Performance of modern pipelined processor depends on steady flow of useful instructions for processing. Branch instruction disrupts sequential flow of instructions by presenting multiple paths through which a program can proceed. By predicting branch outcome early, branch predictors allow processor to continue fetching instructions from the predicted path. History-based dynamic branch predictors have shown to reach high prediction accuracy, yet certain branch types continue to mispredict. These are multitarget indirect branches and data-dependent direct and indirect branches. These are hard-to-predict branches since their outcome do not always exhibit repeatable patterns. This thesis describes branch prediction schemes for improving prediction accuracy of hard-to-predict branches using data value correlation. In these schemes, instead of relying on branch history information, compiler identifies program instructions whose output value strongly correlates with branch outcome. These correlated instructions are tracked at run-time, and their output is used for making branch predictions. Specifically, this thesis proposes following two branch prediction schemes: (i) Value-based BTB indexing (VBBI) is a low cost, compiler-guided scheme for predicting multi-target indirect branches. For every indirect branch, compiler identifies an instruction whose output strongly correlates with targets taken by the indirect branch. At run-time, multiple branch targets are stored and subsequently accessed from BTB using index formed by hashing indirect branch PC with output of the correlated instruction. (ii) Store-Load-Branch (SLB) predictor is a compiler-assisted branch prediction scheme for data-dependent branches. Typically, data-dependent branches are associated with program data structures such as arrays, linked list etc., and follow store-load-branch execution sequence. A set of memory locations is written at an earlier point in a program. Later, these locations are read, and used for evaluating branch condition. Branch outcome depends on values stored in data structure, which, normally do not have repeatable patterns. In SLB scheme, compiler identifies all program points where data structure associated with a data-dependent branch is modified. These marked store instructions are tracked at run-time, and stored values are used for computing branch flags ahead of time. Later, when branch instruction is fetched, pre-computed flags are read, and used for making predictions. This thesis introduces new branch prediction schemes, describes hardware structures and compiler analysis for implementing these schemes, evaluates their performance impact, and estimates their area, power and timing overhead. / text

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The Second Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-2) data set along with ECMWF reanalysis meteorological fields provided the basis for the single column model (SCM) simulations, performed as part of the PACE (Parameterization of the Aerosol Indirect Climatic Effect) project. Six different SCMs were used to simulate ACE-2 case studies of clean and polluted cloudy boundary layers, with the objective being to identify limitations of the aerosol/cloud/radiation interaction schemes within the range of uncertainty in in situ, reanalysis and satellite retrieved data. The exercise proceeds in three steps. First, SCMs are configured with the same fine vertical resolution as the ACE-2 in situ data base to evaluate the numerical schemes for prediction of aerosol activation, radiative transfer and precipitation formation. Second, the same test is performed at the coarser vertical resolution of GCMs to evaluate its impact on the performance of the parameterizations. Finally, SCMs are run for a 24–48 hr period to examine predictions of boundary layer clouds when initialized with large-scale meteorological fields. Several schemes were tested for the prediction of cloud droplet number concentration (N). Physically based activation schemes using vertical velocity show noticeable discrepancies compared to empirical schemes due to biases in the diagnosed cloud base vertical velocity. Prognostic schemes exhibit a larger variability than the diagnostic ones, due to a coupling between aerosol activation and drizzle scavenging in the calculation of N. When SCMs are initialized at a fine vertical resolution with locally observed vertical profiles of liquid water, predicted optical properties are comparable to observations. Predictions however degrade at coarser vertical resolution and are more sensitive to the mean liquid water path than to its spatial heterogeneity. Predicted precipitation fluxes are severely underestimated and improve when accounting for sub-grid liquid water variability. Results from the 24–48 hr runs suggest that most models have problems in simulating boundary layer cloud morphology, since the large-scale initialization fields do not accurately reproduce observed meteorological conditions. As a result, models significantly overestimate optical properties. Improved cloud morphologies were obtained for models with subgrid inversions and subgrid cloud thickness schemes. This may be a result of representing subgrid scale effects though we do not rule out the possibility that better large-forcing data may also improve cloud morphology predictions.

The purpose of this work is to investigate how processes of inference are reflected in the grammar of the natural language. I consider a range of phenomena which call for a representational theory of mind and thought. These constructions display a certain regularity in their truth conditions, but the regularity does not extend to closure under arbitrary logical entailment. I develop a logic that allows me to speak formally about classes of inferences. This logic is then applied to analysis of indirect speech, belief reports, evidentials (with special attention to Bulgarian) and clarity assertions. / text

DNA nucleases are essential for various biological functions such as replication, recombination, and repair. Restriction endonucleases (REs) are excellent model system for the investigation of DNA recognition and specificity. SgrAI is a type IIF RE that cuts an 8 base pair primary sequence. In addition to its primary cleavage activity it also cleaves secondary sequences, but only appreciably in the presence of the primary sequence. The longer flanking DNA exhibits much greater activated DNA cleavage by SgrAI (>1000 fold activation by secondary site). Interestingly, the asymmetric cleavage seen in one of the two types of secondary site DNA is lost upon activation of SgrAI, suggesting a loss of communication between DNA recognition and activity upon specificity expansion. The structure of SgrAI bound to 22-1HT supports the cryoelectron microscopy structure of activated, oligomeric SgrAI highlighting the significance of the contacts made by the flanking DNA and the role played by N-terminal domain contacts in forming the run-on oligomer. The biological study suggests that the run-on oligomer formation sequesters the host DNA from being cleaved by the activated SgrAI complex. The DNA sequence binding, cleavage preference, and the structure of K96A SgrAI were determined. Unexpectedly, this mutation did not alter the structure of the enzyme, nor did it result in an enzyme lacking sequence preference at the 7ᵗʰ position. Instead, the largest effect of the mutation appears to be in making the enzyme more specific such that it fails to cleave either type of secondary site. It may be that the K96 side chain is required to distort the non YG sequences (specifically GG and TC) of secondary site DNA for proper positioning in the enzyme active site upon activation and specificity expansion. The crystal structure of Mk0566, XPG homologue from M. kandleri, was solved to 2.48 Å resolution and was found to be very similar to that of human FEN-1 and to other archaeal FEN-1/XPG homologues. These results suggest that the main biological role of Mk0566 is in DNA replication; however, they do not preclude involvement in a modified form of nucleotide excision repair.

Šiame darbe buvo analizuojami tam tikri netiesioginių mokesčių Europos Sąjungoje reglamentavimo aspektai – tiek pirmoje, tiek antroje darbo dalyje analizė buvo pradedama apžvelgiant kaip kito požiūris į tam tikrus reglamentavimo aspektus, kokių priemonių buvo imtasi, kitais žodžiais tariant, atrodė svarbu apžvelgti, kaip istoriškai kito požiūris į netiesioginių mokesčių reglamentavimą, be abejo, nepaliekant nuošalyje vieno iš svarbesnių aspektų – atsižvelgiant į bendruosius Bendrijos tikslus, peržvelgti, kaip buvo įgyvendintas (ar turėjo būti) siekis harmonizuoti reglamentavimą netiesioginių mokesčių srityje. Po harmonizavimo politikos istorinės apžvalgos buvo pereita prie konkrečių, šiuo metu galiojančių tiek pridėtinės vertės mokesčio, tiek akcizo reglamentavimo aspektų. Kaip vienu iš vertingų šaltinių buvo pasirinkta Europos Teisingumo Teismo praktika, kuri buvo vertinga iš esmės dėl dviejų pagrindinių priežasčių – remiantis Teismo praktika buvo galima išskirti tas sritis, kurių dabartinis reguliavimas vis dar išlieka problematiškas, be to, tose srityse, kur vis dar susiduriama su reglamentavimo neaiškumu ar dviprasmiškumu, pavyzdžiui, aiškinant tam tikras sąvokas, Teismo praktika buvo vertingas šaltinis stengiantis iššiaiškinti kokrečių normų prasmę. Galiausiai darbo išvadose buvo glaustai pateikti pagrindiniai probleminiai aspektai, kurie išryškėjo analizuojant tiek teisės aktus, tiek teismų praktiką bei užsienio teisės mokslininkų darbus – tokie kaip vis dar taikomi... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The subject of this master thesis was the analysis of certain aspects, regarding indirect taxes regulation in the European Union. The first and the second part of this paper cover the changes in the attitude to certain regulations aspects, what sort of measures have been taken, in other words, it seemed important to show the historical development of this attitude, nevertheless pay consideration to the harmonization policy in the field of indirect taxation, the way it had been introduced and implemented (or should be) with regard to the Community’s aims. After the introduction, regarding harmonization policy, both parts deal with certain aspects of the regulation of value added tax and excises. The practice of European Court of Justice has been beneficial mainly because firstly, it helped to disclose those areas, in which the regulation remains problematic and secondly, where regulation is still deemed as inexplicit – it has stood as a valuable source trying to clarify the real meaning of certain regulation aspects. Finally, conclusions have been made with regard to the analysis of laws and practice of the European Court of Justice. These are zero rates, applicable to the Value Added Tax, which do not comply with the common system of the value added tax, excise rates, which Member States are free to determine according to the fixed minimum rates and in this way to distort the common market.

本研究主要在探討台灣的大學裡的英語學習者（EFL）在學習英文到全民英檢中級以上的程度後，面對間接抱怨的語言行為所採取的回應對策狀況。對照同樣情況下，以英文為母語的美國大學生，和以中文為母語的台灣大學生所採取行的行為回應，了解文化是否會在語言學習過程中影響語言學習者的語言行為表現。研究者探索其語言表現，希望提供語言教育者課程設計的參考。研究的三組受試人分別為40位英語學習程度佳的台灣大學生，40位以英語為母語的美國大學生，以及40位以中文為母語且以中文為學習主要媒介的台灣的大學生。蒐集語言資料的工具是語言言談情境問卷（Discourse Completion Task，簡稱DTC），依照收集到的語言資料進行分析。研究結果顯示：三組回應間接報怨的表現習慣有很大的差異，台灣組的表現較為樂觀積極，會營造輕鬆的氣氛並提醒繼續下一個生活步驟。美國組則謹慎小心，較會以了解與提供事實解釋來安慰抱怨者。英語學習者回應的行為看起來好像與美國人的採用的行為對策類似，但受到本身文化的影響，學習者在文字表達，有語用轉移的現象，即語言學習者與台灣組在面對間接抱怨時所採用的用字及表達較為接近。 / This study investigated Taiwanese university students’ response strategies to indirect complaints in English. The response differences were compared among those of native American English speakers and those of Mandarin Chinese speakers. Participants in the study were 40 learners of English living in Taiwan, 40 native speakers of American English living in the United States and 40 native speakers of Mandarin Chinese living in Taiwan. The learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) were with an intermediate to high intermediate English proficiency level. By comparing and contrasting the data collected from native speakers of American English living in the United States and native speakers of Mandarin Chinese living in Taiwan, we found the results informative for English course designers in Taiwan. The instrument used in the study was Discourse Completion Task (DCT). Based on the collected data, the researcher performed both qualitative and quantitative analysis and concluded that the three groups responded significantly differently toward indirect complaints. Taiwanese tended to give advice to their interlocutors and they liked to maintain convivial atmosphere in communication. Americans commiserated their interlocutors mainly based on facts and sympathy. EFL learners were found to bear great similarity with Americans in strategy taking when responding to indirect complaints, but if comparisons were made on the actual wordings used by the three groups, the wordings that the EFL learners used resembled Taiwanese group’s preferences which might be a result of cultural influence.

The past decade has seen a rise in research on social, relational and indirect aggression, with a burgeoning focus only recently on the psychosocial consequences of being a target of such behaviours. It is widely understood that experiencing social aggression can trigger internal distress for children and adolescents, but far less is known about the nature and extent of longer-term psychosocial consequences. In this qualitative study, I aim to begin filling this gap by exploring how young women make meaning from experiences of social aggression in adolescence, with a particular focus on how they understand the impact of these experiences on their sense of self and relation to others in adulthood. Seven women between the ages of 25 and 32 were interviewed using a modified collaborative narrative method (Arvay, 2003). Interviews were transcribed and interpreted in narrative form to preserve the unique voice and experience of each participant. Five themes emerged through a process of categorical-content analysis as described by Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach & Zilber (1998). Themes address participants' meaning-making following experiences of social aggression in terms of the (1) struggle to understand, (2) loss of trust in relationship, (3) changes in sense of self, (4) psychosocial responses, and (5) process of reframing of the experience in adulthood. The themes are discussed within the context of relevant qualitative and quantitative literature on the psychosocial consequence of social, relational and indirect aggression in adolescence and adulthood. Implications for school and community counselling practice and suggestions for future research are examined.

Akcizas – vienkartinis netiesioginis mokestis, kuriuo apmokestinamos tam tikros teisės aktų nustatytos prekės, išleistos vartojimui. Siekiant sukurti efektyvią Bendrijos vidaus rinką, kur vyktų laisvas prekių judėjimas, o rinkos santykių neiškreiptų skirtingas valstybių narių taikomas apmokestinimas, būtina akcizų mokestį Bendrijoje harmonizuoti. Šis procesas vyko dviem kryptimis: reglamentuojant bendrą mokesčio taikymo tvarką bei atskirų mokesčio objektų struktūrą ir tarifus. Dideli tam tikrų objektų tarifų skirtumai valstybėse narėse yra viena iš priežasčių, skatinančių nelegalią prekybą. Kita vertus, net ir suderinus tarifus valstybėse narėse, kontrabanda neišnyksta, jei ekonominės sąlygos jose išlieka nevienodos. Vykdydama stojimo į Europos Sąjungą įsipareigojimus, Lietuva suderino nacionalinius teisės aktus su Bendrijos reikalavimais, o tam tikrus jos nustatytus tarifus turi pasiekti per pereinamąjį laikotarpį konkretaus akcizų objekto atžvilgiu. Akcizų reglamentavimas Europos Sąjungoje netiesiogiai padeda įgyvendinti ir kitus tikslus: skatinant alternatyvius produktus, riboti neatsinaujinančių gamtos išteklių vartojimą ir saugoti aplinką nuo taršą ir klimato kaitą sukeliančių medžiagų. / Excise duty is a one-off indirect tax levied on specific goods produced for consumption. Having as an aim the creation of effective single market of the European Community with free movement of goods and market relations undistorted by the differences in the taxation systems between the member states, it is necessary to harmonize the excise duty in the Community. This has been achieved by regulating general rules of the use of the excise tax and by setting structure and rates of certain taxable objects. One of the reasons that promote the illegal market is related to great differences in the rates of certain taxable objects in member states. On the other hand, smuggling does not come to an end having approximated tax rates if economic conditions still are not of equal base. Due to its legal commitments under the burden of the European Union, Lithuania has implemented Community law given the permission to reach the minimum excise rates in transition periods. The regulation of the excise duty in the European Union is the indirect way to implement other objectives too: by setting the system of exemptions from excise taxation regarding bio-alternatives, the European Union seeks to limit the use of natural resources and to preserve the environment from substances causing climate change and pollution.

Magistro baigiamajame darbe nagrinėjami netiesioginiai mokesčiai. Teoriniu aspektu išanalizuota Lietuvos Respublikos mokesčių sistema, pridėtinės vertės, akcizo bei muito mokesčių esmė, tarifai, teisinis reglamentavimas, taip pat analizuotas ryšys tarp netiesioginio mokesčio pajamų ir elastingumo. Netiesioginiai mokesčiai yra pakankamai svarbūs, kadangi jie sudaro daugiau nei pusę visų valstybės biudžeto pajamų. Netiesioginių mokesčių surenkamas pajamas įtakoja įstatyminės bazės pasikeitimas, namų ūkių vartojimo išlaidų dydis, mokesčio objektų skaičiaus pasikeitimas, PVM mokėtojų skaičius, tarifų pasikeitimas, infliacija (defliacija) taip pat priklauso nuo analizuojamos prekės paklausos elastingumo. Netiesioginius mokesčius galima susieti su šešėline ekonomika. Pridėtinės vertės mokesčio grobstymo mastai yra pakankamai dideli ir kasmet jie didėja. Darbo empirinė dalis parodė, kad didinti akcizo tarifą tabako gaminiams neverta, nes įvertinus tabako gaminių paklausos elastingumą bei kontrabandos mastus, prieita išvados, kad akcizo mokesčio pajamų bus surinkta mažiau nei prieš tarifo didinimą. / There is the analysis of indirect taxes of master’s paper. There is the analysis of Lithuanian tax system, value added tax (VAT), excise tax and customs tax purport, tariffs, juridical regulation by the theoretic aspect. Also there is the analysis between indirect tax revenues and elasticity theory. The indirect taxes are very important, because it‘s revenue a large proportion of the budget. It’s revenues depend on changes of tax law, terminal household expenses, on changes of objects number, VAT payers number, on changes of tariffs, inflation (deflation), also it depends on elasticity of analysed commodity. The indirect taxes are associate with the black/grey economy. It is embezzled by a large extent. The empirical paper part demonstrate, that to raise the excise tax tariffs it’s not worth the risk, because the revenues will be less to compare the situation before raise the tariffs.