No description available.

The term 'club drug' can be loosely defined as any substance used to enhance social settings. Such drugs are commonly found at raves or similar all-night dance parties and include methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), ketamine (KET), and flunitrazepam (FLU). These drugs have potentially dangerous side effects including hallucinations, paranoia, amnesia and hyperthermia. In addition, GHB, KET and FLU are considered predatory drugs due to their roles in drug-facilitated sexual assault. Forensic and regulatory agencies routinely have the need for determination and accurate quantification of these drugs in biological fluids, especially in cases of mortality or criminal investigations. This review presents the chromatographic and spectroscopic methods published for such analyses over the last decade, including sample preparation techniques and validation data.

El presente trabajo de investigación consta de un análisis sobre los artículos de la sección “Tendencias” de la plataforma web del diario La República, difundidos durante todo el mes de mayo del 2019. En las siguientes hojas, se mostrará cuál es el objetivo que cumple la creación y difusión de noticias de la sección del diario anteriormente mencionado, así como también se identificará el rol que cumplen, se observará la estructuración de los artículos, se revelará las fuentes utilizadas y se responderá a la incógnita si la cobertura de estos ejemplos resultan periodísticos. Este trabajo parte con la hipótesis de que la creación y posterior difusión masiva de los artículos publicados en la sección Tendencias de la plataforma web del diario La República responde a una necesidad de cubrir una meta comercial. Dicha arista es priorizada ante la calidad periodística de su contenido, situación que, a su vez, deja en evidencia las falencias de la profesión en su camino a la digitalización. Esta premisa pasará a ser justificada mediante un análisis, donde se abarca una muestra de estudios de cinco casos, en los que se ponen bajo la lupa conceptos como: el titular, la bajada, la fotografía, la estructura de la nota y más. Asimismo, para llevar a cabo este proyecto de investigación también se abordó el contexto de digitalización por el que está pasando el periodismo, al igual que la conceptualización de la profesión en la sociedad, como términos principales. / The next research work is an analysis about the “Tends” section on La República’s web platform, posted throughout the past month of May. In the following pages, the objective that creation and dissemination of news from the aforementioned newspaper section will be shown, as well as the role they play, the structure of the articles will be observed, the used sources will be exposed and the question of if these articles are journalistic or not will be responded. The work starts with the hypothesis of the creation and subsequent massive dissemination of these articles posted on the Tends section on La República’s web platform responses to a need of cover a commercial goal. This margin is prioritized above the journalistic quality of it content, situation that reveals the flaws of the profession in its way to the digitalization. This premise will be justified by an analysis, which you will see a study of five cases, in which concepts are watched from a magnifying glasses as: the title, the development, the photography, the structure of the note and more. Likewise, we also develop the context of digitalization which journalism is actually going through to work out this investigation project, as well as the conceptualization of the profession in the society, as main terms. / Tesis

A database of United States bridge failures was used to ascertain the failure rate of bridge collapses for a sample population with associated rates by causes. By using the National Bridge Inventory bridge counts, the bridge population, from which the collapsed bridge came from, was determined. The average number of bridge collapses based on the sample population was approximately 1/4,700 annually. The geometric distribution was determined to be a valid model for the number of bridge failures per annum through multiple methods. Based on the data extrapolation and 95% confidence interval, the estimated average annual bridge collapse rate in the United States is between 87 and 222 with an expected value of 128. The database showed hazards that have caused bridges to collapse historically, throughout the United States. Conditional probabilities of collapse rate with consideration for the features under the structures were constructed. The most likely cause of collapse was determined to be hydraulic in nature when adjusting for the features under the structure. The collapse rate of hydraulic causes was unknown from past investigations; however, the value was determined to be an annual rate of 1.52E-4. Collapse rates were also quantifiably established for other causes. The consequences coupled with the rate of failure by cause were quantitatively evaluated. A benchmark, set by the United States Army Corps of Engineers interim guideline for dam safety, was used to show that bridge collapses within the United States are within a tolerable range comparing collapses to life loss. To enhance risk-based and data-driven approaches to bridge management systems in compliance with Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, efficacious bridge collapse data collection is examined for this investigation. Trends obtained from statistical analysis of existing data show 53% of collapsed bridges were structurally deficient prior to collapse, and a failure rate of structurally deficient bridges to be 1/1,100 annually. Age and structural deficiency are related, structural deficiency and collapse are related, and age at collapse is contingent on collapse cause. It was determined that deterioration-caused and overload-caused bridge collapses are age related, but hydraulic-caused and collision-caused bridge collapses are not. Based on the desired results, trends seen in existing collapse data, improved collection efforts and data fields of interest are assessed with recommendations for analytical methods and consequence assessment while maintaining concise data. A national repository of bridge collapses at the federal level is paramount for effective bridge collapse risk analysis. Currently, bridge failure data is incomplete and insufficient to enable in-depth lifetime data analysis for improved bridge preservation. However, the frequency of collapses is often enough for large amounts of data to be collected in relatively few years.

Trends in Utah's agriculture and some factors influencing farmer's decisions concerning eight crops produced on irrigated lands in Utah were studied. Trend lines were calculated and compared with statistics of acreages and yields. Simple and multiple regression tests were made. An increasing number of Utah farmers have taken off-farm employment and operate their farms on a part-time basis. Forage and grain crops both adapt readily to part0time farm operations and these crops do not entail the degree of risk involved in the production of most cash crops. Variety improvements have caused some shifting to wheat production. Product prices, costs, weather, government programs, and labor problems were also found to be important factors influencing farmers decisions.

During the mid 70's and early 80's, several precast deck panel bridges were constructed in Florida. These utilize prestressed precast panels as stay-in-place forms and are designed to act compositely with a cast-in-place deck which is poured subsequently. Such bridges offer advantages of quicker construction and lower costs. However, several such bridges built in Florida developed extensive cracking and spalling. Following localized failures, the Florida Department of Transportation have decided to replace all 127 precast panel deck bridges in Districts 1 and 7. Since deck replacement is contingent on funding, it is necessary to develop a rational procedure to decide the order in which they are replaced. This work describes the calibration of a software program developed to assist in the replacement prioritization of panel bridges. Prioritization is based on information available with FDOT in the form of biannual inspection reports over the past 20+ years. A new computer language called BRAILE ( BRidge Annual Inspection LanguagE) was developed to input the data from the inspection reports. A compute program PANEL was used to process the BRAILE data to identify trends that could be used to assign weights to observed deficiencies. The prioritization developed based on the method presented here was found to correctly identify high risk bridges and was reliable than one based solely on National Bridge Inventory (NBI) condition rating.

The catalyst for this research has been the growing national interest in inner city living. Specifically this has come from local and state government, the housing and land development industry, and the general public over the last two decades. During this time there has generally been an increase in dwellings and residents within most Australian inner city areas. The last two decades has witnessed a continual barrage by public and private organisations as to the benefits of inner city living. However there has been negligible research from the inner city residents perspective. Most research to date has centered on inner city lifestyle benefits, what dwellings private developers are providing,and what local and state governments are doing to promote inner city living. This research has focused on Northbridge as a case study as an indicator of inner city Australian areas. The research identifies historical influences and changes in landuses in Northbridge since 1829 through to the 1990s with particular reference to the move from residential to commercial land uses, and the resurgence in residential land uses. This has included an analysis of the role and impact of local and state government, and commercial forces. A synoptic view reveals that landuse changes have been driven by the needs of commercial forces, with local and state government serving commercial before resident needs. A demographic profile of who the inner city residents are has been established. It has been revealed that the diversity of the inner areas is reflected in the demographics of the people that live there. / Similarly the inner city household types and structures are varied, although most households are smaller than those of the middle or outer suburbs. Further research was undertaken to determine the relationship of the available dwellings in inner areas relative to what residents want in terms of dwelling design, size, location, open space, cost and affordability. The type of dwelling being built was found to be similar to what inner city residents want, although their cost creates inequitable access. The problems with inner city living and what support services are required for inner city residents was analysed. This was correlated with an analysis of transport needs, and the relationship between inner city residents, and the location of employment, retail and entertainment facilities. Most support services required by inner city residents were found to be available, although a need exists to improve specific services. Inner residents do rely on private vehicles, although to a lesser degree than middle or outer suburban dwellers and with less time spent travelling to access employment, retail and entertainment facilities. This research has essentially focused on the inner city residents needs, and the degree to which these needs have been fulfilled. / The general consensus amongst local and state government, and private bodies involved in the supply of inner city dwellings is that building more dwellings will inject life into the inner areas. Unfortunately this is a simplistic view that is unlikely to create the bustling, lively streets envisaged. To revitalise the inner areas requires a closer examination of who the residents are that are moving into the inner areas' so as to enhance and not detract from the existing diversity. The concluding chapter of this thesis outlines recommendations that have been designed to promote equitable access to inner city dwellings and revitalisation of inner areas to ensure than not only is the inner city population increased, but that life is injected back into the inner city by the residents, and that there is more of a focus on resident, rather than commercial needs.

This research provides an analysis of the disparate notions and ideas, to form an overview of the possible trends in residential property for the Victorian coastal areas of the Surf Coast and the Bellarine Peninsula. It examines the interaction of the consumers, space producers and infrastructure providers as they are influenced by the three key determinants of the market, the demographic factors, economic conditions and statutory factors. While examining the patterns of urban development on coastal Victoria over the next 20 years, the research also investigates the validity of myths that have emerged concerning the Sea Change experience, the investment market in coastal areas and the adequacy of the relevant infrastructure. The qualitative data used in this research comes from both primary and secondary sources. The primary qualitative and quantitative data was developed on the basis of the responses to a mail out questionnaire to residents from seven towns on the Bellarine Peninsula and the Surf Coast and from a number of interviews with local property experts from these areas. The secondary qualitative and quantitative data came from the results of various government surveys, demographers, the press and the census. The main thrust of this research is to answer the question

Genetic gain studies in the past have been used to evaluate the historical improvement of different traits and give insight into what magnitudes of gain might be possible in the future. Additionally, they have been carried out to defend the role of genetics during periods of stagnant or decreasing yield trends. This study was conducted over a 2-year period (2003 and 2004) and included nine current or obsolete cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars grown in 5 plant densities designed to evaluate varying levels of interplant competition. Plant densities were single plant culture with plants spaced 3m x 3m, 2m x 2m, 1m x 1m, 1m x 0.3m, and two commercial populations with plants spaced 1m x 0.1m. Results were analyzed for each trait to determine whether genetic gains are interrelated with tolerance to interplant competition or strictly under genetic control. The rates of genetic gain for lint yield were highest in the 1m x 0.1m, 1m x 0.3m, and 1m x 1m treatment with slopes of 8.7, 8.2, and 7.1 kg ha-1 yr-1 respectively. The slopes were each significantly smaller in the 2m x 2m and 3m x 3m spaced populations with gains of 3.6 and 1.5 kg ha-1 yr-1 respectively, implying that for lint yield, genetic gains have been made for tolerance to interplant competition. Similarly, modern maize hybrids only out perform obsolete hybrids at higher plant densities. Genetic gain for lint yield, fiber length, fiber strength, and fiber micronaire made in the context of tolerance to interplant competition is due in large part to the excellent performance of Deltapine 491 (2002) at higher plant populations.

The South Nation watershed is located in Eastern Ontario, Canada and managed under the authority of the South Nation Conservation (SNC). The watershed covers an area of 400,000 hectares with four dominant categories of land-use classes (60% agriculture, 34% forest, 5% mixed urban, and 1% other). Water quality is a great concern for the SNC as many anthropogenic activities generate harmful pollutants (such as heavy metals, nitrogen, phosphorus, and pesticides) that are discharged to the river through surface and groundwater flow. The discharge patterns of these pollutants are mainly driven by land-use distribution within the watershed which has been constantly evolving with urbanization and intensification of agriculture. Major changes in land-uses can potentially offset current SNC efforts to mitigate water pollution. The objective of the current study is to predict land-use series of maps for the South Nation watershed starting from 1991 to 2020. The prediction is carried out using the land-use allocation algorithm of the Dyna-CLUE (Dynamic Conversion of Land-Use and its Effects) model which is implemented for local regions. Dyna-CLUE is a spatially explicit hybrid land-use allocation model that combines estimation and simulation models, and its allocation procedures predict future trends of land-use surface (estimated from historical trends). The binary logistic regression is used to link preferences of land-use classes and potential demographic and geographic driving factors. Expert judgment was used to select a set of spatial driving factors believed to be responsible for changes in land-use distribution in the South Nation watershed. Three different scenarios for future development of the region were considered, with different initial conditions and conversion restrictions. The simulation results were evaluated using visual and statistical validation techniques to assess the performance of the model in generating maps similar to reality. The Dyna-CLUE model was successfully applied to the South Nation watershed. It was observed that the simulated maps generated from the model were in good agreement with the reality maps. This was confirmed through statistical validation via map pair analysis (error matrix) used to assess the overall accuracy of the model predictions. Results showed that the model was sensitive to land-use restrictions. Such type of modeling can be valuable for assessing the land-use changes at the local level, and setting up a decision support system for the South Nation Conservation towards sustainable land-use management in the watershed. Better results are expected to be achieved with more reliable datasets (i.e., accurate classification of land-use types in reality maps). Data availability and quality were the main obstacles that faced this research work. Our work has the merit to be the first application of CLUE model in Eastern Ontario.