The great asymmetric divide: An empirical investigation of the link between indigenous and non‐indigenous economic systems in Northern Australia

This empirical study explores financial links between indigenous and non‐indigenous economic systems in a remote river catchment in Northern Australia (the Mitchell). It finds evidence of a profound and asymmetric ‘disconnect’ between these economies: an exogenous increase in indigenous incomes raises the incomes of non‐indigenous people, but the reverse is not true. Evidently, those seeking to improve the incomes of indigenous people in Northern Australia cannot simply seek to (i) increase payments to indigenous people, or (ii) expand the non‐indigenous sector hoping that some benefits will ‘trickle down’. Instead, structural change is required.     

MC-CDMA performance evaluation over a multipath fading channelusing the characteristic function method

This letter presents an efficient and accurate performance evaluation method for binary MC-CDMA systems with deterministic signature sequences. This method is based on a formulation of the characteristic function, and does not resort to any assumption on the statistical or spectral behavior of the interference. The accuracy of the Gaussian approximation method is also considered     

Effects of fade distribution on a mobile satellite down-link and up-link performance in a frequency reuse cellular configuration

In a mobile satellite system with a frequency reuse cellular configuration, significant co-channel interference can be experienced due to the antenna side-lobe level. The signal will be subjected not only to its own fading, but also to the effect of the varying degree of fading on the co-channel interferer, and this interference will behave differently in the up and in the down-link. This paper presents a quantitative evaluation of the combined effects of fades and co-channel interference on a mobile satellite link.     

INTERACTIVE SEMANTIC ANALYSIS OF TECHNICAL TEXTS

Sentence syntax is the basis for organizing semantic relations in TANKA, a project that aims to acquire knowledge from technical text. Other hallmarks include an absence of precoded domain-specific knowledge; significant use of public-domain generic linguistic information sources; involvement of the user as a judge and source of expertise; and learning from the meaning representations produced during processing. These elements shape the realization of the TANKA project: implementing a trainable text processing system to propose correct semantic interpretations to the user. A three-level model of sentence semantics, including a comprehensive Case system, provides the framework for TANKA's representations. Text is first processed by the DIPETT parser, which can handle a wide variety of unedited sentences. The semantic analysis module HAIKU then semi-automatically extracts semantic patterns from the parse trees and composes them into domain knowledge representations. HAIKU's dictionaries and main algorithm are described with the aid of examples and traces of user interaction. Encouraging experimental results are described and evaluated.     

Calciphylaxis in a chronic hemodialysis patient with protein S deficiency

Vascular calcifications are common in uremic patients whereas calciphylaxis is rare. We report the case of a 45-year-old woman on chronic hemodialysis since 1977. She had a subtotal parathyroidectomy in 1985, aortic and mitral valve replacement in 1986, and has been treated since then with nicoumalone. In June 1991, she presented with repeated, painful cutaneous necrosis suggesting panniculitis. A skin biopsy showed lobular panniculitis and evidence of calciphylaxis. There was an obvious biological hyperparathyroidism. Protein C functional level was in the normal range whereas protein S functional level was low, i.e. 42%. The patient underwent cervical surgery to remove two parathyroid glands, and daily hemodialysis sessions. Despite this treatment, cutaneous necrosis progressed with superinfection. A few weeks later, the patient died from a septic shock after a myocardic infarction. Necropsy was not performed.     

Thoracic and abdominal SPECT-CT image fusion without external markers in endocrine carcinomas. The Group of Thyroid Tumoral Pathology of Champagne-Ardenne

Superimposition of SPECT and computed tomography (CT) slices from the thoracoabdominal region was achieved without the use of external markers for 14 studies in 13 patients with endocrine carcinoma. Technical feasibility and clinical validation of this retrospective fusion method were assessed. METHODS: Patients had a history of thyroid cancer or of carcinoid tumor. To detect tumor sites, CT scan and dual-isotope tomoscintigraphy were performed, with 99mTc-hydroxymethylene diphosphonate for bone scintigraphy and with 111In-pentetreotide, 131I or 131I-metaiodobenzylguanidine for tumor scintigraphy (TS). A superimposition method previously developed for the pelvic region was adapted to the nonrigid thoraco-abdominal region. CT-bone scintigraphy and CT-TS superimposed images were obtained. Clinical validation of the information obtained from the superimposed images was obtained from surgery or follow-up imaging studies performed after clinical evolution of the disease process. RESULTS: Reliable and reproducible registration was achieved in all patients. CT-TS superimposed images produced accurate localization of abnormal TS foci. Accuracy was limited primarily by variable relative displacements of the thoracoabdominal organs. For 10 sites in 8 patients, localization and/or characterization obtained from CT-TS images was confirmed by a reference technique. Superimposition enabled the localization of tumor sites that otherwise could not have been suspected from CT alone and allowed the characterization of CT suspicious masses and the confirmation of CT positive sites. Nonspecific tumor TS uptake sites were also localized. CONCLUSION: With standard CT and dual-isotope SPECT acquisitions, SPECT-CT fusion is feasible in the thoracoabdominal region without the use of external markers. Fused images were validated in 8 patients for 10 sites. The use of this technique could probably improve the management and care of patients with endocrine carcinoma.     

Ka-band solid-state pulsed Gunn oscillator and power combiner

GaAs Gunn diodes were fabricated for pulse source application at 8 mm wave band and operated with pulsewidths of 0.05 to 2.0 microseconds and duty cycles of 0.001 to 0.01. Peak pulse output power levels of 0.8–1.2W are achieved and the maximum available power is 1.6W with the highest efficiency of 6.5 percent. A simple and compact pulsed power combiner is also given in this paper.     

Transient and dynamic average-value modeling of synchronous machinefed load-commutated converters

A new average-value model of a synchronous machine fed load-commutated converter is set forth in which the stator dynamics are combined with the DC link dynamics. This model is shown to he extremely accurate in predicting system transients and in predicting frequency-domain characteristics such as the impedance looking into the synchronous machine fed load-commutated converter. The model is verified against a detailed computer simulation and against a hardware test system, thus providing a three-way comparison. The proposed model is shown to be much more accurate than models in which the stator dynamics are neglected