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This satirical comedy offers a take on society evocative of an Ayn Rand worldview and the writing style of Tom Robbins. It's a story that has multiple twists and one more. Nicely broken into short chapters. The idea of Roswell and/or Martians as a political distraction is a great premise, and it develops nicely into an array of revelations that I found both surprising and quite funny.

Abstract: This paper is a first step toward closing the analytical gap in the extensive literature on the results of interactions between public and private R & D expenditures, and their joint effects on the economy. Econometric studies in this area report a plethora of sometimes confusing and frequently contradictory estimates of the response of company financed R & D to changes in the level and nature of public R & D expenditure, but the necessary theoretical framework within which the empirical results can be interpreted is seldom provided. A major cause of inconsistencies' in the empirical literature is the failure to recognize key differences among the various policy experiments' being considered depending upon the economy in which they are embedded, and the type of public sector R & D spending that is contemplated. Using a simple, stylized structural model, we identify the main channels of impact of public R & D. We thus can characterize the various effects, distinguishing between short-run and long-run impacts that would show up in simple regression analyses of nominal public and private R & D expenditure variables. Within the context of our simple model it is possible to offer interpretations that shed light on recent cross-section and panel data findings at both high (i.e. national) and low (specific technology area) levels of aggregation.

A collection of five tantalisingly seductive Regency short stories NOT JUST A SEDUCTION by Carole Mortimer -The Earl of Chambourne has never forgotten the only woman he's ever loved. So when he discovers Sylviana is a widow he hungers to possess her once again. AN OFFICER BUT NO GENTLEMAN by Bronwyn Scott - Elowyn Bagshaw is not the simpering lady Captain Grahame Westmore expected to escort to Vienna. He's got a fight on his hands - one they're both going to enjoy ONE NIGHT WITH THE HIGHLANDER by Ann Lethbridge - What is the truth behind Lady Annabelle's shocking reputation? Gordon McLaughlin is intrigued. And he soon finds one night of illicit pleasure may not be enough...RUNNING INTO TEMPTATION by Amanda McCabe - After narrowly avoiding scandal, Miss Melanie Harding is sent to live in the country. No balls. No parties. And certainly no flirting with dark-eyed strangers like Philip Carrington...HOW TO SEDUCE A SHEIKH by Marguerite Kaye - When Prince Zafar buys Colette at a slave market he intends to send her safely home. But she's eager to learn the art of love - and this desert prince would make the perfect teacher.

A collection of five tantalisingly seductive Regency short stories... Not Just a Seduction—Carole Mortimer The Earl of Chambourne has never forgotten the only woman he's ever loved. So when he discovers Sylviana is a widow he hungers to possess her once again. An Officer But No Gentleman—Bronwyn Scott Elowyn Bagshaw is not the simpering lady Captain Grahame Westmore expected to escort to Vienna. He's got a fight on his hands—one they're both going to enjoy! One Night With the Highlander—Ann Lethbridge What is the truth behind Lady Annabelle's shocking reputation? Gordon McLaughlin is intrigued. And he soon finds one night of illicit pleasure may not be enough... Running Into Temptation—Amanda McCabe After narrowly avoiding scandal, Miss Melanie Harding is sent to live in the country. No balls. No parties. And certainly no flirting with dark-eyed strangers like Philip Carrington... How to Seduce a Sheikh—Marguerite Kaye When Prince Zafar buys Colette at a slave market he intends to send her safely home. But she's eager to learn the art of love—and this desert prince would make the perfect teacher

RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are key regulators of gene expression that, by interacting with specific RNAs, can impact their splicing, localization, translation and decay. Staufen proteins are RBPs that are conserved through metazoan evolution, and can simultaneously bind both double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) and diverse proteins. These properties, together with its presence in the nucleus, cytoplasm and at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), has made it a versatile regulatory protein. In this thesis I explore three distinct contexts wherein Staufen1 has been co-opted during mammalian evolution to regulate gene expression. The first example pursues the Maquat-lab finding that mammalian Staufen1 (STAU1) binds dsRNA structures formed between primate-specific Alu short interspersed elements (SINEs) in humans and between rodent-specific B or ID (B/ID) SINEs in mice. When these duplexes are present in mRNA 3'-untranslated regions (3'-UTRs), STAU1 binding promotes Staufen-mediated decay (SMD). We hypothesized that gene regulation resulting from SINE insertion might have been similarly adaptive in separate mammalian lineages, leading to parallel evolution of the Staufen network by independent exaptation of SINEs. To explore this hypothesis, we identified and confirmed orthologous gene pairs with 3'-UTR SINEs that have been independently exapted in mouse and humans for SMD control of myoblast metabolism. Expanding to other species we demonstrated that SINE-directed SMD likely emerged in both primate and rodent lineages>25 million years ago. This work reveals a novel mechanism for the convergent evolution of post-transcriptional gene regulatory networks in mammals by species-specific SINE transposition and SMD. Another consequence of STAU1 binding to duplexes formed between inverted Alu repeats (IRAlus) in mRNA 3'-UTRs is to promote the escape from nuclear retention. While some mRNAs harboring 3'-UTR IRAlus can be retained in the nucleus by interaction with the paraspeckle protein p54nrb, other 3'-UTR IRAlus do not promote nuclear retention but do promote mRNA translation. The diverse consequences of 3'-UTR Alus imply the existence of different, as yet undefined subcategories. To reach a global understanding of the contribution of 3'-UTR Alus to mRNA localization, translation and decay we undertook to characterize the nucleocytoplasmic distribution, translation and abundance of the 3'-UTR Alu element-containing transcriptome using the isoform-specific RNA seq method, READS+. Using this method uncovered 3'-UTR features that correlate with mRNA localization and distinguish a subset of IRAlus-containing mRNAs, for which the mRNA export is regulated by STAU1. We made an additional and unexpected finding that 3'-UTR length is a determinant of mRNA localization, independent of Alu content. STAU1 also binds intramolecular duplexes in ER-localized mRNAs, including the ER stress-responsive transcript XBP1. Under ER stress, this transcript is known to undergo cytoplasmic cleavage and ligation resulting in a translational frameshift and production of a potent transcription factor that activates ER stress-responsive genes. I have show that knockdown of Staufen1 reduced the production of spliced XBP1 in response to ER stress without a concomitant increase in unspliced XBP1, which, together with my finding that STAU1 co-immunoprecipitates with the RNA ligase RTCB, implicates Staufen1 as a regulator of the ligation step, rather than the cleavage step, of XBP1 splicing. Depletion of Staufen1 also reduced the abundance of XBP1 mRNA in unstressed cells, signifying that STAU1 is additionally required for the maintenance of XBP1 mRNA, and as such the sensitivity to ER stress. This poses the possibility that STAU1 promotes the re-ligation by RTCB after cleavage of XBP1 mRNA at a single site. Interestingly, while the endonuclease that catalyzes the cleavage step of XBP1 mRNA splicing is conserved in eukaryotes, RTCB catalyzes the ligation step of XBP1 mRNA splicing only in metazoans, co-occurring with the emergence of Staufen proteins. Taken together, the capacity of STAU1 to bind to different dsRNA sequences and structures has enabled the convergent evolution of SINE-directed Staufen-mediated mRNA decay in human and mouse, promotes the expression of IRAlus-containing mRNAs and the cellular resilience to ER stress.

A collection of five historical romance novellas.

A collection of five tantalisingly seductive Regency short stories NOT JUST A SEDUCTION by Carole Mortimer -The Earl of Chambourne has never forgotten the only woman he's ever loved. So when he discovers Sylviana is a widow he hungers to possess her once again. AN OFFICER BUT NO GENTLEMAN by Bronwyn Scott - Elowyn Bagshaw is not the simpering lady Captain Grahame Westmore expected to escort to Vienna. He's got a fight on his hands - one they're both going to enjoy! ONE NIGHT WITH THE HIGHLANDER by Ann Lethbridge - What is the truth behind Lady Annabelle's shocking reputation? Gordon McLaughlin is intrigued. And he soon finds one night of illicit pleasure may not be enough... RUNNING INTO TEMPTATION by Amanda McCabe - After narrowly avoiding scandal, Miss Melanie Harding is sent to live in the country. No balls. No parties. And certainly no flirting with dark-eyed strangers like Philip Carrington... HOW TO SEDUCE A SHEIKH by Marguerite Kaye - When Prince Zafar buys Colette at a slave market he intends to send her safely home. But she's eager to learn the art of love - and this desert prince would make the perfect teacher.

In this insightful look at Australia in the 21st century, experienced senior public servant Dr Bronwyn Kelly sets out a new way for Australians to work together to create the future they want. By 2050 establishes a National Community Futures Planning framework that all Australians can use to design their preferred future, work out the best ways to get there, partner with business and institutions to optimise strategies, and hold elected governments to account for efficient delivery through democracy. She examines our current capacity, strengths and weaknesses as a modern economy and a democratic nation and looks at our preparedness for the future. She then provides a practical way for Australians to organise themselves and take far more effective control of their quality of life, their democracy and their cohesion as a community valuing fairness, diversity and freedom. Using this process together, Australians can leave their children and grandchildren a better world. Adult Australians in the 2020s are likely to be the first generation in a century who will fail to leave a better future and quality of life to their children and grandchildren. But it is still possible to rescue a better, even a wonderful future, if we work together to describe it fully, plan our way towards it inclusively and methodically, and then persistently hold our governments to account for their part in delivering it.By 2050 examines Australia's current capacity, strengths and weaknesses as a modern society, economy, environmental custodian and democracy, and looks at our preparedness for the coming challenges. The conclusion is that Australian governments and political leaders are currently incapacitated to the point where they are unable to offer a compelling vision for our future, let alone a path towards it. That path can only be found by Australians working together, using their democracy more effectively than they are now.By 2050 offers a practical way of organising ourselves as a nation to imagine our preferred future and develop an Integrated Planning & Reporting process to make it a reality. This is an efficient process in which any and all Australians can become engaged and which can significantly increase our chances of arriving at a better future by 2050 or sooner, via the most acceptable routes. It allows us to shift to a space where we the people - in all our diversity - can act together and partner with ethical governments, businesses and institutions. This is a space of proactive participatory democracy where power and national wealth are more fairly shared.By 2050 demonstrates how this shift in the balance of power between us and our governments can arise from a system which gives precedence to the coherent plans of a diverse community over the divergent, short-sighted platforms of political parties. Implemented well, this national community futures planning and reporting process can make transcendence of politics and ideology a common feature of our democracy instead of a rarity.

Detained – Ainslie Paton From one of Australia's hottest new authors comes a story about an international scandal, a billionaire, and a fearless reporter who might just save the day... Confined in a cold, dull room in the depths of a Shanghai airport, a journalist chasing a career break and a businessman with a shadowy past play a game of truth or dare – deliberately not exchanging names. They tell each other their most painful secrets and burning desires. One dare leads to a kiss and a wild night of illicit passion, setting off a dangerous sequence of events, bringing exposure and disgrace. Only the brutal truth can save them. But it will also rip them apart. And it will take more than daring before they can build a new truth together. A Dangerous Arrangement – Lee Christine Kicking off a brand new romantic suspense series from Lee Christine is A Dangerous Arrangement: a violinist with a secret, a billionaire with a problem and a race against time set on the beautiful Amalfi Coast. When violinist Marina Wentworth arrives in Venice en route to a cruise ship for a short working holiday, the last thing she expects is to be confronted by a handsome stranger demanding answers. After going to great lengths to keep her real reasons for the trip a secret, Marina refuses to let her immediate attraction to Dean Logan derail her plans. Desperate to recover his latest superyacht designs, Dean doesn't want to believe the lovely violinist is involved in the devastating cyber–attack that threatens to destroy his yacht–building empire. However his growing feelings for Marina fail to extinguish the nagging suspicion that she is hiding something. Set against the backdrop of Italy's Amalfi Coast, Dean and Marina must navigate the dangerous waters of secrecy, attraction and the fusion of two very different worlds. Will their lives remain discordant, or will they take the chance at true harmony? Mixing Business With Pleasure – Bronwyn Stuart What's a girl to do when she finds herself naked except for her stilettos and backed up against a cold mirror, stuck between a rock and a very hard man? Alison Marcum loves her baby brother and would do anything for him–until the day his loan sharks arrive on her doorstep and demand she pay them ten thousand dollars or else. With no way to repay the money, and not wanting to find out what they're capable of, Alison transforms herself from boring social worker to smoking hot model–but getting work isn't going to be the hard part for a woman who'd promised herself she'd never step in front of a camera again. Sam Mason is overseeing a jewellery advertising campaign, and after spending ten minutes in the boardroom with a nearly naked Alison, he decides he might actually enjoy the job. Strictly business, though. Sam's been burned by a model before and no matter how attracted he is, there's no way he's getting involved. As the lies begin to unravel and the loan sharks get impatient, will they both risk it all to be together or lose it all in a bid not to repeat the past?