Spread of COVID-19 infection on a Cruise Ship in Yokohama, Japan Japan's response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection has been problematic since the outbreak was first reported in China A typical example was the case of a cruise ship "Diamond Princess," anchored in Yokohama, Japan As of March, 6, the WHO officially reported that there were 17,481 laboratory-confirmed cases of Covid-19 infection globally outside China In Japan, there were 1,045 such cases, but there were 696 laboratory-confirmed cases on the Diamond Princess 1 The Japanese government have quarantined the ship's 3,711 passengers and crew members since February 5, 2020 until February 19, under the Japan's Quarantine Act enacted in 1951, effectively prohibiting the disembarkation of anyone onto Japanese soil We have three primary concerns about this quarantine action First, the quarantine in the cruise ship may not be effective enough to prevent the contagion of the virus in Japan Although the disease has a relatively low case fatality rate (currently 0 3% in China), each COVID-19 infected individual is reported to infect 2 2 people, similarly to the influenza virus, a basic reproductive number of which is 1 4-4 0 2 Given the fact that Japan has received hundreds of thousands of Chinese tourists since the start of the outbreak in earlyDecember, several of whom may have been from the Wuhan region, it is obvious that COVID-19 is already in Japan, as evidenced by the 13 locally-transmitted individuals, including a taxi driver and bus driver who had transported Chinese tourists at the time when the quarantine was initiated Second, quarantine in the cruise ship could accelerate a contagion of the virus in the ship since it has been reported that cruise ships can become incubators of the viruses because a large number of people are packed in the semi-enclosed space, with limited sanitation as we as restricted water and food supply 3 Indeed, the infection on the cruise ship appears not to have been well-controlled, and the number of infected people has been steadily rising, with 137 new confirmed cases on February 16, according to WHO's daily update Third, care for the passengers and crew members has been poor The majority of the passenger of the ship are the elderly, with more than 200 people over the age of 80 As Japan has learned from past emergencies, the elderly, especially those with existing with comorbidities, are at grave risk not just from the emerging Covid-19 infection, but from the physical and psychological stress that may make their existing ailments worse, actually jeopardizing their health and well being With increased international criticism of the poor management of the those on board, the Japanese government allowed some elderly passengers to leave the ship on February 14, rather than wait until the quarantine ends on February 19 As of February 23, 36 severe cases of the COVID-19 have been reported among the passengers, requiring treatment in land-based intensive care units After this quarantine on the cruise ship, hundreds of others on board had been repatriated to their home countries, where they will start another 14 days of quarantine There is growing global concern about how illegal immigrants and individuals such as the potentially infected on the "Diamond Princess," are being treated We believe that the response of the authorities to the cruise ship dilemma has not been patient-oriented with respect to those on board While it is important to respect the concept of quarantining people who could pose a significant danger to the nation's entire population, which is the government's overriding responsibility, alternative solutions may be possible The reported development of a 15-minute https://mc manuscriptcentral com/qjm Downloaded from https://academic oup com/qjmed/advance-article-abstract/doi/10 1093/qjmed/hcaa092/5805396 by Kobbe University Library user on 16 March 2020 blood-based Covid-1- test kit by Chinese scientists may help in future, if it is accurate and does not produce repeated false-negatives as the existing test does Similarly, creation of a purposebuilt mass quarantine facility somewhere in Japan would be useful We hope learned from this experience in Japan would be help improve the situation on a cruise ship "Grand Princess" off the coast of California, where 21 Covid-19 cases were confirmed on March 5


We evaluated the effect of magnetic stimulation on neuropathic pain using a unique magnetic stimulation apparatus. This system produced an alternating magnetic field of an appropriate uniform intensity that we applied to a rat model of chronic constrictive nerve injury (CCI). We performed an experiment on rats that showed reduction in the paw withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimuli, thermal hyperalgesia and cold hypersensitivity 2 weeks after nerve injury. Animals that underwent CCI were divided into three groups: non–stimulation control (NSC, n=8), low-strength magnetic stimulation (LSM, n=9), and high–strength magnetic stimulation (HSM, n=9). Alternating magnetic stimulation was delivered to the lateral sides of both femurs, operated and unoperated, near the sciatic nerves, at different intensities (ca. 25 mT and 70 mT; 50 Hz) for 30 min every 5 days. Treatment with magnetic stimulation reversed the decreased withdrawal threshold of mechanical allodynia, the effect being more significant in the HSM group as compared to the NSC group on day 5. Magnetic stimulation improved the paw withdrawal latency to thermal stimuli on day 1, though the effect was not significant. Magnetic stimulation had no obvious effect on cold hypersensitivity. In conclusion, alternating magnetic stimulation improved neuropathic pain in CCI rats. The advantage of magnetic stimulation is that since it is non– invasiv e, it could be a suitable method for the non–pharmacological treatment of chronic pain.


The purpose of this study is to investigate whether changes have occurred in the teacher's professional pedagogical role as a result of the implementation of ICT in the schools, from the point of view of the principal and administrative staff of the school. The study was conducted in Israel, using the qualitative method and included eight semi-structured in-depth interviews with the administrative staff of elementary schools: the principal, the assistant principal, the computer coordinator, the grade coordinator and the teacher. The research findings suggest that the program does influence the teacher in a number of aspects: the teacher is required to rethink his teaching methods and increase his team work with his work staff and colleagues. In addition, the results highlight the need for the teacher's continued professional development in the field of computerization.


OBJECTIVE To find out the clinic air disinfectant effect and the damage to human body between air aerosol sprayer of hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid. METHODS New ninety eight sickrooms were randomly disported into two groups. The group of using peracetic acid was a control one. Then the clinic air disinfectant effect and the damage between two groups were observed. RESULTS After thirty minutes, to sample through flat exposure method. The total number of bacteria of two groups reached the third grade of environment eligible standard without pathogenic bacteria being checked. Hydrogen peroxide had not obvious mucous membrane stimulation and hypersusceptible reaction to human body. But peracetic acid had mucous membrane stimulation and hypersusceptible reaction to human body. CONCLUSIONS The air disinfection using aerosol sprayer is still an available method when there are no person in new sickrooms or extended sickrooms. At present, some chemical disinfectant methods that have strong poisonous reactions and pollute environment, such as peracetic acid, have been restricted to be used because of thrill, toxicity to human body and causticity to goods. But the method of dynamic air disinfectant machine that can be used in the situation of ventilation, dust catching, decontaminating, and ultraviolet irradiation, at the same time having someone has became a new idea of air disinfection.


Sahih al-Tirmidhi, also known as Jami` al-Tirmidhi, is a renowned work of Imam al-Tirmidhi, one of the six major collections of authentic Hadith in Islam, holding a significant position among Muslims. In religious seminaries, legal studies programs, and Hadith courses, it is systematically taught. The esteemed Imam adopted a methodology distinct from other collections of Hadith, particularly the authentic compilations of Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. He insisted that his methodology in Hadith compilation be scrutinized and examined, highlighting the importance of understanding the approach of the author, as it aids readers in comprehending the book's contents better.
The findings of this research demonstrate that this extensive Hadith encyclopedia possesses unique characteristics and features, leading even some prominent Islamic scholars to prefer it over Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Since the subject of this article does not have a theological aspect, a reliable and authoritative reference library was consulted in its composition. It is hoped that this article serves as a crucial and beneficial step in introducing this book to eager learners.


In alcoholic media, α-iodination of ketones was accomplished using MnO 2 /I 2 reagent combination in a new, environmentally friendly procedure. The reactions carried out under thermal conditions or microwave irradiation afforded α-iodo ketones in reasonable to good yields.


The rapid growth of textile industries creates environmental pollution, mainly surface water pollution of effluent from textile dying and washing units. In Bangladesh many industries having ETP are not properly used for wastewater treatment due to excessive operational and maintenance cost. As a result, textile industries dump effluent directly into the surface water body without considering the effect on aquatic life as well as human. The principal objective of this thesis was to determine the advantages and limitations of chemical processes in textile dye waste water treatment. Different coagulations like Alum, FeSO4 were applied to select suitable ones with optimum removal efficiency. Laboratory scale model studies and field performance have been observed to optimize treatment processes. In this research chemical unit processes are more efficient and provide satisfactory performance in combination with physical and biological process than alone. Reduction of color is satisfactory and a percentage of 66 percent of initial. COD removal is not very satisfactory but reduced by 15 percent and results increase in EC. On the other hand biological process results an optimum COD reduction of 70 percent. Advanced oxidation processes hold great promise to provide alternative for better treatment and protection of environment, thus are reviewed in this research. Performance of oxidation by chlorine has been observed and identified optimum doses required through extensive laboratory tests. Activated carbon (AC) as low cost adsorption media for the tertiary treatment of treated effluent has also been found most effective to control wastewater parameters in this study. Activated carbon polishes the effluent finally and reduces COD by 8-10 percent, Color reduction is 6-10 percent of Initial. For a fixed flow rate and surface area column in series perform better than a single column of same length due to the flow in upward direction in the second column in series which increases the contact time of activated carbon surface with wastewater. © 2014 Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh. All rights reserved.


According to an aspect of an embodiment, a method of controlling a first information apparatus connectable to a second information apparatus having a display, the second information apparatus being capable of reproducing video image based on video information obtained from a remote source independently from the first information apparatus, the method has storing command code information of the second information apparatus in association with identification information of the second information apparatus, receiving a command indicating a power-on operation of the second information apparatus while the second information apparatus is connected to the first information apparatus, executing a software program upon confirmation of the command indicating the power-on operation of the second information apparatus in reference to the command code information and outputting image data produced by the software program to the second information apparatus so as to display an image corresponding to the image data on the display.


The inflammation of the muco-periosteal lining of the middle ear cleft causes the disease known as chronic otitis media (COM). It is characterized by deafness and ear discharge. The children are more prone to this infectious disease. It is the main reason behind hearing impairment. It is creating a challenging scenario for the health care physicians and doctors. Objective: The purpose of this research work was to evaluate the antibiotic sensitivity of the aural swab. The aetiological factors associated with the infection were also studied. Study design: It is a cross-sectional study with the statistical approach. Methods: The study was conducted on 55 patients who attended the ENT and head neck surgery department of Hayatabad Medical Complex Peshawar and M. Islam Medical & Dental College, Gujranwala during the period from January 2021 to June 2022. Out of the 55 patients the 7 patients were diagnosed with bilateral COM. The aural swab was taken from each patient. Each patient was asked to fill the questionnaire for evaluation of the socioeconomic status of the patients. The laboratory and socioeconomic findings were recorded and analyzed by using percentage and frequency. Results: The age group of 31 to 40 years contributed to 24% patients. The 34 patients were male and 21 were female. The percentage ratio was 1:6:1. Out of the 55 patients, 7 were diagnosed with the bilateral COM. The pseudomonas aeruginosa was observed in the 43% cases while S.aureus was observed in the 32% cases. Out of the 33 cases the 81% showed sensitivity to Amikacin, while 75% cases showed sensitivity to Gentamycine and 69% to Ciprofloxacin. Out of the 21 cases of gram positive organisms, 80% showed sensitivity to Amoxyclav, 71% to ceftriaxone and other 71% to Flucoloxacilllin. The sensitivity of the 4 resistant cases against the Meropenem was observed to be 100%. Conclusion: Chronic otitis media is the most common disorder of childhood. A better understanding of the risk factors and antibiotic sensitivity is necessary for the management of treatment strategies. This study provides in-depth knowledge of antibiotic sensitivity and the aetiological factors of the COM. Keywords: Bilateral COM, Aetiological factors, Antibiotic sensitivity, Aural discharge, Pseudomonas aeruginosa


A wireless power transfer (WPT) system combining multiple topologies is proposed for the power supply problem of rotating devices with multiple channels. Firstly, the finite element software Comsol is used to analyze and design the electromagnetic shielding method of the coupling mechanism to solve the energy interference problem between each energy channel. For the electromagnetic characteristics of each channel of the coupling mechanism, the resonant compensation topology of each channel is designed, and the mathematical model of the compensation network is established, and it is verified by derivation and circuit simulation in Simulink that each channel works in the resonant state to realize zero-voltage switching (ZVS). Finally, the principle prototype is built to realize the output power of 10KW, 500W, 100W, and 50W respectively, and the measured results show that the output power meets and does not interfere with each other, thus proving the rationality and effectiveness of the proposed method.


Petroleum was used in its raw state for various purposes in different parts of the world before the discovery of the overwhelming uses of the refined products following the first distillation of lamp oil/ illuminating fuel (kerosene age, 1859-1900) and the development of the internal combustion engines using gasoline or diesel (for vehicles, trucks and ships), the rise in commercial aviation (airplanes and rockets) and other devices, near the beginning of the twentieth century. The burning/combustion of petroleum fuels release greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide (CO2), which creates environmental problems such as global warming, acid rain from sulfur and nitrogen oxide emissions. This rise in CO2 / temperature "global warming" in turn causes other environmental problems such as flooding of coastlines due to melting of the glaciers (polar ice cap melting); disrupted weather patterns i.e. change in wind and rainfall patterns as well as soil moisture; etc., hence the strong quest for an alternative source. On the other hand, apart from serving the aforementioned traditional purposes (transportation fuels), the other petroleum refined products are now the chief source of raw materials (primary petrochemicals such as methanol, ethylene, propylene, butadiene, benzene, toluene and xylene) for the manufacture of chemicals especially organic chemicals, such as textiles, artificial fibers, and plastics of all descriptions, rubber, nitrogen fertilizers, dyestuffs, detergents, pharmaceuticals, medicines, furniture, appliances, solar panels, PVC pipes, bulletproof vests, consumer electronics, wind turbines and automobile parts. Simply put, the use of fossil petroleum refined products goes beyond transportation fuels; it is virtually everything to mankind development. In contrast, synthetic liquid fuels (Synfuels) are liquid fuels (such as gasoline, kerosene, diesel, et cetera) which are produced from substitute/synthetic natural gas (S.N.G.) otherwise known as syngas {derived from virtually any hydrocarbon feedstock, by reaction with steam or oxygen or by reforming of natural gas i.e. methane} and application of the FT-GTL process technique. The appeal of these liquid products (from the FT-GTL process technique) is that they are free from sulfur, aromatics, metals and out performs crude oil petroleum refined products, for instance the diesel will have a very high Octane number and can be a premium blending product while the naphtha would be low in Octane and represents a good petrochemical feedstock. In general, the most significant breakthrough is in syngas for other chemical processes and industries (it is the building block for many petrochemicals, i.e. methanol, ammonia or urea etc.).The theoretical background and basic concepts of the synergy of the existing petroleum crude oil refining technique and the FT-GTL process technique is presented in sufficient detail to tackle the global dual energy challenges (i.e. energy security Petroleum & Petrochemical Engineering Journal 2 Ekejiuba AIB. Synergy of the Conventional Crude Oil and the FT-GTL Processes for Sustainable Synfuels Production: The Game Changer Approach-Phase One Category. Pet Petro Chem Eng J 2023, 7(1): 000330. Copyright© Ekejiuba AIB. and climate change goals) or more broadly the challenge to produce more of the affordable energy that society needs and the challenge to produce energy that's less carbon intensive (i.e. carbon neutral-zero carbon dioxide emissions). Operationally, the overall products from the crude oil petroleum refining operation is reformed to syngas (CO + H2 mixture) "synthesis gas or synthetic gas" via steam reforming or dry reforming or bi-reforming and subsequently converted to Synfuel "Synthetic liquid fuels" using the FT-GTL Fischer-Tropsch (FT) Technology a.k.a. FT-GTL synthesis process. The super heated steam (H2O), CO2 and waste heat produced during the FT- process is used directly in a chemical reactor to further generate CO/H2 mixture instead of embarking on carbon capture (for CO production) and water electrolysis (for H2 production). The high purity oxygen (O2) and heat produced in the chemical reactor is also directly used in the partial oxidation (POX) or autothermal reforming (ATR), units for additional production of CO/H2 mixture. Furthermore fraction of the CO2 and steam/ H2O generated in the FT process unit can be used for dry reforming or bi-reforming of a fraction of the conventional crude oil refinery products into syngas (CO + H2 mixture). Ultimately, this synergy of refining technique will help refiners to meet new guidelines for very low sulfur fuels and general environmental standards as well as enable the continued use of the fossil petroleum energy resources to help the growing demand in energy and worldwide concern towards alternatives to the use of fossil fuel for energy production. This means that, the world will never stop using fossil energy resource. That is no transition/phase out of crude oil and natural gas, rather there will be transition away from emissions i.e. producing these products in a way that has lower and lower emissions. Even the enthusiast of zero emission vehicles will need roads to drive the cars, which means that we need to produce bitumen. Similarly, the enthusiast for alternative electricity via wind turbines and solar panel (photovoltaic and thermal, PV/T collectors) will need lubricants for the gearboxes and generators mounted inside the turbines and various petrochemical products to fabricate panels and inverters, as well as their installation and connection cables, batteries, and other gadgets. Thus, if we can produce bitumen, lubricants and other petrochemicals with lower and lower emission it will be a win situation for everybody. Win for the environment, win for the economy, and win for the affordability and a win for the environmentalist.


Purpose: To investigate the correlation of foveal microstructural changes with vision after intravitreal ranibizumab injection in eye with choroidal neovascularization (CNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration. Methods: We retrospectively studied 40 eyes of 40 patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration who had no previous treatment history of age-related macular degeneration. All patients were treated with 3 monthly intravitreal ranibizumab (0.5 mg/0.05 mL) injections. One month after the third consecutive injection, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was evaluated and the eyes were categorized into 2 groups according to the change in BCVA (good function group: BCVA improvement ≥ logarithm of minimum angle of resolution 0.3; poor function group: BCVA improvement < logarithm of minimum angle of resolution 0.3). Changes of foveal photoreceptor layer integrity, CNV size (diameter and thickness), central macular thickness, center point thickness, outer nuclear layer thickness, and subretinal fluid in each group were also evaluated using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Results: The good function group is 20 eyes, and the poor function group is 20 eyes. No significant differences in baseline characteristics of variables including CNV type, initial BCVA, photoreceptor integrity, and CNV size were observed between the two groups. Best-corrected visual acuity in the good function group was 0.30 ± 0.17 (logarithm of minimum angle of resolution) and that in the poor function group was 0.48 ± 0.40 (logarithm of minimum angle of resolution). Decreased disrupted length of photoreceptor layer (1,020.80 ± 974.60) and decreased CNV thickness (78.86 ± 50.78) were found in the good function group at the end of follow-up. However, no significant differences in changes of CNV diameter, central macular thickness, center point thickness, outer nuclear layer thickness, and resolution of subretinal fluid were observed between the two groups. Conclusion: Restoration of foveal photoreceptor integrity and decreased CNV thickness are closely associated with visual improvement in neovascular age-related macular degeneration after treatment.


. The current paddy drying practice in the rice mill is heating and blowing air continuously to reduce the paddy moisture content to a certain level (i.e., 12% - 14%). The stopping time of the drying process is determined via manual checking of the paddy moisture content (MC) from time to time. Several problems (i.e., inconsistent dried paddy quality and excess energy consumption) arise in the usual practice due to human error. Hence, the MC time-series data collected from an actual rice mill can be related to the environment and drying factors to build a moisture content profile of the drying paddy using Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) neural networks. The prediction is carried out every 2 hours up to 20 hours from the beginning of the drying process. Based on the prediction of the MC level, the optimum drying time can be determined when the MC level reaches the desired level. When evaluated against the validation dataset, our system successfully predicted the MC from 2 hours to 10 hours ahead of time, with a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of just 1.5 units.


We present an upconversion imaging experiment from the near-infrared to the visible spectrum. Using a dedicated broadband pump laser to increase the number of resolved elements converted in the image we obtain up to 56x64 spatial elements with a 2.7 nm wide pump spectrum, more than 10 times the number of elements accessible with a narrowband laser. Results in terms of field of view, resolution and conversion efficiency are in good agreement with simulations. The computed sensitivity of our experiment favorably compares with direct InGaAs camera detection.


The invention discloses a fruit and vegetable selling car. The fruit and vegetable selling car comprises a car head and a carriage, wherein the carriage comprises a top plate, side plates, a bottom plate and a rear door plate, wherein uprights for fixing and mounting the top plate, the side plate and the rear door plate are arranged at four corners of the bottom plate; a transverse connecting rod is mounted between each two adjacent uprights; a fruit and vegetable displaying rack is arranged in a length direction of the carriage; one end of the fruit and vegetable displaying rack is rotationally connected with the lower ends of the uprights; and the other end of the fruit and vegetable displaying rack is detachably connected with the upper ends of the uprights or the transverse connecting rod or the top plate. The fruit and vegetable displaying rack comprises supporting rods and a plurality of displaying plates, wherein the supporting rods are rotationally connected with the uprights and arranged in a bilaterally symmetric way; and the plurality of displaying plates are fixedly connected between the supporting rods and horizontally arranged. One row of article storage boxes are fixedly connected with the bottom plate. The invention is advantaged in that the fruit and vegetable selling car can be used for selling fruits and vegetables in a mobile way, the fruit and vegetable selling car is convenient to display the fruits, the handling frequency can be reduced and so on.


Complexes formed during interaction of cationic liposomes with poly-nucleotides such as DNA (CLDC) display a variety of polymorphic and metastable structures. These include multilamellar structures of alternating lipid bilayers and DNA monolayers; fibrillar structures, among them spaghetti-liketubules (Figure 1), and map-pin-structures(Figure 2), and, finally, non-bilayer lipid arrangements, such as hexagonal (HII) (Figure 3) and cubic phases. In order to find out the "active" structure(s) in terms of transfection, we investigated the transfection activity both in vivoand in vitroof CLDC composed of the lipid DDAB (dimethyl-dioctadecylammonium bromide) and Choi (cholesterol) or DOPE (l,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol-3- phosphoethanolamine) as helper lipids. In parallel we studied their morphology by freeze-fracture electron microscopy.The in vivostudies were carried out in mice following i.v. injection and therefore the morphology of the CLDC was investigated in mouse serum.


Background. Chest pain is a common diagnostic problem faced by primary and emergency care physicians. We are taught to consider the cardiac cause of chest pain as the usual cause from our undergraduate textbooks. Though the cardiac cause of chest pain is one of the more serious causes, it may not be the common one. There was a paucity of data available concerning this common problem in the Indian context. We present an observational study of causes of chest pain in 254 adults presenting to an ambulatory secondary care unit. Material and methods. All consecutive adults (over 18 years of age) presenting with chest pain to the urban family health center were administered a questionnaire documenting location, severity, characteristic and cause of chest pain as diagnosed by relevant clinical examination and appropriate investigations. This was done in the time period from September 2014 to July 2016. Results. A total of 254 adults with chest pain were studied, among whom 73.6% (187) were female. The most common diagnosis as to the cause of chest pain made by the treating physician was of a gastro-esophageal cause (41.3%, 105). A cardiac origin of chest pain was diagnosed in 18.5% (47) of the patients. Conclusions. The causes of chest pain in adults vary with the setting and the target population. It is mostly non-cardiac in ambulatory care practices in primary and secondary care units. However, we need to be clinically vigilant and apply a robust approach in diagnosing chest pain.


1,2,3,4‐Tetrahydro‐β‐carboline derivatives (THβCs) are formed through Pictet‐Spengler chemical condensation between tryptophan and aldehydes during food production, storage and processing. In the present study, in order to identify the antioxidants in aged garlic extract (AGE), we fractionated it and identified four THβCs; 1‐methyl‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydro‐β‐carboline‐3‐carboxylic acids (MTCC) and 1‐methyl‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydro‐β‐carboline‐1,3‐dicarboxylic acid (MTCdiC) in both diastereoisomers using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC‐MS). Interestingly, these compounds were not detected in raw garlic, but the contents increased during the natural aging process of garlic. In in vitro assay systems, all of these compounds have shown strong hydrogen peroxide scavenging activities. (1S, 3S)‐MTCdiC was found to be stronger than the common antioxidant, ascorbic acid. MTCC and MTCdiC inhibited AAPH‐induced lipid peroxidation. Both MTCdiCs also inhibited LPS‐induced nitrite production from murine macrophages at 10‐100 μM. Our data suggest that these compounds are potent antioxidants in AGE, and thus may be useful for prevention of disorders associated with oxidative stress.


While anecdotal reports of lip protrusion contributing to sibilant production in a variety of languages exist, little attention has been paid to quantifying its contribution. In the present study, lip position was monitored using a modified SELSPOT optoelectronic tracking system, and location of oral constriction was simultaneously monitored by means of a RION artificial palate. Subjects (speakers of Catalan, English, German, and Italian) produced 50 tokens each of 6 (8) symmetrical VCV utterances, where V ranged over /iau(u)/ and C over /ss/. As expected, /s/ has a more anterior constriction than /s/, with the constriction for /usu/ being the most anterior; and, there is more lip protrusion for /s/ than for /s/, except for in the /u_u/ context. Across utterance types, the combination of lip protrusion and constriction location is a better predictor of the frequency of a sibilant's centroid than is either parameter alone; within utterance types, lip protrusion and aperture are, in general, better predictors of centroid frequency than is constriction location. [Work supported by NIH Grant NS‐07237.]


We have developed a new color analyzer for measurin9 the three basic color parameters of color TV screens. The color analyzer consists of a measurin9 head which is put onto the TV screen and a display unit which compares the detected data with the reference data stored ifl the memory and shows the measurin9 result. The results are shown in LED numerical display with four modes. Ei9ht. different white references can be stored into the color analyzer. With hi9h praise the instrument has been tried out in National Broadcast and TV Products Check Center . Now it is manufactured by Yan9zhon9 Optronics Instrument Factory and it. has been applied in several manufacturers of color TV sets. L!


We present simple and efficient laser schemes based on newly developed Er-doped fibers cladding pumped at 976 nm. 103 W CW-power amplifier with 37 % conversion efficiency and 1.5 mJ-pulse energy nanosecond laser were demonstrated.


ABSTRACT: Traditional knowledge in the native peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon, are constituted in a tangible and intangible wealth that Ecuador has, are knowledge that for thousands of years have been transmitted from generation to generation; Ancestral practices that have been applied in agriculture, social organization, medicine, construction, coexistence, etc., for these reasons, their legal protection is essential for the conservation and dissemination of this type of non-experimental science. Under this background, the present investigation, which is entitled: "THE LEGAL PROTECTION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE IN THE ORIGINARY PEOPLES OF THE ECUADORIAN AMAZON," are intended to describe through the application of research instruments why legal protection guarantees The right to intellectual property of the traditional knowledge of the original peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon, to determine whether compliance with current regulations is effective, to achieve this general objective, a doctrinal, legal and critical study of protection was carried out legal knowledge of the traditional knowledge of the native peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon and their intellectual property; The results of the investigation determine that there are sufficient national and international laws that guarantee the legal projection of the traditional knowledge of the native peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon, however, these regulations are not being properly applied, which is why many knowledge Traditional methods have been patented by transnationals, foreigners and settlers who, in essence, are not the creators of ancestral knowledge, these foundations indicate that legal protection and the right to intellectual property of the traditional knowledge of nationals are not guaranteed, native peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon.


We present the case of a 71-year-old man, with medical history of hypertension, dyslipidemia and acute myocardial infarction in 2007, taking low dose of aspirin and bemiparing 3500 every 24h. He was admitted in the Urology Service with recurrent hematuria 14 days after radical prostatectomy, which ceased after continuous bladder irrigation.


In the operation of power transmission and transformation equipment,its insulation performance may decline accompanied with surface discharge.In this case ultraviolet(UV) imager can be applied to detect the operation state and find faults effectively,leading to timely maintenance and failure rate decrease.In the light of the site demand of national engineering laboratory(Kunming) for DC UHV engineering technology,this paper designed and developed the ultraviolet data management system,which implements the effective management of ultraviolet information,and at the same time through ultraviolet image processing,gets information about insulator's operation and provides guidance for field operation.


AbstractLimited proficiency in vocabulary can adversely impact college students. Developmental educators may want to enlist faculty in their efforts to help students increase their college-level vocabulary. This article contains a paper written in 2012 for faculty at Niagara University. It can serve as a template for developmental educators to share their concerns about students' limited vocabulary and suggest ways that faculty can help students expand their vocabulary.IntroductionAs a veteran of learning assistance who has focused on reading support for 27 years, I have become increasingly concerned with the limited vocabulary proficiency of entering college students. Unlike several generations ago, many students today have not benefitted from the kinds of experiences that can strengthen vocabulary: intentional vocabulary instruction throughout high school, Latin courses, frequent independent reading required by teachers, and regular reading for pleasure. Consequently, some entering college students lack the vocabulary necessary to fully comprehend their reading assignments. Students with a limited vocabulary may also miss meaning during lectures and may not fully understand exams questions and directions.Obviously, knowing more words significantly increases comprehension. A strong vocabulary can also enable students to convey their thoughts more precisely in speech and in writing. It can even increase their chances for a job - an important goal for most students today.Through the years, I have implemented a number of approaches to help students expand their vocabulary, from individual assistance, to including vocabulary instruction in developmental reading and reading/ writing courses, to creating stand-alone vocabulary courses. At my current institution, the vocabulary course I developed in 1999 was a one-credit equivalent but it carried no academic credit toward graduation. Although it was a sound course that an average 11.3% of our first-year students were recommended to take, my institution is eliminating noncredit classes.Losing our vocabulary course challenged me to think of new ways to help students expand their vocabulary. As developmental educators, we know the importance of collaborating with faculty so in 2012 I wrote a paper that I shared with our entire faculty. My paper, which appears below, was intended to start a conversation about the problem. I suggested simple ways that faculty can help their students increase vocabulary, and 1 offered to assist faculty in this endeavor.My paper was well-received. Soon after I emailed it, a professor of English stopped me on campus exclaiming, "You've changed my teaching!" In his freshman composition course, he often uses the word "adversity" because it is integral to his course theme but he never defined this word or asked students if they knew its meaning. My paper helped him realize that the word "adversity" was probably unfamiliar to some of his students. Another English professor assigned my paper in her Introductory Literature course with a theme of "Why Read?" and asked students to write a brief response about increasing vocabulary. An accounting professor asked me to preview his Introduction to Accounting textbook. Together we developed a list of generic nouns, verbs, and adjectives that his students need to know in order to fully understand the reading.I offer my paper to you and invite you to consider how you might reach out to faculty on your campus to begin a conversation that can help your students increase their college-level vocabulary. I encourage you to add course-specific examples from your campus as well as additional strategies that your faculty could employ. I hope my paper provides you with an opportunity to broach this important subject with the faculty on your campus.LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AT NIAGARA UNIVERSITYSharon GreenCoordinator, Instructional Services - Office of Academic Support, Niagara UniversityThe ProblemThe vocabulary of a number of our students is below college level. …


Background: The abnormal expression of genes in serum may be associated with early diagnosis of patients with malignant tumors. This study aimed to screen potential genes that may be associated with gastric cancer using bioinformatics methods. Methods: RNA-seq data of gastric cancers were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas and Gene Expression Omnibus databases, and 1903 secretory genes were downloaded from the Human Protein Atlas database. The diagnostic secretory RNAs of gastric cancer were screened using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression analysis. Univariate Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate the prognostic significance of the results. Biological functions were performed using gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses. Then, 640 cases of gastric cancer and paracancerous tissues were collected, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to detect the expression of COL4A1. Results: In total, 25 upregulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, which were secreted mainly in the blood and cell matrix. Six secretory genes (OLFM4, CEMIP, APOC1, CST1, COL4A1, and CD55) with diagnostic significance were identified, and the enrichment scores of these six genes were significantly associated with tumor stage. In addition, we found that increased COL4A1 expression might be associated with a poor prognosis in patients with gastric cancer. Based on GO and KEGG analyses, we found COL4A1-related DEGs were mainly enriched in connective tissue development, collagen fibrous tissue-related processes, extracellular structure, extracellular matrix (ECM) tissue, and related to the ECM receptor-related pathway, focal adhesion, and PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. Moreover, IHC results showed that the COL4A1 protein level in gastric cancer was also higher than that in the matched paracancerous tissues. Conclusions: In this study, we found six upregulated secretory genes, including OLFM4, CEMIP, APOC1, CST1, COL4A1, and CD55, so we speculate that these six genes may be significant DEGs for the diagnosis of gastric cancer. And COL4A1 may also play an important role in the diagnosis and prognosis of gastric cancer.


The invention discloses a stand collar upper garment which comprises a garment body and a collar arranged on the garment body. The stand collar upper garment is characterized in that the collar comprises an inner collar piece and an outer collar piece, wherein the outer collar piece is connected with the garment body, the inner collar piece and the outer collar piece are connected through connecting pieces, a containing space is formed between the inner collar piece and the outer collar piece, and the containing space is filled with a plurality of heat preservation piece bodies. According to the stand collar upper garment, the thickness of the collar can be adjusted conveniently according to the weather temperature, and meanwhile the collar of the stand collar upper garment has good bacterium preventing and resisting effects.


Anaemia, defined as a low blood haemoglobin concentration, is the most common nutritional problem in the world. It is a global public health problem affecting both developed and developing nations leading to impairment in cognitive and functional ability of the affected individuals, thereby leading to serious consequences in the health, social and economic status of these nations. According to WHO statistics on the global prevalence of anaemia (2011), the worldwide prevalence of anaemia in infants and children in the age group 6months to 59 months with anaemia is 42.6%. This translates to around 273.2 million children affected with anaemia globally in 2011.The prevalence varies from region to region and is estimated to be <20% in the most developed nations, 20-60% in the developing nations and >60% in parts of Africa and Afghanistan. Among the developing countries, India has a high prevalence of anaemia in children under five at 58.4%, and Kerala has 35.6%, according to the fourth national family health survey (NFHS-4) data (2015-16). Preliminary data from the most recent national family health survey (NFHS-5) (2019-20) has observed an increase in prevalence of anaemia in under five children in Kerala at 39.4%.


WBANs are widely getting flourished in today's world. WBANs are like normal Wireless Sensor Networks with the exception that in WBANs the sensor nodes are placed on the human body itself. The data, be it of any kind conserning body movements (sports and military purposes) and several body requirements (medicine or drugs etc) is send to the doctor or concerned authority through a main node and further action is taken in agreement with the data. In this paper we will discuss the need of WBANs in different fields.


HX-;'T IS frequently supposed that there exist propositions of a kind appropriately designatable as "self-contradictory"; and in this paper I propose to examine this supposition. It may first be pointed out that some philosophers use the word "proposition" in such a sense that to say there exist self-contradictory propositions is unquestionably to say what is true. They give it such a usage (which they claim to be its only significant one) as to make it synonymous with "declarative sentence"; so that a self-contradictory proposition would be a sentence of the general form s --s, and the supposition (a) that there are self-contradictory propositions would be equivalent merely to the supposition (b) that there are sentences of the form s -s. In this sense of "proposition" it seems quite plain that there are self-contradictory propositions. But it is not this usage of "proposition" with which I shall be concerned in this paper; rather, my concern will be with the usage given it, whether significantly or not, by philosophers like Mr. Russell, who hold that propositions are what literally significant declarative sentences stand for, or express. The kind of view I have in mind is perhaps best expressed by Mr. Russell. He writes: "Words all have meaning, in the simple sense that they stand for things other than themselves."* With regard to what words stand for he says: "When we ex-


the second supposedly cosmetic phrase that bothers Marenin. He seems puzzled by the term manifest, and obviously considers it an artful dodge. Why? The term has a familiar, precise meaning in social science: it refers to actions "intended and recognized" to have some specified effect, and which, for that reason, have an import readily apparent to observers. An example is Marenin's own conception of influence; another, more germane here, is any decision-making process among super or dinates of a social unit. Such processes are "manifestly" concerned with the unit's direction and between-level relations in it. It is true that one might make mistakes about what is intended and recognized in the exercise of authority, but that matter is nowhere near as arcane as motives for compliance.


Key Findings The most common environment respondents reported for enterprise management of digital content was a mix of best-of-breed enterprise and local/departmental solutions (35.9% of institutions). Four in 10 institutions reported only local or ad hoc solutions (that is, no enterprise solutions at all), whereas slightly more than 1 in 10 said they have an integrated enterprise content management solution. Institutions generally anticipated having more enterprise-oriented content management environments three years in the future. Institutions with more enterprise-oriented content management environments tended to report greater agreement that they could effectively manage all the varieties of data and digital content that their institutions need. Public relations and marketing organizations were responsible for the look and feel of the institutional website at about two-thirds of institutions. Video streaming/download and content formatted for handheld devices were the top web environment enhancements institutions selected as most important to meeting constituent expectations in the next three years. Agreement that the institutional web environment routinely exceeds user expectations was higher among institutions that reported more extensive use of such best practices as a database-driven web environment, website owner ability to perform routine maintenance without IT intervention, consistent web page look and feel, and granular control over user access to website content. About half of institutions overall had some kind of entity responsible for electronic records management. Seven in 10 institutions reported having documented electronic records retention schedules for fi nancial, student, and/or HR records; about half have such schedules for faculty and/or staff e-mail. Respondents gave lackluster ratings to their institutions' ability to comply with records retention and disposition requirements throughout the institution, averaging 2.5 (between fair and good) on a 5-point scale. Average ratings were higher where institutions reported more documented electronic records retention schedules, where enterprise data quality scores were higher, and where an enterprise records management solution had been implemented. u


In this paper we propose the application of H! control within optical networks. Specifically, we aim to suppress the cross-gain modulation effects within Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers owed to pilot tone disturbances used for optical monitoring. Based on the characteristics of these pilot tone disturbances, we design an H! controller to improve transient performance of optical channels within the network. Within this paper the control system design is described and simulation results are presented. Application of H∞ Control for Pilot Tones in Erbium-doped Fiber Amplifiers Yong Taing and Lacra Pavel Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Toronto 10 King's College Road, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G4, Canada email@example.com Abstract—In this paper we propose the application of H∞ control within optical networks. Specifically, we aim to suppress the cross-gain modulation effects within Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers owed to pilot tone disturbances used for optical monitoring. Based on the characteristics of these pilot tone disturbances, we design an H∞ controller to improve transient performance of optical channels within the network. Within this paper the control system design is described and simulation results are presented.In this paper we propose the application of H∞ control within optical networks. Specifically, we aim to suppress the cross-gain modulation effects within Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers owed to pilot tone disturbances used for optical monitoring. Based on the characteristics of these pilot tone disturbances, we design an H∞ controller to improve transient performance of optical channels within the network. Within this paper the control system design is described and simulation results are presented.


Abstract This paper investigates the application of nonlinear programming in three‐phase induction motor design. Appropriate design variables are chosen according to the stator and the rotor structures of the motor; these variables are used to form the objective function representing the volume of the motor and the constraints representing some designated electrical characteristics. The volume obtained by using nonlinear programming computational algorithms is smaller than the one designed by the conventional method, with all the electrical characteristics satisfying the National Standards. Computer simulations of the dynamic responses of the induction motor also show the feasibility and accuracy of applying nonlinear programming in induction motor design.


E-government emerged as an important aspect in the delivery of public services. However, some local government e-services only offer interactive content such as application procedures and downloading of forms, and the process takes so long to complete. Hence, the main focus of the study is to develop a system, which will facilitate the application process of business permit and license into a streamlined electronic version using business permit and licensing system named eBPLS. This study adopted a modified Princeton Project Development Methodology (PPMP) as framework to structure the process of software development. The study used structured interview and survey questionnaires, which is designed in line with the ISO 9126 Software Quality Metrics, as data collection tools. In order to quantify the survey results the researchers used Five-Point likert scale and weighted mean to statistically analyze and interpret the general result. The survey focused on the perception of the respondents from the Business Permit Licensing Office of the two (2) municipalities in Camarines Sur, Philippines. Based on the findings, majority of the respondents perceived the proposed system as highly acceptable based on the average weighted mean of 4.61. Moreover, eBPLs was able to speed up the service delivery to one (1) day for both the new and renewal of business applications.


Based on the published sequences of ubiquitin extension protein(UBE) genes of Spodoptera exigu,Pieris rapa,Helicoverpa assulta,Drosophila melanogaste in NCBI database,the genetic diversity and molecular evolution of the nucleotide sequences,as well as structural domains and motif characters of putative amino acid sequences were analyzed using the bioinformatics method.Results showed high identity(81.8%-99.7%) and short genetic distances(0.003-0.199)between the four UBE gene sequences,and all encoded ubiquitin/L40 UBE.During the genetic diversity analysis,81 polymorphic sites in total were detected from 4 UBE gene sequences and 4 haplotypes were sorted.Abundant genetic diversity and strong codon bias were found based on the haplotype diversity(Hd=1.000),the average number of nucleotide difference(K=45.883),the nucleotide diversity(Pi=0.11297),the nucleotide diversity of synonmyous sites(Pi(s)=0.41501),the nucleotide diversity of nonsynonmyous sites(Pi(a)= 0.02489),the effective number of codons(ENC=38.070-53.45861),the codon bias index(CBI=0.437-0.7290) and the scaled Chi-square(χ2=0.454-0.960).Each amino acid sequence deduced from its corresponding UBE gene contained one ubiquitin homologue and one Ribosomal/L40 domain,respectively,but signal peptide and transmembrane domain were not found.Fourteen motifs were detected among 4 amino acid sequences.Deduced amoino acid sequences from the Se-UBE gene and Dm-UBE gene contained 1 casein kinase Ⅱ phosphorylation site and 2 protein kinase C phosphorylation sites.Deduced amino acid sequences from the Pr-UBE gene and Ha-UBE gene both had 2 casein kinase Ⅱ phosphorylation sites and 2 protein kinase C phosphorylation sites.The result provided some basic information for further studying the evolution and expression characteristics of UBE genes as well as mechanism of insect viral infection.


Currently, the competition in the Ukrainian food market has significantly increased, forcing its members to minimize their costs at different stages of activity, in particular, to reduce logistics costs. Today, a lot of specialized companies, which provide logistics services, are able to offer their customers a wide range, starting with the customs clearance, transportation and storage of goods, and completing with information support. At the same time, some branches, among which also national restaurant market, are not interested in cooperation with logistics companies, as well as independent practical implementation of simple optimization methods. Little interest in minimizing logistics expense for the restaurants of high price category is caused by high margins (sometimes above 400%), which cover all logistics costs. Particular attention to optimize procurement costs should give institutions a low price category, for which the reduction in the cost of the product and setting of competitive prices is a matter of increasing business profitability. Tools and directions of business administration procurement logistics restaurant establishments system's adaptation are proposed. Reduce of logistics costs and improve the competitiveness of enterprises of the restaurant business promotes the use of simple optimization techniques adapted to the specificities of their activities. The proposed logistics methods are simple for practical use with the help of modern information systems and Microsoft Office tools and can greatly simplify the inventory management process. ABC method allows to optimize the wide range of the product categories, the method of determining the ranking of suppliers helps to optimize the number and choose those who are responsible for the essential requirements of catering establishments; deterministic models of inventory management give the opportunity to simplify the process of inventory keeping and make timely products orders.


As disposable plastic straws were banned in China, more biodegradable straws were invented. Under high temperature and pressure conditions, starch is pasted and the molecular hydrogen bonds between starch are broken. After adding chitosan, chitosan and starch can form new hydrogen bonds. Biodegradable starch-based straws were made from cassava starch and rice starch (weight ratio = 1:1) by extrusion technique. Chitosan (0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%) was added to improve the mechanical properties of the straws and the effect of chitosan on the chemical, mechanical and water resistance properties of the starch-based straws was investigated. Color, transparency and water resistance of CR/CH (tapioca starch, rice starch and chitosan) straws containing different levels of chitosan. The color and water resistance of straws containing different levels of chitosan were superior to those of CR (tapioca and rice starch). The best mechanical properties and water resistance of starch-based straws were obtained when the chitosan addition was 5%. The addition of chitosan flattened the appearance of the starch-based straws and improved the mechanical properties and water resistance of the straws. The above structure can provide a reference for the application of starch-based materials.


The magnetic field topology at the coronal mass ejection (CME) source regions has been one of the major focuses of CME initiation models. While the "breakout" model requires a quadrupolar magnetic topology in the solar corona to enable an eruption, other models have shown that a bipolar magnetic topology can be the source region of a CME. In this paper, we use observational data and a potential field source surface model to investigate the magnetic field topology over CME productive quiescent filaments. A total of 80 quiescent filament-associated CME events during 1996-2004, spanning almost one solar cycle, with angular width ≥80° are selected for this study. We found both bipolar topology and quadrupolar topology at CME source regions. This observational test of the assumptions of theoretical CME models suggests that bipolar topology is more common overall and in each year. The total occurrence ratio between quadrupolar and bipolar topology is about 1 : 3 with this selection of events. On the rising phase of the solar cycle, there is mostly bipolar topology, but on the declining phase, there is a mixture of both bipolar and quadrupolar topology. The bipolar topology occurrence has no clear solar cycle dependence. The quadrupolar topology occurrence peaks on the declining phase in the current solar cycle 23.


The WC resource usage is compared with the AF (Auto Flush) threshold Caf smaller than the upper limit Clmt, and when the WC resource usage exceeds the AF threshold Caf, the cleanup state of the NAND memory 10 is confirmed. If the cleanup of the NAND memory 10 has proceeded sufficiently, the data is initially deported from the write cache (WC) 21 to the NAND memory 10, thereby improving the response to subsequent write commands.


Two methods of sample preparation, originally developed for transmission electron microscopy and better at preserving bacterial exopolymers than the traditional fixation with glutaraldehyde, were adapted for scanning electron microscopy. The first involves a glutaraldehyde‐lysine mixture as a fixative. The second, based on the use of polycationic ferritin, was modified to include a post‐fixation step with either glutaraldehyde or a glutaraldehyde‐lysine mixture. These techniques were found to improve considerably the preservation of exopolymers secreted by three bacterial strains.


A group of patients with persistent warts has had the lesions treated with local injections of bleomycin sulphate. A significant cure rate was attained without clinical evidence of toxic complications.


The aim of the paper is to examine the geometrical performance, gender wise variation in learning geometry of the students of secondary level and their learning environment. The data is collected from some selected schools of Bhurbanhda CD Block of Morigaon district of Assam. To know the performance in geometry and the problems faced by the students to understand the geometry, a test was taken and a question paper of 25 marks and scheduled questionnaire was prepared. Also a discussion was conducted with the teachers to find out the problems of the students in learning mathematics when it is connected to geometry. To analyze the data, simple statistical method is used. After the study it is found that the fundamental knowledge in geometry is very poor among most of students in secondary level. As it is observed in most of the cases students have great difficulty in geometry part of their mathematics curriculum. So it is very important to improve performance in geometry to improve mathematics as a whole. To improve the knowledge of geometry among the students, government should think of it as a matter of urgency, send mathematics teachers for training and seminars for effective teaching and learning.


A class of D-π-A compounds that can be used as dyes for applications in polymer solar cells has theoretically been designed and studied, on the basis of the dyes recently shown by experiment to have the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE), namely the poly[4,8-bis(5-(2-butylhexylthio)thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl-alt-TZNT] (PBDTS-TZNT) and poly[4,8-bis(4-fluoro-5-(2-butylhexylthio)thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl-alt-TZNT] (PBDTSF-TZNT) substances. Electronic structure theory computations were carried out with density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory methods in conjunction with the 6−311G (d, p) basis set. The PBDTS donor and the TZNT (naphtho[1,2-c:5,6-c]bis(2-octyl-[1,2,3]triazole)) acceptor components were established from the original substances upon replacement of long alkyl groups within the thiophene and azole rings with methyl groups. In particular, the effects of several π-spacers were investigated. The calculated results confirmed that dithieno[3,2-b:2′,3′-d] silole (DTS) acts as an excellent π-linker, even better than the thiophene bridge in the original substances in terms of well-known criteria. Indeed, a PBDTS-DTS-TZNT combination forms a D-π-A substance that has a flatter structure, more rigidity in going from the neutral to the cationic form, and a better conjugation than the original compounds. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO)-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy gap of such a D-π-A substance becomes smaller and its absorption spectrum is more intense and red-shifted, which enhances the intramolecular charge transfer and makes it a promising candidate to attain higher PCEs.


Provided is an electric power temperature-control system, comprising a fiber grating temperature sensor arranged inside a high voltage switch cabinet, wherein the fiber grating temperature sensor sends the collected temperature signals to an optical cable terminal box via an optical cable; the optical cable terminal box is connected to an fiber grating demodulation instrument via the optical cable; the fiber grating demodulation instrument sends the temperature signals into a PLC; and the PLC compares the received temperature signals to the set value and eventually outputs the control signals to a fan motor. The electric power temperature-control system utilizes a fiber grating temperature sensor to collect the temperature value inside the high voltage switch cabinet and is provided with the control and cooling execution functions. When the temperature inside the high voltage switch cabinet is too high, the PLC can be utilized to control the operation of the fan motor, thus to start the fan and facilitate air-discharge and cooling. The electric power temperature-control system realizes the functions of real-time monitoring and timely adjustment.


ABSTRACT Uneven maturation in canola is an important challenge for its management in regions subject to frost and high rainfall at the end of the cycle. In order to identify practices to maximize grain yield under these growing conditions, this work evaluated the effects of desiccation with herbicides at different phenological stages on Hyola 433, one of the most commonly used hybrids in Brazil. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with four repetitions in a 6 x 4 factorial scheme, with five herbicides: paraquat, diquat and ammonium glufosinate at dose of 400 g a.i. ha-1, glyphosate at 1,440 g a.i. ha-1 and saflufenacil at 70 g a.i. ha-1, plus the control, at four phenological stages of silique maturation (G2, G3, G4 and G5). Desiccation at G2 and G3 reduced the oil content and thousand-grain weight on average by 60%, affecting directly grain yield. Desiccation at G4, regardless of herbicide, did not influence thousand-grain weight and oil content, but the use of diquat reduced canola yield by 187 kg ha-1. In the desiccation at G5, none of the herbicides led to differences compared to the control for thousand-grain weight, yield and oil content, and it allowed harvest to be brought forward by five days. In general, the crop presents adequate responses to the desiccation with different herbicides at the phenological stages G4 and G5.


Background: Hypertension is considered as an important public health issue around the world. It is associated with the development of more serious medical conditions like myocardial infarction, cardiac failure, stroke, renal disease, etc. According to the WHO, high blood pressure affects 1280 million adults aged 30 to 79 years worldwide and almost two-thirds of them come from low-middle-income countries. Methods: An OPD-based, observational study was conducted among individuals aged 30 years or above at Gandhinagar UPHC of Jaipur city in the state of Rajasthan. Prevalence of hypertension and prehypertension were analysed. The details regarding gender, age, family history of individuals and other behavioural characteristics like tobacco, smokeless tobacco and alcohol consumption, physical activity, and anthropometric measurements were collected. The Chi-square test was applied to analyze if a statistically significant association exist between hypertension and the above-mentioned factors.Results: This study estimated hypertension prevalence as 23.2%. The prevalence of prehypertension was estimated to be 33.2% and the prevalence of individuals with no-hypertension was 43.6%. This study also reports that obesity, consumption of alcohol, smoking and positive HTN family history were significant determinants for hypertension.Conclusions: Overall, the results of this study show that the HTN and pre-HTN prevalence was significant in the study population. In the absence of lifestyle changes, individuals referred to as prehypertensive are at high risk of developing HTN. Early detection and timely intervention will reduce the effect of high BP thus decreasing the risk of developing CVDs, stroke, and renal impairment.


Shannon′s entropy is applied to measure the complexity of Markov decision processes. The measurements of the complexity, uncertainty and unpredictability for Markov chains are extended to the measurements for Markov decision processes. A method of complexity measurements based on information theory is developed, and it can be used for fully and partially observable Markov decision processes under randomized and deterministic policies. A numerical result is given out to illustrate the mehtod.


The proposal is for novel pumpable aqueous tenside concentrates with long shelf lives and low viscosity, having a solids content of 30 to 60 wt.%, containing (a) alkyl and/or alkenyl oligoglycosides and (b) amphoteric or dipolar ionic tensides in the proportion by weight of 10:90 to 90:10 in relation to the solids content. The mixtures can easily be concentrated in diluted cosmetic formulations.


Stability conditions for time‐delay systems using the Lyapunov‐based methodologies are generically expressed in terms of linear matrix inequalities. However, due to assuming restrictive conditions in deriving the linear matrix inequalities, the established stability conditions can be strictly conservative. This paper attempts to relax this problem for linear systems with interval time‐varying delays. A double‐integral inequality is derived inspired by Wirtinger‐based single‐integral inequality. Using the advanced integral inequalities, the reciprocally convex combination techniques and necessary slack variables, together with extracting a condition for the positive definiteness of the Lyapunov functional, novel stability criteria, have been established for the system. The effectiveness of the criteria is evaluated via 2 numerical examples. The results indicate that more complex stability criteria not only improve the stability region but also bring computational expenses.


The serious problems in the development of culture industry in our country are the irrational exploitation of culture resources and the duplication in type of culture operation.This article proposes some scientific and practicable solutions: training new conception of culture resources which is harmonious with modern industry;defining the development strategies and directions of culture industry based on the characteristics of culture resources;paying attention to originality and using the modern scientific technique to develop new type of culture operation.


The photooxygenation of helianthrene (H), mesodiphenylhelianthrene (MDH) and mcsodiphenylbenzhelianthrene (MDBH) has been studied kinetically by several independent methods in different solvents. The results indicate that singlet oxygen (1Δ) is generated only by oxygen quenching of the lowest triplet states via the process: T1 + 3Σ So + 1Δ, which occurs with unit efficiency for all three hydrocarbons. H is the most reactive 1Δ-acceptor hitherto known. In solvents of low viscosity like acetone the rate constant of reaction is kτ = 4.6 · 109 M−1 s−1. MDH and MDBH are not only very reactive 1Δ-acceptors but also efficient 1Δ-quenchers. In a mixture of toluene and methanol (1 Vol.%) for MDBH the rate constants of physical quenching and photooxygenation amount to k11n = 6.3 · 109 M−1 s−1 and k7 = 0.2·109 M−1 s−1.


The utility model relates to an equipment for cutting apart photovoltaic structure. The utility model discloses one of technical problem who solves provides a modified to be used for constructing a plurality of the equipment of splitting into with the photovoltaic junction. Equipment includes: the first surface, with be connected to the second surface of first surface, wherein the second surface nonparallel in the first surface, wherein the first surface keeps including being suitable for the maintain the body of photovoltaic structure, and wherein combination department between first surface and the second surface forms first fulcrum edge, thereby is convenient for the photovoltaic structure is kept on the first surface, and along first fulcrum edge is cut apart. Through the utility model discloses, can realize that a modified is used for constructing a plurality of the equipment of splitting into with the photovoltaic junction.


This article gives a instruction of national standard on the nameplate requirement of Ex product,meanwhile it gives several examples of the items in the nameplate according combined with standard and explanation of the Ex mark.


Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor has some advantages such as label-free, real-time and highly-sensitive measurement. Recently SPR signal changes based on the allergen-stimulation response of mammalian cells have been reported. In this paper, dynamic responses of single B and T lymphocyte caused by binding with antibodies for surface antigens was measured by using high resolution two-dimensional (2D-) SPR imaging sensor. The SPR responses could be successfully imaged without any labeling, and the response was specific to surface antigen. These results showed the 2D-SPR imaging might be powerful tool for label-free observation of dynamic cell responses specific to surface antigens.


The following study is dedicated to the process of political fundraising as a subject of political science. Through the article one can find the definition of political fundraising and American political scientists' approaches to the analysis of this process. Comparative analysis of political fundraising in the U.S.A. and Russian Federation demonstrates that its' transparency has an important impact on public's control of lobby groups and other shadow political entities.


This paper presents an extended TLM-2D numerical technique. Extensions include simultaneous consideration of non-homogenous media and ionization phenomena representation. Performance evaluation and representation of impulsive grounding systems embedded in concrete are considered as a study case. Analysis based on the Alternative Transients Program (ATP) and field measurements with different grounding systems configurations are presented and discussed.


In this paper, the influences of different kinds and different amount of mineral admixture to Cl-penetration and diffusion in concrete are studied. The results of experiment show that separate addition of mineral admixture (ground fly ash, slag fines, silica fume) into concrete can improve its resistance to chloride ion penetration and diffusion. Furthermore,the effect of silica fume is the best, fly ash second, and then follows slag fines. Mechanism analysis shows that the pozzolanic effect of mineral admixture improves the interface between the cement and aggregate in concrete, reduces the total porosity, makes pores more smaller, on the other hand it increases the Cl-consolidation capability of concrete with low alkaline C-S-H gel produced. So the resistance to chloride ion penetration of concrete is improved.


In this paper after a general literature review on the concept of Efficient Frontier (EF), an important inadequacy of the Variance based models for deriving EFs and the high necessity for applying another risk measure is exemplified. In this regard for this study the risk measure of Lower Partial Moment of the first order is decided to replace Variance. Because of the particular shape of the proposed risk measure, one part of the paper is devoted to development of a mechanism for deriving EF on the basis of new model. After that superiority of the new model to old one is shown and then the shape of new EFs under different situations is investigated. At last it is concluded that application of LPM of the first order in financial models in the phase of deriving EF is completely wise and justifiable.


Diabetes has a profound effect on the health of our population as well as on our economy. Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in people between 20 and 74 years of age (1). Diabetic nephropathy is the leading cause of patients undergoing dialysis for end-stage renal disease (2). Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is the underlying cause of nontraumatic lower-extremity amputations in diabetic patients (3). More than half of lower-extremity amputations occur in people with diabetes (4) who at that time constituted only 4.5% of the population (5). The prevalence of coronary artery disease is twofold higher in men with diabetes and fourfold higher in women with diabetes compared with appropriate nondiabetic control subjects (6). Strokes are two to three times more common in people with diabetes than in those without the disease (7). Peripheral vascular disease is also much more common in diabetic patients compared with nondiabetic individuals (8).

The total cost of caring for people with diabetes in this country in 1992 (106 billion dollars) represented 15% of the total health care budget (720 billion dollars) (5). In a more recent study, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) study found that in 1997 the specific (direct) costs for diabetes care was 44 billion dollars with another 54 billion dollars lost to the economy through indirect costs (i.e., short- and long-term disability and losses secondary to premature mortality) (9). Medicare spent 26.5% of its budget on diabetic patients (5). The excess costs for diabetes in Kaiser-Permanente in Northern California amounted to $3,494 per patient per year (10). Much of these increased costs for diabetes were for related complications. There were progressively increasing costs associated with worsening diabetic control in patients with either diabetes alone or with hypertension and heart disease (11). Increased glycated hemoglobin levels predicted higher rates of …


UD Fajar Samudra is a manufacturing company engaged in rice production. This studied aims to analyze the influence of Brand Image and Brand Trust on Brand Loyalty at UD Fajar Samudra. The researched design uses the survey method. The typed of data used was quantitative data with primary data in the form of a questionnaire. The population of this studied were 100 rice customers UD Fajar Samudra located in Sumbawa district. Samples were taken by systematic sampling technique. Analysis of this researched data using SPSS 16.0. The results of the studied prove that brand image had a positive and significant effect on brand loyalty, brand trust had a positive and significant effect on brand loyalty, and brand image and brand trust simultaneously had a positive and significant effect on brand loyalty.


The S∧4 reactor has a sectored, Mo‐14%Re solid core for avoidance of single point failures in reactor cooling and Closed Brayton Cycle (CBC) energy conversion. The reactor is loaded with UN fuel, cooled with a He‐Xe gas mixture at ∼1200 K and operates at steady thermal power of 550 kW. Following a launch abort accident, the axial and radial BeO reflectors easily disassemble upon impact so that the bare reactor is subcriticial when submerged in wet sand or seawater and the core voids are filled with seawater. Spectral Shift Absorber (SSA) additives have been shown to increase the UN fuel enrichment and significantly reduce the total mass of the reactor. This paper investigates the effects of SSA additions on the temperature and burnup reactivity coefficients and the operational lifetime of the S∧4 reactor. SSAs slightly decrease the temperature reactivity feedback coefficient, but significantly increase the operating lifetime by decreasing the burnup reactivity coefficient. With no SSAs, fuel enrichment is...


The present investigation was performed to harness the potentialities of date fruit to analyze zahidi (Yellow coloured) and khuneizi (Red coloured) varieties of date palm fruit for neutraceutical values. The assessment regarding neutraceuticals contents of fresh date fruits (doka stage) revealed a significant amount of flavanoids (3.26-4.67 CEQ/100g), Total phenolic content (212.53-224.53 mg GAE/100g) and Total antioxidant activity by DPPH assay (39.43-44.48%). Khuneizi variety had significantly higher (p<.05) flavanoids, phenols and antioxidant activity as compare to zahidi variety. A strong significant correlation was observed among flavanoids, phenols and antioxidant activity. Thus, date fruits have a great potential to be considered as functional food owing to its neutraceutical contents.


The school of sociological law is a main school of the West in modern times and its nature finds expression in realistic law.Its theories on right originated from Pound's sociological law.Its basic theory is a criticism of the system of the legal right of the past and it attaches importance to "realistic law" rather then "law in the book".This paper gives an interpretation of the theories on right by Pound,Selmick and Luhmann and concludes that the task of law is not the creation of interests,but the recognition,confirmation,realization and guarantee of interests or right in order to make law a powerful means for social and economic adjustment and control and realize the maximal social benefits and good social order.


Background Although repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been extensively studied in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), the clinical evidence remains inconsistent. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of rTMS on global cognitive function in patients with AD. Methods An integrated literature search using 4 databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library) was performed to identify English language articles published up to October 6, 2021. We pooled Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) scores using a random-effects model via RevMan 5.4 software. We calculated estimates of mean differences (MD) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). The primary outcomes were pre-post treatment changes in global cognition as measured using MMSE and ADAS-Cog immediately after rTMS treatment, and the secondary outcome was duration of cognitive improvement (1–1.5 and ≥3 months). Results Nine studies with 361 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that rTMS significantly improved global cognitive function immediately following rTMS treatment [(MD) 1.82, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.41–2.22, p < 0.00001, MMSE; 2.72, 95% CI, 1.77–3.67, p < 0.00001, ADAS-Cog], and the therapeutic effects persisted for an extended duration (2.20, 95% CI, 0.93–3.47, p =0.0007, MMSE; 1.96, 95% CI, 0.96–2.95, p = 0.0001, ADAS-Cog). Subgroup analyses showed that high frequency rTMS targeted to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) for over 20 sessions induced the greatest cognitive improvement, with effects lasting for more than 1 month after the final treatment. There were no significant differences in dropout rate (p > 0.05) or adverse effect rate (p > 0.05) between the rTMS and control groups. Conclusions Repetitive TMS is a potentially effective treatment for cognitive impairment in AD that is safe and can induce long-lasting effects. Our results also showed that ADAS-cog and MMSE differed in determination of global cognitive impairment. Systematic review registration http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO, PROSPERO CRD42022315545.


Prostaglandin analogues are widely used in the treatment of congenital ductal heart disease, prolonging patients' lives until corrective treatment is possible. Although its use is quite common, some manifestations related to its prolonged administration are few, including periostitis that can alter undesirable clinical changes such as hypomobility, pain and soft tissue edema. This essay aims to emphasize the radiological results of the periosteum secondary to the use of prostaglandin, through cases experienced in our service.


The purpose of this study was to examine recreation functioning including perceived freedom in leisure and changes in favorite recreation activities, and depression in people with arthritis. Subjects were 59 people ranging in ages from 22 to 81 who were members of six Arthritis Foundation groups or clubs in the metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona, area. Participants completed the 25-item Leisure Diagnostic Battery Short Form B (LOB-B), the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and a 14-item survey collecting demographic and descriptive data. Stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that total or partial BDI scores were accounted for by change in favorite recreation activities, rheumatoid arthritis, and children living at home. LDB-B scores were not predicted by any of these variables but suggested that 45 subjects (76.3%) had positive feelings about the more sedentary recreation activities they had changed to because ofarthritis. Some recommendations for further study and for therapeutic recreation professionals working with people with arthritis are given.


Ultra-wideband (UWB) millimeters (mm) Wave radar system (100) is the control input (106), including GHz signal output, and the frequency controlled signal source having an output (108) to (105). Control loop (146) is coupled between the control input and the GHz signal output, a frequency divider (110), and a digitally controlled PLL (115), PLL (115), the control signal source providing locked coupled to the input output, it is the discrete frequency sweep, or is a discrete frequency hop, to provide a frequency locked output signal (119). Frequency multiplier (127) is, in order to output a plurality of millimeter wave frequencies, is coupled to the output which is the frequency control signal source. Antenna (134) is, the millimeter-wave frequencies, and transmitted to the surface (151) to be sent the response signal, receives a reflected millimeter wave signal therefrom. It determines mixer (140), and a reflected millimeter wave signal and the millimeter-wave frequency mixing, the processing circuit (165), from the mixed output, at least one parameter associated with the surface.


The access in fresh water supply in Roxas is mostly from Umalad watershed. Majority of the households' water consumption in Poblacion is supplied by the shed. This study used the descriptive qualitative method in determining water quality and quantity, watershed ecosystem, management activities, conservation and restoration, monitoring, and sustainability. The findings were the water from Umalad watershed is safe to drink; 7 plants/tree recommended for watershed are found in the area; management is concentrated on extensive annual tree planting; sustainability of the watershed depends primarily on the presence of adequate vegetation; stressors found in the area charcoal making, slash and burn activities, presence of residents and logging. It could be concluded that the Umalad watershed has quality control as to the safety of water; stressors in the area affects the sustainability of the water quantity along the minimal government intervention in the management of the watershed. It is recommended that vegetation in the area should be properly monitored and maintained; plans and strategies should be implemented effectively; legislations against charcoal making slash and burn activities and logging in the area should be strictly implemented; residents present in the area can be considered as co-managers of the watershed; analysis of the water coming from the household faucets as distributed by the Roxas Water District (RWD) is recommended.


This paper investigated the effect of stacking sequence on the low velocity impact behavior of glass and jute fiber reinforced hybrid composites. The hand layup method is used to fabricate the composites with various stacking sequences. The low velocity impact analysis was carried out at various impact energies, namely 5 J, 10 J and 15 J. Dye penetrant inspection (liquid penetrate inspection) was performed to analyses the damage area in the composites. Compression after impact (CAI) testing was conducted to study the compression strength of the composites after the impact. The study revealed that the jute fiber composites exhibited better results in terms of energy absorption, but the damage area of the composites was higher, compared to the other specimens fabricated. Meanwhile, hybrid composite S7 presented high energy absorption and the minimum damage area. To conclude, the hybrid composite S7 appeared to have the optimum formulation, showing better results in energy absorption, with lower damage and higher compression strength.


ABSTRACT:I argue that gendered stereotypes, gendered emotions and attitudes, and display rules can influence extrinsic regulation stages, making failure points likely to occur in gendered-context and for reasons that the emotion regulation literature has not given adequate attention to. As a result, I argue for 'feminist emotional intelligence' as a way to help escape these failures. Feminist emotional intelligence, on my view, is a nonideal ability-based approach that equips a person to effectively reason about emotions through an intersectional lens and use emotions to inform how we think and react to the world. This includes being attuned to the ways in which the world and our emotional lives are structured by and favors men. It stresses the need to be attuned to, as well as resist and challenge gender-based stereotypes and attitudes around emotions, paying close attention to the ways those stereotypes, norms, and attitudes differ across race, class, ethnicity, et cetera.


Generally speaking, the crack in viscoelastic materials will grow in some unknown speed even if the applied load is quasistatic, thus the main difficulty is induced in deriving the energy release rate. In this paper, we redefine the energy release rate (ERR) of crack growth as the energy change at the same time t between the two states of the structure, one is with crack length a under the loading /spl sigma/(t), the other is the state with crack length a+/spl Delta/a under the same loading condition. Thus the defined energy release rate corresponds to the released energy when a crack grows suddenly from a to a+/spl Delta/a. It is found that under a given loading history, the ERR is a function of time, and its maximum value should correspond to the critical state for delamination to propagate. Following William's work, the explicit expressions of ERR for DCB experimental configurations to measure the interfacial fracture toughness have been obtained through the classical beam assumption.


The hydrological processes that govern water balance in the Great Lakes region are undergoing significant change as shifting climatic conditions continue to impact the area. Meteoric water isotopes (δO and δH) are an efficient tool for studying these changes, but little work has been done to describe the baseline isotopic variability of meteoric waters in the Great Lakes region. Here I analyze precipitation, river, lake, and groundwater samples collected from the University of Michigan Central Campus (UMCC) and University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) from April 2017 to February 2020 to understand how their isotopic compositions vary seasonally, between sampling sites, and by water type. The precipitation, river, and lake water samples collected from both the UMCC and UMBS show seasonal patterns in isotopic composition that are consistent with previously established predictions for isotopic seasonality in the mid to high latitudes. Precipitation samples collected from each sampling location show little variation between sampling sites, demonstrating the pervasiveness of the regional isotopic signal produced by Lake Michigan evaporation. δO and d-excess values of the precipitation, lake, and groundwater samples collected from the UMBS indicate hydrologic mixing between each water source and demonstrate the usefulness of sampling multiple water types when studying hydrologically connected groundwater and surface water systems. Precipitation samples from the UMCC and UMBS demonstrated high d-excess values ranging from 3.1 to 25.0‰ and -3.2 to 25.2‰ respectively, which indicates the input of recycled moisture from Lake Michigan. In addition to investigating isotopic variability, I assess the usefulness of downwind precipitation d-excess values as a proxy for tracing changes in evaporation on the Great Lakes with a simple isotopic mixing model and conclude that climate-induced changes in evaporation may be difficult to identify over small time scales. With rapidly changing climatic conditions threatening to alter the hydrologic processes that govern water balance in the Great Lakes region, this work serves as an important baseline for tracing future hydrologic change using meteoric water isotopes.


The purpose of this paper is to identify the physical threats to the Colombian state
that must be confronted by security agencies and in particular by the national army after the
signing of a peace process with the FARC and the ELN, considering that the guerrilla
organizations failed in their objective was the seizure of power by armed means, they are in
negotiation processes whose completion is expected to be in the short term, but the signing
of these processes does not mean the extinction of agents and causes of violence, an element
that forces the curriculum in schools army of new security threats to propose strategies to
neutralization


This study investigates older Ghanaian adults' lived experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic along the trajectory of social, healthcare, childcare, self-care and humanitarian dimensions and how they navigated the effects thereof, utilizing interpretive methodology based qualitative dataset. The sample [n=10] was selected using purposive sampling technique. The paper finds that the current pandemic poses significant social challenges. The restrictions on human social movements has implications for social isolation. Social isolation can lead to loneliness and depression. Essentially, loneliness and long-term social distancing physiologically have the propensity to decrease the ability of an individual to fight infections and inflammations. In consequence, the study participants adopted a myriad of survival strategies such as social bonding with grandchildren, keeping busy, fending for and socialising children outside the traditional classroom environment and yet keeping them focused academically. These activities facilitate social interaction among older adults and children with implication for bridging the childcare gap that the closure of schools has brought about with some form of relief for working mothers. It also serves as an income generating avenue in disguise albeit meagre.  In conclusion, more reflection on and the study of the social, psychological/emotional, self-care and childcare challenge dimensions of the pandemic is imperative.


Objective: This paper describes the Lamar Soutter Library's process and costs associated with digitizing 300 doctoral dissertations for a newly implemented institutional repository at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Methodology: Project tasks included identifying metadata elements, obtaining and tracking permissions, converting the dissertations to an electronic format, and coordinating workflow between library departments. Each dissertation was scanned, reviewed for quality control, enhanced with a table of contents, processed through an optical character recognition function, and added to the institutional repository. Results: Three hundred and twenty dissertations were digitized and added to the repository for a cost of $23,562, or $0.28 per page. Seventy-four percent of the authors who were contacted (n5282) granted permission to digitize their dissertations. Processing time per title was 170 minutes, for a total processing time of 906 hours. In the first 17 months, full-text dissertations in the collection were downloaded 17,555 times. Conclusion: Locally digitizing dissertations or other scholarly works for inclusion in institutional repositories can be cost effective, especially if small, defined projects are chosen. A successful project serves as an excellent recruitment strategy for the institutional repository and helps libraries build new relationships. Challenges include workflow, cost, policy development, and copyright permissions. INTRODUCTION Digitization projects in libraries seem ubiquitous as libraries become increasingly involved in the acquisition , development, and management of digital information [1]. Libraries typically target archival and special collections materials such as historical documents and photographs [2]. Projects to digitize vast collections of books began as early as 1971 with Project Gutenberg and are now getting widespread media attention with the launch of Google Book Search, the Internet Archive, and others [3]. In an April 2007 list of ten assumptions about the future that would significantly impact academic libraries and librarians, the Association of College & Research Libraries Research Committee placed digitization at the top of the list, stating, ''There will be an increased emphasis on digitizing collections, preserving digital archives, and improving methods of data storage and retrieval'' [4]. A related emergent trend in academic libraries is the implementation of institutional repositories (IRs), digital collections that capture and preserve the intellectual output of university communities [5]. A search of OpenDOAR, the Directory of Open Access Repositories, lists 298 academic repositories in North America [6]. Health sciences libraries are among those contributing to this trend; of 125 libraries that responded to a 2006 supplementary survey for the


Remote and Distributed Visualization Architectures E. Wes Bethel Computational Research Division Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA, 94720. Mark Miller Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA, 94551. November 2012


The article researches the legal regime of the Bulgarian higher schools from the Liberation until present days in historical and comparatively - legal aspect, in order to systematize the legislative amendments. The legal regime of the higher schools is not being researched from juridical point of view, what provokes the interest of the author to an article in this direction. The author makes a periodization and analysis of the legislation in the area of the higher education in Bulgaria, and on basis of this analysis she makes important conclusions about the Bulgarian system of higher education. The development of the higher education is directly connected to the scientific researches and innovations and is a guarantee for high-qualified graduates/specialists, who are of importance for the whole European Community (European Union).


Incorporation of large meshes in the body of trawl nets reduces the drag substantially and thereby the fuel consumption. Comparative trawling of 28.6 m large mesh four-seam trawl with 26.7 m high opening bottom trawl were conducted off Mangalorc coast during D cember 1989 to May 1990. The large mesh trawl was found to register 33-34% less resistance than the high opening bottom trawl at an average trawling speed of 2-2.5 knots according to theoretical C41lculaUons without any significant effect on catch.