We develop here a novel approach to barcode large numbers of cells through cell-surface expression of programmable zinc-finger DNA-binding domains (sZFs). We show sZFs enable double-stranded DNA to sequence-specifically label living cells, and also develop a sequential tagging approach to in situ image >3 cell types using just 3 fluorophores. Finally we demonstrate their broad versatility through ability to serve as surrogate reporters and facilitate selective cell capture and targeting. The ability to construct and interrogate complex tissues and cellular libraries at single cell resolution requires methods that enable highly multiplexed in situ probing of living cells. Here while the use of fluorescent proteins has revolutionized probing of biological phenomena, their multiplexed use is limited to combinations that can be spectrally resolved. To expand the repertoire of probing tools, we explored the possibility of using DNA binding domains such as zinc finger proteins (ZFs) and transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs). Our motivation stemmed from the observation that as a receptor-ligand pair the ZF-DNA or TALE-DNA interaction is very unique in that both the receptor (ZF or TALE protein) and the ligand (DNA) are highly programmable, and hence the space of engineerable orthogonal interactions is huge. Consequently they can be leveraged for engineering macromolecular interactions beyond genome targeting1–4. Specifically, here we exploit the programmability of this interaction to devise a scheme to barcode and image large numbers of cell types by anchoring zinc finger proteins to the outside of the cell membrane and thus making them accessible to DNA based probes provided in the extracellular medium. To express zinc-finger DNA binding domains on the cell surface, we fused at their Nterminus an Ig κ-chain leader sequence and at the C-terminus a platelet derived growth factor (PDGF) transmembrane domain (refer Methods)5. To test the ability of surface zinc finger (sZF) expressing cells to bind DNA we exposed them to fluorophore tagged DNA molecules. sZF expressing cells strongly bound the DNA while control cells exhibited very low binding signals, implying functional zinc-finger proteins were successfully expressed on 4Correspondence should be addressed to firstname.lastname@example.com. 3These authors contributed equally to this work. Author Contributions PM and GMC conceived the study and designed the experiments. PM performed experiments. JL, DL and LN developed reagents. JA developed the image analysis suite and performed associated analyses. PM, JA and GMC wrote the manuscript with support from all authors. NIH Public Access Author Manuscript Nat Methods. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2013 November 01. Published in final edited form as: Nat Methods. 2013 May ; 10(5): 403–406. doi:10.1038/nmeth.2407. N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript the cell surface (Fig. 1a). Two aspects of this sZF-DNA interaction were of note: First, sZFs were observed to bind to both single6 and double stranded DNA molecules (Supplementary Fig. 1a), however the former interaction was abrogated in the presence of competitor dsDNA (here Salmon Sperm DNA). Second, sZFs also non-specifically bound to dsDNA, but again in the presence of competitor dsDNA binding to only their cognate target dsDNA was retained (Supplementary Fig. 1b). Similar results were obtained using FACS based assays too (Supplementary Fig. 2). Thus in the presence of competitor dsDNA, sZF expressing cells specifically bind their target dsDNA probe and hence each zinc-finger protein uniquely barcodes the cell type expressing them (Fig. 1b). A total of 16 zinc finger proteins7 were tested using this approach (protein sequences and target dsDNA sequences are provided in Supplementary Table 1). Several aspects of sZFdsDNA interactions emerged from this analysis. First, different sZFs have different binding affinities for their target dsDNA (Fig. 1c). Specifically, while some bound, as assayed by both fluorescence intensity and duration of binding, their targets strongly (ZFs 1, 3, 8, 12, 13, 15, 16), some were moderately strong binders (ZFs 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 14), while others were only weak binders (ZFs 9, 11). Next we evaluated the sZF cross reactivity profile for these 16 ZFs (Fig. 1d). We found that while most zinc fingers bound their target dsDNA specifically, some showed a significant degree of cross-reactivity (ZFs 1, 8, 13). The strong ZF binders were particularly susceptible to this phenomenon8. Interestingly, almost all the zinc fingers were observed to bind the ZF16 target dsDNA, likely in part to the high poly-G rich content of this sequence. Based on the above ZFs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 12, 14, 15 were found to be orthogonal to each other and were moderate to strong binders and thus good candidates for barcoding cells. If sZFs are to serve as efficacious barcodes compatible with analysis of structured tissues, they must enable differential labeling of cells in complex mixtures that is detectable in microscopic images. To investigate this we designed experiments to image and analyze mixtures of sZF expressing cell populations. Specifically, cells expressing either sZF1, sZF2, sZF3 or sZF4 were mixed in pairs (sZF1+sZF2; and sZF3+sZF4) or in a pool of three (sZF1+sZF2+sZF3), and were probed using appropriate combinations of fluorophore labeled target dsDNA molecules. We then developed a suite of MatLab GUI applications to analyze the resulting images and compute quantitative measures of the specificity of binding of sZFs to their corresponding oligos at both the whole cell and single pixel level (processing flow for images is depicted in Supplementary Fig. 3). Qualitative inspection and quantitative analysis of the images confirms that the sZF-dsDNA interactions are sequence specific (Figs. 2a, 2b, & 2c, Supplementary Table 2, and Supplementary Figs. 3–9). Exploring additional ZFs, or extending this approach to TALEs9, 10 will further expand and refine the list of orthogonal interaction pairs that can be exploited for cellular barcoding. Regardless, one is still limited by the small number of spectrally distinct fluorophores available for simultaneous cell imaging. To address this problem we next devised a sequential live-cell hybridization and imaging approach (suitable for adherent cells). It uses a modified two-part DNA probe that presents a double-stranded portion that binds the sZF and a single-stranded portion containing barcode sequences that can be read-out by serial hybridizations (approach in Fig. 2d): this approach is fast and does not use enzymes or chemical reactions and is thus compatible with use on live cells. Extending this scheme to n steps enables barcoding of 3n cell types using just 3 fluorophores. A basic demonstration of the scheme in a simplex setting is provided in Fig. 2e where sZF expressing cells are sequentially probed each sZF identity here is encoded by two colors, for instance sZF2 by green in step 1 and red in step 2, sZF3 by red in step 1 and blue in step 2 and similarly for sZFs 6, 12, 14 and 15 (Fig. 2f). We were also able to mix up to six individually labeled cells and identify their barcode in situ using two hybridization cycles (Figs. 2g, 2h). In these Mali et al. Page 2 Nat Methods. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2013 November 01. N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript experiments, the zinc finger-binding probes were also re-supplied for each round of sequencing by hybridization. This re-probing compensated for the loss of fluorescence signal due to the dissociation of dsDNA probes from the sZFs in the interval between imaging steps, and also aided in active displacement of the existing probes, thus mitigating effects of any incomplete quenching in the previous step (refer also Supplementary Figs. 10, 11 respectively for the dissociation kinetics of dsDNA probes and confirmation of the genotype-to-labeling association in these experiments). Use of toe-hold mediated strand exchange11 to displace bound DNA probes can be exploited to further refine this technique. Overall, our results in Fig. 2e and Fig. 2h above suggest that such a sequential tagging scheme can successfully identify the various constituent cells in complex mixtures of barcoded cell types using just 3 spectrally distinct fluorophores. Finally we explored the versatility of sZFs through three applications. First we used sZFs as surrogate reporters of endogenous cellular activity. For this, lentiviral vectors with small molecule (tetracycline and cumate) inducible promoters for driving sZF expression were constructed. Stable transductions of 293T and HeLa cells were performed, and upon small molecule induction sZF expression could indeed be readily detected by the ability of the cells to bind dsDNA molecules (Fig. 3a, Supplementary Fig. 12). This temporally inducible expression of barcodes can also be exploited to minimize effects of sZF expression on cell physiology and toxicity (Supplementary Fig. 13). Second, we exploited the fact that sZFs are expressed on cell surfaces where they are physically accessible and can thus provide convenient handles for DNA mediated cell capture. Specifically, sZF expressing cells were successfully enriched from a mixed population of K562 cells by performing a pull-down using either dsDNA probe-conjugated magnetic beads (Fig. 3b), or on dsDNA arrays (Supplementary Fig. 14). Third, we demonstrated sZF mediated selective gene delivery by pseudotyping12 lentiviruses with dsDNA probes (Supplementary Fig. 15). Specifically, these modified lentiviruses successfully delivered genes to sZF barcoded cells, but in the absence of the DNA pseudotyping, lentiviral delivery efficiency was significantly diminished (Fig. 3c). Taken together, these three applications demonstrate that sZFs have uses beyond direct labeling that include state-probing, capt


This work reports experimental studies on radiative heat flux between two parallel glass surfaces. Small polystyrene particles are used as spacers to maintain a micron-sized gap between two optical flats. By carefully choosing the number of particles and performing the measurement in a high-vacuum environment, the experiment is designed to ensure that the radiative heat flux is the dominant mode of heat transfer. The experimental results clearly demonstrate that the radiative heat flux across micron-sized gaps can exceed the far-field upper limit given by Planck's law of blackbody radiation. The measured radiative heat flux shows reasonable agreement with theoretical predictions.


THE STUDY OF heredity in psychology has mainly concentrated on twins with the specific objectives conditioned by this kind of material. Only sporadical attempts have been made to study heredity according to Mendelian principles. The reason for this is probably to be found in the fact that most behavior patterns are not stable enough to permit a Mendelian hypothesis. The question may be raised, however, if psycho-genetics does not have at its command an instrument which could be used far more often than has been the case. This instrument is population genetics. In his book, "Mathematical Methods for Population Genetics", Dahlberg (1947), has given formulae which have applicability on a number of problems in human genetics. The working conditions encountered by psychology, especially as regards environmental influences and methods of measurement, necessitates, however, the construction of special formulae to meet its demand. Formulae not based on Mendelian principles are, of course, out of the question. The suggestions presented in this paper are therefore nothing but applications of the Mendelian principles on problems of particular interest to the psychologist. In order to be able to draw any conclusions regarding the course of inheritance of a specific trait it is necessary to know the proportions of the phenotypes that may occur. This may be possible when panmixia prevails which is probably the case for a number of mental traits with a hereditary background. The simplest case is found when the inheritance is monofactorial and there are no more than two alleles. This paper mainly deals with this case. When it comes to mental traits, possible deviations from the classical Mendelian principles of manifestation, must be taken into account. The reason is that psychology has to work with behavior and not with morphological traits, and the behavior is less constant and more easily influenced by environmental factors, than other hereditarily conditioned expressions. It is probably more of a rule than an exception that behavior tendencies are so influenced by the environment that the original effect of the genotype no longer can be observed. If we conceive, for instance, that a certain behavior pattern is promoted by a dominant gene and that the proportion between the alleles is such as to let the majority be characterized by the dominant behavior, a social pressure may arise in the population promoting the dominant behavior at the expense of the recessive behavior. The recessive homozygotes are thereby forced to adopt the more sanctioned dominant behavior. An example of this is found in the strive of the lefthanded to accept and adopt the right-handed behavior which is exrpessed in a decreasing frequency of left-handedness with increasing age.


Infrared and Raman spectroscopy are standardmethods for the detection of carbonate minerals in mineralogical and material science studies.1,2 However, identi® cation of carbonates may be rendered dif® cult by the substitution of cations. Therefore, the effect of the incorporation of cations into the crystal lattice of carbonates on vibrational spectra has been investigated in a number of studies, mainly for parts of the system calcite± magnesite± siderite± rhodochrosite (CaCO3 ± MgCO3 ± FeCO3 ± MnCO3). 6 The present study deals with the FT-IR spectra of CaCO3 ± CdCO3 (calcite± otavite) solid solutions which have been measured to investigate the relation between chemical composition and the wavenumbers of internal and combination modes of the carbonate ion group. In the mid-infrared spectrum of rhombohedral carbonates


Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST) is the most frequent mesenchymal tumor of the gastrointestinal tract; its most common site is the stomach (50-60%), followed by small bowel (20-30%), and large bowel (10%), being less frequently found in the retroperitoneum, esophagus, omentum, and mesentery [1-4]. Because in many cases this tumor shows a relatively slow growth rate and there is occurrence of clinically silent GISTs in up to 3% of autopsies [5] its true incidence is unknown. It has been estimated that approximately 5,000 new cases of GIST are diagnosed each year in the US alone [6]. No data are currently available regarding the epidemiology of GIST in Brazil, but there has been growing interest in this disease on the part of clinicians and investigators over the years.


Objective
To analyze and provide the basis for the implementation of clinical nursing cause liver cancer for patients after liver transplantation appears early abdominal distension, formulate effective nursing countermeasures.

Methods
In our hospital,82 cases of early abdominal complications in liver transplantation hepatic carcinoma patients after anesthesia, the operation time, patient's medication, peritoneal effusion and adhesion and postoperative pain caused by the impact of other data were analyzed,and then for the patient to develop effective nursing measures.

Results
After liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma patients, the average time of abdominal distension was (3. 7±1. 1) d, the average time of analgesia pump was(2. 5±0. 4) d, the time of exhaust was(6. 7±2) d, hospitalization time was(10. 8±3. 6) d. Peritoneal effusion and adhesion, drug dosage during operation and the operation time increased postoperative complications.

Conclusions
After operation, the application of antibiotics, abdominal fomentation and massage, foot bath with warm water, nutrition and early ambulation could promote gastrointestinal motility, ease intra-abdominal hypertension status, so as to accelerate the progress of rehabilitation.

Key words:
Liver transplantation; Gastrointestinal motility; Abdominal distension; Decompression


In order to design a prototype for the cross-domain access control (XDAC) system, a PKI approach is used, in which users are identified by using public key certificates. The main features of the approach are: access control by (client, role) pair, implied revocation based on the role hierarchy, and certificate chains to prove a client role hierarchy to a server.


Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) represents 15% of all lung cancers with roughly 30,000 new cases in the U.S. annually. SCLC remains the deadliest histologic subtype with a median survival of only 12.3 months among those with extensive-stage (ES-SCLC) disease as demonstrated in the IMPower133 trial. Recent research by our group (Gay et al, 2021) has demonstrated that SCLC is defined by four transcriptionally defined subtypes, characterized by the predominant expression of the three transcription factors ASCL1 (SCLC-A), NEUROD1 (SCLC-N), POU2F3 (SCLC-P), and a fourth, inflamed subtype (SCLC-I). While SCLC is commonly associated with a history of heavy smoking, there is a paucity of information regarding tumors arising in patients with minimal tobacco use. This represents an unmet need given an increasing appreciation for low pack-year and never-smoker SCLC with some studies, like the CAPSTONE-1 trial, demonstrating an incidence of never-smoking SCLC >20%. To address this disparity, we profiled a cohort of 113 SCLC patients with ≤10 pack-year smoking history (~12.9% of patients with SCLC seen over that time period) treated at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Clinical outcomes were analyzed, as was transcriptomic analysis in a subset of patients. The overall survival of limited-stage (LS-SCLC) and ES-SCLC in the low-pack year cohort was 26.9 and 16.5 months respectively (P=0.029); superior to historic medians of roughly 17.0 and 12.3 months respectively. Interestingly, TP53 and RB1 mutations were significantly less common in the low-pack year cohort compared to patients with higher smoking burdens as determined by George et al. who evaluated 110 SCLC samples using whole-genome sequencing. Clinically obtained mutational analysis of our cohort (N=49) demonstrated a TP53 mutational incidence of 51.0% vs 98.2% from George et al. (P<0.001). Similarly, our RB1 mutational incidence was 26.5% vs 90.9% from George et al. (P<0.001). Samples lacking TP53-RB1 coexisting mutations frequently demonstrated abnormalities in alternative DNA repair genes including STK11, POLE, PALB2, MUTYH, MSH2, MSH6, MLH1, MDM2, BRCA2, and ARID1A. Given these findings, we performed whole-transcriptome profiling on our low pack-year SCLC samples to determine the SCLC-subtypes and identify unique gene signatures which may drive oncogenesis via mechanisms distinct from loss of RB1 and TP53. These data demonstrate that SCLC arising from patients with minimal smoking histories confers a more favorable prognosis and harbors unique RNA signatures with potential therapeutic implications. We anticipate these results will shift the current clinical practice toward routine evaluation of non-RB1 or TP53-mediated drivers of oncogenesis among low pack-year patients with SCLC and promote further work in identifying novel therapies for this population.
 Citation Format: Kyle Concannon, Simon Heeke, Moushumi Sahu, Ximing Tang, Koji Sasaki, Sonia Patel, Maria Gabriela Raso, Hai Tran, Carl Gay, Lauren Byers. Clinical and transcriptomic analysis demonstrates improved survival and unique gene expression signatures among SCLC arising in patients with minimal tobacco use [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 1398.


Conditions commonly managed by primary care providers (PCPs) such as depression, diabetes, and heart disease, commonly co-occur with sleep disorders. If PCPs could readily identify comorbid sleep disorders in this context, it may provide a pathway to more effective management of both types of disorders. Currently, it is unknown what might encourage or discourage PCPs from routinely screening their patients for sleep disorders.

 PCPs from UPENN and GHS completed surveys regarding sleep health. The 30-item instrument comprised demographic, 14 VAS (0%-100%=strongly disagree-strongly agree), 4 open-ended, 3 yes/no, and 2 multiple-choice questions.

 Ninety-nine PCPs responded and were predominately female (61% F, 37%M, 2% other), Caucasian (81%), on-average 45yrs old (25-70) and in primary care for 16yrs (1-43). Fifty-six percent were MDs, 21%DOs, 17%PAs, and 6%NPs. PCPs rated sleep disorders as highly important for cardiopulmonary, mental, and general health (85, 84, & 83%), with no difference (per linear regression, p>0.05) according to system or provider characteristics. PCPs reported high importance for knowing about and diagnosing sleep disorders (88% & 82%) within their practices. Lower comfort levels were reported for discussing (78%) sleep disorders, overseeing/following (62%), diagnosing (60%), or treating (48%) patients. Eighty percent of PCPs stated an efficient sleep disorders screener would be useful for their practice; this perception varied (per logistic regression) according to provider credentials (Wald=0.037) and Hispanic/Latino ethnicity (Wald=0.025). PCPs reported time constraints limit their responsiveness to sleep disorders

 A large disparity exists between the importance PCPs place on sleep disorders and their low comfort levels with following, diagnosing, and treating sleep disorders. PCPs endorsed the need to have available an efficient sleep disorders screener to use in their practice.

 No funding was received for this study.


Abstract
 The plant individual is a holobiont as it hosts diverse microbial assemblages in and on vegetative, reproductive or disseminative organs. All plant compartments - roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds - have been shown to host microorganisms that can influence positively or negatively the plants performance. Some of these microorganisms thrive as endophytes inside plant tissues. Identifying the environmental sources of these microorganisms and the route they take to colonize plant tissues, visualizing their niches within their hosts and understanding how they make intimate associations with plants are of crucial importance in developing biocontrol and biofertilization approaches, both in organic and integrated protection systems. This chapter considers that the plant individual is part of a complex network of biotic interactions influenced by the environment in the phytobiome and provides a comprehensive review on the development of the interactions between plants and beneficial bacterial endophytes.


Aims: The species complex and abundance of panicle pests of sorghum was studied on eight sorghum varieties and cultivars in field trial in order identify the pest spectrum complexity on sorghum and at what time of the season they are in abundance and identify which of the sorghum varieties supports fewer pests and incorporate it in integrated pest management programme (IPM) for future studies. Study Design:The experiment was laid in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) which was replicated 3times on 12m2 plots consisting of eight sorghum varieties and cultivars.


Summary This paper continues the study of the relationship between electron density and carcinogenic activity for compounds related to p -dimethylaminoazobenzene (Cancer Res., 29: 1341–1344, 1969) and reports on the seven p -dimethylaminophenylazoquinolines. A relationship was found between carcinogenic activity and the pK a of the amino nitrogen in these compounds, and in this new series a relationship also was found for carcinogenic activity and the pK a of the azo nitrogen.


Na-Tosyl->Llysine chloromethyl ketone (Tos- LysCH2Cl) was found to inhibit irreversibly the onset of the hormone-induced refractory state in intact thymocytes. When thymocytes (;2 X 107 cells per ml) are treated with TosLysCH2CI (10-4 M, for 90 min at pH 7 and 37°C) the cells retain their viability, including a full capacity to recognize and respond to hormonal stimuli, yet they selectively lose their ability to become desensitized to persistent triggering by a hormone, as reflected in the state of activation of intracellular cyclic AMP- dependent protein kinase (ATP:protein phosphotransferase, EC 22.214.171.124). Whereas upon hormonal stimulation of untreated cells the immediate rise in the state of activation of this enzyme (up to an activity ratio of >0.85) is followed by an exponential de- cline to basal values within t60 min, in TosLysCH2CI-treated cells the hormone-triggered elevation in the state of activation of the enzyme is maintained for >60 min. Evidence is presented to suggest that in thymocytes TosLysCH2CI inhibits the regu- latory process that normally uncouples the adenylate cyclase [ATP pyrophosphate-lyase (cyclizing), EC 22.214.171.124 system without interfering with previous or subsequent molecular events con-nected with the transfer of hormonal signals across the cell membrane. This technique allows,


Pre-sowing treatment of seeds using a low frequency magnetic field (16 Hz, 5mT) and its impact on the yield and quality of plants were investigated. Magnetic treatments increased the emergence of seeds, especially for low vigour seeds. The chlorophyll content also increased significantly. As a result, the yield of plant roots was increased. The magnetic field also influenced the content of sugar in the root of the beet.


Prostatectomy patients are at high risk of developing erectile dysfunction (ED) that is refractory to PDE5 inhibitors. The cavernous nerve (CN), which innervates the penis, is frequently damaged during prostatectomy, causing loss of neurotransmission, remodeling of penile architecture, including abundant smooth muscle apoptosis and fibrosis, resulting in ED.

 In this study we perform microarray and pathway analysis to identify signaling mechanisms that are altered with ED and penile remodeling, in order to develop novel therapies for ED prevention and treatment.

 Corpora cavernosal tissue was obtained from Peyronie's (control, n=3) and prostatectomy (control, n=3) patients that underwent prosthesis implant to treat ED. Sprague Dawley rat penis was obtained from rats that underwent bilateral CN resection (n=5) or sham surgery (controls, n=5), and corpora cavernosa was dissected after two days. RNA was extracted using TRIzol, DNase treated, and purified by Qiagen mini kit. Microarray was performed using the Human Gene 2.0 ST Array and the RU34 rat array. Differentially expressed genes were identified in corpora cavernosa from prostatectomy patients using several analytical tools (ShinyGO, WebGestalt) and databases (GO, Reactome). Comparison of patient and rat pathway analysis was performed. Two technical replicates were examined. A two-fold change was used as threshold for differential expression. FDR<0.05 was considered significant for enrichment terms.

 Microarray identified 197 differentially expressed protein-coding genes in corpora cavernosa from prostatectomy patients, with 100 genes up, and 97 genes down regulated. 112 of the 197 DEGs were non-protein-coding genes of which 26 had documented associations (9 up-regulated and 17 down-regulated; 13 associated with cell proliferation). Thus, the overall changed expression of these documented non-protein-coding genes would be expected to favor a reduction in cell growth compared with Peyronie's control. For the rat ED model, microarray detected 182 differentially expressed protein-coding genes. Over Representation Enrichment Analysis showed enrichments for cell death, stress and cellular development. Examination of the role of individual genes found altered signaling for both proliferation and cell death, indicating while apoptosis is abundant at this time frame in the rat ED model, proliferation also occurs initially, prior to apoptotic dominance.

 Prostatectomy patients display alterations in gene expression in their corpora cavernosa that are consistent with decreased growth, likely impacting tissue repair and regenerative processes. Non-protein-coding RNAs may play a crucial role in ED development in prostatectomy patients. In our CN resection rat ED model, which represents altered signaling early in the architectural remodel process that occurs after CN injury, both cell death and proliferation are the acute response followed by apoptosis domination. Microarray and pathway analysis identify strategic points for clinical intervention for ED therapy development.

 No


For many decades, researchers have been working on finding innovative and sustainable solutions to address the enormous quantities of plastic waste that are produced every year which, after being collected, are transformed into energy, recycled, or sent to landfills. Giving a second life to plastic waste as a material to be incorporated, in the form of macro-fibres, into concrete, could be one such solution. The purpose of this study was to analyse the mechanical and physical behaviour of the hardened concrete reinforced with macro plastic fibres (RPFs) obtained from food packaging waste (FPW) discarded during the packaging phase. By varying the quantity of macro-fibres used, physical and mechanical properties such as compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, flexural strength, and toughness were evaluated. It was observed that, although the presence of macro plastic fibres reduced the mechanical resistance capacity compared to that of traditional concrete, their contribution proved to be of some importance in terms of toughness, bringing an improvement in the post-crack resistance of the composite material. This innovative mixture provides a further impulse to the circular economy.


In this article, Heather C. Hill and Pam Grossman discuss the current focus on using teacher observation instruments as part of new teacher evaluation systems being considered and implemented by st...


Power-law relations between tracers of baryonic mass and rotational velocities of disk galaxies, so-called Tully–Fisher relations (TFRs), offer a wealth of applications in galaxy evolution and cosmology. However, measurements of rotational velocities require galaxy inclinations, which are difficult to measure, thus limiting the range of TFR studies. This work introduces a maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) method for recovering the TFR in galaxy samples with limited or no information on inclinations. The robustness and accuracy of this method is demonstrated using virtual and real galaxy samples. Intriguingly, the MLE reliably recovers the TFR of all test samples, even without using any inclination measurements—that is, assuming a random sin i-distribution for galaxy inclinations. Explicitly, this "inclination-free MLE" recovers the three TFR parameters (zero-point, slope, scatter) with statistical errors only about 1.5 times larger than the best estimates based on perfectly known galaxy inclinations with zero uncertainty. Thus, given realistic uncertainties, the inclination-free MLE is highly competitive. If inclination measurements have mean errors larger than 10°, it is better not to use any inclinations than to consider the inclination measurements to be exact. The inclination-free MLE opens interesting perspectives for future H i surveys by the Square Kilometer Array and its pathfinders.


Abstract Constructivism is an interpretive approach that emphasises the 'meaning- making activity of the individual mind'. It is of particular relevance to drama education because learning in drama is based in process. A number of writers and researchers have applied this approach to learning, but only a few have extended this into a discussion of drama and learning. In this article an understanding of constructivism is described then evaluated through reference to two drama projects—firstly, the scripting of a cross- cultural performance work; secondly, a research project on applied creativity for beginning teachers.


Experimental results are presented for the measurement of both the resistivity and the Hall effect of thin films of cobalt.


Water container 3 for the machine for making the beverage, has side walls 23 and a bottom 25, a connecting coupling 27 for the machine. The conjugates, water container having two openings 37, 39 for water which is respectively discharge opening and inlet opening.


TO THE EDITOR: A new antimicrobial agent is used to treat a febrile, infectious condition. Three groups of patients are treated with a range of dosages. In all groups, fever is significantly reduced compared with baselines. The reduction is greatest in persons receiving the highest dose, but so is the mortality. An objective reader cannot help but raise two questions: 1) What is the rate of survival in the untreated controls? and 2) What is the effect of treatment with nonantimicrobial antipyretic agents such as cyclooxygenase inhibitors? In the recent article on treatment of M. avium complex infection in persons with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) [1], these important controls were not done. In addition, the question of whether they should have been included was not even mentioned, either by the researchers themselves or the distinguished experts who were invited to write the accompanying editorial [2]. Granted, the issue is more complicated. The patients selected for study had M. avium complex bacteremia that was nearly eradicated by the therapy. After observing treatment of this condition first with antimycobacterial drugs and then with a five-drug regimen, I used neither because of their demonstrated inefficacy. I now treat patients with clarithromycin and ethambutol on the theory that patients are better off without bacteremia. But I am not the one doing the research. Studies that show improved quality of life in patients treated with clarithromycin are small-scale, preliminary, and, I believe, similarly uncontrolled; this point should have been addressed by the authors of the article and the authors of the editorial. Chaisson and colleagues [1] conclude that clarithromycin, 500 mg twice daily, was associated with better survival, that is, better than the survival for patients who received even higher doses, not those who were treated for symptoms. Because of the rapid emergence of antimicrobial resistance during clarithromycin therapy, the authors' implication is not that the entire subject be reconsidered but that two drugs be given; this is precisely what many practicing physicians are currently doing. Goldberger and Masur [2], however, indicate several problems that emerge during treatment with clarithromycin alone, and they state that it is unclear whether survival is better in persons treated with 500 mg twice daily or simply worse in those receiving higher dosages. However, in their plea for additional studies, they do not mention placebo or antipyretic controls; I hope that they intend to encourage the inclusion of these controls or at least explain their omission.


This article examines some of the methodological aspects of the formation of the concept of number and magnitude in preschoolers. Emphasizing that counting is a mathematical concept, this is an operation aimed at determining how many elements a given finite set contains, methodological features are given for the development of ideas about the natural series of numbers, a technique for the formation of the ability to group objects (2-6 years), the formation of ideas about the plurality and singularity of objects (from 3 to 5 years old), the formation of the ability to highlight 1 and many objects in the environment (from 3 to 4 years old), as well as the method of teaching counting (4-6 years old). based on a comparison of two groups of objects in terms of quantity.


In the paper we introduce a wide range of Anderson-like variants of Gödel's theory and prove for each of them strong completeness theorem wrt. corresponding class of modal structures. These theories — all formulated in the 2nd order modal language with a 2nd order unary predicate of positiveness — differ among themselves with respect of: properties of the necessity operator and of the predicate of positiveness, axioms characterizing identity between 1st sort terms, definitions of identity between 2nd sort terms, the treatment of Godlikeness as a term of the 2nd order, the treatment of necessary existence as a term of the 2nd order if there exists the necessity of its presence, the treatment of Ix (Ix(y) is read: terms x, y are identical), for every 1st sort term x, as a term of the 2nd order if there exists the necessity of its presence. Concerning to semantical commitments, the following are essential: (i) 1st order terms order receive only rigid extensions in the constant objectual 1st order domain; (ii) 2nd order terms receive non-rigid extensions in the constant objectual domain of 2nd order and rigid intensions in the constant conceptual 2nd order domain; (iii) The behavior of the identity between 1st sort terms shifts from possible worlds to possible worlds.


Further, we come here to what for the purpose of our present argument is the most important consideration of all, viz. that if we could show that there were two kinds of neural or physiological processess, occurring respectively on all occasions of pleasure and pain, the fact would be valueless for proving that life must be predominantly pleasant. It is perhaps intelligible that to succeed or fail in purposive activity should bring respectively contentment and discontent rather than vice-versa; but that of two kinds of neural or physiological process, one should be accompanied by pleasure and the other by pain, is no more intelligible than if the connection were reversed. If the behaviour of any creature is affected by desires and aversions, by judgments, by feelings: if its desires and aversions or its judgments are connected with or affected by its pleasures and pains, then indeed the question with what bodily conditions its pleasures and pains are connected is part of the problem that interests the biologist—viz. what the conditions are under which the species can continue. But in that case the biologist must not claim that all the conditons of life and reproduction can be found in what happens in the body. Pleasures and pains, desires and aversions, purposes are not events that happen in the body. If they are the mere "apparence or sense" of what happens there, and alone determines survival or extinction, then what happens there to determine survival might, for all we can see, equally appear as pain or pleasure.


Because the design-build contract (DBC) system in Korea has been applied by two categories, such as pre-design bid and detailed-design bid, it was difficult for project manager to have an effect of saving in construction duration. Recently, however, the DBC system is expected to be spreaded in construction market by the improvement of regulations related to the DBC. Though the DBC system is evaluated as an appropriate contract system for owners who have not much experience in specific construction, there are some problems, such as a uncertainty in quality management by a unified responsible system, in practical application. This study analyzes the basic problems of DBC system based on the research of various contract systems in Korea, and then suggests an improved method for the application of DBC as a construction contract system.


An editorial article can be about anything and from any standpoint. Articles come in all shapes and sizes. They are in Medical Journals, Newspapers, Magazines, and Posted on the Internet. They cover any and every topic imaginable. As long as you have an op...


(Deemed University) is an authentic work carried out by them under my guidance and supervision. The matter embodied in the thesis has not been submitted to or published in any other University / Institute for the award of any Degree or Diploma to the best of my knowledge and belief. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to begin by thanking Prof. A. K. Panda for his efforts and endeavour in guiding and helping us for our Project work and also we express our heartfelt gratitude towards all our dept. staffs in Lab who have contributed their precious time to help us in completing our project. We are also grateful to Head of the Electrical Engineering Department Prof. B. D. Subudhi for providing necessary facilities in the department. We are also indebted to Power Electronics Lab and Assistant Sanyasi Babu for providing valuable troubleshooting inputs. An assemblage of this nature could never have been attempted without reference to and inspiration from the works of others whose details are mentioned in reference section. We acknowledge our indebtedness to all of them.


Purpose
For the past years, the population of firms in China has increased fast. However, the financial research has always fallen behind the financial practice. Also, the Western financial theory may not be completely consistent with China's context. In addition, appearing internet technology with big data and its applications to business bring some challenges not only to financial practice but also to the financial literature. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to review historical development of research in corporate finance, discuss the current issues and propose 16 key research topics in China context.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper surveys Western classical literature and some important literature by Chinese scholars in the field of corporate finance. On this basis, the authors point out the shortcomings of existing research and opportunities for future research.

Findings
The authors propose 16 key research topics in the near future considering the current reforms on economic development strategy, financial and taxation system and SOE's property right under the institutional background in China.

Originality/value
This paper makes a contribution to corporate finance research by exploring frontier topics for future research according to the China context and the global trend. These topics represent the demand from enterprises in China and are challenges for the academic world. It is of practical significance and great theoretical value to implement these studies. It will help the management to solve their financial problems and provide a fundamental basis for constructing the financial management theory with Chinese characteristics.


Abstract Introduction: Partial nephrectomy (PN) is the treatment of choice in localized renal cell cancer. It depends largely on the anatomy and location of the tumor, as well as the surgeon's expe...


Over the last decade there has been a decreased number of novel antimicrobial agents introduced to the market due to multiple factors including reduced governmental funding, marginal research and development interest by the pharmaceutical industry, lack of return on investment relative to medications used for chronic illnesses, and spiking microbial resistance trends. In an effort to most judiciously use the available armamentarium of anti-infectives available, many hospitals are implementing stewardship programs to re-direct inappropriate antibiotic use, which is estimated to account for up to 50% of all antibiotics prescribed. These efforts make it increasingly evident that the best defense against inappropriate antimicrobial use is accurate diagnosis of infectious diseases. Both the public and federal government must recognize the need for new and improved antimicrobials, as well as augmented infection control strategies and diagnostic techniques, to appropriately aid in the facilitation of bacterial control or eradication.


* Thirteen years ago, writing in the yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, Lewis P. Thorpe said that "American music educators traditionally have been advocates of getting things done.... They have not, however, been equally alert to possible improvements in music instruction suggested by the findings of research in the psychology of learning. . . . Theory and practice have not always been in agreement." Since that time, research has played an increasingly important role in the advancement of music education, and a growing number of music educators have become involved in it. There has been a growth not only in research initiated within the field of music, but also in the application of findings that have come from outside our immediate field. If it is possible to break down research activity in a simple manner, it might be said to consist of two main areas: first, defining problems and carrying on the research studies themselves; and second, interpreting and applying the findings-projecting scientific studies into the music educator's work. In MENC's statement of goals and objectives, published in the December 1970 MEJ, two objectives have direct bearing on this topic: (1) MENC will "promote the conduct of research and research-related activities in music education," and (2) MENC will "disseminate news of research in order that research findings may be applied promptly and effectively." Research is regularly reported by our organization through the Journal of Research in Music Education. Now, MENC and its Music Education Research Council have begun the publication of a series of monographs entitled From Research to the Music Classroom. As the series title suggests, these books will go beyond reporting to help interpret research in a practical manner for music teachers. The first monograph released is Musical Characteristics of Children by Marilyn P. Zimmerman (stock no. 321-10462; $1.25). It is particularly pertinent that this should be the first in the series since it deals with children of elementary school age-the level at which a foundation for music education is established. Among other topics, its content includes a valuable summary of the theories of Jean Piaget, the developmental psychologist. In this issue of the Journal, Sister Cecilia Schmitt shows how Piagetian theory can be applied to music education (page 22). Relating how the cognitive functioning of a child is developed in three stages, she reconstructs the Swiss psychologist's ideas in terms of their implications for music teachers. She also suggests that by applying these theories in the classroom, "teachers can find a new framework and focus for student perception, expression, and creation of music." Implicit in Piagetian theory is the principle of active experimentation and


Aim: In this study, the determination of in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility rates among Stenotrophomonas maltophilia strains isolated from clinical specimens was aimed. Method: A total of 60 S. maltophilia strains isolated from various clinical specimens sent to Dicle University Hospital clinical microbiology laboratory between January 2006 and September 2011 were included retrospectively in this study. Urine samples were inoculated onto 5% sheep blood agar and Eosin-Methylene Blue (EMB) agar media, quantitatively; other clinical samples were inoculated, qualitatively. Identification of S. maltophilia isolates was performed by conventional methods and fully automated microbiology system. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed by Kirby-Bauer's disk diffusion method and by broth dilution. Results: A total of 60 S. maltophilia strains isolated from clinical specimens as 24 urine, 15 blood, 11 sputum, four synovial fluids, three cerebrospinal fluids, two wound swabs and one middle ear materials. The resistance rates against antibiotics were detected as 85% (n=51) for piperacillin-tazobactam, 75% (n=45) for levofloxacin, 73% (n=44) for ciprofloxacin, 57% (n=34) for trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, 5% (n=3) for meropenem and imipenem, and 0% (n=0) for amikacin. Conclusion: In this study, it was detected that piperacillin-tazobactam can be used as an alternative option other than trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, for the treatment of infections due to S. maltophilia at least in our region.


Women participation in justice administration must be understood within the frame of different ongoing processes in the juridical profession. The expansions of layers' cohorts and the structural transformations of economy, as well as the reforms of the judicial power, have been associated with a reorganization process of the juridical labor (Bergoglio, 2005). The classic image of the independent professional is not longer a common situation, generating progressive salaried employments: many professionals are absorbed by the justice administration and juridical companies (Bergoglio, 2009). The growing concentration of woman lawyers in the administration of justice, and their association with the deepening of gender inequalities in this profession, indicates the importance to analyze the dynamics through which these inequalities are reproduced and/or transformed, as well as the contribution of the actors themselves to these processes. In this sense, we get into the perspective and the actions taken by women to properly understand where they build their professional trajectories from, together with their professional and gender identity. Interviews to professionals suggest different explanatory orientations to tackle the situation.


Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: How does second dialect acquisition in a second language compare to that in a first language in terms of rates and predictors of second dialect vocabulary use? Design/methodology/approach: A lexical preference task was completed by four groups of participants residing in Australia: first language speakers of Australian (L1D1) and American (L1D2) English, and first language speakers of Russian who acquired Australian (L2D1) and American (L2D2) English first. The participants named objects which are denoted by different words in American and Australian English (e.g. bell pepper vs capsicum). Data and analysis: The response was coded as either American or Australian, and percentage of use of Australian items was calculated for each group. Findings/conclusions: L1D1 used Australian words the most and L1D2 the least. L2D1 and L2D2 fell between the two L1 groups. L1D2 rate of use was predicted by proportion of life spent in Australia. L2D1 were more likely to choose Australian words if they had lived in Australia longer and had positive attitudes toward Australia. L2D2 were less likely to use Australian words the longer they had lived in the USA. Similar, but not identical, factors predict second dialect acquisition in the first and second languages. Originality: The research is innovative in considering second dialect acquisition in second language speakers and creates a bridge between second language and second dialect acquisition research. Significance/implications: The finding that second language speakers may be more flexible in second dialect acquisition than first language speakers has important implications for our understanding of cognitive and social constraints on acquisition.


Microwave propagation in a metallic waveguide loaded with an array of split‐ring resonators is examined both analytically and experimentally. The synthesized combined medium exhibits a frequency band around 6.0 GHz with simultaneously negative values of permittivity and permeability, which allow transmission in an otherwise forbidden band for the hollow waveguide. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 52:2175–2178, 2010; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.25435


Marketing researches of sales of quail-breeding production on the market in the Kurgan region have been carried out. The quantitative methods in marketing research to study consumer behavior, buying motivation, consumer preferences, the attractiveness and the quality of consumer goods, the ratio price/quality have been used. These methods allowed to obtain the characteristics of social-demographic, economic and psychological portrait of the target group. The promising directions of realization of production of quailbreeding on the market in the Kurgan region have been identified on the basis of these studies. It has been offered to consider as additional segments of the market (promising areas) for the sale of products of a chain of restaurants in Kurgan city.


Examines the use of electronic information sources (EIS) by the teachers/scientists, research scholars and postgraduate students in the College of Fisheries, Mangalore. A survey was administered among the academic community along with observations and informal interviews at the College of Fisheries, Mangalore. Demonstrates and elaborates the various aspects of EIS use such as frequency and purpose of EIS use, frequently used EIS, methods of learning to use EIS, benefits of EIS use, constraints faced in the use of EIS and the satisfaction level of users in the use of EIS. Suggestions have been given to strengthen the existing electronic information sources and services and to maximize the use of EIS among the fisheries institution academic community.


Hyperplastic polyps are common gastric lesions that are characterized by nonneoplastic epithelial hyperplasia. However, to our knowledge, there are no reports of a hyperplastic polyp arising from an endoscopic mucosectomy site of early gastric cancer. We describe the CT findings with a histopathology correlation in a case of a hyperplastic polyp arising from a mucosectomy site that mimicked polypoid gastric cancer.


Stated preference methods can be used to estimate the demand function where no price variation has been observed before. This is the situation of the Mexican coral reef natural protected areas, where after the 2002 approval of a $20 pesos fee (US$1.80) the Ministry of the Environment is now considering increasing the amount of the fee, not only to raise more revenue for the park, but also to curb the number of visitors in the cases where there is excess demand. There are concerns that the very success of the reefs is bringing associated environmental damage that threatens its sustainable use. To estimate the reaction of visitors to different fee levels, we carried out a contingent valuation survey, and constructed with its results an aggregate demand for each park. This demand was then divided by seasons and nationalities, to explore the benefits and costs of differentiating fees, looking at both the revenue maximising and the welfare maximising fees. Finally we discuss how these fees would change when environmental damage functions are taken into account. The recommendation is that increasing fees up to the point where they cover both private and environmental costs would bring the highest amount of economic benefit compatible with the sustainable use of these complex and wondrous marine ecosystems.


In an observational study, Zhang et al1 reported the efficacy of long-term β-blocker therapy in 5926 consecutive patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). They concluded, "in patients with or without previous myocardial infarction undergoing CABG, the consistent use of β-blockers was associated with a lower risk of long-term …


INTRODUCTION Many firms face financial difficulties at some time. Once facing the initial problems, however, some firms regain financial health while others slide into distress that leads to an inability to pay debts as they come due (insolvency). What distinguishes firms that remain healthy and those that eventually become insolvent? More and more, analysts are looking at cash flows to answer that question. This study examines the usefulness of information provided on the cash flow statement to determine if cash flow trends and interactions indicate whether or not a firm will eventually become unable to meet its financial obligations and/or declare bankruptcy. CASH FLOW INFORMATION IN THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS In Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 1 (par. 37) the FASB noted that a goal of financial reporting is to provide information to help users assess prospective net cash inflows. Financial statement users, accountants, and the FASB noted that cash flow information should help investors and creditors predict future cash flows. In SFAS No. 95, the FASB required disclosure of additional cash flow information by replacing the statement of changes in financial position with the cash flow statement. The FASB stressed the importance of trends and interactions among the types of flows in SFAS 95: flows from investing, financing, and operating activities. When a firm faces financial difficulties, investing, financing, and operating flows can indicate how management is attempting to deal with the difficulties. However, accounting researchers have ignored the trends and interactions in cash flows and have primarily examined only cash flows from operations. CASH EQUILIBRIUM, CASH FLOWS, AND FINANCIAL DISTRESS Financial distress is often defined as insolvency, the inability to pay obligations as they come due. How much cash-on-hand the company maintains, how the company obtains cash, and where it spends cash can indicate whether a company remains financially healthy or becomes distressed. Cash flow theory states that a firm achieves financial health and stability by maintaining an equilibrium in cash flows where available funds equal the firm's cash needs. (See an article by Ward, 1995, for a complete discussion of cash flow theory.) These issues were originally considered in ARB No. 37, issued in November, 1948. However, ARB No. 37 was revised in 1953 to include consideration of stock purchase plans and recast as Chapter 13B of ARB No. 43. Events triggering an unexpected drop in cash flow can upset cash flow equilibrium and force a company to take corrective action. Events causing the drop in cash flow include a recession and resulting decline in sales, price or wage increases, increased competition, and management behavior. Cash flow theory suggests that losing cash equilibrium creates financial stress on the firm. The way management tries to restore cash flow equilibrium dictates future cash flows. Managers attempt to regain equilibrium by: borrowing money or issuing capital stock, cutting dividends, cutting costs, or liquidating assets. If equilibrium is not regained, the firm progresses through more severe stages of stress and may become unable to pay financial obligations. At each stage, management attempts to take appropriate action to regain cash equilibrium. Management's success dictates whether a firm recovers or progresses toward eventual insolvency. Because the strategies managers can pursue affect different types of cash flows (operating, investing, and financing), information from the cash flow statement may indicate what stage of financial stress a firm is in, and provide information about management actions to regain cash equilibrium. Cash flow theory indicates that the trends in the three gross cash flows and interactions among these cash flows provide insight into a firm's future solvency. However, researchers have primarily looked at the three cash flows separately and have not placed emphasis on their trends and interactions. …


This study offers a combinatorial approach for suppressing the persistent photo-conductance (PPC) characteristic in solution-processed amorphous oxide semiconductor (AOS) thin-film transistors (TFTs) in order to achieve rapid photo-recovery. Various analyses were used to examine the photo-instability of indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (IGZO) TFTs including negative-bias-illumination-stress (NBIS) and transient photo-response behaviors. It was found that the indium ratio in metallic components had a significant impact on their PPC and photo-recovery characteristics. In particular, when the indium ratio was low (51.5%), the PPC characteristic was significantly suppressed and achieving rapid photo-recovery was possible without significantly affecting the electrical performance of AOSs. These results imply that the optimization of the indium composition ratio may allow achieving highly photo-stable and near PPC-free characteristics while maintaining high electrical performance of AOSs. It is considered that the neg...


OBJECTIVE An HPLC method for determining the content of solanesol in semi-finished products of solanesol was established.METHODS The column was PRONTOSIL 120-5-C18-ace-APS(250 mm×4.6 mm,5 μm);mobile phase was methanol-ethanol(40:60);flow rate was 1.0 ml·min-1 and detection wavelength was 210 nm.RESULTS The linear range was 3.24-51.84 μg ·ml-1(r=0.9998) for solanesol.The limit of quantitation was 0.52 ng(S/N=3) for solanesol.The average recoveries of solanesol were 109.1% with RSD of 0.95%.CONCLUTION This method is rapid and accurate.It is suitable for the determination of solanesol.


Conventional Current Feedback Operational Amplifier (CFOA) is not current controllable or not electronically controllable. It is thus of interest to add a current mirror into the CFOA in order to make it current controllable. This modification can be achieved by using Diamond Transistor (DT) instead of going through complicated IC fabrication process. This work applies the modified CFOA in fractional-order proportional integral derivative (PIλDδ) controller. Both simulation and experimental results confirm that the modified CFOA is electronically controllable.


This paper presents the effects of skewing the rotor teeth on the performance characteristics such as flux linkage, back emf, phase inductance, and reluctance torque of an 8∕6 doubly salient permanent magnet motor using a simple method, which utilizes the results obtained from the two-dimensional finite element analysis. The optimum skewing angle is obtained as 12°–15° for the least ripple torque without much reduction in the back emf. Skewing the rotor teeth of an 8∕6 doubly salient permanent magnet motor by 12°–15° will reduce the total harmonic distortion of the back emf profile to 29.69% from the original value of 44.69%. The reduction in the amplitude of the back emf in this case will be 18.79% only.


ASTN ABS of CA 119(15):158396v Ri et al JP 05132496 May, 28, 1993. P. W. Tang, et al. "Novel Approach to Study of the Antigenicities and Receptor Functions of Carbohydrate Chains of Glycoproteins', Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 132, No. 2: 474-480 (1985). Haensler, et al. "Influence of the galactosyl ligand structure on the interaction of galaosylated liposomes with mouse peritoneal macrophages', Glycoconjugate Journal, 8: 116-124 (1991). Weissig, et al. "Covalent coupling of sugars to lipo somes", Biochimica et Biophysica Acta, 1003: 54-57 (1989). Singh, et al. "Phosphatidylhydroxyalkanols as Versatile Intermediates in the Synthesis of Headgroup Modified Diacetylenic Phospholipids', Synthetic Communica tions, 22(16): 2293-2304 (1992). Primary Examiner-Herbert J. Lilling Attorney, Agent, or Firm-William G. Gosz


The main objective of this thesis is to design a method for opportunities evaluation in the field of long-distance rail transport in the Czech Republic. Initially, a detailed analysis of the transport demand and supply for both public and private transport is carried out. In the next step, a simplified transport network and transport demand models are designed using the software program PTV VISUM. Finally, the method for opportunities evaluation and quantification based on the transport demand model outputs is defined and employed in order to evaluate possible benefits of a proposed particular modification of the rail transport supply.


ABSTRACT The present study was conducted from March 2016 to February 2017 to investigate human-driven shifts in N:P:Si stoichiometry along a 2320 km stretch of the Ganga River. Concentrations of nutrients ( , and ), dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved silica (DSi) were measured in river water and in surface runoff to explore possible role of lateral flow and evaluate if there was a shift in the elemental stoichiometry of N, P and Si. Our study revealed that catchment runoff is an important factor, in addition to urban-industrial flushing, enhancing nutrient enrichment causing a shift in N:P:Si ratios leading to N limitation over P (N:P < 16:1) and Si limitation over N (N:Si > 1). Among the seven dominant diatom genera considered here, diatom abundance changed with concurrent changes in water chemistry. Sites with overall low N:P ratios favoured P-loving species such as Diatoma vulgaris, Fragilaria intermedia and Gomphonema parvulum. The study shows that the N:P:Si stoichiometry if coupled with changes in diatom abundance may be a useful predictor of anthropogenic environmental effects in the Ganga River. This watershed scale study invite attention towards significance of N:P:Si stoichiometry for properly addressing the eutrophy and efforts to rejuvenate the river.


Five new δ13C excursions are reported from the Upper Ordovician Galena Group of Iowa. The δ13Ccarb and δ13Corg trends are compared to sea-level trends based on conventional sedimentological and novel chemostratigraphic (eNd) methods. It is found that rising δ13C values occur during rising sea level, peak-magnitude δ13C values are coincident with inferred peak flooding, and declining δ13C values occur with declining sea levels. The relationship to sea level is explained by a simple model of episodic flooding of the Galena platform by cool, oxygen-depleted, nutrient-rich, bottom waters originating from the Sebree Trough, which was itself connected to the nearby Iapetus Ocean. Flooding of the inner Galena shelf during sea-level transgressions caused local changes in the carbon isotope balance of inner shelf waters due to (1) locally increased primary productivity and organic carbon burial, (2) locally increased exchange of 13C-enriched dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) with surrounding epeiric sea water masse...


The radial velocities of 89 Herculis (89 Her) between 1977 and 1981 show a clear periodicity of about 285 days. This periodic variation is interpreted as the orbital variation of 89 Her around an unseen companion. From the orbital elements no support is found for a low mass (M ~ 2M ʘ ) for 89 Her, but rather a high mass (13 ʘ


A series of laboratory and aircraft measurements have indicated that supercooled liquid water exists to temperatures as low as −70°C. These measurements also show that classical nucleation theory, using standard values for the thermodynamic properties of supercooled water, underestimates the nucleation rate of ice in liquid water at large supercoolings. New theoretical estimates for this homogeneous nucleation rate are presented, based on a new analytic equation of state for liquid water. The new equation of state, which is accurate over a pressure range of 3000 atmospheres and a temperature range of 1200K, is used to infer the latent heat of melting, liquid water density, and ice-water surface energy of supercooled water. Predictions of the nucleation rate and the homogeneous freezing temperature made by this equation of state are in agreement with observations at temperatures as cold as −70°C and at pressures as high as 2000 atmospheres. These results indicate that it is not necessary to invoke a phase transition at −45°C to explain aircraft and laboratory observations of homogeneous ice nucleation in supercooled water clouds.


.In: The Triple Helix (2000) Richard C LewontinThe main purpose of this paper is to suggest a metaphor—among many possibly valid and evocative—for the role of genesin complex chronic diseases. It is based on the inherent role of host-environmental interactions on the expression of low-penetrant genes. The relationship between an individual'sgenetic makeup and its phenotypic expression can be likened tothe relationship between a jazz score and the performed music.I think one of the most inspiring papers published in the last couple of years was the one published by Paolo Vineis, Paul Schulte, and Anthony McMichael in


Purpose – Arising from a study exploring whether best value and performance management had caused change within councils' waste services, this study, having found alternative approaches to those promoted by Government which could warrant further study, sets out to pursue this line of enquiry.Design/methodology/approach – This was an exploratory, inductive theory‐building study using a practitioner‐researcher approach to develop a conceptual model based upon a literature review and a case study research methodology.Findings – Despite much publicity, the cases studied did not use performance management frameworks to structure change. Several of the cases were aware of the intent of performance management and, in light of those approaches promoted by Government, other systems were considered to be potentially more suitable.Research limitations/implications – The practitioner‐researcher approach provided particular insights to this study which may not be apparent otherwise. One of the principal findings was t...


Objective The inhibiting tumor cell proliferate actives of four cytotoxins(CTX-10,CTX-11,CTX-12 and CTX13)were tested using two human bladder tumor cell lines(BIU-87 and EJ). The CTX-12 which owned the strongest activity was chosen and the immunotoxin(IT)was prepared by the CTX-12 conjugated to a bladder cancer-associated monoclonal antibody(BDI-1). The antitumor actives of IT on BIU-87 and EJ cell lines were tested. Methods The inhibiting tumor cell proliferate actives of four cytotoxins were tested by [3H]-TdR incubated analysis. CTX-12 and BDI-1 were covalent coupled by chemical methods with heterobifunctional cross-linking reagents(SPDP). The disulfide-linked BDI-1-CTX-12 complexes were detected by SDS-gradient polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Using DAB dyeing to analyze the IT binding to BIU-87 and EJ cell lines and using [3H]-TdR incubated analysis to analyze the IT's inhibiting tumor cell proliferate active. Results All of the four CTXs showed favorable inhibiting bladder tumor cell proliferate actives and the inhibitory effects showed a definite dose-effect relationship. The IC50(6h incubation)of CTX-10,CTX-11,CTX-12 and CTX13 on BIU-87 was 6.03,6.27,2.25 and 2.89mg/L,the IC50(6h incubation)on EJ was 8.02,7.89,3.05 and 2.76 mg/L respectively. SDS-PAGE demonstrated that CTX-12 and BDI-1 could be conjugated. The IT owned a specific binding to BIU-87 and EJ cell lines,whereas it could not bind to colonic carcinoma cell lines(Lovo). The IT could inhibite proliferation of malignant tumor cell lines. The IC50(6h incubation) of it on BIU-87,EJ and Lovo cell lines was 97.12,85.28 and 193.4 mg/L respectively. Whereas,if the IT replaced by RPMI1640 after incubated 30 min and continued incubating to 6h,the IC50 on BIU-87,EJ and Lovo cell lines was 94.64,81.28 and 865 mg/L respectively. Conclusion Four CTXs own favorable inhibiting bladder tumor cell proliferate actives. The IT prepared by conjugating CTX-12 with BDI-1 shows selective cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines. The IT and four CTXs are largely potential anticancer drug for bladder carcinoma,the result is a good foundation for the further in vivo and clinical study.


The substitution reaction mechanism for complex has been predicted according to the electron structure of the metal ion in the complex. The conclusion was confirmed by the eaperiment.


Multipurpose production of hemp has led to renewed interest for this crop cultivation, especially for human nutrition. To date, no information about the influence of nitrogen source on hemp seed quality is available. Hemp is also used for food and beverages due to its nutritional characteristics. This further use of hemp has led to an increase in hemp-grown areas. Therefore, it is important to get more information on the role of nitrogen on the quality production as well as to evaluate the environmental impact of the cultivation technique. In this work, we evaluate the influence of nitrogen source (i.e., NH4NO3 and urea) on the seed fatty acid composition of an edible hemp as well as on the environment in terms of soil N2O emission. Nitrogen source modified seed quality very little. Even if characterized by a lower acidic profile, seed from plants grown under urea and NH4NO3 had a ω-3/ω-6 ratio (0.3) within the optimal range from the nutritional standpoint, being considered as the optimal proportion for human metabolism and health. Urea fertilization reduced soil N2O emission. Our findings suggest that nitrogen source seems not to influence seed quality and that urea fertilizer might be more climate-friendly than NH4NO3 in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, in an extensive cultivation of hemp for industrial use.


Within a few years, the "partition of the sensible" (le partage du sensible) has become something of a household word in France. With this phrase, Jacques Ranciere refers to the most basic system of categorization through which we perceive and intuitively classify the data provided to our senses. Literary critics, philosophers and theorists of aesthetics, but also sociologists and scholars interested in migrations - everybody seems to find in this catchy phrase what s/he always wanted to express, but never dared to say. I, of course, count myself among these people seduced by the partage du sensible. Its role as a hinge between politics and aesthetics proves extremely useful whenever one attempts to talk just about anything. Far from being weakened by its status of passe-partout, this phrase allows us to dig tunnels under disciplinary frontiers, it sets up an interface through which various approaches can interact and shed light on each other, it offers a foundational common ground on the basis of which we can better root and articulate our various reflections on some of today's most urgent problems.


A thermal conductivity augmentation technology for zeolite bed in adsorption heatpump system has been studied in this paper .A new synthesis method of polymer has been used to enhance effective thermal conductivity of zeolite which was coated with a thermal polymer material in the synthesis process.It was found that the effective thermal conduc-tivity of the polymer-zeolite was increased 2~3 times and at the same time its adsorptiveability in the adsorption heat pump cycle process remains the same.


The features of the modern innovation policy of the EU countries are systematic implementation, social orientation, flexibility and the possibility of mobile response to modern challenges and changes in the world and European markets; availability of effective innovation infrastructure; systems of financing innovative activities and the interaction of science, production and business. The study of experience should become the basis for improving the innovation strategy of Ukraine.


The invention discloses a solar lighting system, which is used for providing light rays to a specified place, and comprises at least one light collector, a light guide module, at least one light releasing unit, at least one solar film cell, at least one piece of control and electricity storage and discharge equipment and at least one light emitting unit, wherein the light collector is arranged outside the specific place for receiving outside light rays, the light guide module is connected with the light collector for guiding to transmit the received light rays, the light releasing unit is connected with the light guide module and is arranged inside the specific place for releasing the light rays conducted by the light guide module, the solar film cell is arranged below the light collector for receiving light rays transmitting the light collector, converting the light rays into electricity energy and storing the electricity energy in the control and electricity storage and discharge equipment, and the light emitting device is arranged above the light collector for providing light rays to the light collector through conversion of the electricity when external light rays are insufficient. After the solar lighting system is adopted, natural light of sun can be utilized for providing lighting to the needed specified place, so that the electricity energy is saved.


I. INTRODUCTION The phenomenon of ion exchange has been scientifically recognized since the middle of the 19th century.1,2 Many of these early scientific investigations were carried out with naturally occurring clays and minerals, such as the zeolites. The zeolites which attracted most of the attention contain alumino-silicate skeletons with exchangeable alkali metal or alkaline earth cations. Artificial silicates were also prepared and successfully used.


Wilms' tumor is the most common pediatric renal tumor accounting for 6-7% of all childhood cancers. Development of faithful Wilms' tumor cell lines is needed to identify novel therapeutics. Currently, established Wilms' tumor cell lines that are suitable for high throughput studies only represent anaplastic Wilms, a rare subtype. In contrast, cell lines representing the more common favorable histology Wilms' tumor (FHWT) often have poor proliferative capacity and are unable to passage long-term (e.g. >20 passages). For this reason, there is a need to establish robust cell lines representing FHWT. We hypothesize that there are core factors missing from the cell culture medium which prevent proper growth signaling and proliferation. We first performed bulk RNA-sequencing from patients and associated cell lines at Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center with an underlying diagnosis of FHWT. Transcriptomic analyses showed that the reduced growth and proliferation in these FHWT cell lines may be due to reduced presence of the mitogenic fibroblast growth factor 8 (FGF8) in the cell culture environment as compared to the tumor environment. Wilms' tumor has notably high FGF8 expression levels compared to all other pediatric tumors, implicating FGF8 as a potential driving factor in tumor maintenance. To characterize the phenotypic effects of FGF8 reintroduction in short term FHWT cell lines, we both endogenously overexpressed FGF8 via a lentiviral vector and ectopically added recombinant FGF8 to the cell culture medium. Qualitatively, endogenous overexpression of FGF8 induced distinct morphological changes in cells, converting the enlarged and flattened cells into more focal cells resembling proliferative early passage cells. Quantitatively, overexpression of FGF8 in one favorable histology cell line led to an increased rate of cellular proliferation and extended the cellular longevity by seven passages (47% above baseline). RNA-sequencing analysis of these FGF8 overexpressing cells implicated the anti-apoptotic gene, NTSR1, and an extracellular matrix protein, SNED1, as potential downstream targets of FGF8 overexpression. However, ectopic addition of recombinant FGF8 protein to the cellular medium had less pronounced effects, with seemingly cell-line specific effects. These data demonstrate FGF8 as possibly being required for survival in certain Wilms' tumor cell lines that can be modulated to influence in vitro proliferation and longevity.
 Citation Format: Garrett Cooper, Benjamin Lee, Nate Smyth, Karuna Mittal, Taylor Lawrence, Hunter Jonus, Jenny Shim, Kelly Goldsmith, Andrew Hong. FGF8 as a modulator of Wilms' tumor in vitro growth and longevity [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 1674.


Abstrcat The organizational structure in most Chinese state-owned enterprises is traditional layer structure, but it is easy to suffocate employees' creativity. Accordingly, this paper argues that the organizational structure in Chinese state-owned enterprises must seek for transformation and innovation, i.e. the organizational structure should be separate, flexible, valuable, compressed, networked, simplified, personalized, lateral, virtual and intellectual.


In this paper we investigate the structure of the equilibrium state of three{dimensional catalytic super-Brownian motion where the catalyst is itself a classical super-Brownian motion. We show that the reactant has an inflnite local biodiversity or genetic abundance. This contrasts the flnite local biodiversity of the equilibrium of classical super-Brownian motion. Another question we address is that of extinction of the reactant in flnite time or in the long{time limit in dimensions d = 2;3. Here we assume that the catalyst starts in the Lebesgue measure and the reactant starts in a flnite measure. We show that there is extinction in the long{time limit if d = 2 or 3. There is, however, no flnite time extinction if d = 3 (for d = 2 this problem is left open). This complements a result of Dawson and Fleischmann (1997a) for d = 1 and again contrasts the behaviour of classical super-Brownian motion. As a key tool for both problems we show that in d = 3 the reactant matter propagates everywhere in space immediately. Running head: The Biodiversity of Catalytic SBM Keywords: superprocess, genetic abundance, equilibrium states, extinction, instantaneous propagation of matter. AMS Subject Classiflcation: 60J80, secondary 60G57, 60K35. Running head: Biodiversity of Catalytic SBM


Increased citizen interaction with the criminal justice system on digital platforms renders citizens more vulnerable to breaches of information to third parties. We introduce the concept of digital vulnerability to measure the extent to which technology produces unequal exposure to risk of data breaches. Using police-dispatcher radio communication, we examine the extent to which dispatchers reveal identifiable information about callers reporting crime. Data come from sixty audio-recorded hours of police-dispatcher radio communication across three racially distinct police radio zones in Chicago. Findings revealed that one of every ten calls made to police in zones serving racial minorities disclosed caller names or home addresses. We discuss implications for research on racial inequality in criminal justice contact, police-community relations, and policies concerning police-dispatcher radio communication.


Abstract It is shown that an old direct argument of Erdős and Heilbronn may be elaborated to yield a result of the current inverse type.


Despite recent advances in dental radiography, the diagnostic accuracies for some of the most common dental diseases have not improved significantly, and in some cases remain low. Intraoral x-ray is the most commonly used x-ray diagnostic tool in dental clinics. It however suffers from the typical limitations of a 2D imaging modality including structure overlap. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) uses high radiation dose and suffers from image artifacts and relatively low resolution. The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of developing a stationary intraoral tomosynthesis (s-IOT) using spatially distributed carbon nanotube (CNT) x-ray array technology, and to evaluate its diagnostic accuracy compared to conventional 2D intraoral x-ray. A bench-top s-IOT device was constructed using a linear CNT based X-ray source array and a digital intraoral detector. Image reconstruction was performed using an iterative reconstruction algorithm. Studies were performed to optimize the imaging configuration. For evaluation of s-IOT's diagnostic accuracy, images of a dental quality assurance phantom, and extracted human tooth specimens were acquired. Results show s-IOT increases the diagnostic sensitivity for caries compared to intraoral x-ray at a comparable dose level.


This thesis research analyzes why and how Software as a Service (SaaS) ventures can succeed or fail using the two forms of free business models: freemium and free based on a multi-sided platform. S ...


Recent research has examined the effect of the passage of the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999, more commonly known as the Gramm-Leach- Bliley Act, on the market value of insurers, commercial banks, securities firms, thrifts, and finance companies. This study differs from previous research in that it examines life insurers and property-liability insurers as separate industries rather than treating them as a single industry. This study also analyzes trading volume in addition to share price reactions. Finally, this study features two variables in a cross-sectional analysis of insurer stock returns not considered in prior research. … Using a generalized least squares portfolio approach and Corrado's rank statistic, we find significant share price reactions to certain legislative announcements surrounding the passage of the GLB. Trading volume reactions corroborate the significant share price reactions. Our results indicate that life insurers and property-liability insurers reacted differently to enactment of the GLB. Smaller life insurers with high liquidity and high leverage had the most positive (or least negative) share price reactions of all insurers.


Adaptive communication has gained attentions of almost all future communication systems, especially Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) Systems. Adaptive nature pays in terms of rate and power while satisfying certain criteria. In fact, this is a constrained optimization problem. In this paper a similar constrained optimization problem is focused. Adaptive modulation has been a key approach in adaptive systems while consideration of practical channel coding is a recent approach. Moreover, convolution codes and parallel concatenated codes (turbo codes) have been very much worked out for such systems while the serially concatenated codes (Product codes) are mostly neglected due their high decoding complexity. In this paper, we have chosen Product codes with a low decoding complexity decoder named Modified Iterative Decoding Algorithm (MIDA) as adaptive coding scheme and Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) as adaptive modulation. We propose a new scheme to adapt both code rate and modulation size by solving a non-convex optimization problem using a Fuzzy Rule Base System (FRBS) to enhance the achievable data rate in an OFDM system with a fixed target bit error rate and fixed transmit power for each subcarrier. Proposed scheme is compared with various well known adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) schemes. General Terms OFDM; Fuzzy Systems; Adaptive Modulation and Coding


Evaluating groundwater flow is important for managing groundwater resources. This can be done using an isotopic tracer such as C in conjunction with hydraulic data. The Dalhousie Springs represent one of the main natural discharge points in the Great Artesian Basin (GAB). The high C activity of these springs compared to those of the uppergradient wells implies local mixing with younger groundwater. Upgradient of the Dalhousie Springs, the system can be described by a linear piston flow model. According to this model the recharge rates range from 0.64 to 1.07 mm/year whereas the groundwater flow velocity is about 3.8 m/year.


The concept of the 'knowledge economy' is increasingly used to underpin education policy in developed countries. In Australia, it has been applied to post-compulsory education policy, with efforts to increase retention in senior secondary education and reform of vocational education in the senior years. The article draws on two research projects with senior secondary schools. Many students (and their teachers and parents) perceived qualifications not so much as providing the knowledge considered necessary by government policy for the contemporary economy, but rather as a 'screen' used by employers to sort and select. Knowledge of opportunity structures and access to resources, while not only defined by social class, operated to create differential access to available choices in the educational market place. Despite ongoing inequality, the article argues that the hope many students expressed in relation to education can be fulfilled in practice.


The specificity of the heading-final complex of Anna Akhmatova's "Poem without a Hero" ("Poema bez geroya") is based on the fact that the semantics of the components included in it refers to several sources at once, and allusions to the works of English romantics, authors of poems, play the most important role among the components included in the poem's frame, and above all to J.G. Byron. The relevance of the undertaken research is due to the application of an integrated approach to the analysis of the elements of the frame text "Poem without a Hero": not only primary, but also secondary and tertiary allusions, playing with the reader's perception and his knowledge of predecessor texts are considered. The purpose of the study is to identify the "English trace" in "Poem without a Hero" and the ways of its manifestation through the heading-final complex. The authors trace the genealogy of "Poem without a Hero" from Byron to Pushkin and to the nominally absent, but implicitly animated, hero of Akhmatova's poem. Research objectives are defined as the study of the framework text as an essential element of the poem, identification of the features of the frame text and its intertextual links, comparison of epigraphs in the poem with notes, comments and critical articles of the author. The authors show that the poet often "hides" Byronic allusions in the reception from Pushkin's poems (mainly "Eugene Onegin"), placing them in the heading-final complex. The article proves that this technique is used by Akhmatova to build the genre genealogy of her own poem, which goes back to the tradition of English romantic poems, mediated by the tradition of A. Pushkin. The reason for turning to this tradition, according to the authors, lies in the tragic personal and epoch-making collisions, the genre interpretation of which could become the transformed Akhmatova canon of the romantic poem, the founder of which was Lord Byron.


An organic waste gas treatment device is characterized by comprising a preheating chamber, a combustion chamber, a heat recycling chamber and a heat pipe exchanger. The preheating chamber, the combustion chamber and the heat recycling chamber are communicated in turn. An air inlet is installed on the preheating chamber, and an air outlet is installed on the heat recycling chamber. The heat pipe exchanger comprises at least one heat pipe. The two ends of the heat pipe are respectively positioned in the preheating chamber and the heat recycling chamber. The position of the end of the heat pipe,which is positioned in the heat recycling chamber, is lower than that of the heat pipe, which is positioned in the preheating chamber. A combustor is installed on the combustion chamber. The organic waste gas treatment device of the invention not only can fully dispose the organic waste gas, but also can recycle the heat energy generated in the combustion of the organic waste gas with high efficiency. The environment protection and the energy saving are integrated. The organic waste gas treatment device of the invention further has the advantages of low operation failure rate, stable and reliable operation, compact structure, and low operating cost. The application area of the invention is wide and can be used for all production techniques with waste gas discharge. The organic waste gas treatment device of the invention has more superiority for the production techniques of printing, coating, etc. with large waste gas amount and low content of organic waste gas.


Using 3-D Finite Element Method combined with Discontinuous Deformation Analysis,in large background of interaction among 3-D tectonic blocks in Qingzang and Chuandian zone,based on the GPS data and seismic focal mechanism,we compute initial displacement field and stress field in the studied zone,which agree basically with the results of GPS measurement and seismic focal mechanism distribution.Further the occurrence process of 1997 Mani earthquake with magnitude Ms7.9 is simulated numerically,and feature of stress state change on each boundary fault of blocks is studied.(1)The maximum horizontal dislocation is 7 m with left rotation and strike;(2)The distribution of dislocation on vertical face of the seismic fault is totally similar with the inversion result from seismic wave information;(3)Maximum shear stresses contour is similar with the deformation field from D-INSAR;(4)The vertical displacement distribution computed on the surface across fault indicates that the fault sliding is adverse to north.Furthermore,distribution of Coulomb failure stress change on the boundary faults of Qingzang and Chuandian block system after Mani earthquake is calculated.It indicates that the Mani earthquake,except making Coulomb failure stress increase and stress concentration in ends of the seismic fault,causes Coulomb failure stress in upper crust layer to increase about 2MPa at the seismic fault where Kunlun Shan Ms7.9 earthquake(H=11 km)located at mid section of eastern Kunlun fracture occurred in 2002.and causes Coulomb failure stress in middle crust layer to increase about 0.7MPa at the seismic fault where Gerze Ms6.9 earthquake(H=30 km)located at Karakorum fracture zone occurred in 2008.It seems to indicate that Mani earthquake has positive function to the two zones close to rupture strength and afterward occurrence of the two earthquake.The research results also indicate that 3-D DDA+FEM method developed by authors is available to apply in studying relationship between large earthquake occurrence and interaction of tectonic blocks.


A new family of heterostigmatic mites, Athyreacaridae, is described on the basis of a group of 9 species whose adult females are phoretic on adult geotrupine scarab beetles of the genus Neoathyreus Howden and Martinez from Mexico, Central America, and South America. Athyreacarus new genus is described as the type genus of the family, based on material representing the type species, A. pleiotretus new species, and 3 undescribed species; it is differentiated from a group of 5 other undescribed species which are thought to represent another, undescribed, genus. These mites evidently live symbiotically in the burrows of their beetle host; however, their feeding habits and life cycle are unknown.


The invention discloses a credit exchange system comprising servers, a main computer, branch computers and a terminal device. The servers, the main computer, the branch computers and the terminal device implement remote consumption credit and discount, rebate, and exchange services through a communication module under control of an operating system and management software. The credit exchange system can form a multi-component whole to connect credit systems of all merchants within an enterprise alliance, so that members of all the merchants can share the system, consumers can benefit more, and credit exchange can produce maximum effectiveness to the merchants. Smooth overall operation of a project can be ensured through an information management system so as to provide a most stable credit accumulation and exchange environment for consumers. Through the credit exchange service, originally-dispersed credits obtained from the merchants are integrated together, and dispersed members of the merchants are communicated to contribute to a new situation of mutual benefit to the merchants and the consumers. The consumers are directly included in a promotion fee allocation scheme to maximize consumption discount which can be obtained by the consumers.


Social networks are a subject of great interest worldwide. Year after year we have experienced an increase in the number of new users and, even, the creation of new technologies (i.e. augmented reality, 360º cameras, …) and new social networks. However, this phenomenon is contrasted with the appearance of automatic programs (bots) and fake news that can affect the quality of published information. This paper presents the state of the art of the quality of the information found in different social networks. In addition, we propose a series of learnt lessons to be followed in order to develop a theoretical application that measures the quality of a user generated information for a given event.


Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare and devastating disease characterized by progressive increases in pulmonary arterial pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance which eventually leads to right ventricular failure and death. PAH inflicts most commonly women, majority of who are of childbearing age. Pregnancy in the setting of PAH is absolutely contraindicated due to high maternal fetal morbidity and guidelines do not exist for the management of such cases. A MEDLINE/PubMed search was performed identifying all relevant articles with ''pulmonary arterial hypertension'' and ''pregnancy'' in the title. Six case series were reviewed as well as our own center's experience outlined. Though there exists generalized treatment measures that are followed in such cases, management varies among different national centers as well an on an international level. At our center patients are managed using a multidisciplinary approach at a high risk obstetric center with preference for intravenous prostacyclin therapy. Women of child bearing age with possible signs and symptoms of PAH must be promptly diagnosed and managed expectantly with an emphasis on maternal–fetal safety. 2015 International Society for the Study of Hypertension in Pregnancy. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.