'Stoneville 213' was planted at Chickasha in a Tuttle silt clay loam soil on Jun 14 and at Altus in a Tillman holister clay loam on May 19 at the rate of 18 and 20 lb of seed/acre respectively. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with 9 treatments replicated 3 times. The plots measured 8 rows x 150 ft. Chemical applications were made Jul 14 at Altus and Jul 27 at Chickasha. Applications were made at Chickasha with a John Deere Hi-cycle 6000 sprayer and at Altus with a John Deere Hi-cycle 600 sprayer. Both original spray systems were replaced with Marco systems equipped with roller pumps powered by 3 hp Briggs and Stratton engines. Spray applications were made at 4.5 mph and 40 psi using 2.5 gal total spray mixture/acre. One #4 Spraying Systems hollow cone nozzle per row was utilized. Plots were sampled 7 days after treatment by making whole plant examinations and recording fleahopper nymphs and adults in each plot. Ten 2.6 ft (l/5000th acre) samples were taken at random in each plot. Beneficial arthropods were also sampled by whole plant examination and included: Nabis spp., Chrysopa spp., Geocoris spp., Orius spp., Col lops spp. and spiders. Yield was estimated by hand-pulling all open boll's from 50 ft of uniform cotton from each" pTot. Raintal I between treatment and sampling date at Chickasha consisted of 0.07 in Jul 27, 0.04 in Jul 30 and 0.21 in Aug 1. Altus recorded no rainfall during the test period.


We prepared FA-targeted and 10-hydroxycamptothecin loaded chitosan nanoparticles (FA-HCPT-NPs) with a combination of emulsion-solvent evaporation and chemical crosslinking method. In vitro cytotoxicity test to the Human Cervix Carcinoma cells (HeLa) was evaluated by cell morphology and internalization observation. The specicity of the FA-HCPT-NPs targeting cancerous cells was demonstrated by comparative intracellular uptake of HCPT-NPs and commercial availible HCPT injection. Laser confocal scanning imaging proved that FA-HCPT-NPs could greatly enhance up-take by HeLa cells. The morphological changes of HeLa cells showed the FA-HCPT-NPs could inhibit HeLa cells more effectively than HCPT-NPs and HCPT. The results indicated that the novel FA-HCPT-NPs could be a potential drug delivery system for tumor cell-selective targeting therapy.


Electrophoretic analysis of enzymes in 383 juvenile Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., within the Tamar catchment (south-west England) revealed significant genetic differences at the IDHP-3* locus between the three tributaries studied. Aspects of temporal and spatial variation, and management policy within catchments, are discussed.


Abstract : The overall objective of this ASSERT project is to establish processing-microstructure-property relations for Sic fibers prepared using novel pre-ceramic polymer blends and selected processing additives. Under the ASSERT parent award, it was demonstrated that SiC fibers with improved thermomechanical stability (e.g., compared to commercial fibers such as Nicalon and Hi-Nicalon ) can be fabricated using blends of organosilicon (pre-ceramic) polymers. Such fibers are of interest for application in high temperature composite materials. In the present ASSERT project, the objective is to relate the chemical/structural characteristics of selected pre-ceramic polymer blends with the SiC fiber microstructure and mechanical properties. Another objective is to determine the effect of selected processing additives (i.e., boron- and aluminum-containing sintering aids and polysilazane fiber processing aids) on microstructure and mechanical properties.


A method for producing an electron lens (28), comprising applying a polymeric layer (12) on the emitter surface of the electron emitter (60) (36), and curing the polymer layer (12) to reduce step volatile matter content.


This study examines the impact of the financial leverage on the Islamic banks' performance in the GCC countries during the period from 2005-2017. The population of this study included the Islamic banks in the GCC countries. Thirteen years data of 25 listed Islamic banks in the GCC countries were used, wereby these data were retrieved from the Thomson Reuters DataStream. This study utilized the fixed effect regression model. The findings show that the financial leverage a has significant impact on the performance of the Islamic banks' performance in the GCC region. More specifically, the financial leverage has a positive and significant impact on ROA, ROE, and Tobin's Q of the Islamic banks in the GCC countries, thus indicating that the higher is the financial leverage the higher is the performance of the Islamic banks in the GCC region. However, the results of this study do not provide evidence to support the Agency Cost Theory that implies a decrease in the performance when equity ratio is increased. On the other hand, the findings provide evidence to support the Signaling Theory that argues that banks are expected to have a better performance credibly in transmitting this information through the higher capital. The findings imply that the level of financial leverage committed by the Islamic banks depends on their flexibility in adjusting their debt value and earning power.


The bacterium B japonicum was successfully isolated from functional root nodules of soybean plants. In vitro evaluation, by inhibition zone technique revealed all of the seven each systemic and non-systemic at their recommended field dosages (100% RD), 50% and 125% of the RD showed both synergistic and toxic effects against B. japonicum. Out of the seven systemic fungicides tested carbendazim 50% WP and hexaconazole 5% EC tested at all three concentrations were found highly compatible with B. japonicum and rest of the five fungicides viz., tebuconazole 25% WG, thiophanate methyl 75% WP, difenconazole 25% EC, propiconazole 25% EC and pyraclostrobin 20% WG were non-compatible with the test bacterium.


One of the most important agents responsible for high pollution in Tehran is carbon monoxide. Prediction of carbon monoxide is of immense help for sustaining the inhabitants' health level. In this paper, motivated by the statistical analysis of carbon monoxide using the empirical Bayes approach, we deal with the issue of prior specification for the model parameters. In fact, the hyperparameters (the parameters of the prior law) are estimated based on a sampling-based method which depends only on the specification of the marginal spatial and temporal correlation structures. We compare the predictive performance of this approach with the type II maximum likelihood method. Results indicate that the proposed procedure performs better for this data set.


Mine reclamation is an integral part of the mineral development process. The selection of land use after the mine closure is a difficult decision, which is complicated further because of the variety of parameters that must be taken into account trying to provide the local community with a viable development plan. Conventional methods used for reclamation planning are characterised by the lack of data integration and by time-consuming analysis. In this study, we propose a spatial decision-support system (SDSS) that minimises these problems, as data integration and analysis are offered within one computerised environment. A geographical information system and multi-criteria decision-making methods, based on binary integer linear programming models, have been integrated to select the appropriate land use in different parts of a post-mining area taking into account social, technical, economic, environmental and safety criteria. The proposed SDSS was used for the selection of the optimal landscape reclamation strategy of the Amynteon lignite surface mine located at West Macedonia Lignite Centre, Northern Greece. On the basis of developed mine maps, the model variables are assessed and incorporated into the objective optimisation function. Emphasis is placed on the spatial diversification of the model variables. The application demonstrates that the decision-support system allows the mining company to determine in an efficient way the specific land use (agricultural land, forest, recreational area and industrial zone) that is considered the most suitable for every part of the study area.


Change in the rates of aseismic deformation prior to large earthquakes is a major area of interest in earthquake physics. Here we present evidence that episodic tremor and slip occurred in the shallow subduction zone within the source region of the 2011 Tohoku‐Oki earthquake prior to the main shock. Ocean bottom seismometers near the Japan Trench recorded some excitations in amplitude of ambient noise level accompanying both the 2008 and 2011 slow slip events. The observed signals show that low frequencies of 5–8 Hz dominated, suggesting that the excitations were due to small low‐frequency tremors accompanying the slow slip events. The largest amplitude tremor was observed just before the 2011 event. The estimated sources of tremors were possibly distributed within the coseismic slip area of the 2011 event, suggesting the shallow plate‐boundary thrust near the trench is a general location of slow earthquakes.


We have performed theoretical and experimental studies of field emission from nanostructured semiconductor cathodes. Resonant tunneling through electric-field-induced interface bound states is found to strongly affect the field-emission characteristics. Our analytical theory predicts power-law and Lorentzian-shaped current-voltage curves for resonant-tunneling field emission from three-dimensional substrates and two-dimensional accumulation layers, respectively. These predicted line shapes are observed in field emission characteristics from self-assembled silicon nanostructures. A simple model describes formation of an accumulation layer and of the resonant level in these systems.


The widespread hysteria and misconceptions associated with the public view of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) necessitate a calm rational look at the facts. Although AIDS is undeniably a lethal disease car accidents cause far more deaths each year. Moreover in the US and other developed countries infection remains restricted to circumscribed groups: homosexual and bisexual men intravenous drug abusers recipients of transfusions and blood products and the heterosexual partners of members of these risk groups. Much of the publics hysteria would abate if there was awareness first that AIDS cannot be contracted through casual contact and second that the AIDS virus is very inefficient in terms of its ability to enter the body. The virus is readily killed by routine handwashing with soap alcohol bleach or hydrogen peroxide. As infection progresses there is a loss of helper T-lymphocytes and a breakdown of the immune system. Death in AIDS patients is actually the result of an opportunistic infection chiefly pulmonary. Since treatment options are very limited the emphasis should be on improving the quality of life of AIDS patients through measures such as home care. Also essential is AIDS education aimed at eliminating high-risk behaviors. There are indications that many individuals who are seropositive for the AIDS virus may not progress to develop AIDS if behaviors such as rectal receptive intercourse between homosexuals or needle-sharing among drug users are eliminated.


Computer simulation is one of the most effective ways to study particle scattering beyond a laboratory environment. This Capstone project was designed to simulate electron-proton scattering experiments conducted at Jefferson Lab with the High Resolution Spectrometer (HRS) via the Monte Carlo method. A Monte Carlo simulation examines the full scope of results that are possible in a scattering experiment, and replicates the stochastic nature of particle interactions by implementing a random generator. HRS employs a suite of acceptance parameters for detecting scattered particles and their physical properties, which the simulation achieved in its development. It could then use these values to calculate physical quantities such as energy transfer, Q-squared, and Bjorken-X scaling under the acceptance conditions of the spectrometer. Simulated results were then compared to samples of experimental data through visual and statistical methods. Only two semesters were allotted to the development of the program, so it is rudimentary in nature. It does not implement a physical model that accounts for inelastic phenomena such as missing energy or missing momentum, but has successfully produced data that agrees with experimental results by employing other computational methods.


We herein report the synthesis of hybrid kauranoid molecules of type 1,2,3-triazole-1,4-disubstituted aiming to improve the antimalarial activity of kaurenoic and xylopic acids. The CuI-catalyzed cycloaddition of azides and kauranoid terminal alkynes was explored as a hybridization strategy. Kauranoid terminal alkynes were prepared from kaurenoic and xylopic acids that were isolated from Wedelia paludosa D. C. (Asteraceae) and Xylopia frutescens Aubl. (Annonaceae). A total of 15 kauranoid derivatives, including nine new triazoles, were obtained and five out of these were more active than the original diterpenes. Interestingly, an increased activity was observed for a kauranoid propargyl ether. Interaction between ent-kaurane diterpene derivatives and Ca2+-ATPase (PfATP6) was investigated. Synthesis of diterpene derivatives emerges as a possible route to be explored in the quest of potentially new inhibitors of PfATP6.


Abstract Transversely isotropic rock is a typical anisotropic rock type. The existing creep constitutive models for isotropic rock do not fully reflect the creep mechanical properties of transverse...


Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is high-mortality primary liver cancer and the most common malignant tumor in the world. This study is based on a hepatocellular carcinoma-related dysfunction module designed to explore the dysregulation of genes in liver cancer tissue. Methods By downloading the relevant data on the GEO database, we performed a differential analysis of healthy liver tissue and liver cancer tissues as well as healthy liver tissue and hepatocellular carcinoma tissue and then obtained two sets of differential genes and combined them. We performed a cointerpretation analysis of these differential genes and constructed related functional disorder modules. A hypergeometric test was performed to calculate the potential regulatory effects of multiple factors on the module, and a series of ncRNA and TF regulators were identified. We obtained a total of 4479 differentially expressed genes in hepatocellular carcinoma, and these genes were clustered into ten hepatocellular carcinoma-related functional interpretation disorder modules. Results Enrichment analysis revealed that these modular genes are mainly involved in signal transduction including cell cycle, TGF-beta signal transduction, and p53 signal transduction. Depending on the predictive analysis of multidimensional regulators, 323 ncRNAs and 52 TF-mediated hepatocellular carcinoma-related dysregulation modules were found to regulate disease progression. Conclusions Based on a series of investigations, it was found that miR-30b-5p may participate in the peroxisome signal transduction by downregulating ABCD3-mediated module 1, thereby promoting the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma. Our research results not only provide a theoretical basis for biologists to study hepatocellular carcinoma further but also offer new methods and new ideas for the personalized care and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.


A unique transannular interaction in the [2.2]paracyclophane series that involves the disruption of an oxazoline on one of the aromatic rings by a v-geminal carboxyl group on the adjacent ring is described. The result is the linking of the two benzene rings by the formation of a new interannular ring containing an ester and a secondary amide linkage leading to the first [6.2.2]cyclophane.


This paper introduces the concept of normal forms for algebraic specifications of Ada packages defining abstract data types. The normal form is used in the process of reusable software component retrieval via formal specifications. We review the use of algebras for the specification of abstract data types. Then, using a concrete example, we define normal forms and present the details of algorithms to automate the normalization process.


We present numerical simulations on the correlated two-electron momentum distributions for the recollisional ($e, 2e$) process in nonsequential double ionization (NSDI) of helium by an 800-nm laser field at an intensity around $4.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{14}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{W}/{\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$, based on the improved quantitative rescattering model, in which the lowering of the kinetic energy required for the electrons to escape from the parent ion due to the presence of electric field at the time of recollision has been taken into account. According to the QRS model, the correlated two-electron momentum distributions for laser-induced ($e, 2e$) collision in NSDI can be factorized as a product of the returning-electron wave packet (RWP) and the field-free differential cross section (DCS) for ionization of the parent ion by the impact of the laser-induced returning electron. The RWPs which describe the momentum distribution of the returning electrons are obtained within the strong-field approximation for high-order above threshold ionization. In the calculations of the DCSs for electron impact ionization of ${\mathrm{He}}^{+}$, the precollision Coulomb interaction between the incident electron and the parent ion and the postcollision Coulomb interaction between the two outgoing electrons are considered. In addition, the dynamic screening (DS) of the three-body Coulomb interactions in the final state, due to the fact that the strength of the interaction of any two particles is affected by the presence of the third one, has also been taken into account. It has been found that while the postcollision Coulomb interaction is responsible for the observed fingerlike structure, the precollision Coulomb interaction changes the orientation of the two fingers from $\mathsf{V}$-type to parallel, the final state DS reduces the separation of the two fingers, and the lowering of threshold energy shifts the two fingers towards smaller momenta. All these effects improve the agreement of the simulated results with the experimental results.


The Quality of Life Research Center, Teglgardstraede 4-8, DK-1452 Copenhagen K, Denmark and The Scandinavian Foundation for Holistic Medicine, Sandvika, Norway; Division of Community Health, Ben Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Office of the Medical Director, Division for Mental Retardation, Ministry of Social Affairs, Jerusalem, Zusman Child Development Center, Division of Pediatrics, Ben Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel


In this paper, we present an experimental implementation of two well-known algorithms for direction of arrival (DOA) estimation of multiple incident source signals called. These methods are Multiple Signal Classification (MUSIC) and Estimation of Signal Parameters via Rotational Invariance Techniques (ESPRIT). The algorithms are programmed in Lab VIEW software and implemented on a National Instruments (NI) PXI platform. The details of the experimental procedures are described which include interfacing of the uniform linear array (ULA) of antennas with the NI-PXI platform, calibrating phase differences between the RF receivers, and parameters selection for both transmitter and receiver ends. The experimental results are shown for a single source lying at two different arbitrary angles to verify the successful real-time implementation of both algorithms.


According to an evolutionary psychology perspective, men's and women's processing of threats to their sex-linked mate selection strategies cause sex differences in infidelity distress. An alternative account assumes that the distress results from men's and women's processing of expectation violations regarding the content of an unfaithful partner's actions with a rival. Logistic regressions supported the conclusion that the participant's sex—but not the processing of expectation violations—was the best predictor of the most distressing infidelity presented in forced-choice, mutually exclusive, and combined formats. Our results also indicated that the sex differences in infidelity distress were neither limited to using data from a forced-choice response format nor caused by the distinct inferences that men and women draw about the relation between love and sex.


Atlantic salmon Salmo salar eggs derived from a single family were incubated at two different water temperature regimes, with a mean temperature between fertilization and first feeding differing between 6 and 10° C (HT) and 2-6° C (LT). From first feed the fry were kept under the same rearing conditions and fed either high (50%) or low (45%) protein diet level of equivalent energy content until smoltification. All treatments were carried out in duplicate tanks. At first feeding the groups were similar in mass, but thereafter the HT-fish were heavier and longer compared to the LT-fish throughout the experiment. The groups fed the high protein diet were significantly heavier and longer compared with the corresponding low protein diet. A strong positive relationship was observed between L F and total white muscle cross-sectional area (CSA), white muscle fibre diameter and fibre number. There were also equivalent relationships with body mass. There were no significant differences in CSA, the mean diameter or the number of white muscle fibres per CSA between groups at first feed. Muscle fibre number and CSA increased in all groups during the experiment, whereas fibre diameter reached a plateau when the fish reached >9 cm IF There were only minor effects of pre-hatch and yolk sac stage temperature on CSA and fibre number per CSA during the juvenile stage. In short periods the LT-group had larger CSA and higher fibre number than the HT-groups, but this differences had disappeared by the end of the juvenile stage. No differences in mean fibre diameter were found between groups, except at the time of smoltification. When the fish approached smoltification a decrease in mean fibre diameter and an increase in muscle fibres <25 μm was seen and taken as an indication of recruitment of new fibres (hyperplasia). Only minor differences in CSA, fibre number or fibre diameter was observed between high and low protein diet groups.


It is observed that the proofs of hidden-variable no-go theorems depend on the `projection postulate,' which is seen to be contradictory with respect to spin operators in directions orthogonal to the magnetic field direction. In this light it is argued that it is less costly to abandon the projection postulate than to abandon locality and this in turn renders Hidden-Variable No-Go Theorems evadible. To buttress this point, a local realist model of the EPR experiment which ignores the constraints of the projection postulate is presented.


The subcellular and catabolic fate of [125I]iodohCG in rat luteal cells after in vivo binding was studied to determine whether internalization and degradation of bound hormone are associated with the removal of hormone-receptor complexes. Pseudopregnant rats were injected iv with [125I]iodohCG, and the ovarian uptake of radioactivity was studied over 24 h. The radioactivity disappeared from the ovarian tissue after the maximal uptake at 1.5 h in a biphasic manner, with half-lives of 1.2 and 4.8 h. The decrease in the loss of radioactivity was not due to an accumulation of hormone catabolites in the tissue. Gel filtration of the radioactivity from the ovarian tissue 2, 6, 12, or 24 h after the injection of labeled hCG displayed only one radioactive peak corresponding to the hormone-receptor complex. Electron microscopic autoradiographs showed that a majority of the silver grains were associated with microvillous projections of the luteal cell plasma membrane directed toward the capillary regions. Multiple ...


Several studies have shown how mental health could be affected during the COVID-19 pandemic, which led us to wonder about the psychological impact that the initial period of lockdown could have. We conducted a multicentric study that sought to describe, compare, and analyze the association between perceived stress, coping strategies and sociodemographic characteristics in a snowball-style convenience sample of 1169 participants from Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, Italy, and Spain who responded to an online survey. There were differences in perceived stress and coping strategies between countries and depending on sociodemographic characteristics. The variables positively associated with perceived stress were the coping strategies alcohol-drug use, focus on emotions and venting, being a woman, and living in Brazil, Italy, and Spain. The variables negatively associated with perceived stress were planning and active coping, positive reinterpretation, being over 45 years old, and being a worker. These results contribute to understanding the stress responses to lockdown and help identify vulnerability factors in order to design prevention and intervention programs.
Keywords: Perceived stress; coping strategies; COVID-19; lockdown; pandemic.


The quantitative relationship between, increase in blood flow and arterial diameter was determined in an anaesthetized dog preparation (pentobarbitone, induction 30 mg kg‐1 i.v., maintenance 3 mg kg‐1 i.v. every 30 min). Changes in external iliac artery diameter were measured using piezoelectric ultrasound transducers capable of measuring diameters within the range of 2–20 mm with a resolution of +/− 0.005 mm. The diameter of the artery was measured at two sites, at one of which the endothelium was damaged using a balloon angioplasty catheter. Increases in blood flow were brought about by a combination of vasodilatation and cardiac stimulation (intra‐arterial administration of acetylcholine, downstream to the sites of diameter measurement, and electrical stimulation of the left ansa subclavia), thereby preventing large changes in blood pressure. The effects of both transient and maintained increases in blood flow on mean arterial diameter in the section of artery with intact endothelium were measured. Transient increases in mean flow from 147 +/− 0.21 to 611 +/− 80.0 ml min‐1 caused increases in diameter of 0.12 +/− 0.02 mm from a control of 5.42 +/− 0.19 mm. The mean delay between maximum flow and maximum diameter was 24.51 +/− 1.1 s and the half‐time for the return to control diameter was 82.0 +/− 9.6 s, compared with 12.1 +/− 1.5 s for the return to control flow. Maintained (3‐4 min) increases in mean blood flow (from 104.7 +/− 15.1 to 694.7 +/− 135.1 ml min‐1) produced larger increases in diameter of 0.48 +/− 0.30 mm from a control diameter of 4.89 +/− 0.12 mm. These changes in diameter were abolished by N omega‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester (L‐NAME. 10‐100 mg kg‐1 i.v.). In the section of artery with damaged endothelium, changes in diameter were relatively small and associated with small changes in blood pressure. This effect of a nearly 7‐fold increase in flow on arterial diameter is dependent upon the integrity of the endothelium and the release of endothelium‐derived relaxing factor and causes a 29% reduction in calculated boundary wall shear stress.


ABSTRACT Using games to teach is an interesting and worthwhile practice; however, the couplet game has not been described before. In this study, first-year students played a couplet game with their teacher at the end of the course. Each student was asked to summarize and write individual opinions on human geography in one keyword; then, the teacher wrote the corresponding or matching keywords. Analyzing the correspondences and the contrasts between couples of words, the students showed an improved understanding of human geography. The results suggested that the couplet game elicited students' creative and independent thinking. This method can also be applied to other fields.


Image question answering is becoming a very attractive topic in the field of computer vision and natural language processing in recent years. In this work, we propose a novel Semantic Bi-Embedded Gated Recurrent Unit (SBE-GRU) method to answer fill-in-the-blank style multiple choice questions for images. Different from the single network, we use the SBE-GRU model to learn the high-level semantic information existing in images. To learn the semantic mapping of an image from the visual level to the language level, we feed the visual-language mappings into a stacked GRU. Moreover, to choose the right answer in the candidate options more simply and effectively, we regard the answer sentence as an answer list while training. In the extensive experiments, the proposed method can get better results compared with the state-of-the-art and CCA methods.


We designed and numerically studied an optically asymmetric structure based on photonic nanojet effect. It can provide averaged asymmetry coefficient (ratio of forward transmission to backward one) 4.7 at averaged forward transmission 91% (in optical band) and has sheet resistance close to that of metallic film. The structure is made of abundant materials and can be produced by conventional nanofabrication methods. It can be used as a transparent electrode with light-trapping function for thin film solar cells.


ABSTRACT Gravel pits created by anchor hopper dredging may affect regional sediment transport patterns by trapping sediments. In turn, this may cause -or enhance- erosion at the adjacent coastline. Reliable assessment of such impacts requires a good understanding of the hydro-sediment dynamic processes acting at dredged pits. This paper examines the processes for sand re-suspension from pressure, current and turbidity data collected inside and outside a single dredged pit, in a non-tidal environment (Tromper Wiek, Baltic Sea). The data confirm the generally weak sediment dynamics in the area, with waves being the main hydrodynamic agent for sediment re-mobilization. Comparisons with historical data indicate a small number of sediment re-suspension events (<15%), over a 37 months-long period, without significant difference inside and outside the pit. Suspended sediment concentration profiles are predicted inside the studied pit by a simplistic model, tuned to over-estimate sediment re-suspension. The results suggest that the depth of the excavation should be very shallow (<1 m) for the bed material to be frequently extracted out by waves, and redistributed over the area. With pits up to 7 m-deep within the extraction zone, we conclude that a significant fraction of sediment is trapped over the long-term period (years).


A simple, yet reliable, method is described for deducing the appropriate term to describe a hue difference between two specimens whose CIELAB hue angles are known. It is based on the rotation of the chroma axis through the position of the specimen regarded as standard and the association of the four unitary hues with the four a* b* axes, two of which must be specified to eliminate ambiguities.


An annotated, illustrated synopsis and key for the identification of some 20 taxa belonging to Syrrhopodon Schwägr., which have been recorded as occurring in India and adjacent regions is presented herein. Excluded from the genus, Syrrhopodon chittagongensis Tixier, syn. nov. is placed in synonymy with Barbula marginatula Müll.Hal. ex Gangulee, and Syrrhopodon pilulifer Dixon, syn. nov. with Mitthyridium flavum (Müll.Hal.) H.Rob. The precise lectotypification is implemented for 14 species within the genus.


Classic English summer grey skies and rain! But the crowd of eager delegates who gathered at the Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering in Loughborough University for the ICT/IEMRC Plating Technology Seminar, Loughborough, 6 August 2008, were there to learn about state of the art metal finishing processes for PCB manufacture, not to escape the weather. The Institute of Circuit Technology joined forces with the Innovative Electronics Manufacturing Research Centre for a Summer Seminar on Plating Technology, introduced by IEMRC Co-ordinator Dr Darren Cadman and ICT Technical Director Bill Wilkie.


Two basic characteristics of enzymes as analytical reagents for the determination of substrates are the focal point of this Plenary Lecture, firstly the high degree of selectivity (or even specificity) offered by enzymes and secondly the regeneration afforded by enzymes as catalysts. Various approaches to the monitoring of enzyme-catalysed reactions (e.g., direct monitoring, coupling to indicator reactions and amplification by cycling) are considered in detail.


In this study, we present a four-point horizontally supported spherical reference cavity of relatively low vibration sensitivity by using finite element analysis (FEA). We show that the vibration sensitivity is tunable by changing the support positions and contact areas. We also show that a zero crossing of the vibration sensitivity can be achieved for the proposed optical cavity. More important is that the zero crossing is still achievable once the cavity has been machined, taking into account tolerances in manufacturing and errors in the FEA simulations. The proposed cavity can also be designed as a two-dimensional squeezed portable cavity, which might find potential application for a non-laboratory cavity-stabilized laser.


In Malaysia, typically, the grid system of terrace houses layout has been dominated by landed housing in the property market for many years. The grid system of residential layout may offer more units to be built up by the developers. This situation may lead to fewer open spaces, playgrounds, and other recreational facilities in a strategic location within the neighbourhood schemes. Adopting some residential layout patterns may influence activities, frequency, interest, time, place, and route while doing their recreational activities. A study related to residential layout mainly focuses on building orientation, building design, privacy, safety, traffic calming, and social relation; however, a limited number of studies examine the effect of neighbourhood design on dwellers' recreational activities routine and pattern. This paper aims to assess the relationship between residential layout design and its impact on dwellers' recreational activities in well-planned landed neighbourhood schemes. Using observation, two (2) different residential layouts in Johor Bahru were selected as the study area, namely Taman Mutiara Rini (Presint Bakti), for the grid housing schemes and Taman Nong Chik Height for the innovative honeycomb layout. Descriptive analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings in this paper proposed recreational activities in the residential layout may be influenced by several design factors. The design of neighbourhood and outdoor open spaces, for example, played an essential role in residents' evaluation of the various recreational activities. This study concludes that residential neighbourhoods design, including buildings and the neighbouring environment, significantly impacts people's ability to participate in neighbourhood recreational activities. Based on this research's findings, residential layouts' design in both study areas influenced local dwellers' recreational activities types behaviour and preferred route through outdoor space arrangement.


This article analyses the evolution over the last two centuries of career horizons for public works engineers -- or the whole of the various avenues of public and private sector activities in which public works engineers are present at a given time. Divided into three chronological periods, the overall picture shows that public works engineers have gradually enlarged their original working areas (construction and maintenance of transport communication for the state). Described with the aid of numerous tables, this spreading out concerns both the opening out onto new employers (from the state to private enterprise and local authorities) as well as onto new domains within the state (research, management, environment).


Objective: To investigate the effects of high intensity intermittent training on muscle glycogen content in obese adolescents. Methods: a total of February 2013 to 2015 February 198 patients to our hospital in obese adolescents were retrospectively studied, divided according to the intensity of training for high intensity interval training group (group A), in intensity interval training group (group B) and low intensity interval training group (Group C) 66 cases in each, than the changes of content of inositol is 3 groups of patients. Results: there is a significant difference between the 3 groups of patients with total efficiency, with significant difference (P


Objective:To investigate mental status of family members of patients with heavy head injury caused by traffic accident and its related factors.Methods:SCL-90 questionnaire was applied to 100 family members of patients who suffered from heavy head injury caused by traffic accident.Mental healthstatus of the investigated objectives with different gender,age,social status,educational level and residency were compared with the conventional norm.Results:Factors scores of compulsion and stubborn werenot significant different from the norm(P0.05),while SCL-90 total score and positive rate of individualfactors including somatization,interpersonal sensitivity,depression,anxiety,hostility terrorism,mentalillness were significant higher than that of the conventional norm(P0.05-0.01).Specifically,worsemental status were observed in female,mid-aged people,and those who were spouses,had lower educational level or rural residency.Conclusion:There are many mental health problems in the family membersof patients with heavy head injury caused by traffic accident,and those problems,can be influenced bymany factors,thus necessary psychological intervention is needed.


A dual-fuel-cell engine power output of the parallel power system was designed.It consists of fuel-cell-engine,control unit,testing unit and main controller.In combination with the vehicle operational requirements,the reliability design method of the power system was designed.Test results showed that the output voltage declined by about 10 V under one hour rated condition.This results show that the system durability is good,and the control strategy is feasible.


- Aim: The aim of this study to evaluate the role of HbA1C as a predictor for the development of diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetic patients. Methods: This prospective observational study was carried out by involving 120 patients. The '' fluctuations" in HbA1 C over time was assessed. HbA1C fluctuation was defined as an increase in HbA1C of more than 2% between two consecutive measurements, or an increase of more than 1% at 2 points in time. Results: There was no association between gender and the development of diabetic nephropathy (p = 0.95). There were no signi ficant group differences in the ''age at onset of diabetes" or ''time period from the onset of diabetes till admission to the chronic care center" (p = 0.48 and p = 0.81, respectively). The association between fluctuations in HbA1C and diabetic nephropathy is shown in Table 1. Abstract- Aim: The aim of this study to evaluate the role of HbA1C as a predictor for the development of diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetic patients. Methods: This prospective observational study was carried out by involving 120 patients. The '' fluctuations" in HbA1 C over time was assessed. HbA1C fluctuation was defined as an increase in HbA1C of more than 2% between two consecutive measurements, or an increase of more than 1% at 2 points in time. Results: There was no association between gender and the development of diabetic nephropathy (p = 0.95). There were no signi ficant group differences in the ''age at onset of diabetes" or ''time period from the onset of diabetes till admission to the chronic care center" (p = 0.48 and p = 0.81, respectively). The association bet ween fluctuations in HbA1C and diabetic nephropathy is shown in Table 1. Among those who developed nephropathy, 10 of 20(60%) had fluctuations in HbA1C; compared to those who do not develop nephropathy 54 of 100 (54%) had fluctuations in HbA1C (p = 0.05). The mean HbA1C per individual was 8.65 ± 1.3 in the whole sample. As shown in Table 1, mean HbA1C was 9.5 ± 1.7% among those who developed nephropathy compared to a mean of 8.6 ± 1.2% for those who did not develop nephropathy, and was statistically signi ficant between the two groups (p = 0.004). Conclusion: We concluded that the T1D patients who have a similar mean HbA1C may progressively behave differently in terms of developing nephropathy, depending on the fluctuations in HbA1C.


Fourier-Motzkin elimination (FME) procedure is often used in information theoretic context in order to simplify rate regions, e.g., by eliminating auxiliary rates. The procedure results in a system of constraints, some of which may be inactive. By incorporating the notion of Shannon-type inequalities (a class of information inequalities that are provable via a computer program), an algorithm that executes FME and removes redundant constraints is implemented. This document gives a mathematical background on the Fourier-Motkzin elimination, Shannon-type inequalities and identification of redundant constraints. The FME-IT package was implemented in MATLAB according to these theorems.


Abstract : The study evaluated the current state of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and the likely opportunities to further improve CFD over the next 20 years. This briefing summarizes those findings and includes overall findings. Description of approaches to CFD, including historic development of CFD capabilities and likely future development paths. Discussion of metrics for characterizing CFD, including impact on the design process, the state of maturity of CFD, and the cost of CFD relative to physical test infrastructure.


This issue of Built Environment seeks to contribute to emerging debates around vertical urbanism by emphasizing the recent sharp upward trajectories of European cities. The skylines of London, Paris, Madrid, Milan, or even Saragossa and Malmo have been transformed dramatically by new tall buildings. This resurgence of skyscrapers that began in the early 2000s is a major phenomenon, both intense and widespread. This post-2000 boom is not necessarily exemplified in super-tall futuristic structures such as the ones that have been erected in Dubai or Beijing during this period, but in supposedly compact energy-efficient urban blocks according to new high-rise urbanism principles. Woven into the existing city fabric, these projects are often framed from the ground up, as initiatives to reinvigorate local deprived or de-industrialized neighbourhoods and to create urban amenities around transport nodes, embodying new sets of discourses and practices among built environment professionals and planning authorities.Through a combination of particular case-studies across Europe with wider analyses of national and international trends, this special issue investigates the relationship in European cities between high-rise built fabric and planning regimes, financial flows, cultural representations, technical innovations, and forms of modernist heritage. Developing cross-disciplinary perspectives and engagement with both academic and practitioner insights, the issue provides a sustained assessment of high-rise Europe in the context of a wider world of vertical urbanisms.


In this paper, insulin injection process in which the level of glucose is monitored and corrected using optimal robust controller. The Bergman minimal model with unknown parameters was adopted to simulate a diabetes mellitus patient. An exogenous disturbance is considered as a meal effect on the patient. Optimal control approach to robust control design is suggested for glucose problem. The goal is to design a state feedback to stabilize the glucose system under uncertainty and disturbance. Linearized model of glucose system is considered with nonlinearity is lumped as a matched and mismatched uncertainties. Comparison in performance is made between the robust optimal controllers with classical optimal controller. The simulated results showed that the robust optimal controller outperforms the classical optimal controller for the considered cases. Also, the disturbance rejection capability of both controllers has been examined, and the results showed that the robust optimal controller has better rejection characteristics than its counterpart.


With the electromagnetic environment getting more complicate,the anti-jamming performance of satellite navigation system is becoming more and more strictly. In those small Satellite Navigation products, power and size are the two most important limiting factors. An anti-jamming performance of satellite navigation system ASIC chip could solve this problem effectively. The bank-end layout design about this anti-jamming satellite navigation ASIC chip is proposed in this paper. In the design process, floorplan, place, route, stationary timing analysis and optimizing are introduced based on SOC Encounter bank-end layout design tool.


Salmonid females invest heavily in reproduction, through gamete production, habitat selection and maternal care. Habitat selection and maternal care are expected to provide shelter for eggs against scouring and predators. However, females also tend to produce variable egg sizes, and this trait may interact with habitat quality to influence the survival of offspring. In this study, we aimed at evaluating the role of female habitat selection on egg survival conditional on individual egg size and female body size. We monitored female reproductive activity in two natural rivers for 3 years, in order to relate nest characteristics to female body size. Bigger females dug deeper nests at lower shear stress force. Right after the end of nest construction, we sampled a part of the eggs laid by each female, measured them individually, and placed them back using capsules within their original position in the nest. At time of hatching, the capsules within the nest were collected and individual egg mortality was assessed. Our results indicate that scouring was the main driver for mortality (75%) and that nest burial depth and shear stress force above the nest both influenced scouring. However, subsequent survival was influenced by neither nest characteristics, individual egg size, nor the interaction between both. It is therefore expected that traits or tactics that reduce nest scouring probability should be under strong selection.


Slip control is one of the most effective methods to improve the efficiency of metal v-belt continuously variable transmission,and it's very meaningful to find out the way of simulation slip control in a computer.After analysis of the principle of slip control,numerical model of traction coefficient changes with relative slip rate and geometric ratio was found based on experimental data,and a method to give the target relative slip rate was given.A slip control simulation system including slip dynamic model,hydraulic system model and system efficiency model was found,fuzzy control method was introduced to control the relative slip.Simulation results indicate that slip control can reduce hydraulic pressure by 40%,consisting well with experimental results obtained by other researchers,and the correctness of the simulation mode was validated.


The motion of a single ion confined in a Penning-Malmberg trap together with a plasma column of electrons or positrons is described by means of a simple model. The model qualitatively reproduces the basic mechanism of the centrifugal separation for multispecies plasma composed of particles with the same sign of charge. The ion is pushed toward the plasma boundary also when its charge and the plasma charge have opposite signs. An estimation of the characteristic time scale for the separation is obtained and discussed.


The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a 12 week Pilates exercise program on body composition, cholesterol, hs-CRP and leptin in male obese adults. Subjects were obese 30-42 year old men (BMI=25.0-30.0㎏/㎡). They were classified into a Pilates group (N=7) and control group (N=7). Pilates program consisted of upper abdominal curl, spine stretch forward, roll up, rolling, single leg stretch, criss crosses, double straight leg, single straight leg stretch, single and double kick, side up/down kick in parallel and side band, etc. Training was preformed 3 days/week for 65 min during the 12 weeks. Exercise intensity was monitored using heart rate monitor and peak intensity was reached between 50 and 75% HRR. Data was analyzed by repeated two way ANOVA with group and period, and then post Hoc test(a=.05) with paired and independent t-test were performed. After 12 week of Pilates training, waist, hip and chest circumstance in body composition factors were significantly decreased with a main effect of period and an interaction effect of period and group in Pilates group. In lipoprotein factors, total cholesterol had a main effect of period and LDL-C had an interaction effect of period and group. In inflammatory markers, hs-CRP were significantly decreased with a main effect of period and an interaction effect of period in Pilates group. In conclusion, 12 weeks of Pilates training seemed to be effective to improve cardiovascular disease risk factors in obese adults.


The course of Test Design and Statistics Methods in Food science is related to a highly practical and scientific discipline.Based on several years of teaching practice,this report summarizes current situation and problems existing in the teaching process,the significance of application case teaching method, and the specific circumstance of implementation in the process of curriculum,so as to explore feasible case teaching method for this course,which can enhance the teaching effectiveness,improve students' learning efficiency,and stimulate the their enthusiasm and learning desire.


A series of functional microcapsules for electrophoretic display (EPD) prepared by complex coacervation technology utilising gelatin and arabic gum as a wall material are presented. The authors have investigated the Isopar M electrophoretic fluid containing blue-white, red-white and yellow-white particles modified by the physical coating as core materials of microcapsules, respectively. The mass ratio of wall/core material is a key factor influencing the yield of microcapsules. The surface of microcapsule was characterised by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The display prototypes based on the red-white, blue-white and yellow-white microencapsulated electrophoretic fluids have been prepared. The contrast ratios of prototypes were found to be 1.62, 1.67 and 1.22, respectively.


The accurate description of blood flow through most atherosclerotic vessels still eludes scientists. Nevertheless, if peripheral vascular surgeons could grasp the way that bioengineers now understand hemodynamics, then clinical judgment, operative technique, and therapeutic results all might improve. Towards this goal, this text tidies up the previously empirical knowledge of clinicians and views it with a balance tilted toward science. The problem of communicating the complexity of bioengineering to nonmathematical readers is partially avoided by the frequent use of paragraphs containing "take home" clinical correlations. A certain amount of technical abstruseness and overcondensation remains, but in general, the bioengineering sections are readable and relevant. Take, for instance, a difficult question; whether distal arterial disease in a donor limb contraindicates a femoral-femoral graft. Instead of merely mentioning the possibility of an iliac steal syndrome, the authors first prove mathematically that distal donor limb disease should be significant only in the presence


An apparatus for the measurement of the lifetimes of gamma-ray transitions between nuclear excited states has been designed and constructed. With this apparatus, lifetimes as short as 1.5 x 10~^° seconds may be determined. This lower limit is shown to be inherent i n the s c i n t i l l a t i o n detectors available and not in the electronic circuits which are themselves capable of much better performance. Measurements have been carried out on several radioactive nuclei and have yielded the following results: 60 (1) The two excited states of Ni have half-lives less than 1.6 x IO" 1 0 seconds. (2) The three excited states of Co-^ have half-lives less -10 than 2 x 10 seconds. (3) No detectable h a l f l i f e is found in the decay of


[1] A four-dimensional variational (4D-VAR) data assimilation system using a coupled ocean-atmosphere global model has been successfully developed with the aim of better defining the dynamical states of the global climate on seasonal to interannual scales. The application of this system to state estimations of climate processes during the 1996–1998 period shows, in particular, that the representations of structures associated with several key events in the tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean sector (such as the El Nino, the Indian Ocean dipole, and the Asian summer monsoon) are significantly improved. This fact suggests that our 4D-VAR coupled data assimilation (CDA) approach has the potential to correct the initial location of the model climate attractor on the basis of observational data. In addition, the coupling parameters that control the air-sea exchange fluxes of mass, momentum, and heat become well adjusted. Such an initialization using the 4D-VAR CDA approach allows us to make a roughly 1.5-year lead time prediction of the 1997–1998 El Nino event. These results demonstrate that our 4D-VAR CDA system has the ability to enhance forecast potential for seasonal to interannual phenomena.


1. There's been much recent discussion about whether content externalism is compatible with the sort of knowledge we have of our thought contents.1 According to externalism, some of a subject's thought contents are partly individuated in terms of her environment. However, it's been argued that externalism is incompatible with the following plausible claim about the nature of our self-knowledge: that a subject can know what her own thought contents are just by reflection and without undertaking an empirical investigation (let's call this claim 'privileged access'). Much of the discussion has focused on reductio arguments of the form first proposed by McKinsey (McKinsey 1991).2 He argued that the assumptions of externalism and privileged access generate an absurd conclusion, namely that a subject can have a priori knowledge of the nature of her environment. Thus, he concluded that externalism and privileged access are incompatible. The sort of reductio argument McKinsey proposed could in principle be applied to any of the different varieties of externalist theses.3 However, in considering whether the argument is successful, it's tempting to simplify matters by considering just one specific externalist thesis. After all, it would be significant and interesting to show that one externalist position is incompatible with privileged access, and one could afterwards consider whether the argument could be extended to other varieties of externalism. A clear example of someone who uses this strategy is Boghossian. In Boghossian 1997, he focuses on the issue of whether externalism generated by Putnamian Twin Earth thought experiments concerning natural kind terms is incompatible with privileged access. He makes it clear that he's leaving other varieties of externalism aside for consideration at a future date. In particular, he explicitly sets aside Burgian externalism, saying that he expects that the same argument which he applies to Putnamian externalism could be later applied to Burge's position (Boghossian 1997: 163, n.3). Although Boghossian's strategy might seem to be a sensible way of approaching the issue, and one that in no way affects the outcome of the argument, I will argue that this is not so. For, by deferring consideration of Burge until later, I think that Boghossian effectively rules out of consideration a number of objections to his argument that arise from Burgian


The utility model provides an earth leakage circuit breaker comprising a casing and a control circuit board which is arranged in the casing, a pair of elastic moving contact bridge arms, a reset mechanism, a tripping mechanism, a testing mechanism and an output connection piece connected with an output power cord are arranged on the control circuit board; the tripping mechanism comprises a tripper, a lock catch and an electromagnetic element, wherein lifting arms extended from the tripper to two sides are arranged below the moving contact bridge arms, a conductor piece is further arranged between the control circuit board and the electromagnetic element; and one end of each moving contact bridge arm and one end of the output connection piece respectively penetrate the electromagnetic element and are connected to the control circuit board together with the conductor piece. The earth leakage circuit breaker can realize the functions of ground fault protection, reverse connection protection and power cord protection at the same time of realizing the normal leakage protection function.


Abstract : Laboratory experimental instantaneous releases of right circular cylindrical volumes of heavy gas (Freon-12/air) with initial volumes ranging from 0.034 cu m to 0.531 cu m and specific gravities ranging from 2.2 to 4.2 are described. Releases with initial height-to-diameter ratios of 0.4, 1.0, and 1.57 are reported. The heavy gas flow field surrounding the release is described by time series of gas concentration at various radial and vertical coordinates with respect to release center. Measurements of the gravity current velocities are determined from time-of-onset of measured gas concentration. Calm-air instantaneous heavy gas releases are demonstrated to scale with a characteristic length cube root of V sub i where V sub i is the initial volume, and a characteristic time (V sub i to the 1/6 power)/(sq root of the reduced gravitational acceleration). The scaled laboratory releases predict the gravity-spreading and dilution process occurring during the buoyancy-dominated flow phase of the 2000 cu/m Freon/air instantaneous releases conducted by the British Health and Safety Executive at Thorney Island, UK. The gravity spread and dilution data are used to validate the buoyancy-dominated flow submodel which is incorporated in DEGADIS, the general purpose heavy gas dispersion model developed for the Coast Guard.


The site-directed generation of a heterodinuclear FeIIICuII complex by using a new asymmetric dinucleating ligand FloH is reported. The iron(III) ion is introduced first on the preferential metal-binding site of the ligand that leads to the formation of the thermodynamically favored five-membered chelate rings upon metal-binding. Copper(II) is introduced in the next step. The stepwise metalation strategy reported here may be extended to the preparation of other heterometallic complexes with the view of avoiding a statistical distribution. Such complexes can offer novel spectroscopic properties, electronic structures, and reactivities in comparison to their homometallic analogues.


Abstract Antibacterial activity of petroleum ether, methanol and aqueous extracts of Eachinacia angustfiloa was investigated. The extracts were tested against both Gram-positive, Gram-negative and fungi organisms Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis, Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans at different doses of 0.5 mg/ml, 1.5 mg/ml and 1.5 mg/ml using cup plate and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method. The Eachinacia angustfiloa extract exhibited broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against the tested organisms. The concentration of the extract that inhibits growth of the organism at a 530 nm MIC was found to be 400, 500, 600 and 900 µg/ml and MBC value was found to be 700, 900 and 1000 µg/ml, respectively.


This paper presents a type of two-pole microstrip bandpass filter with one reconfigurable transmission zero. The couplings between the resonators and the non-resonant nodes are used to generate the transmission zero. The desired tunability of the transmission zero is realized by changing the center frequencies of the two resonators. In the practical designs, varactors are employed to shift the center frequencies of the resonant node. To verify the working principles, filters implementing the proposed topology are fabricated and measured. Good results have been obtained


On the basis of the effect plan of separate addition,several kinds of ground industrial wastes and natural mineral functional materials with different combination on chloride ion penetration of concrete have been studied.The result indicates that ultra combination effect between micro silica and ultra fined,meta kaolin,fly ash,slag etc.The technical line was put for rational choosing in the kinds and component of mineral functional materials,especially in rational using of meta kaolin.Therefore double effect in which has better performance and lower manufacture cost of mineral functional materials for the anti chloride ion penetration is realized.


The preliminary results show that microwave-generated low pressure air plasmas could be a very efficient method for the decontamination of spices since the population of a microorganism (Bacillus subtilis) commonly found in black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) was significantly reduced on test substrates in a very short period of time. Based on the experimental results, a laboratory apparatus was developed for the sterilisation of spices.


The present invention is related to a class of derivatives of 1,2,4 - triazolo [4,3 - b] pyridazine REPLACED OR STATES TO RINGS 7.8. Such derivatives have a heteroaryl, phenyl or cycloalkyl optionally substituted at the 3 and a fraction Alkoxy-substituted derivatives are ligands 6. SUCH selective GABA A receptors, INCLUDING, have high affinity for subassemblies TO 2 AND / O AL 3 of these receptors. SUCH DERIVATIVES ARE THEREFORE USEFUL IN THE TREATMENT AND / OR PREVENTION OF CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM, INCLUDING ANXIETY AND SEIZURE.


In practice the colour matching, in general, is performed based on objective instrumental evaluation of colour parameters and their differences using CIELAB colorimetric system, according to tolerances set by ISO standard. In most cases, the method of instrumental evaluation uses the interval scale in accordance to visual perception of colour and their differences, but in the area of deep dark hues, in this case black hues, the objective evaluation cannot obtained the difference values in accordance to psychological experience of colour. The black hues are characterized with low lightness value on which level the visual perception of colour parameters differ from the measuring results. It is often the case that the instrumental control confirm the colour difference among samples in the range of tolerances set by the ISO standards, while observer perceive certain differences and doesn't accepts the sample. In this paper the analyze of psychological experience and instrumental evaluation of colour parameters and their differences is performed on group of black textile samples, glossy and matt, with colour coordinates values a* +/-1; b* = +/-1, with lightness parameter L*< 16. The psychological perception was set based on visual evaluation by 10 observers.


2539Background: MGMT methylation (MGMTmet) status represents an important prognostic factor for glioblastoma (GBM) patients (PTS). Quantitative pyrosequencing approach has proven to be feasible for...


The quality of the public transport system is an important factor in determining passenger travel satisfaction and it leads to a better quality of life. Quality of life depends on the quality of services provided in the city. Satisfaction is strongly related to the perception of the users. Many people use public transport on their everyday trips and this paper investigates how road users perceive the public transportation system and the place of the stress factor in this perception. Furthermore, willingness to pay analysis was also carried out, and the amount of additional charge for a less stressful trip was included as a new variable in the model. The binomial logit model is used as a method in this study. As a result, the trip time and the home-based work trips increase the stress level in travel rises. Stress level affects the perception of public transport users, and therefore, users tend to stay away from the stress.


Take the environmental geology as foundation,macroscopically,the article discusses that the subsidence amplitude of east part of Zhengzhou City far is large than that of west part according to the following facts:landform,the changing of buried depth of the bottom beds of Neogene system,the state of buried depth by excavated tombs of Shang Dynasty and the fact that the west wall of Lao Ya-chen fault(Zhengzhou)ascended and its east wall descended about 400m;Microscopically,according to the state of the foundation soil mass and its testing and theoretic calculated data,the conclusion is that the east part is the possible of soil mass liquation when the earthquake intensity is 7~8 degree,especially the Jinshui District,due to its large subsidence amplitude,bad foundation soil mass,and shallow underground water level.So we have considered it will go against the requirement of earthquake defence to develop urban construction in large scale at east part of Zhengzhou and its basic investment of foundation reinforcement is more than that of west part about 1/2~1/3 So that it's uneconomical.Conclusion:the key district of distribution of urban construction should be at west part of Zhengzhou.


The microscopic origins and the current predictions of the proxy-SU(3) symmetry model of atomic nuclei were reviewed. Beginning with experimental evidence for the special roles played by nucleon pairs with maximal spatial overlap, the proxy-SU(3) approximation scheme is introduced; its validity is demonstrated through Nilsson model calculations and its connection to the spherical shell model. The major role played by the highest weight-irreducible representations of SU(3) in shaping up the nuclear properties is pointed out, resulting in parameter-free predictions of the collective variables β and γ for even–even nuclei in the explanation of the dominance of prolate over oblate shapes in the ground states of even–even nuclei, in the prediction of a shape/phase transition from prolate to oblate shapes below closed shells, and in the prediction of specific islands on the nuclear chart in which shape coexistence is confined. Further developments within the proxy-SU(3) scheme are outlined.


Wireless sensing technology for injection molding is of increasing interest in literature. Recently, a purely mechanical in-mold sensor for melt front detection was introduced. The sensor system is based on building resonant structures into the mold which are excited by the passing melt front generating structure-borne sound, from which the melt front position is derived. A big advantage of this system is the possibility to implement a plurality of resonant structures while just having one receiver. One important aspect is the need to separate and assign the recorded impinging sounds. A novel algebraic approach was introduced separating the resonant structures by reference to their oscillatory behavior. In this article, measurement results for over 450 injection molding cycles are given proving functionality of the separation process. In addition, it is shown that the melt front detection is reliable and robust when comparing it with results obtained by cavity temperature sensors. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40346.


Let $R$ be a (possibly noncommutative) ring and let $\mathcal C$ be a class of finitely generated (right) $R$-modules which is closed under finite direct sums, direct summands, and isomorphisms. Then the set $\mathcal V (\mathcal C)$ of isomorphism classes of modules is a commutative semigroup with operation induced by the direct sum. This semigroup encodes all possible information about direct sum decompositions of modules in $\mathcal C$. If the endomorphism ring of each module in $\mathcal C$ is semilocal, then $\mathcal V (\mathcal C)$ is a Krull monoid. Although this fact was observed nearly a decade ago, the focus of study thus far has been on ring- and module-theoretic conditions enforcing that $\mathcal V(\mathcal C)$ is Krull. If $\mathcal V(\mathcal C)$ is Krull, its arithmetic depends only on the class group of $\mathcal V(\mathcal C)$ and the set of classes containing prime divisors. In this paper we provide the first systematic treatment to study the direct-sum decompositions of modules using methods from Factorization Theory of Krull monoids. We do this when $\mathcal C$ is the class of finitely generated torsion-free modules over certain one- and two-dimensional commutative Noetherian local rings.


EEG-based emotion recognition is a relatively new research field in the Human Computer Interaction area and its aim is the implementation of new algorithms that would identify and recognize emotions from EEG (electroencephalogram) signals. Towards that, a novel method is presented in this paper that employs an optimized hybrid filter, using Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) and Genetic Algorithms (GA), in order to isolate the Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs) corresponding to the plurality of the energy content of the initial signal for classification. The filtered signal is constructed by the selected IMFs and is subjected to Higher Order Crossings (HOC) analysis for feature extraction. The final feature vector is classified into six emotion classes, i.e., happiness, anger, fear, disgust, sadness, and surprise, using Quadratic Discriminant Analysis. The high classification performance (84.72% maximum mean classification rate) justifies the efficiency of the proposed EEG-based emotion recognition approach.


Most undergraduate engineering economics textbooks and related curricula include elements of decision analysis, and decision trees are often introduced and promoted as a decision making tool. The teaching of value of information analysis is less prevalent, notwithstanding the variety of potential applications to everyday decisions in engineering practice. This paper addresses this gap by providing a detailed demonstration of how decision trees can be used to value information. It includes a detailed set of decision trees that guide the student through a decision under uncertainty. After definition of a base case, cases are provided for the value of perfect and imperfect information. The value of incremental improvement in information is addressed, and a probabilistic approach is described and demonstrated. The influence of risk preference is also addressed.


EJPE interviewed Professor Robeyns about her formative years, her scholarship on the capability approach, her ERC-funded Fair Limits project, the relevance of political philosophy for public policy, and her advice for young philosophers aspiring to an academic career.


A short loop technique is proposed to be used for monitoring on product line CMOS devices sensitiveness to hot carrier induced degradation. This method is based 'on evaluation an interface state generation rate under gate constant current stress. Data presented show an excellent correlation to conventional Hot - carrier lifetime test. The proposed technique can be implemented as a part of a standard electrical test on wafer level.


Graphical user interface, a method for providing a visual effect with a touch screen display device. And displaying the first screen, the step of detecting a multi-touch in the first screen, said the step of detecting a first touch event based on the multi-touch, wherein in response to a first touch event first screen the a step of removing the unnecessary object by moving a step of changing the unneeded objects (garbage object), the unwanted object into trash icon. .Field


In this study, we investigate how Canadian provincial governments have responded to fiscal shocks, including changes in federal transfers, based on annual data spanning over half a century. We find that provincial governments have responded to a $1.00 increase in their per-capita budget deficits by cutting program spending by $0.18 and increasing own-source revenues by $0.09 the following year. As these responses only partially offset the deficit, provincial debt levels increase, and debt service costs rise. Thus, provinces that face adverse fiscal shocks and/or rising budget deficits in a given period inevit-ably respond by reducing program spending and/or hiking own-source revenues in future periods. This undermines the arguments advanced by some politicians and policy analysts who believe provinces can run ongoing deficits without having to "face the fiscal music" in the future. Similarly, we find that a $1.00 increase in per-capita provincial program spending, which causes a rise in the budget deficit, results in a $0.71 decline in future program spending, a $0.26 increase in future own-source revenues, and a $0.10 increase in debt service payments, all measured in present value terms. This means that an increase in provincial program spending in the current period is not entirely offset by future spending reductions and that there will be an associated increase in the future tax burden. Thus, the impacts of fiscal shocks can reverberate for several years. In Canada, federal cash transfers to the provinces represent a sizable portion of total provincial government revenues, particularly for provinces that receive equalization grants. This study also highlights the importance of federal grants


The present invention discloses a prosthetic heart valve stent and valve, the valve support is axially collapsible resilient mount, and the hollow-shaped form, formed in the valve support disposed at a position corresponding to the U-shaped opening of the leaflets. The present invention by providing a hollow shape, and the valve support having a U-shaped opening, so that the entire heart valve metal structure greatly reduced, and the intervention is very beneficial to the implant loading and recovery, reducing the exclusion of the body of the implant.


The development of new and more sophisticated diagnostic techniques has opened up many new avenues of investigation. Using these tools has considerably expanded our knowledge on the infectious etiology of well-established disease states. Recent advances have led us to understand that ulcer disease is a consequence of infection with Helicobacter pylori, that Kaposi's sarcoma may be due to infection with human herpesvirus-8, that Whipple's disease is due to a fastidious gram-negative bacillus Tropherema whippelii, and that atherosclerosis may be associated with Chlamydia pneumoniae. Does parvovirus belong to this list? The discovery of the human parvovirus B19 in 1975 and the subsequent studies of its effects in humans identified this virus as the causative agent of a broad spectrum of diseases. Recent improvements in the development of sensitive polymerase chain reaction techniques and methods for cultivation have provided new insight into its pathogenic role, its virology and immunology, and the varied clinical manifestations. Parvovirus B19 is a common infectious agent in humans, with a seroprevalence of 50±70% in adults [1]. In normal children parvovirus B19 is known to cause erythema infectiosum (fifth disease). The clinical presentation in normal adults includes fever, malaise, and acute and chronic arthropathy. Transient aplastic crisis can develop in patients with increased erythropoiesis, and pure red cell aplasia develops in immunocompromised patients [1]. Virus-associated hemophagocytic syndrome has also been reported [1]. In pregnant women, the virus can be transmitted to the fetus with an infection rate of about 30%, resulting in fetal anemia, fetal hydrops, miscarriage or intrauterine fetal death [2]. Recently, parvovirus B19 was found to be associated with acute meningoencephalitis [3], brachial plexus neuropathy [4], hepatitis [5], pneumonia [6], myocarditis [7], papular-purpuric gloves and socks syndrome [8] and infection in solid-organ and bone marrow transplanted patients [9]. Acute parvovirus B19 infection has also been implicated in the pathogenesis of several autoimmune or inflammatory conditions including systemic lupus erythematosus [10], rheumatoid arthritis [11], systemic necrotizing vasculitis [12], idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura [13], acute post-infectious glomerulonephritis [14], Kawasaki disease [15] and multiple sclerosis (1). In this issue of IMAJ, Klar et al. [16] describe an immunodeficient patient with interstitial lung disease ± a new clinical manifestation associated with parvovirus B19 infection. Also in this issue, Barash et al. [17] describe 48 children with serologic evidence of acute parvovirus B19 infection; 31 presented with prolonged fever, 6 had unexplained anemia, and 5 had arthritis. In six patients each had an unusual presentation, including SLE, leukocytoclastic vasculitis, Diamond-Blackfan syndrome, hepatitis, optic neuritis, and acute lymphoblastic leukemia. However, most of the publications cited above are case reports associated with the virus, or limited PCR-based studies with poorly documented controls. Not only does the broad spectrum of clinical presentations attributed to parvovirus B19 not fit the very narrow target cell range of the virus, but parvovirus B19 apparently can be propagated only in human erythroid cells. Susceptibility to parvovirus B19 increases with differentiation, the pluripotent stem cell appears to be spared, and the main target cells are erythroid progenitors. Erythroid specificity of parvovirus B19 results from the tissue distribution of the virus' cellular receptor, globoside, also known as blood group P antigen, which is found in erythroid progenitors, erythroblasts and megakaryocytes [18]. It is also present in endothelial cells, which may be targets of viral infection involved in the pathogenesis of transplacental transmission, possibly vasculitis, and the rash of fifth disease. Rare individuals who genetically lack P antigen in erythrocytes are resistant to parvovirus B19 infection, and their bone marrow cannot be infected with parvovirus B19 in vitro. Erythroid specificity may also be modulated by specific erythroid cell transcription factors. The rash and polyarthropathy are probably immune complex-mediated. However, in vitro studies have shown that the parvovirus B19 nonstructural protein, in addition to inducing apoptosis in host cells, also induces activation of interleukin 6 [19], which could contribute in vivo to the parvovirus B19-induced arthropathy and/or autoimmune antibody production. The laboratory diagnosis of parvovirus B19 infection is not trivial. The virus cannot easily be cultivated in the laboratory, and the detection of virus relies on DNA hybridization techniques. In immunocompetent patients, viral DNA can be detected in the serum only within 2±4 days, and the diagnosis of acute cases is therefore based on immunoglobulin M assays. However, serologic confirmation of any viral infection cannot be made with a single serum sample, as was performed by Barash et al. [17]. Serologic tests for antiviral antibody are, at best, imperfect and subject to


ABSTRACT A notable gender gap in candidate selection still exists in Canada. While the five major political parties all used a similar decentralized candidate selection process in the 2015 Canadian federal election, the proportion of women candidates varied significantly by party. Placing the authority for selection with constituency-level party organizations limits the ability of parties to impose top-down gender parity policies and also, in principle, makes the process sensitive to demographic and political differences among constituencies. However, the results of mixed-methods analyses show limited influence of traditional local political and demographic variables, but a strong effect of party. The findings also show significant spatial clustering, suggesting that factors such as local social networks may help explain the variation in the nomination of women candidates. We conclude by discussing how party cultures and social networks might reflect supply and demand obstacles for potential women candidates, and how these factors might present challenges to achieving gender parity among federal candidates in Canada.


The study was conducted to investigate composition of fish catching around palm fiber fish aggregating device (FAD). This research was performed in waters of Nagan Raya District, Indian Ocean on October until December 2018. Palm fiber FAD and coconut fronds FAD was set up at 20-30 m depth. The The research is using survey method and to collecting data, experimental fishing was used to collect data with hand line fishing gear. The results show the types of fish catching in palm fiber FAD is Lepturacanthus savala, Selar crumenopthalmus, Selaroides leptolepis, Rastrelliger kanagurta and  Sardinella lemuru. For coconut fronds FADs, composition of fish catching is Selaroides leptolepis, Rastrelliger kanagurta, Sardenella sirin, Caranx sp, Terapon jarbua, Chorinemus tala dan Upenius mullocensin. Total of fish cacthing in palm fiber FADs is 70 fish. While at coconut fronds FADs is 29 fish. Based on descriptive analysis, the palm fiber FADs is more effective than coconut fronds FADs. This study is very important in the production of fish catching around FADs.


Currently, no consensus exists for the appropriate treatment of echocardiographically diagnosed mobile right heart masses giving rise to a high sus- picion of migrant thromboembolism in patients with pulmonary embolism. This may lead to unnecessary delay in the implementation of the most appropriate treat- ment for these patients. Several earlier studies have supported the beneficial role of thrombolytic ther- apy. We report on an additional two patients with mobile right heart thrombo- emboli, refractory to systemic anticoagulation, who recovered quickly after initiation of thrombolytic therapy.


Small scale business has never played an important role in the economy as it is today. This study, therefore, aims to investigate small business enterprise with emphasis on flowers and garden plants. Specifically, it intends to identify market segmentation factors and practical small business marketing strategies utilized by flowers and garden plants entrepreneurs. This investigation used survey research with questionnaires as the data collection instrument. A total of one hundred samples were collected for analysis. The basic statistics used for data analysis were frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation, and ranking. The result of the analysis showed that most of the key marketing segmentation factors are very important in the thriving business of flowers and garden plants. In addition, entrepreneurs relied on marketing mix strategies and consider the product, price, place or distribution channel as very important elements while promotion as moderately important.


Objectives:To investigate the clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical features of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Methods:The clinical and pathological data as well as H E stained slides of 57 cases of GISTs were reviewed. The immunoexpression of vimentin,smooth muscle actin(SMA),S 100 protein,and CD34 were determined in all cases with SP method. Results: 26 tumors were located in the stomach, 28 in the small intestine, and 3 in the colon.Histologically, 28 cases were benign GISTs, 26 cases malignant,3 cases borderline.Immunohistochemically,the positive rate for vimentin was 100 percent;CD34, 86 percent;SMA, 45.6 percent;and S 100 protein, 31.6 percent.Excepting S 100 protein,there were no obviously different immunoreactivity for vimentin,SMA,and CD34 among different location or between benign and malignant GISTs.The muscular layer of gastrointestinal tract and control group were CD34 negative reactivity. Conclusions: Most spindle cell tumors of gastrointestinal tract are GISTs. Its immunohistochemical feature is CD34 postive reaction,and may also co express muscular marker (SMA) and neural marker (S 100 protein).The differentiation between benign and malignant GISTs mainly depends on the tumor size,its clinical behavior,and the number of mitosis.


During the PhaseII project of NSRL, in order to monitor the injecting effectiveness, damping rate and Beta oscillation after update of injection and RF system, a turnbyturn system of HLS has been produced for storage ring diagnostics. Timing system is an important component of turnbyturn system. It provides synchronous clock signal with certain bunch in storage ring for data acquisition system. Programmable timedelay and remote control are available in this system. Total timedelay range of this system is 220ns, step 0.5ns. Time jitter of clock signals is less than 200ps.


Soil profiles are an important tool for comparing soils. Understanding soil profile characteristics is easier when soils can be visually interpreted. Soil monoliths are soil profiles which have been mounted on a relatively small board, making it possible to examine monoliths from remote and diverse regions in one location. Monoliths are treated to preserve the natural appearance of the soil profile. Soil monoliths are not suitable for texturing and other physical tests, but representative samples can be made available for examination. Departmental or agency bulletins appear to be the only source of instructions for making soil monoliths. These are difficult to obtain. It is hoped that through the following publication more people will use soil monoliths. The following paragraphs will cover two commonly sized monoliths: 2-in. core and 6-in. flat. Soil monoliths are usually prepared by taking a soil profile and gluing it to a board. The soil is allowed to dry and then saturated with a fixative that permanently binds the soil. White glue fixative gives a more natural appearance on most soils, but avoid using carpenter's glue as it has a yellowish appearance. Other fixatives, like floor wax, yellow with age, and have a shiny surface. White glue replaces most hazardous and messy materials, like saran and methyl-ethyl-ketone. Soap and water are used for clean up. It also is relatively inexpensive. Many sizes and shapes of monoliths have been prepared. The 2-in. soil core and 6-in. flat monoliths were chosen to illustrate the major steps in making soil monoliths. These methods can be adapted to other types of soil monoliths. The 2-in soil core method has the advantage of being smaller, easier to handle during preparation and more portable. The advantage of the 6-in. flat monolith is a larger lateral area to illustrate larger soil features. It can be collected from areas inaccessible to a coring machine. Its disadvantages are the increased weight while preparing, handling, or displaying the monolith.


In this paper, we apply the optimum waveform design method to meet the application of elastic targets detection and aim at enhance the target detection rate. The target is assumed to be Gaussian elastic targets and the clutter is assumed to be a stationary Gaussian random process. The detection problem then is described using Neyman-Pearson Detector. The waveform design solutions for elastic targets are given theoretically, and numerical simulated results are presented based on different transmit energy and comparison results between optimum signal and LFM signal are shown. Finally, the conclusions are drawn based on our analysis and simulations.


With the growing popularity of high-performance computing devices such as tablets and smart-phones, and the growing trends of cloud-based services, forecasts indicate that the majority of Internet traffic will originate from inside of the buildings. Thus indoor network infrastructure needs to provide both better capacity and better coverage. Meanwhile, energy efficiency of the network becomes an additional requirements on the network design, due to the rising concern of the carbon footprint of telecommunication industry over the past few years. In this paper, we discuss a few fundamental trade-offs that need to be considered when designing energy-efficient networks. We also discuss the energy efficiency of Radio-over-Fiber (RoF) links and compare RoF-based architectures with legacy Baseband-over-Fiber (BoF) for two scenarios: growing network capacity and improving network coverage. We demonstrate that the understanding and the analysis of main energy hogs and their trade-offs in various network architectures is a key factor in optimizing the design of energy-efficient network architecture.


This article is largely based on historical analysis of an overlooked and unexplored colonial document. The Sir James Clark Enquiry of 1868, conducted by the Government of India, contains rich evidence of the mindset of policymakers and those who implemented colonial psychiatry in 14 institutions. While the state regarded the asylum system as burdensome, it made ample efforts to sequester the insane. In view of such ambivalence, the article scrutinises the relationship between colonialism and psychiatry, and also probes some reasons behind the state's inability to establish superior-quality asylums in India. The findings throw new light on the limited colonial agenda of psychiatry in India, highlighting the basically punitive nature of psychiatric infrastructures, linked with attempts to create an ordered society, but above all to minimise costs.


Color-magnitude diagrams for the metal-rich bulge clusters NGC 6528, NGC 6553, and Terzan 1 are calibrated in M I0 versus (V-I) 0 , and compared to that of 47 Tuc. In such diagrams the blanketing effects for increasing metallicities are directly estimated. Such studies are important for the interpretation of CMDs of metal-rich populations in Local Group external galaxies. We compare our results to literature color-magnitude diagrams of M31 and M32 bulges.


This paper approaches the process of 'reflection' as an interpersonal and intra-personal creative act. As commonly used, the word 'reflection' appears to reference two seemingly different processes; the returning of a mirror image and the process of reflective thought. Examining the intersection of these two definitions – from infant development, through attachment theory to post-Kleinian thinking and Lacan – this paper finds that the act of 'reflection' can be conceived of as an act of triangulation, in a mathematical sense, whereby a pre-existing but unknown point is found/made using two known points as the vertices.


"Waste Not, Want Not" is comprised of local community volunteers who regularly collect ripe, unwanted fruit that would otherwise go to waste. With the help of Maui Food Bank, the fruit is distributed to locations where senior citizens and low-income communities can easily obtain this ready to eat, 100% natural nutritional fruit at no cost. "With the large increase in demand for food assistance there has never been a better time for a program like this. Fresh fruit and vegetables play a vital role in proper nutrition and having a balanced diet is the key to ones overall well being. We are always looking to bring in new sources of food and Waste Not Want Not is a great addition." Richard Yust, Executive Director of Maui Food Bank.


This paper presents preliminary results of an ongoing research on housing and urban policies in San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina. It reviews the regularization process of an informal settlement called Virgen Misionera. The neighborhood and its population are fully consolidated, but there are still problems and conflicts related to the ownership of land plots and, thus, conflicts related to the urban consolidation of the settlement emerge. In a context where land prices soared in the last fifteen years, the article reflects on the limits of the regularization strategies used in Argentina and raises the need to reformulate the content and scope of property right.


In the first part of this dissertation we introduce two matrix iso-spectral problems, a Kaup-Newell type and a generalization of the Dirac spectral problem, associated with the three-dimensional real Lie algebras sl(2,R) and so(3,R), respectively. Through zero curvature equations, we furnish two soliton hierarchies. Hamiltonian structures for the resulting hierarchies are formulated by adopting the trace identity. In addition, we prove that each of the soliton hierarchies has a bi-Hamiltonian structure which leads to the integrability in the Liouville sense. The motivation of the first part is to construct soliton hierarchies with infinitely many commuting symmetries and conservation laws. The second part of the dissertation is dedicated to the investigation of exact solutions to some nonlinear evolution equations. We find lump solutions and lump-type solutions to a (2+1)-dimensional 5th-order KdV-like equation and a (3+1)-dimensional Jimbo–Miwa-like equation, respectively. Moreover, we explore interaction solutions of lump-type solutions with kink solutions and resonance stripe solitons solutions for the Jimbo–Miwa-like equation. Finally, we consider a Riemann-Hilbert problem for a coupled complex modified-KdV system and present its N -soliton solutions. Chapter


This paper investigates an optimal procurement policy for items with fixed lifetime. So any units which remain unused by their expiry date are considered outdated, and must be disposed of. The demand rate of items is assumed to be a function of current inventory level if the inventory is greater than or equal to S0, and is constant if the inventory is less than S0. For the system presented, a mathematical model and solution methodology are developed. At last, a numerical example is presented to illustrate the methodology.


Smoking cessation is the most important step to limit the complications of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Outcomes from studies that assessed the association between health-related quality of life (HRQL) and smoking cessation have been controversial. This study aimed to assess the relationship between HRQL and smoking cessation in patients with COPD in Tunisia.

 A cross-sectional study was carried out in the two main primary care centers in the center of Tunisia over a period of three months (April-June 2016). Clinic and socio-demographic data were collected from patients' records. HRQL was assessed by the Medical Outcomes Study Short-form 36 (SF-36). This instrument is composed of two dimensions: physical and mental components. The questionnaire outcomes were described as means and standard deviation. T-test was performed to assess the statistical difference between the dependent and categorical variables.

 A total of 249 COPD patients participated in the study with a mean age of 67.77±11.13. Of this sample, 169 (67.9%) ceased smoking. The average period of smoking cessation was 10 years. The mean of total HRQL score in patients who ceased smoking was lower in comparison to patients who did not quit smoking (40.65±24.49, 43.37±24.49; respectively). The T-test reported a significant difference between the physical component of HRQL and smoking status. Patients with current smoking status had a better physical component score in comparison with patients who quit smoking (43.76±22.62, 37,86±18.21, p = 0.04, respectively). No significant differences were found between smoking cessation, mental component, and HRQL total score (p = 0.89, p = 0.39; respectively).

 This study revealed that smoking cessation was associated with the physical component of HRQL. The smoking dependence in patients with COPD could explain this finding. Health care professionals should work harder on effective smoking cessation strategies.

 These findings suggested that HRQL was better among patients who did not quit smoking. Patients who did not cease smoking reported better physical status and poorer mental status in comparison with patients who quit smoking.


This study examined adaptations in muscle oxidative capacity and exercise performance induced by two work‐ and duration‐matched exercise protocols eliciting different muscle metabolic perturbations in trained individuals. Thirteen male subjects ( V˙ O2‐max 53.5 ± 7.0 mL·kg−1·min−1) (means ± SD) performed 8 weeks (three sessions/week) of training consisting of 60 min of moderate intensity continuous cycling (157 ± 20 W) either without (C) or with (C+S) inclusion of 30‐s sprints (473 ± 79 W) every 10 min. Total work performed during training was matched between groups. Muscle biopsies and arm venous blood were collected before as well as immediately and 2 h after exercise during the first and last training session. Plasma epinephrine and lactate concentrations after the first and last training session were 2–3‐fold higher in C+S than in C. After the first and last training session, muscle phosphocreatine and pH were lower (12–25 mmol·kg d.w.−1 and 0.2–0.4 units, respectively) and muscle lactate higher (48‐64 mmol·kg d.w.−1) in C+S than in C, whereas exercise‐induced changes in muscle PGC‐1α mRNA levels were similar within‐ and between‐groups. Muscle content of cytochrome c oxidase IV and citrate synthase (CS) increased more in C+S than in C, and content of CS in type II muscle fibers increased in C+S only (9–17%), with no difference between groups. Performance during a 45‐min time‐trial improved by 4 ± 3 and 9 ± 3% in C+S and C, respectively, whereas peak power output at exhaustion during an incremental test increased by 3 ± 3% in C+S only, with no difference between groups. In conclusion, addition of sprints in moderate intensity continuous exercise causes muscle oxidative adaptations in trained male individuals which appear to be independent of the exercise‐induced PGC‐1α mRNA response. Interestingly, time‐trial performance improved similarly between groups, suggesting that changes in content of mitochondrial proteins are of less importance for endurance performance in trained males.