The number of features related to morphology, distribution of habitats, biotopical distribution, and biology of species reproduction (within the territory described) of the Mongolian toad (Bufo raddei) which inhabits western shore of Lake Baikal were described. In this paper on the basis of the results of field studies in 1997, 2001, 2005, 2012 the original data on reproduction and chemical composition of the spawning ponds, used by frogs for reproduction, is presented. It was found that reproduction of species occurs in the salty steppe (14-45 g/L) lakes in the west part of the Baikal basin.


Redundancy introduced DSTBC(Differential Space-Time Block Code) is given in flat rayleigh fading channels, and it can only provide a limited speed. To provide high speed data service in frequency selective fading channels, a new differential space-time block coded OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing)system based on the DSTBC scheme is provided. The transmitter first performs DSTBC, then OFDM modulation, and finally signals are transmitted from two antennas. The receiver first performs OFDM demodulation, then DSTBC decoding with Viterbi algorithm. The new DSTBC scheme provides a differential coding gain due to redundancy introduced in the differential encoding. Simulation results show that the new DSTBC coded OFDM system can provide a better performance than traditional DSTBC coded OFDM system, and can improve about 1dB for higher SNR, which is only 2dB worse than coherent space time block coded OFDM system. If an outer code is concatenated before the DSTBC encoder, the system performance can be further improved.


The dissipation of the kinetic energy (KE) associated with oceanic flows is believed to occur primarily in the oceanic bottom boundary layer (BBL), where bottom drag converts the KE from mean flows to heat loss through irreversible mixing at molecular scales. Due to the practical difficulties associated with direct observations on small-scale turbulence close to the seafloor, most up-to-date estimates on bottom drag rely on a simple bulk formula (CdU3) proposed by G.I. Taylor that relates the integrated BBL dissipation rate to a drag coefficient (Cd) as well as a flow magnitude outside of the BBL (U). Using output from several turbulence-resolving direct numerical simulations, it is shown that the true BBL-integrated dissipation rate is approximately 90% of that estimated using the classic bulk formula, applied here to the simplest scenario where a mean flow is present over a flat and hydrodynamically smooth bottom. It is further argued that Taylor's formula only provides an upper bound estimate and should be applied with caution in the future quantification of BBL dissipation; the performance of the bulk formula depends on the distribution of velocity and shear stress near the bottom, which, in the real ocean, could be disrupted by bottom roughness.


This is an important book for all of us who are interested in cardiac pathologyand which of us is not? It brings to the study of the dead heart the essential dimension of function that has been so sadly lacking in most accounts of the morphology of heart disease. As with any multiple-author book there is a good deal of variation in quality between the chapters, but the whole volume is worthy of the pathologist's careful study. The illustrations also vary somewhat in quality but there is a liberal allowance of excellent electronmicrographs. To sum up, this book is highly recommended to research workers in this field and it will make interesting holiday reading for all pathologists


In a working environment that is high-risk, knowledge-intensive, extremely stressful, and competitive, medical institutions have increasingly come to value the concepts of social capital and health promotion. In this study conducted at hospitals in Taiwan, we explored the relationships among social capital (institutional trust and interpersonal trust), health promotion, and job satisfaction. We found that institutional trust had a significantly positive effect on both interpersonal trust and health promotion. In addition, institutional trust, interpersonal trust, and health promotion had significantly positive effects on job satisfaction. Furthermore, in descending order, institutional trust, health promotion, and interpersonal trust, all substantially affected job satisfaction. Therefore, we concluded that Taiwanese hospitals should reinforce both social capital, and health promotion programs to improve job satisfaction.


One picture is divided into maximum coding unit up a data unit size for encoding, out of the hierarchically constituted by depth coding units by the depth indicating the spatial division number of the maximum coding unit , for each depth by the coding unit, independently determine the coding unit of the coding depth and outputs the encoded result, in the maximum coding unit are hierarchically with depth in the same region, other consists of the coding units is independent of the coding depth for the region, to determine the coding unit according to a tree structure, based on coding units according to a tree structure of the maximum coding unit, a maximum coding unit and the original code for performing determining a filtering unit for performing in-loop filtering for minimizing the error between the picture, based on the filtering unit, the in-loop filtering A video encoding method with the in-loop filtering based on the unit.


Distributed, real-time virtual environment (VE) architectures have traditionally been driven by quality of service (QOS) considerations, with little or no concern paid to security issues. With recent advancements in functionality, computing power and network bandwidth it has become practical to use VEs in sensitive areas such as product development with proprietary information and visualization of classified information. Consequently, previously ignored aspects of security need to be made a primary concern at the outset of designing a VE. In this paper we explore security concerns associated with a subtype of VEs: Runtime Extensible VEs (RTEVEs). We introduce a taxonomy of security issues, derived from a case study of NPSNET-V, with the goal of using this taxonomy to guide the formulation of security policy, requirements, and architectures for RTEVEs.


frontation in World War I. Through a marvelous processual analysis of the 1906 burning of the Greek town of Anhalio, the reprisals that followed, and the increasing occurrence of hate speech in Greek periodicals following the incident, Dragostinova provides a closely documented case study of the effect of media coverage, disinformation, and national-level simplifications in the brewing of intercommunal strife. Particularly compelling is her archival detective work, which traces this sequence of events back to a piece of political satire at die expense of a new "Greek" bishop. In showing how, in her words, "an incident that had begun by dressing a donkey in a cassock ended with profound repercussions" (48), Dragostinova affirms the strategic importance of local symbolic protest.


Objectives: Reduction of skeletal muscle mass is the most important component of sarcopenia. Aging and chronic diseases, including chronic heart failure, are the causes of reduced skeletal muscle mass. However, little is known about the mechanism of skeletal muscle mass reduction in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD). The purpose of this study was to assess the association between skeletal muscle mass reduction and the indicators of early and advanced arterial damages in CVD patients. Design and Methods: This was a single-center, retrospective cross-sectional analysis including 310 inpatients with CVD. Bioelectrical impedance assay was used to measure skeletal muscle index (SMI) as well as bioelectrical phase angle (PA), a marker of tissue damage. Arterial velocity pulse index (AVI) was assessed for advanced vascular damages, such as arterial stiffening and increased peripheral resistance, using a commercially available instrument. Flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) was performed to assess early vascular damages, i.e. endothelial dysfunction, using a commercially available, high-resolution, ultrasound device. Results: The mean age was 72 years (male, 57.7%). Symptomatic heart failure (AHA/ACC stage C and D) was observed in 19.4%. Sarcopenia was diagnosed in 25.5% of the whole group, according to the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia criteria. Sarcopenic patients showed higher AVI and narrower PA than non-sarcopenic patients, suggesting as having severer arterial stiffness and tissue damage. Single regression analysis showed that SMI associated with AVI, FMD, PA, age, male sex, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia, but not with CKD and heart failure. Stepwise multivariate regression analysis revealed that age, male sex, AVI, PA, and hypertension were independent factors for SMI in CVD patients, whereas FMD, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia were not. Conclusion: AVI was a significant marker for detecting sarcopenia in CVD patients independently of age and male sex. In addition, skeletal muscle mass reduction was correlated with a tissue damage marker, PA. Therefore, it is suggested that advanced vascular damages resulting arterio-/arteriolo-sclerosis, rather than early endothelial dysfunction, might be attributed to the reduction of skeletal muscle mass, possibly through damages of skeletal muscle tissue in CVD patients.


In this study, a multi objective optimization for end milling of Al 6061 alloy has been presented to provide better surface quality and higher Material Removal Rate (MRR). The input parameters considered for the analysis are spindle speed, depth of cut and feed. The experiments were planned as per Taguchis design of experiment, with L27 orthogonal array. The Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) has been used for transforming multiple quality responses into a single response and the weights of the each performance characteristics are determined by employing the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), so that their relative importance can be properly and objectively described. The results reveal that Taguchi based G-PCA can effectively acquire the optimal combination of cutting parameters. Keywords—Material Removal Rate, Surface Roughness, Taguchi Method, Grey Relational Analysis, Principal Component Analysis.


Corrections for a ''mass gain'' artifact by the weighing mechanism have been found necessary when exposing a Cahn‐RG‐UHV microbalance in water vapor up to 1.3×103‐Pa water vapor. The effect varies linearly with load from 0.2 to 0.9 g and amounts to an apparent mass gain of 27 μg per 100 mg of load at 1.3×103 Pa and 22° C. About two hours were required to reach equilibrium after exposure to water vapor at pressures between 1.3 and 2.4×103 Pa. Similar equilibration times are required in comparable pressure decrements, except that times ranging to as high as 33 h are necessary during final evacuation. Thus, the artifact depends on time, pressure, and load. The mass defect is tentatively ascribed to sorption by the polymer used for insulating the torque motor. Recoating the windings in the torque motor, which was done by the Cahn Division of Ventron, reduced the effect to 12.2 μg at a 100‐mg load and 1.3×103 Pa, but the time, pressure, and load dependence of the artifact remained.


The order relation on the set of completely n-positive linear maps from a pro-C¤-
algebra A to L(H), the C¤-algebra of bounded linear operators on a Hilbert space
H, is characterized in terms of the representation associated with each completely
n-positive linear map. Also, the pure elements in the set of all completely n-positive
linear maps from A to L(H) and the extreme points in the set of completely n-
positive linear maps from a unital C¤-algebra A to L(H) are characterized in terms
of the representation induced by each completely n-positive linear map.


This article argues that a central aspect of political persuasion and propaganda lies in myths (defining the idea of myth in its social-anthropological sense and not the vernacular sense of that which is not true). It is a summary review of the role and significance of myth in political propaganda and persuasion, a function that we claim has been neglected by much of the extant literature. We suggest that political communication cannot function without its myths; and that successful


A novel multiple-output converter with band-pass filter is proposed. Each output is regulated independently without any additional switch by Superposed Sinusoidal Pulse Width Modulation (SSPWM) and Pulse Frequency Modulation (PFM) control. The static and dynamic properties are analyzed and the controllability is experimentally verified on a 500W two-output dc-dc converter for Plasma Display Panels (PDP) power system.


OBJECTIVE
Single, childless working women (SCWW) are a notable proportion of the female workforce. The budding research on this population suggests that they have issues of wellbeing that may be tied to specific needs of both their workplaces and their personal lives, and hence, distinct work-life dynamics that require attention. This study explores how SCWW construct their wellbeing.

PARTICIPANTS
The sample was composed of 22 SCWW aged 29 to 45.

METHODS
A discourse analysis of the transcripts of semi-structured interviews with these women was performed.

RESULTS
Most women drew on an interpretative repertoire of "wellbeing as balance" (e.g., diversification and reasonable dosing of life's dimensions). It was associated with a recurrent subject position we have termed "the dynamic woman" whose intensity transfused talk of the activities in her life. Here, work becomes a "passion" and a source of appreciated challenges. However, a dilemma could arise from these constructions for positioning oneself in relation to the cadence of one's active life or rather, in articulating an unambiguous claim to balance. Balance/dosing and dynamicity/passion can be uneasy bedfellows.

CONCLUSIONS
Our analyses raise questions about possible counter[balancing] discourses and further argue the relevance of work-life issues for SCWW.


Congenital long QT syndrome (LQTS) is an inherited ion channel disorder caused by gene mutations that encode for cardiac ion channels. The incidence of inherited LQTS in the general population is estimated to be 1:2000 (0.05%) [1]. LQTS manifests as prolonged corrected QT interval (QTc) on the electrocardiogram (ECG) and magnetocardiogram (MCG), and it is strongly associated with cardiomyopathies, channelopathies, and sudden death at all ages [2-5]. Sudden death results from susceptibility to Torsade de Pointes (TdP), a highly lethal ventricular tachycardia. Little is known about LQTS in the fetus, but an important recent study suggests that congenital LQTS may account for nearly 10% of unexplained fetal demise [6]. LQTS, however, is virtually unstudied in the fetus because the fetal ECG is difficult to record during pregnancy and repolarization is not detectable by ultrasound [7,8].


Holocene climate change was inferred from records of changing bog surface wetness (BSW) from seven sites in Scotland: six ombrotrophic raised mires and one ombrotrophic blanket mire located across geographical and climatological gradients. The key proxy indicators used were plant macrofossils, colorimetric humification and testate amoebae, which were supported by a radiocarbon based chronology, aided by analyses of spheroidal carbonaceous particles and increases in pine pollen at specific sites. Field stratigraphy was undertaken at each site in order to show that the changes detected within the peat profiles were replicable. In an attempt to identify synchroneity of climatic phases and also to aid chronological control, tephra isochrons were utilised to allow the precise linking of time-spans between sites. Fourteen tephras were identified from the seven sites, and electron probe microanalysis was used to geochemically type the tephras to known isochrons from Icelandic eruptions. The BSW reconstructions show coherent wet and dry phases over the last ca. 5000 years, with the three proxy indicators supporting each other extremely well. Key phases of climate change will be discussed, as well as key ecological changes within the bogs including the local/regional extinctions of specific taxa. Specific correlations at the time of the Glen Garry and Hekla-4 tephra isochrones revealed a significant difference between climatic phases in the north and south of Scotland. Spectral analyses of the climate reconstructions revealed identical significant periodicities from four sites, including a millennial scale periodicity which may be related to an oceanic climate forcing mechanism.


The invention relates to a preparation method of m-phthaloyl chloride. The method is easy and convenient to operate, and has high yield. The method comprises the following steps of: (1) reacting m-phthalic acid and thionyl chloride in the mass ratio of 1:(2-2.5) under heating and refluxing conditions by taking N,N-dimethylfomamide as a catalyst for 5-7 hours, wherein the mass ratio of the N,N-dimethylfomamide to the m-phthalic acid is 1:(75-80); (2) adding thionyl chloride once again, and continually reacting in a heating and refluxing way for 17-19 hours to obtain a reaction liquid, wherein the mass ratio of the thionyl chloride added once again to intermediate phthalic acid in the step (1) is 1:(0.8-0.9); (3) continually heating a reaction liquid, recovering residual thionyl chloride till no thionyl chloride flow out, and exhausting residual waste gas to obtain a synthetic liquid; and (4) after the synthetic liquid is cooled to below 120 DEG C, rectifying the synthetic liquid.


Effects of probe temperature and probe material on electrostatic probe measurements in a partially-ionized high-density plasma were investigated. Probe measurements were performed in an atmospheric-pressure argon arc plasma and also in an argon arc plasma in which a small amount of hydrogen was added. Cylindrical probes of tungsten, rhenium and molybdenum were used at various temperatures. The work functions of these probes in atmospheric-pressure gases were estimated by the thermionic emission method. Further, ion saturation current to a cylindrical probe was calculated taking account of the local properties of the plasma. The ion current increases as the probe temperature rises but its increment is not large. The floating potential shifts in the negative direction at higher probe temperatures. This potential depends also on the material of the probe. These results are explained by the thermo-hydrodynamic effect and the variation in the work function of the probe.


Abnormal liver function, such as hepatic steatosis, hepatic insulin resistance and increased hepatic glucose production is frequently associated with metabolic disorders such as insulin resistance, obesity and diabetes. Various signaling pathways are involved in regulation of hepatic glucose metabolism. Here, we describe a novel role of TGF‐β signaling is in control of hepatic gluconeogenesis. Interestingly, we find that circulating TGF‐β levels are significantly increased in obese human subjects, Lepob/ob mice and high‐fat‐diet (HFD)‐induced obese (DIO) mice. This is accompanied with enhanced Smad3 activity and hepatic insulin resistance and adiposity. Importantly, Smad3−/− mice display enhanced hepatic insulin sensitivity and significantly increased glucose uptake in liver tissues. Moreover, we detect significantly reduced hepatic endogenous glucose production in response to exogenous insulin and pyruvate challenge. Surprisingly, when challenged with high fat diet (HFD), Smad3−/− mice are protected from insulin resistance, obesity and hepatic steatosis. Further, treatment of diabetes susceptible Lepob/ob and DIO mice with an anti‐TGF‐β neutralizing antibody results in improved hepatic insulin sensitivity and resolution of hepatic steatosis. We discover that TGF‐β/Smad3 signaling mediates the beneficial effects by modulating fatty acid β‐oxidation genes and energy sensing molecules, specifically, the adenosine mono phosphate kinases (AMPKs) and the downstream target acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC). We conclude that TGF‐β/Smad3 signaling blockade enhances energy metabolism in hepatic tissues and ameliorates diet‐induced obesity and diabetes. We believe that these findings support the investigational use of anti‐TGF‐β/Smad3 approaches for management and therapy of diabetes and obesity.


ONE of the greatest obstacles in the development of programs for handicapped children is the critical shortage of trained personnel. Testimony provided the Ad Hoc Subcommittee on the Handicapped of the Committee on Education and Labor, House of Representatives, in August, 1966, (89th Congress) indicated that approximately 306,000 teachers were needed to meet the educational needs of handicapped children. At that time, only 70,000 teachers were available, with an additional 21,000 forecasted to be trained by 1969. The above figures are of great concern. They become even more so when we realize that approximately one-fourth of the 70,000 teachers now available are not fully qualified. If general turnover rates applicable to the educational profession are applied, approximately 10 percent of the special education teachers will leave the field each year. At current rates of preparing teaching personnel, sixteen years would be needed to close the gap between supply and need. In addition, there continues to be a critical shortage of leadership personnel needed to train teachers as well as to provide effective supervision and administrative support at state and local levels. Without effective leadership, teacher turnover increases, curriculum innovation and evaluation decreases, and the overall quality of special education programs regresses to a level that actually produces an additional handicap for the handicapped child to overcome. Conservative estimates indicate that approximately 10 percent of all school age .children-more than 5 million-require special education. Approximately 3 million of these


The purpose of this study was to analyse selected factors determining the level of infestation of Ixodes ricinus ticks on Lacerta agilis and Zootoca vivipara lizards found in Central Europe. Both environmental factors (habitats within protected areas and areas transformed as a result of human activity) as well as morphological factors (age, sex and size of lizards, location of ticks on the lizard's body) were assessed. We found that the age and size of a lizard played a significant role in the level of infestation, but this depended on the species and habitat. Females of both species differed significantly in their level of tick infestation; females of L. agilis had lower infection than Z. vivipara. In contrast, there was no difference in levels of infection between juveniles and males of the different species. We also found that the impact of body size changed in the different habitats: the number of ticks increased with body size in natural areas only. In addition, more frequently ticks were found in the front groin area (336 individuals) and forelimbs (202), less often on the neck (12) and never in the hind groin area. These differences might be because it is easier to infest a larger individual than a smaller one, and areas of the front of the lizard might be more accessible whilst foraging. This study provides additional information about tick infestation that may be relevant to the conservation of the species of lizards.


The interaction between copper(II) hexafluoroacetylacetonate [Cu(hfacac)2] and pyridine-containing building blocks with linear, angled and trigonal geometry (1–3) has led to isolation of different coordination polymers (A–D). These were studied by infrared spectroscopy and single-crystal X-ray diffraction methods. The copper coordination geometry in the present complexes can be described as a more or less distorted square bipyramid (or elongated octahedron). The unsaturated Cu(hfacac)2 units are connected by the aromatic spacer ligand moieties 1–3 so as to form polymeric frameworks, which are infinite either in one (A and D) or in two dimensions (C). The polymeric ropes or sheets are held together in the crystals by relatively weak intermolecular interactions, in which the protruding fluoro substituents of the metallic links play an active role. The porous compound A was also studied with respect to sensing reactions for potential analysis of selected volatile compounds. The screening shows interesting reactions of this coordination polymer, indicating a reversible response of relatively small and polar analytes such as methanol, ethanol and acetone, but not of water.


This paper analyzed the main problem in the development and the competition of Shanxi agriculture superiority industry and the product.For example,small production scale,low yield level,low science and technology content,low high-quality rate,low processing capacity,low increase amplitude,low outward degree and low exchange earning by export, etc.it provided some referenced opinions which had the certain value for Shanxi agriculture further development in the analysis process.


The polymorphism of exon 7 in butyrophilin(BTN) gene was detected by PCR-RFLP.A Hae Ⅲ RFLP named A(331+170bp) and B(295+201bp) was found in the lines tested.Association of the polymorphism with 305d matured equivalency(ME),fat percentage(F/%),protein percentage(P/%),solids percentage(S/%) and sugar percentage(Su/%) were analyzed.The results showed the distribution of AA genotype and A allele frequency was higher(over 60%),and the cows carried AA genotype had higher F%(P0.05),P%(P0.05),S% and Su% than those of the cows with BB genotype,respectively,while the ME of cows carried AA genotype was lower than that of the BB genotype(P0.05).The additive effects of allele A was-345.34kg/parity,0.07%,0.09%,0.09%,0.07% for ME,F(%),P(%),S(%) and Su(%),respectively,and the dominant effects of allele A was 187.72kg/parity,0.07%,0.08%,0.04% and 0.04%,respectively.


1However, there is controversy regarding the differentiation of dermatological disease in patients with malignant and nonmalignant conditions. 1 In 1976, Curth indicated that before a skin disease could be called paraneoplastic dermatosis, 6 criteria were required: • both skin and malignant conditions start at approximately the same time • both conditions follow a parallel course • in syndromes, neither the onset nor the course of either condition is dependent on the other • a specific tumour occurs with a specific skin manifestation • the dermatosis is not common in the general population • a high degree of association between the two conditions is noted. 2 Currently, only 2 of the 6 criteria are needed to declare that a skin condition is a paraneoplastic dermatosis. 2 This issue of Dermatology Rounds reviews the classic paraneoplastic dermatoses. The incidence of the underlying malignancy varies with the specific dermatosis and the aggressiveness with which a tumour work-up is pursued should reflect this variation. Generally, the onset of paraneoplastic cutaneous lesions is more rapid than in benign conditions. The pathophysiology of tumours and skin disease is not always known; in some cases, tumour-derived growth factors play a role. 1 The paraneoplastic dermatoses can be


For far too long elderly care has found itself at the end of a very long list of Government priorities. Under-funding and a lack of investment in current services means that our ageing population are at risk of neglect both financially and physically. In a letter to the Guardian 45 council leaders voiced concerns over an unsatisfactory situation in which 'Ever-growing numbers of elderly with ever-greater complexity of cases, combined with a Government grant that has failed to match that spent on other key services, means that services for the elderly are now teetering on the brink.'


The matrix Schrodinger equation with a selfadjoint matrix potential is considered on the half line with the general selfadjoint boundary condition at the origin. When the matrix potential is integrable, the high-energy asymptotics are established for the related Jost matrix, the inverse of the Jost matrix, and the scattering matrix. Under the additional assumption that the matrix potential has a first moment, Levinson's theorem is derived, relating the number of bound states to the change in the argument of the determinant of the scattering matrix.


Criticised for being too close to the drug industry, the US drug regulator is trying to fix its image as the guardian of drug safety


Sepsis is a systemic disease caused by the presence of microbes or poisons into the bloodstream and causes a systemic response. Sepsis is still a leading cause of death in critical cases in various parts of the world and is still a problem in developing countries and in developed countries. It has been recently discovered that Procalcitonin (PCT) testing is used as a marker of specific bacteria and can distinguish between sepsis and SIRS (Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome). The study titled Procalcitonin Examination Results as a Biomarker in Patient Sepsis aims to determine the description of Procalcitonin results in sepsis patients based on age, sex, comorbidity and factors related to Procalcitonin examination results. This type of research is a literature review from the journal 2010-2020 related to the title. Then the results obtained by researchers from all journals were discussed to determine procalcitonin results in sepsis patients and factors related to procalcitonin examination results. The study showed that age 40-70 years and male sex were the most experienced by sepsis with the most sources of sepsis caused by respiratory diseases such as pneumonia followed by hypertension and diabetes melitus. The conclusion from the review is that the incidence of sepsis is still high. Age and underlying disease of sepsis have a relationship with procalcitonin results.


s Scheme 1 R NO2 R NO R NHOH R N N R R H N H N R R N N R O R NH2 Fe, AcOH reflux (A) Baldwin and co-workers have reported the reductive cyclization of substituted dinitrostyrene to indole derivatives with iron powder in acetic acid. They noticed some improvement in yield over the standard conditions.4 (B) A convenient, operationally simple, one-pot synthesis of various substituted g-lactams using an SN2¢ reaction of acetates of Baylis– Hillman adducts with nitroalkanes followed by reductive cyclization with iron–acetic acid was reported by Basavaiah and co-workers.5 (C) Basavaiah et al. have reported an easy, convenient, and operationally simple one-pot procedure for the synthesis of 3-benzoylquinoline derivatives from Baylis–Hillman alcohols using iron– acetic acid.6 BnO


The ad vances in de sign ing novel X-ray sources will al low for time re solved X-ray scat ter ing and dif frac tion on a femto second to mil li sec ond time scale. Un like large scale fa cil i ties such as synchrotrons, in ten sive la sers can be used for the gen er a tion of short X-rays pulses in a setup sim i lar in size to the com mer cially avail able lab o ra tory X-ray sources. The femto second la ser driven emis sion of X-ray pulses from plasma (XPS) of fers higher time res o lu tion for fast ki netic mea sure ments than con tin u ously emit ting sources. The ELI beamlines fa cil ity is planned to start op er a tion by the end of 2016 in Dolni Brezany, Czech Re pub lic. It will give a unique ad van tage for time re solved crys tal log ra phy and wide an gle scat ter ing for a crys tal line sam ples, in clud ing pro teins. The gen er ated pulses will span approx. 100 fs with a rep e ti tion rate of 1 kHz. The scat tered and dif fracted by the pro tein crys tal X-rays will be counted us ing a DECTRIS Eiger 1M area de tec tor which op er ates at the same frame rate as the source, i.e. 1 kHz. Such setup can be com bined with sev eral pump probe la sers to study the fast kinetics for ex am ple in pro teins rel e vant to plant photosystems or vi sion in an i mals. Be cause of the in ter dis ci plin ary na ture of the fields and of the ELI beamlines fa cil ity reg u lar dis cus sions be tween ex perts in the field of high power la ser-mat ter in ter ac tion and po ten tial us ers, as well as young sci en tists, are or ga nized.


We have examined the effects of BMP‐2 on the expression of bone matrix proteins in both human bone marrow stromal cells (HBMSC) and human osteoblasts (HOB) and their proliferation and mineralization. Both HBMSC and HOB express BMP‐2/‐4 type I and type II receptors. Treatment of these two cell types with BMP‐2 for 4 weeks in the presence of β‐glycerophosphate and ascorbic acid results in mineralization of their matrix. BMP‐2 increases the mRNA level and activities of alkaline phosphatase and elevates the mRNA levels and protein synthesis of osteopontin, bone sialoprotein, osteocalcin, and α1(I) collagen in both cell types. Whereas the mRNA level of decorin is increased, the mRNA concentration of biglycan is not altered by BMP‐2. No effect on osteonectin is observed. The effect of BMP‐2 on bone matrix protein expression is dose dependent from 25 to 100 ng/ml and is evident after 1–7 days treatment. In the presence of BMP‐2, proliferation of HBMSC and HOB is decreased under either serum‐free condition or in the presence of serum. Thus, BMP‐2 has profound effects on the proliferation, expression of most of the bone matrix proteins and the mineralization of both relatively immature human bone marrow stromal preosteoblasts and mature human osteoblasts. J. Cell. Biochem. 67:386–398, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Aim A study was done to observe that serial temperature monitoring in early post-op period correlates with extubation outcome. Material and methods This is a prospective observational study. The patients who underwent cardiac surgery for various congenital and acquired heart defects and admitted in PICCU were enrolled in the study. The peripheral toe temperature post surgery at hour 0,1,2,4,6,12,24 and 48 were recorded. Results There were a total of 30 patients enrolled in the study who had undergone cardiac surgery. Post operatively in PICCU at each of 0,1,2,4,6,12,24 and 48 hours peripheral toe temperature was recorded and then they were divided into good outcome (successful extubation) and poor outcome (unsuccessful extubation, requiring re-intubation). Then mean temperature at each hour was calculated based on the outcome. The serial measurement of p-value calculated at 0,1,2,4,6,12,24 and 48 hours is <0.001. It therefore states that the temperature at different time point is statistically significantly higher in patients with good outcome. Conclusion The normal range peripheral toe temperature in pediatric patients in early post-op period following cardiac surgery correlate well with successful extubation. There are multiple factors effecting this relationship and need further studies.


We measured the length and width of ruminal papillae from six sites in rumens of farmed and wild red (Cervus elaphus) and wild fallow (Cervus dama) deer. A multivariate (principal components) analysis was used to explore papillary response to habitat. Three axes of papillary variation were defined: overall size, shape, and site (anatomical location within the rumen). These axes responded differently according to age, sex, diet, and species. Overall papillary size increased with age in wild but not in farmed stock, was significantly affected by sex, but showed no interspecies difference. Papillary shape was not influenced by age, sex, or diet but was influenced by species. Site-specific development was influenced by diet and species but not by age or sex. These results corroborate previous descriptive work and offer a technique for quantitative study of the interaction between wild ruminants and their dietary environment.


We generate a broadband (of ~100 nm bandwidth) nonlinear-dispersive similariton in a passive fiber, and characterize it through the chirp measurement, applying frequency tuning and spectral compression in the sum-frequency generation process.


Disposable ultrasonic contact transducers have been constructed with inexpensive PVDF films for nondestructive testing (NDT) applications. This paper reports the temperature-dependent ultrasonic performance of commercial polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) films and PVDF sensors. PVDF film was evaluated for its material properties of interest for ultrasonic transducer performance including the relative dielectric constant /spl epsi//sub r/, dielectric loss tangent tan /spl delta//sub e/, electromechanical coupling constant k/sub t/, mechanical quality factor Q/sub m/, and acoustic impedance Z. Disposable PVDF transducers were then coupled to both low and high acoustic impedance test panels and their ultrasonic insertion loss/sensitivity and frequency bandwidth measured as a function of temperature in both the pulse-echo and pitch-catch modes. The results yielded center frequencies in the 3.5-16 MHz range, with -6-dB fractional bandwidths for some of the transducers exceeding 100%. The temperature dependence of the transducers' performance is reported for the -40 to 80/spl deg/C range and shows an approximate linear decrease in center frequency and increase in fractional bandwidth with increasing temperature. These measured results are compared with predictions from computer simulations based on Mason's model. These tests showed that the same disposable transducers can be used for both ultrasonic and acoustic emission sensing NDT applications. This paper summarizes the quantitative ultrasonic and vibration sensing performance for all of the disposable PVDF film transducers which were tested.


We report a case of chronic type B aortic dissection in a 70-year-old man. At an outpatient hospital, he was found to have an expanded dissecting descending aortic aneurysm and was transferred to our hospital for thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR). A stent graft was successfully placed in the proximal descending thoracic aorta (DTA) to close the primary entry. Postoperative computed tomography (CT) revealed persistent contrast enhancement of the false lumen in the DTA that was suggestive of an endoleak. However, the origin and flow direction of the endoleak were uncertain, and classification of the endoleak was difficult. Hence, the echocardiographic paravertebral approach (PVA) was performed. Both the true lumen and false lumen were clearly visualized and retrograde flow from the intercostal artery into the false lumen was demonstrated by color Doppler examination. These findings suggested that the endoleak originated from the intercostal artery (type II) rather than the proximal end of the stent graft (type Ia). Hence, it was concluded that the patient should be observed conservatively. Follow-up CT at 8 months post-TEVAR showed no expansion of the maximal diameter of the DTA. In this case, the utility of PVA for detection and classification of an endoleak after TEVAR was confirmed.


BACKGROUND Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is an important cause of nosocomial infections, and contributes to high morbidity and mortality, especially in intensive care units. P. aeruginosa is considered a 'critical' category bacterial pathogen by the World Health Organization to encourage an urgent need for research and development of new antibiotics against its infections. AIM To investigate the effectiveness of baicalin combined with tobramycin therapy as a potential treatment method for carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) infections. METHODS Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and RT-PCR were used to detect the expression levels of drug-resistant genes (including VIM, IMP and OprD2) and biofilm-related genes (including algD, pslA and lasR) in CRPA that confer resistance to tobramycin, baicalin and tobramycin combined with baicalin (0, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 and 1MIC). RESULTS There was a correlation between biofilm formation and the expression of biofilm-related genes. In addition, VIM, IMP, OprD2, algD, pslA and lasR that confer biofilm production under different concentrations in CRPA were significantly correlated. The synergistic effect of baicalin combined with tobramycin was a significant down-regulation of VIM, IMP, algD, pslA and lasR. CONCLUSION Baicalin combined with tobramycin therapy can be an effective treatment method for patients with CRPA infection.


The exhibiting of living cryptogams at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh and Dawyck Botanic Garden is described with the hope that from the management procedures experienced, other institutions will follow and demonstrate to the public these important components of our natural heritage.


Background: Red reflex is a simple test that can detect potentially life-threatening ocular abnormalities. In 2012, a red reflex screening campaign started in Umbria, central Italy. In the present study, we report the results of eye examination in the routine first visit of newborns in a private hospital within 2014-2016.Methods: The red reflex test was carried out as a part of the first health visit of newborns in a private hospital for 2 years. The eyes of all newborns were examined on the first day of life by a handheld ophthalmoscope. The suspected cases with cataract were referred to the Ophthalmologic Department of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran, for the confirmation of the diagnosis.Results: During the 2 years of the study, a total of 10,484 neonates were delivered in this hospital 10 of whom were referred for ophthalmology consultation due to suspected abnormal red reflex. In 2 cases (0.019%), the diagnosis of congenital cataract was confirmed by an ophthalmologist.Conclusion: The results of the current study are consistent with the findings of previous studies, although the reports on red reflex screening are sporadic in the literature. Due to low cost and easy performance and in spite of high false-positive red reflex test, it appears to be useful for the early diagnosis of congenital low-vision disease for the prevention of vision impairment. In addition, the present study confirmed that the red reflex test should become a part of the first newborn examination immediately after birth.


ABSTRACT Wadi Helo (WH), in the United Arab Emirates, is a famous archeological site and protected area in the Hajar Mountains in the Arabian Peninsula. We investigated effects of topography, aspect, and altitude on floral diversity and species composition in this heterogeneous, mountainous, and highly arid environment. Using twenty transects distributed from the mountains top to the wadi bed; eighty plots, 100 m2 each, were selected for vegetation analysis. Classification of vegetation using TWINSPAN showed three groups in the wadi bed and five in the mountains, each distinguished by different dominant species. Forsskaolaea tenacissima, Rhazya stricta, Tephrosia apolina, Notoceras bicorne, Acacia tortilis, and Fagonia indica were dominants of the microhabitats of the wadi bed. Gorges were dominated with Dodonaea viscosa and Lavandula subnoda. The other four groups were found on the mountain slopes and were associated with particular aspects (being north-, south-, west-, or east-facing). The dominant species for these different aspects were, respectively: Boerhavia elegans; Ochradenus aucheri and Helianthemum lippii; Moringa peregrina; and Euphorbia larica and Cenchrus ciliaris. Altitude showed highly significant positive relationship with species frequency (P < 0.001). South-facing slopes had the highest species richness and concentration of dominance. We concluded that the distribution of dominant species was a reflection of their ecological requirements and adaptations. Seven plant species were recorded as new to the flora of the UAE. These, plus ten additional species that had been reported as rare in only one of the two published floras of the UAE were highlighted as meriting greater priority in conservation.


US Highway 93 traverses the Flathead Indian Reservation, which is located on the west side of the Rocky Mountains in western Montana. Picturesque mountains and mountain valleys, with the broad Flathead Valley to the North and the majestic Mission Mountains to the East, characterize this part of Montana. The area is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including grizzly bear, white-tailed deer, mule deer, pronghorn, elk, painted turtles, bighorn sheep, and a number of fish and bird species. It is also home to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation (CSKT).


We develop a general framework constructing distribution-free prediction intervals for dynamic time series. We show that our intervals asymptotically attain valid conditional and marginal coverages for a broad class of predictions functions and time series. We also show that our interval width converges to that of the oracle prediction interval asymptotically. Moreover, we introduce a computationally efficient algorithm called EnbPI that wraps around ensemble predictors, which is closely related to conformal prediction (CP) but does not require data exchangeability. EnbPI avoids data-splitting and is computationally efficient by avoiding retraining and thus scalable to sequentially producing prediction intervals. We perform extensive simulation and real-data analyses to demonstrate its effectiveness compared with existing methods.


This paper presents the simulation results of the C-band active vector-sum digitally controlled phase shifter (VSPS) MMIC which is implemented in 0,18 μm RF CMOS technology. VSPS provides discrete phase control in the range from 0° to 360° with 22,5° step achieving 4-bit phase resolution with a 4,5–6,6 dB signal gain. Noise figure is less than 2,5 dB, 1 dB compression 4 dBm. Power consumption is less than 220 mW. The simulation of the phase shifter shows RMS phase error <3° in bandwidth 4–6 GHz with a corresponding amplitude error <1 dB.


Objective To study the positive rates of autoantibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (GADA), islet cell antibodies (ICA), and insulin autoantibodies (IAA) in type 2 diabetes and its clinical implications in early detection of latent autoimmune diabetes of adults (LADA). Methods GADA, ICA and IAA in serum were determined by ELISA in 304 cases of type 2 diabetes in this hospital, with clinical follow-up. Results In the 304 patients, the positive rate of GADA was 15.8%; that of ICA was 13.2%; that of IAA was 14.8%. In all, 20 patients were diagnosed as LADA, the positive rates of GADA was 55.0%, the positive rates of ICA was 40.0%, the positive rates of IAA was 75.0%. Conclusion The increase of GADA, ICA and IAA in serum, indicating the damage of pancreatic β islet cell function in patients with type 2 diabetes, is significantly correlated with the pathogenesis of LADA. For these patients, the early treatment with insulin would retard the deterioration of pancreatic β islet cell function.


Mortality due to stomach cancer and other cancers of the digestive system in Austria for the periods 1961-1965 and 1981-1985 are analyzed and compared. Consideration is given to sex and age differentials and to rates for provinces. Some comparative data for Czechoslovakia Hungary and Yugoslavia are provided. (ANNOTATION)


An automated library cannot function without a systems librarian who is responsible for the effective operation of the library system. The technological advancement of a library depends on a successful collaboration between a librarian and an IT specialist. In a library which co-creates a central catalogue a systems librarian performs additional tasks – their work is not restricted solely to their own library but covers the whole country and by means of NUKAT adds to the quality of worldwide information circulation. The article illustrates an attempt at defining the competences of a systems librarian that guarantee successful collaboration with NUKAT.


Zouhar M., Mazakova J., Prokinova E., Vaňova M., Rysanek P. ( 2010): Quantification of Tilletia caries and Tilletia controversa mycelium in wheat apical meristem by real-time PCR. Plant Protect. Sci., 46: 107-115. In the Czech Republic, three closely related species of the genus Tilletia belong to pathogens that cause signifi - cant losses of wheat crops by replacing grains with a mass of teliospores. A quantitative real-time qPCR assay using SYBR Green I has been developed to quantify the amount of T. caries and T. controversa mycelium in apical meristems of different wheat varieties. The real-time PCR reaction was validated by evaluating selected extraction methods, examining the specificity of designed target-specific IGS primers and verifying the optimised amplification reaction on naturally infected wheat plants. The PCR detection limit for the specific identification of fungal DNA was 0.22 ng of mycelium, and the negative correlation between the target DNA quantity and cycle threshold (Ct) was high with a coefficient of determination of r 2 = 0.992. The developed method was used to quantify pathogens mycelium in five wheat varieties in the range from 0.34 ng to 15 µg per one growing tip.


1 Introduction. 2 A global review of RAS trials. 2.1 Agroforestry practices during immature period for RAS systems. 2.2 Agroforestry practices during production period for RAS systems. 2.3 Common agronomic features and problems to all RAS plots. 2.4 Associated trees in RAS 2 and 3. 2.5 Preliminary conclusions about RAS. 2.6 Production of improved planting material by farmers. 3 Production, tapping systems and associated strategies. 4 Farmers strategies: modelling farming system as an approach for a better understanding. 5 Methodological use of the farming system modelling software "olympe". 6 Conclusion: from the work plan to the very next future. Conclusion and recommendations. Annexes. (Resume d'auteur)


So now I set your years into their place, surprised at how they settle. Can a time stand shouting grievances like the wronged man outside the seminar?...


Energy-dense terpene biofuels have recently been recognized as renewable alternatives for high-density petroleum-derived fuels. While the physicochemical properties of terpene dimer fuel (TDF) have been well-documented, the propensity of these mixtures to undergo biodegradation and exacerbate the corrosion of the fuel infrastructure remains unknown. Coastal seawater/sediment incubations were amended with TDF or a blend of petroleum-derived hydrocarbons and incubated under strict anaerobic conditions. In some incubations, a model hydrocarbon-degrading sulfate-reducing bacterium (Desulfoglaeba alkanexedens, strain ALDC) was inoculated as a positive control. No increase in sulfate reduction or corrosion was observed in long-term experiments (300 days) relative to TDF-free controls when only seawater/sediment served as the inoculum. However, inoculation with the positive control organism and a mixture of C6–C12 n-alkanes increased both the sulfate reduction rate (95.2 ± 5.2 μM/day) and general corrosion, as d...


Let G be a finite group and F a field. We show that all G-codes over F are abelian if the order of G is less than 24, but for F = ℤ5 and G = S4 there exist non-abelian G-codes over F, answering to an open problem posed in [J. J. Bernal, A. del Rio and J. J. Simon, An intrinsical description of group codes, Des. Codes Cryptogr.51(3) (2009) 289–300]. This problem is related to the decomposability of a group as the product of two abelian subgroups. We consider this problem in the case of p-groups, finding the minimal order for which all p-groups of such order are decomposable. Finally, we study if the fact that all G-codes are abelian remains true when the base field is changed.


The invention provides an evaluation method for a Raman spectrum fast detector. The evaluation method comprises the first step of determining that an instrument to be evaluated is the Raman spectrum fast detector and determining evaluation parameters of the Raman spectrum fast detector, wherein the evaluation parameters include accuracy and repeatability of Raman displacement, repeatability and sensitivity of Raman spectrum strength and detection time, and the sensitivity comprises the signal to noise ratio and the detection limit; the second step of evaluating the accuracy of Raman displacement; the third step of evaluating the repeatability of Raman displacement as well as the repeatability of Raman spectrum strength; the fourth step of evaluating the signal to noise ratio; the fifth step of evaluating the detection limit as well as the detection time; the sixth step of obtaining an evaluation result. According to the evaluation method, the Raman spectrum fast detector is evaluated by combining a physical method and a chemical method, so performance indexes of the Raman spectrum fast detector can be evaluated comprehensively.


It is possible that observers did not follow our instructions and that they made large voluntary or involuntary eye movements which could have explained the perceived probe trajectory (although we have no reason to expect that they did not follow instructions). To provide further evidence that eye movements were not the explanation for our results we have conducted a follow up study in which eye position was recorded.


A boiler for powering fluid pressure motors. The rays from the sun are focused by a lens through a transparent oil primary heat transfer medium and onto a heat absorber. The heat directly absorbed by the oil and by contact with the heat absorber is circulated by a thermo-siphon through a heat exchanger. The heat exchanger transfers heat and raises the temperature of a hydrocarbon fluid utilized as the secondary heat exchange medium. The expanded hydrocarbon powers a fluid pressure operated motor and is returned from the low pressure side of the motor to condensers after which it is compressed and returned to the heat exchanger in a closed cycle operation.


In this paper, we have developed the gateway for multi-information convergence system in ubiquitous sensor network. The gateway gathers the various sensor data from a road light device, and the data is transmitted into an energy management system. The sorts of data are the intensity of illumination, humidity and diagnostic results.


Carbon fiber is a kind of optimal materials for bridge maintenance and reinforcement.Design method of strengthening steel-concrete composite bridges using carbon fiber was studied.Characteristic of bridge reinforcement under load and phasing of stress features were considered,and calculation method of ultimate limit state was suitable for existing bridge design code.Ultimate strain of carbon fiber in ultimate limit state is firstly established based on plane-section assumption and strain-lag of carbon fiber.Then computational scheme and calculation method of flexural capacity in positive moment area and negative moment area for strengthening steel-concrete composite beam using carbon fiber are established respectively,which is reference for design of bridge strengthening.


Sorghum plays an important role in the diet of millions of people in semi-arid regions of sub-saharan Africa, Asia, central America and the middle east. Sorghum grains (feterita) were subjected to processing operations. Ethanolic extraction was done for raw grains, germinated grains, fermented porridge and cooked fermented porridge. All extracts were fractionated to petroleum ether, chloroform and ethyl acetate extracts and also All extracts subjected to phytochemicals profiling, total phenolic contents, antioxidant activity and antimicrobial properties. Thin layer chromatography (TLC) revealed the presence of polyphenols, Flavonoidal acids, coumarin, anthrone, anthraquinones and Terpenoids. Flavonoid mainly accumulated in the ethyl acetate fraction in all extracts before and after fermentation. Flavonoidal acids, coumarin, anthrone and anthraquinones were detected in the chloroform fraction in all extracts before and after fermentation. Terpenoids were accumulated in the petroleum ether fraction. From our finding the fermentation and cooking of the sorghum grains increased the total phenolic contents, the fermented porridge showed the highest phenolic content (305.17 mg GAE/g). The radical scavenging activity of fermented and non-fermented sorghum grain fractions were screened by using 1, 1 diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), the ethyl acetate fraction of cooked fermented porridge at a concentration of 1mg/ml had the high inhibition of DPPH radicals (57.33%). Antimicrobial activity of different extracts was recorded against different pathogenic bacteria and fungi, the petroleum ether extract showed antimicrobial activity against Bacillus subtitles and Staphylococcus aureus at concentration of 40mg/ml. These findings proved that fermentation and cooking could increase the bioavailability of phenols, which subsequently may improve the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity so the Sudanese Traditional Hulu-Mur may be a valuable health and nutrition promoting and hence it can consider one of the functional foods.


Idiosyncrasies of Hobbes's composition process, together with a paucity of reliable autobiographical materials and the norms of seventeenth-century manuscript production, render interpretation of his political theory particularly difficult and contentious. These difficulties are surveyed here under three headings: (1) the process of "serial" composition (meaning the production of multiple, often expanded, versions of a work), which was common in the period; (2) the relationship between Hobbes's three political-theory texts— the Elements of Law, De Cive, and Leviathan, which is basic to defining the textual embodiment of his theory, and controversial; and (3) his method of writing. I argue that Hobbes's composition process undercut his intention to produce a deductive, logical theory of politics and opened the door to inconsistency and muddle in his arguments.


Study of the enclosed (sheltered) and open (unsheltered) spaces in two tradiational and three-contemporary settlements in Saudi Arabia - comparative analysis of micro climatic conditions - solar exposure - analysis of the differences in the design approaches of the old and new ''modern'' developments - recommendations for the appropriate approach to the design of enclosed and open spaces in the arid regions of Saudi Arabia.


Operations for atrioventricular septal defects carry substantial risks, and these are one of the most challenging groups of children for cardiac surgeons and anesthetists, taking their care. Children with AVSDs, especially the complete AVSD have a significant morbidity and mortality resulting from postoperative left atrioventricular valve regurgitation, residual intracardiac shunts, postoperative pulmonary hypertension, and various life‐threatening cardiac arrhythmias.


(54) HYDROCRACKING CATALYST Publication Classification CONTAINING BETA AND Y ZEOLITES, AND PROCESS FOR ITS USE TO PRODUCE (51) Int. Cl. NAPHTHA CIOG II/00 (2006.01) BOI 29/08 (2006.01) (76) Inventor: Li Wang, Bloomingdale, IL (US) BOI 2L/00 (2006.01) BOI 29/06 (2006.01) BOI 38/58 (2006.01) Correspondence Address: (52) U.S. Cl. .......................... 208/120.1; 502/30: 502/63; HONEYWELL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 502/64: 502/.66: 502/67: 502/79; INC 5O2/75 PATENT SERVICES 101 COLUMBIA DRIVE PO BOX 224S MAIL STOP AB/2B MORRISTOWN, NJ 07962 (US) (57) ABSTRACT


Forest provides crucial and beneficial services to man. Transformation of forest areas to non-forest ones has occurred throughout human history, with its notable far-reaching consequences, which has propelled the need to increase forest area in many parts of the world. This gradual recovery from forest decline; forest transition, is a realistic phenomenon in some countries of the world rather than a theory. Reduction in forest loss does not automatically induce forest transition but rather by conscious efforts at increasing forest cover, driven by sustainability of forest products and services, economic development and globalization, increased environmental literacy, improved agricultural practices, forest policies and programs as well as population decline. Climate change is unarguably a global threat and how to manage it has been the greatest environmental challenge confronting the world. Forests play key roles in altering climate elements which determine the general climate condition. Forest transition is a major way of modulating the climate change phenomenon and its effects. Forest recovery has provided a means of modulating climate change through increase possibility of atmospheric carbon sequestration and moderation of rainfall pattern; major determinants of climate change. (OLAGUNJU, Temidayo Ebenezer. Forest Transition: Towards Modulating Climate Change. Nat Sci 2015;13(5):86-91). (ISSN: 1545-0740). http://www.sciencepub.net/nature . 10


Objective The present study was conducted to explore the function and advantages of Changtuoning (Penehyclidine Hydrochloride Injection) in treating acute organophosphorus pesticide poisoning. Methods 56 cases with oral organophosphorus pesticide poisoning were randomly divided into the control group and the therapeutic group. Patients in the control group were treated with Atropine and Pralidoxime Chloride, and in the therapeutic group were treated with Penehyclidine Hydrochloride and Pralidoxime Chloride. Results Compared to the control group, atropinization time, acetylcholine esterase recovery time, total cure rate and average days in hospital were better in the Penehyclidine Hydrochloride group than the Atropine group. There were significant differences between the two groups and the incidence of side reactions in Penehyclidine Hydrochloride group was lower with fewer symptoms. Even though side effects occured, they were easier to recover or be corrected. Conclusion The efficacy of Penehyclidine Hydrochloride in treating organophosphorus pesticide poisoning was significantly better than that of Atropine. So Penehyclidine Hydrochloride is worth generalizing and applying clinically.


Abstract The Anticipatory Optimization Generation (AOG) system is built to generate custom programs using large-scale, programmatic transformations (versus pure pattern-based transformations) that operate on AbstractSyntax Trees (ASTs). Because of the scale of the AOG transformations and the often-complex programreorganizations that they enable, the transformations must operate on the low-level physical formats of theASTs and simultaneously accommodate high degrees of variation in the ASTs. However, both the physicaldetails of and variations within an AST are irrelevant to the AOG system in the same sense that both thephysical details of and variations within a database format are irrelevant to a database management system.In both cases, only the logical structure is relevant. Database management systems introduce logicalschemas to hide the details and variations in the format of their databases. Similarly, the AOG patternmatcher introduces a pattern notation that performs the analogous service for ASTs. It hides the details ofand variations within an AST from the large-scale transformations that must operate on the AST andthereby reduces the complexity of the transformation code.The pattern notation is embedded in the Lisp language and provides a set of Prolog-like operators forperforming complex matching and inference logic. The operators include analogs to the Prolog operatorsand, or, not, mark, cut, bind, is, succeed, fail, prove, and rule definition (i.e., <-). They also include anumber of more specialize operators such as operators that span sections of an AST, bind the remainder ofa list, perform top-down and bottom-up tree searches, rename local variables, use dynamically computedvariable values as patterns, invoke and use rule sets, navigate object structures, perform recursive matchingoperations, and execute arbitrary Lisp expressions. The pattern matcher is fully backtracking and is built ina "continuation passing style" of programming.This user manual describes the pattern notation and the operation of the pattern matching system thatevaluates that notation. It also includes a number of extended examples drawn from the AOG system thatillustrate the use of the pattern notation in the context of transformation-based program generation.


More and more attention is paid to the economic side of the problem of increasing the
tractors' operational and repair manufacturability level in all tractor construction structures of domestic
production of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It is advisable to increase the tractors' operational and repair
manufacturability level by determining the main directions, taking into account the technical objects
adaptability to technical service operations and their diagnosis


The present invention relates to apparatus and method for synchronizing broadcast audiovisual programs with a complementary information provided. At least one semantical unit (41-43) the contents of the apparatus includes an image and / or sound detection device (7) from the program currently being broadcast audiovisual extracted. It also includes an identification unit (8) for identifying the semantic units, it is connected to the program guide (20), the guide information includes a set of one or more tables in chronological order (21-23), and the information set audiovisual programs related. The recognition unit selects the best set of information associated with these semantical units of the at least one current program being broadcast. It performs learning priori, it can select the appropriate information on the basis of the semantic units. Synthesis block (5) so that the program is synchronized with the selected audio information.


Health professional identity transitions involve a dynamic period of liminality prompting a time of considerable uncertainty and self‐doubt. For postgraduate trainees in the United Kingdom, the transition to medical registrar can be a significant deterrent to recruitment and retention. Narrative analysis offers insight into identity work during transitions with potential to inform strategies for developing professional identities. This study aimed to use narrative analysis to explore trainees' experiences and their sense of agency during the liminal phase of this transition.


power of the ArF laser energy, and the saturation occurred at the fluence of 3-4 J/cm'. We are now making the scaled-up experiment with a larger ArF laser. This ArF laser (Lambda Physik LPX350ST) has an output energy of 400 mJ (10 Hz) with a bandwidth of 3 pm. Also the jet nozzle was changed to a new one (General valve) which had a quick response time and a high back pressure up to 80 atm. The XUV intensity increased more than one order of magnitude, but the severe saturation occurred by increasing the ArF power and the hydrogen pressure. So the development of a gas jet system with a large cross sectional area. The measurement of the absolute XUV energy is also an important problem. The intensity of the observed THG is almost the same level as those of the resonant THG generated by a dye laser in a rare gas jet. Therefore, we can expect the conversion efficiency 10-5-10-4, or multi-10 yJ output per pulse. "Department of Energy Conversion, Kyushu University, Kasuga, Fukuoka 816, Japan 1. Y. Hirakawa, T. Okada, M. Maeda, K. Muraoka, Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 29, L958 (1990). Y. Hirakawa, T. Okada, M. Maeda, K. Muraoka, Opt. Commun. 84,365 (1991). Y. Hirakawa, A. Nagai, K. Muraoka, T. Okada, M. Maeda, Optics Lett. 18, 735 (1993). 2.


The authors present a new method for determining the optical properties of arbitrary refractive index elliptical core fibres. The method applies the elliptic cylindrical coordinate system to Maxwell's equations and appropriately, using Fourier Transforms, operated on an elliptical core optical fibre waveguide, derives a flexible algorithm, which can be used to determine the optical properties of elliptical fibre waveguides. By dividing the fibre into a series of uniform consecutive thin dielectric layers transversely across the elliptical cross section with suitable transforming functions representing voltage and current themselves based on the electromagnetic field components, leads to transverse transmission line equations. The resonance frequencies of the cascaded matrices determine the mode propagation constants. The analysis leads to a numerical algorithm for calculating the exact modes of propagation constants. The method is analytically exact and computationally accurate, leading to algorithmic implementation, without making use of Mathieu functions which are solutions for step index waveguide. The advantage of this work is also the fact that it can be applied to arbitrary refractive index profiles. They present results of modal b ¯ − V diagrams for various fibre ellipticities and also apply this method to determine the birefringence of graded index profile fibres and mode cut-off frequencies.


Data format reverse engineering commonly involves identifying conserved format motifs. However, this process typically requires establishing a common ordering for format elements across instances, particularly for formats using type-(length)-value tuples or "chunk" encoding. It is useful to \emph{unshuffle} chunks with common length statistics as a precursor to identifying conserved internal structures. We formalize the unshuffling problem and subsequently derive probabilistic bounds and outline corresponding algorithms for it. We empirically demonstrate unshuffling and highlight connections with the related class of synchronization problems.


Nanotechnology is a new technology,developing very fast in recent years.It possesses almost unlimited potencies.On one hand,sizes of biological molecules are within nano or sub-nano range,the devel-opment of nanotechnology can learn much from the secret of the mechanism of biological molecules.On the other hand,nanotechnology provides new materials and new methods for biological research,and enable biological research much more efficient.This paper introduces some ideas and methods that using nanotechnology for biological research.


A three terminal light emitter in which the emission wavelength is selected by an applied voltage and the emission intensity is independently modulated by an applied current has been demonstrated. The device exhibits coaxial optical output, a large wavelength separation (8210 /spl Aring/ or 7640 /spl Aring/, /spl Delta//spl lambda/=570 /spl Aring/), low operational voltages (<5 V) and currents, and high emission contrast ratios (as large as 159:1 and as small as 1:76). Having selected the wavelength the optical output power can be independently modulated without loss of wavelength selectivity. Wavelength switching can be accomplished while maintaining a high contrast ratio and optical output power.


Thenature oftranscription oftheavianretrovirus RNA genomebythea formoftheviral RNA-directed DNA polymerase hasbeeninvestigated. Transcription wasmostefficient whenMn2"wasprovided asthedivalent metal ion. Thepatterns ofDNA transcription using 70SRNA,35SRNA tRNAtrP, or35S RNA oligo(dT)12.18 template primer complexes bytheaDNA polymerase were essentially identical tothose obtained using thea,8 form. TheaDNA polymerase appears tobedeficient inthesynthesis oftrueduplex DNA butisableto synthesize hairpin-structured DNA initiated atthe5'terminus oftheviral genomeonthetRNAtrP primer molecule. TheRNA-directed DNA polymerase ofavian myeloblastosis virus exists intwoenzymatically active forms. Themajor species ofholoenzyme, a13, consists ofanequimolar ratio oftwopolypeptides, a andf,withmolecular weights of approximately 62,000 and92,000, respectively (13, 15,20), whereas theminorDNA polymerase, termeda,consists ofonlythesmaller polypeptide. Thelarger ,8polypeptide appears tobe theprimary viral geneproduct, since theapolypeptide isapparently derived from,Bbyproteolytic cleavage (11, 27,29,33,34). Inaddition, bothpolypeptides areantigenically related and share similar aminoacidsequences (11, 15,34). A third DNA polymerase species, (,if, wasrecently identified invirions ofRoussarcomavirus andisthought tobeaprecursor totheaBspecies (19). Bothavianmyeloblastosis virus polymerase


AMINOBUTANOL DERIVATIVES USEFUL AS PHARMACEUTICAL AGENTS FOR MOVEMENT DISORDERS AS ARRHYTHMIA ARE REPRESENTED BY THE FOLLOWING FORMULA: (CF DRAWING IN BOPI) OR R R AND ARE IDENTICAL OR DIFFERENT AND ARE SELECTED IN THE GROUP CONSISTING OF HYDROGEN, HALOGEN, OF hYDROXY GROUP GROUP aLKYL WITH FOUR CARBON ATOMS AND GROUP ALCOXY WITH FOUR CARBON ATOMS AND HYDROGEN OR IS R THE GROUPS iSOBUTYL.


Aims:  To determine the characteristics of bacteria associated with the blackleg disease of potato in Brazil and compare them with species and subspecies of pectolytic Erwinia.


A 5 week study on the performance and economic profitability of Oreochromis niloticus when fed on the leaves of Shea tree was carried out in earthen ponds. Oreochromis niloticus of average weight 7.74 ± 0.13 g were stocked at 5 per m 3 in triplicate groups in out-door hapas. Fish were fed three times daily at 30 % of their body weight. Upon termination of the experiment, fish fed on the control feed (24.59 g ±4.11) had significantly higher weights than those fed with Shea leaves (12.05 g ± 0.98). Specific growth rate and feed conversion ratio were higher and significantly different for fish fed with control feed than fish fed with the Shea leaves. Water quality parameters such as temperature, pH, and conductivity were not adversely affected by the feed used. The cost of feed per kilogram was higher for fish fed with control feed (GH¢ 2.50) than fish fed with Shea leaves (GH¢ 1.78). Consequently, lower feed cost from Shea leaves, resulted in lower incidence cost and higher profit index and vice versa for the control. The higher energy levels in Shea leaves makes it suitable for it to be used as a cheap source of energy and an economical feed.


Nicky Marr is a well known personality in the North of Scotland and she highlighted to the students just how important presenting yourself can be


The incision history of the Three Rivers (Salween, Mekong, and Yangtze) region in the Southeast Tibetan Plateau has been linked to both tectonic and climatic controls. In this study, we report new apatite (U‐Th)/He and fission‐track thermochronology data from the >6,000‐m‐high Kawagebo massif, which forms the edge of the high plateau on the western flank of the steepened knickzone reach of the middle Mekong River valley. Thermal‐history modeling of a thermochronological age‐elevation profile shows rapid cooling since ~1.5 Ma and suggests a mean Quaternary exhumation rate of >1 km/Myr at the valley bottom. The amount of Quaternary exhumation is too high to be caused by fluvial incision alone and requires additional tectonic uplift. Comparing our data from the western flank of the Mekong River valley with published data from the eastern flank shows differential exhumation across the valley in the late Miocene, with the western flank undergoing more exhumation, but relatively uniform exhumation in the Quaternary. We relate rapid exhumation since the late Miocene on the western flank of the Mekong valley and the high topography of the Kawagebo massif to localized tectonic uplift associated with a restraining (left stepping) overstep between the still‐active right‐lateral Parlung and Zhongdian strike‐slip faults. The pattern of river steepness index across the knickzone also indicates that it results from locally focused uplift. Our results demonstrate the importance of detailed thermochronologic studies in this very active region to constrain the complex multiphase tectonic history before invoking any potential climatic forcing of river incision.


The article presents an approximate rubric of the annotated catalogue of plants of the "Botanical Garden"Research Center of the SSU. The annotated catalogue will include species and varieties cultivated in all collections. Thecatalogue is designed for flower growers, landscape designers and a wide range of readers; addressed to specialists in thefield of introduction and breeding, industrialists, gardeners, farm specialists, landscape designers and students.


The author believes that the essence of expressional spirit is "grasping spirit and ignoring figures",showing the state of "Mo Xi" with the character of "Song" in technique after a long period of drawing practice,so as to create the so-called expressional sculpture by getting the inner spirit rather than shaping minor details.For Professor Wu,he simply changes ink into mud,does the painting from the surface into three-dimension,but his expressional spirit is consistent with Chinese cultural tradition.


At the end of 2019, the Pentagon Chief M Esper ordered the African Command of the US Armed Forces to prepare a comprehensive plan for the withdrawal of troops by January 2020, the publication reported Under this plan, the United States can leave its military base in Niger and stop supporting France in the fight against Islamists in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso On January 13, 2020, at a meeting with NATO colleagues in Brussels, General M Millie, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed that the White House is considering a significant reduction in its military presence in the Sahel And when E Macron learned about it, said that the withdrawal of the US military from Africa would be «bad news » The Champs Elysees began to urgently strengthen the expeditionary force in the Sahel The Minister of Defense of the Fifth Republic F Parley ordered the deployment of French military drones in the conflict zone, and on January 14, 2020, E Macron announced the sending of another 220 troops to the Center for the French Combined Forces of Operation "Barkhan" The armed forces of France intervened in the conflict in Mali four years ago, but the situation in the Sahel only worsened during this period The fight against Islamic extremists does not bring tangible results, the state unity of Mali is still in doubt, and terrorist attacks in the region have become systematic The African satellites of France, united in the military-political alliance G5S, are not too willing to participate in battles with co-religionists The population of these countries is more likely to sympathize with the Islamists than the French «peacekeepers,» and the power elites seek to derive only material and political benefits from participating in the French-controlled alliance Moreover, in these countries, formerly colonies of the French Empire, anti-French sentiments are growing, and youth are demanding the withdrawal of French troops from Africa In this situation, the Champs Elysees is forced to take on the brunt of the struggle against the Islamists in the Sahel In the context of the economic crisis provoked by the coronavirus pandemic, hopes for effective EU assistance are becoming increasingly illusory The withdrawal of US troops from Africa or a significant reduction in their numbers on the continent would jeopardize the success of Operation "Barkhan" На основе информации, опубликованной во французской и американской прессе, рассматривается ситуация, сложившаяся в Сахеле после того, как Белый дом объявил о своем намерении минимизировать американское военное присутствие в Африке в 2020 году Акцент сделан на реакции Эммануэля Макрона на возможность вывода американских войск из стран Тропической Африки, выясняется, почему президент Франции назвал решение Дональда Трампа «плохой новостью» Анализируется перспектива продолжения военной операции «Бархан» силами французских военных совместно с войсками стран, входящих в альянс G5S


In discussing the current controversy on the effects of breast feeding and "artificial" feeding on infant and child health the recent court case in Switzerland in which Nestle a larger producer of processed cows milk for infants was involved is examined. Nestle took legal action against a Swiss welfare group which maintained that "Nestle kills babies" by producing processed cows milk and promoting its sale. Discussion is also directed to acceptable infant food an illuminating study of infant feeding in an English provincial town and malnutrition. The manufacture primarily in Europe and North America of infant foods based on processed cows milk has grown into a large industry with sales all around the globe. In countries such as England where rising living standards and better health education allowed for their convenient provision they rapidly replaced breast milk. within a few decades breast feeding became exceptional. Elizabeth and John Newsons (1963) study of infant feeding in an English provincial town reported that the necessary precondition of any large-scale breast feeding decline is the availability and inexpensiveness of appropriate artificial or substitute foods feeding bottles teats and the means of sterilization. The increasing use of processed cows milk and decreasing infant mortality have coincided in affluent countries during the past century. Advocates of breast feeding in developing countries who stress the dangers of artificial feeding rarely give due weight to this fact. It fails to support the idea that the manufacturers and sellers of processed cows milk for bottle feeding are "killing babies".


The invention discloses a scroll compressor with high volume ratio, and belongs to the technical field of design theory of environment-friendly fluid mechanical equipment. The scroll compressor mainly comprises an orbiting scroll, a fixed scroll, a cross ring and an eccentric shaft, wherein a plurality of pairs of sealed nine-stage crescent holding cavities can be formed by assembling the orbiting scroll and the fixed scroll with same scroll type line parameters, phase difference pi and distance r between centers of base circles; the scroll type lines of the orbiting scroll and the movable scroll are functional universal scroll type lines; and when the center of the orbiting scroll (the center of the base circle) makes circumferential orbital motion with radius r around the center of the fixed scroll (the center of the base circle), the number of the sealed holding cavities is correspondingly increased or reduced, so that the aims of gas suction, compression and discharge are fulfilled. Low pressure gas enters a gas sucking cavity from a peripheral slot of the orbiting scroll and the fixed scroll, compressed and then discharged out of a discharge port in the center of the fixed scroll. The scroll compressor has the characteristics of simple structure, small size, high volume utilization ratio and compression ratio, low noise, no need of lubricating oil, related lubricating elements and the like, moves stably and can be widely applied to an automobile air conditioner and a refrigerating system of a refrigerator.


Objective To construct and express the Fab fragment of anti human gastric cancer McAb 3H11. Methods The cDNAs of κ chain and Fd fragment of anti gastric cancer McAb 3H11 were amplified with RT PCR using degenerate primers for framework region 1(FR1) and cloned into an Fab expression vector. The Vκ gene was corrected to its genuine sequence with PCR mediated mutagenesis. 3H11 Fab was expressed in E.coli cells. Results By using the vector containing Fab genes amplified by degenerate primers for framework region (FR1),expression of Fab could be detected but with no antigen binding activity. The reconstructed Fab was expressed in E.coli at a similar level while it could bind to gastric cancer cells and showed same specificity to 3H11 antibody. Conclusions This result indicate that PCR primer introduced V region N terminal changes may seriously affect the antigen binding activity.


When your President asked me to give the opening address at your Annual Congress, I was greatly flattered and of course accepted the invitation. I have had no practical experience in radiology, the therapeutic side of the subject having been developed almost de novo since my student days, but I well remember the very elementary accommodation and apparatus that were available for treatment at the end of the 1914–18 war. It is very interesting to think that the great science which you represent has been built up almost from nothing during the last 50 years. Others will deal with the technical side of your subject and all I can do is to pay tribute, as a general observer, to the great benefit to mankind that your science has brought. When I think of the horrible cases of inoperable malignant disease of the mouth that I used to see in my student days and realise that now these are largely things of the past, I have to admit that it is mainly due to the advances that have been made in radiology since those day...


A methane steam reforming catalyst was selected by the comparison of its catalytic properties and resistance to carbon deposition. The performance of a molten carbon fuel cell (MCFC) using this catalyst was studied. The effect of discharge magnitude, gas pressure, and steam-carbon ratio (S/C) on the catalyst was also investigated. The results indicated that the catalyst could make the cell perform well, and the increment of the current affected the content of H(2) in the cell, but it had minor effect on the content of CH(4). In addition, the reforming reaction depended on the gas pressure. There was a maximal content of H(2) in the cell at 0.36 MPa. With the decrease of S/C, the performance of MCFC was improved.


The first integrated Auckland Land Transport Programme has been in operation by the Auckland Regional Transport Authority since July 2006. Development of the Auckland Transport Plan is well underway. Actions from the Passenger Transport Network Plan and Sustainable Transport Plan are being put into practice across the region. This paper explores how far ARTA has come with turning the strategies into actions, it reflects on the role that it plays in the Auckland region, and also the influence it has, or not, across the rest of New Zealand. It discusses collaboration across the agencies required to achieve an integrated land transport system for the Auckland region, the good bits and the bad, and poses the question - is having an independent regional transport authority, responsible for planning and funding the Auckland transport system, providing the right framework for putting strategies into actions?


Acknowledgments. Introduction. Step 1: Wake Up! 1. Wake Up to Possibility! 2. The Playing Field of Life. 3. Focus. 4. The Rules of the Game. 5. What Rules Are You Playing By? Step 2: Choose Your Game. 6. Model the Change You Want to Be. 7. Key Components of a Cognitive Profile. 8. Cognitive Reimprinting. Step 3: Play to Win! 9. Magicians of the Material World. 10. Your Road Map to Success: Vision, Mission, Values, and Goals. 11. The Success Formula of Masters. 12. Who Is on My Team? 13. The Power of Rapport. 14. Values--The Key to Influence and Inspiration. 15. Win--Win Sales and Negotiation. 16. How to Expand Your Sphere of Influence. 17. The Art of Spin and Masterful Storytelling: How to Shift Perceptions through Language. 18. Golden Rules for Success. 19. Conclusion: The One Thing That Can Change Everything. Appendix: The Quantum Facts. Bibliography. Christopher Howard's Seminars and Trainings. Index. About the Author.


Objective: A significant percent of survivors from cardiac arrest and resuscitation suffer permanent brain damage. Previous studies have demonstrated the Neuroprotective effects of progesterone on regional brain ischemia and injury. In the present study, we investigate the Neuroprotective effects of progesterone on global brain ischemia as a result of cardiac arrest and resuscitation. Subjects: Twenty-six male Sprague-Dawley rats Interventions: Two groups of animals were randomized: 1) progesterone group (PG, n=13) and 2) saline placebo group (SG, n=13). After 8 mins of untreated ventricular fibrillation, progesterone (8 mg/kg) or saline was injected at the onset of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Precordial compression and mechanical ventilations were initiated for 8 mins. Hemodynamics was measured at baseline, 2 and 4 hrs after the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). Measurements and Main Results: Electroencephalograph (EEG) was continuously recorded from baseline to the end of the 4 hr observation. Evans blue measurement was performed in 5 animals of each group to investigate blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability. The duration of survival was evaluated during the 72 hrs after resuscitation. All rats except for one in the placebo group were successfully resuscitated. The BBB permeability was less impaired in the PG group and the recovery of EEG was earlier in the PG group. Conclusion: Administration of progesterone during CPR reduces cerebral BBB permeability and accelerates the recovery of neurological function in a rat model of prolonged VF.


This note discusses several problems and solutions in quality monitoring of Internet of Things, when multiple products (devices, apps,) from different vendors interact with each other. It presents a cross-vendor quality monitoring system, which helps each individual vendor discover problems and prioritize between them. The system is compatible with addressing the privacy concerns of end users, but italso addresses secrecy concerns of individual vendors. In particular, a commercial vendor may want to keep information about the size ofthe product installed base, that is available in the monitoring system, secret from the competition. The envisaged system uses commercial incentives and contract law, but no new types of cryptography, to enforce the desired secrecy. It takes a statistical approach to monitoring quality, which also allows for A/B testing.


Abstract : In Herat, Afghanistan, during the late months of 2006, a group of military and civilian workers presented over 12,000 fruit trees to districts in Herat to help the economy and provide an alternative to the illegal opium field farming. The medley of government, military, and aid workers operating together under a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) facilitated this donation through the United Nations' Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups. The Afghani local government officials had worked with the PRT and the UN to complete this donation, allowing the Afghani leaders not only to benefit from the economic and agricultural development, but also from playing a direct role with the PRTs to improve their province. Since 2002, PRTs have played a vital role in Iraq and Afghanistan as they perform counterinsurgency (COIN) through development and stability operations, such as working with local councils, providing veterinary and other agriculture and livestock services, building schools and essential infrastructure, and post-war reconstruction. With over fifty active teams, the military has taken on an unprecedentedly large role in stability and reconstruction efforts in these two countries in what many deem a civilian responsibility. However, with the funding, manpower, mass organizational capabilities, and ability to send forces into dangerous areas, the military seems most capable at this time to carry out these operations. With the ability to react swiftly to natural disasters and the organization and manpower to handle large aid operations, the military is the most capable organization for development, aid, and reconstruction missions, to the chagrin of the military's civilian development counterparts.


for master's thesis Subject: English language and literature Author: Nicholas Honkanen Title: Views on gender in Paula Hawkins's Girl on The Train and Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl A feminist analysis of two novels Supervisor: Lena Englund Abstract: The aim of this study was to find out to what extent gender stereotypes manifest themselves in The Girl on The Train and Gone Girl. On a larger scale the intention was to, through this study, get a hint of the relationship between contemporary literature and gender, and thus also get a perspective on where society stands when it comes to views on gender. In order to reach this aim I looked for what traits of male dominance and female powerlessness could be found in these two literary works. This is because male dominance and female powerlessness are characteristics that have traditionally been noticeable stereotypes about gender in literature, for instance in stories about princesses who are saved by knights. To support with this task the following research questions were constructed: 3. How are men viewed in Paula Hawkins's The Girl on The Train and Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl? 4. How are women viewed in Paula Hawkins's The Girl on The Train and Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl? The results of this study are based on data gathered from reading the two novels chosen for this research. Out of this data six different categories have been created, based on patterns found in the data, to describe the findings about how men and women are viewed in The Girl on The Train and Gone Girl. The categories are: 1. Men glorified, 2 Women objectified, 3. Women denigrated, 4. Women empowered, 5. Negative stereotypes about men and 6. Progressive views on gender. The creation of these specific categories was mostly based on Elias ́ (2011) questions about what to look for in a feminist literary analysis. In conclusion, how men and women are viewed in The Girl on The Train and Gone Girl can be interpreted as representing specific phases in the development of feminism in real life and hence also giving a historical overview of feminism. This results in the novels presenting us with a realistic view of what feminism is all about and what we need in order to achieve a gender equal society. In the introduction I mentioned I am looking for what traits of male dominance and female powerlessness can be found in these two pieces of literature. There were to be found traits of both, which highlighted some very negative depictions of both female and male characters. These repeatedly found negative stereotypes in the books clearly indicate the issues with gender found in both the world of literature as well as in real life society. The key term here being negative undeniably shows that there is something wrong with the current status of gender roles in both our society and in literary representations. By noticing and accepting the fact that there are these flaws in our world, we can try to change them. As most studies, this study does also come with its limitations. The amount of data, i.e. the number of novels analysed, is not enough to draw any general conclusions about the connection between contemporary literature and gender roles in our society. The novels chosen for this study represent a very specific category, crime thrillers written by female authors. This makes it easier to draw conclusions of that specific genre, and the similarity in the findings of both novels encourages to look further in other genres


Humans are unintentionally affecting the evolution of fishery species directly through exploitation and indirectly by altering climate. We aim to test for a relationship between biogeographic patterns in the shell phenotypes of an over‐exploited shellfish and the presence of humans to identify human‐mediated adaptive trade‐offs. The implications of these trade‐offs are discussed with respect to the sustainability of the fishery.


The Banking industry is one of the basic instruments of economic growth. It must be on a sound footing as it constitutes an important link in various socio-economic activities. A strong banking sector is important for flourishing economy. The failure of the banking sector in any country may have an adverse impact on other sectors. Non-performing Assets (NPAs) are one of the major concerns for banking sector in India. Non-performing Assets also called NPAs is the term used in banking and finance sector. Basically this term (NPAs) is used in loan department of the bank. The assets of bank which do not perform any role in getting profit to the organisation, such assets are called Non-performing Assets. NPAs reflect the performance of banks in any country. The more the NPAs the lower the performance of bank. The issue of NPAs has been discussed at length of financial system all over the world. The problem of NPAs is not only affecting the banks but also the entire economy of any country. In this paper, an effort has been made to analyze the concept of NPAs, components of loan assets the commercial banks in India with especial reference to the public sector, private sector and the foreign bank. The study is diagnostic and exploratory in nature and makes use of secondary data. The study finds and concludes that the commercial banks have significantly improved their working performance in the areas of NPAs.


This study aims to determine the effect of interest income and interest expense on net income for the period 2012 to 2020. The research method used is a quantitative method using data sources from the financial statements of Concise Profit and Loss for the period 2012 to 2020. The data analysis technique uses data normality test, Pearson Product correlation analysis. Moment, coefficient of determination, and multiple linear regression analysis. Based on the results of data analysis, knowing the effect of Interest Income and Interest Expense on Net Profit states that the data is normally distributed, the closeness of the relationship is 0.494 strong category, the direction of the influence is positive. Interest Income and Interest Expense affect Net Profit by 85.4% and the remaining 14.4% is influenced by other variables. it is known that t count (6.088) > t table (2.034) and significant 0.000 <0.05. This means that partially interest income has a positive effect on net income at state-owned banks listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, then t count (-2.382) > t table (2.034) and significant 0.023 <0.05. This means that partially interest expense has a negative effect on net income at state-owned banks listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. Furthermore, it is known that F count is 103.149 > F table 3.28, with a significance of 0.000 <0.05. This shows that all independent variables, namely interest income and interest expense, simultaneously have a significant effect on net income at state-owned banks listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange.


This project concerns natural language processing in strictly limited domains, and
 the potential of natural language as user interfaces to such domains.
 Different approaches are presented for the syntactic analysis, namely Denite Clause
 Grammars and Combinatory Categorial Grammars. A first-order logical formalism
 is presented for the semantic analysis, thus allowing first-order logical terms to be
 obtained from English input sentences.
 To demonstrate the potential, a working implementation is realized in Prolog using
 a world of blocks as domain.
 Optimizations and practical applications are discussed, and it is argued that the
 presented solution are successful.