Abstract Cerebral ischemia can cause brain infarcts, which are difficult to recover due to poor angiogenesis. 2,3,5,4′-Tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside is a natural polyphenol, has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, and can protect from ischemic neuronal injury. However, little is known about the effect of 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside on brain microcirculation after stroke. This study aimed at investigating the influence of 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside on brain lesions and angiogenesis after stroke. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to right middle cerebral artery occlusion and treated with vehicle, nimodipine, or different doses of 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside daily beginning at 6 h post-middle cerebral artery occlusion for 14 days. The volume of cerebral infarcts, degree of neurological dysfunction, and level of microvessel density were determined longitudinally. The levels of vascular endothelial growth factor, angiopoietin 1, and angiopoietin receptor-2 expression in the brain lesions were characterized by immunohistochemistry and Western blot assays at 14 days post-middle cerebral artery occlusion. We found that 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside significantly promoted postoperative recovery in rats by minimizing the volume of cerebral infarcts and improving neurological dysfunction in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Additionally, 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside significantly increased the microvessel density in the brain and upregulated CD31 expression in ischemic penumbra, relative to that in the control. Finally, treatment with 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside significantly upregulated the relative levels of vascular endothelial growth factor, angiopoietin 1, and angiopoietin receptor-2 expression in the brain lesions of rats. Therefore, these data indicated that 2,3,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside treatment promoted angiogenesis and recovery from ischemia/reperfusion-induced brain injury in rats.


The main goal of the thesis is to propose effective approaches dealing with information collection, processing and utilization in cognitive radio context. These works are motivated by the necessity for wireless networks to cope with the increasing demand of throughput and services on one hand, and the inefficient use of spectral resources on the other hand. In chapter 1, we propose to integrate advanced radio signal processing in Radio Resource Management (RRM) mechanisms in order to realize an effective and easy-to-implement exploitation of radio measurements, leading to an overall RRM improvement. Thus, we propose a complete framework that performs a signal processing analysis, based on non-parametric regression and smoothing methods. In chapter 2, we propose a novel concept: the interference cartography. It combines location information with radio measurements and provides a complete view of the environment to be used in autonomous decision making in a cognitive context. Our study deals with advanced signal processing techniques to render the information complete and reliable, and updating the cartography to provide a viable picture of the environment for efficient analysis and decision. In chapter 3, our interest turns to opportunistic spectrum access. The proposed approach is inspired from Multi Armed Bandit problem: a reinforcement learning technique that guides the secondary user thanks to appropriate rules and policies. Our study deals with the application of this approach on IEEE802. 11 systems for the realization of opportunistic spectrum access, as well as the tuning of the algorithms' parameters for better performances in non-stationary environments.


Research was carried out involving 2256 students aged 16 to 18. They were enrolled in 2 provinces: Thuathien- Hue and Thanhhoa in the central northern  of Vietnam. The indices evaluate anthropometric parameters for age (including: weight, height, head circumference, neck circumference, mid-upper arm circumference, chest circumference, abdomen circumference, and hip circumference). Results showed that: The basic anthropometric indexes of central northern  people development follow rules of body growth of Vietnamese people. However, weight and height of students in this study were relatively low due to a high malnutrition rate, psychological influences, physical activitity and economic and natural conditions are important factors which have an effect on the health, morphology and physical status of students.


An efficient and stable algorithm based on the Numerov method of solving the Schrodinger equation with complex potential boundaries (NCPB) in open multilayer heterojunction systems is presented. The NCPB solver provides the complex expressions of the system eigenvalues to obtain the quasi-bound state (QBS) energies and lifetimes. Examples of applications in investigating electron tunneling from an accumulation layer across a single AlGaAs barrier, resonant tunneling through double barriers and QBSs in a multilayer quantum cascade laser are discussed. These examples of applications show that the NCPB is a powerful tool with greatly improved efficiency for investigating, designing, and optimizing multilayer heterojunction devices.


A procedure inspired by the Tamm-Dancoff method is applied to the chiral quark model which has been extended to include additional degrees of freedom: a pseudoscalar isoscalar field as well as a triplet of scalar isovector fields. The simpler, generic $\sigma$ -- model has been used before as a test for the Tamm-Dancoff inspired approximation (TDIA). The extended chirial quark model is employed here to investigate possible novel effects of the additional degrees of freedom as well as to point out the necessesity to introduce a SU(3) flavour. Model predictions for the axial-vector coupling constant and for the nucleon magnetic moment obtained in TDIA are compared with experimental values.


Introduction
We aimed to prospectively investigate the effect of first trimester vaginal bleeding on first trimester screening test, uterine artery (UtA) Doppler results and perinatal outcomes.
Materials And Methods
Fifty cases that presented with vaginal bleeding in the first trimester between 2019 and 2020 constituted the early vaginal bleeding (abortus imminens-threatened abortion) group and fifty cases without a history of vaginal bleeding in pregnancy constituted the control group. Demographic datas were noted at the first visit. Both groups were followed up until birth. First trimester screening test (double screening test) between 11-14 weeks and UtA Doppler examination between 20-24 weeks of gestation was performed. Perinatal outcomes and values of nuchal translucency (NT), free β human chorionic gonadotropin (f β-hCG), pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A), and UtA Doppler were compared between the two groups.
Results
There was no statistically significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of NT and PAPP-A among the first trimester screening test results (p=0.741 and p=0.937, respectively). In the group with threatened miscarriage, f β-hCG value was numerically higher, but there was no statistically significant difference (1.24±0.59 vs. 1.1±0.93, p=0.057). In the Doppler examination of the uterine artery, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of systolic/diastolic ratio, pulsatility index, resistive index and the presence of a notch. (p=0.713, p=0.528, p=424, p=0.538, respectively). Perinatal complication rate was statistically significantly higher in the study group (p = 0.013; Odds Ratio: 3.2, 95% CI 1.2 - 8.3).
Conclusion
Contrary to some different studies, we believe that first trimester screening test parameters or uterine artery Doppler flow indices do not have a place in predicting perinatal outcomes of pregnant women with a history of vaginal bleeding in the first trimester. In addition, early vaginal bleeding does not significantly affect screening parameters. Perinatal complication rate was found to be statistically significantly higher in the group with a history of threatened miscarriage.


To the Editor.— In their recent reply to Dr Stewart's 1 letter to the editor (October 1987), Dr Wehr and colleagues 2 erred in their citation of their own second reference by the omission of my name as an author. 3 As clearly stated in the "Methods" section of that initial report on seasonal affective disorder and light therapy, I made the initial observations on the seasonal disorder and the initial treatments with light. Since that time, I have gone on to treat over 200 patients with the seasonal disorder. As a result of my experience, 4 I support Dr Stewart's comments in part: (1) Light therapy is not particularly effective for the majority of my patients with the seasonal disorder. Only approximately 15% of these patients respond to light, and these patients are those who are only mildly ill and have had few or no hospitalizations for their disorder.


The evolution of light propagating in an optical fibre is determined by the complex interplay of the distributed linear (e.g. loss and dispersion) and third order nonlinear effects that the signal experiences as it propagates through the system. The ability therefore to independently control any of these physical properties of the medium along a fibre's length is therefore an extremely enabling capability, offering the possibility of distributed optical waveform control


The information found from researches regarding 1 093 removed dams across the UnitedStates from 1921 to 2013 is summarized. This paper analyzes information by the number, size, materialand age of the removed dams and three primary dam removal purposes including environmental restora-tion, safety concerns, and economic considerations. The statistical results show that the dam removalphenomenon has existed for years and up to now the removed dams in the United States are small, low-head, aging and deteriorating dams. Dams that contribute a lot to the nation's economy are not removedat all, instead they get constant maintenance. Dams still form an integral part that makes great contribu-tion to the collective economy and social welfare.


The combustion performance of inverse diffusion and partially premixed flames was optimized by employing concentric elliptical ports with variable relative angular orientation, co-swirling, and cross-flow opposing jets of different inclination angles. The flexible and favorably active control of combustion was pronounced by changing the nozzle relative angular orientation. The optimum angular shift was found to be 20° where the flame length was shortened by 39% from the case of 0° and the NOx levels were reduced to about 0.51 g/kg of fuel for the inverse partially premixed flames. At such optimum angular shift, the minimum CO and NOx emissions respectively decreased to 17.1 and 1.52 g/kg of fuel for the inverse diffusion flames. The elliptical jets increased the size of the swirling flow recirculation zone by about 28%. Increasing the inner aspect ratio consistently increased the combustion efficiency, where the CO emissions reach minimum values of 12.3 and 6.22 g/kg of fuel respectively for the inverse diffusion and partially premixed flames. The correspondingly minimum NOx emissions were thus 0.89 and 0.51 g/kg of fuel at a cross-flow momentum flux ratio of 2.0. Splitting the opposing cross-flow air jets by increasing their inclination angle above 0° duplicated the stagnation zone vortical impact to enrich the average turbulent energy at the major axis tips. The inclination angle of 15° was the optimum at no swirl while increasing the outer swirl angle shifted the optimum inclination angle to 25°. The inner/outer co-swirl of 45°/60° thus provided a minimum CO emission of 11.1 g/kg of fuel for the inverse diffusion flame and 2.65 g/kg of fuel for the inverse partially premixed flame.


25 Background: Congenital loss of the SHOX gene is thought to be a genetic cause of short 26 stature phenotype in Turner syndrome and Leri-Weill dyschondrosteosis patients. 27 Though the SHOX expression initiates from early fetus period, little is known about the 28 embryonic roles of SHOX. Zebrafish is a preferred model to address this issue due to 29 the conserved shox gene and its convenience in developmental studies. Here, we 30 characterized structure, expression, and developmental roles of zebrafish shox through 31 loss of function approach. Results: We found a previously uncovered Shox protein 32 harboring homeodomain and OAR-domain in zebrafish. During embryogenesis, the 33 shox transcript emerged at early-pharyngula stage and was increased in later stages. The 34 predominant domains of the shox expression were mandibular arch, pectoral fin, 35 anterior notochord, rhonbencephalon and mesencephalon, suggesting that Shox is 36 involved in bone and neural development. Translational blockade of Shox mRNA by 37 antisense morpholino oligo delayed embryonic growth, which was restored by the co38 overexpression of morpholino-resistant Shox mRNA. In later stages, impaired Shox 39 expression markedly delayed calcification process in anterior vertebral column and 40 craniofacial bones. Conclusions: Our data demonstrate evolutionarily conserved Shox 41 plays roles in early embryonic growth and in later bone formation process. 42 43 (194 words / 200 words or less) 44 Zebrafish shox project MS draft ver. 15 Introduction 45 Heritable factor is believed to be predominant in final body size determination in most 46 animals, and genetic abnormality does often cause idiopathic short stature (ISS) in 47 human. The Turner syndrome (TS) and the Leri-Weill dischondrosteosis (LWD) are 48 both well-known short stature syndromes in medical front, and those patients show 49 overlapping symptoms such as not only the signature short stature phenotype but also 50 the abnormalities in specific bones: aborted growth in zeugopods (ulna/tibia, 51 radius/fibula), malformed wrist and ankle which is so called the Madelung deformity, 52 congenital short neck, high arched palate, micrognathia, and so on (Bernasconi et al., 53 2001; Ranke and Saenger, 2001). The genetic cause of TS and LWD has been 54 extensively studied in clinical researches, and a gene showing strong link to the skeletal 55 features in these patients was discovered, which is the short stature homeobox56 containing gene, SHOX (Rao et al., 1997; Shears et al., 1998; Kosho et al., 1999). 57 The SHOX gene is positioned to the pseudo autosomal region 1 (PAR1) of the sex 58 chromosomes in human, and the lack of PAR1, aborted expression of SHOX gene by 59 the mutations or the partial deletion of its regulatory region has strong linkage with the 60 abnormal bone morphology or stunted growth (Clement-Jones et al., 2000; Ogata, 2002; 61 Rappold, 2002; Fukami et al., 2003; Stuppia et al., 2003; Munns et al., 2004; Thomas et 62 al., 2004; Durand et al., 2011). Data from previous studies on molecular functions of 63 this protein in culture cell system further underscores the notion that SHOX is involved 64 in skeletal formation as a transcriptional regulator (Marchini et al., 2004; Sabherwal et 65 al., 2004; Marchini et al., 2007a; Aza-Carmona et al., 2011; Decker et al., 2011). In 66 most mammalian species, however, the SHOX gene was not discovered instead the 67 close related paralogous gene, SHOX2/Og12, has been found (Yu et al., 2007; Gu et al., 68 2008; Puskaric et al., 2010; Bobick and Cobb, 2012; Glaser et al., 2014). So far, it has 69 been found that only limited species, such as chicken and fish, retain genes orthologous 70 to the human SHOX (Tiecke et al., 2006; Sabherwal et al., 2007; Kenyon et al., 2011). 71 The in vivo studies on specific Shox2/Og12 gene knock out have demonstrated 72 that the gene is also crucial osteogenic regulator in rodent model (Blaschke et al., 1998; 73 Yu et al., 2005; Vickerman et al., 2011; Bobick and Cobb, 2012; Glaser et al., 2014). 74 Intriguingly, however, the phenotype found in Shox2 null mouse did not exactly 75 represent the bony frameworks characteristic to the TS and LWD patients: the Shox2 76 Zebrafish shox project MS draft ver. 15 knockout mouse had no major defects in zeunopods, but showed remarkable shortening 77 of the stylopods (humerus and femur) (Yu et al., 2007; Gu et al., 2008; Vickerman et al., 78 2011). This may be the difference in expression domains between SHOX and 79 SHOX2/Shox2 genes (Clement-Jones et al., 2000). Albeit the Shox2 has been 80 demonstrated to be required in animal growth and bone development in vivo, the lack of 81 SHOX gene in major model mammalian species makes the demonstration of the in vivo 82 roles of this gene in bone development and animal growth by loss of function approach 83 unfulfilled. Besides, it has been reported that most, if not all, of TS fetuses are 84 miscarried at around the 1st 2nd trimester of pregnancy (Hook, 1978; Ranke and 85 Saenger, 2001), and the SHOX gene expression starts in early embryonic stages in 86 human. Another clinical data showed that the infant carrying SHOX deletion or 87 haploinsufficiency genotype is often smaller at birth (Kosho et al., 1999), suggesting 88 involvement of SHOX in normal embryonic growth and development. Nevertheless, 89 though the overexpression study of Shox gene in chicken was reported (Tiecke et al., 9


While many social robots already include carefully designed robotic faces, functional robot eyes that meet human expectations are still an open challenge. As a consequence, many robots either have cameras separated from their robot eyes or active camera heads missing an anthropomorphic face. In this paper, we propose a new robot eye that is integrated in the anthropomorphic robot head Floka and fulfills a similar technical specification as a human eye including zero backlash, an increased range of motion, high velocities and accelerations, an integrated high resolution camera, and fast actuated eyelids. The robot eye is built using state-of-the-art off-the-shelf components and the CAD model of our prototype is available free of charge on request for non-commercial applications. We evaluate the technical properties of the robot eye and show that it meets and partially outperforms human eye movements and saccades.


Abstract The aim of this paper is study the chaotic properties of simple map of 2-𝒟. We find it has sensitive dependence on initial conditions if |q|< 1, and positive entropy if p > √2qu Also we prove it has positive Lyapunov exponent with some conditions on a, c, and d. Finally, we determine the cases where it is distal and proximal depended on the values of the p, q w and u.


A boundary element method has been used to analyze electron emission from an extended Schottky cathode, consisting of an infinitely long array of parallel heated wires. Space charge was ignored. It was found that the current density may be expressed by a Richardson-Duschman equation in which the argument of the exponential term is corrected by an additive factor, Q, which is a function of temperature, wire radius, wire separation, and voltage. Over the range of temperatures, wire radii, and voltages examined, Q is a nearly linear function of the square root of the applied voltage. Tentative agreement with experiment was found. >


We are developing a decision support tool for treatment response monitoring of multiple myeloma (MM) disease in spinal MRI scan images. This study investigated the feasibility of using deep learning to stratify the risks for patients who underwent bone marrow transplant (BMT) and assessed its prognostic value in predicting time to progression (TTP) after BMT. We combined a convolutional neural network (CNN) with a recurrent neural network (RNN), referred to as C-RNN model, to classify the low and high risk groups of patients with pre- and post-BMT MRI scans. The CNN was used as the encoder with the pair of pre- and post-BMT MR images as input, and the RNN was used as the decoder to receive time-sequence vectors output from the CNN encoder for classification of patients with high and low risk of progression within a certain time. With IRB approval, 63 pairs of pre- and post-BMT T1W sagittal view of MRI scans and the time to progression (TTP) within 5 years of follow up for each patient were collected retrospectively from 63 MM patients at our institution. With respect to the TTP censored at 24 months, 41 and 22 patients were separated to the low risk and high risk groups as reference standard. Our C-RNN was trained and validated with 5-fold cross-validation. The results showed that the C-RNN achieved an average test AUC of 0.801±0.037. The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the high risk group patients identified by the C-RNN model had significantly shorter TTP than those low risk patients (P<0.05 by log-rank test).


Epilepsy is a common neurological disease. A growing number of research studies provide evidence regarding the progressive neuronal damage induced by prolonged seizures or status epilepticus (SE), as well as recurrent brief seizures. Importantly, seizure is only one aspect of epilepsy. However, cognitive and behavioral deficits induced by progressive seizures or antiepileptic treatment can be detrimental to individual function. The neurobiology of epilepsy is poorly understood involving complex cellular and molecular mechanisms. The brain undergoes changes in its basic structure and function, e.g., neural plasticity with an increased susceptibility in neuronal synchronization and network circuit alterations. Some of these changes are transient, while others are permanent with an involvement of both glutamatergic and γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic systems. Recent data suggest that impaired neuronal plasticity may underlie the cognitive impairment and behavioral changes associated with epilepsy. Many neurologists recognize that the prevention or suppression of seizures by the use of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) alone is insufficient without clear predictions of disease outcome. Hence, it is important to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying epileptogenesis because this may allow the development of innovative strategies to prevent or cure this condition. In addition, this realization would have significant impact in reducing the long‐term adverse consequences of the disease, including neurocognitive and behavioral adverse effects. Drug Dev Res 68:498–511, 2007. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Title: Cross-cultural Study of Prejudice Against Homeless With Explicit and Implicit Measures The objectives of this research were to create explicit and implicit measures of prejudice against homeless, and to identify factors associated with negative attitudes toward this population. To meet these objectives several studies collected in four articles were made. In the first article the literature on prejudice against homeless was reviewed. In this study was found that both, in Latin America and in the countries of industrialized West, have been reported stereotypes towards this population related to mental illness and drug addiction, as well as acts of discrimination related to limitations in the use of public space. Article two corresponded to a study of cross-cultural creation and validation of a scale of prejudice against homeless, created with basics of Item Response Theory and the Allport's scale of prejudice. The created scale presented evidence of construct validity, convergent validity and good internal consistency. It was also verified, in part, the Allport's theory of the scale of prejudice. The third article aimed at identifying factors associated with prejudice against homeless, and to build and test a hierarchical model to explain variations in the levels of this prejudice. The proposed model had four levels of prejudice mediations, good fit indices, and included the variables social dominance orientation, basic values, egocentrism, perception of insecurity and quality of contact with homeless people. In the fourth article was described the process of creating an implicit association test about attitudes toward homeless, and was tested scores correlation levels acquired with this test and those acquired with the scale established in article two. The results indicated that there are strong associations between concepts representing the homeless people and negative stereotypes


The invention discloses a method for a mobile terminal to process homed data and a mobile terminal. The method comprises that a homed data update file is obtained to be stored in a first file directory in a file system, and the homed data update file is obtained from the first file directory, after successful verification, the corresponding file identification of each group of update data is judged to be same with the file identification of one homed data file in a second file directory or not, if yes, the update data is utilized to update the data of the homed data file, if not, a data file which contains the update data is generated in the second file directory, and the file identification of the data file is the corresponding file identification of the update data. According to the technical scheme provided by the invention, an operator side is prevented from releasing a new mobile terminal program software version due to the update of the homed data, a mobile terminal side is prevented from refreshing the program software version due to the update of the homed data, so that the update realization cost and update speed are lowered.


Abstract Chrysocharis laricinellae (Ratz.) from Austria, Sweden, England, and Wisconsin, some of which were thought possibly different species, were crossed. Hybrid sex ratios in this arrhenotokous species were similar to parental types, indicating conspecificity. English and Wisconsin strains tended toward darker legs and female scapes.


One of the most critical variables related to successful breast augmentation is implant selection. Despite the numerous choices with regard to implant design, and the many ways such variables including shape, texture and fill can be mixed and matched, there are very consistent and well-defined principles that can be identified to enhance the aesthetic success of the procedure. Such principles include maximizing soft tissue cover, merging volume with skin elasticity to enhance a harmonious relationship with the native breast, matching implant dimensions to the patient's anatomy, and precisely controlling the boundaries of the breast pocket. In particular, respecting the anatomy of the inframammary fold can greatly affect the overall result. By combining intelligent and strategic manipulation of these variables, and coupling them with artistic technical expertise, optimal results in breast augmentation can be achieved.


Plant breeders have been conccerned with the simultaneous, improvement of several traits. These traits affect the practical value of any line or population in varying degrees accopding to their importance...


In this paper, electrical characteristics of dual-gate polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin film transistors (TFTs) with different undoped region (UR) offsets are investigated. Performance degradation of the poly-Si TFT is dependent on the offset value, offset direction, and offset location. In addition, the degradation is also dependent on the applied drain bias. Significant performance deterioration is observed when the offset is larger than ±0.4 μm. Even an offset in an individual UR can cause the degradation. At a low drain bias of −0.1 V, the degradation is independent on the direction and the location of the offset. When the drain bias increases to −10 V, the performance degradation of the TFT with the positive UR offset significantly reduces. The physical mechanisms underlying the performance variation are studied by analyzing the energy band diagrams, carrier concentration distributions, and electric field distributions.


Distribution of particulate organic carbon(POC) with depth was studied to elucidate the mechanism for vertical distribution of salt marsh POC,based on analyses of POC content,stable carbon isotope and grain size for samples of three cores from high marsh,middle marsh and bare flat of Chongmingdongtan Salt Marsh in the Yangtze River Estuary.Results indicated that soil particulate organic carbon existed mainly in the fine grains with sizes less than 0.016 mm,and POC content was susceptible to changes of contents of grains in size between 0.002 mm and 0.004 mm.It was inferred that salt marsh POC originated mainly from suspended particulate matter of the Yangtze River,based on results of stable carbon isotope analysis and the correlations between POC content and contents of fine grains in different size fractions(0.016 mm) for soil samples from different cores.The correlations between soil POC contents and contents of grains in different size fractions indicated that grain size characteristics of samples from high marsh were similar to those of samples from middle marsh.Samples from bare flat were similar in part to those from high marsh and middle marsh in the correlations between soil POC content and contents of grains in different size fractions,with main differences shown by grains in size fractions greater than 0.016 mm.This might be due to the dynamic depositional processes at locations with different altitudes in the salt marsh.Vegetation provided considerable contributions to soil POC of core samples from high marsh and middle marsh,with the greatest value of 55.6% of soil POC contents in some depth sections, which was controlled predominantly by depositional processes on the tidal flat. The characteristic structure of alternate muddy laminae and sandy laminae originated from dynamic depositional processes on tidal flats,and exerted great influences on the distributions of soil POC with depth,due to the excellent protecting effects of the strata structure on soil POC.The dynamic depositional processes on tidal flats were therefore the key factor constraining the distributions of soil POC with depth.


We present a model to take into account the interface defects contribution on the binding energy of charged exciton in GaAs/Al 0.3 Ga 0.7 As quantum wells. The dependence of the binding energy gain and of the trion size on the quantum well width are variationally calculated. We show that the trion is more sensitive to interface defects than the exciton.


Objective To elucidate the mechanisms of disruption of intestinal mucosa barrier in obstructive jaundice.Methods The obstructive jaundice model of rats was set up.At 10 d and 20 d after operation,immunohistochemistry and Western-blot techniques were used to examine the distribution and expression of tight junction proteins(ZO-1,Occludin) and myosin light chain kinase(MLCK)in intestinal mucosa.Results In normal control groups,the staining of ZO-1 and occludin was predominantly localized to the margins of the epithelial cells and the apex of the cell membrane,and displayed a continuous and uniform distribution along the under surface of the villae.MLCK was distributed mainly in cytoplasm.In obstructive jaundice groups,ZO-1 and occludin staining appeared discontinuous and vague,with rough edges and spiculate processes.The staining of MLCK was also discontinuous and scanty.The strong positive express ratio of ZO-1,Occludin and MLCK were obviously lower in two experiment group than those in the control group all P0.05).ZO-1 was significantly decreased in 20 d group than that in 10 d group(14.3 % vs28.6 %,P0.05),but no significant difference in occludin and MLCK staining between 10 d group and 20 d group.Similar outcomes were obtained by quantitative analysis of Western blot images.Conclusions Obstructive jaundice rats have distribution of ZO-1,occludin and MLCK in ileum mucous membrane epithelium,and is associated with breakdown of the integrity of the intestinal barrier.


Abstract Rationale: Basilar artery (BA) fenestration is a congenital anomaly with duplicated BA, which can cause ischemic stroke. However, the stroke mechanism is not clearly verified in patients with BA fenestration. Patient concerns: Here, we report a case of 64-year-old man with well-controlled hypertension admitted with dysarthria, only. Diagnoses: Diffusion weighted image showed a bilateral symmetric pontine infarction sparing the midline. BA fenestration was observed from magnetic resonance angiography. Intervention: High-resolution magnetic resonance image (MRI) and 4D flow MRI was performed to verify the mechanism of stroke associated with BA fenestration. Outcomes: No plaque was observed at the area of BA fenestration from high-resolution MRI. 4D flow MRI showed bifurcated flow with high flow velocity and low shear stress at the area of BA fenestration. Lessons: A turbulent flow with high flow velocity and low shear stress at the BA fenestration area may have influenced the flow through the bilateral perforating arteries resulting in a bilateral symmetric pontine infarction with sparing the midline where the septa of BA is located. 4D flow dynamic studies may be beneficial for verifying the mechanism of stroke.


Changes in platelet demand accompanying widespread application of autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation (APBPCT) were anticipated. The differences in the transfused volume of platelet concentrate (PC) among 8 patients with malignant lymphoma who were treated with APBPCT and 10 patients with malignant lymphoma who were not treated with APBPCT, although peripheral blood progenitor cell harvests had been performed, were studied. The former was 81 Japanese PC units more than the latter. Considering the supplied volume of PC from Red Cross blood centers and the number of APBPCTs in 1996 in Japan, the Japanese demand for PC increases by 0.16% for enforced APBPCT versus 0.36%, which includes the PC demand necessary in all treatment courses. The total increment in PC demand associated with APBPCT is not large enough to threaten the PC supply of Japan even if the number of APBPCTs increases rapidly.


A composite long rod insulator produced in the authors' laboratory is discussed. The insulator is made of porcelain and silicone rubber. Test results on the electrical and mechanical properties are reported. The insulator has many advantages, such as light weight, ease of manufacture, high mechanical strength, very good antipollution performance, no risk of internal puncture, and reduced need for service safeguarding. These advantages become more obvious in EHV and UHV lines.<<ETX>>


Partial volume effects (PVE) in nuclear imaging blur contours and decrease intensity in small tissues. Among the methodologies considered for PVE correction, a new voxel-wise mutual multi-resolution approach (MMA) was recently introduced. MMA is based on the extraction and transformation of high resolution details from an anatomical image (MR or CT) and their subsequent incorporation into a low-resolution image (PET or SPECT). This voxel-wise approach allows lacking details of the low-resolution image to be reconstructed as well as contours and intensities to be recovered. However, artifacts may be introduced due to the required global linear correlation between both modalities and the current 2D implementation whereas PVE is a 3D phenomenon. The aim of the present study was to assess a new model, designed to overcome these two issues. A 3D wavelet decomposition process was built to replace the 2D global linear model with a 3D local analysis using a moving window. The algorithm was validated on synthetic and simulated images, and its performance was compared to the previous approach. The obtained quantitative correction was found to be similar to the 2D global correction in correlated cases whereas in the uncorrelated cases such as whole body or brain analysis, the new model outperforms the 2D approach without artefacts and with improved visual and quantitative correction.


A study of immigrants investigated the relationship between education in the native language (L1) and development of oral proficiency in a second language (L2), also considering other variables such as age, age at settlement, and length of settlement in the L2 country. Literacy in Ll was not a formal variable, but was roughly implied by extent of Li education. Two populations were studied: (1) 282 public assistance recipients enrolled in one New York City (New York) English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program, with data taken from registration forms, and (2) subjects reported in a citywide database on literacy. In each case, oral proficiency was determined by the same standardized test. Results strongly support the hypothesis that education in Ll correlates positively with L2 oral proficiency. In addition, they also suggest that the age of settlement correlates negatively with L2 oral proficiency, a relationship that continues well into adulthood, and somewhat less strongly, that length of settlement in the L2 culture correlates positively with L2 oral proficiency. A brief bibliography, ESL language test and score sheet, demographic data on subjects, and charted results are appended. (MSE) (Adjunct ERIC Clearinghouse on Literacy Education) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *******************1444::**************************************** The effects of education in L1 and other factors on the development of oral proficiency in L2 among adults Lisa Earl-Castillo BEGIN Language Program, New York City Introduction A wealth of literature has attempted to identify the variables that lead to success in second language learning. Especially numerous have been discussions of the probable differences between fi.rmal study of L2 and informal "acquisition" of it, and the implications of this for instructional methods (Krashen 1976; Krashen 1982; Terrell 1982; see also Long 1986 for a critical review). Krashen's hypotheses have sparked considerable controversy among the research community, but data supporting his claims is less abundant. The importance of psychological factors such as motivation, field dependence/independence, and willingness to take risks have also been discussed frequently (Brown 1987; Rubin and Thompson, 1982; Froehlich et al) but quantifying their roles has proven problematic. The learner's age when exposure to or study of the target language is initiated has been thought by some to be the most crucial factor of all in determining the ultimate level of proficiency attainable by the learner (see Genesee, 1986, for a review of the literature on the "critical period" hypothesis), but the number of exceptions to this "rule" has led to increased skepticism about the validity of such a claim. And, in the case of minority second language learners, the sociopolitical role of the minority culture with respect to that of the speakers of the target language has been found to be an important variable worthy of further attention (Cummins, 1984 and elsewhere). Despite the large number of studies, the findings fail to point toward a single factor, be it instructional method, environmental factor, or learner variable, that determines success in language learning. This does not, however, diminish the value of such work, for when the results of different studies are considered relative to one another, the picture of language acquisition that emerges is that of a complex process dependent on an equally complex array of Interrelated factors, all contributing to but none completely responsible for success. The body of knowledge generated thus far, though still incomplete, nonetheless offers important insights to the teacher and learner, as well as the researcher, in understanding the dynamics of language. learning. This paper will address an often neglected issue of potentially great relevance to L2 acquisition; namely, the effect of education in the native language on second language learning. Although it is generally acknowledged (Richard-Amato, 1988; Haverson and Haynes, 1979; and others) that literacy in L1 is a valuable asset to classroom study of L2, the effects of education in Ll on the development of proficiency in L2 have not been tested. Cummins (1981 and elsewhere) and Torres discuss the role of Ll proficiency on the school learning or content instruction in primary and secondary grades. Scribner and Cole (1978, 1981) in their landmark study of the Vai in Liberia, found that the cognitive consequences of schooling were distinct from those of literacy. Their findings suggested that it is not literacy per se but schooling -and school uses of literacy -which arc responsible for certain forms of cognitive development often causally attributed to literacy, such as abstract reasoning skills. Like Scribner and Cole's findings, the ethnographic work of Shirlq Brice Heath (1986, 1982, and elsewhere) among native speakers of English in the American Southeast also S DEPARTMENT EDUCATION **PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS ,t14 e ot kouulanal nbell,Ch and Impbt/ehhliht MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY DUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTEERic, document has been (spri:xlocd as ece,ved horn the person 0(9111111/11110n 1 ohginating it (' 14.001 Chenchli nave weir made to improve reproduction (loamy Pootit301 wew 0. opth.ofts slated thINS document do not necessarily fmmettent official OEM position of policy I) BEST COPY AVAII.A.BLE 10 THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC). indicates that the consequences of literacy depend largely on the uses to which literacy is put. Cancino and Hakuta (1981), in their detailed study of the acquisition of English by adult working-class Puerto Ricans, found a significant correlation between education in L1 and 12 proficiency. But since in Puerto Rican schools English instruction is included from primary grades, the positive correlation they found is difficult to distinguish from the positive correlation between prior study of English and English proficiency. The ef:et of education in Ll on the acquisition of L2 in adults, especially working-class adults, is still largely an unexplored area. Purpose of study My purpose in undertaking this study was to explore, and where possible to quantify, the relationship (if any) between education in Ll and the development ol oral proficiency in L2, and to compare the effects of education to other factors that in:ght play a part in language learning, including the learner's age, age of settlement, and length of settlement. In :loosing to examine oral proficiency exclusively I was attempting not to load the dice against those who were either nonliterate in Li or 12 or both. TI,is was especially important, since the primary object of comparison in the study was the 12 proficiency of the unschooled versus the educated. The relationship between literacy in Ll and proficiency in L2 was of great interest to me, and certainly of relevance to the study, and literacy is arguably one of the most important consequences of education in our society. It was not, however, within the scope of this study to directly investigate the correlation between L1 literacy and proficiency in L2. The primary reason for this was quite simply that data on Ll literacy was not available. The extent of formal education can, however, often be taken as rough indicator of level of literacy, and the findings of this study may be of some relevance to future investigations of the effect of native language literacy on second language acquisition. A second issue of interest in the study was the possible conditioning effect of schooling on learner tendency to acquire L2 informally, "on the street" or formally, by taking classes. It seemed that unschooled learners, unfamiliar with "academic" learning styles, might show more of a tendency to acquire language outside of classrooms than learners with substantial education, who might gravitate toward formal study. In the case of both formal and informal learning, but especially in the case of the latter, a correlation between both length and age of settlement in the United States and oral proficiency in L2 was hypothesized to exist as well. Length of settlement was deemed important because it could serve as a rough indicator of length of exposure to English. Correlating age of settlement and proficiency in L2 was thought to be important because of its potential for adding new information to the debate surrounding the controversial Critical Period hypothesis. These ideas can be expressed as the following hypotheses: Education in the native language should correlate positively with oral proficiency in L2. H2: Age of settlement in the target culture should correlate negatively with oral proficiency in L2 among adults. H3: Length of settlement in the target culture should correlate positively with oral proficiency in L2.


To investigate the flow characteristics with the steady state pneumatic transportation of solids in horizontal pipes at low air velocities, in this paper, instantaneous photographs of solid flow patterns were taken with a camera simultaneously operated with a storoboscope. The experimental results were as follows: solids tend to settle out along the bottom of the pipe and form dunes at a periodic interval. The height and the length of each dune under such condition is related to the solids-gas flow ratios, as well as to air velocity. However, when the solids-gas ratios are more than 10, these values become constant independently of the solids-gas ratios. On the other hand, the angle of slope, and the pitch length of each dune are independent of the extent of air velocity and solids-gas ratios.


Deposits of the folded Miocene appear in the surrounding of Andrychow. In the profile of the sediments occurring here, clays with gravels and boulders, mainly flysch ones, clays with gravels of crystalline rocks, limestones and flysch deposits, dark clays with organic detritus and large flysch olistoliths as well as sandy clays and sands are distinguished. The youngest deposits, developed as gray clays, sandy clays with an irregular and thin sandy inter-Iamination, have been identified in the Bulowka stream. Based on the presence of C. coalithus and C. cf calyculus the age of the studied deposits has been determined as the nannoplankton zone NN9a/8 that corresponds to the Lower Pannonian in a stratigraphic division for Central Paratethys.


This study is study to Food and Beverage firm by title "Technical Analysis Using to Decision Taking of Investment (study to Food and Beverage Firms which listed in Stock Exchange of Jakarta in 2006 period).
The goal of this study is to know how far investor gain advantage through buying and selling shares based on the technical analysis. The problem formula of this study is how investor to take investment decision of shares based on the technical analysis (study to Food and Beverage Firms which listed in Stock Exchange of Jakarta in 2006 period).
The population of this study are Food and Beverage Firms which listed in BEJ during study period, while to sample technique use purposive sampling, that population which be samples fulfill criteria study suitable with the goal of the study. The criteria of samples which be used in this study that Food and Beverage Firms which state financial statement completely during study period (2006) and use four firms which have highest assets.
The study result show that reversal test of four Food and Beverage firms that may be become investment to gain earning in 2006 are PT. Indofood sukses Makmur, Tbk, PT. Davomas Abadi Tbk, PT. Tunas Baru Lampung and PT. Mayora Indah Tbk.


This work gives an insight into the relationship between Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables and what went on behind closed doors in those early months when PCCs were established and the Police Authority replaced. The work is an extensive and in-depth empirical study, reflecting how these new constitutional actors are flexibly interpreting and discreetly adapting to their responsibilities for governing the police. The authors gained unprecedented access to the PCCs and their Chief Officer teams and undertook confidential interviews with both sides.

The results reveal the inner most workings of the PCCs relationships with the police, the media, partners and the public.


A group G is called a π-closed-Sylow-tower group if there exists a normal Hall π-subgroup in G, which is a Sylow-tower group. Discussion is made on the sufficient conditions for π-closed-Sylow-tower groups through the use of the properties of s()-quasinormal subgroups.


Based on the database of tourism resource development in Lijiang Basin through Map GIS 6.7,the spatial structure of the resources are analyzed by means of compactness indexes,intensity and connectivity.With compactness index of C=0.42 and minimum adjacency index of Rn=0.937 5,the spatial structure of the tourism resource development in Lijiang Basin indicates that there are low spatial compactness and weak overall distribution.There is an even distribution for the upstream area(Rn=1.484),and a compressed distribution for the downstream area(Rn=0.441).The indexes for connectivity(β=1.592 and γ=0.539) indicate that there is a relatively weak connectivity between tourism resources and a middle level of road compactness,and a good transport network for tourism has not yet been established.A buffer analysis of dots and lines indicates that 51.2% tourism resources are grouped in a 5 km centered area around cities and towns,and that the tourism resources in the 2 km buffer zones along the highways constitute 74.4% resources in the whole basin area.There is a high compact distribution of resources between Guilin and Yangshuo.In terms of regional structure,the development of resources for the upstream area is not enough.The quality of the development is best for the middle-stream area and second best for the upstream area.


Some of the more important aspects of research on dark nebulae, globules, and protostars are reported. Included are the birth of a star in the galaxy, optical and radio evidence for large globules and their evolutionary status, and star formation in the star clouds of Magellan. 51 references. (JFP)


In modern world, with the development of information technologies, graphic culture is becoming more and more relevant and important. Many professions, from design to engineering, require workers to understand and create graphics and multimedia materials. In addition, in today's world, where much attention is paid to visual perception, graphic culture is an important component of modern culture. In this regard, it is important to form the graphic culture of students at the stage of school education. Unfortunately, traditional teaching methods are not always effective in this respect. Therefore, the use of cross-pedagogy can be an excellent tool for forming the graphic culture of students in technology lessons. So, the relevance of this topic is to consider the possibilities of using cross-pedagogy as an effective tool for forming the graphic culture of 8th-9th grade students in technology lessons. The purpose of the article is to reveal the effectiveness of the use of cross-pedagogy when forming the graphic culture of 8th-9th grade students in technology lessons.
This article examines in detail the use of cross-pedagogy technology for the formation of the graphic culture of students in technology lessons for grades 8-9. It is emphasized that cross-pedagogy is an innovative technology that ensures the efficiency and effectiveness of the educational process. The article highlights the main principles of cross-pedagogy and its influence on the formation of graphic culture of students in technology classes. Different methods of using cross-pedagogy in technology classes, such as group work, project activities, interactive methods, etc., are analysed, as well as their advantages and disadvantages. The article provides specific examples of the use of cross-pedagogy for the formation of the graphic culture of students of grades 8-9, which allows the reader to better understand the essence of technology and its possibilities. As a result of the research, it was established that the use of cross-pedagogy in technology lessons is an effective means of forming the graphic culture of students and contributes to their successful learning.
The article also examines various types of cross-pedagogy, including cross-cultural, cross-course, and cross-disciplinary pedagogy. In addition, examples of the use of various tools of cross-pedagogy technology to increase the effectiveness of forming students' graphic culture in technology lessons will be considered. The article also examines the role of the teacher in the application of cross-pedagogy in technology lessons and indicates the need to train teaching staff to use this technology. In general, the article contains a comprehensive approach to the use of cross-pedagogy for the formation of graphic culture of 8-9 grade students in technology lessons.


The invention relates to an electronic device (200) for protection against transient voltages in high-power applications. The electronic device (200) comprises: i) a semiconductor substrate (220) comprising an active element (Dd) having at least two terminals (T1, T2); ii) a conductive pad (225) provided on said substrate (220) and being electrically coupled to one of said terminals (T1, T2); iii) electrically-conductive solder material (226) provided on the conductive pad (225); and iv) a first conductive part (230) electrically coupled to the conductive pad (225) via the electrically-conductive interconnect material (226). The electronic device further comprises a wall (229) being provided along the periphery of the conductive pad (225) for forming a lateral confinement of the interconnect material (226) on the conductive pad (225). The invention further relates to a method of manufacturing such electronic device. The proposed invention offers a solution for two problems: a) limited interconnect coverage when using lead-solder (due to the solder limitation), and b) the limitations when using lead-free materials (due to the government restrictions).


This paper discusses the concept of pharmaceutical patents from a legal perspective, assessing the underlying conflict existing between an individual's rights of invention and the morale interest in providing medication for the need of the society. An analysis of law as a tool of public utility highlights how private rights with externalities, such as patents, may be limited by public interest when the general welfare of the people are threaded upon. The author concludes how pharmaceutical patents prescribed by the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) are currently disproportionately favored against the general wellbeing of those in need of the drugs. The iustiftcations for patents are further eclipsed by the need of developing countries for ample and affordable medication, as a balance of rights can still be achieved through alternate means of reword and incentive for drug makers, without heaving penalties upon the society in need.


This research presents analytical results for the presence of the Fusarium genus in
coastal water samples of the Mediterranean Sea and water from the Andarax Riverbed
in the provinces of Granada and Almeria in southeastern Spain. A total of 18 water
samples were analyzed from the Andarax River, from which ten species of Fusarium
were isolated: F. anthophilum, F. acuminatum, F. chlamydosporum, F. culmorum, F.
equiseti, F. verticillioides, F. oxysporum, F. proliferatum, F. solani and F. sambucinum.
Five species were isolated from 33 water samples from the Mediterranean Sea: F.
equiseti, F. verticillioides, F. oxysporum, F. proliferatum and F. solani. Of the total
samples analyzed, 27.45% of the river water samples and 29.41% of the marine water
samples presented a minimum of one Fusarium species over a period of almost 12
months of sampling. Considering the samples according to their origins, 77.77% of river
water samples and 45.45% of marine water samples presented some Fusarium species.
The greater presence of Fusarium in river water could be due to soil particles and
organic matter content from run-off of the river banks after rainfall events. The presence
of species found in the sea could be the consequence of river water flowing into the sea.
Nevertheless, other explanations cannot be excluded.


In this work we study the Hausdorff dimension of measures whose weight distribution satisfies a markov non-homogeneous property. In particular, we prove that the Hausdorff dimensions of this kind of measures coincide with their lower Rényi dimensions (entropy). Moreover, we show that the Tricot dimensions (packing dimension) equal upper Rényi dimensions. As an application we get a continuity property of the Hausdorff dimension of the measures, when it is seen as a function of the distributed weights under the `∞ norm.


Nearly all marketed dosage forms comprise pharmaceutical excipients that have multiple functions, for example, improvement of wettability, solubilization, or absorption enhancement, while they can also have further technical functions such as diluent, glidant, disintegrant, or preservative. The selection of appropriate excipients is crucial for a suitable dosage form design and therefore an important step during the drug development process. Excipients have traditionally been considered as pharmacologically inert; however, they can interact with the drugs in the dosage form. Such interactions can be of physicochemical nature or even biological effects may occur that are critical for oral drug absorption. These interactions can be especially of relevance when formulating poorly water-soluble drugs. Different formulations are needed for the various development phases, where eventually different requirements have to be considered. In early phases, time lines and drug amounts are very limited and therefore, formulation development has to be fast and compound saving but long-term stability does not have to be given. Since the choice of excipients is such a crucial step, a better mechanistic understanding is targeted by pharmaceutical scientists to avoid a purely empirical trial-and-error approach. A thorough general mechanistic understanding of drug-excipients interactions is helpful for designing a robust formulation.
In academic and industrial research, there is a huge interest in understanding the different mechanisms of drug-excipient interactions with regards to formulation processes or with respect to dissolution and absorption. The present work centers around the latter aspects and makes use of miniaturized test methods to obtain comparatively large experimental datasets.
The present thesis consists of six studies, which all focus on excipient effects on the solubility and solid state of poorly water-soluble drugs. Excipients effects were studied at low concentrations that are relevant for solution and suspension formulation in early phases but the effects are of equal importance for oral solid dosage forms upon dissolution and dilution in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. New methods were introduced to study kinetic solubility and possible solid state transformation in a miniaturized scale to save material and to obtain multiple results in a short time frame.
The first study introduces a miniaturized X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) assay for quantification of polymorphic mixtures. This approach was applied to simultaneously study kinetic solubility and time evolution of optional solid state changes. Additionally, the influence of four excipient vehicles and biorelevant media on the solid state and the solubility were tested. Excipient effects could be differentiated into effects in the solid and liquid phase of the slurries as enabled by the parallel study of kinetic concentrations and XRPD. As a result, effects were rather specific and no general interaction type was found for the two excipient classes tested.
The second study introduced image and fractal analysis into the pharmaceutical field of solvent-mediated phase transformation to gain an improved mechanistic understanding. It was possible to monitor the fractal dimension of crystallized compound in different media and it could be interpreted as an indicator of the cluster growth phase of the hydrate crystals. Additional, parallel tests based on a miniaturized scale, provided similar excipient trends for the solid state transformation. There were no general polymer or surfactant trends, and each excipient appeared to have specific effects on the kinetics.
The third study focusses on surfactant effects at low concentrations by studying solid state and solubility of 13 model compounds in parallel. It was found that solid state transformations played a minor role for the extent of solubility enhancement. However, the surfactants showed individual effects on solid state transformations of some drugs, which needs to be considered for formulation development. The obtained dataset demonstrated high solubilization correlations among pegylated surfactants of similar type. Such correlations may be used to omit individual surfactants for a resource-saving solubilization testing in preformulation.
In the fourth study, we focused on a methacrylic copolymer (Eudragit EPO) which is already known for interacting with anionic drugs and is applied for stabilizing them in an amorphous state. These ionic interactions led also to a great solubility enhancement in aqueous environment of eight crystalline, anionic model compounds. With 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, we could also detect hydrophobic interaction that contributed to the overall interaction additionally to the expected ionic interactions. An additional and important finding was the correlation between diffusion data measured by diffusion ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) and the solubility enhancement.
The understanding of the interaction mechanism, resulted in the fifth study, where we investigated the solubility enhancing effect of the same polymer on six basic compounds. Unexpected high solubility enhancement was obtained considering that polymer and drugs are equally charged in the aqueous environment. DOSY-experiments indicated that the polymer undergoes conformational changes in presence of the drugs which may contribute to the interaction mechanism.
Finally, such in vitro obtained results were tested in vivo in rats in the sixth study. Two formulations with Eudragit EPO (EPO) were compared to conventional formulation approaches such as a pH-adjusted solution or suspensions. The in vitro obtained solubility enhancement did not translate into improved in vivo bioavailability in rats; however, the pharmacokinetics were significantly influenced. Delayed and decreased absorption of the drugs was most likely due to hydrophobic drug polymer interactions and co-precipitation of the compound with polymer in the gastrointestinal tract of the rats. Solid state analysis showed an absence of crystalline compound in the co-precipitate. The polymeric co-precipitation in vivo can be used for high-dose in vivo studies in the early phases of pharmaceutical development like toxicology or pharmacokinetic studies to circumvent high peak to trough plasma ratios.
In summary, this thesis provides new analytical methods and an improved mechanistic understanding of drug-excipient interactions in vitro as well as in vivo. However, it was seen that excipient effects especially on the solid state are highly specific between drug and excipient, which makes it hard to formulate general rules or guidelines. Due to choosing the same experimental conditions, excipient effects can be better compared and the concomitant study of solid state and kinetic concentrations is key for a better understanding of molecular drug-excipient interactions in a dispersed system. The obtained findings can be used to guide early formulation development and the mechanistic insights may be help to decrease the number of experiments and needed amounts of compound, which is highly desirable in preformulation or early development.


Synopsis We study the stabilisation of a one-dimensional diffusion equation by means of static feedback. The equation contains the so-called Sturm-Liouville operator (S-L operator). A perturbation, often interpreted as an error in modelling physical systems, enters the principal part and the boundary condition of the S-L operator. Since the perturbation is not subordinate to the operator, the classical perturbation theory is no longer available. We show, however, that the feedback stabilisation scheme for the unperturbed equation is effective also for the perturbed equation as long as the perturbation is small in an adequate topology. The key idea is to show the strong continuity of the eigenfunctions for the S-L operator relative to the coefficients of the operator.


Animal studies show that beside PCO2, PO2 influences brain circulation. Since fluctuations of pO2 occur frequently in ventilated preterms, we investigated whether changes within the therapeutic range of 40-90 mmHg affect blood flow velocity of internal carotid artery or not. Within continuous Doppler studies in preterms < 32 GA over 1 h we looked for accidental fluctuations of pO2 > 10 mmHg occuring within 10 min. We questioned whether there was a concomitant change of Doppler parameters. Continuous pulsed Doppler measurements were performed with a miniature transducer fixed onto the infants fontanelle in 10 preterms (mean GA 28 w, mean birthweight 1321 g). A connected microcomputer evaluated the Doppler curves. A total of 15 pO2 changes > 10 mmHg occured. In 12 of 15 events there were no concomitant changes of mean maximum velocity > 8 % (coefficient of variation of method) which was significant by sign-test, p < 0.05. There were no significant changes in the enddiastolic or peak systolic flow velocities outside the normal range. In conclusion there were no significant changes of cerebral Doppler parameters with accidental pO2 changes.


: Facial emotions are mirrors of human thoughts and feelings. It provides a wealth of social cues to the viewer, including the focus of attention, intention, feelings,motivation, and emotion. It is regarded as a potent tool of silent communication. Study of these expressions gives a significantly more profound insight into human behavior. AI-based Facial Emotion Recognition (FER) has become one of the essential research topics in recent years, with applications in dynamic analysis, pattern recognition, mental health monitoring, and many more. Expression on human faces have been of special use for understanding the feelings or emotions of a person and it has consistently been a simple affair for peoples, yet accomplishing a similar assignment with a AI- based technique or algorithm is very hard and testing. There are different algorithms and techniques to analyze how human emotions works, which are frequently communicated by face demeanor, could be perceived. This paper provides a comparative study of different strategies and algorithm that have been inspected for detecting emotions on human faces. The study incorporates various forms of literary works and explores led by experts that involves numerous viewpoints identified on facial emotion detection. Such a beginning framework utilizes a rearranged technique called 'Viola Jones Face Detection' for contain of faces and further emotion classification can be achieved using different classifiers. Some other technique Utilizes convolutional neural organizations facial emotion recognition. The technique depends on two-section convolutional neural organization (CNN): initially it eliminates the image background, and the subsequent part focus on the facial component vector extraction. Computer vision has thus paved ways for expression detection through inspecting human faces through various algorithms and techniques. Localization,


After measuring the pressure and the height of fluidized bed,the fluidization behaviors of different length,cylinder rape straws,and rice husk and mixtures of these bio-fuels with inert particles(sand) were experimentally investigated in a fluidized bed reactor of 129 mm inner diameter.Experimental results indicate that different diameter of rape straws with the length of 10 mm can be fluidized with the definite flow of carrier gas,although the time of fluidization is very short.But the fluidization processes of particles of rape straw and rice husk are at the disturbance of the channels and caverns.Rice husk and the particles of rape straw can not be fluidized better unless they are massed with sand at the mass ratio not less than 60% and 80%,respectively.


There are many methods that eliminate the harmful of non-weight collapsible loess,dynamic compaction has obvious advantages.It is foreseeable in the future of dynamic consolidation will be used widely in building construction foundation reinforcement,and be popularized in highway construction also.


The mechanical/thermal dewatering (German abbreviation: MTE) is a new energetically and technologically optimized technique for the reduction of the water content of moist bulk materials and suspensions by the combined application of heat and mechanical forces. Apart from the dewatering of moist fossil fuels, the process is especially suited for the dewatering of suspensions containing ultrafine particles, which still are difficult to dewater because of the strong surface effects. The significant shortening of the process time and the reduction of the plant size result in lower costs and provide the economical application of the MTE procedure.


Porous liquids are a promising new class of materials featuring nanoscale cavity units dispersed in liquids that are suitable for applications such as gas storage and separation. In this work, we use molecular dynamics simulations to examine the multicomponent gas storage in a porous liquid consisting of crown-ether-substituted cage molecules dissolved in a 15-crown-5 solvent. We compute the storage of three prototypical small molecules including CO2, CH4, and N2 and their binary mixtures in individual cage molecules. For porous liquids in equilibrium with a binary 1:1 gas mixture bath with partial gas pressure of 27.5 bar, a cage molecule shows a selectivity of 4.3 and 13.1 for the CO2/CH4 and CO2/N2 pairs, respectively. We provide a molecular perspective of how gas molecules are stored in the cage molecule and how the storage of one type of gas molecule is affected by other types of gas molecules. Our results clarify the molecular mechanisms behind the selectivity of such cage molecules toward different...


In connection to the process of financialization of commodity markets which is caused by the sharp increase of money flowing into the commodity markets, the question of which factors affect commodity and commodity indices prices is discussed. In this article, the importance of chosen macroeconomic determinants to the price variability of one of the most important commodity indexes S & P GSCI by using the Boosted Trees method is quantified. The results obtained in the research show that changes in the monthly values of macroeconomic determinants reflect and can, according to the model used, explain the volatility of the monthly average index S & P GSCI Total Return to more than 75%. The most important macroeconomic determinants proved to be Nominal Effective Exchange Rate of USD or US – Short-term interest rates.


Brillouin scattering-based distributed fiber optic sensing (Brillouin-DFOS) technology is widely used in health monitoring of large-scale structures with the aim to provide early warning of structural degradation and timely maintenance and renewal. Material cracking is one of the key mechanisms that contribute to structural failure. However, the conventional strain measurement using the Brillouin-DFOS system has a decimeter-order spatial resolution, and therefore it is difficult to measure the highly localized strain generated by a sub-millimeter crack. In this study, a new crack analysis method based on Brillouin scattering spectrum (BSS) data is proposed to overcome this spatial resolution-induced measurement limitation. By taking the derivative of the BSS data and tracking their local minimums, the method can extract the maximum strain within the spatial resolution around the measurement points. By comparing the variation of the maximum strain within the spatial resolution around different measurement points along the fiber, cracks can be located. The performance of the method is demonstrated and verified by locating and quantifying a small gap created between two wood boards when one of the wood boards is pushed away from the other. The test result verifies the accuracy of the crack strain quantification of the method and proves its capability to measure a sub-millimeter crack. The method is also applied to a thin bonded concrete overlay of asphalt pavement field experiment, in which the growth of a transverse joint penetrating through the concrete–asphalt interface was monitored. The method successfully locates the position, traces the strain variation, and estimates the width of a crack less than 0.1   mm wide using a Brillouin-DFOS system with 750   mm spatial resolution.


The presnt study was conducted in 9 progressive villages of three tehsils of Dausa district of Rajasthan. 180 respondents i.e. 90 female and 90 male were selected for inclusion in the study sample. The data were collected by personal interview technique. The results of study show that most of the male and female respondents view agricultural programs from 6-7 pm during winter season, whereas 89 pm is the preferred time during summer, majority of farmers liked 1⁄2 an hour duration of programme as preferred duration. The male subjects like agricultural loan and insurance where as female subjects like animal husbandary and dairing on priority basis. * Subject Matter Specialist (Agriculture Extension), KVK, Anta (Raj.) 2.Ex-Head, Division of Agriculture Extension, IARL, Pusa, New Dehli-12 ** Corresponding author e-mail: email@example.com INTRODUCTION The role of mass media as an instrument for social, cultural and economic changes is much more vital today than ever before. This is on account of the revolution in information science all over the world. Mass media can provide attention on different development programmes, mobilize people and give them opportunity to express their reactions. They can inform people about needs and problems, innovations and results. Consumption of mass media has to be regarded as one of the indices of development. The present age has been rightly termed as an "information age". People want adequate and authentic information as early as possible. The mass media, namely, newspaper, radio and television try to satisfy this important need of the people craving for information, Of these mass media, television, is the most exciting means of communication ever device by man. Kottak (1990) while studying the impact of television in rural Brazil pointed that television possession gives social status in the community and that it acts as a source of privileged information. Saksena (1998) observed that television has brought about two useful contributions to the nation, firstly, those living in remote corners of the country have been pulled out of their pockets of isolation' and merged into the nation mainstream and second it has provided a 'window' on the social and cultural scene in other parts of the country and beyond. Kashem and Hossain (2000) concluded that almost half (46 per cent) of the TV viewing farmers opined that television, as an agricultural information medium was highly useful in receiving agricultural innovations. This implies that television is playing a significant role in the rural areas in diffusing technical information on various aspects of agriculture. Salzman (1993) pointed out that television playing important role in the modernizing processes of rural life i.e. democratization, consumerism, urban modeling and linguistic hegemony-that are presently widespread and each has major ramifications for cultural life locally and beyond, and they all deserve close and detailed attention by anyone trying to understand contemporary life. Johnson (2000) maintained that television is influencing the economic, social and political landscape, and relationship of village life. Whether it is the message portrayed or the more presence of television, villager's relationship, economic decisions, political awareness, participation, and woridview are being influenced by television. In this information age, television has become popular because of its tremendous and audible Raj. J. Extn. Edu. 17 & 18 : 1-5, 2009 & 2010 2 Raj. J. Extn. Edu. : 17-18, 2009 & 2010 appeal. It has ability to convey life and events in action to develop a profound influence upon the viewers. It provides viewers with realistic experiences, which capture their attention and motivate them in proper direction. So keeping in mind the use of television in the process of social change, which is extensively beneficial in Indian context, appears to be a neglected area for agriculture development as seen by the growth in past decades. The study to find out the preferences of viewers in respect to timings, frequency, duration and modes of presentation about different farm telecast was undertaken. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Dausa district, which falls under semi-arid eastern plain agro-climatic zone of Rajasthan, was purposively selected for the study. Three tehsils of Dausa district were purposively selected bearing in mind its own transmitter center. Total 9 progressive villages (3 from each tehsil) were randomly selected. Twenty TV owner farmers (10 Male and 10 Female) were randomly selected from each village, thus making a total sizeable sample of 180 respondents. The data were collected with the help of well structured interview schedule and the data were analyzed by using different statistical tools viz; percentage, mean, standard deviation, rank, and rank correlation coefficient. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Preferred timings for viewing the farm telecasts The preference of respondents, based on their timings of viewing of the farm telecast has been presented in Table 1. It reveals that during the winter season, majority of the male respondents preferred to watch the telecast between 6 to 7 pm (M.S. 2.41) followed by between 5 to 6 pm and between 7 to 8 pm and hence ranked accordingly 2 and 3", respectively. In case of female, majority of the respondents also preferred to watch the telecast between 6 to 7 pm (M.S. 2.28) followed by between 7 to 8 pm and between 5 to 6 PM and hence ranked accordingly 2nd and 3", respectively. It was seen that there was hardly any difference between male and female preference for time of viewing the farm telecast. Most of the male and female respondents preferred to watch the farm telecasts between 6 to 7 pm during the winter season. It was due to the fact that because of the early sunset, they returned to their homes early after doing farm activities, and so it was a convenient time for watching the television. During summer season, majority of the respondents preferred to watch the telecast between 7 to 8 pm (M.S. 2.44 male and M.S. 2.56 Male (n=90) Female (n=90) Pooled S. No. Timings Mean score Rank Mean score Rank Mean score Rank A. Winter season (October-March) (i) Between 5.00-6.00 pm 1.93 II 1.58 III 1.76 III (ii) Between 6.00-7.00 pm 2.41 I 2.28 I 2.34 I (iii) Between 7.00-8.00 pm 1.49 III 2.13 II 1.81 II B. Summer season (April-September) (i) Between 5.00-6.00 pm 1.52 III 1.38 III 1.45 III (ii) Between 6.00-7.00 pm 1.92 II 2.06 II 1.99 II (iii) Between 7.00-8.00 pm 2.44 I 2.56 I 2.50 I Table 1. Preferred timings for the viewing farm telecasts (n=180) female) followed by between 6 to 7 pm and between 5 to 6 pm and hence ranked accordingly 2 and 3 respectively. Again as in winter season, male and female agreed for the same timing as most acceptable that is 7 to 8 pm. In hot weather sunsets late, so farmers come home late from farms. Hence, one hour's delay was found in the preferred timing in the hot season as compared to the cold season. The overall trend was the same for the pooled category of farmers. Preferences of Viewers About Different


In this paper, for an inverted double pendulum with asymmetric follower force a mathematical model has been constructed in generalized coordinates. The dynamics of the system has been explored through both analytical and numerical approaches. Stability diagrams have been presented. The influence of the follower forces parameters on the dynamical behavior of the pendulum has been analyzed. Numerical simulation has been applied to obtain integral curves and phase portraits. The trajectories of the lower and upper poles of the pendulum have been constructed too.


We investigate properties of reductions of S-terms. The combinator S has the reduction rule S x y z ?! x z (y z). We prove that 1.) this rewriting system is top-terminating and 2.) admits no ground loops. Examples and conjectures are included as well.


The present invention is a method for calculating the end bearing capacity of the buried piles are inserted in the hole formed by drilling long downward from the ground structure is to be built, punghwato (RS, residual soil) is, 50 / 15≤N'≤50 / in the range of 11, punghwaam half (WR, weathered rock mass) is, 50 / 10≤N'≤50 / range of 1 when the correlation to the unit for estimating the end bearing capacity of the buried piles (q The present invention is therefore to perform a variety of support soil and stakes test construction and loading test specifications from multiple sites, was to establish a standard design of embedded piles and construction consultancy scheme of the system. As a result, the problem of applying the under-design bearing capacity as well as due to the design and construction errors are changing the construction method and the stakes increase and the length cost and eliminate the problem of extending the construction period, it is possible to apply to the economic and safe design a large bearing capacity. By the empirical formula developed by analyzing a large number of test data for a site secured while performing as a structured standard design and construction consulting this way, by supporting the punghwato and punghwaam anti tip of the SDA buy stakes are constructed according to the standard design and construction techniques it can calculate the bearing capacity quantitatively.


This study examines the myths and misconceptions aboutstreaming on pupils' academic performance in four Masvingo secondary schools. In Zimbabwe, and indeed many other countries in Southern Africa, streaming has been a much used and sometimes misused approach, in meeting the diverse needs of pupils. In this study, the qualitative survey design was adopted for use and data was collected using questionnaires, observation checklists and interviews. The study established that low ability pupils received low quality instructions, few text books, less attention from teachers and were also taught by negatively labelled teachers, temporary and student teachers. On the contrary, high ability classes were labelled positively, receiving maximum support from teachers and were taught by more experienced teachers. In some instances, mixed feelings on streaming were recorded. The initial differences between pupils in high ability and low ability classes were however exacerbated by streaming. Subsequently, in the way forward, the research study proposed that heterogeneous grouping be adopted, that schools allocate experienced and positively labelled teachers to low ability classes and that teachers use positive labels to stimulate interest among pupils at the same time building pupils' self-concepts.


Cheeses,which were rich in lactic acid bacteria and propionicbacteria,were applied for the propionicbacteria screening. It was known that lactic acid could not as the carbon source for lactic acid production,and propionicbacteria could be enriched when lactic acid was as the sole carbon source. Five propionic acid production strains were isolated from primary screening of 178 strains. And the strain of XZ1 with the highest propionic acid yield was chosen for further study. The strain was denominated as Propionibacterium freudenreichii according to its morphological,physiological and biochemical characteristics,as well as 16S rDNA sequence homology comparison. The effects of corn steep liquor concentration and different carbon sources for the propionic acid production were investigated. The optimal corn steep liquor concentration was 40 g·L-1. The maximal propionic acid yield reached 18.94 g·L-1 when 20 g·L-1 glucose and 20 g·L-1 lactic acid for the mixed carbon source.


Paige and colleagues' previously found patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to demonstrate abnormal sensory gating as assessed by the auditory evoked potential. Tone pips elicit an auditory event-related potential characterized by several components including a vertex negative component at 100 ms poststimulus (N100) and a vertex positive component at 200 ms (P2OO). In control subjects, the amplitude of both NlOO and P200 increases as a function of tone intensity, even for tones as loud as 100 dB. Paige and colleagues found that many PTSD patients show the normal augmentation pattern for N100, but a reducing pattern for P200 in which the response to loud sounds is actually smaller than that to intermediate intensity sounds. This study sought to replicate and extend this work by combining EEG measurements with magnetoencephalographic (MEG) measurements. MEG involves measurement of the magnetic field generated by intracellular neuronal currents.* Using dipole modeling procedures, MEG can clarify the neuronal structures involved in the generation and modulation of NlOO and P200 responses. Basic concepts in EEG and MEG are shown in FIGURE 1.


The crisis of the church will remain unless one is prepared to go further, to move through and beyond post-Christian thought. Faced with the post-Christian condition of Amsterdam, search for a post-Christian identity while using the catholic Reformed repository. In face of the post-Christian idea that God belongs to the past, the psalms verse invites one to make a fundamental shift and to think about God as the one who is present, actual and living. The identity of every human is eccentric in God. The folly of the glorious gloriless cross is the key to deal with the riddle of natural evil and of the evil in human life. The actuality of scripture lies in the actuality of the living God. The church in Amsterdam is only a remnant of what it was in the past. What the church needs is theological self-understanding that gives it strength to remain vital.Keywords: Amsterdam; Church; crisis; cross; living God; post-Christian


The long-wave (λ < 3000 A) photo-oxidation of polystyrene in solution at 25°C has been studied osmometrically. Two types of chain scission have been observed: a purely photo process which occurs completely independently of oxygen and which is attributed to fission of photolabile groups in the polymer, and another process associated with random photolyses of the products of oxidation Scavenger experiments with 131I2 have shown that approximately two iodine atoms are incorporated per chain scission when photolysis is carried out in solution (benzene, hexafluorobenzene, methylene chloride) under high vacuum conditions in the presence of 131I2. No iodine incorporation or chain scission occurs when ionically prepared polystyrenes are treated similarly. The nature of the photolabile bond has been discussed, and there is some evidence for a peroxidic linkage arising from oxygen copolymerization in the chains. It is suggested that fission of the photolabile groups contributes to the initiation of the long-wave photooxidation of the polymer.


The Oxfordian La Manga Limestone (10-65 m) and overlying Auquilco Gypsum (315 m maximum thickness) crop out along the west flank of the Neuquen basin, Neuquen Province, Argentina (36/sup 0/40/sup 0/S lat.). The contact with the underlying Lotena Sandstone is gradational, and both formations are cut by the Late Jurassic Araucanian angular unconformity. Seven lithofacies have been identified within sections measured through the entire interval along the northeast to southwest trending, 30-km long Sierra de la Vaca Muerta ridge (38/sup 0/30'-39/sup 0/S). The La Manga Limestone is interpreted as a temperate ramp carbonate that developed over the Lotena Formation siliciclastic shelf. Interpretations of lithofacies from southwest to northeast are: behind-barrier subtidal lagoon with washovers; coral and red algae biostromes; ooid and peloid sand shoals; downslope wackestone and packstone mud mounds; and deep-water carbonate turbidites. A minor regression separates La Manga and Auquilco Formations. Lithofacies of the Auquilco Formation indicate a shallowing-up sequence comprised of initially deep (hundreds of meters) subaqueous evaporite deposition followed by shallow, subtidal carbonate peloidal and shell fragment grainstones and evaporites. Thickness of the subaqueous evaporite gives an order of magnitude estimate of Auquilco basin depths of a few hundred meters at most. The Neuquen basin hasmore » an intermediate proportion of carbonate in comparison to relatively carbonate-poor basins to the south and carbonate-rich basins to the north.« less


Software performance can be effectively improved by software Rejuvenation.The optimization of software Rejuvenation interval,the key parameter of the software Rejuvenation,is mainly studied.To counteract the drawback of current optimization methods for Rejuvenation interval,which can not improve the software performance in whole,a new method considering all interested parameters was presented.And two cost functions,combining system availability,system downtime and system cost,were also presented.The results show that the interval obtained by the two cost functions can improve system performance effectively.


The present article aims to inquire the negativity implied in the relation between man and nature in Kant's early philosophy. This negativity will be treated from the realm of the theodicy as the dimension from where human fate can be posed. The characterization of this fate will be possible via ethical and aesthetic dimensions set out by Kant in his works dedicated to the subject of theodicy and philosophy of nature; i.e.  Uber Optimismus  (in the  Lose Blater ), which dates back to the 1750´s. Followingly, we will discuss certain aspects of the author´s  Universal History of Nature and Theory of Heaven  (1755), and thereafter we will refer ourselves to three minor works concerning earthquakes (1756). In the last chapter we will point out how the comprehension of the aforementioned works are essential in order to define the sentiment of the sublime. In conclusion we will define the sublime as incompatible with optimism.


Chapter 1: Setting the Scene.- Chapter 2: Conceptual Discourses.- Chapter 3: Local Government Reform Efforts: A Perspective of Women's Political Participation.- Chapter 4: Government and Political Parties in the Reform Process.- Chapter 5: Other Players in the Reform Process: Accessing and Assessing Influence.- Chapter 6: Elected Women Members in the Union Parishad: Representation without Participation.- Chapter 7: Conclusion.


We describe a systematic procedure for analyzing K-meson multiplicity in nonleptonic and semileptonic B-meson decays. The procedure is illustrated. This analysis suggests that the branching ratio for decays b..-->..cc-bars and b..-->..cu-bard+ss-bar is roughly 50% of the nonleptonic b-quark decay.


Hydrogen can be generated by the oxidation of fuel claddings with steam at a high temperature in a nuclear reactor. When the generated hydrogen is discharged from the reactor vessel into the containment, the integrity of the containment can be challenged by the high pressure and shock wave resulting from a hydrogen explosion similar to those during the Fukushima accident and the TMI accident. Thus, an investigation of the hydrogen behavior is required in order to assess the threat of a hydrogen explosion. The objective of this research is to conduct a preliminary 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis to examine the hydrogen behavior in the containment. To achieve this objective, GASFLOW-MPI, a computational fluid dynamics tool, was selected given that it is specialized for analysis of hydrogen behavior in nuclear power plants. A large-break loss-of-coolant accident (LBLOCA) scenario was selected for the assessment. A guillotine break was assumed at a cold leg for the LBLOCA. The boundary condition, specifically the guillotine break, and the initial conditions were set based on calculation results from MAAP 5.03. Mitigation measures, including a spray system, passive autocatalytic recombiners (PARs), and hydrogen ignitors installed in the containment of a NPP were considered in the assessment. In this case, the mitigation measure models inserted by GASFLOW-MPI were used. Specifically, the Korean PAR was modeled by GASFLOW-MPI for the PAR installed in the OPR1000. The results of the preliminary analysis show that GASFLOW-MPI has the capacity to assess hydrogen behavior. The operation of the spray system increased the hydrogen volume fraction and halved the steam volume fraction compared to when it did not operate due to condensation.


This work is intended to discuss the performance of sample entropy feature for the recognition of stuttered events. The data for the analysis is taken from the UCLASS database. Manual segmentation is performed to identify the stuttered events prior to the feature extraction process. Wavelet packet decomposition is performed, and the sample entropy features are extracted using three different filter banks, Bark scale, Mel scale and Erb scale. The extracted features are tested using Least Square Support Vector Machine (LS SVM) for the identification of repetition and prolongation. Ten fold cross validation method is used to ensure the reliability of the results. The experimental investigations reveal that the proposed method shows promising results in distinguishing between the two stuttering events.


In recently years, female executives all over the world have attracted the widespread concern of many scholars, and the relationship between female executives' participation in top executive teams and firm performance is found to be considerably complicated. This paper tries to clarify this relationship by adopting a multi-approach perspective. It finds that resource dependency theory, catfish effect theory and stakeholder theory regard female executives as the facilitators of improving firm performance; feminism theory and vase theory indicate that female executives would contribute less than their male peers; upper echelon theory demonstrates a contingent effect instead of a fixed effect as considering female executives' effect on firm performance; assimilation theory argues that effect of female executives on firm performance has no difference with that of male executives; principal-agent theory, social capital theory and human capital theory all simultaneously hold contradictory views of positive effect and negative effect of female executives on firm performance; and social cognition theory argues that female executives' effect on firm performance is positive or null.


Predication is an application of Artificial Neural Network (ANN). It is a supervised learning due to predefined input and output attributes. Multi-Layer ANN model is used for training, validating, and testing of the data. In this paper, Multi-Layer ANN model was used to train and test the mushroom dataset to predict whether it is edible or poisonous. The Mushrooms dataset was prepared for training, 8124 instances were used for the training. JustNN software was used to training and validating the data. The most important attributes of the data set were identified, and the accuracy of the predication of whether Mushroom is edible or Poisonous was 99.25%.


For years, lead-based paint was the preferred coating used on bridges to help protect steel and lengthen the structure's lifespan. It dries fast, and stands up well to wear and weather. But lead-based paint has a down side. It is toxic to both humans and the environment. Lead-based paint is no longer allowed in residential paints, but is still being used for industrial applications. The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) revised its standard specifications in the mid 70's to discontinue to use of lead-based paint on bridges. Since that time, through regular painting and demolition contracts, INDOT has steadily been eliminating lead-based paints on bridges. Currently, out of over 5500 bridges on the state highway system, less than 400 still are coated with lead-based paint. Each year INDOT removes lead-based paint from bridges. INDOT also removes lead-based coated bridges through demolition contracts. In 10 to 15 years all lead-based coated bridges will have been eliminated from the state highway system. The road to removal of lead-based coatings on our structures has, however, not been smooth. The development of proper standards and specifications is ever evolving. Changes in techniques, regulations, and requirements result in revised specifications. The latest were adopted last fall. New requirements in the Standard Specifications include the following: • Preparation of Quality Control/Quality Assurance Procedure by the contractor including environmental and safety requirements • Painting contractors must be certified by the Steel Structures Painting Council (SSPC) QP-2 for cleaning and painting lead-based coatings. The Quality Control/Quality Assurance Procedure should be prepared and submitted for approval at least 15 workdays prior to the start of work. No work should be allowed to begin until written notice from the project engineer that the Quality Control/Quality Assurance Procedure has been accepted. It must then be followed. What are the environmental pitfalls that a county might encounter when dealing with leaded paint removal from bridges? The main problem areas are: • containment • health and safety equipment • marking and storage • sampling and testing • disposal CONTAINMENT The purpose of the containment system is to prevent debris generated during surface preparation from entering the environment. There are two basic types of containment systems: • lead-based bridges requires SSPC Guide 6 class 2A containment system Class 2A provides a high level of emissions control. For abrasive blast cleaning the following is normally required: > impenetrable walls with rigid or flexible framing > fully sealed joints > partially sealed entryways > forced air flow and exhaust air filtration (dust-collector). • zinc primed bridges requires SSPC class 3A containment system.