Introduction Throughout history and up until the present, there has been a medicine shortage. In the early 1920s, there was a shortage of insulin, which is when drug scarcity first appeared in the records. Drug shortages are now more prevalent globally than they were back then. The goal of this essay is to pinpoint the key components that make up a definition for medication shortages and to pinpoint the circumstances that should be considered when reporting drug shortages in databases. Understanding the factors that led certain organizations to create their own definition of a medicine shortage was crucial for achieving these goals. The pharmaceutical regulatory environment can be connected to several reasons why there are medication shortages, including parallel trading, quality standards, and business choices to halt or reduce manufacturing. The many rules governing medicine shortages have not yet been the subject of a thorough investigation. This protocol's objective is to analyze the pertinent legislative and regulatory frameworks in the European pharmaceutical system that affect medication shortages. The objectives of the study will be the non–availability of drugs at an outpatient pharmacy and to analyze the reason of non–availability of drugs. Methods An observational study will be adopted in this study. It includes a collection of data from the patient coming to the outpatient pharmacy of AVBRH Sawangi (Meghe) Wardha.    Expected result It can lead to delayed treatment for patients seeking alternative medication. It can also lead to increased healthcare costs if patients seek alternative treatments that are more expensive or require additional medical care. The unavailability of drugs can also lead to frustration and anxiety for patients who need medication to manage their health condition. It can also negatively impact the reputation of the hospital.


It is very difficult for public administrators to get results by using only public policies in solving public problems. With the effects of changing social structure, developing technology and globalization, the diversity of public problems has increased and their contents have become different. For this reason, the implementation of public policies alone is no longer sufficient to solve public problems. Effective solutions to many problems can be found thanks to examples of successful entrepreneurship applied in solving social problems. Entrepreneurship has become an important management tool for public administrators in solving the issues where public policies are insufficient. The success in public administration practices of public entrepreneurship which are among the types of entrepreneurship and whose examples are increasing in the public sector is directly proportional to the presence of managers who will support these activities. In the study, the role of public administrators in public entrepreneurship, who is often seen as an obstacle to change in public institutions and who do not want to take risks due to future concerns, has been tried to be evaluated.


The article presents a review of the book "Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done," by Larry Bossidy, Ram Charan, and Charles Burck.


The methanol extract of Moringa pterygosperma (Moringaceae) was used to evaluate its analgesic, anti-inflammatory and local anaesthetic activity in the present study. Analgesic activity was tested in mice using various doses orally. Acetic acid-induced writhing episodes were significantly and dose-dependently reduced. At the same dose, its anti-inflammatory activity was also tested. Carrageenin (a standard inflammatory agent)-induced paw edema in mice was significantly reduced after oral administration. Furthermore, its local anaesthetic activity were tested in frog and guinea pig models, and it was seen that in both animals, the plant (root bark) produces significant local anaesthetic activity.


Based on the JLab study and calculations, Linde made the following changes to the LR1610 heat exchanger. The LR 1610 redesign changed two different aspects of the original LR1610 design. The heat exchanger and the boiler are wrapped differently than the original LR1610 per the following: (A) Heat Exchanger - Section A - Current LR 1610 - 2 wraps - 1 path, Redesign - 2 wraps - 2 paths; Section B: Current LR 1610 - 2 wraps - 1 path, Redesign - 2 wraps - 2 paths; (B) Boiler: Current design - 1 wrap - 2 paths, Redesign - 1 wrap - 1 path. The contents of the attachments are: (1) Assembly - Pictures of the LR1610 Redesign Heat Exchanger after manufacturing; (2) Drawings - 3D and 2D drawings used to fabricate the Redesign LR1610 Heat Exchanger and the Precooler-Boiler; (3) Performance Curves - The expected performance curves and the TS diagram for a single proposed new compressor that is more capacity than the RSX; (4) Test Pictures - Set up bench test of the LR1610 Redesign Heat Exchanger; and (5) Warm Test Data - Warm N2 test data of the LR1610 Redesign Heat Exchanger. Warm test data of themore » LR1610 Redesign Heat Exchange vs. the warm test data of the two standard LR1610 heat exchangers.« less


sports achievement has the ultimate goal in philosophy as the achievement of a victory. Sports achievements also bring about gaps or problems because of the ultimate goal. Some of these problems include: professionalism, policy, racism, cheating, abuse, doping, and gender. The aim of this article is to explain what the issues of sports achievements are like. Professionalism in the world of sports achievement is still an amateur in certain levels of competition. The issue of policy in sports achievement occurs among the stakeholders of the policy, in this case the government. The problem of racism is almost never resolved even on the scale of international sports. Cheating in sports achievement is more rampant. Abuse or ill-treatment often occurs with children conducted by sports coaches. Doping is still an unfavorable alternative to achievement. Gender differences and gaps still occur in certain events. Professional management of sports is required of athletes and coaches who are involved in sports managements. Government policy on sports achievement should also be adjusted to the real conditions in the field. There must be firm laws against the perpetrators of racism. Cheating should sanction. Violence or ill-treatment of athletes should not occur. Doping must be fought and closely watched because of its rapid development. Gender inequality must be eliminated in sport, in order to bring back universalism in sports. Keywords—issues, sports achievement


The Supreme Court of the New Deal era transformed the US Constitution, making the Constitution's original protection of property rights give way to democratically popular regulations. In The Evangelical Origins of the Living Constitution (2014), John W. Compton argues that twentieth-century progressives turned the Court toward this "living" interpretation of the Constitution by relying on legislative methods and judicial precedents created by nineteenth-century evangelicals. Evangelical reformers accomplished national prohibition of liquor and lotteries, but their regulations destroyed property rights that were legally valid and socially acceptable at the inauguration of the Constitution. Courts ultimately acquiesced in these novel economic proscriptions because of overwhelming majoritarian sentiment driven by evangelical populism. Relying on a recent literature of law and religion, Compton alters conventional accounts of the US constitutional tradition of protecting property. This essay reverses the path of analysis and argues that evangelical concerns with constitutional property rights challenge standard accounts of law and religion in US history. Rather than a simplistic imposition of moralism, evangelical reform was derived from antislavery liberalism. The legal and religious pluralism that had impeded antislavery, however, also hindered prohibition and spurred evangelicals to seek federal remedies to national sins. Thus national prohibition, no less than New Deal constitutionalism, centered on the US dilemma of how to wield illiberal regulations to safeguard liberalism.


From projective geometry aspect,this paper applies the vector operation characteristics of homogeneous coordinate to the intersection simulation.In the foundation of precise extracting the perspective projection of spatial parallels,the intersection point of these lines can be calculated by using the least-squares method.Test results coming from a standard calibration cube and a building demonstrate the stability and short time-consuming of this algorithm.


Lung cancer leads to the highest mortality among all cancer types in the world, and non–small‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC) occupies over 80% of the lung cancer cases. Numerous studies have demonstrated that long non‐coding RNA (lncRNA) is involved in various human diseases including cancer. LncRNA FTX was firstly identified in Xist gene locus and was dysregulated in many human cancers. However, the function of FTX in NSCLC is still unclear. Here, we report that long non‐coding RNA FTX expression level is down‐regulated in NSCLC clinical tissue samples and cell lines. Ectopic expression of FTX inhibits proliferation and metastasis of lung cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we find that FTX overexpression activates the expression of transcription factor FOXA2, an important regulator in lung cancer progression, and we reveal a novel FTX/miR‐200a‐3p/FOXA2 competing endogenous RNA regulatory axis in lung cancer cells. Our results provide new insights and directions for exploring the function of FTX in lung cancer progression.


Since the first spacecraft were deployed for earth observation (EO) in the early 1960s, technological change in EO systems has significantly improved remote sensing capabilities. To fully understand the pace of past change and develop empirical baselines for future projections, it is important to quantitatively characterize performance of key instruments used in EO missions. This study presents trends in performance in EO instruments using empirical data from spacecraft and instruments deployed from 1959-2022. Parameterized models are derived to quantitatively determine temporal progression in key figures-of-merit. Pareto frontiers of mass and resolution of sounders, SAR, and radiometers are also determined. The results show a consistent shift in Pareto frontiers of radiometers across successive 15-year periods spanning 1972 to 2025.


The present report comprises the results of various laboratory tests made on a series of uveitis patients seen between 1958 and 1968 in this Department of Ophthalmology, which serves an urban population of 700 000 inhabitants. In previous papers I reported on the clinical aspects and classification of the series (Norn A), recurrence rate and other prognostic criteria (Norn B), serological anti streptococcal reactions (Norn C), and serological tests for toxoplasmosis (Norn D). In this final report the results are given of serological tests for syphilis (W. R.) and gonorrhoea (G. R.), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (E. S. R.), streptococcus-agglutination test (S. A. T.), and haemoglobin percentage (Hb 'Oio). The venereal diseases play a certain rBle in the aetiological reflections concerning uveitis. It is very important to subject a venereal disease to specific treatment. Syphilis was formerly stated to be the cause of uveitis in about 20 per cent (Leira). The diagnostic criteria are debatable, however, (Duke-Elder). In recently published series of uveitis cases only few per cent are of syphilitic origin: Lund found no instance of positive W. R. among 88 cases of chronic uveitis. Vesterdal noticed 4.6 per cent syphilitic among 350 patients with uveitis. Among these, one out of 14 positive W. R. was unexpected.


Direct palladium-catalysed cross-couplings between organolithium reagents and (hetero)aryl halides (Br, Cl) proceed fast, cleanly and selectively at room temperature in air, with water as the only reaction medium and in the presence of NaCl as a cheap additive. Under optimised reaction conditions, a water-accelerated catalysis is responsible for furnishing C(sp3 )-C(sp2 ), C(sp2 )-C(sp2 ), and C(sp)-C(sp2 ) cross-coupled products, in competition with protonolysis, within a reaction time of 20 s, in yields of up to 99 %, and in the absence of undesired dehalogenated/homocoupling side products even when challenging secondary organolithiums serve as the starting material. It is worth noting that the proposed protocol is scalable and the catalyst and water can easily and successfully be recycled up to 10 times, with an E-factor as low as 7.35.


As service-oriented computing technologies mature and gain acceptance, the focus of the research community shifts toward applications, business concerns, and business value creation. Service-oriented business ecosystems are one such emerging research area. In our previous work, we argued for a structuring mechanism enabling service communities in business ecosystems - dynamic, customizable groups of services provided and used by membership-based social or business networks of varying scale and lifetime. This paper develops the idea of service communities further in three ways. First, we study a variety of motivating business scenarios and articulate the business value of applying the community concept to services. Second, we provide technical details of our middleware platform that supports the runtime creation and management of service communities. Third, we discuss extensions of the general service community idea for further value creation and research.


It has been found that phenyl cobalt tetraphenylporphyrin (C_6H_5Cotpp) was formed when cobalt tetraphenylporphyrin (Cotpp) and benzene were introduced into the ion source of mass spectrometer, the mass spectra of Cotpp and C_6H_5Cotpp are discussed.


The mystery of the transformation of Communist systems, Paul Hollander what theories predicted the state breakdowns and revolutions of the Soviet bloc, Randall Collins and David Waller the end of the Cold War as a social process, Greg McLauchlan Eastern Europe fall 1989 - what happened and why? a theory sketch, Johan Galtung grassroots mobilization and international politics - peace and the end of the Cold War, Sam Marullo and David Meyer explaining the Cold War in the context of theories of inter-nation rivalry, Martin Patchen the spiral of capitalism and socialism, Christopher Chase-Dunn dual dependency and the informalization of external linkages - the Hungarian case, Jozsef Borocz the post-Socialist transformation - a unique (re)modernization, Christo Stojanov realizing Perestroika, S.M. Miller the war of historical interpretation and the prospects for peace in the post-Cold War era, Jerry Sanders.


THIS STUDY examines the (a) relationships between background knowledge and passage comprehension, (b) relative usefulness of certain variations in measuring available knowledge (fluency vs. organization), (c) value of a background knowledge measure as applied to a teacher-directed small group pre-reading language and concept organizer activity, and (d) effect of a pre-reading activity on text-specific background knowledge and on comprehension. Passage specific background knowledge, based on free association stimulated by key content .words, was measured by categorization levels developed by Langer (1980). Findings suggest that the background knowledge measure is a significant and reliable predictor of passage-specific comprehension. The pre-reading activity significantly raises available background knowledge, and this in turn seems to improve performance on moderately difficult comprehension questions. The measure of text specific background knowledge may be useful for teachers in assessing the difficulty of a reading assignment, and for researchers in controlling for differences in prior knowledge or in examining the relationships between background knowledge and various aspects of learning.


Students' evaluations of instructional effectiveness were collected in two different university settings (N = 1,341 classes), while faculty self-evaluations of their own teaching were also collected in one of these settings (N = 190 classes). The magnitude of the class-size effect depended upon the specific component of the evaluations being considered. The effect was large for Quality of Group Interaction, but was small for 10 other components including Overall Course and Overall Instructor ratings. The form of the effect was clearly nonlinear; small and large classes were generally rated more favorably. The effect tended to be weak, and much of the observed relationship could be explained in terms of other demographic variables such as percentage of freshman and sophomore students. Finally, relationships between class size and different components of faculty self-evaluations were generally similar to those found with students' evaluations. These findings, particularly that very large classes tended to be rated as favorably as small classes, challenge the widely held speculation that effectiveness of instruction necessarily suffers in classes with large enrollments.


We researched nitrogen and green manure yield of crotalaria by seeding rate; 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 kg ha -1 in upland soil to find out crotalaria"s optimal seeding rate. Crotalaria"s plant height and number of leaves increased when the harvest time was later regardless of its seeding rate. Its nitrogen content of above-ground part was 19.8 g ha -1 , and C/N ratio was 22.5. The highest nitrogen content (50.3 g kg -1 ) was found in flowers part, followed by its leaves, roots and stems. The green manure yields of crotalaria increased when the harvest time was later. The green manure yield of crotalaria was biggest in 50kg ha -1 which was low in seeding rate. It tended to decrease when the seeding rate was higher, and the nitrogen yield had the same tendency. Therefore, the appropriate seeding rate was 50kg ha -1 and the time for application to soil was considered to be the flowering stage.


This is an electronic version of the paper presented at the Fifth BCS-IRSG Symposium on Future Directions in Information Access, held in Granada on 2003


From this contemplation it is to know the recent past and its your historical succession in the writers of the present time, even when it is contained in a heritage of sentimentalism, romantic, seditious and exemplary of change; it is the voice of our history not official, that suggests us failure, styles of errors and circumstanes. The writer narrates the Venezuelan history from the intimacy of the home and uses chronicle as an excuse.


In the era of Internet+, big data technology has been widely used in all walks of life, and has achieved good application results, including university education industry. From the perspective of the overall structure, big data technology can not only maintain campus network security, but also improve the university education platform, assist students to obtain valuable information, and promote effective communication between teachers and students. This article will layer on the progress and development of big data technology, and put forward some personal opinions.


Abstract We have identified a phosphorothioate oligonucleotide T2G4T2, which is a potent inhibitor of HIV infection in vitro. The compound was identified by combinatorial screening of a library of all possible octanucleotide sequences. The oligonucleotide forms a parallel-stranded, tetrameric guanosine-quartet (G-quartet) structure which specifically binds to the HIV envelope glycoprotein (gp 120) and inhibits both cell-to-cell and virus-to-cell infection at submicromolar concentrations. In the current study we demonstrate that the tetramer inhibits the infection of laboratory-derived isolate of HIV-1 and HIV-2 in a variety of phenotypically distinct established human cell lines and a panel of biologically diverse clinical isolates in fresh human peripheral blood lymphocytes and macrophages. The compound was also active against all drug-resistant virus isolates tested. In combination with AZT, ISIS 5320 exhibits additive to slightly synergistic anti-HIV activity. Cell-based mechanism of action studies dem...


Photoluminescence upconversion (PLU) is a phenomenon in which a sample emits photons with energy higher than that of the excitation photon. This effect has been observed in many materials including rare earth ions doped in insulating hosts and semiconductor heterostructures without using high power lasers as the excitation source. Recently, this effect has been observed also in partially CuPt-ordered GaInP{sub 2} epilayers grown on GaAs substrates. As a spectroscopic technique photoluminescence upconversion is particularly well suited for studying band alignment at heterojunction interface. The value of band-offset has been determined with meV precision using magneto-photoluminescence. Using the fact that the pressure coefficient of electrons in GaAs is higher than those in GaInP{sub 2} they have been able to manipulate the band-offset at the GaInP/GaAs interface. By converting the band-offset from Type I to Type II they were able to demonstrate that the efficiency of the upconversion process is greatly enhanced by a Type II band-offset.


Abstract. We develop an algorithm for the canonical computation of general Fourier integral operators whose canonical relations are graphs. The algorithm is based on dyadic parabolic decomposition using wave packets and enables the discrete approximate evaluation of the action of such operators on data in the presence of caustics. The procedure consists in the construction of a universal operator representation through the introduction of locally singularity-resolving diffeomorphisms, enabling the application of wave packet driven computation, and in the construction of the associated pseudo-differential joint-partition of unity on the canonical graphs. We apply the method to a parametrix of the wave equation in the vicinity of a cusp singularity.


Along with the intensifying of energy crisis and environmental problems, energy saving and safety have become the most important issues for the automobile industry. To meet these challenges, weight reduction is most effective, which has lead to the fast development and application of advanced high strength steels. Among these, dual phase (DP) steels have attracted much attention due to their superior properties. In this study, the effects of alloying and hot rolling conditions on the final microstructures and the related mechanical properties of hot-rolled DP780Y steels are discussed. Controlled rolling patterns, especially step cooling temperature and duration time, during the sheet traveling on a run-out table were simulated by a thermomechanical simulator to produce DP 780Y steels as a kind of low carbon steel containing small amounts of manganese (Mn) and phosphorus (P). The microstructures and quantitative analysis of the volume fractions and the fracture surface of the phases were characterized by optical Microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and an image analyzer, respectively. It was found that the alloy contents of the Mn and P elements not only affected the microstructure of the ferrite and martensite phase morphologies, proportions and formations, but also affected the performance of the final steel. In addition, increasing the cooling temperature and duration time decreased the yield and tensile strength, but increased the total elongation. The results showed that with the appropriate proportion of alloy addition and the cooling process control, an optimized balanced combination of high strength and good elongation can be obtained.


Purpose - The main aim of the article is to analyze the IC reporting practices of an Italian non-profit organization (NPO), the ANPAS Piemonte, selected as it is one of the few cases with a longstanding experience in issuing IC reports. Design/methodology/approach - This is an exploratory, qualitative case study focused on a single case study organization. The study took place over eight years. The case description and analysis are based on the IC reports published by the company. Findings – This paper concludes that the ANPAS Piemonte is an organization that has expended considerable focus and effort in developing an IC measurement and reporting model. It has a well-established IC reporting procedure, but a comprehensive view of IC and of the synergies among IC subcategories is lacking. Research limitations/implications – The study focuses on a single case study of a NPO providing public interest services in Italy. The main limit therefore lies in the difficulties in generalizing the ANPAS Piemonte's experience to other NPOs. From the IC management point of view, the distinction between different industries may be as important as the profit orientation as well as the operations of the third sector may vary across countries. Originality/value - The contribution of the articles lies in its analysis of the IC reports of an organization in the context of the NP sector, as few prior studies have examined the third sector from an ICR perspective. Post-print (i.e. final draft post-refereeing) 'This article is (c) Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here (http://ssrn.com/abstract=2187221). Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.


The establishment of anthropometric measurements is of fundamental importance for the correct identification of human bodies. The objective of this study was to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of two-dimensional craniometric landmarks obtained from three-dimensional cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) reconstructions for forensic identification of humans. CBCT images with voxel sizes of 0.25, 0.3, and 0.4 mm were obtained using i-CAT® three-dimensional equipment. Ten landmarks were randomly selected, and ten measurements were demarcated in the three-dimensional reconstruction to evaluate the mandibular condyle, ramus, and body. This study demonstrated that protocols with voxels of 0.3 mm should be preferentially indicated for the evaluation of linear and angular measurements. Implementing our methodology using prototypes for clinical and forensic simulations allows comparisons with human databases in identification issues.


The article provides information on ethnographic studies of Siberian peoples published by Poles in the form of descriptions, notes and diaries in the second half of the 19th century. The ethnographic sketches of the exiled participants of the January Uprising in Poland (1863–1864), P. Argant, A. J. Kon, M. Hruszecki, and J. Koton, published in European languages are still little-studied. The author notes the special contribution of L. Nemojewski, who, while in exile, wrote dozens of essays and the book "Siberian Pictures", which was published in Polish and English. L. Nemojewski was one of the first to present to the European reader the life of the Siberian peoples — and not only the indigenous, but also the Russian Siberians. Not all his descriptions are accurate, sometimes they are somewhat naive. Of particular value is one of the first detailed descriptions of the Khakasses. Nemojewski paid considerable attention to them, analysing not only their traditions, but also their psychology, folklore and religious beliefs. The paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of the study of published ethnographic observations of the exiled participants of the January Uprising in Poland in 1863–1864. All these essays, articles and books certainly fit into the trend of "ethnographic fiction" or "ludoznawstwa" popular in Poland in the second half of the 19th century.


The segmentation of playfield is essential because it can offer higher level content analysis for sport videos. In this paper, a simple but efficient classification scheme is introduced which is able to adapt to the variations of field colors in diverse baseball videos. First, we utilize learning vector quantization (LVQ) to classify the grass and soil colors of playfields in YUV color space, and then propose the filed map feature that possesses class concept rather than low-level feature and it can also preserve the layout of playfield. Experimental results using three different popular baseball video types revealed that the proposed method is robust and can recognize grass soil and other samples accurately.


Alexandro Hoyer, Maximilian Luehr, Martin Misfeld, Michael A. Borger and Friedrich W. Christian D. Etz, Felix F. Girrbach, Konstantin von Aspern, Roberto Battellini, Pascal Dohmen, Gold Standard for Quinquagenarians? Longevity After Aortic Root Replacement: Is the Mechanically Valved Conduit Really the Print ISSN: 0009-7322. Online ISSN: 1524-4539 Copyright © 2013 American Heart Association, Inc. All rights reserved. is published by the American Heart Association, 7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75231 Circulation doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.000338 2013;128:S253-S262 Circulation. http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/128/11_suppl_1/S253 World Wide Web at: The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is located on the


to replace the microtome described in the standard IWTO procedure [2]. The use of a microtome involved compressing assemblies of fibers with a tongue-ingroove arrangement of metal plates, then trimming protruding fibers on both sides of the plates. A metal pusher was then used to extrude the fiber plug a chosen distance (0.4-0.8 mm), after which it was trimmed flush with the surface of the plates to provide the test specimen of snippets. Such microtome methods are too slow for the CSIRO fiber fineness distribution analyzer (FFDA) [4]. In addition the FFDA and certain more sophisticated techniques using image processing require longer snippets. In the case of random fiber assemblies, minicoring techniques [1] have been developed and used extensively under commercial testing conditions. For parallel assemblies, the development of twin bladed devices [3] has enabled the rapid production of large numbers of specimens for the FFDA. The &dquo;twin guillotine&dquo; uses the scissor principle of cutting and requires


We present a discrete two-regional Kaldorian macrodynamic model with flexible exchange rates and explore numerically the stability of equilibrium and the possibility of generation of business cycles. We use a grid search method in two-dimensional parameter subspaces, and coefficient criteria for the flip and Hopf bifurcation curves, to determine the stability region and its boundary curves in several parameter ranges. The model is characterized by enhanced stability of equilibrium, while its predominant asymptotic behavior when equilibrium is unstable is period doubling. Cycles are scarce and short-lived in parameter space, occurring at large values of the degree of capital movement . By contrast to the corresponding fixed exchange rates system, for cycles to occur sufficient amount of trade is required together with high levels of capital movement. Rapid changes in exchange rate expectations and decreased government expenditure are factors contributing to the creation of interregional cycles. Examples of bifurcation and Lyapunov exponent diagrams illustrating period doubling or cycles, and their development into chaotic attractors, are given. The paper illustrates the feasibility and effectiveness of the numerical approach for dynamical systems of moderately high dimensionality and several parameters.


Background  Patients with psoriasis undergoing or about to undergo ultraviolet (UV) phototherapy and photochemotherapy often have thick scale on their plaques which can prevent the penetration of UV radiation. Emollients are used to moisturize the skin and to prevent or reduce some of the milder side‐effects ('dryness', itching) sometimes experienced during UV therapy. However, emollients can alter the UV transmission of skin and thus may alter the clinical effects of phototherapy and photochemotherapy.


Elastic constant (stiffness or compliance) of rock has major applications in seismic analysis, rock physics, and geomechanics. However, the controversy of the elastic constant of isotropic solids is a long standing problem which challenge basic assumptions. In the early years of "mathematical theory of elasticity", only one elastic constant is used to characterize elastically isotropic solid. Much later, two independent elastic constants were introduced, as compliance coefficients (Young's Modulus E, Poisson's Ratio ) and stiffness coefficients (Lame Parameters). In recent years, the combination of elastic constants to is of paramount importance to understand brittle behaviour of the constitutive response of engineering and geological materials. In connection with shale characterization, brittleness prediction serves as a good indicator to delineate susceptible to hydraulic fracturing. However, controversy exist among researchers on what brittleness formula to apply.
 For the purpose of quantitative interpretation of brittleness, we consider the classical Hooke's law and Griffith's crack theory. Based on Eshelby formulation of the elastic state of the crack inclusion and matrix and the consideration of hydrostatic compression a simple and elegant mathematical expression is derived. Experimental data is then generated to check the prediction of this relation. The quantitative measure of brittleness shows a good agreement with distribution of cracks from micro-CT images


This paper presented a vision-based control scheme for autonomous mobile robot to achieve efficient object tracking. The robot is equipped with a CMOS camera. The algorithm was verified in experiments using a ball as the sample object. The proposed method extracts the region of moving objects using 1-dimensional projection algorithm.


Elongated uvula is mostly asymptomatic. In rare instances it may be come symptomatic. This article discusses a patient who presented with intractable cough due to cavernous hemangioma involving uvula. Uvula in this patient was found to be in contact with the posterior portion of the tongue. This case is being presented for its rarity. Introduction: Mucosal hemangiomas are very rare. They are commonly seen in frequently traumatized areas like lips, buccal mucosa and lateral borders of tongue. Hemangioma involving uvula is rather rare and very few cases have been reported in literature. 1 Hemangiomas involving oral cavity are rather rare with prevalence rate of less than 1%. Hemangiomas are very common benign tumors characterized by increased number of normal and abnormal vessels filled with blood. Majority of these hemangiomas resolve spontaneously when the child reaches the age of 10. Oral cavity hemagiomas don't regress that easily. Two types of hemangioma have been described histologically: 1. Capillary hemangioma: This tumor is not encapsulated and is made up of large cavernous spaces partly or completely filled with blood separated by scant connective tissue. 2. Cavernous hemangioma: Commonly seen in skin and subcutaneous tissues, oral cavity and lips. Histologically these tumors are lobulated aggregates of closely packed thin walled capillaries and lined by flattened epithelium. This article discusses capillary hemagioma of uvula which according to published literature is a very rare entity. The word Uvula is derived from UVA, the Latin word for "grape" due to its grape like shape. Even trivial trauma can cause it to swell up. Case Report: 30 years old male patient presented with complaints of cough – 6 months duration. Patient underwent treatment with antibiotics and anitussives for the same and did not have any benefit. On examination: Oral cavity examination showed elongated uvula which was found to be in contact with tongue. Clinical photograph showing elongated uvula Uvula was found to be reddish with streaks of blood vessels. Chest x-ray was normal. Blood investigations were normal. Patient was taken up for surgery under General anesthesia. Uvula was excised and perfect hemostasis was secured. Photograph showing mass being excised Clinical photograph on the 4 post operative day After surgery patient had immediate relief from cough. Histopathology report: Cavernous hemangioma. Discussion: Cavernous hemangioma is very rare in oral cavity, more so in Uvula. Review of published literature revealed very few reports on this topic. Histologically uvula is composed of three layers: Mucosal layer which is composed of non keratinised stratified squamous epithelium. Submucosal layer consisting of mucosal glands, blood vessels, nerve endings, few taste buds and lymphoid follicles. Musculus uvula (muscle layer) lies underneath the submucosa. The position of uvula is such that it is more prone for injury . If uvula is elongated it is more prone for injury . Majority of these hemangiomas are asymptomatic and need no intervention. Hemangioms of oral cavity typically present in adults. Trauma has been attributed as one of the causes for hemangioma of uvula . Symptoms caused by elongated uvula include: 1. Intractable cough 2. Sleep apnoea 3. Bleeding from mouth 4. Rarely difficulty in swallowing


The N-terminal amino acid sequences of the D-serine deaminases from strains of Escherichia coli K-12 that harbor wild-type and high-level constitutive catabolite-insensitive operator-initiator regions are identical: Met-Ser-GluNH2-Ser-Gly-Arg-His-Cys. This result indicates that the operator-initiator region is probably distinct from the D-serine deaminase structural gene.


This paper discusses 〈Nongbuza〉 (Farmers' Song) made by Ugo Lee Tae-ro(l848~1928), a poet who lived during the Japanese Occupation of Korea, The song, which was written in the format of sasa (traditional Korean narrative poem), was written from 1912 to 1913, immediately after the Japanese annexation of Korea. The existence of Nongbuga was unknown before its treatment by this paper. Lee Tae-ro wrote the song as an expression of resistance against Japan's forced occupation of Korea and urged recovery of national sovereignty. Lee Tae-ro's Nongbuga belongs to a tradition of farmers' songs that enriched village life in late Joseon Dynasty. During the same period, the age of Korea's early modernization, the so-called "enlightened gasa" argued for enhancement of national consciousness and love of the fatherland. That was the historic background shared by Lee's Nongbuga and other nongbuga of the period. Lee's Nongbuga urged farmers to be faithful to their vocation of agriculture. In this respect Lee's song belongs to the category of the agrarian tradition of gasa. However, unlike other nongbuga of the period, Lee's Nongbuga describes the dark reality of the Korean nation during the period and proposes the use of force as an option for recovering national autonomy and sovereignty. Most of nongbuga written during the Japanese Occupation either ignored harsh reality of the period or even distorted reality to support Japanese colonialism. In contrast, Lee's Nongbuga bravely treated the issue of Japanese oppression, a sensitive issue of the era, and try to realistically formulate national pain. Lee's work, however, has its own shortcoming. The literary tradition of Lee's Nongbuga belongs to the world of pre-modern Korea that was marked by traditional Confucian worldview that idealized Chinese world order. Lee's Nongbuga implicitly supported resurgence of the old order and longed for good news from China.


Logistics service integrators as the core of logistics service supply chain exist on service operational risks in the model of two-echelon logistics service supply chain of"one service integrators,multiple service providers".This article analyzes service integrators' operational risks in two-echelon logistics service supply chain from the default risk in the cooperation with function-based logistics service providers,including the risk of interest uneven distribution,credit risk,risk of adverse selection,and the risk of service integrators' ability.


Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an endogenous gaseous signaling molecule that plays important roles in the cardiovascular system. However, the impact of H2S on endothelial barrier function is not known. In endothelial cells, the predominant source of H2S is cystathionine γ‐lyase (CSE). After generation, H2S is converted into biological pools of sulfane sulfurs and acid labile sulfurs. Recent studies suggest that these H2S metabolites are also biologically active. Thus, we sought to determine how exogenous and endogenous H2S and its metabolites regulate endothelial permeability. In vitro endothelial permeability was evaluated by albumin leakage or transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER). Exogenous H2S was studied by treating endothelial monolayers with different H2S donors including sodium sulfide (Na2S), GYY4137 and diallyl trisulfide (DATS). To investigate the effect of endogenous H2S, endothelial cells were isolated from aorta (MAECs) of wild type and CSE knockout mice. Alternatively, CSE knockdown was achieved using siRNA targeting CSE mRNA. Cell morphology and junction protein are examined by immunostaining and immunoblotting. Cell survival was examined by the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release and cleaved caspase 3. p‐Nitrophenyl Phosphate (pNPP) assay was also used to measure protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) activity. In vivo endothelial permeability was evaluated by a modified Miles assay. Biological pools of H2S were measured using monobromobimane followed by detection of sulfide‐dibimane with reverse phase HPLC. DATS treatment in vitro induced rapid albumin leakage across endothelial monolayers. Comparatively, Na2S and GYY4137 increased permeability only at later time points and to a lesser extent. The increased permeability was accompanied by the disruption of the intercellular junction and an increase in stress fiber formation. The effective dose of DATS increased both free H2S and bound sulfane sulfur compared to the vehicle control and other donors. In comparison, both free H2S and bound sulfane sulfur were reduced in CSE deficient MAECs, while the lack of CSE enhanced endothelial barrier function compared to wild‐type endothelial cells. CSE knockdown in HUVEC also exhibited better junction structures and increased claudin 5 expression. Interestingly, Na2S and GYY4137 but not DATS decreased PTP activity, while MAECs lacking CSE showed higher PTP activity. However, sulfide donors failed to increase permeability of mouse skin, although CSE knockout mice were less responsive to VEGF stimulated permeability. In summary, both exogenous and endogenous free H2S and bound sulfane sulfur increase endothelial permeability with decreased PTP activity possibly associated with endogenous sulfide regulation of permeability but not DATS induced permeability.


This study aim is analyze influence of responsibility accounting, budgetary participation, and strategic implementation to manajerial performance at PDAM Tirta Pakuan Town of  Bogor. Data in this study is a primer data that is questionair and interview with relevan parties. Sample in this study is 42 respondents are the lower managers until the middle managers. Instrument in this syudy are analized by validities, reliabilities,and classical assumption. The analyze techniquesed is multiple regression analyzed and hypothesis testing with t test. The r esult is indicated that responsibility accounting, budgetary participation, strategic implementation have a positif significant impact to manajerial performance particially and simultan . Key words :  Responsibility accounting, budgetary participation, strategic implementation, manajerial performance.


expectations, there was no significant reduction in the risk factors after a decade and, in many cases, an increase was detected in the prevalence of these risk factors.


Abstract : An investigation was made of the migration of electrons in a magnetic field, obtained by the superposition of a longitudinal constant helical magnetic field and a transverse spatial-periodic one. With determined relationships among the longitudinal energy of the charged particle, the pitch of the helical winding, and the longitudinal and transverse magnetic fields there is observed a resonance redistribution of the energy between the energy of the longitudinal and transverse components. (Author)


"Drinking Dry Clouds" is Gretel Ehrlich's storytelling in full swing. This inspired collection opens during World War II with the stories of cowboys, waitresses, and bartenders along with Japanese Americans interned at Wyoming's Heart Mountain. Many of these characters were introduced in Ehrlich's novel "Heart Mountain". As she explains, "When I returned to my characters, five years after their initial appearance in my life, they seemed to want to report to me, so I let them speak in the first person." Gretel Ehrlich divides her time between California and Wyoming. She is the winner of a National Endowment for the Arts award, the American Academy of Arts and Letters for Distinguished Prose award, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. Her books include "This Cold Heaven: Seven Seasons in Greenland", "The Future of Ice: A Journey into Cold", and "The Solace of Open Spaces".


Two learning ensemble methods, Bagging and Boosting, have been applied to decision trees to improve classification accuracy over that of a single decision tree learner. We introduce Bagging and propose a variant of it — Improved Bagging — which, in general, outperforms the original bagging algorithm. We experiment on 22 datasets from the UCI repository, with emphasis on the ensemble's accuracy as the main performance measure. The variant of Bagging that we propose utilizes the "out of bag" samples in determining a decision tree's voting power, whereas in the classical Bagging algorithm, all trees have the same voting power. Our proposed algorithm creates bootstrap samples from the training data according to a forced probability distribution that emulates random sampling with replacement. We thus achieve a uniformly distributed training set for each base learner, and also identically-sized "out of bag" verification sets for each learner. Our 10-fold cross-validation results and single runs on large data sets show our novel Bagging variant to improve classification accuracy relative to both the original Bagging ensemble and standard Boosting.


Summary. Fortyseven strains of rhizobia were tested for sensitivity to 6 antibiotics (chloramphenicol, erythromycin, penicillin, streptomycin, sulphafurazole and tetra-cycline) using Oxoid Multodisks on yeast extract-mannitol agar (YMA); penicillin was the least inhibitory. Growth of selected strains on YMA was also compared with that on YMA containing one or more antimicrobial substances. Penicillin (1 i.u./ml of YMA) only slightly inhibited growth of some strains that were sensitive to it by the Multodisk test but higher concentrations were too inhibitory to be used in a selective medium. YMA containing pentachloronitrobenzene (5 p/m, suspended in a 5 p/m solution of Triton X-100), brilliant green (0.5 p/m) and sodium azide (0.5 p/m) did not inhibit 15 of 18 strains of rhizobia but was more inhibitory to the general microflora of 4 soils than was YMA. This medium (ABPA) was very inhibitory to several Rhizobium strains when supplemented with 1 i.u./ml of penicillin.


: Joan Slonczewski's A Door Into Ocean depicts animals enmeshed in multispecies relationships who oppose colonial desires to occupy and reform their planet through terraforming. The Bakhtinian grotesque body, Istvan Csicsery- Ronay's sf grotesque, and Donna Haraway's companion species can help account for the relationship between terraforming and pantropy: the modification of the body to facilitate the habitation of alien planets. Building on the human-animal scholarship of Joan Gordon and Sherryl Vint, this article offers a contribution to biopolitical thought that seeks to rehabilitate the aesthetic category of the grotesque as a mode that invites multispecies flourishing.


A fundamental question in distributed computing is to determine whether a given set of "base" shared object types can be used to implement a new type. In this thesis we study this problem in a fault-tolerant setting, where implementations must work even if some of the processes that share the objects may crash. An implementation is t-resilient, if it tolerates the crash of t processes; it is wait-free, if it is $(n - 1)$-resilient, where n is the number of processes. This thesis makes two contributions.
The first concerns the classification of shared object types according to their ability to support wait-free implementations. A wait-free hierarchy assigns object types to levels in $\{1,2,\...\}$ such that, using only objects of any type assigned to level n, in conjunction with registers, we can implement an object of any type in a wait-free manner in a system of n processes. Such a hierarchy is robust if, in a system of n processes, it is not possible to implement objects of types at level n in a wait-free manner, using any number and combination of objects of types that are below level n. We show that, if nondeterministic types are allowed, then the only robust wait-free hierarchy is the trivial one, which lumps all types into level one.
One important and useful object type is consensus, because consensus objects and registers alone can be used to implement objects of any type. The second contribution of the thesis concerns the ability of object types to support one-resilient implementations of the type consensus. Specifically, we study the relationship between the one-resilient implementability of consensus objects for n processes and that for $n - 1$ processes, for every $n \ge 3.$ On the one hand, the following is shown for n = 3: there exists a deterministic type that can be used to implement a one-resilient consensus object for three, but not two, processes. On the other hand, for every $n \ge 4$, we show that given any set ${\cal B}$ of object types, there is a one-resilient implementation of a consensus object for n processes using ${\cal B}$ if and only if there is a one-resilient implementation of a consensus object for $n - 1$ processes using ${\cal B}.$


Raising poultry has been an ancient occupation of the Romanian people because eggs and meat have always been a staple food for the humans. Poultry meat ranks among the most important animal foods due to its nutritive value and low production costs. This is the results of both quick multiplication and high efficiency (high meat productions with high profitability). Raising broiler chicken has known in recent years radical changes: it has become a productive branch with an important role in industry.


This paper builds on a review of the literature on the quality of life of community-based elderly published as Research Paper No, 151 in this series. The present study examines the data on housing conditions from the study of 706 urban and rural elderly in southern Ontario. Separate analysis of the five percent of interviewees living in subsidized (socially assisted) housing accommodation are undertaken and general conclusions are drawn.


Objective To investigate the changes and effects of risperidone on thyroid hormone and sICAM-1 in patients with schizophrenia.Methods Fifty patients with first-episode schizophrenia were selected,whose thyroid hormone levels and sICAM-1 were detected before and 8 weeks after taking risperidone.PANSS score was assessed before and after treatment,then correlation between thyroid hormone and sICAM-1 levels and PANSS score was studied.Results FT3,T4 had significant differences in patients treated with risperidone(P 0.05),and sICAM-1 had a very significant difference(P 0.001).PANSS score was significantly different before and after treatment(P 0.05).There was no correlation between the PANSS score and the level of thyroid hormone,but the sICAM-1 level was positively correlated with PANSS score.Conclusion Long-term use of risperidone in patients with schizophrenia should to be monitor the levels of thyroid hormone and sICAM-1,that facilitate the clinicians effectively adjust and reasonably choose the medication treatment scheme.


【Objective】 To assess the value of combining high-risk human papillomavirus(HPV) test and cytological test in cervical lesion screening.【Methods】 During August 2008 to April 2010,a total of 4144 women were screened by combining high-risk HPV DNA test(hybrid capture Ⅱ,HC-Ⅱ) and cytological test(liquid-based Thin Prep cytology test),and the 880 abnormal cervical smear cases were further biopsied under the colposcope.【Results】 In the 4144 cases,the positive rate of cytology and HR-HPV test were 21.24%,32.41%.Among the 880 abnormal cervical smear cases,the positive rate of HR-HPV of ASC 34.47%(202/586),LSIL69.32%(113/163),HSIL89.08%(106/119),SCC100%.In 880 cases under gonecolposcopy,the pathology diagnosis as cervicitis,CINI,CINII,CINIII,SCC were 237,382,96,111,54,and the positive rates of HR-HPV of the above five groups were 15.19%(36/237),41.88%(160/382),80.21%(77/96),97.30%(108/111) and 98.15%;The rate of pathology diagnosis more than CINI was 73.07% in 880 abnormal cervical smear cases and 91.69% in 421 positive HR-HPV cases.For the detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(≥CINI),the sensitivity of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 45.26%,61.90%,77.14%,respectively and the specificity of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 98.73%,85.23%,77.14%,respectively.Significant differences among the three methods were observed(P 0.05).The negative-predictive value of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 39.93%,44.01%,44.37%,there was no significant differences observed(P 0.05).For the detection of high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(≥CINI),the sensitivity of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 81.23%,93.10%,97.70%,respectively.Significant differences among the three methods were observed(P 0.05).The specificity of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 76.27%,68.50%,64.80%,respectively and the negative-predictive value of cytology,HR-HPV,cytology combined with HR-HPV were 91.13%,92.35%,99.15% respectively,there was no significant differences observed(P 0.05).【Conclusions】 High-risk HPV DNA test has high sensitivity and negative-predictive value.The combination of high-risk HPV DNA test and cytological test increases the sensitivity and negative-predictive value,it was the key of cervical cancer screening.The performance of biopsy under the colposcope can help the diagnosis of cervical dysplasial.


Objective
To investigate the efficacy and adverse reactions of arsenicals in the treatment of refractory or relapsed multiple myeloma.

Methods
The data of 21 patients with refractory or relapsed multiple myeloma were retrospectively analyzed, including 10 patients with arsenicals (the arsenious acid group) and 11 cases treated with new regimens or treatments containing Bortezomib (the control group). The arsenious acid group comprised 5 males and 5 females, with the average age of (62±5) years old. The control group comprised 7 males and 4 females, with the average age of (59±9) years old. The total effective rate and overall survival (OS) in both groups were observed after 2 treatment courses.

Results
The median effective time and the total effective cases in the arsenious acid group and the control group was 8.00 mouths (6.00-9.00 mouths) and 3.50 mouths (1.00-24.00 mouths), 3 (3/10) and 6 (6/11) respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in the total effective rate (P= 0.245). There was no significant difference in the adverse reactions rate between the two groups (P > 0.05). The median OS time was 10.00 months (8.00-24.00 months) and 6.00 months (1.00-69.00 months) in the arsenious acid group and the control group respectively (P= 0.900).

Conclusion
The arsenious acid in the treatment of refractory or relapsed multiple myeloma can not increase the incidence of adverse reactions with a favorable cost performance.

Key words:
Multiple myeloma; Recurrence; Refractory; Arsenites


The relation between chemcial structure and functional properties of low-molecular and polymeric conjugated organic materials is discussed with respect to their use in organic light-emitting devices. Examples for emissive and for hole and electron transporting/injecting materials are given. The peculiarities of some nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds and their use as electron transporting/hole blocking materials are discussed in more detail. Results of an investigation of the valence electronic structure of a heterocyclic model compound (phenyloxadiazole derivative) at the interface to an inorganic conductive substrate are discussed in comparison to the interface between organic semiconductor/conductive inorganic electrode material as prominent in OLEDs. A short outlook towards future development is given.


Previously published experimental studies proposed that thermal ignition of titanium-based pyrotechnics is controlled by the rate at which an initial oxide coating dissolves into the bulk metal as a result of molecular diffusion. The proposed dissolution mechanism was based primarily on the exotherms and ignition temperatures, which were about 793/sup 0/K, observed using differential thermal methods involving heating rates of 0.33 K/s. Data from a more recent investigation of titanium oxidation kinetics at temperatures between 473 and 773/sup 0/K showed that, for time scales on the order of minutes and temperatures near 773/sup 0/K, titanium oxidation rates and, therefore, pyrotechnic ignition are determined by diffusion-controlled growth of a TiO/sub 2/ (rutile) layer adjacent to the gas-solid interface. They are not controlled by oxygen dissolution into the bulk metal. This result was based primarily on Auger depth profiles from isothermally oxidized titanium single crystals. It is further supported by the present work, in which a model for pyrotechnic response during differential thermal analysis experiments was derived using an oxidation rate expression based on growth of a TiO/sub 2/ layer. The model predicts exotherms which are consistent with those reported in the previously published experimental studies. 16 refs., 4 figs., 3 tabs.


[1] Data mining to support simulation modeling of patient ... [2] Analysis of factors and medical errors involved in patient complaints ... [3] The cost of leaving the emergency department without ... [4] Models as instruments for optimizing hospital processes ... [5] An epidemiologic study of emergency department visits before and after executing health sector evolution ... [6] Patient satisfaction before and after executing ... [7] A conceptual model of emergency ... [8] A simulation-ilp based tool for scheduling ... [9] Patient flow: Reducing delay in healthcare ... [10] National hospital ambulatory medical care survey ... [11] The use of emergency department services for non-emergency ... [12] Reducing Patient Flow to help America's ... [13] Does US hospital capacity need to be ... [14] Frequent overcrowding in US emergency ... [15] The DH accident and emergency department model: A national generic model ... [16] What is a generic hospital model?—a comparison of generic and specific ... [17] What input and output variables have been used in models of patient flow in acute care ... [18] The heaviest repeat users of an inner city emergency department are not general ... [19] Emergency overcrowding impact on the quality of care of patients ... [20] Temporal trends in ambulance diversion in ...[21] Hospital and pre-hospital triage systems in disaster and normal conditions ... [22] Triage and ED overcrowding: The aim of this study was to analyze the input and output patterns of patients in the emergency department (ED) of Sina Hospital in 2017. Methods This cross sectional study was carried out, retrospectively, in Sina Hospital affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All patients referring to the ED during 2017 entered the study. At first, the inputs were checked to determine in which paths the patients were referred to the ED. Then, the outcomes of the patients were checked to determine how much of the ED entrance were discharged, hospitalized, dispatched, or possibly died. emergency department to and


: The objective of this study is to find alternative binding materials that can be blended with Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) to enhance the properties of mortar as well as to reduce the cost. This paper discus the effects of using the natural Pozzolana as the alternative binding material. Four samples were collected from areas of Jebel Marra Volcanic Ash (JMVA) South Darfur. They were representative samples of volcanic ash, from Nyertity area classified (NVA), from Tina area (TVA), Kotrom area (KTVA) and Melem area (MVA). The study investigated the use of (JMVA) as partial replacement of (OPC) in the production of mortar mixes. Mortar cubes measuring 70mm* 70mm* 70mm were made from the four different mortar mixes prepared by using (JMVA) to replace 0%,10%, 20% and 30% of (OPC) by mass. The chemical, physical, and mineralogical characteristics of the (JMVA) were first tested. Then the strength and permeability properties of the mixes were examined to determine the effect of these materials on mortar properties compared to control mortar mix. The results of the chemical analysis showed that the sum of oxides of Silica, Alumina and Iron were 86.68%, 86.96%, 86.12% and 87.06% for NVA, MVA, TVA and KTVA respectively. The permeability of the mortar mixes was evaluated using the Ultrasonic Pluses Velocity (UPV) test at age of 28days, Permeability decreased with an increase in replacement percentage. Mortar specimens were tested for compressive strength at age of 2days and 28 days. The maximum compressive strength at all ages of testing was obtained at 20% replacement. The maximum strengths for the four areas were 46.3, 40.1, 40.3 and 45.2 N/mm² respectively, against 40.8 N/mm² for the control mix. This shows an increase of 13.5% for (NVA) and 11% for (KTVA), with negligible decrease for the two other areas. This is clearly confirmed by the strength activity index (SAI) of mortar results for the four areas. Hence Pozzolana from these areas can be used to partially replace 20% of (OPC) in the production of mortar without compromising strength.


In light of improving breeding advice, the frequency was estimated for all the disease-causing mutations that were known at the start of the study and that are potentially relevant for a group of dog breeds, which are relatively popular or in which the genetic diversity in Belgium is low to moderately low. In this study, the results for the German shepherd dog, Malinois, Lakenois, Groenendael, Tervuren, Australian shepherd and Border collie are presented. Disorders with a frequency high enough to warrant routine genotyping for breeding programs are (1) multidrug resistance 1 and hereditary cataract for the Australian shepherd, (2) degenerative myelopathy for the German shepherd dog, Malinois and Groenendael and (3) collie eye anomaly for the Border collie. In addition, the hyperuricosuria mutation described in the German shepherd dog was not found in its Belgian population, but was, to the authors' knowledge discovered for the first time in the Malinois.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the surgical procedures and outcomes of repairing the wound in the posterior wall of vaginal orifice by labium minus flap transfer, when vagina tightening plastic surgery is performed on the patient with scar in the posterior wall of vaginal orifice and labium minus hypertrophy.

METHODS
From May 2007 to May 2008, 10 patients suffering from postpartum vaginal relaxation combined with scar in the posterior wall of vaginal orifice and labium minus hypertrophy were treated. The patients aged 28-40 years old and the width of their labium minus was 3-5 cm. Six of them had coitus pain. Vaginal tightening surgery was performed, meanwhile the hypertrophic labium minus was prepared into the anterior-pedicle labium minus flap (4 cm x 1 cm - 5 cm x 1 cm) and the posterior-pedicle labium minus flap (3 cm x 2 cm - 4 cm x 3 cm), respectively. The posterior-pedicle labium minus flap was transferred inwards by 90 degrees to repair the wound caused by the resection of the scar, and the anterior-pedicle labium minus flap was sutured in situ to form the new labium minus.

RESULTS
All the posterior-pedicle labium minus flaps survived, except for 3 cases in which the epidermis 1 cm around the distal end of posterior-pedicle labium minus flap was exfoliated and recovered 2 weeks after hip bath with potassium permanganate solution (1:5000). All the anterior-pedicle labium minus flaps survived, and all the incisions healed by first intention. Over the follow-up period of 2-8 months, all the patients were satisfied with their vulva configuration, good elasticity of vaginal orifice and no tenderness pain of vaginal orifice. The sensitivities to feeling, such as touch and pain, of the transferred labium minus flap were similar to the normal labium minus. Postoperatively, the coitus pain disappeared, 7 cases had much better sex life and 3 cases had no significant improvement in sex life.

CONCLUSION
Transferring labium minus flap to vaginal orifice is an effective way to improve the coital pain resulted from the scar of vaginal orifice.


Digital extortion has emerged as a significant threat to organizations that rely on information technologies for their operations. Using human subject experimentation, we study the effectiveness of message appeals in encouraging defenders to adopt two mitigation strategies, investment in security and refusal to pay ransoms, to digital extortion threats. We explore two types of appeals, benefit and normative, for this purpose. We find that the decisions of the defenders (representing any organization that can be a potential victim) deviate from the predictions of game theory. However, given the strategic interactions between the defenders and the attacker as well as noisy decision-making behaviors, it is challenging to untangle the influence of the appeals on the defenders. We develop a structural model based on the quantal response equilibrium framework to measure how message appeals change the defenders' utilities of investment and payment refusal. Although the interventions may be successful in increasing the utilities of investment and/or payment refusal, their impacts on investment rate and payment rate are mitigated by the attacker reducing ransoms. Thus, it is challenging for an intervention to significantly boost a community's investment rate or to suppress the ransom payment rate. We characterize how security outcomes of a community (including expected ransom, attack rate, investment rate, and payment rate) vary with the defenders' utilities of investment and pay refusal. This paper was accepted by Chris Forman, information systems.


Objective: Repetitive practicing of microneurosurgical techniques in experimental laboratory using real surgical instruments on training models is extremely important before starting the real surgical interventions. In this experimental study, it was created a laboratory-training model for microneurosurgical drilling of delicate and thin cranial base bones. Methods: Twenty-five boiled chicken eggshell for five minutes were used for this study. The difficulty and suitability of the model was evaluated in terms of the usability in the training of microneruosurgical microdrilling. The objective criterion for the evaluation of the difficulty of the procedure was the protection of the membrane during the procedure. The suitability of the procedure was evaluated within three groups as bad, good, and perfect. Results: In four (16%) eggshells, the difficulty of the microdirilling was evaluated as difficult. Fifteen (60%) of the eggshells were microdrilled with easy procedure. The remaining six (24%) of the eggshells microdrilling was evaluated as very easy. The suitability of the model was evaluated as bad in three (12%) of the eggshells. The suitability was found as good in 16 (64%) of the eggshell. In the remaining three (24%) of the eggshells microdrilling, the suitability of the model was evaluated as perfect. Conclusion: Consolidation of the surgical practice in a laboratory setting, grasping and using of microsurgical instruments, can be repeated in several times in this model. We believe that this model will contribute to the practical training of microneurosurgery.


Objective : To see the impact of demonetization on cashless payment system through comparing the significant differences between cashless payment transactions of three time buckets before demonetization, demonetization and after demonetization. Method/Statistical Analysis: The study was done for the three time buckets before demonetization (March 2016-October 2016), demonetization (November 2016-June 2017) and after demonetization (July 2017-February 2018), using the secondary data of cashless payment system from the RBI bulletin. The Welch's mean equality test was used to look at the significant differences of cashless payment transactions of three time buckets. Findings : Looking at the significant differences of different cashless modes of payment system during the specified three time buckets, we found that during demonetization almost every cashless mode picked a sudden increase in value and volume of the transactions due to the currency deficiency and after the demonetization period due to the currency back in June 2017 the increment in use of almost every cashless mode had been stopped or decreased. From the results, we found that the demonetization move had significantly transformed the use of the cashless payment system, during the period of November 2016-June 2017. Application/Improvements : Policy implications arising from the study is to achieve the objectives of demonetization move and to promote the Indian economy as a cashless economy, a well-equipped digital network, sound digital knowledge in people, digital security for the transactions and less availability of cash currency in economy are required.


The secondary development of conglomerate reservoirs in Karamay oilfield was characterized by local regional water breakthrough along high-permeable channels and high water cut in wells.In order to improve the waterflooding response,in Jan.2010,deep profile control tests of 27 well groups were conducted in lower Karamay reservoirs of Middle District-7 of Class-Ⅰ reservoir and Mid-East District-6 of Class-Ⅲ.Since the differences of these two reservoirs,individual design is made for the different test programs,and one is four-section profile control system dominated by displacement and assisted by adjustment,the other is five-section profile control system dominated by adjustment and assisted by displacement.The field tests indicate that these systems are suitable for the reservoirs,so the responses are improved obviously.By the end of June 2011,the cumulative incremental oil production is 22 373 t,corresponding to 1.9% of EOR.The success of the tests provides valuable experiences for spreading application of such a deep profile control technology in Karamay conglomerate reservoirs.


Florida International University shipped Laponite, clay (bentonite and kaolin blend), and Quality Assurance Requirements Document AZ-101 simulants to the Savannah River Technology Center for physical characterization and to report the results. The objectives of the task were to measure the physical properties of the fluids provided by FIU and to report the results. The physical properties were measured using the approved River Protection Project Waste Treatment Plant characterization procedure [Ref. 1]. This task was conducted in response to the work outlined in CCN066794 [Ref. 2], authored by Gary Smith and William Graves of RPP-WTP.


Background: South Africa recently adopted HIV self-test technology (HIVST) to improve HIV testing and encourage earlier treatment initiation in working populations with a low uptake of conventional testing approaches. This study investigates the impact of HIVST on testing outcomes, focusing on both frequent and infrequent working-class testers. The paper also examines the spillover effect of HIVST on antiretroviral (ART) treatment initiation. To identify these effects, the author focused on South Africa and exploited the HIVST distribution data of 6259 beneficiaries of HIVST. Methods: The author used a two-stage least-squared model to quantify the impact of the HIVST on these vulnerable working populations. Results: The results show that HIVST fosters a 27.6% higher testing uptake in infrequently testing workers compared to frequently testing workers, and that the uptake of HIVST is 11.5% higher in rural regions than in urban settings, as well as 14.5% more prominent in infrequent male testers than infrequent female testers. Notably, the positive effects of HIVST are also confirmed by the presence of positive spillover effects in workers screening positive for HIV. The paper documents a 7.6% increase in ART initiation in infrequent testers. Conclusions: There is a case for adopting this technology to improve the uptake of HIV testing and ART initiation as the country seeks to attain the UNAIDS 95–95–95 targets by 2030.


Steel slag, which has low CaO content, is a by-product of steel processing. The steel slag consisting iron oxides is ground into sizes as coarse aggregates used for concrete. In this paper, the steel slag was characterized by chemical, physical and mineralogical analysis, and then the steel slag was used to replace 100% coarse aggregates in high strength concrete which has various compressive strengths as 60, 70 and 80MPa. Results showed that the strength of the concrete using steel slag aggregate was equivalent to that of the conventional concrete, whereas, the durability of the steel slag aggregate concrete was better than that of the conventional concrete in terms of chloride penetration resistance and resistivity. Moreover, dimensional stability of the steel slag cement mortar was detected.


The present study was conducted to determine the effects of nullification information to the jury from two sources, judge's instructions and lawyers' arguments, on juries' verdicts and decision making in three criminal cases. In addition, the research tested the impact of challenges to nullification information on trial outcomes. The results, gathered from 144 six-person juries, indicated that when juries are in receipt of nullification information from the judge or defense attorney they are more likely to acquit a sympathetic defendant and judge a dangerous defendant more harshly than when such information is not present or when challenges are made to nullification arguments. Analysis of the juries' decisionmaking processes suggested that nullification information may alter the way in which juries perceive and use the trial evidence. In those trials in which a nullification defense was successful, juries used the outcome of the case, as well as the intent of the defendant, to evaluate the worth and weight of the evidence. Pronullification conditions devalued the currency of the evidence and permitted juries to utilize nonevidentiary factors in deciding the cases used in this study.


The interior rearview mirror assembly for a motor vehicle, from an interior rearview mirror and, arranged in the vehicle rear area transparent surface through which a light beam is imaged consisting whose plane of incidence is at the transparent surface approximately perpendicular to the vehicle plane, characterized in that the interior rearview mirror having a polarization device, the polarization direction P approximately parallel is the vehicle vertical direction in order to attenuate the polarized perpendicular to the plane of incidence portion of the reflected light beam L1.


The aim of this study was to screen and select possible candidates as alternative, and less expensive, prey for Neoseiulus californicus, an efficient generalist predator for the control of spider mites. A secondary aim was to devise a quick standard screening method for initial prey evaluation that would also be suitable for other generalist phytoseiids. The mites Tyrolichus casei, Tyrophagus longior, Acarus siro, Glycyphagus domesticus and Lepidoglyphus destructor were assayed; the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae, known as a good alternative prey for N. californicus, was used as a reference species. The phytoseiid was unable to oviposit or to reach adulthood when offered T. casei or T. longior. The other three species gave better results than D. farinae and are considered to be good candidates for mass-rearing the predator. Lepidoglyphus destructor was the most suitable prey, as there was no phytoseiid mortality and the development time was short; on G. domesticus, oviposition and development time did not differ from the values recorded for L. destructor, but the escape rate was higher. The longest development time was on A. siro. Long-term rearing on these three stored food mites showed that the best alternative food for N. californicus was L. destructor, i.e. the species that from the beginning gave the best results, whereas the A. siro rearing declined within a few months. The methodology used in this study is a convenient instrument to screen substitute prey for phytoseiid mites. The escape rate is a particularly useful parameter to predict which species, among prey that provide similar phytoseiid fecundity and mortality, will most likely be a good alternative prey for long-term rearing.


Derivative software development complicates the base software over the years of enhancement and maintenance. It reduces the source code readability, taking developers a long time to understand the software structure and its various parts. In software engineering, software is often compared to buildings. We propose to use this metaphor from a new prospective to help developers understand the existing software efficiently. In this paper, we present a tool called "CodeHouse" that visualizes the source code of the software in a VR space as if it were a house. By placing rooms, which represent modules of the software, on the inside of a virtual cylinder, the CodeHouse makes it possible for the developers to understand both the whole structure of the software and the details of individual program parts before they begin derivative development. The CodeHouse also links with a debugger and helps developers to understand the dynamic behaviors of the program.


Septum polarizers have been used in waveguide systems for over 50 years and are very popular in communication satellites operating in circular polarization. With the progress of computational electromagnetics and computer hardware, combined with advances in manufacturing techniques, there has been a growing interest in septum polarizers with smooth profiles. In particular, a design using Legendre polynomials was recently introduced by the authors. This paper reports on the first experimental validation of this component and introduces also alternative profiles based on cubic splines. The new designs account for considerations on the overhang angle, which is an important parameter in additive layer manufacturing. The axial ratio of these designs is evaluated using a simple and accurate technique based on a back-to-back configuration, which can be implemented outside an anechoic chamber. The proposed characterization technique relies on the custom flanges implemented on the circular common port of septum polarizers to interface with horn antennas. These flanges typically have an 8-fold rotational symmetry, which enables to perform multiple measurements of a back-to-back configuration without requiring further equipment. The measured data is then processed to obtain the axial ratio of the two septum polarizers. This characterization technique is particularly advantageous when a large number of feeds needs to be tested, which is relevant in current and future broadband communication satellites. The technique is validated by comparing with measured data acquired in an anechoic chamber using a standard technique. Various prototypes, designed for operation in C-band communication satellite downlink, are characterized and promising results are obtained, showing very good agreement between simulated and measured data.


Bayesian estimation for the two unknown parameters and the reliability function of the exponentiated Weibull model are obtained based on generalized order statistics. Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods are considered to compute the Bayes estimates of the target parameters. Our computations are based on the balanced loss function which contains the symmetric and asymmetric loss functions as special cases. The results have been specialized to the progressively Type-II censored data and upper record values. Comparisons are made between Bayesian and maximum likelihood estimators via Monte Carlo simulation.


The Laplace transformation has been applied for analyzing viscoelastic behaviors of composite laminated shells. The constitutive equation in integral can be reduced to linear stress-strain relationship in Laplace domain. Therefore, the formulation such as displacement field, can be expressed similarly with elastic one. In order to describe accurately the viscoelastic behaviors of laminated shells, the efficient higher-order shell theory (EHOST) has employed. The general tensor formulation is used for accurate description and arbitrary shell. Moreover, the time-dependent relaxation moduli have the general form of Prony series to simulate real property of viscoelastic composite. However, all the displacement fields, equilibrium equations only are obtained and expressed in Laplace domain. Finally, the time-dependent results of strain, stress distributions through the thickness of the shell are obtained by converting back to real time domain for creep and relaxation process. The Fourier series algorithm is chosen for inversion Laplace transform for accuracy and arbitrary time-dependent loading.


This study examines the association between corporate general counsels (GCs) and internal control quality. GCs often manage the risk and compliance functions of their organizations, and it is an empirical question whether GCs influence the quality of internal controls. We find that the number of material weaknesses and the number of pervasive material weaknesses are negatively associated with the presence of a prominent GC (i.e., a GC who is a disclosed earner). Using a subsample of firms with a GC, we find that both the incidence and number of material weaknesses are negatively associated with the individual's tenure as GC. For prominent GCs only, we also find that the incidence and number of material weaknesses are negatively associated with both tenure at the firm and the GC's cumulative external work experience in law, government, and business. These findings suggest that GCs influence internal control quality within their firms.


When trying to develop a typology about how the crowd works on the Internet, different points of view can be applied. A typology can be developed based on the kind of crowd that participates, the specific area in which the crowd is going to work on, the kind of reward the crowd obtains in exchange, etc. It's also important to have into account the process in which the crowd gets involved. The crowd can participate, for example, in open-innovation or co-creation initiatives. Each one will have its own particularities that will determine the resulting possible typologies. In this paper, a task-based approach to crowdsourcing is exposed and reviewed.


The present invention relates to a software module controller. An enciphering client device obtains an enciphering key from a storing device (165) based on the received request information. The enciphering evaluation describing file is obtained from the storing device. The enciphering module which is corresponding to the enciphering evaluation describing file is obtained. Enciphering is executed on the topic data which is to be enciphered. The enciphered topic data is disclosed.


Real life deployment of robot formation cannot assume that robots are going to be correctly positioned to move in a particular configuration. To do so, we propose an approach that allows the group to determine autonomously the most appropriate assignment of positions in the formation. Our approach is distributed and uses directional visual perception to localize robots. Inter-robot communication allows them to share information on which robots are nearby, so that each can evaluate it ability to be the conductor of the group and assign formation positions to the other robots by minimizing repositioning. The assignment search is done using a distributed bounded depth-first with pruning search. The robot with the best score is selected as the conductor, and the other robots receive from the conductor their assignment in the formation. Validation of our work is done in simulation and with Pioneer 2 robots.


A modified molecular orbital theory was developed by Herzfeld and Goldberg to show the effect of the neglect of the wavefunction overlap and the electron exchange on the results of the conventional crystalfield theory. It was applied by them to calculate the interaction of a hydrogen atom in the 2p state and a hydrogen molecule in the ground state in two different simple nuclear configurations. In one case the atom nucleus was taken to lie on the perpendicular bisector of the molecular axis (T case), and in the other all the three nuclei were taken to lie on a line (L case). The method was generalized for the pn‐atom–H2‐molecule system (L case) by Goldberg (n = 1–5). Numerical results were given for the p1‐atom–H2‐molecule system (L and T cases) by Berger and Herzfeld. In the present calculation this generalization is further extended to the pn‐atom–H2‐molecule system (T case) with numerical results given for the L and T cases. It is shown that the generalized crystal‐field theory can account for some of the shortcomings of the conventional crystal‐field theory. In particular, calculation shows how the "center of gravity" rule and the inversion result are modified. It also shows how the degeneracy is lifted in a system consisting of a diatomic molecule and an atom in the pn configuration. The generalization of the Herzfeld–Goldberg method clearly demonstrates that the conventional crystal‐field theory cannot be considered to be a fundamental theory for the description of the wide range of phenomena that as a semiempirical method it has dealt with so well.A modified molecular orbital theory was developed by Herzfeld and Goldberg to show the effect of the neglect of the wavefunction overlap and the electron exchange on the results of the conventional crystalfield theory. It was applied by them to calculate the interaction of a hydrogen atom in the 2p state and a hydrogen molecule in the ground state in two different simple nuclear configurations. In one case the atom nucleus was taken to lie on the perpendicular bisector of the molecular axis (T case), and in the other all the three nuclei were taken to lie on a line (L case). The method was generalized for the pn‐atom–H2‐molecule system (L case) by Goldberg (n = 1–5). Numerical results were given for the p1‐atom–H2‐molecule system (L and T cases) by Berger and Herzfeld. In the present calculation this generalization is further extended to the pn‐atom–H2‐molecule system (T case) with numerical results given for the L and T cases. It is shown that the generalized crystal‐field theory can account for some of ...


Objective:To observe the therapeutic efficacy and the inflammatory factors(BNP,IL-8 and IL-12) change in heart failure patients with non-cardiac surgery by continuous renal replacement therapy(CRRT) during perioperative period.Methods:102 patients with heart failure were divided into two groups.The control group(51 cases) was treated by routine treatment,the observation group(51 cases) was treated by routine treatment and CRRT treatment.50 normal adults were observed as normal control group.B-type natriuretic peptide(BNP),Interleukin(IL)-8,and IL-12 in blood serum were measured.Results:The therapeutic efficacy was better in the observation group than in the control group.The expressions of BNP,IL-8 and IL-12 level were higher both in the observation group and the control group than in the normal control group,and the expressions of BNP,IL-8 and IL-12 were decreased in both groups,but the values of the observe group were decreased more.Conclusion:CRRT can improve the curative effect,and decrease the expression of BNP,IL-8 and IL-12 in heart failure patients with non-cardiac surgery.


The velocity perturbations of the fragments of a satellite can shed valuable information regarding the nature and intensity of the fragmentation. A feasibility study on calculating the velocity perturbations from existing equations was carried out by analyzing 23 major documented fragmentation events. It was found that whereas the calculated values of the radial components of the velocity change were often unusually high, those in the two other orthogonal directions were mostly reasonable. Since the uncertainties in the radial component necessarily translate into uncertainties in the total velocity change, it is suggested that alternative expressions for the radial component of velocity be sought for the purpose of determining the cause of the fragmentation from the total velocity change. The calculated variances in the velocity perturbations in the two directions orthogonal to the radial vector indicate that they have the smallest values for collision induced breakups and the largest values for low-intensity explosion induced breakups. The corresponding variances for high-intensity explosion induced breakups generally have values intermediate between those of the two extreme categories. A three-dimensional plot of the variances in the two orthogonal velocity perturbations and the plane change angle shows a clear separation between the three major types of breakups. This information is used to reclassify a number of satellite fragmentation events of unknown category.


Full legends for Supplementary Movies S1–S3. Synthesis and characterization. Crystal structure of (+)-Fe2[Nb(CN)8](4-bromopyridine)8·2H2O. Crystal structure of (−)-Fe2[Nb(CN)8](4-bromopyridine)8·2H2O. Instrumentation of characterization. Temperature dependence of the UV-vis absorption spectra. 57Fe Mössbauer spectra. Analysis of the MT‒T curve. XRD pattern with Rietveld analysis and crystal structure of the LT phase. Experimental setups for the SHG and MSHG measurements. Photo-reversible change in the UV-vis absorption spectra. Change in the 57Fe Mössbauer spectra upon light irradiation. Change in the XRD patterns upon light irradiation. XRD pattern with Rietveld analysis and crystal structure of the PI-1 phase. XRD pattern with Rietveld analysis and crystal structure of the PI-2 phase. Thermal relaxation of the photo-induced PI-1 phase. MSHG tensor elements of PI-1 and PI-2 phases. S2 S3 S4,5 S6,7 S8 S9 S10 S11


Grey Egerton-Warburton, Hartleys Ltd lead director, corporate finance has said that Australian resources companies need to take the initiative and take advantage of the strong international demand for Australian gold equities. The Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) is open for business for gold company equity raisings, which should be a positive sign for gold companies to move ahead.


Recent theories of brain function propose brain synchronization as a fundamental mechanism governing different aspects of behavior such as motor activity, perception and cognition. In addition research indicates that different neurologic and psychiatric disorders are associated with abnormal brain synchronization. In a recent study, it was used transcranial stimulation as a tool to demonstrate, for the first time, that the relationship between brain synchronization and cognitive tasks is not an epiphenomenon but the cause. The results of this exciting work open the possibility of brain synchronization restoration trough non-invasive brain stimulation in favor of therapeutic treatments in patients with neurological and psychiatric pathologies.


There is increased interest in cognitive aging among experts in brain sciences and gerontology
as a result of improvement in health sciences leading to longeveity. However, there are very limited
studies on this area in Nigeria and some parts of Africa.


The course of basic clinical skills changed the traditional courses form centered on subjects.Based on clinical skills training center,this course played an important role on the improvement of medical students'basic clinical skills,clinical thinking ability of early stage and professional attitudes.

Key words:
Clinical skills; Course reform; Medical students


Adults aged 18 to 64 who have been identified as being in poor physical health typically exhibit chronic health conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, heart disease, being overweight, or combinations of these conditions; chronic conditions such as these are linked with higher health care expenditures.1-5 Additional studies have linked behavioral health conditions with poorer physical health outcomes for those with chronic health conditions6,7 and suggest that a lack of health care insurance can also be linked to poorer outcomes for both behavioral and physical health.8 Individuals with behavioral health conditions also have higher out-of-pocket costs than those without such conditions.4,9


order pm it results that G involves a regular subgroup. That is, every transitive group of degree pm which involves an intransitive subgroup of index p whose transitive constituents are regular involves a regular subgroup. A simple illustration of this theorem is the group of order 8 and of degree 4. When the transitive group is of order pm+' the substitutions which are of degree less than pm are in the central of the intransitive subgroup of index p. When the order of a transitive group of degree pm has a maximal value it contains a regular subgroup since it is completely determined by its order, and every group of degree pm whose order is a power of p is found in a Sylow group of the symmetric group of degree pm.


With the emergence of Industry 4.0 technologies, the manufacturing sector will need to adjust its structure, process and products to satisfy the requirements of this transformation. The manufacturing sector in the UAE plays an imperative part in its economic diversification efforts and the pursuit of sustainable economic growth and the government enacted many strategies to support the growth of this sector. This research proposes a framework for evaluating the readiness of the manufacturing sector for Industry 4.0 through a survey questionnaire. Preliminary results show that there is lack of knowledge about Industry 4.0 in general, and specifically when it comes to the potential benefits and expected changes brought by the transformation. The main driver behind implementing Industry 4.0 concept are pressure from rivals and market requirements. Also, certain level of Industry 4.0 technologies exists with the potential to increase the level of adoption. Moreover, there is a gap in the skillset needed for Industry 4.0 and no plans initiated to close this gap. Finally, surveyed companies are still developing their Industry 4.0 strategy and organization culture plays an important role in driving digital transformation.


Knowledge can be represented as concept maps or directed graphs. Our research focuses on the use of knowledge mapping within the educational technology domain. The purposes of using knowledge mapping can be varied such as for self-learning, visualizing individual knowledge and sharing knowledge mapping. Knowledge mapping tools in the educational technology domain currently support learners and teachers in creating and visualizing a knowledge repository, usually of subject matter content or links to such content. However, when we consider the context of learning and teaching, none of the tools are based upon a pedagogically informed approach to knowledge in such a context. In our research, we identify contexts as, at the least, the situation, the resources, and the tools involved or required for the knowledge to be effectively demonstrated. We propose a pedagogically-informed knowledge mapping design, where knowledge is conceptualised as a contextualized learner competence or intended learning outcome, and proposes a tool called Mytelemap for creating and visualizing knowledge and recommending appropriate learning and teaching materials. The research question was set as "Does the use of knowledge mapping and Mytelemap correlate with performance on the final project?". Academic performance was operationalized as the final project mark, and the explanatory path for identifying its correlates was particularly interesting. The experiment suggested that satisfaction in using, and the motivation given by using the Mytelemap tool for knowledge mapping and visualization were significant predictors of engagement which was in turn the significant predictor of academic achievement. We hence conclude that the use of knowledge mapping and the tool significantly correlated with academic performance. However, the suggested results were limited to the knowledge domain of web technology, where the academic contexts referred to tools used in developing web site prototypes in an undergraduate curriculum. Future work will investigate contextualized competences in different domains and different contexts.


This thesis presents a fully automatic and sound interprocedural framework for executable analysis, which is employed for e.g. detecting low-level errors or malware. We present an analysis that intertwines disassembling and abstract interpretation-based analysis to provide a sound overapproximation of the control flow graph for an executable. In order to discharge certain assumptions made during control flow reconstruction we add a side-effect analysis that reasons about the modifying potential of procedures. A stack analysis is implemented to precisely deal with non-optimised code. Therefore we present the domain of fast linear two-variable equalities. To track relations between loop iteration variables and memory accesses, we propose the domain of simplices, a subclass of polyhedra. Our experimental evaluation of the implementation shows that our techniques scale well for industrial-sized executables and provide very good results.