hyperuricemia, mild proteinuria, and a low concentrating ability, as UOsm was low (295 mOsmikg) and was slightly increased after an overnight water restriction (348 mOsm/kg). The presence of hyperkalemic metabolic acidosis with a normal serum anion gap and an increased urine anion gap and the low values of both PRA and serum aldosterone levels observed before and after volume contraction confirmed the diagnosis of renal tubular acidosis type IV due to hyporeninemic hypoaldosteronism [5], a manifestation described in SS patients, but not in S/p-thal patients [l]. However, although the urine pH in this disorder is generally below 5.3 [4], in our patient pH was somewhat higher. It is highly likely that the patient had also a hyperkalemic renal tubular acidosis type I, which has been described in patients with sickle cell disease as well [I].


The microstructures of carbon-rich regions in chemically vapor deposited SCS-6 SiC fibers have been studied by electron diffraction and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The microstructures of the carbon in the substrate filament and the outer coating layers of the fiber are consistent with different distributions of Oberlin's model of Basic Structural Units (BSUs)^1 while that of the inner substrate coating is consistent with turbostratic carbon (TC).


A wavelet-based signal processing algorithm for airplane cable fault location is proposed in this paper.A Mallet orthogonal discrete wavelet decomposition and reconstruction algorithm is used to eliminate the noise in the aircraft cable fault signal.The experiment result has shown that the character of emission pulse and reflect pulse used to test the aircraft cable fault point are reserved and the high-frequency noise is eliminated by means of the proposed algorithm.


The present invention is generally provides recombinant microorganisms comprising engineered metabolic pathways capable of producing C3-C5 alcohols under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The invention further provides ketol-acid reductoisomerase enzymes which have been mutated or modified to increase their NADH-dependent activity or to switch the cofactor preference from NADPH to NADH and are expressed in the modified microorganisms. In addition, the invention provides isobutyraldehyde dehydrogenase enzymes expressed in modified microorganisms. Also provided are methods of producing beneficial metabolites under aerobic and anaerobic conditions by contacting a suitable substrate with the modified microorganisms of the present invention.


Evaluation of Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for multiple antenna systems is expected with the upcoming deployment of LTE Advanced, where multi-antennas are excited in both uplink and downlink. In this work, the influence of different antenna locations and antenna types was investigated for stand-alone SAR and simultaneous SAR, to provide some guidelines for antenna design in multi-antenna handsets. For simultaneous SAR, different phase shifts between antenna ports were considered and the averaged SAR was used as a metrics for comparison. The SAR performances were evaluated in the simulation for the body worn scenario (i.e., on the flat phantom), and diffe rent placements of the mobile handset, i.e., with either the screen or back side closer to the body, were studied. (Less)


The algorithm of the initial rotor position estimation based on improved pulse injection method is presented for switched reluctance motor (SRM) in this paper . To implement this method, First, the division of the inductance profiles into region, the pulses are injected to the phase winding , the pulse current amplitude is set to the constant , by comparing the phase current rise time for the initial starting phase estimation . Second, based on the inductance subregional , the linear mathematical model of the phase current rise time is established for calculating the initial position angle .This method can realize the initial position estimate of SRM under standstill and inertia status ,it is quite easy to implement, the proposed method not only reduces the initial position estimation error due to improve the reliability of motor starting, and realize motor running of no inversion. The simulation and experimental results verify the correctness and feasibility of the proposed algorithm. Index Terms — switched reluctance motor; initial position estimation; phase current rise time; pulse injection


Mercury pollution is a widespread problem. In this work, a solid-state sensor based on rhodamine derivative-modified cellulose filter papers for detection of Hg2+ ions in aqueous media is demonstrated. A three-step approach, involving the introduction of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) initiating sites, surface-initiated ATRP (SI-ATRP) of pentafluorophenyl methacrylate, and post-functionalization of the reactive surface with amino-containing spirolactam rhodamine derivatives in ester–amine reaction, was developed for the covalent immobilization of mercury-responsive probes on the cellulose filter paper. This solid-state sensor exhibits highly selective recognition of Hg2+ ions in a Tris–HNO3 buffer solution (pH = 7.24) over various environmentally relevant metal ions with remarkably enhanced fluorescent emission intensity and distinct color change from colorless to pink. The response of a rhodamine derivative-modified cellulose filter paper to Hg2+ ions is fast (<2 min). The positive fluorescence response and color change of this functionalized filter paper thus provide a disposable solid-state sensor for fluorescent and "naked-eye" detection of Hg2+ ions.


The CeO_2/TiO_2 photo-catalyst was prepared by the sol-gel method and was characterized by the scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The photocatalytic elimination of organism pollutant methanol was used as a model reaction to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of the CeO_2/TiO_2 photo-catalyst under ultraviolet light irradiation. The influences of activation temperature, activation time and different gas flow rate on photo-catalytic activity of the elimination methanol, over the CeO_2/TiO_2 were studied. The dynamics of photo-catalytic elimination reaction of methanol was investigated. The results show that the photo-catalyst CeO_2/TiO_2 activated has the highest activity for three hours at 450℃. When the initial concentration of methanol is 10.2 g/m3 and the gas flow rate is 4 mL/min, methanol can be eliminated basically,which conforms to the requirements of emission standards for air pollutants. The photocatalytic eliminations of methanol conforms to a first order kinetic law, in which the apparent activation energy is 15.63 kJ/mol and the apparent pre-exponential factor is 0.517 6 s-1 in the range of reaction temperature.


Currently, Thai Traditional playing is almost disappearing. Thus, the main objective of this study is to conserve the Thai Traditional playing for the next generation to learn Thai Traditional playing online. Three-Dimensional Thai Traditional Game is the one of activities that is very beneficial in term of an entertainment and learning. The programming development of this game based on Macromedia flash and Interactive 3D games using Dark Professinal Basic. The number of players is only one player or more that is based on the type of playing. 37 students about 84.3% who play this game are very satisfaction. It can be concluded that the technology can apply for conserve the Thai Traditional playing sustainability.


In view of the lower temperature process capability during the strips casing and cylinder conditioner's working,it's electric control system was improved.The chamber temperature control circu it from the traditional PID control to a sub-control+traditional PID control,pre-chamber temperature control loop was added,the circuit compensation steam changes manual control from to automatic control.The result proves the temperature process capability index improves from 0.82 to 1.5,preheating time decreases from 40 min to 20 min,and it can save electric energy 4 458 kW and steam 575 t every year.


The alpha subunit of the cytoplasmic Phenylalanyl tRNA synthetase (α-PheRS) displays cell growth and proliferation activities and its elevated levels can induce cell fate changes and tumor-like phenotypes that do neither dependent on the canonical function of charging tRNAPhe with phenylalanine nor on stimulating general translation. In intestinal stem cells of Drosophila midguts, α-PheRS levels are naturally slightly elevated and in multiple human cancers the mRNA levels of the human homolog, FARSA, are also elevated. In the Drosophila midgut model, even moderately elevating α-PheRS levels caused the accumulation of many additional proliferating cells resembling intestinal stem cells (ISCs) and enteroblasts (EBs). This phenotype resembles the tumor-like phenotype described as Notch RNAi phenotype for the same cells. Genetic interactions between α-PheRS and Notch suggest that their activities neutralize each other and that elevated α-PheRS levels attenuate Notch signaling whether Notch induces differentiation into enterocytes, neuroblast stem cell proliferation, or transcription of a Notch reporter. These non-canonical functions all map to the N-terminal part of α-PheRS. An N-terminal α-PheRS polypeptide of approximately 200 amino acids (α-S) accumulates also naturally in the intestine and displays a weak sequence similarity to the Notch intracellular domain (NICD), suggesting that α-S competes with the NICD for binding to the BTD domain of the transcription factor Su(H)/CSL. Supporting this hypothesis, the key tryptophan (W) residue for this suggested interaction is not only conserved in α-PheRS and α-S, but also essential for attenuating Notch signaling.


This article describes the characteristics of innovative organizations as perceived by employees of nonprofit and government organizations in three quite different countries, South Korea, China, and Argentina. A total of 44 employees participated in the studies (13 from South Korea; 16 from China; and 13 from Argentina). At the first stage of the study they were asked to free list characteristics of innovative organizations. At the second stage of the study, country-specific measures containing characteristics of innovative organizations were created, and participants were asked to rate each characteristic on a Likert scale (1 = not characteristic at all of an innovative organization; 5 = extremely characteristic of an innovative organization). This task produced ratings of perceived characteristics of innovative organizations for each country. Cultural consensus analysis widely used in the field of cognitive anthropology was employed next to assess the degree of agreement among the participants on what consistutes an innovative organization. Among the common perceived characteristics of innovative organizations were participation in decision making, teamwork, responsiveness to emerging client and societal needs, adaptability, employee support and value, and accepting failure. While the characteristics produced through the free listing technique showed a lot of similarities, the importance of those characteristics was rated quite differently across the three samples.


In recent years, there have been an increasing number of fetuses diagnosed by fetal echocardiography as having congenital heart disease (CHD). Fetal echocardiography in Japan is divided into 2 levels: Level 1‒fetal heart screening and Level 2‒detailed fetal heart examinations. Pediatric cardiologists are mainly responsible for Level 2 fetal echocardiography. As a result of improved diagnosis of Level 2 fetal echocardiography, both the diagnosis and "assessment of the severity of the disease" are now required. There are two categories of severity: 1) Severity classification by CHD type and 2) Severity determination in each case of the disease. For category 1, assessment can be made by reference to the CHD classification scale developed by Allan LD (in which the severity of fetal CHD is measured on a scale of 1 to 10) and/or to the fetal heart triage chart by Shiono et al. For category 2, it is necessary to recognize and measure the points for evaluating the differences in severity within each disease group. It is important for fetal cardiologists to understand such severity assessments, and it is now essential to become a certified Level 2 fetal echocardiologist.


Convert the deck of steel bridge and steel fiber reinforced concrete into board element of single material by the means of tension-compression equivalence and bending resistance equivalence, Discrete treating the other parts of the steel box and steel fiber reinforced quasi-bound beam bridge as shell element or beam element. And then, analyze the special stress of the quasi-bound beam bridge. The calculation example indicates that the calculate result is close to the actual measurement.


This paper presents an experimental and analytical investigation into the mechanical behavior of PZT-5H piezoelectric ceramic. The materia is subjected to cyclic uniaxial compressive stress at a constant electric field bias. The damping characteristics such as fraction of energy absorbed and elastic modulus are evaluated as a function of bias electric field. Increasing the positive electric field increases the specific damping and decreases the elastic modulus. The trend is reversed when the electric field becomes sufficiently high to inhibit the domain wall motion by the mechanical stresses. Measured specific damping values vary form 0.18 to 0.46 depending on the stress amplitude and bias electric field. The corresponding secant modulus varies from 79 to 24 Gpz. The optimum electric field values increase as the stress amplitude increases because the positive electric field and the compressive stress counteract each other in terms of domain wall motion. An analytical model shows that the material's response is proportional to the volume fraction of the domains available for switching and the domain wall pressure difference between positive electric field and compressive stress.


ABSTRACT This paper discusses the financial crisis facing public education in the United States today and argues that the most effective response to this crisis is to improve the decision-making skills of educational administrators. Based on a review of the literature on administrative decision-making and organizational change, the author examines several alternative approaches and recommends a developmental procedure that will result in improved administrative value skills. In his discussion, the author identifies specific administrative value skills that may be used as criteria for measuring the degree of improvement in decision-making by educational administrators. (JG)


Simple Summary Enriching the places were captive fish live, i.e., tanks, ponds or cages, has demonstrated potential to improve the wellbeing of the fish, which is a matter of increasing concern in the aquaculture sector. Enriching strategies are diverse but studies on the feasibility of their implementation in real farming scenarios are scarce. Here, the feasibility of using structural enrichment in the form of plastic shelters to improve the welfare of rainbow trout was studied in an organic fish farm. It was demonstrated that the use of simple plastic shelters is technically feasible, since the shelters induced little extra work in the farm routines and had no negative effects on fish performance, health or mortality. However, different to laboratory-based studies, the fish did not develop a clear shelter-seeking behavioral response when disturbed. This could be related to the short duration of the study, and therefore, it is recommended that enrichment in real scenarios should be tested covering a relevant part of the life cycle of the fish. Abstract Physical enrichment can improve the welfare of captive fish. Previous research has shown that fish often show preference for enriched environments, which can also result in improvements in growth performance. However, effects of enrichment are not always positive and the design and extent of the enrichment needs to be carefully considered. In this regard, information in real aquaculture scenarios is limited. The aim of this study was to serve as a proof of concept to test the feasibility of using simple PVC immersed shelters as a tool for better welfare in an organic rainbow trout farm. Our shelters induced little extra work in farm routines and had no negative effects on fish performance, health or mortality. The behavioral assessment pointed to a preference for sheltered areas in undisturbed conditions. However, no benefits were observed in terms of stress responses during standardized stress tests, and fish showed no obvious shelter-seeking behavior after disturbance. The results in terms of shelter-seeking behavior were probably limited by the short duration of the experiment, which was due to the farm's routines and needs. It is recommended that strategies for enrichment in real scenarios should be tested covering a relevant part of the life cycle of the fish in captivity, to fully account for their potential to improve welfare in aquaculture.


Background: Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a treatable cause of dementia. Hakim and Adams des-cribed for the first time the symptoms and signs of NPH which include ataxia, progressive memory loss and uri-nary incontinence. In properly diagnosed cases, ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt leads to good outcome.Material and Methods: This study comprised of 40 patients with NPH. The duration of study was 5 years from January 2009 to December 2013. The duration of illness before presentation ranged from one year to 6 years. The patients were diagnosed clinically and CT scan brain was done in all patients (MRI in some patients). All patients underwent Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination. In cases of possible NPH, drainage lumbar puncture (LP) was done and their response was noted. In 35 patients whose families gave consent for surgery, VP shunt was done while families of 5 patients refused surgery. The patients who underwent VP shunt were followed up, which ranged from one to 5 years.Results: The age of the patients was between 52 and 70 years. The majority of patients (25) were between 61-70 years. Out of the 35 patients, 26 (75%) were male while 9 (25%) were female. The initial symptom in all these patients was gait ataxia and the duration of illness ranged from one year to 6 years.Conclusion: Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a treatable cause of dementia. In properly diagnosed pat-ients, ventriculoperitoneal shunt gives good results.


This study aims to develop a semi-implicit constitutive integration algorithm for a class of elastoplastic damage models where calculation of damage energy release rates involves integration of free energy. The constitutive equations with energy integration are split into the elastic predictor, plastic corrector, and damage corrector. The plastic corrector is solved with an improved format of the semi-implicit spectral return mapping, which is characterized by constant flow direction and plastic moduli calculated at initial yield, enforcement of consistency at the end, and coordinate-independent formulation with an orthogonally similar stress tensor. The tangent stiffness consistent with the updating algorithm is derived. The algorithm is implemented with a recently proposed elastoplastic damage model for concrete, and several typical mechanical tests of reinforced concrete components are simulated. The present semi-implicit algorithm proves to achieve a balance between accuracy, stability, and efficiency compared with the implicit and explicit algorithms and calculate free energy accurately with small time steps.


The simulation of algorithms from quantum computing is currently the most affordable solution for development of new applications. Due to the high computational cost of such simulation, solutions towards novel features that increase the performance are always desired. This work proposes an extension for the D-GM's simulation framework, establishing the support for GPU-aware distributed quantum simulation. The project explores the concepts of heterogeneous computing, merging distributed and GPU computing in a single programming environment. Our results comprehend the distributed simulation of systems comprised by Hadamard transformations up to 21 qubits. Detailed analysis and a performance comparison between PyCUDA and JCUDA frameworks for our application are discussed. This work is a significant step towards the ultimate goal of our project, which is the hybrid simulation of quantum algorithms, i.e., exploring multi-core CPUs and GPUs distributed along a cluster, achieving scalability when larger systems are simulated.


Previous studies have shown that standard finite difference techniques cause numerical dispersion and grid orientation problems when used to simulate enhanced recovery processes with adverse mobility ratios. In compositional simulation, numerical dispersion can diffuse sharp fluid interfaces yielding erroneous predictions of fluid compositions and corresponding errors in the velocities of the miscible frontal advance. Numerical dispersion can also effect the computed locations of the boundaries of the regions of single-phase and two-phase flow. Inaccurate fluid velocities and suboptimal use of upstream weighting of transport terms combine to cause many aspects of the numerical dispersion and grid orientation problems. A mixed finite element method has been developed to obtain more accurate approximations to the fluid velocities. In this method the Darcy velocities are considered as primary variables together with the total fluid pressure. Although finite element techniques are used to compute the more accurate fluid velocities, these velocities are then incorporated into a more standard finite difference method for the bulk of the simulation process. This paper presents the use of mixed methods in a two-dimensional finite difference compositional simulator to reduce problems caused by numerical dispersion. Comparisons are made with a standard finite difference simulator on problems involving immiscible displacementmore » and multiple contact miscibility phenomena.« less


When monoenergetic positrons enter a solid they scatter and lose energy via processes similar to those for electrons. Theoretical details of these processes have been well established for decades, but experimental results using low energy positron beams are only now becoming available for comparison. We review the theoretical results for elastic and inelastic scattering of positrons and the predictions that follow for backscattering, inner‐shell ionization, energy loss and stopping profiles. Emphasis is given to specific comparisons with calculations for electrons, and recent experimental results in each of these areas are shown.


The present invention provides a ferroelectric capacitor with excellent reliability and a method of manufacturing. The ferroelectric capacitor 100 is shown as substrate 20, it is formed on the upper side of the first electrode 22, the first electrode 22 formed above the substrate (20), Pb (Zr, Ti) O Ferroelectric capacitors, the ferroelectric layer, the ferroelectric memory


Fiduciary duty is the core idea of the regulation of the transactional behavior of broker-dealers of U.S.,and it includes duty of loyalty and duty of care.The dual property of fiduciary duty,i.e.the legal and ethical property of fiduciary duty,embodies itself broadly at the different levels of regulation such as law,administrative and self-regulation rules.Despite some limits and difficulties,the derivative theory of fiduciary duty i.e.the shingle theory best summarizes and displays the core idea of fiduciary duty,which is best execution,implicit representation to disclose or abstain,reasonable basis and customer suitability.The transplantation of fiduciary duty into the context of China's laws will be through the reconstruction of good faith principle,which will benefit the legal construction of the securities market of China.


Background The aim of the study was to estimate the informative value of quantitative ultrasound and its combination with FRAX® in evaluation of structural-functional state of bone in Ukrainaian postmenopausal women. Objectives 363 postmenopausal women aged 45-87 years were examined, average age 65,1±0.5 years, duration of postmenopausal period 16,5±0.5 years. Methods Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometer (DXA) "Prodigy" and calcaneus quantitative ultrasound (QUS) "Sahara". The ten years probability of major osteoporotic fracture calculated with FRAX® tool. Results There is difference in distribution of bone indexes in depending of used methods. Among women which had osteoporosis of femoral neck by DXA, 34% had osteoporosis, 57% - osteopenia, 9% - norma data by QUS. Sensitivity of QUS indexes ranging was from low to moderate, but specificity was low (with femoral neck – 38% and 39%, total hip – 63% and 34%, lumbar spine – 45% and 34%, total body – 56% and 34% accordingly). Such sensitivity and specificity increased when combining QUS with the ten years probability of major osteoporotic fracture without BMD (FRAX®) (with femoral neck – 71% and 87%, total hip – 90% and 100%, lumbar spine – 72% and 83%, total body – 79% and 91% accordingly). Conclusions QUS of is informative method in evaluation of structural-functional state of bone in postmenopausal women. Sensitivity and specificity increased when combining QUS with FRAX® from 38% and 34% up to 90% and 100% accordingly. Disclosure of Interest None Declared


The aim of this work was to analyse the dynamics of the nutritional state and biomass production in tobacco plants resulting from the application of various calcium levels (Cal, 1.25 mol m 3 CaCl 2 ; Ca2, 2.50 mol m -3 CaCl 2 ; Ca3, Smolm 3 CaCl 2 ) in the culture medium. Tobacco plants were grown under controlled conditions and submitted to regular fertilisation with macro- and micronutrients. The concentrations of Ca, organic N, P, K, Na, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Cl and B were determined in the roots and leaves. As expected, Ca accumulated progressively with increasing concentration of this element in the culture medium. There was a slight rise in the concentration of organic N but hardly any change in the concentrations of K and Na. In contrast, increasing Ca application caused a gradual decline in P and Mg concentrations. In terms of micronutrient concentrations, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cl and B were influenced positively by Ca treatment. A noteworthy synergetic relationship was found between Ca and B. In contrast, the Cu concentration in the roots declined significantly with increasing Ca application. The effect of Ca on biomass production depended on the organ analysed, since the dry matter content diminished in the roots but was augmented slightly in the leaves. Les effets de l'application de differentes doses de calcium sur la croissance et la biomasse du tabac sont observes. L'augmentation de la biomasse varie en fonction de l'organe: la teneur en matiere seche diminue dans les racines alors qu'elle augmente dans les feuilles.


Apperceiving the road type timely is beneficial to the acceleration, braking and other operations of the unmanned vehicle, so as to improve the safety and reliability. Recognition of the road type plays an important role in the field of unmanned vehicles. In this paper, color correlation feature and Tamura texture feature has been extracted from the image taken by the car camera and fused together, then the BP neural network in deep learning is used for training and testing the fusion features. The result shows that the proposed method improves the recognition rate obviously.


The researchers used adapted Bradford Hill criteria to evaluate the role of third-generation and other antipsychotics in the development of impulse control disorders (these criteria are widely used for establishing causality between a presumed cause and an observed effect). They examined whether the features of these antipsychoticassociated impulse control disorders differed from those of other impulse control disorders. They also examined whether third-generation antipsychotics induce impulse control disorders or if another cause is responsible for the association.


Rice is considered by FAO as one of the most important foods to world food security and nitrogen (N) is the nutrient that most often affects the productivity of this crop, with its dynamics in the soil-plant system changed by management used. With the objective of evaluating the yield and quantities of nutrients in the phytomass of cover crops; and to evaluate the influence of the isolated and combined use of cover crops and urea as N sources on the growth, productivity and grain quality of upland rice cultivars irrigated, in the implantation of the no-tillage system, was carried out a study in an Oxisol (Rhodic Haplustox), cerrado (savannah) phase at the Experimental Farm of UNESP/FEIS, in Selvíria-MS, Brazil. The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with four repetitions, in a 4x2x3 factorial scheme. The treatments were a combination of four cover crops: velvet bean (Mucuna aterrima), sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea), millet (Pennisetum glaucum) and spontaneous vegetation (fallow in off-season); and two rice cultivars: Primavera and IAC 202; and three N rates: 0, 50 and 100 kg ha-1 as urea. The millet, followed by sunn hemp, produced the highest yield of dry phytomass and accumulation of nutrients. The succession sunn hemp-rice promoted higher grain yield, regardless of the N rate applied, while the cultivar IAC 202 was the most productive than Primavera. The increase of the N rate caused a drop in the number of spikelets seedless per panicle, with positive effects on grain yield. These results contribute with information about the cover plants and more efficient N rates to increase the quality and yield of rice crop.


A novel type of fluorescent mesoporous silica nanoparticle (FMSN) has been successfully synthesised by hybridising mesoporous silica nanospheres with an aggregation-induced emission luminogen, a quinoline-malononitrile derivative. The FMSNs with uniform morphology show excellent AIE-active luminescence and good biocompatibility. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) demonstrates that the well-ordered mesoporous structure in FMSNs is beneficial for drug delivery. When loaded with doxorubicin (DOX), DOX@FMSNs demonstrate pH-dependent release character and high cytotoxicity towards MCF-7 cancer cells. These FMSNs are expected to be promising multifunctional candidates as both bioimaging agents and drug carriers in cancer therapy.


Certain abnormalities in folate and vitamin B6 metabolism have been well documented in chronic alcoholic s~bjec ts . l '~ Studies on the effect of alcohol on folate metabolism were stimulated by the suggestion of Jandl14 that excessive alcohol ingestion per se could cause a direct hemosuppressive effect in certain subjects. Subsequent studies conducted by Sullivan and Herbert1 s z illustrated the frequent association of megaloblastic anemia in such subjects and provided conclusive evidence that excessive alcohol ingestion caused impaired cellular utilization of folate in selected patients. This effect of alcohol on folate utilization was further shown t o be overcome with administration of pharmacologic amounts of folk or folinic acid. Additional predisposing factors leading to folate deficiency in chronic alcoholics include poor dietary intake, altered absorption, and defective hepatic storage of folate in patients with liver disease. Indirect evidence that abnormalities in vitamin B6 metabolism were associated with chronic alcohol abuse were provided by the observations of Hines,8 documenting a relatively high incidence of marrow sideroblastic abnormalities in patients admitted for alcohol withdrawal that reverted rapidly after cessation of alcohol intake. These findings were confirmed by other investigator^.^*^ Grasso and Hinesg demonstrated that the iron in these abnormal sideroblasts was deposited within the mitochondria (FIGURE I ) , suggesting heme synthesis, possibly as a result of cellular deprivation of pyridoxal phosphate (PLP), the coenzyme for the rate-limiting enzyme for heme biosynthesis (delta amino-levulinic acid synthetase). The purpose of this paper is t o review and extend observations that demonstrate specific abnormalities in vitamin B6 metabolism in subjects ingesting excessive alcohol and to describe another mechanism that creates impaired folate utilization in alcoholic patients.


Virtual schooling is a participation between The Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) by means of different apparatuses, practices such as web-based platforms, tools, devices, video conferencing software, discussion boards to help and motivate students and educators to fill the gap of physical classroom. Virtual Schooling is inseparable from e-learning, happens on the web. Here, students and educators interact in synchronous where students interact or engage with educators while they convey their lessons live, or asynchronous, where students watch recording of the lessons later anytime. This Paper is exploratory in nature, data is collected with primary source like questionnaire and respondent are a total of 66 teachers and 65 students of schools in Lucknow city. Though virtual schooling can happen in multiple and distributed location but at the same time it is significantly more complicated than most expect. The difficulties engaged with virtual schooling might appear to be too various to even think about counting. Commonly found challenges on behalf of educators and students are: multitasking, requests advanced prestidigitate qualities which is inevitable, yet exhausting; quality of teaching resources; volume of work, remote teaching includes a bigger workload than traditional classroom teaching. The volume of assignments, design and plan the lessons and emails to answer can astonish you; time management skills are a continuous issue for remote learners with study, career and other commitments.


By alloy melting, microstructure analysis and micro-hardness test, the effects of Sm addition on the microstructure of Mg-12Gd-2Y-0.5Zr alloy with solution treatment and aging treatment were investigated. The results showed that the microstructure of the tested alloy consisted of α-Mg matrix, Mg41Sm5, Mg5Gdm, Mg24Y5 and β' phases, and Sm improved the micro-hardness value of α-Mg matrix attributed to its better solid solution strengthening effect in α-Mg. The micro-hardness of the alloy with Sm increases obviously from HV121.4 to HV134.3 when compared with that of Mg-12Gd-2Y-0.5Zr alloy.


Objective To define the structure of blood spleen barrier and its role in immunological responses of the spleen. Methods Ninety healthy Kunming mice were randomized into 3 groups. In group A, each mouse was injected with 0 5 ml mixed fluid of India ink and physiological saline through the tail vein. In group B, the mice were injected with 0 5 ml cryptococcus neoformans and the saline (cryptococcus 108/ml). In group C, the animals were injected with 0 5 ml mixed fluid of the ink, cryptococcus neoformans and saline (cryptococcus 108/ml). Histological changes of the spleen in all animals were observed with light and electron microscopy. Results At the 3 h, most of the carbon particles and the bacteria were within the splenic sinuses in marginal zone but not in the white pulp. During the 1st~3rd day, macorphagocytes within marginal sinuses and marginal sinus endothelial cells phagocytized a great number of carbon particles. Then carbon laden macrophages migrated to the germinal centers and scattered in the white pulp in 28 days. Conclusions The blood spleen barrier is located in marginal zone and it is composed of macrophagocytes, marginal sinus endothelial cells and their basement membrane. Its functions are to keep the stablization of micro condition in while pulp and to present antigen information by macorphgocytes.


This paper represents a technical overview of a current state in the Mobile Digital Rights Management (MDRM). It describes Download architecture and different DRM use cases specified by Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) DRM standards. OMA DRM technologies, such as Rights Expression Language, DRM Content Format, and Cryptography are discussed. The paper analyzes security model, specially, rights integrity, content confidentiality and rights-content association integrity. It points out problems in security model that were not solved in OMA DRM version 1 specification. The paper also shows the limitations for developing security model in MDRM systems.


Motivated by the discovery of superconductivity in the infinite-layer nickelate family, we report an experimental endeavor to clean the surface of nickelate superconductor Pr0.8Sr0.2NiO2 films by Ar+ ion sputtering and subsequent annealing, and we study their electronic structures by cryogenic scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. The annealed surfaces are characterized by nano-sized clusters and Coulomb staircases with periodicity inversely proportional to the projected area of the nanoclusters, consistent with a double-barrier tunneling junction model. Moreover, the dynamical Coulomb blockade effects are observed and result in well-defined energy gaps around the Fermi level, which correlate closely with the specific configuration of the junctions. These Coulomb blockade-related phenomena provide an alternative plausible cause of the observed gap structure that should be considered in the spectroscopic understanding of nickelate superconductors with the nano-clustered surface.


The invention relates to the technical field of loudspeaker box manufacturing, in particular to a loudspeaker glue dispensing machine. The loudspeaker glue dispensing machine comprises a worktable, a portal frame, a glue box, an air cylinder, a mould, a mould placement table and a rodless air cylinder. The portal frame is fixed to the worktable. The air cylinder is fixed to the portal frame. A piston rod of the air cylinder is connected with the glue box. Sliding rods are arranged on the upper portion of the glue box and matched with guide sleeves fixed to the portal frame. Glue dispensing needles are arranged on the lower portion of the glue box. The mould is fixed to the mould placement table through jackscrews. Sliding sleeves are arranged on the lower portion of the mould placement table and are in sliding fit with guide rails fixed to the worktable. The rodless air cylinder is fixed to the lower portion of the mould placement table. Through the loudspeaker glue dispensing machine, glue dispensing of multiple loudspeakers can be completed at a time, and therefore working efficiency is greatly improved; besides, loudspeaker components do not move in the glue dispensing process, and therefore the quality of the loudspeakers can be guaranteed.


Liquid treatment processes have been assuming increasing importance in recent decades with the progressive industrialization to ensure public health security for drinking water or to prevent economic damage when safeguarding important production processes. Major investments have been devoted to the research, study, and design of innovative products that are able to respond to the demands of the market, which currently offer several solutions, among which filtration treatment still represents a major one. This work focuses, in particular, on filtration of drinking water with filter cartridges, with the aim to test their hydraulic performance and, particularly, to evaluate the head losses that they produce when introduced into a hydraulic system. The local pressure drops, in fact, may compromise hydraulic plants already characterized by low pressures. What is more, this condition is increasingly likely in supplying networks due to the coexistence of several factors, such as water losses due to failures and inefficient maintenance, severe and prolonged droughts, and increased water demand related to social and economic development. In these systems, the insertion of filtration cartridges can make the pressure levels fall below the minimum limit recommended to ensure the smooth operation of domestic devices. More in detail, in the present study the behavior of seven different commercial filter cartridges was analyzed through a set of experiments conducted in a pilot circuit at the Laboratory of Environmental and Maritime Hydraulics (LIDAM), University of Salerno. These tests have been performed in different operating conditions, collecting pressure data through various pressure gauges. The analysis proved that for common values of operating flow rates in domestic plants the pressure drops in the filter can be of the order of some meters and provided some useful information for the choice of the proper cartridge in low-pressure distribution systems.


to the game as well. A game must be well explained, initiated and played to make it go. The teacher is the only one in the rural school who can do this. She must be the moving spirit because she is fired by enthusiasm for the game. She knows it, and must keep it going until the players also catch this enthusiasm. Once the players catch the spirit the game motivates itself. Soon leaders develop, and they, in turn, become initiators of other games. But never should the te<lcher allow her interest to lag or her presence to be wanting on the playground. Little children like singing and imitative games, while the older ones prefer more highly organized pia)'. So while the teacher should try to divide her time equally between the groups, she may allow the bigger girls, who are efficient in" teaching new games, take charge of the little people while she is umpiring a game of another group. Her purpose is to see that everyone is playing and that no one is left out in the cold. It is not necessary that she be always leading in "every game. Her aim is to develop leaders and to be ever helpful and resourceful. These two problems and their solution spell the success or failure of the rural teacher. It is the wise use of the margin that prepares the pupils to meet the emergencies of life, and grapple with them successfully. In the rural school the margin is the time between classes, and the play periods. Let us, as teachers in these schools, give the "use of the margin" our very best planning. Plan for the study time rather than the recitation, for the one will include the other. When the teacher regards the occupational time more important than the recitation, and the play time more valuable than correcting children or papers, there will he no misfits in the schools, for each child, through guide" self-development, will come self-reliant and work out his own salvation. Then the true power of the rural school as the educational and civ ic centre for the community will become ~ fact .


Frank Bauer rules Bauer Holdings by stealth and sees no reason why he should consider giving up his position as Chairman of the board. In this way, Frank is like many business leaders who have been involved in a multi-generational business since its founding. One of Frank's sons holds a position on the board and although Frank wants this son to eventually take over the business, the anointed son does not have the skills required or the passion to pursue the position. The third generation Bauers' are now questioning their involvement in the business and what role, if any, they can play. Unlike their parents, they have been tertiary educated and are keen to be involved in the business in some capacity. They are keen to introduce corporate governance initiatives that have been proven in similar third generation businesses to Bauer Holdings. The third generation have met and have begun to work on some institutions including a family assembly and other governance initiatives that they think are necessary in order to ensure that the business survives for future generations.


Relativistic full-potential calculations within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) for a series of Mn-based Heusler alloys are presented. Calculated equilibrium lattice parameters deviate less than 1.2% from the experimental values. The main features of a half metallic system are present in the density of states for the PtMnSb and NiMnSb. We predict that PdMnSb shows half metallic character under hydrostatic pressure. The substitution of Sb in PtMnSb by Sn or Te destroys the minority spin band gap. Spin and orbital magnetic moments for all the systems are in good agreement with previous calculations and experimental data. L{sub 2,3} x-ray absorption and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) spectra are calculated for all the five compounds. Pt spectra present big deviations from system to system in the PtMnY (Y=Sn,Sb,Te) compounds while Mn spectra show only small deviations. For all these spectra GGA underestimates the L{sub 3}/L{sub 2} integrated branching ratio and produces a much smaller L{sub 2} peak intensity for the Ni site in NiMnSb. The XMCD sum rules are used to compute the spin and orbital magnetic moments and the results are compared to the direct calculations. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society.


Consumer finance is becoming significantly important nowadays, given the reform of financial system and the development trend of financial internationalization. In recent years, the scale of consumer finance market in China has developed rapidly. Based on the first hand data collection through online questionnaires and conducted interviews, this paper finds out the difficulties in consumer finance risk management in Zhejiang province, including inevitable information asymmetry, high credit information reporting system cost, low-level financial technology, incomplete supervision, insufficient professional talents, and scarce consumer finance products. In order to make contributions to consumer finance research field, this paper simultaneously summarizes corresponding feasible suggestions, such as enhancing the construction of credit reporting system to advance financial risk assessment, combing financial technology efficiently, strengthening government supervision, developing professional talents, building risk management awareness


As a reliable investing channel and costeffective financing instrument,convertible bond is now a common financial derivation tool in the international capital market.The BlackScholes option pricing model,which is an internationally recognized pricing method,takes advantages in its simplicity in practice and easiness in finding the requiring variables in the security market,thus accounts for an easy direct and feasible way for the pricing of convertible bonds in Chinese security market.


Introduction: Gall Bladder (GB) diseases are one of the most common digestive system diseases, the prevalence of which is variable within India and ranges from 2-29%. Cholelithiasis (gallstones) is the commonest lesion and accounts for more than 95% of GB diseases. Gall bladder carcinoma showed regional differences in India with prevalence ranging from 0.52% in southern India and as high as 9.6% in northern India. Aims and Objectives: 1)To identify the morphological spectrum of diseases affecting the gall bladder. 2)To identify the most common histopathological lesion and its correlation with clinical and demographic data of the patient. 3)T o identify the frequency of Gall Bladder Carcinoma (GBC) and its correlation with clinical and demographic data of the patient and pre-existing lesions if any. Materials and Methods: This study was non-participatory descriptive study carried out retrospectively for a period of one year in the Dept. of Pathology, HIMS,from August 2018 to July 2019. All the specimens received in the study period were included in the study. The gross and microscopic findings on H & E slide were included in the study. The descriptive statistics w as applied to analysed data. Results: Total 86 cholecystectomy specimens were received in the Department of Pathology during one year study period. Non-neoplastic lesions (97.67%) of gall bladder outnumbered the neoplastic lesions (2.33%). Most common histopathological lesion was chronic cholecystitis (95.34%). Varied histopathological spectrum was seen comprising of chronic calculous cholecystitis (73.26%), chronic acalculous cholecystitis (13.95), chronic cholecystitis with cholesterosis (13.95%), Xanthogranulomatous cholecystitis (2.33)%), Acute calculous cholecystitis (1.16%), acute gangrenous GB (1.16%), GBC (2.33%). In non-neoplastic lesions, female predilection (70.24%) was seen over male (29.76%) accounting for F:M ratio of 2.4:1, two cases of GBC exclusively seen in females associated with gall stones. Nonneoplastic lesions were common between the age group of 26-50 years accounting for 67.45% where as neoplastic lesions were common in the age group of >60years. Conclusion: Chronic cholecystitis with pigmented gall stone was the commonest GB disease in the present study. The study also revealed that females have increased preponderance for the development of all the gall bladder diseases including malignancy. Non-neoplastic lesions were more common till 5th decade in the present study whereas females in the 5th and 6th decade of life were prone for malignancy of gall bladder which was associated with gall stones. © 2020 Published by Innovative Publication. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)


Yellowtail flounder were found as far north as the Strait of Belle Isle; however, the main concentrations were located on Grand and St. Pierre banks. The highest concentrations were found at 31–35 fath (57–64 m) and temperatures of 3.1–4.8 C. Abundance on the Grand Bank apparently increased from 1961 to 1968 coincident with a general upward trend in bottom temperatures and a drastic reduction in the haddock population. The peak spawning period was the latter half of June. Fifty percent of the males were sexually mature at age 5 and 31 cm, and 50% of females at age 6 and 37 cm.


Aquatic Macrophytic species were studied in three lakes of Jhansi, Bundelkhand region namely Burwa sagar, Atyatal, Laxmital (24 o 11´ and 25 o 57´ N latitude and 78 o 10´ and 79 o 25´ longitude). The present investigation was undertaken in June 2006, deals with distribution characters of macrophytes in the studied wetland ecosystems. Overall 10 species belonging to 9 families were recorded from the lakes. Atyatal was having maximum number of 9 species followed by 5 species in Laxmital and three in Barwasagar. The frequency values evaluated for various species were: 0.84 for Eichhornia crassipes; 0.72 for Ipomea aquatica; 0.53 for Elatina triandra; 0.26 for Potamogeton pectinatus and 0.28 Amaranthus virdis. The maximum values for density were recorded for Eichhornia crassipes (0.47), Ipomea aquatica (0.47), and Potamogeton pectinatus (0.47) all from Atyatal whilst mimimum density values were recorded for Potamogeton pectinatus (0.05) from Barwasagar .The maximum contribution to IVI (Importance Value Index) was recorded from Burwasagar for the species like Ipomea aquatica (111.96), Eichornia crassipes (99.56) and lowest values were recorded from Atyatal for the Species like Parthenium hystrophorus (21.96) and Phalaris arundinaceae


Has a 862MPa (125 ksi) or higher yield stress, to provide a low alloy steel for oil country tubular goods having excellent sulfide stress cracking resistance (SSC resistance). Low alloy steel for oil country tubular goods according to the present invention, in mass%, C: 0.56~1.00%, Si: 0.05~0.50%, Mn: 0.05~1.00%, P: 0 .025% or less, S: 0.010% or less, Al: 0.005~0.100%, Mo: 0.40~1.00%, V: 0.07~0.30%, O: 0. 010% or less, N: containing 0.0300% or less, the balance has a chemical composition consisting of Fe and impurities, having a higher yield stress 862MPa, obtained by X-ray diffraction [211] crystal plane half width is 0.50 ° or less.


This position paper presents GILD – an integrated learning and development environment for programming. The objective of the GILD project is to provide facilities for teaching and learning Java that are tightly integrated with a fully featured, mature and widely adopted development environment. GILD is being designed as a plug-in for Eclipse and takes full advantage of the Eclipse Java development tools. It will also include collaborative support as well as more sophisticated methods for teaching and learning the first principles of a programming language. In this paper we identify the technical and pedagogical aspects that we think will contribute to its adoption by both teachers and students, while discussing the challenges and barriers that we may face.


Abstract : Inversion of light scattering by a single spherical scatterer with or without a layered structure is studied. By numerical simulation of the statistical properties of experiments, we can select those angles that will maximize, the ability of the experiment to resolve a sphere from a layered scatterer. Applying statistical decision theory, we obtain a criterion for decision making that minimizes the probability of incorrect guesses....Invert, Spherical, Retraction, Scattering, Noise, Indices.


The Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, CNIC (National Center of Cardiovascular Investigation), in Madrid, Spain, has rapidly established itself as a leading international center for cardiovascular research through pioneering leadership and a research strategy that cuts across disciplinary boundaries.

Over the past 10 years, the CNIC has built an unrivalled infrastructure and a powerful, cross-disciplinary research base that embraces multiple disciplines and both population and patient studies. One of the keys to this achievement is the commitment of national government to building a flagship research institute to tackle the cardiovascular disease (CVD) epidemic. But the public purse is only part of the story; most importantly, the CNIC is funded through an innovative public–private financing structure, which injects not only added financial security but also the wide-ranging business and management expertise of some of the most prominent Spanish businesses (Pro CNIC Foundation, see below).

The other key ingredient underpinning the CNIC's success is a clear and consistently applied vision, at the heart of which is a shift from an emphasis on clinical events (the current paradigm) to the identification of CVD in its preclinical stages (the new paradigm pursued by the CNIC). This vision brings a cohesive strategy that embraces public health promotion, research infrastructure, professional training, and a clear focus on close collaboration between basic and clinical researchers to ensure that acquired knowledge is translated into real-health benefits. This vision is brought to reality through an agile management structure that promotes training and the exchange of ideas and expertise, a comprehensive modern infrastructure of technical units and support services, and above all a young, energetic team of scientists, clinicians, and technicians dedicated to advancing knowledge about and treatment of CVD.

The Center's strategic direction is defined by CNIC Director Valentin Fuster, who currently combines functions as General Director …


In this paper it is shown that over the past years there is an evolution from rather flexible to rigid designed full composite front-ends. In some cases ever increasing design requirements and reducing space have led to choices for hybrid steel/plastic carriers. However also examples exist where clever geometric design has yielded full composite front-ends with the highest possible stiffness level, and of course lowest weight and cost. The reasons for poor design solutions are discussed here. Also an example of a successful development is given, that of the SMART Forfour front-end.


Chronic pain syndromes can be debilitating and their treatments complex. Vulvodynia is no different, although surgery is more commonly a component of treatment than for some other types of chronic pain. To study patients' perception of benefits from vestibulectomy for vulvodynia, Das et al1 (see page 113) did structured interviews, including components of some validated questionnaires, with 14 women who had undergone surgery for vulvodynia in the preceding 10 years. By reporting both quantitative and qualitative results, including quotations from participants, the authors tell a compelling story of the severe influence that vulvodynia has on the quality of life and sexual function of some women, and the delay in diagnosis (2–5 years for most women) that they experienced. Although 93% of patients reported improvement in vulvar pain after surgery, only 57% reported satisfaction with their sexual lives. Overall, about 80% were satisfied with the overall outcome of the surgery. The results are illuminating. By listening to women's voices and studying their outcomes after surgery, we can become more alert to the diagnosis of vulvodynia, more adept at offering referral if we are not skilled at treatment possibilities, and better able to provide accurate counseling about what women might expect from surgical treatment. This is a disorder that can have a devastating influence on women's lives and their sexual relationships. Surgery is part of the armamentarium for it but not the whole story—as shown by these women's stories.


The On-Line Decontamination program highlights include solvent development, water purification, VNC demo loop, corrosion products, and corrosion testing. The highlights for the alternate water chemistry program include additives, N-16 dose rate, offgas system, condenser leakage monitoring, materials compatibility, and additives. (DLC)


The emergence of demand for space travel, the emergence of commercial enterprises and travel agencies in the space industry,the development of vehicles designed exclusively for transporting tourists into space – all this suggests that space may soon turn froma scientific object into a common destination. Therefore, today the legal regulation of private space flights is a promising issue, giventhat there is no such legislation in Ukraine. We turn to the analysis of the legislation of the United States of America to assess whatarray of regulations we will have to master if we want to develop private space flights at home.A private space flight is a space flight or development of space flight technology that is conducted and paid for by an entity otherthan a government agency. Depending on the purpose, private space flights are divided into flights for the purpose of transportation ofcargoes, and flights within the framework of space tourism.The article presents an overview and analysis of the legislation of the USA regulating private space flights, in particular, flightsfor the purpose of transportation of cargoes, and flights in the framework of space tourism. The author highlights a chronological formationof the commercialization of space, which clearly shows the gradual transition of the United States from a complete reluctanceto allow private space flights to the recognition of the indisputable economic feasibility of such activities. A significant shift in this areahas taken place since 2015, when five directives on space policy, the National Space Strategy and orders on the exploration, extractionand use of space resources were adopted.The author analyzes the main sources of space law in the United States. It was found that mostly, the legislation does not keepup with innovations in the commercialization of space, thus, there is a situation when first comes a relationship (flight of a tourist orcargo into space), and then – the legislative regulation of such relations.


Thermal barrier coatings have been used for the last half century to protect parts in high-temperature service from premature damage. Thermal barrier coatings are mostly produced by thermal spray techniques, especially plasma spray processes. They are widely used in the aerospace and automotive industries and in power plants, applications in which there is an ever-increasing demand for further improvement of functionality and durability. In the field of material design, use of composite coatings rather than monolithic material, and nano-structure instead of conventional grain sizes, are among the solutions most often considered. Suspension plasma spray is an innovative process for production of nano-structured thermal barrier coatings. This research project was directed toward a superior thermal barrier coating using suspension plasma spray deposition of the alumina-yttria stabilized zirconia composite material with nano-crystalline structure. Crystallization of the amorphous phase is introduced as a new route toward nano-crystallinity in ceramics, as was previously applied in the metals and alloys. The suspension plasma spray process was used in production of coatings with comparatively high amorphous content. The work concentrates on three major aspects of thermal barrier coating improvement. The primary focus of the project is amorphous phase formation and the roles it plays in properties and structure. This phase, which was found beneficial to nano-crystallinity, improves the mechanical properties after heat treatment. The second concentration is the suspension plasma spray process and the versatility of its resulting microstructures, and a comparison of suspension with the conventional plasma spray process. The third aspect is the properties of alumina-YSZ composite material as a choice for thermal barrier coating application. It was found that the material can compete with the present YSZ material in some aspects (e.g. thermal resistivity and hardness), but suffers from some other deficiencies (e.g. brittleness and high erosion rate). This suggests considering some other compositions of the composite, while continuing in microstructural improvement of this material for thermal barrier application.


This article discusses Joseph Conrad's links with Cracow, the historic capital of Poland and a major centre of Polish culture. Conrad fi rst came to Cracow in February 1869, accompanied by his father Apollo Korzeniowski, who &mdash


Because the expense is quite high if we want to increase the radar intelligent BIT testability through hardware maintenance approaches. In this paper, for the first time we adopt the software engineering thinking-structural method to model radar intelligent BIT software. In the end, we present an intelligent BIT software modeling based on Multi-Agent. In this way, the intelligent BIT software maintenance becomes possible. The modification or improvement of intelligent BIT software can be easy and effective. So that the intelligent BIT testability maturity can be accelerated as the diagnosis capability will be enhanced and the false alarm rate will be decreased.


The invention relates to an apparatus for detecting metallic objects, particularly in shoes, having at least one transmitter coil for transmitting an electromagnetic signal, and at least a first and a second receiver coil for receiving secondary signals, which are output from any existing metallic objects. The object of the invention is to provide a device of the stated type which enables a particularly reliable detection of metallic objects in shoes. This object is achieved in a generic device in that a surface region of the first receiving coil forms a first passage region for a first shoe of a person and that a surface region of the second receiving coil forms a second passage region for a second shoe of the person. The invention also relates to a method for the detection of metallic objects, especially in shoes.


Background: Careful discharge planning for older surgical patients can reduce length of stay, readmission, and cost. We hypothesized that patients who overestimate their self-care ability prior to surgery are more likely to have complex post-operative discharge planning. Materials and methods: The Vulnerable Elders Surgical Pathways and Outcomes Assessment (VESPA) is a brief pre-operative assessment that can identify older (age >=70) patients with multidimensional geriatric risk, defined by all three of the following: (1) physical or cognitive impairment, (2) living alone, and (3) lack of handicap-accessible home. The VESPA also asks a novel post-operative self-care ability question, whether patient can independently provide self-care for several hours after discharge. Classifying patients into four groups based on multidimensional geriatric risk (full vs none/partial) and the self-care ability question (yes/no), we hypothesized those with Unrealistic Post-Surgical expectation of Independence (UPSI) (both fully at risk + "yes" to self-care ability question ) would be at the elevated risk for complex discharge planning. Complex discharge planning was defined as prolonged stay due to nonmedical reasons or multiple changes in discharge plans. Corresponding author: Lillian Min, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School Division of Geriatric and Palliative Medicine, 300 N. Ingalls St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109, email@example.com, Telephone: 734-615-5453, Fax: 734-647-9647. Author contributions: Study conception and design: Chan, Diehl, Hall, Min Acquisition of data: Chan, Diehl, Palazzolo, Min Analysis and interpretation of data: Chan, Diehl, Hall, Palazzolo, Pollock, Min Drafting of manuscript: Chan, Diehl, Min Critical revision: Chan, Diehl, Hall, Palazzolo, Pollock, Min Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. HHS Public Access Author manuscript J Surg Res. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2020 March 01. Published in final edited form as: J Surg Res. 2019 March ; 235: 501–512. doi:10.1016/j.jss.2018.10.031. A uhor M anscript


Construction cost forecasting is very important for the determination of project quotation. The disadvantages of present cost forecasting in project bidding are analyzed. The method that utilizes fuzzy mathematics and grey system theory to forecast construction cost is introduced. Finally the problems needing attention in application are emphasized.


GaAs/Al0.3Ga0.7As quantum wells (QWs) grown on (411)A-oriented GaAs substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) showed extremely flat interfaces over a macroscopic area (about 200 µm φ) even for the case of no growth interruption, which is mainly due to the intrinsically large migration of Ga atoms and layer growth in the step-flow mode on the (411)A plane. Photoluminescence linewidths at 4.2K were almost the same as or better than the narrowest linewidths reported for GaAs/AlGaAs and GaAs/AlAs QWs grown on GaAs (100) substrates with growth interruption at each GaAs/AlGaAs(AlAs) interface. Only one sharp luminescence peak was observed for each QW on the (411)A substrates, in contrast with three luminescence peaks for the QWs on the (100) substrates, indicating that extremely flat and uniform interfaces over a macroscopic area of laser excitation (200 µm diameter) are realized in the GaAs/AlGaAs QWs grown on (411)A GaAs substrates.


Communication plays a key role be it personal or business world. Every individual is actionable based on the Communication system. At a business, its growth is primarily dependent on the Communication factor as the data exchanged is huge. Similarly, be it learning and education, advertising, finance, security or any other such domain, it requires very effective and robust networks and processing strengths. A network is a primary passage for the all the data transfer. And this data is very important and thus needs to be very secure. Data is the only thing that benefits the world and so the attackers. The security of this data over the network is the main concern for all businesses. Not that security was not present, but it was traditional. The attacks and thefts were known to the system and after that we used to get insurance against the knowns. The traditional way most usually recognizes known dangers in light of characterized rules or behavioral investigation through baselining the system. However, now there is a paradigm shift, the attacks and threats are unknown! Networks suffer from a lot of attacks and the count of attacks are increasing enormously. A skilled attacker can sidestep traditional security techniques, so there is a requirement for advanced and intelligent intrusion detection techniques. Machine learning is a powerful and effective analysis apparatus to recognize any anomalous activities exercising in the network traffic stream. This paper talks about, Random Forest classifier algorithm which is applied along with RandomOverSampler and PCA to help detect network anomalies. The correctness of the proposed strategy is derived using detection accuracy, precision, and recall. The proposed technique shows the detection accuracy of 80.88% and precision of 83% and recall of 81%.


Various two- or three-phase alloys were prepared based on the B2 intermetallic compound CoAl in the Co-Al-Ni ternary system, in which the B2 phase forms a continuous solid solution with NiAl of the same ordered structure. Combination of the phases with the B2 phase can be the (Co, Ni) primary solid solution phase being also continuous from Co to Ni-corners, and/or the L1 2 phase based on Ni 3 Al. Then the relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties were systematically investigated by optical and transmission electron microscopy and by micro-Vickers hardness and compression tests. It is found that two-phase alloys of B2/L1 2 show superior room temperature ductility with over 10% plastic strains to those of B2/(Co, Ni). The present work is based on the seemingly ever lasting motivation to provide some ductility to the intrinsically brittle CoAl compound which unless otherwise has attractive properties as a new high-temperature structural material


Funding for developing-country investments in renewable energy sources has been considered an essential factor for sustainable development after COVID-19. Solar energy investments can be very beneficial in reducing fossil fuel usage. A poll of investors, stakeholders, industry experts, and media personalities in Pakistan was used to gather data for this study, which examines individual investors' intentions to invest in solar energy. This study's primary objective is to enhance investment intention connected with investment in solar energy projects after COVID-19. Investing in solar power projects in the post-COVID-19 period is the focus of this study. To evaluate the study's hypotheses, we used partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). We used the purposive sampling technique for data collection in this study. The findings show that attitudes, subjective norms, perceived investment attitudes, and evaluations of the regulatory framework influence one's willingness to invest in renewable energy initiatives. The study identified a correlation between environmental concern, financial rewards, and investing behavior. Investors' desire to make these kinds of investments was found to be unaffected by risk aversion. According to the data, regulatory framework evaluation is the most significant determinant. Previous research that looked at investment behavior or other forms of pro-environmental intention or behavior came to different conclusions. In addition, this study examined how the theory of planned behavior (TPB) influences investors' intentions to invest in solar energy by evaluating the regulatory environment. The study results show that people's attitudes and perceptions of energy efficiency indirectly impact their willingness to invest in solar power. Subjective norms do not influence investors' plans to put money into solar energy. Policymakers will benefit from this study's realistic advice on how to increase solar energy investments.


A case of lymphangioma in a 6-year-old Thai girl was reported. She had verrucous plaque and cystic appearing vesicles on her right lateral chest. A reddish patch on this area had been noticed since was born. At the age of 8 months, vesicles occurred on top of the patch, which enlarged without any further symptoms. She was referred to Siriraj Hospital because of fever following infection of ruptured vesicles. On admission, the verrucous plaque was found from the right axilla to the right subcostal region with vesicular lesions 2-15 millimeters in diameter. After the infection subsided and the diagnosis of lymphangioma cutis was verified by histo pathological section, radiotherapy was started. After 4 consecutive days of 200 rads deep radiation, the lesion remained the same but her father refused further treatment and hospitalization.


Platelet response to hypotonic stress can be used to estimate the 51Cr recovery in vivo of liquid‐ and freeze‐preserved platelets. This simple in vitro test may prove helpful in determining and controlling the quality of preserved platelets. In our study, the response to hypotonic stress was not related to the 51Cr T‐1/2 value of the preserved platelets, but was related to the number of irreversibly damaged platelets removed within two hours after transfusion.


2C is a general name for the group of psychedelic phenethylamines containing in common a phenethylamine backbone with two methoxy groups in positions 2 and 5 of the aromatic (benzene) ring and different substituents at position 4. Several countries and districts have reported 2C-series phenethylamines emerging in new 21century. This paper reviews the history, pharmacology, toxicology, patterns of use and legal status of 2C-series phenethylamines, hoping to let forensic scientists have more knowledge of them.


Enhanced habit formation, greater automaticity and impaired goal/habit arbitration in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are key hypotheses from the goal/habit imbalance theory of compulsion which have not been directly investigated. This article tests these hypotheses using a combination of newly developed behavioral tasks. First, we trained patients with OCD and healthy controls, using a novel smartphone app, to perform chunked action sequences, previously shown to engage habit brain circuitry. The motor training was daily over one month period. There was equivalent procedural learning and attainment of habitual performance (measured with an objective criteria of automaticity) in both groups, despite greater subjective habitual tendencies in patients with OCD, self-reported via a recently developed questionnaire. We then used a combination of follow-up behavioral tasks to further assess the arbitration between previous automatic and new goal-directed action sequences. We found no evidence for impairments of goal/habit arbitration in OCD following re-evaluation based on monetary feedback, although there was a greater preference for engaging in the trained habitual sequence under certain conditions which may have derived from its intrinsic value. These findings may lead to a reformulation of the goal/habit imbalance hypothesis in OCD. Finally, OCD patients with higher compulsivity scores and habitual tendencies showed more engagement with the motor habit-training app and reported symptom alleviation, with implications for its potential use as a form of habit reversal therapy.


Abstract Data are reported regarding the reliability of evaluations of portfolios constructed for the purpose of gaining accreditation as a teacher in UK higher education (HE). Whilst the reliability of the evaluations lies towards the upper end of the spectrum of reliabilities found in U.S. studies, analysis of the data points to ways in which reliability might further be improved. The combination of evaluations into a single overall evaluation is shown to raise questions about the way in which the cumulation of performance scores should be undertaken. An Approach to Authentic Assessment Portfolios are now widely used for a variety of purposes relating to teacher development and appraisal, including self-presentation for promotion or tenure, personal accreditation as a teacher (Seldin, 1997), and accountability to super-ordinate authorities (such as school systems). Portfolios are also used for development and assessment in other professions including social work and nursing (Taylor, et al., 1999). Portfolios are seen as 'authentic,' in that they refer to collections of performances in naturalistic settings (though there is variation in expectation as to what should be included in a portfolio (Stecher, 1998; Simon and Forgette-Giroux, 2000). For that reason they are held to have advantages over other forms of assessment. However, Herman, et al., (1993, p.202) observed that "the measurement quality of portfolios is largely uncharted territory": there was a flurry of work on the reliability of portfolio assessments in the mid-1990s, but this work now seems substantially to have ceased without having advanced assessment methodology to any great extent. Portfolios in the Accreditation of HE Teachers in the UK The Open University (OU) in the UK runs courses for teachers in higher education, courses which lead to accreditation as teachers and to the award of a post-graduate qualification. The courses are accredited by the UK Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA, 2000) and the Institute for Learning and Teaching (ILT 2000). SEDA specifies the seven or eight (depending on the course) outcomes to be achieved, and the six principles or values which must demonstrably underpin the achievement of these outcomes (see Appendix 1). The teacher is required to present a portfolio of evidence in support of his/her claim for accreditation. The portfolio contains two distinct types of material: evidence (lesson plans, graded student work and the like), and claims in which the course participant argues that s/he has met the outcomes. A portfolio for the course that forms the object of this study requires a total of seventy- five assessment judgements. Twenty of these are technicalities such as word and page count. Forty-six require academic judgement on whether particular elements are demonstrated in the portfolios. The overall judgement on each of seven outcomes is obtained in major part by combining judgement on the elements of that outcome, with limited discretion left to the assessor and scope for marginal failure of one element in an outcome to be condoned. To be judged to have passed the course, the teacher has to achieve a pass on all outcomes. This large number of elements of assessment results in part from the two-dimensional matrix of seven outcomes, the attainment of each of which may need to be underpinned by up to six principles or values. The number of elements is greater than forty-two because each of the outcomes is subdivided into components. For example, the needs to reflect on one's practice, identify one's development needs and plan one's continuing professional development are all subsumed under Outcome 7. Reliability Is Important The potential for very wide use of portfolios by teachers in higher education makes both the validity and the reliability of portfolio assessment critically important. Reliability is clearly important when a teacher's accreditation depends on the assessment of his or her portfolio. …


This paper concerns dissipativity of one-leg θ -methods and linear θ -methods for nonlinear delay differential equations (DDEs). Firstly, we obtain the absorbing set generated by the numerical methods and then prove that the methods can inherit the dissipativity of underlying system. It is shown that the radius of the absorbing set generated by the discrete system goes to that generated by the continuous system as the step size goes to zero. The estimate of the radius is sharp in this sense. Secondly, because the model considered is a very broad class of differential equations with or without delays, the main results obtained provide a unified treatment for ordinary differential equations (ODEs) and DDEs with constant delays and variable delays (including bounded and unbounded variable delays). In particular, the results are also new even in the case of ODEs. Finally, numerical experiments are given to support our theoretical results. AMS subject classifications: 65L05, 65L20


The relationship of Bence Jones protein (mol wt = 45,000) to a β2A-myeloma protein (mol wt = 160,000) formed by the same mouse plasma cell tumor (MPC-2) was investigated. The β2A-myeloma protein was split by treatment with papain and cysteine into fragments (S 20,w = 3.7S), similar in size to the Bence Jones protein (S 20,w = 3.6S). Two types of fragments with distinct antigenic groupings designated S and F, were present in the MPC-2 myeloma protein digest. These were partially separated by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. The Bence Jones protein was found to share antigenic determinants with S fragments from the MPC-2 β2A-myeloma protein and with S fragments from γ-globulins. Physicochemical observations indicated, however, that the Bence Jones protein was not identical to the globulin fragments produced by treatment with papain and cysteine. Comparison of the S and F fragments from β2A- and γ-globulins revealed that the antigenic features shared by the various globulins derived from plasma cells (γ- and β2A-myeloma proteins, the range of normal γ-globulins) are largely properties of the S fragments, whereas the distinctive antigenic differences between the γ- and β2A-myeloma proteins were properties which appeared in the F fragments of the molecules.


Both crystalline and sedimentary rocks are being considered to host a deep geological repository (DGR) for nuclear fuel waste in Canada. In the past several decades, considerable research has been conducted around the world to better understand geomechanical processes associated with development and long-term performance of a DGR. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization's (NWMO's) technical research and development program is examining a number of potentially suitable rock formations to support implementation of Adaptive Phased Management, Canada's approach for long-term management of nuclear fuel waste. Rock engineering will play an important role in siting, design, and construction of a DGR for nuclear fuel waste. Post-construction activities such as excavation maintenance, monitoring, decommissioning, and closure will also involve rock engineering. The type of host rock selected for a DGR will influence the scope of rock engineering activities and related research requirements. This paper outlines key rock engineering aspects to be considered in developing a DGR in sedimentary rock. ROCKENG09: Proceedings of the 3rd CANUS Rock Mechanics Symposium, Toronto, May 2009 (Ed: M.Diederichs and G. Grasselli)


Quality and sophistication of the parts / products are the main requirements of the customer in the present global market. Therefore, the manufacturing / Production industries are searching for un-conventional machining processes to achieve production requirements. One among such production processes is the WireEDM. As such, a solemn attempt is made in this paper to investigate the response parameters, viz., Material Removal Rate (MRR) and Surface Roughness (Ra) a by experimentation on EN 19 & AISI 420 (SS420) Steels in Wire-EDM process. The Design of experiments is carried-out considering Taguchi Technique with four input parameters, namely, pulse-on, pulse-off, Bed speed and Current. The experiments are conducted considering the above two materials for L16 and then the impact of each parameter is estimated by ANOAVA. Then the regression analysis is carried-out to find the trend of the response of each material. A comparison made between the two materials indicates that the EN 19 Material is more suitable for better MRR and AISI 420 for better Surface finish.


Abstract: In previous papers, we referred to studies of the influence of anti‐ovarian autoantibodies on menstrual cycle disorders in adolescent girls. We examined autoantibodies against ooplasma, zona pellucida, membrana granu‐losa, theca folliculi interna, and lutein cells. In infertile women in the IVF/ET program, we studied the positivity of antiovarian antibodies and cytokines, namely, TNF‐α and IL‐1β, in follicular fluid correlated with the following sub‐groups, characterized by the outcome of in vitro fertilization, as follows: G, pregnant; F, fertilized; N, nonfertilized; and O, no oocyte gained. The presence of autoantibodies corresponds to the success or failure of the IVF/ET program. Our results support the hypothesis that antiovarian autoantibodies play an important role in both the endocrine and the reproductive function of the human ovary and that it can influence them negatively.


This paper presents a methodology for the design of over-frequency containment schemes in low inertia, high renewable systems. This methodology is demonstrated through the comprehensive redesign of the containment scheme for significant over-frequency events (e.g., the loss of an exporting HVDC interconnector) in the Ireland and Northern Ireland power system (All-Island System). The new scheme allows an existing synchronous generator runback system integrity protection scheme to be replaced with fixed wind tripping and dynamic response from wind. This exploits the capabilities of renewable generation to create effective protection and control resources. The methodology provides the steps required to determine the key parameters of the scheme (e.g., maximum allowable frequency, required volume of tripping, lowest trip frequency). A key consideration of the methodology is the volume of dynamic response from wind that can be deployed before frequency limits are violated (e.g., inertia and wind penetration). Dynamic simulations are performed in DSE Tools for the All-Island system considering a 2020 operational scenario. These simulations support the application of the methodology and demonstrate the effectiveness of the scheme designed for the All-Island system.


The present research was carried out to determine the effects of the addition of cardamom powder at different levels (0, 1, 2, 3 or 4 g/kg) to diet on performance, egg quality, and serum parameters in laying quails. In the experiment, a total of 120 laying quails at the age of 20 weeks were randomly distributed to 5 treatment groups with 6 subgroups (4 quails each). Quails were fed with experimental diets for 10 weeks. In the experiment, the feed intake of quails significantly increased with the supplementation of cardamom powder at the level of 3 g/kg to the diet, while other performance parameters were not affected. Eggshell thickness advanced with the addition of 1 g/kg cardamom powder to diet. Egg yolk L* value increased at the level of 4 g/kg, but a* value decreased with the addition of cardamom powder. Other egg quality parameters were not affected by the addition of cardamom powder to the diet. In addition, the supplementation of cardamom powder to the diet significantly reduced serum cholesterol levels of quails. According to the results obtained from the experiment, the addition of cardamom powder at the level of 3 g/kg to the diet increased the feed intake of quails, while the supplementation of 1 g/kg was effective in improving the eggshell quality and serum cholesterol level.


A 71-year-old woman came to our hospital with chest pain. A computed tomography revealed right coronary dilatation and a giant fistula (6×12 cm). The fistula was seen to drain from the right coronary artery to the coronary sinus (figure 1A).

Figure 1
(A) Computed tomography revealing right coronary dilatation …


P roductivity improvement is crucial for market competitiveness and in some cases, or ganization survival. Productivity improvement has almost unanimous support at the conceptual level but considerable disagreement occurs in how to implement useful programs. Macro approaches have included changes in organization strategy, policy, methods of doing business and even the type of business. Micro or human resource oriented approaches has focused primarily on behavioral approaches such as organization develop ment and the professional development of organization members. Another micro approach is improving the measurement system by which organization rewards are distributed. Improv ing human resource contribution measurement has not received extensive emphasis in the productivity literature, but it may be the key to productivity improvement. Expectancy theory of motivation is based on the premise that job holders must expect that their positive performance will lead to positive rewards before they will expend the effort that leads to productive performance. The inaccuracy of the performance measurement sys tem has led some authors to conclude differential rewards and performance appraisal are a waste of effort.' Other authors have blamed the failure of appraisal systems on the way appraisals are implemented. For example, McGuire concluded appraisal systems fail because raters must evaluate for two audiences, the ratee and the rater's supervisor and the result satisfies neither. Bedeian believes the immediate supervisor provides an invalid source of information, due to personal biases, and undermines the measurement process. Alexander feels that more objective performance standards are needed to improve the credibility of per formance appraisals. The failure of appraisal systems to do what they are expected to do, appraise performance fairly, has led to legal guidelines and extensive litigation. In response to the Uniform Guidelines and the unsuccessful defense of numerous appraisal systems, a series of articles have appeared summarizing the legal constraints within which an appraisal system should be designed. Brinkerhoff and Kanter noted that appraisal systems should provide: documen tation to justify a legal defense; participative criteria development; justification of appraisal fairness; generate information for selection decisions; and information on recent performance afld employee development needs. Sashkin identified ten criteria including qualified and trained raters, separation of the judge and helper role for supervisors, and avoidance of too much paper work. Lubben, Thompson and Klasson emphasized the need for multiple rat ers, measurement safeguards and standardized, controlled administration and scoring of the appraisal process. Kleinman and Durham analyzed recent court cases and also recom mended multiple raters, safeguards and qualified raters. Two recent books on performance appraisal recommend these same set of appraisal system criteria.' Given the recent emphasis on improved appraisal systems, and especially multi ple rater systems, it is surprising more successful systems have not been reported in the management literature.


This study discusses the law of transporting goods at sea by using a document of charge called Bill of Lading known in common law system is from the 16th century. The research is taken based on the empirical type by showing evidence obtained from the field then analyzed based on bibliography and theory which exists. The result of the research is that each of the international regulations studied does not describe explicitly what the rights and obligations of exporters and importers. However, the B/L contract on the back describes the rights and obligations of exporters and importers as "merchants". Then the results of research that Efficiency is achieved by reason if B/L has been published, No weight miscommunication, Parties abide by applicable legislation, Not falsely signing, Storing B/L in a safe place so as not to disappear, Consistent premises B/L not to be amended, Exporters researching weight standards of goods to be shipped according to ship type, Exporters studying freight forwarding companies in order to manage customs clearance, Selecting the right insurance company to be trusted, Paying attention to the cost of deviation for the benefit of shipping For carrier, Use safe payment method to avoid any more cost when transaction insecurity, Use Surrender B/L model to avoid loading time at loading and unloading ports, Checking documentation of payload including B/L whether complete or not to avoid arrest goods in Customs area, Conduct a container inspection to avoid leakage, and Prevent assignment to less competent workforce to handle cargo documents.


Intestinal parasitosis is an infection caused by protozoa or helminths; closely linked to poverty and related to inadequate personal hygiene and food. The present investigation: "KNOWLEDGE ON PREVENTION OF INTESTINAL PARASITOSIS IN MOTHERS WITH CHILDREN UNDER 5 YEARS OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE CITY OF LOJA" had as objective: to determine the knowledge that mothers of children under 5 years have about prevention of Intestinal parasitosis of the Barrio Nuevo Sunrise of the city of Loja. The study is cross-sectional, descriptive and quantitative. The technique used for the collection of the information was the interview and the instrument the questionnaire. We worked with a sample of 69 mothers. The results obtained were entered into the SPSS V.24 program, reaching the conclusion that the participating mothers are between 26 and 35 years old; single and married; with an average of 3 children, dedicated to housework; and with secondary education. Regarding the knowledge about preventive measures of intestinal parasitosis, most of the respondents know the hygienic conditions in their home (89%), the adequate personal hygiene in their children (92%), on the other hand they do not know the frequency of deworming (76% ), 88% use hand washing, consume boiled, chlorinated and potable water (68%), boil it for 5 minutes (60%), properly wash their food (99%), handle garbage properly by covering it (84%) ) and as another preventive measure they know that pet waste should be collected, disposed of properly and kept away from home (78%).
Key words: Protozoa or helminths-knowledge-preventive measures.


The problem of time delay control (TDC) for a uncertain linear systems with input hysteresis is studied in this paper. To mitigate the effectiveness of input hysteresis, a controller based on TDC is proposed. Particularly, the time delay estimation (TDE) is used to estimate the uncertainty and the unknown nonlinear part of the hysteresis. Then, a time delay controller is designed to obtain high performance without modeling the hysteresis. Finally, compared with an adaptive sliding mode controller, the simulation results show the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed controller.


Abstract:  NAP is an eight‐amino acid neuroprotective peptide NAPVSIPQ; it is the smallest active element derived from the recently cloned activity‐dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) . NAP readily enters the brain from the blood. It will be important to learn whether NAP, in addition to its neuroprotective activity, also might influence immune‐mediated inflammation. Here, we report that: (a) macrophages express ADNP; (b) expression of ADNP in macrophages responds to VIP; and (c) NAP downregulates the key inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor (TNF‐α), interleukin‐16 (IL‐16), and IL‐12 in macrophages. These findings indicate that ADNP/NAP can play an important role in immune regulation as well as in neuroprotection, which may be mutually related processes.


We present results of modelling Ginga data of a number of Soft X-ray Transient sources performed with the aim of constraining the geometry of accretion during various stages of the sources' evolution. Assuming a generic geometry of a central, extended X-ray source with an external, optically thick accretion disk, we use consistent models of X-ray reprocessing to constrain the inner radius of the accretion disk and its ionization state. We show that the evolution of GS 1124−68 (Nova Muscae 1991) and GS 2000+25 agree qualitatively with the recent ideas linking the high/low state transition with changing radius of the optically thick disk, but the case of GS 2023+33 (V404 Cyg) poses a problem for any model.


The main obstacle to the widespread use of biomass - derived fuels has been their cost. However, by developing more productive crops and by continuing to decrease production and conversion costs, researchers believe biomass-derived ethanol costs could be lowered to 60 + 70 cents per gallon within the next 5 to 10 years.


While chronic pain and mental health disorders are major health care issues affecting all sectors of society, treating such conditions poses special challenges for the United States military because of its unique mission, nature of its service population, and the structure of its health care system. This article reviews efforts to meet these challenges in an integrated manner, in the contexts of government initiatives, veterans' needs, and current health care paradigms.


In this contribution, three new concepts called reciprocally continuous, strictly subweakly compatible and strictly subreciprocally continuous single and multivalued mappings are given for obtention some common fixed point theorems in a metric space. Our results improve and complement the results of Aliouche and Popa, Azam and Beg, Deshpande and Pathak, Kaneko and Sessa, Popa and others.