This is our third article already in the previously promised series to focus on FDI & DIA, as unitary fluid substance world owned, and so flows and stocks and country actors carrying these, but respective amounts unevenly distribute on these country actors. Once more, our approach on FDI won't change any of its previous paradigm, coordinates and criteria considered, i.e dynamics mean individual country versus world speed difference along the 1994-2015 interval, in which the 1994 stocks accumulate FDI&DIA flows since 1990, and top countries range up to an important majority of stocks amounts in the total and so a relatively stable percentage, on the one hand, and down to 0.2% on FDI/inflows and to 0.1% of the same total world stocks on DIA/outflows, on the other. This time we will stay in Europe to focus on two so-called 'sub-regions' of this continent with interesting FDI-DIA contents, that will then interestingly aggregate for something that might equally become a territory more economically homogeneous than previously thought.


This is a concept paper to review the potential of retirees in helping themselves to walk through a pathway towards retirement. Most of retiring employees are facing problems during the transition period from work to retirement. The loss of job roles, financial insecurity, poor health, dissatisfaction in life and loss of social support are among the factors that lead to apprehension among retiring employees. The purpose of this paper is to examine the potential of retirees from work to retirement and to identify the levels of their knowledge on retirement. The paper is also important in raising public awareness of the critical need of retirees during retirement years and help to outline strategies to encourage the retirees to empower their potentials to be part of the solution. The outcome of the study will hope to change the mindset of individual on retirement and reshape the focus in policy making on supporting life transition holistically.

Keywords: Retirement, Transitions, Empower, Potentials, Retirees.


The first results of RF tests on a single cell copper niobium cavity operating at 1.5 GHz are presented .l The cavity was obtained by spinning an OFHC copper sheet in half cups and tubes. The cavity's components are welded together under vacuum; the so obtained cavity was niobium coated by using a scaled version (to our dimension) of the magnetron sputtering system developed at CERN for S/C cavities operating at 350 and 500 MHz. The results of our first tests on two cavities, together with the ancillarry measurements performed on several Niobium samples are presented.


Grouping observations in a data set into subgroups according to their percentiles based on a continuous variable (expense, age, or score) and then generating statistics for each subgroup can be tedious. By applying macros appropriately, however, one can achieve greater program efficiency and error-proof results. This paper illustrates a rational process of building a data analysis tool that demonstrates the power and efficiency of macros. By describing three approaches we employed in a real life project, this paper shows how each one improves the tool as our methodology develops. Using a step-by-step illustration of macros in DATA steps and statistical procedures to solve the problem, this paper helps SAS programmers who have just begun tapping into "mysterious" macro programming to learn about some of the basics of macros and the rationales that led us to the results we desired. We assume that readers of this paper have a basic understanding of macros (and macro variables), doloops, and data set manipulation procedures.


The invention relates to a method for connecting a photovoltaic installation to a power supply grid (8), the photovoltaic installation comprising a photovoltaic generator (1), a direct voltage intermediate circuit with at least one capacitor (3), and an inverter (5) The method has the following steps: The direct voltage intermediate circuit is connected to the photovoltaic generator (1) and the capacitor (3) is pre-charged to a first voltage (U1). The direct voltage intermediate circuit is then separated from the photovoltaic generator (1) and the capacitor (3) is discharged to or below a second voltage (U2) which corresponds to a maximum operating voltage of the inverter (5). The inverter (5) is then connected to the power supply grid (8), an inverter bridge of the inverter (5) is clocked, and the direct voltage intermediate circuit is connected to the photovoltaic generator (1).


We obtain a functional central limit theorem (CLT) for sums of the form , where is a sufficiently fast mixing vector process with some moment conditions and stationarity properties, F is a continuous function with polynomial growth and certain regularity properties, is a certain centralizing constant and are arbitrary polynomials taking on positive integer values on positive integers, i.e. polynomials satisfying , where is the set of natural numbers. For polynomial 's this CLT generalizes [The Annals of Probability, 2014, Vol. 42, No.2, 649–688] which allows only linear 's to have the same polynomial degree. We also prove that exists and provide necessary and sufficient conditions for its positivity, which is equivalent to the statement that the weak limit of is not zero almost surely. Finally, we study independence properties of the increments of the limiting process. Our proofs require studying asymptotic densities of special subsets of , which is done in a separate section. As in [The Annals of Probability, 2014, Vol. 42, No.2, 649-688], our results hold true when , where T is a mixing subshift of finite type, a hyperbolic diffeomorphism or an expanding transformation taken with a Gibbs invariant measure, as well as in the case when , where is a Markov chain satisfying the Doeblin condition considered as a stationary process with respect to its invariant measure.


The Brazilian psychiatric reform process has been going on for 28 years. This complex shift in the government-sponsored model of mental health care has its origins in the anti-institutional thinking of Franco Basaglia. It involved replacing psychiatric hospitals, which were the major option for


INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Last summer I was speaking with a group of parents at a reception during Freshman Orientation. They were talking about their own experiences registering for classes when they were students. Registration in a field house, long lines, and full classes were aspects of the experience that almost all of them shared, regardless of where they'd gone to college. They asked me how students register now; I explained that it all is done on the Web, and there are no longer lines. (I think a few of the parents were disappointed that their children wouldn't share in their experiences of long lines!) Someone then asked if closed classes were also a thing of the past. "Not exactly," I responded before going on to describe some of the efforts we've undertaken to get students the courses they need while also using our resources effectively and efficiently. The response from the parents was quite positive: They understood that classes do fill and that not every class will be available at the time every student might want it to be. Unlike the elimination of lines at registration, our approach to improving course availability has not depended heavily on technology. Instead, we've focused on collaboration, communication, data-driven decision making, and achieving multiple "small wins" (Weick 1984). The University of Connecticut is a public research university whose main campus is in Storrs. The Storrs campus has more than 20,000 students, including more than 16,000 undergraduates. Each fall we enroll roughly 3,200 new freshmen in the University's nine undergraduate schools and colleges. Our undergraduate enrollment has grown by a third since 1995, and the freshman class in fall 2006 was 60 percent larger than in fall 1995. During the same period, the freshman to sophomore retention rate has increased from 86 percent to 93 percent, and the fouryear graduation rate has increased from 43 percent to 58 percent. The average time to graduation has decreased to 4.3 years (tied for fourth among public research universities). Our goals are still higher: a 95 percent retention rate and a four-year graduation rate of 65 percent. How will we get there ? We understand that no single approach can do it all. We like to think about what might make a difference for groups of 32 (1 percent of the entering class), undertake multiple initiatives, and build on what works. Three initiatives are related to course availability: packaged schedules, the Course Availability Committee, and expanded summer course offerings. PACKAGED SCHEDULES "Packaged schedules" is a collaborative effort of the Office of the Registrar, the schools and colleges, the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, and several academic departments. We have noted that entering freshmen who cannot get the math and science courses they need in their first semester start their academic career already behind and consequently are less likely to graduate on time. They are more likely to be unhappy with their college experience and are less likely to continue their enrollment through graduation. Prior to five years ago-before packaged schedules-new students would get the seats that remained after continuing students registered. Often, there would not be enough seats to meet the demand. Even when there were enough seats, they might all be in course sections that met at the same time i.e., 8 AM), preventing students from enrolling in all of the needed classes. We usually were not able to inform departments of the need for more seats until it was too late for them to assign instructors for additional sections. Under the new process, we work with the schools and colleges to identify both the majors that will participate in the packaged schedule process and the groups of courses that students with those majors will need. We also estimate the number of seats needed in each course and the number that will be taken by continuing students. …


For the comtemporary audience, Albercht Durer's engraving "Four Naked Woman" was unprecedented in its treatment of nakedness as well as in its dealing with traditional iconography. Even today, the print appears enigmatic. While early scholarship discussed the figures as witches and further research suggested various characteres of ancient myths, recent interpretations tend to read the scene merely as an occasion to show female nudes ("sex sells"). Focusing on what is visible in the print, this study aims to decode the identity of the figures and the plot they are hiding. As Durer added a later component and as every single detail, including the ceiling decoration with the abbreviation "O.G.H.", is based on ciphers of the most widespread cultural tradition, the artist's intention is evident: to make this innovative image comprehensible not only for humanists, but also for the general public.


PURPOSE
To characterize the dosimetric features and limitations of the dynamic beam flattening (DBF) on the Halcyon 2.0 linear accelerator (Varian Medical Systems).

METHODS
A pre-defined multi-leaf collimator (MLC) sequence was introduced and used to flatten the 6MV flattening filter free (FFF) beam on the Halcyon 2.0. Dosimetric characterizations of the flattened beams, including beam flatness, symmetry, percent depth dose (PDD), output factor and MU linearity, were investigated. Flatness and symmetry were obtained from profile measurements with both radiographic films (EDR2) and a 2D ion-chamber array (IC Profiler, Sun Nuclear Corporation). MU linearity, output factor and PDD measurements were performed in a water tank with a CC13 ion chamber (Scanditronix Wellhöfer, Nuremburg, Germany). In addition, the effect of the DBF sequence on 3D plan quality was evaluated by creating DBF plans for a 4-field box rectum and an AP/PA spine plan. Patient specific QA was performed on these plans.

RESULTS
At 100cm SSD and 10cm depth, a flatness of < 3% was observed on both transversal and radial profiles for all square field sizes ≥10cm with DBF. For both larger and smaller field sizes the flatness showed a tendency to increase as the fields got bigger or smaller respectively. Similar trends in flatness were observed at all depths measured. All measured output factors for square field sizes ≥5cm were within 1% of the TPS prediction. Linearity was ≤2.02% for all measurements. For both treatment sites, the MD judged the plans created for the Halcyon without the use of DBF not to be clinically acceptable, however considered both the TrueBeam plan and the Halcyon plan with the DBF sequence to be clinically acceptable.

CONCLUSION
The DBF sequence on the Halcyon and its characteristics were investigated. The analysis indicates that the DBF sequence can be used on the Halcyon to generate clinically acceptable 3D treatment plans.


Preparing PEMFC bipolar plate by moulding presses is very meaningful to reduce the manufacturing cost of PEMFC.But with the variation of draft angle during moulding process,the channel has a different cross-sectional shape.In order to study the effects of draft angle on performance of the flow fields,based on CFD modeling as well as experimental parameters,the flow fields of a 50 cm2 single cell were simulated and calculated.The single-channel serpentine flow fields were used in the anode,while four-channel serpentine flow fields were used in the cathode,and the draft angle was ranged from 0° to 30°.The results show that with the increase of draft angle,the pressure drop of the flow fields in both anode and cathode decrease at first and then increase,the flow cross-over through the gas diffusion layer and the gas concentration in reaction zone increase as well.The optimized draft angle from 14°to 25°for the anode and the one from 10° to 18° for the cathode were suggested.


Current active road noise control (ARNC) systems, configured with the standard filtered-x least mean square (FxLMS) algorithm, are not sufficient enough to yield an ideal noise reduction over a broad frequency range. This is because ARNC systems generally employ multiple reference signals, which has an inherent limitation of the channel-dependent convergence behaviour due to dynamic characteristics amongst reference signals. In this study, an effective ARNC system with the channel self-adjusting FxLMS (CSFxLMS) algorithm by incorporating the self-adjusting parameter on each reference signal path is proposed, which is to minimise the effect of its dynamics characteristics in different reference channels. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, numerical simulations using measured road noise response is conducted. Results show that the performance of the proposed CSFxLMS algorithm is significantly better as compared to the conventional FxLMS algorithm, and is able to achieve around 5 dBA reductions at the driver's ear position.


Seven lots of teliospores of Puccinia graminis Pers. gave rise to mutant white infections on barberry. Cultures heterozygous for the white mutation produced equal numbers of white and normal orange infections indicating that a single mutation caused the absence of color. White pycnial infections fertilized with nectar from normal pycnial infections, and normal infections fertilized with nectar from white infections produced normal aecia, but white infections fertilized with nectar from white infections produced white aecia. White aecia gave rise to greyish-brown uredial cultures. A single dominant gene governed virulence on the varieties Arnautka and Mindum and it appeared to be linked to the locus governing color. Virulence on lines of the variety Marquis carrying genes Sr8 or Sr9a was governed by single recessive genes. Tests of significance indicated that virulence on the line carrying Sr7 was linked with virulence on the line carrying Sr10, and virulence on Lee with virulence on Sr10.


A new cascade frog, superficially resembling Odorrana graminea, O. chloronota and O. livida in having green color dorsally and ventral circummarginal grooves around the discs of the fingers, has been found in Medog County of Tibet (Xizang Autonomous Region), China. The new species (Odorrana zhaoi) is characterized by a combination of the following main attributes: 1) a golden upper lip strip from tip of snout and along the upper jaws extending to insertion of arm; 2) tympanum circular, very distinct and depressed with rim, TD:ED 0.56 in male; 3) dorsolateral fold weak, dorsum smooth except granular in posterior part, venter smooth except for a granular region under the thighs; 4) limbs with transverse bands of distinct blotches to tips of digits; 5) Tips of all fingers expanded with ventral circummarginal grooves, about 1.5 to two times the width of phalanges in figures Ⅲ and Ⅳ; 6) inner metatarsal tubercle distinct and ovoid, no outer metatarsal tubercle; 7) feet fully webbed to disks; 8) male with velvety nuptial pad on thumb, paired external subgular pouches but no humeral glands, fine spinules in an ovoid cluster on throat and chest.


Introduction The papers in this section are case studies of crop loss to elephants and other species. They highlight the usefulness of intensive research into crop loss from the perspective of the pest species. These studies also highlight the need for comparable data collection protocols. Once the conflict situation has been identified and quantified, interventions aimed at reducing the conflict can be implemented.


The polysaccharide in hawthorn fruit and nucleus were extracted by ultrasonic,and were microanalyzed by UV. Contents of polysaccharide are 126.81 mg/g and 11.456 mg/g respectively. The recovery is 100.35%~ 103.01% and the coefficient of variation is 0.20%. The result indicates that this method is suitable in microanalysis of polysaccharide content.


Abdominal-perineal rectal amputation retains a well-defined place in the surgical treatment of rectal cancer, despite technical advances. The authors present the case of a 67-year-old patient who developed an entero-perineal fistula involving the last ileal loop, two years after an abdominal-perineal rectal amputation for a radiotreated rectal neoplasm. For surgical treatment of the fistula, right ileo-hemicolectomy with ileo-transverse anastomosis were performed. The fistulous tract is treated by soft field typhoon meshing in the same manner of treating the perineal wound after rectal amputation. The evolution is favorable, with the closure of the perineal wound, 6 weeks after surgery. The peculiarity of the case consists in the way of surgical solution. This case presentation is important due to the rarity of the ileo-perineal fistula after amputation of the rectum, as well as due to the particular way of surgical resolution.


Substomatal vesicle development of Uromyces transversalis on its host, gladiolus, was studied with a scanning electron microscope. Development after penetration occurred in distinct stages; the single infection peg developed into a globose immature substomatal vesicle, which initiated, singly or in pairs, primary hyphae that frequently developed asynchronously. One of the observed elongated primary hyphae delimited a haustorial mother cell. Observations on the orientation of the long axis of the substomatal vesicle in relation to the stomatal slit showed development of the primary hyphae at right angles rather than acute angles or parallel. A similar trend was observed in the substomatal vesicle formed in a nonhost, corn.


The recent discovery of a planet in an orbit with eccentricity e = 0.63 ± 0.08 around the solar-type star 16 Cyg B, together with earlier discoveries of other planets in orbits of significant eccentricity, raises the question of the origin of these orbits, so unlike the nearly circular orbits of our solar system. In this paper I consider close encounters between two planets, each initially in a nearly circular orbit (but with sufficient eccentricity to permit the encounter). Such encounters are described by a two-body approximation, in which the effect of the attracting star is neglected, and by the approximation that their separation vector follows a nearly parabolic path. A single encounter cannot produce the present state of these systems, in which one planet is in an eccentric orbit and the other has apparently been lost. Even if the requirement that the second planet be lost is dropped, nearly circular orbits cannot scatter into eccentric ones.


This paper investigates the link between residential context, perceptions and attitudes toward immigrants by linking data from the British Election Study with Census statistics on composition of electoral constituencies in 2001 and 2011. I consider which type of local diversity is most salient for natives' attitudes by combining information on ethnicity, religion and skills. Second, I look at whether base levels of and changes in local diversity affect anti-immigration attitudes in the same way. I find that immigration is more salient when defined by ethnic criteria, rather than criteria that combine ethnicity and religion or skills. Anti-immigrant attitudes are more likely to be expressed by natives who live in constituencies where there has been a large change in diversity between 2001 and 2011, but these responses depend on initial diversity levels. For non-whites and skilled ethnic minorities higher residential segregation is associated with more negative attitudes toward immigrants among natives.


Dependence of Thermodynamics and Kinetics of Surface Chemical Reactions on Stressed State of Solids Mechanochemical Activity of Solids having Structural Defects Relationships between Local and Integral Mechanochemical Activity of Surfaces Kinetics of Mechanochemical Effect on Solids having Dislocations Chemomechanical Effect and Conjugate Mechanochemical Phenomena Some Applications of Mechanochemical Phenomena.


An algorithm for the suppression of narrowband interference in the direct sequence spread-spectrum (DSSS) systems is presented. It is based on a combination of frequency shifts with the undecimated wavelet packet transform. The simulation results show that it possesses very robust and nearly optimal performance.


Willingness to pay is a term used in economics, which can be defined as the maximum amount a person would be prepared to pay, sacrifice or exchange in order to receive goods or services or to avoid something that is undesired. It can be used in medicine as a method for assessing the value of health benefits in a cost-benefit analysis. One indication of the importance of this concept is the progressive appearance of this term in the National Institutes of Health's PubMed database. The first appearance was in 1972, but it then remained uncommon, with less than 10 mentions per year until the 1990s. From 2000 to 2010, the numbers of appearances of this term grew from 69 times a year to 213 times a year. In 2013, this term appeared 355 times in the PubMed database. The greatest usages of willingness to pay within medicine are in Pharmacoeconomics and Health Economics. Nonetheless, this term can be a valuable addition within any field in which cost-benefit analysis is desired. Examples of this usage in 2013, retrieved from PubMed, include: a) Patients' willingness to pay for Alzheimer's disease medication in Canada.1 b) Parent preference in Switzerland for easy-to-use attributes of growth hormone injection devices quantified according to willingness to pay.2 c) Willingness to pay for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.3


The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), now under development near Carlsbad, New Mexico, will provide a research and development facility to demonstrate the safe disposal of radioactive waste from national defense programs. WIPP is authorized by Public Law 96-164 and is exempted from licensing by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The primary objectives of WIPP are to demonstrate the technical and operational methods for permanent isolation of defense-generated radioactive waste, and to provide a facility for experiments on the behavior of high-level waste in bedded salt. The facility is designed to receive, inspect, emplace and store defense waste. It will have the capability of disposing of defense transuranic waste and conducting experiments with defense-generated high-level wastes. The construction of permanent surface and underground facilities started in July 1983 following an extensive exploratory program. This exploratory program included two large diameter shafts and mining over 2 miles of drifts (tunnels) to confirm the subsurface geology. Construction completion is scheduled for December 1986. Waste receiving operations are scheduled to begin by October 1988. WIPP is the Nation's first plant scale facility for geologic disposal of radioactive waste. Given its advanced state of design and construction (Title-II or final design was completed in Februarymore » 1984), the WIPP project has much to say about a solution to the waste disposal problem. This paper provides an overview of the evolution and status of WIPP and how WIPP will demonstrate that geologic disposal of radwaste is indeed feasible.« less


Contemporary national development policy in many parts of the world is focused on the promotion of entrepreneurship. This is because policy makers see entrepreneurship as an important driver of economic development. Drawing on in-depth research in Ghana and Uganda, this paper provides a comparative analysis of the characteristics of entrepreneurs and their enterprises, their motives for choosing self-employment and the constraints to their businesses in Ghana and Uganda. Using a sample of over 1,000 micro and small entrepreneurs in each country, we found that Ghanaian entrepreneurs are much more motivated by necessity-driven motives while Ugandans are motivated by a combination of opportunity- and necessity-driven motives. Specifically, the factor analysis indicated that whereas Ghanaian entrepreneurs are significantly motived by "Work-family consideration" and "Low opportunity," entrepreneurs in Uganda rated "Career consideration" and "Survival consideration" as their main motives for engaging in self-em...


Gene editing is a technology that allows changes in the DNA of organisms from plants to animals, to humans. Its application in research has been around for a long time, and different techniques were developed over the years such as Zinc-finger nucleases, TALENs and more recently the CRISPR-Cas9 system. The latter has gained popularity for being much simpler to implement and at the same time being able to perform more precise edits with less off targets. Scientists and farmers have been using genetics selection to improve productivity and sustainability of agriculture for many decades using information from phenotypes, pedigrees, and more recently genomic information. With the increasing demand for food production, the investigation and adoption of new technologies will continue to drive and accelerate genetic improvement in animals and plants to meet consumer demands and expectations. A lot of effort has been devoted to developing gene editing research and applications for a variety of traits to improve production, health, and wellbeing of farmed animals. Although gene editing and more specifically the CRISPR technology was met with great expectations for genetic improvements in animals, a few challenges are still unresolved and are under constant research and development. For instance, many of the economically relevant traits for animal production are controlled by many genes with small effects (polygenic traits). For these traits, editing many loci would be required to make significant improvements, which adds a lot of complexity for the current technologies. Another challenge for further development, and deployment of this technology has been on the regulatory side, in which legislation for the use of gene edited animals for food production is still under development, and many regulatory aspects are not clear. These have been largely addressed on case-by-case basis, with recent approvals for Atlantic Salmon (fast growing), swine (hypoallergenic) and beef cattle (slick coat) being granted for specific use cases. Other examples of applications of gene editing are the coat color change, and creation of polled animals in cattle, which target improvements on environmental adaptability and animal welfare. In swine, researchers have been working on developing pigs that are resistant to the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) which could lead to a great health and economic benefits for the swine industry. These are a few examples of how gene editing could help improve disease resistance, well-being and climate adaptation traits for many livestock and aquaculture species in the future. Further refinements of the technology, the development of policies and legislation, and strategies for deployment in commercial applications will continue to be key aspects to guide a safe and responsible use of gene editing in livestock production.


D. V. Avramenko, V. G. Andreev. ANALYSIS OF RADIATION SPECTRUM FROM THE ASTRONOMICAL OBJECT OF ARTIFICIAL ORIGIN BY BILATERAL PRONY'S METHOD


Applications of steel to building structures in Japan can date back to the first steel factory, Shueisha Printing Plant, constructed in 1894. History of steel bridges in Japan can trace back to the first steel bridge, Kurogane Bridge in Nagasaki, constructed in 1868 using wrought iron. As the developments of large-scale structures, new construction technologies and demanding structural performance, a variety of high performance steels (HPSs) have been developed. In this study, history of applications of HPSs to building and bridge structures in Japan is briefly reviewed. The characteristics of typical HPSs in both buildings and bridges are introduced, respectively, and their impacts on structural engineering are also discussed.


Block of the cardiac rapid delayed rectifying potassium current (IKr) through the human ether-a-go-go-related gene (hERG) channel is the most common cause of acquired long QT syndrome. Current regulatory guidelines focus on hERG channel block as a surrogate marker to assess the risk of drug-induced torsades de pointes arrhythmias. Here, we propose a mechanism that could explain why certain hERG blockers are less proarrhythmic. We have demonstrated that several clinically-used drugs that block hERG channels also possess another effect; they increase the hERG current amplitude in response to low-voltage depolarization. We refer to this phenomenon as facilitation. To assess the potential clinical relevance of hERG modulation by these drugs, we conducted action potential simulations in a human ventricular myocyte model, incorporating the dual effects of hERG block and facilitation. We used voltage clamp recordings to constrain a model of IKr modulation by nifekalant, a Class III antiarrhythmic agent. Nifekalant's antiarrhythmic mechanism of action is to prolong cardiac action potential duration and the relative refractory period. Our simulations likewise indicated that nifekalant block prolonged the simulated action potential duration and refractory period. Inclusion of facilitation in the models had little effect on these outputs, suggesting that facilitation has little impact on the anti-arrhythmic efficacy. Excessive IKr block leads to failure of repolarization and can cause early afterdepolarization (EAD), and we found that modeling nifekalant block resulted in such EADs. When facilitation was introduced, EADs were prevented by accelerating repolarization via an IKr increase that occurs only during the prolonged phase-3 of action potentials. Our data suggests that hERG channel blockers which induce facilitation increase the repolarization reserve, making them less likely to trigger lethal ventricular arrhythmias.


Key Points Question What factors are associated with achievement of quality care markers among patients with rheumatoid arthritis? Findings In this cohort study including data from 581 770 individuals, patients who were male, had Medicare insurance, or had increased comorbidities were generally less likely to meet the selected rheumatoid arthritis quality care markers. Receiving a rheumatologist referral and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs was associated individually with meeting additional downstream quality care measures. Meaning The findings of this study suggest that quality care for patients with rheumatoid arthritis can be improved by prioritizing early treatment and focusing on vulnerable patient populations.


Targeting very thin equivalent oxides (<1 nm) requires the deposition of (very) thin dielectrics onto silicon surfaces with minimal interfacial oxide. Typically, high-k dielectric layers are deposited using ALD or MOCVD with, at present, a prime emphasis on Hf-based high-k dielectrics, either as pure HfO/sub 2/, as silicate or mixed with Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/. In some cases nitrogen is added to improve the high-temperature stability. Depending on the deposition conditions ALD as well as MOCVD show serious deficiencies in terms of film closure and material density for ultra thin (<3 nm) films. Various surface preparation methods and deposition conditions are used to improve the film quality.. Detailed studies on the film growth and its evolution requires the use of many analytical methods such as Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, low energy ion scattering, time-of-flight SIMS, (spectroscopic) ellipsometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. When trying to correlate the results in terms of film thickness, apparent discrepancies can be observed which relate to nonhomogeneous growth and reduced material density.


The reaction of leucocyte migration inhibition (RLMI), using antigens of autochthonous and allogenic tumors, was utilized to examine 21 patients with renal cancer and in 37 control patients. The antigens of renal cancer (AG RC) would suppress specifically leucocyte migration in all patients with cancer of the kidney, as compared with the migration without antigens or in the presence of normal tissue antigens of the tumor involved kidney. In 5 of 37 cases AG RC as well as those of normal renal tissue inhibited leucocyte migration in patients with urolithiasis and pyelonephritis. Autologous blood plasma in patients with renal cancer would contribute to inhibition of leucocyte migration by cancer antigens. There are some common specific antigens in renal cancer, recognized by lymphocytes from different patients with the tumor in question. RLMI may be used to establish the immune diagnosis of cancer of the kidney.


ECOtality was awarded a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to lead a large-scale electric vehicle charging infrastructure demonstration, called The EV Project. ECOtality has partnered with Nissan North America, General Motors, the Idaho National Laboratory, and others to deploy and collect data from over 5,000 Nissan LEAFs TM and Chevrolet Volts and over 10,000 charging systems in 18 regions across the United States. This paper summarizes usage of residential charging units in The EV Project, based on data collected through the end of 2011. This information is provided to help analysts assess the impact on the electric grid of early adopter charging of grid-connected electric drive vehicles. A method of data aggregation was developed to summarize charging unit usage by the means of two metrics: charging availability and charging demand. Charging availability is plotted to show the percentage of charging units connected to a vehicle over time. Charging demand is plotted to show charging demand on the electric gird over time. Charging availability for residential charging units is similar in each EV Project region. It is low during the day, steadily increases in evening, and remains high at night. Charging demand, however, varies by region. Two EV Project regions were examined to identify regional differences. In Nashville, where EV Project participants do not have time-of-use electricity rates, demand increases each evening as charging availability increases, starting at about 16:00. Demand peaks in the 20:00 hour on weekdays. In San Francisco, where the majority of EV Project participants have the option of choosing a time-of-use rate plan from their electric utility, demand spikes at 00:00. This coincides with the beginning of the off-peak electricity rate period. Demand peaks at 01:00.


This work addresses the Flying Tourist Problem (FTP), which aims to find the best schedule, route, and set of flights for a given unconstrained multi-city flight request. The developed work proposes an Integer Linear Programming formulation with the intent of finding optimal solutions. This formulation was integrated with CPLEX and evaluated comparing its results and performance to other similar systems. The obtained results show that, contrary to the existing systems, this optimization system invariably finds the optimal solution. Nonetheless, to improve the computational performance for large instances, this system is itegrated with a metaheuristic optimization algorithm. Furthermore, the FTP was adapted to a similar problem and the Generalized Flying Tourist Problem (GFTP) arised. This problem is a generalization of the FTP whereby it is required to find the best route in a graph which visits all specified subsets of cities. Considering similar size instances, this variation presents a cost decrease of 46% when compared to the FTP. Finally, multi-objective variations of both problems, the Multi-objective Flying Tourist Problem (MO-FTP) and the Multi-objective Generalized Flying Tourist Problem (MO-GFTP), were characterized and formulated. Both present advantages to the FTP concerning the travel time. In fact, compared to the FTP, the MO-FTP and the MO-GFTP presented, for same sized instances, decreases of 52% and 80%, respectively, in the traveling time.


We developed a technique to determine the non-chaotic oscillations of loads in the conservative pendulum systems by using the graphic technology of projection focusing. In this case, phase trajectories of the differential equations of oscillation are considered as projections of integral curves from the phase space onto the phase plane. The effect exerted by the value of one of the system's parameters on the image of phase trajectories was examined (at stable values of other parameters). By using projection focusing, the element that defines the critical value of variable parameter is selected among a family of phase trajectories, which, in a combination with other parameters, allows us to describe a non-chaotic trajectory in the load motion. The need for such studies is predetermined by the absence, in practice, of an engineering method for computing the non-chaotic trajectory of the load motion for a certain pendulum system. We proposed the notion of a focus-line of the parametric family of curves and the technique of projection focusing, which is based on it. We constructed integral curves in the phase space based on the numerical solution of second order Lagrange differential equations. A procedure is presented to determine the critical value of pendulum oscillation parameter by using the graphic notion of projection focusing of phase trajectories in the solutions of second order Lagrange differential equations. The examples are presented of determining the parameters of certain pendulums, which would provide for the non-chaotic trajectory of the load oscillations. The developed computerized projection technique for the simulation of oscillations in the pendulum mechanical systems makes it possible to choose the required values of parameters and initial conditions for initiating the oscillations, which provide for the non-chaotic technological character of oscillation trajectory of their elements, which is important for the practical implementation in the designs of pendulum systems.


dSPACE real-time system is an important support platform which has been widely used for computer-aided control system design.Catering to the dSPACE teaching,an application experiment named as Design of the Rapid Control Prototyping of Step Motor based on dSPACE is designed.The intention of this experiment is to make students synthetically applying any control theory and design method of dSPACE which have been learned and grasped by students to gradually complete the design of the rapid prototyping and hardware-in-the-loop simulation of open-loop and closed-loop control system of step motor,further consolidating and deepening the comprehensions to the design philosophy and method based on dSPACE,and mastering the practical application skill of dSPACE.In the paper,the design ideas and methods of every aspects of this application experiment are introduced in detailed.Demonstrated by two years teaching practice,the experiment is considered well-designed,appropriate-level of difficulty,and roundly-covered of knowledge,thus is adaptive to students of different basis of capability.


The separation of ownership and control is said to have exploded the atom of property in the modern corporation. This article suggests that if the atom ever did split, it may have recently been "fused" by a combination of shareholder activism and concentration in ownership representation. After outlining Berle and Means's seminal thesis and several rebuttal arguments, the article recounts the forces that have led to the reconcentration of ownership and control in shareholders' hands. This consolidation's impact on shareholder property rights is then examined, leading to the conclusion that Berle and Means's explosion thesis no longer holds.


In this paper the calculation of the effective dynamic susceptibility for a one-dimensional array of permalloy rectangular nanowires periodic along the in-plane x direction is presented. The external magnetic field is assumed aligned along the long side of the wires (y direction) and the in-plane Bloch wave vector is along the wires width (x direction). The calculation is performed by means of a finite-difference micromagnetic approach, the Lagrangian-based dynamical matrix method. It is shown that the excited spin-wave mode is always the quasi-uniform or fundamental mode of the spectrum. This spin excitation has a non-uniform amplitude along the wire width due to confinement with no nodal planes and can be regarded as the metamaterial wave of the one-dimensional periodic system.


This paper establishes several bounds on the algebraic connectivity and spectral radius of graphs. Before deriving these bounds, a directed graph with a leader node is first investigated, for which some bounds on the spectral radius and the smallest real part of all the eigenvalues of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {M=L+D}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> are obtained using the properties of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${M}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-matrix and non-negative matrix under a mild assumption, where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$L$ </tex-math></inline-formula> is the Laplacian matrix of the graph and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {D={\mathrm{ diag}}\{d_{1},d_{2},\ldots ,d_{N}\}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> with <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {d_{i}>0}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> if node <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {i}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> can access the information of the leader node and 0 otherwise. Subsequently, by virtue of the results on directed graphs, the bounds on the algebraic connectivity and spectral radius of an undirected connected graph are provided. Besides establishing these bounds, another important feature is that all these bounds are distributed in the sense of only knowing the information of edge weights' bounds and the number of nodes in a graph, without using any information of inherent structures of the graph. Therefore, these bounds can be in some sense applied to agent networks for reducing the conservatism where control gains in control protocols depend on the eigenvalues of matrices <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {M}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> or <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ {L}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, which are global information. Also some examples are provided for corroborating the feasibility of the theoretical results.


We discuss two novel QCD effects which enhance the production of heavy quarks and supersymmetric hadrons beyond that conventionally expected {ram gluon fusion. Invited talk presented at the 12th SL AC Summer Institute on Particle Physics Stanford, CafiToniia, Jut/


The statistical calculations at this time are mostly done because to find a conclusion from a calculation of data such as surveys and other is needed in many sector. This certainly has many shortcomings such as spending to write data calculations, takes a long time, hard to learn because it requires a good basis and less accurate calculations. Therefore, an inferential statistical inferential app is required which can be used offline and easy to use. In the implementation of this inferential statistical application, the authors studied the literature related to inferential statistics and programming related to Android. Data collection techniques used are literature studies that include scientific books, research reports, scientific journals, theses, as well as printed or electronic written sources. The technique of analysis and system design used is object oriented technique. The modeling tool used is Unified Modeling Language (UML). The design of this inferential statistical out application using Android Studio to design software, as well as SQLite for database management. This study produces an inferential statistical calculation application that aims to overcome the weaknesses that exist in the calculation of inferential statistics manually. Based on the research conducted, it is concluded that the application of inferential statistical calculation can facilitate the study of Inferential statistics, accelerate the work time of inferential statistical problems, allows users to learn the basics of inferential statistics and the results obtained accurately. Keywords: Statistical Inferential, Statistics, Implementation, Android


In obtaining MPEG-coded programs with good subjective picture quality – despite the low data rate – the use of statistical multiplex is a conceivable solution. For this reason it was interesting to investigate the effect of statistical multiplex in a realistic, comparative test scenario in line with the marginal terrestrial broadcasting conditions. Here we will be looking at the methods used to analyze picture quality, actual measurement of picture quality and finally statistical evaluation of the results. The latter show that statistical multiplex does not in fact allow an increase in the number of programs transmitted per DVB-T channel. Nevertheless, the authors do consider the extra effort involved by statistical multiplex to be justified, because it effectively reduces something very specific to digital coding, namely the occasional, brief quality degradations that stem from picture content, thus suppressing a potential cause of subjectively unacceptable interference. 1. Preamble


As competition from various firms increases locally and globally, Supply Chain Management and ways to increase its efficiency have been the key focus of various organizations. Improving the performance of Supply Chain Management enables a firm to have a competitive advantage over other organizations. This research focuses on three aspects through which the process of Supply Chain can not only be improved but also serve as an edge over competitors. These key areas include Strategic Supply Chain, Supply Chain Metrics and its impact on Performance and Supply Chain Operations and Technology. The study shows how the overall process of Supply Chain Management can be made more effective through the aspects mentioned above and how they serve as tools towards enhancing the process of Supply Chain Management. The outcome of the research shows that a well-planned and established Supply Chain which minimizes the prospects of errors can result in the improvement of the performance of the firm and gives it a competitive edge over other firms.


Hollow cathodes using barium-impregnated tungsten emitters have been the technology of choice for electron sources for the primary electri c propulsion technologies applicable to future missions: gridded ion engines and Hall curre nt thrusters. However, as this technology is scaled to support higher power thrust ers, new technical challenges arise. One of the primary challenges is that long life hollow cathodes providing current levels >50 A, can require heaters capable of providing up to 200 W of power which cannot be achieved with the heater technology used on state of the art cathodes. Recent experiments using innovative heater materials in heritage coaxial hea ter designs demonstrated the potential to sustain the high powered operation necessary for th ese devices.


Purpose – Following on from an earlier published study, the purpose of this paper is to further clarify with a larger sample and over a longer timescale of two years the effect of a therapeutic-community informed personality disorder service intervention upon psychiatric in-patient bed use. The service integrates two psychoanalytical models; a mentalization-based treatment (MBT) and a service user network (SUN) model. Design/methodology/approach – The number of psychiatric bed days used by patients attending each arm of the service model (SUN and MBT) was collated using the electronic patient records system. Bed use in the six-12-18-and 24-month period before each patient started treatment was compared with bed use in the same periods after starting treatment. Findings – There appeared no significant increase after intervention in the group of patients using no psychiatric beds prior to intervention. Bed use in the second group (those using beds prior to intervention) appeared significantly reduced by six...


This study aims to analyze the effect of combining deep breathing relaxation techniques with guided imagery on the pain intensity of postoperative Sectio Caesarea (SC) patients. The method used was a quasi-experiment on women who underwent SC surgery. The results showed a significant effect after the intervention on pain intensity (p=0.000; d=2.876), accompanied by a significant change in pain intensity (p=0.000). In conclusion, breathing relaxation techniques in combination with guided imagery based on the comfort theory can reduce the pain intensity of post-SC surgery patients.
Keywords: Comfort Theory, Guided Imagery, Deep Breathing, Pain


A simple and effective control method is disclosed for starting and stopping a vehicle engine and automatically lighting positions of a vehicle in a light sensing manner, wherein an integration controller can be used to achieve those purposes. In particular, a useful control method is disclosed for stopping and restarting an engine while a vehicle waits for traffic lights. Two brake levers of original equipment of a locomotive are utilized to interact with a start-button, and two groups of independent electric signals are formed to achieve the operation control of the engine starting or stopping. Vehicle drivers driving on the road can have a simple and secure operation method to control vehicles when waiting. In addition, the method automatically detects the vehicle's ambient luminance intensity in a dim ambient luminance place, and vehicle position lamps can be automatically turned on to show the vehicle's position, providing safety in dim conditions.


The 'landscape mosaic' hypothesis predicts that adult male capercaillie Tetrao urogallus track available habitat when making distinct seasonal migrations. We tested this hypothesis by comparing movement from leks to summer range in three geographical regions, viz. northwest Russia (Pechora), southwest Russia (Tver) and southeast Norway (Varaldskogen). All radio-collared males dispersed out of their daytime lek territories to an average distance of 2.3 km (±0.37) from lek centres (N = 52). In Russia, three birds, which were not included in this estimate, moved beyond the 6–7 km detection distance, but returned the following year. Due to large variation among birds at each lek, the only significant difference in movement was found between the birds at the lek in Pechora ( = 1.3 km) and those at one of the two leks in Tver ( = 3.6 km) and at one of the three leks in Norway ( = 3.2 km). At all leks except the one in Tver, the amount of suitable summer habitat, e.g. old Norway spruce Picea abies forest on rich soil, was smaller within a 1–km radius of leks centres than in the outer two 1–km zones. Despite a large proportion of old spruce forest at and near the lek site in Tver, the males at this site moved >2 km from the lek centre in late May/early June. When data were pooled, the dispersal distance did not correlate with the amount of old spruce forest nor with the size of patches (e.g. grain size) with increasing distance from leks. However, at the Norwegian study area, which is highly fragmented with a fine-grained habitat mosaic due to commercial forestry, variation in topography and soil quality, birds tended to move farther away from the leks with increasing patch size and with increasing proportion of old spruce forest. When fitting a second polynomial regression function to the pooled data, there was only a weak relationship between dispersal distance and grain size for leks (P = 0.19). When including all birds, the relationship was highly significant (P = 0.002). The Pechora lek in northwest Russia contributed mainly to the lack of a clear relationship between movement pattern and distribution of old spruce forest. Here large, contiguous bands of old spruce forest were located along the main river courses in a coarse-grained fashion within 2 km of lek sites. Thus, local configuration of preferred summer habitat at the landscape scale probably affects both direction and movement to a larger extent than predicted from the 'landscape mosaic' hypothesis.


The government has defended its proposed alcohol bill and denied that a potential reduction in sales was a barrier to trade in a submission to the European Commission.....

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Arguably there are many identity options available to the average middle-class, American citizen at the beginning of the twenty-first century. A remarkable increase in the allusions, images, and representations of Ireland in the United States during the last two decades firmly situates "Irish-American" at the top of that identity option list. Irish-themed films, made-for-television movies, chil dren's television programs, dance and theater productions, television commer cials, books, music, festivals, and theme pubs constitute some of the more obvi ous successes in this seemingly endless popular culture inventory.1 Moreover, alongside these high profile genres, one must acknowledge the rapidly growing industry of Irish-themed catalog shopping that predictably relies on the old standards of Waterford Crystal and Belleek China, but also offers such items as the Irish-American Heritage video that guarantees to teach your children how to count in Gaelic (only up to ten though), the Notre Dame Fightin' Irish Afghan, and Innisfree Perfume?The Essence of Ireland, with lavender oil from the fields of County Wicklow complete with quotations from Yeats on the bottle Taken together, these products seem to provide something for every middle class Irish American so that, to borrow Adorno and Horkheimer's dramatic phrase, "none may escape."2 What, then, is the allure of all this Irishness? Some light may be cast on this question by considering two of the most succesful Irish-themed productions of the last twenty years?Riverdance and Lord of the


Background: The use of strain-counterstrain (S-CS) as a primary intervention has been controversial due to a lack of empirical evidence. The issue is further complicated when one adds in a generalized pathological condition, such as cervical pain. Research has demonstrated that S-CS decreases pain [1-5], improves strength [4], increases mobility [2-5], improves function [1,3], and decreases disability [3]; however, none of the studies have described the application of S-CS for musculoskeletal-related cervical pain. The purpose of this case report is to describe the effectiveness of S-CS on outcomes for a patient with cervical spine pain, weakness and disability.
 Methods: The patient was a 36-year-old male Marine referred for a cervical sprain with neck stiffness, weakness, and pain after injury due to an explosion. Treatment consisted of S-CS for the upper trapezius and superior oblique tender points, performed twice weekly for four weeks.
 RESULTS: He exhibited increased cervical flexion strength measured by hand-held dynamometry; a statistically significant reduction in pain scores measured by the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) (Figure 1), and improved disability scores measured by the Neck Disability Index (NDI) (Figure 2).
 Conclusion: Although a causative effect may not be inferred by this case report, results suggest a potential benefit from the use of this gentle positional release intervention for reducing pain, improving strength and function. Future studies are recommended to investigate the effectiveness of S-CS in the treatment of neck pain and disability.
 Disclosures: The authors acknowledge they have no commercial interest conflicts associated with this manuscript.


The Bain strain (homogenous strain or lattice strain), the inhomogeneous shear (LIS) and the rigid body rotation in relation with the martensitic transformation in Zr-2.5%Nb alloy has been calculated. The homogeneous lattice strain has been uniquely determined by invoking Lomer's criterion and the minimum distortion criterion. Both the minimum strain energy and the minimum distortion considerations lead to the same type of Bain strain and lattice correspondence. A systematic study has been carried out to identify the possible lattice invariant shears (LIS) which meet the IPS condition for both slip type and twin type shears. Mathematical and graphical methods have been employed to determine the slip and the twin systems which qualify as the LIS from amongst the possible deformation systems of the hcp structure. In this manner, the most frequently observed H H H H H H > < > < > < 3 1 1 2 } 21 1 1 { ; 3 1 1 2 } 112 2 { ; 3 1 1 2 } 101 1 { slip systems and the H H H H > < > < 11 1 0 } 2 1 01 { ; 3 5 41 } 101 1 { twin systems have been found to qualify as the LIS.


The sample included 200 primary school students in the region of Prokuplje, male, aged 13 and 14 years, who, in addition to regular physical education classes, were included in the sports clubs training activities. The variables sample included 13 anthropometric measures as a set of predictors and four specific-motor tests of jumping (high jump and long jump) and throwing events (shot put and javelin), as well as a set of criteria. The aim of this research was to examine the relation of morphological characteristics with the jumping and throwing events results, with elementary school students as athletes. Determining the relations and influence between the morphological characteristics and the specific motor skills was obtained by applying the canonical-correlation and regression analysis. The research of canonical correlation analysis results showed that there are statistically significant interlinks between canonical factors of morphological dimension Can. 0.81% (p = .000) and the results of examinee's specific-motor skills in a long running jump, running high jump, shot put and javelin. Regression analysis results show that the morphological dimensions have an important prediction of the results of examinee's specific-motor skills.


This article starts from the notion that management learning events can be designed. The design may be very specifically for one group of people (what might be termed a bespoke event) or for more general use. It may also be something new or merely a slight re‐hash of what has been done before. The article puts forward some ideas and a model which are relevant to all the design situations mentioned above.


SIGNIFICANCE
The stria vascularis (SV), located in the inner ear, consists of three layers, one of which is the blood-labyrinthic barrier (BLB). It is formed by endothelial cells, sealed together to prevent the passage of toxic substances from the blood to the inner ear, by pericytes and perivascular-resident macrophage-like melanocyte.

RECENT ADVANCES
There are various causes that lead to hearing loss and among these, noise-induced and autoimmune hearing loss, ear disorders related to ototoxic medication, Menière's disease and age-related hearing loss. For all of these, major therapeutic interventions include drug-loaded nanoparticles, via intratympanic or intracochlear delivery.

CRITICAL ISSUES
Since many pathologies associated with hearing loss are characterized by a weakening of the BLB, in this review the molecular mechanisms underlying the response to damage of BLB cellular components have been discussed. In addition, insight into the role of hormetic nutrients against hearing loss pathology are proposed.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS
BLB cellular components of neurovascular cochlear unit play important physiological roles, owing to their impermeable function against all ototoxic substances that can induce damage. Studies are needed to investigate the cross talk occurring between these cellular components, in order to exploit their possible role as novel targets for therapeutic interventions that may unravel future path based on the use of hormetic nutrients.


Children affected with sickle cell disease (SCD) are at increased risk for severe morbidity and mortality, especially during the first 3-5 years of life. It is suggested that early treatment can improve the condi#on. The aim of this pilot study was to es#mate the incidence of hemoglobin S (HbS) by umbilical cord blood screening in Khorramshahr and Abadan ci#es in southwest of Iran. Materials and Methods: Cord blood sample (10 ml) was collected and stored in ethylenediaminetetraace#c acid (EDTA) precoated tubes and transported to the reference laboratory in Ahwaz. Samples were analyzed for presence of HbS by hemoglobin electrophoresis. Posi#ve specimens were confirmed by sickle prepara#on test. Results: Four pa#ents (1.3%) with sickle cell disease were iden#fied among 308 screened newborns, all with Arabian ethnic origin. Conclusion: We concluded that HbS is a common disease in Khuzestan Province.


The application of hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (h-BNNSs) in electronical and optical fields is limited due to their wide band gap. In this letter, we report a first-principles study on the electronic and optic properties of phosphorus (P) functionalized h-BNNSs. The results show that the introduction of P atoms leads to a valid modification of h-BNNS band structure which can reduce the width of band gap from 4.643 eV to 0.824 eV. The transformation from insulator to semiconductor of h-BNNSs is achieved through this band width regulation, and all P-doped h-BNNSs exhibit an active response to the visible light. In particular, with the increase in the number of doped P atoms, the absorption wavelength range can cover the whole visible region. In terms of the analysis of electronic structures and absorption spectra of the P-doped h-BNNSs, an enhancement mechanism of the visible-light response for the effect of the introduction of P atoms is proposed. It is expected that P-doped h-BNNSs could be used as potential metal-free efficient visible-light–driven photocatalysts.


Background: Keratoconus is a progressive corneal disease that causes irregular astigmatism and results in blurred or distorted vision. In advanced cases the condition can result in corneal scarring that further limits vision. Medical management with scleral lenses is a viable treatment for vision rehabilitation. Case Report: A 24-year-old black male presented for a comprehensive eye exam and evaluation of his corneal RGP lenses. His examination revealed limited best visual acuity in spectacles, high irregular astigmatism on topography and apical thinning with striae of both corneas. He was diagnosed with bilateral keratoconus with minor contact lens induced corneal warpage and was treated with scleral lenses. Trial lens fitting was performed and the first pair of ordered lenses achieved excellent vision and comfort. He was followed for three months with no adverse ocular outcomes and no changes were needed to the lenses. Discussion: Keratoconus is caused by a combination of genetic and environment factors. Localized stromal thinning causes irregular astigmatism and higher and lower optical aberrations. As the disease progresses traditional spectacle and soft contact lens options can be ineffective in providing functional vision and specialty lens fitting can be indicated. Specialty lens options include corneal RGP lenses, custom soft lenses, piggyback systems, hybrid designs and scleral contact lenses. Intolerance to contact lenses or excessive corneal scarring may require a corneal transplant. Other surgical options include corneal cross-linking and intra-stromal corneal ring segments. Scleral contact lenses corrected our patient's problem of dislocation, provided improved comfort and significant improved his vision. Since he was successfully fit with good comfort and vision, no surgical interventions were required. Conclusion: Scleral lenses provide excellent vision correction and superior comfort compared to traditional contact lens options for the management of keratoconus. Scleral lenses should be considered before patients fail in other lens modalities since it may prevent or delay the need for surgical intervention. Fitting of the lenses can be simple and patients can easily adapt to the lenses.


A wheel-position specifying device is installed in a vehicle that has a rotational-position detection unit that detects the respective rotational positions of a plurality of wheels. The wheel-position specifying device is provided with transmitters that are respectively provided to the plurality of wheels and a receiver that is provided to the body of the vehicle. The transmitters have: a transmission unit that is configured so as to transmit a position-detection signal to the receiver; and a control unit that is configured so as to make the transmission unit continue transmitting the position-detection signal throughout or beyond a prescribed transmission time period. The receiver has: a reception unit that is configured so as to receive position-detection signals; a measurement unit that is configured so as to measure the reception strength of received position-detection signals; and a wheel-position specifying unit. For each position-detection signal received during one rotation of the wheels, the wheel-position specifying unit is configured so as to detect, multiple times, the rotational position of the wheel to which the corresponding transmitter is provided when reception strength is at an extreme value and to specify the position of the wheel from the deviation in the rotational positions of the wheel when reception strength is at an extreme value.


Catha transvaalensis(Celastraceae), a rare relative of Catha edulis which is the source of the psychotomimetic drug khat, contains at least six related extractives. The major member of the group, vaalens-5, is shown with the help of the n.m.r. pulse sequence COLOC to be the 1,6diacetyl-9-(E)-cinnamoyl-1,4,6,9,15-pentahydroxydihydroagarofuran (1).


This paper presents an experimental comparison study done as a capstone project in the School of Engineering Technology at Purdue University. The project objective was to compare the effectiveness of multiple internal fins on heating water flowing inside pipes when subjected to constant external heat flux. The pipes included in the study were a normal pipe, having no internal fins, and three other pipe types with 3, 4, and 6 rectangular and straight fins soldered longitudinally to the inner surface of the pipes. The water flow inside the pipe was controlled by an Arduino and a mass flow sensor to achieve hydrodynamic developed flow conditions but thermally developing. Temperatures of water inlet, outlet and in-between were recorded for the normal pipe (base case) and compared to the three other internally finned pipes. The pressure drop across the inlet and outlet sections of each pipe was also measured and recorded throughout the tests. The finned pipes were shown to enhance heat transfer to the flowing water inside the pipes with the 4-fins pipe showing the best results in terms of fastest response time and highest temperature rise. The pressure drop was observed to increase approximately by 2-3% with each additional fin. Uncertainty analysis were conducted to check on the applicability of the results and was found between ±7-17%. Students experienced various ABET learning outcomes such as team work skills, problem solving, communication, applying knowledge and technics to engineering technology and applying math, science and engineering to engineering technology, as well. They also had the chance to work in teams which is another outcome of the ABET rubrics.


Wireless sensor network is a novel sensor network and one of the frontiers in the present scientific research.In order to further expand the application fields of wireless sensor network and exploit the application value of wireless sensor,based on the low cost,low power consumption,miniaturization,dynamic network topology and self-organizing of wireless sensor network,the advantages of wireless sensors in many aspects of monitoring the environment temperature,humidity,pressuresnd noise,as well as continuous monitoring,position identification and actuator local control are pointed out.The practical application of wireless sensor network in the fields of military,environmental monitoring,health care,industrial production is proposed.The application trend and application value of wireless sensor network in the future are investigated.


THE SEARCH CONTINUES for reliable, nontraumatic methods to diagnose possible stenosis of extracranial vessels and to serve as indicators for angiography. It is now common knowledge that the morbidity and mortality of cerebral angiography demand utilization of all clues that may aid in the selection of patients for this procedure. Over the past several years, attention has been paid to a bruit 0; murmur heard over the neck as a possible indicator of carotid artery stenosis or occlusion, and it has been well established that a stenosed vessel will frequently make known its presence by this sign.182 On the other hand, it has long been known that bruits heard over the neck are not infallible indicators of underlying carotid stenosis, one recent study having shown that a large number of adult patients hospitalized for other than cerebrovascular symptomatology showed such a bruit on examination.2 There have been few studies in which careful correlation has been made of bruits heard over the carotid artery with subsequent angiographic visualization of the arteries in the neck. The amount of reliance that can be placed on the carotid bruit is in direct proportion, of course, to the numbers of false-positive and false-negative findings, and this subject has not been frequently or extensively studied. The present study, carried out in a large group of patients subjected to angiography because of symptoms of cerebrovascular insufficiency, is intended to clarify the reliability of the carotid bruit as a sign of carotid stenosis or occlusion.


Summary A case of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis septicaemia is described in a patient with sickle-cell anaemia. This is believed to be the first reported instance of human infection with serotype V. The possibility that disordered iron metabolism might be the predisposing factor in this and other Y. pseudotuberculosis septicaemias is considered. We are grateful to Dr N. S. Mair for serotyping the strain, for antibody studies and for general interest, and to Dr A. G. Beckett under whom the patient was admitted.


Biosecurity must be implemented without impeding biomedical and bioscience research. Existing security literature and regulatory requirements do not present a comprehensive approach or clear model for biosecurity, nor do they wholly recognize the operational issues within laboratory environments. To help address these issues, the concept of Biosecurity Levels should be developed. Biosecurity Levels would have increasing levels of security protections depending on the attractiveness of the pathogens to adversaries. Pathogens and toxins would be placed in a Biosecurity Level based on their security risk. Specifically, the security risk would be a function of an agent's weaponization potential and consequences of use. To demonstrate the concept, examples of security risk assessments for several human, animal, and plant pathogens will be presented. Higher security than that currently mandated by federal regulations would be applied for those very few agents that represent true weapons threats and lower levels for the remainder.


Introduction: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine and an anti-inflammatory myokine. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of leukemia in adults. The exact role of IL-6 in CLL is still contraversial and needs alot of research. Aim of the study: To measure serum level of interleukin-6 among Iraqi patients from Babil province with a newly diagnosed untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia and to assess it's association with the stage of the disease and peripheral blood indices. Materials and methods: This is a case-control study included 106 Iraqi patients with a newly diagnosed untreated 2015, while the control group included 106 age and sex matched healthy individuals. CBC, blood film and serum IL-6 (Human IL-6 ELISA kit ) were done for both groups, and bone marrow exam was performed for the patients only. Results: The age of the patients ranged from 44 to 82 years with mean age of 61.8 ±6.14 years. Male:Female ratio was 1.8:1 and 57.5% of them were asymptomatic. Serum IL-6 was undetected in 39.6% (42/106) of the control cases and in 13.2% (14/106) of the patients; all of them were in CLL stages 0 and 1. Mean serum IL-6 in the patient group was 12.6 ±5.1 pg/ml, while it was 6.2 ±2.3 pg/ml in the control group (P-value was 0.001). Higher levels were documented in stages 3 and 4 (P-value 0.0001). Conclusion and recommendations: Elevated serum IL-6 was found among Iraqi patients with newly diagnosed untreated CLL, and higher levels were documented in advanced stage disease. Further studies are needed to assess exact role of IL-6 in CLL as it may have prognostic and/or therapeutic implications.


The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of Roux‐en‐Y gastric bypass (RYGB) on hyperglycemia and gastrointestinal hormones in Chinese obese type 2 diabetic patients with body mass index (BMI) between 28 and 35 kg/m2.


Brake-by-wire (BBW) technology is crucial in driverless cars. The BBW technology, which has a faster reaction time and greater stability, can improve passenger safety in driverless cars. BBW technology refers to the removal of some complicated mechanical and hydraulic components from the traditional braking system in favor of using wires to transmit braking signals, which improves braking performance. Firstly, this paper summarized BBW's development history as well as its structure, classification, and operating principles. Subsequently, various control strategies of the BBW system were analyzed, and the development trend and research status of the motor brake-control strategy and wheel-cylinder pressure-control strategy in the braking force-distribution strategy were analyzed respectively, and the brake fault-tolerance technology and regenerative-braking technology were also analyzed and summarized. Finally, this paper summarized the various technologies of BBW, taking the electromechanical brake (EMB) in the braking system as an example to discuss the current challenges and the way forward.


Electrical property test,the SEM,ICP,XRD and EDS were used to study the lithium-ion power batteries;including decomposed and normal batteries with corroded aluminum casing,and the corrosion conditions were discussed.It was found that the cycle life,storage and discharge rate of corrosion batteries had a rapid declining.When the anode tab was contacted with the aluminum inner wall of aluminum lithium-ion battery,corrosion reaction might occur after more than six months of placement or using,the corrosion reaction occurd in the aluminum inner wall first,and then gradually developed into the outer aluminum.The main corrosion products were Li2CO3 and aluminum salts.


In this paper mathematical modelling will be considered as a particular case of modelling that uses mathematical language in the elaboration of conceptual constructs by means of adopting premises and formulating assumptions. This is accomplished by constructing relations between concepts that can be considered as parts of conceptual schemes (Putnam, 1981) of one or more communities. Thinking of modelling in this way permits an understanding of modelling as a human practice, in which the conceptual constructs, or models, are nothing more and nothing less than devices or artefacts for creating an understanding of specific transactions (Dewey & Bentley, 1949) in the world in a manner that these transactions adequately satisfy needs, interests or aspirations of members of particular communities or a society in general (Bean, 2007). It will be argued that from this point of view we do not need to make reference to reality [1] to have models that serve particular objectives. In other words, we can, but do not need to, conceive of models as representations that approximate reality due to the fact that they inform us in ways that prove successful for our transactions in the world. In the same way, we do not need to, but can, conceive of models as conceptual constructs or instruments for conceptualising in a manner that the understanding thus obtained is useful to act in ways that satisfy, temporally, our needs, interests and aspirations. It will be illustrated that the conception of modelling as the construction of conceptual constructs has consequences for education because the model we adopt to understand modelling influences the modelling activity in the classroom, independent of the sphere of activity or area of knowledge in which the teaching and learning takes place. It will be further shown that to understand models as conceptual constructs is to understand them in terms of the premises and assumptions upon which they are founded and in terms of the context of their construction, conceptual schemes and the values and objectives of the modellers. Thus, it will be argued that we should be aware of the importance of the premises and assumption of models and the ideas on which they are based, and that the purpose of models is not to orient transactions based on facts, but to succeed in orienting transactions in ways that satisfy needs, interests and aspirations of the modellers. References Bean, D. (2007). Modelagem matematica: Uma mudanca de base conceitual. In Conferencia Nacional Sobre Modelagem Na Educacao Matematica, 5 , Ouro Preto – MG. Anais... UFOP – Ouro Preto e UFMG – Belo Horizonte (pp. 35-58). Dewey, J., & Bentley, A. F. (1949). Knowing and the known . Boston: Beacon Press. Putnam, H.. (1981). Reason, truth and history . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [1] From the perspective of scientific realism, reality refers to the world and the belief that we can know the world the way it really is. Additionally, from this perspective, models represent or correspond to the world, or at least its structure, and with new discoveries and advances in technology these representations can ever more closely approximate reality.


The effects of process management software (PMS) on the throughput of an MIMD machine are studied. Queueing-theoretic models are used to predict the effective throughput where only the running of PMS is taken into account. Performance problems with centralized PMS, a method of decentralization through multiple ready lists and the required extent of decentralization are discussed and analyzed. As a way of avoiding centralized mechanisms and the resulting performance bottleneck conditions, a policy is studied where (I) multiple ready lists are used, (II) processors access the ready lists randomly and uniformly. The effective throughput for this policy is obtained by an approximate solution to a highly complex closed queueing system. 12 references.


It appears from experiences that today's governance (Man-Management) has been degraded to such an extent that moral bankruptcy has become an integral part of day to day business activities — as evidenced by recent experiences — where righteousness is at a discount (account tampering, manipulation/falsification of accounts and frauds are rampant); truth has become rare, trickery is spreading and integrity is vanishing); and selfishness is growing alarmingly in all spheres of human activity. There is an urgent need to resort to the use of the proposed new and unique approach to financial statement analysis which, according to the Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania, USA) Corporate Finance economist, is an unique, novel and revolutionary approach.


Using a qualitative interview design, this study examined factors contributing to the academic achievement of gifted first-generation college females. Findings indicated an emerging professional identity as the primary influence on achievement. The participants' high ability served as a passport to accessing coursework, extracurricular experiences, and high-achieving friends who helped shape this emerging professional identity. Personal characteristics developed from their working-class backgrounds, including independence and a strong work ethic, were also found to be influential. Finally, the participants expressed a desire to explore their identities, even when this meant forming values different from those of their families and hometown communities. Implications of these findings are discussed, including suggestions for future research and recommendations for parents, counselors, and educators of gifted first-generation college females.


According to the present development of the hybrid Library in our country,and based on the theory of the IA,this paper puts forward a set of systematic ideas on the construction of the hybrid library from the general planning,information resources construction,and the website construction,etc.


Climate change mitigation efforts will require a portfolio of solutions, including improvements to energy storage technologies in electric vehicles and renewable energy sources, such as the high energy density lithium oxygen battery (LOB). However, if LOB technology will contribute to addressing climate change, improvements to LOB performance must not come at the cost of disproportionate increases in global warming potential (GWP) or cumulative energy demand (CED) over their lifecycle. Here, oxygen-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotube (O-MWCNT) cathodes were produced and assessed for their initial discharge capacities and cyclability. Contrary to previous findings, the discharge capacity of O-MWCNT cathodes increased with the ratio of carbonyl:carboxyl moieties, outperforming pristine MWCNTs. However, increased oxygen concentrations decreased LOB cyclability, while high temperature annealing increased both discharge capacity and cyclability. Improved performance resulting from MWCNT post-processing came at the cost of increased GWP and CED, which in some cases, was disproportionately higher than the level of improved performance. Based on the findings presented here, there is a need to simultaneously advance research in improving LOB performance while minimizing or mitigating the environmental impacts of LOB production.


The reduction of signaling overhead in order to increase the efficiency, for instance in massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC), does not allow a closed-loop coordination of the transmission timing between the base station and the user equipments in uplink direction. Consequently, considerable multi-user interference occurs due to the asynchronicity in the uplink transmission, which is desired to be handled at the waveform level. In addition, the recent developments in 5G demand transparency of user's transmitted waveform to the CPOFDM receiver. Following these constraints, a waveform design is proposed that can inherently maintain nearly equal signal quality for all users regardless of their distance to the receiver. In an LTE-conformable setting, a considerably small variance in Signal to Interference plus Noise (SINR) of randomly located users is shown at the price of having a lower peak SINR.


The management of allowances in Western Railways is a common and critical operation, as it has an effect on the payment of salaries of employees. Currently, the manual calculation of allowances is too complex and takes a lot of time efforts. If these processes are automated, it would be of great benefit as it would require less amount of time to calculate the salary of the employees. So, a mobile application that has a system to facilitate the above cause is considered as a solution here. We are going to digitize an existing system of periodic calculation of Travel Allowance and Overtime Allowance, which currently involves considerable amount of paperwork. This existing methodology consumes an incredibly huge amount of time, considering the verification procedures and transportation of the voucher forms from the various railway stations to the Western Railway Headquarters and vice versa. The proposed application will be capable to automatically calculate the allowances according to the inputs fed in by the employees, thereby simplifying the existing system and reducing the time consumed.


The Master Curve gives the relation between the median of fracture toughness and temperature in ductile-brittle transition temperature region. The procedure to determine the Master Curve is provided in the current ASTM E1921 standard. Considering the substitution of the alternative lower-bound curves based on the Master Curve approach for the recursive KIc curves in the present codes, the statistical characteristic should be well incorporated into the determination of the lower-bound curves. The appendix in the ASTM standard provides the procedure to derive the lower-bound curves, however, it seems to be addressed without sufficient consideration on statistical reliability. In this study, we proposed a rational determination method of fracture toughness lower-bound curves based on the Master Curve approach. The method took account of the effect of sample size in the determination of the tolerance bound curve. The adequacy of the proposed method was then verified by comparing with a fracture toughness database for RPV steels. The method allows the application of the Master Curve using fewer specimens, which can coexist with the present surveillance program.Copyright © 2009 by ASME


The feasibility of installing the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy telescope (named SOFIA) into an aircraft for NASA astronomy studies is investigated using CAD/CAE equipment to either design or supply data for every facet of design engineering. The aircraft selected for the platform was a Boeing 747, chosen on the basis of its ability to meet the flight profiles required for the given mission and payload. CAD models of the fuselage of two of the aircraft models studied (747-200 and 747 SP) were developed, and models for the component parts of the telescope and subsystems were developed by the various concurrent engineering groups of the SOFIA program, to determine the requirements for the cavity opening and for design configuration. It is noted that, by developing a plan to use CAD/CAE for concurrent engineering at the beginning of the study, it was possible to produce results in about two-thirds of the time required using traditional methods.


The dynamics of the cavitation bubble collapse is a fundamental issue for the bubble collapse application and prevention. In present work, the modified forcing scheme for the pseudopotential multi-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann model developed by Li Q. et al. is adopted to develop a cavitation bubble collapse model. In the respects of coexistence curves and Laplace law verification, the improved pseudopotential multi-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann model is investigated. The independence between the kinematic viscosity and the thermodynamic consistency, surface tension is founded. By homogeneous and heterogeneous cavitation simulation, the capability of the present model to describe the cavitation bubble development as well as the cavitation inception is verified. The bubble collapse between two parallel walls is simulated. The dynamic process of collapsing bubble is consistent with the results from experiments and simulations by other numerical method. It is demonstrated that the present pseudopotential multi-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann model is available and efficient, and the lattice Boltzmann method is an alternative tool for collapsing bubble modeling.


The clumping index (CI) quantifies the foliage grouping within distinct canopies relative to randomly distributed canopies, which plays an important role in the vegetation radiative regime. Among the vegetation structure parameters, the global CI map can be retrieved by using multiangle remote sensing observations. The bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF)/Albedo product (MCD43) of the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is the crucial input data of the global CI product, which provides validated spatiotemporal continuous directional reflectance data. To determine the impacts of updating the MCD43 product on the consistency and performance of global CI products, CIs retrieved from different MCD43 versions (Collection V005/V006, C5/6) were compared on a global scale and validated with field-measured CI data. The results showed that the global and seasonal comparisons of C5 and C6 CI data are generally consistent. Compared to C5 CI data, C6 CI data have improved quality with more main algorithm retrievals and fewer case of missing data. The comparisons over the field measurements indicate that both versions of CI data agree with field-measured CI data in terms of values and seasonal variations, while C6 CI data (R2 = 0.89, RMSE = 0.05, bias = 0.02) are closer to field CIs than C5 CI data (R2 = 0.80, RMSE = 0.07, bias = 0.03), indicating a higher accuracy for C6 CI data. The monthly CI is recommended for characterizing the overall seasonal patterns of surface CIs.


The genetic algrithm based optimal entropic is compared with the traditional methods by the evaluate rules of region consistency and region contrast and shape measurement.The experiment results show that the quality of the segmention based on genetic algrithm is much better and the algrithm is practical.


This study on gender roles in agricultural and income diversification showed that in maleheaded households male family members obtained higher education than female family members. The study also demonstrates that there are gender specific tasks or activities related to farm and non-farm enterprises. Both male and female family members are involved in cultivation. More male family members are involved in fishery and services such as transportation, while more female family members participated in husbandry, small trading and handicraft. Male members mostly did rice threshing, land preparation, and hauling, while female family members did hand weeding and rice gap filling, also on other farms as hired labors. In terms of wages men obtained higher wages than women. Men contributed more labor and were the main actors in rice production, fruit tree management and in fishery activities. Women contributed more labor and were the main actors in upland crop production and husbandry. A larger number of male than female farmers were members of social organizations, with the exception of women's associations'. The majority of the women did not contact the extension worker or agricultural staff for technical information, as did the men. Women obtained technical information primarily from television, village loud speakers, radio, leaflets, experienced old men, male neighbors, relatives and other women in the village. Women's main problems in diversification were market price information, lack of capital, lack of and not sufficient knowledge of technology, lack of knowledge of rice varieties, limited land, lack of family members/labor, acid sulfate soil, difficulty in seeking for and hiring labor and theft. Women felt disadvantaged when they did not have information. Women also found difficulties in access to formal credit. They can, however, get loans fairly easy from the Women Credit Scheme and private lenders. Diversification in agriculture made women feel that they had an increased workload, that they got less sleep, and had no time for leisure due to the bulk of the work that had to be performed. They felt tired and worn out with aching backs, legs and arms. Women also felt that their beauty faded away with an increasingly tanned skin. However, at the same time, women noted that the family nutritional and clothing situation was better after


With the continual development of wireless communication, embedded computing and sensor technology, sensor network has won more chances and attracts more and more focuses. The characteristics and two typical network structures are addressed. In the special local field application, with the integration of Agent technology, a new structure AWSN is presented.


Various vinylbenzaldehydes were prepared using the Heck reaction:  4-vinylbenzaldehyde (14), 3-vinylbenzaldehyde (15), 2-vinylbenzaldehyde (18a), 2-hydroxy-4-vinylbenzaldehyde (16) and 4-[(4-vinylbenzyl)oxy]benzaldehyde (6). The four monomers (6, 14, 15, 16) were polymerized using AIBN as initiator at 70 °C for 24 h to yield the corresponding homopolymers (7, 19, 23, 25) and a copolymer (20) with styrene. The molecular weights are about 10 000. The polymer analogous condensation of the aldehyde groups with an excess of N-isopropylhydroxylamine (8) at room temperature produces polymeric nitrons (9, 21, 22, 24, 26) in almost quantitative yields. All nitron functions were irradiated, and the intramolecular cyclization of the nitrons to the corresponding oxaziridines was examined. Waveguide mode spectroscopy of poly(4-vinylbenzaldehyde-N-isopropylnitron) (21) shows that the changes in film thickness are low but the changes in refractive indices are significant after irradiation. Oxaziridine 10 has high therma...


The anti-oxidant property of various parts of Lagenaria siceraria and its derived fractions were investigated by various assays. Among them crude peel extract showed highest radical scavenging and reducing power activity. Ethyl acetate fraction demonstrated most active due to its highest radical scavenging activity and phenolic content. Twenty seven phenolic compounds were identified from LCMS/MS analysis of EAF. Methyl apigenin, acacetin, thymol, dicaffeoylquinic acid, phloridzin, isorhamnetin-3-O-hexoside and rosmarinic acid were identified for the first time. Thus bottle gourd peel being potent antioxidant could be used for prevention of those diseases where oxidative damage has been implicated. Hence a simple, biocompatible, eco-friendly method for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles (NP) was developed using bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) peel extract (BGPE) monitoring ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The gold NPs had a face-centered cubic structure having size range 40-50 nm with spherical morphology revealed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). These nanoparticles exhibited good anti-cancerous activity in a concentration dependent loss of survival in p53 mutant A431 skin carcinoma cells. The developed eco-friendly method for the synthesis of biocompatible gold NPs utilizing bio waste could prove a better substitute for the physical and chemical methods for biological applications.


Indonesia's economic development inclusiveness accomplishment is relatively low. Mainly on economic's growth and development. This is partly due to the orientation of past development which tends to be centralized. Since this centralized paradigm has diverted to decentralization, especially during the implementation of the village fund granting policy, it is necessary to examine the actual impact. This is a prominent issue considering that the implementation of village fund distribution has been running for more than five years and enough funds have been disbursed. Hence the purpose of this study is to measure the impact of providing village funds on the achievement of economic growth and development in Indonesia. The method used is a quantitative approach, with the technique of Difference-in-Difference (DID) analysis. The results of this study show that the provision of village funds is empirically proven to be able to positively accelerate the achievement of economic growth and development in a region in Indonesia. Thereupon the provision of village funds must remain consistently provided by continuing to seek various forms of improvement in its implementation