Background Rimegepant is an oral, small molecule calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor antagonist for acute treatment of migraine and migraine prevention. Methods This was a single-site, placebo-controlled, sequential, single and multiple ascending dose study in healthy males and females, aged 18–55 years, with no clinically significant medical history. The objectives were to assess the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of the oral capsule free-base formulation. Single oral doses of rimegepant from 25–1500 mg were evaluated in the single ascending dose phase, and 75–600 mg/day doses administered for 14 days were evaluated in the multiple ascending dose phase. Results No dose-related trends were observed in orthostatic systolic and diastolic blood pressure or heart rate after rimegepant administration. Rimegepant was rapidly absorbed with the median time of maximum observed plasma concentration from 1–3.5 hours. Rimegepant showed a more than dose-proportional increase in exposure from 25–1500 mg following a single dose and from 75–600 mg/day following multiple doses. Conclusions Rimegepant was safe and generally well tolerated at single oral doses up to 1500 mg and multiple doses up to 600 mg/day for 14 days in healthy participants in this study. Median terminal half-life ranged from 8–12 hours across the wide range of single doses studied.


This paper proposes a new family of high power density Transformer-less Dual Active Bridge DC/DC converters. Each converter consists of a switched-capacitor voltage divider (SCVD) derived Switched-Capacitor Bridge circuit on the one side, a standard Half-Bridge or a Full-Bridge circuit on the other side, and a small AC link power transfer inductor connected strategically between them. The voltage matching between the two bridge circuits is achieved by changing the SCVD ratio of the Switched-Capacitor Bridge circuit. These converters have several other advantages like reduced switch voltage and current stresses, inherent soft switching for some of the switches, and efficient voltage regulation. The topological evolution of two among the proposed family of converters from their corresponding isolated versions is explained. Thereafter, the circuit operation, analysis, and experimental performance verification for one of these converters are presented. The experimental results establish the suitability of the converter as the regulated first-stage of a two-stage 48 V input VRM.


The article deals with the issues of electronic components incoming inspection processes risk management. A comparative analysis of the cost of using instruments used to identify fraudulent electronic components is carried out. A model developed using principles similar to FMEA-analysis is presented to select plans for detecting counterfeit and fraudulent electronic components based on the influence of factors such as the size of the batch, the criticality of application, and the source of supply.


Background Understanding factors affecting length of hospital stay (LOS) in patients with severe influenza may improve their management. Methods A retrospective cohort study on laboratory-confirmed, adult influenza patients hospitalized in 2004 and 2005 was conducted. For all influenza cases during that period, immunofluorescence assay on nasopharyngeal aspirate was used for rapid diagnosis, and oseltamivir (75 mg twice daily for 5 days) prescribed if the patient presented within 2 days of symptom onset. Independent factors associated with time to discharge were identified using Cox proportional hazards models. An adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) >1 signifies a higher chance of early discharge. Viral shedding and influenza vaccination history were studied during one 'flu' season. Results A total of 356 patients (influenza A 93.5%) were studied. The majority of patients were old (70.2 ±8.4years), had ≥1 comorbid illness (69.1%) and developed respiratory or cardiovascular complications (69.4%). Oseltamivir initiated within 2 days of illness was associated with shorter total LOS (Kaplan-Meier estimated median 4 versus 6 days [-33%]; aHR for discharge 1.54, 95% confidence intervals [95% CI] 1.23–1.92, P<0.0001). Older age (≥70 years), comorbidities and complications were associated with prolonged LOS. Prolonged viral RNA detection >day 4 of illness (23 out of 99 consecutive patients) was also independently associated with longer LOS (aHR 0.36 [95% CI 0.19–0.71], P=0.003), whereas influenza vaccination within 6 months was associated with shorter LOS (aHR 2.14 [95% CI 1.18–3.85], P=0.012). Conclusion Our analyses suggest that timely oseltamivir treatment is independently associated with shorter LOS in patients hospitalized for severe influenza. Efforts to ensure early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention are warranted.


PURPOSE: To provide a Freeman-type ionizer which can be used for a commercial ion implanter and can ionize metals having a high melting point, while maintaining conventional operation. CONSTITUTION: This ionizer is provided with a cylindrical casing 1, having an inside cavity 2 and a flange, an arc chamber 15 which is superposed on its outside upper part and contains a filament 20 to which electric power is supplied by passing through power supply conductors 8, 7 and 6 supported by the flange, a repulsive plate 21 held at a negative voltage by the power supply conductors and an inlet for gas to be ionized. A support 23 for metal 24 to be ionized, which is supported by a rod 9 passing through the inside cavity of the cylindrical casing and electrically connected to an electrode 13, exists on the inside of the arc chamber. COPYRIGHT: (C)1994,JPO


The effects of Trichoderma T216 fermentation filtrate on cold-resistance of rice seedlings was studied.Two rice hybrids Jinyou 402 and Jinyou 974 were treated by soaking seeds with T216 and the seedlings were exposed to low temperature(8℃) for 96 h at 3.1 leaf stage.The results showed that the rice seedlings treated with Trichoderma T216 fermentation filtrate under chilling stress maintained dramatically higher root vigor,POD,CAT and SOD activities than those of the control.The fermentation filtrate could increase the contents of soluble sugar,proline and chlorophyll,decrease the MDA content and electrolyte leakage.It was indicated that the Trichoderma T216 fermentation filtrate could improve the cold-resistance ability of rice seedlings.


Emergency medicine (EM) residents are currently evaluated via The Milestones, which have been shown to be imperfect and subjective. There is also a need for residents to achieve competency in patient safety and quality improvement processes, which can be accomplished through provision of peer comparison metrics. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the implementation of an objective peer comparison system for metrics that quantified aspects of quality and safety, efficiency and throughput, and utilization.


TITLE: Hydrobiogeochemical Interactions along "Flow Tubes" Controls Watershed Scale Contaminant Flow and Transformation at the Oak Ridge IFRC ABSTRACT: Geochemical, spectrographic, microbiological and hydrogeologic studies at the ORIFRC site Geochemical, spectrographic, microbiological and hydrogeologic studies at the ORIFRC site indicate that groundwater transport in structured media may behave as a system of parallel flow tubes. These tubes are preferred flowpaths that enable contaminant transport parallel to bedding planes (strike) over distances of 1000s of meters. A significant flux of groundwater is focused within an interval defined by the interface between the competent bedrock and overlying highly-weathered saprolite, commonly referred to as the "transition zone." Characteristics of this transition zone are dense fractures and the relative absence of weathering products (e.g. clays) results in a significantly higher permeability compared to both the overlying clay-saprolite and underlying bedrock. Several stratabound low seismic velocity zones located below the transition zone were identified during geophysics studies and were also determined to be fractured high permeability preferred contaminant transport pathways during subsequent drilling activities. XANES analysis of precipitates collected from these deeper flow zones indicate 95% or more of the U deposited is U(VI). Linear combination fitting of the EXAFS data shows that precipitates are ~51±5% U(VI)-carbonate-like phase (e.g., liebigite) and ~49±5% U(VI) associated with an iron oxide phase; inclusion of a third component in the fit suggests that up to 15% of the U(VI) may be associated with a phosphate phase or OH phase (e.g.,schoepite). Although precipitates with similar U(VI)-carbonate and/or phosphate associations were identified in the transition zone pathways, there were also U(VI) complexes adsorbed to mineral surfaces that would tend to be more readily mobilized. Groundwater in the different flow tubes has been determined to consist of different water quality types that vary with the solid phase encountered (e.g., clays, carbonates, clastics) as contaminants migrate along the flow paths. This lateral and vertical variability in geochemistry, particularly pH, has a significant impact on microbiological community composition and activity. Ribosomal RNA gene analyses coupled with physiological and genomic analyses suggest that bacteria from the genus Rhodanobacter (a diverse population of denitrifiers that are moderately acid tolerant) have a high relative abundance in the acidic source zone at the ORIFRC site. Watershed-scale analysis across different flow paths/tubes revealed strong negative correlation between pH and the absolute and relative abundance of Rhodanobacter. Recent studies also confirmed that the ORIFRC site hosts a diverse fungal community, with significant differences observed between acidic (pH <5) and circumneutral (>5) wells. The lack of nitrous oxide reduction capability in fungi, and the detection of denitrification potential in slurry microcosms suggest that fungi may have a heretofore underappreciated role in biogeochemical transformations, with implications for site remediation and greenhouse gas emissions. Further research is needed to determine if these organisms can influence U(VI) mobility either directly through immobilization or indirectly through the depletion of nitrate. In conclusion, additional studies are required to quantify the processes (e.g., solid phase reactions, recharge, diffusion, microbial interactions) that are occurring along the groundwater flow tubes identified at the ORIFRC so predictive models can be parameterized and used to assess long-term contaminant fate and transport and remedial options.


SUMMARY
The distribution of the total copper contents of 4179 samples from 946 Scottish soil profiles is reported and the relation of copper content to some other soil variables is examined.

The frequency distribution of copper contents is found to be approximately lognormal. The derived mean for the full set of data is 10 mg/kg and the normal range 0.93–110 mg/kg.

The copper contents of basic and intermediate igneous rocks exceed those of acidic rocks by a factor of about 5 and among sedimentary rocks copper contents are higher in argillaceous than in arenaceous types.

The general trend is for copper to increase with increasing depth and ash content and to decrease with increasing sand content.

On the basis of total copper content the risk of copper deficiency is assessed to be high in 26 soil associations in Scotland and moderate in a further 10. Naturally occurring copper toxicity is unlikely to be encountered.


Silages may represent 50-80 % of the total amount of diet for dairy cows during the winter. There is overwhelming evidence of contamination of maize and grass silages with fungi and associated trichothecenes, fumonisins, zearalenone, aflatoxins, ochratoxin A as well as some emerging mycotoxins (agroclavine, andrastin A, beauvericin, enniatins, festuclavine, fusaric acid, mevinolin, mycophenolic acid, roquefortins, T2/HT2 toxins). From year to year, multi contaminations often occurred with seasonal variations. The levels and incidences of deoxynivalenol and zearalenone raise concerns about animal health, as the levels overpassed the EC regulatory limits (2006/576/EC) for deoxynivalenol in 2006-samples from Poland and for zearalenone in 2000-2001 maize silages from Germany. AFB1 levels exceeded the maximum acceptable level in samples from Argentina. Atypical high occurring mycotoxins such as roquefortine C (up to 36,000 µg/kg), mevinolin (up to 65,400 µg/kg) and mycophenolic acid (up to 35,000 µg/kg) were not covered by routine analysis and legislation. These mycotoxins can diversely affect feed intake, productivity, reproductive performance and animal health but acute intoxications causing death are rare. Monitoring of mycotoxin in silages is extremely necessary. Both European and international legislation concerning the maximum tolerable limits must be strict and should also be adapted to include the interaction impacts between toxins. Further studies are needed to evaluate mycotoxin attributed to carry-over via meat, edible offal and lactation. Reliable multi-detection methods must be developed and should cover the normalized sampling plan to cover the heterogeneous distribution within the silo, the seasonal variation and the requirement to detect low levels of these contaminants. Conjugated (masked) forms of the mycotoxins and the long-term impacts to the exposure to low contamination deserved further assessment challenges.


Summary This scoping study assesses the contribution that woody biomass could make to feedstock supply for an aviation biofuel industry in Queensland. The inland 600–900 mm rainfall zone, including the Fitzroy Basin region, is identified as an area that is particularly worthy of closer study as it has potential for supply of woody biomass from existing native regrowth (brigalow and other species) as well as from new plantings. New analyses carried out for this study of Corymbia citriodora subsp. variegata trials suggest biomass plantings could produce harvestable yield of aboveground dry mass of about 85 t ha−1 over a 10-year rotation at relatively low-rainfall (600–750 mm mean annual precipitation) sites and about 115 t ha−1 at medium-rainfall (750–900 mm) sites. Estimates of productivity for native regrowth suggest potential productivity should be around 40 t ha−1 during the initial decade after clearing when systems are managed for bioenergy rather than grazing. In this paper, potential production systems are described, and sustainability issues are briefly considered. It is concluded that more detailed studies focused particularly on biomass production would be worthwhile, and further research requirements are briefly discussed.


SUMMARY Since the Seventies line commutated converters based on thyristor technology have been the standard for all HVDC applications. This converter topology is, however, marked by its loworder harmonics and high reactive power consumption. Such measures as the use of filter circuits and switchable capacitor banks have been taken to reduce these effects. On the other hand, these converters are marked by low operational losses, robustness of the thyristors against surge currents as well as their overload capability. Therefore, line-commutated thyristor technology will remain best suited to bulk power transmission in future HVDC projects. Compared with the line-commutated technology, additional inherent advantages are obtained through the use of self-commutated converters. In this kind of converter topology, current commutation is independent of the line voltage. This is the case because commutation is purely based on the turn-off capability of the power semiconductors such as IGBTs (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor). These semiconductors have gained in importance over the years and, due to their reliability, they are most commonly used in such challenging applications as traction and industrial drives. The VSC (Voltage-Sourced Converter) is the most common type of self-commutated converters and has therefore become a standard in the applications mentioned above. The possibility to control active and reactive power independently within weak or even passive networks makes them attractive to power transmission and distribution applications. Most VSCs are based on two-level technology along with PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation) controls. This implies that the AC connection voltage can only be switched between two possible levels which are defined by the common DC link capacitor connected to the DC terminals. Through pulse-width modulation with high switching frequencies (up to kHz range), the desired RMS voltage can be controlled and even some discrete low order harmonics can be reduced or eliminated. The use in HVDC applications requires high voltage ratings of the converter which can be achieved by a series connection of power


In this article, I mainly treat the section (§17-§23) in the text "Womit muss der Anfang der Wissenschaft gemacht werden?" by interpreting, analyzing, and finally textually criticizing it based on theoretical tendency. According to my interpretation, Hegel consciously aims to criticize Platonic dialectics of "the upward path" - ex hypothesis to arche anhypothetos, by which the problem of beginning in pure science could be solved. By this dialectics, when it deals with the problem of beginning, it analyzes "the representation of beginning," and finally we can get "the unity of being and non-being" as the first principle without presuppositions. Though the principle seems to be the same with the view of the Hegel's dialectics: "Being-Nothing-Becoming", all analysis is derived from the representation which is related with subjective experience. Accordingly, the principle contains a medium and cannot be the absolute beginning in pure science, so that the whole ontology deduced from it is merely the thoughts of pure concept, not the thoughts that thoughts itself move by itself, which Hegel requires for pure science. If my interpretation is correct, the section can not only explicate Hegel's critic of antique dialectics, but with next section that Hegel criticizes Fichte's theory of subjectivity that he uses intellectual intuition as the beginning, both sections can also implicate - Hegelian rhetoric - the whole purpose of "Wissenschaft der Logik": to unite the metaphysics of antique idealism and of modern subjectivism and to overcome their own problems.


Objective: The olfactory function of patients with primary progressive MS (PPMS), relapsing remitting MS (RRMS), optic neuritis (ON) and patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO) was investigated. Background Some studies reported about olfactory dysfunction in MS patients. Recently our study group could find out an inverse correlation between the olfactory bulb and olfactory brain volumes of MS patients compared with their lesion load. To this date no data are available on olfactory function of different types of the disease. Design/Methods: 54 patients (31 women, 23 men) and 30 control persons were examined. 10 patients had PPMS, 25 patients RRMS, 12 patients acute ON in the beginning state of disease and 7 patients had NMO. Exclusion criteria were olfactory disorders with a different genesis (sinunasal, post-viral, post-traumatic, toxic). Olfactory testing was performed using the tripartide TDI-test measuring olfactory threshold, the discrimination and the identification of different odours. Results: 9 of 10 PPMS patients (90%), 9 of 25 RRMS patients (36%), 7 of 12 ON patients (58%), 3 of 7 NMO patients (43%) and 1 of 30 control persons (3%) displayed hyposmia. The rest of the patients were normosmic, none was anosmic. There was a difference between the TDI-scores of patients with PPMS (p Conclusions: All different types of MS showed hyposmia. Olfactory dysfunction could be detected in early inflammatory phases as well as in chronic phases. Hyposmia seems to appear most frequently and most pronounced in PPMS patients. ON patients had a better perception of their olfactory capacity. Disclosure: Dr. Schmidt has nothing to disclose. Dr. Goektas has nothing to disclose. Dr. Harms has received personal compensation for activities with Biomarin, Biogen, Bayer Health Care, Talecris, Merck-Serono as scientific advisory board member and/or speaker.


The possibility of coupling electron Bernstein waves (EBW) to the overdense plasma in RFX‐mod has been explored. A frequency of 28 GHz has been chosen due to the plasma parameters and the commercial availability of this frequency. A two dimensional full‐wave code has been used to model the O‐X‐B mode conversion process in which an incident O‐mode is first converted to an X‐mode and then to an EBW. Parameter studies have been carried out to optimise the mode‐conversion efficiency. The maximum conversion efficiency for optimal launching conditions amounts to 56% for a single pass. The vacuum vessel has been included in the full‐wave calculations to address the effects of multiple reflections between the vessel wall and the plasma boundary. A significant increase in conversion efficiency is observed as a result.


Landscape diversity is the result of natural disturbance,human activity and the internal succession of vegetation.It also is a major level of biodiversity.In this paper,the authors established a landscape classification system for Longxi-Hongkou Nature Reserve,Sichuan Province,with vegetation types and land-use being the main classify basis,interpreted two different phases of Landsat TM images before and after the Wenchuan Earthquake of the reserve,developed the landscape spatial pattern of the study area,and analyzed the characteristics of landscape changes before and after the earthquake.The results showed that: 1) After the earthquake,the total number of patches(NP) in the study area increased by 2.36 times,so landscape became more fragmentation;after the earthquake,forest landscape(broad-leaf and coniferous) went into smaller pieces,implying the weakness of its dominant position.Broad-leaf,meadow and rare landscape turned into the new dominant landscape.2) The SHDI and PAFRAC of the study area increased 11% and 7% respectively.It implied the diversity and heterogeneous of the study area strengthened,and landscape structure was more complex.The Dominance and CONTAG both decreased 30%.It explained that the number of large patches decreased,the landscape contagion of the study area fell and its connection declined.3) The habitats fragmented,the ability of maintain biodiversity was cut down.Vegetation cover dropped,and edge habitats grew in number,leading to a weaker ability of maintain water,a raising risk of soil erosion,landscape structure destroyed and the protective screen function slipped.Therefore,Wenchuan Earthquake and its secondary disasters as natural disturbance factors have changed the landscape structure and landscape pattern of the study area,undermined the suitable habitats of rare animals and plants,posed a threat to endangered species and natural ecosystems,all those would change the biodiversity and ecology environment of the region.


In the late 1970s, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled the bubble policy as a central part of Jimmy Carter's plan to reform environmental regulations that many believed had grown too proscriptive and too costly for American industry. Since the EPA's formation, regulators had dictated method and means for reducing air pollution. The bubble returned the prerogative to business. But despite bipartisan support, the bubble never took off. Drawing on EPA records and interviews, this article shows how skeptical regulators intentionally made the bubble unwieldy, driving away businesses wary of uncertainty. Though Ronald Reagan's election seemed to lift the bubble's fortunes, his undiscerning assault on the administrative state ironically deflated the EPA's development of a viable alternative to the proscriptive model.


Several websites claim to be presenting the Carnegie Stages of Early Human Embryonic Development, but do not. They use the name, but not the same accurate empirical facts -- especially for Stage 1 (a, b, c,). This is even true for some Swiss websites. Needless to say, the Stage most falsified is Stage 1.


Multimedia subjective quality assessment experiments are the most prominent and reliable way to evaluate the visual quality as perceived by human observers. Along with laboratory (lab) subjective experiments, crowdsourcing (CS) experiments have become very popular in recent years, e.g., during the COVID-19 pandemic these experiments provide an alternative to lab tests. However, conducting subjective quality assessment tests in CS raises many challenges: internet connection quality, lack of control on participants' environment, participants' consistency and reliability, etc. In this work, we evaluate the performance of CS studies for 3D graphics quality assessment To this end, we conducted a CS experiment based on the double stimulus impairment scale method and using a dataset of 80 meshes with diffuse color information corrupted by various distortions. We compared its results with those previously obtained in a lab study conducted on the same dataset and in a virtual reality environment. Results show that under controlled conditions and with appropriate participant screening strategies, a CS experiment can be as accurate as a lab experiment.


Philanthropy plays a major role in university-based scientific, engineering, and medical research in the United States, contributing over $4 billion annually to operations, endowment, and buildings devoted to research. When combined with endowment income, university research funding from science philanthropy is $7 billion a year. This major contribution to US scientific competitiveness comes from private foundations as well as gifts from individuals. From the researcher's perspective, analysis in this paper demonstrates that science philanthropy provides almost 30% of the annual research funds of those in leading universities. And yet science philanthropy has been largely overshadowed by the massive rise of federal research funding and, to a lesser extent, industry funding. Government and industry funding have drawn intensive analysis, partly because their objectives are measurable: governments generally support broad national goals and basic research, while industry finances projects likely to contribute directly to useful products. In contrast, philanthropy's contribution to overall levels of scientific funding and, more importantly, the distribution of philanthropy across different types of research are poorly understood. To fill this gap, I provide the first empirical evaluation of the role of science philanthropy in American research universities. The documented extent of science philanthropy and its strong emphasis on translational medical research raises important questions for federal policy makers. In determining their own funding strategies, they must no longer assume that their funding is the only source in shaping some fields of research while recognizing that philanthropy may ignore other important fields.


A facility effluent monitoring plant is required by the US Department of Energy in DOE Order 5400.1 for any operations that involve hazardous materials and radioactive substances that could impact employee or public safety or the environment. This document is prepared using the specific guidelines identified in A Guide for Preparing Hanford Site Facility Effluent Monitoring Plans, WHC-EP-0438. This facility effluent monitoring plan assesses effluent monitoring systems and evaluates whether they are adequate to ensure the public health and safety as specified in applicable federal, state, and local requirements. This facility effluent monitoring plan is the first annual report. It shall ensure long-range integrity of the effluent monitoring systems by requiring an update whenever a new process or operation introduces new hazardous materials or significant radioactive materials. This document must be reviewed annually even if there are no operational changes, and it must be updated as a minimum every three years. The UO{sub 3} Plant is located in the south-central portion of the 200 West Area of the Hanford Site. The plant consists of two primary processing buildings and several ancillary facilities. The purpose of the UO{sub 3} Plant is to receive uranyl nitrate hexahydrate (UNH) from the Plutonium-Uranium Extractionmore » (PUREX) Plant, concentrate it, convert the UNH to uranium trioxide (UO{sub 3}) powder by calcination and package it for offsite shipment. The UO{sub 3} Plant has been placed in a standby mode. There are two liquid discharges, and three gaseous exhaust stacks, and seven building exhausters that are active during standby conditions.« less


Emission from the J = 1-0 transition of H(N-15)C has been detected in the direction of DR21(OH). The transition frequency of 88,865.69 MHz was measured in the laboratory by microwave absorption spectroscopy. The computed N-15/C-13 isotopic abundance ratio of 1.01 for DR21(OH) is larger than those calculated from isotopes of HCN in other interstellar clouds, perhaps implying a localized enrichment in N-15 in DR21(OH).


The main difference between classic physics and complex physics is the acceptance in complex physics of a 2nd arrow of information in the Universe besides the arrow of entropy or expansive energy, used by XX century physics. Such duality of energy, stored in the spatial vacuum, and information, stored in the frequency of the cyclical clocks of charges and masses (E=Mc2+ExT=k->M=kv) - defines a new Fundamental Principle of Science: 'All what exists are relative surfaces of spatial energy that transform themselves back and forth into clock-cycles of temporal information: Se⇔Ti'. This law that substitutes the law of conservation of energy is formalized by the 'Generator, feedback equation of the Universe', whose dynamic expression, Se⇔Ti, defines the fundamental events of physical systems and its complementary duality, as particles of information attached to fields of energy and its static expression, ExTi=K discovered by Heisenberg in the quantum membrane and Einstein in the cosmological membrane defines the 2 scales of the fractal Universe, the microcosmic membrane of electromagnetic forces and charges and the cosmological membrane of gravitational forces and masses, which according to Einstein's principle of equivalence are attractive vortices of space-time. Thus, Complex Physics defines a Universe made of multiple, fractal cycles of time that break and enclose a surface of spatial energy becoming quantum knots called masses and charges, formalized as fractal, non-Euclidean points with 'breath'. Those Space-Time cycles gather then into particles that gather into social networks called atoms, units of a bigger scale of molecules; units of celestial bodies; units of galaxies; units of a Universe, made of networks of informative galaxies that implode energy into mass, and fields of dark energy that explode mass into energy, balancing each other and creating an infinite, scalar, organic Universe. In this paper we solve with those 2 time arrows and fractal membranes of the Universe, departing from the Generator equation of space-time cycles the main questions that monist physics could not resolve with a single arrow: the meaning of mass; the Unification equation of charges and masses - the two vortices of information of the 2 scales of the Universe; the meaning of dark energy; the deficit of antiparticles; the reasons why there are 3 families of mass; the meaning of Universal Constants; the weakness of gravitational forces in the quantum realm; and why there are 4 dimensions and 4 quantum numbers; deducing most of the laws and equations of physics from the generator equation of space-time cycles. For example, Einstein's famous equation, E=M (Planck's notation) becomes now a simple transformation of two type of motions: E⇔M(i), as lineal, expansive energy coils into a cyclical vortex of mass. This paper introduces the model and resolves with it the main questions left unanswered by classic physics.


In order to measure and compute the structural parameters of wood by computer vision exactly and efficiently,An approach based on digital image processing and binary morphology technique to analyze the microstructural images of wood was proposed.Digital images of wood transverse section were captured by the system composed of a microscope,a dynamic CCD camera,video capture card and a computer,and then were further analyzed,measured and computed by the color image analysis software that secondarily exploited in view of wood molecular traits.The results show that the proposed can realize the digital measurement of morphology,geometry,distributed density,tissue proportion and cell wall percentage of cell tissues,and it has made some progresses on accuracy,efficiency and automatization than traditional methods.


PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain the subject preparation comprising a specific peptide medicine compound in a prescribed polymer base, showing an excellent peptide release profile, capable of maintaining a therapeutically proper concentration in blood for many hours, useful for treating and preventing acromegaly and breast cancer. SOLUTION: The preparation comprises (B) a peptide medicine compound which is calcitonin, lypressin or somatostatin, its salt or derivative in (A) a polymer base having biodegradability and biocompatibility which is a linear poly(lactide-co-glycolide) polymer in the ratio of 40/60 to 60/40 having 25,000-100,000 weight-average molecular weight and 1.2-2 polydispersity (weight- average molecular weight/number-average molecular weight). The content of the composition B is 0.2-10 wt.% in the component A. COPYRIGHT: (C)1996,JPO


Abstract Psoriasis a common autoimmune disorder characterized by T cell mediated keratinocyte hyperproliferation known to be associated with the presence of certain specific HLA alleles. In this study our aim was to evaluate distribution of HLACw susceptible allele of psoriasis from patients in Western India.The study included 84 Psoriasis patients and 91 normal individuals from same geographical region. HLA-C was typed using high resolution PCR-SSOP (Sequence Specific Oligonucleotide Probes) technique.The study revealed significant increase in frequencies of Cw*0202 (OR-6.508, P<0.0001) and Cw*0604 (OR-17.710, P=0.0153) when compared to controls while Cw*1502 (OR-0.130, P=0.0490) were significantly decreased in psoriasis patients.Our study shows a strong association of HLA Cw*0202 and Cw*0604 alleles with psoriasis conferring to its susceptibility to psoriasis patients from Western India.


Maternal blood pressure regulation by the hormone angiotensin II (AngII) sustains fetal growth through feto-placental circulation. AngII binding to orthosteric pocket in the angiotensin type 1 receptor (AT1R) induces G protein and β-arrestin signaling. AT1R blocking drugs and β-arrestin biased ligands also bind to the orthosteric pocket but evoke different inactive and active states1–6. AT1R-directed auto-antibodies observed in preeclampsia bound outside the orthosteric pocket to extracellular loop-2 (ECL2) of AT1R7–9. How auto-antibodies modulate AT1R activity causing preeclampsia pathogenesis is unknown. Here we report a druggable cryptic allosteric pocket encompassing the preeclampsia epitope on ECL2. Using structure based high-throughput small molecule screening we discovered 18 ligands specific for AT1R's allosteric pocket. After procuring these ligands we validated inhibition of preeclampsia epitope-specific antibody binding. We characterize their inhibitory effect on antibody and AngII-signaling in cells and vasoconstriction ex vivo. These novel AT1R allosteric ligands, thus act as dual action negative modulators of auto-antibody action and vasoconstriction. Our study demonstrates that positive allosteric modulator action of auto-antibody causes a disease linked to AT1R. We anticipate our findings to kindle structure-based discovery of AT1R allosteric ligands for intervention in maladies such as preeclampsia7–10, rejection of organ transplants11, vasodilatory shock12, 13 and metabolic syndrome14.


category III (25-29.9), category IV (30-34.9), category V (35-39.9), and category VI (. 40) using appropriate ICD-10-CM codes. An univariate screen followed by multivariate logistic regression was performed to adjust for potential hospital and patient level confounders. Stata 17.0 software was used to perform all statistical analyses. Results: A total of 532,485 NAFLD patients were identified which corresponds to 1.5% of the total US hospitalizations in the year 2019. Of which, 7,964 (1.5%) were category I, 7,530 (1.4%) were category II, 13,450 (2.5%) were category III, 36,650 (6.8%) were category IV, 42,715 (8%) were category V, and 94,425 (17.7%) were category VI. On multivariate analysis, we found that category I NAFLD patients had increased odds of mortality compared to other BMI subgroups [OR 1.71 (1.3-2.2); p, 0.001]. Conclusion: Obesity has been linked with the development of NAFLD. As expected, our study demonstrated an increasing prevalence of NAFLD with higher BMI. However, we found that 2.9% of NAFLD patients were not obese. This group of patients had been termed "lean NAFLD". The hypothesis for lean NAFLD is poorly understood with theories including higher bile production and genetic variations. Interestingly, we found that category I NAFLD patients had higher odds of mortality compared to other BMI groups. These findings could be a result of lean individuals suffering chronic medical conditions or certain malignancies and is beyond the scope of our study. Further studies regarding etiologies for lean NAFLD might bring clarity to this subject.


ABSTRACT This paper proposes a new materialist reading of Cervantes's Numancia (c. 1585) that reassesses the role of personified bodies of water like the Duero as early modern naturecultures. Personifications of bodies of water were ubiquitous in the political iconography of the early modern period due to their capacity to tether political order to idealized visions of a land's natural order. In its ability to bridge the divide between nature and culture, personifications like the river god Duero constitute an early modern iteration of the new materialist notion of natureculture. The Duero, however, is just one personified body of water among many in Numancia. The imperial terraforming of Numancia's land and people into a lake of blood at the end of Act Four represents a liquid counterpoint to the river god Duero and his idealized account of imperial history in Act One. I propose here that the two bodies of water that bookend Numancia must be understood in relation to each other as doubles that reveal, in the case of the lake of blood, what the Duero obfuscates. What surfaces at the confluence of the bodies of water that flood Numancia is Cervantes's critical appraisal of the river god Duero as a beguiling but misleading figure that distorts nature and history in the service of empire. One can conclude that in Numancia Cervantes is thinking of human bodies as porous entities that take on liquid forms imbued with subjectivity and history in ways that speak to the new materialist insights of contemporary theory.


The sign problem is a major obstacle to our understanding of the phase diagram of QCD at finite baryon density. Several numerical methods have been proposed to tackle this problem, but a full solution to the sign problem is still elusive. Motivated by this problem and by recent advances in diagrammatic Monte Carlo methods, we find a new exact representation of the partition function of pure lattice gauge theory that contains no link variables. This approach can be easily extended to include staggered fermions, and results in a diagrammatic representation of fermionic states as arrangements of monomers, dimers, and fermionic loops saturating the spacetime lattice. Our representations are exact for any value of the lattice coupling, and extend previous representations that are only valid in the strong coupling limit and at $O(\beta)$. As a concrete example, we construct a monomer-dimer-loop representation of compact lattice QED.


Quasi-periodic brightness oscillations (QPOs) with frequencies in the range 300-1200 Hz have been detected from at least nine neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries. Here we summarize the sonic-point model for these brightness oscillations, which we present in detail elsewhere. If the sonic-point interpretation of kilohertz QPOs is confirmed, measurements of kilohertz QPO frequencies in low-mass X-ray binaries will provide new bounds on the masses and radii of neutron stars in these systems and new constraints on the equation of state of matter at high densities.


The research was conducted to determine the antioxidant effects of the mixed doses of vitamins B12 and E on male Wistar albino rats infected with T. b. brucei. Fifty-four male Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into six groups of three rats each replicated three times. The rats were marked and kept in stainless wire cages labeled A-F. Groups A, B, and C were normal, negative, and standard controls respectively. Groups D, E and F were infected with 1.0 x 106 trypanosomes and treated with 0.2 + 0.5mg/kg (low-dose), 0.3 + 2.5mg/kg (medium-dose), and 0.4 + 5.0mg/kg (high-dose) of vitamins B12 + E per body weight per day respectively. The experiment lasted for twenty-one days from the day T. b. brucei infection was established. A sample of heart tissue homogenate was collected weekly across the groups and subjected to biochemical determination of malondialdehyde, hydrogen peroxide, nitric oxide, reduced glutathione, and glutathione peroxidase concentrations. There were significant differences in the effect of antioxidant biomarkers which was applied to the duration of the experiment. At post-treatment, the levels of the antioxidant parameters differed significantly (p<0.05) from the negative control. There was a significant increase in the levels of nitric oxide, hydrogen peroxide, and reduced glutathione, and glutathione peroxidase of cardiac tissue homogenate of the experimental rats following the treatments with vitamins B12 + E. The study also showed the pathogenesis of T. b. brucei significantly raised the malondialdehyde concentration and the treatment with vitamins B12 + E decreased the trypanosome-induced elevation of the malondialdehyde level. In conclusion, nitric oxide, hydrogen peroxide, reduced glutathione, and glutathione peroxidase levels significantly increased, while malondialdehyde concentration decreased.


The final goal of conducted research is to make a comparison of spline and polynomial approximation methods to reconstruct a priori unknown nonlinear map functions based on observed chaotic time series in the additive noise presence. Logistic and tent map functions are considered in detail as an example.


Expansions of eligibility for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act may have increased the number of Medicaid drug prescriptions. However, the expansions did not drive Medicaid spending on prescription drugs overall in 2014.


On the basis of understanding PBL conception,from 2007,a multidiscipline FBL curriculum has been constructed and implemented in the oral general department at the School of Stomatology in Wenzhou Medical College for the clinical education of the five - year program students in China.The multidisciplinary PBL curriculum is much more successful in the construction of complex dental knowledge and basic science,and it displays a distinct advantage in the student before graduation.


The utility model relates to a high-speed railway metallic sound barrier unit board, of which the casing is made up of an aluminium alloy back board and an aluminium alloy panel buckled together, theinner part of the casing is supported by a cement-fiber board and metallic support blocks. Sound absorption rock wool is fixed on the cement-fiber board with and a gasket through a screw. The front sides of the aluminium alloy back board and the aluminium alloy panel are tabular, the open hole ratio of sound absorption holes on the front side of the aluminium alloy panel is 40 percent. The metallic support blocks are fixed on four corners and at the middle parts of the inner sides of the upper an lower end surfaces of the metallic sound barrier unit board to support and fix the aluminium alloyback board and the aluminium alloy panel. The length of the sound barrier unit board is 2 m, the width thereof is 500 mm or 430 mm, the thickness thereof corresponds to H-shaped steel upright columns, and the two sides of the unit board are directly inserted into the space between the H-shaped steel upright columns after fixed with single-tube rubber strips are fixed thereon, thereby improving the capability of shock resistance load of the unit board. The high-speed railway metallic sound barrier unit board provided by the utility model has the advantages of reliable structure, strong fatigueresistance performance, convenient installation and harmonious visual sense.


At this historical moment, the urban planning and design professions are confronted with the twin challenges of unprecedented rapid urbanization on the one hand, and declining post-industrial regions on the other. In this environment, there are many different and often conflicting ideas about urban heritage and its relevance for contemporary urban planning and design. In this paper, we look for commonalities and a way forward from among a range of competing urban design models. We examine the illustrative case study of the geography and landscape of Detroit, USA. We consider seven contemporary urban planning and design ideals that dominate the contemporary planning and design discourse and their different views of the past and urban heritage in relation to the approaches in Detroit. From these, we draw a synthesis approach, making several recommendations and observations with a focus on the capacities of so-called "placemaking" approaches. In this paper, urban heritage is understood and examined as contributing a pattern of infrastructure that provides a helpful supportive framework, and (importantly) a set of structural limitations (e.g., historic plot boundaries), that can serve as a generative resource for new urban planning and design. We conclude that the necessary framework for democratic participation and opportunity within urban space can be provided most directly by leveraging the assets of urban heritage.


Heart failure is characterized by recurrent hospitalizations, but often only the first event is considered in clinical trial reports. In chronic diseases, such as heart failure, analysing all events gives a more complete picture of treatment benefit. We describe methods of analysing repeat hospitalizations, and illustrate their value in one major trial.


With reference to the use of interferon beta in multiple sclerosis,1 Betaferon is already off patent, and there has been an unholy scramble to get access to production facilities.2 Extavia is not a generic or biosimilar drug but simply another branded version of interferon beta-1b made in the same factory. It cost …


abstract:Among the seventeenth-century non-elite, anonymous (or almost anonymous) individuals across England organized their experiences into petition narratives presented at various local Quarter Sessions. This article explores these narrative texts as sources of autobiographical acts. It contends that petitions for redress were sites of autobiographical telling that allow investigation into how non-elite people told their life stories in early modern England. It examines how, in the context of a petition for relief, individuals engaged in strategic acts of autobiographical disclosure for redress, which also had implications for the restoration of their dignity and even their identity.


PREVIEW Because of the bad press about weight-loss drugs in recent years, physicians and patients alike may be suspicious of all such medications. However, the agents currently approved for long-term use warrant a second look. For overweight patients who need to lose weight to prevent or lessen the risk of obesity-related disease, these drugs can help achieve medically significant weight loss when used as an adjunct to lifestyle changes. Here, Drs Wyatt and Hill dispel some myths about weight-loss medications and suggest ways to maximize their effectiveness when prescribed in selected patients.


While there is widespread agreement that the spread of new technology crops in India since the mid-1960s has affected rural wages, there is considerable disagreement over the nature of this effect. The existing literature has posed this problem in a demand-supply framework - with a rise in agricultural wages ascribed to increased labour demand caused by this technology change, and stagnant or falling wages attributed to labour supply growth outstripping labour demand. In this paper we reconsider this issue in a modified framework. Within a competitive demand-supply framework we add another aspect of production technology that is idiosyncratic to agriculture, namely, sensitivity of yields to timing of farm operations (say, planting date). It is common knowledge that mistiming can cause substantial yield loss. In a competitive labour market this causes greater impatience on the farmers' part. They are willing to pay a higher wage rather than risk loss of yield. As newer technology crops tend to be more time sensitive, this puts an upward pressure on wages. In this paper we test this hypothesis using annual state-level data from India for the period 1970-85. Delineating the demand-supply effect of new technology on wages from that of the timeliness effect, we indeed find supportive evidence for the above hypothesis.


The lymphatic system has several vital functions to maintain a healthy immune system. Breast cancer-related lymphedema is a non-curable condition that refers to post-surgical chronic and painful swelling of the upper limb. The aim of this study was to review existing literature to see what information is available for nurses about the importance of the lymphatic system. The study focused on breast cancer related lymphedema patients and two research questions were asked 1) What are some of the effects on quality of life that breast cancer-related lymphedema patients' experience? and 2) How should nurses take the lymphatic system into consideration in practice? The literature review was conducted through the theoretical concept of 'Quality of life' (QoL), also 'Health-related Quality of life' (HRQoL). Ten articles were analyzed by using an inductive analysis approach. The reviewed literature supports the hypothesis that women with breast cancer-related lymphedema report poorer quality of life than breast cancer survivors without it and that health care personnel often fail to offer systematic and adequate preand postpatient education to breast cancer patients. Further studies should be conducted whether including lymph related studies in nursing curriculum would benefit nurses' ability to deliver more systematic patient education to breast cancer patients.


Since 2006, the Local Government of Bogota (Colombia) has been executing the actions included in the Food Supply and Security Master Plan (FSSMP), an initiative that seeks to improve overall food intake and quality in the city, particularly for worseoff groups. These actions, though executed independent from one another, should contribute to the creation of a new food supply system that fulfills, efficiently, the food


The effects of radial deformation and single vacancy on the electronic properties of a single-wall carbon nanotube are studied through ab initio method. Different paths are considered:  the tube is deformed and subsequently a vacancy is produced, or a vacancy is created and the tube is deformed later. The involved energies, band structures, and densities of states following several paths are discussed, and a simple way to induce fundamental changes on the electronic properties is proposed.


The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships among variables associated with teams in team‐based learning (TBL) settings and team outcomes.


In this paper, a simple static var compensating scheme using a cascaded multilevel inverter-based STATCOM is proposed. The topology consists of two standard inverters are connected in cascade through open-end windings of a three-phase transformer. The dc-link voltages of the inverters are regulated at different levels to obtain multilevel operation. A fuzzy logic control scheme is proposed for the controlling operation of statcom. The simulation study is carried out in MATLAB/SIMULINK to predict the performance of the proposed scheme under balanced and unbalanced supply-voltage conditions. Further, stability behavior of the topology is investigated. The dynamic model is developed and transfer functions are derived. The system behavior is analyzed for various operating conditions.


Follicle‐stimulating hormone‐follicle‐stimulating hormone receptor (FSH‐FSHR) interaction is one of the most thoroughly studied signaling pathways primarily because of being implicated in sexual reproduction in mammals by way of maintaining gonadal function and sexual fertility. Despite material advances in understanding the role of point mutations, their mechanistic basis in FSH‐FSHR signaling is still confined to mystically altered behavior of sTYS335 (sulfated tyrosine) yet lacking a substantial theory. To understand the structural basis of receptor modulation, we choose two behaviorally contradicting mutations, namely S128Y (activating) and D224Y (inactivating), found in FSH receptor responsible for ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome and ovarian dysgenesis, respectively. Using short‐term molecular dynamics simulations, the atomic scale investigations reveal that the binding pattern of sTYS with FSH and movement of the thumb region of FSHR show distinct contrasting patterns in the two mutants, which supposedly could be a critical factor for differential FSHR behavior in activating and inactivating mutations.


Using different algorithms in artificial intelligence to perform adversarial agent games. The most popular adversarial game that could be implemented using artificial intelligence algorithms is chess games. The algorithm this research used includes minimax with improvement and deep reinforcement learning. The goal for this research is to compute the popular game Reversi in different artificial intelligence methods successfully. Moreover, the research seeks for improvements in the heuristic part of minimax algorithm and the combination of deep reinforcement learning with Monte Carlo Tree with Neural Network. This paper uses Reversi as an example to analyze different algorithms, including Minimax, Monte Carlo Tree, and Neural Networks. As a result, both algorithms work successfully. The alpha-beta pruning minimax algorithm with improvement in heuristic function and fixed depth cut-off significantly increase the winning probability and time cost of our artificial intelligence agent. The deep reinforcement learning successfully combined MCTS with neural network to train two agents to complete Reversi with great winning probability.


Water cost of sediment control(ratio of detained runoff and sediment, RRS) is an indicator derived from runoff and sediment detained by soil and water conservation practices or other water resource projects.RRS plays an important role in discovering the effect of soil conservation practices on water resources.A larger RRS shows that some practices or branches can reduce more runoff when the same weight of sediment is detained.The RRS in 21 of branches in Hekou and Longmen section of the Yellow River was analyzed based on dataset of sediment delivery modules,average annual precipitation,runoff and sediment detained by conservation practices and irrigation from 1970 to 1996.Results show that RRS of irrigation is far more than that of soil and water conservation practices.RRSs of terrace,forest and grass are similar but more than that of dam land.With the increase of sediment delivery modules,the difference between RRS of terrace,forest,grass and RRS of dam land decreases.The positive correlations between average annual precipitation and RRS of terrace,forest and grass practices are evident respectively,but the correlation between average annual precipitation and RRS of dam land is negative evidently.


We investigate the dynamics of concentrated colloidal suspensions included two kinds of particles; those radius ratio is 1.2 and the number of large particles is 10% of the total numbers. It is found that time dependence of the mean square displacement is different from normal diffusion due to consideration of hydrodynamic interactions.


Non-empirical calculations using a standard gaussian atomic orbital basis (LCGO) have been carried out for known and unknown azines. The wavefunctions show pseudo D6h symmetry and have been correlated with those of benzene; this correlation has been used to interpret the combinations of 'lone pair' orbitals that occur. In the case of the tetrazines the splitting of the lone pair levels leads to extensive overlap with the CH region of energy so that mixing occurs and 1,2,4,5-tetrazine shows five orbitals which can be described as 'lone pair orbitals'. The orbital energy ordering is effectively identical with that obtained from recent double ζ calculations on a few of the molecules; these energies correlate well with photoelectron spectra and obey the relationship IPobs= 0·790IPcalc. Correlations using CNDO/2, INDO, and the Extended Huckel Method (EHM) are less satisfactory both in grouping of the orbitals and absolute energies. The LCGO band assignments are generally in good agreement with those made by Lindholm et al. based upon the EHM. The thermodynamic stability of the azines with respect to fragmentation is discussed; the difference in energies between the classical alternating bond lengths and the observed ones for selected examples are in the region 6–10 kcal mol–1.


Line Roberts et al., in "Building A "GenBank" of the Published Literature"
(http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/291/5512/2318a), Sequeira et al., in "PubMed Central decides to decentralize"
(http://www.nature.com/nature/debates/e-access/Articles/pubmed.html) announce a new policy from PubMedCentral (PMC). PMC
already accepts contents from publishers who are only willing to free them 6-12 months after publication. Now PMC is ready
to accept just the metadata from those publishers, linking to their toll-gated websites, if they agree to give away their contents
on their own websites 6-12 months after publication. Free access to refereed research a year after publication is better then no access, but it's too little, too late. The details of the self-archiving alternative for freeing the entire refereed corpus now (including questions of copyright and
embargo) are fully described in Harnad (2001) http://www.cogsci.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Tp/resolution.htm.


Prevention of serious damage of composite structures might be achieved by inspecting the structural integrity during exploitation. This paper decribes the design and development of a promising optical fiber sensor system for low velocity impact detection in unidirectional composite that does not have a laminate structure. Obtained results showed that light in multimode fibers embedded in glass-fiber reinforced epoxy unidirectional composites is attenuated during the time of the impact load. Microstructural analysis of the fracture surfaces obtained from mechanically fractured samples was carried out to examine the failure mode of the composite host with embedded optical fibers.


Multipath streaming is a promising technique for multimedia transport over mobile ad hoc networks. In this paper, we propose AMTP, an ad hoc multipath streaming protocol for multimedia delivery. Coupled with a QoS multipath routing protocol, AMTP can accurately differentiate packet losses due to different network conditions, which is useful for real time multimedia streaming applications to perform correct error control and resource allocation. It also selects multiple maximally disjointed paths with best QoS to maximize aggregate end-to-end throughput. In case of path broken, AMTP can seamlessly switch to a proper path and therefore maintain high streaming quality. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed AMTP.


Viable fuel sources have been in a constant state of flux since the first issue of CCJ appeared 100 years ago this month. But the magazine never has stopped helping its readers get a handle on new ideas and make them profitable.


some similarity between these techniques there is still the problem of considering the KB as a psychoanalytic (-like) procedure. As a support for his broad approach, Stubbe cites the concept of 'instinctive psychoanalysis' (Pfister) and 'dynamic protopsychiatry' (Ellenberger). The book includes an interesting description of some Indian curative procedures and refers to the figure of the shaman (pajg') as a 'psychohygienic institution'. Be that as it may, it must be remembered that, before Freud, fundamental concepts in the praxis of psychoanalysis (free-association, transference, neutrality) were unknown. The strength of the book under review, therefore, should be sought in its historiographic contribution. Specially good is its third part, dealing with the 'pioneers'. Without commenting on earlier books on psychoanalysis in Brazil (published during the second and third decades of this century), the author manages to draw a comprehensive picture of the way in which the Viennese approach influenced a number of Brazilian physicians. The 'second stage' is mainly occupied by the work of Mello Franco (1757-1823) whose 'theory of disease' might be considered as a version of the 'psychosomatic' view. In his claim that Mello Franco is a 'prepsychoanalytic' writer, Stubbe follows the views of Afranio Peixoto and Martinho da Rocha, two influential psychiatrists from the beginning of the twentieth century and authors of earlier works on psychoanalysis in Portuguese. A second important difficulty with this book concerns the 'heuristic' value of dividing up the history of psychoanalysis in Brazil into three 'proto'-phases, particularly when the basis for such approach are flimsy and do not go beyond vague comparisons and analogies. Another strength of this book concerns its review of the literature, appendices, chronology of social and medical events (1500 to 1939), and reprinting of material (faqades, introductions, indices) pertaining


The Dongxiang language, spoken in Dongxiang autonomous County in Gansu province, situated in northwestern China. This language is the result of contact between the Mongolian and Chinese languages. The geographic isolation of the county, and its inhabitants' desire to preserve themselves from contact with non-Muslim populations, have meant that for six centuries the Dongxiang language has been in contact almost exclusively with the Chinese dialect of Linxia. This stable sociolinguistic situation is now being disturbed by economic and urban development, which are giving rise to new social and linguistic behaviors among young people, particularly in the town of Suonanba. The recent contact between Dongxiang and new varieties of Chinese (namely the Lanzhou dialect and Mandarin, or Putonghua) is producing new ways of speaking that suggest the possible emergence of a specific "youth language." This paper describes certain characteristics of these ways of speaking and discusses the relevance in this context of the categories "youth" and "youth language," both for the community and for researchers.


Marine microalgae comprise a large number of polyketides and terpenes identi fi ed to date with highly diverse molecular scaffolds and the biological activities (Kalaitzis et al., 2010) [1]. These compounds play signi fi cant roles in marine food web and nutraceutical supplementation in marine animals. Compounds of this class are often synthesized by gene clusters with dedicated domains responsible for carbon chain extension and modi fi cation. The unique molecular structure of these compounds encourages people to investigate their biosynthetic mechanisms in-depth. In this review, we summarize relevant articles to unravel the shared mechanisms of these compounds to further understand the variety of domain organizations and the subsequent impact on the carbon chain diversity. In addition, the ecological role of these compounds and their modes of distribution in natural sea water is also discussed. We expect this study to bring multifaceted aspects regarding the assemblage and the ecological function of these secondary metabolites and to provide information to those who wish to obtain further understanding in these compounds whose structure and ecological function remain underexplored.


To investigate some virulence factors in Candida species isolated from patients with suspected invasive fungal infection and to identify their relationship with Candida genotypes. Materials and methods: Overall 45 isolates (20 Candida albicans and 25 non-albicans Candida spp.) genotyped by rep-PCR were included in this study. Virulence factors were studied in both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. In isolates, egg yolk agar was used for determining phospholipase activity, while bovine serum albumin agar was used for proteinase activity, Tween-80 medium for esterase activity, and Sabouraud dextrose agar with sheep blood for hemolysin activity. Biofilm formation was detected by the microplate method. Results: In both Candida spp., it was found that hemolytic activity and proteinase activity were higher in aerobic conditions, whereas biofilm formation was higher in anaerobic conditions. It was also found that phospholipase and esterase activity were only detected in C. albicans isolates, which were found to be higher in aerobic conditions. No difference was found in virulence factors evaluated among the C. albicans genotypes. Conclusion: The amount of oxygen in the atmosphere may affect the virulence of Candida spp. Further comprehensive studies are needed in order to identify the relationship between Candida genotypes and virulence factors.


Objective To explore the efficacy of sodium nitroprusside continuous intravenous infusion in the treatment of refractory heart failure in the past two years of our hospital.Methods Fifty-eight cases of patients with refractory heart failure who still ineffective or aggravated by reasonablely given digitalis,diuretics,converting enzyme inhibitors,nitrates,correction of the incentives causes and oxygen inhalation,were given sodium nitroprusside continuous intravenous infusion with a micro-infusion pump under dark for 5 days.Results Compared with before treatment,stroke volume(SV),output per minute(CO),left ventricular ejection fraction(EF),6 minute walk distance after treatment were significantly increased(P 0.05);cardiothoracic ratio and left ventricular end diastolic diameter(LDV) were narrowing(P 0.05).Among 58 cases of patients,41 cases were significantly effective(70.69%),17 cases effective(29.31%),and the total efficiency was 100%.Conclusion Sodium nitroprusside continuous intravenous infusion with micro-infusion pump in the treatment of refractory heart failure has significant efficacy.It is particularly suitable for refractory heart failure combined with hypertensive heart disease,regurgitation-based heart valve disease,congenital heart disease,coronary heart disease,dilated cardiomyopathy.It takes effect quickly,performs easily with high safety,and it is worthy of clinical promotion.


Abstract: Most hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) in high strength quenched-and-tempered ferritic steels occurs along prior austenite grain boundaries. Although this can occur in very high purity laboratory steels in presumably clean grain boundaries, in commercial steels it normally occurs in conjunction with segregated elements that reduce intergranular cohesion. In all these cases the hydrogen appears to be acting as a cohesion-reducing element. In cases of transgranular HIC, the characteristic of hydrogen as a promoter of dislocation motion also plays a role.


Abstract : Experiments were performed on the rate of growth of the neck formed between titanium dioxide single crystal spheres, at constant temperature and different surrounding gas atmospheres. These included air and mixtures of H2 + H20 from 1:1 to 1:20. The temperature range in vestigated was 900 to 1350C. A kinetic analysis of the data shows that the predominant contribution to the sintering of the microspheres stems from a plastic flow mechanism. Supporting qualitative evidence for this conclusion is presented. Whisker growth during sintering of titania was observed and the effect of this growth on sintering is discussed. (Author)


Our work focuses on the study of learning paradigms within a hybrid reasoning system, consisting of a N eural Network and Symbolic Reasoner. There are several aspects to this problem that invite comparisons to work in other fields of study involving for example, knowle dge representation, behavioral modeling, and neuromorphic engineering. Central to this paper is a discussion on the coupling between a particular learning paradigm and the behaviors that a real-time system develops in attem pting to achieve a specific goal.


Abstract This paper critically considers the notion of educational policy transfer by addressing the roles of significant actors, based on an analysis of educational reforms made during the Soviet and US military occupation in the two Koreas. Using evidence from the Korean cases, the paper challenges the state-centric, linear, and static views of educational policy transfer, and proposes a new conceptualisation which involves multiple actors from different levels including international, domestic, and individual players. While the educational reforms in the two Koreas were developed by the Soviet and US military in order to maximise their long-term security interests in the Korean peninsula, the key actors who implemented the reforms were Korean policy-makers, who had been appointed to key positions of the educational administrations through the bureaucratic politics between the military authorities and the Korean polity. Thus, specific programmes and policies for implementation of the reforms depended on the Korean policy-makers' understanding and interpretations of the different ideologies of the Soviet Union and the USA.


Objective To explore the differential expression of Toll-like receptor4(TLR4)in human leukocytes and its significance in the patients with ankylosing spondylitis(AS).Methods Using flowcytometry we determined the expression of TLR4 on the peripheral blood leukocytes from 60 AS patients and 40 healthy controls.Results The positive rate of TLR4 in leukocytes of AS group was significantly higher than that in controls(P0.001).No statistical difference was found between the HLA-B27-positive and HLA-B27-negative AS patients(P0.05).However,both AS groups showed significantly higher positive rate of TLR4 in leukocytes than the controls(P0.001).Conclusions TLR4 is expressed in three kinds of leukocytes(lymphocytes,monocytes and polymorphonuclear leukocytes),but it is mainly expressed in human monocytes.The positive rate of TLR4 on monocytes is significantly increased,and no correlation between the HLA-B27-positive and negative patients.The results indicated that abnormal TLR4 signal pathway might be related to the pathogenesis of AS.


It is well known that the actual buckling stress of a circular cylindrical shell subjected to torsion is only about 60 to 70% of the critical stress calculated from the linear theory, as obtained by various investigators. Authors consider that this discrepancy between the theoretical and experimental values of buckling stress has its cause in the Durchschlag phenomenon, as well as the case of buckling under compression.The existence of the Durchschlag phenomenon in the case of torsional buckling should be justified from the fact that the post-buckling shape of the shell shows a nearly developable surface, for which the extensional energy of the shell is comparable with its bending energy. According to this idea, we calculate in the present paper, the lower buckling stress for the torsional buckling, which is satisfactory for explaining the experimental results.


DeeplabV3 [3]: We use SGD with 0.9 momentum with 16 images per mini-batch cropped to a fixed 768×768 size; the training schedule is 90k updates with a poly learning rate [13] update strategy, starting from 0.01; a linear learning rate warmup [6] over 1000 updates starting from a learning rate of 0.001 is applied; the learning rate for ASPP and the prediction convolution are multiplied by 10; weight decay of 0.0001 is applied; random horizontal flipping and scaling of 0.5× to 2.0× with a 32 pixel step is used as training data augmentation; BN is applied to 16 images minibatches; no test-time augmentation is used;


Following the result of the Scottish Referendum in September 2014, Peter Hennessy thought that the English Question would become the weather-maker in contemporary British politics. It is important, however, to avoid overemphasis on the novelty of this matter. There is a compelling argument to bring current debates about Englishness into fruitful dialogue with historical perspectives because this may yield more nuanced understandings of the relationship between political argument and enduring expressions of Englishness. This article considers first a tradition of institutional thinking and how that thinking helped to define English national self-understanding, what Sir Ernest Barker once described as 'never reflective, because it is so simply and obviously a fact'. The article explores the erosion of that national self-understanding in recent years through a number of 'ironies of inversion', in which the previous virtues of English institutionalism can appear as present vices. These ironies of inversion have become factors of popular political grievance, especially since devolution, and have added to an insistent mood that the English Question must be addressed, even if there is no consensus about how it should be addressed.


In this paper,the mathematic model is set up by the base of the mature fluctuant analytic principle of stock price and the experience of operation,This model is applied to Empirical Research on some stock.The prospect of the way is issued in practice


The study is an attempt to analyze the contribution of infrastructure and other factors to agricultural output over time covering all the districts of the Punjab state. The secondary data were collected on area, production and prices of major crops and infrastructure variables for TE 1984 and TE 2012. Based on the step wise regression, it was found that out of all variables like irrigation, credit, cropping intensity and roads turnrd significances during TE 1984, the road variable which was represented by length and quality was indeed an indicator of the development of transport facility and road were important element of agricultural infrastructure. The coefficient of road length was highest valued (285.361) during 1981–84 period and significantly impacted the value of agricultural output; indicating the rural roads played a significant role in improving the connectivity of the agricultural sector with urban markets for buying and selling of goods and services. During TE 2012 long term maintence of roads, fertilizers, regulated markets and irrigation were found to be significant and the value of coefficient of road length was 29.634 road maintance 167.439 during the said period highlighted that only roads were not sufficient to improve the agricultural production but it was sum total of all the institutional variables because of their complementarities and not the roads alone that determined the aggregate productivity. The findings of the study clearly suggest that besides other infrastructure variables, market and quality of roads also play a major role in enhancing the value of agricultural output. The need is not only to increase the length of roads but their maintenance is much more imperative in the Punjab state.


With an aging population and shortage of primary care providers in the U.S., practitioners and researchers have begun to rethink traditional approaches to healthcare delivery for older adults. Telehealth -- the use of technologies to provide clinical services over distance -- offers new ways for clinicians to deliver care while allowing older adult patients to remain in their homes. However, much of the work on telehealth focuses on single technology modalities (e.g., tablet or computer) and is also primarily patient-centered focused at the expense of excluding important stakeholders (e.g., community centers) who can play a role in the delivery of health and wellness resources. While there are opportunities to extend sites of care to local community organizations using telehealth coaching services, current telehealth research is understudied in this regard. We expand upon existing work to propose a systems perspective of computer-supported health and well-being services in order to improve mental health and well-being of low resource older adults. We conclude with open questions for future work.


The Victorian Essential Learning Standards (VELS) requires the fieldwork to study the geography at school level. Field investigation helps the students to collect information about the natural processes and human activities on the environment and helps them in developing policies for managing such issues.


In the South of Italy, there are many cases of kidnapped people that, after a longtime, are found completely burned in order to cancel every trace. The aim of the present work is to identify the body of a man found inside a car, without head, completely burned down. The DNA typing was performed on a bone taken from the backbone, as the internal organs were not useful for traditional analysis due to their high DNA degradation. For comparison, we obtained DNA specimen from saliva of hypothetical related and personal effect samples of the victim. D 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Previous research on the assessment of pediatric feeding disorders has shown that negative reinforcement (escape) plays a major role in the maintenance of food refusal and that escape extinction (EE) may be necessary in the treatment of severe food refusal. The current study examined the influence of two potential motivating operations (MOs) on escape from bite presentations for 3 children with severe food refusal: (a) noncontingent positive reinforcement (NCR) and (b) food satiation (as a result of enteral nutritional support). The abolishing effects of NCR on negative reinforcement for refusal behaviors were demonstrated in Experiment 1 when escape was allowed for food refusal and in Experiment 2 during demand fading across a hierarchy of bite placements. The interactive effects of NCR and food satiation on negative reinforcement for escaping bite presentations (within a hierarchy of bite placements) were demonstrated in Experiment 3. NCR abolished escape as a reinforcer and food satiation established escape as a reinforcer. The combined MO effects of NCR and food deprivation resulted in decreased refusal behaviors and increased acceptance across all bite placements in Experiment 3 even though escape was allowed. Results extend the existing bodies of literature on the competition between positive and negative reinforcement and the effects of specific biological conditions on escape-maintained behavior. Implications for treatment and future research are discussed. Abstract Approved: __________________________________ Thesis SupervisorApproved: __________________________________ Thesis Supervisor __________________________________ Title and Department __________________________________ Date


A modified Fabry-Perot interferometer along with a thin tilted etalon has been used successfully to obtain single longitudinal mode pulses from a 10 atmosphere pressure CO2 laser. Reliability of 85% was observed for cavity lengths up to 2.8 meters. Continuous tuning over a frequency range of 15 cm-1 was obtained on both the R and the P branches of the 9 μm and 10 μm transitions using a grating.


The studies found out that the productivity and quality of oat crop accessions were influenced by the climatic conditions during the vegetation period and plant mineral nutrition level. Under favorable weather and soil conditions the accessions demonstrated a reliable yield increase (0.35-0.37-0.40 t/ha), increased weight of 1000 grains and lesser grain husk. With irregular heat and humidity on poor naturally fertile soils, the growing season of mid-ripening varieties was longer, while for mid-early ones becamer shorter; grain yield was lower than in dry environments.


It has long been well established that during the height of scarlet fever streptococci flourish and become greatly predominant in the pharyngeal and buccal mucus. To quote only a few of the many recorded observations.


The solution of the Reynolds equation for slider-bearing lubrication is given for the finite bearing, side leakage included, when the viscosity is a known function of the pressure. The solution for the pressure distribution is obtained readily from the corresponding case of constant viscosity. The design factors—total load, center of pressure, friction force, and side leakage—also may be obtained, but, in general, the integrals involved must be worked out numerically. Qualitative properties of the pressure, total load, and center of pressure are obtained.


Dobera glabra is a much branched multipurpose evergreen shrub or tree, which is distributed in Acacia savanna, Acacia open woodland with grassy clearings, and Acacia nubica scrub. This study investigates the population structure, regeneration status, cultural importance, and major threats to D. glabra and provides input for policy and decision-makers to develop conservation strategies that improve the population of the species. A sample plot of 30

 ×

 20 meters and 10

 ×

 10 meters were systematically laid along transect lines for the mature D. glabra population and seedling and saplings of the species, respectively. The historical distribution and principal threats to D. glabra were collected through semistructured interviews and focused group discussion with the purposively selected informants. Moreover, direct field observation of threats such as cutting and debarking was recorded. The density of D. glabra was found to be 18.33 stem ha−1. The mean DBH was 43.55 cm (SE

 ±

 1.58), showing a bell-shaped pattern implying the mid-DBH class is the dominant class. The mean height and crown diameter was 5.5 m (SE

 ±

 0.19) and 8.60 m (SE

 ±

 0.31), respectively. Furthermore, the regeneration status of the D. glabra was found to be extremely poor. The major threats to the species were identified as drought, lightning, grazing, cutting, and windfall. The population structure of the species revealed a bell-shaped pattern. The extremely poor natural regeneration status of the species shows the need to implement a reactive conservation approach.


We consider the design of a simple but powerful space-time trellis coding scheme. It combines some simple block code with a delay element between multiple transmit antennas and is referred to as generalized delay diversity code (GDDC). The necessary and sufficient condition for GDDC to achieve full diversity advantage is given. It is proved that all the full diversity GDDC on a BPSK constellation have the same coding gain. We have also thoroughly studied the coding gain of full diversity GDDC on a QPSK constellation and the optimal GDDC is given. The strategy can also be applied to the analysis of the coding gain of full diversity GDDC defined on any PSK and QAM constellation.


Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) has quickly become the mainstay of treatment for acute aortic dissection, in particular cases of acute complicated Stanford Type B dissection (co‐TBAD). Necessarily, TEVAR carries with it the risk of postoperative complications, including stroke and renal failure. As a result, the management of patients with uncomplicated type B aortic dissection (un‐TBAD), which is generally accepted as being less severe, is safely managed via optimal medical therapy (OMT) alone. However, despite OMT, patients with un‐TBAD are at substantial risk of severe disease progression requiring delayed intervention. The cost–benefit ratio associated with TEVAR for un‐TBAD is therefore of key interest. Howard and colleagues produced a fascinating systematic review and meta‐analysis investigating the clinical outcomes of TEVAR for complicated and uncomplicated TBAD. Their data suggest that there is no significant difference in in‐hospital mortality or 5‐year survival between TEVAR for un‐TBAD and co‐TBAD, although the 30‐day mortality rate appeared to be higher in the co‐TBAD cohort. Patients with co‐TBAD appeared to also be at a higher risk of postoperative stroke and TEVAR endoleak, while un‐TBAD patients were at a higher risk of postoperative renal failure. Further prospective research into these relationships is recommended to fully elucidate the comparative efficacies of TEVAR for un‐TBAD and co‐TBAD.


The5-HT 5A receptoristheleastunderstoodserotonin(5-HT)receptor.Here,weelectrophysiologicallyidentifyandcharacterizeanative 5-HT 5A receptor current in acuteex vivobrain slices of adult rodent prefrontal cortex. In the presence of antagonists for the previously characterized5-HT 1A and5-HT 2 receptors,aproportionoflayerVpyramidalneuronscontinuetoshow5-HT-elicitedoutwardcurrents inbothratsandmice.These5-HTcurrentsaresuppressedbytheselective5-HT 5A antagonist,SB-699551,andarenotobservedin5-HT 5A receptorknock-outmice.Furthercharacterizationrevealsthatthe5-HT 5A currentisactivatedbysubmicromolarconcentrationsof5-HT, isinwardlyrectifyingwithareversalpotentialneartheequilibriumpotentialforKions,andissuppressedbyblockersofKir3channels. Finally,weobservethatgeneticdeletionoftheinhibitory5-HT5Areceptorresultsinanunexpected,largeincreaseintheinhibitory5-HT1A receptor currents. The presence of functional prefrontal 5-HT5A receptors in normal rodents along with compensatory plasticity in 5-HT5Areceptorknock-outmicetestifiestothesignificanceofthisreceptorinthehealthyprefrontalcortex.


Multiphase flows are characterized by sharp moving interfaces, separating different fluids or phases. In many cases the dynamics of the interface determines the behavior of the flow. In a coarse, or reduced order model, it may therefore be important to retain a sharp interface for the resolved scales. Here, a process to coarsen or filter fully resolved numerical solutions for incompressible multiphase flows while retaining a sharp interface is examined. The different phases are identified by an index function that takes different values in each phase and is coarsened by solving a constant coefficient diffusion equation, while tracking the interface contour. Small flows scales of one phase, left behind when the interface is moved, are embedded in the other phase by solving another diffusion equation with a modified diffusion coefficient that is zero at the interface location to prevent diffusion across the interface, plus a pressure like equation to enforce incompressibility of the coarse velocity field. Examples of different levels of coarsening are shown. A simulation of a coarse model, where small scales are treated as a homogeneous mixture, results in a solution that is similar to the filtered fully resolved field for the early time Rayleigh-Taylor instability.


This paper deals with the measurement of the evolution of the water conductivity dripping from an ice-covered insulator during a melting period. For this purpose, post type insulator covered by a wet-formed ice deposit was submitted to melting period tests leading to flashover. During each melting period, leakage current, applied voltage and dripping water conductivity were recorded simultaneously. To measure with precision the conductivity of dripping water, a system of measurement in real time based on a Plexiglas cell was developed. It was demonstrated that dripping water conductivity reaches its maximum value before the occurrence of flashover. For each flashover test performed under the same experimental conditions, the conductivity of the dripping water presents a similar evolution. These results will be helpful to understand the dynamic behavior of ice-covered insulator flashover thus contributing to increase the reliability of flashover numerical models.


This paper discusses a strategy for opti- mal storage scheduling in a supply and demand network equipped with multiple storage units of dierent char- acteristics. The scheduler uses a constrained predictive control technique, where only average information about future operating conditions is needed, making the ap- proach practical. A non-smooth objective is incorpo- rated. The outcome of the optimal schedule heavily de- pends on the characteristics of the storage units. An ex- ample is provided for an airplane power generator where mechanical and electrical power are co-produced, and electrical power can be stored in three dierent storage devices, representing electrical, mechanical, and chemi- cal storage units. and demand, so the supply can be provided at favor- able conditions, so at low incremental costs, while one is still able to meet irregular demand due to the storage units. The design and analysis of control schemes achiev- ing these savings has been demonstrated in the area of hybrid vehicles, see (3{6), and others. This paper illus- trates that those ideas can be applied to a broader eld than hybrid vehicles alone.


Turnkey and thermal island supply scopes present turbine suppliers with a perfect way to sell their rotating products. The popularity of these plant configurations, along with the recent availability of more holistic test codes, has led to the need for an accurate and reasonable method of determining the thermal performance of the externally-purchased HRSG component. To assess a multiple pressure HRSG, it is advantageous and convenient to have one single criterion for the evaluation of performance, especially when this criterion provides for the compensation of the different outlet energy streams. The so-called Model Steam Turbine method of HRSG evaluation was developed for these reasons. The result of the calculation, a lone performance criterion, is the shaft power of the fictitious Model Steam Turbine.Copyright © 2002 by ASME


The states on the southern rim of the former Soviet Union inherited few nuclear weapons, but many nuclear weapons components. Despite good intentions, little progress has been made toward effective control of these materials, which threaten the region and the world.


A forward subtracted library was used to select out the serine/threonine protein kinase gene(AAPK),stress-induced protein gene(Tsi1),dehydrated protein gene(Dehydrin),Δ1-PYRROLINE-5-carboxylic acid synthase gene(P5Cs)and other 9 genes associated with drought by suppression subtractive hybridization using seedling leaf of Tibet barley,and used real-time quantitative PCR analysis of its expression pattern.The results showed that under waterlogged conditions,Tsi1,ERA1,Os SKIPa,Nt-SYR1,SHMT and AAPK genes upregulated,and P5 Cs,Dehydrin genes downregulated.With drought stress treatment,Tsi1,ERA1,Os SKIPa and AAPK genes was upregulated,drought complex after 8 h of water,expression of these genes reached highest levels.After Nt-SYR1 drought stress,the expression of genes was significantly upregulated when the absolute water content in the soil reached 4.8 percent,the expression reached highest after rehydration for 2h. P5 Cs gene under severe drought stress were downregulated,the expression was upregulated gradually after rehydration. Dehydrin genes upregulated during drought stress treatment,with rehydration time increased,also showed upregulated.SHMT genes in drought years and rehydration was downregulated.The soil absolutely moisture of SAMDC gene did not change in normal growth and waterlogging,the drought was downregulated,but the soil absolute moisture content(4.8%)was significantly upregulated,and later was downregulated,expression was low levels throughout the treatment period.


The economic downturn has led to a shift in the emphasis of learning and development programs for leaders, including online programs. Peter McAteer from Harvard Business Publishing was in Sydney recently to discuss the trends.


Analysis of the state of agricultural production, climatic and socio-economic conditions of agriculture of the Volgograd Region. The main directions of agricultural development in the region, taking into account the condition of land and climatic features of the area in the context of its districts. To practice the proposals are given on the development of agribusiness.


Electrochemical double layer capacitors (EDLCs) and Li-ion batteries are the prevailing two electrochemical energy storage technologies due to their superior power output and energy density, respectively. Further improvements are however required to meet the increasing demands of a society based on renewable energies. A higher operating voltage effectively increases the energy density of the cell but also the likelihood of adverse side reactions at the electrode/electrolyte interfaces, which accelerate the cell aging and limit the cell performance. In this work, in situ pressure characterization and online electrochemical mass spectrometry (OEMS) were developed to study the mechanisms of such side reactions. Both techniques characterize the electrochemically generated volatile species and are complementary in nature. In situ pressure characterization monitors the total pressure of a closed cell and permits a temporal and semi-quantitative analysis of the evolving gases during the electrochemical cycling. OEMS allows both quantitative and qualitative temporal analysis of the evolved gases in an open cell configuration. A novel OEMS set-up with improved accuracy and sensitivity, compared to the conventional OEMS was developed, validated, and applied. Carbon-based EDLCs with aqueous electrolytes displayed a range of cell aging mechanisms including oxidation of carbon surface functionalities (cell voltage U > 0.6 V), water decomposition, and carbon corrosion (cell voltage U > 1.6 V) when operated at high voltages up to 2.0 V. The cell voltage of 1.6 V appears to be a critical limit beyond which detrimental cell aging reactions rapidly accelerate. Highly concentrated electrolytes were demonstrated to mitigate the water electrolysis and carbon corrosion successfully according to our in situ gas analysis. Conductive carbons, which are commonly employed as additives in Li-ion batteries, were similarly investigated in a broad potential window of E ~ 0 5.0 V vs. Li+/Li to elucidate parasitic reactions limiting their performance in non-aqueous carbonate-based electrolytes. Electrochemical double layer behavior dominates at E ~ 2.4 3.4 V vs. Li+/Li. At higher electrode potentials, both carbon surface reactions (E > 3.8 V vs. Li+/Li) and electrolyte oxidation (E > 4.6 V vs. Li+/Li) yield CO and CO2. At lower electrode potentials H2 and C2H4


All papers published in this volume of Journal of Physics: Conference Series have been peer reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing. • Type of peer review: Double-blind • Conference submission management system: http://www.academicconf.com/Identity/Account/Login?confName=cmse2020 • • Describe criteria used by Reviewers when accepting/declining papers. Was there the opportunity to resubmit articles after revisions? • The reviewers provide their constructive & detailed comments and suggestions on the manuscripts via the conference peer review system. The Authors were asked to revise their original manuscripts in alignment with the reviewers' comments and suggestions for publication. An opportunity will be given to the authors to resubmit their manuscripts after revisions. • Number of submissions received: 260 • Number of submissions sent for review: 185 • Number of submissions accepted: 71 • Acceptance Rate (Number of Submissions Accepted / Number of Submissions Received X 100): 38.4% • Average number of reviews per paper: 2 • Total number of reviewers involved: 210 • Any additional info on review process: The conference uses iThenticate to check plagiarism. All papers were checked once submitted and were checked again before they are sent to the Publisher for publication. • Contact person for queries: Dr. Alexander Khotsianovsky email@example.com Managing Editor of Strength of Materials, Pisarenko Institute of Problems of Strength of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Ukraine


Acid-base properties of a modified with sodium cation and non-modified Pd/Al2O3 model were investigated by heat-programmable desorption (HPD) of ammonia, IR-spectroscopy using adsorbed carbon monoxide and deuterochloroform. As it was found out, for all test specimen the amount of protondonor groups (according to IR-spectroscopy of the adsorbed CO) correlates with Bronsted sites concentration at vOH=3688 cm-1 (PA = 1380 kJ per mole) calculated by IR-spectra of direct observation. The results of total Bronsted and Lewis acid sites in 0.5 wt.% Na promoted and not promoted alumina support obtained by IR-spectroscopy of adsorbed CO and by HPD of NH3 were close enough. Meanwhile, the amount of sites capable of ammonia chemical absorption is comparable with total amount of Bronsted and Lewis sites having mean strength calculated by IR-spectra of the adsorbed CO. It is shown, that alkali metal added into alumina support and Pd/Al2O3 system decreases the concentration of Bronsted and Lewis sites and simultaneously increases the amount of strong basic sites. Covering the surface of alumina with 0.5 wt.% of palladium from acetylacetanate complex didnt significantly change the amount of Bronsted, Lewis and basic sites and their strength distribution on the support surface. Tapered pores being present in support impair promoting effect of the catalyst systems probably because acid sites contained in such pores become less available for a promoter.