This work forms part of our ongoing research into enhancing and improving microscopy and image processing technologies, and was one of a number of projects undertaken to explore the potential of voice-based interface control. This project focused on voice control of a scanning electron microscope (SEM), Carl Zeiss model 1430VP, using skills developed on a low-cost Virtual Assistant, specifically the Amazon Alexa family of devices [1], to receive commands and requests for information relating to the SEM. With the inexorable advances in computing power and adoption of connected devices, there has been a surge of interest in developing voice control for instruments and apparatus in a wide range of applications [2]. While Alexa primarily targets domestic users, a number of business and other applications have now achieved commercial success. These rely on the voice-recognition and natural language understanding abilities common to all these devices. Devices with an integrated screen for display of images or movies give additional capabilities well-suited to the needs of imaging instruments. These are available for under £100. The objectives of this project were to investigate the feasibility and practicality of developing a voice-controlled system for managing a scanning electron microscope and to explore its areas of application. There is considerable interest in the possibility of remote access to an SEM, where the remote user connects to the instrument and sees images shown on local screen. However, many of these systems are purely extensions of the standard instrument user interface and require considerable training. Interacting remotely with a SEM through voice control opens up the possibility for inexperienced users to get results using 'smart' automated procedures and can offer a better user experience. The objectives were pursued through development of a voice user interface (VUI) skill for the Carl Zeiss SEM using the Amazon Alexa software development kit (SDK) and a variety of Alexa devices. The system comprises three main parts:


Using method of the space sequence instead of time sequence,characteristics of grazing resistance of dominance species in degraded grassland in the eastern part of Qilian mountain were studied.Those dominant plants were Melica przewalskyi,Heteropappus altaicu,Kobresia pygmaca.The results showed that: grazing disturbance influenced the plant growth including the numbers of bunches(or tillers),shoot branching,and the shoot branching in every bunch(or tiller).The subdominant species which belongs to the same dominant plant functional group in primary community had the opposite trend for reproductive characteristics to the dominant species.But it usually could not increase the biomass and the position of the plant functional group.There were lots of deflected succession types in the degraded process.And which species would be the dominant species were depends on characteristics itself in the degraded grassland.Those characteristics were the position in the community,the anti-interference ability and the characteristics of its growth.The disturbance changed the proportion of plant biomass between above and below ground,the proportion between reproductive and nutrition growth.In a word when the grassland degraded,they will enter into a sub-health condition,the plant which can not be graze will be increased in one hand,on the other hand,the grassland will lead to a unstable stage.


We developed and applied a computer analysis method to detect ring galaxy candidates in the first data release of the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (PanSTARRS). The method works by applying a low-pass filter, followed by dynamic global thresholding, to search for closed regions in the binary mask of each galaxy image. Applying the method to ∼3 × 106 PanSTARRS galaxy images produced a catalog of 185 ring galaxy candidates based on their visual appearance.


We present real-time, full-field, fluorescence polarization microscopy and its calibration and validation methods to monitor the absorption dipole orientation of fluorescent molecules. A quarter-wave plate, in combination with a liquid crystal variable retarder (LCVR), provides a tunable method to rotate a linear polarized light prior to being coupled into a fluorescence microscope. A series of full-field fluorescence polarization images are obtained of fluorescent molecules interleaved into the lipid bilyaer of liposomes. With this system, the dynamic dipole orientation of the fluorescent lipid analog tetramethylindocarbocyanine (DiI)-labeled lipids inserted in liposomes are probed and found to be aligned with the liposome in a tangential manner. The dipole orientation of 4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (BODIPY)- labeled lipids are expected to be aligned perpendicularly in the liposome membrane. Spectral separation of fluorescent lipid analogs into separate images provide an internal control and the ability to quantitatively correlate the membrane structure and fluctuations, within an optical section, in real-time. Application of this technique to the identification of characteristic features of cellular processes such as adhesion, endocytosis, and apoptosis are being investigated.


This is an investigation of local (analytic or formal) integrating factors near certain degenerate stationary points of plane analytic vector fields. The method is to use blow-ups and then apply known results from the non-degenerate case. The main result is that in general there is no formal integrating factor which is algebraic over the quotient field of the formal power series ring.


Summary. The influence of heteroplasmy on sperm viability and motility in the undiluted semen of two buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) breeds and a Zebu cattle breed (Bos indicus) was studied. In undiluted semen stored at 5\m=+-\1\s=deg\C, Zebu bull semen showed poor keeping quality (av. 32\m=.\4 hr) compared to Murrah (av. 49\m=.\7 hr) and Surti (av. 45\m=.\6 hr) buffalo bull semen. Mixed samples of semen from both buffalo breeds had a keeping quality which was intermediate between those of the two breeds av. 47\m=.\6 hr). The combination of Murrah buffalo spermatozoa with Zebu bull seminal plasma had the longest keeping quality (64\m=.\1hr). No clumping or agglutination of spermatozoa in the heterospermic or the heteroplasmic treatments was observed at 5\m=+-\1\s=deg\C until \m=+-\3 motility was reached, indicating that selected heteroplasmy plays an important r\l=o^\le in the maintenance of sperm viability and motility. Heteroplasmic samples showed a superior conception rate (68%) over control samples extended with egg-yolk citrate (44%).


New generations of cloud applications are increasingly complex and pose lower latency requirements. e la er is forcing the industry to reduce network latency by adding computation nodes near the edge of the network, also known as Fog Computing. To utilize the Fog nodes efficiently, the dynamic placement and migration of application components must be supported. To this end, a Fog- aware application programming and deployment framework, called Foglets, has been proposed. is demonstration shows how the Foglets framework can be easily used to deploy applications in the Fog Computing infrastructure: A video streaming application allows a moving user to continue watching a video on the closest available screen.


Simultaneously achieving high link performance and advanced microwave photonic processing functionalities in compact integrated circuits is crucial but challenging for the deployment in future and existing practical applications. In this paper, we present the first comprehensive experimental study to optimize the link performance of a Si3 N4-photonic-chip-based microwave photonic notch filter. This systematic study leads to an optimized link performance of the chip-based filter, demonstrating an RF net gain, a sub-20-dB noise figure and an overall third-order spurious-free dynamic range of 115 dB.Hz2/3 over a frequency range of 0–12 GHz, in conjunction with advanced filtering functionalities with a notch rejection >50 dB. The achieved performance is based on a unique and low-loss chip-based filter scheme which offers the compatibility with existing link performance optimization techniques, while maintaining the advanced notch filter functionality. Numerical calculations are also performed to explore the future feasibility of implementing a fully integrated microwave photonic filter that approaches the same level of link performance demonstrated in this work. This study is expected to provide a feasible design route to approach fully integrated microwave photonic filters with high link performance.


A new architecture of mutually coupled regenerative oscillators is presented. It has been used to design a low-noise high-frequency VCO capable of producing two output signals in quadrature with essentially identical properties. The phase relation between the quadrature outputs is frequency independent and extremely stable. A new way of coupling the regenerative oscillators is suggested in order to improve the frequency stability of the coupled oscillator system. Results obtained from a test chip have verified the viability of the new oscillator concept. The oscillator circuit has been realized in a medium-frequency (fT = 3GHz) bipolar process. The tuning range extends to 500MHz. At an oscilation frequency of 200MHz, measured phase noise was¿121dBc/Hz at 1MHz distance from the carrier.


THE INVENTION CONCERNS A DEVICE TRIGGER ALARM RECEIVER SYSTEM TRANSMISSION ON OPTICAL FIBER. DEVICE INCLUDES FILTER SERIES 5 BANDWIDTH OUTSIDE THE FREQUENCY BAND USED TRANSMISSION ON OPTICAL FIBER WHICH THE ENTRY E IS CONNECTED TO AN AVALANCHE pHOTODIODE 2 MEANS AMPLIFICATION 6, 7, MEANS OF RECOVERY, R, R, C, A cOMPARATOR CIRCUIT VOLTAGE 8 AND TRIGGER ALARM MEANS OF. THE DEVICE ACCORDING TO ALARM TRIPPING THE iNVENTION APPLIES TO MODULE RECEIVER OF TRANSMISSION SYSTEM FOR LINK single fiber.


Vertically stacked dies pose thermal management challenges related to increasing power density and the need to conduct heat across interfaces in 3D packages. The thermal resistances across monolithically bonded die interfaces are challenging to characterize in situ due to their low relative magnitude and embedded location in the stack. Such interfaces are buried within the package deeper than the thermal penetration depth of available transient measurement techniques such as time domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) and frequency domain thermoreflectance (FTDR). Steady state techniques such as the reference bar method can measure deeply buried interfaces but require the use of higher temperatures, temperature gradients, and heat fluxes to resolve lower thermal resistances. In this work, we propose and assess the feasibility of thermal metrology techniques for the non-destructive characterization of deeply buried interfaces, targeting thermal contact resistances of the order of 0.01 cm2K/W. We evaluate two different embodiments of the measurement approach. The working principle for both methods includes a combination of non-contact periodic heating and thermal sensing to measure the transient temperature response of a two-layer bonded stack of materials. In the first embodiment, the sample stack is attached over a circular opening in a temperature-controlled heat sink and heated periodically at the center of the suspended zone to create a radial temperature gradient. The second embodiment involves generating a one-dimensional temperature gradient across the stack by periodic heating of one face and steady cooling of the other face. The corresponding amplitude and phase delay of the temperature responses are used to fit for the thermal interfacial resistance, assuming a time-periodic solution for the heat diffusion equation for a system with periodic heating. We compare the measurement sensitivities of both approaches by developing numerical models to simulate the transient temperature profiles across a two-layer bonded silicon stack of known properties and then analyzing the numerical results to infer the interfacial resistance. The one-dimensional gradient approach is found to offer more practically measurable changes in the temperature amplitude compared to the radial spreading approach for thermal interfacial resistances $(R_{th})$ in the range of 0.001 to 0.01 cm2 K/W that are buried to a depth of up to a few hundred microns in a two-layer bonded silicon stack.


In terms of South Africa's Land Transport Bill, it is required that efficient and integrated transportation and spatial development be promoted by all relevant policies, administrative practicies, laws and plans. The Bill particularly emphasizes the need to discourage the dispersal of employment and other travel-intensive activities. Against this background there is a need for specific location policies and strategies aimed at achieving better integration of employment and other travel-intensive land uses to promote public transit ridership and discourage the use of private automobiles. This paper briefly reviews some of the "best practices" internationally and provides a preliminary design of a proposed system for the management of travel-intensive land uses in South Africa.


The European Union has an Association Agreement with Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. One of the important commitments of this document is to bring the rule of law, democracy, and human rights systems closer to European standards. This article discusses the reforms carried out in the above mentioned Eastern Partnership countries in the field of rule of law and the developments, achievements, and current challenges of democratic institutions. It also analyzes the role of the European Union and the legal significance of the Association Agreement in ensuring progress towards the rule of law and democratic transformation.


It is in the present invention is a composite of two successive bonded each single-sided adhesive tape with the purpose of two to be joined together to be bonded materials in a simple, time-saving and low-waste manner.


Objective:To examine the characteristics of social support in college students from low-income families.Methods:Social Support Rating Scale(SSRS) was administered on 91 low-income college students and 229 regular college students in a comprehensive university.Results:The social support level in low-income students was significantly lower than that of their peers.Gender had a significant impact on the social support level.Conclusion:Family economic status had an important effect on social support level in low-imcome college students.


This document presents a theoretical framework and shows a numerical simulation for the propagation of solitons. With special attention to the spatial optical solitons, we calculates analytically the profile of soliton corresponding to the non-linear Schrodinger equation for a Kerr medium. The results show that the optical solitons are stable pulses whose shape and spectrum are preserved at great distances.


Tissue engineering has become a new era in dentistry. It is a novel field that recreates healthy tissues, functional and organ in order to replace dead tissues. There are several applications of tissue engineering in oro-maxillofacial complex.


In the academia,the right-protection activities by Chinese peasants have been categorized as"resistance on a daily basis","fighting with legal rights",and"going by regulations".The present study was based on two land expropriation cases in northeast Guangxi.The study revealed that the general features of the right-protection activities by the peasants involved could be summarized as"fighting with rationality and legality",the expression of which was some kind in between"resistance on a daily basis"and"fighting with legal rights"within the scope of being"rational"and"legal"when determining the rationales for behavior,selecting strategies,and setting goals.To be more specific,the peasants actively used the strategy of delaying the handover of the land to be expropriated for a better price,adopted the behavioral strategy based on both rationality and legality in collective actions,ensured control over the situation,and tried to avoid collisions with the local governments.This kind of resistance had its root in the rural culture and the tension due to the legitimacy of the Chinese government's strong need for social stability and the local government's desire for economic achievements and its efforts to maintain stability,all of which had led to a kind of"unspoken agreement"to let the peasants in the right-protection activities have an equal voice in the dialogue with the local government.When the government comprised a bit,the peasants made advances;when the government became firm,the peasants compromised a bit.Both sides utilized their respective political and social resources to fight for a resolution that would be in the best interest to itself.The pragmatism in the peasants' right-protection activities was the survival strategy and action logic of these peasants who were living in the peripheral region of the structural network woven by power and interests.


This paper summarizes the main results achieved by the Task Group on Benchmarking of Control Strategies for Wastewater Treatment Plants. These results include the Benchmark Simulation Model (BSM) platform, a suite of verified unit process models, and a set of process modelling tools that can generally support wastewater treatment plant modelling studies. More importantly, this paper reflects on the most important lessons learned, both from the BSM platform development and from the use of the BSM platform and its tools: (1) Development of the BSM platform was mostly based on voluntary work and has demonstrated that voluntary work still has a major role to play in the scientific community; (2) Development by a broad and diverse group of experts (e.g. both from industry and academia) has promoted broad acceptance and success of the BSM platform; (3) Model implementation and ringtesting has been one of the most time-consuming development steps, and has to some extent taken the focus away from the original BSM platform purpose, i.e. testing and comparison of control strategies; (4) Modularity and proper documentation of the developed BSM platform tools has contributed substantially to the success of the BSM platform. Finally, the paper also discusses how the BSM platform could form a source of inspiration to other research fields, for example fermentation, biocatalysis and pharmaceutical production.


Signs and Symptoms. Abdominal Pain. Anemia. Back Pain. Bleeding Disorders. Chest Pain. Cough, Hemoptysis, and Hiccup. Delirium and Dementia. Diarrhea. Dizziness and Vertigo. Dyspnea. Electrolyte Disturbances. Fever of Unknown Origin. Gastrointestinal Tract Bleeding. Headache. Hematuria. Hemoptysis. Hepatomegaly. Joint Pain. Lower Extremity Pain. Nausea and Vomiting. Ocular and Visual Abnormalities. Palpitations. Rash. Splenomegaly. Thrombocytopenia. Tremor and Movement Disorders. Laboratory Diagnosis. Arterial Blood Gases. Cardiac Biomarkers. Chest X-Ray. Coagulation Panel. Hepatitis Serology. Interpretation of the Electrocardiogram. Liver Function Tests. Pulmonary Artery Catheter. Pulmonary Function Tests. Thyroid Function Tests. Diseases. Acid-Base Disorders. Acute Coronary Syndromes. Acute Renal Failure. Asthma. Atrial Fibrillation. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Congestive Heart Failure. Connective Tissue Diseases. Diabetes Mellitus. Epileptic Seizures. Fulminant Hepatic Failure. HIV Disease Complications. Hypertensive Crisis. Infective Endocarditis. Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Myasthenia Gravis and Disorders of the Neuromuscular Junction. Neutropenia. Pancreatitis. Pericardial Diseases. Pneumonia. Poisonings and Overdoses. Pulmonary Thromboembolism. Sepsis. Urinary Tract Infections. Vasculitis. Therapy. Antimicrobial Agents. Cardiac Arrest. Insulin Therapy for Hospitalized Patients. Lipid Management. Mechanical and Noninvasive Positive Pressure Ventilation. Nutrition Support in Hospitalized Patients. Oxygen Therapy. Pain Management. Procedures. Renal Replacement Therapies. Steroid Therapy. Transfusion Therapy. Insights. Emergency Response Team Responsibilities and Guidelines. End of Life. Eponyms in Internal Medicine. Evidence-Based Practice. How to Be a Good Intern. Preoperative Medical Evaluation


We tested the hypothesis that aging would be associated with slowed vasodilator kinetics in contracting muscle in part due to a reduced nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability. Young (n=10; 24 ± 2 yr) and older (n=10; 67 ± 2 yr) adults performed rhythmic forearm exercise (4 min each) at 10, 20 and 30% of max during saline infusion (control) and NO synthase (NOS) inhibition. Brachial artery diameter and velocities were measured using Doppler ultrasound. Forearm vascular conductance (FVC) was calculated for each duty cycle (1s contraction/2s relaxation) from blood flow (ml/min) and blood pressure (mmHg) and fit with a monoexponential model. The main parameters derived from the model were the amplitude (Amp) of the FVC response and the number of duty cycles for FVC to change 63% of the steady‐state amplitude (τFVC). Under control conditions 1) the Amp of the response at 20 and 30% MVC was lower in older (240 ± 24 and 319 ± 33 ml/min/100mmHg) compared to young adults (338 ± 45 and 462 ± 52 ml/min/100mmHg; P < 0.05) and 2) τFVC was slower in older (10 ± 1, 13 ± 1 and 15 ± 1 duty cycles) compared to young (6 ± 1, 9 ± 1 and 11 ± 1 duty cycles) adults at all intensities (P < 0.05). NOS inhibition blunted the Amp and slowed the τFVC in young, at all intensities (10 ± 2, 12 ± 1 and 16 ± 2 duty cycles; P < 0.05), whereas it did not change in older adults. Our data indicate that the vasodilator kinetics in exercising muscle are altered with aging likely due to blunted NO signaling.


Automatic control of the matching of the ITER ICRH antenna array on a reference load is presently developed and tested for optimization on a low‐powered scaled (1:5) mock‐up. Resilience to fast load variations is obtained either by 4 Conjugate‐T (CT) or 4 quadrature hybrid circuits, the latter being the reference option. The main results are (i) for the CT option: successful implementation of the simultaneous feedback control of 11 actuators for the matching of the 4 CT and for the control of the array toroidal phasing; (ii) for the hybrid option: the matching and the array current control via feedback control of the decouplers and double stub tuners. This system is being progressively implemented and the simultaneous control of matching and antenna current has already been successfully tested on half of the array for heating and current drive phasings.


: In this research work, the ability of Cystoseria indica brown macro-alga from Phaophyta family and pre-treated with calcium for Th(ІV), V(V), and Fe(ІІІ) biosorption from real wastewater of thorium chemical precepitation process was investigated in a fixed bed column with 5.25 cm bed height and 1.5 cm diameter. The experimental results showed that in Th(ІV) biosorption from two-component feed solutions of Th(ІV) - V(V) and Th(ІV) - Fe(ІІІ), the competition between Th(ІV) and V(V) ions is more significant than the competition between Th(ІV) and Fe(ІІІ) ions. Also, in the Th(ІV) biosorption from real wastewater, the biosorption capacity of Th(ІV), V(V), and Fe(ІІІ) was obtained as 104.60, 24.15, and 17.39 mg/g, respectively. It shows the affinity of Th(ІV) ions to Ca-pretreated Cystoseria indica algae is higher than that of Fe(ІІІ) and V(V) ions. The biosorption breakthrough curves were modeled using Bohart-Adams, Thomas, Yoon-Nelson, Belter, modified dose-response, Gompertz, and modified Gompertz models. The results showed that the modified Gompertz model better agrees with the experimental data. Also, the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis and the measurement of calcium concentration in real wastewater showed that functional groups of hydroxyl, amine, amide, methylene, carboxyl, and sulfate had the most participation in the ion exchange mechanism with Th(ІV), V(V) and Fe(ІІІ) ions.


The average scattered intensity is determined by the optical characteristics of particles in dispersion. The normalized time auto-correlation function of the scattered light intensity $g^{(2)}(\tau) $ includes both the optical and hydrodynamic information of particles. From the different characteristics of particles, the particle sizes can be obtained. In this paper, three sizes: the static radius $R_{s}$, the hydrodynamic radius $R_{h}$ and the apparent hydrodynamic radius $R_{h,app}$ are discussed using dilute water dispersions of homogenous spherical particles poly($N$-isopropylacrylamide) microgels, with a simple assumption that the hydrodynamic radius is in proportion to the static radius, when Rayleigh-Gans-Debye approximation is valid. Our results show that the expected values of the normalized time auto-correlation function of the scattered light intensity are consistent with the experimental data very well and the difference between the static radius and the apparent hydrodynamic radius is large and the difference between the hydrodynamic radius and the apparent hydrodynamic radius is influenced by the particle size distribution.


The legislative pattern of cooperative affects the system supplies of cooperative,relates legislative efficiency of cooperative;because various countries and the area are different in the legal tradition,the regime,the cooperative knowledge popularization and so on,at present there is the big difference in the legislative pattern aspect of various countries and area;by overall evaluating our country's legislative tradition,the legislative efficiency,the need and possible of cooperative legislation and moreover each kind of factor,our country must adopt this cooperative Legislative pattern which includes the cooperative fundamental law and the individual department law of cooperative.


Abstract Purpose: Decades of research exist supporting various types of self-operating prompting systems, including picture, audio and video to help students with disabilities acquire skills, especially to teach life skills. While many facets of life skills are important to target for instruction for secondary students with intellectual disability, one receiving declining attention is grocery shopping. Method: Using a single subject alternating treatment design with two high school students with intellectual disability, the authors analysed the impact of three self-operating prompts systems – picture, audio and video – on students' successful selection of grocery items, independence in completing the task (i.e., percent of steps not prompted), and task completion time. Results: Results showed video prompting to be most successful prompting system for both students for selecting grocery items. However, independence and task completion time varied significantly for the students across the prompting systems. Conclusions: It is important to match the correct prompting system to individual students' skills, needs and preference, but also to balance efficiency – both for educators and students. Implications for Rehabilitation Video prompting is an effective instructional strategy, but must be considered in light of time and skill to create the video prompts as well as social stigmatization of use in natural community settings. It is important to match the correct prompting system to each student, but also to balance efficiency – both for educators and students.


In new conditions of agriculture and it's science technology development, new demands,tasks and problems are discussed to adjust to the new situation with the development of agricultural science and technology in Zhejiang Province. The author suggests some new ideas and countermeasures of accelerating agricultural science and technology in Zhejiang Province.


Daniel Barenboim tells Clemency Burton-Hill why music provides a model for living and governments continue to fear the power of its influence


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between serum albumin and renal function in patients with acute leukemia (AL) and its clinical significance.

METHODS
The clinical data and related test results of 267 newly diagnosed patients with acute leukemia from April 2015 to April 2017 were collected for retrospective cross-sectional analysis. Multivariate regression model was used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS
The creatinine level in serum of newly diagnosed acute leukemia patients decreased with the increase of albumin level (the first quartile-the fourth quartile had an average creatinine level of 72.0 µmol/L, 65.2 µmol/L, 62.8 µmol/L, 58.6 µmol/L); Multiple regression model results showed that each elevated albumin 1 g/L, the serum creatinine level decreased 0.89 µmol/L. The serum albumin was grouped into the model by quartile, and the first quartile was used as the reference group. With the increase of albunin, the β value decreased steply (the second and fourth quartile β values were -12.7, -14.81, -15.98), the trend line test p value was <0.05.

CONCLUSION
Serum albumin negatively correlats with creatinine level in newly diagnosed acute leukemia patients, and its elevation shows protective effect on renal function.


Parent-completed questionnaires have been used by physicians and other health care professionals to assist with the identification of young children with developmental delays. The Ages and Stages Questionnaires, a parent-completed developmental monitoring system, is used in home visiting programs, child-find projects, and teen parenting programs, as well as in a variety of medical settings. Strategies for using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires, advantages and disadvantages associated with each strategy, and examples of programs using each strategy are described


A novel and unconventional electrochemical immunosensing protocol was designed for the sensitive monitoring of neuron-specific enolase (NSE, as a model analyte) by using the sunflower-like gold nanostructure (AuSF)-triggered hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).


In this letter, the sum of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$L$ </tex-math></inline-formula> independent but not necessarily identically distributed (i.n.i.d.) extended <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\eta $ </tex-math></inline-formula>-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu $ </tex-math></inline-formula> variates is considered. In particular, novel expressions for the probability density function and cumulative distribution function are derived in closed-forms. The derived expressions are represented in two different forms, i.e., in terms of confluent multivariate hypergeometric function and general Fox's H-function. Subsequently, closed-form expressions for the outage probability and average symbol error rate are derived. Our analytical results are validated by some numerical and Monte-Carlo simulation results.


No benefit from prophylaxis with fresh frozen plasma (FFP) after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) has been shown in previous studies. However, the results were limited either by retrospective study design or by the use of FFP in subtherapeutic doses (2 to 3 units). Whether a therapeutic dose of 15 mL/kg FFP would reduce blood loss and transfusion requirements in elective coronary artery bypass surgery was evaluated. The risks of multiple allogeneic blood donor exposure were averted by autologous blood use. Sixty adult patients who were scheduled to undergo elective primary coronary artery bypass grafting were randomly assigned to receive, after CPB, an intravenous infusion of 15 mL/kg of either autologous FFP (30 patients) or 6% hydroxyethyl starch, 450/0.7 (HES; 30 patients). Autologous plasma was obtained by platelet-poor plasmapheresis several weeks before surgery. Perioperative blood transfusions were given per protocol. Postoperative blood loss was defined as the chest tube drainage during the first 24 hr after surgery. Data from 56 patients, including 27 in the FFP group and 29 in the HES group, who completed the study according to the protocol were analyzed. The median postoperative blood losses were 630 mL (range, 450–1,840 mL) and 830 mL (range, 340–1,980 mL) in the FFP and HES groups, respectively. Postoperative (0 to 24 hr) and total perioperative erythrocyte transfusion requirements did not differ markedly between groups (P = 0.32 and 0.14, respectively). The prophylactic administration of a therapeutic dose (15 mL/kg) of autologous FFP after CPB did not reduce blood loss and transfusion requirements in patients undergoing uncomplicated, elective, primary coronary artery bypass surgery.


Abstract We discuss an initial-boundary value problem for a fractional diffusion equation with Caputo time-fractional derivative where the coefficients are dependent on spatial and time variables and the zero Dirichlet boundary condition is attached. We prove the unique existence of weak and regular solutions.


The aim of the research is to study the Triple Helix model feasibility in developing innovations and using cluster approach in Kazakhstan. There are possible points of the emergence of clusters in Kazakhstan. However, there are a lot of constraining factors. First of all, institutional and social factors: the culture of business, unfair competition, low trust of economic agents to each other and to power institutes, low psychological readiness for cooperation of the enterprises of various branches and regions, poor development of chambers of commerce, and industrial associations. For the time being, the majority of regions of Kazakhstan are characterized by a limited set of high technology industrial branches, and a sharp shortage of universities generating innovation and research institutes. The research results show that the open innovation model is realized in a limited scale that does not allow to export innovations into external markets, to participate in global technology chains and international research networks. At the same time, some interaction schemes and preconditions for the development of the Triple Helix model are emerging. However, in general, the innovation policy is not systemic; it does not unite actions in the sphere of science and technology, education, industry, and regional initiatives. As the result of the research, some policy implications are given. For the development of clusters in Kazakhstan, it is desirable to use such a way, as integration into global cluster networks. It is necessary to make use of foreign experience at which various specialized state agencies become participants of clusters. It is necessary to focus not only on science but also industry, which should play the central role in the innovation process.


The Big Data, due to its complicated and diverse nature, poses a lot of challenges for extracting meaningful observations. This sought smart and efficient algorithms that can deal with computational complexity along with memory constraints out of their iterative behavior. This issue may be solved by using parallel computing techniques, where a single machine or a multiple machine can perform the work simultaneously, dividing the problem into sub problems and assigning some private memory to each sub problems. Clustering analysis are found to be useful in handling such a huge data in the recent past. Even though, there are many investigations in Big data analysis are on, still, to solve this issue, Canopy and K-Means++ clustering are used for processing the large-scale data in shorter amount of time with no memory constraints. In order to find the suitability of the approach, several data sets are considered ranging from small to very large ones having diverse filed of applications. The experimental results opine that the proposed approach is fast and accurate.


The effect of excess B on tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) yield, fruit size, and vegetative growth was determined in large, outdoor sand cultures. Boron treatments were imposed by irrigation with culture solutions that contained 1.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0, 10.0, or 12.0 mg B/liter. Relative yield was reduced 3.4% with each unit increase in soil solution B (Bsw) above 5.7 mg B/liter. Market quality of the fruit was reduced significantly by increased B concentrations. The occurrence of leaf injury and reduction in vegetative growth were not reliable indicators for B tolerance.


Background: CNTF plays an important role in brain development and injury. Results: S-Nitrosoglutathione induces CNTF expression in astrocytes via NO signaling dependent PPAR-γ transactivation. Conclusion: NO signaling in astrocytes favors the beneficial outcomes of reactive astrogliosis. Significance: Endogenously produced NO or its exogenous source has potential to modulate the outcomes of reactive astrogliosis in vivo. Accumulating evidence suggests that reactive astrogliosis has beneficial and detrimental outcomes in various CNS disorders, but the mechanism behind this dichotomy is unclear. Recent advances in this direction suggested that NO signaling is critical to regulate the outcomes of reactive astrogliosis in vivo. Using biochemical and genetic approaches, we here investigated the effect of S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO; a physiological NO donor) in astrocytes in vitro settings. GSNO enhanced the expressions of glial fibrillary acidic protein and neurotrophic factors including ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) in astrocytes in a dose-dependent manner. The enhanced CNTF expression in GSNO-treated astrocytes was ascribed to NO-mediated sGC/cGMP/PKG signaling. It was associated with p38 MAPK-dependent increased peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ transactivation. In addition, the chromatin accessibility of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ accompanied with ATF2 and CREB (cAMP-response element-binding protein) was enhanced across the CNTF gene promoter in GSNO treated astrocytes. Interestingly, secreted CNTF was responsible for increased expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein in GSNO-treated astrocytes in an autocrine manner via a JAK2- and STAT3-dependent mechanism. In addition, CNTF secreted by GSNO-treated astrocytes enhanced the differentiation of immature oligodendrocytes in vitro. These effects of GSNO were consistent with an endogenously produced NO in astrocytes stimulated with proinflammatory cytokines in vitro. We conclude that NO signaling induces CNTF expression in astrocytes that favors the beneficial outcomes of reactive astrogliosis in vivo. Our data suggest that the endogenously produced NO or its exogenous source has potential to modulate the outcomes of reactive astrogliosis to protect CNS under pathological conditions.


Rodrigues Chaves, R1, J. Collins2, V. da Silva Marques1 1UENF-LAMET-Brazil Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2Department of Geography, University of South Florida, U.S.A. Corresponding author: email@example.com Introduction Climate change has been studied over South America (SA; 60°S-10°N; 90°W-20°W) mainly in the context of deforestation in the Amazon (Nobre et al. 1991 and others). There have been few studies about climate change which consider the whole of SA and which focus on temperature. In this work we investigate how the air temperature at 2 meters above the Earth's surface in SA varies in the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis dataset (Kalnay et al. 1996). It is important to emphasize that El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the most important coupled ocean-atmosphere phenomenon to produce climate variability over SA on an interannual timescale. In this paper we also consider therefore if ENSO signifi cantly affects temperature variability over SA.


In this paper, we get the set of symmetry of Plateau differential equation. Using Lie symmetry method to obtain the classical symmetry operators. Also, we get one- dimensional optimal system of the Plateau equation and reduction Lie invariants, corresponding to infinitesimal symmetries.


The disastrous influence of syphilis on pregnancy, as frequently shown by. the premature expulsion of the product of conception; the excessive fatality of inherited syphilis; and the unfortunate consequences which may be entailed upon the offspring that survive, make the subject one that, in the interest of the progeny of syphilitic parents, merits the special attention of the obstetrician. Carpenter states that of 657 syphilitic females, 231 miscarried, while 426 were delivered at term of living and dead children. Kassowitz asserts that one-third of all children procreated of syphilitic parents are stillborn, and 34 per cent. of those born living, die in the first six months of life. So frequently is syphilis a cause of non-viability and premature delivery, that whenever a woman repeatedly miscarries, or gives birth to a dead fœtus, suspicion of this disease in the parents may be entertained. In view of the fact that, in the


A 34-yr-old woman with an unremarkable medical history presented with generalised maculopapular skin lesions (Fig. 1) accompanied by fever, hepatosplenomegaly, increased activity of serum transaminases (ALAT 1185 U/L, ASAT 2884 U/L), and jaundice (bilirubin 13.8 mg/dL). Steroid therapy was initiated for hepatitis supported by laboratory evidence of past Epstein–Barr virus infection. The patient's subjective condition improved, increased body temperature cleared and transaminase activities decreased. Unexpectedly, after 2 wk of steroid application, moderate pancytopenia (haemoglobin 8.0 g/dL; leukocyte count 1200/lL; platelet count 34 000/ lL) was first noted. Bone marrow examination was performed. Unequivocal morphological evidence of haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis was obtained with numerous haemophagocytic macrophages (1) in bone marrow aspirate smears (Fig. 2). Detailed immunohistochemical workup of the bone marrow sample revealed a B-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma. Haemophagocytic syndromes are characterised by lymphohistiocytic proliferation of either primary (familial) or secondary (infectionor lymphoma-associated) form. The continuous release of various inflammatory cytokines is involved in both the cellular and clinical features of the disease including cutaneous involvement (2) as observed in our index patient. Morphological hallmarks of haemophagocytic syndromes consist of increased numbers of haemophagocytic macrophages in bone marrow samples although the diagnosis can be difficult because of the presence of these cells in normal bone marrow. In addition, varying underlying conditions (3) can obscure the morphological diagnosis. Clinically, it continues to be a highly lethal condition with limited treatment options consisting of either cytotoxic chemotherapy with or without immunomodulatory drugs or allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (4). Steiner B, Wolff D, Leithäuser M, Hartung G, Freund M. Lymphomaassociated haemophagocytic syndrome with jaundice and generalised skin involvement. Eur J Haematol 2003: 70: 193–194. Blackwell Munksgaard 2003. Beate Steiner, Daniel Wolff, Malte Leith user, Gernot Hartung, Mathias Freund, Divison of Haematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany


An optical proximity detector includes a driver, light detector, analog front-end and digital back end. The driver drives the light source to emit light. The light detector produces a light detection signal indicative of a magnitude and a phase of a portion of the emitted light that reflects off an object and is incident on the light detector. The analog front-end includes amplification circuitry, and one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) that output a digital light detection signal, or digital in-phase and quadrature-phase signals indicative thereof. The digital back-end includes a distance calculator and a precision estimator. The distance calculator produces a digital distance value in dependence on the digital light detection signal, or the digital in-phase and quadrature-phase signals, output by the ADC(s) of the analog front-end. The precision estimator produces a precision value indicative of a precision of the digital distance value.


BACKGROUND: The effects of circadian rhythms on aerobic exercise have been well documented, but little research has been conducted during isokinetic exercise. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine how isokinetic peak torque of the knee extensors changes throughout the day. METHODS: Twenty-five college-aged recreational athletes (14 females, 11 males) completed one familiarization and three experimental sessions on a Cybex NORM isokinetic dynamometer, with start times of 08:00–09:00, 13:00–14:00, and 18:00– 19:00. Each session began with a five-minute warmup on a cycle ergometer and three sets of four submaximal concentric discrete knee extensions at 60, 180 and 300 ◦ /s, with knee flexion held constant at 300 ◦ /s and a one minute rest between velocity sets. This was followed by four maximal concentric discrete knee extensions with the same parameters as the warmup. Peak torque was recorded for each velocity. Data were analyzed using a two-way 3 (time) × 3 (velocity) repeated measures ANOVA (α 0.05). RESULTS: There were no significant differences in peak torque by time of day at any velocity among females (n = 14), males (n = 11), or the entire group (n = 25). CONCLUSIONS: When measuring knee extension peak torque in these college-aged subjects, time of day was not a factor.


NonDestructive Testing (NDT) is commonly used to monitor structures before, during and after testing. This paper reports on the use of two NDT techniques to monitor the behavior of a typical wind turbine blade during a quasi-static test-tofailure. The test used a three-point spanwise load distribution to load a 7.9-m blade to failure. The two NDT techniques used were acoustic emission and coherent optical. The former monitors the acoustic energy produced by the blade as it is loaded. The latter uses electronic shearography to measure the differences in surface displacements between two load states with an accuracy of a few microns. Typical results are presented to demonstrate the ability of these two techniques to locate and monitor both high damage regions and flaws in the blade structure. Further, this experiment highlights the limitations in the techniques that must be addressed before one or both can be transferred, with a high probability of success, to the inspection and monitoring of turbine blades during the manufacturing process and under normal operating conditions.


Muscle disuse that accompanies ageing and chronic disease may hasten physical disability by impairing skeletal muscle contractility. We compared skeletal muscle contractile function at the various anatomic levels between two groups of older men and women matched for sex, health status and body size, of which one group was habitually active and the other inactive. Muscle disuse reduced force generation, power output and contractile velocity in single muscle fibres, with differential adaptations in some parameters in men and women. Sex‐specific cellular phenotypes were explained by differential adaptations in molecular muscle function. Moreover, aspects of the molecular functional phenotype apparent in inactive women could be recapitulated in vitro by chemical modification of protein thiols. Our results identify molecular and cellular contractile dysfunction in skeletal muscle that may contribute to reduced physical function with muscle disuse, with sex‐specific differences that may explain a greater disposition towards disability in women.


Aim: We studied the intergenic interactions and the contribution of polymorphic loci for GSTT1, GSTM1, GSTP1 genes in the formation of predisposition to breast cancer (ВС) in women of Kyrgyz nationality.
Material and method: The study included 87 women of the Kyrgyz ethnic group with the morphologically verified diagnosis of BC and 96 women without cancer and chronic diseases. Genotyping of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was performed using PCR-RFLP for rs1695 GSTP1 gene. Deletion polymophisms in GSTT1 and GSTM1 genes were determined using allele-specific real-time PCR. Analysis of the intergenic interactions conducted with MDR 3.0.2 software.
Results: Among women of Kyrgyz nationality, deletion of the GSTM1 gene region is a genetic marker associated with an increased likelihood of developing breast cancer (OR = 2.18, 95% CI 1.38-3.44), p = 0.0007). The absence of deletion in this gene is associated with a protective effect. Analysis of polymorphic markers (GSTT1 gene) and p.Ile105Val (GSTP1 gene) did not reveal statistically significant differences in the frequency distribution of genotypes and alleles between breast cancer patients and women from the comparison group (p > 0.05). Analysis of intergenic interactions using MDR analysis showed that, with the simultaneous presence of the Arg/Gln genotypes (XRCC1 gene) and (GSTM1 gene), the probability of developing breast cancer was - OR = 2.63.
Conclusions: Deletion of the GSTM1 gene and combinations of the Arg/Gln genotypes (XRCC1 gene) and (GSTM1 gene) may contribute to the genetic susceptibility of BC in Kyrgyz women.


Personality education is the core of integrative quality development program offered by institutions of higher education to university students.This thesis probes into the content of the program—personality,personality education and personality cultivation,and reflects the major problems in this field,Given the new situation China's institutions of higher education are faced with in strengthening moral education,it proposes a pool of forces from all sectors to improve the program.


Phototrophic purple sulfur bacteria are crucial to study in Biogeochemistry because they are thought to be one of the first organisms to utilize photosynthesis. In the early atmosphere, there was very little oxygen present. Sulfur bacteria use light and sulfides as energy in anoxic conditions. Conditions suitable for sulfur bacteria can be found in anoxic lakes, which many are located in northern Indiana and the Pacific Northwest. The main goal of this project was to design and create a device that could record data and abstract samples of purple sulfur bacteria in anoxic lakes. In order to create this device, we first had to test the purple sulfur bacteria's light absorbance using a spectrophotometer. The data collected about the sulfur bacteria's absorbance was used by us to optimize our design for the circuit which incorporated the LED and Photo-detector components. Also, a Thermosensor component was added in an attempt to determine the optimal temperature sulfur bacteria lives in. Overall, six Op-amps were used in order to limit the amount of noise and to convert current into voltage so temperature and light absorbance can be measured.


Ring closure and Claisen rearrangement of pyrrole carboxylic acid (III) promoted by diphenylphosphoryl azide leads to the new heterocyclic system (IV) which are further functionalized.


Abstract Cyclopropenes possess very high strain energies1 and their organic and organometallic chemistry has been widely studied. They are reactive dienophiles in the Diels-Alder reaction,2 and they undergo ring opening reactions under vigorous photochemical3 and thermal4 conditions.5 Transition metal promoted ring opening reactions of cyclopropenes occur under very mild conditions,6 and have also been the subject of a theoretical study.7


Due to the versatile networking capability, space- air-ground integrated network (SAGIN) becomes a prominent future architecture to support the ever- increasing Internet of Things (IoT) applications. In this paper, we investigate the IoT task offloading under an SAGIN scenario where multiple IoT devices generate computing tasks to be processed. We adopt an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to fly along a given trajectory to collect the tasks of IoT devices within the coverage area, and then makes the online offloading decision, i.e., processing locally, or offloading to the nearby base station or the far-away satellite. However, due to the constrained energy resources committed by UAV and the uncertainty of the system dynamics, designing an efficient computation task offloading algorithm is challenging. This dynamic scheduling problem is formulated as a constrained Markov decision process (CMDP), considering the stochastic channel conditions, UAV coverage, energy consumption, and task queue backlogs. By exploiting the stationary stochastic feature of the CMDP, the problem can be solved by the linear programming to find a stochastic policy. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed computation offloading scheme can significantly reduce IoT task processing delay as compared to other benchmarks.


Thirteen dihydropyridine analogues 1 - 13 were synthesized and evaluated for their DPPH radical scavenging activity. A good to moderate antioxidant activity ranging from 127.4 to 284.5 μM was observed and structure-activity relationship was established. The 3'-fluoro derivative 8 (IC 50 = 127.4±3.5 μM) was found to exhibit highest activity among the dihydro pyridine derivatives 1 - 13 , while the other derivatives 11 (IC 50 = 132.5±3.32 μM), 6 (IC 50 = 142.2±0.60 μM), 10 (IC 50 = 144.7±2.46 μM), 12 (IC 50 = 153.7±0.50 μM), 5 (IC 50 = 161.4±2.81 μM) and 5 (IC 50 = 164.4±2.50 μM) possess moderate activity, depends upon the C-4 and C-6 substituted groups. The compounds 7 , 13 , 4 , 3 and 2 have lowest IC 50 values, ranging between 172.8 and 284.5 μM. Dihydropyridine analogues were characterized by spectroscopic techniques.


Geoscientists have used data visualization to assist in the difficult task of modeling the subsurface. One of the goals of this dissertation is to show that Virtual Reality (VR) has significant potential for improving geoscientists' ability to analyze their data and to collaborate on its interpretation. The VR application described in this dissertation was designed, not only to permit the user to manipulate interpreted geological surfaces or interfaces, but also to support the simultaneous manipulation of the three-dimensional seismic data from which the interpretations were derived.
Another goal of this VR application was to provide an environment which could function, not only as a manager's display tool but also as a functional daily working tool for geoscientists. Therefore, better interaction and visualization techniques were developed and implemented in this application. For improved visualization, 2D texture images and geological surface models can be created at run time. Based on the observation that most scientific visualizations are contained within a closed world, a novel user interface paradigm called the Closed World Interaction (CWI) technique was developed. This interaction technique can be applied to fine-grain selection, manipulation, and navigation within the virtual environment.
User studies were conducted to evaluate the implementation of the CWI technique in this VR application. The results indicate that two-handed manipulation helped in the CWI technique and that CWI could improve accuracy and speed for specifying desired portions of the dataset. Geoscientists and software developers were invited to evaluate this application; the results demonstrated that this application fulfills the necessary requirements for the interpretation of geoscience data.


A portable electronic device cover, according to the present invention, comprises a conductive plate which is spaced at a predetermined distance from an antenna mounted in a portable electronic device and is arranged at a position overlapped with at least a part of the antenna when the portable electronic device is mounted in the portable electronic device cover.


OBJECTIVE To observe the dextromethorphan-chlorpheniramine-pseudoephedrine solution treatment of elderly patients with acute respiratory tract infection.METHODS 120 cases of elderly patients with acute upper respiratory tract infection were randomly divided into treatment and control groups in all 60 cases.The two groups were given with the treatment of ribavirin with intravenous injection for all patients.The treatment group plus dextromethorphan-chlorpheniramine-pseudoephedrine solution,10 mL tid;The control group with plus sanku cold particles,5 g tid;the period of cough,nasal obstruction,rhinorrhea symptom-free in patients were observed.RESULTS In the treatment group,the average time of cough,nasal obstruction,rhinorrhea symptom-free was shorter than the control group,with significant difference (P0.05).CONCLUSION Dextromethorphan-chlorpheniramine-pseudoephedrine solution is effective in the treatment of elderly patients with acute respiratory tract infections.


This paper reports a modified digestion method for the determination of platinum group elements (PGEs) in geological samples. Samples are first digested by HF in a custom made 120 ml PTFE beaker on a hot plate to remove silicates. The dried residue is then digested with HF + HNO3 at 190 °C for about 48 h after the beaker is sealed in a stainless steel pressure bomb. Although only HF + HNO3 are used for sample digestion at relatively low temperature, ultramafic rocks with refractory minerals can be effectively decomposed by this method. Analytical results for CCRMP (CANMET, Ottawa, Canada) certified reference materials WGB-1 (gabbro), UMT-1 (ultramafic ore tailings), WPR-1 (peridotite) and WMS-1(Massive Sulphide), agree well with the certified values. The proposed method significantly simplifies the sample digestion procedures for PGE analysis compared to those used previously.


The atmospheric water infiltrating the underground predetermines the water storage of large and small rivers, groundwater and inter-stratum water supplies and base-flow. Climate fluctuation cycles affect the natural fluctuations of water-table horizon. Groundwater exploitation, usually responsible for reduction of groundwater supplies, is another important factor of groundwater dynamics. Water-table phreatic zones are replenished by infiltration water which never is of good quality. These negative trends became especially evident in the 21st century. The goal of the present research is to evaluate the groundwater storage formation ingredients in small river catchments based on analysis of precipitation water, relief dissection, surface deposits and types of land use. This method allows evaluating effective precipitation, infiltration condition of sediments, land use structure and relief dissection. The evaluation based on thematic large-scale maps and digital data bases.


Arungkeke subdistrict is one of the main producers of national salt production in fulfilling national salt needs, especially in South Sulawesi. To fullfill industrial and consumption needs efforts are needed to maximize the potential in salt-producing centers. The aim of this study is to determine the extent of the potential for extensification of salt fields, the potential for the formation of salt industrial clusters and the direction for the development of salt pond centers. This research was conducted in Arungkeke District, Jeneponto Regency from June 2019 until February 2020 (9 months). This study uses a literature approach and field research. The analytical method used is descriptive quantitative and qualitative analysis, as well as spatial analysis. The results of the analysis showed that the area of the potential for extensification of the salt ponds reaches 19.55 km2. The average distance between a point (industry) and its closest point is 0.036 km. As many as 77.77% or 224 points (industry) have a distance from the closest industry that is less than this average distance. This condition is in accordance with the theory of the cluster life cycle according to Menzel and Fornahl, which has the potential to become an industrial cluster. The directions for the development of salt industrial centers in the future are: 1) the need for extensification of salt ponds on suitable land; 2) providing distributors of production equipment; and 3) cooperating with universities or the private sector, either in the form of technical assistance for production or product innovation, business management and marketing.


We present an overview of fiber amplifier power-scaling and beam-combining at AFRL. Nonlinear mitigation and power-scaling results of kW amplifiers is discussed. Here nonlinear suppression is attained through phase modulation and laser gain competition. Subsequently, five kW amplifiers were coherently combined into one 5kW beam.


Speleothems (cave deposits) are robust continental paleo-environmental archives owing to their precise and accurate age-determinations, high-resolution (sub-decadal) and multi-proxy information. Fossil water may be sealed within micro-cavities in the crystal lattice as fluid inclusions. Recent analytical advances of δ 18 O and δ D measurements allow micro-volumes of fluid inclusion waters to be extracted and measured precisely. Quantitative paleo-temperature reconstructions can then be calculated based on the fractionation of oxygen isotopes between fluid inclusions water and the surrounding host calcite. Their efficacy as a paleo-temperature proxy comes into question, however, if post depositional alteration or non-equilibrium fractionation processes have occurred and caused deviations from the oxygen isotope equilibration between water and calcite. Here, we present coupled fluid inclusion and carbonate stable isotope measurements from caves in diverse climatic environments (montane to semi-arid) spanning 0-500 ka. We couple this with detailed petrographic analyses to assess the relationships between speleothem morphology (e.g., crystal structure, diagenetic alteration) and processes (e.g., evaporative fractionation, non-equilibrium fractionation processes) in influencing the fidelity of calcite δ 18 O reflecting the original isotopic


Working from a database of visual archives and interviews with journalists, this paper deals with the conflicts of representations between journalists and African migrants in the sixties. Socially dominated, these migrants have to bear with "practical dilemmas," since they do not want to invite media coverage of their living and housing conditions, so as to escape stigmatization. This case study testifies to the difficulty that migrants have in ensuring their rights to their own image and in setting forth a positive group image.


In this paper, we establish some inequalities for the squared norm of the
 second fundamental form and the warping function of warped product
 submanifolds in locally conformal almost cosymplectic manifolds with
 pointwise ?-sectional curvature. The equality cases are also considered.
 Moreover, we prove a triviality result for CR-warped product submanifold by
 using the integration theory on a compact orientate manifold without
 boundary.


Low O2 stress to a varied extent affects almost all the organisms either throughout or at specific stages in their life cycle. Plants experience this stress generally in field conditions when flooding, submergence or waterlogging of roots/plants occurs. Low O2 availability during flooding stress results in enormous yield losses in variety of crops. There is overwhelming evidence indicating that adaptations to low O2 stress involves changes in molecular, biochemical, physiological, genetical and anatomical/morphological attributes in plants. Most plants respond to anaerobiosis by switching their respiration from the oxidative (involving complete oxidation of pyruvate into CO2) to the fermentation (involving incomplete oxidation of pyruvate into lactate/ethanol) pathway. Fermentation pathway-related proteins (such as pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase enzymes) have been characterized to a significant extent. However, attempts made in altering levels of pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase proteins in transgenic plants have not yielded significantly enhanced levels of low O2/flooding stress tolerance as yet. Applying modern tools of transcriptome and proteome analysis, mechanism(s) responsible for low O2/flooding stress tolerance phenotype are being addressed. Progress made in understanding plant responses to low O2 stress is herewith discussed. Referee: Dr. A.M. Ismail, Senior Scientist International Rice Research Institute DAPO 7777, Manila Phillipines


Utilization, Safety, and Related Factors of Illegal Phosphodiesterase Type 5 Inhibitors in South Korean Men Bong Gi Kim, Sun-Young Jung, Kyoung-eun Kwon, and Byung-Joo Park* Korea Institute of Drug Safety and Risk Management, Seoul, 110-750, South Korea Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 110-744, South Korea (Received January 15, 2015 · Revised March 11, 2015 · Accepted March 13, 2015)


The change in structural and mechanical behavior of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) due to 2.4 MeV proton has been studied. Radiation processing of PET polymer is carried out using different low doses such as 0.2, 2.0, and 20 kGy. The Physics of microstrain and radiation-induced mesophase formation are analysed. X-ray investigation indicates that proton-induced structural modification takes place in the material. Apart from usual diffraction peaks, a low intensity broad peak is observed at small angle of about 2 =10o, when the fibre axis is mounted parallel to the X-ray direction. Such peak is absent in the diffraction spectrum when the fibre axis is mounted perpendicular to the beam direction. The appearance of the extra peak in a particular orientation confirms that, the phase is 2-dimensionally oriented (mesophase). The Young"s modulus (Y) of this irradiated PET sample is found to be more than that of the virgin sample with the highest value recorded for a dose of 2.0 kGy. The decrease in Y for higher dose (20 kGy) may be due to enhanced ion-induced microstrain in the sample, causing degradation in mechanical strength.


Parity describing the symmetry of quantum mechanics wavefunction under space inversion transformation not only plays an essential role in solving quantum systems but also can be used to manipulate and measure the motional quantum states of such hybrid quantum systems as quantum Rabi model(QRM) and/or its variants through parity measurements. Here we address an exotic parity behavior of the QRM in its superradiant phase by numerical exact diagonalization, namely, the parities of eigenstates of the QRM behave irregular in the strong coupling regime but the sum of parities for each pair of eigenstates beginning from the ground state remains vanishing. It is found that this exotic behavior originates from the comparability of the photon distribution in the odd and even components of Fock basis when the eigenenergies of each pair of eigenstates approach enough to each other and physically is due to the emergent double-well potential induced by the strong coupling between the single-mode photon field and the two-level atom. The result not only uncovers the physics not known previously in the QRM but also makes an intrinsic limitation on the measurement precision of motional quantum states through parity measurements in modern quantum science and technologies.


The complexity and cost of equipment necessary for dynamic mechanical strength testing is reviewed. The influence of mechanical resonance on the behaviour of electronic components is discussed. On the basis of Miner's rule (linear cumulative fatigue damage), the conditions for equivalent tests (shock, vibration by sweeping, and vibration below resonance frequency) are presented. The results of mechanical resonance measurements of electronic parts and of their life test are given. The test times for different methods are compared. On the basis of experimental results some conclusions are proposed, particularly that vibration tests at constant frequency are not useful.


Since 1970, Eldana saccharina Walker has been a key pest in South African sugarcane. Research projects on Integrated Pest Management (IPM), against this stalk borer are continually undertaken at the South African Sugarcane Research Institute (SASRI). A colony of E. saccharina is routinely reared on artificial diet for use in these IPM projects. The current diet was found to be expensive (R0.22 per E. saccharina larva), so investigations were undertaken to formulate an improved diet that produced more insects per volume of diet, without compromising insect quality. Two artificial diets were compared; namely, a diet developed for the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis Hubner (referred to as rabbit pellet diet), and the current conventional diet (referred to as sugarcane diet). Quality assessment was conducted to determine dietary effects on E. saccharina growth and development. Texture, hardness, consistency and water content of the diets were important aspects in promoting good growth and development of the insects. Results showed that the rabbit pellet diet produced higher numbers of good quality pupae and moths (mean per 2 litres of diet = 89%) than the sugarcane diet (mean per 2 litres of diet = 16%). Time to pupation was also shorter (rabbit pellet diet = 27 days and sugarcane diet = 33 days). Given its lower cost (R0.05 per E. saccharina larva) and ease of preparation, the rabbit pellet diet can replace the current sugarcane diet as the medium on which to rear E. saccharina without compromising insect quality. This will facilitate the resulting IPM research that aims to provide sustainable control of E. saccharina in sugarcane.


Primary mitral regurgitation (PMR) results in adverse remodeling changes and left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. Assessing LV function has prognostic value in predicting morbidity and mortality. Indications for surgery include parameters such as LV ejection fraction (LVEF) and systolic dimensions. Current guidelines are limited in identifying patients at optimal time for surgery. Impaired postoperative LVEF indicates poor prognostic outcomes and subsequent heart failure. Global longitudinal strain (GLS) via speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) presents as a promising parameter to detect subclinical dysfunction in asymptomatic patients.


Mentoring should never be underestimated. It can be applied to different situations in different timeframes and in a number of contexts. Fiona Ellwood explains how


A great number ofspeech coding has been developed in recent years and many others are in their advanced level of development. Most of these encoding algorithms use hybrid methodology of wavefonn coding and voice coding commonly knov.m as (vocoding). The speech quality ofthese coders is comparable with Pulse Code Modulation (PCM); a popular encoding technique used in
digital telephony


During the week of October 7, 1991 many Americans could be found avidly devouring the media coverage of the Clarence Thomas hearings after the astonishing allegations of sexual harassment by Anita Hill were publicized. After reading a prepared statement to members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Anita Hill underwent a grueling day of cross examination during which she responded to questions about why she did not immediately resign from her position (if indeed she was harassed), or at the very least file charges against Thomas, and why she continued to maintain a professional relationship with him after she left his employ. Speculation was rife on several subjects, primarily on her reasons for failing to come forward publicly much sooner. Despite Thomas' facile and cynical appropriation of the phrase "high tech lynching," it seems to me that in addition to the original allegations of harassment, Anita Hill was subjected to nationally televised sexual harassment by 12 more men-which some might argue was itself tantamount to a high tech rape. With impunity, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee almost gleefully assassinated her character by attempting to depict her as a liar or a spumed woman, and then calling into question her psychological stability. Juxtaposed against the 12 white male members of the Senate Judiciary Commuittee, Hill's calm, reserved and ladylike demeanor served to highlight the existence of a sophisticated high tech version of racist/sexist oppression. That same year in July of 1991 the New York Times printed a story about male students who, after cutting phone and electrical lines, proceeded to ravage a girls' dormitory at St. Kizito's co-educational boarding school outside Meru, Kenya. This rampage resulted in the deaths of 19 female students and the rape of 71 others. According to Francis Machira Apollos, a local probation officer, matriculating coeds at this school were forcibly removed from their dormitories by boys who took them out into the tall grass that surrounded the buildings and raped them. The deputy principal of the school, Joyce Kithira, was quoted as saying "The boys never meant any harm against the girls. They just wanted to rape."1


Objective:To study the stress of tooth restored with inlay made from three materials under vertical loading.Method:A two -dimensional finite element model of a mandible first molar with inlay from longitudinal section was developed .The model was simulatedly restored by inlay respectively made from Ni -Cr alloy、porcelain and compsite resin ,then investigated stress variation in the bottom of inlay.Result:When the same vertical loading was applied on the molar with inlay ,the stress of Ni-Cr alloy is the largest among three ones ;so does its improvement of the stress with its thiness increasing ;porcelain is second ;compsite resin is the smallest .Conclusion:Decreasing thiness of inlay made from Ni-Cr alloy or porcelain may improve the concentration of stress in the bottom of inlay to prevent tooth fracture .


Now a day's, most of the research will be concentrated on wireless sensor networks (WSN) because wireless sensor network was a new computing and communication era which resulted due to the advanced reaching in various domain such as Information and communication Engineering. The usage of wireless network was increased which gave a wide deployment of sensor networks. Also, due to its wide application and least cost it became an emerging field. The wireless sensor networks communicate through their radio interface and Energy efficient routing protocols and QoS parameters are playing a vital role in WSN. The proper selection of routing protocol to transmit the data that contain higher energy efficiency and low delay can improve the sensor network lifetime. In this paper, an energy balanced routing protocol was used to consume the energy, the delay was reduced and throughput is increased using the energy efficient protocol.


Objective: Predicting prognosis is a complex process, particularly in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock. This study aimed to determine the relationship between the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores for individual organs during the first week of admission and the in-hospital mortality in patients with sepsis. Methods: This study was a post hoc evaluation of the Japan Septic Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation study and included patients admitted to 42 intensive care units in Japan for severe sepsis or septic shock, between January 2011 and December 2013. We assessed the relationship between the organ and total SOFA scores on days 1, 3, and 7 following admission and the in-hospital mortality using logistic regression analysis. Results: We evaluated 2732 patients and found the in-hospital mortality rate was 29.1%. The mean age of the patients (standard deviation) was 70.5 (14.1) years, and the major primary site of infection was the abdomen (33.6%). The central nervous system (CNS) SOFA score exhibited the strongest relationship with mortality on days 1 (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.49, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.40-1.59), 3 (aOR: 1.75, 95% CI: 1.62-1.89), and 7 (aOR: 1.93, 95% CI: 1.77-2.10). The coagulation SOFA scores showed a weak correlation with mortality on day 1, but a strong correlation with mortality on day 7 (aOR: 2.04, 95% CI: 1.87-2.24). Conclusions: The CNS SOFA scores were associated with mortality in patients with severe sepsis on days 1, 3, and 7 following hospitalization. The coagulation SOFA score was associated with mortality on day 7. In clinical situations, the CNS SOFA scores during the acute phase and the CNS SOFA and coagulation SOFA scores during the subsequent phases should be evaluated in order to determine patient prognosis.


A microprocessor-based digital controller was developed to control the operational modes and the data output of a nuclear PHA (pulse height analyzer). The controller communicates with the PHA via a full duplex serial communications line. Only four wires are required between the devices; therefore, this method is very desirable for remote applications when the nuclear detector and PHA may be distantly located from the controller. The I/O (input/output) device for the controller is a standard 110-baud keyboard terminal or a 2400-baud interface. A SC/MP-II (Simple Cost-effective MicroProcessor) with firmware (permanent software) provides the control functions and output data formatting. The firmware may be easily changed to control other instruments.


Objective To study the MR features and clinical significance of Japanese encephalitis (JE). Materials and Methods 14 patients with clinically serum examination proved JE underwent MR imaging, the image features and lesion characteristics were retrospectively analyzed.The MR sequences included T1 fluid attenuated inversion recovery (T1 FLAIR),T2 weighted image,T2 FLAIR and diffusion weighted image (DWI), the location and MRI features of lesions were analyzed. Results MRI revealed lesions only in thalamic in 3 cases.10 cases showed bilateral thalamic involvement combined with other regions,including 6 cases in caudex cerebri,4 in basal ganglia,2 in cerebral cortex,and 1 case in dentate body of cerebellum respectively.The lesions had hypointensity signal on T1 weighted images and hyperintensity signal on T2 weighted images in most patients.On DWI images,hyperintensity signal in 7 cases,isointensity signal in 4 cases,and hypointensity signal in 3 cases,all of the cases had hyperintensity signal on T2 FLAIR images. Hemorrhage were found in 2 cases. Conclusion The JE can invade multiple brain tissue,and the bilateral thalamic involvement is the conspicuous characteristic.T2 FLAIR and DWI have important value in the diagnosis and follow up during treatment, MRI is suggested to be the first choice in diagnosis of JE.


Mapping magnetic fields via heavy ion beam spectral imaging relies upon establishing a high quality ion beam, identifying beam emission at wavelengths favorable for imaging, and designing an appropriate imaging configuration. Identifying emission lines suitable for imaging is difficult due to intense, broadband radiation of the target reversed field pinch plasma. To compensate, we have worked to raise the beam emission intensity. Simulations of the beam optics and characteristics have led to a technique that achieves a narrower beam and increased ion current at the plasma. Additionally, we are developing computer vision tools to reconstruct beam trajectories based on various camera and system configurations. We simulate charge coupled device images of the vessel interior and beam trajectories, and reconstruct three dimensional trajectories from image pairs. Analysis of the simulated images will guide the system specifications. We present results of the beam optics and camera simulations, surveys of radiat...


: By drawing on the pre-fabricated timber shelters in the migrant camps of Dunkirk and Calais in northern France, this chapter investigates the emergency shelter as an ongoing spatial process designed for and by imagined and real users. While it is first designed as a mass-produced standardized structure for anonymous users, it is then re-designed ad hoc by its real users who appropriate it according to their specific needs, abilities and preferences. The chapter discusses the significance of agency of those adapting their shelters while arguing that displaced people need more than only a minimal structure to cope with their precarious realities.


Industrial developments of recent centuries and entry of industry system in Iran has created instability,chaos and anarchy in urban contexts and this phenomenon has influenced quality in various economic, social and culture parts. In this research, criteria evaluation is assessed in new urban development by explaining influential criteria on residence quality in different parts. This is a qualitative research with the case study method and its purpose is application in order to improve residence quality. Research tools are questionnaire and open interview with experts. The questionnaires are completed in statistical society of 50 individuals and their results are analyzed by SPSS 19 software. Weight calculation of influential factors on residence quality is performed by AHP software according to opinion of experts and analyzed by Likert method and finally is evaluated by use of spearman test of correlation between variables. The results of analysis indicate a high correlation between influential variables on residence quality and satisfaction degree of districts , residents was average to reasonable high. The gathered data shows proportional satisfaction of citizens of this district from residence condition which is influenced by social, cultural and economic homogeneity clearly. This point is not irrelevant to the history of formation of this district and its allocation to special military kinds.


This is a household guide for soil and stain removal from furniture, clothing, and other fabrics which lists numerous kinds of stains, how to identify the fabric, and what is the best cleaning method and how to apply it. -- AATA


Nor was it British policy which sponsored the so-called "white terror" which followed the "red terror." Mr. Alexander quotes Leeper's specific advice on averting it (p. 91). Bevin, who succeeded Eden in July 1945, was constantly urging the Greek government to act with moderation, and the King to behave as a "strictly constitutional monarch" (p. 213). These adjurations, though ineffective, were not insincere.


This report covers progress on the Milliwatt Generator Project during April 1983--March 1984. Activities included (plutonium 238 oxide) fuel processing and characterization, production of heat sources, fabrication of pressure-burst test units, compatibility studies, impact testing, examination of surveillance units, Inconel weld development, and qualilty assurance.


Table of Contents Introduction - Mastering Globalization: New Sub-State's Governance and Strategies Chapter 1. Mastering Globalization Chapter 2. Politics, Economics, and Justice: Toward a Politics of Globalizing Capitalism Chapter 3. Jan Aart Scholte Chapter 4. Globalization and the rise of super territoriality Chapter 5. Local Reponses to the Globalizations of Our Era Chapter 6. John Trent Chapter 7. Globalization and International Security: Pax Americana or Multilateralism? Chapter 8. New Sub-States' Governance and Paradiplomacy Chapter 9. Why do Sub-States and Regions Practice International Relations? Chapter 10. Sub-State Government in International Arenas : Paradiplomacy and Multi-level Governance in Europe and America Chapter 11. Globalization, Welfare Solidarity and Sub-State Governance Chapter 12 Sub-State strategies in an era of globalization and the information technology revolution chapter 13. Multiple identities and global meso-communities Chapter 14. Accommodation in Europe and North America Chapter 15. Ethnonational Minority Identities in France Chapter 16. Multiple Identities and Self-Government in the Basque Country


You Pedestrians are one of the highest traffic accident objects. Several ways are used to reduce the number of accidents, among others by providing road crossing facilities, such as zebra cross and pedestrian bridge crossing. Unfortunately, the utilization of such facilities, especially pedestrian bridge crossing is still very less. This condition raises the need to identify efficiency use the pedestrian bridge crossing. The study location is a pedestrian bridge crossing in the road of Pangeran Antasari, Banjarmasin City. The studies method used are survey method and analysis method. The analysis shows that pedestrian percentage that doesn't use pedestrian bridge crossing is very big, that is 87% at busy time and 88% at not busy time. The solution to increase the use of pedestrian bridge crossing is by install a curb railing fence on both sides of the road (about 200 m).


Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is meant to be a software application that is a security system which act as a protection layer for the infrastructure it also monitors the network and finds if any malicious operations occur. Exponential usage of internet results in raising the concerns about how to protect the digital information in a protective manner. Throughout the years, the IDS technology has grown enormously to keep up with the advancement of computer crime. Nowadays, hackers use different types of attacks for entering our computer's personal secured information. Many intrusion detection techniques, methods and algorithms will act as a shield towards these attacks. This main goal of this paper is to provide a complete study about the definition of intrusion detection, history, life cycle, and intrusion detection methods, types of attacks, different tools and techniques, challenges with its applications.


The paper introduces the context, objective and content of the UK Consensus Statement on the Content of Communication Curricula in Undergraduate Medical Education and summarizes some enlightenments on China's doctor-patient communication education as follows: The curriculum planning and implementation should be improved by designing a model of integrated curricula through five years of medical education. The objectives of communication skills stipulated by Ministry of Education and Ministry of Public Health should defined in more details. Chinese expertise in doctor-patient communication teaching and research should work together to design Chinese communication education consensus or guideline based on China's national conditions and experience of other countries.


The influence of fly ash loss on ignition on some materials properties of fly ash blended cement paste would be discussed. LOI was changed continuously by 8%, 15% and 20%. The results when cement versus HFA was 0.2 by mass, and LOI content was 20%, the all characteristics showed the poorest results which strength, max dry shrinkage and expansion strain were 2MPa, 1052 and 708×10-6(mm/mm).


Editor—In his letter Alan Earl-Slater states that if certain European proposals go ahead then, with effect from 31 December 1997, certain categories of drugs will not be allowed on the market in the European Union.1 He goes on to name two of my company's products, Hyalase and Hypurin (insulin). This is not the case. Both products will …


Bayesian navigation filters are broadly exploited in precise state estimation for kinematic applications such as vehicular positioning and navigation. Among these, Particle Filter (PF) has been shown as a valuable solution to support hybrid positioning algorithms such as sensor fusion to Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Cooperative Positioning (CP). Despite of an increased computational complexity w.r.t. conventional Kalman Filters (KFs), an effective weighting of the input measurements generally provides an improved accuracy of the output estimate. In the framework of the Differential GNSS (DGNSS) CP, this work presents an algorithm for the automated selection of the most appropriate error models for the tight-integration of non-stationary Differential GNSS (DGNSS) collaborative inter-agent distances. A model switching technique named Automated Adaptive Likelihood Switch (AALS) is proposed for a Cognitive Particle Filter (C-PF) architecture, based on the real-time approximation of the statistics of the inter-agent distances errors. The results achieved through realistic simulations demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed solution in terms of error model selection. Therefore, an improvement of the position estimation accuracy was observed, since the cases in which DGNSS-CP would degrade performance due to possible mismodelling of the selected likelihood function are avoided.


These two interesting and provocative books supplement each other in exploring the growth and effect of collective bargaining in local government. The Wellington-Winter study is an assessment of the background theory and models of collective bargaining; the Stanley-Cooper study (which is the result of field studies of nine teen local governments) summarizes the impact of the rise of or ganized labor relations on the local government structure. From different vantage points the two volumes complement each other. The Wellington-Winter book explores the economic, politi cal and legal dynamics of labor relations, collective bargaining and the ultimate strike weapon at the local government level. The Stanley-Cooper research collates the specific effects of this bargain ing process: where and how the municipal budget has increased; the impact upon civil service and related recruitment, promotion and dismissal policies; who bargains for the municipality and why; and other specific examples of how the nineteen selected municipal ities have met the challenges of collective bargaining. The nineteen cities are in fourteen states ranging from New York City, whose labor negotiations have received nationwide coverage, to Bingham ton, New York, with a population of 76,000.


It is very complex to figure the spherical coordinate form of Navier-Stokes equation in fluid mechanics,so there are no solution process in many books and periodicals.Puts forward a simple method using the transitional matrix.Firstly transforms Cartesian coordinates of stress tensor,which in Navier-Stokes equation,to spherical coordinate,then does vector transform of spherical coordinate to Navier-Stokes equation.The results are the same comparing with the classical method.


Neural recordings, returns from radars and sonars, images in astronomy and single-molecule microscopy can be modeled as a linear superposition of a small number of scaled and delayed copies of a band-limited or diffraction-limited point spread function, which is either determined by the nature or designed by the users; in other words, we observe the convolution between a point spread function and a sparse spike signal with unknown amplitudes and delays. While it is of great interest to accurately resolve the spike signal from as few samples as possible, however, when the point spread function is not known a priori, this problem is terribly ill-posed. This paper proposes a convex optimization framework to simultaneously estimate the point spread function as well as the spike signal, by mildly constraining the point spread function to lie in a known low-dimensional subspace. By applying the lifting trick, we obtain an underdetermined linear system of an ensemble of signals with joint spectral sparsity, to which atomic norm minimization is applied. Under mild randomness assumptions of the low-dimensional subspace as well as a separation condition of the spike signal, we prove the proposed algorithm, dubbed as AtomicLift, is guaranteed to recover the spike signal up to a scaling factor as soon as the number of samples is large enough. The extension of AtomicLift to handle noisy measurements is also discussed. Numerical examples are provided to validate the effectiveness of the proposed approaches.


Abstract In this article, we challenge that assumption that the Court of Justice of the European Union does not need to accommodate dissenting opinions because the necessary arguments and policy perspectives can be outlined in the AG's Opinion. We examine the greater legitimacy that may be gained from permitting dissenting and concurring opinions in cases which involve the determination of fundamental rights before the Court. We ultimately argue that our discussion on the quality of judgments is closely related to a discussion on the selection process and criteria for membership of the Court. In the current context, however, the AG's Opinions continue to provide a more robust field for articulating national and European norms and a larger space for interpretive innovation than the Court's ordinary forum.


Centralized development, population growth and pollution are contributing factors to ocean and coastal management problems in Indonesia, particularly in the small island regions. Indonesia, consisting of more than 17,504 small islands, has been adopting and implementing the Integrated Coastal Zone Management program in order to achieve sustainable development. However, many disputes between local communities and governments are observed since Kepulauan Seribu, also known as Thousand Islands, became a Marine National Park in the early 1980s. For a century, the islands located in the northern part of Indonesia's Capital have experienced severe anthropogenic pressures from the surrounding environment, which caused a loss of some islands and the degradation of regional ecosystems. This study aims to assess the social, economic and environmental impacts on Thousand Islands as influenced by anthropogenic factors, using vulnerability indices and Geographic Information Systems. The assessment is based on a qualitative analysis and a survey of decision-makers, aiming to evaluate the policy that has been involved within ocean and coastal management in the region. From the data analysis results, it can be summarized that the region has the sustainability in a social and economic perspective; however, it is the environment that is severely deteriorated. It is found that the policies to maintain the balance of social, economic and environmental impacts have failed in order to overcome the changes. In addition, the ambiguity and powerlessness of law enforcement has caused damage to the environment to some extent. Therefore, coordination between the central government and local governments, as well as public participation is recommended, in order to monitor, evaluate and (if possible) redevelop the region.


Young children are naturally curious. They are born needing to learn so much to survive. As they continue to grow their desire to know and understand grows with them.


Oxyhalogenides of bismuth BiOX (X=Cl, Br and I) are very interesting materials which nd various applications as X-ray luminescent screens, anti-Stokes (frequency upshift) converters, luminophors, and photoconducting analyzers of linear polarized radiation. Since each primitive cell consist of six monoatomic sites, the structure of the reduced representation of the 15 normal modes of vibration is: Γ = 2A1g(Ra.) + B1g(Ra.) + 3Eg(Ra.) + 2A2u(i.r.) + 2Eu(i.r.), in which the vibrations of A1g, B1g and Eg species are active in the Raman spectrum and those of A2u and Eu species are active in the infrared (i.r.) spectrum. The Raman active modes are observed in frequency range 55 225 cm−1, 50 185 cm−1, and 45 175 cm−1 for the BiOCl, BiOBr and BiOI single crystals respectively.


We extend the traditional view of corporate boards as monitors to include a role for outside board members as suppliers of expertise or information. Indeed, both outsiders and insiders may have private information relevant to the decision. Because of the agency problem between managers and owners (who are assumed to be represented by the outside directors), neither party will communicate his or her information fully to the other. Outsiders in our model control agency problems by making some decisions themselves. When they do, the refusal of insiders to communicate their information fully becomes costly. Therefore, shareholders can sometimes be better off by having boards controlled by insiders. We characterize whether the board is optimally controlled by insiders or outsiders, the optimal number of outsiders, and resulting profits as functions of the importance of insiders' and outsiders' information, the extent of agency problems, and some other factors. This leads to an endogenous relationship between profits and the number of outside directors that furthers our understanding of some documented empirical regularities.


The Argument from Illusion has long been dominant in epistemology, action theory, and theory of mind, and this paper attempts to look at it from a holistic point of view. The Argument generates a "sophisticated view" of the connection between mind and world, which accommodates not only experience, knowledge, and action but also illusion, misjudgment, and misguided action. In the paper I propose a "simple view" in place of the sophisticated view. The simple view is preferred because it presupposes no extraordinary states and stays away from the unrealistic goal of reduction and the controversial method of explaining success in terms of failure. Finally, the simple view seeks to understand the phenomenon of subjective indistinguishability-the theoretical ground for the Argument from Illusion-as a normative rather than an ontological issue.


This thesis deals with formal description of diagnostic tests used to diagnose learning disabilities, especially dyslexia. The text of the thesis introduces assistive technologies, specific learning disabilities, characteristic diagnostic tests used in this area of testing and features provided by modern markup languages. The practical part of the thesis consists of designing formal defined language and the implementation of a web service. The web service is capable to accept a set of tests and it is able to provide those tests to client or server applications. The web service also provides methods for text modification by adding visual separators (e.g. dashes) between letters. The designed language called DysX with the web service are prepared to be used by applications that are developed in parallel by another students.