Introduction Diabetes mellitus is a chronic progressive disease that is associated with long-term complications such as diabetic angiopathy. Glimepiride is a third-generation sulfonyleurea that has an extrapancreatic effect on glucose metabolism besides its hypoglycemic action. Aim The aim of the study was to assess the effect of glimepiride on the aorta of the adult albino rat after induction of diabetes mellitus. Materials and methods Forty adult male albino rats were used. They were divided into two main groups: group I and group II. Group I was the control group and group II was the experimental group. Group II was further divided into group IIA, in which 10 rats received glimepiride orally for 8 successive weeks, group IIB, in which 10 rats were given streptozotocin by means of a single intraperitoneal injection, and group IIC, in which 10 rats were given streptozotocin by means of a single intraperitoneal injection and were then given glimepiride orally for 8 successive weeks. Thus, a total of four groups of rats were studied. Five rats were randomly selected and sacrificed after 4 weeks, and another five rats were sacrificed after 8 weeks from the beginning of the experiment. The aorta was taken from each group and prepared for histological and electron microscopic examinations. Results The aortic tissue of the diabetic rats in group IIB showed apparent intimal thickening and accumulation of fatty cells within the subendothelial region with disturbance in the connective tissue distribution in the intima and the media. Electron microscopic study revealed atrophic endothelial cells in the intima. The internal elastic lamina was interrupted and the smooth muscle cells showed intracytoplasmic fat droplets. In group IIC, the aorta showed mild thickening and minimal fatty deposition in the subendothelial region. Electron microscopy revealed that the intima and the internal elastic lamina were nearly intact as in the control group. Conclusion It could be concluded that glimepiride could alleviate the progression of aortic affection produced in case of experimentally induced diabetes mellitus.


Based on the well-known Detrended Fluctuation Analysis (DFA) for time series, in this work we describe a DFA for continuous real variable functions. Under certain conditions, DFA accurately predicts the long-term auto-correlation of the time series, depending on the value of certain scaling parameter. We show that for continuous functions, the proposed continuous DFA also exhibits fractal properties and approximates a power law with scaling exponent one.


This thesis argues that current policies on statelessness fail to prioritize the empowerment of affected persons. It suggests adopting a rights-based approach to statelessness policies to remedy that problem. Part I focuses on the meanings of the concepts of nationality and statelessness. Deeply rooted yet unfounded assumptions that nationality is by definition good for everyone, and that statelessness is by definition problematic are at the core of the failure of current policies. Part II discusses the current legal and policy discourse on statelessness, identifies the way in which it fails to empower affected persons, and suggests an alternative. A rights-based approach to statelessness requires rethinking the language used in policy and law making generally, as well as amending specific rules that do not prioritize the empowerment of affected persons, such as for example the prohibition on voluntary statelessness. Four case studies of policy responses to statelessness illustrate the practical implications of the current approach and of the proposed alternative. The thesis concludes that by adopting a rights-based approach, statelessness policies no longer need to draw their justifications from an unfounded idealization of nationality, and an equally unfounded demonization of statelessness. Instead of focusing on turning stateless persons into nationals, a rights-based statelessness policy empowers affected persons to choose whether, when, and how to invoke the relevant rights. This puts the power to define the problem as well as its solution in the hands of those affected by the policies.


Knowledge means understanding someone or something like: facts, information, descriptions, and skills. Knowledge representation is a field of artificial intelligence dedicated to representing information about the world. Ontology is a formal way to describe taxonomies and classification networks, essentially defining the structure of knowledge for various domains. Protege is an open-source ontology editor and a knowledge acquisition system. Protege provides a graphic user interface for defining ontology. A relationship is a general term covering the specific types of logical connections found on class and object diagrams. The generalization relationship is-a indicates that one of the two related classes (the sub-class) is considered to be a specialized form of the other (the super) type and the super-class is considered a generalization of the sub-class. Is-A relationship is supported by Protege, but we need to define more relations to illustrate ontology. Composition is a stronger variant of the has-a association relationship. This kind of relationship is also called "part of". Part-Of is another important relationship that will be supported by Protege by our new plug-in.


Japanese comprehensive company, western-style industry-oriented multinational corporation and world chain retail group, these three circulation and organization forms of integrated foreign and domestic trade, have their own characteristics. This paper puts forward suggestions for the development target of China's integrated foreign domestic trade circulation and organization form and internationalization of chain group.


Adolescence is the time when teenagers feel an increase of their developmental adaption and experience different kinds of stress with pressure on competition and success. Teenager's low self-esteem influences on stress related teenagers' overall mental state, so, they can easily lead to negative problem behaviors. Therefore for the proper growth of adolescence, increasing self-esteem may be most important. In this research, it is to verify influences that tea-therapy program affects on teenagers' self-esteem. To accomplish the goal of research, I checked in self-esteem, tea therapy and relationship with tea therapy program, self-esteem. The subjects of this research were selected and carried out with voluntary 15 experimental group and 15 control group who were G middle school teenagers in Jeollanam-do. The program took effect to experimental group. Before and after the implementation of program, inspection means such as self-esteem test examination was taken to all subjects. In addition, to verify the effects SPSS WIN 12.0 program was used to analyze data. These are the results of research, teenagers in experimental group who implemented tea therapy had a statistically significant difference in self-esteem between compared with control group teenagers. It means that tea therapy program had positive effects on experimental group which proved tea therapy program influenced positive effect on increase in teenager's self-esteem. The efficacy of tea and tea therapy program of various activities as a mediator in the treatment of teenagers with no side effects, it can be suggested a effective activity to help correct the growth of teenagers.


Nurses are on the front line of caring for the 750,000 people in the UK who have dementia. But their skills to treat those with the condition, particularly in the acute sector, are not always as good as they should be, says RCN president Maura Buchanan.


Inflammatory bowel disease and colorectal cancer are common diseases without effective prevention approach. 3-Hydroxybutyrate (3HB) reported to have multiple functions as an oral food supplement, is a small endogenous molecule of our ketone bodies. This study observes that 3HB cures mouse colitis and reduces their colorectal carcinogenesis. The mechanism was found to relate to 3HB cellular surface receptor GPR109a which can down-regulate NF-κB pathway, so as to decrease the percentage of M1 macrophages from 50% of dextran sulfate sodium salt (DSS) induced acute colitis mouse group to 42% DSS+3HB group mediating the inhibitory effect on the inflammation. The activation of GPR109a was also found to inhibit colonic carcinogenesis, depended on reduced myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) accumulation from 27% of DSS group to 19% of DSS+3HB group. The study concluded that 3HB significantly suppresses colonic inflammation and carcinogenesis, promising to benefit colon disease prevention in form of a food supplement. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


drilling records from water wells, geotechnical, mineral exploration, and hydrogeological studies provide subsurface information for regional geological and hydrogeological investigations. This paper evaluates methods by which water well material descriptions may be standardized. In Ontario, material descriptions are reported in three attribute fields using 82 terms, thus theoretically permitting over 500 000 permutations. Materials descriptions are rationalized to ten classes then reclassified according to two methods, 1) first-attribute method (FAM), and 2) rule-based method (RBM). The first-attribute method is presently applied by hydrogeologists in southern Ontario and uses only the first attribute field; it is a simple, effective method able to broadly delimit aquifers and nonaquifers. The rule-based method applies conditional rules developed from regional geological models. This method is more geologically accurate, and is recommended where water well data are to be integrated into geological and hydrogeological investigations. Successful applications are summarized and general recommendations made.


The Republic of Cyprus was formed on 16 August 1960 according to the Zurich– London agreements and had the representatives from both Greek and Turkish communities. This government did not last long and collapsed when fighting broke out on 21 December 1963, mainly because of the lack of security for the Turkish elements in the government. The Greek Cypriots called this 'a withdrawal' and the Turkish Cypriots called it 'an expulsion'. Whatever they called it, the reality of this event was that the partnership government which had been formed in line with international agreements and the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus broke down. The year 1964 was critical for Cyprus. The inter-communal fighting was continuing, and many Cypriots, most them Turkish Cypriots, lost their lives. The American State Department official, George Ball, wrote to Lyndon Johnson and Dean Rusk on 16 February 1964 and explained the intention of the Greek Cypriot leaders: 'The Greek Cypriots do not want a peace-making force, but they just want to be left alone to kill the Turkish Cypriots.' The British Prime Minister Lord Home emphasized that unless the strife was stopped, a civil war in Cyprus would ensue and could spread to a Greco–Turkish war which might even start a Third World War. The Cyprus issue thus had in British eyes become one of great international important disputes. It involved Britain's own strategic interests, those of NATO and even the general peace of the world. Under these circumstances, the British government summoned the London Conference in January 1964 to find a solution to the Cyprus question with other guaranteeing powers, Greece and Turkey as well as the communities in Cyprus. However, a settlement could not be reached mainly because of differences between what the two sides were proposing. While the Turkish side was appealing for more rights to be guaranteed, the Greek Cypriots claimed to have abrogated all the guaranteeing settlements. Thus, the British government considered that it had no alternative but to call on international support, because the Foreign Office, Commonwealth Office, Chiefs of Staff and also the Prime Minister agreed that they should not reinforce their troops in Cyprus. In the end, a UN peace-keeping force for Cyprus (UNFIYCP) was established and took up its duties in Cyprus in March 1964. This force led to a reduction of tension but did not end the struggle. The main objective of the Makarios policy was to exile the Turks or to persuade them to live under Greek Cypriot rule as a minority. Almost 20 per cent of the Turkish Cypriots had to live in very bad conditions as refugees; they had to leave Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 41, No. 3, 431 – 444, May 2005


Prochlorococcus is an important component of phototrophic biomass in oligotrophic areas. In such systems, diel variations in optical properties have been reported. In order to better understand these natural variations, the optical (absorption, attenuation, and scattering) and biochemical (carbon and pigment) properties of an axenic clone of Prochlorococcus, PCC 9511, grown in a turbidostat set under light conditions that simulated those found near the ocean surface, were monitored every 2 h for several consecutive days. All optical parameters showed pronounced diel patterns except the divinyl‐chlorophyll a (Dv‐Chl a) specific absorption coefficient at 676 nm, a*(676), which remained stable (0.019 m2 mg Dv‐Chl a21). The diel oscillations of the Dv‐Chl a specific absorption coefficient at 440 nm, a*(440) (43% increase between sunrise and sunset), were essentially governed by variations in the zeaxanthin to Dv‐Chl a ratio (52% increase of this ratio between sunrise and sunset). The scattering cross section at 555 nm, σb(555), showed oscillations with the largest amplitude (182% increase between sunrise and sunset). Finally, the carbon‐specific attenuation coefficient at 660 nm, cc*(660) (1.04 m2 gC−1) is less than half that of the other algal groups. This estimation, together with the diel fluctuations in cc*(660) highlighted in the present study, is discussed in the context of using in situ measurements of optical properties to infer biogeochemical stocks (vegetal or detrital biomass) or processes (primary production).


A study was conducted to examine peer effects among undergraduates at Williams College, a highly selective four-year liberal arts school. Specifically, the study explored whether students would perform better writing about newspaper articles they read and discussed in academically homogeneous or heterogeneous groups of three. In homogeneous groups all three students were from either the top half or bottom half of their class on academic ratings assigned at the time of admission. Heterogeneous groups included students from both the top and bottom half of their class. The results showed that students in the top and bottom half performed similarly overall, but that students performed better in homogeneous groups, whether those homogeneous groups were made up of students in the top half or the bottom half of their classes. This pattern of results was stronger for men subjects than women subjects. The results were interpreted in terms of the principles of social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954).


With the development of WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) technology, WLAN has been used in every walk of life. In this paper, we applied WLAN technology in Oil Field. In order to improve operational efficiency, and monitor the measure stations and single well in field, some Oil Extraction Factory want to construct WLAN to access to the original network. The paper first constructed the WLAN plan on network topology and wireless AP (Access Point), then used the network communication simulation software OPNET to simulate a total network with WLAN connected into the original LAN, finally comparatively analysed the network performance on the throughput value and the Ftp Download Response Time value. Through simulation data analysis, we think the whole network was stable and acceptable.


The invention discloses a statistical method and a statistical device for interface access data. The statistical method comprises the following steps of acquiring access information generated when a user terminal accesses a system interface, wherein the behavior that the user terminal accesses the system interface once generates one piece of access information; determining a display area of the access information corresponding to the system interface, wherein the display areas are areas obtained by partitioning the system interface according to display functions; and making a statistics on the quantity of the access information in each display area to obtain the page view of each display area of the system interface. By virtue of the statistical method and the statistical device disclosed by the invention, the problem that the statistics about the user access information of an EPG (Electronic Program Guide) system interface cannot be made in the prior art is solved and the effect of making a statistics on the user access information of the system interface is achieved.


Introduction: nutritional state in pediatric population is a major topic for public health; this reflects different aspects of life conditions and healthy environments for good growth and development. In Dosquebradas there are no studies in the last decade describing that situation. Objetive: for these reasons, a study assessing the nutritional state of children <10 years-old population attended at the Hospital Santa Monica, municipality Dosquebradas, Risaralda, Colombia, 2008-2012, was done. Materials and Methods: a non-longitudinal retrospective study, with a convenience sample of 34315 children, assessing the indicators Weight for Age (W/A global deficit malnutrition), Height for Age, chronic deficit malnutrition, Weight for Height and Body Mass Index, acute deficit malnutrition, in children less than 10 years-old, was done. Results: for global malnutrition a prevalence of 18.99% (18.99-19.41 95%CI) was found. For chronic malnutrition was 20.86% (20.4321.29 95%CI). And for acute malnutrition 25.81% (25.35-26.28 95%CI). Conclusions: present results should guide to the design of public policies that would impulse nutritional intervention policies, food safety, food availability and nutritional education in the municipality with the objective to integrally improve nutritional conditions at the children population of Dosquebradas. A considerable level of malnutrition still exist in the pediatric population of Dosquebradas attended at the Hospital Santa Monica of Dosquebradas. MED.UIS. 2015;28(2):209-20.


A variety of alkyne, alkynyl, alkylidyne and alkylidene complexes has been obtained from the alkynes RCCH (R = Ph, CO2Me or CO2Et). The reactions of these alkynes with trans-[M(N2)2(dppe)2](M = Mo or W, dppe = Ph2PCH2CH2PPh2) and trans-[Mo(N2)2(depe)2](depe = Et2PCH2CH2PEt2) give the alkyne complex [Mo(HCCPh)2(dppe)2]A, the alkynyl complexes [MH2(CCR)2(L–L)2]B(M = Mo or W; R = Ph, CO2Me or CO2Et; L–L = dppe; M = Mo, R = Ph, L–L = depe) and trans-[M(CCR)2(dppe)2]C(M = Mo or W; R = Ph, CO2Me or CO2Et) depending on the conditions. The redox properties and interconversion of B and C are described and the X-ray crystal structures of B(M = W, R = CO2Me, L–L = dppe) and C(M = Mo, R = Ph) are presented. The complexes [WH2(CCR)2(dppe)2]B(R = CO2Me or Ph) react with HBF4 to give [WF(CCH2CO2Me)(dppe)2]D and [WF(CHCH2Ph)(dppe)2]BF4E respectively. The polymerisation of RCCH (R = H or Ph) at these metal centres is also discussed.


Quality improvement (QI) is an approach to evaluating systems of production and service delivery in an effort to improve those processes, with the intent of producing a positive impact on outcomes. Total quality management (TQM) is a term used to describe organizations that have incorporated quality improvement into their management philosophy, values, and operations. In the United States, interest in quality improvement began in response to competition from Japanese manufacturers, who themselves had implemented quality improvement initiatives with the assistance of Americans Edwards Deming and Joseph Juran. However, since 1990, there has been increasing interest in quality improvement as a means of improving the efficiency and effectiveness of service organizations. Interestingly, while QI is essentially a process of formative and summative evaluation, there has been only limited discussion about QI in the evaluation literature. Consequently, while the intended audience for 100 Methods for Total Quality Management is anyone interested in the quality improvement process, it should be of particular interest to evaluators, especially those who may be new to the TQM paradigm and those seeking different approaches to the evaluation process. In the preface, the authors note that two of the main purposes of the book are "to help all employees to understand the proper use of the total quality methods required for the achievement of their organization's quality goals," and to "provide the educators and practitioners in this area with a comprehensive set of TQM methods." Unlike other books on this subject, Kanji and Asher's eschews a description of the history of quality improvement or a discussion on how to implement TQM in organizations, which would provide the conceptual framework for utilizing these methods. Instead, there are a scant six pages of introductory text and then the book moves directly into methodology. While this may not be a problem for readers familiar with the quality improvement paradigm, those less familiar with TQM may be hindered by the lack of context. The text is organized like a cookbook, with each method serving as a recipe. In the preface, the authors indicate that the methods have been classified into four categories: (a) man-


FIELD: power industry. SUBSTANCE: invention relates to heat-power engineering, namely to heat exchangers, and can be used during manufacturing of the cooled structures with large specific heat flows. The method of strength increasing of the cooling path of the thermally stressed structures, made by securing of the shaped internal and external shells at top of fins, made on external surface of the internal shell means surface increasing for brazing by jumpers making between the fins, their external profile corresponds to the shell profile, wherein in the said jumpers the through axial channels are made for the coolant supply. The said jumpers are made such, that by them the fin groups are connected, the groups contain preferably three fins, wherein between the said fin groups at each side the channels are made, their width is equal to width of the cooling channel at the place of jumpers. The adjacent jumpers are installed with displacement relatively to each other by value equal to width of the cooling channel at the place of their location, wherein the jumpers width is equal to width of the cooling channel at place of the jumpers installation. EFFECT: improvement of the method efficiency. 3 dwg


Objective
To investigate the influence factors of malnutrition risk in hospitalized children, in order to provide theoretical basis for early identifying hospitalized children at the risk of malnutrition and for guiding clinical nutritional intervention.

Methods
Hospitalized children in the Department of Pediatrics of our hospital from March 1st 2013 to April 30th 2014 were included and assessed using Screening Tool for the Assessment of Malnutrition in Pediatrics (STAMP). Questionnaire survey was conducted and clinical data was recorded. The children were divided into two groups according to STAMP scores upon admission, namely high malnutrition risk group and low malnutrition risk group. Comparing the differences of basic characteristics, laboratory examinations, and treatments between the two groups, associated factors of statistical significance were detected. With the associated factors identified in single factor analysis as independent variables and STAMP score-based group division as the dependent variable, multifactor unconditional Logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the independent risk factors influencing STAMP scores of hospitalized children.

Results
A total of 1 406 hospitalized children were included, of whom 738 were at high malnutrition risk, and the other 668 were at low malnutrition risk. Single factor analysis indicated that fever before admission (Z=-3.809, P=0.000), severity of condition (χ2=14.068, P=0.000), age (χ2=5.813, P=0.017), and length of fever before admission (t=2.793, P=0.005) were associated with high malnutrition risk of hospitalized children. Non-conditional Logistic regression suggested that severity of condition (OR=1.557, 95% CI: 1.164-2.083, P=0.003), length of fever before admission (OR=1.039, 95% CI: 1.011-1.068, P=0.006), and granulocyte count (OR=1.032, 95% CI: 1.004-1.061, P=0.027) were risk factors of high malnutrition risk in hospitalized children, and age (OR=0.942, 95% CI: 0.909-0.977, P=0.001) was protective factor.

Conclusion
Age, severity of condition, length of fever before admission, and granulocyte count can provide helpful information for early identification of hospitalized children at high malnutrition risk.

Key words:
Malnutrition risk; Screening Tool for the Assessment of Malnutrition in Pediatrics; Hospitalized children; Logistic regression analysis


This research focuses on analyzing what it means to perform in Ecuador, that is, to know everything that entails producing entertainment programs. With the aim of showing that on national television the show has the same importance as other journalistic genres, thus generating several debates regarding the criticism that triggers the image of women in this type of spaces. To carry out this research, audio and video interviews were conducted with several well-known figures from the national show business, sociologists, producers and journalists, to give more support to what was argued, interviews were requested with the directors and owners of two media; Finally to a spokesperson of a public institution such as the Superintendency of Information and Communication to know what penalties have been imposed on entertainment programs and how they are carried out these processes. When analyzing each of the interviews it was possible to see that the show i one of the most consumed genres in the country, followed by the red chronicle. Despite the fact that currently with the new Organic Law of Communication has diminished the sexualized image of women, there continue to be criticisms for the contents and formats of these programs. In conclusion, the national show is a genre that will last for a long time more on Ecuadorian television, as news director Luis Valarezo says: Television is a show and in a show you always have to sell and exploit an image that is what gives rating at present.


Every year, the frequency of use of biological prostheses for treatment of valvular heart disease increases.The implantation of a biological prosthesis allows avoiding lifelong anticoagulant therapy, but at the same time it may require further replacement due to the dysfunction development.Traditional reoperation is associated with a certain risk of trauma to various structures and cardiac chambers during explantation of non-functioning valve.Transcatheter replacement of the prosthesis ("valve-in-valve") is not always realizable due to lack of routes for the delivery system and small diameter of the initial valve."Valve-in-valve" is not always demanded because it does not provide an option to choose mechanical or biological prosthesis.Valve-on-valve implantation technique implies that the new prosthesis is implanted in the carcass of the previous valve. It allows avoiding severe intraoperative complications, reducing the duration of the main stage of the surgery and adverse events in the early postoperative period, and provide an option to choose implantable device.In this review, the authors attempted to comprehensively evaluate the world experience in applying the "valve-on-valve" technique.


In order to solve the inherent defects of traditional two—class classification support vector machine when the types of data is variety and many samples is without being labeled,an algorithm was proposed through a combination of active learning and non—balanced binary tree multi—class classification support vector machine. First,a non—balanced binary tree structure is constructed through the class distance,from easy to difficult in turn construct node,put most likely to separate the class on the root node,then,using active learning strategies the corresponding labels will be added for the selected samples,and automatically the labeled samples will be append to the training sample set.The experimental results show that the performance of the proposed algorithm is superior to the ordinary active learning support vector machine algorithm,by improving the classification accuracy,and greatly reducing running time of the algorithm.


We draw on elements of several established theories of internationalization to provide a framework for exploring international market entry and scale of entry measured by number of foreign markets entered for a sample of young, high-tech, firms from the UK and Germany. We find that founding team human capital is associated with more extensive internationalization, as is intensity of R&D, early internationalization and early stage venture capital. We also find that internationalizing firms who choose the US as their first international market entry are also those most likely to develop more extensive international market presence. Degree of asset specificity, in contrast, is associated with less extensive internationalization.


[1]Arthor, R. S., 1950. Refraction of Shallow Water Waves: Combined Effect of Currents and Topography, Amer. Geophys Union., 31,549~ 552. [2]Berkhoff, J. C. W., 1972. Computation of Combined Refraction-Diffraction, Proc. of the 13th Conf on Coastal Eng., New York: ASCE., Ⅰ , 471~490. [3]Berkhoff, J. C. W., Booij, N. and Radder, A. C., 1982.Verification of Numerical Wave Propagation Models for Simple Harmonic Linear Water Waves, Coastal Eng., 6, 255 ~ 279. [4]Booij, N., 1981. Gravity Waves on Water with Non-Uniform Depth and Current, Communication of Hydraulics, Dept of Civil Eng., Delft Univ. of Technology.FENG Weibing, 1999. [5]Numerical Modeling of Wave Diffraction- Refraction on Arbitrary Varying Current and Topography, Ph. D. Dissertation, Hohai Univ., Nanjing.HONG Guangwen, 1994. [6]Mathematical Models for Refraction-Diffraction of Waves, Seventh Conf on Coastal Eng. of China, 808 ~ 815, China Ocean Press, Beijing. (in Chinese)HONG Guangwen, 1996. [7]Mathematical Models for Combined Refraction-Diffraction of Waves on Non-Uniform Current and Depth, China Ocean Engineering, 10 (4), 433~ 454. [8]HONG Guangwen, FENG Weibing et al., 1997. Numerical Simulation for Refraction-Diffraction of Waves in Water of Slowly Varying Current and Topography, China Ocean Eng., 11 (4), 373~ 386. [9]Horikawa, K., 1988. Near-Shore Dynamics and Coastal Processes, Theory, Measurement, and Predictive Models,Tokyo: Univ. of Tokyo Press: 60~ 66. [10]Kirby, T., 1984. A Note on Linear Surface Wave-Current Interaction Over Slowly Varying Topography, J. Geophys Res., 89 (cl), 745~747. [11]LIU, P. L-F., 1983. Wave-Current Interactions on a Slowly Varying Topography, J. Geophys Res., 88 (7), 4421~4426. [12]Radder, A. C., 1979.On the Parabolic Equation Method for Water-Wave Propagation, J. Fluid Mech., 95,459~ 476. [13]Smith, R. and Sprinks, T., 1975.Scattering of Surface Wave by a Conical Island, J. Fluid Mech., 72, 373~ 384.


Based on the analysis of the disadvantages of traditional wet cutting processing, it is reflected that dry cutting technology in green manufacturing has the advantages of less environmental pollution and rational utilization of resources. The research into dry cutting technology and the quick application of it into industry has a great significance in protecting ecological environment and improving manufacturing level.


The glass-ceramics containing non-linear optic Bi2GeO5-phase was produced by the heat-treatment of xBi2O3-yGeO2 glasses doped with Yb3+. Both glasses and glass-ceramics were researched by X-ray diffraction analysis, optical and luminescence spectroscopy methods.


There is a crucial need for the development of circuits which consume low power and operate at high speeds. The full Adder is a widely used basic adder circuit in Electronics. Optimizing the Power and Speed of this circuit has become the need of the day. In this paper three hybrid full-adder circuits based on the novel full-swing XOR-XNOR gates have been designed. The HFA 22T (Hybrid Full Adder with 22 transistors), HFA B 26T (Hybrid Full Adder with 26 transistors and Buffers) and HFA NB 26T(Hybrid Full Adder with 26 transistors and New Buffers) have been designed using the Cadence virtuoso tool with 18nm FinFET technology. The simulation results have been performed and the delay of the circuit has been calculated. For the Hybrid Full Adder with 22 Transistors (HFA 22T), the delay was observed to be 69.01 ps. In [1] the power consumed was 155.5ps. The reduction in power in comparison to HFA -22T using MOSFET was 56.02%. For the Hybrid Full Adder with 26 Transistors and Buffers (HFA B 26T), the delay was computed to be 99.08ps and a reduction of 36.58 % was observed as compared to the design in [1] where it is 156.9ps. In the case of Hybrid Full Adder with 26 Transistors and New Buffers (HFA NB 6T), the delay was observed to be 52.11ps and a reduction of 64.58% was observed as compared to the previous design where it was computed to be 147.1ps. Thus, the HFA NB 26T showed the smallest delay, hence it is the fastest of the Hybrid Full Adder Designs. A considerable reduction of delay has been achieved in comparison to MOSFETs. It has been found out that the HFA NB 26T is the fastest of the three designed adders.


Through field investigation and testing in loess areas, the structure characteristics and natural viabration periods of different kinds of raw soil buildings are analyzed, and the major factors influencing on earthquake damage and some problems in seismic resistance of the raw soil buildings are summarized. Based on this, a method of predicting the earthquake damage of different kinds of raw soil buildings is put forward and some preliminary results are provided, too.


Alprenolol, a new beta–adrenergic blocking agent, has been used in 50 cases of severe angina pectoris, in a double–blind multicentre trial. It produces a significant reduction in attack rate and "Trinitrin" consumption without any serious side effects.


This brief aims at the issue of globally composite-learning-based neural fast finite-time (F-FnT) tracking control for a class of uncertain systems in strict-feedback form subject to nonlinearly periodic disturbances. First, uncertain dynamics with periodic parameters are identified by incorporating Fourier series expansion (FSE) into an intelligent estimator, which leverages the feedback of newly designed prediction errors in updating weights to boost learning performance. Then, a novel switching mechanism is constructed to fulfill smooth switching from the composite FSE-based neural controller to robust control law when the inputs of the intelligent estimator transcend the valid approximation domain. By fusing the switching mechanism with an improved F-FnT backstepping algorithm, the globally F-FnT boundedness of all variables in the closed-loop system is guaranteed. Finally, a simulation study is conducted to evince the availability of the theoretical result.


At least partially the air quality analysis unit air quality in closed regions detected by the ion mobility sensor, air quality pattern obtained by air quality analysis unit by the boundary surface and the partition wall of the water of the subject to monitor the water quality but to provide a water quality monitoring system having an alarm unit for outputting a signal indicating the abnormal if outside the range allowed for the air quality pattern of air in contact with the water to be monitored. This water quality monitoring system, the quality of such drinking water reservoir indirectly by the quality of the air in contact with the water is detected by the ion mobility sensors, however it can be accurately monitored.


ABSTRACT Natural isolates of Tobacco mild green mosaic virus (TMGMV) fail to infect tomato because the tomato tm-1 protein binds to the replication proteins of TMGMV and prevents RNA replication. Previously, we isolated a TMGMV mutant that overcomes tm-1-mediated resistance and multiplies in tomato plants. Here, we show that the causal mutations in the replication protein gene that abolish the interaction with tm-1 reduce its ability to suppress RNA silencing in host plant Nicotiana benthamiana. The results suggest that the multifunctionality of the replication proteins is an evolutionary constraint of tobamoviruses that restricts their host ranges.


The proposal of a bound state uuddss as a candidate for the dark mass encourages the research on
the properties of such a state expected in the framework of QCD .
To this extent we try to get an approximate evaluation of the mass of that particle in terms of the
chromomagnetic and chromoelectric interactions between the constituents, which is applied to
the lightest ordinary hadrons and the two nonets of tetraquarks.
The way in which the constituents combine to form the singlet under color, spin and flavour, gives
an useful information on the dynamical behaviour and the stability of the uuddss particle.


SUMMARY With the purpose of determining the characteristics of the sexuality geriatric and the old man attitude toward their sexuality was carried out a descriptive study of traverse in a sample of 50 people with age bigger than 65 chosen years by means of the technique of the sampling not accidental probabilistic. In such a sense, an instrument of gathering of data type was implemented it interviews, validated by experts in Psychology and Mental Hygiene of the Department of Pediatrics of the Pediatric Hospital "Dr. Agustin Zubillaga" that is sustained in the objectives of the investigation. Results: the group prevailed among the 65 to 67 years (48%), the masculine sex (58%), the group of the married ones (52%), high degree of interest in the sexual activity (84%). In a same way, the main inconvenience of sexual operation experienced by the men is the delay in the erection (41%), and for the women the pain during the sexual act (44%). As for the level of knowledge 84% it possesses a level Good knowledge about the changes in their sexuality. Finally, 80% Accepts its sexuality and 16% it Reconsiders the effects of this in its social and personal life. Conclusions: in spite of the human being physical and organic


Objective:To enhance nurses′ ability in psychiatric critical incident through the simulation scene drill in the psychiatry department.Methods:We make training plan,set up comment group,and organize department conduct simulation scene drill.Through strengthen theoretical study drill and emergency operation skills,the nurses′ ability has improved and processed optimization of drill.Results:The simulation scene drill has improved coordination of doctor and nurse,enhanced the nurse′s emergency response capabilities and emergency operation level,and relieve the pressure caused by the critical incident to the nurse.Conclusion:The simulation scene drill can promote nurse comprehensive quality,and improve the ability of coping.


The mixed conducting nature of the lithium vanadate LixV2O5 (x = 0.4 – 1.4) prepared by solid state reaction has been analyzed by Wagner's polarization method. The increase of electronic conductivity with increase in lithium content has been observed. The low diffusion constant has been observed for lithium ionic motion in high lithium content samples. The conductivity spectra analysis shows the high columbic repulsive forces between mobile lithium ions in high lithium content samples. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


A new planar UWB antenna with a patch that consists of eight small congruent circles optimally packed into a large circle is proposed. The small circles have equal radii that are found using a straightforward formula that is based on the well-known "circles packing in a circle" theory. This formula is a function of the substrate dielectric constant and the upper frequency in the operating frequency range (10.6 GHz). This formula is also used to find the radius of the large virtual circle where all the eight small circles are packed and which is a function of the lower frequency in the band (3.1 GHz). With its clear design procedure and physical interpretations, the new antenna presents a better candidate than typical circular patch UWB antennas. The simulated |Sn| results and radiation patterns throughout the UWB range are provided to demonstrate the very good antenna performance. The procedure used to produce this antenna can be generalized to produce other antennas operating at different wideband ranges.


Amplification of the HER-2/neu gene resulting in overexpression of the p185HER-2 growth factor receptor occurs in approximately 25-30% of early stage breast cancers and is associated with a poor prognosis. HER-2/neu has also become a marker for predicting the response to anti-HER-2/neu monoclonal antibodies, which have been shown to improve the response rate, response duration, and overall survival in combination with chemotherapy in HER-2/neu amplified metastatic breast cancers. Recent data suggest an association between the degree of HER-2/neu overexpression and the response to anti-HER-2/neu monoclonal antibodies. HER-2/neu is also a potential predictive marker for response to chemotherapy or endocrine therapy. Controversies about the detection of HER-2/neu in archival breast tumor specimens and pitfalls of retrospective subgroup analysis complicate the interpretation of studies of the predictive value of HER-2/neu. As a result there is no conclusive evidence for resistence towards cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluorouracil in HER-2/neu-positive breast cancers. Retrospective studies suggest an increased response to doxorubicin-containing chemotherapeutic regimens in HER-2/neu-positive breast cancers. Data on taxanes are inconclusive. HER-2/neu overexpression is also inversely associated with estrogen receptor (ER) positivity, but in cases where ER and HER-2/neu are coexpressed tamoxifen efficacy is in question. Large cooperative trials have not confirmed a deleterious effect of tamoxifen in such cases. In conclusion, HER-2/neu may be a useful marker for predicting the response to chemotherapy agents, antiestrogens, and therapeutic anti-HER-2/neu monoclonal antibodies.


Abstract A target benefit plan (TBP) is a collective defined contribution (DC) plan that is growing in popularity in Canada. Similar to DC plans, TBPs have fixed contribution rates, but they also implement pooling of longevity and investment risk. In this paper, we formulate a multi-period model that incorporates two sources of risk – asset risk and labor income risk for active members. We present an optimal investment and retirement benefits schedule for TBP members with a fixed contribution rate. Using Australian data from 1965 to 2018, we evaluate the performance of the optimal TBP scheme and compare it to the optimal DC scheme. By adopting the benefit–investment strategy derived in this paper, we demonstrate the stability of benefit distribution over time for a TBP scheme in this stochastic formulation. To outperform the DC scheme's benefit payment, careful consideration shall be given to the benefit target in the TBP scheme. A high target may not be achievable, while a low target can impede the accumulation momentum of the fund's wealth in its early stages. Moreover, a TBP fund's investment strategy is primarily influenced by the wealth target, with more aggressive investments in risky assets as the wealth target increases. This analysis may shed light on the possible improvements to retirement planning in Australia. Although the results are sensitive to the choice of model parameters, overall, the proposed TBP promotes system stability in various scenarios.


Generalizing the ideas of $\mathbb{Z}_k$-manifolds from Sullivan and the theory of stratifolds from Kreck, we define $\mathbb{Z}_k$-stratifolds. We introduce the bordism theory of $\mathbb{Z}_k$-stratifolds in order to represent every homology class with $\mathbb{Z}_k$-coefficients. We present a geometric interpretation of the Bockstein long exact sequence and the Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence for $\mathbb{Z}_k$-bordism ($k$ odd) .


Abstract Background: The MTHFR gene polymorphisms are closely related to the chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Case-control studies have associated the MTHFR polymorphisms and susceptibility to CML but the results were not conclusive. The aim of this study was to assess this association through an update meta-analysis. Methods: Electronic searches were conducted to select published studies prior to juin 2018. Pooled odds ratios (OR) with corresponding 95% confidence interval (95% CI) and stratification analysis were performed under different genetic comparison models and ethnicity. Results: Totally, 17 and 12 case-control studies including CML cases and controls were enrolled in the meta-analysis respectively for C677T and A1298C polymorphism and CML risk. A poor association between the C677T (T vs C ; OR= 1,28; IC95%= [1,01;1,63]; p=0,04) and the one not significant between the A1298C (C vs A ; OR= 1,52; IC95%= [0,92; 2,51]; p= 0,1)polymorphisms and the CML risk for overall population were found. Conclusions: the results of this meta-analysis suggested no significant association between C677T and A1298C polymorphisms and CML risk leading to consider other factors such us folic acid intake, gene-gene and gene- environment interactions.


Little physical information has been published on the size and shape characteristics of the pinna. These details are necessary to establish a standardized replica of the ear for test purposes; and to ensure accurate relation between psychoacoustic measurements and the ear's physical properties. This paper describes anthropometric measurements on 35 human ears. A detailed description of the pinna is qualified with a statistical analysis of the data. The orientation of various parts of the pinna relative to the side of the head are computed. The concha opening is measured. The variation of the concha volume is calculated when a supra‐aural earphone is applied against the ear. Data is computed for all 35 ears and also for groups with respect to age and sex (10 females, 25 males).


This article proposes a new methodology for simultaneous integration of water and energy in heat-integrated water allocation networks (WAHEN). A novel disjunctive model is first developed to determine an optimal water allocation network (WAN) where water and energy are integrated in one step. Based on the optimal WAN, a detailed heat exchanger network (HEN) to satisfy the utility target is then synthesized. Although the final network structure is obtained through two steps, the targets of freshwater and utility are optimized simultaneously. The proposed method has specific advantages. First of all, it can capture a tradeoff among freshwater usage, utility consumption, and direct heat transfer by nonisothermal mixing. Second, it can greatly reduce the complexity of subsequent HEN design. Finally, it is effective for simultaneous water and energy integration in large-scale WAHEN systems. The advantages and applicability of this new method are illustrated by three examples from literature. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 2202–2214, 2015


The examination results of adaptability of 14 soft winter wheat varieties of native breeding and 29 lines of breeding are presented. The stress-resistant varieties with the greatest adaptive capabilities diapason are Spartak, Marathon, Esaul, Zhemchuzhina Povolzhya, line L. 351-04 ya0-19-7. According to the average yield in contrasting conditions the following varieties are stood out: Vjuga is 5,85 t/ha, Severodonetskaya Ubileinaya is 5,88 t/ha, Basis is 5,82 t/ha, Zimnitsa is 5, 62 t/ha, lines are 679 Sv-93 6,28 t/ha, L.351-04- ya0-19-7 6,01 t/ha. The Basis, Vjuga, Zimnitsa varieties demonstrated the maximum yield in favorable conditions during the experiment: Basis is 7,78 t/ha, Vjuga is 8,25 t/ha, Zimnitsa"is 7,93 t/ha. The varieties exceeded the standard in unfavorable conditions by 1,16 t/ha, 0,73 t/ha, 0, 62 t/ha. According to the drought tolerance index the Spartak, Severodonetskaya Ubileinaya, Esaul, Zhemchuzhina Povolzhya "varieties are stood out. The studied varieties under non-stressful conditions exceeded the first class wheat norm by the falling-number value (250-396 s.). The falling-number decreased to 79 s. under the stressful conditions. The mass fraction of protein and gluten in the grain of the most studied soft winter wheat varieties are of low stability. The mass fraction of protein in the grain decreased to 10,4% under the unfavorable conditions. The mass fraction of wet gluten decreased to 17,4%. It is 61,9 and 52,6% of the level of a favorable year for the formation of grain quality. The Birusa and Vjuga varieties have the most stable indicators of the grain quality. The falling-number of the Birusa variety under the unfavorable conditions is 316 s, of the Vjuga variety is 395 s, the mass fraction of protein is 14,5 and 14,0%, of wet gluten is 28,2 and 30,0% correspondingly.


Provided is a complex picture of the present state of Russia's cargo motor transport (dynamics of traffic volume, cargo turnover, rolling stock structure etc.), sector's development trends, including those in the international haulage, are outlined, key issues are analyzed, and measures to tackle them are outlined.


Today's young generation, spends much of its time just playing Play station, Gedget, online games, and so on. That is what makes them empty of local cultural values, as well as foreign to terms such as manners, manners, mutual cooperation and other noble values in daily life. The world of education also feels the impact of modernity. All inventions of advanced technology today have unexpected effects. The development of civilization that is increasingly advanced has a significant influence, it can be seen from the attitude displayed in everyday life has been far from the personality of the nation. The impact of globalization that is happening at this time makes Indonesian people forget about national character education. In fact, character education is a very important foundation of the nation and needs to be instilled early on in children. By re-instilling character education in educational activities in schools, it will provide a solid grip on life for students to make students able to clarify and determine attitudes in choosing new cultures that enter. This article aims to explain the concept of character according to two Indonesian education leaders, namely Ki Hajar Dewantara and Hamka. They have different backgrounds for each other's thoughts. This is an interesting thing to observe.


Abstract : A working instrument has been developed and tested for measuring work functions of perfect single crystal planes. The longstanding high work function value (6.0 eV) for emission from the (110) plane of tungsten was investigated using the new FN plus energy distribution technique. The new results yield still higher work function values than previously reported (8.8 eV). A theory has been developed to include the influence of surface patch fields from adjacent single-crystal planes on field emission from single-crystal planes. This theory led to a new method for interpreting field emission data which removes the influence of patch fields. It has been shown that the high work function values can be explained, at least in part, by assuming that electrons are emitted in pairs. This was studied experimentally and it was concluded that electrons are not in fact emitted in pairs. Preliminary experiments employing strontium adsorbed on tungsten demonstrate that the arrival of single strontium atoms at the surface can be detected. Thus the theory of Duke and Alferieff can be checked experimentally. (Author)


During the vocational English teaching, stratified teaching places incomparable roles and advantages. Moreover, it has had a profound influence on English teaching in higher vocational colleges, which is highly valued and concerned by many education workers. Strengthen stratified teaching application in higher vocational English teaching has an important means to improve the level of students' English, ensure students' English learning interest and stimulate students' potential then to create good English learning environment. This paper mainly focuses on the application of stratified teaching in vocational English teaching, which aiming at providing some theoretical basis for relevant researchers.


A piezoelectric membrane transducer which offers an approach to treat sensorineural hearing loss is introduced. The sensor and the actuator element each consist of a titanium membrane with a single crystal piezo and are clamped into the same assembly housing. The transducer is placed into the incudostapedial joint gap (between incus and stapes ossicle) which offers a straightforward implantation after the drilling of an access through a mastoidectomy which is state of the art for otology surgeries. The sensor is measuring the force transmitted through the ossicular chain onto his membrane on the incus-side of the housing. An associated signal processing drives the actuator at the opposite side of the sensor to amplify the movement transmitted by the ossicular chain to the inner ear. The movement of the stapes footplate is related to the hearing perception. Therefore the proposed concept can be used as part of a fully implantable hearing aid. A finite elemente model (FEM) of a transducer is built and imple...


The present invention relates to a salt or prodrug that allows the compounds, pharmaceutically haksang of formula (I). Wherein (1) Ring A is an unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated monocyclic heterocyclic ring, the ring B is unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated monocyclic heterocyclic ring, unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated fused heterocyclic bicyclic ring , or is an unsubstituted or substituted benzene ring, (2) Ring A is an unsubstituted or substituted benzene ring, ring B is either unsubstituted or substituted upon an unsaturated monocyclic heterocyclic ring, or an unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated fused heterocyclic ring upon by, or (3) Ring A is an unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated fused heterocyclic bicyclic ring, Ring B is independently an unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated monocyclic heterocyclic ring, unsubstituted or substituted unsaturated fused heterocyclic bicyclic ring, or an unsubstituted or substituted benzene ring, and; X is a carbon atom or a nitrogen atom; Y is - (CH n is 1 or 2. Sodium-dependent glucose transporter, diabetes, diabetic complications, obesity, hypertension, atherosclerosis, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia


Here is one biologist's interpretation of the chronology of life during the last six hundred million years of earth history: an extended essay that draws on the author's own data and a wide-ranging literature survey to discuss the nature and dynamics of evolutionary change in organisms and their biological surroundings. Geerat Vermeij demonstrates that escalation--the process by which species adapt to, or are limited by, their enemies as the latter increase in ability to acquire and retain resources--has been a dominant theme in the history of life despite frequent episodes of extinction.


The necessity and importance of establishing the construction jurispru dence as a subject is based on the techno-economical peculiarities of constructi on, therefore it has its long-term advantage. It is necessary to discuss the pro blems concerning its establishment, and as China's teachers specialized in this subject are insufficient, case teaching may be taken as a way for its initiation .


Prostaglandin EP4 receptor (EP4R) plays pivotal role in mediating PGE2-induced vasodilation and blood pressure homeostasis. Our previous work demonstrated that absence of EP4R in all tissues was associated with salt sensitivity and exaggerated Ang II-dependent hypertension. While cell-specific elimination of EP4R from vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) attenuated EP4-dependent vasodilation, but the severity of Ang II-dependent hypertension was not affected. These findings indicate the effects of EP4R to resist hypertension are not attributable to the compensatory vasodilation mediated by EP4R in VSMCs and must be mediated by other cell lineages. Within the vasculature, endothelial cells (ECs) also express high levels of EP4R. To assess the role of EP4R in ECs, we generated conditional EC-specific EP4R knockout mice mice using Tie2-CreERT2 and

 EP4
 flox/flox

 mouse lines (ECKO). After pre-treatment with tamoxifen, we measured the blood pressure in conscious mice using radiotelemetry. At baseline, there were no significant differences in blood pressure between ECKO and controls 107.9±1.7 VS 109.3±1 mmHg). The response of ECKOs to Ang II infusion was variable. In one cohort, MAP during Ang II infusion was significantly lower than controls (142.8±3.1 vs 133.2±1.9 mmHg, p=0.02) whereas in a second cohort there was no difference in MAP with Ang II infusion between groups (131.7±2.3 vs 135.6±2.1 mmHg). Interestingly, the incidence of aortic aneurysm was significantly higher in ECKOs (12/27) compared to controls (2/25; p=0.01 by Fisher exact test). As urine sodium excretion during Ang II infusion was increased in ECKOs, we considered the possibility that aneurysm formation may have impacted the blood pressure. We also found the ECs isolated from ECKOs have significantly higher eNOS mRNA expression compared to control (fold change: 1.35±0.13; p=0.046). To determine whether this difference in eNOS expression have a functional impact, we compared blood pressure responses to L-NAME following Ang II infusion. ECKOs showed exaggerated response to L-NAME compared to controls (MAP increases +5.2±1.4 mmHg in ECKO vs. +0.5±1.5 mmHg in control; p=0.03). Thus, EP4R in ECs play important role in regulating EC function, impacting blood pressure and aortic integrity.


Purpose of study Induced pluripotent stem cell derived therapies hold potential to treat human disease, especially cardiovascular disease. To date, the safety of these therapies has not been satisfactorily addressed. This study was designed to assess if implantation of a cardiac graft seeded with fibroblasts and undifferentiated human induced pluripotent stem cells (uhiPSCs) in a rat model of CHF alters cardiac function. Methods used Male Sprague Dawley rats (n=7) underwent coronary artery ligation, allowed 3 weeks to develop CHF, underwent echocardiography and were treated with a cardiac graft seeded with fibroblasts and uhiPSCs. At 7 weeks post-treatment, echocardiograms were repeated. Results were compared to control groups: heart failure n=8 (sternotomy x2, coronary ligation, no graft) and sham n=12 (sternotomy x2, no coronary ligation, no graft). Summary of results The sham group had the best cardiac function of all three groups with higher EF, e' and e'/a' and lower E/e' compared to CHF control (p<0.05). The treatment group showed no difference compared to the untreated heart failure control group in EF, e', or E/e'. The e'/a' ratio, the ratio of peak velocity at early diastole (e') to peak velocity at late diastole (a'), improved from 1.1 in the heart failure control group to 2.0 in the treatment group (p=0.01). The difference between e'/a' of the treatment group vs the sham group was not significant. Conclusions This study is an important step in establishing the safety of regenerative medicine treatments utilising terminally differentiated iPSCs. As there is the potential for terminally differentiated iPSC treatments to have some level of undifferentiated cell contamination, the safety of fully dosed undifferentiated cell therapies alone must be established. We found no decline in cardiac function after treatment with a cardiac graft seeded with undifferentiated hiPSCs, and in one measure (e'/a'), cardiac function actually improved. These results indicate that potential contamination of differentiated cell therapies with uhiPSCs is not a safety concern for cardiac function.


Both the strong mode confinement and the low propagation loss are very important for the design of highly integrated THz devices, but they are often contradictory to each other and difficult to be achieved at the same time. In this paper, we study the inside-dominant graphene surface plasmon polaritons (GSPPs) propagating on the graphene-coated nanowires with drop-shaped cross section using COMSOL multiphysics. We find that the THz GSPPs achieve not only the sub-micron mode width but also the long propagation length. Furthermore, the inside-dominant GSPPs have very high energy utilization efficiency, because almost all the mode power is inside the nanowire. These excellent characteristics make the mode very useful in the nanophotonics, bio-photonics and highly integrated THz circuits.


In adolescents, on lateral radiographs of the vertebral column, the avulsion of a lumbar posterior ring epiphysis is a good argument suggesting a posterior herniation of the intervertebral disk. Two such cases are reported. The pathogeny of this tearing, unusual in adults, is discussed. This avulsion should be compared with the retromarginal anterior disk herniations, often observed at this age.


volume was slowly increased, bronchial rupture occurred after the injection of 15 ml of air. In order to avoid potentially fatal complication, tracheal and bronchial cuffs should be inflated with the minimuim volume necessary. The use of a 2 ml syringe to inflate the bronchial cuffmay prevent accidental over-inflation. Ifmore than 3 ml are required, the tube should be repositioned. The use of saline, or the ventilating gas to inflate the cuff will prevent N20 diffusion, and if air is used the cuff should be checked frequently to prevent overdistension. The use of a cuff pressure limitation device, such as the Cardiff Cuff Controller9, offers a further safeguard. Ideally, cuff pressure should not exceed 30 cm H207.


The invention relates to compounds of the formula (I): in which R1a, R1b, R1c, R1d, R2a, R2b, R3, R4, p, r and X are as defined in the description. Preparation process and therapeutic application.


As God's caliph on the earth (al-Baqarah, 2:30), man has
a duty to restore natural resources. With the potential given to man,
it is expected that he would be ahle to seek the ways to protect the
earth from its destruction. Nature if as created in a state of
equilibrium and has been so for a long time. Natural disasters that
occur due to humane or natural causes have great impacts on the
equilibrium state of nature and therefore need to be studied.
This article mil discuss how to learn from nature, by
describing how the equilibrium exists in nature as well as the factors
affecting natural equilibrium presents in the atmosphore, hydrosphere
and lithosphere, using the Quran, hadith and scientific books as
references. From the discussion, it can be said that the natural
disasters caused by natural factors are somewhat unavoidable
although the negative impacts can still be reduced. However, the
natural disasters caused by human as indicated by Quran, such as
o%one holes, greenhouse effects and water pollution should be able
to be avoided or even eliminated.
Therefore, as a religion intended for the well-being of the
universe ^rahmatan lil 'alaminj, it is time for Islam not to ignore
nature and examine kauniyah verses in the Quran to be applied
in daily lives. For example, the regulation about the city spatial
arrangement should be implemented strictly, so that there would be
no housing in areas which are vulnerable to natural disasters.
Although disasters are God's wish, his wish in terms of disasters
is always paralleled with man's action which also means that it
should also be parallel with man's readiness in facing the disasters.
Thus, as religious believer, we need to always learn fron nature so
thath we can still have something to be given to our children in the
future.


Target detection is a critical task in interpreting aerial images. Small target detection, such as vehicles, is challenging. Different lighting conditions affect the accuracy of vehicle detection. For example, vehicles are difficult to distinguish from the background in red, green, blue (RGB) images under low illumination conditions. In contrast, under high-illumination conditions, the color and texture of vehicles are not significantly different in thermal infrared (TIR) images. To improve the accuracy of vehicle detection under various illumination conditions, we propose an adaptive multimodal feature fusion and cross-modal vehicle index (AFFCM) model for vehicle detection. Based on the single-stage object detection model, AFFCM uses RGB and TIR images. It comprises three parts: 1) the softpooling channel attention (SCA) mechanism calculates the cross-modal feature weights of the RGB and TIR features using a fully connected layer during global weighted pooling; 2) we design a multimodal adaptive feature fusion (MAFF) module based on the cross-modal feature weights derived from the SCA mechanism; the MAFF selects features with high weight, compresses redundant features with low weight, and performs adaptive fusion using a multiscale feature pyramid; and 3) a cross-modal vehicle index is established to extract the target area, suppress complex background information, and minimize false alarms in vehicle detection. The mean average precision (mAP) on the Drone Vehicle dataset is 14.44% and 5.02% higher than that obtained using only RGB or TIR images. The mAP is 2.63% higher than that of state-of-the-art methods that utilize RGB and TIR images.


West is to be commended for (1) the organization of his discussion, (2) the careful delineation of the research areas, (3) the thoroughness of his research and the excellent documentation of the research efforts of social scientists in treating the problem/s of the small-farm operator, and (4) the development of a means-end schema of "what is," "what ought to be" with implications for future research, programs, and public policy. As West indicates, there is need for a redefinition of small farm. The $20,000 gross sales limit is inadequate. Most definitions do not include the value added of products produced and consumed by the family. Some states, for example Florida, use figures much lower than $20,000 to characterize small farms. The distinction between full-time and part-time farmers and their incomes is not clearly delineated. A national concern should be the redefinition of the term, "small farm." Heterogeneous characteristics of small farms should not inhibit the generation of profile information by geographic regions.


After a disaster many people suffer recurrent nightmares. Proverbial wisdom holds that "what filleth the heart goeth out through the mouth" or Shakespeare's "Give sorrow words." The traumatic complex after a disaster, Jung said, possesses the quality of psychic autonomy. It pounces "rather like an enemy or a wild beast."' Typically, "the affect" is "represented in a dream as an enemy or as a wild and dangerous animal." He saw the therapeutic task not as abreaction but as how to integrate the dissociation-how to restore wholeness; and he believed the intervention of the physician to be absolutely necessary. Freud had already told how integration comes about. He wrote: "A memory of such a trauma, even if it has not been abreacted, enters the great complex of associations, it comes alongside other experiences, which may contradict it, and is subject to rectification by other ideas. After an accident, for instance, the memory of the danger and the (mitigated) repetition of the fright becomes associated with what happened afterwards-rescue and the consciousness of present safety."2 But, he explained, painful experiences tended to be excluded from association and persisted "because they have been denied the normal wearing away processes by means of abreaction and reproduction in states of uninhibited association. " These theories have provided strategies for giving psychological help to those suffering from nightmares on the supposition that the dreams represent the reliving of a disaster in a disguised form, often with rehearsal of the steps that might have been taken to keep control over what was happening and thus overcome the sense of helplessness. Psychiatrists disagree about the relative importance to be given to abreaction (expression of the emotion pent up with the memory of the disaster) and the undoing of repression and recall in a state of uninhibited association. The emphasis given to abreaction lessened after experience in the first world-war. In the second world war Sargant was a notable champion of "excitatory abreaction" in the treatment of war neuroses; he revived memories under light narcosis induced by either injection of amphetamine or inhalation of ether to the accompaniment of noises of battle scenes.3 The general experience was, however, that battle dreams became less frequent and faded when the patient was able to talk about his experiences with a sympathetic listener. Failure to gain relief was usually taken to mean that no more than a cover story had been gleaned. Several sessions were necessary for a sufficient exploration of the painful memories. Stevenson and his colleagues found in a systematic study that reports of improvement after interviews under narcosis did not correlate with the degree of expression of negative affects, such as anxiety or anger; the review of the past and integration of painful memories were favoured, however, when pleasant emotions were experienced.4 Ofmore importance than the drugs administered was the conduct of the interview. The patient tended to feel worse when the interviewer seemed judgmental or unsupportive. Drugs, though they may induce pleasant feelings, are no longer thought to be necessary as an aid in reviewing the past. Attention is paid to the ambience of the interview, creation of the relaxed conditions favouring recall, and development of the partnership between patient and therapist. The debate on these issues has been revived, first by Marks5 and now by Bishay,b who have each described how rehearsal of a repetitive nightmare leads to its disappearance when it has been given in imagination a triumphant ending in which the threat has been eliminated by mastering it. A girl suffering nightmares of snakes or other animals crawling into her bed gained relief when she had given the experience a triumphant ending by cutting off the snake's head with a knife. Another patient, plagued by a nightmare in which, among other things, dogs barked and attacked her, found relief when she rehearsed an ending in which she stared steadily at the dogs, who went away. "Exposure"-that is, recall in a state of uninhibited association-had not been enough in these cases. In other patients there was considerable improvement when the patient was encouraged to rehearse an ending that was happy or neutral. This approach is a form of cognitive therapy, nightmares being treated, like other symptoms, by identifying maladaptive thoughts and discussing how threats can be eliminated by positive, rational, or threat eliminating statements.7 The mood change is said, in accordance with cognitive theory, to follow the altered cognition. Once a threat eliminating ending has been found desensitisation through repeated


The effects of various natural agar media, light, and temperature on mycelium growth of and conidium production by Monilinia oxycocci were ex- amined in the laboratory under controlled condi- tions. Vegetative growth and sporulation were affect- ed differentially by these factors. Optimum vegetative growth and formation of stromata occurred on po- tato dextrose agar at 20-24 C in the dark. The min- imum and maximum temperatures for mycelium growth were 4 and 32 C, respectively. Production of conidia was best on V8 juice agar. The greatest num- bers of conidia were produced at 16 C, but abundant conidium production was most consistent at 20 C. The influence of light on sporulation was inconsis- tent among trials and differed among media and iso- lates. However, on V8 juice agar at 20 C, production of conidia was most abundant in the dark. In general, considerable variability occurred with M. oxycocci throughout the study-among replicates of individ- ual isolates, among isolates within a trial, and among trials with the same isolates. The highly variable na- ture of M. oxycocci in vitro appears to be an inherent characteristic of this plant pathogenic fungus.


The visual quality of graphical user interfaces can be estimated by software measurement, which consists of measuring visual design formulas on a dataset of interfaces and interpreting them for improving their overall quality. When performed manually, this process becomes very tedious and error prone, especially for large datasets. When performed with existing software, this process is accelerated, but tied to a particular set of measures with their own interpretation, making them inflexible. To overcome these shortcomings, GUIMETRICS improves this process by automatically collecting screenshots in various platform configurations and resolutions and automatically computing and interpreting measures on-demand. The cloud-based architecture of GUIMETRICS can be extended with external modules for computing any visual measure, even in different programming languages, thus making it more flexible.


Because alcohol has a number of effects that interfere with hemostasis, it could be expected to cause an increase in bleeding problems. This Scottish


Forty weanling piglets (5.6±0.5 kg and 26 to 30 d of age) were used in a 28-d experiment to determine the effects of β- glucan from Paenibacillus polymyxa and L-theanine on growth performance. Piglets were randomly allotted to four groups (n = 10, 2 animals per pen) provided with the basal feed (control), β-glucan 400 mg/kg feed, L-theanine 80 mg/kg feed or β-glucan plus l-theanine (combination of the above-mentioned concentrations). Body weight and feed consumption were recorded during four weeks. Subsequently, the immunomodulatory effects of β-glucan and L-theanine were investigated for lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced cytokine production in vitro and in vivo on day 28. Although there were no significant differences in the growth performances among the treatment groups, β-glucan plus L-theanine had 5.6% greater ADG (p = 0.074) on day 21 to 28. β-Glucan alone or plus L-theanine increased interleukin (IL)-10 levels and decreased interferon (IFN)-γ and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α levels in cultured medium by LPS treatment (p<0.05). Plasma IL-10 levels were also increased in the piglets fed with β-glucan alone or plus L-theanine after LPS challenge (25 μg/kg, i.p.), whereas plasma IFN-γ and TNF-α levels were decreased (p<0.05). The levels of IFN-γ in piglets fed with β- glucan plus L-theanine showed the greatest inhibition after LPS challenges. In conclusion, treatment of β-glucan alone or plus L- theanine might lessen inflammatory responses against Gram-negative bacterial infection via the inhibition of pro-inflammatory cytokine production and enhancement of anti-inflammatory cytokine production. Further studies are needed to determine an optimal


Applicant discloses an anti-idiotypic antibody to MOR202, which when fused to human albumin, shifted the antibody in IFE thus mitigating any potential interference of MOR202 with the M-protein clinical assessment.


Six soil profiles belonging to the Brookston, Lockport, Guelph, Chinguacousy and Haldimand series were sampled in southern Ontario. Illite contents of the clay fractions ranged from 25 to 56% and vermiculite contents ranged from 13 to 53%. The native fixed ammonium content varied from 57 to 367 μg/g and accounted for between 3 and 44% of the total nitrogen, being proportionally less in Ap horizons. Results of simple linear regression analyses demonstrated significant correlations of native fixed ammonium with percentages of clay, illite, illite plus vermiculite and K2O. The amount of ammonium fixed increased with increasing concentration of added ammonium up to the highest rate of application (2000μg NH4+/g soil). Regression analysis indicated that vermiculite was more important in the fixation of added NH4+ than illite. Studies on Ap horizons comparing the amount of NH4+ fixed with the amount of K− fixed for equivalent amounts of added cation showed that K+ was fixed in greater quantities than NH4+. Key ...


This article continues a cycle of publications by the title «Economic security of the technical university». There is offered an indicative system of economic security of the technical college, containing eighteen indicators, grouped in five projections (students, teachers, science and innovations, material, financial and information resources, management), the threshold values of these indicators are proved. It is shown that it is necessary to carry out normalization of indicators for a joint analysis of the dynamics of indicators of university economic security. The article adduces different types of normalizing functions and shows «risk zones» areas of indicators values in various degree remote from threshold values. The article substantiates the possibility to use generalized indices by aggregating information within each projection system of economic security.


Magnetotelluric and seismological studies suggested the presence of partial melts in the middle to lower Himalaya‐Tibetan crust. However, the melt fractions inferred by previous work were based on presumed electrical conductivity of melts. We performed measurements on the electrical conductivity of peraluminous granitic melts with 0.16–8.4 wt % H2O (the expected compositions in the Tibetan crust) at 600–1,300°C and 0.5–1.0 GPa. Peraluminous melt exhibits lower electrical conductivity than peralkaline melt at dry condition, but this difference diminishes at H2O > 2 wt %. With our data, the observed electrical anomalies in the Tibetan crust could be explained by 2–33 vol % of peraluminous granitic melts with H2O > 6 wt %. Possible reasons for our inferred melt fractions being higher than seismological constraints include the following: (1) The real melts are more Na and H2O rich, (2) the effect of melt reducing seismic velocities was overestimated, and (3) the anomalies at some locations are due to fluids.


Polymer optical fiber (POF) with a highly photosensitive poly(methyl methacrylate-co-methyl vinyl ketone-co-benzyl methacrylate) core is fabricated. Gratings can be fabricated in the core of a POF with a low-cost mercury lamp. The part of the emission spectrum of the mercury lamp in which the cladding material exhibits photosensitivity is effectively filtered by a 1.5-mm-thick Pyrex glass to ensure that a long-period grating is formed only in the core of a POF. A long-period grating with a 3-dR resonant peak at 1568 nm is fabricated with 0.3 mW/cm2 of UV irradiation over a period of 200 s.


Thermal power plants are the largest suppliers of electricity in India, followed by hydro, nuclear, gas, and diesel-based generating plants. Thermal power plants hold the highest share of installed power generation capacity in the country. The economic benefits of thermal power units can be measured through increased employment, value addition in an asset, local investment, and business and wages or salary accrued during both the construction and operational phases of new coal units. This research paper shows the impact of Adani Maharashtra Power Limited on local farmland, housing value and rent on tumsar, Tirora, and Gondia tahsils. For the present study, responses were gathered from 450 respondents and analyzed by using paired t-test at 5% significance level.


A display apparatus including a wireless communication device and a driving method thereof are provided to reduce a noise by including a main clock providing unit to change the frequency of the main clock. A display apparatus including a wireless communication device includes a display unit(100) and a main clock providing unit(200). The display unit receives an input image signal and an input control signal provided from a graphic controller(280) and is driven by a driving frequency. The main clock providing unit measures the noise inside signals received from a wireless communication channel, changes the main clock to reduce the noise and outputs the changed frequency to the display unit.


This paper describes a model formed of a set of elliptic partial differential equations involving Beltramians of coordinates for generating the curved surfaces at the separation of two different media. The main point is that the differential equations are formed in such a way that the sum of the local principal curvatures appears explicitly, which in turn depends on the physical and chemical properties of the two media. This dependence is quite obvious as far as the problem of surface tension is concerned. The developed partial differential equations have been solved numerically for the simple case of a fluid in contact with a vertical wall and for generation of the surface of revolution due to the capillary effect in a tube of small radius. These examples demonstrate the application of the method when the surface tension is important. The method may be of value in tackling other problems, such as the generation of synclastic and anticlastic surfaces, provided that the local principal curvatures can be related to the coordinates by using some physical principle.


Sustainable development, economic considerations and technologic reasons lead to adopt more and more often blended cement for massive concrete structures. Most of the time slags are used combined or not with silica fume or fly ash. Hydration processes of these mixes are more complex than for single clinker cement. In fact activation energy is different for additions and clinker, so, the hydration kinetic of each component depends on the temperature during hydration. So, in large structures, hydration products, and consequently mechanical behavior, may be different in the core (which is subjected to higher temperature) than near the edge due to the difference of temperature of this zone during hydration. This paper focus on particularity of models developed in LMDC Toulouse to take into account this aspect in order to predict early age poro-mechanics behavior of concrete. The dependence of hydrates nature on the temperature needs to consider the consequences in terms of mechanical properties and shrinkage. On purpose, a homogenization model coupled with the percolation theory is clarified. Once the poromechanics characteristics are supplied by the homogenization model, a water retention curve model allows computing capillary pressure from early age until long term. These results are applied to a mechanical model adapted to the prediction of chemically evolving concrete behavior (including effect of creep) in order to assess the risk of cracking at early age under restraining effects.


Aims/Objectives/Background To reduce the risk of spreading infection and hospitals being overwhelmed, on the 18th February 2020, NHS England advised patients with suspected COVID infection to contact NHS 111 instead of attending health care providers. In March 2020, 3 million NHS 111 calls were made; a record number and double the number of the previous year. Concerns have been raised that telephone triage may not be sufficiently accurate in identifying need for emergency care. We aim to assess accuracy of telephone triage in identifying patients who need emergency care amongst those with suspected COVID-19 and identify factors which affect triage accuracy. Methods/Design A cohort study of adults who contacted NHS 111 services provided by Yorkshire Ambulance Service between the 18thMarch 2020 and 29th June 2020 with symptoms indicating possible COVID-19 infection was completed. Callers were linked to ONS death registrations and routine health care data collected by NHS Digital. The accuracy of triage outcome (self-care/non-urgent assessment versus ambulance/urgent assessment) was assessed for death or organ support 30 days from first contact. Multi-variable logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with risk of false negative or false positive triage. Abstract 798 Figure 1 STROBE flow diagram of study population selection Abstract 798 Table 1 Performance of binary NHS 111 triage (ambulance or urgent assessment 4 hours or less) for composite outcome (death or organ support) Adverse outcome up to 30 days (3% , 2.8- 3.2% ) N=40, 261 Adverse Outcome No Adverse Outcome Ambulance/urgent assessment 890 15, 035 Sensitivity 74.2% (71.6- 76.6%)Positive Predictive Value5.6% (5.2 - 6%) Self-care/non-urgent assessment 310 24, 025 Specificity 61.5% (61% - 62%)Negative Predictive Value98.7% (98.6 - 98.9%) Results/Conclusions 3% of the 40,261 callers experienced an adverse outcome. Self-care/non-urgent assessment was recommended for 60%, with a small but non-negligible (1.3%) risk of subsequent deterioration. Triage achieved 74.2% sensitivity (95% CI: 71.6 to 76.6%) and 61.5% specificity (61% to 62%) for the primary outcome. Multivariable analysis suggested some co-morbidities (e.g. respiratory disease) may be over-estimated, and others (e.g. diabetes) underestimated, as predictors of deterioration. Repeat contact with services appears to be an important under recognised predictor of adverse outcomes with 2 contacts (OR 1.77 95% CI: 1.14 to 2.75) and 3+ contacts (OR 4.02 95% CI: 1.68 to 9.65) associated with clinical deterioration when not provided with an ambulance/urgent clinical assessment.


The spread of HIV in Africa South of the Sahara is alarmingly high especial among girls aged between 12 and 24 years despite the knowledge that society has about how HIV spreads particularly through unprotected heterosexual sexual intercourse. In Mberengwa there is also a rise in infection cases among older men aged 50 and above. On the other hand sexual intercourse is premised in the private space. It is general frowned upon for anyone to openly talk about sexual intercourse. In the midst of the silences about sexual intercourse people are very active sexual. Of note is that women who reach menopause amongst the Karanga and the Shangaan Tsonga communities are barred from having sexual intercourse. This paper reflects on traditional beliefs and explanations of menopause amongst the Karanga people of Mberengwa, Zimbabwe and the Shangaan Tsonga of Mozambique which I think have a contribution in the spread of HIV amongst young girls and old men (and some old women) through trans-generational sex with multiple sexual partners in some cases. Findings through focus group discussions in Zimbabwe and Mozambique demonstrate that the traditionalization of sexuality regardless of developments in biological knowledge contribute to the spread of HIV especial among the older men. The cultural beliefs have resulted in behaviours that lead to trans-generational multiple sexual partners. This paper argues that the cultural explanations of the meaning of blood released by women during menstruation requires some biological explanation to ease the fears and taboos thereof among the Karanga and the Shangaan Tsonga. This paper concludes that the continued use of traditionalised explanations of menstrual blood is a possible source for the spread of HIV The Traditionalization of Menopause 251 especial in a trans-generational manner amongst the concerned tribal


ABSTRACT The effectiveness of measuring petiole sap nitrate-nitrogen concentration (PSNC) using ion selective electrode (ISE) has been scrutinized due to claims that PSNC poorly predicts leaf tissue nitrogen concentration (LTNC) or crop yield. This study evaluated the relationship among PSNC, LTNC, and marketable yield of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.). Two tomato trials were conducted using seepage irrigation and controlled-release fertilizer (CRF) in fall 2011 and 2012. At 15 days intervals, six most recently mature leaves were collected to measure PSNC and LTNC. PSNC and LTNC declined throughout the growing seasons, but PSNC was affected by weather. PSNC and LTNC were correlated (P = 0.0001, r = 0.38), though not meaningfully. PSNC and LTNC correlated negatively and positively with crop yield in most correlations, respectively. Correlations of CRFs and soluble fertilizers (SFs) separately, did not improve relationships. Measuring LTNC may be a more reliable nutrient management tool compared to PSNC measured using an ISE.


The subject matter covered within this report is European Union (EU) renewable electricity generation--specifically onshore wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity.


Technique and Apparatus The apparatus used in Edinburgh is a Devices recorder which is a single channel direct writing instrument which makes use of A.C. amplification; the time constant is 4! seconds and this ensures that the representation of the slow phase is reasonably linear. The electrodes are 8 mm. slightly domed silver plates, which are filled with electrode jelly and placed on the outer canthi by means of Sellotape; an earth electrode is placed in the centre of the forehead. In order to reduce the skin resistance at the electrode sites to 2 • 5-3 kohms the areas are rubbed with ether until a good erythema is produced; any difficulty encountered in the technique has always been due to faulty skin preparation. Calibration is done with a 20 deviation of gaze at 6 feet and recordings are run at either 5 or 10 mm. per second. Full details of the technique are published elsewhere (Maran, 1965).


We report a spatially resolved investigation of lasing on the J =0—1,3p—3s transition in neon like titanium at 32 6nm, with high resolution erect field spectrometer. Experiments were carried out on the "Xingguang" Nd glass laser with 1% prepules 5ns before the main pulse. The experimental results are compared with the theoretical simulations obtained by LASNEX and XRASER code. The dependence of lasing region on drive energy is also discussed.


I/sup 131/ injections were used to determine the changes in the functional activity of the thyroid caused by whole-body gamma radiation. Four groups of Wistar rats were exposed to gamma radiation and on the first, third, and seventh day after exposure were injected with 30 mu c of I/sup 131/. The radioiodine uptake was determined 1, 4, 7, and 12 hr after injection. Compared with the controls, the iodine uptake by the thyroid of the irradiated animal increased 8.2% on the first day, but on the seventh it decreased 45.4%. These results are statistically significant. The results of the investigation are discussed, and it is concluded that this dosage facilitates the determination of the thyroid malfunction caused by whole-body irradiation. (auth)


Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR‐TKIs) have shown modest clinical benefit in patients with relapsed nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Down‐regulation of Akt appears to correlate with the antitumor activity of EGFR‐TKIs. Akt activates nuclear factor kappa B (NF‐κB), which transcribes genes important for cell survival, invasion, and metastasis. The authors hypothesized that genistein, through the inhibition of NF‐κB, could enhance the activity of EGFR‐TKIs in NSCLCs.


During the dynamic measurement of chord-based rail corrugation, with the interferences of curve rail and train snaking movement, it is hard to ensure that the measuring points on the rail surface can trace the railhead centerline well the whole time. This introduces the position deviations to the measurement system, and leads to the measurement results cannot reflect the true rail irregularity state. To solve the problem, a position deviation measurement method based on the assistance of bi-linear laser is proposed in this paper. First, by means of three verifications composed of color, dimension and position, the laser stripe regions on railhead are located from original image effectively. Then, by suppressing stripe highlight texture and modifying the traditional Steger algorithm with flexible-widths Gaussian template, we extract the laser stripe centerline accurately, and depict the railhead boundary fast. Last, by locating three chord-based measuring points and calculating the distances from them to the railhead centerline, we obtain the position deviations of each point. The efficiency and superiority of proposed method are verified by vast experiments. The results show that the accuracy of the position deviation of the chord-based measuring points is limited within 0.4mm.


In this paper, the undetermined multiplier method in the calculus of variations under constrained conditions is applied to the problems of transverse vibrations (free and forced), statical deflections, bucklings and others of rectangular plates, some edges of which are clamped and the others are supported. The numerical examples of various kinds are solved in order to explain the process of this method.


A computationally cheap method for computing collision-free trajectories with multiple moving obstacles is proposed here while meeting comfort and safety criteria. By avoiding search in the trajectory calculation and instead using a geometrical set to calculate the trajectory, the calculation time is significantly reduced. The geometrical set is calculated by solving a support vector machine problem and solving the SVM problem characterizes maximum separating surfaces between obstacles and the ego vehicle in the time-space domain. The trajectory on the separating surface might not be kinematically feasible. Therefore, a vehicle model and a Newton-Raphson based procedure is proposed to obtain a safe, kinematically feasible trajectory on the separating surface. A roundabout scenario and two take-over scenarios with different configurations are used to investigate the properties of the proposed algorithm. Robustness properties of the proposed algorithm is investigated by a large number of randomly initiated simulation scenarios.


In this paper we address the problem of the Bayesian segmentation of signals which are modelled as piecewise constant autoregressive (AR) processes excited by white Gaussian noise. We define a probabilistic model that takes into account the fact that the number of AR processes needed to represent the data, the model orders, the values of the parameters and the noise variances are unknown. The resulting posterior probability distributions and Bayesian estimators of the model parameters do not admit closed-form analytical expression. A stochastic algorithm based on a reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method [11] is derived to estimate these quantities. Results are obtained for both synthetic and real data (a speech signal which has been examined in the literature previously [1], [4] and [14]) and confirm the applicability of both the model and the algorithm. ∗C Andrieu is sponsored by AT&T Laboratories, Cambridge, UK. †A.Doucet is sponsored by EPSRC, UK.


Epidemiological studies have revealed that habitual coffee consumption may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Coffee includes many phenolic compounds (coffee polyphenols) such as chlorogenic acids. However, the contribution of chlorogenic acids to the prevention of cognitive dysfunction induced by Alzheimer's disease remains obscure. In this study, we investigated the effect of chlorogenic acids on cognitive function in APP/PS2 transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Five-week-old APP/PS2 mice were administered a diet supplemented with coffee polyphenols daily for 5 months. The memory and cognitive function of mice was examined using the novel object recognition test, Morris water maze test, and the step-through passive avoidance test. Chronic treatment with coffee polyphenols prevented cognitive dysfunction and significantly reduced the amount of amyloid β (Aβ) plaques in the hippocampus. Moreover, 5-caffeoylquinic acid (5-CQA), one of the primary coffee polyphenols, did not inhibit Aβ fibrillation; however, degraded Aβ fibrils. Computational docking simulation predicted that 5-CQA interacted with specific amino acid residues in Aβ protofilament. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that coffee polyphenols prevent cognitive dysfunction and reduce Aβ plaque deposition via disaggregation of Aβ in the APP/PS2 mouse.


Physical Education is one of the most important theme studied by Giovanni Calo during his academic career, from the beginnings to the ages of his maturity, when he became director of ISEF in Florence. The anthropological basis of his thought is related to the centrality of man as individual unity of body and spirit, typical of his "realistic spiritualism" in contrast to Gentile's neoidealism. During the Fascism, Calo struggled against a reductive conception of sport as athletism, and proposed an improvement of P.E. in Italian schools. In the latest years of his scholarship, Calo focussed his attention on the training of P.E. young teachers, in particular of secondary schools, accordingly to the new programmes of ISEF. He underlined the importance of combining scientific, technological and pedagogical dimensions of P.E.