The invention discloses a natural conditioning and nourishing ferment and a manufacturing method thereof. The ferment comprises the following raw materials in parts by mass: 1-80 parts of primarily fermented liquid, 1-30 parts of probiotics, 1-30 parts of enzymes, 1-10 parts of Chinese herbal medicines, 1-30 parts of fruits, 1-30 parts of vegetables, 1-30 parts of edible mushrooms, 1-30 parts of edible algae, 1-30 parts of maltose, and 1-30 parts of honey. The primarily fermented liquid comprises the following raw materials in parts by mass: 1-50 parts of corncobs, 1-15 parts of wheat, 1-30 parts of stem rice, 1-50 parts of brown rice, 1-50 parts of rice bran, 1-50 parts of black soya beans, 1-10 parts of black glutinous rice and 1-10 parts of semen sesami nigrum. The ferment is prepared by compounding the vegetables, the fruits, the edible mushrooms, the edible algae and the traditional Chinese medicinal materials with the enzymes and fermenting by the probiotics. By adopting the ferment, the integrated conditioning properties of a plurality of plants such as fruits and vegetables and traditional Chinese medicinal materials are compounded, and the natural conditioning and nourishing ferment is free of toxic and side effects. The ferment can be used as a food, also can be added to other foods and beverage, and the natural conditioning and nourishing effects are achieved.


Protected areas (PAs) spearhead global conservation efforts, but it has been repeatedly demonstrated that narrowly distributed species are more likely to be unrepresented in PAs. This means that where local extinctions are more likely outside PAs, a positive feedback loop could render PAs largely ineffective in decelerating extinctions, even where PAs effectively abate threats. Here we empirically test the elements of this feedback loop using distribution data for 1,572 threatened plants in Japan. Narrowly distributed species were indeed less likely to overlap PAs than widespread species, and local extinction rates for unprotected populations over 15 years were 1.5 times higher than those inside PAs. A simulation model showed that new PAs will substantially reduce extinction risk for widespread species, but not for narrowly distributed species, unless they are placed very precisely in the landscape. Our results suggest that a representation‐extinction feedback will limit the effectiveness of PAs in preventing extinctions unless PA placement is carefully targeted.


To understand the characteristics of 3D flow and film cooling mechanism in a film cooled turbine in depth, detailed numerical simulations are carried out for the stator of a gas turbine using a 3D NS finite volume solver incorporated with standard k-e turbulence model and scalable wall function. Multi-row film cooling holes and the conjoint coolant-supply-plenum are constructed by means of unstructured meshes, and flows in all the holes are considered. Analysis of simulation results emphasizes on the complex 3D flow due to cooling near leading edge and blade cooling characteristics.


ABSTRACT Hot isostatic pressing of nickel-based superalloys has important applications for manufacturing near-net shape parts such as turbine disks and jet engine parts, which have to operate at high temperatures. Finite element modelling can be used to predict deformation and densification behaviour of such superalloys. Thus, the cost and time of trial and error to obtain the required geometry of the part can be reduced, such that near-net shape parts can be manufactured more economically. Numerical simulations were carried out by implementing the model of ElRakayby and Kim into Abaqus-FEA. The model parameters (relative density functions f and c) for the nickel-based superalloy were obtained from the creep response and compressive strength of porous and solid powder compacts at high a temperature. The agreement between finite element calculations and the experimental data was good for densification, shape change and density distribution of nickel-based superalloy during hot isostatic pressing. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


T ypical presentation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–associated central nervous system (CNS) involvement is quite variable and can include cognitive deficits in memory and information processing, mild motor dysfunctions, or frank dementia. In the mid-1990s, HIV patients with cognitive impairments were responsive to triple therapy resulting in significant improvement in survival. Mortality among patients with CD4 counts of <100/mm dropped from 35/100 person-years in 1993 to 10/100 person-years in 1997. Currently, approximately 15% to 20% of HIV patients present clinically with acute or subacute focalized CNS involvement related to opportunistic infections and neoplasms. In addition, 30% to 40% of AIDS patients develop opportunistic infections of the CNS during the course of their disease. Supporting these observations, our autopsy findings between 1985–2000 report that of 483 AIDS cases, 27% had HIV encephalitis (HIVE), 22% had cytomegalovirus encephalitis, 2.5% had toxoplasmosis, 5% had fungal infections, 3% had progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, and 9% had non–Hodgkin's lymphoma. Of the remaining patients without evidence of opportunistic infections, it is estimated that over 50% developed diffuse subacute or chronic neurologic symptoms suggestive of HIV CNS involvement. The peripheral nervous system is affected in approximately one-third of all HIV patients and presents as painful distal sensory neuropathy. In addition to the classic events connected with peripheral neuropathy involving nerve degeneration and blunted regeneration, HIVassociated distal sensory neuropathy has been significantly linked to unrelated markers such as mental state, implying that this syndrome may be a reflection of overall nervous system dysfunction. In the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), known CNS syndromes have persisted, albeit at reduced levels, and atypical and/or newly recognized syndromes have emerged and are described by McArthur et al. Furthermore, clinical presentation of NeuroAIDS has shifted from a subacute and rapidly progressing condition to a more protracted and chronic disorder that may present subtly in the early stages as depression, slight gait disturbances, or loss of fine motor dexterity. Moreover, during the HAART era, changes in the patterns of neuronal damage and in the progression of HIVE have been noted. These changes are due in part to (1) prolonged patient survival accompanied by CNS ''escape,'' (2) selective pressures on plasma/lymphatic virus by antiretrovirals (ARVs), (3) tolerance and/or adherence issues, (4) bioavailability, (5) reductions in brain metabolites (5) the emergence of neurovirulent strains, and (6) virologic failure in the HAART-experienced patient. An explanation for some of the continuing problems of HIV-related CNS dysfunctions may involve toxicities associated with long-term exposure to HAART. These agents may both protect and damage the brain as they have been shown to do in the peripheral nervous system. In the HAART-experienced patient, the toxic effects of ARVs may become apparent after months or years of use (long-term). Toxicities associated with the long-term use of HAART such as damage to mitochondrial DNA and changes in lipid levels and the mechanisms responsible for these complications are well described. The increased risk of major side effects involving cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events associated with the long-term use of HAART has been suggested. Similar to toxicities observed in peripheral tissues, long-term HAART use may damage brain cells of various types, cerebral vasculature or components of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) leading to increased neuronal dysfunction. Toxicities associated with short-term HAART use may occur days or weeks after the initiation of therapy or when a regimen is changed. Acute CNS alterations associated with the short-term use of HAART include mania, psychosis, white matter changes, and encephalopathies; however, the mechanisms responsible for most of these syndromes are not understood. Because HIV predisposes patients to Original Article


Growers appreciate Cattleya walkeriana and C. loddigesii due to striking shape and rarity. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of DNA barcode regions, namely ITS1, ITS2 and rpoC1 , to discriminate between C. walkeriana and C. loddigesii species. DNA barcode regions were successfully amplified using primers designed to amplify plants. We also included sequences from public databases in order to test if these regions were able to discriminate C. walkeriana and C. loddigesii from other Cattleya species. These regions, and their combinations, demonstrated that the ITS1+ITS2 had the highest average interspecific distance (11.1%), followed by rpoC1 (1.06%). For species discrimination, ITS1+ITS2 provided the best results. The combined data set of ITS1+ITS2+ rpoC1 also discriminated both species, but did not result in higher rates of discrimination. These results indicate that ITS region is the best option for molecular identification of these two species and from some other species of this genus.


In software engineering scenario, software effort estimation is very uncertain and depends on various external factors .For developing a particular type of software, selection of an optimal and experienced group of developer is essential for software development organization for organizational benefits and is necessary because success and failure of software is highly depends upon experienced team members, but it is not always possible to schedule a suitable team of developer for a specific type of software development from a group of developer ,hence there should be a technique to form a group of developer for specific type of software development for cost effective reason. In this paper multi criteria decision making (MCDM) based fuzzy analytical hierarchy process is applied for formation or selection of software developer team. Fuzzy AHP is a ranking based optimization technique, which decides ranking among various alternatives based on conflict nature of criteria. Three different criteria from COCOMO effort estimation model are considered to decide ranking of three programmers. This technique can be applied for more number of criteria and alternative in real sense in software development scenario.


The Contingent Valuation (CV) method is a widely used non-market valuation method especially in the areas of environmental cost–benefit analysis and environmental impact assessment (see Mitchell and Carson, 1989; Cummings et al., 1986). Its application in environmental economics includes estimation of non-use values (e.g. Walsh et al., 1984; Brookshire et al., 1983), non-market use values (e.g. Choe et al., 1996; Loomis and duVair, 1993) or both (e.g. Niklitschek and Leon, 1996; Desvousges et al., 1993) of environmental resources. In recent years, this method is commonly used in developing countries to elicit the individuals' preferences for the basic infrastructural projects such as water supply and sanitation (see Whittington, 1998; Merrett, 2002). Though a popular non-market valuation method, a group of academicians criticise this method severely for not being a proper method of estimating the non-market values (see Hausman, 1993). Hence, the major objective of the concept which is being used to portray the Willingness to Pay to improve the River water quality in the study area based on empirical aspects of CV method.


Ileum of Indian buffaloes was described to have both dome projections of lymphoid follicles of PP's of submucosa into mucous membrane and non-dome areas (Lalitha, 1993). Non-dome areas of ileal mucosa were represented by typical villi with associated lamina propria where lymphatics commence as lacteals (Trautmann and Fiebiger, 1957; Dellman, 1981). There is paucity of literature on the distribution of lymphatics in the dome areas. The distribution of lymphatics in dome areas is necessary to understand the transfer of self and nonself antigens absorbed through the follicle associated epithelium (FAE) of dome areas, which serves as part of local immune system of gastro intestinal tract. Hence a study was done to elucidate the same as the first of its kind in Indian Buffaloes.


We provide several results on the existence of equilibria for discontinuous games in general topological spaces without any convexity structure. All of the theorems yielding existence of equilibria here are stated in terms of the player's preference relations over joint strategies.


Gestational diabetes is defined as glucose intolerance first detected in pregnancy (World Health Organization, 1999). Globally, and in the UK, the prevalence of gestational diabetes is increasing owing to multiple factors. Women with previous gestational diabetes are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life. In recent years, several landmark studies have been performed with the intention of defining the most appropriate treatment for gestational diabetes. The aim of this article is to explore the available treatments for gestational diabetes in the UK, although the author acknowledges that treatment modalities vary throughout the UK and remain largely dependent upon the prescriber's experience within the context of what is determined to be accepted safe practice.


Abstract : A cruise missile is a vehicle that spends the major portion of its flight at essentially constant altitude and speed. Some cruise missiles are flown at very low altitudes in order to avoid detection. The terrain-following capabilities of such a missile and its guidance system are of importance. It is desirable that the missile should follow closely the contour of the terrain, which may be fixed (Land) or time-varying (ocean waves). A previous study (Ref. 1) demonstrated that optimal control theory could usefully be applied to calculate the best achievable accuracy of terrain-following. Reference 1 showed that, even with an optimal guidance system, terrain-following accuracy was limited by considerations of the cruise missile's inertias, airspeed, and aerodynamic configuration.


Background: Several descriptors are used to characterize the dosimetric parameters of a photon beam through an attenuator. This study evaluates these descriptors analytically through various thicknesses of Gamma Putty. Specifically, we measure percent ionization depth doses as a function of depth and field size, and fit three models to the data. Materials and Methods: Measurements of percent ionization at various depths along the central axis were generated from 6 MV and 18 MV photon beams at a source-axis distance of 100 cm with an ionization in solid water phantom. We fit analytic models to the data to determine linear attenuation, beam hardening, beam quality, and electron contamination. Results: We report best-fit parameters for all the analytical models. All models yielded a root mean square (RMS) error of less than 1% with respect to the data. At depths below 5cm in the phantom, the largest attenuation coefficients (μ) were observed for the 6 MV beam, regardless of Gamma Putty thickness. Also, the smallest field sizes (4×4 and 5×5 cm 2 ) have the largest attenuation coefficients at these depths, for both beam energies. At a depth of 10 cm, the variation in μ was negligible for both beam energies. Conclusions: By fitting parametric models to axial ionization profiles, it is possible to characterize the dosimetric parameters of any attenuator as a function of thickness and field size, without knowing the precise spectral distribution of the beam. Parameters such as attenuation coefficients, beam hardening, and electron contamination can then be calculated accurately for any combination of field size and attenuator thickness.


Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) has proven to be a useful tool for extracting high resolution estimates of the surface wind speed field over the earth's oceans. Recently, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NOAA/NESDIS) has developed a technique for extracting wind speed maps from RADARSAT-1 ScanSAR imagery of the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea (Monaldo 2000; Thompson and Beal 2000). Comparisons between the JHU/APL wind extraction method, buoys and QuikSCAT wind speeds indicate that the SAR winds are highly correlated with buoy and QuikSCAT winds (Monaldo et al 2001a, Monaldo et al. 2001b). However, there are situations where significant differences exist between the SAR winds and both QuikSCAT and buoy winds. While there are several possible explanations for these discrepancies, one of the largest, known sources of error affecting SAR winds are wind direction errors. We plan to examine the effect that wind direction errors have on SAR wind speed retrievals and demonstrate that corrected wind direction estimates obtained from subjective analysis can improve the SAR wind speed estimates.


Dense α-sialon materials were produced by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) and post-hot isostatic pressing (post-HIP) using compositions with the formula Yx(Si12–4.5x, Al4.5x)-(O1.5x,N16–1.5x) with 0.1 ≤x≤ 0.9 and with the same compositions with extra additions of yttria and aluminum nitride. X-ray diffraction analyses show how the phase content changes from large amounts of β-sialon (x= 0.1) to large amounts of α-sialon (x= 0.4) and increasing amounts of mellilite and sialon polytypoids (x= 0.8). Samples HIPed at 1600°C for 2 h contained unreacted α-silicon nitride, while those HIPed at 1750°C for 1 h did not. This could be due to the fact that the time is to short to achieve equilibrium or that the high pressure (200 MPa) prohibits α-sialon formation. Sintering at atmospheric pressure leads to open porosity for all compositions except those with excess yttria. Therefore, only samples with excess yttria were post-HIPed. Microstructrual analyses showed that the post-HIPed samples had the highest α-sialon content. A higher amount of α-sialon and subsequently a lower amount of intergranular phase were detected at x= 0.3 and x= 0.4 in the post-HIPed samples in comparison to the HIPed. The hardness (HV10) and fracture toughness (KIC) did not differ significantly between HIPed and post-HIPed materials but vary with different x values due to different phase contents. Measurements of cell parameters for all compositions show a continuous increase with increasing x value which is enhanced by high pressure at high x values.


An experimental investigation of the flow boiling of water at atmospheric pressure was undertaken, including a high—speed cine photographic study of the flow structure near the Critical Heat Flux (CHF). Experimental tests from single-phase forced convection to burnout were conducted at different flow velocities and inlet subcoolings for water flowing upwards through a vertical channel of rectangular cross—section electrically heated on one wall with a glass window forming the opposite wall. The test surfaces were stainless steel strips of constant dimensions, except that wall thickness ranged from 0.08 mm to 0.20 mm. Quantitative measurements of the bubble parameters for the same heating surface under the same operating conditions with varying levels of heat flux (70p to 95p of CHF) were carried out. A nucleation site deactivation/reactivation process was observed with increasing heat flux. A proposed site deactivation mechanism explained this behaviour. A nucleate boiling heat transfer model was proposed for the fully— developed nucleate boiling region, with allowance made for the overlapping areas of bubble influence. It compared favourably with the experimental data. The effect of wall thickness on CHF was investigated: increases in CHF as between the 0.08 mm and the 0.20 mm wall thickness ranging from 38p to 57p were observed. An empirical expression for CHF, including wall thickness as a parameter was developed, correlating the experimental data to within 15p and indicating a limiting value for wall thickness affecting CHF. The flow regimes near burnout were identified as bubbly and slug, these being independent of wall thickness. Other models proposed for the CHF mechanism were tested against the detailed experimental observations at high subcoolings. They were found to be inconsistent with the experimental evidence. A possible alternative for the CHF mechanism points towards stabilisation/ growth of a vapour patch following bubble coalescence as a most likely cause for burnout.


An intermetallic compound TiAl has been recognized as a material which has intermediate properties between metals and ceramics in this article. Fundamental properties of the compound TiAl such as plasticity and effects of composition and alloying elements are described. Courses in order to improve room temperature ductility of TiAl-based alloys are discussed. Ductility of Ti-34.5% Al-1.5% Mn alloy is displayed as an example of success derived by the courses. Fabrication techniques and uses of the TiAl alloys are described. The present state of research and developement for TiAl alloys is summarized briefly.


Modeling of the hysteresis nonlinearities of the Pneumatic Artificial Muscle (PAM) is critical when it is proposed to drive various high-precision mechatronics applications. This paper aims to characterize the hysteresis nonlinearities obtained experimentally of the Pneumatic Artificial Muscle (PAM) system under the load force effect. The load-dependent Prandtl-Ishlinskii model (LDPI) with a load-dependent weight function is proposed to model the measured hysteresis loop under different load forces. Comparing the measured hysteresis loops to the estimated loops of the LDPI model demonstrates the proposed model's ability to characterize the asymmetric and load force effects in the hysteresis nonlinearities of the PAMs.


Diabetes is the common chronic disease that most people are facing nowadays. It also leads to various other health issues. Of them, blindness is the one major issue which could be permanent, if it is not detected and nursed at the early stages. Diabetic Retinopathy is a retina disease that affects diabetes mellitus patients, and is a significant cause of blindness. It is a condition where the blood vessels of the retinal gland swell. It affects the eye retina and could lead to blindness if the diabetes level is very high. So far, early detection by routine screening test is the most effective treatment. But such screenings need too much time, effort and cost. Hence in order to overcome these problems, we employ two image processing techniques that automatically detect the presence of abnormalities in the retinal images. They are: detection of a) Vessels through OD. b) Abnormal signs (such as exudates and lesions). In the first approach, the presence of vessels which is one of the major causes for diabetic retinopathy is detected by applying histogram equalisation algorithm to the digital retinal fundus images. In this, at the start the optic disc, which is the point of exit for ganglion cell axons or optical nerves leaving the eye is determined. Later, the damaged vessels are detected by using the blood vessels. Whereas in the second approach, there are three algorithms to be followed for accurate results, namely, statistical classification, brightness adjustment procedure and local window feature space algorithms. By using these algorithms the other leading cause for blindness i.e, presence of abnormal signs (exudates and lesions) is determined. In these algorithms the majorly considered factors are luminosity and contrast which are very helpful for the exact results, even though the screenings are done in different environments. In this method the results are also verified by the local window feature space algorithm. The dataset for the project is taken from STARE database and some are taken from DRIVE database. Indexed TermsDigital Retinal fundus images, Histogram equalization, statistical classification, local window feature space.


Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of resilience on academic stress in dental hygiene students focused on the mediating effects of self-esteem. Methods: The subjects in this study were 208 selected dental hygiene students in colleges located in Y region of U city. A s...


We consider the busy period in a stochastic fluid flow model with infinite buffer where the input and output rates are controlled by a finite homogeneous Markov process. We derive an explicit expression for the distribution of the busy period and we obtain an algorithm to compute it which exhibits nice numerical properties. *This work was supported by the French–Hungarian bilateral R&D program 2000/2001.


We present radial profiles of the temperature and metallicity of the cluster of galaxies Abell 2052 obtained with XMM‐Newton. The temperature is rising from 2 keV in the core of the cluster up to ∼3 keV around 9′. The iron abundance profile as derived from single‐temperature models shows a dip in the center of the cluster. The dip turns into a peak when multi‐temperature models are used to fit the central 1′. This result is a dramatic example of so‐called 'Fe bias'. The use of multi‐temperature models is necessary in this cluster to obtain accurate abundance values.


In order to assess and reduce the increased vulnerability to earthquakes of existing masonry structures, reliable numerical modelling techniques are needed. These seismic analyses represent a complex task due to the variability of the material properties, the difficulty to determine them through non-destructive tests and the empirical knowledge based on which they were built. Considering the limited available data, numerical simulations validated through laboratory tests could represent an effective method to predict the behaviour of masonry structures. This paper presents the proposed numerical model for a historic unreinforced masonry wall, validated through an experimental campaign conducted at the Technical University of Civil Engineering in Bucharest, Romania. The model created in LS-DYNA, aims to simulate the non-linear behaviour of an unreinforced masonry wall specimen, subjected to unidirectional cyclic loading and constant vertical load, which was built based on traditional materials and constructions techniques.


The purpose of this study is to describe the characteristics of Waldorf school movement in the US Midwest. For about six months, this case study was...


A wireless resources allocation method for Device-to-Multi-Device (D2MD) communication under the control of base station is proposed. In the premise of ensuring quality of services (QoS) of all D2MD groups, the method can allocate wireless resources for D2MD groups through three steps: mode selection, spectrum allocation and power control. Simulation results show that the method can select the high-spectrum-efficiency mode which reuses the spectrum of cellular users for most D2MD communications, and does not affect cellular communications, the interference to cellular uplink of proposed suboptimal LCH algorithm which allocates cellular spectrums for D2MD groups to reuse can achieve the same level as the optimal algorithm, in addition, the calculating complexity is lower therefore shortening the response time of the base station.


This paper presents a framework to organize the various proce sses that endow a robot with autonomy. The main objectives are to allow the achie vement of a variety of missions without an explicit writing of control schemes by t he developer, and the possibility to augment the robot capacities without any major rewriting. The organization relies on the notion of ability, that encapsulates the means to produce various informationwithin the complete system. The mechanisms that autonomously act ivate the various abilities are depicted, and illustrated in the case of an autonomous


A method for numerical forcast of the distribution of snowfall in the Ishikari Plain is described in this paper. The snow cloud which is formed by the vigorous supply of latent and sensible heats of water of the Japan Sea is simulated under the one dimensional diffusion model. The initial and boundary conditions used in this model are the air temperature and relative humidity of the Siberian Continent, and the sea water temperature of the Japan Sea. The obtained cloud is represented by the distribution of liquid water content and air temperature. The snowfall amount on the Ishikari Plain is calculated by the liquid water content taking account of the size distribution of the precipitation elements among the cloud. A computed distribution of the precipitation intensity over the Ishikari Plain is generally similar to the observed distribution. The present method may be useful to the forecasting of the snowfall distribution from winter monsoon clouds over the Ishikari Plain, in spite that the model is one dimensional.


Maternal death number at Gresik residence was increase in this last year (20032005). At 2003, maternal death number at Gresik was 5 per 20.000 life birth. At 2004, maternal death number was 9 per 21.000 life birth. This study was a explorative descriptive research with cross sectional
study approach. Sample taken at research was 13. Sampling technique used was total sampling, which the sample received from medical record. Variable researched is reproduction factors (age, pregnancy length, parity, pregnancy complication, disease suffered by mother and fetus position) and also socialculture factor (education and occupation) From the research could be concluded that most of mother who died at birth in productive age 2035 in elementary educational level, 3 4 children, multigravida, with pregnancy length < 37 weeks, fetus position normal, bleeding, and most attacked disease is hipertension. Auditing result of maternal death is not complete because
of there's no medical record about ANC. According to the result, there is an advice to make additional research to find out another profiel whoch caused maternal death at birth to reduce the amount of mother's mortility (AKI = Angka Kematian Ibu) so that could be made a prevention to
mother's mortility.


mattresses, pillows) part was gone, taken 'at the departure of French wounded officers' from Moscow; that 'our Hospital of Golitsyn was called the main one of all the Moscow hospitals in which there was a sentry and in which generals, staff and subaltern officers, with a small number of their private soldiers, were hospitalized [100–160 died], there were also the Russian Service Staff and subaltern officers with private soldiers' but there were no medical hospital officials – 'the observation and the use were French'. The Hospital of Golitsyn appeared among those few medical establishments in Moscow that actually suffered from military action and fire. Moreover, as all Moscow drugstores plundered, the executive director SM Golitsyn in August 1813 organized the sale of medicines to the inhabitants of Moscow at the hospital and he wrote 'the distribution of medicines with fixed price in no way contradicted that charitable intention with which the institution' was founded. Since that time, for many decades the drugstore at the Hospital of Golitsyn was the only one of all hospital drugstores in Russia that utilised the right of free sale of medicines. After the war of 1812 Moscow suffered from the great fire and robberies but was quickly built up again. The need to expand the Hospital of Golitsyn was more and more urgent, and at least a hundred beds had been developed before the war. In 1813, 50 beds were developed and then another 25 beds were added such that by the following year the general number of beds was once more increased and simultaneously hospitalized 115 patients. SM Golitsyn took the maintenance of 10 of the 115 of beds and these beds were assigned to his serfs to whom each month he paid 20 roubles in bank notes for each patient. With the aim of further improvement in hospital business in 1815, detailed rules and instructions for all employees were published: the basis of these was the desire 'to achieve the best order in every respect at this institution and to complete the good intentions of the bequest'. Then at the start of the 19th century a new large city hospital was opened in Moscow that quickly became one of the best medical institutions of the city. The peculiar feature of the Hospital of Golitsyn was free treatment of the poor and deprived. The Hospital of Golitsyn from the first years of its existence has proved to be an advanced medical institution and this is in large part due to Professor EO Mukhin. The remarkable scientist and the doctor-expert, the author of the first national manual on traumatology and orthopaedics, proved himself to be the greatest surgeon of his time. Here at the Hospital of Golitsyn he performed complex surgery that aroused the constant interest of his colleagues and the wider public. In 1835 Mukhin retired and spent his last years in the manor of Koltsovka of the Smolensk Province where he died in 1850.


The aim of this paper is to introduce the reader to the field of thermal barrier coatings, which play an important role in aeronautics, aerospace and power generation plants, due to a combination of properties that these materials exhibit, such as low thermal conductivity and high thermal expansion coefficient. To approach this subject, the following topics will be introduced: some history explaining the emergence of this kind of coatings, then, the components of a thermal barrier system are described showing their advantages, and finally materials that are commonly used to be deposited as a thermal barrier coating are described.


Mei Lanfang, who performed the dan (young female) role in Jingju (Beijing/Peking "opera"), is the best-known and most widely-acclaimed Chinese actor of the 20th century, both at home and internationally. In addition to his artistic achievements, he is also renown in China for his refusal to perform for the Japanese during Occupation—he retired from the stage for the duration, and grew a mustache as a concrete symbol of this act of resistance. On May 1, 2004, the Beijing Jingju Company premiered a new production, billed as "a Jingju symphonic dramatic poem" (jingju jiaoxiang ju shi), based upon that act of resistance. This production is a marked success in the most fundamental terms of the Jingju form—it was performed in Berlin a year later, and remains in the company's repertory. In the production, which I argue is the first truly post-modern Jingju to be publicly staged, extensive musical quotation from traditional and revolutionary modern Jingju sources alternates with original symphonic music. Portrayals of geisha, Kabuki, and Noh performances provide a startling commentary on cross-cultural aesthetic perception, and significant scenic experimentation produce visual distortions that both confront and enhance a modern rewriting of historical events.


The concept of inter-organisational network relationship is increasingly gaining currency in management research; however there is limited recognition as to how these relationships are governed. Governance typically involves the structure, power and process to make decisions on collective activities. Making the right decision is an essential part of inter-organisational relationship governance. Decisions related to the inter-organizational relationship governance can influence the health of the organizations and can as well result on fostering the success or greatly contributing to the failure of the organizations. We conduct an unsystematic review of the inter-organizational network relationship governance and related literature. The study offers insight into the governance mechanisms that are adopted in a transaction relationship by actors in a business ecosystem. A deeper understanding of inter-organizational governance will be valuable in crafting strategies for parties involve in transaction as that can be used to predict behaviours of transactors as well influence the outcome of actors' relationships. The study identified that appropriate blend or combination of different governance mechanisms is necessary as the mechanisms exclusively do not exist mutually.


Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical application of three methods for detecting Clostridium difficile in fecal samples. Methods One hundred and fifty fecal specimens were collected and tested for C. difficile using three methods: (1) the toxigenic culture (TC); (2) the VIDAS enzyme immunoassay (EIA): the VIDAS glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) assay and toxin A/B assay were used to detect GDH antigen and A/B toxin; and (3) the GeneXpert PCR assay. The toxigenic culture was used as a reference to evaluate the performance of the VIDAS EIA and the GeneXpert PCR assay. Results Of 150 specimens, 26 carried both A and B toxin genes, and none of the samples were positive for the binary toxin gene. Toxin-producing C. difficile using three methods: (1) the toxigenic culture (TC); (2) the VIDAS enzyme immunoassay (EIA): the VIDAS glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) assay and toxin A/B assay were used to detect GDH antigen and A/B toxin; and (3) the GeneXpert PCR assay. The toxigenic culture was used as a reference to evaluate the performance of the VIDAS EIA and the GeneXpert PCR assay. C. difficile using three methods: (1) the toxigenic culture (TC); (2) the VIDAS enzyme immunoassay (EIA): the VIDAS glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) assay and toxin A/B assay were used to detect GDH antigen and A/B toxin; and (3) the GeneXpert PCR assay. The toxigenic culture was used as a reference to evaluate the performance of the VIDAS EIA and the GeneXpert PCR assay. Conclusion The VIDAS GDH assay is useful for initial screening of C. difficile using three methods: (1) the toxigenic culture (TC); (2) the VIDAS enzyme immunoassay (EIA): the VIDAS glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) assay and toxin A/B assay were used to detect GDH antigen and A/B toxin; and (3) the GeneXpert PCR assay. The toxigenic culture was used as a reference to evaluate the performance of the VIDAS EIA and the GeneXpert PCR assay.


Understanding forest fragmentation and deforestation patterns with respect to human presence and development is important for governing bodies to provide adequate protection for vulnerable tropical ecosystems. In recent decades, Brazil has seen increasing pressures to clear rainforest in the interior of the Brazilian Amazon through increased agricultural production and government infrastructure initiatives. As a result the area of cleared forest in Brazil is currently larger than France, and continues to increase annually. This project looks at the statistical relationships between forest fragmentation, deforestation rates, and census variables such as agricultural investment and population trends. Agricultural production and income can be linked to forest fragmentation and deforestation as more contemporary drivers. The Brazilian Amazon The Amazon Basin is one of the world's most biologically diverse regions in the world. It contains over 40% of the world's remaining tropical forest and has been said to sustain a higher number of wildlife species than most any other region on the planet (Myers & Myers, 1992) (1). Covering 5,000,000 square kilometers, the Brazilian Amazon (also referred to as the Legal Amazon) Region includes nine different Brazilian states: Acre, Amapa, Amazonas, Mato Grosso, Para, Rondonia, Roraima, Tocantins, and a portion of Maranhao (2). The Brazil Socio-Geographic Division recognizes Amazônia Legal as large and relatively underdeveloped when compared to the eastern and southern regions of Noredestre and Centrol Sul. The area extends west encompassing a large amount of the Amazon Basin along with vast tracts of rainforest still untouched by Brazilian development schemes. Though due to its large size the Legal Amazon is not considered a highly populated region, the last three national censuses conducted in Brazil indicate a pattern of continued increasing migration to the area. Between 1980 and 2000 the resident population has grown from 11,984,927 to 21,056,532, indicating increasing urbanization in the region (3). The average annual growth rate for the region for the 1980's and 1990's was 3.0%, with the highest rates belonging to Roraima and Rondonia (9.1% and 7.6%, though these two states are relatively small in population size. Nonetheless, significant growth has been noted in even the two larger states of Para and Amazonas (with populations of 6,192,307 and 2,812,557, respectively), which have experienced average annual percent growth rates of 3.4% and 3.5% (3). Even though a census has not been conducted since 2000, the annual growth rates for every state between 1980 and 2000 far exceed Brazil's estimated annual growth for 2008. The Central Intelligence Agency's 2008 World Factbook says Brazil experienced 1.228% growth in 2008 (4). The nine states making up the Brazilian Amazon have been subject to Brazilian Government policies aimed to stimulate development, colonization and occupation (2). These government initiatives which have helped created financial incentives for many to expand construction and development within the interior of the Amazon have worked in concert with other factors to further deforestation. Though government directed infrastructure development has been rather specific in its goals (e.g. to increase the potential for soybean export, an important economic asset of Brazil), other more unpredictable, indirect, and local causes of forest clearing have contributed to the loss of rainforest and biodiversity substantially over the past thirty years. Figure 1. Legal Amazon and States


custom block pins are routed within the CBA core region as part of generic routing. As a result, the final routing becomes a simple task of connecting each abstract I/O or abstract custom block pin to its associated process specific I/O or custom block pin. By making this final process


This book does not profess to be an overall survey of the 1978 Malaysian election; the topics selected were limited by "the availability of writers interested in discussing them" (p. v). Nevertheless, it gives a reasonable comprehensive account; the main gaps are the UMNO campaign and the election in Sabah. The first two chapters, devoted to setting the background for the elections, are admirably done. On almost every point, the senior author is not only correct, but combines correctness with elegance, notably in his judgment of the persistent importance of political patronage. Some other sections of the book are also of high quality. The two chapters on the state and subsequent federal elections in Kelantan bring out very well the difficulties that PAS had to face: the constraints imposed upon it as a member of a coalition, the governing Barisan Nasional's skillful use and timing of emergency rule, and the low quality of some PAS candidates. Conflicts within the Barisan's component parties are well-described, particularly the MCA-Gerakan dispute over the allocation of seats in Penang. So are the MCA's sources of strength in the rural areas and the role of its mammoth projects, such as "Multi-Purpose Holdings." The contribution on the urban Malay vote includes a useful case study of the Damansara constituency. A chapter on the electoral system contains new calculations on the effect of delineation of constituencies on the electoral weight of various ethnic groups. There is a perceptive chapter on Sarawak, which highlights the role of the Chief Minister, Datuk Abdul Rahman Yakub. A few political cartoons provide light relief, as well as some insights.


Water samples were periodically collected from four lake sites (surface and 2 deep water samples) and seventeen streams within the Seneca Lake watershed from May 2000 through November 2004 and analyzed for the major ions (Cl - , Na + , SO 4 2- , K + ,


This study aimed to describe the differences between next‐generation sequencing (NGS) and cloning‐based sequencing (CBS) in HBX quasispecies research and primitively investigate the relationship between the dominant HBX quasispecies and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).


PURPOSE: A social magazine information providing apparatus and method are provided to offer social magazine information for users which are positioned in a mobile space having specific portability in the social network service circumstance. CONSTITUTION: A social magazine management unit (100) operates a social magazine corresponding to a transfer unit of information which is provided to a user according to position and space. A dynamic magazine reconfiguration management unit (200) forms a magazine which is provided based on the position information, spatial information, and a user profile. A user relationship information management unit (300) manages users' connects to a social magazine information providing apparatus and manages relationship information between the users which form a community. A space information management unit (400) assigns position and space information corresponding to a corresponding service domain and manages a profile corresponding to the same. [Reference numerals] (100) Social magazine management unit; (200) Dynamic magazine reconfiguration management unit; (300) User relation information management unit; (400) Space information management unit


This chapter provides the basis for a process theoretical sociology of human rights. It offers critiques of Luhmannian and Foucaultian approaches and builds upon Turner's (1993) rethinking of the fact / value distinction. A.N. Whitehead's implicit sociology from 'Adventures in Ideas' (1933) is presented as a valuable precursor to process thinking in sociology.


Objective To analyze the protective effect of amifostine for normal tissue in the radiotherapy of non-small cell lung cancer. Methods From August,2009 to June,2013,137 patients with non-small cell lung cancer were selected in our hospital. According to the treatment methods,they were divided into the observation group( radiotherapy and amifostine,n = 69) and the control group( radiotherapy,n = 68). The curative effect and side effect were compared in the two groups. Results The total effective rate was 56. 52% in the observation group and 54. 41% in the control group( P 0. 05). The incidence of radiation-induced lung injury was 15. 94% and V level injury did not occur in the observation group. The incidence of radiation-induced lung injury was 30. 88%,and the incidence of V level injury was 2. 94% in the control group( P 0. 05). In the observation group after treatment,hemoglobin was 118. 26 ± 32. 49 g /L,white blood cells was( 5. 11 ± 1. 28) × 109/L,platelets was( 213. 97 ±40. 38) × 109/L,CD+3( 57.19 ± 10.21) %,CD+4( 45.63 ± 10.58) %,and NK cell( 21.15 ± 7.69) %( P 0. 05). Conclusion In non-small cell lung cancer radiotherapy,amifostine can effectively protect normal tissue organization and reduce the side effects.


An M/G/1 queueing system with negative customers and Bernoulli feedback was studied.Just after completion of his service,a positive customer may leave the system with probability θ(0θ≤1),or feedback with probability 1-θ.Negative customers remove positive customers at the head of the queue who is being serviced.By using supplemental variable method and state transfer analysis,the main queueing indexes,the steady-state probability generating function and the result of stochastic decomposition in the system are obtained.


The article touches upon the problem of the crisis of national-state identity of young Russian citizens. Digitalization fundamentally changes the functioning and reproduction of the culture, which underlies group, ethnic, national, and state identity. These changes may cause significant risks of destabilizing the state and its main institutions. The authors discuss the role of educational institutions in the reproduction and formation of new social values among young people and the following formation of the national-state identity. The empirical part of the study is aimed to identify the basis of national-state identity, which is the structure and content of social ideas about Russia among various groups of users of social networks aged 14–35 years, selected according to their gender, age, and educational background. The article presents the results of the empirical study of respondents' social representations about Russia. It explains the correlation between the national-state identity and social representations of one's country and indicates the structural-functional and contentmorphological characteristics of the social ideas of young people about Russia. It also reveals the differences in the social representations of young people from different population groups. The results make it possible to clarify the understanding of the pattern of Russian young people's social thinking, which is responsible for the choice of identification images and predetermines the strength and direction of political attitudes that affect the political stability of Russia.


An interactive Hangul input method using the numeric phone keypad, which is applicable for mobile devices is introduced. In the proposed method, user only selects the corresponding keys by single tapping, for the alphabet of Korean letter which is desired to enter. The interface generates the subset of eligible letters for the key sequence, then the user selects the desired letter in the set. Such an interactive approach transforms the text entry interface into a multi-level interactive letter-oriented style, from the preexisting passive and single-level alphabet-oriented interface. The annoyance of key-operations, the major disadvantage of the previous methods, derived from multi-tap to clear the ambiguity of multi-assigned alphabets for the Hangul automata, can be eliminated permanently, while the additional letter selection procedure to finalize the desired letter is essential. Also the complexity of Hangul text entry is reduced since all letters can be compounded from basic alphabet selection of the writing sequence order. The advantage and disadvantage of the proposed method are analyzed through comparing with pre-existing method by experiments.


This paper deals with important influence of acousto-optic device's dynamic response on OEHF-LDA and AOS-LDA, in which acoustooptic modulator and deflector working with variable frequency. Begin with theoretical analysis, dynamic response of acousto-optic device is discussed through computation and the theoretic results are proved by experiment. Then the influence of delay response on OEHF-LDA and AOS-LDA is discussed deeply, and finally.essential requirement on adjustment of acousto-optic device is given.


Objective To explore the fuction of transforming growth factor beta1(TGF-β1) in the progression of breast cancer and T lymphocyte transducted cellular immuno-reaction.Methods The effects of TGF-β1 on the preliferation of breastl cancer cell lines MCF-7,MDA-MB-157,SK-BR-3 and MDA-MB-453 were detected by MTT and the dosage-effect and time-effect relationship between cells and TGF-β1 were analyzed.Using enzyme-linked immumoadsorbent assay (ELISA),the production of IL-2 and IFN-γ in the presence or absence of TGF-β1 was measured.Results TGF-β1 could inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells with different effects at different concentrations only in the first three days.Under the regulation of TGF-β1,the concentration of IL-2 (296.5± 79.4) ng/L and IFN-γ (665.3± 107.0) ng/L in the supernatant of cultured PBMC was significantly lower than in the control group [(644.9± 105.5) ng/L and (922.3± 184.1) ng/L respectively, P 0.001].Conclusion TGF-β1 can inhibit the proliferation of breast cancer cells in a certain range of concentration and in a very short duration.It can inhibit the production of cytokines to depress the cellular immunization.


The antioxidant activity of supercritical CO 2 extracts of H. italicum dried flower heads derived from the commercial drug and from plants grown in different areas of north-east Italy with different culturing conditions was determined. In particular, the characterization of the antioxidant activity was made by the DPPH and ß-carotene bleaching test methods. The four kind of H. italicum extracts were also tested for their ability to scavenger superoxide radicals. All extracts showed, although with different importance, an antioxidant activity with all the methods performed. The supercritical extracts obtained from commercial dried H. italicum flower heads and from dried flower heads belonging to wild plants exhibited the highest activity. These results established H. italicum supercritical extracts as important antioxidant solvent-free matrices in alimentary (i.e., dietary, nutraceutical, flavouring) and cosmetic fields, as well as the value of coastal Mediterranean areas to serve as an exploitable source of important plant matrices.


Highlighted in this paper is a study designed to investigate perceptions of empowerment among young 4-H club members. Participants included 90 boys and girls (mean age 10.61). Perceptions of the autonomy supportive nature of 4-H leaders and the general climate of 4-H clubs were assessed. MANCOVA analyses revealed participants perceived 4-H leaders and the general climate to be empowering. Although the young participants in this study confirmed some of the positive views found elsewhere in the literature, considerable disparities in their responses to various surveys were noted. There appeared to be uncertainty or misunderstanding among youngsters when asked to respond to questions about these concepts. The need for more useful quantitative measures of programmatic impact was accentuated.


Objective: The primary treatment for adults with risk factors for metabolic syndrome is lifestyle change, though adoption of traditional lifestyle programs is often limited. This pilot study tested the feasibility of conducting a randomized clinical trial comparing a novel targeted yoga program coupled to lifestyle education versus lifestyle education alone among adults with metabolic syndrome risk factors. Design and methods: Patients from primary care clinic were pre-screened electronically and further screened for metabolic syndrome. Consented participants were randomized to either a 12-week yoga program with lifestyle education or lifestyle education alone. Participants in the yoga arm received weekly 30 to 45 min of face-to-face yoga instruction, followed by 30 to 45 min of lifestyle education, and written instructions for home yoga practice and lifestyle changes. The lifestyle education was based on (EDU) the Group Lifestyle Balance Program that is adapted from the Diabetes Prevention Program. Participants in EDU only group received a weekly standardized curriculum matched in attention and time to the yoga with EDU arm. The primary outcome was to assess the feasibility of conducting a randomized trial by assessing recruitment rate and adherence to the protocol. Secondly, we aimed to collect preliminary data on changes in cardiometabolic factors including insulin resistance (IR) as measured by Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), blood pressure, fasting lipids, body weight and composition, habitual physical activity, and dietary intake from baseline to 12-week intervention. Results: We identified 238 adults at high risk for metabolic syndrome medical records review utilizing an electronic recruitment tool. Among eligible individuals, 67 (28%) were enrolled and 56 (84%) completed the 12-week assessment. The median attendance was 8 of 12 sessions for the yoga with EDU and 9 of 12 sessions for the EDU arm. Self-reported median frequency of home practice was 2.8 (IQR 1.4) times per week among the yoga with EDU group and 3.3 (IQR 1.1) times per week among the EDU group. Participants in the yoga with EDU arm versus EDU alone demonstrated a non-significant decrease in HOMA-IR (-0.21 (S.D. 0.99) versus 0.02 (S.D. 0.74), p=0.29). Both groups had similar changes in blood pressure, lipids, weight, body composition, energy intake, and physical activity from baseline to 12 weeks. Conclusions: It is feasible to implement yoga combined with EDU and conduct a prospective trial to assess effectiveness on cardiometabolic risk reduction in adults with metabolic syndrome.


In order to sustain its exponential growth, the Internet community is gradually transitioning from its mainstream communications protocol Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). IPv6 provides a virtually inexhaustible address space, capable of accommodating the hundreds of billions of unique devices. Through a procedure called Stateless Address Autoconfiguration (SLAAC), IPv6 also provides a network device the capability to automatically set its own Internet address. While providing this convenience, SLAAC possesses several vulnerabilities in its design. The top three common attacks against the IPv6 SLAAC mechanism, namely the malicious last hop router, neighbor spoofing, and duplicate address detection denial of service attacks exploit these vulnerabilities This paper discusses detection methods for these attacks, implemented using a system that captures network traffic, and monitors IPv6 SLAAC operations through examination of discrepancies between expected network settings and SLAAC messages sent between devices in the network. To test these detection methods, the system is set up to monitor an IPv6 network and the three attacks are performed against network hosts. Results show that the system is capable of detecting SLAAC attacks within seconds from attack onset across multiple trials, thereby demonstrating that data traffic monitoring is a viable solution for mitigating the security issues that SLAAC may cause in an IPv6 network.


Time series shapelets are a recent promising concept in time series data mining. Shapelets are time series snippets that can be used to classify unlabeled time series. Shapelets not only provide interpretable results, which are useful for domain experts and developers alike, but shapelet-based classifiers have been shown by several independent research groups to have superior accuracy on many datasets. Moreover, shapelets can be seen as generalizing the lazy nearest neighbor classifier to an eager classifier. Thus, as a deployed classification tool, shapelets can be many orders of magnitude faster than any rival with comparable accuracy. Although shapelets are a useful concept, the current literature bemoans the fact that shapelet discovery is a time-consuming task. In spite of several efforts to speed up shapelet discovery algorithms, including the use of specialist hardware, the current state-of-the-art algorithms are still intractable on large datasets. In this work, we propose a fast shapelet discovery algorithm that outperforms the current state-of-the-art by two or three orders of magnitude, while producing models with accuracy that is not perceptibly different.


With the popularization of higher education,more and more attention is being paid to the employment of higher vocational college students.As an important arena of cultivating and providing talents,higher vocational colleges should face the problems in the present career guidance and make great efforts to explore new ideas and methods so as to gain substantial results in career guidance.


Objective Study on the effect of controlling hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome(HFRS) with ecological measures. Methods To form good hygiene practice by the way of health education. Facilities against the mouse could be perfected by making use of net and hard ground. The mouse density could be well controlled by optimizing the environment. To appraise the effect of control measures by monitoring the mouse activity and HFRS condition. Results The average rate of mouse capture in the three trial regions ranged from 0.53% to 1.04%, peak HFRS cases occurred in ecological regions. Conclusion Ecological measures do not achieved distinctive effect in the regions with relatively advanced economy, low mouse density and most sporadic HFRS cases.


Statins are widely used in the treatment of dyslipidemia, which is usually associated with cardiovascular abnormalities including hypertension. Microvascular rarefaction and endothelial dysfunction are aggravating factors of hypertensive end-organ damage. Thus, this study was designed to investigate the acute effects of simvastatin (SINVA) on cerebral microcirculation and endothelial function in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and the simvastatin effects on bradykinin-induced increases in microvascular permeability. Male Wistar normotensive rats (WKY) and SHR were divided into 4 groups of 8 animals each: WKY-CTL and SHR-CTL treated with 0.9% saline solution, and WKY+SINVA e SHR+SINVA treated with SIM 30 mg/kg/day during 3 days by gavage. In order to investigate the effects of simvastatin on microvascular hyperpermeability induced by bradykinin (BK), male rats were divided in two groups, BK group, treated with saline and BK+SINVA group treated with SINVA (5 mg/kg; i.p) 24 hours prior to the induction of microvascular hyperpermeability with rising concentrations of BK on the cremaster muscle surface. Simvastatin treatment reduced blood pressure, reversed functional microvascular rarefaction in the brain and skeletal muscle of hypertensive rats, as well as, improved endothelialdependent arteriolar vasodilation, followed by an increase on brain eNOS expression and microvascular cerebral blood flow in hypertensive rats
Moreover, simvastatin had an antiinflammatory effect, reducing leukocyte rolling and adhesion in cerebral microvessles, and reduced oxidative stress in the skeletal muscle and brain of hypertensive rats. The cardiovascular benefits observed with simvastatin treatment in this study, were completely independent of cholesterol levels, as the hypertensive rats did not present hypercholesterolemia compared with normotensive rats, and simvastatin treatment during 3 days did not alter cholesterol levels of any experimental group. Furthermore, acute treatment with simvastatin was able to prevent the bradykinin-induced increase in microvascular permeability. The microcirculatory and cardiovascular effects could turn out to be a new therapeutic approach for improving microcirculatory function in hypertensive patients, independently of cholesterol levels


This exercise helps students understand how different business characteristics are reflected in financial statements (balance sheets, income statements, and financial ratios). In this particular exercise, students are given balance sheet data in percentage form (common-size balance sheets) and other selected financial ratios for a set of 12 unidentified firms from 12 different industries (all 12 companies are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, ASX). Students must use the balance sheet data and the financial ratios along with their basic knowledge of the operating characteristics of these various industries to match each firm to the correct industry. The goals are to learn about the major components of balance sheets, and how to calculate and interpret commonly-used financial ratios.


> The special function of certain Newspeak words was not so much to express meanings as to destroy them. These words, necessarily few in number, had had their meanings extended until they contained within themselves whole batteries of words which, as they were sufficiently covered by a single comprehensive term, could now be scrapped and forgotten. The greatest difficulty facing the compilers of the Newspeak Dictionary was not to invent new words, but, having invented them, to make sure what they meant: to make sure, that is to say, what ranges of words they cancelled by their existence.
>
> —George Orwell, 1984
"What is a clinician and what does he do?" appeared as a special article in the July 1970 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine .1 Written …


The paper presents comparison between the a priori MaxEnt and the a posteriori MaxEnt methodologies, namely Lagrange Constraint Neural Network (LCNN) by Szu in 1997 and ICA algorithms by Bell-Sejnowski-Amari-Oja (BSAO) and many others since 1996. We chose the remote sensing application because it is the only real world application that we know to be truly linear, single path, and instantaneous mixing of the unknown ground spectral objects.


Adhesive capsulitis causes discomfort, limited mobility, and joint stiffness. Various conservative physiotherapy management are used in frozen shoulder patients. Previously, patients were mostly treated with various heating modalities, mobilization techniques and exercises of shoulder. Virtual reality, on the other hand, may now be utilized to cure patients. In this study, traditional therapy, which includes Maitland's mobilization, is compared to virtual reality headset guided physiotherapy in addition to Maitland's mobilization. To compare the efficacy of virtual reality headset assisted physiotherapy to traditional physical therapy in frozen shoulder patients. A total of 50 male and female patients of 40-60 years are selected randomly. They were split into two groups of 25 patients each, in which one group had received traditional treatment of Maitland's mobilization and other group received virtual reality guided physical therapy with Maitland's mobilization. The above interventions were given for 2 weeks with 15-20 minutes of each session daily. The Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS), Shoulder Range of Motion (ROM) using goniometry, and the Shoulder Pain Disability Index (SPADI) scale were used to examine the patient before and after the intervention. The chi-square test, as well as the student's paired and unpaired t tests, were used to examine the data. In patients with frozen shoulder, virtual reality headset i.e., oculus assisted physical therapy is more beneficial than traditional physical therapy, according to the findings of this study.


years of Bouraoui's career, from 1995 to 2005, by focusing on the term "nomadisme" in three texts, Nomadaime, Retour à Thyna, and La francophonie à l'estomac. The contributions that follow explore Bouraoui's transcultural themes from a variety of perspectives: the multicultural and multilingual Toronto in Ainsi parle la tour CN, the possible link between "transprophétie," transcendence, and mysticism in Rose des sables and Bangkok Blues, and a geographic viewpoint, the exile and wandering of the mind from canada to Haiti, the marginalization of migrants, and the interrelation of Jews and Muslims in Tunisia. in the second part entitled "Poétique de l'avenir" (Poetics of the Future), the concept of transculture is approached through a metaphoric and poetic interpretation of the francophone world, the creativity of poetic language and of the "parole inspirée" (232). in "approches diverses" (Diverse approaches), the third part, christiane Ndiaye analyzes the reception of Bouraoui's work. She suggests that the historians of literature have difficulties categorizing a Canadian author originally from the Maghreb whose purpose in writing is to transgress borders and barriers. according to Noureddine Slimani, Bouraoui's poetic of the imaginary brings forth what he names a subversion of the genre, writing taking a multiplicity of forms and becoming fragmentary and interstitial. For his part, Sergio Villani examines the traditional and the experimental aspects of the poet and critic's work whereby "le modernisme [. . .] s'inscrit toujours dans la tradition" 'modernism [. . .] is always inscribed in tradition' (312). Entitled "Poétique du féminin" (Poetics of the Feminine), the last section explores the place of women in Bouraoui's novels through the questions of identity, culture, and symbolic construction in the Maghreb, Egypt, and Europe. From another angle, cécile cloutier and Jean-Max Tixier examine, in La femme entre les lignes, the theme of love as a metaphor of literature and the creative process. The last study, by Suzanne crosta, brings to a conclusion a book that is worthy of attention in the field of francophone studies. It analyzes with depth and subtlety the last forty years of Bouraoui's literary, poetic, and critical work that is rooted in several continents, from africa to Europe and North america.


This month, we'll be surfing the net for Internet sites related to data science and big data. Data science is a very hot topic right now. There are hundreds of open data science employment opportunities listed on the Internet job boards. The Harvard Business Review and CNBC say that data scientists and data analysts, respectively, are "The Sexiest Job of the 21st Century." Most of the data science positions offer generous starting salaries and impressive fringe benefits. The Harvard Business Review, CNBC, Challenger Gray & Christmas, and many universities claim that data science professionals are virtually assured full employment for life. Although the notion of data science has been around for a long time, the field is still evolving, particularly due to advances in the analysis of big data. As you'll see from the articles below, data science is a unique confluence of software engineering, computer science, computational linguistics, and information science with a touch of statistics and mathematics tossed in for good measure. More than just database administration, a data scientist works to identify the data sources and algorithms that can be used for business intelligence and predictive analysis across a wide array of application domains. Data exists in many forms. While text is probably the most common form for data, today's data scientist also considers data in images, sound recordings, videos, and data streams from various sensors. The data may be structured or unstructured. While much of the data is already in electronic form, some data may have to be converted from paper or analog sources into electronic digital form. For that reason, the data scientist is very concerned with how to prepare the data for analysis. What used to be called "extract, transform, and load" (ETL) has evolved into some rather complex data conversion and data cleansing operations. In addition to the general skills discussed above, the data scientist is also concerned with data visualization, presenting the results of the data analysis in a form that helps convey meaning to the end user. Data scientists work closely with human factors engineers to display the analysis results in a way that allows people to easily load data for analysis and interpret the results of that analysis. So, as you can see, there are many topics to cover in the field of data science. We'll start by visiting some sites that discuss data science skills in detail. After we talk about who a data scientist is and what they do, we'll visit some sites that talk about the software engineering aspects of data science, such as programming languages and tools.


Virtual reality, the ability to view and interact with virtual environments, has changed the way the world solves problems and accomplishes goals. The ability to control a person's perceptions and interactions with a virtual environment allows programmers to create situations that can be used in numerous fields. Virtual interaction can go from a computer program to an immersive experience with realistic sounds, smells, visuals, and even touch. Research in virtual reality has covered human interaction with virtual reality, different potential applications, and different techniques in creating the virtual environments. This paper reviews several key areas of virtual reality technology and related applications. An application that has large implications for our research is the control of robotic systems. Robotic systems are only as smart as their programming. This limitation often limits the utility of robotic applications in otherwise desirable circumstances. Virtual reality technologies offer the ability to couple the intelligence of a human operator with a physical robotic implementation through a user-friendly virtualized interface. This early-stage research aims to develop a technological foundation that will ultimately lead to a virtual teleoperation interface for robotics in hazardous applications. The resulting system may have applications in nuclear material handling, chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing, and biomedical research fields.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


Sex biases in parasitism rates are widely reported in the literature. Among vertebrates in particular, males are more frequently parasitized than females. These sex-linked differences are often attributed to different investment strategies in current versus future reproduction at the ultimate level and to different levels of circulating androgens at the proximate level. But there are other factors that can influence parasitism rates that are often neglected. In this study, we examined multiple measures of parasitism in male and female Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus (L., 1766)) to determine whether sex biases occur and sought to identify physiological and ecological factors that may be shaping such differences. We assessed three groups of parasites (ectoparasites, intestinal parasites, blood parasites), one measure of immune function (bacteria-killing ability), and diet. We found that male-biased infections were common only for intestinal parasites, but could not be attributed to dietary or imm...


In the past few years, public concern over the disposal of medical waste has markedly increased. The rising concerns over medical waste disposal were stimulated by reports of such waste washing up on the beaches along the east coast from Maine to Florida, the west coast, the Great Lakes, and the Gulf coast. This resulted in a number of beach closings and a loss in revenues to the tourist industries in these areas. While there also have been rare and isolated instances of public exposure, such as the report in 1987 of children in Indianapolis, Indiana, who were found playing with needles and vials discarded by a doctor's office, the literature shows no instances of public illness caused by such exposures. While the problem of medical waste washing up on beaches is a serious one, the problem is less sensational than the media, general public, and legislative reaction would imply. For example, the quantity and volume of medical waste washing up on beaches is relatively small. This is one of the conclusions of four largely unnoticed reports of the beach washups that found that the vast majority of waste on beaches was debris (about 99%) such as plastic, glass, and paper, not medical waste. l4 Despite extensive investigations, the washed-up medical waste found could not be traced to illegal dumping or a specific source such as hospitals, but was more directly related to improper control of New York City's solid waste stream (e.g., malfunctioning sewage treatment systems) and changes in prevailing winds and currents.' Additionally, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) documents acknowledge that much of the medical waste that washed ashore in the summer of 1988 was syringe-related (65%) and came from home healthcare and illegal intravenous drug use.2,5 Chemical analysis of a few syringes collected during the EPA Harbor Studies Program have identified insulin and/or cocaine in 60% (3/5).6 In spite of the failure of investigative efforts to uncover illegal dumping of medical waste and the absence of any evidence that medical waste has ever caused an infection in any person outside of a healthcare facility, the Medical Waste Tracking Act (MWTA) was signed into law on November 1, 1988.5 Fueling the fears of the public about medical waste are such concerns as the hypothetical risk of medical waste for transmitting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and other agents associated with bloodborne diseases. The public also is concerned about the emissions from incinerators that burn medical waste and whether these emissions may contain microorganisms or toxic substances. Thus, a lack of understanding of the modes of transmission of agents associated with bloodborne diseases, the fear of a fatal disease such as the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and a distrust of healthcare facilities accentuated by intense and often misleading media coverage has led to intense public pressure on federal, state, and local politicians to regulate medical waste. Responses by state governments have ranged from no regulation of medical waste to imposition of extensive regulations including refrigeration of medical waste while stored and awaiting transport to a waste disposal facility, inclusion of any article stained with blood or body fluids in the definitions of regulated medical waste, and elaborate procedures and


Objective To explore the influence of different irradiation methods on liver in vivo rats by Nd∶YAP laser.Methods Fifteen rats were divided into three groups according to the operation methods,there were no-contact,contact and insertion irradiation groups,respectively,five rats in each group.Nd∶YAP laser was used to irradiate liver middle and right lobes with light spot of 0.5 mm diameter,and the irradiation power was 3.0,3.5,4.0,4.5 and 5.0 W,respectively,in varous groups,the working time was 4 s.Every hepatic lobe was irrdiated with 3 to 6 light spots with interval above 0.5 cm.After that the morphology and pathological changes of cases under light microscope were observed. ResultsThe tissues were mainly coagulated in 3.0-3.5 W by all three methods.As increasing in power it aslo demonstrated the gasification,and the penetrating depth was gradually increased from about 0.5 mm to 2.5 mm. Compared with non-contact irradiation,tissues with contact irradiation and insertion irradiation had more damaged and deeper penetration depth at the same power and action time. The tissues blasted when exposure at a higher power with non-contact irradiation while the rest were stable in the used power dose of the experiment.The insertion irradiation seemed easy to damage tissues around.ConclusionsNd∶YAP laser is a feasible method to treat tumors which can choose non-contact irradiation,contact irradiation or insertion irradiation with the power of 3.0-4.5,3-5,and 3-4 W,respectively,according to the thickness of tissues,but the operator should know well the power action thus avoiding damage to the surrounding tissues.


Water is often referred to as our most precious resource, and for a good reason— drinking water and wastewater services sustain core functions of the critical infrastructure, communities, and human life itself. Our water systems are threatened by aging infrastructure, floods, drought, storms, earthquakes, sea level rise, population growth, cyber-security breaches, and pollution, often in combination. Marginalized communities inevitably feel the worst impacts, and our response continues to be hampered by fragmented and antiquated governance and management practices. This paper focuses on the resilience of water sector (drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater (DWS)) to three major hazards (Sea-Level Rise, Earthquake, and Cyberattack). The purpose of this paper is to provide information useful for creating and maintaining resilient water system services. The term resilience describes the ability to adapt to changing conditions and to withstand and recover from disruptions. The resilience of DWS


Fisheries sector is not only providing the cheap animal protein, but also playing a significant role in the national economy, human development and welfare, such as in terms of providing employment, production and trade. Employment in the fisheries sector has grown more rapidly, especially in Asia, where over 85% of the world's fisher folk live (FAO 2006; WHO/FAO, 2003). The fishing industry of Pakistan has importance in the foreign exchange earnings and employment. The Pakistani coastal belt is about 1 120 km long from the southeast Indian border to the northwest Iranian border (Fig. 1) and an EEZ (exclusive economic zone) is 2 40 000 km 2 with an additional continental shelf area of about 50 270 km 2 . There were about 250 commercially important demersal fishes, 50 small pelagic, 15 medium-sized pelagic and 20 large pelagic fish species from Pakistani water (Bianchi, 1985; FAO, 2009).


That point cloud data is used as the data formats of spraying painting robot path planning is put forward.The point cloud data processing technology is used to generate spraying robot path,which includes point cloud preprocessing、region segmentation、point cloud slicing、acquiring the normal vectors of the sampled points、the sampled points offsetting and so on.The point cloud data processing technology is used to spraying robot trajectory planning,point cloud segmentation make its features clear and reduce the complexity of spraying process,it can control the position of spraying gun well and also improve quality and efficiency of spraying.


Presently work is made a theoretical boarding on the thematic one half environmental and of the relating one conceptual necessary for its understanding from the perspective of the Process of Teaching - Learning (PDE) of the Social Sciences that not alone it is materialized in the schools like main irradiador center culture, but rather the community also becomes a complex and dynamic axis of educational stocks. Key words : Environmental education, professional training, physical culture


Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, College of Energy & Biotechnology, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 139-743, Korea Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, Goyang-si, Gyeonggido 410-773, Korea Department of Medical Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Dongguk University, Seoul 100-715, Korea Biomaterials Research Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul 130-650, Korea (Received February 12, 2013/Acccepted May 2, 2013)


Aiming to evaluate the alterations that occur during the dormancy period of irrigated rice seeds, three experiments were carried out at different storage conditions. Seeds from Rio Grande cultivar, highly post-harvest dormant seeds, after preparation, were placed in multilayered paper bags and stored for 12 months, in a cold and dry (10oC and 50% of relative humidity) and in three conventional storage. Every three months, water content, germination, alterations in the electrophoretical profile of the isoenzymes Polyphenoloxidase (PPO), Peroxidase (PO), Alpha-amylase (a-AM), Beta-amylase (b-amylase) in polyacrilamide gel and reducing groups by spectrophotometer were evaluated. Storage conditions and duration have influenced the dormancy breakage, and, in the conventional storage environment, rice seeds have broken dormancy faster than the ones stored in cold and dry chamber. Changes in a-AM and PPO activities are related to alterations in the germination percentage, that is, while the a-AM activity increases, PPO activity decreases as dormancy is broken, suggesting these enzymes activities as a promising indicator of dormancy intensity. However, PO and b-AM activities are not related to dormancy in rice seeds.


To design highly efficient and robust detectors of a weak signal, an asymptotic approach to stable estimation exploiting redescending score functions is used. Two new indicators of robustness of detection, the detection error sensitivity and detection stability, are introduced. The optimal Neyman–Pearson rules maximizing detection efficiency under the guaranteed level of detection stability are written out. Under heavy‐tailed noise distributions, the proposed asymptotically stable detectors based on redescending score functions, namely, the minimum error sensitivity and the radical ones, outperform conventional linear bounded Huber's and redescending Hampel's detectors both on small and large samples. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The article reveals the peculiarities of functioning of the internal control system in commercial banks. Commercial banks, as financial institutions, have a number of features that determines the relevance of the study of internal control. Assessment activities in commercial banks is carried out through the external and internal control. External control has several disadvantages, chief among them that the supervisors do not have all of the information base and monitoring is sporadic.Internal control consists of five interrelated elements, which is a set of procedures and measures to manage the Bank. Each employee of the Bank carries out internal control in accordance with its terms of reference that defined the constituent and internal documents of the credit institution. And when communicating to subordinates adopted managerial decisions, the Manager is obliged not just to determine how can I control its execution, it is required to consider the decisions from the point of view of its perpetrators, i.e. to suggest various solutions and their practical implementation. When you create the service of internal control of the management of commercial Bank should be clearly identified its place in the system of management of the organization. It is important to understand that the intervention of the internal control service in the operational activities division the purpose of establishment of current control over correctness of the operation may lead to conflict of interest members of the operation and staff of the internal control service. For effective work of the service of internal control it is necessary to comply with all its essential principles.


In this paper, we proposed a coverage path (CP) planning approach for a mobile robot moving in a dynamically changing environment. Our family of algorithms begins by finding the first path around the center of interior obstacles/disks of a given target region (TR) through the Graham scan algorithm. The first path is then used as a foundational path to generate a collision free, first order differentiable, and observable CP through a complete set of input and output transformation algorithms which together form the rainbow CP planning approach. The last algorithm of the rainbow CP planning approach finds a sufficient number of observation points on the CP needed to observe the TR. The novelty of our rainbow CP planning approach is that it partitions the TR into different shapes with different properties needed to obtain complete coverage while achieving first order path differentiability. The main technical contributions of the proposed approach is to provide a holistic solution that segments any TR, uses triangulation to determine the line of sights and observation points, and computes the collision-free CP within a quadratic runtime. The proposed method can be readily generalized to address problems of higher dimensions, and it is scalable with respect to the size of TR and the number of robots. Computer simulations are used to illustrate the effectiveness and correctness of the proposed approach.


The inflammatory process specific for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is accompanied by T lymphocyte migration from peripheral blood to the respiratory tract. Suppression of T cell chemotaxis by drugs may attenuate the inflammatory response in patients with COPD.The aim of this study was to determine the ability of azithromycin in combination with glucocorticoids to affect the migration of blood T cells in patients with COPD.The percentage of T lymphocytes expressing chemokine receptors CCR5, CCR6, CCR7, CXCR3, CXCR4, CXCR6 was analyzed by flow cytometry in the peripheral blood of 54 smokers with COPD, 21 healthy smokers, and 20 healthy non-smokers, as well as in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) of 7 smokers with COPD and 7 healthy smokers. Additionally, we determined the effect of azithromycin (10 μg/ml) and budesonide (10 nM) on the migration of peripheral blood T helper cells and cytotoxic T lymphocytes from patients with COPD (n = 8) to chemokines RANTES (10 nM) and IP-10 (10 nM).The percentage of T lymphocytes expressing chemokine receptors CXCR3 and CCR5 increased in the peripheral blood of COPD smokers compared with healthy smokers and healthy non-smokers, as well as in the BAL of COPD smokers compared with healthy smokers. The proportion of T cells expressing chemokine receptors CXCR4, CXCR6, CCR6, and CCR7 did not differ in the peripheral blood and the BAL between COPD patients and healthy controls. Budesonide only inhibited the migration of cytotoxic T lymphocytes to RANTES. Azithromycin, alone and combined with budesonide, inhibited the migration of T helper cells and cytotoxic T lymphocytes to both RANTES and IP-10. Moreover, the inhibitory effect of azithromycin, in combination with budesonide and without it, on the T cell migration was significantly greater than the effect of budesonide alone.Our results suggest a role for CXCR3 and CCR5 in T cell recruitment into the lungs of COPD patients and demonstrate the ability of azithromycin to inhibit T lymphocyte migration.


Aligning partially overlapping point sets where there is no prior information about the value of the transformation is a challenging problem in computer vision. To achieve this goal, we first reduce the objective of the robust point matching algorithm to a function of a low dimensional variable. The resulting function, however, is only concave over a finite region including the feasible region. To cope with this issue, we employ the inner approximation optimization algorithm which only operates within the region where the objective function is concave. Our algorithm does not need regularization on transformation, and thus can handle the situation where there is no prior information about the values of the transformations. Our method is also $\epsilon-$globally optimal and thus is guaranteed to be robust. Moreover, its most computationally expensive subroutine is a linear assignment problem which can be efficiently solved. Experimental results demonstrate the better robustness of the proposed method over state-of-the-art algorithms. Our method is also efficient when the number of transformation parameters is small.


Over the last few decades there have been growing commer-cial interaction between Western companies and their Middle Eastern counterparts. Given this interaction and the great geo-political and economic importance of this region, it is imperative that Western lawyers and dispute resolution professionals have a reasonable grasp of the general principles of Shari" a or Islamic law, a source (to varying degrees) of law in most nations in the Middle East. It is clear that the increase in international commer-cial transactions has contributed to the globalization of the legal community, but it is disturbing that there has been very little ex-amination of the influence and impact on the Middle East"s legal system"s religious underpinnings upon the continued acceptance of international commercial arbitration. Given the growing calls for a return to the Sharia and increasing global interdependence, the western legal community can no longer be satisfied to leave the Sharia as a preserve of Middle East specialists, Arabists and comparative law experts. It is a trite observation that cultural or more aptly in the Middle East, religious considerations, can play a vital role in the acceptance and successful functioning of interna-tional commercial arbitration...


Physicochemical properties of biodiesel from vegetable oils depend on the inherent properties of the oil-producing seeds. The purpose of this study is to investigate the physicochemical properties of biodiesels extracted from calabash and rubber seeds oils, as well as their combined oil mixtures with a view to ascertaining the most suitable for biodiesel production. Calabash and rubber seeds oils were separately extracted through the use of a mechanical press with periodic addition of water. Biodiesels were produced from each category of the oils by transesterification of the free fatty acid (FFA) with alcohol under the influence of a catalyst in batch process. The physicochemical properties of the biodiesels were investigated and comparatively analysed. The results obtained indicated an average of 1.40 wt% FFA for biodiesel produced from the purified calabash oil, which has a specific gravity of 0.920, pH of 5.93, flash point of 116 0C, fire point of 138 0C, cloud point of 70 0C, pour point of -4 0C, moisture content of 0.82 wt% and specific heat capacity of 5301 J/kgK. Conversely, the results obtained for biodiesel produced from the purified rubber oil showed an average of 33.66 wt% FFA, specific gravity of 0.885, pH of 5.51, flash point of 145 0C, fire point of 170 0C, cloud point of 10 0C, pour point of 4 0C, moisture content of 1.30 wt% and specific heat capacity of 9317 J/kgK. However, results obtained for biodiesel produced from the combined oil mixtures indicated an average of 19.77 wt% FFA content, specific gravity of 0.904, API gravity of 25.036, pH value of 5.73, flash point of 157 0C, Fire point of 180 0C, cloud point of 9 0C, pour point of 5 0C, moisture content of 0.93 wt% and specific heat capacity of 6051 J/kgK. Biodiesel produced from calabash seed oil is superior in quality to rubber seed oil, particularly in terms of its low FFA and moisture contents.


Distance education is not a big news in the academic community of library science. It has been drawing attention of the educators all over the world ever since its emergence at the end of the 60ies but in the last twenty years, as a result of the rapid developments in ICT and the increasing presence of the Internet in the academic education and research work, distance education has become a consisting part of many university curricula in the developed countries. Distance education in Croatia is at its very beginnings. LIS professionals from Croatia have also started thinking about the application of ICT, which has become more accessible recently but still has some limitations, in the distance education of part-time LIS students as well as the continuous professional education of graduated Croatian librarians.


Various researches revealed language learners' preferences on language learning strategies vary due to a few reasons. However, studies on how good language learners usually learn and practise the target language will provide new perspectives for the current trends and developments of language learning and teaching (Lightbown & Spada, 2006), especially among those majoring in English language. Thus, this small-scale study aims to investigate how the undergraduates majoring in English language and Linguistics at University of Malaya employ language learning strategies to enhance their English language efficiently. Quantitative and qualitative research designs were used to identify the learners' preferences on types of strategies, frequency of usage and in what ways the preferred language learning strategies among the learners vary with their programme year of study. Using Oxford's (1990) Strategy Inventory of Language Learning (SILL) Version 7, the quantitative data were analysed in the form of average scores and percentages. Categorization and thematic analysis were used to analyse the qualitative data retrieved from the interview. The findings revealed that majority of the learners prefer social and metacognitive strategies more than other types of language learning strategies. They were indeed frequent users of strategies and this finding also was reflected in their results of self-rating on proficiency level. The participants from each year of study were found to have similar patterns on the preferred types of strategies and how they go about learning the language. This research contributes perspectives about strategies in language learning and awareness about the effectiveness of using strategies that can be considered as pertinent to develop learners' achievements in language learning as well as its implications toward the educators, syllabus designers and researchers.


The relations among parents', children's, and teachers' reports of childhood anxiety on a structured diagnostic interview were investigated in two samples of clinic-referred children: a younger sample aged 6 to 8 years (n = 54) and an older sample aged 9 to 13 years (n = 41). In both age groups, teachers showed substantial disagreements in their reports of anxiety with those of parents and children. In the older sample, children who self-reported the presence of an anxiety disorder formed a subset of children reported as being anxious by their parents. When parents and children agreed on the presence of an anxiety disorder, the children had a greater number of anxiety symptoms and there was a strong relationship with maternal anxiety


Minjiang Changmen Bridge in Fuzhou City is a hybrid girder cable-stayed bridge used the pylon-girder fixed system for the first time in China,and the main span exceeds 550 meters.In this paper,the construction condition,design of bridge type and structure of this bridge are mainly introduced.The key techniques including the comparison between the differences sites of steel-concrete joint part,optimum of structures system,the local stress analysis of pylon-girder fixed region,structure property of the seismic and wind resistance performance,etc are specific discussed in this work.


The operational efficiency of regional water treatment input-output is the key to regional water pollution control and the healthy development of a river's ecology and environment.Based on an analysis of research status about the regional water treatment system theory,the performance connotation of regional water treatment system and its evaluation significance are given,the performance evaluation index system of regional water treatment is established from the perspectives of economy,society,environment,technology and resources.The research on a comprehensive performance evaluation of the system's input-output is conducted,based on the modified data envelop analysis model.Then,the effectiveness of the model is verified with the examples,according to the analytical results of the examples,the suggestion of optimizing regional water treatment performance is put forward to strengthen regional water pollution control and improve the operational efficiency of regional water treatment system and water ecology.


Transcanada and Enbridge, Canada's two dominant energy pipeline companies, are making their long-anticipated advances into the North American market. Their moves will cement their positions as the carriers of choice for future Artic natural gas and Alberta oil-sands production.