In this work, a description is given of the possibilities that, at present, can be envisioned for using NMR scalar spin–spin couplings for studying molecular systems. Such possibilities are based both on the application of computational chemistry approaches to calculate them and on the using of modern experimental techniques to measure them. This article intends to be useful to scientists who are not familiar with the theoretical background of scalar couplings. The organization of this work proceeds as follows: First, a short description is given of the nucleus–electron magnetic interactions that originate these spectral parameters. Second, some comments on the current approaches to calculate them are quoted, and adequate references are given for readers interested in deepening their theoretical background. Third, the potential of scalar couplings to study inter- and intramolecular interactions is illustrated. This is accomplished by discussing how the Fermi contact contribution to as well as to several types of geminal scalar couplings is influenced by hyperconjugative interactions. A qualitative analysis is presented for geminal couplings involving nuclei of lone-pair–bearing atoms in order to explain under which conditions their paramagnetic spin-orbital contribution could be substantial. Two different examples are presented in which, for similar configurations of lone pairs, the roles played by such lone pairs in coupling transmission are quite different.

Keywords:

NMR;
scalar couplings;
Fermi contact;
hyperconjugative interactions;
anomeric effect;
solvent effect;
paramagnetic spin orbit;
geminal couplings;
natural J couplings;
spin–spin couplings


53 year old female developed lower extremity lymphedema following a CVA Right sided hemiparesis, decreased range of motion and decreased strength in the right lower extremity, and increased tone and spasticity throughout the right upper and lower extremity Decreased strength, impaired balance (Tinetti), and increased limb heaviness affected her ambulation and ADL's Interventions Complete Decongestive Therapy (CDT): 1.Skin Care: Keeping the edematous limb clean, dry, and moisturized with a lotion of a neutral pH. 2.Compression: Application of compression bandages below the knee on the right consisting of tricofix, foam wrapping, and short stretch bandages (6,8,and 10 cm wide).


Computer methods can now be used on almost every stage of drug development, but the most common areas of computers application are virtual screening and lead generation/optimization stages. Accurate prediction of the protein-ligand binding affinities is a crucial step in the structure-based drug design approach. Current algorithms and tools for binding energy calculation that are used upon the development of new drug candidates with an emphasize on underlying principles, advantages and limitations, software and general considerations in the selection of specific methods are discussed in the paper. Four main classes of currently available physics-based computer methods (molecular docking, end point / approximate free energy, relative binding free energy, and absolute binding free energy) are reviewed in details. Molecular docking approaches are the method of choice to filter out compounds-nonbinders, but they are not accurate enough to predict binding affinity. The end point methods are more physically rigorous and closer to real free energy calculations, but they are more computationally-intensive and not predictive for some types of proteins. Relative binding free energy methods take into account conformational and entropic contributions, thus offering more accurate predictions. However, they have high computational requirements and can be used only to compare related ligands or receptors. The extremely computational-dependent method of absolute binding free energy calculation is the most powerful approach, giving predictions with good correlations to experimental binding affinities.


This report briefly discusses various arguments regarding the introduction of additional ground forces to secure territory once it has been taken back from the Islamic State.


Bio energy development by using Low Calorific Gas Turbine(LCGT) has been developed for New & Renewable energy source for next generation power system, low fuel and operating cost method by using the renewable energy source in landfill gas (LFG), Food Waste, water waste and Livestock biogas. Low calorific fuel purification by pretreatment system and carbon dioxide fixation by green house system are very important design target for evaluate optimum applications for bio energy. Main problems and accidents of Low Calorific Gas Turbine system was derived from bio fuel condition such as hydro sulfide concentration, siloxane level, moisture concentration and so on. Even if the quality of the bio fuel is not better than natural gas, LCGT system has the various fuel range and environmental friendly power system. The mechanical characterisitics of LCGT system is a high total efficiency (>70%), wide range of output power (30kW - 30MW class) and very clean emmission from power system (low NOx). Also, we can use co-generation system. A green house designed for four different carbon dioxide concentration from ambient air to 2000 ppm by utilizing the exhaust gas and hot water from LCGT system. We look forward to contribute the policy for Renewable Portfolio Standards(RPS) by using LCGT power system.


Through summarizing the reports about oryzanol in recent years,w found that its adverse includes not only many phenomena attracted our attention in the past such as stomach discomfort.nausea,vomiting,dry mouth,skin eruption,skin tickle,spargosis,hypersecretion of lipa,alopecia,weight gain and so on,but also many other adverse reactions such as extracorticospinal tract,facial edema.legs edema.frequent micturition.irritable cough and colporrhagia.Nowadays oryzanol is wildly used in clinical therapy,it is necessary for physicians to notice its adverse reactions.when such symptoms appear,physicians should be able to coufirm whether it is caused by oryzanol.and then give correct treatment instantly and lower the adverse reaction to its minimum.


Polymerase chain reaction-based microsatellite markers have proven to be a significant improvement over traditional genomic Southern hybridization-based restriction fragment length polymorphisms. However, the genotyping and allele-scoring process for these markers is still very labor intensive and expensive. To overcome many of the current rate limiting steps and to improve on the genotyping process, we have developed a non-radioactive multiplex genotyping approach. The method involves multiplexing at three separate levels. First, five different markers are amplified in the same PCR tube for each individual`s DNA. The pooling is determined based on common PCR conditions. Second, PCR products from 10 sets (i.e. PCR products form 50 loci) are pooled and separated on denaturing polyacrylamide gels. The PCR products are then transferred onto nylon membranes for decoding by hybridization. Third, the decoding step is performed using five oligonucleotide probes at each hybridization. These five probes reveal five individual loci with distinguishable sizes. We have optimized many of the steps in the multiplex genotyping protocol to achieve maximum efficiency while retaining accurate genotyping results. Presently for hybridization and detection, the ECL detection kit from Amersham is used. We are also testing the efficiency of other non-radioactive detection systems. The protocols we have developed allowmore » rapid and efficient genotyping of large numbers of individuals for linkage analysis. These protocols are currently being put into production mode for the genotyping of several inherited diseases. This includes the implementation of robotics and processing of large numbers of filters simultaneously. In addition, a computer program for automated scoring of genotypes is being developed to significantly improve on the throughput of genotyping projects.« less


Sensing of soil water content is useful in many precision agriculture and resource management applications, particularly if the sensing technique permits frequent field-scale measurements at depth. To date, soil moisture sensing technologies have a trade-off between point based measurements at depth or rapid, remote measurements of water content near the surface. In this paper, we propose a non-contact thermoacoustic soil moisture sensing modality which could permit high-resolution, high-throughput mapping of water content at depth. Within, we develop an algorithm for reconstructing the speed-of-sound in soil, which is known to be highly correlated with the soil moisture content. Through verification in simulation, our algorithm demonstrates high fidelity – reconstructing speed-of-sound profiles that match well with the ground-truth.


A field trial was undertaken at Regional Research Station (Hill Zone), Kali mpong, Darjeeling during the.year 2002 and 2003 with five different coloured polythene mulches on onion crop with the objective to observe the effect of different coloured polythene mulches on weed management as well as bulb yield. The result depicted significant reduction in weed population and biomass in blue coloured polythene mulch followed by black coloured mulch. Highest bulb yield was found in off-white coloured polythene mulch followed by blue and black coloured mulch and their increase in yield as compared to control were 54.2 1 %, 34.53% and 29.46% respectively. The highest mean net production value (rupees per rupee investment) was recorded in blue coloured polythene mulch (6.92) followed by black polythene mulch (6.80) .


Now-a-days, air pollution is the biggest problem faced by the people in our country. Air pollution is basically caused due to toxic gases like carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide etc. It may cause a large impact of human health & plants also skin & eye irritation. The accidents due to LPG leakage may cause a serious damage. But, the identification of such toxic gases is not possible by human beings. So, for this purpose, artificial sensing methodology (e-nose) can be used to identify such toxic gases. Artificial sensing methodology (e-nose) uses sensors like MQ-3, MQ-6 and MQ135 etc. These sensors are used to sense carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, alcohol & LPG etc. The data sensed using sensors are transmitted wirelessly using RF Zigbee Tx & Rx. Here, the sensors training & learning is done using Visual Basic 6.0. Back propagation algorithm is used for classification. When the gas is leak the system identifies the gas & represents the output on screen.


Suitable plant species for annual winter pasture formation for dairy goats were investigated in the basis of genotype and animal behaviours. Two experiments were carried out with a total number of forty-five lactating goats from three breeds (G: Gokceada; M: Maltese and TS: Turkish Saanen). In Experiment I, nine grazing plots containing triticale (xTriticosecale Wittmack), oat (Avena sativa), common vetch (Vicia sativa) and Hungarian vetch (Vicia pannonica) as a sub-plot were formed, and five goats from each breed were grazed for three days on their grazing plots. Treatment was repeated three times with different goats. Behaviour of goats was recorded every day through direct observation for four hours. Biting rate of goat breed on the same plant species was examined in Experiment II. Grazing frequencies were determined as 55.2, 63.8 and 70.7% for the breeds of G, M and TS goats, respectively (P ≤ 0.01). Grasses, and triticale in particular, were preferred to legumes (P ≤ 0.01), and Hungarian vetch had the lowest grazing frequency. Biting rate varied among plant species (P ≤ 0.01), and observed values on triticale and Hungarian vetch were significantly lower than those of the other plant species (P ≤ 0.05). It was concluded that triticale has an important potential as a plant for annual winter pasture for dairy goats in Mediterranean climatic zone.


On pages 202 and 205, Vol. 58, No. 2, August 1, 1933, the cuts for Text-figs. 2 and 3 should be interchanged. The cut on page 202 is Text-fig. 3, and should appear on page 205. The cut on page 205 is Text-fig. 2, and should appear on page 202. The legends should remain on the pages where they now appear.


Summary Nitrosoguanidine-induced mutation frequencies for resistance to streptomycin, spectinomycin, erythromycin and novomycin were studied in Azospirillum brasilense. Lentil inoculated with A. brasilense and its mutants and Rhizobium strains produced increased nodule dry weight, nitrogenase activity of nodules and roots and grain yield compared with an uninoculated control.


The HfOx-based resistive random access memory (RRAM) has been extensively investigated as one of the emerging nonvolatile memory (NVM) candidates due to its excellent memory performance and compatibility with CMOS process. In this study, the influences of deposition ambient, especially the oxygen partial pressure during thin film sputtering, on the resistive switching characteristics are discussed in detail for possible nonvolatile memory applications. The Ni/HfOx/TiN RRAMs are fabricated, and the HfOx films with different oxygen content are deposited by a radio frequency magnetron sputtering at room temperature under different oxygen partial pressures. The oxygen partial pressures in the sputter deposition process are 2%, 4% and 6% relative to engineer oxygen content in the HfOx film. Current-voltage (I-V) measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy are performed to explain the possible nature of the stable resistive switching phenomenon. Through the current-voltage measurement, typical resistive switching behavior is observed in Ni/HfOx/TiN device cells. It is found that with the increase of the oxygen partial pressure during the preparation of HfOx films, the stoichiometric ratio of O in the film is improved, the root mean square (RMS) of the surface roughness of the film slightly decreases due to the slower deposition rate under a higher oxygen partial pressure, and the high resistance state (HRS) current decreases. In addition, by controlling the oxygen content of the device, the endurance performance of the device is improved, which reaches up to 103 under a 6% oxygen partial pressure. The HfOx films prepared at a higher oxygen partial pressure supply enough oxygen ions to preserve the switching effect. As the oxygen partial pressure increases, the uniformity of the switching voltage is improved, which can be attributed to the fact that better oxidation prevents the point defects (oxygen vacancies) from aggregating into extended defects. Through the linear fitting and temperature test, it is found that the conduction mechanism of Ni/HfOx/TiN RRAM device cells in low resistance state is an ohmic conduction mechanism, while in high resistance state it is a Schottky emission mechanism. The interface between TE and the oxide layer (HfOx) is expected to influence the resistive switching phenomenon. The activation energy of the device is investigated based on the Arrhenius plots in HRS. A switching model is proposed according to the theory of oxygen vacancy conductive filament. Furthermore, the self-compliance behavior is found and explained.


We develop an action principle to construct the field equations for dissipative/resistive general relativistic two-temperature plasmas, including a neutrally charged component. The total action is a combination of four pieces: an action for a multifluid/plasma system with dissipation/resistivity and entrainment; the Maxwell action for the electromagnetic field; the Coulomb action with a minimal coupling of the four-potential to the charged fluxes; and the Einstein–Hilbert action for gravity (with the metric being minimally coupled to the other action pieces). We use a pull-back formalism from spacetime to abstract matter spaces to build unconstrained variations for the neutral, positively, and negatively charged fluid species and for three associated entropy flows. The full suite of field equations is recast in the so-called "3+1" form (suitable for numerical simulations), where spacetime is broken up into a foliation of spacelike hypersurfaces and a prescribed "flow-of-time". A previously constructed phenomenological model for the resistivity is updated to include the modified heat flow and the presence of a neutrally charged species. We impose baryon number and charge conservation as well as the Second Law of Thermodynamics in order to constrain the number of free parameters in the resistivity. Finally, we take the Newtonian limit of the "3+1" form of the field equations, which can be compared to existing non-relativistic formulations. Applications include main sequence stars, neutron star interiors, accretion disks, and the early universe.


The Advanced-ANPC converter is designed to withstand almost every possible short-circuit failure of the semiconductors in comparison to state-of-the-art (A)NPC converters. The idea behind this concept is an additional short-circuit inductor to improve the robustness against faults. The presented investigations within this paper examine all the possible short-circuit situations and their effects for an (A)ANPC converter with high-voltage IGBTs.


This study explores public hospitals in Nigeria to investigate the relationship between supply chain management practices and operational efficiencycost minimization, delivery quality and service availability. Survey design was adopted to delineate the study population, select participants, and design appropriate method of data collection and analysis. Out of 584 healthcare supply chain executives that constituted the study population, 293 were selected from 18 public hospitals in Southern geopolitical zone of Nigeria using the multistage sampling method. The structured questionnaire was employed to glean relevant primary data which was analyzed quantitatively. Findings shows that operational efficiency is significantly and positively influenced by three major practices: strategic supplier partnership, supplier selection decision, and integration of information communication technologies among supply chain partners. Relevant implications of the findings for managers were highlighted and discussed.


For the diction of this Treatise has not been chosen at haphazard, but with great exactness and exceeding precision (Maimonides, Introduction to The Guide of the Perplexed, p. 15). In 2.32 of The Guide of the Perplexed, at the very outset of his section on prophecy, Maimonides states: "The opinions of people concerning prophecy are like their opinions concerning the eternity of the world or its creation in time" (p. 360).


Cardiovascular Aging: Mechanisms and Pathways: The heart is made up of millions of myocardial cells that contract and relax to pump blood adequately to various body organs. In turn, it is itself dependent for oxygen and nutrients on vascular supply. There goes on the ongoing damage to the heart and vasculature with aging. Various adaptive and compensatory measures including lifestyle interventions and related treatment modalities contributing directly or indirectly to strengthening of heart and myocardial preservation. Modalities for Retarding CV Aging: Age is the most important determinant of cardiovascular health. There occurs an exponential rise in both the CV risk and the incidence of CV events in older adults parallel with the advancing age. With advancing age, there is an increase in incidence and prevalence of atherosclerosis, hypertension, coronary artery disease and heart failure; cerebrovascular and peripheral vascular disease. Simultaneously, important changes are taking place at micro level; at cellular, subcellular and molecular levels. The macro- and micro level changes have impact on quality of life and affect the individual survival. The most promising data comes from experimental biology highlightening calorie restriction as a tool for reduction in oxidative stress and increasing longevity. The metabolic manipulations enhance longevity by retarding aging comparable to CR, are not as effective as repair strategies which can reverse aging process. The Modalities for Reversing CV Aging: The genetic manipulations causing alterations work through a common pathway across many species endorsing that there is an evolutionary genetic program that controls aging. Further, it appears that the metabolic changes will not produce significant effects on longevity in humans as they do in mice for the simple reason that lifespan is much more plastic in short-lived species. There are important potential target genes for future gene therapies to retard and reverse CV aging or compensating for age-related damage. and impetus will come from bioengineering and stem cell technology. The 3-D bioprinting may provide the bulk supply of organs and blood vessls somatic repair and reversal of CV aging. These interventions will form the basis of regenerative medicine for aging and age-related CV aging and Cure for CVDs. Studies indicate that the flavonoids inhibit platelet aggregation, thrombus formation and coagulation. They reduce oxidative stress, atherosclerosis and arterial blood pressure. They may favorably modify vascular inflammatory and endothelial and capillary function. They may improve lipid profile values and regulate carbohydrate metabolism.


The current phenomena of business enterprise by university graduates are first studied in this paper.The strengthes and weaknesses of the graduates from the universities in Guilin as well as the business enterprise characteristics of these graduates are then studied as a case.In light of the findings from these studies and the relevant policy by the government,the universities and the other sectors of the society,a set of strategies to enhance business enterprise training for university students is proposed and discussed.It is highlighted that enterprise training programmes should be so designed as to assist the graduates to build enterprise qualities and cultivate flexible minds of enterprise in order for them to meet the needs of the society.


Thin‐film diodes composed of Al‐Al2O3‐Au films can be made to emit light under applied voltages. The spectral intensity of the electroluminescence was measured in the wavelength range 2000–6000 A for different diode voltages. In this spectral range, the intensity was found to decrease nearly exponentially with increasing photon energy for a given voltage. The results also indicate that as the intensity of the short‐wavelength emission is enhanced with increasing diode voltage above approximately 4 V, there is a corresponding decrease in intensity in the long‐wavelength region. An attempt is made to explain the results in terms of a band model of the oxide.


This paper investigates the load sharing of double circular arc helical gears considering the influence of assembly errors. Based on a load sharing formulae, a three-dimensional finite element tooth contact analysis (TCA) is implemented with commercial software package ANSYS. The finite element grid for the double circular arc gear contact model is automatically generated by using the APDL (ANSYS Parameter Design Language) embedded in ANSYS. The realistic rotation of gears is achieved by using a coupling degree-of-freedom method. Numerical simulations are carried out to exemplify the proposed approach. The distribution of contact stress and bending stress under specific loading conditions are computed and compared with those obtained from Hertz contact theory and empirical formulae to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed load sharing calculation formulae and TCA approach.


In Africa at least 10 million people depend in fisheries. 90% of fish is from the continent is landed by small-scale fishers. The value of landed catch from the continent is estimated at $2.7 billion annually. In southern Africa, the main fishery resources range from inland lake and river systems to marine systems. Over 95% of catch from these systems is landed by small-scale fishers. This review cerebrates' the value and benefits deriving from Southern African fisheries such as employment, income, food security, cultural, etc., among others. What should also be notable is the welfare function that fisheries play in most fishing communities, thereby contributing to community resilience and stability, despite the low priority accorded to the sector by most governments in the region. By demonstrating the value of the sector, it is envisaged that governments and donors would begin to see the sector in better light and give it due consideration in future policies and development planning.


Disparity estimation is an essential step in stereoscopic video coding. Existing disparity estimation methods are based on single disparity model and lack the robustness for estimating the real-time view disparities. To overcome this problem, this paper proposes an adaptive disparity estimation scheme which employs adaptive selection of disparity models based on the rate distortion optimization function. By exploiting the information obtained from the disparity models, the proposed technique estimates and compensates the disparities among different views in stereoscopic video coding efficiently. Experimental results show that the proposed technique contributes to improve the accurate of disparity estimation and save the bits spent on the coding.


Nitrogen NMR shieldings (Δσ=‐δ on the frequency scale of chemical shifts), measured by high‐precision 14N NMR and bulk susceptibility corrected, of 20 nitroalkanes in dilute solutions in cyclohexane and in acetone are reported, including vic‐dinitro, gem‐dinitro and trinitro structures and tetranitromethane. The data obtained for cyclohexane solutions yield an excellent linear correlation with theoretical shieldings calculated for the corresponding isolated molecules by the semi‐empirical TNDO/2 method. The NO2 nitrogen shieldings of nitroalkanes are shown to depend linearly on the net charges of the corresponding nitro groups, each taken as a whole, but there is no correlation with the atomic charges of the nitrogen atoms concerned. Thus, the nitrogen shieldings seem to provide a measure of electron‐acceptor or electron‐donor strength of the substituted alkyl system bound directly to the nitro group. Solvent polarity effects on the shieldings are discussed. The nitro group nitrogen shieldings are shown to be generally sensitive to conformational effects, particularly in sterically hindered molecules, and to provide insight into conformational or rotamer equilibria in nitroalkane systems. Ab initio calculations of the shieldings of some simple nitroalkanes, using the Hartree–Fock/GIAO approach, are reported. They indicate that the semi‐empirical method employed, combined with the experimental data, yields results which are comparable to those obtained by the ab initio method, as far as relative shieldings are concerned. ©1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcome of very low birth weight newborns, submitted to high frequency oscillatory ventilation with a strategy of early lung volume optimization. Methods: Descriptive prospective study in a nine-year period, between 1999 January 1 st to 2008 January 1 st . All the very low birth weight newborns were born in Dr. Alfredo da Costa Maternity, Lisbon, Portugal, were admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and submitted to high frequency oscillatory ventilation with early lung volume optimization; these newborns were followedup since birth and their charts were analyzed periodically until hospital discharge. results: From a total population of 730 very low birth weight inborns, 117 babies died (16%) and 613 survived (84%). The median of birth weight was 975 g and the gestational age median was 28 weeks. For the survivors, the median ventilation and oxygenation times were 3 and 18 days, respectively. The incidence of chronic lung disease was 9.5%, with nine newborns discharged on oxygen therapy. The incidence of intraventricular hemorrhage III – IV (total population group) was 11.5% and the incidence of retinopathy of prematurity grade 3 or higher was 8.0%. conclusions : High frequency oscillatory ventilation with early lung volume optimization strategy reduced the need of respiratory support, and improved pulmonary and global outcomes in very low birth weight infants with respiratory distress syndrome.


Tests were made in the Bureau's Experimental Coal Mine on stoppings similar to those used in operating coal mines to obtain information on air leakage through the face and the rupture strength of a stopping subjected to a pressure differential. Block stoppings were made from cinder, slag, and gravel aggregates with and without mortared joints and coatings. Sheet stoppings were uncoated brattice cloth and nylon or brattice cloth and expanded-metal-lath coated with asphalt, latex, mortar, or rigid urethane foam. Limited data were obtained on air leakage through stoppings subjected to simulated roof convergence and to shock forces created by the firing of an adjacent charge of explosive. The pressure differential required to rupture stoppings was determined. The research shows that coating the face of a stopping effectively reduces air leakage. Block stoppings, particularly those with mortared joints, are more resistant to pressure and shock forces than are sheet stoppings. Where ground movement is a factor, sheet stoppings leak less air than block stoppings.


A prototype instrument for making contactless measurements of free carrier concentration as a function of the surface coordinates has been developed. The instrument requires minimal sample preparation and the measurements are nondestructive. Measurements are based upon the free carrier absorption of photons at a wavelength of 10.6 μm. The measurement sensitivity is determined by the ability to resolve small variations in the transmitted wave. These variations can be significantly influenced by changes in sample thickness. A scheme has been devised which eliminates thickness variations by rotating the sample through small angles to achieve a transmission maximum at each data point. Preliminary results indicate that system drift limits the sensitivity of the prototype system to measurements of the order of 1015 free carriers per cm3. Data on CdS samples indicate accurate measurements for free electron densities greater that 1016 cm−3. Refinements in the instrument should reduce this level to 1014 cm−3 or less.


In this paper, an effective color detection technique is presented. Color detection techniques are widely used in the image processing area, especially for measuring the amount of a certain color after some modifications on an image to check wither it gets enhanced or not. We test this technique on images that were carried out in a physical laboratory during some experiments. Moreover, we will use this technique to calculate the percentage of the red color before and after "red-eye" removal process. Finally, a comparison of these techniques with some other methods has been achieved.


A case of secondary infertility related with prolonged retention of fetal bones in cervix is presented. A 34-year-old nulliparous woman admitted to hospital with chronic pelvic pain, dyspareunia and 12-yearlong secondary infertility following an induced abortion due to fetal demise. Transvaginal ultrasonography (USG) revealed a linear echogenic area around the posterior cervical wall. Hysteroscopic examination confirmed the existence of an irregular calcified mass embedded in cervix. The mass turned out to be conglomerated fetal bone fragments which probably acted as an intrauterine device. After removal of the cervical mass, the patient conceived spontaneously within four months. The present case report emphasizes the significance of detailed history and through evaluation by transvaginal USG in case of secondary infertility following an induced or spontaneous abortion.


Many studies have shown that the burden of malaria in a community can be reduced by the use of insecticidetreated nets (ITNs). In Africa, four randomised trials, which had child mortality as the primary endpoint, found a reduction in deaths among children under 5 years of age with the use of ITNs (three trials) or insecticide-treated curtains. 1 Although these results are encouraging, they pose additional questions. First, can this efficacy (ie, success in the artificial circumstances of a scientific trial) be translated into effectiveness (ie, success when implemented as a healthservice programme)? 2


This article applies the grey model approach in the grey system theory to set up the Same-distance Grey munmer's Step-supplement forecasting model GM(1,1)of the national record of long jump,begin directed against the ambiguity,unknown and so on.It also performs the examinnation of posterior difference and analysis of the relative degree.It turns out the precision of forecasting model is equal to first class(GOOD).At the same time,this model has been applied to forecast the sport achievement of 2002.


This study aims to determine the role of Gratitude in Organizational Citizenship Behavior by considering the Supervisor Support as mediator. The participants of this study were 100 teachers at junior high schools and senior high schools in DKI Jakarta using a non-probability sampling method with a purposive sampling technique. This study uses a non-experimental quantitative design with a correlational approach with the help of the SPSS program. Data was collected by distributing questionnaires using the Gratitude at Work Scale (GAWS), Teachers' Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Survey of Perceived Supervisor Support (SPSS). The results of this study indicate that being grateful contributes to PKO. Furthermore, PSS proved to play a role as a mediator between Gratitude and OCB, in which case it was proven that the role of Gratitude for OCB increased when employees felt support from the supervisor (PSS).


Objective To define the risk factor and mortality of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) of bloodstream infections(BSI) after liver transplantation. Method From January 1993 to May 2010, a retrospective analysis of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in liver transplants are conducted. Results 53 out of 695 patients had BSI,commonly infected with enterococcus. Postoperative acquisition of MRSA was detected in 7 patients. Univariate analysis identified acute rejection was the risk factor for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia(P=0.03). No significant differences was found in mortality at 15 days,30 days and 1 year in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia after liver transplantation. Conclusions Risk factor associated with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus of bloodstream infections was acute rejection. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection show no significance in mortality at 15 days, 30 days and 1 year after operation.


The local structure within the ionic aggregates of a carboxylato-telechelic ionomer neutralized with an excess of zirconium has been investigated by EXAFS spectroscopy. The presence of non-ionic Zr-O-Zr intramolecular bonds explains the great stability of the material towards polar compounds. The number of Zr neighbours in the aggregates has been found to increase with the total amount of zirconium in the sample. A model consistent with the unique mechanical properties of the resulting material is proposed.


No definitive treatment exists for familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy (FAP), an autosomal dominant disease associated with a mutant form of the protein transthyretin (prealbumin) [1]. Symptoms usually begin in middle life with peripheral neuropathy, autonomic dysfunction, cardiomyopathy, vitreous opacities, and occasionally renal failure. Death results from cardiomyopathy, malnutrition, or complications of autonomic neuropathy about 10 years after the onset of disease. Treatment of FAP has been limited to supportive measures including cardiac pacemakers, dialysis, parenteral nutrition, and physical therapy. In 1990, investigators in Sweden proposed liver transplantation as a treatment to remove the major source of mutant transthyretin production. Since then, several patients with FAP in Sweden [2], Spain, and now the United States have received liver transplants. We report our experience in seven persons treated with transplantation in the United States. Patients All seven patients were seen and evaluated in the Thorndike Clinical Research Center of the Boston University School of Medicine at Boston City Hospital. All had an identified mutant transthyretin and were from three families known to be affected with FAP. All patients had biopsy results that showed amyloid deposition. Liver transplant evaluation and surgery were done by the liver transplant unit at the New England Deaconess Hospital in six of the patients and at the Cleveland Clinic in one patient. Patients are still receiving several quantitative assessments including sensory and motor neurologic examinations; standard autonomic neuropathy testing as described by Ewing and colleagues [3]; cardiac status testing using electrocardiograms, echocardiograms, and Holter monitoring; ophthalmologic examinations for vitreous opacities; and a quality-of-life health status questionnaire. Family 1 includes a sister (age 35 years) and brother (age 37 years) of Greek ancestry with the transthyretin mutation, valine 30 methionine (Val 30 Met), whose mother, maternal uncle, and grandfather died of FAP at ages 50, 37, and 40 years, respectively [4]. Clinical findings began at ages 32 and 25 years (in the sister and the brother) and included a sensory and motor neuropathy of the legs and arms, foot drop, urinary retention, orthostasis, and diarrhea. The brother had severe wasting, had cardiac conduction defects requiring a pacemaker, and was receiving total parenteral nutrition. Liver transplantations were done in March 1992 and August 1992. Eight months later, the brother died of a pacemaker failure but did not have complications from transplant surgery. Family 2 contains a 40-year-old woman of Greek ancestry, with the transthyretin mutation Val 30 Met, whose father and paternal grandmother died of FAP at ages 44 and 60 years, respectively [4]. Clinical features were present for 5 years and were similar to those in family 1. Liver transplantation was done in July 1992. Family 3 contains four persons of Italian ancestry with the transthyretin mutation, glutamate 42 glycine (Glu 42 Gly): a sister 40 years old, a brother 36 years old, a male cousin 35 years old, and a female cousin 42 years old. These four persons had liver transplantation in June 1992, September 1992, November 1992, and June 1992. Family history showed death due to FAP in the mother, maternal aunt, uncle, and grandfather at ages 50, 46, 40, and 41 years, respectively. All persons have a second mutation on the same transthyretin gene causing an amino acid substitution of histidine 90 asparagine (His 90 Asn) also noted in families of Portuguese and German descent who do not have FAP [5]. Clinical features in this kindred were autonomic neuropathy with diarrhea and orthostasis, cardiomyopathy, vitreous opacities, and mild peripheral neuropathy. Results Seven patients (35 to 42 years old) had liver transplantation ranging 2 to 11 years after the onset of symptoms of FAP. Six liver transplantations were done at the New England Deaconess Hospital, where it was noted that the operative time (median, 5.5 hours), the blood use (median, 4 units), and the intensive care unit time (3 days for one patient) were statistically less than required for transplantation in patients with chronic liver failure. Specimens of liver tissue at the time of transplant were examined for amyloid deposition using Congo red staining. All specimens were positive with perivascular deposits graded as trace to 1+ (on a scale of 0 to 4+); more amyloid was noted in specimens from persons who had had symptoms of FAP for a long time. Serum was collected at multiple times preoperatively and within 1 month postoperatively. Total transthyretin was quantified by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. To quantify the mutant transthyretin, total transthyretin was separated from other serum proteins by a native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and was subjected to isoelectric focusing using a modification of a previously described protocol [6] (Figure 1). The relative proportion of normal and mutant transthyretin in each sample was quantified by densitometry (Image Quant software package, Sunnyvale, California). Preoperative transthyretin levels in all patients ranged from 153 to 373 g/mL (normal values, 200 to 400 g/mL); postoperative values were 248 to 458 g/mL. All patients had slightly less mutant transthyretin than normal transthyretin before transplantation (35% to 45%). Postoperatively, sera from all patients showed only normal transthyretin. Figure 1. Isoelectric focusing gels of the serum transthyretin proteins from five patients before and after liver transplantation. Hospital stay after transplant averaged 17 days. No patient had a rejection episode requiring re-hospitalization. No objective changes in neuropathologic or cardiomyopathologic symptoms have been noted since transplantation, although several patients report a decrease in diarrhea. Discussion We describe the first patients who had liver transplantation as a treatment for FAP in the United States. In FAP, a mutant transthyretin protein synthesized by the liver is deposited as amyloid fibrils in various organ systems and is uniformly fatal 7 to 15 years after disease onset in middle life [1]. Treatment options with gene therapy are not expected in the near future; unlike conditions where gene therapy can be used to replace a deficient product, in FAP a need exists to eliminate a deleterious product. Liver transplantation, although a complicated and major surgical procedure, provides the first successful therapy for patients and families who have this disease. The follow-up period for transplantation is still relatively brief (1 to 15 months) for defining neurologic improvement. However, none of the patients have had progression of their disease, a noteworthy observation in FAP. Given the optimistic surgical outlook and the bleak prognosis of FAP, transplantation should be done soon after biopsy results show amyloid deposits, thus confirming disease onset.


In this growing digital world all digital circuits are facing the issue of large power dissipation, higher packaging density, lower latency and higher degree of reliability. Today all the portable and hand held devices are aiming to have all the above said features along with greater battery life. One of the basic circuits that is mostly used in digital designs is multiplier. Now we have lot of different types of architectures available for the design of multiplier, each have their own merits and de-merits. This paper describes the basic architecture of multiplier design which is based upon the right shift algorithm but the technique has been customized to function on unsigned floating point numbers. The FPGA based simulation using Verilog and cadence based simulations for schematic on UMC 55nm technology have been successfully verified. The proposed 8-bit multiplier incorporates sleep transistor logic for realizing low power operations and uses the single floating point number representation. The multiplier has been operated at 10MHz and it dissipates 14.9 micro watts.


This research was designed to investigate the effects of two different types of learning modalities, namely Meta-cognitive Prompting and structured peer interaction on intermediate EFL learners' collaborative writing. For this purpose, 90 learners of total number of 120 intermediate learners studying at Kish English language school were chosen first for homogenization prior to the study. In order to homogenize the subjects Preliminary English Test (PET) was administered and 90 students were selected. A pre-test writing was administered among all of them. They were divided in two groups, one in which Students were contributing in their writing samples with each other and the other groups based on their individual efforts and outcomes. each group was exposed to the treatment for 24 sessions in seven weeks. At the end of the instruction, post-test with Analytic rating scale was applied and one-way ANOVA was run to test and the two hypotheses raised in the study. The results showed that while learners benefited from structured peer interaction setting compared to metacognitive prompting one, they were better off receiving writing instruction and more improved in their writing skill.


Online video games are a popular leisure activity around the world; such virtual environments enable new ways for social identity to develop. This study investigated the motives affecting social identification processes in the massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft (WoW). In this video game, players interact with other players in a tridimensional virtual world through their avatar. A sample of 92 WoW players took part in a data collection Web survey. Building on the theory of social identity, we tested the predictive power of three identification motives: self-esteem enhancement, optimal distinctiveness, and uncertainty reduction. Additionally, considering previous research on MMORPGs, we added identification with the game character and membership duration as further predictors of virtual group identification. The construct of virtual group identification was analyzed at two levels: identification with the faction and guild of the character. Furthermore, the current study ...


A .smcl presentation is a series of linked .smcl files that open in the viewer inside Stata (like help-files). They are particularly useful for talks that focus on how to do things in Stata, like a lecture on graphs in Stata or a talk at a Stata Users' Group meeting. Preparing for such a talk typically starts with preparing the examples using a .do file. The purpose of smclpres is to streamline the process of turning that .do file into a .smcl presentation.


Manifestations and types of aggressive behaviour are described, as well as organization, diagnostics, main branches and forms of its prevention and correction under the condition of integrated education.


Background: The prevalence of chronic kidney disease is increasing with diabetic nephropathy as the common underlying cause. Although numerous drugs are being used to improve glycaemic control, evidence in patients with diabetic nephropathy is sparse. The aim of the present was to evaluate the effectiveness of sitagliptin or vildagliptin addition on glycaemic control in patients with T2DM undergoing haemodialysis as part of their routine care in a rural tertiary care setting.Methods: Type 2 diabetic patients on maintenance haemodialysis as part of routine care and whose glycaemia was not controlled adequately and prescribed one of the oral gliptins once daily in addition to existing therapy for a period of 24 weeks were included in the present study. Effectiveness was assessed in terms of glycaemic control as measured by the change over time in glycated haemoglobin. Data analysis included glycated haemoglobin, body weight, serum creatinine, urine albumin creatinine ratio and the occurrence of hypoglycaemia.Results: Significant reduction in glycated haemoglobin values were noted after 24 weeks of therapy with gliptins similar to insulin glargine with a small weight loss. There was an insignificant decrease in the serum creatinine and urine albumin excretion levels after treatment with vildagliptin with Vildagliptin producing a slightly higher decrease but there was no correlation with changes in A1c levels. The overall incidence of adverse experiences was low and generally mild in both groups.Conclusions: In a group of Asian Indian patients with diabetic nephropathy due to T2DM undergoing haemodialysis in whom glycaemia was not controlled adequately, addition of gliptins helped to achieve glycaemic control to a similar extent as insulin glargine but with a marginal weight advantage.


Carbon multi wall nanotubes (MWNTs) and single wall nanotubes (SWNT) have been identified by S. Ijima in 1991 and 1993 respectively. Although significant progress has been made for 25 years, one major obstacle to realization of SWNTs-based nanotechnology has been the lack of control for designing selective synthesis conditions. This is partly due to the incomplete understanding of the physical and chemical effects driving the kind of tubes able to nucleate and grow under given experimental conditions [1]. In this talk, I will review where we are and our contribution at LEM to this challenging problem.


Working achievement of employee is absolutely needed in a firm. One of the efforts on increasing such case is through training, improving the worker skill also making the best of a good teamwork as well. PT. United Tractors Tbk Medan is a firm runs in the sale of heavy-duty equipment such as tractors, dump truck, crane, forklipt, sparepart, and services after sale on the consumers. The firm which is in the efforts of improving the achievement of its employee so far has involved in any training and development either in the level of region or central as well as bringing into mainstream of the good. In intensifying of this research is used some supporting theories on team work, training and development. Hence, in order to know more about yhe further influence of teamwork, trust, and the solidarity or harmony is necessarily needed intensification of teamwork theories. The method used in this research is census and quantitative descriptive approaches along with the explanatory on it. The sample shown in it is about 34 employees in which they are involved in the teamwork and had attended some trainings and developments carried out by the firm at list twice. The result of first test hypothesis shows the value of determination coefficient Rsquare is 0.667 and the value of Fcount is 31.014 higher than Ftabel value (3.320), and sig. (0.000) is lower than alpha 5% (0.05). Therefore team work, training and development all together have a significant influence on working achievement of employees. The result of the second hypothesis regression test shows that value of determine coefficient Rsquare is 0.694, Fcount is 22.672 higher than Ftabel (2.920) and sig á (0.000) is lower than alpha 5% (0.05). This result shows that cooperation, trust and cohesiveness all together have a significant influence on teamwork. The result states that the team work and partially cohesiveness influence more dominant. The conclusion of this thesis is that the teamwork, training and development influenced significantly at working achievement. The teamwork has been conducted well. Cooperation, trust and cohesiveness have been done well. The cohesiveness has improved to influence the teamwork significantly.


In systems with charged mobile defects, application of an external electric field modifies the spatial distribution of defects. We obtain the corresponding dependence of the thermal conductivity on the electric field due to the redistribution of defects, both in bulk systems (heat transfer described by Fourier's law) and in nanosystems (heat transfer described by phonon hydrodynamics). We consider the electric field transverse to the heat flux as well as the electric field parallel to the heat flux; in the latter case, we consider a superlattice composed of alternating layers with defects and without defects. For transverse electric fields, the effective thermal conductivity is increased in bulk systems and decreased in nanosystems. This dependence on the field would allow us to control heat transport in an easy and reversible way without modifying the material.


To cope with the warming global environments, the authors have proposed the counter-rotating type hydroelectric unit. This unit may take place of the traditional bulb type turbines, and is suitable for not only the hydropower on the land but also the tidal power in the ocean. This paper discusses the effects of the setting angles of the front and the rear runner blades on the turbine performances, and presents the optimum setting angles at the on-cam operation, which is applicable to the gradual change of the tidal head at the large power station. The maximum output or the maximum efficiency is got at the larger unit discharge with the decrease of not only the blade number but also the blade setting angle. The on-cam hill chart gives the optimum blade setting angles to operate the unit at the specified efficiency or output. Besides, the runner blades were modified to get the fruitful output from not only the rising but also the falling tides at the power station with the dam/weir/sluice. The performances against the relative rotational speed have almost the same profiles as those of the normal runners and the maximum hydraulic efficiency is compared favorably with that of the normal runners.


Abstract To evaluate the effects of coexisting cations on Cl- adsorption in variable-charge soils, we measured the Cl- adsorption from CaCl2 and MgCl2 solutions on two Andisols as a function of the pH and electrolyte concentration, and compared the results with the adsorption from NH4Cl and NaCl solutions. For the Choyo B soil in which allophane and imogolite are the dominant exchangers, the Cl- adsorption from NaCl, NH4Cl, and MgCl2 solutions was only determined by the pH+pCl values of the bathing solutions. In the CaCl2 solutions, however, the Cl- adsorption deviated positively from the relationship obtained in using the NaCl, NH4Cl, and MgCl2 solutions. We considered that this deviation reflected the CaCl+ ion-pair adsorption on negatively charged sites. In a 50 mmol l-1 CaCl2 solution at pH = 7.1, the estimated CaCl+ ion-pair adsorption amounted up to about 10% of the adsorbed Ca2+ and 56% of the adsorbed Cl- on a mol kg-1 basis. In the lower pH range (< 6.5), however, the CaCl+ adsorption was negligi...


Introduction: The effectiveness of colonoscopy depends on multiple factors, being two of the most important ones an adequate bowel preparation and the patient's tolerability to the preparation. Objectives: Compare effectiveness and tolerability of two bowel preparation agents, polyethylene glycol (PEG) and sodium picosulfate/magnesium citrate (SPMC). Patients and Methods: Randomized clinical trial on outpatients that went into colonoscopy in INDISA Clinic. We evaluated effectiveness and tolerability with Boston Bowel Preparation Score (BBPS) and Lawrence questionnaire [composed by Likert scale, two qualitative questions and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain], respectively. Results: 189 patients, 123 were randomized to PEG and 66 to SPMC. BBPS average in patients in the PEG branch was 7.51 (SD 1.66) and for SPMC 7.12 (SD 1.71) (p = 0.111). Likert scale for evaluating tolerability average for PEG was 0.94 (SD 0.68) and for SPMC 0.63 (SD 0.61) (p = 0.0004). VAS scale for PEG had an average of 7.68 (SD 2.4) and for PSCM 9.04 (SD 1.59) (p < 0.0001). When we asked for workplace absenteeism, there were no significant differences between both groups and when we asked about using the same intestinal preparation in a future colonoscopy there was statistical significance in favor to SPMC (p = 0.026). Conclusions: No differences were noted on effectiveness between the PEG and SPMC bowel preparations. Nevertheless, SPMC appeared to be better tolerated by patients.


A Simplified Approach to Fixed Metal-ceramic Reconstructions R estoring the edentulous patient with an implantsupported fixed complete denture prosthesis is a challenging procedure. Fixed metal-ceramic reconstructions are inherently different from fixed complete dentures or implant overdentures. From a prosthodontic perspective, there are 3 phases of treatment for these types of rehabilitations:


The appendix is considered as a vestigial organ, with no known physiological role, that has been accepted as the origin of a potentially life threatening but easily treatable inflammatory disease of the right lower quadrant of the abdomen only at the end of the nineteenth century. Appendectomy for acute appendicitis is since then still the most frequently performed emergency surgical procedure. Despite the fact that this surgical procedure is so frequently and easily performed, its indication was, till recently, the result of equilibrium between the negative appendectomy rate and the appendiceal perforation rate. It has been advocated that imaging could play an important role in ruling out acute appendicitis, preventing negative appendectomy and in confirming acute appendicitis. Nevertheless, even if various diagnostic imaging techniques, especially ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography (CT), are widely available and diagnostic features very well known in each technique, the impact of medical imaging on the clinical work-up of patients suspected of acute appendicitis remains a matter of debate. In addition, among the radiology community, there are still debates addressing the questions of the most appropriate technique (US vs. CT), in men or in women, in children or in adults, with or without intravenous contrast injection, at standard or at low radiation dose. In addition, the possible impact of imaging on cost-effective care has to be taken into account. Selected on the only basis of their scientific contributions in the field and on the impact of these contributions, recognized international experts have accepted to address all these issues in this handbook. This book, entirely dedicated to the appendix and acute appendicitis in adults and children, sets out to be a guide for radiologists, emergency physicians, and surgeons, beginners as well as experienced ones. We want to express our sincere gratitude to all renowned radiologists, emergency physicians, and surgeons who have contributed to this book with great enthusiasm and support.


Background and Objectives: The developments of fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopic instrumentation, and application, over the years has made it a powerful analytical tool in the study of oils and fats. This work has explored fourier transform Infra-Red for characterization of plant oils from selected cultivars grown in Nigeria. The selection of these plants oils that flourishes in Nigeria aside their used primarily for nutritional applications, is dependent on the fatty acid (FA) composition of triacylglycerol (TAG which make them potential for bioenergy and biofiuel production considering the explosion of energy demand through alternative energy sources. They are also needed for the preparations of chemical feedstocks, biopolymer and composites, skin care products. Oils from these plants can provide renewable sources of high-value fatty acids for both the chemical and health-related industries. We report here several areas where these plant oils can have a significant impact on the emerging bioeconomy.
Materials and Methods: The samples were each placed in contact with KBr disc and FT-IR spectra were collected in frequency 4500-400 cm-1 by coadding 32 scans and at resolution of 4 cm-1. All spectra were rationed against a background spectrum. In each scan, a new reference background spectrum was detected.
Results: The spectra of oils of the present investigation revealed the following bands 1522, 1449.55, 1364.68, 1444.73, 1364.68, 1445.09, 1369.50, 1447.62, 1362.75, 1449.55, 1371.43, 1447.62, 1366.54, 1447.62, 1450.5, 1360.82, 1370.47, 1446.66, 1246.06, 1364.47, 1448.59 for Adansonia digitata, Ricinus communis, Sesamum indicum, Jatropha curcas, Allium cepa, Cucumis melo, Lannea microcarpa, Lagenaria vulgaris and Sesamun indicum seed oil respectively. 1450 cm-1- 1444 is related to bending vibration of CH2, and CH3; (cis =C–H bending) and at 1360 - 1370 cm-1 is concerned with the bending vibrations CH2 groups which showed total unsaturation. The results obtained shows that all the oils are unsaturated because there is no band around 3005- 3009 which is the band that normally determine the index of degree of unsaturation.
Conclusion: The FT- IR spectroscopy proved to be an important technique for identification, analysis, determination of degree of saturation of fatty acids in oils suitable for industrial applications.


This study investigated educational developers' perspectives on the conduct of assessment in Australian universities when online components were introduced into courses or subjects. To advance the inquiry, four research questions were developed that focussed on: the characteristics of educational developers that influenced the assessment advice they provided to academics; significant influences upon educational developers' thinking about assessment; critical assessment issues they identified when online components were introduced; and how to represent their thinking about assessment when it was conducted partially or fully online. The method of research was located within a qualitative, interpretive paradigm based on multiple case studies associated with the six participants who were employed in different Australian universities. Data collection involved three interviews with each participant, conducted in three consecutive semesters between June 2004 and July 2005. Data were digitally recorded during each interview, transcribed and then electronically imported into the qualitative software program Nvivo. Techniques of qualitative analysis were used to identify, describe and interpret critical components in participants' thinking about forms of assessment they were encountering online. The main conclusions of the inquiry were that (1) although the characteristics of educational developers in the sample group were described, their relevance became more apparent within the larger university contexts in which they worked; (2) significant influences upon educational developers occurred at an individual, as well as an institutional level and these were represented in a model that encapsulated key components in respondents' perspectives; (3) critical issues identified by respondents revolved around the difficulties of establishing the identity of online students, how to assess online discussions appropriately, use of the term 'interactivity', the value of online quizzes, determining transparent criteria for assessing online group work, embedding generic attributes in online assessment, criterion-referenced assessment, assessing international students online and the impact of university assessment policy; and (4) educational developers' perspectives on assessment were represented in three models: assessment online in traditional campuses, assessment online with a supported model in traditional campuses and a strategic, off-campus/off-shore model for assessment conducted online.


Recently GSI presented the plans for a major new international research facility, called FAIR. A key feature of this new facility will be the delivery of intense, high-quality secondary beams which embody the production of antiprotons. For the antiproton beams a High Energy Storage Ring (HESR) is comprised. The design luminosity is 2·1032cm-2s-1. Experiments will take place at an internal target. The rich spectroscopy program on exotic hadrons with antiproton beams is presented.


Current status and future perspectives for SOI (silicon-on-insulator) using Smart Cut technology will be reviewed. First, industrial growth of SOI production mainly driven by MRJ and low-power LSI applications will be presented, with a focus on the rapid growth of 300mm SOI wafer production and advancement of Si thickness control. Next, versatility of the bonding (Smart Cut) technology will be described, exemplified by the future device candidates, such as strained-Si on insulator, ultrathin FD structures, FinFET, combination of different crystal orientations, and Ge-on-insulator. Thirdly, it will be shown that bonding technology can be extended to realize totally different functions, such as SO (silicon-on-quartz) and combination of Si technology with compound semiconductors, which cannot be realized by conventional bulk Si nor bulk compound semiconductors. Throughout this presentation, it will be shown that wafer bonding technology provides not only solutions for survival of CMOS scaling, but also contributes to diversification of functionality in LSIs, which will meet the needs of the future IT society.


The low-resolution photoelectric position sensor is used, that is, Hall position sensor replaces the traditional photoelectric encoder and other high-resolution position sensors to monitor the rotor position. However, because the three-phase Hall position sensor can only output six
 position signals, a hardware circuit design of low-resolution position sensor monitoring rotor position signal is proposed. Meanwhile, nanotechnology has been introduced in the study of micro drive of battery electric vehicle (BEV). BEV driver has some disadvantages such as hysteresis, creep
 and nonlinearity, which seriously affects its application in nano environment. A nano displacement sensor is designed for the characteristics of BEV driver. The nonlinear problem of micro driver is solved through the closed-loop control of position feedback. In the test, through the verification
 of rotor position and current waveform, it can be proved that the method based on photoelectric position sensor and rotor position signal monitoring can ensure the low deviation of rotor position calculation and correct output signal of three-phase photoelectric position sensor. The decoupling
 performance of vector control is verified by 3/2 transformation. In the displacement detection of micro driver, the designed nano displacement sensor has higher resolution and its performance is better than that of the previous three generations of displacement sensors.


Abstract : IN THE EVENT OF THERMONUCLEAR WARFARE IT IS ANTICIPATED THAT THERE WILL BE LARGE NUMBERS OF LOW VELOCITY MISSILE WOUNDS OF THE SOFT TISSUE STRUCTURES. The current treatment procedure for this type wound will not be applicable due to many factors, most important of which will be the lack of qualified medical personnel. The aim of this project was to gather sufficient data that might have been used to establish minimal treatment requirements which could be followed, at a later date, by definitive treatment and still yield a well healed wound. To attain this end a pilot study was initiated and completed utilizing 20 dogs as the experimental animal. The Ivalon Sponge Biopsy Technique was used in this study and was found unsatisfactory for reasons explained in this report.


The overhauled Steam Turbo unit 1 of Huaneng Shantou Power Plant incurred superstandard vibration during start up and operational periods. With the analysis of the unit structure and various influencing factors which may cause the vibration, it draws a conclusion that the high exhaust steam temperature of LP cylinder is the immediate cause of the vibration in start up period, while the great circulating water inlet pressure of the condenser is the reason for the vibration during operation. The author suggests that the former vibration be eliminated by slightly opening the LP by pass, spraying on it and starting the second main vapor extractor; the latter vibration be removed by adjusting the seawater return valve of the condenser to make pressure on both sides of the inlet equal to or less than 0 10 MPa.


The study compared the influence of chitosan sources on rumen fermentation, methane emission and milk production in lactating dairy cows fed a glycerin-based diet. Six, lactating Holstein-Frisian crossbreeds (410 ± 5.0 kg BW, 120 ± 21 day-in-milk), were arranged in a 3 x 3 replicated Latin square design. In addition to control, a 2% chitosan extract supplement and a 2% commercial chitosan supplement of dry matter intake were the treatments. The results denoted that no significant differences on daily dry matter, nutrients or estimated energy intake were noted when cows received different sources of chitosan. Nutrient digestibility was not influenced differently by extraction based or commercial chitosan supplements. The pH, temperature, ammonia nitrogen, blood urea and microbial count were similar among treatments. The different sources of chitosan supplements did not change the totals of volatile fatty acids, acetate and butyrate; in contrast, different chitosan sources influenced (P<0.05) propionate content. The ruminal acetate to propionate ratio was markedly (P<0.05) reduced with chitosan supplement, but no change appeared between sources of chitosan. At 4 hours after feeding, the methane estimation significantly decreased with the addition of chitosan supplementation (P<0.05) compared to the control group. The purine derivatives and microbial protein synthesis were not altered by the treatments. No significant differences existed on milk yield, milk composition or milk urea nitrogen when cows received different sources of chitosan (P>0.05). In sum, supplementing extracted chitosan showed more potential than did commercial chitosan for enhancing economic efficiency and recycling shrimp residues, therefore, reducing environmental waste.


This proceeding includes original and peer-reviewed research papers from the 3rd International Conference on Frontiers of Materials Synthesis and Processing (FMSP 2019), which held from 9 to 10 November 2019, in Sanya City, China. FMSP 2019 aims at creating a meeting point for researchers and practitioners that from both China and abroad to exchange ideas in the domain of Materials Synthesis and Processing and related topics with its prospective application in the various interdisciplinary domains of engineering, including not only technological issues but also social issues. FMSP 2019 received 791 manuscripts, and 120 submissions had been accepted by our reviewers. Articles submitted to the conference should report original, previously unpublished research results, experimental or theoretical and must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere. We firmly believe that ethical conduct is the most essential virtual of any academic. Hence any act of plagiarism is a totally unacceptable academic misconduct and cannot be tolerated. The committees of FMSP 2019 invested great efforts in reviewing the papers submitted to the conference and organizing the sessions to enable the participants to gain maximum benefit. Hopefully, all participants and other interested readers will benefit scientifically from the proceedings and also find it stimulating in the process. With our warmest regards, Lin Liu Conference Organizing Chair Wuhan, China


A replication scheme is an effective method for maintaining a high hit rate for target files. This paper proposes a new replication scheme that scatters 'replicas' of files to other servants on a P2P network for the purpose of dispersing query and download traffic. First, the details of this proposed scheme are described and its parameter tuning is discussed by introducing rating functions. Second, the effectiveness of this scheme is evaluated by simulation. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme has superior performance for some characteristic values, such as the hit rate and the number of mean hops to the target servant, compared with other schemes. Finally, the influence of departure rate is discussed.


Speech emotion recognition is a hot topic nowadays. In order to improve recognition rates, we propose a new solution based on kernel principal component analysis (KPCA) and optimized SVM. KPCA reduces features dimension, while the gravity search algorithm (GSA) is used to optimize support vector machine (SVM) classification performances. We show that KPCA with Gaussian kernel function applied to the Berlin emotional speech database, KPCA outperforms the classical principal. On the other hand, we present experimental results showing that the GSA-SVM model achieves higher recognition rates and runs faster than two classical optimized SVM namely the SVM-particle swarm and the SVM-genetic algorithm. Combined together the KPCA-GSA/SVM achieves good recognition rates.


Spatial heterogeneities of total carbon(C),total nitrogen(N),total phosphorus(P),and total potassium(K) contents in black thin-layer soil in Shuangcheng City,Heilongjiang Province were analyzed by geostatistical method.Results showed that all of them had the significant spatial heterogeneity.The spatial distribution of total C was affected by the depth of dark soil and it had high spatial similarity with total P.Total K had the least spatial heterogeneity and its variability is little in entire area except in the central and southwest areas.Total C was correlated positively with total N and total P,and total N,negatively with total P.However,total K was correlated negatively with total C,total N,and total P.Total C,total N,and total K were greatly affected by soil structure factors and their effects accounted to 86.8%,85.4%,and 81.8%,respectively.Total P was affected equally by structure and random factors.


RNA interference (RNAi) has revolutionized biology — it has changed the way in which we view gene regulation and is a heaven-sent tool for studies of gene function and, potentially, for gene therapy. But, has the time come for us to re-evaluate the 'power' of RNAi? Two recent reports, one by Bridge et al. and the other by Sledz et al., show that RNAi might not be as specific as we had thought and that small interfering (si) RNAs, either chemically synthesized or transcribed from vectors, induce an interferon response. When RNAi was first reported in worms and flies, the enthusiasm of those working with mammals was marred by the fact that long 500-bp RNAs, which worked so well in invertebrates, induced a nonspecific interferon response that resulted in a transcriptional shut down of the cell. This problem was overcome by the direct use of short RNAs, into which the 500-bp fragments are cut anyway to mediate RNAi. Bridge et al. used microarray analysis of cells that had been infected with viruses that express short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs), which are intra-cellularly processed into siRNAs. Although several siRNAs specifically silenced their target genes, the trans-duced cells also activated the inter-feron target genes. Despite their findings, the authors do not rule out future use of RNAi, but suggest that the lowest effective concentration should be used to minimize the non-specific interferon response. Sledz et al. show that the non-specific effects extend to chemically synthesized siRNAs. Also using micro-arrays, they conclude that siRNAs activate the JAK-STAT signalling pat-way, which is implicated in interferon-mediated stress responses. Sledz et al. also reveal some of the mechanism by which siRNAs activate the interferon pathway. They show that PKP — a dsRNA recognition protein that is part of the signal transduction pathway that regulates cell growth and stress responses — is activated by siRNAs in a concentration-dependent manner , and is required for the inter-feron response. By using cell lines that lack the interferon response, the authors show that this pathway is not normally required for specific gene silencing by siRNA. As Bridge et al. point out, interferon induction by siRNA might have eluded us so far because tissue-'culture experiments use cell lines that are derived from tumours in which the interferon pathway is defective. Neither group suggests that their findings mean the end of RNAi as a basic research tool, but we will need to be …


Large egg-associated outbreaks of Salmonella Typhimurium 135 (STm135) that were associated with inadequate food safety practices but also linked to a common poultry farm occurred in Tasmania in 2005. A series of public health interventions were implemented to prevent further occurrences but 2 more egg-associated outbreaks in Tasmania in March 2007 and January 2008 led to a further 66 cases of STm135. This report describes these outbreaks and their links to the common source associated with the outbreaks in 2005.


High temperature composite flooding systems with oil-washing,profile-controlling,viscosity-reduction functions were developed.It is used to solve the severe problems which were faced in the late development stage such as heavy oil reservoirs pressure declining greatly and ineffective steam channeling in high permeability zones,etc.FCY high temperature multifunctional foamer was researched as foaming agent of high temperature composite flooding systems,and plugging capacity of foam was measured by stable method.Effects of percolation velocity on plugging pressure differential and gas percolation mechanism under the existence of foam were researched by percolation experiments.Moreover,the resistance factor foam percolation model was built up based on experiment results of foam percolation mechanism.Good consistency between results from model and experiment results was found,and shear-thinning behavior of foam is described preferably.Effect of whole parameters,such as critical water saturation,capillary number,on gas percolation was also performed,and theory support is provided for steam-foam flooding in heavy oil reservoirs.


may ultimately seek psychiatric help, and thus become available for psychodynamic investigation. It would be expected that these individuals would be characterized psychologically by minimal representation of the need to submit to a parent figure. This need could be evaluated by inference from an examination of the transference relationship to the psychiatrist viewed as a parent figure. A preliminary study along these lines (EI-Islam, i g6~) revealed a predominance of aggressive, contemptuous and controlling, but not submissive relationships to the psychiatrist among neurotics who failed to benefit from the rituals. A larger study is planned to explore this subject in greater depth.


Time domain closed-form analytical solutions to the coupled telegrapher`s equations for the voltage and current on a lossless multiconductor transmission line are presented. The resulting expressions are obtained in the form of exact time domain propagators operating on the line voltage and current. Time domain numerical methods are developed and examples showing exceptionally accurate results are obtained for uniform and nonuniform; symmetric and asymmetric strip lines.


Quality security requirements contribute to the success of secure software development. However, the process of eliciting security requirements is tedious and complex. It also requires requirements engineers to have security experience in the process of eliciting consistent security requirements from the clients-stakeholders. Most of the requirements engineers faced problems in eliciting consistent security compliance requirements from the clients-stakeholders as they misunderstood the real needs and the security term used. Thus, this resulted to inconsistent security requirements being elicited. The inconsistency leads to incorrect and insecure software systems being developed as well as to disruptions of schedule and increase of a project's expenditure. Motivated by these problems, this study is aimed to propose a new approach for consistency validation of functional security requirements. Here, security requirements specifications will be collected from software vendors to analyse the flow of functional security requirements process. Next, visual differencing will be integrated to cross-validate the consistency of the elicited functional security requirements with the best-practise template. Here, security requirements best-practice template pattern library will be designed and a new mathematical formulation that defines the consistency validation rules of security requirements will also be constructed. The formulation will be based on the security-related semi-formalised model, called SecEssential Use Case (SecEUC).This approach will then be realised with a proof of concept prototype tool and will be compared with the existing approaches, focusing on its ability to validate the inconsistency of the functional security requirements. Finally, this study is believed could provide a positive impact to the software industry by reducing the development cost as it allows the requirements engineers to validate the inconsistency that occurs in the elicited security compliance requirements at the early stage of the secure software development.


The compact airborne spectrographic imager (casi) is a pushbroom imaging spectrograph intended for acquisition of VNIR multispectral imagery from light aircraft. An ongoing development program has resulted in improvements to the radiometric calibration procedures, and the capability for roll correction and geocorrection of imagery acquired with casi. A variety of monitoring and research missions have been undertaken for aquatic and terrestrial applications and development of remote sensing methodologies.


This study is a follow-up study of research on the curriculum of college courses in Tourism Management at N University. In order to analyze Hotel Business Administration Major course catalog, data was acquired on preferred courses, most helpful course in understanding the major, and most useful course when going into industry from the Tourism Management majoring students in the previous study. The study uses Social Network Analysis(SNA) and the results are as follows. In response to the questionnaire on preferred courses, freshmen and sophomores showed interest in the Hotel and Catering course while juniors and seniors were more focused on courses on Hotel-related fields. For the question on the most helpful course in understanding the major underclassmen showed general interest in major-related courses due to their heavy course load on humanities and social sciences requirements. Meanwhile, upperclassmen showed strong interest in courses related to Hotel Management Theory. In response to the questionnaire on the most useful course when going into industry, underclassmen chose courses on Dining while upperclassmen picked both Hotel and Dining related courses. The study demonstrates that preferred courses and career paths of the students with similar majors at the same school show statistically significant difference among themselves according to their majors and coursework. Tourism Management majoring students had a wider range of career paths related to their preferred courses and other industry fields while Hotel Business Administration majoring students concentrated on career paths just related to Hotel and Dining. The study therefore shows that Hotel Business Administration majoring students are more focused on their majors than Tourism Management students.


Mechanical forces play crucial roles in a variety of cell functions, including growth, survival, proliferation, and migration. Rearrangement of actin cytoskeletal structures is one of the typical cell events in response to mechanical forces. For example, formation of actin stress fibers is greatly affected by tension increases in themselves induced by intrinsic contractile forces or extrinsic stretching forces. Here, we propose a novel hypothesis, "mechano-sensingby actin filaments". To test this hypothesis, we examined the effect of actin-modulating protein cofilin to single actin filaments with or without tension in the filaments. Relaxed actin filaments were severed by cofilin in less than ca. 20 s, whereas they were severed with a larger delay when the filaments were tensed. Single molecular imaging of cofilin bindings showed that the rate of cofilin binding to an actin filament was decreased in tensed filaments in comparison with relaxed filaments. These observations suggest that tension in the filament affects the apparent severing activity of cofilin by decreasing the on-rate of cofilin binding, and support the hypothesis that actin filaments act as a "negative tension senor".


https://catalog.olemiss.edu/2022/spring/undergraduate/liberal-arts/mathematics/math-564 Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 10:54:32 am CDT Math 564: Introduction to Dynamical Systems I Mathematics This course is an introduction to the theory of dynamical systems. The course will cover linear maps and differential equations, nonlinear systems, conservative dynamics, one-dimensional dynamics and connections with ergodic theory and number theory. 3 Credits Prerequisites Pre-req: Math 353 with a minimum grade of C or Graduate Standing. ●


The paper consists of two parts. In the first part the main characteristics of heavy sea are discussed that are essential for radar observation at grazing angles, the sea surface spike characteristics are analyzed in the framework of the statistical theory of random process surges above some boundary, the sea surface shadowing function is considered. In the second part the radar spike characteristics of sea backscattering at frequencies of 10.0, 35.0, 75.0 and 140.0 GHz are analyzed including the polarization and polarization-spectral characteristics of rough sea backscattered signals. During the spikes the depolarization coefficients, spectrum central frequency and spectrum width increasing is marked and the second maximum appearance in the scattered signal spectra is observed. The probable mechanisms are analyzed, the one of these is the backscattering from spray-drop fraction formed by breaking of sea wave.


Nanostructured powder of Ni–Zn ferrite was directly produced by high-energy ball milling of stoichiometric mixture of ZnO, NiO, and Fe2O3 powders. X-ray powder diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, annealing, treatment, and vibrating sample magnetometer were used to investigate the structural, chemical, and magnetic aspects of Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 compound. The crystallite size of final product after 60 h of ball milling time was estimated to be 17 nm. Heat treatment of ball-milled Ni–Zn ferrite was performed to study the thermal behavior of ferrite. The effect of copper doping on structure and magnetic properties of Ni–Zn ferrite was also studied. The results showed that the Zn replacement with Cu led to a decrease of magnetization.


This document assigns a Generic Associated Channel (G-ACh) Type for
carrying ITU-T MPLS Transport Profile Operations, Administration, and
Management (MPLS-TP OAM) messages in the MPLS Generic Associated
Channel. This document is not an Internet Standards Track
specification; it is published for informational purposes.


To optimize the formula ratio of base and prepare better glycyrrhetinic acid suspension nasal drops.Using formula adjuvant as factor,sedimentation volume ratio,dispersibility and particle diameter as the target,the best ratio of suspending agent was optimized by momfactor analysis and homogeneons design.The best ratio of prescription is glycyrrhetic acid:tween-80:HPMC=0.25:0.3:0.05.The ratio is better.


Fruit processors want to reduce their environmental footprint by implementing the recycling of treated wastewater. Observations of a membrane bioreactor (MBR) and reverse osmosis (RO) system showed that the RO quickly fouled due to elevated levels of soluble microbial products (SMPs), an inert micromolecular composition in the form of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the MBR effluent. Bench scale experiments were completed using enhanced coagulation and granular activated carbon sorption. Results showed that enhanced coagulation removed only 20% of the DOM, which was insufficient to protect the RO membrane. However, sorption studies with GAC showed that 98% of the dissolved SMP-DOM could be removed, the fraction of DOM from microbial activities. Results also showed that when enhanced coagulation preceded the sorption stage, GAC column run time could be extended by about 15%. The resulting BMP minimizes RO membrane fouling in the agri-food sector and opens further water recycling opportunities.


Growing recognition of women's critical economic and social roles has led to a worldwide focus on gender issues. Gender-related obstacles to effective participation in development must be overcome in order to reduce poverty. This Precis is a summarized version of the Bank's Operations Evaluation Department (OED) : Gender issues in the World Bank's lending, Report No. 21147, dated March 31, 2000. The study finds that the Bank adopted a deliberate stance on gender concerns for nearly 20 years. The Bank now focus on further developing gender issues in dialogue with members countries. This will require intensified managerial commitment and appropriate resources and incentives.


1 shows the feasibility of the successful introduction and large eff ect of rotavirus vaccination in Rwanda. The fi ndings are a tribute not only to rotavirus vaccination but also to the RotaTeq (so-called pentavalent or RV5) vaccine because Rwanda has used this vaccine exclusively in its immunisation programme. Several African countries have introduced rotavirus vaccination using the human rotavirus vaccine Rotarix and good eff ectiveness has been reported from South Africa 2 and Malawi. 3 The real-life eff ectiveness of RotaTeq in Rwanda was recorded in several ways and is convincing. After the introduction of rotavirus vaccination in 2012, admittance to hospital for gastroenteritis decreased by 49% in 2013, and 48% in 2014, and admittance to hospital for rotavirus in the hospitals doing specifi c rotavirus diagnosis decreased by 61% and 70% in the same period. The eff ectiveness is actually in line with the available prelicensure effi cacy data for RotaTeq in Kenya (83%) and Ghana (65%) against severe rotavirus gastroenteritis severity score (the Vesikari score)


Abstract In the tropics, broadcast seeded flooded rice (BSFR) was found to show a higher 15N recovery than transplanted rice (TPR) under the same fertilizer N management conditions mainly due to the higher initial growth rate at early stages as a result of the lack of transplanting shock. This study was conducted to compare the growth characteristics and 15N recovery at early growth stages between BSFR and TPR under conventional and delayed (low and high temperatures) planting environment in Japan. Under both planting environments, BSFR produced a larger number of tillers m-2 (600-700) than TPR (420-450) at the middle growth stage (89 d after seeding, DAS). However, TPR showed a larger crop dry weight accumulation at either planting time resulting in a higher total plant N uptake. Irrespective of the cropping method and time, dry weight was exponentially correlated with the plant uptake while 15N recovery showed a curvilinear relation to the N uptake. Under conventional planting, TPR showed a higher basal...


A laser protective wall for shielding a laser region having two, an internal space limiting (3) walls, of which a first wall of an inner wall (1) to the work area and the second wall forms an outer wall (2) is designed such that in the interior (3) at least one or more sensors (5) for detecting near-infrared radiation (NIR radiation) are arranged, which are connected to an evaluation and control unit (7) connected to the switching off of a laser source.


ABSTRACT Understanding human decision making about resource use is the common denominator in effective conservation that hinges on local community involvement. Rational choice theory provides an avenue for better assessing individual-level decision making, but its ability to adequately explain community-level cooperation remains in question. Focusing on two culturally distinct populations residing in Tanzania, East Africa, I employ rational choice theory to test hypothesized relationships between the degree to which local wood resource value is discounted, and individual decisions regarding rate and selectivity of fuelwood extraction. I then relate variation in demonstrated valuation of fuelwood resources to the existence of working rules that monitor fuelwood extraction practices. I find evidence for population-level variation in future discounting of fuelwood resources, reflected in selectivity and rates of use. Evidence of rules that monitor fuelwood extraction practices did not, however, relate to future valuation of fuelwood resource, but rather to the cultural identities of the two populations.


We performed a cohort study on patients with lumbar stenosis and degenerative spondylolisthesis (DS) who underwent decompression alone (DA). At 2-years there was significant improvement in all outcome measures with low rate of intraoperative/postoperative complications and subsequent surgery. DA was found effective and safe for lumbar stenosis with DS. Study Design. Cohort study. Objective. To study the clinical outcome, complications and subsequent surgery rate of DA for lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) with DS. Summary of Background Data. There is still no consensus regarding the treatment approach for LSS with DS. Methods. We performed a retrospectively designed cohort study on prospectively collected data from a single high productive spine surgical center. Results from the Swedish Spine Registry and a local register for complications were used for the analyses. Patients with LSS and DS (>3 mm) who underwent DA during January 2012 to August 2017 were included. Patient reported outcome measures at baseline and 2 years after surgery were analyzed. Complications within 30 days of surgery and all subsequent surgery in the lumbar spine were registered. Results. We identified and included 346 patients with completed 2-year follow-up registration. At 2-year follow-up there was a significant improvement in all outcome measures. The global assessment success rate for back and leg pain was 68.3% and 67.6% respectively. Forty-one patients had at least 1 intra- or postoperative complication (11.9%). Nine patients (2.6%), underwent subsequent surgery within 2 years of the primary surgery whereof 2 underwent fusion. During the whole period of data collection, that is, as of June 2020, 28 patients had undergone subsequent surgery (8.1%) whereas 8 of them had had 2 surgeries. Fifteen patients underwent fusion. Conclusion. DA provides good clinical outcome at 2-year follow-up in patients with LSS and DS with low rate of intra- and postoperative complications and subsequent surgery. Our data supports the evidence that DA is effective and safe for LSS with DS. Level of Evidence: 3


Human pressure on the environment has steadily increased throughout the last few decades, especially in Southeast Asia. This part of the world is also particularly rich in biodiversity and an appropriate biological knowledge is in high demand by the civil society which is actually asking for a "greener" life and the questions of quality of life are rising more and more. Unfortunately, plants recognition/identification skills of people in these countries are still limited. However, this skill can be improved with the aid of information technology. Recently, a number of works have been dedicated to plant information collection, plant information management and plant recognition. However, the developed systems are far from user requirement. In this paper, we present our computer aided plant identification system. The developed system contains two main parts: a semi-automatic graphical tool and an automatic plant identification method based on leaf images. Feedbacks from end users for graphical tool show that this tool does not have disadvantage of the classical tools (too technical, not sufficiently precise) while the experimental results of automatic plant identification method based on leaf image analysis are promising.


This paper provides evidence on the short-run reactions of an emerging financial market to monetary policy announcements. An instrumental variable estimation approach is employed, based on the 'identification through heteroscedasticity' technique, to estimate the impact of a change in the official interest rate and its surprise component on asset prices in Poland. The recently introduced methodology controls for possible feedback relationships between financial variables and official interest rate changes. In this analysis, the short-term interest rates respond significantly to official interest rate changes, but neither the long-term interest rates, stock indices, nor foreign exchange rates react to monetary announcements in the expected direction.


Fifty-eight reading disabled children referred to a medical clinic for developmentally disabled children were examined on admission and after 3 to 5 years of special educational intervention. As a group, the children showed minimal gains in reading, remaining among the poorest readers for age. However, one-third of the children (mainly the older ones) made sufficient progress which, while slowly achieved, resulted in a minimal degree of functional reading. A high proportion of the children were diagnosed as having neurologic and/or psychiatric disorders which were unrelated to the level of reading failure found within the group. The findings suggested that such children are not representative of the general population of poor readers in the community and that throughout their schooling they require special educational methods, other than reading, for the acquisition of subject matter.


Cofilin is an actin‐binding protein that depolymerizes and/or severs actin filaments. This dual function of cofilin makes it one of the major regulators of actin dynamics important for T‐cell activation and migration. The activity of cofilin is spatio‐temporally regulated. Its main control mechanisms comprise a molecular toolbox of phospho‐, phospholipid, and redox regulation. Phosphorylated cofilin is inactive and represents the dominant cofilin fraction in the cytoplasm of resting human T cells. A fraction of dephosphorylated cofilin is kept inactive at the plasma membrane by binding to phosphatidylinositol 4,5‐bisphosphate. Costimulation via the T‐cell receptor/CD3 complex (signal 1) together with accessory receptors (signal 2) or triggering through the chemokine SDF1α (stromal cell‐derived factor 1α) induce Ras‐dependent dephosphorylation of cofilin, which is important for immune synapse formation, T‐cell activation, and T‐cell migration. Recently, it became evident that cofilin is also highly sensitive for microenvironmental changes, particularly for alterations in the redox milieu. Cofilin is inactivated by oxidation, provoking T‐cell hyporesponsiveness or necrotic‐like programmed cell death. In contrast, in a reducing environment, even phosphatidylinositol 4,5‐bisphosphate ‐bound cofilin becomes active, leading to actin dynamics in the vicinity of the plasma membrane. In addition to the well‐established three signals for T‐cell activation, this microenvironmental control of cofilin delivers a modulating signal for T‐cell‐dependent immune reactions. This fourth modulating signal highly impacts both initial T‐cell activation and the effector phase of T‐cell‐mediated immune responses.