In this research work an objective method for evaluating the levelness (L) of coloured textile materials by spectrophotometric measurements is reported. Colour levelness is actually a description of the uniformity of colour shade in different places of the fabric. Thus, we use three different fabrics namely, wool, polyester and wool/polyester blend (65/35%), firstly these fabrics are treated with different uv/ozone exposure times continued for one hour exposure, followed by dyeing separately with three different dye classes; reactive, direct and acid. The colour strength (K/S) and colour difference ?E after exposing of the treated dyed samples to artificial day light are measured spectrophoto-metrically. The results of these measurements are statistically correlated with the levelness (L), relative standard deviation Sr (?), and the unlevelness (U). The obtained results showed that the dyeability, L parameter, U parameter and ?E values are greatly depend on the dye class used, fabric nature, and type of treatment applied. Where as these parameters reflect the effect of homogeneity of dye distribution on the fabric which decreases the colour fading of the dyed samples under test. Where uv/ozone exposure leads to the increase in the amorphousity of the exposed samples especially at the end of exposure leading to an increase in the exhaustion and diffusion of the dye inside the fabric pores besides, to its effect on districting the dye accumulation and hence increases the levelness of dyeing.


The study was conducted to investigate the external and internal egg quality characteristics of two local strains of turkey during their early reproductive age. A total of 96 freshly laid eggs were sampled from two local turkey strains having black and white plumages. The turkeys were 33weeks of age with two months into lay. Data were collected weekly for three weeks on egg weight, egg length, egg diameter, shell thickness, shell weight, shell index, albumen weight, yolk weight, albumen: yolk ratio, albumen length, yolk length, albumen diameter, yolk diameter, albumen height, yolk height, yolk index and Haugh unit and analyzed using the statistical package of SAS. The results revealed that highly significant (p 0.01) exits in most of the correlated traits with the except for Haugh unit that had no significantly (p<0.01) correlations. Thus, since significant variations exits between the two strains, selection activities are recommended to improve these economic traits in egg weight using it has an index in selection and in possible prediction of the quality of poults to be hatched. Also, economically, it may be used to know the consumers' preference on the quality of turkey eggs consumed.

L'etude a ete menee pour etudier les caracteristiques de qualite externe et interne des œufs de deux souches locales de dinde au debut de leur âge de reproduction. Un total de 96 œufs fraichement pondus ont ete echantillonnes a partir de deux souches de dinde locales presentant des plumages noirs et blancs. Les dindes etaient âgees de 33 semaines avec deux mois de ponte. Des donnees ont ete collectees chaque semaine pendant trois semaines sur le poids de l'œuf, la longueur de l'œuf, le diametre de l'œuf, l'epaisseur de la coquille, le poids de la coquille, l'indice de la coquille, le poids de l'albumine, le poids du jaune, le rapport albumine: jaune, la longueur de l'albumen, la longueur du jaune, le diametre de l'albumen, le diametre du jaune, l'albumine hauteur, hauteur du jaune, indice de jaune et unite Haugh et analyses a l'aide du progiciel statistique de 'SAS'. Les resultats ont revele que des differences tres significatives (p = 0,01) dans les caracteres externes se produisaient dans le poids des œufs, la longueur des œufs et le poids de la coquille avec la souche de dinde blanche superieure. En outre, les traits internes ont enregistre des differences tres significatives (p = 0,01) dans le poids de l'albumine, le poids du jaune, le rapport albumine : jaune, la longueur de l'albumine, la longueur du jaune et le diametre du jaune, la souche blanche fonctionnant mieux que la souche noire. Des correlations hautement significatives (p?0,01) existent dans la plupart des traits correles avec l'unite a l'exception de Haugh qui n'avait pas de correlations significatives (p?0,01). Ainsi, etant donne que des variations importantes existent entre les deux souches, des activites de selection sont recommandees pour ameliorer ces caracteres economiques en poids de l'œuf en utilisant un indice de selection et de prediction eventuelle de la qualite des dindonneaux a eclore. Aussi, economiquement, il peut etre utilise pour connaitre la preference des consommateurs sur la qualite des œufs de dinde consommes.


In this study, Mg-doped LiNbO3 nanoparticles are prepared and their photocatalytic ability is studied for bioorganic degradation application. It is found that their photocatalytic ability shows a pronounced dependence on the Mg-doping levels, and in particular an unusual threshold effect exists at the 2-mol%-doping level. Moreover, X-ray diffraction (XRD), SEM, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses show that the similar threshold effect also exists in the Mg-doping dependences of the crystalline anisotropy, morphology, and endothermic behavior of these LiNbO3 nanoparticles. The relevance between the basic properties and the photocatalytic activity of the LiNbO3 nanoparticles is discussed, and their Mg-doping dependences are finally connected with the (NbLi)4+ and (MgNb)3− defects in the lattice. It is suggested that both the morphology and the lattice defects of LiNbO3 nanoparticles contribute to the photocatalytic activity and that trapping holes is the essential way through which the (MgNb)3− defects make the contribution.


The first battery-electric Mustang was born out of an unexpected change of direction two years ago, and a realization that the technology could offer more than just rational appeal


Much of the forest land in New England, as elsewhere in the United States, is in small private holdings. How to get these small holdings under reasonably good forest management so that they can better contribute to the country?s need for a high sustained yield of good timber products is one of the forestry?s big problems.


Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) conduct message passing which aggregates local neighbors to update node representations. Such message passing leads to scalability issues in practical latency-constrained applications. To address this issue, recent methods adopt knowledge distillation (KD) to learn computationally-efficient multi-layer perceptron (MLP) by mimicking the output of GNN. However, the existing GNN representation space may not be expressive enough for representing diverse local structures of the underlying graph, which limits the knowledge transfer from GNN to MLP. Here we present a novel framework VQG RAPH to learn a powerful graph representation space for bridging GNNs and MLPs. We adopt the encoder of a variant of a vector-quantized variational autoencoder (VQ-VAE) as a structure-aware graph tokenizer, which explicitly represents the nodes of diverse local structures as numerous discrete tokens and constitutes a meaningful codebook . Equipped with the learned codebook, we propose a new token-based distillation objective based on soft token assignments to sufficiently transfer the structural knowledge from GNN to MLP. Extensive experiments and analyses demonstrate the strong performance of VQG RAPH , where we achieve new state-of-the-art performance on GNN-MLP distillation in both transductive and inductive settings across seven graph datasets. We show that VQG RAPH with better performance infers faster than GNNs by 828×, and also achieves accuracy improvement over


Most previous work on real-time event-based communication has assumed infrastructure-based networks. The underlying assumption of this work is that application components are stationary and that a fixed network infrastructure exists to facilitate communication between them [1]. Ad hoc wireless networks comprise sets of mobile nodes connected by wireless links that form arbitrary wireless network topologies without the use of any centralized access point. Ad hoc wireless networks are inherently self-creating, selforganizing and self-administering [2]. Such highly mobile, dynamic networks do not satisfy the design assumptions for previous real-time event-based communication. In this paper we propose a conceptual model for real-time event-based communication in mobile ad hoc wireless networks. Our model is designed to alleviate the impediments to real-time event-based communication that are characteristic of a mobile ad hoc wireless environment, for example, dynamic connectivity, unpredictable latency and limited resources. The model we propose is the first to directly address the issue of achieving timeliness and reliability for real-time eventbased communication in dynamic mobile ad hoc wireless networks. In this paper we describe the impediments imposed by ad hoc wireless networks on real-time event-based communication, and propose techniques, in particular prediction, to help overcome them.


The dynamic structure factor $S(\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{\mathrm{Q}},\ensuremath{\omega})$ for a Bose-condensed system is calculated microscopically at temperatures where there are a significant number of thermally excited quasiparticles present. Our work is based on the one-loop diagrammatic approximation, which has been used by Wong and Gould to discuss the low-temperature limit. In our numerical calculations (for $Q=0.35 \mathrm{and} 0.8$ ${\mathrm{\AA{}}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$) of proper, irreducible quantities, we use the Bogoliubov approximation for the coherence factors in conjunction with the experimentally determined quasiparticle spectrum. We find that at high temperatures, the collisionless phonon resonance exhibited by $S(\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{\mathrm{Q}},\ensuremath{\omega})$ has a width which increases with the number of thermally excited rotons, in rough agreement with the neutron scattering data of Cowley and Woods as well as those of Woods and Svensson. Our results are compared with those based on a phenomenological treatment of the phonon-roton coupling.


Read more and get great! That's what the book enPDFd art and understanding towards a humanist aesthetic will give for every reader to read this book. This is an on-line book provided in this website. Even this book becomes a choice of someone to read, many in the world also loves it so much. As what we talk, when you read more every page of this art and understanding towards a humanist aesthetic, what you will obtain is something great.


We discuss a way to increase surface plasmon polariton (SPP) propagation lengths and intensities. It involves reflecting radiation loss back to the propagation surface, regenerating SPPs. This is achieved with a metal-dielectric structure, which is also designed to efficiently couple in external light. Flexibility in the design of the structure allows for optimization of SPP properties. Extensive finite-difference time-domain simulations, including coupling external light into the system, demonstrate the approach.


The preliminary interpretation results of monitoring data of hydrodynamic parameters of groundwater in Dnepropetrovsk region for the purpose of tectonic changes forecast in the massifs are given. The necessity of creation the national data base of monitoring results of groundwater hydrodynamic parameters, executed at all regions of Ukraine, is pointed out.


Abstract : The purpose of this project was to evaluate the potential effects of leachates from upland dredged material disposal areas on groundwater quality. A laboratory simulation was developed using Plexiglas lysimeter columns filled with two types of interfacing soils and dredged materials obtained from five actual upland disposal sites. Various leaching solutions were passed through both a dredged material and an interfacing soil placed in tandem in a Plexiglas lysimeter. Several types of water samples were studied. The study showed that the migration of constituents in dredged material/interfacing soil systems is complex; no single mechanism can account for the various trends and levels of migration. The major mechanisms that appeared to affect the migration of constituents from dredged material were solubilization, adsorption, complexation, redox reactions, ion exchange, and dilution.


This review encompasses on the most recent applications and fabrication methods of plant essential oil based nanoemulsions. The spice based nanoemulsions have promising medicinal applications like antimicrobial and anticancer activity.


In electronic reconnaissance system,how to detect linear frequency-modulated(LFM) signal quickly and effectively especially under the circumstance of multi-component and complicated modulation is an important problem. In this paper,by using the characteristics of the LFM signal in fractional domain,the algorithm of kurtosis detection based on high-order culmulative weight in fractional domain is put forward, and the detection performance of the algorithm is analyzed qualitatively.The results demonstrate that the kurtosis detection has good detection ability to both single component and multi-component LFM signal,and also can complete the detection under the circumstance of low signal-noise ratio.


As a result of increasing pressure from the European Commission and environmental groups the UK Government announced, in March 1990, that it would no longer allow the discharge of untreated sewage to the sea. This decision has resulted in a reappraisal of the scope of many coastal and estuarine improvement schemes and it has been necessary to determine how existing schemes can be adapted to allow for building primary or secondary treatment works, depending on the populations and the nature of the receiving waters. The potential environmental impact of new works and of sludge disposal causes considerable concern to populations near to potential sites and extensive consultations are required to ensure that an acceptable location is found. Such consultations are difficult at times when the objectives are fully supported by existing legislation but even more difficult when there is a good chance that more stringent objectives are soon to be adopted. As a result of the decisions so far made by the UK Government the cost of providing sewage treatment facilities will increase considerably over the next few years. Since these costs must be borne by the customers it will be interesting to see whether they regard the environmental improvements as good value for money and continue to support moves for even higher standards.


human
  labor,
  though
  they
  differ
  in
  the
  ways
  in
  which
  they
  foreground
  their
  embodiment
  of abstract
  labor.
  As
  Marx
  argues,
  "The
  body
  of
  the
  commodity,
  which
  serves
  as
  the
  equivalent,
  always figures
  as
  the
  embodiment
  of
  abstract
  human
  labour,
  and
  is
  always
  the
  product
  of
  some
  specific useful
  and
  concrete
  labour."106
  While
  they
  are
  visual
  equivalents
  within
  the
  diegesis
  of
  the
  film,
  the abstract
  labor
  congealed
  in
  the
  "bodies"
  of
  the
  digital
  and
  analog
  images
  are
  founded
  on
  very
  differ-‐ ent
  forms
  of
  concrete
  labor. The
  bodies
  of
  the
  Spartan
  warriors
  depicted
  in
  film
  can
  be
  conceptualized
  as
  a
  form
  of
  ab-‐ stract
  human
  labor
  rooted
  in
  the
  concrete
  labor
  of
  physical/bodily
  exertion.
  Each
  Spartan
  body
  rep-‐ resents
  not
  only
  the
  work,
  suffering,
  sacrifice,
  and
  dedication
  needed
  to
  create
  it,
  but
  also,
  by
  proxy, the
  work,
  suffering,
  sacrifice,
  and
  dedication
  of
  the
  entire
  Spartan
  army.
  The
  Spartan
  army
  is
  a
  sin-‐ gle
  unit,
  fighting
  together
  in
  a
  phalanx
  and
  relying
  on
  each
  other
  to
  survive
  a
  battle.
  As
  such,
  the strength
  of
  the
  individual
  becomes
  the
  strength
  of
  the
  group,
  obscuring
  the
  singular
  labor
  required to
  form
  each
  physical
  body.
  The
  Spartan
  bodies
  thus
  come
  to
  represent
  labor
  in
  the
  abstract.
  Within the
  film,
  the
  men
  are
  not
  seen
  training
  (except
  as
  children),
  nor
  are
  they
  seen
  engaging
  in
  any
  sort of
  physical
  activity
  except
  waging
  war.
  Like
  the
  commodity
  in
  capitalism,
  these
  bodies
  arise
  in
  fully
  labor
  congealed
  in
  the
  "bodies"
  of
  the
  digital
  and
  analog
  images
  are
  founded
  on
  very
  differ-‐ ent
  forms
  of
  concrete
  labor. The
  bodies
  of
  the
  Spartan
  warriors
  depicted
  in
  film
  can
  be
  conceptualized
  as
  a
  form
  of
  ab-‐ stract
  human
  labor
  rooted
  in
  the
  concrete
  labor
  of
  physical/bodily
  exertion.
  Each
  Spartan
  body
  rep-‐ resents
  not
  only
  the
  work,
  suffering,
  sacrifice,
  and
  dedication
  needed
  to
  create
  it,
  but
  also,
  by
  proxy, the
  work,
  suffering,
  sacrifice,
  and
  dedication
  of
  the
  entire
  Spartan
  army.
  The
  Spartan
  army
  is
  a
  sin-‐ gle
  unit,
  fighting
  together
  in
  a
  phalanx
  and
  relying
  on
  each
  other
  to
  survive
  a
  battle.
  As
  such,
  the strength
  of
  the
  individual
  becomes
  the
  strength
  of
  the
  group,
  obscuring
  the
  singular
  labor
  required to
  form
  each
  physical
  body.
  The
  Spartan
  bodies
  thus
  come
  to
  represent
  labor
  in
  the
  abstract.
  Within the
  film,
  the
  men
  are
  not
  seen
  training
  (except
  as
  children),
  nor
  are
  they
  seen
  engaging
  in
  any
  sort of
  physical
  activity
  except
  waging
  war.
  Like
  the
  commodity
  in
  capitalism,
  these
  bodies
  arise
  in
  fully formed
  perfection,
  denying
  the
  labor
  needed
  for
  their
  creation
  and
  serving
  as
  a
  sign
  of
  abstract
  hu-‐ man
  labor. These
  bodies
  serve
  as
  complex
  sign
  systems
  and
  indexes
  to
  the
  "reality"
  of
  the
  analog
  image. The
  actors
  playing
  the
  Spartans
  really
  had
  to
  submit
  themselves
  to
  the
  pain,
  toil,
  and
  dedication
  of sculpting
  their
  physiques.
  They
  really
  had
  to
  train
  themselves
  to
  perform
  the
  stunts
  and
  other
  phys-‐ 106
  Marx,
  Capital:
  Volume
  1:
  150.


OBJECTIVE
To explore the effect of PI3K p85alpha gene silencing on the 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-induced apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells.

METHODS
The PI3K p85alpha/RNAi transfected cells (PI3K p85alpha/RNAi-LoVo) were cultured in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum and 500 microg/ml G418. The 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of 5-FU (0.000625, 0.00125, 0.005, 0.01, 0.02, 0.04, 0.08, 0.16, 0.32 micromol/ml) were evaluated by MTT assay. Mitochondrial membrane potential was detected by JC-1 fluorescence, and Western blotting was used to analyze the expression of apoptotic proteins Bcl-6 and Bim.

RESULTS
Compared with the untransfected LoVo cells, PI3K p85alpha/RNAi-LoVo showed obviously decreased IC(50) of 5-FU (P=0.000). The mitochondrial membrane potential of PI3K p85alpha/RNAi-LoVo cells was significantly lower than that of LoVo cells, suggesting that silencing PI3K p85alpha expression increased the sensitivity of LoVo cells to 5-FU. The expression of apoptotic protein Bcl-6 and Bim were significantly higher in PI3K p85alpha/RNAi-LoVo cells treated with 5-FU than LoVo cells (P=0.000).

CONCLUSION
PI3Kp85alpha gene silencing can significantly promote 5-FU-induced apoptosis of colorectal LoVo cells.


This report comprises the complete D5.1.1 deliverable as specified for workpackage WP5.1 in Subpro-ject SP5 of the DELIS (Dynamically Evolving Large-scale Information Systems) Integrated Project. The essential goal of the DELIS project is to understand, predict, engineer and control large evolving information systems. It is becoming widely recognised that large-scale distributed information systems could benefit from certain desirable properties found within naturally occurring biological (living) systems. Examples of these properties are: self-organization, adaptivity, robustness, scala-bility, self-repair, etc. In this deliverable, we give an overview of living systems, in terms of both the phenomena of life and the properties exhibited by life. Both the phenomena and the properties, we find, are of interest to engineers wishing to build systems with lifelike properties 1. 1 Most papers produced within DELIS are available from the DELIS website as DELIS Technical Reports. Where this is the case references are appended with the DELIS Tech Report number in square brackets. This indicates the paper was produced within the DELIS project, not some other project.


The network connectivity of one-dimensional wireless ad hoc networks was analyzed based on the pathloss channel model and the equal transmission range assumption.The connectivity probability was analyzed in both static and mobile cases with nodes distributed according to one-dimensional Poisson process.In the static case,the closed form formula of connectivity probability was derived,as well as the transmission power needed to achieve a certain level of connectivity.The condition which the transmitting range should satisfy to achieve asymptotical full connectivity was also proved.In the mobile case,the connectivity problem was studied based on generalized mobility scheme,by which the connectivity probability under the specific random waypoint(RWP) mobility scheme was further obtained.The connectivity probability predicted by the theoretical analysis coincided with the simulation results perfectly in most cases.


The modem Shanghai tabloid based its special humorous and cynical style by playing many aspects of criticism about society and the goverment since later Qing Dynasty.The marginalized criticism pattern by using a funny entertaining style meets the reading taste of the citizens on one side,and on the othe side,the establishment of the cultural space reflects the rebellion of the civic culture against the political authority and mainstream culture.


ABSTRACT Passwords remain the most common form of authentication in the digital world. People have increasing numbers of passwords, and many people undertake risky password management behaviours such as re-using passwords, writing them down and sharing them. It is unclear whether people persist in these behaviours because they do not understand the risks involved or the benefits of the behaviour outweigh the risk. Two studies investigated the relationships between people's perceptions of the risks and benefits of a range of password management behaviours and their self-reports of their likelihood of undertaking them. The first study involved 120 MTurkers in the U.S.A., the second study involved 128 respondents from 26 different countries including approximately 50% students. In both studies, respondents took rated the risks, benefits and likelihood of undertaking 15 password management behaviours. The two very different samples provided very similar results, validating our classification of password management behaviours into four components: Storing, Sharing, Loggingn and Change behaviours. Somecomponents were more affected by perceptions of the benefits, others were equally affected by the perceptions of the risks and the benefits. These results have implications for how information about risky password behaviours is presented to users and general education about password security.


Heartened by Aaron Director's formation of a law-and-economics cluster at the University of Chicago, this paper proposes a new cluster that shares a post nation-state, city-centered, vision for constitutional organisation. To this end, the paper introduces an economic model to illustrate the role of polycentricity in the stability and prosperity of polities. The model is inspired by Tinbergen's gravity model of international trade, and two-dimensional lattice models used in theoretical physics. The model suggests that constitutional constructs weave an evolutionary dialectic between different organisational scales (the local, national, and global). This dialectic continues to wreak havoc at the local scale, and can be interrupted only through explicit constitutional constraints on the size of 'jurisdictional footprints'. Polycentricity is interpreted in the spirit of (non-contiguous) charter cities, and through the scholarship of Baruch Spinoza's constitutional orders, as exemplified by the Dutch Republic (1581-1795). This rendition of sovereignty is imperative as much for countries facing the strife of civil war (including Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and the Ukraine) as it is for maturing economies. In a globalizing world that is more and more imbued with nation-state morbidity, there is a pressing need for a city-centric, 'Olympic world system'. A Chicago cluster bringing together scholars such as Gerald Frug, Paul Romer, Benjamin Barber, Yishai Blank, and Saskia Sassen, could see this vision come to fruition.


This study aimed to estimate the burden of diseases (BoD) from environmental cigarette smoke (ECS) exposure. More precisely, the study examined the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) related to cigarette smoking in municipal staff based on a prospective cohort study. This cross-sectional study was designed among municipal employees, aged 25-55 years in Qazvin, Iran during 2019-2020. The data on cigarette smoking and environmental exposure were obtained using a standard questionnaire. Finally, systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting blood sugar (FBS), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein, and low-density lipoprotein were measured to assess the relation between active cigarette smoking and the prevalence of NCDs, including hypertension and diabetes in workers. The prevalence of cigarette smoking was 16.2%. In addition, 15% of staff were exposed to ECS. The prevalence of anemia and high TG levels in current cigarette smokers was 2.71 (P=0.024) and 1.4 times higher than among non-smokers (P=0.027). The total number of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) caused by lung cancer, asthma, and ischemic heart disease (IHD) attributable to ECS was 0.65 per 1000 adults annually. Further, the number of 0.058 death was estimated per 1000 adults annually at the workplace. Most deaths were caused by IHD (79%), followed by lung cancer (12%) and asthma (9%). It was revealed that the number of DALYs and deaths attributable to secondhand smoke (SHS) was 0.34 and 0.3 vs. 0.028 and 0.029 per 1000 adults in men and women, respectively. The results demonstrated that exposure to ECS is an important factor in increasing the risk of the prevalence of NCDs and can increase the BoD attributable to cigarette smoking.


SARS-CoV2 (CoV2) infection causes both acute and long-term health effects via damaging multiple organs including lung. The endothelial dysfunction associated with the infection may contribute to pathogenesis of acute COVID-19 and long COVID. However, the mechanisms underlying the endothelial dysfunction remain elusive. Development of mouse models for these diseases will help us better dissect these mechanisms and facilitate the development of therapeutics for treatment of the disease. Previously, we developed an acute COVID model by infecting human ACE2 transgenic (K18) mice with a lethal CoV2 dose. K18 mice developed severe COVID-19, including progressive body weight loss and fatality at days 7 post infection (DPI), severe lung interstitial inflammation, edema, hemorrhage, perivascular inflammation, systemic lymphocytopenia, and eosinopenia. We detected CoV2 in capillary endothelial cells, activation and adhesion of platelets and immune cells to the vascular wall of the alveolar septa, and increased complement deposition in the lungs in this model. These results indicate that CoV2 infection and infection-mediated immune activation caused endothelial dysfunction, which contributes to the pathogenesis of severe COVID-19. To further develop a model for long COVID, we infected K18 mice with sub lethal CoV2 dose, monitored the body weight and survival rate and characterized the lung and brain histological changes at 21 and 45 DPI. The infected mice progressively lost body weights from 5 to 7 DPI and started to rebound from 8 DPI and then returned to baseline at 13 DPI. Mice had extensive patchy inflammation in the lungs associated with collagen deposition and smooth muscle action expression. We also found moderate levels of total viral RNA in the lung but not brain while viral subgenomic RNA (a correlate of viral replication) was undetectable in lung or brain by qRT-PCR assay. Fluorescence staining showed co-localization of CoV2 spike protein and CD206 in lungs, suggesting macrophage engulfment CoV2 at late time points. Together, we have successfully established long-term COVID mouse models, which will be useful tools for further defining the role of endothelial dysfunction in pathogeneses of CoV2-related acute and long COVID.


In order to overcome the shortcomings of artificial immune algorithm in the process of function optimization, such as low convergence accuracy and weak local search ability, an improved artificial immune algorithm is proposed by introducing a variety of methods and designing a dynamic shrinkage strategy. Firstly, Logistic-Cubic cascade chaotic mapping is introduced to initialize the algorithm, so that the antibodies are evenly distributed in the whole solution space to enhance the global search ability in the early stage of the algorithm. Secondly, when the antibody population is updated, the mutated clonal memory cells are used to replace the poor antibodies in the population to avoid the premature stagnation of the algorithm, and the dynamic weight is added to the calculation of antibody expectation value to make the algorithm adapt to more possible situations. Then, designing a dynamic shrinkage strategy with the Pearl curve model to improve the algorithm's convergence speed and accuracy. Seven typical test functions are selected as the experimental objects, and five different optimization algorithms are used as the comparison algorithm to optimize the experimental functions. The experimental results show the effectiveness and superiority of the improved artificial immune algorithm on the function optimization problem.


We give a brief overview of some three-dimensional toy models for higher-spin interactions. We first review the construction of pure higher-spin gauge theories in terms of Chern-Simons theories. We then discuss how this setup could be modified along the lines of the known topologically massive theories. Based on the talk presented at the 49th Course of the International School of Subnuclear Physics, Erice, Italy, 24 June – 3 July 2011


The grading entropy of a soil [S] is derived in terms of the more general concept of statistical entropy. It consists of two terms: the base entropy [So], arising from the difference in the width of the statistical cells in the conventional grading curve, and the entropy increment [∆S]. The goal of the research is to study which grading entropy plays the role of the "true" entropy in a thermodynamic sense (i.e. undergoes an increase during the crushing process being considered as an irreversible thermodynamic process): the entropy increment [∆S] or the sum of the base entropy and the entropy increment [S]. The soil samples are subjected to some crushing tests and direct shear test. The grading curve and the grading entropy are determined before and after each test. It is found that only the entropy increment [∆S] increases in the tests. INTRODUCTION The grading entropy of soils can be calculated on the basis of the formula known from theory or probability or from theory of information (Lorincz [1], [2]). The grading curve is a statistical distribution curve where the probability is in the function of the diameter [d] of the particles. The fractions are the grains "passing through one hole size, but retained by the next". The following equality can be written for the measured relative frequencies xi of the fractions: 0 1 1 ≥ = ∑ i i N = i x ; x (1) where N is the number of fractions comprised between the finest and coarsest ones. The sieve hole diameters are usually incremented by a multiplication factor of 2 (e.g. 0.5 mm, 1mm, 2mm 4mm etc) since d may vary across several orders of magnitude. The minimum grain diameter [dmin] is equal to the height of the SiO4 tetrahedron, 2 mm (Imre [3]). The fractions are numbered by increasing integers starting from 0 (Table 1). The limiting d values for the i-th fraction in terms of dmin can be calculated as follows: min i min 1 i d 2 d 2 > ≥ + d (2) Table 1. Properties of the fractions Fraction 0 ... 22 23 24 D [mm] 22 1-2 2-4 4-8 S0 [-] 0 22 23 24 The derivation is ended in the sum of two terms: the base entropy S0 and, the entropy increment ∆ S due to the mixing of the fractions: S S = S 0 ∆ + (3) i i N = i S x S 0 1 0 ∑ = (4) i i N = i x ln x ln S ∑ − = 1 2 1 ∆ (5) where S0i is the eigenentropy of the i-th fraction (Table 1). The grading curves can be represented by a single point in the following normalised coordinate system: 1 1 1 − − = − − ∑ = N ) i ( x S S S S = A N i i min o max o min o o (6) ) N ln( / x ln x ln ) N ln( / S B i i N 0 = i ⎟⎟ ⎠ ⎞ ⎜⎜ ⎝ ⎛ − = = ∑ 2 1 ∆ (7) where A is the relative base entropy, B is the normalised entropy increment. The admissible points form a compact set in the 2D space of A and B. The aim of the ongoing research is to examine the entropy path of some laboratory tests in this graph. METHODS, FIRST RESULTS In the first part of the research (Lorincz et al, 2004) some soil samples were subjected to successive crushing treatments, the grading curve and the grading entropy were determined after each treatment. It was found that only the entropy increment (∆S) increased monotonically with an increasing number of crushing-treatments. Therefore, in the ultimate state characterised by maximum entropy increment (∆S) the relative frequencies of the fractions are equal. In this part of the research some crushing and direct shear tests are made and, the grading curve and the grading entropy are determined before and after the tests. Two examples are shown in the following. Crushing test, wet compaction Results are shown in Table 2, Figures 1, 2. According to the results, the normalised entropy increment B increases, the relative base entropy A decreases. Table 2. Entropy coordinates in the crushing test A [-] B [-] initial 0.77705 1.067783 final 0.701289 1.194772 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Relative base entropy, A (-) 0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 En tro py in cr em en t, B [] A=2/3 maximal entropy increment after compaction before compaction Figure 1. Entropy coordinates in a crushing test 0.001 0.010 0.100 1.000 10.000 100.000 d [mm] 0.0 0.4 0.8 Pe rc en ta ge p as si ng []


AbstractWe propose a texture-based interpretation workflow and apply it to delineate salt domes in 3D migrated seismic volumes. First, we compute an attribute map using a novel seismic attribute, 3D gradient of textures (3D-GoT), which measures the dissimilarity between neighboring cubes around each voxel in a seismic volume across the time or depth, crossline, and inline directions. To evaluate the texture dissimilarity, we introduce five 3D perceptual and nonperceptual dissimilarity functions. Second, we apply a global threshold on the 3D-GoT volume to yield a binary volume and demonstrate its effects on salt-dome delineation using objective evaluation measures such as receiver operating characteristic curves and the areas under the curves. Third, with an initial seed point selected inside the binary volume, we use a 3D region growing method to capture a salt body. For an automated 3D region growing, we adopt a tensor-based automatic seed point selection method. Finally, we apply morphological postproce...


An eighty two year old man with a remote history of metastatic melanoma status post chemotherapy presented with fatigue, generalized weakness, low grade fevers, abdominal pain and weight loss. Positron emission tomography (PET) scan was obtained, which revealed diffuse and symmetric increased F-18 Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake throughout the large arterial vasculature in the neck, chest, abdomen, pelvis and lower extremities. CT angiogram showed subtle wall thickening involving the bilateral vertebral, bilateral axillary, left subclavian, abdominal aorta, bilateral common iliac, internal iliac, common femoral, superficial femoral, popliteal and anterior tibial arteries, consistent with large vessel vasculitis. Subsequent left temporal artery biopsy revealed multiple giant cells with associated lymphoid cells infiltrating all levels of the artery, but most focused in the media and adventitia, consistent with giant cell arteritis (GCA). The patient was started on prednisone, resulting in prompt improvement in his constitutional symptoms and normalization of his sedimentation rate.


The nutritional value of browse foliage from the Thorny Kalahari Dune Bush veld of South Africa is not characterized. Most of this browse species is rich in tannin, but still palatable, and is consumed by ruminants during the dry season, as well as having a role to play in mitigating enteric methane emission from ruminants. In this study, the rumen methane mitigation potential of 19 browse species foliage collected from the Thorny Kalahari Dune Bush veld, was analyzed in terms of chemical composition, in vitro fermentation, digestibility and methane production. In vitro gas and methane production and organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) were determined by using rumen fluid collected, strained and anaerobically prepared. A semi-automated system was used to measure gas production (GP) from each browse species by incubating 400 mg samples in a shaking incubator at 39 °C with or without inclusion of 400 mg of polyethylene glycol (PEG). Data for all the parameters collected were statistically analyzed using the SAS (9.0) general linear model (GLM) procedure, and differences between foliage species were determined using Duncan's multiple-range test. Acacia luederitziiand Monechma incanumshowed the best potential for decreasing methane production by up to 90 % after 48 h of incubation. The secondary components (mainly tannins) of the browse species appeared to have a significant effect on volatile fatty acids (VFA), methane and gas production as judged by the comparison of samples incubated with or without PEG inclusion. The substantial amount of crude protein (CP) content coupled with their anti-methanogenic effect during fermentation would make these browses a potential mitigation option for small scale farmers and pastoralists in sub-Sahara Africa. However, it is also very important that systematic and strategic supplementation in a mixed diet should be looked at as the way forward in terms of best utilization.


Prof. Dr. F.M. Saadawy, Hort. Res. Inst., ARC. ABSTRACT: A set of pot experiments were conducted under saran house conditions (65% shade) at the Experimental Farm of the Hort. Res. Inst., ARC, Giza Egypt during 2013 and 2014 seasons in order to study the influence of two commercial liquid products, Vege Grow (V.G.) and Phos Root-X (P. R-X.) at the rates of 1, 2 and 4 ml/l of irrigation water for each, as well as the 3 combinations between V.G. and P. R-X. at the rates of 0.5, 1 and 2 ml/l for each on growth and chemical composition of one-year-old seedlings of Mickey Mouse plant (Ochna serrulata (Hochst.) Walp.) cultivated in 16-cm-diameter plastic pots filled with about 1.5 kg of sand + clay + peatmoss mixture (1:1:1, v/v/v). The control seedlings received no treatment. The obtained results indicated that means of all vegetative and root growth parameters improved greatly as a result of applying the various treatments used in this study. However, the dominance was for fertilization with V.G. at 2 ml/l treatment which gave the highest means in most measurements of vegetative and root growth in the two seasons. Similarly were those results of leaf content of photosynthetic pigments, total soluble sugars, N, P, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn and protein, as content of these constituents increased in the leaves with various significant differences compared to control. Also,V.G. at 2 ml/l treatment recorded the utmost high content of most constituents above mentioned. Combining between V. G. and P. R-X. products did not induce any additional improvement neither in vegetative and root growth nor in chemical constituent contents, except for few cases. From the above results, it is recommended to fertilize one-year-old seedlings of Mickey Mouse shrubby plants, planted in 16-cm-diameter plastic pots with Vege Grow liquid commercial product at 2 ml/l two times/month during the growing season to get better growth and quality.


Spontaneous electrochemical noise (EN) can be a rich source of information concern-ing the processes simultaneously occurring at a corroding interface. Potential noisefluctuations during the free corrosion of pure aluminum in different concentration ofneutral sodium chloride solution are investigated, and the breakdown and restorationof passive metal's film are studied using potentiodynamic scanning (PDS) measure-ments and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique. Two capacitanceloops are observed in the Nyquist plots in two kinds of concentration, and the corro-sion process is under activation control at first, then become diffusion control withinthe oxide film and corrosion products of (Al(OH)p-m Cl-m) accumulated on the surfaceof the corroding electrode. It is suggested that the pitting corrosion is much easierto occur for pure aluminum in 7.0wt% than in 2.0wt% NaCl solution, and the highconcentration of chloride ion in solution inhibits the repassivation of a metastable pit.The corrosion rate deterministic step does not involve Cl-.


We have studied the radiative corrections from the fourth generation leptons in the context of the see-saw mechanism. We have estimated numerically the differential cross section for the process (${\rm e}^{+}{\rm e}^{-}\! \rightarrow {\rm W}^{+}{\rm W}^{-}$) at one-loop level, and found in the cross section the threshold behaviors for Majorana neutrino productions.


From a perspective of collective estimation principles, the authors worked out the technique of testing, for a hypothesis of identity of laws of distributions of random variables, based on nonparametric algorithms of pattern recognition. Results of its comparison with Smirnov and Pearson criterion are presented.


LF has been designed as a meta-logical framework to represent logics, and has become a standard tool for studying properties of logics. Building on the newly introduced module system for LF, we present the nucleus of an integrated and structured development of the syntax, semantics, and proof theory of logics, and of the relations between those logics. The methodology is chosen so that it will scale to an atlas for the zoo of logics currently used in reasoning systems, and the modular nature of this development aids the practical integration of systems because shared features of the logics are reused directly. Finally we show how these encodings in LF are imported into the Hets system, which provides automated proof support on the modular level and integrates various automated theorem provers for the represented object logics.


On 15 March 2004, the European Commission approved, subject to conditions, the acquisition by L'Air Liquide SA ('Air Liquide') of Messer Griesheim KGaA's ('Messer Group') activities in Germany, the UK and the US ('Messer'). The Commission was concerned that the merged entity would have become dominant on the European market for tonnage gases and jointly dominant with Linde in the German markets for bulk and cylinder gases.


The stabilisation region of turbulent lifted flames of methane has been investigated using simultaneous laser imaging of Rayleigh scattering, Raman scattering and OH·LIF. These images are used to derive mixture fraction, temperature, fuel mass fraction and OH concentration images. This enables the mixing field and the reaction zone of the lifted flames to be studied in detail. The images reveal that the oscillation in the lift off height of these flames may be caused by large scale vortices in the fuel jet pushing out into the reaction zone and causing entrainment of ambient coflowing air around the base of the reaction zone subsequently shifting it further downstream. It is proposed that the flame is stabilised through a combination of premixed propagation into fresh mixture and extinction due to the interaction of large scale turbulent structures in the jet. The large scale structures cause extinction by drawing ambient airin the base of the stabilisation region and convecting the reaction zone downstre...


. Upon the analysis of export situation of domestic drugs, this essay finds theoretical support from Michel Foucault's discourse analysis theory (including "external systems of exclusion", "internal systems of exclusion", and "restrictions on discourse subject"), probes into the writing features of English medical instructions in view of some social factors, and finally brings about some favorable writing guidance for export pharmaceutical English instructions.


Defroster for a motor vehicle interior trim part (200) with - an outlet opening (201) for an air flow, - a diaphragm (202, 202 ') to cover the outlet opening when switched defrost function, wherein said diaphragm is configured for translational movement, and - a drive (216) for the shutter to move the shutter in disconnected defrost function via the outlet opening.


Eye-tracking refers to a methodology that helps researchers understand visual attention by recording eye positions, pupil dilation, and capturing eye movement images of a subject. Since eye-tracking systems nowadays are becoming more and more participant-friendly and easy to use for researchers, the application of the technology in behavioral economics and finance has recently been growing fast. Specifically, over the past two decades, there have been about forty eye-tracking research papers in the field, in which more than forty percent of them has been published since the last two years. For this reason, a literature review of the relevant studies will provide an overview of the development of eye-tracking and thus help to shape future eye-tracking research in human decision making in behavioral economics and finance.


Fogging of protective head/eye gears is one of the most common problems in 80%[1] of cases in the daily practice of using PPEs during endotracheal intubation. Routine use of anti-fog treatment to prevent interference especially during airway management has been recommended.[2,3] Full body encapsulating PPEs increase sweating and the added heat with moisture contributes to noncompliance in continued usage of PPEs.


This paper introduces the structure of a 5 GHz model,and discusses the aggregate interference calculation process in detail,including operational scenarios setup,technical parameter setup,and aggregate inference calculation for radio local area networks and radar.A paradigm of 5 GHz is then proposed.


Nitrate reductase activity was measured during the stratification cycle of the eutrophic reservoir La Concepcion. Nitrate was consumed in the epilimnion mainly through assimilatory reduction, and in the hypolimnion through dissimilatory reduction triggered by anoxic conditions. Nitrate reductase activity (NR) scaled to particulate nitrogen (PN) was positively correlated with the external nitrate concentration and the NO3 ‐ /NH4 + ratio. Using NR as a tool for the assessment of the N cycle dynamics, it can be suggested that at the beginning of the stratification cycle, the phytoplanktonic community was mainly using NO3 ‐ as N source; and since N was not likely the limiting nutrient at that time of the year, NR was close to its maximum possible.


Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate residents' perceptions, preferences and satisfaction concerning the urban green infrastructure of Kalamaria, Greece, to evaluate the importance of urban parks for residents' well-being and to suggest management improvements.

Design/methodology/approach

– Following a random sampling method, 385 residents were interviewed. Green infrastructure number and size, design suitability, safety, variety and care of plants, noise pollution, facilities for people with disabilities and duration and frequency of visits to green areas were among the considered parameters. Factor and hierarchical log-linear analyses were conducted.

Findings

– The existing green spaces were insufficient in number, size and design, and their distribution was unsatisfactory. The facilities and equipment in the green spaces were evaluated as rather mediocre, and most respondents were unsatisfied with the overall planning and management of the green infrastructure in the municipality of Kalamaria. The results indicate that resident's well-being relates to their satisfaction with urban green infrastructure. Frequent and longer visits of green spaces significantly improved the perceived well-being. The residents expressed an intention to pay 20-40 percent more than the average price for a house with a view of a green area.

Originality/value

– Public perception surveys enable green infrastructure managers to identify preferred management alternatives and to use this information in an urban planning framework. Local authorities can use the results of the present survey to manage the city's green infrastructure, enhance the city's resilience and anticipate climate change challenges and the future needs of residents.


This thesis focus on the established the ways of writing instruction based on the writing theory. There are some theory in this research field. Formalism, constructivism, social constructivism, social congnitivism, and dialogitism about writing behaviors are there. This researcher has interested in the accommodation these writing theory on the writing instruction field selectively. Formalism, cognitive view, and social view about writing behaviors are not omnipotence theory. So researcher suggest selective accommodation these theory. researcher focus on the accommodation of these theory on the real writing instruction contexts. Expecially researcher` interesting fields are as following, the goals of writing instruction, contents, teaching methods and evaluation field.


A wide array of antioxidative and anti-inflammatory substances derived from edible plants have been reported to possess chemopreventive and chemoprotective activities. Among the most extensively investigated and well-defined dietary chemopreventives is curcumin. Using the Ames test and in vivo micronucleus test, chemiluminescence test, blastic transformation test, and comet assay, we examined the antimutagenic effects of the chemically identified chemoprotective substance curcumin (diferuloylmethane) in the pure form on mutagenicity induced by three reference mutagens: aflatoxin B 1 (AFB 1 ), 2-amino-3-metylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ), and N-nitroso-A-metylurea (MNU), and the effect of curcumin on the immunosuppression caused by these mutagens. Curcumin in the pure form showed a clear antimutagenic and immunomodulatory activities on mutagenicity and immunosuppression induced by reference mutagens.


For the study of the discharge parameters characteristics of different proportions of SF6/N2 gas mixture, thus the reason of synergistic effect was analyzed from the perspective of inter-particle interaction. With the `two-term' approximation to solve the Boltzmann equation, the discharge parameters of different mixing ratio of the SF6/N2 mixtures can be acquired including the electron energies distribution function (EEDF), the equivalent ionization coefficient (α/N) and the equivalent adsorption coefficient (η/N), as well as the equivalent effective ionization coefficient (α-η)/N, and the effectiveness of the calculation method and results are proved by comparing with other experimental data. The results showed that: With the reduced electric field E/N is increased, the EEDF in the low energy region (<;8eV) decreases, while the EEDF in the high energy region (>8eV) increases, and the phenomenon of EEDF dips exists near electron energy of 3eV that phenomenon will become more obvious with the increasing of N2, and this phenomenon does not exist in pure SF6 molecules; as the E/N increases, the equivalent ionization coefficient a/N has a significant increase, while the adsorption coefficient η /N is reduced, and the equivalent effective ionization reaction coefficient (α-η) / N also increases; with the percentage of SF6 increasing, the equivalent critical breakdown field strength (E / N)cr increases significantly.


techniques and methods of radioastronomic reception is available in our book collection an online access to it is set as public so you can get it instantly. Our digital library spans in multiple locations, allowing you to get the most less latency time to download any of our books like this one. Kindly say, the techniques and methods of radioastronomic reception is universally compatible with any devices to read.


ABSTRACT Snowflakes and ordinary hexagonal ice were studied measuring water proton spin–lattice relaxation rate -nuclear magnetic resonance dispersion (NMRD) profiles at proton Larmor frequencies ranging from 1 to 30 MHz and at different temperatures ranging from C to C. The spin–spin relaxation rate 1/ was determined at a single Larmor frequency of  MHz. The high-field wing of the proton -NMRD profile was characterised by two parameters: a correlation time which described the dipole–dipole spectral density, and the relaxation rate at low fields which was determined from . The correlation time depended on the dynamic model used. A rotation diffusion model yield approximatively s at C to about s at C, whereas for a more realistic six-site discrete exchange model, the correlation times decreased slightly to about 80% for the same temperature interval. Proton dipole–dipole interactions were divided into intramolecular and intermolecular contributions where the intermolecular contribution was about 0.4–0.8 × the intramolecular contribution. It was not possible to discriminate between the dynamic models or to detect ice/water interface effects by comparing the NMRD data from snowflakes with ordinary hexagonal ice data. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


Human lymphocytes and their subpopulations from the peripheral blood and pleural effusions of cancer patients were tested for cytotoxicity against fresh tumor cells isolated from carcinomatous pleural effusions of the same patients. Fresh tumor cells were relatively resistant to lysis by autologous unseparated lymphocytes in a 4 h Cr‐release assay. Positive reactions were recorded in 10 of 38 blood samples and 10 of 37 effusion specimens. Purification of large granular lymphocytes (LGL) by discontinuous Percoll gradient centrifugation resulted in enhancement of cytotoxic activity against autologous tumor cells and K562 cells, with no reactivity in LGL‐depleted small T‐lymphocyte populations. Significant lysis of effusion tumor cells by autologous LGL was observed in 15 of 22 blood specimens and 15 of 21 effusion samples. Further depletion of high‐affinity sheep erythrocyte resetting cells from Percoll‐purified LGL populations gave an increase in autologous tumor‐killing activity. Depletion of LGL/K562 conjugates from LGL populations decreased lysis of autologous tumor cells and K562 cells. Effusion tumor cells that were susceptible to lysis by allogeneic normal LGL were also killed by autologous LGL, and effusion tumor cells resistant to lysis by allogeneic NK cells were not lysed by autologous LGL. In a single‐cell cytotoxicity assay in agarose, 4–26% LGL bound autologous tumor cells and 0.2–5% LGL killed these target cells, while 12–45% LGL bound K562 cells and 2–20% LGL lysed them. These results indicate that cytotoxic potential for autologous effusion tumor cells is present in the peripheral blood and pleural effusions of cancer patients; it is strongly associated with a minor proportion of LGL and restricted to the cell population that can lyse NK‐sensitive K562 cells.


Chrysanthemums are well known for their esthetic and medicinal values. Characterization of chrysanthemums is vital for their conservation and management as well as for understanding their genetic relationships. We found 12 simple sequence repeat markers (SSRs) of 100 designed primers to be polymorphic. These novel SSR markers were used to evaluate 95 accessions of chrysanthemums (3 indigenous and 92 cultivated accessions). Two hundred alleles were identified, with an average of 16.7 alleles per locus. KNUCRY-77


In this work the control design problem for the Schrödinger equation with an arbitrary potential is addressed. In particular a controller is designed which (i) for a space-dependent potential steers the state probability density function to a prescribed solution and (ii) for a space and state-dependent potential exponentially stabilizes the zero solution. The problem is addressed using a backstepping controller that steers to zero the deviation between the initial probability wave function and the target probability wave function. The exponential convergence property is rigorously established and the convergence behavior is illustrated using numerical simulations for the Morse and the Pöschl-Teller potentials as well as the semilinear Schrödinger equation with cubic potential.


Objectives:To investigate the vasodilative effects of milrinone on the isolated pulmonary vasculature in human. Methods:Pulmonary vascular segments, collected after lobectomy of the lung from 26 patients, were divided into group A1(endothelium denuded arteries), A2(endothelium denuede veins), B1(endothelium intact arteries),and B2(endothelium intact veins).Vascular tensions were recorded under different concentrations of milrinone. Results:①Milrinone had strong vasodilative effects in all the four groups, the effect was dose dependent(from 0.1 μmol/L to 10.0 μmol/L).②The vasodilative effects between group A1 and B1, or group A2 and B2 were not different significantly. ③The dilative effect of milrinone on the pulmonary vein(group A2 and B2) was stronger than that on the pulmonary artery(group A1 and B1). Conclusions:Milrinone had concentration dependent endothelium independent pulmonary vasodilative effect. The dilative effect on the pulmonary vein was stonger than that on the pulmonary artery.


Two open ends and (2,3) cylindrical main body which contains the fluid to be administered to a patient having a (1), the plunger a (6) at the end of this one, the cylindrical body in a slidably mounted piston (4), a plunger passing through the opening of the first end of the tubular body, for connecting the needle or the like, connecting the tip of the cone in the form of a luer-type It is intended to be passed through the a and fluid in (9), connecting tip has an opening and communication with the cylindrical portion (10) of the second end and a (9), the tip includes a closure portion connected to the free end of the cylindrical portion by embrittlement zone (14) (13), closure is shaped as a single piece together with the tip and the cylindrical body, the pre-filled about hypodermic syringe. .FIELD 6


Flaws in the relationship between innate and adaptive immunity may favor the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a disease of exceedingly complex pathogenesis. The former signaling pathway is triggered by microbial products, while the latter is shifted towards nuclear components. The pattern-recognition receptors (PRR), most particularly the Toll-like receptors (TLR), are now appreciated for their crucial role in this crosstalk1. In fact TLR have moved to center stage, as critical sensors of pathogen-associated molecular patterns. In particular, flagellated bacteria bind to TLR-5, which defend the cell surface, and mount a robust type I interferon (IFN) response2, whereas TLR-9 are sequestered away from the plasma membrane of B and plasmocytoid dendritic cells (pDC), as an attempt to prevent undesirable activation of TLR-9. Although dedicated to unmethylated cytosine-phosphate-guanosine (CpG)-containing single-stranded DNA, these PRR are involved in anti-double-stranded (ds) DNA antibody production3. Interestingly, CpG dsDNA promotes autoantibody, engages TLR-9, and activates antigen receptors (B cell receptors) on B lymphocytes4 or Fc-gamma (Fcγ) receptors on pDC5. This raises the issue as to whether structural variations of the TLR influence their function or reflect the clinical outcome of the disease. One step further, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) may be sufficient to promote or resist SLE. Actually, every single nucleotide counts: for example, a stop codon in the TLR-5 gene has been implicated in vulnerability to pneumonia, and, unexpectedly, in protection from SLE. Such an association was established in a Caucasian SLE cohort using transmission-testing analyses6. One cannot exclude a linkage disequilibrium of SNP with nearby causative genes, because a case-control methodology failed to replicate this observation in a similar cohort of patients, as reported by Demirci and colleagues in this issue of The Journal7. It is no surprise that nucleic acid-related PRR have also been suspected to play a role in SLE. Based on the high expression levels of TLR-9 in B lymphocytes, but not in pDC, their involvement might be quantitative8. On the other hand, it might be qualitative and dependent on the diversity of the TLR-9 gene. Such genetic variations of a frontline receptor are most likely to produce an effect. No association of susceptibility to SLE has been found to date in Korean9, British10, or American7 patients. This occurrence locus should thus be extremely low. Nonetheless, type I IFN act as efficient defence agents against microorganisms, and present as important factors in the pathogenesis of any autoimmune setting. Further, this awareness is coupled with the fact that, due to defective clearance of apoptotic cells in SLE11, mammalian nucleic acids acquire the capacity to substitute for exogenous nucleic acids with respect to TLR-912. The genuine mechanisms might be much more complex than originally thought13. There is indeed increasing evidence that TLR are activated by endogenous ligands, and therefore regulated through hitherto ignored mechanisms. In addition, TLR require coreceptors for microbial recognition. These include the B cell receptors, CD14, or Fc receptors. Even more important, after TLR-9 triggering, B cells produce high concentrations of interleukin 10 (IL-10), preventing optimal IL-12 secretion by pDC and the subsequent Th1 priming.Although both CD5-expressing and CD5-nonexpressing B cells respond to CpG stimulation, only CD5expressing B cells make IL-10. This is paradoxical and raises the possibility that activation of regulatory B cells14 might result from the engagement of TLR-9. To conclude, there is an obvious need for further research in this field, before targeting TLR signaling in pDC and B lymphocytes as a therapy for SLE and various non-organ-specific autoimmune diseases.


The research progress on floral fragrance of orchid was introduced from the aspects of testing methods,ingredients,formation mechanism and gene engineering.And the research prospects were discussed based on the current problems.


The electric field gradient has been computed for 14N in ammonia, employing the one‐center SCF wavefunctions of Moccia, Joshi, and Rutledge and Saturno. It is found that the calculated values are comparable to that of a multicenter SCF wavefunction. Influence of configuration interaction on the electric‐field‐gradient calculation also is discussed.


Load frequency control of the hybrid system consisting photovoltaic system and thermal generator is performed in this paper. In this paper Maximum Power Point Tracking is performed in photovoltaic using modified hill climbing algorithm. Modified hill climbing is performed by combining fuzzy logic with hill climbing algorithm. The converter used is Boost converter. DC output obtained is converted to AC output by using single phase inverter. Grid connection is performed by using sinusoidal pulse width modulation. Transfer function model of the whole system is created. Transfer function model of the thermal generator is interfaced with the photovoltaic system to create two area systems. Load frequency controls of this two area system are performed. The simulation of the entire system is performed in the MATLAB SIMULINK.


Despite the unquestionable superiority of Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) over Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), the impact of TEE on the long term management of cardio-embolic strokes remains uncertain. The purpose of present study was to determine the extent to which TEE, influenced the decision regarding long-term anticoagulant management of patients with ischemic stroke in a University Hospital. Between January 1992 and May 1995, TEE was performed in 122 out of 485 consecutive patients with ischemic stroke enrolled in the Maryland Stroke Data Bank. The indication to perform TEE was unexplained cerebral infarction. Twenty five patients had a possible cardiac source of embolism (CSOE) detected only after a TEE out of whom 17 were placed on anticoagulant therapy. From the remaining 8 patients, 2 expired, 2 were already receiving anticoagulants for different reasons and 4 were managed with antiplatelet agents. To conclude, in 17 of 122 ischemic stroke patients (14%) who underwent TEE, the decision regarding long term anticoagulation was made only because TEE revealed a cardioembolic source.


Having demonstrated the importance of forensic anthropology in the positive identification of human skeletal remains, we consider it relevant to learn a basic management of the techniques by the students of the Medical Degree, in the context of the subject "Legal Medicine and Ethics". The main objective was to apply theoretical and technical knowledge on physical and forensic anthropology to identify real cases through group work dynamics, concluding with justified decision making. Sixteen 2-hour workshops were organized for groups of 8 students, using skeletal remains of 4 individuals mixed with animal bones. After the human remains were identified, the four skeletons were isolated and an inventory of the available bones was made. The basic biological profile of each of them was analyzed: sex, age and height. These data were entered in a protocol form, which they delivered at the end of the practice. Subsequently, they conducted an anonymous questionnaire of 10 items about the degree of satisfaction on contents, methodology, and utility in their training. With a response rate of 78.4% (n = 125), the highest mean scores were given to items related to: teacher and subject (χ 4,98; Dt. 0.14), expository clarity (χ 4, 94, Dt. 0.24) and adequacy of methodology (χ 4,92, Dt. 0,28). In addition to the favorable results obtained, it was objectified through the protocolized forms, the adequate resolution of real practical cases, based on a joint decision making and justified on the theoretical contents learned.


The purpose of this action research is to explore the ways mathematical discourse effects number sense in the primary classroom. A study was done in a first grade classroom with 18 students to determine if increasing mathematical discourse in the classroom through the use of "Number Talks" by Parrish and "5 Practices for Orchestrating Mathematical Discussions" by Smith and Stein, student number sense will increase. The findings suggest that through effective questioning in whole-group and small-group instruction, openstrategy sharing, and quantitative imagery, students' number sense will increase. Students in classrooms with rich mathematical discourse will potentially become more comfortable sharing math strategies and will be more confident in their own mathematical abilities. Sources of data collection include a district written and mandated test to measure number-sense in primary students, a student self-assessment, math unit tests, and teacher field notes. The study was conducted over a six-week time period, it may be more successful if done from the beginning of the school year.


Aim of this study is to determine nurses' knowledge and practice about food-drug interaction. This study was a descriptive and cross section. The target population included 90 nurses who works in clinics of internal diseases in two university hospitals in Ankara. The survey was conducted using questionnaire form developed in light of related literature by researcher. Data were entered and evaluated into the SPSS. 32.2% 26.7%, 24.4 % of the nurses had knowledge about effects of alcohol, calcium, grapefruit respectively. In regard to effects of drugs on minerals and vitamins in organism, 37.8% and 7.8% of the nurses had knowledge about effects of anticoagulans and antidiabetics, respectively. The status of nurses' knowledge according to subgroups by age, educational level and working years was assessed. As a result of the analyses no significant differences were found. 12.2% of the nurses expressed that content of nutrition was adjusted by nurses because of food drug interactions. Lesson of food-drug interaction should be put in curriculum of nursing education and topic of fooddrug interaction should be firmed by job training. Thus effects of treatment and quality of care could increase.


In this paper, the design problem and the robustness of space-frequency trellis codes for MIMO-OFDM systems are studied. We find that the channel constructed by the consecutive subcarriers of an OFDM block is a correlated fading channel with regular correlation function of the number and time delay of the multipaths. We decompose the correlated fading channel into two independent components: slow fading channel and fast fading channel. Therefore the design problem of space-frequency trellis codes is converted into the problem that we jointly design the space-time trellis code both in slow fading channel and in fast fading channel. We also show that the space-frequency trellis codes designed according to our criterion are robust against the time delay of multipaths. Simulation results are provided to confirm our theoretic analysis.


. The article is concerned with complex research and selection of the trends of industrial enterprise development, taking into account industrial peculiarities and compatibility of individual managerial decisions. Under the trend of development the authors imply a set of important functions of the enterprise and compatible managerial decisions within each function. A morphological analysis was devised to the study of compatibility of managerial decisions on important functions of the enterprise, which allows to justify the alternative directions of the enterprise development. The analysis was applied in terms of hardware production industry.


The invention discloses a kind of signal communication delay analogy method based on PSCAD/EMTDC, including:Communication time delay module is set up in PSCAD/EMTDC, port and the parameter of communication time delay module are set;According to the parameter of communication time delay module, apply for that space is used as data buffering and input and output pointer memory space in PSCAD/EMTDC global array STORI and STORF;Signal delay simulation is realized using data buffering using loop buffer mode.The present invention can be communicated with analog signal and is delayed, and efficiency high, accuracy are high.


Bose effect expan- sion and contraction in response to changes in ambient humidity. This property is unique to the organoceramic and is not observed in the unmod- ified calcium aluminate ceramic. The roughness of metallic surfaces generated by machining depends on the intended intervention by the tool and the inadvertent consequences determined by the response of metals. The roughness generated in four different metals by grinding is studied using the power spectrum method. It was found that the level of power is determined by the intended interven- tion such as the depth of cut and, to some extent, by hardness because of its possible influence on micropileup geometry. The power gradient is, however, influenced by inadvertent damage which may be related to material properties such as thermal conductivity and adhesion. Stability of fullerenes under hydrothermal Stability of fullerenes C 60 under hydrothermal conditions (200- 800 °C, 100 MPa, 20 min-168 h) has been investigated. The reaction products have been characterized by Raman spectroscopy and x-ray dif- fraction. The fullerenes were stable up to 500 °C, but they decomposed immediately at 800 °C into amorphous carbon. In the transition region between 600 and 750 °C, longer times and higher temperatures of the hydrothermal treatment favored decomposition of C 60 with the formation of amorphous carbon. Addition of nickel to the C 60 -H 2 O system neither suppressed hydrothermal decomposition of C 60 nor induced formation of other phases, except of the amorphous carbon. Alkyl phosphates can be used as sol-gel precursors for phosphate- based glasses and glass-ceramics. An improvement in the synthesis of alkyl phospates Is presented. Following the procedure here described, it is possible to limit the fraction of condensed phosphates to 1-2%. At the same time, a ratio between mono- and disubstituted phosphates near to that given by the reaction stoichiometry may be attained. Third-order nonlinear optical properties Na 2 S-PbS-GeS z sulfide The third-order optical nonlinearity of glasses of the Na 2 S-PbS- GeS 2 and Na 2 S-Pb0-GeS 2 systems was measured by the third-harmonic generation method. The third-order nonlinearities of glasses of both systems increased with the increasing lead content. The maximum value of the third-order optical nonlinearity was 3.00 x 10" 12 esu. The addition of PbO had basically little influence on third-order optical nonlinearity, and the largest nonlinearity is 1.49 x 10" 12 esu. The minimum appeared at 15 mol% PbO can be explained by the decrease of number density of lead and sulfur. Chemical durability of oxysulfide glasses is superior to that of a pure sulfide system, thus the addition of PbO is important in this sense. Two new compounds, GdBa 4 Cu 3 0 85+8 (Gd143) and DyBa 4 Cu 3 0 8 5+8 (Dy143) were synthesized from precursors Gd 2 O 3 , Dy 2 O 3 , BaO 2 , and CuO at 1000 °C in an oxygen atmosphere. The oxygen stoichiometric value 8 was found to be 0.68 for Gd143 and 0.6 for Dy143 by iodometric titration. Rietveld refinement of x-ray powder diffraction data showed that Gd143 belongs to the space group Pm3 while Dy143 belongs to the space group P23. The two space groups, Pm3 and P23, are very similar. Their main dif- ference is that P23 does not have the inversion symmetry of Pm3. Both compounds have a cubic unit cell with a lattice parameter of 8.16528 ± 0.00006 A for Gd143 and 8.10807 ± 0.00010 A for Dy143. Superconduct-ing quantum interference device (SQUID) measurement indicated that nei- ther compound was superconductive down to 5 K. The effect of lead content on the critical current density, irreversibillty field, and mlcrostructure of Ag-clad Bi 18 Pb / Sr 2 Ca 2 3 ) We studied the effect of lead content (x= 0.20-0.40) on the critical current density J C (OT, 77 K), irreversibility field H*(77 K), and microstruc- ture of monocore, Ag-clad B^ 8 Pb x Sr 2 Ca 2 Cu 3 0 y (2223) tapes, finding that tapes with lower lead contents (x= 0.20-0.25) required higher processing temperatures (840 and 832 °C, respectively) to complete 2223 formation, as compared to the optimum 820 °C reaction temperature of the x= 0.30- 0.40 tapes. We found that both the zero-field and the in-field properties correlated strongly to the phase purity with J c (0T, 77 K) reaching a maximum of -20 kA/cm 2 for x= 0.30, and then decreasing with in-creasing lead content to -12 kA/cm 2 for x= 0.40. H*(77 K) increased from -165 mT at x= 0.20 to ~265 mT at x= 0.30, then declined to 195 mT at x= 0.40. Optimiz-ing the lead content at x= 0.30 maximized both the connectivity and the flux pinning contributions to the critical current density. Structure and misorientation angle distributions of (001) twist grain boundaries BI 2 Sr 2 Ca 1 2 y We investigated the relationship between the structure and misori- entation angle of (001) twist grain boundaries in Bi 2 Sr 2 Ca 1 Cu 2 O J /Ag composite tapes processed in different oxygen partial pressures (P 02 = 0.01, 0.21, and 1 atm). Large-angle misoriented twist boundaries (>10°) essen-tially had no amorphous layers at the interface and the misorientation angles of these boundaries mostly corresponded to low-energy misorien-tations. This large-angle misoriented boundary structure was independent of Po2- Small-angle misoriented twist boundaries (<10°), on the other hand, corresponded to high-energy misorientations, and sometimes had amorphous layers at the interface. The population of the small-angle boundary with an amorphous layer was very low in the tape processed in P 0 2 = 1 atm. This suggests that high P 02 during the heat treatment is effec- tive in the improvement of grain coupling, and hence, to increase critical current density. High-temperature deformation of vertical gradient The deformation behavior of melt-textured YBCO prepared by the vertical gradient freeze (VGF) method was investigated by high-temperature deformation experiments at temperatures ranging from 850 to 950 °C. The experiments were performed in an atmosphere of pure oxygen under uni-axial pressure with constant strain rates in the range from 1 x 10" 5 to 5 x 10" 4 s -1 . An analysis of the dependence of the steady state flow stress on the strain rate and the deformation temperature reveals that the predomi- nant deformation mechanism is dislocation glide and climb controlled by climb at Y-211 particles and that no significant grain boundary sliding oc- curs. Furthermore, transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations of deformed and undeformed samples support a deformation mechanism based on dislocation movement. The total fracture strain, however, does not depend on the temperature or strain rate. Scanning electron micro- scope (SEM) investigations of the fracture faces of samples deformed until fracture reveal that fracture does not occur within the Y-123 matrix but along platelet boundaries. An improvement of the fracture behavior is expected by introducing large Y-211 particles interconnecting neighboring platelets. crystalline core surrounded by an amorphous ZnO shell; growth defects and surface steps are clearly visible In the crystalline core. A pronounced narrowing of the ZnTe nanocrystal size distribution with increasing D ts also was found. The results demonstrate that the size of laser-ablated nanoparticles can be controlled by varying the molecular weight and pressure of an ambient gas and that nanometer-scale particles can be synthesized. Larger aggregates of both ZnTe and Si having a "flakelike" or "weblike" structure were formed at the higher ambient gas pressures; for ZnTe these appear to be open agglomerates of much smaller (-10 nm) particles. A systematic investigation has been made on surface defect states of crystallites in the crystallization process of sputtered amorphous silicon films by isothermal annealing. Transmission electron microscopic observa- tions indicate a pronounced vertical columnar structure in the upper part of the films, where the crystallization is delayed. Admittance spectroscopy reveals that two newly generated energy levels with the crystallization are attributed to the crystallites in the lower and upper parts of the films in view of the anisotropic crystallization. These thermally induced changes can be well explained by Si-Si shearing modes at the interfaces of crystallites through the process of crystallization. of In, and Se powders ball microscopy and diffraction techniques were employed to follow the structural evolution during milling. It was observed that, depending upon the milling conditions, either a metastable cubic or a stable tetragonal phase was produced. The grain size of the mechanically alloyed powder was about 10 nm. The mechanically alloyed powder was consolidated to full density by hot isostatic pressing of the powder at 750 °C and 100 MPa for 2 h. Irrespective of the nature of the phase in the starting powder, the hot-iso- statically-pressed compact contained the well-recrystallized tetragonal Culn 07 Ga 03 Se 2 phase with a grain size of about 50 nm. Precipitation behavior In the early stage of aging In an Al-Li-Cu-Mg-Zr-Ag (Weldallte 049) The precipitation behavior of various phases during the aging process of an Al-Li-Cu-Mg-Zr-Ag (Weldalite 049) alloy was investigated by high-resolution electron microscopy and in situ hot-stage microscopy. Two kinds of domains with L1 2 -type ordered structures, which are consid- ered to be 5' and P' phases, are observed with different domain sizes in the alloy quenched from 530 "C. In the early stage of aging at 190 C C, the 8' phase is precipitated as surrounding the P' phase, and the 5' domains appear with inphase and antiphase relationships to the P' lattices. In situ observations at 190 °C clearly show that the T1 phase precipitates predom- inantly on dislocations at subgrain boundaries and then is homogeneously formed in the matrix with increasing aging time. The nucleation of the S 1 phase is associated with clustering of Cu and Mg


The article is devoted to the issue of activating the intellectual potential of the enterprise and intensification of intellectual property processes in a knowledge-based economy. Foreign experience in the field of scaling the intellectual property market was studied, the state and tendencies of its development were covered. Challenges for Ukraine in the context of commercialization of intellectual property rights are substantiated. The sphere of intellectual property as the main tool of scientific-technological important transformation directions and creative development in general are singled out. The institutional regulation of intellectual potential and commercialization of the intellectual activity in a knowledge-based economy results processes effective use is highlighted. Based on the study of legal, financial and organizational institutions that stimulate the development of intellectual and innovative technologies, the knowledge-based economy key trends are summarized in the context of intellectual property based on institutional approach capitalization paradigm: accelerating the intellectual resources transformation into intellectual capital; correspondence of the remuneration received by the specialist to payment of knowledge; merging intellectual capital with financial. It is proved that the influence of institutions in the Ukrainian economy leads to a disproportion between the intellectual resources formation spheres and intellectual capital; the intellectual capital use by institutional conditions processes slowing down. The main directions of intellectual property sphere development in connection with the process of knowledge-based economy innovative development are offered. A set of measures has been developed for further development of intellectual potential and intellectual property market scaling in Ukraine, which will provide comparable in quality or superior to world best practices conditions for intellectual creativity.


Determining an effective architecture for multi-layer feedforward backpropagation neural networks can be a time-consuming effort. In general it requires human intervention in determining the number of layers, number of hidden cells, the learning rule and the learning parameters. Over the past few years several approaches to dynamically configure neural networks have been proposed, which remove most of the responsibility for choosing the correct network configuration from the user. As important as finding a viable network architecture for some given learning problem, is the need to obtain a minimal configuration. The total time required to emulate or simulate neural networks is largely dependent on the number of connections present in a network. Therefore, it is essential to provide pruning methods to reduce network complexity. In this paper two approaches to network pruning will be investigated: single- and multi-pass pruning. Their effectiveness is emphasized by applying them to several real world proble...


In the first phase of the research project Nanotechnologies for Tomorrow's Society (www.nanosoc.be), the research consortium explored a variety of futuristic visions or technoscientific imaginaries. This exploration took the form of a Policy Delphi, adapted to the particular objective of jointly constructing nano-imaginaries, taking participants' personal visions of possible future applications and societal issues as a starting point. The participants were nanoresearchers, as well as societal experts and primary involved citizens. In this article, the authors describe the theoretical frame that inspired their methodological approach, present the analytical results obtained, and bring some reflections to the fore that arose as a result of the performance and analysis of this Delphi-exercise.


The main circulatory medium of echinoderms is the coelomic fluid. Biochemistry of coelomic fluid is very complex and slightly different from seawater. The main aim of this research was to analyse concentration of electrolytes (potassium, calcium, magnesium, chlorine and sodium), heavy metals (lead, chromium, cadmium and cobalt) and iron in coelomic fluid of sea urchin, Arbacia lixula as an indirect indicator of seawater contamination. After precise statistical evaluation it was observed that electrolyte concentrations were; Na 189.20±11.41 mmol/l, Cl 134.06±37.08 mmol/l, Mg 4.24±1.08 mmol/l, Ca 3.04±0.84 mmol/l. Biochemical content of heavy metals in coelomic fluid was; Co 1.292±0.879 ppm, Pb 0.644±0.131 ppm, Cr 0.116±0.055 ppm, Cd 0.031±0.017 ppm and iron 0.259±0.058 ppm, and it depends on the potential accumulation level in the organism. The composition of electrolyte and heavy metal content varies depending on the composition of seawater. Obtained values are within the range of values most commonly found in low polluted areas of the Adriatic sea. Similar models may be applied for monitoring of heavy metal contamination in marine environment.


This practice article describes the use of collaborative evaluation for institutional improvement leading to continuous learning at a regional university in Australia. The University of Southern Queensland's Academic Quality Framework (2019–2022) was developed in response to external drivers to improve practices relating to the comprehensive and systematic analysis of academic data. One aspect of the response was to introduce 'course enhancement conversations', which were a collaboration between the central Academic Quality Unit and academic staff, including course teams and learning and teaching leaders within schools and faculties. A feature of these conversations was the use of sentinel rather than performance indicators of course (not teaching) quality to prompt the holding of conversations. Conversations were conducted in a spirit of constructive collaboration, where the shared goal was to support course teams to deliver an outstanding student experience. Through adopting a collaborative approach to evaluation, Academic Quality Unit staff were evaluation champions who gradually acculturated academic staff and learning and teaching leaders to evaluative thinking and data-informed decision-making. Issues brought to light during these conversations have informed changes in practice at the university level, including the development of a new evaluation procedure to embed best-practice monitoring and evaluation across all levels of curriculum delivery.


A colony of thirteen male and female deer have been studied for seasonal fluctuation of blood calcium phosphorus, albumin, globulin, and alkaline phosphatase. The female animals had stable levels of these parameters of body chemistry throughout all periods of the years. The male animals, beginning in May, undergo rapid antler growth, producing a structure equivalent to one-sixth the total skeletal bulk in a three-to-four-month period and have stable levels of calcium, phosphorus, albumin and globulin. This group demonstrated marked rise in serum alkaline phosphatase activity directly coordinated with the rate of antler growth. Amputation of the antler formation led to a sharp decline of circulating alkaline phosphatase, indicating this structure is the source of the enzyme.


OBJECTIVE
To study the clinical value of cervical measurement by transvaginal ultrasound after 36 weeks of gestation.

METHODS
Eighty three normal nulliparous woman were studied from 36 weeks of gestation until delivery prospectivelly. Transvaginal ultrasound examinations were performed and cervical length (CL), cervical width (CW) and the diameter of cervical canal were measured weekly. 52 cases were delivered naturelly and 31 cases by cesarean sections (CS).

RESULTS
From 36 weeks of gestation until delivery, there was a significant correlation between gestation age (GA) and CL and the diameter of cervical canal (r = -0.37, P < 0.00001; r = 0.16, P = 0.002). The time from examination to initiation of labor was significantly correlated with CL and the diameter of cervical canal (r = 0.32, P < 0.00001; r = -0.19, P = 0.02). The regressive formulas were CL (cm) = 13.77 - 0.27 x GA, the time to beginning of labor (week) = 0.64 + 0.54 x CL (cm). The cases with CL > or = 3.5 cm at 2-3 weeks before labor had a significant higher CS rate than those with CL < or = 3.5 cm (P = 0.002).

CONCLUSIONS
Transvaginal ultrasonographic measurement of CL, CW and the diameter of cervical canal could reflect the maturity of cervix accurately. It could be used as predictors of labor course and outcome of delivery.


Light weapon systems can play a very important role in fighting under specific conditions (darkness, jungle, canyon, town, etc.). To ensure that light weapons can accurately hit their targets, high-precision optical aiming devices become an indispensable component of light weapons. Generally, light weapons include a precision aiming system consisting of many optical components and precision mechanical parts. Therefore, in the scope high and low temperature and firing stereotypes test, will make the aiming baseline scribe plate and other optical parts become loose, which will certainly make the zero position of the aiming baseline change, the amount of change is the zero position of the aiming device, the amount of change will affect the accuracy of the aiming device, so the measurement of the zero position of the amount of movement is very important to improve the shooting accuracy of the aiming device. For this purpose, we need to investigate a detection device that can be based on digital white micro-optical image processing.


ConclusionsA laboratory exercise was devised that illustrates the basic laws of motion, challenges the experimenter's capabilities, and generates class enthusiasm. Many additional variations on this basic experiment can be utilized. For example, inadequate time constants could be used and then corrected for in the digital processing.


In 1981, still in the early days of copyright expansionism, David Lange wrote 'Recognizing the Public Domain', an article that 25 years later remains a central text in intellectual property scholarship. In 2006 the study of copyright, patents, and trademarks has grown exponentially to the point of generating an unsurveyable amount of books, articles, workshops, and conferences, extending far beyond law schools and into disciplines like economy, political science, cultural studies, book history, library and information science, anthropology, and literature studies. Knowing what we


Forests of the southern Rocky Mountains are punctuated by persistent meadows called parks that are dominated by grasses and forbs. In an attempt to elucidate the maintenance of subalpine parks in the Gunnison Basin, Colorado, soil texture and tree morphology differences along 60-m transects spanning the forest-park ecotone were studied in 6 representative parks. Seedling survivorship, percent seed germination, and soil moisture available to plants were also studied along one of the transects in Willow Park. Soil analyses revealed 40% more silt and significantly less sand and clay in all 6 parks ( P P = 0.011), with 54% more water in forest than in park soils. Measures of growth rate obtained from tree height, dbh, and age were significantly higher nearer the ecotone ( P P = 0.002). These results suggest that stress of mature Engelmann spruce ( Picea engelmannii ) and lodgepole pine ( Pinus contorta ) is an unlikely explanation of park maintenance. P. engelmanii percent seed germination and seedling survivorship were significantly higher in the forest than in the park ( P < 0.001). This may be largely due to the more severe seedling microclimate observed in the park. Results indicate that limited seedling establishment is primarily responsible for maintenance of subalpine parks in the Gunnison Basin.


Ecosystem functioning is influenced by species composition and environmental conditions. Positive biodiversity effects on forest stand-level water use efficiency (WUES) have been observed under limiting soil water conditions, but whether such a relationship would explain WUEs patterns under non-limiting conditions remains to be addressed. We investigated the influence of biodiversity on WUES in mature boreal forests over two periods with contrasted soil water conditions (wet year in 2004 and dry year in 2006) by using the carbon isotope composition (d13C) of tree rings of Betula pendula, Pinus sylvestris and Picea abies growing in pure or mixed stands. Furthermore, we tested whether differences in WUES would influence stand annual basal area increment (BAIS). We observed a significant increase in d13CS, and thus in WUES, between the wet and the dry year and a positive effect of biodiversity on d13CS for the dry year. Below-ground niche overlapping between the coniferous species and the high competitiveness of Betula pendula under soil water limiting conditions could explain the observed patterns. Our study thus confirms expectations from the stress gradient-hypothesis that higher physical stress conditions influence carbon and water balance in boreal forest ecosystems.


In 1983 the Department of Health in Papua New Guinea decentralized the control of health services to provincial governments. In the same year a major rural health development project commenced in six of the nineteen provinces. Conflict arose between the centralized control required by the project and the decentralized health system. This article reviews the experience of the project implementators in trying to reconcile the philosophy and reality of decentralization with the centralized project design. Lessons point to the need for closer collaboration with beneficiaries during project design, formal clarification of responsibilities of national and provincial governments in implementation, institutional strengthening as a project input and the development of mechanisms for review and change during the course of implementation.


Manuel Castells Oliván is widely considered the leading analyst of the information age. He is thus in high demand by universities, international organizations, governments, colleagues, students, journalists, biographers, and, of course, by Global Media and Communication. Castells receives about 1000 invitations per year (Ince, 2003: 20), accepts in fact only about 20 of them, gives on average one media interview per month, usually online, and one keynote speech a month somewhere in the world (Annenberg Agenda, 2003: 12). He has given more than 300 papers in 43 countries (Webster and Dimitriou, 2004). When not globetrotting he now divides his time primarily between two cities in two continents. In Los Angeles he holds the Wallis Annenberg Chair in Communication Technology and Society at the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California, and in Barcelona the Research Professorship at the Open University of Catalonia [http://www.ascweb.usc.edu/]. Castells is sole author of 23 books and editor or co-author of 15 more, as well as over 100 articles in academic journals. His magnum opus, the trilogy, The Information Age (1996–8), has been compared to the work of Karl Marx and Max Weber and took him 15 years to research, from 1983 to 1998, the last five years in a race against cancer. Castells is now recovered and the book is in its second edition and has been translated into 20 languages. His most recent books are The Internet Galaxy (Castells, 2001), which has now been translated into 15 languages; The Information Society and the Welfare State: The Finnish Model (Castells and Himanen, 2002); La societat xarxa a Catalunya (Castells, 2003) and The Network Society: A Cross-cultural Perspective (Castells, 2004). Castells has received more honorary doctorates from universities around the world than he has time to accept in person. Apart from his scholarly activities he has a weekly column in Barcelona's leading daily La Vanguardia. INTERVIEW


Thomas Graham first directed attention to the desirability of a study of the flow of pure liquids in connection with their other physical as well as chemical properties. A serious attempt to realize this purpose was made by Pribram and Handl who noted the increase of viscosity with the molecular weight and attempted to establish a relationship. Rellstab observed the apparently important effect of chemical constitution in that metameric substances do not in general have the same times of transpiration. Bruhl, perhaps too optimistically, inferred that among metamers those having the greatest viscosity have also the greatest density, the highest boiling point and the greatest refractive index. To this generalization, however, Gartenmeister found numerous exceptions; by securing unprecedented standards of precision in measurement, Thorpe and Rodger hoped to be able to assign exact viscosity values to each atom. Their excellent data seemed, however, to shatter this hope rather than to justify it.