Purpose: To evaluate serum C-reactive protein (CRP) as prognostic variable in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Experimental Design: In a multicenter study, preoperative serum CRP was evaluated in 623 patients with EOC. Results were correlated with clinical data. Results:Mean (SD) preoperative serum CRPwas 3.6 (4.8) mg/dL. Serum CRPwas significantly associated with International Federation of Gynecologists and Obstetricians stage (P < 0.001) and postoperative residual tumor mass (P < 0.001) but not with histologic grade (P = 0.1) and type (P = 0.7), patients'age (Pearson's correlation coefficient = 0.05; P = 0.2), and serumCA125 (Pearson's correlation coefficient = 0.02; P = 0.6). Patients with platinum-resistant EOC had significantly higher CRP serum levels compared with patients with platinum-sensitive EOC [6.0 (6.6) mg/dL versus 2.8 (3.8) mg/dL; P < 0.001]. Higher International Federation ofGynecologists and Obstetricians stage (P < 0.001), presence of postoperative residual tumor mass (P < 0.001), tumor grade (P = 0.001), serum CA 125 (P = 0.03), and serum CRP (P = 0.001) were independently associated with overall survival. Patients with serum CRP V1mg/dL versus >1mg/dL had an overall 5-year survival of 82% versus 58.5% (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Serum CRP can be seen as a novel, widely available independent prognostic variable of ovarian cancer. C-reactive protein (CRP) is one of the most important acutephase proteins produced predominantly by hepatocytes rising rapidly in response to inflammation (1, 2). CRP has both proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory actions, and it is uncertain which is predominant. Proinflammatory effects include the induction of monocytes. Anti-inflammatory actions are reflected by the diminished accumulation of neutrophils at inflammatory sites due to reduced neutrophil adhesion to the endothelium and the noninflammatory clearance of apoptotic cells (1, 2). Circulating serum CRP is routinely measured in clinical laboratories as marker for various acute and chronic inflammatory diseases (3–5). The pathogenesis and development of ovarian cancer have also been closely linked to inflammatory processes (6, 7). The inflammatory response promotes carcinogenesis by damaging DNA, stimulating angiogenesis and cell proliferation, and inhibiting apoptosis (8, 9). Various proinflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-a, IFN-g, and tumor growth factor, all known to stimulate CRP production, influence survival, growth, mutation, proliferation, differentiation, and migration of tumor cells (6, 7, 10, 11). Serum CRP has been shown to parallel carcinogenesis possibly as an expression of the host defense reaction or as paraneoplastic syndrome (1, 3). Therefore, serum CRP has been investigated as risk factor and prognostic variable in various human malignancies, such as colon (12), esophageal (13), hepatocellular (14), and renal cell (15) cancer. Few data are available on the role of serum CRP in gynecologic malignancies. Preliminary data suggest a possible prognostic value in patients with ovarian cancer (16). Tumor stage and postoperative residual tumor mass at primary cytoreductive surgery have been shown to most reliably predict outcome in patients with ovarian cancer (17). Clinical decision making with respect to adjuvant therapy is largely based on International Federation of Gynecologists and Obstetricians (FIGO) stage and tumor grade, especially in earlystage disease. The standard concept of six cycles of a platinum/ taxane combination as adjuvant chemotherapy for ovarian Imaging, Diagnosis, Prognosis Authors' Affiliations: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University ofVienna; Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Gynecology and Gynecologic Oncology ; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wilhelminenspital, Vienna, Austria; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Charite¤ / CampusVirchow-Klinikum, University Medicine of Berlin, Berlin, Germany; and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Landeskrankenhaus Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt, Austria Received 5/1/07; revised 9/4/07; accepted10/24/07. Grant support: Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Gynecology and Gynecologic Oncology,Vienna, Austria. The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges.This article must therefore be hereby marked advertisement in accordance with18 U.S.C. Section1734 solely to indicate this fact. Requests for reprints: Lukas A. Hefler, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Gu« rtel 18-20, A-1090 Vienna, Austria. Phone: 43-1-40400-2962; Fax: 43-1-40400-2911; E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com. F2008 American Association for Cancer Research. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-07-1044 www.aacrjournals.org Clin Cancer Res 2008;14(3) February1, 2008 710 Research. on April 13, 2017. © 2008 American Association for Cancer clincancerres.aacrjournals.org Downloaded from cancer has recently been challenged (18, 19). Omission of chemotherapy for adequately staged early-stage disease (20), a neoadjuvant chemotherapy approach for patients expected not to be optimally debulked at primary cytoreductive surgery (21), and consolidation chemotherapy for patients at high risk for recurrent disease have been advocated (22). Additional prognostic variables to more individually tailor adjuvant therapy would be of considerable clinical value. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the clinical value of serum CRP as independent prognostic variable in a large multicenter study of patients with ovarian cancer. Materials andMethods Patients. A total of 623 patients with epithelial ovarian cancer were included in the present retrospective multicenter study (Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria: n = 208; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria: n = 192; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Charité/Campus Virchow-Klinikum, University Medicine of Berlin, Berlin, Germany: n = 99; Landeskrankenhaus Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt, Austria: n = 64; Wilhelminenspital, Vienna, Austria: n = 29; Sozialmedizinisches Zentrum Süd, KFJ, Vienna, Austria: n = 31). The respective Institutional Review Boards approved the present study. Data were collected with chart review. Before elective surgery, an acute infection was ruled out by a physical examination, measuring body temperature, and respective blood tests. Patients were treated according to standards of the respective institution with hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, pelvic and/or paraaortic lymphadenectomy, appendectomy, and omentectomy. All patients with tumor stages Ic to III and all patients with clear cell carcinoma received a platinum-based chemotherapy. All patients were followed up in 3-month intervals, including vagino-rectal palpation, abdominal ultrasound examination, and serum tumor marker evaluation. In cases of clinically doubtful findings and/or tumor marker elevation, computed tomography was done. The mean duration of follow-up was 25.5 (24.1) months. Patient charts were reviewed to obtain clinical data about age, FIGO tumor stage, tumor grade, amount of postoperative residual tumor mass after primary surgery, histologic type, preoperative serum CA 125, and time of death or time of last follow-up. Mean patient's age at diagnosis, distribution of tumor stage, amount of postoperative residual tumor mass, and tumor grade were not different between study centers. Patients with platinum-resistant and platinum-sensitive tumors were defined as having a time with no evidence of disease V6 months versus >6 months after completion of primary chemotherapy. CRP measurement. Patients' blood was obtained before surgery by peripheral venous puncture. CRP serum levels were measured as part of the clinical routine by a modified latex-enhanced immunoturbidimetric assay using a CRP Latex kit (Olympus Life and Material Science Europe) according to the manufacturer's instructions (23). Serum levels V1 mg/dL were defined as normal. The manufacturer claims an intraassay variability between 1.64% and 3.34%. Serum CRP levels were not assessed expressly as part of the study but were ascertained as part of clinical routine. Of note, serum CRP levels were not assayed at one central laboratory to better reflect clinical practice, but all clinical laboratories used the same assay kit. Table 1. Patients' characteristics and CRP serum levels in patients with ovarian cancer broken down by clinicopathologic variables Variable n or mean (SD) Mean (SD) CRP serum levels (mg/dL) P Patients with epithelial ovarian cancer 623 — — Age at first diagnosis (y) 60.5 (13.7) — — Tumor stage FIGO I 143 1.9 (3.0) <0.0001* FIGO II 44 2.1 (2.6) FIGO III 346 4.3 (5.3) FIGO IV 90 4.7 (5.6) Postoperative residual tumor mass after surgery (cm) V2 459 2.9 (4.5) <0.0001c >2 164 5.7 (5.3) Tumor grade G1 89 2.7 (5.2) 0.1* G2 218 3.4 (4.7) G3 316 3.9 (4.7) Histologic type Serous 401 3.6 (4.7) 0.7c Mucinous 68 Endometrioid 89 Others 65 Mucinous, endometrioid, and all others combined 222 3.5 (5.0) Length of follow-up (mo) 25.5 (24.1) — — Status at last observation Alive with no evidence of disease 342 — — Alive with stable disease 66 — — Progressive disease 64 — — Dead as a result of disease 131 — — Dead as a result of other causes 15 — — Lost to follow-up 5 — — *One-way ANOVA. ct test. SerumCRPand Prognosis in Ovarian Cancer www.aacrjournals.org Clin Cancer Res 2008;14(3) February1, 2008 711 Research. on April 13, 2017. © 2008 American Association for Cancer clincancerres.aacrjournals.org Downloaded from Statistics. Values are given as means (SD). Variables were compared using Pearson's correlation coefficient, t test, and one-way ANOVA. Survival probabilities were calculated by univariate Kaplan-Meier


The article discusses the role of Fyodor Ivanovich in pacification of the country astonished and devastated by the deeds of Ivan IV Terrible. The authors attempt figuring out how this mentally defective tsar affected the process of restoring destroyed economy and nearly collapsed state structures


In this paper, we introduce a novel perspective to feature selection in face retrieval, for the purpose of increasing the coherence in face similarity feedback, and hence narrowing the semantic gap between human and machine in face perception, and thus speeding up the interactive retrieval. The coherence is defined in previously established interactive face retrieval models and the feedback database of human users is built up for building or testing those models. Based on this coherence database, we propose a novel criterion function as the target function in feature selection to measure the coherence. Four feature selection algorithms have been adopted in comparison: the minimal- Redundancy-Maximal-Relevance criterion (mRMR), the best individual (BI), the sequential forward selection (SFS), and the Plus-l-Minus-r (l-r). The l-r algorithm proves to be better than the other three methods in feature selection for coherence. Experiments demonstrate that the proposed feature selection method could largely improve the interactive searching efficiency and face recognition rate in face databases.


Summability of Multiple Fourier Series Introduction Iterated Fejer Summability of Fourier Series Bochner-Riesz Summability of Fourier Series Abel Summability of Fourier Series Gauss-Weierstrass Summability of Fourier Series Further Results and Comments Conjugate Multiple Fourier Series Introduction Abel Summability of Conjugate Series Spherical Convergence of Conjugate Series The Calpha-Condition An Application of the Calpha-Condition An Application of the Lp-Condition Further Results and Comments Uniqueness of Multiple Trigonometric Series Uniqueness for Abel Summability Uniqueness for Circular Convergence Uniqueness, Number Theory, and Fractals Further Results and Comments Positive Definite Functions Positive Definite Functions on SN-l Positive Definite Functions on TN Positive Definite Functions on SN1-l x TN Further Results and Comments Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations Reaction-Diffusion Equations on the N-Torus Quasilinear Ellipticity on the N-Torus Further Results and Comments The Stationary Navier-Stokes Equations Distribution Solutions Classical Solutions Further Results and Comments Appendix A: Integrals and Identities Appendix B: Real Analysis Appendix C: Harmonic and Subharmonic Functions Bibliography Index


Qing dynasty was the last Chinese feudal dynasty,also was the dynasty which the national minority ruled the population multitudinous of Han Nationality and the spacious region,therefore,it had some typical characteristics.Through the comprehensive introduction of the interior decoration and the furniture style in Qing dynasty,the paper analyzed its characteristics,especially pursuit of the solemn,and the splendid luxurious ones in Yongzheng and Qianlong periods to provider a better understanding of the furniture in Qing dynasty and interior decoration artistic style and its important status in Chinese furniture and interior development history.


Telecommunication line circuit comprising a Herterbrug (RO-R 5) comprises warvan the line feed resistances (RO, R1) form part and which is provided with a detection device (OA2). This is with line amplifiers (LOAO, LOA1), which are connected to the line feed resistors and, together with these amplifiers are part of a resistance-as well as of an impedance synthesis circuit.


The contribution of low‐affinity T cells to autoimmunity in the context of polyclonal T‐cell responses is understudied due to the limitations in their capture by tetrameric reagents and low level of activation in response to antigenic stimulation. As a result, low‐affinity T cells are often disregarded as nonantigen‐specific cells irrelevant to the immune response. Our study aimed to assess how the level of self‐antigen reactivity shapes T‐cell lineage and effector responses in the context of spontaneous tissue‐specific autoimmunity observed in NOD mice. Using multicolor flow cytometry in combination with Nur77GFP reporter of TCR signaling, we identified a dormant population of T cells that infiltrated the pancreatic islets of prediabetic NOD mice, which exhibited reduced levels of self‐tissue reactivity based on expression of CD5 and Nur77GFP. We showed that these CD5low T cells had a unique TCR repertoire and exhibited low activation and minimal effector function; however, induced rapid diabetes upon transfer. The CD4+CD5low T‐cell population displayed transcriptional signature of central memory T cells, consistent with the ability to acquire effector function post‐transfer. Transcriptional profile of CD5low T cells was similar to T cells expressing a low‐affinity TCR, indicating TCR affinity to be an important factor in shaping CD5low T‐cell phenotype and function at the tissue site. Overall, our study suggests that autoimmune tissue can maintain a reservoir of undifferentiated central memory‐like autoreactive T cells with pathogenic effector potential that might be an important source for effector T cells during long‐term chronic autoimmunity.


A finite-difference solution is presented of the velocity and temperature fields for the flow of an Ostwald-de-Waele (power law) fluid between two vertical isothermal parallel plates under the influence of free convection. Two quantities are of particular interest: the total heat transferred from the plates and the average velocity between the plates. Although these quantities can be presented in a dimensionless manner as related to the generalized Grashof and Prandtl numbers, there is an important difference compared to the similar problem involving Newtonian fluids. In the present case, the generalized Prandtl number is not a fluid property but contains a geometric factor and thus the geometry of the system must be specified before the Prandtl number is fixed. The results and the manner in which they can be used are illustrated by a numerical example.


In this paper, we investigate a Brownian motion (BM) with purely time dependent drift and difusion by suggesting and examining several Brownian functionals which characterize the lifetime and reactivity of such stochastic processes. We introduce several probability distribution functions (PDFs) associated with such time dependent BMs. For instance, for a BM with initial starting point $x_0$, we derive analytical expressions for : (i) the PDF $P(t_f|x_0)$ of the first passage time $t_f$ which specify the lifetime of such stochastic process, (ii) the PDF $P(A|x_0)$ of the area A till the first passage time and it provides us numerous valuable information about the effective reactivity of the process, (iii) the PDF $P(M)$ associated with the maximum size M of the BM process before the first passage time, and (iv)the joint PDF $P(M; t_m)$ of the maximum size M and its occurrence time $t_m$ before the first passage time. These distributions are examined for the power law time time dependent drift and diffusion. A simple illustrative example for the stochastic model of water resources availability in snowmelt dominated regions with power law time dependent drift and diffusion is demonstrated in details. We motivate our study with approximate calculation of an unsolved problem of Brownian functionals including inertia.


At present,advertising is one of the principal means of business promotion.Thinking that women are gifted in attracting audiences especially men,merchants and advertisers fully exploit this advantage to campaign their commodities,various women's images are thus shaped along with advertisements presented to public.Results of analyses of these advertisements show that women are discriminated in many of them.Jointly efforts shall be spared to eradiate the prejudice against women so that an improved ideology could be constructed to serve the end of man-women harmony in society.


The motivations of 395 public librarians to participate in continuing education events were compared with those of 222 respondents from other types of libraries. Public librarians gave three of the four motivators significantly higher mean ratings than did respondents who worked in other types of libraries. However, most of the significant afferences between the respondents appear to be due primarily to the responses of the paraprofessional public librarians, who rated three motivators significantly higher than did the paraprofessional respondents from other types of libraries and who rated all four motivators significantly higher than did the public library respondents who had their master's degree.


The mechanical processes of earthquake preparation are always accompanied by deformations associated with complex precursory phenomena. Satellite time-series data, coupled with ground based observations where available, can enable scientists to survey pre-earthquake signals in the areas of strong tectonic activity. Cumulative stress energy in active geotectonic regions manifests various earthquakes' precursors. Space-time anomalies of Earth's emitted radiation (thermal infrared in spectral range measured from satellite months to weeks before the occurrence of earthquakes, radon in underground water and soil, etc.), and electromagnetic anomalies are considered as pre-seismic signals. This paper is focused on observations made using time series MODIS Terra/Aqua and NOAA-AVHRR satellite data for derived multi-parameters land surface temperature (LST), outgoing long-wave radiation (OLR), and mean air temperature (AT) for some seismic events recorded in Vrancea region in Romania, which is one of the most active intracontinental seismic areas in Europe. Starting with almost one week prior to a moderate or strong earthquake a transient thermal infrared rise in LST of several Celsius degrees (oC) and the increased OLR values higher than the normal have been recorded around epicentral areas, function of the magnitude and focal depth, which disappeared after the main shock.


The different tree species and water retaining agents have been used in the afforestation in middle and upper yellow river.The influence of differernt tree species and water retaining agents on the survival rate and growth vigor have been observed.The results show that using water retaining bag can obviously raise the survival rate and the aboveground growth than using other water retaining agent.The survival rate is closely related to the tree species.


In order to solve the problem existing in ideological and political work in process of postgraduate education for all-around development,the authors adopt the way of combining theory with practice,according to the experience in postgraduate ideological and political work for many years.The significance of ideological and political work and the methods in order to enhance education for all-around development are expounded,It has certain theory reference value for the teachers of postgraduate ideological and political work.


Micromachined Fabry-Perot tunable filters with a large clear aperture (12.5 to 40 mm) are being developed as an optical component for wide-field imaging spectroscopy. This program applies silicon micromachining fabrication techniques to miniaturize Fabry-Perot filters for astronomical science instruments. The filter assembly consists of two reflector plates that form a tunable Fabry-Perot etalon. One plate is fixed and the second plate is free to move along the optical axis on silicon springs. The moving plate is actuated electrostatically by capacitance pads on the stationary and moving plates. To reduce mass, both reflectors are fabricated by applying optical coatings to a thin freestanding silicon nitride film held flat in drumhead tension. In this paper, we discuss the etalon design, electromechanical modeling, fabrication, and initial results. In the current design, the transmission aperture is 11.0 mm in diameter, the moving plate is 26.3 mm in diameter, and the stationary plate is 32.6 mm in diameter. The plates and springs are nominally 350 μm thick, the electrical and mechanical spacing between plates is 18 μm, and the uncoated optical spacing is 15 μm.


The objective: to evaluate the efficacy and safety of various anti-tuberculosis therapy regimens for multiple drug resistant (MDR) and extensive drug resistant pulmonary tuberculosis in the intensive phase of treatment lasting for 8 months minimum.Subjects and Methods. A single-center cohort prospective-retrospective clinical study was conducted, which included 166 patients aged 18 to 70 years with active pulmonary tuberculosis and proven MDR of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, who received chemotherapy according to regimens IV and V. The treatment regimen of patients in Group I (n = 96) included modern anti-tuberculosis drugs (TBdrugs) – bedaquiline, linezolid, respiratory fluoroquinolone (levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, sparfloxacin), cycloserine, pyrazinamide, and perchlozone at a dose of 8-10 mg/kg, 1 time per day after meals during the intensive phase of treatment, that was at least 8 months. Patients from Group II (n = 70) received a respiratory fluoroquinolone (levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, sparfloxacin), aminoglycoside (amikacin), cycloserine, pyrazinamide, ethambutol, and prothionamide.Results. After 3 months of treatment, symptoms of intoxication disappeared in 22 (81.5%) patients in Group I, and only 41 (61.2%) in Group II (p = 0.04; TTF). In patients of Group I versus Group II, the body temperature returned to normal within a shorter time: 2.8 and 4.3 weeks, respectively (p < 0.05). By the end of the intensive phase of treatment (8 months), sputum conversion confirmed by culture was observed more often in patients of Group I compared to Group II (85 and 80%, pχ2 = 0.003). Adverse events (AE) caused by TB drugs in Group I were observed significantly more often versus Group II: gastroenterological adverse events (pχ2 = 0.05), cardiac adverse events (pTTP = 0.05), and endocrinological adverse events (pTTP = 0.05). Neurotoxic AEs tended to develop more often in Group I (pTTP = 0.06). Ototoxic AEs were more frequently observed in Group II where the treatment regimens included aminoglycosides (pχ2 = 0.05). To maintain adequate chemotherapy regimens IV or V over long-term treatment, MDR tuberculosis patients need continuous monitoring of AEs, intravenous administration of two or three TB drugs, and timely therapy to manage manifestations of AEs.


At the moment, the shortcomings in the system of responding to crises in the health sector lie in the imperfection of the response order and management mechanisms. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the legal regulation and reflection of public health emergencies in China, as exemplified by the case of 2019 coronavirus. The paper discusses the legal framework for the regulation of emergency situations in public health in China for the period from the end of 2019. The importance of preventing and controlling the epidemic is substantiated, and shortcomings in the work to combat the epidemic are analysed. Particular attention is paid to issues of informing the public and the rule of law in emergency situations in public health. The provisions of the legislation of the People's Republic of China in public health emergencies were also examined. The paper is of practical importance not only for China, but for the entire world in the prevention and control of coronavirus.


Introduction In this paper we explore the relevance of the concept of cultural capital understood here as an alternative to the more traditional measures of socio-economic disadvantage in the context of a discussion of the significance of information technology (IT) in contemporary societies. Our argument is that there are important analytical connections between these two phenomena and that in some respects they can be seen as mutually constitutive. On the one hand, the educational advantages which are perceived to accrue to individuals and families 'rich' in traditional forms of cultural capital can be readily invoked to explain the variations in uptake of IT by households from different socio-economic backgrounds. On the other hand, the skills and competencies which IT use entails can, we suggest, be conceptualised as a form of cultural capital in their own right. Although these competencies play no part in Bourdieu's original formulation, we argue that the concept is sufficiently flexible to incorporate these additional dimensions. In the first part of the paper we look at the conceptual foundations of cultural capital and at how the term might be extended to include the systems of knowledge accompanying IT usage. In the second part we develop these points by considering some of the research findings into households' involvement with IT. Using data from the recently completed Australian Everyday Culture Project we examine the relationships between IT usage and cultural capital that are evident in a national sample of Australian households.


A new 1/N expansion for mass matrices of charged leptons and quarks is proposed in a composite model. The number N is shown to be the number of fermion generations. From the phenomenological analysis of mass matrices the generation number N is estimated to be 3--6.


When we think about preserving our cultural heritage the first thing that comes to mind is how to find ways to properly store and protect the original works of art, literature and science. Our aim is to save them for our time and for generations to come. We wish to restore them in such a way that their original structure and content is respected and remains unaltered while the material is strengthened to withstand the pressure exacted by use, climate and many other hazards. Very notable aims. Reality, however, is quick to bring disillusion. User demand far exceeds our possibilities to sufficiently prepare the original items or even to restore them diligently enough not to alter their originality. True restoration is bound to consume resources and time to such an extent that we cannot but treat only a relatively small number of items.


This paper expounds the necessity of constructing university town's resources sharing network platform and the principles of its construction, and probes into the constructing mode of the resources sharing network platform and the main contents of the resources construction.


This research consisted Evaluate the process of absorption and desorption of cocoa testa with molasses added to obtain a product of alternative food use, aims (Theobroma cacao l.): To evaluate the adsorption process and desorption in the testa of T. cacao with added molasses, an analysis of mold fungi and yeasts to the product during processing at different time intervals and perform a sensory analysis to final product for acceptability. It seeks to ensure that treatments absorption and desorption of testa cocoa, NO influence the physical, chemical and microbiological product changes. The research was conducted by FSIS laboratory located in the Mary belonging to the State Technical University Quevedo and the food laboratory of the Escuela Superior Politecnica del Litoral. Using a DCA and an experimental design completely randomized factorial arrangement AxB and using ANOVA (analysis of variance) with the following characteristics of the experiment were determined: 8 treatments with 3 replicates for a total of 24 experimental units made up 1000g husk with molasses added. PH, acidity, moisture, ash, protein, fat, Aw and total count of molds and yeasts: To evaluate the effects that different treatments in the absorption and desorption, the following variables were evaluated. As corresponding to the results of the final product, treatment a2b4 (desorption at 240 min) presented the best values of pH (4.62), acidity (9.57), moisture (16,21), protein (10 , 74). While the best treatment for ash was a2b2 (desorption at 120 min) with a value of 4.27, grease optimum value (7.085) to 1b1 (absorption at 60 min) molds and yeasts showed the best value a1b4 (absorption at 240 min) (30,67); A2B1 and Aw (desorption at 60 min) with a value (0.71). In turn with acceptable organoleptic characteristics by the group of tasters.


The topic of this paper is a model of two-predicate sentence in which with
 the matrix predication, which makes the so-called sentential-transitive verb,
 there appears accusative with the preposition ZA (for) and the complement
 clause with the conjunction DA (that). On the basis of such formal structure,
 it represents a sentence with two objects - one non-propositional object in
 the form of the prepositional accusative - indirect type and the other
 propositional object, sententially formalized. Conducted analysis showed that
 this is a specific sentential model which could be viewed at several relevant
 levels: at the syntactic, syntactic-semantic, semantic and pragmatic level,
 because only that way one can view all its features. It turned out that the
 status of complement clause was not problematic - it is a
 propositional-sentential object, obligatorily postponed both to the basic
 predication and to the prepositional accusative, but the prepositional
 accusative, though placed in the matrix sentence, is not in the direct
 correlation with its predication, so it is not its object, but has the
 function of PROLEPTIC SUBJECT of the complement clause (in the periphrasis
 test, the prepositional accusative is turned into nominative and is placed
 inside the complement clause), and semantically it is a pseudoagent: the
 bearer of the feature expressed in the predicate of the complement clause
 whose referent most frequently has the feature 'alive' 'human', but can also
 be abstract. Therefore, the verbs which appear in the matrix predication are
 the verbs of simple, obligatorily propositional-sentential transitivity which
 in addition also belong to specific semantic classes: it is the case with the
 verbs of cognition: primarily the basic verb of having knowledge znati (know)
 and the verbs of acquiring knowledge saznati, doznati (get to know); the
 verbs of a different degree of certainty about the factual situation: the
 verb garantovati (guarantee) and the copulative-adjectival structure biti
 siguran (be certain), biti ubeđen (be assured) and the verbs verovati
 (believe), misliti (think); then the verb of fictitious cognition uobražavati
 (imagine); the verbs of speaking pricati (talk) and, used in that meaning,
 the verbs cuti (hear), citati (read), then kazati (say), suskati 'speak
 quietly' (whisper), sumnjati (doubt), nagađati (suspect); and at the end the
 verbs of fear: brinuti se 'fear' (worry), bojati se (fear), pribojavati se
 (have fears), plasiti se (fear), strepeti (fear for), strahovati (be
 apprehensive). Since with these verbs the complement proposition acquires
 various features when it comes to factivity, this sentential model is
 analyzed from that perspective, too. Finally, the paper also discusses the
 frequency of negative / positive characterization of the referent of the
 proleptic subject.


Electro‐optic intensity modulation is demonstrated in three‐dimensional (channel) waveguides fabricated by diffusion techniques in ZnSe and CdS. Typical diffused guide dimensions are 1.6 μm × 19 μm × 2 mm. Two electrode configurations giving two field orientations are used. Waveguide modulators with Vπ (voltage for π radians phase shift) of 72 V with rise times less than 5 nsec are described. Waveguide modulation in epitaxial layers of ZnS and ZnSe on GaAs is also described.


Summary. Different cell fractions obtained from five patients with immune severe aplastic anaemia (SAA) in complete autologous haematologic reconstitution were tested for CFU‐c suppression. Bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMC), but not peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), showed definite CFU‐c inhibitory activity. On the contrary, both peripheral blood and marrow E rosetting cells (E+) suppressed CFU‐c growth. The suppressor activity of PBE+ cells could not be rescued by adding back PBE‐ cells and/or PB adherent cells (AC). In addition, unfractionated PBMC exposed to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) suppressed CFU‐c growth. PBMC from normal donors exposed to SRBC had no suppressor activity.


Numerical solutions of a nonlinear Schrödinger equation may suffer from the spurious four-wave mixing processes. We study how these nonphysical resonances appear in solutions of a much more stiff generalized nonlinear Schrödinger equation with an arbitrary dispersion operator and determine the necessary restrictions on temporal and spatial resolution of a numerical scheme. The restrictions are especially important to meet when an envelope equation has to be applied in a wide spectral window, e.g., because of the spectral broadening.


INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................... 277 I. THE LEGAL CONTROL OF EXECUTIVE POWER: TWO MODELS ........ 279 A. The American Model .......................................................................... 280 B. The Singapore Experience ................................................................... 281 II. INTRA-BRANCH CONTROLS ..................................................................... 286 A. The Attorney-General ......................................................................... 287 B. The Elected President .......................................................................... 290 III. JUDICIAL REVIEW ..................................................................................... 293 A. To say what the law is ......................................................................... 296 B. Neither force nor will, but only judgment ........................................... 300 IV. CONCLUDING THOUGHTS ....................................................................... 303


The object of research is the risk appetite of an IT project. It is important for the implementation of an IT project to determine the critical values of indicators important for the activity, which predetermines the need to define and manage risk appetite. Risk appetite management in the implementation of an IT project directly affects its successful implementation and requires theoretical and methodological foundations for its consideration in the project management system. By establishing risk appetite, the project manager determines how much risk s/he is willing to take in order to achieve the key goals of the project. The definitions of "risk appetite", "risk tolerance", "risk appetite" in the implementation of IT projects have been clarified. It is determined that risk appetite should be considered as an integral set of IT project risk, which affects the achievement of the set goals: completion of the project in time, volume and budget that have been agreed. Risk tolerance defines acceptable limits for individual operational risks of the project. This will allow project participants to understand the limits of their authority and responsibility in risk management. A survey of project managers was conducted on their understanding of risk appetite and its use in project management. As a result, the most significant risks and the most used indicators and methods for establishing the risk appetite of IT projects were identified. This made it possible to generalize the experience of establishing and using risk appetite in IT projects. Also, based on the results of the study, an integrated risk appetite management system for the implementation of an IT project is proposed. This will allow balancing the permissible risk limits and the desired goals of its implementation during the implementation of the IT project. At the same time, an important place is occupied by taking into account the interests of stakeholders and their vision of the results, taking into account the risks. The findings reported here could make it possible to systematize risk management of IT projects and determine it as part of a single integrated project management process


Our lack of recognition of concrete block makes concrete block-made
envelope structure not so popular in spite of its excellent Heat
Capacity, good sound insulation tion, low construction cost, and
distinguished fire resistance.
The purpose of this study is, therefore, to demonstrate its
distinguised characte ristics-especially heat capacity-, and to
encourage wide use of this building material.
From this study, the following results have been derived.
1) In three methods of caculating K-value of concrete block;
method 2 can be concluded as a most accurate method.
2) Envelope structure using concrete block have lower K-values
than that of other structures. 3) In a 24 pyung house, the total
heat losses of the concrete block house show 10.54% cut-off from
that of brick structure house, and construction cost can be reduced
to 72.45% of that of brick construction in envelope structure.


(2-ChloroethyI)phosphonic acid (ethephon) spray on tomato transplants (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) 12 days prior to pulling resulted in partial protection of the plants from frost injury after transplanting. Cultivars of tomato responded differently both to the degree of frost damage even if not treated with ethephon and to the level of protection by ethephon. 'Heinz 1630' was most tolerant to frost while 'Ohio 7663', 'Hunts 304', 'Libby 7241', and 'Chico III' were most susceptible. The transplants with thicker stems (>4.5 mm) generally had a better survival rate than thin-stemmed (<4.5 mm) transplants.


In the development of embedded hard real-time systems the ability to guarantee worst case execution times is gaining importance and complexity. The fast evolving processor acceleration techniques constantly increase the gap between a processor which uses the accelerations and one which does not. Modeling cache, pipelines and other parts of the processor gets increasingly difficult and time consuming. To circumvent this problem especially in the domain of rapid prototyping of embedded hard real-time systems, we propose to lay more weight on measurement and less on modeling. By analyzing the control flow graph the compiler uses for optimization, a reduced control flow graph can be generated, which limits the paths to be measured. Using this information the object code of the program is being instrumented and then measured. By measuring all paths the reduced control flow graph indicates, predictability is achieved without using too pessimistic estimations.


A floating structure of a bioplateau has been developed for the purification of water bodies from the toxic substances, the biotic component of which is terrestrial plants. Chemically inert floating materials were used as a substrate for the construction of the bioplateau: perlite, expanded clay, granular foam, vermiculite, cork. Substrate testing has shown that granular expanded polystyrene is the most optimal for the usage. The study of different options for seed germination in the design of the bioplateau has shown that its placement on the top of the substrate is the best option. The usage of perlite in combination with granular foam had created an additional capillary effect, due to which the seeds germinated at a faster rate. To optimize the hydrophytic structure a grid was used, which made it possible to increase the overall density of the bioplateau. An algorithm for creating a "rolled" plant that is suitable for transportation and placement in the surface water bodies that require purification from toxic substances has been developed.


The 2008 financial crisis demonstrates that studies on property price volatility are important because it impacts domestic economic conditions. This study identifies the volatility of property prices through monetary variables. This current study employs the ARDL method to determine the effect of monetary variables in the short and long term. The study results show that GDP as a proxy for income negatively affects residential property prices in Indonesia, and inflation positively affects property prices. There is a difference in the effect of domestic interest rates on property prices where there is a direct effect on domestic interest rates followed by the COVID-19 crisis. Meanwhile, foreign interest rates have a negative effect in the short term and a positive effect in the long term. This study implies that strong monetary operation through interest rates can maintain public expectations of prices, especially property prices.


Field-aligned currents (FACs) derived from the divergence of horizontal current estimates are presented. The technique for determining the currents is discussed and then example observations are presented. The horizontal currents were estimated from the product of the ionospheric conductance and the convection electric field. The ionospheric conductance was estimated from auroral ultraviolet luminosity observations from the ultraviolet imager instrument on the Polar satellite combined with an empirical model of the solar ultraviolet produced ionization. The convection electric field was estimated from plasma drift observations from the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network. The general features of the statistical FAC pattern [Iijima and Potemra, 1976] are found in the observations. In addition, transient currents in the vicinity of the magnetospheric cusp are observed and are found to be the most intense currents within the field of view. An example of FACs during the development of a magnetospheric substorm is presented. Conductance gradients are found to play an important role in determining the currents on both the dayside and nightside.


Considering the antibiotics potency in industrial cooling water evaluated with the inhibition zone diameter,an image processing method was proposed to measure this diameter.Firstly,having the obtained inhibition zone image pre-processed by translating the color image into the gray-scale image and carrying out the Wiener filtering,and then having the inhibition zones extracted through the Hough transmission;finally,having the inhibition zone detected with Cellular automata(CA) method and having its inhibition zone diameter calculated,and as well as having this image detection method compared with conventional image boundary operators(Prewitt and Canny).


PurposeAlthough crisis communication via social media has engaged academia's attention during the disease outbreak, information value for preventive behaviors is inadequately studied. The purpose of this paper is to cast light on how to strengthen the uptake of older people's coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) behavioral outcomes due to information value and perceived threat through social media.Design/methodology/approachThis study designs a survey and applies structural equation modeling to examine a research framework. A sample comprises 334 Vietnamese older participants who have utilized social media.FindingsThe results illustrate that preventive behaviors are determined by perceived threat (i.e. severity and susceptibility). Furthermore, older people heighten risk perceptions based on information characteristics, including information relevance, informative support and source credibility. Lastly, information relevance is a strong predictor of source credibility.Practical implicationsThe findings assist practitioners to enhance crisis communication effectiveness via social media by imparting valuable information to the public. Moreover, this paper offers overarching guidelines on the improvement in credibility with creators, risk consciousness and preventive behaviors.Originality/valueAlthough earlier studies focused attentiveness on the power of social media for raising threat perceptions, this work seems the first to unveil informative motives for perceived COVID-19 threat across older individuals, which subsequently presents plausible reasons for behavioral disclosure, including facemask-wearing, hand-washing and social distancing.


Damage induced localized failure is of vital importance to evaluate residual safety and to prevent catastrophic collapse of concrete structures. Aiming for the efficient and robust modeling of localized failure in quasi-brittle solids and structures, this paper addresses a thermodynamically consistent and numerically efficient localized damage model for concrete. The thermodynamic framework is presented in such a way that not only the continuum model for the bulk material, but also the localized model for the discontinuity, can be established in a consistent approach. For the latter, a localized Helmholtz free energy potential is postulated, mimicking the classical continuum damage model. Specifically, a localized damage variable is introduced to characterize degradation of the initially-rigid discontinuity with a well-defined reference stiffness. Consistent evolution law for the localized damage variable is derived from an appropriate traction-based failure criterion and its equivalent separation-based counterpart, e.g. the novel hyperbolic damage criterion introduced in this work. The proposed model can be regularized and in particular, upon the assumption of continuous stress field, an orthotropic damage model in the context of smeared crack methods is recovered. This coincidence not only justifies the proposed model, but also sheds new lights on other classical methods. Numerically, the proposed localized damage model is incorporated into the improved stable eXtended FEM. Compared to those plasticity-based localized models, an explicit numerical algorithm can be used to update the cohesive tractions transferred across the discontinuity with no iteration on the constitutive level. This feature, together with the well-conditioned system matrix ensured by the improved stable eXtended FEM, guarantees noticeable efficiency and robustness of the overall numerical performances. The proposed model is verified against several classical benchmark tests of concrete in both mode-I and mixed-mode failure. The numerical predictions agree well with experimental test data and those reported in the literature. Remarkably, all the numerical results are mesh-size and mesh-alignment independent, and no spurious stress locking is observed, showing validity of the proposed model in the modeling of localized failure in concrete.


In 1963 we tested the kallikrein inactivator TrasyloF for the first time. It had been shown earlier that Trasylol inhibits the proteolytic action of kallikrein,' trypsin,2 ~hymotrypsin,~ and p la~min .~ Because of the similarity in enzymatic specificity between thrombin and trypsin, we considered the possibility that Trasylol might also counteract circulating thrombin. It was, however, subsequently shown that Trasylol is, in fact, an antithromboplastic agent and is without effect on t h r ~ m b i n . ~ A report is given here of some of our experimental investigations on Trasylol with regard to 1) the action of Trasylol on blood coagulation in vitro; 2) the in vivo antithromboplastic effect of Trasylol in dogs; and 3) the effect of E-aminocaproic acid and Trasylol on fibrinolysis following induced intravascular coagulation in dogs.


Sheath blight, caused by the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Rhizoctonia solani, is the second most serious and destructive disease of the rice crop after blast. Screening of rice germplasm across the world failed to identify the rice variety resistant to R.solani. Thus conventional breeding could not be used to develop a rice variety for combating the disease and protect plants against yield loss. In this study, in order to improve sheath blight resistance, two different kinds of pyramided transgenic rice lines have been developed. The first pyramided rice line that overexpresses the rice oxalate oxidase 4 (Osoxo4) rice chitinase gene (OsCHI11) and second one that overexpress rice chitinase (OsCHI11) and Arabidopsis NPR1 (AtNPR1) gene. Transgenes were expressed under the control of two different green tissue specific-promoters: rice PD54O–544 and maize PPEPC. Transgenic rice plants of each individual construct were screened via PCR, southern hybridization, activity assays, and expression analysis. Expression of PR genes increased significantly following pathogen infection in overexpressing transgenic plants. Following infection, transgenic plants exhibited elevated hydrogen peroxide levels, significant changes in activity of ROS scavenging enzymes and reduced membrane damage when compared to their wild type counterpart. In a Rhizoctonia solani toxin assay, a detached leaf inoculation test and an in vivo plant bioassay, transgenic plants showed a significant reduction in disease symptoms in comparison to non-transgenic control plants. Pyramiding of OsCHI11 and OsOXO4 genes have been done for the first time in a single vector background. It is evident from the study that green tissue-specific and simultaneous over expression of both the genes is able to degrade exogenous oxalate, and subsequently to produce H2O2 which activates plants defense system to enhance resistance of rice plant against the necrotrophic sheath blight pathogen R.solani. Coexpression of OsCHI11 and AtNPR1 genes in rice showed enhanced resistance by activating the SAR pathway related PR genes. It can be concluded from the study that green tissue-specific expression of OsCHI11-AtNPR1 genes in rice is a promising strategy to enhance resistance against sheath blight pathogen without any concomitant phenotypic and agronomic cost.


Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common pathogen in children, with nearly all children being infected before the age of 2. Severe infection requiring hospitalization has been linked to the development of asthma later in life due to an improper Th2 skewing of the immune response. Dendritic cells (DCs) are key cells involved in presenting antigen to T cells and polarizing the T cell response. It has been reported that RSV interferes with the initiation of the adaptive immune response by inhibiting the production of type I interferons (IFN), including IFNβ, thus leading to a Th2 environment in the lungs. The mechanism by which this occurs is not fully understood. Epigenetic modulation of gene transcription has been shown to be important in regulating inflammatory pathways. We found that bone marrow derived DCs (BMDCs) infected with the RSV clinical isolate A2001/2-20 upregulated expression of Jarid1b, an H3K4 demethylase. Jarid1b has been described as a transcriptional repressor in cancer cells. We therefore hypothesized that Jarid1b plays a role in suppressing inflammatory genes in RSV infected DCs. We used siRNA to downregulate Jarid1b in BMDCs. Loss of Jarid1b led to a 10-fold increase in IFNβ compared to cells transfected with non-specific siRNA, as well as an increase in IL-6 and TNF-α. DC phenotype was unaffected as determined by flow cytometry. Investigations into the role that Jarid1b-induced DC regulation has in directing the T cell response are ongoing.


In this paper, we have fabricated the magnesium-doped indium oxide (MgInO) thin-film transistors (TFTs) by solution process and evaluate the electrical characteristics and stability under temperature stress and positive bias stress. The MgInO TFTs show a decrease of off-state current (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\text {I}}_{{\mathrm{\scriptscriptstyle off}}})$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and an increase of threshold voltage (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\text {V}}_{\mathrm {TH}})$ </tex-math></inline-formula> with the increase of Mg doping concentration. For MgInO TFT with 0.75 mol% Mg doping concentration, it shows an excellent electrical characteristic (the field effectmobility of 13.77 cm<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^{2} {\text {V}}^{-1}~\text{s}^{-1}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, the threshold voltage of 2.84 V, and subthreshold swing value of 0.85 V/decade) and a good stability of temperature stress and positive bias stress. The performance enhancement of MgInO TFTs is attributed to the reduced density of states and the lower interface trap density by the optimized Mg doping concentration, which is first verified by the temperature-dependent field effect measurement and capacitance–voltage method.


Abstract We study the character of the infinite wedge projective representation of the algebra of differential operators on the circle. We prove quasi-modularity of this character and also compute certain generating functions for traces of differential operators which we call correlation functions. These correlation functions are sums of determinants built from genus 1 theta functions and their derivatives.


Grating-assisted couplers have been widely studied over the past twenty years for use in guided-wave optics. The grating tooth shape strongly influences the radiation characteristics of the couplers.


This paper examines whether the active management strategy can outperform the market by using turnover ratio as the proxy. Turnover ratio is the percentage of changing fund's holding in a given year. Therefore, a high turnover ratio can indicate an active management.

This paper will focus on an active equity fund in Thailand from 2010 to 2019. The first objective is to examine the effect of the different levels of turnover ratio on fund performance. This objective sorts mutual funds based on their turnover ratio. The findings are the performance of the high-turnover funds are indifferent from the low-turnover funds and the moderate-turnover funds significantly underperform the market and in the aggregate, active funds underperform the market in the net return basis which supports the Efficient Market Hypothesis that investors have the same information. Thus, the buy-and-hold strategy is preferred in Thai mutual fund industry. The second is to examine the subsequent performance by using the past turnover ratio and past performance as an investment strategy. The result suggests that there is no strategy that significantly beat the market. At the same levels of the past performance, investing in the past high-turnover ratio is indifferent from investing in the past low-turnover ratio. While investing in fund with moderate turnover ratio in the past without considering its past performance will significantly lead to adverse return in the subsequent year. The third objective is to investigate the relationship between portfolio turnover and mutual fund performance by employing panel regression, panel vector autoregression, and panel granger causality. These three approaches affirm that there is no relation between turnover and mutual fund performance. Additionally, the result of impulse response function (IRF) and forecast-error variance decomposition (VDC) indicates that the variability of trading activities is explained by the shocks of performance. In contrast, shocks to trading activities do not tend to have an impact on corresponding performance.


This article is an attempt to analyse the information and didactic potential of interactive historical maps in the conditions of transition to the competence educational model. The possibilities of using traditional, electronic and interactive maps in the educational process are considered. The author formulates requirements for a training interactive map for different categories of students (in the framework of secondary and higher education). The article offers a short description of the experience of creating interactive cartographic resources at the I. Kant Baltic Federal University.


The present invention provides a medical instrument that can be reliably attached to a drug dispensing part without breaking a locking mechanism; an injection needle assembly; and a drug injection apparatus equipped with the injection needle assembly. An insertion part of this injection needle assembly, through tapered mating, engages the drug dispensing part of a syringe inserted therein and is secured to the syringe by a locking mechanism. The assembly is provided with a restricting part that, when the drug dispensing part is inserted into the insertion part, and a first thread part of the locking mechanism and a second thread part of the insertion part mate in a threaded manner, comes into contact with the locking mechanism, thereby restricting the drug dispensing part from pushing into the insertion part. Pushing of the drug dispensing part into the insertion part is restricted by this restricting part.


represent differences not in degree, but in kind, and are diametrically opposed to the prevalent teachings; that is, the third opposes the Idea that the diabetic should be kept at the highest possible level of weight and strength, and that gain in weilrht is srnonymous with Improvement; and It substitutes for this the plan of keeping most severe diabetics Intentionally and permanently at a sufflclently low level of weight and metabolism, in the belief that return of symptoms and downward progress is thus prevented. The fourth feature stands opposed to the doctrines that fat feeding does not appreciably Influence diabetic glycosur-ia, and th~t calories lost in the urine should be replaced by additional calories In the diet, preferably in the form of fat. It opposes to these the observation that addition of fat to a fixed diet sufftces to bring back both glycosuria and ketonuria in most severe diabetics, and the principle that the patient's tolerance for fat and calories should be followed in the same way as the tolerance for carbohydrate and protein. The fifth feature consists merely of routine or incidental matters, which are not without practical importance. Among these may be mentioned (1) the diet such as not to overtax tolerance and yet satisfy the patient sufflciently that he will follow It continuously at home; (2) the absence of any specific craving for carbohydrate, such as diabetics are supposed to manifest, and the contradiction of the prevalent Idea that most severe diabetics cannot be trusted; (3) the avoidance of the need of alkali for more than a few days, and therewith relief from disturbances due either to acidosis on the one hand or to prolonged large doses of soda on the other; (4) the principle of clearing up the urine quickly and devoting the greater part of the stay in hospital to educating the patient, rather than devoting the greater part of the stay in hospital to clearing up the urine and dismissing the patient shortly thereafter; (5) instruction of the patient in the simple means of controlling his own condition, through his diet, his body-weight, and the daily testing of his own urine with Benedict's or Fehling's solution."


These are the proceedings of an international symposium entitled The Mortality Decline and Short-Term Population Movement held in Lund Sweden June 22-26 1981. Sixteen papers by various authors are included. The papers deal with aspects of the relationship between demographic and economic changes in preindustrial Europe. The primary focus of most of the papers is on the decline in mortality and the factors affecting it and on the factors influencing short-term fluctuations in population trends in the preindustrial era. (ANNOTATION)


Between September 1999 and May 2000, seasonal changes of plankton communities were assessed in two contrasting tropical systems: Salamanca Gulf and Tayrona Natural National Park at the coastal, south-central Colombian Caribbean Sea. We measured hydrographic characteristics of the water column, size fractionated phytoplankton biomass, protein/carbohydrate ratios (P/C) of the particulate organic material, phytoplankton (>55 µm), and mesozooplankton composition and density. Between zones no change was detected in water column characteristics, but there were changes among seasons (rainy and dry) in both areas. High chlorophyll a concentrations in the phytoplankton community prevailed during both seasons. The phytoplankton taxonomic composition, mesozooplankton assemblages, as well as P/C ratio, differed between seasons. This variability was derived from differences in fresh and brackish water input to the continental shelf (rainy season) and potentially upwelling (dry season). Albeit differences in the intensity of the oceanographic processes, Salamanca Gulf and Tayrona Natural National Park varied similarly by climatic season. Our results showed strong seasonal differences in the plankton community, contrasting with the general perspective of tropical Caribbean systems where plankton communities are usually considered of low variability and concentration all year long.


As the downscaling of gate oxides continues, trap density in the oxide bulk will reduce, but positive charges formed near to the SiO/sub 2//Si interface become relatively important. For gate oxides used in industry, hole trapping is the most important process for positive charge formation. Apart from as-grown hole traps, we recently reported that new hole traps were generated by electrical stresses. Information on these hole traps, however, is still limited. In part I of this work, properties of both generated and as-grown hole traps are investigated. For the first time, it will be clearly shown that generated hole traps consist of two components; cyclic positive charges (CPC) and antineutralization positive charges (ANPC). The charging and discharging rates of CPC are similar, while the neutralization of ANPC is much more difficult than its charging. Differences between them are also observed in generation kinetics and dependence on measurement temperature. Efforts will be made to explain their differences in terms of energy levels and to link them with positive charges reported in earlier works. We will also show that as-grown traps, regardless their distance from the interface, are not responsible for either ANPC or CPC. This is to say that generated hole traps are not the same as as-grown traps and their differences will be highlighted. In part II, hole trap generation mechanisms will be investigated.


In Turkey, the quality and production power of the rangelands have decreased over time by uncontrolled grazing, carelessness and without improvement of rangelands in time because they are medium benefited. Sustainability has not been achieved in rangeland improvement and management projects that implemented by the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for last 20 years. Mistakes concerning to grazing of animals are effective on the basis of both gradual reduction of the current classes of existing vegetations and the lack of improvements in the rehabilitated ones. Attention should be paid to the grazing time and intensity, animal distribution and animal species in order to use the rangelands correctly. Failure to comply with any of these principles causes rangelands to tend to deteriorate. Generally, problems are not to be faced in terms of the selection of the species of animals will be grazed in the rangelands in Turkey. On the other hand, animal distribution would be a problem in the vicinity of the settlement and water resources; otherwise, there is not any major problem in other areas. Heavy grazing appears as an important problem in the rangelands of some settlement areas where the number of animals is high. However, this is not the main factor causing deterioration of the most rangelands. Because approximately 75% of the land is evaluated for grazing the animals in Turkey. In contrast, untimely grazing is one of the most destructive effects on rangelands vegetation. Untimely or yearlong grazing causes serious damage to plants that do not produce enough photosynthesis tissue. On the other hand, it disrupts the soil-water-air-nutrient element balance for a long time by causing deterioration of the soil structure. This causes destructive effects, especially, in good plants and the condition of the rangelands is gradually decreasing. Consequently, firstly, observing the grazing season will solve at least half of the issues related to the deterioration and sustainability in range management.


ABSTRACT Background Education is increasingly a bureaucratized, standardized and regulated service in which everything is decided by the 'experts'. There is an abandonment of the concept of education centred on the subject, social progress and collective transformation. Thus, education in general and teacher-training in particular, need innovative approaches that question the role of schools with regard to the social reproduction and neoliberalism. Critical pedagogies must develop practical propositions for transformation beyond theoretical criticism. In this sense, one of these possibilities is the philosophy of emancipation, which demands that students participate in their own education to recognize themselves as active social agents in the process of transformation and as authors in the construction of their own world. Purpose This study is an outline and an evaluation of an experience that was based on the main objective of emancipating the students of a Master's degree in Physical Education in Secondary Education Teaching in order to carry out their own Action Research (AR) projects. Methods The study was carried out through the planning of three cycles of AR, and a teaching role closely associated to the pedagogy of ignorance. Data from the study was collected through reflective journals from the teachers (n = 2) and the participating students (n = 90). Added to this were two discussion groups, developed for the purpose of giving the students a more active voice. Findings The results show, on the one hand, how the combination of the pedagogy of ignorance and the cycles of AR required students to act with autonomy and responsibility; however, although they valued this precept in the end, they asked for more intervention by teachers. Their overriding feeling of needing to 'be taught' made the study, unexpectedly, resemble a simulation. On the other hand, the methodology demanded that the authors of the study to not only maintain distance and not intervene but also to continually reconsider their role and authority in the classroom. Conclusions Based on this study, the conclusions are that the course was designed too extensively planning fewer cycles might have resolved the sensation of the emotional distance that was perceived by the students. Reflection on the dynamics of the course also bred a feeling that the objectives of the study could have been shared with the students sooner to have obtained more accurate results. Despite these complications, it was a process of intense reflection and pedagogical learning, and a valuable experience on many levels.


Recently, more and more scholars have devoted themselves to researching new methods of vibration reduction and noise reduction by manipulating the elastic waves in the structure to achieve the purpose of vibration reduction and noise reduction. To this end, a new type of 'acoustic black hole' structure is proposed, which reduces structural vibration while avoiding problems such as mass increase. In this paper, the vibration damping performance of the structure is mainly calculated by finite element software, and the energy concentration effect of the thin plate containing the acoustic black hole is verified by finite element analysis. A thin plate structure with four acoustic black holes is proposed. The calculation shows that the structure has obvious vibration reduction effect, and the vibration reduction effect can reach more than 20dB at high frequency.


The 501 high-speed printer is an output device of the RCA 501 Electronic Data Processing System. This system is fully transistorized. It is expandable in both the area of the high-speed memory and the input-output devices. In the specific case of the High-Speed Printer, this expandability takes the form of optional use of the printer mechanism either as an on-line device or an off-line device.


BIOSENSORS—42 YEARS AND COUNTING by George G. Guilbault, M. Pravda, and M. Kreuzer, Chemistry Department, Sensors Development Research Group, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland and C. K. O'Sullivan, Department of Chemical Engineering, Nanobiotechnology and Bioanalysis Group, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain ABSTRACT: In this presentation, the entire field of biosensor research and commercial applications will be covered, starting with the beginnings of developments in the 1960s, through 42 years to the present. Especially stressed is the fields of immunosensors, a technique dating back to 1964 and one that forms the most active field if research today. Finally, some of the newer biological sensors are mentioned‐antibody fragments and non‐immunoglobulin ligands. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1481–1496, 2004 DEVELOPMENT OF A LACCASE‐MODIFIED ELECTRODE FOR AMPEROMETRIC DETECTION OF MONO‐ AND DIPHENOLS. THE INFLUENCE OF ENZYME STORAGE METHOD by Anna Jarosz‐Wilkołazka, Grzegorz Janusz, Elzbieta Malarczyk, and Andrzej Leonowicz, Department of Biochemistry, Maria Curie‐Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland and Tautgirdas Ruzgas and Lo Gorton, Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Lund, P.O. Box 124, Lund S‐221 00, Sweden ABSTRACT: Results are reported for biosensors based on two different preparations of the same enzyme, laccase from Cerrena unicolor, one lyophilized and one stored frozen at −18°C, for monitoring phenolic compounds. The enzyme was adsorbed on graphite electrodes and these were used in a flow through wall jet cell connected to a flow injection set‐up. The electrodes were used at −50 mV vs. Ag|AgCl. The effect of pH, flow rate of the carrier buffer was investigated as well as the operational and storage stability. Biosensors based on the frozen enzyme preparation were shown to be superior for biosensor construction. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1497–1513, 2004 FLOW INJECTION ANALYSIS OF BENZENE USING AN AMPEROMETRIC BACTERIAL BIOSENSOR by Yvonne H. Lanyon and Ibtisam E. Tothill, Cranfield Biotechnology Centre, Cranfield University, Silsoe, Bedfordshire MK45 4DT, UK and Yvonne H. Lanyon, Giovanna Marrazza, and Marco Mascini, Department of Chemistry, Florence University, Sesto Fiorentino FI, Italy ABSTRACT: A bacterial biosensor integrated within a flow injection analysis (FIA) system has been developed for the detection of benzene, based on its aerobic catabolism by Pseudomonas putida ML2. P. putida ML2 cells were immobilised between two cellulose acetate membranes and fixed onto a Clark dissolved oxygen electrode. Biosensor responses were investigated with the FIA system, resulting in a linear detection range between 0.01–0.1 mM benzene. A response and baseline recovery time of 6 and 10–15 min, respectively, was obtained. A stable and reproducible sensor response has been found up to 28 days of use based on the same bacterial membrane, and the sensor has shown a high specificity to benzene, with a negligible response to other benzene‐related compounds. Its ease of operation, rapid and sensitive response, and cost‐effective production, demonstrate that the P. putida ML2 biosensor has potential applications for the analysis of samples containing benzene. The optimisation of the biosensor‐flow injection system is described. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1515–1528, 2004 COMBINATION OF GOLD‐MODIFIED ELECTRODE AND α‐AMYLOGLUCOSIDASE FOR SIMULTANEOUS DETERMINATION OF STARCH AND GLUCOSE by Ilhame Bourais and Aziz Amine, Laboratoire des Analyses Chimiques et Biocapteurs, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, B.P.146, Mohammedia, Morocco and Christopher M. A. Brett, Departamento de Quimica, Universidade de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal ABSTRACT: The electrocatalytic activity of copper‐modified gold electrodes has been investigated for the simultaneous detection of glucose and starch using α‐amyloglucosidase in solution. The amperometric response of glucose at the modified gold electrode was monitored for different copper loadings (0.04, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3 mg cm−2), that of 0.2 mg cm−2 deposited on the electrode surface being chosen for further investigation. The surface characteristics were confirmed by the electrochemical impedance spectra. The oxidation of glucose and starch was studied by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) in order to determine the best applied potential for measuring glucose in the presence of starch, a value of +0.4 V vs. SCE being selected. The glucose detection limit at +0.4 V is equal to 0.64 mg L−1 in the absence of starch. The same detection limit was found after adding 200 mg L−1 starch to the cell. The properties of the copper‐deposited films were investigated in 0.15 M NaOH solution for the determination of α‐amyloglucosidase enzyme activity. The enzymatic reaction conditions were optimized. Conversion of starch into glucose was found to be around 89% by using α‐amyloglucosidase (2970 mUI) at 55°C for 30 min. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1529–1543, 2004 DEVELOPMENT OF AN ELECTROCHEMICAL IMMUNOSENSOR FOR OCHRATOXIN A by Sergio Hugo Alarcón, Laura Micheli, and Giuseppe Palleschi, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Roma, Italia; Sergio Hugo Alarcón, Departamento de Química Analítica, Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina; and Dario Compagnone, Dipartimento di Scienze degli Alimenti, Università di Teramo, Via Spagna, 164023, Mosciano S. Angelo, Teramo, Italia ABSTRACT: A direct, competitive electrochemical enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) has been developed for the quantitative determination of ochratoxin A (OTA) using polyclonal antibodies. The assay is carried out on carbon‐based screen printed electrodes (SPE). Optimisation of the ELISA competitive conditions allowed us to realise an assay with improved analytical behaviour compared to the classical spectrophotometric ELISA based assay. The performance was comparable to a published monoclonal based assay. The assay gave a detection limit of 180 pg mL−1 and sensitivity of 6.1 ± 0.1 ng mL−1. The immunosensor was challenged with wine to assess a matrix effect. Recoveries obtained were in the 70–118% range. The method appears to be suitable for OTA contamination screening in food samples. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1545–1558, 2004 THERMAL INKJET TECHNOLOGY FOR THE MICRODEPOSITION OF BIOLOGICAL MOLECULES AS A VIABLE ROUTE FOR THE REALIZATION OF BIOSENSORS by L. Setti, C. Piana, S. Bonazzi, and D. Frascaro, Department of Industrial and Materials Chemistry, University of Bologna, Viale del Risorgimento 4, 40136 Bologna, Italy; B. Ballarin, Department of Physical and Inorganic Chemistry, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy; A. Fraleoni-Morgera, Spinner Consortium, c/o Department of Industrial and Materials Chemistry, V. Risorgimento 4, I-40136, Bologna, Italy; and S. Giuliani, Lesepidado Srl, V. G. Dozza 5, I-40139, Bologna, Italy ABSTRACT: Recent progresses in inkjet printing of parts of biosensors are highlighted, with particular reference to the printing of biologically active molecules. We describe a system constituted by a thermal inkjet printer, adapted to layering a bidimensional array of dots [701 × 701 dots per inch] on solid supports. The printer was used to depose a β‐galactosidase (GAL)‐containing ink on a polyester sheet, with dots obtained from 10 pL drops, each drop containing in turn 6 pg of enzyme. The activity of GAL after the preparation was determined using a colorimetric probe (Brilliant Blue FCF). The activity loss of the microdeposed enzymes was found to be around 15%, showing that the 2 µsec‐lasting thermal shock experienced by the biomolecule into the printhead nozzle affects to a lesser extent the activity of the thermal inkjet deposited enzyme. In conclusion, the most recent findings of our group in this line are depicted, and a view of possible future developments of the "biopolytronics" field is outlined. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1559–1570, 2004 AFFINITY METHODS TO IMMOBILIZE ACETYLCHOLINESTERASES FOR MANUFACTURING BIOSENSORS by Bogdan Bucur, Silvana Andreescu, and Jean‐Louis Marty, Centre of Phytopharmacy, University of Perpignan, URA 5054, 52 Av. de Villeneuve 66860, Perpignan Cedex, France and Bogdan Bucur and Silvana Andreescu, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania ABSTRACT: Two new affinity methods to immobilise acetylcholinesterase (AChE) onto screen‐printed electrodes (SPE) are described and compared for the fabrication of SPE: one based on metal chelate affinity (MCA) and one based on the Concanavalin A (Con A), a sugar residue binding lectine. The manufacturing and the optimisation procedure for each type of biosensor are discussed with respect to no‐specific binding, functionalisation of the SPE surface and the amount of enzyme used. A linear response range to acetylthiocholine substrate between 10 and 100 µmol L−1 was obtained for Con A sensors and between 1 and 60 µmol L−1 with the MCA sensors. The possibilities to reuse the sensors fabricated using both affinity immobilisation chemistries were also discussed. The optimised sensors were used to study the inhibitory effects of organophosphorus pesticides on immobilised AChE activity. A detection limit of 5 × 10−7 mol L−1 chlorpyrifos methyl‐oxon (ee AChE sensor) and 2 × 10−9 mol L−1 paraoxon (dm AChE sensor) was achieved for the sensors with the enzyme attached via Con A and NTA–Ni, respectively. Analytical Letters, 37(8), 1571–1588, 2004 A BI‐ENZYMATIC WHOLE‐CELL ALGAL BIOSENSOR FOR MONITORING WASTE WATER POLLUTANTS by Claude Durrieu, Céline Chouteau, and Lucile Barthet, Ecole Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'Etat, Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement, Rue Maurice Audin, Vaulx‐en‐Velin, France; Céline Chouteau and Jean‐Marc Chovelon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, LACE, CNRS UMR, Villeurbanne, France; and Canh Tran‐Minh, Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Saint Etienne, SPIN, P


Accurate representation of periodic speech segments is essential for synthesizing high quality digital speech at very low bit rates. For bit rates at 4.8 kb/s and below, conventional code excited linear prediction (CELP) does not provide the appropriate degree of periodicity. It has been suggested that good quality low bit rate speech can be obtained from frequency domain techniques such as STC, NMR and MB-LPC vocoders. A MB-LPC vocoder operating at 2.4 kb/s and below is presented which exploits the advantages of both time- and frequency-domain speech coding to produce natural sounding, good quality speech. This also includes a new frequency domain post-filter which attenuates the noise in the formant nulls and enhances the synthesized speech.<<ETX>>


Objective To observe the effects of Soft Capsule of Compound Oil of Jujube,Arboruitae,and Gardenia(COJAG) on serum estrogen hormone,blood rheology,blood fats,as well as body weight and viscera indexes in castrated female rats.Methods 45 bilateral oophorectomy female rats were divided into COJAG high,middle and low doses groups,estrogen group,and model group;other 10 rats were used as sham operation group.The blood fats,blood rheology,body weight,viscera indexes,serum estrodiol,follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone were determined.Results Compared with model group,the serum E2 was significantly increased(P0.01),FSH(P0.05) and LH(P0.01) were reduced;TG,TC,LDL,and C/HDL-C were significantly reduced(P0.05),HDL-C was increased(P0.05);the body weight of the female castrated rats was significantly reduced and their thymus,pituitary,uterus,adrenal and other organs' viscera indexes were increased(P0.05 or P0.01).The ηb and ηp in high,middle and low shear rates of whole blood viscosity,plasma viscosity were significantly lowered(P0.05),ESR was speeded up(P0.05),and the Hct and Fib were lowered(P0.05) in the female castrated rats in COJAG groups.Conclusion COJAG can decrease blood fat,improve blood rheology,reduce weight,and increase viscera index;these roles are probably related to the increase of estrogen content in blood and(or) its rich polyunsaturated fatty acids.


The presence of a base cavity will degrade the bearing capacity of tunnel bottom structures, and will also have a noteworthy impact on its fatigue performance. In order to study the fatigue performance and cumulative damage to tunnel bottom structure, a series of bending fatigue tests are conducted by reference to a heavy haul railway tunnel with a base cavity. Through the tests, fatigue evolution characteristics of tunnel bottom structure with cavity are obtained, then based on the expression of S-N curves, a non-linear fatigue cumulative damage model is therefore proposed, the deflection evolution and cumulative damage evolution can be divided into three stages, and characterized with an "s-shaped" curve. The tests results reveal that the damage to the tunnel bottom structure develops rapidly when a cavity exists in the base rock, fatigue occurs more easily, and the fatigue life of specimens decreases with the increase of the stress level and cavity width.


We report a nanowire–quantum-dot–polymer solar cell consisting of a chemically treated CdSe quantum dot film deposited on n-type ZnO nanowires. The electron and hole collecting contacts are a fluorine-doped tin-oxide/zinc oxide layer and a P3HT/Au layer. This device architecture allows for enhanced light absorption and an efficient collection of photogenerated carriers. A detailed analysis of the chemical treatment of the quantum dots, their deposition, and the necessary annealing processes are discussed. We find that the surface treatment of CdSe quantum dots with pyridine, and the use of 1,2-ethanedithiol (EDT) ligands, critically improves the device performance. Annealing at 380 °C for 2 h is found to cause a structural conversion of the CdSe from its initial isolated quantum dot arrangement into a polycrystalline film with excellent surface conformality, thereby resulting in a further enhancement of device performance. Moreover, long-term annealing of 24 h leads to additional increases in device efficiency. Our best conversion efficiency reached for this type of cell is 3.4% under 85 mW cm−2 illumination.


Let be a doubly infinite sequence of identically distributed and -mixing random variables with zero means and finite variances and an absolutely summable sequence of real numbers. In this paper, we prove the complete moment convergence of under some suitable conditions.


Background: Soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is used as a biomarker for inflammatory factor in various conditions, but its potential role as a biomarker in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) induced by intra-abdominal infection has not yet been assessed. The aim of the current study was to identify the diagnostic and prognostic value of suPAR in this population. Methods: We performed a 1-year prospective observational study in the general intensive care unit of The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China, from January 2014 to February 2015. Patients who had acquired ARDS as a result of intra-abdominal infection were enrolled into the study, along with patients with sepsis and healthy control individuals. Clinical parameters were recorded and serum samples were collected, and serum levels of suPAR and other inflammatory markers were determined. ARDS patients were followed for 90 days following hospital discharge. Results: A total of 45 ARDS patients, 47 sepsis patients and 50 healthy control individuals were enrolled. ARDS and sepsis patients showed elevated suPAR serum concentrations compared with healthy volunteers, but there were no significant differences between patients with ARDS and those with sepsis. The value of suPAR in the diagnosis of ARDS was therefore limited. However, suPAR levels were associated with ARDS severity and other disease-severity scores, such as Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II and the Simplified Acute Physiology Score II. Further analysis revealed that the suPAR level could predict worse outcomes for ARDS patients, and receiver operating characteristic analyses indicated that a suPAR cut-off value of 310 pg/ml on admission was the best predictor of mortality. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis confirmed these results. Conclusions: This prognostic study indicates that suPAR is a reliable marker of ARDS severity and a strong independent predictor of unfavorable outcomes in patients with intra-abdominal infection. However, its power to discriminate between ARDS and sepsis appears to be limited.


Abstract An instrumented aircraft and a vertically-pointing FM-CW radar were used to investigate waves and turbulence within a very strong low-level temperature inversion. Temperature and wind velocity data from the aircraft were spectrum-analyzed to reveal characteristics of gravity waves with lengths between 44 and 560 m. Data from two days, with slightly different inversion conditions, are presented. Nearly all the waves at these wavelengths are trapped waves, propagating horizontally within the inversion. The wave groups are generally of limited horizontal and vertical extent, often occurring wholly within thin sublayers of the inversion. The longer waves tend to have uniformity of direction, while the shorter waves propagate in all directions. Data from aircraft, radar and wind soundings are internally consistent and show that critical layer absorption of some of the waves is probable within the inversion. Some implications for the observation of gravity waves by aircraft are presented.


Development of advanced rotorcraft configurations has highlighted a need for high-quality experimental data to support the development of flexible and accurate analytical design tools. To provide this type of data, a test program was conducted in the Langley 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel to measure the flow near the empennage of a 15-percent scale powered helicopter model with an operating tail fan. Three-component velocity profiles were measured with laser velocimetry (LV) one chord forward of the horizontal tail for four advance ratios to evaluate the effect of the rotor wake impingement on the horizontal tail angle of attack. These velocity data indicate the horizontal tail can experience unsteady angle of attack variations of over 30 degrees due to the rotor wake influence. The horizontal tail is most affected by the rotor wake above advance ratios of 0.10. Velocity measurements of the flow on the inlet side of the tail fan were made for a low-speed flight condition using conventional LV techniques. The velocity data show an accelerated flow near the tail fan duct, and vorticity calculations track the passage of main rotor wake vortices through the measurement plane.


If you have a stream running through your farm, you may be interested in learning about a conservation technique that has gained the respect of many Iowa landowners and conservation professionals. It is called a riparian buffer system and involves planting trees, shrubs, and native grasses along streams to prevent sediment and chemicals from entering creeks and rivers.


Inthispaper, we propose a framerate up-conversion (FRUC)methodusingthemotion compensation (MC)basedonblock matching algorithm (BMA). Theproperty oftheBMA ischanged bythesize of block. Itisdesirable forsmall moving object tosetblock size small. Ontheother hand, wewouldlike tosettheblock size large intheglobal motion region. Therefore, theblock size isdecided depend ontheproperty ofthelocal region of frameimage. Inthis paper, we present anovelFRUC technique based onthemotion compensated interpolation withmulti-size blocks. Atfirst, theframeimage isdivided into 8x8blocks andnr,tion vectors areestimated foreach 8x8block. Next, thesimilar motion blocks aremerged into oneblock. Thustheproposed methodreduces block artifacts andrealizes theclear interpolation ofmoving objects regardless ofthesize ofthose.


In the environment Management Improvement there exist some conditions that aims for a better performance of the company through the satisfaction of the client. However, despite of these, it does not seem clear to us the manner or the way of making these aspirations a reality. The present work links the processes of Marketing Research and Quality Managemet in the search for the achievement of a common goal: the satisfaction of the client. The work also shows that is possible to manage the quality of markets research process through planning management, control and improvement and defining. In each case the activities that should be undertaken in order to make an effective quality management of processes are also presented.


Aims This quality improvement initiative aimed to improve the quality of paediatric out-patient department (OPD) letters in a non-tertiary centre, by assessing adherence to a pre-designed layout. The Sheffield Assessment Instrument for Letters (SAIL) is an assessment tool that gauges written communication performance in the OPD setting. This pre-designed lay out has been proven to improve the quality of clinic letters. We assessed its efficacy and looked at the uptake of this template over a year long period. Method Clinic letters generated from consultant led general paediatric clinics over one year were retrospectively analysed via a hospital database. A checklist based on SAIL assessment tool was designed. This modified checklist included the following parameters; word count, NCHD grade, use of paragraphs, problem list. All doctors starting or continuing to work in the paediatrics outpatients department were introduced to the template system at the beginning of their clinic. We compared our numbers between each of the four interventions which included; education sessions and laminated template placement in each clinic room to assess our progress. We performed a comparative analysis on the uptake of this intervention following its initial introduction in January 2018 and its continued use from July 2018. Our main focus was on inclusion of problem lists and medication lists in the GP letter Results Initial assessment: 51% (n=132) of the letters included problem lists. 19.3% (n=50) included medication lists. Post first intervention: 77% (n=94) had problem lists and 47% (n=57) had medication lists. A template was placed in all clinic rooms. A year on: 78.9% (n=94) had problem lists. 31% (n=38) had medication lists. A repeat education session took place. Post third intervention: 88% (n=208) had problem lists and 58% (n= 136) had medication lists. Over all there was a 37% increase in the inclusion of problem lists and 12% increase in medication list inclusion. Conclusion Effective communication is an integral part of clinical medicine. According to the modified SAIL assessment tool letters were not effectively communicating clinic details to primary care physicians posing a threat to patient care at the interface of paediatric primary and secondary care. Regular education and a pre designed layout positively impacts the quality of our written communication. Further steps need to be taken to ensure the continuity of standards in a centre where NCHDs rotate frequently.


Starting from July of 2016, literally bumping into people on the streets trying to catch Pokemon has become a common sight. Pokemon, of course, are fictional creatures based on the popular Japanese video game franchise that has become the basis of animated series and films [1]. Unlike other fictional characters, however, Pokemon now exist in an augmented reality (AR) in the new mobile game, Pokemon Go, which transforms your physical location into a world that hosts characters superimposed on the reality that we see through our smart phones.


The first example of a chiral halogen-bond donor with a sp3-hybridized carbon–iodine moiety in a fluorobissulfonyl scaffold is described. The binaphthyl backbone was designed as a chiral source and the chiral halogen-bond donor (R)-1 was synthesized from (R)-1,1′-binaphthol in 11 steps. An NMR titration experiment demonstrated that (R)-1 worked as a halogen-bond donor. The Mukaiyama aldol reaction and quinoline reduction were examined using (R)-1 as a catalyst to evaluate the asymmetric induction.


Using the recently developed correlation consistent basis sets and advanced methods for treating electron correlation in molecules, it is now possible to compute accurate potential energy surfaces for small molecules of importance in atmospheric chemistry. Halogenated species play a critical role in atmospheric photochemistry, particularly in mechanisms of polar stratospheric ozone loss. Unfortunately, the photochemistry and thermochemistry of many of the relevant species are not well determined. We will discuss calculations on a number of chlorinated species, including studies of the photochemistry of ClO{sub 2} and the thermochemistry of HOCl and Cl{sub 2}O{sub 2}. We are in the process of developing correlation consistent basis sets for bromine. Benchmark calculations on selected bromine molecules will also be reported.


Educational Rationale Local anesthetic systemic toxicity (LAST) is perhaps one of the most feared complications in the use of local anesthetics. Although the mechanism is not fully understood, it likely results from interactions at sodium channels located in both the cardiac and nervous systems. Patients exhibit symptoms ranging from tinnitus and restlessness to seizures and ultimately cardiovascular collapse. Cardiac arrest due to LAST is notable for the difficulty in resuscitation using standard American Heart Association Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) protocols. Until recently, few options were available, and other than cardiopulmonary bypass, there were no specific therapies. However, intravenous administration of lipid emulsion for the treatment of LAST has been documented in many case reports and is now part of the guidelines of both American and British anesthesia societies (albeit without FDA indication). Because the use of local anesthetics is expanding beyond the operative environment, LAST must become part of the differential diagnosis in an increasing number of patient care (PC) areas. At our institution, we have recently enacted a protocol for lidocaine infusions for postoperative analgesia in patients on general surgical wards. These are settings in which LASTwould not typically be a diagnostic consideration. Because LAST is (fortunately) an extremely rare occurrence, it is an excellent scenario to teach during simulation for knowledge and clinical judgment as well as teamwork, understanding of available resources, and knowledge of one's care environment. As such, the following scenario is designed to model a hypothetical case of LAST occurring on a patient outside of the operative environment. The scenario is easily modifiable, though, to be used in a more traditional setting such as LAST immediately after peripheral nerve blockade. The stem of the scenario can also be easily modified for trainees of different specialties including anesthesia, surgery, and nursing.


As a first-tier supplier, Liebherr-Aerospace faces the ever-growing challenge to provide the different airframers with competitive products within a highly competitive and agile business environment. Costs, time-to-market, product maturity, and ramp-up capabilities are driving factors for technology selection. Environmental aspects play a growing role and must also be taken into consideration by airframers and suppliers, since they are key criteria for success and customer satisfaction. The electrification of aircraft contributes to the goal of greener air transportation. Several solutions must be developed on system-level to give airframers the required technologies for turning the "more electric aircraft" into reality. Liebherr proposes a highly efficient solution for decentralized hydraulic power generation. It provides the airframes the flexibility to place the hydraulic power pack close to the consumers and eliminating long pipe sections between power generation and consumers. Two sizes of highly efficient power packs were designed; one for large power demand, typically applied for main landing gear retraction/extension, and one mid-sized pack for primary flight controls consumers placed in the aircraft tail (rudder and elevators). The system works solely on electric power, and thus is an important brick for the electrification of future aircraft. This paper summarizes Liebherr-Aerospace's R&T activities funded under the European Clean Sky 2 program for developing and maturing required next-generation hydraulic power pack technology bricks. The activities were combined within the SmartHePP project, which was launched in October 2017 and concluded in December 2021. It was a joint undertaking between Liebherr and partners from industry and academia. The technology bricks matured in SmartHePP now allows Liebherr to bring innovative solutions for de-centralized hydraulic power supply in next-generation aircraft to our customers facilitating more/all-electrical aircraft architectures for