BACKGROUND: Immune checkpoint inhibitors in combination with chemotherapy have demonstrated an improvement of pathologic complete response (pCR) in patients with HR-HER2- and MammaPrint (MP) High Risk, HR+HER2- tumors in the I-SPY2 TRIAL. However, not all patients benefit from immune checkpoint blockade and these new agents come with additional financial burden and significant long-lasting side effects such as adrenal insufficiency. Thus, it is imperative to better understand who benefits. Response Predictive Subtypes (RPS) were developed in the I-SPY2 TRIAL using pre-treatment expression data from 987 MP High Risk patients; 39% of HR+HER2- tumors and 63% of HR-HER2- tumors were identified as immune sensitive. In I-SPY2.2, RPS tumor classification uses ImPrint, a 53-gene signature that has been independently validated to predict the likelihood of a pCR with PD1-PDL1 immune checkpoint inhibitors with high sensitivity and specificity. Using a real-world dataset of 10,000 patients enrolled in the FLEX trial, we identified immune sensitive (ImPrint+) patients within immunohistochemistry (IHC) subtypes and within MP and BluePrint (BP) subgroups.
 METHODS: FLEX (NCT03053193) is an ongoing registry trial with 97 sites open in the United States and 2 international sites. Patients enrolled in FLEX have early-stage breast cancer and receive standard of care MP testing with or without BP molecular subtyping and consent to clinically annotated full genome data collection. MP is a 70-gene risk of distant recurrence signature that classifies patients as Low Risk or High Risk. MP High Risk can be further stratified into High 1 and High 2, which have demonstrated differences in chemosensitivity and pCR rates in the I-SPY2 TRIAL (NCT01042379). BP, an 80-gene molecular subtyping signature, categorizes patients' tumors as Luminal-, HER2- or Basal-Type.
 RESULTS: Of the 10,021 patients, 9.1% of the FLEX patient population are ImPrint+ and are predicted to have a meaningful pCR rate with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Younger (≤ 50 years) or pre/peri-menopausal patients, patients with larger or node-positive tumors, and patients of Black or Latin race/ethnicity independently had a higher likelihood of having ImPrint+ tumors (Table 1). ImPrint+ tumors were identified in all clinical subtypes by IHC. There is a higher likelihood of ImPrint+ tumors being MP High 2 or BP Basal-Type tumors. Within BP Basal tumors, 74.7% of HR+ and 66.0% of HR- tumors were ImPrint+.
 CONCLUSIONS: The focus of immune therapy trials has been on patients with HR-HER2-, MP High Risk patients. Indeed, most patients who are predicted to benefit have MP High 2 or BP Basal-Type tumors, including some HR+ patients, which is consistent with I-SPY2 results. Importantly, this large real-world dataset enables the identification of populations who may benefit from immune therapy outside of traditional clinical trial populations and supports the testing of checkpoint inhibitors in the immune-positive subtype. Younger women and patients of Black or Latin race/ethnicity who typically have more aggressive tumors also have higher proportions of ImPrint+ tumors. Thus, it is critical that these populations be included in clinical trials. This first look at immune sensitivity in over 10,000 FLEX patients with ImPrint generates preliminary data and hypotheses that will be explored in future FLEX substudies, including an analysis of lobular cancers and long-term outcomes in ImPrint+ patients across all races and ages.
 Table 1. Clinical characteristics of ImPrint+ and ImPrint- tumors.
 Citation Format: Adam M. Brufsky, Midas Kuilman, Rita Mukhtar, Denise M. Wolf, Christina Yau, Joyce O'Shaughnessy, Cathy Graham, Vijayakrishna K. Gadi, Pat Whitworth, Alexander Hindenburg, Ian Grady, Gordon Srkalovic, Kent Hoskins, Ajay Dhakal, Cynthia Ma, Natasha Hunter, Jennifer Crozier, Blanche Mavromatis, Lorenza Mittempergher, Christine Finn, Shraddha Modh, Erin B. Yoder, Patricia Dauer, Andrea Menicucci, Bas van der Baan, William Audeh, Laura J. Esserman. ImPrint immune signature in 10,000 early-stage breast cancer patients from the real-world FLEX database [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2022 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(5 Suppl):Abstract nr PD9-08.


372 that, despite such inspiration from an indigenous Maori educator, there was no place for discussion of the extraordinary transformation of Maori education in New Zealand as Maori educational institutions blossom and Maoritanga comes to have substantial impact not only on the revivifying of indigenous communities but also on a national system of education. But that is the essential limitation of a book reliant on reprints from a journal for whom indigenous knowledge and education is but one interest among many.


The effects of chlorine on improving hydrogen diffusion have been studied by first principle calculations and we obtain the diffusivity of hydrogen in liquid aluminum which is in agreement with the experimental data. It can be concluded that the diffusion of hydrogen in aluminum melts can be enhanced in the presence of chlorine and mobility of aluminum is depressed by forming alumina layer which can impede the diffusion of hydrogen.


Radiation therapy students at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) attend clinical placements at five different clinical departments with varying resources and support strategies. This study aimed to determine the relative availability and perceived importance of different factors affecting student support while on clinical placement. The purpose of the research was to inform development of future support mechanisms to enhance radiation therapy students' experience on clinical placement.


A semisynthetic electrocatalyst for carbon dioxide reduction to carbon monoxide in water is reported. Cobalt microperoxidase-11 (CoMP11-Ac) is shown to reduce CO2 to CO with a turnover number of up to 32,000 and a selectivity of up to 88:5 CO:H2. Higher selectivity for CO production is favored by a less cathodic applied potential and use of a higher pKa buffer. A mechanistic hypothesis is presented in which avoiding the formation and protonation of a formal Co(I) species favors CO production. These results demonstrate how tuning reaction conditions impact reactivity toward CO2 reduction for a biocatalyst previously developed for H2 production.


This study aimed at developing an effective approach to evaluating the durability of existing water supply pipes. The influential factors were clarified and classified into two groups, i. e. general factors and corrosion environment factors. Then, an approach using fuzzy sets theory was proposed to combine the evaluations on each group of factors. In the approach, the general factors are evaluated using an existing statistical model and the corrosion environment ones using experts' knowledge. A small number of field surveys of water supply pipes are required to be carried out for the combination of evaluations. The approach was used to establish an evaluation model for the cast iron pipes in Nagoya City and the model showed higher accuracy than the statistical model.


Boundary layer equations are derived for the first time for a Williamson fluid. Using Lie group theory, a symmetry analysis of the equations is performed. The partial differential system is transferred to an ordinary differential system via symmetries, and the resulting equations are numerically solved. Finally, the effects of the non-Newtonian parameters on the solutions are discussed


Introduction. Multicultural Education-What For?, Eduardo Manuel Duarte and Stacy Smith. Section I. Ethnic Studies Multiculturalism. Ethnic Studies: Its Evolution in American Colleges and Universities, Ramon A. Gutierrez. The Afrocentric Idea in Education, Molefi K. Asante. White Studies: The Intellectual Imperialism of Contemporary U.S. Education, Ward Churchill. On the Ethnic Studies Requirement, Sucheng Chan. "Chicana! Rican? No, Chicana-Reiquena!" Refashioning the Transnational Connection, Angie C. Dernersesian. Section II. Antiracist Multiculturalism. Overcoming White Supremacy: A Comment, bell hooks. Multicultural Education, Social Positionality, and Whiteness, Christine Sleeter. Multicultural or Antiracist Education? The Need to Choose, Robin Grinter. Retain, Relinquish or Revise: The Future for Multicultural Education, Geoffrey Short. Section III. Critical Multiculturalism. Multicultural Education and Postmodernism: Movement Toward a Dialogue, Carl A. Grant and Judyth M. Sachs. Insurgent Multiculturalism and the Promise of Pedagogy, Henry Giroux. White Terror and Oppositional Agency: Towards a Critical Multiculturalism, Peter McLaren Section IV. Liberal Democratic Multiculturalism. Dialogue Across Difference: Continuing the Conversation, Nicholas Burbules and Suzanne Rice. Culture, Subculture, Multiculturalism: Education Options, Anthony K. Appiah. The Politics of Recognition (an excerpt), Charles Taylor. Challenges of Multiculturalism in Democratic Education, Amy Gutmann. List of Contributors. Selected Bibliography. Glossary. Credits. Name Index. Subject Index.


Introduce the onsite collection of some state parameters, such as indoor meteorological environmental factor, equipment dynamic parameter and safety and protection state parameter, and the automatic regulation of partial parameters, as well as wire and wireless data transmission between site control terminal and remote control center.


Two new configurations for realizing high input impedance voltage-mode universal biquadratic filters are presented. Each proposed universal biquadratic filter with three inputs is composed of three plus-type CCIIs and can realize all the standard filter functions, that is, highpass, bandpass, lowpass, notch and allpass filters. In spite of the active components, the first proposed configuration uses five passive components, the second proposed configuration uses three capacitors and three resistors. The use of only plus-type CCIIs simplifies the configurations.


Rheological properties of fruits and vegetables are of interest to plant physiologists, horticulturalists, agricultural engineers and food engineers, due to different causes. the rheological properties are relevant to several aspects of the study of these materials, including the causes and extent of damage during harvesting, transport and storage; the human perception of product quality. The rheological constants of the four element Burgers model when tomatoes were subjected to various fixed loads (stresses) on the main dimensions of the fruits were investigated .The rheological constants, K1(instantaneous elasticity, N/mm), K2 (retarded elasticity, N/mm), C1 (free viscous element, N.min/mm and C2 (retarded viscous element, N.min/mm) were decreased significantly with storage time.


When the electromagnetic (EM) force <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula> is used to balance the dynamical axial gas separation force <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\text{gas}}$</tex-math></inline-formula> of scroll compressors, the control effect, system complexity, reliability, and cost are severely restricted by the dynamic force sensor systems. For this consideration, a scroll compressor without online force sensors is designed, and an innovative EM force control method based on "EM force-current (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>)" nonlinear model is proposed. The "<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>" nonlinear relationship changes with frequency and EM gap, so it is difficult to determine the relationship online. Even when the target EM force is precise, it is difficult to obtain the corresponding control current to generate the actual EM force. Given this difficulty and challenge, this article creatively puts forward a method. When the target EM force is always kept as the final target curve, the "<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>" relationship, used to decode the control current, is adjusted by adjusting the estimated value of the EM gap to control the actual EM force. The best dynamic contact seal and high-quality steady-state operation can be realized by optimizing the estimated EM gap value. This method consists of two stages: set up an offline database and carry out online control. At the offline stage, the "<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>" nonlinear relations with different frequencies and EM gaps are sampled with force sensors and then stored using Prandtl–Ishlinskii (PI) model. At the online stage, no online feedback force sensors are needed. The current needed to produce exact <italic>F</italic>M is decoded from the chosen "<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>" PI model established at the offline stage. The creative "<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${F}_{\mathrm{M}}{\rm{ - }}{i}_{\mathrm{M}}$</tex-math></inline-formula>" model choosing method is proposed, which relies on the iterative estimations of EM gap value. The results of the quasi-prototype experiment show that the aforesaid control method is feasible.


This is an extended version of the paper with the same title that has been presented at IBC 2014.
 1
Twenty years ago, Poynton presented a paper at IBC 1994 entitled "Wide gamut device-independent color image interchange." The CCIR 709 standard had just been adopted (in 1990), and, by 1994, sRGB deployment in desktop computing was well under way. That paper anticipated commercial interest in exchange for wide-gamut imagery. As it turned out, wide gamut was not imminent: We've had 20 years of very stable color encoding for video in the form of BT.709 for HD (augmented recently by BT.1886, which finally standardizes gamma), and the 709-derivative sRGB that remains ubiquitous in the computer domain. Now, however, dramatic changes are under way. Wide color gamut (WCG), enabled mainly by RGB LED backlights for liquid crystal display (LCD) displays, has already seen initial deployment in consumer television. High dynamic range (HDR) cameras are commercially available; and HDR displays, mainly enabled by spatially modulated LED backlights, are on the verge of commercialization. Many industry experts agree that consumers will experience WCG and HDR as more significant than increasing spatial resolution from HD ("2K") to "4K." This paper revisits the topic of the 1994 paper, but now with some urgency, to address the question: How should wide color gamut and high dynamic range video imagery be encoded? The main conclusion is that the Y'CBCR technique and its variants are perfectly adequate for moderate dynamic range, but yield less than optimum performance when combined with HDR. New encoding techniques are needed. We conclude that: ▪A new high dynamic range opto-electronic conversion function (HDR OECF) (perceptual quantizer) should replace the conventional gamma function to enable HDR. ▪HDR should be encoded with at least 10 bits per component, to suppress "banding." 10 bits Y"C
 B
C
 R 4:2:0 is at this moment the accepted standard for encoding HDR, and Philips will support the developments deriving from that choice. ▪Going to 12 bits Y"C
 B
C
 R 4:2:0 will bring too little perceived improvement on natural content; further improvement must come from other changes. ▪C
 B
C
 R (chroma) subsampling performs worse in combination with the HDR OECF; we propose encoding and decoding constant luminance, with modified u'v' chromaticity components instead of C
 B
C
 R
. ▪Therefore, for the future, we propose going to 10 bits Y"u"v" 4:2:0.


Vincristine treatment alone does not evoke estimable histological damage in solid Ehrlich carcinoma. However, when combined with fractionated local X-irradiation it causes more severe damage than the irradiation alone, consequently vincristine has a synergistic effect in radiation therapy. Comparing the effects of irradiation of the same total dose fractionated differently and combined with vincristine, one cannot find any characteristic and consequent histological differences.


In this paper, we propose a novel monopole antenna made of an out-of-plane pre-deformed cantilever beam caused by high residual stress. The proposed antenna has the following advantages: 1) radiating element is perpendicular to the plane of the wafer and is isolated from the lossy substrate by a ground plane. Thus, it can achieve high efficiency even with low-resistivity silicon substrates; 2) the fabrication process is fully compatible with conventional integrated circuit (IC) process which ensures low fabrication cost; 3) relatively wide bandwidth can be obtained from a monopole structure (more than 16%); 4) it can be fabricated on flexible substrates due to the very small anchor of the cantilever beam. Experimental results of the proposed antenna geometry and its full-wave numerically calculated radiation characteristics are presented in this paper.


This paper details the methodology for determining the joint factor for all parachute components. This method has been successfully implemented on the Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) for the NASA Orion Crew Module for use in determining the margin of safety for each component. Also discussed are concepts behind the joint factor and what drives the loss of material strength at joints. The joint factor is defined by Knacke as a "loss in joint strength...relative to the basic material strength" that occurs when "textiles are connected to each other or to metals." 1


Two cases of hypertrophic osteodystrophy (HOD) showed the characteristic stigmata of scurvy. The effective treatment, for both patients, was ascorbic acid. The clinical and radiographic findings and a discussion of the possible causes of hypovitaminosis C are presented.


In delay discounting tasks, the rate of discounting monetary rewards is greater for individuals who use drugs than for control participants. This result has been observed in individuals who use a particular drug (mono-consumers). In this study we examined delay discounting of hypothetical money rewards and losses by 102 men: 38 cocaine-dependent individuals (mono-consumers), 34 cocaine-dependent individuals who also abused a second drug (poly-consumers) and 30 non-drug-using matched controls. All participants were offered choices between hypothetical monetary rewards ($50$200) available immediately and larger rewards ($200-$3,000) available after delays ranging from one week to three years. Participants were also offered choices between an immediate hypothetical money loss ($750$1,500) and a money loss (up to $1,500) after the varying delays. Results showed that the rate of monetary reward discounting was generally greater for mono-consumers and poly-consumers than for control participants. Poly-consumers discounted monetary rewards more steeply than mono-consumers when the amounts of the hypothetical rewards were low. This result suggests a magnitude effect on delay discounting between mono-consumers and poly-consumers. No differences were found in delay discounting of losses among the three groups of participants. This finding is consistent with previous studies and shows that gains are discounted at a higher rate than comparable losses.


Abstract The aim of the present research has been to determine the effect of replacing a part of commercial compound feed with whole triticale grain on the body weight (BW), body measurements, feed conversion ratio (FCR), carcass composition and meat quality of pheasants. The study involved 80 one-d-old common pheasants. From 71 to 112 d of rearing, two diets were administered: a complete commercial diet ad libitum for control pheasants and restricted amounts of a commercial diet (50%) and whole triticale grain (50%) for experimental pheasants. Each treatment consisted of 4 replications, 10 birds each. Introducing whole triticale grain did not cause significant changes in BW, body measurements, feed intake and FCR. The carcasses of 112-d-old pheasants fed whole triticale grain diet showed a significantly lower breast muscle content (%) and a significantly higher content of skin with subcutaneous fat and carcass remainders (p < .05). Breast muscles of pheasants fed commercial compound feed and whole triticale grain exhibited significantly higher hardness, chewiness and gumminess, more palmitic acid and zinc, as well as significantly less sodium, water, linoleic acid, paullinic acid, heptadeconoic acid. There were also significant changes in water and protein, the content of fatty acids in leg muscles, except for myristic acid, pentadecanoic acid, arachidonic acid and nervonic acid. Irrespective of the type of diet, males showed a significantly higher body weight, body measurements and carcass weight, and their breast muscles demonstrated significantly higher WB shear force and the amounts of protein, linoleic acid, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and zinc.


In the present world scenario, In a progressive and developing society it is natural that demands of water always remain on the rise. Of all the planets known to man, Earth deserves to be called as the water planet. Fresh water is a gift of nature to living beings. Rain is the main source of fresh water. The world is passing through a critical phase with regard to water. And looking to the future trends, the picture regarding water is very gloomy. Rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge structure are innovative method to solve this demand.


The main objective of this study is to find out the influences of cooperation and intra-specific competition in the prey population on escaping predation through refuge and the effect of the two intra-specific interactions on the dynamics of prey–predator systems. For this purpose, two mathematical models with Holling type II functional response functions were proposed and analyzed. The first model includes cooperation among prey populations, whereas the second one incorporates intra-specific competition. The existence conditions and stability of different equilibrium points for both models were analyzed to determine the qualitative behaviors of the systems. Refuge through intra-specific competition has a stabilizing role, whereas cooperation has a destabilizing role on the system dynamics. Periodic oscillations were observed in both systems through Hopf bifurcation. From the analytical and numerical findings, we conclude that intra-specific competition affects the prey population and continuously controls the refuge class under a critical value, and thus, it never becomes too large to cause predator extinction due to food scarcity. Conversely, cooperation leads the maximal number of individuals to escape predation through the refuge so that predators suffer from low predation success.


Di-N-oxoquinoxaline formaldehyde γ-hydroxylbutyric acylhydrazoneⅠand di-N-oxoquinoxaline formaldehyde salicylic acylhydrazoneⅡ react with KOH in DMSO at room temperature within 5min,and give out colored products with absorbing peaks at 550nm and 480nm respectively.The Beer law is obeyed with regression equations,AcylhydrazoneⅠ:A=0.00225C- 0.0080,r=0.999,in the range of 7.50—300×10~ -4mg/mL,AcylhydrazoneⅡ:A=0.0563C- 0.019,r=0.999,in the range of 1.00—30.0×10~ -3mg/mL.The method is suitable for quantitative analysis of acylhydrazone compound.


Natural completions are suggested as a way to avoid or overcome damage to the formation caused by drilling and perforating. Formation damage may take the form of plugged passageways which remain closed because formation pressure does not exceed that of the plug material. Natural completions refer to using maximum differential pressure toward the wellbore, so that such obstructions in passageways can less easily exist. The method allows the formation pressure to backsurge perforation tunnels immediately following detonation of the guns, with the objectives of obtaining deep, clean perforations with the crushed zone and debris completely removed from the perforations. Procedures for natural completions are described and illustrated. A case history is given where the natural completion method restores productivity of a well.


The development in sophisticated sensory devices has largely revolutionized industrial control systems (ICS). With the popularity of the fourth industrial revolution, which is also referred to as Industry 4.0, more large-scale industrial communication systems are being interconnected by leveraging information communication technology (ICT) paradigms. These new paradigms have resulted in a sustainable improvement in the conventional production systems by facilitating timely and enhanced production rates. The ICS embeds service oriented architecture (SOA), which comprise of supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems as its backbone. However, such systems have often fallen prey to cyber-attacks leading to temporary failures or complete physical damage to the ICS. In this perspective, this work suggests the adoption of particle swarm optimization (PSO) method and artificial neural network (ANN) model for identifying cyber-attacks associated with ICS. This work considers the gas pipeline control system data to assess the efficacy of the proposed approach in conjunction with other models. It is observed that the proposed approach provides a prediction accuracy of 98.87 % and respective precision and recall values of 97.80 % and 95.79 %.


This paper presents an application of particle swarm optimisation (PSO) for system identification and tuning of the proportional integral (PI) controller in pH process. Two independent swarms are used sequentially for system identification and PI controller tuning. The proposed PSO utilises self tuning regulator to search for the changes in system parameters and to calculate the corresponding controller parameters. The self tuning regulator has a parameter identification function and requires neither prior knowledge nor training data for learning. Once the process parameters are identified, another PSO is applied to find the optimal controller setting. The performance of the proposed PSO approach is compared with the traditional Ziegler Nichols tuning and internal model control for various set point and trajectory response of the pH process. The simulation results show that the cascaded PSOs are very effective to adapt the controller to dynamic plant characteristic changes in pH process.


Volume 25, No. 1–2, 2015 Wilbur B. Amand, BS, VMD, ARAV Executive Director, 1994–2014 Wilbur B. Amand received a BS from Millersville University (1962) and his VMD (1966) from the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating from veterinary school, Wilbur pursued a small-animal medicine and surgery internship at the University of Pennsylvania; this was then followed by a residency in veterinary and comparative dermatology. He continued on after his residency as a fellow for the Dorothy Eustes Seeing Eye, the oldest seeing-eye dog facility in the United States, while teaching as an instructor at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1972, he left the University of Pennsylvania for 2 years to pursue training in comparative gastroenterology at Cornell University. After his time at Cornell, Wilbur began his career at the Philadelphia Zoo, in 1974. He first served as a Senior Veterinarian and Curator of Mammals, but then moved on to serve as Acting Director of the Zoological Society of Philadelphia (1978–1979), Head of the Veterinary Department and Animal Health (1979–1987), and Vice-President for Animal Health (1987– 1992). During his tenure at the Philadelphia Zoo, Wilbur also spent time at the University of Pennsylvania rising through the ranks as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in Zoological Medicine to Adjunct Professor of Zoological Medicine, from 1974 to 2004. Wilbur established and taught many courses in exotic animal medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, including Basic Avian Medicine, Avian Medicine and Surgery, Zoo Mammal Medicine, Reptile and Amphibian Medicine, and Environmental Wildlife Medicine; he also helped out in many other courses that involved exotics. Dr. Amand authored over 37 papers and book chapters in exotic animal medicine and was truly one of the pioneers of zoological medicine. Wilbur has been awarded honorary membership in two science societies, Sigma Zi, the Scientific Research Society, and Phi Zeta, the only honor society of veterinary medicine in the United States. Wilbur has also received numerous awards and honors over his career, including the Class Award for Outstanding Student at Penn Vet (1963), the Order of the Aardvark from Morris Animal Foundation (1978), Centennial Award of Merit from the University of Pennsylvania (1984), Outstanding Service Award from the American Association Zoos and Aquariums (1985), the Emil Dolensek Award from the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians (AAZV) (1993), Alumni Award of Merit from Penn Veterinary Medicine Alumni Society (1996), the inaugural Exotic DVM of the Year Award from Exotic DVM Magazine (1999), and, finally, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the ARAV (2014).


The prevalence of cytomegalovirus (Ad 169) antibodies in the Turkish population is studied by complement fixation techniques in 692 sera obtained from various age groups. The titer of 1:8 or higher antibody levels detected in 68% of 0-5 age groups and in 93% of 55 and above ages. Our findings proved that cytomegalovirus infections are frequent and recurrent in Turkish community like other countries which have low living and socio-economical standards.


In order to succeed in Higher Education, students need to be able to argue effectively in writing. This thesis focuses on the argumentational skills of international students as manifested in short essays, similar to the written English proficiency tests for university admission.

The study compared these essays to opinion pieces produced by expert academic writers. First, insights from the field of rhetoric were used to compare how the writers argued. An analytical tool was designed to deconstruct arguments into their essential parts to determine the number and distribution of these components in the texts. The results from this analysis then informed an investigation into selected types of cohesive markers and their role in managing writer-reader dialogues. The study found differences in both the argumentational and linguistic strategies used by the writers to persuade their readers, especially with regard to the integration of other voices.

The thesis discusses implications for the teaching of argument in the English for Academic Purposes (EAP) curriculum and beyond, and advocates a more rhetorical approach. Recommendations include the use of a new generative model of argument in the classroom and the use of the analytical tool for further research across different argumentational genres and academic disciplines.


Two supramolecular components {[3-BCBPY][H3BTEC]2}n (1) and {[H2BPYBC]1/2[H3BTEC].H2O}n (2) based on benzene carboxylic acid (H4BTEC = 1,2,4,5-benzenetetracarboxylic acid) and different viologen cations (3-BCBPY.2Cl = 1,1′-bis(3-cyanobenzyl)-4,4′-bipyridinium chloride, and 4-BCBPY.2Cl = 1,1′-bis(4-cyanobenzyl)-4,4′-bipyridinium chloride)...


Global seagrass losses parallel significant declines observed in corals and mangroves over the past 50 years. These combined declines have resulted in accelerated global losses to ecosystem services in coastal waters. Seagrass meadows can be extensive (hundreds of square kilometers) and long-lived (thousands of years), with the meadows persisting predominantly through vegetative (clonal) growth. They also invest a large amount of energy in sexual reproduction. In this article, we explore the role that sexual reproduction, pollen, and seed dispersal play in maintaining species distributions, genetic diversity, and connectivity among seagrass populations. We also address the relationship between long-distance dispersal, genetic connectivity, and the maintenance of genetic diversity that may enhance resilience to stresses associated with seagrass loss. Our reevaluation of seagrass dispersal and recruitment has altered our perception of the importance of long-distance dispersal and has revealed extensive dispersal at scales much larger than was previously thought possible.


AbstractPolyamide thin-film composite membranes were prepared on a reinforced microporous polyethersulfone (PES) support by in situ interfacial polycondensation of amic acid diamines (AADs) with 1,3,5-benzenetricarbonyl trichloride and subsequent curing. Water soluble AADs were synthesized by reacting trimellitic anhydride chloride and cyclic/aromatic diamines in dimethylformamide at 5–10°C. Polyamide ultra-thin barrier layer containing different structural modifications were isolated by dissolving the matrix PES support in dichloromethane and characterized for IR, NMR, and DSC techniques. Morphology of membranes by scanning electron microscopy showed the appearance of honeycomb-like structure on the polyamide skin surface and the cross section displayed the presence of nodular structure which arises from the dense polyamide skin. The performances of these membranes were measured by passing the feed solutions containing 2,000 ppm of NaCl and Na2SO4 in a reverse osmosis test kit. Membranes exhibited very b...


The aim of this research is to evaluate the current situation and create a
 model for some countries involved in animal production. Eastern Anatolian
 Red (EAR) breed that adapts to arid and barren areas has been raised in
 Turkey. The experimental animals comprised 31 head of EAR cows of different
 ages, fed on pastures and in the barn. This study determined the effects of
 age, birth weight and suction time on carcass characteristics of EAR cows.
 The animals were divided into 6 groups based on birth weight, 4 groups based
 on age and 6 groups based on milk suction time. They were reared under a
 conventional system that was based on grazing during summer and a
 semi-intensive system during winter. Carcass length, fat thickness over
 longissimus dorsi, marbling score, and LDR were significantly (P< 0.05)
 affected by age group. Significant (P< 0.05) differences were noted for
 carcass length, fat thickness over LD, and marbling score among animals with
 different birth weights. The milk suction time had a significant (P< 0.05)
 effect on all the parameters measured. In this research, the 4th age group
 was seen advantageous based on carcass characteristics and LDR and resembled
 other groups. As indicated in the study, the carcass characteristic output
 from the 2nd birth weight group shows that carcass length was a far more
 important output than other carcass portions or carcass quality parameters.
 Similarly, the 1st group based on milk suction time came to the forefront
 for some carcass characteristic, although it indicated partial similarity
 with other groups.


Fluctuations in the economy have a strong effect on the extent of poverty and well-being among low-income families. Reduced economic demand during recessions can significantly increase the unemployment rate, as was the case in the early 1980s. A sustained economic expansion can substantially reduce the unemployment rate and contribute to increased experience on the job and in wage growth, as occurred in the late 1990s. The employment of lessskilled workers has tended to fluctuate more across the business cycle than the employment of other workers. Longer-run developments in the economy, such as labor-saving technological changes, the globalization of the economy, declines in the degree of unionization, and the changing skill mix of the labor force, also affect the economic well-being of less-skilled workers independent of the business cycle. For example, over the last quarter-century, the wage rates of high school graduates and high school dropouts have fallen dramatically relative to those of college graduates. And wage growth for all workers has been slow in this quarter-century relative to the experience of the quarter-century following the end of World War II. Improvements in employment opportunities and wage rates are important to low-income families because less-skilled workers have more cyclical employment opportunities and their income fluctuates more with the economic cycle (Borjas, this volume). In 2004, 61 percent of families with income below the poverty line contained at least one worker; 28 percent contained at least one fulltime, year-round worker (U.S. Department of Commerce 2005b). Several chapters in this volume analyze the ways in which the business cycle and long-run changes in the economic environment since the late 1970s have affected the employment and earnings opportunities for less-skilled workers. Other chapters focus on the demographic composition and material well-being of low-income families; still others evaluate the effectiveness of federal and state social policies and the federal and state tax systems and how they interact with the economy over the long run and over the course of the business cycle. One


This paper reports estimated coefficients for the α function based on vapor pressure data to a series of 438 components, mainly hydrocarbons, for both van der Waals and Peng−Robinson equations of state (EoS). The α function utilized for the attractive term is the one proposed by Mathias and Copeman in 1983, and it improves the cubic EoS calculations. Accurate vapor-pressure correlations and critical data required for the estimation of the constants were retrieved from two databases, i.e., AIChE DIPPR and the Reid et al. (The Properties of Gases and Liquids; McGraw-Hill:  New York, 1987) reference book. The method of calculation is described, and the constants are tested with respect of their representation of thermodynamic properties, mainly in terms of the vapor-pressure deviations. The behavior of density and enthalpy EoS predictions is also evaluated. The estimated coefficients for the α function are reported in the Supporting Information and may be applied as a data bank in a simulator, providing more...


My mum loves to do the bolt. For her it's a game until it turns too real. It starts as a playful hop and a jog past some houses. She exhales with a smile then and her eyes expand so much that her brow lines fold. And then she is gone. And then she is bolting down a footpath with her house keys in between her knuckles like jagged bronze knives.


Though the analysis of clay minerals,major and trace elements of the Carboniferous mudstone samples collected from cores in Bachu,Tazhong and Tahe areas and field outcrops around Xiaohaizi in Bachu and Sishichang in Akesu,palaeosalinity character of water environment when this mudstone was deposited in these regions was revealed by quantitative semiquantitative analysis involving calculation using Adams and Couch palaeosalinity formula,equivalent boron determinate method suggested by Walker and strontium-barium ratio method.The results indicate the range of palaeosalnity is 4.7‰~33.9‰,and display that the majority of mudstone samples show semi-saltwater sedimentary environment and freshwater-brackish environment is secondary while saltwater environment is less.In plane view,from northeast of the basin to southwest,the palaeosalinity concentration of mudstone in Mudstone Section,Bachu Formation increased in a general view.Mudstone in Sandstone and Mudstone Section,Kalashayi Formation shows the minimal palaeosalinity concentration in the center and the maximal in the southwest part of the basin,and in the north part of the basin,the palaeosalinity concentration is moderate.Owing to palaeosalinity information extracted form mudstone is one of the indications to determine the sedimentary environment,it can provide important reference in aspect of water character for identifying controversial sedimentary environment of Sandstone and Mudstone Section in Kalashayi Formation and Breccia Section in Bachu Formation.Palaeosalinity of water environment when Carboniferous mudstone was deposited has a good correlation with eustacy and sedimentary facies evolution in this period,and these mudstone was formed in sedimentary environment in which sea level is relatively in fall or slow rise and palaeosalinity is relatively low.


Blackgram is an important pulse crop grown for its protein rich seeds. Its tissues are rich in polyphenols which hampered pure nucleic acid extraction and thus use of molecular techniques in breeding programme. In this study, a well established DNA extraction method for legumes, Gem-CTAB method has been modified to isolate PCR compatible DNA from blackgram in a quick and economical way from a very small tissue. The amplification rate of DNA extracted through modified Gem-CTAB method was found to be high compared to Gem-CTAB method for begomovirus specific genes. While for RNA isolation, among different protocols, column based kit method followed by lithium chloride precipitation yielded high quality RNA for leaves compatible with RT-PCR. For flowers and roots, kit method alone or with its modifications yielded pure RNA. The above modified nucleic acid extraction method yielded PCR compatible DNA and RNA from phenolics rich blackgram tissues.


With the development of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and the upgrading of the manufacturing industry, intelligent solutions for factories are imminent. Nowadays, most factories have backward testing methods and low efficiency, which has gradually become the shackles of enterprise development. Aiming at the problem of the appearance quality of the air conditioner external unit, this paper proposes an intelligent detection solution for the appearance quality of the air conditioner external unit based on the YOLO object detector, and constructs an image dataset containing with 25897 images and object labels. In the actual test, the object labelled in the quality inspection task of the air conditioner external unit reached a recall rate of more than 99% and a mAP of more than 95%.


The aim of the present study was to analyze the motivational profile of high school students and how it was related to responsibility, basic psychological needs and school social climate, as well as to assess gender differences. For this purpose, a total sample of 302 students (M = 14.48; SD = 1.40) participated and were administered a multiple-choice questionnaire, where, in turn, gender and date of birth were asked. A profile analysis was performance using Ward's method and k-means using the motivation scale (intrinsic motivation, identified, introjected and external regulation, amotivation) as variables for its elaboration. Two cluster profiles were finally created and named: a) "high motivation and low amotivation" (n = 212); b) "low motivation and high amotivation" (n = 95).  Next, a multivariate analysis was performed, which showed that high motivation profile had statistically significant results at p < .001, higher in the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness, personal and social responsibility and school social climate. On the other hand, attending to gender, no significant differences were found in the number of students in the profiles after analyzing the standardized residuals. It is concluded that an increase in self-determined motivation can be associated to an improvement in basic psychological needs, responsibility and school social climate, regardless of the student's gender.


The agricultural lands are being affected due to groundwater (GW) quality issues. To address this worldwide problematic situation, various irrigation studies have been practiced to identify the effects on the soil conditions. The current study has been designed to assess the GW quality and soil salinity/sodicity by different irrigation techniques in the remote mountainous area of Jamshoro district at Gul Muhammad Khaskheli farm Thana Boula Khan. The experimental plot was designed under furrow, pitcher and poly ethylene bag irrigation system. These soil characteristics indicated that the drain-ability of the soil was high, with an infiltration rate of 1.60 cm/h and water holding capacity was low. Water samples were collected at each irrigation time from sowing to harvest. The soil understudy was non-saline (ECe < 4.0 dS/m) and non-sodic (pH < 8.0, SAR < 7.5 and ESP < 15.0) before crop sowing in all the three methods of irrigation at all the three sampling depths, i.e., 0-15 cm, 15-30 cm and 30-60 cm. Thus, the quality of water used for cultivation of ladyfinger/Okra crop under all irrigation methods was Class-I quality water.The investigated results shown that ECw (electrical conductivity of water) was < 1.5 dS/m, pH < 8.0, SAR (sodium adsorption ratio) < 10.0 and RSC (residual sodium carbonate) were non detective. After crop harvest changed a little bit, change was observed in the soil, i.e., under furrow and pitcher irrigation method, the ECe, SAR. and ESP (exchangeable sodium percentage) decreased in the wetted zone and increased at the wetted periphery. Under the polyethylene bag irrigation method, ECe, SAR and ESP decreased at depths 0-15 cm and 15-30 cm but these increased at lower depth, i.e., 30-60 cm after crop harvest. However, the soil remained non-saline and non-sodic.


The filing administration of college electronic documents arose as a new problem.we must change our views,take effective measures,raise the quality of archivists and put effective administation into practice to ensure the electronic documents are filed correctly.


ABSTRACT Synthesis of two isomeric tetrasaccharides, namely Neu5Acα(2→3)Galβ(1→3)[Fucα(1→4)GlcNAcβ (sLea) and Neu5Acα(2→3)Galβ(1→4)[Fucα(1→3)]GlcNAcβ (sLex) as 3-aminopropyl glycosides is described. Preparation of these compounds was performed by sialylation of selectively protected trisaccharides Lea and Lex which contain three unsubstituted OH groups at positions 2, 3 and 4 of Gal residue. Glycosylation of Lex trisaccharide with ethylthio sialoside under promotion by NIS and TfOH in acetonitrile was effective and regio- and stereoselective to give sLex derivative in 81% yield. In contrast, sialylation of the Lca acceptor was accompanied by a variety of undesirable by-processes, namely. N-thioethylation of the GlcNAc residue, β-sialylation, and lactonisation. In order to improve the yield of sLca tetrasaccharide the glycosylation of Lea acceptor by sialyl donors of ethyl and phenyl thioglycoside (promoted by NIS-TfOH or NBS-Bu4NBr), xanthate (promotion by NIS-TfOH mixture or MeOTf) and phosphite (promote...


Method of controlling bamboo shoot decaying in exported soft cans was studied in this paper. We isolated a group of thermophilic, facultative anaerobic or aerobic spore bacillus by investigating contamination of total producing technical flowing and testing. Twelve strains of putrefying bacterium were classified, identified and analyzed. We put forward method of controlling bamboo shoot decaying and improved the producing technology.


Much of the current theory attempting to explain the high prevalence of corruption within African states starts from the assumption that the continued prevalence of traditional moral values within African societies is a key enabler of corrupt behaviour. Since the 1960's every modernizing system was regarded as being susceptible to corruption, which had manifested peak levels of corruption as they experienced socio-political development. Corruption in developing countries was therefore assumed to be part of the natural maturation process. South Africa was no exception. The problem of corruption has captured the minds of all South Africans who are committed to good governance as reflected in terms of value driven perspectives which manifest itself in effective, legitimate, democratic government, and high levels of institutionalization or combinations of the above. One needs, however, to move beyond debates about whether traditional African culture inadvertently lends itself to corruption, and focus on mechanisms to minimize or prevent these activities from taking place as, despite the introduction of various legislative and organizational measures, it is still rife in the South African public sector. Leadership can play a meaningful role to ensure that the measures to minimize or eliminate corruption are effectively implemented and will be discussed in this article.


We analyze GPS data observed before and after the 2001 Mw 7.8 Kokoxili earthquake in northern Tibet to derive the coseismic deformation field of that earthquake. Using this coseismic displacement data set and geologically mapped surface break measurements, we invert for the coseismic slip distribution along the seismogenic East Kunlun fault. Our result shows that the earthquake on average ruptured from surface down to a depth of ~16.5 km (13.1~18.7 km at 70% confidence). The average slip is ~2.6 m left-lateral, with the maximum slip of ~5 m along the Kusai Lake segment of the fault. There is 2~3 m left-slip detected in a gap of measured surface rupture between the westernmost Sun Lake segment and the west end of the main rupture on the East Kunlun fault. We also determine 1.5~2.0 m left-slip along a segment beyond the east end of geologically mapped surface rupture. Vertical slip is insignificant (<< 1 m) along most part of the fault, it nevertheless shows a pattern of south side up west of and north side up east of 93E longitude respectively. The seismic moment release is estimated ~6.0×10 N.m, in good agreement with the seismological estimates.


Karanasos (1998) presented a new method for computing the theoretical autocovariance function (acf) of the following univariate autoregressive moving average (ARMA) model: Φ(L)yt = Θ(L)εt where Φ(L) = 1 − φ1L − … − φpLp, Θ(L) = 1 − θ1L − … − θqLq


A method for simulating a mission of an unmanned armed and with an engine (16 ') the missile (1) provided that binds to a carrier aircraft in captive flight (2) is coupled, wherein the missile (1) an irreversibly activatable battery (6) for having electrical power to electrical components of the missile (1); movable, but in the supporting flight locked control surfaces (14, 15); with a seeker head (5) is provided, the closed off by a means of an irreversibly operable valve (54) coolant conduit (56) coolant contained with in a reservoir (52) can be cooled, and a computer (32), on which a software running, generates at least the following switching signals for initiating an autonomous operating state of the missile, the computer (32) to respective switching signal lines (33, 34, 35, 36) are submitted: • a first signal (S1) to activate the battery (6); • a second signal (S2) for unlocking the control surfaces (14, 15); • a third signal (S3) for opening the valve (54) and • a fourth signal (S4) for actuating a starting device (16 '') for the thruster (16 '); is characterized in that the flight body (1) is brought into a simulation configuration comprising the steps of a use configuration: a) deactivating the starting device (16 ''); b) replacing the irreversibly operable valve (54) against a switchable valve (54 ') or replacing the (with the irreversibly operable valve 54) provided with the coolant reservoir (52) against one (with a switchable valve 54' equipped) coolant reservoir (52 ') and c) separating the (to the battery 6) extending switching signal line (33) (for the first signal S1) and connecting the this switching signal line (33) associated with the output (33 '') of the computer (32) with the switchable valve (54 '); that a simulated mission is performed, wherein said carrier aircraft (2) with the support plane (2) a coupled missile (1) is controlled along a predetermined by the mission plan trajectory, and wherein the switching signal for activating the battery (6) in the simulation configuration for switchable valve (54 ') is passed.


Bulk (vapour–liquid equilibrium and excess enthalpy data) and surface (surface tension) properties of the highly non-ideal associated mixtures formed by methanol and propanal have been measured. The vapour–liquid equilibrium data have been obtained at 288.15, 298.15, 308.15 and 318.15 K using a Gibbs–Van Ness type apparatus. These mixtures show negative deviations from ideality, including a negative azeotrope in the methanol-rich region. The calculated values for the excess Gibbs energy are very large and negative, and their absolute value decreases sharply with increasing temperature. The calculated values for the concentration–concentration correlation function are lower than those corresponding to an ideal mixture and exhibit a minimum in the middle of the concentration range. The excess enthalpy data have been obtained at 4.00 MPa and 298.15 and 318.15 K by means of a high-pressure flow calorimeter. Values for the excess enthalpies are very exothermic and in agreement with those calculated from the excess Gibbs energies. The surface tension has been measured at 298.15 K. Values for the relative surface adsorption calculated from the surface tension and the chemical potentials indicate that the surface is significantly enriched in propanal for mixtures rich in methanol. A complex composition dependence of the concentration profiles can be inferred. The lattice-fluid and the lattice-fluid associated solution models have been used to describe the bulk properties of the methanol–propanal mixtures.


The purpose of this article is to study on the question of back shielding of small-bore 316Lstainless steel pipeline in the process of backing weld.Two welding technology were used to weld the φ108 mm×10 mm 316L stainless steel pipeline respectively.The one is FMAW,the other is a combined welding method of GTAW backing and SMAW filling cosmetic.RT(radiographic testing),metallographic observation,mechanical property detection,resistance to intergranular corrosion property detection were used to test the welding point.It turned out that using flux-cored wire to weld small-core 316Lstainless steel pipeline without fill argon could reach the requirement of practicality.


This randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, ascending‐dose, crossover study evaluated single oral doses of naloxegol (NKTR‐118; 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, and 1000 mg), a PEGylated derivative of naloxone, for safety and tolerability, antagonism of peripheral and central nervous system (CNS) effects of intravenous morphine, and pharmacokinetics. Healthy men were randomized 1:1 to naloxegol or naloxegol‐matching placebo administered with morphine and lactulose in a 2‐period crossover design. Periods were separated by a 5‐ to 7‐day washout. Assessments included safety, tolerability, orocecal transit time (OCTT), pupillary miosis, and pharmacokinetics. The study was completed by 46 subjects. The most common adverse events were somnolence, dizziness, headache, and nausea. Greater reversal of morphine‐induced delay in OCTT occurred with increasing naloxegol dose, demonstrating dose‐ordered antagonism of morphine's peripheral gastrointestinal effects. Forty‐four subjects showed no reversal of pupillary miosis; 2 showed potential partial reversal at 250 and 1000 mg, indicating negligible antagonism of morphine's CNS effects at doses ≤ 125 mg. Rapid absorption, linear pharmacokinetics up to 1000 mg, and low to moderate between‐subject pharmacokinetic variability was observed. The pharmacokinetics of morphine or its glucuronide metabolites were unaltered by concurrent naloxegol administration. Naloxegol was generally safe and well tolerated at single doses up to 1000 mg.


Objective: To observe the effects of Qingfei Mixture retention enema on bronchial pneumonia in children.Methods: 160 patients were averagely randomly divided into two groups.The treatment group were given Qingfei Mixture rtention enema,while the control group were given cnventional treatment of wstern mdicine.The effects were observed after 3 d,7 d.Results: The effect of treatment group was better than that of control group.Regression time of fver,cough,pulmonary rales,white blood cells were all shorter control group.Conclusion: Qingfei Mixture treating bonchial peumonia in cildren can sorten the course of treatment and improve efficacy.


Two graphs G and H are Türker equivalent if they have the same set of Türker angles. In this paper some Türker equivalent family of graphs are obtained.


This brief presents a compact and flexible 0.73–15.5GHz clock generator with only a single LC-VCO. A 50% duty cycle divide-by-1.5 divider (Div-1.5) is employed to reduce the required VCO tuning range in the wide-range clock generator to 50%, which becomes viable for a single LC-VCO to cover. The divider is realized by duty cycle interpolation (DI) between two digital divide-by-1.5 (DDiv-1.5) clocks with 33.3% duty cycle and 66.7% duty cycle, respectively. The clock generator was fabricated in 12nm CMOS process with an active area of 0.17 mm2. At a 13.28125GHz output, it achieves a 101fs integrated jitter and a −74.79dBc reference spur, while consuming 19.5mW. The measured worst deterministic jitter induced by the 50% duty cycle Div-1.5 is 550fs.


Introduction: Aging is associated with several health threats, including poor sleep quality which is one of the most common problems among elderly people. Sleep problems are prevalent in hospitalized elderly patients, out of which one can name having trouble falling asleep or waking up frequently during the night. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the sleep quality of elderly patients with coronary artery disease admitted to Imam Ali Hospital, Kermanshah, Iran, during 2018. Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 elderly people with coronary artery disease. The sampling was performed using a continuous method. After data collection, the data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 25). A p-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Ethics code: Findings : The mean±SD age of the elderly was 68.87±7.83 years. Regarding the sleep quality, the majority of the elderly (75.5%) had poor sleep quality. Moreover, sleep quality had no significant correlation with age, gender, marital status, educational level, and occupational status. Discussions & Conclusions: Based on the results of this study, the sleep quality of the majority of the elderly was poor. Moreover, sleep quality was not significantly correlated with demographic characteristics. Therefore, health policy makers should consider necessary interventions in education regarding the importance of sleeping for the elderly and their families.


This article argues that Boudreaux and Holcombe (1989) misrepresented at least some contemporary theories of the firm when they claimed that these theories were constructed on a rigid general equilibrium basis, and contrasted them unfavorably with Frank Knight's theory of the firm. While nexus of contract theories may partially fit this description, this is not the case with the theorizing represented by the work of Oliver Williamson. Boudreaux and Holcombe are also criticized for failing to see that Knight's theory of the firm is in fact consistent with much contemporary theorizing on the firm.


The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of assisted hatching (AH) in assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment.


Background: Emergency contraception (EC) has enormous potential to reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies; however, the use of EC has been opposed by some groups that believe it as an abortifacient and some groups argue EC may encourage riskier sexual behaviour and poorer use of regular contraception, especially among teens. The consequences of unplanned pregnancies in Ethiopia are multiple, such as high incidence of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortion particularly among adolescents and the major problems in the previous and present day is consequences of unprotected sex, such as unintended pregnancy and unsafe abortion which can be prevented by access to contraceptive services including emergency contraception. Thus this present study will provide a clue to assist policy makers in developing appropriate evidence based strategies to promote the use of emergency contraception methods. Objective: To assess knowledge, attitude and practice of emergency contraceptive pills among female students in Hosanna College of Health Sciences, Hosanna town, Hadiya Zone, Southern Nation, Nationalities and Peoples Region, Ethiopia. Methodology and Materials: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from February 20 to March 6 among 263 female college students who were admitted in the academic year of 2012/2013. They were selected by using proportional allocation and the students answered a self-administered questionnaire up on consent. Results and discussion: Out of the total female students (263), 62% are in the age interval of 20-24. The majority (47.9%) of respondents have got source of information about ECPs from Health education. Majority (35.74%) of the respondents used progesterone only pills, and the least (3.8%) used both combined oral contraceptives and Progesterone only Pills. Those who know and who didn't know about the use of time to take ECPs are 38% and 62% respectively. Those agreed about ECP's impact in future pregnancy is about 50.9%. However, 90% of the respondents said that they didn't use emergency contraceptive pills on regular basis to prevent unwanted pregnancy.


results and conclusion. Can the authors more clearly highlight that the intervention had a negative impact. When reading quickly it's easy to miss this because of not expecting the results to go in this direction. E.g. in discussion 1st paragraph say, "Community screening and targeted treatment of asymptomatic carriers had a negative impact on the incidence...." Changed as suggested in the conclusion. In the abstract and results, we would suggest that this is already quite unambiguously stated. 17 p13 discussion: "clearance of subpatent infections" – subpatent normally means below the detection limit of microscopy or RDT, but in this study, only positive carriers were treated – do you 'subpatent' here was being used to mean 'asymptomatic'. We have deleted the word to prevent confusion. 13


Numerical simulation has been carried out to investigate the effect on combustion and emissions in a common rail injection system. The relevant injection parameters are accumulator volume, control chamber initial volume, control orifice diameter, needle valve diameter and nozzle chamber initial volume, etc. Spray and combustion characteristics are examined by KIVA-3V with the conditional moment closure (CMC) model to predict the turbulent mean reaction rate. Conditional flame structures are estimated by the CMC model to determine mean state variables, instead of mean reaction rates. The main focus of this research is on optimization of a common rail injection system with respect to the various injection parameters under investigation.


We have slowly come to realize that periodical idleness as well as the payment of wages insufficient for maintenance of the manual worker in full industrial and domestic efficiency stand economically on the same footing with the 'sweated' industries, the overwork of women, and employment of children. But of all the aspects of social misery nothing is so heart-breaking as unemployment, … Jane Addams, 1910, pp. 220–221 INTRODUCTION Background Depression and Stress . According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (1994) (DSM-IV), major depressive disorder is characterized by at least one two-week long episode of depressed mood accompanied by at least four additional symptoms, such as feelings of worthlessness and recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. Psychological depression is a major public mental health problem affecting approximately 17 million Americans each year (Jacobs, Kopans, & Reizes, 1995). The lifetime prevalence of major depression has been estimated in the range of 10% to 25% for women and 5% to 12% for men with the point prevalence estimated in the range of 5% to 9% for women and 2% to 3% for men (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). This disorder can appear at any age, but the average age at onset is the mid-twenties, near the beginning of the age range of the NLSY respondents in 1992. This is a recurring disorder, with half or more of those individuals with major depressive disorder expected to have a second episode.


Musk compounds play an important role as parfuming agents for household chemicals, detergents and cosmetics. It has been demonstrated that oral absorption pathway of these compounds is significant in the case of contaminated fish. In this study we researched, by GC/MS, the following compounds: the 1,3,4,6,7,8-hexahydro-4,6,6,7,8,8-hexamethylcyclopenta-(g)-2-benzopyran (HHCB or Galaxolide), the 7-acetyl-1,1,3,4,4,6-hexamethyltetralin (AHTN or Tonalide), the 4-acetyl-1,1-dimethyl-6-tert-butylindan (ADBI or Celestolide), the 6-acetyl-1,1,2,3,3,5-hexamethylindan (AHMI or Phantolide), arid 5-acetyl-1,1,2,6-tetramethyl-3-isopropylindan (ATII or Traseolide). The data achieved provided evidence of contamination from polyciclic musk compounds in Italian aquatic resources. This is the first report on the contamination from musk compounds in freshwater fish collected in Italy.


The practical significance. The materials of this paper are of theoretical importance for further research of the philosophical heritage in terms of ethical issues, including human happiness. They can be used in the process of studying the humanities at institutions of higher education and developing new textbooks for students.


ABSTRACT The most accepted definition of sudden cardiac death nowadays is an unexplained death occurred suddenly within one hour of symptom onset. If it was not witnessed, individuals need to had been observed for at least 24 hours before the event and should be discarded the possibility of non cardiac causes of sudden death, pulmonary embolism or extensive malignancy. The term athlete refers to individuals of any age who participate in collective or individual regular physical activity, as well as physical training program for regular competitions. The sudden death of a young athlete, whether amateur or professional, especially during competitions, is always dramatic, with strong negative social impact and in the media. The fact that sports are recommended as a formula for longevity and quality of life makes these events a cause for concern in sports and society in general.


Based on the analysis of the situation of methane drainage in China s coal mines , it is pointed out that shorter pre-drainage time, insufficient boreholes, bad borehole seal, unmatched drainage system and unsuited management are the main reasons which cause low methane drainage rate of coal mines in China. Combined with the lately achievements in methane drainage, the countermeasures to the problem of low methane drainage rate are presented.


Environmentally sound disposal to pesticide POPs waste and treatment to contaminated sites were important content of China's National Implementation Plan for Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Main body of liability for POPs waste was the aged enterprise, from which waste was not the same as the hazardous waste from current factories due to their great changes during long term operation. A new system of liability should be established to determine responsibility of treatment and fulfill fund of treatment. China's pesticide POPs waste and contaminated sites was investigated, system and principles of apportionment of liability on relevant laws was analyzed, suggestions on building up a joint liability system on treatment of POPs waste and contaminated sites-were also proposed, which can provide theoretical support for POPs waste management.


N-phenyl-α-amino acids had been synthesized under microwave irradiation, using bromobenzene and α-amino acids as raw materials, DMF as a solvent and cuprous iodide as a catalyst. The reaction was optimized by a model reaction of bromobenzene and valine. The products were characterized by IR and 1H NMR.


Abstract Objective To identify barriers and facilitators to the use of formal dementia services among underserved and minority groups (UMG) in the United States and Germany. Method Semi-structured qualitative interviews with caregivers (N = 18) of persons with dementia in the United States and Germany. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results Caregivers described their experiences in three stages of seeking, initiating, and utilizing care, and different factors served to hinder or enable the use of care services in each stage. The most important factors included limited knowledge about dementia, challenges interacting with healthcare systems, and how closely formal services met the expectations and needs of caregivers, particularly with regard to accommodating cultural or ethnic/racial identity. Caregivers preferred interacting with service care providers who shared a similar identity to receive information or services. Conclusion Barriers and facilitators to using dementia care services vary by stage of engaging services and may be shared across different healthcare contexts. Targeting specific barriers and strengthening facilitators could help reduce disparities in dementia care among UMG.


This paper studies the planning of downsteps in Dutch enumerations of two to six items long. Is it true that the available pitch range is subdivided into smaller downsteps as the number of accented items in the enumeration is larger, and how precisely do speakers programme the stepsize? Do listeners use the size of the (first) downstep to project the length of the enumeration? The results show that the size of the first downstep (when scaled in ERB) is exactly proportional to the number of items in the enumeration – indicating a high degree of planning on the part of the speaker – but that listeners are largely insensitive to the stepsize as when asked to predict the length of the utterance.


BACKGROUND: To evaluate, through pregnancy and pressure burst tests, the effectiveness of sheep uterine tube sterilization through hysteroscopic insertion of cyanoacrylate adhesive. METHODS: Adult sheep (n=12), with one previous pregnancy, were distributed as follows: PO Group (n=3) submitted to laparotomy and Pomeroy surgical procedure of tubal obstruction, Group SH (n=3) submitted to hysteroscopy application of saline solution inside the tubal isthmus, and Group AD (n=6) submitted to hysteroscopy application of 0.5 mL of n-2-butil-cyanoacrylate inside the tubal isthmus. They were allowed to copulate with fertile males during ninety days. The non pregnant sheep, at the 90th day, were submitted to laparotomy, the uterine tubes were removed and their diameters analyzed. The uterine tubes were evaluated for patency with methylene blue dye injection. The overpressure burst test (80mmHg) was then applied through the uterine cervix. Data were evaluated by t Student and Fisher test. RESULTS: All sheep from groups PO and AD did not get pregnant (0%) in contrast with sheep from group SH (100%); the adhesive remained stable inside the tubal lumen. The diameter of the proximal tube in AD group (0.650 ± 0.16cm) was significantly wider than the PO group (0.195 ± 0.04* cm) (p= 0.01). The overpressure burst and dye patency tests were negative for all animals from PO group and only one animal in AD group was positive for the pressure burst test. CONCLUSION: The hysteroscopic insertion of cyanoacrylate inside the tubal lumen of the sheep was effective to obstruct the uterine tube and to promote the sterilization, and would be an option for future applying in human beings.


The total content of heavy metals and its regional specific features were determined in the main parent rocks and soils of the southern part of Western Siberia. The regional background concentrations of heavy metals were found for chernozems and gray forest soils of the Ob River basin and for chernozems of the Barabinskaya and Kulundinskaya plains. The information obtained may be used for environmental monitoring.


Determining what standards should be the basis for administrative organs resolving administrative disputes is a very important issue, but one that has been neglected in the study of administrative law in recent years. No single work in the past ten years has addressed this question. Raising and resolving this problem are necessary to the development of our administrative review legislation. Its significance is not limited to administrative review itself but is related to how we perceive our country's administrative legislative system, the effectiveness of administrative standards enacted by the local governments, and whether administrative review is considered as a legal basis for the trial of administrative litigation cases and other basic issues.


Abstract Sleep and circadian patterns change as people age and are linked to a number of health and psychosocial outcomes. As such, there is a need to continue generating new knowledge about sleep in older adults by encouraging early-career scientists to research this topic. In this symposium, sponsored by the Sleep, Circadian Rhythms and Aging Interest Group, we will showcase studies by early-career researchers at the masters through junior faculty level who conduct work in sleep and its impact on health outcomes in older adults. Our symposium will have five presentations. The first will examine how sleep and loneliness may mediate relationships between marital quality and depressive symptoms. The second study will assess links between personality characteristics and objectively measured chronotype. Our third presentation will determine the longitudinal association of sleep duration with body mass index. The fourth will evaluate how an intervention to reduce functional disability in low-income older adults impacts sleep quality. Finally, our fifth presentation will focus on understanding how sleep duration and changes in sleep patterns may impact speech-in-noise performance. Overall, our symposium will highlight multidisciplinary studies of sleep and health outcomes that are of importance to older populations and promote the work of the next generation of sleep, circadian rhythms, and aging scientists.


tridentate bridging coordination favorable for the initiation of selfassembling of highdimensional structures. In the case of stabilization ofthe triplet state of the bridging ligand L*, cooperativemagnetic ordering in such heterospin polymers can beexpected. The possibility of stabilization of the triplet statehas recently been demonstrated for the metal complexeswith 2,5dihydroxy1,4benzoquinone derivatives structurally related to the ligand L.


A design of a high-voltage power supply used in the neutron generator at high temperature condition is introduced.The power supply bases on discontinuous current working mode of Boost converter and uses UC1842 acting as controller.The developed power supply is tested on different temperature condition and rated load,the result presents good performance in stability and reliability in running.


"State aid: Commission orders reimbursement of loans for 17 R&D projects in the aeronautical sector in Italy"* The Commission took on 11 March 2008 a first conditional decision on aid to the…


The greenhouse type metal structures are increasingly used in modern construction of livestock farms because they are less laborious to construct and they provide a more favorable microclimate for the growth of animals compared to conventional livestock structures. A key stress factor for metal structures is the wind. The external pressure coefficient (cpe) is used for the calculation of the wind effect on the structures. A high pressure coefficient value leads to an increase of the construction weight and
subsequently to an increase in the construction cost. The EC1 in conjunction with EN 13031-1:2001, which is specialized for greenhouses, gives values for this coefficient. This value must satisfy two requirements: the safety of the structure and a reduced construction cost. In this paper, the Navier – Stokes and continuity equations are solved numerically with the finite element method (Galerkin Method) in order to simulate the two dimensional, incompressible, viscous air flow over the vaulted roofs of single span and twin-span with eaves livestock greenhouses\' structures, with a height of 4.5 meters and with
length of span of 9.6 and 14 m. The simulation was carried out in a wind tunnel. The numerical results of pressure coefficients, as well as, the distribution of them are presented and compared with data from Eurocodes for wind actions (EC1, EN 13031-1:2001). The results of the numerical experiment were close to the values given by the Eurocodes mainly on the leeward area of the roof while on the windward area a further segmentation is suggested.


Ultrafine particles, with particle size less than 1 µm, tend to be difficult for users to handle. Therefore, they are often assembled into larger granules for ease of handling and to allow controlled delivery in their desired functions. Engineers who manufacture granules want to be able to control and predict the structures formed and ultimately predict the functional performance of the granular products. The overall aim of this project is to engineer structure for TiO2 (titanium dioxide) type pigments using a controlled spray drying method. It is also important to gain a detailed understanding of the morphology control techniques and the associated properties of spray-dried granules.

The project first considers the colloidal characterisations of two distinctive TiO2 slurry systems in order to develop an overall understanding of the feed materials for the subsequent spray drying experiments. The morphology, size and surface of primary particles from two slurries system were examined using SEM, TEM and EDX analysis. The surface charge measurements were performed to identify the iso-electric point (IEP) at which system start to aggregate for two systems. The slurries were re-formulated with controlled colloidal stability by adjusting pH of system to IEP and to non-IEP conditions. The following particle size, particle settling, and rheology measurements confirmed the difference between slurry at IEP and non-IEP condition in terms of colloidal structure.

Initial drying work was performed using a pilot-plant scale ProCepT spray drying using an ultrasonic at 120oC. It has been found the variations in colloidal structure of a droplet is responsible for the assemblies of primary particles during the drying process. For the spray drying of alumina-coated TiO2 system at all three concentration levels, spherical morphology was found from drying of slurries at IEP condition, whereas a buckled morphology was seen from drying of slurries at non-IEP condition. The Morphologi G3 image analysis indicated a size range of 10-100 µm for all spray-dried granules, regardless of their external morphology. For the spray drying of non-coated TiO2 system at all three concentration levels, constant spherical morphology was obtained from drying of slurries at both IEP and non-IEP conditions. In fact, a buckled morphology was expected from drying a "well-dispersed" system. The colloidal stability was not proved to affect the morphology in spray drying of the non-coated TiO2 system.

The subsequent drying work was conducted at 200oC using the same ultrasonic nozzle to investigate the temperature effect and were conducted at 120oC using a 0.6 mm bi-fluid nozzle to investigate the atomisation effect to the product. The revised drying process conditions were found to have minor effect on the spray-dried morphology for both two TiO2 systems. The obtained morphologies were same as the ones prepared from 120oC drying using an ultrasonic nozzle.

The 20%wt slurries at both IEP and non-IEP conditions from two TiO2 particles systems were dried at 120oC using a more controlled single droplet drying rig to verify the morphologies from spray drying experiment. For alumina-coated system, the morphologies obtained from single droplet drying were consistent from spray drying work. However, a buckled morphology was obtained from drying of non-coated system at non-IEP condition which was different from its spherical morphology obtained from spray drying study. The morphology forming mechanism was proposed based on the experimental results and calculated Peclet number, and the key driving force for structure buckling was identified to be capillary force. The droplet size effect on morphology was studied by drying the "well-dispersed" droplets with varied size from two TiO2 systems. Through the estimation of central void of spray-dried granule, the morphology was proved to be dependent on the hollowness of granule and particle-particle interaction in shell of droplet.

It was found the investigated spray drying process conditions cannot affect the porosity, internal structure, surface area, moisture adsorption and desorption, and the density of the spray-dried granule, whereas the alumina-coating layer on particle surface exhibited a significant effect on these properties. As the colloidal stability was proved to be important to morphology control, it allows a more research gaps for slurry formulation development.


The world is currently experiencing average high temperatures and low precipitation, frequent droughts and scarcity of both ground and surface water. The damaging effects of global climate change are increasing and most damages are predicted to occur in developing countries due to their over-reliance on low-input rain-fed agricultural production and their low adaptive capacity. Due to the erratic rainfall and high incidence of droughts which make crop production not feasible, the majority of the rural population in Third World Countries depends on livestock production for their livelihoods. The livestock sector is, however, considered very vulnerable to climate variability and change. Floods, droughts, diseases and poor grazing conditions are some of the factors currently causing significant livestock losses. The problems being encountered by the livestock farmers in most of the Third World Countries are expected to worsen in future due to the effects of climate change. This therefore makes the study of impact of climate change on livestock production a vital concern in the world, particularly in developing countries where many rural households depend on livestock production for their livelihoods. This article therefore looks at both the direct and indirect effects of climate change on livestock production. Strategies to curtail the effect of climate change on livestock production are also recommended in the paper.


River morphology and ecosystem are macro-indicators of climate and land-use changes as well as human activities and land policies. In the last decades, knowledge of water resources, in terms of quality, quantity, prevention and control, has quickly increased – even for the availability of advanced methodologies and technologies both for monitoring and modelling fields. Nevertheless, the objective of a good ecological status of water bodies has not yet been reached due to human pressure which still induces long term impacts as well as direct or indirect physical constraints. In such a context, the European Water Framework Directive introduces the concepts of artificial water bodies (AWB) and heavily modified water bodies (HMWB) and states that in such cases good ecological potential must be reached while good ecological status is required only for natural water bodies (NWB). Further, the methodologies proposed for the AWB and HMWB need a wide set of parameters and measurements, which are not always systematically available, inducing further actions and analyses in order to evaluate the quality level of the water bodies. Moreover, the AWB or HMWB classification represents an opportunity to resize the measures addressed to achieve good ecological status both in terms of economic engagement and timing with relevant consequences on water resource planning and management. The paper deals with these issues and synthetically reports the work done on the whole Lucanian river network (Basilicata region, Southern Italy) and also presents the Agri River case study in order to classify, as best as possible, AWB, HMWB and NWB as well as to support survey planning.


Scorpions are globally known to be venomous as well as medically important creatures. They possess millions of years of evolutionary history with considerable diversity. Heterometrus swammerdammi from the family Scorpionidaeis one of the less harmful scorpions found in the Jaffna peninsula. There are no reports available about their protein profile from Sri Lanka. Therefore, the current research was undertaken to report their protein profile. The scorpions were sampled from selected locations of the Jaffna Peninsula and their venom was extracted using the electrical stimulation method immediately after the sampling. The sampled scorpions were housed in the Animal house of Department of Zoology, University of Jaffna with the supply of food and water at libitum. The Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate Polyacrylamide gel Electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of Laemmli was used in the profiling of scorpion venom with the 10% polyacrylamide gel and protein marker. The Coomassie brilliant blue stain was used to stain the gel and distilled water was used to de-stain the gel and then the gel was analysed. The protein marker consists of bands sized 225, 150, 100, 75, 50, 35, and 25 kDa, where 30, 70, 100, 110, and the bands above the size of 250 kDa were observed in the samples. The bands at100 kDa and the bands between 60-75 kDa were the predominant in the samples and they were identified as hyaluronidase. The victims of scorpion bite are suffered from excessive sweating, agitation, tissue destruction at the biting site, and palpitation. Tissue destruction can be occurred due to the action of Phospholipase-A, Neurotransmitter can be a responsible molecule for the palpitation response. The 225kda band and the band between 40-50 kDa would be the responsible bands for acute heart failure in the absence of proper treatment. Therefore, the functional assays should be done in the future to recognize the pharmacological activity of the above novel molecule in action.


The nature of soil disturbance required to alleviate soil compaction in a range of agricultural and land restoration situations is identified. Implement geometry and adjustments required to achieve the desired brittle or tensile deformation of compacted soil are discussed. Field operating procedures to achieve the required degrees of soil fissuring, loosening or soil unit rearrangement using the power units and equipment available are described. A new progressive loosening technique is identified for use within deep, extremely compacted soil profiles. Emphasis is given to the importance of making visual field checks across the loosened soil zone at an early stage, to check the desired disturbance is being achieved. Care must be taken during subsequent trafficking operations, to minimize the risk of recompaction.


Reactions of adult Tessaratoma papillosa(Drury) to light,host-plants and 15 colors were assayed using Y-tube olfactometer and behavior bioassay apparatus.The results showed that the responses of the adults to light was 100% in the test of behavior responses to the combinations of lights and host-plants,and there was no obvious differences in adult choices between light plus plant combinations and light treatments.The females and males showed a significant preference to red(186C) color and blue(299C) color among the tested colors,respectively.


The aimof the present studywas to evaluate the wound healing profiles in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. The study was carried out in two groups of 6 animals each. Group I animals were served as control, treated with normal saline. Group II animals were diabetes induced rat. Hyperglycemia associated with significant decreasing in granulation tissue hydroxyproline (reflection of collagen content), glycosaminoglycans content (ground substances), proteins and lysyl oxidase were observed in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. In the study significant decrease in granulation tissue breaking strength, wet and dry granulation tissue weight were observed. The study clearly indicated that streptozotocin interferes in the various phases of wound healing and delays the process.


The PGDprime® test was updated to enable Acinetobacter spp. detection to respond to morbidity and mortality events in 2018 and 2020 involving platelets contaminated with Acinetobacter‐calcoaceticus‐baumannii complex (ACBC). In one morbidity event, the first‐generation PGD test failed to detect ACBC. In two other reported events, pathogen‐reduced (PR) platelets contaminated with ACBC and other bacteria led to patient morbidity and one death.


In this study we analyzed application of two types reinforcements of the polymer matrix composites (PMC): (1) fabric prepreg, (2) unidirectional prepreg and their hybrids for production of modern snap–fit joints. The numerical calculations were made in Abaqus program. Moreover, different layer systems and geometries were proposed to get the most effective joints. For each kind of joints the opening forces were assessed and Tsai-Hill strength criterion for estimation of a damage parameter inside of the PMC was applied. The proposed methodology leads to designing of more optimal joints for various engineering structures.


1. A new genus and species of Isoparorchiidae Poche, 1926, is described from the air-bladder of the marine catfish, Anus jella (Val.), caught off the coast of Waltair, India. The new fluke is named Elongoparorchis pneumatis. 2. The new genus Elongoparorchis bears a superficial resemblance to the genus Isoparorchis Southwell, 1913, but differs appreciably in the structure of the testes, the ovary and the vitellaria to warrant the separation.


The authors wish to thank Referee #1 for a careful reading of the manuscript and for insightful comments. The referee recognizes the delicate balance between making the paper self-contained, and requiring the reader to consult earlier work. The authors will improve the readability of the manuscript, with the following clarifications and additions, as suggested by the referee. 1. The confusing asymmetry between equations (1) and (2) will be explained, and the use of I_A instead of T_A will be better motivated. 2. Eq. (10) for the vertical heat transport f_C will be simplified, and its derivation will be given in the Appendix.


Thermal comfort is associated with clothing insulation, conveying a level of satisfaction with the thermal surroundings. Besides, clothing insulation is commonly associated with indoor thermal comfort. However, clothing classification in smart homes might save energy when the end-user wears appropriate clothes to save energy and obtain thermal comfort. Furthermore, object detection and classification through Convolutional Neural Networks has increased over the last decade. There are real-time clothing garment classifiers, but these are oriented towards single garment recognition for texture, fabric, shape, or style. Consequently, this paper proposes a CNN model classification for the implementation of these classifiers on cameras. First, the Fashion MNIST was analyzed and compared with the VGG16, Inceptionvv4, TinyYOLOv3, and ResNet18 classification algorithms to determine the best clo classifier. Then, for real-time analysis, a new dataset with 12,000 images was created and analyzed with the YOLOv3 and TinyYOLO. Finally, an Azure Kinect DT was employed to analyze the clo value in real-time. Moreover, real-time analysis can be employed with any other webcam. The model recognizes at least three garments of a clothing ensemble, proving that it identifies more than a single clothing garment. Besides, the model has at least 90% accuracy in the test dataset, ensuring that it can be generalized and is not overfitting.


Asymmetric grounding fault is very common in medium voltage distribution network,so it is essential that students understand the production,process control and other hazards of grounding fault in teaching of electrical engineering courses.This article constructs 10kV distribution network simulation platform with the power system simulation tool PSCAD / EMTDC,and establishes the parallel simulation environment.On this basis students can carry out performance simulation research about different neutral grounding modes and four different arc suppression coils,and the simulated result can be compared with the experimental data from 10kV high-voltage testing.The discussion is helpful for the teaching of electrical engineering.


The utility model provides a sea wave power generation device, comprising a power generation device, a boosting module, a rectifying module and an energy storage device which are successively connected with each other. The power generation device comprises at least one power generation unit, each power generation unit comprises a support, a piezoelectric ceramic plate placed in the support and insulation leads, conductive coatings are coated on two surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic plate, each piezoelectric ceramic plate is connected with the boosting module via the insulation leads which are connected to the conductive coatings on two sides of the piezoelectric ceramic plate, the piezoelectric ceramic plates coated with the conductive coatings contact with the insulation leads, and all surfaces, except for surfaces contacting with the insulation leads, of the piezoelectric ceramic plates are coated with insulation coatings. The sea wave power generation device overcomes the shortage that an existing sea wave power generation device is complex in structure and low in efficiency, and has the advantages of simple structure, low cost and convenience in wide popularization.


Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act record for Renin Corp., Renin Corp. (US), Kingstar Products (Western) Inc. Includes information on file, company and monitor.


Objective: The present study has tried to develop a thorough understanding of why Indian farmers borrow; the effectiveness of loan waiver announcements; and their impact on farmers' lives; and more critically on farmers' suicides. The Study has also highlighted the "other" factors, which act behind the curtain, but, have a great influence. Methods/Analysis: The Study is explorative in nature and takes a descriptive form. It has looked into the reasons that have led to farmer distress, the relationship between debt and farmer distress, which culminates to suicides, and the impact of loan waiver on this process, using secondary data. Findings: The study found that there is no concrete connection between farm loan waivers and farmers' suicides, and farm loan waivers do not necessarily result in reduction in farmers' suicides, and largely, are an electoral agenda. There are various "other" factors, contributing to farmers' debt distress, forcing them to commit suicide, as a last resort, which is not accounted for, at large. These factors include environmental degradation, education expenditures, and health issues and related expenditures. Policy suggestions: Farm loan waivers need to be supported with augmentative and alternative models to make them a success. These augmentative models include Debt-Swap, Encouraging Food Processing Industry, Alternate Sources of Income and Organic Farming and strategies such as KALIA and can be used as an alternative model to farm loan waiver.


Background Progression of osteoarthritis (OA) is characterised by destruction of articular cartilage, thickening of subchondral bone, and formation of osteophytes. The disease modifying OA drug (DMOAD) diacerein functions as a slow acting drug through anti-inflammatory, anti-catabolic, and pro-anabolic effects on cartilage and the synovial membrane. Mechanical loading of joint tissue directly affects the homeostasis of matrix degrading enzyme production and matrix repair. Objectives To explore the impact of diacerein and moderate mechanical stimulation on the anabolic metabolism of OA and non-OA chondrocytes, as well as on the integrin-FAK-MAPKs signal transduction cascade in these cells. Methods Mechanical stimulation was applied in terms of three different intensities by the Flexcell tension system. Influence on catabolic parameters such as MMPs, ADAMTS, and IL-6 were assessed by qPCR. Changes in phosphorylation of FAK, STAT3 as well as MAP kinases were verified by western blot analysis. Intracellular calcium was measured fluorimetrically using fura-2. Results Mechanical stimulation at moderate intensity (SM/SA) proved to be most efficient in terms of reducing production of matrix degrading enzyme and IL-6 expression. Treatment with diacerein by itself and diacerein in combination with SM/SA reduced phosphorylation of FAK and STAT3, which is more pronounced in OA cells. Pretreatment with diacerein for 7 days resulted in an increase in the sensitivity to Yoda1, the agonist for the mechanically activated ion channel Piezo1. However, in OA cells a significant reduction in Piezo1 expression was observed following treatment with diacerein. Conclusions Cyclic tensil strain can reduce matrix destroying enzymes, and when used in combination with diacerein, the activity of integrin signalling components is changed. The observed effects can be mainly attributed to diacerein's capacity to modulate STAT3 and Piezo1, which are both potential targets to prevent the progression of OA. Disclosure of Interest None declared