The aim of this article is to reveal Lewis's scepticism in The Monk. The Monk critics can fall largely into two groups First group maintain that The Monk is pervaded by Lewis's negative attitude to the new individualistic progressive ideology of the late 18th century, whose emphasis on the importance of individualism, individual emotion, and human instinct poses a threat to the established society based on the traditional authority and rationalism. The other group believe that The Monk advocates the new ideology which presents itself as an alternative to the corrupt and tyrannical authority.
The Monk, however, is characterized by Lewis's ambivalent attitude to the new individualistic ideology, which, Lewis believed, though instrumental in dispelling a corrupt authority and superstition, brought about chaos and disorder in the established society. It seems that Lewis hesitated to adopt this new progressive ideology because of his lack of conviction or his scepticism.
Lewis's ambivalence deriving from his scepticism manifests itself in the novel. Ambrosio is the victim of the wrong education which represses his natural instinct unnaturally. Owing to this wrong education, he becomes a demon-like figure governed by the insatiable sexual desire, once he yielded to the carnal temptation of Matilda.
Lewis's attitude to the noters' scene, the symbolic representation of the French Revolution, is also ambivalent. In this scene, the rioters destroy the abbey and cruelly murder the prioress. Truly, the prioress, a symbol of corrupted authority, should be punished. But, the cruel murder of the prioress and the chaos brought about by the riot have a negative aspect. In short, for Lewis, the rioters' scene, the manifestation of the individualistic ideology in this novel, has a negative aspect as well as a positive one, like that of French Revolution.
Lewis's scepticism or ambivalence is extended into his attitude to the gothic itself. The Monk with the motifs of imprisonment, rape, murder, and ghosts, is a typical gothic novel, which is said to represent a revolutionary or conservative voice. In The Monk, however, coexist Lewis's revolutionary and conservative ideas. He seems to approve of the gothic as the literary genre informed by revolutionary ideas, while distrusting the absurdity of its supernatural elements. This is the reason that he introduces gothic elements sometimes playfully and sometimes seriously. In this respect, The Monk is a typical gothic as well as an anti-gothic which mocks gothic devices by parodying them.
The way in which Satan murders Ambrosio, the main source of the gothic elements of the novel, is the one in which Lewis disintegrates his gothic novel, The Monk, because in the description of the murder of Ambrosio, Lewis parodies various literary figures including those of the Bible. At this moment, we obviously realize that Lewis made fun of readers, who listen to his gothic story with seriousness. His fun, however, derives from his sceptical or ambivalent attitude to the new ideology, which pervades his novel.


We establish a lower bound for the cop number of graphs of high girth in terms of the minimum degree, and more generally, in terms of a certain growth condition. We show, in particular, that the cop number of any graph with girth g $g$ and minimum degree δ $\delta $ is at least 1 g ( δ − 1 ) ⌊ g − 1 4 ⌋ $\frac{1}{g}{(\delta -1)}^{\lfloor \frac{g-1}{4}\rfloor }$ . We establish similar results for directed graphs. While exposing several reasons for conjecturing that the exponent 1 4 g $\frac{1}{4}g$ in this lower bound cannot be improved to ( 1 4 + ε ) g $(\frac{1}{4}+\varepsilon )g$ , we are also able to prove that it cannot be increased beyond 3 8 g $\frac{3}{8}g$ . This is established by considering a certain family of Ramanujan graphs. In our proof of this bound, we also show that the "weak" Meyniel's conjecture holds for expander graph families of bounded degree.


Introduction. Perinatal hypoxia - ischemia is the cause of 30 - 35% of neonatal fatalities. Inflammatory factors such as prolonged rupture of membranes, maternal fever, are often accompanied by chorioamnionitis, associated with the birth of low Apgar scores children, convulsions of newborns and the diagnosis of "birth asphyxia" in infants who then develop cerebral palsy. The objective: to assess the condition and behavior of the premature fetus in pregnant women with prelabor rupture of membranes Materials and methods . The treatment (main) group (TG) consisted of 80 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies who gave birth to premature infants at gestation 27 + 6 - 34 weeks. The comparison group (CG) included 60 pregnant women at 27 + 6 - 34 weeks of gestation who were hospitalized with spontaneous preterm birth. Ultrasound examination to determine the behavior of the fetus on the scale of the neurological test KANET was performed. R esults and discussion. The most common complication was the threat of abortion in the third trimester in CG pregnant women (76.6%), which is 1.3 times more if compared with TG (60%) data. Placental dysfunction and fetal growth retardation were 2 times greater in CG (TG-16.2%, CG-35%). One in five pregnant women in both groups had dehydration, which complicated the fetus's development and condition. The long anhydrous period of more than 48 hours was in 22 (36.6%) CG pregnant women, which is 10 times more often than in the treatment group. In 7 (11.6%) cases, CG women had chorioamnionitis. KANET neurological test showed that the fetuses of the TG pregnant women with prelabor rupture of memebranes, who underwent neuroprotection with magnesium sulfate in 87.5% of cases showed normal behavior. The fetuses of pregnant women from the CG had normal neurological behavior in only 64.5% of cases , i.e.1.3 times less than in the TG. Conclusions: Prelabor rupture of membranes in premature pregnancy affects the course of pregnancy, leads to premature birth, increases the risk of intrauterine infection, changes the antenatal behavior of the fetus and can lead to hypoxic - ischemic brain damage with subsequent adverse effects.


Comets, being considered the most primitive bodies in the solar system, command the highest priority among solar-system objects for studying solar nebula evolution and the evolution of life through biogenic elements and compounds. The study of comets, and more especially, of material from them, provides an understanding of the physical, chemical, and mineralogical processes operative in the formation and earliest development of the solar systems. These return samples will provide valuable information on comets and serve as a rosetta stone for the analytical studies conducted on interplanetary dust particles over the past two decades, and will provide much needed extraterrestrial samples for the planetary materials community since the Apollo program. Lander sample return missions require rather complex spacecraft, intricate operations, and costly propulsion systems. By contrast, it is possible to take a highly simplified approach for sample capture and return in the case of a comet. In the past, we have considered Earth free-return trajectory to the comet, in which passive collectors intercept dust and volatiles from the cometary coma. However, standard short period cometary free-return trajectories results in the comet to the spacecraft encounter speeds in the range of 10 km/s. At these speeds the kinetic energy of the capture process can render significant modification of dust structure, change of solid phase as well as the lost of volatiles components. This paper presents a class of new missions with trajectories with significant reduction of encounter speeds by incorporating gravity assists and deep space maneuvering. Low encounter speed cometary flyby sample return will enable a marked increase in the value of the return science. Acquiring thousands of samples from a known comet and thousands of images of a comet nucleus would be space firsts. Applying new approach in flight mechanics to generate a new class of low encounter speed cometary sample return trajectories opens new possibilities in science. A systematic search of trajectories for the first decade of the twenty-first century will be made. The target encounter speed is for less than 7 km/s to short period comets.


The methods of removing snow from roads. Revealed the most expensive and time consuming operation of the winter road maintenance snow removal from the carriageway. The main problems with the use of snow removal trucks from the roads. On the example of a specific vehicle capacity utilization rate is calculated body and specific volumetric capacity. We propose a graphical method for determining the quantity of the goods, depending on the volume weight, which can be loaded into the back of the truck. The analysis of cargo capacity dump trucks, it is concluded that with increasing height boards dump cargo capacity and capacity utilization rate increased. We propose the most efficient way to reduce the cost of snow removal compacted snow on his pickup.


We attempt to understand the fundamental factors that determine the growth rate of carbon nanotubes. In a series of experiments on growing multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) by thermal chemical vapor deposition, we found that the addition of carrier gas and the type of carrier gas can change the growth rate, growth density, and structures of MWNTs. We explain these results based on the dissociative adsorption of C2H2 on Fe nanoparticles and the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth model. Finally, high-density, vertically aligned MWNTs were grown when decomposition and segregation rates of carbon were balanced.


Research work was conducted with tests and experimentations for the evaluation of effective integrated control measures against seedling mortality of chilli caused by Sclerotium rolfsii and Colletotrichum capsici. Two separate sets of experiment were conducted by inoculating the soil and the chilli seeds with S. rolfsii and C. capsici respectively, and then treated with the six compatible treatment combination sets along with two control sets for evaluation. In both the experiments, the growth of S. rolfsii and C. capsici were inhibited, and chilli seed infection by these fungi were checked by the separate application of T. harzianum isolate, Chaetomium globosum isolate, Vitavax-200 and garlic extract, significantly, in compare with all other individual control measures. Significantly effective control of seedling mortality of chilli was observed when both soil and seedling were inoculated with S. rolfsii and C. capsici treated with T. harzianum, C. globosum, Vitavax-200 and garlic extract combindly (T9) in comparison to any other intgegrated combinations and individual measure. However, efficacy of the measures was much improved when they are applied in integrated approach.


We describe and execute a novel approach to observationally estimate the lifetimes of giant molecular clouds (GMCs). We focus on the cloud population between the two main spiral arms in M51 (the inter-arm region) where cloud destruction via shear and star formation feedback dominates over formation processes. By monitoring the change in GMC number densities and properties across the inter-arm, we estimate the lifetime as a fraction of the inter-arm travel time. We find that GMC lifetimes in M51's inter-arm are finite and short, 20–30 Myr. Over most of the region under investigation shear appears to regulate the lifetime. As the shear timescale increases with galactocentric radius, we expect cloud destruction to switch primarily to feedback at larger radii. We identify a transition from shear- to feedback-dominated disruption, finding that shear is more efficient at dispersing clouds, whereas feedback transforms the population, e.g., by fragmenting high-mass clouds into lower mass pieces. Compared to the characteristic timescale for molecular hydrogen in M51, our short lifetimes suggest that gas can remain molecular while clouds disperse and reassemble. We propose that galaxy dynamics regulates the cycling of molecular material from diffuse to bound (and ultimately star-forming) objects, contributing to long observed molecular depletion times in normal disk galaxies. We also speculate that, in extreme environments like elliptical galaxies and concentrated galaxy centers, star formation can be suppressed when the shear timescale is short enough that some clouds will not survive to form stars.


Abstract A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for predicting the moderator circulation inside the Canada deuterium uranium (CANDU) reactor vessel has been developed to estimate the local subcooling of the moderator in the vicinity of the Calandria tubes. The buoyancy effect induced by internal heating is accounted for by Boussinesq approximation. The standard k-[curly epsilon] turbulence model associated with logarithmic wall treatment is applied to predict the turbulent jet flows from the inlet nozzles. The matrix of the Calandria tubes in the core region is simplified to porous media, in which anisotropic hydraulic impedance is modeled using an empirical correlation of the frictional pressure loss. The governing equations are solved by CFX-4.4, a commercial CFD code developed by AEA Technology. The CFD model has been successfully verified and validated against experimental data obtained at Stern Laboratories Inc. in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.


The energy spectrum of an isotropic harmonic oscillator as a function of the noncommutativity parameter $\ensuremath{\Theta}$ is studied. It is shown that for a dense set of values of $\ensuremath{\Theta}$ the spectrum is degenerated and the algebra responsible for degeneracy can always be chosen to be SU(2). The generators of the algebra are constructed explicitly.


Isothermal vapor−liquid equilibrium data were determined by static method at 323.15 K for the binary systems {propyl vinyl ether + 1-propanol}, {propyl vinyl ether + toluene}, and {1-propanol + toluene} and also for the ternary system {propyl vinyl ether + 1-propanol + toluene}. The experimental binary and ternary vapor−liquid equilibrium data were correlated with different GE models such as the Margules, van Laar, Wilson, NRTL, and UNIQUAC equations. In addition, excess molar volume data are reported for the same systems at 298.15 K. The excess molar volume data were correlated with the Redlich−Kister equation for the binary systems and the Cibulka equation for the ternary system, respectively.


In this paper, we will briefly present the main objective of the ERC Project Migrating Commercial Law and Language (MICOLL) that started at the end of 2021 at the Univeristy of Padova. This project consists in approaching the issue of the existence of a medieval and early modern lex mercatoria [1], the law of merchants in a completely new way: by analyzing the technical legal terms used by merchants between the Late Middle Ages and the early modern period (11th-17th century), focusing on some of the most important trading centers of northern Italy (Venice and Genoa) and Germany (Nuremberg and Lübeck). The project will make use of semi-automated approach for the creation of concept maps of the multilingual glossaries needed to interpret the legal terms, and automated techniques to enrich ancient digitized maps.


A new configuration for a three-phase bi-directional power converter (AC-DC and DC-AC) is presented. The converter is operated as a step-down converter where the output voltage can be controlled in the range of 0 to 1.5 Vph. The power switch configuration is simpler than the conventional anti-parallel bridge used for bi-directional step-down rectification. It has nine controllable switches and twelve diodes. In the rectifier and inverter mode, line current can be sinusoidally regulated with unity displacement factor. This complies with the EN standard on harmonic currents. Synchronous PWM is implemented in a field programmable gate array and regulation of the output is achieved with a PID controller. Simulation and experimental results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed converter system.


Romanovski polynomial was a traditional method to solve the Klein-Gordon equation for Fraction potential with q-deformed of radial momentum. By reducing Klein-Gordon equation into differential of one-dimensional Schrodinger like equation with appropriate variable and parameter substitution that could be solved by Romanovski polynomial. Then, the relativistic energy and the wave function equations was obtained analytically. Besides that, the numerical result of relativistic energy could be calculated by Matlab 2013a software. As a result, the relativistic energy values increase by increasing of q-deformed and quantum number parameters.


The coat protein(CP) was amplified from RNA_2(GenBank accession number AY789694) of Barley stripe mosaic virus Chain strain(BSMV-CH) by PCR,and subcloned into pMD18-T vector for sequence analysis for the first time in China.Its length was 597 bp.Compared with the other stains of BSMV,the identities of nucleotides were between 93.1% and 93.8%;the identities of amino acids were between(91.4% and) 92.4%.Compared with Poa semilatent virus(PSLV) and Lychnis ringspot virus(LRSV),the identities of nucleotides were 53.0% and 41.8% and that of amino acids were 48.1% and 40.0%,respectively.Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that there was correlation between BSMV isolates and geographic regions.The coat protein was subcloned to pEGX-6p-1,an expression vector fused with GST.The fusion protein was successfully expressed in E.coil BL21 induced with 1.0 mmol/L IPTG at 37℃.12% SDS-PAGE showed that the expression product with molecular weight 48.5 kDa was mainly in the form of inclusion body.Rabbit was immunized with the expressed fusion protein as antigen and antiserum was obtained.The titer of the antiserum was determined to be 1/6 400 by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay.The antiserum had high specificity to barley leaves infected by Barley stripe mosaic virus.


The current technology of spare supply and the involved factors were studied in this paper.The new model for the primary spare calculating model was established in combination of the analysis of demand of spare supply.In the spare calculating model,a fuzzy set was constructed to determine variety of spare,and following different life distribution to calculate the quantity of the spare.The new model was demonstrated by the engineering example and the result was satisfactory.


Most of picture books are created for children and intended to establish values as Adults' expected. Both John Scieszka, a writer and Lane Smith, an illustrator, state that Children's book must be "interesting and fun." Therefore their coauthored picture books broke through the stereotype of picture books and developed the particular style and forms of expression. Their creations are unique and have impact to on the domain of picture books. This article will through literature review and Feldman (1971)'s art criticism to inquiry: (a) the background and the features of creation of John Scieszka and Lane Smith (b) the cooperation of Scieszka and Smithback (c) the connotation of the three selected works; (d) the characteristics of works and the influence in the domain of picture books. The finding includes: (a)The appearance and style of the picture books are influenced by two author's features of creation. (b) Good relationship between the authors makes the connotation of expressed in these works more clearly. (c) the characteristics of their picture books are-- breaking through the stereotype of picture books, combiing the new elements with classic ones for sarcasm and contrast, showing the interesting and friendly to the readers.


INTRODUCTION: It is recognised that the desired therapeutic effect of most Anti-epileptic Drugs (AEDs) is achieved within a specific concentration range, with lower levels giving an unsatisfactory response and higher levels possibly giving undesirable side-effects. Large inter-individual differences in drug disposition occur, and many refractory patients require treatment with several AEDs. Thus, monitoring serum/plasma concentrations of AEDs has proved to be an extremely useful means of assisting in the individualisation of treatment. A large number of AEDs are available and it is necessary to quantitatively determine each compound that a patient is prescribed. Assay methods include a range of gas- and liquid- chromatographic procedures, and specific immunoassays, although the latter are not available for all AEDs. This work describes an Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS/MS) method capable of analysing a panel of AEDs, and, where appropriate, the active metabolite, simultaneously in a single procedure. METHODOLOGY: Sample preparation consisted of a simple protein precipitation using aqueous zinc sulphate and methanol. The resulting supernatant was diluted with mobile phase to give a response in the linear range of the analyte. A reversed phase UPLC method, using a Waters ACQUITY UPLC™ BEH C18 2.1x50mm 1.7µm column was developed to meet the demands of the clinical laboratory for speed of analysis, chromatographic resolution and sensitivity. The mobile phase consisted of :- Solvent A: aqueous ammonium acetate and solvent B: methanolic ammonium acetate; A five-minute gradient elution from 2-75% organic phase, produced an effective separation. Detection was undertaken using a Waters Quattro Premier XE™ tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer operating in Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) mode with fast (20ms) positive and negative ion mode switching and short (20ms) dwell times, commensurate with the UPLC peak widths. RESULTS: The assay for Lamotrigine was linear over the analytical range 2.9 -15.3 mg/L, with a correlation coefficient (r 2 ) of 0.995, and a precision %RSD = 4.4% at the lower concentration (n=6). The assay for Primidone was linear over the analytical range 4.3-30.0mg/L with a r 2


A Large Eddy Simulation based investigation is performed on a rectangular Mach 0.226 jet to examine the effect of differential entrainment along the minor and major axes. The nozzle has a circular cross-section at the inlet and a 2:1 aspect ratio rectangular cross-section (5.3848cm equivalent hydraulic diameter) at the exit. The Reynolds number of the flow is 73,242. The streamwise distribution of both mean and rms axial velocity fluctuations along the jet centerline agree with available experimental data. Q-criterion iso-levels confirm the existence of large hairpin like vortices, which initially are dominant along the major axis but further downstream, appear along the minor axis as well. The integral scales of these structures are investigated through their pressure footprints along the minor axis, major axis and corner. To highlight the influence of different frequency ranges, the velocity field at the core collapse location is first decomposed using Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD). The spectrum in these different ranges is then correlated with observations along representative lip-line at the major and minor axes and the corner. The presence of the large scale structures corresponding to low frequency ranges is predominant along the corner compared to major and minor axes. The correlations provide information on the connections between the structures and local times scales. The major components of low frequency structures in the propagated signal occur between St = 0.05 and St = 0.3


Thank you very much for downloading supervision and performance managing professional work in human service organizations. Maybe you have knowledge that, people have look numerous times for their chosen readings like this supervision and performance managing professional work in human service organizations, but end up in harmful downloads. Rather than enjoying a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they are facing with some malicious virus inside their desktop computer.


The conditional Lie–Bäcklund symmetry method is applied to investigate the functionally generalized separation of variables for quasi-linear diffusion equations with a source. The equations and the admitted conditional Lie–Bäcklund symmetries related to invariant subspaces are identified. The exact solutions possessing the form of the functionally generalized separation of variables are constructed for the resulting equations due to the corresponding symmetry reductions.


Abstract Objective. The endonasal endoscopic approach to skull base is still under investigation. The main goal is the minimal invasive approach to pathologies with a better rate of resection without retraction of the brain tissue. Here, the authors report their technique of transnasal endoscopic neurosurgery using a mononostril approach and its development. Methods. The supplementary video demonstrates the different steps of the mononostril approach and resection of a pituitary adenoma. All video-recorded procedures that were carried out between 2000 and 2013 using this technique were analysed. The patients were followed prospectively. Results. Visualization and handling were good in 246/251 (98%). In three cases, we had to switch to microscopy because of severe bleeding of the cavernous sinus. On follow-up, magnetic resonance imaging revealed radical tumour resection in 92% of all cases when intended. There was no mortality, and the low complication rate was remarkable. Conclusion. Our mononostril approach of transnasal transsphenoidal surgery shows better results compared with previously published reports in regards to radicality, low cerebrospinal fluid leaks and morbidity. The very low rate of nasal complains is particularly remarkable.


Technological change is one of the main generators of competition. It plays the most important role in changing the structure of existing and creation of new industries. In addition, technological changes equate company, since they may reduce the competitive advantage of well-positioned enterprises and point it to other companies. Many large companies have achieved their today success due to the fact that they were able to take advantage of technological change. Technological changes are one of the most important factors that can change the rules of the competition. Technological enterprises' strategy is an integral part of its global development strategy and is defined as a long-term commitment of the company to the place and role of technology in business. The procedures of technology strategy forming have been studied in this research through strategic analysis and definition of technology strategy. Research has shown that forming the basis of technological strategy should consist of a set of long-term goals of the company, the overall potential of the company as well as environment demands fulfillment. It has been concluded that the strategy of technology is actually the company's commitment to become a pioneer or the one that quickly forms alliances or partnerships in the branch. Strategy of technology is competitive advantage achieving through differentiation and low cost of production. It also establishes the basic ways of acquiring and using technology, while balancing optimization can be achieved by allocating resources (capital, human resources, technology, raw materials, etc.), which leads for a long time stability.


Molecular techniques are gaining increasing importance in the diagnosis and monitoring of infectious diseases. They have been useful to detect the infectious agents directly from clinical samples, without the need for culture, and allow the determination of viral load and the direct detection of genes or gene mutations responsible for drug resistance. Because of laborious and time-consuming protocols, together with strict precautions to avoid carryover contamination, molecular assays have been commonly done in especially dedicated laboratories. Over the past several years, novel technologies have been incorporated into molecular assays that minimize contamination risk and use only standard laboratory techniques. These developments bring molecular technologies into routine diagnostic laboratories and will make them widely used.


Sandspur grass has hindered the integrated weed management in the Brazilian crop systems. This study aimed at evaluating the efficiency of biomass levels of different cover crops on the soil surface to control the sandspur grass. A complete randomized blocks design with four replications, in a 6 x 5 + 1 factorial arrangement, was used. The first factor consisted of six cover crops ( Pennisetum glaucum - ADR 7010 and ADR 300 cultivars, Crotalaria ochroleuca , Urochloa ruziziensis , Fagopyrum tataricum and Crambe abyssinica ) and the second one consisted of five biomass levels of each species (2 t ha -1 , 4 t ha -1 , 8 t ha -1 , 12 t ha -1 and 16 t ha -1 ), plus a control treatment without soil cover. The variables analyzed were the total number of emerged plants, germination speed index, leaf area, root volume and shoot and root dry biomass. U. ruziziensis excelled in the suppression of C. echinatus growth by reducing the number of emerged plants, emergence speed index, shoot and root dry biomass, root volume and leaf area.


Describes a project currently under way in the Pittsburgh Public Schools seeking to develop new environments for teaching and learning using the technology of wide area computer networks. The history of this project offers lessons for other school districts which might wish to develop similar resources for their own use. Extracts a set of guidelines that can be followed by these other school districts.


Bioaerosolsor biotic components play an important role in climate change and have detrimental effects on vegetation and human health. Biotic components or bioaerosol is a group of organic aerosols ranging from 10 nm to 100 μm that are either alive, carry living organisms or are released form living organisms (viz., bacteria, fungi, virus, pollen, cell, cell debris and biofilms). Bioaerosols, as the name implies, have a biological origin. The surfaces of living and dead plants are important natural sources of airborne bacterial and fungal spores. Wind, waves and even rain may aerosolize microorganisms from natural accumulations of water. Bioaerosols occur naturally everywhere from the middle of the ocean to the middle of the arctic. They consist of particles such as bacterial spores and cells, viruses, fungal spores, protozoa, pollen, fragments of insects and skin scales. These include both fine and coarse particles. Viruses are among the smallest bioaerosol particles; some species are only a few tens of nanometers in size. On the other end of the size spectrum, pollen grains can be over 100 μm in diameter. As with other types of aerosols, bioaerosol concentrations vary significantly from location to location. Typical outdoor concentrations of airborne bacteria range from 100 to 1000 cfu/m 3 (cfu = colony forming units). Bioaerosol concentrations as high as 10 10 cfu/m 3 may occur in environments such as textile mills. The presence of various types of bioaerosol in indoor air, in the troposphere and even in the stratosphere has been established (Ariya and Amyot, 2004). Although biological components contributes 20% load of aerosol but the biological fraction of ambient particulate matter can potentially cause significant health effects (Schneider et al., 1997; Miguel et al., 1999, Boreson et al., 2004, Viana et al., 2008).So, biological characterization of aerosol is of paramount importance.


Criteria for selecting hardware and software suitable for use under the adverse conditions found in Civil Engineering mobile field applications are presented. Such systems, constructed by the end user organisation have been supported and maintained at high levels of availability without the need for extensive user skills, and can be readily adapted to new tasks at the end of a project. The importance of software is discussed and the virtues of a menu-driven environment are indicated.


Nonparametric smoothing has become the norm of statistics research in the last few decades. The advantage of nonparametric smoothing is its data driven nature. It does not assume any predetermined functional form but allow data to speak for themselves. One particularly popular nonparametric smoothing technique is penalized splines or P-splines. This technique is popular partly because it is computationally expedient and flexible enough to be adapted in complex models. Despite of its popularity in statistics methodological research, its applications in other areas such as finance and economics are limited. One reason for such limited applications is that P-splines remain unknown to most economics researchers. This chapter introduces the general idea of penalized splines and illustrates its application in forecasting US real GNP. Some references and resources are pointed out for future researches.


Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a multifactorial lung inflammatory disease that affects 174 million people worldwide, with a recently reported increased incidence in female patients. Patients with COPD are especially vulnerable to the detrimental effects of environmental exposures, especially from air particulate and gaseous pollutants; exposure to air pollution severely influences COPD outcomes, resulting in acute exacerbations, hospitalisations, and death. Here, a literature review of the recent work addressing air pollution-induced acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD) was conducted in order to determine whether sex was considered as a biological variable in these studies, and whether air pollution exposure affected patients with COPD in a sex-specific manner. It was found that, while the majority of studies enrolled both male and female patients, only a few reported results were disaggregated by sex. Most studies had a higher enrolment of male patients, only four compared AECOPD outcomes between sexes, and only one study identified sex differences in AECOPD, with females displaying higher rates. Overall, this analysis of the literature confirmed that air pollution exposure is a trigger for AECOPD hospitalisations and revealed a significant gap in the knowledge of sex-specific effects of air pollutants on COPD outcomes, highlighting the need for more studies to consider sex as a biological variable.


Vattimo is an author of so-called radicalized hermeneutics. In it he refers creatively to the counter-metaphysical nihilism of Nietzsche and Heidegger. He is accompanied by an intention of radicalization (weakening) both these positions with hope for clearing them of the remains of metaphysical thinking. The nihilistic accomplishment of hermeneutics Vattimo combines with its transition to the ethical position. However he polemizes with approaches, which develop "an ethical vocation" of hermeneutics either in the direction of the ethics of communication (like Habermas), or in the direction of the ethics of redescription (like Rorty), or in the direction of the ethics of continuation (like Gadamer). In their place Vattimo suggests the ethics of interpretation, which is rather ethics of goods than ethics of obligations. It is a kind of a retrospective (historical), pluralistic, relativistic ethics with a preference for the value of freedom.


Cold agglutinin syndrome (CAS) is a rare disorder associated with infection, autoimmune disorders, and lymphoid malignancies. We are present a case of CAS associated with SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19. A 46-year-old female presented with severe anemia and positive SARS-CoV-2 RNA PCR. Direct Coombs test was positive to IgG and complement. LDH was elevated and haptoglobin was undetectable. Peripheral smear revealed RBC agglutination, marked polychromasia, and many nucleated RBCs. Unfortunately, as a result of her severe hypoxemia, patient went into pulseless electrical activity before receiving transfusion and subsequently died. We postulate that CAS can be associated with COVID-19, and ongoing surveillance is required for potential association.


If information retrieval systems are to facilitate the dissemination of information for certain guidance functions, it is important that the factors which influence the use of such systems be understood. This article discusses information retrieval processes and the components of an information system. It also describes a number of currently operating systems which have direct relevance for guidance and counseling, and it stresses that in developing and using these systems, individual counselors, large guidance-oriented units, and guidance and counseling professional associations all have a vital role to play in this development.


The aim of this study was to introduce the foods recorded in「Bongjeopyoram」, a cookbook, of which the date of production and author are unknown. This was described in an old document belonging to the Hansan Lee family clan from Chungcheongnam-do and revealed its content and significance in the food culture history of Korea to academia for the first time, A close examination of「Bongjeopyoram」 showed that, as with other cookbooks from the Joseon Dynasty, it started with methods of making alcoholic beverages. This was followed by recipes for different types of food in the following order: rice cakes and confectioneries, jeol-sik (seasonal foods), daily meals, foods made for jesa (ancestral rites) or a feast, food for weddings, and food for sijeol-jesa (seasonal ancestral rites). The book contained a total of 18 types of alcoholic beverages, 11 types of rice cakes and confectioneries, 20 types of daily meals, 28 types of jeol-sik and food for sijeol-jesa, 12 types of food for jesa and feasts, and 37 types of food for weddings, for a total of 126 types of food and beverages.「Bongjeopyoram」 was an ancient cookbook with detailed records on how to carry out jesa, which was an important event hosted by jonggas, or the head family of a family clan, and how to receive and serve guests in the Joseon period. This book is expected to play a valuable role as a guidance with significance as a cookbook of a jongga from the Joseon Dynasty, a time when bongjesa-jeopbingaek (hosting jesa for one's ancestors and serving one's guest) was considered important.


Abstract : This paper presents a coordinated effort to model, lest and validate the structural response of complex aerospace rib-skin structures in both undamaged and damaged configurations. Coordinated experimental and finite element model results are presented for cylindrical rib-skin structures each approximately nine foot long, and thirty inches in diameter. The test articles considered are of riveted aluminum construction and include internal structural components including bulkheads and complex stiffeners. Experimental reproduction of the highly idealized loading conditions used in the finite element models required the development of a custom loading rig that is described in detail. In summary, the finite element models were found to predict the structural stiffness of both the damaged and undamaged structures well for small deflections and strains. However, structural failure was not well predicted because large deflect ions and nonlinear material behavior were intentionally not modeled for simplicity.


Space-energy distribution of process induced traps was extracted from random telegraph noise (RTN) characterization on ozone (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{O}_{{3}}{)}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> annealed Indium-Gallium-Zinc-Oxide (IGZO) metal-oxide-metal (MOM) capacitors. It was found that, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{O}_{{3}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> anneal increases both deeper and shallower traps in IGZO all the way to conduction band edge (CB) compared to the as-deposited film, and results in higher aggregate trap density as found from low frequency noise measurement. Extracted trap distribution was benchmarked with that in as-deposited and thermal annealed films, and was found convenient to interpret low field current degradation in IGZO due to <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{O}_{{3}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> anneal.


EUROPEAN foulbrood (EFB) is one of the most important bacterial diseases of honeybee larvae. The causative agent, Melissococcus plutonius , is a one genus-one species bacterium and had been thought to be remarkably homogeneous on the basis of morphological, physiological, immunological, and genetic studies (Bailey and Gibbs 1962, Allen and Ball 1993, Djordjevic and others 1999). However, Arai and colleagues (2012) recently reported the presence of an atypical type of M plutonius strains that is phenotypically and genetically …


This research makes use of the optimal membership principle and the measure of weights to establish the model of fuzzy pattern recognition,which is used in the study of the Chinese real estate market combined with some interrelated data.It analyzes the situation of the Chinese real estate market between 2005 and 2009 and assesses the development in 2010,whose results are in line with the actual situation.


Background: Occupational footwear and a prolonged duration of walking have been previously reported to play a role in maintaining postural stability. The purpose of this paper was to analyze the impact of three types of occupational footwear: the steel-toed work boot (ST), the tactical work boot (TB), and the low-top work shoe (LT) on previously unreported lower extremity muscle activity during postural stability tasks. Methods: Electromyography (EMG) muscle activity was measured from four lower extremity muscles (vastus medialis (VM), medial hamstrings (MH), tibialis anterior (TA), and medial gastrocnemius (MG) during maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) and during a sensory organization test (SOT) every 30 min over a 4 h simulated workload while wearing ST, TB, and LT footwear. The mean MVIC and the mean and percentage MVIC during each SOT condition from each muscle was analyzed individually using a repeated measures ANOVA at an alpha level of 0.05. Results: Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for maximal exertions, but this was limited to only the time main effect. No significant differences existed for EMG measures during the SOT. Conclusion: The findings suggest that occupational footwear type does not influence lower extremity muscle activity during both MVIC and SOT. Significantly lower muscle activity during maximal exertions over the course of the 4 h workload was evident, which can be attributed to localized muscular fatigue, but this was not sufficient to impact muscle activity during postural stability tasks.


DESPITE THEIR FUNDAMENTAL ROLE in chemical and biochemical systems, amides are tough to make. Routes to this functional group usually employ toxic reagents, such as thionyl chloride; require corros...


The density of supermagnetron plasma generated over a lower cathode, i.e., the wafer stage, was examined qualitatively by optical emission spectroscopy and compared to the results of Ar plasma measured by a similar method. Optical emission intensities (OEIs) of O (or Ar) atoms and O (or Ar) ions over the lower cathode were increased with each rf power. By increasing the upper cathode rf power (UPRF), a remarkable increase of OEI was observed at approximately 180° of the phase difference of two synchronous rf powers supplied to two cathodes, but there was a slight increase observed at approximately 0°. A lot of negative self‐bias voltage was observed at about 180°, but there was little positive voltage observed at approximately 0°. The etch rate of the photoresist was increased with UPRF at 150° without increasing the self‐bias voltage of the lower cathode. Highly uniform etching of ±5% was obtained in a 5‐in.‐diam photoresist wafer etching using a stationary magnetic field. 0.4 μm photoresist lines were e...


Results of analysis of topicality of researches in the cash flow area by the tools of Internet-analysis are presented. Selected definitions used for analysis are introduced. The topicality of researches in the cash flow area is confirmed. The necessity of further researches and creating new approaches and methods in the area of cash flow and its optimization was acknowledged.


Interaction among autonomous agents in Multi-Agent Systems (MASs) is a key aspect for agents to coordinate with one another. Social approaches, as opposite to the mentalistic approaches, have received a considerable attention in the area of agent communication recently. They exploit observable social commitments to develop a verifiable formal semantics by which communication protocols can be specified. However, treating social commitments in stochastic systems is entirely missing in the literature. In this paper, we present a new logical language called Probabilistic Computation Tree Logic of Commitments, PCTLC for short, to specify and reason about social commitments in systems exhibiting uncertainty. The proposed modal logic extends PCTL with modalities for commitments and their fulfillments. We model MASs using two extended versions of interpreted systems to capture the probabilistic behavior of MASs, and account for the communication between the interacting agents.


Could salting the world's oceans with iron help reduce greenhouse gases? In recent years, scientists have intensified their research on iron and the ocean carbon cycle. Iron fertilization is one of several controversial geoengineering responses to climate change. Others include placing sulfates or devices in the atmosphere to reflect solar radiation. Skeptics point out, however, that those methods could potentially have grave ecological effects and that placing sul fates and solar reflectors high up in the atmosphere are responses focused on temperature and not on the underlying greenhouse gas problem. Iron fertilization, though, is a seques tration method. The idea is that in many parts of the seas, especially in highnutrient, lowchlorophyll (HNLC) regions, such as the Southern Ocean, iron deficiency accounts for minimal phytoplankton. With increased iron, the thinking goes, phytoplankton would bloom, which would increase photo synthesis and would subsequently draw down atmospheric carbon. The ocean "biological pump" would transport an unknown fraction of this phytoplank tonpulled carbon to the deep seas, where it could remain for centuries. The late John Martin, oceanographer of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories and seminal thinker on the role of iron in the oceans, sought to understand the ocean biochemistry of interglacial periods. Martin's famous 1988 quip at a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution presentation—"Give me half a tanker of iron, and I'll give you an ice age"—is a frequent starting point for discussing iron fertilization. Since then, researchers have conducted approximately a dozen artificial iron fer tilization experiments. These restricted experiments have generally indicated that phytoplankton does bloom when iron is deposited in HNLC regions. Although iron fertilization alone could not sufficiently decrease green house gas concentrations, two recent studies, one published in Global Biogeochemical Cycles and the other published in Biogeosciences Discussions, suggested that it could potentially draw down car bon dioxide by, respectively, 33 and 41.8 parts per million (roughly 10 percent of current levels) from atmospheric levels over a 100year period. Along with other measures, such as reforesta tion and soil, peat land, and mangrove restoration, iron fertilization could be a significant component of a global carbon sequestration schema. However, in these and other studies, the vastness and uncertainties of such an enterprise have been stressed. For ex ample, in a 2010 US Congress–mandated National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency report (Ocean Fertilization: The Potential of Ocean Fertilization for Climate Change Mitigation), diminished ocean productivity in nontargeted regions; denitrification and a possible attendant release of nitrous oxide, a po tent greenhouse gas; and further ocean acidification as possible consequences of iron fertilization were identified. The Convention on Biological Diversity has also issued recent deci sions that embody the skepticism toward iron fertilization, warning of the un certain biological effects and calling for nations to restrict the research scope and to stop early consideration of issu ing carbon credits for iron fertilization. But others think the concept war rants further study. This year, 13 sci entific and educational institutions launched the InSitu Iron Studies (ISIS) Consortium (http://isisconsortium. org), in large part to get a handle on the uncertainty. Its mission is to "re solve the impact of iron fertilization on marine ecosystems, to quantify its potential for removal of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and to improve our collective understanding of the chang ing ocean." Ken Buesseler, Woods Hole oceans biochemist and ISIS Consor tium cofounder and cochair of its Sci entific Steering Committee, said, "If a key to turning the dial on atmospheric carbon is iron in the ocean, then we need to study it well enough to under stand the consequences." Buesseler added that more study of natural sites' iron sourcing of phyto plankton bloom should help answer the large questions of scale and carbon retention. In June, Woods Hole held a twoandahalfday workshop on natu ral iron fertilization studies conducted in the Southern Ocean from 2004 to 2006 (www.whoi.edu/sbl/liteSite.do? litesiteid=48732). Woods Hole oceans chemist Matt Charette, who managed the workshop, said that these natural incidents with "hundreds to thousands of tons at a minimum... dwarf any previous artificial iron release, making these natural iron release experiments very important in understanding how the earth works." Charette believes that a future priority is a "full yearround study of one of these blossoms, from the onset, [to] the bloom and the crash—from winter, through spring, summer, and back to winter." Other scientific and policy circles are also paying attention to iron fertiliza tion. In June, in Lima, Peru, a meeting of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) included a poster pre sentation of ocean iron fertilization within the geoengineering focus. Importantly, the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter in 1972 (London Convention), with its 1996 Protocol, has emerged as the legally binding forum focused on iron fertilization in the high seas and, in ef fect, restricts artificial iron fertilization to scientific experiments. This fall, the governing body of the London Con vention will further elaborate on its framework program for iron fertiliza tion, perhaps expanding its focus to all oceansrelated geoengineering work.


The National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism (NCCRI) was established in 1998 as an independent expert body focusing on racism and interculturalism. The NCCRI is a partnership body which brings together government and non-government organisations.
Sector: Culture
Address: Third Floor, Jervis House, Jervis Street, Dublin, Dublin
Phone: +353 (0)1 858 8000
Email: email@example.com


A simple model for the "diamond graphitization" type of phase transition is proposed, leading to a good agreement with the experimental data. The phase transition temperature dependence on the external pressure is found. A new phenomenon in diamond is predicted, which is a decrease of the temperature of graphitization with increase of external pressure.


Lexicology is by nature full of metaphysical issues, because the social life that lexicon reflects is innately filled with all kinds of contradictions. The present is possible because of the past, but there is no past without the present. There is "real," "kind," and "beautiful"; hence, "false," "evil," and "ugly" also exist. If there were no false, evil, and ugly in the world, where would real, kind, and beautiful arise? In a study of lexicon, there must be no room for metaphysics. Metaphysics does not match patterns of objective reality, and cannot stand the testing by objective reality.


: Female prisoners are likely to experience psychological problems, especially related to self-image such as loss of identity and personality, loss of self-control, difficulty adjusting, having low self-esteem, difficult to accept the present situation, reduced self-confidence and a high sense of despair. Self image will have an impact on the formation of personality and wrong development of female prisoners. Therefore, intervention and counseling service interventions are needed to improve the self image experienced by female prisoners. This study aims to examine the self-image of female prisoners, and the role of counselors in helping to improve the self-image. The research method used was a literature study of the dimensions of self-image in female prisoners associated with the guidance and counseling service interventions. Discussion and implications are discussed further.


Two series premiered in 2017: British-American Taboo and Polish Belle Epoque. The year is not the only similarity – based on the statements by Edward Miszczak, head of programming of the TVN channel, resemblance was sought and even intended. Similitude in the main character's image as well as the starting point of the story lines proved to be misleading. A closer look at both shows reveals that the only feature that they have in common is their rootedness in popular (and vernacular) cultural traditions: in Taboo intentional and visible references to political fiction, film noir aesthetics, graphic novel and heist movie; in Belle Epoque (topical but also stylistic) resemblance to popular gutter circulation novels (dime novels) on Polish territory at the turn of 19th and 20th centuries.


-Abstract There is a huge discrepancy between the "political" values of the reserves by country as reported by Oil & Gas Journal, World Oil, BP Statistical Review, OPEC… and the "technical" values which are confidential for most countries. Yet, most production forecasts by official agencies are based on the political data. Some countries report minimum values (e.g. the US with Proved values), others report maximum values (e.g. the FSU), and most countries report likely or median (called Proven + Probable) values which are generally close to, yet lower than, "mean", e.g. "expected", values. When technical data are used to calculate the "mean" values of field reserves, a good fit is found between annual (and cumulative) discoveries and annual (and cumulative) production, the former being close to the latter with a time translation of a certain number of years. This procedure makes it possible to forecast future production from the corresponding past discovery trend. Examples shown for conventional oil are the US Lower 48, FSU, France, UK, Middle-East, deepwater and the world outside "Middle-East & deepwater", and for conventional gas, the North America. A long-term forecast for World production of all hydrocarbons, based on these methods, is far below all the scenarios developed for the 2000 Third Assessment report of the IPCC.


This cross-sectional study examines generic prescribing patterns for 2020 among 340B-eligible and non-340B clinicians in the Medicare Part D program to assess whether 340B revenue incentives may influence prescribing.


Squilla (Oratosquilla nepa) is abundant along the west coast of India, inhabiting burrows in sand and mud. The species is little used as it possesses little meat. There is great similarity between chemical composition of Squilla and prawn waste, and it is suggested that Squilla could therefore be used for making chitosan, a potential industrial chemical with various uses. Preparation of chitosan, and the general nature of the prepared product, is described.


The present invention, hydrogen fluoride, and E-3,3,3-trifluoro-1-chloropropene, optionally, one or more (hydro) halogen carbon compounds containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms about azeotropic or azeotrope-like composition comprising and. The present invention also hydrogen fluoride, and E-3,3,3-trifluoro-1-chloropropene, optionally, 1,1,1,2,2-pentafluoropropane, 2,3 , 3,3-tetrafluoropropene, 3,3,3-trifluoropropene, 3,3,3-trifluoro-2-chloropropene, 1,3,3,3, trifluoropropyne, 1 1,1,3,3-pentafluoropropane, 1,1,1,3,3-pentafluoropropane, 1,1,1,3,3-pentafluoropropene, 1,1,1,2,3 - relates to pentafluoropropene and 2-chloro-1,1,1,2 one or preferably azeotropic or azeotrope-like composition comprising a plurality of compounds selected from tetrafluoropropane. .BACKGROUND


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Just as any other industry, the performing arts realize an output due to a certain input. Nonetheless, the characteristics of the industry, being non-profit and receiving subsidy, have an influence on the way the input is constituted. Whereas in the for profit sector, organizations aim to maximize profit by increasing the output and minimizing the production costs, the aim is different for the performing arts. Nonetheless, times have changed, and in economical harsh time it has also become important for cultural institutions to bring about a healthy balance between the productions costs of their input and the output realized.
In this article, the performing art landscapes of the Netherlands and Germany are compared, because they differ significantly in the way they produce and present theatre. In Germany performing companies and venues form one organization while in the Netherlands these are separate organizations. Generally is presumed that the German system of presenting and producing is preferable for the social embedding of the arts and support for cultural subsidies. The data suggests that the separated production and presenting of the performing arts in the Netherlands works more cost efficient than the German system. The Netherlands attracts the same number of visitors with less seats and performances available. Also, the subsidy requirement is lower and the degree of occupancy is higher.


Every year there is a mass of technical literature published on planned maintenance and life expectancies of building materials and components: a guide published by NBA Construction Consultants, the end product of a comprehensive review of over 7000 titles and summaries published over 20 years, selects and abstracts 300 of those titles. This must represent the most thorough analysis of the available technical data on the subject which has yet been made.


Abstract Background More than 50% of catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) occur within 5 days of urinary catheter (UC) insertion suggesting poor insertion technique. Breaks in sterile technique and inappropriate UC kit use were observed resulting in increased insertion-associated CAUTI (iCAUTI, CAUTI occurring ≤5 days post-UC insertion). Specific challenges with UC insertion were identified in the emergency department (ED, high patient flow) and critical care units (CCU, high acuity). The objective of the study was to change the UC insertion process in the ED and CCU to reduce iCAUTI. Methods The study included pre-intervention (August 2016–May 2017), implementation (June–December 2017) and post-intervention (January–March 2018) periods. The interventions were use of a buddy system for UC insertions and the reduction of UC insertions in the ED. The buddy system involved critical care nurses inserting UC catheters with another healthcare worker present to ensure correct process and identify breaches in sterile technique. The ED was notified of the patients who (1) received a UC within 24 hours of admission and (2) received the UC in the ED resulting in raised awareness and joint effort between ED and CCU. An iCAUTI rate was calculated for each of the three periods. The proportion of UCs inserted using the buddy system and the proportion of admitted patients with UCs inserted in the ED were calculated. Results The iCAUTI rate decreased by 75.8% between pre-intervention (0.33 iCAUTI/100 UCs inserted) and implementation period (0.08) and increased slightly in post-intervention period (0.16). The ED demonstrated the largest decrease in iCAUTI rate between pre-intervention (0.40) and post-intervention (0.0). Buddy system adherence was 47.3% for the implementation and 58.2% for the post-implementation period. Patients who had UCs inserted in the ED decreased from 59.8% in pre-intervention, to 42.4% in implementation to 35.1% in the post-intervention period. Conclusion A decrease in iCAUTI was observed with the implementation of a buddy system and reduction of UC insertions in the ED. Sustainability of the iCAUTI reduction program will be successful with the use of tools such as electronic medical records as well as culture change and staff buy in. Future directions will include expanding the program to acute care floors. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


We demonstrate the application of optical amplifiers and polymer-dispersed liquid-crystal (PDLC) shutters to electrically reconfigurable fiber optic delay line signal processors. Two 8-tap finite impulse response (FIR) fiber filter modules were fabricated. These two modules can also be interconnected in a cascaded or parallel configuration to implement a 16-tap fiber FIR filter. An erbium-doped fiber amplifier with a peak gain of about 20 dB was used to compensate for the large optical losses involved in the filters due to the large tap numbers. The relatively inexpensive PDLCs were used to realize electrically reconfigurable analog tap weights. The individual fiber filters were then evaluated for their impulse and frequency responses. The fabricated filters used single-mode fibers and fiber components and were polarization independent to within 0.5 dB. The sampling frequency was about 200 MHz, which can easily be upgraded into the gigahertz range. The tapping extinction ratio was about 13 dB with subkilohertz tunability speed. The amplified spontaneous emission noise can limit the filtering performance unless appropriate spectral filtering is included before detection. These optically amplified electrically reconfigurable fiber signal processors have the potential to lead to the realization of complex programmable and adaptive optical systems.


Since deregulation in 1999, the development of the Indonesian aviation industry has continued to develop. However, many airlines still face various problems before and during flights. Problems in the plane, ranging from engine problems, technical problems, tire damage, cockpit problems to air pressure problems. Airlines customers have personal considerations and preferences when choosing an airline. The many choices and many considerations of airlines often confuse customers. To solve this problem, a decision support system (DSS) can be used to provide advice in selecting airlines based on customer preferences. This study uses the FUCOM-MARCOS method, using 8 criteria and 6 testing alternatives. When using FUCOM to calculate criterion weights, it appears that the factor price (C5) is the factor that counts most. Calculations using FUCOM-MARCOS show that Garuda Indonesia is the favorite airline in Indonesia with a preference value of 0.7390, followed by Citilink in second place, and Batik Air in third. Testing using consistency analysis shows that Garuda Indonesia remains stable and is the first choice by being ranked first 15 times out of 17 tests, with an average ranking distribution reaching 1.23466.


An efficient synthetic pathway to the core structure 5 of the polyketide antibiotic tetrodecamycin (la) has been developed. Our approach features the acid-catalyzed cyclization of a tert-bu-tyldimethylsilyl protected methyl α-(γ-hydroxyacyl) tetronate, leading to the novel tricyclic ring skeleton exhibited by 5. An insight into the mechanism of this key ring closure step has been gained. Furthermore an alternative pathway to this ring skeleton, based on a fluoride ion induced desilylation-cyclization sequence, has been disclosed.


A perfect (Delaunay) ellipsoid is an ellipsoid in n-dimensional Euclidean space that does not contain integral points in its interior, but is uniquely defined by integral points that lie on its surface. A perfect Delaunay polytope with respect to a positive quadratic form f() is a polytope with integral vertices that is circumscribed by a perfect Delaunay ellipsoid with an equation whose quadratic part is f(). This document has been corrected on January 15, 2005. Note that it represents the state of the area as of the end of 2002. For recent research on perfect Delaunay polytopes see my recent preprint, with Erdahl and Ordine, math.NT/0408122 on ArXiv.org .


Abstract Quantifying productivity of bird populations often involves calculating nest success from samples of nests found during a breeding season. Female reproductive output (annual or lifetime) is important to demographic modeling of birds, but nest success is a poor metric to compare productivity among areas or populations. Based on preliminary review, we hypothesized that avian literature poorly distinguishes annual reproductive success from nest success regardless of species' breeding strategies, and that the influence of renesting and multiple brooding on avian productivity is infrequently recognized. We investigated the reporting of nest success, annual reproductive success, renesting, and multiple brooding in 356 articles across 81 journal-years for nine journals that frequently publish ornithological literature. We found 54% of 356 articles reporting productivity estimators used variations of nest success. However, only 10% of articles reported estimates of annual reproductive output. We found that 28% of articles reported the breeding strategy of the species studied, and 47% acknowledged renesting or multi-brooded species. There was no temporal increase in acknowledgment of species' breeding strategy, renesting, or multi-brooding. Our review indicated little distinction between nest success and annual reproductive success. To accurately support conservation evaluations, we believe use of nest success in assessing avian productivity must be critically examined.


An active sector of small and medium enterprises (SME) in Poland is a prerequisite of a properly functioning market economy. This sector encompasses various companies. The ICT (Information and Communication Technology) can help even the odds. We have conducted a questionnaire-based survey to identify how polish SMEs perceive this phenomenon of eBusiness systems.


Demonstrated the existence of another kind of non-equilibrium ordered structure that emerges at vapor-liquid interface spontaneously. This structure forms spontaneously due to thermal motion of the molecules moving between the vapor phase and the liquid ph...


Conceived in the 1960s at MIT to integrate complex mathematical relations and to assist in the identification of the structure of chemical compounds, expert systems have since been commercialized to assist in medical diagnosis and configuring computer systems. There are currently several hundred nuclear-oriented expert systems under development by utilities, research organizations, private firms, industry suppliers, universities, and government organizations. Major application areas for expert systems are assessed in terms relative to the capabilities of the technology in the nuclear industry. These areas include the use of systems as engineering tools, plant design, facility management, maintenance planning, interactive diagnostics, real-time diagnostics, decision support, emergency response, operator models and control. In this book each area of application is reviewed in terms relative to the capabilities of the technology.


This paper outlines some of the key issues affecting town and city centres today, and provides glimpses of new challenges and opportunities for researchers and practitioners in this field. These include the strategic positioning of town centres, managing the evening and night-time economies effectively, the growing role of the
experience economy to town centre attractiveness beyond mere retail-led approaches, the potential dichotomy between physical town centres and digital high streets, more human smart cities, as well as the growing role of emerging concepts such as the sharing economy and the circular economy. It is argued that place management practitioners will need to address these trends proactively (rather than reactively) and that further research is required in order to understand the complex interactions of the various parameters managed by place managers to keep town centres vibrant, viable, innovative and resilient to further global economic downturns.


This article presents the plans for the Punggol Eco-Town and eco-modernisation developed by Singapore's Public Housing Authority, Housing and Development Board's Building Research Institute as a model for the future development of next generation of eco-friendly homes and sustainable new towns in a dense urban environment setting in Singapore.


The purpose of this research is to analyze the Wulla Poddu ritual as Resilience Model of Marapu community in Tarung and Praiijing villages, West Sumba. The theories used are resilience, ritual, and liminal.The research approach is descriptive qualitative method. The deep data is obtained based on the understanding of the community informants. The results of the research showed that under a lot of pressures, Tarung and Praiijing community had the ability to return to the beginning of the situation called resilience in the form of Wulla Poddu ritual of Marapu belief. Marapu is considered as the intermediate spirit that had the power to raise the feeling of the community through Wulla Poddu ritual events. The Wulla Poddu Ritual bound the community to be one unity without status and religious differences, and returned to live their life as the beginning and even better than before. The pressure and uncertainty came from the government in obtaining rights, responsibility, and official religions (Islam and Christian) where the fact shows that they have a belief in Marapu as their God. In this case, the Wulla Poddu becomes an open ritual of uncertainty.


Quite often because of the complexity in the design of large industrial motors, the theoretical motor parameter calculations do not match actual results from laboratory tests. Thus, it becomes important to predict the amount of discrepancy between the two methods to develop confidence in the motor parameter calculations. This paper discusses the development of multiple artificial neural networks (ANNs) designed to predict the ratios of measured parameters to calculated parameters, given the geometry and construction of the motor. These ratios represent correction factors which can be applied to the values calculated from the theoretical program, which, in this case, is a software package known as MPE program.


Regulatory T cells (Tregs) play an important role maintaining intestinal homeostasis. The Treg pool from the small intestine lamina propria (siLP) include two subpopulations: Helios+ Tregs, comprised of mainly thymic derived Tregs, and the microbiota-induced RORgt+ Tregs. We used K14 transgenic mice lacking peripheral TCR-MHCII to examine the phenotype and maintenance of Helios+ Tregs in siLP. We find that the siLP of K14 mice fills with Helios+ Tregs that adopt an effector phenotype independent of TCR signaling.
 To dissect the mechanisms that maintain siLP Helios+ and RORgt+ siLP Treg subpopulations, we used blocking antibodies to inhibit costimulatory signals. We find that the composition of the Treg pool is dynamic; both subpopulations expand to compensate for the loss of the other to maintain intestinal Treg numbers. Moreover, we found that the balance between RORgt+ and Helios+ Tregs in siLP is differentially modulated by ICOS and CD28 signals. Thus, while Helios+ Tregs rely only on CD28 but neither ICOS nor MHCII signaling for their expansion; MHCII, CD28, and ICOS signaling play a role in RORgt+ Treg maintenance. Together, our data highlight the intricate signaling network that regulates the intestinal Treg homeostasis.
 Supported by grants from: AAI Careers in Immunology Fellowship VA NIH


Epulis, or congenital granular cell tumor, is a rare benign tumor of the soft tissue in the oral cavity. Antenatal diagnosis has been reported rarely in the literature and incomplete evaluation is not uncommon1–3. Recently, a report on three clinical cases suggested that an ex-utero intrapartum treatment (EXIT) procedure may be useful when congenital epulis is diagnosed antenatally4. This procedure, however, requires a multidisciplinary team and is not completely devoid of complications, thus, should be chosen only after strict antenatal evaluation. We report on the case of a 24-year-old primigravida with no significant medical history. Findings on sonography at 12 and 23 weeks were normal. On routine ultrasound examination at 30 weeks' gestation, a solitary, homogeneous, vascularized solid mass (17 × 20 mm) was discovered protruding from the fetal oral cavity. Subsequent twoand three-dimensional (2D/3D) sonographic evaluation at 34 and 36 weeks' gestation revealed a mass (20 × 25 mm) attached to the left mandibular ridge by a pedicle, vascularized from the lower maxillary artery (Figures 1 and 2). There was no involvement of any adjacent oral or oropharyngeal structures and both nares were unobstructed on both 2D and 3D color Doppler ultrasonography. The nasal amniotic flow and streaming of fluid in the nasopharynx during breathing movements was unaffected and detected as bidirectional. Amniotic fluid volume was normal, as were the results of dynamic evaluation of fetal swallowing and the fetal stomach bubble was visualized. No other associated morphological abnormalities were identified. Based on these findings, the risk for mechanical airway obstruction


In large management information system,database security is very important.The model structure of role based access control(RBAC) is analyzed,and a method for role based safe access control is proposed and designed in large management information system.Role definition effectively confirms the access power of different users.It is good to divide the work of every member in the system,and it makes the system run safely.


TAMPERE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY Master's Degree Programme in Electrical Engineering SHRESTHA, DEEP: Advanced Multicarrier Communication Techniques in Automotive Environment Master of Science Thesis, 53 pages May 2014 Major: Wireless Communication Circuits and Systems Examiner: Prof. Markku Renfors


The article analyzes the novel «Pasternak» by Mikhail Elizarov and Alexander Prokhanov's «Ship «Joseph Brodsky»» in the view of distinctive «signs» of Russian culture functioning in them. Therefore, the work of the title='Найти все статьи с этим ключевым словом', kind='ключ'>writers - Nobel Prize winners is a kind of prism for modern prose writers through which the major questions for Russian history are considered: the people and the intellectuals, social justice, national idea, religion and statehood. The main topics are implemented through the number of reasons, the main of which are the motives of the blood and salvation (the Savior on Spilled Blood), controversially allowing philosophical problem of redemption of the depravity of existence. Social issues are stated through allusion layer: references to Dostoevsky's novels, Radishchev's «Journey from Petersburg to Moscow», Nekrasov's poem «Who lives Happy in Russia». With the theme of redemption organically linked theme of man's salvation, which Prokhanov and Elizarov's characters decide on their own. So different view of the world and creative aspirations of the authors are unified by their desire to capture their era, its reversal of fortune and historical faults in which the Great Russian literature has always played a significant role


Abstract We designed and implemented a discrete choice experiment to assess how information about the health, environmental, and economic benefits of locally produced aquaculture products affect Connecticut consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for products produced in the state, as compared with products from another state or another country. We find that information about local economic benefits tended to increase WTP for Connecticut-grown and -raised products, whereas information about health, safety, and the environment tended to decrease WTP for products from other regions. We also explore heterogeneous effects of the information treatments by respondent gender, education, and income.


Using mass spectrometer, we investigate the formation mechanism of bubbles in float glass. The relationships connected with bubble size, location, composition, and conditions for formation are described. These results are valuable for high quality float glass manufacturing.


In a neoclassical investment model, returns and investment are linked. We show that the timing of investment and returns are also linked. Conditional on total investment, firms investing earlier in the year have lower returns than firms investing later in the year. We show empirical evidence consistent with this prediction. Our model further predicts that the effects are strongest when the firm has cash flows early in the year. We confirm this prediction, as well. Moreover, regressing returns on annual investment year produces a much weaker relationship between returns and investment than regressing returns on semi-annual investment.


Objective To observe the effect of combination of Huangkui capsule and western medicine on type 2 diabetes complicated with early diabetic nephropathy(DN).Methods 62 cases of type 2 diabetes with DN were randomly divided into two groups.Patients in control group(n=30) were administrated by life style,high-qualified low protein diet and drugs for controlling blood sugar and pressure.Patients in treatment group(n=32) were treated by combination of Huangkui capsule,5 pills,thrice a day and routine therapy during 8 weeks.Changes of UAER,quantity of urine protein during 24 hours,urine β2-MG,Scr and BUN before and after treatment in two groups were observed.Results UAER and urine β2-MG after treatment were decreased in comparison with those before treatment in two groups(P0.05).There was obvious difference between two groups(P0.05).The total effective rate in the treatment group(84.4%) was markedly higher than that in the control groups(63.3%,P0.05).Conclusion Huangkui capsules could improve functions of kidney glomerular and tubular in early diabetic nephropathy patients,and could delay the progress of diabetic nephropathy.It was a safe and effective drug on the treatment of early diabetic nephropathy.


In order to build up a representation of the Dutch voicing contrast in the lexical representations of words, the learner must first identify the relevant phonological contrast in the language. In Dutch, the main acoustic cue for voicing in initial position is Voice Onset Time (VOT): Voiced stops (e.g. /b/, /d/) have a negative VOT value of around − 4 ms., while voiceless stops (e.g. /p/, /t/) have a VOT value between 0 and 25 ms. (Lisker & Abramson 1964, among others). r8"


Both internal and external elements compose commercial retail enterprise competitiveness.The internal elements decide the basic level of enterprise competitiveness;and the external elements decide the relative strength of enterprise competitiveness.They are combined to make the overall level of enterprise competitiveness.


It is a well-known fact that for any natural number $n$, there always exists a prime in $[n, 2n]$. Our aim in this note is to generalize this result to $[n, kn]$. A lower as well as an upper bound on the number of primes in $[n, kn]$ were conjectured by Mitra et al. [Arxiv 2009]. In 2016, Christian Axler provided a proof of the lower bound which is valid only when $n$ is greater than a very large threshold. In this paper, after almost a decade, we for the first time provide a direct proof of the lower bound that holds for all $n \geq 2$. Further, we show that the upper bound is a consequence of Firoozbakht's conjecture. Finally, we also prove a stronger version of the bounded gaps between primes.


Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), a large subfamily of the transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) superfamily of growth factors, have been implicated in patterning of the central nervous system, but their role in the retina is much less well known. As an initial step in addressing this issue, we have investigated by in situ hybridization the expression patterns of BMP‐2, ‐4, ‐5, ‐6, and ‐7, BMP receptor kinases (BRKs) ‐1, ‐2, and ‐3, and BMP binding proteins noggin and chordin, in the chick embryonic eye at embryonic day 3 (E3), and in isolated retinas at E6, E8, and E18. Strikingly, all mRNAs examined had spatially restricted patterns of expression in the early eye, with the receptors found primarily in the ventral portion of the retina and in the optic stalk, and the ligands and binding proteins localized to other regions of the retina and/or retinal pigment epithelium. Dorso‐ventrally restricted patterns of expression persisted at E8, but were no longer apparent at E18, whereas layer‐specific patterns of expression were detectable at both E8 and E18. This distribution of BMP family members, receptors, and binding proteins within the retina appears consistent with a possible role in patterning and/or differentiation of this tissue. J. Comp. Neurol. 430:562–572, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Questions of regulation of the market of the earths of agricultural appointment, formation of the competitive environment in wholesale-retail sphere of the food market and in the housing construction market.


The lipid class and fatty acid composition of eggs of Indian fresh water goby (Glossogobius giuris Hamilton) have been studied. The mean wet weight of mature eggs accounted for 4.8% of total weight of fish, of which 25% (on dry basis) was lipid. The major portion of lipid was triacylglycerol (TAG, about 62.5%). A significant amount of phospholipid (PL, 27.1%) was also present of which phosphatidylcholine (PC) was predominant. The fatty acid composition of the total lipid, TAG, and phospholipids were studied, Palmitic acid (16:0) was the most abundant saturated fatty acid present in the total lipid (33.2%), TAG (36.3%), and phospholipid (23.1%) fractions. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) were more accumulated in the phospholipid fraction than the TAG. Arachidonic acid (20:4n-6, AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3, DHA) in the phospholipid fraction were 11.4% and 16.6% and in TAG fraction 3.3% and 4.0%, respectively. The results of the study indicated that G. giuris eggs were rich in PUFA which are very much essential in terms of fertilization success and larval development.


This study was designed to investigate the in vitro inhibitory activity of aqueous extract of propolis (AEP) on the growth of Trichomonas gallinae in comparison to metronidazole. Aqueous extract of propolis inhibited the growth of T. gallinae trophozoites and the level of inhibition varied according to the extract concentration and incubation times. The highest reduction of parasitic growth (100%) was observed in cultures treated with 100 and 75 mg/ ml of propolis aqueous extract after 24 h. The same result was detected in cultures treated with 50 mg/ ml of AEP but after 48h. While Growth reduction by 92.5 and 80% was observed in 25 and 12.5 mg/ml propolis-treated cultures respectively after 96 h. Minimal lethal concentration of aqueous extract of propolis was 50mg /ml after 48 hours.In comparison complete inhibition of parasite growth was obtained by metronidazole (50 µg/ml) after 24hours. Light microscope observations revealed changes of the pear-shaped aspect of the cell as a result of presence of large vacuolations in the cytoplasm of the trophozoites. Our results hold the perspective for the utilization of propolis as an antitrichomonal agent after the complementary in vivo studies.


A cutting tool (10) having a shank (15) having a longitudinal axis (20), wherein the cutting tool (10) a first groove (32) extending around the longitudinal shaft (15) along a helix angle, and a first cutting edge (56 ) adjacent to the first groove (32). The cutting tool (10) also includes a second groove (36) extending around the longitudinal shaft (15) along a helix angle and a second cutting edge (58) adjacent said second groove (36). The cutting tool (10) further comprises a third groove (40) extending around the longitudinal shaft (15) along a helix angle and a third cutting edge (60) adjacent to the third groove (40). The first cutting edge (56), the second cutting edge (58) and the third cutting edge (60) are spaced at an angle not equal to each other.


In order to improve the growth situation of tobacco plant in field,effects of ridge height,20 cm,30 cm and 40 cm,and fertilization ways,single row,"101"fertilization and annular spot application,on agronomic traits and main chemical components in cured leaves( C3F) of Yunyan 87 were studied in Yanshan county,Yunnan province on April,2014,and soil temperature and moisture content in 10 cm and 20 cm depth were determined. The results showed that the temperature in ridge body was decreased with increment of ridge height,while this change was weakened gradually with the time.Soil moisture content was decreased with increment of ridge height,the deeper soil layers,the lower moisture content in soil. The plant height,maximum leaf length and the width of the largest leaf were biggest in treatment with ridge height 30 cm. As for fertilization ways,"101 "fertilization and annular spot application were better. Difference in yield of cured leaves among treatments was not clear,output value of treatment of ridge height 30 cm and"101"fertilization was highest.


Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a common and sometimes disabling syndrome which has been reported to affect up to 10–15% of adults in North America (1) and Western Europe (2,3); inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), though less common, affecting approximately 0.5% of the Canadian population (4), is not rare. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that these entities should, on occasion, coincide or coexist, albeit by happenstance. Recent descriptions of immune activation and even subtle mucosal inflammation in IBS have raised the possibility of a more fundamental relationship between IBS and IBD. This review will address two issues: firstly, at a pathophsyiological level, the relationships between IBS and IBD and, secondly, in a clinical context, the interpretation of IBS-type symptoms among IBD patients in apparent remission. IS IBS PART OF THE SPECTRUM OF IBD? In past decades, when IBS sufferers were commonly employed as "controls" in IBD studies, IBS was regarded as a mere nuisance to be occasionally tolerated by the hoi polloi of that rarefied community, the IBD confraternity. The very suggestion that IBD, a disorder populated by innumerable T-cell subsets and complexities of mucosal immunology and human genetics comprehensible only to that elite cadre of practitioners and clinical researchers possessed of the intellectual prowess to enter this field, had anything in common with IBS, a messy, vague and marginal entity, would be treated with the scorn it deserved and dismissed with derision. How things have changed? As yet another T cell subset failed to deliver, the litany of cytokines and chemokines possibly linked to IBD stretched even further into a darkening horizon and yet another gene mutation disappointed, the gaze of the IBD-ologist began to wander and, reluctantly, and secretly (as no self-respecting IBD aficionado could admit in public that he or she was dabbling in the dark arts of IBS) began to rest on IBS. Meanwhile, though handicapped by an inferior intellect and an ignorance INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE: A PRACTICAL APPROACH, SERIES #66


Advances in virtualization technologies and edge computing have inspired a new paradigm for Internet-of-Things (IoT) application development. By breaking a monolithic application into loosely coupled microservices, great gain can be achieved in performance, flexibility and robustness. In this paper, we study the important problem of load balancing across IoT microservice instances. A key difficulty in this problem is the interdependencies among microservices: the load on a successor microservice instance directly depends on the load distributed from its predecessor microservice instances. We propose a graph-based model for describing the load dependencies among microservices. Based on the model, we first propose a basic formulation for load balancing, which can be solved optimally in polynomial time. The basic model neglects the quality-of-service (QoS) of the IoT application. We then propose a QoS-aware load balancing model, based on a novel abstraction that captures a realization of the application's internal logic. The QoS-aware load balancing problem is NP-hard. We propose a fully polynomial-time approximation scheme for the QoS-aware problem. We show through simulation experiments that our proposed algorithm achieves enhanced QoS compared to heuristic solutions.


The purpose of the paper is to analyze the convergence of urban land consumption intensity by econometric model so as to reveal the trend of regional difference of urban land consumption intensity in the process of urbanization and verify the related economic theory.Panel data model was employed to study on the convergence of regional difference of urban land consumption intensity in China.The results showed that 1) The mean value of urban land consumption intensity gradually decreased in the whole country,relatively developed area and less developed area from 2000 to 2011,and the intra-class standard deviation fell volatile as a whole,showing the characteristics of σ convergence.2)Comparatively,the narrowed gap of urban land consumption intensity of different provinces in the relatively developed area was smaller than that in the whole country and the less developed area.From 2004 to 2011,the value of σ in the relatively developed area was greater than the whole country,and the whole country was greater than the relatively less developed area.It showed that the relatively less developed area was more convergent at present.3) There was β convergence in the difference of GDP per capita between the relatively less developed and developed areas.At the same time,the difference of urban land consumption intensity between the two areas was also convergent although the convergent speed of the urban land consumption intensity was faster than that of GDP per capita.4) The η value of the provinces was positive in the relatively less developed area,showing that the gap of economic difference was narrowed between the provinces in the relatively less developed and developed areas,and the urban land consumption intensity difference was also shrinking.It is concluded that urban land consumption intensity gradually decreased in China in the recent ten years.Meanwhile,the regional difference tended to converge.


Three novel coordination polymers, [Co(NH2-Aip)(H2Bibim)] n (1), [Co(NH2-Aip)(HBibimop)] n √ nH2O (2) and [Mn(NH2-Aip) √ H2O] n √ 2nH2O (3) with NH2-Aip and similar benzimidazole derivative ligands (NH2-Aip = 5-aminoisophthalic acid, H2Bibim = 2,2′-bibenzimidazole and HBibimop = 1,3-bis(benzimidazol-2-yl)-2-oxapropane), have been synthesised under hydrothermal conditions and structurally characterised by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis, elemental analysis and IR spectroscopy. 5-Aminoisophthalic acid ligand adopts μ2-, μ3- and μ4-bridge coordination fashion and benzimidazole derivatives exist as terminal- and bridge-mode in complexes 1–3. The intricate hydrogen bonds and π–π stacking interactions in supramolecular framework are discussed. Using the combination of ultraviolet–visible absorption titration and fluorescence spectra, the experimental results show that complexes 1 and 2 bind to DNA in an intercalative mode and their DNA-binding constants (K b ) are also found.


BACKGROUND For many years, chlorine dioxide (ClO2) has been used successfully as either a substitute for or an adjunct to chlorine during the treatment of drinking water. Although ClO2 is an excellent oxidant, disinfectant, and treatment for tastes and odors, its use in recent years has been restricted because potential health effects are associated with both the oxidant itself and its by-products, chlorate ion (ClO3-) and chlorite ion (ClO2-). Regulations have proposed the ClO2 maximum residual disinfectant level (MRDL) as 0.8 mg/L, and the maximum contaminant level for chlorite as 1.0 mg/L. No regulations have been proposed for chlorate.


Based on correlation and regression analysis,two questions were put forward: the interrelation between factors that impacts customer loyalty in automobile service market and how they impact customer loyalty.It is believed that customer value is also a factor affecting customer loyalty just as customer satisfaction,relationship trust,and switching cost A basic customer loyalty-driven model was constructed to draw conclusions that automobile service enterprises should manifold switching cost appropriately,increase customer value,further strengthen the management of customer satisfaction,and enhance the relationship trust in order to improve customer loyalty.


The Wu and Mizukami's(1993)robust stabilization conditions are inproved tomake them use widely.An example is given to demonstrate that our results are better thanWu and Mizukami's.


Handwriting recognition is a challenging and critical problem in the fields of pattern recognition and machine learning, with applications spanning a wide range of domains. In this paper, we focus on the specific issue of recognizing offline Arabic handwritten text. Existing approaches typically utilize a combination of convolutional neural networks for image feature extraction and recurrent neural networks for temporal modeling, with connectionist temporal classification used for text generation. However, these methods suffer from a lack of parallelization due to the sequential nature of recurrent neural networks. Furthermore, these models cannot account for linguistic rules, necessitating the use of an external language model in the post-processing stage to boost accuracy. To overcome these issues, we introduce two alternative architectures, namely the Transformer Transducer and the standard sequence-to-sequence Transformer, and compare their performance in terms of accuracy and speed. Our approach can model language dependencies and relies only on the attention mechanism, thereby making it more parallelizable and less complex. We employ pre-trained Transformers for both image understanding and language modeling. Our evaluation on the Arabic KHATT dataset demonstrates that our proposed method outperforms the current state-of-the-art approaches for recognizing offline Arabic handwritten text.