This paper presents performance data for a grid-interfaced 180kWh, 240kVA battery energy storage system. Hardware test data is used to understand the performance of the system when delivering grid services. The operational battery voltage variation is presented. Both static and operational losses are presented for usage cycles representative of time of use management and frequency support services. Cell-level tests are undertaken to quantify the battery round-trip efficiency, found to be around 95%, and the complete system is modelled to provide a loss breakdown by component.. The battery energy storage system achieves a round-trip efficiency of 91.1% at 180kW (1C) for a full charge / discharge cycle.


The term 'mass tourism' can simply be an empirical description of tourism enjoyed by many in modern, industrial societies. However, in context, it often refers to more than this. The 'mass' involves an aggregation of individuals, and involves assumptions and inferences about those individuals and their society. Hence mass tourism is, in an important sense, a social construct. It is therefore surprising that there is little consideration of this aspect of 'mass tourism' and its corollary, the 'mass tourist' in relevant literature. The article develops a provisional periodisation of mass tourism in social thought, linking constructions of the mass to the politics of the day. It has an exploratory character, suggesting themes for contestation and/or further research. It indicates changes in the view of mass tourism, but also important continuities relating to an assumption of a lack of agency on the part of mass tourists.


Paracetamol is non-narcotic analgesic and antipyretic of the central action from group of anilides, widely used in clinical practice. This drug has pronounced hepatotoxic effect which amplifies with alcohol. Paracetamol intoxication most frequently happens as a result of deliberate peroral intake of excessive doses of drug with a suicidal purpose. Undeliberate medicine poisoning is possible as a result of self-treatment.


Monotonic triaxial compression, triaxial extension and torsional shear tests were carried out on geotextile reinforced sand and reinforced clay, mainly to investigate the effects of rotation of principal stresses on the mechanical behavior of the reinforced soil materials. The tests were carried out on unreinforced and reinforced specimens with 2, 3 and 4 geotextile layers under three different confining pressures. Investigation of the monotonic behavior of the reinforced materials under different stress paths, i.e. triaxial compression, triaxial extension, and torsional shear shows that direction of principal stresses can have profound effects on the stress-strain curve, shear strength, and slope and intercept of failure envelope. Test results reveal that geotextiles improve the mechanical properties of the sand and clay, since both strain at failure and undrained shear strength increase with the number of geotextile layers in sand and clay. In addition, test results indicate that geotextile inclusion enhances the mechanical properties of geotextile reinforced sand and clay, however, geotextiles seems to be more effective when used to reinforce sands. Keywords– Principal stress rotation, geotextiles, sand, clay


Diffusion coefficients of D2O in dielectric films are studied through the analysis of deuterium depth profiles by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The films investigated are atmospheric chemical vapor deposition (CVD) SiO2 (LTO), borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG), plasma-CVD SiO2, tetra-ethoxy-silicate (TEOS)-based plasma-enhanced CVD SiO2 (P-TEOS), O3- and TEOS-based SiO2 ( O3-TEOS), and organic spin-on glass (SOG) films. The diffusion coefficient of D2O in the plasma-CVD SiO2 film is less than one-fifth those in the other films.


objective This study was designed in order to evaluate bone turnover with bone formation and resorption markers in hyperthyroidism and its possible relationship with serum cytokines interleukin 6 (IL‐6) and tumour necrosis‐α (TNF‐α), levels of thyroid hormones and thyroid autoantibodies.


Feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGN) is thought to regulate the growth of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and galaxies. The most direct evidence of AGN feedback is probably galactic outflows. This thesis addresses the link between SMBHs and their host galaxies from four different observational perspectives. First, I study the local correlation between black hole mass and the galactic halo potential (the MBH − Vc relation) based on Very Large Array (VLA) H I observations of galaxy rotation curves. Although there is a correlation, it is no tighter than the well-studied MBH − σ∗ relation between the black hole mass and the potential of the galactic bulge, indicating that physical processes, such as feedback, could link the evolution of the black hole to the baryons in the bulge. In what follows, I thus search for galactic outflows as direct evidence of AGN feedback. Second, I use the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) to observe a luminous obscured AGN that hosts an ionized galactic outflow and find a compact but massive molecular outflow that can potentially quench the star formation in 106 years. The third study extends the sample of known ionized outflows with new Magellan long-slit observations of 12 luminous obscured AGN. I find that most luminous obscured AGN (Lbol> 10 46 ergs s−1) host ionized outflows on 10 kpc scales, and the size of the outflow correlates strongly with the luminosity of the AGN. Lastly, to capitalize on the power of modern photometric surveys, I experiment with a new broadband imaging technique to study the morphology of AGN emission line regions and outflows. With images from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), this method successfully constructs images of the [O III]λ5007 emission line and reveals hundreds of extended emission line systems. When applied to current and future surveys, such as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), this technique could open a new parameter space for the study of AGN outflows. In summary, through multi-phase and multi-scale galactic outflows, AGN feedback can link the growth of SMBHs with the evolution of galaxies.


Algorithms of the program for determining the optimal parameters of 3D-printing are described. To confirm the effectiveness of the developed algorithms and mathematical model, the tensile strength of an ABS plastic part was calculated at the specified printing parameters. It is concluded that the use of the developed program will allow one to assign optimal printing parameters and obtain products with a given margin of safety.


The existing wireless power transfer (WPT) for monitoring devices of the overhead high voltage transmission line is usually open-loop controlled. And the voltage of the WPT receiving terminal inevitably fluctuates in the harsh and changeable wild environment, which affects the performance and life of the monitoring devices. To solve the problem, this paper proposes a new topology and applies model predictive control (MPC) to control it. In this topology, a buck boost converter is connected in series at the receiving terminal of the WPT. First of all, the features of the new topology are described in detail. Then the prediction model of the converter is derived from the state equation. And the control algorithm without increasing the number of system sensors is also given. The performance of the control algorithm is tested in different working conditions. The simulation results show that the topology and control algorithm can effectively control the output voltage of WPT to make it stable even if the input voltage deviates seriously. Finally, it is concluded that the topology proposed has excellent characteristics and is very suitable for monitoring devices of the overhead high voltage transmission line.


Development of technology for producing catalysts for the destructive hydrogenation of asphalt-free oil of heavy sulfur crude oilis given in research work. Optimal conditions for the preparation of catalysts for the hydrogenation processare identified.


In the 21st century, climate change is considered as one of the greatest environmental threats in the world, and changes in climate maximization have more negative effects on human society and the natural environment than climate change. Zarineh Roud River Basin in the south of Urmia Lake is of great importance because of its importance in economic and agricultural activities as well as providing a major section of the water input to Lake Urmia. Therefore, in this study the impacts of climate changes on the water resources of the Zarineh Roud River Basin have been studied according to the predicted climate change and its effects on a global scale. In this study, precipitation and temperature were used as key variables for water resources analysis . The Statistical Downscaling Model (SDSM) was also used to downscaling global circulation model (GCM). Predictive variables were selected on the basis of partial correlation (r) and p-value, and a 17-year baseline period from 1984-2001was used to assess climate change. The base period was divided into two periods for SDSM calibration and validation: 1984 to 1995 and 1996 to 2001. In this case, ground measurements and atmospheric information revised from the US National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) were used . During the validation, the scenario generator in the SDSM model was used to generate simulation time series for five stations in the region including: Mahabad, Takab, Maragheh, Saqez and Zarineh. For precipitation, the R statistic for the SDSM model for the two calibration and validation periods was 0.2-0.07 and 0.21-0.63, respectively. Correlation coefficient r ranged from 0.03-0.05 indicates low performance and 0.46-0.8 indicates high performance of SDSM model. R values were calculated as 0.42-0.5 and 0.98-0.6 for temperature, respectively.


'Alexa'Kentuckybluegrass (PoapratensisL.) (Reg. no.CV-92, PI 634978) is a turf-type cultivar released in August 2004 by Jacklin Seed by Simplot, Post Falls, ID. Experimental designations for Alexa were 94-2561 and J-2561. Alexa originated as an apomictic, single-plant selection from the progeny of field cross 92-4230, created June 1992 using Jacklin breeding line 92-0076 as the maternal parent and 'Midnight' (Meyer et al., 1984) as the pollen source. Isolation distance and not pollen bags were used to control pollination. Breeding line 92-0076 is a dark green variety with medium-low turf quality, originating from an open-pollinated field cross of Midnight in 1990. Seeds harvested from hybrid cross 92-4230 were sown in greenhouse flats in spring of 1993, and transplanted into a spaced-plant nursery of 40701 plants. Offspring with characteristics dissimilar to 92-0076 were selected during maturation in spring of 1994. Plant number 94-2561 was identified as being unique from 92-0076 by the color and appearance of its panicle. A single spaced plant of 94-2561 produced 45 g of clean seed, which is three times the amount typical for a Kentucky bluegrass spaced plant in northern Idaho. Seed harvested from 94-2561 was tested in turf trials in Idaho beginning in 1994 and in Maryland and Ohio in 1997. First Breeder seed was produced in 2000 and Certified seed in 2003. Progeny apomixis trials were conducted in a spaced-plant nursery established near Post Falls in 1999. Among 1367 Alexa plants, 1.7% were variants in the vegetative stage, 1.2% were heading maturity variants, 0.4% were seedhead variants, 0.2% were variants during dry-down, and 0.7% were miniature plants. In spaced-plant nurseries, Alexa averaged 96% apomictic, though the level varies from 90 to 99% in commercial seed production depending on weather, location, and year. Heading variants average 10 to 20 cm taller in culm length with a tendency toward lodging. Some variants are miniature plants that will not be apparent in seed production. About 0.2% of plants resemble common Kentucky bluegrass, but with leaf and panicle color characteristics that link them to the cultivar. Approximately 0.4% of plants have a later maturity, with taller culms and lighter green foliage as the stand matures. Aberrant plants are removed from seedstock fields but will continue to be expressed in each generation because of the facultative apomictic nature of Kentucky bluegrass. Alexa most closely resembles 'Liberator' (Brede, 2001), differing by a wider flag leaf, more branches at the lowest node in the panicle, and later reproductive maturity. Alexa is a half-sib of the cultivars EverGlade (Brede, 2006a) and Freedom III (Brede, 2006b). Alexa was tested in the 2000 National Turfgrass Evaluation Program (NTEP) trials for Kentucky bluegrass (Morris, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005). In the trial, Alexa had a dark green genetic color and good turf quality at close (25 mm or lower), intermediate (25–50 mm), and higher (greater than 50 mm) mowing heights. In overall turf quality, it performed well in the northeastern, Midwest, Great Plains, and Transition Zone regions of the USA. Alexa has good shoot density during summer and autumn, a medium-fine leaf texture, good shade tolerance, relative freedom from seedhead expression inmowed turf, and good tolerance of traffic stress. It is resistant to leaf spot [caused by Drechslera poae (Baudys) Shoem], dollar spot (caused by Lanzia Sacc. or Moellerodiscus Henn. spp.), brown patch (caused by Rhizoctonia solani Kühn), and is tolerant of annual bluegrass (P. annua L.) encroachment. In 5 yr of commercial seed production, Alexa has demonstrated the potential for high yields of quality seed, relative freedom from ergot [caused by Claviceps purpurea (Fr.) Tul.] and no adverse reactions to labeled pesticides. Alexa is recommended for golf course tees, fairways, and roughs, and for lawns, parks and sports turf, in full sun or some shade, in areas where Kentucky bluegrass is well adapted for turf. It is compatible in blends and mixtures with other cool-season turfgrasses at mowing heights as low as 13 mm. Breeder seed is maintained by Jacklin Seed, with seed increase limited to one generation each of Foundation, Registered, and Certified. United States Plant Variety Protection application no. 200400216 has been filed for Alexa. Limited quantities of seed are available for experimentation on request from the author. Recipients are asked to recognize the source if Alexa contributes to the development of a cultivar or germplasm or is used for other research purposes. Seed has been deposited in the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS), but no seed will be distributed by the NPGS without written permission for 20 yr from the date of publication in Crop Science, at which time seed will also be available from NPGS.


The growing popularity of renewable energy and hydrogen-powered vehicles (HVs) will facilitate the coordinated optimization of energy and transportation systems for economic and environmental benefits. However, little research attention has been paid to dynamic hydrogen pricing and its impact on the optimal performance of energy and transportation systems. To reduce the dependency on centralized controllers and protect information privacy, a time-decoupling layered optimization strategy is put forward to realize the low-carbon and economic operation of energy and transportation systems under dynamic hydrogen pricing. First, a dynamic hydrogen pricing mechanism was formulated on the basis of the share of renewable power in the energy supply and introduced into the optimization of distributed energy stations (DESs), which will promote hydrogen production using renewable power and minimize the DES construction and operation cost. On the basis of the dynamic hydrogen price optimized by DESs and the traffic conditions on roads, the raised user-centric routing optimization method can select a minimum cost route for HVs to purchase fuels from a DES with low-cost and/or low-carbon hydrogen. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed optimization strategy was verified by simulations.


By using those sources traditionally referred to, as well as introducing a number of new ones, the article seeks to shed light on weapon dances within the Nordic countries, placing them in a European context, the intention being to strengthen the basis for further research into this area within the field of Nordic dance studies and history. Until now, the shortage of material has made it difficult for scholars to place potential Nordic weapon dances within the context of comparable traditions known elsewhere in Europe. The purpose of this article is to attempt to fill this gap to some degree by presenting relevant material of a different kind. In order to demonstrate that weapon dances belong to a deep-rooted tradition of dances and games in Northern Europe, some ancient pictorial sources are exhibited and explained. Furthermore, Icelandic sources that shed new light on the coherence of medieval weapon dances are revealed. The Icelandic material, in other words sources which indicate that people in Iceland knew or knew of weapon dances, are of two different kinds: they indicate first of all that Icelanders used to take part in a dance called hringbrot, a dance which appears to be very similar to descriptions of weapon dances of other nations. Secondly, it seems that they created and preserved in their manuscripts drawings that indicate that they knew about weapon dances as early as in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The additional material presented here, which is substantial, is now being analyzed and has a valuable contribution to make to the debate concerning Nordic weapon dances. By putting the Icelandic material in connection with more traditional sources from Northern Europe, and in the broader context of Mid and Western Europe, we should be able to increase our understanding of the context and development of weapon dances.


Existing agricultural tractor path tracking methods rarely consider tracking accuracy and driving stability simultaneously. To solve this problem, a novel path tracking method of tractor is proposed in this paper. The method contains two layers of controllers. The first layer is the desired front wheel steering angle controller based on path prediction, and the desired yaw rate of tractor can be obtained by reference model expression. The second layer is the front wheel steering angle compensation controller based on improved second-order sliding mode (SOSMC) to improve tractor driving stability. The innovation of SOSMC is a combination of nonlinear integral sliding mode (NISM) surface and improved Super-Twisting algorithm, which can not only improve the rate of the control system to the sliding mode surface, but also suppress chattering. To verify the performance of SOSMC, the simulations are carried out on three paths at the constant speed of 10 km/h through Matlab/Simulink and Carsim. Three working paths including arched, pear-shape and lemniscate are constructed in Carsim. The results show that the control effect under three controllers is better than no control. Compared with no control, the maximum value and root mean square (RMS) of lateral error under SOSMC are reduced by 13.09% and 25.07% on average in three paths, and that of yaw rate are decreased 53.29% and 54.64%. The tracking accuracy of SOSMC is the best of three controllers, and that of NISMC is better than SMC. Compared with NISMC, the maximum value and RMS of yaw rate under SOSMC are reduced by 37.74% and 43.62% on average. The yaw rate, front wheel steering angle compensation value and chattering amplitude of front wheel steering angle under SOSMC are significantly smaller than those of SMC and NISMC. In summary, the novel path tracking method can simultaneously satisfy the accuracy and stability of the tractor when it tracks the field working path.


At the dawn of the "Brave New World" ushered by revolutionary breakthroughs of cutting-edge technologies, this article reflects on the relationship of technology and religion, focussing on the following questions: (1) What are the ultimate meanings of technologies? (2) How is technology related to...


Variational methods have proven to be excellent tools to approximate ground states of complex many body Hamiltonians. Generic tools like neural networks are extremely powerful, but their parameters are not necessarily physically motivated. Thus, an efficient parametrization of the wave-function can become challenging. In this letter we introduce a neural-network based variational ansatz that retains the flexibility of these generic methods while allowing for a tunability with respect to the relevant correlations governing the physics of the system. We illustrate the success of this approach on topological, long-range correlated and frustrated models. Additionally, we introduce compatible variational optimization methods for exploration of low-lying excited states without symmetries that preserve the interpretability of the ansatz.


Shrimp waste utilization as feed in an effort to reduce environmental pollution and the greenhouse effect. Magelang ducks which are a source of germplasm Indonesia. The purpose of this study was the use of fermented shrimp waste by Isoptericola sp. bacteria chitin biodegradation as duck feed compound to improve the performance and carcass quality. The study consisting of 7 treatment feed R0 = concentrate feed as a control, R= shrimp waste non fermented (SWNF) 5%, R2= (SWNF) 10%, R3 = (SWNF) 15%, R4 = shrimp waste fermentation (SWF) 5%, R5 = (SWF) 10% and R6 = (SWF) 15%, each repeated 5 replicates in 4 enclosure floc (7x5x4) = 140 ducks. Feed and water given adlibitum. The research result is specific activity chitinase incubation at pH 8, arter 5 days (0.70 U/mg) as inoculum. The addition of shrimp waste fermentation level 5, 10, and 15% did not differ significantly on the performance of Magelang ducks ie live body weight, carcass percentage, body weight gain and feed conversion, but also does not degrade the performance of Magelang ducks. The dry matter intake and organic matter intakes showed significantly.


Objective: to characterize the socioeconomic and clinical-epidemiological profile of people attended in an outpatient clinic specialized in complex wounds. Methods: cross-sectional study with 69 people with wounds, through the application of a questionnaire. Data analyzed using descriptive and analytical statistics. Results: most participants were male (55.1%), above 60 years old (55.1%), married (40.6%), income from one to three minimum wages (69.6%). Regarding clinical aspects, 50 (72.4%) had the injury for more than six months, 32 (46.4%) had a relative responsible wound dressing, 44 (63.8%) did not have difficulties in wound dressing. Regarding how long they had the wound, pain and arterial disease were statistically significant (p=0.042; p=0.026). Conclusion: most participants were male and above 60 years old. Pain and the presence of arterial diseases were significant with regards to people with chronic wounds.


A multi-component powder for consolidation to form a sinterable green body for a zirconia ceramic is described. The multi-component powder comprises at least 80% by volume of nano-sized particles of zirconia and up to 20% by volume of a stabilising agent which may form a coating around the nano-sized particles of zirconia and is optionally in particulate form. A multi-component slurry formed by suspending the powder in a liquid is also described as well as a green body formed from either the slurry or the powder. A zirconia ceramic formed by sintering the green body is also described.


The present invention relates to an antenna device using liquid metal. The antenna device includes: a plurality of antenna structures which have internal spaces corresponding to antenna patterns; and at least one actuator which s connected to at least two of the antenna structures and controls the movement of the liquid metal to supply the liquid metal to one of the antenna structures. By doing so, the present invention is able to prevent deterioration of antenna performance due to the human body as well as due to deformation of a mobile terminal. In other words, the present invention ensures the optimum radiation performance of an antenna.


OBJECTIVE To systematically evaluate the quality of Spatholobus suberectus. METHODS The contents of 6 marker compounds in 23 samples of Spatholobus suberectus collected from different areas and markets were analyzed by HPLC method. Some physical and chemical tests( EtOH extract,total ash,acid-insoluble ash,H2O) were used to investigate their quality. RESULTS There were significant differences among 23 batches of crude drug material of Spatholobus suberectus in contents of 6 index compounds as well as some physical and chemical parameters. The contents of epicatechin and isoliquiritigenin were highest in 6 index compounds. CONCLUSION The study provided reference in order to systematically evaluate the quality of Spatholobus suberectus.


Graft copolymerization reactions of methyl, ethyl, butyl, hexyl, and lauryl methacrylates and 1,3-butylene dimethacrylate with fibrous cotton cellulose were initiated by the simul taneous irradiation procedure, using 60Co γ-radiation. The fabric properties of the poly(alkyl methacrylate)—cotton copolymers (methyl, ethyl, butyl, and hexyl) were determined at two degrees of grafting. The flex abrasion resistance of the poly(hexyl methacrylate)—cotton copolymer at 37% add-on of polymer was more than ten-fold that of the cotton fabric control. The flat abrasion resistance of the poly(ethyl methacrylate) —cotton copolymer was ten-fold greater than that of the fabric control. Examination of electron microphotographs of thin sections of the copolymers embedded in aqueous polyvinyl alcohol indicated that layer opening of the fibrous structure occurred during graft copolymerization and that the degree of layering and size of the opening was related to the molecular weight of the monomer being reacted. The radiochemical yields of the reactions ranged from 4,600 to 44,000 molecular actions per 100 eV at a dosage of 0.5 MR.


Starting with The Daughter of the Army and The Sun over Sangna Highland , this paper attempts to trace the development of Han literature in Xinjiang, mapping out its development pedigree and demonstrating its unique regional features and human spirit connotation. The vigorously publicized pioneer consciousness and innovative spirit as well as the cultural description of primitive natural landscape in Han literature of Xinjiang enhances heroism and humanitarian spirit, reproducing and eulogizing the conquest of nature and self-transcendence by the Chinese people. Besides, by alerting people to the increasingly commercialized and decadent present society, these traits in Han literature of Xinjiang can, in one sense, offer a solution to the problem of man's ideological value trend in the current society. It has undoubtedly become a significant type of spiritual resources in the present massive development of West China.


Recently, improvement of hybrid and electric vehicle technologies, equipped with batteries, continues to solve energy and environmental problems. Lighter weight and crash safety are required in these vehicles body. In order to meet these requirements, three-dimensional hot bending and direct quench (3DQ) technology, which enables to form hollow tubular automotive parts with a tensile strength of 1470 MPa or over, has been developed. In addition, this technology enables to produce partially quenched automotive parts. In this study, the crash characteristics of 3DQ partially quenched products were investigated as the fundamental research of the design for improving the energy absorption. Main results are as follows: (1) for partially quenched straight products in axial crash test, buckling that occurs at nonquenched portion can be controlled; (2) for the nonquenched conventional and overall-quenched curved products, buckling occurs at the bent portion at the initial stage in axial crash tests, and its energy absorption is low; (3) by optimizing partially quench conditions, buckling occurrence can be controlled; and (4) In this study, the largest energy absorption was obtained from the partially quenched curved product, which was 84.6% larger than the energy absorption of the conventional nonquenched bent product in crash test.


A quantitative evaluation index system for agricultural eco-environment,which is composed of 17 indexes in three aspects,such as ecological resources,impact of human activities,and system response,is established.And the agricultural eco-environment in Liucheng,Guangxi was evaluated with the model of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation.The results show that the eco-environment of Liucheng is in a common level,the natural eco-environment is a good state,and the ecosystem operates normally though it has been significantly affected by human activities.The results are in agreement with the actual situation in Liucheng which shows that the index system is reliable and practical.Suggestions and countermeasures for improving the agricultural eco-environment quality of Liucheng are raised.


EDITOR—Schmidt and Ernst concluded that some homoeopaths and chiropractors advise against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination. Their survey seems to have used dubious and possibly unethical methods to extract potentially sensational information.1 Public confidence in our profession may have been dealt a blow by this piece of reporting.

The Society of Homeopaths does not …


In the real construction world, resources for construction activities are usually limited. The critical path method (CPM) that has been intensively used in construction industry for planning and controlling of construction, is not feasible for this problem because of the unlimited resources assumption. To deal with the limited resources, construction planner must include resources allocation in order to find out an applicable project planning. The activity's duration and their sequences may need to be adjusted by considering the available resources at the considered time. This paper presents a process model for project planning using the genetic algorithm searching technique to solve the multicriteria problem in construction planning in order to find out an optimal construction project planning. The genetic algorithm can solve the combinatorial problems of project planning and give an integrated planning solution, such as, project planning, resources levelling, smoothing by considering multi-criteria and multi-constraints for project planning.


'Post-truth' has become a prevailing theme since the US presidential election in 2016.bIt denotes that hard facts and truthful evidence are less powerful in forming public opinions than appeals to personal emotions and beliefs (Derian, 2017). Social media has become a new battleground for the 'information war' among fake news (misinformation), journalism production, and organisation-owned media practices. As revealed by Buzzfeed, 'fake news' stories on Facebook, whereby 62 percent of the U.S. adults source their information, drastically outperform mass media news coverage in both reach and impact (MacKey & Jacobson, 2016). Pew Research also reports that 23 percent of social media users admitted having shared a made-up news story, either knowingly or not (Madison, 2017). While fake news dates back to the two World Wars, it is difficult to define what fake news is exactly: Misinformation? Falsehood? Hoaxes? Newfangled propaganda? Biased media report? Or simply anything that one disagrees and dislikes?


Suitable site selection is a key factor for any aquaculture operation planning. This study assesses habitat suitability of beel (depression), floodplain and pond using integrated habitat suitability index approach to produce geo-referenced habitat requirement information about the fish of different Upazilas (sub-districts) of Gazipur district, Bangladesh. This study has found that the degree or magnitude of habitat suitability in respect of habitat productivity varies with (i) habitat condition including habitat type, spawning ground, water depth and soil pH; and (ii) food availability including phytoplankton availability and pollution proximity to agricultural and industrial pollutants. The beels are highly suitable for aquaculture in Gazipur Sadar, Kaliakair and Kapasia, whereas floodplains are similarly suitable in Kaliganj. The floodplains however have lowest suitability in Gazipur Sadar and Kapasia. Ponds have lowest suitability in Kaliakair and Kaliganj but has opposite in Sreepur where the suitability for beel is the lowest. The present study has further found that habitat characteristics are moderately correlated with habitat suitability at 95% significant level.


The preparation of indium tricyanide and indium trithiocyanate is reported. Some chemical properties of these compounds are described. The compounds have been studied by X-ray powder methods. In(CN)3 is indexed on the basis of a monoclinic unit cell with a= 6·80 ± 0·05, b= 11·90 ± 0·5, c= 97 ± 0·05 A, β= 116·8°± 0·2°. In(SCN)3 is indexed on the basis of a cubic unit cell with a= 12·00 ± 0·05 A.


MgO films were synthesized on stainless steel electrodes by a chemical-vapor-deposition method operated under atmosphere to reduce a discharge inception voltage in diode type discharge system under 6%Xe + 94%Ne atmosphere. The relationship between crystalline perfection of the MgO film and discharge inception voltage was investigated. In this study, crystalline perfection is quantified by the true density of the film. The discharge inception voltage was varied with the true density of the MgO film. The MgO film with 87% of the theoretical density indicated a minimum discharge inception voltage under various gas pressures and electrode distances.


The thermomechanical properties of earthen construction materials are relatively unknown: particularly under the temperatures associated with fire exposure. This paper presents an exploratory study examining the transient thermal behaviour of unstabilised rammed earth samples exposed to controlled, unidirectional incident heat fluxes of 20, 35 and 50 kW/m 2 , reaching temperatures of approximately 500°C. Temperatures throughout the samples were recorded using embedded thermocouples. Results demonstrated the loss of mechanical water at 100°C and subsequent oxidation of the exposed sample surfaces to depths between 5 and 10 mm. Inverse heat transfer modelling was used to estimate effective material thermal properties for the samples and the limitations of this approach are discussed.


Transport electrification is increasingly seen as a necessary action to curb climate change. Free floating car sharing (FFCS) is a transport mode whose real benefits and disadvantages are still largely discussed. Here we compare possible FFCS which adopt either internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEV) or electric vehicles (EV). We focus on three main aspects: satisfied demand, emission, and system profitability. We use a realistic simulator to thoroughly compare the different dynamics of ICEV and EV based FFCS systems. Our simulator models mobility demand, fleet status, refueling operations, and estimates the satisfied demand, determines the equivalent CO2 emission from the fuel production up to the fuel consumption, and computes operational profit. As case study we consider the city of Turin, where we compare 4 FFCS systems based on a fleet of Fiat 500 with different engines, i.e., gasoline, diesel, LPG, and electric. We run simulations using the demand as derived from trips recorded by the currently operational FFCS, and using the fueling infrastructures today present in the city. Results show that the EV FFCS system can satisfy the same demand as the ICEV based solutions. As expected, the EV fleet reduces emission. However, the current higher cost of EVs makes the FFCS system less profitable than ICEV solutions - questioning its adoption. Interestingly, cheap low-power chargers result the best solution for the EV FFCS, reducing also maintenance costs. We believe our approach and our simulator, which we make available for the community, is a first step to thoroughly compare the implications of different engines in shared mobility.


$I\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}n$ $v\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}i\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}v\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}o$ high-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy reveals that entropy effects substantially modify the growth of self-assembled Ge nanostructures on vicinal Si (001) surfaces. Due to the resulting free surface energy renormalization, the resulting 1D nanowire structures can be completely erased and reformed without changes in size and composition. The critical temperature for this transition scales with the Ge thickness and provides a deterministic control of sizes and shapes. Thus, highly reproducible nanostructures with tunable geometries and dimensions are obtained.


A portrait of James Baldwin tracing his development from the ghettos of Harlem to Paris and back to America where his active participation in civil rights brought him in close contact with Dr Martin Luther King, Robert Kennedy, Marlon Brando and Norman Mailer.


Consideration of counterfactual alternatives to negative outcomes, particularly when the counterfactuals change those outcomes, has repeatedly been shown to intensify regret and judgments of blame. Two studies examined the influence of the relevance of the counterfactual to future behavior on Ss' judgments of regret and self-blame after a negative outcome. Results indicated that a dispositional tendency to consider the future consequences of current behavior can ameliorate the negative affect caused by thinking about how a negative outcome could have been avoided. Results also suggested that this amelioration is particularly likely to occur when Ss are induced to focus on the future


We wish to examine the support claimed for the set of axioms contained in The Foundations of Accounting Measurement by Yuji Ijiri.1 The purpose of those axioms is to enable an 'Axiomatic Structure of Historical Cost Valuation' to be developed (p. 87). And although that structure is intended to approximate conventional accounting (p. 88), it is in the nature of an ideal. Conventional accounting is recognized as a collection of many different principles and practices, some of which are mutually inconsistent. Accordingly, no consistent set of ideas can describe all of them (p. 88). Those instances, found in practice, of rules or methods that do not accord with a "pure" historic cost valuation system are listed as exceptions "that cannot be handled the same way in our system" (p. 98). No attempt is made to prescribe ways of eliminating these exceptions, or of overcoming those "different principles and practices, which, in some cases are mutually inconsistent." On the contrary, "the conventional accounting system [is taken] as given rather than ab inritio seeking to prescribe what we think an accounting system should be" (p. 88). Thus, those parts of conventional accounting which do not, accord with a strict interpretation of the historical cost principle are ignored. This is the nature of the ideal. It is adhered to, and "the valuation system of conventional accounting [is viewed] as though it consisted of a set of axioms on one hand and a set of valuation rules on the other. These are extracted from conventional accounting in such a way that they are not only necessary but also sufficient to explain most of the principles and practices in it" (p. 88).


The evolution of migration has long been the domain of evolutionary ecology. Work has focused on how natural selection drives the gain and loss of migration. We review applications of phylogenetic approaches to the question. By examining the deeper evolutionary history of migratory species and their populations rather than just their present-day ecology, such approaches, which can include historical biogeography and phylogeography, complement ecology. For example, breeding distributions appear to have been commonly displaced during the evolution of migration; component species of a migration system need not have evolved migration at the same time nor by the same processes nor in response to the same environmental pressures. The tools of historical biogeography, phylogeny and population genetics allow one to tease apart such spatiotemporal heterogeneity that may underlie the evolution of any migration system.


The article presents the results of a comprehensive evaluation of genotypes morfobiologic allocytoplasmatic wheat on the level of resistance to drought in tough weather conditions 2010.


Two capacitive transducer designs have been used in this laboratory for amplitude measurements of longitudinal ultrasonic waves in solids. The designs are simple, can be fabricated easily, are rugged, and should prove to be a useful ultrasonic laboratory item. Each of the microphones can be conveniently altered to be used with a variety of specimen sizes, and displacement amplitudes as small as 10−14 m have been measured for 30 MHz frequency longitudinal waves. As an example application of the transducer, measurement of phase shift upon reflection from an X‐cut quartz transducer bonded to an SrTiO3 crystal is given.


Using the density functional theory with the approximation of the generalized gradient approximation, we carried out a theoretical investigation of the structural, optoelectronic, vibrational (IR and Raman), and thermodynamic properties of the noradrenaline (NA) and adrenaline (AD) crystals. The lattice parameters showed good agreement with the experimental data, and an indirect bandgap was obtained for both structures. The calculated optical properties showed that the crystal of noradrenaline has a slightly higher sensitivity than adrenaline, and the absorption of both crystalline structures occurs in the UV region, showing greater sensitivity to electromagnetic radiation with an energy of approximately 5 eV and a dielectric constant of approximately 2.50 for NA and AD. Finally, IR and Raman spectra were presented, and a thermodynamic analysis showed that the adrenaline crystal is more stable than the noradrenaline crystal as the temperature increases.


Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) becomes a solution to help humans connect with computers. Research and tools related to HCI have been developed by many researchers. HCI is able to help humans connect between humans and computers and humans with humans at a considerable distance. One of HCI model is applied to the MyoWare tool that can capture hand muscle movements using an electromyograph (EMG) sensor. This article describes how to assemble and identify the raw data generated from the MyoWare tool. Using MyoWare on the hand could produce EMG data output. MyoWare only used the EMG sensor and generated data in the form of Envelope EMG and Raw EMG which differed in scale and size. This required a extraction features process to make the data uniform. This study uses the Moment Invariant method to extract features and min-max to normalize each data generated on the MyoWare sensor. Testing was done by doing simple hand movements. The test results showed that the differences in gestures were recognized well even though they were performed in different positions.


Thispaperproposes anewcurrent controller forhighspeeddrives ofIPMSMposition sensorless control. Ithasbeenpointed outthattheconventional current control system withlowperformance design becomes unstable under highspeedregion. First, thispapershowsthatposition estimation errorcauseunstable phenomenon, andthis in- stability isespecially emphasized underhighspeedregion. To overcomethisinstability, simplymodified controller with2DOF structure isproposed inthispaper. Stability usingtheproposed current controller isthenanalyzed theoretically, andtheproposed controller canenlarge robust stable region forIPMSM position sensorless control, and someexperimental results showthattheproposed controller issuperior tothatusing conventional one.


After the earthquake present invention discloses a replaceable steel and fabricated steel frame shear wall structure comprising a frame of steel columns, main beams, can be replaced after the earthquake shock energy nodes and replaceable embedded steel, steel columns frame column a web connected by a first body end plate. A second end fixed to plate steel beam body provided at both ends of the beam. Can be replaced after the earthquake energy end plate fixed to the third node disposed at both ends of the beam section, the third end plate is bolted to the inner flange of the beam body and the second end plate of the cylinder, respectively. After the steel sheet after the earthquake can be replaced with cylinder embedded inside the beam flanges and the bolt connection, the embedded steel sheet after the earthquake can be replaced with the four corners of the replaceable energy shock node contact opening at long groove. The present invention can effectively transfer force, to assure its structural integrity and mechanical properties of one; and structural damage and failure active control mechanism to ensure that the main structure remains elastic state, and the energy plastic local damage occurs at the specified location, the ease of replacing the earthquake and repair and reduce economic losses.


Anatomy and Physiology Poster #1-7 Audiology / Otology Poster #8-17 Auditory Processing Poster #18-25 Cochlear Implants Poster #26-35 Electrophysiologic Responses Poster #36-41 Hearing Loss / Rehabilitation Poster #42-52 Hearing Science / Psychoacoustics Poster #53-66 Hearing Technology / Amplification Poster #67-78 Pediatric Audiology / Otology Poster #79-85 Speech Perception Poster #86-89 Tinnitus Poster #90-92


The β decay of 97Sr to 97Y has been investigated using ion-guide on-line mass separation and a 10 Ge-detector array to record γ−γ coincidences to a detection limit well below that of former studies. Similarities are found in the β-decay patterns of 99Zr and of its isotone 97Sr and also in the γ-ray decay rates and branchings of the corresponding levels in their respective daughters 99Nb and 97Y. This indicates a persisting influence of the d5/2 neutron shell closure for 99Nb. The level structure of 99Nb and the β-feeding pattern are discussed in the frame of the interacting boson-fermion plus broken pair model and the microscopic quasiparticle phonon model.


In this article we continue the study of the apochromatic Twiss parameters of straight drift-quadrupole systems with special attention given to the properties of these parameters for beamlines with symmetries.


Summary In the article, the results of long-term research (2006–2010) on biological substantiation and the improved potato protection system against Colorado beetle in Belarus are presented. The system is based on age and the phenotypic structure of the phytophage population definition, and their resistance monitoring to pyrethroids by frequency of phenomorph №3 occurrence. The system includes a pre-planting tuber treatment, or spraying growing plants with different preparations. The economic expediency thresholds of insecticidal protection depending on weather conditions, varietal features, planned productivity, and a special-purpose designation of the crop cultivated in different agroclimatic zones were taken into account. Now, the improved system of potato protection against the pest is widely promoted on the farms of the Republic.


We present calculations of potential curves for very high-n (89D) Cs Rydberg-atom pairs, including a background electric field. From these potentials, we show that energy transfer occurs at rates of {approx}30-70 MHz, background electric fields play an important role and dipole-dipole- and quadrupole-quadrupole-induced avoided curve crossings should lead to conversion of electronic to kinetic energy, n-changing collisions, and observable ultracold long-range Rydberg molecules.


[Objective]To investigate the effect of benzene exposure with different concentrations on workers' health.[Methods]Benzene concentrations in the air of the working sites of 7 enterprises were determined;occupational physical examination was carried out among the workers of the high concentration group(6 mg/m~3),low concentration group(lower than 6 mg/m~3) and the control group.[Results]The incidence of neurasthenic,white blood cell(WBC) decrease and abnormal liver function among the workers of the high concentration group(31.2%,17.2% and 17.2% respectively) were significantly higher than that of the low concentration group(23.6%,12.1% and 15.9% respectively)(P0.01) and the control group(8.4%,6.8% and 6.4% respectively)((P0.01).) The incidence of hemorrhage,platelet and red blood cell(RBC) number decrease,anemia,hypertension and abnormal electrocardiogram(ECG) among the workers of high concentration group was not significantly different from that of the low concentration group(P0.05) and the control group(P0.05).[Conclusion]Benzene induces severe damages on nervous system,blood system and liver,but has no significant effect on hemorrhage tendency and cardiovascular system.


The growing popularity of verification competitions such as VerifyThis Verification Competition and the Competition on Software Verification (SV-COMP), both, incentivize as well as reward tool developers. VerifyThis 2016 was held in Eindhoven colocated with the European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software (ETAPS) 2016. The competition presents challenges to evaluate a broad range of tools such as Danfy, KeY, VeriFast, CIVL, among others. The first article in the newsletter "CIVL Solutions to VerifyThis 2016 Challenges" by Stephen F. Siegel at University of Delaware presents the solutions to the challenges using The Concurrency Intermediate Verification Language (CIVL) verifier. CIVL supports of a variety of techniques based on symbolic execution and model checking to verify sequential and concurrent programs. The article presents an overview of the framework, a description of the challenges, and how CIVL performs on the benchmarks. The second article "Security by Compilation: An Automated Approach to Comprehensive Side-channel resistance" by Chao Wang from University of Southern California and Patrick Schaumont from Virginia Tech leverage formal verification and program synthesis to detect side challenge attacks on mobile devices. The approach is evaluated on implementations of MAC-Keccak, AES and other cryptographic algorithms. This article bridges the security and verification forums of the newsletter.


The efficiency of the dual active bridge (DAB) based converter is a strong function of loss in the series inductor. The optimal design of the series inductor requires accurate estimation of magnetic loss to achieve high efficiency and power density. Unlike PWM DC-DC converters, here the inductor experiences high-frequency flux reversal and hence higher core loss. This paper presents a comparative study of total magnetic loss in a high-frequency AC inductor, estimated using analytical, simulation and experimental approaches. First, the inductor is designed for DAB based DC-DC converter using the area product method. Then the magnetic loss is estimated for a triangular current wave shape using three different approaches for a range of operating voltage and frequencies. The estimated loss obtained through different approaches is compared.


The present study was investigate the hepatoprotective effect of ethanol extract Mymercodia pendans(EEMP) in white rats. Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats by oral administration of Paracetamol (PCM) 250 mg/kg/d for ten days. Effect of concurrent administration of EEMP at a dose of 250 mg/kg/d given by oral route was determined using aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT) and histological paramater as indicators of hepar damage. The results showed that ethanol extract of M. pendans resulted in significant (p<0.05) decrease in paracetamol-induced by increasing levels of liver enzymes. Histopathologic examination revealed that PCM administration produced liver cell necrosis, degeneration, hemorrhage and congestion, but the degree of induced hepatotoxicity-paracetamol was reduce by treatment with EEMP. This can be concluded that ethanolic extract of M. pendans possess hepatoprotective activity.


We propose an object-oriented information architecture for telemedicine systems that promotes secure 'plug-and-play' interaction between system components through standardized interfaces, communication protocols, messaging formats, and data definitions. In this architecture, each component functions as a black box, and components plug together in a "lego-like" fashion to achieve the desired device or system functionality.


The aim of current research work is studying the effect of two bubbler irrigation discharges (BD) were: a) 8 LPH and b) 12 LPH, and different water quantity treatments from evapotranspiration (ET): 100%, 75%, 50% on uniformity coefficient (UC%), emission uniformity (EU%) and coefficient of variation (CV%), maize (Zea mays-L., HF-10 Varity) grain and Hay yield. The experiment design is split in randomized complete block with three replicates. So, field experiment for one growing season (2014) was conducted in sandy soil at the Agricultural Research and Production Station of National Research Centre, El- Nubaria, Elbehira Governorate, Egypt. Irrigation water was added in order to compensate for ET of maize. Obtained data could be summarized as follow: Parameters under study could be ranked in following descending orders: 8 LPH>12 LPH and 100>75>50 for bubbler discharge treatments, except for CV%. Investigated bubbler discharge (8 and 12 LPH), increase operating pressure head, getting improvement in UC%, EU% and decreasing CV values. With respect to BD and ET% effect on UC, EU%, maize hay yield, and significant difference at the 1 % level between all mean values of bubblers and ET% treatments were obtained. The interaction effects of the investigated factors, the highest and lowest values of maize hay yield were recorded under 8 LPH X 100% and 12 LPH X 50% ET treatments. These attained results were attributed to the improvement in hydraulic parameters of UC%, EU% and CV Also the Irrigation treatments of 100 and 75% from ET were covered water requirements and also recorded convergent results in values which means that the quantity of water added (which is the difference between the 100-75% =25% ET). It's amount, in excess of the plant required under the current conditions of the experiment. So it can be recommended to using 75% for saving 25% from water requirements under bubbler irrigation system using 8 LPH bubbler.


The Buchen are performers of rituals, exorcists, actors, storytellers and musicians unique to the Pin Valley in Spiti. Historically, Buchen troupes have toured the villages of Spiti, Upper Kinnaur and parts of Ladakh (and formerly western Tibet) to spread the message and teachings of the Buddha through the medium of entertainment. Buchen are most famous for performing the exorcism ritual entitled the Ceremony of Breaking the Stone, photographed by John Coldstream a century ago, described in detail by the Tibetologist Georges de Roerich in 1932 and contextualised in much greater detail by Pascale Dollfus in 2004. Although the ceremony is now well known and increasingly performed for visiting trekkers and film crews or within local arts and cultural programmes, their winter tours, narrations and theatrical performances of moral and religious folk tales are significantly less researched and possibly disappearing.

In 2014 I returned to Spiti to photograph and record their material culture, specifically the objects connected to Buchen performances and still extant within active and dormant Buchen households: the narrative and ritual texts, thangkas, musical instruments, statues, costumes, masks and ritual objects that Buchen utilise. For a reportage photographer, this process of photographic copying held precious little excitement, but the opportunity to talk around the history and ownership of these objects and to delve into family memories revealed some new understanding of Buchen history, roles, interconnections and status.


This study examined whether 1-hour perceptual training could elicit feature-specific improvement of performance and corresponding cortical plasticity in humans during speech segregation by using magnetoencephalography (MEG). One group of participants learned to segregate concurrent vowels by using difference in fundamental frequency (f0) while the other group learned to use difference in sound location. MEG recordings were conducted after the training and required participants to identify the two different vowels, which may have the same f0 and location or differ in f0 only, location only or both f0 and location. Compared to Control Group who didn't receive pre-scan training, the trained groups showed behavioral improvements specific to the trained cues which were paralleled by feature-specific changes on brain activities. That is, f0-difference-induced changes in dipole source-waveforms in auditory cortex were only modulated in Frequency Group, while location-difference-induced changes were only modulate...


This article provides a systematic presentation of everyone of the batches of documents preservated in the Provincial Historical Archives of Valladolid, some of them recently added. As documentary and graphic source, these documents can turn out to be of great interest in order to improve the knowledge of the Architectural and Urban Heritage of the province of Valladolid, from the 16th to the 19th century, not only about the actual buildings, but also the disappeared and only planned.


The national standard COD determination method is improved.Take 10.00 mL water sample and add 10.0 mL standard K2Cr2O7 solution,10.0 mL conc.H2SO4,2.0 mL conc.H3PO4 and 0.1 g MnSO4 to substitute Ag2SO4 as catalyst and HgSO4 as Cl-screening agent.Use the constant temperature electrothermal drying oven to heat the sample to 190 ℃ and keep for 18~42 min(according to the content and properties of pollutant in water sample).Compare the obtained COD value with that by the national standard method,the accuracy and precision are all within allowable range.Seeking out appropriate time and temperature for digestion of low,middle and high concentration waste water provides the experimental basis for mercury-free and silver-free fast determination method.


Objects in 3D games are typically shell models, a polygon mesh representing the shell or skin of the object. While emulation of the behaviour of shell models under combustion is sufficient for many game applications and is fairly well studied, solid objects do in fact burn rather differently than shell objects. We show how to manipulate shell models so that they appear to burn as solid models. Since our burning objects will be only a small part of a video game, computation speed is of the essence. We demonstrate that our method uses only a fraction of the computational power available by implementing the computation on a modest GPU using CUDA.


This paper describes an improved beam analysis for compound rotorcraft fuselage design. The present beam approach is capable of analyzing fuselage composed of stiffeners using equivalent layer methodology. Thickness of the skin and laminated layer approach are suggested based on the unified beam formulation. The analysis which considers an equivalent stiffener layer is performed for a fuselage with stiffeners and preliminary study about the specification of stiffeners is conducted and compared by the results using the existing software.


Multilevel inverter (MLI) is a new breed of power converter that is suited for high power applications. Multilevel inverter is an effective and practical solution for increasing power and reducing harmonics in ac waveforms. This paper focuses on the implementation of inverted sine PWM technique for asymmetric cascaded multilevel inverter with unequal DC sources. This technique combines the advantage of inverted sine PWM technique and asymmetric cascaded multilevel inverter with unequal DC sources. Performance evaluation of the proposed PWM strategy and inverter topology is done using MATLAB/SIMULINK for single phase asymmetric multilevel inverter.


Deep penetration of distributed generators have created several stability and operation issues for power systems. In order to address these, inverters with advanced capabilities such as frequency and reactive power support the grid. Known also as Smart Inverters (SIs), these devices are highly dynamic and contribute to the power flow in the system. Notwithstanding their benefits, such dynamic devices are new to distribution networks. Power system operators are very reluctant toward such changes as they may cause unknown issues. In order to alleviate these concerns and facilitate SIs integration to the grid, behavior studies are required. To that end, this paper presents a power hardware-in-the-loop test set up and tests that are performed to study fault behavior of SIs connected to distribution networks. The details of the software model, SI integration with the real-time simulator, test results, and their analyses are presented. This experience shows that it is not trivial to connect such novel devices with simulation environments. Adjustments are required on both software and hardware fronts on a case-by-case basis. The encountered integration issues and their solutions are presented herein. The fault behavior of the SI with respect to the fault location is documented. It is observed that for faults that are close to SIs, momentary cessation of generation is observed. This needs to be tackled by device manufacturers as this phenomenon is very detrimental to health of a power system under fault conditions. Extensive PHIL test results show that several factors affect the fault behavior of an SI: fault location and its duration, SI mode of operation as well as extra devices housed in the casing. These results and their in-depth analyses are presented for a thorough understanding of SI behavior under fault conditions.


Based on the use of consciousness in singing teaching, this paper expounds that consciousness is the process of psychology, it is also the thought, the imagination, the activity of intellectual image, and it has the mental feature of character.


Cloud computing has become an established paradigm for running services on external
infrastructure that dynamically allocates virtually unlimited capacity. This paradigm
creates a new scenario for the deployment of applications and information technology
(IT) services. In this model, complete applications and machine infrastructure are offered
to users, who are charged only for the resources they consume. Thus, cloud resources are
offered through service abstractions classified into three main categories: Software as a
Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
In IaaS, computing resources are offered as virtual machines to the end user. The aim
to offer such unlimited resources necessitates distributing these virtual machines through
multiple data centers. This distribution makes harder to fulfill a number of requirements
including security, reliability, availability, and accounting. Accounting refers to how
resources are recorded, accounted for, and charged. Even for a single cloud provider
this task is hard, and it becomes more difficult for a federation of cloud computing, or
federated cloud, in which a cloud provider dynamically outsources resources to other
providers in response to demand variation. Thus, a cluster of clouds shares heterogeneous
resources, requiring greater effort to manage and accurately account for the distributed
resources.
Some earlier research has addressed the development of platforms for federated
clouds but without considering the accounting requirement. This dissertation presents
a framework for charging IaaS with a focus on federated cloud. In order to gather
information about this topic area and to generate guidelines for building the framework,
we applied a systematic mapping study. This dissertation also presents an initial validation
of the tool through a case study, showing evidence that the requirements generated
through the mapping study were fulfilled by the framework and presenting indications of
its feasibility in a real cloud service scenario


We investigate the phenomenological consequences of a modification of the initial state of a single inflationary field. While single-field inflation with the standard Bunch-Davies initial vacuum state does not generally produce a measurable three-point function (bispectrum) in the squeezed configuration, allowing for a non-standard initial state produces an exception. Here, we calculate the signature of an initial state modification in single-field slow-roll inflation in both the scale-dependent bias of the large-scale structure (LSS) and mu-type distortion in the black-body spectrum of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). We parametrize the initial state modifications and identify certain choices of parameters as natural, though we also note some fine-tuned choices that can yield a larger bispectrum. In both cases, we observe a distinctive k^-3 signature in LSS (as opposed to k^-2 for the local-form). As a non-zero bispectrum in the squeezed configuration correlates a long-wavelength mode with two short-wavelength modes, it induces a correlation between the CMB temperature anisotropy on large scales with the temperature-anisotropy-squared on very small scales; this correlation persists as the small-scale anisotropy-squared is processed into mu-type distortions. While the local-form mu-distortion turns out to be too small to detect in the near future, a modified initial vacuum state enhances the signal by a large factor owing to an extra factor of k_1/k. For example, a proposed absolutely-calibrated experiment, PIXIE, is expected to detect this correlation with a signal-to-noise ratio greater than 10, for an occupation number of about 0.5 in the observable modes. Relatively calibrated experiments such as Planck and LiteBIRD should also be able to measure this effect, provided that the relative calibration between different frequencies meets the required precision. (Abridged)


I: -.r.-- r*&-?*xnati- LBL-11510 Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Physics, Computer Science & Mathematics Division Presented at the XXth International Conference on High Energy Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, HI, July 17-23, 1980 LOW ENERGY WEAK INTERACTIONS AND DECAVS G.H. Trilling September 1980 »fc;sof$ .JfcT* •'V •ss Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract W-7405-ENG-48


In today's society, Diabetes Mellitus affects a large portion of the population. The purpose of this research is to examine a few Machine Learning (ML) algorithms to assist in prediction of Type 2 diabetes, a disorder that alters the body's blood sugar processing. For the diabetes prediction proposed, the prominent PIMA Indian Diabetes Dataset was utilized. Support Vector Machine (SVM), K-Nearest Neighbours (KNN), XGBoost (Extreme gradient boosting), and Random Forest Regression are the techniques that were investigated. SVM yields an accuracy of 84.5%, sensitivity of 88.00% and specificity of 81.00%. KNN yields an accuracy of 80.5% sensitivity of 83.00% and specificity of 78.00%. XGBoost yields an accuracy of 83.41 %, sensitivity of 80.18% and specificity of 86.61%. Random Forest Regression yields an accuracy of 91.26%, sensitivity of 82.76% and specificity of 98.96%. Diabetes may be detected early and treated promptly, slowing the course of the disease. Using an ML model to reliably foresee Type 2 diabetes might prove beneficial. As a result, machine learning and artificial intelligence have found a home in the healthcare industry. The Random Forest method should be used for a far more accurate and specific identification, according to a comparison of the models.


Abstract. Pamexis Hagen, 1866, is revised. Myrmeleon luteum Thunberg is designated as type species. A key is provided for the five species comprising the genus. Pamexis luteus (Thunberg, 1784), P.bifasciatus (Olivier, 1811) and P.contaminatus (Hagen, 1887) are redescribed: P.karoo and P.namaqua are new species. All are endemic to the Cape Province of South Africa.


Summary:  Purpose: Defining prognostic factors for neocortical epilepsy surgery is important for the identification of ideal candidates and for predicting the prognosis of individual patients. We use multivariate analysis to identify favorable prognostic factors for neocortical epilepsy surgery.


Flash is a type of Electronically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM). Different from traditional magnetic disks, flash memories have no moving parts and are purely electronic devices, giving them unique advantages, such as lower access latency, lower power consumption, higher density, shock resistance, and lack of noise. However, existing applications cannot run directly on flash memories due to their special characteristics. Flash Translation Layer (FTL) is a software layer built on raw flash memories that emulates a normal block device like magnetic disks. Primary functionalities of the FTL include address translation, garbage collection, and wear leveling. This survey focuses on address translation technologies and provides a broad overview of existing schemes described in patents, journals, and conference proceedings.


An investigation was made of an acousto-optic light deflector in the form of a water container and a lithium niobate piezoelectric transducer. This deflector had 50 resolvable positions for a laser beam of λ=0.63μ wavelength and the switching time was ~6 μsec. The intensity of the light deflected into a side maximum was 20% of the total intensity and the power consumption in the transducer was ~1.7 W.


Most research on fertility behavior assumes a single cause when the persons decision actually is the result of multiple factors. The woman who says she does not want any more children but is not using contraception gives as her reason in 90% of cases surveyed either her husband objects her husband wants more children she is afraid of side effects she is sterile or she has lactation amenorrhea. In each instance her behavior is quite consistent with other attitudes and situations. A multivariant model showed that the most important determinant of family planning is social support from spouses friends and relatives. 2nd is specific family planning attitudes and intentions. 3rd is availability of services. The other predictors were socioeconomic and demographic situations personal aspirations and 6th or lower with a multiple regression of .128 was a generalized fertility norm. This suggests that generalized values or norms concerning family size have little effect on contraceptive use. Also this survey showed that within a relatively homogeneous population socioeconomic factors play a smaller supporting role than do intrapersonal factors. Most intervention programs approach the individual as though he/she were an isolated actor; this study shows the social support approach would be more effective. Communication should be aimed at internal change rather than change coerced through peer group pressure or economic pressure. Both mass and interpersonal communications campaigns must aim at both attracting acceptors and combating rumors and wooing back dropouts. Both mass approaches and personal approaches should be used because each reinforces the other.


Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is an incurable condition inevitably resulting in death because of increased right heart workload and eventual failure. PH causes pulmonary vascular remodeling, including muscularization of the arteries, and a reduction in the typically large vascular compliance of the pulmonary circulation. We used a rat model of monocrotaline (MCT) induced PH to evaluated and compared Captopril (an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor with antioxidant capacity) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC, a mucolytic with a large antioxidant capacity) as possible treatments. Twenty-eight days after MCT injection, the rats were sacrificed and heart, blood, and lungs were studied to measure indices such as right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH), hematocrit, pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), vessel morphology and biomechanics. We implemented microfocal X-ray computed tomography to image the pulmonary arterial tree at intravascular pressures of 30, 21, 12, and 6 mmHg and then used automated vessel detection and measurement algorithms to perform morphological analysis and estimate the distensibility of the arterial tree. The vessel detection and measurement algorithms quickly and effectively mapped and measured the vascular trees at each intravascular pressure. Monocrotaline treatment, and the ensuing PH, resulted in a significantly decreased arterial distensibility, increased PVR, and tended to decrease the length of the main pulmonary trunk. In rats with PH induced by monocrotaline, Captopril treatment significantly increased arterial distensibility and decrease PVR. NAC treatment did not result in an improvement, it did not significantly increase distensibility and resulted in further increase in PVR. Interestingly, NAC tended to increase peripheral vascular density. The results suggest that arterial distensibility may be more important than distal collateral pathways in maintaining PVR at normally low values.


Torsten Anders studied composition with Wolfgang von Schweinitz and Michael Obst, as well as electroacoustic composition with Hans Tutschku and Robin Minard. He received a PhD in Music Technology from Queen's University Belfast (UK) in 2007. He is currently a Research Fellow in Artificial Intelligence and Music at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Computer Music Research (ICCMR), University of Plymouth, and a composer specializing in computer-aided composition. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


Biaxially textured YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 (YBCO) thin films, yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and yttria (Y 2 O 3 ), CeO 2 buffer layers were grown in situ on NiO/Ni based substrates by Pulsed Injection MOCVD (PICVD) using monoglyme solutions of β-diketonates (Cu(thd) 2 , Ba(thd) 2 , Y(thd) 3 , Ce (thd) 2 , Zr(thd) 4 ). High quality textured nickel oxide layers have been prepared by SOE (Surface Oxydation Epitaxy) following an optimized recrystallisation-oxidation process.Thin YSZ/Y 2 O 3 biaxially textured buffer layers (thickness 200nm/200 nm) were deposited in a wide range of temperature (from 600°C to 800°C). Subsequent YBCO layers (thickness 750nm) on Ni/NiO/YSZ/Y 2 O 3 were grown epitaxially (ω-scan of YBCO FWMH=5°) and exhibited critical current densities Jc ≥3.10 5 A/cm 2 with a critical temperature Tc=90K and ΔTc ≤ 1 K. The best results were obtained for deposition temperatures of 600°C for YSZ, 675°C for Y 2 O 3 and 800°C for YBCO.


A computationally efficient null-data subcarrier switching scheme for peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction of OFDM systems is proposed. By applying incremental searching within dynamically expanding subcarrier bands, the proposed method achieves significant reduction in computational requirement without sacrificing PAPR reduction capability. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is demonstrated by presenting simulation results of PAPR and bit error ratio.


The utility model provides a remote smoke exhaust valve executing mechanism. The mechanism comprises a wiring board, a micro switch, a pull wire connector, an electric magnet, a rope wheel assembly, a swing rack assembly and a swing rod assembly, wherein the wiring board, the micro switch, the pull wire connector and the electric magnet are fixed on a bottom board in a box body; the rope wheel assembly consists of a rotary shaft, a fixing shaft, a rope wheel disc and a ratchet; the swing rack assembly consists of a swing rack seat and a swing rack; the swing rack is provided with detents which are matched with the ratchet; the swing rack is also connected with a shift rod; the swing rod assembly consists of a swing rod seat and a swing rod; one end of the swing rod is matched with the swing rack, and the other end is connected with the electric magnet; a panel is arranged on the upper part of the box body; and a turning cover is arranged on the panel. A pull rod is arranged on the swing rod. One end of the swing rack is connected with a tension spring which is fixed at the bottom board. A pressure spring is arranged between the swing rod and the electric magnet. Compared with the prior art, the utility model uses the tension spring to replace the torsion spring used in the swing rack, uses the pressure spring to replace the torsion spring in the swing rod, especially removes the manual pushbutton assembly with complicated structure in the prior art, and uses the simple pull rod, therefore the structure is simplified, and the operation is simple and reliable.


The activities carried out in ports are disruptive to the environment where they are located. Therefore, the objective of this work is to analyze the presence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the missions and visions of the main ports of Latin America.,A qualitative technique of content analysis was applied to the missions and visions of 72 ports in Latin America. First, the missions and visions of the ports were collected (72). Second, it was assigned a value 1 if the mission had any evidence of CSR, 0 if it had no evidence and "-" if the mission was not found. The same procedure was performed with the visions.,Results indicate that 20.83% of the ports allude to CSR in their missions, 34.72% of the ports allude to it in their missions and visions and 13.88% only allude to it in their visions (22 ports did not mention it in their missions or their visions). So, the main findings indicate that in Latin America the majority of ports do not consider elements of CSR in their missions and visions.,This paper is mainly focused on covering two gaps in the literature: first, to increase knowledge about the strategic bases of ports in Latin America through their missions and visions; and second, to visualize the coherence of the missions and visions with the activities of CSR.


For the state, tax is one of the important revenue sources that will be used to finance state expenditures. On the contrary for the company, the tax is a burden that will reduce the company's net profit. PT. XYZ wishes to obtain maximum profit without violating any applicable regulations. Based on this, researches interested in conducting research entitled "The Implementation of Tax Planning in Order to Minimize The Payment of Income Tax Payable Corporate Taxpayer in Case of PT. XYZ" with the formulation of the problem how the implementation of tax planning undertaken by PT. XYZ and whether the tax planning in accordance with tax laws that can be made in an effort to improve the fulfillment of corporate tax obligations effectively and efficiently. The purpose of this study is to find out how the implementation of tax planning implemented by PT. XYZ and to explain the appropriate tax planning. This research uses qualitative approach method. The data source used is secondary data. Data will be analyzed by collecting financial statements, analyzing data, and tax implementing tax saving calculations. The theoretical basis used is the teory of tax planning that can achieve tax savings tyo achieve maximum corporate profits. Based on data analysis conducted, obtained the conclusion that the policy of PT. XYZ management in tax planning in not maximal. Companies do not take advantage of government policies and regulations in tax planning in order to obtain maximum profit without violating applicable tax laws.


Finished the Second World War some diplomatic and political situations were modified in the international area. United States was standing out in America, promoted to create regional organizations to stop any "threat come from the exterior". In this context, it wanted to analyze the role of Colombia in the international policy and in the diplomatic matters during the consolidation of the new world order.


Abstract This work reports a method for the determination of the purity of some potential antiviral agents by analytical HPLC. Such agents are nucleoside analogs, which possess one chiral center and are synthesized by an asymmetric route to give a single enantiomer (either R or S). Chiral stationary phases chosen for this study were Cyclobond I 2000 [β‐cyclodextrin (β‐CD)] and Cyclobond I 2000 RSP (R,S hydroxypropylether β‐CD). Resolutions were made using a reverse‐phase methodology and polar organic mode. Furthermore, the effects of structural features were thoroughly studied in relation to retention, selectivity, resolution, and order of elution.


Purpose – The issue of digital divide is widely discussed in research as well as in practice. Today, especially senior citizens are excluded from the merits of using information and communication technologies (ICT). This paper aims to study municipal projects for an inclusive information society in Russia, Austria, and Switzerland.Design/methodology/approach – In this paper 50 cities are selected from each country studied based on three variables. In each city, all age‐related e‐inclusion projects are analyzed to find commonalities and varieties.Findings – Results show that in all countries the projects share several commonalities. However, project ideas are not shared internationally.Research limitations/implications – The research is limited by the selection of countries and cities. Future research should compare the results of other countries.Practical implications – Decision makers in municipalities should look for successful e‐inclusion projects in other areas, not only nationally but also internatio...


Background: Parents often question why one of their children have asthma while their siblings do not. With twins, this is especially perplexing. The gene-environment interaction hypothesis suggests that early-life environmental exposures interact with genes, leading to asthma and atopic diseases. This study aims to investigate potential risk factors that modifies the risk of asthma and other atopic diseases between twins in shared early-life environments.

Methods: A paired population-based open cohort study was conducted using health administrative data between April 1, 2004 and March 31, 2019 from Ontario, Canada. The study population consisted of Ontario twins born between 2004-2017. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for associations between discordance (asthma, allergic rhinitis, and eczema) and early-life factors.

Results: This study included 24,392 twin-pairs from Ontario Canada aged 1 to 15 years. 15·7%, 17·9%, and 31·9% of twin-pairs had discordant asthma, allergic rhinitis, and eczema respectively. Compared to female-female twin-pairs, male-female and male-male twin-pairs were 69% (95% CI: 1·54-1·84) and 35% (95% CI: 1·23-1·49) higher odds to have asthma discordance, respectively. Twins who were delivered by Caesarian-section had significantly higher odds of asthma (aOR: 1·09, 95% CI: 1·01-1·18) and allergic rhinitis (aOR: 1·11, 95% CI: 1·04-1·20), and is strongly suggested for eczema discordance (aOR: 1·05, 95% CI: 1·00-1·12), compared to pairs who had vaginal births.

Conclusion: This population-based study found associations of various early-life factors and asthma and allergic diseases discordance between twins. While early-life factors were associated with disease risks in children, genetic factors played a strong underlying role.

Funding: This study was funded by the Asthma and COPD Program, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC).

Declaration of Interest: None to declare.

Ethical Approval: Ethics approval for this study was obtained from the Hospital for Sick Children Research Ethics Board in Toronto, Ontario.


This study tested the development of bechamel sauce with different ratios of soy milk to milk(0:4, 1:3, 1:1, 3:1, 4:0) to examine changes in quality characteristics. Proximate composition analysis showed a decrease in salinity with increasing amounts of soy milk, while the moisture content and, density increases. The highest pH values were found for a 1:1 ratio of soy milk to milk (S2) and the lowest pH values were found for a 0:4 ratio of soy milk to milk (CON). The L-value decreased, while a and b values increased with increasing amounts of soy milk. In the stability test, segregation occurred in CON after 5 days, while the highest segregation occurred at a 4:0 ratio of soy milk to milk (S4). The sensory evaluation results showed that the color, thickness, savory flavor, and savory taste increased with increasing amounts of soy milk. In the acceptance test, a 1:3 ratio of soy milk to milk (S1) and a 1:1 ratio of soy milk to milk (S2) had the highest acceptance scores (p<0.001) for appearance, taste, texture, and overall acceptance.


Bibliometric statistics concerning the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology (JCCP) over the period 1977-1993 are reported. Compared to other journals on cross-cultural psychology, the impact factor of JCCP has been fairly high over this 17-year period. The average impact factor ofjournals publishing exclusively or mainly cross-cultural studies is stable. The overall numbers of journals that are quoted in JCCP is high, yet most references (apart from self-references) are to social psychological journals, particularly Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and Journal of Social Psychology. The pattern is similar for the journals in which JCCP is quoted.


Wildfire risk is greatest during high winds after sustained periods of dry and hot conditions. This paper is a statistical extreme event risk attribution study which aims to answer whether extreme wildfire seasons are more likely now than under past climate. This requires modeling temporal dependence at extreme levels. We propose the use of transformed-linear time series models which are constructed similarly to traditional ARMA models while having a dependence structure that is tied to a widely used framework for extremes (regular variation). We fit the models to the extreme values of the seasonally adjusted Fire Weather Index (FWI) time series to capture the dependence in the upper tail for past and present climate. Ten-thousand fire seasons are simulated from each fitted model and we compare the proportion of simulated high-risk fire seasons to quantify the increase in risk. Our method suggests that the risk of experiencing an extreme wildfire season in Grand Lake, Colorado under current climate has increased dramatically compared to the risk under the climate of the mid-20th century. Our method also finds some evidence of increased risk of extreme wildfire seasons in Quincy, California, but large uncertainties do not allow us to reject a null hypothesis of no change.


Self-efficacy (SE), a person's confidence in the ability to perform a task, is an important predictor of the adoption and maintenance of physical activity. The present study examined the effects of SE manipulated through verbal persuasion on exercise intentions and behaviour during a 4-week follow-up period and investigated the role of social physique anxiety (SPA) as a moderator. Female college infrequent exercisers (n = 66) were randomly assigned into one of three groups (high-efficacy [HE], low-efficacy [LE], or control) and asked to complete several questionnaires at baseline. The HE and LE groups were provided with positive and negative exercise adherence feedback, respectively. The HE group reported higher SE from preto post-feedback. Both the HE and LE groups reported increases in exercise behaviour at the 4-week follow-up. Preto post-feedback changes in SE, exercise intention, and exercise behaviour did not depend on level of SPA reported.


This paper presents an efficient error-correction-code (ECC) scheme which is designed to enhance the Reliability, Availability, and Serviceability (RAS) features and save area for HBM3 DRAM, the latest-generation technology of high bandwidth memory (HBM). In order to improve reliability, a fully parallel Reed-Solomon (RS) encoder/decoder with the double-sub-engine architecture is proposed for the on-die ECC implementation where the symbol-wise interleaver/de-interleaver can provide significantly strong and flexible error correction capabilities. Furthermore, the area of the on-die ECC engine can be vastly reduced by introducing a hardware sharing scheme which can save 35% area overhead as compared to the conventional architecture. The on-die ECC has a symbol size of 8 bits and an ability of double-symbol-correction that can be implemented in future high performance memory systems.


Objective: Blood-membrane interaction during hemodialysis may contribute to inflammatory process, which accelerates the development of atherosclerosis in maintenance hemodialysis patients (MHD). Vitamin E has been widely used against oxidative stress in MHD. One of the strategies for the utilization of vitamin E in MHD patients is the usage of vitamin E-coated membrane dialyzer. We investigated the effects of vitamin E-coated membrane dialyzer on serum C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, the biomarker of inflammation, compared to polysulfone membrane dialyzer. Methods: Vitamin E-coated membrane dialyzer (1.5-m2 surface area) and synthetic polysulfone dialyzer (1.5-m2 surface area) were manipulated in a crossover clinical study for 24 weeks in 10 non-diabetic MHD patients. Run-in and wash-out periods (Cellulose tri-acetate) were performed for 4 weeks before the treatment. Pre- and post-dialysis blood samples were taken at the begining and the end of each dialyzer period (12 weeks). High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were examined. Results: Mean age of the patients was 54.9 years old. CRP and IL-6 levels were similarly increased after dialysis in both groups (4.8 ± 0.7 and 37.2 ± 9.4, respectively). The CRP and IL-6 level in vitamin E-coated membrane dialyzer treatment were lower than in polysulfone treatment (5.0 ± 1.2, p < 0.008 and 67.2 ± 12.4, p < 0.04, respectively). Serum albumin, hemoglobin level, and white blood cell count were not affected by types of dialyzer membrane. Conclusions: In our study, hemodialysis stimulated the inflammation as the previous study. Vitamin E-coated membrane dialyzer may diminish the inflammatory process in MHD patients and may also prevent further atherosclerosis.


This business process plan is developed for competitive airline industry globally to use the power of mobile technology to create new levels of customer experience and operational efficiencies that will help produce successful results and maintain sustainable competitive differentiation [1]. This is accomplished with the help of strategic planning [5, 6] and combining the relationship between the organization's business information systems and its strategy [4, 7]. In this paper, I have first developed the process plan and strategy. Then, using the score card mechanism [2, 3], I have analyzed the various costs and benefits of the newly developed business process plan.


Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANA). Monitoring of anti-DNA antibody levels may reflect disease activity, by contrast a single anti-RBP antibody determination is thought to suffice for clinical purposes. Recent data suggests that ANA levels may decrease over time secondary to the natural history or to treatments.To investigate the trend of ANA and anti-dsDNA titers over time in children with a diagnosis of SLE.We enrolled 15 children with SLE. ANA and anti-dsDNA testing were carried out in all patients from diagnosis every 3-4 months for 2 years. ANA were defined as negative for titers < 1:80. Laboratory parameters, clinical and demographic data was retrieved and analyzed. Interferon Gene Signature (IGS was assessed by the expression of 6 interferon-induced genes (IFI27, IFI44L, IFIT1, ISG15, RSAD2, SIGLEC1) in whole blood RNA. Statistical analysis was performed with SW R_v. 4.0.3.Following 2 years of follow-up, all patients had ANA titers significantly lower than at time of the onset (MWW, p=0.0002) (Figure 1A). After two years of follow-up, 11 patients (73%) remained ANA positive (group 1), while 4 patients (26%) became negative (group 0). At time of diagnosis no significant differences in ANA titers (MWW, p=0.74) nor in disease activity, measured by SLEDAI, (MWW, p=0.88) were observed (table 1; Figure 1E). No significant differences in organ involvement were observed (Table 1). Assessing the change over time in ANA titers, the 2 groups of patients showed 2 different patterns: in group 0, ANA titers quickly declined and disappeared in the first 6 months after diagnosis; in group 1, ANA titers declined more slowly, remaining positive at 2 years (Figure 1C). ANA pattern (by IFA) was also evaluated, changes from homogenous pattern to speckled was observed during follow up (Figure 1B). Both C3 and C4 increased, with no different patterns between the 2 groups (Figure 1D). Similarly, anti-dsDNA antibodies titers declined over time with no clear different patterns between the groups (Figure 1C). We also analyzed the levels of IGS at last of follow-up, observing significant differences between the groups (MWW, p=0.018) with higher levels of IGS in ANA+ patients (Figure 1F).Our analysis showed 2 different patterns in the reduction of ANA titers over time in children with SLE, with 26% of them becoming ANA negative after 6 months from diagnosis and remaining persistently negative during follow-up. Our data have important implications, specifically for the recruitment of patients into clinical trials, where the latest classification criteria of SLE require ANA positivity as entry criterion. A seronegative state may represent a different subcategory of patients with SLE with specific pathogenetic pathways, possibly independently from autoantibodies. Therefore, further studies are needed to confirm our data.[1] Pisetsky DS,Nat Rev Rheumatol. 2020.Table 1.ANA- at 2yANA+ at 2yPatients, n411Female, n (%)3 (25)10 (9)Age, mean±SD (years)13.80 ± 1.9113.45 ± 2.72Disease duration, mean±SD (years)6.47 ± 4.226.17 ± 2.71EULAR/ACR 2019 criteriaFever, n (%)3 (75)8 (73)Acute cutaneous, n (%)4 (100)6 (55)Chronic cutaneous, n (%)0 (0)0 (0)Non-scarring alopecia, n (%)0 (0)1 (9)Oral/nasal ulcers, n (%)2 (50)7 (64)Joint involvement, n, (%)3 (75)4 (36)Serositis, n (%)0 (0)2 (18)Renal, n (%)1 (25)2 (18)Neurological, n (%)0 (0)0 (0)Hemolytic anemia, n (%)1 (25)4 (36)Leukopenia, n (%)4 (100)9 (82)Thrombocytopenia, n (%)3 (75)5 (45)Anti-dsDNA, n (%)4 (100)11 (100)Anti-Sm, n (%)1 (25)2 (18)LA, n (%)0 (0)1 (9.1)aCL, n (%)2 (50)2 (18)aB2GPI, n (%)2(50)2 (18)Low complement, n (%)4 (100)11 (100)C3, mean ± SD (mg/dl)40.25 ± 5.5152.73 ± 20.81C4, mean ± SD (mg/dl)3.67 ± 2.894.60 ± 2.72SLEDAI at diagnosis, mean±SD12.75 ± 4.5012.18 ± 7.14SLEDAI at last follow-up, mean±SD0.00 ± 0.001.36 ± 1.43Damage (SDI at last follow-up >0), n (%)0 (100)0 (100)TreatmentPDN, n (%)3 (75)11 (100)HCQ, n (%)4 (100)11 (100)MMF, n (%)4 (100)11 (100)RTX, n (%)0 (0)2 (18)Figure 1.NIL.None Declared.


The monomer (1-undecanoyloxy-3-hydroxyacetone) and dimer (2,5-diundecanoyloxymethyl-2,5-dihydroxy-1,4-dioxane) of dihydroxyacetone monoundecanoate have been characterized, and the conditions associated with their interconversion have been determined. The respective molecular constitutions have been unequivocally documented with ultraviolet and infrared spectral characteristics.


Abstract : A study was made of methods for improving the means of estimating the expected number of wave impacts per unit time of the SWATH ship cross-structure. Two avenues were explored: (1) Improvement of relative motion estimates by adding the components of ship-generated wave and diffracted wave to the incident wave in describing the free surface; and, (2) including a limiting impact angle in the criteria defining the occurrence of a slam in the formulation of the level-crossing definition from which the expected number of impacts is derived. The results of this study show that including the ship-generated wave and diffracted wave does not improve the correlation of the computed relative motion with results obtained from experiments. Imposing a limiting impact angle on the definition of cross-structure slamming, as expected, reduces the estimated frequency of slamming. Additional model experiments are recommended to obtain a more definitive estimate of threshold velocity and limiting impact angle for estimating SWATH cross-structure slamming frequencies of occurrence.


In this paper we give explicit formulas of the Kauffman bracket of the 2-strand braid link x̂1 and the 3-strand braid link x̂ b 1x m 2 . We also show that the Kauffman bracket of the 3-strand braid link x̂1x m 2 is actually the product of the Kauffman brackets of the 2-strand braid links x̂1 and x̂1 . AMS Mathematics Subject Classification : 57M27, 57Q45.


This work results from the research carried out at Volkswagen, a car engine industry located in Sao Carlos ? Brazil. By analysing the major restructuring actions of the automobile industry in the last decade, it aims at demonstrating the influence of these actions on the establishment a new professional profile. This profile was later reviewed and modified as a result of a high turnover rate that prevailed in the industry's first few years and also due to organisational structure inertia, which led to fewer opportunities. Concerning the adequacy of the profile for the different phases of the organisational structure, a retrogression of the required qualifications can be noted.