The present research work was conducted to find out livelihood status of fishermen at Paba, Mohonpur and Durgapur in Rajshahi district of Bangladesh for a period of one year from July 2020 to June 2021. Data were collected from 600 fishermen (Paba, 200; Mohonpur, 200 and Durgapur, 200) through questionnaire interview and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). It was covered the main fishing communities in Rajshahi area. For data collection, three methods were used such as, personal interview, direct observations and use of PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) & FGD (focus groups discussion) tools regarding the fishermen information. Livelihood condition of fishermen were presented in terms of categories of fishermen, types of fishermen, age structure, educational status, family size, status of school going children, religion and marital status, housing condition, occupation, annual income, source of drinking water, sanitary conditions and credit access. It was found that 66-73% professional fishermen, 31-34% can signature, 49-57.50% small family (1-4), 87-92% Muslim and the rest were Hindus and others. Among the occupations of fishermen, only fishing was contributed 48-56.5%. The housing condition was Kacha 57.5-71% and annual income (<1) 1 lac (40.5-52.5%). Most of the fishermen used drinking water mainly Tube well (72.5-77.5%). Most of the fishermen depends on NGO for credit access. They face various problems such as low income, limited alternative income opportunities, inadequate credit system and lack of adequate medical services.


The Uhthoff symptom, a transient impairment of visual function, gives a clue to the diagnosis of retrobulbar neuritis and multiple sclerosis.We examined whether any clinicopathogenical significance of Uhthoff's phenomenon may declare in patients with Behcet's disease.15 of 72 patients had been suspected of having the Uhthoff symptom.High signal intensity lesions on T2-weighted MRI preferentially located on subcortico-occipital lobe and posterior horn of the lateral ventricle in patients having the Uhthoff symptom.PET studies in 4 patients having the Uhthoff symptom showed decreased cerebral blood flow (CBF) in subcortico- and cortico-temporo-occipital lobes.In PVEP examination, peak latencies of P100 were delayed in 5 of 20 patients, while mean peak amplitude was diminished in 2. However, these results had no bearing on the presence or absence of the Uhthoff symptom.Our observation suggests that the reduction of CBF in visual center may play an important role in the occurrence of Uhthoff's phenomenon in Behcet's disease besides any disorders of the anterior visual pathways.


Free space optical communication is one of the best approaches in future communications. Laser beam's acquisition, pointing and tracking are crucial technologies of free space optical communication. Fine tracking system is important component of APT (acquisition, pointing and tracking) system. It cooperates with the coarse pointing system in executing the APT mission. Satellite platform vibration and disturbance, which reduce received optical power, increase bit error rate and affect seriously the natural performance of laser communication. For the characteristic of satellite platform, an active disturbance rejection controller was designed to reduce the vibration and disturbance. There are three major contributions in the paper. Firstly, the effects of vibration on the inter satellite optical communications were analyzed, and the reasons and characters of vibration of the satellite platform were summarized. The amplitude-frequency response of a filter was designed according to the power spectral density of platform vibration of SILEX (Semiconductor Inter-satellite Laser Experiment), and then the signals of platform vibration were generated by filtering white Gaussian noise using the filter. Secondly, the fast steering mirror is a key component of the fine tracking system for optical communication. The mechanical design and model analysis was made to the tip/tilt mirror driven by the piezoelectric actuator and transmitted by the flexure hinge. The transfer function of the fast steering mirror, camera, D/A data acquisition card was established, and the theory model of transfer function of this system was further obtained. Finally, an active disturbance rejection control method is developed, multiple parallel extended state observers were designed for estimation of unknown dynamics and external disturbance, and the estimated states were used for nonlinear feedback control and compensation to improve system performance. The simulation results show that the designed controller not only accurately estimates and compensates the disturbances, but also realizes the robustness to estimation of unknown dynamics. The controller can satisfy the requirement of fine tracking accuracy for free space optical communication system.


Human activities such as fossil fuel combustion,production and use of chemical fertilizers,and livestock ranching have dramatically altered the global nitrogen cycle.A potential concern of chronic anthropogenic N emitted to atmosphere is altered nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems.Most studies reporting effects of N additions on forest ecosystems have been primarily carried out in temperate regions of Europe and North America.Importantly,however,there is a strong need to understand how nitrogen interacts with forests in the tropical and subtropical regions because rates of nitrogen deposition in these areas are projected to increase rapidly in upcoming decades.To assess the impact of simulated nitrogen deposition on plant nutrient balance,one-year-old Chinese fir seedlings(Cunninghamia lanceolata(Lamb.) Hook.) from a nursery were transplanted at the beginning of March 2007 before budbreak to plastic pots containing 17.5 kg of forest soil(red earth).The seedlings were kept in natural daylight in a greenhouse and irrigated by hand with distilled water before treatment.The experiment started in April 2007 and lasted for 12 months.Ammonium nitrate solutions were sprayed on the seedlings every three days at four doses,N1(6 g N m-2 · a-1),N2(12 g N m-2 · a-1),N3(24 g N m-2 · a-1) and N4(g N m-2 · a-1),with N0(0 g N m-2 · a-1) as the control and six replicates in each treatment.Totally 30 Chinese fir seedlings were available for destructive sampling to monitor biomass and nutrient concentration at the end of experiment.The amount of water solution sprayed to the seedlings each month was equivalent to the average monthly precipitation recorded over the last 30 years.The results indicated that nitrogen addition increased N,K and Mg contents in leaves,shoots(including branches and stems),coarse roots and fine roots of the seedlings,but reduced Ca concentration.Phosphorus contents in the seedlings responded positively to low-to-medium N treatments(N1,N2),but negatively to high N treatments(N3,N4).Nitrogen loads generally resulted in increased ratios of N relative to other elements in the seedlings,but decreased N/K and N/Mg in coarse roots.Linear regression correlations between nitrogen contents in leaves or fine roots(independent variables) and other element contents in leaves or fine roots(dependent variables) were developed for varying N levels.The N contents in leaves were positively correlated with K and Mg contents,but negatively with P and Ca contents.For fine roots,correlation between N contents and P and Mg contents was positive,while correlation between N contents and P and Mg was negative.The apparent N-use efficiency by the seedlings was estimated at 60.7%,57.9%,43.3% and 27.9% in the N1,N2,N3 and N4 treatments,respectively.Nitrogen addition increased N allocation to leaves and fine roots,but lowered N to shoots and coarse roots.Fine roots are more sensitive to N addition than any other seedling component.In general,the present simulated N deposition in greenhouse has been found to change the nutrient balance due to significant enhanced N concentration in the seedlings.


The present study is an attempt to compare the information seeking behaviour of physical scientists (i.e. teachers and research scholars) of Assam and Mizoram Universities. The scientists in university always need information to perform their duty and responsibility i.e. teaching and research. Information need is an aspect of information behaviour that represents the root of information search. A structured questionnaire was framed and distributed to physical scientists of these two universities to analyze their information seeking behaviour. The analysis revealed the frequency & purpose of visiting the library, use of library services, usage of formal and informal sources, purpose of seeking information, the category of information used and use of UGC-Infonet consortium by physical scientists.


Empowerment has elicited a lot of attention lately as employees' mobility has increased and organisations have had problems attracting and retaining talented employees. Organisations have therefore realized the importance of workforce empowerment and enshrined the concept in their policies although they hardly practice the empowerment or practice just a few element of empowerment. This study investigated the influence of psychological empowerment on job performance in National Polytechnics in Kenya. Psychological empowerment was considered as the independent variable, Job performance as the dependent variable and the moderating variable as job characteristics. The target population consisted of 2993 staff from the ten National Polytechnics in Kenya. The study employed descriptive survey research design. The researcher used disproportionate stratified sampling in selecting the respondents. The sample size consisted of 337 respondents. Data was collected by use of questionnaires. Validity was established by pretesting and experts' verification. To determine the document's reliability, Cronbach's alpha score was computed, realizing a score of 0.724.  Inferential and descriptive statistics were used. Out of the 337 questionnaires issued, 302 valid questionnaires were received translating to 89.6% response rate. Qualitative and quantitative analysis were done. To determine whether psychological empowerment influences job performance, regression analysis was conducted. The study established that psychological empowerment significantly influenced job performance. The study also established that job characteristics affected the relationship between psychological empowerment and job performance.  Data was presented in tables and figures. This study was expected to be useful to managers in designing empowerment plans; to the National Polytechnics managements, the public and the government in policy making. It would also contribute to knowledge and serve as a source of literature for further research. Keywords : E mployee empowerment, Psychological Empowerment, Job performance. CITATION: Kagucia, C. N., Mukanzi, C. M., & Kihoro, J. M. (2019). The influence of employee psychological empowerment on job performance in national polytechnics in Kenya. The Strategic Journal of Business & Change Management, 6 (4), 1678 – 1690.


The alignment tolerance for a string of quadrupoles and sextupoles on a ~5 m long girder in the proposed light source NSLS-II at BNL is ±30 µm. In view of difficulties in achieving this tolerance by conventional fiducialization and survey, it is decided to align several magnets installed on a girder based on magnetic measurements using the vibrating wire technique. In order to develop the technique with improved accuracy and to ultimately build a fully automated system suitable for large scale production work, an R&D program has been ongoing at BNL. Results obtained using an R&D set up in both quadrupole and sextupole magnets are presented.


Objective To retrospectively examine the feasibility of computed tomographic(CT) virtual endoscopy(VE) in the evaluation of hypoplasia of bony cochlear nerve canal(BCNC) base on absence of helix like shape.Methods Twenty ears in 14 consecutive patients diagnosed with BCNC hypoplasia and 100 ears in 50 gender-and age-matched individuals without inner ear disease and internal auditory canal malformations were included in this work.The BCNCs of all subjects were reconstructed using 3D software program(Fly Through,3D).The VE was performed applying low threshold of 850HU to 1150HU and high threshold of 3071HU.Hypoplasia BCNC was defined as absence of helix-like shape or central canal of the cochleaon CT VE.Normal result on CT VE was defined as presence of helix-like shape or central canal of the cochlea.Sensitivity,specificity and accuracy of CT VE were calculated.Results 17 of 20 ears of hypoplasia BCNC showed absence of helix like shape on CT VE.All of the ears of control subjects showed helix like shape and central canal of the cochlea on CT VE.Inter-observer agreement was substantial(K= 0.773).The BCNC hypoplasia was diagnosed based on absence of helix-like shape,the sensitivity,specificity and accuracy were 85%,100% and 98% respectively.There were significant differences of absence of helix-like shape between the two groups(P﹤0.001).Conclusion The absence of helix-like shape on CT VE images may be used as a potentially useful sign for diagnosis of BCNC hypoplasia.


The main goal of the NA62 experiment at SPS CERN is to measure the branching fraction of the ultra-rare kaon decay K+ → π+νν̅ with ~10% precision. RICH is a crucial detector for background suppression and particle indentification. RICH will provide muon/pion separation at the ~0.5% level in the momentum range between 15 and 35 GeV/c, unique time resolution (~100 ps) and a fast signal for the trigger system. This paper describes the main features of the RICH detector, results of the test beam and the construction status.


Aim: (1) Compare BMI standard deviation scores (BMIsds) in 16‐year olds in 2001 and 2007 to assess trends. (2) Describe tracking of BMIsds between ages 10 and 16 years, in a longitudinal 6‐year follow‐up. (3) Identify possible predictors in 2001 for high BMIsds in 2007 and increase in BMIsds between 2001 and 2007.


Cutting is an effective device to reduce crosswind loads acting on trains. The cutting depth, width and gradient of slope are important factors for design and construction of cutting. Based on numerical analysis methods of three-dimensional viscous incompressible aerodynamics equations, aerodynamic side forces and yawing moments acting on the high-speed train, with different depths and widths of cutting,are calculated and analyzed under crosswinds,meanwhile the relationship of the gradient of cutting slope and transverse aerodynamic forces acting on trains are also studied. Simulation results show that aerodynamic side forces and yawing moments acting on the train(the first, middle and rear train)decrease with the increase of cutting depth. The relationship between transverse forces (moments) coefficients acting on the three sections and the cutting depth basically is the three cubed relation. The bigger is cutting width,the worse is running stability of train. The relationship between yawing moments coefficients acting each body of the train and the cutting width approximately is the three cubed relation. The transverse Aerodynamic forces decreased gradually with the increase of the gradient of cutting slope, the relationship between yawing moments coefficients acting each body of the train and the gradient of cutting slope basically is the four cubed relation.


Many public and governmental services, regulations and information aim at people who are unemployed, have low education levels, have disabilities or are elderly. The same groups have low levels of digital skills compared to the population at large (Van Deursen en van Dijk, 2011; van Dijk, 2005), and experience problems in comprehending the digital content and applying it in realistic tasks (Van Deursen, 2010). According to studies of adult literacy, about 10% of the Dutch population has a literacy level that is insufficient to use written information to fully participate in society, realize their own goals and develop their knowledge and competences (Fouarge, Houtkoop & Van de Velde, 2011). The proportion of the Dutch population that has inadequate digital skills to fulfill ordinary daily-living tasks on the web is even much bigger (Van Deursen, 2010). That means that large parts of web content is inaccessible for people who, for reasons of cognitive or auditory disabilities, or because of inadequate schooling, lack the required written text and/or digital literacy. The problem of difficultto-understand web content is not simply solved by making web texts easier to read (Karreman, van der Geest & Buursink, 2007).


&NA; The aim of the study is to examine the prevalence rate of psychiatric disorders and substance misuse in patients admitted to the psychiatric emergency unit in Ribeirão Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil. The data was obtained from SAME (Serviço de Arquivo Medico e Estatístico) and the method used in this study is an examination of 500 patients admitted to the emergency psychiatric unit in the year 2000. The data was from the Service of Medical and Statistical Unit of the Hospital Clinic of Ribeirão Preto. The findings show that the prevalence rate of dual diagnosis for first time admissions and re‐admissions was 32.6% and 33.8% respectively. The highest rate of admissions is observed in the 20 to 39 age range (55.3% of the total admissions) which is predominantly male. The majority of patients admitted were diagnosed with the co‐existence of alcohol and psychiatric disorders (59%). About 42% had alcohol dependence syndrome and 30% of those admitted were suffering from abstinence or withdrawal syndrome as a result of alcohol misuse. Only 11% were diagnosed with schizophrenia. The study has implications for the adequate preparation of mental health nurses in working with dual diagnosis and for service provision.


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide details on a study to determine the wait time and service time for various emergency department (ED) patient care processes and to apply the science of plan‐do‐study‐act (PDSA) cycles to improve patient flow.Design/methodology/approach – The paper used direct observation to collect patient flow data on 1,728 patients at multiple ED sites in Saskatchewan, Canada. It calculated wait times and services associated with important care processes and then tested, measured and implemented ideas to reduce wait time.Findings – On an average, patients spend nearly five hours in the ED with about one‐half of the visit devoted to waiting for the next required service to take place. Waiting for an inpatient bed, specialist consultation or physician reassessment comprised relatively long wait times. Through the use of visual reminders and standard process worksheets, quality improvement teams were able to achieve large reductions in physician reassessment waiting time. T...


The effect of bile salts,free fatty acid and lutein on β carotene 15,15′ dioxygenase(βCDIOX)activity in vitro was investigated.The results showed:1)When the concentration of cholytaurine sodium(CLS)was 4 or 8 mmol·L -1 ,the βCDIOX activity was significant higher than the control′s.The effect of CLS and cholic acid on βCDIOX activity was similar,and the effect of deoxycholic acid on βCDIOX was not significant higher than the other′s.2)When the concentration of oleic acid was 5 mmol·L -1 ,the βCDIOX activity was significant higher than the control′s.The palmitic acid and stearic acid had no effect on βCDIOX,and inoleic acid and linolenic acid could improve βCDIOX activity,but there was no significant difference.3)With the increase of lutein concentration,the βCDIOX activity gradually decreased and lutein conversion was very low.


70e C therapies have the potential to replace many conventional treatments and produce cures to diseases that were previously untreatable. Reconstruction of the alveolar cleft, as is suggested here, is one example that is amenable to such an approach. As the authors point out, these defects can be detected during the prenatal period, and measures to correct them using autologous stem cells can be initiated at the time of birth. Conventional techniques require autogenous bone grafting, a procedure that itself has shortcomings, including donor-site morbidity.1–3 Although conventional techniques are generally efficacious, clearly there is room for improvement. Before stem cell–based therapy can gain traction, several hurdles must be overcome. The explanted tissue from which the stem cells are collected should be expendable and accessible without the need for invasive procedures. To reach clinically useful numbers, the cells often must be expanded in culture. This creates a lag time between the initial procurement and the planned intervention. Cell characteristics change in culture, and the desired effect may be lost. Further compounding this problem are the nonuniform ways in which stem cells are isolated and the culture conditions under which they are expanded.4 Conventional culture methods use animal serum, which is inconsistent and has poorly understood composition, introduces variability, and carries a risk of contamination (e.g., xenogenic antigens, viruses, prions).5 Moreover, the regulatory scrutiny of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other similar bodies is increased exponentially when serum-containing media are used. Finally, the stem cell population used needs to be appropriate for the application. It must have the capacity to either differentiate into the target tissue type or modulate the microenvironment in such a way that the desired effect is achieved. Although many strategies have been proposed, Mueller et al. have described an approach that addresses several of the fundamental hurdles to cell-based therapy. Wharton jelly–derived mesenchymal stem cells are a mesenchymal stem cell population that possesses many significant advantages for alveolar cleft repair. They are harvested from an easily accessible tissue source that would usually be discarded, can be culture-expanded to sufficient cell numbers for clinical effect, are less likely to harbor viral contaminants, and have fewer accumulated genomic alterations secondary to aging or disease.6,7 The osteodifferentiation capacity of mesenchymal stem cells is clearly established. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that mesenchymal stem cells derived from neonatal tissue have greater proliferative and differentiation capacity relative to their adult counterparts.8 The Wharton jelly–derived mesenchymal stem cells maintained under the serum-free culture conditions proposed by Mueller et al. appear consistent with mesenchymal stem cells derived from bone marrow and adipose tissue, according to morphology and previously established cell surface markers.9 As such, the proposed culture conditions may indeed pave the way for this therapy into the clinic. Although there is certainly less literature dedicated specifically to Wharton jelly–derived mesenchymal stem cells, their ability to form at least early osteoblasts and produce bone mineralization in vitro is demonstrated convincingly. The authors, noting some structural similarities between Wharton jelly and bone, demonstrated that whole Wharton jelly biopsy specimens can be osteodifferentiated in vitro. This is a novel and


A 30-50% reduction in fracture risk produced by a drug is biologically worthwhile. The detection of this benefit, when truly present, is a challenge requiring large studies of 3-5 years' duration, because only a small number of women at risk actually sustain a fracture during this time. For example, in any year, fractures occur in- 1-2 per 100 women approximately 65 years of age, 6-10 per 100 women approximately 75 years of age, and only 1-2 per 2,000 of the 15% of women 70 years of age. Reduction in hip fracture risk with HRT has been reported in observational studies. Two rigorously conducted studies provide credible evidence that the bisphosphonate alendronate reduces the risk of vertebral and hip fractures by approximately 40-50%. Etidronate, calcitonin, and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D 3 may reduce risk of vertebral fracture; however, problems in study design leave uncertainty. Although 2 trials using fluoride suggest a reduction in fracture rates, the more rigorously conducted trials do not, despite having adequate power to do so. Calcium supplements are likely to slow bone loss, but reduction in fracture risk is uncertain. Vitamin D and calcium supplementation reduce risk of hip fracture in nursing home residents but not in community residents. There have been no studies of the efficacy of any treatment to prevent hip or vertebral fractures in men or in corticosteroid-related osteoporosis. The treatment of osteoporosis is becoming a reality. HRT and the bisphosphonates, particularly alendronate, appear to be the best options at present.


Today, the importance of information technology and communications has been clearly specified to increase the speed and accuracy of the various activities of organizations and the relationship between its various components together, and thus increase their effectiveness. The purpose of this research is to investigate the role of information technology in increasing the effectiveness of the internal audit. The statistical population of the study consisted of 120 heads of banks and employees of different parts of internal audit of Iran Melli Bank Branches in Sistan and Baluchestan province. Of these, 92 samples were selected as research samples according to the sample size formula. The method of sampling in this research is Krjusi Morgan method. Then the questionnaire has been distributed among them and then collected. The research questionnaire contains 30 questions based on the research hypotheses. To assess the validity of the questionnaire, content validity was used and the Cronbach's alpha method was used to calculate the validity coefficient of the measure in this research.


We report stable and repeatable UV and red electroluminescence (EL) from ZnO nanorod (NR) array light-emitting diodes (LEDs), where the p-type ZnO was formed by As+ ion implantation into the as-grown ZnO NRs. Both doped and undoped single ZnO NRs were probed using nanomanipulator, where the former ones showed good rectification characteristics, confirming the formation of p-n homojunctions by ion implantation. Distinct EL emissions in UV and red regions were observed at room temperature under forward bias, where the emission intensity shows amplified spontaneous emission characteristics, suggesting high efficiency of these LEDs.


Our research is a natural continuation of previous results in [1]. Theideas given in [1] can be extended for other models of SIRD-type. From a method-ological point of view, we recommend the specialists working in this scientific field tostudy the possibility of using input functions lambda(t) and k_d(t) of polynomial type (forthe MSIRD model [2]). A similar modifications are proposed for the modified modelproposed in [3]. The specialists working in the field of "reaction-kinetic mechanisms"have the word. Numerical examples, illustrating our results are given using CAS Math-ematica.


This paper aims at explaining why education reduces female marriage market attractiveness, while the opposite is typically true for men. We assume that women are ranked according to their take home pay and time spent doing household work. We explicitly consider the role of job satisfaction for labour supply. The argument is that job satisfaction could induce women to work too much from the point ofview of their partners. The result is that under low wage dispersion educated women are out-competed by less educated women for husbands, while under high wage dispersion, the marriage squeeze would affect poorly educated women. Heavy taxation and low returns to education are factors which compress the (net) wage distribution. We argue that the particularly low marriageability ofbetter educated women in Sweden and the low propensity to marry among poorly educated women in the US could be a result of differences in the wage distribution in the two countries.


Acetone solution of the amino derivatives from three diphenyl ether herbicides, nitrofen-amino (p-aminophenyl 2, 4-dichlorophenyl ether), chlornitrofen-amino (p-aminophenyl 2, 4, 6-trichlorophenyl ether), and chlomethoxynil-amino (4-amino-3-methoxyphenyl 2, 4-dichlorophenyl ether) shows two peaks on a gas chromatogram (equipped with FID or ECD), respectively. GC-mass spectrometry revealed that the first peak was the amino compound, and the second was the condensate with acetone. The condensates were N-isopropylidene-p-(2, 4-dichlorophenoxy) aniline, N-isopropylidene-p-(2, 4, 6-trichlorophenoxy) aniline, and N-isopropylidene-4-(2, 4-dichlorophenoxy)-2-methoxyaniline. Results of experiments in which acetone was replaced with hexane suggest that the amino compounds in acetone exist in free states, or form easily reversible combinations with acetone and the dehydrated condensates are formed at the injection port (230°C) immediately after injecting the solution into GC.


The study on enclosed centrifugal barrel finishing has been staying at the experimental period for a long time. The design parameters and process parameters were fully determined by experiences without any theoretical basis. Considering the abrasive particles and workpieces as two kinds of ball particles with different materials and sizes, 3-Dimensional Discrete Element Method (DEM) was used to build the dynamics model. Based on such model, by setting different movement parameters, different movement laws and interaction forces of abrasive particles and workpieces were got. We analyzed the behavior of particles filled into a planetary barrel. In this paper, the influence of filling ratio of process parameters on medium movement was mainly analyzed. Then the transient movement diagram and the average contact forces diagram for abrasive particles or workpieces under different filling ratio were obtained. The simulation results are basically coincident to the experimental results. Both results have proved that filling ratio is the main parameter that changes medium motion laws, which provides a very efficient way to further optimize design parameters and process parameters, as well as to improve production efficiency.


An ultrasonic micromotor which has vibration conversion `elastic fins' in the rotor is proposed and constructed for trial. The motor, which is 5 mm in diameter, has proved to work quite well, and this suggests the possibility of further miniaturization of the motor. The principle and experimental evaluations of the characteristics of the motor are presented.


Left ventricular diverticulum (LVD) is a rarely found and tricky pathology. The diagnosis in echocardiography lies in synchronous contractility. We present a child with LVD and coexisting life-threating ventricular arrhythmia. The patient was qualified to ablation of arrhythmia and conservative treatment of the diverticulum itself. The girl remains in a good clinical condition after 10 years of follow-up. However, a recent Holter ECG examination revealed benign ventricular arrhythmia. *Correspondence to: Wojciech Szychta, The Children's Memorial Health Institute, Dzieci Polskich 20, Warsaw, Poland, Tel: +48 22 815 73 70, Fax: +48 22 815 73 65; E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


Reinforcement learning (RL) is an adaptive process where an agent relies on its experience to improve the outcome of its performance. It learns by taking actions to maximize its rewards, and by minimizing the gap between predicted and received rewards. In experimental neuropsychology, RL algorithms are used as a conceptual basis to account for several aspects of human motivation and cognition. A number of neuropsychological experiments, such as reversal learning, sequential decision-making, and go-no-go tasks, are required to validate the decisive RL algorithms. The experiments are conducted in digital environments and are comprised of numerous trials that lead to participants' frustration and fatigue. This paper presents a gamification framework for reinforcement-based neuropsychology experiments that aims to increase participant engagement and provide them with appropriate testing environments.


The concept of 'property' is inherently tangled in contradictions and disorders, especially within Information Capitalism where ideas and culture have to be restricted to make a profit, and shared in order to innovate. Marking out property as 'private' and 'profitable' means that it has to be separated from the social complex of its origin, so that this origin is both obscured and marked by the prospect of violence and theft. As David Hume and Pierre Joseph Proudhon suggest property is driven by imagination, metaphor, power, its contribution to symbolic identity, and throughout, by conflict over originality and copying. In Information Capitalism, the tools of 'knowledge' workers are the tools by which their creativity is appropriated, captured and displayed, and their access to property is acquired or retained for the uncertain future. In this situation the boundaries between property and piracy become even more ambiguous. This situation is explored through considering the social formations and activities around peer to peer file-sharing, and the court case involving The Pirate Bay, in which the roles of metaphor and the tension between property, survival and theft are clearly displayed.


According to the discussion about whether or not the China Telecom should be split,in this paper,the theory of the trading cost is used to analysis how to settle the boundary of telecommunication companies,and discus the reason of the high trading cost in the telecommunication operation market.The impact of unsymmetrical regulation on it is also mentioned here.And it is put forward by the status role of the China Telecom and the requirement of the development of the world telecommunication industry that currently the most important role of the China Telecom is to develop,and to split it is not propitious to this role.


Civil rights are core citizenship rights. The term itself is in fact derived from the Latin ius civis, referring to 'the rights of the citizen'. Civil rights form the basis that supports the exercise of other rights, be they political, economic or social. Therefore, one cannot engage in an examination or appraisal of the concept and practice of EU citizenship, and of the barriers which actually or potentially hinder its development and exercise, without a thorough investigation of the civil rights that are associated with it. For that reason, due attention was given to this thematic within the interdisciplinary research project 'bEUcitizen' that gave rise to a whole series of books, of which the present volume constitutes merely one tome. An enquiry into the civil rights attached to EU citizenship is complicated by the multilevel and multi-layered nature of the concept. First, as a status, EU citizenship is dependent on national citizenship, complementing it without replacing it.1 Second, it interacts, overlaps and competes with national citizenship, as well as with other formal and informal community memberships across Europe. As such, EU citizenship does not directly confer civil rights beyond a limited right to move and reside in other Member States. However, alongside a growing fundamental rights acquis guaranteed at the supranational level, the concept has helped to enhance the access to, and the exercise of, a range of civil rights across the Member States. Moreover, this dynamic has produced some significant transformative effects on


Contents: Acknowledgments Introduction: Insiders and Outsiders - Kimberly D. Schmidt, Diane Zimmerman Umble, and Steven D. Reschly Part I: Practice Makes Gender 1 Insights and Blindspots: Writing History from Inside and Outside - Hasia R. Diner 2 Who Are You? The Identity of the Outsider Within - Diane Zimmerman Umble 3 "To Remind Us of Who We Are": Multiple Meanings of Conservative Women's Dress - Beth E. Graybill 4 River Brethren Breadmaking Ritual - Margaret C. Reynolds 5 The Chosen Women: The Amish and the New Deal - Katherine Jellison Part 2: Creating Gendered Communities 6 Meeting around the Distaff : Anabaptist Women in Augsburg - Jeni Hiett Umble 7 "Weak Families" in the Green Hell of Paraguay - Marlene Epp 8 "The Parents Shall Not Go Unpunished": Preservationist Patriarchy and Community - Steven D. Reschly 9 Mennonite Missionary Martha Moser Voth in the Hopi Pueblos, 1893-1910 - Cathy Ann Trotta 10 Schism: Where Women's Outside Work and Insider Dress Collided - Kimberly D. Schmidt Part 3: (Re) creating Gendered Traditions 11 Speaking up and Taking Risks: Anabaptist Family and Household Roles in Sixteenth-Century Tirol - Linda Huebert Hecht 12 Household, Coffee Klatsch, and Office: The Evolving Worlds of Mid-Twentieth-Century Mennonite Women - Royden K. Loewen 13 Voices Within and Voices Without: Quaker Women's Autobiography - Barbara Bolz 14 "We Weren't Always Plain": Poetry by Women of Mennonite Backgrounds - Julia Kasdorf 15 "She May Be Amish Now, but She Won't Be Amish Long": Anabaptist Women and Antimodernism - Jane Marie Pederson Works Cited Contributors Index


With the coming of the intellectual economy era,colleges and universities should,besides strengthening the students′ studies in basic theories and elementary knowledge,pay more attention to the cultivation of their creative ability.How to attain this goal?First of all ,the students should set up lofty ideals and firm beliefs,which are the spiritual drive of their creativity.Secondly,they should have a wide range of knowledge,which is the material base of their creativity.Thirdly,they should take advantage of all the civilization fruit created by human beings ,which is the intellegence source of their creativity .What is more,they should have super courage and keen insight ,which is also very improtant for the cultivation of their creative ability.


The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that 3,225 cases of child-abuse were reported to thirty Child-Abuse Prevention Center's during first...


Certain questions are basic to the human condition: how we imagine the world, and ourselves and others within it; how we confront the constraints of language and the limits of our own minds; and how we use imagination to give meaning to past experiences and to shape future ones. These are the questions James Boyd White addresses in "The Edge of Meaning", exploring each through its application to great works of Western culture - "Huckleberry Finn", the "Odyssey", and the paintings of Vermeer among them. In doing so, White creates a deeply moving and insightful book and presents an inspiring conception of mind, language and the essence of living.


Ride-sharing, or carpooling, systems with autonomous vehicles will provide efficient and reliable urban mobility on demand. In this work we present a method for dynamic vehicle routing that leverages historical data to improve the performance of a network of self-driving taxis. In particular, we describe a constrained optimization method capable of assigning requests to autonomous vehicles in an informed way, to minimize the expected cost of serving both current and future travel requests. We allow several passengers with independent trips to share a vehicle and allow vehicles to pick additional passengers as they progress through their route. Based on historical data, we compute a probability distribution over future demand. Then, samples from the learned probability distribution are incorporated into a decoupled vehicle routing and passenger assignment method to take into account the predicted future demand. This method consists of three steps, namely pruning of feasible trips, assignment of trips to vehicles and rebalancing of idle vehicles. We show the benefits and trade-offs of this predictive approach in an experimental evaluation with over three million rides extracted from a dataset of taxi trips in New York City. Our method produces routes and assignments that, in expectation, reduce the travel and waiting times for passengers, with respect to a purely reactive approach. Besides the mobility on demand application, the method we present is general and could also be applied to other multi-task multi-vehicle assignment and routing problems.


Development time of Tribolium castancum (Herbst) and Trogoderma iuclusum (LeConte) was reduced by about 9–12% when beetles were exposed to sinusoidal fluctuating temperatures with 10°C range and mean of 25°C rather than a constant 25°C. Sitophilus oryzae (L.) showed no significant difference in the effect of the 2 temperature conditions upon development time.

During the 1st 14 days after emergence, the fecundity of T. castancum was apparently greater in fluctuating than in constant temperature; fecundity of T. inclusum and S. oryzae was not different in the 2 temperature regimens.


Background: At present, diagnostics of premorbid conditions in medical college students is of particular importance owing to the extensive use of modern educational equipment, technologies and materials.
Objective: To assess the functional status of first to third-year medical college students majoring in orthopedic dentistry.
Materials and methods: In April–May 2023, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 182 male students of the medical college at the Volgograd State Medical University, all majoring in orthopedic dentistry. The subjects were divided into three observation cohorts consisting of 66 first-year college students (mean age: 18.29 ± 0.11 years), 60 second-year students (19.84 ± 0.20 years), and 56 third-year students (20.66 ± 0.24 years). We established their heart rate variability and analyzed integrative indicators of functioning of the regulatory systems with a focus on adaptive capacities according to the method by R.M. Baevsky. The functional state of the central nervous system of the students was assessed using variational chronoreflexometry.
Results: We observed balanced heart rate regulation (type 1) in most subjects (73 %). At the same time, by the final year of study the number of students with excessive sympathicotonic reaction was found to increase. Some young men showed an increase in the activity of regulatory systems above normal values. Suboptimal activity of the autonomic nervous system can reduce its efficiency and induce rapid CNS fatigue, which was confirmed by the results of variational chronoreflexometry.
Discussion: We revealed a slight tension of regulatory systems having no adverse health effects in the male students. Yet, excessive sympathicotonic reaction noted in the third-year students indicated predisposition to disruption of mechanisms of adaptive capacity in some young men. Optimization of schoolwork pressure is one of the measures of
preventing further negative changes in the functional status of student youth. The assessed score of schooling intensity of future dental technicians was 3.1.
Conclusions: Our findings show that the study load causes increasing tension of the regulatory systems of the body. They justify the importance of improving the curriculum and developing a set of targeted measures for an increase in functional reserves of medical college students majoring in orthopedic dentistry.


The year 2020, despite the pandemic and quarantine, saw a wide range of important events of domestic and international significance for the Visegrad countries. Each of them, no matter how different they may seem, fit into an interesting mosaic of the revival of a new Central European identity. The fight against the coronavirus pandemic has revealed the inner core of the Visegrad countries, their understanding of the real hierarchy of priorities, in which no one has abolished the national level. The Visegrad solidarity and mutual support of Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic proved to be a very significant help in defending their rights in Brussels in allocating budget funds to help national economies to overcome the crisis. However, a number of other international developments have shown the flexibility of B4 as a regional factor. The Visegrad group, both from a practical and theoretical point of view, can be considered as a new form of regional European interaction that deserves the attention of other interstate associations for its experience and ability to find answers to current challenges quickly.


In recent decades, renewable energy sources, such as wind power, have extraordinarily increased their participation in the energy mix throughout the world. This progression has played an important role in lowering the usage of fossil fuels. In addition, it has reduced environmental hazards and increased the emergence of hybrid power systems, mainly in remote areas. In some of these areas, diesel power plants were the only previous source of energy. Irrespective of the benefits, hybrid power systems might face problems such as frequency deviations. To contribute to reducing these problems, this paper presents a methodology to tune diesel engine governors using the Student Psychology-Based Algorithm. This proposed methodology enhances some metrics of controller performance, such as the integral square error, integral absolute error, and number of sign changes in the frequency derivative. This approach has been tested against different perturbations (step, ramp and random). To validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, it has been simulated in relation to the San Cristobal Island (Ecuador) hybrid wind–diesel power system. The simulation results show that the governor tuned with the proposed approach provides a better system response.


Prime Editing + Telomerase + Autophagy [Phagolysosomes (in moderation)] + Mitochondrial Biogenesis & Selected Mitophagy + Macrophages (activation with curry & black pepper) + Microglia + Pluripotent Stem Cells (from fat) + CAR-T Cells (injection in Thymus) = Maybe can lead us to Immortality.The isolation of the biological material of regenerating flatworms in order to do selective injections with it to drone ants that live for 3 weeks in order to have fast results inside from continuous monitoring with tests can lead us also to immortality.


This paper examines the profitability of the moving average trading rule on the Islamic stock markets. We apply the trading rules associated with the 10-day, 20-day, and 50-day moving averages to 11 major Islamic stock market indices. It is found that, except Bangladesh, the moving average trading rules outperform the buy-and-hold strategy. The weighted moving average obtained higher return rates than other moving averages in most cases.


The work deals with one sheet material produced under three various conditions and leading to different hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) resistances. The starting material was conventionally rolled with the finishing rolling temperature under the Ar3 resulting to hydrogen embrittlement. That material served for heat treatment leading to the tempered low bainite matrix showing numerous fine carbides dispersed in the bainite ferrite. Neither this heat treatment ensures any satisfactory solution. On the top of that followed treatment realized after conventional rolling does not represent economical engineering approach. The third treatment type corresponded to simulation of finishing rolling temperature above the Ar3 temperature with controlling cooling process leading to a chaotic acicular ferrite formation suppressing the cleavage cracks propagation and satisfactory HIC resistance.


The space structures, such as satellite antenna and the solar panel for space station, are lightweight and very flexible. They are likely undergo large displacements and structural deformations caused by gravitational force as well as other disturbances, such as shuttle jet impingement, deployment, thermal effects from solar radiation, debris impact, etc. In this paper, a finite element formulation based on a new coordinate system has been developed to study the dynamic behavior of flexible structures in orbit. In this formulation, coupling effects of orbital motion and structural deformation are readily taken into account. Theory of elastodynamics can be used in this new coordinate system. Finite element formulation is also developed for jet impingement loading, which is a highly nonlinear function depending upon the distance from source to the point on the beam, angle of attack, as well as the position and orientation of the deflected system. In this investigation, results are obtained for attitude motions and elastic deformations of flexible structure under gravitational force and jet impingement loading. For flexible structures in orbit, the structural response under jet impingement loading is significant.


A GaAs vertical optoelectronic integrated circuit is fabricated using a selective atmosphere pressure MOC\ID. It consists of a surface emitting LED and a vertical FET employurg the embedded schottky contacts. As the drain current of the FET also flows through the LED structure, the light output of the LED is effectively controlled by the gate bias of the driver FET. This device operates as a three terminal optical device controlled by an electric input.


Niosomes are novel drug delivery system that are having bilayer in structure and these vesicles are obtained during hydration of synthetic non-ionic surfactants, with the incorporation of cholesterol or their lipids. These vesicles present convenient, prolonged, targeted and effective drug delivery system with the ability of loading both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs. The hydrophilic drugs are entrapped into aqueous core while the lipophilic drugs into the lipid membrane. Their potential can be enhanced by the use of novel preparations, loading and modification methods. This article reviews the current deepening and widening of interest of niosomes.


Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of the ongoing coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite the urgent need, we still do not fully understand the molecular basis of SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis and its ability to antagonize innate immune responses. Here, we use RNA-sequencing and ribosome profiling along SARS-CoV-2 infection and comprehensively define the mechanisms that are utilized by SARS-CoV-2 to shutoff cellular protein synthesis. We show SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to a global reduction in translation but that viral transcripts are not preferentially translated. Instead, we reveal that infection leads to accelerated degradation of cytosolic cellular mRNAs which facilitates viral takeover of the mRNA pool in infected cells. Moreover, we show that the translation of transcripts whose expression is induced in response to infection, including innate immune genes, is impaired, implying infection prevents newly transcribed cellular mRNAs from accessing the ribosomes. Overall, our results uncover the multipronged strategy employed by SARS-CoV-2 to commandeer the translation machinery and to suppress host defenses.


Otolaryngologists are often called upon by patients to make a definitive diagnosis of a mass in the neck. Just as often, they are asked in consultation by their medical and surgical colleagues to rule out the possibility of the mass being a metastatic lesion from a focus primary in the head and neck. Frequently, the diagnosis of these tumors are not made until the time of surgery. Such was my experience when I was consulted by a thirty-six year old Hawaiian-Chinese female with a mass in the right side of the neck. At surgery, the tumor proved to be a schwannoma of the vagus nerve in the neck.


Letter from Charles B. Moore to Claude and Linnet Moore White in which he tells them about the activities at the house and on the farm. He gives them the news on the sale of his crops. He also discusses the activities of neighbors, friends, and family.


SNOMED is a detailed and specific coded vocabulary of names and descriptions used in healthcare--explicitly designed for use in the computerized patient record. Here's an overview of this system and a look at its next generation.


A novel microsensor consisted of piezoresistive and thermal resistive components is designed and fabricated. A 50 μm thick silicon diaphragm is used, thicker than that of the conventional piezoresistive pressure sensor, which extends the high stress area in the bulk silicon, and increases the linear operating range as well as the burst pressure. Novel meandering shape piezoresistors are designed with optimized structure parameters, parts of which are fabricated on the high stress bulk silicon to obtain high sensitivity. The thermistors are fabricated on the bulk silicon with the same implantation process as the piezoresistors. Good temperature linearity and sensitivity are obtained, and the fabrication is simplified. The whole fabrication is low-cost, high yield and compatible with the standard IC process. Primary measured results are presented.


The purpose of this study was to find out whether the refill water (AMIU) was contaminated with coliform or not. The methods used were presumptive, confirmed, and completed test. Sample of this study was refill water (AMIU) from five refill water shops located in Ilie village, sub-district of Ulee Kareng, Banda Aceh. The sample was taken 3 times with interval period of one week. Sample was culture in lactose broth and incubated at 37° C for 48 hours. If it did not form gas in Durham tube, presumptive test result was considered negative and the samples were not proceed to the other test. The data was presented using descriptive analysis. It could be concluded that AMIU from 5 shops in Ilie Ulee Kareng, Banda Aceh is negatively contaminated with coliform bacteria.


Summary (1) ACTH in divided doses of 15 mg per day and cortisone (5 mg per day) for 48 hours prior to the intravenous injection of a bacterial endotoxin (Shiga dysenteriae) and injection of 10 mg of either compound during the 2-day test period resulted in a significant lessening of the febrile response in the treated as compared to the control animals. (2) Rabbits given smaller doses of ACTH (5 mg per day) or cortisone (5 mg per day) for 24 hours prior to the injection of antigen, and continued through the test period, demonstrated an aggravated febrile and systemic response to the injected endotoxin as compared to the controls. (3) The significance of this time-dose relationship in the interpretation of experiments involving the use of ACTH and cortisone and bacterial endotoxins is discussed.


Transboundary environmental problems pose significant challenges in achieving lasting peace, order, stability, and prosperity in the Northeast Asian region. Through rapid economic growth and energy-intensive industrialization, countries in this region are faced with serious environmental challenges, such as dust and sandstorms (DSS). This article describes the present state of DSS and the major legal and policy responses to deal with this problem in the Northeast Asian region. It focuses on how international environmental principles and theories can illustrate the emergence of the regional cooperative and regional institutionalization and assesses the developments so far. It then lays out why and how more expansive policy coordination among the countries in this region can lead to more promising results.


Introduction Since 2004, Britain has witnessed the "largest single wave of in-migration that the British Isles have ever experienced" (Salt and Millar 2006: 335). Polish workers and their families accounted for 64.4% of immigration from the "new" (A8) EU nations to the UK in 2004. We report initial findings from a research project investigating the acquisition of sociolinguistic variation in English by adolescent Polish immigrants living in Edinburgh. We question to what extent Polish adolescent immigrants are acquiring the variable grammar of their local peer group. To do this, we examine the speech of some Polish adolescents living in Edinburgh and compare their use of the (ing) variable with that of Edinburgh-born adolescents. Our findings suggest that Polish adolescent migrants are acquiring both 'local' Edinburgh constraints on (ing) variation and 'supra-local' constraints found to operate on (ing) in other varieties of British English and American English. We exemplify this with the pattern of grammaticality constraints operating on (ing) for these teenagers.


INTRODUCTION
In recent years several methods have been described for the treatment of deep Miller-class-II-recessions. Most of these techniques concentrate on single recessions or one deep recession accompanied by just slight neighboring root denudations. A modified technique is presented for treating two or more deep recessions beyond the mucogingival margin combining a subepithelial connective tissue graft, enamel matrix derivative and a multiple pedicle coronally advanced flap. As far to our knowledge this is the first report to describe the treatment of multiple deep Miller-Class-II-recessions exceeding beyond the mucogingival junction using a pedicled advanced flap.

CASE PRESENTATION
A 29-year-old woman was referred to the periodontal practice of JT for the treatment of progressive deep Miller-class-II-recessions. The root coverage procedure was performed by a modified multiple pedicle flap combined with a connective tissue graft harvested from the palate and enamel matrix derivative. The case was followed up for two years.

CONCLUSIONS
This modified technique of a multiple pedicled flap is a feasible and useful method for treating several deep neighboring recessions. Due to the improved incision techniques scar tissue formation might be reduced not to interfere with the aesthetic result. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


Novel optically active axially chiral amino acid and amino alcohols have been synthesized efficiently via lactam ring-opening, with the aid of an optically active alcohol, amidoaza[5]helicene 5, which has been readily prepared by an additive-ligand-free Pd catalyzed domino coupling reaction in a single step. The stereostructures of these chiral molecules have also been clarified.


Abstract Background Cardiac remodeling, an important aspect of cardiovascular disease (CVD) progression, is emerging as a significant therapeutic target. The electrocardiogram (ECG) is of paramount importance in the initial evaluation of a patient. However, the ECG is not a sensitive method of detecting left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), and as far as we know, it cannot detect changes in left ventricular geometry (LVG) at early stages, especially before LVH is present. Its sensitivity is particularly low for obese patients. Purpose To use a machine learning (ML) classifier to detect abnormal LVG from ECG parameters/markers, even before it becomes LVH, and to propose some indicative markers useful for practitioners. We also looked at the results of our model for obese patients to test the markers in this population. Methods We enrolled consecutive subjects, aged 30 years or older (mean age: 61.6±12 years old) with and without essential hypertension and no indications of CVD. All patients underwent a full echocardiographic evaluation and were classified into 2 groups; those with normal geometry (NG) vs. those with concentric remodeling (CR) or LVH defined as concentric hypertrophy (CH) and eccentric hypertrophy (EH). Abnormal LVG was identified as increased relative wall thickness (RWT) and/or left ventricular mass index (LVMi). We analyzed the EKG waveforms deduced to single beat averages for each lead using custom software and extracted 70 markers. We then trained a Random Forest machine learning model to classify subjects with abnormal LVG and calculated SHAP values to perform feature importance and interaction. Results After screening 1120 individuals, we enrolled 594 subjects, aged 30 years or older (mean age: 61.6±12 years old). The percentage of women was 56.5%, while 71.3% of all patients were hypertensive. Hypertension, age, body mass index divided by the Sokolow-Lyon voltage (BMI/S-L), QRS-T angle, and QTc duration were among the most important parameters (Figure, left panel) identified by the model as being predictive of abnormal LVG (AUC/ROC = 0.84, sensitivity = 0.94, specificity 0.61). Specifically for obese patients, whose prevalence in our population was 60.3%, our model performed well (sensitivity = 0.71, specificity = 0.92. When we tried our model without the the BMI/S-L parameter, the specificity dropped to 0.88. We also found that a cut-off point of 18 for the BMI/S-L marker predicted the patients who were more probable to have developed abnormal LVG. Conclusions This study is the first to demonstrate the promising potential of ML modeling for the efficient and cost-effective diagnostic screening of abnormal LVG and cardiac remodeling through ECG. We found specific clinical and ECG parameters that can predict early pathological changes of LVG in patients without established CVD and detect the population who will benefit from a detailed echocardiographic evaluation. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None. Figure 1


Traffic flow forecasting is an important function of a traffic information system. In recent years, it has become a research hotspot of experts and scholars in the field of transportation. The traffic flow is affected by spatiotemporal factors, so the traffic flow data is highly nonlinear and complex, which makes the flow data difficult to predict accurately. Therefore, the previous traffic prediction model does not have accuracy and reliability. Under the circumstances, this paper proposes a self-attention mechanism-based packet residual network model (SA-Res2Net) to predict urban traffic flow. Firstly, the internal pixel connection and global correlation of the New York bike data is enhanced through the Self-Attention mechanism. Then, the Attention Map is input into the Res2Net model and divided into 8 channels of in and out traffic data to extract the spatiotemporal correlation of traffic flow with finer-grained multi-scale features. The experimental results show that compared with other traditional models, the model in this paper is of satisfactory predictive value.


A novel application of ionic liquid as a charge carrier for the analysis and detection of neutral organometallic complexes using a mass spectrometer has been presented. The mass spectrometer detects only charged compounds which raise a difficulty in analyzing a neutral molecule that lacks a basic site to associate with charge. Therefore, an effective way of providing charge has always been an area of keen interest in the field of mass spectrometry. Ionic liquids have a very fascinating property of forming a cation-? interaction with other molecules to give a charged complex. In order to take advantage of this, it is important to know the geometric structure of the complex. Advanced methodologies like hydrogen-deuterium exchange and computational calculations have been used assisting in better understanding of the structure of the ionic liquid complexes.


The financial crisis in 2008 has spread through the whole world due to the subprime mortgage crisis in the U.S. As the result of the financial crisis,...


Microscopic studies carried out on the lungs of rabbits exposed to 0.4 ppm of ozone for six hours a day, five days a week, for a calendar period of ten months showed both emphysematous and vascular lesions. Small pulmonary arteries (exterior diameters of 105µ to 1,050µ) showed a marked mural thickening. The mean ratio of the thickness of the wall to the diameter of the lumen was greatly reduced in the exposed animals as compared with that of the controls.


Given the success of deep generative models in many creative tasks, it is natural to ask how to best leverage them to support human designers. We study this problem in the context of mixed-initiative design of platformer levels, a paradigmatic co-creative task. This setting is especially challenging, because – like all functional content – platformer levels must satisfy complex validity constraints, like coherency and playability. We explore mixed-initiative interaction with constrained adversarial networks (CANs), a class of deep generative models that synthesize structures satisfying one or more validity constraints. As such, CANs can be used to complete user-supplied partial levels while retaining full control of the constraints to be applied. We go one step beyond, and consider the issue of customizing a pre-trained CAN to some target design task at hand and to the designer's preferences. We discuss how to achieve this by combining CANs with coactive learning, a very natural mixed-initiate interaction protocol that acquires the necessary supervision from the designer in a transparent manner. Finally, we illustrate how to extend coactive learning to acquire informative supervision in the form of interpretable constraints.


s Bowles EJ, Myers S (2003) Pilot survey of aromatherapy use in Northern Rivers aged care facilities, Australasian Journal on Ageing, 22(4) Supplement 1: 13. Oral presentations Bowles EJ, Myers S, Pilot survey of aromatherapy use in Northern Rivers aged care facilities, Expanding Knowledge of Ageing, 36 Annual Conference of the Australian Association of Gerontology, Hobart, TAS, 5-7 October, 2003. Bowles EJ, Stevens J, Cheras P, Myers S, A pilot study survey of aromatherapy use in aged care facilities in the Northern Rivers area of NSW, Australia, First Inaugural International Longevity Conference, Sydney, NSW, 5-7 March 2004. Bowles EJ, Cheras P, Stevens J, Myers S, A survey of aromatherapy practices in aged care facilities in Northern NSW, Australia, Complementary and Alternative Medicines: Towards Integrated Healthcare, Australian Resource Centre for Healthcare Innovations (ARCHI) Toolkit Conference, Surfers Paradise, QLD, 14 October 2004. Poster presentation "Is the MMSE a useful tool in dementia trials?" Innovations in Management of Cognitive Impairment in Older Australians, Change Champions and Australian Resource Centre for Healthcare Innovations (ARCHI), Sydney, NSW, 6-7 April 2006.


On the basis of theoretic analysis of limiting short circuit current by low reactance grounding transformer neutral point,and combining engineering practices,according to the effects of current limiting of adding low reactance at neutral point under different operation modes,the effects of current limiting after low reactance was added are analyzed.Proper reactance values and its configurations are proposed.In addition,neutral point insulation matching and relay protection problems are also studied.Solutions are presented.


This thesis briefly introduces Vocational Burnout from an educational psychology's prospect and revises Maslach Burnout Inventory.It proves more reliable and practical.The author has made an investigation with the revised inventory to the junior English teachers in Chaoyang.The result shows that: junior English teachers got higher emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment scores but depersonalization scores are lower.Female teachers' emotional exhaustion is higher than the male's but there are no obvious differences on personal accomplishment and depersonalization.Technical title and record of schooling show little difference in the three dimensions of Vocational Burnout.


—We present a simple, efficient method of real- time articulated arm pose estimation using stochastic gradient descent to correct unmodeled errors in the robot's kinematics with point cloud data from commercial depth sensors. We show that our method is robust to error in both the robot's joint encoders and in the extrinsic calibration of the sensor; and that it is both fast and accurate enough to provide real- time performance for autonomous manipulation tasks. The efficiency of our technique allows us to embed it in a closed- loop position servoing strategy; which we extensively use to perform manipulation tasks. Our method is generalizable to any articulated robot, including dexterous humanoids and mobile manipulators with multiple kinematic chains.


In vitro release of bioidentical hormones in four different liposomal transdermal emulsions (containing testosterone, progesterone, estradiol, or estradiol and estriol) was assessed. For this purpose, novel high-performance liquid chromatography methods were developed and validated in an eco-friendly manner and used to determine the in vitro release of such products. The methods were suitable for our intended goal, and the emulsions employed were found to be effective as transporting candidates for the efficient release of hormones in the transdermal delivery of human sexual steroids.


Male and female sterilization have been established as the main technique to reduce the huge number of mongrel dogs. However, there are several barriers regarding to the choice of the best anesthetic protocol, in terms of efficacy, security and cost reduction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the analgesic, cardiorespiratory and hemogasometric effects of epidural anesthesia with a large volume of lidocaine in combination with morphine in female dogs submitted to ovariosalpingohisterectomy (OSH), with or without oxygen supplementation. Twelve adult female dogs were used, with average weight of 11.5±3.7kg and age of 1 to 4 years. The animals received acepromazine (0.1mg kg-1) and meperidine (5mg kg-1) as premedication, administered by the intramuscular route. Fifteen minutes later, thiopental (10mg kg-1) was administered by intravenous route, followed by endotracheal intubation. The animals were allocated into two groups: GCO (group with oxygen, n=06), where the animals received 100% oxygen supplementation and GSO (group without oxygen supplementation, n=6), mantained with endotracheal intubation, but without oxygen supplementation. After intubation, epidural with morphine (0,1mg kg-1), adjusted to IDepartamento de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina (UDESC). Av. Luiz de Camões 2090, Bairro Conta Dinheiro, 88520-000, Lages, SC, Brasil. E-mail: email@example.com. *Autor para correspondência. IIDepartamento de Clínica, Cirurgia e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Odontologia de Araçatuba (FOA), Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Araçatuba, SP, Brasil. Recebido para publicação 17.04.09 Aprovado em 02.10.09


OBJECTIVE
To determine prognostic factors for mortality in a cohort of 667 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) including those variables associated with the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) as well as antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) itself.

METHODS
Analysis of the cohort under a nested case control design by means of Cox proportional hazards regression with and without stepwise method.

RESULTS
During the 2039 person-years of followup, there were 49 deaths (cases). Thrombocytopenia, arterial occlusions, and hemolytic anemia were the aPL related manifestations that were associated with decreased survival in univariate analyses. The first 2 were also selected among risk factors for mortality in stepwise Cox multivariate analysis. The syndrome itself was also associated with increased mortality rates, independently of other variables.

CONCLUSION
APS is among the variables that confer decreased survival on patients with SLE. This decreased survival is due to some (e.g., thrombocytopenia or arterial occlusions), but not all, of the manifestations of APS.


Objectives: To construct gestational age-adjusted reference ranges of the left fetal modified myocardial performance index (Mod-MPI) in the Australian population and assess the influence of valve click caliper position on constituent time intervals and the Mod-MPI. Methods: This is a prospective longitudinal study of 117 normal singleton fetuses undergoing 318 ultrasound scans at 4–6 weekly intervals between 18 and 38 weeks of gestation. The isovolumetric contraction time (ICT), isovolumetric relaxation time (IRT), and ejection time (ET) were measured at 3 different caliper positions in each fetus: beginning of the original valve clicks ('original'), beginning of the reflected valve clicks ('reflected'), and peak of valve clicks ('peak'). The Mod-MPI was calculated as (ICT + IRT)/ET. Results: The Mod-MPI increased throughout gestation with means ± SD of 0.42 ± 0.05 'reflected' and 'peak' versus 0.49 ± 0.03 'original' at 19 weeks, and means of 0.46 ± 0.05 'reflected and peak' versus 0.51 ± 0.08 'original' at 36 weeks. Throughout gestation, ICT remained fairly constant and IRT increased, while ET decreased with 'original' click and remained constant for 'reflected' and 'peak' clicks. A modest increase in Mod-MPI was seen with increasing fetal heart rate. Analysis of repeatability for the 3 methods showed the following ICCs: 'original', 0.797 (95% CI 0.762–0.829); 'reflected', 0.809 (95% CI 0.775–0.839), and 'peak', 0.799 (95% CI 0.764–0.831). Conclusions: Detailed exploration of the morphology of mitral and aortic valve closure and opening clicks shows how selection of different phases of these clicks may significantly influence the Mod-MPI. We recommend that the peak of the valve clicks be standardized between research groups.


Line start permanent magnet synchronous motors with high efficiency are one of alternative solutions to replace induction motors in the future. However, start-up capability of line start permanent magnet synchronous motors is still a key factor in design and operation of these motors. In operation, line start permanent magnet synchronous motors are influenced by some factors, such as temperature, material, kind of loads. In this paper, the start-up of a line start permanent magnet synchronous motor 2.2kW in various temperatures is in detail studied. Some recommendations for enhancing line start permanent magnet synchronous motors start-up characteristics in changing environmental temperature are proposed.


The new global economy and its branches need to be both sustainable and entrepreneurial. In the world where finitude of resources can be eye-witnessed, decisions that lay upon the principles of people, profit, and planet have the ability to preserve the quality of life of present and future generations. Tourism is one of those sectors which have largely expanded over the past decades and whose development affects countries, economies, and natural resources. Sustainable tourism appears to be a natural fit for entrepreneurs wishing to establish new ventures and pursue business opportunities in today's dynamic yet complex business climate. This chapter examines the nexus between entrepreneurship and sustainable tourism. On the basis of theoretical framework and the review of relevant global environmental and tourism-specific tendencies, an online empirical study was conducted to understand how young adults perceive entrepreneurship and sustainability in tourism and the contribution of the two to sustainable development.


Reforms in education and training are the order of the day in the spirit of maintaining relevance in this changing world. This paper looks at the development of vocational education and training (VET) in Kenya at three levels: the past, the present and the future directions. A brief historical discussion forms a basis for understanding the trends in Kenya's VET. A discussion of the current state of affairs highlights the main issues that are at play in Kenya's VET sector. From the issues that are foregrounded in the past and the present, the forces that have continued to shape the VET system are highlighted with a view to drawing lessons for the rest of the world. Some of the forces that are discussed in this paper cover the political will and policy matters in VET, the broad aims of education and training, and the need for clarity and inclusion of all the stakeholders in all the stages of educational reforms. Lessons are drawn for Kenya and the rest of the world based on the trends and issues divulged.


This paper presents the equations modelling concentration waves in reacting diffusion systems. We show that under the highly general assumptions concerning the nature of space non-locality of relations between thermodynamic fluxes and forces the governing transfer equation acts in the form of the modified Witham's integro-differential equation. In contradistinction to the known Witham's equation the one obtained is heterogeneous under the presence of heat and mass sources. It is shown that transfer processes with consideration of dependencies of transfer coefficients on the coordinates and chemical potentials can also be described by an equation of the same type. In the paper the preconditions and computations leading to the mentioned non-linear equation have been adduced. The important peculiarity of the equation obtained is the possibility to describe the propagation of dispersing running waves and moving wave fronts in media with complex structure. Within the limits of this equation's characteristic analysis there proved to be a successful method of the investigation of the solitary concentration waves by the "classic way", i.e. as a result of interaction between the non-linear phenomena and dispersion.


Fixed point theory and contractive mappings are popular tools in solving a variety of problems such as control theory, economic theory, nonlinear analysis and global analysis.There are many works on di erent types of contractions to nd a xed point in metric spaces. Improving and extending some kind of those, in this paper, we introduce a new version of H-contradiction for four mappings in a metric space (X,d). Then, we prove the existence and uniqueness of a common best proximity point for four non-self mappings. An example is also given to support our main result. The related xed point theorem are also proved.


Research designs that are congruent with theoretical frameworks of African American women are important. However, many researchers remain unfamiliar with womanist thought or are unsure of how it can be used to inform specific aspects of research design. The article explicates a womanist epistemologic framework that can undergird the development of intervention designs aimed at assisting African American women incorporate health-promoting behaviors into their lives.


This paper presents the application of machine vision and learning techniques to detect and identify the number of flower clusters on apple trees leading to the ability to predict the potential yield of apples. A new field robot was designed and built to collect and build a dataset of 1500 images of apples trees. The trained model produced a cluster precision of 0.88 or 88% and a percentage error of 14% over 106 trees running the mobile vehicle on both sides of the trees. The detection model was predicting less than the actual amount but the fruit flower count is still significant in that it can give the researcher information on the estimated growth and production of each tree with respect to the actions applied to each fruit tree. A bias could be included to compensate for the average undercount. The resulting F1-Score of the object detection model was 80%, which is similar to other research methods ranging from an F1-Score of 77.3% to 84.1%. This paper helps lay the foundation for future application of machine vision and learning techniques within apple orchards or other fruit tree settings.


DESCRIPTION OF HEALTHY HOUSE IN PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER I KARANGASEM BALI 2015 ABSTRACT Poverty caused inability of the individual to fulfill their requirements of proper residential based from the aspect of healthiness. Healthy houses were a shelter, dwelling, also as a media for family building with the result that all of the member could be productive. Unhealthy houses might increase the risk for the family member to be subjected to all kind of diseases. The purpose of this study was to understand the descriptive of healthy houses in the work area of Karangasem I public health center. The cross-sectional-descriptive study was done in the Pertima and Bugbug Village as the representative of the work area. Eighty-one houses chosen as samples of study from both of the village with the proportional to size random sampling method. The data collected through the interview to obtain the characteristics and unmated daily habit of respondents and also to observe the houses component and sanitation facility. The result of the study showed that only 38,3% of houses that fulfilled the healthy houses criteria. Based on the components of the house, all of them (100%) had windows in the living room, most of them had windows in the bed room (96,3%), tiled floor (97,5%), brick wall (91,4%), clean and safe ceiling (67,9%), and also permanent ventilation with the size of more than 10% of the floor size (58%). Houses with the kitchen ventilation more than 10% of the floor size was only 49,4% and the houses with the good lighting was only 30,9%. Based on sanitation facility, all of them (100%) had private clean water facility and most of them (91,4%) had toilet that connected to the septic tank. Houses with the sewage wastewater disposal facility were only 24,7% and houses that had the waterproof and closed trash were only 2,5%. Based on the family habit, all of them (100%) defecated using the water closet. Most of them cleaned the yard (97,5%), opened the window in living room (88,9%) and bedroom (70,5%) everyday. The habit for throwing the trash daily was 39,5%.


The surfacing material containing cellulose-containing fibers or cellulose-containing fibers, (1) at least a compound having two primary amine groups and (2) at least in one of a combination of a compound having a β- keto carbonyl group processing method. Compound (2) has the general formula Process, the compound (1) and (2), together as a premix and Kamada with individually sequentially following steps (1) (2), cellulose-containing fibers of aqueous paper products are manufactured or it can be done by metering the atheromatous material, or compound (1) and (2), together as a premix of Kamada individually and sequentially spray process (1) and (2) It is carried out by spraying on the paper product.


Yield, productivity, and safety can be greatly improved by early and careful consideration of all aspects of design and operation, from initial hazardous materials classification to final instrumenting of equipment.


fore that. in requiring judicial protection of the individual against even the best officials, my letter repeated an opinion strongly held in the Association. Officials and social workers including probation officers are not infallible, and leaving olicials to 'know what is best' for other people can soon lead to totalitarian situations. We can all persuade ourselves that our motives in acting on behalf of others are of the highest. but none of us can ultimately escape wliat T. S. Eliot referred to as. I... the awareness of things ... done to others' harm Which once you took for exercise of virtue.' To demand a judicial safeguard need not, however, involve the use of criminal courts or the proof of delinclucnt conduct W111Oh, as Mr. Aplin says, is usually but one symptom of social maladjustment. The family court may be the best solution, but this court should control the actions of officials


The paper introduced the concept of digital mine and its development target,analyzed current situation of digital mine in China,proposed a construction frame of digital mine taking digital mine basic information platform based on 3DGIS technology as core.It briefly introduced the key technologies for realizing digital mine such as information regulation and interface standards,intellectualization of equipments,high-speed transmission network,integration and sharing of multi-source heterogeneous data,platform of 3DGIS,3D modeling algorithm,analysis and processing of specialization for basic data,development of business application systems and so on.It has guiding significance for development of digital mine in China.


Tickets for Harrogate International Festivals' headline act, Van Morrison, go on sale at 10am on Monday 21 March 2016. It will be one of just a ...


A data association algorithm for multiple passive sensors is presented in this paper. The algorithm is based on the intensity of space intersection made by measurements. Dividing the set of all possible targets into several subsets, starting with the subset which has the best probability under the restraint of data association rule, the real target can be found quickly. Numerical simulation with perfect detection probability and zero false alarm has been carried out and the results show that the algorithm has excellent performance in terms of computation time.


The way work is scheduled can have a significant impact on productivity and safety. Trying to determine a reliable relationship between scheduling details and this impact has not been easy. The relationship is a complex one because it is not simply a mater of how many hours a person is working, but also includes when the person is working (daytime, afternoon, night), how many "days" (shifts) in a row the person is working, and how frequently during the work day the person takes breaks from work. Recent research has pointed out that there are sufficient good-quality studies to model the impact of these factors on injury risk. The available research was reviewed and developed into a model that allows estimation of the relative risk based on type of shift (day, afternoon, night), number of consecutive shifts, hours per shift, and time between breaks. This paper describes the source research data, modeling procedures and cautions of interpreting and applying the modeling.


The technology of three-dimensional (3D) printing was commercialized in the late 1980s. Since then, the development of this technology has been dramatically increasing. Moreover, 3D printing technology has been used in many different fields, such as electronics and medical appliances, because 3D printing is a technological convergence based on precision instruments, chemical materials, and electrical equipment. The technological impact of 3D printing is so powerful that we need to analyze 3D printing technology to understand the 3D printing industry. In addition, we want more analytical results for understanding the sustainability of 3D printing technology. Thus, we compare the technologies between 3D printing competitors to find their technological innovations and evolution from a technological sustainability. To analyze the 3D printing technology, we propose a new methodology of statistical technology analysis combing social network analysis with time series clustering. In our case study, we make a comparison between "3D Systems" and "Stratasys", two major 3D printing companies, because they have been leading the sustainable technologies of 3D printing in the market. We illustrate how the proposed methodology can be applied to practical problems from the case study. This paper contributes to the sustainable technology management, and our research can expand to other competitors with diverse technological fields as well as 3D printing.


The Rotterdam Port Management has started the development of a new Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS). Phase 1 of the project is now underway, in which basic studies will be performed to provide a firm basis for the new set-up. The paper discusses the VTMS in general, the preliminary studies connected with it, benefit-cost analysis, a traffic simulation model to study various levels of control and associated benefits, and the proposed project development strategy.


Aircraft icing flight research was performed in natural icing conditions. A data base consisting of icing cloud measurements, ice shapes, and aerodynamic measurements is being developed. During research icing encounters the icing cloud was continuously measured. After the encounter, the ice accretion shapes on the wing were documented with a stereo camera system. The increase in wing section drag was measured with a wake survey probe. The overall aircraft performance loss in terms of lift and drag coefficient changes were obtained by steady level speed/power measurements. Selective deicing of the airframe components was performed to determine their contributions to the total drag increase. Engine out capability in terms of power available was analyzed for the iced aircraft. It was shown that the stereo photography system can be used to document ice shapes in flight and that the wake survey probe can measure increases in wing section drag caused by ice. On one flight, the wing section drag coefficient (c sub d) increased approximately 120 percent over the uniced baseline at an aircraft angle of attack of 6 deg. On another flight, the aircraft drag coefficient (c sub d) increased by 75 percent over the uniced baseline at an aircraft lift coefficient (c sub d) of 0.5.


Tertiary volcano-sedimentary sequences constitute an important geological unity that covers a large part ofthe Andean Cordillera at least between latitudes 33"s and 37"s. However, Tertiary volcanic outcrops are scarse between 37's and 40°S, being restricted to the Longitudinal Depression (Central Valley) and Coastal Range. Deep drilling projects, carried out by ENAP (Chilean Oil Company), have allowed to determine the distribution and thickness ofthis unity in the latter region.


The ferroelectric field effect has been studied experimentally at low temperatures (300°K > T > 78°K) using n type tin oxide films deposited on polished ferroelectric ceramic (PZT) substrates. It is shown that the film, in its enhanced state, possesses the characteristics of a degenerate semiconductor with the Fermi level 0.60 eV above the conduction band edge. In the depleted state (high resistance) the Fermi level can be as much as 0.28 eV below the conduction band edge. There is evidence of a trapping state that degrades the field effect transition at temperatures below ∼183°K and at 78°K there is only a very small field effect transition even though the substrate switches more polarization charge than at room temperature. The depleted state instability is shown to be due to a thermally activated process with the high resistance being relatively stable with time for temperatures below 253°K.


Undertaking consolidation of the atomized Polish steel industry was a solution advocated in the early years of transition, as necessary for the success of the sector's restructuring. The government did not heed the advice, with disastrous effects. Later on, the government also did not use privatization policy strategically, as an effective tool, which would have prevented the need for state-led consolidation efforts. Taken together, the resulting policy option was the worst possible for the sector, yet, in terms of the government's calculus, it was the least costly politically. By avoiding confrontation with powerful vested interests, the government was minimizing its short-term political losses. As for the vested interests, most notably the managers, they were rationally following their best individual strategy, all while realizing that combined, in medium term, their strategies would lead to worse outcomes than those envisaged by the originally proposed reform. When the government finally acted, it was in a crisis situation, which dampened the vested interests' opposition to a previously unacceptable solution. Moreover, with EU negotiations underway, the government's bargaining power vis-à-vis powerful vested interests increased, as to a significant degree, its hands became tied by the European Commission's requirements. Secondly, the paper argues that the adequacy of economic policy tools differs according to sector. The Polish case suggests that in a transition setting, the restructuring of capital-intensive industry with high sunk costs requires decisive, strategic, state action through sectoral industrial policy, rather than mere reliance on market forces. Given the investment needed for technological restructuring and capital replacement, as well as for alleviation of social consequences of restructuring, even horizontal industrial policy tools may not be enough.


Hypothesis of purchasing power parity basically depends on the presumption of unique price in international trade. The price of a good is the same all over the world when it is converted to a common currency. In other words, one unit of national currency has the same purchasing power everywhere in the world. The other form of purchasing power parity (PPP) does not depend on the assumption of unique price, instead it is based on the argument that exchange rates changes by the amount of differences in inflations of the involved countries. In this article, the validities of these two forms of PPP for Turkey have been evaluated by imposing time series applications on the quarterly data for the period of 1986Q1-2017Q4. For the sake of 2001 economic crisis, the sample period has been divided into two subperiods; 1986Q1-2001Q3 and 2001Q4-2017Q4. The unit root and cointegration tests have been applied to both of the subperiods. The statistical evidence supporting the absolute form of PPP could not have been gained. On the other hand, for both of the subperiods, the validity of relative version of PPP has been approved by the application results.


Introduction:A pinguecula is a yellowish non malignant lump that develops on the conjunctiva. It is Common degenerative condition of the conjunctiva, Yellowish white patch on the bulbar conjunctiva near the limbus. It swelled up due to deposition of fat, calcium,and protein will cause irritation leading to pingueculitis. Pingueculitis is the condition where the pinguecula remain inflamed and is vascularised. In our samhitas there is no direct reference available regarding the symptoms of Pingueculitis but by studying SushrutSmahita the sings, symptoms and aetiologyof PistakNetrarogamuch correlated with Pingueculitis. According to Acharya Shuhrut and YogratnakarRaktamokshanaand the treatment of kaphabhishanda useful in pistak. Aim: To Study the Role of Jaloukavacharana in the Management ofPistaka (Pingueculitis). Objectives: To study the role of jalokavacharana to reducing the sign and symptom of pistaka with special reference to pingueculitis. Methodology – 1) Nidanparivarjana 2) Ahara -Vihara 3) Jaloukavcharana procedure. Result: The procedure Jaloukavacharanato reduce the sign and symptom ofpistak(pingueculitis). Conclucion: Ayurvedic procedure like Jaloukavacharnacan help inpistak (pingueculitis).


ABSTRACT Measuring urban form is particularly important in rapidly urbanising countries as it can help assess problems caused by inefficient planning. Despite this, there is a dearth of research on fine-scale measures of urban form in Asia and Vietnam. In this paper, we aim to identify spatial patterns of urban form measured at the intra-urban level in Lào Cai, a provincial capital city in northern Vietnam that has been transformed dramatically since its integration in the Greater Mekong Subregion. We compute 15 indicators of urban form divided into four groups: shapes of built areas, street connectivity, density of services and population, and accessibility. A spatial clustering of the indicators allows to identify five urban form types and their spatial patterns, showing that this small city is experiencing an extensive and fragmented urban growth. We question urbanisation policy underlying such urban form and suggest avenues for a more sustainable urban planning.


We study the process of photodissociation of a molecular Bose-Einstein condensate as a potential source of strongly correlated twin atomic beams. We show that the two beams can possess nearly perfect quantum squeezing in their relative numbers.


The primary glaucoma is one of the common diseases causing blindness. The pathogenesis of primary glaucoma has not yet been clear. Primary glaucoma can be divided into primary angle-closure glaucoma(PACG) and primary open angle glaucoma(POAG). The risk factors of PACG include heredity, gender, age, intraocular pressure, trans-lamina cribrosa pressure difference, myopia, psychological and mental factors. The risk factors of POAG include heredity, gender, age, hypertension, intraocular pressure, ocular perfusion pressure, trans-lamina cribrosa pressure difference, hypothyroidism, retinal oxygen saturation, diabetes, smoking and height. Therefore, assessment of these risk factors is of great significance for early diagnosis and treatment of primary glaucoma.(Int Rev Ophthalmol, 2018, 42: 245-249)

Key words:
primary glaucoma; prevalence; risk factors


Introduction. For Russia, the development of an effective industrial policy is a response to the challenge of maintaining competitiveness and increasing the productivity of the country's industrial complex. The study aims to identify and systematize the prerequisites and limitations of industrial development in the context of the institutional component of industrial policy. Theoretical analysis. We have considered the historical transformation of views on industrial policy, identified resource-industry and institutional approaches to industrial policy, and justified their differences. Based on the literature review the specific features of the institutional environment of Russia have been summarized: path dependence of previous development, weakness of institutions, institutional traps, distorting market signals. Empirical analysis. The analysis of statistical information made it possible to substantiate that over the past decades, Russia has deepened its raw material specialization, while there are some positive changes regarding the quality of the institutional environment. The analysis of the features of the institutional component of industrial policy made it possible to identify the following turning points: the creation of the Presidential Council on the modernization of the economy and innovative development of Russia; the adoption of a law on industrial policy; the modification of the system of central executive bodies and the improvement of their interaction; creation of infrastructure of the Industrial Development Funds. At the same time, a number of restrictions on the institutional environment have been identified. The most significant are: the formal and contradictory nature of the strategic planning of industrial development, duplication of powers and contradictions between formal institutions of state power, the creation of a system of "incomplete" regulation. Results. The analysis has revealed that effective institutes for the development of industrial policy have not yet been formed, despite the permanently changing institutional environment. The thesis on situational and institutional component of the fragmentation of the existing industrial policy has been confirmed.