The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of liquidity on large companies (LC). Liquidity ratios are indicative of the company's ability to pay its due debts and therefore are a good indicator of its current financial performance. The sample used in research consists of financial statements of 794 companies prepared for the period 20072013. During the observed period, the share of current assets in the company's total assets recorded a decline which means that fixed assets have a faster growth rate than current assets. The results obtained indicate that managers minimize the value of supplies within the structure of current assets. Calculated values of liquidity ratio are not compliant with applicable theory which leads us to conclusion that the companies classified as large companies have poor and insufficient coverage of short-term liabilities with current assets. However, ratio shows the positive trend and the first signs of recovery of large companies in regard to liquidity. Analysis of the companies per industry shows that not all companies were equally affected by the economic crisis. Entertainment industry and craft industry are the most liquid one while the construction industry is the least liquid.


Dermatoglyphics or study of the palmar prints is constant and individualistic. Any genetic abnormality if there is inherited and is reflected in finger prints. Psoriasis is a common familial chronic papulosquamous inflammatory skin disorder of unknown cause. Dermatoglyphics of psoriasis has been studied by various authors all over the world. The present study was conducted with an aim to find any change in dermatoglyphics of psoriatics among Coastal Odia population. The study was carried out in the department of Anatomy, MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur, Odisha. It consists of 420 cases (210 psoriatics and 210 controls). Various parameters of dermatoglyphics like total ridge count, palmar patterns, atd angle and a-b ridge count were analyzed by using statistical calculations to find out the mean, standard deviation and standard error of mean. Significance of the statistical analysis was established after finding p value and t value. After complete analysis it is concluded from the study that there is definitely a statistically significant difference in the dermatoglyphic patterns of psoriatics and controls. Keywords— Dermatoglyphics, psoriasis, ridge count, palmar pattern, atd angle.


Three copper-based compounds (copper hydroxide, copper oxychloride, copper sulphate), two antibiotics (streptomycin and kasugamycin) and a plant activator (ASM) significantly reduced population sizes and spread of C. michiganensis subsp. michiganensis among tomato seedlings in the greenhouse. Streptomycin had the best effect in reducing pathogen population size in all sampling regions. Moreover, this antibiotic completely stopped the spread of C. michiganensis subsp. michiganensis in the region most distant from the inoculum focus. Copper hydroxide mixed with streptomycin significantly limited the pathogen population, compared with copper hydroxide alone, the other copper-based compounds, ASM and kasugamycin. However, combining streptomycin with copper hydroxide did not contribute to its greater efficacy against the pathogen population. Copper-based compounds, in general, were less effective in limiting pathogen population sizes than the other treatments in all three sampling regions, primarily copper oxychloride and the combination of copper hydroxide and mannose. Among copper compounds, copper hydroxide was the most prominent in reducing the bacterial population, especially in the region closest to the inoculums focus, while its combination with mannose did not improve the effects. Kasugamycin significantly limited pathogen population size, compared to copper bactericides, but it was less effective than the other antibiotic compound, i.e. streptomycin. The plant activator ASM significantly reduced population density, and it was more effective when used three days prior to inoculation than six days before inoculation.


Decisions about scarce resources affect people most of all. This chapter discusses who should make these decisions and how they should be made.


This study examined the phenomenon of particle segregation in lean-phase binary mixtures, with a specific focus on the effect of particle size variations while flowing over a continuous liquid fluidized bed (LFB). The experimental configuration included a cylindrical column with a 72 mm internal diameter and 3 m vertical height. The binary mixture considered for this investigation was made up of solid materials that were rich in flotsam and jetsam. The study encompassed various factors, including liquid velocity, solid feed rate, and feed composition, in order to examine the separations containing flotsam and jetsam. A segregation index was calculated for each of the various combinations. On the other hand, the fluidization of the blend consisting of two solid components displayed notable differences in its behavior when compared to the reported effects of particle separation in any of the mixtures. Empirical correlations have been employed to establish relationships between variables, particularly with respect to solid entrainment and top and bottom product purity levels.


Abstract A facile, straightforward, reliable, and an efficient chemical synthesis of inosine nucleotides such as 7-methylinosine 5′-O-monophosphate, 7-methylinosine 5′-O-diphosphate, and 7-methylinosine 5′-O-triphosphate, starting from the corresponding inosine nucleotide is delineated. The present methylation reaction of inosine nucleotide utilizes dimethyl sulfate as a methylating agent and water as a solvent at room temperature. It is noteworthy that the present methylation reaction proceeds smoothly under aqueous conditions that is highly regioselective to afford exclusive 7-methylinosine nucleotide in good yields with high purity (>99.5%).


In order to accurately describe the running vehicles, based on the coupled map car following model proposed by Konishi, considering the influence of the driver's time-dependent delay time and the driver's sensitivity would change with velocity and the headway, meanwhile the actuator exist saturation constraints, introducing the fuzzy control theory, a new T-S fuzzy coupled map car following model with time-delays and control saturation is proposed, the stability of the new coupled map car following model is studied. Using the Lyapunov function theory and theorem of the parallel distributed compensation (PDC), the sufficient condition for the existence of the controller is given, which ensured that the closed loop fuzzy system satisfy the asymptotic stability under the actuator saturation is presented, the fuzzy controller gain matrix can be obtained via solving linear matrix inequality (LMI). Finally, through the simulation examples verify that the method in suppress the traffic congestion and reduce the carbon dioxide emissions is effective.


Maren culture is a tradition of the people of the Kei archipelago, especially in the community in Ohoi Ur-Island, in the form of mutual cooperation, please help fellow citizens. This culture has existed since their ancestors. However, in this era of modernization and globalization, Maren culture has begun to fade. Thisi studyi aimsi are: (1) toi determinei the younger generation's perceptioni of Maren culture, (2) to know how to develop Maren cultural values to support the values of Bhineka Tunggal Ika through a qualitative approach. The resultsi showedi ithat: (1) The younger generation's perception of Maren culture is that it is a habit or way of life of the community to relieve the help of others by working together, (2) How to develop Maren culture to support the value of Bhineka Tunggal Ika, namely (a). The local government, namely the Regent and Mayor of Tual in Southeast Maluku Regency, must be able to issue a regional regulation that can build public awareness of the importance of Maren culture, (c). For parents or traditional leaders and the community, they are re-applying the real Maren culture so that it can be seen and passed on by the younger generation.


Over the last decade, awareness about the changing nature of children's play has gradually increased, leading to some concerns that outdoor play, particularly unstructured outdoor play, is rapidly declining. Reasons for these changes are diverse and multilayered, rooted in ever-evolving sets of social and parental expectations and the children's needs for entertainment and self-expression. Parents are struggling with competing, rational, and emotive judgments (personal and social in nature) about positive and negative risks associated with play. As suggested in this article, adventure playgrounds are a specific type of outdoor play environments that have the potential to offer an abundance of developmental opportunities for children to grow emotionally, socially, and physically.


A machine model consisting of a limited number of processors, a token pool and a storage has been defined, [HaCi]. A token represents the state of a proicess, which in turn executes a branch in the search tree of a logic program. !Tokens in the token pool correspond to processes which are ready for execution but not allocated a processor. Processors execute processes as presecribed by jthe tokens and create new tokens. During an Or-parallel execution the number of processes usually exceedes the number of available processors. The problem ;of controlling the number of activities can be divided into two subproblems: (1) controlling the traversal of the search tree and (2) prunning some branches of the search tree. The solution to (1) can been seen as a scheduling problem and will be discussed in a forthcoming paper. To solve (2) we device a mechanism for prunning the search tree, removing from the system tokens representing no longer needed computations, when only one solution to a problem or a subproblem is required. We show how the mechanism is incorporated into the Or-parallel token machine without imposing any process hierarchy or message passing. We define a translation of the extended source language programs, (Ha,HHT], into sequences of abstract machine instructions and define the interpretation cycle of a processor for the extended instruction set. Finally we discuss how the mechanism can be generalised to pruning of the trees when at most n solutions is reguired, and for guarded clauses [ClGr,Sh].


The purpose of this paper is to illustrate an optimal design procedure for security fixed communication networks that, thanks to Genetic Algorithms (GAs), is capable of reaching the desired goal of preserving the architecture of buildings characterized by installation constrains, such as the historical ones, and of reducing the cost of installation, ensuring a high level of benefit/cost ratio. This technique has been used in the design of security systems of historical sites such as Vatican City State, Senate of Italian Republic, museums, churches, etc. in Italy giving excellent results.


ABSTRACT The expansion of globalizing cities into larger city-regions and, most recently, megaregions is posing fundamental questions about how best to plan and govern 21st-century urban regions. Nowhere is this challenge more acute than China, yet there is no clear understanding of Chinese megaregionalism. Debunking some inherent assumptions surrounding megaregions in China, this paper broadens the horizons beyond the narrow focus on what people have come to assume are China's megaregions to consider megaregionalism as an always evolving political–economic project. The paper argues the importance of distinguishing between planning megaregions (as discursive and imagined) and megaregional planning (as concrete and actual).


: Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is one of the most important emergencies in paediatric population. Children with diabetic ketoacidosis do not present clinically with the typical manifestations of polydipsia, polyurea, polyphagia, confusion, abdominal pain, vomiting, and dyspnoea adults. Therefore, a high index of suspicion should be there for appropriate timely diagnosis and management of this condition among paediatric age group. The most common risk factors for paediatric ketoacidosis are infection, incompliance with insulin regimen, and psychological stress. Though the most important laboratory tests for diagnosis of DKA in children are the blood glucose level and arterial blood gases, many other lab tests can help confirmation of the diagnosis, predicting the outcome, and monitoring of treatment. The mainstay treatment lines are insulin therapy and correction of hypovolemia. Electrolyte imbalance and cardiac monitoring are fundamental during the management plan, This article will discuss the epidemiology, aetiology, risk factors, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of diabetic ketoacidosis in paediatric population.


Recently, time-frequency interferometry (TFI)-OFDM has been proposed as a channel identification scheme. TFI-OFDM system can multiplex the same impulse response in twice on the time domain without overlapping to each other. Moreover, by averaging of these impulse responses, the accurated channel impulse responses are obtained. However, under the fast fading channel, the change of channel conditions is too fast to be followed by channel estimator in the receiver. Therefore, too many errors occur in data demodulation processing particularly in the last part of data symbols. To overcome this problem, in this paper, we propose the decision direct and linear prediction based fast fading compensation method for TFI-OFDM.


of Macfarlane and French, and notably in the longer appreciations of Buss/ Clarke and Johnston. A strength of The Newfoundland Diaspora is how it applies conclusions drawn by international scholars working across disparate fields to the province and its literature. The work of American social scientists, for example, helps Delisle actually extend the concept of diaspora, allowing her to move through conceptualizations of nation rooted in the Jewish experience or the development of Asian states in order to engage anew the research of Newfoundland folklorists, historians, and sociologists. Some of their voices, like those of Pat Byrne and Shane O'Dea, may still be heard; others, like those of David Alexander and Stuart Pierson, have fallen silent. That their ideas help shape the background to this innovative study demonstrates the healthy tradition of Newfoundland scholarship that has developed in parallel with its literature.


The article analyses crime rate connected with intentional destruction or damaging another's property in Volgograd region and the Russian Federation. The author defines the tendencies and regularities of this crime kind. The research presents a comparative analysis of the enumerated characteristics recorded in Volgograd region and the Russian Federation. The author shows possible prognostic scenarios of crime development connected with intentional destruction or damaging another's property for a near-term prospect.


This article is devoted to the study of Jack connection coefficients, a generalization of the connection coefficients of the classical commutative subalgebras of the group algebra of the symmetric group closely related to the theory of Jack symmetric functions. First introduced by Goulden and Jackson (1996) these numbers indexed by three partitions of a given integer $n$ and the Jack parameter $\alpha$ are defined as the coefficients in the power sum expansion of the Cauchy sum for Jack symmetric functions. While very little is known about them, examples of computations for small values of $n$ tend to show that the nice properties of the special cases $\alpha =1$ (connection coefficients of the class algebra) and $\alpha = 2$ (connection coefficients of the double coset algebra) extend to general $\alpha$. Goulden and Jackson conjectured that Jack connection coefficients are polynomials in $\beta = \alpha-1$ with non negative integer coefficients given by some statistics on matchings on a set of $2n$ elements, the so called Matchings-Jack conjecture. In this paper we look at the case when two of the integer partitions are equal to the single part $(n)$ and use a framework by Lasalle (2008) for Jack symmetric functions to show that the coefficients satisfy a simple recurrence formula that makes their computation very effective and allow a better understanding of their properties. In particular we prove the Matchings-Jack conjecture in this case. Furthermore, we provide a bijective proof of the recurrence formula for $\alpha \in \{1,2\}$ using the combinatorial interpretation of the coefficients for these specific values of the Jack parameter. Finally we exhibit the polynomial properties of more general coefficients where the two single part partitions are replaced by an arbitrary number of integer partitions either equal to $(n)$ or $[1^{n-2}2]$.


ABSTRACT There is a significant difference between de facto and de jure regimes in terms of exchange rates, especially in emerging market economies. A simple open economy model is used to test the empirical plausibility of a managed exchange rate system in which the monetary authority responds to exchange rate movements with foreign exchange intervention as an additional goal of monetary policy. This study demonstrates that this system fits the data better than a float-system specification. In addition, it is found that the authorities in Asian countries are more likely to intervene in the foreign exchange market with a higher degree of concern regarding exchange rate movements. The study empirically confirms that all emerging market inflation targeters have employed a de facto managed exchange rate system while adopting a de jure float system.


The filtering characteristics of coated phase-shifted long-period fiber grating (LPFG) is analyzed by the coupled- mode theory together with the transfer matrix method. The effects of introducing single and multiple phase shifts at various locations along a LPFG are analyzed, and the influences of the film parameters on the spectral characteristics are also studied. It is shown that the number, location and value of the phase shifts will affect the LPFG filtering characteristics. The loss peak of transmission spectrum decreases with the increase of film thickness, and the peak position shifts with the film refractive index. Compared with the non-coated phase-shifted LPFG, the coated phase-shifted LPFG not only has the similar desirable filtering characteristics, but also has a flexible adjustment ability to transmission properties. Keywords—phase shifted long-period fiber grating; transmission spectrum; filtering characteristics ; film parameters.


Introduction. To investigate and compare the effect of the multimodal approach of electrotherapy and myofascial release on pain, range of motion, and functional restriction in patients with chronic mechanical neck pain. Methods. overall, 60 patients of both genders, aged 18–40 years, with chronic mechanical neck pain were diagnosed by an orthopaedist in Shoubra General Hospital, Cairo, Egypt. They were randomly assigned into 3 groups. in group A, 20 patients received multimodal approach of electrotherapy (low level laser therapy, interferential therapy, ultrasound, and non-guideline approach in the form of stretch and strength) 3 times a week for 4 weeks. in group B, 20 patients received myofascial release therapy and non-guideline approach in the form of stretch and strength 3 times a week for 4 weeks. in group C, 20 patients received traditional therapeutic exercises in the form of stretch and strength 3 times a week for 4 weeks. All patients in all groups were evaluated preand post-treatment through visual analogue scale, cervical range of motion (CRoM) device, and neck disability index to assess pain, CRoM, and functional restriction. Results. Multiple pairwise comparison tests (post-hoc tests) revealed that there was no significant difference between the effect of multimodal approach of electrotherapy (group A) and myofascial release therapy (group B) on pain intensity level, CRoM, or functional restriction. However, these turned out significantly more effective than traditional therapeutic exercises (group C). Conclusions. Both multimodal approach of electrotherapy and myofascial release therapy are effective in treating patients with chronic mechanical neck pain.


To present the prenatal diagnosis, sonographic findings and, molecular genetic analysis of a 46,XX/46,XY true hermaphrodite chimera and to review the literature.


Owing to their high surface areas, porous networks, nanosized walls, and unique electronic structure, mesoporous metal carbides with tailored nanoarchitectures are of particular interest for their prominent potential applications in various fields, including energy storage, fuel cells, and catalysis. Herein, we report a sprout‐like growth strategy for the preparation of a mesoporous β‐Mo2C nanonetwork embedded in a nitrogen‐rich carbon matrix. The nanoarchitecture can be tailored from a mesoporous Mo2C nanonetwork film into Mo2C nanoparticles embedded into the carbon layer. The as‐prepared β‐Mo2C material was demonstrated to drive a current density of 10 mA cm−2 at a low overpotential of 140 mV for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in acidic conditions and to remain stable for at least 120 h. The excellent electrocatalytic performance may be from (1) mesoporous Mo2C frameworks offering numerous accessible active sites; (2) a carbon layer that protects the Mo2C from accumulation and favors electron transportation; and (3) shortened diffusion paths and ultrafine crystallinity that benefit its catalytic performance.


Summary In 1989 and 1991 abstracts of postgraduate theses relating to forest science and undertaken in Australia and by Australians in overseas institutions were published in Australian Forestry. The Institute of Foresters of Australia (IFA) subsequently commissioned a more complete compilation for publication on the IFA website for access by the forestry community. The details (full name, year, institution, doctorate or masters degree, field of study, genus and species, rainforest or native forest or plantation) and abstract of each thesis recording research into forestry, forest products or forestry-related topics in Australian universities or by Australians in overseas institutions were collated through direct contact with university libraries or individuals. Records of a total of 964 theses are now on the website of the IFA (www.forestry.org.au/publications/forestry/abstracts). These records are from a total of 35 institutions, of which four provided 67% of all the records; the annual number of theses completed at the latter increased sharply after the mid-1960s. The topics studied were diverse; wildlife and ecology became prominent in later years. Fifty-four percent of studies pertained to native forest (excluding rainforest), 38% to plantations and 8% to rainforest.


Partial linearization method is proposed for controling Lorenz-like system.Through partially cancelling the nonlinear cross-coupling terms the stabilization of the resulting system is realized.Finally,numerical simulation is provided to show the effectiveness and feasibility of the method.


Abstract : LONG-TERM GOAL. My long-term goals are to a) develop a mechanistic understanding of submarine debris flows and associated turbidity currents and b) incorporate this understanding into the broader context of the evolution of the morphology of the continental slope. OBJECTIVES. Objectives can be enumerated as follows. Determine the mechanisms of submarine debris flow runout. Characterize the deposits of submarine debris flows. Characterize and describe tendencies for transition to turbidity currents. Develop models for predicting runout and deposition of submarine debris flows. Extract the essentials of submarine debris flow behavior for incorporation into models of continental slope dynamics, morphology and stratigraphy.


Silibinin is the major bioactive compound of silymarin which is the mixture of flavonoliigans extracted from milk thistle. Silibinin has been shown to possess anti‐inflammatory activity, in inflammation associated with the activation of inducible nitric oxide (iNOS), cyclooxygenase (COX2), and pro‐inflammatory cytokines. However, the underlying mechanisms still remain unclear.


His‐Purkinje conduction system pacing (HPCSP) has been proposed as an alternative to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT); however, predictors of echocardiographic response have not been described in this population. Septal flash (SF), a fast contraction and relaxation of the septum, is a marker of intraventricular dyssynchrony.


Abstract The objective of this study was to investigate variation in sperm quality metrics (motility, velocity, linearity, longevity, and density) of hatchery-reared Lake Trout Salvelinus namaycush throughout the spawning season. Seasonal variation in sperm quality was investigated using both a regression and repeated-measures approach. Sperm was collected from the same 16 individuals over four sampling periods, separated by 3-week intervals. Regression analyses showed that 7–27% of the variation in sperm traits could be explained by seasonal variation, indicating that seasonality can have a significant impact on the quality of sperm. Significant positive linear relationships were found for percent motility and linearity at 5 s postactivation. Significant negative quadratic relationships were found for velocity at 5 s postactivation, longevity, and density, whereas a positive quadratic relationship was found for linearity at 10 s postactivation. Repeated measures ANOVAs showed a significant effect of seas...


This paper deals with the construction of stable discrete numerical solutions of strongly coupled diffusion mixed partial differential systems. After discretization, using a matrix difference scheme, the resulting coupled mixed partial difference problem is treated using a discrete separation of variables method which avoids solving algebraic systems. Existence, stability of solutions, its construction and illustrative examples are considered.


With the decreasing costs of electronic parts for embedded systems, complexity of their software has drastically increased. A possible solution for handling this high complexity is component-based ...


Spectral analysis based diagnosis proposes to use a prototype for the spectrum that constitutes a reference for further analyses. This prototype is used to decide that the actual signal has the same behavior as the reference one. Data used to build the prototype mast be very reliable, which is not always the case when acquisition is made in an industrial context The objective of this paper is the evaluation of the prototype validity and its use in the diagnostic decision. The study of the features of one or several reference signals, considered as prototypes of a specific behavior, is used to build a spectrum pattern representative of the specific behavior of the process (normal or specific fault). The validity of this pattern is evaluated a priori. During online diagnosis, the similarity between the actual data spectrum and the pattern is calculated thanks to the computation of a relevant distance. The pattern validity may be modified, to obtain a posteriori pattern validity. Both the similarity and the pattern validity are used to make the diagnostic decision. The proposed methodology is illustrated using an online short time Fourier transform for analyzing industrial data issued from a plate mill in metal industry. Note that plate mill and rougher of a hot rolling mill present very similar torque behavior


Ultrathin bronchoscopy aids in the diagnosis of peripheral pulmonary lesions. However, both the working channel and the specimens are small. A 1.1‐mm ultrathin cryoprobe that can enter the working channel of the ultrathin bronchoscope is now available, which may overcome the limitations of small specimen size. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, efficacy and safety of ultrathin bronchoscopic cryobiopsy using an ultrathin cryoprobe for diagnosing peripheral pulmonary lesions.


We use Salem's method to prove that there is a lower bound for partial sums of series of bi-orthogonal vectors in a Hilbert space, or the dual vectors. This is applied to some lower bounds on $L^{1}$ norms for orthogonal expansions. There is also an application concerning linear algebra.


Abstract : The effect of information relevance and information availability on perceptual differences between Chinese and American nationals was investigated. Subjects participated in pairs as decision makers in a complex experimental environment. Participants' perceptions of success, failure, and competence levels for their own team (under conditions where judgments could be based on varying levels of relevant information) and for a supposed opposing team (under conditions where perceptions had to be inferred in the absence of information) were obtained. Potential applications of the findings for military decision making and for a policy of military deterrence are considered. (Author)


The article is an attempt to answer the following questions: • whether the twenty-first century economic realities are conditions conducive to the implementation of succession programs, or inconstancy of environment, globalization processes and increase the qualifications of managers is in contradiction with the idea of succession? • whether the prevailing conditions of culture in Poland, it is possible to implement the succession process in Polish enterprises? The first part of the article shows a review and an analysis of the Polish business culture in the background of selected world cultures. Cultural factors shaping the organizational leaders and managers and the results of their impact are presented in this section. The next part is a representation of the essence and importance of succession to the position of CEO with regard to shaping her national, regional, global and organizational cultures. There are analyzed research reports and scientific studies in this area. The article ends with the presentation conceptions about the integration of the succession process and talent management, valuation of chances of their implementation in a few predictable environment of the twenty-first century and the announcement of the planned research in this area. Łukasz Haromszeki, Tadeusz Listwan


Previous research shows that a high proportion of respondents engage in other activities while answering surveys. In this study, we examine the effect of multitasking in reporting sensitive information and socially undesirable behavior (e.g., substance use, mental health, gambling) along with reporting of knowledge/awareness of publicly funded programs. The dataset comes from a dual-frame random digit dial telephone survey of adults in a Midwestern state (N = 1,761) who were asked about their attitudes and behaviors toward gambling and health-related behaviors. The results of the study reveal that nearly half of the respondents engaged in multitasking activities (46.9%). In addition, it was found that multitaskers disclosed more socially undesirable information and reported lower levels of knowledge than non-multitaskers. The implications of these findings and how they fit in with previous work are discussed.


Structural adjustment reforms, economic liberalization and globalization have put labour law and labour policy reform on the center stage of economic and social development. With heightened global competition, financial crises in some countries and high incidence of layoffs, the subject of termination of employment assumed greater significance. The key argument from employers and even policy makers in governments in most countries has been the need to align labour laws with changing economic and industrial policies. Trade unions, on the other hand, have been seeking to secure a fair balance between considerations of equity and efficiency, if they are not able to protect the existing legal safeguards. The International Labour Organization has been arguing for 'promoting change defending values', pushing the agenda for upholding the 'rights at work' through a declaration on core labour stand-


We examined the impact of a 27-week university-based professional training program on the self-rated skills and competencies of a group of New Zealand rehabilitation case managers. The extent to which training-related change transferred back to the workplace at both the individual and organisational level was also considered. Some pre-test/post-test increases in self-rated competencies were observed and these were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Training-related change back in the workplace was generally perceived to be in a negative direction, which highlights the fact that the relationship between the training process and subsequent skill/knowledge utilisation in the workplace is a complex and non-linear phenomenon. Some suggestions as to how research on training in rehabilitation might move forward are presented.


Fostering self-determination is the defining focus of empowerment evaluation and the heart of its explicit political and social change agenda. However, empowerment evaluation overlaps participatory, collaborative, stakeholder-involving, and utilization-focused approaches to evaluation in its concern for such issues as ownership, relevance, understandability, access, involvement, improvement, and capacity-building. A critical question becomes how to distinguish empowerment evaluation from these other approaches. Making such distinctions has become critical as the field debates the boundaries and implications of empowerment evaluation.


A simple, uniquely plasma-enabled and environment-friendly process to reduce the thickness of vertically standing graphenes to only 4–5 graphene layers and arranging them in dense, ultra-large surface area, ultra-open-edge-length, self-organized and interconnected networks is demonstrated. The approach for the ultimate thickness reduction to 1–2 graphene layers is also proposed. The vertical graphene networks are optically transparent and show tunable electric properties from semiconducting to semi-metallic and metallic at room and near-room temperature, thus recovering semi-metallic properties of a single-layer graphene.


Adaptive random testing (ART) describes a family of algorithms for generating random test cases that have been experimentally demonstrated to have greater fault-detection capacity than simple random testing. We outline and demonstrate two new ART algorithms, and demonstrate experimentally that they offer similar performance advantages, with considerably lower overhead than other ART algorithms.


The multiple Academy Award winning sci-fi absurdist multiverse film Everything Everywhere All At Once (Daniels, 2021) uses transpacific film genre conventions to represent the possible life variations of its Asian American immigrant family protagonists. An exception to the seeming incommensurability of commercial feature filmmaking and the anti-capitalist and anti-racist traditions of Asian American cinema, the film highlights how the conventions of transpacific genre films condition the intimate public of Asian American audiences. To be legible as an Asian American, the film shows, is to be attuned to the conventions of its dominant, often hegemonic and repressive, representations. By illustrating how genre conventions condition the sense of belonging amongst its Asian American protagonists, the film offers new ways of imagining and relating with Asian America Cinema.


Perturbation equations describing the response of hot wires and hot films operating in a simple constant temperature circuit are developed. The heat transfer model shows that at low frequencies (a( omega /Ks)12/ >1) the hot film rolls off at 30 dB/decade. Experimental measurements of the circuit frequency response to a voltage perturbation for both a hot film and a hot wire show good agreement with theory if the calculations use the measured probe time constants, and when thermal end losses are taken into account.


Private entrepreneur should put their religious belief into enterprise culture construction.It is not only because of the purely religious belief but also the consideration of actual utility.The concrete form of it embodies four aspects:spirit of enterprise,system of enterprise,behavior of enterprise,and the material of enterprise. And the in-depth mechanism of it based on the coordination of the above four aspects.The way of that private entrepreneur putting their religious belief into enterprise culture construction should be treated carefully.Because on one hand it will help private enterprise construction conform to value system of social ethics and moral rule,on the other hand it will aggravate personal color of the private entrepreneur which is the common fault of most private enterprise cultures.


The Raft River Geothermal Site has been evaluated over the past eight years by the United States Geological Survey and the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory as a moderate-temperature geothermal resource. The geoscience data gathered in the drilling and testing of seven geothermal wells suggest that the Raft River thermal reservoir is: (a) produced from fractures found at the contact metamorphic zone, apparently the base of detached normal faulting from the Bridge and Horse Well Fault zones of the Jim Sage Mountains; (b) anisotropic, with the major axis of hydraulic conductivity coincident to the Bridge Fault Zone; (c) hydraulically connected to the shallow thermal fluid of the Crook and BLM wells based upon both geochemistry and pressure response; (d) controlled by a mixture of diluted meteoric water recharging from the northwest and a saline sodium chloride water entering from the southwest. Although the hydrogeologic environment of the Raft River geothermal area is very complex and unique, it is typical of many Basin and Range systems.


The continuously reinforced concrete pavement(CRCP) has its own characteristics of working with cracks,which can be combined with the jointless technology.Based on this,we propose a new measure to absorbe the shrinkage deformation of the bridge through the approach pavements in small and middle integral jointless bridges.Combined with the topic of the jointless technology in small and middle bridge in western China,an indoor model test was implemented.And some experimental results have been yielded from the following aspects: application of active crack controlling,the law of crack developing,and the law of the stress in steel bars and Concrete.


Purpose: To develop a decision-making tool to choose the optimal treatment for oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer (OPSCC) patients who are eligible for primary transoral robotic surgery (TORS) and primary (chemo)radiation therapy with comparable locoregional control and survival. Methods: Decision tree models were constructed to study two decision-making scenarios, 1) TORS vs. definitive radiation therapy (RT), and 2) TORS vs. definitive chemo(radiation) therapy (CRT) based on well-established objective and subjective swallowing-function instruments, MD Anderson Dysphagia Inventory (MDADI), MD Anderson Symptom Inventory-Head and Neck Module (MDASI-HN), and clinician-rated Dynamic Imaging Grade of Swallowing Toxicity (DIGEST) that measure swallowing-related toxicity pre-therapy, 3-6 months (short-term), and 18-24 months (long-term) after therapy for five treatment cohorts (RT, CRT, TORS, TORS with adjuvant RT, and TORS with adjuvant CRT). The optimal treatment was sought as a function of postoperative extranodal extension (ENE) and/or positive margin (PM) that can trigger the adjuvant therapy. 2D heatmaps were constructed indicating the thresholds of postoperative events likelihoods required for TORS or definitive therapy to become the optimal treatment. Additionally, a risk calculation model was developed to quantify the risk associated with TORS in the settings that estimation of postoperative complications likelihoods may not be available. Results: Under the first scenario and for short-term measures, MDADI and MDASI instruments indicate the superiority of definitive therapy to TORS at all times, while DIGEST required a maximum of 40% likelihood for both ENE and PM events to indicate TORS as the optimal treatment. For 18-24 months measures, MDASI indicated TORS as the optimal treatment; however, MDADI- and DIGEST-based long-term measures indicated threshold likelihoods of 90% and 25%, respectively, for TORS to remain the optimal treatment. For short-term outcomes, TORS resulted in higher toxicity even when the likelihood associated with postoperative tumor resection margin (TM) are extremely low. For higher probability of postoperative TM, all instruments indicated high risk associated with TORS (>83%). For long-term swallowing-related toxicity, TORS remained the optimal therapy independent from the probability of postoperative TM based on MDASI instrument. However, MDADI-based measure assigned a high risk to TORS (>86%) when postoperative TM is extremely likely. DIGEST-based measures indicated a very high risk associated with TORS independent from the postoperative TM likelihood (>91%). Under the second scenario (TORS vs. definitive CRT), Both MDASI- and MDADI-based short-term measures indicated TORS as the optimal therapy independent from postoperative ENE/PM events. However, according to the DIGEST-based measure, definitive RT remained the optimal therapy when the probability of postoperative ENE and PM events exceed 80%. In this case, TORS was the optimal therapy if both events were not relatively likely (<55%). The same result was observed for MDADI and MDASI instruments for long-term measures indicating TORS as the optimal therapy independent from postoperative PM or ENE events. However, the DIGEST measure indicated that TORS is the optimal therapy only if the likelihood of both events are very low (<20%). When the postoperative TM is very unlikely (<10%), all instruments indicated TORS as the optimal therapy based on short-term outcomes. However, when the postoperative TM is extremely likely (>90%), DIGEST-based measures demonstrated the superiority of definitive CRT once the likelihood of postoperative ENE or PM is, at least, 60%. Long-term measures indicated higher sensitivity to postoperative TM likelihood with both MDADI- and DIGEST-based measures indicating a moderately high risk (> 60%) with TORS causing higher clinician-rated swallowing toxicity compared to definitive CRT when postoperative TM is extremely likely. Conclusion: The current study using decision modeling shows proof of concept that in the absence of reliable estimation of postoperative ENE/PM events concurrent with significant postoperative positive margins (i.e., more than 2mm) that can trigger adjuvant therapy, the overall toxicity level incurred by OPSCC patients undergoing TORS may become more severe compared to patients receiving non-surgical treatments thus advocating definitive (C)RT protocols. The results further demonstrated that, when available, the likelihoods of postoperative events triggering postoperative adjuvant therapy must be incorporated when choosing the optimal treatment plan for eligible patients.


Smart wearable (SW) devices have attracted the users' attention and their utility has been increasingly employed in different arenas of life. Of late, it is expected that wearable payments will be the norm of mobile payments soon. Recognizing the SW payments as an emerging innovation, this study investigates the consumers' adoption of SW payments. A survey method was used to collect data from SW devices users in Saudi Arabia. For this purpose, online questionnaires were distributed and a total of 269 responses were received within that 243 operational cases were used for data analysis. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique was employed to analyze the data. The statistical tools employed for data analysis are SmartPLS 3.0 and SPSS23. The findings show that all hypothesized relationships were supported except the compatibility and perceived ease of use relationship which was found insignificant. Additionally, the moderating role of personal innovativeness on behavioral intention and actual use relationship was also confirmed. Although TAM is an established robust model of technology adoption, however, the integration of technological features like (perceived esthetics, compatibility, and convenience) make it a more vigorous model for adoption of the smart wearable device.


RECOTOX: a network of research sites to implement multiple and multi-scale approaches for a posteriori environmental risk assessment in agricultural systems. EcotoxicoMic 2017 : First International Conference on Microbial Ecotoxicology


Some counties in the United States are turning to visions of sustainable development in response to increasing environmental problems caused by land use expansion and intensification. Sustainable tourism is one industry capable of fostering this change because of its relationship to all facets of a destination, from transportation and culture to natural resource management. This paper addresses a study that examined what support tourism destinations in Florida need from the Cooperative Extension Service to better utilize natural areas as responsible tourism attractions to benefit the local community, economy, and biodiversity (i.e., ecotourism). A nominal group technique, questionnaires, and interviews with local tourism professionals were used to investigate needs and support for ecotourism development. Results show, when nature-based tourism products are present, growth in ecotourism market supply is desired by tourism providers. Results also indicate that this growth is possible with the help of Extension agents, who would serve as educators on responsible tourism topics and facilitate partnerships between government, businesses, local residents, and visitors. Integrating these results into the (2013) multi-stakeholder framework developed by Waligo et al. for sustainable tourism development, this paper outlines reasoning and process for the Cooperative Extension Service to provide important support for a prevalent natural resource use.


Summary:  Purpose: The epilepsy associated with hypothalamic hamartomas (HHs) has typical clinical, electrophysiologic, and behavioral manifestations refractory to drug therapy and with unfavorable evolution. It is well known that only sessile lesions produce epilepsy, but no correlation has been established between the different types of sessile hamartomas and the diverse manifestations of the epilepsy. We correlate anatomic details of the hamartoma and the clinical and neurophysiologic manifestations of the associated epilepsy.


The fiber orientation measurement of fiber/polymer composites were studied for the model samples and the injection molding plaques. The characteristic patterns of fiber orientation of the injection molding plaques were obtained. New experimental apparatus for measuring the fiber orientation was developed, based on the light scattering theory for a rod. Polystyrene and glass fibers were used as a matrix material and a reinforced materials respectively. The fiber orientanion patterns of the transparent plaques were measured by the apparatus and the usefulness of this method for small fiber content (1-5wt%) was confirmed. When matrix polymer was opaque, the soft X-ray image pattern was used as a test specimen for the apparatus. Here, this processing for the image pattern, which was known as a spatial filtering, was achieved using a digital computer. The effectiveness of this method was shown by applying to high fiber content plaques with a small amount of the lead glass fiber as a tracer.


Abstract Purpose: We evaluated the effects of supervised intradialytic resistance training on physical activity in daily life (PADL), muscle strength, physical capacity and quality of life (QoL) in hemodialysis patients. Methods: Twenty-four hemodialysis patients were randomly assigned to either a 12-weeks moderate-intensity resistance training or a control period. An accelerometer evaluated PADL for seven consecutive days, measuring the time spent in different activities and positions of daily routine and the number of steps taken. Muscle strength, physical capacity and QoL were evaluated. Results: After 12 weeks of training, we did not find significant difference (post-pre values) in walking time (−1.2 ± 18.3 vs. −9.2 ± 13.1 min/day); standing time (−10.2 ± 28.6 vs. 3.2 ± 20.1 min/day); sitting time (20.8 ± 58.9 vs. −30.0 ± 53.0 min/day); lying down time (−9.3 ± 57.9 vs. 34.6 ± 54.0 min/day); number of steps taken [−147 (1834) vs. −454 (2066)] and muscle strength in training and control group, respectively. There was a significant increase in the six-minute walking test distance (48.8 ± 35.9 vs. 6.9 ± 45.9 m, p < 0.05) and some domains of QoL in the training compared to the control group. Conclusions: PADL was not modified after 12 weeks of intradialytic resistance training in hemodialysis patients. However, the exercise program was able to increase the physical capacity and some domains of QoL. Implications for rehabilitation Physical activity in daily life was not modified after 12 weeks of intradialytic resistance training in hemodialysis patients. The exercise program was able to increase the physical capacity, efficacy of dialysis and some domains of quality of life in hemodialysis patients. The protocol used in this study was safe since no complications were observed during and after resistance training. These results should be interpreted with caution because we applied a moderate resistance training in both lower limbs and in the contralateral arteriovenous fistula upper limb, using perceived exertion by Borg scale to exercise prescription. Moreover, the safety protocol evaluation was not conducted.


Long-term high-risk investigations into topics related to future planning and operation functions of large-scale electric utilities by university researchers encompasses a wide range of issues. Many of these issues are captured by the topics contained in the following list: ¿ Computer Applications ¿ Modeling ¿ Security Assessment ¿ Control Under Uncertainty ¿ Distribution Systems ¿ Protection ¿ Reliability ¿ Economics/Pricing ¿ Knowledge-Based Systems These topics and others were discussed at a recent NSF workshop on university research for electric power systems engineering held in Tempe, Arizona and attended by seventy researchers. This paper discusses the origin of the topics, their relation to future large-scale nonlinear systems problems, and conclusions reached based on the discussions held at the workshop.


One of the main technical problems faced during field-scale injections of iron microparticles (mZVI) for groundwater nanoremediation is related to their poor colloidal stability and mobility in porous media. In this study, a shear-thinning gel, composed of a mixture of two environmentally friendly biopolymers, i.e., guar gum and xanthan gum, was employed to overcome these limitations. The slurry rheology and particle mobility were characterized by column transport tests. Then, a radial transport experiment was performed to mimic the particle delivery in more realistic conditions. The gel, even at a low polymeric content (1.75 g/L), proved effective in enhancing the mobility of high concentrated mZVI suspensions (20 g/L) in field-like conditions. The high radius of influence (73 cm) and homogeneous iron distribution were achieved by maintaining a low injection overpressure (<0.4 bar). Based only on the information derived from column tests, the MNMs 2018 software (Micro- and Nanoparticle transport, filtration, and clogging Model-Suite) was able to predict the particle distribution and pressure build-up measured in the radial domain. Experimental and simulated results showed good agreement, thus proving that a simplified experimental-modeling procedure based on 1D column tests could be used to effectively upscale the slurry behavior to more representative scales, e.g., radial domains.


The existing quantitative phase imaging method Multifilter Phase Imaging with Partially Coherent light (MFPI-PC) has been extended to nonparaxial case. Its improved accuracy has been verified using simulations and microlens experimental measurements.


Aim: Closed extraction of a broken distal piece of the intramedullary nail is very challenging. We herein report a case of the broken distal piece of the tibial intramedullary nail remaining for 8 years, which was successfully extracted by closed method using a self-made broken nail extractor.
Case Presentation: A 51-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital for extraction of the broken distal piece of the tibial intramedullary nail for 8 years. The preoperative X-ray films showed the broken intramedullary nail was cannulated and the outer diameter is 10 mm, larger than the isthmus of the medullary cavity.
Results: After reaming with Φ 11 mm drill, the self-made broken nail extractor was inserted into the medullary cavity from the nail entry point and passed through the canal of the broken nail, and successfully pulled out the broken nail.
Conclusion: Our technique is a simple reproducible alternative that has high extraction success rate for broken distal piece of cannulated intramedullary nails.


DOI: 10.21276/sb.2017.3.11.5 Abstract: The study examines the relationship between female teachers' self-efficacy and their aspiration for leadership positions in public primary schools in Kericho County, Kenya. Although more women today are joining the teaching profession, a gender gap in leadership in favour of men persists in primary schools in Kenya. Notably, women hold less than 20% of all leadership positions in primary schools in Kericho County. It is founded on the Theory of planned behaviour and the Model of Administrative Career Mobility, from which a conceptual framework was formulated. A mixed method design was utilized. A survey questionnaire and an interview schedule were used to collect data. The study population consisted of all 461 public primary schools in Kericho County. The study employed stratified and simple random sampling techniques to sample 327 female teacher respondents from the target population. Female senior teachers and deputy head teachers were purposively sampled from the sample of schools. This study employed the concurrent triangulation strategy to analyse and interpret data. Descriptive techniques, One-Way Analysis of Variance, the Pearson Product Moment correlation and regression analysis were used to analyse the quantitative data. The qualitative data obtained from the interviews were transcribed, organized into categories, sub categories and themes, and presented in prose form. The study established a significant positive relationship between self-efficacy of the female teacher and their leadership aspiration with a coefficient of 0.373 at p-value of 0.05, accounting for 14% of the variability in leadership aspiration. The study recommends the development of programs for enhancing the access of female teachers to leadership positions in primary schools in light of their high aspiration for leadership. The study also contributes to the body of literature on women in educational leadership in Kenya.


BACKGROUND: Past clinical genetic studies have identified rare, copy number variants (CNVs) as risk factors for multiple, neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD), including autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. However, the broad, clinical characterization of these NDD-CNVs in large population cohorts, especially of diverse ancestry, is relatively understudied. We characterized the clinical presentation of NDD-CNVs in the BioMe biobank, comprising ~25,000 individuals across diverse ancestry, medical and neuropsychiatric clinical presentation, with a mean age of 50.3 years. METHODS: Individuals within the BioMe biobank harboring NDD-CNVs were identified using a consensus of two CNV calling algorithms, based on whole-exome sequencing and genotype array data, followed by a series of novel, in-silico clinical assessments. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of a set of 64 NDD-CNVs was calculated at ~2.5%, with prevalence varying by locus, corroborating the presence of some relatively, highly-prevalent NDD-CNVs (i.e., 15q11.2 deletion/duplication, 2q13(NPHP1) deletion/duplication). An aggregate set of rare, NDD-CNVs were enriched for congenital disorders (OR=1.8, p-value=0.02) and major depressive disorders (OR=1.3, p-value=0.04) in multi-ancestry analyses, and major depressive-disorder in an African ancestry-stratified group (OR=1.8, p-value=0.01). In a meta-analysis of medical diagnoses (n=195 hierarchically-clustered diagnostic codes), an aggregated set of rare, NDD-CNVs was significantly associated with obstructive sleep apnea (Z-score=3.6 p=3.2x10-4). Further, an aggregated set of rare, NDD-CNVs was associated with increased body mass index (BMI) in a multi-ancestry analysis (Beta=0.14, p-value=0,04), and in Hispanic-stratified analyses (Beta=0.30, p-value=4.2x10-3). For 38 common serum laboratory tests, there was no identified association with the aggregate set of NDD-CNVs. CONCLUSION: The current analyses elucidated clinical features of individuals harboring NDD-CNVs, in a large-scale, multi-ancestry biobank, identifying enrichments for congenital disorders and major depressive disorder, as well as identifying associations with obesity-related phenotypes, obstructive sleep apnea and increased BMI. Future recall of individuals harboring NDD-CNVs will allow for further clinical assessments beyond the electronic health records (EHR) presently analyzed, including neurocognitive and neuroimaging outcomes.


The present study was conducted to ascertain the effects of feeding varying levels of metabolisable protein on the nutrient utilization and production performance in Murrah buffaloes. Sixteen Murrah buffaloes in advanced stage of pregnancy (40–50 d before parturition) were divided into 3 groups on the basis of most probable production ability (MPPA) and lactation number. Duration of feeding trial was 130 days (40 days pre-partum to 90 days post-partum period. The animals were fed 3 different diets as low metabolizable protein (LMP), medium metabolizable protein (MMP) and high metabolizable protein (HMP) at MP levels of 85, 100 and 115% of ICAR (2013) recommendations, respectively, however, the diets had similar metabolisable energy (ME) content. The intakes of DM, ME and TDN were similar in all the experimental groups. The CP and MP intakes before and after calving were higher (P<0.05) in HMP followed by MMP and LMP groups. The digestibility of DM, OM, EE, NDF and ADF was similar in 3 groups whereas the digestibility of CP was higher (P<0.05) in HMP compared to LMP groups. Milk yield efficiency (kg/kg DMI), 6% FCM and FCM production efficiency were lower on feeding low MP diet. There was no significant change in the concentrations of β-HBA, glucose and IGF-1 on varying MP intake. Hence, feeding 75% lower MP than ICAR, 2013 recommendation in the ration decreased milk production and CP digestibility.


Juniper volatile oil is extracted from Juniperus communis L., of the Cupressaceae family, also known as common juniper. Also, in aromatherapy the juniper volatile oil is used against anxiety, nervous tension and stress-related conditions. The present study analysed the possible anxiolytic, antidepressant and antioxidant properties of the juniper volatile oil in beta-amyloid (1-42) rat model of Alzheimer's disease. The anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects of the juniper volatile oil were studied by means of in vivo (elevated plus-maze and forced swimming tests) approaches. Also, the antioxidant activity in the amygdala was assessed using superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase specific activities, the total content of the reduced glutathione, protein carbonyl and malondialdehyde levels. The beta-amyloid (1-42)-treated rats exhibited the following: decrease of the exploratory activity, the percentage of the time spent and the number of entries in the open arm within elevated plus-maze test and decrease of swimming time and increase of immobility time within forced swimming test. Inhalation of the juniper volatile oil significantly exhibited anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects and also antioxidant potential. Our results suggest that the juniper volatile oil inhalation ameliorates beta-amyloid (1-42)-induced anxiety and depression and attenuated oxidative stress in the rat amygdala. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Infrared reflection absorption (IRA) spectroscopy was applied to study the adsorption process and structural change of (methacryloyloxy)alkyl dihydrogen phosphates, M10P and M2P (see Figure 1), during their self-assembling process at a silver substrate from a methyl methacrylate solution (5 × 10-5 mol/L). The saturation coverage of M10P was completed after about 50 min, while that of M2P was completed after about 25 min. The self-assembled monolayers of both M10P and M2P gave the νs(PO32-) band around 980 cm-1, indicating that the dissociation of the dihydrogen phosphate groups takes place on adsorption to the silver substrate. At an initial stage of the self-assembling process of M10P the IRA spectra gave only the νs(PO32-) band. After several minutes of incubation there arose the νas(PO32-) band near 1080 cm-1 and the intensity ratio of νas(PO32-)/νs(PO32-) increased with time, indicating that the axis of the PO32- group of the adsorbate changes from a perpendicular orientation to a tilted one. On the o...


When it comes to the formation of real-looking images using some complex models, Generative Adversarial Networks do not disappoint. The complex models involved are often the types with infeasible maximum likelihoods. Be that as it may, there is not yet any proof for the convergence of GANs training. This paper proposes a TTUR (a two-time scale update rule) for training the Generative Adversarial Networks with a descent of stochastic gradient based on haphazard loss functions. The two time-scale update rule has separate learning rates for the generator and the discriminator. With the aid of the stochastic approximation theory, this paper demonstrates that the TTUR reaches a point of convergence under the influence of mild assumption to a kind of remote and stationary state known as Nash equilibrium. This unification or meeting point principle also applies to the widespread Adam optimization. This is a form or replacement optimization algorithm designed into stochastic gradient descent and used for tutoring the deep learning models in the system. For the Adam optimization theory, this paper evinces that it is in line with the dynamics of a weighty ball in a frictional state. Thus, we prove that it favours flat minina in the objective perspective of things. To carry out an evaluation of how GANs perform during the image creation process, this paper presents what we have termed the 'Fréchet Inception Distance", also known as FID—a concept known to dwell on the resemblance between the images created and the real ones in a way that is more improved compared to the Inception Score. Experimentally, the TTUR helps in the bettering of DCGANs and Improved Wasserstein GANs (WGAN-GP). This makes it perform better than the traditional CelebA GAN training, LSUN Bedrooms, CIFAR-10, SVHN and the One Billion Word Benchmark.


The surface reactivity of three kinds of carbon fiber, T300, T800 and home-made carbon fiber, were examined by acid treatment followed by acylation reaction with SOCl_2. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was employed to analyze the surface chemical properties of specimens of acid treatment and acylation reaction. The results indicate that after acid treatment the content of–COOH group, on T300 surface reached its maximal value ie 14.50%. The content of Cl element was also maximized to be 3.88 % after acylation reaction. The Cl element linked to the fiber surface by acyl chlorine covalent bond.


In this article, we study the nonexistence of global solutions to a semi‐linear structurally damped wave equation with nonlinear memory in Rn$\mathbb {R}^n$ for any space dimension n≥1$n\ge 1$ and for the initial arbitrarily data being subject to a positivity assumption. We intend to apply the method of test function to establish blow‐up results and to overcome some difficulties as well caused by the well‐known fractional Laplacian (−Δ)σ/2$(-\Delta )^{\sigma /2}$ in structural damping terms.


ED FROM Goldman RD, Carter S, Stephens D, et al. Prospective validation of the Pediatric Appendicitis Score. J Pediatr 2008;153:278–82. Correspondence to: Dr R D Goldman, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; email@example.com Source of funding: not stated. c Clinical impact ratings: GP/FP/Primary care 7/7; Paediatrics 6/7; Surgery— General 6/7; Surgery—Gastrointestinal 5/7; Paediatric emergency medicine 5/7; Gastroenterology 5/7; Emergency medicine 5/7 Test characteristics of the Paediatric Appendicitis Score (PAS) for diagnosing appendicitis in children* PAS score Appendicitis No appendicitis Sensitivity (95% CI) Specificity (CI) LR 0–2 3 529 98% (93 to 99) 73% (69 to 76) 0.03


Neptunyl NpO2n+ complexes on the surface of goethite α-(FeOOH) resulted from the interaction of neptunyl nitrate (NpO2NO3, 10-6 M) in the aqueous media with the background electrolyte (NaClO4) of ionic force 0.1 M (pH = 7.0 ± 0.2) were formed and studied with the X-ray photo electron spectroscopy. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy ionic and elemental quantitative analysis of the goethite and products of its interaction with neptunyl and plutonyl nitrates was carried out. It was established that during the studied neptunyl nitrate - goethite interaction Np4+ and Np6+ com pounds did not to form, while the complexes of neptunyl group NpO21+ containing Np5+ ions with oxygen, water and/or car bon ate ions in the equatorial planes did.


Nowadays, parametric design and various simulation methods are gaining ground in almost every engineering and creative profession. The paper investigates the practical applicability of the combination of these methods, by analysing a specific freeform structure with Grasshopper 3D and OpenFOAM and pointing out the differences between the results of a CFD simulation and the recommended methods of the Eurocode. The case study highlights the new perspectives that are opening up in the field of structural design, especially in the examination of wind effects.


Model transformation is at the heart of modeldriven development techniques. The development of model transformations typically consists of designing rewriting rules that are applied on model instances. However, the lack of systematic development methodology and re-use hamper the quality of model transformations. This study presents existing work from the literature on quality evaluation of model transformation as well as the elaboration of model transformation design patterns. We also introduce a design pattern example that demonstrates the impact on some quality aspects of model transformation. Keywords—model transformation, design patterns, model transformation quality


This chapter explores the American clergy's arguments for political resistance as they developed in the 1770s, as British actions toward the colonists became more aggressive and ultimately intolerable to the colonists. As certain pockets of colonial society suffered greatly under British attempts to coerce submission, the clergy increasingly turned to arguments for self-defense as a basis of justifying resistance. The natural right of self-defense had long been recognized as a legitimate ground for taking up arms and for engaging in defensive warfare. Arguments published in earlier centuries were reprinted in America and encouraged the colonists to understand their expressions of political resistance in terms of self-defense.


Six (Z)-3-substitutedmethylene-2H-thiopyrano[2,3-b]pyridin-4(3H)-ones were designed and synthesized. Theirstructures were confirmed by MS and 1H-NMR and element analysis. Their antifungal activity was tested by microdilution broth susceptibility for eight kinds of fungi, and the results showed that the target compounds exhibitedactivity against fungi tested to some extent. The compound 5a had the best antifungal effect among of the targetcompounds.


The aim of the present paper is to study the effect of different concentrations of Cd on the contents of N,P,K,Zn,Cd in soybean grains that are now cultivated in two kinds of typical Hunan soil,i.e.the red soil and the alluvial soil so as to improve the profitability of reasonable use of the local soil resources slightly polluted by cadmium.The results of our experiments can be shown as follows:(1)Cd stress at lower concentrations(0.25 mg/kg)helps to increase the height and biomass of soybean plants whereas depressed effects can be found at high Cd concentrations with the two kinds of tested soil.(2)Cd treatment at different concentrations may lead to the decrease of N content in the soybean grains,which has been found enhanced with the increase of the Cd concentrations.Furthermore,Cd and Phosphorus presence in the grains reveals a synergistic effect at lower Cd concentrations(0.25-0.50 mg/kg),and an antagonistic effect at the Cd increased concentrations.At the same time,the presence of Cd and potassium in the soybean grains indicates an antagonistic effect at low Cd concentrations.While an antagonistic effect is exhibited in the plant leaves,Cd and zinc presence in grains reveals a synergistic effect.(3)The correlation analysis between Cd concentrations in grains and soils prove that the Cd critical value in the red and alluvial soils is 0.157 mg/kg and 0.769 mg/kg respectively when the Cd content in the grains is below 0.2 mg/kg.


Optical methods of detection for gases and vapours can utilise a range of optical response functions the most general of which is a change in the refractive index of the sensing material.


Over the last couple of decades, there has been an intense research on strain balanced semiconductor quantum wells (QW) to increase the efficiency of multi-junction solar (MJ) solar cells grown monolithically on germanium. So far, the most successful application of QWs have required just to tailor a few tens of nanometers the absorption edge of a given subcell in order to reach the optimum spectral position. However, the demand for higher efficiency devices requiring 3, 4 or more junctions, represents a major difference in the challenges QWs must face: tailoring the absorption edge of a host material is not enough, but a complete new device, absorbing light in a different spectral region, must be designed. Among the most important issues to solve is the need for an optically thick structure to absorb enough light while keeping excellent carrier extraction using highly strained materials. Improvement of the growth techniques, smarter device designs - involving superlattices and shifted QWs, for example - or the use of quantum wires rather than QWs, have proven to be very effective steps towards high efficient MJ solar cells based on nanostructures in the last couple of years. But more is to be done to reach the target performances. This work discusses all these challenges, the limitations they represent and the different approaches that are being used to overcome them.


The thorium (or more accurately the Th-232/U-233) fuel cycle is attracting growing interest world wide and one reason for this is the reduced radiotoxicity of long-lived waste, with the Th- 232/U-233 fuel cycle often being justified partly on the grounds of low radiotoxicity for long cooling times. This paper considers the evolution of heavy metal radiotoxicity in a Molten Salt Fast Reactor (MSFR) operating a closed Th-232/U-233 cycle during different operational phases. The paper shows that even in the MSFR core, the equilibrium radiotoxicity of the thorium fuel cycle is only reached after almost 100 years of operation. MSFR was chosen because it has many theoretical advantages that favour the Th-232/U-233 fuel cycle. Conventional solid fuel systems would be expected to behave similarly, but with even longer timescales and therefore the MSFR cycle can be used to define the limits of what is practically achievable. The results are used to argue the case that a fair approach to justifying the Th-232/U-233 breeder cycle should not quote the long term equilibrium radiotoxicity, but rather the somewhat less favourable radiotoxicity that could be achieved within the operational lifetime of the first generation of Th-232/U-233 breeder reactors. (authors)


During the recent three decades from 1966 to 1995, we treated 5 patients with gastric tube cancer after a radical esophagectomy for an esophageal cancer. These patients were subjected to a study of age, location of cancer, operative procedure, pathological findings, route of reconstruction at esophagectomy, as well as endoscopic findings, prognosis and the same factors mentioned above at surgery for gastric tube cancer. Mean age was 62 years (range: 57 to 68 at esophagectomy). All cases had undergone an transthoracic esophagectomy. Three cases were reconstructed via retrosternal route, and two cases via posterior mediastinal route at the time of esophagectomy. On the other hand, at the time of operation for gastric tube cancer, a mean age was 68.4 years (range: 63 to 71). Four cancers were located in the antrum, and three cases were performed surgical local resection (SLR). Three cases keep no evidence of disease, but one was dead due to exacerbation of the disease and one died of pneumonia after surgery for the gastric tube cancer. We suggest that SLR is useful technique for early cases, because of difficulty in radical resection for gastric tube cancer. It is important to go through endoscopic examination more than once a year regularly after surgery to detect the disease in an early stage.


The aim of this research was to evaluate the collembola development in soils with different levels of heavy metals, fuels and pesticides, in laboratory conditions. Treatments were: Cadmium - 1, 10 and 100mg kg-1 soil; Copper - 50, 500 and 5000mg kg-1 soil; Zinc - 100, 1000 and 10000 mg kg-1 soil; fungicide epoxiconazol + piraclostrobina - 1 and 2L ha-1; fungicide epoxiconazol - 0,75 and 1,5L ha-1; herbicide glyphosate - 2 and 4L ha-1; burned lubricating oil - 5, 50 and 100mL kg-1 soil and diesel oil - 5, 50 and 100mL kg-1 soil and control. In the 1mg kg-1 dose of Cd there was a great increase of the collembola population and the soil pH decreased as the Cd, Zn and Cu doses in the soil increased. In the presence on fuels the collembola presented incapacity to procreate regardless the dose applied in the soil. The number of collembola showed an increase with increasing glyphosate and epoxiconazole level. The heavy metal Cu and Zn have negative impact over the collembola population and just Cd (1mg kg-1 soil) offers increase on their population in the soil. The presence of burned oil and diesel in the soil inhibit the collembolan development in the soil. The pesticides glyphosate, epoxiconazol and epoxiconazol + piraclostrobina do not negatively influence the collembola population in the soil.


Through the review of research papers about Termitomyces Heim germplasm resources in the past twenty years,this paper presents the current research of this resources including herb textual research,status and system of classification,investigation and distribution,germplasm research in molecular level,the domestication cultivation and inactivating opponents.Existing problems and developmental trends associated with Termitomyces Heim have also been discussed in this paper.


We present here a study of coatings prepared from β-Ti binary alloy Ti-39wt%Nb, a promising metallic material. TiNb is a highly corrosion-resistant and non-toxic material that is potentially applicable as a biomaterial. TiNb coatings can be prepared on substrates of widely-used materials, and promise not only improved properties but also a less high price of potential TiNb implants. A TiNb film can also be used as a barrier for limiting the potential diffusion of some allergens and toxic elements from the substrate to the surface, which can be influenced by layer properties. We deposited thin layers of TiNb by magnetron sputtering, which provides excellent layer properties in applications. These layers were prepared on substrates made from Ti, Ti alloys (Ti39Nb and Ti6Al4V) and stainless steel AISI316. The aim of our work was to characterize the structure and the mechanical properties of the layers, in dependence on the type of substrate, for application as coatings for medical implants.


Abstract Larvae of the abalone Haliotis rubra were settled on pieces of the non-geniculate coralline red alga Phymatolithon repandum. We measured a mean growth-rate of ca. 30 μmsol;day, 11 days after larval settlement which stayed constant throughout the experiment. The diatom assemblage on the surface of the alga was studied for 53 days after larval settlement using scanning electron microscopy. Two species of the genus Cocconeis were found to dominate the diatom assemblage on the surface of P. repandum. Up to 18 days after larval settlement, the diatom population increased exponentially. Eighteen days after settlement, post-larval abalone started to graze on the diatom Cocconeis scutellum leaving the bottom valves of the diatoms on the surface of P. repandum. As a result, the diatom population decreased markedly. The outermost cells and polysaccharide layer of P. repandum were often missing but we did not find any grazing marks on the thallus surface up to 53 days post-settlement. We discuss the hypothe...


This study identifies key characteristics of municipal infrastructure finance based upon extensive field research and a comprehensive review of several sewage treatment and collection projects recently completed in Hungary. Hungary's mixed regulatory system, almost entirely privatized banking and financial system and local governments with a broad range of business and economic activities and roles, amount to many examples of creative infrastructure finance that are entirely rational given the environment in which these actors operate. These creative solutions on a project-by-project basis are often suboptimal at the social level, and reveal the distortions caused by uncertainty and the perverse incentives of the existing construction grant system. In addition to identifying the actors, their roles, as well as prototype models, this study will describe in detail four disguised cases, as well as draw general conclusions and possible policy lessons.


This paper deals with an experimental measurement and a numerical simulation of shielding effectiveness of a perforated shielding enclosure using finite element method (FEM). There are shown possibilities of model definitions, differences between 2D and 3D models are discussed. Important part of simulation is the possibility to verify the model results - the simulation result should be verified in terms of total electric energy of the model on the degrees of freedom and the simulation results could be verified by measurements. A solution of illustrative example of shielding effectiveness FEM simulation is shown and the simulation results are verified by the experimental measurement results.


Provisions in government funding agreements with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) may constrain the ability of these organisations to contribute to political debate. NGOs perceive risks to their funding if they criticise government policy. Such organisations play a significant role in the democratic process, and this article examines the applicability of the constitutional freedom of political communication to 'gag clauses'. Australian courts have not considered the constitutional freedom in this context, but the Supreme Court of the United States has considered the question in relation to the First Amendment. The article shows what can be learned from American jurisprudence and Australian case law in order to challenge such provisions. 政府与非政府组织的资助协议中的条款约束了这些组织进行政治辩论的能力。非政府组织如果批评政府的政策就会感到资助受到威胁。非政府组织在民主过程中扮演了重要的角色,本文政治探讨了交流的宪政自由能否适用于"钳口条款"。澳大利亚法庭没有处理过此类宪政自由的案子,不过美国高等法庭倒是处理过和第一修正案相关的问题。本文分析了可以从美国的司法以及澳大利亚的案例法中学到什么,以挑战这类条款。


Dear Editors, We read with great interest the article by Sousa et al who have compared early surgical intervention (n 1⁄4 38) with late surgical intervention (n 1⁄4 12) for acute spinal injured patients. We appreciate the tremendous work by the authors. However, we noted that there are some issues in the article that may mislead the readers, and a few clarifications would be of benefit. First, early surgery firstly and mostly defined as the first 72 hours after injury, since the timing showed the highest differences between the 2 groups. In this study, however, the authors defined early surgery as "surgeries performed in the first 72 hours after admission". Did the authors have different considerations? Given that the hours between injury and the time of admission vary for every patient, which can significantly distort study results. Second, "delay to surgery" was mentioned in the results part and correlates strongly with the hospital stay in Figure 1, but the Y-axis of Figure 1 was named "time to surgery", which the authors defined as "the number of hours between patient's arrival at the emergency department and the time at which the spine surgery was initiated". Does "delay to surgery" means the same as "time to surgery"? This does not let the readers understand the results completely. A recent study by Du et al. who have applied AOSpine subaxial cervical spinal injury classification system in the study to evaluate the optimal timing for traumatic cervical spinal cord injury. They concluded that the early surgery for type A and type F1-3 fractures defined by the AOSpine is not required to undergo aggressive early decompression surgery, while type B and type C/F4 fractures should be surgically treated early for better clinical outcomes. Therefore, we believe that early or delayed surgery for spinal injured patients, in the future, should be considered in many aspects instead of just focussing on the timing. Once again, we appreciate the authors for the great work. It provides other guidelines for the timing of the surgical treatment for spinal injured patients.


Membrane-bound BACE1 naturally cleaves its transmembrane substrate amyloid precursor protein (APP) at the two adjacent β- and β′-sites. Cleavage at these two sites generates the heterogeneous N-terminal end of APP C-terminal fragments that are further processed by γ-secretase to release Aβ-(1-40/42) or Aβ-(11-40/42). The significance underlying Aβ-(11-40/42) in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis has remained to be experimentally elucidated, but increased production of Aβ-(1-40/42) has been broadly demonstrated to contribute to amyloid depositions in senile plaques. In this study, we show that the cleavage of APP at the β-site by BACE1 is readily disrupted through limited structural twists, whereas the β′-site is relatively better positioned to gain access to the BACE1 catalytic cavity. Radical insertion or deletion of residues between β- and β′-site also favors cleavage of APP at the β′-site. On the other hand, either lengthening or shortening the loop region of BACE1 has a minor impact on the selective cleavage of APP at these two adjacent sites, but significantly shortening the loop region impairs the ability of BACE1 to process APP at both sites. Thus, processing of APP by BACE1 is clearly dependent on a mutual structural compatibility in addition to the sequence feature. The knowledge gained from this study will potentially offer an opportunity for rational design of small molecule drugs to block the cleavage of APP specifically at the β-site while not disturbing the functions of other cellular aspartyl proteases.


Cloud computing is an Internet-based computing, whereby shared resources, software, and information are provided to computers and other devices on demand. It is an upcoming paradigm that offers tremendous advantages in economical aspects, such as reduced time to market, flexible computing capabilities, and limitless computing power. Popularity of cloud computing is increasing day by day in distributed computing environment. There is a growing trend of using cloud environments for storage and data processing needs. To use the full potential of cloud computing, data is transferred, processed, retrieved and stored by external cloud providers. However, data owners are very skeptical to place their data outside their own control sphere. Their main concerns are the confidentiality, integrity, security and methods of mining the data from the cloud. This paper discus efforts directed to which degree this skepticism is justified, by proposing to model Cloud Computing Confidentiality Archetype and Data Mining 3CADM. The 3CADM is a step-by-step framework that creates mapping from data sensitivity onto the most suitable cloud computing architecture and process very large datasets over commodity clusters with the use of right programming model. To achieve this, the 3CADM determines the security mechanisms required for each data sensitivity level, which of these security controls may not be supported in certain computing environments, which solutions can be used to cope with the identified security limitations of cloud computing. The model achieves data confidentiality while still keeping the harmonizing relations intact in the cloud. It also achieves an algorithm to mine the data from the cloud using sector/sphere framework with association rules.


Introduction: Semi-automatic neuropsychological testing has gained a position both in clinical use and in research. Comparison studies with traditional neuropsychological tests are sparse and the role of such semi-automated testing is debated. To integrate semi-automated neuropsychological testing in the established clinical setting the tests must be validated in the patient groups addressed. The aim of this study was to validate Cambridge Neuropsychological Tests Automated Battery (CANTAB) in patients with epilepsy. Material and Methods: Patients scheduled for traditional neuropsychological testing with Category test (CT), Trail Making Test part B (TMT-B), WAIS-III and WMS-R were also asked to complete the CANTAB battery. Our hypothesis was that memory tests from CANTAB (DMS, PAL) would correlate with visual memory tests from WMS-R and that a test of executive functions from CANTAB (SOC) would correlate with functions tested with TMT-B, CT and WAIS-III. Results: Scores from DMS correlated strongly with Visual Paired Associations 1 from WMS-R. From SOC results correlated both with Visual Paired Association 1 & 2, General Memory Index and Full Scale IQ. Results from PAL correlated with several results from the traditional battery: Verbal, Visual and General Memory Index, Paired Associations, Visual Memory Span Backwards, TmtB and Visual IQ. Conclusion: Our results indicate that DMS primarily tests visual matching to sample. SOC tests executive functions and also depends on non-verbal IQ and memory. Numerous correlations between PAL and traditional tests illustrates that PAL is a complex task depending on several cognitive domains, but mainly memory.


To arrive at a tenable interpretation of black history, it is important to resolve the conflict between my measure-retrospective years of schooling completed-and Robert Margo's measure-prospective accumulation across ages of cohort-specific attendance rates. My series reconciled the apparent inconsistency between the stagnant pre-1940 black-white income ratios and what scholars had previously thought was a steady narrowing of racial education differences. Margo's series not only would restore that incon


Performance of polymers as stabilizers or floccultants for controlling the properties of concentrated suspensions depends upon both the extent of the polymer adsorption as well as conformation at solid-liquid interfaces. Solids loading, polymer molecular weight and fractionation, and dissolved solid species, among others, are important factors that control the polymer adsorption and conformation and the system behavior. In this study, polymer molecular weight fractionation and adsorption changes were monitored using stepwise adsorption tests with techniques such as TOC (total organic carbon) and GPC/LS (gel-permeation chromatography /light scattering). Fluorescence and ESR (electron spin resonance) spectroscopy were used to monitor the conformation/orientation of the polymers adsorbed on the solid particles. Dissolved aluminum species in the residual solutions was monitored using ICP (inductively coupled plasma) atomic emission. Zeta potential measurements of the suspensions were made using a Zeta-Meter Model D to investigate effects of the dissolved aluminum species on the system behavior. The adsorption of PAA on alumina did not change significantly with increase in solids loading from 2 vol. % to 15 vol. % as a whole. However, there is large scattering of data at low solids loading (2 vol. %) and fixed initial high PAA concentration as found in our previous study which showed a "greater" adsorption density at low solids loading with a marked decrease in adsorption with increase in solids loading in the same range. Interestingly, the polymer adsorption behavior at high solids loading is different from that at low solids loading when the polymer sample contains impurities such as dioxane. Under the test conditions, smaller polymer molecules were found to preferentially adsorb first at the interfaces. Polymer molecular weight fractionation due to such preferential adsorption is more evident at low solids loading than at high solids loading, suggesting an increasing effect of particle-particle interaction on the polymer diffusion. Concentration of the dissolved aluminum species in the residual solutions increased significantly as the system becomes denser. Dissolved aluminum species was found to affect the conformation of PAA in the solution: PAA molecules become more coiled in the presence of the species at pH<7 even though the concentration of the species is low. Zeta potential of PAA-alumina suspensions with additions of dissolved aluminum species was markedly higher than that of PAA-alumina systems at pH 4 to pH 10, suggesting that the alumina particle surface becomes more positive in this pH range due to increasing complexation of PAA with the dissolved alumina species. Our earlier fluorescence and ESR results had suggested that the adsorbed PAA molecules tend to stretch out or dangle more into the solution as the system becomes denser. It is clear that conformation of the adsorbed polymer is an important parameter for controlling flocculation/dispersion behavior of concentrated suspensions.


We explored how anthropogenic and hydro-climatic forcing controls the dynamics of water and pesticide transport through hillslopes, as reflected in the hydrologic and water-quality measurements in stream networks draining intensively managed agricultural catchments. We adopted two parsimonious modelling approaches to examine the stochastic, episodic transport through hillslopes in response to a series of rainfall events. In both approaches, the hillslopes and the stream network act as a series of nonlinear, hierarchical, dynamic filters, to both delay and attenuate the hydrologic and biogeochemical signals observed in catchments. We used the two modelling approaches to explore the specific coupling of the hydrological and biogeochemical processes, and the role of the antecedent conditions in the observed emergent patterns along the river networks.


A method was described for reading rings appearing on vertebral centra. This method was to make polyvinyl alcohol replicas from vertebral centra for convenience of reading rings on their concave surfaces. As far as the materials examined by the authors is concerned, polyvinyl alcohol was found to be best. For making replica, polyvinyl alcohol solution is first applied on the vertebral centrum, after removing the remnant tissue and fat. Then the film is peeled off after drying, and mounted between two glass slides for reading rings with binocular microscope. As a preliminary work, the method was used to make replicas from vertebral centra of two species, yellowtail Seriola quinqueradiata nd ribbon fish Trichiurus lepturus. These replicas seemed to be better than opercular bone and otolith which have been generally used for age estimation of these species. Full advantage could be taken of the replica of vertebral centrum on ageing fish, especially those whose otolith, opercular bone and scale did not show any age marks.


Protein losses from normal corn traditionally processed into agidi paste were evaluated. Results showed that overall protein losses were as high as 52% in a 12-hr soaking and 44% in an 18-hr soaking schedule. Soluble protein losses were higher with prolonged soaking in corn. Amino acid composition of the waste-liquor (WL) from 12-hr soaking was significantly (p < 0.05) different from other processing fractions. The results indicated that minimal use of water in wet-sieving and utilization of waste-liquor in agidi preparation improved the nutritive value of agidi.


A satire on donald trump's Books Scott Dikkers, Ed. Trump's America: The Complete Loser's Guide. Stockbridge (MA): Blaffo Books: Micro Publishing Media, Inc., 2016. ISBN: 978-1-944068-16-5. $19.95. 168pp.This book caught my attention at ALA because there is a bald eagle in Trump's wig on the front cover perched on his shoulder. I assumed it was a satire, and then I saw Trump's name and signature at the bottom of the Foreword and the operator of the booth had to explain that Trump did not really write it and that it was an imitation of his style. Having now read this Foreword, it's a very clever foreword indeed and captures his nonsensical, circular writing style that manages to keep going on without really saying anything.This is a great book for anybody that wants to have a good laugh or is interested in the science of forgery and wants to study hundreds of brilliantly executed fake documents. I created some of my own fake death certificates and coroner's reports for a novel recently, so the detail these art designers managed to insert is admirable. For example, the "Certificate of Birth" has realistic borders, stamp and other components, and yet has obviously not been scanned from an actual certificate, but rather re-created from basic parts in InDesign. I recognize the typeface used as a recently freely released Google font that mim- ics a typewriter and looks very realistic. I think this font was partially erased in spots to make it look more real (14). The Report Card has bended edges and shows natural wear-and-tear, while it is obviously completely fake because the graded sections are: Math, Negotiation, Introduction to Yelling, and Bribery (15). An article about an accident that left Trump's hair damaged has edges that don't look entirely real, and rather as if they were trimmed to look ripped and then underlined with intermittent black lines, but it's a very good attempt. This article is formatted just lie a real newspaper article from the 1952 era (16). The variety of handwritings on Donald Trump's yearbook clip is fantastic because it looks like a series of young people contributed to it as no single forger could've mimicked all these handwritings. The ink on these also stands out, so that it looks as if these were scribbled on the book itself; in other words it's a very realistic image and the quotes included are fantastic, like: "SEE YOU IN COURT-Mary Beth O'Connor." A transformer-like statue composed of the various Trump towers does not look realistic as it is hovering off the ground in an unrelated photo of New York City, but it is a creative attempt (19). The mimicked covers are hilarious and really look like the books Trump authored. One of these stands out from the rest because there's a half-naked body of a woman on it, and the title is: My Beautiful Daughter Ivanka: A Book of Erotic Photography (22-3). It's amazing how they managed to find so many photos of Trump available for purchase. Each of the photos in the book is an absurd Photoshop edit that uses anything from a gorilla (34) to a shot of Nancy Pelosi behind the congressional podium (35) to create an alternate reality akin to what life would be like under a Trump presidency.The stories in the clippings exaggerate actual accusations or proven stories from Trump's life. In one, his father is accused of repelling blacks from his real-estate (18), in another Trump offers "Urban Kids Gambling Tips" (20).One of the more disturbing imitations is the "Breast Trump," because it features Trump's head with the eyes cut out and mouth wide open, teeth fully exposed, ready to pump a new mother's breasts (21).Most of the accusations made against him with satire seem to be accurate. For example a section, "To Be Thrown Out of the White House on Day One" includes: "Any administrative assistant over 26," "China," "Congress," and "Supreme Court" (29). It seems like these are absurd accusations but not for somebody that has attempted read- ing one of his books. …


Chemokines are a large group of proinflammatory cytokines; currently, there are about 40 different chemokines produced by different cellular sources and with pleiotropic actions. Interest in chemokines' research is growing due to their selectivity to activate and to direct the traffic of different leukocyte populations, in contrast with other chemotactic factors that attract neutrophils and monocytes similarly. Furthermore, it has been observed that chemokines are involved in hematopoiesis, angiogenesis, tissue remodeling, tumor growth and apoptosis. As chemokines direct the migration and function of leukocytes, it has been proposed that they have an important role in the pathophysiology of some diseases such as immune-complex glomerulonephritis, ischemia–reperfussion, HIV infection and other immune reactions.


Staphylococcus bacteraemia is the leading cause of hospital acquired and community acquired bacteraemia. Complications associated are difficult to recognise. Mortality is 20 to 40%. This is a unique case discussing the metastatic spread of Staphylococcus infection following a wound infection. An informed consent was taken from the patient before publishing this case report.