H.264/AVC is a kind of video coding standard,which has higher compression efficiency and better network adaptability,and it is used in the field of high-performance video services widely.It adopts RDO(Rate distortion optimization)technique,which improves the encoding efficiency,but increases computational complexity.This paper presents a kind of fast H.264intra prediction mode selection algorithm based on the texture features and the correlation between the sub-blocks.According to the texture direction,the number of prediction modes is reduced.Based on relative independence of prediction mode in chrominance block and luminance block,and the mode correlation between sub-blocks,the RDO calculation is reduced.The experiment result shows that in the case of image quality remained unchanged,the encoding time is reduced about 65% on average.


In this letter Haurowitz discussed his and Heidelberger's research on complement, a complex system of over twenty serum
 proteins that play an essential enzymatic role in host defense mechanisms against invading organisms. The letter also highlights
 the dislocations in science brought on by World War II, including the forced emigration of scientists (Haurowitz fled his
 native Czechoslovakia for neutral Turkey during the war) and the difficulty of obtaining international scientific literature.


Abstract A survey of the desert plants as used for the medicinal/nutritive supplementation by the desert inhabitants has been undertaken. The specific use of plants/plant parts for a specific purpose has been documented. Experimental work to analyze the constituents for the purpose it is being used, has commenced. The observations indicate that plant species such as Cenchrus biflorous, Prosopis cineraria, Calligonum polygonoids, Tribulus terrestrisand Acacia niloticaetc are being used as famine foods whereas , Salvadora oleoidesand Citrullus colocynthisare used for the medicinal purpose. Chemical analysis of the medicinal plants used is in progress to link perceptions of inhabitants with the scientific evidence of constituents.


This paper develops ideal estimators to causally estimate the effect of two education reforms in India that expanded the access to schooling. These policies differed in their levels of decentralization in decision making. The different administrative levels decided which inputs the funds were allocated for and where the school-building was targeted. Comparing the two policies, I find evidence that the decentralized policy increases literacy rates more than the relatively centralized one. While one of the policies requires a Regression Discontinuity (RD) design, the other uses a multi-dimensional RD (MRD) approach. Since the MRD is new to the literature, I perform a Monte Carlo exercise to determine the ideal estimators, that may be used by researchers in other contexts as well. JEL: C1, O1, I20, I28, C5, O53,


The article is devoted to the use of landscape-geochemical mapping to study the spatial structure of the Black sea coast of Russia. Landscape-geochemical map of Black sea coast of Russia is done as a result of a complex study of the South of Russia summarizing large volume of various materials geological, soil, geobotanical, geological trends and the official in the field work process. Topographical and geological maps of scale 1:200000–1:500000 were the basis for drawing up the map of geochemical landscapes. Using these data, it was possible to establish the main factors of landscape differentiation and make auxiliary maps that characterize the taxonomic parameters: 1-plant communities and types of nature management developed in the region; 2 – types of geochemical conditions in soils; 3 – geomorphological features; 5-soil-forming rocks. All these factors are taken into account at various taxonomic levels and are clearly shown on the map of geochemical landscapes. The area of the research area is approximately 8,300 km2 . The variety of natural conditions and the wide development of anthropogenic activities caused the complex landscape and geochemical structure of the studied territory Most of the territory of the Black sea coast of Russia is occupied by biogenic landscapes (5717.2 km2 or 69 %). Technogenic landscapes on the black sea coast of Russia are developed everywhere, but their largest area is on the Taman Peninsula and the area from Anapa to Novorossiysk. The map made it possible to assess the natural differentiation and specifics of the technogenic transformation of the studied territory. The objectivity of using the landscape-geochemical map as a basis for a comprehensive study of the territory is confirmed by the results of studying the features of migration and concentration of chemical elements in soils and rocks.


Formalized knowledge is a powerful resource for AI projects, but it is usually created at great expense. Taxonomization is linking a flat set of concepts into a hierarchical knowledge graph, and in this work, we present our approach to semi-automatic generation of such concept maps, elevating a sub-domain of IATE terminology into a multilingual knowledge graph. We taxonomized a flat list of concepts within the COVID sub-domain, benchmarking two approaches to tackle this task: automatic concept map creation using an enhanced ML-powered language model and manual creation of the graph by a linguist expert. We dwell on advantages of the collaborative method, made easy by a user-friendly UI, and show how the achieved productivity rate can make taxonomization of large terminology databases viable. Copyright © 2021 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).


The present study entitled "SSR marker-assisted backcross introgression of QTL for host plant resistance to Artherigona soccata in Sorghum Bicolor" was aimed at the transfer and validation of putative QTL shoot fly resistance from donor parent IS 18551, which were mapped in previous studies, into the genetics backgrounds of elite hybrid of Parental lines BTx623 and 296B…......


NASA's Vision for Space Exploration and the missions it comprises pose large‐scale systems‐engineering problems with concomitant large‐budget investment decisions involving multiple disciplines (e.g., science, engineering, information technology), multiple constraints (e.g., time, mass, energy consumption), myriad uncertainties, and a hierarchical structure of problem decomposition with resolution of increasing fidelity. Navigation through this sea of complexity is greatly facilitated by an analytical system that includes optimization and analysis software tools. The interplay between program planning and decision‐support tools is seen here in a case study of a hypothetical mission on the Moon. The architecture of one such tool, HURON, is discussed and its application is illustrated in a comparison of the relative productivity of employing two pressurized or two unpressurized robotic rovers with two pairs of astronauts to conduct a specified group of activities. For the mission scenarios studied, a pair of pressurized rovers is shown to be significantly more productive than a pair of unpressurized rovers when calculating work accomplished divided by marginal operational costs. The HURON decision‐support system presented and successfully applied in this paper deals explicitly with combinatorial explosion of a huge design space in scheduling the activities of agents subject to constraints, deploys a productivity function as a measure of value, and automatically determines a ranked sensitivity list of important inputs. The approach is applicable to a wide class of large‐scale systems‐engineering applications. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Eng


Febrile Diseases. DR. NITZE recently exhibited his electric apparatus for the examination of the male bladder to the members of the Medical Society. This endoscope is not altogether new, but it has lately been so much improved that a short account of it may not be out of place. Endoscopic exploration is often useful in leading to the discovery of small stones or tumours, and in revealing the cause of the bleeding in certain obscure cases of haematuria. Sir H. Thompson's perineal incision does not always allow of a satisfactory examination being made with the finger, while Guyou's "high operation " is dangerous, as compared with the mere introduction of a tube by the natural passage. Dr. von Bergmann related a case of vesical tumour on which he had operated after examination with Nitze's "cystoscope," and dwelt on the advantage, in a procedure of such gravity as opening the bladder, of being perfectly acquainted with the exact site and size of the tumour. Dr. Bidder described a new method of treating furuncles by parenchymatous injections of carbolic acid. If the boil is a small one, he gives one injection of a few drops of a solution of carbolic acid (2 per cent.); if it is of medium size, two injections are given, the half or the whole of a Pravaz-syringeful of the solution being used on each occasion. In the case of large furuncles, for example, half the size of a man's hand, Dr. Bidder injects at four different spots the contents of four Pravaz syringes half or wholly filled with a solution of 2 per cent. of carbolic acid. These injections are given only once. This treatment is strikingly successful. There is some smarting at the seat of injection at first, but the pain soon disappears, and the next day there is a marked improvement in the pAtient's condition. The inflammatory swelling subsides very quickly, and in eight or ten days even the largest furuncle is dispersed. By this plan no unsightly


The objective of this research was to better understand the role of selected thermophilic bacteria in the colonization and dissolution of silicate minerals, with potential applications to the HDR Project. The demonstration of enhanced dissolution from microbial effects is critically dependent on providing a mineral bait within a media deficient in the critical nutrient found in the mineral (e.g., Fe). Reproducible experimental conditions in batch experiments require agitation to expose mineral powders, as well as nearly similar initial conditions for both inoculated cultures and controls. It is difficult, but not impossible to ensure reproducible conditions with microbes favoring filamentous growth habits.


The electric dipole (E1) response of Pb has been precisely determined by proton inelastic scattering measurement at very forward angles. The electric dipole polarizability, which is an inversely energy-weighted sum-rule of the electric dipole strength, has been extracted as 20.1±0.6 fm. The data has been used to constrain the neutron skin thickness of Pb as 0.168 ± 0.22 fm and the slope parameter of the symmetry energy as L = 46 ± 15 MeV. The determination of the slope parameter is important for nuclear physics as well as for astrophysical simulations related to neutron stars.


This editorial is about "fake publishers/ journals/ conferences", which is one of the most important problem in scholarly communication. Especially, some reasons such as academic performance evaluation, academic incentive and academic advancement trigger "fake" publishing cases.


Delusions constitute one of the most prominent psychiatric complications in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, there is little consensus of the prevalence and associated factors for delusions in AD.


Tylophora indica is very rare plant which is obtained in tropical or subtropical region of India. The leaf of this plant have antiasthmatic property and when it consume before winter for a certain period, it creates a extra immunity against cold. It is reported that the action of the leaf is more when it is consume in fresh condition. In this analysis, the fresh and dried leaves were extracted with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), acetone and ethanol. These extracts are subjected to estimation of total alkaloid, as they are the main active constituents. The result shows that the alkaloids are extracted more form the fresh leaves. All extracts of dried leaves are content less alkaloid than the fresh one. The Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) shows the presence of different compounds belongs to the group of alkaloid in different extracts.


Mangroves thrive in the intertidal areas (interface between land and sea) of tropical and sub-tropical belt and play an important role in overall attenuation of nearshore waves. Multiple interactions of waves with mangrove trunks and roots and bottom friction are the two primary mechanisms responsible for wave attenuation in mangrove forests. Earlier studies, comprising both analytical and experimental, reported an exponential decay in wave height for waves propagating over vegetation with idealized bottom topography and a few on sloping bottom. But hardly studies have attempted to characterize the wave attenuation by vegetation over varying seabed slopes since mangroves generally grow luxuriantly on gradual topography having large tidal amplitudes. Nowadays, several studies are being carried out on development of artificial mangroves to reduce the coastal hazard risks; thenceforth, there is an imperative requirement to study the wave damping characteristics of mangroves on varying seabed slopes. Consequently, this study performs sensitivity experiments to analyze the wave attenuation over mangroves with different sea-bottom slopes using a third-generation wave model. The study exposes sensitivity of wave attenuation characteristics to different beach slopes in the presence of mangroves and aims at understanding how the wave attenuation characteristics by mangroves differ with varying bottom slopes. The total percentage energy reduction for waves reaching the shoreline after propagating through mangroves on mild slope (1:80, 1:40) is observed to be 93%–98%, nearly 84% for 1:20 slope, and 67% for steep slope (1:10). The study reveals that the wave height decays exponentially for the mild slope and found to be consistent with the earlier studies, but as the degree of bottom steepness increases, the wave height reduction becomes gradual, and this can be attributed to the water depth variation, shoaling, breaking, and reflection characteristics associated with different slopes, in the presence of mangroves.


In their seminal work, Lellouch and L\"uscher derived a conversion factor relating a finite-volume matrix element, calculable using numerical lattice QCD, with the infinite-volume decay amplitude for $K \to \pi \pi$. The conversion factor depends on the $\pi \pi \to \pi \pi$ scattering amplitude with the same total isospin (either zero or two) as the $\pi \pi$ decay channel. Although an infinite tower of $\pi \pi \to \pi \pi$ partial-wave components affect the conversion factor, the $S$-wave ($\ell=0$) component is expected to dominate, and only this contribution is included in the well-known Lellouch-L\"uscher factor, with other $\pi \pi \to \pi \pi$ partial-wave amplitudes formally set to zero. However, as the precision of lattice calculations increases, it may become important to assess the systematic uncertainty arising from this approximation. With this motivation, we compare the $S$-wave-only results with those truncated at the next contaminating partial wave: the $G$-wave ($\ell=4$) for zero total momentum in the finite-volume frame and the $D$-wave ($\ell=2$) otherwise. Using the general framework for $1 \overset{\mathcal J}{\to} 2$ transitions, we quantify the effect of higher partial waves for systems with zero and non-zero total momentum as well as with anti-periodic boundary conditions, presenting both generic numerical examples and results for realistic $\pi \pi$ amplitudes taken from chiral perturbation theory and dispersive analysis. We also consider the accidental degeneracy occurring in the 8$^{\text {th}}$ excited state of the zero-momentum system. This exhibits qualitatively new features at $\ell=4$, not seen in the $\ell=0$ truncation.


Abstract : The following articles are abstracted: On the Existence of Energy Chains of Ozone Decomposition, by S. W. Benson; Kinetics of the Reactions of Alkyl Iodides with HI, by S. W. Benson and E. O'Neal; Reaction of Cyclopropane with Iodine and Some Observations of Isomerization of Cyclopropane, by S. W. Benson; The Pyrolysis of DiTertiary Butyl Peroxide. Temperature Gradients and Chain Contribution to the Rate, by L. Batt and S. W. Benson; Photolysis of Acetone in the Presence of HI. The Kinetics of Decomposition of the CH3CO radical, by E. O'Neal and S. W. Benson; Termination Products in the Pyrolysis of Dimethyl Ether, by K. Anderson and S. W. Benson; Kinetics of the Reaction of Acetyl Iodide with HI and the I2-Induced Decomposition of CH3CHO, by S. W. Benson and E. O'Neal; HCl-Catalyzed Pyrolysis of Ditertiary Butyl Peroxide, by S. W. Benson, L. Batt, and M. C. Flowers; The Pyrolysis of Organic Iodides, by S. W. Benson.


The aim of this thesis is to measure the parameters of the printing sheets by spectral photometry. The theoretical part describes the basic knowledge necessary for understanding the problems of assessing the quality of prints. In the practical part i1Pro spectrophotometer is described, with which the experiment was realized and the program KeyWizard GretagMacbeth TM, which measure and evaluate the optical densities. Measured parameters are optical density of solids process color, tone value increase and tonal values, print contrast, ink trapping, an error tone and greyness. Measurements were carried out on sheets printed on two and one laser printer and were printed on glossy coated and uncoated paper. The result of this work is the evaluation and comparing results of both types of prints.


of the city states. The material in Fried's book alone disproves a part of Bartlett's thesis, at least for the 'great Italian cities'. Whatever his conclusions, Bartlett should have taken Fried's work into account. Bartlett rests his generalisations about torture on the research of others. Very little is known about the use of torture in the thirteenth century. Even so, he has not considered several objections to his thesis that torture replaced the ordeal. The rules governing torture were strict, and the jurists defined narrowly the people who could be tortured ('infames', 'viles', etc.). According to theory, torture could be employed only in the absence of other proof, when there was a grave presumption of guilt. Thus a judge would have been permitted to torture defendants in the Kingdom of Sicily, whether the cases were 'hard' or not. importantly, a person who had been tortured had to repeat his confession before a judge after a significant interval of time, entirely free of coercion. Anyone who recanted could not be tortured more than three times. In practice, these rules were undoubtedly violated. Torture was, at times, arbitrarily imposed on defendants in the Kingdom of Sicily, whether the cases were 'hard' or not. Bartlett cites studies on the theory of torture, but he fails to supply even the basic information found in the previous paragraph. He cannot substantiate his assertion that torture 'was employed increasingly frequently' in the thirteenth century (pp. 139-41) and does not bring forward a single example of judicial torture in the thirteenth century. That torture was used is certain. That it was used commonly is not. That it was reserved for 'hard cases' is sheer speculation. There are simply no studies for the period from 1215 to 1300 on the actual use and frequency of torture. The ordeal will remain an intriguing problem for historians, and Bartlett has dealt with it critically and intelligently. The evidence is such that scholars may and will disagree. However, the procedural developments of the thirteenth century are also significant. The author of the book Bartlett wished to write will find the answers to the questions he raises (after much digging) in the rich archives of Italy.


Clear glasses were produced when SiO2 in sodium borosilicate glasses was replaced by Ga2O3. Phase separation and/or crystallization occurred after heat treatment. The porous skeleton of leached material consisted of monoclinic β-Ga2O3. The specific surface areas and pore radii are comparable to those of porous SiO2. Alumina contamination influenced the structure of the porous product.


We have developed a set-up to perform measurements of S-parameters on devices operated at low temperature, using a Vector Network Analyzer in combination with a cryogenic chamber. High accuracy in the characterization of the devices is obtained using a set of TRL calibration standards operated at the same cryogenic temperature of the DUT. Measurements have been performed on Front-End-Modules of mm-wave receivers including cryogenic LNA developed within our collaboration.


In this paper, we introduce a new concept of training and learning systems that are based on the Web and knowledge mining technologies. Knowledge mining is the process of deriving hidden and potentially useful information from the current and archival databases. Derived knowledge can possibly be in various forms of patterns, such as data summarization and relationships among data instances. We propose the design of a Web-based training and learning system that incorporates knowledge management modules to induce knowledge and manage stored knowledge objects. This new module is intended to supplement the content management and the learning management modules that exist in most Web-based learning systems. Our proposed architecture of learning environments will enable the convergence of e-learning with the knowledge management. A repository containing learner-related materials is a valuable source of knowledge to support personalization information for independent learners. The contribution of our work is the design of a knowledge-oriented system to provide an integrated, flexible, and efficient platform for intelligent learning environment suitable for both vocational training and higher educational systems.


Non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) situations in the upper atmospheres of the planets need to be understood in order to perform meaningful simulations of the radiative balance of these atmospheres. Also they are needed in order to validateand analyse the increasing number of measurements of those high altitudes, either from ground observatories or from instruments on board orbiting satellites, which can be a useful technique for sounding these highly unexplored layers. In the case of Mars, the first objective, that related to the radiative balance of the non-LTE atmosphere, is specially important above about 60 km, where the emissions by CO2 at 15-microns dominate the cooling rate of the atmosphere (Bougher and Dickinson, 1988). Also the direct absorption of solar radiation in the near-IR spectrum, between 1 and 5 micron, represents an important term in the radiation budget beetwen 50 and 120 km approximately (Bougher et al, 1994). And regarding the second aim of non-LTE studies in Mars, an avalanche of new measurements of the infrared emissions of a number of gases in the upper Martian atmosphere is being taken from instruments on board Mars Express, which are currently being analyzed. In the case of the atmosphere of Mars, these emissions offer the fascinating chance to research on a real model-data symbiosis, as the theoretical models available can be employed in data validation tasks on one hand, and on the other, the data may allow us to test and improve the model simulations also. In this presentation, we will describe the progress made recently in the modeling and understanding of nonLTE processes in the CO 2 atmosphere of Mars, based on the analysis of the new data from Mars Express. We will mention how such analysis is improving the models and how the new knowledge can be used to extend the present paramaterizations of the radiation field in the upper atmosphere currently in use in most Martian GCMs.


Mediastinal germ cell tumours (GCT) carry a poor prognosis, particularly after relapse. We have reviewed the published reports of current treatments and describe a case with a cure after an allogeneic bone marrow transplant, which is not reported in the current published data. We believe that GCT may be susceptible to a graft‐versus‐tumour effect and suggest that patients with relapsed GCT be considered for allogeneic transplantation.


Health-related limitations prohibit a human from working in hazardous environments, due to which cognitive robots are needed to work there. A robot cannot learn the spatial semantics of the environment or object, which hinders the robot from interacting with the working environment. To overcome this problem, in this work, an agent is computationally devised that mimics the grid and place neuron functionality to learn cognitive maps from the input spatial data of an environment or an object. A novel quadrant-based approach is proposed to model the behavior of the grid neuron, which, like the real grid neuron, is capable of generating periodic hexagonal grid-like output patterns from the input body movement. Furthermore, a cognitive map formation and their learning mechanism are proposed using the place–grid neuron interaction system, which is meant for making predictions of environmental sensations from the body movement. A place sequence learning system is also introduced, which is like an episodic memory of a trip that is forgettable based on their usage frequency and helps in reducing the accumulation of error during a visit to distant places. The model has been deployed and validated in two different spatial data learning applications, one being the 2D object detection by touch, and another is the navigation in an environment. The result analysis shows that the proposed model is significantly associated with the expected outcomes.


We distinguished between the expected and actual profit of a firm. We proposed that, beyond maximizing profit, a firm's goal also encompasses minimizing the gap between expected and actual profit. Firms strive to enhance their capability to transform projects into reality through a process of trial and error, evident as a cyclical iterative optimization process. To characterize this iterative mechanism, we developed the Skill-Task Matching Model, extending the task approach in both multidimensional and iterative manners. We vectorized jobs and employees into task and skill vector spaces, respectively, while treating production techniques as a skill-task matching matrix and business strategy as a task value vector. In our model, the process of stabilizing production techniques and optimizing business strategies corresponds to the recalibration of parameters within the skill-task matching matrix and the task value vector. We constructed a feed-forward neural network algorithm to run this model and demonstrated how it can augment operational efficiency.


In the area of mobile ad hoc and sensor networks, simulation became the evaluation method of choice. Due to the high number of variables--including transmission range, number of nodes, simulation area, mobility pattern--simulation settings vary largely from work to work, depending on the application scenario focused. The results for two simulations with identical setting, but different mobility models, or in some cases, just different initial node deployments can cause very different results that cause a natural tendency to compare these apparently similar simulations. This paper contributes on this problem by proposing to model mobility based the affiliation dynamics of the nodes. Thus, links become first class citizen and exogenous simulation parameters as the size of the simulation area and the number of nodes are of less importance. We show that this approach is a consistence approach to model mobility in ad hoc and sensor networks and makes simulation settings easier to compare.


Introduction Globalization Revisited Economic Crises, Neo-Classical Theory & Paradigmatic Change The Global Crisis A Christian Perspective Chinas Outward Investment: Crisis, Opportunities & Challenges Cyberpolitics in China Adaptive Stress: China & the Global Economic Crisis The Crisis & South Korea Business Groups in the Global Recession: the Case of the Japanese Keiretsu Assessing the Impact of 'the Crisis' on Sino-Irish Flows How Asia Acted with the Rest of the World in Dealing with the Crisis A Global Inter-Regional Perspective Index.


In England, a 'revised' educational code appears to be emerging. It centres upon the concept of 'personalisation'. Its basis is less in educational theory, more in contemporary marketing theory. Personalisation can be regarded in two ways. First, it provides the rationale for a new mode of public‐service delivery, one which seeks to enable 'users' to co‐produce with professionals a solution to their needs. In this endeavour, it takes further that process of marketisation which had been set in train under the New Public Management. Second, it portends a new 'grammar' for the school, in the guise of 'personalised learning'. At this stage, what shall count as personalisation—particularly in relation to personalised learning—remains incoherent and inchoate. For its justification as a policy, personalisation appeals to child‐centredness, to democracy and to consumerism. The analysis draws on contemporary social and marketing theory.


Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (RVACS) is a simple and passive decay heat removal system for FBRs. However the heat removable capability of this system is small compared to that of immersed type of decay heat exchangers. So, RVACS has limit in applicability up to about 400MWe pool type LMFBR.The objectives of this report are to confirm its heat removal capability, to estimate its applicability limit of this RVACS for FBRs and to evaluate the effects of design parameters. In this report, the plant transient analyses have been performed with thermal-hydraulic code CERES. The main results are as follows:(1) The RVACS with heat collector have large heat removal capability to reduce the peak temperature of primary Coolant by 20°C than that without heat collector.(2) The effects of stack height and level difference of overflow liner on the heat removal capability are not so large.(3) The RVACS with heat collector is applicable up to 500MWe pool type LMFBR.


The utilization of polarization information is a hot topic in the bistatic radar field. Bistatic full-polarization scattering data set and polarization decomposition theories are urgently needed. We have established an indoor bistatic full-polarization scattering measurement system to investigate the target polarization scattering characteristics (PSCs), and a data set is obtained. Due to its excellent performance, bistatic Huynen target parameters (BHTPs) are selected as the PSCs analysis tool. Then, a new BHTPs extraction algorithm is presented, which directly extracts BHTPs from the measured Sinclair matrix. It is a state-of-the-art algorithm for BHTPs extraction because of its easy implementation, robustness, and clear physical meanings. Experiment results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can extract BHTPs accurately.


A variety of combinatorial problems (e.g., in capital budgeting, scheduling, allocation) can be expressed as a linear integer programming problem. However, the standard devices for doing this often produce an inordinate number of variables and constraints, putting the problem beyond the practical reach of available integer programming methods. This paper presents new formulation techniques for capturing the essential nonlinearities of the problem of interest, while producing a significantly smaller problem size than the standard techniques.


Abstract An HPLC procedure for the simultaneous determination of metformin in combination with glipizide and gliclazide in pharmaceutical preparations is described. A Zorbax XDB C18 15 cm analytical column and UV detection at wavelength 226 nm were used. In this study, various mobile phase variables were studied to determine the effects that each had on metformin, glipizide, and gliclazide. The reproducibilities in combination I for metformin and glipizide were 1.39%, 1.30%, and in combination II for metformin and gliclazide were 1.28%, 1.75%, respectively. The determinations of glipizide, metformin (combination I), and gliclazide, metformin (combination II) gave recoveries with respect to the values declared by the manufacturers for glipizide and metformin (combination‐I) in the range 96.1–103.4%, 95.0–100.0% using peak areas, and 96.4–103.6%, 97.3–102.5% using peak heights, respectively. The recoveries for the gliclazide and metformin (combination II) were in the range 94.7–100.8%, 96.2–101.2% using peak areas, and 94.3–101.5%, 97.8–102.5% using peak heights, respectively.


Take a large piece of material and measure some of its macroscopic properties, for example its density, compressibility or magnetisation. Now divide it into two roughly equal halves, keeping the external variables like pressure and temperature the same. The macroscopic properties of each piece will then be the same as those of the whole. The same holds true if the process is repeated. But eventually, after many iterations, something different must happen, because we know that matter is made up of atoms and molecules whose individual properties are quite different from those of the matter which they constitute. The length scale at which the overall properties of the pieces begin to differ markedly from those of the original gives a measure of what is termed the correlation length of the material. It is the distance over which the fluctuations of the microscopic degrees of freedom (the positions of the atoms and suchlike) are significantly correlated with each other. The fluctuations in two parts of the material much further apart than the correlation length are effectively disconnected from each other. Therefore it makes no appreciable difference to the macroscopic properties if the connection is completely severed. Usually the correlation length is of the order of a few inter-atomic spacings. This means that we may consider really quite small collections of atoms to get a very good idea of the macroscopic behaviour of the material.


Ruthenium oxide/ruthenocyanide (ruthenium oxide/hexacyanoruthenate, or mvRuO/RuCN) and iron(III) ruthenocyanide (ruthenium purple, or RP) hybrid films have been prepared using consecutive cyclic voltammetry, and the deposition process and the films' electrocatalytic properties in electrolytes containing Rb + and Cs + have been investigated. The hybrid ruthenium oxide/ ruthenocyanide and RP films showed four obvious and separated redox couples with formal potentials between -0.2 and 1.0 V in monovalent cation aqueous solutions of RbNO 3 or CsNO 3 . The cyclic voltammograms recorded the deposition of the hybrid films directly from the mixing of Ru 3+ , Fe 3+ , and Ru(CN) 4- 6 ions in aqueous Rb + or Cs + cation solutions. An electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance and cyclic voltammetry were used to study the growth mechanism of the hybrid films. The electrochemical properties of the films indicate that the redox process was confined to the immobilized and mixed ruthenium oxide/ruthenocyanide and RP films. The electrocatalytic reduction properties of SO 2- 5 and S 2 O 2- 8 by the hybrid films were also determined. as well as the electrocatalytic properties of dopamine and epinephrine. The electrocatalytic reactions of the hybrid films were investigated using the rotating ring-disk electrode method.


Engagement with professional practice learning introduced through simulation, which includes peer and formative assessment and builds towards summative assessment in clinical practice, is central to the undergraduate nursing curriculum at UWE and at many higher education institutions across the world. This approach enriches the student experience and, as health care and the patient population continue to change and evolve, enables students to develop an adaptive and critical understanding of nursing (Berragan, 2014). These features are not just additional ways of learning nursing and developing fundamental nursing skills; they are ways of knowing nursing (Berragan, 1998). There is real potential for assessment through simulation to help students to understand the key features of nursing and learn to deliver skilled, integrated and compassionate care to their patients.
This presentation focuses upon the opportunities provided through simulation to enhance learning through assessment. Simulation supports opportunities for authentic assessment of the fundamental skills of nursing (Wiggins, 1989; Walters, 2014). The notion that assessment tasks should acknowledge and engage with the ways in which knowledge and skills are used in authentic settings is important (Boud, 2007). Assessment has a major influence upon learning, directing attention to areas of significance, acting as an incentive for learning and having a powerful effect upon students' approaches to their learning (Boud and Falchikov, 2007). Assessment also guides students, emphasizing what they can and cannot succeed in doing (Boud, 2007). It is this aspect of simulation that we wish to highlight. Our current research explores undergraduate nursing students' simulation experiences, and their descriptions of simulation during feedback, debriefing and formative assessment. It also highlights the benefits of peer assessment within the simulation learning environment as nursing students work together to demonstrate, describe and reflect upon their learning.


We propose a design approach for serial concatenation of an outer convolutional code and an inner trellis code with multilevel amplitude/phase modulations using a bit-by-bit iterative decoding scheme. An example is given for throughput of 2 bits/sec/Hz with 2/spl times/8PSK modulation to clarify the approach. In this example, an 8-state outer code with rate 4/5 and a 2-state inner trellis code with 5 inputs and 2/spl times/8PSK outputs per trellis branch were used. The performance of this code with input block of 16384 bits is within 1.1 dB from the Shannon limit for 8PSK at a bit error probability of 5/spl times/10/sup -8/ for 2 bits/sec/Hz with 10 iterations,.


Mechanical seals are commonly used in rotating machinery to contain liquid leakage past a rotating shaft. Pumps vibration often exhibit both synchronous and sub-synchronous whirling, which may lead to premature failure of mechanical seals. A test rig was developed to simulate a running pump environment for the mechanical seal. The controlled-motion test rig comprises a flexibly-mounted-rotor connected to a pair of electrohydraulic shakers. This configuration allows imposing whirl orbits to a flexibly-mounted-rotor (FMR) mechanical seal at any prescribed frequency independent of rotor speed. A 6-axis load cell provides direct measurements of the reaction forces at the mechanical seal stationary component. Five Eddy current sensors and capacity probes track the 5 DOFs of the mechanical seal dynamic face. The flow loop is a modified plan 54 with an external pump capable of delivering 32 lpm at 14 bar using VG 2 mineral oil, and an external heat exchanger to regulate oil temperature. Tests were performed on a 3-inch (76.2 mm) FMR seal. Input rotor whirl vibration was increased to 10 mils pk-pk (254 microns), while cooling flow (VG2 mineral oil) was set to 8 lpm and pressure was varied from 1.7–6.9 lpm. The measurements include steady state values of temperature, power loss, clearance and leakage; and dynamic measurements of seal face wobble, wobble-imposed torque, relative lateral movement and fluid film shear.


Bickerton, Derek (1975). Dynamics of a Creole system. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Thomason, Sarah G., & Kaufman, Terrence (1988). Language contact, creolization, and genetic linguistics. Berkeley: University of California Press. Weinreich, Uriel (1953). Languages in contact. New York: Linguistic Circle of New York. ; Labov, William; Herzog, Marvin (1968). Empirical foundations for a theory of language change. In Winfred P. Lehmann & Yakov Malkiel (eds.), Directions for historical linguistics, 95-195. Austin: University of Texas Press.


As the public health care system continues to slide, the poor are looking elsewhere for care. Is there still a way to help them without endangering the entire system? Those on the front lines say yes--well, at least maybe--if steps are taken now. Fresh ideas, new partnerships--everything is up for grabs in today's turbulent times.


The author examines the physics of the unraisable body, an exercise performed to aid in the aikido student's Ki development. It is also an essential skill for performing many of the techniques of aikido. The test is also used in other martial arts for developing and demonstrating internal energy. (non-author abstract)


In human face-to-face communication, embodied sharing using the synchrony of embodied rhythms is promoted by embodied interactions. Therefore, embodied interactions are important for smoothly initiating coexistence and communication. When there is embodied interactions with direct contact, it plays to synchronize embodied rhythms effectively. Hug behavior is one of the types of embodied interactions that involve direct contact. In this type interactions, humans whole-body contact with each other. In the case of interaction between a human and a robot, robot synchronizes embodied rhythms effectively using hug behaviors. Furthermore, embodied interactions are expected to be promoted by hug behaviors, in which robot actively approaches and requests to the human. Therefore, in this paper, we develop a hug request motion model of robot during active approach to human. At first, mutual hug behaviors between humans are analyzed in an environment with a voice greeting. Then, on the basis of this analysis results, a hug request motion model during active approach to human is developed. This model generates a hug behavior in which a robot active approaches and requests a hug behavior to a human. In addition, we developed a hug robot system that uses the developed hug request motion model. Using this robot system, the effectiveness of the proposed model is demonstrated by a sensory evaluation.


The multiatmosphere CO2 TE laser provides broad continuous turnability in the 9-11-µm region which is useful in many spectroscopic and optical pumping applications. In a single-grating laser, the linewidth is typically greater than 3.5 gHz, and it is often necessary to restrict the output power to avoid damage to intracavity optical elements. Both of these factors compromise the usefulness of the CO2 TE laser. The linewidth can be substantially reduced by using two or more gratings in the cavity. Introduction of a third (partially reflecting) mirror between the gain section and the gratings enhances the line narrowing and also helps to protect the gratings from power damage. We have analyzed several alternative multigrating resonator configurations. Using the optimum double-grating configuration resulting from this analysis, the linewidth was measured with a wedged etalon and a 128-element array of pyroelectric detectors. The result for a 10-atm laser was 600 MHz. When used with a 125-cm long, 1-atm CO2 TEA laser, the same grating combination produced consistent SLM operation.


Data on 20 659 pullets which were the progenies of 40 to 50 sires and 160 to 200 dams per generation of a strain (IWH) if White Leghorn under long term selection for part period egg production over 24 generations were studied. Realised genetic responses per generation in over all period were -0.92 day in ASM, 3.38G in 20 weeks bw, -4.92g in 40 weeks bw and -0.07g in 40 weeks egg weight. The decline in egg weight was comparatively much lower in later part as compared to early part of the study. Age at sexual maturity showed a significant decline over the period of selection and significant negative correlated response was observed in early periods. For 20 weeks body weight in the over all period realized observed in body weight at 40 weeks of age. There was poor agreememnt between expected and realized responses for all the correlated traits. Realized heritabilities were much lower in the last generation than the first generations.


A trial network was constructed in the laboratory to simulate the hydrodynamic and water quality condition of real water distribution network.Water quality indexes were monitored and correlation analysis was made.The results indicate that residual chlorine,turbidity and pH have close relation with total iron content of the water.According to the change of total iron content of the water in the trial network under different conditions,the mutual influence mechanism between iron release and residual chlorine,turbidity,and pH was analyzed and the method of iron release control was put forward.Water quality of the real water distribution network was monitored.The relationship between total iron content and residual chlorine,turbidity,and pH was described quantitatively.Two models were established to forecast total iron content of the water,which are multivariate linear regression model based on Excel and BP artificial neural network model based on Matlab.


5087 Background: Indication, technique and extent of lymph-node-dissection (LND) in endometrial cancer (EC) remains controversial and is strongly debated in cancer community. We conducted a national- and at a second step an international-survey evaluating the current status-quo of the surgical and medical management of EC. Methods: A validated 15-item-questionnaire regarding surgical and adjuvant procedures of EC was sent to all major gynaecological cancer societies and study groups worldwide. The questionnaire could also be answered online. Results: In a phase-I-national trial, the questionnaire was validated on basis of 316 German institutions. On the phase-II-international survey a total of 302 questionnaires were answered from 24 countries, mainly from Japan (38.7%), Spain (8.3%), Austria (7%), United-Kingdom (6.3%), Italy (6%), USA (4.3%) and Canada (4%). The vast majority of the participating clinics were academic (62.8%), while 75.2% of them belonged to gynaecology. Only 0.7% of the clinics interna...


The main objective of this paper is to reduce the number of predictors using multiple correlation/ association while estimating the survival of HIV/AIDS. MANOVA is used to test the association when we have two or more continuous predictors and two or more categorical predictors. Also, log-linear models are used to test the joint independence of two or more predictors. The survival times are estimated using AFTM. It is observed that the estimated survival times are not affected by the reduction of predictors from 11 to 4. Also, the estimates so obtained are more efficient as they have reduced standard error. Results of the proposed reduction method were also compared with the results of the two existing variable reduction methods, viz, LASSO and Net- Elastic method.


This study aimed to investigate the effect of deposition potential on the growth of tungsten trioxide electrodeposited onto titania nanotubes (WTNT) in a fixed solution pH of 1.5 as well as its effect on the photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of titania nanotubes (TNT). Well-ordered crystalline TNT and WTNT were obtained via anodization of titanium foil and electrodeposition of WO3 species respectively as proven via FESEM, EDX, and XRD analyses. All WTNTs showed enhanced PEC performance compared to the blank TNT. WTNT/0.65 V prepared under deposition potential at 0.65 V exhibited the highest PEC performance (Ƞ = 9.63 %) compared to other WTNTs and almost 6 times higher compared to blank TNT (Ƞ = 1.65 %). Such enhancement was due to optimal amount and morphology of tungsten trioxide deposited which enabled efficient synergetic effect between tungsten trioxide and TNT.


A neural network model, the INN (Inverted Neurons Network), is applied to the Maximum Clique problem. First, I describe the INN model and how it implements a given graph instance. The model has a threshold parameter t, which determines the character of the network stable states. As shown in an earlier work 5], the stable states of the network correspond to the t-codegree sets of its underlying graph, and, in the case of t < 1, to its maximal cliques. These results are brieey reviewed. In this work I concentrate on improving the deterministic dynamics called t-annealing. The main issue is the initialization procedure and the choice of parameters. Adaptive procedures for choosing the initial state of the network and setting the threshold are presented. The result is the \Adaptive t-Annealing" algorithm (AtA). This algorithm is tested on many benchmark problems and found to be more eecient than steepest descent or the simple t-annealing procedure.


Representative pieces of human brain were fixed in 10% formalin, embedded in paraffin and sectioned at 5 μ. Paired sections were used, one of which was oxidized in equal parts of 0.5% potassium permanganate and 0.5% sulfuric acid for 1-2 min, while the other was left unoxidized. Both the oxidized and unoxidized sections were impregnated with silver diamine. The lipofuscin granules in the nerve cells appeared as small intensely stained black dots, surrounded by a clear unstained zone, in the unoxidized sections, while in the oxidized sections there was an outer ring of intensely blackened material surrounding a central unstained dot.


Abstract Three-part specimens were produced from Norway spruce wood (Picea abies Karst.) and bonded with the following adhesives: melamine-urea-formaldehyde (MUF), phenol-resorcinol-formaldehyde (PRF), and a two-component emulsion polymer isocyanate (EPI). The effect of alternating climate conditions on bond strength was studied by tensile tests. The specimens were exposed to a three-step ageing cycle lasting for 7 days [50°C/95% relative humidity (RH), -20°C/65– 70% RH and 75°C/15% RH] which was repeated 24 times. In general, a decrease in internal bond strength of all exposed specimens was observed but it was highest in the case of MUF-bonded joints. Furthermore, a significant decrease of the tensile strength of the wood adherend perpendicular to the grain in the tangential direction was determined after the cyclic climatic changes. The mechanical performance of the different adhesives in the bond line was tested by means of nanoindentation. Reduced values of elastic modulus, hardness, and total indentation were observed after climatic treatment, particularly for the rigid MUF adhesive, whereas the flexible adhesive EPI did not show such changes.


Matthew's placement of Hosea 11:1 – "Out of Egypt I called my son" – following the arrival of Jesus in Egypt has been largely misinterpreted by scholars as a "premature quotation." The Old Testament's expanded portrayal of a symbolic Egypt, the interpretative framework of the Social Identity Approach, and the recognition of Matthew 2:13–18 as a "reflection story" add the necessary keys for understanding Hosea 11:1's placement. Old Testament exodus stories not only advance the possibility of a symbolic interpretation of Egypt in the citation, but they favor such an interpretation. The exodus allusions in Matthew's story endorse this symbolic interpretation of Israel as the Egyptian Other. In the looking glass of the exodus, Matthew's Flight to Egypt story reveals both the character of the Other and that of the story's hero.


Oilfield formation damage by scale formation can occur when two incompatible brine streams are mixed. A common method for preventing scale formation is the use of chemical scale inhibitors such as aminotri(methylene phosphonic acid) (ATMP). Scale inhibitors are injected and retained in the reservoir by adsorption and/or precipitation. The induction time, the period between the establishment of supersaturation and the detection of a new phase, is a measure of the ability of an inhibitor solution to remain in the metastable state. As a result, long induction times allow transport of inhibitor fluids into the near-wellbore regions without precipitation of the scale inhibitor and subsequent formation damage. In this study, an induction time model is applied to precipitation of the inhibitor (ATMP) with Ca2+ ions. The nucleation kinetics can be described by classical nucleation theory. Solution equilibrium was calculated by accounting for inhibitor dissociation and cation−inhibitor complexing as a function of ...


This paper is mainly about the integral testing technology of anchor structure's resistance.Firstly,it analysed the factors of anchor structure's resistance briefly.And then,it advanced the integral testing technology and failure criterion according to the codes.It consummated the testing technologyofanchor structure's resistance.


According to the Ambrosetti-Prodi theorem, the map $F(u)= - \Delta u - f(u)$ between appropriate functional spaces is a global fold. Among the hypotheses, the convexity of the function $f$ is required. We show in two different ways that, under mild conditions, convexity is indeed necessary. If $f$ is not convex, there is a point with at least four preimages under $F$. More, $F$ generically admits cusps among its critical points. We present a larger class of nonlinearities $f$ for which the critical set of $F$ has cusps. The results are true for a class of boundary conditions.


We study the simplicial coalgebra of chains on a simplicial set with respect to three notions of weak equivalence. To this end, we construct three model structures on the category of reduced simplicial sets for any commutative ring R. The weak equivalences are given by: (1) an R-linearized version of categorical equivalences, (2) maps inducing an isomorphism on fundamental groups and an R-homology equivalence between universal covers, and (3) R-homology equivalences. Analogously, for any field F, we construct three model structures on the category of connected simplicial cocommutative F-coalgebras. The weak equivalences in this context are (1) maps inducing a quasi-isomorphism of dg algebras after applying the cobar functor, (2) maps inducing a quasi-isomorphism of dg algebras after applying a localized version of the cobar functor, and (3) quasi-isomorphisms. Building on previous work of Goerss in the context of (3)–(3), we prove that, when F is algebraically closed, the simplicial F-coalgebra of chains defines a homotopically full and faithful left Quillen functor for each pair of model categories. More generally, when F is a perfect field, we compare the three pairs of model categories in terms of suitable notions of homotopy fixed points with respect to the absolute Galois group of F.


Background It has been established that the urinary tract is not sterile, however, research related to the study of urine bacteria are limited. Our work aims to study the frequency and patterns of resistance of normal urinary aerobic bacterial flora. Methods Clean catch midstream urine specimens were collected from 120 young healthy females, and then cultured. Identification of bacteria and antimicrobial susceptibility were done by means of Biomérieux VITEK® 2 automated systems. Subjects who have undergone antimicrobial treatment in one month weren't included. Results The incidence of positive bacterial cultures was 54.2%, of which 21.5% were ploymicrobial. 107 bacterial isolates that encompass 12 genera and 27 species that were predominated by Gram-positive bacteria (72%) were cultivated. Staphylococcaceae (46.1%) and Enterobacteriaceae (17.8%) were the most frequently isolates among Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria respectively, from them 36 species have been identified as b lactamase producers. The top four frequently isolated bacteria are Micrococcus species (16%), Staphylococcus haemolyticus (13.2%), Staphylococcus aureus (10%), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (10%). Twenty two bacterial species were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing by using broad and narrow spectrum antibiotics and antimicrobials. Ampicillin showed the lowest susceptibility rate against Gram positives, followed by erythromycin and azithromycin. The lesser antimicrobial susceptibility potential among Gram negative bacteria was exhibited against ampicillin, followed by piperacillin and cefotaxime. Conclusion Our findings emphasize the importance of highlighting urine bacterial flora in research especially those related to susceptibility patterns, employing more advanced culture methods as multiple drug resistant bacteria were isolated.


This book offers an accessible and engaging introduction to quantum cryptography, assuming no prior knowledge in quantum computing. Essential background theory and mathematical techniques are introduced and applied in the analysis and design of quantum cryptographic protocols. The title explores several important applications such as quantum key distribution, quantum money, and delegated quantum computation, while also serving as a self-contained introduction to the field of quantum computing. With frequent illustrations and simple examples relevant to quantum cryptography, this title focuses on building intuition and challenges readers to understand the basis of cryptographic security. Frequent worked examples and mid-chapter exercises allow readers to extend their understanding, and in-text quizzes, end-of-chapter homework problems, and recommended further reading reinforce and broaden understanding. Online resources available to instructors include interactive computational problems in Julia, videos, lecture slides, and a fully worked solutions manual.


Contents: 1. Introduction Rune Ervik, Nanna Kildal and Even Nilssen 2. Comparing Social Policy Ideas Within the EU and the OECD Nanna Kildal 3. Directly-deliberative Polyarchy - A Suitable Democracy Model for European Social Policy? Milena Buchs 4. Combating Social Exclusion in the European Union Even Nilssen 5. Between Policymaking and Application of Law: The European Court of Justice and the Free Movement of Workers Aksel Hatland and Even Nilssen 6. EU and OECD Policy Advice and Changes in National Family Policy: Can Reforms be Attributed to Participation in Learning Processes? Tord Skogedal Linden 7. Policy Actors, Ideas and Power: EU and OECD Pension Policy Recommendations and National Policies Rune Ervik 8. Pension Policy of the International Labour Office Remi Maier-Rigaud 9. Towards a European Convergence in Pension Reform Priorities? Lessons from the OMC in Pensions Axel West Pedersen and Henning Finseraas 10. Health Policy - A Global Dimension? Christof Schiller, Henni Hensen and Stein Kuhnle


A randomised study of 414 patients undergoing coronary artery surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass was conducted to compare the effects of a volatile anaesthetic regimen with either deesflurane or sevoflurane, and a total intravenous anaesthesia (TIVA) regimen on postoperative troponin T release. The primary outcome variable was postoperative troponin T release, secondary outcome variables were hospital length of stay and 1‐year mortality. Maximal postoperative troponin T values did not differ between groups (TIVA: 0.30 [0.00–4.79] ng.ml−1 (median [range]), sevoflurane: 0.33 [0.02–3.68] ng.ml−1, and desflurane: 0.39 [0.08–3.74] ng.ml−1). The independent predictors of hospital length of stay were the EuroSCORE (p < 0.001), female gender (p = 0.042) and the group assignment (p < 0.001). The one‐year mortality was 12.3% in the TIVA group, 3.3% in the sevoflurane group, and 6.7% in the desflurane group. The EuroSCORE (p = 0.003) was the only significant independent predictor of 1‐year mortality.


Land and Building Tax is a tax imposed on land and building objects. Land and Building Tax is one form of taxation that has good potential for development financing therefore the management of the land and building tax becomes important. The purpose of this study was to analyze the influence of population, Gross Domestic Product, inflation rate and the amount of land area of the land and building tax receipt Ex residency in Semarang. These factors affect the increase in Tax Object Sale Value Tax on Land and Building, by increasing the Tax Object Sale Value of Land and Building Tax revenues will also increase. The population used in this study is the residency of Semarang and ex sample in this study is Semarang District, Kendal, Demak, Grobogan, Salatiga and Semarang with the data from 2006 to 2012. The selection of the sample in this study using a sample saturated. The type of data used are secondary data using methods of documentation and literature. The analytical tool used is multiple linear regression. These results indicate a variable number of population and GDP significantly influence the acceptance of land and building tax residency in Ex Semarang, meaning that any increase in population and GDP will improve also the land and building tax receipts in Ex residency of Semarang. While variable rate of inflation and the amount of land area did not significantly influence the acceptance of land and building tax residency of Semarang in Ex. Keywords: Land and Building Tax, Total Population, GDP, Inflation and Total Land Area


The article considers modern plays that show the peculiarities of the teenagers communication in the Internet. The aim of the study is to determine the impact that, according to playwrights, in the Internet communication has on the fate of adolescents. The empirical material for the study was the plays of 2013-2020, noted at the competitions of the contemporary dramaturgy and included in the collections of teenage plays: "Photo topless" by N. Blok, "That's all she" by A. Ivanov, "Mart and Sliva" by E. Bizyaeva, "Gandhi was silent on Saturdays" by A. Bukreeva. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study is based on a combination of an interdisciplinary approach with an analysis of works on literary criticism, theater studies and psychology. As a result of the investigation, it was found that playwrights reconstruct the situation of characters' being in the Internet and reflect the communication of teenagers with their peers, adults and anonymous users, whose age or gender cannot be determined. The emerging conflict situations are associated with the violation of personal boundaries (bringing the conflict into the public space of the Internet), the substitution of live communication with virtual one, the manipulation by adults of the fragile consciousness of children. In some cases, the Internet space is portrayed as a digital copy of the real life of adolescents, while the Internet becomes a platform to which traditional adolescent conflicts are transferred. In other cases, the Internet becomes a place where a teenager goes to, being in conflict with the present.


This article studies the disturbance observer-based adaptive fuzzy finite-time control issue of strict-feedback nonlinear systems. Specifically, to meet practical application requirement, the finite-time prescribed performance is considered, which can guarantee the tracking error enters into the prescribed bounded set in a known time. A disturbance observer is proposed to estimate the external disturbance. It is proved that the closed-loop system is semi-globally practically finite-time stable. Finally, simulation studies for a one-link manipulator are shown to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


Future Internet will be a network that can interconnect traditional computers and a large number of intelligent objects or networks through IPv6 such as Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN). The Internet of Things (IoT) is required to link many services and our lives depend on its availability and its good fonctionnement.Par Therefore, among many challenges, the challenge of solving the problem of the security of communications between objects in the IoT. The traditional Internet has already established and tested conventional means and techniques of security to prototype networks connected to the Internet. The IoT requires multidimensional security solutions where communication is ensured with confidentiality, integrity and authentication services; the network is protected against intrusion and disruption; and the data is encrypted and stored at a sensor node. The security of IoT communication can be secured to different layers in the OSI model, using standardized security systems, such as at the link layer using IEEE 802.15.4, at the network layer with IP (IPsec) and at the transport layer with Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS). This paper studied the different types of attacks, the security issues in WSN and cons-measures with the complete comparison of attacks against the OSI model layers in Wireless Sensor Networks.


Applied monitoring studies of air pollution are often based on the use of time-tested, but not the most modern methods. The experience of the use of a complex method of atmospheric particle suspensions research, including laser granulometry, high-resolution mass spectrometry, light microscopy with Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersion analysis in hygienics and environmental research is discussed in the paper.


Iodine is a trace element that is essential for the synthesis of thyroid hormone [1]. Both chronic iodine deficiency and iodine excess have been associated with hypertrophy and hyperplasia of thyroid follicular cells [2]. Using experimental mice, an extensive study of benign and malignant thyroid tumors were induced with radioiodine [3-7]. External (I131 or ionizing) radiation exposure to the head and neck region in children is well known causes of thyroid cancer [8,9]. Another environmental etiology for thyroid cancer is dietary iodine content [10,11]. Increased PTC occurs with a high frequently in region with a high dietary iodine intake such as Iceland and Pacific Bay Area [12,13].


"This book is a report on the major effort made to establish a breadfruit germplasm collection at the University of the West Indies, at St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, and to describe each cultivar in the collection. Cultivars are from the Pacific islands and the Caribbean. This effort is highly commendable because breadfruit, among its various attributes, can be a valuable and staple source of food, yet information on this tree crop is sparse. This is not surprising as it takes several years to collect reliable data on tree crops, and breadfruit has been a neglected, underutilized crop. "As with any other crop, certain breadfruit cultivars grow better under some environmental conditions, are more resistant to pests and diseases, and are more suitable for various types of processing, than other cultivars. The detailed descriptions of the morphology and other characteristics made by Laura Roberts- Nkrumah are essential steps for identifying and selecting suitable cultivars for the desired purpose – for use as fresh or frozen food, for processing into flour or chips, for soil conservation and so on. "This book is useful in making any Ministry of Agriculture in the tropics, other agricultural-related organizations and institutions, and individuals aware of the diverse characteristics of breadfruit and thus select cultivars which are suitable for the intended purpose. In addition, if persons would like to have already-established cultivars identified, until DNA profiles are available, this book explains how relevant measurements can be taken, and observations made, which can then be submitted to the author for identification of the cultivar. The clearly described methods and the accompanying high-quality photographs greatly facilitate the collection of the data." —Phyllis L. Coates-Beckford, Professor Emeritus of Plant Pathology, the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica.


Phase change materials have been of increasing interest in thermal management of power batteries due to their high latent heat with minimum volume change. In this work, a numerical study of phase change materials is presented for the purpose of thermal control of the cylindrical power battery cells for applications in electric vehicles. Uniform heat density was applied at the battery cell surrounded by phase change material (PCM) of paraffin wax type contained in a metal housing. A two-dimensional cylindrical model was considered due to the model symmetry. The effects of power densities, heat transfer coefficients and onset melting temperatures were examined for the battery temperature evolution. Temperature plateaus can be observed from the present numerical analysis for the pure PCM cases, and the temperature level depending on the power densities, heat transfer coefficients, melting temperatures. In addition, the copper foam of high thermal conductivity was inserted into the PCM to enhance the heat transfer. The local thermal non-equilibrium between the metal foam and the PCM was taken into account in the numerical modeling. The significant thermal enhancement with copper foam was observed with lowered battery temperature.


2018 saw contentious shifts in European gender policy and public awareness. Among these was the suppression of gender studies in universities in Viktor Orban's Hungary, where a conservative, nationalist majority has taken leadership despite fierce opposition not only from Hungarian academia but the international community. Other developments, while hopeful, serve to remind gender scholars that the success of human rights campaigns is not assured and victories, while brilliant, are precarious at best. The repeal of Ireland's abortion laws by referendum, for example, carries with it new challenges in ethics and legislation and is still opposed by 33 per cent of the voting population, despite news sources lauding it as a 'landslide victory' (The Guardian 2018). It is in the context of such volatility that AntiGender Campaigns in Europe: Mobilizing Against Equality becomes a valuable resource to dissect and analyze the factors, figures and mechanisms of anti-gender movements in the continent.


Johannes Magnus' (1488-1544) Historia de omnibus Gothorum Sueonumque regibus has often been accused of lacking in truthfulness - but thos is a charge that might be laid at the door of almost any Renaissance historian. However, the importance of truth is stressed by both Johannes himself and by others, which indicates that truth was something else for them than it is for us. This paper is an attempt of tracing Johannes Magnus' idea of truth by examining his usage of sources.


Using 12 pairs of college males as Ss, a study was done to determine what effect, if any, the introduction of greater amounts of potential reward would have on the number of collaborative responses made by Ss when playing the G-type game introduced by Scodel, et al. (1959). Only 2 of 12 pairs played the game in a collaborative manner. The correlation between the number of collaborative responses and the amount of money for which the game was being played was insignificant. These results support those of Scodel, et al. (1939).


The current era is witnessing a proliferation of challenges of a transnational character that do not recognize the geographical limits of sovereign States, such as human traficking and pollution. Therefore, States have to establish new regional cooperative methods to find effective solutions for these challenges. Although the Maghreb States (i.e. Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia) have been suffering from the negative impacts of such challenges over the last few decades, they have not yet created an effective regional cooperative framework. In this respect, since its establishment in 1989 among the Maghreb States, the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU, Union) has not been successful in stimulating Maghreb regional integration. The current study addresses a topic that has not yet been fully exploited by legal studies in the English language. It examines, first, the genesis and institutional structure of the AMU as well as the constitutional aspects of the 1989 AMU Treaty; second, the role of the EU's multilateral and bilateral instruments in promoting Maghreb regional integration; and third, the dispute on Western Sahara between Morocco and the Polisario Front and its effect on Maghreb regional integration. The article concludes that Maghreb regional integration has so far failed due to the institutional and constitutional limits of the AMU Treaty and the political division among the Maghreb States resulting from the Western Sahara conflict. In addition, the EU so far has not followed a consistent and single approach in promoting the Maghreb integration nor did it play any role in solving the dispute on Western Sahara.


The research paper presents economic and mathematical modeling of the level of fiscal decentralization in Ukraine through a set of indicative parameters. Trends in fiscal decentralization levels are analyzed based on statistical information. The budget indicators of the united territorial communities of Ukraine are examined and the first positive consequences of the practical implementation of fiscal decentralization are shown. The improvement principles and development prospects of local budgets' fiscal autonomy in Ukraine are determined.


At the start of preschool, four-year-old pupils differ in their development, including in their capacity to self-regulate their playing and learning. In preschool and primary school, educational processes are generally adapted to the mean age of the pupils in the class. The same may apply to pupil-monitoring systems based on information and communication technology (ICT). This norm-based factor undermines the potential of ICT to support the educational differentiation needed for pupils and increases the amount of daily work for teachers. A theoretical framework is sketched in which pedagogical-didactical, organisational and ICT guidelines enhance differentiated, self-regulated playing and learning for each pupil within preschool and primary school. To develop and check such optimal education and ICT conditions in practice, a pilot and a randomised intervention study are carried out in integrated Dutch preschools/primary schools for pupils aged 4–12. Pilot results support the use of a procedure to screen each child's characteristics at the start of preschool by parents and preschool teachers, and also the immediate relevance of criterion-based and norm-based ordering ('double diagnostics') of playing and learning materials. Final attention is given to the intervention study and further development of optimal education in a European research context.


CMV is the most common cause of both congenital infection and post‐transplant infection worldwide. CMV infection can cause severe symptoms: pneumonia, encephalitis, and inflammation of vital organs. There is currently no vaccine for CMV. An understanding of how CMV progresses from its acute phase to persistence would illuminate features of the pathogen that could lead to novel treatments for the disease which block the virus from reaching latency.


A dynamical system represent the infection and propagation of HIV is considered. First a mathematical model for the HIV is simulated. Since age, sex… are important parameters in treatment of HIV disease, it is natural to consider the variables as fuzzy variables. Thus we need to consider a fuzzy dynamical system to control the HIV disease. To solve such a fuzzy dynamical system, by using α-cuts, one can convert this system to a non-fuzzy system of differential equations, then by using numerical methods one may attempts to solve these differential equations


Abstract : The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) was a military and political struggle between Left- and Right-wing factions in Spain. Despite the likelihood the Spanish Civil War would lead to a larger war in Europe, pro-democracy countries chartered a course of nonintervention and isolationism. It remains one of the most controversial periods in the Twentieth Century as it is often described as the dress rehearsal for World War II. First, this research paper will review the complex political environment in Spain before the war resulting in the outbreak of the Civil War. The second part of the paper will focus on the international political environment and the effects it had on the Spanish Civil War. It will evaluate foreign policies and the strategic-level relationships between Spain, Britain, France, the USSR, the United States, Germany, and Italy. Finally, the paper will conclude with some lessons learned from the War. (14 refs.)


1024x768 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Gastric disorders like hyperacidity and ulcers are a common clinical entity. A rational therapy for gastric ulcers still remains elusive and search for safer potential drugs is being carried out. The present comparative experimental study was planned to see the efficacy of two Ayurvedic formulations i.e. Narikela Khanda ( Cocus nucifera candy) and Narikela Khanda granules by using swimming stress induced ulcers and hypothermia in albino rats. Wister strain albino rats of either sex were divided into three groups, each group consists of six animals. Here group 'A' received Narikela Khanda suspension, while group 'B' received Narikela Khanda granules suspension and group 'C' received dose of tap water which served as stress control group. Narikela Khanda and Narikela Khanda granules were prepared in house laboratory of the department. Wister strain albino rats of either sex weighing between 150-250g were selected for the study. Effects of both the formulations were assessed on different parameters like change in body weight, effect on rectal temperature and ulcer index. Body weight decrease was seen in both the formulations compared to initial body weight. Both the formulations did not affect the rectal temperature to significant extent in comparison to stress control group. An apparent and statistically highly significant decrease in ulcer index was observed in both the test formulations treated group in comparison to stress control group. The magnitude of anti-ulcer effect was found to be higher in Narikela Khanda granules treated group.


The slowly activating delayed rectifier potassium currents, IKs, play a vital role in determining cardiac action potential duration. The channel that conducts IKs is composed of a pore-forming a subunit, KCNQ1, and a regulatory b subunit, KCNE1, whose genetic mutations cause hereditary long QT syndromes. The IKs (KCNQ1/KCNE1) channel can be modulated by various G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), such as adrenergic receptors (a and b), angiotensin receptor type 1, and endothelin receptors, which has a profound effect on cardiac excitability. In contrast to the well-known modulation by GPCRs, a little is known about modulation of IKs by receptor tyrosine kinases, including insulin receptor. A higher risk of sudden cardiac death has been reported for diabetic patients. One reason may be higher susceptibility to cardiac arrhythmia due to alteration of cardiac excitability. In patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus, a prolonged QTc interval is observed, which is speculated to increase the risk of fatal cardiac arrhythmia. Along with the prolonged QT interval, attenuation of repolarization reserve has been observed in animal models of type 1 diabetes. In addition to this longterm change in cardiac ion channels because of pathophysiological insulin, acute effects of insulin on cardiac ion channels might alter cardiac excitability, which has not been well demonstrated. In a recent study, we examined the effects of acute application of insulin on KCNQ1/KCNE1 currents. We found that insulin suppressed KCNQ1/ KCNE1 currents, in which KCNE1 played an essential role in the effects of insulin. The phosphatidylinositol 3kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway was responsible for the effects of insulin, while the MEK/ERK pathway was not. Further investigation suggested that signaling molecule(s) downstream of PI3K and upstream of Akt was responsible for the insulin action. KCNQ1/KCNE1 requires phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) for its channel activity, and KCNE1 greatly enhances the PIP2 sensitivity of the channel (in other words, the PIP2 sensitivity of the KCNQ1 channel is low). Because insulin had little effect on KCNQ1 currents (without KCNE1) in our study, and PI3K can reduce the level of PIP2 by phosphorylation, we hypothesize that PIP2 is a candidate molecule that mediates the suppressive effect of insulin. PIP2 regulates activities of various ion channels, including inwardly rectifying potassium channels and voltage-dependent KCNQ channels. PIP2 binds to channel proteins via electrostatic interactions between its negatively charged head group and positively charged basic residues in the channels, which mostly leads to up-regulation of the channel activities. Suppression of KCNQ1/KCNE1 currents by GqPCRs are reported to be due to depletion of PIP2. 7 Stimulation of GqPCRs activates phospholipase C that hydrolyzes PIP2 into inositol 1,4,5 trisphosphate and diacyl glycerol, and results in a reduction of PIP2. Although the signaling pathway is different from GqPCRs, the activation of insulin receptor could reduce PIP2 via PI3K that phosphorylates PIP2 to PIP3. Our hypothesis for a possible role of PIP2 in the suppressive effect of insulin should be tested. KCNE1 is a single transmembrane protein of 129 amino acids whose Cterminus spans from amino acids 67 to 129. A previous study suggested that four amino acids within the proximal C-terminus (R67, K69, K70 and H73) were key determinants of PIP2 binding to


The problem of preemptively scheduling jobs in the M/G/1 queue to minimize mean response time is a classic problem in computer systems. Typically, one assumes that the time it takes to preempt a jo...


In this paper,a compounding-sensing setup for measuring pressure is proposed,which is based on a fiber Bragg grating(FBG),and a precision elastic embedded metal cylinder to pass to the cantilever beam enhance the pressure sensitivity was studied theoretically.Simultaneous measurement for the pressure and temperature has been experimented by two FBGs producing two wave spike respectively,numerical simulation are conducted by finite element software ANSYS for the two-dimensional on the model.


In this paper the generalized list using head and tail link is discussed,and some algorithms,including creation,output,deletion,copy,getting head,getting tail,calculating depth of generalized list,are also discussed.


It is well-known that infinitesimal perturbation analysis gives biased estimates for multi-server queues when the service time distributions of the servers are not equal. In such cases, it is natural to ask how serious is the bias. In this paper, we analytically calculate the bias for infinitesimal perturbation analysis gradient estimators of mean steady-state system time (with respect to parameters in the interarrival or service time distributions) in a two-server Markovian queue where reversibility holds.


Along with microwave mixture IC is evolving toward the direction of high performance,high reliability, miniaturization, high uniformity and low cost, the demand to arts and crafts of chipjoint is increasingly high. Several kinds of arts and crafts of eutectic die attachment are compared,the different application scope is discussed, the specific factors of impact IC quality is analyzed,some simple discussions and summary to experiment results are given.


This article examines the transformation of the construction and architectural appearance of Armavir, which in the late XIX – early XX centuries, became one of the most important centers of the Caucasus. Considers in detail the rapid growth and development of Armavir after the 1875, the Rostov-Vladikavkaz railway, which became one of the manifestations of capitalist modernization in the region. Quantitative and qualitative changes in the field of construction and architecture are analyzed in close connection with the processes of complication of social, ethnic and confessional structure of the local population. With the involvement of various sources in the article, the conclusion is justified that in the period under review, Armavir turns into the "urban" in scale and appearance, the village of the Russian Empire, comparable to provincial and regional centers of the region. The issue has scientific significance as because of its comprehensive and interdisciplinary nature, and due to the fact that the historical building of the Armavir has largely been lost in the years of the great Patriotic war, that ultimately actualizes the task of keeping the survivors in the city of historical and cultural heritage of peoples of the Kuban region in the late XIX – early XX century. Analyzing stylistic features of local development, the author comes to the conclusion about the international nature of the architecture of Armavir, which is determined by the processes of the expansion of information and communicative space and the involvement of the Caucasus into the sphere of economic globalization. The article explores the historical phenomenon of layering the settlement evolved from a small village of the Circassian Armenians to a major city. The peculiarities of its urban topography, architectural silhouette, topography and layout. Substantiates the view that the appearance of the streets and neighborhoods of Armavir in the pre-Soviet period was influenced by the functional specificity of certain areas and is directly dependent on the factors of professional orientation, social status and living standards of the local population.


The e.s.r. spectra of [Co(CN)5]3– in the presence of various bases are very similar, showing small effects due to weak interactions. With pyridine and diethylamine, hyperfine coupling to N (11.5 and 11.25 G) suggests a stronger interaction. With triphenylphosphine the unpaired electron density in the metal 3dz2 orbital is reduced to only 39% whilst that in a p orbital on phosphours is in excess of 46%. This substantial delocalisation is associated with a considerable 'flattening' of the phosphine ligand. In the presence of triphenylarsine and tirphenylstibine, complete reduction of the base takes place. The quadrupole coupling constant, Q′, for [Co(CN)5]3– is –2.5 × 10–4 cm–1, from which it is deduced that the orbital coefficient β22 for the dxy orbital is 0.85.


Abstract This paper focuses on short- and long-term migrants between Argentina and Germany, as well as between Argentina and Austria, and their discourses about their lives between their host and home countries. Blogs, journalistic articles, and in-depth interviews are analysed from a qualitative perspective in order to examine hetero- and auto-stereotypes. How can these stereotypes be described from a linguistic and discursive point of view? How do speakers express or avoid the responsibility of uttered stereotypes? To answer these questions, we draw on an overarching Critical Discourse Studies framework. At the same time, Pümpel- Mader's (2010) approach is helpful to better understand the linguistic properties of stereotypes, as it distinguishes between social categories, the characteristics attributed to them, and a series of modifiers. Within this framework, forms and contents of stereotypes, as well as phenomena like subgrouping and the use of personal experience are referred to. Further, some rhetorical strategies used to display stereotype awareness or leading to actual stereotype avoidance are pointed out.


The solid–liquid equilibrium data of the aqueous NaOH–Na2CO3–Na2SO4–H2O, NaOH–Na2CO3–NaCl–H2O, and NaOH–Na2SO4–NaCl–H2O quaternary systems at 363.15 K were measured. The equilibrium solid phases and solubilities of salts in the three systems and its subsystems were determined. The densities of the saturated solutions were also determined. The experimental data are used to plot the solubility diagrams and water content diagrams of the systems. It was found that the NaOH–Na2CO3–Na2SO4–H2O system contains the solid solution of γ-salt (mNa2SO4·nNa2CO3) and the other two systems Na2CO3–NaOH–NaCl–H2O and NaOH–Na2SO4–NaCl–H2O have the complex salts S1 (Na2SO4·NaOH) and S3 (Na2SO4·NaCl·NaOH). On the basis of Xu's activity coefficient model, a model was constructed for the correlation of solid–liquid equilibrium in electrolyte solutions to calculate the solubilities of salts in these systems at 363.15 K. The calculated solubilities are in agreement with the experimental values.


In this paper we propose N-Guard: a portable, effective, and efficient solution to thwart contactless skimming of NFC cards. Our solution enables an NFC-compliant smartphone to protect the user's cards, preventing the adversary from harvesting the cards' data. Moreover, we also introduce a fine grained access control mechanism, allowing the user to discriminate between NFC cards that can be opportunistically queried and sensitive ones that can be read only under the strict permission of the owner. We implemented a proof-of-concept of N-Guard for Android OS and tested it under several digital skimming scenarios showing its effectiveness in thwarting unauthorized access attempts. Moreover, we also measured the consumption of N-Guard and proved that its energy consumption is negligible. Further, it is worth noting that N-Guard requires neither any specific modification to the NFC standard, nor any change on users behavior. Finally, through some empirical evidence, we show N-Guard to be effective even when the interaction between the NFC tags and the reader is driven by proprietary protocols (e.g. Mastercard). All the reported results, having being developed over an NFC-enabled credit-card use case, are general and applicable to all NFC tags.


Interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) release assays (IGRAs) are useful for the assessment of the T‐cell response to severe acute respiratory syndrome‐coronavirus‐2 (SARS‐CoV‐2). We aimed to assess the performance of the newly developed IGRA ELISA test compared to the pre‐existing assays and to validate the cutoff value in real‐world conditions.


This article brings together a lot of research information that deals with iron-silicate fines (ISF), as a basic by-product produced by the copper plant of Aurubis, located in Bulgaria. As a rare material, produced only in couple of plants in the world, ISF has a wide variety of applications due to its specific physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics. Well known for decades by the clinker cements industry, nowadays Aurubis presents a wide variety of new perspectives for creating green and sustainable building materials out of ISF. Sustainability in the construction sector is mostly referred to as zero waste scenarios related to the use of recycled and secondary materials (RSM). Such RSM materials differ significantly and their performance remains to be established separately as well as the properties of the construction products produced by them. Besides this each production unit has its own experience with raw materials for its production and introducing a new one is always causing some initial doubts. ISF not only covers preliminary expectations but even exceeds them. One of the main purposes of this article is to present opportunities to academics, researchers, design engineers, research and development & production managers in companies, specialists and contractors, for sustainable building products development of this not so well-known material with great potential. Most of the presented applications are prepared on industrial scale with different percentages of ISF for testing the effect of its quantity on the properties of the final products.


We are constructing 18 air Fluorescence Detectors (FD) in three stations for Telescope Array (TA) experiment (each station contains 6 detectors). The telescopes measure longitudinal developments of EAS by air uorescence lights associated with extensive air shower EAS of ultra high energy cosmic rays. From the reconstructed EAS developments the primary energy of the cosmic rays and arrival direction can be determined. To observe the primary cosmic ray with high accuracy, we have to study air uorescence yield, atmospheric monitoring, absolute calibration and performance monitoring of FD equipment carefully. For latter ones, we calibrate the components of FD: reectance and curvature radius of segment mirrors; the characteristics of PMT and preamplier (their gain, linearity, dynamic range); uniformity of the camera surface. Also we have plans of FD performance monitoring and adjusting: absolute PMT gain, mirror reectance, and transmittance of the front window of camera etc. In this paper these calibrations and the plans of performance monitoring for FD of TA experiment are described.


This document explains and demonstrates how to realize all-side mobile monitoring system in coal face. The system is running in Yunjialing Mine, Jizhong Energy Resources, Handan, Hebei. In the paper first of al, we put forward the principle for system design. And then, we continue to explain the structure and function of the design. Finally, we analysis on the technology of the remote wireless video transmission.


This talk is available as Technical Report No. 101, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and will appear in a forthcoming issue of Fortune Magazine.


Based on the observation that a Cauchy density is more accurate in estimating the distribution of the AC coefficients than the traditional Laplacian density for H.264 video coders, a rate model with improved accuracy is derived. Using the new rate model, a frame bit-allocation algorithm for the rate control of an H.264 video coder is developed. Extensive analysis with carefully selected anchor video sequences demonstrates a 0.43 dB average PSNR improvement over the JM 8.4 rate control algorithm, and a 0.27 dB average PSNR improvement over the TM5-based bit-allocation algorithm that has recently been proposed for H.264 by S. Ma et al. (see Proc. 2003 Int. Conf. Image Process., ICIP '03, vol.3, p.793-6, 2003). The analysis also demonstrates 20% and 60% reductions in PSNR variation among the encoded pictures when compared to the JM 8.4 rate control algorithm and the TM5-based bit-allocation algorithm, respectively.


The present study was conducted on rabbit does to evaluate the effect of using dried leftover food on nutrients digestibility, productive performance and some blood parameters. Forty V-Line rabbit does were chosen at 1 st and 2 nd seasons (7-12 months of age). They were divided into 4 similar groups (10 does, each) according to their initial live body weight (3117.5g±102.5g), animals were fed four experimental diets containing 0, 10, 20 and 30% dried leftover food (DLF) for 120 days, and will be referred to as groups D1, D2, D3 and D4, respectively. Results indicated that the chemical composition of DLF was 14.96, 2.53, 7.34, 69.87 and 5.30% for CP, CF, EE, NFE and ash, respectively. The digestibility coefficients of DM, CP, CF, NFE, TDN and DCP were insignificant improved with increasing the level of DLF in diets. On the other hand OM and EE values were significantly improved with increasing the level of DLF up to 30% in their diets compared with that of control group. Post-natal weight, gestation length and number of mating were not significantly affected by increasing the level of DLF up to 30% in diets as compared to the control group. Litter weights were insignificantly higher with tested diet D4 at 7, 14 and 21 days compared with control one (D1). D4 had significant effect on increasing bunny weight gain than control group during the periods from birth to 14, 21 and 28 days. The mortality rate was decreased with tested diets (D2, D3 and D4) compared with the control group. Total milk yield, milk efficiency and milk yield from birth to7, 14, 21 and 28 days were insignificantly better with diets contained 10 up to 30% DLF, than that of control group. No significant differences among tested diets with respect to all blood metabolites except for urea and albumin which significantly decreased with increasing the level of DLF in diets. In conclusion DLF could be used in the feeding of rabbits does up to 30% with no adverse effect on general and productive performance.


Knowledge about the distribution of weeds in the field is a prerequisite for site-specific treatment. Optical sensors make it possible to detect varying weed densities and species, which can be mapped using GPS data. The weeds are extracted from images using image processing and described by shape features. A classification based on the features reveals the type and number of weeds per image. For the classification only a maximum of 16 features out of the 81 computed ones are used. Features are used, which enable an optimal distinction of the weed classes. The selection can be done using data mining algorithms, which rate the discriminance of the features of prototypes. If no prototypes are available, clustering algorithms can be used to automatically generate clusters. In a next step weed classes can be assigned to the clusters. Such a procedure aids to select prototypes, which is done manually. Classes can be identified, that are distinct in the feature space or which are overlapping and therefore not well separable. Clustering can be used in some, less complex cases to establish an automatic procedure for the classification. Weed maps are generated using the system. These are compared to the results of a manual weed sampling.


The article deals with a study of Synthesis Transition Metal Complexes Like copper and iron with Pyrimidine based ligand derivatives. The synthesized complex were characterized by XRD, SEM, FTIR. Mossbauer Spectra of Iron complex has also taken out to find oxidation state of iron after complexation.The aim of this study is to preparation and characterization with Transition Metal complexes by different physical and chemical characterization techniques.