ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to identify cognitive and affective mechanisms by which the experience of live sport spectating might inspire new sport participation. A conceptual model of demonstration effects that explored relationships among cognitive dimensions of spectators' consumptive experiences (i.e., fantasy, flow, evaluation, aesthetics and physical attractiveness), an affective state of inspiration, and intention to try a sport on display was tested. Data were collected from spectators attending 2015 Pan Am Games track cycling competitions through a written questionnaire. Cognitive dimensions were all positively related to feelings of being inspired while watching the event. Feelings of being inspired while watching the event, in turn, had a positive effect on intention to try the sport of track cycling. An affective state of inspiration also mediated relationships between each cognitive dimension of sport event performance consumption and intention. Implications for research and practice are discussed.


For the third order evolution differential equations, the algebra of differential invariants with respect to the pseudogroup of point transformations is constructed. Such equations arise in the study of filtration processes (the Rapoport – Leas equation), the theory of nonlinear waves (the Korteweg – de Vries equation).


Recently, I received the latest issue, the third edition, of The Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics, edited by Dr. Gavriel Salvendy (2006). I am awed and amazed by this massive tome, with its long and distinguished list of Advisory Board members (25) and even longer and more distinguished list of chapter authors (114). Do we need another 1654-page summary of everything we need to know, but about which we might be afraid to ask? Yes, but with some qualifications.


Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has been successfully used in patients affected by heart failure and left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction with LV dissyncrony. However, a variable number of patients (20%–30%) do not respond favorably to CRT due to several possible, still uncertain factors. One possible cause is the displacement of the electrode tip from effectively resynchronizing stimulation sites. In this study we (1) developed a procedure aimed at quantifying the coronary sinus (CS) lead tip position in the 3D domain throughout the cardiac cycle and (2) tested this procedure by comparing the CS lead position at device implantation (t0) and at three-months follow-up (t1) using chest fluoroscopy. Our procedure for the assessment of the CS lead position was successfully applied to ten patients. The accuracy resulted in 0.8±0.4 mm, giving a resolution of 1.7 mm. The repeatability was 0.4±0.4 mm. Six patients were evaluated at follow-up and the qualitative check of displacement from fluoroscopy videos did not contradict our quantitative analysis. The proposed technique allowed quantitative evaluation of CS lead position and tracking in 3D space.


Generalizations of GL(n) abelian Toda and (n) abelian affine Toda field theories to the noncommutative plane are constructed. Our proposal relies on the noncommutative extension of a zero-curvature condition satisfied by algebra-valued gauge potentials dependent on the fields. This condition can be expressed as noncommutative Leznov-Saveliev equations which make possible to define the noncommutative generalizations as systems of second order differential equations, with an infinite chain of conserved currents. The actions corresponding to these field theories are also provided. The special cases of GL(2) Liouville and (2) sinh/sine-Gordon are explicitly studied. It is also shown that from the noncommutative (anti-)self-dual Yang-Mills equations in four dimensions it is possible to obtain by dimensional reduction the equations of motion of the two-dimensional models constructed. This fact supports the validity of the noncommutative version of the Ward conjecture. The relation of our proposal to previous versions of some specific Toda field theories reported in the literature is presented as well.


Introduction 19F-MRI of inhaled perfluoropropane (PFP) is a relatively new approach to ventilation imaging, enabling assessment of regional gas distribution without the requirement for hyperpolarization.1 While quantitative measures of pulmonary ventilation (e.g. the percent ventilated lung volume,%VV) are well established for hyperpolarized-gas MRI,2 their utility in 19F-MR ventilation imaging is less clear. Determining the reproducibility of such measures is paramount in developing future clinical application of this technique. Aim We assessed the reproducibility of%VV measurements in healthy volunteers using 19F-MRI of inhaled PFP across two UK study sites. Methods 38 healthy volunteers (20M, 18F; aged 23–67) provided written informed consent and were screened for eligibility at one of two UK study sites. Participants underwent a single MRI scan session on a 3T scanner, involving periodic inhalation of a 79% PFP/21% oxygen gas mixture. Each gas inhalation lasted <1 min, comprising three deep breaths of gas followed by a breath-hold (∼13.5s), during which 19F-MR images were acquired. Participants underwent four 19F-MRI acquisitions in total, each separated by a 5 min interval.%VV values were determined by registering ventilation images to anatomical 1H images (acquired separately for each participant) and semi-automated image segmentation performed by two independent raters. Intra-volunteer%VV reproducibility was assessed using a two-way random measures Intraclass Correlation Coefficient, ICC(2,1). Inter-rater reliability was evaluated using the Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC). Results MRI scans were well tolerated throughout with no adverse events. Assessment of intra-volunteer%VV reproducibility revealed an ICCrater1=0.682 (95% CI=0.529–0.785) and ICCrater2=0.614 (0.443–0.736). Assessment of inter-rater reliability of%VV measurements showed a high mean DSC(±SD) of 0.97±0.2, with only minor discrepancies between the two raters (figure 1). Conclusions We have demonstrated good reproducibility of%VV measurements in healthy volunteers using 19F-MRI of inhaled PFP. Importantly, our methods have been successfully implemented across two UK study sites, confirming suitability for multi-centre use and the development of larger clinical trials. Current studies will apply these techniques to quantify ventilation impairment in patients with asthma and COPD, including assessing response to bronchodilator therapy. References Gutberlet M, et al. Radiology 2018;286:1040–1051 Kirby M, et al. Radiology 2012;265:600–610Abstract S124 Figure 1 (a) Representative 19F-MR ventilation images (coronal slices) from one healthy volunteer; and (b) corresponding image segmentations showing agreement (yellow) and discrepancies (green) of ventilated regions between the two raters


Low level of social sphere security is one of the main factors governing the Russian Far East economic security. This paper analyzes social sphere security indices available at the moment and suggests a new index. The results obtained through the proposed procedure allow to evaluate the level of personal economic security at the Far East Russia.


Unbalance of urban and rural commodity market is an important characteristic of China's dual urban and rural economy,in which there exists great difference either in scale or in operating efficiency and which is caused by an urban-prior system.To reach the harmonious development in urban and rural commodity market,we should reform the financial system,household register system,and decision-making system as well.


As modern world economy and society are globalizing more rapidly than ever, the impacts of globalization and its various dimensions have been widely debated and examined by academics, politicians, policymakers, the private sector and even the general public. However, there is no consensus regarding how the benefits of globalization are distributed across and within countries and how globalization does affect quality of life (QOL). This study attempts to analyze the impacts of globalization on QOL in developing countries (DCs) in general and in the Asia-Pacific in particular. The study has three independent analyses using different datasets and methodologies. First, it uses panel data of 126 DCs from 1997 to 2005 and applies the fixed effect (FE) panel regression model to evaluate the effects of globalization on human development, gender development and human poverty in DCs. The result shows that globalization not only promotes human and gender development but also reduces human poverty significantly. Second, it uses panel data of 19 Asia-Pacific countries from 1975 to 2005 and applies the dynamic panel data model to examine whether human QOL in Asia-Pacific countries is converging, and to assess the impact of globalization on this process. It is found that overall QOL, measured by the Human Development Index (HDI), of most countries in the region is moving closer to that of Japan (the benchmark country) and that globalization has a significant impact on this convergence process. Finally, it examines the extent to which the key elements of globalization such as international trade, foreign direct investment, foreign aid, transnational labor migration and tourism have been mainstreamed into the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) of low-income countries (LICs) in the Asia-Pacific. Using a content analytic framework, it is found that the LICs are moderately open (average score of 1.7 on the 0-3 point scale) towards global society. In conclusion, this study makes a number of scholarly contributions to research on the relationship between globalization and QOL by incorporating comprehensive measures and specific elements of both the dependent and explanatory variables with the most recent and a wide coverage of data and some methodological improvements in the analyses. † All the research activities of this study, including numerous presentations at international conferences, were generously funded by the Global Institute for Asian Regional Integration, Waseda University.


Hyperspectral images (HSIs) have evident advantages in image understanding due to enormous spectral bands, and rich spatial information. Hundreds of spectral bands, however, actually play different roles in contributing to the class-specific classification. Then, treating each band equally may lead to the underuse or overuse of them. To address this issue, this paper introduces class-specific band contributions (BCs) into the spectral space, and proposes a weighted spectral-spatial classification method for HSIs. In the method, by incorporating BC characterized by F-measure into the distance-based posterior probability, a weighted spectral posterior probability (WSP) model is established. Furthermore, to exploit the spatial information, WSP is then combined with the spatial consistency constraint via an adaptive tradeoff parameter. Additionally, aimed at obtaining the class-dependent F-measures of each band, a semisupervised F-measure prediction method is also developed. Experiments on four hyperspectral data sets are conducted. Experimental results show the superiority of our proposed method over several state-of-the-art methods in terms of three widely used indexes.


The deployment of IPv6 is accelerating with depletion of IPv4 address space in the last year. Audio/video streaming and overall effectiveness of multicast one-to-many data delivery are becoming popular nowadays. Interest in proper simulation and modeling has increased together with those two trends. This paper introduces two brand-new simulation modules for RIPng and PIM-DM dynamic routing protocols, which are now parts of our ANSA extension, built over the INET framework.


In this paper, I present how I use wikis in my undergraduate courses to try to enhance conceptual comprehension. This WikiConcept research is housed within a theoretical perspective entitled "Communal Constructivism" (CC). According to CC, students construct learning "for" as well as "with" others, ideally leaving their imprint in the development of the course, their school or university, and ideally the discipline. As I argued previously (Fountain, 2005), "The goal of such "co-curricularization" is to influence the quality of ALL work, not just one's own. Quality is to be influenced OVER TIME (long term sustainability of knowledge-Ciffolilli, 2003 & Schwartz, 2004), ACROSS collectivities (across students, over classes, over years, over generations-Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1994), VIA open-natured projects and TOWARDS creating "impossible public goods" (Ciffolilli, 2003)." While the development and implementation of this conceptual enhancement project across time and collectivities has taken place over several years, the evaluation of these peer-to-peer conceptualizations has just begun (winter, 2007). This paper reports on students (n = 85) reported conceptual comprehension when asked to read and evaluate three differing co-elaborated texts (wiki texts produced by their peers in previous sessions of the same course in technology) regarding the concept of "Cookie". The same "Cookie" text did not "work" (enable greater comprehension) for all students. Many students appreciated a given text for the same reasons (both in terms of form and content) that many others did not. Again, while these results are preliminary, it appears that conceptual comprehension may be enhanced by systematic inclusion of and instance upon engagement with multiple, (and in this case) textual representations of a given concept. Such an insistence upon "a textual plurality around the same, the "always already", is seen as a pedagogical wiki bow towards enacting collaborative structuration research and practice.


The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a study of information-seeking behavior among a group of Arab postgraduate students in social science and humanities disciplines. The paper also explores information-seeking styles and examines how information seeking is affected by external factors. The study employed a qualitative approach to explore informationseeking behavior in the sample and the sources of information used to obtain scholarly information. A sample of 33 participants was interviewed to elucidate the information-seeking behavior of the Arabic language speakers. The analysis of the interviews revealed that the participants use different methods to find information on the internet. These methods vary from using search engines to using sites that provide pirated scholarly papers. The data showed that most of the sample students use search engines and databases provided by their universities, but they should be trained in research ethics to avoid unacceptable research practices. The results also indicate that searching in other languages represents a challenge for Arab postgraduates in the social sciences and humanities. This study was conducted with social science and humanities postgraduates as part of a series of studies aiming to explore Arab language speakers' scholarly practices. The information-seeking behavior of science disciplines may differ, as the teaching language is mainly in English. This study contributes to the field by expanding our understanding of how non-English language speakers seek scholarly information and what sources are used to obtain the scholarly papers.


This paper introduces the PLC control of two multistorey elevators by C-NET network.The system can control these two elevators to operate in unison,which further improves the effectiveness of the running of the elevators.It has been practically tested and the running of the elevators is steady and reliable.


Disasters related to infectious disease involve biological interference along with social and cultural involvement which results in a number of mortalities which can be called as an outbreak of an emerging disease that is termed as infectious. The 21st century had an unusual beginning which is experiencing severe acute respiratory syndrome pandemic and a rigorous measure of warrant and acylation that is being termed as social distancing bye professionals and practitioners. Biology history and culture combined defines humans future. An anthropologist in the present situation has a greater role to take up to understand the cultural and ecological constraints to control such pandemic. History is a treasure of evidences having hymns and clues to modify and treat various kinds of diseases which results in epidemic to Pandemic. The present paper is an initiative to understanding of history mythology spirituality social cultural and biological means to understand the present scenario the world is undergoing through related to the pandemic situation.


Schiff base ligands are prepared via condensation of pyridine-2,6-dicarboxaldehyde with 2-aminothiophenol (H 2 L 1 ) and 2-aminobenzoic acid (H 2 L 2 ), respectively. The ligands are characterized based on elemental analysis, mass, IR and 1 H NMR spectra. Metal complexes are reported and characterized based on elemental analyses, IR, 1 H NMR, solid reflectance, magnetic moment, molar conductance, and thermal analyses (TG, DTG and DTA). The molar conductance reveals that all the metal chelates are non-electrolytes except Th(IV) H 2 L 2 complex which is 1:1 electrolyte . IR spectra show that H 2 L 1 and H 2 L 2 ligands behave as neutral tridentate ligands and bind to the metal ions via the two azomethine N and pyridine N. From the magnetic and solid reflectance spectra, it is found that the geometrical structures of these complexes are octahedral (Cr(III)- and Fe(III)-H 2 L 1 and H 2 L 2 , Th(IV)-H 2 L 2 and Mn(II)-H 2 L 1 complexes) and triagonal bipyramidal (Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), Cd(II) and UO 2 (II)-H 2 L 1 and H 2 L 2 and Mn(II)-H 2 L 2 complexes). The thermal behaviour of these chelates is studied using TG and DTA techniques and the activation thermodynamic parameters are calculated using Coats-Redfern method. The synthesized ligands and their metal complexes were screened for their biological activity against bacterial species ( Escherichia coli , P. vulgavis , B. subtilis and S. pyogones ) and fungi ( F. solani , A. niger and A. liavus ). The activity data show that the metal complexes have antibacterial and antifungal activity more than the parent Schiff base ligands against one or more bacterial or fungi species.


This article aims to provide a simple and applicable method of measuring the rock accumulation rate and recording the depositional events based on the application of graphic correlation and similarity matrix of the Paleogene planktonic foraminifera in two surface sections in South Sinai. Fifteen continuous biozones and subzones were recorded spanning from P0 to E3. The average RAR of the Beida Formation was somewhat equal to that recorded for the Dakhla Formation, however, the Selandian‐Ypresian Garra Formation was more than twice that recorded for the Esna Formation. On the other hand, the Thebes Formation represents a reverse setting which is relatively higher in the south than the north. Seven (T1‐T7) and twelve (T1‐T12) terraces were recorded at different stratigraphic positions. The terraces diverged in the Palaeocene and converged in the Eocene, whereas they lengthen in the Palaeocene and shortened in the Eocene. Breaks identified in the SM support many of the poorly constrained terraces on the GC, however, the SM technique efficiently recorded around 60% of the terraces recorded by GC. For confirming the terraces identified, field and faunal parameters confirm all the recorded events, however, a further correlation with their equivalent in and outside Egypt has been made which confirms another support of the technique applied. Therefore, the integration between these techniques in recognizing the depositional events and sedimentation breaks supports further depositional and palaeobathymetical studies and regional correlation as well.


system but refined it by recognizing two principal divisions within the alpha sec? tion, the carolinensis and punctatus subsec? tions, and by further subdividing the sub? sections and the beta section into series, subseries, and species groups (in a de? scending hierarchy). This arrangement was called the Etheridge/Williams classifica? tion system in our earlier review, and that designation will also be used here. Our review of the characters used to de?


Combining with my feelings and experience, trying to explore the recent high-profile test related to foreign language socialization. Hope our policymakers take more comprehensive consideration of socialization of the college entrance examination, especially on English operation design, ensure the interests equalization of groups and the smooth implementation of the reform.


Insight in the interaction between PPO and poly(vinyl pyridine) is of considerable interest for several nanotechnological developments, since PPO is used to improve the mechanical properties of e.g. PS-block-P4VP nanorods prepared from self-assembled PS-blockP4VP(PDP)x comb-shaped supramolecules (Chapter 6 presents an explicit example). To this end the phase behavior of blends of poly(2,6-dimethyl1,4-phenylene oxide) (PPO) with random copolymers of styrene and 2-vinyl pyridine, Poly(S-co-2VP), as well as with random copolymers of styrene and 4-vinyl pyridine, Poly(S-co-4VP), has been investigated in order to estimate the values of the Flory-Huggins parameters χPPO,2VP and χPPO,4VP between PPO and 2-vinyl pyridine and 4-vinyl pyridine, respectively. Using previously estimated values for the Flory-Huggins parameters 0.09 < χS,2VP < 0.11 and 0.30 < χS,4VP < 0.35, together with the literature value χS,PPO = -0.043, the phase behavior observed as a function of the copolymer composition results in 0.11 < χPPO,2VP < 0.12 and 0.46 < χPPO,4VP < 0.48.


The aim of this paper is to present the practices adopted in Brazil for the accounting valuation of the investment portfolio of investment funds (venture capital and private equity) and check their alignment with international accounting practices, considering the context of global accounting harmonization. Enabling a better understanding of the subject, presents the definition of venture capital, the changing context of industry, venture capital and private equity players and the types and stages of investment, the regulatory environment in the country and the major accounting practices in Brazil and internationally. To achieve the goal of the research work has brought a qualitative approach of descriptive, based on literature research and also research on information available in financial statements filed with the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM). The test result shows that the accounting practices adopted in Brazil, specifically concerning the assessment of the investment portfolio of investment funds in venture capital and private equity, are still not harmonized with international accounting practices.


The annual Feb ruary se ries of shows held in T ucson, Arizona, has become such an industry inst itution that it al most requires no in tro duct ion . The many T ucson exhibi tors represent four distinct approaches to natural products, from unprocessed minerals th rough finis hed jewelry: fashioned stones (including diamonds and colored stones of every description) and ornamental matcrials, findings and jewelry supplies [including beads]; finished pieces (mostly jewelry, but also carvings and othe r obiets d'art ); and items for collectors [such as mi neral and foss il specimens]. This year, the edi tors and contributing editors were helped by many people. Special t hanks go to GIA's Bill Boyajian , Brook Ellis, Debbie Hiss-Odell, D. Vincent Manson, Andrea McShane, and James E. Shigley, as well as GalC's technic al editor Carol Stockton and GIA Gem Trade Laboratory's Nick DelRe and Cheryl Wentzell.


This study highlights the features of vine copula for examining compound events involving underlying conditions that amply the compounding effects. To illustrate, we study compound floods in Texas (TX), USA. These compound floods consist of combinations of precipitation and surface runoff with the El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and rising temperatures as underlying conditions. Although the individual variable of precipitation and runoff may not itself be extreme, large exceedances can lead to flooding situations when combined. The presence of underlying conditions (e.g., El Niño and/or rising temperatures) can exacerbate the associated flood impacts. We use observational data during May–August for each climate division of TX. A three‐dimensional vine copula is used first to quantify the ENSO effect on precipitation and runoff through conditioning sets of vine copula. We further examine the interplay of a warming signal and El Niño to reveal their mutual effects on compound floods by placing these two factors as interrelated conditions in a four‐dimensional vine copula. Our results show that El Niño is much stronger than the other ENSO states in conditioning a high likelihood of TX compound floods by amplifying mean and extreme states of rainfall and runoff. Conditioned by both El Niño and global temperatures, a slight reduction occurs in TX compound floods under the warmer condition. This is consistent with the trend of precipitation and runoff composites under given conditions, while no appreciable changes are found to suggest a different joint effect of El Niño and rising temperatures on TX compound floods.


Relativistic magnetized jets, such as those from AGN, GRBs, and XRBs, are susceptible to current- and pressure-driven MHD instabilities that can lead to particle acceleration and nonthermal radiation. Here, we investigate the development of these instabilities through 3D kinetic simulations of cylindrically symmetric equilibria involving toroidal magnetic fields with electron–positron pair plasma. Generalizing recent treatments by Alves et al. and Davelaar et al., we consider a range of initial structures in which the force due to toroidal magnetic field is balanced by a combination of forces due to axial magnetic field and gas pressure. We argue that the particle energy limit identified by Alves et al. is due to the finite duration of the fast magnetic dissipation phase. We find a rather minor role of electric fields parallel to the local magnetic fields in particle acceleration. In all investigated cases, a kink mode arises in the central core region with a growth timescale consistent with the predictions of linearized MHD models. In the case of a gas-pressure-balanced (Z-pinch) profile, we identify a weak local pinch mode well outside the jet core. We argue that pressure-driven modes are important for relativistic jets, in regions where sufficient gas pressure is produced by other dissipation mechanisms.


In this work, we assess the applicability of the fast electromagnetic (EM) scattering solver, MIDAS [1], (short for MoM Integral-equation Decomposition for Arbitrarily-shaped Scatterers), by comparing its performance to a solver based on discrete dipole approximation (DDA), the famed ADDA method, in solving for the scattering properties of simulated melting hydrometeors [2]. At microwave frequencies of Ka-band (~35GHz) and below, the refractive-index contrast between liquid water and solid ice becomes increasingly large, causing significant uncertainties in ADDA solutions dependent upon its computation setup, e.g., dipole size (even while it strictly satisfies the accuracy criterion, inversely related to the refractive index, specified by the method) and the choice of dipole polarizability or interaction schemes. This challenge motivates us to test MIDAS on the same melting hydrometeors, assess the range of uncertainty in its solutions, and compare against that of the ADDA solutions. Since there is no (numericized) analytical EM solution for these complexly irregular scatterers with heterogeneous compositions, no truly accurate solution exists, against which we may assess the absolute uncertainties of MIDAS and ADDA solutions. We thus use the relative range of solution uncertainty to evaluate their applicability.


In Chinese teaching , one of the important links is to guid students to understand the meaning of a word according to the context, the way of whioh is trying to figure out the basic meaning of the word , remove the ambiguity , grasp the special meaning flexibily, and probe the implied meaning .


Carbon nanotube field-effect transistors often exhibit a hysteresis effect in the gate-voltage dependence. We report devices fabricated with small hysteresis, and demonstrate a method to introduce this effect controllably by coating nanotube devices with charged polymers. In addition, the hysteresis is sensitive to humidity on sub-second time scales, showing promise as a humidity sensor. The polymer charge is related to the threshold shift observed, proving that the induced hysteresis results from ionic motion.


In this work, the conductivity of anatase titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanowires was enhanced by lanthanum (La) and cobalt (Co) co-doping method. The nanowires were synthesised via a facile solvothermal process. The diameter of as-synthesised nanowires is about 300 nm and length more than 20 μm. The electrical properties were studied based on single nanowire field-effect transistor; the anatase TiO2 nanowires exhibit n-type conductivity with mobility of 2.18 cm2 V−1 S−1 and carrier concentration of 1.95 × 1018 cm−3. Doping of rare earth element La and transition element Co can not only reduce bandgap, but also reduce electron–hole recombination and improve carrier concentration. The distinct electrical properties of doped nanowires will open new opportunities for the application of anatase TiO2 semiconductor materials in nanoelectronics devices.


Sturm's relations governing the behavior of thin pencils of rays is applied to skew refraction at toric surfaces. The general relations are simplified and an estimate of the resulting error is derived. Exact results are presented for the 45° intermediate plane trace at 30° vista angle in a −4.00-diopter sphere combined with a 4.00-diopter convex cylinder toric lens. An alternate skew toric trace is described.


We propose two inter-carrier interference (ICI) self-cancellation schemes based on CO-OFDM system. They can not only enhance the laser linewidth tolerance of the system, but also improve the robustness against fiber nonlinearity.


The professional morality accomplishment of medical staff may make external principles,standards and requirements of medical morality internalized for medical staff's own cognition,emotion,will and beliefs,manifested as medical morality behaviors in medical service activities.As a result,cultivation of medical morality accompanied with medical practice activities has promoted the medical moral realm of medical staff,and also played a key role in the process of training medical morality qualities.


We present the experimental demonstration of a remarkable size effect of inter-Landau-level scattering (ILLS) in a quantum Hall bar. This observation has become possible by imaging cyclotron emission. The images obtained clearly reveal that spatial distribution of ILLS macroscopically depends on channel width of the device.


While traditional data fusion started with systems which exploit the output of multiple sensors so as to optimise the characterisation or recognition of objects of interest, modern information fusion systems will increasingly integrate all types of information, including behavioural information and information resulting from modelling, analysis and computation. In many critical applications, modelling the behaviour of groups of coordinated autonomous entities must be carried out within physically accurate settings in order to provide realistic information about their likely behaviour. The simulated entities must conduct autonomous actions which are realistic, which follow plans of action, but which also exhibit intelligent reactive behaviour in response to unforeseen conditions. In this paper we describe how a complex and simulation environment can be used to fuse information about the behaviour of groups of objects of interest. The fused information includes the objects' individual pursuits and aims, the physical and geographic setting within which they act, and their collective social behaviour. The group control algorithms combine reinforcement learning, social potential fields and imitation. We summarise the design of a simulation system that we have designed based on these principles.


The measurement of the metal – oxide surge arresters (MOSA) leakage current and the analysis of its components is a key diagnostic criterion according to technical standards. During on site MOSA condition assessment, the easy way is based on the measurement only leakage current, without the inconvenient live working measurements of supply voltage. Orthogonal vectors method of determination the resistive leakage current is presented. This method provides a good estimate in the comparison with the references values from active power calculation.


An intercomparison by interpolation is made between two types of reanalysis data(NCEP/NCAR and ERA-Interim) and seven months(May 2008 to December 2008) measurements of high vertical resolution GPS radiosonde(RS92) at Shouxian station(32.56°N,116.78°E),China.The correlation coefficient(R),bias(Bias),and mean absolute deviation(Mad)of temperature(T),zonal wind(U),meridional wind(V),and relative humidity(RH) are presented at the standard pressure levels of two reanalysis data sets from 1000 hPa to 20 hPa.The results indicate better correlation of RS92 observations with the ERA-Interim data than that with the NCEP/NCAR data.T,U,and V have higher correlation coefficients than RH at all levels.R of T is close to 1.0 from 1000 hPa to 250 hPa and decreases gradually above 250 hPa.The absolute values of bias for T is mostly less than 0.3℃ between ERA-Interim and RS92,but about two times between NCEP and RS92 at all levels.R of U is larger in middle and upper troposphere than in lower troposphere and lower stratosphere.R of V increases with height in the troposphere and decreases dramatically in lower stratosphere.R of RH decreases with height.It is shown that Bias of RH ranges from 10% to 20% through 400 hPa to 100 hPa and becomes smaller than 10% in the upper layers,which is in part attributed to the limitation of measurement precision.


Abstract The spectacle of the encampments that occupied public plazas throughout Spain during the 15-M protests of 2011 asserted what urban theorist Henri Lefebvre (1968) and others have called the "right to the city." In a similar vein, the free open-air performances on All Saints' Day in 2011 and 2012 of José Zorrilla's Don Juan Tenorio by the theater collective AlmaViva Teatro in the self-managed neighborhood space called the Campo de Cebada have also been an effort to reclaim urban space. These performances called Don Juan Tenorio en La Cebada are notable not only for their use of a repurposed vacant lot left abandoned in the wake of the financial crisis but also for their dynamic staging that required the public to move throughout the large vacant lot for each of the play's seven acts. As the public traversed the reappropriated space of the Campo de Cebada, the performance was framed by the urban backdrop created by the bright lights of the Teatro Latina and the adjacent residential apartment buildings. This movement of the public not only foregrounded the trope of mobility evoked by the shifting dramatic spaces within Zorrilla's work but also the mobile and changing character of urban space produced by the perpetual investment and divestment of speculative capital. Just as Don Juan Tenorio journeys from the physical world to the spiritual one and moves from a secular space of individualism to the communal space of heaven, these performances have created an urban experience that promotes community and connection that stands in stark contrast to the cold, individualistic logic of mobile capital and real estate speculation that characterized the economic bubble that preceded the current crisis.


An 820-GHz 8×8 imaging array using diode-connected NMOS transistor detectors is demonstrated in 130-nm CMOS process. Measured mean responsivity of 3.4 kV/W and mean NEP of 28 pW/Hz1/2 at 1MHz modulation frequency are achieved. The NEP is 3.5X lower than that of NMOS and slightly lower than that of Schottky diode terahertz imaging arrays implemented in CMOS. The minimum NEP is 15.5 pW/Hz1/2, which is the lowest for THz detector arrays fabricated in CMOS. The imaging array occupies 2.0×1.7mm2 and the power consumption is 9.6 mW.


We study a coordinated multi-point visible light communication (CoMP-VLC) system where space division multiple access (SDMA) is enabled. A novel SDMA grouping algorithm is proposed for achieving a better performance-fairness trade-off.


Based on blcr software,this paper proposes designs session checkpoint preservation and recovery software on the core level of Linux.The software can realize synchronous checkpoint preservation and recovery in the same session and process.It can not change the mutual dependency relationship between processes.Application results show that it integrates this software into Torque/Maui cluster management and scheduling system,it can realize checkpoint preservation and recovery transparently for user operation procedure.


A method and apparatus for measuring formation characteristics as a function of angular distance segments about the borehole is disclosed. The measurement apparatus includes a logging while drilling tool which turns in the borehole while drilling. Such characteristics as bulk density, photoelectric effect (PEF), neutron porosity and ultrasonic standoff are all measured as a function of such angular distance segments where one of such segments is defined to include that portion of a "down" or earth's gravity vector which is in a radial cross sectional plane of the tool. The measurement is accomplished with either a generally cylindrical tool which generally touches a down or bottom portion of the borehole while the tool rotates in an inclined borehole or with a tool centered by stabilizer blades in the borehole.


We have developed a miniature ultrasonic lysing system for the rapid release and extraction of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (MTB) DNA. The prototype consists of two key sections, a disposable plastic manifold that hold sputum slides and a plastic cartridge with five fluidic DNA extraction channels. The MTB vaccine Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) was used as a simulant for MTB for all the lysing studies. The slide manifold houses up to five individual sputum slides and is processed by a computer to fill and load the cartridges with sputum suspensions from each slide. The plastic cartridge was developed to facilitate acoustic coupling through the bottom interface such that MTB/BCG can be lysed remotely. The disposable cartridge eliminated cross contamination problems and additional cleaning time. Due to the high power density, only 66 mW was required to lyse microliter BCG samples at the same level as the positive control (i.e. boiling for 30 minutes at 95 °C).


See related article, pages 3213–3217.

Utilizing a population-based study1 Dr Majersik and her coworkers provide excellent data on stroke patient arrival times in a community without academic centers. Because most patients present after 3 hours from stroke onset—the ratio in their study is 62% to 69% of patients—the idea of Majersik and her coworkers is to extend the time window beyond 3 hours to make more stroke patients eligible for recanalization therapy. Of those 31% to 38% of their patients presenting within the 3-hour time window, 4% received intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA), which compares well with the 5% of acute stroke patients receiving rt-PA in the United States.2 Because effective recanalization therapy is time dependent, we should concentrate our efforts on shortening the onset to treatment times3 instead of trying to extend the time window for such therapies. The experience in Helsinki shows that it is possible to increase the number of patients treated within 90 minutes from the onset of symptoms and even earlier, and thereby increase the number of patients with good outcome.4

In the efforts to extend the time window for reperfusion beyond 3 hours, desmoteplase has been closest to a breakthrough. Both …


Intelligence about transnational terrorist threats is generally gathered by national agencies. I set up and analyze a game theoretic model to study the implications of national intelligence gathering for the provision of domestic (defensive) counterterrorism when two countries are facing a transnational terrorist threat. It is shown that, relative to a benchmark case where all intelligence is commonly known, national intelligence gathering often leads to increased overprovision, although it can be the other way around. By extending the model with a com munication stage, I also explore the possibilities for intelligence sharing prior to decisions on counterterrorism provision. If verifiable sharing is a viable option for each country, there exists an equilibrium with full intelligence sharing. On the other hand, if only cheap talk communication is possible then full sharing cannot happen in equilibrium.


Abstract The propagation of vibrations may provide a better way of understanding the spread of diasporas than the conventional focus on the circulation of products (Hall 1980, Appadurai 1986, 1996, Gilroy 1993a, Brah 1996). Jamaican sound systems operate as a broadcast medium and a source of CDs, DVDs, and other commercial products (Henriques 2007a). But the dancehall sound system session also propagates a broad spectrum of frequencies diffused through a range of media and activities – described as 'sounding' (following Small's 1998 concept of 'musicking'). These include the material vibrations of the signature low-pitched auditory frequencies of Reggae as a bass culture (Johnson 1980), at the loudness of 'sonic dominance' (Henriques 2003). Secondly a session propagates the corporeal vibrations of rituals, dance routines, and bass-line 'riddims' (Veal 2007). Thirdly it propagates the ethereal vibrations (Henriques 2007b), 'vibes' or atmosphere of the sexually charged popular subculture by which the crowd (audience) appreciate each dancehall session as part of the Dancehall scene (Cooper 2004). The paper concludes that thinking though vibrating frequencies makes it easier to appreciate how audiences with no direct or inherited connection with a particular music genre can be energetically infected and affected – to form a sonic diaspora.


Disclosed is a malodor removing apparatus having lighting functions, which is to remove malodor in a manhole by being installed on the manhole. To this end, the malodor removing apparatus comprises a lighting part which comprises: a filter main body installed to penetrate an upper slab of the manhole, filled with a malodor removing medium therein, and discharging the purified air through an upper part to the outside, after malodor in the manhole is introduced through a lower portion; a light guiding part vertically installed at the center of the filter main body; a light collection part connected to an upper end of the light guiding part; and a light emission part connected to a lower end of the light guiding part. The sunlight is condensed through the light collection part, and the collected light is transmitted to the light emission part through the light guiding part is emitted into the manhole through the light emission part, thereby allowing the emitted light to light the inside of the manhole.


The signals released by the online retailer can influence the consumers' trust in the retailer, and then, make an impact on consumer's purchase intention. This research will directly examine the effect of trust signals on online retailers' sales. The data are collected from Taobao (www.taobao.com), and contain 400 samples unit with product and four categories. With linear regression model, this research finds that: 1) there is correlation between the number of signals and product's sales; 2) among the 13 signals introduced into the model, signals which indicate ability of retailers, such as "level of store", can significantly and positively influence product's sales, the influence of other kinds of signals is very little or even no; 3) price of product can significantly moderate the effect above; 4) compared with the most important factor which can influence the product's sales online - word of mouth (WOM), even though the influence is not as significant as WOM, trust signal can be another important indicator to affect sales.


The constrained nature of compositional data gives many difficulties when one performs a multivariate data analysis technique. In literature, to respect the nature of compositional data Partial Least Squares (PLS) based on a Logcontrast PLS was suggesting by Hinkle and Rayen (1995). Moreover this approach presents two principal problems: a very strong assumption of strict positive and the curvature that generally the compositional data present. To resolve them, we present an alternative method based on a particular spline transformation of the compositional data and a constrained version of the PLS. Finally an application on Customer Satisfaction (CS) data is given.


A number of small RNA molecules that are high affinity ligands for the 46-kDa form of human 2′-5′ oligoadenylate synthetase have been identified by the SELEX method. Surface plasmon resonance analysis indicates that these RNAs bind to the enzyme with dissociation constants in the nanomolar range. Competition experiments indicate that the binding site for the small RNAs on the 2′-5′ oligoadenylate synthetase molecule at least partially overlaps that for the synthetic double-stranded RNA, poly(I)·poly(C). Several of the RNAs function as potent activators of 2′-5′ oligoadenylate synthetasein vitro, although there is no correlation between binding affinity and ability to activate. The RNA aptamers having the strongest activation potential appear to have few base-paired regions. This suggests that 2′-5′ oligoadenylate synthetase, which has previously been believed to be activated only by double-stranded RNA, can also be activated by RNA ligands with little secondary structure. Since 2′-5′ oligoadenylate synthetase possesses no homology to other known RNA-binding proteins, the development of small specific ligands by SELEX should facilitate studies of RNA-protein interactions and may reveal novel features of the structure-function relationships involving this enzyme.


An injection device for automatically pouring, comprising a housing (270) having a longitudinal axis, a needle protection device (210) which is displaceable along the longitudinal axis from a distal position to a proximal position and from the proximal position to a needle protected position, in the housing (270) movable driving means which is driven by a drive means in a Ausschuttposition, and a rotary sleeve, which is rotatable about the longitudinal axis from a first position to a second position and at least a first profile (241) which (in operative connection with at least a second profile 251), characterized in that the drive means by the at least first profile (241) and the at least second profile (251) rotates the rotating sleeve from the first position to the second position.


A low-power audio delta-sigma modulator (DSM) is presented. Two new techniques are proposed to reduce the overall power dissipation of the modulator: a power-efficient direct-charge-transfer adder is employed, and noise-shaping enhancement is implemented by feeding the differentiated quantization noise to the input of the second integrator. The measured power dissipation is 1.1 mW, the dynamic range is 101.3 dB, the spur-free dynamic range is 112 dB and the signal-to-noise-plus-distortion ratio is 99.3 dB. The power efficiency of this design is among the best in DSMs with high (over 15) ENOBs.


The shift in binding energy that results from allowing one explicit {Delta} in the triton is studied using the Hannover one-{Delta} force model. The one-{Delta} analysis extends through {ital J}{le}4, subject only to {ital L}({ital N}{Delta}){le}4. Our main result is a 103-channel triton binding energy of 7.83 MeV, which corresponds to a net attractive one-{Delta} effect of 370 keV. The corresponding (repulsive) dispersive effect is found to be 600 keV, so that the full one-{Delta} three-body-force effect is 970 keV. Appropriately restricted {ital J}{le}2 calculations substantiate the basic results of the original Hannover triton calculations, although differences are found. The original {ital J}{le}2 figures are in good agreement with our full results and dissecting our results shows this to be largely due to cancellations among the various truncations employed in the original calculations. A numerical correction is obtained for each truncation and these are found to be relatively independent of each other. This forms a reliable basis for subsequent {Delta}{Delta} studies. The Hannover one-{Delta} model is also critically examined for physical consistency and the {sup 1}{ital S}{sub 0} effective range is found to be about 0.1 fm too low, a defect which could be responsible for about half of themore » net 370-keV increase in triton binding. The approach, methods, and numerical checks that underlie our investigations are also detailed.« less


Introduction Civil-Military Dualism Military Regionalism and the Gao-Rao Incident Crisis on Lushan Launching the Cultural Revolution Resistance to Power Seizure The Lin Biao Incident Fall of the Gang of Four Conclusion


In the resonance ratio control, which is a well-known excellent technique for vibration suppression and disturbance rejection control of torsional systems, the estimation speed of the disturbance observer was assumed to be much faster than the resonance frequency of the controlled object. However, too fast disturbance observer sometimes causes implementation problem. In this paper, we give the optimal speed of the disturbance estimation and propose a novel technique, "slow resonance ratio control". It enables us to design the speed controller and the vibration suppression controller completely independently.


the D-SACT in human subjects.4 Theoretically, this should give a pure SN wave, uncontaminated by atrial activity. Figure 9 of Reiffel's article, a 2: 1 sinoatrial block, is shown as an example. This poses the interesting and difficult problem of distinguishing between deflection due to the recording of the SN electrogram (the Heisenberg uncertainty principle is as true in medicine as it is in physical chemistry), and the slower waves resulting from repolarization which are frequently observed. Such manifestations seem to be present in D,, and high in the right atrium, as indicated by Dr. Reiffel's


This paper reports two-bit unit cell (UC)-based coding metasurfaces (MSs) which can be suitable for wireless body area networks. The proposed UCs aid in achieving the required encoding of electromagnetic waves. Two distinct functions of designed MSs such as beam steering and multi-beam generation are demonstrated using different coding patterns. The designed UCs with various size square patches are developed on RO3003 boards. Furthermore, the realized compact digital MSs, operating at 9 GHz, possess an area of $120\times 120\ \text{mm}^{2}$. Finally, the obtained experimental results validate the designed MSs and show their usefulness in supporting the considered application.


Dante LIUS Associate Vice President Principal Bridge Engineer T.Y. Lin International Miami, FL, USA email@example.com Dante Lius, received his Doctorate in civil engineering from the University of Naples, Italy. He has worked as Project Manager and Resident Engineer on various bridges around the world. His main area of expertise is design and construction of major bridges and cable stayed bridges.


We consider the stochastic control problem in which the control domain need not be convex, the control variable has two components, the first being absolutely continuous and the second singular. The coefficients of the state equation are non linear and depend explicitly on the absolutely continuous component of the control. We establish a maximum principle, by using a spike variation on the absolutely continuous part of the control and a convex perturbation on the singular one. This result is a generalization of Peng's maximum principle to singular control problems.


Dear Editor,

We read with interest the report by Giron-Arango and colleagues on the novel pericapsular nerve group (PENG) block and its use for postoperative analgesia in five patients with hip fractures.[1][1] Regional anesthesia practitioners have long awaited a primarily sensory block for


Korean learners of English are known to repair consonant clusters, which are not allowed in their native language, with an epenthetic vowel [ɨ]. The purpose of the present study is to examine whether the perception–production link of such an illusory vowel in a second language (L2) is only within and not across processing levels, as proposed in a previous study regarding L2 segments. We assessed the perception and production of English onset clusters by Korean learners and native English speakers at the prelexical (AX discrimination and pseudoword read-aloud tasks) and lexical (lexical decision and picture-naming tasks) levels, using the same participants and stimuli across the tasks. Results showed that accuracy in not producing an epenthetic vowel between the two consonants of onset cluster was not significantly associated with accurate perception of the cluster either within or across processing levels. The results suggest that production and perception accuracy in L2 phonotactics are independent to a certain extent.


Objective To observe the effect of mending an infected wound which has been enlarged and cleaned entirely by grafting a large piece of mid-thick skin on it. Methods Operations were performed on 33 cases. First their wounds were enlarged and cleaned completely,and their tendon or bones must be covered by muscular valve or fasial valve if they could be seen.Then large pieces of mid-thick skin were used to cover them.Finally they should be bound up with pressure. Results Out of the 33 cases,the survival ratio of the grafted skin was over 90% in 28 cases,which was 84.8% of all.The others' survival ratio was 60%~90%.The grafted skin on all cases healed well within two weeks.Conclusion After the skin graftings,the appearances of these wounds are fine. The sensation of the grafted skin is recovered. The grafted skin on the wounds are well wearproof. This kind of operation is a simple and effective way to mend limbs on which large wounds are seriously infected.


In order to improve information security and personal data protection, business organizations have chosen to introduce ISO 27001 and BS 10012 management systems and other international standards. The introduction of these systems can be quite complicated, and risk assessment is one of the necessary items for establishing the management system. If two systems are introduced simultaneously, the risk assessment must be implemented twice, which will incur repeated costs. Therefore, this study investigated the integration of the risk assessment methods for ISO 27001 and BS 10012 based on the case study of government agency A, with the aim of reducing man-hour costs. With the requirements of relevant government laws and regulations and the risk management framework of CNS 27005 and CNS 31000 as the risk assessment architecture, this study made an inventory of the information assets and personal data files in the form of flow process, and stipulated the aspects of impact and risk scenario conforming to the information asset and personal data files to serve as the factors for integrating the ISO 27001 and BS 10012 risk assessments. This study found that government agency A only had to implement one risk assessment after introducing the integrated risk assessment methodology, which saved about 29% of inventory and risk assessment man-hours, and 33% of educational training man-hours, consequently decreasing the man-hour cost of the business organizations.


In recent years, the spread of online offensive content has become of great concern, motivating researchers to develop robust systems capable of identifying such content automatically. To carry out a fair evaluation of these systems, several international shared tasks have been organized, providing the community with essential benchmark data and evaluation methods for various languages. Organized since 2019, the HASOC (Hate Speech and Offensive Content Identification) shared task is one of these initiatives. In its fourth iteration, HASOC 2022 included three tasks for English-Hindi codemix, German and Marathi. Tasks 1 and 2 were on conversational hate speech detection. The idea is to detect supporting hate speech, profanity, or other forms of offensiveness depending on the surrounding context of Twitter posts. Task 1 was offered in Hindi-English codemix and German. Task 2 was provided for Hindi-English codemix, and it was focused on further classifying the problematic tweets in conversational hate speech into standalone and contextual hate. This paper presents a brief description of tasks, data, and participation.


Effective Quality Management (EQM) concept it identifies the principles of successful EQM implementation. The Effective Quality Management System incorporates quality planning, provides a framework for managing the activities that enable the company to create items and services which consistently satisfy the customer, statutory, and regulatory requirements, and is a tool for achieving enhanced customer satisfaction. The EQMS also provides for the continual improvement of the quality management system by monitoring processes based on their significance, measuring their effectiveness against objectives, and management selection of processes for improvement. The Quality Control program contributes to the objectives of good practice guidance, namely to improve transparency, consistency, comparability, completeness, and confidence in national inventories of emissions estimates. The outcomes of the QC process may result in a reassessment of inventory or source category uncertainty estimates.


We consider deconvolution problems where the observations are equal in distribution to Here the random variables in the sums are independent, the E i are exponentially distributed, the L i are Laplace distributed and Y has an unknown distribution F which we want to estimate. The constants i or i are given. These problems include exponential, gamma and Laplace deconvolution. We derive inversion formulas, expressing F in terms of the distribution of the observations. Simple kernel estimators are then introduced by plugging in standard kernel estimators of the distribution of the observations. The pointwise asymptotic properties of the estimators are investigated.


The aim of the BEST-project is to support laymen in judging their legal position through intelligent disclosure of case-law in the area of Dutch tort law. Laymen can turn to legal professionals to determine their legal position, but often resolve their disputes in an informal way, e.g. by negotiation, or just leave it. In the BEST-project (BATNA Establishment using Semantic web Technology) we strive to provide disputing parties with information about their legal position in a liability case. In this way parties are given the opportunity to form a judgment about whether they could hold another party liable for certain caused damage or if they could be held liable themselves. Also, parties can determine how much room for negotiation is available when settling the damage. By information about previous court decisions, where relevant taking into consideration other factors such as time, costs, emotions, etc., a well-rounded impression is obtained about a parties' BATNA (Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement), that is: the best option a party has if negotiation fails [3].


William J Kaufmann III 1980 Oxford: W H Freeman x + 221 pp price £4.60 Bill Kaufmann is a talented expositor of astronomical subtleties, and in itself this book is an excellent introduction for an intelligent general reader or young scientist to the nature of the universe. Curiously, though, no mention is made on the jacket or within the book of the fact that much of the material is culled – some verbatim, some paraphrased – from the author's other recent books, including Stars and Nebulas and Galaxies and Quasars (both also published by Freeman) and The Cosmic Frontiers of General Relativity (Little, Brown and Co).


Abstra ct: This article aims to describe how to build character in children in the new normal era. This article is conceptually written as a medium for providing information to educators, parents and people involved in the distance learning process (PJJ) that is currently being used. Online system learning has increased digital use considerably, so awareness of the negative effects of digital technology needs to be increased. Character building is expected to minimize the negative effects of digital. The formation of a generation with character is part of the aspired national education goals. In line with that, Islamic education also aims at building the morals (character) of all human beings. In addition, the presence of educators is also important in order to achieve this noble goal. Even though the pandemic limits the face-to-face space, educators must be present to continue their mission. Between educators, parents, and students, there must be synergy as part of efforts to build national character. The final hope is that Islamic education in the midst of digital flow will become the best defense and lead them to grow into a digital generation with quality (character). Keywords : Character Building, Islamic Education, New Normal


Many applications have benefited from the images with both high spatial and spectral resolution, such as mineralogy and surveillance. However, it is difficult to acquire such images due to the limitation of sensor technologies. Recently, super-resolution (SR) techniques have been proposed to improve the spatial or spectral resolution of images, e.g., improving the spatial resolution of hyperspectral images (HSIs) or improving spectral resolution of color images (reconstructing HSIs from RGB inputs). However, none of the researches attempted to improve both spatial and spectral resolution together. In this article, these two types of resolution are jointly improved using convolutional neural network (CNN). Specifically, two kinds of CNN-based SR are conducted, including a simultaneous spatial–spectral joint SR (SimSSJSR) that conducts SR in spectral and spatial domain simultaneously and a separated spatial–spectral joint SR (SepSSJSR) that considers spectral and spatial SR sequentially. In the proposed SimSSJSR, a full 3-D CNN is constructed to learn an end-to-end mapping between a low spatial-resolution mulitspectral image (LR-MSI) and the corresponding high spatial-resolution HSI (HR-HSI). In the proposed SepSSJSR, a spatial SR network and a spectral SR network are designed separately, and thus two different frameworks are proposed for SepSSJSR, namely SepSSJSR1 and SepSSJSR2, according to the order that spatial SR and spectral SR are applied. Furthermore, the least absolute deviation, instead of mean square error (MSE) in traditional SR networks, is chosen as the loss function for the proposed networks. Experimental results over simulated images from different sensors demonstrated that the proposed SepSSJSR1 is most effective to improve spatial and spectral resolution of MSIs sequentially by conducting spatial SR prior to spectral SR. In addition, validation on real Landsat images also indicates that the proposed SSJSR techniques can make full use of available MSIs for high-resolution-based analysis or applications.


Background: The discharging ear presents the otologist with the dilemma of operating on it or not. This study is being undertaken to study and compare the results of type I tympanoplasty in dry ear (no ear discharge at the time of surgery) and wet ear (culture negative consistent ear discharge at the time of surgery).Methods: 50 patients of either sex aged between 18 to 50 years undergoing type-I tympanoplasty were included in the study on the basis of pre-determined clinical criteria. Type I tympanoplasty was performed using temporalis fascia graft by underlay technique. Post-operative data regarding graft uptake and hearing improvement was recorded in the follow up period of three months.  Results: The complete graft uptake was there in 88% of the patients in group 1 and 84% patients in group 2. The difference in the two groups was statistically insignificant (p>0.05). The mean pre-operative pure tone average in group 1 was 30.57±7.80 dB while post-operative pure tone average was 20.68±8.22 dB with a mean hearing gain of 9.89 dB. The mean pre-operative pure tone average in group 2 was 35.21±5.98 dB while the post-operative pure tone average was 27.07±9.25 dB with a mean hearing gain of 8.12 dB. There was marked hearing improvement in both the groups post operatively (p<0.001 i.e., highly significant). When hearing improvement was compared between two groups there was no significant statistical difference (p>0.05).Conclusions: The outcome is equally good for type 1 tympanoplasty in dry and wet ear in safe (mucosal) type of chronic suppurative otitis media with respect to graft uptake and hearing improvement.


Endobronchial tuberculosis (EBTB) is a condition that occurs as a result of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), where the infection spreads to the inner walls of the bronchial tubes or the trachea. This causes the inner lining and the layer underneath to become inflamed, swollen, ulcerated, or to develop granulated tissue or scar. We discuss a 19-year-old lady with active pulmonary TB who was receiving anti-TB drug treatment. Despite being on anti-TB medications, she had persistent cough, loss of weight and increasing dyspnea. She was diagnosed with EBTB with left main bronchus (LMB) stenosis, based upon a strong clinical suspicion, followed by using a variety of techniques, including lung function testing, a chest and neck CT scan, and a bronchoscopy. Given that EBTB is a rare consequence of TB, it is crucial for clinicians to take it into account when patients present with symptoms that are comparable. This will enable prompt and effective treatment.


Introduction Face-to-face communication can be challenging in noisy environments for everyone [1] and people often experience difficulties with speech communication in cocktail party situations. Despite identifying factors that influence spoken communication, such as the level and position of background noise sources and talkers, and the exact position of the listener's head, the precise reasons for listening problems are often unknown. Therefore, replication of the problems in laboratory is difficult which closely relates to the fact that the acoustics at the ear of people who communicate in cocktail party situations change rapidly due to the movement of participants and sound sources, and reverberation [2]–[4]. To provide a broader perspective on communication in realistic situations, the present study aims to investigate the movement behavior of people engaged in triadic conversations. We accomplish this by creating a precisely controlled audiovisual virtual reality using the real-time Simulated Open Field Environment (rtSOFE) [5].


A case of a healed fibrotic ureteral infarct secondary to vascular occlusion+ by thromboemboli that caused a ureteral filling defect and obstruction is reported.


Introduction: Improving the temporal constraints of Martian geologic processes is essential for understanding the formational history of the planet and providing adequate context for exploration. Martian surfaces are generally delineated into discrete packages based on morphological, compositional, and/or temporal characteristics, the latter of which are derived through (1) apparent cross-cutting relationships between geologic units and tectonic features and (2) the size and density of impact craters of any given surface [e.g., 1]. Size-frequency distributions of impact craters on the Martian surface have long been used as a proxy for dating the age of Martian geologic units [1-3]. What have not been systematically applied to strati-graphic studies are large crater clusters (those ≥20 km in length and containing ≥10 individual craters ≥300 m in diameter [4]). Herein, we present progress toward a new method for refining the current Martian time-stratigraphic scheme by using publicly available global datasets and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies. Rationale: Present workflows for the temporal subdivision of Martian geologic terrains are not straightforward, particularly when attempting to use full array of current dataset resolutions. Our method intends to establish a systematic and repeatable approach of stratigraphic studies that uses the spatial distribution and cross-cutting relationships of large crater clusters (LCCs). The goal is avoid many of the interpretive nuances that often plague stratigraphic analyses using crater density assessments. Martian surfaces are generally delineated through temporal characteristics that include crosscutting relationships of geologic units and the size and frequency of impact craters [1]. These two, along with other morphological and compositional properties are the basis for defining the boundaries of geologic events through time. This type of interpretive temporal-assessment is complex, because of the many characteristics that are taken into account when placing time constraints on the surfaces. Our new methodology, presented here, focuses on the identification and classification of LCCs as a means to provide stratigraphic markers. Our method uses the distributional characteristics of LCCs as a proxy for partitioning the current strati-graphic framework. To this end, we are required to find out if the clusters were formed (1) as primary impacts , via swarms of meteoroids that entered the at


Nanometre-sized iron particles with diameters in the range 5-8.5 nm have been grownwithin a 30Na2O-60SiO2-10B2O3 glassmatrix using a 3Na+i'« Fe3+ exchange reaction followed by reduction treatment in hydrogen for different temperatures. Electron diffraction pattern shows the presence of FeO and a-Fe particles. Thermal characteristicswere studied byDSCwhile the nanoscale-related magnetic properties were investigated by VSM. The results show depression of magnetization as a function of temperature. This behaviour indicates the occurrence of spin-wave fluctuation in iron core of the studies samples.


A 7-week-old girl had pneumococcal endocarditis and perforation of the mitral valve. Pneumococcal endocarditis in children under 2 years of age is extremely rare, and is a prototype for endocarditis in general in infants less than 2 years of age. To our knowledge, this is the youngest reported patients with pneumococcal endocarditis in the penicillin era.


distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and redistribution in any medium, provided that the original author and source are credited. The first academic journal was created by Henry Oldenburg (1619-1677), first Secretary of the Royal Society. Rather than wait years for scientists to publish their findings in books, Oldenburg wanted to accelerate the scientific process by soliciting short letters from scientists. He collected these letters and published them as the first journal, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, in 1665. He encouraged submissions from all who had knowledge to share, even people without formal training, and he encouraged the use of common language (as opposed to Latin, which was previously used for scientific communication) so the content could be accessible to a wider audience (see Science as an Open Enterprise, Royal Society Report). Journals were created to be an engine of science, driving innovation, communication, and openness for the benefit of all. After 350 years however, these systems have developed into something else entirely, and reached their limits. In many ways traditional journals are now barriers to progress in science (and even antithetical to their original purpose-as powerfully illustrated by the late Aaron Swartz in his Guerilla Open Access Manifesto). Perhaps the only thing they truly do effectively now is generate profits. In the context of increasing pressures in science e.g. from sheer research volume, traditional publications and peer-review have long-since reached the point of diminishing returns. New paradigms of transparency and collaboration in the peer process which go beyond 'review' are needed, and systems of rapid open access to text, data, and code are essential. Solutions are already developing, such as FigShare and ScienceOpen. Today, there are many possibilities for publishing your scholarly work. For authors, this means that the hurdles to passing through various publication systems ranges enormously, from closed, anonymous, peer-review; self-publishing on pre-pub archives (such as ArXiV); or even simply paying a so-called predatory-publisher. There are most definitely still reputable journals. There are also good reviewers who freely volunteer their time and energy to the enormous financial gain of publishers, which charge for publicly-funded research at every turn (see here for a nice graphic explaining the publishers business model). But, the benefits of peer-review and the dissemination enabled by journals can be received (and greatly improved upon) outside of a traditional system. Indeed, peer-review itself …


The linear electro-optic (EO) and electro-gyration (EG) effects are studied in an optically active material systems including Bi12SiO20 (BSO) oxide and bent-core liquid crystals. In an isotropic BSO sample, the breaking of intrinsic centro-symmetry allowed the EO modulation of the refractive index. In a mixture of bent-shaped liquid crystalline molecules having both optical activity and birefringence, the observed intensity modulation is investigated, which is related to the nonlinear optical responses of both the optical rotatory power and the birefringence. Both the linear EO and EG effects are understood in terms of the superposition principle of linear and circular birefringences.


A white-tailed deer die-off occurred in the coastal marshes of Louisiana in the fall of 1967 following an extended period of below normal rainfall. Surviving deer were reported to be in poor condition. In late November a weak, emaciated doe was captured at the Audubon Game Refue and transported to Baton Rouge for examination. The doe was moribund when presented for necropsy. The animal was heavily infested with biting lice. The blood was thin and watery. There was red marrow all through the femur and in the proximal pant of the tibia. The more distal marrow was yellow and gelatinous. Body fat was almost entirely pleted. There was a pronounced serous atrophy of cardiac and mesenteric adipose tissue. The kidneys and liver were pale. The liver was quite small with a surface that appeared dull and somewhat granular as compared to the smooth glistening surface of the liver of a freshly killed, healthy animal. The lungs were grossly normal except for a moderate amount of hypostatic congestion. A few adult lung worms were found in the bronchi. The doe was not pregnant. Her age was estimated to be 9 years. A few days later two more adult female deer were received from the Audubon Refuge. They were anemic and


Objective To approach relationship between the clinical significance and prognosis of XAF1、CHD5 express deliver convey show communicate and Ki67 in tumor of ovary serous adenocarcinoma. Methods To analyze epithelial ovarian tumor resection specimens of 63 cases were observed,Through the pathology results confirmed, 15 cases of benign ovarian tumors, borderline ovarian tumor in 13 cases,35 cases of ovarian serous adenocarcinoma, select normal tissues in 5 cases of ovarian resection operation of uterine leiomyoma were. Results XAF1, the positive rate of CHD5 in normal ovarian tissues, benign epithelial tumor were higher than borderline ovarian tumor and epithelial ovarian cancer,XAF1, CHD5 combined with Ki-67 detection,XAF1, CHD5 and clinical staging significantly negative correlation in tumor of ovary serous adenocarcinoma,with clinical stage, pathological significantly negative correlation to histological grade, lymph node metastasis,P0.05,the difference were statistical significance. Conclusion The relationship between, to explore its role in ovarian epithelial tumor development,guidance of ovarian serous adenocarcinoma clinical reasonable treatment and accurate prognosis has important clinical significance.


The concept of socio-technical self-descriptions can be employed to run CSCW-projects where several perspectives have to be integrated in a process of decision making. The decisions are related to technical as well as organizational structures and their interplay. Current approaches do not sufficiently match the challenge to facilitate the communication processes during CSCW-projects. The alignment of software-development and configuration on the one hand with organizational changes and regulations on the other hand need specific forms of documentation which can be considered as a kind of self-description. In this paper we explain how semi-structured diagrams can fulfil these requirements, if they are embedded in appropriately facilitated communication processes. We provide guidelines and recommendations which were derived from several case studies and were refined during a project which planned to support the cooperation between truck drivers and dispatches by using mobile pocketPCs


Abstract : The Korean Seismic Research Station (KSRS) short-period array was evaluated using data which cover eight-hour time periods daily between May and June 1973. Most of the data is of poor quality due to instrumental problems. The average noise reduction obtained by beaming was about 2 dB better than square root of (N) due to the almost continuous presence of propagating coherent noise at the station. The 50% detection body wave magnitude threshold was found to be 4.35 + or - .45 (95% confidence interval) at the epicentral distance of 60 deg. The 90% detection threshold was found to be 5.42 + or - .45 magnitude units.


The analysis of tree cross-sections (discs) by measuring the rings (annuli) of a disc to determine a tree's growth history is conducted frequently by foresters, botanists and ecologists. The purpose of this paper is to discuss algorithms and approaches that were used to develop a prototype for a system to automate the measurement of tree rings through image analysis. A system was developed to define the area of annuli of a disc with clearly defined boundaries and no perturbations. The area of the entire region enclosed by a ring is determined by defining a ring's perimeter using a conventional radially-sweeping contour-tracing algorithm. The area of an annuli is calculated by subtraction of the area enclosed by the adjoining inner rings. This portion of the system is O((r+1)n) for the measurement of a disc, where n=(Ymax-Ymin+1) and r = the number of rings in the disc. A flood (polygon) fill algorithm must be used to verify the center of the disc was found. Thus, the efficiency of the entire system is O(n2). The area that must be visited by the flood fill algorithm is small thus the approach is efficient. Its utility for tree ring analysis is limited due to tree discs often having indistinct boundaries and flaws. Research is being conducted on image capture, edge detection and contour tracing methods to further develop the prototype. These capabilities must be incorporated to make this system a useful tool for analyzing a normal imperfect disc.


Psychological well-being refers to positive mental health for college students, but psychological problems cause decreased psychological well-being. Numerous studies indicate social support and religiosity are essential for maintaining psychological well-being for college students. This study aimed to analyze the contribution of social support and religiosity to psychological well-being among college students. Data were obtained using the scale of social support, the scale of religiosity, and the scale of psychological well-being. The subjects of this study were 350 college students in Universitas Negeri Malang, East Java, Indonesia. The method of data analysis used was multiple regression. Analysis results show that the psychological well-being of college students influenced social support and religiosity but social support had more influence than religiosity. Thus, social support and religiosity are needed by college students to improve psychological well-being, more specifically for social support.


Proposes a mathematical formulation of bumpy responses and a method to analyze their magnitudes. Bumpy responses often appear when switching occurs in control systems. Since those responses are harmful, several methods have been proposed to attain bumpless transfer. However, most of the existing methods do not provide any guarantee for the resultant performance nor deal with uncertainty explicitly. This paper formulates the magnitude of bumpy responses as the worst-case /spl Lscr//sub 2/ gain from past disturbance to future outputs and proposes a method to analyze the worst-case gain based on linear matrix inequalities. Numerical examples clarify the effectiveness of the proposed method.


The purpose of this service is to help trainees be able to make learning media in the form of videos. The training method used is the lecture method and uses the Direct Instruction learning model. As for the material presented, there are two: 1. Install the Bandicam application to make learning videos, and 2. Setting the Bandicam application as desired. The training is carried outat UNDIKMA to be precise for students who will soon complete their studies or final semester students or students who are currently pursuing their thesis or prospective educators. The results of the training conducted were that participants were able to install the Bandicam application themselves and students were able to set up the Bandicam application according to what the participants wanted. More importantly, the participants are able to make their own learning videos.


This article examines the impact of a movie's budget on its profitability by measuring movie profitability using its return on investment (ROI). With a dataset comprising 3309 movies, we find that a movie's ROI negatively correlates to its production budget. Our findings further reveal that its ROI is highest in the category of low budget films when compared to other groups of different budget categories, i.e., moderate, big, and mega budget. In terms of an investment portfolio strategy, we argue that the better option for movie studios is to concentrate more on smaller-scale film projects instead of investing heavily in major productions, or at the very least, to consider having a more balanced portfolio in order to realize greater overall returns.


The present experiment was begun in 1923 by thesuggestion of Professor Nakamura, and some preliminary report was read before the Physico-Matheinatical Society of Japan. The method employed is the same in principle as Dauvillier's experiment1), differing however inthe use of continuous radiation of an ordinary Coolidge tube of tungsten target instead of monochromatic radiations. Manyspecimens of both natural and cultivated pearlsas well as a number of nuclei utilized inthe cultivation were kindly placed at our disposal by Mikimoto & Co. These nuclei, perfectly spherical,about 3.5 mm. in dia., were made of some shells and showed a laminatedstructure. From an investigation of the Laue patterns of nuclei obtained for different orientations of


The physical paradigm has been dominant in the management of forest fires, but this is a complex process resulting from the interaction between ecological and human components. This paper proposes a reflection on the polysemy with which the terms risk, hazard and vulnerability have been used in research on forest fires and presents a model for assessing vulnerability. It highlights the importance of this concept for more efficient management of forest fire risk as well as presents some challenges to streamline its operation.


Radioactive atoms have been used in solid-state physics and in material science for many decades. Besides their classical application as tracer for diffusion studies, nuclear techniques such as Mössbauer spectroscopy, perturbed angular correlation, β-NMR, and emission channelling have used nuclear properties (via hyperfine interactions or emitted particles) to gain microscopical information on the structural and dynamical properties of solids. During the last decade, the availability of many different radioactive isotopes as a clean ion beam at ISOL facilities such as ISOLDE at CERN has triggered a new era involving methods sensitive for the optical and electronic properties of solids, especially in the field of semiconductor physics. Extremely sensitive spectroscopic techniques like deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS), photoluminescence (PL), and Hall effect have gained a new quality by using radioactive isotopes. Because of their decay the chemical origin of an observed electronic and optical behaviour of a specific defect or dopant can be unambiguously identified. The ongoing experiments in solid-state physics using radioactive ions deal with a wide variety of problems in condensed matter physics involving bulk properties, surfaces and interfaces in many different systems like semiconductors, superconductors, surfaces, interfaces, magnetic systems, metals, and ceramics. This article highlights a few examples to illustrate the potential of the use of radiaoctive isotopes for various problems in solid-state physics. Submitted to Europhysics News


A Call for Papers for the 213th ECS Meeting to be held at the Phoenix Convention Center & Hyatt Regency in Phoenix, AZ. The meeting dates are May 18-23, 2008.


With the increase of terrorist and criminal activities, closed circuit television (CCTV) is widely used on many occasions. However, abuse of surveillance video may result in the leakage of personal privacy. To protect the privacy in the video of CCTV, an encryption scheme for region of interest (ROI) of H.264 video based on flexible macroblock ordering (FMO) and chaos is proposed in this paper, where human face regions are selected as an example of ROI. First, the human face regions in the video are detected and extracted. Then, they are mapped into slice groups by using FMO technology in H.264. After that, these regions are encrypted using selective video encryption based on chaos. Experimental results and analysis show that the proposed scheme can effectively protect the private information of H.264 video and, therefore, can strike a good balance among the security, encryption efficiency, and coding performance. It has great potential to be used in the privacy protection of the video of CCTV.


Recent lower court decisions in California and Ohio have focused public attention on the use of sterilization as an instrument of social policy. The author traces the history of sterilization in the United States and analyzes current legislation and practices. The scientific premise upon which eugenic sterilization is based is now subject to considerable doubt. Nonetheless, sterilization has found questionable new support among those seeking to reduce welfare rolls.


In order to study the mechanism of rock-burst induced by excavation and unloading at the interface of rock formations, two types of true triaxial loading-unloading numerical simulations were carried out on the 收稿日期:2021−01−15;修回日期:2021−03−08 基金项目(Foundation item):国家自然科学基金资助项目(U1602232,51474050,52004052); 中央高校基本科研业务专项资金资 助项目(N180701005,N170108029);中国矿业大学(北京)深部岩土力学与地下工程国家重点实验室开放基金课题资助 项目(SKLGDUEK1920) (Projects(U1602232, 51474050, 52004052) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China; Projects (N180701005, N170108029) supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for Central Universities; Project (SKLGDUEK1920) supported by the State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, China University of Mining & Technology(Beijing)) 通信作者:贾蓬,博士,副教授,从事岩石力学与数值模拟方面的研究;E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com DOI: 10.11817/j.issn.1672-7207.2021.08.031 引用格式:贾蓬, 杨楠, 刘冬桥, 等 . 组合岩石真三轴加卸荷条件下的破坏机理[J]. 中南大学学报(自然科学版), 2021, 52(8): 2867−2875. Citation: JIA Peng, YANG Nan, LIU Dongqiao, et al. Failure mechanism of combined rock under true triaxial loading and unloading conditions[J]. Journal of Central South University(Science and Technology), 2021, 52(8): 2867−2875. 第 52 卷 中南大学学报(自然科学版) combined rock using RFPA parallel code. The failure evolution process, mechanical characteristics and failure modes of combined rocks with different height ratios and different dip angles were studied. The results show that the localized failure characteristics of the combined rock under true triaxial loading-unloading conditions are significant, and the failure location depends on locations of the sof-hard rock. Damage is mainly concentrated near the free surface of the soft rock and propagate into the hard rock. The failure mode of the combined rock is closely related to the height ratio of soft-hard rock and the dip angle. With the increase of the height ratio, the failure mode changes from shear-tension composite failure to tension-shear composite failure. With the increase of the dip angle, the shear slip failure of the rock is more significant. The peak strength of the combined rock is also closely related to the height ratio of the soft and hard rock and the combined dip angle, and is greatly affected by the mechanical parameters of the soft rock. The research findings can provide references for understanding the mechanism of rock failure induced by excavation at the interface of rock formations.


In order to realize the full potential in an MR receiver, the digitizer must capture a signal magnitude range from the central k-space peak to the thermal noise floor of the system. This dynamic range can exceed the performance of standard 16-bit data converters. For example, a whole-body mouse scan in a 7 Tesla magnet requires 20 bits of dynamic range. A 3D high-resolution mouse scan at 75 μm isotropic voxel resolution using a 16-bit spectrometer shows an eightfold improvement in image SNR by gain stepping the receiver prior to digitization to cover the full magnitude dynamic range compared to a standard fixed gain approach. A method is presented to determine the dynamic range requirements of any experiment. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part B (Magn Reson Engineering) 26B: 28–35, 2005.


In this paper, a simulation system with printhead's distortion model is developed for 3D printing based on 3D printing robot. The simulation system based on DirectX SDK is modular designed which is consist of pre-process module, virtual running module, simulation platform module and user interface module. Virtual running is taken on the simulation platform using the 3D printing data which was pre-processed by the simulation system. According to the contrast between simulation and the real results, printhead's distortion model is verified and improved. Finally, an improved 3D printing strategy is proposed by simulation system and verified in real 3D printing.


Functional fish protein isolate of anchovy Engraulis ringens was explored as a solution started with fish meal as a low value crude fish protein concentrate to increase value into anchovy in China. First,fish protein functionality of crude protein concentrate( fish meal) was modified by hydrolysis of flavourzyme and alcalase. The hydrolyzed fish protein was defatted,centrifuged,and filtered by diatomaceous clay,and then concentrated by spray drying to get hydrolyzed fish protein isolate( HFPI). Second,approximate compositions and function were analyzed in HFPI and growth-promoting effects of HFPI on 4 species of microorganisms including Bacillus subtilis,Lactobacillus bulgaricus,Escherichia coli,and Saccharomyces cerevisiae were evaluated. Combination of enzymatic hydrolysis,filtration,separation and spray drying revealed that the HFPI had yield rate of 59. 53%,and contained81. 02% crude protein,0. 52% fat,and 11. 52% ash. It was found that HFPI showed well growth- promoting effects on microorganisms above,and was used as a functional fish protein in microorganism culture.


A battery pack device of an embodiment includes a battery module, a casing, an air inlet, an air outlet, and a ventilation channel. In the battery module, a plurality of battery cells stacked one on another are disposed. The casing is installed while housing the battery module therein. The air inlet is provided in the casing and lets an outside air into the casing. The air outlet is provided in the casing, disposed at a position higher than a position of the air inlet, and lets the air out of the casing. The ventilation channel, in the casing, connects the air inlet and the air outlet, and inclines with respect to a horizontal direction.


The Laurentian Great Lakes are a chain of five large water bodies and connecting rivers that constitute the headwaters of the St. Lawrence River. Collectively they form one of the largest reservoirs of surface freshwater on the planet with an aggregate volume of >22,000 km. Early interpretations of the postglacial lake history implicitly assumed that the Great Lakes always overflowed their outlets. A study of Lake Winnipeg which concluded that lack of water in a dry climate had dried that lake for millennia led to re-evaluation of the Great Lakes water-level history. Using the empirical information of glacioisostatic rebound derived from C-dated and uptilted Great Lake paleo-shorelines, a method of computation was developed to test the paradigm of continuous lake overflow. The method evaluated site and outlet uplift independently, and lowlevel indicators such as submerged tree stumps rooted beneath the present Great Lakes were found to be lower than the lowest possible corresponding basin outlet. Results confirmed the low-level, closed-basin hydrological status of the early Great Lakes. This status is consistent with paleoclimatic inferences of aridity during the early Holocene before establishment of the present patterns of atmospheric circulation which now bring adequate precipitation to maintain the overflowing lakes. In a sense, the early to middle Holocene phase of dry climate and low water levels is a natural experiment to illustrate the sensitivity of the Great Lakes to climate change in this era of global warming, should their climate shift to one much drier than present, or future major diversions of their waters be permitted.


This interview with Piero Zanini has a particular interest. At the end of Nineties he firstly faced the theme of boundary, explored through a wide range of sources, not only related to architecture but also referred to geography, moving, literature, anthropology. This argument is now one of the most discussed between planners and designers and therefore the considerations here showed, that send to the complex discussion begun in 1997, are particularly actual and source of suggestions.


Assessment of student learning can both provide a measure of individual achievement and support data‐driven decisions about educational programs. The annual American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) Certification Exam is an important component of the undergraduate accreditation program offered by the Society. Exam development and scoring have resulted in a community of scientist‐educators dedicated to the improvement of biochemistry and molecular biology (BMB) education. The exam assesses student competence in four BMB concept areas: energy and metabolism; structure and function; information storage and transfer; and quantitative reasoning. Undergraduate students nearing completion of their ASBMB‐accredited program are eligible to take the exam. A community of volunteers, aided by the organizational efforts of ASBMB staff, has come together to implement all aspects of the exam process. Over 50 volunteers from diverse institutions across the country helped score the exam in 2019, and additional volunteers are being recruited for 2020. This scoring community primarily consists of BMB faculty members, but also welcomes postdoctoral scientists and advanced graduate students. In preparation for the exam, scoring teams review and suggest revisions for proposed exam questions and answer keys. Several scoring teams of 3–5 members are assigned to each concept area, and each exam question is scored independently by one or more teams. Student responses are marked as "highly proficient", "proficient", or "not yet proficient". Scoring is statistically analyzed for inter‐rater reliability. Any discrepancies are resolved cooperatively. Students' overall exam scores are categorized as "Pass with Distinction", "Pass", or "Not Passing". Since the exam was first administered in 2014, nearly 4,000 students have participated. Historically, the "Pass with Distinction" rate has ranged between 10% and 18% and the "Pass" rate 35% to 55%. Scorers value the opportunity to contribute to this national effort to support quality BMB education. Many have served in this role for multiple years, and 98% of the 2019 scorers report they plan to score again in 2020.


mixedbacterial culture degraded twotetrameric lignin modelcompounds containing 3-O--4and5-S biphenyl structures. Thea-hydroxyl groupsinthepropanechain ofbothphenolic andnonphenolic tetramers were first oxidized symmetrically in twosuccessive steps togivemonoketones anddiketones. Theseketone metabolites weredecomposed through C.(= O)-Cpcleavage, forming trimeric carboxyl acids whichwere further metabolized through another Ca(=O)Cgp cleavage. Dehydrodiveratric acid, whichresulted fromthecleavage ofthecarbonbondsofthe nonphenol tetramer, was demethylated twice. Fourmetabolites ofthephenolic tetramer were purified and identified. Allofthese were stable compounds insterile mineral medium, butwere readily degraded bylignin tetramer-degrading bacteria along thesame pathway asthephenol tetramer. Nomonoaromatic metabolites accumulated. Allmetabolites were identified bymass andprotonmagnetic resonancespectrometry. The metabolic routebywhichthemixedbacterial culture degraded tetrameric lignin modelcompounds was different fromtherouteofthemainligninase-catalyzed