ABSTRACT In situ nuclear DNA content estimations, karyotype analysis, and somatic chromosome number (2n = 16) were made for nine cultivars of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.), revealing cultivar specific chromosomal characteristics and minute structural alterations in chromosomes of the genome. The 4C DNA content varied significantly from 3.12 to 4.36 picograms. Significant variations were also observed in total chromosome length, total chromosome volume, and total form percentage at the cultivar level. Correlation coefficients showed interdependence between the chromosome length and chromosome volume within at the cultivar level. Variations in genomic structure and the nuclear DNA content of fenugreek cultivars, despite the same somatic chromosome number, suggest a genetic drift among the cultivars.


The development of two-lane system higher education in which higher vocational education and higher general education develop equally is the trend of the development of mass higher education.However,at present,the development of higher vocational education and higher general education is imbalanced,and the main reasons are: the total financial investment in higher education is insufficient and the allocation of financial resources deflects to general education that caused by internal management system of higher education.Therefore,to optimize allocation of financial resources of higher education and rational plan the internal structure of higher education system can promote the development of two-lane system higher education.


Background About 21% of the patients coming yearly to the DMZ Clinic at the Dead Sea for climatotherapy suffer from atopic dermatitis. This is a common, chronic, and relapsing disease which necessitates drug treatment (topical corticosteroids, antimicrobials, antihistamines, or immunomodulators), phototherapy, or climatotherapy.


Young's modulus of ceramic YBa_2Cu_3O_7−δ was measured between room temperature and 1000 °C, E(T) , by an ultrasonic pulse-echo technique. Experimental results are presented for nonaligned ceramics with average grain sizes from 2 to 10 μm and densities from 80% to 95% of the theoretical value. Young's modulus is shown to be strongly sensitive to oxygen content with the orthorhombic phase being significantly stiffer than the tetragonal phase. In addition, the phase transition is denoted by a pronounced minimum in E(T) relating to softening of certain bonds in the unit cell. At high temperature (>900 °C) melting of the second phase gives a steep drop in E(T) while subsequent densification increases E . Finally, cooling of large-grained ceramic below 450 °C opens microcracks due to anisotropic volume changes. This results in hysteresis between the heating and cooling curves for E(T) . Hence the technique is used to show that ceramic, with an average grain size of 2 μm and 85% of theoretical density, is well oxygenated and undamaged by its thermal treatment.


Abstract The present study reports the preparation and physicochemical characterization of surface-modified poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) microparticles containing interleukin-2 (rhIL-2) for pulmonary delivery. The surface of the microparticles was modified with mucoadhesive polymers such as chitosan and Carbopol 971P. The feasibility of this surface modification was confirmed by measuring the zeta potential. Chitosan-modified PLGA microparticles showed a positive zeta potential, while Carbopol-modified PLGA microparticles were negatively charged. The mucin binding efficiency values have shown that the positively charged chitosan coated microparticles showed a higher adhesive percent to the mucin than the negatively charged un-coated or Carbopol 971P coated microparticles. Furthermore, surface modification of microparticles with chitosan and Carbopol 971P has yielded a slight decrease in the amount of protein initially released. These findings suggest the suitability of surface-modified PLGA microparticles as an efficient carrier system for delivery peptides and proteins to the respiratory tract.


This paper presents an algorithmic tool that was used to create panels of experts for the synoptic assessment of a software engineering project course that is targeted towards fostering innovation and creativity in software engineering students. Synoptic assessments succeed with the ability to formulate expert evaluation panels. Yet many industry experts are busy professionals, and hence, the process of constituting appropriately balanced evaluation panels for project demonstrations is a significant challenge. The discussion includes the outcomes of using the algorithm to automate the panel composition and scheduling process for synoptic assessments of project demonstrations for a batch of 100 students following the Bachelor of Engineering (Honors) degree program in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Moratuwa in Sri Lanka. We describe the challenges we faced and our approach towards addressing the issues as well as our encouraging successes.


In recent years, the emergence of new invaders has been discovered in Crimea – the mealy lantern fly Metcalfa pruinosa (Say, 1830) (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Flatidae), the indian wax scale Ceroplastes ceriferus (Fabricius, 1798) (Hemiptera: Coccoidea: Coccoidea), the southern green stink bug Nezara viridula (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae), the stink bug Oxycarenus lavaterae (Fabricius, 1787) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae) and palm moth Paysandisia archon (Burmeister, 1880) (Lepidoptera: Castniidae). Timely information on the penetration of new alien species that damage agricultural and ornamental crops into the entomofauna of Crimea, their distribution, biological characteristics that are relevant for specialists in the field of plant protection and landscape architecture. The number of mealy lantern fly has increased over the years of observations, and the list of host plants has also expanded, which has confirmed its polyphagia. In Crimea, a pest has appeared that can cause significant damage to fruit, berry, nut-bearing and ornamental crops. During the years of research, we discovered another alien species – the indian wax scale. As a result of damage to ornamental crops, individual branches dried out and some plants died. We assume that this phytophage was brought to the Crimea with planting material, because it occurs focally on objects of landscape architecture. Since 2018, palm trees have been damaged by the palm moth – one of the invasive pests of these plants on the southern coast of Crimea. Caterpillars damage the vascular system and the plant's growth point. As a result of the damage caused, the plants die. Since the same year, a new alien species, the southern green stink bug, has shown harmfulness on vegetable, berry and flower crops, as well as on weeds, and in 2020, for the first time in the Crimea, in the Nizhnegorsk region, another stink bug, O. lavaterae, was found on a linden. There is little information about this insect. It can form massive clusters on linden and hibiscus bark.


Banner clouds are clouds in the lee of steep mountains or sharp ridges on otherwise cloud-free days. Previous studies investigated various aspects of banner cloud formation in numerical simulations, most of which were based on idealized orography and a neutrally stratified ambient atmosphere. The present study extends these simulations in two important directions by (1) examining the impact of various types of orography ranging from an idealized pyramid to the realistic orography of Mount Matterhorn, and (2) accounting for an ambient atmosphere that turns from neutral to stably stratified below the mountain summit. Not surprisingly, realistic orography introduces asymmetries in the spanwise direction. At the same time, banner cloud occurrence remains associated with a coherent area of strong uplift, although this region does not have to be located exclusively in the lee of the mountain any longer. In the case of Mount Matterhorn with a westerly ambient flow, a large fraction of air parcels rises along the southern face of the mountain, before they reach the lee and are lifted into the banner cloud. The presence of a shallow boundary layer with its top below the mountain summit introduces more complex behavior compared to a neutrally stratified boundary layer; in particular, it introduces a dependence on wind speed, because strong wind is associated with strong turbulence that is able to raise the boundary layer height and, thus, facilitates the formation of a banner cloud.


Restating the importance of teachers' role in traditional sound lab,this paper establishes three roles of a teacher as "instructor,technician and portofolio manager"in listening course for English majors.A "portofolio"-based autonomous learning model was constructed and applied in the teaching of Listening This Way 3.The follow-ups as interviews with students and listening test scores proved the model could facilitate students' autonomous learning so as to contribute to their listening level.


The big problem of Indonesian people today is moral degradation. The number of criminal cases, promiscuity, drugs, and corruption indicate that the moral of this nation has been damaged. If it is not immediately addressed, it will have a negative impact on the sustainability of the nation . To overcome moral degradation, one way that is considered very effective is to implement religious humanist education from an early age. that in those days the child is very easy to receive new information and has not been affected by negative behavior from outside. Religious Humanist Education (RHE) is very important for early childhood. RHE teaches children about morality and good values towards fellow human beings and the environment. RHE can grow children to be intelligent, to have character, and to be noble. Therefore, this article aimed to examine the concept of religious humanist education in early childhood.


Two difficult problems in commissioning of aluminum foil rolling mills are analyzed,and their solutions are found,which can be a reference to the designers and users of aluminum foil rolling mills.


Unconventional resources such as tight, fractured and hybrid shale gas and oil plays as well as oil or kerogen shale systems, are considered exploitable self-contained source and reservoir rocks. A better understanding of the thermal cracking of sedimentary organic matter, hydrocarbons generation, expulsion, storage and retention mechanisms constitutes a key point, estimating the oil and gas in-place, free or adsorbed, for their exploration and exploitation. Herein, we introduce a new " ready to use " method of analysis and interpretation for the Rock-Eval 6 device for better assessment of free or sorbed hydrocarbons in unconventional shale plays. This method was developed at IFP Energies nouvelles (France) and was tested on 15 actual or potential unconventional shale samples from Silurian Shale (Algeria), Mississippian Barnett Shale (USA), Early Jurassic Shale (France), Late Jurassic Bazhenov Shale (Russia) and Eocene Green River Shale at different thermal maturity stages. Results indicate a better quantification of free and/or sorbed hydrocarbons (Sh0 and Sh1 peaks) as well as a more accurate determination of the Rock-Eval T max maturity parameter.


Current magnetic particle imaging methods use an alternating magnetic field (AMF) to induce magnetization from the magnetic nanoparticles. The dominant component of the magnetization is in the same direction as the AMF; hence only the harmonics of the magnetization can be isolated from the AMF using their frequencies. We recently introduced a method of using a small static field to induce a component of the magnetization in the direction perpendicular to the AMF. The perpendicular magnetization is geometrically as well as spectrally decoupled from the AMF. The magnetization is generated as the AMF passes though zero and is entirely composed of even harmonics. The method was developed for spectroscopic sensing applications. Here we suggest that perpendicular magnetization can be used to image the spatial distribution of magnetic nanoparticles. Two gradient orientations can be used and simulations of the two were made to perform a preliminary comparison. In both cases, spatial gradients in static magnetic fields were employed. The direction of magnetic field is critical: In the first case, the static gradient fields are in the direction perpendicular to the AMF. In the second case, the static gradient fields are in the same direction as the AMF. In both cases, there would be gradients in all three directions. In both cases, the AMF can be large enough to image all pixels in the field of view at once, or a stepped static field can be used to break the field of view into subregions to reduce the power requirements on the AMF. Both methods should be able to produce low-noise images with reasonably conditioned reconstructions that are less than ten.


ABSTRACT Cybercrime investigators, in an attempt to rid Nigeria of cybercrime, go about arresting and demanding for digital devices, of unsuspecting members of the public, especially Nigerian youths. Upon seizing these digital devices, they compel the owners to surrender security features to gain access to the devices to fish for cybercrime evidence. The rampant nature of this investigative process partly culminated in the recent 'ENDSARS' protests in Nigeria that commenced in cyberspace with the hashtag #ENDSARS NOW. Although the ENDSARS protest has become a topic of discourse in the news, literature, and academic domain, there seems to be limited or no literature on the cybercrime perspectives of the protests. This paper seeks to answer the question: To what extent can cybercrime investigators legally gain access to digital devices and social networks of persons? It concludes that to avoid future protests against cybercrime investigators, implementing a structured cybercrime investigation process in conformity with best practices, as it is done in developed economies like the United States of America, is suggested.


Let A,B and C be finite dimensional algebras. In this paper, we prove that if A is a Gorenstein algebra such that Db(A) has a recollement relative to Db(B) and Db(C), then B and C are Gorenstein algebras. Mathematics Subject Classification: 18E30, 16G10; 16S10, 18G15


Fiber-on-fiber friction has been studied extensively by many researchers. However, the traditional approach to the problem has limited our understanding of the physics of fiber-on-fiber friction. The experiment methods developed so far have also been restricted by traditional theory of friction. Study of energy loss due to friction provides a new approach and opportunity for fiber-on-fiber friction research. Based on the dynamic mechanical theory of polymeric materials, a theoretical model of kinetic friction energy loss has been developed. In order to verify the theory, a preliminary experimental study was carried out using a cotton roving with different twist levels, different cyclic loading frequencies, and different gage lengths. The data indicates that when frictional force induced by higher twist increases the inter-fiber frictional energy loss also increases substantially. The higher the frequency of the cyclic loading, the higher the energy loss. A gage length significantly shorter than the staple length results in a considerably lower energy loss due to lack of relative movement of the fibers.


The power industry is moving rapidly from regulated conventional setups to a deregulated envirorment. There is an urgent need to keep a track of intemational experiences and activities taking place in this emerging field. This paper gives a bibliographical survey and general background of research and development in the field of power system wheeling under a deregulated environment based on over 170 published articles. Wheeling in general and the establishment of wheeling rate in particular are subjects of extensive debate today. This will be very useful for all countries, especially those developing countries that are moving towards the unbundling of electricity supply industry. The collected literature have been divided into many sections so that new researchers do not face any difficulty obtaining literature, particularly in the area of wheeling of power under deregulated environments.


Many single-stranded RNA viruses, including major viral pathogens, present RNA-encoded virus assembly instructions (VAIs) within their genetic message that can be isolated from the genetic code and repurposed for the design of virus-like particles. These VAIs rely on multiple dispersed RNA secondary structure elements with a consensus recognition motif for the capsid (core) protein, called packaging signals (PSs), which collectively promote capsid assembly. In this talk, I will provide evidence for the evolutionary conservation of the PS-encoded assembly instructions among different viruses in a viral family and discuss the implications of this discovery for viral evolution. I will then demonstrate how the VAIs can be exploited for therapy. In particular, defective interfering particles occur spontaneously in viral evolution as mutant strains lacking essential parts of the viral genome. Their ability to replicate in the presence of wild-type virus at the expense of virally produced resources can be mimicked by therapeutic interfering particles (TIPs). I will introduce a novel approach to the design of such TIPs based on synthetic nucleic acid sequences containing the VAIs but otherwise lacking genetic information. Using multiscale models of a viral infection, I will demonstrate the potential of these particles in both the prophylaxis and treatment of RNA viral infections.


Abstract Visual perception has always been the focus in design research. In order to systematically summarize the research streams and frontier issues related to visual perception since the beginning of twenty first century, 378 articles were retrieved under the 'A&HCI' in the Web of Science Core Collection. Firstly, the research distribution of these articles is introduced, and four research streams of visual perception are identified through multi-dimensional scaling analysis, namely, 'expert' research, 'behavior' research, 'expression' research and 'quantization' research. Secondly, using the method of bibliometrics science mapping, the paper summarizes the research topics analysis of citing literature and the research community analysis of cited literature. Research directions worthy of further exploration are delineated: these are academic circle continuation, 'hot' new exploration, classic re-excavation and cross-field expansion. Finally, 25 frontier issues are summarized, and these provide some enlightenment for future research directions in visual perception research related to design.


Includes descriptive metadata provided by producer in MP3 file: "Your ability to follow the rules of the road when driving on unfamiliar streets exists thanks to the way your pre-teen life experiences influenced the development of your brain. Individuals deprived of normal life experiences may lack this ability to control their behavior in novel situations, a new computer model suggests, providing insight into how nature and nurture may interact in the development of self-control."


This paper highlights the importance in Australia of providing an effective final year experience in higher education to bookend the progress that has been made to develop coherent first year experience programs. Though the observations made are of general application, the paper focuses on legal education and argues that the special circumstances of final year students create an imperative to ensure that we "close the loop" on their university studies. The paper considers the synergies in issues of curriculum renewal for first and final year students of tertiary education, and argues that the development of a coherent final year experience/capstone program in Australian universities, and particularly in legal education, is long overdue.


A solid propellant gas generator operating with a calibrated tunable resonator produces a strong sonic field capable of affecting particle coagulation in an aerosol. The resonator is calibrated to produce a sonic field at the optimum frequency for a given aerosol and can be changed according to the aerosol involved. The resultant coagulation increases visibility and/or electromagnetic transmissibility within the sonic field. The device can be used to reduce obscuration during battlefield operations.


This article proposes a Ka-band transceiver with an integrated local oscillator (LO) generator and multiple low dropout regulators (LDOs) to eliminate the strict requirements to the external power supply network. The proposed self-calibrated LDO eliminates the use of a bandgap reference circuit and its large flicker noise contribution in traditional power regulators to achieve ultralow-noise performance. The output of the proposed LDO is self-calibrated with temperature and process variations by autoconfiguring the feedback coefficient through a digital loop to guarantee the stable performance of its loaded high-speed circuits. The stable gain and output power of the transceiver with temperature variation are achieved by on-chip multiple self-compensation schemes, which include a self-sensing LDO for the power amplifier, a constant-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\!m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> bias circuit for the amplification stages, and the temperature-compensated intermediate-frequency amplifiers (TC IFAs) with proportional-to-absolute-temperature (PTAT) gain to further compensate for the gain deviation caused by the second-order effect and large-signal performance difference. Implemented in 65-nm CMOS technology, measurements indicate that the output noise of the proposed LDO is as low as 15 nV/sqrt (Hz) at 10-kHz offset and the integrated power network greatly reduces the noise influence on the LO signal compared with the traditional bandgap-referenced LDO. Furthermore, due to the adoption of the proposed temperature compensation scheme, the small-signal gains of the receiver and transmitter only fluctuate by 1.1 and 1.3 dB from <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$- 40\,\,^{\circ }\text{C}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> to <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$85~^{\circ }\text{C}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, respectively, and the output saturated power of the transmitter varies by 0.7 dBm over the entire temperature range.


One of the most pivotal points for any burn patient is the initial fluid resuscitation. Nurses must maintain burn competencies and be familiar with perfusion indicators. Diverse levels of experience, unusually low census, frequent staff turnover, and changes in resuscitation strategies prompted concern regarding staff education. We developed a new resuscitation course for burn nurses, and aimed to determine whether it improves their confidence and knowledge.

 Prior to training, a 7-item survey and a 10-item knowledge assessment were distributed to staff to assess baseline knowledge and confidence. In January 2019, nurses were provided a 45-min lecture about the unit's fluid resuscitation protocol, critical indicators of end-organ perfusion, and adjunctive resuscitation tools. Teams were provided information on a real case scenario and asked to create a resuscitation plan. This was followed by a collaborative discussion. Staff then completed a follow-up survey and assessment. Nurses were provided a copy of the unit's fluid resuscitation clinical practice guideline and a copy of a peer-reviewed journal article. In April 2019, staff members were not given a lecture, but were asked to repeat the questionnaire portion from the previous course to assess knowledge retention. In August 2019 staff received a 45-min lecture regarding blood gas interpretation as it applies to burn resuscitation, common burn resuscitation missteps, and when to call the physician. Staff received a burn resuscitation checklist to improve nurse/physician communication. The staff was given a 5-item satisfaction survey related to course content.

 The initial confidence survey (n=64) overall average was 8/10 with 0 being least confident and 10 extremely confident. The post-training average was 9/10. One of the largest confidence improvements was staff with less than 5 years of burn experience, which increased from 6.5/10 to 8/10. The initial baseline knowledge assessment (n=64) overall average was 80%. The post-lecture assessment average was 94%. The knowledge retention questionnaire (n=48) average score was 90%. Finally, the satisfaction survey (n=60) showed an overall score of 94%.

 Data gathered suggest that brief lectures combined with collaborative discussion and case studies may be an effective tool for enhancing burn competencies and confidence among staff, especially for those with less than 5 years' burn experience. Since this was a small sample size and single-center project, more research is needed to optimize the approach.

 Managing burn injuries, particularly in the hours immediately following injury, requires expertise and training. This project provides one method for improving nurse competency.


The webinars series form part of the regular activities of any scientific consortium that aims to strengthen research activities and foster collaborations amongst the different partners. The webinars are intended to foster the exchange of ideas, build potential collaborations across multiple disciplines and enabling the participation and sharing of knowledge in current research.

The Ten Simple Rules for organizing a webinar series can be summarized as follow: The webinar coordination team assists with all the planning and logistics for hosting a webinar (Rule 1); Choosing webinar themes requires mapping of the target audience needs and interest (Rule 2); Drafting a webinar planning checklist through regular planning meetings as well as post webinar meetings (Rule 3); Decentralized webinar organization of tasks and resources through accessible shared space (Rule 4); Planing early and settling on the provisional dates and times of the webinar events along with their themes (Rule 5); Choosing and settling on convenient and user friendly webinar platform (Rule 6); Approaching and confirming potential speakers (Rule 7); Obtaining the webinar title, abstract and presenter's biography for creating the webinar announcement through emails and social media channels (Rule 8); Allocating time for the platform orientation (Rule 9); and Keeping close-up track of webinar metrics for regular assessment and evaluation (Rule 10).

These Ten Simple Rules shared with the computational biology community will help those who have not yet ventured into training through webinars to learn from our experience. In our experience, the feedback from the post-webinar surveys clearly demonstrate that webinars are an effective way to create a two-way conversation between presenters and participants via a web-based platform.


The following document contains 8 chapters in which the creation of a Survival Academy directed to children with Down syndrome is analyzed. This academy will be a place of recreation to develop physical and mental abilities through the practice of unconventional sports for children whit this syndrome. This project is born from the lack of specialized care centers for special needs children. The rightful development of this proposal started with a thorough research in which different aspects where studied, such as the industry, business opportunity, marketing and operation plan, marketing mix, corporate philosophy, ending with a detailed analysis of the financial components. It is important to mention that the Deming circle, studied in Chapter 5, will be implemented in 4 important steps that lead to executing the project in a responsible way: planning, doing, verifying and acting. These steps will guarantee a quality work as well as a continuous improvement of failures that most likely appear in business. Finally, Chapter 7 shows the financial projections of expenditures, income and costs of the academy, initial investment, among others indexes that allow the evaluation of the profitability and feasibility of creating the academy.


Synchronous firing of biological oscillators is explained by a mathematical model developed by Mirollo and Strogatz [SIAM J. Appl. Math., 50 (1990), pp. 1645–1662]. Exactly the same principles may be carried over to achieve decentral synchronization in time-division multiple access systems. However, some extensions of the basic model are necessary in view of technical implementations. This paper deals with synchronization in finite time for two oscillators and convergence to synchrony except on a set of initial conditions of measure zero for cliques of oscillators, particularly for nondifferentiable (e.g., piecewise linear) state functions. Moreover, for oscillator pairs we prove synchronization even if there is a certain delay between transmission and reception of pulses. A simulation tool, named ImDeSy, is developed to investigate general networks of oscillators with arbitrary topologies and more refined reaction strategies. This is demonstrated in two extensive examples.


Background and Aim: Upper limb surgeries are mostly performed under peripheral nerve blocks such as the brachial plexus block. Peripheral nerve blocks not only provide intraoperative anaesthesia but also extend analgesia in the post-operative period with less systemic side effects. Adjuvants to local anaesthetic drugs like clonidine, an alpha-2 adrenergic agonist, improves peripheral nerve block by reducing the onset time, increasing the efficacy of block and extending postoperative analgesia thus improving the quality of block. Methods: 60 adult patients of ASA PS I and II undergoing upper limb surgeries under supraclavicular brachial plexus block were randomly allocated to two groups of 30 each. Group A received 3 mg/kg of 0.5% levobupivacaine with 0.5 μg /kg of clonidine and Group B received 3mg/kg of 0.5% levobupivacaine with 1μg/kg Clonidine. The duration of sensory and motor blockade, duration of analgesia, haemodynamic variables and sedation scores were compared. Results: Mean time of onset of sensory block was 13.23 ± 1.331 min in group A and in group B was 11.33±1.470 min. Mean duration of motor block was 470.33 ± 30.680 min in group A and in group B was 484±37.941 min and mean duration of analgesia was 828.667 ± 70.0115 min in group A and 813.667 ±75.9529 min in group B. No patient in either group had developed hypotension, bradycardia and decrease in oxygen saturation. Sedation scores were higher in group B. Conclusion: Our study concluded that the two groups were comparable in terms of duration of analgesia, motor blockade and haemodynamic effects. But sedation score was more for higher group B.


This essay examines the links between the ideological debates in the communist world and the events surrounding the decision to stage the 1968 Tet Offensive in Vietnam. It is based on memoirs, documents from the Public Record Office in London, and some documents from edited Vietnamese collections, as well as Vietnamese journals from the period in question. For analysts of DRV politics in the 1960s, there is still comparatively little in the way of documentary evidence to shed light on the nature of the communist leadership and its decision-making processes. This is true of the year leading up to the Tet Offensive of 1968: as David Elliott has shown in his recent study of the war in My Tho province (2003), Vietnamese accounts of this period present a contradictory and confused record. At the same time, the political events in Hanoi during the latter half of 1967, when what came to be called the `Anti-Party Affair' was revealed, have only been elucidated in unofficial memoirs and open letters from party veterans to the leadership. We know that this period was one of high tension in the communist world, when the Cultural Revolution in China was reaching its peak and relations between the USSR and China had sharply deteriorated. Yet we still know very little about how this tension may have affected policy decisions within North Vietnam. The author concludes that ideological conflicts within the North Vietnamese leadership had a strong bearing on events in 1967–68, and that they influenced not only military decisions but alsoVietnam's post-war development.


Atmospheric ice accretion is a natural phenomenon in cold climate regions. On overhead transmission lines, the ice load can cause severe damage and can cause critical situations for those relying on this infrastructure. Even fatal casualties have been documented due to the lapse of transmission lines. Capacitive sensing has been reported a feasible approach for detecting ice accretion events and autonomous sensor systems have been presented. The automated extracting of information about the state of ice accretion, e.g. the layer thickness, from capacitive measurement readings is a vital part for the usability of such systems. In this paper we report on a model based approach for estimating ice accretion parameters from capacitive sensor readings. We identify critical input parameters and present the design of a surrogate model for a capacitive ice sensor. For this we present a test rig to generate ice in a climate chamber. We finally demonstrate the estimation of ice thickness from measurements.


Despite the excellent photovoltaic properties achieved by perovskite solar cells at the laboratory scale, hybrid perovskites decompose in the presence of air, especially at high temperatures and in humid environments. Consequently, high‐efficiency perovskites are usually prepared in dry/inert environments, which are expensive and less convenient for scale‐up purposes. Here, a new approach based on the inclusion of an in situ polymerizable ionic liquid, 1,3‐bis(4‐vinylbenzyl)imidazolium chloride ([bvbim]Cl), is presented, which allows perovskite films to be manufactured under humid environments, additionally leading to a material with improved quality and long‐term stability. The approach, which is transferrable to several perovskite formulations, allows efficiencies as high as 17% for MAPbI3 processed in air % relative humidity (RH) ≥30 (from an initial 15%), and 19.92% for FAMAPbI3 fabricated in %RH ≥50 (from an initial 17%), providing one of the best performances to date under similar conditions.


Abstract An efficient conversion of 5-substituted-4,5-dihydro-3(2H)-pyridazinones into their corresponding dehydrogenated derivatives was achieved by treatment with anhydrous copper(II) chloride in acetonitrile.


Although self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of alkylthiols on planar gold (2D SAMs) and on gold nanoparticles (3D SAMs) have been intensely studied, the actual nature of the Au−S bonding remains poorly characterized. Comparison of the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra of 2D and 3D SAMs and "reference" Au(I) complexes, sometimes referred to as Au(I) thiolate polymers, provides detailed insight into this problem. We report high-resolution XPS spectra and Au 4f7/2 and S 2p3/2 binding energies (BE) in 2D SAMs, 3D SAMs and the Au(I) thiolate complexes for two short-chain thiols (n-C4SH and n-C5SH). Sulfur 2p3/2 BE shifts are used to compare the different states of bonding in the SAM systems and the Au(I) complexes and establish that the S atom in the SAM systems bears a charge of about 0.2e. The 2D and 3D SAMs exhibit similar XPS characteristics and are both distinguishable from the Au(I) complexes. The origins of the observed BE values are discussed in the context of the nature of the gold substrat...


A visible-light driven photocatalyst, BiZn 2 VO 6 (E g , ∼2.4 eV), was synthesized under the guideline of energy band modulation. The photocatalytic oxygen evolution activity for BiZn 2 VO 6 was largely increased by chemical etching with H 2 SO 4 , accompanied by formation of a lot of pleats or furrows at the surface. Consideration of the specific surface area has indicated that the activity for BiZn 2 VO 6 lies in the highest class ever reported and is much higher than that for BiVO 4 , which is known as one of the most active photocatalysts.


The crystal and molecular structure of the title compound (I) has been determined by a single-crystal X-ray analysis from three-dimensional counter data. Crystals are orthorhombic, space group Pnma, with Z= 4 in a cell of dimensions a= 11·305, b= 12·110, c= 9·075 (all ± 0·010)A. The structure was established by direct methods and refined by least squares to R 3·7% for 1066 structure amplitudes. The complex has exact Cs symmetry. The boat-like conformation of the ring and molecular dimensions (bond length σ 0·003–0·007 A) are consistent with a significant contribution to the metal–cycloheptadiene bonding of a σ–π type of interaction.


The problem of staff shortages in social care, paired with the developments in artificial intelligence technology, seems to point to a simple solution: implementing care robots. Jo Stephenson and Claire Acklam explore the legal implications of this.


It is tempting to describe Critical Theory as an American version of the Habermas-vs.-Foucault debate, a debate which has agitated Europe in the ten years since the publication of Habermas's The Philosophical Discourse of Modernity. It is also tempting to read it as a contribution to the debate over postmodernism which is presently agitating the American academy. But neither description is quite right. Although McCarthy is a reasonably orthodox Habermasian, Hoy's allegiance is more to Gadamer than to Foucault. Nobody has, as far as I know, described Gadamer as a post-modern. Further, Hoy has no wish to defend Foucault against the most important criticism which Habermas made of him: namely that nobody would guess from Foucault's books that human freedom, and the chances of human happiness, increased considerably as a result of the Enlightenment. Hoy's defense of Foucault against Habermas is largely a defense of Foucault's refusal to offer a general theory of rationality, something Gadamer too refuses to do. As Hoy says, "The question . . . is whether his [Foucault's] substantive genealogical histories need to be supplemented by an abstract, universal and procedural conception of reason that is validated solely by philosophical arguments (for instance, transcendental ones) instead of by historiographical and sociological data" (148). In his rejoinder to Hoy, Thomas McCarthy agrees that we need Foucauldian "critical histories of contingent regimes of rationality." But he disagrees with Hoy on the question of "whether there is anything universal at all to say about reason, truth, objectivity, and the like, or rather anything that would not be too 'thin' to be of any use" (223). McCarthy thus lays out what I take to be the central issue of the book: namely, whether these traditional topics of philosophical debate are relevant to socio-political deliberation. I doubt that they are. So I am on Hoy's side of the argument. I agree with him when he says that McCarthy's ideal of a "validity that could be rationally acknowledged by all competent judges under ideal epistemic conditions" (268) is too thin to help us change our minds about anything,


The use of human serum albumin nanoparticles (HSA-NPs) as drug delivery systems in controlled drug release studies has gained importance today. Albumin nanoparticles are biocompatible, biodegradable and provide sustained release. To maintain long-term drug delivery, HSA nanoparticles need to be cross-linked. A chemical crosslinker, glutaraldehyde is generally used in the literature and has some toxic effects on the cells. In this study, a biological crosslinker, genipin, was used for the production of HSA nanoparticles by desolvation technique. Two different temperatures and genipin concentrations were studied in order to decrease crosslinking time. The nanoparticles were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS). The crosslinking time was reduced from 8-24 hours to 2 hours by raising the temperature to 37oC from room temperature. HSA nanoparticles which are crosslinked by genipin may have potential use in drug delivery system and may be applied in personalized medicine applications.


This paper studies the linear stability problem for solitary wave solutions of Hamiltonian PDEs. The linear stability problem is formulated in terms of the Evans function, a complex analytic function denoted by $D(\lambda)$, where $\lambda$ is the stability exponent. The main result is the introduction of a new factor, denoted $\Pi$, in the Pego-Weinstein derivative formula \[ D''(0) = \Pi \frac{dI}{dc}\,, \] where $I$ is the momentum of the solitary wave and $c$ is the speed. Moreover this factor turns out to be related to transversality of the solitary wave, modelled as a homoclinic orbit: the homoclinic orbit is transversely constructed if and only if $\Pi\neq 0$. The sign of $\Pi$ is a symplectic invariant, an intrinsic property of the solitary wave, and is a key new factor affecting the linear stability. A supporting result is the introduction of a new abstract class of Hamiltonian PDEs built on a nonlinear Dirac-type equation, which model a wide range of Hamiltonian PDEs. Examples where the theory applies, other than Dirac operators, are the coupled mode equation in fluid mechanics and optics, the massive Thirring model, and coupled nonlinear wave equations. The new result is already present when the homoclinic orbit representation of the solitary wave lives in a four dimensional phase space, and so the theory is presented for this case, with the generalization to arbitrary dimension sketched.


We demonstrate dynamic control of the birefringence in a silicon waveguide. Electrically tunable stress on the waveguide core is induced using an integrated piezoelectric film. We show that the induced birefringence can be used to fine tune the phase mismatch among interacting waves present in parametric nonlinear optical effects.


The vertical vibration and lengthways vibration of work roller in cold strip mill caused by friction is qualitative analyzed. The damage result from the frictional vibration is pointed out. The countenneasure that can restrain the unsteady of work roller is given.


Background: The pleural effusion is a common clinical problem which can be exudative or transudativein nature due to variety of causes. Measurement of biochemical markers in the pleural fluid is an importantmeasure to distinguish exudative from transudative effusion.Aim of the Study: Is to determine the value of pleural fluid to serum bilirubin ratio to differentiate betweentransudative and exudative pleural effusion.Patients and Method: Thirty-five patients enrolled in this study, they admitted to medical ward in Baghdadteaching hospital and submitted to clinical, radiological, ultrasonographic examination proved to havepleural effusion from December 2018 to July 2019. Samples of blood and pleural fluid aspirated in themedical ward, analyzedafter 30-60 minute of aspiration. The sample of some cases were analyzed in privatelaboratories. Serum protein, total serum bilirubin and other investigation according to the condition of thepatient like blood urea, serum creatinine, liver function test, sputum of AFB. Pleural fluid analyzed fromprotein, total bilirubin, cell count, differential and cytology .Pleural biopsy was done to patients suspectedto have malignant or tuberculous effusion and grouped at the end of their hospitalization into exudativeand transudative effusion according to specific etiology, clinical examination, radiological finding, andthen measure the pleural fluid to serum protein ratio, pleural fluid to serum bilirubin for each patient. Wedepended on pleural fluid to serum protein ratio to compare with pleural fluid to serum bilirubin ratio fordifferentiation between exudative and transudative pleural fluid.Results: Twenty two patients with exudative effusion and thirteen patients were having transudate accordingto pleural fluid to serum protein (Light 's criteria). P-value= 0.002, Fisher. Exact test= 0.001. Twenty threepatients with exudative effusion and twelve patients with transudative effusion according to pleural fluidto serum bilirubin ratio. P value= 0.37, Fisher. Exact test = 0.45. Pf/s ratio can increase the sensitivity andspecificity of Light 's criteria.Conclusions: Pleural fluid to serum bilirubin ratio can't replace Light's criteria in differentiation betweenexudates and transudate pleural effusion. Pf/s bilirubin ratio is a reliable test can easily perform but notcommon use in our hospital because of its costy and not familial use in our laboratories.


Human population have large genetic variation. Genetic variations are usually characterized by Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP). These are the location of variation in the genome sequence of two individuals. Identication of SNPs aecting human phenotype, especially leading to risks of complex disorders, is one of the key problems of medical genetics. In this project we build a probabilistic model which can determine the deleterious mutation which can lead to heart disease in humans.


This paper proposes a wideband Multiple Input - Multiple Output (MIMO) channel model and its implementation algorithm suitable for channel emulators. The model is based on a structured vector modes construction scheme, and assumes separability at space and time domains. It uses the Karhunen-Loeve Expansion (KLE) basis for the orthogonalization process both on the time delay and space domains, and is able to make channel realizations based on specific statistics with a predefined Mean Square Error (MSE).


Continuous Observation of Hydrogen Release on the Surface of Pure Iron by Means of the Repetition in Hydrogen Microprint Technique Keitaro Horikawa1, Yasuhito Fujii1,, Hidetoshi Kobayashi1 and Kenji Kobayashi2 1Department of Mechanical Science and Bioengineering, Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University, Osaka 5608531 2Pipe & Tube Research Lab., Steel Research Laboratories, Technical Research & Development Bureau, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation, Amagasaki 6600891


The theory of reverberant rooms and a new standard JB/T10504-2005 was introduced.Then based on JB/T10504-2005,a new reverberant room is constructed.Every band of octave-band and 1/3 octave-band is measured based on JB/T10504-2005.The testing results of the anechoic room prove that its capability accords with the requirements of the standard.


For decades, the idea of step-wise carcinogenesis and evolution towards metastasizing disease has been a paradigm, but currently it is eroding. Specifically, as regards colorectal cancer, statistical evolutionary modelling of genomic data obtained from multi-region samples by contemporary cutting-edge technology fostered the hypothesis that there was a set of genomic aberrations sufficient for full-blown malignancy even at a tumour's inception. This concept has been called the 'Big Bang' hypothesis (1). This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


Relatively little is known about Y.B. Chavan, India's defence minister from 1962 to 1966. He replaced the controversial Mr. Krishna Menon on 19 November 1962, when India's war with China was still ...


The fast growth of Chinese real estate market has caused extensive concern in society. It is necessary to probe into the governemnt's role in the phenomenon, and a series of actions and problems pursuing social fairness.


Background & Objectives: Forearm fractures are regarded as articular fractures as slight deviations in spatial orientation of the radius & ulna will significantly decrease the forearm's rotational range thus disturbing positioning & functioning of the hand. Conservatively done reduction of these fractures results in a poor functional outcome. Hence perfect reduction is essential in maintaining the rotation which is achieved by open reduction & internal fixation with plate & screws. The present study is undertaken to learn the techniques assess the advantages, functional outcome and complication of the new method of internal fixation of diaphyseal fractures of radius & ulna.Materials & Methods: A prospective study involving 20 cases was carried out from September 2015 to September 2017 at Bapuji Hospital and Chigateri General Hospital attached to JJM Medical College, Davangere. These cases involving fracture both bone forearm was treated with open reduction & internal fixation using Locking Compression Plating. Functional outcome was assessed using Anderson et al. criteria scoring system (1975).Results: In this study, majority of the patients were males, middle aged, with road traffic accidents being the commonest mode of injury, involving middle third of both bones of forearm. Majority of our cases had fracture union within 14 weeks with no cases of failure or non-union and most of the patients returned to their routine activities within 16 weeks of surgery. There was no major complication in our study. Excellent or full range of mobility of elbow and wrist joints was present in 15 patients (75%) and 5 (25%) patients had good range of movements.Conclusion: The open reduction and internal fixation with LCP of forearm fractures produce excellent results, the advantage being early mobilization, early union but the complication, duration of surgery and surgical techniques remains unchanged.


This study examines the roles of firm characteristics and environmental factors in the formation of interfirm alliances. Specifically, we examine the dual role of these groups of factors as inducements and opportunities for Chinese high-technology new ventures (HTNVs) in their adoption of agency business activity, a downstream type of alliance involving marketing and distribution of the products of foreign firms. Results suggest that both internal and external factors are related to the adoption of agency business activity but the inducement and opportunity value of environmental uncertainty may be dampened by institutional support provided to HTNVs. Further, we find that successful agency business activity is positively related to new venture performance but negatively related to its product innovation efforts. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Summary. According to WHO data, about 4.5 million people are affected by parasitic diseases. In the last decade, the attention of clinicians has been drawn to parasitic diseases caused by helminth larvae of animals that are not characteristic of humans. Filariasis is the only transmissible human helminthosis in Ukraine. Despite the fact that there is an opinion that helminthiasis has become "forgotten diseases" in modern conditions, there is a tendency to underestimate their medical and social importance all over the world. In confirmation of the above, the article describes the case of treatment of a patient with filariasis. This clinical example demonstrates that this topic is relevant not only for effectionist doctors, but also for doctors of other specialties. Helminthiasis is often the last point in the chain of differential diagnostic thinking of the doctor. The urgency of the problem is due primarily to the significant prevalence, the pronounced negative impact on the human body, the polymorphism of clinical manifestations, which complicates the differential diagnosis of diseases, the lack of sterile immunity and specific methods of prevention.


Sixty-two sera horse collected from two stables at Lagos, Nigeria, were tested for complement fixing antibody to 8 arbovirus antigens; Chikungunya, Igbo-Ora, Yellow fever, Wesselsbron, West Nile, Potiskum, Uganda S and Rift Valley fever. Ten per cent of the horse sera examined contained CF antibody to one or more of the test antigens and indicated considerable arbovirus activity in the two stables. Reactions with flavivirus antigens were most common and the highest antibody titres were obtained with Wesselsbron and Yellow fever viruses. Eleven per cent of the sera tested reacted with alphavirus antigens while 10 per cent were positive for Rift Valley fever virus CF antibodies.


We reported a novel process for the successful demonstration of junctionless poly-Si field-effect transistors (FETs) with an ultra-thin tube channel and gate-all-around configuration. The fabricated devices show well-behaved performance with on/off current ratio greater than 10 and subthreshold swing of 98 mV/decade. We also show that parasitic effects arising from the underneath channel can be effectively suppressed by using a substrate implant design.


Abstract Tree-ring data is commonly used in forest science and dendrochronology. As the collected datasets represent restricted populations of theoretical infinite sample size, an interesting question deals with the sample selection that is carried out during the fieldwork and through the data analyses. This paper considers the latter issue, by statistically examining a recently completed Scots pine dataset of timberline tree-rings from Lapland (northern Finland). Following the detrending of individual ring-width series, the composition of the data was restricted using a pre-determined criteria of linear correlativity between the individual sample series and the master chronology (Rmaster). This procedure reduced both the number of sites and the sample size (i.e. the number of individual tree-ring series) and altered the tree-ring statistics of the remaining subset of the data in a systematic fashion. It was seen that the first-order autocorrelation, mean sensitivity and standard deviation all ascended with the uplifted Rmaster criterion. Conspicuously, such filtering also reduced the correlation between the resulting tree-ring chronology and climate parameter. The results indicated that the screening of the data will alter the chronology statistics in a way that may be artificially generated, irrelative to the predetermined sample selection criteria. We remain to assume that the most fundamental selection of data is attained through the cross-dating process.


Under the background of sprawl land, environmental degradation and other issues in the rapid urbanization process, greenway planning effectively curbs the urban sprawl, protects and improves the urban public space, so as to achieve sustainable development. In this paper, the Boston Metropolitan Park System and the Greenway in Shenzhen are set as cases, their planning ideas and construction and implementation results are introduced, the experience of Greenways of the Pearl River Delta region in China is compared and summarized, the similarities and differences between them are analyzed, and then the significance of American greenway planning on the construction of China regional planning sustainable development is expounded in detail.


Animate stimuli are remembered better than inanimate stimuli. The proximate mechanism of this preferential retrieval of animate stimuli has not been clarified. The present study proposes an inhibitory control explanation for the advantage of the memory of animate stimuli. The retrieval practice paradigm is employed to examine the role of inhibitory control in animacy effect in two experiments. The results of Experiment 1 revealed a strong inhibitory effect on animate stimuli but was not reliable on inanimate stimuli, suggesting that animacy effect is not due to the insensitivity to the inhibitory control. The results of Experiment 2 show the absence of animacy effect when animacy is designed as a between-subject variable, suggesting that the memory of artifact may be influenced by the memory of animals. These findings are discussed using the inhibitory control account and suggest that the role of inhibitory control in animacy effect is to selectively inhibit the memory of other categories in order to facilitate the retrieval of animals, indicating that inhibitory control is, in part, responsible for the animacy effect.


Significance Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) contributes to metastasis and chemoresistance in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the genes driving EMT are poorly understood. Here, we describe a transposon mutagenesis screen that made it possible to identify 233 candidate cancer genes (CCGs) that are enriched for genes driving EMT in HCC. Twenty-three CCGs are predicted to function early in tumorigenesis, and alterations in these genes are associated with poor HCC patient survival. Validation studies showed that deregulation of the most highly mutated CCGs activates an EMT program that enhances HCC cell migration and also confers sorafenib resistance. Thus, transposon mutagenesis appears to provide an excellent resource for identifying genes regulating EMT in human HCC and for potentially identifying new drug targets for HCC. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is thought to contribute to metastasis and chemoresistance in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), leading to their poor prognosis. The genes driving EMT in HCC are not yet fully understood, however. Here, we show that mobilization of Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposons in immortalized mouse hepatoblasts induces mesenchymal liver tumors on transplantation to nude mice. These tumors show significant down-regulation of epithelial markers, along with up-regulation of mesenchymal markers and EMT-related transcription factors (EMT-TFs). Sequencing of transposon insertion sites from tumors identified 233 candidate cancer genes (CCGs) that were enriched for genes and cellular processes driving EMT. Subsequent trunk driver analysis identified 23 CCGs that are predicted to function early in tumorigenesis and whose mutation or alteration in patients with HCC is correlated with poor patient survival. Validation of the top trunk drivers identified in the screen, including MET (MET proto-oncogene, receptor tyrosine kinase), GRB2-associated binding protein 1 (GAB1), HECT, UBA, and WWE domain containing 1 (HUWE1), lysine-specific demethylase 6A (KDM6A), and protein-tyrosine phosphatase, nonreceptor-type 12 (PTPN12), showed that deregulation of these genes activates an EMT program in human HCC cells that enhances tumor cell migration. Finally, deregulation of these genes in human HCC was found to confer sorafenib resistance through apoptotic tolerance and reduced proliferation, consistent with recent studies showing that EMT contributes to the chemoresistance of tumor cells. Our unique cell-based transposon mutagenesis screen appears to be an excellent resource for discovering genes involved in EMT in human HCC and potentially for identifying new drug targets.


The accurate identification and monitoring of invasive plants are of great significance to sustainable ecological development. The invasive Pedicularis poses a severe threat to native biodiversity, ecological security, socioeconomic development, and human health in the Bayinbuluke Grassland, China. It is imperative and useful to obtain a precise distribution map of Pedicularis for controlling its spread. This study used the positive and unlabeled learning (PUL) method to extract Pedicularis from the Bayinbuluke Grassland based on multi-period Sentinel-2 and PlanetScope remote sensing images. A change rate model for a single land cover type and a dynamic transfer matrix were constructed under GIS to reflect the spatiotemporal distribution of Pedicularis. The results reveal that (1) the PUL method accurately identifies Pedicularis in satellite images, achieving F1-scores above 0.70 and up to 0.94 across all three datasets: PlanetScope data (seven features), Sentinel-2 data (seven features), and Sentinel-2 data (thirteen features). (2) When comparing the three datasets, the number of features is more important than the spatial resolution in terms of use in the PUL method of Pedicularis extraction. Nevertheless, when compared with PlanetScope data, Sentinel-2 data demonstrated a higher level of accuracy in predicting the distribution of Pedicularis. (3) During the 2019–2021 growing season, the distribution area of Pedicularis decreased, and the distribution was mainly concentrated in the northeast and southeast of Bayinbuluke Swan Lake. The acquired spatiotemporal pattern of invasive Pedicularis could potentially be used to aid in controlling Pedicularis spread or elimination, and the methods proposed in this study could be adopted by the government as a low-cost strategy to identify priority areas in which to concentrate efforts to control and continue monitoring Pedicularis invasion.


To identify geographical regularities in changing the structure of spatial point patterns, we proposed the use of cartographic visualization. Approaches to gathering initial data, mechanisms for calculating the characteristics of the spatial structure and ways of displaying them on the map are described. The process of mapping combines elements of geoinformatics, spatial statistics and cartography. The elements of the methodology were integrated using the R programming language and the spatstat package. A script was written in the R that enables automating the calculation of the spatial structure's quantitative characteristics. Thirteen indicators were identified that can be used for cartographic visualization of the spatial point images structure features. The described approach was tested on the example of sparse woody vegetation areas found in the ravine-gully network of the Central Chernozem region.


Mono-dispersive nickel nanoparticles were prepared by chemical reduction method at the mixture media of distilled water and absolute alcohol using hydrazimum hydroxide as reductant,NiCl2·6H2O as starting material.X-ray diffraction(XRD) results indicate that the as-prepared samples are pure nickel without any other impurity.Transmission electron microscopy(TEM) images clearly show that the diameter of as-synthesized samples is in the range of 10~40 nm.The selected area electron diffraction(SAED) patterns reveal that the samples are poly-crystallinity.At the same time,the reaction mechanism and influence factors were investigated.


Opportunistic Networking (ON) is an emerging networking paradigm exploiting contact opportunities and node mobility to move data between nodes. Differently from infrastructure networks, where conventional information like network topology could be used to route messages, ON demands for new techniques able to cope with a dynamic evolving network topology and scenarios with limited or no information. Further, the heterogeneity of the autonomous actors involved in the network processes translates into different network protocol constraints which, if not considered carefully could lead to scalability problems of the devised solutions. In this context, in this article, we provide a survey of relevant opportunistic solutions and their motivation, with emphasis on the data gathering and dissemination processes. Despite the major research effort, it emerges there is no one silver bullet.


The paper explains the special features of combined cycle sets and aspects to be considered in the desigh of waste heat boilers, matching cycle components, boiler construction etc., in case fuel augmented gas steam cycles are used to retrofit small coal firing power plant. Figs 4


Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) have been shown to be a promising technology for integrating intermittent renewable energy sources into the existing electrical grid. Incorporation of carbon cloth electrodes into VRFB is an area of interest for their enhanced electrochemical performance; however, issues with performance degradation throughout the duration of the experiment persist. This study investigated the performance evolution of carbon cloth electrodes during VRFB cycling to build a hypothesis on possible reasons for the declining performance. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and polarization curve measurements were used in conjunction to monitor the electrode degradation and shed light on the effectiveness of carbon cloth electrodes during extended cycling experiments. A detailed investigation into the structure of the carbon cloth electrodes before and after cycling, via several material characterization tests, provides insight needed to determine an explanation for the increasing resistance. The structural integrity and surface morphology of the carbon cloth electrodes are evaluated to compare the electrode before and after cycling, displaying any changes to the electrode due to cycling. Durability of hydrophilicity during RFB cycling is found to be a key feature for future carbon cloth electrode design efforts.


BeO and AI2O3 are commonly used materials for waveguide lasers because of their waveguiding properties and high thermal conductivity. However, dust from BeO is toxic, and alumina is difficult to machine. For many applications, particularly those in the laboratory, an alternative material is desirable. This paper reports on the performance of rf-excited waveguide lasers fabricated from Macor,1 a machinable ceramic. This material can be dry machined to close tolerances with conventional HISS tools, allowing the construction of relatively complex structures, and to a high surface finish, an important consideration in avoiding waveguiding losses, its main disadvantage is its relatively poor thermal conductivity, an order of magnitude worse than Al2O3.


Lynx1 is a GPI‐tethered protein colocalized with nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in the brain areas important for learning and memory. Previously, we demonstrated that at low micromolar concentrations the water‐soluble Lynx1 variant lacking GPI‐anchor (ws‐Lynx1) acts on α7‐nAChRs as a positive allosteric modulator. We hypothesized that ws‐Lynx1 could be used for improvement of cognitive processes dependent on nAChRs. Here we showed that 2 µM ws‐Lynx1 increased the acetylcholine‐evoked current at α7‐nAChRs in the rat primary visual cortex L1 interneurons. At higher concentrations ws‐Lynx1 inhibits α7‐nAChRs expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes with IC50 ~ 50 µM. In mice, ws‐Lynx1 penetrated the blood‐brain barrier upon intranasal administration and accumulated in the cortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum. Chronic ws‐Lynx1 treatment prevented the olfactory memory and motor learning impairment induced by the α7‐nAChRs inhibitor methyllycaconitine (MLA). Enhanced long‐term potentiation and increased paired‐pulse facilitation ratio were observed in the hippocampal slices incubated with ws‐Lynx1 and in the slices from ws‐Lynx1‐treated mice. Long‐term potentiation blockade observed in MLA‐treated mice was abolished by ws‐Lynx1 co‐administration. To understand the mechanism of ws‐Lynx1 action, we studied the interaction of ws‐Lynx1 and MLA at α7‐nAChRs, measured the basal concentrations of endogenous Lynx1 and the α7 nAChR subunit and their association in the mouse brain. Our findings suggest that endogenous Lynx1 limits α7‐nAChRs activation in the adult brain. Ws‐Lynx1 partially displaces Lynx1 causing positive modulation of α7‐nAChRs and enhancement of synaptic plasticity. Ws‐Lynx1 and similar compounds may constitute useful hits for treatment of cognitive deficits associated with the cholinergic system dysfunction.


The AdS/CFT correspondence, conjectured by Maldecena in late 1997, has been playing an essential role in modern string theory. The original version of this gravity/gauge AdS/CFT correspondence states an equivalence between Type 2B string theory on AdS5 × S and N = 4 super Yang-Mills theory in 4D, under certain parameter region. Namely, for these two theories, the operator variables, physical states, correlation functions and dynamics, are equivalent to one another. In this elementary-level note, we briefly discuss the geometry of AdS space, and show that the isometry group of AdSd+1 is isomorphic to the conformal group of the flat Minkowski space R1,d−1, which motivates the AdS/CFT . Then we will provide a precise statement of the AdS/CFT correspondence. We mainly follow the expositions of following references: 1. Aharony, O., Gubser, S.S., Maldacena, J., Ooguri, H. and Oz, Y., 2000. Large N field theories, string theory and gravity. Physics Reports, 323(3), pp.183-386. ArXiv: 9905111. 2. D'Hoker, Eric, and Daniel Z. Freedman. "Supersymmetric gauge theories and the AdS/CFT correspondence." ArXiv:0201253v2.


A detailed analysis of the model levels,objective demands and model characteristics of MES for the process industry is provided.Recent advances in MES architectures and modeling methods are summarized along with the technological features and problems.Finally,the developing trends of integrated architecture and modeling tools for MES are discussed.It will facilitate the research and design of MES in process industry.


It is necessary to understand that work and occupation influence the health of individuals and this influence goes beyond the dangers, risks and physical, emotional and social conditions with which people may face them. Work or occupation also has an important influence on other aspects of life which contribute to or affect the health of individuals and their families. Jobs are the main incentive for Mexican migration going to the United States. Mexican migrants suffer from the effect of physical health and chronic illnesses which tend to grow worse as they spend more and more time in the United States. The close relationship between work and immigration suggests that for many Mexicans immigration may be analogous to a profession which places them and their families in situations which may affect their physical, emotional and social health as a result of their work. Given the large number of Mexicans who emigrate for seeking jogs, it is essential that social workers take into account the physical, mental and social impacts associated with emigration when they work with migrants on the individual, family or community level, as well as at the level of the system. This paper is a bibliographic review which explores the effect of migration on the health of people who emigrate and of their families who stay behind.


An electrical cable condition monitoring (CCM) method utilizing conductive polymer age sensors provides a distributed, in-situ approach that reduces access considerations and eliminates destructive testing, increasing safety by monitoring areas otherwise impractical or impossible. It reduces the cost of Generation IV cable condition monitoring by eliminating sample-retrieval and significantly reducing testing costs associated with conventional mechanical and chemical condition monitoring. Future applications include simple, lowcost condition monitoring of virtually any polymer used in industry, transportation, construction and recreation. The proposed CCM method utilizes inert conductive particles compounded with candidate insulation materials to provide an age "sensor" distributed in the wire or cable insulation or jacket. A simple electrical measurement, the resistivity of the sensor, correlates age-related degradation of mechanical properties such as elongation at break (EAB) and provides a means to determine remaining life of the insulation material. This paper summarizes the results of research being conducted under a DOE Small Business Innovative Research grant in concert with the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Georgia Tech and Rockbestos-Surprenant Cable Corp.Copyright © 2004 by ASME


Abstract Duratek Federal Services, Inc., Northwest Operations (DFSNW), formerly Waste Management Federal Services, is located in South-East Washington State near the Hanford Site. Duratek Engineering offers expertise and experience in design, analysis, fabrication, testing and technical support associated with the certification of hazardous materials packaging, particularly for radioactive materials. Duratek Engineering staff manage and perform structural, thermal and nuclear (shielding and criticality) engineering projects, risk assessments, facility safety evaluations, and provide engineering support to all types of waste management projects. The primary purpose of this paper is to outline the capabilities that exist through Duratek for qualification of packaging through the performance of engineering analyses and destructive testing.


Purpose

As the penalized vortex-in-cell (pVIC) method is based on the vorticity-velocity form of the Navier–Stokes equation, the pressure variable is not incorporated in its solution procedure. This is one of the advantages of vorticity-based methods such as pVIC. However, dynamic pressure is an essential flow property in engineering problems. In pVIC, the pressure field can be explicitly evaluated by a pressure Poisson equation (PPE) from the velocity and vorticity solutions. How to specify far-field boundary conditions is then an important numerical issue. Therefore, this paper aims to robustly and accurately determine the boundary conditions for solving the PPE.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper introduces a novel non-iterative method for specifying Dirichlet far-field boundary conditions to solve the PPE in a bounded domain. The pressure field is computed using the velocity and vorticity fields obtained from pVIC, and the solid boundary conditions for pressure are also imposed by a penalization term within the framework of pVIC. The basic idea of our approach is that the pressure at any position can be evaluated from its gradient field in a closed contour because the contour integration for conservative vector fields is path-independent. The proposed approach is validated and assessed by a comparative study.

Findings

This non-iterative method is successfully implemented to the pressure calculation of the benchmark problems in both 2D and 3D. The method is much faster than all the other methods tested without compromising accuracy and enables one to obtain reasonable pressure field even for small computation domains that are used regardless of a source distribution (the right-hand side in the Poisson equation).

Originality/value

The strategy introduced in this paper provides an effective means of specifying Dirichlet boundary conditions at the exterior domain boundaries for the pressure Poisson problems. It is very efficient and robust compared with the conventional methods. The proposed idea can also be adopted in other fields dealing with infinite-domain Poisson problems.


Self-aligned high-frequency InP/InGaAs double heterojunction bipolar transistors (DHBTs) have been fabricated on a Si substrate. A current gain of 40 was obtained for a DHBT with an emitter dimension of 1.6 mu m*19 mu m. The S parameters were measured for various bias points. In the case of I/sub C/=15 mA, f/sub T/ was 59 GHz at V/sub CE/=1.8 V, and f/sub max/ was 69 GHz at V/sub CE/=2.3 V. Due to the InP collector, breakdown voltage was so high that a V/sub CE/ of 3.8 V was applied for I/sub C/=7.5 mA in the S-parameter measurements to give an f/sub T/ of 39 GHz and an f/sub max/ of 52 GHz.<<ETX>>


Objective To investigate the treatment of thoracic and lumbar fracture and dislocation without spinal cord or nerve injury. Methods 15 cases of thoracic and lumbar fracture and dislocation without spinal cord or nerve injury were treated with operation (12 unstable fractures) or conservatively (3 stable fractures). Results All cases were followed up and the symptoms were improved. Conclusions The stable thoracic and lumbar fracture and dislocation without spinal cord or nerve injury should be treated conservatively, and the unstable cases should be treated with operation.


We report a measurement of the branching fraction of B þ → τ þ ν τ decays using a data sample of 772 × 10 6 B ¯ B pairs, collected at the ϒ ð 4 S Þ resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e þ e − collider. We reconstruct the accompanying B meson in a semileptonic decay and detect the recoiling B candidate in the decay channel B þ → τ þ ν τ . We obtain a branching fraction of B ð B þ → τ þ ν τ Þ ¼ ½ 1 . 25 (cid:2) 0 . 28 ð stat : Þ (cid:2) 0 . 27 ð syst : Þ(cid:3) × 10 − 4 . This result is in good agreement with previous measurements and the expectation from the calculation based on the Standard Model.


Objective To study the relationships between lipoprotein levels and cytokine concentrations and prognostic value of lipoprotein levels in systemic inflammatory response syndrome(SIRS) patients.Methods To measure the serum concentration of lipoprotein and cytokine TNFα,IL 6 and assess the correlation between them,then to evaluate the relationship between lipoprotein levels and progonosis in SIRS patients.Results In SIRS patients,HDL and LDL levels are remarkably inversely correlated with TNFα,but nor are CH and TG.The inverse correlations between lipoproteins and IL 6 are not remarkably.HDL and LDL levels are remarkably correlated with the progonosis of SIRS patients.Conclusion Lipoprotein levels are inversely correlated with cytokine level and are valuable in predicting the prognosis in SIRS patients.


The effects of temperature, moisture content and contact time on the extract from garcinia kola were studied. From the results obtained, the yield increases as the temperature were being raised. At the temperature of 75°C,85°C,95°C  and 105°C, the yield were 2.2g, 2.7g, 2.9g, and 3g respectively. Moisture decreases with an increase in the oil yield. Sun dry the maximum yield of 2.5g with the lowest moisture content of 9%. The yield increased with an increase in contact time but leveled out as the maximum contact time required for the extraction was exceed. Analysis on the oil such as free fatty acid, refractive index, viscosity, yield capacity, density, specific gravity, pH boiling point, flash point,iodine value and saponification value were carried


.Proton magnetic resonance spectra of a wide variety of substituted 2-nitro- and 2,4-dinitro-diphenylamines and related compounds reveal that long-range coupling occurs between the NH proton and the 5-proton of the nitrophenyl ring in non-polar or weakly polar solvents. However, in the case of the 2,4-dinitrodiphenyl- amines, this coupling is absent in highly polar solvents, except when the non-nitrated ring carries powerful electron-donating substituents, e.g. methoxyl or dimethylamino, ortho or para (but not meta) to the NH group. An examination of these phenomena leads to the conclusion that such long-range coupling provides evidence that intramolecular hydrogen bonding occurs between the NH and the 2-nitro groups. N-Benzyl-2,4-dinitroaniline also exhibited similar long-range coupling but, in dimethyl sulphoxide solut'ion, this coupling was temperature-dependent. The chemical shift data of the ortho-nitrodiphenylamines suggest that they adopt a non-planar skew conformation in solution. A six-bond H-F coupling was observed between the fluorine atom and the 6-proton of 2'-fluoro-2,4-dinitrodiphenylamine.


The need for dense spatial discretizations commonly arises when analyzing electromagnetic wave interactions on composite structures with sub-wavelength geometric features, e.g. millimeter and microwave integrated circuits, antenna feeds and beam-forming networks, aircraft fuselage details, etc. In this paper, a well conditioned coupled set of surface and volume electric field integral equations (SEFIE and VEFIE) for analyzing wave interactions with such structures is presented. SEFIE and VEFIE, which enforce fundamental boundary and field consistency conditions on perfect electrically conducting (PEC) surfaces and dielectric volumes, are discretized using the well-known Rao-Wilton-Glisson (RWG) (S. M. Rao et al., IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., 30(3), 1982, 409-418) surface and Schaubert-Wilton-Glisson (SWG) (D. H. Schaubert et al., IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., 32(1), 1984, 77-85) volume basis functions; and the resulting coupled method of moments (MOM) linear system is solved iteratively. It is known that the VEFIE operator, even when applied to the analysis of wave interactions with densely discretized volumes, is well-posed. On the other hand, the SEFIE operator becomes ill-posed when applied to the analysis of wave interactions with densely discretized PEC surfaces. This increases the condition number of the coupled MOM system and renders its iterative solution inefficient or even impossible.


Describes a project run at St Thomas' Hospital whose goal was to design an information system that would support the business of a 'clinical directorate'. We argue that the analysis for an information system in an area as complex as this needs to be preceded by detailed domain analysis, and that conventional techniques are inadequate. The method used is described this supports the construction of formal set theoretic domain theories, and the refinement of those theories through refutation and reconstruction. The domain theory that was developed is elucidated. Some abstract properties of the domain are described and discussed. An animation of the theory is presented and examples of behavioural theorems that were refuted by domain experts are given. Some philosophical issues concerning the method are briefly discussed.<<ETX>>


Subtitle: Peru is gearing up for sustained port development as the Andean nation aims to become a significant regional trader and exporter. P&H's Michael Mackey reports.


The CMB observation sets stringent constraints on MeV dark matter (DM) annihilating into charged states/photons in s-wave, and the recent observation of the 21-cm absorption at the cosmic dawn reported by EDGES is also very strict for s-wave annihilations of MeV DM. The millicharged DM with p-wave dominant annihilations during the freeze-out period are considered in literatures to give an explanation about the 21-cm absorption, with photon mediated scattering cooling the hydrogen. In this paper, we focus on the annihilation of millicharged DM being s-wave dominant. To explain the 21-cm absorption and meanwhile be compatible with the CMB and 21-cm absorption bounds on DM annihilations, we consider the annihilation close to the resonance, with the new mediator (here is dark photon) mass being slightly above twice of the millicharged DM mass. In this case, the annihilation cross section at the temperature $T \to 0$ could be much smaller than that at $T_f$, which would be tolerated by the bounds on DM annihilations, avoiding the excess heating from DM s-wave annihilations to the hydrogen gas. The beam dump and lepton collider experiments can be employed to hunt for millicharged DM via the production of the invisible dark photon.


A fast semi-empirical and semi-analytical method for shielding efficiency(or coupling efficiency) estimation of slot with large length-width ratio is presented.The method is based on coupling theory of small holes and Green's functions of rectangular cavity excited by magnetic current.The result of the method matches well with that obtained by Micro-Stripes software and the measured result.The relationship between slot position,slot number,cavity volume and the shielding efficiency is analyzed.Calculation result shows that the shielding efficiency will degrade by 6 dB when adding a similar slot,and that when keeping slot length unchanged,shielding efficiency will increase by 1 dB when the length-width radio is two times larger and that the shielding efficiency will rise when the cavity volume becomes larger.The result of the fast evaluation method is nearly the same as that obtained by Micro-Stripes software except near the slot resonant frequency,but the calculation speed is faster than software.The fast evaluation method is also good for frequency higher than slot resonant frequency.


Objectives.  The aim of the current study was to evaluate the potential efficacy of a presurgical behavioral medicine evaluation screening algorithm with patients undergoing evaluation for implantable pain management devices.


It is disclosed a control technique which prevents a transmission automatically thereto to slow a vehicle when an ignition in the vehicle is accidentally turned off while the vehicle is moving, and waits until the vehicle is completely stopped, to the transmission of the vehicle automatically in to switch the parking position and lock.


Ground penetrating radar was used to assess the decay state of the mosaics at the south upper gallery of Hagia Sophia, Istanbul. These mosaics were plastered during the Ottoman period of the monument, but during recent conservation interventions part of the plaster layer has been removed. It has been revealed that cohesion problems may be encountered with the preserved mosaic at the perpendicular junction of two arches. In another area, GPR was employed to reveal the presence of underlying mosaics being below the plaster layer. There have been observed void spaces below this layer, indicating possible cohesion problems that need to be taken into consideration in case of future removal of the plaster. In addition, the Empress Zoe mosaic was scanned, verifying good overall cohesion and homogeneity of the mosaic and the substrate structure but also that there exist restored areas with new base mortar and tesserae, confirming historic data.


The paper is aimed at presenting a simulated model of the spatial blocks in rock slope excavation and assessment of the dynamic sliding instability.In this paper we have investigated the dynamic sliding process affected by a different excavation angle and gained necessary data and information of the slope engineering with the advanced non-contact measurement technology(the ShapeMetriX3D system).We have also taken pictures from different points of view and acquired a three-dimensional digital image that can provide relevant information after appropriate processing.At the same time,we have also numerically simulated the spatial entity including the three-dimensional finite random or the fixed discontinuities by using the same system.The so-called GeoSMA3D system is founded on the Block Theory,which has the fractures as finite disk-shaped forms.Later,we have made a comparative study of the key blocks to be identified from the different excavation angles.We have also examined the key blocks of the strongest rock mass and the weakest parts on the basis of the core Block Theory.Actually,so far as we know,the failure of rock mass always begins with the key block or blocks and extends to the other parts of the mass likely to lead to the destruction of the whole mass.The Geo-SMA can help to find out the key blocks in the rock mass and optimize the excavation angle in the design along with some necessary support focused on the above said blocks,so as to maintain the stability of the entire rock mass.In addition,we have also chosen a typical cross-section and made a simulated model of the likely-to-happen or potential sliding instability of the slope blocks by planar Numerical Manifold Method(NMM) code in different excavation angles.As a new numerical model for geotechnical engineering,NMM is by nature a more general approach to attacking the problems of continuity and discontinuity of dynamic and static nature,great displacement as well as small deformation.Thus,it proves out that NMM can be taken as a model of good performance in solving such slope engineering problem.Besides,we have also worked out the essential data through NMM code and make them in diagrams,as the result of comparing the displacements of certain key blocks in x and y axis.Therefore,the two methods above mentioned prove to be worthy for evaluating the security and stability from the two different aspects,since they are not only closely related to the morphology of fractures,but also heavily influenced by the excavation angle.With the certain fracture morphology in our engineering discussion,stability tends to be diminished or decreased with the change of the excavation angles of 45°,60° and 75°.


chronic myelomonocytic leukemia by a peripheral blood eosinophil count of equal or than 1.5x10E9/L, and absence of PDGFRA or PDGFRB gene abnormalities.


This article provides an autobiographical account of the evolution and role of social work research since the beginning of my career as a social worker in the late 1960s. It traces the bumpy road from the days when the profession's attitude about research was, at best, ambivalent to today's emphasis on evidence-informed practice and empirically supported treatments. It ends by identifying several new challenges and their implications for future efforts to help further bridge the gap between research and practice in social work.


From November 1797 to March 1798, scarlatina angiosa occurred in almost every town in the county of Cumberland, Maine. Barker reports on fifty cases treated, with the deaths of two children, one of whom was dissected. He comments on a change of medical philosophy in which "bile . . . [was considered] the mischievous cause" in 1784 but the cause was thought to be "septic acid" in 1797. He reviewed inflammatory fevers in 1799–1800 and measles in 1803–1804 in seaport towns, and scarlatina angiosa inland, with descriptions of patients aged eighteen months to thirty years. Barker referred to a "golden opportunity," that is, an ideal time to see and treat patients for the best outcomes. He also wrote about hooping (whooping) cough in Maine from 1795–1806 and about quinsy or croup as he had found it earlier in Barnstable county, 1774–1780.


Neural phenotypes are the result of probabilistic developmental processes. This means that stochasticity is an intrinsic aspect of the brain as it self-organizes over a protracted period. In other words, while both genomic and environmental factors shape the developing nervous system, another significant—though often neglected—contributor is the randomness introduced by probability distributions. Using generative modelling of brain networks, we provide a framework for probing the contribution of stochasticity to neurodevelopmental diversity. To mimic the prenatal scaffold of brain structure set by activity-independent mechanisms, we start our simulations from the medio-posterior neonatal rich-club (Developing Human Connectome Project; dHCP, n = 630). From this initial starting point, models implementing Hebbian-like wiring processes generate variable yet consistently plausible brain network topologies. By analyzing repeated runs of the generative process (> 107 simulations), we identify critical determinants and effects of stochasticity. Namely, we find that stochastic variation has a greater impact on brain organization when networks develop under weaker constraints. This heightened stochasticity makes brain networks more robust to random and targeted attacks, but more often results in non-normative phenotypic outcomes. To test our framework empirically, we evaluated whether stochasticity varies according to the experience of early-life deprivation using a cohort of neurodiverse children (Centre for Attention, Learning and Memory; CALM n = 357). We show that low socioeconomic status predicts more stochastic brain wiring. We conclude that stochasticity may be an unappreciated contributor to relevant developmental outcomes, and make specific predictions for future research.


Introduction: Enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus is an important pathogen that causes septicemia and bacteremia and is often associated with serious complications, such as endocarditis and osteomyelitis. Some Staphylococcus enterotoxins require only minute quantities to be toxic in humans. The present study focused on investigation how to remove this problematic issue. Objectives: This study was conducted to inhibit S. aureus enterotoxin genes that obtained from positive blood culture bottles of patients at the pediatric hospital in Sulaimania city. Methods: Twenty five isolates of S. aureus were isolated among 100 positive blood culture bottles and determined the strains that produce enterotoxins through culture method. Then, the enterotoxin genes that located on plasmids were cured by two medicinal plants (Eugenia caryophyllata and Cinnamomum zeylanicum). Results: The results showed that nine out of 25 isolates were released enterotoxins from which the plasmid encoding enterotoxin genes were confirmed in four of them. And, two of the isolates were transferred to recipient DH10B E. coli isolate successfully. Methanol extracts of (E. caryophyllata and C. zeylanicum) were used at sub minimum inhibition concentration as curing agents. Conclusion: Methanol extracts of (E. caryophyllata and C. zeylanicum) have grate effect on eliminating the plasmidsencoding enterotoxin gene of S. aureus.


Recrystallization from methylene chloride gives a tetragonal pseudo-polymorph of(μ-η 5 :η 5 -bicyclohexadienyl)bis(tricarbonylmanganese), [Mn 2 (C 12 H 12 )(CO) 6 ].-CH 2 Cl 2 , in the rare space group P4 2 /mbc. Molecules in these crystals and in the monoclinic unsolvated form are virtually superimposable, and it is the inclusion of the methylene chloride solvate molecule which allows for crystallization in P4 2 /mbc. The Mn dimers are packed in layers with fourfold symmetry, with disordered methylene chloride molecules filling interstices between the layers.


6Li and 15N NMR spectroscopic studies of lithium diethylamide (Et2NLi) solvated by oxetane, THF, and Et2O are described. Four-, five-, and six-rung ladders, as well as cyclic dimers and trimers, are identified. In addition, dynamic processes within the trimers and ladders are detected. The symmetries of the aggregates facilitated the determination of relatively complex solution structures and equilibria.


The algorithm presented here allows the motion tracking of a human subject performing rehabilitation exercises during physiotherapy. The motion is tracked by fitting a model into the observed data, which are depth images coming from one or multiple Kinect sensors. The model consists of a surface mesh morphologically close to the patient's body and an articulated skeleton. The mesh is deformed by linear blend skinning according to the pose of the skeleton. The optimization is performed by particle filtering. Thanks to the graphics pipeline and the computing capabilities of the GPU, our algorithm reaches execution speeds close to real time. When working offline with a model very close to the patient's morphology, the joints locations and rotations are estimated with an average accuracy respectively smaller than a few millimeters and a few degrees.


Aarti Gupta and Michael Mason, eds. (2014). Transparency in Global Environmental Governance: Critical Perspectives. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 350 pp., $28 paperback (ISBN-13: 9780262526180).

The presumed virtue of transparency in global affairs is seldom challenged in contemporary political discourse. The merits of public access to information have gained further traction since the revelations of government surveillance by Wikileaks and Edward Snowden. This is particularly the case with environmental information because natural resources are more convincingly considered a public asset. It is in this context of an ascendant transparency agenda that the anthology prepared by Gupta and Mason is a welcome critical appraisal. At its core, the editors of this volume challenge the assumed linkage between disclosure and democratization processes. The book has been meticulously crafted around a structure presented in the first chapter by the editors with three key elements: a) uptake of transparency; b) institutionalization of transparency; and c) effects of transparency. In each step, the editors have posited certain hypotheses that are then evaluated in the following 13 chapters within the same framework. The key hypotheses presented for testing are as follows:

1. Democratization and marketization are driving the uptake of transparency. … saleem{at}alum.mit.edu


On December 6, 1991, there was established the Bureau for Control over Illegal Circulation of Narcotic Drugs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR as an independent structural subdivision of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR. In 2021, there was the 30th anniversary of the establishment of subdivisions for control over the circulation of narcotic drugs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. In view of that, the Siberian Law Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia has prepared and held an international scientific and practical seminar to review the issues reflecting historical aspects of functioning of subdivisions of internal affairs agencies for control over the circulation of narcotic drugs and related to the relevant problems of drug threat combating at the modern stage.


Statistics, images, and other files relating to the numerical simulation of 2D shock-cloud and wind-cloud interactions with respect to a comparison of the two processes (Paper II).


Results stress the role of 5-HT2A/2C receptor antagonistic
activity in the mediation of methamphetamine psychotropic
effects in animals and these data can be of great importance
for both experimental and clinical studies of potential impact
of 5-HT2A/2C antagonists in methamphetamine dependence and even
the treatment of methamphetamine withdrawal symptoms.


4,4'-Dimethoxy-5,6,5',6'-dimethenedioxy-2,2'-dimethoxycarbonyl biphenyl (DDB, 1) and its derivatives show anti-HBV and anti-HIV activities.[1] However, their poor solubility was not in favor of bioavailability.[2,3] In addition,other anti-HIV agents[4] with piperazine moiety have been investigated. Their saturated nitrogen-containing heterocyclic groups play the role of pharmaco-effectivity.[5] It was assumed that the combination of DDB with substituted benzyl piperazines would produce some new compounds with activity against anti-HIV. Therefore, we designed and synthesized a class of novel 4,4'-dimethoxy-5,6,5',6'-dimethenedioxy biphenyls modified by substituted piperazines, and partly evaluated their anti-SIV activity.……


Some preliminary thoughts on how to design and develop the DAQ architecture for the Silicon tracking system at the future Linear electron positron collider, are briefly presented here. The proposed structure includes three DAQ levels. The first level is based on a high level processing mix-mode ASIC sitting on the detector. The second level still on the detector is a DSP like interface that will send the processed data to the general DAQ system. Several novel technological aspects are part of this development. The role of the ongoing test beam activities with detector prototypes as training camp is emphasized.