Traffic congestion leads to significant economic and environmental costs. Currently, we can reduce congestion using infrastructure based systems, such as ramp metering installations and variable speed limits. However, we see more and more in-vehicle technologies which have the potential of replacing infrastructure based technologies. Therefore, in the future we will be able to reduce congestion by controlling individual vehicles using cooperative systems based control strategies. In this thesis we will develop a cooperative systems based control strategy to resolve a moving jam near an on-ramp. This strategy determines the number of vehicles that should be speed limited to resolve a moving jam with respect to a certain ramp metering rate. Additionally, vehicles are speed limited to realize a stable traffic flow once the moving jam has been resolved. The control strategy is evaluated using a simulation of traffic on a one-lane freeway on which all vehicles are equipped with ideal cooperative systems. The most important findings of this research are: (1) that a moving jam near a metered on-ramp can be resolved, thus resulting in an improvement of the throughput, and (2) that the most optimal throughput improvement is achieved when choosing a ramp metering rate which is as low as possible. The control strategy is one of the first integrations of ramp metering and variable speed limits for cooperative systems which can reduce congestion. However, before this system can be implemented in practice, the control system has to be able to deal with more complex traffic networks and non-ideal cooperative systems.


NATURAL ENEMIES OF THE OAK SCALE INSECT, EULECANIUM CILIATUM (DOUGLAS) (HEMIPTERA: COCCIDAE) IN TURKEY. Eulecanium ciliatum Douglas is an important pest of ornamental plants in the Palaearctic region and has a wide range of natural enemies. In Ankara, Turkey, eight hymenopterous parasitoids and one hyperparasitoid species have been bred from this scale, and nine predators were collected in association with it, seven Coleoptera and two Hemiptera. Key words: urban, ornamental plantings, parasitoid hosts, predator hosts, Aphelinidae, Encyrtidae, Eulophidae, Pteromalidae, Anthribidae, Coccinellidae, Cybocephalidae, Miridae.


Disease of ear, nose and throat (ENT) affect the functioning of adults as well as children, often with significant challenge to of the daily life of affected patients. Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas species are the most prevalent etiologic agent of ENT infections. Therefore the aim of this study was to determine the antibiogram of molecularly Characterized the Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas species in the Ear and Throat among Patients Attending Rivers State Teaching Hospital. Total number of eighty samples of throat swab, and aural (ear) swab were collected aseptically using sterile Evepon swab sticks and the sample collected were properly labelled with patients' number, date and the side. The swabs were immediately transported with a transportation medium in sterile cotton plugged test tube to the microbiology laboratory for further analysis. Qquestionnaires were administered for degraphic data collections. Each throat and aural swab sample was inoculated onto Mannitol salt agar and Cetrimide agar plates for isolation of Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas species respectively. The plates were incubated at 37°C and examined for growth after 24-48 hours. Pure culture of the isolates were primarily identified biochemically and confirmed using molecular approaches. Antibiogram of the isolates was performed by the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method on Mueller-Hinton agar according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guideline. Results shows that out of the 50 ear swabs and 30 throat swab samples, 17 (34%) and 8 (26.7%) of the throat swabs ear swabs were positive of Pseudomonas spp. While for the Staphylococcus spp. 8 (16%) out of the 50 ear swabs and 4 (13.7%) out of 30 throat swabs were positive. The molecular results of the isolates shows that Pseudomonas fluorescens NR_115715.1, Pseudomonas aeruginosa NR_113599.1.
Staphylococcus aureus NR_113956.1. were the predominates species isolated from both ear and throat swabs. The results of antibiogram of the Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas species isolated revealed that commonly uses antibiotics especially Ceftazidime, Cefuroxime, Cloxacillin Gentamicin and Augmentin were 100% resistant to the isolates only Ofloxacin, Ceftriaxone and Nitrofurantoin were susceptible to the isolates with a percentage of 80.2%, 85.7% and 90%. The findings of this study points to the high level of frequent and indescrimate uses of antibiotics among patient suffering from symptoms of ENT resulting to difficulty in the treatment of infections using common antibiotics. It is strongly recommended that ccontinuous monitoring of patients is required for preparing antibiograms. These susceptibility results will help the physician for deciding the empirical regime for the patients.


Abstract : Planting mangroves for stabilizing man-made marl shorelines in the Florida Keys is an environmentally preferred alternative to seawall and riprap construction. In June 1977, 126 mangroves were planted along three marl shorelines to determine the relative significance of (a) tidal height, (b) degree of exposure to erosion forces, and (c) plant size upon growth and survival. This report documents findings for plant survival and growth after 5 years.


In China, chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection represents a considerable healthcare burden. Although interferon‐based therapy has been the standard‐of‐care for many years, few long‐term, real‐life studies have assessed interferon‐based treatment in China. The objective of CCgenos follow‐up study was to analyze long‐term treatment patterns and outcomes in a cohort of treatment‐naïve, Han ethnic, patients with chronic HCV infection.


Microprocessors have long been the central controller for many autonomous robots. However, as a processor is a general-purpose device, it is possible that if a control system for a robot were designed specifically for a certain task, improved performance would result. However, such an approach would be impractical for anything but the most simplistic goals, assuming that a human were the designer. One possible solution is to approach the problem using Evolvable Hardware (EHW). This method uses Genetic Algorithms to apply evolutionary forces to the development process. In this research, the EHW approach will be applied to design a control system for a robot that has increasingly complex tasks to perform. This design process will then be compared with control systems developed by a human designer, to determine whether the EHW approach can benefit robot designs.


Information Retriveal in scienti c publications can be enhanced through semantic annotation in view to identify relevant sentences containing speci c semantic relations such as the expression of methods, de nitions, hypotheses. We present an IR System for scienti c publications that provides the possibility to lter results according to semantic facets. The semantic annotations are obtained using a rule-based method that identi es speci c linguistic clues organized into a linguistic ontology. This approach is implemented with Solr Search Server and offers e cient search and navigation in scienti c papers. The demontrator is available at http://sempub2014.nlp-labs.org/task3/.


Commissioned by the National Trust as a result of a national competition for the Folly2018! sculpture trail at the UNESCO World Heritage Fountains Abbey Studley Royal Water Gardens, Orta's winning design, 'Gazing Ball', reinterprets the notion of the folly architecture and its role in 18th century landscape design.

The project developed from site visits and historical research on the former landscape design by Sir John Aislabie (1670-1742). The resulting architectural sculpture breaks with the original neo-classical hexagonal architecture of the rotunda, creating a sculpture that evokes the notion of 'oppositional tension', a feature of Aislabie's landscaping. Orta has imagined a pentagonal steel structure with a trompe l'oeil colonnade; the classic dome has been replaced by a rotating-axis tower onto which a huge gazing ball delicatley balances. The mirror surface of the sphere is designed to reflect and distort the surrounding water gardens, whilst the geometrical shaped windows act as framing devices from which visitors are offered multiple perspectives over the composed landscapes.

This work evolved out of Orta's research project Totipotent Architecture, funded by the Welcome Trust Sciart program which explored, in collaboration with cell biologists, the relationship between the cellular and the architectural body, by simulating the process of cell differentiation to develop new architectural forms, and imbuing them with new 'social' functionalities.

The research process involved drawing and experiments with scale modelling in steel mesh and glass blowing, to create a series of maquettes for future public sculpture.


Extreme rainfall causes heavy losses in human life and properties. Hence many works have been done to predict extreme rainfall by using extreme value distributions. In this study, we use a generalized extreme value distribution to derive the posterior predictive density with hierarchical Bayesian approach based on the data of Seoul area from 1973 to 2010. It becomes clear that the probability of the extreme rainfall is increasing for last 20 years in Seoul area and the model proposed works relatively well for both point prediction and predictive interval approach.


A neural network is used to predict the sensitivity of a complex nonlinear system (such as an automobile) to input variation, which will aid greatly in the effort to model the system and the effects of changes to its controllers. A blend of signal processing techniques is used to provide maximum resolution neural network inputs for various drivers, vehicles, engine technologies, transmissions, velocity traces, and operating temperatures. The neural net predicts what four different vehicle outputs will be, given a sample of driving inputs.


The problem of voting is still critical in terms of safety and security hence this project aims to develop a secure Electronic voting machine using Finger print identification and iris identification to provide a high performance and high security to the voting system .The proposed electronic voting system allows the voters to scan their fingerprint and iris which is then compared with the AADHAR card database. After the process of authentication the voters can cast their vote and then automatically the electronic ballot is reset for others to vote. Also for the blind people plug in components are present through which the recorded voice of the symbol to vote can be listened and voting is done by the voice message send through the plug in component. Keywords—AADHAR card dtabase iris Identification,Authenticaton,Electronic Voting Machine.


Emergencies of the head and neck are a common presentation in both emergency room and office practice settings. The complex neck anatomy with various spaces and fascial planes poses a challenge to the prompt diagnosis and management. Imaging of the head and neck region includes structuresfromtheskullbasetotheuppermediastinum.The proximity to the brain is certainly an important consideration, and therefore, the potential complications should be known. The extension of the neck spaces inferiorly to the mediastinum is of great significance. Our focus in this review will be centered on using computed tomography (CT) as the primary imaging modality, as it is widely available in emergency settings. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a problem solver and a great tool in special situations. We will discuss the utility of MRI in the appropriate setting. We hope to provide the reader with the appropriate armamentarium to approach these conditions in a simple, yet comprehensive manner. The basic pathophysiology of each condition will be discussed to give the reader a clear understanding of the disease process. The importance of performing the appropriate radiological investigation cannot be overemphasized, as we strive to provide the best patient care to negate the effects of these potentially life-threatening conditions. The chapter will be broadly divided into the following cate


on Warming, Exclusive Lighting, and the Communication of Sound. tiy JJ. D. ivKID, M.D. London, 1044. 0V0, pp. 40Z. In this climate and state of society, which subject so large a portion of the population to an in-door life, the subject of ventilation has claims the importance of which it would be difficult to overrate, as they press on all classes of the community. This " age of great cities" congregates human beings into huge masses; and whether they are heaped up in manufactories, or in ships of war, or in churches, chapels, halls, or theatres, or in close cabins, rooms, tenements, or streets, they are all subjected to one great cause of disease?each man poisoning the atmosphere both for himself and his neighbour. Since the discovery of gases, and of the law that all gases tend to diffuse themselves through each other, ventilation has become a branch of chemistry, and promises to be one of those by which this great science may be applied to the highest purposes of physical discoveries?the improvement of the health and consequently of the well-being of the community. It is fortunate that the necessity which our legislators felt for the comfort of their own persons in the House of Commons, led them to seek the assistance of Dr.'Boswell Reid, whose strong manly intellect and untiring energy and zeal are well fitted to apply to practical pur-


The large space in the university town will bring new challenge to the vocational colleges in the psychological education on students and so it is an attractive project for us to explore to make full use of the space in the university town to implement psychological education.The paper analyzes the character of psychological teaching based on the space and brings forward the construction mode of the psychological education curriculum.


The goal of this research was to develop a conceptual model for elearning as a supporting tool for business process management. A mixed methods case study was used to evaluate and test an elearning model in a case study firm. The case study focused on internal communications processes and procedures, which was a specific issue of the case firm. The elearning model was developed through a combination of preliminary testing and expert review, which identified eight elearning characteristics that ultimately led to process knowledge (internal communications effectiveness) through perceived usefulness, user satisfaction and knowledge transfer. Following an organizational training intervention, the model was retested. This retesting demonstrated that the conceptual framework reliably measured internal communication effectiveness. The implication of these findings is that elearning is an effective tool for supporting business process management and that specific characteristics of elearning influence training outcomes.


AMONG THE MATERIAL of parasitic copepod s which Dr. W. 1. Klawe of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission collected from fishes in the eastern Pacific and sent to the auth or for identification, there was an interesting specimen representin g a new species of the genus Caligus. The specimen , consisting of a single female, was obtained off the coast of California . It has been preserved together with the host, Engraulis mordax, to whose body it was firmly clinging. The present note contains the description of this parasite. The author wishes to express his thanks to Dr. Klawe for providing the present material, and takes a great pleasure in associating the name of the species with the naturalist.


To cite: Sasegbon A, Hasan SS, Disney BR, et al. Frontline Gastroenterology Epub ahead of print: [please include Day Month Year]. doi:10.1136/ flgastro-2021-101856 Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Gastroenterology, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK Neurogastroenterology Unit, Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK Gastroenterology, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK


Abstract Catalysis and combustion have long been linked. In fact, the science of catalysis stems from Davy's discovery [1] that platinum wires could promote the flameless combustion of flammable fuel-air mixtures. Today, catalysis is a mainstay of our modern chemical industry. Oxidation catalysts are used not only for the complete oxidation of fuels to carbon dioxide and water, as in radiant catalytic tent heaters and fume abatement devices, but also for the selective partial oxidation of hydrocarbons or other "fuels" to produce basic chemicals such as ethylene oxide (from ethylene), terephthalic acid (from p-xylene), and nitric acid (from ammonia). However, despite the long-known capability of catalysts to oxidize hydrocarbons without significant production of carbon monoxide, soot, or thermal NOx, there seemed little possibility that catalytic oxidation reactors could ever displace conventional flame combustors as primary fuel combustors. This is because the volumetric heat release rates of conventional...


Recently, there has been greater attention to the use of classifier systems in medical diagnosis. Medical diagnostic tools provide automated procedures for objective decisions by making use of quantitative measures and machine learning techniques. These tools are effective and helpful for medical experts to diagnose diseases. One of such diseases is breast cancer which is the second largest cause of cancer deaths among women. To build an intelligent tool, it is very important to have an effective set of features. Two types of feature sets have been commonly implemented for the purpose of breast cancer diagnosis: image shape-based features and microarray gene expression data. Both types of feature sets have been widely implemented; however, there has been no work that directly compared the classification performance of these two feature sets. In this paper, we intensively review related works that used both types of feature sets and we also review the implemented machine learning algorithms. Moreover, we run extensive experiments to compare the classification performance of the aforementioned feature sets. Our results show that the image shape-based features are more discriminative for breast cancer classification when tested with ten-fold cross validation. To check the robustness of the best performing feature set, we further examine it with five-fold cross validation and with a variety of generative classification algorithms.


Abstract Tobacco, cannabis, and alcohol consumption, found to be most common among college students, is known to cause life-threatening diseases, and is correlated with social, financial and health problems. For the present study, we aimed to assess the sociodemographic factors affecting tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis consumption among university students. A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to March 2020, on a random sample of 507 undergraduates, between the ages of 18 and 24. The research instrument was a self- administered questionnaire with questions on the sociodemographic characteristics, and questions regarding the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis. The mean ± standard deviation age of study sample was 21.56 ± 1.81 years, and 56.4% participants were females. The lifetime prevalence of tobacco usage among the study sample was 66.7%, alcohol 54.2%, and the cannabis had a prevalence of 13.8%. About 46.2% ( n  = 234) were co-users of tobacco smoking and alcohol, and 12.6% ( n  = 64) were co-user of tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and drug use. Analyzed with Pearson's chi-squared test, there was no statistically significant difference between students from private and public institutions on lifetime, in the past 1 year/1 month of tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and cannabis use ( p  > 0.05). The logistic regression model for dependent variable cannabis abuse in the past 1 year is associated with lower odds among female students (odds ratio: 0.337, 95% confidence interval: 0.167–0.682; p  = 0.002). Smoking, drinking, and cannabis were found to be highly prevalent among university students. These findings can help program managers and policy makers devise effective and appropriate control programs and policies for substance-using university students.


The bacterial diversity by 16S rDNA partial sequencing and scanning electron microscope (SEM) of the rumen microbiome was characterized. Three Nellore bovines, cannulated at the rumen, were utilized. Liquid and solid fractions from the rumen content were processed for the extraction of metagenomic DNA and later 16S rDNA amplicons were utilized to construct the WGA library for further clone sequencing. Data were analyzed by MEGA and MOTUR (University of Michigan) softwares. Approximately 97.96% of operation taxonomic units (OTUs) were related to Bacteriodetes phylum and 2.04% of sequences were affiliated to Firmicutes phylum. In the case of Bacteriodetes, the great part of sequences (47.96%) was attributed to Prevotella genus. Bacteroidetes phylum was predominant in rumen content and the Prevotella genus was the most abundant, including diverse species related to this taxon. The bacterial morphological diversity associated to plant fibers was detected by SEM and showed its role in plant biomass deconstruction beyond the detection of microbiological interactions that involved protozoa.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the outcome of patients undergoing extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) for treatment of upper urinary tract calculi (renal and ureteric), and to note role of double-J (DJ) stents in these patients.

DESIGN
A cross-sectional analytical study.

PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY
Department of Urology, Rawalpindi General Hospital, Rawalpindi, from February 1999 to July 2001.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Record of patients who underwent ESWL for renal and ureteric stones was retrieved and analyzed using statistical program, SPSS version-10 and Epi-Info 2000. In some patients pre-ESWL DJ stents were placed because of various reasons like solitary kidney, large stone volume etc. Patients were divided in two groups, Group I, in whom DJ stents were not placed, and Group II, in whom DJ stents were placed. ESWL was performed in each subject in standard way employing piezoelectric lithotripter E.D.A.P. LT 02X. Patients were evaluated for stone clearance fortnightly with X-ray or ultrasound.

RESULTS
Four hundred and thirty-two patients, 68.8% male and 31.2% female, underwent ESWL. Mean age of patients was 37.7 +/- 13.1 years. Majority of patients (78.47%, n = 339) had renal, while rest had ureteric stones. Group I and II included 408 (94.4%) and 24 (5.6%) patients respectively. Renal stones were present in 78% (n=318) of Group I and 87.5% [n = 21] of Group II patients. Mean size of stones in Group I and II patients was 10.91 +/- 4.6, and 10.4 +/- 4.7mm. Stone clearance was 96.3% and 100% in Group I and Group II patients respectively. Significantly more ESWL sessions were required for stone clearance in Group II (p-value 0.03); in addition Group II patients had significantly more complications (p-value 0.01).

CONCLUSION
ESWL is an effective procedure. Pre-ESWL stenting is associated with increased numbers of ESWL sessions and more complications.


The invention relates to a thermal imager for resisting strong-light damage, which comprises an infrared camera lens, a shutter and an infrared detector, wherein the shutter is connected with a drive motor capable of driving the shutter to be opened and closed. The thermal image also comprises an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) controller, wherein the FPGA controller comprises an image gray monitor module, am image comparison module and a shutter control module. According to the invention, a method for resisting the strong-light damage comprises a step of controlling a detector to close the shutter on a condition that the FPGA controller detects that multiple frames of images include strong light so as to ensure that the strong light cannot pass through the shutter to damage an imaging element behind the shutter, therefore, the effect of protecting the thermal imager can be achieved.


OBJECTIVE
To define the cytomorphologic features of carcinoid tumor.

STUDY DESIGN
The study consisted of 19 carcinoid tumors sampled by fine needle aspiration. These included 6 pulmonary carcinoids. 11 intestinal carcinoids and 2 aspirates from a patient with a mediastinal carcinoid. The cytomorphologic features of carcinoid tumor were documented, and, in selected cases, immunocytochemical findings were noted. Additionally, the cytology literature concerning carcinoid tumor was reviewed and summarized.

RESULTS
Morphologically, the carcinoid tumors consisted predominantly of loose groups with a background of single cells. A striking degree of cellular and nuclear monomorphism was seen in all cases. Nuclei were small and round to oval, and all exhibited a characteristic finely granular, evenly distributed chromatin pattern. Cytoplasm was minimal to moderate in amount and finely granular in appearance. Necrosis and prominent nucleoli were not seen. Positive staining was noted in all seven cases in which immunostaining for chromogranin was performed. Neuron-specific enolase was positive in four of five cases.

CONCLUSION
The cytomorphologic characteristics of carcinoid tumors are distinctive, and appropriate ancillary studies can assist in confirming the diagnosis.


Investigating the volatility of financial assets is fundamental to risk management. This study used generalized Autoregressive Con-ditional Heteroscedastic Volatility models to evaluate the volatility of the long term inter-est rate of Nigeria's financial market. We al-so incorporated three innovations distribu-tions viz: the Gaussian, the student-t, and the Generalized Error Distribution (GED) in the modeling process under the maximum likelihood estimation method. The results show that GARCH (GED) is the most performing model for describing the volatility of three and twenty-year interest rate returns while TARCH (GED) is the most suitable model for describing the volatility of five and ten-year interest rate returns in Nigeria. The pre-ferred models will help in the development of tools for effective risk management by moni-toring the behavior of long term interest rates.


The research descriptive aims to describe the implementation of character education through musical extracurricular activities in inclusive education schools in SD Siluk. The subjects of this study were the school principal, musical teacher, class teacher, special assistant teacher, and students. Data collection techniques using interviews, observation, and documentation. Data analysis techniques used are descriptive qualitative analysis with data analysis models according to Miller and Huberman. The result showed the 1) the implementation of character education through musical extracurricular activities at SD Siluk by shaking hands, picking up instruments in the box. Pray before & after the activity, students adhere to ethics in music. The use of lectures, questions, and answers, and practice methods. Provide exemplary & personal approach to students. Train to your confidence by taking part in the competition & performing arts. Clean up of gamelan and restore the instrument. 2) the dimensions of the development of inclusive education in karawitan include the dimensions of culture, policy, and practice. 3) character values formed are responsibility, love the motherland, appreciate achievement, cooperation, confidence. 4) Supporting factors are community leaders who have gamelan, using technology that supports musical activities, karawitan space is quitter extensive.


Massive MIMO (Ma-MIMO) is a promising technology that increases the capacity of a specific radio link by increasing the number of antennas at the transmitter and receiver side. This ensures effective utilization of multipath propagation with an increase in spectral and power efficiency. The design and implementation of Ma-MIMO faces a lot of challenges in many aspects. This review paper focuses on the potential challenges in architecture, detection algorithms used and its performance analysis.


Real-gas effects have a significant impact on compressible turbulent flows of dense gases, especially when flow properties are in proximity of the saturation line and/or the thermodynamic critical point. Understanding of these effects is key for the analysis and improvement of performance for many industrial components, including expanders and heat exchangers in organic Rankine cycle systems.

This work analyzes the real-gas effect on the turbulent boundary layer of fully developed channel flow of two organic gases, R1233zd(E) and MDM - two candidate working fluids for ORC systems. Compressible direct numerical simulations (DNS) with real-gas equations of state are used in this research. Three cases are set up for each organic vapour, representing thermodynamic states far from, close to and inside the supercritical region, and these cases refer to weak, normal and strong real-gas effect in each fluid.

The results within this work show that the real-gas effect can significantly influence the profile of averaged thermodynamic properties, relative to an air baseline case. This effect has a reverse impact on the distribution of averaged temperature and density. As the real-gas effect gets stronger, the averaged centre-to-wall temperature ratio decreases but the density drop increases. In a strong real-gas effect case, the dynamic viscosity at the channel center point can be lower than at channel wall. This phenomenon can not be found in a perfect gas flow.

The real-gas effect increases the normal Reynolds stress in the wall-normal direction by 7–20% and in the spanwise direction by 10–21%, which is caused by its impact on the viscosity profile. It also increases the Reynolds shear stress by 5–8%. The real-gas effect increases the turbulence kinetic energy dissipation in the viscous sublayer and buffer sublayer <inline-formula><mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:msup><mml:mi>y</mml:mi><mml:mo>∗</mml:mo></mml:msup><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>30</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math></inline-formula> but not in the outer layer. The turbulent viscosity hypthesis is checked in these two fluids, and the result shows that the standard two-function RANS model (<inline-formula><mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"><mml:mi>k</mml:mi><mml:mo>−</mml:mo><mml:mi>ϵ</mml:mi></mml:math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula><mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"><mml:mi>k</mml:mi><mml:mo>−</mml:mo><mml:mi>ω</mml:mi></mml:math></inline-formula>) with a constant <inline-formula><mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"><mml:msub><mml:mi>C</mml:mi><mml:mi>μ</mml:mi></mml:msub><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.09</mml:mn></mml:math></inline-formula> is still suitable in the outer layer <inline-formula><mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:msup><mml:mi>y</mml:mi><mml:mo>∗</mml:mo></mml:msup><mml:mo>></mml:mo><mml:mn>70</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math></inline-formula>, with an error in ±10%.


The present invention is one or more heteroatoms selected among, a group Q It is also disclosed that ionic liquid of Tricia furnace meth arsenide substrate.


Strawberry seed bug, Neopamera bilobata (Say), is a pest of organic strawberries in Florida. The rhyparochromidae species has been collected in a range of habitats worldwide, including South and Central America and many states in the southeastern United States. Strawberry seed bugs can cause injury to ripe strawberries, decreasing growers' profits. Integrated pest management techniques can mitigate strawberry seed bug populations in organic systems. This publication provides an overview of the strawberry seed bug and the injuries it can cause to strawberries produced in Florida. It includes monitoring and management options growers can use against strawberry seed bugs in organic strawberry production.


Eutypa dieback, caused by the fungus Eutypa lata is a serious disease of grapevines that affects vineyard productivity and longevity. Grapevines displaying foliar symptoms typical of Eutypa dieback or evidence of dead spurs, cankers, or discoloured vascular tissue, were surveyed from 77 vineyards throughout New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Fungal cultures were tentatively identified based on cultural morphology, before further identification using sequence analysis of rDNA internal transcribed spacer regions. E. lata and several other species from the Diatrypaceae including Cryptovalsa ampelina, and species of Eutypella and Diatrypella were isolated from diseased grapevines. Eutypa dieback was found to be more widespread in NSW than first thought, with confirmation that the disease is present both in the Central Ranges and southern NSW districts, regions recognised for their cooler climates and higher annual rainfall, both of which favour the growth of E. lata.


Objective To observe the recovery effect of local irradiation of semiconductor laser therapeutic apparatus combined with Kangfuxin solution gauze external application after anorectal operation.Methods Two hundred and forty cases of postoperation on anorectal diseases were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group,120 cases in each one.The control group was treated by Kangfuxin gauze external application besides the routine dressing since the 1st day after operation,and on the basis treatment of the control group,the treatment group was treated by local irradiation of semiconductor laser therapeutic apparatus.The condition of postoperative pain,swelling and wound healing was observed in both groups.Results There were 113 cases(94.17 %) in the treatment group and 98 cases(81.67 %) in the control group with little or mild pain at the 3rd day after operation,and there was significant difference between the two groups(P0.05);at the 7th day after operation,the swelling around the edge of wound subsided in the treatment group with 106 cases(88.33 %) and in the control group with 92 cases(76.67 %),and there was significant difference between the two groups(P0.05);the time of wound healing in the treatment group was significantly superior to that in the control group(P0.05).Conclusion The therapy of local irradiation of semiconductor laser therapeutic apparatus combined with Kangfuxin solution gauze external application could remarkably improve the recovery effect on postoperation of anorectal diseases.


Government efforts to reduce the burden on the community indonesia poor affected by providing aid covid-19 the cash that is a source of the funds from the village or commonly called cash transfer village funds (BLT-DD). The distribution of blt-dd this needs to be done quickly and directed. But in the election of a candidate BLT-DD recipients this are still being undertaken in an unconventional manner so that , the determination of certification BLT-DD recipients to less than optimal. The purpose of this research was a concept to build the system with applies the methods of analitycal hierarchy processes (AHP) - technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) in the determination of the communities in receipt of BLT-DD that can help the village administration Pekandangan in choosing recipients BLT-DD. Criteria used is 3 criteria that is the community who were not currently other social help PKH ( Program Keluarga Harapan ) / the cards pre workings etc, jobs / reserve enough of financial three months fore, and has family members and sick or chronic perennials. eight priority was obtained from the calculation on to the method AHP and used in seeking value matrix normalization terbobot to the method TOPSIS. Testing the accuracy of this research using confusion matrix , and the results of 91 % accuracy. Ranking it produces the research data alternative pekandangan village used by government for consideration decision making in choosing BLT-DD recipients.


Objective: Investigate impact of community based programs for creating nutrition and health awareness of women of child bearing age for prevention of anemia. Design: Intervention comprising of informal meetings, live demonstrations of iron rich recipes from green leafy vegetables and kitchen garden activity. Women with Hb 11 g/dl formed non supplemented group (NSG). Settings: Three villages near Pune city, Maharashtra, India. Subjects: Rural non pregnant women (n= 317) of childbearing age (15-35 yr). Results: Prevalence of severe anemia (Hb =50% meetings) compared to those with (29.8%) lower participation (<25% meetings). This was also true with regard to actual practice of repeating the demonstrated iron rich recipes at home. Impact after two years was reduced, however, the participation in interventional activities continued to show association with improvement in Hb (p = 0.06). Conclusion: Our observations highlight that developing action programs for improving nutritional awareness to enhance consumption of iron rich foods through dietary diversification has great potential for preventing anaemia in rural India.


Before a new drug product can be marketed in the United States, it must first be approved by an agency of the federal government, the Food and Drug Administration. The first step on the way through this long and arduous approval procedure is the actual discovery of a new, pharmacologically active, therapeutically useful compound, a process known as ''pharmagenesis.'' In the following sections, there will be a brief overview of the evolution of drug development. This subject is presented in greater detail in Chapter 4, ''A Brief History of Clinical Research in Pharmaceutical Development,'' by Donald Vogt and Michael Montagne.


Over the course of industrialization, servants moved out of the household, the site of both economic production and family life, and into the workplace, a space infused with the ideology of free labor and freedom of contract. In the process, they became employees, no longer dependent on their master for care or subject to his control. Free labor ideology dictated that employees be independent, self-reliant, and responsible for their own persons, as well as capable of bargaining for themselves in a competitive marketplace. This reconceptualization of servants proved both a benefit and a bane as workers, employers, and the legal system attempted to determine the scope of employer liability in the increasingly accident-prone industrial workplace. This Article maps the transformation of servants from household dependents to independent employees, exploring how elements of both the traditional master-servant relationship and emerging employer liability law influenced nineteenth-century workplace relations. The move of servants out of the household and into the workplace took place against the emerging ideology of the family/market dichotomy as well as the related philosophy of free labor and freedom of contract. However, even as the workplace relation began to be expressed in law through the rhetoric of free will, the reality of workplace interaction was still informed by traditional conceptions of master-servant relations. The disconnect between interactions based on traditional household relations and the liberal assumptions of classical legal thought produced inconsistent treatment of workers in the realm of employer liability, in which workers were sometimes treated as independent, self-reliant individuals, and sometimes as dependent on the master for care and control. Ultimately,


This article concerns the problem of reliability of measuring in the parts of hydraulic units. It is offered the authentic complex measuring of the effective size of pass channels by the method, which increases the reliability and operating life of hydraulic unit parts.


This research was performed to evaluate applicability of cold-recycled asphalt mixtures, which was modified during recycling process, for bituminous-treated base course. A maximum size of 25mm reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) was used in cold-recycle process together with an asphalt emulsion as a binder. An unsaturated polyester was selected for the most effective polymer, and a 40% RAP content was found to be the most effective ratio for cold-mix recycle. Using this RAP ratio, various rejuvenator and polymer content combinations were examined to find out the best performing ratio(s). The mixture combinations of rejuvenator 10% and polyester 10%, and of polyester 10% without rejuvenator were selected as two of the best performing additive combinations. Two recycled mixtures were prepared using these ratios, respectively, and Marshall properties were evaluated. Two mixtures satisfied Korean specification limits for bituminous-treated base course. One of these materials was used in field trial application in a test pit. Evaluation of the field condition showed that the compacted mixture had excellent properties based on domestic specification. Therefore, it is concluded that the recycled mixtures by cold-mix method in this study were satisfactorily applicable for bituminous treated base course material.


The collective monograph "Тhе Idea of Good in F. М. Dostoevsky's Work and Its Influence on тhе Development of the Philosophy of Law (To the 200th anniversary of F. М. Dostoevsky)" has become a significant event in the world of world science that studies issues of international law.Within the framework of this book, great attention is paid to the opposition of the multivector forces of "Good — Evil" in relation to the Russian Federation through the work of F. M. Dostoevsky. Now, on the western borders of the Russian Federation, the actions of a number of western unfriendly states that are members of the NATO military bloc have intensified, which, from the point of view of F. M. Dostoevsky abandoned God and bring evil, vices and death to the whole world. At the same time, the Russian Federation faced an ideological vacuum after the fall of the USSR and the rejection of socialist ideals. The authors show that Russia can offer the world a new civilizational ideology of Good within which there will be a spiritual transformation and liberation of mankind from temptations, strengthening of faith in God, the establishment of Christian love and virtue. The development of the ideology of Good is becoming the historical mission of Russia in the 21st century.


Magnet simulation is often used in calculating a vessel′s magnetic field,but the precision is affected by this positions of the magnet that often depend on human experience.This paper introduces a new method named particle swarm optimism.It reduces the influence of human experience on magnet model stability.The experimental results show that the precision is improved.


This papers addresses the dynamic characterization of the autonomous underwater vehicle MARES. The paper presents the main dynamic properties of this underwater robotic platform as well as the procedures employed to obtain the parameters that define the vehicle model. Furthermore, the paper also presents a detailed characterization of the elementary motions that this vehicle is able to perform.


In presence of abnormal neurological features infective, immunological and metabolic etiologies are also needed to be kept as possibility. Dengue fever may present with variety of neurological manifestations. This case series includes rare neurological presentation of dengue fever including first ever reported case of dengue fever induced bilateral abducens nerve palsy with another case of dengue cerebellitis. This case series along with previous studies suggest that imaging may be normal in these cases. This case series also highlighted the possible immunological etio-pathogenesis and role of steroids as treatment modality.


The research examines pedagogical approaches to work on interpreting expressions in a developed educational organisation. The essay contains two analyses: A re-analysis of a previous study (study 1 ...


ABSTRACT The choice of the model framework in a regression setting depends on the nature of the data. The focus of this study is on changepoint data, exhibiting three phases: incoming and outgoing, both of which are linear, joined by a curved transition. Bent-cable regression is an appealing statistical tool to characterize such trajectories, quantifying the nature of the transition between the two linear phases by modeling the transition as a quadratic phase with unknown width. We demonstrate that a quadratic function may not be appropriate to adequately describe many changepoint data. We then propose a generalization of the bent-cable model by relaxing the assumption of the quadratic bend. The properties of the generalized model are discussed and a Bayesian approach for inference is proposed. The generalized model is demonstrated with applications to three data sets taken from environmental science and economics. We also consider a comparison among the quadratic bent-cable, generalized bent-cable and piecewise linear models in terms of goodness of fit in analyzing both real-world and simulated data. This study suggests that the proposed generalization of the bent-cable model can be valuable in adequately describing changepoint data that exhibit either an abrupt or gradual transition over time.


We reported that we were successful in our 45nm technology node device demonstration in February 2008 and 22nm node technology node device patterning in February 2009 using ASML's Alpha Demo Tool (ADT).1, 2, 3 In order to insert extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography at the 15nm technology node and beyond, we have thoroughly characterized one EUV mask, a so-called NOVACD mask. In this paper, we report on three topics. The first topic is an analysis of line edge roughness (LER) using a mask Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) and the Actinic Inspection Tool (AIT) to compare resist images printed with the ASML ADT. The results of the analysis show a good correlation between the mask AFM and the mask SEM measurements. However, the resist printing results for the isolated space patterns are slightly different. The cause of this discrepancy may be resist blur, image log slope and SEM image quality and so on. The second topic is an analysis of mask topography using an AFM and relative reflectivity of mirror and absorber surface using the AIT. The AFM data show 6 and 7 angstrom rms roughness for mirror and absorber, respectively. The reflectivity measurements show that the mirror reflects EUV light about 20 times higher than absorber. The last topic is an analysis of a 32nm technology node SRAM cell which includes a comparison of mask SEM image, AIT image, resist image and simulation results. The ADT images of the SRAM pattern were of high quality even though the mask patters were not corrected for OPC or any EUV-specific effects. Image simulation results were in good agreement with the printing results.


Barriers in commercialising software innovations are studied from the perspective of four knowledge bases in product innovation: technology knowledge base, end-user knowledge base, brand knowledge base and business-logic knowledge base. Hypotheses are formulated based on case studies of publicly-funded innovation development projects in Finnish Information and Communication Technology (ICT) companies. The 'perfect technology syndrome' and diversification arising from any product innovation are put forward as important barriers of commercialisation.


This paper discusses incompatibilities between stones and mortars. The aim is to understand the evolution of rocks of acid nature, sandstones in this case, in the presence of mortars of an alkaline nature, such as cement mortars used for jointing or coatings. Accelerated aging tests combining alkaline alteration and salt alteration were simultaneously carried out in order to study the synergy between these two processes of degradation. The degradation process is follow-up by observing the induced alteration patterns, the identification of the newly appeared mineral phases and the evolution of the ultrasonic propagation speed of the materials tested. The obtained results allow showing that the pH-salt crystallization synergy is particularly aggressive towards the studied materials and that the sustainability of the rocks subjected to circulations of basic solutions due to the proximity of mortars of alkaline nature is seriously reduced.

https://ijaers.com/uploads/issue_files/7 IJAERS-AUG-2017-6-Incompatibility stone-mortar Influence.pdf


A novel combustion mode, namely tri-fuel (TF) combustion using a diesel pilot to ignite the premixed methane–hydrogen–air (CH4–H2–air) mixtures, was experimentally investigated under various H2 fractions (0%, 10%, 20%, 40%, 60%) and ultra-lean conditions (equivalence ratio of φ= 0.5). The overarching objective is to evaluate the effect of H2 fraction on flame characteristics and engine performance. To visualize the effect of H2 fraction on the combustion process and flame characteristics, a high-speed color camera (Photron SA-Z) was employed for natural flame luminosity (NFL) imaging to visualize the instantaneous TF combustion process. The engine performance, flame characteristics, and flame stability are characterized based on cylinder pressure and color natural flame images. Both pressure-based and optical imaging-based analyses indicate that adding H2 into the CH4–air mixture can dramatically improve engine performance, such as combustion efficiency, flame speed, and flame stability. The visualization results of NFL show that the addition of H2 promotes the high-temperature reaction, which exhibits a brighter bluish flame during the start of combustion and main combustion, however, a brighter orangish flame during the end of combustion. Since the combustion is ultra-lean, increasing the H2 concentration in the CH4–air mixture dramatically improves the flame propagation, which might reduce the CH4 slip. However, higher H2 concentration in the CH4–air mixture might lead to a high-temperature reaction that sequentially promotes soot emissions, which emit a bright yellowish flame.


Tunneling technique is the key technique to implement VPN In this paper,we first perform a comparative research on the existing tunneling protocols including GRE,L2TP,IPSec and IP/IP Then we propose an integrated scheme of tunneling mechanism to support VPN under current condition In this scheme,we use"tunneling"mode IPSec as the basic data encapsulation method and the security guarantee of the tunnels,make use of Internet Key Exchange protocol as the signal protocol for tunnel establishment,and refer to the "soft state"mechanism in IP/IP protocol to implement tunnel maintenance and management At last we give the implementation architecture of the scheme in the VPN gateway


Abstract In recent years cognitive therapy has become increasingly popular as a treatment for many forms of mental illness. This therapy is presented as scientific, rational and relatively easy to learn and use. In this paper we seek to demonstrate the particular philosophy of mind at work within the cognitivist framework and the ethical assumptions which accompany it. We conclude by drawing attention to some of the clinical implications of this analysis.


A user's manual is described and is provided for ASAP, an automated tool for static source code analysis of programs written in the Ada programming language. The purpose of the analysis is to collect and store information pertaining to the analyzed Ada compilation unit's size, complexity, usage of Ada language constructs and features, and static interface with other Ada compilation units.


The actual problem of enterprise revenue management that requires an effective solution is considered. Revenue is the main source of cash proceeds specifically from the main enterprise activities, as well as one of the main factors affecting enterprise functioning. As a result, the amount of revenue is extremely important for the company—it must be sufficient to ensure the repayment of all expenses of the company and the formation of the required profit amount. However, the amount of revenue itself is not the only important characteristic of revenue; the revenue stability over time and the revenue receipt regularity are no less important. The purpose of this work is to develop a dynamic model of enterprise revenue management, which differs from the model known in the literature by considering the parameter of enterprise performance efficiency. The parametric method of Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) is used as a method to evaluate the efficiency of an enterprise. Financial indicators are used as input and output data. The model was tested on six small business sectors of a single-industry town for the period from 2007 to 2021. Data collection was carried out using the SPARK system, which allows selecting enterprises for research by the status of the enterprise (bankrupt/operating), by the size of the enterprise (large/medium/small/micro), etc. The above calculations based on the constructed modified model have demonstrated the possibility of using the enterprise's revenue management with the desired rate of change and with the work efficiency parameter.


The article focuses on the aspects of nation-building and the main paradigms of the institutionalization of ethnicity in Abkhazia during the Soviet era and assesses the impact of Soviet practices of ordering ethnic categories on the modern ethnocultural and ethnopolitical landscape of the country. I examine the history of formation of the ethnic mosaic of Abkhazia, analyze the particular Abkhazian ways of solving general issues of the early Soviet nation-building, and discuss the influence of Soviet nation-building on the modern identity of various groups of Abkhazia's population. The article further assesses the impact of ethnic mixing on the shaping of identity of Abkhazia's population and explores the questions of civil nation-building and multilevel identity.


The AGO, REEEP and REIL wish to acknowledge that this report includes findings from the Integration of Renewables into Electricity Grids Experts Workshop hosted by the IEA in November 2006. This report does not however necessarily reflect the position of the IEA. *The opinions and views offered by Commissioner Kelly are her own and not necessarily those of the United States, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, individual Commissioners or members of the Commission staff. Executive summary Background Growing concerns about energy security and climate change have heightened interest in harnessing renewable energy resources as a response to these critical issues. Electricity generated using these resources will in the most part be delivered to the point of use via large scale transmission and distribution systems. Consequently, the successful integration of renewable energy generation into large power systems has become fundamental to successfully addressing climate change and energy security concerns. This report arises from an IEA workshop held in Paris on 20 November 2006 to consider the challenges of integrating renewable energy resources into electricity industries. The integration of renewable energy resources cannot be solved in isolation from the other challenges facing modern electricity industries. For example, price and technical performance are critical issues as well as energy security, environmental sustainability and end-use efficiency. Moreover, many countries are undertaking processes of electricity industry restructuring, which involve disaggregation of formerly vertically integrated monopoly supply utilities and the introduction of competition and enhanced end-user participation. The terms " deregulation " and " liberalisation " suggest that rules are being removed. However, successful electricity industry restructuring requires the careful crafting of a set of institutions and rules that constitute an integrated decision-making framework that retains some centralised decision-making while decentralising other decision-making through purpose-designed markets and other commercial processes that create a competitive environment. Moreover, electricity industry restructuring processes should now be specifically designed and implemented to accommodate high levels of renewable energy penetration. More broadly, these issues translate into sustainability challenges for the stationary energy sector and specifically the electricity industry to contribute to: • Societal sustainability, through good industry governance processes that deliver reliable, affordable and sustainable electrical energy and in the process foster social cohesion and consensus and provide a benchmark for other sectors of the economy • Economic sustainability by delivering economic efficiency, particularly dynamic efficiency in achieving rapid, effective and efficient innovation in the electricity industry • Environmental sustainability, achieved …


Child language-learners quickly learn to recognize and rely on the sentence patterns that are characteristic of their native language. English, for example, has a rigid SVO word order; and it has been demonstrated that children learn at an early age to assign an interpretation of Agent-Verb-Object to an NVN sequence in the main clause (Bever 1970). As an operating principle, this strategy is inadequate when applied to some constructions such as the passive but it holds good for most of the sentences that children encounter. Gradually the semantic notions of agent and object are replaced by the broader grammatical categories of subject and object. The practices learned at an early age serve as a foundation on which subsequent learning can be built without radical reorganization.


This paper introduces the principles and some common failures of the grid bias power circuit,deep analyses the causation aiming at the phenomenon of the failure,and then raises the resolvent,the improving of the circuit advances the dependability the efficency of circuit and prolongs its life,greatly reduce the failure of the circuit.


The most advanced technology, watermarking enables intruders to access the database. Various techniques have been developed for information security. Watermarks and histories are linked to many biometric techniques such as fingerprints, palm positions, gait, iris and speech are recommended. Digital watermarking is the utmost successful approaches among the methods available. In this paper the multiband wavelet transforms and singular value decomposition are discussed to establish a watermarking strategy rather than biometric information. The use of biometrics instead of conservative watermarks can enhance information protection. The biometric technology being used is iris. The iris template can be viewed as a watermark, while an iris mode of communication may be used to help information security with the addition of a watermark to the image of the iris. The research involves verifying authentication against different attacks such as no attacks, Jpeg Compression, Gaussian, Median Filtering and Blurring. The Algorithm increases durability and resilience when exposed to geometric and frequency attacks. Finally, the proposed framework can be applied not only to the assessment of iris biometrics, but also to other areas where privacy is critical.


This article reports on the performance of 16 visually impaired children, aged 4–12, on tasks designed to assess their understanding of false belief, a central aspect of social understanding. The study found that the development of understanding of another's false belief is delayed in children with severe visual impairments and that the degree of vision loss seems to be a key variable in that development.


The development of grid service technology makes the grid service matching a study hot-spot.Service matching is one of the key technologies that can effectively improve the use of resources.After analyzing the reason of the lack of communication beforehand between the service requesters and the service providers,this paper proposed how to add semantic information into the service description language and the service matching algorithms.Combing the problems of application of service matching,it finally presented a corresponding solution.


This article reports an investigation into the students' use of metacognitive reading
strategies that involve the use of analytic and pragmatic reading strategies when
reading in the two languages: English and Bahasa Indonesia. One-hundred and one
students from the English Study Program within the Faculty of Teacher Training and
Education of Sriwijaya University in Palembang, South Sumatera, Indonesia,
completed the Metacognitive Reading Strategies questionnaire (MRSQ) both in
Bahasa Indonesia and in English. The good values of indicators of internal
consistency are shown by both the English and the Bahasa versions of the MRSQ. A
paired sample t-test shows that some significant differences are found between the
students' use of particular metacognitive reading strategies for reading in English and
in Bahasa. On average, the students reported using some of the analytic reading
strategies more frequently when reading in Bahasa. However, they used the pragmatic
reading strategies more frequently when reading in English.


PURPOSE: An automatic scarfing device for an edge slot of slab is provided to improve quality of an article and to reduce working time by simultaneously removing burr formed at an edge and a side portion of slab. CONSTITUTION: An automatic scarfing device includes a gas mixing section, a body driving section, a melting unit section, and a melting unit distance adjusting section. The gas mixing section has a gas mixing box(5), to which an oxygen feeding pipe(20') and an LPG gas feeding pipe(20) are connected. The body driving section has a running wheel(18), a gear shaft, a main gear connected to a center of the gear shaft, a motor coupled to the main gear, and a guide roll(7). The melting unit section includes a mixing gas feeding pipe(10), a mixing gas inlet port(10a) communicated with a mixing gas outlet port(6a), and a melting unit(9) for melting slab. The melting unit distance adjusting section includes a pinion integrally formed with the rotating shaft of the motor, a rack integrally formed with a center of a coupling(17), and a guide roll formed on an upper portion of the rack.


Formal argument suggests that command, communication and control systems can remain stable in the sense of the Data Rate Theorem that mandates the minimum rate of control information required to stabilize inherently unstable 'plants', but may nonetheless, under fog-of-war demands, collapse into dysfunctional modes at variance with their fundamental mission. We apply the theory to autonomous ground vehicles under intelligent trac control in which swarms of interacting, self-driving devices are inherently unstable as a consequence of the basic irregularity of the road network. It appears that such 'V2V/V2I' systems will experience large-scale failures analogous to the vast propagating fronts of power network blackouts, and possibly less benign, but more subtle patterns of 'psychopathology' at various scales.


The talk focused on a grammar-based technique for identifying redundancy in program code and taking advantage of that redundancy to reduce the memory required to store and execute the program [1]. The idea is to start with a simple context-free grammar that represents all valid basic blocks of any program. We represent a program by the parse trees (i.e. derivations) of its basic blocks using the grammar. We then modify the grammar, by considering sample programs, so that idioms of the language have shorter derivations in the modified grammar. Since each derivation represents a basic block, we can interpret the resulting set of derivations much as we would interpret the original program. We need only expand the grammar rules indicated by the derivation to produce a sequence of original program instructions to execute. The result is a program representation that is approximately 40% of the original program size and is interpretable by a very modest-sized interpreter.


[Objective] To develop a content determination method for simultaneous determination of harpagide and harpagoside in figwort roots, and establish its methodology. [Methods] The HPLC method is adopted to assay harpagide glycosides as internal standard, establishe the relative correction factor with harpagoside. Five batches figwort roots are determined the two iridoids content using, quantitative analysis multicomponents by single marker(QAMS) and compared with the external standard method. [Results] No significant differences was found in the quantitative analysis results of the two iridoids content between external standard method and QAMS method.[Conclusion] The use of relative correction factor is feasible to assay the content of the harpagoside. QAMS method can be used for the quality assessment of figwort roots.


The study examined whether reactive change scores from a short blood pressure (BP) reactivity protocol, resting BP, or resting pulse pressure (PP) would be predictors of 24-hour ambulatory BP and BP load in cardiac patients. The study used a single-group design, with both an experimental clinical component and an observational field component. Both components used repeated measurement methods. The study population consisted of 45 adult patients with a mean age of 64.6 +/- 8.5 years who were diagnosed with cardiac disease in a cardiac rehabilitation program and who were taking anti-hypertensive medication. Blood pressure reactivity was operationalized with a speech protocol. During the speech protocol, BP was measured with an automatic device (Dinamap) while patients talked about their health and about their usual day. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory BP measurement followed the speech protocol. Resting systolic BP and resting PP were significant predictors of 24-hour ambulatory systolic BP, and resting systolic BP was a significant predictor of systolic BP load. No predictors were significant of 24-hour diastolic BP or diastolic BP load. Initial resting BP and PP may be used in clinical settings to assess hypertension management. Future studies are necessary to confirm the ability of resting BP to predict ambulatory BP and BP load in older adults who are medicated and hypertensive.


The Kinkasan granitic body, Kitakami mountains, was studied from the petrochemical and mineralogical point of view. From field and microscopic observation, this body is divided into four rock types of A, B, C and D, whose modal compositions are shouwn in Table 1 and Figure 3. A and D types are schistose and protoclastic. Variation trends on the SiO2-oxides diagrams are generally smooth (Figure 4). Mineral chemistry of biotites, hornblendes and magnetites in all rock types shows approximately similar characteristics, suggesting they are co-magmatic. But in the strict sence, petrochemistry and mineralogy of B and C types are very similar, while those of A type are different from B and C types, and moreover those of D type lie between A and B-C types though its SiO2 content is the highest of the four types. Judging from these petrochemical and mineralogical evidences, D type was not differentiated from C type (i.e. in order of A-B-C-D), but from A type directly. The rock types A, B and C were differentiated in a magma chamber located at about 15km in depth. At the upper part of the chamber, about 10km in depth, C type magma was generated by differentiation. At first A type has uprised to the present place, located at about 3.5 to 5km in depth, and differentiated D type in situ. After these two types were deformed by tectonic movement, B and C types were intruded into A type rocks successively. Cr2O3 content in minerals is controlled by that in bulk rocks, while it is more concentrated in magnetites. Behavior of Zn in mafic silicate minerals agrees with the conclusion of Kato (1970), and Zn content in magnetites is roughly proportional to that in the associating biotites (Figure 7) and hornblendes.


OBJECTIVES
Psychotherapy is subjected to the legal conditions of quality assurance(QA). Does operationalized psychodynamic diagnostics (OPD) contribute substantially to this?

METHODS
We investigated the application of OPD in outpatient psychodynamic psychotherapy, inpatient treatment, rehabilitation, and legal assessment.

RESULTS
Psychodynamic diagnostics, treatment plan, and evaluation by means of the OPD and Heidelberg Structural Change Scale (HSCS) may be comprehensibly described for quality assurance (QA) of outpatient and inpatient psychotherapy. Virtually all psychodynamic conceptualized departments for psychosomatic medicine and psychotherapy as well as some rehabilitation centres applied OPD. Furthermore, data-collection periods were defined during and after inpatient short- and long-term psychotherapy. OPD serves QA in legal assessment and is of a pivotal significance in judicial proceedings.

CONCLUSIONS
It must be deliberated whether more extensive use of QA, in cooperation with outpatient psychotherapists and in comparison to institutions, could be of benefit to patients.


INTRODUCTION: Treatment of head and neck cancers with surgical resection, chemotherapy, and external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) is the standard for treatment of advanced-stage tumors. However, loco-regional recurrence is common, overall survival rates range from 10% to 25% at 2 years, and secondary treatment options are limited. Ablative surgery combined with interstitial brachytherapy (IBT) has demonstrated curative potential and improved survival in recalcitrant disease. Reconstructive surgery and outcomes of these challenging patients have not been described. The purpose of this study was to review outcomes of head and neck reconstruction in salvage patients undergoing cervical tumor ablation combined with IBT, and further to identify patient characteristics and reconstructive options predictive and/or protective for complications.


Although age-standardised rates of stroke mortality have decreased worldwide in the past two decades, the absolute number of people who have a stroke every year, stroke survivors, related deaths, and the overall global burden of stroke (DALYs lost) are great and increasing (Feigin et al., 2010). Mortality rate of cerebrovascular disease in 2013 in Latvia was 242.8 per 100 000, which is one of the highest in Europe (Anonymous, 2015). According to Latvian Stroke Register data, stroke due to large artery atherosclerosis is 32%.


Introduction: Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an integrated social, labor and mental health intervention with an important component of evidence for its effectiveness in helping people with severe mental disorders. Its objective is to obtain and maintain competitive jobs, increase social inclusion and quality of life, and while consuming fewer resources. In Europe, IPS model (which began 14 year ago) is currently implemented in four countries which share background with Dartmouth College. This work aims to describe achievements and challenges of IPS implementation in Catalonia, Spain. Back in 2013, the project started with an agreement among three Regional Government Departments (Ministry of Health, Ministry of Business and Labor, and Ministry of Social Wellbeing and Family), "la Caixa" Banking Foundation, Government of Province of Barcelona, and the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center. The goal of the project is to improve labor and social inclusion of people with mental disorders, with a pilot project of the integrated plan of care for people with mental illness and addictions (2014-2016), as one of the strategies to promote ordinary labor inclusion for people with severe mental disorders. Practice change implemented: The project aims to integrate efforts and workflow from three areas (health care, social services and labor) both at community and policy levels to develop supported employment. It is based on IPS principles, such as: zero exclusion criteria; personalized benefits counseling; competitive jobs; IPS and mental health services integration; rapid job search; IPS professionals building relationships with employers; continuous supports and follow-up's; and respect clients' preferences. The innovative challenge involves implementing a new community perspective to support people with severe mental disorders finding a job and keeping it. Changes implemented are based on a specific patient management system including integration of Employment Programs with mental health treatment teams, interventions at community level and in the workplace including local employers. They are measured through a "fidelity scale" validated by Dartmouth College. Facing stigma and social barriers for inclusion are also included. Actions taken include: 1) professional training, as specific competencies are needed to be developed in different professionals' roles to work in multidisciplinary teams; 2) improving workflow integration between mental Health and Employment Services including periodic meetings, patient plans and training on benefits planning and coordination among main administrators; 3) on-site support and monitoring achievements through an ICT platform that allows on-time review of results; 4) quarterly follow-up meetings among regional leaders, Mental Health teams and Employment Services to identify opportunities for improvement and support and encourage local development. In addition, an individualized action plan is developed to improve practices in each Employment Service. Key findings: Since October 2013, 7 sites have adapted their own programs to implement IPS methodology in Catalonia. Up to June 2015, an average of 350 people with severe mental illness has participated in these programs quarterly. Although severe economic crisis, percentage of working people have increased 17.7% from the beginning of the program. The number of jobs found by people during this period is 344. Although first fidelity reviews (which measure adherence of work process proposed by IPS methodology) were poor, now they have increased 18.8% as average. Highlights: Main barriers found in implementation process are related to economic crisis background and stigma for people with mental illness; adoption of innovation, current funding for programs development, different reported indicators for different funding sources, and the need of further integration among Employment Services and Mental Health Agencies, including the lack of shared electronic records with confidentiality implications Facilitators involve strong government support for the pilot project, periodic follow up and facilitator support approach, friendly professionals' network created, as well as their commitment to increase patients' quality of life. Improving communication among services is a key practice to increase access to multidisciplinary resources, with a strong senior leadership that supports the integration of different services in a variety of levels. Conclusions: A strong local leadership and commitment is fostering the project with a territorial approach, and raising IPS as an important intervention to obtain and maintain competitive employment and recovery for people with a mental health condition. To achieve this goal, payment systems will probably need to be aligned. The possibility of a European Collaborative Network to share these practices and knowledge may improve sustainability and implementation in a European context, and allow testing its effectiveness in other patients groups.


Mango fruit is a tropical crop characterized by heterogeneity in fruit size and quality at harvest. The effect of source-sink relationships on fruit production have been reported in many species but their interplay at the branch, scaffold and tree scales has been little investigated. This study aims at evaluating how source-sink relationships from a local (branch) to a global (tree) scale affect fruit production. Experiments were conducted on mango trees ('Cogshall') in Reunion Island. Fruit-bearing branches were randomly selected on six trees with low to high fruit load. Half of them were girdled and ratios of 10 and 100 leaves fruit‑1 were established on girdled and non-girdled branches. Pulp dry matter content, titratable acidity and total soluble solids were measured on one ripe fruit per branch. Number of fruits, yield and trunk and scaffolds cross-sectional areas were collected on these trees, and on other trees over several years. Average fruit fresh mass at the scaffold and at the tree scales was negatively related to fruit load, expressed in number of fruits per scaffold and per trunk cross-sectional area, respectively. A global negative effect of tree fruit load on average fruit fresh mass at the scaffold scale was also observed. Between-trees variability of average fruit fresh mass decreased with fruit load. At the branch scale, low leaf-to-fruit ratio and girdling induced fruit drop in the early stages of fruit development and reduced fruit growth, pulp dry matter content and total soluble solids. Results suggested partial autonomy of the scaffolds and fruit-bearing branches with respect to fruit growth. As a next step, a modeling approach integrating carbon-related processes from the branch to the tree scale should be used to further investigate to what extent source-sink relationships, and other factors such as light environment or water availability, can explain fruit production variability.


Canonical stocking and scientific management for medical equipment are important parts in hospital manageˉment.Canonical stocking is a precondition to get high quality medical equipment.Scientific management is a foundation to ensure the normal supply of medical equipment.Both of them are supplement each other and can't be short of.This paper expatiates some important tache about medical equipment such as stocking,keeping,putting out and so on.Then the author brings forward how to stock with reason and make scientific management in order that medical equipment can do much more good for clinic medical treatment and development in hospital.


Abstract This article analyses the polarisation of Islamic groupings in Indonesia which have taken place since 2017. It reviews the situation from the 2017 gubernatorial elections in Jakarta and the incident of the Ahok Video, during which the various Islamic factions were united, up to the 2019 elections, during which they polarised around the different presidential candidates and were unable to present a united front. This article analyses the division of Islamic groupings in Indonesia into traditionalist, fundamentalist and modernist, and looks at the interactions within them and between them on social media towards the 2019 campaign to better understand their positioning.


Following the theoretical orientation of psychoanalysis, this article presents the results of a clinical research on how the narcissistic use of the body can interfere in the subjective perception of organic pain. Based on the clinical practice in a general hospital, we have studied the function of the body in the narcissistic schema. We have inferred that the organic may represent a threat to narcissism. The body becomes an enemy to the narcissistic plenitude and thus demands a repairing action from the subject's defense mechanisms. Once the organic repression is finished, the pains suffered by the body do not produce psychical affections any longer. Key-words: Narcissism, Ideal Ego and Body. Psicologo graduado pela Universidade Federal Fluminense. Contatos: (21) 3327-2472 / (21) 3392-8988 / email@example.com


The integration of librarians into allied health programs presents many exciting opportunities for collaboration. This column will describe how a library instruction program is integrated into the occupational therapy, respiratory care, and physical therapy curricula at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The allied health faculty have welcomed and recognized the librarians' expertise in teaching evidence-based practice and library research skills.


This article presents a mapofarea, identifying gaps, advances and new perspectives of journalism and gender studies. To this, we discuss the different approaches foundedin 186 publications of qualified academic journals. Among the observed characteristics,we havetheobject, type of study, methodand technique of research,the approach, the temporallineand the distributionby scientificjournals. Theresearch, with these variables,contributes tounderstandand to presentsa panoramaofthis area.The results indicate thefocus on the message, use of the qualitative approach andcontent analysisand the longitudinal advance of the publications. On the other hand, its necessary to emphasizethe process of production and reception from other methodological approaches.


Sourcing our ever-increasing demand for energy to power our high-paced and energy-thirsty industries poses a never-ending challenge. Therefore, many academic, industrial, and government entities pu...


I don't even remember when I first heard about UFOs. Who does? Even in the 1970s (when I was growing up), they were so much a part of our culture that most of us were probably exposed to the imagery, and the ideas, before we could even talk, much less have an opinion about them. One of my earliest memories is of watching The Day of the Triffids with my mother, at around six years old (the film is based on John Wyndham's novel about an invasion of alien plants). One of my first memories of the cinema is watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind, when I was ten. I remember at about fi)een being told by an uncle (not blood-related) that UFOS had started appearing in the skies a)er the first atom bomb was exploded, drawn by an interest in our newly destruc-ve technology. I grew up accep-ng these things as part of reality before I could think about what they might be or whether or not to believe in them.


ABSTRACT From 1970 to 2010, sub-Saharan African's (SSA) labour productivity hovered at around 6% of the US level. This lacklustre performance, which remained stubbornly low despite the SSA's growth spurt that started in the mid-1990s, masks a great deal of variations across sectors and countries. Using a structural decomposition, we examine, for a representative sample of SSA countries, the sectoral sources that hold back their convergence to the US frontier. Our results suggest the presence of strong – and possibly long-lasting – headwinds that have wiped out the favourable effects of substantial, yet circumstantial, tailwinds. Headwinds, quantified by the unfavourable within- and reallocation-effects, are indicative of significant capital-deepening and technology gaps, both of which are extremely hard to bridge. The tailwinds, represented by favourable between-effects, result from the convergence of the SSA labour force to sectors where some US sectors have seen a slowdown of their productivity relative to that of the whole economy – a development unrelated to the fundamentals underlying the SSA economy. Although few exceptions emerged out of this general pattern, these results are indicative of a bleak outlook for the SSA economic performance at least in the medium run.


Gulf of Mexico marshes have been found to support more than 80 spe- cies of fish, 60 species of birds, and many reptile, mammal, and invertebrate species (Stout �984). In addition to the ecological services provided by salt marshes, the 2005 hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico raised public awareness of the ability of intertidal marshes to reduce personal property damage from storm surges. Since marshes can be destroyed through natural or anthropogenic processes, methods to protect these areas are being developed; one such method is the use of "living shorelines." Living shore- lines serve multiple roles by controlling erosion, maintaining natural coastal processes, and sustaining biodiversity through land-use management, soft armoring, or combina- tions of soft and semihard armoring techniques. Living shorelines provide a viable alternative to common hardened structures such as bulkheads, stone revetments, and seawalls. One type of living shoreline was used at Saw Grass Point Salt Marsh on Dau- phin Island, Alabama. Dauphin Island's Fort Gaines Harbor was constructed in the �950s by removing approximately 3 ha from Saw Grass Point Salt Marsh. The har- bor now serves as one of Dauphin Island's two primary access points for recreational and commercial boats to the Gulf of Mexico. Chronic erosion has resulted in the loss of 0.5 ha of the remaining marsh. This saline tidal marsh is of significant ecological importance and is one of only two on Dauphin Island. In 2004, a community-based restoration grant was used to protect and restore the marsh through the use of ex- posed nearshore precast concrete breakwaters called coastal havens. These structures function as detached breakwaters to minimize the effect of storm surge and boat wake through wave attenuation; they also provide suitable substrate for oyster colonization. These structures were selected over other erosion control technologies, including ver- tical bulkheads, rock or wooden sills, and headlands. In April 2005, �82 units were installed in two interlocking rows parallel to the east perimeter of the marsh in water approximately �.3 m deep. Oyster density on the coastal havens, measured �9 months postinstallation, was 205 oysters/m 2 . Measurements behind the breakwater indicate some sediment accretion. The project cost was approximately US$335/m to protect �62 m of shoreline. The dual function of these structures has controlled the erosion behind the breakwater and has provided habitat for a wide array of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration trust resources, including locally important species such as spotted seatrout (also known as speckled trout) Cynoscion nebulosus, blue crabs Callinectes sapidus and Gulf stone crabs Menippe adina, eastern oyster Crassostrea virgi- nica, red drum Sciaenops ocellatus, southern flounder Paralichthys lethostigma, and various species of commercially important shrimp (brown shrimp Farfantepenaeus aztecus, pink shrimp F. duorarum, and white shrimp Litopenaeus setiferus).


The primary cilium is a sensory organelle projecting from the apical surface of renal epithelial cells. Dysfunctional cilia have been linked to a number of genetic diseases known as ciliopathies, which include autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). Previous studies have determined that renal epithelial primary cilia express both the polycystin-2 (PC2, TRPP2) channel and the type-2 vasopressin receptor (V2R), coupled to local cAMP production. However, little is known as to how Ca2+ and cAMP signals lead to changes in the length of the primary cilium. Here, we explored how cAMP signals regulate the length of the primary cilium in wild type LLC-PK1 renal epithelial cells. Primary cilia length was determined by immunocytochemical labeling of the ciliary axoneme. Treatment of cells with the cAMP analog 8-Br-cAMP (1 mM) in normal external Ca2+ (1.2 mM) produced a 25.3% increase (p < 0.0001) in the length of the primary cilium, a phenomenon also observed in cells exposed to high external Ca2+ (6.2 mM). However, exposure of cells to vasopressin (AVP, 10 μM), which also increases cAMP in primary cilia of LLC-PK1 cells, mimicked the effect of 8-Br-cAMP in normal, but not in high Ca2+. Further, specific gene silencing of PC2 expression further increased primary cilium length after 8-Br-cAMP treatment, in normal, but not high Ca2+. The encompassed data indicate a crosstalk between the cAMP and Ca2+ signals to modulate the length of the primary cilium, in a phenomenon that implicates the expression of PC2. Significance Statement Morphological changes in primary cilia have been linked to genetic disorders, including autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), a major cause of kidney disease. Both cAMP and Ca2+ are universal second messengers that regulate polycystin-2 (PC2, TRPP2), a Ca2+ permeable non-selective cation channel implicated in ADPKD, and expressed in the primary cilium of renal epithelial cells. Despite current interest, little is known as to how second messenger systems and how aberrant regulation of PC2 may link primary cilium structure with cyst formation in ADPKD. Here we determined that both the cAMP analog 8-Br-cAMP and vasopressin increase the length of the primary cilium in renal epithelial cells. However, this phenomenon depends of external Ca2+ and PKD2 gene silencing. Proper cAMP signaling may be essential in the control of the primary cilium of renal epithelial cells, and the onset of cyst formation in ADPKD.


On a touch-panel display of an image forming apparatus, which is divided to five areas, that is, a system area, a function selection area, a preview area, an action panel area and a task trigger area, pieces of information are displayed. Even if an operational mode is switched, the same or similar information is always displayed in the area arranged at the same position. In addition, when an input of a numerical value is requested, a group of keys of the same arrangement is displayed at the same position on the touch-panel display, regardless of the operational mode.


Within a wide range of rail freight strategies for mainly mitigating the increasing road congestion, "Ferrobonus" was introduced in Italy, as an incentive that supports intermodal road-rail transportation. It constitutes a financial scheme that introduces subsidies per train-kilometer with the scope to reduce the incurring external costs from road transportation by promoting the use of electrified rail for at least part of a journey. Although Ferrobonus was implemented in 2010, only preliminary results have been obtained, while little work has been undertaken to examine its incentivization effect and related benefits. Nevertheless, there are certainly lessons to be learned from any incentive that focuses on the demand side, without distorting competition to an extent contrary to the common interest. To this end, the present paper develops a methodology whose scope is to ascertain whether Ferrobonus can be proven effective and beneficial in other countries and markets. The proposed approach entails a forecasting methodology for estimating the modal shift to rail, generated by the introduction of the subsidy on a single intermodal road-rail route, as well as a socio-economic appraisal that determines the viability of its related subsidy, quantifying the net benefit to the national economy and society in general. The methodology is targeted at national authorities and policy makers that are willing to evaluate the appropriateness of adopting policy interventions of financial subsidies similar to the Ferrobonus conceptual model, in order to promote and retain growth in the rail freight sector and secure the full range of its applicable environmental and social benefits.


We discuss D-branes on a line of conformal field theories connected by an exact marginal deformation. The line contains an SU(2) WZW model and two mutually T-dual SU(2)/U(1) cosets times a free boson. We find the D-branes preserving a U(1) isometry, an F-flux quantization condition and conformal invariance. Away from the SU(2) point a U(1) × U(1) symmetry is broken to U(1) × k, i.e. continuous rotations of branes are accompanied by rotations along the branes. Requiring decoupling of the cosets from the free boson at the endpoints of the deformation breaks the continuous rotation of branes to k. At the SU(2) point the full U(1) × U(1) symmetry is restored. This suggests the occurrence of phase transitions for branes at angles in the coset model, at a semiclassical level. We also discuss briefly the orientifold planes along the deformation line.


The international associated laboratory eCAMPUS has developed an electro-mobility Living Lab, one of whose first actions is the realisation of consultation workshops. The aim of these workshops is to assess the level of social acceptability of the electric vehicle and the progressive electrification of mobility on the campuses studied. Social acceptability is a major variable in the adoption of electric mobility. The consultation workshops were conducted by videoconference in order to respect the sanitary measures related to the COVID 19 pandemic.


In this letter, an unpredictable change of magnetism-controlled lateral photovoltaic effect was observed in a well-designed Cu/SiO2/p-Si nonmagnetic structure, which performs better than that in Cu/SiO2/n-Si. When a vertical magnetic flux density changes from 0 to 0.55 T, maximum value of lateral photovoltage drops from 84.3to 31.2 mv. The sensitivity changes 63% and the change rate reaches 290 mv/T. However, under the same condition, the lateral photovoltage in Cu/SiO2/n-Si has little change. The result reveals that the p-Si-based structure has a remarkable sensitivity to variation of magnetic field. We consider it is due to asymmetric diffusion of carries in Si layer in the structures and different types of minority carrier in p-Si and n-Si. This finding provides a novel way to control lateral photovoltaic effect by magnetic field.


Thromb Haemost 2008; 100: 173–174 Venous thromboembolism (VTE), particularly recurrent VTE, presents an ongoing challenge to clinical management. Despite Virchow's original insight into the triad of blood stasis, vessel wall changes and hypercoagulability as the underlying causes of VTE (1), the identification of new risk factors for VTE has been problematic. Several well-validated genetic risk factors have been established forVTE, most notably factorV Leiden, antithrombin deficiency, protein C deficiency, protein S deficiency, and the prothrombin G20120A gene mutation, as well as non-genetic risk factors, including oral contraceptives, pregnancy, surgery, cancer, and stasis (2). But new risk factors for VTE have been elusive, prompting the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health to issue a recent Request for Proposals to improve diagnosis, therapy, and prevention of venous thrombotic diseases (Deep Vein Thrombosis and Venous Disease, RFA-HL-08–002; http://grants.nih.gov/ grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-HL-08–002.html). In this issue of Thrombosis and Haemostasis, Pecheniuk et al. identify a potential new risk factor for venous thromboembolism, fibronectin (3). Until recently, this extracellular matrix molecule has been in the provenance of tumor biologists, who have been studying it for over three decades. Fibronectin, which is often confused by students and trainees with its similarly-named counterpart, fibrinogen, was originally known as "cold insoluble globulin" and is found as a constituent of plasma cryoprecipitate. In the mid-1970s, several laboratories, including those of Richard Hynes (4), Deane Mosher (5), Erkki Ruoslahti (6), Antti Vaheri (5), and Kenneth Yamada (7), identified fibronectin as a cell-surface glycoprotein. At the time, fibronectin was "re-discovered" as CIG (cold-insoluble globulin), FSA (Fibroblast Surface Antigen), and the LETS (Large External Transformation Sensitive) protein, which are absent from the surface of many tumor cells. This 460 kDa glycoprotein is a dimer of two 230 kDa polypeptide chains that are held together by disulfide bonds (8). Several splice variants of fibronectin have been identified, and the biological roles of these isoforms have been investigated (9). Some of the splice isoforms function as cell surface glycoproteins, while others exist as soluble molecules, including plasma fibronectin. Plasma fibronectin circulates at levels of approximately 300–400 μg/ml, and is also present in platelet α-granules (8). The link between fibronectin and coagulation developed as an outgrowth of early studies that investigated the binding of fibronectin to cell surface receptors, including those that would later become known as the integrin superfamily. Fibronectin was shown to compete for binding to the fibrinogen receptor on platelets, glycoprotein IIb-IIIa, later named integrin αIIbβ3. The identification of the canonical arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) motif in fibronectin was the first demonstration of an integrin recognition sequence, which would later be found in several other integrin ligands, including vitronectin, osteopontin, and fibrinogen (10). In addition, fibronectin was shown to bind to fibrinogen itself and become crosslinked by factor XIIIa (11). These studies established a firm relationship between fibronectin and coagulation. The results presented in this issue by Pecheniuk et al. (3) demonstrate a significant association between VTE and fibronectin. Intriguingly, fibronectin levels were not only elevated in VTE cases, but were increased to a slightly greater degree in cases of idiopathic VTE. The association between VTE and fibronectin levels above the 90th percentile was quite robust, with an odds ratio of 9.37 (95% confidence interval 2.73–32.2; p<0.001).These findings raise the exciting possibility that fibronectin may become a useful biomarker for the prediction of VTE and/or its recurrence. The mechanism(s) underlying this association between fibronectin and VTE remains in the realm of speculation. As with any association study, it is possible that the association is an epiphenomenon that is unrelated to the biological properties of fibronectin. However, the physiologic relationship between fibronectin and coagulation suggest that the biochemical properties of fibronectin itself may provide a causal role for fibronectin in VTE. For example, the two RGD sequences in dimeric plasma fibronectin may play a role in bivalent binding to platelet αIIbβ3-integrin. Plasma fibronectin has been shown to promote thrombus growth (12, 13) and another study showed that decreased plasma