administration of the TREM-1 decoy receptor rTREM-1/ Fc attenuated the proinflammatory cytokine response, improving the outcome [3] . S. pyogenes also produces several proteases and two of these have distinct activities against immunoglobulins (IgGs). The classical cysteine proteinase of S. pyogenes is SpeB, having broad proteolytic activities including IgG degradation [4] . In addition, S. pyogenes secretes one of the best-described bacterial enzymes with glycoside hydrolase activity specific for human IgG. The glycan of IgG is crucial for the stability and conformation of the Fc portion, and deglycosylation of IgG can result in the loss of activation of the complement and a failure to bind to Fc receptors. The activity of EndoS on opsonizing IgG has been shown to lead to a significant reduction in the killing of S. pyogenes in blood compared to untreated IgG [5] . In addition to SpeB and EndoS, S. pyogenes has evolved an IgG-specific endopeptidase, IdeS, which is highly specific for the lower hinge region of IgG [6] . S. pyogenes can also manipulate the innate immune response, as described in the following three examples: complement activation, phagocytosis and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Complement fragments, such as C3a and C5a, are important in host defense because both peptides serve as anaphylatoxins and, similarly to IL-8/CXCL8, they can recruit neutrophils to sites of infection [7] . There are two specific proteases released from S. pyogenes that can target these chemotactic factors, i.e. C5a peptidase-degrading C5a and SpyCEP-processing IL-8/CXCL8, respectively [8, 9] , which, in both Infections with Streptococcus pyogenes , a major human pathogen, are typically of a mild and superficial nature. However, under rare and unfortunate conditions, patients can experience severe and life-threatening complications, such as necrotizing fasciitis and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome [1] . Notably, invasive streptococcal disease can occur in previously healthy individuals with no obvious preceding superficial infection. This has led to the hypothesis that streptococci have to cause a transient bacteremia that facilitates their dissemination within the host's body. In this issue of the Journal of Innate Immunity , Ochel et al. [2] show that S. pyogenes of the M1 serotype can invade endothelial cells. The study focuses on the tissue-invasive serotype M1 of S. pyogenes , demonstrating that the pathogen can enter the endothelial cells of blood vessels, thereby escaping host defense, and can survive in the cytoplasm of these cells. At a later stage, the bacteria may then spread further, causing systemic and severe infections. S. pyogenes is extremely virulent in the bloodstream, not least via the M-proteins, both surface-associated and released, that may trigger a cytokine storm and other pathologic conditions as is often seen in patients with severe sepsis. A better understanding of these reactions may lead to the discovery of novel diagnostic tools and antimicrobial therapies. One example is TREM-1 (triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells), a surface molecule expressed on neutrophils and macrophages. Recent findings in an animal model showed that TREM-1 was upregulated during sepsis caused by S. pyogenes and that Published online: June 25, 2014 Journal of Innate Immunity


The invention discloses a storage method and a storage device of a distributive-type file system. The method comprises following steps of determining access times for the same file within a preset period of time; and migrating the file into a storage device with higher performance than the current storage device according to the access times. Through the storage method and the storage device, files inside the distributive-type file system are graded to be stored according to the file access heat of the file, i.e. the file with high access frequencies in the preset period of time is migrated into the storage device with high performance, the correlation of the file slice storage position and the file slice access heat is realized through the differential storage, so that input output operations per second (IOPS) pressure among the storage devices is balanced, and the overall performance is enhanced.


Abstract : This is the final technical report for services relative to the use of the ARPANET. Major areas of responsibility were: (1) The development and implementation of an ARPANET training program for the DARPA staff, selected agents and contractors; (2) The development of a comprehensive ARPANET User's Guide for the DARPA staff and DARPA sponsored ARPANET users; (3) The development and implementation of procedures to monitor ARPANET usage by the DARPA testbed- user community, to include the addition of new users; deletion of departing users; and a quarterly review of DARPA sponsored users to ensure that DARPA sponsorship would still be desirable; (4) The quarterly preparation of a submission to the Network Information Center (NIC) relating to the DARPA, users of ARPANET hosts; and (5) The provision and responsive ARPANET user support services for the DARPA staff, its agents, and selected contractors.


Twenty-five years of research in expert systems for descriptive cataloging and related areas are reviewed. Researchers who developed prototype expert cataloging systems in the 1980s found that cataloging rules are extremely comprehensive and complicated, but still insufficient to permit these systems accurate cataloging results. Those researchers also identified smaller areas that need to be pursued for successful implementation of expert cataloging systems. Subsequent research has focused on narrower areas. Cataloging rules were studied and more was learned about problems with their logic structure and organization. Another focus was optical reading of bibliographic elements in documents. Categories of responsibility and graphic design continue to pose problems. The visual characteristics of documents were studied to understand more about the automatic recognition of bibliographic elements necessary for the bibliographic description of documents. The systematic study of the cataloging process, necessary for development of expert systems, may result in improvement of manual working procedures and enrich the education of new catalogers.


A novel system of decade display for high-speed counters, with facilities for reading out to printers and punches, is described.


During a ramp-incremental (RI) cycling exercise, the measurement of oxygen uptake (V ̇O2) at the level of the mouth has a time delay from the onset of exercise, which is defined as the mean response time (MRT). It has been shown that the MRT is best calculated using the steady-state V ̇O2 from a bout of moderate-intensity exercise prior to the RI test, and then matching this V ̇O2 to the time at which this metabolic rate occurs during the RI test. Previous research has used RI slopes of 25 and 30 W∙min to measure the MRT. In this context, it is known that the V ̇O2 to work rate relationship is affected by the slopes of the ramp, which might affect the duration of the MRT. However, there is no empirical data to support this assumption. PURPOSE: To determine the influence of different RI slopes on the MRT. METHODS: Six healthy young men (age: 28 ± 10 years; height: 179 ± 6 cm; weight: 72 ± 5 kg; V ̇O2max: 4.0 ± 0.3 L·min ) performed six RI cycling tests with slopes of 5, 10, 15, 25, 30 and 100 (W·min). The ramp-incremental test was preceded by a moderate-intensity step-transition (i.e., 6 min at 20 followed by 6 min at 100 W), from which the steady-state V ̇O2 could be determined before the ramp V ̇O2 vs power output relationship was established. The difference between the power output at the steady-state V ̇O2 and the ramp-specific power output at a similar V ̇O2 was transformed into time to calculate the MRT. RESULTS: The MRT for 5 (11 ± 6 s), 10 (16 ± 11 s), 15 (22 ± 12 s), 25 (26 ± 11 s), 30 (32 ± 13 s) and 100 (25 ± 10 s) W·min showed a significant main effect (P = 0.001). Post-hoc comparisons showed shorter MRT for 5 compared to 25 (P = 0.025) and 30 (P = 0.001) W·min, and for 10 compared to 30 (P = 0.015) W·min. CONCLUSION: Different ramp-incremental slopes directly influences the MRT, where it appears that MRT progressively becomes greater with steeper ramp slopes, until a certain level is reached (i.e., ~25 W·min) where there was no further lengthening of the MRT. From a practical perspective, less steep RI slopes will result in smaller adjustments in power output due to the shorter MRT. Thus, in RI slopes of 5 and 100 W·min the power output adjustment would be ~1 and ~40 W, respectively.


The increased integration of global markets continuously generates influences, challenging traditional corporate governance models. Ownership concentration is one of the most fundamental features o ...


In this book, one of a series of 'monographs in controlled medicine', Dr Richens has reviewed the clinical pharmacology, efficacy, interactions and adverse reactions of the commonly used anticonvulsant drugs. Epilepsy is a common disorder that falls within the experience of all physicians, and much has been learnt in recent years about anticonvulsant drugs. Much of this new knowledge concerns unwanted effects and drug interactions, both with other anticonvulsant drugs and with unrelated compounds such as anticoagulants. It derives principally from the availability of estimations of anticonvulsant drug levels in the blood. Regrettably, such estimations are not routinely available, but Dr Richens points out with refreshing clarity how important monitoring of drug levels can be to the individual patient with epilepsy, and there is hope that newer radioimmunoassay techniques will reduce the cost of the estimat'ons to acceptable levels. There is much to be learned from this book, but the reader must remember


Incidence rates of IBD are increasing in areas of the world previously unaffected • by these diseases. Among children, the incidence of Crohn's disease (but not ulcerative colitis) has • greatly increased. Age-specific incidence rates are highest for patients aged 20–40 years old. • Specific population incidence rates first increase for ulcerative colitis, with an • increase in Crohn's disease seen 15–20 years later. Environmental factors associated with a decreased incidence of ulcerative colitis • include smoking and appendicitis. Smoking is associated with a greater incidence of Crohn's disease. A putative • "North–South" in Northern America and Europe has been challenged by more recent studies.


Many authors try to predict the details of defects in software systems, before they deliver it to the customer. The purpose is to attempt to predict the quality of software at different stages in the process of software development. This defect is the sum of the errors found in code, design, documentation, specific requirements, and bad fixes errors introduced when repairing prior defects. Different variables come into picture in this process. In this paper neural network model is used considering the volume of U.S paper work with sizes and domain. Eight form of software paperwork containing requirements, documentations and specifications of few function points that are taken as input. US average Defect Potentials per function points (sum of requirements, design, code document and bad fix Defects) of few function points as output of the neural network.


An experimental investigation carried out to study the forced air cooling heat sinks used in electronic packaging is discussed. The parameters include clearance between the heat sink and adjacent PCB (printed circuit board), lateral space between heat sinks, and height and width of heat sink. A fin efficiency model is used to calculate the convective coefficient and fin efficiency. The results show that the air flow bypass effect on thermal performance, due to top clearance or lateral space, is significant, more than 20%. Thermal performance can be improved by either increasing height or decreasing width of the heat sinks. The convective coefficient, however, may not increase monotonically with thermal performance. The results indicate that, generally the Nusselt number can be expressed as an exponential form of the Reynolds number and the exponent is about 0.6.<<ETX>>


The discussion on GMOs and society is constructed around 12 major questions that have polarised debate on the subject, namely: What is the current status of GM crops, particularly in the Australasian region? Are the net economic benefits of GM crops likely to be positive or negative? Can the "Precautionary principle" ever be consistent with "Substantial equivalence"? How important are GM crops likely to be in poverty reduction in developing countries? Are the overall environmental benefits of GM crops positive or negative? GM crops – health hazard, health wonder or mostly irrelevant? Who really benefits – big business, farmers, or consumers? IP management – necessary for research and investment in GM crop development or only a tool for the rich to get richer? Labelling and segregation chains – consumer right to choose or unworkable apartheid? Can regulatory systems evolve that can please everyone? Is it possible not to take sides - Why is there so much opposition? Hope or hype? Has the technology been oversold? Is universal adoption inevitable? Media summary This paper summarises some of the arguments that are currently used for and against production of genetically-modified (GM) crops. It proposes a likely scenario akin to that for nuclear energy, in which some countries will be strong adopters while others will not adopt GM crops even after the technology has been available elsewhere for several decades.


Sometimes I sleep like a baby and sometimes I sleep like a log. For me, the baby aspect is defined by a series of interruptions with a quick fix in the bathroom or a snack from the fridge. The log is more like a stiffness accompanied by a metaphoric chain saw buzz from my apparently loud snoring. Insomnia, habitual sleeplessness, fortunately is not a friend of mine, but that's because I have experimented with different ways to make my forty winks longer, waken with an attitude to seize the day and not feel tired an hour after breakfast. Are you one of the estimated one half of the population who suffers from not enough shut-eye? Allow me to let you in


ever, of the beginnings of an appropriate plan of action. He does not believe that naziism can survive a crisis better than can the democratic process. He emphasizes the need for teaching pupils to improve their power of discrimination in the choice of leaders. He believes that we can teach youngsters how to control their anxieties and how to manage them proportionally to the realities of the danger. "Each individual in a democracy must sooner or later rely on his own health, strength, talents, and abilities as his best line of defense" (p. 70). There may be those who differ somewhat from the author in his interpretation of the modern scene, but there will be few who will not be stimulated to think by the clear presentation and interpretation of the problems faced by educators in modern-day life. S. A. HAMRIN Northwestern University


Simple Summary Gym-based exercise in a group setting promotes health and wellness among veterans. However, some veterans are not inclined to participate in gym-based exercise, and alternative options should be considered. We found that providing a companion dog for three months improved the surveyed veterans' ability to walk longer distances and stand up from a sitting position in a specific amount of time. The number of steps walked and the amount of time physically active throughout the day also increased. Through questionnaires, we found that the veterans were strongly attached to their dogs, and all the veterans reported that their dogs provided love and affection, companionship, and emotional support and facilitated improved social activity participation. We suggest that having a household dog may be an effective alternative to gym-based exercise to promote health and wellness among veterans. Abstract GeroFit is a gym-based exercise program that promotes health and wellness among older sedentary veterans. The aims of the current study were to determine whether providing a companion dog as an alternative to gym-based exercise would similarly affect whole health outcomes. A total of 15 (n = 15) veterans (62 ± 11 years of age; 13 of 15 >54 years of age) underwent physical function testing, completed global and whole health questionnaires, and wore an accelerometer for 7 days before (baseline) and 3 months after a dog came into their home. The participants completed the Pet Attachment Scale (PAS), Dog Owner-Specific Quality of Life (DOQOL), and Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research questionnaires at 3 months. Cardiorespiratory endurance, lower body strength, daily steps, and time spent engaging in moderate physical activity all increased compared to the baseline levels. Body weight decreased among veterans whose body mass index was ≥30 (n = 11). The PAS and DOQOL scores indicated high attachment and positive effects on quality of life after having a dog in the home, with all veterans agreeing that having a dog improved the number of social activities they performed. We conclude that providing a companion dog to veterans not inclined to participate in gym-based exercise is an effective alternative method of promoting health and wellness in this population.


Due to irrational use of natural resources, human society is facing unprecedented threats. Remote sensing is one of the essential tools to determine changes in various forms of biological diversity over time. There are many methods to determine changes in protected areas, using satellite images. In this paper after introducing different change detection methods and their advantages and disadvantages, a hybrid method is used to analyse changes in forests and protected areas in a national park. Two Landsat images of Golestan National Park in Iran (taken in 1998 and 2010) were used. This hybrid approach combines Change Vector Analysis (CVA) for flagging the occurrence of changes, followed by signature extension to assign labels to changedpixels. The main objective of this paper is to propose a method for discovering and assessing environmental threats to natural treasures.


Northwest Africa (NWA) 2977 is an olivine gabbro cumulate equivalent to one of the lithologies in lunar mare breccia NWA 773 [1,2,3]. The Ar-39-Ar-40 age is 2.77+/-0.04 Ga based on the last approx.57% of the gas release [4], similar to results for NWA 773 [5]. A Sm-Nd age (T) of 2.865+/-0.031 Ga and Epsilon(sub Nd) = -7.84+/-0.22 for the NWA 773 gabbro reported by [6] has been revised to T = 2.993+/-=0.032 Ga, Epsilon(sub Nd) -4.5+/-0.3 [7]. Sm-147-Nd-143 isochron for NWA 2977: Whole rock, pyroxene, olivine, plagioclase, whole rock leachate (approx.phosphate) and the combined leachates from the mineral separates yield a well defined Sm-Nd isochron for an age T = 3.10+/-0.05 Ga and Epsilon(sub Nd-CHUR) = -3.74+/-0.26 [8], or Epsilon(sub Nd-HEDR) = -4.61+/-0.26 [9]. Rb-87-Sr-87 isochron: NWA 2977 contains only a modest amount of Rb and/or Sr contamination. The Sr-isotopic composition of the contaminant closely resembles that of seawater. The whole rock residue after leaching combined with leach residues for plagioclase and pyroxene define an isochron age of 3.29+/-0.11 Ga for initial Sr-87/Sr-86 = 0.70287+/-18. The olivine residue, with lower Sr abundance of approx 1.5 ppm, is only slightly displaced from the isochron. The relatively small uncertainties of the Rb-Sr isochron parameters and near-concordancy with the Sm-Nd age indicate that both the Rb-Sr and the Sm-Nd ages are reliable.


An in vitro system for the production of hepatitis B virus (HBV) particles was established by the transient expression of transfected HBV DNA using a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell, HuH-7, as a recipient. The 3.6- and 2.2-kilobase transcripts observed were similar to those in virus-infected liver cells. Both transcripts revealed the microheterogeneity of their 5' ends. The formation of virus- related particles subsequent to the RNA transcription was demonstrated. The core particles observed in the cytoplasm and the virus particles secreted in the culture medium con- tained the replicative intermediates of IBV DNA and banded at densities of 1.35-1.36 g/cm3 and 1.22-1.24 g/cm3, respec- tively. Furthermore, the in vitro mutagenesis of the template HBV DNA demonstrated that the P gene as well as the C gene products were essential for the production of HBV particles. Infection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes acute and chronic hepatitis. Furthermore, HBV is known to be a major cause of human liver cancer. HBV DNA has the following unique structural characteristics (1). Two linear DNA strands (plus and minus) form a circular molecule by annealing each cohesive end region. The minus strand is 3.2 kilobases (kb) in size with a protein linked to its 5' end. The plus strand usually shows various degrees of incompleteness. Similar HBV-like animal viruses have been discovered in wood- chucks (woodchuck hepatitis virus), ground squirrels (ground squirrel hepatitis virus, GSHV), and ducks (duck hepatitis B virus, DHBV). The replication cycle of the virus was proposed by Summers and Mason based on their observations of the in vivo replication of DHBV (2). How- ever, the restricted host range of HBV and lack of a cell culture system for virus production have been major prob- lems hindering from understanding of HBV replication and transcription at the molecular level. In this investigation, an in vitro system for the production of HBV particles was established by the transient expression of transfected HBV DNA, using a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell as a recipient. The RNA transcription of HBV DNA, similar to that in virus infection in vivo, was observed. Furthermore, mutagenesis of the template HBV DNA indi- cated virus production to be absolutely dependent on the template plasmid and the P gene as well as the C gene products to be essential for the synthesis of HBV DNA.


Heart disease is still a growing global health issue. In the health care system, limiting human experience and expertise in manual diagnosis leads to inaccurate diagnosis, and the information about various illnesses is either inadequate or lacking in accuracy as they are collected from various types of medical equipment. Since the correct prediction of a person's condition is of great importance, equipping medical science with intelligent tools for diagnosing and treating illness can reduce doctors' mistakes and financial losses. In this paper, the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm, which is one of the most powerful evolutionary algorithms, is used to generate rules for heart disease. First the random rules are encoded and then they are optimized based on their accuracy using PSO algorithm. Finally we compare our results with the C4.5 algorithm.


This paper examines the relationship between innovation and dynamic productivity growth in the Indonesian food and beverage industry. Dynamic productivity growth is calculated using a Luenberger indicator, and innovation is represented by a process innovation. This research uses firm-level data for the period 1980–2015 sourced from the Indonesian Central Bureau of Statistics. This research uses a panel data regression model to estimate the relationship between innovation and dynamic productivity growth. This research finds that innovation is relatively low in the Indonesian food and beverage industry. Dynamic productivity growth declines steadily during the period of estimation. This research also found that innovation positively affected dynamic productivity growth only after the introduction of the competition law in Indonesia.


This short paper reflects upon the temporal characteristics of the emerging phenomenon known as the Internet of Things. As objects become individually tagged with unique identities through the addition of small electronic chips or bar codes, their history is recorded and made available to others across a network. The advent of this ever-growing catalogue of histories means that every object will be 'in touch' with its current and previous owner at all times, and suggests that whilst owners might like to 'forget' about an object, we will never truly be detached from them. Such a network presents opportunities for society to reconsider how it disposes of objects and instead consider how we might pass them on to future owners. However the author suggests that current industrial interest in the potential for an Internet of Things is hindered by an adherence to a linear model of time that is more interested in the production and sale of new objects than the histories of the old.


This letter presents a synchronizer and its handshake interface for bridging clock domains in SoC. The proposed scheme uses a double two-flop synchronizer operated at different clock edges respectively, based on a two-phase handshake protocol. Performance analysis shows that the proposed design reduces latency up to a clock cycle, while retaining its safety to a tolerable level.


Millimeter wave magnetron has exhibited promising prospect in its application. Due to intensive electron back-bombardment in millimeter wave magnetron, Ba-W dispenser cathodes may not be ideal long-acting electron source in such devices. The traditional Th-W cathode encounters fatal shortcoming of radioactivity. REO-Mo metal-ceramic cathode is one of the hopeful cathodes for millimeter wave magnetron because of their shortage of natural radioactivity background and lower cost than recently developed Ir-La alloy cathode. Investigations from Wang showed the low susceptivity of REO-Mo metal ceramic cathodes to electron bombardment and the dependence of secondary emission property on the distribution of different ingredient and microstructure of materials. Therefore, in this work, attempts are made to prepare the REO-Mo metal ceramic cathodes with fine sub-micro structure on the basis of precursor rare oxide doped molybdenum powder synthesized by a sol-gel and two-step method.


carrying out research the researcher is performing some of the tasks associated with the therapeutic relationship where the social worker engages with the person, listens to their story, and through this process, the service user gains comfort, and perhaps solutions to questions, with the researcher also carrying out this function. Chapter 5 – focuses on policy knowledge – an area that social work practitioners are very familiar with. This is the one area of knowledge that social workers work with daily. This chapter is particularly relevant in understanding the importance of the policy base. However, the implication on page 108, that 'practitioners have to decide which policies to prioritize and which to ignore', is ill-advised, as practitioners must refer to the appropriate policy for the particular area of practice. A new author contributes to chapters 7 and 8. I found these two chapters particularly inspiring with excellent ideas for practitioner research. This book is targeted at the professional social worker, and indeed, the introductory first sentence indicates that it is about how different sources of knowledge can be used to guide the work of the practising social worker. However, the first chapter, which focuses on philosophy, theory and practice, is esoteric and abstract and is of little relevance to the practising social worker. In my view, social workers will find it difficult to get beyond this first chapter, which is disappointing for a book with the title Evidence and knowledge for practice and which brings together the full range of knowledge for social workers and has so much to offer. Having persevered past the first chapter I found this book stimulating and an excellent resource for social workers. The fundamental requirement for social workers at qualifying, post-qualifying and advanced level social work is critical reflection and this book certainly enables social workers to understand this concept, to seek support in this process and to use the material in the book to internalize this function.


Due to the large amount of solid waste that is currently generated in cities, it is important to create strategies to decrease their impact on the environment. It is therefore necessary to identify the factors influencing the consumer to look for protecting the environment both in their consumption and disposal practices. To embrace this complex task a lot of factors should be considered, for this reason in this work the consumer will be identified based on sociodemographic variables to detect those variables associated with pro-environmental behavior development. To conduct this research a sample of 2831 consumers was used; consumers were spread across seven socio-economic strata.


The plug connector for connecting a hose (1) with a tube (2) provided with a locking rib PERIFERICO (3) characterized in that the coupling element (4) is made integrally with the retaining arms (8) And the circlip (7) is integral with arms SAFETY (27) elastically flexible in radial direction, which in the secured position SIDED RING SECURITY (7) apply prestressed to the outside OF EACH retaining arms (8). This prevents a relative kink And, therefore, an uneven deformation of the sealing ring (6), resulting LEAK AS WELL AS POSSIBLE TO MANUFACTURE AND ASSEMBLY OF PLAIN plug connector.


Trihalomethanes (THMs) are contaminants of drinking water produced by the reaction between chlorine and natural organic matter. Determination of THM formation potential (THMFP) is a means of quantifying precursor abundance in waters from diverse sources. THMFP in river water entering and leaving Taylorsville Lake (Ky.) was measured to assess internal and external sources of THM precursors. THMFP in Taylorsville Lake was largely determined by watershed inputs. External inputs from tributary streams accounted for 80% of reservoir THMFP, and internal processes resulted in a net generation of 20%. Chlorophyll concentrations in the main tributary (Salt River) were comparable to those measured in Taylorsville Lake, suggesting that algal production in source waters may be important in regulating precursor supply to the reservoir. The highest THMFP was found in hypolimnetic samples, and peak export from the reservoir occurred during fall turnover, suggesting that decomposition of sedimenting organic matter both delayed and enhanced precursor release.


As a basic study for the establishment of an accuracy estimation method in the finite element method, this report deals with the problems of transverse bending of thin, flat plates. From numerical experiments for uniform mesh divisions, the following relation was deduced, e∝(h/a)k, kg1, where e is the error of the value by the finite element method relative to the exact value and h/a is the dimensionless mesh diameter. combining this relation with the results of the error analyses for local mesh refinement, an accuracy estimation method, which was based on the recursive simulation method, was presented. A computer program using this accuracy estimation method was developed and applied to nineteen problems of various shapes. The usefulness of this accuracy estimation method was illustrated by these application results.


Based on the composite system collaboration model, this paper selects three representative elements that can reflect the innovation input and innovation benefit in south Jiangsu province, namely innovation resources, innovation environment and innovation benefit, and calculates the overall synergy degree of the regional innovation system with five cities in south Jiangsu province as the whole. It can be concluded from the analysis that the order degree of collaborative innovation in Suzhou is the highest, followed by that in Nanjing and Wuxi, Changzhou and Zhenjiang, the order degree of regional collaborative innovation is at the end of the five cities in southern Jiangsu. Due to the differences in the ability and level of collaborative innovation among different cities, as well as the problems in resource sharing and collaborative innovation among different cities, the overall level of the collaborative degree of regional innovation system in southern Jiangsu is not high. On the basis of this empirical analysis, this paper puts forward some scientific and targeted Suggestions for improving the overall coordination degree of regional innovation system in southern Jiangsu and building a higher level of southern Jiangsu modernization demonstration area.


Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of drinking Chinese medicine combined external 0.1% retinoic acid ointment for the treatment of verruca plana.Methods 75 cases were treated by drinking Chinese medicine combined external 0.1% retinoic acid ointment,71 cases were treated by external only 0.1% retinoic acid ointment.Results 63 patients treated with the combination of Chinese medicine and 0.1% retinoic acid ointment were cured,the cure rate was 84.0%,there was significantly diffence in the inter-group (P < 0.01).Conclusion The cure rate of internal Chinese medicine combined external 0.1% retinoic acid ointment may be a effective method in the treatment of verruca plana.

Key words:
Flat warts;  Chinese medicine;  Retinoic acid ointment


. The article presents modern research on the development of compositions and technologies of light aggregates based on natural and man-made raw materials, as well as mixtures containing both natural and man-made raw materials. As a natural raw material component, shungite, clays, silica – containing raw materials-diatomite, trepel and flask are used. As man-made raw materials, coal-enrichment waste and coal-containing waste, fly ash, ash slags, oil sludge and paper waste paper are used. Light aggregate is prepared according to roasting, clinker-free and clinker-free technologies. For the production of the aggregate according to the firing technology, the raw materials are mixed after grinding, mixed in certain ratios, moistened, prepared granules and after drying, the granules are fired. Liquid glass is used to produce the aggregate using the clinker-free technology, while Portland cement, slag-Portland cement and gypsum-cement-pozzolan binder can be used as binders using the clinker technology. The bulk density of the developed aggregates is in the range of 100 ... 1100 kg / m3, porosity-50...88%, compressive strength in the cylinder-0.32...3 MPa.


Using an amino column (Supelcosil LC-NH2) and different mixtures of acetonitrile-water, quantitative structure-retention relationship models are discussed. These models are based on computed molecular descriptors representing numerically structured features of some saccharides. The obtained results are underlining the lipophilicity/hydrophilicity balance, and how this is controlling the separation of the saccharides. The resulting models ensued are characterized by a highly predictive capacity evaluated through a series of representative statistical indices (R2, Q2, SDEC, SDEP, s, and F). Moreover, using genetic algorithms for selection of the most important descriptors in the model, one-, two-, and three-descriptor models were selected and the contribution of each one was explained. As the majority of the selected descriptors is highly related to the functional groups existing in the molecule and to the effects caused by their presence, the retention mechanism involved in the chromatographic process appears to be mainly controlled by polar interactions.


In many applications of speckle photography or holographic interferometry to surface or structure distortion measurement some general understanding of the theory and optics of coherent light scattering from rough surfaces is important. In order to apply a simplified heuristic solution to the different flow patterns which occur with moving speckle patterns a geometrical optics method of diffraction, using diffractive rays, has been used. A modified initial model of this concept has associated the speckle movements with either (1) linear displacement of mirror facet sets on the scatter surface, or (2) rotations of tangent planes on the surface. A surface tangent free vector and cotangent axial vector system is developed, together with various lens and surface scattering geometries, and these are applied to the distorting surface using vector topology. Two topological flows are described, one for the surface in-plane free vector displacements, and the other for the axial vector rotations of the scatter surfa...


Leprosy is curable and can be treated with multidrug therapy in the early stages. As a result,
we chose a Scientometrics evaluation of leprosy research guides on adverse drug reactions to better
grasp the current popularity of drug-related responses. During the 2010-2021 a study with a total of 48
publications was selected. This study aims to analyze scientometric tools such as frequency distribution, percentage analysis, double-related growth rate, and interaction rate. During the study period, 7
(14.58%) study publications were submitted in 2018. The related growth rate is identified by decreasing trend and the double time is growing from 2010 to 2021. The 11 published study sizes (22.92%)
were provided by top writers, the average Degree of Collaboration is 0.96, and 19 (39.58%) published
research articles by headers. India is the largest supplier of 21 leprosy research publications (43.75%).
As India is the most productive country in leprosy research, hence there are four out of the top five institutions that are from the Indian center that is listed among the most productive institutions.


A dynamically buckled elastic beam is a physically realizable system exhibiting both periodic and chaotic behavior. The equations of motion are developed as a finite dimensional Galerkin approximation of an infinite degree of freedom system. Generalized eigenvalues or Lyapunov exponents are introduced as a quantitative characterization of chaos, i.e. unstable but bounded motion. A semi-discrete method for the estimation of the Lyapunov spectrum is used to investigate the influence of the forcing parameters on the system response. The equations of motion are then integrated numerically to correlate the steady state response with the value of the associated largest Lyapunov exponent .


There are four forms in the yes- no question of Yi- language in the eastern dialect of Pa-Pu: particle yes- no question,selective yes- no question,iterative yes- no question and reduplicated yes- no question. The yes- no question has evolved from two paths. One is positive- negative selective yes- no question " V + conject + neg + V",then iterative yes- no question " V + neg + V",next iterative acronym form " V + neg",finally particle yes- no question " V + particle". The other is positive- negative selective yes- no question " V + conject + neg + V",then iterative yes- no question " V + neg + V",finally reduplicated yes- no question " V + V". The former path was certified in the study of the mandarin,whereas the latter path can be demonstrated in Yi- language dialect of Pa- Pu.


This article is concerned with texts by Frantisek Cermak devoted to issues of Czech language cultivation. Four major topics are analyzed: standard vs. common Czech, written vs. spoken Czech, prescriptivism and the native language of Czechs. Various problems in the analyzed texts result from an unclear methodological background. Many concepts are used without argumentation: Cermak fails to substantiate their suitability for his language description. We can find uncorroborated generalizations which can be interpreted as Cermak's communicative strategy. Many statements are rather impressionistic and are not based on relevant language observations. With regard to these findings, the author of this paper argues that a deep-reaching dialogue should be held, which may help to clarify the indeterminate situation in Czech linguistics concerning issues of language cultivation.


Stress concentration is a major cause of metal structure failures. Based on the metal magnetic memory (MMM) technique, detailed information of stress concentration or defects on ferromagnetic materials can be obtained from the changed magnetic signals. The magnetic charge model of MMM signal is described, and simulations based on this model are performed for a sample with stress-concentration zone or a long elliptical defect. Some basic characteristics produced by present model are coincident with existed experimental measurements. The agreements between simulations and experimental results confirm that the present magnetic charge model can be used as an MMM signal forward technique.


Wavelength-dependent variations in the spectral emissivity of advanced high strength steels (AHSS) leads to errors in pyrometry measurements during intercritical annealing, which in turn affect the mechanical properties of the steel. This study presents in-situ spectral emissivity measurements for a dual-phase steel (DP980) heated in an annealing simulator with a reducing atmosphere. The variation of the spectral emissivity with wavelength, temperature, and time is measured simultaneously using a near-infrared spectrometer and a multi-wavelength pyrometer, providing insights into how the evolving surface state affects the spectral emissivity and the pyrometrically-inferred measurements. Comparing the spectral emissivity and temperature estimates obtained by ratio and multi-wavelength pyrometry methods indicates that multi-wavelength pyrometry provides more accurate emissivity and temperature estimates for annealing AHSS.


NEGRO STAYS DEATH'S TRYST WITH 'LOST' DOG Drew Field will celebrate the Christmas season with special religious services, sports jamborees, parties, dances, musical programs, and, of course, a swell Christ:rp.as Day feast. Soldiers aren't the only ones who will have an elegant time. Two big parties are planned for the children of Drew Field officers and enlisted men. Each child will be given a g ift .and will have the opportunity to speak with Santa Claus.


Abstract:  The authors develop a model framework that includes a set of hydrologic modules as a water resources management and planning tool for the upper Santa Cruz River near the Mexican border, Southern Arizona. The modules consist of: (1) stochastic generation of hourly precipitation scenarios that maintain the characteristics and variability of a 45‐year hourly precipitation record from a nearby rain gauge; (2) conceptual transformation of generated precipitation into daily streamflow using varied infiltration rates and estimates of the basin antecedent moisture conditions; and (3) surface‐water to ground‐water interaction for four downstream microbasins that accounts for alluvial ground‐water recharge, and ET and pumping losses. To maintain the large inter‐annual variability of streamflow as prevails in Southern Arizona, the model framework is constructed to produce three types of seasonal winter and summer categories of streamflow (i.e., wet, medium, or dry). Long‐term (i.e., 100 years) realizations (ensembles) are generated by the above described model framework that reflects two different regimes of inter annual variability. The first regime is that of the historic streamflow gauge record. The second regime is that of the tree ring reconstructed precipitation, which was derived for the study location. Generated flow ensembles for these two regimes are used to evaluate the risk that the regional four ground‐water microbasins decline below a preset storage threshold under different operational water utilization scenarios.


Professional User Experience (UX) practitioners have an inherent need for effective group communication practices. If they work as external consultants, the need is arguably even greater. Enterpris ...


A computerized fetal ECG(FECG)system is presented,w hi ch is composed of two components.One is the data collection device with a PIC m icrocomputer as the main hardware,which has low power consumption and gets power supply through serial port.The other is a software platform based on PC,which i s built through LabView6.1,a graphic programming language.Plenty of modules prov ided by LabView6.1utilized,it is efficient to develop the software platform.In particular,the implementation of the matched filtering algorithms is introduced ,which is the core of the software platform.A new method of updating templates o f matched filter is described.


Electrocardiogram,as a useful and feasible tool,has been widely used in the diagnosis of the infarction-related in acute myocardial infarction. The left circumflex artery,whose anatomical variation degree is great,is easily affected by the collateral circulation. It makes difficulty to predict the infarction-related artery is the left circumflex artery. This article summarizes recently available research and has a brief review about the relationship of the electrocardiographic characters and the infarction-related artery of which is the left circumflex artery.


Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) provide a novel tool for the study of macroscopic quantum phenomena and condensed matter systems. Two of the recent frontiers, quantized vortices and ultracold molecules, are the subject of this thesis. The formation of highly-ordered vortex lattices in a Bose-condensed gas has been observed. These triangular lattices contain more than 150 vortices with lifetimes of several seconds. The vortices were generated by rotating the condensate with a scanning blue-detuned laser beam. Depending on the stirrer size, vortices were either nucleated at discrete surface-mode resonances (large beams) or over a broad range of stirring frequencies (small beams). Additionally, the dynamics of the lattices have been studied at finite temperature by varying the condensed fraction of atoms in the system. The decay of angular momentum is observed to be strongly temperature-dependant, while the crystallization of the lattice appears to be insensitive to temperature change. Recently, the field of BEC has been extended to include cold molecules. Here ultra-cold sodium molecules were produced from an atomic BEC by ramping an applied magnetic field across a Feshbach resonance. These molecules were used to demonstrate coherent molecular optics. In particular, we have extended KapitzaDirac and Bragg diffraction to cold molecules. By measuring the Bragg spectrum of the molecules immediately after their creation, the conversion from atoms to molecules was shown to be coherent the matter wave analog to frequency doubling in optics. In addition, the more general process of sum-frequency generation was demonstrated. Atoms prepared in two momentum states, prior to creating molecules, were observed to cross-pair, generating a third momentum state. Finally, molecular matter-wave interference was realized using an autocorrelation technique. Thesis Supervisor: Wolfgang Ketterle Title: John D. MacAurthur Professor of Physics For my family, Nadya, Amir, Anita and Muhsin.


Several differences of observed ground motion characteristics between crustal and intraslab earthquakes seem to be caused by not only propagation-path but also source characteristics. We studied the characterization of source models for shallow intraslab earthquakes based on strong motion simulations. Appropriate source models of several shallow intraslab earthquakes (MW 5.2 7.0) that occurred in Japan were constructed to explain the broadband ground motion based on strong motion simulations using the empirical Green's function method. Our source model is expressed by one or several rectangular regions called strong motion generation area on an assumed fault plane, which can be thought to be equivalent to the asperities of heterogeneous source model by previous studies. We summarized the results and found that the strong motion generation area of the source model for each shallow intraslab earthquake is smaller than the prediction by the empirical relationship for inland crustal earthquakes proposed by Somerville et al. (1999). This means that the stress drop on the asperity or the strong motion generation area of a shallow intraslab earthquake is higher than that of an inland crustal earthquake. Among shallow intraslab earthquakes, relatively deeper event with the source depth of about 70 – 100 km has very high stress drop, that is more than 100 MPa, though shallower events with the source depth of about 30 km has relatively low stress drop, that is almost same or slightly higher than inland crustal events. Our result suggests that the stress drop on the asperity of shallow intraslab earthquakes depends on its depth. When we assume the value of the stress drop in case of the strong motion prediction for an intraslab earthquake, we have to consider include the focal-depth dependence of the stress drop.


MPEG-7, or the Multimedia Content Description Interface, promises to standardize descriptions of audio-visual material to allow universal indexing, retrieval, filtering, control, and other activities supported by rich meta-data. In this paper an overview of the current conception of MPEG-7, the examples how current practice could be incorporated into the MPEG-7 framework are given. And a few thoughts on possible directions and solutions for the standard are presented.


Lately, image classification with unknown labels has been the focus of many research related to social media and cyber-security. In order to cluster images into labels, a similarity metric is used to compare images and based on the output a decision is made. In this article, we propose a Convolution Neural Network (CNN) based metric that achieves state of the art results. The proposed approach learns the priority features that differentiate two given input faces. The metric is trained on MSCeleb (10M faces of 100k individuals) and VGGFace2 (3.3M faces of 9k individuals) then tested using LFW (13 K faces of 5,749 individuals), MSCeleb, and VGGFace2 datasets. The network is evaluated through $F_{\beta}$ measure and accuracy. The metric proposed in this paper achieves state of the art $F_{\beta}$ measure of 0.94 for LFW benchmark.


An analytic result is given for the electric dipole contribution to the deuteron photoeffect cross section, for a central Serber force containing an r/ sup -2/ repulsive core. A comparison between calculations and experiment indicates that for energies greater than 60 Mev other effects like the interaction in the final state and mesonic effects are of more importance than the inclusion of this repulsive core. Sum rule calculations are also discussed. (auth)


Introduction: It is known that anticholinergic agents contribute to improve quality of conventional uterine MR images with suppression of intestinal motion. Similar to intestine, uterine myometrium consists of smooth muscles and rhythmical motion is known as uterine peristalsis. However, the effect of the anticholinergic agents to suppress uterine contractility has been shown to be weaker compared to the effect on intestinal motion on a recent cine MRI study using T2-weighted half-Fourier rapid acquisition with relaxation enhancement (RARE). Relaxation of smooth muscles in the intestines is reported to start in 45 seconds after intravenous injection of hyoscine butylbromide and to last 17 minutes., whereas effect of the drug to suppression of the uterine contractility regarding duration and degree has not yet been clarified. Purpose of this study was to compare time course of the effect of the anticholinergic agent between intestinal motion and uterine peristalsis by visual assessment of the cine MR images. Materials and Methods: MR imging was obtained with a 1.5T scanner( EXELART Vantage, Toshiba Medical Systems, Tokyo, Japan). A T2-weighted RARE sequence (repetition time/echo time = 3000/130msec, FOV of 300x300 mm, matrix of 512x512,slice thickness of 5mm) was employed. In a midsagittal plane of the uterus during quiet respiration, 60 serial RARE images were acquired to create cine MR images. Study population included19 healthy women of reproductive age (25.7±3.7 years) in periovulatory phase. Cine MR images were obtained at four occasions, each for three minutes: before (pre), and 2-5 (post 1), 5-8 (post 2) and 10-13 (post 3) minutes after intravenous injection of 20 mg of hyoscine butylbromide. For each session, AVI movie of 12 seconds was created by Osirix® and displayed at 15-30 times faster than real speed on computer monitors by using commercially available software package. Two experienced radiologists separately evaluated these movies in a random order. Intestinal motion was evaluated in degree. Uterine peristalsis was evaluated as frequency/3min and degrees of endometrial transformation, subendometrial conduction of low signal intensity, conduction of low signal intensity toward the outer myometrium. All degrees were graded by a five-point scale (0: not present, 1: weak, 2: mild, 3: moderate, and 4: marked). Frequency of uterine peristalsis during three minutes was each recorded. After the initial scorings, simultaneous re-evaluation was done when the scores showed discrepancy of 2 or more. Finally,scores of two radiologists were averaged. Scores of the qualitative evaluations were analyzed by Friedmann test. Wilcoxon signed rank test with Bonferroni correction was used as a post-hoc test. Frequency of the uterine peristalsis was analyzed by one-way repeated measures ANOVA. P-values less than .05 were regarded as statistically significant. Results: Results were summarized in Figure1 and Table 1. Intestinal motion were significantly reduced at post 1, 2 and 3 Compared with images before administration of the drug. In comparison of images at post 2 and 3, the intestinal motion showed significant, but incomplete recovery at post 3. No significant differences were shown regarding uterus peristalsis on all occasions. Discussion and Conclusion: In serial time course evaluation of cine MRI, suppressive effect of the anticholinergic agent on the intestinal motion was clearly proven. This result is in concordance with previous report of anticholinergic effect on intestine. We have further observed the strongest effect around 2min to8min. In this study, however, effect of the drug to uteine peristaosis was not seen. It has been previously reported that uterine peristalsis in follicular through periovulatory phases is slightly suppressed by the administration of the anticholinergic agent. However it was also suggested that sporadic and contractions of the uterine myometrium disturb the conduction of uterine peristalsis and the relaxation effect of the drug adversely increase the uterine peristalsis in such situations. Further investigation with the evaluation of sustained contraction is necessary to clarify the anticholinergic effect in this group of women. References: 1. Nakai A, Togashi K, Kosaka K, Kido A, Kataoka M, Koyama T, Fujii S, Do Anticholinergic Agents Suppress Uterine Peristalsis and Sporadic Myometrial Contractions at Cine MR imaging? Radiology. 2008 Feb;246(2):489-96. 2. Ayre-Smith G. Hyoscine-N-buthlbromide(Buscopan) as a duodenal relaxant in tubeless duodenography. Acta Radiol Diagn(Stockh) 1976;17:701-713. Figure 1. mean value of each qualitative evaluation.


Comments are made on an article by S. Gow and I. MacGillivray who reported that "16% of 25 women who underwent a hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy developed venous thrombosis after treatment with estrogen." The writer notes that the number treated was too small to be used for statistical purposes and that the 4 cases who developed venous thrombosis had other predisposing causes. In the writers own review of 1000 menopausal women treated with implants of estradiol progesterone and testosterone the incidence of uterine bleeding and cancer of the uterus and breast was lower in the treated women than in the untreated women. It is recommended that menopausal women not be deprived of the benefits derived from hormonal treatment.


This paper is concerned with the problem of fuzzy iterative learning control for two-dimensional (2-D) state systems described by the Fornasini and Marchesini (FM) second state-space model. This paper gives iterative learning control (ILC) techniques, used to improve tracking control performance in 2-D processes. The fundamental concepts of the various ILC algorithms are presented, with a particular focus on a fuzzy-based algorithm called Fuzzy-ILC (FILC). The study indicates that one can solve a seemingly very difficult multivariable nonlinear tracking problem with relative ease by intelligently combining the ILC technique with fuzzy logic systems. The results of simulations show that our proposed FILC can reduce the trajectory error in far less number of iterations. This is due to the fact that FILC is providing a nonlinear mapping while all our others presented schemes is linear.


The editors of this special issue on '"Making" and "Doing" the Material World' examine some aspects of the anthropology of techniques, a relatively understudied branch of anthropology, which considers the embodied and cognitive engagement of human beings in their lived material world. They suggest that the use of new theories of embodiment, cognition and performance allows for a consideration of the role of the senses, perception, emotions and materiality in the formation of knowledgeable, gendered subjects. They argue that the Francophone and Anglophone traditions in the anthropology of techniques are complementary, despite their divisions (between and within them).


The invention relates to a concrete roofing and ground anti-seepage leak-proof agent and an anti-seepage leak-proof method. The anti-seepage leak-proof agent is made of tung oil and cement. The invention also provides an anti-seepage leak-proof method. By means of the provided anti-seepage leak-proof agent, the anti-seepage leak-proof structure and method, the anti-seepage leak-proof agent can penetrate in cracks and be well combined with concrete roofing or ground into one body; the invention has advantages such as anti-demixing or anti-aging, and lasting anti-seepage effect.


A novel mixed barium(II)/silver(I)/chromium(III) oxalate salt, Ba0.5Ag2[Cr(C2O4)3]·5H2O (1), with open architecture has been synthesized in water and characterized by elemental analysis, vibrational and electronic spectra, and single crystal X-ray structure determination. Compound 1 crystallizes in a monoclinic space group C2/c, with unit cell parameters a = 18.179(3), b = 14.743(2), c = 12.278(2)A, β = 113.821(3), V = 3010.34(90) A3, Z = 8. The structure is characterized by a network of anionic [Cr(C2O4)3]3- units connected through the O atoms of the oxalates to Ba2+ and Ag+ sites, forming a three-dimensional coordination polymer with one-dimensional isolated nanochannels parallel to the c axis, and encapsulating hydrogen-bonded guest water molecules. The bulk structure is consolidated by O–H···O bridgings within the nanochannels and by coulombic interactions.


Abstract : This document summarizes the results of a research program to evaluate the applicability of available materials for use as the display media in a sonar data signal processing/interactive display system. The technical approach for meeting the objectives of the study program was to: Perform a literature survey to determine currently available optical storage and recording materials in order to evaluate the material characteristics in the context of the defined display requirements and to summarize the appropriate characteristics of the various materials; Perform an experimental investigation of the display properties of promising and available material candidates; and, To develop preliminary display system concepts for use with sonar surveillance/human operator decision making processes.


Picture 1. Sensory nerve conduction studies in the median N and sural N. Limb temperature was maintained above 32°C during the examination. The results on admission were as folows: median N; SNAP amplitude 10 μV, SCV 56 m/s, sural N; SNAP amplitude 22 μV, SCV 46 m/s (A). While distal SNAP amplitude of sural N was within the normal range, that of median N was beyond the laboratory normal limits (normal > 12μV). Folow-up studies at one (B) and two (C) months later showed recovery and normalization of SNAP amplitude at the median N. median N: median nerve, sural N: sural nerve, SNAP: sensory nerve action potential, SCV: sensory conduction velocity □ PICTURES IN CLINICAL MEDICINE □


Transparent conducting Aluminium-doped zinc oxide(ZnO:Al) films were deposited on BK-7 glass substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering.Sputtering power changed from 250 W to 400 W and the substrate temperature was 250 ℃.XRD results show that the film deposited at 250 W shows only (002) peak,and the films deposited at the power larger than 300 W show both(002) and(101) peaks.Moreover,the intensity of(002) peak decreases as the increase of sputtering power,but the intensity of(101) peak increases with increasing sputtering power.Both the film thickness and carrier mobility increase as the increase of sputtering power.The resistivity of the film decreases from 24.6×10-4Ωcm to 7.2×10-4 Ωcm as the sputtering power increases from 250 W to 400 W.The average transmittance at visible spectral region for all samples is larger than 85%.The optical band gap decreases with decreasing carrier concentration.


SPECIAL JOINTS FOR REFRIGERATORS made from a polymeric material formed from a copolymer mixture AL - OLEFINAS. JOINTS thus obtained are lighter, thinner and have better Mechanical characteristics than known until now.


Valence and core-level photoemission spectra show that cleaved $i$-Al-Pd-Mn quasicrystals have a pronounced metallic signature. Spectra from states above ${E}_{F},$ populated by increasing the sample temperature, indicate the presence of a shallow pseudogap 0.09 eV above ${E}_{F}.$ The Al $2p$ line asymmetry, on the other hand, which indicates metallic behavior, decreases with increasing photoelectron escape depth. This implies a decreasing density of states at ${E}_{F}$ with increasing distance from the surface, consistent with indications that the density of states near ${E}_{F}$ in the bulk is reduced. Our results thus help to resolve the apparent contradiction between the theoretical predictions for a bulk pseudogap, and the clear metallic Fermi edges in photoemission.


Objective To study the feasibility of conjugating lactosaminated human serum albumin and liposomes as a carrier for drugs targeted at the liver. Methods Lactosaminated human serum albumin was covalently coupled with liposomes, using biofunctional reagent N- succinimidyl- S-acetylthioacetate. Labeled with 131I, the conjugate was injected into rat tail vein to ob- serve its accumulation in the liver and the inhibitory effect of pre-injected lactosaminated albumin on the accumulation. The inhibitory effects of the conjugate- and liposome-encapsulated interferon-a on hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication were observed and compared in 2.2. 15 cells treated with the 2 preparations. Results The accumulation of the conjugate in the rat liver was twice as much as in the spleen (P0.01), and 4 to 9 times as in other organs (P0.01). Pre-injection of lactosaminated albumin did not affect the accumulation of the conjugate in the liver and spleen (P0.05). When encapsulated by the conjugate, interferon-a showed enhanced inhibitory effect on HBV replication compared with that of liposome-encapsulated interferon-a (0.01P0.05) and free interferon-a (P0.05), and to achieve similar inhibitory effect, the dosage of conjugate- encapsulated interferon-a was only l/4 and l/8 of that required by the latter 2 respectively. Conclusion The conjugate of lactosaminated albumin and liposomes is targeted at the liver guided by asialoglycoprotein receptor, and has the potential for application as a carrier for drugs targeted at the liver.


In this paper, a circulating current suppressing control is proposed to suppress the circulating current in the modular multilevel converter based unified power quality conditioner (MMC-UPQC). In order to decrease the circulating current among the six phases of MMC-UPQC, which is resulted from the voltage difference of the six phases, an averaged phase voltage control is introduced in the UPQC control strategy. Operating principle of the proposed control is discussed. Simulation results are presented to verify the effectiveness of the proposed control method.


A solar collector integrated pump accumulator means evaporated collector solar collector, storage container and a heat pump system in one evaporator, reducing the solar energy storage conventional multi-stage heat pump system heat losses and manufacturing cost of the intermediate heat exchanger on the basis of , to speed up the collection efficiency solar collector, to enhance the heat exchange efficiency between the heat pump system evaporator tube and the accumulator refrigerant medium, thus ensuring high efficiency and stability of the energy storage type solar heat pump operation of the device. The apparatus includes a compressor (1), water-cooled condenser (2), a thermostatic expansion valve (3), an evaporator (4), the pump (12), the tank (thirteen), wherein the compressor (1), water-cooled condenser ( 2) the refrigerant pipe, the thermal expansion valve (3), an evaporator (4) connected in series into a closed circuit, water-cooled condenser (2) water cooling pipes, the water pump (12), connected to the water tank (13) connected in series into a closed loop, wherein the evaporator (4) with solar cells / heat pump evaporator.


Processing tests have been conducted on copper ores with pure carbonaceous gauge in Shizishan Copper Mine, however, on the basis of previous studies and by repeat research and analysis,it turned out that it is difficult to achieve good processing indicators by only using collectors, thus studies and tests should be made on regulators. It was found that there would be a positive effect on enhancing the technical indicators by adding lime in concentrating areas to regulate pH value and potential of pulp. This study will provide references for similar mines in dealing with carbonaceous gangue copper ores.


The side‐chain orientation of a tyrosine residue located in a peptide, which is an excellent substrate of Syk tyrosine kinase (A. M. Brunati, A. Donella‐Deana, M. Ruzzene, O. Marin, L. A. Pinna, FEBS Letters, 1995, Vol. 367, pp. 149–152), was fixed in the gauche (+) or gauche (−) conformation by using the 7‐hydroxy‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydro isoquinoline‐3‐carboxylic (Htc) structure. The tyrosine trans conformation was blocked by using an aminobenzazepine‐type (Hba) structure. The proposed side‐chain orientations were confirmed by the analysis of the 1H‐NMR parameters: chemical shifts, coupling constants, and nuclear Overhauser effects to the tyrosine constraints in the different analogs. This "rotamer scan" of the phosphorylatable residue allowed us to generate optimal substrates in terms of both phosphorylation efficiency and selectivity for Syk tyrosine kinase. In contrast, these conformationally restricted tyrosine analogs were not tolerated by the Src‐related tyrosine kinases Lyn and c‐Fgr. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers (Pept Sci) 71: 478–488, 2003


We present a geometric model of image formation in Scheimpflug cameras that is most general. Scheimpflug imaging is commonly used is scientific and medical imaging either to increase the depth of field of the imager or to focus on tilted object surfaces. Existing Scheimpflug imaging models do not take into account the effect of pupil magnification (i.e. the ratio of the exit pupil diameter to the entrance pupil diameter), which we have found to affect the type of distortions experienced by the image-field upon lens rotations. In this work, we have also derived the relationship between the object, lens and sensor planes in Scheimpflug configuration, which is very similar in form with the standard Gaussian imaging equation, but applicable for imaging systems in which the lens plane and the sensor plane are arbitrarily oriented with respect to each other. Since the conventional rigid camera, in which the sensor and lens planes are constrained to be parallel to each other, is a special case of the Scheimpflug camera, our model also applies to imaging with conventional cameras.


Micro-Air-Vehicle (MAV) and micro-flight robot using insect and bird flight mechanisms has been attracting significant attention in recent years since the micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) have been developed actively. Many researchers have attempted to develop MAV and micro-flight robot with various actuators and devices so far however their studies have not led to practical applications yet. One of the reasons is that flying mechanism of birds and insects has not been clarified sufficiently. In this study, we evaluate dynamic behaviors of a wing observed from the butterfly's viewpoint in its flight. The authors conduct a flight observation experiment of Cynthia cardui performing a free flight and fixed flight and an image analysis and calculate flapping angles, lead-lag angle and feathering angles of the butterfly performing flapping flight to clarify the relation between them. Furthermore, we aim at developing the micro flight robot like the butterfly using these results. The butterfly realizes its flapping motions by changing not only flapping angles but also lead-lag angles in free and fixed flights. In a free flight, a butterfly performs flapping by greatly changing feathering angles in the wing span direction. The micro flapping robot has two wings and does not have the tail plane. The micro flapping robot flied stably for 12 minutes, which was the battery's duration. The elastic deformations of a wing are one of the important parameters to realize stable flight performance.Copyright © 2009 by ASME


In the present paper, it is considered a cylinder of the finite length being in an axisymmetric tension. The solution for the strength problem of the cylinder is obtained. This solution can be used for solving the problem of the strainly-deformed state of multilayer cylindrical bodies.


Recent evidence indicates that alternative policies based on building community can re- duce crime, especially in disadvantaged neighborhoods. In this paper we study the effects on local crime rates of bolstering community ties. We take advantage of the quasi-random deployment of a community health policy ( Barcelona Salut als Barris , BSaB) that aims to improve health outcomes and reduce inequalities in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods through community-based initiatives. To test whether BSaB reduces crime, we follow a difference-in-differences approach and make use of detailed data from local police and Barcelona City Council administrative records. We find that BSaB significantly reduces a category we term "intimate crimes" in the short term and drug crimes in the long term. The young offender crime rate is also lowered. Evidence suggests that this is due to tighter-knit communities. These results provide evidence in favor of non-traditional crime preven- tion policies.


Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a harmful gas whose emissions are associated to natural gas leaks. Laser-based spectroscopy techniques have been demonstrated to be well suited for real time gas monitoring, providing high sensitivity and selectivity. Quartz enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) helped in developing of compact sensors. In the QEPAS sensor here presented, a distribute feedback diode laser emitting around 2.6 μm and a T-shaped quartz tuning fork coupled with acoustic resonator tubes were used to detect H2S in methane-based matrix. The realized QEPAS sensor is a ready-to use solution for H2S leaks monitoring in presence of methane (CH4) at the percent scale.


We review our recent progress on laser-based 3D micro- and nanoprinting, including application examples, on (i) multi-material, and (ii) faster/scalable 3D printing. Regarding (i), we report on combining self-organization and 3D printing for light-scattering devices, stimuli-responsive liquid-crystal elastomer photoresists, and 3D polymer-metal architectures. Concerning (ii), we present a novel 3D chiral mechanical metamaterial with tailored characteristic length, composed of nearly 120 thousand complex unit cells, enabled by rapid multi-focus multi-photon 3D printing. We discuss more sensitive multi-photon photoresists for lower required laser powers. Furthermore, we outline the status of parallelized two-color 3D light-sheet laser microprinting using inexpensive continuous-wave lasers.


An unexpected palladium-catalyzed carbonylative synthesis of 2,3-disubstituted chromones has been developed. Starting from 2-bromofluorobenzenes and ketones, the corresponding chromones were produced in good yields. By control experiments, this transformation was found to proceed through a sequential carbonylation/Claisen–Hasse rearrangement/intramolecular nucleophilic aromatic substitution approach (SNAr). More specifically, the reaction sequence started with a palladium-catalyzed carbonylation of the ketone with o-bromofluorobenzene to give the vinyl benzoates, which subsequently transformed into 1,3-diketones via a Claisen–Hasse rearrangement. The final products were produced after an intramolecular SNAr reaction of the in situ formed 1,3-diketone.


To the Editor.— I read with much interest and some confusion the article "Twenty-Nail Dystrophy of Childhood" by Hazelrigg et al (113:73,1977). The confusion concerned my own 20-nail dystrophy and the observation that the condition is not found in adults. I am a 31-year-old dermatology resident who has had a nail dystrophy since I was in my teens that has extended into the present. All 20 nails are excessively ridged (longitudinally), opalescent, and excessively pitted, and all nails exhibit mild onycholysis (Figure). There are no Nails of feet and hands showing 20-nail dystrophy. skin, hair, or mucous membrane abnormalities. Results of KOH preparations and culture of all 20 were negative. There is no history of eczema or paronychia; however, there is a history of maternal psoriasis. Am I the first person with 20-nail dystrophy of adulthood, or do I have just an unusual 20-nail psoriasis without cutaneous involvement or 20-nail


Cultural hybridization indicates mixing, intermingling, and fusion of cultures that the globalized world enables and produces. Adopting an institutional theoretic framework, this article examines how hybrid cultural products strive for legitimacy in the context of yoga. We conceptualize American Yoga as a hybrid cultural practice that emerged as yoga was reconfigured through dialectical exchanges between India and the West and acquired new forms and meanings in the geographical and cultural sphere of the United States. The findings reveal a series of reterritorialization strategies through which market actors seek to advance moral, cognitive, and pragmatic legitimacy for American Yoga, accompanied by identity, ownership, and authenticity centered tensions. We illustrate reterritorialization as a legitimation process mediated by strategies of market actors and identify unique outcomes in legitimation of hybrid cultural products drawing from polar perspectives on hybridization.


The present industry update covers the period 1–30 September 2018, with information sourced from company press releases, regulatory and patent agencies as well as scientific literature. Various tec...


The GPS space segment has been instrumental in sustaining the signals for historical users and catering to emerging needs. The current generation GPS payloads, GPS IIR-M and IIF, to be deployed shortly, bring users several advances in technology and capabilities. ITT Research and Development (R&D) activities on High Power Amplifiers, Efficient Modulation Techniques, and Flexible Implementations led to several of the new features of IIR-M and IIF. These implementations use mature space qualified technologies and novel techniques to provide enhanced performance. This paper presents the results of our R&D efforts leading to the implementations in IIR-M and IIF navigation payloads. The modular, high efficiency architecture of GPS transmitters is presented. The architecture introduces GaAs technology for high power amplification and interplex modulation to provide M code to the users while minimizing modulation losses. The transmitter architecture provides a high degree of commonality between the L1 and L2 transmitters. A novel implementation for the interplex modulation that maximizes performance is presented. This modulator allows a high degree of miniaturization and commonality between code channels. Flexibility in waveform generation is also introduced in this architecture. The R&D effort led to miniaturized custom designs that enhanced performance. The payload implementation approach for IIR-M and IIF is also presented. The IIR-M upgrade leveraged our R&D efforts and minimized schedule and cost for deployment. The IIF transmitter implementation leveraged the IIR-M design, reducing the development time. These implementations enhance accuracy and provide onorbit flexibility.


Photorefractive (PR) polymers change their index of refraction upon illumination through a series of electronic phenomena that makes these materials one of the most complex organic systems known. The refractive index change is dynamic and fully reversible, making PR materials very interesting for a large variety of applications such as holography and 3D display. In order to improve the recording speed and achieve videorate for our stereographic display application, we have introduced a new type of electrode geometry where the anode and cathode are in the same plane and are shaped as interpenetrating combs. This type of electrode geometry does not require the sample to be tilted with respect to the writing beams to record the hologram, which is a significant advantage. To monitor the highly non-homogeneous field resulting from this configuration, we used a multiphoton microscope to directly observe the chromophore orientation in situ upon the application of an electric field. Most recently, we developed a fast repetition rate laser (10kHz) where the pulse width can be adjusted from microseconds to milliseconds so that, in conjunction with a ns Q-switched Nd:YAG laser and an externally chopped CW laser, the diffraction efficiency of the material could be measured over 9 orders of magnitude. This measurement helps us better understand the mechanism of grating buildup inside photorefractive polymers.


We read with interest a recently published study on personal exposure of asthmatic children to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), relative to concentrations in outdoor air.1 In their results, the authors did not find:

" . . .significant correlation . . . between each child's weekly mean personal exposures and mean outdoor concentrations for the corresponding periods";

" . . .marked evidence of seasonality" on personal exposure .

They concluded: " . . .at low concentrations, changes in NO2 in outdoor air . . .contribute little to variations …


To the Editor: Many doctors across a broad range of specialties will be expected to insert a chest drain in an elective or emergency situation during their career. However, chest drains can be associated with an unacceptable and under recognised degree of morbidity, and are often inserted by junior and relatively inexperienced medical staff. We wish to highlight a case which serves as a valuable reminder to all clinicians of the potential dangers associated with this common procedure. A 76-year-old female with a history of congestive cardiac failure, chronic renal failure, ischaemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease and atrial fibrillation was admitted to hospital with a few weeks of increasing breathlessness. Examination revealed a tachypnoeic, tachycardic, ill-looking elderly patient with raised jugular venous pressure, bilateral ankle oedema and clinical evidence of bilateral pleural effusions, more so on the left. These details were clearly documented in the case notes during the post-take ward round. The patient was commenced on intravenous diuretics and it was requested that a chest drain be inserted given the patients respiratory distress, although it was not clearly stipulated which side. The initial hard copy chest radiograph (Figure 1) was subsequently reviewed by a junior doctor and showed what was initially thought to be a large right pleural effusion with a smaller left effusion. On needle aspiration of the right side of the patients chest, straw-coloured pleural fluid was easily obtained and a 24gauge drain subsequently inserted. Within half an hour, the patient had a massive haemoptysis followed by cardiac arrest. A further chest radiograph (Figure 2) showed a large left pleural effusion with the chest drain inserted into the right pleural space. At this point, it was realised that that the initial chest radiograph had been labelled incorrectly. A further drain was inserted into the left pleural cavity, although the resuscitation attempt was unsuccessful. This case illustrates several important points. First, radiographers and radiology departments should have a completely failsafe mechanism by which to correctly label radiographs. Secondly, individuals inserting chest drains should always personally carefully examine patients prior to the procedure and always scrutinise the chest radiograph, especially if clinical findings do not correspond to radiograph interpretation. Review of and reflection upon this case has resulted in a change in procedure of labelling radiographs along with further education of juniors doctors regarding chest drain insertion. It was also felt likely that the massive haemoptysis and subsequent aspiration was directly responsible to the patients ultimate demise (rather than incorrect chest drain insertion per se). Cases such as this can be reported to the National Patient Safety website (http://www.npsa.nhs.uk) with a view to analysis of the incident and implementation of mechanisms to avoid such catastrophic events.


Background: Length of stay in hospital (LOS) is regarded as a useful indicator of morbidity and an important determinant of medical care cost. LOS has been shown to have implications for post injur ...


A series of phosphate glass was prepared and the effect of glass composition on the thermal expansion coefficient was investigated. A promising phosphate laser glass which has a very low thermal expansion coefficient of 68 X 10-7 degree(s)C-1 has been developed, and the thermal, mechanical, spectral, and laser properties of this laser glass are reported.


1. Introduction: Gender and Career in Organisations 2. Biography, Biology and Career 3. Femininity, Masculinity and Organisation 4. Gender at Work 5. Still in the Shadow of the Glass Ceiling? 6. Sexuality, Power and Organisation 7. Gender, Power and Leadership 8. Conclusions


ABSTRACT It was recently demonstrated that the taxonomic concept of Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank, 1781), an ubiquitous, agriculturally and medically important mite species, involved two closely related species, and one of them was described as Tyrophagus communis Fan and Zhang, 2007. We show that the prevailing usage of the name T. putrescentiae includes almost exclusively one of these species, and this usage is not in taxonomic accord with the neotype designated by Robertson (1959). We propose that this neotype fixation for the species T. putrescentiae be set aside under Article 75.6 (ICZN, 1999) and a neotype consistent with the prevailing usage be designated. We verified the synonymy of T. putrescentiae (based on the new neotype) after examining the following taxa with extant types: Tyrophagus americanus (Banks, 1906), T. breviceps (Banks, 1906) n. syn, T. cocciphilus (Banks, 1906) n. syn, T. castellanii (Hirst, 1912), T. australasiae (Oudemans, 1916) (tentative synonymy), T. neotropicus Oudemans, 1917, T. amboinensis Oudemans (1925), T. nadinus (Lombardini, 1944), and T. communis Fan and Zhang, 2007, n. syn. For the taxon T. putrescentiae sensu Fan and Zhang (based on the neotype designated by Robertson) a new name is proposed, T. fanetzhangorum, n. sp. Lectotypes are designated for the following species: T. americanus, T. breviceps, T. cocciphilus, T. castellani, T. australasiae, T. neotropicus, T. amboinensis, and T. nadinus.


We report on a novel quantum cascade laser design that utilizes wide active region quantum wells to create a lasing transition between the second- and first-excited states of the constituent wells. Electroluminescence and lasing spectra confirm the presence of the optical transition at the expected energy, but also show the conventional transition between energy levels resulting from excited and ground states of the original quantum wells. As a result, the laser produces simultaneous dual-wavelength emission at 8.2 µm and 9.3 µm.


On an experimental fluidized bed which is 0.23×0.23m 2, we studied all kinds of effections on steady combustion of papermaking sludge without anxiliary fuels.It shows that papermaking sludge can be burned steadily when the moisture is less than 50%.


This critical review of foresight professionals seeks to analyse their social interests, methodology, epistemological focal domains, capacitating focus, geography and organisational type. The call for a deeper understanding of the practice in the Australian context is made in order for the foundations for a National Foresight Strategy to be laid.


Abstract This article investigates transcultural communication taking film commissions as case study. Film commissions are non-profit organisations looking to attract audiovisual productions to their areas and supply these audiovisual productions with services free of charge. Although relatively recent and little studied, film commissions are spreading fast worldwide. Combining the political economy approach with the most recent production studies, the article contends that film commissions can stimulate transcultural phenomena on three levels. First, they act as intermediaries between the audiovisual production and the host area. Second, they encourage collaboration between different production cultures. Third, they incentivise brand-new collaboration between the audiovisual production and the tourist sector.


A feature system based on the integration of CAD/CAM is proposed in this paper. The system infrastructure and the represention method of part information based on feature, are discussed. At last, the paper also presents the functions and performance of feature modelling recognition subsystem, which are developed on the base of Solid Edge CAD system.


The translation method with GUI comprises: the terminal requires the server for translation data result of the GUI according to object language; the server sends result; the terminal transmits result to the application program. This invention can ensure translation consistency by uniform maintenance, and also saves memory for the terminal.


Abstract In the present frame work, we studied the semi generalized recurrent, semi generalized ϕ-recurrent, extended generalized ϕ-recurrent and concircularly locally ϕ-symmetric on generalized Sasakian space forms.


Tobacco smoking is a permissive factor in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), but the impact on the clinical course has not been established


Motivated by recently published physics based scattering SISO and MIMO channel models in mobile communications [1, 2], a new adaptive channel prediction based on non-stationary polynomial phase signals is proposed. To mitigate the influence of the time-varying amplitudes and to reduce the computation complexity, an iterative estimation of the polynomial phase parameters using the Non-linear instantaneous LS criterion is proposed. Given the polynomial phase parameters, the time-varying amplitudes are estimated using the Kalman filter. The performance of the new predictor is evaluated by Monte Carlo simulations in SISO scenarios with multiple scattering clusters. The new predictor outperforms the classical Linear Prediction and previous prediction methods based on sinusoidal modeling.


The influence of charged particle longitudinal fields on their motion in d omega /dE > 0 systems was studied by means of kinetic equations. The existence of azimuthally limited particle clusters phased by proper fields were analyzed, and a stable shape for a localized plasma cluster was found. (tr-auth)


Mathematical modelling has a key role to play in the design, analysis, optimization and control of material processing technologies. The task of modelling is interdisciplinary, involving materials scientists, process technologists, as well as applied mathematicians. This volume contains contributions on the subject from all branches of mathematical modelling, from researchers who develop models of the microstructural changes that occur during forming, to developers of algorithms and codes as simulation tools, to those who employ such models and tools in an industrial context.


I am a fourth year clinical psychology doctoral student at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) at Rutgers University. I have devoted much of my graduate training to exploring effective tools for the dissemination and implementation of mental health services, with telehealth chief among them. However, until the COVID-19 pandemic hit, I had had no personal experience delivering psychotherapy treatment via virtual platforms. Reviewing Dr. Logan Durland's (2020) lessons from treating Parkinson's disease patients via telephone therapy has served as an excellent guide for navigating treatment, both during the pandemic and in the future.


Background/Objectives: Examination of the connections in a steel structure is of paramount importance and lack of precision in design and implementation of connections in steel structures will cause not only failure in the connection itself but also devastating effects on structural members and thereby entire the structure. Methods/Statistical Analysis: In present study, structural safety is assessed through probabilistic methods and the work mainly tries to make a suitable platform for its performance within the useful life of structure. To this end, the experimental setup for testing these connections - which are proper agents of their performance in a building frame (connection place and a half of joint beam and column) - was modeled in the software ABAQUS and acceleration time history of the frame it is embedded in is included under a set of certain records of the desired site. Results: Connection in a structure with a special frame and moderate height was studied and initially it was determined to join levels of performance with a suitable criteria based on connection failure. Thereafter, the corresponding fragility curves were drawn and then compared with moment-rotation curve and cyclic loading based on joining models which are influenced by nonlinear static analysis and cyclic loading. Conclusion/Application: Pushover and cyclic loading curves of this connection were determined in order to specify level of performance of the connection as per the connection failure.


Diffusion bonding of Si3N4 ceramic and TiAl alloy was achieved using 80μm thick Ni foil as interlayer.The interfacial microstructure was TiAl/Al5Ni2Ti3/AlNi2Ti/Ni3(Ti,Al)/Ni(s,s)+Ni3Si/Si3N4,which was analyzed by SEM,EDS and XRD.The effect of bonding temperature on interfacial microstructure and joining properties of the Si3N4/Ni/TiAl joints were investigated in details.With an increase of temperature,the inter-diffusion rate of alloying elements at the TiAl/Ni and Ni/Si3N4 interfaces increased gradually,which led to an increase in thickness of reaction layers.A porous zone formed between Ni and Si3N4 when the temperature was relatively high,where cracks performed to come forth.The highest shear strength of 104.2 MPa was obtained when the specimen was bonded at 1 000 ℃ for 2 h.Fracture analysis indicated that cracks initiated at the Si3N4/Ni interface and propagated to Si3N4 substrate finally ruptured within ceramic.