CASE 1 A 70-year-old asymptomatic man presented for treatment of recurrent renal cell carcinoma, metastatic to the lungs. Low-dose interferon alfa (IFN) was initiated at 0.5 million units subcutaneously twice daily on protocol. At the 8-week evaluation, he reported a 2-wk history of precipitous decline of vision in the right eye. Visual acuity measured 20/80. Fundoscopic examination demonstrated diffuse disc edema with hemorrhage in the right eye (Fig. 1). A right-sided relative afferent pupillary defect and altitudinal field defect were noted. The left optic nerve was normal. Neurologic evaluation demonstrated no abnormalities. Complete blood count, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, rapid plasma reagin, fibrin split product, protein-S, lupus anticoagulant, factor-V Leiden, plasma homocystine level, antithrombin III, functional protein-C, and 2 glycoprotein levels were normal. MRI of the brain and orbit, carotid duplex and 2D echocardiogram demonstrated no abnormalities. IFN was discontinued. Treatment with oral prednisone (80 mg daily), acetylsalicylic acid (325 mg daily), and brimonidine (1 drop 3 times daily) was initiated. Follow-up examination 6 weeks later demonstrated a decline of vision in the right eye to 20/100, with resolution of disc edema (Fig. 2). Automated Humphrey visual field testing demonstrated a residual altitudinal visual field defect. The patient was maintained on acetylsalicylic acid and brimonidine but visual acuity did not improve in the affected eye.


Abstract : The conditions required to obtain maximum output from a ruby laser as a function of pumping conditions was investigated experimentally for several values of the interferometer base. At minimum distance, the output increases with increased pumping, but at greater distances the output levels off and at still greater distances, it undergoes a maximum, all at the same pumping power. A mechanism is proposed to account for these effects. (Author)


Which rule to follow and which explanation method to use for explaining insurance contract in insurance practice directly concerns whether insurance contract can be smoothly executed and contract dissension fairly solved.Insurance contract is a typical format contract,and the unfavorable explanation rule is a special rule for insurance contract explanation.Hot disputes arise in academy and law communities for the specific application of the unfavorable explanation rule,and there is a tendency of abuse.The general explanation rule should first of all be applied for insurance contract explanation,and then the unfavorable explanation rule be applied.However,there are applicable premises and range for the unfavorable explanation rule.


The bulk transport properties of positive carriers in thin films of a low band-gap conjugated polymer, called APFO-Green5, have been investigated in the ac regime. The frequency-dependent impedance of an ITO/PEDOT:PSS/APFO-Green5/Al structure (where ITO is indium tin oxide and PEDOT:PSS is poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/polystyrene sulphonic acid) was measured as a function of the dc applied bias. The capacitance response at low frequency gave indication of a combination of trapping and double-injection effects, while in the intermediate-high frequency range was determined by the transit time of injected holes. Hole mobility in APFO-Green5 thin films exhibited a Frenkel-like dependence on the applied electric field, with a field-dependent coefficient of around 8×10−3 (V cm−1)−1/2. A hole mobility close to 2×10−5 cm2 V−1 s−1 was achieved at the field of 3.5×105 V cm−1, in excellent agreement with that already reported by using a different bulk investigation technique.


Associations between ambivalence over emotional expression and psychological well-being among rheumatoid arthritis patients and their spouses were investigated. Sixty-nine couples completed questionnaires assessing ambivalence over emotional expression, emotional expressiveness, psychological well-being, and strategies used in coping with arthritis. Associations between the patient's ambivalence and psychological well-being were stronger for those married to a highly ambivalent spouse, although this pattern of results was not found for spouses. Lower psychological well-being among more ambivalent spouses, and to a lesser extent patients, could be partially explained by their greater use of passive and distancing coping strategies. Results emphasize the importance of taking a dyadic approach to the study of psychological functioning among chronically ill patients and their spouses.


The present study was conducted to evaluate the adherence to treatment guidelines in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University. The study assessed the awareness of prescribers, adherence to treatment guidelines and reasons for nonadherence. A questionnaire survey was conducted followed by a retrospective medical review and in-depth interview. The study revealed that 60.9% of key prescribers are aware of Treatment Guidelines. In pediatric patients, adherence was highest in neonatal sepsis (71.7%) and lowest in bronchial asthma (3.3%) and pneumonia (3.3%). In adult patients, adherence was highest in rheumatoid arthritis (100%) and lowest in bronchial asthma (13.3%). Adherence was 29.5% and 52.7% in pediatric and adult patients respectively and difference was highly significant (p<0.001). The adherence was highest with International Guideline (100%), followed by institutional Guideline (71.7%) and National Guideline (22.5%). There is significant variation in extent of adherence in different age group of patients, diseases and categories of guidelines.


There is a crisis that is impacting health care in the Arab nations of the Middle East and in north and west Africa: six countries in this region are on the top-ten list worldwide in terms of diabetes prevalence. Comprising 22 countries with a total population of 350 million people, these nations constitute only about 5% of the total world population. Yet, nearly 20% of the people in Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are diabetic. Not to be forgotten is the likelihood that between 41% (Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE) to 62% (Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, occupied Palestine, Sudan, and Tunisia) of the population is suffering from undiagnosed diabetes. Currently, nearly 10% of all adult deaths in Arab countries are related to the complications of diabetes. This disproportionate prevalence of diabetes within the Arab nations undoubtedly has long-term health implications that will manifest in several ways unless social norms regarding diet and exercise change, along with a serious effort to reconsider government priorities.


Recently, investors have been becoming more interested in market liquidity. Liquidity is regarded as a measure of a booming financial market; market participants are able to smoothly buy and sell their intended amount at a price close to the market mid-price. When discussing market liquidity in empirical studies, researchers have defined liquidity indicators that are consistent with their research objectives. However, it has not been clarified which market factors affect these indicators. Therefore, we investigated which market factors affect major liquidity indicators by using an artificial market. As a result, the four liquidity indicators Volume, Tightness, Resiliency, and Depth were found to be affected by tick size and investor strategies (fundamental, technical, and noise) among the parameters of the artificial market.


[Objective]To discuss the preservation effect of microwave and fresh- keeping agent on peach branches. [Method]The morphological and physiological indexes of peach branches were determined to investigate effects of microwave power,time and fresh- keeping agent on preservation effect of peach branches. [Result] The results showed that treatment 4 (A2B1C2D3),namely sucrose 50 g/L + silver nitrate 68 mg/L + 8- hydroxyquinoline enjoin 150 mg/L + microwave power 10%,70 s on peach branches preservation works best. The vase life of cut branches was improved 2. 0 d; the fresh weight,flowering rate,protein content increased; shedding wilting rate and MDA content reduced and the ornamental quality was improved. [Conclusion]The study can provide reference basis for preservation technology of peach branches.


Article history: Received August 21, 2016 Received in revised form October 14, 2016 Accepted 15 October 2016 Available online 15 October 2016 Benzyl -L-rhamnopyranoside, prepared by both conventional and microwave assisted glycosidation techniques, was converted into benzyl 2,3-O-isopropylidene-α-Lrhamnopyranoside which after lauroylation followed by removal of isopropylidene group gave the benzyl 4-O-lauroyl-α-L-rhamnopyranoside in good yield. Several derivatives of benzyl 4O-lauroyl-α-L-rhamnopyranoside were prepared and assessed in vitro for their antimicrobial activity against ten human pathogenic bacteria and seven fungi. The structure activity relationship (SAR) study revealed that incorporation of 4-O-lauroyl group in rhamnopyranoside frame work along with 2,3-di-O-acyl group increased the antifungal potentiality of the rhamnopyranosides. © 2017 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved.


Mechanisms for single-event gate rupture (SEGR) in MOS capacitors and linear integrated circuits (ICs ) are explored at ion energies greater than 1 GeV. We find that SEGR thresholds depend strongly on ion energy, but are independent of oxide defects, bias polarity, doping concentration, and ionizing dose. The number of SEGR strikes across a MOS capacitor was measured, and the SEGR response cross section distinctly shows an electric field threshold. The importance of having stiffening and speedup capacitors at the device is discussed.


The unique advantages of UAV with good maneuverability, ease of deployment and control can effectively meet the needs of emergency communications network construction. In order to solve the problem of effective communication security in large-area rescue areas, the idea of using multiple UAVs to construct an emergency relay network was proposed. Under the given mission area, the deployment of this network was studied. First of all, in order to fit the practical application, consider the channel fading to model the UAV coverage area, and propose a UAV relay network model based on connectivity probability. Then, according to the needs of emergency communication scenarios, from the perspective of simplifying the algorithm time complexity and guaranteeing the accuracy of the solution, an algorithm based on simulated annealing for deployment of UAV relay network is proposed. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm has strong effectiveness and stability and can be applied to the deployment of UAV relay network in the context of emergency communications.


OBJECTIVES
The definition of the 2016 diagnostic criteria of fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome and of FM severities was based on studies with clinical samples. We tested if somatic symptom profiles consistent with the symptom pattern of the FM 2016 diagnostic criteria and of severities of FM can be found in the general population.

METHODS
Somatic symptom burden was measured by the Somatic Symptom Scale - 8 in 2,531 persons aged ≥14 years representative for the general German population. We used latent class analysis of SSS-8 items to identify somatic symptom profiles. The profiles were described by their association with age, gender, self-reported disabling somatic disease, psychological symptom burden, illness worries and self-perceived health.

RESULTS
We identified five somatic symptom profiles. The majority of the population (40.9%) had a profile characterised by the absence of bothering symptoms. 5.9% had a profile defined by "considerable bothering" back and extremities pains, fatigue and sleep problems. This symptom profile was associated with older age, self-reported somatic diseases, psychological symptom burden and fair to poor general health. 63.2% of persons meeting FM 2016 criteria belonged to this profile. 17.8% of the sample were characterized by little perturbation by multiple somatic symptoms and good to fair general health. 36.8% of persons meeting FM 2016 criteria belonged to this profile.

CONCLUSIONS
Two somatic symptom profiles consistent with the 2016 FM diagnostic criteria were identified in the general German population. These symptom profiles differed in somatic and psychological symptom burden and general health supporting the distinction of FM severities.


The aim of the study is to design a mathematical model for the effective allotment of construction equipment by type of activity and site. There is also put forward a theoretically substantiated method and the corresponding algorithm for finding the optima l solution of the proposed model. The method has been tested on a case with numeral data, through which its practical applicability is demonstrated.


Electrophoretic karyotypes of strains from the astaxanthin-producing yeast Phaffia rhodozyma have been established. Intact chromosomal DNA molecules released from protoplasts were separated by orthogonal field alternation gel electrophoresis (OFAGE) and contour clamped homogeneous electric field (CHEF). Both small and large chromosomal DNA molecules were resolved simultaneously by optimizing the running conditions. Electrophoretic karyotypes among the Phaffia isolates examined differed significantly. Seven to thirteen chromosomal bands, ranging in size from 0.83 Mb to 3.50 Mb, were resolved, giving total genome sizes of about 15.4 to 23.2 Mb. Ribosomal DNA has been assigned to chromosomal bands using a heterologous gene probe.


tors and their impact on survival, ICUand hospital lengths of stay and costs in cardiac surgical patients [1]. Method: The aim of this study was to assess predictors of T and the impact on ICUand hospital-length of stay and costs in a cardiac surgical patient cohort admitted to our 8 bedded ICU, from 1997 to June 2005. All the pre-, intraand post-operative variables were prospectively put into an electronic database. Patients were divided into: (i) nTG group, not needing a T; (ii) TG group, undergoing a tracheostomy. P values 0.05 were considered significant. Results: A total of 5123 patients with a median (IQR) age of 67 yr (59–73) were admitted during the study period. 63.5% underwent a CABG operation, 22.8% valve surgery and 13.6% aortic and lung surgery. 112 (2.2%) underwent a T with a median (IQR) timing of 8 (5–12) days from the beginning of mechanical ventilation (MV). A logistic regression model allowed us to identify MV length (OR 10.2 95% CI 10.1–10.4), cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) time (OR 1.5 95% CI 1.1–2.3), red blood cell (RBC) (OR 5.1 95% CI 2.5–9.7), fresh frozen plasma (FFP) (OR 2.3 95% CI 1.9–3.5) unit transfusions and VAP (OR 2.1 95% CI 1.5–3.3) as the T independent predictors. Moreover (i) MV length 96 hours, related to a sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 97.7% (Area under ROC: 0.999) and (ii) RBC unit transfusions 4, related to a sensitivity of 93.2% and specificity of 89.5% (Area under ROC: 0.942) were confirmed as best T predictors. FFP unit transfusions and CPB time were related to a lower sensitivity (71.5% and 75%) and specificity (90% and 70%). The cumulative hazard of patient discharging (i) from post-operative ICU to the cardiac surgical ward and (ii) from the cardiac surgical ward to the rehabilitative one, increased more significantly in the nTG group than in TG group (respectively: Log-Rank 260.9, P 0.0000 and Log-Rank 77.1, P 0.0000). The nTG group showed a lower mortality (3.2% vs. 36.6%, P 0.000) than the TG group. Conclusion: This study allowed us to define a predictive model for identifying patients who are likely to undergo a T and to assess the impact of T on ICU and hospital stay, costs and survival. Reference: 1 Goldman SM, Sutter FP, Wertan MA, et al. Outcome improvement and cost reduction in an increasingly morbid cardiac surgery population. Semin Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth 2006; 10(2): 171–175.


Objective To evaluate the methodology of turbidimetric immunoassay for detection of retinol binding protein(RBP)in serum.Methods According to relevant documents of NCCLS,the precision,linearity and accuracy of this method were determined and a clinical application tried.Results Within-day CV was less than 4.0% and between-day CV was less than 5.0%.The performance of anti-jamming was strong,in which hemoglobin(≤4.0 g/L),bilirubin(≤420 μmol/L),triglytceride(≤10 mmol/L.The comparison between imported RBP(Y)and this kit(X)gave following results:Y=1.007 5X+0.002 9,r=0.999 5.There was good correlation between them.According to the statistical data,this kit would be stable after first used.Conclusion The RBP assay kit is convenient,fast,accurate and suitable for automation analysis.The method of particle-enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay can be applied on automatic analyzer for detection of RBP in serum.


This paper presents the results of our system that has participated in the word segmentation task in the Fourth SIGHAN Bakeoff. Our system consists of several basic components which include the preprocessing, token identification and the post-processing. An agent-based approach is introduced to identify the weak segmentation points. Our system has participated in two open and five closed tracks in five major corpora. Our results have attained top five in most of the tracks in the bakeoff. In particular, it is ranked first in the open track of the corpus from Academia Sinica, second in the closed track of the corpus from City University of Hong Kong, third in two closed tracks of the corpora from State Language Commission of P.R.C. and Academia Sinica.


There is evidence to suggest that childhood leukemia may be initiated in utero [1]. One of the perinatal factors found to be associated with an increased risk of childhood acute leukemia (CAL) is high birth weight. Two recent meta-analyses of published studies [2,3] concluded that children with birth weight 4000 g were at significantly higher risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) compared with children with lower birth weight. Few studies investigating the relationship between risk of CAL and birth weight have taken into account gestational age, the key determinant of birth weight [4–7]. To understand potential biological mechanisms that can explain the link between high birth weight and risk of CAL, it is important to differentiate between absolute and relative high birth weight. Our study investigated the risk of CAL in relation to birth weight, standardized birth weight, and gestational age in a record linkage study using two high quality population-based datasets, the Particulate Matter and Perinatal Events Research (PAMPER) study birth record dataset and the Northern Region Young Persons' Malignant Disease Registry (NRYPMDR). The PAMPER study birth population consists of all singleton births during 1961–1992 to mothers resident in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England (population approximately 260 000). A computer birth record database was constructed using data from several sources, including paper-based neonatal records from the two major city maternity hospitals and data on home births (1961–1973) from birth ledgers containing basic information only. Hospital records contained data on maternal and infant characteristics, including maternal full name, date of birth or age in years, home address at delivery, child's name, date of birth, and sex, and birth outcomes (birth weight, gestational age, stillbirth, and infant death). The details of the PAMPER study area, database construction, completeness, and accuracy of collected data are published elsewhere [8]. Home births, which constituted about a third of all births in the early 1960s but reduced to 51% by 1973, were recorded in birth ledgers only, which resulted in missing information on birth weight and gestational age for those births [8]. The PAMPER database was extended to include records on 1993– 2002 births delivered in the large tertiary center (Royal Victoria Infirmary) which in 1993 replaced the two maternity hospitals mentioned above. The NRYPMDR is a population-based registry recording young people, aged under 25 years, diagnosed with malignancies and benign central nervous system tumors and resident in the north of England, since 1968 [9–11]. The registry currently holds information on over 6000 cases of primary malignant disease, including over 1200 cases of leukemia. Registration with the registry is not mandatory, but cases are identified from multiple sources; consultants throughout the region notify the registry of any malignancies in children and young adults, and death certificates and hospital admissions are regularly scrutinized. Overall ascertainment of


The February 1988 issue of The Business Lawyer reported on the Uniform Limited Offering Registration (UULOR") project undertaken by a study group of the Subcommittee on Private Offering Exemption and Simplification of Capital Formation of the State Regulation of Securities Committee ("Study Group") to improve the capital formation process for new and emerging businesses.1 The project addresses the needs of small businesses by creating a simplified uniform registration form for state registration of securities offered pursuant to rule 504 under regulation D.2 Offerings that are registered in states that require delivery of a disclosure document may be made to the public by means of a general solicitation and no resale restrictions are imposed on the securities. The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has recently amended rule 504 to permit offerings of up to $1 million, provided that at least $500,000 is registered under state securities laws.3 The goal of the ULOR project is to fashion a balanced approach to the capital raising process by providing a registration form that small businesses can use easily in several states at a reduced cost without sacrificing investor protection. The previous article discusses the companies that are eligible to use the form and the limitations on the use of the form.


Encouraged by recent developments in AdS/QCD models for the light quark system, we study heavy quarkonium in the framework of the AdS/QCD models. We calculate the masses of cc vector meson states using the AdS/QCD models at zero and at finite temperature. Among the models adopted in this work, we find that the soft-wall model describes the low-lying heavy quark meson states at zero temperature relatively well. At finite temperature, we observe that once the bound state is above T{sub c}, its mass will increase with temperature until it dissociates at a temperature of around 494 MeV. It is shown that the dissociation temperature is fixed by the infrared cutoff of the models. The present model serves as a unified nonperturbative model to investigate the properties of bound quarkonium states above T{sub c}.


In this article, we focus on improving the sub-gradient extra-gradient method to find a solution to the problems of pseudo-monotone equilibrium in a real Hilbert space. The weak convergence of our method is well-established based on the standard assumptions on a bifunction. We also present the application of our results that enable to solve numerically the pseudo-monotone and monotone variational inequality problems, in addition to the particular presumptions required by the operator. We have used various numerical examples to support our well-proved convergence results, and we can show that the proposed method involves a considerable influence over-running time and the total number of iterations.


Purpose
This study aims to broaches several endemic challenges for academics who support doctoral writing: writers are emotionally protective of their own writing; writing a thesis in English as a second language is a challenging, complex task; and advising across cultures is delicate. Giving constructive feedback kindly, but with the rigour needed to raise writing quality can seem daunting. Addressing those issues, the authors offer a novel way of working with writing feedback across cultures.

Design/methodology/approach
The case study research team of two candidates and one supervisor stumbled onto an effective way of working across cultural and institutional difference. What began as advisory feedback on doctoral writing became an effective collaborative analysis of prose meaning-making. The authors reflected separately and collectively on how this happened, analysed reflections and this narrative inquiry approach led to theories of use to writing feedback practice.

Findings
The authors cross between theory and praxis, showing that advisors and supervisors can create Bhabha's post-colonial third space (a promising social space that sits between cultures, beyond hierarchies, where new ways of thinking can be collaboratively generated) as a working environment for international doctoral writing feedback. Within this zone, Brechtian alienation, a theory from theatre practice, is applied to prompt emotional detachment that enables focus on writing clearly in academic English.

Research limitations/implications
Arguably the writing feedback session the authors described remains bound by the generic expectations of a western education system. The study is exegetical, humanities reading of practice, rather than a social science gathering of empirical data. Yet the humanities approach suits the point that a change of language, attitude and theory can give positive leverage with doctoral writing feedback.

Practical implications
The authors provide a novel practical method of supporting international doctoral candidates' writing with feedback across cultures. It entails attracting the writers' interest in theory and persuading them, via theory, to look objectively and freshly at their own writing. Also backed by theory, a theoretical cross-cultural space allows for discussion about differences and similarities. Detachment from proprietorial emotions and cross-cultural openness enables productive work amongst the mechanics of clear academic English text.

Originality/value
Underpinned by sociocultural and metacognitive approaches to learning, reflection from student and supervisor perspectives (the data), and oriented by theory, the authors propose another strategy for supporting doctoral writing across cultures. The authors demonstrate a third space approach for writing feedback across cultures, showing how to operationalise theory.


The new learning system that is published by the Indonesian government as a prevention due to Covid-19 brings a new challenge for the teachers particularly in implementing 21st century learning. Teachers are suggested to do a reflection toward the online learning that has been conducted to find out the teaching and learning process quality. This study is aimed at investigating the level of teachers' reflective thinking in which it was conducted in SMAN 2 Singaraja. There were two teachers involved in this study and the data were collected through the spreading of questionnaire and interview. The data were analyzed by using interactive data analysis to check the validity and reliability. The results showed that the awareness of the teacher in carrying out a process of reflection on learning during the online learning period. The efforts made by the English teacher at SMA N 2 Singaraja in improving the quality of learning both by discussing and innovating need to be used as an example for other teachers. In the future, of course, it is hoped that a better online learning process and learning objectives can be maximally achieved


We present the status of ATLAS liquid argon electromagnetic calorimeter and hadronic end-cap calorimeter simulations with the GEANT4 toolkit. Comparisons with test beam data and GEANT3 simulations are performed. The first experience of "accordion" calorimeter implementation in GEANT4 is discussed. A new type of GEANT4 volume is under investigation.


The University of Alabama and the Center for Watershed Protection were awarded an EPA Office of Water 104(b)3 grant in 2001 to collect and evaluate stormwater data from a representative number of NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) MS4 (municipal separate storm sewer system) stormwater permit holders. The monitoring data collected over nearly a ten-year period from more than 200 municipalities throughout the country have a great potential in characterizing the quality of stormwater runoff and comparing it against historical benchmarks. This project is creating a national database of stormwater monitoring data collected as part of the existing stormwater permit program, providing a scientific analysis of the data, and providing recommendations for improving the quality and management value of future NPDES monitoring efforts. Each data set is receiving a quality assurance/quality control review based on reasonableness of data, extreme values, relationships among parameters, sampling methods, and a review of the analytical methods. The statistical analyses are being conducted at several levels. Probability plots are used to identify range, randomness and normality. Clustering and principal component analyses are utilized to characterize significant factors affecting the data patterns.


This article reports on the results of a project which used a social network site to support students on a year abroad and foster informal learning, particularly in the area of intercultural communication. The project employed a peer-mentoring structure to solve the problem of role conflict, in which users of these sites may feel some tension as the academic and social dimensions – two contexts usually kept fairly separate – of their lives collide. This article describes how students used the site, reports on the benefits of the project to both students and mentors, and sets out some recommendations for increasing the sustainability of social network sites as pedagogical tools in other educational contexts.


A methodology for building pragmatic physics based models (Zoric et al., 2015b) is here adapted to a use-case in the steel industry. The challenge is to predict the erosion of steel ladle linings, such that the model can support operators to decide if the lade lining can be used one more time or not. If the ladle has too thin lining 140 tons of hot liquid steel may escape out of the ladle, with huge consequences for workers and plant. The development was done with a very small core team (two developers), which is typical for many industrial developments. The adopted workflow for the development, challenges that were faced, and some model results are presented. One key learning is that development of models should allow time for maturing the process understanding, and time should be given for many iterations by"questions-responses and actions"at the various levels in the model development. The good interactions between development team and industry case owner is an important success factor. In this case the results of using the PPBM (Pragmatism in physics-based modelling) were good thanks to very successful interaction between development team and industry case owner. Combining or extending the model with use of ML methods and cognition-related methods, such as knowledge graphs and self-adaptive algorithms is discussed.


Author Institution: Department of Chemistry, The University of Arizona; Division of Geological and Planelary Sciences 170-25, California Institute of Technology


Written by Shen Congwen as the representative work of The Western Hunan Novels,Border Town is not only a madrigal of melody and grieve,but an ode of freshness and exquisiteness as well.It reflects the writer's deep love for his hometown,his praise of the nature and his artistic construction of the beauty of human nature.Characters in this book are the incarnations of the true,the good and the beautiful,such as the good and righteous captain,the generous Shunshun,the brave young brothers,and especially Cuicui,the most moving image,all of whom are so humane and touching.The writer attempts to display the healthy,exquisite and natural life-style which he advocates by presenting a picture of beautiful natural scenery,simple folk custom,mellow human nature and sincere sentiment.


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> He who has never hoped can never despair.
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> George Bernard Shaw
It is well known that Canadians participate in the medical tourism industry as patients, investors, and business people, but there is very little research examining the magnitude of the issue.[1][2] In a


Academic research is increasingly required to demonstrate economic and policy relevance, with this becoming a key metric by which the success of research projects are being judged. Furthermore, the active, as opposed to passive, participation of citizens in science is now encouraged through dissemination and outreach, using, for example, co-production techniques. These non-traditional academic impacts have become a key component of a number of funding agency calls, most notably the European Union's research funding programme Horizon 2020. However, exactly how measurable these 'impacts' are, particularly social and policy impacts, is unclear as there is not an obvious metric. Additionally, there is no standardised approach to assessing research impact recognised in the social sciences. Using a case study which describes the experience of using public engagement seminars as a means to disseminate academic research to stakeholder communities, this article aims to develop an impact assessment strategy to measure societal impact applicable in the social sciences. Based on recommendations in the UK Research Excellence Framework, amongst other literature, we put forward three steps to better capture research 'impact' in a more meaningful way in future research projects: (i) establish the quality of the academic research, (ii) choose appropriate discipline-specific criteria for measuring societal impact and (iii) choose appropriate measurable indicators. Other useful insights include the difficulty of motivating public interest in topics that are no longer high profile or emotive, and hence the necessity to provide access to research findings as early as possible in the research cycle. The article concludes with a discussion of the difficulties of measuring 'impact' in a meaningful sense.


The hemoglobin (Hb) and the serum albumin (S.Alb) concentration commonly rise during seated, conventional thrice‐weekly 4 to 4.5 hr hemodialysis (CHD) as a result of rapid fluid removal from the intravascular compartment. Conversely, in long, slow, recumbent nocturnal home hemodialysis (NHHD), the intra‐dialytic S.Alb concentration has been shown to fall. In normal human physiology, plasma volume expansion rapidly follows recumbency and is sustained until a resumption of an upright position re‐induces plasma volume contraction. The plasma protein dilution of recumbency has been suggested as the mechanism behind this finding in NHHD. Our retrospective analysis of 585 consecutive measurements of predialysis and postdialysis S.Alb and Hb taken from 71 NHHD patients confirmed an intra‐dialytic fall in S.Alb (0.99% in alternate night NHHD and 1.4% in 6 nights/week NHHD) compared with an 8.4% rise in a control group of 104 CHD patients (p<0.001). Although the NHHD intra‐dialytic Hb rose (3.8% in alternate night NHHD and 2.6% in 6 nights/week NHHD), this rise was significantly greater (8%) in CHD patients (p<0.001), and as physiological data confirm that recumbent dilution for albumin is greater than that for Hb, this may provide the explanation. We conclude that NHHD provides a more physiological volume milieu with the normal physiological dilution mechanisms of recumbency still operating despite the slow, steady volume reduction that accompanied longer hour and more frequent dialysis. These mechanisms are subverted, however, in CHD by the more‐aggressive plasma contraction needed to attain adequate control of the intravascular volume in the face of shorter hour, less‐frequent dialysis.


This study aimed at investigating whether conformity in the experimental setting suggested by Asch was particularly related to American culture and less likely to be replicable elsewhere - e.g. in Portugal - as has been suggested more recently. Thus, Asch's classic conformity and independence experiment was replicated, using women psychology students in a Portuguese university as minority of one, unanimous majority group, and control S s. The original procedure was re-enacted as similarly as possible using a computer program. Among "critical" S s 59% conformed at least once, 28% yielded three to twelve times. Among control S s 27% erred at least once, 3.3% made more than three errors. These differences between critical and control S s were significant. Thus, recent university students in Portugal showed that the degree of conformity to a unanimous peer-group opinion remains observable. They reported considerable distress under the group pressure.


For several decades silica-based optical fibres have been used for telecommunication and sensor purposes. The single-mode fibre is frequently employed in long-distance networks, whereas the multi-mode fibre is the preferred means of signal transport in campus and in-building networks. Because of the huge bandwidth of optical fibres in comparison to its electrical wireless and copper-based counterparts, the demand for optical fibres keeps increasing. In a competitive market, fibre manufacturers aim to produce ever better fibres that are as cheap and easy to employ as possible. As fibre research, development and manufacturing is a mature discipline, improvements in fibre design can only be achieved through the construction of robust, accurate and efficient numerical fibre models for the computation of those quantities that determine the behaviour of the fibre. We have developed a modular software code, based on Maxwell's equations, to compute these quantities in a vectorial full-wave way for both single-mode and multi-mode optical fibres. Key is the refractive-index profile, or, more specifically, the dopant profile, as it defines the propagation, splicing and bending-loss characteristics of the fibre. For the single-mode fibre, the fibre quantities that we have concentrated on are dispersion, dispersion slope, mode-field diameter, effective area, bending loss, effective and theoretical cut-off wavelength and MAC-value. We highlight one fibre quantity in particular, viz. the computation of the bending loss in a single-mode fibre. Many approximate modelling techniques have been developed to estimate this loss in a fast way. Our numerical scheme, however, is the first rigorous one, as we have performed a vectorial full-wave analysis of the bent optical fibre. In this context, triple integrals involving products of Bessel functions with large, complex order and argument appear. Due to cancellations in the pertaining computation, a high relative accuracy is needed for the computation of each product. As a result, it takes weeks on a contemporary computer to compute the bending loss as a function of the radius of curvature. We have used the vectorial full-wave bending-loss results to determine the most appropriate approximate method. Subsequently, we have extended that approximate method to compute the bending losses of higher-order modes, since the required effective cut-off wavelength depends on the bending loss of the first higher-order mode. The selected approximate method has been used in the ensuing bending-loss calculations. Since the fibre properties are often conflicting, it is a challenging task to adapt the radial dopant profile to meet a set of predefined design goals. A design goal is a combination of desired values for (some of) the aforementioned fibre quantities, and can mathematically be translated into a cost function. The minimisation of this cost function provides us with the optimal dopant profile for that specific set. For the single-mode fibre, we have performed this minimisation for piecewise-linear profiles, by employing various global and gradient-based local optimisation strategies to speed up the design step considerably. Frequently,these optimisation strategies lead to counter-intuitive dopant profile designs that could not have been contrived otherwise. We have selected a deliberate mix of several optimisation routines and have compared their performances. Perhaps the most important conclusion is that there still appears to be room for improvement in the design of the radial dopant profile of commercially available fibres. For the multi-mode fibre, vectorial full-wave optimisation is not feasible yet because of the long computation times for the large number of propagating modes. Still, our numerical scheme allows for a manual fine-tuning of the popular power-law profile to minimise differential mode delay. Further, we have included mode coupling and differential mode attenuation in our model to obtain intensity patterns that match closely with measurements. We have also analysed the influence of profile variations, e.g. on-axis dips and kinks, on the intensity pattern. A selective excitation of different mode groups in a multi-mode fibre, offers the possibility to create several independent transmission channels, and thus a higher information capacity. Recently, the feasibility of this so-called mode group diversity multiplexing technique has been demonstrated. Simulations provide us with a means to better understand its operation and possibly increase its efficiency. The channel separation may be enhanced by employing a lens between the fibre and the detector, which is called mode-selective spatial filtering. Our numerical simulations of a mode group diversity multiplexing link, with and without mode-selective spatial filtering, are in agreement with the measurements. The above discussion makes clear that the developed software code has a wide range of applicability. Moreover, it is built in a modular way and thus extensions, like the inclusion of more fibre quantities or different profile dopants, are straightforward.


Corn cultivation continually demands new technologies, since average yields can still be increased. This study aimed to evaluate the response of high-yield corn to humic acids, isolated from organic manure compost, with or without the application of lime and fertilizer. The experiment was conducted at Milhão® (http://www.omilhao.com.br) in Florestal, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Three treatments were used: (a) control, without liming, fertilization, or humic acids; (b) conventional farm cultivation, with liming and fertilization; (c) liming, fertilization, and humic acids applied to seeds. The experiment design was a randomized block with five replicates (fifteen experimental units). Lime was applied at 1.6 Mg ha-1, incorporated into total area. Fertilization treatments included 300 kg ha-1 NPK 08-28-16 at sowing, and 500 kg ha-1 NPK 20-00-20 in coverage. The concentration of humic acids used in both seed treatment was 10 mmol L-1 of C. Biometrics and biomass productivity were evaluated at harvest time. Humic acids, whether applied as a seed coating, increased yield by ~15% higher than conventional farm cultivation, and this difference was statistically significant. Therefore, the use of humic acids based plant regulators is positive and complementary to the inputs generally used for corn yield.


OBJECTIVE:To study the preparation of 5% albumin microspheres by sonication and the possible mechanism of microsphere forming.METHODS:The preparation technic was optimized with orthogonal design.The microsphere diameter was measured with Coulter multisizer and the outward apperance was observed with light and electronic microscope.RESUL_TS:The optimal preparation technic was as follows:5% albumin in NS,ultrasound power at 9th grade and 60 seconds of sonication.CONCLUSION:The albumin microspheres filled with air can be successfully prepared with orthogonal design and can be effectively used in intravenous myocardial contrast echocardiography.


PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES
To examine relationships among pain intensity, interference in daily life because of pain, reported pain relief, and analgesics prescribed in hospitalized patients with cancer.

DESIGN
Cross-sectional, descriptive.

SETTING
The internal medicine services of two acute-care facilities, an academic medical center, and a community hospital in the northeastern United States.

SAMPLE
176 patients with cancer, 139 of whom reported pain during hospitalization. Mean age of the sample was 59 years, 50% were women, and 79% were Caucasian.

METHODS
Patients were interviewed in their hospital rooms to obtain information about the major variables using the Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form and the Pain Management Index. Demographic, clinical, and analgesic prescription data were obtained from patients' medical records.

MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES
Pain intensity, pain-related interference, and pain relief analgesic adequacy.

FINDINGS
The prevalence of pain in the sample of 176 patients was 79%. Of the 139 patients who experienced pain during hospitalization, a strong positive correlation was found between worst pain intensity and interference, which was not appreciably altered by surgery or procedures conducted during hospitalization. Although patients with metastatic disease reported greater pain intensity and interference than patients without metastases, they were more likely to have adequate analgesics prescribed.

CONCLUSION
Findings suggest that pain interferes with daily life and that higher levels of pain produce greater interference. Adequate analgesics were prescribed for a majority of the patients, yet levels of worst pain remained severe for 46% of the sample.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE
These findings reinforce the need to assess and treat pain in hospitalized patients with cancer. Nurses need to be aware of the prescribed dose of analgesics and administer a dose that provides adequate pain relief.


Environmental pollution and global warming are of great concern for life existence. Hazards to health and change in climate are among these effects that are caused by the global warming and pollution. Many gases cause these phenomena such as carbon dioxide that comes from burning processes and manufacturing processes as well as fermentation processes. Any method of utilizing such gas will be helpful, especially if this method converts it into useful products. This paper will deal with reforming methods to utilize carbon dioxide and convert it into synthesis gas that is considered as feed for chemical and petrochemical industries.


Extraction of zinc with 3-methyl-l-phenyl-4trifluoroacetyl-pyrazolin-5-one /FAP/ into chloroform has been investigated as a function of pH. The extraction is masked with cyanide and citrate ions. The extracted zinc can be quantitatively stripped into appropriate aqueous solutions. The distribution data of other metal ions show that zinc can be separated from a number of elements~ Few possible applications of such separations from analytical and radiochenica! point of view have been suggested.


A simple gas collection apparatus based on the principles of a Torricelli tube has been designed and built to measure gas volume yields and flow rates. This instrument is routinely used to monitor and collect methane gas released during methane hydrate dissociation experiments. It is easily and inexpensively built, operates at ambient pressures and temperatures, and measures gas volumes of up to 7 L to a precision of about 15 ml (about 0.0025 mol). It is capable of measuring gas flow rates varying from more than 103 to less than 10−1 ml/min during gas evolution events that span minutes to several days. We have obtained a highly reproducible hydrate number of n=5.891 with a propagated uncertainty of ±0.020 for synthetic methane hydrate.


Although there is evidence that interest in Croatian literature in the Englishspeaking world is on the rise (primarily in newer Croatian literature), the fortune of Marko MaruliÊ in English translation is modest. To date, only Judita has been translated fully into English, while the Split master's other worthy Croatian works remain only partially translated and mostly untranslated. This is both unfortunate and ironic: unfortunate because an important body of work of one of Europe's leading Humanist/Renaissance writers remains relatively unknown in the Englishspeaking world; ironic because MaruliÊ was well-known in England, as well as in other parts of Europe through his Latin works during his own lifetime. Moreover, English boasts of a rich tradition of producing new translations of past literary masters practically with each successive generation (e.g. in the last 10 years two new translations of Homer's The Odyssey and one of Iliad appeared, one new translation of the Persian classic Gilgamesh, and a new translation of Beowulf). Nonetheless, the little of MaruliÊ that we have in English provides, for the most part, a helpful basis for moving forward and correcting the gap with fuller and up-todate translations.


Based on the literature research at home and abroad, based on stakeholder theory as foundation for this research,in combination with the actual operation situation of Chinese Super League to construct a framework of stakeholder in Chinese Super League,and analysis of impact on each stakeholder for the retirement of Wuhan Guanggu Team.


1) Since 1929 linkage studies were begun in order to get a fundamental knowledge to the genetics in einkorn-wheats, Triticum aegilopoides var. boeoticum and T. monococcum var. vulgare. The former species is assumed to be the standard type of the latter. The F1 hybrids showed in most cases aegilopoides- or nearly aegilopoides-characters.2) A linkage group involving 3 genes is established.sca1 (scabra)....One of the duplicate genes for pubescent leaf-blades. The phenotypes corresponding to the normal alleles of sca1 and sca2 are apparently different (Fig. 1). The gene is recessive to its normal allele+ of T. aegilopoides.gla1 (glabrescens)....One of the duplicate genes for hairiness of the rachis (Fig. 2). Recessive to its normal allele+.his (hispidulus)....A recessive gene for hairy nodes (Fig. 3). The normal allele+ of the gene is so far completely linked with a gene for pubescence on sheaths.3) The linkage relationship is shown in Fig. 4.


1H NMR spectroscopy is presented as a routine analysis for diesel mixed with biodiesel and gasoline. Results of NMR spectroscopy and the orthogonal gas chromatography method show identical results.


We consider the teleportation of quantum information consisting of the quantum state of a set S1 of N two-level systems (TLSs), using EPR entangled state consisting of set S2⊕S3 where set S2 has M TLSs and set S3 has N TLSs. The Bell state measurement is done on set S1⊕S2 and a unitary transformation, dependent on this result, on the quantum state of set S3 generates a replica of the original state of set S1. We show rigorously that the teleportation is possible only if M ≥ N.


k-mean [1] is one of the most important algorithm for Clustering. Major problem of using k-mean type algorithms in Data mining is selection of variables (attributes). k-meanalgorithm can not select variablesautomatically because they treat all variables equally in clustering process that result in poor clustering. To obtain good clustering results it is important to identify the subset of variables from all variables. So that subset of variables can be used for clustering. New k-mean type clustering algorithm called W-k-mean [2] that can automatically calculate variable weights. So the algorithm can be used as variable selection in data mining application where large and complex real data are often involved. This paper gives detail information about k-mean and W-k-mean algorithms and their performance.


AIM To investigate the effect of Hemin on the production of endogenous CO and the expression of PDGF B gene in rat lung tissue, and discuss the mechanism by which Hemin decreases the right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) and ameliorated the vascular remodeling of pulmonary artery in the hypoxic pulmonary hypertension rats. METHODS The rat model of hypoxic pulmonary hypertension were recreated by intermittent normal pressure hypoxia (10% O 2). Right ventricular systolic pressure was measured by right ventricular catheter. The quantity of carbon monoxide hemoglobin (COHb) in rat arterial blood was examined by double wavelength spectrophotometry. Expression of PDGF B and PCNA protein were determined by immunohistochemistry staining. PDGF B mRNA was examined by in situ hybridization. RESULTS ① The in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry staining in the wall of intra acinar pulmonary arteries (IAPA) of normal rats were negative, but positive in hypoxic rats. The quantity of COHb in the arterial blood of hypoxic rats was higher than that of normal rats( P 0 01). ②After treated with Hemin, the quantity of COHb in arterial blood increased( P 0 05). Compared with the hypoxic rats, the level of PDGF B mRNA and the expression of PDGF B, PCNA proteins were decreased( P 0 01, or P 0 05). CONCLUSION Hemin can induce the production of endogenous CO, and suppress the hypoxic remodeling of pulmonary artery by inhibiting the expression of PDGF B gene.


The mechanism of "cold-emission" caused by high electric field gradients typical of future linacs is studied. The mechanism was studied by molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of a nanoscale copper tip on a surface of an rf-cavity electrode that is capable of revealing temperature effects. In this MD method, the equations of motion of interacting particles are solved numerically and appropriate initial and boundary conditions are applied. According to the results, the vacuum inside the high-gradient rf cavity should contain a noticeable presence of nanometer-size chunks that evaporated from various intrusions that exist on the real cavity surface by an rf field. A critical electrical evaporation field was obtained for temperatures that range from room up to the melting point of bulk Cu. The simulation results were compared with available data on FIM tip fracture in a dc electric field.


A novel chitosan derivative has been synthesized by the dispersible nano-SiO2 (DNS), succinic anhydride, and chitosan in two steps. The structure and morphology of the new material are characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscope. Thermogravimetric studies show improvement in thermal character. The effects of initial pH, adsorption time, adsorbent dosage and temperature have also been studied. The adsorption equilibrium data are fitted with the Langmuir isotherm (R = 0.999), which reveals that the maximum capacity for monolayer saturation is 3.9108 mmol·g -1 . Chitosan derivative shows stronger adsorption than chitosan. The optimal adsorption conditions of chitosan derivative are found to be pH 5.0, time 4 h, and adsorbent dose 0.1 g respectively.


The rate of information systems and/or information technology failures even with the existence of risk management models which are to help reduce IT failures necessitated this thesis. To reduce the IT failures, companies need to understand that different critical factors such as involving both risk management staff and non risk management staff underlie effective risk management. This essay presents a coherent theoretical framework of the critical factors for successful risk management, for instance, educating non risk management on risk identification and monitoring and choosing risk management models according to certain qualities, from various scientific articles within IT/IS research. The theoretical framework was put to test by collecting empirical data through structured interviews of various managers with titles such as Chief Information Officer, Chief Technology Officer (CTO), and IT manager and so on responsible for risk management issues in ten (10) purposefully sampled IT projects in Egypt. The findings of this study indicate that critical factors have specific impact on risk management models and effectiveness of risk management in general. Specifically, we found that critical factors such as the essential features of information system: technology, information, people, and system-hardware and software; the qualities of risk models: clarity, practicality of use, completeness and adaptability; effective communication between risk management staff and other staff; and proper coordination of the resources in organizations are important to effective risk management as indicated by the responses of the interviewees. In the same vein, our findings indicate that the extent to which companies" apply risk management frameworks depends on the companies" identification of their major risks and the difficulty in managing them. Furthermore, the study also found that language and political risks to be critical factors for risk management in Egypt. In sum, this paper found that effective risk management depend on underlying critical factors which governs risk management issues from risk management models" selection to models" application in practical risk management environments.


The 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions of chiral five-membered cyclic azomethine ylides, generated in situ from ethyl glyoxylate and protected (3S,4S)-dihydroxypyrrolidines 3 and 6 have been studied. The facial selectivity of the cycloaddition reaction is governed by the steric effect of the substituent on the pyrrolidine ring next to the azomethine ylide functionality, leading in all cases to an exclusive Si face approach of the dipolarophile. The exo/endo selectivity depends on the dipolarophile and on the size of the other substituent on the pyrrolidine ring. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)


The relative transition probabilities at threshold for the photoemission of molecular nitrogen to vibrational levels of the X (2Σ+g), A (2Πu), and B (2Σ+u) states of the N+2 ion have been determined with high resolution threshold photoelectron spectroscopy using synchrotron radiation. These threshold cross sections are found to be strongly influenced by ionizing Rydberg states which are not necessarily apparent in the absorption or photoion spectrum of nitrogen. This interaction leads in the X (2Σ+g) state of N+2 to rotationlike structure in the observed vibrational transitions and in the A (2Πu) state to a smooth but non‐Franck–Condon distribution of vibrational intensities. In addition to the cross section data, the molecular parameters for the X, A, and B states of N2 have been determined.


Scholars of multicultural education urge school administrators to produce curricula in which the heterogeneity found in our public schools becomes an asset and not a barrier. In this survey research, we examined the extent to which secondary school principals in a southeastern state positively viewed the values and principles of multicultural education with regard to shaping their school climate to make certain it reflects the ideals of respect, trust, and high morale for all students. We found that secondary school principals' perceptions as to whether multicultural education can have a positive effect on the school climate were significantly influenced by the socioeconomic status ofthe administrator's community. These findings suggest that when it comes to issues of diversity and multicultural education, outside influences that exist in public education can play a major role in principals' perceptions as to whether or not multiculturalism is seen as something of value.


The Mw=6.3 L'Aquila earthquake, taking place on 6th April 2009 in Italy, caused severe surface deformation. This paper described that the differential interferometric SAR (D-InSAR) technique and ENVISAT ASAR data were used to detect the L'Aquila co-seismic deformation fields. Firstly it introduced the basic principle and data processing flowchart of D-InSAR. Then it introduced the ENVISAT ASAR data and SRTM DEM. And it selected 3 interferometric pairs. It illustrated the procedure of two-pass InSAR data processing. Then it got the earthquake coseismic deformation field. Through interpreting and analyzing the coseismic deformation fields in detailed, it got the maximum deformation about 23cm in LOS direction. At last, it got some valuable conclusions in monitoring the earthquake deformation using two-pass D-InSAR technique. The test proves that SRTM DEM can be used in two-pass D-InSAR for monitoring the earthquake deformation.


In this paper, we study the problem of enhancing the fault tolerance of IEEE 802.11 wireless local area networks in the design stage. We aim to settle proper number of access points (APs) and carefully locate them, such that the system can tolerate AP failures while guaranteeing QoS requirement. Given a set of clients (end-users), each client has a traffic demand for Internet access. The problem of our concern is to find out the minimal number of access points and proper location, such that the fault tolerance and QoS constraint are both satisfied. That is, when there is no AP failure, the actual traffic delivery ratio for each client shall exceed the threshold. When their happens that one AP failed, the clients it served can switch to other APs with reconfiguration of the system, while providing an acceptable bandwidth. We proposed a heuristic algorithm, firstly we place one AP in each candidate place and gradually decrease the APs until no more APs can be deleted, in each step we make fault tolerance checking. Our proposed method can effectively solve the problem of tolerating to access point failure in the design phase of wireless local area networks. Simulations are conducted to show the performance of our proposed method.


Covid-19 affected higher educational institutions not just in Wuhan, China where the virus originated but all other higher educational institutions in 188 countries as of April 06, 2020. Educational countermeasures are taken to continue educating the students despite the COVID-19 predicaments. Based on the author's experiences, research, observations in the academe, COVID-19 guidelines, and the need for alternative solutions, this article introduces how higher education is affected and how it can respond to future challenges. This article recommends to educational institutions to produce studies to proliferate and document the impact of the pandemic to the educational system. There is also a greater need for educational institutions to strengthen the practices in the curriculum and make it more responsive to the learning needs of the students even beyond the conventional classrooms.


The purpose of this comparative study is to improve the predictive accuracy of the cutting force during the turning of Ti-6Al-4V on a lathe machine. By optimizing the machining process parameters such as cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut, the cutting force in the machining process can be improved significantly. Cutting force is one of the crucial characteristics that must be monitored during the cutting process in order to enhance tool life and the surface finish of the workpiece. This paper is based on the experimental dataset of cutting forces collected during the turning of titanium alloy under the Minimum Quantity Lubrication (MQL) condition. To predict the cutting forces, two machine learning techniques are explored. Firstly, a black-box model called an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) is proposed to predict cutting force. Using the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, a two-layered feedforward neural network is built in MATLAB to predict cutting force. The second model to be implemented was the Genetic Algorithm (GA), a white-box model. GA is an optimization technique which is based on Darwinian theories. It is a probabilistic method of searching, unlike most other search algorithms, which require definite inputs. Using symbolic regression in HeuristicLab, a GA model is developed to estimate cutting force. The anticipated values of cutting forces for both models were compared. Since the ANN model had fewer errors, it was ascertained that the particular model is preferable for machining process optimization.


The nature of the cubic-like state in the lead-free piezoelectric ceramics 0.5K0.5Na0.5NbO3-0.5Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3 (KNN-50BNT) has been examined in detail by synchrotron x-ray diffraction (SD), selected-area electron diffraction (SAED), neutron diffraction (ND), and temperature-dependent dielectric characterization. The SD pattern of KNN-50BNT presents a pure perovskite structure with pseudocubic symmetry. However, superlattice reflections were observed by SAED and completely indexed by tetragonal symmetry with P4bm space group in ND pattern. The relaxor behavior of KNN-50BNT is compared with Pb-based and Ba-based relaxors and discussed in the framework of the Vogel-Fulcher law and the new glass model. The KNN-50BNT ceramic exhibits the strongest dielectric dispersion among them.


The most commonly used technique in networking nowadays is packet switching. It has become one of the important infrastructure elements in the communication society. Time-division multiplexing (TDM) and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) over Ethernet is regarded as an economical and efficient scheme in the mid-distance of TDM or (SDH) interconnections. This paper focus on the design and analysis of the E1 to Ethernet protocol converter (Gateway), it based on the frame granularity scheme which takes into account of miniaturization, power, cost and time delay of companding reduction. The E1 to new Ethernet (LAN) link protocol converter designed in this paper utilizes universal programmable devices. A new approach is proposed, modeled and then simulated by using (VHDL) code and implemented in Spartan 3E kit. In high speed networks, packet processing is relatively expensive while bandwidth is cheap. The proposed approach considers the most important factor affecting the performance of high speed networks. These are packet processing time, throughput, and packet efficiency. Packet processing time is an issue in real time communications. As consequences, real time signal quality (like the voice) might be degraded severely when the process time exceed its limits. In this paper, the simulation results show that the active mode of the frame payload effectively improves the performance of the Ethernet protocol. In E1 line, 36% bandwidth is saved at half traffic load of the maximum.


Vascularized omental lymphatic transplant (VOLT) is an increasingly popular treatment of extremity lymphedema given its promising donor site. While the success of VOLT in the treatment of lymphedema has been reported previously, several questions remain.


The present paper deals with indigenous taxa of Angiosperm belonging to family Bombacaceae. It is reported as an addition to the flora of Valsad District and a new record from wild areas of the Valsad. The paper envisages citation, detailed, description, flowering and fruiting time, followed by ecological notes along with photographs and longitudinal and latitudinal and height of the area is also provided & mention.


Objective To determine whether the insulin resistance syndrome is associated with reduced fetal growth and maternal undernutrition.Methods Six hundred and twenty seven men and women (mean age,45 years),whose mothers′ obstetric records were preserved,were followed up for a prospective study.The 627 adult offspring′s blood pressure,plasma glucose levels,insulin levels during an oral glucose tolerance test,and blood lipid levels were assayed.The main explanatory variables were mothers′ body mass index during pregnancy and offspring′s birthweight and adult body size.Results Given the sex and current body mass index disregarded,low birthweight was associated with elevated plasma glucose level,insulin level,triglyceride concentration,and blood pressure.For every 1 kg increase in birthweight,systolic blood pressure decreased by 2 9 mm Hg (95%CI,0 3~5 4 mm Hg) and the 2 hour plasma glucose level decreased by 5 1% ( 95%CI,0 7%~9 3%).Low maternal body mass index in early and late pregnancy was associated with elevated levels of plasma glucose,insulin,and triglycerides in adult offspring but was not associated with elevated blood pressure.Conclusion Risk of insulin resistance syndrome may be partially from progravid low maternal body mass index and consequent fetal undernutrition.This risk is independent of what associate with adult obesity.In developing countries such as China,especially in their poverty areas,to improve the nutriture of girls and young women may offer a long term benefit to offspring.


The aim of the article is to analyze the concepts of natural law, political law, and divine law in the thought of Rabbi Josef Albo. The article concludes that according to R. Albo, the true divine law has something natural. Humans can understand by themselves that natural law is not developed enough to assure their needs. They can comprehend as well that only divine law can be a good political law, and thus they draw the natural conclusion that they need divine revelation and divine law.


Resilience and high availability are being considered as essential requirements in 5G networks. To fullfil these requirements, the integration of a satellite component within mobile backhaul networks is regarded as a compelling proposition to provide backup connectivity to critical cell sites and divert traffic from congested areas so that a limited capacity in their terrestrial links could be supplemented during peak-time or even replaced in case of total/partial failure or maintenance. Sustained in an architectural framework that enables the integration and management of the satellite capacity as a constituent part of a SDN-based traffic engineered mobile backhaul network, this paper develops and assesses a traffic distribution strategy that exploits the dynamically steerable satellite capacity provisioned for resilience purposes to maximize a network utility function under both failure and non-failure conditions in the terrestrial links.


Prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases had led to the effective usage of drugs. Ciprofloxacin, a first generation fluoroquinolone was introduced recently, has broad antimicrobial activity. Vitamin A helps in part to regulate the immune system. Vitamin C strengthens and protect the immune system by stimulating the activity of antibodies and immune system cells (Masquelier, 1987). The antioxidant activity of α-tocopherol, which is the most active form of vitamin E in animals protect cell membranes against damaging effect of free radicals, this may contribute to the arrest of development of chronic diseases such as cancer (USDA, 2004), by enhancing immune function (Weitberg and Corvese, 1997). Antibiotics such as chloramphenicol brought a reversible suppression of erythrocyte formation (Keller and Follath, 1998). White blood cells are the cellular part of the immune system and are very important in surveying the body for infection. They find, trap, neutralize and kill invading pathogens. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had assured that ciprofloxacin is a powerful antibiotic taken only after consultation as it is associated with serious side effects. Since this fluroquinolone is used for prolonged periods it will be worth while to study its effect on hematological changes in order to assess its toxic nature, if any, and the study is an attempt to investigate in detail the complete blood count which comprises RBC count, WBC count, differential count and hemoglobin measurement. Packed cell volume and Red blood cell Indices also serve the purpose. To find out the level of the drug dosage at which it show its harmful / beneficial effects in the organs, two different doses were selected in accordance with the body weight of the experimental animal. The drug effects to the physiological system was found out by weighing the body weight of the animal. To verify if any rescue agents minimize / maximize the drug effect three excellent antioxidants vitamins, C, and E were given to animals of separate groups. To learn the recovery of the drug effect withdrawal group was maintained for each dose and durations. To observe the difference in drug effect for a short course and a long course, two different experimental periods were charted as short duration (7 days) and long duration (30 days). Hematology comprises RBC study on the oxygen carrier, WBC the cellular part of immune system and hemoglobin the oxygen transporter were analyzed. A control group was maintained to study the difference, variations and level of impact made by the drug in different experimental groups of rat. Ciprofloxacin alone and in co-administration with vitamin supplementations did not cause any marked changes in the body weight of rats at their dose and durational dependent administration. A dose dependent reduction in red blood cell count was seen after ciprofloxacin administration. Vitamin A and E were more effective in preventing the drug induced adverse reaction than vitamin C at both the duration of treatments and withdrawal of the drug proved better in restoring the red blood counts.


: This retrospective study aimed to assess the differences in serum biomarker levels, specifically thyroid hormone (free T4 and Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone [TSH]) levels, according to the presence or absence of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection. Using a quantitative immunofluorescence assay, we analyzed serum samples from patients with confirmed HBV infection at Dankook University Hospital in Cheonan Province, Republic of Korea, between August 2022 and September 2022. The study population was divided into two groups: Young individuals (<60 years) and older adults (≥60 years). Our findings indicated that differences in thyroid hormone levels between HBV-positive and negative participants were not significant. However, when considering age groups, TSH and free T4 levels in young individuals with HBV-positive serum were 1.78±0.09 µIU/mL (normal range: 0.4-5.0 µIU/mL) and 1.24±0.02 ng/mL (normal range: 0.8-1.9 ng/mL), respectively. In older adults with HBV-positive serum, the corresponding values were 2.22±0.17 µIU/mL and 1.24±0.07 ng/mL, respectively. Our results suggest that the influence of HBV on anti-pituitary hormone levels is age-dependent rather than virus related. Furthermore, the quantitative immunofluorescence method used in this study provides a simpler alternative to enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or electrochemiluminescence immunoassay for assessing serological thyroid hormone levels in patients with HBV. These findings can aid in the interpretation of diagnostic test results and the timely detection of metabolic changes associated with HBV infection.


The invention relates to a support filling mechanism, in particular to an automatic support filling device for penicillin bottles. The device comprises a horizontal feeding mechanism, a bottle separation mechanism, a bottle pulling mechanism, a spiral track and a storage apparatus. The horizontal feeding mechanism comprises a delivery belt and tracks, wherein the tracks are arranged on two sides of the delivery belt, and wall plates are arranged on the rack on the two outer sides of the tracks. The bottle separation mechanism is composed of separation plates which are arranged in parallel and at equal intervals at the tail end of the delivery belt. The device is controlled through a programmable logic controller (PLC) and a human-computer interface touch screen, so that the automation degree is high, operation staff are few in a whole packing process, the labor intensity requirement is low, connection positions are tight, the operation is stable, the device is safe and reliable, bottles cannot be blocked and broken easily, labels on the penicillin bottles cannot be abraded, the packing quality is high, the packing speed is fast, the production efficiency is high, and integrated support separation and filling is achieved.


The invention discloses an intelligent water quality detection device, which comprises a shell, wherein an electric system module providing electric power needed in a system, a control system module, a display module and an operating button unit are arranged in the shell; and a waterway connection terminal connected with a waterway pipeline needing detection is arranged outside the shell, a water quality detection module is arranged in the waterway connection terminal, detected water quality parameter signals flowing by the waterway connection terminal are transmitted to the control system module by the water quality detection module, after internal comparison and computation, the comparison result parameter values are output by the control system module to be displayed in a display module, and the comparison parameter values of the control system module can be set by the operating button unit. The device is convenient to install, is light and small, does not need external electric power, can be used for detecting current water quality condition in real time and displaying the condition intuitively, and is suitable for being arranged at a terminal drinking water source.


The article discusses some proposals for improving the Forest Code of the Russian Federation, logging Rules, linking normative acts on forest management and reforestation. Proposes to clarify the conceptual apparatus. Must give the same definitions in the regulations that reflect the essence of the operations in the process, developing in particular the production phase. This is due to the repetition of inaccuracies of the forest code in subsequent regulations. So, you should clearly define the concept of «harvesting», «logging operation», «partial processing», «removal of wood.» It is proposed to remove certain articles of the Code in view of their possible misinterpretation.


Cloud computing in the medical sector refers to the method of storing, maintaining, and processing electronic health records and relevant services on cloud servers that are accessible over the internet. The flexibility of cloud computing makes it a practical approach for enhancing the quality, dependability, and efficiency of medical services, as well as increasing patient-doctor interaction and safeguarding patient anonymity if proper measures are taken. Furthermore, cloud strategies facilitate healthcare technologies such as computerized healthcare records, remote appointments, mobile applications, patient portals, IoT devices, and big data analytics, enabling trouble-free scalable solutions. Integrating cloud computing technologies can especially be beneficial in increasing the efficiency of healthcare services in developing counties where physical health infrastructure is usually limited. As such, the objective of this work is to explore the feasibility of incorporating cloud and distributed computing in e-healthcare through an extensive requirement analysis and user study. Then, the smart healthcare system will be compared with traditional database-centric healthcare systems and a prototype system will be designed and implemented based on the findings. Finally, we focus on finding the usability and user acceptance of such systems and challenges that lie with integrating cloud services to e-healthcare systems for the general user demographic of developing countries through extensive usability evaluation.


⊥ Abstract Background: Underreporting has been recognized as one of the problems and constraints of nutritional studies in the last decade. Objective: To review available information regarding underreporting in Iran and the world. Methods: This article is a review of studies in which the problem of underreporting was assessed and evaluated. All papers from 1966 to 2001 were searched by medline using keywords of nutritional survey, underreporting, energy intake, BMI and validity. Several leading studies in this field were searched for and obtained from medline and the related articles were analyzed. Findings: The subjects participating in nutritional studies, inaccurately reported their energy and nutrient intakes. Most epidemiological studies use the "energy intake to basal metabolic rate" ratio (EI/BMR) to determine and evaluate underreporting. In most studies EI/BMR ratio below 1.27 is considered to be responsible for underreporting. The incidence of underreporting is between 20-30%, more prevalent in women. Underreporting increases with age, obesity, increasing levels of illiteracy, low socioeconomic status and smoking. The "Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study" (TLGS) is the only study in Iran to have documented underreporting of 1450 subjects, 32.6% women and 14.7% men aged between 20-50 years and 40.3% women and 17.1% men aged over 50 years. Conclusion: This article highlights the importance of the problem caused by underreporting.


Objective:To evaluate the clinical diagnosis value of FIESTA in biliary calculus.Methods:30 patients with calculus of intrahepatic duct were examined by MRCP,FRFFSE and FIESTA,14 of 30 patients accompany with calculus of extrahepatc duct.Statistical differences were analyzed.Results:30 cases of calculus of intrahepatic duct,the positive rate of MRCP+FRFSE is 63%;the positive rate of MRCP+FIESTA is 87%.There was a significant difference(χ2=4.36,P0.05).Conclusion:MRCP+FIESTA have a high value for location and diagnosis of biliary system calculus,especially for calculus of intrahepatic duct.


Background Opiate addiction remains intractable in a large percentage of patients, and relapse is the biggest hurdle to recovery. Many studies have identified a central role of the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in addiction. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has the advantages of being reversible, adjustable, and minimally invasive, and it has become a potential neurobiological intervention for addiction. The purpose of our study was to investigate whether high‐frequency DBS in the NAc effectively attenuates the reinstatement of morphine seeking in morphine‐primed rats. Methods A morphine‐dependent group of rats was given increasing doses of morphine during conditioned place preference training. A control group of rats was given equal volumes of saline. After the establishment of this model, withdrawal syndromes were precipitated in these two groups by administering naloxone, and the differences in withdrawal symptoms between the groups were analyzed. Electrodes for DBS were implanted in the bilateral shell of the NAc in the experimental group. The rats were stimulated daily in the NAc for 5 hours per day over 30 days. Changes in the conditioned place preference test and withdrawal symptoms in the rats were investigated and place navigation studies were performed using the Morris water maze. The data were assessed statistically with one‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey's tests for multiple post hoc comparisons. Results High‐frequency stimulation of the bilateral NAc prevented the morphine‐induced reinstatement of morphine seeking in the conditioned place preference test. The time spent in the white compartment by rats following 30 days of DBS ((268.25±25.07) seconds) was not significantly different compared with the time spent in the white compartment after relapse was induced by morphine administration ((303.29±34.22) seconds). High‐frequency stimulation of the bilateral NAc accelerated the innate decay of drug craving in morphine‐dependent rats without significantly influencing learning and memory. Conclusion Bilateral high‐frequency stimulation of the shell of the NAc may be useful as a novel therapeutic modality for the treatment of severe morphine addiction.


XRD analysis was used to determine the time-temperature-transformation (T-T-T) diagram for sol-gel derived GeO 2 gels. Sol-gel derived GeO 2 glasses were obtained by heating the gels according to the T-T-T diagram. For comparative purposes, GeO 2 glass was prepared by melt quenching. The sol-gel derived glasses showed a strong, white luminescence (400-700 nm). A white afterglow was also observed under irradiation at 254 and 365 nm. On the other hand, the melt quenched glass gave a luminescence band at 410 nm, and the afterglow decayed quickly. The sol-gel derived glass included defects and impurities such as Ge 2+ centres, Ge-OH, HjO, R-OH (R: alkyl group), CH 3 -, -CH 2 -, CH 3 CH 2 -, CO 2 , Ge-O-C, GeC, Ge-O-R, and carbon related radicals, while the melt-quenched glass contained Ge 2+ and GeE'centres, and Ge-OH. The white luminescence and afterglow observed in the sol-gel derived GeO 2 glass are thought to have been caused by the Ge 2+ centre and Ge-O-C.


This study aims to evaluate the economic and environmental efficiency of Asian and African economies. In the model proposed, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is considered as the desired output and Greenhouse Gases (GHG), like carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, as the undesirable output. Capital, labor, fossil fuels, and renewable energy consumption are regarded as inputs, and the GDP/CO2 ratio is the output, by using a log-linear Translog production function and using data from 2005 until 2018, including 22 Asian and 22 African countries. Results evidence cross-countries heterogeneity among production inputs, namely labor, capital, and type of energy use and its efficiency. The models complement each other and are based on different distributional assumptions and estimation methods while providing a picture of Eco-efficiency in Asian and African economies. Labor and renewable energy share increase technical Eco-efficiency, while fixed capital decreases it under time-variant models. Technical improvements in Eco-efficiency are verified through time considering the time variable into the model estimations, replacing fossil fuels with renewable sources. An inverted U-shaped Eco-efficiency function is found concerning the share of fossil fuel consumption. Important policy implications are drawn from the results regarding the empirical results.


The invention relates to a multiparameter testing device for drilling rock mechanics, which is mainly characterized in that a marking tool and an inductive type moment measuring mechanism are utilized for testing the uniaxial compressive strength of rocks, the completeness of a rock sample can be guaranteed after testing is over, for a very few of rock cores with high hardness, a flat-bottom pressure head is used for directly measuring the uniaxial compressive strength of rocks, the drillability of rocks can be tested by a cone micro drill bit, and a hydraulic actuator, a gear transmission mechanism and a variable speed motor are matched to realize the optimization of bit pressure and rotating speed. Compared with a direct press-in testing device, the device has remarkable advantages in batch testing, the usage amount of rock cores can be greatly decreased, the utilization rate of single experimental equipment can be improved, and the experimental cost can be lowered; in addition, the testing result has important significance on the increase of drilling speed and drilling efficiency and guidance of field construction.


The software development process is described in terms of cost or effort via cost drivers. Some scenarios are inadequately addressed because the available elements to describe them become inappropriate. Those scenarios comprise a great amount of effort at the conception stage and at managing perspectives and relationships. This work explores several aspects not considered as cost drivers that could be relevant for the process. Data collected was analyzed to reveal if there is a significant enough relationship between them and the development cost and verify or refute the assumption that could allow these aspects to be presented as cost drivers. The investigation has been circumscribed to the web scope to delimit the work.


Flexible PCB(FPC)'s multi layers,thin copper lines and scrappy line distance characteristic make it very difficult to acquire malfunction information.Focusing on this problem,we raise time series based,malfunction diagnose methodology in this paper.In limited testing points,we could acquire more diagnosing information,and can raise diagnosing rate from original 86.5% to 94.6%.


This thesis analyses the characteristics and legal implications of International Regime Theory with special focus on fisheries on the high seas on the basis of a critical examination of the 1995 UN Agreement on Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks (SSA). The theoretical framework adopted in this investigation suggests that the emerging international regime for fisheries on the high seas relies on four interconnected elements; first, a scientific and diplomatic consensus about the nature of specific issues regarding fisheries; secondly, a core of informal and formalized principles, norms and rules contained mainly in the 1995 SSA, as well as in other related international legal instruments; thirdly, a set of organizations and decision making procedures that constitute the operation of the international regime; and fourth, a set of compliance and enforcement mechanisms to help international society to manage the problem of fisheries as a global common. These four elements characterise the continuous process of development and refinement of International Environmental Law to protect the environment in particular in relation to conservation of the living resources of the sea. The thesis also considers the way in which the regime can operate as an institution able to influence the behaviour of States and their subjects to manage the international problem of fisheries on the high seas. The findings of this investigation yield both theoretical and pragmatic results. First, the application of the theoretical framework can enhance understanding of the problems and potentialities of the International Law for the protection and management of the global commons and, in particular, of fisheries on the high seas. Secondly, the theoretical framework offers explanations as to the manner in which the emerging new international regime for fisheries is limiting and reshaping the legal principle of freedom of fishing on the high seas. Further, as this thesis aims to demonstrate, state sovereignty is not incompatible with international progress in solving common problems.


The maintenance requirements of the roadway network, through significant research and documentation efforts, have become fairly well documented. The same cannot be said of intelligent transportation systems (ITS), which have gained significant popularity within the last decade. Most ITS strategic planning efforts consider maintenance only to the level of estimating an annual cost as a percentage of capital costs. Moreover, most ITS technologies are of comparatively recent origin, so there is little documentation regarding how ITS technologies should be maintained either technically or institutionally. This paper summarizes the efforts of the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), in conjunction with the Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University-Bozeman, to determine the true maintenance requirements associated with ITS deployments. These efforts culminated in the development of a statewide ITS maintenance plan for Oregon


For the railway vehicle builders in the rough bodywork department at Alstom, Salzgitter, welding is the most important bonding technology. The use the innovative CMT (Cold Metal Transfer) method. CMT is predestined for automated processes, whereby this "cold" process replaces conventional MIG/MAG (metal shielding gas) welding. With significantly less heat input than using the conventional method and zero spattering, CMT typically offers the railway vehicle specialists benefits such as spatter-free joining, low sheet metal distortion, high quality and high output. Following the positive experience initially gained with the automated process, the welders in Salzgitter are now also using CMT for manual welding jobs.


In this paper, a step response identification method is proposed for overdamped industrial processes with time delay from sampled data by developing a gradient searching approach to minimize the output prediction error. Based on establishing a least-squares fitting of the time domain expression of a low-order process model, i.e. first-order-plus-dead-time (FOPDT) or second-order-plus-dead-time (SOPDT), with respect to a step change, the rational model parameters together with the delay parameter can be simultaneously estimated, while the computation effort can be significantly reduced compared to the existing step identification methods based on using the time integral approach for model fitting. Both cases of repetitive poles and distinct poles are considered for the identification of an SOPDT model, along with a guideline for a suitable choice of the model structure for practical applications. The convergence and accuracy of the proposed algorithms are analysed with a strict proof. Four illustrative examples from recent references are used to show the effectiveness of the proposed method.


Limited research exists on how speech impairments affect quality of life (QOL) factors over time in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). A review of the literature, including the history, disease course, and prevalence of ALS, is presented. Physical and psychosocial functioning, especially the decline of bulbar functioning's potential impact on QOL factors and communication style, are outlined. This study is a follow-up study on a study by Duff, who found a significant difference in QOL relative to level of bulbar functioning in a cross-sectional design. The current study used a longitudinal design to look at bulbar functioning, specifically levels of speech, and how that affects certain aspects of QOL over time. This study used archival data, collected from a multidisciplinary clinic at three time points, and evaluated the following measures: ALS Functional Rating Scale–Revised (ALSFRS–R) and the ALS–Specific Quality of Life Measurement–Revised (ALSSQOL–R). ALSSQOL–R domains of Negative Emotion, Interaction with People and the Environment, Intimacy, and Bulbar Function were analyzed by repeated measures tests, and correlated to speech impairment over time. Results indicated that as speech became significantly more impaired, no significant differences were observed on the Negative Emotion, Interaction with People and the Environment, and Intimacy subscales. However, as the ability to speak declines over time, participants' Bulbar Functioning subscale scores decreased. These findings suggest that increased bulbar symptoms are perceived as more problematic over time point. However, results also indicated that at the third time point (most recent clinic visit) the relationship between actual speech impairment and perceived bulbar functioning weakens.


Objective:To observe the antimicrobial activity of different polar fractions from extracts of Ningxia Cirsium japonicum on five gram negtive bacteria in vitro.Methods:The antimicrobial test of water-extract of Cirsium japonicum,n-butyl alcohol-extract of Cirsium japonicum and ethyl acetate-extract of Cirsium japonicum was performed by the tube double dilution method combined with agar plate method in vitro.Results:The minimum inhibitory concentration(MIC) of water-extract of Cirsium japonicum and ethyl acetate-extract of Cirsium japonicum on the five gram negtive bacteria were1.00mg·mL-1;n-butyl alcohol-extract of Cirsium japonicum showed the bacteriostatic effect on the five gram negtive bacteria,the MIC on E.coli and P.aeruginosa were 1.0mg·mL-1;whereas S.typhi,P.Vulgar.s and Shigella bacteria(MIC) were 0.5mg·mL-1.Conclusion:N-butyl alcohol-extract of Cirsium japonicum has the effect of bacteriostasis on the five gram negtive bacteria,while water-extract of Cirsium japonicum and ethyl acetate-extract of Cirsium japonicum have no bacteriostasis effect.


Background and aims: Elders at an increased risk of getting the novel COVID-19 infection. Materials and Methods: We analyzed the clinical presentations, laboratory and radiological investigations, and the patient's outcome in fifty seniors aged 60 years and more who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 confirmed by RT-PCR essay of nasopharyngeal swabs in the period from December 2020 till March 2021. Results: The mean age was 68.2 ± 5.9 years (60% males and 40% females), 70% with comorbidities. Our patients exhibited a variety of clinical manifestations (constitutional, respiratory, gastrointestinal, and atypical) and hematological presentations with variable percentages. The mean period of hospital stay was15.05 days with 60% of the patients cured and 40% died (60% males, 40% females). The causes of death were septic shock (81.8%), ARDS (36.3%), AKI (18.2%), DIC (13.6), and encephalitis (9.1%). Using multivariant regression analysis and Roc curve analysis; levels of D-dimer >901ng/ml, interleukin-6 >13.5pg/ml, and >30% lung involvement were independent predictors of mortality after adjustment of other predictors. Conclusion: Elderly patients are susceptible to adverse outcomes of SARS Cov-2 infection. Unexpectedly, gastrointestinal manifestations were associated with mortality in seniors along with low oxygen saturation, and wheezy chest. After multivariant regression analysis only D-dimer, interleukin-6, and the degree of lung involvement in CT were independent predictors of mortality in seniors after adjustment of other predictors.


In this work, a micro-Raman study under high hydrostatic pressure (up to ∼5.5 GPa) has been carried on YBa2Cu4O8 and Y(Ba, Sr)2Cu4O8 single crystals at room temperature. In both samples, seven strong modes, of Ag symmetry, and one weak, of B3g symmetry, have been observed and examined in connection with previously published results concerning YBa2Cu4O8. With the Sr substitution for Ba, the ambient pressure measurements show an upward shift in energy for all modes, except those that involve vibrations of the plane and apex oxygen atoms. With increasing hydrostatic pressure all phonons shift to higher energies. Anomalous nonlinear pressure behaviour has been observed for three phonons, which is correlated with the pressure dependence of T c of these compounds.


Given the relevance of the word "managing" since time immemorial, this book acts as a comprehensive guide for understanding the basic five principles of management. The book actively covers the sub...