How does the neural control of manual movements mature from childhood to adulthood? Here, we investigated developmental differences in functional corticomuscular connectivity using coherence techniques in 91 individuals recruited from four different age groups covering the age range 8-30y. EEG and EMG were recorded while participants performed a unimanual visual force-tracing task requiring fine control of the force produced in a precision grip with both the dominant and non-dominant hand. Using beamforming methods, we reconstructed source activity from EEG data displaying peak coherence with the active FDI muscle during the task in order to assess functional corticomuscular connectivity. Our results revealed that coherence was greater in adolescents and adults than in children and that the difference in coherence between children and adults was driven by a greater magnitude of descending (cortex-to-muscle) coherence. This was paralleled by the observation of a posterior-to-anterior shift in the cortical sources displaying corticomuscular coherence within the contralateral hemisphere from late adolescence. Finally, we observed that corticomuscular coherence was higher on the non-dominant compared to the dominant hand across age groups. These findings provide a detailed characterization of differences in task-related corticomuscular connectivity for individuals at different stages of typical ontogenetic development that may be related to the maturational refinement of dexterous motor control. Key points ‐ Fine motor control is gradually refined during human motor development, but little is known about the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms.‐ Here, we used EEG and EMG to investigate functional corticomuscular connectivity during a precision grip with the dominant and non-dominant hand in 91 typically developed children, adolescents and adults (age range 8-30y).‐ We show that older adolescents and adults are characterized by greater levels of corticomuscular coherence compared to children and that this is mainly driven by greater magnitudes of descending coherence (cortex-to-muscle). This is paralleled by a more anterior cortical site of coherence in older adolescents and adults compared to younger individuals.‐ These results help us better understand the ontogenetic development of task-related functional connectivity in sensorimotor networks.


A total number of 125 chicken samples from apparently healthy broiler chickens (25 and 15), diseased broiler chickens (25 and 15) and freshly dead ones (25 and 20) were collected in winter (from December to February) and summer (from June to August), respectively from Kafr –Elsheik Governorate. In winter season, E. coli was recovered from 43 broiler chickens with an incidence of 57.3% and the incidence of E. coli in apparently healthy broiler chickens was 32%, diseased broiler chickens 64% and in freshly dead ones 76% while in summer season E. coli was recovered from 21 broiler chickens with an incidence 42% represented 26.6% in apparently healthy, 40% in diseased chickens and 55% in freshly dead one. The serogroups of E. coli that obtained by serological identification were O78, O1,O26, O2, O127, O91and O153. The results obtained by multiplex PCR reported that eaeA (intimin or E. coli attaching and effacing) gene detected in O2,O26,O1and O153, ompA (outer membrane protein) gene detected in all E. coli serogroups that isolated O2,O26,O78,O127,O1and O91 except O153. Stx1 gene detected in O2, O26, O78and O91. Stx2 gene detected in O78,O127 and O91. [Mahmoud, Abd El-Mongy, Abeer, M. Bayme, Ghada, M. Abd –El-Moneam, and Amgad, A. Moawad. Serotyping and Virulence Genes Detection in Escherichia coli Isolated from Broiler Chickens. Biomedicine and Nursing 2018;4(1): 38-41]. ISSN 2379-8211 (print); ISSN 2379-8203 (online). http://www.nbmedicine.org. 7. doi:10.7537/marsbnj040118.07.


A systematic study of the mesomorphic properties of three series of copper(II) complexes based on β-diketonate ligands containing branched side chains is reported. These disc-like compounds have four, six and eight flexible alkoxy side chains appended to the central core, in which two or four side chains were substituted by bulkier secondary alkoxy groups: 1-methylbutyloxy R ' = C5(2°) or 1-methylheptyloxy R ' = C8(2°). The mesomorphic results indicated that at least eight side chains are required to form stable columnar mesophases; other compounds with four or six side chains are not mesogenic regardless of the combination of the carbon length on the alkoxy or secondary alkoxy groups of the side chains. The compounds 3 with shorter R ' = C5(2°) side chains were all non-mesogenic regardless of the carbon length of three alkoxy side chains (R = C8, C10, C12) used. However, when the longer 1-methylheptyloxy side chain R ' = C8(2°) was substituted, the compounds 3b-3e with various alkoxy groups (R = C6, C7, C8, C10, C12) exhibited columnar phases. The mesophases were characterized and identified as columnar hexagonal phases (Colh), as expected, by thermal analysis and optical polarized microscopy. The presence of the introduced secondary alkoxy groups apparently appeared to influence the formation of columnar phases. The clearing points were relatively lower than other similar copper(II) compounds not substituted by secondary alkoxy side chains.


Abstract This paper presents empirical modelling approach in predicting elemental composition of coal. The model is developed to estimate carbon, hydrogen and oxygen content of coal. In the present work, several methods are applied to formulate the model including multiple regression (MR), principal component regression (PCR), partial least squares (PLS) and back propagation neural networks (BP-ANN). The use of BP-ANN shows the best result among the tested methods and appears to be a promising tool for predicting elemental composition of coal because it gave the least root mean square of error (RMSE) and the highest correlation coefficient (R 2 ).


As there aren't special laws stipulate the specific rights and obligations of journalist in our country, the exercise of the right of gathering news from football games and activities is often imposed unsuitable restrictions by the football association.This paper expounds the certainty of journalist's right of gathering news from football games and activities directed by the football association from the four respects of the nature of the football association,the boundary of the football association's right of administering football games and activities, the limitation of the football association's right of refusing interviews and the requirement of the football undertakings' development.


Two questions will be addressed: (1) How should control coils be chosen to optimally mitigate the effects of the magnetic field errors? (2) How should the expected properties of the magnetic field errors be characterized while deciding on the importance of various control coils? Although magnetic field errors are caused by misplacements in coil locations and winding patterns, the actual source of the error in an as-built tokamak is not relevant to the mitigation of the error field effects unless coils are to be repositioned or replaced. Nevertheless, certain properties of the errors are important for the choice of control coils. These properties can be estimated using a Monte Carlo model of likely errors, but it is not clear that existing Monte Carlo calculations, which take coil displacements as independent random variables, predict these properties correctly or in accordance with the actual field errors in existing tokamaks.


Can a single, powerful sociopolitical event (government's response to Hurricane Katrina) produce changes in prevalent cultural beliefs such as the Protestant work ethic (PWE)? In a cross-sectional study conducted before, immediately after, and 5 months after Katrina (Study 1: Part a), in a longitudinal study tracking participants immediately after Katrina and 3 months later (Study 1: Part b), and in an experiment that primed thoughts about Katrina (Study 2), thinking about Katrina reduced African Americans' (but not European Americans') endorsement of the PWE. Preliminary evidence suggested that the shift in African Americans' endorsement of the PWE was due to lower trust in the government.


A mechanism for a zoom lens having relatively movable lens groups where the aperture defining means moves with one of the lens groups.


AspectJ is a language implementing aspect-oriented programming on top of Java. Besides modification of program flow and state using advice, AspectJ offers language elements to statically modify existing classes by changing their position in the inheritance hierarchy or introducing new members. This can lead to binding interference, i.e. the dynamic lookup of method calls not affected directly by the aspect might change. This paper presents methods allowing programmers to automatically check the impact of introductions and hierarchy modifications on existing programs.


We image objects in the path of squeezed vacuum, by analyzing spatial-quantum noise statistics. Visibility and resolution of the image are linked to the squeezing mode size and the area of analyzed spatial correlations.


Carbon-13 n.m.r. spectra have been obtained for some methyl and phenyl substituted 2H-azirines. The higher field resonance of C-2 than that of the corresponding aziridine carbon is interpreted in terms of ring strain. Substituent effects on the chemical shifts of the azirine ring carbons are discussed. A set of additivity parameters for the methyl and phenyl groups are obtained which can be used for the calculation of the chemical shifts of the azirine ring carbons. The substituent effect of an azirine ring on the chemical shift of benzene is also discussed in comparison with those of some other substituents. A high degree of s character (48.5%) in the exocyclic orbital of C-3 is indicated by a large J(13C-3,H) value (242.5 Hz).


The paper overviews the fundamental principles, methods, technologies and applications of quantum communication. It introduces the basic protocol of secure quantum private communication, including the decoy method, quantum communication based on the entanglement distribution, quantum teleportation, manipulation of entangled photonspairs in polarization space. This review introduces recent status in quantum technology and applications, and attempts to discuss future directions in which the field is likely to develop.


The economic activities of Buddhist monasteries have frequently been noted. In regard to Tibetan Lamaist monasteries some writers have assumed that these activities indicate the "corruption" or "degeneration" of pure Buddhist ideals. On the other hand many have expressed wonder at the generosity with which Lamaist laymen will give, sometimes impoverishing themselves, to support their religion. Attention too seldom has been drawn to the means by which gifts are translated into religious merit for the donors, whether these be monks or laymen. It is the mechanism of translation that explains the universal economic success of Buddhist monasticism.


Recent reports have demonstrated that neurotensin (NT) receptors are overexpressed at high density in such devastating human neoplasms like exocrine ductal pancreatic carcinomas. Consequently, radiolabeled NT analogs can be used in the early diagnosis or even treatment of such tumors. In the present study we report on the synthesis and preclinical evaluation of four 99mTc labeled synthetic NT analogs based on the NT(8–13) sequence, known to specifically interact with the NTR1 subtype found in neoplastic cells. The biological half life of these analogs has been increased by strategic reduction of amide bonds, replacement of amino acid residues and coupling of a tetramine bifunctional chelator at the N-terminal of resulting peptides. The affinity for the NTR1 subtype was found high in competition binding assays in WiDr cell membrane preparations. Labeling with 99mTc was quantitative under mild conditions leading to single radioactive species in high specific activities. The stability of labeled peptides in plasma, urine and kidney homogenates was found dependent on the above described modifications. The rate of internalization in WiDr cells was very high for all radiolabeled peptides, with >90% of the radioactivity accumulating in the cells within 30 min. In vivo distribution of the two most stable 99mTc NT analogs in mice xenografts revealed a specific accumulation of radioactivity in NTR1 subtype — rich cancer tissue combined with a very rapid clearance of background activity through the kidneys and the urinary system.


ABSTRACT Research investigating the risk factors for delinquency has found that single-parent households are more criminogenic than two-parent households. Using data (N = 4,626) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, this study expands on prior research by considering various types of households and parent-child relationship, along with three categories of delinquency: status offenses, property crimes, and violent crimes. Contrary to previous research, we find that juveniles living in single-parent households are significantly less likely to engage in all three types of delinquency than those from intact and stepparent households. Further, while an increased quantity of parents in the household does not lessen engagement in delinquency, the quality of the parent-child relationship does, as those who have stronger relationships with their parents are at lower risk of delinquent behavior. Our study highlights the importance of distinguishing between different types of delinquency and household structures, as well as how such classifications may influence research findings in this area.


In this paper we intend to present a tool we developed for translation studies and diachronically compare various French translations of the Odyssey. This field of study is part of the more general "Classical Receptions" studies that try to analyse the influence and adaptation of classical texts in modern and contemporary literature, theatre, cinema, and many other artistic fields. While Greek texts have been analysed by scholars for more than two thousand years, research about classical translations is not yet a most renown subject. In recent years this theme has raised a growing interest in the academic community. We developed a program that can align textual sequences (defined as groups of words delimited by a specified grammatical pivot, in our case proper nouns), without need of previous training. We obtained alignments for many different kinds of translations[1]. While other programs have an upper bound for one-to-many alignments (for example with a maximum of four translated elements aligned to the same original element) this algorithm allows an indefinite number of alignments, both for the source sequences and the target ones. The aligner is based on an implementation of Needleman-Wunsch algorithm and on a string-based similarity approach to textual segments. The aligner needs to establish proper names as anchor words, as they are a relatively stable feature through different translations and tend to be similar in several languages. Thanks to the alignments obtained using the program, we can explore translations in a number of ways. We will illustrate the creation of a graphical interface to visualize French Homeric translations. With our tool, it is possible to highlight aligned portions of texts and show their immediate differences or similarities, both in meaning and in syntactic distribution. We will show some resulting syntactic analyses carried out on a small sample of texts, taken from a corpus of twenty-seven unabridged French translations of the Odyssey and explore how the study of diachronic translations through algorithms of computational linguistics can produce interesting results for literary and linguistic studies.


1. CONTENTS
(1) RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
This study separated the Cheonsei to sales ratio into trend and cycle using unobserved components model of state...


EHV centralized control center is the development trend of the power system in the future. In this paper, we mainly introduce the design of the computer monitoring system, the remote video monitoring systems, and the channel configuration and the system communication scheme of Hunan 500 KV power grid running centralized control center. The successful design and operation of this centralized control center provide an important reference for the following EHV centralized control center building of the other regions of China. Our design not only makes the unattended mode of 500 KV substations in the province into reality, but also satisfies the "intensive" development needs of the power system.


The system described in this disclosure may be configured to read information stored on toy objects that indicates whether the toy objects have been used and/or are being used with other toy objects, gaming systems, and/or other devices. The system described in this disclosure may be configured to facilitate an association of the information stored on the toy objects with virtual entities in a virtual space, update virtual content associated with the virtual entities, determine relationships between users, and/or other perform other functions based on the information stored on the toy objects. The information stored on the toy objects may be updated responsive to the toy objects being used by users with other toy objects, gaming systems, and/or other devices. The use of the toy objects by users may include two or more users playing together with toy objects and/or playing with gaming systems associated with the toy objects.


A field experiment was conducted during kharif season of 2016 and 2017 at Regional Research and Technology Transfer Sub-Station, Umerkote of Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology comes under Eastern Ghat High Zone of Odisha, India to assess the response of integrated nutrient management on yield and economics of rainfed maize. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with six treatments replicated four times. The experimental soils were strongly acidic, non-saline, loamy sand, low in organic carbon, available N, P, B, Zn and medium in available K contents. The maximum 100 seeds weight (38.86 g),  stover yield (9.57 t ha-1), grain yield (7.65 t ha-1), net return (INR 50,711 ha-1)  and B:C ratio (1.98) were recorded in soil test based N:P:K:B:Zn (i.e. N:P2O5:K2O:S:B:Zn @ 150:75:60:1.25:6.25 kg ha-1) + lime @ 0.1 LR + FYM @ 5 t ha-1  (T6) followed by soil test based N:P:K:Zn @ 150:75:60:1.25: 6.25 kg ha-1 + lime @ 0.1 LR (T5) over control (i.e Farmers Practice N:P:K:Zn @ 160:80:45:0:0 kg ha-1). Hence, it could be concluded that application of soil test based N:P:K:B:Zn @ 150:75:60:1.25:6.25 kg ha-1 + lime 0.1 LR + FYM @ 5 t ha-1 recorded better yield (7.65 t ha-1) and income (INR 50,711 ha-1) as compared to other treatments as well as farmers practice.


1 Mechanisms in Vapour Epitaxy of Semiconductors.- 2 Principles of the Vapour Growth of Single Crystals.- 3 Travelling Solvent Techniques.- 4 Refractory Metal Crystal Growth Techniques.- Materials Index.


With the increase in international tourism and further population movements in the modern world, the inclusion of tropical diseases in differential diagnoses must be promoted, even in a non-tropical environment. In recent years, cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis have been diagnosed in increasing numbers in hospitals throughout Germany [1, 2]. Leishmaniasis is caused by various species of the protozoan parasite Leishmania, and is transmitted by stings of the sand fly (Phlebotomus spp.). There are three main clinical forms of leishmaniasis: cutaneous, mucocutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis [3]. The incubation period of cutaneous leishmaniasis usually lasts for about two weeks; however, a period of up to several months is not uncommon [4]. Treatment options differ according to the clinical form and causative species of Leishmania. A 62-year-old, otherwise healthy male patient presented at our outpatient department with multiple painless wounds on his back, arms and hands, ranging from one to eight centimeters in size. Clinical examination found 15 ulcers and ulcerated nodules covered with yellowish crusts on the right side of the back, left elbow and right hand (Figure 1a, b). There was no medical history of impaired wound healing or diabetes. However, the patient reported numerous business visits to Morocco in recent years, with the last visit about three months prior to occurrence of the skin lesions. The initial treatment included daily bathing with a wash lotion containing octenidine and a combination of oral ampicillin and sulbactam over a period of a week, but this did not lead to sufficient improvement of the lesions. We performed skin biopsies from the margins of the lesions, and routine histological examination revealed numerous intracellular parasites (Figure 2a, b). Molecular investigation (Real Time PCR) showed infection with Leishmania (L.) major. The results of further investigations (routine blood analysis and HIV tests) were unremarkable, so the unusual extent of the skin lesions was not associated with a concomitant immunosuppressive disease, but probably with the L. major isolate imported from Morocco. Severe lesions with zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (L. major) have been described in the native Moroccan population [5]. Ulcerative forms similar to the lesions observed in our patient are relatively rare in Morocco [6], but are described in Tunisia as the predominant clinical manifestation with typical large lesions 0.5–6.0 cm in diameter [7]. Taken together, the clinical picture of cutaneous leishmaniasis is determined by the species of Leishmania, the individual susceptibility of the patients Clinical Letter


A promoter probe shuttle vector suitable for the isolation of promoter elements from coryneform bacteria was constructed. This vector carried the neomycin phosphotransferase (NPTII) gene from transposon Tn5 as a reporter gene, and was capable of replication in both Escherichia coli and Brevibacterium flavum. The vector was used in the construction of a B. flavum library of 899 independently isolated promoter clones. Promoters with a wide range of activities in B. flavum, including some very strong promoter elements, were isolated. Comparative analysis suggests that significant differences between B. flavum and E. coli may exist in the determinants of promoter strength.


The author uses an extensive study of the five Greek novels preserved by tradition since Roman times (Chariton, Chaireas and Callirhoe, Longus, Daphnis and Chloe, Xenophon of Ephesus, Ephesiaca, Achilles Tatius, Leucippe and Clitophon, Heliodorus, Ethiopica) to show how the novel form, from its origins, has been based upon the repetition of commonplaces, tau piomicroniota, which allows an interplay with the reader. The commonest of these commonplaces, love-Eros, provides the plot of the five novels, in an order which is itself topical: meeting and love at first sight, wounds of love and lovesickness, lovers separated, lovers put to the test by the sea and by pirates, lovers reunited. The heroes of Greek novels, always young, good-looking and well-born (even if their identities are left unclear), allow for easy reader identification. From Xenophon of Ephesus (the most primitive form of the novel) to the Ethiopica (a true work of art), the Greek novel had already explored all the main narrative possibilities of the genre.


This paper provides an overview and review of R&D studies, findings, and practices that identify important problems that constitute an emerging program of future R&D opportunities relevant to established scholars and new students interested in computer games and software engineering (CGSE). This includes examining how computer games may be used to address longstanding, grand challenge problems in software engineering in new ways. The review also examines other challenges in game software requirements engineering, game software design, game software testing, teamwork processes in CGSE, global CGSE, and other closely related areas for CGSE research. From these results, it becomes possible to identify and outline possible areas for future CGSE research opportunities that may be appropriate for consideration by students, scholars, or research agencies seeking to build up scientific and technological capabilities in CGSE research and educational practice.


Carapichea ipecacuanha is a sub-shrub species known as "poaia" or Ipecac, widely used as therapy for healing and amoebiasis, attributed to emetic alkaloids. This work was undertaken to describe the main aspects of the vegetative reproduction and ontogeny of root-derived adventitious buds. In nature, the regeneration of this species is essentially carried out from root sprouts. Variation on the stem external morphology was observed which encloses subterranean parts (straight or horizontal to soil) and aerial parts that, in general, bend to the soil surface, where adventitious roots are emitted from the internode.. Root fragments of C. ipecacuanha were placed in distilled water (with and without 8.9 µM 6-benzyladenine - BA) and in hydroponics medium with Hoagland solution (with and without 8.9 µM BA). Adventitious buds developed from the phellogen, whose cells divided in several planes, generating the neoformed meristemoids. The buds were formed asynchronously on the surface of roots that presented secondary growth. The bud vascular system was formed mainly by differentiating meristematic cells, and with a late development it was entirely connected to the root vascular system.


Ten years after treatment of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome was undertaken with cyclosporin A, its mode of action is still unclear. The drug appears not to be merely an immunosuppressive agent, but also seems endowed with nonspecific antiproteinuric properties, explaining partial remissions observed in various aetiologies of nephrotic syndrome, including some with no immunologic background [1]. Its indications continue to generate contradictory publications. Some affirm that it is a major advance in the treatment of nephrotic syndrome, while in other publications, prophets of doom fulminate caveats against those who undertake to destroy the kidneys of their renal patients with the nephrotoxic distillate of Tolypocladium inflatum (Gams). This stream of articles and oral presentations leaves the nephrologist more perplexed than enlightened. What aetiologies of nephrotic syndrome are the right indications? Is success predictable in a given patient? Should cyclosporin A be used alone or be boosted by steroids? What dosage should be used? Should it be titrated by monitoring blood levels? Or just according to serum creatinine fluctuations? Will steroid dependency invariably be traded off for cyclosporin dependency? If so, how many cyclosporin-dependent patients will have to pay the price of remission with relentless renal interstitial fibrosis?


Introduction: A spinal epidural abscess is difficult to diagnose and it can sometimes mimic an acute ischemic stroke.Case presentation: We report a 69-year-old woman attended our emergency department because of gross hematuria for 1 week, with fever and bilateral flank pain. Two weeks earlier, she had received needle-knife acupotomy (a more invasive procedure than the traditional acupuncture) for chronic neck pain. Acute pyelonephritis was diagnosed; however, 4 h later, she developed weakness of both right limbs. Acute lacunar infarction was tentatively diagnosed. After admission, weakness of the left limbs developed, with a feeling of fullness and discomfort around the entire T6 dermatome with urinary retention. Neck magnetic resonance imaging showed extensive cervical epidural abscesses from C3 to T1. After an operation, her neck pain and the weakness of the four limbs gradually improved.Discussion: Spinal epidural abscess is a rare complication, and which should be considered for patients who have undergone invasive cervical procedures. Needle-knife acupotomy is a more invasive procedure than the traditional acupuncture. Conclusion: Although it is considered safe and effective for cervical spondylosis, it can be complicated by spinal infection. Careful disinfection should therefore be performed, and disposable needleknives should be used.


The C'uk converter suffers from high working voltage on its switching transistor.Study shows that the voltage would be effectively reduced by increasing the working frequency of the switching transistor, and the employing graded frequency control technique can solve this kind of problems. And an experimental C'uk converter of 100 W validates this technique in this paper.


With relatively high total gold background values,the strata of the greenstone belt in western Shandong are source beds of gold deposit.Both the well-preserved greenstone belt and TTG-reworked granite-greenstone belt are favorable for gold deposit formation.The formation and distribution of the known gold deposits are both related to ductile shear belts,which are major ore-controlling structure of greenstone type gold deposits.The TTG series,which have experienced strong ductile deformation and fragmentation and contain rich greenstone belt remnants,have close relation with gold deposit formation.Superimposition of Mesozoic Yanshanian magmatic-hydrothermal activities favorable for further gold concentration and mineralization.


The Note from the Editors of Bijdragen 148-1 states that the journal shall in future concentrate on Southeast Asia. This will entail a regional narrowing with respect to world-wide subjects covered in recent decades, but a broadening with respect to the original specialization in colonial times, as expressed until 1949 in the name of the journal, Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Wolkenkunde van Nederlandsch Indie. According as one emphasizes one aspect or the other, this new regional demarcation may be seen in two quite different lights.1 If we refer to the original area of interest of Bijdragen, an obvious vindication of the recent move may be found, for a journal appearing in the Netherlands, in the historical continuance of a colonial research tradition with many generations of expertise and unique archival material to its name. From an anthropological perspective, however, there is also a scientific argument to be added. For over half a century one particular methodological approach has proved extremely fruitful in Dutch anthro pology, and for many years in British and Australian work as well, for the analysis of the Indonesian cultural region:2 the concept of the 'Field of Anthropological Study'.


We developed a new precursor solution that consists of copper naphthenate, and yttrium- and barium-trifluoroacetates (advanced TFA solution) that can make the heating rate during calcination increase while maintaining a high Jc. In this paper, we investigated the influence of HF gas generation on the calcination process in order to optimize an advanced TFA-MOD process. The high heating rate and/or low copper content in the starting solution lead to a low Jc. In both cases, a high generation rate of HF gas was observed. Consequently, it is clear that rapid HF gas generation leads to the formation of pores that cause a reduction in Jc values.


Introduction Hip modular implants provide real advantages to patients and surgeons: the opportunity to restore the natural anatomy, to correct discrepancy is positioning, etc… Nevertheless, recent publication showed the weakness of these prostheses. A review of the literature on this phenomenon is carried out, and shows that fretting fatigue and fretting wear is often pointed out to explain these issues. Objectives The goal of this project is to optimise these products, carrying out advanced simulations with criterion that allow to compare the behaviour regarding fretting in the modularity. Methods Different parameters are considered: -Geometric (length, width and height of the neck basis) -Material (CrCo, TA6V4) -Tribology (different friction coefficient to simulate different roughness) -Environmental (load impaction) Several FEA simulations are carried out (Fig 1) in order to assess the sensitivity of these parameters. The choice of the criterion is of course an important point, and 2 main criterions are proposed to compare the designs regarding fretting wear and fretting fatigue. The experiment plan is exploited in order to find the best solutions for next designs. Fatigue tests are also carried out in ISO 7206–6 conditions (fig. 2): failure analyses are conducted and results are compared to simulation. Results and conclusion To be correctly simulated, a failure of fretting fatigue need to be considered with appropriated criterion: FEA with Smith Watson Topper, a multi axial fatigue criteria, is an efficient way of improving the modularity design. The study also allows us to identify important parameters, like load impaction: it appears that a load too high or too low conducts to non-optimum behaviour. Similarly, simulations shows that a friction coefficient about 0, 4 leads a good behaviour regarding fatigue fretting as well as fatigue wear.


Discipline in carrying out Large-Scale Social Restrictions (PSBB) is a regulation including in the Acceleration of Handling the COVID-19. In reality, the implementation of PSBB is still not well understood by the community. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of intrinsic motivation (a pleasure to help and hedonic value) and extrinsic motivation (reputation and reciprocity) on the discipline of the implementation of PSBB during COVID-19 pandemic. This study also examines the role of community identification on mediating the influence between intrinsic (a pleasure to help and hedonic value) and extrinsic (reputation and reciprocity) motivation toward the discipline of the implementation of PSBB during COVID-19 pandemic. This study uses quantitative research method by distributing a questionnaire to 120 respondents, which then analyzed using SEM method. This study shows that intrinsic motivation, such as pleasure to help and hedonic value, has an influence on community identification and discipline. Extrinsic motivation such as reputation and reciprocity also has an influence on community identification and discipline as well. The results of this study also show that community identification mediates the influence between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on the discipline of the implementation of PSBB during


As a rule, translation "nurtures" a text, extends its genealogy across cultural and historical divides. The strange account of this article is perhaps the exception that proves the rule. We'll see a seventy-year old Jorge Luis Borges put heads together with a young Harvard man by the name of Norman Thomas di Giovanni and "re-write the slate clean," translate old texts for the purpose of "sticking it" to them, suppressing them, even consigning them to oblivion. The collaboration was a bit of inspired naughtiness that we'll call "translational infamy." It had enduring consequences, for the good and bad, on the characters populating Borges's writings and his private life. This equation of translation and oblivion, we'll see it play out in Borges's older fictions, specifically Pierre Menard; in the editorial logistics of his collaboration with Di Giovanni; in the creation—and simultaneous translation—of new fictions (Brodie's Report); and, perhaps most interestingly, in the details of his own biography.


The impact of travel risk has been demonstrated in the hostage incident in the Philippines. Their tourism industry suffered a huge loss of revenue due to cancellations of over 1,000 travel booking from Hong Kong and China within the month of September. Obviously, when people are aware and concerned a risk, they are likely to calculate how the risk affects their life and such calculation subsequently affects their behavior. This paper attempts to investigate how tourists from Hong Kong and Macau perceive safety and security risk in traveling to the Philippines and their willingness to travel as well as mechanism to reduce the perceived travel risk. An online survey was conducted with 112 respondents using snowball sampling method. The results reveal that insecurity in terms of hostage was considered to be the second highest possible travel risk after robbery associated with travel to the Philippines. Respondents also perceived buying travel insurance and reading tourists guidebook for safety tips were either increasing the certainty of having a good holiday or reducing the consequence when things go wrong. The study provides direction for future research.


Intensive globalization processes and broadly understanding economic interrelationships are characteristic factors for the modern world. A result of globalization is homogeneous, international goods, service and funds market which is closely combined with national markets. Logistics development brings closer countries and supports sharpening of international competition. Nowadays a customer is the center of attention on rapidly developing economic market. Customers' decisions determine a success of producers and sellers. Knowledge about customers' behavior is fundamental for marketing decision making in all stages of developing a logistics offer.


We report on two surface acoustic wave (SAW) shaping filters which generate a minimum shift keying (MSK) modulated signal by converting a BPSK modulated signal. The filters are intended to be used for modulators with high data rates, as it is necessary in broadband direct sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) systems. One filter has been fabricated from a lithium tantalate (LiTaO/sub 3/) substrate, and one from a quartz substrate. The filter on LiTaO/sub 3/ fulfills all requirements dealing with spectrum shaping. However, the temperature range is not as wide as with quartz substrates due to the higher temperature coefficient of LiTaO/sub 3/. The filter on quartz is very stable from the temperature coefficient point of view, but the insertion attenuation and spurious electromagnetic feedthrough are relatively high.


A novel rectenna based on the grid-array antenna is presented in this paper. The grid-array antenna provides the feasibility to tilt the radiation beam. Two isolated feed points are designed in the grid-array antenna so as to generate two different beams separately. In this way, the rectenna can harvest more wireless RF energy from different directions. Finally, a prototype is fabricated and measured. Under the power density of 1 μW/cm2, it can produce over 50 μW dc power when the incident angle of incoming wave ranges from −10° to 10° at the E-plane.


An assessment of the mechanical reliability of the 3-D Computer is presented. The purpose of this reliability assessment was to gain confidence in the feasibility of this stacked-wafer approach for space-based applications. The investigation addressed both the mechanical and thermal reliability by means of analyses and experiments.<<ETX>>


We performed a molecular marker-based analysis of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for the traits that determine appearance quality of the grains using 120 double haploid (DH) lines developed by anther culture from F1 hybrid of a cross between Cheongcheong (Oryza sativa L. ssp. Indica) and Nagdong (Oryza sativa L. ssp. Japonica). The traits studied included grain length, grain width, grain thickness, length to width ration and thousand grain weight. This experiment was conducted with two replications of 2013 and 2014. A linkage map with 217 DNA markers was constructed spanning across 2,067.1 centiMorgans (cM) at an average interval of 9.5 cM between markers and covering 12 rice chromosomes. Interval mapping procedure was used to identify the QTLs controlling five grain traits and QTLs detected were further confirmed using composite interval mapping. A total of 24 QTLs affecting grain appearances were identified and mapped on all the twelve chromosomes for 2 years at grain quality. Nine of the 24 QTLs were reproducibly detected in two year trials. Major QTL for grain length was detected on chromosome 5 in 2013 with a phenotypic variation of 64% and chromosome 7 in 2014 that explained 55% of the phenotypic variation. The QTL findings in this study will in future faciltate the gene isolation and breeding application for improvement of rice grain shape and yield.


»Taking adapt concepts from the contemporary«. German language as a medium of philosophic-literary enlightenment
»Taking adapt concepts from the contemporary« has been postulated by J. G. Hamann considering a mediation between the past and the present. In terms of concepts, the past was meant for Latin as the preliminary terminology in academic discourse. But the future was meant for a new type of discourse. Would the relation between language and thought change with the use of German? Philosophers at the time thought it would : as Kant and others before him decided to publish in German, this was opposed to contemporary potentates who preferred French. Sensitisation for the language in practice, that is German as opposed to Latin or French, accompanied the quest for enlightenment throughout the 18th Century. The ascendancy of German as a convention in academic discourse was revolutionary in terms of capturing public awareness.


The effect of weather and climate variation on complex manufacturing and the retail sector and their operations can be significant, unpredictable, and costly. This paper provides a novel conceptual framework for a sustainability platform for competitive advantage. It encompasses metrics of performance, business processes, and product and process innovation to encapsulate risk of weather conditions. A sustainable platform requires deep collaboration across the entire eco-system: the supply chain, the life cycle of production, processes, and managerial functions, and distribution end-points, including recycling and disposal. Sustainability platforms and their implications in practice are discussed.


This book shows how to get the most out of PR, showing what it can achieve for a well-planned company. The book covers how to define objectives, work out a strategy and devise tactics from a toolkit of techniques available. It focuses on media relations and provides ideas and gimmicks successfully deployed by professionals. It is aimed at non-marketing and marketing managers seeking to get the best out of PR.


Filtering module with a pressure pipe (4) and a membrane (5) arranged therein, containing a permeate collecting (44) tube, with connections (3, 6, 7) for a fluid to be supplied , preferably untreated water, and for discharging filtrate and retentate, a functional unit / connection (11), which is fixed to one end of the pressure tube (4) and having a top (12) and a lower part, wherein the lower part a reception bore (15) to connect the permeate collecting (44) tube being provided all connections (3, 6, 7) at the top (12) and being driven to through the bottom flow channels that are connected with connections (3, 6, 7) being provided between the pressure tube (4) and the membrane (5) ring (21) open a space, through which the supplied fluid can flow towards the bottom of the membrane (5), and wherein the tube pressure (4) a closed base, characterized in that the flow channel for the fluid to be delivered flows into an annular groove (13) perimeter, arranged in a radial plane at the bottom, from which the fluid may flow outwardly so uniformly distributed in the annular space (21) in a cylinder receiving (17) of the membrane (5), forming the cylinder receiving (17) on its inner side a stop (52) for the membrane (5 ) so that the retentate can be discharged in the entire front surface of the membrane (44).


with respect to infertility, the causes and investigations are outlined (with references). There is then a section on what data the doctor needs to collect to demonstrate learning and standards of service delivery in relation to the management of infertility according to various presentations and case studies. The diagram of the cycle of evidence appears in this chapter four times (which I do not think is necessary). There is not enough detail to use this chapter as a definitive guide to the diagnosis and management of infertility, but then that is not the main purpose of the book. Other chapters include women's lifestyle, contraception, sexually transmitted infections, vaginal bleeding and the menopause. There is nothing on pregnancy, body image, sexuality and breast diseases (apart from in relation to menopause). This book therefore has a very limited market in my opinion, and I would not recommend it to health professionals as a women's health text (though to be fair it does not set out to be one). I did enjoy reading the books and they should be of use for GPs in the context of practice education and improving standards.


The paper provides scientific substantiation and experimental confirmation of feasibility, prospects, and simplicity of production of high-quality purified pectin through preliminary multistage extraction of pectin-containing plant raw material, its acid hydrolysis and subsequent precipitation of pectin in the form of calcium salt. One of the most important physical and chemical properties of pectin substances is their ability to sorb and remove toxic substances from the body. These properties make pectin valuable for preventive nutrition, and as a biologically active food supplement.


Animal Studies Journal 2021 10(2): [Review] Teya Brooks Pribac. Enter the Animal: Cross-species Perspectives on Grief and Spirituality. Sydney University Press, 2021. 262 pp


A concise, accessible introduction to the public policy process that can be read on may levels. The author's direct writing style and extensive use of examples will appeal to students as well as practitioners. The book offers an extensive overview of the best current thinking on the policy process, with an emphasis on accessibility and synthesis rather than novelty or abstraction. An extensive glossary of terms, keyed to the chapters in which each term is most thoroughly discussed; an annotated bibliography; and an introduction to web-based research, with a guide to the most important and reliable public policy research sites, are among the book's many useful features.


Summary The aim of this study was to prospectively evaluate the accuracy of real-time B-mode ultrasonography in the diagnosis of asymptomatic proximal deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in hip surgery patients. Venography was adopted as the gold standard. We studied 100 consecutive patients undergoing hip surgery: 60 patients for hip fracture and 40 patients for elective hip replacement. Bilateral real-time B-mode ultrasonography was performed prior to bilateral venography. The two diagnostic procedures were performed on the same day by different investigators unaware of the assigned prophylatic regimen for DVT Compressibility of the vein segment was adopted as the single criterion for DVT. Venography was performed and judged by radiologists unaware of the ultrasonography results. In 13 limbs venography was either impossible to perform or not adequate for judgement. Ultrasonography and an adequate venography was obtained in 187 limbs. A venography proven DVT was observed in 49 limbs (26.2%) and a proximal DVT in 21 limbs (11.2%). All the patients were asymptomatic for DVT. The sensitivity and specificity of real time B-mode ultrasonography for proximal DVT were 57% (95% confidence interval: C. I. 36–80) and 99% (C. I. 99–100), respectively and the positive and negative predictive values were 93% (C.I. 73–100) and 95% (C.I. 91–97), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity for overall DVT were 25% (C.I. 11–38) and 99% (C.I. 97–100), respectively and the positive and negative predictive values were 92% (C. I. 73–100) and 79% (C.I. 76–85), respectively. Our data indicate that realtime B-mode ultrasonography for its high specificity could make venography unnecessary in patients with positive results. However, because of its low sensitivity it cannot be used for the screening of DVT in asymptomatic patients, nor can it replace venography for outcome measurements in clinical trials on DVT prophylaxis.


Eastern Anatolia comprises one of the high plateaus of the Alpine-Himalaya mountain belt with an average elevation of ∼2 km above the sea level. Available geochronologic data indicate that the volcanism started in the south of the region around the north of Lake Van and continued towards the norths in a age interval of 15.0 Ma to 0.4 Ma. The products are exposed as stratovolcanoes like Agri, Tendurek, Suphan and Girekol with the eruption of andesitic to rhyolitic lavas, ignimbrites and basaltic lava flows.


This study examines the spatial extent of coastal urban development and its potential sensitivity to sea-level rise. The main aim of the study is to critically examine the extent of growth in Eti-Osa over time, and the potential impacts of sea leve rise. Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imageries of years 2000 and 2015 were used to evaluate the different land use type identified. Post-classification change detection method was used to evaluate the output of the maximum likelihood supervised classification analysis done. This was also used to estimate the changes induces through urban development on the environment which accounts for the biodiversity loss. ASTER GDEM 2 imagery of 2011 was used to generate the elevation data used for the inundation analysis. Thus, both Land use map of Eti-Osa in 2015 and the down scaled Sea-level rise scenarios (at 0.5 to 15 meters) were used for the inundation mapping. Results obtained from this research affirms that indeed EtiOsa has been subjected to gross urban expansion giving room for diverse forms of environmental degradation among which are huge replacement of natural land cover with built-up, reclamation of wetlands and sand filling of water bodies. This basically illustrates growth but also the risk that accompanies the advent of excessive alteration of natural ecosystem as Sea-level rise projections imply in this research.


As a one-dimensional model of a liquid a chain of atoms is considered in which the distances of nearest neighbours are independent random variables having a given probability distribution. Electronic levels are derived using the tight binding approximation. The distribution of quantum states on the energy scale is obtained by applying known results from the mathematics of Jacobian matrices. Using atomic fields appropriate to the potassium atom it is shown that the conducting property of potassium and the insulating property of argon are preserved in the liquid state and that the band structure of the solid state is not essentially changed by the transition from the ordered to the disordered atomic structure.


The present invention relates to an integrated memory chip information readout method of the defect, having a plurality of word lines of word line group may be replaced by redundancy word line group and / or bit lines may be substituted with redundant bit lines to replace defective memory cell; Test data is written to the memory cells in the memory chip for the purpose of testing the memory cell; written data is read out and the previously written test data item than the first defect information generating; if the write and the read test data different test data, the first defect information item display defects; is read continuously along one of the bit lines of memory cells; the first defect information items are stored in the buffer word lines during the memory cell test group; second defect information items are generated, if at least one of the first defect information item display defects, the second defect information item display defects.


The aim of this article is to introduce a solution method for an indeterminate dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model. The method uses the concept of a biased expectation equilibrium, which is defined in this paper and means that expectations of certain variable are mechanically biased against those that would be rational. Our method should be particularly useful in terms of empirical estimation using DSGE models, because it will allow researchers to estimate how much agents' expectations are biased in the case where a model has indeterminacy.


This paper is a continuation of the authors' work on parameter estimation for heavy-tailed models. Here we review the sample autocorrelation and the Whittle estimator for linear processes in i.i.d innnite variance r.v.'s from the point of view of a.s. convergence. We consider examples which show that the sample autocorrelations do not converge a.s., but they do so along a speciied non-random subsequence. This fact can then be used to obtain a.s. convergence of the Whittle estimator along a speciied non-random subsequence.


Article 18B The 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia recognizes and respects the traditional rights of indigenous community. Article Number 14 of Law Number 12 Year 2011 in conjunction with  Article Number 236 paragraph four (4) of Law Number 23 Year 2014 guarantees the formation of Regional Regulations based on regional characteristic. It is a normative research, using the approach of legislation and conceptual approach. It is necessary to amend Law No. 23 of 2014, especially in relation to the formation of Regional Regulations based on regional characteristics. Law Number 32 Year 2004 along with its implementing regulations and Law Number 23 Year 2014 do not specify the rules for the establishment of Regional Regulations based on regional characteristics .


......................................................................................................................................................... iii Opsomming ...................................................................................................................................................... v Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................................ vii Dedications ................................................................................................................................................... viii Table of contents ............................................................................................................................................ ix List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................. xii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................................. xiii Operational Definition of terms .....................................................................................................................xiv Chapter 1: Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Research problem .................................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Research Question ................................................................................................................................. 4 1.4 Aim of the study ..................................................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Rationale................................................................................................................................................ 4 1.6 Objectives .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Chapter 2: Literature review ............................................................................................................................ 6 2.


Keywords: clinical trial, confidential information, personal data, patient
Clinical trials are conductedin accordance with legal norms, subject to human rights and in accordance with internationalethical principles. Each clinical trial for the patient (subject) begins on a voluntarybasis and with acquaintance of the patient (subject) about the features of the study, itspurpose and purpose, explanation of possible risks, in addition, the patient is informedabout innovative drugs and access to free treatment during research. The patient participatesin the study of the drug of his own volition, signing a voluntary informed consent.It is important to ensure that the rights of the patient (subject) in the clinical trial of themedicinal product to privacy and the protection of personal data, which is confidential informationabout the person who is the subject of the study, are respected. During clinicaltrials, researchers and all persons involved in the research process should treat responsiblythe person participating in the study of the medicinal product as the object of study,namely with respect for the human right to privacy and its secrecy. Individuals and legalentities should be able to protect information legally under their control from disclosure,acquisition or use by others without their consent in a manner contrary to fair commercialpractice, if such information is confidential in the sense that it is as a whole or in theexact configuration and combination of its components, commonly known or available topersons in the circles normally involved with the information in question. It is importantto note that any information that becomes known about the patient (subject) during theclinical trial of the drug should be carefully protected by the party conducting the study.Therefore, it is important to note that the right of a patient not to disclose confidentialinformation about him is guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine. The right to medicalsecrecy is enshrined in the Law of Ukraine "Fundamentals of Health Legislation". Incases where the rights of the patient (subject) have been violated, the legislator providesfor criminal liability for intentional disclosure of medical secrets to a person who becameknown in connection with the performance of professional or official duties, if such an actcaused serious consequences and for illegal collection, storage, use, destruction, disseminationof confidential information about a person or illegal change of such informationcomes criminal liability.


Dollarization is a phenomenon where the three fundamental roles of domestic currency(a means of payment, unit of account and a store of value) are replaced by the U.S. dollar. As the dollarization process goes on, the U.S. dollar replaces the role of local currency as a store of value because the wealth measured by local currency could be devalued.2) Typically, economic crisis or at least the acceleration of economic


Use of risk management principles to promote resilience to a range of potential hazards is important to contemporary emergency planning. Emphasis on individual resilience and adjustment adoption is crucial in communities vulnerable to highly disruptive and destructive hazard activity that can temporarily incapacitate institutional resources.


The article describes the risks of hemotherapy services evaluated by the Health Surveillance in 2011 and 2012 through the Valuation Method of Potential Risks in Hemotherapy Services (MARPSH), classifying them into five categories: Low, Medium-Low, Medium, Medium-High and High. Of the 560 evaluated, there was an increase of 9% among the classified as low risk and a decrease of 6% among the high risk. The main problems were found in the Northern Region, in transfusion agencies (Hospital Blood Banks) and public services. Nonconformities were mostly related to quality management, of personnel and of equipment. Despite the observed improvements, there were services with critical aspects related to their commitment to the safety and effectiveness of products and services.


Have succeded in isolating dissolved and undissolved matter from PP-b-PE by using dissolved and precipitable method uniquely. Then, studied their structures and properties by 13C-NMR, DSC and FT-IR.


Rubinstein‐Taybi syndrome (RSTS) is characterized by dysmorphic facial features, broad thumbs, and intellectual disability. CREB‐binding protein (CREBBP) or E1A‐binding protein P300 (EP300) are causative genes. To elucidate the underlying genetic and genomic architecture related to the RSTS phenotype, we performed comprehensive genetic analysis targeting CREBBP and/or EP300 in 22 clinically diagnosed patients. During the 11‐year study period, we used several analysis methods including high‐resolution melting, array‐based comparative genomic hybridization, panel‐based exome sequencing, whole exome sequencing, and whole genome sequencing (WGS). We identified the causative variants in 19 patients (86.3%), but they were variable and complex, so we must combine multiple analysis methods. Notably, we found genetic alterations in the non‐coding regions of two patients (10.5%, 2/19): scattered deletions including a partial 5′‐untranslated region of CREBBP in one patient (all coding exons were intact), and a deep 229‐bp intronic deletion in another patient, resulting in a splicing error. Furthermore, we identified rare clinical findings: two patients with an EP300 variant showed abnormal development of the neural tube, and one patient with a CREBBP variant had anorectal atresia with a cloaca. Our findings expand the allelic heterogeneity of RSTS, underscore the utility of comprehensive genetic analysis, and suggest that WGS may be a practical diagnostic strategy.


Public1 and private sector partnerships have proliferated to address wicked and complex planning problems, resulting in the rise of "governance networks." Governance networks draw actors from the public, private and non-profit sectors cutting across geographic, social and administrative boundaries. Empirical examples of governance networks include, but are not limited to, watershed partnerships, airshed partnerships, regional transportation and land-use planning networks and climate action partnerships. For this study of watershed governance networks, we develop agent-based models to examine how agents holding diverse beliefs interact under different assumptions for network structure. Using a simulation methodology, we address three research questions: (1) How do voting outcomes in watershed partnerships differ when planning proposals with low, medium and high scores on decision criteria regarding the environment, market and local government are introduced for discussion and voting by agents with heterogeneous mental models? (2) How sensitive are decision making outcomes to changes in the tolerance of a network members' beliefs to other members' beliefs in small world versus like-minded networks? (3) How sensitive are decision-making outcomes to changes in the average number of connections per agent in small world versus tolerance of belief difference in connections in like-minded networks? Results from a survey of watershed stakeholders are used to initialize the simulated beliefs of six stakeholder groups in an agent-based model: environmentalists, farmers, business people, government officials, and water and forestry experts. Simulated voting outcomes are sensitive to both stakeholder beliefs and simulated social networks among stakeholders. Increasing an agent's tolerance of other's beliefs increases the likelihood of majority or consensus voting on planning proposals. Counter to our expectations, simulated group consensus emerged more readily in small world networks than like-minded networks in which stakeholders had narrow thresholds of tolerance for other beliefs. As the diversity of stakeholder connections increases, consensus becomes more likely for watershed and other environmental planning governance networks.


According to one exemplary embodiment, an EUV (extreme ultraviolet) optical element in a light path between an EUV light source and a semiconductor wafer includes a reflective film having a number of bilayers. The reflective film includes a pattern, where the pattern causes a change in incident EUV light from the EUV light source, thereby controlling illumi nation at a pupil plane of an EUV projection optic to form a printed field on the semiconductor wafer. The EUV optical element can be utilized in an EUV lithographic process to fabricate a semiconductor die.


Adopting the method of theoretical focal mechanism solution,using the focal mechanism solutions(hereafter referred to as FMSs) of Wenchuan earthquake sequence(hereafter referred to as WES) as the constraint,the effect of different tectonic models in West Sichuan on WES is discussed.Employing the finite element method,considering different models of tectonic deformation,different tectonic stress fields of the Longmenshan region are simulated.According to the tectonic stress fields,theoretical FMSs are calculated and compared with the practical FMSs.The result shows that the tectonic stress field in this region,corresponding to the model that deformation rates increasing with depth in the Tibetan Plateau,is most consistent with the FMSs of WES.The consistency may lead to two conclusions:(1) the model that deformation rates increase with depth in Tibetan Plateau is more reasonable for the Longmenshan region;(2) the regional tectonic stress field is an important dynamic factor to WES.


The use of higher symmetries in periodic structures has made possible the development of new designs of microwave components with enhanced properties. Significant potential of this new way of making periodic structures can also be applied in design of electromagnetic band-gap (EBG) structures. This can simplify the manufacturing of components in gap waveguide technology, but at the same time it is necessary to respect some limitations and challenging design aspects. In this work, we will discuss the properties of EBG glide-symmetrical holey structures and how to apply them in the realization of gap waveguide technology.


General Background Platelet transfusions are indicated for the treatment and prevention of hemorrhage in thrombocytopenic patients and/or those affected by primary or secondary platelet dysfunction. In North America, apheresis (single donor) platelets are the predominantly used product, though platelets derived from whole blood remain available in some regions. Both products, which expire five days after collection, have a usable shelf life of only three-tofour days; the delay in availability is associated with the completion of required infectious disease (including bacterial) testing. The Food and Drug Administration will allow seven-day storage of some apheresis platelets if retested for bacteria late in storage with a rapid test approved as a "safety measure." Maintaining an appropriate, cost-efficient platelet inventory can be a logistical challenge and places a premium on appropriate use. Leukoreduced (LR) platelets collected by apheresis contain ≥3 x 1011 platelets and <5 x 106 leukocytes. LR has decreased but not eliminated the risk of cytomegalovirus (CMV) transmission and HLA alloimmunization, with the latter benefit minimizing the likelihood for consequent platelet transfusion refractoriness and/or transplant rejection.1,2 Irradiation of platelets reduces the risk of transfusion-associated graft-vs.-host disease without affecting the quality of the product. Following their transfusion into healthy individuals, fresh autologous platelets have an average lifespan of approximately three-to-five days.3 In patients with thrombocytopenia, however, platelet survival may be considerably shorter, often making it necessary to transfuse platelets at least every two to three days for patients with very low production.2 Risks from platelet transfusions include transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI), transfusionassociated circulatory overload (TACO), and febrile and allergic reactions, as well as transfusion-transmitted diseases (with the latter consisting most characteristically of bacterial septic reactions related to the room temperature storage of these products). ABO-incompatible (including, in some cases, "plasma-incompatible") platelets are transfused routinely at many facilities, with significant hemolysis being seen very rarely.


A quantitative precipitation micro-technique has been developed using the plastic microtiter plates. Amounts as small as 80–160 μl of antiserum were sufficient for the determination of the precipitin, curve. The microprocedure was shown to correlate both with the normal quantitative precipitation technique and the single radial immunodiffusion test.


SPECIMEN PREPARATION – acetonitrile as a dehydration agent I remember well that acetonitrile (AN) has been advised as a substitute for propylene oxide (PO) between ethanol dehydration and Epon embedding. I have always used ethanol and then PO until now but I am eager to use AN instead. Now I wonder if I could not use AN for dehydration too, so it could be used all along! For dehydration factors like penetration time, lipid extraction and hardening of the tissue are important to take into account but having no experience with AN, I have no idea. Do some of you use AN for dehydration and Epon embedding? Are there differences between ethanol and AN dehydration (time, hardness,...) to take into account? Also, I have to split the whole procedure into 2 days, usually I stopped in ethanol 70%. Where should I stop until next day with AN? Stephane Nizets email@example.com Apr 17 I have only ever-substituted acetonitrile in place of the PO, I've never tried to use it to dehydrate, only for the infiltration steps. It works great for that purpose. Jo Dee Fish firstname.lastname@example.com Tue Apr 29 I tried dehydration and Epon embedding with only acetonitrile as agent. I used it instead of ethanol dehydration then PO (propylene oxide) then Epon in my classical protocol. Well...it didn't work. The sections contain holes or cracks that really look like bad polymerization. Especially artifacts (holes or cracks) are visible along the nuclear envelope and with lipidic organelles like the mucus-filled vacuoles of goblet cells (I tried with pieces of gut). Nothing is visible in LM on semi-thin sections, only under the TEM. Apart from the artifacts, the morphology is excellent and the contrast too. I can only guess that acetonitrile dehydration requires longer or more frequent steps than ethanol. My dehydration protocol for small pieces of organ in ethanol is 2x10' per step (50%-70%-95%-100%) and I did the same with acetonitrile. I could of course wash 3x or extend the incubation time but I wish not to experiment further with acetonitrile. Stephane Nizets email@example.com Apr 29


Room‐temperature measurements of the reversible relaxation of the initial magnetic permeability have been performed in rapidly solidified Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 ribbons at different stages of the transformation from the amorphous to the nanocrystalline phase. The intensity of the relaxation is observed to practically disappear in the nanocrystalline alloy. This result may modify the current views about the structural defects responsible for the magnetic‐permeability relaxation in amorphous ferromagnets.


BACKGROUND
Early detection of critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) through newborn pulse oximetry (POx) screening is an effective strategy for reducing paediatric morbidity and mortality rates and has been adopted by much of the developed world.

OBJECTIVES
To document the feasibility of implementing pre-discharge POx screening in well babies born at Mowbray Maternity Hospital, a busy government hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. Parent and staff acceptance was assessed.

METHODS
We conducted a prospective study of predischarge POx screening in one postnatal ward, following informed parental consent.

RESULTS
During the 4-month study period, 1 017 of 2 256 babies discharged (45.1%) were offered POx screening and 1 001 were screened; 94.0% of tests took <3 minutes to perform, 4.3% 3 - 5 minutes and 1.7% >5 minutes. Eighteen patients needed second screens and three required third screens. Only 3.1% protocol errors were made, all without consequence. The vast majority (91.6%) of nursing staff reported insufficient time to perform the study screening in addition to their daily tasks, but ~75% felt that with a full nursing staff complement and if done routinely (not part of a study), pre-discharge POx screening could be successfully instituted at our facility. Over 98% of the mothers had positive comments. Two babies failed screening and required echocardiograms; one was diagnosed with CCHD and the other with neonatal sepsis. The sensitivity and specificity were 50% (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.3 - 98.7%) and 99.9% (95% CI 99.4 - 100%), respectively, with a percentage correct of 99.8%.

CONCLUSIONS
POx screening was supported and accepted by staff and parents. If there are no nursing staff shortages and if it is done routinely before discharge, not as part of a study, we conclude that POx screening could be implemented successfully without excessive false positives or errors, or any additional burden to cardiology services.


Objective To study the effect and possibility of the implantation of radiant 125I odine for advanced pancreatic cancer.Methods Sixty patients with advanced pancreatic cancer were treated with radiant 125I implantation by CT.Survival time and the pain relief rate were observed.Results Postoperative follow-up was carried out on all patients.The mid-survive time was 189 days and 9(15%)patients survive over one year.Three patients underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy one month after implantation of 125I.No bone marrow depression occurred.Conclusion 125I implantation radiotherapy by CT for advanced pancreatic cancer was feasible and yielded a longer survival time.


Taiwan, like many other countries, often incentivizes private investors to participate in the construction of infrastructures for environmental protection. The build-operate-transfer (BOT) or build-operate-own (BOO) model of financing public infrastructure was introduced to Taiwan in the 1990s. Among them, the construction of incinerators to treat the municipal solid waste using the BOT/BOO model was quite a success in the beginning. With the socio-technical change of lifestyle and waste generation, the amount of amount of trash dropped dramatically. The policy failed eventually, however, because the government over-estimated the trash quantity and refrained from inter-municipality cooperation to treat trash efficiently. This failure triggered a rash of intense debates and legal disputes. In the case of the Taitung incinerator, the 26th incinerator located in southeastern Taiwan, the arbitration resulted in the government making significant compensation payments to the private sector. The finished construction was consequently converted into a "mothballed and pensioned off" facility. This study applies in-depth interviews and literature review to discuss aspects contributing to the policy failure and proposes some possible remedial measures. Five aspects are summarized, namely, the administrative organization's rigid attitude, the irrationality of the BOT/BOO contracts, the loss of the spirit of BOO partnerships, the heavy financial burden on local government, and the abandonment of inter-municipality cooperation. The remedial measures for the policy failure are presented in the form of thorough policy evaluation, room for contract adjustments under the BOT/BOO model, encouragement of cross-boundary cooperation, and revision of the legal framework for implementing decentralization.


Hereditary forms of bone marrow failure and aplastic anaemia (AA) manifest in rare blood syndromes (Dyskeratosis Congenita, Diamond-Blackfan Anaemia and Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome) in which genetic abnormalities directly impair ribosome biogenesis. These conditions are all associated with varying degrees of predisposition to haematological malignancy. Various studies of ribosome proteins have revealed an intimate relationship between ribosome biogenesis and p53 that governs cell fate in human haematopoietic disease. Over 70 years ago, recognition of the bone marrow suppressive properties of nitrogen mustards led to the development of early chemotherapeutics. Since, a multitude of seemingly unrelated drugs have emerged that also provoke AA as an idiosyncratic side effect. Here we hypothesize that at least some of these bone marrow suppressive drugs target ribosome biogenesis thereby mimicking congenital forms of bone marrow failure and inducing AA. If so, these bone marrow suppressive drugs may also share the anti-cancer potential of mustard gas through targeting abnormal ribosome biogenesis in malignant haematopoietic stem cells. Targeted drug development is an arduous and time-consuming process, however, repurposing of bone marrow suppressive drugs could provide a novel, clinically applicable therapeutic strategy in haematological malignancies.


An experimental study has been made of the anodic dissolution of silicon in aqueous solution with emphasis on heavily doped n‐type. Current‐voltage curves, the effective dissolution valence, and the critical current density have been determined for n, n+, and p samples. Since n+ silicon has a resistivity less than 0.05 ohm‐cm, it can be electropolished while higher resistivity material exhibits a current saturation effect although breakdown occurs at only a few volts. Minority carrier generation within the space charge region does not account for the magnitude of the saturation current for n‐type and extensive attack was evident at the surface of n‐type which had received prolonged anodic treatment. The critical current density for n+ samples was found to be a function of the resistivity.


The concepts of a generalized theta function and of a metaplectic cover of GL2 were introduced by T. Kubota in the 1960s. This theory is concerned with a remarkable class of automorphic forms closely related to the nth-order reciprocity law over an algebraic number field k containing the nth roots of unity. A foundational discussion of the theory for the case of n-fold covers of GLr (r 2* 2) is given in [4]. The finer details of the theory of generalized theta functions are by no means understood, even over JGL2. In the case of a 3-fold cover of Q(V—3) one has a complete description [9]; in the case of more general 3-fold covers there is one undetermined parameter [4, p. 135]. In the case of a 2-fold cover of GL2 one recovers the classical theta series. These results can be generalized to an n-fold cover of GLr where they help in studying the Fourier coefficients of a theta function on an n-fold cover of GL2 for nSM. Several years ago the second author formulated a conjecture about the Fourier coefficients of the theta functions on a 4-fold cover of GL^; henceforth we shall call these 'biquadratic theta series'. This conjecture was supported by numerical evidence provided by N. Stephens but as no really efficient algorithms existed at that time the evidence was rather imprecise. The details were circulated privately and in [11] an attempt was made to formulate this conjecture in a general setting. This attempt was unsuccessful and the formulation given there is inconsistent. A discussion of the original motivation for the conjecture as well as a wide-reaching generalization can be found in [1]. Our objectives here are two-fold. First of all we shall give a precise version of the conjecture over any algebraic number field containing the fourth roots of unity. We are indebted to D. A. Kazhdan for his insistence on the necessity of such a formulation. This is given as Conjecture 2.11. One should note in this connection that the p{r, TJ) defined immediately before Theorem 1.9 are the Fourier coefficients of a generalized theta function but that we do not use this interpretation here. One consequence of our analysis is that one sees that the conjecture is special to this case and it gives no insight into the possible arithmetic nature of the Fourier coefficients of theta series for covers of degrees greater than 4. The second objective is to give numerical evidence for the correctness of the conjecture. The quantities in question are defined as the residues of certain Dirichlet series and as such are not easy to compute. In the original version of the conjecture, evidence had been computed by Nelson Stephens but as this was based on a Tauberian theorem the accuracy was low and could not be estimated


Aiming at the microporous array structure, a measurement system combining vision and probe which can take into account the measurement accuracy and efficiency is proposed. The acquisition of visual features needs to ensure the accuracy and rapidity. Therefore, for the scanning acquisition of visual features, an image segmentation algorithm based on image gradient and a fast scanning method of part surface area are designed in this paper. The image segmentation algorithm based on image gradient combines the advantages of global binarization and local Binarization in threshold segmentation. Firstly, the local eigenvalues of each pixel are obtained, then the threshold segmentation is carried out according to the eigenvalues, and the region edge features are used to distinguish the non-part region, part surface and micropore feature region; The fast scanning method of part surface area realizes fast scanning through image segmentation results and certain scanning strategies; Using the space engine injection disk to verify, it shows that the region segmentation not only ensures the accuracy, but also ensures the real-time performance of the algorithm; The fast scanning method of part surface can avoid invalid scanning, effectively improve the scanning efficiency, and does not need the operator to provide a priori knowledge.


If the author of this book would have followed the advice of Cyril Connolly, "the true function of a writer is to produce a masterpiece and that no other task is of any consequence," the book would not have been written, or at least published. One of the problems confronted by medical books dealing with therapeutics is the occurrence of rapid changes in this area making obsolescence almost inevitable in short periods of time. A rather successful attempt to improve this situation has been the yearly books. It seems from reviewing this book that some chapters have been recently revised. This is the case in chapter 11 on smallpox. N-methyl-isatin β-thio-semicarbazone in the prophylaxis of smallpox is given a large paragraph, though no details of doses can be found. Many assertions in other chapters are given as definite and unquestionable, when at best they could be called personal impressions or


Although fire occurrence plays a central role in the dominance of the super-dominant bracken fern Pteridium arachnoideum in Neotropical forests, it is unclear whether this applies to the Brazilian savanna (Cerrado), which vegetation is naturally adapted to fire. We assessed fire effects on the aboveground biomass of P. arachnoideum in the Cerrado Ecological Reserve in Central Brazil. We measured frond height, density, standing biomass, and litter biomass before and for two years following a prescribed fire, and also sampled a control site to control for other mortality events and for seasonal variation. The average P. arachnoideum frond height and aboveground biomass decreased over three times in the burnt site 18 months after the fire. The frond density decreased both in the burnt and control site, indicating that this may have been caused in another way than by fire. Conversely, litter biomass decreased shortly after the fire in the burnt site, but returned to pre-fire levels in one year. Possible explanations for the lasting negative effects of fire on the height and biomass of P. arachnoideum include the implementation of the prescribed fire early in the dry season, which likely limited immediate clonal regrowth, and the herbivory by leaf-cutting ants. Nevertheless, the effective clonal growth of P. arachnoideum apparently precluded the fire from having stronger effects and hence this species was not excluded from the site. We conclude that direct and indirect fire effects may cause the decline of P. arachnoideum in Cerrado, so that prescribed fires may be applied as a management strategy in Cerrado sites where this species is super-dominant, ideally in combination with other control measures.


A statistical equilibrium ensemble for a class of nonlinear, ideal, compressible magnetohydrodynamics models is constructed. If the departure from thermal equilibrium is due to helical magnetic‐field configurations, then the magnetic‐field fluctuation spectrum differs profoundly from that predicted by Landau's theory of fluid fluctuations which involves zero helicity. Some of the results of that theory however are recovered, as far as fluctuations of fluid‐dynamical (nonmagnetic) variables are concerned, in the linear limit of our nonlinear theory. Comparisons are also made with related models of incompressible plasma turbulence.


Spasticity often coexists with stroke due to an upper motor neuron lesion, which impacts the patient's quality of life. Therefore, the control of muscle tone through physical therapy such as cryotherapy and Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) is extremely important. Several studies have demonstrated their advantageous physiological effects. However, these studies have not provided sufficient scientific proof for the treatment of upper limb spasticity and the duration of the physiological effects after the therapy. Therefore, this work helps to establish an application protocol for cryotherapy and NMES in individuals with spastic hemiparesis. The resistance to movement of the elbow flexor and extensor muscles before and after application of cryotherapy and NMES was used to determine the effect of the therapies. The study included 15 stroke patients that required physical therapy for spastic hemiparesis. They included both sexes, mean age of 56 ± 16. An evaluation was performed before and after therapy, as well as 10, 20, and 30 minutes following the application, by means of surface electromyography (EMG). The resistance to movement was measured with an Isokinetic Dynamometer in the passive mode at an angular velocity of 30 and 150 o/s. Although not statistically significant (p < 0.05), the results showed a reduced resistance to passive movement of the elbow flexors and extensors after cryotherapy and NMES, allowing us to conclude that physical therapy effectively reduces the resistance to passive movement in spastic hemiparetic patients, however, they have different effects with respect to time.


In his physiography of Eastern United States, Fenneman divided the Atlantic coast into embayed and sea island (largely unembayed) segments at the Neuse River. The southern North Carolina coast is unembayed because of geologic uplift. To the north (i.e., North Carolina and Virginia) and south (i.e., South Carolina and Georgia), submerged coasts and river systems support some of the world's richest estuaries. Cultural patterns inland from the two kinds of shorelines differ profoundly and reflect a fundamental characteristic of coastlines, shallow and rich or steep and impoverished. The ecological ramifications of these shoreline habitats sum to long-term stability or instability, both near-shore and inland. In pre-modern times, a key variable for human populations was the magnitude of late winter anadromous fish runs. Unstable landscapes such as existed on the southern North Carolina Coastal Plain have been discussed as "cultural anvils." The implications of the cultural anvil model are explored for the region.


Many governments enforced physical distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic to avoid the collapse of often fragile and overloaded health care systems. Following the physical distancing measures, school closures seemed unavoidable to keep the transmission of the pathogen under control, given the potentially high-risk of these environments. Nevertheless, closing schools was considered an extreme and the last resort of governments, and so various non-pharmaceutical interventions in schools were implemented to reduce the risk of transmission. By means of an agent-based model, we studied the efficacy of active surveillance strategies in the school environment. Simulations settings provided hypothetical although realistic scenarios which allowed us to identify the most suitable control strategy to avoid massive school closures while adapting to contagion dynamics. Reducing risk by means of public policies explored in our study is essential for both health authorities and school administrators. © 2022, University of Surrey. All rights reserved.


In today's fast-advancing world, Deep learning brought the huge potential to the healthcare system and it still undergoes different amazing new techniques. New automatic brain tumor segmentation models have been realized. As a result, it is being much more affordable and faster to save lives. However, most of the tumor detection works are still being conducted with 2D single slices of brain image, although, there are new 3D CNN [1] models with more benefits. Those 3D models enable to scan of brain images in 3d volume. 2D models accept only single slices as input and they innately fail to use context from neighboring slices. Missed voxel data from contiguous slices might affect the detection of tumors and decrease the accuracy of the model. 3D models address this issue by utilizing 3D convolutional kernels to make predictions from volumetric inputs. The capacity to use interslice features can increase the further performance of the model. Therefore, in practice, 3D volumes enable to obtain much more efficient and clear diagnoses. İn this paper we purpose our new 3D MRI reconstruction algorithm based on VTK toolkit [3].


Objectives: Cryolipolysis provides a nonsurgical treatment option for reducing excess subcutaneous fat. Although widely used, clinical outcomes such as photographs, patient questionnaires, and caliper measurements may be affected by subjectivity and operator- dependency. The current case series study evaluated changes in body composition using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) in patients who underwent cryolipolysis treatment. Methods: between 2019 and 2020, 5 patients underwent cryolipolysis at a dermatology practice in São Paulo, Brazil. Patients were treated in different body regions using a cryolipolysis medical device (CoolSculpting®; ZELTIQ Aesthetics, Inc., Pleasanton, CA, USA) with the CoolAdvantage™ or CoolAdvantage Plus™ vacuum applicators (ZELTIQ Aesthetics, Inc). Pre- and post-treatment, body weight and abdominal circumference were recorded. Fat and lean mass measurements were also obtained using a total body scanner. Results: five patients (4 females, 1 male; mean age, 34 years) were treated in a total of 8 areas (2 cases in the flank, 3 cases in the abdomen, and 3 cases in the back). Three months post-treatment, body weight was reduced in 3 out of 5 (60.0%) patients, and abdominal circumference was reduced in 2 out of 3 (66.7%) patients. Most patients showed reductions in total fat mass (80.0%) and lean mass (60.0%). The percentage change in body weight was also correlated with the percentage change in total fat mass (R=0.81). Region-specific alterations in fat content were also observed. Conclusions: most patients showed changes in body composition, including lower fat mass (5%-36% reductions) 3 months after cryolipolysis treatment. The results suggest that DEXA can be used to objectively visualize and quantify body composition changes following cryolipolysis treatment.


A 3-year study of interactions between frugivorous birds (11 species) and fleshyfruited plants with bird-dispersed seeds (eight species) documented the diffuseness of the mutualism between the taxa. We found considerable annual variation in degree of frugivory, principal fruits in the diet, and dietary diversity for most of the frugivores. There were no consistent correlations between fruit or seed size and gape width, body size, or diversity of consumers. Mutual dependency of bird species and plant species was very limited. The birds could usually obtain 1 to 2% of their metabolically effective body mass in fruit pulp/minute, but they did not concentrate their foraging on the fruits yielding the greatest intake rate. Subcanopy and understory foragers seldom changed foraging stratum and may constitute two guilds of seed dispersal agents, from the perspective of the plants. These guilds differed consistently in average body size, tendency to void seeds by regurgitation, occurrence in years of low fruit abundance, frequency of foraging on clumped fruiting displays, and in speed of movement away from a fruit source. However, three of the five subcanopy species have increased dramatically in abundance in the past 100 to 150 years, and so the dispersal regime for plant species whose fruits are eaten by these species may be different now from what it was. Most of the frugivores foraged preferentially in treefall gaps, and several species also shifted their foraging behavior toward increased fruit foraging in gaps. These observations reinforce other studies that have shown greater abundances of birds and greater rates of fruit removal in gaps. As a result of the preference for fruit foraging in gaps, bird-dispersed plants growing in gaps may achieve better seed dispersal than those in forest interior. Frugivores usually left a fruit source soon after feeding, so most seeds were carried some minimum distance away from the parent plant. However, the probability of departure varied with bird species and plant species, and bird species also differed in probable sites of seed deposition. The most efficacious dispersal agents were not necessarily the most common dispersers of any of the plants.


This paper represents studies on fusion strategies for personal identification using fingerprints and iris biometrics. The purpose of our paper is to investigate whether the integration of fingerprint and iris biometrics can achieve performance that may not be possible using a single biometric technology. Biometrics comprises methods for uniquely recognizing humans based upon one or more intrinsic physical or behavioral. Multimodal biometric identification is based on iris and fingerprint biometrics, both performs better as compared to other available traits due to their accuracy, reliability and simplicity. The fusion of multiple biometrics helps to minimize the system error rates. Fusion methods include processing biometric modalities sequentially until an acceptable match is obtained. The results of this paper confirm that a multimodal biometric can overcome some of the limitations of a single biometric resulting in a substantial performance improvement.


The Institute of Business Forecasting (IBF) surveyed the attendees of the Business Forecasting: Best Practices Conference, held in Orlando, Florida, on October 2829, 1996, to benchmark some of the practices in the forecasting industry. Most ofthe people who attended the conference came from Fortune 500 companies. The survey asked three main questions which were: (I) Where does the forecasting function reside within your company? (2) How many people within your company work as a full time forecaster? (3) What is the salary of a Forecast Analyst, Senior Forecast Analyst, Forecast Manager and Director of Forecasting in your company? 103 persons responded to this survey. In the IBF seminar, held in Boston, MA ( July 29-30, 1996), attendees were asked, in addition to the above three questions, How old is the forecasting function within your corporation? The answer to this question will reveal when the company started recognizing the role of forecasting as a function. If a company hired for the first time a full time forecaster one year ago , it means it recognized the need of this function only one year ago. 29 persons responded to this survey. Thus, the results of the first three questions are based on 132 (103 + 29) respondents and the last question, only 29 respondents. Also, there were some respondents who, for one reason or another, did not answer all the questions. WHERE THE FORECASTING FUNCTION RESIDES WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION Although 132 persons participated in these two surveys, the number of responses received on this issue were 159. There were some individuals who gave more than one response. In many companies the forecasting function is not centralized in one particular department. Different departments prepare their own forecasts. For example, Marketing prepares its own forecasts and Production prepares its own forecasts. In such cases, we got more than one response from an individual. The survey results showed that Marketing is the leader when it comes to preparing forecasts. In 25.8% of the cases, the forecasting function resides with the Marketing Organization. (See Exhibit 1 ) Next comes Strategic Planning. Many forecasters do not like the idea of giving this responsibility to the Strategic Planning Organization . They believe if Strategic Planning prepares forecast then there will be the danger of it becoming the financial plan. But many companies do not see it that way, which is obvious in the survey. In 20.1% ofthe cases, the forecasting function resides with Strategic Planning. Next to Strategic Planning are Sales ( 17.6%), Finance (13.2%) and Production (9.4%). There are very few companies where the forecasting function is completely independent (1.3%). Levi Strauss is one of the few examples. NUMBER OF FULL TIME FORECASTERS With respect to the number of persons working as a full time forecaster, we received a total of 113 responses. …


Negative chirp modulation of optical transmitters is needed for the optimal performance of high bit-rate transmission in optical fiber systems operating at nonzero dispersion window at 1.5 /spl mu/m. In this paper several approaches to achieving any fixed chirp value for LiNbO/sub 3/ modulators are proposed, Experimental results of impedance matched devices on x-cut lithium niobate with chirp values of /spl plusmn/0.7 and /spl plusmn/1.0 are presented. By tuning the modulators bias point, the chirp value can be adjusted linearly around the designed value without degrading other performances.