We studied a multi-orbital Hubbard model at half-filling for two and three orbitals per site on a two-site cluster via full exact diagonalization, in a wide range for the onsite repulsion U, from weak to strong coupling, and multiple ratios of the Hund coupling J H to U. The hopping matrix elements among the orbitals were also varied extensively. At intermediate and large U, we mapped the results into a Heisenberg model. For two orbitals per site, the mapping is into a S = 1 Heisenberg model where by symmetry both nearest-neighbor (S i ⋅ S j ) and (Si⋅Sj)2 are allowed, with respective couplings J 1 and J 2. For the case of three orbitals per site, the mapping is into a S = 3/2 Heisenberg model with (S i ⋅ S j ), (Si⋅Sj)2 , and (Si⋅Sj)3 terms, and respective couplings J 1, J 2, and J 3. The strength of these coupling constants in the Heisenberg models depend on the U, J H, and hopping amplitudes of the underlying Hubbard model. Our study provides a first crude estimate to establish bounds on how large the ratios J 2/J 1 and J 3/J 1 can be. We show that those ratios appear rather limited and, as a qualitative guidance, we conclude that J 2/J 1 is less than 0.4 and J 3/J 1 is less than 0.2, establishing bounds on effective models for strongly correlated Hubbard systems. Moreover, the intermediate Hubbard U regime was found to be the most promising to enhance J 2/J 1 and J 3/J 1.


It is well-known that the analysis of elasto-plastic thermal stress and deformation are substantially important in optimal design of metal casting mould. The unsteady state thermal stress and deformation generated during the solidification process of ingot and mould have been analyzed by two dimensional thermal elasto-plastic theories. Distributions of temperature, stress and relative displacement of the mould are calculated by the finite element method and compared with experimental results. In the elasto-plastic thermal stress analysis, compressive stress occurred at the inside wall of the mould whereas tensile stress occurred at outside wall. A coincidence between the analytical and experimental results is found to be fairly good, showing that the proposed analytical method is reliable.


This article aimed to explore the effect of student-centered nursing rounds in clinical practice.99 nursing students participated the student-centered nursing rounds in clinical practice.Then,the nusing students and clinical teachers were investigated with a questionnaire regarding to their attitude to the nursing rounds.The student-centered nursing rounds is proved to be a feasible and effective means in clinical practice,which can motivate nursing students' learning enthusiasm, enhace their self-confidence, improve their general diathesis and realize the training objectives with klowledge,competence and diathesis.


This paper presents mathematical models for BRT station operation, calibrated using microscopic simulation modelling. Models are presented for station capacity and bus queue length. No reliable model presently exists to estimate bus queue length. The proposed bus queue model is analogous to an unsignalized intersection queuing model.


The bearing regularly suffers from compound faults in real-world working conditions. In comparison to the single-fault feature extraction, the compound fault diagnosis is more difficult to achieve. This paper suggests an alternative signal processing strategy using the Multipoint Optimal Minimum Entropy Deconvolution method (MOMED) and B-spline based envelope-derivative operator (EDO) tools. As an upgraded version of the Minimum Entropy Deconvolution tool, the MOMEDA technique has been extensively available for bearing and gear fault detection. However, this approach results in an open problem related to how one can choose an appropriate filter size. Considering this problem, an optimized MOMED based on Salp Swarm Algorithm is proposed. Besides, a novel energy operator method called B-spline based envelope-derivative operator (B-spline EDO) is proposed to detect the corresponding fault characteristics from the two separated mono-component signals produced by the optimized MOMED. The new B-spline EDO method accomplishes higher fault detection performance in a noisy environment. Finally, the experimental results displayed that the novel compound fault detection approach can effectively identify the compound fault characteristics.


ObjectivesTo determine what data are currently being collected at the critical care bedside, the role of flow sheets in storing these data, and what other forms and locations are used to store critical care data. DesignWe undertook a descriptive survey in a nonrandom sample of acute care hospitals with designated critical care units. Flow sheets were reviewed, and interviews with critical care nurses and physicians were conducted according to a predefined questionnaire. Finally, compliance in the surveyed hospitals with previous recommendations and existing guidelines on data collection and storage was then determined. SettingFifteen "teaching" and 19 "nonteaching" acute care hospitals in the Province of Ontario. ResultsA lack of standardization of flowsheet design and of the specific data included on these flow sheets was identified. Abbreviations were inconsistent. Little collaboration between physician and nonphysician members of the critical care team was identified in flow-sheet design. Variance between units in their collection of physiologic data was remarkable. Finally, few units surveyed used quantifiable illness severity scoring to describe their unit population. ConclusionsThe lack of standardization regarding key information that should be collected and archived in critical care units identifies important risk management and quality assurance issues. There is a need for agreement on what information should be collected and maintained at the bedside in order to provide quality patient care. (Crit Care Med 1993; 21:144–150)


Porosity is one of the most common defects in casting production. When
some parts of the casting begin to solidify they contract due to the difference
of densities between the liquid and solid phases. The areas that are still liquid
feed the solidifying regions until at some point feeding is not longer possible
due to the growth of the solid phase and porosity begins to form. If the feeding
cut is due to the growth of dendrites, pores will have a very small size and
will be usually mentioned as microporosity. When a pool of liquid is isolated,
surrounded by solid material, a big void will appear known as macroporosity. If
the liquid pool is connected to the exterior it will form pipe shrinkage.
The aim of this work is the implementation of a microporosity model inside
the commercial casting software Click2Cast, based on the general finite elements
framework Kratos Multiphysics. The model that has been implemented is based
on the Dimensionless Niyama method developed by Carlson and Beckermann
in 2008. This approach requires the recover of the gradient of the temperature.
In order to do this, several methods to compute the gradients were developed
and implemented inside the code.
Finally, another model to calculate macroporosity and pipe shrinkage is being
currently implemented. This method is based on the calculation of the pressure
during the solidification. No results are provided for this model as still further
work is needed to expect a correct under different circumstaces .The objective
is that after validation, this model will be also included in Click2Cast.


Purpose: To report a rare case of subconjunctival oil granuloma caused by a high-pressure injection injury that showed excellent cosmetic result after tissue resection and conjunctival autograft. Methods: A 49-year-old male was injured by the high-pressure sprouting of bunker fuel oil C in his right eye during ship work. Temporal bulbar conjunctival laceration and subconjunctival oil involving the nasal subconjunctival area were observed on the initial examination. Irrigation and aspiration of subconjunctival oil was performed, but the result was not satisfactory. After wound healing of the conjunctiva, radical resection and biopsy of the conjunctival and tenon tissue that formed the fibrotic adhesion around laceration wound was performed. Then, the superotemporal bulbar conjunctiva of contralateral eye was grafted to the lesion. Results: Bunker fuel oil C in the subconjunctival space did not invade the intraocular area. However, excisional biopsy of the scarred lesion showed chronic granulomatous inflammation. Satisfactory cosmetic outcome was achieved after conjunctival autograft without any complications.


Objective To investigate the effect of endothelin receptor antagonist (BQ-123) on expression of matrix metalloproteinase-1(MMP-1) in rats with pulmonary fibrosis induced by bleomycin.Methods Rats were divided into three groups: model, treatment and control groups. Pulmonary fibrosis wase induced by endotracheal injection of bleomycin (5mg/kg). Treatment group rats were given intraperitoneal injection of BQ-123 (50 μg/kg twice a week). Control group rats were given normal saline in the same amount. At 28 day all the rats were exacuted. The expression of MMP-1 mRNA was determined by Semi-quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (sqRT-PCR) and The expression of MMP-1 protein was measured by ELISA technique.Results MMP-1 mRNA expression of model group rats was significantly lower than that of control group(P0.01), whereas MMP-1 mRNA expression of treatment group rats was significantly higher than that of model group rats(P0.01).MMP-1 protein content of model group rats was also significantly lower than that of control group(P0.05);As compared with model group rats, the MMP-1 protein content of treatment group rats was significantly increased(P0.01).Conclusion MMP-1 level was decreased in rats with pulmonary fibrosis induced by bleomycin, endothelin receptor antagonist could increase its expression.


This paper investigates whether workers in flexible employment relationships show lower job satisfaction than workers with permanent job contracts. Our results indicate that looking only at formal job security provided by the contract type may lead to misleading conclusions about job satisfaction. Using longitudinal data for Germany, we find that it is not the formal job security provided by the contractual agreement but rather the perceived job security that matters for job satisfaction. Moreover, there is evidence that workers value job characteristics in similar ways across fundamentally different types of job contracts.


Abstract The problem of the preparedness formation of future teachers of vocational training to the professional adaptation under conditions of globalization processes in society is considered. The analysis of scientific and educational literature devoted to the study of occupational adaptation and preparedness formation of specialists to it is carried out. Different approaches to the interpretation of the term "adaptation" of the various sciences positions as in in our country and foreign scientific literature are analyzed. It is determined that the professional adaptation is the process of joining a young vocational education teacher in a new social environment in the system of interpersonal relations of particular staff, during which it is taking place the standards of thinking and behavior production in terms of values system and behavioral norms of the staff; readiness for occupational adaptation as one of the essential parameters of professional and social maturity of a person is the particular bound, which characterizes the internal readiness of a man to the qualitative changes.


When first seen on 5/6/59, the headache was bilateral, dull, referred to the frontal area, radiating toward the occiput, relieved by aspirin. There was evidence of allergic sinus disease. Conclusive in-fradermal skin test reactions were obtained to various foods. Laboratory studies were negative except for a leucocytosis of 11,500, erythrocyte sed rate of 38 mm/hr. The headaches were believed to be the result of a sinus infection and possibly to allergic irritation. No further studies were therefore carried out. Subsequently, the child had been taking two sulfa tablets twice daily for two months as a prophylactic measure for his sinus disease.


Endometrial cancer is an increasingly common malignancy in women worldwide. The incidence of endometrial cancer has risen significantly in the past two decades [1]. Women in the United States have an estimated lifetime risk of developing endometrial cancer of 3.1%. The mortality rate due to endometrial cancer has increased at a higher rate than the incidence; unfortunately, the average percentage increase in endometrial cancer deaths in the past decade is the highest among all female cancers. Surgical management, consisting of hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy and lymph node evaluation, remains the initial treatment for most patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer. Following surgery, the risk of cancer recurrence and death varies based on clinical, pathological, and molecular factors. The role of adjuvant therapy in endometrial cancer is to reduce the risk of disease recurrence and mortality more effectively than surgery alone. Herein, we review the historical trials, which established the utility of adjuvant therapy in subgroups defined by clinical and pathological factors and discuss the current paradigm shift in contemporary clinical trials toward precision adjuvant therapy based on molecular/genetic features.


Sharia stock has become one of the biggest concerns for investors in
economic development. One of the things to be considered by investors and
companies listed on stock exchange is firm performance. Firm performance is an
effective mechanism to maintain a competitive advantage. This study aims to
determine the effect of good corporate governance aspect on the level of firm
performance in companies listed in Indonesia Sharia Stock Index during 2012-
2014.
Hypothesis in this research uses independent commissioner, gender
diversity, institutional ownership and managerial ownership as independent
variables as well as firm size and growth opportunity as control variables.
Variable used as dependent variable is return on equity (ROE). The sample used
in this study is sharia stock listed in Indonesia Sharia Stock Index (ISSI) 2012-
2014 with purposive sampling method analyzed for 270 data of 90 companies.
The data used is secondary data obtained from Indonesia Stock Exchange and
Indonesian Capital Market Directory. The analyticial method used is multiple
linear regression analysis. Result of the research shows that institutional
ownership has a significant negative effect on return on equity, managerial
ownership and independent commissioner have an insignificant negative effect on
return on equity and gender diversity has an insignificant positive effect on return
on equity.


Review(s) of: The Mad square: Modernity in German art 1910-37, by Curator: Jacqueline Strecker, Art Gallery of New South Wales, 6 August - 6 November 2011, National Gallery of Victoria, 25 November 2011 - 4 March 2012.


This paper studies the vibration modal characteristics of cylindrical shell structure by means of finite element method. The aim is to analyze the variation of vibration modes due to the changes of the structure parameters of the cylindrical shell. The numerical results show that the density of the modal increases with pipe enlarging in diameter, and the circumferential frequencies follows a permutation rule. The results provide the theoretical basis for the reliable designing of piping system.


We report novel technique to fabricate patterned retarder films on the basis of reactive mesogen materials (RMM). The comparison of RMM‐patterned retarders fabricated via our innovative high‐anchoring‐patterned rubbing and standard contactless photoalignment techniques of the same B15 alignment material developed by us is presented.


The sharptooth catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822), has a very wide distribution in Africa (Lévêque 1997). Cambray (2005) noted that, due to its possible aquaculture potential, this species was 'leapfrogging' around the world via the aquaculture pathway and was escaping into natural waters. This process is also happening in South Africa. Here, we trace the history of the Dutch domesticated strain of this species, and evaluate whether it should have been introduced into South Africa for aquaculture purposes. In 1976, some 40 Clarias gariepinus from Cameroon became the breeding nucleus cultured at the University of Wageningen, Holland, where the Dutch domesticated strain was bred (Verreth in litt. 2005), it having been selected for good shape (i.e. small head) and fast growth. When inbreeding symptoms were encountered in these fish, testes from Central African Republic and Nigerian males were used to bring in new genetic variety (Verreth in litt. 2005). In addition, Volckaert (pers. comm.) mentioned that the Dutch domesticated strain comprised a combination of various 'aquaculture' stocks from Israel and Central Africa (both regions being within the native range of this species). This strain was commercialised during the 1980s and is now produced in Holland, where annual production of 4 000 MT is achieved (Verreth in litt. 2005). It has also been exported to Hungary and to South Africa. The Dutch domesticated Clarias was identified as the preferred stock when the Megafisch recirculating system was adopted as a supposedly ideal intensive fish production technique for use in South Africa (J Theron pers. comm.). The first stocks were imported from Holland in 2001 (Beckert pers. comm. 2005, Kooij pers. comm. 2005). Initially, 40 adults were imported by Mr Johan Kooij, but later an additional 50 000 larvae were imported, forming the basis from which this strain was bred in South Africa. The importations were done under permits issued by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism of the North West Province as well as by the national Department of Agriculture. In the closed recirculation systems in which they were kept, they showed very good growth rates, growing by between 1.8 and 3.5kg in eight months (J Kooij pers. comm.). However, problems were soon encountered. Whilst the imported fish could be bred every month, they produced few eggs and there was a low egg fertilisation rate. Low fertilities were subsequently overcome by back-crossing female domesticated fish with wild males obtained from the Crocodile River system, which also resulted in higher survival rates. Back-crossed fish were distributed by the assigned breeder, Mr J Kooij, to other Megafisch operations in South Africa, including those in Ventersdorp (Vaal River system), and Hazyview (Sabi River, Inkomati system) as well as at the following sites in the Limpopo system: Mabalingwe (Crocodile River) Delmas (Wilge River, Olifants Short Note


The COVID-19 epidemic has spread throughout countries around the world. In Indonesia, this case was detected in early March 2020, and until now, there is still an increase in positive cases of COVID-19. The purpose of this paper is to predict COVID-19 cases in Indonesia using a time series approach. The method used is H-WEMA method because this method can capture trend data patterns following the conditions of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia. Based on the analysis results, H-WEMA can predict COVID-19 cases very well. The forecasted results of the COVID-19 cases in Indonesia still have an upward trend, so it needs the cooperation of all elements of community to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Received September 8, 2021Revised October 15, 2021Accepted November 3, 2021


The article analyzes the reinterpretation and adaptation of the discourse of human rights among the Mapuche. The analysis uses the comparison between the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Spanish and a translation to Spanish of the official version in the language of the Mapuche ( Mapuzungun ) to detect and interpret the specificity of the Mapuche concepts, integrating them in the notion of Az Mapu and considering them in the context of conflict with the Chilean state. The agreements with the results of a previous retranslation from Tzeltal to Spanish, authored by Pedro Pitarch, lead to suggest a number of notions potentially distinctive of Amerindian peoples in general.


An instrument for the study of charge transfer processes and ion-molecule reactions with negative ions has been constructed. It consists of an electron bombardment source, a primary ion mass analyser, an energy analyser and an accelerating lens followed by the reaction chamber and a secondary mass analyser. Mass analysed primary ion beams of experimentally useful intensities are produced over an energy range (in the laboratory system) from 0.2 eV to 100 eV with an energy spread of about 0.2 eV (full width at half maximum) above 2 eV.


It is forgivable that American political science should have so few classics, since it so self-consciously re-invented itself less than 40 years ago. Certainly, however, Murray Edelman's The Symbolic Uses of Politics (1964) can be classified as one of a small group. It is of no small irony that this work is also a massive self-critique of the discipline. For Edelman attacked the profession on two fronts: political action should be studied not in terms of the observations of objects but in terms of the interpretation of subjects and the American polity was not a pluralist system of relatively free access but one manipulated by elites who knew how to get what they wanted from government and at the same time reassure or intimate others into quiescence. Edelman employed the tropes of "symbol," "myth," and "ritual" to explain how elites manipulate administrative and judicial environments as well as elections and leadership personas to provide mass symbolic benefits while controlling "tangible resources." Thus while The Symbolic Uses of Politics was similar to two other classics of the period, The Power Elite and One Dimensional Man, in its conclusions (and indeed to slightly earlier works which addressed the question of symbolization as political weapon, such as Thurman Arnold's The Folklore of Capitalism and James Burnham's The Machiavellians), it was more influential in the discipline because, while attacking positivism, it employed much of its rhetorical style. Edelman's work was largely ahistorical, he placed his analysis in propositional form, spoke in terms of "research programs" for the discipline, and approached his subject with the brio of an epistemological revolutionary.


© 2 0 0 9 T H E A U T H O R S 2 9 0 J O U R N A L C O M P I L A T I O N © 2 0 0 9 B J U I N T E R N A T I O N A L 3 Del Guercio L, Cohn J. Monitoring operative risk in the elderly. JAMA 1980; 243 : 1350–5 4 Haagensen R, Steen PA. Perioperative myocardial infarction. Br J Anaesth 1988; 61 : 24–37 5 Goldman L, Caldera DL, Nussbaum SR et al. Multifactorial index of cardiac risk in non-cardiac surgical procedures. N Engl J Med 1977; 297 : 845–50 6 Audisio R, Pope D, Ramesh HS et al. Shall we operate? Pre-operative assessment in elderly cancer patients (PACE) can help. A SIOG surgical task force prospective study. Crit Rev Oncol Haematol 2008; 65 : 156–63 7 Fritsche H, Burger M, Ganzer R. Impact of comorbidity on perioperative mortality after radical cystectomy. Aktuelle Urol 2008; 39 : 225–8 8 Reilly D, McNeely M, Doerner D. Selfreported exercise tolerance and the risk of serious perioperative complications. Arch Intern Med 1999; 159 : 2185–92 9 McPhail N, Calvin JE, Shariatmadar A et al. The use of exercise testing to predict cardiac complications after arterial reconstruction. J Vasc Surg 1988; 7 : 60–8 10 Barisone G, Rovida S, Gazzaniga GM et al. Upper abdominal surgery: does a lung function test exist to predict early severe post-operative pulmonary complications. Eur Respir J 1997; 10 : 1301–8 11 Older P, Hall A, Hader R. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing as a screening test for perioperative management of major surgery in the elderly. Chest 1999; 116 : 355–62 12 Carlisle J, Swart M. Mid-term survival after AAA surgery predicted by cardiopulmonary exercise testing. Br J Surg 2007; 94 : 1575–6 13 Nagamatsu Y, Shima I, Yamana H et al. Preoperative evaluation of cardiopulmonary reserve with the use of expired gas analysis during exercise testing in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2001; 121 : 1064– 8 14 Forshaw M, Strauss DC, Davies AR et al. Is cardiopulmonary exercise testing a useful test before esophagectomy? Ann Thorac Surg 2008; 85 : 294–9 15 Pearse R, Harrison DA, James P et al. Identification and characterisation of the high-risk surgical population in the United Kingdom. Crit Care 2006; 10 : R81


Investigation of heat and mass transfer at nonisothermal absorption on the falling liquid film surrounded by pure vapour is presented. The analytical method for entrance region and numerical method for solving the problem are proposed. The analytical solution is obtained for the entry region, where temperature and concentration perturbations are near the interface. Then, the analytical solution is used as an inlet condition for further numerical solution by the finite-difference method. The key dimensionless criteria characterizing heat and mass transfer at absorption on the falling liquid film are defined.


Everywhere under the seemingly placid surface of business, there is the undercurrent of sex, upsetting, repelling, attracting individuals. . . . but the day's work must be done. . . . So, in most businesses, any outward manifestation of attraction between the sexes is frowned upon by the management, and the dynamite is kept in the cellar, so to speak. . . . [F]or the most part men and women learn to work side by side in business, sublimating their primary urges and becoming almost unconscious of each other's sex. Unless they can do this, their business careers are necessarily shortlived. . . . my observation is that it is much better for a girl to maintain a strictly impersonal relationship with the men where she works and make her conquests elsewhere. —Elizabeth Gregg macGibbon, Manners in Business (1936)


One-to-all broadcast (OAB) and all-to-all broadcast (AAB) (Defago, 2003) group communications are frequently used in many parallel algorithms and if their overhead is excessive, performance degrades rapidly with processor count. This paper deals with the design of a new application specific Bayesian optimization algorithm (BOA) and standard genetic algorithm (SGA) that both produce almost optimal communication schedules for an arbitrary multiprocessor topology. We demonstrated the optimization process on hypercube and AMP topology (Chalmers, 1996) using wormhole (WH) switching


FIBROUS dysplasia of bone has been known under a variety of names and in the jaws it is still commonly called focal osteitis fibrosa. The lesion is not inflammatory but then neither is osteitis deformans or Paget's disease. Other names which have been used particularly for maxillary lesions are fibro-osseous dysplasia, fibrosis of bone (Elmslie, 1931), chronic hyperplasia (Davis, 1941), hyperostosis, fibrous osteoma, osteo-fibroma and ossifying fibroma (Eden, 1939), though perhaps some of these are separate entities. Localized fibrocystic disease is a name given to lesions occurring in a long bone which are probably either simple bone cysts or monostotic fibrous dysplasia. Radiologically these two may be very similar and indistinguishable without surgical intervention. The other lesions to be considered and compared are Paget's disease, hyperparathyroidism or generalized fibrocystic disease-one of the two widespread diseases bearing the name of von Recklinghausen-and some localized lesions which are not usually confusing. These are central osteoclastoma, dental cyst and perhaps adamantinoma.


In this thesis, we present three algorithms for blind estimation of the finite impulse response (FIR) channels in the presence of unknown noise. The algorithms are developed considering different available system resources: 1) If only one receiving antenna is available, based on the single-input-single-output (SISO) system model, with the output being up-sampled, we develop the maximum a posteriori (MAP) algorithm for Gaussian distributed noise. With large enough samples being collected, during which the channel keeps invariant, an efficient implementation of the MAP algorithm is also obtained; 2) If two receiving antennae can be affordable, based on the singleinput-multiple-output (SIMO) system model and up-sampling both the outputs, we develop a subspace based algorithm utilizing Canonical Correlation Decomposition (CCD) to obtain the subspaces, and a maximum likelihood (ML) based algorithm which starts from the Gaussian distributed projection error from the noise subspace onto the COD-estimated signal subspace. The developed channel estimators achieve superior performance measured by the normalized root mean square error (NRMSE), compared with some existing second-order-statistics (SOS) based methods while keeping the computation complexity comparable. When more than two receiving antennae are available, by treating them as one group and applying the MAP algorithm or separating them into two groups and applying the CCD based algorithms, the channels can still be blindly estimated with or without up-sampling the outputs.


Summary Duponchelia fovealis (Zeller). A new emergency for strawberry? It is recorded the presence on strawberry (cv Camarosa) in Calabria of the Crambidae moth Duponchelia fovealis (Zeller). The species is polyphagous and polivoltine, with wide geographical distribution and from long time recorded for Italy, where it has hitherto been a serious problem only for Lisianthus in Liguria and Calandola in Friuli Venezia Giulia. The alert extends the framework of strawberry pests in Italy and raises the need to take stock of the problem. For this purpose we recall the principal aspects of morphology, bio-ecology and control.


It analyses the producing reasons which cause some kinds of outer quality problems including concrete surface cracks,surface damage,surface uneven color and surface leaking tendon,and elaborates different effective factors,points out measures of improving,in order to improve the outer quality of concrete.


Using largely unpublished documentation, this article studies the spiritual, educational, and notarial control exercized by the parish of an expanding, late-medieval Catalan town (Santa Maria de Piera, in the bishopric of Barcelona). These three related areas of control are viewed as the basic mechanisms that allowed the local church to maintain a monopoly of the word. It was this monopoly that, even in the face of a changing society, enabled the local church efficiently to maintain its directing role in spiritual guidance and in mediating cultural and moral ideals.


The investigation and analysis related to national educational technology professional quality course construction and application of course the low utilization rate and update slowly lead to fine course of sustainable development is difficult to maintain,resource sharing consciousness and awareness of copyright in the course builders conflict.Solve these problems,a number of recommendations designed to provide reference for the construction and application of the sustainable development of national quality courses.


ing the conduct of their American allies. Wang frames his book as follows: 'The relationship between the United States and China from 1953 to 1956 was characterized by U.S. efforts to contain China and Beijing's struggles to break the containment' (p. 203). In his telling, New China was responding to a belligerent United States imperial power. But one could just as easily, and with equal justification, reverse his formula, and postulate that China, a revolutionary communist state bent on transforming the existing order, provoked responses from the United States which, although undoubtedly hostile to the PRC, was constructing defensive alliances against the very real efforts of the PRC to support communist revolutions elsewhere in Asia through subversion, united front policies, and armed insurrection. The period 1953–6, characterized by China's peace offensive, was an aberration in the diplomacy of the Maoist era, as Wang himself recognizes. In 1957, Mao installed the abrasive Chen Yi as foreign minister, replacing Zhou Enlai, as China turned from pragmatic to radical diplomacy. In sum, Wang Tao's book, developed from a doctoral dissertation in history, is an impressive debut work by a gifted scholar. Isolating the Enemy both presents a thoughtprovoking thesis and fills in fascinating details of the early Cold War, a formative period in Sino-American relations, the echoes of which still reverberate to this day in the context of enhanced rivalry between Beijing andWashington seven decades later. It is a book that merits close reading by diplomatic historians and students of US–East Asian international relations.


Microglandular hyperplasia (MGH) is a benign proliferation of endocervical glands with relatively uniform columnar or cuboidal nuclei, and rare to absent mitoses. Endometrial adenocarcinomas with mucinous differentiation or a microglandular pattern can closely mimic MGH, often resulting in a diagnostic dilemma in small biopsy specimens. Rare unusual morphologic features—mild to moderate nuclear atypia, solid or reticular growth pattern, hobnail and signet ring cells—have been previously reported in MGH. We present 9 cases of unusual, mitotically active–between 5 and 11 mitotic figures per 10 HPF—MGH, all of which presented as endocervical polyps and had morphologic features otherwise typical of MGH. The patients' age ranged between 35 and 56 yr, 2 patients were postmenopausal. High-risk human papillomavirus status was available in 7 patients, all of which were negative. The Ki-67 proliferation index ranged between 1% and 15%, and all cases were negative for p16, carcinoembryonic antigen, and vimentin immunostains. The clinical follow-up ranged from 3 to 76.2 mo, with a median of 40.7 mo, all patients were doing well without evidence of endocervical or endometrial malignancy. In summary, this case series documents the presence of rare cases of MGH demonstrating significant mitotic activity (up to 11/10 HPF) without a negative impact on the clinical prognosis. Mitotic activity alone should be interpreted with caution in small biopsy specimens with microglandular growth pattern. Immunohistochemical stains, especially p16, carcinoembryonic antigen, and vimentin, may be helpful—in addition to the patient's clinical history and human papillomavirus status to rule out endocervical or endometrial malignancy.


Leaking pipes are a primary concern for water utilities around the globe as they compose a major portion of revenue loss. An acoustic method is preferred by the water industry to detect and localise leaks in water pipelines. However, the acoustic leak detection method is only feasible for metal pipes and has several limitations when applied to soft materials, like plastic pipes. Therefore, this study aims to investigate a vibration technique to detect leakage on plastic water pipeline using wireless accelerometer sensor, namely 6DOF accelerometer sensor called MPU6050 across x-, y- and z-axis. A 25-mm diameter of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) pipe with a length of approximately 10 meters was developed as a water pipeline testbed. The MPU6050 measured the vibration on the water pipeline across x-, y- and z-axis, over ZigBee networks. The vibration signals were then compared between the three sensors and analysed by extracting the signal features in time and frequency domains. The sensors were examined based on three different cases, which are no pipe leakage, a 1-mm leak, and a 3-mm leak. The accelerometer sensor demonstrated a significant difference between no leak and leak conditions when the water pressure is in the range of 0.6 to 1.2 kgf/cm2 for time domain. For different leak size cases, MPU6050 can identify leak size cases just not from the x-, but also from z-axis data. Based on new experimental findings, this paper also proposes an MPU6050 procedure in detecting the conditions of the plastic water pipeline including the sizes of the leaks.


In this paper, we address a novel method to efficiently manage and analyze a large amount of log data. First, we present a new Apache Hive-based data storage and analysis architecture to process a large volume of Hadoop log data, which rapidly occur in multiple nodes. Second, we design and implement three simple but efficient anomaly detection methods. These methods use moving average and 3-sigma techniques to detect anomalies in log data. Finally, we show that all the three methods detect abnormal intervals properly, and the weighted anomaly detection methods are more precise than the basic one. These results indicate that our research is an excellent and simple approach in detecting anomalies of log data on a Hadoop ecosystem.


Abstract This paper presents multidisciplinary facets of earthquake engineering research and developments in Australia over the past decade. Past and current research into seismic activity modelling and the associated challenges is first described. The Component Attenuation model (CAM) that provides estimates for the seismic displacement demand in regions lacking strong motion data is then introduced, along with other models developed by conventional methods. Research into the seismic performances of typical Australian construction, which incorporates the use of unreinforced masonry, steel and concrete, has been summarised together with a brief report on current activities with risk modelling and the earthquake loading standard. A new two-tier displacement based approach for assessing the seismic performance of structures is presented along with future trends in earthquake engineering.


ABSTRACT While accumulating literature is demonstrating the role of the dopamine transporter (DAT) in predicting emotional–behavioural difficulties in adults of at risk populations, only few studies have focused on the possible association between the methylation status of the DAT promoter and the psychopathological risk of mothers, fathers and children in normative samples. The pattern of methylation of M1-M7 loci present in the 5′-untranslated promoter region (5′-UTR) of DAT1, and parental and offspring psychopathological risk were assessed in a sample of 152 families with 5-year-old-children, employing principal components (PCAs) and cluster analyses. Parents' psychopathological symptoms were assessed through SCL-90/R; children's emotional-behavioural functioning was evaluated through C-TRF. Cluster analysis allowed to form three clusters; cluster 1 is primarily composed by children with low-/middle-risk profiles; most of children with high-risk are in this cluster, and had parents with mild/high psychopathological risk; children in cluster 2 showed low-risk profiles and their parents had low/mild psychopathological risk; children in cluster 3 were predominantly at middle risk and had parents with low psychopathological risk. Analysis of results shows that DNA methylation occurs in different loci of DAT1 according to patterns of psychopathology and that psychopathological risk is specifically associated with hyper-methylation or hypo-methylation of these loci.


The magnitude of the stabilizing interaction between an aliphatic C[bond]H bond attached to an ammonium nitrogen and a carbonyl oxygen was evaluated by ab initio calculations at the MP2/6-311++G** level of theory. Attractive R(3)N(+)-C-H...O[double bond]C interactions play an important role in supramolecular recognition and various types of stereoselective catalysis. Our calculations show that R(3)N(+)-C-H...O[double bond]C is the strongest hydrogen bond of the C-H...O type known to date. Such hydrogen bonds remain as stabilizing interactions even in water for amide acceptors.


The Cast-in Process between steel based carbide and cast steel was discussed.The connection mechanism and formation of the new compounds were researched by macro-observation,microstructure and hardness in the junction area.


In this note an analytic representation is given for continuous linear operators from C(X) into a linear normed space Y where C(X) is the space of continuous functions on [0, 1 ] with values in a linear normed space X.


Complex flow with large-scale moving boundaries is divided into a moving boundary zone and a common flow zone connected by a special interior boundary named zone interface.Local remeshing method is applied to deal with grid-reforming of a high-speed bullet. The axis is defined as a special grid-deforming boundary to avoid negative volume of grid near the axis.Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian(ALE) formulation is used to solve unsteady process of a bullet leaving a muzzle.It indicates that the bullet is accelerated and then decelerated gradually.


Voice alternations respond to two motivations, functional and formal. Cross-linguistically, such grammatical phenomena appeal to a number of formal devices. The principal motivation may be functional, as in the demotion of a negligible/concealed core participant, or formal, as in promotion for accessibility. Of course, the latter cannot take place unless another participant is demoted. A prominent device for achieving voice alternation (and one of the formally simplest) consists in intervening in the coding of the participant to be demoted − particularly, provided there is a sufficient explicit verb morphology −, by manipulating the referentiality of person markers. As shown in the two languages in focus here, as well as in a small sample of others, person manipulation is an adequate tool for achieving voice changes, independently of the basic argument alignment or the type of motivation inducing the derived voice.


A novel methodology is proposed for the development of neural network models for complex engineering systems exhibiting nonlinearity. This method performs neural network modeling by first establishing some fundamental nonlinear functions from a priori engineering knowledge, which are then constructed and coded into appropriate chromosome representations. Given a suitable fitness function, using evolutionary approaches such as genetic algorithms, a population of chromosomes evolves for a certain number of generations to finally produce a neural network model best fitting the system data. The objective is to improve the transparency of the neural networks, i.e. to produce physically meaningful "white box" neural network model with better generalization performance. In this paper, the problem formulation, the neural network configuration, and the associated optimization software are discussed in detail. This methodology is then applied to a practical real-world system to illustrate its effectiveness.


The article examines the relationship of theories geo-urbanism and real spatial distribution of urban settlements in Sverdlovsk Oblast. As the basic theory "rank-size" rule by Zipf is accepted. The ideal and the real distribution of ranking of towns in the Sverdlovsk region are worked out. Based on the results, a conclusion of partial compliance theory, the practical distribution of cities is given.


A course in the sociology of tourism offers an opportunity to examine a world-transforming force that is penetrating more and more aspects of social life. It also offers an opportunity to create a learning environment that uses the object of study as the medium of study. This article examines how instructors can use tourism to teach the sociology of tourism, and thereby help students develop an understanding of the subject matter through reflexive examination of classroom practice. Drawing on research in the sociology of tourism, it outlines a conceptual framework for thinking about tourism as a spatial practice that includes semiotic, interpersonal and cultural dimensions. Through examples, it shows how these dimensions can be synthesized into a pedagogical strategy that uses field trips and classroom learning to teach the sociology of tourism. The article addresses logistical and conceptual issues involved in course planning and implementation.


O'Connell JW, Faulkner DB, Ortendahl DA, et al: Colorcomposites: Display oftwo independent parameters in a single functional image, hn Emission Cotnputed Tomography: Current Trends (I 3th Annual Symposium on the Sharing ofComputer Programs and Technology in Nuclear Medicine). New York, Society of Nuclear Medicine, 1983, pp 275-287 Okerlund MD. Sheldon K, Corpuz S, et al: A new method with high sensitivity and specificity lor localization of abnormal parathyroid glands. Ann Surg 1984; 200:381-388


Taxol content in twelve wild samples of branch and leaf of Taxus chinensis var.mairei(Lemee et Levl.) Cheng et L.K.Fu from six locations(including Zhouzhi and Hanzhong of Shaanxi;Tianshui of Gansu;Hule,Niejiashan and Xianyushan of Anhui) was comparatively analyzed by HPLC,and the similarity of fingerprints of twelve samples was compared and the characteristic fingerprint of T.chinensis var.mairei was constructed.The results show that taxol content has an obvious difference among samples from different locations,that from Shaanxi and Gansu provinces is obviously higher than that from Anhui Province and that from Zhouzhi of Shaanxi is the highest with a value of 0.019 3 mg·g-1.There are twelve common peaks in fingerprints of different samples,in which,No.9 common peak is determined as the reference peak(s) whose retention time(32.75 min) is agreement with that of taxol standard.And the RSD values of relative retention time of every common peaks all are lower than 1%,while those of relative peak area all are higher than 40%,indicating that retention time of common peaks of different samples is stable but their relative content has a great difference.Except of two samples from Niejiashan of Anhui,the similarity value of the other samples all are above 0.8,indicating that similarity of fingerprints among different samples is high.The characteristic fingerprint of T.chinensis var.mairei is obtained according to fingerprints of twelve samples,which should be used for identification and quality assessment of T.chinensis var.mairei.According to these results,it is conjectured that the difference of taxol content in T.chinensis var.mairei from different locations is probably related to the difference of growth environment.


The need for ready-to-wear clothing increases as the problem comes to arise from the fit of custommade clothing due to the characteristics of middle-aged women's somatotype. At this point of time, a study on the realities of production of custom-made clothing in middle-aged women's clothing business firms is of very greatly significance. Therefore, this study was intended to identify the problem and improvements through the survey research of production of custom-made clothing in middle-aged women's clothing business firms and further present the plan for development of custom-made clothing business. The questionnaire was framed based on the contents extracted from the preliminary questionnaire research for the pattern section chief of each business firm. Collected data were statistically processed using the SPSS 10.0 Windows program. As a result, the following findings were obtained: 1. The target age of the middle-aged women's clothing business firms ranged from more than 45 years to less than 50 years of age. Clothing business firms much made inroads into the ready-to-wear clothing market largely in the 1980s and the 1990s. Their active entry into the custom-made clothing market occurred in the 1970s and the 1980s. 2. In terms of the clothing production method of middle-aged women's clothing firms, some private boutique and designer brand clothing firms entered the clothing market with a focus on custom-made clothing in the beginning of its organization and introduced the production method of ready-to-wear clothing in accordance with changes in production methods and consumers' needs and wants. National brand clothing firms manufactured clothing with a focus on ready-to-wear clothing from the beginning of its organization, but at last they manufactured both partial custom-made and whole custom-made as the problem arose from ready-to-wear clothing. Seeing that their clothing production showed the ratio readyto-wear to custom-made clothing of 2.58:1. And it was found that the manufacture of ready-to-wear and custom-made clothing took into consideration the great difference in the pattern, size and design plan. The research of the clothing production process showed that whole custom-made and partial custommade were distinguished according to whether or not the sample was presented. 3. The ready-to-wear pattern of middle-aged women's clothing firms were used with a focus on the 'patternmaker-developed pattern' and company-developed pattern'. Most clothing businesses produced clothing in 4 to 5 basic sizes, which is found to be insufficient to complement the physical characteristics of middle-aged women with many specific somatotypes. In the pattern of custom-made clothing, the 'pattern of ready-to-wear were applied' or the 'customized pattern was developed'. Actual measurements were most used as the size of custom-made, and accordingly it is predicted that the level of satisfaction is higher with the fit of custom-made clothing than that of ready-to-wear. The selling place and the head office showed the similar percent as the place for measuring the size of custom-made clothing. Size measurers were mostly the shop master. And it was found that most clothing business firms had a problem when the measured size was applied to the pattern. Accordingly, it is necessary to provide education on size measurement for shop masters. 4. It was found that in the middle-aged women's clothing firms, the pattern correction of the length of sleeve, jacket and slacks occupied the highest percent. Accordingly, it is necessary to provide for the size system to complement the accurate somatotype characteristics of middle-aged women. 5. In custom-made clothing customer management, most firms engaged in customer somatotype management through size management. They provided customers with commodity information by informing them of the sales and event period and practiced human management for customers by maintaining the get-together and friendly relationship. 6. Middle-aged women's clothing businesses responded that it would be necessary to improve the fit of custom-made clothing and complement their pursuit for individuality as the plan to improve its quality. In consequence, it suggests that middle-aged women's clothing businesses should provide middle-aged women with the clothing of better-suited size and refined design. Middle-aged women's clothing businesses responded that it was the most urgent task to form the custom-made clothing manufacturing team as the plan to expand the custom-made clothing market, which is identified as their emphasis on the systematized production of custom-made clothing.


Howe. Even the simplest request from Mr. Howe resulted in resistance from Justin. Although Mr. Howe initially dealt with Justin's resistance by trying to cajole, convince, or bribe him to comply, he was losing patience with Justin. Now, when Justin refused to do something, Mr. Howe became angry and quickly threatened him in front of the class, which Justin seemed to enjoy even more. Mr. Howe realized that he was playing into Justin's hands and contacted the school's prereferral team, which included Ms. Douglas, a special educator who had worked with Justin and his family. The team collected information about Justin and his behavior. They analyzed several recent incidents to identify the actions of Justin and Mr. Howe that precipitated and maintained their power struggles. Justin's family also discussed how they use routines and how they structure transitions to avoid confrontations with him at home. On the basis of this information, the team concluded that Justin truly enjoyed his confrontations with Mr. Howe. The team then collaborated with Mr. Howe to create a plan to try to reduce Justin's power struggles. They determined which classroom rules were nonnegotiable and what the consequences would be for violating them. They used these rules to establish a home-school contract with Justin's family. They also discussed ways for Mr. Howe to change his instructional techniques to motivate Justin and involve him in the learning process and in monitoring his own behavior. Mr. Howe also tried to change his demeanor and facial expressions with Justin. He calmly gave Justin brief, easyto-follow directions and provided him with some choices. If Justin resisted, Mr. Howe briefly listened to Justin's explanation and either discussed it privately with him or quickly exited the situation. When Justin complied with Mr. Howe's requests, Mr. Howe occasionally and privately acknowledged this behavior by employing quick walk-by reinforcement such as a gesture, whisper, or pat on the back or left a note for Justin to find later in the day.


The goals of competition policy have been long debated among economists, legal practitioners and policy makers. While the vast majority of commentators argue that the fundamental reason in the adoption and enforcement of competition law has been historically an economic one, we argue that even from its start, in nineteenth century United States of America, antitrust law has had the primary goal of social redistribution. Competition policy remains even today a public policy with sometimes implicit political objectives that could not ignore, to say the least, social effects. The protection of small producers against big producers or of consumers against producers is, in fact, a part of a social policy that is underlying the core logic of competition policy. As a public policy, social redistribution always comes at the cost of economic efficiency. We attempt to explore the potential loss in economic efficiency by the operation of competition policy. We argue that the core defining objective of competition policy is social redistribution.


Most research in the ongoing effort to improve building seismic safety has been devoted to improving building code methodology by refining the techniques of analysis and prediction of seismic forces. This agenda has left little room for the observation that how the code is regarded and interpreted by structural designers may have as much to do with overall seismic safety as do the code's written provisions. The purpose of this investigation is to look at both how the seismic code is viewed by practicing professional engineers and explore a range of ethical dilemmas entailed by interpreting the code. In conclusion, a case is made to consider interpretation of the seismic code to be an ethical, as well as technical matter; one that can be successfully addressed by a community of professionals acting together.


This paper summarized the applications in the oxidation of olefins to ketones.For this kind of reaction,good product yields were obtained when quaternary ammonium salt or polyethylene glycols as phase transfer catalyst and the activity of cyclodcxtrin or its derivatives as inverse phase transfer catalyst was high.


Beauty Waves: An Artistic Representation of Ocean Waves Using Bezier Curves. (December 2006) Jay Allen Faulkner, B.S., Texas A&M University Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. Ergun Akleman In this thesis, we present a method for computing an artistic representation of ocean waves using Bezier curves. Wave forms are loosely based on procedural wave models and are designed to emulate those found in both art and nature. The wave forms are generated using a slice method which is user defined by structured input, thus providing the artist with full control over crest shape and placement. Wave propagation is obtained by interpolating between defined crest shapes and positions. We also present a method for computing a stylized representation of breaking crests in shallow water. Artists may use our model to create many interesting wave forms, including basic sinusoidal waves and waves with breaking crests that have a rotation that is cyclical in time. The major drawbacks to our solution are that data entry can be tedious and it can be difficult to produce waves that animate with a natural appearance.


The change curves of fresh weight and lutein content in connection with different flower harvest dates were studied in marigold in cold region in order to obtain a suitable picking period.The results showed that flower weight and diameter,and lutein content increased at first and then decreased.The best harvest dates of marigold should be from 16 to 22 d after bud emerged because the flower weight and lutein content reached the maximum with 9.82 g per flower and 12.97 g·kg-1 dry weight,respectively.


P122 steel has high thermal stability,can meet the requirements of high temperature and high pressure steam for 1000MW ultra supercritical units,but has poor weldability.The control methods of welding technology for P122 steel in main steam piping of ultra supercritical units are introduced.The practice has verified that welding quality reaches requirements when the first welding, weld metal composition and microstructure measured up to the standard,by strictly control for post welding heat treatment process and operation technique.


Abstract : Structural components in high-speed aircraft and in missiles must function for short periods of time at high temperatures and at high stresses, and frequently the heating and loading occur simultaneously. The requirement for reliability without overdesign demands accurate test data obtained under conditions approximating the expected operating conditions. In an effort to fulfill a portion of this need, this program was divided into four independent areas of work as follows: (1) The tensile properties of unalloyed beryllium were determined at test temperatures from ambient through 1500 deg F. (2) The short-time, elevated-temperature tensile properties were determined for ten combinations of base materials and coating materials (Cr-Ni electroplate on copper sheet, Rokide A on copper sheet, Rokide Z on copper sheet, Rokide ZS on copper sheet, Cr electroplate on A-nickel sheet, Ni-Cr electroplate on molybdenum sheet, Rokide Z on molded graphite, Rokide ZS on molded graphite, Crystalon C on molded graphite and SiC-SiN on molded graphite). (3) The effects of linear thermal gradients up to 1500 deg F/in on the tensile properties of a typical refractory alloy were investigated. (4) The effects of simultaneous heating and loading on the tensile properties of a typical structural alloy were investigated. This report covers the first three of these four areas of work; a supplementary report will be issued shortly containing all of the results of the investigations involving simultaneously transient temperature and load.


Cassia auriculata (Avarai in Tamil) flowers are used extensively in the indigenous system of medicine as an anti-diabetic agent.The present investigation focuses on the lipid lowering property of an aqueous extract of flowers of Cassia auriculata on streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats.The lipid profile such as serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low density lipoproteins (LDL), high density lipoproteins (HDL), and very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) were studied.The levels of serum TC, TG, LDL, and VLDL were reduced significantly (P<0.00.1). Where as HDL levels were increased in the plant extract fed animals when compared to diabetic control group.These results further suggest that the flowers of Cassia auriculata may be useful in the therapy and management of diabetes induced hyperlipidemia.


Low-energy ion beam bombardment can induce various biological effects on plants, including stimulation, damage, and mutation. However, the physiological and molecular mechanisms of the stress effects of indica–japonica intersubspecific tetraploid rice seedlings roots in response to ion implantation are not fully understood. In this work, indica–japonica intersubspecific tetraploid rice seeds were implanted with different doses of ion beam to explore the responses of their seedling roots. The investigation found that that high-dose ion implantation significantly reduced the total root length, root surface area, total root volume and root tips number, significantly increased MDA content in roots, and interfered with the expression level of IAA biosynthesis and transport related genes. Under low-dose radiation, the antioxidant enzyme activity in the roots of intersubspecific tetraploid rice increased significantly compared with the control, and remained at a high level during 5–15 days of culture, without significant change. Meanwhile, the expression of IAA biosynthesis and transportation related genes were up-regulated, and the IAA content was significantly increased, which was 20.12% higher than that of the control, which finally made the root activity significantly higher than that of the parents. The aforementioned results will be useful for further research on the physiological and molecular mechanisms of indica–japonica intersubspecific tetraploid rice seedlings roots to ion beam stress.


The synthesis of a novel nanostructure of LiCoO{sub 2}, and its performance as a cathode for a high-rate lithium ion battery, is described. The LiCoO{sub 2} nanostructure resembles the morphology of a known natural mineral: 'desert rose' gypsum. A range of measurement techniques are used to investigate the growth mechanism of this structure and the origin of its high rate charge/discharge properties.


The pipeline section in Wenyang village of Fujian LNG Pipeline Project is located in marine alluvial plain where there is a grit layer at the depth over 0.1 m and it is easy to liquefy and is difficult to make a ditch. Furthermore, the LNG pipeline is laid in parallel with a tap-water pipeline that goes along a riverbank; the distance between the two pipelines is only 2 m. The construction of the LNG pipeline must ensure the safety of the tap-water pipeline. Taking the pipeline section project as an example, this paper illustrates the construction method in area with high underground water table and quicksand, i.e. trenching with small-size wheel-type machine and building ditch slope pitching with woven fabric bags filled with grit. This method solves successfully the difficulties of pipe ditch forming and nearby tap-water pipeline protection, and it is easy, safe and reliable to operate.


Scientists say that it is only a matter of time before another neglected infectious disease causes a global public health emergency. So will the world now make these diseases a priority? Sophie Arie reports


In an era where there is a globally concerted effort to improve healthcare especially in regions with endemic diseases like Sub-Saharan Africa, there have been major calls for real-time health data acquisition and reporting[1] to prompt health institutions and government to adequately plan and tackle such challenges. Data Acquistion is also very important as it will in the long run drive other future research work. Due to these eminent reasons, this paper seeks to review a number of situational reports, relevant projects and papers with proposed solutions or implemented prototypes that can be employed in monitoring the recovery and health status of patients that are diagnosed of Malaria. This paper also proposes an operational algorithm (based on the existing projects' review) of a wearable embedded device in the form a flowchart to inspires device makers and innovators to design systems and devices to help in the fight against Malaria, which currently claims the lives of thousands annually. [2] The focus, though on Malaria because of its prevalence in the Sub-Saharan Africa, can be employed on other similar endemic diseases.


THIS is a preliminary report on the use of hydroxychloroquiiie (Plaquenil) in the treatment of cutaneous lupus erythematosus. The therapeutic effects of Plaquenil have been recorded by a number of authors in the United States of America (MuUins et al., 1956; Lewis and Prumess, 1956; Cornbleet, 1956 ; Bennett and Rees, 1956; Rein and Fleischmajer, 1956) and the opportunity to use the drug prior to its becoming generally available in this country has made possible the following report. Up to this time the safest and most effective treatment in cutaneous lupus erythematosus has been by means of oral chloroquine (Christiansen, 1956; Lewis, 1955). Side-effects, however, are relatively common and those reported include anorexia, dyspepsia and diarrhoea; visual disturbances with difficulty in accommodation and flickering before the eyes; vertigo and tinnitus; pruritus; nervous disturbances; malaise; urticaria; leucopenia and agranulocytosis; dermatitis ; bleaching of the scalp hair, eyebrows and eyelashes (Alving et al., 1948 ; Christiansen, 1956). On account of these side-effects it is impossible to increase the dose to the therapeutic level in certain cases.


We present an example of a thermal process (TP) for a system of d energy levels, which cannot be performed without an instant access to the whole energy space. This TP is uniquely connected with a transition between some states of the system, that cannot be performed without access to the whole energy space even when approximate transitions are allowed. Pursuing the question about the decomposability of TPs into convex combinations of compositions of processes acting non-trivially on smaller subspaces, we investigate transitions within the subspace of states diagonal in the energy basis. For three level systems, we determine the set of extremal points of these operations, as well as the minimal set of operations needed to perform an arbitrary TP, and connect the set of TPs with thermomajorization criterion. We show that the structure of the set depends on temperature, which is associated with the fact that TPs cannot increase deterministically extractable work from a state—the conclusion that holds for arbitrary d level system. We also connect the decomposability problem with detailed balance symmetry of an extremal TPs.


The invention discloses modified building plastering mortar for aerated concrete. The modified building plastering mortar comprises, by weight, 250-150 parts of cement, 70-120 parts of coal ash, 650-720 parts of fine aggregate, 0.5-0.8 part of hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, 03-0.4 part of superplasticizer, 0.5-0.2 part of II-type anhydrous gypsum, 5-10 parts of redispersible latex powder, 0.5-1.0 part of wood fiber, 0-0.1 part of PP (polypropylene) fiber, and 0.2-1.0 part of water repellent. The mortar has superior water retention, application property, cohesive property and cracking resistance, and by using the mortar, cost can be evidently reduced, procedures can be reduced, construction period is shortened, and economic benefit is improved for enterprises.


Many modern speech recognition systems now use neural networks. Although neural networks can produce acceptable results in some situations, there are a number of problems they cannot solve. Such speech recognition systems cannot properly recognize an unfamiliar dialect or speech with an accent or impairment. In addition, neural networks are a "black box", so that we cannot assess the correctness of their work or confidently know what we will get at the output, and can only observe the result. In this paper the acoustic-phonetic approach is discussed. The problem of speech segmentation and phoneme dataset collection with the description of speaker features is considered. The structure of a graph database for storing speech records, phonemes, description of speakers characteristics such as native language, dialect, presence of accent and speech disorders is presented. The speech corpus development system architecture is described.


The macroscopic quantum tunneling in a double-well potential with dissipation is formulated without referring to instantons. This formulation, in the domain of small dissipation, goes beyond the instanton approximation which corresponds to the two-state truncated system (or, the so-called spin-boson Hamiltonian). It is first confirmed that our formulation, when applied to the two-state truncated system, reproduces all the known results of the instanton approximation. It is then shown that the ground state is mixed with excited states by dissipative interactions and this effect tends to enhance the ground-state quantum tunneling. In the Ohmic dissipation case this enhancement factor, even for a shallow double-well potential, can be at most comparable to the suppression factor which has been known from the work by Caldeira and Leggett. In the super-Ohmic case, however, the enhancement factor generally exceeds the suppression factor and the two-state approximation fails. A salient feature in the choice of counter terms in macroscopic quantum tunneling, which is essential to the above conclusion, is emphasized.


This article describes three types of negotiation courses and asks what range of goals is usually achieved in such courses from the overlapping perspectives of organizers, teachers, and participants. It then translates Benjamin Bloom's categories of educational goals into aspirational goals for any negotiation course.


In any kind of organization, recruitment and selection processes are considered useful, because they help in finding the most suitable candidates for the jobs. Recruitment and selection are important operations in human resource management, designed to make best use of employee strength in order to meet the strategic goals and objectives of the employers and of the organization as a whole. It is a process of screening, sourcing, shortlisting, and selecting the right candidates for the vacant positions. The employers put into practice recruitment strategies and methods that would be the most beneficial to achieve organizational goals and objectives. The main purpose of this research paper is to understand recruitment and selection procedures. The main areas that have been taken into account include, significance of recruitment and selection, principles of recruitment and selection, factors affecting recruitment and selection, posting vacancies, recruitment and selection process, types of recruitment and types of interview. I. INTRODUTION TO THE TOPIC Recruitment Recruitment and selection are the most important tasks in an organization because with the help of these companies the managers choose the best options for their team. Organizations, in this growing world of competition, need more power to limit their competition. According to Flipped, "Re-employment is a process of recruiting employees who want to work for them further and encouraging them and encouraging them to apply for jobs in the organization." In Joder's words, "Re-employment is a process of recruiting staff to meet the needs of the recruitment process and the attractive recruitment that is done by employees at sufficient costs to make the best selection of the best employees."Reemployment will be a way to find out what is most attractive to potential assets in the filling of vacant positions that are consolidated alongside the organization. Raising hopes with skills What is another ethical approach, which would be needed to achieve those organizational goals. The recruitment process is a way of seeking to monitor those employment activities, process job requirements, review applications, write tests, listings. Should expand the effectiveness of hiring, it is prescribed that those hr group of an association takes after those five best polishes (as indicated in the taking after image). These five polishes guarantee great recruitment without any interruptions. To addition, these polishes also guarantee consistency and consistence in the recruitment procedure. II.THE IMPORTANCE OF RECRUITMENT: Recruiting staff is a very costly exercise. It is also an essential part of any business and it pays to do it properly. When organizations choose the right people for the job, train them well and treat them appropriately, these people not only produce good results but also tend to stay with the organization longer. In such circumstances, the organization's International Journal of Pure and initial and on-going investment in them is well rewarded. An organization may have all of the latest technology and the best physical resources, but if it does not have the right people it will struggle to achieve the results it requires. This is true across the whole spectrum of business activity e.g. Schools, hospitals, legal practices, restaurants, airlines, and diesel engine manufacturers. About the Company: Satpalda Geospatial Strategic Advanced Technology Products and Linkages Development Agency (SATPALDA) is a leading provider of satellite imagery and Geospatial services to the user comm. Unity Established in 2002, SATPALDA has successfully completed a wide range of photogrammetric and Remote Sensing Projects. Our cost-effective solutions cater to the broad spectrum of Government and Private Users. The USP of SATPALDA's services is the unique blend of experience and cost-effectiveness.


Conference: Alabama NSF EPSCoR Science and Technology Open House., At Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center, Montgomery, Alabama

Seasonal Variability in the Diversity of Microbial Assemblages and Antibiotic Resistance Determinants of an Estuary System.


This paper is devoted to a general framework of high concentration suspension using homogenization methods. It is based on a previous paper by Levy and Sanchez-Palencia [10] which is taken again in a different form by using systematically virtual powers. The roles of small and large scale Reynolds numbers are explained. General equations for the mixture motion are given, including the evolution of the microstructure. Some new general results on sedimentation are given. The paper concludes with a commented bibliography, some remarks and a list of open problems Etude des suspensions concentrees a l'aide de methodes d'homogeneisation. Explication du role des nombres de Reynolds micro et macroscopiques. On donne les equations generales du mouvement de la suspension, en particulier de l'evolution de la microstructure. On donne quelques resultats sur la sedimentation


[Objective] The research aimed to provide reference for the clinical medication of infectious peripneumonia mycoplasma from goat in southwestern mountain area of Hubei province.[Method] The sensitivity of 8 kinds of drugs including ciprofloxacin hydrochloride,ofloxacin,danofloxacin mesylate,erythromycin thiocyanate,roxithromycin,tylosin tartrate,timulin fumarate and tetracycline hydrochloride to strain PG3 and strain Y-eshi-goat and the sensitive effect of the combined medication were determined resp.[Result] Strain PG3 and strain Y-eshi-goat were most sensitive to erythromycin and timulin among 8 kinds of drugs,followed by roxithromycin and tylosin,while tetracycline and quinolones were insensitive.The combined sensitivity test of 4 kinds of drugs showed that erythromycin and ofloxacin showed an additive effect,while erythromycin and tylosin showed an unrelated effect.[Conclusion] On the clinical therapy of infectious peripneumonia mycoplasma in goat,the high-sensitive drugs such as erythromycin and timulin were the first-choice drugs,and the medium-sensitive drugs such as tylosin and roxithromycin were the second choice.


The recent report of superconductivity in nitrogen-doped lutetium hydride at near-ambient pressures and temperatures has attracted great attention but also continuing controversy. Several experimental groups have reported no observation of superconductivity at these conditions in Lu-N-H samples they have prepared. To address this issue, we have carried out a series of studies of phases in the Lu-N-H system using a variety of techniques. We report here electrical resistance measurements on a Lu-N-H sample that are in very good agreement with both previously reported Tc and its pressure dependence in the vicinity of room temperature for nitrogen-doped lutetium hydride.


Robotic rehabilitation is advantageous as it allows for dynamic exercise routines that are more accurate and efficient than human-led routines. However, existing robotic wrist rehabilitation devices are often bulky and are tethered in rehabilitation centers. It is difficult to realize compact wearable wrist orthosis that is capable of inducing three degrees of freedom (DOF) of the wrist. This paper presents the first wearable wrist orthosis with three DOF driven by twisted string actuators (TSAs) using both stiff fishing lines and compliant super-coiled polymer (SCP) strings. The design considerations of the robotic wrist orthosis are provided in detail. Experiments are performed to characterize the compliance and force production of TSAs. The device is capable of inducing pronation or supination, flexion or extension, and abduction or adduction, with a range of 117.9°, 115.5°, and 73.4° respectively. In addition, it is demonstrated that the device can fully induce wrist movement of a human subject without the need of activating the human subject's muscles.


comparative study is made between Arabic and English Blogs. The difference between Arabic and English blogs starts with their Pagerank. The question to answer in this paper is "Do the Arab blogger benefits from the search engine optimizer properties or not?" In other words does the user cares for Pagerank? This question rises after the fame that the social media in general and blogs in specific have played during the political changes in Middle East region. Using a corpus of Arabic & English blogs, their content & link properties that effect the Pagerank score to answer the question (to prove or deny whether our assumption is true or not). The results obtained showed that there is a huge difference between Arabic & English blogs in terms of Page rank and content.


As might have been expected. the number of positive cultures can be increased by increasing the weight of the sample; but there is no indication of what a realistic figure may be. Practical limitations in the laboratory are many. not the least of which is the prodigious quantity of selenite F medium required for cultures in excess of 20 grammes. When a 10% sampling method is used, quantities in excess of 13 litres may be required if ISO-gramme samples are cultured.


Find loads of the data mining and knowledge discovery making sense out of data book catalogues in this site as the choice of you visiting this page. You can also join to the website book library that will show you numerous books from any types. Literature, science, politics, and many more catalogues are presented to offer you the best book to find. The book that really makes you feels satisfied. Or that's the book that will save you from your job deadline.


This research was carried out to determine the microbial loads on Baobab Yoghurt produced using Lactobacilus bulgaricus. Lactobacilus bulgaricus was isolated from fermented cow milk and was identified using Analytical Profile Index 50 CH kit. Four fifty grams of powdered Baobab was formulated with 1L of sterile water and 1L of milk emulsion was added after which the Lactobacilus bulgaricus was inoculated using 0.5 macfarlane standard, it was allowed to ferment for 9h. The pH and TTA of the finished product was recorded as 3.34 and 1.089 respectively. The microbial was observed using MRS media, Nutrient agar and PDA and the following results were observed; 2.52 x 102, 2.06 x 102, <10 respectively. The identified microorganisms are Lactic acid bacteria and Saccharomyces species. All the results were within the acceptable limits set by NAFDAC. The reason for the low fungal count is owed to the lower pH of the yoghurt.


Abstract Daily latent and sensible heat fluxes for the Atlantic Ocean from 1988 to 1999 with 1° × 1° resolution have been recently developed at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) by using a variational object analysis approach. The present study evaluated the degree of improvement made by the WHOI analysis using in situ buoy/ship measurements as verification data. The measurements were taken from the following field experiments: the five-buoy Subduction Experiment in the eastern subtropical North Atlantic, three coastal field programs in the western Atlantic, two winter cruises by R/V Knorr from the Labrador Sea Deep Convection Experiment, and the Pilot Research Moored Array in the Tropical Atlantic (PIRATA). The differences between the observed and the WHOI-analyzed fluxes and surface meteorological variables were quantified. Comparisons with the outputs from two numerical weather prediction (NWP) models were also conducted. The mean and daily variability of the latent and sensible heat fluxes f...


The alignment of atomic states as the result of collisions with a beam of slow charged particles is investigated. The problem of the collisional reorientation of atomic moments is solved by numerical integration of the equations of the impact parameter method taking into account charge--quadrupole interaction. Calculations are made of the alignment of the /sup 2/P/sub 3//sub ///sub 2/ levels of alkali atoms populated by collisions with selective excitation of the /sup 2/P/sub 1//sub ///sub 2/ level. The linear polarization of light emitted by the /sup 2/P/sub 3//sub ///sub 2/ level attains some tens of percents and corresponds to the predominance of polarization in directions perpendicular to the beam. The efficiency of the resulting alignment depends on the volume density but not on the velocity of the beam of charged particles. Thus the slow drift of ions (and electrons) in a gas-discharge plasma can compete with alignment as the result of fluxes of charged particles. We shall formulate the sum rules for anisotropic collisional relaxation of atomic polarization moments. It follows from these that for the appearance of alignment in intramultiplet mixing under the action of anisotropic collisions we require a nonuniform population of multiplet levels that differs from the more » ratio of their statistical weights. « less


This paper is aimed at determining the dome roof design most suitable for the restoration of old churches with a weakened ability of load-bearing walls and the improvement of the operation of enclosing structures. The authors compare the designs of church dome roofs. They justify the use of fiberglass in the manufacture of dome roofs of church monuments of architecture from the decorative-aesthetic and constructive perspective. They study the aerodynamic characteristics of the church dome roof to determine the most difficult design places. Solid works suite-based visualization is used in the study.


One of the most common types of welding electrodes, used in welding processes; are the low hydrogen electrode classification; E 7018. This electrode is applied for fabrication most carbon steel alloys, where it used for welding plate works of ships, equipment, tanks, boilers and pressure vessels, steel structures of buildings, bridges as well. One of the most common drawbacks resulting of using of this welding electrode is the difficulty of removing the slag between the deposited passes, which consumes time and money and hence decreasing the quality of welding process also one of the most drawbacks of this type of welding electrode is the rabid burning of coating flux at elevated amperes increase. This study aimed to suggest rooted solution for these two problems by adding zirconium silicate to the flux recipe. Different percentages of Egyptian zirconium silicate were added to the coating flux recipes of type E7018 where the changes at both weldability and slag removing between deposited passes were noticed at different amperes. By using HSc simulation program of the thermodynamics data and expected phases in slag were studied. Microstructure samples of weld metal were imaged and analyzed, basicity index was calculated, XRF chemical analysis for all slag different samples, were determined. The study concluded that adding 5% of the Egyptian zirconium silicate to the flux clearly improved; the welding properties as well as the ease of slag removal.


Abstract There are three purse-web spider species in Kansas, all in the genus Sphodros. Two of these species, S. niger (Hentz) and S. rufipes (Latreille), are known only from the eastern edge of the state, while the range of S. fitchi Gertsch and Platnick extends into western Kansas which is the westernmost distribution record for the family in the New World.


The automation system of quasioptical polarimetric micro-compact range (PMCR) is developed, which realizes the method of quasi-optical waveguide modeling (QWM) [2]. The operation algorithm of automation system is described briefly.


The inert gas rule has been reformulated in terms of complementary and complete sets of central atom and ligand sphere wave-functions with s, p, and d nodal characteristics.


intermittent courses of Misulban. In June, 1977, the patient presented with asthenia, fever, and an increase of WBC counts to 21 ,000/cu mm with the presence of 5% blast cells in blood smears. The bone marrow was hypercellulan with 57% blast cells of small and large size (Table 1). The penoxidase, non specific esterase, and sudan black reactions on the bone marrow leukemic blasts were negative, but the neutrophil aI kaline phosphatase and the periodic acid-Schiff stains were highly positive. From these cytological and cytochemical ob servations, the conversion of CML into an ALL form was estab lished. After a 3-month remission induced with Solupred and Oncovin, the patient relapsed again and died a few weeks later.


Whereas it is acknowledged that the C:N:P stoichiometry of consumers and their resources affects both the structure and the function of food webs, and eventually influences broad-scale processes su ...


The objective of this paper is to describe and assess the project development in terms of ensuring consistency of transportation policies, concerning planning, land use and environment. The strategy selected to arrive to coordination in the urban transportation sector was through a bottom-up approach. This paper encourages using it in two ways: the development of a core group of technical skills in metropolitan transportation planning, and the carrying out of an urban transportation study which will require the cooperation of different agencies in the area through the creation of a steering committee. This presentation will show the progress and effectiveness of such strategy.


s: The traditional (e.g. Gantt chart) and modern (network modeling) scheduling techniques reach their limits quite soon in case of large projects. In case of thousands of activities, the current methods do not provide an effective evaluation. This paper would like to show tools that can solve the above-mentioned problem. We have several options for handling these matters effectively. For example: fine scheduling based on resource and cost use, innovative solutions for printing of complex schedules. The latter includes the poster-like presentation of several plan details. These applications can be considered novelties in project planning methodology.


In order to provide accurate blade element data for wind turbine design codes, measured three-dimensional (3D) field data must be corrected in terms of the (sectional) angle of attack. A 3D Lifting-Surface Inflow Correction Method (LSIM) has been developed with the aid of a vortex-panel code in order to calculate the relationship between measured local flow angle and angle of attack. The results show the advantages of using the 3D LSIM correction over 2D correction methods, particularly at the inboard sections of the blade where the local flow is affected by post-stall effects and the influence of the blade root.


The structure and working principle of a inchwormtype piezoelectric linear actuator are analyzed,and the mechanical system dynamic modal of the actuator is established.Based on the analysis of the actuator's stator,the output performance of proposed actuator is analyzed,experimental results show that the output displacement of the actuator is stable,and the displacement for single step is 9.8 μm when the actuating voltage is 100 V.The velocity and acceleration properties of the linear actuator are tested.According to the testing results,the dynamic response performance of the actuator is analyzed deeply.The experimental results show that the proposed piezoelectric linear actuator has good dynamic performance and motion stability.


Objective: to review colombian case history of idiopathic vasculitis from the first reported case. Materials and methods: systematic review of the literature, identifying published clinical cases since 1945 to 2006 in MEDLINE, SciELO Colombia, LILACS, and BVS Colombia. Manual search through the library systems of the largest universities in Colombia. Results: we identified 3 studies of Periarteritis nodosa, 11 studies of Takayasu's arteritis, 1 study of giant cell arteritides, 8 studies of classic PAN, 10 studies of Kawasaki's disease, 19 studies of Wegener's granulomatosis, 7 studies of Churg-Strauss disease, 8 studies of microscopic polyangiitis (MPA), 5 studies of Henoch-Schonlein purpura, 9 studies of Buerger's disease, 2 studies of Primary Angiitis of the Central Nervous System, 3 studies of primary cutaneous angiitis, 1 study of peripheral nerve vasculitis, and 1 study of Cryoglobulinemia. In total 540 cases have been reported. Conclusions: during the past 62 years Colombian institutions have published 69 articles about clinical cases covering the 540 reported cases of idiopathic vasculitis. Of these articles 7 were published in foreign journals. These figures are considerably lower than the numbers for other countries in the region such as Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Argentina. Despite the efforts of some institutions and authors, Colombia continues at a low level of output in this field.


Interstellar reddening is determined for a number of recent novae based upon emission-line ratios which are generally observable using CCDs. Large values of extinction are found for most systems, possibly indicative of an intrinsic component of reddening in postoutburst novae. The unusual characteristics of the (O I) lines in novae, which are strong and optically thick, require a large population of very dense globules which are the likely sites of dust formation. These pyroclasts must be ejected from the white dwarf. The total mass of the neutral gas in the globules in some of the objects is substantially larger than the masses normally derived for the ionized ejecta of novae. The distribution of radial velocities of Galactic novae in the Tololo sample, although uncertain, shows an asymmetry in having predominantly negative values. Either high internal absorption in the expanding ejecta skews the emission lines to bluer wavelengths, or most of the novae are moving out from the center of the Galaxy.


We study the Rees algebra of a perfect Gorenstein ideal of codimension 3 in a hypersurface ring. We provide a minimal generating set of the defining ideal of these rings by introducing a modified Jacobian dual and applying a recursive algorithm. Once the defining equations are known, we explore properties of these Rees algebras such as Cohen-Macaulayness and Castelnuovo-Mumford regularity.


Laser therapy based on the selective photothermolysis has been regarded as the most effective treatment strategy for Port-Wine Stain (PWS) caused by the expansion of dermal capillaries. A long-pulsed Neodymium: Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Nd:YAG) laser has great potential for deeply situated PWS. However, the weak absorption of blood to Nd:YAG laser limits the laser treatment efficacy. Gold nanorods, which can convert the absorbed near-infrared light into localized heat, have shown potential for photo-activated cancer therapy. Owing to their unique surface plasmon resonance and photothermal conversion effect, gold nanorods may be one of possible strategies for improving laser treatment efficacy of PWS by enhancing blood absorption to Nd:YAG laser. In this study, an experimental study was carried out to compare laser-induced thermal response of blood vessels in vivo animal model before and after injection of gold nanorods. The results demonstrated that the obvious thermal response of blood vessels to Nd:YAG can be obtained with lower laser energy fluence and less pulse number under the assistance of gold NRs, suggesting that Nd:YAG laser treatment combined with gold NRs may be a novel treatment strategy for PWS.


Collaborative software development models, inspired by the open source community, are also being considered for development and deployment of business applications. We describe current work and future directions towards a hosted model to support collaboration during software development. We submit that such a platform can enable rapid application development, facilitate globally located virtual teams spanning locations to work as a single unit, and also encourage re-use, especially of technical frameworks. Going forward, we foresee extending such environments to providing an end-to-end development process accessible to globally distributed virtual teams


In the process of gathering and transportation of natural gas,leakage accidents happen occasionally caused by pipeaging and other factors,among which small aperture leakage is of high probability.This article adopts numerical software to simulate the small aperture leakage of high sulfur-containing gas.Simulation results show that,the spread scope,concentration and cloud height of methane and H2S are obviously affected by the wind speed.With the ambient wind speed around 8 m/s,the dangerons area of leakage gas diffuses towards downwind direction,and the defection increases with the wind speed.Thus,as to small aperture leakage,the wind speed determines the dispersion route of the leakage gas and the dangerous area of H2S and methane concentration.


In the absence of any treatment of translation-gliding in English, this paper is presented as an introduction to forthcoming experimental and theoretical contriLutions to our knowledge of that subject. The fundamental concepts are dis'cussed, and a tabulation of existing data and literature appended'


Corruption influences firm behavior and performance even in relatively transparent countries like the United States. In this paper, we examine whether corruption at the state level affected bank failures during the subprime mortgage crisis. Our measure of corruption is the number of corruption convictions of government employees (adjusted for population) based on the Public Integrity Section (PIN) reports from the Department of Justice, capturing the degree of "public corruption" in the US. After disaggregating the data based on bank size and geography, we find that corruption is associated with more bank failures for smaller banks and fewer bank failures for banks located in the South. This research marks a pioneering attempt to examine the connection between corruption and bank failures while underscoring the significance of political risk for financial institutions. Given the recent setbacks experienced by Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and First Republic Bank, this research provides valuable recommendations for policymakers. The findings suggest the need for regulators to mandate greater transparency regarding banks' exposure to undisclosed risks, such as political risk. It also advocates for implementing internal control mechanisms to curb corrupt activities.


The invention relates to the field of mobile acquisition of instrumented information, in particular to a mobile acquisition device and an acquisition method of instrumented information. The device comprises an information acquiring and processing module, a data communication module and a drive control module. The device is characterized in that the information acquiring and processing module comprises an infrared acquisition unit and a bar code scanning unit; the data communication module comprises a bluetooth communication module and a USB interface communication module; the drive control module comprises a button drive module, a buzzing drive module, a state lamp drive module and a power supply drive module. The mobile acquisition device provided by the invention is hand-held information acquisition equipment integrating infrared bar code scanning and bluetooth communications, and intelligent equipment having a bluetooth communication function can be connected with the acquisition device, so that the device has favorable compatibility and expansibility, and the device and the method can be used for various business applications.


Therapists who treat adolescents are now coming to understand that adolescent behavior cannot be changed effectively without also considering and impacting the family and the context within which he or she lives. A strategic approach has been developed for obtaining participation in therapy from parents and family members who are difficult to get involved. In this paper a theory and pragmatic approach are presented merging Strategic Therapy with the community intervention approaches used in a three-year NIMH field study on Alternative Treatment Methods completed by the University of North Carolina, and three participating Mental Health Centers. This method allows the therapist to have much greater power to intervene with adolescents and their families formerly seen as "resistant" to treatment and either treated individually, in groups, or not at all.


Using the meteorological,geographical,agricultural and socio-economical data,the four indexes,including the danger of disaster-causing factors,the sensitivity of disaster-formative environments,the vulnerability of disaster-bearing body and the capability of disaster prevention,were presented and used to analyze the regional difference of cold disaster in Anhui Province based on the natural disaster risk theory.Furthermore,a comprehensive risk index model of cold disaster was constructed to zone the risk of cold disaster in Anhui Province using the above four disaster risk indexes and GIS.Finally,the zonation results were validated by the historical disaster data.The results showed that the cold disaster risk assessment model of Anhui Province was reasonable and objective,and its assessment results were relatively suitable for the fact of clod disaster risk in Anhui Province.Particularly,the high risk zones of cold disaster were mainly located in the northern areas of Anhui Province and the some mountainous areas,and the low risk of cold disaster zones were mainly located near water and cities areas in Anhui Province.Comparing with the historical disaster data,the zonation of cold disaster results were in accordance with the actual distributions.This work provided convincing evidences to assess,prevent and reduce natural cold disaster.