This paper provides an analysis of liquidity premium using monthly data of the U.K. stock market from 1993 to 2008. The liquidity measures are the relative bid-ask spread and the turnover rate. Overall the evidence suggests that there is no significant relation between liquidity level and asset returns. In the time-series analysis in which a portfolio method is involved, for one-month holding period there is no significant liquidity premium associated with either liquidity measure. Consistently, the results of cross-sectional regressions also suggest that liquidity does not have explanatory power in the cross-sectional variation of asset returns and, if anything, the opposite is observed. In addition, the book-to-market ratio proves to be efficient in explaining expected return, whereas the influence of firm size on returns is only significant in January months over the second half of sample period from 2001 to 2008. Content Introduction .................................................................................1 Literature Review........................................................................5 Data and Methodology .............................................................18 Liquidity Premium .....................................................................28 A. Time-series Regressions .................................................28 B. Cross-sectional Regressions ...........................................33 Conclusion ................................................................................46 Appendix...................................................................................48 Reference .................................................................................91


In order to establish a calculation model of conductor corona loss in corona cage,AC conductor was simulated by line charges,and charges were mirrored by square section cage walls.Considering the impact of space charges,the effect of conductor surface electric field strength in-homogeneity on corona charge was calculated.Meanwhile,emission,migration,and recombination of charges were simulated,and energy loss of charge movement was calculated.Moreover,corona loss of bundle conductors was measured in the 8 m×8 m square cross section UHV cage,the test voltage was 200~600 kV,and corona loss of bundle conductors 8×LGJ-500/35 was 0~680 W/m.According to experience,the roughness parameter was 0.85,and the corona loss was calculated.The research results show that,charge simulation method can be adopted to establish corona loss calculation model of single conductor,bundle conductors,and the corona loss calculation model can compute the AC composite electric field strength including space charge,reflect the fundamental physics process of conductor corona loss,and simulate and calculate corona cage bundle conductors corona loss.


Motor vehicle emissions have been identified as a source of ultrafine particles, which have significant impacts on human health. Repeated and prolonged exposure to ultrafine particles may have a significant association with organ damage. Here, we evaluated the correlation between repeated exposure to ultrafine particles and organ damage in mice. Motorcycle emissions were injected into an exposure chamber with mice for a period of 20 seconds. This treatment was conducted over 10 days. The mice were sacrificed on the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, and 10th days for organ preparations. Based on the results, motorcycle emission exposure caused organ damage in mice, with different severities depending on the organ. The highest damage was found for the lung, followed by the kidney, erythrocytes, and liver.


Over the last decade, Canadian students have exhibited insubstantial improvements in mathematical scores compared to other countries as indicated by large-scale educational assessments such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). In relation to students' mathematical performance, math anxiety - the feeling of fear or nervousness when performing math-related tasks - was found as an associated factor. However, no previous study has explored math performance and math anxiety, specifically among Albertan students. We present a work-in-progress that identifies significant predictors of math performance and math anxiety among Canadian and Albertan students, using the PISA 2018 and TIMSS 2019 datasets. This study has three phases: first, a list of predictors will be selected from the data set based on existing theories regarding students' math performance and math anxiety. The initial list of predictors will be presented to domain experts (i.e., math teachers) for refinement based on their practical experience. A predictive model for math performance and math anxiety will be developed with Educational Data Mining techniques in the second phase. Results from the model will be presented to the domain experts for their inputs as the qualitative component, and variable importance metrics of the model will be consulted for the quantitative component. Findings from both components will be integrated consulted with the domain experts to derive actionable recommendations that would inform various stakeholders (e.g., educators, school districts, and Alberta Education) of ways to improve math performance in Alberta students.


Internet of Things protocols such as ZigBee, Thread and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) are the popular low-power protocols developed for interconnection among wireless devices in IoT systems using the same frequency spectrum. In this paper we propose a general mechanism providing the concurrent multiple protocol operation on a radio co-processor with can support seamless connections to multiple standard IoT devices. Dynamic multiprotocol technique allows a network node to run BLE and IEEE 805.14 standard stacks simultaneously. Additionally, by implementing a service called forwarding service on top of the BLE and Thread stacks, a connection between a Thread-only node and a BLE application can be established through a BLE/Thread multiprotocol node acting as a forwarder. Moreover, remote control and observation of the multiprotocol network from the Internet are enabled by using the popular MQTT protocol. To demonstrate the benefits of our proposed mechanism for various IoT applications, a deep performance evaluation is conducted in a real testbed with several scenarios.


The preliminary difficulties involved in exciting single animal fibers to act as elastic waveguides at 0.5 MHz have been overcome. Propagation constants of the lowest-order vibration modes were used to calculate the respective elastic constants of the fibers.


Traditionally, properties for most substances are determined using graphs or equations obtained under thermodynamic equilibrium, however, real processes seldom occur in such circumstances. In a system under non-equilibrium thermodynamic conditions, condensation does not begin precisely when saturation is reached, this delay in the onset of condensation is called supersaturation and is defined as the ratio of the instantaneous fuel partial pressure to its vapour pressure. The onset of homogeneous nucleation (start of condensation), in terms of thermodynamic properties, is commonly called the Wilson point. The Wilson line is defined by a series of Wilson points obtained at different expansion conditions and represents the deviation with respect to the equilibrium condition in the process of condensation. This line was determined for iso-octane in the present work, at low expansion rates, based on a significant amount of measurements of pressure, temperature and drop size during expansion processes out of equilibrium in a combustion vessel at laminar and turbulent conditions.


AbstractMotivation is the powerful part of learning process for studying English. By this way, students will be more diligent to go to school and engage with the subject. The purpose of this research to reveal students' motivation in studying English. The data analysis is utilized in this research is qualitative. This method is to reveal some information that collected from questionnaire given to students. Here, there are 40 students are asked some questions. The result of this study that students have answer the questionnaire varies greatly. The top of average percentage of the choice is neutral then followed with agree. The residue are disagree, strongly agree and strongly disagree sequentially. It means some students still hesitant to say agree or disagree about the their motivation in studying English.Keywords: motivation, students' motivation, studying English


It is no wonder that positioning accuracy is important, and it will have a direct and obvious influence on the cutting precision of the NC machine tool.Therefore,to ensure the positioning precision of NC machine tool becomes very important. Directing at the method to improve the positioning precision of machine tool, this paper makes some analysis, it introduces reverse clearance error compensation, accumulative error compensation of screw pitch, screw backlash compensation and other related methods, hoping to provide favourable reference for the improvement and guarantee of positioning accuracy of NC machine tool.


SUMMARY This paper discusses the implementation of nearest-neighbour document retrieval in serial files using transputer networks. The system uses a two-stage retrieval algorithm in which an initial text-signature search is used to exclude large numbers of documents from the detailed and time-consuming pattern-matching search. The latter is implemented using a processor farm, so that documents which match at the signature level can be examined in parallel to determine whether they are, in fact, a good match for the query. The results demonstrate that communication is the critical factor in all of the transputer networks that were investigated. A high degree of speed-up can be obtained when only the pattern-matching search is carried out. When text signatures are used, however, the speed-up is less, decreasing in line with an increase in the size of the text signatures that are used.


Reaction of Mes2BF with trimethylsilyl triflate (Me3SiOTf) and [Ag(IMe)2][Ag2I3] (IMe = 1,3-dimethylimidazol-2-ylidene) in refluxing chlorobenzene affords the carbene-stabilized borenium salt [(IMe)BMes2]OTf ([1][OTf]). As indicated by cyclic voltammetry, [1]+ is reversibly reduced to produce a radical that has been characterized by EPR spectroscopy.


To test several predictions derived from a behavior-systems approach, the authors assessed Pavlovianfear conditioning in rats after 30 trials of forward, simultaneous, or unpaired training. Direct evidence ofconditioned fear was collected through observation of flight and freezing reactions during presentationsof the conditioned stimulus (CS) alone. The authors also tested the CS's potential to reinforce aninstrumental escape response in an escape-from-fear paradigm. On the one hand, rats that receivedforward training showed conditioned freezing, but no conditioned flight was observed. On the other hand,rats that received simultaneous training showed conditioned flight, but no conditioned freezing wasobserved. Rats that received either forward or simultaneous pairings showed instrumental learning of theescape-from-fear response. Implications for several theories of Pavlovian conditioning are discussed.


We discuss observations of the ion flux from a cloud of trapped 23S1 metastable helium atoms. Both Bose–Einstein condensates (BEC) and thermal clouds were investigated. The ion flux is compared with time-of-flight observations of the expanded cloud. We show data concerning BEC formation and decay, as well as measurements of two-and three-body ionization rate constants. We also discuss possible improvements and extensions of our results.


[AbstractThe four essays by Ashworth, Blackburn, Nimtz and Post all make important contributions to our understanding of the causes and consequences of the American Civil War, and to modern analysis of these questions within a Marxist tradition. Although they differ among themselves on key issues, they direct attention to problems too often neglected by other historians: the role of class-conflict within North and South in the coming of the War; the part played by slave-resistance in the sectional conflict; the nature of the economic relationship between slave and free economies; and a shift in control of the national state as an enduring result of the conflict., Abstract The four essays by Ashworth, Blackburn, Nimtz and Post all make important contributions to our understanding of the causes and consequences of the American Civil War, and to modern analysis of these questions within a Marxist tradition. Although they differ among themselves on key issues, they direct attention to problems too often neglected by other historians: the role of class-conflict within North and South in the coming of the War; the part played by slave-resistance in the sectional conflict; the nature of the economic relationship between slave and free economies; and a shift in control of the national state as an enduring result of the conflict.]


A digitally implemented integrated inlet/engine control system was developed and tested on a mixed compression, Mach 2.5, supersonic inlet and augmented turbofan engine. The control matched engine airflow to available inlet airflow so that in steady state, the shock would be at the desired location, and the overboard bypass doors would be closed. During engine induced transients, such as augmentor lights and cutoffs, the inlet operating point was momentarily changed to a more supercritical point to minimize unstarts. The digital control also provided automatic inlet restart.


Microbiology is a basic course of the biological students,which is an applied and practical subject.How to cultivate innovative talent in research and production of micro-organisms,i.e.teaching microbiology should not be ignored.In this paper,it studied on the changing teaching concept-insist on "The human-oriented education";combining classroom teaching and practical teaching;focusing on the quality of students' education;improvies teaching methods to—"Heuristic teaching",multimedia teaching and seminar teaching to improve classroom teaching effectiveness;changing assessment methods-carrying out the combination of the process assessment and the summary assessment,the process assessment,including the discussion paper,knowledge contests mid-term exam,summary of course content,summary assessment is the final written examination,focus on the characteristics of the comprehensive assessment.It proved that the new teaching concept,teaching methods,and assessment methods can not only stimulated students' interest in studying the course,but also developed the comprehensive quality and their creative capability.


The technology for extracting the dietary fiber from wheat bran by the different extracting methods was introduced, and studied that different extracting method influences on the sensory properties and the physical properties of dietary fiber from wheat bran.


Our attention was directed to this type of tumor by the observation in two patients of numerous growths that clinically resembled Boeck's sarcoid to such an extent as to lead several dermatologists of experience to make that diagnosis erroneously. On further investigation we found that the clinical appearance of dermatofibroma varies considerably. In view of the fact that practically nothing on this subject has appeared in American dermatologic literature, we considered it worth while to report the findings in a number of cases observed during the past year. Unna 1 was the first to describe this tumor under the name of fibroma simplex. He stated that the simple fibroma of the skin was a benign tumor, usually solitary, on the upper part of the body or the extremities, largely embedded in the skin and usually a little elevated above the surface. The firm nodules were either sharply defined from the


In this work, an analytical method for finding the equilibrium configuration of the suspension systems used for the non-steered (usually rear) wheels of the passenger car is proposed. This study is based on the static model, which takes into account the elastic elements of the suspension (springs, bushings, anti-roll bar, buffers). The external loading of the suspension system comes from the contact forces between the wheels and the ground, depending on the specific operating regime of the vehicle (static or dynamic, by case). An algorithm for analysis of the relative movements in the wheel guiding mechanisms was developed (and further integrated in the general method for finding the equilibrium position) with the purpose of establishing the deformations of the elastic elements. Finally, a computer program was conceived and tested on a particular application.


This paper analyzes the characteristics of uranium prospecting facilities and their impact on the environment at first,and then presents two principles that should be followed in EIA,finally tables the relevant proposals to solve the existing problems.


Abstract The effects of intraperitoneally implanted dummy acoustic transmitters on juvenile Atlantic salmon Salmo salar of comparable size to wild presmolts and smolts were examined in two laboratory experiments. In the first experiment, different-sized tags (24, 28, and 32 mm × 8-mm diameter) that mimicked acoustic transmitters suitable for long-term studies were assessed. There was 60% mortality (3 of 5 fish) with the 32-mm implant early in the 316-d study and 20% mortality (1 of 5 fish) with the 28-mm implant. All fish surviving with 28- and 32-mm implants eventually expelled their tags, compared with only 20% of fish (1 of 5) with the 24-mm implant. Tag expulsion was not a cause of death. After implantation, tags were first encapsulated in a thick membrane and then expelled between 142 and 217 d after surgery, exiting at a site where pressure of the tag on the abdominal wall was greatest. Growth of tagged fish was initially delayed and lagged that of control and sham-tagged fish, but survivors from th...


This study attempts to describe and analyze the rules on the buyer's duty to examine the goods and to give any or proper notice of non-conformity under Korean law in comparison with those under the PELS and the CISG. This may provide legal advice to the sellers who plan to enter into both Korean and European commercial and consumer markets. The second is to compare the rules of one jurisdiction with those of other jurisdictions and to evaluate them in light of the discipline of comparative law. The basic question for this purpose is placed on whether a solution from one jurisdiction may facilitate the systematic development and reform of another jurisdiction. Its comparison and evaluation is executed particularly on the basis of the spirit and purpose of the examination and notice requirement.


University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. June 2013. Major: Work and Human Resource Education. Advisor: Gary N. McLean. 1 computer file (PDF); ix, 118 pages, appendices A-D.


We performed a detailed analysis of the use of [C/N] measured in red giant branch stars between the completion of the first dredge up and the red giant branch bump ([C/N]_{FDU}) as age indicator. [C/N]_{FDU} cannot give accurate ages for individual stars, but may provide a general chronology for the formation of composite populations and add constraints to analyses of red giants from surface gravity-effective temperature diagrams. We provide a theoretical calibration of [C/N]_{FDU} in terms of total metallicity [M/H] and age, for ages greater than 1 Gyr, which we tested against variations in the initial heavy element distribution (scaled-solar vs alpha-enhanced), efficiency of overshooting from MS convective cores and from the convective envelopes, variations in the initial He abundance and in the mixing length parameter. Our calibration is compared with a small sample of available measurements of [C/N]_{FDU} in star clusters and halo field stars, which at least qualitatively confirm the overall trend of the predicted [C/N]_{FDU} with age and [M/H]. The use of [C/N]_{FDU}-[M/H]-age relations obtained from independent sets of stellar evolution calculations cause age differences (for a given [C/N]_{FDU} and [M/H] pair) up to about 2~Gyr. More accurate spectroscopic measurements of [C/N]_{FDU} in star clusters with well-established ages and metallicities are required to better test theoretical calibrations of this age indicator.


Abstract The southernmost population of Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoises) occurs at Cape Sable, FL. The burrows of this population were surveyed in 1979 using strip transects to estimate Gopher Tortoise burrow density. We present data from a 1990 strip-transect survey and a 2001 line-transect survey of burrows for comparison. We found a significantly lower density of active burrows and a significantly higher density of abandoned burrows in 2001 compared to 1979 and 1990, but the overall density of burrows did not differ significantly over time. The distribution of burrow widths in 2001 was not significantly different from the 1982 distribution, and the bimodal pattern suggests that reproduction has occurred at the site. The 76% decline of active burrows at the site suggests that Gopher Tortoises have been subject to mortality. Reduction of habitat quality and tropical storms are possible explanations for the apparent decline in the Gopher Tortoise population at Cape Sable, but more monitoring is required to understand the long-term trends in this coastal population.


Supply chain management has become method to gain the competitive advantage. Supplier selection is one of the most important aspects. Firstly, the paper reviews many literatures in supplier selection. Then, it introduces the AHP theory and application procedure in supplier selection. Finally, a case that a company applies the AHP to select its supplier is studied.


This qualitative research study was carried out with two groups of students at a beginner English level; the students were in the fourth semester of psychology at a Colombian university. The overall aim of this action research study was to analyze learners' perceptions of the strategy Just in Time Teaching in a web 2.0. The data were collected through students' artifacts, journals, and interviews. Results of this study indicate that students perceived the strategy of Just in Time Teaching as a means to engage them in the designed activities; it was manifested by investing time to extend knowledge and promoting participation by reducing the affective filter.


In general, I think that the story of the manuscript, the hypotheses, and objectives need to be further improved. The use of highly specific jargon in the text makes challenging to understand the manuscript without enough context for some of the technical terms used. Being the scope of this journal so broad, I suggest reducing the jargon, use the same terminology across the manuscript and explain it briefly where possible. Finally, I agree with reviewer1 that this manuscript needs to include enough information to be a standalone manuscript and needs to explicitly state how it builds up from the previous study.


The article discusses the implementation of a database presenting the pupils that studied at the Greek Catholic High School in Beiuș in the 1876/1877 school year and presents a series of geographic annotations made on a map of the Habsburg Empire, opened in QGIS, consisting in the birthplaces of the aforementioned pupils. The database and the geographic annotations presented here are already being developed to include further pupils that studied at the Greek Catholic High School in Beiuș subsequent to the 1876/1877 school year. Therefore, the database and the geographic annotations are a pilot version of a broader project meant to conclude into a monograph regarding the Greek Catholic High School in Beiuș in the 19th century and first quarter of the 20th century.


An ultrasensitive nanoparticle-based biomolecule detection method, known as BioBar-Coding (BBC) was recently developed by the Mirkin Group, which utilizes magnetic microparticle probes (MMP) functionalized with monoclonal antibodies that specifically bind to the target of interest [prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in this case; PSA is a prostate cancer marker and a potential breast cancer marker] and gold nanoparticle probes (NP) coated with both polyclonal antibodies and a distinctive DNA sequence (bar-code DNA), which sandwich the target bound to the MMP. We demonstrate this technique in a single microfluidic device that integrates magnetic separation of the captured target, release of a number of bar-code DNA strands for every target recognition event, and the subsequent detection of the bar-code DNA using a chip-based DNA detection method. PSA concentrations as low as 500 attomolar (~200 target proteins in entire sample and this is four orders of magnitude more sensitive than current PSA assays), using only 1 micoliter total sample volume, were detected in this manner on a single chip.


The fiber produced by the regional Creole goat from the northern area of Patagonia is little known, both within the Country and in the international market. The objective of this work is to characterize the textile quality of this goat fiber in relation to similar fibers coming from other parts of the world, and validate its textile potential use named us Patagonian cashmere. Samples from 4 different zones were analyzed and classified by morphological types such as long cashmere (CA), short cashmere (CC), intermediate cashmere (CI), cashgora (CG) and lustre (L). In turn, the average diameter of the fine fiber was determined and 3 types were classified by fineness: H (<16.5µm), W (16.6-18.6µm) and S (>18.6µm). Frequencies were established and compared by contingency tables. The most significant types are CA with respect to all, CG and CI are not different from each other, but different from the rest and CC and L have the lower frequency. The significantly more frequent fineness is S and there are no significant frequency differences between H and W. The diameter distribution profiles allow us to infer that the fibre examined in this study corresponds to 40% of the type known as cashmere in the international market. The rest of the fibre studied has a diameter slightly coarser than 19µm, but also shows an important textile potential, due to its softness and by being predominantly white in colour.


Video summarization has attracted researchers' attention because it provides a compact and informative video version, supporting users and systems to save efforts in searching and understanding content of interest. Current techniques employ different strategies to select which video segments should be included in the final summary. The challenge is to process multimodal data present in the video looking for relevance clues (like redundant or complementary information) that help make a decision. A recent strategy is to use subjectivity detection. The presence or the absence of subjectivity can be explored as a relevance clue, helping to bring video summaries closer to the final user's expectations. However, despite this potential, there is a gap on how to capture subjectivity information from videos. This paper investigates video summarization through subjectivity classification from video transcripts. This approach requires dealing with recent challenges that are important in video summarization tasks, such as detecting subjectivity in different languages and across multiple domains. We propose a multilingual machine learning model trained to deal with subjectivity classification in multiple domains. An experimental evaluation with different benchmark datasets indicates that our multilingual and multi-domain method achieves competitive results, even compared to language-specific models. Furthermore, such a model can be used to provide subjectivity as a content selection criterion in the video summarization task, filtering out segments that are not relevant to a video domain of interest.


The following paper surnmarizes results of CPT's performed in virtual calibration chamber (VCC) built with a 3D model based on the distinct element method (DEM). A discrete material tailored to mimic Ticino sand is tested at different densities, stress and stress history. The limit cone tip resistance from the numerical experiments shows quantitative agreement with different empirical curves summarizing
previous tests on Ticino sand in physical calibration chambers (ENEL and ISMES).


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the relative contribution of work environment factors as well as individual difference variables on the degree of work interfering with family (WIF) and other mental health outcomes, namely, emotional exhaustion, life satisfaction, and family interfering with work (FIW).Design/methodology/approach – Self‐report measures of the constructs of interest will be completed by a random sample of 539 health care professionals (Study 1: n=314; Study 2: n=128). In Study 1, it is hypothesized that work environment factors namely, work stressors and a supportive work environment characterized by perceived support from the supervisor, the organization, and co‐workers' supportive behaviors will be positively and negatively associated with WIF, respectively.Findings – Findings document positive links between task‐related stressors and WIF and negative links between perceived support from the organization and WIF. In addition, both task‐related stressors and WIF are positive...


Jean Rhys's Good Morning, Midnight (1939) is a novel which anatomises – with humour, precision and restraint – the condition of defeat. It tells the story of Sasha Jensen, aged thirty nine, who drinks too much and cries too much, and who is not enjoying a two-week stay in Paris. She used to live there as a young married woman, and her return is haunted by the memories of a faithless husband, the death of her baby, and the degradations of poverty. Nor does her present sojourn promise to exorcise these Parisian ghosts. Isolated, and afraid of herself as much as of others, Sasha is offered cold comfort during her stay: she attracts only the self-interested attentions of a gigolo and the lecherous advances of a commercial traveller. This dark, spare tale about loss – and the lost – represents a new departure in Rhys's fiction.


0. BACKGROUND It was in 1905 that Bertrand Russell first formulated the claim that definite descriptions (like 'the first dog in space' and 'the pug Liza owns') are devices of quantification rather than devices of reference. By Russell's lights, his theory of descriptions was to make a significant contribution to several areas of philosophy; natural language semantics—how definite descriptions work in languages like English or Japanese— did not seem to be one of them. It is therefore a curious outcome that over the past sixty years, this turned out to be the area in which some of the most fruitful and lively debates were spawned by Russell's paradigm—a "paradigm of philosophy", as it was called by F. P. Ramsey as well as G. E. Moore and A. J. Ayer. The present paper focuses on one chapter of the ongoing debate: the challenge presented by incomplete definite descriptions like 'the table' and 'the pug'. The debate over incomplete definite descriptions was progressively broadening in its scope and implications—it is worth distinguishing three stages. Initially, at issue was the meaning of a specific, rather narrow class of expressions, incomplete definite descriptions: are they devices of reference or of quantification? Subsequently, Russell's followers strived to provide a general framework for treating incompleteness phenomena exhibited by all devices of quantification, incomplete definite descriptions included. But this turned out to require considerable semantic complexity, prompting a third round of considerations that were already emerging in the literature elsewhere: On what grounds can additional semantic structure be posited? What aspects of this structure appear at the pragmatic level only? To what extent can the semantic and pragmatic levels come apart? These are some of the biggest questions anyone can ask about semantics. I will devote a section to each of the three stages, bringing together and criticizing the arguments on each side as we go along. In the end, Russell's theory of descriptions gets the upper hand; but perhaps more important are the insights about semantics and pragmatics which prove Russell right. Enter Stage 1: Peter F. Strawson (1950) championed a reversal a Russell's verdict, and argued that definite descriptions were devices of reference after all. One of his most memorable objections involved the sentence 'The table is covered with books'. 'The table' and 'the pug' are incomplete definite descriptions because more than one entity satisfies them—tables abound and, to a lesser extent, so do pugs.


Now Information and Communication Technology(ICT) is omnipresent and ubiquitous. ICT have been increasingly used for teacher training and professional development. It is particularly conducive to teacher development because (a)it helps break down teacher isolation and build a supportive learning community and (b)it helps disseminate educational materials and resources. how will educational professionalism change in knowledge society?In this paper, it is made clear that new educational professionalism of teachers is needed. ICT application in university is encouraged by a change paradigm in the process of learning.


This article proposes a genetic algorithm (GA) for the simultaneous lotsizing and sequencing problem in permutation flow shops involving sequence-dependent setups and capacity constraints. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed GA, two lower bounds are developed and compared against the optimal solution. The results of GA are compared with the selected lower bound.


The current control measures used against common household ants in urban and agricultural settings include perimeter insecticide applications. These often have the potential to cause problems of poisoning non-target organisms, due to the insecticidal runoff and environmental contamination. A gel-baiting technique is the most effective tool to control ants with less insecticides released into the environment. In this study two commercial gel baits; the Boric acid (2.5% boric acid) and the Fipronil (0.01% fipronil) baits, were evaluated against laboratory made baits (lab baits). The lab baits, consisted of: 1.5% boric + fructose (F1.5), 1.5% boric acid + fructose + molasses (M1.5), 3% boric acid + fructose (F3), and 3% boric + fructose + molasses (M3) were evaluated based on preference and mortality rates of the common household ant species: the Asian needle ant, Monomorium chinensis, Santschi, and the Yellow crazy ant, Anoplolepis gracilipes, Smith, under laboratory conditions. An inconsistent preference was observed between species and different baits; however, the fipronil bait and the lab bait M3, were preferred more by both ant species compared to the other baits tested. Lab bait M3 also had a faster killing speed than the boric acid bait and the lab bait F3.Based on the results it was concluded that lab bait M3 was a more efficient ant bait and is a potential alternative control measure to the current commercial baits.


Abstract : Prills of Composition A-3, Type II (Comp A-3) were characterized to provide information on the composition and properties of the explosive for implementation into modeling and simulation tools as part of the Multi-scale Response of Energetic Materials (MREM) program. Optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to study the interaction between the RDX fill and polyethylene binder. The components of the formulation as well as residual solvent from the RDX and several impurities carried over from the polyethylene emulsion were identified using desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (D-GCMS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Quantitative analysis of nitramines and morpholine were performed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The reduced indentation modulus and hardness values of RDX crystals of different orientations were also measured. Thermal behavior was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), from which the percent crystallinity was estimated. The chemical and physical characterization of Comp A-3 prills is the first step toward understanding the microstructure of the pressed explosive and provides critical information for the development of a high fidelity particle-based course-grain model for predicting energetic material response.


Antimony (Sb) is a toxic heavy metal, and PM2.5‐bound Sb (SbPM2.5) in the air impacts human health via inhalation pathways. In this study, we analyzed multiyear measurements of ambient SbPM2.5 in Beijing to characterize its spatiotemporal distributions, identify main sources, and predict future trends. The results show that ambient SbPM2.5 has been decreasing with fluctuations from 2005 to 2012 and decreased rapidly after 2013, which was likely a result of the government's enhanced air pollution control plan that targeted main sources of industrial Sb. Across the city, average SbPM2.5 concentrations were relatively higher at nonemission locomotive traffic sampling sites and in densely populated areas (9.45–19.45 ng/m3) and lower in background areas (0.6–0.9 ng/m3). Regional‐scale emissions and local human activities both affected the spatial distributions of SbPM2.5. Notably, SbPM2.5 concentration increased by 58.3% from 2006 to 2013 in one suburban background area, indicating the changing emission distributions and intensities over the study period. A neural network model was developed and tested to predict future SbPM2.5 levels, results from which showed that with simulated massive reductions in coal supplies and a rapid boom in the waste incineration industry, SbPM2.5 concentration would vary in a smaller range (from 4.08 to 4.38 ng/m3) over the next decade as compared to the observed range during 2011–2018 (19.0–5.44 ng/m3). The impact of the continued expansion of the waste incineration industry on SbPM2.5 pollution needs to be considered in future emission control policies.


This report contains the descriptions of the timed automata (models) and the properties (specifications) that are used as the "benchmark examples in Data structure choices for on-the-fly model checking of real-time systems" and "The power of proofs: New algorithms for timed automata model checking." The four models from those sources are: CSMA, FISCHER, LEADER, and GRC. Additionally we include in this report two additional models: FDDI and PATHOS. These six models are often used to benchmark timed automata model checker speed throughout timed automata model checking papers.


An Automated Guided Vehicle System (AGVS) with a unidirectional loop guide path is modeled as a discrete-time stationary Markov chain. It is discussed how to estimate the mean response time, the utilization, and the cycle time of AGV for a delivery order. Three common operation strategies for idle vehicles - central zone positioning rule, circulatory loop positioning rule and point of release positioning rule - are analyzed. These different operation strategies are compared with each other based on the performance measures.


IN Bk. II, 107, Herodotus reports the attempt to put Sesostris to death by fire and the king's escape. He says that the would-be sacrificer 'piled wood round the house and set it on fire. When Sesostris was aware of this, he took counsel at once with his wife, whom (it was said) he was bringing with him; and she counselled him to lay two of his six sons on the fire and to make a bridge over the burning whereby they might pass over the bodies of the two and escape. This Sesostris did; two of his sons were thus burnt, but the rest were saved alive with their father.' The king's escape from the fire and the death of the two substitutes was clearly a fertility sacrifice; for Sesostris, in this case at any rate, represents Ramesses II who was lauded by his courtiers as a fertility-king, and under whom there was a great resurgence of the fertility-religion; 1 the attempt on the king took place at the end of nine years,z which is well known as one of the regulation periods of the fertility-religion; the death was by fire, as so often in these cases; Manetho, as quoted by Josephus and Eusebius, records that the king, 'Sethosis who is also called Ramesses' as they call him, was summoned by the priest 'who was appointed over the sacrifices of Egypt'; the guards made little or no attempt to save the king (Diodorus); the attempt was made by his


How to effective control losses of large power transformer, such as tank and structural parts, shielding and others, which is significant to reduce the manufacturing cost of power transformer and the safety of network operation. Based above, this paper investigated on the structural parts (pull plates, clamps and others) loss of power transformer with analytical and experimental method under different harmonic conditions. First, measured the B-H, B-P and permeability curves of different materials (silicon steel sheet, non-magnetic steel and steel) under different frequencies. Second, established the loss calculation model of power transformer based on analytical method; at the same time, calculated the losses of the structural parts under different shields with the finite element method. Finally, an experimental study is carried out to verify the correctness of the proposed simulation results.


The recently written CI-based multi-reference many-body perturbation theory (MR-MBPT) program package is exploited to study a simple ab initio minimum basis set model involving four hydrogen atoms in a rectangular configuration. This model was examined earlier by several authors using both coupled cluster (CC) and finite-order MBPT approaches. Here we present the MR-MBPT results up to the 50th order and examine the effect of various shifting techniques on the convergence behavior of this approach. It is shown that in contrast with CC methods, both single and MR finite-order MBPT potential energy calculations are plagued with convergency and intruder state problems, which can be particularly severe when the latter approach is employed for non-degenerate situations.


Objective To evaluate the clinical effect of modified mini-root operation on aortic root diseases with the short and middle term follow-up results. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the data of thirty-one patients of modified mini-root operations between March 2008 to September 2012. There were 22 male and 9 female patients with mean age of 47.2±21.3 years(ranged from 28 to 71 years). Fifteen patients were diagnosed with acute aortic dissection(Standford A). Thirteen patients were of Marfan syndrome including 8 patients with aortic dissection and 3 patients of bi-leaflet aortic valve malformation with aortic dissection. The patients were followed up for 6 months to 50 months. Thirteen patients of mini-root operation without other procedure(mini-root operation group) were selected to compare with 8 patients of Bentall operation(Bentall operation group). Some clinical indexes were compared between the two groups. Results Three patients died in hospital, in which 1 died from low cardiac out-put syndrome and multiple organ failure, 1 from descending aortic aneurysm rupture, and 1 from acute cerebral infarction. Three patients suffered with acute renal insufficiency and received hemodialysis. During the follow-up, 1 patient received continuous kidney dialysis treatment, and 3 patients performed reoperation. Compared with the Bentall group,the cardiopulmonary bypass time was shorter(108.5±20.8 min vs. 138.5±19.0 min), postoperative blood transfusion volume in the first 24 h was less(661.6±135.0 ml vs. 1 381.2±517.5 ml) than those in the mini-root group. Conclusion Modified mini-root technique can significantly shorten the operation time and reduce the amount of blood transfusion in the treatment of aortic root diseases. The modified mini-root technique has obvious effect on selected aortic root diseases during perioperative period.


Using radio frequency identification technology in information management application for services by mobile applications are an important topic in modern technologies for portability and personalization in distributed integrated electronic commerce applied at increase in popularity of web-based events services to user information. In design information management cases study on radio frequency identification services platform by cooperative services for Web-based. Using radio frequency identification technology in information management application for Web-based events process with computer techniques for database applications provide mobility guarantees without incurring costly computation and communication overhead. Services mobile applications will improve the performances of Web-based integrated applied on radio frequency identification services platform.


Some 15% of the population suffer from pathological anxiety, making it the most common of all psychiatric conditions (Costa E Silva, 1998). Anxiety disorders are poorly conceptualized, rarely diagnosed and inadequately treated (Hale, 1997). They are taken for granted, yet remain a major source of emotional distress, chronic morbidity and high health-care resource utilization. Greater awareness, earlier recognition and more aggressive treatments would improve the prognosis, and overcome the stigmatization and undervaluation of patients with these disorders (Lloyd et al, 1996).


The invention relates to a cantilever type cover plate deformation joint structure of an accessible roof, and a construction method for the structure. One side wall of a deformation joint and a cantilever plate are cast in situ integrally, and the other side wall of the deformation joint is a brick wall which is built later; a flashing part has an R angle; the top of the brick wall which is built later is filled with stuffing; the top of the cantilever plate is provided with a cover plate; and two ends of the cover plate are provided with downward drip moulds. The construction method comprises the following steps of: pre-burying steel bars in one side of the deformation joint of the roof; measuring and setting out; erecting one side formwork; binding the walls and cantilever plate steel bars; cleaning a base course; erecting the other side formwork; pouring concrete; dismounting the formworks; cleaning the base course; building the other side wall; preparing the R angle of the flashing part; painting the walls; painting polymer cement (JS) waterproof paint; constructing a waterproof layer of the flashing part of the roof; filling the stuffing, namely bituminous hemp fibers; and painting the waterproof paint on the surface. Through the cantilever type cover plate deformation joint structure of the accessible roof, the phenomenon that the deformation joint of the roof leaks is avoided to the maximum extent under the condition of guaranteeing the function of the deformation joint.


AbstractThe corrosion of reinforcement is one of the major problems affecting the durability of aging reinforced concrete (RC) structures. In this paper, the results of a study concerning the effec...


A single individual of Botrychium lunaria (L.) Sw. was found in a shady dolomite rocky grassland above the city of Pecs in the Mecsek Mts., on 1 June 2020. The habitat of this fern, which is new to the flora of the Mecsek Mts., is presented by a phytosociological releve.


The child presented with cough that was progressive, productive (greenish-brown sputum), and with no diurnal variation. Breathing was progressive, more in supine position, and he preferred to sit hunched forward. There was high-grade, intermittent fever (102°F) with one or two spikes per day. There was no history of hemoptysis, chest pain, passage of greasy stools, allergy, atopy symptoms, or contact with tuberculosis.


The functions of trace mineral-dependent enzymes impact every aspect of the complex immune response. This includes, but is not limited to, the chemical components (interferon and interleukin), the innate cellular functionality (neutrophil and macrophage) as well as the acquired immune response (T-cell and B-cell functionality). Disease management relies significantly on the use of vaccines and more recently on non-specific immune modulators. Understanding the role of the different minerals will enable practitioners to identify when and how trace mineral supplementation may be required for optimal immune function.


Environmental noise is at the present time a cause of concern, for the serious nuisance that it causes, and also the effects on health and behavior of individuals, on human activities, as well as for the psychological and social consequences. Hospital centers are places where numerous factors of quality and degradation can affect the recovery of patients. Knowing the acoustical conditions in some of the main hospitals of the city will make it possible to suggest measures to assist the present problem. We sampled 7 hospitals. The measurement points were selected at corners and at representative points or areas of pedestrian and vehicular entrance, a minimum of 4 points per block. We detected critical points of environmental noise in the vicinity of the hospitals, that require urgent attention. Some of the critical levels of noise were for LEQ, 93.4 and averages of this around 84.63 and maximum levels of 114.2, caused by an ambulance siren.


In 1981 Professor Rodolpho De Dominicis (University of Naples) published an article ([4] of the bibliography) in this Journal. The reviewer in Mathematical Reviews (82j:60033a, b) pointed out that the results of [4] are contained in De Dominicis's earlier publication [3]. Recently the Editors of this Journal have received from Dr. S. Grigorescu and Dr. Gh. Popescu (Center of Mathematical Statistics, Bucharest, Romania) a letter which indicates that there are astonishing similarities between their earlier articles [1] and [2], especially the latter, and the De Dominicis articles [3] and [4]. An ad hoc committee of Editors was formed to consider the matter. In response to a letter of inquiry from an Editor, Professor De Dominicis expressed surprise at the similarities between [4] and Popescu's paper [2], and suggested that these might have arisen because he and Popescu both started from the same basic literature. The committee carefully compared [4] and [2, Section 2.2] starting after the introductory material in both papers. Using the initial points p. 182, line 25, of Popescu's 1978 paper [2] and p. 456, line 3, of De Dominicis' 1981 paper [4], the committee found many similarities in content, style (even to the numbering of displayed formulas), and notation of the pages following these starting points. The committee invites interested persons to make their own comparisons. The Editors of this Journal regret the publication of the article [4], apologize to that unknown author whose paper was crowded out of this Journal by [4], and thank Drs. Grigorescu and Popescu for bringing this resemblance to their attention.


Christian is one of the most controversial figures in Scandinavian historiography. His colorful personality and tumultuous private life have assured him a central position in Danish historical mythology. The political legacy of his long reign during which the Danish-Norwegian monarchy began to take its first furtive steps in the direction of centralized, bureaucratic absolutism is still the subject of considerable historical scrutiny. In particular, Scandinavian historians continue to debate the relative merits and shortcomings of Danish foreign policy during the first half of the seventeenth century. The foreign policy of Christian IV, which aimed at the active maintenance of DenmarkNorway's territorial, commercial, and confessional security in the Baltic region and in northern Germany, can oftentimes be construed as aggressive in character. In the long run, it proved to be far too costly. When he died in 1648, Christian IV left his realm nearly bankrupt, as well as greatly reduced in size and in international reputation. As a result, historical treatments of Christian's statesmanship have ranged from the obsequious praise of royalist historians in the eighteenth century to the venomous character assassination practiced by liberal scholars in the 1930s.1


A party to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands must designate at least one site within its territory as a Wetland of International Importance. To assess the benefits associated with these international designations, the authors conducted a survey of 26 Ramsar sites in 18 countries in Africa. After a brief introduction to the Ramsar Convention, the article describes the sites that were surveyed, focusing on the ecosystem services they provide and the challenges they face. The article then examines how the sites are identified with the Ramsar Convention and found that designation provided benefits such as: increased support for protection and management of the sites; increased scientific studies; increased funding opportunities; increased ecotourism; and poverty alleviation. The article concludes with recommendations on how to strengthen the Ramsar Convention in Africa.


Double ionization of H2 in a co-rotating two-color circularly polarized (TCCP) laser field is theoretically investigated. By changing the ratio of electric field peak amplitudes of the TCCP laser pulses, the double ionization probability as a function of the laser intensity shows a clear knee structure, which is suppressed significantly in the case of the atom. Due to the large spatial range of the electronic initial distribution, with the analysis of classical trajectories of ionized electrons, it is found that the ionization of the electron in the farther distance increases the probability of recollision. Furthermore, the yield of nonsequential double ionization created by the recollision can be enhanced by controlling the amplitude ratio of the TCCP laser field.


1. To determine methods for improving flesh and skin quality attributes in barramundi.

2. To develop disease management plans and options for Lake Argyle.

3. To optimise feed management strategies for optimal efficiency.

4. To determine the environmental sensitivity of the Lake Argyle ecosystem to additional nutrients.

5. To develop carrying capacity assessment models of the Lake Argyle ecosystem.


The purpose of this paper is to analyze the roots of Catholic modernism in Germany from previous intellectual and theological movements, such as Catholic Enlightenment. Therfore, this paper analyzes the internal and external conflicts of the Catholic Church in Germany during the process of consolidation of modernity, in the 19th century, until culminating in the modernist movement and its consequences in the beginning of the 20th century.


A stochastic model of a one-step financial market with a countable number of states is constructed. A description of the computational processes that are necessary for the development of a software package intended for calculating the components of hedging portfolios that replicate Markov-type financial obligations is presented.


Cohort analysis for the Coilia ditssumieri stock along the northwest coast
(Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts) of India for 1981-1983 indicated annual recruits
to be ranging from 5.1 x 10' to 6.8 x IC (mean = 5.7 x 10'*) and the spawners
from 3.1 X 10» to 4.2 x 10» mean. 3.55 x 10«). The annual yield ranged from
16,353 t to 19,610 t (mean - 17,534 t). The fully recruited group of i + year
(6 to 11 mon. fish), which was the age at first maturity as well as for maximum
exploitation, formed the mainstay of the fishery. The present yield per recruit
(Y|R = 3.0 g, for the annual exploitation ratio, E = 0.51 and the age at first
capture, tc = 0.6 year) is close to the maximum Y|R of 3.04 g at E • 0.6;
suggesting that only marginal increase in yield is possible by increasing the effort.
At the present level of exploitation (51%), the effective fishing effort is about
1,300 trawlers per day (Maharashtra = 740; Gujarat = 560) and about 2,000
dol netters per day (Maharashtra = 1,200; Gujarat = 800) for about 215
fishing days per year. The fishing effort seems to have remained around this
level since 1971 obviously because of near-optimum level of yield from nearly
all the inshore stocks including that of C. dussumieri.


The Stone Angel, A Jest of God, The Fire-Dwellers, and A Bird in the House are, to date, the Canadian-set works of Margaret Laurence. They were preceded by the Ghanaian stories of The Tomorrow-Tamer, the Ghana-set novel, This Side Jordan, and the story of the Laurences' first encounter with Africa, The Prophet's Camel-Bell, set in Somaliland. It is an impressive twelve-year fictional achievement, augmented by Ja? son's Quest, a children's book, and by Long Drums and Cannons,1 a commentary on the dynamic literature of emergent Nigeria. Vanessa Macleod, the child-girl-heroine of A Bird in the House is Mrs. Laurence's reconstruction of her young self?and Vanessa al? ways knew that she would be a writer. The drive was there; the sensitivity was certainly there; the urge to use words to shape and form experience into a different and a better whole than the chaotic, painful moment-frag? ments was there too. But to release the full force and direction of the


Congressional elections scholars have spent considerable time exploring how voters pay attention to campaigns. We add to this literature by conceptualizing public attention as a relative measure between two candidates. Borrowing from epidemiology and research in public policy, we propose a new indicator of public attention based on trends in Internet search activity. Such a conceptualization allows for us to insert public attention into the larger theoretical picture. We test this measure by statistically analyzing Senate elections between 2004-2010, finding a positive and significant relationship between relative attentiveness and electoral success that is robust across multiple specifications.


Joint sparse recovery is a problem in which com pressed measurements at multiple sensing nodes are jointly reconstructed. Such problem is common in Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) and Internet of Things (IoT) applications, such as environment monitoring for precision agriculture. In this paper, we propose a joint sparse recovery algorithm, the Joint Fast Matching Pursuit (JFMP), considering the JSM-I sparsity model commonly encountered in WSN and IoT applications. JFMP iteratively estimates the support of the common component of the sparse signals, and then estimates the sparse signals based on such support. In each iteration, the estimated support is further refined. Our experiments, using both random and real-life data, show that JFMP achieves perfect reconstruction of the measured attribute in a short time with fewer sensors and measurements compared to related algorithms. This is due to JFMP optimum selection strategy, pruning strategy, and avoidance of large matrix inversion during signal estimation.


The triggering mechanism of tin copolymer antideposit products for hull protection was reproduced in a system based on the unique technology that uses copper acryl. Similar performance levels of antifoulling (that can last up to 3 years) are results of a new tin free system for coastline ships. The auto-polishing characteristics of copper acryl result from a controlled hydrolytic process, which is similar to the tin copolymer triggering mechanism. The active agent releasing level is sustained throughout the lifetime of the cover, by the chemical control of size and composition of the active zone. Performance characteristics are specially designed for coastline ships, the sustained releasing level of the biocide substance is made for long docking periods and high levels of antifoulling levels permit maximum efficiency for operating ships.The economic and environmental benefits are done by giving up to usual antifoulling auto polish substances and using Ecoloflex instead. Thus money is saved by reducing fuel consumption and environmental taxes. Ecoflex antifoulling systems contain only copper based biocide that decays fast when released in a marine environment.


Logistic control and schedule is an extremely necessary part of production schedule in workshop. By using hierarchical model as the object of research, material logistic process control in workshop is studied. First, a four layer hierarchical control structure is presented according to literature study and production practice, and rational material logistic control conventions of hierarchical model are defined. Then, overall logistic control model of workshop is established based on those conventions via an instance; Next, main logistic control processes like task start-up, part machining including activities like waiting for machining, machining and waiting for transportation and part transportation including activities as loading, downloading between different layers are analysed, and key process control logics are listed. Key technologies as rule based logistic control, logistic buffer, AGV sensor and close-looped data collection are refined. Finally, development and implementation validates the feasibility and effectiveness of the model. (6 pages)


ABSTRACT Over a year of seismic observations, ~5000 short duration icequakes were detected by a permanent broadband station installed at the Princess Elisabeth base, located ~180 km inland in eastern Dronning Maud Land, East-Antarctica. Icequake detection via seismic waveform pattern recognition indicates the presence of two dominating clusters of events, totalizing ~1500 icequakes. The corresponding icequake locations point towards two distinct zones of outcropping blue ice areas (BIAs) located respectively at 4 and 1 km from the seismic station, both on the leeward side of a nunatak protruding through the ice sheet. The temporal occurrence of these icequakes suggests a close genetic link with thermal contraction of ice caused by significant surface cooling controlled, in summer by variations in diurnal solar radiation and in winter by strong cooling during cold katabatic regimes. Further analysis demonstrates the dependence of these icequakes on the absolute surface temperature and on its temporal change. Besides providing information on the ice fracture mechanics and rheology, investigations of thermal icequakes may be regarded as a ground-based proxy for the monitoring of the thermal state of BIAs, and characterization of ice-sheet ablation zones.


Acid ceramidase (ASAH1) is a key enzyme for sphingolipid metabolism that regulates the amount of ceramide, sphingosine, and sphingosine‐1‐phosphate within the cell. Based on our previous studies demonstrating that sphingosine is an endogenous ligand for the nuclear receptor steroidogenic factor‐1 (SF‐1), we examined the role of adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) signaling in regulating the expression of ASAH1. Using H295R adrenocortical cells, we show that ACTH/cAMP increases mRNA and reporter gene activity of ASAH1. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation and reporter gene assays, we have identified the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and cAMP‐responsive element binding protein (CREB) as important activators of this gene. We propose that ACTH signaling promotes the recruitment of GR and CREB to the ASAH1 promoter and that this increase in ASAH1 gene expression regulates ligand availability and SF‐1 target expression in the human adrenal cortex.


The aim of this research is to identify an efficient model to describe the fluctuations around the trend of the soil temperatures monitored in the volcanic caldera of the Campi Flegrei area in Naples (Italy). The study focuses on the data concerning the temperatures in the mentioned area through a seven-year period. The research is initially finalized to identify the deterministic component of the model, given by the seasonal trend of the temperatures, which is obtained through an adapted regression method on the time series. Subsequently, the stochastic component from the time series is tested to represent a fractional Brownian motion (fBm). An estimation based on the periodogram of the data is used to estabilish that the data series follows a fBm motion, rather then a fractional Gaussian noise. An estimation of the Hurst exponent $H$ of the process is also obtained. Finally, an inference test based on the detrended moving average of the data is adopted in order to assess the hypothesis that the time series follows a suitably estimated fBm.


Stem cell-replacement therapies have been proposed as a potential tool to treat sensorineural hearing loss by aiding the regeneration of spiral ganglion neurons in the inner ear. However, transplantation procedures have yet to be explored thoroughly to ensure proper cell differentiation and optimal transplant procedures. We hypothesized that the aggregation of human embryonic stem cell-derived otic neuronal progenitor cells into a multicellular form would improve their function and their survival in vivo post-transplantation. We generated human embryonic stem cell-derived otic neuronal progenitor spheroids-an aggregate form conducive to differentiation, transplantation, and prolonged cell survival-to optimize conditions for their transplantation. Our findings indicate that these cell spheroids maintain the molecular and functional characteristics similar to those of otic neuronal progenitor cells, which are upstream in the spiral ganglion neuron lineage. Moreover, our phenotypical, electrophysiological, and mechanical data suggest an optimal spheroid transplantation point after seven days of in vitro three-dimensional culture. We have also developed a feasible transplantation protocol for these spheroids using a micropipette aided by a digital micro-injection system. In summary, the present work demonstrates that the transplantation of otic neuronal progenitor cells in spheroid form into the inner ear via micropipette seven days after seeding for three-dimensional spheroid culture is an expedient and viable method for stem cell-replacement therapies in the inner ear.


The richness and plurality of meanings that the term Sophia has received in speaking of the divine sphere demands careful approach to its use and projection. The author, in this article, intends to take a tour by authors and their insights to be able to have an overview of a complex and rich itinerary.


Objective This study was designed to observe the effects of selenium dioxide(SeO_2) on the growth and c-fos expression in lung cancer GLC-82 cell line.Methods MTT assay was used to observe the inhibition of growth of GLC-82 cells treated with SeO2.After exposed to SeO2 for 1,6,12 and 24 h at different concentrations(3,10 and 30μmol/L),immunohistochemical method was used to investigate the expression of c-fos,and stereological analysis for c-los positive cells was performed by CMIAS-II image analysis system at a magnification of 400.Results After treated with SeO_2 for 24~96 h,cell proliferation and viability were markedly inhibited.The expression of c-los was up-regulated at 1 h(P0.05),and there were significant differences at 6~12 h(P0.05 and P0.01).The level of c-fos expression in group of 30 #mol/L was higher than that in group of 3 #mol/L.Conclusion SeO_2 can inhibit cell proliferation and up-regulate c-fos expression in GLC-82 cells.This indicates that SeO_2 may be involved in the process of apoptosis through c-fos protein.


Abstract Lithostratigraphic units of early to late Cambrian age established by T. C. Nicholas in 1915 in the St Tudwal's Peninsula are revised. They comprise, in ascending order: Hell's Mouth Formation (> 190 m); Trwyn y Fulfran Formation (37 m);Cilan Formation (400 m); Ceiriad Formation (40 m seen); Nant-y-big Formation (> 110 m seen); Maentwrog Formation (in part, 50 m seen, an estimated 250 m concealed); Ffestiniog Flags Formation (in part, c. 120m seen). The 'calcareous grit' at the top of Nicholas's Nant-pig Mudstones spans the unconformable boundary between the Nant-y-big and Maentwrog formations. Previously described limestone clasts in the 'grit' are probably erosional remnants of an in situ bioclastic limestone bed; their contained trilobites include genera and species found in the Andrarum Limestone (late Middle Cambrian) of Scania, Sweden. Acritarchs are documented and compared particularly with those from eastern Newfound-land. Those from the highest part of the 'calcareous grit' include Cymatiogalea sp. and are of late Cambrian age. One new species, Heliosphaeridium? llynense Martin, comes from the lower part of the Nant-y-big Formation (middle Middle Cambrian), where it appears a little earlier than the Adara alea Biozone.


This article analyses how digital storytelling (DS) is applied to a digital humanities (DH) research project. It considers the purpose of storytelling and illustrates its use to help to democratize the wider project by including diverse voices and helping to reconstruct cultural memory. How can DS be used as a critical research method to help develop a robust methodology in DH research, particularly for organizing historical and cultural resources to form a story world and addressing biases in the established archival collections? This initiative is the latest phase of the Shanghai Memory project, adding an important additional dimension to the established showcase, A Journey from Wukang Road. Wukang Road, with many historical buildings going back to the colonial era, has important cultural significance as part of the former French Concession. Originally known as Rue de Ferguson, the name was changed in 1943, at the time of the Japanese occupation, seemingly as part of anti-colonial sentiment while China was being encouraged to resist her occupiers. Participation in the storytelling project is facilitated by user generated content and promotion in the Shanghai Library. The aim is to present a clearer storyline about the evolution of Wukang Road, explore its historical context, use the stories and reflections of the ordinary people to balance that of the elites, importantly encouraging inclusion of the vernacular Shanghainese dialect as part of wider movements to protect local languages.


This paper presents an exact formula for calculating the fourth-moment tensor from the second-moment tensor for the three-dimensional Jeffery's equation. Although this approach falls within the category of a moment tensor closure, it does not rely upon an approximation, either analytic or curve fit, of the fourth-moment tensor as do previous closures. This closure is orthotropic in the sense of Cintra & Tucker (J. Rheol., vol. 39, 1995, p. 1095), or equivalently, a natural closure in the sense of Verleye & Dupret (Developments in Non-Newtonian Flow, 1993, p. 139). The existence of these explicit formulae has been asserted previously, but as far as the authors know, the explicit forms have yet to be published. The formulae involve elliptic integrals, and are valid whenever fibre orientation was isotropic at some point in time. Finally, this paper presents the fast exact closure, a fast and in principle exact method for solving Jeffery's equation, which does not require approximate closures nor the elliptic integral computation.


This paper studies rill and gully initiation and propagation on levees, dams, and general earth embankments. It specifically studies where these erosion features occur, and how long a particular embankment can sustain overtopping before breaching and catastrophic failure. This contrasts to previous levee erosion analysis, which has primarily concerned the final effects of erosion, such as soil loss, depth of scour and breach width. This paper describes the construction of scaled-down physical models of levees composed of different homogeneous sands, as well as sand- clay mixtures, and their laboratory testing. A 3-D laser range scanner captured the surface features of the physical model, before and after erosion. The resulting data is utilized in developing digital simulations of the rill erosion process. Those simulations combine 3-D Navier-Stokes fluid simulations and a segmented height field data structure to produce an accurate portrayal of the erosive processes, which will be validated by physical modeling.


The present invention relates to a method for producing silk particles, preferably spider silk particles, and loading them with compounds. In particular, the present invention provides a novel two-stage process for loading silk particles, preferably spider silk particles, with small water soluble compounds. Also disclosed are silk particles, preferably spider silk particles, loaded with at least one compound that are highly suitable as carriers for controlled and sustained delivery applications. The invention further relates to a pharmaceutical or cosmetic composition comprising said silk particles, preferably spider silk particles, and a pharmaceutically active or cosmetic compound for controlled and sustained release. The invention also relates to compound-loaded silk particles, preferably spider silk particles, obtainable by the process according to the invention. [Selection figure] None


The Backward Induction strategy for the Centipede Game leads us to a counterfactual reasoning paradox, The Centipede Game paradox. The counterfactual reasoning proving the backward induction strategy for the game appears to rely on the players in the game not choosing that very same backward induction strategy. The paradox is a general paradox that applies to backward induction reasoning in sequential, perfect information games. The Centipede Game is a prime illustration of this paradox in counterfactual reasoning. As a result, this paper will use a material versus subjunctive/counterfactual conditional analysis to provide a theoretical and empirical resolution to the Centipede Game, with the hope that a similar solution can be applied to other areas where this paradox may appear. The solution involves delineating between the epistemic systems of the players and the game theorists.


Based on the analysis of the necessity and importance of maintenance standardized management of test equipment,this essay mainly talks about the existing problems and their causes in maintenance management of test equipment.The essay analyzes from the following four aspects: maintenance plan management、maintenance resource management、maintenance process management、maintenance team management,and then puts forward ideas and measures.


In previous DOE projects, coal liquefaction products from the H-Coal, Wilsonville and SRC-II processes were separated into 28 K narrow-boiling range fractions. Information resulting from elemental analysis, proton nuclear magnetic resonance (/sup 1/H NMR), low-voltage high-resolution mass spectrometry (LVHRMS), infrared spectroscopy (ir) and open-column preparative liquid chromatography were obtained for each narrow boiling distillate of the H-coal and Wilsonville processes. The data obtained on the SRC-II fractions were elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy (ir), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and high-voltage low-resolution mass spectrometry (HVLRMS). This work has focused on using the available analytical data to determine the major functional groups in the distillates and to estimate their concentrations. 23 refs., 1 fig., 11 tabs.


Trauma is often the main cause of unilateral loss of vision in developing countries. Although corneal trauma can range from tiny corneal abrasions to sight-threatening and penetrating ocular injuries, even minor corneal trauma that breaches the epithelium has the potential to result in microbial keratitis and its associated complications, up until complete loss of vision. Even though ocular trauma is a global problem, blindness from eye injuries occurs mostly in developing countries, especially those where wars and civil conflicts bring around eye traumas from various weapons such as land mines, chemical substances, etc. Chemical injuries from both acids and alkalies are common causes of corneal injury due to their easy availability and soft regulations regarding their use. This chapter includes photos of trauma cases of the anterior segment, corneal and conjunctival foreign bodies, sequelae of blunt and penetrating trauma, chemical injuries, as well as a case of posttraumatic iris cyst.


Many authors, using both experimental tests and complex numerical models, have examined the effect of vehicle velocity on a highway bridge's dynamic amplification. Although these tests and models give valuable quantitative information on dynamic amplification, they give little insight into how amplification is affected by individual vehicle/bridge parameters. This paper uses relatively simple numerical models to investigate the effect of vehicle velocity on a bridge's dynamic amplification. A single vehicle crossing a simply supported bridge is modeled as a constant point force. A set of critical velocities are determined associated with peaks of dynamic amplification for all beams. The reasons for these large amplifications are discussed. A more complex finite element model, validated with field tests, is used to test the applicability of the conclusions obtained from the simple models to a realistic bridge/vehicle system.


Introduction. Several authors practice and disseminate good practices related to interactivity and agile, and from different areas and disciplines, as part of their activities, but few integrate them to develop projects. Objective. This paper presents the results of a review in which the level of dissemination of good practices related to these areas and those proposed for structuring, designing, and evaluating interactive content are investigated. Method. To conduct reliable literature reviews, it is necessary to build an initial protocol in which the research methodology is structured. Results. The final sample is made up of 100 works distributed mainly among articles, presentations at events, and online contributions. It was found that 47 % of the researchers publish about good practices to indicate an area or discipline of application, while 21 % describe them from interactivity and 24 % from agile. Conclusions. Furthermore, the good practices found are the result of personal experiences, not general validations, which makes it impossible to conclude whether they are really good.


We report a nonvolatile memory organic field effect transistor (OFET) using ambipolar organic molecules as nano-interfaced semiconductor materials. Newly synthesized push-pull organic molecules (PPOMs) containing triarylamine as an electron donating group, thiophene as a spacer, and malononitrile as an electron withdrawing group are proposed. The tilted PPOMs with side chains could control the charge trapping of the conducting channel formed between pentacene and PPOMs. Quantum chemical calculations were carried out to estimate the dihedral angle at the neutral and electron charged anion molecules and to explain the charging effects for the memory OFET performance (write-read-erase-read cycles). The charge mobilities of OFETs comprising the nano-interfaced PPOMs were affected by the dihedral angles derived from the steric hindrance of the bulky side chain of the spacer. The memory OTFT with higher dihedral angle material exhibited a wider memory window as well as reduced current flow. The memory OFET devices showed a memory window of −40 to +40 V, a memory ratio of 100 for "ON" to "OFF" currents, and long retention time for the nonvolatile memory.


The method for inserting a supple pouch into a container (9) through a narrow orifice involves rotating the pouch (2) as it is advanced horizontally between guides (6). The guides end above the container orifice so that it is rolled up on entry, and then rotating it in the opposite direction to deploy the pouch inside the container. The guide can be in the form of a cone which tapers towards the container orifice, or two plates (7,8) situated above and to one side of the orifice and converging towards it. The pouch is connected to a driven rotary rod (1) by a coupling (3) and a lug and notch assembly.


Second-order nonlincar optical susceptibility β of polyimide containing azo chromphore was calculated by ab initio cacultion of quantum chemistry. Charge transfer of chromphore in ground state and excital and excited state was explored by the changing of charge distributions and dipole monents in groumdd state and excited atate.


This invention is directed to a fiber attachment including a hot pad and solder glass that attaches an optical fiber to the hot pad. The attached is formed by positioning the optical fiber over the hot pad and aligning the optical fiber. The optical fiber is then raised and solder glass preforms are positioned on the hot pad . Heat is applied to the glass preforms such that they melt. Once the preforms are melted, the optical fiber is lowered into the molten solder glass . The current is then removed and the solder glass solidifies as it cools to form an attachment between the optical fiber and the hot pad.


Ultrathin carbon nitride (CN/sub x/) overcoats were grown using pulsed dc magnetron sputtering. Substrates were mounted on a holder that allowed 45/spl deg/ tilt angle and rotation at different speeds. Effects of sputter gas composition, target power, substrate bias, substrate tilt, and rotation on film growth and properties were explored. Atomic force microscopy scans over large sampling areas show that thin CN/sub x/ films obtained at -100 V substrate bias with 45/spl deg/ substrate tilt and 20 r/min rotation have root-mean-square roughness almost four times lower than those prepared without substrate tilt and rotation. Several percent of helium in an Ar-5%N/sub 2/ sputter gas was found to improve surface roughness of these coatings. These 1-nm-thick ultrasmooth coatings reduced corrosion damage compared with coatings of the same thickness grown without substrate tilt and rotation. This improved performance appears to be directly related to the growth of smoother and denser coatings synthesized under the present conditions.


Alcohol abuse causes 88,000 deaths annually. Alcohol affects neuromotor functions such as walk patterns, making them a reliable bio-measure of intoxication. In this paper, we present AlcoWear, a machine learning based system that passively senses a drinker's Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) by classifying accelerometer and gyroscope data gathered from their smartphone and smartwatch. While gait sensor readings taken from a device attached to the user's trunk (smartphone) are the most accurate, users often do not carry their phones (e.g. leave them on a table) while walking around during their day. Smartwatches are worn continuously but are less accurate due to noisier sensor readings (e.g. confounding hand gestures). AlcoWear extracts and classifies features such as sway area (gyroscope) and cadence (accelerometer) from smartphone sensor data, and features such as Total Harmonic Distortion (accelerometer) and angular velocity (gyroscope) from the same users' smartwatches. On the smartphone, the J48 classifier was the most accurate, classifying user gait patterns into BAC ranges of [0.00–0.08), [0.08–0.15), [0.15–0.25), [0.25+) with an accuracy of 89.45%. For the smartwatch, AlcoWear classifies users as being in BAC ranges [< 0.08 vs >= 0.08] (2 bins) with a 79.8% accuracy using a Random Forest classifier. AlcoWear classifies the smartphone's data when the user carries it, and uses data from the user's smartwatch when the user is not carrying their phone. AlcoWear is the first to combine the smartphone and smartwatch in a collaborative system to sense BAC from gait.


The
 electronic absorption spectrum of free-base porphin has been studied at density-functional theory (DFT) level
 using the time-dependent perturbation theory approach. The optimization of the molecular structure was carried
 out using the Becke–Perdew functional and split-valence quality basis sets augmented by polarization functions.
 In the calculation of the electronic excitation energies, the same functional was employed while the
 basis set was further augmented by diffuse s, p, and d functions. The calculated absorption spectrum agrees with recent ab initio and DFT calculations and with experiment. The B-band must be assigned to the strong 3 1B2u and the 3 1B3u transitions. Two additional weak transitions (2 1B2u
 and 2 1B3u) are found below
 the B band. However, these states have not been obtained at CASSCF (CASPT2) and DFT/MRCI levels and might be an
 artifact of the functional used. The lowest symmetry-allowed triplet–triplet
 transition
 is calculated to be 1.58
 eV as compared to the experimental value of 1.56–1.58 eV.


Mathematical models are a useful tool for predicting the responses of marine phyto- plankton to changes in nutrient inputs and other environmental factors. Two modeling approaches — Monod and Droop — have been traditionally used. These 2 model types were fitted to empirical data for specific growth rate, cellular N:C ratio, cellular ammonium uptake rate, and ammonium concen- tration measured in N-limited cyclostats at different dilution rates and in nutrient-saturated batch cultures. The modeled data were for a small, fast-growing coastal diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana (~4.5 μm diameter) and for a larger, slower growing diatom T. weissflogii (~11 μm diameter) cultured in seawater medium at 20°C and 14 h d -1 of light. The observed data did not conform well to the clas- sic Monod equation, but could be fit to a modification of this equation in which the maximum growth rate was assigned a value higher than the observed maximum rate. Likewise, data for cellular N uptake rate versus ammonium concentration did not conform well to the standard saturation equa- tion, but could be fit to a modification of the equation in which the maximum uptake rate was set above the empirically measured value and the x-intercept was shifted from the origin to a finite pos- itive value. Both modified models accurately fit the observed steady-state relationships between ammonium concentrations and specific growth rates of the 2 species. However, the 2 models showed different transient dynamics in response to a change in the concentration of inflowing nutrients in time-course simulations. Such differences suggest that the choice between Droop and Monod approaches, when used as part of larger food web models, could lead to widely divergent predictions of algal blooms and other nonequilibrium dynamics of ecosystems.


Conventional wisdom assumes that carcinogenesis is caused by mutations in genes involved in the control of cell proliferation and survival, replicative senescence, oxidative metabolism, cell adhesion, immune recognition and angiogenesis. Over the last two decades, however, mounting evidence supports that "healthy" leukocytes, endothelial and fibroblasts "invade" the extracellular matrix of tumors and provide soluble factors that promote malignancy. Somatic and autonomic innervation, however, are factors that have remained out of the equation in spite of the evidence that shows that malignant tumors may attract or repel them. In addition, various neuro‐messengers are now known to modulate cancer progression. This is why in this work we begin studying the pattern of autonomic innervation in melanoma, putting emphasis on the cytological relationship between innervation and tumor metabolic compartmentalization; it is known that innervation regulates oxidative metabolism in normal tissues.


Humanism of science can be defined as a general version including all contemporary humanistic understanding of science. It can be roughly distinguished as three different types:(1) "traditional type" or "orthodox type"; (2) "radical type" or "rebel type" and (3) "middle type" or "compromise type". The three different types of humanism of science embody mergence between science and humanism from different angles. They have both various rational factors and many defects and biases. Researching into humanism of science will help not only deepen understanding of science and humanism and their mutual relation, but also push on mergence between scientific culture and human culture in practice.


The intelligent robot is the development direction of the robot, it has the intelligence system, mainly is feeling device, visual device and language identification device, etc. Robot manipulator is the execution of the components, its transmission parts is the drive source and robot each joint connection bridge, is an important part of the industrial robot, this paper analyzed its design.


A catheter for back-loading a device (32) which has been deployed on a guidewire (26) within a vasculature for performing a medical procedure, comprising: a main body (12) of the catheter having a distal end (14) and an inner vessel having a diameter sufficient for the device when it is retracted into engagement with said distal end, it can be housed within said main body, also said main body comprising a side exit port (24 ) formed through a wall (15) that a location spaced proximally of said distal end; a hosted light (18) and extending axially within said outer passage, said lumen characterized in having a proximal portion extending externally with respect to said main body through said outlet port being, further including said light one boundary wall which is circumferentially continuous in the near axial location to a distal end of said wall, wherein in use prior to back-loading the device, said axial location is axially proximate said distal end of said main body in the the boundary wall includes means for withdrawing said circumferentially continuous axial location proximally within said inner passage when the device is retracted and received within said main body.


delinquents are still missing: An analysis of more than 100 expert testimonies should redress this deficiency. Methods: Amongst others the data was collected with the PCL-R, HCR-20, SVR-20 and the Static 99. Results: The data indicates that the inmates are part of a high risk population. Most are social desintegrated; some of them show noticeable personality problems or personality disorders. This indicates an overlap between preventive detention and the treatment possibilities of forensic psychiatric hospitals. This requires careful diagnostic and criminal prognostic proceedings, but in a large number of expert testimonies the diagnostic and criminal prognostic approach remained unclear. Psychiatrists dońt use standardized prognostic tools, which leads to the loss of relevant information. Conclusion: The use of especially prognostic instruments can enrich the information content of expert testimonies in the context of preventive detention. Thus they can serve as a tool to assure the quality of the expert opinion.


Objective To construct two novel fusion suicide gene expression vectors, and detect their expression in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. Methods Two fusion suicide gene PNP-TK and PNP-CD were generated respectively by recombinant DNA techniques. Two fusion genes were inserted into pcDNA 3.0 vector separately to construct two suicide gene expression vectors, pcDNA 3.0/PNP-TK and pcDNA 3.0/PNP-CD. Two recombinants were analyzed and identified by recombinant enzyme, PCR and sequencing. Then they were transfected into human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2 by liposome-mediated method. The expressions of two fusion genes were detected in HepG2 cell line. Results Two fusion genes were constructed successfully and the expression of two fusion genes were detected in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. Conclusion Two fusion suicide gene expression vectors based on PNP/Mep-dR system are effective and broad-spectrum vectors for human hepatocellular carcinoma gene therapy.


It is known that the Cech homology sequence of a compact pair (X, A) over a compact coefficient group is exact. It is proved that the Cech homology sequence of a compact pair (X, A) over an algebraically compact coefficient group is exact, too. To show this it is proved that if the Cech homology sequence of a pair (X, A) (not necessarily a compact pair) over a coefficient group G is exact and H is a direct summand of the group G, then the Cech homology sequence of the pair (X, A) over the group H is exact, too. In showing this we work in the category InvM (Comp) of inverse systems of chain complexes over a fixed directed set M which is shown to form a category.


Objective To develop a method for simultaneous determination of 14 organic solvent residues in cosmetics by automated headspace gas chromatography- mass spectrometry. Methods The experimental conditions of headspace( such as temperature,time and sample volume),GC and sample treatment were optimized to establish a method for analysis of organic solvent residues in cosmetics. Cosmetic samples were extracted by headspace at 90 ℃ for 30 min,then separated by HP- INNOWAX capillary column,and determined by GC- MS. The retention time of the peaks was used for qualitative analysis,while external standard method was used for quantitative analysis. Results The method had good linearity over the range of 0. 05 mg / L ~ 50 mg / L for 12 orgainc solvent residues,while that of acrylonitrile and acetonitrile was between 0. 5 mg / L ~ 50 mg / L. The detection limits of the 14 organic solvents ranged from 1 mg / kg to 3 mg / kg with recoveries of 73. 6 % ~ 98. 5 % and relative standard deviation( RSD) of 1. 7% ~ 6. 7%( n = 6). Conclusion The method is simple,rapid,sensitive and stable,it is suitable for simultaneous monitoring of 14 organic solvent residues in cosmetics.


The shot noise in the electrical current through a ballistic chaotic quantum dot with N-channel point contacts is suppressed for N → ∞, because of the transition from stochastic scattering of quantum wave packets to deterministic dynamics of classical trajectories. The dynamics of the electron spin remains quantum mechanical in this transition, and can affect the electrical current via spin-orbit interaction. We explain how the role of the channel number N in determining the shot noise is taken over by the ratio lso/λF of spin precession length lso and Fermi wavelength λF, and present computer simulations in a two-dimensional billiard geometry (Lyapunov exponent α, mean dwell time τdwell point contact width W) to demonstrate the scaling ∝ (λF/lso)1/ατdwell of the shot noise in the regime λF ≪ lso ≪ W.


The article deals on the Greek loan words in the Bulgarian standard language. The main target of the article is to show in which fields of life the use of the Greek loan words is dominating and in which not. We excepted the loan words in the Bulgarian dialects, because the situation is too different from that in the standard language, and also the loan words, which came by Greek mediation into the Bulgarian language. So we found out, that only ten percent of the Greek loan words are common for all Bulgarian dialects. The existence of the Greek loan words is only to compare with the Turkish loan words. The comparison of both groups shows, that the influence of the greek group is quite different from that of the Turkish. The Greek language took the longest influence on the Bulgarian, however there are lots of Greek words, which are not genuine Greek.


In this study, we construct a detailed simulation model in order to quantify the benefits of device-to-device (D2D) caching for video content delivery. Simulation model involves caches at the evolved packet core, radio access network (RAN) and end user devices. We compare the bandwidth cost savings for different caching strategies at the EPC, RAN and devices and find the best joint strategy.


Abstract Understanding the success factors underlying each step in the process of biological invasion provides a robust foundation upon which to develop appropriate biosecurity measures. Insights into the processes occurring can be gained through clarifying the circumstances applying to non-native species that have arrived, established and, in some cases, successfully spread in terrestrial Antarctica. To date, examples include a small number of vascular plants and a greater diversity of invertebrates (including Diptera, Collembola, Acari and Oligochaeta), which share features of pre-adaptation to the environmental stresses experienced in Antarctica. In this synthesis, we examine multiple classic invasion science hypotheses that are widely considered to have relevance in invasion ecology and assess their utility in understanding the different invasion histories so far documented in the continent. All of these existing hypotheses appear relevant to some degree in explaining invasion processes in Antarctica. They are also relevant in understanding failed invasions and identifying barriers to invasion. However, the limited number of cases currently available constrains the possibility of establishing patterns and processes. To conclude, we discuss several new and emerging confirmatory methods as relevant tools to test and compare these hypotheses given the availability of appropriate sample sizes in the future.


The problems of nonparametric estimation of the derivative of the invariant density function and of the trend coefficient are considered for a one dimensional ergodic diffusion process in the asymptotics of large samples. In both problems the lower minimax (local) bounds on the L-type risks of all estimators are proposed and the asymptotically efficient (up to the Pinsker's constant) in the sense of these bounds estimators are constructed.