Use of a T-cell-based test for detection of tuberculosis infection among immunocompromised patients. Comment on: Possible miliary tuberculosis during adalimumab therapy with negative g-IFN release assays: reply SIR, We would like to thank Mangat et al. [1] for their interest in our article [2] and would like to make the following comments. We did not isolate any organisms including non-tuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) from sputum or bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. NTM infection is rare in the immunocompromised patient with otherwise structurally normal lungs, more frequently affecting those with chronic lung disease such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or bronchiectasis (which was not present in this patient). NTM are also ubiquitous throughout the environment [3] and identification of these organisms, particularly if confined to a positive mycobacterium PCR, would not necessarily confirm these as the causative organism even in the absence of tuberculous mycobacterium. We agree, however, that a positive PCR result for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MT) would have been of interest, but it was not locally available. Because of rapid deterioration in an immunocompromised patient, the decision to treat empirically for tuberculosis was essentially made on clinical grounds. The patient did not develop significant evidence of side effects (e.g. liver toxicity) and, hence, in the absence of microbiological confirmation, risks of inadequate treatment outweighed the risks of continuing treatment. If this case does in fact represent NTM infection then these opportunistic organisms may potentially cause significant disease in patients treated with anti-TNF. Duration of treatment in NTM is often longer than for MT, however; in this case, the cause of immunosuppression was withdrawn. The patient was followed up during and after the completion of treatment and has not suffered relapse. We would agree with Mangat et al. that an ELISPOT test is potentially more informative in immunocompromised patients. Our patient did have this test prior to commencing anti-TNF therapy as part of the RHAPSODY trial protocol, but it was not available locally when she became unwell. From the limited head-to-head comparison data available, the pooled sensitivity of TB-SPOT-TB, while greater than QuantiFERON Gold, is still not complete. Recent national guidelines for tuberculosis diagnosis [4] and an NHS Health Technology Assessment [5] have reviewed the use of-IFN assays in latent tuberculosis and briefly considered the use of-IFN release assays to rule out active infection. Caution should be exercised for both MT and NTM infection in the immunocompromised patient. The current national guidelines for assessing …


According to modern concepts, myocarditis is an inflammatory disease of the myocardium, diagnosed on the basis of generally accepted histological, immunological, immunohistochemical criteria. Previously, most researchers believed that the most common cardiac extra-articular manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is pericarditis. In the last decade, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the heart, it turned out that myocarditis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is not a rare manifestation of the disease. Recently, there is increasing evidence that inflammatory cytokines in RA can also directly cause chronic myocardial damage, further contributing to the development of chronic heart failure (CHF). In our clinical case, myocarditis developed in a patient with active refractory rheumatoid arthritis. The myocardial lesion in the patient was characterized by pronounced echocardiographic signs of restrictive cardiomyopathy, a significant decrease in the ejection fraction with the development of heart failure, various rhythm disturbances in combination with acute renal dysfunction, which led to the formation of cardiorenal syndrome (CRS). Complete regression of myocarditis and cattle occurred precisely against the background of effective treatment of refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with basic antirheumatic drugs and the successful use of biological therapy.


In Reply.— Dr Rosner's suggestions that we consider the use of theological classics and that we add a theologian to our teaching team are excellent and pertinent. It is our intent to achieve both of these goals in our use of literary classics in teaching medical ethics to physicians. We agree that the use of theological classics will add important insight into our understanding of the ethical relationships between the patient and the physician.


This tutorial-reference demonstrates how to develop Window-based applications. The first part offers detailed tutorials designed to ease users into the X Window system and to show how to build interactive applications using X. The second part includes X library routines.


* (8()() 397-378 * (888)47()-3942 * stervi e@I westlimsi(c.com() * www.w 'sttlLlsii(.(-()l MENCs journals present a wide variety of information and ideas. Articles in the journals cover everything from early childhood education to music teacher education. You might start with these Current Readings-articles on topics that have a direct impact on the work of music educators. For more information on the Journal of Research in Music Education, Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, the Journal of Music Teacher Education, and General Music Today, call Publications Sales at 703-860-4000 or 800-828-0229.


We show how the recently proposed Taylor-Lagrange renormalization scheme can lead to extensions of singular distributions which are reminiscent of the Pauli-Villars subtraction. However, at variance with the Pauli-Villars regularization scheme, no infinite mass limit is performed in this scheme. As an illustration of this mechanism, we consider the calculation of the self-energy in second order perturbation theory in the Yukawa model, within the covariant formulation of light-front dynamics. We show, in particular, how rotational invariance is preserved in this scheme.


The purpose of this study is to analyze the relevance of morality with student achievement so that its contribution to learning achievement is known. This research includes the type of verification research conducted through data collection in the field using survey methods. The unit of analysis was taken using a simple random sampling technique. Data were collected through observation, interviews, questionnaires, and documentation. This study consisted of two variables, namely morality as the independent variable, and student learning achievement as the dependent variable. The results of the study show that the correlation between moral reasoning and student achievement is 0. 683 (the degree of relationship is strong). This means that students' morality reasoning is 46.65 % determined by learning achievement factors, and 53.35 % is determined by other factors.


The mainlobe width of a waveform's Ambiguity Function (AF) determines its ability to resolve multiple closely spaced targets in time-delay (range) and Doppler (range-rate). The contour of the AF's mainlobe is well approximated by a coupled ellipse known as the Ellipse Of Ambiguity (EOA) whose parameters can be directly calculated in closed form if the waveform's modulation function is known. The Multi-Tone Sinusoidal Frequency Modulated (MTSFM) waveform possesses a modulation function that is represented using a Fourier series expansion. These Fourier coefficients act as a set of tunable parameters that can be adjusted to synthesize waveforms with desired properties. This paper derives closed form expressions for the EOA parameters of the MTSFM and demonstrates their mainlobe characteristics via simulation.


A low power demodulator, part of a radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder operating in the 900 MHz range, is presented using sub-threshold design. Using this technique and working with 90nm complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology, the circuit can operate with a supply voltage as low as 0.3V, consuming only an average of 15nW, making it suitable for ultra-low power applications.


We show that, due to the weak ferromagnetism of La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$CuO$_4$, an external magnetic field leads to a dimensional crossover 2D $\to$ 3D for the in-plane transport. The crossover results in an increase of the hole's localization length and hence in a dramatic negative magnetoresistance in the variable range hopping regime. This mechanism quantitatively explains puzzling experimental data on the negative magnetoresistance in the N\'eel phase of La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$CuO$_4$.


The basic principle and the mathematical model of direction finding by method of interferometer are introduced in this paper.The factors that affect the accuracy of the interferometer used for direction finding are investigated generally.And an effective way to improve accuracy that increases the length of baselines is introduced.The method of the combination of long baseline and short baseline,the algorithm and the performance of system are studied and the discussion is focused on resolving the ambiguities of Angle of Arrival and increasing the accuracy of direction finding system.Lastly the implementation of the system in practical applications and some experimental data are presented.


Thecomplexity ofvectorquantization increase exponentially withthevectordimension limits thedimension that can beusedinquantizer. Butthequantitative relation of performance andcomplexity isn't clear forquantization of distributed source.Inthispaper, therateanddistortion of distributed source vectorquantization are characterized and analyzed through thepoint density function ofaquantizer. The function ofrate, distortion anddimension isthenderived. Moreover, the asymptotically performance of vector quantization areanalyzed. Simulation results showthat vector quantization ofdistributed source can approach Wyner-Ziv boundinthelower dimension case.


A manual type injection apparatus (10) and serving quantitative formulated fluid or pasty product, comprising a body (12) having gripping means (20) and the guide means (19), a substantially cylindrical storage section cylinder (23) interposed therebetween and along a line guide. The apparatus further comprises at least partially elastic piston (24), which should function as a sealing with the inner wall of the cylindrical storage body (12) further comprises a plunger member (21) is mounted a needle (11). The body (12) relative to the storage drum (23) moves the plunger (21) the piston (24) sliding in a storage cylinder, thereby extracting a fluid or pasty product and served through a needle (11).


This study examined interview accounts from thirty-one Taiwanese older adults about their inter- and intra-generational communication experiences, and perceptions of today's young and older people. Thematic analysis showed that Taiwanese older adults tended to initiate conversation topics accommodative to young people's lives such as their job and marriage, whereas conversation topics with their old-age peers centered on adjustment into senior years (e.g., health, exercise) and their children's achievement. Analysis also revealed some of the Taiwanese older adults' major perceptions of young people (e.g., less respectful towards elders) and their peers (e.g., losing status in the family). The discursive strategies used in constructing such perceptions (e.g., discourse on self exception, denial of self inclusion) demonstrated the ways in which they negotiated and managed their age identity in inter- and intra-generational communication. Results are discussed in light of Social Identity Theory, Communication Accommodation Theory, age identity, filial piety, and cultural change.


In this work we describe the synthesis and characterization of the Co2Cu4Te4O11Cl4 phase prepared by the hydrothermal technique. From the polycrystalline X-ray diffraction pattern the obtained new phase was indexed in the P-1 space group with cell parameters a= 9.274(7), b= 12.132(2), c= 9.252(2) Å, α= 98.18(14), β= 108.22(13) and γ= 111.07(8) o. The nominal composition and morphology were obtained using SEM-EDX measurements. The optical band gap of the material corresponds to an insulating system with 2.7 eV, and the thermogravimetric data shows that the phase is stable up to 700 oC. e-mail: email@example.com INTRODUCTION From the synthetic point of view, the hydrothermal synthesis is referred to the preparation of substances in sealed containers, heated up at above room temperature and autogenerated pressures. An interesting fact of this synthesis is that it enables working at non thermodynamic conditions permitting the crystallization of compounds with different structures due to the variation of the physicochemical properties of the solutions. Basically, the mechanism of the hydrothermal reactions obeys a model of liquid nucleation1 which differs from the synthesis in solid state where the mechanism of reaction consists basically in the diffusion of atoms and ions in the interphase between the reactants. This method has been used in the synthesis of interesting types of solid phases like microporous crystals, super-ionic conductors, and chemical sensors, electronic and magnetic solids2-6. Between current techniques used for the production of nanostructured materials, the hydrothermal synthesis presents many benefits, high degree of chemical homogeneity at molecular scale, the use of low temperatures as compared with solid state syntheses, formation of nanocrystalline materials in a one-step process. Nowadays, the hydrothermal technique represents the most promising route for the cost-reducing production of advanced ceramic materials like polycrystalline oxides, electroceramics, hybrid organicinorganic materials and molecular systems with transition metals with characteristics adapted to technological applications. An interesting family of compounds that presents an increasing development during the last years corresponds to the oxychlorides of transition metals, which are phases of great interest due to their intercalation properties, superconducting properties at high temperature, electric, optical and magnetic properties7-13. For example, a wide range of amines have been intercalated in FeOCl, TiOCl, VOCl and LnOCl ( Ln = Ho, Er, Tm and Yb )7-9. On the other hand, phases like ( Ca, Na )2CuO2Cl2 and (Ca, Na )2CaCu2O4Cl2 have proven to be materials with a high Curie temperature14-15. The phase Ba5Co5ClO3 shows both antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic phenomena16, while Sr2MnO3Cl and Sr4Mn3O8 are compounds with strong antiferromagnetic interactions 17. On the other hand Bi3Pb2Nb2O11Cl presents ferroelectricity 18 and the phase BiSeO3Cl is active in the generation of a second harmonic12, which is fundamental in nonlinear optics. In addition, recently Okamoto's group19 has started to work on a new oxychloride family of rare earths doped with calcium, which are promising solid state conductive electrolytes. This effect is due to the migration of chloride ions across the inorganic framework. Due to the interesting and peculiar characteristics to being insoluble in water and very stable at high temperatures, they are potential candidates to be HCl or Cl2 sensors. This type of phases have been synthesized both by ceramic, hydrothermal methods and vapor transporting reactions20-22. In this context, telurites are particularly interesting not only from a structural point of view, since they can adopt a varied number of coordination environments, but also due to their the magnetic behavior. Despite the fact that these structures present the usual TeO3 -2 pyramidal fragment, which is quite common in sulfites and selenites23, telurites24 can also show a tetracoordinated fragment TeO4 -4 with a C2v symmetry, and can adopt a unique geometry of the type TeO3+1 -4, where one of the axial positions of the pseudotrigonal bipyramid is longer than the other ones25. This unusual and rich chemistry, has given a renewal interest to the production of new telurites phases like the spiroffite structure M2Te3O8 (M= Co, Cu, Zn ) 26. New works on oxychlorides of tellurium and copper with other transition metals do not exist in literature. Due to this fact, the aim of this work was to prepare and characterize new phases derived from oxychlorides.


Charge induced as a function of time in a-Si:H p-i-n detectors by protons having energies ranging between 5 and 12 MeV have been studied. A multiple trapping transport model is developed in order to explain the non saturation of the collected charge with bias and evidence of a bias dependent recombination process is shown. The dependence of the total induced charge (the detector efficiency) with bias can be expressed by an Onsager function with a thermalization distance of 34 A.


The polymerization reaction of the fluoroalkyl esters of methacrylic acid was studied in both the liquid and glassy state under uv and ..gamma.. radiation. With both irradiations the rate of conversion of the monomers increased with increasing length of the fluoroalkyl group. In the uv irradiation there was a remarkable acceleration of the rate at high temperatures which was accompanied by the augmentation of the intrinsic viscosities of the polymers produced. At low temperatures the polymerization increased linearly with the irradiation time. Under ..gamma.. irradiation the polymerization rate was higher in the glassy state than in the liquid state, and the viscosity of the polymer produced at -78/sup 0/C was higher than that of the polymer produced in the liquid state. (JSR)


A 75‐year‐old woman presented with a 2‐year history of a pigmented nodular lesion on her left sole and a 9‐year history of a red infiltrative plaque on the vulva. The plantar lesion was a 15‐mm ulcerated nodule located at the center of a 25‐mm atypical pigmentation region; the nodule was clinically suspected to be a malignant melanoma. Histopathological analysis of the vulvar lesion biopsy sample indicated extramammary Paget's disease (EMPD). There was no evidence of metastasis in the computed tomography (CT) and 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography scans. We simultaneously performed a wide excision of both lesions and a left inguinal sentinel lymph node biopsy. Melanoma cells were identified in the sentinel lymph nodes, and left radical lymph node dissection was performed after a course of neoadjuvant chemotherapy. All the lymph nodes that were resected during the second operation tested negative for melanomas, and the plantar lesion was diagnosed as a stage IIIB malignant melanoma (pT4b, Na2, M0). Thereafter, we administrated four courses of chemotherapy, and 8 months after the operation, there was no evidence of recurrence or metastatic lesions. We present a case report of double cancer: a plantar malignant melanoma and vulvar EMPD, and also discuss the possible genetic mutations responsible for these two tumors.


OBJECTIVE: For the purpose of prescribing exercise intensity, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) provides guidelines for relating the perceived level of exertion and the heart rate (HR) response during exercise, expressed either as a percentage of maximal HR or of HR reserve, to a percentage of maximal aerobic power (VO2max). However, because maximal HR and V̇O2max decline with age, it is possible that these guidelines are not appropriate for an older population. The purpose of this study was to evaluate in 60‐to 72‐year‐old women the relationships among the common methods of prescribing exercise intensity.


The decision support system for a stock trader based on neural networks and fuzzy logic is proposed. An application of the fractal analysis and the shapes recognition on charts of the financial time series gives an opportunity to predict the future trend reversal of stock quotes and to build the rules for it. It gives the possibility to recognize the trend reversal faster than the adaptive methods, which always give a delay of one time step. That's why it helps a trader to make a timely decision about opening and closing positions.


Consider a single-server service system with uncertain quality level (which is assumed to be binary). Both the server and the customers know the distribution of quality levels and are engaged in the following two-stage game. In the first stage, the server commits to a strategy (possibly mixed) that, given a realized quality level, states whether or not the queue length will be revealed to customers upon their arrival. In the second stage, quality is realized and the server's corresponding queue-disclosure action is observed by the customers, who then update their belief on the service quality and decide whether or not to join the service system. The server's decision problem is to find an optimal commitment strategy to maximize his expected effective arrival rate, anticipating the customers' equilibrium queueing behavior toward his queue-disclosure strategy. Using a Bayesian-persuasion approach, we reformulate the server's decision problem as looking for the best resulting posterior distribution on service quality. This reformulation yields useful insights into when and why a commitment strategy helps. In particular, we demonstrate that the maximal expected effective arrival rate, as a function of the prior, can be graphed as the upper envelope of all convex combinations of points on the effective arrival rate function of the revealed queue and those of the concealed queue. We also show that when the market size is sufficiently small (resp. large), the server always conceals (resp. reveals) the queue regardless of the realized service quality. In a medium-sized market, however, the server's optimal commitment strategy is often mixed, that is, randomized over queue disclosure and concealment. These results remain quite robust no matter whether customers are individual decision makers or act as one to maximize their total utility. We also find that, due to the change of the optimal disclosure strategy, customers' total utility when they behave collectively can be less than that when they behave individually.


Chapter One: The Spiritual Division of the Buddhist World Chapter Two: The Path Chapter Three: The Goal Chapter Four: The New Brahmin


The New Zealand Family Protection Act 1955 asks the courts to decide whether a will-maker has made "adequate provision…for the proper maintenance and support" of their adult child. The courts, applying these words, determine the extent to which conventional social values are applied by law to errant will-makers. In this article, the authors explore the results of the courts' work, with particular reference to two recent decision of the Court of Appeal, Williams v Aucutt and Auckland City Mission v Brown. The article begins by considering some essential theoretical questions, before looking at the Law Commission's radical proposal to limit adult children's claims under the Act and discussing the Court of Appeal's response to that proposal. The authors conclude that, as long as it is properly confined, the Court's jurisdiction might still be useful to modify the results of the occasional irrational or frail exercise of will-making power.


As has been well established, Bologna and Rome maintained a contentious relationship during the early modern period. Though technically under the sovereignty of the Church, Bologna clung obdurately to its republican past, enabled by both cultural tradition and legal loophole, leading historians to label it a 'republic by contract'. However, scholars have yet to grapple with the ways Bolognese women, especially women religious, participated in this pro‐civic, anti‐papal network. At the same time that the senators of Bologna, though often divided by factionalism, were unified in their disdain for the tightening of the papal collar, cloistered women found themselves under assault by a Church endeavoring to limit their autonomy in the tense decades following the Council of Trent (1545–63). This environment set the stage for a natural, if unexpected, alliance between the city's senate and its nuns. The two groups perceived the encroaching papal power as a threat to their sovereignty, and both recognized the strength that could be derived from a united Bolognese front. A batch of previously unstudied archival letters in Bologna's Archivio di Stato documents this partnership, revealing senatorial and monastic parties negotiating fruitfully – and with surprising parity – in the public sphere.


North Yorkshire Police are looking for volunteers who have a few hours to spare each week and can assist them with a number of roles ...


Even before COVID-19 hit, Indonesia and several of its Southeast Asian neighbors were facing a series of profound and protracted political, economic, and social problems. Analysts have posited a range of sweeping theories to explain these governance challenges, from a global democratic recession to the increasing appeal of China's authoritarian model. However, Indonesia's contemporary difficulties are better understood as the result of long-running internal tensions, which in some cases date back to the struggle for independence.


A critical problem in current molecular biology is to gain a detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which related transcription factor isoforms with identical DNA sequence specificity mediate distinct transcription responses. Pit-1 and Pit-1β constitute such a pair of transcription factor isoforms. Pit-1 enhances the Ras signaling pathway to the prolactin promoter, and Pit-1β represses basal prolactin promoter activity as well as Ras signaling to the prolactin promoter in pituitary cells. We have previously demonstrated that the β-domain amino acid sequence dictates the transcriptional properties of Pit-1β. Here, we show that five hydrophobic β-domain residues are required for Pit-1 isoform-specific repression of Ras signaling, and we demonstrate that sodium butyrate and trichostatin A, pharmacological inhibitors of histone deacetylation, as well as viral Ski protein, a dominant-negative inhibitor of recruitment of N-CoR/mSin3 histone deacetylase complexes, specifically reverse β isoform-specific repression of Ras signaling. Moreover, we directly demonstrate, with a chromatin immunoprecipitation assay, that the Pit-1β isoform alters the histone acetylation state of the proximal prolactin promoter. This differential analysis of Pit-1/Pit-1β isoform function provides significant insights into the structural determinants that govern how different transcription factors with identical DNA sequence specificity can display opposite effects on target gene activity.


The purpose of this article is to analyse the criteria which determine the bonuses of the CEOs in the companies listed in the CAC 40, the French stock exchange index. The question of incentives for managers has been generally analysed in terms of the agency relationship. If one refers to the agency theory, the CEOs are agents who have the role of managing the company in the interests of the shareholders. Their objective is thus to improve the financial performance without worrying themselves with the interests of other concerned parties. The results of our research show that the executive managers are evaluated based on criteria of financial performance (net profits, dividend distribution, share prices) as the agency theory would suggest. As regards social and environmental criteria, these are totally inexistent.


The utility model relates to a multi-power intelligent conversion charging device, which comprises a fan alternating current-direct current conversion module, diesel engine alternating current-direct current conversion modules, a solar energy direct current conversion module, voltage transformers, a current transformer, a storage battery module, an inverter module and a central control module. The central control module serves as a core, and wind power generation, solar power generation and diesel engine power generation are integrated, and are automatically switched through the central control module, so that the multi-power intelligent conversion charging device is easy and convenient to operate, the electricity utilization safety of a load is ensured, and the stable and safe charging of the storage battery module is also ensured.


There are various types of services on a telecommunication network. This paper examines several types of multimedia services and subscriber network architectures from the service nodes to the terminals on the B-ISDN network. We propose a conceptual services model that can be applied to several ITU-T classified multimedia services. Each service model presents its own service characteristics and network configuration. The transfer paths are discussed, as are subscriber network types such as copper, HFC, or FTTC.


Objectives: This study investigated the possible prognostic factors for the long-term survival (Cure Rate) of Hodgkin Lymphoma patients who underwent HSCT. Methods: This retrospective cohort study analyzed 116 Patients diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma who received autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (Auto-HSCT) between the years 2007 and 2014 and followed up until 2017. The information regarding patients' survival had been collected using phone calls, and their pre-transplant information was available in the archived documents. Prognostic effects were investigated using long-term survival models. Results: Patients with obesity had five times higher odds of long-term survival (cure) than the others (P=0.06). Also, the recurrence experience after HSCT negatively impacted the curing potential by 78% (P=0.05). Also, with 32 years as the change point, patients younger than 32 had 76% fewer odds of surviving long-term (P=0.03), and Poor transfused stem cell dose of CD34+ (<0.16 × 106 cells/ml) reduced the odds of long-term survival by 92% (P=0.01). Conclusion: According to the statistical models used in this study, obesity can increase the curing potential of Hodgkin lymphoma after transplantation. Meanwhile, aging, poor transfused CD34+ cells, and recurrence after HSCT were associated with lower survival following HSCT.


Quassin and 8 congeners, 1-9, were identified as active principles in Picrasma quassioides for the paralytic/acute insecticidal activity upon subcutaneous injection in the American cockroach. The activity was prolonged by applying the metabolic inhibitors for oxidation and esterification before injecting the quassinoids. The nature of the insecticidal activity seems to differ from that of other cytotoxic quassinoids, such as brusatol.


Three statistical jet noise prediction models are compared for a representative set of single-stream jet cases, which include cold and hot jets of the Strategic Investment in Low-carbon Engine Technology (SILOET) experiment at acoustic Mach number 0.875 and the cold jets of the NASA Small Hot Jet Acoustic Rig (SHJAR) experiment at acoustic Mach numbers 0.5 and 0.9. The implemented models are those proposed by Tam and Auriault, Khavaran, and the Goldstein Generalised Acoustic Analogy (GAA). By the virtue of reduced-order modelling, which is based on the single-point meanflow and turbulence statistics, all these implementations use a number of empirical dimensionless source parameters for far-field noise spectra predictions. In comparison with the Tam and Auriault model, the Khavaran and GAA model implementations use several dimensionless parameters, which are available from the previous literature and assumed to be more-or-less universal for a class of single-stream jets. These parameters include the fluctuating enthalpy function and the dimensionless amplitudes of auto-covariances of turbulent fluctuating stresses and velocities available from the literature. The comparison of the three models is aimed not only at assessing their accuracy for a range of jet conditions, observer angles, and frequencies, but also to examine their robustness outside of a reference jet experiment for which their source models were calibrated. For the input to each model, the meanflow, turbulence kinetic energy, and dissipation rate extracted from Large Eddy Simulations


New method for the synthesis of solanidine protein conjugates were developed. The protein conjugates were synthesized from γ-chaconine or solanidine hemisuccinate and resulted in greater alkaloid to protein ratios (up to 23 mol of alkaloid/mol of bovine albumin) than earlier methods. Limulus polyphemus hemocganin conjugates were used to immunize rabbits and produced high sera titers (>10 6 ; 10 5 serum dilution could be used for assays)


A MEMS thermal emitter based on heating thin film resistors has been studied for the MEMS infrared gas sensor as an infrared (IR) source. The IR source, with an effective emitting area of 1.6 times 1.6 mm2, is fabricated using heated platinum thin film resistors deposited on a Si3N4/Si02 membrane. IR radiation power of the emitter is up to 60mW with the effective blackbody temperature ranged from 300 to 850K. Moreover, it has very good dynamic parameters a modulation frequency as high as 100Hz and a response time of 23ms. The properties of the source demonstrate the potential applications to meet the performance, size and low-cost requirements of the mass market


Peak to Average Power Ratio (PAPR) is an important parameter to be considered in any advanced digital communication system. Continuous efforts have been applied in the direction to reduce PAPR. The system proposed here for Orthogonal Frequency Division Modulation (OFDM) to reduce the PAPR and improve the Bit Error Rate (BER). In this technique, a combination of Partial Transmit Sequence (PTS), Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT) and Wavelet Transform is used in a single system to achieve the desired results. The proposed work is focused on design and implementation of modified OFDM system. The OFDM system incorporates Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), Symbol Generator (SG), Zero Padding, 128-point Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT), Cyclic Prefix, Output Module, Inverse Discrete Cosine Transform (IDCT), and Inverse Wavelet Transform. The design has been coded in Verilog. The design is simulated and implemented on FPGA board. The results obtained from the proposed system have been compared with existing system for obtained PAPR and also for the BER. It has been observed that the proposed system considerably better than the existing system.


The haze forecast ideas given here were deduced by analyzing the variable characteristics of haze weather,the feature of the circulation situation on the middle level and surface pressure field distribution which generally led to haze weather in Yinchuan. Based on the NCEP daily reanalyzed sea level pressure( SLP) and 500 hPa geopotential height field,416 haze weather cases which happened in Yinchuan from 2000 to 2009 were studied and the analysis results indicated that the haze weathers occured about 42 d per year by average and up to 61 d in the most in Yinchuan,and the haze weathers appeared easily in autumn and winter,especially in November and December. The haze weathers usually occurred under a relatively stable situation,when it was the northwest flow,smooth westerly flow,or southwest flow at the level of 500 hPa,and on the surface,Ningxia was in the warm region before the front,or the slight pressure gradient area,or the front was nearly crossing Ningxia or just crossed. When Ningxia was controlled by warm ridge,it could also lead to haze. In the seasons of haze weather occurs frequently,we should comprehensively analyze the evolution of atmospheric circulation situation,configuration of systems at the up and bottom,the steady state of stratification and variabilities of each meteorological facters,when it appears favorable circulation background and surface pressure distribution,we should combine the satellite images with other observations to determine the possibility of haze weather occurrence.


The invention relates to a water-based airplane surface cleaning agent, which is prepared by uniformly mixing the following components in percentage by weight: 21 to 30 percent of degradable surfactant, 5 to 7 percent of metal corrosion inhibitor, 0.3 to 2 percent of pH regulating agent, 1.7 to 5 percent of stabilizer, and the balance of deionized water. A preparation method comprises the following steps: (1) weighing the pH regulating agent, the degradable surfactant, the metal corrosion inhibitor, the stabilizer and the deionized water according to the ratio of weight percent; (2) adding the pH regulating agent, the metal corrosion inhibitor, the degradable surfactant and the stabilizer into the deionized water at the room temperature of between 23 and 25 DEG C; and (3) stirring the liquid at constant speed of 60 to 80r/min for 20 to 40 minutes to ensure that no bubble is generated in the liquid to prepare the cleaning agent after uniform mixing. The invention has scientific and reasonable formula and simple process without special equipment, and the cleaning agent has the advantages of strong cleaning capability, short cleaning time, low cost, high efficiency and is safe and reliable for use.


Previous research on first-generation college students has concentrated largely on students enrolled in community colleges or universities. This study examines firstgeneration students at a single, highly selective, four-year, liberal arts college, and uses an academic literacies approach to understand the relationship between first-generation status and written and oral literacies as illustrated in academic papers and classroom performance. Twelve first-generation college students were intemewed extensively about their early literacy experiences, family background, relationship to family and home community, high school preparation, selection of and transition into a highly selective college, and written and oral literacy experiences at that institution. Writing samples were collected throughout the semester from a subset of five students enrolled in writing-intensive courses, and those papers were examined closely and discussed at length with the student writers. Students were also observed in classroom situations. Participants in the study exhibited a range of perceptions about academic preparation, integration into the academic community and comfort with writing and class participation, with several striking siniilarities, particularly regarding early reading experiences, relationships with family, and attitudes toward the use of personal experience as a foundation for academic work. Suggestion for further research are proposed in order to provide more extensive information that will help to shape educational programs for first-generation students at such institutions. Major Adviser: Ce lest Martin, Associate Professor of English


Two rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivars, high-Se rice Xiushui 48 and low-Se rice S. Andrea, differed in their ability to accumulate Se in the grain as high as a three-fold during the grain filling period. Four Se species (Selenate, Selenite, Se-methyl-selenocysteine (SeMeSeCys), Selenomethionine (Se-Met) were supplied to individuals of the two cultivars via excised panicle stems subjected to a ± stem-girdling treatment and cut flag leaves. Results indicated that organic Se can be remobilized from the stems to the grains only through the phloem, but about 29.1 to 48.7% of inorganic Se can be transported to the grain through the phloem. The remaining inorganic Se is transported to the grain through the xylem. The cultivar Xiushui 48 was significantly more effective (p = 0.05) in transporting SeMeSeCys, Se-Met and selenate from stem to grains, and its ability to remobilize SeMeSeCys and Se-Met from flag leaves to grains is significantly more than that of S. Andrea. High-Se rice, Xiushui 48 can remobilize more Se from stems and flag leaves and transport it to grains more efficiently than the low-Se rice, S. Andrea. Introduction Rice is a very important crop in China, and improvement in the Se content of rice is considered as the main way to increase the intake of Se in the diet of the Chinese population. Organic Se is more easily absorbed by humans and Se-Met and SeMeCys are the most effective anti-cancer Se species (Combs 2001). Therefore, when the mechanisms of Se transfer and accumulation in the rice grains are investigated, Se speciation must be considered. Selenite is the main species of Se in flooded rice fields (Masscheleyen et al. 1991); however, the oxidation of selenite to selenate in the rhizosphere may result in the uptake of selenate by rice as well. When rice plants absorb selenate, Se mainly exists in the roots, stems and xylem liquid, in contrast, selenite enters the root, it quickly metabolizes into amino acids, such as selenomethionine, Se-methyl-selenocysteine and very small amount of selenomethionine Se-oxide (SeOMet) (Li et al. 2008). Sun et al. (2010) collected rice from different areas of China, and came to the conclusion that Se-Met is the most prevalent species in rice grains, accounting for 82.9% of the total Se content, while SeMeSeCys and SeCys made up 6.2 and 2.8 6.3%, respectively. Bourgis et al. (1999) applied S-Met as tracer material to supply leaves in the filling stage, and concluded that sulfur exists in the form of S-methyl-Met (SMM) in plants, and is mainly transported to grains through the phloem. Carey et al. (2012) have shown that selenite was retained at the point of grain entry; organic Se species viz., SeMet and SeMeSeCys were loaded into phloem and transported to the grain. However, the Se content of rice husk is low. Se in the flag leaf of high-Se cultivar, Xiushui 48, seems to be more easily remobilized than in low-Se cultivars (Zhou et al. 2008). So far, there are significant gaps in current understanding of whether a higher Se content of Se enriched rice is directly related to its high transport capacity. The excised panicle culture method was used to study differences between cultivars in Se transfer and remobilization in rice grains, with the aim of *Author for correspondence: .


A novel fifth-degree strong tracking cubature Kalman filter is put forward to improve the two-dimensional maneuvering target tracking accuracy. First, a new fifth-degree cubature rule, with only one point more than the theoretical lower bound, is used to approximate the intractable nonlinear Gaussian weighted integral in the nonlinear Kalman filtering framework, and a novel fifth-degree cubature Kalman filter is proposed. Then, the suboptimal fading factor is designed for the filter to adjust the filtering gain matrix online and force the residual sequences mutually orthogonal, thus improving the ability of the filter to track the mutation state, and the fifth-degree strong tracking cubature Kalman filter is derived. The suboptimal fading factor is calculated in a new method, which reduces the number of calculations for the cubature points from three times to twice without calculating the Jacobian matrix. The simulation results indicate that the proposed filter has the ability to track the maneuvering target and achieve higher target tracking accuracy and thus verifies the effectiveness of the proposed filter.


The textbook discusses the basic concepts, definitions, provisions and methodological approaches to the organization of an integrated information security system. Special attention is paid to the problem of the human factor.
Complies with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard of Higher Education of the last generation in the bachelor program 10.03.01 "Information Security".
The manual is intended for students, graduate students, teachers of higher educational institutions engaged in the protection of information.


TENNESSEE WILLIAMS' THEATER is in one sense very like the ancient classical theater. It is essentially a religious act. Sweet Bird of Youth, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore, and Baby Doll center on altar tables of beds; Eccentricities of a Nightingale, Summer and Smoke, and Camino Real revolve around ritual fountains of Eternity. Battle of Angels, Orpheus Descending, and Suddenly Last Summer are ritual reenactments of events of salvationand damnation. The patio setting of Night of the Iguana is sanctuary-like, the characters making entrance from their isolated sacristry cells. A Streetcar Named Desire moves its people in a deftly choreographed ritual from the introit of scene one, played appropriately on the steps of the house, to Stella's offertory to Blanche, to Blanche's repetitious ritual cleansing in white tubs of water, to the ritual of The Poker Night played around an altar of a table by men whom Williams' stage directions place in ritual vestments of primary colors....


In the late 1970s and early 1980s,the Communist Party of China has made unremitting exploration on the rural economic system,the practice of which in the new stage demonstrates that the key to successful economic policy lies in the compliance with the objective economic law;to realize socialist public ownership the accordance with the "three favorables";to successful working methods the persistence in the principle of democracy and practice;to consolidate the favorable situation the continuity and predictability of the policy.


Proposed synthetic-aperture antenna array for radio astronomy at wavelengths between 60 and 300 micrometers includes twelve 3.5-m-diameter paraboloidal-dish antennas at various positions along three 0.5-km-long arms of Y-shaped pattern. Receivers located centrally, with consequent reductions in complexity and cost. Innovative features of design also stimulates solutions to engineering problems arising in terrestrial radio systems.


Currently, each manufacturer is responsible for documenting, maintaining and continuously improving, the manufacturing processes that they use to produce common military vehicle platforms. While some of this information is specific to the manufacturer, facility, location and production volumes associated to a particular site, much of this information is common across manufacturing sites, and even manufacturing vendors for each specific vehicle platform. Automotive manufacturing firms have addressed this problem via the development of Manufacturing Process Management Systems (MPM) that are integrated between their Product Data Management, (PDM) and Enterprise Resource Planning Environments (ERP) systems. Unfortunately, until recently, these systems have been technically, and financially, out of reach to many military vehicle programs. The objective of this article is to provide an overview on how newer commercially available Internet/Intranet-based MPM systems can be, and have been, applied to the unique manufacturing challenges present within the land-based vehicle sector, and subsequently the realized benefits that can be, and in some cases have been, achieved. In particular, this article will present how secure collaborative platforms of manufacturing process information can reduce overall platform program costs, enhance final product quality, ensure multi-vendor vehicle component consistency, allow for scalability to meet demand variability, and most importantly, reduce the time required to get new vehicle designs into the field.


Laser patterning technique as a flexible tool to grow high quality undoped gallium nitride (uGaN) on sapphire wafers is presented. A series of stripes were formed on sapphire wafer surface using Nd:YAG laser (100 kHz, 266 nm, 30 ps pulse) with variable pulse power (40-670 mW), laser spot velocity over the wafer (1-46 mm/s) and distance between the stripes (4-15 μm). Stripes width was ∼2-5 μm. After laser patterning sapphire wafers were cleaned using aqua regia and etched using sulphuric and phosphoric acid solution. SEM images after wet chemical etching show less surface roughness and open sapphire crystalline planes compared to surfaces treated with laser. Undoped GaN was grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD). Used III/IV ratio: 2400, reactor pressure: 150 mBar, temperature: 1065 °C. SEM and AFM results show reduction of dislocation density in grown gallium nitride layer. The growing of this layer was performed using epitaxial lateral overgrowth (ELO) method on laser patterned sapphire substrates. Our observation revealed that the optimal laser power for sapphire substrate patterning for ELO GaN growth is 70-300 mW. Moreover, we demonstrated intermediate GaN lateral growth states. (© 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


The mixture of alkaloids isolated from plants of the genus Buxus has been utilized in treatment of various diseases. Comparison showed that alkaloids present in the individual species differ from each other not only quantitatively, but also qualitatively. Bases present in the leaves of B. Harlandi have not been isolated so far and therefore, we included this species in our systematic studies. Dried and ground leaves of B. Harlandi were extracted and the mixture of alkaloids obtained in this way was partitioned by extraction at various pH into separate portions from which the alkaloids were isolated by a procedure described in our previous papers [1,2]. The pH 6.5 extract afforded two alkaloids of molecular weight 386. The structure of the first of them, deduced from spectral data, was verified by comparison with the specimen of cyclobuxine-D [3] (identical i.r. and mass spectra, optical rotations, and mixed melting point without depression). The second alkaloid of the same molecular weight showed in its mass spectrum peaks of fragment ions indicative of methylamino groups at C-3 (m/z 44, 57, 70) and C-20 (m/z M— 15, M 3 0 , and 58) [4]'. Basing upon this fact, i.r. spectrum, and the


This study aims to discuss the hadith about misogyny. This study uses a qualitative approach by applying the descriptive-analytical method. The formal object of this research is the science of hadith, while the material object is the hadith about misogyny, in the narration of Bukhari no. 293. The results and discussion of this study indicate that the status of the hadith is of authentic quality that meets the qualifications of maqbul ma'mul bih for the practice of Islam. This study concludes that the hadith narrated by Bukhari no. 293 is relevant to be used as motivation for early warning and the development of good behavior in worship.


The major aspect of the study is to find out the consumer behavior towards organized & unorganized retail sector .The tool used to collect the data from respondents is questionnaire method. The study show the weak factor for organized are the fast service, home delivery, location and relationship factors also meat quality is not good as per the respondents. These factors are to be taken care of for the growth in business. The strong factors for organized sector are discounted price, offers, variety, one stop solution, service ,ambience and parking .these factors are attracting the customers also making huge preference and the store cleanliness is very good, very good regular prices, quality of product, bakery products ,milk products are also of very good quality.


Background Newer implantable cardioverter defibrillators can monitor intracardiac ECGs , but their ability to detect ischemia is unclear. This study investigated the usefulness of implantable cardioverter defibrillators with an ST‐monitoring function in coronary artery disease patients. Methods and Results We conducted a prospective study of implantable cardioverter defibrillator patients with the ST‐monitoring function. One hundred seventy‐three patients who received implantable cardioverter defibrillators for primary or secondary prevention of sudden cardiac death. All patients underwent medical examinations at least every 6 months, with standard 12‐lead ECGs and device checks that included analysis of the ST‐monitoring function. Myocardial perfusion imaging or coronary angiography was performed during the follow‐up. The mean follow‐up duration was 23.3±7.7 months. Significant ST changes occurred in 15 patients (8.7%), of whom 14 were asymptomatic. The incidence of angina pectoris was significantly higher in the ST change (+) group than that in the ST change (−) group (28.6% versus 7.2%, P=0.03). In the patients who underwent myocardial perfusion imaging, the sensitivity, specificity, and negative predictive value of the ST‐monitoring feature to detect ischemia were 75.0%, 72.5%, and 93.5%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, and negative predictive value of the ST‐monitoring feature to predict residual stenosis evaluated using coronary angiography were 76.9%, 83.5%, and 97.5%, respectively. The percentage of patients with a septal right ventricular lead was significantly lower in the ST change (+) group than in the ST change (−) group (13.5% versus 33.5%, P=0.01). Conclusions If intracardiac ECGs ST changes are detected, it is necessary to use additional modalities even in asymptomatic patients. Clinical Trial Registration URL: http://upload.umin.ac.jp. Unique identifier: UMIN000011824.


The ultimate goal of human resource management is to improve the organization`s performance. This study explored how human resource management practices such as recruitment and selection, training and development, compensation and benefits, and performance appraisal affect the organizational commitment of Korean hotel restaurants. The results of this study shows that recruitment and selection, training and development have influence on affective organizational commitment, while compensation and benefits, and performance appraisal have impact on continuance organizational commitment. These findings have significant implications in presenting a new directions for human resource management in the operation of hotel restaurant business.


Starting with the ancient Greeks, mathematicians searched for the answer to the question "Which polygons, are constructible with a straightedge and compass." As time passed, mathematicians began to utilize what is knownias . Abstract Algebra and Group Theory to answer this question. . As a result, Field Theory was born. Using Field . Theory many new questions soon arose. One of them was "Which polynomials over Q were and were not solvable by radicals." The examination of this question led to the creation of Galois Theory. . Great anticipation surrounded whether or not a typical quintic polynomial was solvable. When it was found through Galois Theory that a typical quintic polynomial Was not solvable, many mathematicians chose to study other topics. Most textbooks these days spend very little time on solvable quintics, giving very few examples, concentrating instead on the impossibility of solving a quintic by radicals. As a result, I chose to center my research around . finding specific examples of quintics that were and were not solvable. In order to do this, I needed to extend my understanding from Galois Theory, and learn about, solvable groups. This new knowledge led me to a deeper ■ understanding of symmetric groups. This in turn, helped me devise a method for finding examples of solvable and unsolvable quintics.


518. Etiology of Constipation. BMCART (Bull. et 3llm. Soc. deMAed. de Paris, October 10th, 1930, p. 404) detfnes the constipated subject as one who fails to have a stool at least once in the twenty-four hours or has anincomplete evacuation, although he admits that perfect health may exist with the passing of a stool on alternate days only. Discussing the anatomy and physiology of the intestinal tract (with some useful diagrams), he points out the resemblance between the sigmoid and the stomach as reservoirs, while the oesophagus and rectum act as channels for the Ingestion or expulsion of materials. He then describes the function of the three parts of the colon and the mechanism of defaecation. The daily stool represents what has been collected In the sigmoid during twenty-four hours, andis not necessarily made up of the residue of food swallowed during that period. BWcartdraws attention to the piston-like action of the sigmoid when it is invaginated into the rectum in the flrst stages of defaccation. Constipationmaybe due to faulty education, the abuse of purgatives, Improper food, or nervous factors. The author commnents at length on the abuse of strong purgatives, and classifies as main types of constipation those due to colonic trouble (imperfect digestioni, endocrine dleflciencies, colitis, and dolichocolon) and those due to mechanical difficulties in the rectum or sigmoid. Where thereis biliary insufficiency the administration of bile extLacts often achieves excellent results. B3cart then gives clinical descriptions of different types of constipation, paying particular attention to the neurotic female colitis patient. Rectal examination Is advisable, in addition to the usual routine abdominal investigation. In treatment all aperients cannot


Background: Obesity is a risk factor for coronary heart disease and may be partly of fetal origin. Having a small or large for gestational age newborn's weight was previously shown to be a predicto...


Abstract The rapid commercial evolution of the World Wide Web has resulted in an environment where consumers engage directly with businesses in a variety of ways and levels of interactivity. This has resulted in a conflict between the need for identifying individual consumers in buyer–seller interactions through the use of personal data and their desire to protect this personal data. This paper contributes to the discussion of new developments in online marketing by investigating the potential for a profiling system managed by individual consumers with a view to allowing role-specific privacy. Challenging the accepted notion of organisations being the sole managers of data about individuals, the research starts from the hypothetical point where individual consumers manage and distribute their own data. Using the means–end approach, an initial survey was followed by in-depth interviews and a self-completion questionnaire. These were analysed according to a variation of the laddering interview technique. Benefits and concerns raised by respondents are discussed and a consumer-managed profiling system is introduced that could overcome the conflict between the need for consumers to participate in contemporary societies and their desire to seek projection from the unnecessary collection of their personal data.


Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is a key element of Australia's Qualification Framework (AQF), however, the utility and value of RPL is not confined to educational application. The purpose of this paper is to broaden the utility of RPL by identifying the multitude of uses of RPL within human resource management (HRM) contexts. RPL can assist in addressing some of the big human capital issues impacting the Australian economy: aging workforces; skill shortages; global labour markets and; need for labour mobility. There has been very little research on the use of RPL within HRM contexts in Australia and internationally. This paper discusses three exemplars of RPL in HRM contexts before presenting a framework for mapping RPL utility within HRM.


This is a companion to a paper of the same title, Part I [1], which deals with the theoretical aspects of the optimal allocation of passive filters in distribution electrical networks with static converters. Part I formulates the multiobjective optimization model and proposes a heuristic solution procedure based on trade-off/risk analysis. This Part II presents and discusses numerical applications of the approach proposed in Part I, in order to illustrate the implementation problems and practical applications. The numerical tests refer to a 16-node Medium Voltage distribution system and consider both deterministic and uncertain frameworks. (7 pages)


regards to cult film stardom, but cinematic depictions of gender, race, and sexuality. The final section, Part five ('Cult Stardom in Context: connoisseurship and film criticism') brings together many of the themes explored throughout the various essays, but also takes a more historical approach to cult film stardom. These final two co-authored chapters (by Mark Jancovich and Shane Brown and Cynthia Baron and Mark Bernard) examine how the reading of cult films and stars is often historically specific and contingent on cult connoisseurship by film critics and audiences. These chapters complement the historical turn in film studies in the last decade, but also star studies' move away from understanding star images as fixed to considering how they often change and evolve over time. The strength of this collection is its expansiveness, appealing to a wide range of scholars, including those interested in cult cinema, fan studies, stardom and performance, auteurism, genre and film history, to name, but a few. Unfortunately, the analogy is dominated by Anglo-American cinema and stars, but this illustrates there is much more work to be done in the area. This is a significant addition to star studies, tackling many of the complexities of a particular type of stardom, while also exploring star agency, industrial contexts, genre, authenticity, ordinariness, performance, subcultural capital, and historical and cultural circumstances, relevant to all types of stars. The editors and contributors exhibit a strong understanding of cult cinema and star studies with engaging and accessible writing throughout the anthology. This is an insightful and fascinating collection that opens new doors to exploring cult films and stardom.


Producing energy from biomass via anaerobic digestion (AD) has experienced a lot of attention in recent years. Biogas can be produced out of many different kinds of organic materials and its options for utilization can be equally versatile and can be used to generate electricity, heat, biofuels or digestate that can be utilized as a fertilizer.The amount of biogas produced can be increased by adding food waste to manure, however, maize silage is the most common input in EU and is 8 times more effective than cow manure in terms of biogas yield per tonne. The paper aims to summarize the main findings of the recent empirical studies related to biogas produced by biogas plants, discuss positive and negative externalities rising from producing energy via anaerobic digestion and give an overview about situation of biogas sector in EU.


Abstract This article presents the results of a study on hierarchical multiservice traffic overflow systems. The systems under investigation were composed of a number of primary resources and one alternative resource. Traffic in the considered systems was generated with the assumption that there was a finite number of traffic sources in individual classes. Further assumption was that offered traffic is elastic traffic for which – with an increase of the load of the system – a change in the volume of allocated resources is possible followed by concurrent extension of their service time. The article includes the results that present the blocking probability in the sample elastic traffic overflow systems. The study focuses on a determination of the influence of the traffic intensity, volume of resources, degree of compression, resource with compression (primary resources, alternative resources) and the cardinality of traffic sources on values of the blocking probability in individual call classes and on the number of calls that overflow to the alternative resource.


The stability and electronic structure of a single monatomic Al wire has been studied using the ab initio pseudopotential method. The Al wire undergoes two structural rearrangements under compression, i.e., zigzag configurations at angles of 140° and 60°. The evolution of electronic structures of the Al chain as a function of structural phase transition has been investigated. The relationship between electronic structure and geometric stability is also discussed. The 2p bands in the Al nanowire are shown to play a critical role in its stability. The effects of density functionals (GGA and LDA) on cohesive energy and bond length of Al nanostructures (dimer, chains, and monolayers) are also examined. The link between low dimensional 0D structure (dimer) to high dimensional 3D bulk Al is estimated. An example of optimized tip-suspended finite atomic chain is presented to bridge the gap between hypothetical infinite chains and experimental finite chains.


The present studies tested the impact of the total residual chlorine in the doses of0.1-0.5 mg/dm on carp with the appli cation of the general physical effort method. The ergometric tests revealed the immediate reaction for chlorine in the water was the drop in the performance ability of fish. In the concen trations of 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 mg/ dm the value of work diminished down to: 70.0, 45.0, and 26.6% respectively of the norm es tablished for the fish tested in the chlorine-free water.


The massive access of onshore charging facilities has caused grid heavy/overload problems. New onshore charging facilities access requests also encountered difficulties. In order to support the development of electric ships while ensuring the reliability of the power grid, this paper proposes a novel method to generate a strategy with the lowest control cost and higher success rate from the perspective of power grid dispatching instructions. First, a resilience assessment matrix is generated based on the historical electricity consumption data of onshore charging facilities to show the willingness to be regulated at each time period. Then, combined with the overlap with the base load peak, at the position of the medium voltage line, the load reduction allocation plan for each onshore charging facility is finally generated. It can be seen from the example that this strategy can effectively solve the heavy/overload problem caused by the charging load.


Casale, A., Giachino, P. M. & Jal`i}, B.: Croatodirus (nov. gen.) bozicevici n. sp., an enigmatic new leptodirine beetle from Croatia (Coleoptera, Cholevidae). Nat. Croat., Vol. 9, No. 2., 83–92, 2000, Zagreb. Croatodirus, new genus, bozicevici new species (Coleoptera, Cholevidae) are described from the cave Cavern in U~ka Tunnel, Mt. U~ka (Monte Maggiore) near the town of Rijeka (Croatia). The new taxon, provisionally attributed to the phyletic lineage of Antroherpon, is however markedly isolated owing to the following peculiar combination of morphological features: 1) antennal insertion on the posterior 4th of the head; 2) antennomere 1 slightly longer than antennomere 2; 3) pterothorax not pedunculate, mesosternum not carinate; 4) mesocoxal cavities contiguous; 5) tarsal claws widened; 6) protibiae without external apical comb of spines and without external spurs; 7) mesoand metatibiae furnished with inner, unified spurs; 8) aedeagus medium sized, with inner sac without sclerotized pieces; and 9) female stylomeres and spermatheca fully atrophied. The systematic position and the peculiar ecology of this new, exceptional troglobiontic beetle are illustrated and discussed.


By making use of tools from convex analysis, we formulate an inexact Newton-Landweber iteration method for solving nonlinear inverse problems in Banach spaces. The method consists of two components: an outer Newton iteration and an inner scheme. The inner scheme provides increments by applying Landweber iteration with nonsmooth uniformly convex penalty terms to local linearized equations. The outer iteration is then terminated by the discrepancy principle. Detailed convergence analysis is present under standard conditions on the nonlinearity. Finally, numerical simulations are reported to test the performance of the method. (The PDF has been replaced.)


Based on the extreme value theory, with the peak over threshold, this paper studies about the fat\|tail distribution of market return in Shanghai Securities Exchange. We employ the Sample Mean Excess Function as diagnostic tool, and conduct fitted detection to the fat-tail distribution through GPD(generalized pareto distribution) model. We estimate the risk and get the quantile of the return of the stock market.


The paper analysis the problems of China's joint-venture railway financing, and brings forward through the formation of the local railway investment company setting up a local railway construction financing platform under the environment of "Ministry-City" collaboration. Based on the financial perspective, the paper puts forward defining standards and the various characteristics for profitable joint-venture railways, quasi-welfare joint-venture railways and public joint-venture railways. The paper designs different financing mode to match different nature of railway investment projects.


Reduze is a computer program for reducing Feynman integrals to master integrals employing a variant of Laporta's reduction algorithm. This article describes version 2 of the program. New features include the distributed reduction of single topologies on multiple processor cores. The parallel reduction of different topologies is supported via a modular, load balancing job system. Fast graph and matroid based algorithms allow for the identification of equivalent topologies and integrals.


The invention relates to members of the MAGE-Xp family of nucleic acid molecules. These molecules differ from the previously described MAGE nucleic acid molecules in that members of the MAGE-Xp family do not hybridize to the previously identified MAGE sequences. Further, the members of the MAGE-Xp family are found on the Xp arm of the X chromosome rather than on the Xq chromosome, as was the case with the previously identified MAGE genes.


Abstract : A study was made of the solution variables, crystal constants, and system parameters which control the growth of large perfect crystals of refractory oxides from fused salt solvents. A set of formulas were developed for the prediction of growth conditions from these fluxes. Cooling rates, thermal gradients, stirring rates, and container dimensions were considered as system parameters. Solubilities, diffusion constants, viscosities, interfacial surface energies, solution and crystal densities, and solute radii were considered as independent variables. The formulas were applied to the prediction of crystal growing conditions for the production of sapphire and ruby from a lanthanum fluoride-aluminum oxide flux. The study included experimental determinations of the densities and viscosities of the lanthanum fluoride- aluminum oxide flux and experiments upon the solubility of aluminum oxide in this flux. Results from the program indicate that past and present difficulties with the fused salt technique of crystal growth have been caused primarily by hydrodynamic factors which may be overcome by detailed planning of experimental growth conditions.


Quick Response Code Abstract: This research sought to examine four variables in terms of service quality, perceived risk, purchasing decision, and customer trust. It aims to examine the effect of service quality and perceived risk on purchasing decisions in Shopee through customer trust. The design of the research was quantitative, the research respondents were postgraduate students at Universitas Merdeka Malang class of 2018 and 2019 intakeswhich involved 156 active students. To take samples, the probability sampling technique and the Slovid formula tolerable error rate of 5%was obtained for 113 sample respondents. Primary data collection used a questionnaire thatwassupported by the Google Form application. For data analysis usingthe path analysis technique. Research Findings showed that the quality of service has a significant effect on customer trust, perceived risk has a significant influence on customer trust. Service quality affects purchasing decisions; customer decisions significantly affect purchasing decisions. In a brief, the four service qualities and perceived risk influence purchasing decisions through customer trust are accepted.


Background: A major challenge in clinical periodontics is to find a reliable molecular marker of periodontal tissue destruction. Aim: The aim of the present study was to assess, whether any correlation exists between salivary immunoglobulin A (IgA) level against lipopolysaccharide of Porphyromonas gingivalis and clinical periodontal parameters (probing depth and clinical attachment loss). Materials and Methods: Totally, 30 patients with chronic periodontitis were included for the study based on clinical examination. Unstimulated saliva was collected from each study subject. Probing depth and clinical attachment loss were recorded in all selected subjects using University of North Carolina-15 periodontal probe. Extraction and purification of lipopolysaccharide were done from the standard strain of P. gingivalis (ATCC 33277). Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the level of IgA antibodies against lipopolysaccharide of P. gingivalis in the saliva of each subject by coating wells of ELISA kit with extracted lipopolysaccharide antigen. Statistical Analysis: The correlation between salivary IgA and clinical periodontal parameters was checked using Karl Pearson′s correlation coefficient method and regression analysis. Results: The significant correlation was observed between salivary IgA level and clinical periodontal parameters in chronic periodontitis patients. Conclusion: A significant strong correlation was observed between salivary IgA against lipopolysaccharide of P. gingivalis and clinical periodontal parameters which suggest that salivary IgA level against lipopolysaccharide of P. gingivalis can be used to predict the severity of periodontal destruction in chronic periodontitis patients.


The Erasmus program is considered as the most notable achievement of European social policy. The students exchanges in Europe would facilitate the agreement of systems and mutual recognition of European diplomas. Based on a longitudinal survey by case study in three European countries, this paper analyses the direction of institutionalised student mobility flows and the links with the new migratory movements of young graduates in Europe. It describes the beginnings of a competitive Higher education construction in the European area


Objective To investigate the change of matrix metalloproteinase(MMP)-9 expression in newborn rabbits with oxygen inhalation and ventilator-induced lung injury,and their probable molecular mechanism as well.Methods One hundred and eight newborn rabbits aged 1~5 days were arranged randomly to two groups by 2×3×3 factorial design according to high concentration oxygen groups(FiO2=1.0) and low concentration oxygen groups(FiO2=0.45),Each groups were divided into three parts:high peak inspiratory pressure group(HPIP)、moderate peak inspiratory pressure group(MPIP)and low peak inspiratory pressure group(LPIP).Six rabbits withont mechanical ventilation served as control group.The rabbits in each group were sacrificed to obtain lungs at 1 h,3 h,6 h after mechanical ventilation respectively.Cells in BALF were counted and the percentage of WBC classified in sediment film.The ratio of wet to dry of lungs were detected.MMP-9 expression in lung tissue was examined by immunohistochemiscal method and the concentration of MMP-9 in lung tissue bomogenate were detected by ELISA.Results(1) Compared with low concentration oxygen inhalation group,the concentration of the MMP-9 decreased significantly in high concentration oxygen group(F=15.660,P=0.000).The concentration of MMP-9 in different PIP groups showed no significant difference.(2) Compared with the control groups,the MMP-9 mRNA expression down-regulated in HPIP group and approached normal in MPIP group and LPIP group.With mechanical ventilation going,the MMP-9 mRNA expression up-regulated and near to maximum at 6 h.(3) There were positive correlation between concentration of MMP-9 and the total white blood cells,and the percentage of macrophage in BALF,and the ratio of wet to dry in lung.Conclusion Within 6 h of mechanical ventilation,hyperoxia ventilation can down-regulate MMP-9 expression,but different mechanical stretch has no effect on MMP-9 expression.MMP-9 expression has correlation with ventilator-induced lung injury of newborn rabbits.


In accordance with the recommendation of USNRC and the U.S. license renewal experiences, the effects of reactor coolant environment on the fatigue life have to be considered for the continued operation of operating nuclear power plants as well as for the design of new plants. Although various evaluation methodologies have been suggested to date, a wide range of comparison of the existing methodologies has not been performed. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the environmental effects on the fatigue life of a reactor pressure vessel and ASME Class 1 piping by the various methodologies and to investigate the effects of the pressure and moment stress histories on the environmental fatigue evaluation. The evaluation results show that the environmental fatigue evaluation results based on the design cumulative usage factors for the reactor pressure vessel and ASME Class 1 piping satisfy the requirement of the ASME code except for charging nozzle. However, when using operating cumulative usage factor, the environmental fatigue evaluation result for the charging nozzle satisfies the ASME code allowable. And the effects of the pressure and moment stress histories on the environmental fatigue evaluation are considered to be small when using the modified rate approach.© 2008 ASME


There are three tasks for Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS): education, research and development (R%D), and regional development. The focus of this analysis is on student-centred R%D which actualised R%D and regional development, and shared the regional-national R%D capabilities, interests and agenda in the collaboration of higher education, regional innovation systems and living labs. The study is a multiple case study analysis of R%D regarding the externally funded R%D projects at Laurea UAS between 2008 and 2011. The analysis includes data of R%D projects that develop academic knowledge, competences and regional-national capabilities for all networked participants by contributing to R%D in real-life and living lab contexts. The research domain comprises the collaborative networks, partnership of higher education, and mutual interactions and retentions of industry, service sector and higher education. The contribution of study includes extended analysis, concept of value concentration and framework of research continuum in perspective of regional development.


Regular photographic observations of ADS 5983 ( δ Gem) with the Pulkovo 26-in refractor have been made since 1972. The series of observations over the time interval 1972-1990 are considered. New orbital elements of the binary are obtained by the AMP–method. Some wave with a period about 5 years in the orbital motion of this star is found.


A Rydberg atom in a strong magnetic field constitutes a prototype two-dimensional nonseparable problem. It is one of the simplest experimentally-realizable quantum systems for which there is no general solution. In addition, this system is uniquely suited to studying the manifestations of chaos in quantum mechanics for it is among the very small number of systems whose classical motion displays chaos and whose Andy H. Miklich, James Schwonek, Genevieve


ROCK MASS CHARACTERIZATION FOR STORAGE OF NUCLEAR WASTE IN GRANITE P. A. Witherspoon, P. Nelson, T. Doe, R. Thorpe, B. Paulsson Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Berkeley, California 94720 J. Gale, C. Forster Department of Earth Sciences University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada J ™ * H.VaaSum Com™,,. u " ", •™» W W . or irtmvna itui in or wouU oat Paper to be presented to the 4th Congress of the International Society for Rock Mechanics, Montreux, Switzerland, September 2-8, 1979. This report was prepared by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory under the Univer sity of California contract W-7405-ENC-48 with the Department of Energy. The contract is administered by the Office of Nuclear Waste Isolation at Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio. February, 1979 i.JaTi, TW^rv*.,^


A process of the oil shale refinery and the quantity of sulphur dioxide produced in this process were briefly introduced in this paper.Both dry and wet method were compared in the principles and applicability of desulfuration methods.The investment cost of wet method desulfuration was also estimated,and the result shows that the environment benefit and social benefit are obvious.


The results of two experiments on the culture of Penaeus indicus conducted during the year 1982 are given. A high survival rate of 99.2% was obtained for the prawns which were stocked at a mean size of 15.8mm. Maximum production rates obtained per hectare within a period of 83 days mono-culture under stocking densities 4, 5, 7 and 10/m2 were respectively 355, 253, 431 and 398 kg. The size of prawns at harvest ranged from 90.8 to 119.3 mm mean length and from 4.4 to 12.3 g mean weight. The instan taneous growth rate varied from 0.0211 to 0.0251 for length and from 0.0591 to 0.0720 for weight in the different ponds. The pelletised feed used in these experiments gave a good feed conversion ratio of 2.62 in one of the ponds.


We report a novel resonant metasurface (MTS) based on mu-negative and near-zero (MNNZ) metamaterial (MTM)-lined disks for improved surface-enhanced mid-infrared spectroscopy, which relies on the strong electric-field enhancement near plasmonic metals. The design consists of an array of gold disks patterned with meandered capacitive gaps using electron-beam lithography on a ZnSe substrate. These gaps allow the electric field to be enhanced over a much wider area. The MNNZ MTM-lined disk MTS operates at a wavelength of $15\ \mu\mathrm{m}$ (667 cm-1 or 20 THz) with miniaturized, polarization-insensitive unit cells that exhibit plasmonic-like field enhancement of > 30 over a wide area. In this operation band, the MTS may be applied to CO2 detection with enhanced sensitivity and subwavelength resolution.


One of the public policy objectives in agriculture-dependent countries is to provide decision-making criteria to cope with risk and uncertainty. In order to do so, it is necessary to evaluate how much "cost of uncertainty" society is willing to pay, or to reduce it using risk transfer instruments such as Insurance. Crop insurance provides protection against reduced income for the farmer as a result of low productivity, caused by critical hydrological events, or other adverse natural events, or the decrease in market prices. This paper deals with the first of these causes (it does not take into account the variability in market prices) through a capitalization model with the following characteristics: i) financial sustainability, by means of an annuity to be paid by the beneficiaries, without a need for the systematic use of public resources and ii) social protection, through a minimum income warranty to the farmers The model is tested on agricultural activity in the Argentine Chaco. Key-words: crop insurance; risk; cost.


To achieve the highly emissive features and overcome the troublesome photobleaching for fluorescent organic molecules, a facile and versatile strategy named "self-isolation enhanced emission (SIEE)" was developed to prevent the π–π stacking of organic fluorophores by linking alkyl chains on their conjugated backbones. As a proof-of-concept, one or two octyl groups were grafted onto the backbone of 4,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole (termed as DTBT-0), resulting in two different molecules, termed as DTBT-1 and DTBT-2, respectively. Compared with DTBT-0, DTBT-1 and DTBT-2 exhibited remarkably enhanced fluorescent properties in both aggregated thin films and nanoparticles, demonstrating that the SIEE method could isolate the fluorophores effectively and then prevent their π–π stacking to achieve the impressive fluorescent properties. After proper surface modification, excellent water dispersibility, biocompatibility, and improved resistance to photobleaching were also achieved for highly emissiv...


In this work, we use an analytical approach to study the dynamic consequences of refuge use by the prey in the Rosenzweig-MacArthur predator-prey model with the refuge function proposed by AlmanzaVasquez. We will evaluate the effects with regard to the local stability of equilibrium points in the first quadrant. We show that there is a trend from limit cycles through non-zero stable points. Mathematics Subject Classification: 34A34 7476 Edilber Almanza, Ruben-Dario Ortiz and Ana-Magnolia Marin


Poor seismic performance of existing sub-standard reinforced concrete buildings is a serious problem that frequently cause fatalities, injuries and economic losses after earthquakes. Therefore, the seismic upgrade of such sub-standard structures is vitally important to avoid losses. In this study, a new retrofit method, which is achieved by using basalt mesh reinforcement together with glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC), which is externally sprayed onto existing columns, is presented. Then, initial results of an ongoing experimental campaign for seismic retrofit of sub-standard columns are summarized. Test observations indicate that significant enhancement in ductility as well as strength and energy dissipation characteristics can be achieved with this seismic retrofit method, which is also occupant-friendly and costeffective.


A palynological assemblage including the extinct araucarian dispersed pollen, Cyclusphaera scabrata , was analysed from the Achiri locality, Bolivian Altiplano. The fossil-yielding locality of Achiri is located in the Pacajes Province, La Paz Department, in the northwestern Altiplano, Bolivia. The Achiri locality is very well known by the fossil vertebrate faunas recovered from the Mauri Formation (M6). The palynological samples come from fine-grained and plant-rich carbonated lacustrine levels lower in the same unit. An age between late middle to early late Miocene? was inferred for the palynological association studied based on local stratigraphy and radioisotopic ages obtained higher in the series. The retrieved association is mainly represented by angiosperms; although gymnosperms, bryophytes, ferns, and fresh-water algae are also documented. Compositae are the most abundant group within angiosperms, and Polylepis also occurred but in low percentages. The presence of C. scabrata in the Bolivian Altiplano expands the taxon distribution outside northern South America and provides additional evidence to infer timing and distribution routes of conifers, restricted toward the tropics during the latest Neogene. Its occurrence supports a paleoelevation of no more than 2000 m for the northern area of the Altiplano in agreement with previous results. Compositae of Fenestrites type and Polylepis occur earlier in Bolivia and C. scabrata later, comparing their occurrence in miocene microfloras from low to mid-latitudes of South America.


Although standard treatment recommendations for urethral carcinoma are lacking due to its rare incidence, urethral infusion chemotherapy can be a good choice for urethral carcinoma therapy which minimizes damage to patients compared to radical cystourethrectomy and radiation therapy.
 In this work, pirarubicin loaded Fe3O4@ZnO core–shell nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized. They can magnetically position in a tubular structure at will and realized on-demand pirarubicin release and re-absorption under UV radiation and darkness. As
 a result, they can strongly inhibit the human urethral squamous carcinoma cells during infusion chemotherapy and give nearly no damage to normal cells after infusion chemotherapy. Overall, such nanoparticles are highly possible to be a new approach for urethral carcinoma infusion chemotherapy,
 with satisfactory efficacy and slight side effects.


[Objective]To know the maternal mortality rate and reasons and provide scientific data for the reduction of the rate.[Methods]Data analysis was made on the maternal mortality rate in Fengqiu county from 2000 to 2004.[Results]The maternal mortality rate was 98/100 000 from 2000 to 2004, the top 4 death causes were obstetric bleeding, hypertension of pregnancy, amniotic fluid embolism and pregnancy associated with heart disease.[Conclusions]The maternal mortality rate is high in Fengqiu county, therefore measures such as delivery in hospital should be taken to reduce the rate.


Enantiomeric recognition by several chiral dimethyl-substituted macrocycles of the pyridino-18-crown-6 type for chiral organic ammonium salts has been studied by titration calorimetry in CH/sub 3/OH, temperature-dependent /sup 1/H NMR spectroscopy in CD/sub 2/CL/sub 2/, and selective crystallization. Results from the three procedures are consistent in demonstrating either host-guest recognition or nonrecognition in the systems investigated. Futhermore, enaniomeric recognition by one chiral host for a pair of chiral guests is correlated with X-ray crystallographic data for the same system. The chiral dimethyl-substituted ligands used in the study include three dimethyl diester pyridino-18-crown-6 ligands, dimethyl thiono diester pyridino-18-crown-6, and dimethyl-pyridino-18-crown-6 ligands. All of these ligands exhibited chiral recognition. Dimethylpyridino-18-crown-6 in complexation with (R)- and (S)-(..cap alpha..-(1-naphthyl)ethyl)ammonium perchlorate exhibited the largest ratio of ..delta..G/sub c/+ yet observed by the /sup 1/H NMR technique. A diphenyl-substituted diester pyridino-18-crown-6 where the phenyl substituents are in less rigid portion of the macrocycle failed to show chiral recognition.


Several hydrological studies have shown that river discharge records are affected by significant uncertainty. This uncertainty is expected to be very high for river flow data referred to flood even ...


The present invention belongs to the technical field hematite, hematite particularly to a continuous grinding, magnetic, magnetic, acidic flotation processes. Characterized in that after stage continuous hematite ore after grinding to a classification job into job magnetic, magnetic tailings to concentrate the magnetic before, and concentrated to a job into the slag, slag after magnetic infeed operation, concentrate and magnetic concentrate the magnetic mixture is mixed with magnetic concentrate, before this mixture to concentrate the magnetic flotation concentrate, and concentrated to give the roughing period, selection period, three sections of the positive scavenging of floating acidic sorting operation, to obtain more than 65% of the grade in the concentrate. The present invention is a process flow reasonably simple, stable, easy to control, suitable for separation of mineral crystal grain size fine, uniformly disseminated hematite. Improved resource utilization and effects of technical and economic beneficiation enterprises hematite.


The Vladimirskoe deposit is one of the largest gold ore deposits in the southeastern part of the Eastern Sayan. This work is devoted to the localization of mineralized zones and the determination of the formation time of gold mineralization.The geological and structural analysis has shown that second-order discontinuous disturbances accompanied by zones of beresitization, calcification, sulfidization and dyke bodies are the main ore-controlling structures of gold mineralization. For the first time, the age of rocks of dyke complexes and ore mineralized zones of the deposit has been established by 40Ar/39Ar dating methods.


We report the self-organized growth of cobalt nanodot arrays using a Gd-Au Moire superlattice as a template. After analyzing the influence of the Co flux and the substrate temperature, we obtain the suitable parameters to maximize nanodot density, homogeneity, and individual size. Depending on the growth conditions an areal density of up to 54 Teradots/inch2 can be achieved. Below the limit of lateral coalescence, independent nanodots made of ∼1000 Co atoms exhibit room temperature remanent magnetization.


Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among men and the second leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide. The trend of lung cancer varies differently in sex, sex, age, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and geography because of differences in historical smoking patterns. Pattern of lung cancer was found to be high in number in persons' who start smoking at an early age. Countries from low and middle-income countries account for more than 50% of lung cancers in the world. This article will report about the systemic review on the disease and available surgical interventions available to treat it. Providing an overall Knowledge utilizing a PICO method for benefit of anyone who seeks it through this article.


Zanskar pony is a native breed of high altitude region of Ladakh namely Zanskar valley and Nubra valley. These ponies are commonly used for load carrying by locals and defence personnel due to their adaptability in rugged terrain and rocky track. Therefore, high enduring ponies are in great demand for ride and load carrying at low maintenance cost. So far to the best of our knowledge no studies have made attempt to evaluate different physio-biochemical indices of exercise performance in Zanskar pony, so that selection of elite pony could be made based on these indices. Hence, present study was conducted to evaluate the physiological responses, biochemical, cytokines, hormones, and antioxidant related parameters to performance in Zanskar pony at two geographic areas namely Leh (3500 meter msl) and Nubra valley (3291 meter msl) with different altitude. For this study, total of 6 adult mares ponies were selected for sampling at Leh and 8 adult mare ponies were selected at Partapur. Ponies at different altitude did not exhibit significant difference in physiological responses, and biochemical, cytokines, hormones, and antioxidant related parameters, except aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Though the all the parameters were within the normal ranges towards higher side. These findings indicated that there was no effect of altitude within the entire home tracks of Zanskar pony namely Zanskar Valley and Nubra of Ladakh region. Hence, these parameters may be useful if evaluated during load carrying trials and associated with the performance.


Both Wintershall Dea and Equinor have successfully conducted conformance control pilots previously. Wintershall Dea's past field experience and Equinor's search for an option for a salinity tolerant chemical to prevent pre- and post-flush measures led to further investigation of an inorganic thermotropic Aluminium-Carbamide gel system – GALKA, Kuvshinov et al. (2019). In this paper, we present the steps to validate GALKA and benchmark it against Sodium Silicate with regards to in-depth and near wellbore conformance control.
 Bulk gelation experiments using bottle tests were performed to monitor and estimate gel strengths according to the gel strength codes outlined by Sydansk et al. (1993). Gelation time, syneresis, gel strength dependency on temperature, salinity and concentration were measured to determine optimized gel formulation. Rheology measurements were performed using both rotational and oscillatory viscometry at different temperatures to measure viscosity variations with the corresponding gelation times. Corefloods performed using 25 cm outcrop cores showed excellent injectivity and in-depth gelation was observed at elevated temperatures. The gelation times were found to be in good agreement with the bulk gelation times.
 Stable gel formation was witnessed over a wide range of temperatures, ranging from 38 to 100°C and salinities ranging from 0.2 to 186 g/L during the bulk gelation experiments. Investigation of gelation kinetics of GALKA revealed that in-situ gelation can be controlled primarily by varying the temperature and the Carbamide concentration of the system. GALKA compositions containing a constant amount of Aluminium salt (8.8%) with decreasing amounts of Carbamide (from 30 to 1.87) % showed an increase of gelation time (5 to 13 folds) respectively, at different temperatures. Simultaneously, the corresponding viscosity and shear stress of the gels increased with increase in temperature. Corefloods demonstrated excellent injectivity due to the low initial viscosity (∼1.1 cp) of the GALKA system similar to brine viscosity. This was confirmed by the mobility reduction, (RF∼2.1) which was close to the measured relative viscosity value during GALKA injection. Stable gel formation was observed even at pressure gradients exceeding 100 bar/m without any sign of gel destruction. Benchmarking with Sodium Silicate gel revealed slightly faster gelation times for the GALKA system. However, systems with high buffer capacity could be used as additives to retard the GALKA gelation time accordingly.
 Good solubility in harsh brines, excellent injectivity and strong gel formation capabilities of GALKA over a broad temperature range and at high salinity conditions were confirmed during our investigations. Additionally, high flexibility with regards to adjusting the in-situ gelation times and its environmental-friendly classification validates it and makes it an alternative for potential implementation in both onshore and offshore assets requiring in-depth and near wellbore conformance control.


Perpetrators of the restaurant business should provide protection to consumers of food that will be consumed, the more this problem becomes a very important problem in the midst of rapid food technology, that is food business actors are not transparent with Muslim consumers. The identification of this research includes: (1) how the use of halal labels by industry and restaurants;, (2) legal protection for Muslim consumers against halal labeled foods, legal efforts against the misuse of halal labels (3). The research method used in this research is the normative juridical approach. The results of this research are: (1) Implementation of halal label with the process of obtaining halal certification for restaurant done by restaurant x has been in accordance with the requirements of halal certification HAS 23000 from LPPOM-MUI.; (2) Provisions of halal products have been regulated in the legislation between other laws concerning: consumer, food, assurance of halal products. The provisions of the regulation are manifestations of universal Islamic legal values that must be supported by their execution; (3) There are 2 (two) dispute settlements that can be taken by the consumer, namely the first settlement of disputes outside the court that is with conciliation, mediation, and arbitration, through the Agency of Consumer Dispute Settlement Agency and both dispute settlement in court. Keywords: Rule of Law, Halal Label, Consumer Protection for Muslims


Vascular compression of the trigeminal nerve root frequently contributes to trigeminal neuralgia, or tic douloureux. This report describes the outcomes