Light beams having a vectorial field structure, or polarization, that varies over the transverse profile and a central optical singularity are called vector vortex (VV) beams and may exhibit specific properties such as focusing into ``light needles'' or rotation invariance. VV beams have already found applications in areas ranging from microscopy to metrology, optical trapping, nano-optics, and quantum communication. Individual photons in such beams exhibit a form of single-particle quantum entanglement between different degrees of freedom. On the other hand, the quantum states of two photons can be also entangled with each other. Here, we combine these two concepts and demonstrate the generation of quantum entanglement between two photons that are both in VV states: a form of entanglement between two complex vectorial fields. This result may lead to quantum-enhanced applications of VV beams as well as to quantum information protocols fully exploiting the vectorial features of light.


The fact that certain strains of staphylococci have the ability to clot plasma was recognized in 1903,1 and since then this reaction has been widely employed as a test for pathogenicity of the organism. From the investigations of Smith and Hale2 and Kaplan and Spink3 the mechanism whereby staphylococcal coagulase clots plasma has been elucidated to some extent. Most strains of Staphylococcus aureus produce an extracellular substance, coagulase, during their growth. Coagulase does not clot fibrinogen directly; a second factor, normally found in the blood of many species, is required in the reaction. This factor was termed "activator" by Smith and Hale2 and "coagluase reacting factor" by Tager.4 Since staphylococcal coagulase has not been identified as the active clotting substance, the term activator is somewhat misleading. It would appear equally possible that the factor found in blood is acted on by staphylo-


The conceptual heterogeneity of spirituality has been widely recognized and, for some authors, spirituality does not have a clear definition, being the term used imprecisely and inconsistently, varying according to religion, culture and time and therefore difficult to measure. The theme is so relevant that the Department of Spirituality and Cardiovascular Medicine of the Brazilian Society of Cardiology elaborated and published a Position on arterial hypertension and spirituality – 2021, making it clear that the realization of the spiritual anamnesis is fundamental. We evaluated 200 patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) due to clinical pathologies that were lucid and conscious. Because there is no single and established methodology, it was decided to elaborate a score of easy applicability in the patients evaluated by this group to classify the patient as spiritualized or non-spiritualized. Before classifying them as spiritual or not, the risk of mortality in this hospitalization was calculated through the Simplified Acute Physiology Score III (SAPS 3). The 200 patients had a predictive score of death around 20% (18.5% to 21%). Through this sample, it is concluded that the existence of faith and the presence of active spirituality of these patients was one of the factors for the reduction of mortality during their hospitalization during the period in which they remained in the ICU. Another highlight was the lower mortality in women, especially in the non-spiritual group (2.5 times lower). The length of ICU stay did not vary significantly between groups.


THE THEATER OF POLITICS CHANGES AT TIMES MUCH MORE RAPIDLY THAN ITS CAST of characters. Before a character is given a chance to make an exit, he or she may be surrounded by a new scene which transforms the meanings of the old lines. Lewis Wickes Hine's photographic career spanned the years from Progressive reform through the Depression of the 1930s. While his photographic themes and purposes maintained a considerable consistency over the course of his life, the uses to which his photographs were put changed dramatically. This change was more a consequence of the altered environment in which Hine worked than of any major revision in his own outlook. Recent historians have generally emphasized the unity of Hine's career; those who do point to change see it only in terms of a seeming lack of spirit or inspiration in Hine's post-World War One photographs. To comprehend fully the import of this specific body of work, however, it is necessary to examine not only the photographs themselves, but the political-economic context in which they were produced and used. Throughout his life, Hine's work demonstrated the dignity of the worker, but the uses to which his vision was put by his employers and publishers changed fundamentally. And because Hine was a photographer for hire, usually on the brink of insolvency, his work was particularly vulnerable to changes in the outlooks and purposes of those who paid for it.2 Hine was born in 1874, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. In 1901, he traveled east and arrived in New York City. Fresh in the minds of urban Americans was the extreme social turbulence of ihe 1890s. The Homestead Strike, the Pullman Strike, and Coxey's Army brought public consciousness of the divisions between labor and capital to a new height. Unprecedented levels of immigration posed the threat of an unassimilable horde within American borders. And in the West, according to the 1893 paper of Frederick Jackson Turner, the frontier was now "closed," no longer able to act as a safety valve and a stimulus for democracy in America.3 Hine, however, did not encounter a hopeless New York-far from it. He later recalled


THE BOOKS under review have been selected from the Topographics series published by Reaktion Books. This series offers a collection of experimental writing about place, established under a remit to provide 'criticism with original expressive writing, to explore the creative collision between physical space and the human mind'.1 Across the series, issues arise regarding the urban setting, visuality, postmodernity, the body and so forth. I take as the overriding interest here their relevance to visual and cultural studies research; fields of study which, if only because of their interdisciplinary nature, bring to attention a number of self-consciously testing theoretical concerns. As Chaney notes, this enterprise can become 'considerably demanding intellectually' (2000: 112), a symptom of which, paralleling Connor's remarks of postmodern theorizing, is the propensity to attend only 'to the manifest content of [. . .] theory, rather than assessing its discursive effects: looking at what it says, rather than at what it does' (1994:


Antibiotics have been widely used to control and treat infections caused by Escherichia coli (E. coli) in weaned pigs. The bacteria resistance to antibiotics can occur naturally; however, the misuse of antibiotics can accelerate this resistance. New antibiotics are developed very slowly, and only two new classes of antibiotics have been developed in the past 40 years. This makes herbal medicine a promising method for fighting against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In the current study, 25 male crossbred (Duroc x Landrace x Large white) weaned piglets with an average weight of 6-8 kg were examined for 24 days. The pigs were randomly assigned to five groups in a completely randomized design with five replicates (1 pig/pen). All treatments included 20% crude protein corn-soybean as the basal diet. The negative control group received no supplementation, while pigs in the second experimental group received a basal diet supplemented with 150 ppm colistin sulfate. Basal diet and herbal mixture (Andrographis paniculata, Zingiber cassumunar, and Garcinia mangostana) were fed to three other experimental groups at 500, 1000, and 2000 ppm. The F18-positive, colistin-resistant E. coli were orally inoculated to all pigs for 9 days. The antibacterial and anti-diarrheal effects of this diet and its effect on the inoculated pigs' intestinal villi were evaluated. The results indicated that supplementation of this herbal mixture at levels of 500, 1000, and 2000 ppm had antibacterial effects, with no significant difference between doses. However, the positive effects of this herbal mixture on intestinal villi height and diarrhea were found only in pigs that received 1000 and 2000 ppm of the herbal mixture. From a practical point of view, supplementation of this herbal mixture at 500 and 1000 ppm could be applied for prophylaxis during the weaning period, whereas 2000 ppm of the herbal mixture could be used for the treatment of postweaning E. coli diarrhea.


We consider parametric generation of electrostatic waves in the magnetosphere of the pulsar PSR0531. The suggested mechanism allows us to convert the pulsar rotational energy into the energy of Langmuir waves. The maximum growth rate is achieved in the "superluminal" area, where the phase velocity of perturbations exceeds the speed of light. Therefore, electromagnetic waves do not damp on particles. Instead, they create plasmon condensate, which is carried out outside of the pulsar magnetosphere and reaches the Crab Nebula. It is shown that the transfer of the energy of the plasmon condensate from the light cylinder to the active region of the nebula happens practically without losses. Unlike the plasma of the magnetosphere, the one of the nebula contains ions, i.e., it may sustain modulation instability, that leads to the collapse of the Langmuir condensate. Langmuir wave collapse, in turn, leads to the acceleration of the distribution function particles. Furthermore, the processes that lead to self-trapping of the synchrotron radiation are discussed. The self-trapping results in the growth of the radiation intensity, which manifests itself observationally as a flare. The condition for the self-trapping onset is derived, showing that if the phenomenon takes place at 100 MeV, then it does not happen at lower (or higher) energies. This specific kind of higher-/lower-energy cutoff could explain why when we observe the flare at 100 MeV that no enhanced emission is observed at lower/higher energies!


Effects of different solvents on tensile mechanical properties of nylon 6 filament yarns are examined . Treatment with these solvents decreases the yam strength and increases the breaking elongation. Aqueous solutions of phenol and chlorophenol are used to set the mechanical deformation in twisted yarn and knitted fabrics . Properties of solvents sot and heat set yarns are compared . The results are explained with reference to current literature .


Key Points Question Are there similarities among clinical situations associated with diagnostic errors? Findings This qualitative study identified 836 relevant cases among 4325 patient safety incident reports, 403 closed malpractice claims, 24 morbidity and mortality reports, and 355 focus group responses. From these, 661 disease-specific and 21 generic diagnostic "pitfalls" were identified. Meaning Diagnostic pitfalls represent a potentially useful construct that bridges cognitive and systems diagnosis error approaches because they can delineate and demonstrate recurrent patterns of diagnostic error.


With electron microscopy, the presence of peritubular cells has been demonstrated in the interstitial tissue of carp testis. They are long flattened cells, often occupying nearly the whole space between neighbouring tubules. Their ultrastructural characteristics in mature carp, i.e. microfilaments and dense bodies, indicate myoid properties, probably related to sperm transport, similar to peritubular cells in mammals and to myoid boundary cells in pikes. The presence of actin, revealed in peritubular cells of mature carp testis, confirms the ultrastructural demonstration of microfilaments. Moreover, the peritubular cells are characterized by desmin, as shown in a double (immuno)fluorescence reaction for actin and desmin. The location of desmin in the peritubular cells is similar to that in mice and other mammals. However, in testes of carp at the age of seven months, showing active spermatogenesis, only faint desmin positivity was observed. Moreover, contrary to mice and other mammals, activity of alkaline phosphatase seems not to be present in peritubular cells of spermatogenic or mature carp, but only in the walls of blood vessels and capillaries. The possible function of peritubular cells during active spermatogenesis is discussed.


The one-dimensional position sensitive wire gaseous detector is developed for the synchrotron radiation diffraction, which consists of a single wire of gold-plated tungsten and 200 cathode strips as the readout. The induced signal is produced by the several adjacent cathode strips when X-ray is incident on anode wire with high voltage. Using the center gravity method to analyze the adjacent signals in one dimension, the primary ionization position of the X-ray can be obtained and the position resolution is 160 mu m (FWHM). In Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facility, the diffraction test is done at the experimental station. When the X-ray irradiates the crystal sample of SiO2, the different sizes of the diffraction rings can be produced. The diffraction angles are measured to be 11.148. and 14.201., and the two-dimensional diffraction rings are reconstructed when the detector is moved and scanned with the several steps in the diffraction ring range. The diffraction aberration of one-dimensional wire chamber is very obvious. In the paper, the relevant influence factors of the detector construct are discussed. The thickness of the working gas and the width of active area window can give rise to the diffraction ring aberration. The theoretical calculation value of the diffraction aberration is larger than the position resolution value of the gaseous detector. The correction method is established based on the corresponding physical analysis, and by this method the value of the diffraction ring point is calculated. The relative aberration of diffraction position is improved by up to 7% with using the method, and the two-dimensional diffraction ring with no aberration can be reconstructed.


Based on qualitative interviews with 36 ACC Approved counsellors, this research explores the range of social, organisational and theoretical factors that impact on sexual abuse counsellors. In this context the author explores the relevance of 'vicarious traumatisation' and the strategies and theoretical approaches used, that foster counsellors' wellbeing. Current literature about vicarious traumatisation suggests that counsellors' exposure to their client's trauma may increase their risk of burn out and secondary traumatisation. The relationship between counsellors' responses to their clients' trauma and the theoretical frameworks they use in practice and the impact of the counsellor's work on their relationships with their partners, colleagues, friends and family, are explored. The model of stress and trauma developed highlights that counsellors experience stress when there are and the implications for their relationships with their significant others.


Thermochromic thin films of the spin crossover (SCO) polymer [Fe(NH2trz)3](BF4) are prepared using a variety of organic polymers as hosts. The formation of different polymeric networks is confirmed macroscopically by the colour changes related to an SCO phenomenon induced by thermal variation, and the results are correlated with electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Large particles of the SCO material are observed in SCO/polymer hybrid systems with hydrophobic polymers, while more dispersed nano-crystals appear in the hydrophilic matrices, leading to the transformation of the particles into fibrous structures. Subsequently, submicrometer-size SCO fibrous nanoparticles undergo colourimetric spin transitions near room temperature while grains with sizes larger than several microns move their transitions to lower temperatures. The difference in properties between the SCO/polymer hybrid materials is not only due to the differences in the size and shape of the SCO crystals in each polymer but also to the nature of the polymer and solvent interactions. The optical changes obtained for each SCO/polymer hybrid material are related to the microscopic origin of the cooperative interactions tracked by using a photographic digital camera. A linear correlation is obtained (colour values versus temperature) when processing all the colourimetric data by artificial neural networks, thus avoiding the uncertainty inherent in the hysteresis loop.


SUMMARYSynergids have usually been considered ephemeral, but recent histochemical and ultrastructural studies have shown that they contain abundant mithocondria, plastids, dictyosomes and rough ER. This indicates that the synergids are active cells and play an important role both in nutrition and fertilization. An interesting feature is that the pollen tube enters only the degenerating synergid and through the Eliform apparatus.The egg is comparatively an inactive cell. The central cell, on the other hand, is highly metabolic. This is borne out by the fact that although syngamy starts first, the process of triple fusion is accomplished earlier.The pollen tube discharges its contents through a pore which may be lateral or terminal. The sperm enters the egg through a small opening, or rupture, in the common wall of the egg and synergid.The sperm move passively in the cytoplasm of the egg and central cell. They do not show any amoeboid movement. It is only the nuclei of the male cells that fuse with their re...


In order to study the mechanism of seismic isolation、seismic absorption and the limiting strength of Dougong under the seismic vertical action in Chinese timber structure, by following the building regulation of Ying Zao Fa Shi published in Song Dynasty (960A.D. —1279 A.D.) in China history, the three Dougong models with the scale of 1/3.52 of the prototype structure are made, and on which the limiting strength experiments are carried out. The experimental phenomenon is observed, and the relevant P-△ curves are drawn simultaneously. The tested results show that :under the vertical load,(1) the mechanical behaviors of Dougong can be regarded as linear-elastic mechanic model with varied modulus of elasticity, and expressed with SDOF system; (2) the first cause of the destruction of Dougong is the break of the midmost of Huagong;(3) Dougong plays a very important role in reducing obviously seismic responses of the Chinese timber structure due to the sdismic vertical transmissibility is approximate to 0.019;and ⑷ under the normal condition, the material strain and stress of Dougong are very small, and no more than 1/7 of the limiting, so the abundance of the material strength is quite large. This ensures that many Chinese ancient wooden structures have survived many violent earthquakes and stood over one thousand years.


This case study investigates what role the government decisions and policies have for deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. The decisions and policies are part of the immediate causes of deforestation, which exists in a theoretical framework that I have developed. This theoretical framework constitutes of three levels: underlying causes, immediate causes and sources, which lead to deforestation. And through discussing the different causes there are, I have been able to analyze the role that policies and decisions have for deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. My results show that the government´s decisions and policies have had an important role for deforestation during the time period 1990-2005, and impact through underlying causes, mainly economic development projects, supporting the timber market and population pressure; immediate causes such as insecure property rights, policies for increased share of timber market, and weak institutions; sources, such as agricultural expansion, road building, and infrastructure extension. This analysis has shown that the government´s decisions are essential causes for forest clearing, however they have influenced in connection with other causes. That the deforestation has been on high levels through out this time period, has therefore been the consequence of multiple factors contributing.


We introduce a non-exponential radiative framework that takes into account the local spatial correlation of scattering particles in a medium. Most previous works in graphics have ignored this, assuming uncorrelated media with a uniform, random local distribution of particles. However, positive and negative correlation lead to slower- and faster-than-exponential attenuation respectively, which cannot be predicted by the Beer-Lambert law. As our results show, this has a major effect on extinction, and thus appearance. From recent advances in neutron transport, we first introduce our Extended Generalized Boltzmann Equation, and develop a general framework for light transport in correlated media. We lift the limitations of the original formulation, including an analysis of the boundary conditions, and present a model suitable for computer graphics, based on optical properties of the media and statistical distributions of scatterers. In addition, we present an analytic expression for transmittance in the case of positive correlation, and show how to incorporate it efficiently into a Monte Carlo renderer. We show results with a wide range of both positive and negative correlation, and demonstrate the differences compared to classic light transport.


Understanding the nature of science (NOS) is a critical and necessary dimension of the scientific literacy. However, studies have consistently shown that students and teachers have insufficient conceptions of NOS. In this qualitative case study, the effects of an argumentation-focused chemistry teaching course on pre-service chemistry teachers' conceptions of NOS was examined. Participants were 23 pre-service teachers. Throughout the course, historical science vignettes and role-playing activities were used to emphasise the role of argumentation in science and NOS.


Three graduate studio projectsfinished by the author in the U.S. are introducedto analyze the concepts and tendencies in thecurrent architectural design in the U.S. contextand detail are essential in design and the maintendencies in practice include the increasingsmall projects, revival of dying downtown andthe public participation and the calculation insustainable design.


Cirrhosis significantly changes all hemostasis steps. Recent studies suggest that cirrhosis is associated with a coagulopathy leading to a hypercoagulable state. The underlying mechanisms are not fully understood, but protein C deficiency is probably a major determinant of this phenotype. The aim of this study was to compare the results of thrombin generation assays performed with addition of thrombomodulin or activated protein C to assess the effect of by‐passing the protein C activation step in cirrhotic patients and healthy controls.


[reaction: see text] In contrast to the [3+2] or [4+3] cycloaddition of N-metalated azomethine ylides and various alkenes, N-benzylidene glycine ethyl ester reacts with fulvenes to give the hetero [6+3] cycloaddition adducts with high stereoselectivity, constituting an efficient and novel route to [2]pyrindines.


Fingerprinting-based algorithms are popular in indoor location systems based on mobile devices. Comparing the RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) from different radio wave transmitters, such as Wi-Fi access points, with prerecorded fingerprints from located points (using different artificial intelligence algorithms), fingerprinting-based systems can locate unknown points with a few meters resolution. However, training the system with already located fingerprints tends to be an expensive task both in time and in resources, especially if large areas are to be considered. Moreover, the decision algorithms tend to be of high memory and CPU consuming in such cases and so does the required time for obtaining the estimated location for a new fingerprint. In this paper, we study, propose, and validate a way to select the locations for the training fingerprints which reduces the amount of required points while improving the accuracy of the algorithms when locating points at room level resolution. We present a comparison of different artificial intelligence decision algorithms and select those with better results. We do a comparison with other systems in the literature and draw conclusions about the improvements obtained in our proposal. Moreover, some techniques such as filtering nonstable access points for improving accuracy are introduced, studied, and validated.


Th1 and Th2 polarization is determined by the coordination of numerous factors including the affinity and strength of the antigen‐receptor interaction, predominant cytokine environment, and costimulatory molecules present. Here, we show that Schnurri (SHN) proteins have distinct roles in Th1 and Th2 polarization. SHN2 was previously found to block the induction of GATA3 and Th2 differentiation. We found that, in contrast to SHN2, SHN3 is critical for IL‐4 production and Th2 polarization. Strength of stimulation controls SHN2 and SHN3 expression patterns, where higher doses of antigen receptor stimulation promoted SHN3 expression and IL‐4 production, along with repression of SHN2 expression. SHN3‐deficient T cells showed a substantial defect in IL‐4 production and expression of AP‐1 components, particularly c‐Jun and Jun B. This loss of early IL‐4 production led to reduced GATA3 expression and impaired Th2 differentiation. Together, these findings uncover SHN3 as a novel, critical regulator of Th2 development.


Traditional target tracking is carried out based on the point measurements extracted from the radar resolution cells. This is not suitable for situations of low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). In this paper, we aim to investigate the problem of the joint detection and tracking (JDT) of a target by directly using the received signals of passive multi-static radar without feeding the signals to matched filters. To this end, a novel likelihood function is proposed exploiting the statistical properties of coherent processing between the reference and surveillance signals. With such a likelihood function, the particle Bernoulli filter is employed to perform direct JDT (DJDT) of the target. A remarkable feature of the proposed method is that it is able to achieve satisfactory performance when the SNR of received signals is low. Furthermore, the proposed method cannot only achieve the existence and kinematic state of the target, but also the time-varying SNR of each receiver, which serves as an important input for sensor adjustment. The performance of the proposed method is verified via simulations.


China harbors 56 ethnic groups, including Korean, with a population size of approximately 1.92 million at the 2010 census. Most of the Koreans live in Northeastern parts of China, including Jilin (59.64%), Heilongjiang (20.21%), and Liaoning (12.55%) provinces, and the rest are spread to other parts of China. Koreans across China share a common culture, which is similar to Korea.


"Despite the negative opinions portrayed in the media, however, the consensus view was that the shadow banking market is actually satisfying a capital market function, albeit in an opaque manner."


The basic well-being of residents should be fully considered when making residential energy-saving policies. In this study, decent living standards for China were proposed. The provincial energy saving potential of Chinese residents were estimated from a lifetime perspective using environmental extended input–output analysis. The results show that, in 2017, the energy saving potential of Chinese residents constituted 32.74% of total energy consumption. The consumption categories of transportation, housing and cooking had the greatest energy saving potential of 1668.40, 3540.83 and 3229.75 trillion kJ, respectively, in which direct energy consumption accounted for 85% of total energy consumption. For food, clothing, water, health care and education, there was only energy saving potential from indirect consumption, of which food has the largest indirect energy consumption of 3159.25 trillion kJ. Moreover, the energy saving potential varied at the provincial level, coming from different consumption categories. Special attentions should be paid to the transportation in Beijing, housing in Liaoning, and cooking in Gansu, which have relatively greater energy saving potential with per capita energy saving potential of 207.38, 1002.16, and 4256.6 thousand kJ, respectively. The results verify the importance of differentiated and targeted energy policies for residential consumption in different provinces.


This paper analyses influence of asymmetric behaviour of collateral constraint through the lens of the DSGE model with occasionally binding constraint on housing wealth. The Czech economy data show positive but asymmetric behaviour between housing prices and consumption. It can be explained by following mechanism. When the prices of houses fall, the housing wealth decreases, which decreases consumption substantially as constraint on borrowing is binding. On the other hand, rise in house prices increases housing wealth, the constraint becomes slack and consumption increases only slightly. Such mechanism is incorporated into DSGE model that is estimated on data of the Czech economy using Bayesian techniques. The results from model simulation show that the occasionally binding constraint is able to replicate asymmetric behaviour of house prices and consumption found in the data.


In a parenthetical statement designed to provide an interpretive context for a 68% calving rate in a district of India, Bennett (CA 8:25 1) has asserted that "under the worst conditions on the North American range of the 1880's, the rate was about 75%." This period included some of the most damaging droughts and severe winters in historic times in the American West. The assertion is in error for the 1880's, as well as for much less unusual weather years, in northeastern Nevada. There in the north central Great Basin, as on the Northern Plains and in portions of the Northwest, a great many cattlemen practiced open-range breeding and calving. Bulls were turned out with the cows on unfenced range, and calves were later dropped in the open without human assistance. Ranchers had no systematic knowledge of which cows had been served, how many were pregnant, or the number of surviving calves until roundup and branding. Thus under this type of management the calculable calving rate is the ratio of calves branded to breeding cows on the range the previous year. The winter of 1889-90 was extremely harsh in northeastern Nevada. According to the 11th U.S. Census, over 40% of the adult cattle died. Many cattlemen claimed 80-90% loss. One rancher who branded 2,700 calves in 1889 had but 25 in 1890. Another branded about 2,700 calves in 1889 and just 225 in 1890. These calving rates had to be considerably below 10%, while that for the entire region (which cannot be calculated because population data lump cows and steers) was certainly well under 75%. Assuming that cows, steers, and calves died in proportional numbers, the rate could not have been over 60% and was probably far less because a higher proportion of calves can be expected to have perished. Since skepticism may be entertained regarding the validity of these figures, it is instructive to examine open-range calving rates for 1937 and 1963 obtained through field studies. An investigation of numerous Elko County ranches in regard to 1937 yielded a mean calving rate of 65% (Carpenter, Clawson, and Fleming 1941:9, 16-17, 26). In 1963 a sample of ranches in northern and northeastern Nevada had a mean calving rate of 76%. Those ranches which calved most of their cows on the open range averaged 69% (Rogers and Helming 1967:18). Both years had nonsevere weather for the region, except for April 1963, which was cold and wet. Clearly, Bennett should have proven the opposite of the point he sought to establish by reference to North America: a 68% calving rate appears to have been normal under open-range conditions.


This study aimed to evaluate the surface area and velocity of center of pressure (COP) during one leg standing by stimulating the sensory system in normal adults. Thirty subjects were enrolled in this study. Subjects were asked to stand on one leg during testing conditions. Testing conditions included 6 different sensory stimulations as follows: eyes opened, eyes closed, eyes opened with vibrator, eyes opened with head-mounted display (HMD), eyes opened with vibrator and HMD, and eyes closed with vibrator. During each testing condition, the surface area and velocity of center of pressure were measured. There were significant differences in the mean surface area and the mean velocity of COP between the "eyes opened" condition and the other five testing conditions (p<.05). However, in the comparison between the "eyes closed" and "eyes opened with HMD" conditions, there were no significant differences in the tested parameters. This study shows that closing eyes or keeping eyes opened while using HMD to experience virtual reality has the same effect on one leg standing balance. This finding should be considered in the evaluation or intervention of balance, especially one leg standing balance and balance while standing with a small base of support.


This article discusses the notion of naming as a practice which saves as an archive of culture and history. Naming is a common phenomenon across cultures in the world. This informative onomastic practice plays a crucial role in society because we get to know better what is around us through it. The interesting feature of naming is that it is not usually done from a layman's point of view but it is endowed with wisdom which is associated with people's culture, thereby documenting peoples' history, which is a major aspect of culture. People do not normally name for the sake of naming but they artfully analyse the world around them and therefore intelligently deduce the name which will embrace their circumstances. Therefore, this paper focuses on the intelligence associated with names given to children during and after the liberation war struggle in Zimbabwe and the occurrence of natural hazards as well as post independence experiences. Names in general, are reflective in nature, they picture the reality of a certain incident, portraying how people reacted and perceived it from various angles. One is able to trace back a peoples' history, their way of living and the challenges they encounter in their lives by just analysing peoples' names as reflective of their existential and circumstantial realities of that particular area. The paper concludes by indicating that the art of naming plays a key role in society because through naming we get the "uncensored" voice of people, that is, their history by themselves.


Abstract The paper deals with the numerical computation of a crack problem posed on microstructural heterogeneous materials containing multiple phases in the microstructure. The failure of such materials is a natural multi-scale effect since cracks typically nucleate in regions of defects on the microscopic scale. The modeling strategy for solving the crack problem concerns simultaneously the macroscopic and microscopic models. Our approach is based on an efficient combination of the homogenization technique and the mesh superposition method (s-version of the finite element method). The homogenized model relies on a double-scale asymptotic expansion of the displacement field. The mesh superposition method uses two independent (global and local) finite element meshes and the concept of superposing the local mesh arbitrarily on the global continuous mesh. The crack is treated by the local mesh and the homogenized material model is considered on the global mesh. Numerical experiments for problems on biomorphic microcellular ceramic templates with porous microstructures of different materials constituents are presented.


A multi-purpose electrician pliers tool having an elongate body with a forward end and a rearward end and constructed of a first member and a second member pivotally secured together by a pivot pin. The first and second members include forwardly extending and overlapping jaw portions on a forward side of the pivot pin and define therebetween a plurality of opposing and pivotally interengaging locations corresponding to a plurality of different wire fabricating features located on both forward and rearward sides of the pivot pin. The features of the tool include first and second planar splicing faces located at a forward end, first and second wire cutter portions established at a succeeding location on the forward side of the pivot pin, first and second crimping portions established at a further succeeding location on the rearward side of the pivot pin, first and second pluralities of wire stripper portions located at a yet further succeeding location on the rearward side and, finally, a first fish tape engaging portion and a second corresponding fish tape receiving portion established at a still further location on the rearward side of the pivot pin and capable of being actuated so as to sandwich therebetween a length of a fish tape reel. The plurality of different wire fabricating features provides a greater range of applications to the multi-purpose electrician's tool. The tool further includes the feature of a pair of wire curl holes located at an outwardly spaced position on each of the first and second members and so as to facilitate the bending of wire ends into curl shapes for securing to electrical leads. The first and second members terminate in arcuate shaped handle portions which extend in opposing fashion relative to each other.


In recent years global finance has seen the emergence of Islamic finance as an alternative to the western secular system. While the two systems posses largely similar concepts of social equity and well-being the major divide between them rests in the distinction between divine and natural law as a source of protection for the downtrodden. As communication barriers between the Arabic and Anglo-European accounting systems start to blur, the question posed for the practitioners as to what constitutes a source of equity becomes more and more relevant. Considering the case of Islamic countries, besides internally-generated and acquired goodwill Islamic sources of social equity such as zakat also provide a source of social equity. For the purpose of this paper, two models pertaining to value relevance are tested for a sample of 56 companies in 6 accounting jurisdictions with the purpose of identifying the underlying sources of social equity revealing that zakat disclosures marginally improve the accuracy of the model.


It is only reasonable to become a zero waste society and for producers to immediately start redesigning products, and for us to make the transition in our mentality to stop buying products that we do not really need or products that we could, in fact, borrow. In the interim (transitional period), until all our products are sustainable ones, waste incinerators (thermal treatment that utilises energy recovery) will still be unavoidable. However, this does not mean that new ones will need to be built, instead, the existing infrastructure can be utilised. Thermal treatment should only be allowed to be used for waste that cannot be utilised or returned into the material flow in any way. In my master's thesis I have presented an overview of municipal waste management: the history and current situation in both Slovenia and Europe. I carried out a study on Zero Waste and the standard of municipal waste services. I have presented the techniques of treating mixed municipal waste, a circular economy, material flows of certain types of waste, the 5 or 6 steps of waste management, as well as the Zero Waste movement and how to join this movement. The 'Loci.me' ('separate me') application was developed to promote the correct sorting of waste and encourage people to separate their waste. On the basis of the facts examined, I put forward some proposals on how to harmonise the operations of municipal companies, critically determine the current roles and perspectives of modern methods of waste thermal treatment and an initiative to adopt a circular economy as a systemic solution for the formation of a zero waste society.


The shoe is a kind of body. It has an anatomy. Throat, tongue. Vamp, a feather line, shank, heel, welt. The welt has a flesh side into which the sewing goes. A last is the model made for every shoe, every size, like a wooden foot. A puppet foot. At night, I'd run beside the city of shoes, the city where I was born. I wore my first pair of running shoes, bought by my grandmother. Before that I had shin splints, a burning that lifted only when I ran again, in my tennis shoes, so thin I could feel the sidewalk on my soles, tiny pebbles. At school I limped from class to class. But in my running shoes, in my first year of college, I ran until I ran out of breath. Years before, Rocky had run a few miles away, in 1950s Brockton, in black boots. Black leather training shoes made on a Muson Military Last. They look like war boots. Size 10.5. Heavy, double leather soles. He ran 750 miles in those shoes. Eight inch blucher pattern with a straight tip: a high shoe with laces over the tongue, modeled after a half boot. To the shins. Open throat. The Rock from Brockton. I'd leave at midnight to run, a girl in my dorm warning me once against it, saying, "Someone has to be a mother." I wanted quiet, darkness. I'd run past a factory and look up at the dark windows, feel the charge of someone looking out or bent over a table at a task, someone gone. The dust of their being there. Like when they dig up the ground and find city after city, one layer on top of another. Time right in front of me, inside the brick and the air, the soul of the world. The day my son was born was the same day that Rocky began his professional career as a boxer. Thirty-four years later. I'm not


Studies on new sources for resistance against rice Brown plant hopper (BPH) were undertaken under glass house conditions. Among the 191 National Screening Nursery (NSN) entries evaluated,Swarnadhan was found to be highly resistant, CN 1870 was resistant and HKR 05–22, JGL-16267, UPR 2973-18-2-1, CR 2499-68-10, WGL-309, CR 3080-3-2-5-2, NDR-359 and IR-64 were moderately resistant against Brown plant hopper.


Requarth, M. (2008). After a Parent's Suicide: Helping Children Heal Sebastopol, CA, US: Healing Hearts Press. Résumé: [This book] focuses on how to help children and teens in the aftermath of a parent's suicide. The book provides an overview of current thinking/research on suicide and explores the increased risk of mental health issues for child survivors. In addition to information about how children grieve at different developmental levels, it also offers comfort to the bereaved, specific coping strategies for families facing this trauma, and insight into what promotes resiliency.


The embodiment of the invention provides a payment method, which comprises the following steps of receiving a payment request containing user ID information and payment information by a payment gateway; decrypting the payment request and extracting the user ID information and the payment information; finding a payment channel corresponding to the user ID formation in the payment channel according to the user ID information; sending the payment request to a payment client end for identification through the payment channel; receiving the identified payment request sent by the payment client end, and forwarding the identified payment request to a payment server; and obtaining a payment result and sending the payment result back to the payment request starter. The embodiment of the invention also provides a payment gateway and a payment client end. By using the embodiment of the invention, versatility of secure payment can be improved, and risks of cutting off, eavesdropping and tampering the payment information can be avoided.


Gamma irradiation-inactivated cultural preparations (-IP) of African swine fever (ASF) non-haemadsorbing strains acquire a potential for haemadsorption induction in porcine bone marrow culture (PBMC). We have obtained some experimental data indicating that a modification of haemadsorption inhibition assay (HIA) which is an assay aimed at removal of γ -IP-induced haemadsorption may be used in research works to determine serospecificity rates of ASF virus non-haemadsorbing isolates


By default, may be used in the DC magnetron sputtering apparatus, the transparent and also provides a high-resistance transparent conductive film and the high resistance of the transparent conductive film The sputtering target manufacturing method capable of high-resistance film is formed. Resistivity is Magnetron sputtering, the conductive film, the target, the resistivity, indium oxide, tin oxide, a liquid crystal display device, FPD, oxide.


An enigmatic and important feature of life origin on Earth is embodied with a number of different hypotheses and knowledge based on experimental data and biomedical principles. These hypotheses and understanding generally contain some small-scale experimental simulation, chemical structure comparisons and a series of guesswork from existing biological knowledge and principles. So far, there is no widely agreement of single hypothesis without significant arguments and conflicts between researchers of different disciplines and individual biological characters. Thus, it needs more heated debates, cooperation and circulation for life origin topics academically and in large media to all human population. These debates and publication may invite interests of non-academic careers and solve this enigma from widest human professions. Keywords :  Human evolution, life-origin, RNA-world, systems biology, genetic information system, environmental ecology.


The development of this research paper is focused on a comparison between the results obtained experimentally for the estimation of the rate of cooling water welded geometry T specimens made of structural steel ASTM HR A36 compared to analyzes using computational tools , particularly the software of the finite element modeling (FEM) ANSYS, the experimental test for type K thermocouples which capture the cooling temperature values obtained by the data acquisition cards are used, the analysis model required MEF the development of a more than 850,000 mesh nodes, the results of the comparative product analysis of the cooling rate, showing a difference between methods below 3%, which allows the computer to estimate as a reliable alternative when setting this type of analysis additionally the costs associated with the development of experimental tests vs MEF implementing models for the costs associated with this stage of experimentation are determined, it is established that the rate of recovery, just to test cooling is evaluated 15 months, but the versatility of this computational tool, allows you to explore other uses. Key Word — Technical and economic analysis, welding, cooling.


A number of retanning tests on wet-blue bovine hides using vegetable tannins have been carried out. On the so produced leathers the more common physical tests for the final destination were carried out and the results compared to the values provided by the updated standards in Italy and in Europe for those destinations. The results obtained show that retanning by vegetable tannin, also chemically modified, allows to produce leathers with physical performances clearly higher than the values reported in the official standards and with acceptable light fastness as well.


Context Prioritising connectivity conservation areas has become a main concern in landscape ecology and related ecological sciences. Prioritising is likely to differ depending on the species considered for connectivity assessments, leading to a lack of consensual decisions for territorial planning. This is the case for the establishment of a conservation network when connectivity needs cannot explicitly account for every species. Objectives The objective was to assess the relevance of designing priority areas for connectivity for groups of species based on common dispersal abilities. We aimed to assess the impact of target groups choices on predicted priority areas. Henceforth, comparing results on existing protected area networks, land use types and decisions on territorial planning. Methods The study was located at the Thau Lagoon territory (Occitanie Region, France) as a demonstrator for the methodological approach. Ecological niche modelling (ENM) was used to quantify species resistance and to identify suitable habitat patches. We coupled least-cost path with circuit theory to assess species connectivity. We classified connectivity by level and averaged the results by dispersal groups. Results We found important differences in identified priority areas between groups having dissimilar dispersal abilities, with low overlap between highly connected areas. We identified a gap in between the level of protection of low dispersal species and highly connected areas. We found mismatches between existing corridors and connectivity for low dispersal species and higher impact of expected urban sprawl projects on highly connected areas for high dispersal species. Conclusion We show that diversity in dispersal capacity must be accounted for the identification of ecological corridors in programmes aiming to restore habitat connectivity. Our findings are oriented to support decisions towards planning initiatives, from local to regional management schemes.


Pipes are everywhere, which should be inspected and maintained to ensure their safety and integrity. Although the in-pipe mobile robot is attractive for such application, the adhesion mechanism may be an obstacle. Thus, this paper presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of an in-pipe robot, which is capable of the controlled magnetic forces between the wheel and interior surfaces of ferromagnetic pipes at will. The first requirement is that the robot must fit into the ferromagnetic pipe with a diameter of 105 mm. The overall size of the robot is determined, based on the worst case with a 90° bend pipe. Then, the detailed design procedure is described including motor selection and related gear train design. The robot is designed into two symmetric bodies, fabricated, and assembled with sensors. A separate controller is designed and used for the tests. The second requirement is that the robot must run at a velocity of 1 cm/s with the capability of controlled magnetic force at will. The fabricated robot is subjected to test the requirements. The designed robot has the final dimensions with a length of 110 mm, and with a width of 100 mm. It satisfies the first requirement. The measured velocity of the robot is estimated as 1.2 cm/s with the capability of controlled magnetic force according to the slope of the pipe. It satisfies the second requirement.


The title compound (C30H32ClNO2, Mr = 470.02) has been synthesized by the reaction of 2-chloro- benzaldehyde, 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione and p-toluidine in ethyleneglycol under microwave irradi- ation, and its structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystal belongs to triclinic, space group P21/c with a = 12.048(3), b = 11.044(2), c = 19.989(3) ? b = 107.78(2), Z = 4, V = 2607(1) ?, Dc = 1.208 g/cm3, m(MoKa) = 0.173 mm-1, F(000) = 1008, R = 0.0450 and wR = 0.0869. X-ray analysis reveals that the C(8), C(13), C(14), C(15), C(20) and N atoms form a six-membered ring which adopts boat conformation. The six-membered rings of C(8)~C(13) and C(15)~C(20)) are of half-chair conformation.


Abstract : The optical properties of two examples of nonlinear periodic structures experimentally studied: colloidal crystals used as nonlinear distributed feedback structures and nonlinear volume holographic elements. The transmission of the colloidal crystals was found to be dramatically modified by an incident field whose frequency was tuned within or near the stop gap of the crystal. Optical limiting was observed when the frequency of the incident field was tuned to the high frequency edge of the stop gap. Optical switching and bistability were observed when the frequency was tuned to within the stop gap. The switching intensity was seen to decrease as the frequency of the incident light was tuned further into the stop gap. This result can not be explained by the simple model of a nonlinear distributed feedback structure. The transmission was also found to exhibit temporal fluctuations at high intensities. The nonlinear volume holographic structures consisted of a porous photopolymer in which a permanent grating was recorded and then was imbibed with a nematic liquid crystal. The diffraction efficiency of the grating was switched from high to low using a control beam power of 8.4 mW. The response time of the switching was limited by the response time of the thermal nonlinearity of the liquid crystal and was measured to be approximately 1 ms. (MM)


G-protein-mediated inhibition of presynaptic voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels is comprised of voltage-dependent and -resistant components. The former is caused by a direct interaction of Ca2+channel α1 subunits with Gβγ, whereas the latter has not been characterized well. Here, we show that the N terminus of Gαo is critical for the interaction with the C terminus of the α1A channel subunit, and that the binding induces the voltage-resistant inhibition. An α1A C-terminal peptide, an antiserum raised against Gαo N terminus, and a Gαo N-terminal peptide all attenuated the voltage-resistant inhibition of α1A currents. Furthermore, the N terminus of Gαo bound to the C terminus of α1A in vitro, which was prevented either by the α1A channel C-terminal or GαoN-terminal peptide. Although the C-terminal domain of the α1B channel showed similar ability in the binding with Gαo N terminus, the above mentioned treatments were ineffective in the α1B channel current. These findings demonstrate that the voltage-resistant inhibition of the P/Q-type, α1A channel is caused by the interaction between the C-terminal domain of Ca2+ channel α1A subunit and the N-terminal region of Gαo.


The new organic π-donor, 2-(thiopyran-4-ylidene)-1,3-dithiole (3), iso-π-electronic to both tetrathiafulvalene (1) and Δ4,4′-bithiopyran (2) and obtained by a three-step synthesis in 15% overall yield, reacts with 7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) to give two semiconducting salts.


Provided are a plastic fat or oil composition, which has excellent shape retention properties, is almost free from fat or oil bleeding and has high meltability in mouth, and a food.
In the plastic fat or oil composition: the ratio by mass of SUS type triglycerides to SSU type triglycerides is 0.1 or higher and lower than 2.5; the sum of the content of disaturated-monounsaturated triglycerides and the content of trisaturated triglycerides is 30-65 mass% relative to the total mass of the fat or oil; and the content of monoglycerol monofatty acid esters having melting point of 60 o C or lower is 0.01-1.0 mass% relative to the total mass of the composition. It is preferred that the content of trans acids in the fatty acids constituting the fat or oil is lower than 3.0 mass% relative to the total mass of the fatty acids constituting the fat or oil. It is also preferred that the content of lauric acid in the fatty acids constituting the fat or oil is 0.9 mass% or higher relative to the total mass of the fatty acids constituting the fat or oil.


Public arts Sculpture is regarded as a result of art activities, reflecting the purpose of cultural enjoyment and local environment. On the other hand, as sculpture located in outdoor environment damaged by various caused, an appropriate methods are needed. The aim of research is to consider the damage condition and conservation method of public arts sculpture in masan sculpture park. As a result of damage assessment, biological damage indicated 144%, chemical damage 736% and physical damage 96% because of complex pattern of damage condition such as biological form, vandalism, discoloration and metal corrosion. This damage presents the possibility of direct or indirect influences including change in the original form of a work and deterioration of aesthetic value and material durability. By doing this, organisms, metal corrosion, discoloration and physical damage could be minimized by cleaning and bonding in the process of conservation treatment. However, as the sculpture situated in the outdoor environment, not only a change in perception of conservation by citizen and manager, but also continuous monitoring and systematic management are required.


This paper presents a model that uses only pH, alkalinity, and temperature to estimate the concentrations of major ions in rivers (Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, HCO3−, SO42−, Cl−, and NO3−) together with the equilibrium concentrations of minor ions and heavy metals (Fe3+, Mn2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, Al3+, Pb2+, and Zn2+). Mining operations have been increasing, which has led to changes in the pollution loads to receiving water systems, meanwhile most developing countries cannot afford water quality monitoring. A possible solution is to implement less resource-demanding monitoring programs, supported by mathematical models that minimize the required sampling and analysis, while still being able to detect water quality changes, thereby allowing implementation of measures to protect the water resources. The present model was developed using existing theories for: (i) carbonate equilibrium; (ii) total alkalinity; (iii) statistics of major ions; (iv) solubility of minerals; and (v) conductivity of salts in water. The model includes two options to estimate the concentrations of major ions: (1) a generalized method, which employs standard values from a world-wide data base; and (2) a customized method, which requires specific baseline data for the river of interest. The model was tested using data from four monitoring stations in Swedish rivers with satisfactory results.


Integrin engagement within the immune synapse enhances T cell activation, but our understanding of this process is incomplete. In response to T cell receptor (TCR) ligation, SLP-76 (LCP2), ADAP (FYB), and SKAP-55 (SKAP1) are recruited into microclusters and activate integrins via the effectors Talin-1 and Kindlin-3. We postulated that integrins influence the centripetal transport and signaling of SLP-76 microclusters via these linkages. We show that contractile myosin filaments surround and are co-transported with SLP-76 microclusters, and that TCR ligand density governs the centripetal movement of both structures. Centripetal transport requires formin activity, actomyosin contraction, microtubule integrity, and dynein motor function. Although immobilized VLA-4 (a4b1) and LFA-1 (aLb2) ligands arrest the centripetal movement of SLP-76 microclusters and myosin filaments, VLA-4 acts distally, while LFA-1 acts in the lamellum. Integrin b2, Kindlin-3, and Zyxin are required for complete centripetal transport, while integrin b1 and Talin-1 are not. CD69 upregulation is similarly dependent on integrin b2, Kindlin-3, and Zyxin, but not Talin-1. These findings highlight the integration of cytoskeletal systems within the immune synapse and reveal extracellular ligand-independent roles for LFA-1 and Kindlin-3.


This paper derives the consistency and asymptotic distribution of the bias corrected least squares estimators (LSEs) of the regression parameters in linear regression models when covariates have measurement error and errors and covariates form mutually independent long memory moving average processes. In the structural ME linear regression model, where the unobservable predicting variables are random, the nature of the asymptotic distribution of suitably standardized BC-LSEs depends on the values of $D_{max} = max {d_X + d_vep, d_X + d_u, d_u + d_vep, 2d_u }, $ where $d_X, d_u,$ and $ d_vep$ are the LM parameters of the covariate, ME and regression error processes, respectively. This limiting distribution is Gaussian when $D_{max} 1/2$. In the former case some consistent estimators of the asymptotic variances of these estimators and a log($n$)-consistent estimator of an underlying LM parameter are also provided. They are useful in the construction of the large sample confidence intervals for regression parameters. In the functional measurement error linear regression models, where the unobservable covariates are non-random, the limiting distribution of the BC-LSEs is always a Gaussian distribution, padetermined by the range of the values of $d_vep-d_u$.


In article formalization of mathematical model of optimization of calculation of a monetary cash for loading in self-service devices (cash dispenses, information-payment terminals) is considered. The given model allows to predict the expense of money resources in a cash dispense, on the basis of this forecast to define necessity for collection and to calculate optimum quantity of a monetary cash for loading. The basic idea of the given model consists in construction of the neural network allowing on the basis of historical data about an expenditure of money resources the concrete device of self-service, data about forthcoming payments, and also taking into account days of week, month and typical days on volume of a given out monetary cash, to predict its expense on the nearest M of days, and then to calculate optimum quantity of loaded money resources, taking into account minimization of idle actives of bank and decrease in expenses for collection


Selective arterial embolization of arteriovenous fistula has been used as an alternative approach co surgical repair. In one case that was twice surgically treated without success, cathecer embolization was performed with good result. Our case offers additional proof of the efficacy of this form of treatment.


The short-,medium- and long-term natural gas storage and peak-shaving schemes in Shenzhen City are analyzed.The optimization method of peak-shaving scheme is put forward.The frame-work for establishing a natural gas high pressure transmission and distribution system with multi-gas sources,unified network interconnecting and mutual emergency is discussed.


This Economic Letter reviews recent work that focuses on micro-level data to study the impact of the launch of the EMU on the currency denomination of international bonds.


Despite the rapid increase in reliance on bumble bees for food production and security, there are many critical knowledge gaps in our understanding of bumble bee biology that limit their colony production, commercial management, and pollination services. Our project focuses on the social, endocrine, and molecular processes regulating body size in the two bumble bee species most important to agriculture: Bombus terrestris in Israel, and B. impatiens in the USA. Variation in body size underline both caste (queen/worker) differentiation and division of labor among workers (foragers are typically larger than nest bees), two hallmarks of insect sociality which are also crucial for the commercial rearing and crop pollination services of bumble bees. Our project has generated several fundamental new insights into the biology of bumble bees, which can be integrated into science-based management strategies for commercial pollination. Using transcriptomic and behavioral approaches we show that in spite of high flexibility, task performance (brood care or foraging) in bumble bee colonies is associated with physiological variation and differential brain gene expression and RNA editing patterns. We further showed that interactions between the brood, the queen, and the workers determine the developmental program of the larva. We identified two important periods. The first is a critical period during the first few days after hatching. Larvae fed by queens during this period develop over less days, are not likely to develop into gynes, and commonly reach a smaller ultimate body size compared to workers reared mostly or solely by workers. The facial exocrine (mandibular and hypopharangeal) glands are involved in this queen effect on larva development. The second period is important for determining the ultimate body size which is positively regulated by the number of tending workers. The presence of the queen during this stage has little, if at all, influence. We further show that stressors such as agrochemicals that interfere with foraging or brood care specific processes can compromise bumble bee colony development and their pollination performance. We also developed new technology (an RFID system) for automated collection of foraging trip data, for future deployment in agroecosystems. In spite of many similarities, our findings suggest important differences between the Eurasian model species (B. terrestris) and the North American model species (B. impatiens) that impact how management strategies translate across the two species. For example, there is a similar influence of the queen on offspring body size in both species, but this effect does not appear to be mediated by development time in B. impatiens as it is in B. terrestris. Taken together, our collaboration highlights the power of comparative work, to show that considerable differences that exist between these two key pollinator species, and in the organization of young bumble bee nests (wherein queens provide the majority of care and then transition away from brood care) relative to later stages of nest development.


Abstract Aircraft flight control has a multivariable and non linear nature that makes it suitable for a verification of control capability of different designs. QFT techniques have been thoroughly used during the last years to provide robust control designs while using classic theory of control. The QFT method is applied to the design of an aircraft flight control and the results, evaluated by means of an automated software, can be compared to results obtained with different methodology approaches.


Treatment of unstable intertrochanteric fractures is often difficult.We report the effectiveness of the trochanter stabilizing plate (TSP) in addition to the dynamic hip screw (DHS) compared with CHS or CHS with brim supporter.There were no significant differences in operation time and blood loss across the three groups.In the Evans stage Type I Grade 3 unstable fracture,lag screw sliding was lower in the DHS-TSP group than the other two groups.TSP is effective for preventing excessive sliding in Grade 3 unstable fracture.Grade 4 unstable fracture is difficult to treat by using only TSP.There is a need to fix the medial fragment and fill with filling material.


In this paper, films of (PMMA-PC/Sb2O3-GO) quaternary nanostructures were prepared  by casting method with different concentrations of Sb2O3/GO NPs are (0, 1.4 %, 2.8 %, 4.2 %,and 5.6 %). The structural and dielectric characteristics of nanostructures system (PMMA-PC/Sb2O3-GO) have been explored to use in different solid state electronics nanodevices applications. The morphology of (PMMA-PC/Sb2O3-GO) nanostructures films was studied using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). SEM images indicate a large number of uniform and coherent aggregates or chunks. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR) analysis were studied to show the interactions between the Sb2O3/GO NPs and PMMA/PC blend. The dielectric properties of nanostructures films were investigated in the frequency range (100HZ-5MHZ). The dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and A.C electrical conductivity increase with the concentration of (Sb2O3-GO) NPs. The dielectric constant and dielectric loss were reduced, whereas electrical conductivity increased with frequency. Finally, results showed the PMMA-PC/Sb2O3-GO nanostructures may be considered as promising materials for solid state electronics nanodevices.


Developing advanced oxygen storage materials that deliver high thermal stability is crucial to meeting increasingly stringent environmental regulations for three-way catalysts (TWCs). The surfactant, trialkylamine (N235, N (CnH2n+1), n = 8–10), was used to prepare the zirconium (Zr)-based ceria–zirconia–neodymia composites with loose morphology for the first time, and the effect of N235 on the properties of the ceria–zirconia–neodymia solid solution composites was investigated systematically. After thermal treatment at 1000 °C for 5 h in air, the obtained material (CZ/N235-1000) presented a high surface area of 31 m2 g−1 and had superior redox properties. As a support material in rhodium (Rh)-only TWCs, the prepared Rh/CZ/N235-f and Rh/CZ/N235-a demonstrated excellent catalytic performances. Particularly, after aging at 1000 °C for 5 h in air, the light off temperature (T50%) of nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide for Rh/CZ/N235-a were 229 °C and 235 °C, respectively, and were much lower than those (278 °C and 280 °C) of Rh/CZ-a in which the support material was synthesized without N235. Therefore, this work provides a simple and scalable synthesis route for advanced oxygen storage materials.


The article analyses the problem of threats experienced on online social networks by girls attending a Child Day Care Centre. In order to reveal what actions carried out by girls on online social networks pose a threat to them, a qualitative study of 20 girls from four Lithuanian Child Day Care Centres was conducted using the focus group method. The results revealed that majority of the girls from the risk group face the following threats to their security: publicizing personal information and sharing it with strangers; communication with strangers online and meeting with them outside the Internet; negative actions of Internet users. The study found that the girls from the risk group fail to recognize the threats of online social networks and do not realize their consequences, and their need to protect themselves in cyberspace is quite weak.


The aim of this work was to clarify and extend the existing clinical guidelines on organ-sparing treatment of muscleinvasive bladder cancer. The standard protocol of radical conservative treatment for muscle-invasive bladder cancer includes transurethral resection of the bladder, external beam radiotherapy with simultaneous chemotherapy (radiosensitization), which is usually referred to as trimodal therapy. The implementation of trimodal therapy into routine practice in Russia is limited due to the lack of distinct criteria for each of the stages. The involvement of surgeons, radiation oncologists, and chemotherapists, on the one hand, provides the required multidisciplinary approach to cancer treatment; on the other hand, it might impede the entire algorithm. To address this problem, specialists from the Department of Radiology (project moderators), Department of Cancer Urology, and Department of Chemotherapy of N.N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology under the auspices of Saint Petersburg Oncological Research Society formed a group of experts, including radiation oncologists, urologists, and chemotherapists from federal and local cancer (educational) institutions of Saint Petersburg who had an experience of treating muscle-invasive bladder cancer. The guideline was developed with the consideration of available guidelines published by leading professional associations of radiotherapy and oncology (urological), research articles, and own experience.


The component measuring device (humor sampling implement of the present invention), is used by attaching the puncture needle, a device that blood sampling site (humor sampling site) punctured to thereby issue a blood (body fluid) by the puncture needle, puncture needle was accommodated, and a body puncture needle with a passable opening, is fixedly installed in the main body so as to surround the periphery of the opening, when performing puncturing the blood sampling site by puncture needle, the blood sampling site and a contact portion for pressing. Abutment, when pressed against the blood sampling site, and has a function of defining the shape of the vicinity of the blood collection site. Moreover, contact surface of the contact portion 3 (the inner surface) is toward the opening of the body, inclined as to approach the center axis of the opening forms a truncated cone side surface shape.


Carbon dioxide absorption in sodium hydroxide solution was studied in a metal mesh microstructured reactor. The reactor comprised of a microstructured metal mesh placed between two acrylic plates. Channels were machined in the plates with 0.85 mm and 0.2 mm depth forming the areas where gas and liquid flowed, respectively. The reactor was 192 mm × 97 mm (length × width). Experimental data were obtained for 2 M NaOH and 20 vol % CO2 inlet concentrations, for various liquid and gas flow rates, while keeping the molar flow rate ratio CO2/NaOH at 0.6. Results showed that in less than 1.2 s gas residence time approximately 30% of the carbon dioxide was removed. A two-dimensional model of the reactor where the solid area of the mesh was neglected and its percentage open area was used to modify the effective length of the reactor (segregated model) was formulated. This model's predictions gave better agreement with the experimental results compared to a pseudohomogeneous model where the diffusivities in the mesh...


The challenges of quality managemeit in personal quality consciousness,product design quality,control of the raw and semifinished materials and the components,personal operating quality and product verification are discussed,and the responsive solutions are provided.


This study examines whether firms' advantage from lower explicit taxes (tax management) is mitigated by lower pre-tax incomes (implicit taxes) and whether this advantage creates sustainable competitive advantage. We investigate a sample of firms with low explicit tax rates prior to the enactment of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (the Act) and a control sample of firms with higher explicit taxes, over a 14-year period bracketing the Act. In years prior to the Act, we find that lower explicit taxes were offset by correspondingly lower pre-tax incomes such that after-tax incomes were equal. Cumulative market returns from portfolio investments in each sample's equity securities were also equal suggesting that no competitive advantage existed during this period. In the years immediately after the Act, the differences in explicit taxes narrowed but differences in pre-tax incomes diminished less, such that after-tax incomes of the low tax rate firms suffered. Market returns were similarly lower. In the final years, the after-tax incomes and market returns returned to equality. These results suggest that aggressive tax management, like many other behaviors, tends not to yield a sustainable competitive advantage. Rather, frictions in "unwinding" implicit taxes seemingly result in a short-term competitive disadvantage following tax reform aimed at leveling the explicit tax playing field.


The invention discloses a radiator and an LED lamp with a fan. The LED lamp comprises an LED light source module (1), a radiator (2), a radiating fan (3), a driving circuit board module (4), an air inlet cover (6) and a power lead (8). The LED light source module (1) comprises an LED chip (11) and an LED radiating base board (12). The radiator (2) comprises a base board (21), the bottom of which is a plane. The base board (21) is provided with a radiating part. The upper center of the radiating part is provided with a space for containing a radiating fan. The LED radiating base board (12) is jointed with the bottom of the base board (21) for conducting and radiating. The lower part (3) of the air inlet cover (6) is fixedly connected to the radiator (2) and encircles the upward side of theradiating fan (3) and the radiator (2). A cavity is provided on the upper part of the air inlet cover (6). The driving circuit board module (4) is arranged in the cavity. The side wall of the cavity is provided with a plurality of air inlets (61). The invention is applied to the field of LED illumination.


There is a growing demand for context-aware applications that can dynamically adapt to their run-time environment. An application offers a collection of functionalities that can be realized through a composition of software components and/or services that are made available at runtime. With the availability of alternative variants of such components and/or services that provide the basic functionalities, while differ in extra- functional characteristics, characterized by quality of services (QoS), an unforeseen number of application variants can be created. The variant that best fits the current context is selected through adaptation reasoning, which can suffer from the processing capabilities of resource-scarce mobile devices, especially when a huge number of application variants needs to be reason about. In this paper, we present a reasoning approach, which provides a meaningful adaptation decision for adaptive applications having a large number of variants within a reasonable time frame. The approach is validated through two arbitrary applications with large number of variants.


Now that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives the presumption of innocence a constitutional status, some argue that the burden of proof associated with the presumption of sanity set out in section 16(4) of the Criminal Code should be revised In this article it is suggested that what is needed is not simply a discussion of the reversing of the burden of proof associated with a defence of insanity, but rather a more fundamental reconsideration of the true nature and future of this defence.
More particularly, it is contended that the basic conditions of the defence,
and especially the concept of insanity, should be revised so that they are in accord with the theory of mens rea and the principles of fundamental justice. Special verdicts and confinement orders can be justified only to protect society against individuals whose mental disorder results in violence which may be repeated In conclusion, the author states that the burden of proof of insanity by the civil standard of proof is justified by the special nature of the verdict and the deprivation of freedom which follows.


Abstract 2,4,5-Triaryl-1H-imidazole hybrids were synthesized from substituted benzil and indole-3-aldehyde which on subsequent treatment with aryl azides converted to 1,2,3-triazoles by employing click chemistry. All the synthesized hybrids were characterized by FTIR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR spectroscopy and HRMS. These scaffolds were tested in vitro for their antifungal evaluation against different candida species. Screening against the used fungal strains, the results outcome that imidazole-indole hybrids bearing antifungals more effectively reduced than imidazole-indole-1,2,3-triazole hybrids with their MIC80 values in the range of 2–128 µg/mL. Among all the synthesized hybrids, 2a and 2b were found to be the most potent against fungal strains as a result of different methods like, time kill assays, effect on fungal membrane and antibiofilm activity. The docking simulations of the most active hybrids, 2a, 2b and 2c were carried out in the active site of sterol 14-alpha demethylase enzyme of Candida albicans. Graphical Abstract


The school level's learning conditions in general and especially at SMP Negeri 1 Pammana are still coloured by the emphasis on the aspect of knowledge, and there is still little that refers to the involvement of students in the learning process itself. As a result, students get the learning result score is still below the average of 60.00. This research is a Classroom Action Research, which includes four stages of implementation, namely: planning, action/implementation, observation/evaluation, and reflection. This study consisted of two variables, namely: first, the free variable type card sort cooperative learning. Second, the dependent variable is the quality of knowledge of grade VIII students of SMP Negeri 1 Pammana. The results showed that the learning quality of Islamic religious education for VIII B grade students at SMP Negeri I Pammana in the 2007/2008 academic year had increased through the application of card sort type cooperative learning. Namely, the increase in student activity in the learning process, indicated by student learning outcomes with an average value of 60.70 in the first cycle, increased to 70.70 in the second cycle.


Abstract Two pollfen diagrams derived from organic sediments at the northern and southern ends of Greens Beach, north of Lake Ianthe, South Westland, New Zealand, are discussed. The sediments overlie till of the penultimate glaciation (Waimean Glacial) and at the southern site are buried beneath c. 12 m of fluvioglacial gravels of last glacial (Otiran Glacial) origin; at the northern site, the peats are overlain by silt, probably overbank deposits, and loess. The pollen diagrams reflect mostly events of the last interglacial (Kaihinu). Although both diagrams represent the same phase of the interglacial, similarities are not immediately apparent because of breaks in the pollen record from the northern (Opuku) site. Two radiocarbon dates, one from mid section (NZ4379A, 29 600 ± 850 14C yr BP) and one from nearer the base (NZ4378A, 38 000 + 4450 ‐2850 14C yr BP), provide a mid‐Otiran age for the site. Because the pollen diagrams reflect interglacial conditions, and because of the stratigraphic position of the organic sediments, the dates are rejected as being too young.


The development of procedures to isolate large numbers of purified human pancreatic islet cells has made it possible to initiate a new phase of clinical trials in pancreatic islet transplantation for treatment of type I diabetes.1–4 Although nonspecific immunosuppressive agents have been instrumental in controlling alloreactivity to transplanted islet cells, rejection still occurs and is a major limitation to islet transplantation.5,6 The induction of donor-specific transplantation across a species barrier, using bone marrow stem cells to produce chimerism and induce donor-specific transplantation tolerance, has been suggested as a potential approach to prevent rejection of transplanted cells.7–9 The purpose of this study was to determine whether long-term acceptance and function of xenogeneic pancreatic islet grafts could be achieved in fully xenogeneic chimeras.


When a streamer discharge occurs in water, several luminous plasma filaments will be created in the water during the discharge. After the discharge, these plasma filaments turn into neutral gas phase and remain in water. The gas filament remained in water is a good object for studying the basic processes involved in the streamer propagation. We investigated the evolution of the gas filaments remained in water after a streamer discharge at different experimental conditions. We recorded eight successive images during one discharge pulse. The density of gas in the gas filament and the radius of the gas filament were measured from the obtained images. We found that the radius of the gas filament and the density of gas in the gas filament are almost not influenced by the impulse voltage within the range studied. While the conductivity of water has strong effect on the radius of the gas filament and the density of gas in the gas filament. The radius of the gas filament becomes thicker and expands faster as the conductivity of water becomes larger. The density of gas in the gas filament remained in water oscillates between 400 to 800 kg/m3 with an duration of ~10 μs during the expansion period of 4–39 μs after the HV pulse starts. Both the impulse voltage and the conductivity of water do not affect the oscillation duration of the density of gas in the gas filament.


Review(s) of: A great New Zealand prime minister?: Reappraising William Ferguson Massey, by Editors: James Watson and Lachy Paterson, Published by: University of Otago Press, Dunedin, 2011, 172pp, $45; The forgotten general New Zealand's world war I commander major-general Sir Andrew Russell, by Jock Vennell, Published by: Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, 2011, 338pp, $39.99.


The LCAO version of the perimeter model with overlap through second order is used to obtain algebraic solutions for the singlet electronic states of the antiaromatic 4N-electron [n]annulenes of Dnh symmetry. The states of these biradicals are classified and their spectroscopic properties derived. General simple results are given for the signs and magnitudes of the A, B and C terms in magnetic circular dichroism. The effects of perturbations that preserve the antiaromatic biradical or biradicaloid character are considered. Other perturbations will be treated in Parts 2 and 3.


The technique of velocity map imaging [A. T. J. B. Eppink, and D. H. Parker, Rev. Sci. lnstrum. 68, (1997) 3477] has been applied to the reaction oen) + D2 --7 OD + D under single collision conditions in crossed molecular beams at a collision energy (Econ) of 2.4 kcaUmol. Images of the reactively scattered D atom product were recorded, yielding the full double c;lifferential cross sections (energy and angle) for the reaction. The translational energy and angular distributions are observed to be strongly coupled, with the forward scattered products showing the largest translational energy release, and the sideways scattered products the lowest translational energy release.


Background: Ascite is one of the most important symptoms of underlying diseases that a complete evaluation of it makes the suitable treatment possible. Because of neumerous procedures in diagnosis of ascitic fluid and inauthenticity of the information in this regard, this study was performed to evaluate the nature of ascitic fluid with two ascite-serum albumin gradient and transudate-exudate methods on hospitalized ascitic patients admitted to Shaheed Beheshti Hospital during the 1994-2003. Materials and Methods: Descriptive study with diagnostic value was performed on ascitic patients hospitalized in all age ranges. Firstly, all patients with absolute ascite, diagnosed through CT scan, sonography and parasynthesis were evaluated and then necessary demographic data and the ascitic causes i.e. cirrhosis, heart failure, nephrotic syndrome, multiple ascite with various reasons or pancreas diseases were recorded. After taking consent, Patients were parasynthesied. Ascite liquid (50-100CC) and arm citrated blood (5CC) were taken and sent to laboratory. Total protein of ascite fluid, serum and ascitic liquid albumin were determined cytologic study, staing and acid fast and culturing were also done. After taking answers, was each case with ascite liquid protein of ≥2.5 mg/dI and the ones with the protein of Results: 100 patients with ascitic were studied, 56 of whom were male with average age of (X ± SD) 55.2 ± 16.4 and the rest were female with average age of (X ± SD) 54.9 ± 15.4 61% of the patients were more than 60. The most common reason of ascite (65%) was cirrhosis. Heart failure (14%) and malignancies (11%) were classified in 2nd and 3rd ranks. The sensitivity of transude-exuda and gradient albumin 47% and 73% respectively and the characteristic of transude-exuda method to gradient albumin was 80.3%. Also agreement coeficiency was 44% (K=0.44). The highest rate of conformity and transude-exude and gradient albumin method in recognizing infectious peritonite and multiple ascite were variable reasons (100%) and hepatitic cirrhosis (89.2%). The least rate of agreement was conjestive heart failure (21.4%). Conclusion: The most common cause of ascite was hepatitic cirrhosis and the most agreement of two transudate-exudate and albumin gradient method, was infectious peritonitis and Mixed ascite, mean while, sensitivity and specifity of albumin gradient and specifity of transudate-exudate to albumin gradient had the highest agreement.


This Thesis investigation is about the development of a company called Yaretzy, the company will produce and comercialize soaps named "Yaretzy", prepared on base of saponina, same found in the seeds of quinoa, the content is high in protein, amino acids, rich in vitamins and minerals, for cleaning and natural moisture for the skin. Societies are realizing day after day how important of personal care, to keep good habits, taking into account that the soap is a staple product, which is found in all homes at Ecuador. It is expected to attract an audience of 25 years and older, worried about their personal care and physical appearance, willing to change the traditional artisan soap, which offers skin benefits. This research work provides added value to the artisanal sector and contributes to the development of the productive matrix, transforming this raw material (quinoa) to a finished product (handmade soap), part of the Campaign "First Ecuador". We will need an investment of $ 11,800, of which 50 percent will be equity and the remaining 50% will be financed by a loan from the National Finance Corporation. Based on the financial analysis, an IRR of 40.75% and a NPV of 11,667.44, calculated with a discount rate of 14.76% it was obtained. Projections made in the financial model of the project, allow to estimate positive values for the company, which shows that the business is viable.


This paper deals with the vibration and the stability of a cylindrical shell conveying a compressible fluid taking into account an effect of the boundary layer of the fluid. Mizoguchi's shell theory is used and the compressible fluid is treated as an ideal gas. The frequencies of shell vibrations are obtained for several flow speeds ranging from 10m/sec to Mach 3 under two kinds of the mean static pressures of the fluid. From the results with the infinitely long pipeline the cases of periodical support may be obtained by means of some simple drawings as in the first author's previous paper. The instability is discussed based on an energy consideration of the shell and fluid.


The paper presents a computer simulation for the evolution and interaction of shocks resulting from large interplanetary streams based on multispacecraft observations and an unsteady, one-dimensional, MHD model. We studied two events, each observed by two or more spacecraft separated by a distance of the order of 10 AU and consisting of a sequence of shocks in the outer heliosphere. The first simulation is based on the plasma and magnetic field observations made by radially aligned spacecraft: first by IMP 7 and 8 in November 1977 at 1 AU, and later by Pioneer 10 in January 1978 at 15 AU. The second simulation is based on an event observed first by Helios 1 in May 1980 near 0.6 AU and later by Voyager 1 in June 1980 at 8.1 AU. These simulations can explain a complex history for each sequence of the shocks observed in the outer heliosphere. They correctly identify the nature of the shock, facing forward or reverse. The calculated shock arrival time and the observed shock arrival time are within 10% accuracy of the total shock traveling time over a distance of the order of 10 AU. The examples show that the shock process, including the formation, collision and merging of shocks, dominates the dynamical evolution of large-scale solar wind structures. In the outer heliosphere, the large-scale solar wind and magnetic field evolve into a much simpler structure, and MHD shocks are present as a principal component of the solar wind. The simulation results shed new light on interpretation for the interaction and evolution of large interplanetary streams. Observations were made only along a few limited trajectories, but simulation results can supplement these by providing the detailed evolution process for large-scale solar wind structures in the vast region not directly observed. The use of a quantitative nonlinear simulation model including the shock merging process is crucial in the interpretation of data obtained in the outer heliosphere.


This paper presents basic research results for development of the integrated HVI Manager algorithm needed for intelligent cockpit module. With the development of the current sensor and vehicle technologies, we expect to reduce the rate of traffic accidents, however increased complexity of vehicles could easily become the contributing factor of traffic accidents. Driver monitoring systems, such as driver state, intention, tendency, can help to minimize the above problem. This paper presents literature survey results for HVI Manager framework.


Along with the spreading of the Corona Virus Disease 2019(COVID-19), most of people's normal life are disorganized, within which, college students' learning programs also demonstrate numerous changes. Home exercise has become a new exercise mode under regular epidemic prevention measures, and college students' sports show more distinct autonomy. This work is going to analyze the influences that the COVID-19 Pandemic Era has upon college students' physical conditions and their cognition on PE study, so as to not only find out a way to optimize students' cognition on PE study and help to strengthen their physical quality, but also provide a reference for the emphasis of physical education under the circumstance of regular epidemic prevention measures in the Post-COVID-19 Era. Through this research, we find out that the health awareness of college students during the Post-COVID-19 Era (from Apr. 2020—, when domestic pandemic was under control) has been improved significantly, but still, few of them take regular exercise, while their sports needs are diversified. It is also discovered that the physical quality of college students shows a downward trend, especially for men. Therefore, the following suggestions are made especially for college physical education in the Post-COVID-19 Era: firstly, lead college students to set up positive sports values; secondly, help them to lose weight and control BMI level reasonably; and then, in terms of physical fitness, we should enhance the training of men's strength and speed quality, as well as women's endurance quality, apart from that, improve college students' specific physical weakness in time, so as to achieve the goal of "educating students with all-around physical education".


This paper presents a new control strategy for an Optimal Uni ed Power Flow Controller (OUPFC) through a Lyapunov energy function in terms of local parameters to improve the transient stability of a power system. The OUPFC is a hybrid con guration of Flexible AC Transmission System (FACTS) devices, i.e. an arrangement of small-sized Uni ed Power Flow Controller (UPFC) and a full-scale Phase Shifting Transformer (PST).In this study, a new term of OUPFC's energy function and its injection model in a simpli ed structure preserving model is developed and implemented in a two-machine power system using MATLAB/Simpower. The ability of the OUPFC controller to enhance the transient stability is compared to that of UPFC. The results show that using the proposed control strategy for OUPFC leads to more abatement of the rst swing oscillations and enlargement of stability margin. It is concluded that compensation of UPFC's angle displacement maycome true using OUPFC with appropriate angles in proper locations. So, compared to UPFC, OUPFC enjoys another degree of freedom.


The utility model relates to the field of the environment monitoring alarm technology, more particularly to a wireless monitoring alarm system for an indoor environment. The wireless monitoring alarm system comprises a single chip microcomputer, a control terminal and a monitoring terminal. The control terminal includes a wireless transmission module, a data storage module, a clock module, a display module, a GSM module, a voice alarm module and a key module; the data storage module, the clock module, the display module, the GSM module, the voice alarm module and the key module are respectively connected with the single chip microcomputer; and the wireless transmission module is in both-way connection with the single chip microcomputer. The control terminal consists of a wireless transmission module, a gas concentration collection module, a humidity-temperature collection module, and an infrared sensing module; the gas concentration collection module, the humidity-temperature collection module, and the infrared sensing module are respectively connected with the single chip microcomputer; and the wireless transmission module is in both-way connection with the single chip microcomputer. Besides, the monitoring terminal and the control terminal are in wireless transmission connection.


Nowadays usability has become a fundamental element to guarantee the quality of software. One of the ways to evaluate usability is through the so-called user tests, which are developed in a usability laboratory. These tests aim to obtain indicators of the three main attributes of usability defined in ISO 9241-11: efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction. With regard to efficiency and effectiveness, metrics are defined to evaluate these attributes, however, in the case of the satisfaction attribute, the perception of the test coordinator with respect to the user's behavior (gestures, postures, facial expressions) is usually used. In this paper, it is proposed an automated tool for monitoring the user's emotional behavior during a usability test, considering the user's facial expression as a monitoring variable. The proposed tool was developed using the OpenCV library.


1. Electromechanical actuator comprising a frame mounted thereon a turning motor and gear reducer coaxial, having as inputs the engine output shaft and outputs as the first anti-lock system and a ring element coaxial with the engine output shaft and coupled to the lever for actuating element which is to be actuated, wherein the gear reducer is mounted on a frame rotatably about an axis of the engine output shaft, an anti-lock device is mounted on the car ace and includes a second member configured to move between a blocking position for blocking the first element in rotation relative to the frame and a disengaged position for disengaging the first element in rotation relative to the frame, the anti-lock device includes a retaining member for retaining the second member in a locking position and means for enabling said retaining member, wherein the second member is guided to the position of disengagement by the elastic lementa.2. Drive according to Claim. 1, wherein the toothed gear is a differential gear, and the first member has an annular portion with internal teeth to form a toothed stationary member mehanizma.3. Drive according to Claim. 1, wherein the second member is mounted slidably along the sliding direction, which coincides with the output valom.4. Drive according to claim. 3, wherein the second member is a plate having a friction surface which is pressed against the first member and the frame so as to define together with