Yoonju Cho, J. C. Craig, S. S. Hsiao, and S. J. Bensmaia Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana; and Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois


The western edge of the Sydney basin in Australia has been one of the major sources of fruit and vegetables for the Sydney markets. A rapid expansion of urban development in this region has caused a significant reduction in the number of small farms and market gardens. Urban and peri-urban agriculture in the region also provides an important buffer between urban development and the neighbouring Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. The decline in urban agriculture can be attributed to various causes including urban expansion and economies of scale. This paper presents an overview of a four-year project that explored options for supporting these vulnerable farming communities both in terms of the regulatory factors and economic and environmental sustainability. The role of agri-industries as landscape buffers to the neighbouring World Heritage Area was investigated in relation to resilience, communities of practice, and ecosystem services. The study developed tools, in conjunction with targeted representative landholders, that can assist in enhancing the economic and environmental resilience of these agri-industries. These tools included an integrated bio-system approach to waste using organic waste conversion, and the use of landscape function analysis to monitor across farms to help address erosion, loss of nutrients and inefficient water management.


Using methods for preapraisal of shell rut-resistance abroad,the paper analyses rut-resistance of asphalt pavement structure of asphalt-stabilized macadam base and makes the comparative analysis with asphalt pavement structure of semi-rigid base.Results indicate that the asphalt-stabilized macadam both and the semi-rigid base,their ruts mainly arise on surface layer and mid-surface year;by contrast to asphalt pavement of semi-rigid base,the rut depth which the asphalt pavement structure of asphalt-stabilized macadam base yields increases a little.Proceed from heightening the rut-resistance of asphalt pavement of asphalt-stabilized macadam base,the paper proposes emphatically to enhance rut-resistances of mid-surface and surface of asphalt,and the thickness of ATB-25 asphalt-stabilized macadam ought to be within 15 to 20 cm.


This paper presents an overview of the basic techniques employed to perform shape and topology structural optimization. Sizing optimization and material selection are also briefly commented. The prominent methods employed to generate optimal topological designs are homogenization, bubble insertion, nature analogy and ground structure. Similarly, the main algorithms used to perform shape optimization fall in one of the following categories: boundary variation, nature analogy and hybrid, such as, a machine learning system interfaced to the shape optimization environment. The practical use of such methods in the design of structures is discussed. Special consideration will be given to the nature analogy software algorithms SKO (soft kill option) and CAO (computer aided optimization) both developed at the Karlsruhe Nuclear Research Centre. These are an integral part of the software package employed at EMPA for topology and shape optimization, respectively. In addition, it is planned to fabricate and test the structural components optimized with SKO and CAO in order to validate the algorithms.


This study examines the effect of manufacturing capacity utilization on economic growth in Nigeria given the decadence that has been experienced in the manufacturing sector using annual data from 1980 to 2018 sourced from World Development Indicators (WDI) and Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin. The study employs Johansen and the Canonical cointegration technique and impulse response function in order to investigate the response of manufacturing capacity utilization to a shock in gross domestic product proxy for economic growth. The Johansen cointegration result reveals a long run relationship among the variables. The empirical result reveals that manufacturing capacity utilization insignificantly decreases gross domestic product in the first model while across the second and third model, manufacturing capacity utilization significantly increases gross domestic product in Nigeria in the long run. Therefore, the study concludes and recommends that government should set up institutional framework that will revamp the moribund manufacturing sector thereby harnessing its full potential in order to contribute to economic growth and development.


Thiopurines remain recommended as maintenance therapy in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Despite their widespread use, long‐term effectiveness data are sparse and safety is an increasingly debated topic which thwarts proper delineation in the current IBD treatment algorithm.


Pr2Ir2O7 is the metallic pyrochlore magnet which has been revealed to form a spin liquid phase by recent studies. Here we report results of structural, magnetic, and electrical transport properties of a newly synthesized polycrystalline sample of Pr2Ir2O7. Our powder x-ray diffraction indicates the sample to be a single pyrochlore phase with a "Pr-stuffing" into the Ir site. The resistivity measurement suggests a phase transition into some sort of ordered phase, in contrast to the previous report. We discuss the possible origin of the phase transition.


Applying technique of boracing beam and changing column,the old multiple brick concrete structure has been builded into partial framed structure in order to attain build funcion of larger space.It is rigorous quality control to every activities in construction process that can ensure the effect in anticipation.


Author(s): O'Leary, Maura Christine | Advisor(s): Sharvit, Yael | Abstract: This work seeks to add further depth to our knowledge of cleft constructions by examining the tense of the matrix copula. There are numerous accounts describing the semantics of clefts, but none of these have integrated the matrix tense, meaning that any current theory of cleft constructions would claim that 'It was John that died.' and 'It is John that died.' have the same formal meaning, despite the fact that there are situations in which one can be uttered but the other cannot.This work proposes that the matrix tense overtly marks the topic time of the utterance (see Klein 1994), and that the cleft clause (e.g. 'that died.') is interpreted relative to that time. For instance, a past matrix tense communicates that the topic time precedes the utterance time. The property specified in the cleft clause 'that died' is therefore true for all individuals who died at some t prior to the topic time, rather than prior to the utterance time. These truth conditions are added to the cleft operator proposed by B�ring a Križ (2013).


Four aspects on the present status and progress of quality assurance study on environmental sampling and analysis are discussed in this paper, namely, (1) the basis of quality assurance; (2) the theory research of quality assurance; (3) the method of quality control; (4) drawing out the standard of quality control. Drawing out the standard of quality control means to combine the sampling and analysis procedures together and draws out the justified limit of the allowed variance.


Abstract:  The River Environment Classification (REC) provides a GIS-based tool to differentiate between biophysical attributes of river systems. This study tests the effectiveness of the REC as a tool to differentiate physical habitat and macroinvertebrate assemblages between four classes of stream in the Auckland region. Results indicate significant within-class variability in physical habitat and macroinvertebrate assemblages, with considerable overlap among the four classes. Biophysically meaningful stream classes cannot be identified from GIS-derived data applied in this research. Field analyses of physical habitat (i.e. geomorphic river condition) are required as a supplementary tool to interpret ecological relationships for differing stream types.


Au–Cd1−xZnxS core–shell nanocrystals (NCs) with controllable shell compositions (from x = 0 to x = 0.37) were synthesized by using the hot-injection method. By increasing the mole fraction of ZnS in the Cd1−xZnxS shell, the conduction band of Cd1−xZnxS can be cathodically shifted to cause an increase of energy difference between the conduction band level of the Cd1−xZnxS shell and the Fermi level of the Au core, thereby enlarging the driving force of interfacial electron transfer to enhance the photoelectrochemical (PEC) efficiency. The interfacial charge dynamics of the samples were examined by time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectroscopy. The results showed that the interfacial electron transfer rate constant (ket) from the Cd1−xZnxS shell to the Au core was increased by 2 orders of magnitude, from 2.41 × 107 to 4.91 × 109 s−1 as the mole fraction of ZnS increased from 0 to 0.37. Furthermore, PEC characterization, including Mott–Schottky analysis and photovoltage decay measurements, illustrated that gradually introducing ZnS into the shell composition of Au–Cd1−xZnxS NCs can modify the band structure and enhance the effectiveness of interfacial ET for advancing the PEC properties. The practical use of Au–Cd1−xZnxS NCs in PEC methanol oxidation was also demonstrated, revealing their promising potential as viable photoelectrodes for various PEC applications. The present study delivers an alternative approach of modulating the interfacial ET dynamics of core–shell MSNs by means of shell composition adjustment. The illustrations provide an empirical guideline to the intelligent design of core–shell metal–semiconductor nanoheterostructures (MSNs) for the desired PEC applications.


In modern power industry, one of the important stages of development is the development and implementation of decentralized gas turbine power plants with electrical equipment based on electric machine-valve complexes. One of the enterprises engaged in this activity is JSC «GT Energo», where the link between the generator with 6000 rpm and the power system is a thyristor frequency converter. Improvement of pulse width modulation (PWM) methods for controlling power converters is one of the most important tasks for power electronics. The purpose of this article is to analyze the existing PWM methods and to choose the most effective one based on the analysis performed. There are many methods that differ in the implementation and resulting power quality. Sinusoidal PWM as well as the method of 3 harmonics addition PWM (THIPWM) are used in the article. However, the total harmonic distortion (THD) is high when using these methods. The most effective methods are space vector PWM (SVPWM) and optimal pulse width modulation (OPM). Compared with carrier-based methods, the control strategy for selective elimination and mitigation of harmonics (SHEPWM and SHMPWM) leads to a significant improvement in the performance of converters.


Mouse embryos survived freezing to -196�C. Survival required slow cooling (0.3� to 2�C per minute) and slow warming (4� to 25�C per minute). Depending on the specific rates used, 50 to 70 percent of more than 2500 frozen and thawed early embryos developed into blastocysts in culture after storage at -196�C for up to 8 days. When approximately 1000 of the survivors, including some frozen to -269�C (4�K), were transferred into foster mothers, 65 percent of the recipients became pregnant. More than 40 percent of the embryos in these pregnant mice gave rise to normal, living full-term fetuses or newborn mice.


Our paper simulates the likely effects of a comparable-worth wage-adjustment policy in the state and local sector on female employment in the sector. The simulation is based on estimates of within-occupation male/female substitution and across-occupation occupational employment substitution that we obtain using data from the 1980 Census of Population.


It is relatively easy to prove the results of a heat treatment operation regarding distortion by performing dimensional measurements. But, it is not that easy in most of the cases to recognize the probable sources and to perform subsequent corrective actions successfully. If it is possible, however, to keep the dimensional changes uniform and to reduce the dimensional variations, then the grinding cost can be minimized and, in case, also the scrap cost be reduced. In this publication the system distortion is described and its correlation with residual stresses resulting from the various manufacturing steps of a component is considered. In addition recommendations for improvements are shown.


Assigning monopoly power to an inventor is usually viewed as a static efficiency cost needed to obtain the dynamic benefit of increased research and development; public dissemination is considered to be superior. For example, Katz and Shapiro (1986) find that when a monopolist licenses an innovation to competing downstream firms, "[its] incentives to disseminate the innovation typically are [socially] too low." I find that in contrast dissemination can be excessive even if there was monopoly dissemination. For example, it can be profit maximizing for the lab to issue several license while it is socially optimal that no licenses are issued.


Using Gammasphere data on prompt gamma rays from spontaneous fission of 252Cf, we propose energy-level schemes for 110,111,112, & 113Rh (Z=45). The fission-gamma data complement earlier studies of others on beta decay of fission products in that prompt fission gammas mainly populate yrast or near-yrast levels, while beta decay populates lower-spin levels. For the odd-A rhodium nuclei studied here, their ground bands and collective sidebands are compared with model calculations using triaxial-shaped nucleus with one odd quasi-proton. The energies and E2 transition rates are best fit by a shape slightly to the prolate side of maximum triaxiality, namely, gamma = 28 deg. The model calculations also show a K=1/2+ band with energies not in good agreement with a corresponding experimental band. The experimental 1/2+ band is regarded as an intruder band from a prolate-driving proton orbital 1/2[431] above the Z=50 closed shell. This intruder band, seen in other odd-A Rh isotopes, is probably m ore deformed and prolate and would not be expected to be fit at the same triaxial shape parameter as the 7/2+ ground band. We observe a band-crossing (backbending) in the odd-A ground bands above spins of about 21/2. The odd-odd nuclei 110 and 112 Rh showmore » mainly a single band with no backbending up to higher frequency than the backbend in the odd-A isotopes. It is concluded that the backbend is due to alignment of a pair of h11/2 neutrons.« less


Purpose - The present research aims to explore whether Twitter is a tool that should be taken seriously by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in their marketing strategies, taking the stance of SMEs – how they perceive, use and see the future of Twitter for their businesses. The research has three objectives: firstly, to explore how SMEs use Twitter in their marketing strategies; secondly, to explore their perception of Twitter's benefits/limitations as a marketing tool, compared to other social networks; and thirdly, to explore their plans for improvement/future use of Twitter in their marketing strategies. Design/methodology/approach - Because the micro-blogging area is underexplored, especially from a business perspective, a qualitative-interpretivist-exploratory methodology has been chosen. The research method which will be utilized in the project is semi-structured one-to-one online synchronous interviews, conducted on a homogenous sample comprising 4-5 Romanian and British SMEs with around 2 employees from the marketing/PR departments of each company. The present paper comprises stage one of the project, which has been a pilot in-depth interview with a British SME, aimed to explore initial insights while testing the validity, reliability and trustworthiness of the research. Findings - The present report only discusses the pilot findings, which are not definite conclusions but just provide guidance for further research, indicating whether the methodology/method/questions were suitable/useful and thus identifying new areas for further exploration. The interviewee's conclusion, also supported by the research findings, is that, although Twitter should not be viewed as "the be all and end all for our communications", it is still a critical platform to embark on, especially if companies want a chance to listen to/influence consumers' opinions. Practical implications - In general, it is agreed that social media and Twitter can have as much benefits for the business in terms of networking, relationship and online branding opportunities as irreparable and costly damages caused by the negative electronic Word of Mouth (e-WOM). Consequently, the present project takes initiative towards a more clear understanding of how and what should be done, if anything, with models like Twitter as marketing tools. Originality/value - Using social media and especially Twitter for marketing purposes is only a recent phenomenon, as it is mainly since 2008 that social networking sites exploded in user numbers and marketing applications. Therefore, there is limited academic research into this area and much of it is focused on the user side, with little known from the companies' perspective. Most information regarding Twitter has been based on best practice, industry trial and error, and a few research papers looking into how consumers perceive the micro-blogging tool. The business stance has been acknowledged as a significant gap in the literature, consequently demonstrating the value and originality of the present paper. Because social networking and especially micro=blogging is multi-faceted, the focus of this project has been Twitter as a word of mouth/ electronic word of mouth (WOM/ e-WOM) marketing tool, utilizing research proving the benefits/limitations of WOM/e-WOM for businesses.


Aiming at the problem of unable to choose suitable filtering mode for errors accumulated and noise distribution changed,the body coordinate system,a augmented measure composed of measurements of star-sensor and gyro in the inertial coordinate is proposed and the attitude determination is modeled to a nonlinear filter problem.Because the nonlinear filters used commonly may have a good performance both in accuracy and real time,UKF is introduced to estimate the attitude parameters and the gyro drift.Further,the situation of unknown or time-varied sensor accuracy is considered,and the IMMUKF algorithm is proposed.The simulation results show the efficiency and accuracy of the method.It has a high practical value.


【Objective】In order to demonstrate and promote timely sale of non-breeding male Maiwa yaks under local common feeding condition and thereby to gain commercial benefits and solve overloading problem,【Method】A slaughtering test was conducted to determinate the fattening performance and slaughter traits of the animals under the condition during 66 days within local warm season.【Result】The fattening results showed that the body weight significantly(P0.001) increased 26.47 kg,and daily gain was 0.40 kg.There were significantly(P0.001) difference in body height and chest circumference increasing 2.69 cm and 5.72 cm,respectively,but no difference in body length and cannon circumference traits.The results also revealed that the body weight of male Maiwa yak could reach 180 kg and even more at the age of 3.5 years.The slaughter analysis for 8 male yaks with an average live weight at slaughter of 171.00±18.93 kg showed that dressing percentage,meat percentage,and meat bone ratio were 41.07 %,30.32 % and 3.00,respectively.【Conclusion】 The results suggest that 3.5 years old male Maiwa yak should timely slaughter under local common feeding condition,which could gain better benefits.


Fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE) are formed by conjugation of ethanol to free fatty acids by an enzymatic activity called fatty acid ethyl ester synthase. These compounds accumulate in fetal tissue following maternal ethanol exposure. To determine if fetal tissues synthesize FAEE, we examined fetal mouse, rat and human tissues, focusing on the central nervous system, for FAEE synthase. FAEE synthase activity was present in all tissues examined. This study suggests that the enzyme activity necessary for accumulation of FAEE is present in fetuses and fetal brain tissue at the time when ethanol has been shown to be teratogenic.


The purposes of the Data Bank are to organize field (operating pipeline) data from a wide variety of gas and oil pipelines and make these data available in a convenient form to interested pipeline designers and operators. The Data Bank itself consists of a computer tape written in IBM Fortran and a User's Manual. The tape contains two computer programs, (one to enter data and one to read back the data), the files of the data, an index listing pipelines contained in the Data Bank, a bibliography for the data in the Data Bank, and a brief summary describing the data. The types of data of interest include: composition, pipe geometry, pressure drop and holdup data (obtained pigging or by measurements). Transient data during pigging operations or from rapid flow changes are also of interest.


Intervertebral disc is a sophisticated structure that connects separate vertebras, withstands loads acting on a spinal column and allows its movements. Intervertebral disc consists of gel-like nucleus pulposus surrounded by concentric layers of annulus fibrosus. Superior and inferior surfaces of nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus are covered by thin cartilaginous end plates. Most of the nutrients supplied by vertebral capillaries penetrate subchondral plates and enter intervertebral disc through cartilaginous end plates. They diffuse through the end plates and reach cells of nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus while metabolites move in opposite direction. Only a small part of nutrients reaches the disc by capillaries of outer layer of annulus fibrosus [1]. The balance between the nutrients supply and consumption is delicate, and its disturbance could reduce activity or viability of the cells which ensure functionality of disc matrix. Nutrition of the cells depends on distance between cells and supply source [2], condition of endplates [3], genetics [4] and other factors. Insufficient nutrition could lead to loss of proteoglycans, dehydration of nucleus pulposus, disorganization and disintegration of annulus fibrosus. This is also known as disc degenerative disease. Due to disc degeneration, height of the disc reduces as well as ability to withstand loads and secure stability of the spinal column and also leads to low back pain [5, 6]. Fluid flow within the intervertebral disc is one of the key contributors for control of cell metabolism and could improve transportation of the nutrients. It is known that fluid content in intervertebral disc varies during the day. Height of the disc reduces during day activities and reaches its primary value during night rest as fluid flows out of the disc mostly due to mechanical loading and fluid flows back to the disc due to diffusion which depends on osmotic pressure [7]. Modelling of diurnal cycle loading (16 hours of compressive loading and 8 hours of rest) shows that fluid flow velocity due to daily activities does not increase transportation of low weight solutes (molecular weight of 400 Da), for example, oxygen, glucose and lactic acid, but enhances transportation of large solutes (molecular weight of 40 kDa) [8]. Application of compressive 1000 N 1 Hz frequency cyclic load to poroelastic model of spinal functional unit induces fluid flow through the intervertebral disc into the vertebras with fluid flow velocity consistently decreasing due to the reason that less fluid is left in the disc. After the load is removed, fluid starts to flow into the disc, but time is needed for fluid flow velocity to increase [9]. Authors of this study also conclude that disc response to loading depends on loading frequency. While cell-based therapies to increase fluid flow to and from the intervertebral disc are researched and presented [10], exercise therapy is still the most often used to improve condition of the intervertebral disc and spine in general. Review of animal model researches shows that relationship between loading type and regenerative response of intervertebral disc may exist and while high loading at high volumes and frequencies could start degenerative processes high loading at low volumes and frequencies could induce regenerative processes, for example, to increase fluid flow within the intervertebral disc [11]. Diffusion through the endplates may be increased by forced convection induced by compression-traction loading in healthy and degenerated discs of rabbit models [12]. Moderate intensity running is proven to reduce height and volume of intervertebral discs in thoracic and lumbar regions [13]. Authors of this study discuss that decreased content of fluid in the discs may reduce their load absorption capabilities, cyclic changes of intradiscal pressure are necessary to ensure diffusion and convection of nutrients and metabolites. In vivo study of young healthy adults [14] reveals that runners have better hydrated intervertebral discs with higher glycosaminoglycan levels and the hydration is higher in nucleus region than in other regions. Also, it is proven that sedentary lifestyle decreases health of intervertebral discs. Results of in vivo magnetic resonance imaging study by Arun et al. [15] show that sustained compressive spinal loading of 4.5 hours in supine position reduces small solute transport rates in intervertebral disc. MRI measurement of fluid content and flow show that sedentary lifestyle (daily sedentary time greater than 67 % of awake time) leads to significantly lower apparent diffusion coefficient, in other words, reduced fluid flow velocity [16]. To sum up, specific exercise regimes should be chosen to improve fluid flow, but only tension-compression loads are more researched in this regard. The purpose of this study is to investigate an influence of basic spine moves (flexion, extension, lateral bending and axial rotation) on fluid flow velocity of intervertebral disc.


The production of ectoine from a halophilic bacteria Halomonas elongata BK-AG25 was optimized using osmotic shock technique. At first, the bacteria were grown in MM63 media containing optimal level of salt to gain high biomass yield. The bacteria were than inoculated in the same media with high concentration of salt (osmotic upshock) to produce ectoine. Subsequently, the bacteria were transferred into distilled water containing lower concentration of salt (osmotic downshock) to release ectoine produced. The two process is known as "bacterial milking". These process were repeated several cycles to gain a maximum yield of ectoine. The survival of the cells and ectoine released by the bacteria after osmotic downshock were determined. The results showed that the survival bacteria were more than 70% after the serial osmotic downshock, which was from 17.5%(w/v) to 1.5%(w/v) and then to 3% (w/v) NaCl. However, only 9% of the bacteria were survive when the same process was occurred from 17.5% to 0% (w/v) NaCl. By using the former downshock process, the yield of ectoine released by the bacteria was relatively high, which was about 88%. The productivity of the bacteria in producing ectoine was high, which was about 206.4 mg extracellular per g cell dry weight.


Systems such as Alexa, Cortana, and Siri appear rather smart. However, they only react to predefined wordings and do not actually grasp the user's intent. To overcome this limitation, a system must grasp the topics the user is talking about. Therefore, we apply unsupervised multi-topic labeling to spoken utterances. Although topic labeling is a well-studied task on textual documents, its potential for spoken input is almost unexplored. Our approach for topic labeling is tailored to spoken utterances; it copes with short and ungrammatical input. The approach is two-tiered. First, we disambiguate word senses. We utilize Wikipedia as pre-labeled corpus to train a naïve-bayes classifier. Second, we build topic graphs based on DBpedia relations. We use two strategies to determine central terms in the graphs, i.e. the shared topics. One focuses on the dominant senses in the utterance and the other covers as many distinct senses as possible. Our approach creates multiple distinct topics per utterance and ranks results. The evaluation shows that the approach is feasible; the word sense disambiguation achieves a recall of 0.799. Concerning topic labeling, in a user study subjects assessed that in 90.9% of the cases at least one proposed topic label among the first four is a good fit. With regard to precision, the subjects judged that 77.2% of the top ranked labels are a good fit or good but somewhat too broad (Fleiss' kappa k = 0.27).


structure-conduct-preference(SCP) analysis method plays an important role in industrial economics research.In this paper,on the basis of the model and data,the authors use SCP method to descript the petroleum industry in China,observe the degree of concentration of China's petroleum industry and the petroleum consuming elastic index.The authors find that the degree of concentration is high in the petroleum exploration and excavation but low in the petroleum byproduct industry.The characteristics of petroleum industry is oligopolistic economy in superordinate industry and competition in subordinate industry.Finally,the authors make corresponding comments on the petroleum consumption in China,and conclude that the consumption of petroleum is inelastic.


ACCORDING to Johann Leopold Ebner, Schubert was once on the point of destroying one of his own songs because a friend had called his attention to a few measures that resembled a familiar passage from Beethoven. The year was 1817, and the song was Die Forelle. Shortly after he had finished it, the young composer showed it to a group of friends, one of whom recognized in it an unconscious quotation from the Coriolan Overture. "Schubert saw this at once, too, and wanted to destroy the song, but we would not allow it and thus saved that glorious song from destruction." 1 The passage in question is probably measures 64-65, which should be compared with measures 19-20 of the Beethoven overture.2


The sticking probabilities of a water molecule to a water cluster at several temperatures are calculated as a function of cluster size by using the models proposed for dissociation and stabilization rate constants of vibrationally excited clusters. The model for dissociation is built from RRK theory, while the model for stabilization is based on the general equation describing V→ T relaxation rates of diatomic molecules. The sticking probabilities calculated are strongly dependent on the size of the water clusters. They increase from zero to levels close to unity in the cluster-size region of 3 through approximately 20 and keep constant at levels close to unity at a cluster size larger than 20 at 253, 273, and 300 K.


As more electronic information applies to the modern battlefield,electromagnetic environment becomes much more complex.Constructing approximative actual combat electromagnetic environment is the precondition of testing electronic equipment.The composing and characteristic of the battlefield electromagnetic environment is analyzed,from the influence of electromagnetic environment on equipment performance,object and element of electromagnetic environment constructing is confirmed.Based on the constructing method,the flow is designed,the foundation of equipment test is established understand the complex electromagnetic environment.


Background: Multiple drug-resistant strains of Acinetobacter have become common in hospitals worldwide. The problem becomes more acute with increasing resistance to carbapenems, the last resort in the treatment of hospital acquired Acinetobacter baumannii infections. Objectives: The current study was conducted to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and prevalence of OXA-type carbapenemases, among clinical isolates of A. baumannii, in Tehran hospitals, Iran. Materials and Methods: Isolates were identified as A. baumannii by PCR with specific primers for bla OXA-51-like gene. Their susceptibilities to different antibiotics were determined using disk diffusion method. Isolates were then subjected to multiplex-PCR targeting bla oxa-51, bla oxa-24, blaoxa-23 and bla oxa-58 genes. Results: Results showed that 123 of 131 (93.89%) Acinetobacter species, possessed bla oxa-51-like gene and were identified as A.baumannii. 54.47% of isolates were resistant to amikacin, 67.47% resistant to imipenem and 84.55% resistant to meropenem.All isolates were susceptible to colistin and polymixin B. 43 of 123 A. baumannii isolates(34.95%)were MDR. These isolates were resistant to amikacin, ciprofloxacin, imipenem, cefrazidim. Among 123 isolates, 100 (81.3 %) had an acquired oxa-23like carbapenemase 10 (8.1%) possessed oxa-24-like, and 1 (0.81%) possessed oxa-58-like carbapenemase. Conclusions: The present study showed that bla OXA-23-like was the most frequent carbapenemase identified among carbapenemresistant A. baumannii isolated in Tehran hospitals. Evaluation of antibiotic resistance genes in A. baumannii, is necessary to control further dissemination of these antibiotic resistant genes.


We prove a positive mass theorem for continuous Riemannian metrics in the Sobolev space $W^{2, n/2}_{\mathrm{loc}}(M)$. We argue that this is the largest class of metrics with scalar curvature a positive a.c. measure for which the positive mass theorem may be proved by our methods.


With existing energy and greenhouse measure in place, our medium term basecase forecasts show GDP growth between 2003 and 2012 at an average annual rate of 3.2 per cent. The corresponding forecasts for growth in real private consumption and employment are 3.1 per cent and 1.6 per cent. Our basecase forecasts imply that greenhouse gas emissions will grow at an average rate of 1.3 per cent per annum, considerably less than forecast growth in real GDP. The main factors underlying relatively slow growth in emissions are: slow growth of agricultural emissions, fast growth in forestry sequestration, a shift towards renewable sources of generation; favourable electricity-saving and fuel-saving technical change; and faster-than-average growth in low emitting service industries. According to our basecase, Australia's actual emissions remain below the Kyoto target through to 2011. In 2012, the gap between actual emissions and the Kyoto target is projected to be 30.1 Mt of CO[2]-e or five percent of the basecase level. These projections suggest that new measures are required if Australia is to limit emissions to the Kyoto target through to 2012. One such measure is a domestic permit trading scheme for greenhouse gases. Our analysis in the second part of this article suggests that, for a comprehensive scheme covering all greenhouse gases and all emitters, a permit price of $15 per tonne of CO[2]-e will be necessary to achieve a five per cent cut in emissions in 2012. A carbon price of $15 per tonne is equivalent to a tax of around $8 billion. This is a big tax and it will have a significant dampening effect on activity. According to our simulations, in 2012 it will reduce real GDP by 0.24 per cent and real GNP by 0.25 per cent. Real private consumption is hardly affected, however, because we assume that the revenue from the trading scheme is returned lump-sum to the owners of emitting activities (i.e., to domestic and foreign households). Employment is projected to fall relative to its basecase value by 0.33 per cent, which is equivalent to around 35,000 full- and part-time jobs. The scheme reduces activity in most sectors. For example, in 2012 output in the Electricity supply and distribution sector falls by 1.2 per cent, and in Agricultural, forestry and fishing sector by 1.1 per cent. These sectors are the major contributors to Australia's greenhouse emissions. In percentage terms the largest fall in the largest fall is in the wholesale and retail trade area where 9,300 jobs are lost. Not all industries suffer output decline. Industries favourably affected by the permit scheme include the elements of the broader electricity sector that use renewable and low-emissions gas generation technologies, and the forestry component of the broader Agricultural, forestry and fishing sector. Forestry is a net sink and the emissions price acts as a subsidy for this industry.


This paper develops a new elimination mechanism strategy to improve the performance of cooperative particle swarm optimizer with elimination mechanism (CPSO-EM) algorithm which is proposed to extract better vector elements by analyzing features of cooperative particle swarm optimizer (CPSO). The extracting method is simple and has the potential to be improved. The proposed cooperative particle swarm optimizer with improved elimination mechanism (CPSO-IEM) makes two main changes in order to extract useful elements from elimination mechanism (EM) effectively. These changes not only increase the diversity of solution vectors which are stored in EM, but also improve the performance of cooperative particle swarm optimizer (CPSO) which is treated as a basic operator in CPSO-IEM. Experimental studies on a set of test functions show that CPSO-EM exhibits better performance than several other peer algorithms in solving nonseparable multimodal problems.


Patient and referring physician satisfaction surveys are becoming more important. Here's how radiology groups can collect and use the data.


Theory of Critical Distances (TCD) collects several methods adopted in failure prediction of components provided with stress concentration features. The idea of evaluating stress effect in a zone rather than in a single point was proposed decades ago but, only thanks to relatively recent works, TCD concepts showed to be a successful extension of Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics (LEFM), able to assess strength and fatigue life. The increasing computational power has made Finite Element Method (FEM) widespread, hence stress fields can be easily extracted and used as input data for fatigue post-processing and durability analyses. In this scenario, TCD reveals as a powerful tool which, thanks to the introduction of a single material parameter (critical distance, L ), integrates classical fracture models by considering the presence of microscale phenomena acting in fracture process. In this sense, TCD behaves as a link between continuum mechanics and LEFM. Modalities and reasons for this connection to occur are interesting points of further investigations. Literature on TCD and its theoretical-experimental background is quite extended, nevertheless few industrial applications are available in literature to the best of authors' knowledge. In this paper, an overview of concepts and applications related to TCD are reported highlighting the relevance of theoretical arguments in actual applications.


This is a short film written and directed by Lab Ky Mo. It was commissioned by Yello Earth Theatre in conjunction with ALRA Theatre, and promoted East Asian actors.


The utility model discloses a capacitance type touch circuit pattern structure which is formed on a substrate and used for a touch display screen. The touch circuit pattern structure comprises a transparent conductive layer with the thickness of 100-500 angstroms, a conductive layer with the thickness of 1000-5000 angstroms, and an insulating layer with the thickness of 1-5 micrometers and arranged between the transparent conductive layer and the conductive layer. The capacitance type touch circuit pattern structure only comprises a capacitance induction layer, thus being capable of effectively reducing the thickness of the whole touch panel, lowering resistance and improving the sensitivity of signal transmission. The utility model also discloses a touch panel and a touch screen with the pattern structure.


This paper describes an on-going "OEX" catalytic surface _ffects experiment being conducted on the Space Shuttle. The catalytic surface effects expcrimen= was performed on four of the five flights of Columbia. Temperature-time histories and distributions along the midfuselage and wing of the orbiter were used to dete-_-mine the surface catalytic efficiency of the baseline HRSI. Correlation parameters are shown that allow the comparison of all flight data _th predictions f_om the iesiB n trajectory 14414.1. These data show that the catalytic surface efficiency increased and surface emittance decreased as a result of contazlinants during the five flights


Journal of Biology and Life Science (JBLS) would like to acknowledge the following reviewers for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Many authors, regardless of whether JBLS publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review for this issue.Reviewers for Volume 12, Number 2Geonyzl Lepiten Alviola, Davao Doctors College, PhlippinesJeriels Matatula, Indonesian Silvicultural Community, IndonesiaJosé Max Barbosa de Oliveira Junior, Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará, BrazilRagab A. El-Mergawi, National Research Centre, EgyptRajaa Ahmed Mahmoud, University of Basrah, Iraq Kelvin LeeEditorial AssistantJournal of Biology and Life Science-------------------------------------------Macrothink Institute5348 Vegas Dr.#825Las Vegas, Nevada 89108United StatesTel: 1-702-953-1852 ext.510Fax: 1-702-420-2900E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com: http://jbls.macrothink.org


The story of Heinrich Himmler, father of the Holocaust, Chief of Nazi Intelligence, and at one point the most powerful man in Nazi Germany, has been the subject of several books, the best by the British historian Peter Padfield. But that has not stopped numerous other writers from tackling the topic. Martin Allen justifies his recent contribution to the Himmler l i terature with claims of ' 'new material ' ' found in the Brit ish National Archieves (BNA) that adds a history-changing twist to the Himmler story—he alleges that the British government ordered and implemented the assassination of Himmler. The reason, writes Allen in Himmler's Secret War, was so Himmler could not testify at the Nuremburg trials and reveal that Britain had entered into peace negotiations with Himmler without telling its allies, the United States and the Soviet Union. The basis for this extraordinary conclusion—the long-accepted evidence justifies suicide—Allen tells his readers, was his serendipitous discovery in the


We construct maximally supersymmetric gauged N = 16 super-gravity in three dimensions, thereby obtaining an entirely new class of AdS supergravities. These models are not derivable from any known higher-dimensional theory, indicating the existence of a new type of supergravity beyond D = 11. They are expected to be of special importance also for the conjectured AdS/CFT correspondence. One of their noteworthy features is a nonabelian generalization of the dual-ity between scalar and vector fields in three dimensions. Among the possible gauge groups, SO(8)×SO(8) is distinguished as the maximal compact gauge group, but there are also more exotic possibilities such as F 4(−20) ×G 2 .


Objective To compare perception and intake of fruit and vegetables, and to identify the factors associated with misperception of intake. Methods Cross-sectional study with 3,414 participants of the Health Academy Program from Belo Horizonte (MG), Brazil. Stages of change from Transtheoretical Model were used to evaluate perception of intake, and questions adapted from national surveys were used to assess intake of fruit and vegetables as separate groups. Individuals whose intake and perception were discordant were reclassifi ed in pseudo-maintenance (wrongly believe their intake is adequate) or non-refl ective action (wrongly believe their intake is inadequate). Results Insuffi cient intake of fruit and vegetables and misperception of intake were observed. Pseudo-maintenance was more prevalent, given that 45.1% of individuals were reclassifi ed in this stage regarding their vegetable intake and 22.9% regarding fruit. According to multinomial logistic regression, pseudo-maintenance of fruit intake


HAEMORRHOIDECTOMY has the unfortunate reputation of being frequently followed by an inordinate amount of postoperative pain. One of the claims often made for different variations in technique proposed for this operation is that they diminish the severity of the discomfort associated with it. Recently we have submitted some of these claims to critical assessment. By means of a carefully controlled trial (Watts, Bennett, Duthie


SSS, in summary, maintains a good balance between sophisticated analyses and accounts of the actual events and actions transpiring in the Canadian and Mexican contexts. My only quibble with the book is its slightly misleading subtitle. The Global Politics of Transgenic Crops might be a bit exaggerated, since SSS only covers Canada and Mexico, and the author explicitly avoids a nation-to-nation comparison. The ancillary references to United States and Europe included in the book do not amount to a "global" scope, and perhaps the inclusion of anti-GM mobilization in other OECD countries would have added interesting questions about the role of consumers in the debates surrounding the role of transgenics in agro-food systems (SSS mostly focuses on the relationships between social movement and civil society organizations with governments and experts, and the mobilization of farmers and campesinos). Considering this, The Politics of Transgenic Crops in North America would have been a more accurate subtitle. But this is a minor point about a well researched, balanced, and readable book. Looking toward the future, SSS helps us to better understand two developments that may, once again, shake the global agri-food system and affect farmers and consumers alike in the coming years. First, I am referring to an impending decision of the United States government, which is poised to approve new genetically engineered soybean and corn seeds that resist the herbicide 2,4D (an agrochemical that is more toxic than glyphosate, the herbicide that GE soybeans currently endure). Second, agribusiness corporations seem to be preparing the public to re-launch a type of genetically engineered wheat, a project that was shelved in 2004 amid widespread opposition (something hinted, for instance, in an Op-Ed in the New York Times published in early 2014 straightforwardly entitled "We need G.M.O. wheat"). Whereas GM soybeans, corn, and canola are mostly used as animal feed or as inputs for the food industry, wheat enters the food chain more directly. SSS should be read by anyone interested in developing a critical perspective on this forthcoming debate. Kinchy offers valuable lessons about the pros and cons of different mobilizing strategies, from the double-edge sword of deploying neoliberal discourses, engaging experts, and embarking in legal disputes, to the many possibilities opened by mobilizing consumers, farmers, and civil society in broad campaigns with the goal of influencing decisions about agriculture, food, and technology. Kinchy's book, avoiding Manichean interpretations, prepares us to approach these coming debates armed with much needed empirical research.


In this paper we present methods for the miniaturization of superconducting filters. We consider two designs of seventh-order bandpass Chebyshev filters based on lumped elements and a novel quasi-lumped element resonator. In both designs the area of the filters, with a central frequency of 2–5 GHz, is less than 1.2 mm2. Such small filters can be readily integrated on a single board for multi-channel microwave control of superconducting qubits. The filters have been experimentally tested and the results are compared with simulations. The miniaturization resulted in parasitic coupling between resonators and within each resonator that affected primarily the stopband and increased the bandwidth. The severity of the error depends on the design in particular, and was less sensitive when a groundplane was used under the inductances of the resonators. The best performance was reached for the quasi-lumped filter with central frequency of 4.45 GHz, quality factor of 40 and 50 dB stopband.


The presented system of experimental trays permits conducting field experiments at considerable depths, all year round, and with no application of diving techniques. The deployed set can be entirely hidden under water, which is an advantage in crowded areas. The set is composed of single units, each composed of a tray filled with a substrate, four-legged bridles, and a hanging rope with a removable marker float fixed on top by means of a carabiner clip. The float provides information on the location of deployed trays, and permits proper distribution of next trays to be deployed. After deployment from a boat, the units are connected with a rope, extended on one end by a sinking retrieval rope. The floats are removed immediately after deployment. Any number of units can be deployed to the bottom. It depends on the experimental design and the number of replicates. Retrieval of the set starts with locating the trays by means of GPS, and searching for the retrieval rope by means of a grappling hook dragged behind the boat. Based on our own experience and the literature, the possibilities of development of the described system are proposed depending on the local field conditions and research objectives.


Objective: To evaluate the value of T2-mapping imaging in the knee articular cartilage of the non-professional athletes after marathon. Methods: Cartilage thickness and MRI T2 values of 13 marathon runners(age range: 24 ~40 years,mean(32±6.3) years) were compared before and after the marathon. A 3.0T scanner was used to calculate thickness and T2 values of the weight-bearing and non-weight-bearing area of the femoral and tibial cartilage. Statistical difference was analyzed. Results: There was no significant difference of conventional magnetic resonance imaging before and after the marathon.MRI T2 values of superficial cartilage were higher than deeper layer both before and after the marathon. After marathon running MRI T2 values decreased in superficial cartilage of the weight-bearing area of the femoral and tibial along with a decrease of cartilage thickness. Conclusion: MRI T2-mapping imaging provides quantitative assessment of articular cartilage correlated with the biochemical changes in cartilage. MRI T2 value of superficial cartilage is higher than deeper layer. After marathon running MRI T2 values decrease in superficial cartilage from the weight-bearing area of the femoral and tibial along with a decrease of cartilage thickness.


The themes of spiritual ascension and mystical ecstasy in V. Ivanov, which occupy a pivotal place in his literary production, have been recently examined by M. Tsimborska-Leboda in the context of Augustine's theology and by V. Mahlin in the context of Bakhtin's analysis of Dostoevsky's works. The theme of ecstasy has also been considered by Pamela Davidson in her 1989 monograph. The present paper proposes to analyse this very theme, but this time in the context of the theological poetics of Dante's Paradiso. The relevance of this study lies in the fact that, despite a number of immediately discernible parallels, the differences between Dante's and Ivanov's conceptions of ecstasy have not been fully identified yet, notwithstanding the significant influence exerted by Dante's texts on the conception of ecstasy in Ivanov's writings on Symbolism. Comparing Ivanov's and Dante's models of ascent, P. Davidson sees a fundamental difference between Ivanov's and Dante's conceptions of ecstasy in Ivanov's rejection of the moral-ethical dimension as a sine qua non of the mystical quest. This article reveals another important difference between Dante's and Ivanov's descriptions of ecstasy, one that concerns the category of "penetration". Focusing on Ivanov's articles and Dante's Paradiso, the article analyses them in relation to the category of "penetration", to be understood as the ultimate realization of transcendence in Ivanov as well as in Dante's poem. It highlights the similarity between Ivanov's and Dante's thinking as far as the category of "sobornost" is concerned, whereby a vertical relationship with the Supreme Being implies a horizontal relationship with the Other, to the extent of spiritual penetration into the Other. However, it is argued that, while in Ivanov's description of ecstasy the ascent of man and artist begins with erotic rapture and, at its highest stage, implies detachment from all earthly things and separation from them, for Dante the ascent, as described in the Paradiso, is accompanied by spiritual interpenetration which occurs in interpersonal communion even at the height of the mystical vision. The conclusion is that, although Ivanov's other works treat the theme of transcendence in a similar way to how it is treated in Dante, Ivanov's treatment of ecstasy in his articles on Symbolism differs significantly from its description in the Commedia.


Peripheral blood smears from 1,547 birds, of 50 species, from 15 families trapped in Northfield, Vermont were examined for hematozoa. Numerous new host–parasite relationships were identified. The prevalence of all species of parasites over the 3 yr of the study was 42.5%. Prevalence of the genera of parasites were: Leucocytozoon—36.5%; Trypanosoma—7.3%; Haemoproteus—6.3%; microfilariae—1.0%; Plasmodium—1.0%. Peak prevalence (78.9%) occurred in the first half of July. Peak intensity was seen in the last half of June. Evidence from immature birds suggested that active transmission of all genera of hematozoans took place in the study area. Leucocytozoon gametocytes, unlike Haemoproteus gametocytes, were detected in smears from birds during all seasons of the year, and showed no period of complete remission. Trypanosoma and microfilariae also were seen throughout the year.


Multicomponent solid solutions of AIIIBV are increasingly used in optoelectronics, photonics, and other fields of science and technology. These are AlGaInN-based emitters, InGaAsP-based receivers, etc. In addition, these materials are widely used as buffer and isomorphic layers in general-purpose nanoheterostructures. The main methods of their production are gas-phase methods, such as chloride-hydride, MOS-hydride epitaxy, MBE. The development of optimal technological modes of multicomponent layers and structures, as a rule, takes a lot of time and is quite expensive. In this paper, the author proposed a method for modeling processes based on the basic physical and chemical laws of the crystallization processes of materials and the properties of AIIIBV compounds. The analysis and prediction of the processes of obtaining four-component solid solutions In1–yGayAs1–xPx, isoperiodic with GaAs, three-component solid solutions GaAs0,8P0,2 and GaAs0,6P0,4 were performed. The calculated modes have been experimentally implemented and the materials corresponding to the current level of quality have been obtained.


Leakage current is the most important parameter of electrical safety performance, the requirement of the leakage test in IEC is introduced in the paper, which includes the impedance network of the human body and the limit of the leakage current,and the test and control system of hardware and software. The system can test the leakage current of all kinds of electrical and possesses the characteristics of mulit-purpose, high precision,real-time results and convenient test.


By implementation of the nanospace-confinement strategy using silica nanosphere as reaction medium, the interesting transformation behavior of the nanosized Mn–silicate phase could be perceived in ...


Objective: To assess implementation of clinical practice guideline on traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) for hypertension.Methods: We used questionnaire survey to evaluate 404 general practitioners and hospital-based specialists from 7 areas with the object of exploring implementation situation toward clinical practice guidelines(CPG) on TCM for hypertension,and processed datas with frequency statistics,chi-square test and logistic regression analysis methods.Results: 68.81% TCM doctors used CPG in their clinical works.The 88.89% TCM doctors had positive attitude on TCM CPG and would like to use TCM CPG in the future.The usage rate of TCM CPG was different due to various grades of hospital,technical title,clinical times and education background of TCM doctors.Shortage of popularization of guideline was the most important factors which influence the implementation of clinical practice guideline on TCM.Conclusion: To popularize TCM clinical practice guideline,we suggest that: ①Different ways to release TCM CPG should be established.②More training course for young TCM doctors of how to use TCM CPG should be developed.③Useing the policy to push the implement of TCM CPG.


A series of pseudo-tetrahedral copper(I) complexes carrying bis(imino)acenaphthene (BIAN) ligands as acceptor subunits and various phosphane derivatives was prepared and characterized by elemental analysis, X-ray crystallography and spectroscopic techniques. The electronic spectra of the compounds are dominated by low-lying metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) transitions which could be systematically modified by different substituent patterns at the diimine acceptor subunit and by variations of the electron donating properties and bite angles of the phosphane moiety. A qualitative model based on frontier-orbital overlap arguments is introduced to describe the observed variations in optical spectra, excited state energies, solvatochromic behaviour, charge transfer character, and extent of electronic coupling following moderate changes in orbital mixing. Due to their readily tuneable properties and the potential of the BIAN ligands to reversibly store up to four redox equivalents, these systems are of considerable interest for the development of novel multi-electron transfer photosensitizers which are based on the abundant and environmentally benign transition metal copper.


My primary research interests lie in the fields of operating systems, distributed systems and programming languages. I also have interests in software engineering, networks, continuous media applications, sentient environments and human-computer interaction. I intend to pursue a career in research, and during 2005–6 have been a Research Assistant at the Computer Laboratory of the University of Cambridge. Further details may be found in my CV.


Abstract : This thesis uses neural networks to forecast winds at the Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Air Station launch pads. Variables are developed from WINDS tower observations, surface and buoy observations, and an upper-air sounding. From these variables, a smaller set of predictive inputs is chosen using a signal-to-noise variable screening method. A neural network is then trained to forecast launch pad winds from the inputs. The network forecasts are compared to persistence, and peak wind predictions are found skillful compared to persistence. An ensemble modeling technique using Toth's and Kalnay's breeding of growing modes method is explored with neural networks. The inputs are perturbed an amount representative of measurement error. Ensemble member forecasts are found to diverge, but the ensemble spread does not often encompass the resulting weather. This is due to a disproportionate amount of error originating from the model compared to error originating from measurements.


The observed degradation of radiatively driven single shell capsule yield with increasing convergence ratio can be quantitatively understood by mixing between the gaseous deuterium-tritium (DT) or deuterium (DD) and the pusher. Calculations using a multifluid interpenetration mix model can replicate the performance of experiments at the NOVA [C. Bibeau et al., Appl. Opt. 31, 5799 (1992)] and OMEGA [T. R. Boehly et al., Opt. Commun. 133, 495 (1997)] lasers, using a single fitting parameter, a mixing length ratio. When mix is similarly treated at the ablator–solid DT interface, cryogenic single shell ignition capsules for the National Ignition Facility [J. A. Paisner, E. M. Campbell, and W. J. Hogan, Fusion Technol. 26, 755 (1994)] and the Laser Mega Joule [ P. A. Holstein et al., Laser Part. Beams 17, 403 (1999)] calculate to ignite and burn with gains of several due to isolation of the ignition hot spot from the pusher material.


This paper discusses the problem of stresses of two joined materials, [I] and [II]. Material [I] is a large plate with an elliptic hole and [II] is an elliptic patch plate. There are two different conditions. One is the difference in the mechanical properties, the other is the difference in the initial elliptic boundary dimensions. Before joining, some amounts of dislocation exist on the elliptic boundaries between [I] and [II]. For continuous connection of both boundaries, we analyzed the necessary boundary tractions, qx and qy, theoretically using Goursat's stress functions and Dundurs' parameters. As a result, we obtained generally applicable formulae for expressing qx and qy and reported the fundamental numerical calculations in this paper.


Key hurdles for replacing damaged cartilage with an equivalent synthetic construct are the development of a hydrogel with a strength that exceeds that of cartilage and fixation of this hydrogel onto the surface of an articulating joint. This article describes the first hydrogel with a tensile and compressive strength (51 and 98 MPa) that exceeds those of cartilage (40 and 59 MPa), and the first attachment of a hydrogel to a metal backing with a shear strength (2.0 MPa) that exceeds that of cartilage on bone (1.2 MPa). The hydrogel strength is achieved through reinforcement of crystallized polyvinyl alcohol with bacterial cellulose. The high attachment strength is achieved by securing freeze‐dried bacterial cellulose to a metal backing with an adhesive and a shape memory alloy clamp prior to infiltration and crystallization of the polyvinyl alcohol. The bacterial cellulose‐reinforced polyvinyl alcohol is three times more wear resistant than cartilage over one million cycles and exhibits the same coefficient of friction. These advances in hydrogel strength and attachment enable the creation of a hydrogel‐based implant for durable resurfacing of damaged articulating joints.


A stellate ganglion block (SGB) is a widely used procedure in the treatment of chronic pain syndromes in the facial and cervicobrachial regions as well as in nonpainful conditions. The complications of a stellate ganglion block include intra-arterial or intracranial injection of local anesthetic, Horner's syndrome, phrenic nerve block, recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis, brachial plexus block, and pneumothorax. Horner's syndrome after the performance of a stellate ganglion block is a valuable sign of a successful block, but contralateral or bilateral Horner's syndrome remains an unusual and poorly explained phenomenon. We experienced a case of a 56 year-old female patient who had developed ipsilateral and contralateral Horner's syndrome after a stellate ganglion block. The ipsilateral Horner's syndrome was resolved after several hours but the contralateral side lasted for a week.


The toxicity of gases evolved from blends and mix tures of polymers generally appears to be a function of the toxici ties of the gases from the individual polymers and proportional to their relative proportions in the blend or mixture.


Objective To investigate the influence of propranolol on expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and matrix metalloproteinases-2 (MMP-2) from in vitro hemangioma endothelial cells, aiming to explore the mechanism of propranolol in treatment of hemangioma. Methods The hemangioma vascular endothelial cells were harvested from the specimens arising from infant with hemangioma, and cultured via tissue explants combined with trypsin digestion approach. The cxpression of the factor Ⅷ related antigen in endothelial cells was identified via immunohistochemistry assay. When cells were in the logarithmic phase, the serum-free medium was added and incubated for 48 hours for synchronization. 0.5 μmol/L and 1.0 μmol/l. concentration of propranolol was added respectively and 0μmol/L. group was set for control. The expression level of VEGF and MMP-2 were detected using RT-PCR after 24 hours incubation, meanwhile the cell apoptosis in each group was detected using flow cytometry, then further analysis the correlation between the apoptosis and expression of them. Results The apoptosis rate in 0.5μmol/L and 1.0 μmol/L group was respectively 22.42 ±0.83 and 24.36 ± 1.42 percent, compared with control (15.72± 0.59 percent), they were significantly increased ( P <0.01 ). While in term of VEGF mRNA expression level, they were respectively 1.02 ± 0.42 ;and 0.93 ± 0.22 in 0.5μmol/L and 1.0 μ mol/L group. Compared with the control ( 1.61 ±0.52). They decreased remarkably. Regarding to the MMP-2 mRAN expression level, they were respectively 0.77 ± 0.18 and 0.67 ± 0.27 in 0.5μmol/L and 1.0μmol/L group. In contrast to control (1.47± 0.57), they also decreased significantly. However, compared with the 0.5 μmol/L and 1.0μmol/L groups, statistical difference in both VEGF and MMP-2 was not seen (P>0.05). Conclusions Propranolol can promote apoptosis of in vitro hemangioma vascular endothelial cells. The potential mechanism is that they can down regulate the expression of VEGF and MMP2, through which the cell apoptosis occurs.

Key words:
Hemangioma;  Cell culture;  Propranolol;  Vascular endothelial growth factor;  Matrix metalloproteinases 2


This review offers a chance to reread and rethink Carlo Ginzburg's The Cheese and the Worms, a masterpiece of twentieth-century historiography. As is well known, this book is about the consciousness and the cultural world of Domenico Scandella called Menocchio, a sixteenth-century miller of Montereale in the Friuli,who was executed as a heretic in 1599. Ginzburg expertly narrates Menocchio's thoughts or fantasies by means of the remaining records of two trials. His narrative is strongly supported by a cogent theory of the popular culture. Of importance is that historian's thinking process for theorizing is transparently revealed in the text. Accordingly, as Ginzburg said, hypothesizing and reasoning become part of the narration. This combination of narrative and theory is, indeed, a distinctive characteristic of "microhistory" - a genre developed by a group of Italian historians. According to Giovanni Levi and Edoardo Grendi among them, microhistory works on an extremely reduced scale, and yet tests the accepted generalizations and familiar formulations derived from macro-analysis or total history. Of course, the cases of trivial events or ordinary people might create doubt about whether these could represent the general and the normal. But Grendi could defend microhistory by suggesting that the exceptional sources can be exceptionally normal. In this regard, what deserves serious attention, as Tony Molho pointed out, is that for Ginzburg microhistory was a means for arriving at a goal. He tried to grasp an epistemological model which he himself impressively called the "evidential paradigm (paradigma indiziario)" juxtaposed to a so-called "Galileian paradigm (paradigma galileiano)" which was based on the quantitative and antianthropocentric model. Finally, there is no doubt that The Cheese and the Worms is a great achievement that tells us the autonomous popular culture and the complicated relation between elite culture and peasant culture through a profound heretical thinker.


In order to reduce the transmission delay of the data packet in the wireless network, so as to improve the performance of the network, this paper proposes CGAR algorithm of the coding gain aware routing protocol. The algorithm uses the network coding gain and expected transmission count of the wireless link, provides the time needed for the node to transmit a data packet from the new flow in the wireless link, and take it as the routing metrics. This metric takes into consideration the factors such as the transmission delay, the time of the node's contention channel and so on. The experimental results show that this algorithm can reduce the transmission delay of the data packet and improve the performance of the network.


Providing for performing non-invasive motion tracking of the patient for treatment to enhance physical embodiment of the system of a patient, via a motion tracking device, and a display coupled to the computing platform and a display device motion tracking to enhance the physical embodiment of a patient treatment. A computing platform for providing a menu driven interface to a patient, the patient's instructions, or an operation is determined in response to movement of the patient's instructions, to determine a comparison between patient and patient motion command or action, display and provide feedback to the patient . In certain embodiments, the system, apparatus and method further includes a social network links, in other embodiments, a live link telemedicine, and optionally based on the detection alarm or alert condition is triggered. In other embodiments, using the recovery tool.


Cloudpoint data for polystyrene/methylcyclohexane solutions extending over moderate ranges of pressure and molecular weight are available in the literature. Those data are supplemented with new results from this laboratory to fill in gaps and extend the MW range (to 761 ≤ MW/amu ≤ 2 X 10 7 ). The resulting data net is discussed and reasons to extend studies to higher pressure are presented.


A dimension invariant for isomorphism of non-singular ergodic integer actions is presented. A result analogous to Shannon's Theorem is used to calculate the critical dimension of type III odometer actions. It is shown that the dimension is non-trivial and that it is not an invariant of orbit equivalence.


To effectively establish the three-dimensional model of the pipe laying process, reduce the three-dimensional coordinate positioning error of pipe laying and realize pipe position remeasurement, the pipe position remeasurement method of power engineering based on tilt photography three-dimensional reconstruction technology is studied. The UAV is equipped with four tilt cameras and a vertical camera, combined with a GPS receiver and high-precision inertial sensor to collect the pipe laying image and more accurate position information. Tube images are normalized to uniform light and color. The aerial triangulation method extracts the accurate pipe laying position information in the more accurate position. According to the processed pipe laying image and accurate position information, the polygonal pipe laying three-dimensional model is reconstructed and the pipe position information is retested. Experiments show that this method can effectively establish the three-dimensional model of the pipe laying process and retest the pipe position. In different routes, this method can accurately extract the three-dimensional coordinates of the pipeline, and the maximum absolute coordinate error is only 18cm.


For brain tumor surgery using 5-ALA during surgery, we analyze the brightness using image analysis software Image J, we report the results to date for strongly positive findings. Thirty-nine patients who were suspected of having malignant glioma before surgery and who were strongly positive for 5-ALA during surgery were included. (21 malignant glioma, 14 metastatic brain tumor, 3 meningioma, and 1 germ cell tumor.) Intraoperative 5-ALA-positive findings were analyzed with image analysis software Image J (Wayne Rasband: NIH), brightness was measured with histograms, and maximum brightness was compared. The average maximum brightness titer was 106.38 (50-225) in 21 cases of malignant glioma. The brightness titer was 84.5 (28-121) in 14 cases of metastatic brain tumor, 80 (59-97) in meningioma, and 43 in 1 case of germ cell tumor. No clear correlation was found between brightness, tumor grading, and MIB-1 LI. In addition, a clear difference in luminance was observed between the tumor and the ventricle in one case.By analyzing brightness with Image J, it will be possible to obtain informations about tumors from different perspectives.


This article presents a comparison between the use of analytical methods and simulations for dimensioning the approach to the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Świnoujście. Parameters of rectilinear sections of the fairway were obtained by analytical methods, widely used in traffic engineering. These methods are: the method of the Three Components, the Panama Canal method, the Canadian method, the method of the INM and the PIANC method. Dimensioning the approaching fairway to the LNG terminal in Świnoujście was conducted for two types of LNG tankers: Q-flex and Q-max. Results for simulation methods were obtained using a navigational bridge simulator. Results obtained using analytical and simulation methods allowed the comparison of parameters of the approach to the LND terminal in Świnoujście, and an indication of the optimal dimensioning methods of a fairway's straight sections.


: Th is note analyzes the choices of parties to either pursue a traditional presidential electoral campaign focusing on influencing informed voters who care about the proposed policy and have ideological preferences, or to concentrate on a more radical discourse which goal is to take to the voting arena dormant citizens who would, otherwise, retract from voting. To awaken dormant voters, parties use a radical discourse strategy, focused on social media technology. In general, the radical discourse strategy will be adopted if there are enough dormant voters, the social media technology has evolved to reach a significant part of the electorate, and there is enough ex-ante evidence of an ideological bias of dormant voters towards one specific party.


Quang-Vinh Tran, Tae-Won Chun, Hong-Hee Lee, Heung-Geun Kim and Eui-Cheol Nho 요 약 본 논문은 단상 그리드전압의 동기화에 가장 적합한 곱형 PLL 시스템을 설계한다. 소신호 해석방법으로 PLL 시스템을 모델링하고, 동기 과도 응답특성뿐만 아니라 동기신호의 왜곡을 고려하여 저역필터의 차단주파수 및 이득의 최적 값을 유도한다. 설계의 성능을 검증하기 위하여, 시뮬레이션 및 실험결과로 차단주파수 및 이득의 변화에 동기신호의 과도응답과 리플성분을 관찰한다. ABSTRACT In the paper, the product-type PLL system, which is so suitable for synchronizing a single phase grid voltage is designed. The PLL system is modelled with the small signal analysis. Both the cut-off frequency of low pass filter and the optimal gain are derived by considering the transient response for synchronization as well as a distortion of synchronization signal. Through the simulation studies and experimental results, the transient response and ripple component of synchronization signal are investigated with a variation of both the cut-off frequency and gain in order to verify the performance of design.Key Words : PLL, Product-type, Synchronization, Grid voltage


The application of RFID which is the critical technology for the internet of things used the planning of supply chain,which could realize the non-touching dangerous cargo logisticsmanagement in warehousing,bottling and packaging tracing,transportation.The technology of RFID solve the problem of continuous data acquisition,efficiency,safety,data accurate and synchronism which is hardly guaranteed by the traditional manned operation.With the wide usage of RFID and other intelligent dada picking device and transmission bring the powerful support for the dangerous cargo supply chain.


During the application of Genetic Algorithm (GA) for job shop scheduling problem (JSSP), chromosome representation and evolution strategy are the main consideration in order to guarantee the feasibility of solution. Crossover operation between two feasible solutions (parents) may result in infeasible solution (offspring).Inspired by the existence of self-reproducing in nature, this paper presents a self-crossover genetic algorithm for job shop scheduling problem (JSSP). The chromosome representation of the problem is based on work piece and the crossover operation is based on single individual. The approach was tested on a standard six-job six-machine (6×6) JSSP. The computational results validate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.


Turmeric (Curcuma longa L), "the golden spice of life" is one of most essential spice use as an important ingredient in culinary all over the world. Present investigation was done to understand the biocontrol potential of various endophytic microbes associated with turmeric against the pathogen causing rhizome rot disease of turmeric (Pythium sp.). A total of 15 endophytic fungi isolated from different locations of Andhra Pradesh state were evaluated. It was observed that Tc ed f 1(Acremonium kilense) was found to exert maximum antagonism against the pathogen. It was also observed that Acremonium kilense is incompatible with fungicides like Bordeaux mixture, Mancozeb 75%WP, Cyamoxanil 8% + Mancozeb 64%WP and Bordeaux mixture and higher concentrations of Fenamidone 10% + Mancozeb 50% WG and insecticides like Dimethoate, Malathion and Thiomethoxam showed 100 per cent inhibition indicating its poor level of compatibility.


Concepts of attractive female facial rejuvenation seem to change as new technologies become available. In some ways, techniques follow the currently popular media face of the moment. These trends are important to cosmetic dermatology because they set forth patient expectations as to what constitutes a good outcome. I have found analysis of these trends interesting and hope to shed insight into the cosmetic rejuvenation of the aging face with a window to the future. The first approach to cosmetic improvement of the female face began with the desire of the French upper class to minimize the appearance of small pox scars, which were ubiquitous among those fortunate enough to survive the disease. Facial rejuvenation in the 1600s consisted of wearing cloth patches designed to cover facial scars known as beauty patches, which were black silk or velvet pieces shaped like stars, moons, and hearts that were carefully placed about the face. The patches were carried in small patch boxes, the forerunner of the mirrored facial compact, in case they fell off in public and required replacement. The next trend was the application of powder to the face to create the illusion of a smoother complexion. The powder was white and gave a chalky facial appearance, which was fashionable at the time, but did not stay on well and flaked onto clothing. Suspending the powder in a liquid created a cream, known as French White, which was the first modern-type facial cosmetic. The white liquid formed a thin film that dried into place on the face and body, but was water soluble and easily removed with sweating. This problem was overcome with the suspension of the pigments and fillers in an oily vehicle and gave rise to grease paints. These were popularized in the theater and soon consumers also wanted to get the white complexions they observed on the stage. The availability of grease paints to the consumer market was really the birth of the cosmetics industry. Max Factor is credited with developing the first widely marketed cake make-up in 1936. Pigment was added to these cosmetics, and the movement toward a more natural skin color over the white pastes became a new trend. The goal here was to create an attractive face by minimizing discoloration. The use of facial foundation still remains an important part of creating an attractive aging face, but this technique did not address issues of wrinkling or facial proportions. Next, the issues of wrinkling of the aging face and skin redundancy were addressed and the field of facial plastic surgery was born. Facelifts were invented and the excess skin from the eyelids was pulled and cut along with the excess skin from the cheeks. This removed folds from the face, and the dyspigmentation issues were addressed with facial cosmetics. The skeletonized female face became the norm as the skin was pulled tighter over a face devoid of subcutaneous fat; however, women did not necessarily look younger following this type of facelift; they only possessed fewer facial folds. Furthermore, the facelift did not address fine lines of the face and other skin texture issues. The need to address wrinkles and lines led to the development of injectable materials to fill in wrinkles of the face. The first injectable was bovine collagen, currently unavailable, to fill in nasolabial folds and lip rhytids. Also, Gortex tubes were created into which collagen could grow to fill in nasolabial folds. These were the first permanent cosmetics and represented an advance from the prior temporary cosmetics. There were problems with the need for skin testing to prevent allergic reactions to bovine collagen and foreign body issues of extrusion and infection with the tubes. Collagen gave way to hyaluronic acid fillers, which did not require a skin test and had an increased longevity over the first bovine collagen products. Hyaluronic acid fillers were also injected into wrinkles and fine lines to reduce their depth. While filling in wrinkles appeared to have value around the mouth, there were some issues with wrinkles at rest and wrinkles at motion. Aging women did not want to look good only when the face was not emoting and the concept of chemodenervation was invented allowing the introduction of facial botulinum toxin injections. Chemodenervation allowed Editorial Echoes


The invention belongs to the technical field of food processing, and particularly relates to a wheat paste production technology and wheat paste produced through the wheat paste production technology. The technology comprises the steps of raw material cleaning and purifying, material soaking, material steaming, fermentation, smashing, burdening, sun-curing, sterilization, filling, finished product forming and the like. The wheat paste produced through the wheat paste production technology is aromatic in smell, sweet in taste and safe in quality, and the wheat paste production technology is safe, reliable and suitable for industrial production.


Welcome to the Valencia College Libraries System. This libguide will help you find materials, answer your library questions, and welcome you to the world of all things library!


The modulation effect of the rotating vane in the reverberation chamber and the consequences on the sound‐power measurement at single frequencies [J. Tichy, "The Effect of Boundary Conditions on the Statistical Properties of the Sound Field in Enclosures," J. Acoust. Soc. Amer. 50, 98(A) (1971)] has been further studied. The vane causes the amplitude and frequency modulation of the sound field, which results in line frequency spectrum of the sound in the chamber. Therefore, several modes or modal groups can be excited. The time average value of the sound pressure at a certain point depends on the vane speed. The statistical properties of the sound‐pressure amplitude have been studied as a function of microphone location and damping of the chamber for various vane speeds.


Cloud Computing enables users to use remote resources thus reduces the burden on local storage. However, the use of such services gives rise to new set of problems. The users have no control over the data which they have stored on those storages so to achieve data authentication with confidentiality is utmost important. As every user may not have that expertise so they can request for data verification task to Trusted Verifier (TV) which will be an authorized party to check the intactness of outsourced data. Since the data owner stores the data on the cloud in an encrypted format, it becomes difficult to check the integrity of the data without decrypting. But by using homomorphic encryption schemes the integrity checking can be made possible without original copy. In this paper, we have given implementation and performance details of two homomorphic encryption schemes, Rivest Shamir Adleman (RSA) and Paillier. The RSA is multiplicative homomorphic scheme where the Paillier is additive homomorphic scheme. Both the algorithms are partially homomorphic thus limited in their functions. Due to homomorphic property of these algorithms, original contents will not get revealed in the verification process. This framework will achieve authentication of data by maintaining confidentiality.


In patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction, a troponin T 0.1 g/L on admission indicates poorer prognosis despite early reperfusion. To evaluate the possible causes, clinical investigators from University of Luebeck, Germany, studied the value of cardiac troponin (cTnT) for prediction of outcomes after primary percutaneous intervention in 140 patients admitted within 12 hours after onset of symptoms. Epicardial and myocardial reperfusion were graded by the thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) score and by measurement of relative increases of myoglobin, cTnT, and creatine kinase MB 60 minutes after recanalization. cTnT was positive in 64 patients (45.7%) and was associated with longer median time to admission (5.5 vs 3.5 hours, p -.001) and higher mortality rates after 30 days (12.5% vs 3.9%, p 0.06) and 9 months (14% vs 3.9%, p 0.005). cTnT independently predicted a 3.2-fold risk for incomplete epicardial reperfusion (p 0.03). In addition, cTnT 0.1 g/L was associated with more severely impaired myocardial perfusion despite normal epicardial flow, as indicated by significantly lower 60-minute ratios of myoglobin (2.6 vs 7.6, p 0.007), cTnT (6.6 vs 29.2, p 0.001), and creatine kinase MB (3.3 vs 21.4, p 0.002), and a tendency for less resolution of ST segment elevation (54% vs 60%, p 0.08). The study shows that elevated cTnT identifies patients at increased risk for death. This risk may be a result of incomplete restoration of epicardial flow despite early primary percutaneous intervention. However, even when epicardial flow was restored, the study disclosed evidence of microcirculatory malperfusion. Thus, the cTnT status on admission may aid selection of additional therapeutic measures to improve epicardial and microvascular flow. (Giannitsis E, Bardoff MM, Lehrke S, et al: Admission troponin T level predicts clinical outcomes, TIMI flow, and myocardial tissue perfusion after primary percutaneous intervention for acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Circulation 2001;104:630–635).


The growing trend of collaborative RD they are objective and are particularly appropriate for analyzing the benefits of collaboration. As the identification of the institutions to which individual inventors are affiliated is a particularly time consuming task, we focus on robot technology in Japan since the beginning of the 1990s. Our results are as follows. First, although the level of RD however, we show that there are significant spillover effects of collaboration, which imply an indirect effect on quality. Third, the determinants and motives which encourage firms to decide to engage in collaborative research differ depending on the partner they are collaborating with. In the case of collaboration with other firms, IO theories hold, as the existence of spillovers acts as an incentive. Regarding the collaboration with universities and public research institutes, the validity of capability theory, which emphasizes the quest for complementary knowledge and capability, is confirmed by our empirical investigation.


Face segmentation plays an important role in various applications such as human computer interaction, video surveillance, biometric systems, and face recognition for purposes including authentication and authorization. The accuracy of face classification system depends on the correctness of segmentation. Robustness of the face classification system is determined by the segmentation algorithm used, and the effectiveness in segmenting images of similar kind. This paper explains the level set based segmentation for human face images. The process is done in two stages: In order to get better accuracy, binarization of the image to be segmented is performed. Next, segmentation is applied on the image. Binarization is the process of setting pixel intensity values greater than some threshold value to "on" and the rest to "off". This process converts the input image into binary image which is used for segmentation. Second process is image segmentation for eliminating the background portion from the binarized image which is obtained after the binarization of the original image. Conventional approaches use separate methods for binarization and segmentation. In this paper we investigate the use of recently introduced convex optimization methods, selective local/global segmentation (SLGS) algorithm [16] for simultaneous binarization and segmentation. The approach is tested in MATLAB and satisfactory results were obtained.


Orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light has drawn increasing attention due to its intriguingly rich physics and potential for a variety of applications. Having an unbounded set of orthogonal states, OAM has been used to enhance the channel capacity of data transmission. We propose and demonstrate the viability of using OAM to create an automultiscopic 3D display. Multi-view image information is encoded using an OAM beam array, then sorted into different view directions using coordinate transformation elements. A three-view demonstration was achieved to encode and decode 9 × 9 pixel images. These demonstrations suggest that OAM could potentially serve as an additional platform for future 3D display systems.


One strategy by which tumor cells evade recognition by the immune system is by upregulating factors that interfere with immune cell signaling—a process known as immune checkpoint. For example, the upregulation of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) leads to increased binding to its receptor (PD-1) on T cells of the immune system, inhibiting T cell activation. The therapeutic use of immune checkpoint inhibitors can reverse these effects, restoring immune system surveillance and tumor cell killing. However, these anti-cancer drugs are accompanied by autoimmune side effects, including the onset of type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is a serious autoimmune disease that develops when the level of insulin produced by the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas drops below the required threshold, resulting in the body's inability to control blood sugar levels. Such patients are dependent on insulin therapy. When insulinproducing cells are completely lost, the control of blood sugar levels becomes severely compromised, resulting in clinical complications, impaired quality of life, and a poor prognosis. Strategies for the prevention or cure of type 1 diabetes are currently lacking.


A retrospective study was conducted based on a data collection form designed to evaluate the present level of the performance of nurses. The entire information gathered through questionnaire; were studied and analyzed. The research revealed that Nurses usually treat patients with politeness but to our complete disappointment, they do not give the patients with satisfactory information as well as deliver proper Medication. The use and side effects of medications prescribed are not fully explained to the patients. The research reveals a small number of instances where nurses and other health workers insulted and neglected patients. Nurses should be a part of the work that helps in protection any patient's health care and safety which is affected by the useless, unethical or unlawful practice of any person etc. © 2011 IGJPS. All rights reserved.


THE scratch-reflex of the 'spinal' dog can be elicited by electrical stimuli' as well as by mechanical of the kinds previously described2 as efficient for it. It was noted in a former papers that the frequency of the rhythmic response of this reflex is not sensibly affected by the rate of repetition of mechanical stimuli evoking it, For testing this relation electrical stimuli possess advantages over mechanical. With the former the rate of application, duration, &c., can be better adjusted and controlled. If a graphic record of the scratching movement itself be taken simultaneously with that of the application of the stimuli to the skin, the rhythms of the movement and of the stitnulus can be compared.


On the example of the fuel and energy complex in the Novgorod region is analyzed the environmental activity of the enterprises. The analyses was held with the use of natural (emissions of polluting substance into open air and the coeffi cient of their slop) and monetary (environmental costs, economic damage and payments for the pollution of atmosphere ) index numbers. It is shown the dependence between economical activity of the enterprises and economic damage to the environment. It is established that the payments for the environment pollution are undercharged and don't compensate economic damage – that shows ineffectiveness of the environmental management economical regulators. Comparison of the payments for the pollution of atmosphere and environmental costs shows that payments don't fulfi ll their function- stimulation of the environment protection activity. We suggested to work out industry-specifi c coeffi cients of the ecological situation to settle accounts of the environmental pollution.


Breast cancer development is intimately related to DNA damage and DNA repair failures. The aim of this study was to investigate the level of DNA damage in the lymphocytes of breast cancer patients and to find its association with age and menopausal status. This study comprises of 75 breast cancer patients, equally categorized into three groups, based on the disease stage namely, non metastatic group, metastatic group and post treatment group. Control consisted of 25 healthy subjects. Lymphocytes were isolated from blood samples and DNA damage was assessed by comet assay. DNA damage was remarkably higher in breast cancer patients than in healthy subjects. Increased DNA damage was found in patients with metastases and post-treatment group. A positive correlation has been obtained in case of age and DNA damage. DNA damage was also high in post menopausal group when compared with pre menopausal group. These findings reveal that DNA damage increases with disease progression. DNA damage was also found to be positively associated with age and menopausal status of women with breast cancer. This stronger correlation observed may be useful in elucidating the mechanism of disease pathogenesis.


The synthesis and swelling behavior of a superabsorbent hydrogel based on starch (St) and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) were investigated. The physical mixture of St and PAN was hydrolyzed with NaOH solution to yield St—poly(sodium acrylate-co-acrylamide) superabsorbent hydrogels. The nitrile groups of PAN were completely converted to a mixture of hydrophilic carboxamide and carboxylate groups during the basic hydrolysis followed by in situ crosslinking of the PAN chains by the starch alkoxide ions. A mechanism for hydrogel formation was proposed and the structure of the product was established using FTIR spectroscopy. The effect of reaction variables, such as, base concentration, hydrolysis time, and temperature were systematically optimized to achieve a hydrogel with swelling capacity as high as possible. The optimized swelling capacity in distilled water was found to be >500g/g. The absorbency of the hydrogels indicated that the swelling ratios decreased with ionic strength increases. The St—poly(sodium acrylate-co-acrylamide) hydrogel exhibited a pH-responsive swelling—deswelling behavior at pH's 2 and 8. This on—off switching behavior provides the hydrogel with the potential to control delivery of bioactive agents. Release profiles of ibuprofen (IBU), a poor watersoluble drug, from the hydrogels were studied under both simulated gastric and intestinal pH conditions. The release was much quicker at pH 7.4 than at pH 1.2. The swelling rates of the hydrogels with various particle sizes were investigated as well.


The use of videoconferences (2 Mbit/s) in distance education has expanded in Norway as in many other countries. Universities and colleges use videoconferences to distribute lectures to groups of students that are widely spread geographically. Teachers in high schools have the opportunity to increase their knowledge of special education with the aid of videoconferences. Workers in the fish processing industry are offered further education, and schools that are short of qualified teachers may supplement their teaching schedule by putting up distant teachers on screen. The videotelephone, with its requirement of only one single digital telephone line, is of particular interest to distant educators. Through ISDN, visual communication will be available at a much lower price than the 2 Mbit/s videoconferences of today. At the same time, accessibility will be greatly improved. With this prospect in mind, the Norwegian Telecom Research has spent the last few years experimenting with the use of videotelephones in distance education.


Human performance is intrinsic to the philosophies, policies and process by which society is governed. Thus society establishes performance requirements and effects punishment or other sanctions if such, standards are not met. This paper examines human error as delineated or otherwise encountered by human factors specialists and then in the context of our legal system. Human Factors and the Law meet in the courtroom, especially in accident litigation. A serious deficiency exists in the investigation of human error accidents which poses a continuing threat to both effective accident prevention and improved social justice.