In this paper we propose an analysis of a slotted based protocol designed for devices of the Internet of Thing (IoT). In contrast to other TDMA-based protocols this scheme uses a random technique to access shared slots which presents similarities with CSMA protocols. In practice the transmissions are scheduled in a given back-off window of slots whose duration allows the transmission of a packet and its acknowledgment. Therefore this protocol can be analyzed according to the methodology introduced by Bianchi for the IEEE 802.11 protocol even if the protocol studied differs in many aspects. The model we use is also particular because we succeed in obtaining a Markov model even if the scheme used to send a packet (in a node) may depend on the transmission of the previous packet. We distinguish two protocols; in the first one, at the initial stage or after a successful transmission, the packets are transmitted without any back-off, whereas in the second protocol each transmission is always preceded by the count down of a random back-off. Extensive simulations validate the models of both protocols and a comparative performance evaluation is carried out.


In the new financial era, the realization of teaching objectives must be based on the integration and development of different majors. Therefore, for any professional practical courses, we should not confine our vision to this major, but should focus on the whole economic management specialty. Based on this, we designs a set of comprehensive simulation training teaching system. The system can build a three-dimensional talent training mode, cultivate innovative and applied talents.


Objective To explore the clinical application and value of personalized surgical treatment for repairing the oroantral fistula.Methods A total of 31 cases with oroantral fistula treated in our hospital from May 2006 to September 2009 were analyzed retrospectively.The individual surgical interventions were performed according to different situations as the size of fistula and inflammation of maxillary sinus.To repair the fistula with a diameter less than 7 mm(in 17 cases),double-layer tissue flaps overlapping method was adopted:Covered the fistula with gingival mucosa tissue flap as inner lining;after moderately decreasing the alveolar ridge,covered the gingival mucosa tissue flap with free and loosened buccal and palatal mucosa flap as surface microstructure tissue and sutured it discontinuously.To repair the fistula with a diameter during 7 to 25 mm(in 9 cases),three-tier tissue flaps overlapping method was adopted:buccal fat pad with vascular pedicle was clipped between the double-layer tissue flaps.To repair the fistula with a diameter more than 25 mm(in 5 cases),pedicled whole-palatal flap or forehead flap was transferred to cover the fistula.Patients with serious maxillary sinusitis were received functional nasal endoscopic operation to broaden the natural opening of middle nasal meatus for drainage.Results White accidental membrane was formed in edge of incision 72 hours after the operation,and no wound dehiscence was occurred after stitch removal at day 12 after the operation.All 31 cases were followed up for 1 to 6 months.One patient treated with double-layer tissue flaps overlapping method was relapsed and cured by re-operation of three-tier tissue flaps overlapping method in period Ⅱ 3 months afterwards,and another one case was found partial sutures exfoliated due to tension suturing and cured by change of dressing.The other cases were achieved well cured by one-time operation.The 9 patients combined with maxillary sinusitis were cured by operation assisted with nasal endoscope.Conclusions Patients with continually insisting oroantral fistula need to take effective surgical operation for repair.The overlapping of gingival mucosa tissue flap,and buccal and palatal mucosa flap should be applied to repair the small oroantral fistula;The overlapping of gingival mucosa tissue flap,buccal fat pad with vascular pedicle,and buccal and palatal mucosa flap would be suitable for large oroantral fistula;The pedicled whole-palatal flap or forehead flap should be recommended to repair the grave oroantral fistula.To cure serious maxillary sinusitis,functional nasal endoscope can be applied to broaden oral maxillary sinus for drainage.According to different situations of patients,choosing personalized operative treatment to repair oral maxillary sinus fistula would be more appropriate and more efficient to improve clinical one-time cure rate.


Since the end o f the 1990's, a strong increase in the stranding o f the common porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) has been observed in the southern North Sea. As strandings currently yield most o f inform ation about the composition o f the populations o f marine mammals, our study aims to characterize the main characteristics w ithin the stranded population, and to refine the representativeness o f the strandings as an ecological indicator o f the populations at sea. Therefore, the inform ation collected during the necropsies o f 893 animals stranded between 1990 and the end o f June 2013 on the Belgian and northern French coast was used. Furthermore, a firs t attem pt to model the backtracking d rift o f carcasses was used to estimate the origin o f the death o f animals. The simulations were realized over two major stranding peaks (from March 1st till May 31st 2006 and from March 20th till May 20th 2013) by means o f the OSERIT 1.0 software (Oil Spill valuation and Response Integrated Tool). One o f the main causes o f death is by-catch (accidental capture in fishing nets), which m ostly concerns the juveniles, due to the more coastal d is tribu tion o f this specific age group. Additionally, most o f by-caught animals died in the western water o f our study area and d rift some days before stranding. By-catch represents more than half the causes o f death during the main peak o f stranding. This peak occurs in spring and can be partially explained by the strong concentration o f recreational fishing during th is period in the Western part o f the studied area. The model simulations suggested that a large part o f the found animals come from waters lining the Dutch, Belgian and northern French coast. Moreover, the ir likely areas o f origin are very wide, covering the English Channel and the southern North Sea. This phenomenon could be partially explained by the current patterns, the tides and the wind, which would be the reason behind the high density o f strandings on these coasts. Finally, the progressive increase o f the strandings since 1990 is confirmed by our results w ith on average only 6.3 animals per year between 1990 and 2000, and 80.5 animals per year between 2001 and 2012. It would be explained in particular by the sh ift o f the population o f porpoises in the northern North Sea to the southern North Sea and by the higher incidence o f by-catch since the beginning o f the 2000 's.


The authors describe the case of a 31-year old woman who had been taking Infecundin for 5 years. The subject was hospitalized in order to undergo surgery for kidney ptosis. After opening the peritoneum, the surgeon detected a resistance the size of a fist in the right lobe of the liver. The resistance was palpable in the right hypocondrium. The routine laboratory analysis and tests concerning the liver function revealed no sign of any disorder. The authors performed a selective coeliography, following the Seldinger procedure. This confirmed the existence in the right lobe of the liver, of a 15 x 20 cm growth. The angioarchitecture was largely diseased and after further examinations, malignant hepatoma was diagnosed. The patient underwent a transrectal laparotomy. The study of other similar cases has revealed that these liver tumors often cause acute abdominal hemorrhages. In their conclusion, the authors draw attention to the fact that there is a very strong probability that liver adenomas are related to the use of oral contraceptives.


School Sex Education is nowadays an important public health issue as it concerns not only youth AIDS prevention (and other sexually transmitted infections – STI) and adolescent pregnancy prevention but also interpersonal relationships and psychosocial issues. Therefore school sex education contributes to promote better citizenship. The European FP6 Biohead-Citizen research project aims to understand how biology, health and environmental education can contribute to improving citizenship. It analyses the social representations and practices of teachers in several countries, focusing on their differences and associating them to controlled parameters (e.g. social context, religion, gender). In this communication we analyse data concerning teachers' and future teachers' conceptions on the topic of sex education derived from a questionnaire that was constructed and tested during the first year of the project. The questionnaire was completed by 5189 teachers and future teachers from 12 countries. We used statistical multivariate analyses, a method that has become standard for investigating complex data derived from many individuals that needs to be analysed according to many variables (here we have used the responses to the questions as variables). The results show that the factors that correlate most closely with the teachers' and future teachers' conceptions are religion, the level of belief in God and the level of religious practices. It was also found that the level of teaching (primary versus secondary school) is also correlated with different conceptions on sex education. Detailed results will be presented and discussed. Acknowledgements This work had the financial support of the European project FP6 Biohead-Citizen CIT2-CT-2004-506015.


As the reform in People's Bank of China deepens,some branch banks in counties(cities) with small volume of business,scarcity of staff or in the vicinity of center branches have been removed or merged.The remaining branches cannot fit in the security condition due to scarcity of staff,aging group and bad security,and they check the deepening development of basic central banks' security work.It has become a necessity to develop a new mode of security operation under new circumstances in basic central banks.


Conventional attitude algorithms for strapdown inertial navigation system (SINS) use angular increment as algorithm input. However, these algorithms do not address the issue of angular rate which is the output of modern-day gyro. The integration of angular rate for the purpose of getting angular increment degrades the algorithm performance inevitably. To solve this problem, a generalized method for improved coning algorithms is proposed. The improved coning algorithms use angular rate as algorithm input and estimate the coning term with the cross product of angular rates. Simulations are carried out under coning motion. While angular rate is used as algorithm input, the accuracy of attitude computation can be improved effectively by using improved coning algorithms as compared with conventional ones.


Polypyrrole hollow nanoparticles were prepared by atmospheric pressure plasma polymerization. The structure of the nanoparticles was studied using Fourier transform infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning and transmission electron microscopies and atomic force microscopy. In contrast to low-pressure plasma polymerization of pyrrole, which can produce films and solid nanoparticles, we obtained two types of hollow nanoparticles: a fraction with single spherical core and another with a core composed of small bubbles. Thermal characterization allowed us to determine that the nanoparticles are composed of highly crosslinked polymer. A mechanism that explains the formation of both types of hollow nanoparticles as well as solid nanoparticles is proposed. Chemical characterization shows that, in addition to the expected chemical structures due to pyrrole polymerization, the high energy of the plasma at atmospheric pressure produces intense dehydrogenation and oxidation processes. The fluorescence spectrum of the nanoparticles, however, shows a peak at 482 nm indicating that some degree of π-conjugation is present in the material. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry


Abstract Background Rising rates of substance use, particularly synthetic opioids, have led to increases in fatal overdoses and injection-associated infections. Harm reduction, including infection prevention via provision of supplies and education, is an approach to minimize risk of severe outcomes. Although harm reduction services (HRS) are highly evidence-based, implementation in most healthcare settings is limited. The aim of this study was to identify facilitators and barriers to the implementation of HRS to inform strategies for increasing access and adoption of a comprehensive bundle of harm reduction resources within the VHA. Methods Qualitative interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide and explored how harm reduction is currently understood and implemented by VHA providers and was designed to identify perceived gaps and barriers. Data were analyzed using a directed content analysis. After barriers and facilitators were identified, they were mapped to relevant implementation strategies using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research - Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (CFIR – ERIC) tool. Results 15 interviews with VHA providers (physicians, social workers, pharmacists, and directors of addiction and mental health services) were conducted across 5 sites. Multiple barriers and few facilitators to the provision of HRS were identified (Table 1). Currently, HRS were thought to be fragmented and dependent on the knowledge, time, and comfort level of individual providers. Participants also highlighted stigma around substance use, limited support, and burdensome regulatory requirements. Existing infrastructure, social programming, and local champions were highlighted as facilitators. Given these factors, implementation strategies that may be bundled to promote adoption of HRS include engagement of champions, communications and educational strategies, existing policies, and creation of dashboards and tracking and feedback systems (Table 1). Conclusion HRS are effective, evidence-based, and patient-centered tools. Mapping of barriers to evidence-based implementation strategies may help improve integration of HRS into VHA healthcare, however, challenges addressing stigma remain a substantial barrier. Disclosures Westyn Branch-Elliman, MD, MMSc, DLA Piper,LLC/Medtronic: Advisor/Consultant|Gilead Pharmaceuticals: Grant/Research Support.


As the term of 'model' has a wide variety of meanings, clearly a very narrow type of models is addressed in this book. Even within the special field of 'environmental models' only the sub-class of deterministic models is treated; statistical models do not appear, although statistics plays a significant role in environmental sciences and technology. In deterministic models all variables and parameters are functions of independent space and time variables. The independent variables are referred to by the usual notation x, y, z and t. In most models, especially in the relatively simple examples presented here, it is sufficient to formulate the problem considering only a subset of these four variables. Depending on the number of space dimensions, one speaks of 0D, 1D, 2D or 3D models. 0D models have no space dependency, only a time dependency. Ecological models concerning populations of biological species in an environmental compartment are in their majority of that type. As t is the only independent variable, the analytical formulation leads to ordinary differential equations. These are differential equations, which depend on one variable only; in contrast to partial differential equations, where there are at least two independent variables. Models with no time dependency are denoted as steady, steady state or stationary. The corresponding terms for time dependent simulations are: unsteady or transient. A steady state is approached in real systems, if the internal processes have time enough to adjust to constant outer conditions. It is a necessary condition for steady state that exterior processes or parameters do not change in time. Otherwise steady conditions cannot be reached. 1D models include one space dimension only. Models for the soil compartment are mostly 1D, as the changes in vertical direction are of concern: seepage to the groundwater table or evaporation to the ground surface. Processes in rivers (image a water level peak or a pollutant plume moving downstream) can be regarded in 1D under certain conditions. Water from surface water bodies infiltrating into aquifers


Black ice is a thin coating of ice on the road surface, which strongly reduces friction at the tire-road surface, resulting in dangerous driving when it happens. An appropriate diagnostic of black ice could prevent traffic accidents as well as provide timely notice to drivers. Therefore, this study aims at developing a black ice prediction model to diagnose the probability of black ice formation. Several combinations that can form road ice have been considered, including freezing rain, hoar frost, freezing of wet roads. In addition, black ice risky index (BRI) has been computed to reflect the probability of black ice formation. To acquire a fast prediction and high accuracy, the existing Geographical Information System (GIS) database and meteorological data have been utilized. GIS database includes road geometry and location of automatic weather stations, while the meteoritical data consists of air temperature, wind speed, humidity, cloud cover. The model has been developed based on the Python programming language. A 5-km road condition was observed from 1 December to 31 December 2021 to determine the model accuracy. Based on the results from the prediction model, black ice formation has been verified when the BRI is higher than 0.8. The model may be useful to develop black ice diagnostic program.


This is not a committee report, though perhaps it could be made to serve as such, because its genesis was a request from the committee on the economic status of the engineer that a paper be written around the author's remark, "The economic status of the engineer is largely a matter determined by each individual engineer according to his particular personal qualifications and the relations these bear to the work he does and to the personalities of those persons with whom and by whom he is employed."


The area of application for Vacuumed insulated panels (VIP), including household electric appliances like refrigerator, boxes for heat and cold insulators and window glasses, is expanding rapidly by its advances of practical applications. Furthermore, VIP has been possibly used in building industries recently. However, the measurement method of its thermal conductivity has been not fully established. Especially, it is difficult to know the thermal conductivity of the core material in VIP. It must be the reason that laminated films lapping the core material in VIP facilitate the growth of the heat loss. In this study, it was proposed a way which could estimate the thermal conductivity of the core material using thermal conductivities measured by Guarded Hot Plate method. We have confirmed the accuracy of the proposed estimation by numerical simulations and experiments. Then we have just a simple assumption that the heat flow conducting through the VIP is separated to two heat flows in the directions of thickness and plane of VIP respectively. Furthermore it was shown that the thermal conductivity of the laminated film could be estimated. [


Bias Temperature Instability (BTI) has led to more vulnerable ICs with the continuous downscaling of CMOS technologies. This paper presents the impact of BTI for two different SRAM sense amplifiers which target two applications, i.e., low power (LP), and high performance (HP). The evaluation metrics, the sensing delay (SD) and energy, are analyzed for three workloads. In contrast to earlier work, this paper thoroughly quantifies the increased impact of BTI in such sense amplifiers for the different applications for 45nm technology node. The results show that the sensing delay degrades faster for high performance application. We observed an increase in energy consumption for the HP application when BTI is applied, while this consumption reduces for the LP application. The results further show that the BTI impact sensing delay is 4.00% for LP, and 5.02% for HP when typical workload is applied for a 10s lifetime, while there is no significant change in energy consumption for both LP and HP applications. Furthermore, the results show that, the BTI sensing delay impact is higher for Standard-latch type Sense Amplifier (SLT-SA) than for Double-tail ltach-type Sense Amplifier (DTLT-SA) for the worst case workload. BTI impact on energy is lower for DTLT-SA as compared to SLT-SA.


On the basis of the integrated analysis of anelastic effects of internal friction (Snoek, Snoek-Kester, decrtuction effect) of evolution of degradation and damage in low-carbon steels was estimated. The mechanisms of evolution of degradation and the earlier stages of damage were revealed.


We present a very easy and practical method to send the information in a secure manner such that its disclosure to unintended recipient is not possible. Our method does not require the distribution of shared key at all. Our idea is inspired by the popularity of a very recent phenomenon of "Disclaimer Statement" in corporate emails.


Objective To explore clinical effects of laparoscopy applied in the female patients with infertility. Methods 468 cases of female infertility patients were diagnosed and treated by laparoscopy and 168 cases received follow-up survey. Results Among those infertility patients, the patients of normal pelvic cavity and the abnormal one were 49(10.47% ) and 419( 89.53% ). Among those patients of abnormal pelvic cavity .fallopian tube disease in 276 cases(65.87% ) was at the first place. The constituent ratio of endometriosis,ovary tumor,polycystic ovary,uterine myoma,female genital tract malformation and pelvic tuberculosis was 14. 80% ,5. 97% ,4. 30% ,3. 82% , 3. 34% and 1.91% .respectively. The patients of primary infertility and the secondary ones were 208 and 260 cases. In secondary infertility patients 69.23% (180/260) of patients were caused due to fallopian tube diseases,and the constituent ratio was higher than that in primary infertility 46.15% (96/208) (x2 = 14.05 ,P <0.05),while in primary infertility,the constituent ratio of endometriosis and normal pelvic cavity were 20.19% ,15.38% ,which were higher than that in secondary infertility respectively(x2 = 11. 78,11. 16, all P < 0.05). The pregnancy rate of 168 cases followed-up was 45.24% (76/168).47.37% ,84.21% pregnancy occurred within 6,12 months with laparoscopy. The shortest and longest time of pregnancy was 2 and 30 months, respectively. The median was 8months. Conclusion Laparoscopy playd an important role in diagnosis of infertility and improvement of pregnancy rate.

Key words:
Laparoscopy; Infertility, female


Background: Little is known about the function of specific phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) isoforms in osteoclasts. Results: Using a panel of isoform-selective inhibitors, we found that PI3Kδ regulates osteoclast morphology, actin cytoskeletal organization and resorptive activity. Conclusion: The PI3Kδ isoform plays a critical role in regulating osteoclast resorptive activity. Significance: PI3Kδ is an attractive target for anti-resorptive therapeutics.


The exhaled fraction of nitric oxide (FeNO) is known as a biomarker of pulmonary inflammation. Epidemiological studies led to Rationale conflicting results regarding associations between FeNO, atopy and asthma. Nitrite (NO -) and nitrate (NO -) are other indicators of NO 2 3 synthesis. Total NO -NO we are exposed to derive from endogenous and dietary sources (vegetables, cured meat). Nitric Oxide Synthase 2 3 (NOS) is the key enzyme in the formation of NO. The aims of this study were to evaluate the associations between 1) NO -NO in exhaled 2 3 breath condensate (EBC) and response to Skin Prick Tests (SPT) 2) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in NOS2A with NO -NO and 2 3 response to SPT, and 3) whether genetic factors modify the association between NO -NO level and response to SPT among adults from 2 3 the French Epidemiological case-control and family-based study on Genetics and Environment of Asthma (EGEA). Positivity to SPT (SPT+) was defined as a positive response (>=3mm in diameter) to at least one of 11 aeroallergens. Total NO Methods 2 -NO (converted nitrate plus nitrite) level was measured in EBC. 37 SNPs belonging to NOS2A were included in the analyses. Odds ratios 3 for SPT+ were estimated with generalized estimating equations (GEE) for logistic regression models accounting for age and gender. Association between the 37 SNPs with SPT+ and NO -NO , interactions between total NO -NO and the SNPs on SPT+ were tested under 2 3 2 3 an additive genetic model. Data were available for 1327 adults (43 years, 51.2% women, 37.8% with asthma). EBC NO -NO level was unrelated to asthma, Results 2 3 diet, smoking habits. A positive and borderline statistically significant association was found between level of total NO -NO in EBC and 2 3 SPT+ (adjusted OR=1.38(95%CI 0.99,1.91), p=0.06) and a stronger association was found among non-asthmatics (adjusted OR=1.51 (95%CI 1.02, 2.22), p=0.04) as compared to asthmatics. No association was found between SNPs in NOS2A and SPT. One SNP (rs4795067) was significantly associated with NO2-NO3 (b=0.053, p=0.046). Statistically significant interactions were found between five SNPs and EBC NO2 -NO on SPT+, one of which (rs11080358) remained statistically significant after correction for the effect of multiple testing (see below). 3 This result was confirmed after adjustment for gender and age.


1. Economic policy Former Finnish Prime Minister Lipponen stressed the close links between economic and social policy. Referring to the example of his own country – and of the other Scandinavian states – he showed that not only is it possible to reconcile an end to state deficits with the stabilisation of higher welfare standards but such a policy is actually a prerequisite for social improvement. Only if the state pulls itself out of the vicious circle of debt and interest payments will new resources be released for education, research and the welfare state. Lipponen particularly emphasised the importance of securing international competitiveness, expressing his support, in this respect, for the EU policy of open markets and liberalisation. Without economic growth, he argued, there would be no progress of any kind. The political and trade union Left must say farewell to its traditional understanding of the welfare state as a care body and perceive the need for citizens to take on greater responsibility for their own welfare.


The article examines the life and work of the American artist David Wojnarowicz. Various topics are discussed including his childhood in Michigan, his impact on the New York City art scene in the 1980s and his death from AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) in 1992. The 2012 book "Fire in the Belly: The Life and Times of David Wojnarowicz," by Cynthia Carr is also examined.


Sangam literature is a time mirror that reflects life events in languages in which the heroism and generosity of four hundred kings have been described. From time immemorial, the Guru has been revered as a deity after his mother and father as the Guru's deity. The idea that only the Guru can heal the family, the student, and the country has been around. In Sanskrit literature, poets had the right to rebuke the king and to give him loving advice to make the country prosperous for the good of a king. In the late nineteenth century, poets primarily portrayed the heroism and generosity of kings through their songs. Not only male poets but also female poets excelled in this. Songs sung by individual poets All the songs in this book are sung about public justice without being sung about anyone There are hundreds of poets who mention the names of poets but also mention the names of kings.


This paper analyzes the questioning of witnesses in a West German civil Hearing in order to explicate how 'legal' reality is socially constructed through the communicative choices of the judge, and their influence on the witness 's answer. The testimony of two persons who were witnesses to an automobile accident is analyzed, in order to elucidate the objectified, latent meaning structures constructed through interaction. The author formulates six general· izations, which may be taken both äs conclusions about the particular case studied and äs hypotheses about communication in inquisitorial courtrooms generally.


Forecasting as a data mining technique offers the opportunity to leverage the numerous sources of time-series data, to support business decision-makers for effective planning and derive value from historical data. The lack and fluctuating rainfall and the Israeli occupation caused a crisis in Palestine and in Gaza in particular. Water resources are decreasing by the increase of population as the passage of time. Groundwater is the only water resource used in Gaza. Moreover, the increase in the demand for groundwater and the decrease in rainfall water, which is the main source of groundwater, will lead to depletion of groundwater wells, thus increase the salinity rate. In this paper, we conducted the forecasting technique on both the groundwater and the rain amounts in Dear El-Balah city of Gaza using the following forecasting algorithms: Auto-Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA), Hybrid ARIMA:(ARIMA+ NN), (ARIMA+ ets), (ARIMA+ tbats). The best performance of applied algorithms on rainfall data according to Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) measure was ARIMA combined with NN which gave the MAPE = 21%. On the other hand, ARIMA combined with tbats was the best algorithm applied on wells production data which achieved MAPE= 8.9%. The results showed that after 5 years the amounts of rainfall and groundwater production in comparison with the period from (2013 to 2017) will decrease by 8.4%, 0.03%, respectively.


In order to meet the challenges of the marketplace, senior management needs to ensure that an organisation employs highly skilled and well‐motivated staff, and there is a commitment to establishing a learning organisation. Simulation exercises can be used to develop the skill base of individual employees and corporate mentoring can be used to both retain and stimulate junior managers who are keen to progress through the organisation's hierarchy. This paper makes reference to a human resource management development and strategic management framework that can be used to develop a pro‐active approach to decision making. Such a framework will allow junior managers to develop a holistic awareness and appreciation of the organisation, and will provide a basis for consensus decision making. It will also foster diversity and enhance the process of communication in a multi‐cultural work environment.


The laboratory nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurement and NMR logging have been widely used in formation evaluation since the recorded signal is directly related with the hydrogen. However, the internal magnetic field gradient (G) that is generated from the magnetic susceptibility difference between pore fluid and solid grains, is an important factor that cannot be ignored. It affects the accuracy of NMR logging interpretation and results of fluid identification by accelerating the transverse relaxation of pore fluid through diffusion relaxation, especially in paramagnetic minerals reservoirs such as volcanic and shale.


In this paper, we study the self-adjoint second order boundary value problem with integral boundary conditions: (p(t)x'(t))'+f(t,x(t))=0, t (0,1), x'(0)=0, x(1) = x(s)g(s)ds. A new result on the existence of positive solutions is obtained. The interesting points are: the first, we employ a new tool-the recent Leggett-Williams norm-type theorem for coincidences; the second, the boundary value problem is involved in integral condition; the third, the solutions obtained are positive.


Introduction: Tuberculosis is a highly contagious disease and requires long-term treatment and large amounts of medication. This can affect the high risk of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB). A health service approach in providing comprehensive management including promotive, preventive, curative, and rehabilitative is very necessary to overcome these cases. Aim of study: This article aims to determine interventions that can be carried out by health services in preventing the occurrence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). Method: The method used is a literature review through national to international journals that examine the interventions that can be carried out by health services in preventing MDR-TB. The articles or data sources that have been obtained will be compared with one another so that the factors that most influence the occurrence of MDR-TB can be found. Results and Discussion: The literature search results show that health workers, especially doctors, have an important role in managing MDR-TB cases. Management of MDR-TB in a comprehensive manner is carried out through promotive, preventive, curative, and rehabilitative programs through a health service provider approach. Educational activities regarding TB, MDR-TB, or the possibility of drug resistance are important to do to prevent new cases of MDR-TB. Curative treatment is carried out to improve mental and social health. Furthermore, rehabilitative efforts are carried out as a means to improve health status recovery for MDR-TB sufferers. Conclusion: Health service providers can improve facilities, they can carry out promotive, curative rehabilitative management to reduce the incidence of MDR-TB.


【Objective】 The reaserch on effects of differing low temperature stress on main osmotic adjustment substances,chlorophyll content(chlorophyll content index) and fluorescence paramerter Fv/Fm of tea leaves was performed to study the response of tea plants to low temperature stress and provide a basis for tea introduction and cultivation.【Method】 One-year-old detached branches of 'Shuchazao' and 'Wuniuzao' were treated under-6,-9,-12,-15 and-18 ℃,respectively,and the changes of relative conductivity,proline,soluble protein,soluble sugars,chlorophyll content and Fv/Fm of tea leaves under stress conditions were measured with untreated materials as control.Then the semilethal temperature(LT50) was calculated based on relative conductivity.【Result】 The results showed that there was no significant difference in relative conductivity between control and treatment under-6 ℃ stress,but the relative conductivity was remarkably increased with the decrease of temperature.As temperature decreased,the content of proline,soluble protein,soluble sugars all ascended first and then decreased,and these indexes of 'Shuchazao' exceeded significantly those in 'Wuniuzao'.However,temperature range in responsive to low temperature stress of these indexes was different between 'Shuchazao' and 'Wuniuzao'.'Shuchazao' had a remarkable higher content of Chlorophyll than 'Wuniuzao'.When the temperature was below-9 ℃,chlorophyll content index and Fv/Fm decreased obviously.LT50 of 'Shuchazao' and 'Wuniuzao' were-17.3 and-16.7 ℃ respectively.【Conclusion】 The physiological indexes related to cold-resisitance of tea plant all changed significantly under low temperature stress,and tea plant would suffer serious physiological harm at-17 ℃,which should be on guard on tea cultivation.


During the last decade the issue of competence development has again been receiving a great deal of attention. Many, particularly larger organisations (e.g. in agribusiness) are using competencies to manage and implement change in their organisations. But also in other contexts increasing use is being made of competencies. In short the competence concept is aimed at shifting attention from knowledge (especially declarative knowledge) to the application of skills. In this article, the theme competence development, which forms the core of life-long learning and which from this perspective is of great importance for organisations in general and for the agricultural and market-gardening sector in particular, will be discussed. The main aim is to create structure in the enormous diversity of notions concerning the concept of competence, to outline its advantages and disadvantages and finally, to consider the consequences of using competencies in organisations in the agri-food system. The structure of this article is as follows. First of all an outline is given of the contexts in which the concept of competence is used. It will then become evident that competence is used in many different contexts. Hence, the use of competence will be dealt with, creating an outline of the functions of the concept of competence in organisations. This is followed by a reflection on the background of the popularity of working with the concept of competence: core-competence. The strategic power of core-competence has been the decisive factor for renewed interest in competence development. Then attention will be paid to the fact that there is a myriad of definitions for the terms competence and competencies. Dimensions, which can be differentiated by these definitions, are presented. On the basis of these definitions a working definition of the terms competence and competencies is introduced which can be used in the context of policy for organisations in the agri-food system, but also in edu


We have used a novel approach to describe pulse flux in the brain lymphatic vessel applying a mathematical analogy to the Barenblatt-Pattle solution of the non-linear diffusion equation that describes gas spreading in porous medium. Such simple mathematical model simulates adequately pulse motion leading to the initial increase of the transversal vessel deformation with following slow lateral distribution. Such approach allows to explain the high velocity motion of the compounds in the brain lymnhatic system.


The South African publications control system has, during the past two to three years, shown much greater tolerance than it has been given credit for. To Jessen negative perceptions, the public should be infonned about the current state of affairs and the concessions already made in the current application of the existing legiSlation. This article also provides details of arguments Dr. H.L. Venter is Senior Lektrise considered during the drafting of the by die Departement Kommunika new Film and Publications Bill, as . RAU well as details of, and comments on SI8 , . the proposed procedures with re-I ·ct' ns of an economic nal re d f I 'fi f f b res n 10 u ~ar _ to uture c asst lea Ion ? pu - where edilorial policies of publications !lcations and fil~s, Th,e meanmg and are formu!ated to attract certain readers eff~ct of claSSifications, age re· who in tum attract advertisers, stnctions and new proposals such de. of presented. prohibited. These researchers have tablishing a culture of sexuality in which shown that there is evidence that visual certain norms, attitudes and behaviour material which includes a crude mixture are presented as standard practice. It of sex and violence leads to more ag- may thus be possible that prolonged gressive sexual behaviour by male exposure may lead to integration of viewers. This view has also been rec- these factors into the perceptual ognised by the Canadian Supreme framework of some reCipients, espe Court. Prohibition of child pornography, cially children or individuals who have prolonged and crude mixtures of sex not been exposed to other forms of sex and violence and bestiality is also in education.


This article focuses on the analysis of two Sinophone films made by Chinese Malaysian filmmakers, which are Flower in the Pocket (Liew Seng Tat 2007) and Nasi Lemak 2.0 (Namewee/Wee 2011), and discusses how these films engage Malaysian ethnocracy by interrogating the ever-problematic Malay–Chinese relationship. Both filmmakers belong to the new generation of Chinese Malaysians who feel the need to question the political system and long for a more inclusive national identity. Flower in the Pocket depicts the uncomfortable relationship between Malays and Chinese by examining the stories of two families from both ethnic backgrounds while questioning how Malays have taken their privilege position and economic protection for granted. Nasi Lemak 2.0 instead parodies the mainstream Malay-centric ideology by deconstructing the image Malay heroism while satirizing UMNO's manipulation of ethnic politics.


Silicon (Si) has been widely used in advanced energy technologies including solar cells and secondary batteries because of its unique properties. However, up to now, the highest conversion efficiency of solar cells for silicon is just over 26%. Furthermore, during charge–discharge cycles, the Si voluminal expansion has been considered seriously, which greatly reduces the cycle life of the solar cell. Therefore, many research efforts have been focusing on the development of new phase, nanostructure, and pathways for improving the conversion efficiency and the cycle life of Si-based energy devices. In this review article, advanced methods, such as in situ transmission electron microscope nanomechanical testing, nanoscratching, nanoindentation, scratching at the nanoscale, and micrometer examination of the deformation-induced nanostructure of Si, are first presented. Subsequently, deformation-induced nanostructures in Si are proposed, in which the nanostructures are fabricated by a developed setup and novel diamond wheels. A new phase and a pathway in Si are manufactured and demonstrated by this setup. Finally, the perspectives and challenges of deformation-induced Si nanostructures for future developments are discussed.


Subject
 Food security and obesity.

 Significance
 President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) announced on August 16 that his government would set up a new public body dedicated to food security. Mexican Food Security (Segalmex) will merge two existing state companies that sell subsidised food in deprived areas and distribute fortified milk to vulnerable groups. AMLO's announcement was followed by the release on September 11 of a UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) report showing that while 11.3 million Mexicans were severely food insecure in 2015-17, 24.3 million adults were obese in 2016, up from 20.5 million in 2012.

 Impacts
 Boosting local production may be insufficient to reduce the country's reliance on imported foodstuffs.
 The OECD estimates that 40% of Mexicans could be obese by 2030, exacerbating pressures on the public health system.
 Failure to address obesity will have financial costs owing to the impact of associated illnesses such as diabetes on worker productivity.


Recent current measurements obtained from drifting platforms over the Yermak Plateau in the eastern Arctic Ocean confirm that the plateau is a region of greatly enhanced diurnal tidal currents. Modulation of the diurnal currents is clearly related to the plateau topography, as has been previously proposed. We show, however, that temporal variability due to spring-neap modulation must also be considered in interpreting records from drifting platforms. We review simple models of tidal current amplification in this region and find that the previous assumption of near-resonant, barotropic shelf waves propagating around the plateau's entire perimeter is inconsistent with the true topography. Instead, we propose that the diurnal variability is due to topographic shelf waves at the K1 and O1 tidal frequencies that are generated at points on the plateau's perimeter where the waves' group velocities are near zero. Observed cross-slope variations in ellipticity, orientation, and magnitude of tidal oscillations are consistent with the presence of topographic waves generated in this manner. The topographic enhancement of the diurnal tide near the Yermak Plateau has important consequences for the sea ice cover, hydrography, and general circulation of this region. For example, the stress divergence applied by the tidal currents at the ice base greatly exceeds the typical divergence of the surface wind stress, and tides may therefore be important to local ice deformation. The strong cross-slope tidal currents also appear to be responsible for the production of high-frequency internal wave packets, which are associated with energetic diapycnal mixing in the pycnocline. We also consider the possibility that tidal rectification is responsible for a mean current transporting Atlantic Water clockwise around the plateau.


We studied the influence of a quantum dot in a 1D-channel on the quantised acoustic charge transport. Current plateaux at record-low RF-powers have been observed. More importantly, our findings show a possible way to a systematic engineering of quantum dots for an optimised high accuracy device


∗ J.D. candidate, 2012, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology; B.A., 2005, University of Colorado at Boulder. Special thanks to Bill Gray for his valuable insight. 1 Dan Rushe, Rod Blagojevich, Former Illinois Governor, Found Guilty of Corruption, THE GUARDIAN (June 27, 2011), http://www.guardian.co.uk/world /2011/jun/27/rod-blagojevich-barack-obama-senate-seat. 2 Former Illinois Governors Otto Kerner, Dan Walker, and George Ryan have also served jail time on public corruption charges. 'Sorry' Blagojevich Gets 14-Year Prison Sentence, THE CHICAGO-SUN TIMES (December 7, 2011), http://www .suntimes.com/news/crime/9300810-418/sorry-blagojevich-gets-14-year-prisonsentence.html.


A DC-AC inverter containing no magnetic devices is proposed. The energy is transferred from an unregulated line to a regulated sinusoidal output through a controlled switched-capacitor (SC) circuit. The SC circuit is formed by two symmetrical sub-circuits, which operate in anti-phase in each half-cycle of a switching period: when one of them is in the charging state, the other one is in the discharging state. A typical period of the output sinusoid is realized in 64 steps. Any switching cycle in a step is formed by four phases, the even phases playing a regulation role. A duty-cycle control is used. The inverter exhibits small size, low weight, good efficiency, clean AC output, good regulation capability with respect to large changes in line or load.<<ETX>>


For most of human history the natural environment stood separate from man: indifferent and alien, to be overcome, exploited, or managed. This article draws on the legal concept of standing and the nonlegal concept of voice to argue that nature no longer has standing as an "other" within the global environmental governance framework. Reviews of the transition toward "sustainable development" in environmentalism and also the post–Cold War global environmental governance framework are offered to support this point. Freed of the role that nature plays to ground humanity in space, sustainability now frames mankind only in temporal terms that are developmental but, without reference to context, irrational. The implications that nature has no standing are applied as alternative perspective on Blühdorn's arguments for a "politics of unsustainability."


[1] Barry et al. [2004] assess the performance of four bed load transport formulae in mountain gravel bed rivers in Idaho. When using log-log plots, they rightly point to the poor results obtained by formulae incorporating a threshold below which there is no transport at all. They go on proposing a simple power function (equation (3)) to link the bed load transport rate to the total discharge. They further parameterize the two parameters in the power function in order to obtain suitable predictions (equation (6)) on specific rivers. Figure 7 (Boise river study site) is shown as an illustration of the relevance of the power function.


A therapeutically effective amount, Deer Serein, rain or their pharmaceutically acceptable salts, analogs, prodrugs or hyperuricemia or hyperuricemia the administration of the active metabolite to a patient in need, diseases associated metabolic treating disorders and / or methods and compositions for preventing.


Despite the importance of promoting entrepreneurship in business activities to achieve a competitive advantage, a large proportion of business firms fail to make entrepreneurship a reality in their work. In addition, these constraints make it possible to gain a competitive advantage in the problems of the market in particular that modern markets are full of rivals and fast-paced changes in various variables. In light of this, the researcher carried out this study to investigate the role of entrepreneurship in achieving competitive advantage in SMEs. By using the descriptive-analytical approach, developing a questionnaire tool and distributing it to a sample of 100 administrators working in SMEs in Saudi Arabia. The results of the study showed that there is a positive relationship in the role of entrepreneurship in achieving competitive advantage in small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.


Unfinished Business: Faculty Advising Survey Discussion ; Election of New Officers by Secret Ballot: President Elect- Sarah Mergel (Unopposed) Parliamentarian- Kent Harrelson (Unopposed) ; Amendment of the Bylaws (Celeste)


Since the establishment of the Awards of JSE Outstanding Papers in 2014 (Ge & Wen, 2015), we have awarded 36 papers (four per year) to recognize the most significant research published in JSE between 2008 and 2017. The awarded papers were nominated by JSE Editors and were selected based on the citations (citation data from Thomson Reuters Web of Science) and editors' assessments. Starting in 2015, we have decided to recognize two outstanding papers for the JSE Young Investigators' Awards each year. First authors who received their Ph.D. degree within seven years are eligible for the JSE Young Investigators' Awards. The winners of the Awards will receive a certificate and a prize of $800 (JSE Outstanding Papers) or $500 (JSE Outstanding Papers by Young Investigators). Here, we are delighted to announce the recipients of the awards for the 2018 papers and highlight the significance of the four awarded papers.


I. A CENTRAL PROBLEM OF POLITICAL OBLIGATION 1. The problem 2. Obligations: initial points 3. In pursuit of political obligation 4. Actual contract theory: attractions 5. Actual contract theory: objections II. SOCIETIES, MEMBERSHIP, AND OBLIGATION 6. Social groups: starting small 7. Joint commitment and obligation 8. Societies as plural subjects III. A THEORY OF POLITICAL OBLIGATION 9. Political societies 10. Reconsidering actual contract theory 11. The plural subject theory of political obligation 12. Summary and prospect


Based on the origin data of Landsat TM images in 1980, 1995, 2000, 2006, 2012, this paper recurred to geoscience information spectrogram theory and utlized RS / GIS technologies, land use dynamic degree, land use transition matrixes and CA-Markov model to analyze the land use pattern change in Shiyang River Basin in the past 33 years, which was for the sake of discussing the spatial-temporal evolution rules and driving mechanism of land use in Shiyang River Basin. The results showed that: (1) There were apparent changes in the land use of Shiyang River Basin form 1980 to 2013. (2) in the past 33 years, the dynamic degrees of forest land, urban and rural resident construction land had relative large increase degree on the whole. (3) The main transition direction of land use types were arable land to grass land, grass land to unused land and unused land to arable land and forest land. (4) The CA-Markov model forecasting results indicated that there was no obvious change in land use construction in 2020. (5) The change of land use/cover brought desertification, mountainous runoff variation, the loss of water environment, vegetation coverage, water and soil, and a series of ecological environment problems.


A novel intelligent anti-theft door comprises an electric lock system, a communication camera device and a power supply control device, wherein the electric lock system, the communication camera device and the power supply control device are connected in a circuit mode, the electric lock system comprises a lock, a spring which is connected to the lock and an electromagnet, the communication camera device comprises a camera, a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) module which is connected to the camera in a circuit mode and an alarm, the power supply control device comprises an electromagnet, a camera, a GSM module, a controller of the alarm, a controller, an electromagnet, a camera, a GSM module and a power supply of the alarm, the electromagnet, the camera, the GSM module and the controller of the alarm are connected in a circuit mode, and the controller, the electromagnet, the camera, the GSM module and the power supply of the alarm are connected in a circuit mode. By the aid of the anti-theft door, if a user inputs a correct password, the anti-theft door can be opened smoothly. If the user inputs a wrong password for three times, the camera can shoot the user automatically, the user image can be transmitted to a mobile phone or other mobile devices of an owner through the GSM module, the owner can alarm timely or use other modes to avoid the theft, the anti-theft door is combined with an informationized technology and the life is guaranteed.


We study some of the general principles underlying the geometry of families of nodal curves. In particular: i) we prove a smoothing criterion for nodal curves in a given family, ii) we derive from it the existence of nodal curves on a general K3 surface according to Mumford.


This paper proposes a sensorless control method for a surface-mounted Permanent-Magnet Synchronous Machine (PMSM) based on the stator parameters. The toque of the motor is indirectly controlled based on the stator voltage measurements and current measurements and also on knowledge of stator inductance and stator resistance. The rotor speed is also indirectly calculated and used for sensorless speed control. The use of sliding control (smc) technique method provide s a straight forward solution for the control input. It is a dynamic control scheme which minimises error by comparing input and output values. It is a robust control scheme based on the concept of changing the structure of the controller in response to changing the state of   the system in order to obtain desired output. Experimental results confirm good dynamical performance, even at low speeds.


This article explores the experience of childlessness in individuals who want children. Psychoanalytic literature has documented many psychic meanings of childlessness. The author focuses on one factor that has not received much attention: a loss of connection to early objects and continuity with one's past and future. The author provides several clinical cases—both male and female, as well as a discussion of the life and work of the famous artist, Frida Kahlo, to demonstrate how childlessness can rob the individual of a way of coping with his or her fears about death. The author speculates on the sense of the inevitability of death as a driving force toward procreation.


Two‐dimensional focusing grating couplers have been produced using holographic interferometry with freely propagating wave fronts. Theoretical considerations lead to an optimized holographic arrangement. Experimental grating couplers with 2.2‐μm focus‐spot diameter have been achieved.


Objective : Testing for mutations in genes of known prognostic importance in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) can inform treatment decisions once first complete remission is achieved. Our objective was to model the cost-effectiveness of a genomics-based diagnostic with appropriate consideration to the relevant decision problems and heterogeneous nature of AML. Methods: A hybrid, decision-tree and Markov modeling approach was taken to conceptualize the history and chances involved in AML diagnosis and treatment. Outcomes from young adults (age ≥18 and de novo , intermediate cytogenetic risk group AML in British Columbia, Canada, were used to inform transition probabilities in the model and outcomes. A separate, patient-level, cost dataset was built for each of the health states and cycles in the model. Our base-case scenario assessed the impact of testing for NCCN guideline specified mutations (FLT3-ITD and NPM1) versus no genomic testing. Deterministic analysis was applied to assess relevant parameter inputs such as the impact of testing for other emergent prognostic mutations in AML and the cost of the diagnostic test. Probabilistic analysis was applied to assess the combined parameter uncertainty of the model. Results: Consolidation treatment decisions that follow successful first remission inductions (CR1) are critically important to health outcomes in AML. AML patients who undergo stem cell transplant in their first complete remission incur higher upfront costs than those who are treated with chemotherapy alone, yet survive significantly longer and have longer relapse-free survival. Cost savings are available from reduction of salvage transplants if high-risk patients are treated with a transplant in their first complete remission. The data shows a baseline chance that qualifying AML patients would receive a transplant that is equivalent to 34%, overall. Scenarios which project the impact of mutational testing predict that 15% more unrelated stem cell transplants could be expected at an increased cost of $4,822 (2013 CAD) and gain of 27 days of life per person, on average. Deterministic analysis identified the cost of a stem cell transplant to have a strong impact on cost-effectiveness, while the cost of the genomic test, and addition of other mutational tests were minor contributions to the simulated cost-effectiveness ratios. In probabilistic analysis, the resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (averaging $43,634 per life-year gained) were found to be reasonably likely to be considered a cost-effective cancer intervention in Canada. Conclusions: Modeling the impact of genomic tests in AML should sort cost and outcomes data according to treatment history and disease sub-classification. Mutational testing for young adult, de novo AML with intermediate risk characteristics is likely to be considered a cost-effective intervention to inform critical CR1 treatment decisions. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


We present a comprehensive investigation of the cryogenic performance of third-generation silicon-germanium (SiGe) heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) technology. Measurements of the current-voltage (dc), small-signal ac, and broad-band noise characteristics of a 200-GHz SiGe HBT were made at 85 K, 120 K, 150 K, 200 K, and 300 K. These devices show excellent behavior down to 85 K, maintaining reasonable dc ideality, with a peak current gain of 3800, a peak cut-off frequency (f/sub T/) of 260 GHz, a peak f/sub max/ of 310 GHz, and a minimum noise figure (NF/sub min/) of approximately 0.30 dB at a frequency of 14 GHz, in all cases representing significant improvements over their corresponding values at 300 K. These results demonstrate that aggressively scaled SiGe HBTs are inherently well suited for cryogenic electronics applications requiring extreme levels of transistor performance.


Interaction of relativistic particle streams is ubiquitous in laboratory as well as astrophysical plasmas, and so are the instabilities such as Weibel, filamentation, Kelvin-Helmholtz and two stream instabilities. The available theoretical models for transverse instabilities, like filamentation and Weibel instabilities, are restricted only to purely temporal analysis and do not catch any spatial characteristics of the instabilities, which can be relevant for finite size beams. Here we show spatial-temporal evolution of purely transverse filamentation instability by obtaining single differential equation governing the instability, as well as the exact analytical solutions for physically relevant initial conditions. The instability grows from the beam front to the back spatially up to a certain beam length, and then the instability acquires purely temporal behavior. This critical beam length increases linearly with time and also depends upon the beam velocity and instability characteristics. In ultra-relativistic regime the instability acquires purely temporal behavior. The analytical results are in good agreement with the multi-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations performed using OSIRIS. 41 EPS Conference on Plasma Physics O2.405


We present chain structure, phase morphology, and toughness relationships in thermoplastic polymers and polymer/rubber blends. In neat polymers, molecular aspects of craze/yield behavior are controlled by two chain parameters: entanglement density ν e and characteristic ratio C ∞ . The crazing stress is proportional to ν e 1/2 , and the yield stress is proportional to C ∞ . The dispersed rubber toughens a polymer/rubber blend mainly by promoting energy dissipation of the matrix. The toughening efficiency correlates with the rubber phase morphology and the chain structure of the matrix


The photofission fragment mass yields of actinides are evaluated using a systematic statistical scission point model. In this model, all energies at the scission point are presented as a linear function of the mass numbers of fission fragments. The mass yields are calculated with a new approximated relative probability for each complementary fragment. The agreement with the experimental data is quite good, especially with a collective temperature T col of 2 MeV at intermediate excitation energy and T col = 1 MeV for spontaneous fission. This indicates that the collective temperature is greater than the value obtained by the initial excitation energy. The generalized superfluid model is applied for calculating the fragment temperature. The deformation parameters of fission fragments have been obtained by fitting the calculated results with the experimental values. This indicates that the deformation parameters decrease with increasing excitation energy. Also, these parameters decrease for fissioning systems with odd mass numbers.


To investigate the morphology and ultrastructure of human peripheral blood lymphocytes before and after activation with atomic force microscopy(AFM).Methods:Human resting lymphocytes were separated and activated by PDB and Ion,the cells before activation,activated for 24h and 48h were all scanned by AFM in air.Result: Lymphocytes were obvious enlarged and have a more complicated surface after activation,small granules and immunological synapse were found on the activated lymphocytes.Conclusion: AFM is a powerful tool to study the morphology and ultrastucture of lymphocytes activation.


This study draws together a range of critical models in order to explore the ways in which the periodical functions as a particular cultural practice, both shaping and being shaped by the society in which it was produced. Focusing upon single women's magazine, Woman, across its entire publication span from 1890 to 1910, the study seeks to contribute a deeper understanding of the periodical text by situating it within its specific social and historical context. Through this comprehensive diachronic approach the study accounts for the changes occurring within a long-lived periodical which does not have one identity but several. The study also explores the complex web of relations between the text, its producers and its consumers, and the function of each in the creation and negotiation of meanings. The fragmentation of the periodical text into separate areas of writing, as well as its multiple points of production (from proprietors, publishers and editors to the many professional and amateur contributors), renders the magazine's construction of a stable textual identity problematic. A central question in the study, therefore, has been how to develop a critical model with which to address the plurality of a text in which genres and voices collide within an overarching editorial framework. The study also aims to redress the balance of existing critiques of the women's periodical press which have tended to marginalise the role of the reader both in the production of the text itself and in its interpretations. While the study explores the ways in which the genres of feature articles and editorials, competitions, correspondence and fiction in Woman functioned within the editorial framework as well as in response to circulating discourses, the central focus of the study is the interaction between consumers and producers in the construction of the text, and the ways readers absorbed, appropriated or resisted dominant modes of editorial discourse.


Tiie following case came under my notice when in Perth as locum tcncns for Dr Stirling, and is sufficiently interesting and uncommon to warrant a few notes of it being recorded:? Mrs I., aged 0(J, was seen by me on the night of 4th October. She had travelled from Glasgow that day, and was supposed to be in fair health when she left; she had, however, been under treatment for what was believed to be a hysterical condition. Since her death I have received particulars of the case from her Glasgow medical attendant. She had returned from America some three


In this paper, we present a novel approach for anonymous recommendation that combines the knowledge-based recommendation with a learning component. The novelty of the approach is specially expressed through a new approach for cascade combination of two systems, that enables better the usage of prior knowledge in the learning process. Secondly, the training data for learning is based on a complex description of a recommendation situation, that enables significant improvement in the quality of recommendations in unseen situations. The approach has been implemented in a real e-commerce environment and tested in large dataset based on the twenty months usage data. The results of the evaluation studies show that this kind of hybrid systems is very promising for ephemeral recommendation


Due to the increased transactions of second-hand products in the market, the optimization of maintenance strategy for the second-hand product has become very important issue to attract a great attention from many researchers of late. This paper proposes a new post-warranty strategy with a variable self-maintenance period for the second-hand product, assuming that the product is replaced by another one on the first failure following a fixed length of post-warranty self-maintenance period. During the non-renewing warranty period, the product is subject to preventive maintenance periodically at a prorated cost while only minimal repair is implemented at each failure by the dealer. The main goal of this study is to determine an optimal length of post-warranty self-maintenance period which minimizes the expected cost rate per unit time during the product's life cycle from the user's perspective. This approach considers not only the periodic preventive maintenance during the warranty period, but also the remaining life distribution of the product after the warranty expires, which is the significant difference of this work from many existing maintenance policies. For this purpose, we formulate the expected length of life cycle and evaluate the expected total cost incurred during the life cycle of the second-had product which is purchased at the age of x ( > 0 ) . The existence of the optimal self-maintenance period is proved analytically under mild conditions and the proposed maintenance model is compared with an existing model with regard to the expected cost rate. Finally, assuming that the life distribution of the product follows a Weibull distribution, the effect of relevant parameters on the optimal self-maintenance period is analyzed numerically.


Remote line power is rapidly becoming an acceptable alternative to local power as a means of powering Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH), DSLAMs, G.fast, and Small Cells. This paper gives examples of existing and emerging applications for remote line powering and describes the development and consolidation of standards that support it. The RFT-V standard, predominantly a North American standard, is now being considered in locations throughout the world because of its inherent power transmission advantages when compared to the well-established RFT-C standard. This paper describes the content of the newly released ATIS standard and discusses the potential for the upcoming IEC 62368-3 standard. The paper concludes that RFT-V power architecture is safe, and that the inherent power transmission advantages will drive RFT-V to power the next generation of distributed telecommunication equipment. The consolidation towards a primary standard, is expected to ensure cost containment and a steady pipeline of product innovations that can help drive the remote line powering of emerging technologies such as 5G, small cells and G.fast.


Abstract Answering the call for a "new comprehensiveness" in planning that enhances community equity, this paper presents a case study of Inclusionary Housing (IH), a program that can foster both residential integration and affordable housing. IH in California has evolved in response to, and has adapted to changing economic and political conditions. Survey findings for 75 IH programs show that they have produced more than 24,000 units, provide flexibility to the developers in meeting program requirements, establish affordability terms that are usually met at 30 years or longer, and favor moderate-income home buyers. Interviews with planners in San Diego County reveal that IH programs are usually established as a response to an actual or perceived threat of litigation due to noncompliance with state "housing element" law. Planners can enhance a new comprehensiveness by emphasizing state mandates and regional housing needs and by pursuing IH as one of the regulatory choices available to decision-makers.


This study set out to investigate the effects of disaster cognition and disaster risk cognition on the disaster management competence of social workers working in social welfare centers and examine their disaster management competence in details by focusing on the mediation effects of disaster preparedness. The purpose of this study is to establish a disaster safety culture at the organizational level of social welfare centers and to seek ways to strengthen disaster management competence at the level of individual social workers. To this end, a survey was conducted with social workers in social welfare centers(community welfare centers, community rehabilitation centers, and senior welfare centers located in Busan. Total 980 questionnaires were distributed, and 896 ones were returned, and the data of 892 research subjects was used for the descriptive statistical analysis, correlation analysis, structural equation model(measurement model and structural model) analysis, and mediation effects analysis using bootstrapping. The analysis results are as follows. First, it was found that the disaster cognition and disaster risk cognition directly affected the disaster management competence. Secondly, as for the relationship between disaster cognition and disaster management competence, and between their disaster risk cognition and disaster management competence, the mediating effects of disaster preparedness was found statistically significant. In particular, as a result of effect decomposition, it was found that the indirect effect of disaster preparedness had most significant impacts on the disaster management competence, being followed by the direct effect of disaster risk cognition in the order, which suggests that the social welfare academy should increase their interest in disaster preparedness. Based on the above results, it is necessary to seek ways to realize a safety-first organizational culture by raising the value and awareness of disaster safety at the organizational level of social welfare centers. And at the level of individual social workers, it will be necessary to actively participate in various disaster safety education and training. In addition, it will be important to foster expertise and responsibility in disaster safety for the rapid recovery of local communities. Finally, it was suggested that it is important to seek ways to increase disaster preparedness at the organizational level of social welfare centers and individual social workers.


For an active flow control, proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) has been used to develop a reduced-order model of the flow past a circular cylinder. Snapshots of the flo w field are recorded from the two-dimensional simulations of incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. Suction on the cylinder surface is the control mechanism to suppress vortex shedding. Feedback linearization approach is used to reduce the complex model to a linear-time-invariant system. Optimal control theory is implemented on the reduced-order model using a control function method. Appropriate gains are computed to reduce the hydrodynamic forces on the cylinder. 1 Introduction Feedback control of fluid-structure interaction is of pract ical importance from the perspective of wake modification and vortex-induced vibrations (VI V) reduction. Therefore, the development of design models and computational schemes for controlling vortex production and its shedding pattern has received considerable int erest in research as well as in industry. Despite recent progress in CFD and parallel computing, flow control through a computational approach still remains a formidable task. Application of control on systems described by PDEs is a challenging problem. A typical example is the control of fluid dynamical systems in which the Navier-Stokes equations are the state equations. To apply a control technique, one often reduces the partial-differen tial equations (PDEs) to ordinarydifferential equation (ODEs) to simplify the complexity of the dynamical system. For control design purposes, the POD approach enables modeling the Navier-Stokes equations as a set of ODEs. We use the CFD data of the flow past a circular cyl inder and compute the POD eigenfunctions from the velocity and pressure fields. Th e Navier-Stokes equations are then projected onto a low-dimensional space to develop a reduced-order model. Control of the flow over a circular cylinder has received consi derable attention because of its canonical nature and being a typical unstable flow. The re are various control mechanisms which have been employed on a circular cylinder to suppress vortex shedding. These methods include cylinder rotation, transverse motion, blowing/suction on the cylinder surface, and acoustic actuation. The focus of this work is to develop a reduced-order model and apply an optimal control strategy to suppress the vortex shedding. POD based reduced-order models have been successfully implemented for various control strategies. Graham et al. (1999a,b) developed a reduced-order model for the flow past a circular cylinder at Re = 100 using numerical simulations and the control action was achieved by cylinder rotation. They suggested two approaches to incorporate variable input control in the reduced-order model. In the first approach, kn own as the "control function method", a suitable control function is included in the velocity expansion to account for the inhomogeneous boundary conditions on the cylinder surface. The POD modes, used in the modified expansion, retain the homogeneous boundary condit ions. In the second approach, the "penalty method", the velocity expansion remains the same as for the unactuated flow and the essential boundary condition is enforced in an integral "weak" fashion. Thus, to


To assess the manoeuvrability of ships in shallow water at the early design stage, reliable simulation models which present shallow water effect are required. However, studies on the manoeuvrability of ship at low speeds in shallow water have been performed less than manoeuvrability in deep water. Also, the limitation of model that the effects of the keel clearance on manoeuvrability are applied to has been validated through previous studies. In this study, the manoeuvrability characteristics of the ship sailing in shallow water at low speed are evaluated by applying the mathematical model considering the shallow water effect. And the sensitivity analysis on shallow water manoeuvring simulation is performed in order to determine hydrodynamic derivatives which are necessary to be derived exactly due to the limitation of the shallow water model used in previous studies. Through this study, it could be confirmed that great importance of estimation of manoeuvrability could be found through the sensitivity index factor of hydrodynamic derivatives changing in the situation operating the shallow water at low speed.


Edge detection is the foundation of many computer vision systems because of its highly repetitive computational intensive nature there have been many research efforts to find ways to improve both speed and quality of edge maps. This paper describes a method of edge segmentation based on the composition of the split and merge method and the Canny edge operator. In order to speed-up the computationally intensive Canny operator, the proposed method is based on preliminary region segmentation and finding a focus of attention area. The focus of attention area is formed as strips around boundaries of regions. The Canny operator is navigated to the focus of attention area and then applied. The proposed method has been tested on nontextural images of the blocks world scenes, toy images and the images of outdoor scenes. The experimental results are given.


Dysregulation of the Wnt signaling pathway underlies the pathogenesis of a wide range of human cancers, including hematological malignancies such as multiple myeloma (MM). The terminal effector of this signaling pathway is a transcriptional complex formed by β-catenin and BCL9. This complex is of particular interest because the BCL9 locus resides on the frequently recurring 1q21 chromosomal amplification in MM, which has been linked to poor clinical prognosis and outcome. Our previous studies indicate that BCL9-mediated enhancement of β-catenin activity increases cells proliferation, migration, invasion, and the metastatic potential of MM cells. Therefore, in order to: (I) unequivocally determine the oncogenic role of BCL9, (II) better understand its mechanism of action, and (III) develop mouse preclinical model of cancer with dysregulated Wnt/β-catenin/BCL9 activity, we generated transgenic mouse models. To overcome problems inherently related to embryonic lethality, we generated BCL9fl/- conditional transgenic mice using site-specific transgene integration into the mouse ColA1 gene in embryonic stem cells. To remove the stop cassette and activate BCL9 expression in vivo, we generated AID-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- and ERT2-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- compound mice. Recombinase activity driven by AID (activation-induced cytidine deaminase) gene promoter or ER receptor after tamoxifen administration, caused removal of the stop cassette and expression of BCL9 in germinal center (GC) B cells or several tissues, respectively, as confirmed by immunoblot, immunohistochemical (IHC) and PCR analysis. Since BCL9 is a β-catenin co-activator, next we generated cohorts of AID-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/-; TCF/Lef1-lacZ+/- and ERT2-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/-; TCF/Lef1-lacZ+/- triple compound transgenic mice carrying the Wnt reporter system that expresses β-galactosidase (β-gal), to determine whether Wnt/β-catenin transcriptional activity is increased as a consequence of BCL9 overexpression in vivo. β-gal stain was increased in frequency and intensity in cells within GCs but not outside them in AID-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/-; TCF/Lef1-lacZ+/- compared to control mice. In ERT2-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/-; TCF/Lef1-lacZ+/- mice β-gal staining was primarily detected in cells outside the GCs, not within them. Overall, these results indicate that Wnt transcriptional activity is increased in B-cells as a consequence of Cre-induced expression of BCL9 and that AID-Cre+/- and ERT2-Cre+/- target expression of BCL9 to GC and non-GC B cells, respectively. Because BCL9 is involved in the pathogenesis of human cancers, we evaluated whether our transgenic mice develop hematological malignancies. Except for mild splenic enlargement, BCL9-transgenic mice were indistinguishable from control mice between 8 and 30 weeks of age as assessed by weight and posture. However, after 40 weeks of age and at variable times thereafter, 80% (32/40) of AID-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- and 70% (28/40) of ERT2-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- mice but none from control cohorts showed signs of disease. Gross pathologic examination of euthanized animals with BCL9 overexpression revealed enlargement of the spleen and LNs. Two distinct patterns of clonal hematological malignancies were identified after detailed histological, IHC and molecular examination. In AID-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- mice tumors resembled human plasmacytomas (PCs), whereas in ERT2-Cre+/-; BCL9fl/- mice B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). This later result is of particular interest, since BCL9 was first identified by cloning the t(1;14)(q21;q32) translocation from a patient with B-ALL. These findings indicate that BCL9 overexpression at different stages of B-cell development leads to distinct subtypes of B-cell malignancies. Finally, we investigated the BCL9 expression in human extramedullary plasmocytomas (EMP) and B-ALL. 32% of EMP cases analyzed by IHC expressed BCL9 at significant levels. Utilizing gene expression data available in the public domain we also showed that BCL9 is significantly overexpressed in ETV6-RUNX1 and TCF3-PBX1 subtypes of human B-ALL when compared to normal bone marrow counterparts, suggesting that BCL9 may play important roles in the pathogenesis of EMP as well as B-ALL in humans. Since BCL9 is highly expressed in tumors but not in the cells of origin and its interaction with β-catenin is specific, these results imply BCL9 as a promising candidate for targeted therapy. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


ABSTRACT Recent research has allowed us to quantify the costs and benefits of adopting renewable energy in specific municipalities, but how do these outcomes vary among communities at the national scale? This study uses survey responses from 47 Japanese municipalities to model these impacts and identifies key technological, social, and demographic factors that shape which communities benefit more from the renewable energy transition. On average, introducing renewable energy improves social equity, any financial burden on electricity prices is born most by wealthier residents, not the poor, and towns are predisposed to benefit from renewables no matter the amount introduced. To improve these impacts, towns can increase the amount of solar they host, or they can adjust the amount of CO2 emissions, PM emissions, tax revenue, jobs gained, or unpopular renewable power plants in their town. However, preferences and demographics matter as well. Age, education, and local preferences in favor of employment and community development all significantly relate to equity potential outcomes. Policymakers should consider adjusting their local energy priorities using these levers if they hope to engineer a renewable energy transition that is both positive and popular for their constituents.


The institutional perspective of cross-country differences in economic outcomes gives contrasting explanations on the persistence of extractive institutions in developing countries. Colonization, social fragmentation and the existence and use of natural resources are the most frequently discussed causes in the available literature. In this study, we analyze all the three explanations together by providing a case study of Nigeria. Nigeria is characterized by colonial legacy, social divide revealed by ethnicity and religion, and huge windfalls from oil. Based on our analysis, we argue that the lack and incoherence of formal institutional order is the main factor for Nigerian underdevelopment. Ethnic politics has shaped the formal institutional framework as a central stage for the disbursement of patronage and other types of the largesse. Colonial legacy has reinforced the effect of ethnicity by failing to provide a national ideology; and instead, providing a regional structure to rule. Similarly, the windfalls from oil have intensified the effect of ethnicity by invoking civil conflicts, arising mainly from the distribution of common pool. Thus, no single factor on its own can explain the persistence of extractive institutions; rather, it is the combination of exogenous and endogenous factors that collectively shape institutions.


The ongoing trend of crime problems in the Philippines has taken the government to create many ways and solutions to resolve this issue. One of these is the passage of House Bill 8858. It is a bill that aims to expand the scope of the Juvenile Justice and Welfare System and strengthen programs concerning the social integration of juvenile delinquents. Its possible enactment will change the MACR of the Philippines from fifteen to twelve years old. With this, the researchers conducted the current study that aims to evaluate the public perceptions and implications of lowering the MACR in Naga City. A mixed-method research design was used to assess the results of the study. Quantitative data were gathered from the survey conducted, while the qualitative method was used in the interview. The PNP-Naga provided statistics of CICL in Naga City in the year 2018. The selected respondents for this study include CICL, non-CICL, parents, DSWD officials, PNP officers, CYO, and professionals such as lawyers, guidance counselors, and psychologists. Two-tailed t-test with a p-value < 0.05 was also used to determine if there is a significant difference between the response of the CICL and non-CICL. Based on the results, in the year 2018, it turns out that there were 219 CICL in Naga City, which is considered relatively low. Most of these were aged 15-18, male, and in secondary school. Moreover, theft topped the criminal cases involving the children. The results also presented that there is no significant difference in the response of CICL and non-CICL. Both subjects disagree with lowering the MACR as it affects their mental and physical behavior. Most parents, officials, and professionals also disagree with lowering the MACR as they believe that the country is not yet prepared in terms of implementation, infrastructure, and management. Implications on the community showed that there could be an increase in the crime rate if not implemented properly. There is also a need to increase the budget allocation in the overall implementation. If CICL is detained, they will be just exposed to serious illegal activities, which can encourage them to be heightened rebellious and defiant. Furthermore, CICL that will be put on jurisdiction may be the reason for to drop in their morale and sense of behavior. Thus, the results affirm that lowering the MACR in the Philippines does not positively affect Naga City.


A curious optical deception takes place when a carriage wheel, rolling along the ground, is viewed through the intervals of a series of vertical bars, such as those of a palisade, or of a Venetian window-blind. Under these circumstances the spokes of the wheel, instead of appearing straight, as they would naturally do if no bars intervened, seem to have a considerable degree of curvature. The distinctness of this appearance is influenced by several circumstances presently to be noticed; but when every thing concurs to favour it, the illusion is irresistible, and, from the difficulty of detecting its real cause, is exceedingly striking. The degree of curvature in each spoke varies according to the situation it occupies for the moment with respect to the perpendicular. The two spokes which arrive at the vertical position, above and below the axle, are seen of their natural shape, that is, without any curvature. Those on each side of the upper one appear slightly curved; those more remote, still more so; and the curvature of the spokes increases as we follow them downwards on each side till we arrive at the lowest spoke, which, like the first, again appears straight.


The GHG cap-and-trade system is a key element of the policies designed to achieve California's ambitious goal of reducing GHG emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020. The cap-and-trade program creates allowances necessary for regulatory compliance that become valuable because of their limited supply. Decisions about how to initially allocate these allowances have important consequences for the cap-and-trade program's environmental effectiveness, economic performance, and distributional impact.Regulators have three basic options for allocating allowances initially: allocating pre-determined fixed quantities for free ("fixed allocations"), allocating each year's allowances in proportion to recent actual production output ("updating output-based allocations"), and auctions. The choice among these alternatives does not directly affect environmental performance. Regardless of the choice of allocation method, aggregate emissions are limited by the emissions cap. However, allocation choices may indirectly affect emissions through emissions leakage if economic activity shifts to unregulated sources due to cap-and-trade costs. In the context of California's GHG cap-and-trade program, leakage is most likely to occur if all allowances are distributed through some combination of auctions and fixed allocations. Appropriately designed output-based allocations can reduce leakage and thus increase emission reductions achieved by AB 32 policies.


The aim of this study was to analyze the association between the amount of daily movement measured with a triaxial accelerometer (MIMAMORI-Gait) and motor symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The subjects were 50 consecutive patients with untreated PD free of dementia. The amount of overall movement over 24 h was measured with the portable MIMAMORI-Gait device and its association with the modified Hoehn and Yahr stage and UPDRS part II and III scores was analyzed. In patients with PD, the amount of overall movement measured with MIMAMORI-Gait was significantly associated with the UPDRS part II score (β = −0.506, p < 0.001) and part III score (β = −0.347, p = 0.010), but not with the modified Hoehn and Yahr stage. The amount of overall movement measured with MIMAMORI-Gait can potentially be used for evaluation of motor symptoms and ADL in PD patients.


Vegetable production is heavily dependent upon high off-farm inputs of polyethylene (plastic) mulch, nitrogen fertilizer and pesticides. Such a production practice potentially contributes to the unintentional environmental pollution with fertilizer and pesticides as well as water run off and soil erosion. This raises serious environmental concerns for human and animal health. The integration of on-farm biological inputs into vegetable production system is one potential means of reducing the dependence on off-farm inputs. In recent years, alternative agriculture practices have tested cover crops like hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) as on-farm biological inputs that have the potential to reduce both erosion and the use of agrochemicals without impacting the yield or quality of the produce. Field-grown, fresh market tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) plants cultivated in hairy vetch mulch display reduced defoliation and tolerance to disease as compared to plants cultivated in the plastic mulch. We have initiated a molecular approach to test whether these beneficial attributes are linked to changes in the expression profiles of one or more specific gene products. The data indicated that vetch-grown tomato plants have increased accumulation of transcripts and proteins that are central to delayed senescence and disease suppression. INTRODUCTION US consumer demand for fresh market vegetables has increased considerably in recent years due to their contribution to human health. Vegetables and fruits are rich sources of vitamins, minerals and fiber. Conventional production methods have met these demands but compromised on the environmental and social issues because these production systems heavily rely on materials synthesized off the farm, such as polyethylene mulch, nitrogen fertilizer and pesticides. The current reliance on off-farm inputs will continue unless profitable, lower-input systems for fresh market production are developed. The integration of on-farm biological inputs into vegetable production systems is one potential means of reducing the current dependence on off-farm inputs. Cover crops represent on-farm biological inputs that have the potential to reduce the use of polyethylene mulch, fertilizer and pesticides (Abdul-Baki et al., 1996a, b; Creamer et al., 1996). The benefits of cover crops include improvements in soil preservation (Flach, 1990), soil health (McVay et al., 1989), weed suppression (Teasdale, 1993; Creamer et al., 1996), and the reduction of soilborne diseases (Rothrock et al., 1995; Candole and Rothrock, 1997). Hairy vetch has been used successfully as cover crop/organic mulch for growing processing tomato (Abdul-Baki et al., 1996a). In most cases, marketable yield of fresh market tomatoes was equivalent or greater in hairy vetch mulch as compared to black polyethylene mulch (Abdul-Baki et al., 1996a; Mills et al., 2002b). In addition, vetch decomposition provided nitrogen reducing the need for commercial nitrogen input (Abdul-Baki et al., 1997); nitrogen content of hairy vetch aerial biomass has been estimated at 126-169 kg ha. Fresh market tomato production in hairy vetch mulch is Proc. XXVI IHC – Sustainability of Horticultural Systems Eds. L. Bertschinger and J.D. Anderson Acta Hort. 638, ISHS 2004 Publication supported by Can. Int. Dev. Agency (CIDA) 498 economical as compared to production using black polyethylene mulch (Kelly et al., 1995). Cover cropping has been shown to suppress disease in some vegetable and fruit crops. The incidence of Phytophthora blight was reduced in peppers grown in a wheat cover crop compared to bare soil and polyethylene mulch (Ristaino et al., 1997). This reduction in disease incidence affected dispersal of propagules of Phytophthora capsici, the causal agent of Phytophthora blight (Ristaino et al., 1997). Sudangrass was shown to reduce the splash dispersal of Colletotrichum acuatum conidia and has the potential to manage anthracnose of strawberry (Ntahimpera et al., 1998). Compared to no soil cover, sand and plastic mulch, the incidence of leather rot disease of strawberry was reduced by using straw as a soil cover to reduce the splash dispersal of P. cactorum (Madden and Ellis, 1990). Cotton grown in hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth)-amended soil exhibited reduced incidence of black root rot, caused by Thielaviopsis basicola (Candole and Rothrock, 1997). The reduction of black root rot incidence correlated with increased ammonia levels in the soil (Candole and Rothrock, 1997). Compared to winter fallow, reduced soil levels of T. basicola were observed in a hairy vetch cover crop (Rothrock et al., 1995). Similarly, foliar disease was reduced in tomato plants grown in hairy vetch compared to bare soil (Mills, et al., 2002a). In addition, fruit produced in hairy vetch mulch appeared to be more suitable for fresh-cut slices than those grown in black plastic (Hong, et al., 2000). The advantages of cover crop cultivation seem impressive. However, not much is known about the cellular processes impacted, signaling factors involved or molecular mechanisms that are fundamental to vetch-induced longevity and disease-suppression. To help understand these mechanisms, we initiated studies to identify genetic components that are regulated in plants cultivated in vetch-mulch. This report presents our findings to date. HYPOTHESIS Our hypothesis is that controlled release of carbon and nitrogen metabolites during water-mediated decomposition of vetch results in a certain carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio that influences expression of genes associated with senescence, longevity and/or disease infestation. This hypothesis is based on the following observations in the literature: 1. Sugars impact photosynthesis, nitrogen metabolism, sucrose and starch metabolism, and defense mechanisms by regulating a few key genes (Sheen, 1994; Koch, 1996; Sheen and Jang, 1997). 2. Nitrate regulates carbon metabolism, resource allocation, root development and flowering (Koch, 1997; Wang et al., 2000). 3. Nitrate down-regulates genes involved in starch synthesis, facilitating the mobilization of carbon skeletons into organic acids (Koch, 1997, Wang et al, 2000). 4. Nitrate is readily reduced to ammonia and subsequently incorporated into amino acids (Koch, 1997; Stitt, 1999). 5. Carbon : nitrogen (C/N) ratio may regulate metabolic development (Smeekens, 2000; Hellmann et al., 2000; Vidmar et al., 2000., Coruzzi and Zhou, 2001). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Severer Foliar Disease Levels and Leaf Defoliation Occur in Black Polyethylene than in Hairy Vetch Mulch The onset of foliar disease was significantly delayed in hairy vetch-grown plants compared to those cultivated on black polyethylene. For example, foliar disease in plastic beds exceeded 41% at 84 days after transplant compared to hairy vetch beds that showed remarkably little sign of disease onset during a field test in year 2000. Similarly, plants grown in black polyethylene beds lost ~33% of their foliage at 84 days after transplant whereas those grown in hairy vetch beds lost only ~11% of their foliage in the same time frame (Fig. 1).


This article proposes the use of therapeutic associative cards in career supervision. Associative therapeutic cards, as a stimulus material, can be used to elicit thoughts and feelings and to encou...