. This research tittle is management of Ancol Regency Object Facilities Sarolangun. The purpose of this research is to describe the management of the object facilities Ancol Tourism in Sarolangun Regency. This research consists of three facility indicators, main facilities, supporting facilities, and complementary facilities direction, organization, direction and supervisor. This research is a qualitative descriptive research with survey methods. Data collection was carried out by means of observation, interviews, and documentation. The number of informants in this research 5 people, involving the District Office of Culture, Tourism, Youth and Sports Sarolangun, manager of the Sarolangun Regency Ancol Tourism Object. local society Ancol Tourism Object, Sarolangun Regency. The results of this study indicate that management of facilities at Ancol Tourism Object, Sarolangun Regency is not yet structured with good Planning made by the tourism agency is still slowly to advancing Ancol Tourism Object in Saolangun Regency. It can be seen that existing facilities have not made visitors comfortable. Therefore, expected to the management and the Tourism Office to always supervise existing facilities as well as organizing and maintaining existing facilities in order comfortable visitors. And future planning for the Tourism Office can be serious to build additional facilities at the Ancol Tourism Object, Sarolangun Regency.


The frequency of several kinds of cancer among relatives of 200 patients with ovarian cancer was analysed. The annual population incidence was used as a control. Nonrandom familial clustering of ovarian cancer (p less than 0.01) was observed. The frequency of breast cancer in women and that of eosophagal cancer in man was higher than the expected value (p less than 0.05). The risk of ovarian cancer occurrence amounted 9% in women of the first degree of relationship, whereas cumulative risk in a population only reached 1.57% to the age of 90. The patterns of distribution of patients in the pedigrees satisfied the requirements of the multifactorial model. Heritability coefficient was 54.12 +/- 2.49%. Thus, women of the first degree of relationship compose the high risk group.


Most of the members of the genus Helicobacter do not normally colonize the gastric mucosa, but instead thrive in the mucosal surfaces of the intestinal tract and/or the liver of humans, other mammals, and birds. A growing number of enterohepatic Helicobacter species have also been reported to be associated with gastroenteritis, hepatitis, and other disease states in humans and in other animal species. The significance of the enterohepatic Helicobacter species in human disease and the true prevalence of these organisms in human populations remain to be determined. Chronic active hepatitis leading to hepatocellular neoplasia was also observed in germ-free female Swiss Webster mice following experimental infection with Helicobacter hepaticus, clearly establishing the organism as a murine pathogen. Helicobacter cinaedi has been documented as a cause of acute diarrhea in otherwise healthy individuals; however, bacteremia without gastroenteritis is more frequently associated with H. cinaedi and H. fennelliae infection in immunocompromised patients with AIDS or other underlying conditions. H. pametensis and H. pullorum have been shown to infect birds and mammals. By microscopic visualization, H. muridarum was found to have a higher density of colonization in the ileum than the cecum or colon in conventional mice and rats. H. muridarum can infect the stomach of mice and cause gastritis. Sequencing of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene fragments has been used to show that enterohepatic Helicobacter species can infect the gallbladder of humans with chronic cholecystitis.


W, ' ITH THE beginning of public school kindergartens in North Carolina, educators were called upon to plan and im plement a statewide staff development pro gram unlike anything this state had ever attempted to do. State Department of Public Instruction personnel, public school teachers and administrators, college and university professors, and the Learning Institute of North Carolina joined forces to meet the challenge. Just as the implementation of kindergartens has purposefully been a grad ual one so that a "spread effect" over the state could ensure quality, so has the staff devel opment program systematically expanded developing leadership all along the way. The first state-supported kindergartens in North Carolina began in 1969 and became known as the K-3 continuous progress early childhood program. At that time kinder gartens were established in eight schools or early childhood centers located in each of the state's educational districts. Just over 300 children were enrolled. During 1970-71 ten additional centers were added, totaling 18 state-supported centers. In 1971-72 support


Development of new forms of interventions for diastolic heart failure (HFpEF) remains a challenging task.  The aim: Assessing the effect of combining erythropoietin and sildenafil on the left ventricle "LV" functions and morphometry in NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)-induced HFpEF model in rats. Method: Forty-eight female albino rats were randomly assigned to one of six treatment groups: "C" (Control), "L" (L-NAME-treated), "L+M" (L-NAME+milrinone-treated), "L+S" (L-NAME+sildenafil-treated), "L+E" (L-NAME+erythropoietin-treated), and "L+S+E"  (L-NAME+sildenafil+erythropoietin-treated). Assessment was done by morphometric examination, LV ejection fraction (LVEF) and fraction of shortening (LVFS)], ECG changes, and mean time to peak tension (TPT) and to complete relaxation (TCR) of isometric contraction of LV muscle strip stimulated by single (TPT-S & TCR-S) and by repeated pulses (TPT-R & TCR-R), respectively. Results: L-NAME resulted in cardiac dysfunction with significant reduction in the mean "LVEF" and "LVFS", and prolonged both the mean "TPT-R" and "TCR-R". Milrinone and sildenafil treatment significantly corrected these parameters. In addition, erythropoietin significantly ameliorated "LVEF" and "LVFS" and shortened "TPT-S". Similarly, "sildenafil+erythropoietin" treatment significantly corrected the measured parameters; however, they were insignificantly different from that of sildenafil only treatment. Morphometrically, sildenafil treatment resulted in significant but partial improvement in L-NAME-induced myocardial injury. Meanwhile, erythropoietin treatment showed more improvement. Moreover, combination treatment showed the best histologic picture in all of the treated groups. Conclusion: Sildenafil was able to improve cardiac functions mainly by accelerating diastolic relaxation. Addition of erythropoietin to sildenafil improved its cytoprotective effect.


The invention discloses a video session implementation method based on audio/video signal transmission through independent channels respectively. The method relates to a video session system which is implemented based on the internet, and solves the problems of session interruption and the like caused by voice communication blockage and pause due to limited bandwidth in the current video session. The audio/video signals are transmitted in two independent channels, so that the audio/video signals are transmitted separately, and the voice transmission in the video session process is not interfered by video and other data transmission at all. The complexity of the whole system is simplified, the operating efficiency of the video session system is improved, and the video session always operates in a simple, stable and high-efficiency state.


The Municipality of Fasano (Puglia, Italy), i.e. owning one of 32 managed aquifer recharge (MAR) sites in operation in the Puglia region, has pioneered the reuse of tertiary-treated municipal effluent for both soil irrigations and the containment of seawater intrusion via groundwater recharge by ditches.

In this work, quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) methodologies have been applied to assess the degree of safety associated with such integrated practices by assessing the risks for public health resulting from the exposure to the reclaimed water. Escherichia coli (E.coli) dose-response model was used in this work since the pathogenic E.coli is reported to potentially occur in reclaimed water obtained from treated municipal effluents. The target count of pathogens ingested during swimming or inoculated by contaminated (uncooked) vegetables and fruits, was determined from the Monte Carlo Markov Chain (MCMC) Bayesian procedure applied to the results obtained from a monitoring campaign carried out in 2019. An optimization routine was applied in order to determine the most probable target pathogen count by minimizing the number of water samplings. The monitoring positions along the coast were defined by means of mathematical modeling, which highlighted the preferential pathways followed by pathogens when released into the fractured aquifer at a recharge operation flow rate of 10-30 L/s.

QMRA results indicated a negligible risk impact (12% probability of 0.4 infections per year) for soil irrigation practices and no impact on the seawater quality as a result of the additional treatment barrier provided by the so-called "soil-aquifer treatment" during the pathogen transport through the fractures of groundwater.


The objective of the work is to develop a microwave unit with removable modules for continuous heat treatment and disinfection of animal-derived raw materials of different structures with resonators, providing electromagnetic safety without shielding and high electric field intensity with reduced operating costs while preserving the feeding value of the product. The study includes 3D modeling of resonators for each module using CST Microwave Studio software and multi-criteria evaluation of regression models of process parameters, allowing one to estimate the feeding value of the product. The first module is designed for heat treatment of secondary animal-derived raw materials, including frozen blocks of meat waste. There are modules can be installed simultaneously or separately in the microwave unit, depending on demand and available raw materials. All modules are removable and easy to clean after completion of heat treatment, and the source block is closed and is subject only to maintenance inspection. Studies of electromagnetic safety for the perforated cylindrical resonator were performed. The operating modes of the second module were found, the duration of defrosting and heating of the animal colostrum was 10–15 min with the generator power of 4.8 kW and energy costs of 0.18–0.20 kW·h/kg.


The article analysis in depth the status and the problems on propaganda of college library,for the reality of propaganda of college library,the Modern Library idea,the use of modern information technology networks,and optimize the combination of modern and traditional publicity measures and improve staff quality,deep-seated to provide quality information services to are put forwards to carry out propaganda and college library and enhance the effectiveness of the library.


See related articles at [[www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.171076][2]][2] and [[www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.170371][3]][3]

KEY POINTS
Against a background of growing concern that rates of cesarean delivery in Canada and globally are rising, trial of labour after previous cesarean


Recent mathematical advances in the study of the response of a rigid block to horizontal simple harmonic forcing conclude that (i) all types of subharmonic response are possible, (ii) several types can occur at one point in parameter space, (iii) exact expressions are available for stability boundaries in parameter space, (iv) asymmetric solutions exist just outside the upper boundaries of symmetric solutions, (v) period- and impact-doubling cascades occur as parameter values are varied even further outside the boundaries, (vi) aperiodic (or chaotic) responses are possible, (vii) periodic responses can occur which appear to violate West's formula and (viii) steady state responses of the forced system can be so large as to produce toppling of the block if the system were unforced.

These results are used to explain and extend recent computational work. Also we find quantitative agreement between our theoretical work and some recent experimental work of Tso and Wong.


Professor Salje: It gives me great pleasure to present the 1999 Minera logica l Society Schlumberger Medal for 'scientific excellence in mineralogy and its applications' to you following Council's unanimous decision to make you the recipient. The award is given in recognition of your distinguished work on the thermodynamics and kinetics of mineral stability, involving over 200 articles on phase transitions in oxides, superconductors and aluminosilicates. Your application of Landau theory and the concept of ferroelasticity to minerals is presented in your prestigious 1990 book Phase Transitions in Ferroelastic and Coelastic Crystals, which opened up new insights into the time and temperature dependence of mineral stability, and which has gone on to be published in a student version. You studied, researched and taught at Hanover in Germany, a place that has supplied Britain with five kings and a composer, Handel, although I regret that we cannot provide an Hallelujah chorus to accompany this citation. Your 1970 Diploma in Physics included a study of polarization fluctuations in Nd-YAG lasers; your 1972 PhD, also in Physics, involved the ferroelectric properties of KIO3 and its use as a quantumoptical switching device, while your 1978 Habilitation in crystallography concerned the symmetry constraints of structural phase transitions in crystals with perovskite structure. You were lecturer and then Professor at an early age in Hanover, with periods of research spent in Bradford, Yorkshire, and, in contrast, in Paris, before becoming Head of Department at the Institute for Crystallography and Petrology at the University of Hanover in 1983, a post from which you resigned to become Lecturer and later Reader and then, with a personal chair, Professor of Mineral Physics at Cambridge before occupying the prestigious Chair of Mineralogy and Petrology. You have studied an amazing range of compounds and minerals from tungsten and arsenic oxides, lead phosphates, vanadates and arsenates through iodates, K Cd sulphate, K double sulphates, and Na nitrate to the minerals calcite, aragonite, sillimanite, andalusite, albite, anorthite, cordierite, ilvaite, leucite, sanidine, titanite, tridymite and others, for many aspects of their structures and phase transitions including for instance, in feldspars and leucite, that vexed subject of A1-Si order-disorder. As this is the first award of this medal to a mineral physicist, I feel I should make clear that physics is supposed to be a much more precise subject than either geology or mineralogy. Everything in physics works according to


This study reviewed how the changes of the government policy on solar power generation projects affected the annual mandatory quotas of the regulated power providers under the RPS (renewable portfolio standard) system and analysed economic feasibility of the investment for meeting their quotas as compared to the case of non-regulated power providers. The analysis results showed that under the discount rate of 7.5%, which was used for the annual national electricity plans for the recent years, both the regulated and non-regulated power providers achieved economic feasibility under both the NPV (net present value) method and the real option pricing method. It was also shown that higher profitability was attained by non-regulated power providers than by their regulated counterparts, which can be attributable to the fact that regulated providers are required to out-source 50% of the total quota. The results of this study are considered to be useful for establishing a meaningful mid term or long term strategy for the future of solar power generation linked to the current RPS system.


This article considers the leader-following consensus problem of heterogeneous multi-agent systems. The proposed multi-agent system is consisted of heterogeneous agents where each agents have their own nonlinear dynamic behavior. To overcome difficulty from heterogeneous nonlinear intrinsic dynamics of agents, a fuzzy disturbance observer is adopted. In addition, based on the Lyapunov stability theory, an adaptive control method is used to compensate the observation error caused by the difference between the unknown factor and estimated values. Two numerical examples are given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Complexity 19: 20-31, 2014


Building large scale systems involves many design decisions, both at specification and implementation levels. This is due to numerous variants in the description of the task to achieve and its execution context as well as in the assembly of software components. We have modeled variability for large scale systems using feature diagrams, a formalism well suited for modeling variablility. These models are built with a clear separation of concerns between specification and implementation aspects. They are used at design and deployment time as well as at execution time. Our test application domain is video surveillance systems, from a software engineering perspective. These are good candidates to put model driven engineering to the test, because of the huge variability in both the surveillance tasks and the video analysis algorithms. They are also dynamically adaptive systems, thus suitable for models at run time approaches. We propose techniques and tools to define the models, to operate on them, and to transform specification requirements into an effective implementation of a processing chain. We also define a run time architecture to integrate models into the adaptation loop.


Objective: LC/NA system is activator of hypothalamic–pituitar–adrenal (HPA) axis and cold stress triggers an equally robust increase in plasma NA. Increased LHRH content probably due to absence or decrease of NE release from the LC and positive feedback action of E2 on LH secretion show that in late proestrous phase NA, LH and E2 have a strong link. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of central sympathetic nervous system (by LC lesion and acute cold stress induction) and peripheral sympathetic nervous system (with propranolol administration) on late proestrous phase in rat. Material and method: One hundred eight rats were divided into control and study groups. Study group was divided into three main sub groups: LC lesion (electrolytic lesion), acute cold stress (4°C for 20 minutes) and propranolol (antagonist of sympathetic nervous system). Vaginal smears were taken for all groups and late proestrous was selective phase for this study. Statistical differences were determined by one–way ANOVA followed by the Tukey post hoc test. SPSS 11 was used for data analysis. P value ≤ 0.05 was defined as significant level. Results: LC lesion decreased only estradiol level (P≤0.001) but could increase serum level of LH like propranolol administration (7mg/kg ip) (P≤0.01). No significant changes were noted in the levels of LH and estradiol in cold stress group like the synergistic effect of LC lesion and Cold stress also synergism of LC lesion, Cold stress and propranolol. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that late proestrous phase has a critical role in LH surge and sympathetic nervous system (NA) and E2 are important and basic factors in this process.


The Tam Pokhari glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF), which occurred in 1998 in the Mt. Everest region of Nepal, was evaluated using hydrodynamic models to gain a better understanding of the flow behaviour. The flood wave was analysed separately under rigid and erodible boundary conditions. In both cases, the calculated dam‐breach hydrograph, which had a peak discharge of about 10 000 m3/s, was routed through the Inkhu River, which originates from the lake. The morphologic changes along the river were also analysed and the results were compared with satellite images, field observations and recorded data. In the case of rigid boundaries, the routing procedure gradually attenuated the peaks of the hydrographs to account for hydraulic pooling in narrow gorges and storage in the channel. In the case of erodible boundaries, such effects were minimized due to the increment in channel capacity associated with erosion by debris flow. The study revealed that the GLOF event produced a large‐scale debris flow. Additionally, the results revealed that erosion and deposition took place intermittently, but that approximately 440 000 m3 of sediment was deposited about 14 km downstream from the lake mouth. The calculated peak of the water and sediment mixture at 14·4 km was found to be 30 000 m3/s, which is almost 6 times as large as that observed when the rigid boundary conditions were used. Further, the increase in the peaks of the hydrographs due to sediment transport was the primary reason for the destruction associated with the GLOF. These findings suggest that the local sedimentology and topography, as well as other geo‐hazard conditions in the area, should be carefully evaluated before recommending any control measures against GLOFs in the Himalayan region. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The efficient solving scheme, focusing on the problems faced in the modification course of synchronizing circuit in main control room, was presented in the paper according to the situation of updating synchronizing device.


RPL is defined broadly as the principles and processes through which prior experiences, knowledge, skills, and attitudes acquired outside the formal learning programme are recognised and assessed for purposes of certification, alternative access and admission, and further learning and development (South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) 2013). In this paper, I highlight the importance of an enabling environment in the development and implementation of RPL in library and information science (LIS) in South Africa. The SAQA RPL policy (2002) makes it explicit that "an enabling environment" (p. 18) demonstrating commitment to RPL is essential. It is evident from the document that unless proper policies, structures, and resources are allocated to a credible assessment process, it can easily become an area of contestation and conflict. In my study, I adopted a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods which involved the use of questionnaires and document analysis to collect data. I found that there are islands of good practice in terms of compliance with the legislative framework in implementing RPL in South African LIS schools. I recommend, among other things, that the Department of Higher Education (DHE) together with the Council on Higher Education (CHE) and SAQA conduct regular monitoring and evaluation processes of RPL implementation in LIS schools to encourage compliance with prevailing legislative frameworks. Further, periodic RPL accreditation processes could also be used to great effect to ensure that LIS schools comply, failing which, their accreditation to offer RPL services could be reviewed. This will help create an enabling environment, which is a prerequisite for an effective and credible recognition of the RPL process.


"Uplifting Moana Perspectives: Emerging Pacific Researchers and New Directions in New Zealand-Based Pacific Research" presents a shared vision for the future of Pacific research by Pacific early career academics (PECA) primarily based in Aotearoa–New Zealand. The task of charting new directions in imagining possibilities for Pacific research is a critical one, which speaks to our communities' long and storied history in Aotearoa: a reality incongruent with the lack of Pacific scholars employed in permanent positions in New Zealand universities.[i] This special issue challenges the idea that there is a dearth of Pacific research, asserting rather that our underrepresentation in academia is a structural issue, not necessarily one of scarcity. As special issue editors, we intentionally draw in a cross-section of emerging Pacific researchers in our country to confidently write with emerging Pacific scholars on the other side of our Moana-Oceania region, writing back to the exclusionary nature of conventional disciplinary norms and divides that we are forced to navigate. In doing so, our contributors challenge and transcend disciplinary boundaries and push against the Eurocentrism of our tertiary education system. This work is crucial, as the ability to build an academy that prioritises and centres our ways of knowing, doing, relating, and being is a key component of addressing cultural safety and inclusiveness in university lecture theatres, curriculums, and epistemological norms for both PECA and Pacific students in Aotearoa–New Zealand.


The researches on sea-level changes in South China Sea since mid-Holocene during the past several decades have been comprehensively reviewed.Some disputes and hot questions are mainly discussed and the conclusions indicate that high sea level in mid-Holocene reached maximally 2~3 m above present mean sea level during 7.0~5.5 kaBP,and the following sea level performed oscillating and fell to present mean sea level,in phase of the Holocene temperature to some extent,suggesting their close relationship.The modern rising rates of sea level in South China Sea resulting from observation of satellite altimeters and tide gauges,are up to 3.9 and 2.4 mm/a respectively,both slightly higher than the corresponding contemporaneous global mean rates.Additionally,some shortages and problems about sea-level researches are listed,and preliminary improving measures concluded include:(1)using more precise dating technology to minimize errors;(2)carrying out researches on tectonically stable locations;(3)adopting more precise sea-level indicators such as microatolls and tubeworm encrustations.


It is often said that when married couples fight, most of the time they wake up the next day to fulfil the routines they have grown used to. The routines might mask a bitter silence, and the conversations that ensue after a fight are never really easy or devoid of malice. This is because the losing party still feels the sting of having been beaten and is not ready to fully accept the fact of having lost, while the winner gloats. In responding to Nyamnjoh's critique of contemporary public anthropology and of anthropology in Africa, I feel like someone observing a troubled marriage. As an observer, it strikes me that Nyamnjoh might be falling out of love with anthropology. Like a disaffected spouse, it is as though he can no longer see any virtues in his beloved. That which he once thought of as unique and intriguing in the significant other is no longer so, or perhaps (as so often happens), the relationship has grown stale and the disaffected partner is looking for a way out. If this is the case, then I would like to make the following arguments in response to Nyamnjoh's piece. First, for a true anthropologist, research is imperative not because the anthropologist wants to save anyone (or sets out with that thought in mind), but because research is love. The true anthropologist can never get enough of research. It is completely intoxicating and unpredictable. It invokes compassion, it has to be shared, pondered and doubted. Indeed, research (and as Shakespeare reminds us for love), never runs smooth. Moreover, research, like love, is characterised by humility, commitment, modesty and depth, qualities that Nyamnjoh implies are not evident in anthropological research. Drawing on examples from the USA, he leads us to believe that anthropology in Africa is tainted. In his reference list only the works of three, white male anthropologists who have either lived in Africa or done field research on the continent, are noted. There is not one essay from an African anthropologist. And yet phenomenally good research has been and is being done in Africa with the kind of humility, commitment, modesty and depth that Nyamnjoh talks about (Henderson 2012; Ross 2009). To rescue anthropology, and for the discipline to achieve its true potential, Nyamnjoh says it should reclaim its status as a 'science'. Anthropologists should also use theory to 'facilitate the production of meaning' and not overly concern themselves with helping the poor and downtrodden. Nyamnjoh's statement is worrying, not because it is true, but because it seems that he is completely unaware of the dynamics in Africa, the contributions of Africans, the profound inequalities on the continent, the dire need for social justice and the need for an engaged, conscious and present humanities in Africa. However, having read some of his novels, I am inclined to believe that he is not unaware. I am therefore left wondering whether or not he is playing agent provocateur. Anthropologists in Africa are deeply and reflexively conscious of Africa's sociopolitical and economic issues. But (and this is a point that Nyamnjoh fails to take up) African anthropologists are few and far between. Anthropology departments are dwindling, senior faculty are resigning. Funding for anthropological research is not a Journal of Contemporary African Studies, 2015 Vol. 33, No. 1, 64–68, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02589001.2015.1021216


. QoS is not a consideration at the beginning of the development of IP networks. However, as its growth and support more services including critical and real-time services, QoS support is indispensable. Multimedia applications require different QoS requirements from simple network applications. Multimedia services need more bandwidth, lossless delivery, and strict delay. IP networks treat all traffic, in the same way, this will be a problem for real-time traffic likes multimedia applications. This project uses Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) and DiffServ QoS management schemes to meet the quality of service requirement in multimedia networks. The aim of this study shows that two methods can improve network performance for multimedia type applications. An analysis to compare the quality of service guarantees provided by these models using a simulation approach. Based on simulation results and analysis shows that two methods improved network performance for multimedia type applications in massive traffic environments.


A patch (10) of infusion comprising: - a cannula (70) - a base (90); - at least one adhesive region (60) in said base (90) suitable to be fixed to the skin; - at least one area (50) of access to the skin within said base (90); - at least one duct (40) in flow communication with said at least one area (50) of access to the skin; and - at least one first deposit (30) Anesthetic can be detachably fixed in flow communication with said at least one area (50) of access to the skin, wherein said at least one conduit (40) It facilitates the transfer of an anesthetic substance contained within the said at least one first deposit (30) anesthetic, favoring the administration of said anesthetic agent to said at least one area (50) of access to the skin, and wherein said anesthetic agent administered to said area (50) of access to the skin may be at least partially filled without removing said patch (10) of infusion.


Formic acid mediated cascade rearrangement/annulation reaction is the key step to the preparation of alkaloid precursors (II), which are further functionalized to hainanensine (III) and its dimethyl analogue.


Delta-granule platelet storage pool deficiency (&dgr;-PSPD) is a poorly studied bleeding diathesis resulting from either decreased granule content or decreased average number of platelet &dgr;-granules. Light transmission aggregometry (LTA) is commonly used to evaluate for &dgr;-PSPD and platelet electron microscopy (EM) is used to confirm the diagnosis. Currently, little data exist examining the relationship between the likelihood of abnormal platelet aggregation findings, severity of &dgr;-granule deficiency on platelet EM, and severity of bleeding symptoms in patients with &dgr;-PSPD. Patients diagnosed with &dgr;-PSPD by platelet EM who also underwent LTA testing were identified at a single institution for correlation between severity of bleeding, average number of platelet &dgr;-granules, and number of agonist abnormalities on LTA. No statistically significant association was identified between the average number of &dgr;-granules per platelet and likelihood of an abnormal LTA. LTA abnormalities were quite varied and only 50% diagnosed with &dgr;-PSPD on EM had abnormal aggregation testing. Also, no correlation was seen between the number of clinical bleeding symptoms, number of average &dgr;-granules per platelet, and the number of LTA agonist abnormalities. Our findings highlight the difficulties inherent in the laboratory evaluation of platelet function.


Background: The influence of participating in vigorous-intensity physical activity and associated compensatory declines in other types of physical activity in the general population has not been studied well; hence, it is unknown if participation in recommended levels of vigorous-intensity physical activity influence the likelihood of participating in recommended levels of moderate-intensity physical activity. Methods: Face-to-face interviews were conducted on healthy adults (n = 1803), 18 to 59 years of age, recruited from the top and lower quintiles of socioeconomic status within Perth, Western Australia. Data on television watching, vigorous-intensity activity, moderate-intensity activity, and walking for recreation and transport were used in the analysis. Logistic regression was used to determine whether participation in recommended levels of vigorous-intensity activity predicted participation in recommended levels of other types of physical activity and television watching. Results: After controlling...


Long-term (2000–2019) assessment of aerosol loads and dominant aerosol types at spatiotemporal scales using multi-source datasets can provide a strong impetus to the investigation of aerosol loads and to the targeted prevention control of atmospheric pollution in densely populated regions with frequent anthropogenic activities and heavy aerosol emissions. This study uses multi-source aerosol datasets, including Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications version 2 (MERRA-2), Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET), to conduct a long-term variation assessment of aerosol load, high aerosol load frequency, and dominant aerosol types over Asia. The results indicate that regional aerosol type information with adequate spatial resolution can be combined with aerosol optical depth (AOD) values and heavy aerosol load frequency characterization results to explore the key contributors to air pollution. During the study period, the aerosol load over the North China Plain, Central China, Yangtze River Delta, Red River Delta, Sichuan Basin, and Pearl River Delta exhibited an increasing trend from 2000–2009 due to a sharp rise in aerosol emissions with economic development and a declining trend from 2010–2019 under stricter energy conservation controls and emissions reductions. The growth of urban/industrial (UI) type and biomass burning (BB) type aerosol emissions hindered the improvement of the atmospheric environment. Therefore, in future pollution mitigation efforts, focus should be on the control of UI-type and BB-type aerosol emissions. The Indus–Ganges River Plain, Deccan Plateau, and Eastern Ghats show a continuously increasing trend; however, the aerosol load growth rate of the last decade was lower than that of the first decade, which was mainly due to the decrease in the proportion of the mixed type aerosols.


To ensure comprehensive information protection, it is necessary to use various means of information protection, distributed by levels and segments of the information system. This creates a contradiction, which consists in the presence of many different means of information protection and the inability to ensure their joint coordinated application in ensuring the protection of information due to the lack of an automated control system. One of the tasks that contribute to the solution of this problem is the task of generating a feasible organizational structure and the structure of such an automated control system, the results of which would provide these options and choose the one that is optimal under given initial parameters and limitations. The problem is solved by reducing the General task with particular splitting the original graph of the automated cyber defense control system into subgraphs. As a result, the organizational composition and the automated cyber defense management system structures will provide a set of acceptable variants, on the basis of which the optimal choice is made under the given initial parameters and restrictions. As a result, admissible variants for the formation technique of organizational structure and structure by the automated control system of cyber defense is received.


Studies of applications have shown that various criteria must be observed. Cases 1) and 3) can be realized by commercially available heat pipes. For the other application (2)) heat pipes have been developed to ensure the heat transport to keep off the medium voltage and to minimize the contact resistances. All experimental results were also calculated by using the thermal network, thus conclusions on using heat pipes in other switchgears can be drawn easily. An adjustable reduction in the temperature rise up to 50 % is possible. This can be used to:


This paper focuses on the accountability of disaster preparedness and response of two cities in Metro Manila, Philippines. The paper draws a lesson from the experiences of two highly urbanized cities in Metro Manila and how coordinated efforts in disaster preparedness and response among the members of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (CDRRMC) were accounted for. This paper provides a deeper understanding of how city governments fulfill their commitments and responsibilities to disaster victims during disaster preparedness and response. This study utilized key informants interviews and focus group discussions among key members of CDRRMC and review of existing laws and relevant policies. The upward vertical accountability is well established as this involves members of the City DDRM Councils as the council members are accountable to their respective City Mayors. Downward vertical accountability is not well defined as this refers to the accountability of DRRM frontline service workers to the disaster victims. The horizontal accountability among members of the City DRRM Councils is yet to be established as this involves different department heads who are at the same level of power and authority. The paper provides fresh insights on the vertical and horizontal accountability in disaster governance of cities in Metro Manila.


The global competitiveness of Malaysia in innovation has been declined recently. Small medium enterprise (SME) hold 98.5% of businesses and seek as an economy backbone in Malaysia. However, the declining innovation index has been reflected that a low level of innovation in SME. In the line with Malaysia Master Plan (2012-2020), focusing on a fresh approach to bring SME to the next level by accelerating growth through innovation. With the aim to ensure SME able to achieve higher innovation level, this study seeks a need to further investigate in this field. The study aims to provide a result which innovation factors affect innovation performance as there are relatively little empirical evidences in previous researches and very little companies nurture innovative activities in SMEs. This study examined the relationship among innovation factors, innovation capacity towards innovation performance based on Absorptive Capacity Theory. This study used quantitative methodology, 300 sample sets has been collected from Malaysia SMEs and further analysed the results by using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The results indicated that all items are normal and do not exist multicollinearity. Also, the research framework which developed in this study also achieved goodness of fit through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Each variable is valid and reliable by achieving the acceptable values of composite reliability (CR) and average variance extracted (AVE).


New informational technologies have led to a rebirth of interest in primal production functions. This study revisits the vexing question of the estimation of the Cobb-Douglas production function given zero input levels for some observations. A resampling technique is proposed that produces a sample with nonzero input levels. The results of the resampling technique are then compared with the substitution results using informational measures of the implied cost shares.


The article describes, analyzes and compares the causes and conditions of the latency of crime, their classification. An assessment of the extent and dynamics of the latency of crime based on the study and comparison of crime statistics in Russia and in other countries. We consider the role of the police in minimizing the causes of latency crime.


The Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker Green-function method for noncollinear magnetic structures was applied on Mn and Cr nanoclusters deposited on the Ni(111) surface. We consider various dimers, trimers, and tetramers. We obtain collinear and noncollinear magnetic solutions, brought about by the competition of antiferromagnetic interactions. It is found that the triangular geometry of the Ni(111) substrate, together with the intracluster antiferromagnetic interactions, is the main cause of the noncollinear states, which are secondarily affected by the cluster-substrate exchange interactions. The stabilization energy of the noncollinear, compared to the collinear, states is calculated to be typically of the order of $100\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{meV}∕\text{atom}$, while multiple local-energy minima are found, corresponding to different noncollinear states, differing typically by $1\char21{}10\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{meV}∕\text{atom}$. Open structures exhibit sizable total moments, while compact clusters tend to have very small total moments, resulting from the complex frustration mechanisms in these systems.


This paper reviews legislation relating to the safeguarding and management of Oman's diverse archaeological resource. It focuses on the National Heritage Protection Law (NHPL), other national legislation and regulations, and international conventions signed by the Omani Government. It also discusses the extent to which these existing legislative tools support the management of the nation's archaeological resource and the socio-economic changes that are taking place in the country. The paper also examines whether the legislation in place is apt for purposes of identification, management, conservation, research and for development planning needs. Certain concerns are raised. For example, the NHPL has not been amended since it was issued in 1980 and the issue of archaeology protection is absent from related national laws, especially those covering activities related to the environment, municipalities, mining and tourism. What also emerges is that current legislation has not fully been implemented by the relevant organisations, which consequently has negatively affected Oman's archaeological resource management. Finally, the paper proposes the evaluation of all the legislative tools that govern archaeological practice in Oman. It also urges an updating of the NHPL in accordance with new theoretical and practical changes.


Switched reluctance motor drives are a common technology used in traction motor drives. Herein, an online method is proposed for the fault diagnosis of power transistors in the popular asymmetric half ‐ bridge power converter of the SRM drive. Based on the rearrangement of three current sensors, each phase current was first calculated by solving equations associated with their detected values and the drive signals of the transistors. The faults in the transistors were then preliminarily detected by monitoring the error between the calculated sum of currents and the sum of actual phase currents detected by a current sensor. Once a fault was identified, the actual states of all transistors of the power converter were solved for inversely using a mathematical model and the necessary rule for a trade ‐ off. Then, the faulty transistors and the fault types were identified by comparing the actual states with the drive signals. Compared with prevalent methods, the diagnostic range of the proposed scheme was wider, and its control modes and the number of motor phases were not limited. A higher accuracy than currently available methods was its prominent advantage. The effectiveness of the proposed solution was also validated on a three ‐ phase 6/4 SRM drive.


This study was performed to determine the voluntary range of joint mobility for middle-aged Korean adults. One hundred and eighty-eight subjects (99 males and 89 females) at the age range of 40 to 60 participated for this study. Thirty body movements at various joints were conducted to measure the range of joint mobility. Subjects were grouped by R??hrer's index into four based on 25th percentile. The data were analyzed to see the differences of range of joint mobility between sexes and R??hrer's index groups. The results of this study and previous studies were compared to see the differences of range of joint mobility due to the aging. Results of this study indicate that females are generally more flexible than males. Significant differences were found to exist in fourteen movement between sexes and in ten movements, females have larger range of joint mobility than males.
There were no significant differences in range of joint mobility between R??hrer's index groups. Compared with previous studies, the range of joint mobility may have a tendency to decrease with ages. The results of this study provide important information in dynamic dimensions for middle-aged Korean and can be used to design the various products and work places for the middle-aged.


Contents: PART I: CONTEXTS AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORKS 1. Introduction Rebecca Surender 2. The Role of Historical Contexts in Shaping Social Policy in the Global South Rebecca Surender PART II: INSTITUTIONS AND ACTORS 3. The Role of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Poverty Reduction: Limits of Policy Change Antje Vetterlein 4. Building the Welfare Mix or Sidelining the State? Non-Governmental Organisations in Developing Countries as Social l Policy Actors David Lewis 5. The Informal Economy: Dilemmas and Policy Responses Sony Pellissery 6. Addressing the Failings of Public Health Systems: Should the Private Sector be an Instrument of Choice? Jane Doherty and Di McIntyre PART III: INSTRUMENTS AND MECHANISMS 7. Social Security: Risks, Needs and Protection Robert Walker 8. The Implications of Conditionality in Social Assistance Programmes Paul Dornan and Catherine Porter 9. Work and Welfare in the Global South: Public Works Programmes as an Instrument of Social Policy Anna McCord and Charles Meth 10. The Social Entrepreneurship-Social Policy Nexus in Developing Countries Alex Nicholls PART IV: SCENARIOS AND TRAJECTORIES 11. Globalisation and Social Policy in Developing Countries Bob Deacon 12. South - South Cooperation: A New Paradigm for Global Social Policy? Rebecca Surender and Marian Urbina 13. Conclusion: Towards the Analysis of Social Policy in a Developing World Robert Walker Index


A new 64 channel analog receive beamformer was developed to support a recently built 30 MHz 256-element linear array with 50 μm pitch. Each channel of the proposed beamformer consisted of a coarse delay and a fine delay circuit block. The delay blocks were implemented using wide bandwidth tapped delay lines. Multiplexers were used to select the output taps of the fine delay and coarse delay. Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) devices which stored the delay profile of each channel were used to update the control signals for the multiplexers at each scan line and focal zone switching. Due to the transient effect when turning a switch on or off, glitch noise could be introduced during each focal zone transition. A differential circuit, as well as switch offsetting, was used to suppress such an effect. The design was shown to be capable of providing a total delay of 157 ns with a resolution of 1ns. The rise time of the cascading delay lines was 8.66 ns, which set the −3dB bandwidth to about 40MHz. The test on two channels of the beamformer showed a 20 dB improvement in SNR by the two glitch suppressing methods. Phantoms images shows that the system can achieve lateral resolution of 120 μm, and can resolve anechoic spheres as small as 300 μm in diameter.


The value of information on health care quality has never been so widely recognized; yet many organizations lack the resources and/or expertise to build a quality information program from the ground up. Recognizing this, the AHRQ Quality Indicators were developed specifically to meet the short-term needs for information on health care quality using standardized, user-friendly methods and existing sources of data. This module of the AHRQ Quality Indicators was designed to capitalize on the availability of administrative data on inpatient stays to produce information about 16 Prevention Quality Indicators (PQIs): potentially avoidable hospitalizations for ambulatory care sensitive condition (ACSC) indicators, which involve admissions that evidence suggest could have been avoided, at least in part, through better access to highquality outpatient care. This document is the software documentation for the Prevention Quality Indicators software Version 2.1, which is provided on the AHRQ Web site. The software was developed in SAS, for use on a personal computer. By making this tool available, we hope to assist others in producing information on health care quality more cost effectively. Details on the development of the Prevention Quality Indicators can be found in "Guide to Prevention Quality Indicators: Hospital Admission for Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions."


The climate is very harsh in Hexi region,the selection of cover materials is important to seed germination and seedling surviving rate in the process of lawn establishment;lawn can be established at the 1st sowing by a cover of grass curtain,wheat straw,fine sands,etc.The varieties of Lolium perenne have weak adaptability in the region,disappeared in 3-5 years in the lawn,other varieties have better adaptability,and surviving rate is more than 90% which passes through in winter and in summer.The oasis soil is the best for lawn establishment which have a long green period and good growth in a year, long time sustainability and adaptability,others are oasis alkaline soil,gray brown desert soil and sandy soil,soil improvement is needed according to the soil conditions before a lawn being established.The adaptability on high temperature resistance is Festuca arundinacea Schreb,AgrostisF.rubra,Lolium perenne,Poa,the adaptability on low temperature resistance is AgrostisPoaFestuca,F.rubraL.perenne,the adaptability on drought resistance is Festuca,F.rubraPoa,L.perenneAgrostis.


Composites were fabricated by impregnating the jute nonwoven fabric in a bath of acrylonitrile-butadiene (NBR) latex. The effects of different pickup ratios (dry-to-dry weight) of jute nonwoven fabric to NBR latex viz., 1:0.5, 1:1, 1:1.5, 1:2, and 1:2.5 on the performance of composites have been studied. The fabricated composites have been evaluated for physico-mechanical properties and chemical resistance. Percent water absorption of composites has been determined both at room temperature and boiling water. Effects of different relative humidity on the equilibrium moisture content of the natural jute nonwoven fabric-NBR composites have been evaluated.


In order to determine the best location of well for pumping drinking water in an alluvial plain, different non destructive geophysical methods (Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), electrical prospecting, seismic refraction) are tested on the studied site. The goal of this study is to determine non destructive geophysical protocol for the lithological and geometrical characterization of the alluvial deposits (6 to 10 meters thick) and the bedrock constituted of clays. We have evaluated the efficiency of geophysical methods on the same site. The preliminary results are presented here. The results obtained with each method depend essentially of the lithology inside alluvial deposits and thick of vegetal soil. The combination of GPR and electrical measurements appears to be the best solution to have geometrical informations with good resolution for the top of the bedrock and informations about the lithological variations inside the alluvial deposits.


The level of heavy metals (Fe, Cu, As, Pb, Cd, Mg, Ca, Hg, Ni, Cr, Zn, Ag, Co, Mo, Se and Al) in soils and food crops (okra, cassava and rice) cultivated within selected mining sites in Ebonyi State, Nigeria were determined using FS240AA Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) according to the method of American Public Health Association (APHA). Soil samples were collected from Enyigba mining site, Ikwo mining site, AmeriAmekamining site, Izza mining site, MkpumeAkwatakwa mining site and MpumeAkwaokuku mining site while the food crop samples (okra, cassava and rice) were collected from the farmlands within the mining sites. Control samples were collected 500m away from the mining destinations were there was no evidence of mining activities on the soils. A total of sixty sub-samples and six control soil samples were collected for this study. Generally, the values of all the heavy metals analyzed for soil and food crop samples were higher than the values recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), and those from the control site suggesting possible mobility of the metals from mining sites to farmlands through leaching and runoffs. The findings in this study also revealed that the food crops contain heavy metals exceeding the maximum permissible concentration, and could be detrimental to human health when they are consumed.


Due to the widespread use of peristaltic pumps in the pharmaceutical industries, manufacturers are searching for new type of pumping machines, based on the mathematical models. Researchers have predicted the results of peristaltic transport in many applications mathematically and failed to interpret the results. One of the reasons is the difficulties faced in generation of peristaltic transportation of the fluid mechanically. This paper has made an effort to generate the design & characteristics of peristaltic transport of the fluid. The parameters identified in designing the pump are generation of constant contraction and expansion of the tube with small amplitudes, considerable pressure development in the fluid and flow characteristics. The fabricated model is different from existing conventional pumps while the characteristics of the pump being same.


Abstract This chapter presents a review of the mechanical properties of biodegradable polymers and the effects of degradation. The current fundamental theories of elastic and plastic deformation are discussed, and mechanical properties including stiffness, strength, and elongation-at-break are considered in relation to specific experimental examples from the literature. The effects of molecular weight and crystallinity, which both vary greatly during degradation, are analysed. A simple linear relationship between Young's modulus and log( M n ) is found to fit to a large number of experimental data sets from the literature. Three existing theoretical studies for the degradation of mechanical properties are also reviewed.


Traffic flow data are required for a variety of reasons by local and national government and for research purposes. While data can be collected automatically using equipment installed in the carriageway, such installations are generally only suitable at permanent or semi-permanent sites. This paper describes the development of a portable, yet fully automatic, video based traffic data collection and analysis system, which aims eventually to operate in real-time. The system captures an image of the scene using a solid state video camera based on a charge coupled device (ccd) image sensor. Ccd cameras offer considerable advantages over vidicon types in this application. A multi microprocessor system is then used to extract moving parts of the scene from a static background and useful data are at present stored on magnetic tape for subsequent analysis. Serial data, output from the camera in analogue form, is digitised by an adc at a rate too high to allow the necessary processing to be carried out by a single microprocessor. Therefore, a number of microprocessors connected serially in a pipeline fashion each partially process data then pass data to the next microprocessor for further processing in real-time. The paper describes some practical problems encountered while trying to apply simple image processing techniques to observations of traffic scenes and also reports on the results of site trials. (Author/TRRL)


4 , where E is the number of smart-phones produced and a & b are the number of circuit broad hours and the number of relay hours worked, respectively. Such a function is known to economists as a Cobb– Douglas function. Laborers are paid by the type of work they do: the circuit boards and the relays for $5 and $10 an hour, respectively. We want to maximize the number of smart-phones to be made if we have $150,000 to spend on these components in the short run. Lagrange multipliers can be used to solve nonlinear optimization problems (NLPs) in which all the constraints are equality constrained. We consider the following type of NLPs as shown by Equation (1):


In this paper we formulate a baseline disequilibrium AS-AD model and empirically estimate it with time series data for the US-economy. The version of the model used here exhibits a Phillips-curve, a dynamic IS curve and a Taylor interest rate rule. It is based on sticky wages and prices, perfect foresight of current inflation rates and adaptive expectations concerning the inflation climate in which the economy operates. A version of Okun's law is used to link capacity utilization to employment. Our proposed nonlinear 5D model of real market dynamics overcomes anomalies of the old Neoclassical synthesis and also the rational expectations methodology of the new Neoclassical Synthesis. It resembles New Keynesian macroeconomics but permits nonclearing of markets. It exhibits typical Keynesian feedback structures with asymptotic stability of its steady state for low adjustment speeds and with loss of stability { generally by way of Hopf bifurcations { when certain adjustment speeds are made sufficiently large. We provide system estimates of our model, for quarterly time series data of the U.S. economy 1965.1-2001.1, and study the stability features of the U.S. economy with respect to its various feedback channels from an empirical perspective. Based on these estimates, which in particular imply that goods market dynamics are profit led, we find that the dynamics are strongly convergent around the steady state, if monetary policy is sufficiently active, but will lose this feature if the inflationary climate variable or the price inflation rate itself adjusts sufficiently fast. We also study to what extent more active interest rate feedback rules or downward wage rigidity can stabilize the dynamics in the large when the steady state is locally repelling. We study the economy's behavior due to faster adjustments. We find that monetary policy should allow for sufficient steady state inflation in order to avoid stability problems in areas of the phase space where wages are not flexible in a downward direction.


Interactions of ET-1(Endothelin-1) with its receptors ETA(Endothelin-A) and ETB(Endothelin-B) regulate the vascular tone, maintain the blood pressure, and are closely related to cardiovascular diseases. Binding of ET-1 with ETB in the vascular endothelium induces vasodilation, while binding with ETA and ETB in vascular smooth muscle results in vasoconstriction. Because ET-1 only induces vasodilation in vivo when the blood fl ow is present, we speculate that the shear stress of the blood fl ow may control the conformation of ET-1 through its structural fl exibility, thus regulate its binding with ETB. By flow molecular dynamics simulation, the conformational changes of ET-1 in uniform flow were studied with its center of mass constrained. It is found that the C-terminal of ET-1 gets closer to the N-terminal in the simulation, resulting in a compact structure. This fi nding may provide guidance for the study on the interaction between ET-1 and ETB and the design of ET-1-based cardiovascular drugs.


- This paper presents a CMOS current comparator with high speed and low power consumption having minimum circuit complexity. Circuit shows a low response time to provide high speed. SPICE is used to verify the circuit performance with a standard 0.5µm and 0.35 µm CMOS technology. Circuit with 0.5µm CMOS technology shows the propagation delay of 292.19 ps to 10.10 ns and total power dissipation of 12.19 mW to 854.69 nW for input current pulse of 1 mA to 1 µA. Similarly circuit with 0.35 µm CMOS technology shows the propagation delay of 390.15 ps to 20.223 ns and total power dissipation of 7.37 mW to 572.88 nW for input current pulse of 1 mA to 1 µA. Comparisons have been made with the earlier circuit for power dissipation and delay. It has been observed that present circuit shows better performance than previous circuit.


This study aims at defining the concept of the fragile state, a term that came into existence in 2014, when the states that had internal Problems and external interventions were referred to as the failure states. However, the indicators for their designation and the criteria adopted are 12 indicators that address all aspects of the State's duties vis-a-vis its citizens. The study examined the reasons that led to the continuation of Iraq within the fragile states, and the selection of the five years within the time limits of the study due to the factors that led to the decline of Iraq and falling back within the most fragile countries. The study dealt with the fragile state challenges to the media reality as a result of the change of its structure because of changing the form of political system alongside the political transformations.
The researcher has used the descriptive and the functional approach in the study to achieve the goal of research and analysis of the media reality, which has lost many of its basic elements to the public. The research arrived at a number of findings that revealed the reasons behind the fragility of the state and the challenges that have been reflected in the media reality which suffers from the lack of legal legislations providing access to information that is the right way to reach the truth that is still absent from the citizen who lives in a troubled environment due to the retreat of the political will and the conflicts between those in control of authority, which was a major cause of the fragility of the state, and their repercussions on the media reality, whose contribution at this stage was consistent with the orientations and rhetoric of the funding agencies of those means .In other words, it became a reflection of a divided society which is already divided at the level of sectarianism, nationalism and religion. The researcher identified the factors that influenced the media and their role in this transitional period, which was characterized by vulnerability due to weak state and performance of its functions. This requires drawing up plans, enacting legal legislations in an attempt to reduce this fragility and counter its collapse.


This article aims to determine the constraints and legitimacy of prosecutors in carrying out criminal executions based on the provisions of the Supreme Court Circular Letter Number 1 of 2011 in terms of the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code and legal certainty. This type of legal research is normative research with primary and secondary legal materials using a statute approach and a conceptual approach. The technique of collecting legal materials uses library research and the technique of analyzing legal materials is deductive in nature using the syllogism method. As for the results of this study, it was found that based on Article 79 of the Supreme Court Law and Article 7, 8 paragraph of Law Number 11 of 2011 Supreme Court Circular Letter Number 1 of 2011 is not a statutory regulation, but a policy regulation that only has the power internal binding. As a result, SEMA No. 1 of 2011 by the Prosecutor in the criminal procedural law environment is a form of customary law (customary law) which also has legal certainty because the execution must be carried out against a judge's decision that has permanent legal force (in kracht van gewisjde) and has executive power. So that the execution of a crime using the excerpt of the decision certainly has legal certainty for the convict in assisting the convict to immediately obtain the convict's rights while serving his sentence as an inmate in a penitentiary.Keywords: Criminal Execution; Prosecutor's Constraints, Supreme Court Circular Letter (SEMA), Excerpt of the Decision


The molecular chaperone HSP60 is a chaperonin homolog of GroEL. We had previously shown that the immunosuppressant mizoribine is bound directly to HSP60 and inhibited its chaperone activity. However, the inhibitory mechanisms of HSP60 by mizoribine have not yet been fully understood. In the present study, we investigated the influence of mizoribine on a folding cycle of HSP60 and co-chaperone HSP10. Our results showed that mizoribine inhibited the folding cycle of HSP60/HSP10. The ATPase activity of HSP60/HSP10 was decreased in the presence of mizoribine and the dissociation of HSP10 from HSP-60 was also decreased by mizoribine. The same functions of GroEL and/or GroES were slightly affected by mizoribine. Based on our findings, we discuss the inhibitory mechanisms of HSP60 by mizoribine.


We review the terminology used in the context of cutaneous vasculitis with discussion of cutaneous leukocytoclastic vasculitis, its clinical approach, differential diagnosis and treatment algorithm. Cutaneous vasculitis encompasses a wide spectrum of conditions of very different severity and urgency, from limited skin disease to severe systemic life-threatening vasculitis. This review will empower the reader with tools for rapid evaluation of patients suspected of cutaneous vasculitis such as a correct interpretation of skin biopsies, an effective high yield laboratory and imaging testing approach, a simple practical evaluation procedure to ensure that severe organ involvement by a systemic vasculitis is not missed, as well as an easy diagnostic algorithm for identification of the cause of vasculitis.


s the essays in this forum make clear, the call for histories of medieval women, first sounded over forty years ago, has been answered, and the number of studies of influential women of the Middle Ages is ever growing. 2 The contributions of Theresa Earenfight, Lois Huneycutt, Amy Livingstone, and Marie Kelleher, in particular, trace how we have come to understand power or authority in ways that reveal rather than mask how women wielded their influence. As a function of the sort of revisions that these scholars describe, some women formerly regarded as harridans, vixens, or worse have been "rehabilitated." 3 Indeed, it seems safe to say that it would be impossible today to find an academic press willing to publish a biography that relied


Background: Acute skin erythematous lesions that follow allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and are histologically diagnosed as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) are often associated with reactivation of latent herpes simplex virus (HSV). Objective: To further examine the relationship between reactivated HSV and GVHD development. Methods: We present 3 patients with acute skin GVHD after allogeneic HSCT who were studied prospectively for expression of the HSV antigen Pol, which is involved in HSV-associated erythema multiforme. Results: Pol was expressed in the GVHD lesions but not the pre-HSCT normal skin or peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Lesion severity correlated with the Pol levels but not the histopathologically defined GVHD grade. Lesion development was accompanied by increased numbers of Pol+ circulating/skin-infiltrating CD34+ stem cells and CD1a+ and other dermal dendritic cells. Conclusions: Subclinical HSV infection of circulating CD34+ cells can contribute to some post-HSCT skin lesions histologically diagnosed as GVHD, with potential preventive and therapeutic implications.


Placenta accreta is defined as an abnormal attachment of the placenta to the uterine wall with abnormal bond of the placental villi through the endometrium, directly into the myometrium. We report a case of a 38-year-old pregnant, gravida 3, para 1, with a previous cesarean delivery 10 years ago and known with uterine polyfibromatosis that presented to our emergency unit at 16 weeks of amenorrhea with diffuse abdominal ache and mild vaginal hemorrhage. The emergency ultrasound examination revealed uterine polyfibromatosis, incomplete miscarriage and suspected abnormal placentation. A dilation and curettage was performed. Due to persistent active vaginal bleeding and to the hemodinamicaly instability of the patient a second emergency ultrasound was performed and revealed a retained, adherent placenta on the anterior uterine wall. Therefore, an emergency laparotomy with abdominal hysterectomy was performed. Histopathology revealed a polyfibromatous uterus and placenta accreta adherent to isthmic fibroid tumors. Abnormal adherent placentation can significantly increase maternal hemorrhagic morbidity, thus when a prenatal diagnosis of placenta accreta is confirmed or suspected, it is necessary to implement a multidisciplinary approach.


The adsorption and monolayer self-assembly of functional metal–organic blocks on solid surfaces are critical for the physicochemical properties of these low-dimensional materials. Although modern m...


Synthesis of [2,3- 3 H]-n-butyl alcohol consisted of two steps: crotonaldehyde was reduced with lithium aluminum hydride to crotyl alcohol, which with the catalytic addition of tritium gas was transformed to [2,3- 3 H]-n-butyl alcohol. Its specific activity and radiochemical purity were 29 TBq/g and 99%, respectively.


This article discusses language awareness, a new approach in teaching a target language. It provides differences between tradition al looking at grammar teaching and the new one i.e. LA (language awareness) whereby students "reveals" grammar spontaneously. It also introduces some techniques teachers can use aiming to raise student s' consciousness of the form and function of targeted grammatical features. The written techniqu es have been used effectively and successfully by the authors at their faculties of Agriculture. Howe ver they can be modified and used at any education level.


Tim Burton's stop motion-animated remake of his 1984 short film, Frankenweenie was produced and released by Walt Disney Studios. In the film, a young suburban Victor Frankenstein's dog, Sparky, dies in an accident. In keeping with Burton's absurd, macabre and
 Gothic auteurism's, Frankenstein resurrects his pet. This ultimately leads to a series of chaotic events where the other students discover Frankenstein's creation and subsequently resurrect of all of their deceased pets which reflect the form of other popular monsters such as,
 Frankenstein's monster, Dracula, the Wolfman, the Mummy and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, among many others. I will analyse these satirical reflections of popular monsters through the lens of the whimsical Gothic and seek to identify the implications of Burton's work to Disney's
 brand and aesthetic through the popular monster outside of Disney's popular repertoire of 'child friendly' fairy tales.


Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions affecting about 1% of adults. Up to 40% of people with epilepsy (PWE) report recurring seizures while on medication. And optimal functioning requires good self‐management. Our objective was to evaluate a group self‐management education courses for people with epilepsy and drug‐resistant seizures by means of a multicenter, pragmatic, parallel group, randomized controlled trial.


complicities and subversions that occur when articulating the "multiple and hybridized subject positionings" promoted and embodied by the text and the Peranakan matriarch figure of Emily. Going beyond this text as national allegory, Lo's critical contextualization of the play contains a wealth of information about Singapore's material, historical, and social milieu, and points to ways in which singular binaries such as Self/Other, repression/opposition, sanction inadequate understanding of the diasporic, postcolonial, and intracultural dimensions of a play like Emily.


Following the emergence of the concepts "Green Building"/ "Sustainable Construction" in the early 1990s, much attention has been paid to developing Building Environmental Assessment Methods (BEAMs) to promulgate sustainable practices in the building industry. While BEAMs have emerged to operationalize the green building concept, the varied and sometimes conflicting interests of industry actors make their development and establishment anything but a trivial undertaking. Stakeholders may have conflicting views and interests over how best to operationalize the concept green building. However, little is known about how different BEAMs have been created, which actors participated and influenced the contents, and how their varied interests have influenced the establishment of BEAMs as green building standards. This paper sets out to provide a theoretical explanation of how the actions of industry actors have led to the emergence of a wide array of competing BEAMs in the same market. The point of departure is that the support received from actors (economic, social, political etc.), and the personal interests and biases of interested parties influence the development and establishment of BEAMs. Drawing on the theory of Strategic Action Fields proposed by Fligstein and McAdam, we explain the emergence of multiple schemes through an exposition of the dynamic interactions between the industry stakeholders that were involved in their development. Focusing on the power struggles between various interested parties vis-à-vis the delivery of green buildings, we show how actors have jostled for position and engaged in various strategic actions to advance their interest and promote BEAMs that resonate with their core ideologies. We argue that the strategies employed by multiple actors with varied interests and resources have not only culminated in the emergence of multiple BEAMs, but also a struggle for market dominance.


With the exponential increase in the amount of multimedia data, data storage and retrieval has become a big challenge. It has become increasingly difficult to query and retrieve result relevant to user's demand with efficiency and accuracy. Previously, the search of image data was done by using keywords or description of data which failed to produce expected results. The distributed data model of Hadoop, an open-source software, provides us with a solution to this problem by using an image as query input and Map Reduce algorithms for processing. This paper intends to discuss the Content based Image Retrieval using Map-Reduce Algorithm.


Crude protein rations and stocking densities influence growth, and nutrient composition of fish, depending on environmental factors etc. 240 fish samples, with weight and size ranges between 10.0112.11 g and 8.0-9.7cm respectively were hand-sexed. They were acclimated in 100 liters plastic bowl and fed compounded feed, 5% body weight, twice daily for 90 days. The experiment was 2 x 3 x 4 factorial. Data obtained revealed that the highest body weight (TC2 16.72±6.52) was obtained at 30% crude protein at a stocking density of 20 fish samples. The highest feed conversion ratio (TC3 -19.57±0.96) was obtained at 30% crude protein at a stocking density of 30 fish samples. The highest and lowest protein efficiency ratios were obtained at 35% crude protein diet (TD1 -1.76±0.48a) and 30% crude protein diet (TC3-0.35±0.12c). Fish survival at dietary rations and stocking densities was 100%. The study indicates that Oreochromis niloticus fed 30% crude protein diet at a stocking density of 20 fish/100 liters bowl resulted in the highest growth.


Electro Magnetic and Radio Frequency Interference (EMI/RFI) occur in mobile electronics as high functioning devices with multiple operating frequencies are packaged in dense form factors. The most fundamental protection is through metal shielding to produce a "Faraday Cage" (e.g. a metal box) [1], a structure that absorbs or reflects EMI/RFI and boosts performance. A simple and direct means to shield packages is through physical vapor deposition (PVD). Temporary bonding adhesives are used to affix land grid array (LGA) and ball grid array (BGA) packages onto substrates and sent into the PVD line. The properties of the adhesive must be thermally stable, exhibit reduced sidewall creep, prevent under-side deposition (back spill), and be free of residue. Several adhesive solutions exist for EMI shielding processes [2], they exhibit low outgas to 300°C, and are proven to accept package bow and warp of greater than 30um [3]. LGA and BGA packages are affixed using a sufficient adhesion force that is tuned by mixing different resin molecular weights (MW) and activator amounts, all known to have a direct effect on peel force. Adhesion force has been shown to trend with MW of the resin and seemingly supports affixing, while simultaneous adjusting down activator until tearing begins to produce unwanted residue (Fig. 3). Through tuning, solutions are created that allow rapid sealing of small components with topographies exceeding 300um, metal deposition, and rapid satisfactory removal. These temporary bonding adhesives are formulated to achieve a desired modulus and elasticity to accept small packages, allow rapid processing and support high volume manufacturing. Similar work has been conducted to reduce the bow/warp of interposers during stacking with micro-bumped chips. The C4 bumps are encapsulated and protected during thermal exposure [4]. Simple tapes may support low profile LGAs whereas the high standoff in BGAs can create challenges in proper affixing, sealing, and processing. One solution in affixing packages with topographies is based upon the use of rigid etched or "pocket" carriers [5]. Once believed to be a solution for high-density placement of BGAs, there exist challenges in geometric design, glue placement, execution, and recycling (cleanup). Another possible solution is tape that is patterned using CAD-driven laser tooling, producing pockets within the flexible backing. However, the same flexible plastic backing that provides simplicity and ease creates challenges during high-density placement. Placement on flexible tapes can shift to lower density (increased separation), reduction in throughput, and increased cost of ownership (COO). New affixing introductions include laminates and composites that combine the design targets of rigid carriers with the simplicity of tapes [2]. While activity in affixing technologies remains high, PVD systems are also shifting towards small footprints and lower operating temperatures. While low temperatures may be more compatible with epoxy molding compound (EMC), it is uncertain if this will create a main effect and drive down PVD processing temperatures without affect on throughput. This paper will discuss irregularities in package type and shape, adhesive system, adhesion force, and the entire process execution, including PVD systems.


Five laboratory-produced cut-back bitumens with same target viscosity of 600 mm2/s at 60°C were investigated to determine the effect of chemical composition on the rheological properties. Studied cut-back bitumens comprised four bioflux-modified bitumens and one traditional slow-curing cut-back bitumen as a reference. The generic fractions (saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes) of base bitumens (viscosities of about 1500, 3000, 6000 and 37,000 mm2/s at 60°C) were quantified by thin-layer chromatographic method with flame-ionisation detection (IATROSCAN MK-6s) and the rheological properties of the base bitumens and cut-back bitumens were studied with a Physica 301 rheometer. The soft base bitumens (viscosity≤6000 mm2/s at 60°C) and their biofluxed solutions proved to be rheologically complex, which was witnessed by wax crystallisation and melting phenomena observed at temperatures between 10 and 30°C. The harder base bitumens with higher asphaltene content did not exhibit noticeable crystallisation. The low polarity and low molecular weight of the bioflux solvent reduced the stiffnesses of cut-back bitumens remarkably under 30°C. Thus, the composition of cut-back bitumens had a significant effect on the rheology of blends, although the target viscosities at 60°C were the same.


In this paper, an effective DOA estimation algorithm is presented for DS-CDMA systems under multi-user environment. First, the information associated with each path is extracted. Then, DOA's are efficiently resolved using the proposed element-wise division operations. The algorithm requires neither complex eigenvalue decomposition operations nor source number estimation. In addition, paths pairing are matched automatically. Generally speaking, the proposed algorithm is high in resolution and easy to implement in practice. Simulations confirm the effectiveness of the algorithm.


Variable camber flap technology can adjust the spanwise circulation distribution, thereby reducing the induced drag. Therefore, the concept of variable camber flap is introduced into the design of propeller aircraft wing, and the design for drag reduction of propeller aircraft is carried out. The numerical simulation of the propeller aircraft is carried out by using the actuator disc method with non-uniform distribution of radial and circumferential loads. Through the unsteady simulation of a single propeller, the aerodynamic load on a periodic propeller is extracted as a boundary condition to the steady simulation of the full aircraft. The load extracted by the actuator disc is compared with the unsteady simulation result, which verifies the reliability of the method. The design for drag reduction at cruise and climb design conditions are respectively carried out with the variable camber flap technology. The variable camber cruise configuration is evaluated at both the begin and end cruise conditions. The results show that, after the flaps deflecting at a small angle according to the circulation distribution, the camber distribution of the wing is adjusted to make the circulation distribution closer to the elliptical circulation distribution. At the design cruise condition, the drag coefficient is reduced by 1.4 counts, and the lift-drag ratio increase by 0.1. At both begin and end cruise conditions, the drag coefficient decreases by 1 count, and the lift-drag ratio increases by 0.07. At the design climb condition, the drag coefficient decreases by 1 count, and the lift-to-drag ratio increases by 0.09.


The article describes the main task of the sanitary-parasitological inspection as a timely detection of parasites and the degree of infection of fish raw materials in order to determine the eating properties or other use of fish products. Sanitary and parasitological study of the fish from the closed and open water bodies of the Astrakhan Oblast was carried out using perch (Perca fluviatilis L.)
as an example. There were studied 60 fish specimens (by 10 specimens in the autumn, winter, spring periods of 2018-2019) caught from the Sarbai River and the Shuralinskoye reservoir, with average weight of 110-182 g and length of 15-25 cm. There have been found dangerous nematodes (Anisakidae) and nematodes (Eustrongylides) – parasites that are not dangerous to human health, but significantly spoil the fish marketability. According to the results of comparative analysis of the extensiveness and permissible average number of parasites per 1 kg of fish, depending on the season and the type of reservoir, it was inferred that the Shuralinskoye reservoir is a safer reservoir
in terms of the prevalence of helminthes in perch than the Sarbai River. The fish from the reservoir can be eaten after sculling, gutting and the appropriate decontamination methods. The dynamics of fish parasites occurrence has been found to depend on the type of the water body and the season.


Considering that a nation is definitionally a governmental entity, the issues critical to an international business gamingsimulation must be governmental issues, namely, monetary, fiscal, and trade policies. A gaming-simulation can represent issues either by modeling them or by gaming them. The gaming method assures validity and avoids administrative error. Its administrative difficulties can be relieved by computers. Forms for presenting national accounting statements and methods for computing currency exchange rates and national measures of welfare are discussed. A minimum class size limitation of 20 participants is acknowledged and one application is presented. Continued development of the gaming method may depend on the acceptance of gaming-simulations as ideal instruments for assessing business education.


A collision avoidance flight guidance and control is developed to be implemented in a small UAV system. The obstacle avoidance system is designed to be an integral part of the autonomous flight control system, such that the UAV has ability to manage its maneuvers and flight trajectory during particular missions. The avoidance system has to be able to adjust the flight path in case potential collision with other flying vehicles is detected. The algorithm principally works by compute new waypoints at each time step for correcting the original ones. In the proposed approach, once a potential flight path conflict (collision) is detected, an ellipsoid zone is attributed to the conflicting vehicle. Then the UAV system will compute new trajectory avoiding the conflicting flight path by determining contact points on the boundary of the moving ellipsoid at each particular time steps. The contact points computation considers the relative positions and velocity vectors between the UAV and the conflicted fying vehicle. Based on the obtained avoiding waypoints, a flight guidance and a flight control systems are designed to steer the UAV following the suggested path. The controller principally works by driving the cross-track and course angle errors of the UAV flight, relative to the desired path, to zero, through performing Bank to Turn (BTT) maneuvers. The system generates corrective commands, based on the error information, and transforms it into a heading change via roll maneuver. The roll maneuver controller is designed using LQR technique such that it can provide an appropriate roll dynamics of the UAV. Simulation results will be presented and analyzed to investigate the performance of the proposed system.


The aim of this study was to evaluate the topical toxicity of the Esenbeckia pumila plant extracts on workers of the Atta laevigata and Acromyrmex balzani. Five leaf fractions E. pumila were drawn viz., the hexane, ethanolic, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and methanolic extracts, as well as the ethanolic fruit extracts. Further, the phytochemical leaf extract exploration was performed, and the secondary compounds detected were as follows: flavonoids, anthraquinones, coumarins, cardioactive heterosides and tannins. The different leaf and fruit extract fractions were first diluted in 70% ethyl alcohol, and different doses were topically applied to the A. laevigata and A. balzani workers. All the fractions extracted exhibited formicidal effects and this effect was greater to A. laevigata rather than to A. balzani. Only a small percentage of the workers succumbed within the first few hours of application of the different extracts in comparison with the workers which died only after a longer exposure time (72 h) implying a delayed effect of E. pumila extracts.


The aim of this paper is to isolate, describe and evaluate sentence patterns in Ba's So Long a Letter with a view to determining their stylistic significance. Such stylistic devices as foregrounding, sentence fragmentation pattern repetition and category rule violation. The emphasis is on determining how the author's sentences create aesthetic patterns and values. The Transformational Generative Grammar (TGG) was applied in the analysis of certain aspects of identified literary language. The TGG features were used to describe the sentence patterns. Thus, the paper discusses how sentence patterns/ Structure can create special effects.


(57) Abstract: camera (35) generates a digital image signal representing an image of one or two or more natural or artificial reference points on the patient on the treatment or diagnostic device (39). The processor performs multiple levels of filtering at multiple levels of resolution to determine repeatedly the sequential position of the reference point. It exceeds a certain limit there is motion is to generate an alarm signal if for treatment is still acceptable size. Unacceptable displacement stops the treatment beam (15), if any. Tracking templates, or by interaction from the display of the digital image signal or correlation between the first template, it can be generated automatically select images moderate. It can be a gate signal synchronized with breathing of the patient by extracting from the digital image signals for controlling the radiation beam generator.


Femtosecond transient absorption studies of [Os(bpy)3]2+ have been performed to gain new insights into the excited-state dynamics. Experiments were performed for a series of excitation wavelengths throughout both the singlet and triplet metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) bands. The dynamics are probed via the π−π* transition on the bpy- anion at 370 nm. Time scales for interligand electron transfer (ILET) and vibrational cooling are extracted from the amplitude and anisotropy of the excited state absorptions. The ILET rate has been measured as a function of temperature and, from these data, estimates for the electron transfer activation energy and ligand−ligand coupling are made. Our data also provide insight into the vibrational cooling dynamics within these large complexes, suggesting that vibrational cooling occurs only when exciting into the singlet MLCT state, after intersystem crossing. It appears that photoexcitation within the triplet MLCT absorption produces molecules that are vibrationally c...


Over the last two decades, Reinforcement Learning (RL) has emerged the method of choice for data-driven dialog management. However, one of the limitations of RL methods for the optimization of dialog managers in the context of virtual conversational agents, is that they require a large amount of data, which is often unavailable, particularly when the dialog deals with complex discourse phenomena. User simulators help address this problem by generating synthetic data to train RL agents in an online fashion. In this work, we extend user simulators to the case of socially-aware conversational agents, that combine task and social functions. We propose a novel architecture that takes into consideration the user's conversational goals and generates both task and social behaviour. Our proposed architecture is general enough to be useful for training socially-aware conversational agents in any domain. As a proof of concept, we construct a user simulator for training a conversational recommendation agent and provide evidence towards the effectiveness of the approach.


As part of the permitting and design of a power plant, the ability to supply cooling water subject to permit and availability constraints was investigated. As a first step, a synthetic hydrograph was estimated based upon a time series of river discharge downstream, the characteristics of the subbasin, and the point source discharger that significantly augments river discharge. The second step involved estimation of the frequency of forced facility shutdown due to insufficient water supply. This analysis treated as variables purchase of limited quantities of potable water and the quantity of stored water on site. In addition to estimating shutdown frequency, the frequency and duration of potable water purchase was calculated to facilitate cost estimation. Finally, a system for real-time monitoring of river discharge and change of facility operation in response to critical low river discharges was designed and implemented.


The companies operating subways are very much concerned with counting the passengers traveling through their transport systems. One of the most widely used systems for counting passenger consists of a mechanical gate equipped with a counter. However such simple systems are not able to count passengers jumping above the gates. Moreover passengers carrying large luggage or bags may meet some difficulties when going through such gates. The ideal solution is a contact-free counting system that would bring a more comfort of use for the passengers. For these reasons, we propose to use a video processing system instead of these mechanical gates. The optical sensors discussed in this paper offer several advantages including well defined detection areas, fast response time and reliable counting capability. A new technology have been developed and tested, based on linear cameras. Preliminary results have shown that this system is very efficient when the passengers crossing the optical gate are well separated. In other cases, such as in compact crowd conditions, very good accuracy in terms of counting in real time has been demonstrated. These results are illustrated by means of a number of sequences shot in field conditions


Since the Middle and Late Ming Dynasty,under the influence of the restoration poetic school of "Seven Scholars",the poetic domain has been flooded with a gust of simulation and plagiarism which is frequently criticized by critics of the Early Qing Dynasty.Huang Zong-xi points out there are two factors for this issue.On one hand,the kickback of the compromise thought since the Song Dynasty leads to the schools confining the poem-scholars only simulating the poems of the Song and Tang Dynasties,on the other hand,some poem-scholars realize the disadvantages caused by simulation and then come up with the idea of learning through no learning which later baffle them with independence.Ultimately,these factors are resulted from the incorrect relation between poems and studies.Hence,Huang puts forward the concept of learning into the poetics by controlling the poetic temperament.


Recent decades, shaped by powerful neoliberal forces, have witnessed a significant encroachment on the UK state sector with privatisation advancing over many social and economic sectors. The extension of private sector involvement has implications for the effective public accountability of UK 'public' services. This chapter examines, through case studies drawn from the past ten or fifteen years, selected aspects of this diminished accountability. The three case studies concern the availability of data in relation to different dimensions of privatisation in the NHS: performance data in the provision of care when NHS-funded care is provided by private companies; financial and ownership details in infrastructure procurement; and technical data allowing an assessment of the character and implications of proposals in the policy process.


The pathogenesis of neck pain in the brain, which is the fourth most common cause of disability, remains unclear. Furthermore, little is known about the characteristics of dynamic local functional brain activity in cervical pain.

 The present study aimed to investigate the changes of local brain activity caused by chronic neck pain and the factors leading to neck pain.

 Using the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) method combined with sliding window approach, we compared local brain activity that was measured by the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of 107 patients with chronic neck pain (CNP) with that of 57 healthy control participants. Five pathogenic factors were selected for correlation analysis.

 The group comparison results of dynamic amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (dALFF) variability showed that patients with CNP exhibited decreased dALFF variability in the left inferior temporal gyrus, the middle temporal gyrus, the angular gyrus, the inferior parietal marginal angular gyrus, and the middle occipital gyrus. The abnormal dALFF variability of the left inferior temporal gyrus was negatively correlated with the average daily working hours of patients with neck pain.

 The findings indicated that the brain regions of patients with CNP responsible for audition, vision, memory, and emotion were subjected to temporal variability of abnormal regional brain activity. Moreover, the dALFF variability in the left inferior temporal gyrus might be a risk factor for neck pain.
 This study revealed the brain dysfunction of patients with CNP from the perspective of dynamic local brain activity, and highlighted the important role of dALFF variability in understanding the neural mechanism of CNP.