Abstrcat At first,gives the definition of distributed energy system.Second,states the definition and meaning of general energy system,puts forward that distributed energy system is effective form to realize general energy system,as well as creates the conditions to realize multi-utilization of primary energy.Last,puts forward distributed energy system can run parallel with concentrated power system,if be combined resonably,they will promote our country's power building.


Abstract This article proposes a new approach to employing Maurice Merleau-Ponty's philosophy in the philosophy of religion. Rather than finding a latent theology in Merleau-Ponty – as some interpreters do – this article argues that Merleau-Ponty's later ontology can provide the basis for a philosophical anthropology which can help us understand why human beings are drawn to religion and how this is expressed in affective and ritual practice. This ontology can help us to understand the notion of freedom as it applies to affective, embodied, and ritual religious practices and begins to sketch out how freedom might be understood in light of embodiment.


The article aims to find out how the census of 1701–1703 took place in the Kolomna diocese and to establish who took part in the practical conduct of the census events organized by the Monastery Order during the initial stage of the church reform of Peter I. The main attention is paid to the study of entries on the sheets of the census books of the Kolomna Episcopal House and monasteries of the Kolomna diocese.


Given the connection between customer happiness and support ticket escalation, we describe an approach that 1) analyzes the emotions in conversations between a customer and a support analyst and 2) provides organizations with a cost-based mechanism to evaluate machine-learning algorithms trained on emotion-related features to predict support ticket escalations.


The question of whether visible light spectrum exposure affect the metabolism of bacteria still remain uncertain. The objective of this study was to assess the relationships between physical signal in the form of different visible light spectrum and the number of colony forming unit of bacteria.
Methods : The type of this research was True Experimental research with post-test only control group design. This research was conducted at Medical Microbiology Laboratory of Medical Faculty of Airlangga University using Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 bacteria and consist of six groups. Six groups were one control group and five treatment groups (illuminated by light). The treatment group was divided into five groups, each of treatment group was illuminated by different visible light color from Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps with 180mW/LED, they were blue, green, yellow, red and white light for 24 hours inside incubator with 37° C to then count the number of colonies growing on Mac Conkey media.
Results : No significant differences were observed between the groups in term of colony forming unit.
Conclusion : No significant colony number differences among every group.


The seismic coefficient suggested in the present Specifications for Seismic Design of Hydraulic Structures(DL5073-1997) is suitable for earth-rock dams lower than 150 meters.While at the present time,many earth-rock dams to be constructed are higher than 150 meters.Compared with low dams,high dams get less constraint from stiffness of foundation,and its natural vibrating period becomes prolonged.During the seismic response,high order naturalvibrating period gets more opportunities to coincide with the seismic predominant period,and the vibrations of high orders are easily to be activated and amplified,which result in the seismic acceleration distribution is somewhat different from low dams.With the finite element method,the seismic acceleration distribution of high earth-rock dams is analyzed.The figure of the seismic coefficient of earth-rock dams higher than 150 meters is put forward.Based on the above analysis,further research of the slope seismic stability of earth-rock dams higher than 150m is made.The conclusion is,with the decrease of the seismic coefficient in the dam body,the critical value of safety factor of the dam slope increases.


Biochem ical, im m unological, an d s tru c tu ra l charac te riza tions of th e s tru c tu ra l p ro teins of sim ian im m unodeficiency v irus (SIV) were perform ed. V arious electrophoretic and chrom atographic analyses of n a tive an d m etabolically radiolabeled v irus p repara tions coupled w ith im m unological procedures such a s W estern b lo tting and radio im m unoprecip itation were utilized to identify SIVXDeltaB670-encoded polypeptides. Two-dim ensional tryptic peptide m apping of each pu tative v ira l p ro te in was employed to confirm th a t each of these com ponents were unique and no t cleavage products of p recursor polyproteins. S ite-d irected serological stud ies using synthetic peptides analogous to regions of the SU and TM protein predicted to have h igh antigenic po ten tial were perform ed. These studies resu lted in th e identification of several group-specific an d type-specific antigenic d e te rm in an ts of SIV envelope p ro teins and dem onstra ted serological sim ilarities betw een SIV and several o ther len tiv iruses. The len tiv irus lytic peptide (LLP), a segm ent w ith in th e carboxyl te rm in u s of th e TM protein w hich has h igh am phipath ic po ten tia l and u n u su a lly h igh positive charge density, was identified d u rin g secondary s tru c tu ra l m odeling studies. Since the LLP appeared to sh a re s tru c tu ra l p roperties w ith n a tu ra l cytolytic peptides such as m again ins, cecropins, m elittin , etc., syn thetic peptides homologous to the LLP of HIV-1 and SIV w ere employed in stan d ard assays designed to m easure th e ability of cytolytic peptides to inh ib it prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells, an d w ere found to share functional characteristics w ith n a tu ra l cytolytic peptides. Results from m em brane perm eability studies and 51Cr-release assays suggested th a t the LLPs inhib it cells via m em brane perturbation. The LLPs also share struc tu ra l characteristics w ith calmodulin (CaM)-binding proteins. CaM is the prim ary sensor of Ca2+ w ithin eukaryotic cells. Since Ca2+ is the prim ary signal for activation of m any enzyme system s, CaM plays an essential role in the activation of m any cellular enzymatic processes. Using gel mobility shift assays and standard phosphodiesterase competition assays, we have shown th a t LLPs bind CaM w ith high affinity and can inh ib it CaM -mediated activation of CaM -dependent enzymes. LLP-mediated interference w ith enzyme activation and/or alteration of critical plasm a m em brane properties m ay explain m any of the unusual m anifestations of H IV -l-m ediated disease and m ay represen t a novel m echanism of pathogenesis.


We advocate the use of curated, comprehensive benchmark suites of machine learning datasets, backed by standardized OpenML-based interfaces and complementary software toolkits written in Python, Java and R. Major distinguishing features of OpenML benchmark suites are (a) ease of use through standardized data formats, APIs, and existing client libraries; (b) machine-readable meta-information regarding the contents of the suite; and (c) online sharing of results, enabling large scale comparisons. As a first such suite, we propose the OpenML100, a machine learning benchmark suite of 100~classification datasets carefully curated from the thousands of datasets available on OpenML.org.


Volumetric grid is widely used for 3D deep learning due to its regularity. However the use of relatively lower order local approximation functions such as piece-wise constant function (occupancy grid) or piece-wise linear function (distance field) to approximate 3D shape means that it needs a very high-resolution grid to represent finer geometry details, which could be memory and computationally inefficient. In this work, we propose the PointGrid, a 3D convolutional network that incorporates a constant number of points within each grid cell thus allowing the network to learn higher order local approximation functions that could better represent the local geometry shape details. With experiments on popular shape recognition benchmarks, PointGrid demonstrates state-of-the-art performance over existing deep learning methods on both classification and segmentation.


The CARES field campaign is motivated by the scientific issues described in the CARES Science Plan. The primary objectives of this field campaign are to investigate the evolution and aging of carbonaceous aerosols and their climate-affecting properties in the urban plume of Sacramento, California, a mid-size, mid-latitude city that is located upwind of a biogenic volatile organic compound (VOC) emission region. Our basic observational strategy is to make comprehensive gas, aerosol, and meteorological measurements upwind, within, and downwind of the urban area with the DOE G-1 aircraft and at strategically located ground sites so as to study the evolution of urban aerosols as they age and mix with biogenic SOA precursors. The NASA B-200 aircraft, equipped with the High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL), digital camera, and the Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP), will be flown in coordination with the G-1 to characterize the vertical and horizontal distribution of aerosols and aerosol optical properties, and to provide the vertical context for the G-1 and ground in situ measurements.


Statins and β-blockers can prevent clinically evident coronary heart disease (CHD), but can they alter the initial clinical presentation? In a


We developed an N, B co-doped carbon nanotubes as a substrate material to load 2-3 nm uniform Ru clusters. We rationally realized controllable N and B doping into carbon nanotubes....


This study investigates the managerial approaches family SMEs adopt to address sustainability in the context of the Blue Economy. Using a qualitative methodology, we conduct nine case studies of family firms operating in Sicily's COSVAP Fishing District area. The data are collected via semi-structured interviews with the founders/managers and analyzed using the Gioia method. The results reveal that family SMEs approach sustainability by adopting three managerial approaches. In the first approach, SME managers conceive sustainability as a threat to the economic sustainability of their firms. The second approach implies that sustainability must undergo specific compromises. The third approach considers sustainability as an opportunity whereby social, environmental, and economic sustainability goals are balanced. Regarding the theoretical implications, our work provides a comprehensive account of managerial approaches of family SMEs toward sustainability. The study offers insights for practitioners and policymakers concerning how to facilitate the transition of family SMEs – and, specifically, fisheries – toward sustainability.


Objective Describing the levels and distributions of 16 PAHs in the sediments of the Huaihe River. Method Searching and collecting articles on the PAHs in the sediments of the Huaihe River from yea...


Recent US studies generally conclude that city size contributes to greater intra-urban income inequality, while higher average income levels contribute to equality. We argue that Canadian cities and the Canadian urban system are in some ways different from those in the US, and that American results may not therefore be transferable to Canada. This is confirmed by our testing with 1971 Census data; we find that city size does not affect urban income distributions in Canada, although higher levels of income do add to equality, as in the US. We conclude that American findings may be due to the particularities of US cities, and that long term growth of Canadian cities, while perhaps of some concern for other reasons, does not appear to threaten existing levels of income equality.


Wearable electronic textiles with high conductivity and excellent antibacterial activity are very desirable to minimize health risks and deteriorated performance of the electronic textiles in application. In this work, conductive fabrics were prepared with chitosan nonwovens with inherent antibacterial activity as the substrate. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized in situ on the surface of chitosan fabric without any additional reducing agent, and silver nanowires (AgNWs) were adhered to the surface of AgNPs-coated chitosan fabrics by simple dip-coating cycles. The synergy of AgNPs and AgNWs enhances the conductivity of the fabric and the stability of AgNPs on the surface of the fabric. According to the analysis of scanning electron microscope and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectra, AgNPs were reduced in situ on the fabric. With synergy of AgNPs and AgNWs, the electrical resistance of the fabric is as low as low as 0.93 Ω/sq and 0.20 Ω/sq after one and four dip-coating cycles of AgNWs respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis and inhibition zone assay showed that combination of AgNPs and AgNWs enhanced the thermal stability and antibacterial activity of chitosan fabrics. The chitosan fabrics with conductivity, thermal stability and antibacterial activity can be used in electronic textiles for different applications. Graphical Abstract


To investigate the relationship between photosynthesis and contamination removal efficiency,constructed wetlands were used to treat urban sewage.Results showed that Pn was positively relative to the removal efficiency of COD_(Cr) while TN was less relative to the removal efficiency of TP.Therefore Pn could be used as one of important indexes of purification capability of the plants in practical engineering.


Achieving a bobbin design that meets all the performance and cost demands placed on it is addressed. The discussion covers package size, basic bobbin types, temperature, thin-wall designs, flange design, start lead considerations, terminals, terminal insertion, tolerances, and tooling. Ways to reduce cost are discussed.<<ETX>>


[Objective] To explore the expressions and pathological significances of DNA repair proteins hMSH2 and MGMT in endometrial carcinoma. [Methods] The expressions of hMSH2,MGMT and P53 protein were detected in 66 cases of endometrial carcinoma(EC) and 24 cases of normal endometrium(NE) by immunohistochemistry.[Result] All of P53,hMSH2 and MGMT positive expression rates in EC were significantly higher than those of NE(P0.05).The positive expression rate of P53 inⅠ-Ⅱ pathologic stage group of EC(35.2%) was,significantly lower than that in Ⅲ pathologic stage(83.3%),and that in shallow muscle layer infiltration group(34%) was significantly lower than that in deep muscle layer infiltration group(75%)(P0.05),and the rates in lymphatic node metastasis group and without were 61.5% and 39.6% respectively,while the difference was not significant(P0.05).In EC,the expression of P53 was positively related to that of hMSH2 significantly,but not to that of MGMT.[Conclusion] The detection of P53 expression may help us to predict prognosis of the patients with endometrial carcinoma and mutation of P53 may be ralated to the mismatch of DNA in the development of endometrial carcinoma.


A stochastic model in the form of a periodically correlated random process (PCRP) was applied to a voiced speech signal. In such a signal, the amplitudes and phases of the harmonic components varied randomly; therefore, a stochastic model of the signal was appropriate. A description of the signal in terms of a stationary random process allowed an analysis of the spectral density of the oscillations, but the phase (temporal) structure remained unconsidered. To reveal this structure, a PCRP was used. The speech signal was processed by the co‐phase analysis in the time domain and the component analysis in the spectral domain. The algorithms were based on a specific property of the PCRP that the samples selected with a period of correlation formed a series of related stationary sequences. Each sequence was then analyzed using the theory of stationary processes. This technique was used in a study of 70 recordings of the vowel /a/. The recordings were obtained from people with a normal heart rate and provoked a...


The Barcelona Convention and Protocols represent the first detailed and co-ordinated effort by UNEP to manage the environmental clean-up and maintenance of a large region. The Convention and Protocols are being implemented through the Mediterranean Action Plan which the author examines in some detail along with the relevant documents and agreements. This book is an important landmark in the study of international environmental law. The Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea Against Pollution, 1976, and its four subsequent Protocols to date is at the heart of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) regional system of co-operation known as the Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP). This book presents an authoritative analysis of the MAP as it has evolved over almost two decades and outlines its characteristic features as a model for UNEP's Regional Seas programme. The texts of the Convention and the Protocols are accompanied by a comprehensive collection of related documents which illustrate the major institutional and operational features of a pioneering regional environmental protection regime. Dr Raftopoulos, who is himself a consultant to the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), and to MAP, gives an authoritative, first-hand account and evaluation of the achievements of a pioneering and innovative venture in regional co-operation.


linear regression coefficients (r) were 0.981 for tryptophan (slope 1.004) and 0.905 for kynurenine (slope 1.21). The presented method is well suited for high throughput of samples. Approximately 150 specimens can be measured with one chromatographic system per day. On the one hand, it allows measurement of tryptophan and kynurenine concentrations with high sensitivity. Determination of tryptophan may be especially important for psychiatric clinics when the background of increased susceptibility for mental depression needs to be characterized more precisely. On the other hand, the parallel measurement of kynurenine concentrations will allow ruling out whether low tryptophan is attributable to insufficient dietary intake of the essential amino acid tryptophan and allows an estimate of IDO activity in vitro and in vivo when the kynurenine-to-tryptophan ratio is calculated. The sensitivity of the method can be easily enhanced by increasing the injection volume to 100 L, which is necessary when analyzing cerebrospinal fluid or cell culture supernatants in which kynurenine concentrations are one order of magnitude lower than in serum or plasma.


COVID‐19, caused by SARS‐CoV‐2, has had a significant global impact. While vaccines and treatments have reduced severe cases and deaths, the long‐term effects are not yet well understood. Current models used for research, such as non‐human primates and transgenic mice, are expensive and require scarce Biosafety Level‐3 (BSL‐3) laboratories, thereby limiting their practicality. However, the mouse hepatitis virus 1 (MHV‐1) mouse model offers a promising alternative. This surrogate model can be investigated in more widely available Biosafety Level‐2 (BSL‐2) laboratories. Furthermore, mice are affordable and easy to handle, and utilizing MHV‐1 as a surrogate for SARS‐CoV‐2 eliminates the need for costly transgenic mice. Importantly, the MHV‐1 model successfully recapitulates COVID‐19‐related clinical symptoms, weight loss, multiorgan pathological changes and failure in acute stages, irreversible neurological complications, and other long‐term organ dysfunction post‐infection, which are similar to available human data post‐COVID‐19. To assist researchers in establishing and using the MHV‐1 mouse model, this protocol offers comprehensive guidance encompassing procedures for animal preparation, induction of viral infection, clinical observation, pathological changes, and tissue analysis for mechanistic studies, thereby yielding valuable insights into disease mechanisms and progression. By adopting the MHV‐1 model and the provided protocols, researchers can effectively circumvent financial constraints and the limited availability of BSL‐3 laboratories, thus facilitating a more accessible and cost‐effective approach to investigating the underlying mechanisms of SARS‐CoV‐2 pathophysiology and exploring potential therapeutic interventions. © 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.


A few complexes of Zn(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II) of the type MLz with two new heterocyclic ligands viz. tetrahydroquinoline and isoquinoline dithiocarbamates have been synthesized and characterized on the basis of elemental analysis, IR, UV-VIS, IHNMR spectra, X-ray powder diffraction and mDTA studies. The infrared and IHNMR data have shown that the ligands behave as isobidentate ones. The electronic spectra show .that mostly ligand centered char~e transfer transitions occur. In thermal studies, interesting fragmentation patterns are reported and kinetic parameters such as order of the thermal rea~tions (n) and activation energy (Ea) have also been evaluated.


We are doing astrometric pulsar VLBI observation with Kashima-Kalyazin 7000 km baseline. K4 correlator is under the development for this observation program. When XF type correlator is used for pulsar processing with gating, attention should be paid to avoid fluctuation on delay result due to fractional bit effect. This influence is serious around the point that bit shift for delay tracking and pulsar period is synchronized. In this paper, the K4 correlation system is introduced and fractional bit effect on pulsar processing is explained.


In modelling the wave behaviour through fractured and jointed rocks, different models have been proposed to describe the fractures. A fracture can be modelled (1) as a parallel-walled thin layer, or (2) as a planar array of distributions of small cracks or voids (rough surface), or (3) empirically as a linear slip interface. For the first two cases, approximate boundary conditions can be derived and we find that they are similar to the third empirical linear slip interface model. The results according to exact elastodynamic theory have been compared with solutions based on the approximate boundary conditions. Good agreement is obtained. Consequently, these three models can be cast into a universal form. The relatively simple boundary conditions that we derive can be used to model the much more complicated microstructures of natural fractures, joints, and faults in the Earth.


The Early Middle Palaeolithic of southern Britain is best represented by the record recovered from within the terraces of the Thames, within which some attempt has been made to correlate particular sites to substage level within MIS 7. It has been suggested that there are particular features of the British record which suggest both shared features – and differences – to the record in Northern France: firstly, an under-representation of sites in Britain dated to late MIS7/early MIS 6 (unlike Northern France), and secondly, an apparent geographical split in the manufacture of handaxes versus Levallois debitage between the east and west. We here present the key features of the British record, but suggest that taking a "compare and contrast" approach to Britain could artificially create an impression of difference. We need to understand how our records are formed before assuming human behaviour to be the primary driver. It is necessary to work towards a seamless characterisation of northwest European landscapes, taking account the regional filters created by, for instance, local conditions of preservation and release, and research tradition, before addressing such apparent differences. British research has tended to focus on La Manche as a barrier, and the timing and impact of the creation of the channel upon human access to Britain. We here suggest ways in which we can start looking at this area, not as a barrier, but an inhabited landscape, concentrating on what we can learn from sites located around the margins of this now inaccessible, submerged place. The site of La Cotte de St. Brelade, Jersey provides us with an important window into the landscapes of La Manche. This site preserves the longest Middle Palaeolithic archaeological sequence in north-west Europe, spanning from at least 240,000 BP through to MIS3. The Saalian sequence is some 5m thick, and divided into 10 major units, all rich in artefacts. New work enables changing Neanderthal behaviour throughout the sequence to be explored in relation to changes in regional climate and environment, as well as starting to repopulate the space between Britain and the continent. Building on these observations, we can begin to reflect of how space was used by Neanderthals between Great Britain and the rest of the European continent.


For the realization of the planned development of study programmes, scientific-research activities of the University of Pardubice and the necessary infrastructure are used by the various sources of financing, in particular funds of the state budget, development programmes of the MINISTRY of education also funds the EU Structural funds. Institutional development plan of the University of Pardubice 2016 – 2018, part of which is an internal development competition (IRS), took the initiative in the framework of the thematic programme to Support the pedagogical work of academic staff and specialisation and innovation of study programmes at the level of the subjects/courses to the processing of the project Innovation of the subject special pedagogy with a focus on the therapeutic approaches in the context of (re)socialization of the target groups of special pedagogy. The following text is focused on the analysis of this project – acquainted with the objectives, the progress and the outcomes including self-reflection of students.


Surviving 2000 thermal shock cycles from 0 to 125°C without bonding wire deterioration in a plastic-encapsulated power hybrid requires judicious selection of materials and processes. Power hybrid modules under development had reached the preproduction and qualification test phase and began exhibiting wire failure within 200 thermal shock cycles. The wire failures occurred within two to three wire diameters above the ball in thermosonic bonded 0.025- and 0.051-mm wire. The problem was determined to be one of creep rupture wherein the wire was being subjected to repeated thermal and mechanical stressing during assembly and test. The module, the materials of construction, and the methods whereby the problem was identified and resolved are · described.


Silvicultural practices greatly improve the economic value of wood products from forests. Stem dimensions, wood density, and stem form are closely linked to end-product performance. This research aimed to examine the effects of stand density and stem height on variables that reflect ring growth and wood properties of Sassafras tzumu stands during the self-thinning phase. Between the ages of 10 and 40 years, the number of stems per hectare has declined from 1,068 to 964 due to density-dependent mortality. As the relative stand density decreased, there were significant reductions in the average tree ring width (5.07–3.51 mm) and increases in latewood proportions (49.88–53.49%) and the density of the annual growth ring (165.60–708.58 kg/m3). Therefore, ring density, earlywood density, and latewood density increased with decreasing relative stand density after self-thinning occurred. Ring width, earlywood width, and latewood width significantly increased from the base to the apex of the stem. Stand density and stem height had additive effects on S. tzumu wood properties during the self-thinning phase. A shift in the growth allocation along the longitudinal stem in response to self-thinning resulted in decreasing radial growth, increasing wood density, and improved stem form. In summary, we found a significant influence of stand density on tree ring growth, wood quality, and stem form of S. tzumu trees during the self-thinning phase.


Moral education plays an important role in education of vocational-technical schools in China,but due to various reasons,there exist many deficiencies.This article,by analyzing the main problems existing currently and the causes,tries to provide some strategies and suggestions for the work improvement of moral education in China's vocational education.


The aim of this research was to study the topographical features in the structure of the brain to improve the diagnosis of dementia of the Alzheimer`s type. Research conducted in 70 patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type using magnetic resonance imaging. The study of patients shows that the morphological differences in the topography of cerebral changes in patients with different types of Alzheimer`s disease correlated with cognitive and neurological status of the patient, and revealed the importance of the early diagnosis of Alzheimer`s disease.


Abstract The dissertation introduces new sequent-calculi for free first- and second-order logic, and a hyper-sequent calculus for modal logics K, D, T, B, S4, and S5; to attain the calculi for the stronger modal logics, only external structural rules need to be added to the calculus for K, while operational and internal structural rules remain the same. Completeness and cut-elimination are proved for all calculi presented. Philosophically, the dissertation develops an inferentialist, or proof-theoretic, theory of meaning. It takes as a starting point that the sense of a sentence is determined by the rules governing its use. In particular, there are two features of the use of a sentence that jointly determine its sense, the conditions under which it is coherent to assert that sentence and the conditions under which it is coherent to deny that sentence. The dissertation develops a theory of quantification as marking coherent ways a language can be expanded and modality as the means by which we can reflect on the norms governing the assertion and denial conditions of our language. If the view of quantification that is argued for is correct, then there is no tension between second-order quantification and nominalism. In particular, the ontological commitments one can incur through the use of a quantifier depend wholly on the ontological commitments one can incur through the use of atomic sentences. The dissertation concludes by applying the developed theory of meaning to the metaphysical issue of necessitism and contingentism. Two objections to a logic of contingentism are raised and addressed. The resulting logic is shown to meet all the requirement that the dissertation lays out for a theory of meaning for quantifiers and modal operators. Abstract prepared by Andrew Parisi E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com URL: https://opencommons.uconn.edu/dissertations/1480/


Purpose – The present study seeks to examine how perceived uncertainty of reward schedule and reward frame (i.e. segregated vs aggregated) affect consumers ' evaluation of loyalty programs. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted three experiments to test the hypotheses. Findings – Ambiguity aversion was salient when the subjects perceived low uncertainty in the schedule of a loyalty program, which led to customers ' choice of a loyalty program with an aggregated frame. In contrast, the subjects displayed ambiguity proneness when they detected a high level of uncertainty in the reward schedule; as a result, the subjects preferred a loyalty program that employed a segregated frame. Research limitations/implications – The findings show that individuals adopt different types of attitudinal pattern and show dissimilar choice behaviors depending on reward schemes. The findings also provide insights to enhance the understanding concerning how consumers perceive the value of loyalty programs. Practic...


Abstract In the liquid state, the molecules of the carboxylic acids are associated in pairs by hydrogen bonds connecting their acid groups. If these dimers are long and rigid, they can form a nematic phase. The dimer molecules of the liquid crystal p-hexyloxybenzoic acid have been deuterated on the hydrogen bonds, and the nuclear quadrupolar spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T 1 of these deuterons has been studied. In the nematic phase, 1/T 1 is frequency dependent between 2.7 and 13.8 MHz; its temperature behavior is identical with that of the parameter S describing the orientational order of the nematic phase. In the isotropic phase, 1/T 1 behaves in the same way as in conventional nematics: at high nuclear frequencies, it is still frequency dependent, and rather unsensitive to temperature in the vicinity of the nematic-isotropic transition; at low frequencies, it has no frequency dependence, but diverges when the transition temperature T c is approached from above: The "critical frequency" which separates...


Sewer overflows may cause communities to be vulnerable to various health problems and other monetary losses. This puts a lot of burden on responsible to minimize end user complaints. Therefore, crack prediction would be helpful to facilitate decision makers to control sewer overflow problems and prioritize inspection and rehabilitation needs .The accurate prediction of current underground sewer pipe cracks must be done before any pipe crashing with enough period of time to enable rehabilitation and replacement intervals, appropriate remedial methods and preventing sewer pipes crashing. Unfortunately, traditional technologies and models approaches have been limited to predict the development of sewer pipe cracks. In this paper, we address the problem of crack prediction of such cracks. This paper provides a proposed model which predict crack and cracks developments in any period of time that may occur in weak areas of a network of pipes.. We evaluate our results by comparing them with those obtained by many other models. The accuracy percentage of this model exceeds 90% and outperforms other approaches.


Hong Kong's educational system is presented from its past to its uneertain future as a one-country,two-educational-system arrangement with mainland China,featuring the changes that have happened already and to the possibilities that will arise in the future. This project delves into the areas oflanguage learning stresses on secondary students in posteolonial Hong Kong. It addresses the language anxiety and stress that comes with learning two languages along with the native language,Cantonese. Students' motivation in learning English is covered along with the effect ofcultural values'on learning. The projectthen moves into curriculum development presenting learning strategies combined with cooperative learning techniques. A model ofstudents'learning behaviors is presented,starting with the individual factors that students bring with them to the classroom to the elassroom techniques that are used to teach the students. The outcomes;test performanee,language profieieney,and language enjoyment are presented in this model. A unit on health is introduced that takes the model and puts it into the context of the classroom. This unit shows how the model can be introduced into the classroom setting to provide a learner-friendly environmentfor the student. This unit covers health, fitness, stress,and nutrition and how it affects the students, offering waysto deal with their stresses in a non-threatening environment.


KEY MESSAGES • Africa faces multiple challenges to improve the livelihoods of a rapidly growing population, most of whom are dependent on rural livelihoods that have already put pressure on African landscapes. These landscapes have been declining in productivity and are now becoming increasingly exposed to uncertainties arising from climate change. • Nature-based solutions (NBS) will play a major role in managing these environmental concerns. NBS harness the power of nature to help build resilience against a range of environmental hazards. NBS also tend to create job opportunities for local people and encourage local ownership of the outcomes. • Agroforestry, a land management practice where trees are grown around or among crops, pastureland, or homes to provide shade, shelter, fertilizer, fuel, food, fodder, and other products, is an important NBS that fits well with African farming systems, skills, and livelihoods. • Many have simply called for more agroforestry and the planting of more trees. But agroforestry solutions must be carefully tailored to locations, to existing livelihoods, community skills and priorities, and to local markets. • Despite lamentably poor financial support African scientists are tackling questions of finding the best solutions—site selection, farming system Photo: Mikkel Ostergaard/Panos Pictures


It argues that in some regions with tough living conditions,the reconstruction mode of ecological regional migration should be adopted.Integrated with other reconstruction mode it will lead the people of the worst-hit area migrate to Chengdu-Chongqing town cluster,so that the people in quake-hit area can resume their living soon,the ecological environment of the worst-hit area can be well preserved and healthy urbanization of Sichuan and Chongqing region can be realized.


According to the actual practical condition of acousto-optical deflectors, by solving Dixon equations of abnormal Bragg diffraction under the condition of fixed incident light direction ? 1 , the functional dependences of the ultrasonic wave direction ? a . which gave rise the acousto-optical interaction and the diffraction light direction ? 2 on the frequency f are obtained. From the ? a -f relationship, the important design parameters, i.e., the Bragg bandwidth and the transducer length, can be determined accurately. The ? 2 -f relationship shows good linearity, hence the previously proposed corrections on scanning linearity appear to be unnecessary.


1. About 6% of the nation's households are currently wired for cable. Within the next decade we estimate that 50% -60% of the nation will be equipped for cable reception, a figure capable of supporting a 25 % compound annual growth rate over the next 10 years. 2. The economics associated with well managed CATV systems are strong. A steady stream of revenues (about $5/subscriber each month) is reasonably assured once subscribers are secured. In addition, the potential system's revenue growth is quite substantial. Local origination coupled with advertising, leased channels, and the two-way communications highway concept, all add to the financial attractiveness of system ownership. 3. We believe that CATV is poised for rapid expansion in the years ahead. It seems likely that the Federal Communications Commission, under pressure from Congress and other sources, will clear up the muddy regulatory environment that currently exists. The regulatory environment is. in our opinion, at an historically low ebb. However, we expect pressure from Congress, the Jusfice Department and independent task forces to lead to positive developments (such as the liberalization of some segment of the 100 major markets from tight control) in this area. Once a meaningful and stable legal framework has been established, the future for CATV would seem to be quite promising. 4. It is our thesis that the most rewarding method of participating in the growth of the CATV industry is through investments in the equities of system operators. Note, however, that relatively small floats and wide price fluctuations typify these issues.


The article presents theoretical and experimental study results of rotation uniformity for seed drill wheel and possibilities of using wheeled dibber drills in the design of sowing machines. The main purpose of research is to obtain mathematical models of wheel dynamic model expressing the dependence of wheel sliding on the technological and design factors. The objectives were to determine rolling coefficients in order to use their numerical characteristics in the analysis of wheel dynamic model and in particularity, the axial load, wheel radius, parameters of the dibber drills wheel and speed of movement. Freely rotating wheels with a rim width of 170 mm and diameters of 524 mm and 712 mm were used in the experiments. Soil in the channel was brought close by properties to the soil prepared for sowing. Measurement of the driving force was made by strain gauge equipment at a wheel speed of 0.47 m/s. The optimal axial load at the masses of 35-55 kg and diameter in the range of 500-800 mm of the wheeled dibber drills was determined. It was proved, that wheel slip within 10-12% will assure the quality of sowing crops technological process execution at speeds up to 3 ms-1. Numerical values of wheel sliding coefficients are on average 58% lower for rolled soil than for loose soil for equal conditions.


Significance The accuracy by which cells are able to replicate their chromosomal DNA is critical for the rate by which they produce mutations. To keep the mutation rate low, cells have developed several mechanisms including accurate base selection by DNA polymerase, exonucleolytic proofreading that can excise incorrectly inserted bases, and postreplicative DNA mismatch repair. Also important are the concentrations of the deoxynucleoside-5′-triphosphates (dNTPs) that serve as direct substrates for the DNA synthesis reaction. Here, we describe a case in which certain changes in the relative levels of the four dNTPs (dATP, dTTP, dGTP, dCTP) can profoundly disturb the overall replication fidelity by impairing the efficiency of each of the three main fidelity systems, leading to a case of extreme hypermutability. The enzyme ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) plays a critical role in the production of deoxynucleoside-5′-triphosphates (dNTPs), the building blocks for DNA synthesis and replication. The levels of the cellular dNTPs are tightly controlled, in large part through allosteric control of RNR. One important reason for controlling the dNTPs relates to their ability to affect the fidelity of DNA replication and, hence, the cellular mutation rate. We have previously isolated a set of mutants of Escherichia coli RNR that are characterized by altered dNTP pools and increased mutation rates (mutator mutants). Here, we show that one particular set of RNR mutants, carrying alterations at the enzyme's allosteric specificity site, is characterized by relatively modest dNTP pool deviations but exceptionally strong mutator phenotypes, when measured in a mutational forward assay (>1,000-fold increases). We provide evidence indicating that this high mutability is due to a saturation of the DNA mismatch repair system, leading to hypermutability and error catastrophe. The results indicate that, surprisingly, even modest deviations of the cellular dNTP pools, particularly when the pool deviations promote particular types of replication errors, can have dramatic consequences for mutation rates.


Adult soft-shelled clams {Mya arenaria) persist at low densities in Chesapeake Bay sandy habitats despite intense predation by blue crabs {Callinectes sapidus). Clam persistence may be a consequence of variation in blue crab foraging rates as a function of clam density and sediment composition. In laboratory aquaria, we measured the functional responses (prey consumption per predator as a function of prey density) of large blue crabs to six densities of adult soft-shelled clams buried at natural depths in two sediment types (mud and sand). Functional responses in sand and mud were differentiated statistically by analyses of (1) residuals and residual sums of squares of discrete and continuous-time models, and (2) the exponent (3 of a general functional response model. Crab predation rates were significantly higher in mud than sand, and functional responses differed significantly between these two substrates. Blue crabs displayed type III (sigmoid) density-dependent functional responses in sand, and type II (decelerating rise to an upper asymptote) inversely density- dependent responses in mud. Risk of mortality for clams decreased sharply in sand at low densities similar to those observed in the field near the end of the annual period of active predation. These observations (1) suggest that variable blue crab functional responses result in microhabitat-specific mortality rates of benthic prey, and (2) indicate that functional responses can differ significantly according to the physical properties of topographically simple habitats.


Abstract To investigate the influence of particle size in terms of electrocatalysis for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), small Ptn species with n=1,10,13$n=1,10,13$ atoms and nanoparticles are deposited onto native titanium dioxide. These species are compared to the bare support as well as to bulk platinum with respect to the catalytic activity. Photoelectron spectroscopy showed Pt4f core-level shifts to higher binding energies with decreasing cluster size. In addition, the various species contribute significant density of states into the valence band gap of TiO2, thereby with larger particle size, the resulting band gap narrows. For nanoparticles, metal-like behaviour was already observed. Electrochemical measurements in 0.1 M H2SO4 showed the highest overall catalytic activity for bulk platinum and large Pt nanoparticles. A different assertion is obtained when the activities are related to the mass of the catalyst used, indicating that clusters with a size of about ten atoms seem to be most active. In comparison with the results from photoelectron spectroscopy regarding the electronic structure, no clear correlation to the catalytic activity was found. In terms of degradation induced due to the electrochemical treatment, the cluster samples showed no sintering effects, but instead, some detachment took place.


Air injection assisted cyclic steam stimulation (CSS) is an innovative and effective process for enhancing ultra heavy oil recovery and increasing the efficiency of steam injection, which has been successfully applied in over 200 wells in Liaohe oilfield (Northeast China) in recent years. During this process, low temperature oxidation (LTO) and pyrolysis of crude oils may take place spontaneously under elevated reservoir temperatures (around 300°C) due to steam and air coinjection. There have been concerns over the formation and deposition of coke-like substance in the reservoir and their impacts on reservoir permeability and oil production.
 In this study, the mechanisms of coke formation during this process were investigated based on experimental results, and the effects of LTO reactions on coking and oil pyrolysis were analyzed. A mechanistic model of coke formation in the presence of air was constructed, in which the coking process was modeled based on the partial equilibrium reaction. The model was then incorporated into a reservoir simulator, and a field scale reservoir simulation study of this process was conducted in order to reveal the impacts of coke deposition on formation properties and oil recovery performance.
 The simulation results demonstrate that coke deposition can reduce the fluid porosity and permeability in the near well region, which will induce a detrimental effect on heavy oil production. Therefore, the possible reduction of formation permeability due to precipitation of coke-like substance should be considered. The field performance of this technique conducted in a typical ultra heavy oilfield was simulated and presented along with the analysis of the possible coking effect. Injection of air with reduced oxygen content is proposed for reducing the coking effect, and the simulation results show that injection of air with oxygen content of 10 vol% will be beneficial to retarding coke formation and deposition, and moreover the safety hazard of explosion will also be eliminated in field operation.
 This study can provide new insights into the numerical modeling of the coking process and deepen the understanding of the air injection assisted CSS process for extracting oil from ultra heavy oil reservoirs.


The rainfall and streamflow were measured over one year in a catchment of 11.2 km2 sited in Boqueixon (A Coruña). From annual discharge, we selected 9 events and the effective precipitation and runoff coeficient was calculated for each one. Afterwards, tJre antecedent precipitation index was calculated by the equation I1 = ! 0 K where It and ! 0 are values of the antecedent precipitation index on day t and at the beginning of the calculation period, and K is a constant ussually varying between 0.85 and 0.95, and t is the time >(in days) since the last rainfall. Also we estimated the infiltration losses in each event by means of the infiltration index (F), which consider the infiltration rate as a constant value during the event. Likewise, we observed a good relationship between the infiltration index and the antecedent precipitation index; the highest values of antecedent precipitation index correspond to highest values of infiltration index and viceversa. The results obtained in this catchment show both index are good estimators of hydrological behaviour but it is necessary to verify them in other catchments.


ABSTRACT : The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of individual innovative behaviours on the role conflict and Role ambiguity of workers and the mediating role of Conflict with Co-Workers in this effect. The sample of the study was comprised of 387 participants chosen from among the workers of public and private health sector active in Mersin Province with Simple Random Sampling method. Data were obtained with face to face survey method. When analysing data obtained in the study, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (AMOS and SPSS) was used. Within this framework, when determining the relations between the variables, statistical methods of correlation analysis, hierarchic regression analysis and Sobel test were used. As a result of the research, it was found that innovative behaviour affects role conflict positively and conflict with co-workers has a mediating effect in this relationship. However, no meaningful relationship was found between innovative behaviour and role ambiguity. That the study revealed individual innovative behaviours in organizations may have positive results as well as negative results and they may affect role conflict and conflict with co-workers positively is one of the most important findings of this study


Introduction: Colombian clinical practice guidelines for health care are published in the Web Portal of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection. Objective: To analyze the traffic of the clinical guidelines portal through web consultation metrics. Materials and methods: The website traffic analysis was performed over a period of 20 months using Google Analytics and Megalytic. Results: 190 115 users logged in, and 125 475 of them (≈66%) were first-time visitors, while 63 118 (≈33%) were repeated users. 126 994 users visited 608 745 pages, with an average of 3.2 pages per session, query time of 3.45 minutes per visit and average rebound rate of 46.74%. 40% of users interacted with at least three pages and 40% left the site without interacting with a second page. The sessions originated in Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Spain; the first country represented 169 666 visits and Bogota D.C. recorded the highest number of visits (32%), followed by Medellin (12.3%), Cali (8.3%), Barranquilla (4.1%) and Bucaramanga (3.3%), for a total of 60% of the traffic. The most visited guides were handling pregnancy and infection of the urogenital tract. Conclusions: The portal had an acceptable traffic during the first 20 months of operation. An innovative portal that improves the dissemination of the guides must remain active.


Chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) remains a major late complication of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Prolonged administration of a calcineurin inhibitor, such as cyclosporin A (CsA), does not decrease the risk of chronic GVHD. Indeed, we and others have reported that long-term use of CsA impairs reconstitution of bone marrow-derived regulatory T cells (Tregs) and increases susceptibility to chronic GVHD. Recently, the administration of post-transplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCY) has been used widely in GVHD prophylaxis and lower incidences of acute and chronic GVHD have been reported. Here, we evaluated the effects of PTCY and CsA on Tregs and cytokine production in effector T cells using the well-defined chronic GVHD mouse model of B10.D2 (H2d) cells into BALB/c (H2d) mice. Sublethally-irradiated recipient BALB/c mice were transplanted with 8.0 × 106 T cell-depleted bone marrow cells and 2.0 × 106 T cell-replete spleen cells from donor B10.D2 mice. PTCY was administered by intraperitoneal injection at days 3 and 4 post bone marrow transplantation (BMT). CsA was injected peritoneally once daily, starting on day 0 of BMT until the day of analysis. Administration of PTCY, with or without CsA, improved the clinical chronic GVHD score significantly at day 50 versus the controls and the CsA-alone group (controls: 2.8 ± 0.34, PTCY: 0.5 ± 0.0, p Disclosures Maeda:Mundipharma KK: Research Funding.


The viabilities of golden shiner virus (GSV), chum salmon virus (CSV), oyster reovirus 13P2 (13P2). and catfish reovirus (CRV) were compared following viruses incubation in pond water samples held at 4°. 20°, 25°, and 30°C for one month. At the three higher temperatures tested, viral infectivity was lost by day 15 for GSV, day 20 for CSV, and day 10 for CRV and 13P2. At 4°C. no infectious GSV was detected at day 15, while the other viruses showed little or no loss of infectivity during the 30-day incubation period. The survival of these viruses in natural waters appears to be sufficient to sustain fish-to-fish transmission.


Thank you very much for your letter informing us of your decision regarding the manuscript entitled "Adherence to low carbohydrate diet and prevalence of psychological disorders in adults" (NUTJ-D-19-00129). The manuscript has been revised according to the editor's comments. Responses to the reviewer's comments have been provided below. Revised texts have been provided in red font. Thank you so much in advance. Yours Sincerely, Correspondence: Ahmad Esmaillzadeh, PhD


Date of presentation Degree programme Author or authors Markus Juurikkala Group or year of entry 2008 Title of thesis Teaching Game Sense in Ice Hockey Junior Organization Number of pages and appendices 24+45 Supervisor or supervisors Kari Savolainen, Jukka Tiikkaja The purpose of making a manual for Heinolan Kiekko junior ice-hockey club was to provide a tool for coaches everyday work in the field. The manual gives information about teaching game sense for junior hockey players. The manual also provides general guidelines and tips to everyday coaching and works as an alignment of coaching in Heinolan Kiekko. Heinolan Kiekko is middle size junior ice-hockey club located in Heinola Finland. Heinolan Kiekko was founded in 1984 and has been working since. Heinolan Kiekko is the only ice-hockey junior club in Heinola. Heinolan Kiekko already has a manual for coaches named Player Development Guidebook for Heinolan Kiekko. The new manual is made to support the old one and is only focused on teaching game sense and game itself. In Heinolan Kiekko, the game itself is the first priority in coaching. Through this product we want our coaches to have the same guidelines in coaching and to enhance the importance and knowledge of teaching the game and game sense. The manual consists of following chapters:


Ships have sailed East African waters since the days of the Old Testament and the Arab have tr ded in the area for at least the last 1200 years. Gradually small colonies of Arabs established themselves and bought from the indigenous inhabitants the leopard skins, ivory, rhinoceros horn, tortoise-shell and other luxury goods, which were carried back to Asia by the dhows which arrived every year with the north-east monsoon. In the tenth century there was established, by refugees from civil wars in Arabia and Persia, the Zinj Empire. This was a collection of small City States along the coast from Somalia to Mocambique and, in Kenya, included Lamu, Pate, Malindi and Mombasa and, as the years passed, smaller towns like Gede (which is now in ruins), Kilifi, Takaungu and Vanga. With them grew up a coastal trade made neces? sary by the thick bush which hindered overland transport between the little towns, which are as much as 30 miles apart. Despite fierce competition by motor vessels and particularly road transport, which now carry practically all the trade along the coast, this dhow trade has managed to survive until today. The trade is dying, but some 300 dhows of all sizes are still in commission along the 400-mile Kenya coastline, carrying firewood, food and indigenous products. The dhows vary in size from 6 to 60 tons displacement, but are all built to the same pattern with one mast, sheer stem and square stern. The only deck is the quarterdeck and cooking is done on a fire lit in a sand-filled container in the bows. There are no cabins and passengers and crew sleep on the quarter-deck or on top of the cargo. In Swahili they are called jahazi and in the local Arabic safina, while they are further distinguished by the large ones being termed khashbah and the small ones nusf khashbah. In appearance they are very similar to a description given by Dicksonr of a type found in the Persian Gulf and called jalibut or jali. Six-ton dhows are 15 feet in length along the waterline and vessels of this size carry a crew and trade between the islands of the Bajun Archipelago and do short trips along the coast between the smaller and larger ports. The next largest dhows are of 20 tons displacement and are sea-going vessels which are between 20 and 60 tons. Their crews number from twelve to sixteen and these ships, which compose a quarter of all Kenya dhows, trade between the larger ports from Mogadishu to Dar-es-Salaam. The speed of journeys is affected by the monsoons which blow from the north-east in November and December and from the south-east from March to July, while from August to October the wind falls and dhows are repaired and refitted. Thus on any voyage along the coast and then back to its home port, a sailing vessel has the wind blowing from dead ahead on either the outward or return journey. With a good wind astern a dhow can achieve 12 knots, but with a wind on the bow the time taken for a voyage is quadrupled as the vessels are unhandy in anything but a following wind, and going about is a slow and dangerous operation. At the end of a tack the sheets are loosened and the sail is collapsed by the spar being pulled into a vertical position. The lee shrouds, which are normally unfastened at the gunwales and tucked out of the way, are fastened by the toggles at their lower ends being slipped through rope loops fastened to the gunwales. That accomplished, the spar is then swung round to the other side of the mast, so that what was its fore end becomes the aft end, the shrouds on the side which the spar is on are unfastened, and the sheets are tightened so that the sail fills. The great danger in going about is that the wind may catch the partially collapsed sail and drive the spar against the bowsprit and break it, which would necessitate running for shelter. The whole procedure takes ten minutes, during which the vessel loses steering way and wallows sickeningly while the crew all shout orders at


The paper discussed the several problem of rut test for bituminous mixture,introduced the shaping method of test sample rolling and the choice of high-temperature stability index etc.


POTENTIAL COMPLICATIONS Urethral rupture In some neglected cases, rupture of the urethra/penis may occur, with subcutaneous urine accumulation up to 8 cm deep extending cranially from the scrotum to the prepuce. After several days, large, sharply-demarcated areas of purple-discoloured skin develop along the ventrum overlying the subcutaneous urine accumulation. This discoloured skin becomes cold, and, with associated necrotic muscle, will slough after 10-14 days, if the animal survives the uraemic state and urinary back pressure/hydronephrosis. In such cases, even if tube cystotomy surgery is successful, considerable sloughing occurs. The multiloculated sonographic appearance of the subcutaneous swelling indicates that drainage through a single or multiple skin incisions would not readily occur.


Via subclavian/jugular vein, successful puncture of interventricular septum (IVS) has been achieved transvenously. However, the approach was limited by acute entry‐angle. The study was conducted to investigate a novel transcatheter puncture of IVS via femoral access and transfemoral‐venous access to left ventricle (LV) through IVS.


The explicit expression for the linearized longitudinal quantum conductivity of inhomogeneous systems (such as semiconductor atomic clusters, artificial molecules, etc.) in weak electro-magnetic fields derived recently within a first principle quantum statistical mechanical approach in terms of the equilibrium two-time temperature Green functions (TTGFs) has been analyzed to develop analytical and computational means for its calculations. This has been done using a generalized continuous fraction method due to Zubarev and Tserkovnikov (ZT). The TTGFs have been related to Kubo's relaxation functions of the charge density and its gradients that can be computed using available quantum statistical mechanical algorithms and software. Thus, it becomes possible to predict the linearized quantum conductivity of any small system (in particular small semiconductor quantum dots (QDs)) as a function of external electromagnetic fields using a unified fundamental approach. This knowledge can be used to develop small semiconductor QD-based highly sensitive tunable sensors based on changes in the conductivity caused by external electromagnetic fields (in particular, radiation).


The present beamforming methods for radar jamming are subject to many flaws such as low efficiency,difficulty to form synchronous multi-beam jamming.In this paper,a new beamforming method based on second-order cone programming(SOCP) is proposed for the synchronous multi-beam radar jamming.First,the optimal design problems can be formulated into the mathematical description under different norm criteria.Then,mathematical description under the norm criteria is translated the into a SOCP one.Last,the related constraints simulation results show that the approach can solve the design problem efficiendy.


Objectives To provide an up-to-date review of the literature on the safety and efficacy of the endoscopic technique for cerebrospinal (CSF) leak repairs. Data Sources PubMed, Medline/Old Medline, and Cochrane Central databases. Review Methods Using the above outlined data sources, studies involving the endoscopic repair of CSF leaks were reviewed independently by 2 researchers. Studies included met the following criteria: full-text article written in the English language, at least 5 human patients undergoing purely endoscopic surgical repair of a CSF leak, and documented follow-up. Data extracted included leak etiology, presentation and location, the use of imaging, intrathecal fluorescein, and adjunctive measures as well as the success rate of the repair. Results Fifty-five studies, involving 1778 fistulae repairs, were included for analysis. Spontaneous leaks were most prevalent, with the ethmoid roof and sphenoid the most common sites involved. The overall success rate of repair was high at 90% for primary and 97% for secondary repairs. A low complication rate of less than 0.03% was reported. Conclusion The endoscopic repair of CSF fistula is both safe and effective and should be considered the standard of care for most cases. Evidence supporting adjunctive measures such as lumbar drains and antibiotics remains limited despite their common use.


The project is done to audit the knowledge owned by researchers in UTM related to their research activities. This project determined the knowledge existance in UTM and knowledge own by researchers. By using a formula, findings from questionnaire being compared with the real existing knowledge that exist in UTM. The knowledge had been divided into three phases which the Applying Research Grant phase, the Conducting Research phase and the Intellectual Property and Commercialization phase. After analysis done, a knowledge architecture had been proposed in order for RMC to upgrade their services to help researchers in their research activities. RMC can planned and upgrade their services according to proposed architecture and recommended ICT tools in this project report.


The objective of the study was to compare the effects produced by Propylene Glycol and Fat By Pass versus Witness by means of evaluation of zootechnical parameters: accumulated weight gain (GP), daily weight gain (GDP), and laboratory indicators related to the function Lipid: cholesterol, triglycerides and HDL. Thirty-five male Norman cattle were used at the end of the study, aged 1 year 8 months up to 2 years 1 month. The animals under study were chosen under the inclusion and exclusion criteria proposed; The animals were identified, the tracking cards were collected, the protocols were developed to standardize activities and finally the additives were started for 60 days. The animals were weighed every 15 days and for laboratory indicators blood samples were taken every 30 days. The results showed that the group with administration of Propylene Glycol (Group P) was superior in GP (39.58 kg / animal) on the group with Fat By Pass (Group G) and Group Witness (Group T); With respect to GDP, Propylene Glycol achieved a superior result (0.7192 kg / animal / day) over the remaining two groups .For cholesterol, the ANOVA analysis showed significant differences with a p-value 0.05 in the last sampling, with the means of Group G and T being higher than those of Group P; For triglycerides between the initial sampling and the final sampling there are no significant differences between the means of the groups; Finally the values for HDL between the initial sampling and the final sampling, a significant difference was presented with a p-value 0.05, the mean of the P Group being greater than the means of Group G and T. In the financial analysis, Group P Showed a positive result with a figure of 1.04 dollars compared to the remaining groups.


This is a cultural—developmental study of conceptions of family. It compared religiously liberal and conservative lay believers in young, midlife, and older adulthood on their conceptions of diverse aspects of family life, including spousal roles, the balance between family and work, and child—rearing approaches (N = 120). Results showed a marked division between liberal and conservative believers, whichwas particularly strong in midlife. Also, young and older adults within each religious group differed. In light of comparable historic survey results, this age group difference is likely to be partly generational. The study found few gender differences.


Infrared spectra of Cs+(H2O)1−5 were obtained from vibrational predissociation of mass‐selected cluster ions in a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer using a pulsed‐tunable infrared laser in the 2.6–3.0 μm region. By comparison to size‐selective infrared spectra of neutral water clusters, the structure of hydrogen‐bonded water clusters complexed to the Cs+ can be observed for cluster ions with three or more water molecules. The onset of hydrogen bonding is also marked by the presence of structural isomers. There is also evidence for an unusual change in the vibrational transition moments for the symmetric and asymmetric O–H stretch, for isolated (non‐hydrogen‐bonded) water molecules, where the symmetric stretch is substantially enhanced.


Philosopher Gilles Deleuze and psychoanalyst Félix Guattari's figuration of the rhizome describes structures that are non-hierarchical and open-ended. Rhizomatic analyses are increasingly being adopted in educational research to challenge traditional power structures, give voice to those previously unheard and open issues in messy but authentic ways. Rhizomatic mapping involves depicting a number of points that elaborate, shape and disrupt each other, encouraging readers to draw their own interconnecting routes or separating chasms between them. In this paper, I adopt rhizomatic mapping techniques to open up issues of learning spaces in one Australian university, in order to problematise the mass university's approaches to student learning. In this mapping, I give voice to two of the least powerful groups in the university, first-year students and sessional tutors, alongside educational academics and administrators.


This study aims to offer an effective solution to tackle conflicts in national defense policy enforcement by analyzing the role and the mediation effect of conflict mediation institutions as a third party to the civil-military conflict. Three conflict mediation institutions including the Committee for Administrative Consultation and Coordination, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, and the Council for Conflict Resolution in the Ministry of National Defense were selected and each case was analyzed respectively. This study shows that sharp conflicts were toned down or resolved as the conflict mediation institutions facilitated dialogue and negotiation between parties to the conflict. Therefore, this study concludes that the conflict mediation institutions are very useful in resolving civil-military conflicts. However, regulations need to be supplemented concerning the drawbacks of the conflict mediation institutions, including independence of the institutions and insufficient rights to implement decisions.


We study the thermal transport properties of general conformal field theories (CFTs) on curved spacetimes in the leading order viscous hydrodynamic limit. At the level of linear response, we show that the thermal transport is governed by a system of forced linearized Navier-Stokes equations on a curved space. Our setup includes CFTs in flat spacetime that have been deformed by spatially dependent and periodic local temperature variations or strains that have been applied to the CFT, and hence is relevant to CFTs arising in condensed matter systems at zero charge density. We provide specific examples of deformations which lead to thermal backflow driven by a dc source: that is, the thermal currents locally flow in the opposite direction to the applied dc thermal source. We also consider thermal transport for relativistic quantum field theories that are not conformally invariant.


All too rarely do journal articles elicit a substantive response from readers, but the following is one of those responses which may help to add to our understanding of a continually festering controversy which is broader than the specific program at issue. Dr. Smith is on the faculty of the Radio‐Television‐Film division at North Texas State University.


To achieve effective intracellular drug release from nanostructures, we designed high molecular weight (HMW) reducible poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) structures synthesized by a coupling reaction between the low molecular weight (LMW) PCL diol and a single disulfide-containing dicarboxylic acid. The synthesized HMW-reducible PCL (RSPCL) polymers with approximately 7 disulfide bonds were further linked with methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG), resulting in mPEG-b-RSPCL-b-mPEG (mPEG-RSPCL) copolymers. In aqueous environments, the mPEG-RSPCL copolymers were self-assembled to construct nanoparticles (NPs) of less than 100 nm with nearly neutral zeta-potentials, and the NPs had negligible cytotoxicity below 0.2 mg mL−1. In a thiol-rich environment (10 mM), mPEG-RSPCL NPs increased in size over time, and their polymer components completely degraded to mPEG and LMW PCL derivatives. The mPEG-RSPCL NPs were able to load both water-soluble doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX·HCl) and water-insoluble doxorubicin (DOX). Based on different cellular uptakes of free drugs and drug-loaded NPs in HeLa and HepG2 cells, DOX·HCl-loaded mPEG-RSPCL NPs showed approximately 1.7–3.6-fold and 20-fold higher anti-tumor effects than free DOX·HCl and DOX-loaded mPEG-RSPCL NPs, respectively. Additionally, DOX-mPEG-RSPCL NPs represented similar or lower drug efficacy than free DOX. Especially, DOX·HCl-loaded mPEG-RSPCL NPs represented superior thiol-triggered drug release and killing effects than their control NPs having fewer or no disulfide bonds. In conclusion, the designed mPEG-RSPCL NPs are potentially useful as nanosized drug carriers for the effective intracellular release of hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs in the cytosol and/or nucleus.


We present our experience in transforming a software development course and a systems software course from a traditional, lecture-based style to an active-learning format. We outline the common changes that were made in both courses, and provide a summary of the active-learning techniques that were successfully employed. We provide quantitative and qualitative evidence that this transformation was a success. In both courses, student grades and overall satisfaction with the course were increased with the transformation to active learning, despite teaching essentially the same curriculum.


Together, Sigma Pi Sigma and the Society of Physics Students establish a vital link between the physicists of tomorrow and those of today and yesterday.


The task mode of robots is mostly one machine corresponding to multiple targets, which is equivalent to a multi-point path planning problem under specific constraints. To solve this problem, a parallel elite particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is proposed. Firstly, the elite selection mechanism is applied to PSO algorithm, which avoids the blindness of the algorithm and improves the convergence speed. At the same time, the improved artificial potential field gravity is combined with inertia factor in the PSO algorithm to construct an adaptive update strategy of particle position and velocity. This strategy enhances the global search ability of the PSO algorithm in the early stage of robot motion, and the local search ability of the PSO algorithm gradually increases with the decrease of gravity in the later stage, which solves the problem that the PSO algorithm is easy to fall into local optimal. Secondly, with the help of the adaptive elite PSO algorithm, the safety distance between any two target points is calculated to form the corresponding safety distance matrix. Then, the PSO algorithm is used to find the optimal order according to the safety distance matrix. Finally, multi-objective point path planning is implemented according to the optimal order, and the concept of parallel optimization is introduced to improve the operating efficiency of the program algorithm. The simulation results show that the algorithm is feasible and effective.


This paper proposes an optical access network scheme to support multi-access edge computing. Experiments in the testbed demonstrate that the round-trip time of optical access networks with 60km fiber and 5hops is below 1ms.


We show that the isotopic shift Δ 00 of the frequency of a purely electronic transition can be calculated from molecular vibration data (v R , vR D , v' R , v' R D ) for the molecule even if data on the v' R D frequencies of the deuteriated molecules are not available. The method has been used to determine the unknown stretching vibration frequencies v' oH and v' OH D for a molecule with an intramolecular hydrogen bond in the S 1 electronic state


The surface/subsurface damage is generated inevitably in grinding glass-ceramics. In this study, the surface topography, surface/subsurface damage characteristics and material removal mechanism of glass-ceramics ground by diamond wheels with different abrasive sizes of 500#, 1 500#, 2 000# and 5 000# are investigated. The surface/subsurface damage characteristics of glass-ceramics in brittle-mode grinding and ductile-mode grinding respectively are revealed, and a high-efficiency and low-damage ultra-precision grinding process of glass-ceramics by stages using 500# diamond wheel for rough grinding and 5 000# diamond wheel for fine grinding is proposed. The experiment results show that the material is removed in brittle mode when glass-ceramics are ground by 500 #and 1 500# diamond wheels, in both brittle mode and ductile mode when ground by 2 000# diamond wheel, and in ductile mode when ground by 5 000# diamond wheel. In the brittle-mode grinding of glass-ceramics, the surface damage consists of pits, microcracks and deep scratches, and the subsurface damage takes the form of microcracks. But in the ductile mode grinding of glass-ceramics, the surface damage has only micro-scratches, and subsurface damage is the plastic flow of workpiece material closed to the ground surface.


At present, many college educators are lack of humanism spirit objectively, yet teachers who are rich in humanism spirit is an important assurance to the smooth implement of quality education and also the basic demand in carrying out the concrete teaching and students administration work. The training of teachers' humanism spirit should be combined tightly with the teachers' moral construction, the teaching practice and the campus culture construction.


Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is the most aggressive form of locally advanced breast cancer. The signs of inflammation such as hyperemia and hyperthermia might suggest the possible participation of inflammatory mediators. This study investigates stromal and tumor expression of nuclear factor‐kappa B (NF‐κB) and interleukin‐18 (IL‐18) in samples obtained from IBC and noninflammatory locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) and the influence of these markers on patients' prognosis.


In this paper, the properties of Low-level clouds are explored with a Raman-elastic lidar. In particular, we examine two complementary methods to measure thin cloud optical depth (COD). The first is direct integration of Raman Derived extinction while the second method utilizes a regression technique. We show that if we correct for aerosol influences the regression method for low cloud optical depth can be dramatically improved. Furthermore, estimates of extinction to backscatter ratio can be made within the cloud. We find that when the lidar ratio in cloud is averaged over the vertical extent, an S ratio on the order of 20 sr is found which is consistent with conventional water phase cloud droplet models. Key words: Low cloud, optical depth, Raman lidar. Finally, correlations between aerosol loading below clouds and small droplets in cloud interior are studied illustrating possible connections between aerosols and small droplet seeding.


This paper presents a voice activity detection (VAD) scheme that uses multiple of some popular features. As, in each noisy condition, one type of feature performs best in speech/non- speech classification, combining features can lead to a better performance. Features are combined linearly with weights that were obtained for each condition in training stage via a method of classification and dimension reduction, i.e. linear discriminant analysis (LDA). Also, nonlinear combination of features is carried out via kernel discriminant analysis (KDA). The results are compared to MCE-based approach. We show that LDA and KDA can lead to better performance, compared to MCE and also the best single feature. In particular, KDA shows 12.14% improvement in average speech/non-speech classification rate, relative to the best feature.


Objective To evaluate the application of microscopy and viscoelastic agent for perforating corneal injury. Methods 59 cases of varying degrees of corneal perforation injury,had undergone the microagent technology and the refractive viscoelastic suture. Results All patients had wound healing class.It showed no complications,and there was obvious improvement of visual acuity. Conclusion Refractive corneal suture would make good anatomy replacement,reduce postoperative astigmatism,improve the quality of surgery on the healing and functional recovery of perforating corneal injury.


A method of preparing a metal electrode crystalline silicon cells, the slurry is heated on a conveyor belt in the slurry below the laser by the laser beam of the laser, the slurry was transferred to the bottom of the slurry through the mesh conveyor belt of a slurry of crystalline upper surface of the silicon cell, the metal electrode is deposited in the surface of crystalline silicon cells. The photovoltaic cell metal electrode prepared by the method of the present invention may be smaller than the width of the front gate line 20μm, the height may be 10-15μm, pattern accuracy of up to 5μm, much higher than the accuracy of the screen printing pattern of 25μm. By a laser transfer technique silver ink transferred to the emitter can be formed finer than the conventional screen printing techniques and electrode structures superior aspect ratio, which has great commercial potential in the field of high crystalline silicon cells, is a battery was fabricated positive electrode grid surface trend lines mainstream technology.


The Grampian region early anistreplase trial (GREAT) assessed the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of prehospital thrombolysis given by general practitioners.1 This treatment was shown to be feasible and safe in their hands, and at one year a halving of mortality was reported (p = 0.007).2 Seven other small randomised trials comparing prehospital with hospital thrombolysis have been published, and although none showed significant benefit at one month, meta-analysis has confirmed the value of prehospital thrombolysis.3

Standard 6 of the National Service Framework for coronary heart disease requires that thrombolysis should be given within 60 minutes of calling for professional help.4 Since GREAT has been influential in informing policy decisions and formulating this target, the 10 year results are presented in this paper.

The trial and the results at three months were fully described in 1992.1 Twenty nine rural practices in Grampian participated, and these were located 26–100 km (mean 58 km) by road from Aberdeen where …


In this paper, we present a framework for dynamic consistent estimation of dense motion fields over a sequence of Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) images. The originality of the approach is to exploit recipes related to optimal control theory developed in geophysical sciences. This framework, known as variational data assimilation, enables to perform the estimation of an unknown state function according to a given dynamical model and to noisy and incomplete measurements. In our work, the measurements are defined according to a smoothed brightness consistency model whereas the dynamical model on which we rely is derived from a velocity conservation law. The overall assimilation process is formalized through the minimization of a global spatio- temporal cost functional w.r.t to the complete sequence of motion fields. The minimization is handled considering an adjoint formulation. The resulting scheme consists in iterating a forward integration of the evolution model and a backward integration of the adjoint evolution model guided by a discrepancy measurement between the state variable and the available noisy observations. Such an approach allows us to cope with several delicate situations (such as the absence of data) which are not well managed with usual estimators. The efficiency of our approach is demonstrated on real data. It enables to estimate a sequence of dense motion fields even in situations where data are strongly corrupted.


This paper examines the ability of the axially dispersed plug-flow model to accurately predict breakthrough in adsorbent beds confined by rigid walls. The axially dispersed plug-flow model is used ...


Abstract Background and aims(s): The study evaluated the contribution of coping strategies, based on the Toulousiane conceptualization of coping, to the prediction of suicide risk and tested the moderating effect of gender, controlling for depressive symptoms. Method: A two-time data collection design was used. A community sample of 195 adults (91 men and 104 women) ranging in age from 19 to 65 years and living in several Portuguese regions, mostly in Alentejo, participated in this research. Results: Gender, depressive symptoms, control, and withdrawal and conversion significantly predicted suicide risk and gender interacted with control, withdrawal and conversion, and social distraction in the prediction of suicide risk. Coping predicted suicide risk only for women. Conclusions: Results have important implications for assessment and intervention with suicide at-risk individuals. In particular,the evaluation and development of coping skills is indicated as a goal for therapists having suicide at-risk women as clients.


Resume The purpose of this study was to improve the diagnostics efficiency of modern diesel engine injectors with electronic controls. Experimental studies, performed using certified specialized equipment of injectors' manufacturers and standard software packages for data analysis, made it possible to prove adequacy of theoretical research and get results that are more accurate. Those results contribute to development of a software product that allows identifying a particular faulty element during the defective injector's operation by using mathematical processing of the diagnostic data obtained when testing the injector. Thus, the time spent to repair the fuel injection system reduces. The developed software product also helps to predict the remaining injector's operational life and prevent possible technical failures during operation. Article info Received 6 April 2020 Accepted 20 July 2020 Online 19 November 2020


The minority charge carrier transport in beta gallium oxide ( -Ga2O3) before and after exposure to neutrons from a 241Am-Be source was studied. Cathodoluminescence (CL) spectroscopy and current–voltage (I-V) characteristics were used to study minority carrier behavior. High energy radiation affects minority carrier properties through the production of carrier traps that reduce the conductivity and mobility of the material. In this paper, we report the effects of neutron radiation in silicon-doped -Ga2O3, using rectifiers or transistors as the measurement platform. The thermal activation energy of the reference (non-irradiated) sample was 40.9 meV, which is ascribed to silicon-donors. CL measurements indicate a slightly indirect bandgap energy of 4.9 eV. Neutrons create disordered regions in -Ga2O3 rather than just point defects, resulting in the lowest carrier removal rate because of the lowest average non-ionizing energy loss. The neutron irradiation caused an increase in reverse bias leakage current in rectifiers and a carrier removal rate of 480 cm−1 but had little effect on reverse recovery switching time. Differences in CL spectra were observed between vertical and lateral device structures, emphasizing the importance of impurities and defects in the starting material. The neutron energies in the Am-Be source range up to 11 MeV, with an average energy between 4 and 5 MeV (Figure 1). We also contrasted neutron damage with the effects of irradiation with 10 MeV protons. Under 10 MeV proton irradiation, the thermal activation energies increase. This is attributable to high order defects and their influence on carrier lifetimes. The measurements show that -Ga2O3 is more resistant to radiation damage than other wide bandgap semiconductors due to its higher displacement threshold energy, which is inversely proportional to the lattice constant.


Below the seismogenic zone, faults are expressed as zones of distributed ductile strain in which minerals deform chiefly by crystal plastic and diffusional processes. We present a case study from the Caledonian frontal thrust system in northwest Scotland to better constrain the geometry, internal structure, and rheology of a major zone of reverse-sense shear below the brittle-to-ductile transition (BDT). Rocks now exposed at the surface preserve a range of shear zone conditions reflecting progressive exhumation of the shear zone during deformation. Field-based measurements of structural distance normal to the Moine Thrust Zone, which marks the approximate base of the shear zone, together with microstructural observations of active slip systems and the mechanisms of deformation and recrystallization in quartz, are paired with quantitative estimates of differential stress, deformation temperature, and pressure. These are used to reconstruct the internal structure and geometry of the Scandian shear zone from ~10 to 20 km depth. We document a shear zone that localizes upwards from a thickness of >2.5 km to <200 m with temperature ranging from ~450–350°C and differential stress from 15–225 MPa. We use estimates of deformation conditions in conjunction with independently calculated strain rates to compare between experimentally derived constitutive relationships and conditions observed in naturally-deformed rocks. Lastly, pressure and converted shear stress are used to construct a crustal strength profile through this contractional orogen. We calculate a peak shear stress of ~130 MPa in the shallowest rocks which were deformed at the BDT, decreasing to <10 MPa at depths of ~20 km. Our results are broadly consistent with previous studies which find that the BDT is the strongest region of the crust.


Similar documents arise in software and business situations. Examples are user guides for different versions of a software product, contracts between vendors and clients, and legal documents. The usual practice is to capture similarities in templates that must be copied and manually customized to a new context – often a slow, tedious, and error-prone process. Document Management Environment (DME) automates routine tasks involved in creating and updating documents. DME provides functions to create templates and to generate custom documents from them. Any arbitrary document part can be designated as template's variation point, and the same interdependent customizations occurring at different variation points can be streamlined. We develop DME to automate generation of documentation of multiple software products (e.g., in reuse via Software Product Line approach), but also plan to explore its potentials in management of general business documents.


Studies of benzylidyne and its derivatives are of great interest due to their biological, pharmaceutical and industrial importance. In the present investigation, the vibrational wave numbers, geometrical parameters, modes of vibrations, minimum energy, NBO and 1H and 13C NMR chemical shifts of 3-Hydroxy benzylidyne Trifluoride (3HBT) are calculated with DFT/ B3LYP level of theory with 6-31+G(d) and 6-31++G(d) basis sets. The FT-IR spectrum of 3HBT is recorded in the range of 4000–400 cm and the FT-Raman spectrum is recorded in the 3500–50 cm Stokes region. The systematic comparison of the results from DFT theory with results of experiments has shown that the method using B3LYP functional is the most promising in providing correct vibrational wave numbers.


A mechanistic model has been developed to predict corrosion rates in multiphase (water/oil/CO{sub 2}) flow conditions. The model takes into account electrochemistry, reaction kinetics, and, mass transport effects. This paper describes the equations used to determine pH and bulk concentrations of various ions, which are then used to calculate the mass transfer rates to the corrosion surface. The result includes the determination of the mass transfer coefficients of various ionic species and corrosion rates. Details of relations used for determination of mass transfer coefficients for multiphase flows, and rates of electrochemical reaction kinetics are discussed and predicted results are compared with experimental observations. Agreement between model results and experimental data is good.


This paper proposes a LDPC (Low Density Parity Check Codes) encoder architecture for DMB-TH based on ASIP (Application Specific Instruction Set Processor). The encoding algorithm is first analyzed and optimized for the ASIP encode, And then the special instruction sets are extracted according to the optimized algorithm. The ASIP architecture uses main processor and coprocessor to get high throughput. This ASIP encoder can support three different code rates (0.4, 0.6 and 0.8) just by different programs and thus is more flexible than other ASIC implementations. Based on XC2V6000, at the max frequency of 117MHz, the max throughput of the encoder can deliver 187Mbps, 206Mbps and 232Mbps for 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 code rates, respectively.


Boulat, Saleur and Schmitteckert (BSS) reported results on the full $I-V$ characteristics of the interacting resonant level model (IRLM) exhibiting region with unexpected negative differential conductance (NDC). Using time-dependent density matrix renormalization group complemented with the exact solution performed at a special point (the self-dual point) in the parameter space BSS have shown that at nonzero Coulomb interaction $U$ the current flowing through the impurity level (IL) exhibits a power-law asymptotics as a function of large applied bias voltage. Similar conclusion was earlier reached by Doyon. Even though their results are solid and supported by both analytic and numeric arguments, BSS concluded that "the NDC at large voltage seems a truly nonperturbative behavior, with unclear physical origin". On the contrary, the remarkable physics of NDC can be explained by simple physical arguments and, as we shall show in this Comment, in certain circumstances can be calculated in the framework of perturbation theory.


An investigation of the resonant behavior of the swimbladder for different species and sizes has been performed. Most measurements have been done using the ring‐hydrophone method, but also a few normal echo measurements have been done. The results show the resonance frequency to increase with depth, but also to depend on what degree the fish is adapted to the depth. After a sudden transfer to new depth, the resonance frequency will first oscillate and then gradually adjust to a new resonance frequency given by the necessary swimbladder volume to retain neutral buoyancy. The time required to adapt to a deeper depth is longer than for a transfer in the opposite direction suggesting that gas production takes longer time than letting out gas. The observed Q values are also dependent on adaption, but appears to increase almost linearly with the resonance frequency at least for low Q values. The measured values are compared with a model for scattering from swimbladder fish and values for the swimbladder tension...


A numerical scheme has been developed for calculation of multiphase equilibria. The scheme is applied to a thermodynamic model that employs a modified version of the Peng-Robinson equation for all phases except possibly an aqueous phase. Henry's constants are used for computation of solute fugacities in the water phase. The numerical scheme makes ''optimal''use of first- and second-order iterative schemes and circumvents the problems reported by previous investigators. An outline of the scheme is presented with references to other sources where complete details are available. Examples of two-, three-, and four-phase separations are presented to demonstrate the range of the proposed scheme. 17 refs.


Information is provided on the seismicity of the Earth at the level of mb≥6.0 in the 2023 first half, as well as on 97 earthquakes felt on the territory of the Russian Federation according to the to the Alert Service of the Geophysical Survey RAS. For the 14 most severe earthquakes, information messages were publishing within one or two days after their implementation, the parameters of the mechanisms of foci were calculated and given. During the period under review, the strongest earthquakes on the globe with MS=8.0 (Mw=7.8) and MS=7.8 (Mw=7.7) occurred on February 6 in Kahramanmaras Province, Turkey. As a result of these earthquakes, 500 people were killed in Turkey, about 115 thousand were injured, about 10 thousand people were killed in Syria, and more than 10 thousand were injured. On the territory of Russia, the strongest earthquake was on April 3 with mb=6.4 (Mw=6.5) on the east coast of Kamchatka. It was also felt with the greatest intensity of concussions (5-6 points) in the settlements of Russia. The seismic energy released on the globe for the 2023 first half (1.93⋅1017 J) increased relative to similar values for the 2022 first and second half, coming close to the average half-year value for the period 2010-2022 (2.31⋅1017 J).


Epidemiological control of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is needed to estimate the infection period of confirmed cases and identify potential cases. The present study, targeting confirmed cases for which the time of COVID-19 symptom onset was disclosed, aimed to investigate the relationship between intervals (day) from symptom onset to testing the cycle threshold (CT) values of real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Of the COVID-19 confirmed cases, those for which the date of suspected symptom onset in the epidemiological investigation was specifically disclosed were included in this study. Interval was defined as the number of days from symptom onset (as disclosed by the patient) to specimen collection for testing. A locally weighted regression smoothing (LOWESS) curve was applied, with intervals as explanatory variables and CT values (CTR for RdRp gene and CTE for E gene) as outcome variables. After finding its non-linear relationship, a polynomial regression model was applied to estimate the 95% confidence interval values of CTR and CTE by interval. The application of LOWESS in 331 patients identified a U-shaped curve relationship between the CTR and CTE values according to the number of interval days, and both CTR and CTE satisfied the quadratic model for interval days. Active application of these results to epidemiological investigations would minimize the chance of failing to identify individuals who are in contact with COVID-19 confirmed cases, thereby reducing the potential transmission of the virus to local communities.