Objeetive:To probe into the correlation between active infection of human cytomegalovirus(HCMV)and the serum level of pregnancy-associated plasma protein(PAPP-A)in early trimester of pregnancy and their role in the pathogenesis of spontaneous abortion.Methods:HCMV IgM and mRNA in the sera of women with threatened abortion in early trimester of pregnancy were tested with enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay(ELISA)and reverse transcription polymerasechain reaction(RT-PCR)and those with active infection of HCMV were screened.Noninfected gravida of threatened abortion and healthy gravida of similar gestational age were randomly selected.The serum level of PAPP-A of the three groups was assayed with ELISA.Results:The serum level of PAPP-A was(0.4924±0.088)mlU/ml,(0.805±0.213)mlU/ml and(2.479±1.020)mlU/ml,respectively(F=93.98,P0.01).Conclusion:The serum PAPP-A is correlated with active infection of HCMV,which might play an essential role in the pathogenesis of spontaneous abortion in early trimester of pregnancy.


The most serious environmental problem metallurgical industry are emissions of waste gases containing toxic substances, including nitrogen oxides. As part of these studies to the development and implementation of cleaner production technologies to ensure high sanitary requirements for use of nitrogenous companies in the country, identified the main ways to capture the nitrogen oxides to their lives or their complete decomposition to elemental nitrogen before release into the atmosphere. It is shown that the use of waste nitrous gases can achieve a significant reduction of the negative impact of nitrogen oxides on the environment. In addition, due to trapping emissions by industrial wastes leaching of hazardous components can reduce material costs by using the obtained nitric acid as the leaching agent, that is, returning it to the head of the technological chain.


Milwaukee-When an anophthalmic implant is required, in most cases, oculoplastic surgeon Russell S. Gonnering, MD, prefers using a non-wrapped porous sphere.


We consider inference in the linear regression model with a single endogenous variable and potentially weak instruments. We construct confidence sets for the coefficient on endogenous variable by inverting the Anderson-Rubin, Lagrange multiplier, and conditional likelihood ratio tests. Our confidence sets have correct coverage probabilities even when the instruments are weak. We propose a numerically simple algorithms for finding these confidence sets, and we present a Stata command that supersedes the one presented in Moreira and Poi (2003).


A quantitative comparison between off-line supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and a classical solvent extraction of a limonoid compound is discussed. A two-level three factor factorial analysis was used to optimize the variables, pressure, temperature, and the length of extraction time. By a statistical analysis of variance on the preliminary data collected, pressure and temperature were the significant variables influencing the yields of the limonoid cedrelone from the ground wood of Cedrela toona (Meliaceae). The cedrelone in the extracts was analyzed by capillary gas chromatography with flame ionization and mass spectrometric detection. On-line combination of micro-SFE with gas chromatography (SFE-GC) was also performed on the wood and bark to show the applicability of the technique in the analysis of semi-volatile components in natural products. Results for on-line and off-line SFE-GC were comparable and indicated that the on-line studies could be used to predict results obtainable from large scale SFE. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Intra-urban surface water (IUSW) is an indispensable resource for urban living. Accurately acquiring and updating the distributions of IUSW resources is significant for human settlement environments and urban ecosystem services. High-resolution optical remote sensing data are used widely in the detailed monitoring of IUSW because of their characteristics of high resolution, large width, and high frequency. The lack of spectral information in high-resolution remote sensing data, however, has led to the IUSW misclassification problem, which is difficult to fully solve by relying only on spatial features. In addition, with an increasing abundance of water products, it is equally important to explore methods for using water products to further enhance the automatic acquisition of IUSW. In this study, we developed an automated urban surface-water area extraction method (AUSWAEM) to obtain accurate IUSW by fusing GaoFen-1 (GF-1) images, Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) images, and GlobeLand30 products. First, we derived morphological large-area/small-area water indices to increase the salience of IUSW features. Then, we applied an adaptive segmentation model based on the GlobeLand30 product to obtain the initial results of IUSW. Finally, we constructed a decision-level fusion model based on expert knowledge to eliminate the problem of misclassification resulting from insufficient information from high-resolution remote sensing spectra and obtained the final IUSW results. We used a three-case study in China (i.e., Tianjin, Shanghai, and Guangzhou) to validate this method based on remotely sensed images, such as those from GF-1 and Landsat-8 OLI. We performed a comparative analysis of the results from the proposed method and the results from the normalized differential water index, with average kappa coefficients of 0.91 and 0.55, respectively, which indicated that the AUSWAEM improved the average kappa coefficient by 0.36 and obtained accurate spatial patterns of IUSW. Furthermore, the AUSWAEM displayed more stable and robust performance under different environmental conditions. Therefore, the AUSWAEM is a promising technique for extracting IUSW with more accurate and automated detection performance.


Abstract:One of the standard objections against guilds in the premodern world has been their exclusiveness. Guilds have been portrayed as providing unfair advantages to the children of established masters and locals, over immigrants and other outsiders. Privileged access to certain professions and industries is seen as a source of inequality and a disincentive for technological progress. In this paper, we examine this assumption by studying the composition of guild masters and apprentices from a large sample of European towns and cities from 1600 to 1800, focusing on the share who were children of masters or locals. These data offer an indirect measurement of the strength of guild barriers and, by implication, of their monopolies. We find very wide variation between guilds in practice, but most guild masters and apprentices were immigrants or unrelated locals: openness was much more common than closure, especially in larger centers. Our understanding of guild "monopolies" and exclusivity is in need of serious revision.


Extract of Kayu Jawa (Lannea coromandelica) bark plant is known to have biological activity, one of which is antibacterial. This research aimed to determine the inhibition of nanoparticles kayu jawa (Lannea coromandelica) bark against Stapylococcus aureus and Eschericia coli. The extraction of  Kayu Jawa (Lannea coromandelica) bark was carried out by maceration method using 70% ethanol as solvent. The extract of the Kayu Jawa (Lannea coromandelica) bark was synthesized to form chitosan-coated nanoparticles using the ionic gelation method and the results of the synthesis were characterized using X-Ray Difraction (XRD). The results showed that the synthesis of nanoparticles extract of Kayu Jawa (Lannea coromandelica) bark coated with chitosan had a particle size of 24.9 nm.


In binary digital image processing,threshold selection is very critical.In order to match the target image of the binary image quickly and accurately in practice,use template matching method to research binary threshold sensitivity for the standard template matching algorithm and the weighted template matching algorithm.According to the threshold results of fluctuations on the match situation in the experimental binary image processing,obtain binarization threshold sensitivity difference between the weighted template matching algorithm and the standard template matching algorithm.Experimental results also show that the weighted template matching algorithm has strong binarization threshold does not match the performance of sensitivity and good benefits.


Objective To demonstrate the influence of HCMV infection on MCM-loading factor Cdc6 in human embryonic lung fibroblastic(HEL)cells and investigate the pathogenesis of HCMV infection at molecular level.Methods The HEL cells in G0/G1 were synchronized by serum starvation.Synchronized HEL cells were infected with HCMV,at the same time the mock-infected group was set up as control group.Infected HEL cells were harvested at 12 hours post infection(h p.i.),24,48,72 and 96 h p.i.,to extract the total RNA and detect the expression of Cdc6 mRNA with semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR)technique.ResultsThere was a significant difference in expression levels of Cdc6 mRNA between two groups(P0.05) at 12,24,48,72 and 96 h p.i..The expression levels of Cdc6 mRNA in HCMV-infected group were obviously higher than those in the mock-infected group at 12,24,48 h p.i.,but at 72 and 96 h p.i.,the expression levels of Cdc6 mRNA in HCMV-infected group were lower than those in the mock-infected group.In the HCMV-infected group the expression levels of Cdc6 mRNA reached at a peak at 12 h p.i.,then decreased gradually,and reached a nadir at 72 h p.i.,but then went up a little again at 96 h p.i.;while in the mock-infected group the expression levels of Cdc6 mRNA reached at a peak at 12 h p.i.,then decreased gradually,and reached a nadir at 48 h p.i.,but then went up a little again at 72 h p.i.and continued increasing at 96 h p.i.Conclusion HCMV could induce the over expressions of Cdc6 mRNA and accumulation of Cdc6 by the HCMV infection and cell cycle progression was affected at last.


This Context Statement contains critical descriptions of my academic and professional outputs as a hospital clinical pharmacist and senior pharmacy leader, over the period 2007 to 2017, with some antecedents prior to 2007. Clinical Pharmacy has a main aim of optimising safe, appropriate and effective medicines use, for individual patients and organisations as well as system-wide. The Public Works presented here centre around four interrelated themes regarding clinical pharmacy – measuring and improving standards and quality of care; prescribing, prescribing practices and prescribing safety; innovative practice within legal and ethical frameworks; the impact and outcomes of clinical pharmacy. A unifying premise is my aim of advancing clinical pharmacy practice.

The concept of measuring to improve standards and quality of clinical care has progressed considerably over the past 15 years. I present my contributions to this - developing, implementing, measuring and disseminating clinical pharmacy quality and performance indicators, as well as benchmarking and quality improvement initiatives.

The chapter on prescribing encompasses the impact of electronic prescribing on pharmacy practice; the formal and informal roles of hospital pharmacists as prescribers; and a practice model I developed for pharmacists to practice as both specialist and generalist prescribers. I also discuss my research into inappropriate prescribing.

The innovative practices in Chapter Four include the introduction of different models of practice to improve patient care and medicines use, with significant focus on a specific initiative - redesigning the discharge medication prescription pathway. Chapter Five highlights other work which I undertook to demonstrate the potential of hospital clinical pharmacy to improve outcomes.

Throughout my professional career I have promoted the development of research capability within hospital pharmacy, to better improve patient care. In the concluding chapter, I draw from other professions to conceptualise a model of integrating professional practice, theory and research. Pharmacy Praxis is a philosophy which bears further development, in order to continue the progress of clinical pharmacy.


Situation of protection coating with durability for China's railway bridges,railway concrete bridge deck,and the steel structure of orthogonal special-shaped bridge were introduced in detail,in particular,new anti-corrosion,waterproof materials(such as waterproof coatings of methyl methacrylate ester resin,polyurea waterproof paints),new techniques,and new standards involved in the current building of passenger railway line,were illustrated in detail.


The newly unearthed epitaphs of Tang Dynasty Prime Minister Zhao Zongru in Luoyang,recounted the life of the minister,which is more detailed than the two Tang.The inscription was written by Zhao's disciple,Zheng Han.Though the content was quite serious,the longstanding grudges was regarded as taboo for the deceased.The inscription,which was copied on the epitaph by the well-known calligraphers Guo Cheng-gu(jia),showed the artistic style of Guo's calligraphy.


In this paper we proposed a writer adaptation system based on an adaptation module that is a plug-in for any writer-independent handwriting recognition systems. The adaptation module is a radial basis function neural network (RBF-NN) that is built using an incremental learning algorithm named GALTM-AM algorithm (Growing-Adjustment with Long-Term Memory). GALTM-AM train a new given data with some LTM data to suppress the interference. Therefore, we design two procedures to manage the LTM data. The first is produce and store. The second is retrieve and learn. This new learning algorithm is evaluated by the adaptation of a writer-independent handwriting recognition system. Moreover, the results using a benchmark database named LaViola prove the efficiency of the proposed GALTM-AM. Performance comparison of GALTM-AM algorithm over the existing approaches is presented.


Strategists have argued that knowledge and how it is managed is a key source of competitive advantage. No where is this more important than in knowledge-intensive professional service firms, where resources are almost exclusively knowledge-based. Learning from past experiences and applying knowledge in new situations are essential for improving future value creation for clients. The paper introduces a framework for understanding how these firms can leverage knowledge more effectively. The framework explains the core social processes of knowledge collection and connection. These processes are essential for making knowledge productive, using it to innovate, delivering better services, and preventing "reinventing of the wheel." Yet few professional service firms focus on how these processes actually work. To understand these processes, professional service firms must recognize the difference between rationalized and embedded knowledge. The paper describes these concepts and shows how this typology sheds ligh...


Purpose of reviewDiscovery of the Wnt signaling pathway and understanding the central role of osteocyte in skeletal homeostasis have been the major advances in skeletal biology over the past decade. Sclerostin, secreted mainly (but not exclusively) by osteocytes, has emerged as a key player in skeletal homeostasis. This review highlights the most relevant recent advances. Recent findingsSclerostin by inhibiting Wnt signaling pathway decreases bone formation and osteoblast differentiation and promotes osteoblast apoptosis. Ability to measure serum sclerostin levels better clarified the role of sclerostin in various physiologic and pathologic states. Early clinical trials with antibodies to sclerostin have produced robust increases in bone mineral density, and fracture prevention trials are underway. SummarySince the discovery of Wnt signaling pathway and sclerostin's association with high bone mass, there has been a remarkable progress. Clinical trials with fracture endpoints, already underway, should expand osteoanabolic therapeutic horizon in the very near future. Measurement of sclerostin levels in a number of conditions has advanced our knowledge about pathophysiology of skeletal and nonskeletal disorders in an altogether new light.


This paper examines the impact of informational frictions when the entrepreneur anticipates having little or no bargaining power in negotiating with the financier and can select ex ante the innovation/venture he wants to develop. In this environment the entrepreneur faces a tradeoff between selecting an innovation that creates high value but one which only allows him to capture little or none of that value; or selecting a "pet-project" innovation that creates lower value but yields private benefits to him. In the baseline scenario, without contractual frictions, the financier is able to elicit first-best entrepreneurial effort, but cannot commit not to extracts all innovation rents from the entrepreneur, leading him to select his favored but inefficient innovation the first place. The key insight of the model is that the introduction of informational frictions like non-verifiability of effort or talent information asymmetry, while leading to reductions in effort (for a given innovation choice), do lead to more efficient (i.e. higher value) innovation choices ex ante, and indeed could generate superior payoffs for the entrepreneur and the financier, as well as a greater expected total surplus from innovation. This yields several empirical implications, not least of which the potential motivation for financiers to commit to "opacity of information" when the resulting improvements in innovation selection dominate the impact of effort reduction.


This paper performs linear stability analysis of base flow velocity profiles for laminar and turbulent water-hammer flows. These base flow velocity profiles are determined analytically, where the transient is generated by an instantaneous reduction in flow rate at the downstream end of a simple pipe system. The presence of inflection points in the base flow velocity profile and the large velocity gradient near the pipe wall are the sources of flow instability. The main parameters that govern the stability behavior of transient flows are the Reynolds number and dimensionless timescale. The stability of the base flow velocity profiles with respect to axisymmetric and asymmetric modes is studied and its results are plotted in the Reynolds number/time-scale parameter space. It is found that the asymmetric mode with azimuthal wave number 1 is the least stable. In addition, the results indicate that the decrease of the velocity gradient at the inflection point with time is a stabilizing mechanism whereas the migration of the inflection point from the pipe wall with time is a destabilizing mechanism. Moreover, it is shown that a higher reduction in flow rate, which results in a larger velocity gradient at the inflection point, promotes flow instability. Furthermore, it is found that the stability results of the laminar and the turbulent velocity profiles are consistent with published experimental data and successfully explain controversial conclusions in the literature. The consistency between stability analysis and experiments provide further confirmation that (1) water-hammer flows can become unstable; (2) the instability is asymmetric; (3) instabilities develop in a short (water-hammer) timescale; and (4) the Reynolds number and the wave timescale are important in the characterization of the stability of water-hammer flows. Physically, flow instabilities change the structure and strength of the turbulence in a pipe, result in strong flow asymmetry, and induce significant fluctuations in wall shear stress. These effects of flow instability are not represented in existing water-hammer models.


This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. For more information, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com. Recommended Citation Michaelis, Stephen Henry, "A Model of Suicidal Behavior In Latency Age Children Based on Developmental Object Relations Theory" (1989). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 2939.


This paper is the first of a two-part exploration of the significance of biopolitics to the study of geography. Our first paper surveys the emergent field of biopolitics by looking at the philosophical underpinnings of the concept and some of the ways in which scholars, including geographers, have utilized the concept as an analytical tool. Throughout the papers, we make the argument for a greater degree of empirical rigor and conceptual clarity in the way the term biopolitics is deployed and operationalized.


Venous disease has long been the poor relation in the family of general surgery. Consisting principally of operations for varicose veins, it has been regarded as dull and uninteresting, and it has often been delegated to reluctant and disinterested junior staff. There has been a quiet revolution in the past decade, brought about largely by increasing specialisation in surgery. Almost all elective arterial surgery in the United Kingdom and Ireland is now done by specialist vascular surgeons. The drive towards provision of comprehensive cover for emergency arterial diseases is likely to fuel the separation of vascular surgery away from general surgery. An increasing number of surgeons now practise exclusively in vascular surgery, and many have turned their attention towards managing venous disease. Elective varicose vein surgery consists of largevolume, relatively low-difficulty procedures, and has the added attraction of a significant presence in the commercial sector. The time has come for vascular surgeons to bid strongly to be specialist venous, as well as arterial surgeons, but the argument has to be won on quality issues, not perceived greed.


A sustainability module was included in courses for first-year engineering students majoring in civil, environmental, architectural, and general engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder. The low infrastructure grades in America were used to help motivate students about the importance of sustainable engineering. A homework assignment required students to select a case study from one of the ASCE Infrastructure Report Card areas, and discuss how it did or could target sustainability. A rubric was used to determine if students discussed environmental, social, and economic aspects. The civil, architectural, and general engineering students also explored the Greenroads ® Rating System, LEED, or ENVISION™, respectively. Environmental engineering students explored life cycle assessment. At the end of the semester the students increased in their self-efficacy for sustainable engineering knowledge. The paper provides an example of a simple module that helped students achieve knowledge and comprehension of sustainable engineering.


This paper presents a new method for Magic Square studies,i.e.,the n-order Magic Square is constructed by using genetic algorithm.To achieve this purpose,a crossover operator and a mutation operator have been designed,so that the improved generic operator is more suitable for constructing genetic operation of the n-order Magic Square.


The structure and properties of syndiotacticity-rich poly(vinyl alcohol) (s-PVA) prepared through the saponification of drawn poly(vinyl trifluoroacetate) (PVTFAc) with gaseous ammonia were studied. The PVTFAc samples with s-diad % of 59 and 64 were used. The s-PVAs had low densities and showed X-ray diagrams similar to the fiber diagram of PVA with indistinct 100, 101, 101, and 200 plane reflections and without the plane reflections seen at the equator of a typical fiber diagram, such as 001, 201, and 002. The s-PVAs had melting points comparable to those of saponified and heat-drawn samples, indicating a PVA with the typical fiber structure as seen in the X-ray diagram of a sample. The intensity of the 916 cm 1 band in the infrared spectrum related to syndiotactic diads decreased with drawing, suggesting an increase in the crystallinity. Crystals with more defects are thought to be produced in saponification. The s-PVA films drawn 16 times and saponified had a Young's modulus and strength at break of 22 and 1.5 GPa for the sample from S-59 and 14 and 1.2 GPa for the sample from S-64, respectively. The crystallization-sensitive band of 1145 cm 1 in the infrared spectra of the saponified samples was weak.


Following natural disasters, many regions face substantial losses of wealth. However, some sectors experience temporary gains in economic activity as a result of insurance claims and other short-term income flows. This paper examines the economic gains and losses from Hurricane Hugo in South Carolina. The analysis is based on a multi-sector regional econometric model, which allows us to examine the state's economy "with and without" the storm. We first obtained estimates based on pre-Hugo period data. Then, we simulated the state's economy in the post-Hugo period based on the actual values of national economic variables during the reconstruction period-yielding the "without" storm estimates. We found that the income gains were neutral overall, despite a major surge in some sectors. Even in these sectors, the economic gain remained below the unreimbursed wealth loss. Thus, the catastrophe had a net negative economic effect.


This study examines fund family performance, in terms of selectivity and market timing skills of fund family managers, in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Pakistan from 2007–2021. Selectivity skills are measured using excess returns, Sharpe ratio, Treynor ratio, Jensen's alpha, and Carhart's four-factor model, whereas market timing ability is measured using the Treynor-Mazuy and Henriksson-Merton models. The analysis is carried out on three levels of sample: by entire sample, by country, and by Islamic vs conventional families. The findings evince the good selectivity but poor timing skills of family managers. A novel contribution of this study is that family managers of Islamic and conventional families have different selectivity and timing skills, which can be attributed to the different goals of each type of family.


Primary cardiac sarcomas are very rare and there is no consensus on management. Clinical presentation is usually late. Despite newer diagnostic technology, prognosis remains dismal. We report a case of right atrial sarcoma in a 28-year-old man who presented with acute cardiac tamponade. Emergency subxiphoid pericardial drainage stabilized the patient's critical condition. The lesion was advanced. Therefore, we only performed a suboptimal surgical resection. Despite planning for radiation, the patient's status deteriorated. Only palliative measures continued during the next four months before his death due to disseminated metastasis and progressive cardiopulmonary failure.


The invention discloses a high-end antitheft hand brake installed in a light vehicle or luxury car. The high-end antitheft hand brake is characterized by being made of metal. A cylindrical-spring type cylindrical lock is disposed in a startup handle inner cavity of the high-end antitheft hand brake, and a key control handle mechanism is fixed in the middle of a car seat. The whole hand brake is fully close and is operated by mechanical safety means and electrical control devices. Startup of the car antitheft hand brake is required before driving.


Pissodes nemorensis and Pissodes strobi are major pests of pine produc tion in eastern North America. Ethanol-and-turpentine baited traps were used here to monitor weevil populations in a Scotch pine Christmas tree plantation in Wisconsin. Baited pitfall traps were ineffective in trapp g either weevil species. However, baited flight traps at 0.8 and 1.6 m above ground effec tIvely captured flying weevils of both species, 70% of which were P. nemoren sis. Females of both species were more attracted than males to the ethanoll turpentine baits. Significantly more female P. nemorensis and total P. nemorensis were trapped at a height of 0.8 m than 1.6 m. There was no significant difference in male P. ne or nsis response to the different heights, nor was there a significant difference in response to tra height by P. strobi. The white pine weevil, Pissodes strobi (Peck), and the eastern pine weevil, Pissodes nemorensis Germar, are significant pests of conifer reproduction (Drooz 1985). Pissodes strobi feeding, oviposition, and larval development occur in the terminal leaders of host pine (pinus) and spruce (Picea) trees. Damage appears as flagged terminal branches with a characteristic shep herd's crook, most commonly on young, vigorous trees (Benyus 1983). Pis sodes strobi is widely distributed throughout North America. In eastern North America. eastern white pine, Pinus strobus L., and Norway spruce, Picea abies L., are most severely attacked (Drooz 1985). Pissodes nemorensis requires stressed host plants to complete develop ment. It preferentially attacks he basal stem region and lower lateral branches of stressed trees, and frequently breeds in stumps and logs (Bliss & Kearby 1969, Drooz 1985). Seedlings in Christmas tree planatations and intensively managed timber stands are particularly susceptible to attack. Pis sodes nemorensis commonly occurs throughout eastern North America, with favored host plants being red pine, Pinus res osa, and Scotch pine, Pinus sylvestris. Although P. strobi is the more aggressive of the two species, adult feeding and larval development of both species can cause considerable host disfigure ment and occasional mortality. The dispersal abilities of both species are well documented (Finnegan 1958, Overhulser & Gara 1975). Pissodes strobi emerge from overwintering sites when temperatures reach 6° C (Sullivan 1959), and flight activity occurs at temperatures from 16°C to 29°C (MacAlo ney 1932, Silver 1968). lDepartment of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706. 1 Rieske and Raffa: Use of Ethanol-and-Turpentine-Baited Flight Traps to Monitor P Published by ValpoScholar, 1993 156 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 26, No.2 Ethanol and turpentine are recognized as important host volatiles attract ing many forest-dwelling insects; these compounds have been successfully employed to bait traps for pine-infesting coleopterans (Moeck 1970, F tzinger 1985, Raffa & Hunt 1988, Rieske 1990, Rieske & Raffa 1990). Insecticides, intensive cultural practices, and sanitation are used to man age these weevil populations in pine plantations. A simple method for detect ing and monitoring these weevils prior to yield losses and grade reduction could reduce insecticide usage, and alleviate the need for labor intensive exam ination of potentially infested trees. The objectives of this study were to assess th feasibility of employing ethanol and turpentine baited traps to monitor Pissodes populati s, and characterize flight patterns of these weevils in infested Christmas tree planta tions.


If you observe medical consultations closely, you will nearly always observe some kind of struggle going on between medical and lay styles of conversation. Patients mostly display a style that is best described as a narrative one, while doctors pursue one that is more normative. (The distinction is my own, but it closely follows the psychologist Jerome Bruner, who talks of 'narrative' and 'paradigmatic' modes of speech.)

Patients, by and large, have a story to tell. This story-telling has a primeval drive behind it, a drive that is universal and probably far older even than medicine. If you want to find out how powerful the story-telling drive is, you have only to interrupt patients prematurely in their narratives—as we all sometimes do—and to notice how they generally carry on from exactly where they stopped.

Doctors, by contrast, generally approach conversations with patients in quite a different way. Our utterances are largely aimed at matching patients' words against known patterns of description, or norms. These may be norms of diagnosis ('Is this angina?') but …


Nowadays, computer experiments are often used for evaluation of functions with random inputs. Instead of accessing a complex function and calculating the probability distribution function of the result, a set of computer simulations may be processed and the information concerning the properties of the resulting variable/random vector can be estimated. The quality of such an estimate depends on the number of simulations and also on the distribution of points in the sampling space. Since the time required for the calculation is proportional to the number of the design points, it is desirable to reduce this number while keeping the quality of the design. This can be achieved by appropriate selection of the design points (specific combinations of values of input variables out of the permissible range of values given by the probability distribution of each variable).This paper describes several frequently used methods for generation and optimization of the designs and compares them using several basic function...


Anytime algorithms enable intelligent systems to trade computation time with solution quality. To exploit this crucial ability in real-time decision-making, the system must decide when to interrupt the anytime algorithm and act on the current solution. Existing meta-level control techniques, however, address this problem by relying on significant offline work that diminishes their practical utility and accuracy. We formally introduce an online performance prediction framework that enables meta-level control to adapt to each instance of a problem without any preprocessing. Using this framework, we then present a meta-level control technique and two stopping conditions. Finally, we show that our approach outperforms existing techniques that require substantial offline work. The result is efficient nonmyopic meta-level control that reduces the overhead and increases the benefits of using anytime algorithms in intelligent systems.


Antecedent precipitation too often remains a subjectively determined and arbitrarily implemented parameter in rainfall-runoff modeling. Antecedent moisture can account for a several-fold difference in runoff from the same storm in an otherwise identical watershed. The antecedent precipitation index and the Natural Resource Conservation Service's antecedent moisture condition triad are conventional expressions of antecedent precipitation. Unfortunately, neither index consistently characterizes the runoff consequence of watershed moisture preceding a rainfall event. A normalized antecedent precipitation index is proposed that modifies the conventional index in three aspects: inclusion of antecedent precipitation earlier in the day of the event, normalization to the station mean, and normalization to antecedent series length. The proposed index, based on daily rainfall record, is theoretically simple and mathematically continuous. Initial results show the proposed index to outperform single curve number-based results, even when the curve number is fit to historic rainfall-runoff records. The proposed index enhances delineation of the antecedent moisture condition for estimates based on that parameter and provides a basis for runoff estimates where the initial watershed moisture condition is probabilistic.


Polylactide (PLA) was first toughened with methyl methacrylate-butadiene-styrene (MBS) copolymer. Then the toughened PLA was further blended with diethylene glycol monobutyl ether adipate (DGBEA) using a twin-screw extruder. Finally, the extruded samples were blown using the blown film technique. The PLA/DGBEA/MBS blends were characterized by dynamic rheometer, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Rhelological investigation demonstrated that there was a significantly dependence of viscosity on composition. DMA results displayed that the PLA/DGBEA/MBS blends showed a single peak, which suggested that PLA and the shell of MBS be compatible. So, DGBEA could act as a plasticizer and improve the miscibility of PLA/MBS blends. The crystallization morphology, mechanical properties, optical properties, the morphology of the tear-fracture surfaces, and enzymatic degradation of the PLA/DGBEA/MBS films were further studied. The Maltese cross pattern phenomenon weakens and the spherulite size becomes smaller from the observation of the polarized microscope. With an increase of MBS content from 3% to 12%, the tensile strength of the films decreased from 38.2/37.5 MPa (MD/TD) to 25.2/26.4 MPa (MD/TD), however, the elongation at break increased significantly from 72.3/83.1% (MD/TD) to 289.5/286.8% (MD/TD), which indicated the toughening effects of the MBS on PLA. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2017. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers


mystery. They tell us that those who witnessed Jesus' Transfiguration were three : Peter and James and John. Our evangelist tells us: ' We beheld His glory' or Transfiguration; in other terms, 'I am one of the three disciples who beheld I the Transfiguration.' Well, who is this I? Is it Peter or James or, john ? The reply is self evident ; it is also authoritative, all three Synoptists vouching for it. And now one more closing word: As the


Sometimes we are rudely awakened to this fact when a really catastrophic event happens such as an earthquake with unexpected strength at an unexpected location. That is the gist of non-traditional stochastic modeling: accounting for " unexpected events." Although such events cannot be predicted, they can be modeled. measurement errors, leading to the binomial distribution and in the limit, the Gaussian distribution. Many random physical phenomena are indeed governed by such distributions, a lot of theory has been developed for them and they have invaded engineering ranging from the design of electronic amplifiers and telecommunication links to helicopter control via Kalman filtering. Somehow, and thanks to the famous (Lindeberg-L ´ evy) central limit theorem, there is a belief that when you have the sum of a large number of presumably small effects, you automatically get a near-Gaussian distribution and that therefore all stochastic disturbances in engineering can be meaningfully modeled by Gaussian models.. . The truth, however, is much more complex. Many natural and human-made probabilistic phenomena do not adhere to a Gaussian distribution. This is already pretty evident from the properties of the latter. It has a very pronounced average value; the distribution is symmetric around that value and tapers off exponentially. Three or four " sigmas " away (sigma is a number equal to the standard deviation of the random variable) and the probability that the process has such a value is virtually nil. Already early on in the development of probability theory, the famous French mathematician L ´ evy defined a continuous distribution function for a new class of positive random variables, characteristic of some physical effects in spectroscopy and deviating from the Gaussian case. That new distribution has then been found useful for the modeling of economic effects such as the return on shares in the stock market. Pareto drew the attention of the economic community to these so-called " power law probability distributions, " a class of distributions that are described by a power law and hence have a " fat tail, " leading to statements such as " 80% of world's wealth is in 20% of the hands. " It seems that many meaningful distributions obey such laws: e.g., size of islands, Internet traffic, 1/f noise, size of sand particles, you name it – reason enough to give these distributions a great deal of attention! Probability theorists generalized the distributions discovered by L ´ …


The dimerization constants for yeast hexokinase at various pH values were determined. The dimerization of hexokinase at a silica gel surface was studied. Two independent (adsorption and catalytic) methods demonstrated that, as in solutions, the association of hexokinase is limited to dimerization. It was shown that the values of the pair interaction constant calculated from the adsorption and catalytic data are identical.


T HE philosophical problem with which we are here concerned may briefly be formulated thus: Whether in one and the same: individual, remaining essentially one, there are many substantial forms or only one. A concrete thing of matter and form, the crvvoA.ov, is one essence and one nature, but it possesses several perfections and activities. It is, in fact, a body, corpus, and it is such and such a body, a stone or a tree or a horse. A tree is a body, but it is a determinate body, quite different from a stone or a horse; besides being a corporeal thing, it is also a living thing. Now, as Boethius has it, it is the form that confers on matter the actual being: omne esse ex forma est.1 A substantial form imparts an essential perfection, and an accidental form a relative or qualified perfection. Assuming that substantial form is the determining principle of a composite being, the difficulty arises of how to account for the various essential perfections of an individual. Does one substantial form give one perfection only, so that we have to look for as many substantial forms as there are perfections and activities; or does a single form suffice to determine the thing in its own nature, thus endowing it with all its perfections and activities? A stone is a corporeal thing as much as a piece of iron, and man is as much a living being as a tree or a horse; but as a horse possesses some perfections which a tree has not, for example, sensitive life, so man, besides having nutritive and sense powers, is also endowed with an intellective soul. The whole point of the discussion, therefore, comes to this: Is a man-let us say man, for it was in connection with the human soul that the vexed question was first stated-a living


Abstract : Veterans of Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm (ODS/DS) have reported an array of health complaints since the war. These complaints are often attributed to the veterans' deployment to the Persian Gulf, and the reported ailments have been popularly labeled Gulf War illness. Whether veterans are experiencing higher-than-expected rates of either known or unknown illnesses has not yet been determined. However, by 1997 the Veterans Administration (VA) had recorded approximately 15,000 veterans with undiagnosed symptoms, commonly including fatigue, muscle and joint pains, headaches, memory loss, skin rash, diarrhea, and sleep disturbances. Symptoms similar to some of those reported by Gulf War veterans may result from overexposure to various pesticides, but little is known about the use (or misuse) of pesticides during ODS/DS, particularly pesticide use by the average service member. In an effort to gather additional information, RAND was commissioned by the Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Defense for Gulf War Illnesses to survey veterans about the pesticides they personally used and other pesticides they used or observed being used in the field. The purpose of the survey was to augment available information about the extent of pesticide use by the troops, the level of multiple pesticide use, and the duration and frequency of use.


In this paper, we present and analyze a novel decoder architecture for LDPC convolutional codes (LDPCCCs). The proposed architecture enables high throughput and can be programmed to decode different codes and blocklengths, which might be necessary to cope with the requirements of future communication systems. To achieve high throughput, the SIMD paradigm is applied on the regular graph structure typical to LDPCCCs. We also present the main components of the proposed architecture and analyze its programmability. Finally, synthesis results for a prototype ASIC show that the architecture is capable of achieving decoding throughputs of several hundreds MBits/s with attractive complexity and power consumption.


SUMMARY:  The prevalence of diabetes along with its associated foot complications is an increasing dilemma throughout the developed world. Over the past two decades, a new breed of healthcare providers has evolved with a focus on treating these diabetic patients, specifically in the arenas of wound care and limb salvage. Notably, diabetic patients themselves are becoming more involved to take on a larger role in the self-management of this disease. As such, we take a closer look at the 'diabetes caregiver' as part of a multidisciplinary team and highlight the importance of educating and empowering our patients to help establish a new standard for providing top-tiered diabetic foot care and amputation prevention.


A smartwatch is a mini-sized digital computer device that functions apart from being a watch and can also perform intelligent computing tasks. Due to screen size limitations, a smartwatch requires special design techniques on its input and output to allow interaction with its users. Text entry is often required by many applications, but because the smartwatch screen is small, text entry techniques commonly used on personal computers are impractical when applied to smartwatches. In this study, we introduce a design concept proposal for a soft keyboard called One Line Soft Keyboard with T9-Keys Layout. The soft keyboard design concept is expected to reduce the space on the keyboard on the smartwatch screen, along with the use of widely used button layouts that are familiar to users.


Background The practice of medicine by uncertified personnel is a common concern in public healthcare. Although the introduction of the Korean National Health Insurance Service has significantly reduced the number of these cases, the problem persists in the field of aesthetics. Herein, we report an outbreak of devastating facial stigmata in patients treated with illegal cosmetic procedures.Methods During 1 week in November 2021, five patients presented to Bucheon St. Mary's Hospital for the management of identical patterns of severe facial scarring. Each patient had been treated for "skin rejuvenation" by a single unlicensed practitioner. Months of needling therapy by the practitioner, aimed at resolving the problem, only aggravated the scarring. The victims visited our hospital after the practitioner ceased to answer their calls. The patients had similar presentations with multiple prominent scars on both cheeks. Ectropion of the right lower eyelid due to scar contracture was observed in one patient.Results Five monthly treatments with intralesional triamcinolone injection and laser therapy were performed. Despite thorough management, the patients were left with improved but distinctive stigmata on their faces.Conclusions Cases of illegal aesthetic procedures are difficult to prosecute because the patients have implicitly agreed to the procedure. Therefore, active legislative measures should be adopted to prevent further victimization. Public education on the dangers of illegal aesthetic practices is also necessary.


This report pertains to a comprehensive study involving the use of recycled materials in portland cement concrete. Three different materials were studied including crushed glass (CG), street sweepings (SS), and recycled concrete (RC). Blast furnace slag was also considered as a cementitious additive for enhancing the durability characteristics of the mixture. This research was performed and completed earlier. Four reports were submitted covering literature survey, mix details and experimental results for the recycled materials in the study. However, in these studies, the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) class A concrete was substantially modified in order to establish an optimized mixture. The optimized mixture was used in conjunction with the recycled materials. This was done due to the fact that the researchers were aware of the deleterious effects of the recycled constituents on the class A mix. However, NJDOT project engineers indicated that despite the outcome, they would like the experiments to also encompass standard class A concrete in conjunction with the recycled materials. The project was extended at no additional cost and a second series of experiments were performed with mixtures that included class A concrete as a base material. The bulk of this report pertains to these results. The research phase corresponding to class A mixtures is designated as Phase-A, and the earlier research with optimized proportions corresponds to Phase-B. Representative results from the earlier study (Phase-B) for the CG and RC are also given for completeness. Based on the results of this study, it is recommended that SS shall not be used with any type of concrete mixture due to its variability. CG and RC shall be used with optimized cementitious mixtures and not standard class A concrete. These recommendations are mainly based on the decreased durability attributes of such materials. Even with the optimized cementitious mixtures, the reduction in compressive strength as a function of curing age for CG concrete points at uncertainty regarding the long term load bearing characteristics of such material. It is recommended that the CG concrete not be used in structural and load bearing applications. RC can be used for secondary applications and it possesses enhanced durability attributes in optimized, cementitious mixtures.


Objective To explore the efficacy of nephritis rehabilitation tablets in treatemtn of hematuria chronic nephritis. Methods One hundred and eighty cases of patients with chronic nephritis admitted by the outpatient service of this hospital from October 2009 to December 2013 were selected,and were divided into research group and the control group according to different methods of treatment,with 90 cases in each group.Patients in two groups were given with quality diet with low protein and low salt,patients in the control group were given with adequate hormone treatment on the basis of conventional diet,while patients in the research group were given with the treatment of nephritis rehabilitation tablets on the basis of control group.The hematuresis routine,renal function index,albumin,immunoglobulin and other indicators of patients before and after treatment were examined,and clinical efficacy was observed. Results The total effective rate of research group was 85.6%,higher than 66.7% of the control group,the difference was significant(P0.05).After treatment,there was significant difference about albumin,blood urea nitrogen,urine creatinine,urine protein level in two groups(P0.05). Conclusion Nephritis rehabilitation tablets treating hematuria chronic nephritis has significant efficacy,can betterly improve the clinical symptoms of patients,be worth further promotion and application in clinic.


Abstract Abstract. Animals exploiting patchily-distributed resources must decide when to leave a given patch and seek another. If economically based, this decision will depend on the rate of return in the patch, the cost of moving to a new patch, and the overall rate of return in the environment. This study examined how these economic considerations may influence the pattern of daily food intake, i.e. the meal pattern. Laboratory rats lived continuously in a simulated depleting-patch environment in which the cost of beginning a meal in a new patch was controlled by a fixed-ratio price of access to the feeder and the rate of patch depletion was controlled with progressive-ratio schedules of pellet cost. As predicted by a cost-minimizing model, patch leaving was a joint function of the size of the progressive ratio and the size of the access cost: meals were smaller at higher depletion rates, but larger at higher access costs. However, meals were somewhat larger than the size that would have minimized feeding time and reliably larger than the size that would have minimized response output. Furthermore, although meal frequency changed in the opposite directions from meal size, the changes were not entirely compensatory; daily intake and body weight declined in the higher-cost conditions. These results suggest that intake patterns are the result of compromises between economic and physiological requirements.


Objective: New effective therapy is desirable for outpatients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Fractionated administration of paclitaxel may be less toxic and more active against NSCLC. The aim of this study was to evaluate the activity and toxicity of weekly paclitaxel therapy for chemotherapy-naive NSCLC. Methods: Patients with pathological or cytological diagnosis of NSCLC, measurable lesions, and no prior therapy were enrolled. We administered weekly infusions of 80 mg/m2 paclitaxel 3 times in a 4-week cycle. In the absence of progressive disease or intolerable toxicity, we treated each patient for a minimum of four cycles. Results: Of 35 patients enrolled, 17 patients achieved partial response, although no complete responses were observed (response rate 49%; 95% confidence interval 32–66%). The median survival time was 55 weeks (range 6–93 weeks). Grade 3 or 4 leukopenia occurred in only 1 patient (3%). Neurotoxicity was the most frequent adverse effect (grades 1 and 2, 26 and 3%, respectively). Serious toxicity, observed in 2 patients (6%), was interstitial pneumonia, and 1 patient died from sequela. Conclusion: Low-dose weekly paclitaxel is a promising therapy for advanced NSCLC with high effectiveness and low toxicity.


The potential of using the biogas as energy source is widely recognized. It is considered an important future contributor to the energy supply, although upgrading is needed. Biogas upgrading can be achieved after removing the CO2 and contaminants. The main objective of the present research was CH4 a...


Many manufacturing processes involved in the fabrication and assembly of hightech components have highly variable yields that tend to complicate the production control. Under this random yield situation we develop a model to determine optimal input quantity, mean waiting time in the system and variance of waiting time in the system. An example which considers beta distribution as a yield distribution is given.


The basic form of the machinery innovation design procedure,method and innovative thinking and its principles,emphasizing the role of human initiative and creativity in the design process,advocating people with new ideas,new principles and new functional design new products.And to melt hole technology used in the escalator truss thin wall pipe as an example,tells the story of creative thinking in the mechanical design of the function and practice.


A circularly-polarized (CP) array antenna based on the substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology is proposed. The 2×2 linearly polarized SIW sub-arrays with 90° sequential rotation are employed as the radiating elements on the top layer. The sequential rotation technique is introduced to design SIW corporate-feed network on the bottom layer to realize wideband circular polarized characteristic. The network and the radiating elements of the array are both designed on close SIW structure with low cost printed circuit board (PCB) technology. The simulated results show that, the proposed 4×4 array has a large axial ratio (AR) bandwidth of 14% from 18.3 GHz to 21.1 GHz with a gain above 13 dBi.


This work presents approaches aimed at achieving Order((number of states)(number of time steps)) complexity for optimal control synthesis for sparsely interconnected dynamic systems. The methods are then applied to a concrete example of a mechanical rod discretized into a discrete number of masses connected with springs.


In order to obtain some useful information for the high rate combustion flame diamond deposition process using various substrates, as a basic study, diamond depositions on surface cooled stainless steels with varying acetylene/ oxygen flow ratios during operation and with twin gas torches were carried out. As a result, it was proved that the diamond deposition rate was promoted by varying the gas flow ratio and/ or using the twin gas welding torch.


The anthropological study of one's 'own' society, or one with which you have some familiarity, requires you to resist taking for granted anything which, as a competent social member, you think you may already understand. Of course you then run the risk of mystifying the familiar. But the dividend may be that you also re-discover and reveal the richness of ordinary social practice the significance of which may have become understated, precisely because of its very familiarity. I am going to deal with a subject which will be more than familiar to most readers of Scottish Affairs, and will hope to suggest the importance of continuing to think about it: the meaning to individuals of their Scottishness. Along the way, I will touch on an event, the Burns Supper, which people seem to find either fabulously exotic or mindnuinbingly tedious witness Ian Hamilton's vituperative outburst in The Scotsman last July.


The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus HVPS ASIC qualified analog control device for, the ASIC qualified analog control device is a secondary side transformer is for use in an image forming apparatus HVPS converting an AC signal having a predetermined frequency to the high-voltage signal and the transformer analog control for rectifying the AC high-voltage signal and the back pressure and when comprising a back pressure to output a direct-current high-voltage of the HVPS for the image forming apparatus, to generate a DC level signal to a high frequency switching signal with a switching element output to the transformer primary coil If the circuit and wherein a screen with a single ASIC chip, the analog control circuit there is no feedback of the high-voltage output signal output from the dividing part, the voltage control section for amplifying a signal of a DC level; PWM modulator to an output signal of the voltage control PWM modulation using a predetermined carrier signal; A gate driver for driving the modulated signal PWM from the modulator to the input signal to the gate terminal of the switching element; And it accepts the driver driving signal to the gate terminal it is preferable to include a switching element for output to the transformer by a high-frequency switching. According to the present invention, by configuring the application of the analog ASIC on a single chip assembly instead of a number of elements with respect to the high-voltage transformer primary side control space is capable of easy and cost reduction by mass production with water, the working process. In addition, it is possible to increase the production efficiency, according to the mass production using an ASIC chip.


The distribution of cadmium between calcium phosphate and solution has been investigated, when calcium phosphate is precipitated from calcium nitrate, diammonium hydrogen phosphate and cadmium nitrate solutions containing sodium chloride (0, 0.53 mol/l) or magnesium chloride (0, 5.0 × 10-2mol/l) at 25 and 100°C: Cadmium in the parent solution is mostly incorporated in hydroxyapatite as a solid solution between hydroxyapatite and apatitic cadmium phosphate. Adsorption of cadmium on suspended hydroxyapatite has been also examined: It is greatly reduced by the presence of calcium ions in the solution.


: Nowadays the actual problem is that there is not any proper platform where software houses can collaborate or any proper marketplace where people related to IT fields can get jobs. The people fear whether the organizations are real or fake or whether they are registered or not and the individuals are finding registered organizations to get jobs. This work is making a project to solve all these problems. This work has made this project solve these kinds of problems. This project has used the iterative model, the iterative model is used to do all steps of development iteratively. This model helps make a project step by step. This project consists of two breakthroughs first one is a mobile app and the second one is the web. In mobile apps and the web, this work has used the Iterative model, first, the admin panel is made where the organizations can be managed by the admin and after that, the user interface of a mobile app is designed and then the app relates to the database which is mongo dB and with backend which is made in node Js. Similarly,


The determination of piezoelectric properties of an aluminium nitride thin film sandwiched between two electrodes, and acoustically coupled to a supporting substrate, is considered. Measuring the properties of such a BAW composite resonator can be used for film characterisation. The resonant spectrum method has been implemented, which consists of analysing the variation in spacing of parallel resonant frequencies for the resonator. The film parameters were derived from experimental measurements of the insertion loss (s11) of aluminium nitride deposited on glass and LiNO3 respectively, with top and bottom electrodes. A one-dimensional model was used to simulate the functional behaviour of the two examples of four-layer aluminium nitride based resonators. The modelling technique for multilayer ultrasonic transducers was based on the solutions to the 1-D wave equation. It was possible to obtain good agreement between the experimental and modelled results. The values of velocity and density agreed within 0.5%. The spacing of parallel resonant frequencies could also be closely matched between the experiment and the simulation. Under these conditions, the value of kt 2 of the piezoelectric film was inferred from the model.


Gestational hypertension can lead to fetal complications, and, if untreated, high blood pressure during pregnancy may cause eclampsia and even death in the mother and fetus. Exercise is a strategy for preventing blood pressure disorders. There is little knowledge about the physiological impacts of different physical types of training on blood pressure during pregnancy. For that, this meta-analysis aimed to compare the effects of different physical exercise modalities (i.e., aerobic training—AT, strength training—ST, and combined training—AT + ST) on systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of pregnant women. A search was performed on PUBMED, LILACS, CINAHL, Sport discus, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials to identify researchers. From 3,450 studies, 20 and 19 were included in the qualitative and quantitative analyses. AT studies presented a medium effect size (ES) on SBP [−0.29 (−2.95 to 2.36) p = 0.83], with substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 64%), and had a large impact on DBP [−1.34 (−2.98 to 0.30) p = 0.11], with moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 30%). ST researchers showed a large ES on SBP [−1.09 (−3.66 to 1.49) p = 0.41], with a reduced heterogeneity (I2 = 0%), and a medium ES on DBP [−0.26 (−2.77 to 2.19) p = 0.83] with moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 38%). AT + ST studies had a large ES on SBP [−1.69 (−3.88 to 0.49) p = 0.13] and DBP [−01.29 (−2.26 to 0.31) p = 0.01] with considerable (I2 = 83%) and moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 47%), respectively. These findings are essential for developing new research protocols to avoid gestational hypertension and preeclampsia. AT + ST had a large impact on the SBP and DBP reduction; however, there is a need for more similar procedures to reduce heterogeneity between studies, promoting consensual results. Systematic Review Registration: [PROSPERO], identifier [CRD42021256509].


Objective: To describe the prevalence of medication used by patients of a community-based dental clinic and the prevalence of their various medical conditions. Materials and methods: Hundred patients attending a community-based dental clinic were invited to participate in this study. Data were collected via a self-administered questionnaire which was distributed to a convenience sample. Descriptive data, such as age, gender, medical conditions, and medication used were recorded. The patients' medical conditions were then classified into general groups and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. Results: The participants had a mean age of 42. The majority (58%) were female. Most (49%) participants were Afro-Trinidadians. The vast majority (83%) did not have a dentist. Some (17%) participants had been hospitalized for either illness and/or surgery in the past. Most (56%) participants were not taking any form of medication, while 44% of participants displayed a wide range of medication use. Some (30%) had only one medical condition present, and 14% were on a combination of medical drugs, in order to treat multiple medical conditions. The medical conditions with the highest prevalence were hypertension (14%), diabetes (11%), and ophthalmic disease (7%). Conclusion: These findings emphasize the array of medical conditions which must be taken into consideration in the dental setting as systemic health issues and their associated medications play an important role in treatment planning.


Duplex ultrasonography is the ideal modality to assess great saphenous vein insufficiency. Duplex ultrasonography incorporates both gray scale images to delineate anatomy and color-Doppler imaging that visualizes the flow of blood in a structure. Assessment of great saphenous vein requires definition of the anatomy, augmentation of flow, evaluation for both superficial and deep vein thrombosis, and determining the presence of reflux. Currently, evolution in the treatment of reflux also relies on ultrasound for the treatment of the disease. Understanding the utilization of the ultrasound for the diagnosis and treatment of greater saphenous vein reflux is important for practitioners treating reflux disease.


With all the exciting advances in sensor fusion and data interpretation technologies in recent years, including co-registration, 3-D surface reconstruction, object recognition, spatial reasoning, and more, high-quality detailed and precise segmentation of remote sensing spectral images remains a much needed key component in the comprehensive analysis and understanding of surfaces. Urban surfaces are no exception. In fact, urban surfaces can represent more challenge than many other types because of the very large variety of materials concentrated in relatively small areas. Segmentation (unsupervised clustering) or supervised classification based on spectral signatures from multi-and hyperspectral imagery, or based on other multidimensional signatures from stacked disparate (multi-source) imagery, provide delineation of materials with various compositional and physical properties in a scene. Such a cluster or classification map lends critical support to further reasoning for accurate identification of surface objects and conditions. It is, therefore, imperative to develop methods whose data exploitation power matches that of the discriminating power of the data acquisition instrument. We present a study of unsupervised segmentation, comparing the performances of ISODATA clustering and self-organized manifold learning on an urban image from a Daedalus multi-spectral scanner and on an AVIRIS hyperspectral image.


Pseudo 2:l Atrioventricular (AV) Block In their Figure I (see our Fig. I). the authorc (II describe an "electrocardiogram al 4 days of age shouaing extreme QT prolongation (QT interval 840 msl associated with I:/ orr& ventricular block" However. given that the sinoalrial cycle length (500 lo MI0 ms) is much shorter lhan the QT interval. every other P wave must necessarily fall during or before the preceding T wave, as is clearly apparcm for P, and P, (4% well as all the other "even" P waves m the comolete tracing). When such impulses reach the ventricle. the'venlricular muscle must be absolutely refractory. Therefore. this 2: I response is caused not by a true bluck of conduction but rather by simple interference 121. It is thus probably more correct to refer to the case in Figure I as an example of pseudo 21 AV block 13-6) because there is no evidence 01 any inlrinsic abnormaliry of AV conduaion. Six other rep&d cases uf ?I AV block ilhrec in Rcfl and one each in Ref 8 10 I01 can also be shown to bc typical e*amplez 01 pseudo 2:l AV block. In all ofthcm. as in the case in Figure I. the PP inter& are much shorter than an extremely prolonged QT interval. This kind of response appears 10 be unique lo the conpoilal long QT syndrome in which. in contrast lo the normal simation. refmcmriness may lw much longer m the vemncle than m the AV trarxmiccion 'iyLlem_ Other abnormalilies of AV conduction. Scartered cases have been reponed (II-151 m whtch Ihe long QT syndrome UBF apparrndy asocialed with other abnormalides of AV condu&on. Ai example of true ::I AV block was reported t II) but BC a ~nncaem event followmg an episode of ventncular fibrillauon. lrolared ehamflsr ofiong QTsyndrone wilh coexisting congenital complete heart block have been dexribed (12.131. but Ihe associatioe may be merely coincidental because nol a single example of this combination was found !n o recent review 116) of 1% paliena wlh the idtopathx long QT syndrome. The case reported by Weber cl al. (151 wan a single example of AV dissociation due to a iunaional rhvlbm in the oresrnce of sinus bmdvcardia. With ;he exception of this &ically disputable study (Il. available information mdicates that the AV transmission system is little or not at all involved m the congenital long QT syndrome. Recauw imravemricular block. either organic or functional. also seems to be a rarilv (16.17). there data supal lhal lbe entire His-Purkinje system fails to share in the moloneation of the action ootenlial duration t 17-20) that cha&teri&ally occurs al Ihe ventricular level. This dif?er"nce may have ,lrong pathogenic connotations because why should anything Iwhatever it isl that prolongs the action potential duration in ventricular muscle spare the Purkinje tissue'! A succen~ful explanadon of the congenital long QT syndrome cannot escape this question.


For the first time a potential based on high-rank atomic multipole moments computed according to quantum chemical topology (QCT) has been used in molecular dynamics simulations. Completing earlier work on the performance of this QCT potential on small gas-phase van der Waals complexes we now focus on the liquid structure of water. Other than the parameter L, which keeps track of the rank of the electrostatic interaction, the current QCT potential contains only two adjustable parameters of the Lennard-Jones type. A system of 216 water molecules was simulated including long-range interactions represented by a high-rank multipolar Ewald summation. High-order multipolar interactions (L = 5) are essential to recover the typical features of a liquid-like structure. Liquid simulations at five different temperatures showed a maximum in the density and a temperature profile that agrees fairly well with experiment. The density of simulated water at 300 K and 1 atm, is about 0.1% off the experimental value, while the calculated potential energy of the liquid is within 3% of the experimental result. The experimental value of the self-diffusion coefficient is underestimated by 35%. The value of C-p is overestimated by 40% and the thermal expansion coefficient alpha by 37%. The calculated correlation coefficients between the calculated QCT profile and the experimental profile of g(OO)(r), g(OH)(r), and g(HH)(r) are 0.976, 0.970, and 0.972, respectively. (C) 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


This paper aims at solving the difficulty in arriving the bending moment coefficients of bridge deck slab from cumbersome Pigeaud charts. In this study, the bending moment coefficient values from pigeaud charts are tabulated for different IRC (Indian Road Congress) classes of loadings using interpolation technique. For this study, IRC classes of loadings viz., Class AA tracked and wheeled, 70R tracked and wheeled, Class A and Class B vehicle loadings are taken into considered. A program using MATLAB software is developed to interconnect these tabulated bending moment coefficient values in the analysis of pre-stressed concrete deck slab. It is observed there is a good agreement between computational analysis and theoretical analysis. This study facilitates the analysis of pre-stressed concrete deck slab to be easier and systematic.


The purpose of the lecture was to show that the explanation usually given by physiologists of the mode in which the respiratory movements of the thorax influence the force and frequency of the contractions of the heart can no longer be entertained. The doctrine usually taught in this and other countries is stated as follows in one of the most recent text-books:— "During the act of expiration the frequency of the pulse is considerably augmented, whilst the line of mean pressure rapidly rises, indicating increased tension in the arterial walls. . . . . During the act of inspiration, on the contrary, the pulsation becomes slower, the curves much bolder, and the line of mean pressure gradually falls; for then the blood readily enters the thorax, and, as a consequence, the great veins, capillaries, and arterial walls become comparably flaccid" (Carpenter's 'Physiology,' 1864, p. 345). Statements to the same effect are to be found in Budge's 'Lehrbuch der Physiologie,' 1862, p. 350; in Kirke's 'Handbook of Physiology,' 1863, p. 129; in Ludwig's 'Lehrbuch,' 1857, vol. ii. pp. 161, 162.


The Minimum Scale Sample Acquisition and Caching (MinSAC) architecture has been developed to enable rover-based sample acquisition and caching while minimizing the system mass. The MinSAC architecture is a version of the previously developed Integrated Mars Sample Acquisition and Handling (IMSAH) architecture. The MinSAC implementation utilizes the sampling manipulator both for sampling and sample tube transfer. This significantly reduces the number of actuators in the sample acquisition and caching subsystem. A core sample is acquired directly into its sample tube in the coring bit. The bit is transferred and released on the rover. A tube gripper on the robotic arm turret pulls the filled sample tube out of the back of the coring bit and the tube is sealed. The sample tube is then placed in the return sample canister. A new tube is placed in the bit for acquisition of another sample.


One of the sources of the urban experience is the urban travels and mobility. In the public transportation, multiple strategies of social interaction are shown in order to elaborate the sense of the situation and negotiate its degree of difference and surprise. The aim of the present paper is to analyze the corporal dimension of the urban everyday travel in Mexico City subway, and to understand the sense of place that emerges through the social interaction between travelers. The information was collected using focus groups, survey, content analysis of press notes and observation in the field.


PURPOSE
To explore the crucial role of the human corneal epithelium-derived proallergic cytokine thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) in initiation and regulation of immune responses.

METHODS
Primary corneal epithelial cells, established from donor limbal explants, were treated with 11 microbial ligands and proinflammatory and Th2 cytokines, alone or in combination. TSLP mRNA and protein were determined by real-time PCR and ELISA, respectively. NF-kappaB activation was detected by immunostaining and Western blot.

RESULTS
TSLP was found to be expressed by human corneal epithelium and its cultures. TSLP in corneal epithelial cells were largely induced in a concentration-dependent fashion by polyI:C, flagellin, and FSL-1, the ligands for toll-like receptor (TLR)-3, -5, and -6, respectively. Compared with the control, TSLP mRNA was increased by 60-, 12- and 8-fold and TSLP protein increased by 67-, 19- and 7-fold by these three ligands, respectively. The proinflammatory (TNF-alpha and IL-1beta) and Th2 (IL-4 and IL-13) cytokines moderately induced TSLP expression and production. IL-4 and -13 strongly synergized with PolyI:C, flagellin, and TNF-alpha to promote TSLP production in ex vivo tissues and in vitro cultures of corneal epithelium. PolyI:C, flagellin, or TNF-alpha also induced NF-kappaB p65 protein nuclear translocation. The NF-kappaB inhibitor quinazoline blocked p65 nuclear translocation and further suppressed TSLP expression and production induced by these stimuli.

CONCLUSIONS
These findings provide the first evidence of TSLP induction in the human eye and suggest the novel phenomenon that human corneal epithelium-derived TSLP may serve as a link between the innate and adaptive immune responses. TSLP may become a novel therapeutic target for allergic and inflammatory ocular surface diseases.


To be a journalist in Venezuela is very dangerous. In the past decade, there has been an increase of attacks against media and their personnel. On the one hand, attacks against journalists include harassment (physical, digital, legal), illegal detentions, kidnapping, and assassination. On the other hand, digital media have experienced blockages (DNS), internet shutdowns and slow-downs, failures in the connection, and restrictions to access internet-based platforms and content. Since 2014, the situation is deteriorating and limitations to exercise the right to freedom of expression have increased. However, this issue remains understudied; hence, this chapter considers primary and secondary data to analyze the types of limitations experienced by Venezuelan digital journalists from 2014 to 2018, explains the effects of ambiguous regulations and the use of problematic interpretations, and describes the inadequacies of national policies to promote freedom of the press.


This author offers a feminist and rights-based critique of zina laws in Muslim legal tradition, which define any sexual relations outside legal marriage as a crime. In the early 20th century, zina laws, which were rarely applied in practice, also became legally obsolete in almost all Muslim countries and communities; but with the resurgence of Islam as a political and spiritual force later in the 20th century, in several states and communities zina laws were selectively revived, codified and grafted onto the criminal justice system, and applied through the machinery of the modern state. The author reviews current campaigns to decriminalise consensual sex, and argues that zina laws must also be addressed from within the Islamic legal tradition. Exploring the intersections between religion, culture and law that legitimate violence in the regulation of sexuality, the author proposes a framework that can bring Islamic and human rights principles together.


Career guidance focuses on life planning, a process of continuous self-development in helping students with career planning. The counselor has a big enough role in helping to provide an understanding of career planning from an early age. One of the services that can be provided by counselors is classical services, which focus on providing information in a systematic and comprehensive manner. The subjects of this study were determined using a purposive sampling technique using the experimental research method of the One-Group Pretest-Posttest design. The data collection instrument used multiple-choice tests. The data obtained were analyzed quantitatively by using the t-test. The results showed that after being given the treatment there was a significant change in the understanding of career planning in class VIII students at SMP Negeri 1 Palembang


abuse and trafficking are not new developments in China. They have been part of China's history even prior to the Boxer Rebellion and the first British Opium War in the mid-1 800s, as the People s Republic of China s (PRC) sheer size and geography has traditionally made it a likely victim of drug trafficking.1 Today, largely because of China's increased trade and commercial interests with Southeast Asia, a loosening of travel restrictions within China, increased urbanization, longer work hours, and the gradual development of a more consumer-oriented society, the PRC has become a major transit point not only for narcotics bound for other Asian nations, but also for North America, Russia, Europe, Africa and Latin America.2 The repercussions for China have been severe. According to the UN, the PRC produces 50 percent of methamphetamines (AST) in Asia, with most of this production occurring in the southeastern Guangdong province.3 AST drugs include methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) and crystal methamphetamine (ice), with much of it supplying markets in the Philippines, Japan and South Korea before entering the global trade through contacts with the Chinese diaspora.4 Further, over one million people are


The aim of this study is to describe forgiveness and the factors contribute to it in wives experiencing domestic violence who choose to save their marriages in UPT-P2TP2A Kota Bandung. Descriptive method was employed in this study with 15 participants as the subjects. The data were gathered through forgiveness measurement adopted and based in the forgiveness theory proposed by McCullough. Its reliability score was 0,721. The results of the study revealed that 73, 3% of domestic violence victims who insist to save their marriages did forgive or gave for forgiveness. Among the factors determine the forgiveness, the low Rumination factor as well as high personal and moral commitment, encouraged a wife to forgive. Forgiveness showed by a wife, in some way impacted on the domestic violence doer. It lessened the intensity of the violence.


In 1980, for the 125th anniversary of the First Edition of Leaves of Grass, a colloquium was held at Hofstra University, and most of the papers delivered there are included in this Here and Now volume. It is unfortunate that there has been such a long delay in publication, particularly since only one author acknowledges in a footnote othet studies appearing in the five year hiatus. Since there is no explanation of the long delay, some readers may assume the scholarship is current and thus be misled. Other scholars, aware of recent discoveries and hypotheses, may consider the scholars in Here and Now to be remiss in not being au courant in the very area of their specialty. In our generation there are many conferences sponsored by universities, but it is certainly incumbent on the institution to publish the proceedings promptly or not at all (so that contributors can publish elsewhere). To defer, especially for five years, is to embarrass the participating scholars and perhaps bring their scholarship into question. Otherwise this is a valuable collection of interesting papers, with certain articles concerning Whitman's homosexuality having particular importance in light of Eve Sedgwick's Between Men. The Here and Now volume opens with prefatory comments by Joann Krieg, editor and Whitman scholar at Hofstra. Next, the legendary godfather of Whitman studies, Charles Feinberg, extended his greetings. His modest reference to the first Whitman letter he purchased sixty-five years ago should remind us all of our own debt to him for his many "benefactions" to the Whitman "Industry.» The book proper then begins with valuable comments and summaries by William White .of what was then (in 1980) current Whitman scholarship (pp. 3-6) and concludes (pp. 217-224) with that indefatigable bibliographer's wise and sprightly remarks on the continuing industry up to 1984. In the particular concern of this present book review on Whitman and homosexuality, there are many articles in Here and Now that cannot be examined in depth here. Yet they should at least be noted. In Part I, "Biographers and Critics,» Justin Kaplan gives interesting brief analyses of the early biographies, with a neat remark on the O'Connor, Burroughs, and Bucke books as each "a campaign biography on a man nominated and vigorously running for the office of American bard" (p. 11). Milton Hindus provides a lively comment on the anti-Whitman critics from the beginning on. Moving ahead to Part III, Jon Rosenblatt studies Whitman's intense absorption in words and language, while providing a challenging analysis of" As I Ebb'd" (pp. 106-113). Gregory Haynes examines "Patroling Barnegat," explaining the region, its history and dangers, and analyzing the rhetorical functions of the language patterns. David Cavitch, working toward his new book, My Soul and 1(1985), examines the autobiographical and family implications of "This Compost" and ' the treatment of women in "Song of the Broad-Axe." In Part IV, "Whitman and America" by Jerome Loving provides a good firm statement on Whitman's reluctance to consider the black question in relation to Democ-


Scalable video is the research topic to provide different size of video bitstream under different transmission bandwidth. In this paper, the semantic scalability is proposed that provides the scalable videos in semantic domain, and the tennis videos are used as the experiments. Contrary to decreasing the video quality to reduce the bitrates, the lower bitstream size is achieved by abandoning the video contents with less semantic importance. The experimental results show that the proposed semantic scalability provides four levels of the scalable videos and maintains the visual quality in watching the game video. The study of the scalability in semantic domain provides a new aspect for the scalable video.


Objective:To investigate the incidence of axial symptoms(AS) after anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion(ACCF) and anterior cervical discectomy and fusion(ACDF) for 2-level cervical spondylotic myelopathy(CSM) respectively.Method:From March 2004 to May 2007,the clinical and radiographic data of 113 CSM patients with 2-level involvement treated surgically were collected,there were 61 cases(42 males and 19 females) with the mean age of 56.2 years(range,36-73 years) undergoing ACCF(group A),while 52(37 males and 15 females) with the mean age of 54.6 years(range,33-77 years) underwent 2-level ACDF(group B).The pre-and post-operative Japanese Orthopedic Association scores,segmental height and segmental lordosis were compared between each group.And the incidence of postoperative AS was analyzed either.Result:All patients were followed up for an average of 32.2 months(range,24-48months).The improving rate of neurological function at final follow-up was(70.1±12.2)% and(63.5±4.7)% for group A and B respectively,with no significant difference(P0.05).However the change of fusion segments height was-0.04±0.02cm and 0.05 ±0.02cm,with significant difference(P 0.05).Kyphosis rate for fusion segments was 34.4% and 13.5%,with significant difference(P0.05).The incidence of AS at final follow-up was 45.9%(28/61) and 26.9%(14/52) for group A and B respectively,with significant difference(P0.05).The prevalence of AS com-plicated with lowering of fusion segments height was higher than that with no lowering of fusion segments height(P0.05),and the lowering of fusion segments height in group A was higher than that in group B(P 0.05).The prevalence of AS complicated with severe kyphosis in group A was higher than that with no or mild kyphosis(P0.05),and the prevalence of severe kyphosis in fusion segments in group A was higher than that in group B(P 0.05).Conclusion:The incidence of the postoperative AS is much higher in patients complicated with decreased fusion segments height and/or with obvious kyphosis after anterior cervical decompression and fusion.Compared with ACCF,ACDF for CSM is associated with good outcomes and lower incidence of the postoperative AS.


The role of macrophages in the pathogenesis of acetaminophen (APAP)‐induced liver injury remains controversial, as it has been demonstrated that these cells display pro‐toxicant and hepato‐protective functions. This controversy may stem from the heterogeneity and/or plasticity of macrophages and the difficulty in distinguishing and differentially studying subpopulations of macrophages in the liver. In the present study, using flow cytometric analysis and fluorescence‐labeled antibodies against specific cell surface macrophage markers, we were able to, for the first time, identify an APAP‐induced macrophage (IM) population distinct from resident Kupffer cells. The data demonstrated that the IMs were derived from circulating monocytes that infiltrated the liver following APAP‐induced liver injury. The IMs exhibited a phenotype consistent with that of alternatively activated macrophages and demonstrated the ability to phagocytize apoptotic cells and induce apoptosis of neutrophils. Furthermore, in the absence of the IMs, the resolution of hepatic damage following APAP‐induced hepatotoxicity was delayed in CCR2−/− mice compared with wild‐type mice. These findings likely contribute to the role of the IMs in the processes of tissue repair, including counteracting inflammation and promoting angiogenesis. The present study also demonstrated the ability of separating populations of macrophages and delineating distinct functions of each group in future studies of inflammatory disease in the liver and other tissues.


Hyperparathyroidism is a common endocrine disorder, which must be suspected in patients presenting with fatigue, history of pathologic fracture and the diagnosis can be confirmed by elevated calcium and PTH levels, and the preferred treatment option.


The lomechusine genus Myrmedonota Cameron is recorded from North America for the first time. Myrmedonota is diagnosed, and two new species, M. aidani Maruyama & Klimaszewski, sp. nov., and M. lewisi Maruyama & Klimaszewski, sp. nov., are described and illustrated. Bionomical information is provided for both new species.


According to the investigation and analysis of the reasons about the students outdoor sports safety status and safety problems on the basis of understanding of the outdoor sports concept.Collected on students outdoor sports literature data,applying the method of documentation,questionnaire,logic analysis and so on university students outdoor sports safety comprehensive evaluation.Summed up the students outdoor sports safety accidents.The main factors is from the participants,organizers,supervision,public rescue system in several aspects.Aimed at the accident reasons,from the safety consciousness,safety education,training,management system and perspective for students outdoor sports put forward relevant safety recommendations.Guiding students participating in outdoor sports scientificly.


The peripheral hypoglossal nerve palsy is caused by carotid aneurysm, vascular entrapment, local infection, trauma, neck radiation, and tumors in the neck, retropharyngeal spaces, and basilar area of skull. A basilar skull lesion may rarely involve the hypoglossal nerve alone. We report a 58-year-old man with isolated hypoglossal nerve palsy due to metastasis of lung cancer at the skull base.


One of the first successful Cu(I) CVD precursors is (hfac)Cu{sup I}(COD), and this species continues to served as a model system. In the CVD process, a significant step is dissociation of the COD ligand. The energetics of this process have been estimated previously. However, it now appears that, in the solid state, (hfac)Cu{sup I}(COD) undergoes an exchange process that allows additional insight into the potential energy surface governing the Cu-COD interaction. The solid-state structure of (hfac)Cu{sup I}(COD) has been difficult to establish, but a combination of variable temperature X-ray and solid-state {sup 13}C NMR studies leads to the following picture. Cu{sup I} is three-coordinate, bound to the hfac ligand and bound preferentially to one olefin of the COD ligand. There is a small energy barrier associated with motion of the Cu into position for {eta}{sup 2}-binding to the other olefin; the COD and hfac ligands remain approximately stationary. Thus, there are two sites for Cu, now labeled {eta}{sup 2} and {eta}{sup 2}. This new interpretation of the solid-state structure differs from that of our 300 K data set and a previous report. In addition, the exchange process is intimately connected with the Cu-COD dissociation step in the CVD process.


Although It Is widely known that the saliency-based position sensorless drive is able to achieve the closed-loop control at zero and low speed, there is little literature addressing the consideration on the selection of injection voltage frequency. This paper evaluates the square-wave injection voltage at different frequencies for the design of interior permanent magnet (PM) machine saliency-based sensorless drive. It is shown that more flux saturation on high frequency (HF) d-axis inductance occurs than the saturation on q-axis inductance due to the magnetic relaxation. The performance of saliency-based sensorless drive can be enhanced by properly designing the frequency of injection voltage. An IPM machine with a saliency ratio (Lq/Ld) of 1.41 is tested for the experimental evaluation.


The colour change of cobalt(Ⅱ) partial matching under various conditions is liable to cause confusion and controversy.This paper discusses and explains the metachromatic principle of cobalt partial matching substance from a few aspects.


The article provides an analysis of the effect of lead on the body of carp. The authors considered one of the criteria of lipid metabolism in fish – the concentration of total cholesterol. The level of cholesterol, which is an indispensable structural material for cell membranes, should be in the body within certain limits. The impact of heavy metals on the body of fish can lead to disruption of the functioning of many organ systems, as well as to a change in metabolism in one direction or another. The authors examined the effect of high MPC of lead on four experimental groups contained in solutions Pb (CH3COO)2 appropriate concentrations (0.06 mg/l, 0.6 mg/l, 6 mg/l, 60 mg/l). It has been shown that with an increase in the concentration of a toxic agent (lead acetate), the level of total serum cholesterol increases.


Objective To study the relationship between the level of homocysteine(HCY)and platelet activation(PAC-1、CD62p)and acute cerebral infarction in young,to explore the pathophysiologic significance of HCY,PAC-1,CD62p on acute cerebral infarction in young and aged,and to analyze the relativity of HCY to sex,PAC-1 and CD62p.Methods HCY,PAC-1 and CD62p from 34 cases with acute cerebral infarction in young,64 cases with acute cerebral infarction in aged and 38 cases of normal young were detected by ELISA and flow cytometry.The results were compared and analyzed in relativity.Results HCY,PAC-1 and CD62p from acute cerebral infarction in young significant increase comparing with normal young(P0.05),also significant increase comparing with acute cerebral infarction in aged(P0.05),HCY and CD62p exist significant positive correlation on acute cerebral infarction(Pearson Correlation Index=0.749,P0.05).Conclusion HCY,PAC-1 and CD62p from acute cerebral infarction in young significant increase, which may assist to early diagnosis and monitor acute cerebral infarction in young.HCY,CD62p bearing more pathophysiologic significance on acute cerebral infarction in young than in aged.HCY and CD62p exist significant positive correlation on acute cerebral infarction in young.


The aim of this project is to apply mathematical techniques in Scattering Theory for Noncommutative Markov Chains, and Multivariate Operator Theory to problems in the rapidly developing interdisciplinary field of Quantum Control. The proposal draws on the expertise of the Quantum Control and Information research group at Aberystwyth, and will include research collaboration with specialists Burkhard Kümmerer (Darmstadt) and Hans Maassen (Nijmegen) who appear in the proposal as visiting researchers. The project aims to develop connections between these fields, and to combine them in a new way toward developing a systematic theory of quantum control.


Lipid peroxidation and active oxygen metabolites have been suggested to play an important role in the pathogenesis of acute gastric mucosal injury induced by ischaemia-reperfusion. On the-other hand 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) has been shown to contribute to gastric mucosal damage. This ulcerogenic action is likely to be mediated through a depressive action on gastric-mucosal flow via 5-HT blockade and 5-HT2-receptor activation. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of ketanserin a specific 5-HT2 antagonist on gastric injury induced by ischaemia-reperfusion. The peroxidation of lipids and changes in the activities of related enzymes such as gluthatione peroxidase and myeloperoxidase, as a marker of neutrophil infiltration, were also studied.

Intraperitoneal administration of ketanserin prevented post-ischaemic mucosal injury. The mean ulcer indexes of rats treated with 2.5, 5 and 10 mg kg−1 were significantly lower than that of control rats. These protective effects were specifically related to a reduction of neutrophil infiltration. Lipid peroxidation in the stomach was increased by ischaemia-reperfusion injury and this increase was inhibited by the administration of all the tested doses of ketanserin. In addition, treatment with ketanserin could improve the decreased gluthatione peroxidase activity.

These results suggest that selective blockade of 5-HT2 receptors by ketanserin may be effective on ischaemia-reperfusion gastric injury. The inhibitory effects of ketanserin on neutrophil function and lipid-peroxidation and the increase of glutathione peroxidase activity seem to contribute significantly to the gastroprotection afforded by ketanserin in this experimental model.


AVS3 is an emerging video coding standard, and screen content coding is a very important feature of AVS3. This paper presents a method of Implicit-Selected Transform Skip (ISTS) to further improve the screen content coding performance. With ISTS, transform skip mode is introduced as an optional substitution to transform-coding on residual signals of blocks with intra-prediction. The indication of whether to apply transform skip is hidden into the Parity of the Number of Non-zero Coefficients (PNNC) of a residual block, instead of being signaled to the decoder. Moreover, the coefficients of an intra-coded block are reordered to make the coefficients more compact. Experimental results show that the proposed method can achieve 12.04%, 8.15% and 10.19% BD-rate savings on average under All Intra (AI), Low Delay (LD) and Random Access (RA) configurations, respectively, with the encoding time reduced by 5% to 8%. ISTS has been adopted into AVS3.