Objective To evaluate the effects of preconditioning with isoflurane and propofol on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion(I/R)injury in rots.Methods Thirty-six male Wistar rats weighing 250-300 g were randomly divided into 4 groups(n=9 each): group Ⅰ I/R; group Ⅱ isoflurane preconditioning(group Ⅰ);group Ⅲ propofol preconditioning(group P)and group Ⅳ preconditioning with isoflurane and propofol(group I+P).The animals were anesthetized with intraperitoneal urethane.The trachea was intubated.The animals were mechanically ventilated.In group Ⅱ and Ⅳ the animals received 2 episodes of 10 min 1.6% isoflurane inhalation at 5 min intervals before I/R; in group Ⅲ and Ⅳ the animals received 2 episodes of 10 rain iv propefol infusion at 37.5 mg·kg~(-1)·h~(-1) at 5 min intervals before I/R.Preconditioning with isoflurane and propefol was performed simultaneously in group I+P(Ⅳ).Myocardial I/R was produced by 60 min occlusion of left anterior descending coronary artery followed by 120 min reperfusion.The animals were sacrificed at the end of 120 min reperfusion and the hearts were removed for microscopic examination with transmission electron microscope,detection of myocyte apoptosis by TUNEL staining and determination of mitochondrial ROS level by fluorescence staining.Results Cardiomyocyte apoptosis was detected by transmission electron microscopy.Apoptosis index and mitochondrial ROS level were significantly lower in group I,group P and group I+P than in group I/R,but no difference was found among the 3 preconditioning groups.Conclusion The protection provided by preconditioning with isoflurane or propofol or isoflurane+propofol against myocardial I/R is comparable.

Key words:
Isoflurane; Propofol; Ischemic preconditioning; Myocardial reperfusion injury


Abstract. The paper, for the purpose of studying the relevant factors affecting the projecting velocity and time of video scout projectile, makes an analysis on the stress condition of projecting section of scout equipment, sets up the axial movement differential equation for scout equipment, and analyzes the influences of projectile rotational speed, projecting charge and cabin opening altitude on projecting velocity and time of video scout projectile. Analysis of this paper shows that when choosing the opening-point of video scout projectile, the downward arc stage is a correct choice, when designing the video scout projectile, the projecting charge can be determined the strength and reliability of projecting structure, and the changes in projecting height has little influences on projecting velocity and projecting time.


The development of increasingly stringent business world in Indonesia will create an increasingly sharp competition between companies. Firms in the industry in Indonesia is a land for investors to invest capital to be invested in various forms of securities. So it is not wrong for the company's various aspects and types become part of the capital market. This study was conducted to determine the effect of ROE, DER and PBV to Stock Return on Telecommunications Sector Sub Listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange. This study uses annual data for the observation period from 2014 until 2018. The research type is descriptive causality. The data used is the data panel that is a combination of annual time series data and cross section were processed using panel data regression analysis. The population is all Sub-Sector Telecommunications listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2014 until 2018 the number of 5 companies. The sampling technique used purposive sampling, found a sample of four companies with the observation of 5 years in order to obtain total observation as much as 20. Data were obtained from the Indonesia Stock Exchange, and Yahoo Finance. Analysis of the data in this study is panel data regression. The model used is the Common Effect Model. The analysis showed that the ROE does not have a significant effect on stock returns, DER has no significant effect on stock returns, while PBV positive and significant effect Stock Return on Telecommunications Sector Sub Listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange.


A technique for identifying the location of structural damage in a beam is presented,which is called receptance method. And the result of numerical examples is coincident with the location of the damage.


The widespread use of minicomputers in widely diverse applications has resulted in the need for many peripheral devices to allow user communication with the machine. Data passing from the computer to the operator may be in the form of paper tape, punch cards, line printer listing, voice output, and video display to name but a few. Many applications require that the computer output be in a "hard copy" form such as a line printer listing. Obvious examples include such areas as order processing, invoice preparation, and payroll distribution.


The realization of solid-state Raman longitudinally diode pumped lasers, generating first and second Stokes components has been researched. The crystals of Gd3Ga5O12:Nd3+, Y3Al5O12:Nd3+ and KGd(WO4)2:Nd3+ have been applied as an active elements. Giant pulse mode was obtained with the use of the passive Q-switch shutters based on Y3Al5O12:V3+ and Y3Al5O12:Cr4+ crystals. The first and second Stokes component conversion was performed using intracavity Raman conversion scheme with crystals KGd(WO4)2 and KY(WO4)2 Raman conversion elements. The possibility of an effective solid-state Raman conversion laser with end diode pumping emitting at the wavelength of 1.3152 microns has been demonstrated.


The intensity of 5.6 · 1012 ppp attained at the IHEP accelerator with proton injection energy of 100 MeV is close to the incoherent Coulomb limit. The construction of a new 1.5 GeV injection system (fast cycling booster) to increase the accelerated beam intensity is near completion. A number of the main ring systems have been modified with the goal to get ready for the booster operation.


Background: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is the most severe form of leishmaniasis. Correct identification of infected patients and reservoirs is vital to control the spread of VL. One important step in the control of Zoonotic Visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) is the identification of infected dogs, which are the main domestic reservoir hosts of Leishmania infantum. We aimed to prepare and evaluate a new recombinant antigen using Bioinformatics tools for diagnosis of ZVL in domestic dogs. Methods: The present study was carried out in Cellular and Molecular Biology Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran during 2015–2018. Three L. infantum (JPCM5 strain) proteins were analyzed as follows: Nucleotide sequences of the surface proteins, putative amastin-like surface protein (P1), surface antigen protein 2 precursor (P2) and surface antigen-like protein (P3). The epitopes were predicted by several different bioinformatics servers using different methods. The predicted epitopes were selected with the highest immunogenic potential (P1P2P3) linked to each other with linkers (Gly, Se) and synthesized. Then the expression and protein purification were performed. In total, 114 serum samples were collected at 7 months. Positive and negative sera were confirmed using direct agglutination test (DAT). These recombinant antigens from L. infantum were used by indirect ELISA. Results: Considering the cut-off point of 0.23, the test showed a sensitivity of 98% (95%CI=89.50%–99.90%) and a specificity of 95.31% (95%CI=87.10%–98.72%). Kappa analysis indicated very good agreement (kappa=0.831) between ELISA and DAT (P<0.05). Conclusion: ELISA using the recombinant protein P1P2P3 has great potential for the diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL).


Objective In order to study the levels of plasma thrombomodulin(TM), protein C(PC) antigen and D-Dimer(D-D) before and after treatment in acute leukemia , and to explore their clinical significance. Methods Twenty-two patients with acute leukemia were selected into the study, the levels of plasma thrombomodulin, protein C antigen and D-Dimer were measured by ELISA. Results Compared with normal control group, the plasma levels of TM and D-D were elevated and plasma PC antigen levels were reduced before treatment in acute leukemia patients (P 0.01). After complete remission, plasma levels of TM and PC antigen returned to normal range except for D-D compared with normal control group(P 0.01). Conclusion These results suggest that activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis existed in patients with acute leukemia as well as injury of vascular endothelium, and were greatly improved with amelioration of the disease.


This section focuses on Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim's texts and documents. It considers Agrippa to be a great figure in the history of Renaissance thought, especially in Germany. Moreover, in the context of the philosophical, scientific and religious issues of the sixteenth century, he is an author who merits more attention than he has so far received. In Book III of De occulta philosophia Agrippa hinted at the doctrine of psychopannychism and tried to conceal it from Catholic censors or readers. The section focuses on Agrippa's complex religious attitude and its influence on the development of his theory of magic. This doctrine of the so-called 'sleep of the souls' expresses the heretical thesis that after death, the human soul instead of going directly to Hell, Purgatory or Paradise will 'sleep' until the Last Judgement.Keywords: Catholic censors; De occulta philosophia; Germany; Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim; psychopannychism; theory of magic


This paper proposes a methodology for exploiting approximate computing to reduce the time and energy requirements of Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithms, which are used in important problem domains like robotics and autonomous driving in which autonomous agents navigate through unknown environments. Algorithms for SLAM use sensors to probe the environment, integrate this information into a map of the surroundings (mapping), and determine where the agent is in this map (localization). Visual SLAM algorithms use cameras as sensors. They can be used in places where GPS information is not available, %such as inside buildings, but they have high computational requirements, leading to poor performance and high energy usage on embedded platforms. Existing studies of approximation in SLAM have mostly used offline control, which requires the trajectory be known before the agent starts to move. This is not realistic in most SLAM applications. In this paper, we present a general methodology for applying principled online approximation to visual SLAM algorithms. We implemented our proposed methodology in four visual SLAM algorithms (including one visual inertial SLAM algorithm) and evaluated them on several platforms. Our experimental results show that across different algorithms and platforms, our proposed methodology results in savings of up to 77% and 40% in computation time and energy consumption respectively with acceptable quality loss in localization and mapping accuracy over a variety of inputs.


An optimal signal constellation design algorithm suitable for the phase noise channels is proposed, in which the cumulative log-likelihood-function is used as the optimization criterion. The signal constellations obtained by this algorithm significantly outperform conventional QAM.


On the basis of study on resonance exciting action of laser with chains and bonds of biomolecules the in reference damping effect of laser with biomolecules will be further analyzed and discussed using quantum mechanics in this paper.


Summary Exploration and development of the Nordegg in West Central Alberta is challenging because this prolific zone is deep, structured, and has low permeability. The reservoir is quite thick and is charged with gas. We know from core, samples, well log, and drilling data that the Nordegg zone is fractured to some degree. We expect this fracturing will affect the behavior of the Nordegg to our operations in many ways, from the drilling, to the way that the reservoir behaves under fracture stimulation, and even to the production rates we may achieve from the zone. The fracture density and the production capability of wells drilled into the Nordegg vary materially. In order to address the questions surrounding the effect of fractures on our operations, we must first demonstrate that we can accurately predict the orientation and density of the fracture systems within our area of interest. 3-D surface seismic techniques such as Azimuthal AVO (AVAz), Azimuthal Velocity Analysis (VVAz), Curvature, and Coherence techniques have all been used to predict fractures in a qualitative way in the past. Our approach to the fracture prediction problem will contrast these earlier qualitative attempts, and attempt to cast the problem within the framework of an objective, scientific experiment. Very little information exists in the literature regarding the true accuracy and validity of fracture prediction from surface seismic, so the importance of this endeavor and the need for care in its undertaking is magnified. Our goal is a quantitative analysis of fracture prediction techniques for the Nordegg using objective and scientific validation data. Our validating data includes fracture density data measured from Fullbore Micro Imager Log (FMI) recorded in two horizontal wells as well as microseismic event data recorded over one of the two wells. In part one of this effort, we will describe the experimental set-up and make observations regarding the statistical nature of the FMI data and our seismic attributes. The most crucial result illustrated in part one is that the FMI data clearly illustrates the fractures are almost uniformly vertical and aligned. This satisfies key theoretic requirements of AVAz and VVAz. In part two of this work, we will analyze the correlations that exist between FMI fracture density, microseismic events, and our seismic attributes.


SUMMARY

1
Preliminary data is reported as to the insecticidal properties of three tropical fish-poison plants (Tephrosia macropoda Harv., Mundulea suberosa Benth. and Neorautanenia (Rhynchosia) fisifolia C.A.Sm.).

2
A list is given of other plants (most of them known to be fish poisons) from many different countries, which have been tested but appear to have little or no toxicity to Aphis rumicis L.

3
Extracts of the stems of black Haiari (Lonchocarpus sp.) are shown to be toxic as contact insecticides to young larvae of two species of moths. Older larvae are much, more resistant.

4
All the plants so far tested which are toxic both to fish and to insects are members of the natural order Leguminosae.


We report the observation of enhanced magneto-optic rotation as the coherent superposition of different hyperfine states is established in an atomic sample. The polarization rotation near the two photon Raman resonance condition appears to have an analogous characteristic to the well established Faraday rotation observed in the vicinity of a single photon resonance, however it contains sharp features arising from coherent population trapping state. The profile of the two photon rotation signal exhibits interesting features for slightly imbalanced circular polarization component of the laser field as well as for on and away from the single photon resonance. The investigation can be used to explore the effect of superposition states generated by coherent population trapping on optical activity. A complete density matrix based numerical simulation that consistently captures all the relevant features of the experiment is presented.


A system and a method for instantiating a virtual machine (VM) in a data center includes providing a network device (104) to a location for monitoring management information data traffic. Indices (110) are created for the data center images in the network setup. VM Instanziierungsanfragen be intercepted in the network device (104). Memory locations from which blocks for the VM on the basis should be fetched from the network cost (22) are determined. VM image blocks are entered from the memory locations (22).


This chapter has briefly discussed the use of GPR as an NDT and an NDE tool. In contrast to other NDT methods, GPR is based on EM wave propagation, which provides advantages and limitations. Among the advantages, one can cite relatively low-cost of survey, compact size of equipment, excellent trade-off between resolution and depth of detection, and suitability to an overwhelming variety of applications. However, the analysis of data is not straightforward not only because of the complexity of the physical phenomena involved in propagation and scattering of EM waves but also because of the impact of environmental conditions on the EM description of the media and consequently on the data acquired. To reduce this burden, the GPR equipment allows for multiple configurations that have to be carefully explored and selected in the planning stage of surveys. Even with the right choices of these configurations, the ability to predict and detect targets requires considerable expertise as well as a set of specialized post-processing tools. Far from being a closed line of research, the possibilities to improve detection are still open, and more exciting contributions are expected in the future to create more powerful NDT tools.


To improve the conversion efficiency of tandem-type III-V multijunction solar cells, the (NH 4 ) 2 S x -treatment method was used to passivate the surface of the window layer (AlInP) of the cell. The conversion efficiency of the (NH 4 ) 2 S x -treated multijunction solar cell was increased more than 4%. Using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and current-voltage measurements, the mechanism of the conversion efficiency improvement is attributed to the reduction of the surface states by sulfidation passivation. It is indicated that the (NH 4 ) 2 S x treatment is an effective method for improving the performance of III-V compound multijunction solar cells.


To increase the medical students' practical technical level,a teaching method was discussed which chooses some classes as experimental groups randomly,the other classes as comparing groups who don't join the pre-experiment.The effects of experimental and comparing groups were analyzed and compared.The result shows that the effect of experimental groups is much better than that of comparing groups.After joining the pre-experiment,students can understand the teaching intention bettetr,and grasp the operating requirement better.This experiment can develop the "Setter(in volleyball)" function efficiently, can be of advantage to carry on the practical teaching process according to the plan,and reach the practical teaching aim.


TiO2 films were prepared by RF magnetron sputtering with process variations of substrate temperature and oxygen dilution ratio to investigate the effect of the optoelectronic properties of TiO2 films on antireflection characteristics in solar cells. With an increase in substrate temperature from RT to 350 °C, the conductivity and refractive index of TiO2 films increased. However, the absorption coefficient also increased. In the case of oxygen-diluted sputtering (0.5–1%), the conductivity and refractive index decreased with the increase in oxygen dilution. On the other hand, the absorption coefficient decreased simultaneously. To evaluate these optoelectronic property variations of TiO2 films in terms of the antireflection effect in solar cells, amorphous silicon (a-Si:H)/amorphous silicon germanium (a-SiGe:H) tandem solar cells with various optoelectronic properties and thicknesses (20–40 nm) of TiO2 films were fabricated. The TiO2 film deposited at 350 °C and 0.5% oxygen dilution showed a high conductivity (∼10-3 Ω-1 cm-1) and refractive index (∼2.56 at 550 nm). The fabricated tandem cell with the TiO2 antireflection layer showed an efficiency of 11.22%, whereas the reference cell without TiO2 exhibited an efficiency of 10.97%.


The practical stability region and maximal tolerable rejection are estimated for the linear system with saturation nonlinearities and rejection,and then the conservatism in the estimation is reduced by solving a multi-objective optimization problem. On this basis,the optimization problem is simplified by the Schur complements of matrixes,with some properties of the Pareto optimized result proved and the algorithm developed. Further more,as an application of this approach in power system,a method to analyze the performance of power system stabilizer(PSS) controller with saturation nonlinearities and rejection is introduced. Numerical test for a small power system with 3 generators and 5 buses is presented as well,indicating the reliability and simplicity of the approach.


Easily to select appropriate equipment as a target of registration cancellation (pairing release). Server (1), when the number of paired device receives a pairing request state has reached the upper limit, select the release candidate from among the devices already paired, presents the release candidate to the user pairing management unit for selecting whether pairing release of the release candidate Te and a (11).


This study aims to innovate storytelling to add value to homestay tourism. By using qualitative research methodology, this study conducted non-participant observation and in-depth interviews on purposive samplings of the target population. Selected participants are professionals in communication arts, social science, tourism management, and homestay entrepreneurs. The innovative storytelling process begins with entrepreneurs considering both the tangible and intangible characteristics of the primary local resources that are different from other communities and develop them into experiential tourism destinations. The narrative method's selection must consider an uncomplicated narrative structure, a few characters, and only one clear theme. The emotional narrative method is based on the time frame of the story. The narrative strategy applies the unique storytelling technique of influencers, reviewers, or travelers, using their personal narrative styles, symbolic images and elements to convey the story. This also includes broadcasting through various communication channels, including social media or mainstream media.


The change of rural culture is accompanied with the Chinese rural modernization.In the course of the change of farmers' personality,the professional awareness together with the awareness of home village have all changed.The reasons for the changes could be of the endogenous cultural crisis,infusion of periphery culture the enhancing of cultural heterogeneity,the modern education as well as the popularization of mass media and so on.In the course of the change,the implementation of the system of contracted responsibilities on the household basis with remuneration linked to output,the crop up of rural enterprises,the fastening of township construction and the new approach of fastening up the development of urban-rural integration could be the basic approach in the change of Chinese rural culture.


Samples of nanocrystalline iron were carburised with ethylene and next reduced with hydrogen. Both carburisation and reduction were monitored by the thermogravimetry. The obtained samples were characterised using X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and ferromagnetic resonance. The samples after carburisation contained cementite (Fe3C) and carbon deposit (nanofibres and nanotubes). As the result of reduction with hydrogen at 450 or 500 °C cementite was reduced to iron. A major part of carbon was also hydrogenated, only thin carbon nanotubes remained. The FMR spectra of the prepared samples were recorded at room temperature. The sample after carburisation has shown a wide FMR line with weak intensity while the resonance field has been shifted to lower magnetic field. This spectrum has been attributed to the presence of cementite. The FMR lines corresponding to samples after reduction are more intense and are connected with the presence of α-Fe nanoparticle conglomerates.


PURPOSE: A method for controlling congestion in a message transmission system is provided to prevent a message congestion state in a common bus by making each slave module generate a bus usage request if a required time should pass. CONSTITUTION: A user sets a prescaler value and an interval value and stores them in an interval value storage part(S61). A usage grant determination part reads the prescaler value and the interval value from the interval value storage part and stores them in its internal memory element. Then the usage grant determination part downcounts the stored prescaler value at regular intervals and updates the downcounted value into the present prescaler value(S62). The usage grant determination part judges whether the prescaler value is 0(S63). In case that the prescaler value is 0, the usage grant determination part decreases the interval value(S64) and judges whether the interval value is 0(S65). In case than the interval value is 0, the usage grant determination part concedes that a relevant slave module's bus usage request is valid, and executes bus usage arbitration(S66). In case that bus usage permission for the slave module is determined according the usage grant determination part's determination(S67), the slave module transmits messages through the bus(S68).


Abstract Multiple non-pharmacologic interventions for symptom management in community dwelling individuals with dementia have demonstrated effectiveness, but have had limited uptake in practice. Prior reviews have evaluated acceptability of interventions for caregivers, but none have evaluated interventions for care recipients with dementia and dyads. This review synthesized the evidence about intervention acceptability for dyads (individuals with dementia and informal caregivers) and individuals with dementia residing at home. Four databases were searched (PubMed, CINAHL, AgeLine, PsycINFO) using inclusion criteria of: intervention studies, community dwelling individuals with dementia or dyads of care recipients and informal caregivers, non-pharmacologic intervention, evaluation of intervention acceptability. Gray literature and non-English articles were excluded. 173 citations were screened by title and abstract, 38 were reviewed by full text, and 19 studies were included. 18 studies focused on dyads, and 13 different non-pharmacologic intervention types were evaluated across studies. Qualitative (n=3), quantitative (n=8) and mixed methods (n=8) were used to evaluate acceptability. Approaches and measures of acceptability included field notes, behavioral checklists, focus groups, semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and completion rates of intervention sessions and outcome measures. Although participants' benefit and satisfaction with the interventions were high across studies, variability in definitions of acceptability, the methods and measures used constrain the interpretation and generalizability of findings. Psychometric properties of quantitative questionnaires were not addressed even as the most basic level of face or content validity. To enhance the applicability of non-pharmacologic treatments for this population, future research should emphasize the evaluation of intervention acceptability, as well as effectiveness.


By using the coupling technique, we present sufficient conditions for the exponential ergodicity of general continuous-state nonlinear branching processes in both the $L^1$-Wasserstein distance and the total variation norm, where the drift term is dissipative only for large distance, and either diffusion noise or jump noise is allowed to be vanished. Sufficient conditions for the corresponding strong ergodicity are also established.


Influence of audio on perception and comprehension of video sequences : A SUBJECTIVE TEST OF PERCEPTION OF AUDIOVISUAL CONTENT WHERE AUDIO QUALITY WAS CHANGED


The aim of this research was to investigate how a local community's empowerment influences its perception of the impacts of community-based ecotourism (CBE) upon the people of Ban Na village in the Phou Khao Khouay National Protected Area of Laos. Qualitative data collected from in-depth interviews reveals that economic empowerment is the most significant dimension of empowerment to the development of CBE and influencing positive perceptions of the impact of CBE. Meanwhile, the social dimension of empowerment is the least important in the village. The study demonstrates that the empowered local community was more supportive of tourism development, and of equal chances for locals to have fair responsibilities for their work and to obtain comparable power over the decision-making process in the development of their jobs were driving force in enhancing living conditions and receiving substantial economic benefits from CBE participation.


Landfill Gas (LFG) has been identified as a major source of contamination of groundwater underlying landfills. Contaminants consist primarily of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as methylene chloride, trichloroethene, and tetrachloroethene. Three mechanisms for vapor phase VOC migration from a landfill to groundwater are predominant. These are: (1) Direct contact of landfill gas containing VOCs with groundwater, (2) Vapor phase VOC migration through the unsaturated zone surrounding a landfill, and (3) LFG Condensate water formation in the unsaturated zone and subsequent migration to groundwater. Current LFG collection practices are not geared towards controlling the potential for groundwater contamination caused by LFG. By not recognizing this major source of contamination, landfill operators are missing a major opportunity to reduce costs and minimize future liability of future groundwater impacts. Existing or future LFG collection systems can be upgraded, augmented with unsaturated zone remediation, or collection system operations modified to significantly reduce the potential for VOC contamination of groundwater.


Objective:To investigate genotypes and alleles' distributions of inducible nitric oxide synthase (NOS2) gene (CCTTT)n polymorphism in Han nationality in the southwest of China,and make comparisons with different race or the same race in different areas.Methods:The (CCTTT)n polymorphisms of NOS2 gene were analyzed in a total of 205 southwestern Chinese healthy subjects by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-8% denature polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis(PAGE)-silver staining and DNA sequencing.Results:(1)Nine alleles and thirty genotypes were identified.(2)(CCTTT) 9,(CCTTT) 10 ,(CCTTT) 12 ,(CCTTT) 13 alleles frequencies of NOS2 gene in Chinese Han population in southwestern area differed significantly from those in northern area.(3)(CCTTT) 9,(CCTTT) 10 ,(CCTTT) 11 ,(CCTTT) 15 ,(CCTTT) 16 alleles frequencies of NOS2 gene in Han population of the southwest of China differed significantly from those of Caucasians in England.Conclusion:The (CCTTT)n microsatellite polymorphisms of NOS2 gene are different not only among different ethnic populations but also within the same population of different areas, which may be of significance in the studies on relationship between genetics and disease.


When dealing with specific tasks, the hidden layer output matrix of an extreme learning machine (ELM) may change, largely due to the random assigned weight matrix of the input layer and the threshold matrix of the hidden layer, which sequentially leads to the corresponding change to output weights. The unstable fluctuations of the output weights increase the structural risk and the empirical risk of ELM. This paper proposed a fuzzy adaptive particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm to solve this problem, which could nonlinearly control the inertia factor during the iteration by fuzzy control. Based on the fuzzy adaptive PSO-ELM algorithm, a sound quality prediction model was developed. The prediction results of this model were compared with the other three sound quality prediction models. The results showed that the fuzzy adaptive PSO-ELM model was more precise. In addition, in comparison with two other adaptive inertia factor algorithms, the fuzzy adaptive PSO-ELM model was the fastest model to reach goal accuracy.


The life cycle of pharmaceuticals is accompanied by information flows, from the first steps of biomedical research through the end stage i.e., the consumption by the users. The information flows are provided by a great number of people and organizations. They equally raise a great number of problems related to relevance, accuracy, safety, laws, ethics and the like. The article presents some of these problems in France. Undoubtedly they are common to nearly all countries.


The revealed correlation of blood pressure variation in the females who had used hormonal contraceptives and certain features of their cardiovascular histories were used to define the group of risk for borderline arterial hypertension during the intake of Ovidon or Non-Ovlon and to develop the criteria for differentiated choice of estrogen-gestagen drugs.


A new spectrophotometric method for the determination of chlorine dioxide(ClO2) in tap water was developed based on methyl red(MR) oxidation and discoloration.Wavelength scanning showed that MR had maximal absorption at 518 nm.Under the experiment conditions of c(MR)/c(ClO2) = 6.4,pH 4.0-4.5,25 ℃ and reaction time of 40 min,a linear equation was obtained as ΔA518 =-1.7845c(ClO2) +1.5228(r = 0.992) in the range of 0.0004-0.80 mg/L,the apparent molar absorptivitye = 1.2 × 105 L/(mol·cm),and the detection of limit 0.0036 mg/L.MR discoloration by ClO2 oxidation was a first-order reaction.The dynamic equation at 25 ℃ was ln[c∞/(c∞-c)] =-0.000689t + 2.263669 with the activation energy Ea = 87.3 kJ/mol and the half-time t1/2 = 16.8 min.The average recoveries for ClO2 in tap water and ClO2 disinfectant were 98.2%-103.2%(n = 5) with a relative standard deviation of 2.43%-3.83%.This method and the recommended standard N,N-diethyl-p-phenylendiamin(DPD) method showed no significant difference(P = 0.05) according to F-test and t-test.Furthermore,satisfying determination results were obtained from this method.


The advantage of fiber optic data transmission systems is their insensitivity to electromagnetic radiation, in which the optical fiber. Some exemplary applications of fiber optic transmission in power electronics and electric drives which due to their specific job bring significant electromagnetic interference. Electrical signal wires are in an area of very strong electromagnetic field so that the transmission distortion may occur. The paper presents existing and possible applications of optical links using optical fibers, in the control of power systems.


The evolution of integrated circuit technology over the five decades resulted in scaling down the minimum feature size of a transistor from 10 μm to ~14 nm. The high-k dielectrics were identified as potential candidates to replace SiO2 from 2007 due to the large leakage current observed when scaling down SiO2. These materials captured the attention of many researchers and led them to focus on many emerging applications in addition to metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET). In this thesis, two emerging applications of high-k dielectrics were investigated: (i) germanium based MOSFETs and (ii) high frequency high speed rectifiers for optical rectennas.


Background: Treatment of stroke patients is complex. Multidisicplinary rounds have been shown to decrease 30-day readmission rates, improve efficiency in work flow, communication between discipline...


This paper firstly introduces the concept of life cycle cost and the meaning of life cycle cost estimation,secondly analyzes the advantage and disadvantage of the conventional estimation method.By introducing the principles and methods of wavelet and wavelet transformation,a wavelet neural network structure applicable to equipment development expense is built.Finally,data simulation combined with airplane Life Cycle Cost(LCC) is done,and the simulation results show that the method mentioned in this paper is feasible and practicable.


We examine the effects of gender on loan default in an emerging market context. Specifically, we investigate whether female borrowers are less risky to loan default than male counterparts. Using logit and 3,717 loan clients' dataset from a big financial institution in Sierra Leone over the period 2007 to 2014, we find that female is positively related to loan default but not statistically significant. This finding has implication on theory, practice and policy on loan default in emerging market context. This study's finding does not only contribute to an important but neglected area of research, but also practice and policy, due to the size, growth and impact of loan default in emerging markets.


The project presents that data hiding and logo watermarking in encrypted compressed video bit streams, for privacy informat ion like binary watermark to protect videos during transmission or cloud storage. Digital video sometimes needs to be stored and proc essed in an encrypted format to maintain security and privacy. Data hiding and embedding watermark approaches are necessary to perform in these encrypted videos for the purpose of content notation and tampering detection. Here, Data hid ing and embedding watermark directly in the encrypted version of H.264/CAVLC v ideo stream is approached, which includes the following three parts, i.e., H.264/CAVLC v ideo encryption, watermark embedding, data embedding, watermark ext raction and data extract ion. By analyzing the property of H.264 codec, the code words of intra prediction modes, the code words of motion vector differences, and the code words of residual coefficients are encrypted with stream ciphers. Then, a data hider may embed additional data in the encrypted domain by using bits wrapping technique, without knowing the original v ideo content. Arnold transform is used here to scramble/descramble the secret watermark before/after data embedding/ext raction. In order to adapt to different application scenarios, dat a extraction can be done either in the encrypted domain or in the decrypted domain. The simulated results shows that used methods provides better performance in terms of computation efficiency ,high data security and video quality after decryption. The parameters such as Mean square error, PSNR, correlation and SSIM are evaluated to measure its efficiency.


The ability of solvent to influence the rate of formation and subsequent evolution of the bromonium ion or the β-bromocarbenium ion as key ionic intermediates formed by bromine addition to alkenes are discussed based on kinetic and stereochemical studies as well as theoretical investigations.


[Objective] To determine the antioxidant activity of anthocyanin from blueberry.[Method] The anthocyanin were extracted with acidified ethanol from the fresh blueberry and the antioxidant activities of blueberry anthocyanin were determined by.OH,DPPH.,H2O2,superoxide anion and Fe3 + removal experiments.[Result]The.OH,DPPH.,H2O2,superoxide anion and Fe3 + removal rates of blueberry anthocyanin increased with its concentrations and were superior to that of Vc at the same concentration.[Conclusion] Blueberry anthocyanin possessed high antioxidant activity,which can be developed as natural antioxidants.


The undercooling and nucleation of Al4Mn alloy have been investigated by containerless solidification in a 1.2 m long drop tube, where molten droplets of the alloy solidified in the vacuum. Droplets in various sizes were collected at the bottom of the tube. It is found by x‐ray and electron diffractions that besides the orthorhombic Al6Mn and β‐Mn phases, two approximants of the decagonal quasicrystal, one approximant of the icosahedral quasicrystal and decagonal domains can be observed in the as‐solidified droplets. However, due to the different cooling rate or undercooling in the samples of different sizes, the phases mentioned above will appear in different amounts. The relationship between the phase composition and the sample size is discussed on the basis of the classical nucleation and growth theories.


Grumman is developing an aircrew trainer suite for the A-6 and F-14 aircraft. The primary mission of the A-6 is ground/surface attack, while that of the F-14 is air superiority. A major part of the development is designing a visual simulation database that is correlated with a high resolution radar database. Analysis and evaluation were performed on alternative approaches to developing a terrain skin database. Costs and benefits of the alternative approaches are discussed.


This paper first follows with the development of the situation of Indian Buddhist Vajrayana and then introduces the situation of collection,collation and research of the literature on the eighty-four siddhas in Indian acadmic circles.Finally reviews the influence of siddha's thought and literature on later generations.


It has become almost axiomatic in the pharmaceutical world that litigation has replaced innovation as the primary mode of operation, says the head of the Canadian Generic Pharmaceutical Association.

The Supreme Court of Canada tossed another salvo into that litiginous world Oct. 3 by ruling that


The Westboro Baptist Church are a deeply homophobic organisation based in Kansas, USA. Their primary slogan is God Hates Fags (which is an offensive ...


The designer of mechanical equipment and products already has the guidelines and supporting data to adopt the non-waste technology concept. A non-waste technology future must first solve the problems of finite raw materials, the threat of energy shortages, and rapid pollution. Short-term solutions to these problems will involve recycling, but long-term solutions will require methodical design to prevent these situations from developing. Methodical design can also be used to stimulate creativity, which is essential if future resource problems are to be solved. 14 references.


In this paper,we started out the property of contaminants and investigated some enterprises to find out the source of the contaminated groundwater,then we analyzed the groundwater by GC/MS, and identified the main contaminant is tetrahydro-(thiophene).At the same time, we gained the concentration of contaminant by GC semiquantitatively.At last,we identified the reason why the groundwater is contaminated and the range of the contaminated groundwater.


Objective To investigate the impaired mechanism of cognitive handicap induced by ischemia reperfusion and the intervention of ginsenoside Rg2 in rats.Methods Ischemia reperfusion model was prepared by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)-reperfusion method.Reperfusion was performed 60 min after ischemia and persisted till 24 hours.Morris water maze was applied to analyze the changes in learning and memory abilities.Expressions of β amyloid,amyloid precursor protein and NMDA receptor protein(NR1) were detected with immunohistochemistry and image analysis.Results The escaping incubation period was prolonged 24h after ischemia-reperfusion in rats(model group),while the period was shorten in ginsenoside Rg2 group and nimodipine group compared with the model group(P0.01).Expressions of β amyloid,amyloid precursor protein and NMDA receptor protein NR1 were increased in model group,the expressions were decreased in ginsenoside Rg2 groups and Nimodipine group compared with the model group(P0.05,0.01).Conclusion Ischemia reperfusion could cause cognitive handicap through up-regulation of β amyloid,amyloid precursor protein and NR1 and ginsenoside Rg2 has protective effect on cognitive function in rats.


1.The perspective I bring to questions of creativity in man and machine reflects my background in evolutionary robotics, which I consider an exercise in philosophy of mind, trying to understand the relationship between Behaviour and Mechanism. I have a suitcase full of philosophical premises and assumptions; some of these are common, some will be identifiable as associated with a Dynamical Systems approach to cognitive science, also influenced by Varela; and some will seem plain perverse.


Functional classes can be established thorough simple discrimination and repeated reversals training. However, successive reversals necessarily involve experience with the occurrence of errors, which may interfere with class formation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a teaching procedure with no reversals on the acquisition of simple and conditional discriminations, on the transfer of stimulus functions, and on the formation of functional and equivalence classes, in preschool children. The children learned three simple discriminations and the S+ and S– of one of the discriminations were presented as samples in a matching-to-sample task with a novel pair of comparison stimuli. Six participants learned the simple and conditional discriminations with a few errors. Probe trials were inserted among trials of a baseline of simple and conditional discriminations. In probes of simple discrimination with the stimuli that served as comparisons in the conditional discrimination, all children selected the novel stimulus correlated with the sample that had a previous S+ function in a simple discrimination. In conditional discriminations probes, participants showed emergence of new relations (immediate or delayed), what can be interpreted as the formation of functional classes. Then, two participants learned new conditional discriminations and responded in simple and conditional discrimination probes according to the stimulus functions established in training (formation of functional and equivalence classes). The variability in individual performances was similar to that observed under reversal procedures, which generated more errors than the present study, thus suggesting that errors are not the critical variable responsible for the variability. Keywords : simple discrimination, conditional discrimination, functional classes, equivalence classes, preschool children. Normal 0 21 false false false PT-BR X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabela normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}


Blunder test shows that the results of variance component estimation for Helmert type also contain gross errors and the gross errors will probably be transformed when observations contain blunders in this paper. To avoid interacting between blunders and stochastic model errors, the solution of variance component estimation for Helmert type is introduced base on double factors equivalent prior and is improved at the same time.


The author presents changes in ways of helping a child with learning difficulties. Contemporary early school education focuses on leaving a child a lot of independence during pedagogical activities aimed at helping in the implementation of tasks that are difficult for a child. Particularly important here is the need to leave a child time to understand the whole task to be performed. Helping a child to perform particular activities must not interfere with his understanding and independent thinking as well as the activities planned by him. It is important for the child to seek his own way to achieve the result even at the cost of making mistakes and repeating work.


INTRODUCTION
Prior to 1982, patients in our department with choanalatresia were operated by the transpalatinal approach. To eliminate the risk of insufficient transpalatine growth, only older children were operated.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
From 1982 we have chosen to operate as soon as symptoms occurred, usually at an earlier age. Therefore, we chose the transnasal approach in 32 patients.

RESULTS
Of 14 patients with bilateral choanalatresia, nine were operated before two months of age. In nine patients we took care to remove some of the posterior part of vomer. Four of them have been symptom free for more than a year, an additional two symptom free but with an observation period of less than a year, and three have renewed symptoms. Of 18 patients with unilateral atresia, 11 were operated before seven years of age, seven of them successfully. Of the seven operated after the age of seven, six are symptom free.

INTERPRETATIONS
We believe that these results justify continuing with transnasal operations as soon as symptoms are distressing, regardless of age.


This paper presents calculations of the radiative forcing impacts of aircraft CO2 and NOx emissions, and the effects of different routing scenarios. The authors conclude that the different scenarios lead to only small changes in the radiative forcings from the gases, and that these are likely to be smaller that the changes due to contrails. However that should not detract from the value of the study as it is still important to publish negative conclusions.


Three kinds of iron-based catalysts are prepared by impregnation,they are iron loaded powdered silicon dioxide catalyst,iron loaded L zeolite catalyst and iron loaded silica gel catalyst.Three catalysts are characterized by XRD and BET.The condition of FT synthesis are 0.5 MPa,270 ℃,H2/CO=2∶1,air current 40 mL/min,FT synthesis is done for 6 h in a continuous stirred bed reactor,then the liquid product is collected.The carbon distribution of the liquid product of the three iron-based catalysts with different supports is compared.The results show that the support structure play an important role in the selectivity of FT synthesis liquid product.It provides some references for improving the selectively of some products.


Blockchain is a decentralized ledger used to securely exchange digital currency, perform deals and transactions efficient manner, each user of the network has access to the latest copy of the encrypted ledger so that they can validate a new transaction. The blockchain ledger is a collection of all Bitcoin transactions executed in the past. Basically, it's a distributed database that maintains continuously growing tamper-proof data structure blocks that holds batches of individual transactions. The completed blocks are added in a linear and chronological order. Each block contains a timestamp and information link which points to a previous block. Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer permissionless network that allows every user to connect to the network and send new transactions to verify and create new blocks. Satoshi Nakamoto described the design of Bitcoin digital currency in his research paper posted to a cryptography listserv 2008. Nakamoto's suggestion has solved the long-pending problem of cryptographers and laid the foundation stone for digital currency. This paper explains the concept of Bitcoins, its characteristics, the need for Blockchain, and how Bitcoin works. It attempts to highlight the role of Blockchain in shaping the future of banking, financial services, and the adoption of the Internet of Things(IoT), Artificial Intelligence and future


Introduction: Peripheral arterial vasoconstriction during mental stress (MS) has been associated with mental stress-induced myocardial ischemia, which in turn has been linked with worse cardiovascu...


Objective To explore the prevention of PMMA leaking in percutaneous vertebroplasty. Methods From January 2008 to July 2009,the 30 cases of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures with vertebra retral cracked were observed under X-ray fluobscopie guidance during being performed with PVP,man were 8 cases,female were 22 cases,the base of fracture were T 10-L5,Unilateral Vertebra fracture were 16 cases,bilateral Vertebra fracture were 6 cases. The 30 cases were disparted two groups,A group adopts different slimy PMMA multiple inject,B adopts PMMA durative inject. Results A group no PMMA leak into the vertebral canal,2 cases PMMA leak in the hole of puncture needle and the cases were of no clinical symptom. All cases were followed 6 months to 1 year,partial or complete relief of pain was obtained,and no clinical symptom of the spinal cord scathe. B group all have little PMMA leak into the vertebral canal,All cases were followed 6 months to 1 year,partial relief of pain was obtained,and 2 cases were clinical symptom of the spinal cord scathe. Conclusion Different slimy PMMA multiple inject can reduce the percentage of leaking,and improve operation security.


This paper seeks to study the work of Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things as a text of 'feminine writing'. It also analyzes how the myth of the double/twin has been appropriated by Roy so as to deconstruct and rewrite cultural concepts of masculinity and femininity enabling her to foreground the distinction between biological sex and culturally constructed gender, and to raise questions about gender attributes and the marginal position assigned to the female subject in the dominant culture. Through the characters of the twins, she seeks to blur the dichotomous divide between 'self' and 'other', 'mind' and 'body', 'masculine' and 'feminine', illustrative of the chaotic/pre-linguistic state of creation. In the process of demythologizing, Arundhati Roy, as a feminist writer, indulges in experimental writing that exemplifies the concept of ecriture feminine, the aim of which is to disrupt phallogocentric systems of patriarchy.


The Tourism is one of the important economic sources for the many countries. For some countries, tourism represents the first source of national income. The World Travel and Tourism Council's statistics 2001 indicated that tourism for leisure purpose takes the first rank with 62% of the total world demand for tourism activities. Also, the tourism industry formed 11% of the global Gross Domestic Product and 8.2% of the total world employment. Promotion is one of the attractive methods to use such an industry either by investors or audience. The promotional means is the used by one of the most essential elements of marketing mixture on which establishments depend in marketing their services and products. In Saudi Arabia, there are many tourism establishments that provide different tourism services to the public including accommodation, entertainment, recreation ...etc. This study aims at recognizing how much these establishments would use the different marketing communication elements such as advertisements, public relations, personal selling, and sales proudion and publishing. Also, the study aims at identifying elements that would affect such establishments when using some elements of marketing communication. This Study is an exploratory study since this phenomenon never has been studied. This study is important since it tries to achieve a full understanding of the marketing communication elements, which are used in supporting the internal tourism, the theoretical and applying dimensions of marketing this communication, and the impact of such elements of the promotion effectiveness. The possibility of making impact increases largely if the promotion process depended on more than one wedium and communication means and more than one message. This study presents an important scientific and applicable dimension represented in the development of a scientific standard. Such a standard identifies how much the tourism establishments play this important role, allowing the researcher to connect between the extent of applying the marketing communication and the effectiveness of supporting the domestic tourism. In this framework, the study aims at examining how much the tourism establishments are convinced promotion, the marketing with communication role, the affecting factors, and the relation between this role and domestic tourism support. Through the study results, the researcher reached the following to conclusions as follows: -Seasonality is a main obstacle for the tourism establishment work, affecting the sales size. The tourism seasonality in the KSA is one of the most important impediments facing the development of The tourism sector in the KSA. The seasonality makes the tourism establishment raise the price of their products or services. Consequently, the local consumer not will direct towards the local tourism for comparing its prices with those of the same products in other countries. -The results showed the existence of statistical differences for the benefit of entertainment places in using the media and publicity compared to other tourism establishments. Also, there are statistical differences for the benefit of accommodation facilities in using personal selling compared to other establishments. Thus, the most commonly used marketing communication elements in tourism establishments are media, publicity, and personal selling. -The statistical tests revealed that the type of promotion means is the first factor that influences using or not using the marketing communication elements by tourism establishments. Therefore, if the tourism establishments do not have promotional plans, they will focus on a certain type of elements more than other elements. -Through statistical test, the study indicated that sales and profits have an impact on the tourism establishment's use of promotional elements with an average 4.08. Also, defining the tourism product is the third factor affecting the use of marketing communication elements with an average 4.04. The budget of the department concerned with using the promotion mix elements is the last factor with an average of 3.73. -The study proved that the marketing activity in the tourism sector needs human resources trained on promoting the tourism activities efficiency. Since it is hard to find qualified employees in this field and because the tourism sector and its marketing is new, the top management in tourism establishments was not interested in providing human resources to manage promotion at such establishments.


there was a rapid development in wireless network area focusing on high speed and long range application. For this purpose Zigbee technology was developed. Zigbee based devices operates usually three bands i.e. 868 MHz, 915 MHz, and 2.4 GHz. This paper explore about several blocks of transmitter using VHDL. The transmitter consist of CRC(cyclic redundancy check), Bil-to-Symbol block, symbol-to-chip block, oqpsk modulator, power amplifier. Objective behind designing of transmitter using VHDL is that we can reduce slices Look up table contents and there is lesser no.of components using low power transmission experiencing negligible loss.


Young rice plants (Oryza sativa L. cv. Koshihikari), which are 4 week old plants grown in a potting soil under natural light at 28/27°C in day/night, were intermittently fumigated with 0.1 ppm ozone for 4 h (AM 10-14)/day for 4 days, and the ultrastructural changes of chloroplasts in leaf cells were examined by electron microscopy. A visual symptom of small reddish brown flecks appeared on an abaxial leaf surface fumigated for 2 days. After fumigation for 3 days or more, the flecks increased in both size and number and also brightness of green leaves slightly diminished. On observation by electron microscopy, the first indication of ozone injury was swelling of the thylakoid membranes in chloroplasts of abaxial leaf cells fumigated for 2 days. The swelling began first at the outermost thylakoid in grana stacks and was followed by a distortion in the arrangement of internal thylakoids. After fumigation for 3 days or more, the changes of thylakoid membranes became serious and then vacuolization occurred in chloroplast stroma. In leaves which were fumigated for 4 days and afterward kept in a fumigation chamber for a day, destruction of chloroplast envelope was observed. The ultrastructural changes occurred first on the leaf tip area and then extended to the middle region. Ozone injury was more serious in abaxial leaf cells than in adaxial ones. A characteristic was no increase of osmiophilic globules in chloroplasts throughout this ozone fumigation.


In the wake of COVID-19, online learning has achieved new dimensions and affected all fields of education. As such, one of the emerging fields of ELT is Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL). The proposed study adapts the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to identify factors influencing students' behavioral intention towards WhatsApp for enhancing lexical competence. Three constructs, namely, performance expectancy, social influence, & hedonic motivation, are adopted from the original model, and two new constructs: perceived relevance and collaborative learning are added. A questionnaire was administered to 203 undergraduate students from select Institutes in Rajasthan. Smart-PLS (ver. 3.2.9) and IBM SPSS (ver. 26) are used for data analysis. Empirical testing confirms the significant relationship of social influence (?=.274, p=.002), hedonic motivation (?=0.639, p=.000), and perceived relevance (?=0.138, p=.035) with the behavioral intention to use WhatsApp for enhancing lexical competence; and performance expectancy and collaborative learning are proved as insignificant predictors of behavioral intention. The findings should aid decision-makers in developing ELT practices and teachers in opting for innovative approaches for the benefit of language learners. The originality of the study stems from the inclusion of external factors in the UTAUT model. The ramifications for MALL theory and practice have been examined in light of these findings.


Capsule Summary Cross-reactive bovine and porcine gelatin-specific IgE antibody is more common in cow's milk and beef or pork meat-sensitized individuals than previously known and a potential risk factor for allergic reactions to gelatin-containing products (foods, vaccines).


A new groove machining process for nuclear rotor disk was presented.In a consideration of the product precision and the accuracy of processing equipment,milling machine and double-end milling machine were respectively applied in the rough disk and finish machining process of the groove.The quality and the efficiency of groove machining were both improved to break the bottleneck of the disk machining.


Chronic pain, particularly in the treatment of inflammatory pain and neuropathic pain is an area that is not met important still medical needs. On the other hand, II diabetes, also known as non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, a disease of progressive characterized by glucose metabolism with disabilities result in high blood sugar levels. Table 1, 2, 3a, 3b, 3c, comprising administering 3d and formula selected from the group consisting of defined compound 4a azetidine derivative (I), a disease or condition (e.g., pain, diabetes or method of treating a disorder) of lipid metabolism is disclosed.


Sourdough is one of the oldest starters traditionally used for making baked goods, offering several advantages to the sensory, rheology, and shelf life of final products. The present study investigated, for the first time, the microbiota of spontaneously fermented Maiorca dough samples collected from bakeries located in Sicily (Italy). Four sourdough samples (M1, M2, M3, and M4), were produced using Triticum vulgare Host. var. albidum Koern (Maiorca grain) were subjected to LAB and yeasts isolation and identification at the species level. The in-depth characterization of the lactobacilli population revealed that Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Levilactobacillus brevis unquestionably dominated the Maiorca sourdough ecosystem. Concerning the yeasts community, high species diversity was found. Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Wickerhamomyces anomalus were the most frequently isolated species. In addition, Torulaspora delbrueckii, Pichia kluyveri, Candida boidinii, and Candida diddensiae were also detected. Investigations on both pro-technological and functional traits of the isolated strains could lead to the selection of starters for the production of baked goods.


The design and implementation of efficient, easy to program, distributed systems remains one of the foremost challenges for software engineering today. Too often, users and system designers are forced to trade ease of programming for efficiency or vice versa. In this work we present the design of a distributed computing environment that addresses the dual goals of ease of use and efficiency. To make the system easier to program, we support a fine grain active object model. To make it more efficient, we map the active object model onto an architecture we have specifically designed to be amenable to a range of optimizations. Efficiency is also enhanced by the architectural framework of this system, which we have termed Diamonds, which allows the concurrency within an active object model to be exploited in an effective manner.
Diamonds includes language processing facilities, static analysis tools, and a distributed runtime environment. We have applied a strong object oriented design philosophy to all aspects of our system. The language processing facilities use familiar tools in new ways to capture the essence of an object oriented language in an extensible, maintainable manner. The runtime environment is structured around a novel set of execution protocols that allow for varying numbers of heterogeneous processors to be used. To communicate between the constituents of our environment we have designed a unique set of abstractions that hide the location and message transmission details.
Object oriented distributed systems like Diamonds are new territory in terms of optimization. We contribute an examination of optimizations as they apply to distributed object systems in general, and suggest a set of specific optimizations for Diamonds.


With acceleration of the process of urbanization and mobility,traffic congestion is rapidly becoming one of the important constraints for urban development.It′s an inevitable choice that giving priority to the development of urban rail traffic to ease urban traffic congestion situation and implement the sustainable development strategy decided by highly congregation of the city′s residents and the limited road space resources.From China specific national conditions,the city′s economy,communications,population and geographical conditions,constructing a really suitable for urban rail transport system to make greater contributions for economy development.


It is fast becoming common knowledge that China`s massive economic development has resulted in serious environmental problems. For nearly 20 years, China`s central government has made legislative efforts to tackle its pollution problem, but with only limited success. Despite a series of pollution-control laws enacted between 1979 and 1989, public and local support for greening China -- much like support for greening the United States and Europe -- was secondary to the people`s desire to expand the economy. However, the last few years have witnessed a new and serious effort at responsible environmental management in China. The nation has enacted several tough new pieces of environmental legislation designed to reduce pollution and encourage cleanup efforts. Local government officials are successfully balancing economic growth with notions of sustainable development and pollution prevention. Enforcement of discharge standards is at an all-time high as nearly one-hundred thousand polluting firms were shut down in 1997 alone. The enforcement of pollution control standards and the development of projects to reduce existing pollution present many opportunities to foreign investors and developers. US investors with experience in environmental management and pollution abatement technologies can benefit on both sides of China`s enforcement system. First, enforcement of new lawsmore » will force business enterprises to develop and import pollution-abatement technology. Second, enforcement agencies need training and technology to monitor sources of emissions. Further, government spending on large-scale infrastructure projects presents additional opportunities to develop wastewater treatment facilities, urban gasification projects and solid-waste landfill projects. This paper attempts to summarize certain key aspects of the Chinese environmental regulatory system and discuss some of the opportunities for foreign businesses.« less


Microplastics (MPs) and heavy metals (HMs) co-exist in sweet potato fields of China. As the main component of agricultural field mulch and one of the most polluting and harmful HMs, the effects of polyethylene microplastics (PE MPs) and cadmium (Cd) on sweet potato and soil environment are remains unclear. Here, pot and hydroponic experiments are used to explore the effects of original and weathered PE MPs on growth and Cd uptake of sweet potatoes. The results of pot experiments reveal that compared with the control (0%), 5% of weathered PE MPs can significantly increase soil electrical conductivity (EC); both 5% of the original PE MPs and weathered PE MPs can significantly reduce the concentration of Olsen phosphorus (P) and Olsen potassium (K) in soil, inhibit plant growth, but significantly increase Cd accumulation and glutathione (GSH) level in tissues of sweet potatoes, and also induce membrane lipid peroxidation. In addition, compared to 5% weathered PE MPs, 5% original PE MPs significantly reduce soil EC, growth and peroxidase level of sweet potatoes, but significantly increase Cd concentration in leaves and stems. The results of hydroponic experiment show that original PE MPs significantly increase the P, K, and Cd adsorption compared with weathered PE MPs, and Cd increases the original PE MPs accumulation in the root cortex but decrease PE MPs accumulation in shoots. To sum up, our study investigates the differences and reasons of the effects of original and weathered PE MPs on growth and Cd absorption of sweet potatoes. Graphical Abstract OPE: Original polyethylene (PE) microplastic; WPE: Weathered PE microplastic; K: Potassium; P: Phosphorus; Cd: Cadmium; EC: Electrical conductivity. ↑: The values in original or weathered PE treatment are significant higher than that of control (0 % PE). ↓: The values in original or weathered PE treatment are significant lower than that of control.


The aging of the population is the most striking demographic process in Lithuania and other Western world countries. Elderly rural residents, which are the consumers of the public goods and the providers of them at the same time, become increasingly important element of rural vitality. That's the reason the scientific community pays more and more attention on various aspects of life of older people in rural areas: the quality of life, social services, sociality and others. The purpose of this article is to analyze one dimension of the life quality of older rural residents – the changes in living conditions, which were registered in 2001 and 2011 during Population and housing census in Lithuania. Indicators of quality of life were measured – the type of dwelling, accommodation of dwellings: hot water, bath and shower,.sewerage, flush toilet, the type of heating systems, the type of water supply. The result showed that although the living conditions of rural and especially of elderly rural population are rapidly increasing, they are still lower compared to the urban population's living conditions. JEL codes: H44, R11, R20.


Talent training program is the key to determine the quality of talent training. With the new trend of foreign trade development and the change of demand for foreign trade talents derived from new formats, it is urgent to introduce OBE concept to optimize the traditional talent training program of international economy and trade. In this paper, the existing ways to realize the talent training of school enterprise cooperation of economic and trade majors are sorted out. Based on the analysis of the causes of the problems existing in the school enterprise cooperation of economic and trade majors in Colleges and universities, the research group puts forward the countermeasures and suggestions for the talent training of school enterprise cooperation of economic and trade majors in Colleges and universities.


Graphene is an ideal material for spin transport as very long spin relaxation times and lengths can be achieved even at room temperature. However, electrical spin injection is challenging due to the conductivity mismatch problem. Spin pumping driven by ferromagnetic resonance is a neat way to circumvent this problem as it produces a pure spin current in the absence of a charge current. Here, we show spin pumping into single layer graphene in micron scale devices. A broadband on-chip RF current line is used to bring micron scale permalloy (Ni$_{80}$Fe$_{20}$) pads to ferromagnetic resonance with a magnetic field tunable resonance condition. At resonance, a spin current is emitted into graphene, which is detected by the inverse spin hall voltage in a close-by platinum electrode. Clear spin current signals are detected down to a power of a few milliwatts over a frequency range of 2 GHz to 8 GHz. This compact device scheme paves the way for more complex device structures and allows the investigation of novel materials.


Union Bank Routing Number is important for most of your banking transactions. We have provided here all the routing numbers for every State where Union ...


The collaborative very light rail project involves the development of a novel railcar designed to revolutionise the rail industry: a self-powered, very light rail vehicle. Each of the two bogies contains a complete diesel–electric series-hybrid drive system, while the whole vehicle has undergone significant lightweighting activity to realise a target weight of less than 18 t, or 1 t per linear metre. The target cost is £500 000, which is to be achieved through the use of standardised, modular components, and appropriate materials and structural design methodologies. The research covers several aspects of the GB Rail Technical Strategy chapter relating to rolling stock. Lightweighting leads to a reduction in the propulsion requirements and reduces the infrastructure installation and maintenance costs. The use of higher-efficiency drive systems achieved through on-board energy systems enables a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. These hybridisation activities improve the passenger experience through qui...


Abstract At the core of the Czech education system and rehabilitation for people with multiple disabilities to the assumption that this is a group that requires a specialized approach to this issue. The main purpose of the text is to present the organization of education of people with multiple disability in the Czech Republic. Education and rehabilitation with the participation of people with multiple disabilities encourages to undertake research related to the dynamics of changes as well as their size. This work is an attempt to show how various factors have shaped the current form of education of people with multiple disability in the Czech Republic.


This paper presents a new correlated level shifting (CLS) technique that relaxes the design criteria for the residue amplifier in pipelined successive approximation register (SAR) ADCs. Unlike prior techniques, this correlated level shifting technique does not load the residue amplifier during its initial estimation phase by sampling its output to generate an estimate for use in level-shifting. Instead, the estimate is generated by using the residue voltage stored on the SAR DAC to create a look-ahead path that charges the level-shifting and load capacitors before the start of amplification. The operation of the look-ahead CLS (LACLS) technique is described and its effect on key residue amplifier design criteria such as slew rate, linear output range, and dc gain is analyzed. Simulation results are provided to verify the technique in the context of a pipelined SAR ADC and a discussion is given on choosing an appropriate circuit-level implementation for the look-ahead path. Finally, the merits of look-ahead correlated level shifting are discussed and compared to other techniques.


The Edo period (1603-1868) witnessed a preponderance of technological advances in the areas of printing, textiles, construction, and mechanics, yet few were to impact the experience of everyday life as much as clockmaking. Over two hundred years before the abolition of the fujiteihō (variable hour time-keeping) system in Meiji 20 (1887), Japanese clockmakers realized their first successes at replicating and adapting Western chronometric technology for a society that ran on a variable, twelve-hour schedule of diurnal time. The consequences of these innovations, while not immediately manifest, would eventually prove far-reaching and profound. The introduction of the automated clock inaugurated a new regime of timekeeping in early modern Japan, one whose operation was directed by powerful political and economic forces. In the hands of the Tokugawa bakufu and the municipal authorities of Edo, automated clocks were used to instill punctuality in resident samurai and to synchronize the daily lives of the populace. Within the context of Japan's incipient market economy, the automated clock represented the possibility of reifying time's value with an unprecedented degree of mechanical accuracy. Notwithstanding the propensity of its escapement to trip and its springs to falter, the automated clock also captured the popular imagination with its complex and seemingly magical inner workings, which only the most practiced hand could calibrate. In eighteenth century print discourse, the clock emerged as a site of cultural inscription, as artists and writers imputed to this foreign technology connotative meaning, rendering it into a new emblem of the prevailing culture of play.


This paper attempts to discover the lagged optimization of two major Indian stock Indices using econometric assumptions. The main focus is to demonstrate the difference in the observed values of the Index-VaR (Index-Value at risk). Also, the Index VaR will further be tested using Stressed values. GARCH (Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity Model) and EGARCH (Exponential Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity Model) models were utilized for VaR estimation. For non-linear optimization the use of "Evolutionary Algorithm" using spreadsheet solver tool was used. Both the indexes are studied independently hence the preposition is under univariate modeling. The aim is to identify the difference in the risk optimization and the change in the Lags when an artificial or "stressed simulated" environment is fitted within the actual historical price moves. To observe the lag movements and determination of optimal parameters in both GARCH (Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity Model) and EGARCH (Exponential Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity Model) environment, the traditional MLE-AIC (Maximum Likelihood EstimateAkaike information criterion) minimax criterion was utilized. The result clearly demonstrated a marked difference in the VaR at various stress levels confirming that within Indices the "Information arbitrage" is possible even at the monthly price movements.


This article discusses the problem of social activity of the youth of Uzbekistan, and also makes recommendations for its improvement. Using the example of the activities of the Youth Union of Uzbekistan, a mechanism is being developed to prepare young people for perceiving the ideology of civil society and democratic values.


The application scale of new energy such as wind energy and solar energy in China is increasingly large. One of the characteristics of these energy sources is instability. Circuit-breakers play an important role protection in distributing these energy sources. Aiming at a new type of smart circuit-breaker architecture, this paper proposes a frequency measurement method for protection function, that is, the waveform sample value of high precision and high sample rate output by the DMA of the metering chip. The FIR filter is used to eliminate harmonic interference, impulse interference, etc of sample value. The frequency value is calculated by the interval duration between the two cross-zero points of sample value, and the simulation process, as well as the results, are given.


The Stokeslet is the fundamental Green's function associated with point forces in viscous flows. It prescribes how the work done by external forces is balanced by the energy dissipated through velocity gradients. In ordinary fluids, viscosity is synonymous with energy dissipation. Yet, in fluids with broken microscopic time-reversal symmetry, the viscosity tensor can acquire a dissipationless contribution called odd viscosity. As the ratio between odd and dissipative viscosity diverges, energy balance requires that the resulting flow gradients become singular. Here, we find that these singularities give rise to additional contributions to the Stokeslet flow that persist even when the odd viscosity is small. In this limit, we solve for the flow past a sphere and illustrate the distinct effects of odd shear and rotational viscosities. When applied to many-body sedimentation, our analysis reveals the emergence of non-reciprocal hydrodynamic interactions and chiral modifications to particle trajectories.


Equivalent circuit models of a stripline have been proposed previously but most of them are either in a very complex form or are only able to model striplines in homogeneous media. In this work, modal decomposition technique is applied and a simple equivalent circuit model for a stripline in inhomogeneous substrate is proposed. Comparison with other models is also presented.


This article presents an innovative testing machine for determining fracture toughness in double-notched cylindrical and prismatic test specimens loaded in shear over a wide range of applied strain rates and superimposed pressures. The equipment makes use of an electromagnetic actuator that is capable of accelerating the shearing punch against the specimens, with excellent repeatability and very precise control of the impact velocity, by means of the high pressure that is generated in a transient magnetic field produced by passing a pulse of electric current through a series of coils. Experiments performed in technically pure lead and aluminium AA1050-O give support to the presentation and allow understanding the influence of the loading rate and pressure on fracture toughness of ductile metals.


The invention discloses a combined type wire spool. The wire spool is connected with a wire pulling shaft in a dismountable mode and comprises a first winding mechanism and a second winding structure. The first winding structure and the second winding structure are symmetrically arranged. The winding structure comprises a disc and a bobbin which is connected with the disc. A shaft hole is formed in the center of the disc, one end of the bobbin is provided with a sleeve which is integrated with the bobbin and is inserted into the shaft hole, and the end of the bobbin is close to the disc. The outer diameter of the bobbin is larger than the outer diameter of the sleeve. The face of the bobbin of the first winding structure and the face of the bobbin of the second winding structure are located and connected in an inserted mode through a location structure, and the face of the bobbin of the first winding structure and the face of the bobbin of the second winding structure are both far away from the disc. A plurality of strip-shaped notches which are distributed in a radial shape are formed in the disc, and through thread grooves are formed in wire spools which correspond to the bottom walls of the strip-shaped notches along the radial direction. The combined type wire spool is convenient and easy to combine and separate, effectively improves working efficiency, enables the banding operation of a cabletree to be convenient, is stable in cabletree banding quality, effectively reduces cost of transportation and storage and reduces resource waste.


The impact of diet on the microbial composition in the gastrointestinal tract has been well documented. However, quantitation of the role of diet in shaping microbial composition has been difficult due to the presence of factors such as host genetics and environment. We used two genetically identical pigs housed together as a system for isolating diet‐induced changes in the microbiome. We used a withdrawal design across four 14‐d periods with two diets having different solubility of dietary fiber to study the fecal microbial community by 454‐pyrosequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. Shifts in the fecal microbial community composition were assessed with respect to dietary correlations. Similarity analysis revealed that the gut microbiomes from the two different diets clustered separately. Taxa‐based approaches detected significantly different bacteria composition in two different diets. Diversity analysis showed that bacterial diversity was associated with the level of dietary fiber solubility. To conclude, the impact of diet on gut microbiome composition was isolated from host genetics and environment. Diet‐induced changes in gut microbiome composition were observed and found to be reversible within a short time. Our results show that genetically identical pigs can be used as a model system for assessing the influence of diet and other variables on the composition of the gut microbial community.


We investigate how to obtain high‐quality 360‐degree 3D reconstructions of small objects using consumer‐level depth cameras. For many homeware objects such as shoes and toys with dimensions around 0.06 – 0.4 meters, their whole projections, in the hand‐held scanning process, occupy fewer than 20% pixels of the camera's image. We observe that existing 3D reconstruction algorithms like KinectFusion and other similar methods often fail in such cases even under the close‐range depth setting. To achieve high‐quality 3D object reconstruction results at this scale, our algorithm relies on an online global non‐rigid registration, where embedded deformation graph is employed to handle the drifting of camera tracking and the possible nonlinear distortion in the captured depth data. We perform an automatic target object extraction from RGBD frames to remove the unrelated depth data so that the registration algorithm can focus on minimizing the geometric and photogrammetric distances of the RGBD data of target objects. Our algorithm is implemented using CUDA for a fast non‐rigid registration. The experimental results show that the proposed method can reconstruct high‐quality 3D shapes of various small objects with textures.


AIM
There is no common standard defining how biopsies for translational research purposes should be performed. In our study, the impact of two different biopsy methods on the results of immunohistochemical staining of the samples for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and the proliferation antigen Ki-67 were evaluated.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Twenty-four patients who underwent surgical treatment of their HNSCC tumour were included. From each surgically resected tumour, one superficial biopsy and one core-needle biopsy through the cross-section of the tumour were taken. As a positive control, a tissue slide through the primary tumour was made.

RESULTS
The analysis showed that neither the superficial nor the core biopsy expression of EGFR correlated significantly with that of the tumour. The analysis showed that the superficial biopsy expression of Ki-67 correlated significantly with that of tumour.

CONCLUSION
Translational research projects based on biopsy tissues should be using whole surgical resection specimens of a tumour.


Recently, consumers demand high-quality wireless multimedia services via terrestrial and satellite network. And the interest for new services to sustain its successful commercial deployment grows tremendously. So, the MIMO schemes, such as STCs, MRC, has been used for realizing high reliability. However, MIMO schemes has some limitations. MIMO scheme needs more size, cost, and hardware complexity to employ additional antennas. Moreover, sufficient spaces between antennas are required to guarantee the independence of each channel and the devices which use multiple antennas should be enlarged. A cooperative transmission technique which is detect and forward type applying virtual MIMO with STBC matrix in DVB-RCT(Digital Video Broadcasting with Return Channel via Terrestrial) system based on OFDMA is also proposed.


It has been proven that the definition of the concept of tourism does not imply a mandatory border crossing. In this regard, domestic and external medical tourism have been highlighted, each of which is of great importance for the state. Domestic tourism is aimed at providing the state's economy with the necessary labor resources and is a prerequisite for the survival of the state through ensuring the restoration (social reproduction) of the population, while external tourism is aimed at filling the state budget, financial support for medical tourism entities and their employees (primarily highly qualified specialists), popularizing the state and its regions, and facilitating contacts for organizing investments in the tourism, recreation and medical sectors of Ukraine. An analysis of relations between various participants in the field of medical tourism has been carried out and proposals have been made for legal incentives of the development of three main types of medical tourism in Ukraine. These three types of medical tourism have been identified and characterized according to the criteria for determining the goals for the consumers of tourist services: 1) health tourism; 2) classical medical tourism: domestic and external (with the aim of obtaining relatively high-quality and relatively inexpensive medical services); 3) medical tourism related to the birth of a child who will receive Ukrainian citizenship.
It has been suggested that central and local executive authorities and territorial communities of cities, towns, and villages should more actively use the means of the State's regulatory influence on the activities of business entities as defined in Part 2 of Article 12 "Means of State Regulation of Economic Activity" of the Economic Code of Ukraine, as well as other means not prohibited by law. It has been emphasized the importance of licensing of medical and tour operator activities as a means of the State's regulatory influence on business entities, which is mainly of a controlling nature, but supports effective entities in the field of medical tourism by removing low-quality and inefficient ones from the market. It has been concluded that it is necessary to develop, adopt and implement a programme to popularize Ukrainian health care institutions; the services they provide; the regions in which these institutions are built or opened, etc.


Abstract Electron irradiation of CaF2 with 2 keV electrons causes metallization of the surface and near surface layers by the formation of colloids. Colloids on the surface are significantly larger than those in the bulk indicating a higher mobility of defects on the surface. Optical spectroscopy on extinction bands of bulk colloids reveals Ostwald ripening as the driving force for aggregation, while scanning force microscopy results suggest that similar processes dominate the early stages of surface colloid formation.


DESCRIBED pharmaceutical compositions for targeted delivery BY MOUTH OF A therapeutically effective amount of a drug to the colon, without PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT RELEASED the drug in the upper GI tract after oral administration of the composition. The composition is a unit dosage in tablet form that includes approximately from 0.01% by weight to 10% by weight of the drug useful for treating colonic DISORDER OR ABSORBED IN THE COLON; From approximately 40% by weight to 98% by weight of a hydrocolloid gum obtainable from higher plants, And from approximately 2% by weight to 50% by weight of a pharmaceutically acceptable BINDER. The compositions are useful for treating lower GI DISORDERS IN HUMAN SUBJECTS BY GIVING AN ADEQUATE AMOUNT TO A subject in need thereof. A particularly preferred aspect is the procedure for preparing said composition in tablet form.


With the objective of preparing an isolable triplet carbene, we have carried out the oxidation of an allenic compound bearing two thioxanthene moieties (5). Relatively weak oxidants such as Ph3C+BF4 – gave 8, which is the conjugate acid of 5, as a result of a one-electron oxidation followed by hydrogen abstraction, whereas relatively strong oxidants such as SbCl5 furnished a dicationic ketal (9) as a consequence of oxidation and demethylation. Computations on the supposed dicationic intermediate suggest that the singlet state is more stable than the triplet state by 6.7 kcal mol–1 and that the reason for this peculiarity is because the singlet state is essentially a vinyl cation stabilized by a coordinating methoxy group.


To characterize crystals and other particles not only with respect to their size but also to their shape there has been increasing interest over the last decade. Though there are several studies on the geometric problems for single crystals and studies using morphological population balance equations for specific cases there is a lack of a systematic way to construct models for the growth of crystal populations with arbitrary shape. This is due to the geometrical complexity. The aim of this work is to exploit mathematical theories in the area of convex geometry to overcome this deficiency. By introducing an algebra for convex bodies, any convex crystal shape can be decomposed into a set of simple shapes called structuring elements. The decomposition is a linear combination from which generic equations for the calculation of any measure, like volume, surface area or mean diameter, can be easily derived. Importantly, all the required parameters for these measure calculations can be calculated a priori to any dynamic simulation. Ultimately, this allows the generic construction of morphological population balances to model crystal growth. Additionally, the combinatorial complexity is explored with respect to the computational effort. Although the concepts are developed for faceted crystals only, the framework may apply to a much broader class of convex particles.


Glycomics is an emerging field of life science that proposed as a new concept to follow genomics and proteomics, which focus on glycan structures and function. Glyco-catch method could identify the glcoprotein and glycosylation sites via combination with protomic database. Carbohydrate microarray could identify and characterize whole glycoprotein structures of intact cells, which is high-throughput technology for glycan analysis. Chemoselective glycoblotting simplifies purifying process of glycan and increases the sensitivity of glycosylation assay. Two-step proteolytic digestion combined with sequential microcolumns technology takes advantage of sequential specific and nonspecific enzymatic treatment followed by selective purification and characterization of the glycopeptide, which is compatible with proteomic studies.


According to experiences on soft foundation treatment applying for powder-spraying pile when building highway in Shanxi, illustrates effective measures to ensure quality of powder-spraying from design method and quality control, which can improve design and construction level of soft foundation treatment applying for powder-spraying pile.


After stroke, changes to body perception are common. However, little is known about what these disturbed perceptions feel like to the stroke survivor. This programme of work used embodiment theory to explore stroke survivors' experiences of altered body perception and whether these perceptions were uncomfortable from a biopsychosocial perspective. It explored whether participants indicated a need for clinical interventions and the feasibility of using assessment tools to collate information about the body.

A range of methodologies were used. A scoping review of the literature identified 28 studies exploring first-person accounts of altered body perception. Stroke survivors described the body across conditions as strange and unfamiliar; reflecting a changed awareness and means of relating to the body. Concurrently, a phenomenological study was conducted. A purposive sample of 16 stroke survivors able to communicate verbally, at least six-months post-stroke and experiencing motor and sensory impairments, were selected. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Participants described uncomfortable altered perceptions. The body did not exist, was hindered by strange perceptions and uncontrollable. The body was isolated, but participants were hopeful for improvement. Altered perceptions were difficult to comprehend and describe.

From this, a feasibility and acceptability study explored the use of three assessment tools to communicate the altered body. Ten participants experiencing including a proportion with communication problems, were purposively selected. Participants wanted to communicate the experience of altered body perception and discomfort to health professionals and their preferred visual tools to achieve this.
Stroke causes a complex sense of physical and psychosocial disembodiment, which is uncomfortable and of concern to survivors. Embodiment research suggests these domains may interact with one another. Clinical recognition and support to communicate altered body perception and discomfort from a holistic perspective may elucidate the multimodal experience of altered perceptions and foster new approaches for rehabilitation.


This paper analyses the convergence of spline approximation methods for strongly elliptic singular integral equations on a finite interval. We consider collocation by smooth polynomial splines of odd degree multiplied by a weight function and a Galerkin-Petrov method with spline trial functions of even degree and piecewise constant test functions. We prove the stability of the methods in weighted Sobolev spaces and obtain the optimal orders of convergence in the case of graded meshes.