The purpose of this study was to investigate how students (mean= 6.08±0.5 years) benefit from a physical education program in motor performance, creative thinking and academic achievement. Students (n = 39) were randomly assigned to comparison group (6 boys and 7 girls) who received the regular preschool program (which includes 1 session of 30 minutes per week); intervention group 1 (6 boys and 7 girls) who received the regular preschool program plus 1 session of 30 minutes per week of the intervention program; or intervention group 2 (6 boys and 7 girls), who received the regular preschool program plus 1 session of 60 minutes per week of the intervention program; during 8 weeks. All participants performed the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2) and the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) before and after the study. The academic achievement score was given by the school. The ANOVA (Group x Gender x Time pre and post) analysis revealed a significant triple interaction in the object control. Significant double interactions in the locomotor subscale and in the gross motor quotient were also found. After the post-hoc analysis, the results suggest that the physical education program benefits the gross motor performance and did not have an effect on the creative thinking or on the academic achievement.


Prey-flock deformation was investigated in response to a predator's attack with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in a two-dimensional continuous model. Prey flock was produced in such a way that prey individuals would coherently align among themselves through interactive forces within the flock. A single predator was additionally generated in the system and was allowed to attack the prey population toward the center of the flock, based on a biased random walk. In response to the predator's attack, prey flock showed three different phases in flock size: compression (Regime I), expansion (Regime II), and relaxation (Regime III). Scaling behavior in the changes in the prey-flock size was observed at different levels of noise with the increase in risk range (R).


This paper discusses the specification, organization, and utility of time references identified in digital library materials, emphasizing how to treat date references that cannot be resolved to a single day. The HistoryMakers oral history archive is used to illustrate the concept of windowing such time in digital library interfaces


Determining weigh is an important tache to C4ISR system effectiveness evaluation. This paper comes up with a new method, namely GEAHP (Group Extension Analytic Hierarchy Process). This method solves the problems in determining weigh, such as concentrating different experts′ ideas, constructing evaluation matrix reasonably and checking up its coherence. The basic course of GEAHP is expatiated and its validity is verified with an example.


Prediction of the dispersion of sediment plumes induced by potential mining activities is still very limited due to operational limitations on in-situ observations required for a thorough validation and calibration of numerical models. Here we report on a plume dispersion experiment carried out in the German License Area for the exploration of polymetallic nodules in the northeastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The dispersion of a sediment plume induced by a dredging experiment in April 2019 was investigated by employing a hydrodynamic high-resolution regional ocean model coupled to a sediment transport module.

Various aspects including sediment characteristics and ocean hydrodynamics are examined to obtain the best statistical agreement between observation and model results. Results show that the model is capable to reproduce suspended sediment concentration and re-deposition patterns observed in the dredging experiment. Due to a strong southward current during the experiment, the model predicts no sediment deposition and plume dispersion north of the dredging tracks. The sediment re-deposition thickness reaches up to 9 mm at the dredging tracks and 0.01 mm at far-field at a distance of about 500 m from the dredging tracks.

The model results suggest that seabed topography and variable sediment release heights above the seafloor cause significant changes especially for the low sedimentation pattern in the far-field region due to different current regimes. The termination of seawater stratification can rise sediment plume above the seafloor and spread it in a larger vertical distances up to 10 m from the seafloor.


Introduction: Prurigo nodularis (PN) is a chronic, benign neurodermatitis. The exact cause is unknown. In majority, cases of PN do not have a complete resolution of the nodules even with treatment. Case Summary: Here, a diagnosed case of PN of an 18 year old female with a history of 1 year old eczematous lesion is presented. On the basis of the totality of symptoms, homoeopathic medicine Natrium muriaticum was prescribed and gradually the patient showed stable improvement in the domain of signs and symptoms and reached remission by the end of 4 months. There was no recurrence over the next 1 year. This case report evidently suggests that Homoeopathy can serve as a possible treatment option for the management of PN cases.


Controlled force–torque exertion by a small-scaled free-flying space robot will be potentially required for future on-orbit assembly missions. This paper presents a hybrid controller to achieve the desired end-effector motion and contact forces required for driving a screw into a floating target. Attitude of the spacecraft base is controlled simultaneously. Postcapture control to stabilize the entire system is also addressed in this paper. Simulation results have demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed control laws.


A common sunflower isolate of Alternaria helianthi collected near Stoneville, MS, was pathogenic to cultivated sunflower and common cocklebur. Soybean, cotton, rice, grain sorghum, corn, wheat, and 22 other weed and crop species/varieties in nine botanical families showed no response or only minor symptoms. Therefore, further research is warranted to determine the potential of A. helianthi as a biocontrol agent against common cocklebur in geographic areas where sunflower is not a crop.


The historical consciousness of modern Western man, a trait of the cultured mind of the last half-dozen generations, seems to be the legacy to a secular civilization from the historians of the Christian church. Since the creation of man, to be sure, rudimentary types of historical thought have doubtless existed nearly everywhere. With memory and moral freedom of choice was given to Adam the ethical situation in which historical thought appears, for history is the interpretation of social memory in relation to present decisions and hopes for the future. This absolute beginning of historical thought is forever shrouded in mystery, however, and the earliest records of such thought, ages and centuries later, bear little similarity to our patterns of history. These earliest histories are precisely what the modern historian pursues with puritan hatred, myth and legend. The first histories recount relatively little of what men have done; they tell of natural disasters, wars, and migrations primarily as the deeds of the gods. Modern secular history has sought to escape this religious aspect of its archetype, but if the thesis of this paper is correct, the attempt has been vain, the gods have been exorcised from history only by the power of other gods, and the ancient myths displaced only for a more extravagant mythology. And the vagaries of secular Western history are the recognizable corruptions of Christian church history.


With the popularization of higher education, the situation for university students to obtain employment is becoming more and more severe, therefore the enterprising education in university emerges as the times requires, characterized by finding chance for success without chance of development and making oneself a leader. However, it has become a vital problem which currently needs solving urgently as for its inevitability and feasibility to enable students to improve their enterprising consciousness and skills and receive future challenge with their perfect qualities.


A special 3-phase AC servo system for driving the computerized embroidery machine's main shaft is introduced.SVPWM control technique realized on DSP microcontroller and the single neuron model reference adaptive control method is applied in this system.This servo system introduced can track the speed signal that is randomly tipped by the microcontroller,and catch the speed-adjusting request for embroidering with high efficiency.


At birth, the newborn infant faces immediate and significant challenges for successful transition to the extrauterine environment. The critical physiological tasks to accomplish are to aerate the liquid-filled lung and thereby maintain aerated lung volume to establish a functional residual capacity (FRC). While term infants begin to establish the FRC with the first breath after birth, preterm infants are hampered by a greater instability of the thorax, limited muscle strength, and immature epithelial sodium channels, surfactant composition and production. /Foglia et al 2015


In this manuscript, we design and synthesize a series of X-shaped mesogenic monomers, bearing two terminal- alkene tails. Starting from these X-shaped monomers, acyclic diene metathesis polymerization and thiol-ene polyaddition are applied for the first time to prepare two series of side-on main- chain liquid crystalline polymers (LCPs), respectively. The meso- morphic behaviors and structure-property relationships of these new polymers are studied in detail by a combination of 1 H NMR, GPC, TGA, DSC, POM, and XRD experiments. It turns out that the length of alkoxy terminal chains of the embedded mesogens and the length of the spacer connecting two adjacent mesogens on the polymer backbones markedly influence the mesomorphic properties. Furthermore, a side-on main-chain liq- uid crystalline elastomer fiber is prepared by crosslinking the LCP using a UV-sensitive bifunctional benzophenone cross- linker. In comparison with the pure polymer fiber's monodo- main alignment, the crosslinked elastomer fiber however shows nonaligned polydomain structure, probably due to the order competitions between the mixed crosslinkers, mesogens, and polymer backbones. V C 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014, 52, 1086-1098


There is a growing attention towards the application of Radio Frequency Identification (RFId) technology in the Fashion & Apparel supply chain. This paper describes a Lateral Trans-shipment replenishment policy enabled by item-level RFId tagging. In fact, in order to adopt a Lateral Transshipment policy, a firm should have an accurate visibility of both the inventory level in its warehouses and in each store. Such visibility can be provided by RFId technology. An analytical model has been developed to evaluate the convenience of applying a Lateral Trans-shipment policy, and the main managerial implications are discussed.


The sense of loss so central to Hemingway's work inscribes a social rupture with autonomous and potent masculinity—and in this sense his work responds to the crisis in gender in the United States at the turn of the 20th century. Hemingway responded to this crisis, along with a dominant strain of American modernism, in a melancholic manner. He sought to keep psychically alive what he insisted had become socially impossible. The Sun Also Rises enacts this process with particular complexity, staging Hemingway's identification with two incompatible and lost forms of manhood—the sentimental and the invulnerable—neither of which he is able to relinquish for a masculinity more currently viable.


The application of mathematical model‐building in educational research and planning is a very recent development. Planners have found that their ad hoc trend analysis procedures are not good enough to accommodate a very rapidly changing system. The multiregression model proposed in this paper has been derived from the class of straightforward least‐squares applications of the general linear model, without any built‐in statistical tests. The procedure used is a data search procedure in which the intent is to evaluate a number of variables substantively, rather than in terms of formal statistical procedures. The resulting multiregression model appears to be an excellent predictor of enrolment patterns in that it accounts for 99.49 per cent of the variance of the criterion variable. Its application in this example can be likened to a "moving least squares" model.


The Princeton Transport Code (PTC) is a quasi-three dimensional groundwater flow and transport code. PTC is implemented using a splitting algorithm that allows the three-dimensional solution to be computed in two steps. This paper reports on a verification study of the code's features conducted to fully document the performance of PTC. Given the unique nature of the splitting scheme, the testing sequence contains problems that test the effects of using non-uniform layer thickness. Both flow and transport are considered. Initial test results show that the PTC algorithm performs well for horizontally flat discretizations. Moreover, in addition to restricting the use to nearly horizontal layers, the discretization should maintain uniform thickness in all layers.


This paper introduces the relationship between level fluctuation and sticking of mould. And also, the reasons on frequent level fluctuation after maintenance are analyzed. Therefore, the related predicting method and preventing measures are put forward.


Objectives: This study aimed at exploring the relationship of students' attitudes towards learning communication skills to demographic variables, metacognitive skills, and to the appreciation of patient-oriented care. Methods: The cross-sectional survey study involved firstand third-term students from two traditional and two problem-based curricula (N= 351). Demographic variables, attitudes towards communication skills learning, patient orientation, and awareness of learning strategies were assessed. Differences in attitude measures were assessed with t-tests and univariate comparisons. With multiple linear regressions predictor variables of students' attitudes towards communication skills learning and patient-oriented care were identified. Results: A positive attitude towards learning communication skills was predicted by a caring patient orientation, selfregulation of learning strategies, and female gender (R 2 = 0.23; F (9,310) = 9.72; p < 0.001). Students' caring patient orientation was predicted by their attitudes towards learning communication skills, female gender, and higher age (R 2 = 0.23; F (9,307) = 13.48; p < 0.001). Students from a traditional curriculum were least interested in learning communication skills (F (3, 346) = 26.75; p <0.001). Conclusions: Students' attitudes towards learning communication skills and their caring patient orientation are interrelated. However, communication skills are considered as more positive by students with good self-regulatory skills. Early training of self-regulation and the training of communication skills in mixed-gender groups are


We performed simultaneous measurement of light scattering and absorption due to reduction of cytochrome c oxidase as intrinsic optical signals that are related to morphological characteristics and energy metabolism, respectively, for rat brains after oxygen/glucose deprivation by saline infusion. To detect change in light scattering, we determined the wavelength that was the most insensitive to change in light absorption due to the reduction of cytochrome c oxidase on the basis of multiwavelength analysis of diffuse reflectance data set for each rat. Then the relationships between scattering signal and absorption signals related to the reductions of heme aa3 (605 nm) and CuA (830 nm) in cytochrome c oxidase were examined. Measurements showed that after starting saline infusion, the reduction of heme aa3 started first; thereafter triphasic, large scattering change occurred (200-300 s), during which the reduction of CuA started. Despite such complex behaviors of IOSs, almost linear correlations were seen between the scattering signal and the heme aa3-related absorption signal, while a relatively large animal-to-animal variation was observed in the correlation between the scattering signal and CuA-related absorption signal. Transmission electron microscopic observation revealed that dendritic swelling and mitochondrial deformation occurred in the cortical surface tissue after the triphasic scattering change. These results suggest that mitochondrial energy failure accompanies morphological alteration in the brain tissue and results in change in light scattering; light scattering will become an important indicator of tissue viability in brain.


S In search for naturally health foods, we selected a study of an antioxidants from spices food, Indonesian rhizome curcuma longa. Rhizome curcuma longa pulverized and extracted with n-hexane, the crude extract was studied in chemical screening by using thin layer chromatography (TLC) silica-gel, and the extract showed eight compounds as shown as spots ranging from yellow to dark brown. The antioxidative activity of crude extract was evaluated by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazil (DPPH) method, and showed antioxidative activity, as observed potent decreasing DPPH absorbance at 515nm. The active compounds was observed as synergistic effect since the activity in crude extract more stronger than its purified one.


Objective To isolate and culture human adipose derived mesenchynal stem cells (hADSCs) and study the potential of hADSCs to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells. Methods To ensure the removal of contaminating hematopoietic cells, hADSCs were selected based on plastic adherence. Cell surface antigen was confirmed by flow cytometry; ultramicrostructure was detected by transmission electron microscopy; adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation of hADSCs was analyzed by oil Red O staining and yon Kossa staining. hADSCs were exposed to differentiation medium containing EGF,FGF,OSM, HGF,TSA in vitro. 10% CCl4 (100 μ1/20 g body weight )was injected into immune-deficient BALB/c-nu mice and hADSCs (5 × 105 cells) were simultaneously administrated from the tail vein. Blood samples were collected and concentration of aminotransferase and direct bilirubin were detected. Administration without hADSCs was used as a control. One month later, we sacrificed the mice and liver sections were examined by histochemical immunofluorescence with human ALB specific antibodies. Results hADSCs exhibited fibroblast-like morphology, and expressed CD73, CD90,CD105, and were lacking of CD34 and CD45. Adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation showed that hADSCs have the capacity of multidifferentiation. The differentiated cells showed hepatocyte-like cell morphologies and hepatocyte-specific markers including albumin (alb) and α-fetoprotein (AFP). The bioactivity assays revealed that these hepatocyte-like cells could uptake low-density lipoprotein (LDL).Histochemical immunofluorescence showed that hADSCs were incorporated into injured livers. Some human alb-positive cells were found in liver sections after implantation of undifferentiated hADSCs. Transaminase activity in the experimental group was lower than in the control group. Conclution hADSCs can differentiated into functional hepatocyte-like cells and can relieve CCl4 induced BALB/c-nu acute liver injury.

Key words:
Adipose tissue; Mesenchymal stem cells; Differentiation


The purpose of the present study was to determine specific psychotic factors associated with environmental sensitivities, the changes in those tendencies occurring with ecological treatment and the extent to which those behaviors could be attributed to the chronicity of the illness. An inpatient group of 42 environmental patients was compared to an inpatient population of 20 chronic spinal pain patients. Instruments utilized in the study included the Bender Gestalt Test of Motor Ability, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) with the Harris and Lingoe subscales, and three subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised, Digit Symbol, Object Assembly, and Block Design. Data was analyzed via multivariate analysis of covariance, analysis of covariance, canonical analysis, and t tests for related and independent means.


This regular issue contains seven original articles and, unusually, six reviews of books and reports, each of which raises substantive issues. The first four articles outline research on teachers' views on assessment practices in different countries (Spain, New Zealand, Grenada and England) and settings (school, higher education and special education). The lead article, by Ernesto Panadero, Gavin Brown and Matthew Courtney, relates to Spanish practitioners' self-reports regarding use of self-assessment. This follows their earlier study showing the benefits of the use of an assessment rubric for self-assessment accuracy (Panadero & Romero, 2014). In the current issue, their paper reports a structural equation model of data from 944 respondents' views on self-assessment. They show that use of self-assessment is related to prior positive experience with it, training, beliefs that students should use self-assessment and willingness to use self-assessment in grading. These findings are important for those seeking to implement self-assessment programmes. Another large survey was conducted in the second article, by Roseanna Bourke and Mandia Mentis. Their study reports on 964 New Zealand primary and secondary school teachers' assessment practices with children who have special educational needs. The authors present a framework for the integration of assessment practices. The range of assessment approaches used by teachers in these conditions was particularly striking (see Table 1; Bourke & Mentis, 2014, p. 387). In the third article in this issue, by James E.J. Young and Mary Grace-Anne Jackman, a comparison was made of teachers (n = 252) who were trained in the use of formative assessment and those without training. Interestingly, no significant differences in self-reported practice were found. There have been mixed findings in the literature regarding the impact of training upon formative assessment practice. The state of the field does not have standard approaches to gauging fidelity of the training or practice, so there is much work to be done on this topic. Ruth Marlow, Brahm Norwich, Obioha C. Ukoumunne, Lorraine Hansford, Siobhan Sharkey and Tamsin Ford carried out an unusual investigation of the implementation of a government-initiated formative assessment system in England, as they compared the results of the formative assessment with a standardised ability measure (WIAT-II) for 72 children in 11 schools. Whilst the results for literacy correlated moderately, the numeracy scores did not correlate significantly. Based upon these findings and interviews with head teachers, the authors concluded that teacher judgments need to be better standardised in numeracy, despite the £150 million spent by the UK Government to implement the Assessing Pupils' Progress formative assessment scheme. Taking the first four articles in this issue together, it is noteworthy that there are not more standard approaches to the investigation of teacher views on assessment practices and perhaps this is an area where we will see more consolidation in the coming years. Gavin Brown's Teachers' Conceptions of Assessment instrument


In a recent article, Robert Butts has analyzed William Whewell's evaluation of Newton's four rules of philosophizing [4]. As in his other writings on Whewell ([1], [2], [3]), in this study he provides valuable insights into Whewell's thought. Nevertheless, his article does contain what I consider a misleading suggestion on a point crucial to a proper understanding of Whewell's concept of science. Butts suggests that Whewell regarded science not as a search for actually existing "true causes," but as a pursuit of "successful" theories. This note is an attempt to show that Whewell in no way rejected true causes. Butts makes his suggestion in a discussion of Whewell's opinion of Newton's first rule of philosophizing. Newton's rule states: "We are not to admit other causes of natural things than such as both are true, and suffice for explaining their phenomena" ([4], p. 134). According to Butts, Whewell thought there were four ways one might construe this rule, the first three of which were invalid. The fourth was sound: "We may, provisorily, assume such hypothetical cause as will account for any given class of natural phenomena; but ... when two different classes of facts lead us to the same hypothesis, we may hold it to be a true cause" ([4], p. 135; [8], p. 192). A cause like gravity, for example, was "justly and rigorously inferred" from two classes of empirical data: celestial phenomena and terrestrial phenomena. Because gravity was inferred in the same manner from both classes, neither inference was preferable to the other. Gravity was not a true cause on the basis of either inference alone, but only on the basis of both taken together. Hence, Whewell declared, "We thus obtain an intelligible and tenable explanation of a vera causa; but then, by this explanation, its verity ceases to be distinguishable from its other condition, that it 'suffices for the explanation of the phenomena"' ([4], p. 139; [8], pp. 189-190). Butts concludes:


1 Ducimeti ere F, Lurkin A, Ranch ere-Vince D et al. Incidence of sarcoma histotypes and molecular subtypes in a prospective epidemiological study with central pathology review and molecular testing. PLoS ONE 2011; 6: e20294. 2 Liles JS, Tzeng CW, Short JJ, Kulesza P, Heslin MJ. Retroperitoneal and intra-abdominal sarcoma. Curr. Probl. Surg. 2009; 46: 445–503. 3 Lewis JJ, Leung D, Woodruff JM, Brennan MF. Retroperitoneal soft-tissue sarcoma: analysis of 500 patients treated and followed at a single institution. Ann. Surg. 1998; 228: 355–65. 4 Nathan H, Raut CP, Thornton K et al. Predictors of survival after resection of retroperitoneal sarcoma: a population-based analysis and critical appraisal of the AJCC staging system. Ann. Surg. 2009; 250: 970–6. 5 Bonvalot S, Rivoire M, Castaing M et al. Primary retroperitoneal sarcomas: a multivariate analysis of surgical factors associated with local control. J. Clin. Oncol. 2009; 27: 31–7. 6 Lehnert T, Cardona S, Hinz U et al. Primary and locally recurrent retroperitoneal soft-tissue sarcoma: local control and survival. Eur. J. Surg. Oncol. 2009; 35: 986–93. 7 Anaya DA, Lahat G, Wang X et al. Postoperative nomogram for survival of patients with retroperitoneal sarcoma treated with curative intent. Ann. Oncol. 2010; 21: 397–402. 8 Strauss DC, Hayes AJ, Thway K, Moskovic EC, Fisher C, Thomas JM. Surgical management of primary retroperitoneal sarcoma. Br. J. Surg. 2010; 97: 698–706. 9 Gronchi A, Miceli R, Shurell E et al. Outcome prediction in primary resected retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma: histology-specific overall survival and disease-free survival nomograms built on major sarcoma center data sets. J. Clin. Oncol. 2013; 31: 1649–55. 10 Toulmonde M, Bonvalot S, Meeus P et al. Retroperitoneal sarcomas: patterns of care at diagnosis, prognostic factors and focus on main histological subtypes: a multicenter analysis of the French Sarcoma Group. Ann. Oncol. 2014; 25: 735–42. 11 Smith HG, Panchalingam D, Hannay JA et al. Outcome following resection of retroperitoneal sarcoma. Br. J. Surg. 2015; 102: 1698–709. 12 Gronchi A, Miceli R, Allard MA et al. Personalizing the approach to retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma: histology-specific patterns of failure and postrelapse outcome after primary extended resection. Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2015; 22: 1447–54. 13 Tan MC, Yoon SS. Surgical management of retroperitoneal and pelvic sarcomas. J. Surg. Oncol. 2015; 111: 553–61. 14 Abdelfatah E, Guzzetta AA, Nagarajan N et al. Long-term outcomes in treatment of retroperitoneal sarcomas: a 15 year single-institution evaluation of prognostic features. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016; 114: 56–64. 15 Stahl JM, Corso CD, Park HS et al. The effect of microscopic margin status on survival in adult retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcomas. Eur. J. Surg. Oncol. 2017; 43: 168–74. 16 Krane A, Crago AM. The importance of surgical margins in retroperitoneal sarcoma. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016; 113: 270–6. 17 Chou YS, Liu CY, Chang YH et al. Prognostic factors of primary resected retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma: analysis from a single Asian tertiary center and external validation of Gronchi's nomogram. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016; 113: 355–60. 18 Xu YH, Guo KJ, Guo RX, Ge CL, Tian YL, He SG. Surgical management of 143 patients with adult primary retroperitoneal tumor. World J. Gastroenterol. 2007; 13: 2619–21. 19 Fletcher CD, Hogendoorn P, Mertens F, Bridge J (eds). WHO Classification of Tumours of Soft Tissue and Bone, 4th edn. IARC Press, Lyon, 2013. 20 Garcia-Ortega DY, Villa-Zepeda O, Martinez-Said H, Cuellar-Hubbe M, Luna-Ortiz K. Oncology outcomes in retroperitoneal sarcomas: prognostic factors in a Retrospective Cohort study. Int. J. Surg. 2016; 32: 45–9. 21 Chikkannaiah P, Boovalli MM, Nathiyal V, Venkataramappa S. Morphological spectrum of peripheral nerve sheath tumors: an insight into World Health Organization 2013 classification. J. Neurosci. Rural Pract. 2016; 7: 346–54. 22 Nussbaum DP, Rushing CN, Lane WO et al. Preoperative or postoperative radiotherapy versus surgery alone for retroperitoneal sarcoma: a case-control, propensity score-matched analysis of a nationwide clinical oncology database. Lancet Oncol. 2016; 17: 966–75. 23 MacNeill AJ, Miceli R, Strauss DC et al. Post-relapse outcomes after primary extended resection of retroperitoneal sarcoma: a report from the Trans-Atlantic RPS Working Group. Cancer 2017; 123: 1971–8. 24 Trans-Atlantic RPS Working Group. Management of primary retroperitoneal sarcoma (RPS) in the adult: a consensus approach from the Trans-Atlantic RPS Working Group. Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2015; 22: 256–63.


Long-term waterflooding exploitation in Daqing Lasaxing oilfield caused changes in reservoir porosity structure,and formed inefficient water circulating formation,that is,the big porous reservoir.Analyzed are the relationship between the Silicon Calcium ratio(Si/Ca) and the shale volume(Vsh),the hydrogen Silicon ratio and porosity according to carbon oxygen ratio(C/O) spectra logging principle.Put forward is a log interpretation method to calculate Vsh,porosity and current water saturation with C/O log data.This method can identify and evaluate the big porous reservoir efficiently combining with the open hole log data.The method obtained good geology result in actual log applications.


Objective To analyze the clinical characteristics of uterine sarcoma to facilitate the earlier diagnosis and treatment.Methods Thirty seven cases with uterine sarcoma were retrospectively analyzed about the clinical features,diagnosis,therapy and prognostic factors.Results The patients usually manifested with abnormal vaginal bleeding and lower-abdominal mass; Diagnostic curettage and rapid frozen section examination during the operation were main methods for diagnosis.Pathologic type and chemotherapy were not correlated with the overall 2-year and 5-year survival rates of the patients (P0.05) .But clinical stage and ages of the patients were correlated with them (P0.05) .Conclusion The clinical symptoms of uterine sarcoma is not typical,the preoperative di-agnosis rate is low and the prognosis is poor.The treatment is mostly by operation.Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are given after operation.The prognosis of uterine sarcoma was significantly related to clinical stage and patients' age.


Learning control is investigated to solve the tracking problem for linear systems via unreliable networks with random data dropouts. By using an encoding–decoding mechanism-based finite-level uniform quantizer, the communication burden is remarkably reduced while retaining a precise tracking performance. An intermittent update principle is adopted in both the encoding–decoding mechanism and the learning control algorithm to handle the effects of data dropouts. A special case, in which no consecutive dropouts exist along the iteration axis, is provided first and then extended to a general case, in which bounded consecutive data dropouts are allowed. A precise analysis of the maximum range of the finite-level quantizer and the associated asymptotical convergence is conducted. Illustrative simulations demonstrate the validity of the proposed framework. Note to Practitioners—Networked control structure has been widely used in practical applications because of its distinct flexibility, facilitation, and robustness of the entire control framework. All of the involved units in networked systems are usually located in different sites and communicate with each other through wired/wireless networks. An overload of these networks can result in packet congestion and data dropouts among other severe problems. As a result, the reduction of communication burden is of great significance for control through networks, for which quantization is an effective method. In consideration of device cost, it is preferred to apply finite-level uniform quantizer that is cheap and abundant. However, generally, this quantizer cannot guarantee an acceptable tracking performance because of its limited quantization ability. An encoding–decoding mechanism is thus proposed in this article to realize high tracking accuracy while using a simple uniform quantizer, where a learning control methodology is provided to improve tracking performance gradually. In addition, random data dropouts are accommodated in the proposed framework.


The use of Matrix of Partial Derivatives of the State Vector (Mpdx) method for numerical simulation of distributed parameter processes modeled by partial differential equations is considered to be known. In this paper is presented a new approach of computing the (Mpdx) matrix based on 4th order partial differential equations with two independent variables, time (t) and propagation space (s). Using a concrete example, the MpdxIV.2 matrix is computed and the results are presented both in tabular and graphical form.


An analytic method is described and results of calculations are given for a magnetic structure made up of an even number of prismatic oppositely magnetic rare-earth permanent magnets, embedded in a cylindrical casing made of nonmagnetic material. It is shown that such structures can be used in microwave ion sources as a means of maintaining the gas-discharge near-wall plasma. Solutions are obtained for the scalar magnetic potential, the vector intensity flux, and the component of magnetization of the magnetic field; these expressions are in the form of series of harmonic functions, which are convenient for practical calculations


This qualitative case study investigated the reflective processes of fou r secondary teachers in a rural setting who participated in a six week guided study based on the principles of Teacher Formation as espoused by Parker J. Palmer. The research w as phenomenological in nature and situated in the field of educational justice. Primary data were collected through guided study participant responses and semi-struct ured interviews, and were further triangulated through observational field notes a nd participant journal entries. The data were analyzed using emergent design th at allowed the researcher to identify and code themes. The following five key themes emerged: (1) Teacher rejuvenation; (2) Change in relationship with colleagues ; (3) Change in relationship with students; (4) Critical reflection/self exami n tion; and (5) Practice more mindful teaching/greater awareness of impact. The data and pr esence of the emergent themes suggests that secondary teachers, however rural, can benefi t from exposure to principles of Teacher Formation, and further suggests that education as a whole can benefit from the incorporation of quality professional development that is inexpensive and accessible to teachers in all areas. Finally, the outc ome of this study illustrates the critical reflection processes that allow teach ers to cultivate a learning environment for students based on educational justice. CRITICAL REFLECTION 3


Objective:To examine the relationship between the BOLD-fMRI signal and the neural mechanism of overt utterance.Methods:BOLD-fMRI signal was acquired with a 1.5 T MR scanner when nine subjects with normal speech were performing two picture naming tasks.The two tasks were different only in aspects of phonological encoding and articulation coordination.These pictures were standard line drawing pictures matched in semantic familiarity,concept complexity and visual complexity.The data was analyzed by AFNI software package.Results:It indicated that compared with the one character naming task,the brain activation regions were smaller and more concentrated in three character naming task,and more deactivation was appeared in the left pericentral gyrus,right precentral and postcentral gyrus,left superior temporal gyrus and right putamen.Conclusion:Although more cognitive resources may be needed by the more complex task,the signal of BOLD-fMRI does not necessarily increase correspondingly.The more complex the task is,the more deactivations there are.These results suggested that brain is more likely to work in a modular way.And it is necessary to examine the deactivation in BOLD-fMRI study about the overt utterance in order to further clarify the neural mechanism of overt utterance.


ASSENGERS on board a Union and Castle boat were recently surprised to find that something like half their " World's News, received daily under Parrangement with the Wireless Press Ltd.," dealt with the success of a new United Empire party.l Neither Mr. Baldwin's nor Mr. MacDonald's view of this party seems to have been recorded. But on March 2nd long extracts from an article by Lord Rothermere explained that when the United Empire party was in power " fresh issues of capital would be constantly announced, the Stock Exchange, which is now stagnant, would be working to its full capacity . . . At the same time there would be an immense flow of American capital, organising ability, eager to share . . .', On the next day the "World's News" stated that "the United Empire party has been created only just in time to save the nation fromutter ruin. That conclusion every thinking man and woman drew from the publication of the estimates of the Civil Service departments for the coming financial year . . . The result is an enormous addition to the membership of the United Empire party.', On landing these passengers must have learned that the United Empire party had received no welcome in the Empire and was no longer united at home, that the number of men and women who had united to save the nation from utter ruin was about 200,000, that they included no responsible politician or prominent economist, that Mr. Baldwin, with Lord Beaverbrook's approval, remained leader of the Conservative party and that even in the columns of the Rothermere Press, in which alone the " Party of Prosperity " maintained an insecure existence, Empire tariffs were now regarded as less important than the maintenance of a strong hand in India,


The present research programme envisages a comparative study of the effects of
two piscicides of plant origin, viz., mahua oil cake, a derivative from the plant Bassia
latifolia and croton seed, a product from the plant Croton tiglium Although some reports
on the effects of mahua oil cake and croton seed on fresh water pond culture systems are
available, information on their effect on brackishwater culture systems are rather scanty.
This was the guiding principle for launching the present study. It is hoped that the findings
will enable aquaculturists to make use of the piscicides in a more rational and efficient
way, and will go a long way towards realising the maximum return Horn culture systems
without hampering the environment.


In this paper, we prove the existence and uniqueness of solutions for a coupled system of fractional differential equati ons with integral boundary conditions. Our analysis relies on a generalized coupled fixed point theorem in the space of the co ntinuous functions defined on (0, 1). An example is also presented to illustrate the obtained res ults.


The invention discloses a horizontal field head coil used for a magnetic resonance imaging system. The horizontal field head coil comprises eight annular units which are divided into an upper part and a lower part, both the upper part and the lower part have four units in a 2*2 arrangement, and part circuits of the four units of the upper part are placed in the lower part. The horizontal field head coil used for a magnetic resonance imaging system has the characteristics of simple structure, a high signal to noise ratio, and good patient visual field.


Nine patients have undergone cardiac transplantation at Stanford University Hospital. Three of these showed no clinical evidence of rejection and had essentially normal physical and phonocardiographic findings. There were eight distinct early rejection episodes in the other six patients. Early rejection was accompanied by decreasing QRS voltage, an early diastolic gallop, and frequently a rightward shift of the mean electrical axis of the heart. If not treated, this progressed to severe heart failure with a right ventricular heave, biventricular gallop, marked elevation of venous pressure with rapid y descent and severe dyspnea without orthopnea. Ultrasound measurements show increasing posterior wall thickness and overall heart diameter during the rejection episode. With aggressive therapy, all of these signs usually resolve rapidly, suggesting that dysfunction of the rejecting heart is secondary to the interstitial edema, vascular engorgement, and cellular infiltration, causing restriction of diastolic filling. These cardiovascular signs appear to aid detection of early cardiac rejection and allow treatment at an earlier stage of the rejection process.


In this work, sulfobetaine (4-(trialkylammonium) propansultan (TAAPS)) was first developed as a new phase-transfer catalyst for synthesizing dialkoxymethane. The addition reaction of 1,3-propane sultone (PS) and trialkylamines (TAA) was successfully carried out to synthesize sulfobetaines in a homogeneous organic solution. In this work, for the first time, five different TAAPSs, which possess high reactivity, stability, selectivity, and performance, were employed as phase-transfer catalysis to synthesize dialkoxymethane. The reaction of alcohol and dibromomethane in a highly alkaline solution of KOH/organic solvent two-phase medium to produce dialkoxymethane was carried out under phase-transfer catalysis using 4-(trialkylammonium) propansultan as the catalyst. From the experimental observation, a rational reaction mechanism using this new phase-transfer catalyst was proposed. Kinetics of the reaction are studied in detail.


This paper analyzes on the separation between the scientific research results and the enterprises in China in the production links and the application links of the scientific research results in China, expounds that the main bodies of the operative production have naturally become the main bodies of the transformation of the scientific research results, and points out that in order to be in an unassailable position of the drastic market competition, the enterprises must increase their cognition, transform their conception, establish their own scientific research center, absorb the scientific research institutions to participate, pay attention to training the talents, and quicken the technical transformation.


Achieving high detection accuracy of pavement cracks with complex textures under different lighting conditions is still challenging. In this context, an encoder-decoder network-based architecture named CrackResAttentionNet was proposed in this study, and the position attention module and channel attention module were connected after each encoder to summarize remote contextual information. The experiment results demonstrated that, compared with other popular models (ENet, ExFuse, FCN, LinkNet, SegNet, and UNet), for the public dataset, CrackResAttentionNet with BCE loss function and PRelu activation function achieved the best performance in terms of precision (89.40), mean IoU (71.51), recall (81.09), and F1 (85.04). Meanwhile, for a self-developed dataset (Yantai dataset), CrackResAttentionNet with BCE loss function and PRelu activation function also had better performance in terms of precision (96.17), mean IoU (83.69), recall (93.44), and F1 (94.79). In particular, for the public dataset, the precision of BCE loss and PRelu activation function was improved by 3.21. For the Yantai dataset, the results indicated that the precision was improved by 0.99, the mean IoU was increased by 0.74, the recall was increased by 1.1, and the F1 for BCE loss and PRelu activation function was increased by 1.24.


them. It is not a naive optimism, but rather a clear-eyed character trait that I have witnessed over and over." McCabe says this strength of character really stands out. "I have seen him in both good times and bad," he said. "Of course, everyone can happily accept the results when things go well, including Don. When things don't go so well, I have personally witnessed Don accepting whatever was dealt to him and actually reassuring those around him that everything would eventually work out." Rockwell's wife, Diane, who has witnessed this firsthand during their 42 years of marriage, agreed, noting his honesty and high ethical standards have benefited not just his clients and colleagues, but everyone around him. "His ethical standards are not only present in his profession but also in his daily life as a husband, father, and friend," she said. court system or simply in a lawyer's office," Swann said. "That includes respect for the law and each other. Too often, civility that should be shown, whether by a judge or an attorney, breaks down into petty squabbles."


Saio et al. (2006) have shown that the presence of an intermediate convective zone (ICZ) in post-main sequence models could prevent the propagation of g-modes in the radiative interior and hence avoid the corresponding radiative damping. The development of such a convective region highly depends on the structure of the star in the mu-gradient region surrounding the convective core during the main sequence phase. In particular,the development of this ICZ depends on physical processes such as mass loss, overshooting (Chiosi & Maeder 1986, Chiosi et al. 1992, see also Godart et al., these proceedings) and convective instability criterion (Schwarzschild's or Ledoux's criteria). In this paper we study the consequences of adopting the Ledoux's criterion on the evolution of the convective regions in massive stars (15 and 20 Msun), and on the pulsation spectrum of these new B-type variables (also called SPBsg).


Several tumor cell systems have been developed for investigating the cytotoxic activity of different substances. The Ehrlich ascytic tumor (EAT) has been studied extensively and used to increase our comprehension of immunotherapy (Yamamoto and Naraparaju. Cancer Res 57:2187–2192, 1997). In this study, we evaluated the ability of an enzymatic method to assess cytotoxic tumor activity in vitro. To prepare cytotoxic cells, lymphoid cells isolated from the lymph nodes of C57BL/6 mice were activated with interleukin‐2 (IL‐2). The cytotoxic activity to EAT cells was assessed by an enzymatic test using lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), an enzyme widely distributed in mammalian tissues which, in the presence of NAD/NADH, converts lactate to pyruvate. IL‐2 treatment of lymph node cells induced a greater percentage of lysis (75.47%) than effector cells that were not treated with IL‐2 (42.38%). This suggests that IL‐2 directly activates effector cells and not tumor cells. The results demonstrate that the LDH release‐measurement method can be utilized to assay cytotoxic cell‐mediated activity in which murine tumor cells act as the target. Levels of IL‐2 appear to have a direct correlation to cellular immunity and treatment with these substances may strengthen immune function and decrease the pace of disease development. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 18:27–30, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


With the development of computer and network technology, the pace of people's life is much faster. At the same time, the need for entertainment is also growing. The game based on handheld devices is becoming more and more popular. It has been booming along due to its educational, fun, casual, easy to carry, easy to operate, highly interactive and many other features to meet the people's entertainment needs. This paper introduces the embedded systems based on general-purpose software development model and development process, including the design of hardware platform and software. The design of the hardware platform is based on the Altera's DE2-115 Series development board, the software platform is Nios II EDS 10.1 and the programming language is C and VHDL. Based on the SOPC tool, we designed the reconfigurable IP cores of the VGA display, LTM touch screen. With Galaxian game as an example, we design a embedded game based on GUI. The results show that the game system is human-computer interaction friendly and it has quick response and action. This configurable IP core has high flexibility, variability, plasticity and it can achieve more functional expansion and development with the same resource. Keywords— Configurable IP core; DE2-115; FPGA; SOPC; hardware/software co-design


We conducted an experiment using training in a software package for presentations. Ninety undergraduate students with no previous experience received either training that guided them to commit common errors or alternatively training that sought to prevent errors from occurring. From previous research and relevant theory, a typology for manipulating errors is presented. In addition, we offer and test a new way of using errors in training, based on guided errors. Before training, a subject matter expert identified common errors that occur when first learning the software package. Trainees in the guided-errors condition were then guided into and out of mistakes during training. Findings revealed superior performance (accuracy and speed) and self-efficacy associated with using guided errors during training. Study limitations and implications for research and practice are also discussed.


The broad use ofWireless Sensor Networks (WSN) in various fields have resulted in growing demand for advanced data collection and querying mechanisms embedded in the sensor node. Sensor Web Services (SWS) have recently emerged as a promising tool to enable external machines to have access to the information collected by public sensor webs. Machine-to-machine interactions or wireless sensor and actor networks can take advantage of this platform-independent technology to develop diverse smart grid applications. In this survey, we first briefly present the state of the art in SWS technology by describing the techniques for customizing web services to fit the sensor node capabilities such as customizing the WSDL file, compressing XML documents and redesigning TCP protocol. Then, we survey the studies that have utilized the SWS technology in smart grid applications. These studies have shown that SWS provide energy management capabilities to the consumers and the utilities, and they are well suited for smart grid integrated smart home solutions.


To successfully manipulate in unknown environments, a robot must be able to perceive degrees of freedom of objects in its environment. Based on the resulting kinematic model and joint configurations, the robot is able to select and adapt actions, recognize their successful completion and detect failure. We present an RGB-D-based online algorithm for the interactive perception of articulated objects. The algorithm decomposes the perception problem into three interconnected levels of recursive estimation. The estimation problems at each level are much simpler than the original problem and their robustness is improved by level-specific priors that help reject noise in the measurements. These three estimators mutually inform each other to further improve the convergence properties of the three estimation solutions. We demonstrate that the resulting algorithm is robust, accurate, and versatile in real-world experiments. We also show how the perceptual skill can be used online to control the robot's behavior in real-world manipulation tasks.


Background.  Nuclear fluorescence in keratinocytes is an occasional phenomenon, often present in autoimmune diseases, especially in connective‐tissue disease (CTD); however, its clinical significance remains unclear.


In this paper it classified the type of coal fires,and analyzed their characteristics.According to the whole process of forming coal fire,it proposed analysis and research of the technologies of predicting and forecasting,determining dangerous zone,and detecting coal fires,and brought forward the technologies of coal fires preventing and extinguishing,the technologies included water,grouting,covered by loess,stripping fire,cream-body,nitrogen,three-phase foam,liquid carbon dioxide and gel etc.Finally,it proposed a new technology of fire preventing and extinguishing with gel materials,which was applied on the typical ground coalfield fire and coal seam spontaneous combustion underground,achieved good results.


Esophagitis,esophageal diverticulum,cardiac spasms,diffuse esophageal spasm,esophageal cardiac failure flaccid disease,esophageal stricture,esophageal cancer,cardiac diseases such as difficulty in swallowing,as Ye Ge card for Nursing.Prevention,and active health education;with treatment and close observation of changes;daily life,strict attention;eating food,rationally.


Еpos, lyric poetry, and drama are presented with their own set of genres. Idyll is not a genre that clearly fixes a particular ancestral origin. This article provides the examples of modern idylls aimed at the epization (organizing principle is not a sense of the observer, but the event and the narration of the event) and the dramatization of lyrics (poetic dialogues, dating back to the ancient eclogues).


The invention relates to a method for producing a multi-dimensional structure of structured, deep-drawable metal flat product (2), which is produced by rolling from a precursor and passes through a forming step, which is cold worked at ambient temperature, wherein a surface structure in a first forming step (11) in at least one of the surfaces (4) of the flat metal product (2) is formed and wherein the first forming step in the metal flat product (2) molded surface structure (11) at least one carried out as a cold-forming step the second shaping step is leveled by cold rolling with an unstructured roller (16) in the , By the present invention, the molded-in in the first forming surface structure (11) of depressions (12) and between the depressions (12) present projections (13) is formed, wherein the recesses (12) of projections (13) or the elevations (13) of recesses (12) are fully bounded, it is possible to produce metal products with a flat optimally adapted to the respective requirements microstructure. The invention also relates to a corresponding beschaffenes metal flat product.


This article by Neufeld and Levinthal of the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin confirmed earlier research, conducted by Fred
 Griffith of the British Ministry of Health, which demonstrated that pneumococci could be made to change types. Lionel Alloway
 in Avery's lab would later expand on these findings in a 1932 article.


Alice Walker describes heroine Mag Delina's "nonsexual" and the homosexual relationship between Susana and Pauline.The paper discusses the key role of "nonsexual" and "homosexual" at the sisters growing process,thus points out that "nonsexual" and "homosexual" relationship are not only the strong accusation to patriarchy's ravage to female,but also the channel of the sisters stepping to awakening and reaching harmonious sexual relaitons.


Report discussing a possible curriculum for instructing students about growing corn. Topic for exercises include 1) selecting seed, 2) judging corn, 3) testing seed in school, 4) selecting corn for exhibition, 5) cultivation practices, and 6) simple corn breeding.


Purpose The aim of the study was to quantify low and high order Zernike aberrations in children and youths as well as to investigate influence of fogging and cycloplegia on the refraction and aberrations measurement.


Thyroid gland dysfunction was studied in Zebu cattle experimentally infected with Thyroid gland dysfunction was studied in Zebu cattle experimentally infected with Trypanosoma vivax, Trypanosoma vivax, based on the levels of serum thyroxine (T based on the levels of serum thyroxine (T 4 ) and occurrence of pathological lesions at 13 weeks post infection ) and occurrence of pathological lesions at 13 weeks post infection (p.i.). There were statistically signifi cant declines in the T (p.i.). There were statistically signifi cant declines in the T4 levels in the infected group at 3 weeks p.i. (P 0.05) and control bulls showed no gross lesions and the mean weights were not statistically signifi cant (P>0.05) between the groups. Histopathological lesions observed in the thyroid glands of the infected bulls were between the groups. Histopathological lesions observed in the thyroid glands of the infected bulls were focal in occurrence and include; squamous metaplasia of follicular epithelium with fi broplasia and widened focal in occurrence and include; squamous metaplasia of follicular epithelium with fi broplasia and widened interfollicular connective tissue. The control bulls showed no histopathological lesions in the thyroid glands. interfollicular connective tissue. The control bulls showed no histopathological lesions in the thyroid glands. It was concluded that thyroid gland dysfunction occurs in trypanosomosis due to It was concluded that thyroid gland dysfunction occurs in trypanosomosis due to T. vivax T. vivax in cattle and it is in cattle and it is suggested that this could contribute to the weakness associated with trypanosomosis. suggested that this could contribute to the weakness associated with trypanosomosis.


This monograph issue comprises eight articles discussing various aspects of gender, marriage and intergenerational support in East Asian societies. The articles are organized under two major themes, namely 'gender and marriage' and 'family support'. All are based on empirical data, most are of large sample sizes, and quantitative methods are commonly used to analyse both spousal and intergenerational relationships. Geographically, this issue focuses on family relations in Taiwan, Hong Kong, mainland China, Japan and Korea. It is clear that among these East Asian societies, Confucianism serves as a common basis in their cultural heritage. Furthermore, we can take Taiwan, Hong Kong and mainland China as three Chinese societies that have been exposed to relatively stable Chinese cultural norms, and have experienced different political systems over the last five decades. The possible effect of cultural similarity and political variation on marriage, gender power at home and family support behaviours deserves special attention. Japan and Korea are typical Confucian societies in Asia, with strong family traditions and normative practices. Research findings from these societies allow us to compare the relative significance of changing norms with personal resources in consequence of various support and dependency attitudes and behaviours occurring in the familial context. Since most of the published scientific work on family relations has been empirical work based on societies with bilinear kinship patterns and conjugal family type, societies with patrilineal kinship systems that have been relatively underreported deserve special attention. This monograph issue aims to close this gap by providing valid, complementary perspectives. From a theoretical point of view, it seems quite obvious that family and kinship systems in the Oriental and Occidental world differ in various aspects, e.g. spousal relationships are differently institutionalized in


In this study, we investigated the day and night periodic effects of 24,25(OH)2D3, Copper (II) as CuCl2 and [Cu(II)-24,25(OH)2D3] complex on cerebral and renal alkaline phosphatase (APA) and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT) activities in hypophysectomized (Hx) rats in which vitamin D3 metabolism is disturbed. During the day and night, cerebral APA and g?GT activities were higher in Hx rats than in intact (I) rodents APA: –36% and 38% respectively; p < .01; γ-GT: –19% and 29% respectively; p < .01) while renal markers levels were lowered (APA: –16% and 21% respectively; p < .05; γ-GT: –11% and –31% respectively; p < .01). Hx rats were more sensitive to secosterois effects at night. In both organs, the complex stimulated mostly APA activity at night, and in our experimental conditions, it was more efficient on renal APA activity during the rodents active period. In conclusion, the effects of 24,25(OH)2D3, CuCl2 and [Cu(II)-24,25(OH)2D3] complex on APA and γ-GT where quite different during day ti...


The effect of sulfur addition on supersaturation observed in aluminum deoxidized liquid iron was studied at 1873 K, by using CaO-Al 2 O 3 slags in an alumina or lime crucible. The contents of supersaturated oxygen for a given aluminum level were not influenced by the addition of sulfur (mass contents of 1 × 10 −5 ∼ 0.42%) in the experiments where the sample was rapidly quenched. However, in the experiments in which the sample was cooled from 1873 to 1723 K at a cooling rate of 2.7 K/min, the effect of sulfur on supersaturation was observed for mass contents of more than 0.01% sulfur. The critical supersaturation for alumina precipitation was discussed based on the variation of the interfacial energy between liquid iron and alumina


The climate scenarios that form the basis for current climate risk assessments have no assigned probabilities, and this impedes the analysis of future climate risks. This paper proposes an approach to estimate the probability of carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration scenarios used in key climate change modeling experiments. It computes the CO2 emissions compatible with the concentrations prescribed by Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) and CMIP6 experiments. The distribution of these compatible cumulative emissions is interpreted as the likelihood of future emissions given a concentration pathway. Using Bayesian analysis, the probability of each pathway can be estimated from a probabilistic sample of future emissions. The approach is demonstrated with five probabilistic CO2 emission simulation ensembles from four Integrated Assessment Models (IAM), leading to independent estimates of the likelihood of the CO2 concentration of Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) and Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP). Results suggest that SSP5‐8.5 is unlikely for the second half of the 21st century, but offer no clear consensus on which of the remaining scenarios is most likely. Estimates of likelihoods of CO2 concentrations associated with RCP and SSP scenarios are affected by sampling errors, differences in emission sources simulated by the IAMs, and a lack of a common experimental framework for IAM simulations. These shortcomings, along with a small IAM ensemble size, limit the applicability of the results presented here. Novel joint IAM and the Earth System Model experiments are needed to deliver actionable probabilistic climate risk assessments.


In this paper, we study the problem of streaming multiway aggregation, where large data volumes are received from multiple input streams. Multiway aggregation is a fundamental computational component in data stream management systems, requiring lowlatency and high throughput solutions. We focus on the problem of designing concurrent data structures for achieving low-latency and high throughput multiway aggregation; an issue that has been overlooked in the literature. Data structures act as articulation points between pipeline stages of streaming aggregation, supporting parallelism and balancing the work between the aggregate stages. By studying the use and limitations of existing aggregate designs and the data structures they use, we motivate the need for new ones. We present two new concurrent data structures and their lock-free linearizable implementations, supporting both order-sensitive and order-insensitive aggregate functions. We also present an extensive evaluation, based on a variety of aggregation queries on two large datasets, one with data extracted from SoundCloud, a music social network, and one with data from a smart grid metering network. In all the experiments, the proposed data structures and methods improved the aggregation performance significantly, up to one order of magnitude, in terms of both processing throughput and latency over the commonly-used techniques based on queues.


Intermittent power sources such as wind and solar are increasingly penetrating electrical grids, mainly motivated by global warming concerns and government policies. These intermittent and non-dispatchable sources of power affect the operation and control of the power system because of the uncertainties associated with their output power. Depending on the penetration level of intermittent sources of power, the electric grid may experience considerable changes in power flows and synchronizing torques associated with system stability, because of the variability of the power injections, among several other factors. Thus, adequate and efficient techniques are required to properly analyze the system stability under such uncertainties. A variety of methods are available in the literature to perform power flow, transient, and voltage stability analyses considering uncertainties associated with electrical parameters. Some of these methods are computationally inefficient and require assumptions regarding the probability density functions (pdfs) of the uncertain variables that may be unrealistic in some cases. Thus, this thesis proposes computationally efficient Affine Arithmetic (AA)-based approaches for voltage and transient stability assessment of power systems, considering uncertainties associated with power injections due to intermittent sources of power. In the proposed AA-based methods, the estimation of the output power of the intermittent sources and their associated uncertainty are modeled as intervals, without any need for assumptions regarding pdfs. This is a more desirable characteristic when dealing with intermittent sources of power, since the pdfs of the output power depends on the planning horizon and prediction method, among several other factors. The proposed AA-based approaches take into account the correlations among variables, thus avoiding error explosions attributed to other self-validated techniques such as Interval Arithmetic (IA). The AA-based voltage stability method proposed in the thesis, computes the hull of PV curves associated with the assumed uncertainties, and is tested using two study cases, first, a 5-bus test system is used to illustrate the proposed technique in detail, and thereafter a 2383-bus test system to demonstrate its practical application. The results are compared with those obtained using conventional Monte Carlo Simulations (MCS) to verify the accuracy and computational burden of the proposed AA-based method, and also with respect to a previously proposed technique to estimate parameter sensitivities in voltage stability assessment. On the other hand, the proposed AA-based transient stability assessment method solves the set of Differential-Algebraic


The use of commercially-available address lists as a replacement for traditional listing has been a topic of interest in recent years among survey research organizations due to the potential of substantial cost savings. Of concern has been the possibility that the coverage of commercially-available listings is inferior when compared to the traditional "gold standard", at least in specific environments. NORC has employed the Valassis (formerly ADVO) commercial address list as the basis for area-probability studies in urban and suburban areas since 2003, while still conducting traditional listing in rural areas. The reason for the distinction has been the understanding that residents of rural areas tend to have PO BOX mail delivery, and thus do not have addresses that can be assigned directly to Census geographies through GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology. NORC conducted a field examination of Valassis address list on a nationallyrepresentative sample of segments during the summer of 2008. The purpose of this address validation was to determine the coverage of the list generally, but with a specific interest in areas considered to be too rural for list sufficiency. Our paper first compares the results of our validation with what was expected using model that predicts list coverage based on a-priori information, such as urbanicity, population density, segment morphology, and other relevant attributes. Secondly, we present further refinements to our coverage prediction model, and demonstrate how it can be applied to any segment before listing begins. In so doing we argue that the suitability of a segment for commercial address lists or traditional listing contains a substantial random component. The third component of our research discusses the improvements that address list vendors have made in rural areas, and considers the implications for the ongoing need for traditional listing.


Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) is caused by Shiga‐toxin‐producing Escherichia coli (STEC). Although, Shiga toxin type 2 (Stx2) is responsible for the renal pathogenesis observed in patients, the inflammatory response, including cytokines and polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN), plays a key role in the development of HUS. Previously, we demonstrated that Stx2 injection generates an anti‐inflammatory reaction characterized by endogenous glucocorticoid (GC) secretion, which attenuates HUS severity in mice. Here, we analysed the effects of Stx2 on the pathogenic function of PMN and the potential role of endogenous GC to limit PMN activation during HUS development in a murine model. For this purpose we assessed the functional activity of isolated PMN after in vivo treatment with Stx2 alone or in simultaneous treatment with Ru486 (GC receptor antagonist). We found that Stx2 increased the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) under phobol‐myristate‐acetate (PMA) stimulation and that the simultaneous treatment with Ru486 strengthened this effect. Conversely, both treatments significantly inhibited in vitro phagocytosis. Furthermore, Stx2 augmented in vitro PMN adhesion to fibrinogen (FGN) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) but not to collagen type I (CTI). Stx2 + Ru486 caused enhanced adhesion to BSA and CTI compared to Stx2. Whereas Stx2 significantly increased migration towards N‐formyl‐methionyl‐leucyl‐phenylalanine (fMLP), Stx2 + Ru486 treatment enhanced and accelerated this process. The percentage of apoptotic PMN from Stx2‐treated mice was higher compared with controls, but equal to Stx2 + Ru486 treated mice. We conclude that Stx2 activates PMN and that the absence of endogenous GC enhances this activation suggesting that endogenous GC can, at least partially, counteract PMN inflammatory functions.


Let J = [α, ∞) for some α ∈ R or J = R and denote byXa Banach space. We study the solutions on J of the equation (*) Ω(n)(t) + ∑n − 1k = 0∑mj = 1aj, k(t)Ω(k)(t + tj) = b(t), wheret1 < t2 ··· < tm,aj, k: J → L(X) andb: J → X. We prove that ifband all of the coefficients are bounded and Ω is a bounded solution of (*), then Ω′, Ω″,…,Ω(n)are bounded, provided one of the following holds: (i)a(p)j, kare bounded for all 1 ≤ p ≤ k ≤ n − 1; (ii) J = [α, ∞) andtm ≤ 0; (iii) J = [α, ∞) and ‖a(p)j, k(t)‖ = O(eρ|t|) for some 0 < ρr ≤ n/(n − 1),r = max{tm, 0}, and all 0 ≤ p ≤ k ≤ n − 1, 1 ≤ j ≤ m. An analogous result for uniform continuity instead of boundedness is obtained. More generally, in the delay casetm ≤ 0, we give estimates on the growth of the Ω(k)in terms of the growth of Ω,aj, k, andb. We also investigate neutral equations. We prove that an Esclangon–Landau theorem is still valid for neutral equations, if one has small perturbations of (*) or if the characteristic function has positive distance from 0. Our results extend the classical Esclangon–Landau theorem; they are needed in the study of asymptotic properties (for example, almost periodicity) of solutions of (*) and neutral equations.


Microballoons AIR OR GAS FILLED webbed interfacially deposited polymer-dispersible AQUEOUS LIQUID CARRIER FOR LIVING ORGANISM be injected or given orally, rectally or URETHRAL PURPOSES therapeutic or diagnostic (ultrasound). The properties of the polymeric membrane microballoons (elasticity, permeability, biodegradability) CAN BE CONTROLLED AS DESIRED DEPENDING ON THE CHOSEN POLYMER, THE CONDITIONS OF DEPOSIT INTERFACIAL AND POLYMER ADDITIVES.


Author(s): Trettel, Andrew James | Advisor(s): Kim, John; Zhong, Xiaolin | Abstract: The Trettel-Larsson (TL) transformation is extended to two dimensions using mass conservation and an interpretation of Morkovin's hypothesis. This extension reveals the previously unknown limitations of the TL transformation. The TL transformation only works in channel flows, in the inner layer of high Reynolds number boundary layers, and in boundary layers where the viscosity varies with the square root of the density. The error in the TL velocity transformation correlates with the second derivative of the transformed coordinate (the semi-local scaling). The second derivative of the transformed coordinate measures the amount that the transformed outer layer coordinate does not equal the untransformed outer layer coordinate. The extended TL theory now includes a streamwise coordinate transformation and production rate scalings. The limitations of the TL theory state that the analogy between compressible turbulent boundary layers and incompressible turbulent boundary layers is limited in theory but nonetheless useful in practice when possible.


MicroRNAs (miRs) are short non-coding RNA molecules approximately 22-nucleotides in length that regulate gene expression through imperfect base pairing with target mRNA transcripts [1]. Primary transcripts of miRs (primiRs) are transcribed by RNA Polymerase II and are encoded within independent transcriptional units or within introns of protein-coding genes. Canonical miR processing begins in the nucleus where the RNase III endonuclease Drosha and DGCR8 protein complexes process miRs into stem-loop (pre-miR) molecules of approximately 70-nucleotides [1]. MiRs are exported from the nucleus to the cytoplasm by Exportin 5 proteins which recognize dsRNA, and upon reaching the cytoplasm, miRs are processed by another RNase III endonuclease, Dicer, finally resulting in a ~22-nucleotide miR duplex [2]. The mature or guide strand of this miR duplex then forms a complex with Argonaute proteins generating the RNA induced silencing complex (RISC) [2]. Once formed, this complex primarily targets the 3′un-translated region (3′UTR) and to a lesser extent the coding region or 5′UTR [3‐5] of target mRNAs and results in inhibition of gene expression by cleavage of target mRNAs or inhibition of their translation [6]. Both steroid receptors (e.g., estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor) and co-regulatory proteins important in steroid receptor signaling are confirmed targets of miR regulation. Frequently, this miR-mediated regulation of steroid receptor signaling is a component of feedback mechanisms responsible for attenuating or fine-tuning steroid receptor signaling.


[Objective]To identify,analyze and assess the possible occupational risk factors in a mercantile crude oil reserve project,determine the type of hazards,provide technical evidences for the approval by the health administration departments.[Methods]The assessment was performed by using combination of check lists and analogy.[Results]The project location,overall layout and equipment layout,protective measures of occupational hazards,auxiliary rooms,personal protective equipments,emergency rescue measures and the management system on occupational health accorded with the hygiene requirements. The concentrations( intensities) of occupational risk factors met the national standards. The comprehensive analysis showed that it was the project with general occupational hazards.[Conclusion]The occupational risk factors in the project can be controlled and prevented. From the view of occupational health,this project is feasible.


To gain a foam plastic with excellent mechanical properties, tensile mechanical properties of methacylic acid/acrylonitrile (MAA/AN) copolymer and the corresponding foam microstructure were studied, and furthermore effects of the density, heat treatment, and crosslinking agent on foam mechanical properties were also discussed in this paper. The results reveal that the tensile strength and modulus of the copolymer after heat treatment are 64 MPa and 4.2 GPa respectively, when compared with 58 MPa and 3.8 GPa before heat treatment respectively. Foam mechanical properties are enhanced with the rise of the density, and the values tested accords with the theoretical values of pentagonal dodecahedron mechanical model basically. Foam mechanical properties are enhanced via heat treatment, and the same result can be observed after using the crosslinking agent (acrylamide) too. All these results indicate that MAA/AN copolymer foam possesses excellent mechanical properties, such as its tensile, 10% compressive and shear strength are 1.3, 0.8, and 0.8 MPa respectively when the foam density is 52 kg/m3. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:314–322, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers.


Primary objectives: To examine the scope of paediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a health concern and to identify prognostic factors for TBI-related sequelae. Methods and procedures: The study was prospective and nationwide. A questionnaire was sent to a study group (SG) of all 0–19 years old in Iceland, diagnosed ∼16 years earlier with TBI during a 1-year period, 1992–1993 (n = 550) and to a control group (CG) (n = 1232), selected from the National Register. Main outcomes and results: In the CG 49.5% reported having sustained TBI and 7.0% reported long-term disability. In the group with TBI, force of impact to the head, more than one incident of TBI and the injury severity by gender interaction predicted late symptoms. TBI severity had substantially less effect than force of impact and was close to non-existent for females. Conclusions: Based on two independent nationwide samples, the scope of TBI as a health concern in adolescence and young adulthood is greater than previously documented. The findings suggest that TBI event-related factors, especially force of impact, have greater predictive value than clinical symptoms of severity at the acute stage, females being more sensitive to the effects of mild TBI than males.


Loneliness is the feeling associated with a perceived lack of qualitative and quantitative aspects of social relationships. Loneliness is thus evidently intwined with individuals' social behaviors in day-to-day life. Yet, little is known about the bidirectional pathways between loneliness and social interactions in daily life. In this study, we thus investigate (a) how loneliness predicts the frequency and duration of social interactions and (b) how frequency and duration of social interactions predict changes in loneliness. We examine these questions using fine-grained ambulatory-assessed sensor data of student's social behavior covering 10 weeks (N_participants = 45, N_observations = 74,645). Before (T1) and after (T2) the ambulatory assessment phase, participants completed the UCLA loneliness scale, covering subscales on intimate, relational, and collective loneliness. Using multistate survival models, we show that T1 loneliness subscales are not significantly associated with differences in social interaction frequency and duration– only relational loneliness predicted shorter social interaction encounters. In predicting changes in loneliness subscales (T1-T2), only the mean duration of social interactions was negatively associated with collective loneliness. Thus, effects of loneliness on the structure of social interactions may be small or limited to specific forms of loneliness, implying that the quality of interactions may be more important.


More than a hundred descriptions of guest stars observations made by Chinese, Korean and Japanese astronomers within the period from 6th till 17th centuries are examined in this paper. The aim of this investigation is the evaluation of the dynamics of the Chinese astronomy through observations of outbursts of new stars. The comparison of the distribution of star outbursts on galactic latitudes from the Chinese sources with the modern data casts doubt on the reliability of the ancient observations. The text analysis of these observations shows that the technique of the descriptions of the places of outbursts of new stars does not change from the first ancient observations till the 16th century. This is a sign of a lack of precise instrumental measurements until the 16th century and of their own star catalog in medieval China.


Introduction Each year 20% or more of students entering first-grade will have severe difficulty learning to read (Clay, 1993; Shaywitz, 2003) . Longitudinal research suggests that children who are the lowest achievers in first grade will continue to be the lowest achievers throughout the elementary grades (Juel, 1988) . Early intervention with high-quality one-to-one instruction is critical to change the course of learning failure for the lowest-performing children (Clay, 1993; Vellutino et al ., 1996) . In the United States, a larger percentage of the lowest-achieving children in first grade accelerate their learning and reach grade-level performance in reading and writing with Reading Recovery intervention .


The utility model relates to a PCB (printed circuit board), and especially relates to a cover oil layer structure of the PCB. The purpose of the present utility model is to provide a PCB that is convenient to process and reliable in performance and has a secondary solder resistant protective layer. The PCB having the secondary solder resistant protective layer has a green oil cover layer for covering the surface of a circuit. The secondary resistant protective layer is positioned at the edge of the PCB and the periphery of a threaded hole. The advantage of the PCB having the secondary solder resistant protective layer is that after the added printed secondary solder resistant protective layer, an ink layer of a dense fine circuit is thickened, and the wear resistance of the circuit board is enhanced without affecting the performance of the PCB.


The germination of lettuce seeds at high temperatur es is a problem faced by farmers and seed producers. At high temperatures germination is low or absent, and the physiological protein and/or enzyma tic patterns changes may occur. Given this objective with this study was to evaluate the electrophoretic patterns of the heat-resistant proteins and endoβ-mannanase in lettuce seeds associated with tolerance of germination at high te mp rature activity. Seeds eight lettuce cultivars subjected to germination, f irst count and emergence tests at two temperatures (20 and 35 C) were used. IVG and the IVE was also calculated. Seeds of the eight cultivars were soake d in temperatures cited for the extraction of heat resistant and endoβ-mannanase proteins. The experiment tests for assessing the quality of seeds was completely r andomized , factorial 2x8, whose two factors were temperature (20 and 35 C ), and eight cultivars. The highest germination at 35 °C is observed in cultiva r Everglades therefore considered thermotolerant. The patterns of heat-res istant proteins are stable in lettuce seeds, and these present specific bands in farming in Everglades 35oC. The activity of endoβ-mannanase also higher in the Everglades at 35oC. T his cultivar has potential for use in breeding of lettu ce aiming tolerance to high temperatures for germination programs.


Objective To observe the effect of Xiyanping in treatment of hand foot and mouth disease.Methods A total of 340 children of the hand foot and mouth disease classification according to the order of visit were randomly divided into treatment group(172 cases) and control group(168 cases),The treatment group was given Xiyanping injection 0.2-0.4mL/(kg d) intravenous drip,the control group was given ribavirin injection 10-15mg/(kg d),acourse of 3 to7 days.observed the two groups of total efficiency,clinical symptoms and signs of change Results The total efficiency,the time of fever and skin eruption left of the treatment group was better than that of the control group.Conclusion Xiyanping injection is markedly effective in the treatment of hand foot and mouth disease in children,and deserves clinical promotion.


The objective of this research is to investigate the relationship between drying temperature and age of leaves on the total phenolic content of Ficus deltoidea leaves. The leaves were dried at 4 different temperatures which are 30, 40, 60 and 80 °C. The age of leaves is determined by using chlorophyll meter to measure the chlorophyll content and categorized into three level of age leaves. The total phenolic content of the F. deltoidea dried leaves were determined using Standard Folin–Ciocalteu (FC) analytical methodology with methanolic extracts of the samples. The result showed that the total phenolic content is highest at 40°C drying temperature and at medium-aged of leaves. It is suggested to consider drying the F. deltoidea leaves at 40-80°C and harvest at the medium-aged of leaves maturity to obtain high total phenolic content.


Early cancer detection remains an important problem in healthcare today. Since the mid-1990s, Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) has been explored as a cancer detection instrument. Previous studies have shown connections between tissue porosity, cell behavior, cell topology, and their relation to cancer and disease progression. Previous researchers have found that in a healthy cell, the pore size of the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM) is homogenous. However, in a cancerous cell, heterogeneous pores appear. Additionally, as cancer progresses, pore size decreases. Herein, we propose a new method of improving cancer detection using OCT. In a study utilizing an artificial ECM, a connection between pore size and gold nanorod (GNR) diffusion was established such that smaller pores lead to less diffusion, and vice versa. Cell behavior is measured by cell motility, which refers to the rapid, in-place motions of intracellular parts that can be used to assess cell response to therapy, their surrounding environment, and potentially reveal premalignant behavior. Previous investigators have defined two metrics of cell movement, alpha, and motility, which correspond to signal auto-decorrelation and signal amplitude, respectively. Cell topology refers to the 3D structure and shape of cells and cell clusters, which has been shown to mutate in diseases such as cancer. By quantifying cell topology, cellular health can be examined. Techniques using OCT have also been used to monitor the response of diseased tissue to treatment. These studies have been largely independent of each other, and the need for a more holistic measuring system has been called for. This research aims to create a custom OCT system capable of obtaining these metrics simultaneously and with improved imaging depth and comparable resolution. Through an integration of a near-infrared (NIR) laser, interferometer, and LabVIEW control of the system, a new Deep-Imaging, Multi-Parameter OCT (DIMP-OCT) is being created. The system bodes a 4.6µm resolution and 5.4mm imaging depth. This is made possible by a 50-50 fiber optic beam splitter using a 1300nm wavelength laser with 160nm bandwidth, and 2048-pixel spectrometer with a 140kHz linerate. Here, we report the design of the system being built, the techniques used to build and test the hardware, and the approach to developing the graphical user interface. We also will report results from tests to assess DIMP-OCT subsystems.


The Mandarin learners need a dictionary to facilitate their learning. Nowadays, there are three types of dictionaries that can be used, namely, dictionaries in book form, digital and online. Based on a year of observations, most Mandarin learners prefer a dictionary in book form compared with digital and online form. In Yogyakarta province, not all the dictionaries on the market are fulfill the quality standards, as we see from several dictionaries which was reviewed and analyzed. The results from our analysis showed that the Mandarin dictionaries on the market is not following the principles in Mandarin language, whether in terms of spelling, vocabulary, Han characters and sentence examples. Hence, we suggest that a Mandarin learners must take a cautious care when they are going to buy a dictionary in a book form, becuse that is going to determine the quality of the learners in learning Mandarin language.


Frank dikötter's Mao's Great Famine: The History of China's Most Devastating Catastrophe, 1958–1962 is the longest and most detailed study of the Great leap Forward (GlF) famine to appear in english to date. much of the story will already be familiar to western readers from works by Roderick macFarquhar (1983), Jasper Becker (1996), Ralph thaxton (2008), and others, but dikötter adds a lot that is new and valuable. For the past decade or so chinese scholars have been publishing works based on public records, including party archives, formerly closed to historians. most prominent of these are Yu Xiguang, cao Shuji, and Yang Jisheng. Yang's Tombstone created a sensation when it appeared in hong Kong in 2008, and its english translation is eagerly awaited (see Yang 2008, 2010). dikötter, a prolific writer, has been quickest off the mark among western scholars in accessing these records, and Mao's Great Famine (henceforth MGF) is informed by an "against the grain" reading of "well over a thousand" documents from cities and provinces spread across china (although excluding anhui and henan, two of the worst-hit provinces). harrowing images of brutality and suffering based on these documents (rarely, however, quoted directly) give a vivid and graphic character to MGF, although whether the end result fundamentally "transforms" our understanding of the GlF and accompanying famine is moot. dikötter begins with a broadly chronological narrative of the Great leap Forward and accompanying famine (chapters 1–16). the remainder of the book describes the impact on the economy and the environment (chapters 17–21), and the cost in terms of lives ruined and lost (chapters 22–37). it begins in 1953 with the death of Stalin, which chairman mao Zedong saw as an opportunity for asserting his independence of moscow, and ends in 1962 when mao was confronted by his own Khrushchev in the person of liu


The brachiopod fauna from the Lower Badenian (Langhian) of Niederleis and Immendorf, Lower Austria is described and illustrated. Argyrotheca cuneata (RISSO, 1826) is reported for the first time from the Miocene of Austria.


It is shown that the (empirically determined) mode of the kernel estimate is uniformly convergent to the conditional mode function under the ergodic condition over a sequence of compact sets which increases to R d .


A new upper bound is introduced on the estimation of the probability density function through spectral analysis. The upper bound is shown to decrease steadily as the modulating index is increased, for the Gaussian case.


A 50yearold man was admitted to the hospital with severe weight loss and pancytopenia (white blood cell count 1.58 × 109/L, neutrophils 0.66 × 109/L, hemoglobin 70 g/L, MCV 75.9 fl, platelets 86 × 109/L). The erythrocyte sedimentation rate was markedly elevated (120 mm/h), and Creactive protein was slightly abnormal (12 mg/L, ULN: 6 mg/L). Hypergammaglobulinemia (total protein 10.7 g/dL) with concurrent hypoalbuminemia (2.3 g/dL) was present, while serum ferritin, vitamin B12, and folic acid were within the normal range. Blood, urine, and stool cultures and testing for hepatitis viruses and HIV were all negative. Abdominal ultrasound revealed mild splenomegaly (13.2 cm). IgG and IgE levels were highly elevated (7230 mg/dL and 664 U/mL, respectively), while IgA and IgM were within the normal range. Serum free kappa and lambda light chains were both elevated (385 mg/L and 215.75 mg/L, respectively). Serum protein electrophoresis (Figure 1, on admission) demonstrated a monoclonal band (Mprotein: 5.75 g/dL) and immunofixation was positive for a possible biclonal gammopathy (IgG kappa and IgG lambda). Hypergammaglobulinemia urged the need for a parallel workup for multiple myeloma (MM); therefore, a bone marrow aspirate and biopsy were performed. Bone marrow aspirate showed normal cellularity, mild hemophagocytosis, increased plasma cells (17%), and Mott cells (Figures 2AB). A thorough inspection of the bone marrow smears revealed the presence of parasites (Figure 2CD), extracellularly and intracellularly, in both histiocytic and nonhistiocytic cells, in many fields.1 Parasite morphology was highly suggestive of leishmania, with the presence of both nuclei and kinetoplasts, as required for the definitive diagnosis of leishmaniasis. Indirect hemagglutination assay (IHA) test confirmed the presence of leishmaniasis with a titer of 1:1024. Plasma cell infiltration in the bone marrow biopsy was 30%. Plasma cells were CD138 positive, CD19 positive, and CD56 negative and expressed both kappa and lambda chains, i.e. were polytypic, as assessed by immunohistochemistry (Figure 3). Lack of clonality confirmed that plasmacytosis was reactive due to the underlying infection. The patient was started on amphotericin at a dose of 3 mg/kg on days 15, 14, and 21. By the end of the treatment plan, neutrophil count returned to normal (2.68 × 109/L), with a concurrent increase in hemoglobin (104 g/L) and platelets (111 × 109/L), and a decrease in globulins (total protein 9.2 g/dL). M protein in serum protein electrophoresis and increased percentage of bone marrow plasma cells were highly indicative of MM. A thorough inspection of bone marrow smears, though, led to the detection of leishmania amastigotes. The presence and degree of hemophagocytosis and the percentage of bone marrow plasma cells


Explains how the collection and subsequent analysis of information on the personal interactions within an organization, and the identification of natural work groups, can provide a powerful diagnostic tool to evaluate the organizational health of a company, measuring internal customer/supplier relationships, the degree of cross‐functional working, the level of teamwork, and the dominant management style.


Abstract We have found it an effective way of teaching symmetry in the context of stereoselectivity, to use common everyday objects with the same point groups as the substrates involved. This has helped students to distinguish between those symmetry elements which allow for stereospecificity and those which preclude it. Two symmetry elements, the simple rotation axis and the mirror plane, are needed to explain the equivalence (or its absence) between atoms or groups in the substrate while interacting with the chiral enzyme. We have used familiar objects such as blackboard erasers, scissors and purses to illustrate the point group symmetry of substrates such as ethanol, citrate, succinate and fumarate and the interaction between the EcoRI restriction enzyme and the EcoRI-DNA palindromic complex.


Whilst the relative standing of Cuban women in the workplace, and in access to education, health, and professional work, has much improved since the start of the Cuban Revolution, aspects of women's social life, notably in the household, have not changed significantly. In reality, machismo continues to be an omnipresent factor shaping women's everyday lives in the domestic sphere. This publication will show that there is still a long way to go before the intentions of the Revolution, and in particular Article 44 of the Cuban Constitution, can be fulfilled. Article 44 stipulates a woman's right to equality in the home, work, health provision, and in their entitlement to state benefits. Despite the Revolution's ongoing efforts, patriarchy, sexism and machismo continue to be obstacles in the struggle, commonly known as "la lucha", for gender equality. This struggle is argued to have important political, as well as economic, consequences for Cuba's future.


The technical side of this dissertation is mostly related to augmented workstations, desks and textbooks which were introduced in the early 1990s. Most of these prototypes aimed to improve physical notes by digitizing them, which has now been accomplished through tablets. This dissertation is justified as an interesting application of computer science or computer vision. It can be used as a fun prototype to increase interest in the field or just to serve as entertainment for others.


Objective To discuss the clinical value using 16G heavy needle and 18G heavy needle in ultrasonography (US) guided percutaneous needle biopsy (US-PCNB), and to compare the successful rate and safety in PCNB with the two types of the needle. Methods Totally 79 patients were biopsied with heavy needle to get lung tumour samples definitely by Planar-US. In the 79 cases, 58 were biopsied with 16G heavy needle and 21 with 18G heavy needle. Results The pathological tissue samples gained from the lung tumour puncture using 16G heavy needle were thicker, and the successful rate of 84.5% (49/58) only through 1-2 procedures was distinctly higher than that of 38.9% (7/21) using 18G heavy needle. The successful rate of the two needle types were statistically significant(P0.01). Compared to the 18G heavy needle, the 16G heavy needle had lower complication occurrence and higher safety with statistic significance(P0.05). Conclusions Results on the basis of 16G heavy needle application, we can get enough tissue biopsy samples so that procedure times will be reduced and complications due to puncture will also be decreased simultaneously.