In this contribution, we present a non-intrusive assessment technique that aims to reproduce some human perceptual mechanisms. We model a set of perceptually relevant features extracted after an auditory transform of clean speech. This internal source-model is used to characterize any occurring distortions. Preliminary results are given to illustrate the characterization of distortions by some perceptual features. It seems that the temporal resolution of our auditory transform provides interesting information to characterize non-linear distortions induced by low bit-rate coders.


In the last decades, the major motivation for manufacturing multilayer mirrors has been in soft x‐ray applications, particularly for astronomy, microlithography, and polarimetry. The advent of high energy synchrotron storage rings has provided a new significant impetus emphasizing high energy applications and especially when flux, rather than resolution, is desired. In this paper we present the reflection properties of the most promising multilayer material combinations for the energy range from 0.1 keV up to 200 keV. Previous calculations by Rosenbluth were limited to a maximum of 2 keV and to multilayers composed of pure elements and operating under normal incidence. As alloys might be essential for a smooth growth and/or for stability under high heat load, our screening consisted of a list of up to 300 solids having a melting point above 100°C and that could be deposited in a sputtering process. A full computer search calculates 45000 multilayer combinations for each angle (or multilayer d‐spacing) and...


In the aftermath of disasters, where the communication infrastructure is often impaired or completely unavailable, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) assisted Mobile Ad Hoc network(MANET) is a promising choice to recover wireless communication. However, affected by the dynamic topology and time-varying channel quality caused by the nodes' mobility in emergency scenarios, it is difficult to guarantee the quality of service (QoS) of various types of packets in terms of transmission delay. In this paper, a dynamic priority packet scheduling scheme is proposed to maintain high QoS in post-disaster UAV assisted MANET, where not only the occurred packet delay has experienced but also the impact that will occur in the future transmission is taken into consideration on the priority assignment. Specifically, to characterize the dynamic features of nodes, the Gauss-Markov Mobility Model is exploited. Then to incorporate the impacts of the node's movement, as well as the instability of the topology and the time-varying channel quality into the packet's priority assignment, we estimate the packet's transmission delay where the device-to-device(D2D), device-to- UAV(D2U), and UAV-to-UAV(U2U) channels are all specified, and theoretically analyzed the probability of link duration in the future transmission. Simulation results show that the proposed dynamic priority scheme outperforms the static priority and (first in first out) FIFO scheme in terms of the overall packets transmission success ratio and transmission delay.


Indian jujube (Ziziphus mauritiana Lamk.) is a drought tolerant fruit crop and well adapted to sub-tropical to tropical climates. Seasonal pruning in jujube is essential to sustain the plants as productive with quality fruits because flowers and fruits are borne on young shoots of current season's growth. This experiment was initiated and accomplished during 2016-18 to assess appropriate extent of pruning in various cultivars of Indian jujube with regard to productivity and fruit quality. Four cultivars of jujube i.e., Dehli Sufaid, Pak White, Umran and Alu Bukhara were subjected to four pruning levels i.e. no pruning, 25%, 50% and 75% pruning by removing unproductive, over-crowded secondary and tertiary branches leaving 3/4 (light), 1/2 (medium) and 1/4 (severe pruning) portion of branch intact with main limb, respectively. Experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with three replications and statistically analysed in 2-factors factorial way. Pak White initiated new growth earlier (39 days), produced maximum branches per plant (77), shoots (15), panicles (63) and fruits (90) per branch, heavier (38 g) and bulky fruits (44 cm3), with minimum fruit drop (13%), higher yield (184 kg) per plant and fruits carrying the maximum pulp ratio (90%), total soluble solids (16 °Brix), vitamin C content (121 mg /100 g pulp) and total sugars (5.7%). Fifty percent pruning level proved more judicious in all jujube cultivars. Pak White performed the best when subjected to 50% pruning level for all the parameters under study as calculated by interaction between two factors.


A 42-years-old woman is admitted for sudden onset repeated discomforts and orthostatic hypotension. Her history is limited to a thoracic traumatism 16 years ago, with no immediate complication. Initial physical examination detected tachycardia, cyanosis, and cold extremities. Electrocardiography showed a right ventricular overload. The initial transthoracic ultrasound visualized a voluminous compressive cavity (Panel A; Supplementary material online, Video S1). Computed tomography (CT) scan and magnetic resonance imaging showed a giant aneurysm (100/86 mm) rising from the non coronary sinus of Valsalva, significantly compressing both atria (Panels B and F). Four dimensional flow imaging showed that the non-coronary aortic cusp partially covered the aneurysmal origin during the systolic phase of cardiac cycle, limiting the intra aneurysmal flow (Panel C; Supplementary material online, Video S2). That explained the partially slow flow into the aneurysm nevertheless with a complete late opacification on the CT scan, without thrombosis. Coronary arteries were normal. Transoesophageal ultrasound confirmed the atrial compression (Panel D; Supplementary material online, Video S4) by the aneurysm of the non coronary Valsalva sinus (Panel E; Supplementary material online, Video S3). No other ultrasound abnormality was noted.


The take‐up and completion rates for the level 4 N/SVQs in training and development over the period 1992‐1994 have been extremely disappointing. If these figures are representative of other higher level N/SVQs, then this gives major cause for concern over the proposed extension of the NVQ framework at higher levels. Argues that there is an urgent need for research into the take‐up and completion rates for other level 4 and 5 awards. Finally, a major obstacle to improving the quality of N/SVQ provision is the lack of data available at award level in England and Wales to determine the success or otherwise of particular NVQs . In Scotland the position is even more serious as no data are published on the performance of SVQs at framework or award level.


The theory of adaptive sequence detection incorporating estimation of channel and related parameters is studied in the context of maximum-likelihood (ML) principles in a general framework based on the expectation and maximization (EM) algorithm. A generalized ML sequence detection and estimation (GMLSDE) criterion is derived based on the EM approach, and it is shown how the per-survivor processing and per-branch processing methods emerge naturally from GMLSDE. GMLSDE is developed into a real time detection/estimation algorithm using the online EM algorithm with coupling between estimation and detection. By utilizing Titterington's (1984) stochastic approximation approach, different adaptive ML sequence detection and estimation (MLSDE) algorithms are formulated in a unified manner for different channel models and for different amounts of channel knowledge available at the receiver. Computer simulation results are presented for differentially encoded quadrature phase-shift keying in frequency flat and selective fading channels, and comparisons are made among the performances of the various adaptive MLSDE algorithms derived earlier.


Abstract Most ethics guidelines for distributing scarce medical resources during the coronavirus pandemic seek to save the most lives and the most life‐years. A patient's prognosis is determined using a SOFA or MSOFA score to measure likelihood of survival to discharge, as well as a consideration of relevant comorbidities and their effects on likelihood of survival up to one or five years. Although some guidelines use age as a tiebreaker when two patients' prognoses are identical, others refuse to consider age for fear of discriminating against the elderly. In this paper, I argue that age is directly relevant for maximizing health benefits, so current ethics guidelines are wrongly excluding or deemphasizing life‐stage in their triage algorithms. Research on COVID‐19 has shown that age is a risk factor in adverse outcomes, independent of comorbidities. And limiting a consideration of life‐years to only one or five years past discharge does not maximize health benefits. Therefore, based on their own stated values, triage algorithms for coronavirus patients ought to include life‐stage as a primary consideration, along with the SOFA score and comorbidities, rather than excluding it or using it merely as a tiebreaker. This is not discriminatory because patients ought to have equal opportunity to experience life‐stages. The equitable enforcement of that right justifies unequal treatment based on age in cases when there is a scarcity of life‐saving resources. A consideration of life‐stage would thus allow healthcare workers to responsibly steward public resources in order to maximize lives and life‐years saved.


Platelet‐activating factor (PAF) increases endothelial permeability (hyperpermeability) via endothelial NOS (eNOS), which stimulates cGMP production to enhance permeability. We explored the complementary hypothesis that PAF‐stimulated hyperpermeability involves eNOS‐derived NO induced S‐nitrosylation of adherens junction proteins. We measured PAF‐stimulated S‐nitrosylation of β‐catenin and p120‐catenin (p120) in 3 cell lines: ECV‐eNOSGFP, EAhy926 and CVEC. S‐nitrosylation reduced expression of β‐catenin and p120 at the adherens junction and enhanced permeability. To ascertain the significance of eNOS location, we used ECV‐304 cells transfected with constructs that target eNOS to the cytosol (G2AeNOSGFP) and plasma membrane (CAAXeNOSGFP). We detected S‐nitrosylation of β‐catenin and p120 only in ECV‐GFPeNOS‐G2A, i.e., in cells with cytosolic eNOS. PAF‐stimulated S‐nitrosylation decreased the association between β‐catenin and p‐120. PAF significantly decreased the association between β‐catenin and p‐120 only in ECV‐GFPeNOS‐G2A. Inhibitors of NO production and of S‐nitrosylation blocked PAF‐induced S‐nitrosylation and hyperpermeability. Our results demonstrate that agonist‐induced S‐nitrosylation contributes to junctional membrane protein changes that enhance endothelial permeability.


Multifunctional materials and devices found in nature serve as inspiration for advanced synthetic materials, structures, and robotics. Here, we elucidate the structural mechanics and unusual deformation mechanisms discovered in seahorses that provide them prehension and protection against predators. The seahorse tail is composed of subdermal bony plates arranged in articulating ring-like segments that overlap for controlled ventral bending and twisting. The bony plates are fracture resistant materials designed to slide past one another and buckle when compressed. This complex plate and segment motion, along with the unique hardness distribution and architectural hierarchy of each plate, provide seahorses joint flexibility while shielding them against impact and crushing. Mimicking seahorse armor may lead to novel biomimetic technologies, such as flexible armor, fracture resistant structures, or prehensile robotics.


Hybrid analog/digital schemes for precoding/combining have proved to be a low-complexity and/or low-power strategy to obtain reasonable beamforming gains in multiuser millimeter-wave (mmWave) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. Hybrid precoding/combining performs jointly baseband processing and analog processing in the radio frequency (RF) domain. In these systems, the number of RF chains limits the maximum number of streams simultaneously handled by the transceivers. In the uplink of a multiuser mmWave MIMO system, the hardware reduction based on hybrid transceivers is limited by the number of data streams that must be simultaneously served by the centralized node. Most works approach hybrid transceiver design by considering more RF chains than data streams, an unrealistic assumption when the number of nodes is large. On the other hand, statistically independent information is conventionally assumed in multiuser mmWave systems. This assumption does not hold in scenarios like wireless sensor networks (WSNs), where the sources produce correlated information. In this paper, by enabling inter-user correlation exploitation, we propose a grouping approach to handle a high number of individual sources with a limited number of RF chains through distributed quantizer linear coding (DQLC) mappings. The allocation of the users per group and the hybrid design of the combiner at the common central node to serve the grouped users is also analyzed. We also propose a hybrid minimum mean square error (MMSE) combining design in order to exploit the spatial correlation between the sources in a conventional uncoded mmWave uplink. Simulation results show the performance advantages of the proposed approaches in various hardware-constrained system settings.


The aim of this project was to look at time taken to achieve clinical resolution of diabetic charcot neuroarthropathy (CN) and to see if there was a correlation with location within the foot and overall outcomes. A retrospective analysis of newly presenting acute CN patients between 2007 & 2012 was performed. Clinic records were examined to determine the site of the CN; total time treated in a TCC or other removable offloading devices; the presence of co-morbidities. Fifty CN cases presented during this time. The mean age was 62.5±11.7 (SD) years. Eleven patients had type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). The mean duration of diabetes was 29.7±12.9 years for T1DM, and 14.4±10.7 years for type 2 diabetics. All had palpable foot pulses & peripheral neuropathy at diagnosis. 82% had retinopathy; 34% had CKD stage 3–4. For the 42 patients who completed treatment, the mean duration was 53.9±28.0 weeks, of which a mean of 30.2±25.0 weeks was spent in a TCC. 23.7±16.2 weeks were spent in other offloading devices. Mean duration of treatment for forefoot, mid-foot & hind-foot was 47.2±22.6, 55.9±30.6 & 51.8±23.1 weeks respectively. Thirty-six patients were treated with TCC & other removable offloading devices, 6 were treated with one modality. Fourteen of the 36 (38.9%) required re-casting. Eight patients did not complete treatment: 4 underwent below knee amputation, 2 died, 2 were still undergoing treatment. In our cohort the mean length of treatment is dependent on the position of the CN. The mean time to resolution is just over 1 year. However, a high percentage (38.9%) deteriorated after coming out of a TCC. This study highlights the need to develop more precise measures to help manage acute CN.


Recently, there have been several efforts to develop compilers that synthesize applications written in high-level languages such as C into hardware. Streaming applications form an important class of systems that need to be mapped onto hardware. In this paper we present the modeling of stream and frame based applications in C and extend a behavioral synthesis tool framework to synthesize RTL models from streaming system descriptions in C. Individual C functions get synthesized onto individual IP blocks in the synthesis framework. We describe how the behavioral synthesis tool automatically infers ports and generates the required handshaking signals for interfacing the IP blocks in the system. We describe a system level approach for interfacing synthesized IP blocks. Results of the system level synthesis and simulation are reported for Xilinx VirtexII FPGAs for single IP systems for streaming data and frame-based data, and for multiple IP systems having streaming and frame-based data.


ABSTRACT Acids, bases and neutral nitrogen compounds from high-boiling petroleum distillates were separated and further fractionated into fractions containing nitrogen compound types by HPLC on neutral alumina. Acids and bases were separated with anion and cation exchange resins respectively while the neutral nitrogen compounds were removed by complexation with ferric chloride supported on Attapulgus clay. The HPLC fractions were characterized by potentiometric titration for their basic and nonbasic nitrogen contents while infrared spectroscopy was used for the quantitative determination of major compound types present which are pyridines, pyrroles, amides, phenols and carboxylic acids. Characterization of individual nitrogen compounds was accomplished using gas chromatography and gas chromatography -mass spectrometry. The nitrogen compounds identified belong to three compound types which are pyridine, pyrrole and amide.


The present study examines the incremental validity of Honesty–Humility (H-H), a measure of the tendency to be fair and genuine in dealing with others, for supervisory ratings of job performance (including both task and contextual performance) over cognitive ability and the Big Five personality traits. Specifically, we explore the incremental validity of H-H in predicting contextual performance. Results based on 217 South Korean military officer candidates are consistent with previous conclusions that Conscientiousness is the strongest predictor of contextual performance and that cognitive ability is the strongest predictor of task performance. More important, our results reveal that H-H offers moderate incremental validity for contextual performance but no incremental validity for task performance over the effects of cognitive ability and the Big Five personality traits.


A fuzzy-based solution methodology has been formulated to address the machine-loading problem in a flexible manufacturing system. The objectives considered are minimization of system unbalance and maximization of throughput, whereas the systems technological constraints are posed by availability of machining time and tool slots. The job ordering/job sequence determination before loading is carried out by evaluating the membership contribution of each job to its characteristics such as batch size, essential operation processing time and optional operation processing time. The operation?machine allocation decisions are made based on the evaluation of membership contribution of operation machine allocation vector. The formulation of membership function is based on logical derivations and enjoys reasonable analytical support. The proposed heuristic is tested on 10 problems adopted from literatures and the results reveal substantial improvement in solution quality over, some of existing heuristic-based approaches.


Learning disability (LD) is a situation where a person has difficulties in receiving, processing and storing information in their brain. There are many types of learning disabilities including reading (Dyslexia), math (Dyscalculia) and writing (Dysgraphia). The utilization of mobile learning has increased in education practice for LD children. Despite an increased interest in mobile learning, it is surprising that very limited empirical research has actually been conducted on the mobile app design model for Dyscalculia children especially from the perspectives of mobile app designers and developers. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the existing mobile app model that is related to Dyscalculia children, to identify the factors that influence Dyscalculia children in learning and to propose the mobile app design model for Dyscalculia children in Malaysia called Calculic Kids. Hence, this research work starts with rigorous literature review search on the domains related to LD, Dyscalculia and existing mobile app model. Next, all the relevant literatures were consolidated and analyzed. From literature review, two existing mobile app models related to Dyscalculia children were reviewed and analyzed. This has resulted in identifying 3 factors and 19 components in Initial Calculic Model.


This chapter is a contribution to the study of formal ontologies. It addresses the problem of atypical entities in ontologies. The authors propose a new model of knowledge representation by combining ontologies and topology. In order to represent atypical entities in ontologies, the four topological operators of interior, exterior, border and closure are introduced. These operators allow to specify whether an entity, belonging to a class, is typical or not. The authors define a system of topological inclusion and membership relations into the ontology formalism, by adapting the four topological operators with the help of their mathematical properties. These properties are used as a set of axioms which allows to define the topological inclusion and membership relations. Further, the authors define combinations of the operators of interior, exterior, border and closure that allow the construction of an algebra. They model is implemented in AnsProlog, a recent logic programming language that allows negative predicates in inference rules.


The fermentation of sugars by yeast has received much scientific investigation. The more common mineral elements required in relatively large amounts for the growth of yeasts have been definitely established but the influence of some of the less common elements in the metabolism of yeasts is not so well known. Manganese, copper and zinc can be found in small amounts in the ash of most plant material. Because yeasts depend upon the products of other plants for a portion of their nutrients, they have access to these metals. KAYSER and MARCHAND (1) state that the addition of from 1 to 1.5 gm. of manganese sulphate per liter increased the yield of alcohol 3 per cent. in some cases. The amounts of glycerol and volatile acids were also increased. They obtained especially good results with the nitrate. KOSTYTSCHEw and FREY (2) found that zinc chloride added at the rate of 0.4 gm. to 2.6 gm. in 100 cc., caused the production of acetaldehyde in dry but not in living yeast fermentation. It also resulted in an increased production of carbon dioxide as compared with the alcohol, and in a large part of the fermented sugar being converted into unknown products. The larger part of the sugar remained unfermented in the presence of zinc chloride whereas practically all was fermented in controls without zinc. SCHWEIZER (3) found that fermentation was decreased in copper vessels as compared with glass. He investigated the effect of cuprous oxide and found it decreased growth in amounts greater than 0.0001 gm. for 0.5 gm. of yeast, and that 0.014 gm. inhibited fermentation. Cupric oxide did not affect fermentation. The chief difficulty in investigating the influence of manganese, copper and zinc on the growth of yeasts was in obtaining a medium suited to their growth that was free from traces of these metals. The medium used in this investigation was an aqueous solution containing ammonium sulphate 0.5 per cent., potassium dihydrogen phosphate 0.2 per cent., potassium sulphate 0.4 per cent., magnesium sulphate 0.1 per cent., calcium sulphate 0.05 per cent., ferrous chloride 0.001 per cent., and sucrose 5.0 per cent.


In experimental design,optimal design and uniform design are two important types of designs.They have different advantages and shortcomings.In this paper,the threshold accepting algorithm is considered to construct the multi-dimension D-optimal design.And based on the D-optimal design and uniform design,a new type of design, constructed by a new algorithm,is considered.Numerical results show that this type of design has a trade-off between the D-efficiency and robustness.


Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) isolated from Wolinella recta and seven related bacteria was examined by agarose gel electrophoresis. The 23S rRNA molecule could not be detected in W. recta, Wolinella curva, Bacteroides gracilis, or Bacteroides ureolyticus. In place of the 23S molecule, there were three smaller molecules of approximately 1700, 650, and 600 bases designated 23Sa, 23Sβ, and 23S∂, respectively. An intact 23S rRNA molecule could be isolated from Wolinella succinogenes, Campylobacter concisus, and Campylobacter sputorum. The cleavage sites of the W. recta 23S rRNA molecule were located by direct RNA sequence analysis and were found to be in similar locations, nucleotides 546 and 1180, as cleavage sites described in other prokaryotes. The presence or absence of the 23S rRNA molecule may be a useful marker for these micro-organisms.


Many commercial materials derived from synthetic polymers exhibit a complex response under different processing operations such as fiber formation, injection moulding, film blowing, film casting or coatings. They can be processed both in the solid or in the melted state. Often they may contain two or more different polymers in addition to additives, fillers or solvents in order to modify the properties of the final product. Usually, it is also desired to improve the processability. For example the supplement of a high molecular weight component improves the stability in elongational flows. On the other hand, addition of low-volatility solvents to polymers is also a common industrial practice that offers a means for lowering the Tg of the polymers. Moreover industrial polymers present a wide distribution of chain lengths and/or branched architectures that strongly influence their response. Understanding the behaviour of polymer melts and solutions in complex non-linear flows is crucial for the design of polymeric materials and polymer processes. Through rheological characterization, in shear and extensional flow, of model polymer systems, i.e. narrow molar mass distribution polymer melts and solutions or well defined polymer molecules architecture, researchers develop constitutive equations that can relate the stress induced into a material with its flow deformation history. Indeed experiments on samples with well-defined structure supply data that can be compared with models. Current models have been shown to be quite successful in describing the dynamics of polymers although they are still continuously challenged by new experimental data on model polymer systems. At the same time, new methods for generating extensional flows [McKinley and Sridhar (2002), Sentmanat (2004), Bach et al. (2003b)] are being constantly refined to improve the quality of the data and to explore a wider range of rates and deformations. Moreover, recently rheometry methods have been supplemented by other techniques such as dielectric spectroscopy that can probe chain


This article investigates the applicability of diffusion of innovations theory in targeting unique populations at high‐risk for HIV/AIDS in Bangkok, Thailand. The diffusion of innovations theoretical framework, especially as it applies to targeting unique population groups, is discussed. An overview of the research site, Bangkok, is provided, followed by a discussion of the data collection procedures employed. As part of the site description, a history of HIV and AIDS in Thailand is presented, which examines the sociocultural context of targeting information to unique populations in Bangkok. Following the study findings, the implications of employing diffusion of innovations theory to effectively target unique populations at high‐risk for HIV/ AIDS are discussed.


Due to the advantages of short treatment period, no wastewater and oil produced, the 15 CO 2 laser is applied as an environment friendly thermal treatment for wood materials 16 to improve the wood properties, such as appearance, color and wettability, etc. However, 17 the morphological features of treated wood surface are also changed, which have 18 negative effects on wooden product properties. To reveal the change tendency of surface 19 roughness during laser irradiation, the common indexes of average roughness (Ra) and 20 mean peak-to-valley height (Rz) were chosen to evaluate the surface roughness. The 21 response surface methodology was selected to arrange the experiments and analyze the 22 influences of laser parameters on surface roughness. The results showed that the poplar 23 wood got rougher with the increased laser power, but the surface roughness decreased 24 with increased feed speed and path spacing, due to the total heat absorption varied under 25 different combination of laser parameters. The ANOVA results showed that the selected 26 quadratic models for Ra ∥ , Rz ∥ , Ra ⊥ and Rz ⊥ were significant due to the values of 27 probability value ("Prob>F") less than 0,05. In this case, all the input laser parameters 28 were also the significant model terms for variation of surface roughness. The values of 29 correlation coefficient were very close to 1, which meant the selected quadratic models 30 could give accurate prediction of surface roughness for laser treated wood. Therefore, 31 it is of great significance to predict the surface roughness of the modified wood surface 32 scientifically and to guide the selection of reasonable modification process parameters.


This study was performed to observe the effect of Keughachukeo-tang(KH) extract on the hepatocellular carcinogenesis and acute liver damage induced by Diethylnitrosamine(DENA) and in Rats. Experimental groups were divided into four; normal group(Nor), acute liver damage and hepatocellular cancer inducing control group(Con), KH extract 350㎎/㎏/day(KHA), and 700㎎/㎏/day(KHB) administered groups to Con. The results obtained are as follows: The body weight increased in KHA and KHB than Con from 7th week to the 8th week. The activities of Alanine aminotransferase(ALT) were the most increased in the Con among experimental group. The activities of aspartate aminotransferase(AST), alkaline phosphatase(ALP), and lactacte dehydrogenase(LDH) were significantly decreased(p$ in Rats.


Commercial electric propulsion systems are now being considered as a cost effective solution for competitively awarded science missions such as the NASA Discovery and New Frontiers programs. Aerojet's BPT-4000 Hall thruster, which has been identified as a candidate for near-term use on NASA science missions, has recently completed a 6,750 h qualification life test that demonstrated power throttling from 1 to 4.5 kW and a total impulse of 5.3 MN-s. The implementation of electric propulsion technology on NASA science missions requires the availability of life models that can accurately reproduce the erosion observed during ground testing as well as predict the erosion for actual mission profiles. Hall thruster simulations are presented from an erosion model developed at JPL in concert with a modified version of the plasma model HPHall-2. The models are applied to the BPT-4000 and used to calculate the performance and erosion observed during qualification life testing. The models are shown to be capable of accurately reproducing many of the micro- and macroscopic properties that determine the plasma response and thruster performance over a wide range of power and voltages. An erosion simulation carried through almost 1000 hours of thruster operation has shown general agreement overall with experiment. Analysis of wall erosion properties reveals that the process is both spatially and temporally dependent, which verifies the importance of developing modeling tools that are physics-based and capable of predicting the complexity of Hall thruster erosion physics.


Social media are not only the new form of communication, but also give the ability to big industry players, like Facebook, to analyze overwhelming amounts of data about customers' behavior. The focus of this study was to analyze if social media time series have the power to predict the evolution of financial markets. Despite the short time frame being analyzed, the study delivered promising results that social media time series may be a leading indicator for market behavior after special events. Building on my findings, an applied sentiment trading strategy delivered positive abnormal returns and statistically significant positive alpha in and out-of-sample.


In this research, it aimed to understand the existence situation of a regional resource in the city park, and to investigate the use of the city park as the refuge of a regional resource and the directionality of the use of a regional resource in the future. As a result, it has been understood that a regional resource is produced after in recent years while the kind of the involved a regional resource is various, and has had a lot of things to tell "History and event" in the one and the region concerning "Land". Moreover, it was suggested that the possibility of maintenance and using a regional resource in each city park by investigation into detailed of the movement of a regional resource in the city park and the realities of use.


Schwarz's effort seeks to tell how the revolutionaries saw the revolution—at least in St. Petersburg. In its place in the History of Menshevism series, his volume does appropriately provide a thorough analysis of the role, and sometimes lack of a role, of Menshevism in 1905. At the same time, it is a history of socialism in 1905 with as many accolades to the Bolsheviks as to the Mensheviks. As Schwarz demonstrates from the record of his own activities in" 1905, somehow the militant activist tactics of Bolshevism seemed ever so much more relevant to the situation of that year. Schwarz does take issue with Bolshevik historians for distorting both Bolshevik and Menshevik roles in 1905 and particularly feels compelled to reassert the Mensheviks' historic role in creating the Soviet in 1905.


The strength of a labour movement is connected to development as there is a linkage between the strength of workers' movements and the provision of social goods (Muntaner et al. 2004; Robertson and Murninghan 2006; Coburn 2009; Camfield 2011). I examine the Canadian Auto Workers' (CAW) Paid Education Leave (PEL) program and its relation to progressive development in Canada. I explore the CAW's PEL program since it is arguably the most well-established and progressive PEL program in North America (Weststar 2004, 2006; Roth 2007). In particular, the CAW's four week Core Program (CP) is the focus since it concentrates on worker empowerment (Weststar 2004). I employ Amartya Sen's (1999) definition of development based on the expansion of instrumental freedoms (Sen 1999; Terry and Abdullat 2004). Next, I broadly and briefly discuss how the labour movement is related to the expansion of freedoms through the life-ground ethical perspective which corresponds to instrumental freedoms being the means and ends of development (Noonan 2008, 2008b, 2009; Camfield 2011). Given Sen's concept of development – empowering and increasing the capacity of individuals through the expansion of freedoms leads to progressive development – in tandem with the PEL's aims, I propose that the CP: a) contributes to political freedoms b) increases access to economic facilities c) increases transparency guarantees d) empowers workers to demand protective securities Based on these premises, I argue that the CP is an avenue to foster progressive development in Canada. I suggest that the main mechanism by which such freedoms are expanded is through worker empowerment. The CP is likely to promote development by increasing worker empowerment and engagement in their workplace and communities, and ultimately, strengthening the Canadian labour movement. Finally, I discuss the limitations of the CAW's CP.


A comprehensive theoretical and experimental investigation is presented on the performances of cost-effective radio over fiber (RoF) links where the RoF Transmitter is directly modulated by signals complying the Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS) and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) standards. A numerical model for calculating intermodulation related quantities like the adjacent channel leakage ratio has been developed for this purpose. Measurements have also been performed over real RoF Systems modulated by UMTS and WiMAX signals. A very good agreement has been found between measured and modelled results, and the feasibility of these connections over distances of tens of kilometers has been investigated.


The invention relates to a device for delivering materials, which comprises a stander, a horizontal movement adsorption device, a lifting device, a conveying belt and a controller. The stander comprises at least one horizontal guide rail. The lifting device is arranged under the guide rail and comprises a bearing device. The adsorption device is connected with the guide rail in a sliding mode, is opposite to the bearing device, comprises a sliding adsorption device and a second driving device connected with the sliding adsorption device and used for driving the sliding adsorption device to slide along the guide rail, and is used for transferring the materials in the bearing device to the conveying belt. The controller is connected with the sliding adsorption device, the second driving device and a first driving device, and is used for controlling the second driving device to drive the sliding adsorption device to adsorb the materials from the bearing device, slide between the lifting device and the conveying belt along the guide rail and throw the materials onto the conveying belt, and controlling the first driving device to drive the bearing device to lift relative to the guide rail.


Objective To observe the safety and effectiveness of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells(UC-MSC) in the treatment of hereditary spastic paraplegia(HSP) from a familial father and son. Methods In September 2010 and April 2011,a familial father and son with HSP were given UC-MSCs by intrathecal injection for 2 courses,at a dose of 1x106/kg,once a week,4 times as a course. Modified Ashworth Scale(MAS),International Cooperative Ataxia Rating Scale(ICARS) and Activity of Daily Living Scale(ADL) were used to evaluate patients' neural function and quality of daily life before and after cell therapy. Results Comparing their MAS grading,ICARS and ADL scores one month after the first course therapy with those before therapy,it is found that MAS grading,ICARS and ADL scores were decreased,their stability of walking and standing,as well as verbal fluency were improved. Comparing their ICARS and ADL scores one month after the second course therapy with those before the second course therapy,it is found that their ICARS and ADL scores were decreased,son 's muscular tension was further reduced,and father's ataxia was relieved. No side effect was observed in both of them. A follow-up of 20months after the second course therapy showed that the father and son's symptoms progressed respectively at the time of 7months and 8 months after all therapy. Conclusion Intrathecal injection of UC-MSCs is safe and can ameliorate clinical symptoms,improve life quality of HSP patients to some extent within a certain period,and slow down disease progression,but efficacy can not permanently maintain.


The potential of VLP is increasing with the rise of indoor mobile machine applications. In this paper, a 3D indoor VLP system based on machine learning and optical camera communications is presented. The system uses electronically controlled LED luminaires as reference points and a rolling shutter CMOS sensor as the receiver. The LED luminaires are modulated using On-Off Keying with unique frequencies. YOLOv5 is used for classification and estimation of the position of each LED luminaire in the image. The pose of the receiver is estimated using a perspective-n-point algorithm. The system was validated using a real-world sized setup containing eight LED luminaires, and achieved an average positioning error of 3.5 cm. The average time to compute the camera pose is approximately 52 ms, which makes it suitable for real-time positioning. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first application of the YOLOv5 algorithm in the field of VLP for indoor environments.


Summary By use of the split sample technique the fertility of bovine semen extended in 3.6 per cent citrate-yolk containing no antibacterial agent, sulfanilamide, penicillin, streptomycin, polymyxin or a combination of these four antibacterial agents was studied. Semen was used from bulls with histories of low fertility, as well as from bulls with histories of high fertility. The per cent 60- to 90-day non-returns to first and second service cows for the treatments, no antibacterial agent, sulfanilamide, penicillin, streptomycin, polymyxin, and sulfanilamide plus penicillin plus streptomycin plus polymyxin were, respectively, for the high fertility bulls, 63, 64, 70, 69, 68, and 67; for the low fertility bulls, 58, 60, 67, 66, 59, and 69 and for both the high fertility and the low fertility bulls combined, 61, 62, 68, 68, 64, and 68. On the bases of these results and those reported by other workers, it is concluded that the addition of penicillin, streptomycin or a combination of these plus polymyxin and sulfanilamide to present day extenders may be expected to increase the over-all fertility level of bovine semen used for artificial breeding.


What was the problem? Prior to the establishment of the SASHA breeding platform for West Africa in Ghana, experienced colleagues from the region told us that sweet taste, meaning a sugary taste, was a constraint to wider sweetpotato adoption in this region, where low sweet starchy staples such as cassava and yam predominate. So breeding for low sweet taste became a focus of our breeding effort, which did not exclusively emphasize orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) but included other flesh colors as well. We had low sugar germplasm from global and local sources (Ghanaian varieties were not very sweet), and we had laboratory equipment for the rapid determination of sugars in samples from our trials, which we assumed would help us efficiently select low sugar/low sweet genotypes. We knew, however, that sugars in sweetpotato can change during cooking as starch is converted to the sugar maltose, so we needed to update our methods to be able to rapidly determine sugars in cooked samples. Furthermore, breeding trials were underway using participatory approaches, and we were surprised when farmers and other consumers told us that they liked most of the varieties we offered them, including sweet ones. We realized we didn't have a clear enough understanding of the sweetpotato quality preferences of consumers in Ghana and West Africa where sweetpotato is primarily eaten boiled or fried, so needed more information to be able to guide our breeding effort. We also needed to know how we could most efficiently breed to meet consumer preferences through the use of laboratory techniques (such as measuring sugars) or other approaches.


I present objections against the statement of the popular press ``Big Bang was not, and black holes do not exist - proved mathematically''. Sadly, but this was deduced from Houghton paper, which has different value.


The use of bio‐based nanoscaled cellulose for the construction of novel functional materials has progressed rapidly over the past years. In comparison to most of studies starting with the hydrophilic nanoscaled cellulose, surface‐stearoylated cellulose nanoparticles (SS‐CNPs) are used in this report for the construction of multifunctional, responsive films. SS‐CNPs with an average size of 115 ± 0.5 nm are obtained after the surface‐modification of cellulose under heterogeneous conditions. Crystalline cellulose core is present within SS‐CNPs according to solid‐state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. SS‐CNPs show excellent dispersibility in nonpolar solvents and form temperature‐responsive organogels in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at low temperature or after long time storage at room temperature. Moreover, transparent and self‐standing films of SS‐CNPs from their THF‐suspension show solvent‐responsive surface wettability and responsive shape‐memory property. SS‐CNPs can also be used for the fabrication of nanocomposite films together with nonpolar compounds, such as (2‐stearoylaminoethyl) rhodamine B. Thus, these novel SS‐CNPs derived from sustainable cellulose fibers are promising candidates for the construction of novel functional materials.


This patent deals with the synthesis, characterisation and biological activity of a large series of cyclic hexapeptides which display interesting activity against fungi (including Pneumocystis carinii) and protozoa. Novel semisynthetic methods are described and a broad spectrum antifungal activity is expected, as cyclic-hexapeptides are naturally occurring inhibitors of β-glucan synthesis. The antiprotozoal activity is surprising, since these organisms do not have cell walls, and suggests a novel mechanism of action. However, the information on antiprotozoal activity is scant and precludes the evaluation of the potential these new compounds have as antiparasitic drugs.


The Mars Atmospheric Wind Imaging Interferometer offers several advantages, notably its high throughput, enabling the acquisition of precise and high vertical resolution data on the temperature and wind fields in the Martian atmosphere. Considering the current absence of such an Interferometer, this paper introduces a novel Mars wind field imaging interferometer. In analyzing the photochemical model of O2 (a1Δg) 1.27 μm molecular airglow radiation in the Martian atmosphere and considering the impact of instrument signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), we have chosen an optical path difference (OPD) of 8.6 cm for the interferometer. The all-solid-state polarized wind imaging interferometer is miniaturized by incorporating two arm glasses as the compensation medium in its construction, achieving the effects of field-widening and temperature compensation. Additionally, an F-P Etalon is designed to selectively filter the desired three spectral lines of O2 dayglow, and its effect is evaluated through simulations. The accuracy of the proposed compact Mars polarized wind imaging interferometer for detecting Mars' wind field and temperature field has been validated through rigorous theoretical derivation and comprehensive computer simulations. The interferometer boasts several advantages, including its compact and small size, static stability, minimal stray light, and absence of moving parts. It establishes the theoretical, technological, and instrumental engineering foundations for future simultaneous static measurement of Martian global atmospheric wind fields, temperature fields, and ozone concentrations from spacecraft, thereby significantly contributing to the dataset for investigating Martian atmospheric dynamics.


Can the bible function as a theological authority for eco-theology given its conflicting messages concerning the earth and humanity's relationship to it and in particular the deeply anthropocentric character of some passages? This article critically examines five approaches to the Bible that seek to affirm its theological authority while recognising its problematic character. It then proposes criteria for an alternative model.


In recent years digital technology has liberated us, saving us time, giving us access to more methods of communication than we ever thought possible and bringing us closer to the people we love. But it is becoming increasingly apparent that there is a darker side to digital. In July of 2015, Northstar teamed up with creative agency Six: Thirty to generate a design exhibition inspired by the increasingly complex relationship between our real world and digital lives.


Doppler is one of the most important factors which affects the high-speed underwater acoustic OFDM communication in shallow water.Doppler frequency shift could lead the orthogonalilty between sub-carriers of OFDM damaged and the quality of the OFDM communication system degraded.So it is urgent to conduct a study of how to eliminate the Doppler.There are usually two steps to eliminate the impact of Doppler on underwater acoustic communication: first estimate the Doppler factor,and then resample the received data.Based on simulation,this paper firstly achieves resampling,then uses ployphase decomposition for reducing the computational complexity to form a high rate of variable resampling filter and applies the algorithm to the OFDM system simulation,finally processes the lake test data.The effect of Doppler shift on the underwater acoustic OFDM communication system is greatly reduced and satisfactory results are obtained in this paper.


Under the advance of time, development of science and technology, and popularity of network, the combination of medical ecological environment and information & communication technology provides diverse medical care services for the public. Having the elderly receive diverse medical services in neighboring communities, under constantly increasing medical expenses becomes the common objective of various countries. An artificial intelligence medical service system might be the ideal tool to actualize local aging. Taking prefecture-level cities in Shanghai as samples, total 16 DMUs are studied. With the operation of Modified Delphi Method, the geometric mean is used as the consensus of experts' input/output evaluation; and, DEA is applied to evaluate the performance on the introduction of artificial intelligence medical service system into medical ecological environment. The research results conclude that one DMU presents strong efficiency on the introduction of artificial intelligence medical service system into medical ecological environment, 6 DMUs reveal the efficiency in 0.9-1, and 9 DMUs appear the efficiency lower than 0.9. Slack Variable Analysis is further applied to improve excess and short inputs of prefecture-level cities. According to the results, suggestions are proposed, expecting that medical staff could real-time grasp the physiological state and offer timely assistance to reduce medical costs, promote the quality of life of people in communities, and improve doctor-patient interactive relationship.


We evaluated TaSix-based bi-layer absorber on ZrSi-based buffer for EUV mask, especially considering the possibility of ZrSi-based film as a combined buffer and capping layer. Since ZrSi-based film has both high dry-etching resistance and EUV transparency, it has potentiality to work as a combined capping and buffer layer. AFM machining repair of bi-layer TaSix absorber on ZrSi-based buffer can be performed to good profile. Printing evaluation showed that over-repair into buffer layer did not affect significantly to wafer CD. FIB (10keV) repair of bi-layer TaSix absorber on ZrSi-based buffer needs improvement for side-wall profile and distinguishable evaluation from implanted Ga+ effect in more detail. Effect of FIB (10keV) scan with ordinary repair process seems to be at least smaller than 10%.


Indonesia have a problem on the number one of quality human resources with the high birth rate each year. In these improvements, it is necessary to increase the degree of life with development and Family Planning (FP). The purpose of this study was to determine description of characteristic FP MKJP acceptors in Payaman village, Ngraho, Bojonegoro. This research was descriptive analytic with quantitative approach. The data were collected using structured questioners to 243 mothers and 213 fathers in Payaman village. The variable that used in this study was age, education, job, hospital sheet, type of contraseption tools and time used contraseption tools. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistic analysis. The result of this study was determine that mayority of populations in Payaman Village, Ngraho Subdistrict, Bojonegoro City has follow FP's  program.  The description of characteristic FP acceptors that use MKJP method in Payaman Village, Ngraho Subdistrict, Bojonegoro City were 15–45 years old (61%), has job as a farmer (78%), has a low education (66%) An  using IUD as contraseption tools with using period more than 6 years (90%). From this explanation the result of the variable shows that there is no differences risks between FP MKJP and non MKJP.


This thesis studies cryogenic electronics and quantum dots on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) for quantum computing. Different types of electron and hole quantum dots are fabricated with Leti's SOI nanowire (NW) and planar 28nm FD-SOI technology. In the first part, Pauli Spin Blockade (PSB) is studied for the first holes down to 60mK. We show that it is governed by a strong spin orbit coupling (SOC). The intradot relaxation rate of 120kHz was found for the first holes. The access barriers tunability realized with additional gates was proven to be efficient regarding the isolation of qubit from source/drain metallic leads. Following the recent demonstration of electron-dipole spin resonance (EDSR) achieved in electron quantum dots confined in the corners of silicon nanowire (CDs), we deeply investigated quantum dots in several multi-gate samples under different body-biasing conditions. Based on preliminary cryogenic transport measurements, an operation protocol for a compact two electron spin qubit gate has been proposed.Regarding cryogenic electronics required for an efficient control, manipulation and read-out of a large number of qubits, the low temperature digital and analog performance of 28nm FD-SOI MOSFETs was analysed from room temperature down to 4K. Significant improvements in transistor performance are achieved with a clear enhancement of carrier mobility and a strong reduction of subthreshold swing (SS), even for short-channel devices with gate length down to 28nm. The saturation of the subthreshold swing at low temperature is explained with a new analytical model developed in this thesis. By introducing a narrow tail in the density of states at the edges of the conduction and valence bands and using the Fermi-Dirac statistics, an excellent agreement of SS is achieved between experiments and modelling. The analysis of the SS-IDS metric under different forward body-biasing (FBB) conditions has revealed that the increased density of interface traps cannot be responsible for the SS saturation at low temperature. By adding a slight exponential variation in the interface trap density, we show that the SS-IDS curve can be well reproduced over more than 6 decades, paving a way for an efficient cryogenic design of CryoCMOS.In a second time, cryogenic performance of Ring Oscillators (RO) down to 4K was investigated. We have shown that the optimal supply voltage can be reduced down to 0.3V. This allows to efficiently reduce the dynamic and static power dissipations. At the same time, a small Energy-Delay product of 6.9fJ.ps with a delay per stage of 37ps were achieved at VDD=0.325V under aggressive FBB.Finally, in the last chapter, the duality of short-channel FD-SOI transistors operation as FETs or SETs is demonstrated at 4K. By benchmarking the QDs with respect to the common silicon platforms, we show that 28nm FD-SOI technology has a great potential for both cryogenic electronics and qubits.


The extent to which behavioral weight management interventions affect health inequalities is uncertain, as is whether trials of these interventions directly consider inequalities. We conducted a systematic review, synthesizing evidence on how different aspects of inequality impact uptake, adherence, and effectiveness in trials of behavioral weight management interventions. We included (cluster‐) randomized controlled trials of primary care‐applicable behavioral weight management interventions in adults with overweight or obesity published prior to March 2020. Data about trial uptake, intervention adherence, attrition, and weight change by PROGRESS‐Plus criteria (place of residence, race/ethnicity, occupation, gender, religion, education, socioeconomic status, social capital, plus other discriminating factors) were extracted. Data were synthesized narratively and summarized in harvest plots. We identified 91 behavioral weight loss interventions and 12 behavioral weight loss maintenance interventions. Fifty‐six of the 103 trials considered inequalities in relation to at least one of intervention or trial uptake (n = 15), intervention adherence (n = 15), trial attrition (n = 32), or weight outcome (n = 34). Most trials found no inequalities gradient. If a gradient was observed for trial uptake, intervention adherence, and trial attrition, those considered "more advantaged" did best. Alternative methods of data synthesis that enable data to be pooled and increase statistical power may enhance understanding of inequalities in behavioral weight management interventions.


Summary: The aim of this paper to examine a larger set of wavelet functions for implementation in a still image compression system using Set-Partitioning In Hierarchical Tree (SPIHT) algorithm. This paper discusses important features of wavelet transform in compression of still images, including the extent to which the quality of image is degraded by the process of wavelet compression and decompression. Image quality is measured objectively using peak signal to noise ratio. The effect of different parameters is studied on different wavelet functions.


In this paper, the existing products' status about mechanical life-saving parachute device or unlock device is analiszed, and the key problems in specific design of multistate program control parachute is shown and illustrated. The prototype is development, which is formed mainly by PC104 as control core, 3-dimensional electrom compass as sensors and ball lock mechanism as release machine. Princinple experiment is carried out, and the feasibility of design idea is tested and verified.


A technique for continuously monitoring the progress of a mixing operation in a rotating drum has been described. A signal proportional to the bulk density is obtained from a sensor mounted at a fixed point within the mixer. The sensor consists of a cup mounted on a load cell, and this assembly is bolted to the drum wall. As the drum rotates the sensor rotates periodically filling and emptying the cup and returning a signal with a periodic component proportional to bulk density. The sensor is battery powered, and data transmission from the rotating drum is by FM telemetry. Results are presented for the progress of an experiment to mix a 60 kg charge of ironsand with 170 kg silica sand.


The frequencies of resonance of the lower‐order modes in a plate are sensitive to boundary conditions. By adaptively controlling the clamping pressures on the edges of a vibrating plate, the frequencies of resonance can be continuously detuned from the frequency of a pure‐tone source. Results from laboratory demonstrations of the passive adaptive control of the vibration and acoustic radiation from a plate excited by pure‐tone sources with varying source frequencies are presented and discussed.


Thank you very much for downloading and you visited me sacramental ministry to the sick and the dying. Maybe you have knowledge that, people have look numerous times for their chosen readings like this and you visited me sacramental ministry to the sick and the dying, but end up in infectious downloads. Rather than reading a good book with a cup of tea in the afternoon, instead they cope with some harmful virus inside their laptop.


The ongoing global energy transition towards sustainable and climate-neutral power generation has led to the increasing adoption of concentrated solar tower power plants, relying on heliostats for precise solar tracking. Heliostat calibration, vital for maintaining accurate alignment, traditionally assumes a decrease in accuracy over time due to various factors. However, the impact of data set sampling on reported tracking accuracy has been overlooked. This paper utilizes a kNN (k-Nearest Neighbors) data set sampling approach to investigate data set distribution's impact on model accuracy. Results indicate that conventional time-dependent sampling can lead to an overestimation of reported accuracies. In contrast, the kNN sampling approach demonstrates a strong correlation between model performance and the proximity of test data to training data. Simulations reveal that reported accuracy scores are influenced by the similarity between training and test data sets. The study highlights the critical importance of considering data set distribution when interpreting accuracy scores. The proposed method improves tracking accuracy and offers a dependable metric for evaluating calibration results. It provides valuable insights to enhance heliostat calibration models, advancing precise solar tracking in concentrated solar tower power plants and supporting the global transition towards sustainable energy solutions.


This paper investigates the procedure for starting a rotation sensorless PMSM under coasting condition for railway vehicle traction. To achieve restarting, the initial rotor position and speed at restart are needed. The existing algorithm for estimation of the initial position and speed cannot be applied to railway vehicle traction because of the greater speed range and the longer current sampling time. We propose a novel method for estimation of the initial speed. The estimation method is verified experimentally to assure that it is suitable for application to the railway vehicle traction system. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 169(2): 56–63, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.20764


Objective:To explore distributions and expressions of ERK,JNK,p38 MAP kinase in lung tissues and roles of MAP kinases on hyperoxia-induced lung injury with signal pathway inhibitors. Methods:Sixty Wistar rats aged 3 weeks old were randomized to 10 groups with 6 rats in each:room-air group(A),hyperoxia exposure 3,7,14 days groups(O3,O7,O14),hyperoxia 7 d+ PD98059 group (O7+PD)、hyperoxia 7 d +SB203580 group(O7+SB),hyperoxia 7 d+ SP600125 group(O7+SP) and room-air +inhibitors groups.Rats had received i.v injection of PD98059(0.3 mg/kg)and SB203580(0.2 mg/kg) and injected with SP600125(15 mg/kg) intraperitoneally.Lung pathology examined by light microscopy,lung wet/dry ratio(W/D) and protein level in BALF and permeability coefficient were evaluated.The location and quantity of MAP kinases protein were detected by immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis respectively.Results:Lung injury in hyperoxia exposure groups were developed as compared with room-air group,W/D and protein level in BALF and permeability coefficient in O7 and O14 groups were increased than those in control group(P0.05),lung tissue pathology in O7+SB and O7+SP groups were improved than that in O7 group,as evidenced by decreased pathology score and decreased W/D,total protein in BALF and permeability coefficient(P0.05).The positive cells remarkably increased in hyperoxia groups andthe positive cells labeled in many types cells.MAP kinases positive cells in inhibitors groups decreased significantly.Protein quantity of ERK,p38,JNK in hyperoxia exposure groups were remarkablely higher than those in room-air group,protein expression of ERK in O7 group and p38 in O14 group and JNK in O14 group were strongest in all hyperoxia groups.Signal inhibitors could inhibit corresponding MAP kinases protein expression.Conclusion:High concentration of oxygen activated ERK,p38,JNK signaling pathway in lung tissue,p38 and JNK may exert promotion role on hyperoxia induced lung injury development.


In globalized world, the impact of cultural differences on economic activity is becoming more and more pronounced. The subject of the study is the modern reading of Max Weber's views on the impact of cultural factors on economic growth. The main thesis is that, both historically and in modern times, economic relations are closely intertwined with social factors and they influence each other. The research is focused on the impact of the cultural environment on: building personal qualities that directly influence the economic results, the formation of social knowledge and skills in individuals, the criteria for optimization and the distribution of goods and their application in modeling in the "game theory". Human well-being is the criterion for assessing the development of the economic system and indicators for improving the quality of life should reflect social processes.


Intraclutch egg-size variation and hatching success were studied in a population of Hudson Bay common eiders (Somateria mollissima sedentaria) at La Perouse Bay, Manitoba (58°24′N, 94°24′W), to test the hypothesis that females allocate more nutrient reserves to eggs that are more likely to hatch. Egg volumes were calculated for 575 known-sequence eggs in 134 complete clutches of 3–6 eggs. In general, the length of eggs decreased linearly with position in the laying sequence, whereas the breadth of eggs followed a curvilinear pattern, the second or third egg being the widest. For all clutch sizes, the last-laid egg was the smallest and the second- or third-laid egg the largest. Hatching success also varied with position in the laying sequence. Pre-incubation failure declined over the laying sequence, whereas hatching failure (dead, infertile, or rotten eggs) increased. In all cases pre-incubation failure was the major cause of egg loss (84% of total loss). Overall, third and fourth eggs were the most succe...


Contamination of weather radar echoes by anoma- lous propagation (anaprop) mechanisms remains a serious is- sue in quality control of radar precipitation estimates. Al- though significant progress has been made identifying clut- ter due to anaprop there is no unique method that solves the question of data reliability without removing genuine data. The work described here relates to the development of a software application that uses a numerical weather predic- tion (NWP) model to obtain the temperature, humidity and pressure fields to calculate the three dimensional structure of the atmospheric refractive index structure, from which a physically based prediction of the incidence of clutter can be made. This technique can be used in conjunction with ex- isting methods for clutter removal by modifying parameters of detectors or filters according to the physical evidence for anomalous propagation conditions. The parabolic equation method (PEM) is a well established technique for solving the equations for beam propagation in a non-uniformly strat- ified atmosphere, but although intrinsically very efficient, is not sufficiently fast to be practicable for near real-time mod- elling of clutter over the entire area observed by a typical weather radar. We demonstrate a fast hybrid PEM technique that is capable of providing acceptable results in conjunc- tion with a high-resolution terrain elevation model, using a standard desktop personal computer. We discuss the perfor- mance of the method and approaches for the improvement of the model profiles in the lowest levels of the troposphere.


World War One reduced Berlin from a splendid, bustling, exciting intellectual and financial German capital to a dark, isolated, foreboding ruin. When the war ended in 1918 Berlin had lost its cultural prominence in Europe. German politicians, intellectuals and artists emerged from their isolation with a fervent desire to establish sound international relations. Leo Kestenberg, the newly elected advisor on musical affairs of the Weimar government's Ministry of Arts, Sciences and People's Education, resolved to reestablish Berlin as a cosmopolitan musical center by single-handedly bringing the best musicians from all over Europe to work there. He committed himself to bringing back to the German capital his teacher, mentor, and friend, Ferruccio Busoni. Like most of his contemporaries he saw Busoni as a quasi-mythical figure, a pure, deepley humanistic spirit whose mixed German-Italian blood had enabled him to rise above the turmoils and petty nationalistic squabbles of his day. Kestenberg remembered Busoni's avant-garde concert series


Some historically successful engineering inventions have been designed by trial and error as was the famous case of Thomas Edison's light bulb. No contemporary design researcher would advocate a tedious, trial-and-error methodology as the basis for engineering practice. The 21st century engineer is expected to create innovative solutions to real world problems with limited resources and limited time. Successful engineering design methods are those that substitute trial-and-error with practice-based guidance (e.g., TRIZ), mathematical analysis (e.g., optimization), general problem-solving strategies (e.g., functional decomposition and synthesis), or good cognitive thinking strategies (e.g., Synectics). This research is placed in the last category, studying the cognitive processes that can be observed in recorded work of engineering designers. This study is the first step in research intended to go further into the designers mind and reveal new insights about the design process. This paper presents a cognitive coding scheme model to organize and categorize designer "thinking" as recorded in design documentation. The product of this research can be used to instruct curriculum on teaching the design process for students and professional engineers.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


The performance of a solar cell is greatly affected by the Schottky barrier at the back contact. For a standard modelling of a good solar cell, care is to be taken on the fabrication of the back su...


: The objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of ginseng, green tea or/and cinnamon to improve the disturbances occur in liver, heart, lipid and thyroid profiles as well as antioxidant and lipid peroxidation status in rats as a result of exposure to γ-irradiation. The obtained results revealed a significant (p<0.05) increase in serum alanine transferase (ALT), aspartate transferase (AST), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and creatine kinase (CK) activities as well as elevations in the levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, high density cholesterol (HDL-Ch) and low density cholesterol (LDL-Ch) in irradiated rats than those in control ones. On the other hand, the concentrations of serum total protein, albumin and free triiodothyronine (FT 3 ) were remarkable decreased in rats as a result of exposure to γ-irradiation. Moreover, as a result of exposure to γ-radiation, the mean value of GSH content and Gpx activity were remarkable decreased in both the liver tissues and in the cardiac tissues of the rats. On the contrary, the exposure to γ-radiation caused a significant (P<0.001) increment in thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) level in both liver and heart tissues of rats. When γ-irradiated rats groups were treated with ginseng, green tea or cinnamon, considerable amelioration effects in all previous studied parameters were pronounced dependent on time of treatment (15 & 30 days). The maximum correction was occurred in all studied parameters in irradiated-rats treated with mixture of ginseng, green tea and cinnamon dependent on the time of treatment (15 and 30 days). So, this study can practically help to encourage the clinical use of this mixture as a treatment for exposure to γ-radiation. These mechanisms were discussed according to available recent researches.


This paper presents an electric drive consisting of a multiphase induction motor fed by a multiphase inverter. The control system is similar to that of a traditional field-oriented control for three-phase motors, but the machine speed is estimated by a novel sensorless observer. Since multiphase motors with M phases (M is supposed odd) have the capability of controlling the odd spatial harmonics of the magnetic field up to the (M-2)th order, the developed observer excites the third-order spatial harmonic of the magnetic field to estimate the rotor speed. Simulation results are provided to assess the performance of the observer.


These lab notes were recorded while Axelrod researched the "fate of caffeine in man," and detailed his findings on
 the relative levels of caffeine present in various commercially available brands of coffee.


The Cs-134 to Cs-137 activity ratio of the Cs-134 and Cs-137 fission products released from failed fuel rods into primary coolant is very useful to identify the exposure along with the fuel batch of the failed fuel. The calculated and measured Cs-137 to Cs-134 radioactivity ratios of failed BWR and PWR fuels are compared and analyzed for better understanding of their relationship.  Moreover, the impacts of power uprate and fuel reload outage on calculated Cs-137 to Cs-134 activity ratios are studied and the physics behind the impacts are provided.


The analysis and research on patent information is very important in enterprise competitive intelligence and counterintelligence, which can provide the company with technology strategy, competitor review, as well as countermeasures in counterintelligence process. This paper fully describes the technology and method of patent analysis from Competitive Intelligence and Counterintelligence, and puts forward some views about patent analyzing.


For many African countries that have experienced prolonged macroeconomic disequilibria, adhering to structural adjustment is essential to restore macroeconomic balance. Restoration of macroeconomic balance is a necessary condition for resuming growth. However, African agriculture faces another set of "structural" problems. The question, therefore, is not whether to undertake structural adjustment but rather how to resume growth through restoration of macroeconomic balance in situations of these other


Aimed at the problems of low solution precision and easy to be trapped into local optima by single objective evolutionary algorithm, a self-adaptive multi-objective optimization algorithm based on nondominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA2) and Label Propagation Algorithm (LPA) is proposed. The algorithm takes Kernel K-means (KKM) and Ratio Cut (RC) as the objective functions. Two new crossover operator and the improved mutation operator is used to achieve the evolution of the population. We conducted simulation experiments in the computer-generated networks and the real-world networks environment. The results show that compared with other community detection algorithms, our algorithm has the advantages of high resolution and strong search ability, and it can effectively identify the community structure in complex networks. Introduction Real-world systems are complex, but they can be described by abstract network models, such as ecosystem, social network and so on. By analyzing the community structure in complex network, features in complex networks can be found more intuitively [1,2,3]. Community detection can be modeled as an optimization problem. For example, Pizzuti has proposed a single objective genetic algorithm(GA-net) for community detection[4].Because of the limit of single-objective evolutionary method based on modularity several multi-objective evolutionary methods has been proposed, such as MOGA-net [5]. In this paper, we propose a novel community algorithm based on NSGA2 and LPA, termed as NSGA2-LPA. We use the multi-objective evolutionary algorithm based on NSGA2 which was proposed by Deb in 2002. NSGA2 has high computational efficiency when dealing with low-dimensional problems, and the solution set has good diversity and convergence [6,7]. Related Background Complex Network A complex network is usually represented by G = (V, E), where V represents the set of all nodes in the complex network, and E represents the set of all edges in the complex network. The topology of complex networks is usually represented by adjacent matrix A = (aij)n×n, where n is the number of nodes in the network,aij = 1, if there is a link between node i and j ,otherwise,aij = 0. Optimization Problem The community detection algorithm based on improved NSGA2 selects KKM as the evaluation function of the community's internal density and RC as the evaluation function of the community's external density [8]. Given an unsigned network denoted as G = (V, E) with |V| = n nodes and |E| = m edges. The adjacency matrix is A . The k partitions are in the network denoted


Abstract The notion that the soul comes into existence simultaneously with the body at the moment of conception was originally introduced into the Patristic discourse as an alternative to the Origenist notion of a pre-existing soul. Yet from the sixth century onwards it was itself regarded as an Origenist tenet. Now it was claimed that only those who believed the soul to be created after the body were truly orthodox. The present article examines the links between this development and the Christological conversies.


Purpose To evaluate HBV and HCV infection among high risk sexual behavior group and the relationship between them. Methods 173 cases were investigated at the STD outpatient departnent of Huashan Hospital.The questionarie measured sexual risk factors including age, the number of lifetime sex partners, the number of sex partners in recent three months, the age of first intercourse, the history of STD, the style of sexual behavior.HBV?DNA and HCV?RNA were detected by PCR. Patients who had past history of drug abuse or blood transfusion were excluded. Results HCV positive rate was higher in high risk group, especially in STD patients, and was positively related with STD history.Having sexual intercourse more than four partners in the last three months is the risk factor in getting HBV or HCV infection. HBV and HCV infection are most commonly seen in syphilis people. Conclusions HCV infection is more oftenly seen among STD patients and people with multiple sex partners. Thus the sexual behavior way may play an important role in the transmission of HBV and HCV.


Through the teaching practice, we have analysized the present situation of teachers in high and primary schools in this paper. And also we've brought forward the ideas of opening the information - offering courses, therefore, analysized the teaching results.


Background: Breath holding time is the time taken by an individual to hold his/her breath as long as they can. During voluntary breath holding, tissues continue to utilize oxygen and liberate carbon dioxide. Therefore, during breath holding arterial pO2 falls and pCO2 rises. Normal Breath holding time (BHT) is 45-55 seconds which is estimated at 2014. The main aim of this study is to assess the breath holding time among healthy dental students.
Materials and Methods: A minimal number of sample sizes have been taken into account with regards to their BMI. The sample size was divided into two groups as gender comparison. Students were detail explained about the procedure and breath holding time has been measured. The statistical analysis was done by ANOVA test in SPSS Software-23 and an independent t-test was calculated.
Results: BHT was found to be significantly low among females compared to males. A statistically significant negative correlation was observed when BHT is correlated with gender because BHT differs in both the gender.
Conclusion: The present study revealed that breath holding time is less in females compared to males. Therefore, males are healthier than females.


After more than one year of successful operation, the design and performance of a 52.5 MW thyristor controlled rectifier installation in a chlor-alkali plant are reviewed. Procedures for final checkout of the installation before plant startup as well as field modifications made to the equipment are discussed. Maintenance procedures are outlined and advantages of thyristor controlled rectifiers are detailed. Power factor and harmonic considerations are also presented.


It is shown that the semigroup variety generated by the monoid A 1 0 = 〈 a, b : a 2 = a, b = b, ba = 0 〉 ∪ {1} of order five is hereditarily finitely based and contains countably infinitely many subvarieties. In contrast, the monoid variety generated by A0 is shown to contain only eight subvarieties.


Context is important when people judge sounds, cr attributes of sounds, or other stimuli. It is shown how judgments depend on what sounds recently occurred (sequence effects), on how those sounds differ from one another (range effects), on the distribution of those differences (set effects), on what subjects are told about the situation (task effects), and on what subjects are told about their performance (feedback effects). Each of these factors determines the overall mean and variability of response times and response choices, which are the standard measures, when people judge attribute amounts. Trial-by-trial analyses of the data show the s factors also determine performance on individual trials. Moreover, these momentary data cannot be predictEd from the overall data. The opposite is not u.rue; the averaged data can be predicted from the momentary details. These results are consistent with a model having two simple assumptions: Successive sounds (not just their attributes) assimilate toward ole another in memory, and judgments are based on comparisons of these remembered events. i£his.holds for judgments of multidimensional stimuli as well as for judgments of unidimensional stimuli. When two dimensions varied between trials but only one was judged, variations of the nominally irrelevant dimension interfered with judgments of the relevant dimension. Furthermore, the magnitude of this effect was greater when the irrelevant dimension varied by larger amounts. For example, pitch judgments depend on whether and by how much loudness changes between trials. Combined with the literature, the results allow the suggestion that continuing to search for an underlying psychophysical scale may not be productive. A different approach is suggested. The traditional approach uses methods adopted from classical physics to examine how people process attributes of objects. The suggested alternative is based, instead, on biological and psychological considerations of how people process objects in various environments. This view is based on the fact that sounds, like most other stimuli used in psychophysical studies, are integral. This means the entire stimulus, rather than its attributes, is processed initially. According to the model, successive stimuli are compared in memory and subjects then judge their attributes. The loudness and pitch judgments reported here are consistent with the interpretation. These and many other data are not consistent with assumptions made by classic scaling models. It is concluded that Fechner's Law, Stevens' Law, and all related psychophysical scaling models are wrong or inuomplete. Accordingly, they are rejcctod. It is suggested that relations between attributes, rather than the magnitudes of the attributes themselves, are the basis for judgment. To present the argument in this technical report, a paper submitted for publication is reproduced here.


ObjectiveTo establish a comprehensive health education model of communicable diseases and evaluate the effect of comprehensive health education to improve knowledge of diseases in non-medical students.MethodsA comprehensive communicable diseases health education was implemented through a series of participatory integrated measures(compiling teaching materials and books,setting up elective courses,classroom consultation and discussion,expert lectures,essay competitions,website/forum discussion,scientific research for undergraduate student,et al.) among the non-medical undergraduates from three schools in a university.At the end of health education,a total of 1 582 students were investigated with a structured questionnaire,of which 958 students received health education and the other 624 ones did not.Scores of infectious diseases knowledge were compared between the two groups.ResultsA series of participatory integrated measures proved to become effective,non-medical students were active,enthusiastic in the education program.The average score of the undergraduates not receiving health education was 14.98±2.35,and average score of those receiving health education was 17.79±2.05,the difference was statistically significant(P0.01).ConclusionThe comprehensive communicable diseases health education model can effectively improve students'knowledge of communicable diseases.


Millions of uninsured Americans rely on hospital emergency departments (EDs) for medical care. Throughout the United States, uninsured patients treated in or admitted to the hospital through the ED receive hospital bills based on what hospitals call "billed charges." These charges are much higher than those paid by insured patients. In 2006 California approved "fair pricing" legislation to protect uninsured patients from having to pay full billed charges. We found that by 2011 most California hospitals had responded to the law by adopting financial assistance policies to make care more affordable for the state's 6.8 million uninsured people. Ninety-seven percent of California hospitals reported that they offered free care to uninsured patients with incomes at or below 100 percent of the federal poverty level. California's approach offers a promising policy option to other states seeking to protect the uninsured from receiving bills based on full billed charges. M illions of uninsured Americans rely on hospital emergency departments (EDs) for much of their medical care, both urgent and nonurgent. Throughout most of the United States, uninsured patients treated in an ED are likely to receive a bill from the hospital based on what hospitals call "billed charges." All hospitals in the United States base their billed charges on a database contained in hospital accounting systems called the Charge Description Master. Billed-charge databases were developed in part based on Medicare regulations that required hospitals to include on the bills sent to every patient the services rendered and the list price for each service based on the hospitals' charges. Although hospital billed charges used to represent prices that most patients or their insurers actually paid, Medicare regulations andmarket changes now limit the amounts actually paid to hospitals for insured patients. There is no limit on the billed charges that hospitals send to uninsured patients, however. Billed charges have risen rapidly over time and now bear little relationship to actual market prices paid by insured patients. For example, payments to all California hospitals in 2010 were $69 billion even though billed charges totaled $269 billion. That represents a ratio of billed charges to payments of four to one. Uwe Reinhardt, Gerard Anderson, and others have written about the arbitrary nature of hospitals'billed charges and,more important, about the distortions and hardships created by hospitals' using inflated billed charges as the basis for determining prices to the uninsured. Since the uninsured are not covered by contracts that include fixed prices, uninsured patients receive bills for hospital services based on full billed charges. Although hospitals often do not collect the full amount of these charges, they frequently represent a starting point for negotiations leading to a final payment. Onestudy fundedby theRobertWoodJohnson Foundation found that California hospitals, on doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2012.0731


The project Researching and Promoting Character Education in Latin American Secondary Schools funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation. The Conference was organized by the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues. University of Birmingham. UK.


The invention provides a hydraulic hybrid electric vehicle transmission system, which belongs to the technical field of vehicle energy conservation and emission reduction. The vehicle transmission system, without a clutch or a gear box, is directly connected with a main reducer and a differential to drive the vehicle according to the stepless speed regulation characteristics of an electromotor and a hydraulic pump/motor to reduce the operation strength of a driver. A storage battery-electromotor is used as the main power source of the vehicle; a hydraulic accumulator-variable pump/motor is only used for recycling and reusing the brake energy of the vehicle; during acceleration, the hydraulic pump/motor supplies extra power; particularly in start process, the hydraulic pump/motor alone drives the vehicle to start moving, and the electromotor can always run in stable conditions. The impact of variable conditions on the circuit system is reduced, the load of the storage battery is remarkably lowered, the work performance of the storage battery-electromotor is promoted, the service life of the storage battery-electromotor is prolonged, and the continuous mileage of the electric vehicle is prolonged.


In the following we undertake to derive quantum theory as a stochastic low-energy and coarse-grained theory from a more primordial discrete and basically geometric theory living on the Planck scale and which (as we argue) possibly underlies also string theory. We isolate the so-called ideal elements which represent at the same time the cornerstones of the framework of ordinary quantum theory and show how and why they encode the non-local aspects, being ubiquituous in the quantum realm, in a, on the surface, local way. We show that the quantum non-locality emerges in our approach as a natural consequence of the underlying two-storey nature of space-time or the physical vacuum, that is, quantum theory turns out to be a residual effect of the geometric depth structure of space-time on the Planck scale. We indicate how the measurement problem and the emergence of the macroscopic sub-regime can be understood in this framework.


Population explosion is a mysterious problem especially on our plundered planet. It is estimated that there is one birth every 8 seconds and one death every 12 seconds, with a net gain of one person on earth every 24 seconds raises the fundamental question as to where from the human numbers are adding up. This aspect is explored from the Vedas and Upanishads to seek a solution to this perennial problem of 'population explosion' and prevent the total collapse of environment and ecology. Demographers cautions of world population reaching a hooping 9.7 billion by 2050 from the current world population of 7.3 billion. Human beings must live and let live as per the dictum of Vedānta thereby disappearing for centuries from the Earth to live in Urdhvalokas (higher lokas) where a day is equivalent to several hundreds of earth years before being reborn and eventually after constant pursuit attain liberation in the end.


Deals with the problem of detecting subspace random signals against correlated non-Gaussian clutter exploiting different degrees of knowledge on target and clutter statistical characteristics. The clutter process is modeled by the compound-Gaussian distribution. In the first part of the paper, the optimum Neyman-Pearson (NP) detector, the generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT), and a constant false-alarm rate (CFAR) detector are sequentially derived both for the Gaussian and the compound-Gaussian scenarios. Different interpretations of the various detectors are provided to highlight the relationships and the differences among them. In particular, we show how the GLRT detector may be recast into an estimator-correlator form and into another form, namely a generalized whitening-matched filter (GWMF), which is the GLRT detector against Gaussian disturbance, compared with a data-dependent threshold. In the second part of this paper, the proposed detectors are tested against both simulated data and measured high resolution sea clutter data to investigate the dependence of their performance on the various clutter and signal parameters.


In this work is shown how to construct blocks to simulate and analyze optical sources using Simulink. The versatility of this software is used to form analisys blocks in the time and frequency domains. Results for LED (FD), Quantum Well (TD) and Fabry Perot (FD) LASERs are shown, and it is possible to change various parameters to obtain new results according to the necessity.


Cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular and promises to revolutionize the future of IT service delivery. However, security and privacy concerns continue to hinder cloud adoption. Some of the challenges and open issues associated with privacy preserving concern in cloud computing are also discussed. The distributed computing is another figuring model which originates from lattice processing, disseminated registering, parallel processing virtualization innovation, utility figuring and other PC advancements. The security issue of distributed computing is essential and it can keep the fast improvement of distributed computing. In this paper, the proposed technique is utilized for information stockpiling and recovers in secure way. FHE plot is utilized to scramble the information and furthermore give indication to store the information in distributed storage.


Security Audit trail Analysis can be accomplished by searching audit trail logs of user activities for known attacks. The problem is a combinatorial optimization problem NP-Hard. Metaheuristics offer an alternative to solve this type of problems. In this paper, we propose to use Harmony Search metaheuristic as intrusion detection engine. It is a populationbased evolutionary algorithm well suited for constrained optimization problems. Experimental results for simulated attacks are reported. The effectiveness of the method is evaluated by its ability to make correct predictions. Our new approach has proven effective and capable of producing a reliable method for intrusion detection. Keywords-metaheuristics; harmony search; evolutionary Algorithm; intrusion detection; security audit.


The aim of the study is to describe the radiological phenotype of vertebral malformations in congenital scoliosis and to discuss the possible mechanisms of morphogenesis of some of these anomalies. The article describes 5 cases of complete or partial splitting in the sagittal plane of the body of one of the thoracic vertebrae (butterfly-shaped vertebra). The anterior vertebral cleft was combined with other congenital vertebral anomalies: block of vertebra, hemivertebrae, spina bifida posterior. All patients had scoliosis with right-sided or left-sided curves. In the human fetuses of the first trimester of gestation without visible malformations in the cartilaginous anlages of the thoracic vertebral bodies we revealed the presence of one o three centers of ossification, and in the fetus with exensephaly – the lack of the intervertebral disc anlage between the bodies C2-C3. According to the published data, the etiology of congenital vertebral anomalies is multifactorial. In the pathogenesis of this pathology, there is a violation of local blood flow due to the anomalous course of intersegmental arteries and as a consequence – a complete or partial separation of adjacent somites or associated mesenchyme. According to the published data, a possible cause of the anterior cleft may be untimely an involution of cartilage canals, the growth of which in the cartilaginous anlage of the vertebral body precedes the appearance of the ossification center. The absence of the intervertebral disk at a considerable length between the cartilaginous anlages of bodies 2 and 3 of the cervical vertebrae in the human fetus with exencephaly indicates a close relationship between the axial skeleton and the neural tube.


A novel measurement technique utilising a new test structure is applied to the existing subthreshold methodology to extract coupling coefficients of the Top-Floating-Gate (TFG) cell. The TFG cell is unique in structure and operation in comparison with current NVM devices. It is designed with the FG surrounding the CG which greatly enhances the gate coupling ratio (/spl alpha//sub cg/) allowing a small area cell and avoiding the use of expensive z-direction extensions unlike the industry standard stacked-gate approach. This work quantifies this benefit for the area efficient TFG cell design.


Review(s) of: Weighing Up Australian Values, by B Howe, University of New South Wales Press Ltd, Sydney, 2007, 207 pages, $29.95 (paperback).


The common good has been represented as the sum of individual interests, the sum of shared interests, the common interests of members of a society, the benefit of a whole society, and a set of methods to achieve common aims. The concept depends on citizenship, a degree of equality and social inclusion; the key methods include measures to enhance voice, empowerment and engagement. The arguments for taking collective action to achieve the common good include moral positions, economic arguments, pragmatic approaches and the collective values considered in the previous chapter.


As our cities become more intensely developed, the cost of building new road infrastructure is increasing, with expensive tunneling often the only option available to increase road capacity through intensely developed areas of our cities. In Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, tolling has become a popular means of recouping these costs, with the private sector often asked to partly or fully finance the cost of construction and maintenance through lBid, Own and Operater agreements. Tolling in Australia is seen as a way of financing new infrastructure, rather than a method of maximizing economic benefits to society (such as is the case with congestion charging). In three recent cases n the Clem7, Lane Cove, and Cross City tunnels - this has led to very high tolls on short pieces of infrastructure. In all three cases, the high toll per kilometre has resulted in severely suppressed demand for the new road, and limited congestion relief on competing routes. As a result, these toll roads are providing only a fraction of the congestion relief that they were designed to deliver, and have caused extreme financial distress for their initial operators. Therefore, we pose the question: should Government buy back these assets and make them free? Doing so, in several instances, would deliver sizeable economic benefits through extra congestion relief and lower travel times. But do the benefits exceed the cost of buy back? In this paper we attempt to answer these questions by quantifying the economic benefits which would result from making these projects free. In cases where the cost of buy back is less than this benefit, a buying opportunity for Government might exist.