Genome and exome sequencing have provided important insights into the biology of hematologic malignancies, and have led to the identification of prognostically relevant mutations and therapeutically targetable genomic alterations. However, the utility of genomic profiling in routine clinical practice remains an area of active investigation, and there is a need for evidence-based approaches to application of these data. Although most adults with acute leukemia relapse after initial therapy, only 25% of acute leukemia patients are enrolled onto clinical trials. Reasons for limited enrollment are multifold, but include a limited understanding by clinicians of genomic alterations, and lack of access to broad-based analytically validated clinical genomic profiling, both hampering the ability of clinicians to enroll patients on genotype-specific, mechanism-based clinical trials. As such, the development of high throughput, state-of-the-art genomic profiling assays for clinical practice, such as FoundationOneHeme, provide an unprecedented opportunity. Here we analyzed a consecutive series of 62 leukemia patients at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for whom FoundationOneHeme was performed to determine the incidence and applicability of genomic findings on clinical care. The clinical sample cohort included 17 patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), 14 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), 14 patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), 6 patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN), 5 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), 4 patients with aplastic anemia (AA), and 2 patients with chronic myeloid leukemias (CML). DNA and RNA were successfully extracted from 58/62 samples (94%). Adaptor ligated sequencing libraries were captured by solution hybridization using a custom bait-set targeting 405 cancer-related genes and 31 frequently rearranged genes by DNA-seq, and 265 frequently-rearranged genes by RNA-seq. Samples were sequenced to high depth (Illumina HiSeq) in a CLIA-certified CAP-accredited laboratory (Foundation Medicine), averaging 590x for DNA and >20M total pairs for RNA, to enable the sensitive and specific detection of short variants (substitutions and indels), CNAs and gene fusions. A genomic alteration was characterized as "therapeutic" if it has been shown to determine response or resistance to an available therapy, or mechanism-based trial and "prognostic" if it has been shown to be predictive of outcome by individual disease states. Of the 58 patients with informative genomic data, 84% had at least one pathogenic variant identified. A total of 154 such alterations were identified (2.7 alterations per sample), including 81 base substitutions, 39 indels, 6 splice mutations, 10 CNAs and 18 fusions/rearrangements. 69% of patients had variants identified that were classified as clinically significant. 53% of patients had potential therapeutically relevant genomic alterations, and 43% of patients had prognostically relevant alterations identified. 36% of patients had both therapeutic and prognostic alterations identified. The most common alterations identified in our cohort were TP53 (n= 8), NRAS (n= 6), KMT2A, KRAS, RUNX1 (n= 5), CDKN2A, CDKN2B, SF3B1, TET2 (n= 4). In sum, 54 prognostic and 47 therapeutic genomic alterations were identified. 7 MDS cases, 4 AA cases, 2 AML cases, 2 ALL cases, 1 CML case, and 1 CLL case did not have a pathogenic or actionable allele, demonstrating that almost all patients in our cohort had mutations with biologic and clinical relevance. We also noted a set of variants of unknown significance, including 37 deletions and 26 insertions, which are under investigation in regard to prognostic and therapeutic significance. However, given that at least one genomic variant was identified in the majority of patients, our data demonstrate the utility of this approach in the identification of somatic genomic alterations for prognostic and therapeutic value, and to identify clonal markers which can be used to track molecular response during anti-leukemic therapy. In summary, we analyzed the mutational profiles of leukemia patients using an analytic and clinically validated assay, which allowed us to identify both prognostic and therapeutically relevant mutations in the majority of patients, confirming the utility of comprehensive next-generation sequencing in clinical practice. Disclosures He: Foundation Medicine: Employment. Lipson: Foundation Medicine, Inc.: Employment. Otto: Foundation Medicine, Inc.: Employment. Miller: Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. van den Brink: Foundation Medicine, Inc.: Consultancy. Armstrong: Foundation Medicine, Inc.: Consultancy. Stephens: Foundation Medicine: Employment, Equity Ownership. Levine: Foundation Medicine, Inc.: Consultancy.


Effective nurse-patient communication is of paramount importance in countries with large foreign healthcare workforces such as the Middle East and in particular Saudi Arabia. The presence of a large expatriate population with a different language from the


ASPECTS of culture vary in the extent to which they are assumed to be "natural" and "invariant" properties of reality. Thus, members of any society will regard some of their own rules, practices, or customs as more or less arbitrary than others. Some will be seen as alternative, variable, or optional; others will be the "only," the "natural," and the "imperative" ways in which the world is constituted. This "taken-for-granted," "couldn't-be-otherwise" quality of some aspects of culture is reflected in the level of awareness people have of them. That people everywhere maintain relatively unconscious assumptions regarding time and space, customs, attitudes and values, meanings of all kinds, and language itself, is common anthropological knowledge.2 One such assumption, which is probably universal, is that the world consists of two biological sexes-men and women. That the world should be so constituted is taken for granted as the natural, normal and necessary way of things. Of course, it is commonly recognized that biological men and biological women may fail to behave in ways appropriate to their sex-may be too masculine, too feminine or even become transvestites-but such persons are nevertheless always known to be biological men or women, even though they may have "gone wrong." It is always understood that a person is born with a male or a female body, and despite a lifetime of acts that compromise or even reverse normal sex role expectations, this person will continue to live in the body of a


A review of the research literature published in 2007 related to automotive wastes is presented. This includes solid wastes from automotive bodies and tires, and automotive emissions. Published literature related to toxicology and health effects of automotive wastes was also reviewed.


A model for the deposition and wall reaction of molten coal ash slag particle in entrained-flow coal gasifier was proposed.The models of flow,heat and mass transfer,and phase change of slag layer in entrained flow coal gasifier were improved.The method of numerical simulation was developed.Simulations were carried out on a Chinese pilot-scale two-stage dry feed entrained-flow gasifier.The carbon content of slag layer,wall reaction rate,thicknesses of solid slag layer and liquid slag layer,average temperature of slag layer,and average velocity of liquid slag layer were obtained with the proposed model.With increasing oxygen to coal ratio,the thicknesses of solid slag layer and liquid slag layer and carbon content of slag layer at the outlet of gasifier decreased,while the average temperature of slag layer increased.The carbon content of slag was about 14%,and carbon conversion of the gasifier was 95.2%,which agreed with the experiment data.It was revealed that wall reaction had significant effects on carbon conversion,carbon content of slag,flow and temperature of slag layer in the gasifier.It might affect the reliability of practical operation of the gasifier.


ABSTRACT The effects of oil–water two-phase-stratified flow rates, inlet water cut and pipe inclinations on the characteristics of the interfacial wave were investigated experimentally. The experiment was conducted in a transparent acrylic tube with 20 mm ID, from horizontal to inclined (0°, +3°, +5°, and +10°), using water and No.15 industrial white oil (11.984 mPa·s at 40°C) as test fluids. A high-speed digital camera has been equipped for visualization and a pair of conductivity probes for oil–water interface height measurement. The stratified flow pattern at different pipe inclinations and wave celerity were obtained using a camera. In addition, from the time series of the conductivity probes, the wave amplitude and wavelength were calculated. Results showed that the interfacial wave characteristics are strongly affected by flow rates, inlet water cut and pipe inclinations, and the analysis of these effects are based on the stabilizing force and destabilizing force of the oil–water flow.


The morphological transformation of an arched ribbon driven by torsion is a scientific problem that is connected with daily life and requires thorough analysis. An arched ribbon can achieve an instantaneous high speed through energy transformation and then return to the original shape of the structure. In this paper, based on the characteristics of the ribbon structure, the dynamic mathematical model of the arched ribbon driven by torsion is established from the Kirchhoff rod equation. The variations of the Euler angle of each point on the center line of the ribbon with the arc coordinate s and the rotation angle of the supports $\phi$ was examined. The relationship between the internal force distribution of each point in the direction of $\hat{d}_{a}$ and the material, cross-sectional properties, and rotation angle of the supports was obtained. We used ABAQUS, a nonlinear finite element analysis tool, to simulate the morphological transformations of the ribbons, verified our theory with simulation results, and reproduced the experimental results of Sano. Furthermore, we redefined the concept of the ``critical flipping point'' of Sano. In this paper, the dimensional analysis method was used to fit the simulation data. The following relationship between the critical width $ w ^{*} $, thickness h, and the radius R of the ribbon with different cross sections was obtained: $w^{*}=A\cdot R\left(h/R\right)^{0.6}$, where A is 3.19 for rectangular cross sections and 3.06 for elliptical cross sections. By analyzing the simulation data, we determined the variation behavior of the out-of-plane deflection of the center point of the ribbon with the radius R, width w, and thickness h. Our research has guiding significance for understanding and designing arched ribbons driven by torsion, and the results can be applied to problems of different scales.


Diane Miller Sommerville unearths how before and after secession, as well as following Confederate defeat, northerners and southerners employed "the language of self-destruction," "the political rhetoric of suicide," to accentuate the severity of the political crisis that befell them. Americans above and below the Mason-Dixon line had long considered suicide abhorrent. During the secession crisis they identified disunion as a self-inflicted and unforgivable death blow to the republic that the Founders had established. Over time, however, as Sommerville shows through her close reading of numerous texts, especially newspapers, a competing version of suicide emerged in the post-Civil War South.


We studied the morphological modifications that the adherent human cells of aged subjects show in short term cultures in an atmosphere containing 5% CO2, in comparison with young controls. The sequential variations in the morphological aspect are nearly the same of the young subject, but they seem to occur late, during the observations at 2,4,8,20 hours.


Anganwadis are staffed by officers and their helper s, who are typically women from poor families. The workers do not have permanent jobs with comprehensive retirement benefits like other government staff. Wo rker protests (by the All India Anganwadi Workers Federation) and public debates on this topic are on-going. There are periodic reports of corruption and crimes again st women in some anganwadi centres. In the backdrop of these problems, the in vestigator made an attempt to find out the accountability of anganwadi workers of Punj ab in relation to some selected personological variables. In the present research, descriptive survey method and stratified random sampling technique was used by th e investigator to collect data from Stratified random sampling technique has been used to select the sample. Two blocks namely Delhon and Khanna of Ludhiana district were selected randomly. 50 AWW were selected randomly from Delhon and Khanna block each to make a total sample of 100 AWW. Self constructed interview schedule , Contact Personality Factor test developed by Raymond B. Cattel and Socio-economic Status Scale developed by R.L Bharadwaj was used by the investigator for research purpose. The result reflects that a) 20% of AWWs were under the age group of 21-30 in Dehlon block, 56% of AWWs were under the age group of 31-40 in Dehlon block, and 24% of AWWs were under the age group of 41-50 in Dehlon block. In Kh anna block, 12% of AWWs were under the age group of 21-30, 60% of AWWs were under the age group of 31-40, and 28% of AWWs were under the age group of 41-50.b) In Dehlon block, 16% AWWs were unmarried, 74% AWWs were married, and 6% AWWs were widow. In Khanna block, 14% AWWs were unmarried, 82% AWWs were married, and 4% AWWs were widow. c) In Dehlon block, 18% AWWs were passed high school, 25% AWWs were passed secondary school, 7% AWWs were passed graduation. In Khanna block, 12% AWWs were passed high school, 32% AWWs were passed secondary school, 6% AWWs were passed graduation. d) In Dehlon block, 42% of Anganwadi workers were under Sc/St caste, 24% of Anganwadi workers were OBC, and 8% of anganwadi worker were belongs to other caste. In Khanna block, 38% of Anganwadi workers were under Sc/St caste, 26% of Anganwadi workers were OBC, and 2% of anganwadi worker were belongs to other caste. e) In Dehlon bl ock, 78% of Anganwadi workers were from Nuclear family, 22% of Anganwadi workers were from Joint family. In Khanna block, 64% of Anganwadi workers were from Nuclear family, 36% of Anganwadi workers were from Joint family. f) In Dehlon block, 20% of Anganwadi workers were from Hindu Religion, 80% of Anganwadi workers were from Sikh Religion. In Khanna block, 18% of Anganwadi workers were from Hindu Religion, 82% of Anganwadi workers were from Sikh Religion. g) In Dehlon block, 2% of AWW was working from more than 15 years as AWW, 30% of AWWs were working from 11-15 years as AWWs, 46% of AWWs were working from 6—10 years, 22% of the AWWS were working from 0—5 years as AWW. In Khanna block, 6% of


ABSTRACT Oats (Avena sativa L.) with similar amylose content were used to investigate the effects of ultra-high pressure treatment (UHPT) on the eating quality of steamed oat and oat protein structure. Water absorption and texture of steamed oat were evaluated and taste analysis was conducted by electronic tongue after a series of UHPT (400–600 MPa; holding time 5–15 min). The oat protein was extracted from the oat and treated with the same UHPT as the steamed oat (400–600 MPa; holding time 5–15 min). The oat protein structure was scanned by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The water absorption rate of oat rice was increased by UHPT. Hardness values of steamed oat were reduced while springiness and cohesiveness were increased by UHPT. The UHPT samples showed significant differences in electronic tongue profiles from that of the original samples. The SEM results indicated that the structure of the protein was greatly affected by UHPT. The impact on protein structure significantly increased with an increasing level of pressure and treatment time. In general, the UHPT has strong potential to improve the texture and flavor of oat and change the structure of oat protein during industrial production.


Distribution of the clay minerals in the Jurassic-Tertiary consolidated sediments of the Kopet Dagh Basin (KD) was investigated to study the origins of the clay minerals and to reconstruct the paleoclimate of the area. The entire sedimentary rock sequences of the KD were sampled for XRD, XRF, high resolution microscopy, and optical microscopy examinations. Illite, illitesmectite (IS) mixed-layer minerals, kaolinite, smectite, chlorite and palygorskite were found in the studied deposits. The presence of the clay minerals in the studied rocks was related partly to deep burial diagenesis and partly to the pedogenetic detrital origins. The thick sediments (total of 6000m) of the Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic suggest the possibility of the burial digenetic origin to explain the high occurrence of illite and low smectite mainly due to the illitization of smectite. Gradual increase in IS and smectite toward the Upper Cretaceous may indicate the gradual disappearance of deep burial diagenesis and the presence of the favorable conditions for the detrital input. The low thickness of the sediments of Upper Cretaceous and younger deposits also confirms the possibility of the detrital pedogenetic origin rather than the burial diagenesis. Smectite was proved to be of the montmorillonite type (dioctahedral). The higher occurrences of IS and smectite and its coexistence with some palygorskite in most parts of the Upper Cretaceous and younger deposits could indicate the prevailing of a semi-arid climate and hot seasonal droughts. Dominance of seasonal and semi-arid conditions extends to all Paleogene and Neogene sediments. Clay mineralogical data is suggested to be used along with other proxies to have a more reliable paleoclimate interpretations. ARTICLE INFO


Computer simulations have long been used as an effective tool in engineering, economics, psychology, and a number of other social sciences. Engineers typically use simulations to predict performance of a system that has known dynamic characteristics. These characteristics are typically obtained from theory and are then articulated in the simulation as difference or differential equations. The goal of engineering simulation is then to assess the dynamic performance of a system based on a priori knowledge of the dynamic relationships among the various elements of the system. Forrester (1961, 1973) was one of the earliest and most influential advocates of simulation modeling of dynamic social systems. Forrester advocated this approach as a way to model and assess the dynamics of industrial and world phenomena. Sterman (2000) provides a recent review of research on dynamics simulation from this tradition. While this approach has produced a considerable number of studies, it too is based on the assumption that the researcher has a priori knowledge of the dynamic relationships among elements of the system. Indeed, many of the results of these models have been criticized for specifying relationships that were at best untested and at worst flawed. In response to these criticisms, more recent interest has focused on redefining the utility of simulations in the social sciences. Rather than using simulations to test the long-term dynamics of systems with known interrelationships, theorists (Carley &


A 100 t/a-bench-scale research apparatus for continuous preparation of bio-diesel by supercritical methanol is established on the basis of laboratory experimental results.The apparatus includes three main parts:a reaction system,a biodiesel refining system and an automatic control system.Soybean oil and methanol are utilized as raw materials in the bench-scale research.The effects of different reaction conditions on the yield of soybean oil to fatty acid methyl esters are investigated.The results show that the bench-scale research apparatus runs satisfactorily and the yield of fatty acid methyl esters exceeds 95% at 300℃ and 15 MPa with methanol to oil molar ratio of 40∶1 and the reaction time of 1 200 s.The reactant mixing state has an important influence on the transesterification.Under the same process conditions,Reynolds number of the reactive mixture in the bench-scale research the apparatus is double as that in the laboratory experimental apparatus,at the same time,mass-transfer coefficient and the yield of fatty acid methyl esters increase.


This paper is a review of how the rise of a new form of Islamic mysticism called Sufism was a major factor in shaping Islamically integrated cultures and political structures throughout West Africa in the 18th century. As the trans-Atlantic slave trade and imperialism resulted in the region becoming more militarized and destabilized, Islamic reformers embraced Sufism and viewed it as a unifying force amongst Muslims against European conquest.


A new sensor structure is proposed for the tasks of target interception and system stabilization. The first task involves changing the vehicle trajectory from a fixed path to match any deviations in the trajectory of a target. The second requires that the vehicle on which the sensor is mounted is rotated about some fixed axes to correct for any pitch and yaw in order to stabilize the image on the sensor.
The proposed sensor structure is unique in that it comprises of hexagonal elements laid on an hemispherical sensor, each of which is a part of two orthogonal, direction sensitive networks. Each of these networks responds to a particular set of directions of deviation. Further, each element is a part of a drift detection network which provides information about the relative motion of the sensor and the target. The direction sensitive networks are used to stabilize the vehicle, whereas the drift detection network is used for target interception.
Each network is implemented using neural networks for a number of reasons: speed of computation, simplicity of implementation, parallelism of neural networks, and their inherent fault tolerance aspects, being the major ones. Each network is trained on an ideal training set using the competitive learning paradigm, an unsupervised cluster seeking mechanism. After the training, the system forms internal representations of the statistically salient features of the input set. This is the input stage to a feature associator, which teaches the network to associate an appropriate output with an input stimulus. The two networks in conjunction form the heart of the interception and stabilization systems.
The algorithms for training the networks are presented, as well as simulation results obtained by using these algorithms. It is shown that the system correctly identifies deviations, and tests for the interception system also provide good results showing adjustments in the sensor trajectory in response to deviations in target trajectory, ensuring that interception still occurs.


The 60 years since the founding of New China,China's national higher education system experienced five stages of development: the old and new institutional transition period,the initial development period,the destruction of the period,recovery and reconstruction period,the deepening of reform period.The 60 Years of Remembrance of the twists and turns of China's national higher education system,from the first national institute set up to 15 National Institute;from the National Institutes of "Cultural Revolution" almost complete withdrawal to the "eleventh plenary Session " full recovery and reconstruction;have held from the Presidency of the five National Institute for Nationalities to "five times the National Education Work Conference" was held;the establishment of the national higher education system from a planned economy to transformation and deepening the reform of the school system in the market economy.Series of historical changes,have confirmed the historical inevitability of the National Higher Education,"the Times",which also test an important historical research value.


An experimental motor installation is presented on the base of a small sized marine diesel 2CH 9.5/11, allowing to conduct experimental studies of a gas-diesel cycle at its organizations in the given diesel at different forms of the combustion chamber. The paper shows the results of the experimental studies of external factors of the functioning of the marine diesel 2CH 9.5/11at different ways of mixture formation (swirl-chamber diesel and diesel with the combustion chamber of the type CDRI, located in the piston). The results are presented at engines functioning on screw and load characteristics. The analysis of the received results is given. These results will be later used as a starting point for comparison at the investigation of a gas-diesel cycle.


The sports is one of the most population society culture phenomena, it has all kinds of contact with other society phenomena. This kind of contact influence the human's society process every time. Therefore, we should make good use of was of the special function of the physical education at school. Make correct use of the guide meaning that fair competition, conflict and cooperation to develop the students' helpfulness compete consciousness, less conflict and strength of the spirit of cooperation. In society process, let students make contribution to our nation prosperity.


Financial derivatives are financial instruments that "derive" value from an underlying item such as an asset or index. The use of derivatives provides exposure to the linked underlying item without necessitating the trade or exchange of the item itself. This allows specific risks, such as commodity or equity price fluctuations, to be traded in financial markets. Many derivatives are traded on exchanges such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) or over the counter (OTC). The main purposes of derivatives are risk control, arbitrage, and speculation. Derivatives allow risk of the underlying asset or index to be transferred between entities. This permits intermediary financial institutions and other entities that are more capable or knowledgeable about the specific risk to manage these risks. The latest buzzword ready to hit Indian financial markets is Derivative. Derivatives are wasting assets, which derive their values from an underlying asset. These underlying assets are of various categories like equity, bonds, commodities etc. For example, a dollar forward is a derivative contract, which gives the buyer a right & an obligation to buy dollars at some future date. The prices of the derivatives are driven by the spot prices of these underlying assets. The present paper includes detailed role of futures and options in Indian derivative markets.


Two near-infrared spectrometers (NIR) were tested at various points in the avocado value chain. The first was a handheld unit for estimating dry matter content. When measurements were taken with the fruit skin removed, the R2 = 83% and SEP = 2.25% DM for 'Fuerte', 'Hass', and 'Mendez #1' ('Carmen®-Hass') combined. A comparison between the conventional method to determine dry matter and this NIR method, showed that, on an orchard basis, 76% of the DM-values being within 1.5% DM of each other. After a robust model has been developed, handheld NIR can be used to quickly determine dry matter of avocados preand postharvest. The second unit was a packline-mounted T1 unit from Taste Technologies for application in a packhouse or ripening facility. On hard fruit, the unit was able to eliminate class 1 fruit with orchard cold (frost) damage with accuracy of up to 90%, depending on severity of the damage. This unit was used on a semi-commercial basis at Westfalia Packhouse in 2014. Furthermore, it was able to estimate dry matter with a standard error of prediction (SEP) of 1.9% DM and R2 = 76% comparable to the handheld unit. For ripe fruit, the T1 was able to detect diffuse flesh discolouration (grey pulp) with an accuracy of about 80%, depending on severity. Other disorders and diseases were not consistently detected due to the isolated nature of these defects in the fruit flesh. The economic feasibility of online NIR is complex and needs to be determined case by case.


Abstract : This project has focused on the development of new highly-efficient, selective catalysts for widely-used commercial and biological reactions of carboxylic and phosphoric acids and their derivatives. The first phase of the project included the design and synthesis of linear, water-soluble polymers that are expected to self-organize in aqueous solution to form lipophilic substrate- binding domains adjacent to catalytic sites effective in transacylation reactions. The second phase of this work has dealt with the continuing evaluation of synthetic catalysts and the development of new methods for detailed structural characterization of these polymeric materials. Prof. R.G. Cooks (Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN) has been a key collaborator in this effort. The ultimate aim of this phase of the investigation is to ascertain the limits of substrate-selectivity for linear, synthetic polymeric catalysts.


1. Van der Feen DE, Kurakula K, Tremblay E, Boucherat O, Bossers GP, Szulcek R, et al. Multicenter preclinical validation of BET inhibition for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2019;200:910–920. 2. Piquereau J, Boet A, Péchoux C, Antigny F, Lambert M, Gressette M, et al. The BET bromodomain inhibitor I-BET-151 induces structural and functional alterations of the heart mitochondria in healthy male mice and rats. Int J Mol Sci 2019;20:1527. 3. Nicholls SJ, Ray KK, Johansson JO, Gordon A, Sweeney M, Halliday C, et al. Selective BET protein inhibition with apabetalone and cardiovascular events: a pooled analysis of trials in patients with coronary artery disease. Am J Cardiovasc Drugs 2018;18:109–115.


The subject of the alleviation of pain is one of the oldest in the history of medicine, dating from the misty ages when certain criminals who were sentenced to the lash drank decoctions of stupefying drugs in order to render the perception of its sting less acute, down through the centuries until only within the last seventyfive years has anesthesia become a reality. It is true that refrigeration by means of ice packs, ether and ethyl chlorid sprays, pressure upon nerve trunks, etc., has been employed for many years, but it was not until 1884, with the discovery of the anesthetic properties of cocain, that true local anesthesia, as we now understand the term, was induced. In the following year, 1885, Halstedt successfully anesthetized the mandible, using conductive anesthesia with cocain. Local and spinal anesthesia were practiced widely for a time, and, while


Title An Evaluation of a Displacement Estimation Method by an Iteration Method for a Four Degrees of Freedom Capacitive Force Sensor [an abstract of dissertation and a summary of dissertation review] Author(s) 村上, 知里 Citation 北海道大学. 博士(情報科学) 甲第11302号 Issue Date 2014-03-25 Doc URL http://hdl.handle.net/2115/55550 Rights(URL) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.1/jp/ Type theses (doctoral abstract and summary of review) Additional Information There are other files related to this item in HUSCAP. Check the above URL. File Information Chisato_Murakami_abstract.pdf (論文内容の要旨)


A new approach to the Learning Weighted Metrics method for optimized classification of data with 1-NN rule is proposed. New approach is based on application of updating rule similar to one of Madaline neural network, and on dynamic optimization of the step size similar to Runge's method of half step. A short theory is given and the classification ability is demonstrated.


The integreted-systematic method of grassland classification was used to classify the high-mountain rangeland in Tian zhu and 5 subclasses and 10 different types of grassland were selected as sampling plots- The method of no-bottom sampling basket were used to take grasshoppers in different sarnpling plots by no put-back sampling- The sampling data were treated by cluster analysis. The differences and laws of grasshopper distributions among different grassland types were analysised and discussed from the species and quantity of grasshoppers. The main results and conclusions were obtained as follows: (1)The similarty of grasshopper species among sampling plots depended not only on the vegetation form but also on the habitat; (2)The population quantity of grasshoppers in each habitat depended on the habitats' fitness for grasshoppers, and the fitness was judged by species presence; (3)The population quantity of grasshopper grew and declined with the development stages of forage grasses, in grassland terrace however, the dynamics depended on the population quantity of Chorthtwusfallx (Zub.).


âĂć Can you show that this method using SPEI performs better for the Iberian Peninsula? How does it compare with other indices (say SPI) for the same purpose? Can you validate its applicability for the outcomes (hydrological/ ecological/ agricultural) on different time-scales? It should be fairly easy to show like Vicente-Serrano et al., 2012 did (for global and continental scales) that SPEI is better than SPI (and PDSI) for vari-


Aim: to determine the role of corneal hysteresis (CH) as the predictors of glaucomatous optic neuropathy (GON) progression in a comparative aspect with morpho-functional parameters. Patients and Methods: 128 (173 eyes) patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG) were observed in a retrospective study. All patients were divided into two groups: group 1 — with no GON progression, group 2 — with GON progression. The observation period lasted 7 years. Corneal-compensated intraocular pressure (IOP) and CH, as well as morpho-functional parameters: perimetric indexes (MD, PSD), retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), ganglion cell complex (GCC), global loss volume (GLV) and focal loss volume (FLV) — were examined as the predictors of GON along with other clinical parameters. Results: the study determined the diagnostic significance of the parameters as predictors of glaucomatous optic neuropathy progression — AUC (estimation of the area under the characteristic ROC-curve). It was found that the groups statistically significantly differ by the following indicators: corneal hysteresis (AUC 0.640±057, p=0.006), age (AUC 0.612±0.051, p=0.006), MD (AUC 0.710±0.066, p=0.001), PSD (AUC 0.681±0.066, p=0.006), RNFL (AUC 0.620±0.041, p=0.007) and FLV (AUC 0.617±0.050, p=0.008). Conclusion: despite the fact that most researchers agree that IOP is a leading factor in the progression of the disease, in recent years, a thesis that the corneal hysteresis is more prognostically important is heard more often. Thus, in the course of the study, the initial low level of CH, but not the initial IOP, was associated with the GON progression. Other significant factors were the age of patients and the degree of glaucomatous lesion, characterized by perimetric indexes and the retinal nerve fiber layer, as well as the focal loss volume of its ganglion cell complex.


Applying the optimization methods to design for products as optimization problems is increasingly spreading. Since these methods can make design processes more efficient, we should also use them when designing power electronic converters. Design processes for power electronics converters are roughly classified into electrical circuit parameters, geometric properties of parts, and alignment of parts. These processes are studied as optimization problems individually and are combined into a series of design processes. However, since they are not strictly independent, solutions with low manufacturability may be derived. Therefore, the design process becomes inefficient because of the iterative calculations to get manufacturable solutions. In this paper, to reduce the iterative calculations, we propose the design process that simultaneously solves two of the above three optimization problems, electrical circuit parameters, and geometric properties of parts. On the other hand, calculation time for simulations becomes longer, so we substitute the machine learning model for simulations. The feasibility of the proposed process was validated through the design for a wireless power transfer system. Because of the machine learning model, the calculation time was reduced by 70%, and the range of designs could be expanded by 1.5 times.


The development of recombinant DNA technology during the past decade has allowed the production of useful peptides and proteins a t the industrial level. However, the importance of recombinant DNA instability must be recognized for the scaleup of fermentation processes.'-3 A variety of experimental approaches to overcoming plasmid instability have been proposed. One of the most widely used methods is the addition of an antibiotic to the culture medium; however, in a large-scale preparation, this would be expensive. A recently developed method involves the use of a plasmid that gives a host the ability to produce bacteriocins that are lethal to plasmid-free bacteria of the same host type.4 Other techniques involving the use of temperature-sensitive systems or two-stage continuous culture rea~tors ,~ , ' ,~ or the insertion of the Sop+ gene of the F plasmid and the par B+ of the R, plasmid' and the use of substrate inhibition effects on the growth of plasmid-free bacteria,' have also been exploited. On the other hand, the application of immobilized-cell reactors has been emphasized in order to increase cell concentration, prevent cell washout, and increase the productivity of the plasmid-coded gene product. Inloes et al.,9 Mosbach et al.,'' Dhulster et al.," Georgiou et al.,I2 and Kanayama et aZ.I3 have studied recombinant protein production by immobilized bacteria. Some authors have shown that the immobilization of recombinant microorganisms may increase plasmid ~tabi l i ty . '~'~ The main objective of this work was to examine the maintenance conditions of a stable population of plasmid-carrying cells during continuous culture without selection pressure by using the immobilization of recombinant E . coli within carrageenan gel beads.


We have measured the strongly suppressed electric tensor polarizability of the Cs ground state using an optical pump-probe technique in a thermal atomic beam. The result ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{2}(F=4)/h=\ensuremath{-}{3.34(2)}_{\mathrm{stat}}{(25)}_{\mathrm{syst}}$ ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}8}\mathrm{Hz}/(\mathrm{V}/\mathrm{c}\mathrm{m}{)}^{2}$ agrees with a previous measurement and confirms the long-standing discrepancy with a theoretical value. The anticipated future reduction of the total uncertainty to the 1% level makes this quantity a valuable test for atomic structure calculations involving short-range inner-atomic interactions.


The regularity properties of impulse trains in pulse-transmission neural networks are examined. The author describes how a single network can have both regular and irregular pulse trains. Circuits that translate irregular to regular pulses and regular to irregular pulses are proposed


Magnetic Field Imaging (MFI) is a widely used technique in the Semiconductor industry for non-destructive Electrical Fault Isolation (EFI) for shorts, leakages and opens. When the devices shrink and the mobile electronics industry has a more strict criteria for speed with low power consumption, making High Resistance Opens (HRO) failures more important to detect. We show in this paper two cases in which magnetic field phase analysis using MFI helped localize HRO failures that were causing delays and slower speed in addition to higher power consumption.


Developing a wide field of view (FOV) optical see-through (OST) head mounted display (HMD) has been a challenge for decades. Naturally, the actual effects of a wide FOV OST display on the perception of augmentations have not been widely studied either. We previously proposed a wide FOV head mounted projective display (HMPD) using a hyperboloidal semitransparent mirror and a semi-transparent retroreflective screen, called the wearable HHMPD [1]. Main features of the wearable HHMPD include a horizontal FOV of 110 degrees and a visual acuity of around 20/200. Using the wearable HHMPD, we then conducted a user study investigating the effects of a wide FOV in augmented reality (AR) [2]. Results show that target discovery rates consistently drop with in-view labelling and increase with in-situ labelling as display angle approaches 100 degrees of FOV. Past this point, the performances of the two view management methods begin to converge, suggesting equivalent discovery rates at approximately 130 degrees of FOV. Results also indicate that users exhibited lower discovery rates for targets appearing in peripheral vision, and that there is little impact of FOV on response time and mental workload.


Economic and social cooperation through the United Nations seems destined to face new challenges and alternatives in the coming years as a result of the changed composition of the United Nations membership, the increased bargaining power of the African, Asian, and other states seeking economic and technical assistance, and the precedent of UN operations in the Congo.


The purpose of the project discussed in this article was to set up a computerized catalog and distribution database of alternative materials for visually impaired people in Nigeria. The project was based on the need to open wider the gates of information resources, nationally and internationally, to this category of information users by identifying the location and availability of resources throughout Nigeria and creating a database for access and retrieval. Another purpose was to create a template for database entry, which could be replicated by other developing countries. A state-by-state survey of educational institutions, state libraries, and nongovernmental organizations serving the visually impaired in all of the thirty-six states of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was conducted. Three sets of data were gathered from a template for data entry of alternative materials and two questionnaires for institutions and the blind and visually impaired students. A database was designed and created using Microsoft Access. An American Disability Act (ADA) compliant Web site was designed, which has a "text-only" version for browsing by visually impaired persons (see www.alvi-laris.org).


Non‐coding RNAs have been reported to participate in the pathophysiology of neuropathic pain. The objective of our study was to investigate the biological role of XIST in neuropathic pain development. In our study, we identify and validate that lncRNA XIST was markedly increased and miR‐137 was significantly decreased in chronic constriction injury (CCI) rats. XIST silencing alleviated pain behaviors including both mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia in the CCI rats. XIST was predicted to interact with miR‐137 by bioinformatics technology and dual‐luciferase reporter assays confirmed the correlation between XIST and miR‐137. miR‐137 was negatively modulated by XIST and upregulation of miR‐137 greatly reduced neuropathic pain development in CCI rats. Moreover, we observed that tumor necrosis factor alpha‐induced protein 1 (TNFAIP1) was enhanced in CCI rats and 3′‐untranslated region (UTR) of TNFAIP1 was exhibited to be a target of miR‐137 by bioinformatics prediction. TNFAIP1 can act as a crucial inflammation regulator by activating NF‐kB activity. Overexpression of miR‐137 significantly suppressed TNFAIP1 both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, upregulation of XIST reversed the inhibitory role of miR‐137 in neuropathic pain development by inhibiting TNFAIP1. In conclusion, our current study indicates that XIST can positively regulate neuropathic pain in rats through regulating the expression of miR‐137 and TNFAIP1. Our results imply that XIST/miR‐137/TNFAIP1 axis may serve as a novel therapeutic target in neuropathic pain.


In order to adapt to the trend of digitized and integrated design of satellite, it is integrated that Satellite Tools Kit (STK) with great demonstration and verification and satellite orbit design software faced to customer by STK/CON function. From the viewpoint of satellite customer, digital platform for satellite orbit design and mission analysis is built. It is provided with design, demonstration, verification and great data report and access, according to different missions of respective satellite customer. The platform is used to optimize and verify the project of satellite orbit design during the development stage.


Employing small size aerial robots, acting as mobile airborne sensors, to work alongside ground robots can be extremely useful in many different robotic missions. Due to the strict constraints in terms of size, weight, 3D coverage, processing power and power consumption. There are not many technological possibilities for performing independent self-localization for such tiny robots. This paper describes a cooperative audio-visual localization system to robustly estimate the position of a small aerial robot from a ground robot. Experimental results with a 40-gram quadrotor assess the performance of the system and demonstrate the reliability gained through fusion of sound measurements with visual information.


To collect, manage and distribute traffic information, the Swedish National Road Administration (SNRA) uses a common national system, TRISS (TRaffic Information Support System). The TRISS system is today in use at all traffic information centres in Sweden. All information is replicated between the centres and whenever needed, one centre can act as a stand-in for any other centre. In addition to SNRA's internal information (roadworks, road conditions, frost damages etc...), the TRISS system also deals with information from other sources such as SOS Alarm, Swedish National Radio and the police force. Based on the information entered in TRISS, RDS-TMC messages are automatically generated and transmitted on the RDS channel. For the covering abstract, see IRRD 490001.


This study presents the results of the last developments made on the reduction of the noise radiated by circular saw blades at the Acoustic and vibration group of Sherbrooke laboratory. The reduction of noise has been made on both the free running or idling noise and the cutting noise. Our experiments showed that the free running noise is generated by the motion of teeth and gullet at high speed in the air which creates turbulences. Those turbulences can be significantly decreased as the dimensions of gullets are well chosen. The cutting noise is generated by saw blade vibrations excited by the cutting force. As the cutting force can not be easily reduced the cutting noise has been reduced using modal analysis techniques results and materials with high damping properties


A general method of characterizing symmetry equivalence and non-equivalence in a molecule is developed on the basis of the one-one correspondence between an orbit and a coset representation. This method provides us with a theoretical foundation to understand anisochrony in rotatable ligands. A given molecule is regarded as a combination of a three-dimensional skeleton and ligands. The ligand is referred to as a segment or a fragment according to its environment. Thus, the fragment is defined as a ligand-in-isolation; and the segment denotes a ligand built into a molecule. The symmetry of the ligand as a fragment is restricted to the local symmetry. This restriction is examined by using methyl and methylene ligands as examples. A methyl fragment has a homospheric C3v(/Cs) orbit that consists of three hydrogen atoms. On the other hand, a methylene fragment has an enantiospheric Cs(/C1) orbit that contains two hydrogen atoms. Such an orbit is incorporated into various molecules to afford restricted orbits, w...


Digital predistortion (DPD) is a baseband signal processing technique that corrects for impairments in RF power amplifiers (PAs). These impairments cause out-of-band emissions or spectral regrowth and in-band distortion, which correlate with an increased bit error rate (BER). Wideband signals with a high peak-to-average ratio, are more susceptible to these unwanted effects. So to reduce these impairments, this paper proposes the modeling of the digital predistortion for the power amplifier using GSA algorithm.


In this paper, Compton  profile for Tungsten (W) was computed by  employing both the RFA and FE models setting several electronic configurations in subset (5d-6s). same were done for copper (Cu) by chosen (3d-4s) subshells, these Results were compared with recent experimental data, these study are extended to the electronic state in (W0.60 Cu0.40, W0.72 Cu0.28) alloys. The superposition are adopted to calculate the total C.P for the two alloys, where the calculated values for W& Cu of the constituent are used, the available measured data on both alloys are in very good agreement with the superposition of Compton profiles of the pure constituent metales .


The aim of this research is to identify the management strategy done by star hotels in Bali in dealing with pandemi situation of Covid 19. It is descriptive qualitative research with virtual interview techniques and literature review. The reseach found out some similarities and differences held by star hotel management in facing the covid 19 situatioan. Both The Westin Resort Nusa Dua and Wyndham Garden Kuta Beach Bali apply the hotel management internal strategy carried out in facing the pandemi situation. They also implement efficiency and effectiveness in order to survive. These hotels are different in generic strategy. The Westin Resort Nusa Dua uses generic strategy based on Poster theory (1985), and functional strategy. Meanwhile Wyndham Garden Kuta Beach uses a Strategic Recovery Plan which inspired by the theory of Business Continuity or Disaster Recovery Plan that consists of 6 phases and 3 strategy steps to ensure the plan is implemented properly.


Simple and also low in energy consumption, by removing the solvent from the copolymer solution containing the copolymer, a method for absorbing market share is producing a high copolymer, separating the solvent from the copolymer solution comprising the following step A ~ C and it relates to a production method to obtain a copolymer. The solid content concentration (Ts) of the process A) copolymer solution, in weight percent process for the preparation in a range of 5 ≤ Ts ≤ 60; Step of the copolymer solution obtained in the step B) Step A, a temperature T (℃) is heated to a certain range; Step C) the copolymer solution is heated in the step B, the step of from the particular nozzle linear velocity of 1 ~ 100 m / sec discharging, and remove the solvent under an inert gas flow of 0 ~ 200 ℃.


Four species are recognized in the understorey palm genus Johannesteijsmannia (Arecaceae), all of which occur in close geographical proximity in the Malay Peninsula. We hypothesize that overlapping distributions are maintained by a lack of gene flow among species and that segregation along morphological trait or environmental axes confers ecological divergence and, hence, defines species limits. Although some species have sympatric distributions, differentiation was detected among species in morphological and genetic data, corroborating current species delimitation. Differences in niche breadth were not found to explain the overlapping distribution and coexistence of Johannesteijsmannia spp. Four species formed over the last 3 Mya, showing that diversity accumulated within a short time frame and wide range expansion has not occurred, potentially due to a lack of time for dispersal or the evolution of traits to facilitate movement. An assessment of genetic diversity is presented and, as expected, the widest distribution in the genus harbours the highest genetic diversity. (C) 2016 The Linnean Society of London.


Pentamethyldisilane pyrolysis results in the formation of trimethylsilane and heptamethyltrisilane as the major products. Detailed analytical data at a variety of times, supplemented by runs in the presence of ethanol and buta-1,3-diene at temperatures in the range 591–639 K support the occurrence of the reaction Me3SiSiMe2H → Me3SiH + SiMe2(1), followed by a variety of scavenging steps of SiMe2. Kinetic tests show that reaction (1) is unimolecular and homogeneous and fits the Arrhenius equation: log(k1/s–1)=(12.83 ± 0.18)–(195.1 ± 2.0 kJ mol–1)/RT ln 10, where the error limits are two standard deviations. This equation is in good agreement with previous experimental estimates. The A factor, unusually low for a dissociation process, is interpreted as support for a two-stage mechanism for step (1), which proceeds via an intermediate complex. Kinetic modelling of the full analytical data up to > 70% conversion reveals that in the temperature range 615 ± 24 K, SiMe2 reacts 11 times faster with Si2Me5H than with Me3SiH, but 60 times slower with ethanol than with Me3SiH.


Information-Centric Networking, which is also called Content-Centric Networking (CCN), is the vowing candidate for the Future Internet. ICN has many aspects, e.g., Naming, Routing, and Caching, etc. but in the past five years, caching gained a tremendous attraction by the research community. In ICN, caching is of two types, i.e., off-path caching and on-path caching. On-path caching is also known as in-network caching, where routers cache content items for some time before sending them to the desired destination(s). For ICN caching, many strategies have been proposed, for example, Leave Copy Everywhere (LCE), Leave Copy Down (LCD), Centrality-based caching, Most Popular Caching (MPC), and many more. The authors of MPC claim that it outperforms all existing strategies, however, it utilizes maximum memory during content caching. In this paper, we propose a mechanism for content caching, named Content Eviction Mechanism (CEM), and compare our results with LCE and MPC in OPNET Modeler 18.0. Our simulation results show that CEM predominantly outperforms LCE and MPC.


[Objective]To evaluate the effect of Oxymatrine capsule on chronic hepatitis B(CHB). [Methods] 100 cases of CHB were randomly divided into treatment group (50 cases) and control group (50 cases), HBVM、HBVDNA were detected before and after 26-week-long treatment. [Results]Negative conxversionratio of HBeAg(42.0%) and HBVDNA(44.0%) of treatment group was significantly higher than that(4.0%, 4.0% respectively) of control group(P0.01) .[Conclusion] Oxymatrine capsule has obvious effect on HBV.


ABSTRACT This paper discusses the possible contributions of the Foucauldian discourse analysis (FDA) to the exploration of the person-centered approach (PCA) hence relating Michel Foucault to Carl Rogers. Different paths lead us to similar forms of understanding concerning meaning, discourses, subjective experience, personal power, self-actualization, epimeleia heautou (care of the self), parrhesia and eventually, history as ethics and process. Discourse analysis which focuses on language constitutes a privileged field for this consideration. More precisely, FDA proposes a crucial methodological tool to meet and evaluate possible constructions of PCA as a therapeutic approach in theory and practice. In association with them, gender construction is durable and always present. Therefore, we use a research study having as reference the gender construction by person-centered therapists in order to implement a concrete apprehension of the methodological significance of FDA considering PCA in theory and practice.


Introduction Symphony No. 1 Symphony No. 2 Symphony No. 3 Symphony No. 4 Symphony No. 5 Symphony No. 6 Symphony No. 7 Symphony No. 8 Das Lied von der Erde Symphony No. 9 Symphony No. 10 Bibliography Index to Conductors Index to Orchestras Index to Soloists Index to Choruses Index to Record Labels


Neurons are interconnected with one another to form circuits, much as electronic components are wired together to form a functional circuit. Many neural circuits together form a neural system, just as many electronic circuits together form a device such as a computer or a TV. The connections in neural circuits can be classified into a few basic patterns: Divergence. Output from one neuron onto many. Each postsynaptic neuron receives input from the same presynaptic neuron, but may react to it differently. Figure 6-1. In a divergent neural circuit, the axon of one neuron branches to send information to multiple target neurons. Divergent output allows the same signal to reach many different neurons. Convergence. Output from many neurons onto one. Many different presynaptic neurons provide input to a single postsynaptic neuron. These inputs may be excitatory or inhibitory, and may be active at different times. Figure 6-2. In a convergent neural circuit, the axons of multiple neurons all send information to a single target neuron. Convergent output allows different signals to reach one neuron for comparison or integration.


Introduction of substitution atoms into carbon nanotubes is an efficient tool of controlling their physicochemical properties which allows one to expand their practical applications. Boron is one of the most promising materials used for the modification of carbon nanotubes. However until now there has been no systematization of research data on the effect of boron impurity atoms on the properties of carbon nanotubes, and this limits potential industrial applications of this nanomaterial. In this work the most efficient currently existing methods of synthesizing carbon nanotubes containing boron impurity atoms have been discussed and the physicochemical properties of the obtained nanomaterials have been analyzed. Furthermore predictions as to their potential application domains have been made on the basis of available theoretical and experimental results. Comparison of the developed technologies has shown that the most efficient synthesis method is the catalytic vapor phase deposition. The mechanical, electronic and chemical properties of boron-carbon nanotubes have also been reviewed. For a more comprehensive analysis of the dependence of the physicochemical properties of carbon nanotubes on the concentration of boron impurity a model experiment has been carried out involving quantum mechanics instruments which has shown a direct correlation between the band gap of the material and the number of boron impurity atoms. The main practical application trends of boron-containing carbon nanotubes have been outlined.


i n c reased interest in health information with IT and the Internet (or intranets) playing a leading role. I found this an excellent overview only marred by the IT focus limiting the geographical coverage – with the honourable exception of Vietnam. Alan Gilchrist's chapter is entitled 'Research and Consultancy', but really covers only research. He initially describes the diff e rences between the two but then explains that the results of consultancy are kept confidential and thus writing a chapter on this area is nearly impossible. My exper i e n c e in 'grey literature' has been the same, with many project evaluation reports being unavailable, meaning the same mistakes occur. The context of LIS re s e a rch is well presented, covering funding, funders, and 'the big issues'. The latter includes electronic libraries, internet, electronic publishing, user domain, information retrieval, management issues and value for money. Clearly, very IT focused. H o w e v e r, even within this it is interesting to note the re t u r n to the user, i.e. issues of how people search rather than the IT per se. Given the remit, the geographical focus is clearly Europe and North America, with a heavy bias to the UK. Beryl Morris's chapter on teamwork is again very subject focused but with a good overview of the issues. Financial and organizational context is clearly laid out. The changing nature of the re q u i red skills is pre s e n t e d ; while IT is mentioned, here it is clearly the leadership, political and communication skills that are needed to survive. Other issues such as staff security are included and the chapter ends with an excellent section on 'Keeping-up-to date with the literature'. Jagtar Singh's section on 'Librarianship and Information Work in S.E. Asia' is the last and worth waiting for. He defines this area as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. He clearly separates the last three countries as being smaller and less developed. The subject covered range from publishing; library services; reader/user education; public, academic, school and special libraries; automation and networks; training and education; management and pre s e r v a t i o n . Jagtar warns the reader of the difficulty in obtaining what literature there is. While much of the literature is clearly f rom India, the geographical coverage for each subject are a is excellent (including IT developments and re f e re n c e s lacking from some other chapters) with explanations when this is not possible. The social context of LIS is clearly laid out with a call for government leadership in this area. Given the nature of the book, Paul Sturges's epilogue can really do no more than state what is obvious from the chapters – the world is changing rapidly and thus so is the profession. For all of the above criticism, I have found the book an invaluable tool in my subject areas and for re f e rences for the Pacific Islands. Not only is it highly readable and intro d u c e d me to subjects I had previously only touched upon. My one criticism is the poor geographical coverage overall. While the SE Asia chapter (and certain others) to some extent offset this, a move back to more than one geographical chapter may be necessary if the series is to be truly re p re s e n t a ttive of 'Librarianship and Information Work Wo r l d w i d e'. If I am not asked to review this book again next year, I will unfortunately be forced to purchase it.


ABSTRACT The Implementation of PLAN (Predict, Locate,Add, and Note) to Improve Reading Comprehension Skills of Eleventh Grade Students of MAN Tambakberas Jombang Rizqiana, Annisa. 2016. The Implementation of PLAN (Predict, Locate, Add, Note) to Improve Reading Comprehension Skill of Eleventh Grade Students of MAN Tambakberas Jombang. Thesis, Department of English, Faculty of Letters, State University of Malang. Advisors: (I) Prof. Dr. Gunadi Harry Sulistyo M.A., (II) Dr. Suharmanto M.Pd. Key words: reading comprehension, report texts, PLAN Strategy This Classroom Action Research is performed to solve the problems experienced by the students of XI MIPA 1 of MAN Tambakberas Jombang. Based on the results of the preliminary study, it was found that XI MIPA 1 students had reading comprehension problems. To solve these problems, it was decided to implement PLAN Strategy to enhance the teaching and learning of reading in the classroom to improve the students' reading comprehension on report texts. The study was conducted in the cycle which consisted of four stages namely planning the action, implementing the action, observing the action, and reflecting the action. The subjects of the study are eleventh grade students of MAN Tambakberas Jombang, class XI MIPA 1 comprising 24 students. In this study, the collected data were the students' reading score to identify whether the students make a progress in reading comprehension, interview guide, students' questionnaire, observation checklist toward the teacher's and students' activities and performance during the implementation of the PLAN Strategy teaching and learning process, and field notes to note the data beyond the coverage of the observation checklist. The research shows that the implementation of the PLAN Strategy in the teaching learning of reading comprehension can improve the students' comprehension skill. The researcher, together with the English teacher determined the criteria of success. It can be identified that after the implementation of the action there is an improvement in the number of students who got the score greater or equal to 75 in the cycle were 21 out of 24 students or 87, 5%. It fulfilled the criterion of the success in terms of the score improvement that is 80% students passed the minimum passing grade 75. Moreover, the students gave the positive responses toward the implementation of the PLAN Strategy in the teaching and learning reading. This study provides an alternative medium for teaching reading the text. During the implementation of the strategy, the students are assigned to work in groups. Based on the findings, it is suggested that English teachers implement the PLAN Strategy as an alternative teaching technique especially in teaching reading in the classroom in order to improve the students' reading comprehension skill. For other researchers, this study can be a reference to conduct the same or even different settings and subjects.


This paper chronicles the evolution and content of an integrated MBA (IMBA) at the University of Denver and relates an IS-oriented view of the curriculum integration and teaching experience. The study emphasizes IS faculty efforts to integrate curricula from the traditional MIS course into three of the seven team-taught, interdisciplinary IMBA courses. Their teaching experiences illustrate pedagogy, and ensuing sections summarize student feedback and provide insights on what appears to work and what does not, as well as what remains to be done.A process is recommended to MIS faculty for infusing IS topics into an integrated curriculum. Gaining respect from other faculty for teaching the use and management of IT beyond its use for personal productivity, and incorporating IS into multiple class sections with scarce IS faculty resources are major problems. What appears to work best for MIS faculty is to attend curriculum discussions with (1) an appreciation of what IS/IT knowledge is essential for an MBA to (a) understand IS contributions to the solution of business problems and (b) participate in systems development activities to obtain (and later manage) IT applications; and (2) a willingness to look for opportunities to position IS/IT topics to complement other curricula.


Nearly 20 years ago I (David Dinges) was asked by my sleep medicine colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine if I would join them in developing studies of adherence to contin...


The distribution laws' composition of the permanent, long-term temporary, snow and wind loads acting on the structure of buildings and structures is estimated. The following load distribution laws are respectively adopted: normal, logarithmically normal, Gumbel and Weibull. The calculation of the four main central statistical moments was carried out, the approximate distribution law for the generalized load was established by the expansion method in a Gram-Charlier series, as well as the magnitude of its statistical variability. The characteristics of the load variability are compared with the approximate solution of A.N. Dobromyslov. The results obtained are intended for the practical solution of the problems of assessing the safety and residual life of buildings and structures using the reliability theory methods.


The influence of laser parameters in welding aluminum alloys was studied in order to reduce hot cracking. The extension of cracks at the welding surface was used as a cracking susceptibility (CS) index. It has been shown that the CS changes with changing welding velocity for binary Al-Cu alloys. In general, the CS index increased until a maximum velocity and then dropped to zero, generating a typical l-curve. This curve is due to two different mechanisms: 1) the refinement of porosities with increasing velocity and 2) the changes in the liquid fraction due to decreasing microsegregation with increasing velocities.


Polystyrene can be fractionated with supercritical propane.The main advantage of supercritical fluid fractionation is that large polymer fractions with a narrow molecular mass distribution can be obtained without using hazardous organic solvent.Isothermal fractionation was performed using increasing pressure profiling that provided milligram-size fractions with M _w distribution of 1.0-2.0 as compared to parent polymer with polydispersity 4.225.At the same time,isobaric fractionation was performed using increasing temperature profiling that provided fractions with M _w distribution of 1.3-2.0 from the same parent polymer.The molecular mass of fraction increases with increasing operating pressure and temperature as the solvent power of SCF increases.The major benefit of SCF solvent relative to a liquid solvent is that the solvent power of SCF can be finely tuned by controlling operating conditions.It is recommended that pressure should be controlled to tune the solvent power of SCF effectively.With a SCF solvent,the solubility of a polymer drops to essentially zero if the pressure is reduced to near ambient condition,thus facilitating the recovery of a solvent-free polymer fraction.A model relating the molecular mass of fraction to operating variables was deduced on the basis of the theory of polymer solution.The model parameters were estimated by using experimental data.The average relative deviation was below 18%.


The history of Prophet Ibrahim in the Holy Qur'an consists of many normatif guidances from Allah swt. for humans to strengthen their existence as His khalifah on the world.   In line with Islamic education, the purpose, the subject and the object, as well as the method of Islamic education are described explicitly in the history of Prophet Ibrahim in the Holy Qur'an. The purpose of Islamic education is described in how Prophet Ibrahim finally understands that the final purpose of all humans' efforts is tauheed supported by belief and taqwa . The subject of Islamic education is described in how Prophet Ibrahim summons tauheed values to his community where he is the subject that is always guided by Allah swt. that puts him as the object. The methods of Islamic education are described in many methods that Prophet Ibrahim uses to summon tauheed values to his community consisting of discussion, modeling, advice/question-answer.


The paper deals with the problem of ensuring of an invariance of the output variable of linear SISO system to external unmatched disturbances under restrictions on the state variables and control. External disturbances are assumed as unknown bounded in modulus functions of time. A mathematical model of control plant is represented in the canonical form of input-output. Smoothness requirements of external disturbances and the first derivative of given signal are absent. All state variables are measured. Under these assumptions the problem of state feedback design stabilizing tracking error with a given accuracy is solved within the block approach, the sliding mode theory and method of states space extension.


: World War I, often referred to as "the war to end all wars," brought a dozen of technical innovations that changed the characteristic of the warfare forever. It was the war in which tanks, submarines, planes, flamethrowers, and the silent killer of the trenches, the chemical weapon appeared in the battlefield. The threat of massive deployment of war gases was met by an evolving array of defensive countermeasures. To achieve protection against war gases a new special branch was born: the chemical defense service.


The most basic theme in Davidson's writings in philosophy of language in the 1960s is that we are finite beings whose mastery of the indefinitely many expressions of our language must somehow arise out of our mastery of finite resources. Otherwise, there would be an unbounded number of distinct things to learn in learning a language, which would make language learning ∗I presented some of this material in a symposium discussing Ernest Lepore and Kirk Ludwig, Donald Davidson: Meaning, Truth, Language, and Reality (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005) at a meeting in Chicago of the Central Division of the American Philosophical Association.


In this demo we present our system for performance-based character animation that enables any user to control the facial expressions of a digital avatar in realtime. Compared to existing technologies, our system is easy to deploy and does not require any face markers, intrusive lighting, or complex scanning hardware. Instead, the user is recorded in a natural environment using the non-intrusive, commercially available Microsoft Kinect 3D sensor. Since high noise levels in the acquired data prevent conventional tracking methods to work well, we developed a method to combine a database of existing animations with facial tracking to generate compelling animations. Realistic facial tracking facilitates a range of new applications, e.g. in digital gameplay, telepresence or social interactions.


The frequency and intensity of natural disasters have been increasing significantly over the past decades and this trend is predicted to continue. Natural disasters have a dramatic impact on human lives and on the socio-economic welfare of entire regions. They were identified in 2011 by the World Bank [The World Bank, 2011] as one of the major risks of the East Asia and Pacific region, which represents 85 percents of all people affected since 2007. Moreover, this exposure will likely double by 2050 due to rapid urbanization and climate change. To understand the magnitude of such disasters, consider Irene, a category 3 hurricane that hit the East Coast of the United States in August 2011. It killed 56 people, inflicted damages now estimated in the range of 15 billion dollars, and created blackouts that lasted for several days. Hurricane Sandy and the Tohoku tsunami in Japan were even more dramatic, affecting human welfare in entire regions and damaging entire segments of the economy. For instance, Japanese manufacturers lost a significant market shares after the tsunami. It is possible however to mitigate the impact of these disasters through appropriate public and corporate policies, investment in infrastructure resilience, real-time decisionsupport systems, and education. In general, the focus of decision-support systems for disaster management is on situational awareness, i.e., communicating to decision makers the siuation in the field as accurately as possible. Situational awareness is obviously a critical component of any decisionsupport system for disaster management. However, Hurricane Katrina, a traumatic event for the United States, indicated the need to go beyond the communication of timely information; it is critical to enhance the cognitive abilities of decision makers through advanced use of optimization and simulation technology. The Katrina report [United-States Government, 2006], which should be required reading for policymakers and emergency officials around the world, pointed out that "the existing planning and operational structure for delivering critical resources and humanitarian aid clearly proved to be inequate to he task." In addition, the report recommended that "the Federal government must develop the capacity to conduct large-scale logistical operations". Similar observations have been made elsewhere: A European ambassador at a donor conference for Tsunami relief even said that "we do not need another donors' conference; we need a logistics conference". It seems clear that a novel, holistic approach is necessary for disaster management. The United States responded strongly to the Katrina report, starting major initiatives in various departments, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Substantial progress has been achieved since 2006 and this paper reviews some efforts that are now deployed to mitigate the impact of disasters. However, much more is needed and this paper sketches some of the challenges and a long-term vision for computational disaster management. This paper articulates the role of optimization for disaster management and its inherent complexity . It reviews a number of case studies in this space, some of which in deployment, to highlight the benefits of optimization . It concludes by articulating a potential long-term vision for computational disaster management, articulating some of the broader computational challenges. Obviously, space limits make it difficult to enter into deep technical issues but the hope is that this paper will provide the incentives to learn more about this important and fascinating field and, hopefully, to join this effort.


The Urban Institute, the Center for Court Innovation, and RTI International conducted NIJ's Multi-Site Adult Drug Court Evaluation. This presentation uses data collected for MADCE drug court participants to describe key court policies, practices, and dynamics (e.g., treatment, leverage, judicial supervision, judicial interaction, case management, drug testing, sanctions, rewards, etc.). It addresses: 1) how policies, practices, and courtroom experiences vary across drug court programs; 2) which policies, practices, and courtroom experiences make drug courts more or less effective; 3) whether courtroom experiences mediate drug court success; and 4) whether the effects of specific policies and practices vary by offender subgroup.


Over the past four decades, abortion has remained the most controversial domestic issue in the US. Public opinion toward legalizing abortion has been sharply divided yet stable according to several major surveys. This study examines how religion and other important factors affect Asian Americans' views toward abortion. Data are from the National Asian American Survey 2008 and multivariate analyses are used to examine whether religion exerts a mediation effect and explore attitudinal differences among six major Asian American groups. Results show that Asian Americans resemble the broader society in their opinions toward the abortion issue in that a documented sharp division exists among Asian American respondents. Groups ranked by the level of support for legal abortion are: Japanese, Chinese, Asian Indians, Korean, Filipino/a, and Vietnamese Americans. OLS regression analyses show that religiosity mediates the impact of religious affiliation on opinions toward abortion for Asian Americans who are non-Catholic Christians. Among Asian American who are Catholics, only a partial mediation effect is observed in the analysis. Analysis conducted for each Asian American group shows that different factors exert varying degree of influence in the opinion toward legalized abortion. Thus, an interaction effect of religion and ethnicity is found. Implications concerning ethnic diversity, religion, and opinions toward abortion are discussed in the paper.


Solar selective absorber coatings of Cr/ Cr2O3 cermet were deposited by DC reactive magnetron sputtering. Various growth fac2 tors ,including oxygen flow rate ,sputtering current and target voltage ,were studied to optimize the quality of the coatings. And the optical con2 stants of Cr/ Cr2O3 cermet ,grown under different conditions ,were characterized with ellipsometry. The absorptance and emittance of the opti2 mized coatings of Cr/ Cr2O3 cermet at room temperature areα≥95 % ande≤5 % ,respectively.


Cyber bullying among youth is rapidly becoming a global phenomenon, as educators, parents and policymakers grapple with trying to curtail this negative and sometimes devastating behavior. Since most cyber bullying emanates from the home computer, parents can play an important role in preventing cyber bullying and in fostering a kinder online world, or what might be termed "cyber kindness." In this study, we examine parents' knowledge of social networking technology, their level of concern with cyber bullying, their experiences with cyber bullying, and their ideas for preventing cyber bullying and promoting cyber kindness. Three hundred and fifteen parents from three schools in British Columbia, Canada completed a questionnaire, primarily involving open-ended, written responses. We found that parents are not very familiar with the newer forms of online social networking, such as Facebook, blogs, and chat rooms. Further, they are not overly concerned about the problem of cyber bullying, nor are they aware of the extent of cyber bullying among their children. Although a minority of parents looked to stricter controls over technology and more stringent punishment as the solution, most parents thought a more effective way, in the long-term, was for adults in the home and school to model the right behavior, provide opportunities to dialogue with youth, and develop school curricula on this theme. The results demonstrate the need for collaboration among students, parents, and educators.


In this update to the 2015 study, the authors examine US state statutes and regulations relating to licensing and enforcement of Digital Examiner functions under each State's private investigator/detective statute. As with the prior studies, the authors find that very few state statutes explicitly distinguish between Private Investigators (PI) and Digital Examiners (DE), and when they do, they either explicitly require a license or exempt them from the licensing statute. As noted in the previous 2015 study, there is a minor trend in which some states are moving to exempt DE from PI licensing requirements. We examine this trend and look at some additional information in terms of exemptions, including those relating to practicing attorneys, employer/employee relationships, expert testimony, and penalties for violation of the PI statutes where it is believed a PI license is required. As with the previous studies (Lonardo et al., 2008, 2009, 2012, 2015), we reviewed all state statutes relating to PI licensing. Where statutory language did not explicitly address exemption or inclusion of Digital Examiners, we contacted the relevant state regulatory body (i.e., Secretary of State's office, State Police, regulatory agency) to assess the applicability of Digital Examiners under the respective state statutes. Based on this statutory review and regulatory feedback, we present the various state approaches to professional Digital Examiner licensing. Our recommendation remains the same: states must differentiate between Private Investigator and Digital Examiner licensing requirements and oversight.


The main objective of this article is to present a new technique for solving integro-differential equations (IDEs) subject to mixed conditions, based on the least-squares method (LSM) and Laguerre polynomial. To explain the effect of the proposed procedure will be discussed three examples of the first, second and three-order linear mixed IDEs. The numerical results used to demonstrate the validity and applicability of comparisons of this method with the exact solution shown that the competence and accuracy of the present method.


Recent data compilations of abundances of Strontium and Barium in Extremely Metal Poor Stars show that large fluctuations exist in the ratio of the abundances of those elements. Two models exist for explaining those fluctuations, as well as the apparent truncation of data for those elements for stars having metallicity of [Fe/H] < −3.5. We study the factors that place upper limits on the logarithmic ratio [Sr/Ba] in the two models. A model has been developed in which the collapse of type II supernovae may produce a pronounced [Sr/Ba] enhancement in single-site r-process enriched stars. This model is consistent with galactic chemical constraints of light-element enrichment in metal-poor stars.


When a bounded beam is incident on a piezoelectric crystal at the right angle, surface waves are generated which result in the Schoch effect. This effect consists of the appearance of two reflected beams instead of one, with a null strip in between. The characteristics of this Schoch effect are determined by the physical properties of the solid under consideration, but also by the direction of the principal axes. Therefore, the effect can be used to determine those directions. A comparison of theory and experiments on lithium niobate is shown. This method can be used as a practical tool for determining the principle axes, since these are not visible to the eye. [Work supported by The Flemish Institute for the Encouragement of the Scientific and Technological Research in Industry (I.W.T.) and by a NATO Collaborative Linkage Grant.]


Ovarian carcinoma is the most lethal gynaecological malignancy. Better understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of this disease and effective targeted therapies are needed to improve patient outcomes. MicroRNAs play important roles in cancer progression and have the potential for use as either therapeutic agents or targets. Studies in other cancers have suggested that miR‐506 has anti‐tumour activity, but its function has yet to be elucidated. We found that deregulation of miR‐506 in ovarian carcinoma promotes an aggressive phenotype. Ectopic over‐expression of miR‐506 in ovarian cancer cells was sufficient to inhibit proliferation and to promote senescence. We also demonstrated that CDK4 and CDK6 are direct targets of miR‐506, and that miR‐506 can inhibit CDK4/6–FOXM1 signalling, which is activated in the majority of serous ovarian carcinomas. This newly recognized miR‐506–CDK4/6–FOXM1 axis provides further insight into the pathogenesis of ovarian carcinoma and identifies a potential novel therapeutic agent. Copyright © 2014 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd


A project submitted to department of Management in partial
Fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of executive
Masters of business administration


This paper presents the first monolithic 3D vertical cross-tier computing-in-memory (CIM) SRAM cell fabricated using low cost TSV-free FinFET-based 3D+-IC technology. The 9T 3D CIM SRAM cell is able to compute NAND/AND, OR/NOR and XOR/XNOR operations within a single memory cycle. We fabricated stackable multi-fin single-grained Si FinFET using low thermal-budget CO2 far-infrared laser annealing (FIR-LA) for activation and self-aligned silicide. The proposed device achieved high Ion (320 μA/μm (n-FET) and 275 μA/μm (p-FET)) and high Ion/Ioff (>107). The proposed scheme enables the fabrication of energy and area efficient circuits for cost-aware intelligent IoT devices. For proposed 9T CIM SRAM cell, the monolithic 3D device reduces area overhead by 51%, compared to the 2D version, thanks to the stacking of three additional transistors above the 6T SRAM cell.


Spearman's rank correlation coefficient is not entirely suitable for measuring the correlation between two rankings in some applications because it treats all ranks equally. In 2000, Blest proposed an alternative measure of correlation that gives more importance to higher ranks but has some drawbacks. This paper proposes a weighted rank measure of correlation that weights the distance between two ranks using a linear function of those ranks, giving more importance to higher ranks than lower ones. It analyses its distribution and provides a table of critical values to test whether a given value of the coefficient is significantly different from zero. The paper also summarizes a number of applications for which the new measure is more suitable than Spearman's.


Nowadays the trend of power supply market is more inclined to high switching frequency, high efficiency and high power density. To meet this trend, resonant power supply holds more attraction, because it can be operated in high switching frequency with high efficiency. There are many resonant power supplies such as Series-Resonant Converter (SRC), Parallel-Resonant Converter (PRC) and Series-Parallel Resonant Converter (SPRC). Among them, LLC Resonant Converter has a lot of advantages over the conventional SRC and PRC considering relatively narrow switching frequency variation over wide input and load variation and Zero-Voltage-Switching for entire load range. Therefore, the LLC Resonant Converter has been widely used and discussed. However, the conventional analysis of LLC Resonant Converter with Fundamental Harmonic Approximation (FHA) can not explain the practical operation of LLC Resonant Converter. To overcome this limitation, in this paper, analysis and design of the LLC Resonant Converter including parasitic components which are affecting converter operation are proposed using a traditional analysis based on FHA. The effect of each parasitic component is analyzed with simulation results and the design guideline standing on this analysis will be described. Moreover, the experimental results of prototype designing on the basis of the analysis are shown to demonstrate the proposed analysis and design guideline.


Context is a key concept in pragmatics as well as a very important factor in linguistic communication. In recent years, there has been new development in the study of context, to which the dynamic approach is now the main trend. In this paper, some reviews on the developmental locus of contextual theory are made. Then the communicative approach to contextual theory is analyzed. And finally, the application of the theory in linguistic communication is studied and discussed.


Abstract To reveal the catalytic potential of abandoned naturally occurring material, we synthesized titania-termite hill composite (Ti-THC) via an incipient wetness impregnation route, characterized by various techniques and tested as a catalyst for transesterification of waste frying oil (WFO). The reusability of the prepared catalyst was also studied to evaluate its stability. The effects of reaction process parameters, such as temperature, time, catalyst loading and methanol/WFO molar ratio on fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) yield, were investigated using a central composite design approach. SEM result revealed pores formation on the catalyst surface, while XRD and EDX analyses confirmed successful insertion of titania into the aluminosilicate layer of the termite hill. The maximum FAME yield of 90.78% was obtained at optimum experimental conditions of 71.16 °C reaction temperature, 2.12 h reaction time, 1.03 wt.% catalyst loading and 9.96:1 methanol/WFO molar ratio. The catalyst still maintained its better stability after being reused for three reaction cycles.


An assessment is made based mainly on the early results of the Princeton European Fertility Project of the general statement that a decline in mortality was the initiating force in the European fertility transition in light of the historical vital experiences of areal aggregations of the European population. Attention is given to information relating to 3 operational questions each of which bears directly on standard arguments relating the fertility transition to reduced mortality: 1) did the onset of the decline in youthful mortality systematically precede the onset of the decline in fertility in Europe; 2) was there a steady-state balance of fertility and mortality in pretransition Europe; 3) is there evidence of an areal association in the amounts of change in fertility and mortality in the period of transition? It is concluded that the information reviewed does not go very far toward assessment of the causal role of mortality in the European fertility transition. There is little evidence of a general positive cross-sectional association of marital fertility and mortality in the pretransitional era. The relevant information in the national reports of the Princeton Project does not point to any general positive association of the vital forces in the years preceding the demographic transition. In the absence of such an equilibrium any causal connection must be understood in terms of events and relations more or less specific to the period of transition; for example the diffusion of contraception and the general process of modernization.


Traditional P.E.teaching model in Chinese institutes of higher learning seriously discomforts current situation,P.E.teaching which stresses courses and disciplines features cannot achieve the value and functions of P.E.in school,and causes many negative impacts and is inconsistent with the needs of quality education.A model of athletic clubs makes students choose teachers,projects,class time by themselves,which not only reflects teaching thought in which students are the main body,but also is conducive to create a lively,vibrant,active learning atmosphere,which is helpful to alleviate the insufficient resources for P.E.at the same time.


A 400 meter thick succession of Middle Ordovician non-cyclic carbonates occurs at four on-shelf localities exposed along a 6 km transect on the northwest limb of the Copper Creek allochthon of East Tennessee. By using paleobathymetric analysis the authors were able to unravel the sequencing of stratigraphic units in this succession. Inflection points in water-depth curves indicate stratigraphic intervals that, on further detailed analysis, also contain subtle indicators of subaerial exposure. Seven surfaces of subaerial exposure or drowning define six third order sequences in the entire Middle and Upper Ordovician. They have analyzed in detail the lower four and the lower part of the fifth third order sequences and their contained 22 fourth order sequences that appear to be correlative across the shelf. These third and fourth order sequences, contain many fifth order or meter-scale packages, here termed sub-sequences. Sub-sequences are not correlative from place to place and many of these are probably the result of fine scale, lateral environmental migration. Stratigraphic sequences and sub-sequences represent shallowing-upward packages similar to cycles. However, these sequences and sub-sequences differ from the usual cycles in that they mostly lack peritidal caps, and evidence for exposure and shoaling is subtle and generally revealed onlymore » through detailed microscopic examination. A Fischer plot, substituting sub-sequences for cycles, supports interpretations previously made for this succession based on other lines of evidence and helps clarify new observations revealed through water-depth analysis.« less


Giant dielectric CaCu3.1Ti4O12.1 based composites containing nanoparticles of ZrO2 were synthesized using a conventional mixed oxide method. Then properties of the nanocomposites were characterized using a variety of methods. The addion of ZrO2 inhibited grain growth and changed the mode of fracture from a partially inter-granular in pure CaCu3.1Ti4O12.1 to a mostly intra-granular fracture in the composite samples. The nanocomposites also exhibited a frequency stability of the dielectric constant and a low tangent loss (0.06) at 3–9 kHz. The hardness and dielectric results are also discussed and related to the microstructure.


Monahan Monahan, J. P. 1984. A quantity discount pricing model to increase vendor profits. Management Sci. June 720-726. adapted the quantity discount model of inventory theory to the problem of determining an optimal quantity discount schedule from a vendor's point of view, and opened up an important direction of research. However, his one-item, one-customer, one-vendor model is based on several implicit assumptions that must be judged unreasonable. Monahan must account for the vendor's inventory carrying charges and redefine his variable S2. It is shown that a rational vendor's manufacturing frequency would not be identical to the buyer's ordering frequency if the vendor's manufacturing setup costs are substantially larger than the buyer's ordering costs. A numerical example presented in this note also questions the practical usefulness of Monahan's model even after its theoretical inaccuracies axe corrected. Monahan's model may explain discounts that are a fraction of 1% of the price of an item, but it fails to explain commonly observed magnitudes of quantity discounts, such as 10% of the unit price.


A series of five experimental properties of DNA−RNA bases (U, T, A, G, and C):  singlet excitation energies ΔE1 and ΔE2, oscillator strengths f1 and f2, and molar absorption coefficient e260 plus three experimental properties of a wider set of purine and pyrimidine bases:  average 〈pK〉 = 1/2(pKa + pKb), molecular weights MW, and solubility have been simulated in two different ways with linear combinations of connectivity indices (LCCI) chosen from a medium sized molecular connectivity {χ} = {D,Dv,0χ,0χv,1χ,1χv,χt,χtv} set. A forward selection technique and a full combinatorial space technique have been used to choose the best linear combination of connectivity indices for an optimal modeling. The given properties are very well modeled with the only exception being 〈pK〉, whose modeling could be improved with the introduction of fragment reciprocal connectivity indices, that take into account the number of basic and acid groups of the given molecules. The (easier to perform) forward selection technique is i...


The paper presents the results of research in which 50 women with essential hypertension illness (arterial hypertension I-II degree) have taken part. 20 patients received long-acting metoprolol therapy (Egilok retard, EGIS AO) in the dose of 25-100 mg, if necessary in a combination with hydrochlorothiazide 25 mg. In group of comparison (30 subjects) treatment with enalapril (5-10 mg/сут) or by a combination of enalapril and hydrochlorothiazide was administarted. It is shown, that monotherapy by metoprolol-retard allowed to reach a «target» levels of blood pressure in 89,5 % of women, in 10,5 % cases the combined therapy was required. At 12-week of treatment significant improvement of parameters of concentration of attention and anxiety decrease was observed.