Blood can save millions of human life. The necessity of blood in our country depends on the population and health problems. The only source of blood is blood donation. However requirement of voluntary blood donors possess main challenges to transfusion services throughout the world [1]. In this study we have analysed the iron status of continue blood donors. 160 blood donating volunteers were included in this study and were divided into two groups depending on number of donation. Group 1 consisted of (90) initial blood donating volunteers and group 2 consisted of (70) blood donating volunteers, who had donated more than three times in past 2 years,. Serum ferritin, Haemoglobin (Hb), total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation and complete blood count (CBC) was done in all blood donating volunteers. The mean serum ferritin level in group 2 (52.7±32.9) ng/ml was significantly lower compared to group 1 blood donors 69.3±44.6). (5.1)% of blood donating volunteers in group 2 and 3.1%) of the volunteers in group 1 had reduced Haemoglobin. Serum ferritin and Haemoglobin should be done in all blood donating volunteers to ensure the volunteers healthy.


This study involved the design and development of a low-noise lawnmower blade using virtual modeling tools and Rapid Prototyping (RP) principles. Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) tools and techniques were used to generate an optimised model of the original lawnmower blade which was prototyped using a Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) machine. The prototype generates lower noise levels than the original blade and the virtual modeling tools are adequate enough to predict the noise levels of the proposed blade design. Furthermore, the use of RP technology in the fabrication of the blade has potential to reduce developmental cost and time.


Although anti‐HIV‐1 protease drugs nelfinavir (NFV) and saquinavir (SQV) share common functional groups, D30N is a major resistance mutation against NFV but remains susceptible to SQV. We have determined the crystal structure of D30N mutant‐tethered HIV‐1 protease in complex with SQV to 1.79 Å resolution. Structural analysis showed that SQV forms two direct hydrogen bonds with the main chain atoms of the residues Asp29 and Asp30 that are not observed in the D30N–NFV complex. Apart from maintaining these two main chain hydrogen bonds, the P2‐asparagine of SQV forms an additional hydrogen bond to the mutated side chain of the residue 30. These could be the reasons why D30N is not a drug resistance mutation against SQV. This structure supports the previous studies showing that the interactions between a potential inhibitor and backbone atoms of the enzyme are important to maintain potency against drug‐resistant HIV‐1 protease.


An analysis of mortality in the large urban area of Plzen Czechoslovakia in 1977 is presented. The data are from death certificates of 2005 deceased persons. Particular attention is paid to mortality among the population over age 80. Over 70 percent of mortality was due to diseases of the circulatory system and malignant neoplasms. (summary in ENG RUS) (ANNOTATION)


Teenager traffic safety education is an important part of national traffic safety education.Teenager traffic safety research in foreign countries develops earlier than in China and achieves a lot.The theories in this field are closely connected with the applications.The educational ideas,patterns and methods are also enriched and innovated.To comprehensively demonstrate present situation of teenager traffic safety education in foreign countries,this paper analyzes the foreign educational patterns from different angles and points out their advantages and disadvantages,with an emphasis on interactive education research results.Based on the above,this paper presents the weaknesses and proposes suggestions for Chinese teenager traffic safety education.


The development of mobile internet has been accelerated in the aspects of mobile devices manufacturing,operation systems,core chips as well as critical components and application services.This paper studies the status of technology and industry of mobile internet,and predicts the future trend.


An intelligent learning aid device of biological brain wave is provided with an oscillating circuit of the impulse frequency for the imitation of brain ' alpha ' wave, theta wave, delta wave, and the output of the oscillating circuit is connected with the lamination and loudspeaker simultaneously. The output of oscillating circuit is connected with the lamination tube and the loudspeaker through the amplification circuit. The utility model provides the effect of the flare light and the sound with the additional low-frequency light and the low-frequency sound, generating the ' alpha ' wave, theta wave, delta wave with electric, sound and light, and the utility model stimulates the vision, hearing organs. The information is transferred to the specific region of the roof brain through the feeling channel, and the effect of using is much better.


The objective of this work was to evaluate the fatty acid profile of crossbreed steers, in confinement, fed with diets containing increasing levels of ground millet grain in replacement to ground corn grain. Twenty-four European crossbred bulls and 24 Zebu crossbred bulls, slaughtered at 24 months of age, after 96 days in confinement, were used. The experimental design was completely randomized with treatments in a 4x2 factorial arrangement (four diets with 0, 33, 66, and 100% of pearl millet in the concentrate and two genetic groups) with six replicates. The increase in the levels of pearl millet grain in the diet increased linearly the participation of the arachidic (C20:0), heneicosanoic (C21:0), α-linolenic (C18:3 n-3), and dihomo-γ-linolenic (C20:3 n-6) fatty acids. European bulls showed meat with lower content of myristic (C14:0), heneicosanoic (C21:0), and γ-linolenic (C18:3 n-6) fatty acids than the Zebu bulls. The total concentration of saturated (45.2%), monounsaturated (41.2%), and polyunsaturated (8.7%) fatty acids, and the monounsaturated/saturated (1.09) and polyunsaturated/saturated (0.18) ratio were not affected by the genetic groups and diets. The increase in the percentage of millet grain in the diet of European and Zebu bulls improves the ratio between ω-6/ω-3 fatty acids.


A simple, straightforward, reliable, and efficient protection-free "one-pot, three-step" chemical synthesis of 7-deaza-2′-deoxyguanosine-5′-triphosphate (7-deaza-dGTP) is described. The reaction involves monophosphorylation of 7-deaza-2′-deoxyguanosine using phosphorous oxychloride as the phosphorylating agent, followed by reaction with tributylammonium pyrophosphate, and subsequent hydrolysis affords 7-deaza-2′-deoxyguanosine-5′-triphosphate in a 52% yield with high purity (>99.9%).


The function for supporting a human by considering his of her skill-level is required for a future advanced machine. In this study, discrete movements of operatorpsilas hand were analyzed to propose an adequate skill evaluation method that has possibility to be implementable to a machine. Using teleoperation experiment system for two radio-controlled construction machines, the training process of the operators was recorded, and performance of the machine operation, the reaching action of operatorpsilas hand, and the state transition matrix of the operation commands were investigated. From the analyses, sufficiently-high correlation between the change of the fitting error to Fittspsila law and the task-performance index was confirmed, and an increasing of the task performance and a decreasing of the inching had strong relationship.


This paper examines the value and character of cutting forces in the creep-feed surface grinding. In order to identify the impact of cutting forces on the state of the process of deep grinding, according on the elements of the machining, experimental tests were determined dependence of the tangential and normal components of the grinding forces and ratio grinding force. In comparison with the traditional multi-pass grinding results show the occurrence of higher cutting forces in creep-deep surface grinding, especially normal components.


In the present study, optimization on β-glucanase-assisted extraction was made in order to isolate waxy barley starch from domestic cultivar using the D-optimal design suitable for response surface methodology (RSM). The results demonstrated that the amount of enzyme was found to be a major influencing factor on the extraction yield, which was substantially increased by increasing the amount of enzyme. It was also influenced by the reaction time and amount of water addition; however, the two factors were less influential than the amount of enzyme. The optimized condition by RSM for the reaction time was found to be 2.63 hours and amount of enzyme 1.7%, and amount of water addition 4.38 times the weight of raw material. With the enzyme treatment, the starch content in residues (R), particularly in R1 and R5, was reduced considerably, resulting in an increase in the extraction yield and therefore primarily and effectively releasing B-type starch small granule confirmed by scanning electronic microscopy. In addition, the study determined the physicochemical properties of isolated waxy starch (i.e., purity, water adsorption capacity, thermal properties, rheology and starch morphology) and compared them with those from the enzyme-not treated sample. It was found that they were almost similar to each other, except for the purity of starch, which was lower in the enzyme-treated sample than in the enzyme-not treated one.


Based on the practical vibration situation of steel factory in rolling process,a dynamical model on vertical vibration system for the 4200 rolling mills in damping condition is established by the dynamics analysis,and the vibration system of the natural frequency and the corresponding vibration mode is calculated by Matlab software.Through the analysis of the corresponding vibration mode,the third order self-vibration frequency is found to be easy to cause significant strip thickness fluctuation.While horizontal vibration lines of dark and light may appear on the surface of strip caused by the sixth order self-vibration frequence.At the sametime,the causes for affecting the vibration of the rolling mill and solutions have been analysed in tension fluctuation,friction and lubrication,rolling speed and the changes of rolled-piece thickness,thus it has certain guiding significance for improving the strip quality.


AbstractThe aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of dehydrogenase activities as an early warning indicator in wastewater treatment process under the impact of Cu(II). The substrate removals in sequencing batch reactors (SBR) on different Cu(II) concentrations (0, 5, 10, and 20 mg L−1) were investigated during long-term operation. Meanwhile, the dehydrogenase activities of activated sludge taken from SBR were observed in short-term bioassays. The results indicate that the inhibitory rates of Cu(II) on substrate removal efficiencies increased along with an increment of Cu(II) concentration. The dehydrogenase activities demonstrated similar trend. Logarithmic curves were used to describe the inhibitory effect of Cu(II) on dehydrogenase activities. Positive correlations were then obtained between the substrate removal efficiencies during long-term operation and dehydrogenase activities in short-term bioassays. Thus, 2-(p-iod-phenyl)-3-(p-nitrophenyl)-5-phenyltetrazolium chloride (INT)-dehydrogen...


The present invention discloses preparation process of hydrophilic modified hollow microporous polyethylene film. Some hydrophilic matters with relatively high surface energy are used to mix with fused polyethylene. The present invention features that the prepared hollow microporous polyethylene film has improved hydrophilicity, including contact angle reduced by over 20 deg, film porosity of 40-80 %, average pore size of 0.1-0.5 micron and air permeability of 0.01-1 cu cm/sq cm.s.cmHg. The film has inner diameter of 250-500 microns and thickness of 30-60 microns. The prepared hollow microporous polyethylene film of the present invention has average pore size, porosity and hydrophilicity much higher than those of hollow polyethylene fiber film prepared through fusion spinning-stretching process, and has no obvious change in tension strength, rebound degree, etc.


Comprehensive electrical transport studies are performed on InSb nanowires by varying temperature, gate voltage, and magnetic field. The 3-dimensional bulk conduction is found to dominate in the nanowire channel after investigating a large number of nanowires with different diameters, which show approximately a linear relation between the conductance normalized to the length and the wire cross section. At low temperatures, universal conductance fluctuations are observed. From the amplitude and the correlation voltage of the conductance fluctuations, the phase-coherence length in InSb nanowires is determined at various temperatures.


This data set contains openly-documented, machine readable digital research data corresponding to figures published in K.E. Thome et al., 'High Confinement Mode and Edge Localized Mode Characteristics in a Near-Unity Aspect Ratio Tokamak,' Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 175001 (2016).


Abstract The triterpenes friedelin (1), β-friedelinol (2) and 3,15-dioxo-21α-hydroxyfriedelane (3) in the aerial parts of Maytenus robusta, a Brazilian medicinal plant with antiulcer potential, were seasonally quantified by gas chromatography flame-ionization detection (GC-FID) using an external standard. The method was found to be linear, precise and sensitive. Compounds 1 and 2 were found in M. robusta leaves and branches, with highest concentrations in the leaves collected in autumn, i.e. 3.21 ± 0.16 and 12.60 ± 1.49 mg g−1 dry weight of 1 and 2, respectively. On the other hand, compound 3 was found only in the branches, with the highest concentrations in winter and autumn (0.21 ± 0.01 and 0.20 ± 0.02 mg g−1). The results allow to define the optimal season and plant parts for the collection of M. robusta as a phytotherapeutic drug.


Starch-based coatings were applied to extend storage life of strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa) stored at 0 °C and 84.8% relative humidity. The effects of amylose content of the starch, the type of plasticizer (glycerol and sorbitol), and the inclusion of antimicrobial agents on coating formulation were analyzed. Microstructure characterization of coatings was related to water vapor permeability (WVP) observations. Coatings made with starches with the higher amylose content decreased WVP and weight losses and retained fruit firmness for longer periods than coatings formulated with medium amylose content starches. Coatings with sorbitol showed lower WVPs than glycerol ones. Both sorbitol and glycerol reduced weight losses and maintained texture and surface color of fruits, with 20 g/L sorbitol being the most effective plasticizer option. Modifications of physiological parameters in strawberries such as anthocyanin content, reducing and nonreducing sugars, titratable acidity, and pH were slowed for coated f...


The mechanisms underlying TGF‐β regulation in response to injury are not fully understood. We have developed an in vitro wound model to evaluate the expression and localization of transforming growth factor‐β1 in rabbit corneal fibroblasts in response to injury. Experiments were conducted in the presence or absence of serum so that the effect of the injury could be distinguished from exogenous wound mediators. Cultures were wounded and evaluations conducted over a number of time points. Expression of TGF‐β1 RNA was determined using Northern blot analysis and in situ hybridization, while the TGF‐β receptors were identified by affinity cross‐linking. Injury increased the expression of TGF‐β1 mRNA in cells at the wound edge after 30 min; this response was amplified by the addition of serum. TGF‐β1 mRNA expression was observed in a number of cells distal from the wound. After wound closure, TGF‐β1 mRNA was negligible and resembled unwounded cultures. The half‐life of TGF‐β1 mRNA was two times greater in the wounded cultures, indicating that the injury itself maintained the expression, while cell migration was present. Analogous to these findings, we found that binding of TGF‐β to its receptors was maximal at the wound edge, decreasing with time and distance from the wound. These results indicate that injury increases the level of expression of TGF‐β1 mRNA and maintains a higher level of receptor binding during events in wound repair and that these might facilitate the migratory and synthetic response of stromal fibroblasts. J. Cell. Biochem. 77:186–199, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


This paper is concerned with the following second-order half-linear differential equations on time scale:[r(t)x~△(t))~α]~△+p(t)x~α(t)=0,t∈T.where p(t),r(t)∈C_(rd)(T,R)are positive,lim_(t→∞)∫~t_(t_1)(1[]r(s)~(1[]α)△s=∞,α≥1is a quotient of two odd positive integers.A sufficient condition for the nonoccillatory for the above equation is obtained.


There is an acute shortage of potable water in many countries over the world especially in the Middle East region. Currently over one-third of the world's population lives in areas where people are unable to meet their water demand of fresh water [1


An exact statistical mechanical theory for fluid mixtures of rigid molecules with arbitrary charge distributions, sizes, and shapes is presented. It deals with many-body effects in electrostatic interactions between molecules in fluids and can, for example, be applied to mixtures of polar molecules and to solutions of electrolytes or colloidal dispersions in polar molecular solvents. All solute and solvent molecules are treated on the same fundamental level in statistical mechanics. The exact screened Coulomb potential φ0(r) for the solution is given a general definition. A renormalized charge distribution ρi0 for each molecule of any species i is uniquely defined such that the total electrostatic potential from each i molecule is exactly given by φ0 with ρi0 as the source. By using ρi0 when calculating the interaction between the molecule and the total electrostatic potential from any source, one includes the indirect effects from the surrounding polarizable molecular medium on the electrostatic part of ...


racing performance and sudden death in horses are problems that have been linked to heart arrhythmias. "Arrhythmia" describes a group of medical conditions that involve irregular heartbeats caused by problems with the electrical activity of the heart. Ventricular arrhythmias (which arise in one of the two large chambers of the heart) are thought to be a primary cause of sudden death following intense exercise, but this is impossible to confirm by autopsy. Little research has been done to describe normal heart rhythms and the occurrence of non-fatal arrhythmias in horses exercising at maximum effort, especially under "real world" racing conditions. Similarly, little is known about how non-fatal arrhythmias may affect race performance. A better understanding of the "normal" range of heart rhythms, both during maximum effort and afterwards in the recovery phase, can help scientists learn more about the causes of sudden death. Complex ventricular arrhythmias (CVA) were fairly common in Standardbred racehorses during the recovery period following races. Race conditions causing unusual demands (like attempting to take the lead or get back onto gait), harness racing at a trot, and punctuated deceleration (PD) are risk factors.


Summary Immune response and metabolic activity of bursal, splenic, and thymic lymphocytes from chickens treated with DDT and Mirex were evaluated. The results indicated a marked reduction in the metabolic activity upon pesticide treatment. There was no significant difference in total antibody production, but IgG levels were significantly reduced and IgM levels were markedly elevated. The significance of reduced metabolic activity and IgG production were discussed in relation to T-cell activity .


This review paper describes in short the application areas of infrared thermography and thermal testing, such as civil and electrical/thermal engineering, petrochemistry, military, aerospace and others.


Recently, Kauffmann (26) proposed a classification of the family Enterobacteriaceae in which the microorganisms known as Shigella alkalescens and Shigella dispar were removed from the genus Shigella and included in a special group termed the Alkalescens-Dispar group. The new group was placed in the tribe Eschericheae. Kauffmann's decision to make these changes was logical, and it was based upon the results of his investigations (cited below) on the relationships of S. alkalescens and S. dispar cultures to certain of the established 0 groups of Escherichia coli (15, 23, 26, 27, 32) and upon the biochemical behavior of S. alkalescens and S. dispar cultures. The work of other investigators on the relationships of these and other microorganisms to members of the genus Escherichia affords ancillary evidence for Kauffmann's conclusions (for example, see 16, 31). Frantzen (18), utilizing the methods recommended by Kauffmann (23, 24, 25), proposed an antigenic schema (table 1) for the AlkalescensDispar (A-D) group based upon an extensive study of the relationships of its members to each other and to E. coli 0 groups. Kauffmann (26) reported that certain types now included in the A-D group contain K antigens. Frantzen confirmed this fact and reported the presence of K antigens of the L and A types in certain A-D cultures. A detailed study of the K antigens of cultures of the A-D group is in progress (19). The results of agglutination tests which reveal the 0 antigen relationships of members of the A-D group to each other and to known E. coli 0 groups are given in tables 2, 3, and 4. The results of reciprocal absorption tests with 0 antiserums prepared with members of the A-D and' E. coli groups confirm the relationships between these groups that are described by Kauffmann and by Frantzen. The results of our tests indicate that A-D 08 and E. coli 081 are 0-identical. The Alkalescens-Dispar schema affords a practical means for the identification and reporting of its members. Since the members of the A-D group are related closely to, or are identical with, certain E. coli 0 groups, it would be feasible to classify these microorganisms as anaerogenic E. coli cultures of the several 0 groups. We are in accord with Kauffmann's view that such a change is not advisable at this time. However, if new types are found, they may be described as anaerogenic Escherichia cultures related to, or identical with, cer*Bacteriologists, Laboratory Services, Communicable Disease Center, Public Health Service, Atlanta, Ga.


By definition, the DJ or pigtail stent in a catheter or tube placed within the ureteral lumen in a retrograde or antegrade fashion in order to maintain its patency. The pigtail catheter provides a self-retaining capability due to a double coil design at proximal and distal ends that work to securely anchor the stent in the upper urinary tract (renal pelvis and upper calyx) and the bladder. This prevents stent migration proximally or distally despite urinary flow, patient movement and ureteral peristalsis.


Hybrid identities are sentences in a special second order language with identity. The model classes of sets of hybrid identities are called hybrid solid varieties. We give a Birkhoff-type-characterization of hybrid solid varieties and develop a hybrid equational logic.


Global interest in the use of renewable energy is increasing, especially in remote locations or when the national electrical grid is unreliable. The need is more if the use of renewable energy to pump water for daily civilian consumption. The advantages of PV pumping systems include low operating cost, easy installation, extremely low maintenance, and long life. The purpose of this research paper is to study the design of a solar energy system to pump water to benefit from the design in simulating the actual system of the project as a first step to an integrated system for monitoring and diagnosing faults as a second stage. The photovoltaic system contains 140 solar panels of 250 watts installed to generate a peak power of 35 kW to power a submersible pump of 22 kW. The results obtained from the simulated PV system indicate their compatibility with the actual results from the real system. The use of solar energy to pump water is more economical and does not depend on the provision of traditional energy sources such as diesel.


Dassault Aviation as a civil aircraft manufacturer is studying the feasibility of a supersonic business jet. One of the prerequisites for an environmentally friendly and economically viable supersonic aircraft is that its sonic boom signature is reduced to a level acceptable for flight over populated areas. The method presented here is part of the Dassault Aviation toolbox dedicated to the evaluation and/or to the design process of a low boom constrained supersonic aircraft.


It is with humility and trepidation that I rise to recount Dan Dykstra's years as a teacher, leader, and friend of the University of Utah, its College of Law, his Utah colleagues, and his Utah students. Humility because there are those with us today who are better able to recall those years like his lifelong friends Bob and Peggy Swenson and Rita Fordham. Also, there are others who knew the Dykstra family as close friends during all their Utah years and could speak more eloquently than I, but who could not be here today, like Fred and Belva Emery, Spence Kimball, Evelyn and Wally Bennett, and Francis and Bob Schmid. I speak with trepidation because Dan Dykstra was noted for his humility and selflessness; a 'man always concerned for the well-being and success of others and not one to publicize his own achievements or volunteer his personal successes. Dan did not, as the Irish say, "put on airs" about himself. Therefore, because I suspect he would frown upon and be uncomfortable with our praising him, I beseech Dan to forgive me now, and in the hereafter, for recounting how much he has meant to all of us as a friend, colleague, mentor, leader, and as an example-both in his professional and private life-as an exemplary husband, parent and teacher, and as a person of unflinching personal integrity. Daniel J. Dykstra was recruited to teach law at Drake University in 1948 through the efforts of his long-term friend, Bob Swenson, after Dan completed his S.J.D. at the University of Wisconsin. He moved to the University of Utah College of Law in 1949 when the school was undergoing a significant transition from a small regional law school barely qualified for accreditation to one of quality and academic stature. Classes were taught on a quarterly system in those days, including a summer quarter to serve the needs of returning veterans anxious to complete their legal education as quickly as possible. Most of the faculty taught two classes a quarter, and classes were held six days per week. Law professors were giants in those days-underpaid and over-worked giants. When Danjoined the Utah faculty, the Dean of the law school, William Leary, was retiring after serving as dean for 35 years, and a substantial turnover and expansion of the faculty was underway. Dan Dykstra was


The ATLAS experiment at the LHC uses plastic laminates RPCs as first level trigger detectors in the barrel up to pseudorapidity |eta| < 1. A set of quality controls are performed on the RPC chambers before they are sent to CERN for integration and installation on the experiment. Three test stands were installed for this purpose in INFN Divisions of Lecce, Napoli and Roma Tor Vergata. The results of the BOL-type chambers tested in Rome are presented.


Large double-canned induction motor has high power density and usually works in a closed environment. Compared with a common induction motor, there are many contacted metallic parts in the stator end region of a large double-canned induction motor, in which eddy current will exist not only in end metallic parts themselves but also between contacted metallic parts. Evaluation of eddy-current losses in stator end metallic parts and reasonable end structure design is the premise of ensuring the safe and stable operation of a large double-canned induction motor. A 5-MW-scale double-canned induction motor is taken as an example in this paper, and the 3-D eddy-current field finite-element calculation model of its stator end is established and solved. Then, the eddy current in stator end metallic parts and between different contacted stator end metallic parts is analyzed in detail. On this basis, the eddy-current losses' decrease method through cutting off the eddy-current path between contacted stator end metallic parts is proposed and validated by experimental results of temperature.


whether it is fair to a scholar's reputation to publish posthumously an incomplete work, especially when some years have elapsed between the original writing and the publication. The first section of this book is an admirable study of the estates and villages of Byzantine Egypt, based on the author's own previous work and subsequent studies such as that of Mr. Hardy on the large estates of the province. It is annotated by the author and represents her considered views. But it suffers a little from the time-lag. A book published in 1953 ought to take into account sources published before that date, as, for instance, the last volume of papyri from the John Rylands Library. These omissions are inevitable, but they weaken the value of the book. The remaining parts of the book, covering Byzantine country life from ihe eighth to the fifteenth century, are published without reference-notes. Here not only do we lack, through no fault of the author's, any reference to the important work in this field published during the last six years, in particular, M. Ostrogorsky's extremely valuable studies on the pronoia and kindred questions; but also some of Mile Rouillard's statements and arguments need the sort of amplification and discussion that she would undoubtedly have provided in her notes. This is particularly regrettable, because she had a wide knowledge of the existing sources and her judgement seems always to be sane and free from dogmatism. For example, she rejects Professor Dolger's hard-and-fast distinction between xiopooiKohtairoTai and OIKOSCOirorat. (village-dwellers and town-dwellers). She is almost certainly right; but her view needs more justification than the text of a lecture can be expected to offer.


Centrifugal separators — hydrocyclones — are widely used in many areas of the national economy to separate mixtures of substances of different densities. Hydrocyclones can be used for phase separation in oil, water and gas flow measurement units. The flow from the well is initially a three-phase mixture. The hydrocyclone separates the gas and liquid phases at the inlet of the measuring unit, which are then transferred to separate gas and liquid measurement units. Maintaining the accuracy of the phase flow measurement when using hydrocyclones in the measuring units requires high quality separation over a wide range of flow rates and phase contents. One of the directions of forecasting the characteristics of the separation process is based on the numerical solution of the equations of hydrodynamics of multiphase flows. Modern software of computational hydrodynamics allows to solve problems of such class in three-dimensional statement and thus to estimate efficiency of work of the device and its metrological characteristics.
This paper studies the processes of separation of gas-liquid mixture in hydrocyclone at different volume gas content and phase flow rates. The authors present a mathematical model with indication of the main assumptions and formulate the boundary conditions of the problem. Calculations were carried out on the open platform OpenFOAM with the use of interFoam solver. The results of numerical modeling have determined the basic structures of currents in the hydrocyclone. The influence of the initial gas content on the separation efficiency at different flow rates is investigated. The main reasons for the decrease in separation efficiency at low gas content values are revealed. In addition, the influence of the guiding elements on the separation process is considered.


Objective:This paper aimed to investigate the clinical efficacies of the Yiqi Yangyin and Huoxue prescription on fatty liver in type 2 diabetes mellitus(DFL).Methods:We selected 96 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus combined with fatty liver disease which were diagnosed with deficiency of both qi and yin,blood stasis by TCM.These patients were divided into control and experimental groups randomly.They all performed basic treatment,like oral antidiabetic drug,diet control as well as more exercise to regulate the blood glucose level,while the patients of experimental group,in addition to the above treatment,were given the Chinese medicine of Yiqi Yangyin and Huoxue prescription.The treatment period was 3 months.Liver ultrasound examination and biochemical tests(including blood lipid,blood glucose,liver function) as well as scoring of the disease activity index(DAI) and evaluation of insulin resistance were carried out for those 96 patients before and after the treatment.Result:①There was no significant difference between the disease active index score of two groups before treatment,but the DAI score of the experimental group was significantly better than that of control groups after the 3-month treatment(P0.01).②After 3 months,the blood lipid,glucose,liver function and insulin resistance of the two groups were all improved to different degrees,and those of the experimental group improved more significantly.③There was no significant difference between the DFL degree of two groups before treatment and the DFL degree of two groups was reversed to different degrees after the 3-month treatment,wherein,the DFL degree of the experimental group was significantly improved(P0.01) and that of the control group was not significantly improved.The DFL degree of the experimental group was significantly better than that of the control group after 3 months(P0.05).Conclusion:The Yiqi Yangyin Huoxue prescription had a favourable curative effect on fatty liver in type 2 diabetes mellitus(DFL).This TCM prescription could improve the DFL degree in liver ultrasonic,improve liver function and improve insulin resistance as well as the clinical symptom of patients with fatty liver in type 2 diabetes mellitus.


Two questions concerning Oser's theory of religious judgment are discussed and empirically tested. The first question is about the discriminating value of religious judgment for other aspects of personal religion. The second question concerns the dynamics of the development of religious judgment. It is shown that religious judgment is an indication for the entire religious personality, not merely an isolated component of the way a person copes with contingency. Reflection on personal religion and reduction of uncertainty are important indicators for the dynamics of the development of religious judgment. Concluding remarks are made on the distinction between content and structure and on theological-psychological profiles.


In this paper, we presented a prediction model of oxygen consumption of blast furnace (BF) based on least squares support vector machine (LSSVM) with the production data of an iron and steel factory. This method utilizes data pre-processing and parameters optimization to improve the fitting precision and operation speed of the model. By comparing the prediction results using different models with actual production data, we found out that the modified regression model of LSSVM is more suitable to predict the trend of oxygen consumption than others. The prediction accuracy is satisfactory and is helpful for oxygen system dispatch and production practice.


The classification,theories and evaluation methodology of waterproof and moisture permeable fabrics are briefly introduced in this paper,research progress on waterproof and moisture permeable fabrics is reviewed from micropore diffusion mechanism and hydrophilic group "adsorption-diffusion-desorption" mechanism.The common testing indictors are waterproof property and moisture permeability.Problems existing in present testing methods are analyzed,and measures are put forward.


The Raft River Valley occupies an upper Cenozoic structural basin filled with nearly 1600 m of fluvial silt, sand, and gravel. Rapid facies and thickness changes, steep initial dips (30/sup 0/C), and alteration make correlation of basin-fill depositional units very difficult. Hydrothermal alteration products in the form of clays and zeolites, and deposition of secondary calcite and silica increase with depth. The abundance of near-vertical open fractures also increases with depth, allowing greater movement of hydrothermal fluids near the base of the Cenozoic basin fill. The basin is floored with quartzites and schists that can be correlated with formations in the nearby Raft River Range. Beneath these rocks is a Precambrian adamellite basement complex. The Raft River geothermal system is a hot water convective system relying on deep circulation of meteoric water in a region of high geothermal gradients and open fractures near the base of the Tertiary basin fill.


Using Digimat-FE, a representative volume element (RVE) model was constructed that reflects the true mesostructure of PBX explosives. The model consists of three phases of explosive particles, binder and pores. Through Digimat-MF, various factors affecting the effective elastic modulus of PBX explosives were investigated, including the elastic modulus, volume fraction, morphology, gradation, porosity and pore diameter of the explosive particles. The calculation results show that the higher the volume fraction of explosive particles, the larger the effective elastic modulus of PBX, and the increase of the effective elastic modulus of PBX is obviously increased when the volume fraction exceeds 60%. The morphology of the explosive particles has little effect on the effective elastic modulus of the PBX explosive, while the grading of the explosive particles has a great influence. The existence of pores makes the effective elastic modulus of PBX explosives significantly reduced, and the increase of porosity makes the effective elastic modulus decrease exponentially; the increase of pore diameter makes the effective elastic modulus of PBX explosives decrease.


I describe metarules which order predicates contained in first order logic rules. These metarules are applied to rules created by a learning Go program. After the ordering of the predicates, the rules are matched orders of magnitude faster than the original learned rules.


Multiple inputs can elicit nausea and vomiting, including ingested toxins and vestibular signals. Amongst the nervous system regions believed to participate in generating motion sickness is the cerebellar rostral fastigial nucleus (rFN). In addition, there is evidence that gastrointestinal inputs are transmitted to rFN through a variety of pathways, including projections from the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus and area postrema. These observations raise the hypothesis that GI inputs could change motion sickness susceptibility by altering the processing of labyrinthine inputs by rFN neurons. To test this hypothesis, we recorded activity from rFN neurons in decerebrate cats, and compared their responses to whole‐body rotations before and after the intragastric infusion of the emetic compound copper sulfate (CuSO4). Some (18%) rFN neurons had complex responses to vestibular stimulation, particularly responses to only one direction of rotation (known as STC behavior). Such complex responses would be expected in a brain area that participates in generating motion sickness. The spatial and temporal characteristics of these responses changed little after injection of CuSO4. Although infusion of CuSO4 affected gains of responses to rotations of ~25% rFN neurons, the effects were inconsistent (CuSO4 augmented responses in some cells and decremented responses in others). CuSO4 resulted in pronounced changes in responses to rotations of a significantly larger fraction (Chi‐squared test, p<0.05) of neurons in other brain regions that mediate nausea and vomiting, including the parabrachial nucleus and the "vomiting center" (caudal medullary lateral tegmental field). These data suggest that integration of vestibular and GI inputs by rFN neurons plays a limited role in affecting motion sickness susceptibility.


Glucose is the main fuel for energy metabo- lism in the normal human brain. It is generally assumed that glucose transport into the brain is not rate-limiting for metab- olism. Since brain glucose concentrations cannot be determined directly by radiotracer techniques, we used 13C NMR spec- troscopy after infusing enriched D-(1-13C)glucose to measure brain glucose concentrations at euglycemia and at hyperglyce- mia (range, 4.5-12.1 mM) in six healthy children (13-16 years old). Brain glucose concentrations averaged 1.0 ? 0.1 Amol/ml at euglycemia (4.7 ? 0.3 mM plasma) and 1.8-2.7 ,umol/ml at hyperglycemia (7.3-12.1 mM plasma). Michaelis- Menten parameters of transport were calculated to be Kt = 6.2 ? 1.7 mM and Tmax = 1.2 + 0.1 ,umol/g-min from the relationship between plasma and brain glucose concentrations. The brain glucose concentrations and transport constants are consistent with transport not being rate-limiting for resting brain metabolism at plasma levels >3 mM.


Aim: (1) Survey and organize computational approaches to fossil data analysis into a methodological framework. (2) Highlight the kinds of research questions about evolutionary and environmental change that can be answered by applying computational algorithms to mammal fossil data to better understand past ecosystems and climates. Questions: What models have been used for what research questions? What is their scope of application? What are their potential limitations? Search methods: Our search of the literature was based on personal knowledge in combination with keyword-based searches. Papers were considered relevant if data-driven computational methods were used to analyse relationships between organisms and their environments at evolutionary time scales. Conclusions: We demonstrate that different research questions may be answered with the same computational algorithm, and different algorithms may be needed to answer the same question in different contexts. We believe that in order to move forward, we need to match knowledge of methods with knowledge of the fossil record in a research question-driven way. Figure 2 presents a proposed workflow. Following this framework, we survey existing work and highlight what research questions can potentially be answered with which methods, some of which may not have been reported in the evolutionary palaeontology literature to date. The outcome of this survey is a proposal for a research agenda in computational fossil data analysis.


Executive Summary This exploratory study employed multiple data sources to examine the relationship between pre-charismatic leader emergence and ethical attitudes. It was hypothesized that individuals who varied across levels of pre-charismatic emergence would also vary in their perceptions of Utilitarianism/Formalism, Pragmatism/Altruism, Idealism/Relativism, and Machiavellianism. Findings suggest that individuals who exhibit high levels of pre-charismatic emergence are likely to prefer pragmatic outcomes. Other findings provided further support for the link between charismatic leadership behaviors and Machiavellian behaviors. High pre-charismatics were more likely to prefer using negative Machiavellian behaviors, while low pre-charismatics preferred to use positive Machiavellian behaviors. Surprisingly, the ethical attitude measures employed in much of the ethical behavior research did not exhibit high correlations, suggesting there might be a need to design new, more reliable measures to employ in ethical decision making research. Perhaps the most important finding in this exploratory study is the presence of differing levels of pre-charismatic emergence in our study sample. This study is the first one to find evidence to support the existence of the distributional characteristics of pre-charismatic emergence. (ProQuest Information and Learning: ... denotes text stops here in original.) Introduction The cult of corporate leadership remains fascinating to Fortune 500 watchers. The implosion of corporate kings, for example, Bernie Ebbers of WorldCom and Dennis Koslowski of Tyco, and corporate queens, for example, Martha Stewart of Martha Stewart Omnimedia and Lea Fastow of Enron, have registered heavily on the "perp walk" radar screen. Why has the business school mantra "maximize shareholder wealth" been emphasized at the expense of ethics? Why are leaders who were once considered to be charismatic and to have transformed ways of doing business in the 21st century going to jail? Have business schools focused so heavily on maximizing shareholder wealth that they have forgotten to uphold ethical behaviors? Business schools should go about recognizing future leaders and training them to make ethical decisions that address the needs of multiple stakeholders. While research has examined the "dark side of leadership," little research has focused on the early recognition and development of charismatic leadership traits and their relationship to ethical behaviors. Thus, our research question of interest is: "What is the relationship between leadership emergence and ethical attitudes?" We begin our study with a review of the literature. Hypotheses are generated and the methodology is described. Following a discussion of the results and implications, we conclude with suggestions for future research. Review of the Literature While the effects of ethical decision making on firm performance have been equivocal (Carlson & Perrewe, 1998), the benefits of an ethical organization have been confirmed in a variety of empirical studies. The benefits include the reduction of turnover and the development of a positive and supportive organizational climate (Howell & Avolio, 1992; Mowday, Porter, & Steers, 1982; Snider, Hill, & Martin, 2003), resulting in an increase in organizational commitment (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Moorman, & Fetter, 1990; Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Pain, & Bachrach, 2000). Schein (1985) identified two key factors in the development of an ethical organization. The first factor is those ethical traits that are espoused, that is, the types of ethical decision making models and values incorporated into the firm's decision making process. The second key factor is those values that are enacted by the firm's leader, for example, the actual behavior of the firm's top management team. Ethical decision making models have largely addressed the types of moral philosophies that focus on the decision making outcomes or upon the processes initiated to achieve the outcomes. …


This paper discusses the role the question of being would have played in the development of Heidegger's thought. Contrary to what it is commonly assumed, through the analysis of texts it is shown that the basic question of traditional ontology does not provide a permanent Leitfaden throughout Heidegger's philosophical development. In fact, in his first academic writings, the philosopher shifts from the traditional neo-scholastic view —the ontology from the notion of 'being'— to Lotze and Lask's Geltungslogik —the ontological conception that characterizes the logic of validity—. Nonetheless, later, in the 1919 to 1925/26 period, Heidegger goes back to the old question of ontology. An important reason for this was given by a critical view about the ontological aporiae to which both neo-Kantian and phenomenological philosophy of logic with their criticism against psychologism had led to.


[1] Ionospheric origin O+ accelerated in the cusp/cleft region convects over the polar cap and flows along open field lines to the tail lobes. Some O+ in the lobes enters the near-Earth plasma sheet where it is then convected to the inner magnetosphere, while some O+ ends up in the distant tail where it is lost. In order to understand the transport of ionospheric O+ to the plasma sheet so as to understand its contribution to the formation of geomagnetic storms, we have determined the occurrence frequency of cusp source O+ over the polar caps and in the lobes to determine where and when it is observed. The results show that the probability of observing O+ along the transport path is high even during nonstorm times, although, as expected, the highest probability is found during storm times. It was also found that when interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) By is positive, O+ from the northern cusp/cleft tends to stream toward the dawnside tail lobe while O+ from the south are observed on the duskside. The transport path for negative IMF By is more symmetric, but shows some evidence for a reversed asymmetry when IMF By is strongly negative. IMF Bz has little influence on the asymmetry. The asymmetry for positive By and lack of mirror symmetry between positive and negative By most likely result from the combination of convection driven by the solar wind and coupling with the ionosphere. Similar asymmetries have been observed in the convection patterns over the polar caps, which are attributed to a day-night ionospheric conductivity gradient adding to the IMF By effect. However, there are some disagreements between the asymmetries observed in polar cap potential patterns and the asymmetries observed in the O+ spatial distribution, indicating there may be other causes for the symmetry breaking, in addition to the day-night conductivity gradient.


Some of the personal observations made difficulties encountered and experiences gained in the BRAC program known as OTEP (Oral Therapy Extension Program) are recounted. The program is now 3 years old. At the initial stage oral replacement workers (ORWs) were not welcomed by village women because they thought the ORWs were family planning workers and that oral rehydration solution (ORS) would make them sterile. Radio messages individual and group contacts and actual demonstrations of the preparation and testing of ORS played a real part in acceptance of the program. There has been a steady increase in usage rate of ORS or BRACs Labon Gur Saline (LGS) in rural Bangladesh. Emphasis is now on taking a greater quantity of food along with higher fluid intake after a diarrhea episode. During the episode normal food intake plus LGS must be continued. Some problems arose during activities in low-lying coastal areas where salinity of water was high. As the higher salinity of water in those areas was normal for the locals the addition of salt through LGS did not alter the function of any human system. Usually it takes time to convince the clients about the need for normal food intake. It is also difficult to convince mothers of the need to continue breastfeeding in cases of diarrhea. At places where tubewell water is unavailable boiling and then cooling water before preparation of LGS is not feasible. Their normal drinking water would make no difference in diarrheal cases. It is better not to wait for boiling and then cooling which takes more than 2 hours. By then a patient may lose enough fluid and electrolytes that it may not be possible to replace by ORS. Experiences show that LGS prepared with available water used for drinking proved equally good in replacing fluid and electrolytes lost during the episode of individual cases.


In Ancient Russia (X с. XVII с.) there were lots of writings where psychological questions were set and solved. Among them were both translations, and works of national authors that were included into their textbook on psychology, meditative admonitions of old russian devotees; various compositions of old Russian pedagogical and ethical thought; naturephilosophical compositions, folk legends, and also works of art.


Limited retroperitoneal and peritoneal lymph accumulations are undoubtedly common following abdominal aortic reconstruction. However, intractable and symptomatic chylous ascites is a fortunately uncommon occurrence in this setting, though probably not as rare as suggested by the presence of only six cases in the world literature. 1—6 A case of intractable chylous ascites following aorto-femoral reconstruction is presented with a review of the previous six cases in order to clarify the clinical presentation, course, and management aspects of post-operative chylous ascites, specifically in vascular patients with a synthetic graft in place.


Control unit (SG) for actuating personal protection means (PS) comprising: - an evaluation circuit (μC1, .mu.C2) which actuates the personal protection means (PS) in response to a crash signal, characterized in that at least one interface (IF) is provided, which provides the crash signal, wherein only the at least one interface (IF) a crash sensor system (ISC) outside the control unit (SG) can be connected, - in that the evaluation circuit (μC1, .mu.C2) processes a signal of an imaging sensor system and influences the triggering accordingly, the imaging sensor (V1, V2) on the housing of the control device (SG) is attached.


Behemoth and leviathan The Trustees and Director of the National Maritime Museum have done me a double honour by asking me to deliver the Caird Lecture and to mark the opening of the Museum's new Research Centre for Imperial and Maritime Studies. With a double honour comes a double duty. I must both attempt to continue a distinguished tradition of Caird lectures and also seek to inaugurate what will surely become an equally great tradition emanating from this timely new Centre. The theme of my lecture will therefore be a double one: to reflect – and to reflect upon – the two fields covered by the Centre, imperial history and maritime history, their relationships and their differences.


It is proposed that at least two spaced apart sensors (2, 3, 12, 13) to integrate on or directly in the weapon barrel (1). When projectile through the sensors out (2, 3, 12, 13) due to the gas pressure on the projectile base and the pressure of the guide band of the projectile to the barrel inside an extension, which is converted into an electrical signal and, if necessary after amplification (7) to a downstream signal processing (8) is supplied. As sensors (2, 3, 12, 13) are preferably high temperature resistant quartz sensors in the form of longitudinal measuring pin used which are mounted either in a support ring (4, 5) on or around the weapon barrel (1) or directly in the weapon barrel (1).


There are various dimensions to the way migrant workers may find themselves within the most vulnerable parts of British society and also in a position where they cannot effectively deploy their skills, abilities and qualifications. First of all, their experiences of the initial stages into employment may be highly chaotic, disorganised and the product of a relatively de-regulated labour market. Secondly, the nature of the jobs many typically undertake means that they are unable to provide a framework of inclusion and support sufficient to allow an individual to prepare a clear plan for self development, or for using their skills and relevant qualifications. There is a failure within much of the labour market for skills and qualifications to be effectively recognised. Employers' perceptions of migrant workers' menial position within the labour market, and thus low salary expectations, means that some employers are effectively recruiting to low skilled positions on the basis of ethnicity as opposed to suitability. We therefore witness the situation where the acquisition of human capital by migrant workers generates no financial improvements, and worse still subjects migrant workers to a process of de-skilling. This is a generic problem but it affects the newly arrived more directly as they do not have the access points and local knowledge to overcome this challenge. Third, the uneven nature of employment regulation as in the case of Britain, for example, means that getting a basic wage and good working conditions is an all-consuming task for many migrants who work in some of the most vulnerable forms of employment. This leads to a fourth challenge in terms of mapping social support and being able to use networks and services that can alleviate many of their economic conditions. Many migrants have to use their own ethnic communities in order to gain information, services and a sense of dignity. This has implications on how they are able to use their experiences and qualifications to map their way into an improved and dignified existence. The paper attempts to map these dimensions of migrant activity and networks explaining how institutions at the local level fail to map onto these experiences. The paper will look at how new social movements in terms of migrant organisations and traditional social movements such as trade unions have in various European cases (especially in relation to the United Kingdom) used the discourse and strategy of learning as a key element of their politics of connection with the broader needs of such communities. The paper will draw from a range of sociological sources to show that networking requires a multidimensional understanding of the employment relationship and the local spaces it is structured within. The role of the local state is a vital feature of this process and its form is a determining variable in terms of developments.


Initial interest in community resilience by the U.S. federal government has been followed by waves of community resilience theory building and of community resilience assessment and intervention development and testing. This special issue of American Behavioral Scientist includes reviews of recent work to conceptualize, measure, and foster community resilience. These reviews identify common community resilience principles and considerations that cut across individual community resilience projects. These insights can inform next steps in community resilience practice and research.


The objectives of this study were to evaluate consumption, ruminal parameters and milk production of F1 Holstein x Zebu milking cows fed nitrogenated supplements with or without monensin added to the silage. Cows with 21 days on milk and producing initially 19.2kg of milk/day were distributed in a 5X5 Latin square design with three replicates per treatment. The treatments (T) were: 1- concentrate fed during the milking time and corn silage fed after milking (C.SM); 2- C.SM + nitromineral(NM) (C.SMNM); 3- C.SM + nitroproteico (NP) (C.SMNP); 4- C.SMNM + monensin (C.SMNM+MO) e 5- C.SMNP + monensin (C.SMNP+MO). The addition of NP e NM to the T C.SM increased the DMI when compared to C.SM (P 0,05). The protein supplementation did not alter acetate (P>0,05), but increased propionate and butyrate concentrations. (P<0.05) The N-NH3 concentration increased (P<0.05) only in T C.SMNM (P<0.05). The addition of monensin to T C.SMNP decreased propionate and butyrate concentrations (P<0.05) related to T C.SMNP. The milk production was greater in the C.SMNP treatments than T C.SM (P<0.05). Cows in T C.SM produced milk more efficiently than cows fed C.SMNM (P<0.05), but did not differ from the others.


The inhibitory effects of angiotensin-(1–7) on angiotensin II–induced vasoconstriction, growth of vascular smooth muscle cells, stimulation of protein kinase C, extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK), and angiotensin subtype 1 receptor (AT1) and subtype 2 receptor (AT2) mRNA expression were investigated. The hemodynamic effects of angiotensin-(1–7) were measured in Wistar rats. Vasoconstriction was measured using aortic rings. DNA synthesis or protein synthesis was measured in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells using [3H] thymidine or [3H] leucine incorporation, respectively. Angiotensin II stimulated protein kinase C and ERK1/2 were measured by Western blot analysis using phosphospecific protein kinase C and ERK1/2 antibodies. AT1 and AT2 receptor mRNA expression was measured using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Infusion of angiotensin II significantly increased whereas infusion of angiotensin-(1–7) had no effects on mean arterial blood pressure in Wistar rats. Angiotensin-(1–7) dose-dependently showed partial antagonism on angiotensin II–induced contraction of aortic rings. Angiotensin-(1–7) showed partial antagonism on angiotensin II–induced DNA synthesis and protein synthesis. Angiotensin-(1–7) showed partial antagonism on angiotensin II–induced activation of protein kinase C and ERK1/2. The administration of angiotensin-(1–7) showed partial antagonism on angiotensin II–induced downregulation of AT1 receptor mRNA expression, whereas AT2 receptor mRNA expression was unchanged. Angiotensin-(1–7) showed partial antagonism on angiotensin II–induced intracellular signal transduction and may play a crucial role in the adaptation process of AT1 receptors to sustained stimulation of angiotensin II.


The use of media technology is a possibility of growth and at the same time an educational problem not to be underestimated because of the extreme pervasiveness and diffusion among adolescents. Many of the studies conducted so far, although not validated in the literature, suggest that Internet abuse would be related to dysfunctional and compulsive behaviours, tolerance and impoverishment of the functioning of the individual. This increases the risk of the onset of feelings of loneliness, depressive moods and low self-esteem. The purpose of this article is to examine some aspects of the positive and negative effects of technology in education and socialization of today's adolescents and the opportunity to use technology during text comprehension tasks (in this case on a geographical track) through a pilot study on Italian adolescents (age m = 12.11). Methodologically, in the first part of the document, a systematic review of the literature of the issues presented in the second part of the experience described, tools used and results obtained was carried out. The conclusions of this research are that the way to overcome the problem of the negative effects of technology is to exploit its educational potential, finalizing it to the construction of meanings and social relationships. In the study conducted, the students took into consideration the use of the highly motivating and stimulating technological tool even if, the general interpretation was better in the print texts than in the digital reading.


A new alizarin red S/multi-walled carbon nanotube modified carbon paste electrode was developed and a sensitive stripping voltammetric method for trace copper determination is reported. By use of the second derivative linear sweep technique on polarographic analyser, it was found that in a 0.1 moL/L HAc-NaAc buffer solution (pH 4.1), copper(Ⅱ) is preconcentrated on the modified electrode surface because of formation of Cu(Ⅱ)-ARS complex, which can be reduced at -400 mV (vs. SCE). During the potential scan of positive direction, a sensitive anodic stripping peak appears at about 64 mV. A linear relationship between peak current and copper(Ⅱ) concentration was obtained in the range of 2×10-11~6×10-7 mol/L, and the detection limit (S/N=3) was 8.0×10-12 mol/L (240 s accumulation). The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of copper in hair samples with satisfactory results, and the recoveries were found to be 98%~102%.


The relations of anxiety as measured by the Alpert-Haber Achievement Anxiety scale to extroversion, neuroticism, and optimism were explored. Anxiety scores were those derived from the Facilitating (helpful) subscale, the Debilitating (crippling) subscale, and the Facilitating minus the Debilitating subscale. Ss were 134 members of a sophomore social science class. For the total group, significant relationships were found among three measures of anxiety and neuroticism and optimism but none with extroversion. By sex, only the males showed the same significant correlations as the total sample. Further studies, particularly with the anxiety measures, must be cautious of possible sex differences. Since the relationships found among neuroticism, optimism, and the anxiety types were logical, some construct validity is derived for the Alpert-Haber scale.


Several single‐component and two‐component imidazolium ionic liquids (ILs) ultrathin films were formed on Si substrates by a dip‐coating and heat treatment process. The formation and surface properties of the films were analyzed by means of ellipsometric thickness measurement, X‐ray photoelectron spectra and atomic force microscope. The adhesive and nanotribological behaviors of the films were evaluated by a homemade colloidal probe. A ball‐on‐plate tribometer was used to test the microtribological performances of these films. As a result, the two‐component ILs ultrathin film containing 80% solid‐like ILs phase shows more homogenous surface morphologies and optimal micro/nano‐tribological properties as compared to single‐component ILs films, which is ascribed to a synergic effect between the steady solid‐like ILs phase as the backbone and the proper amount of flowable liquid‐like ILs phase. By studying the influence of various solid/liquid ILs ratios on tribological properties of the two‐component ILs films, we might find the way to design ILs films with excellent comprehensive tribological properties. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A disc spring, also known as a Belleville spring, is a conical shell which can be loaded along its axis either statically or dynamically. It can generate a high force in a very short spring length with minimal movement when compressed. A novel multi-step austempering heat treatment process is developed to improve both the hardness and strength of a conventional 60Si2Mn disc spring. In this case, the disc spring is austenitized at 900°C for 0.5 h, control-quenched to a temperature below Ms (the starting temperature of martensite transformation) for a very short time, subsequently heated to the Ms point and holding for a specific time, and finally air cooled to the room temperature. It is found that the resulting multiphase microstructure consists mainly of prior lenticular martensite formed during controlled quenching (PM), needle bainitic ferrite (BF), and high carbon enriched retained austenite (RA). Further observation shows that a nanostructured (BF+RA)nano phase including lath BF and film RA with a width of about 100 nm nucleates around the PM. Such a microstructure results in uniform compression behavior, and significantly higher strength and hardness than for a conventional 60Si2Mn disc spring. This controlled multi-step austempering process is a promising solution for enhancing the disc spring properties for those applications involving higher loading and fatigue conditions.


A nontargeted approach based on liquid chromatography equipped with a quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass detector (LC‐MS Q‐TOF) joined to nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis allowed rapid identification and quantification of the anti‐inflammatory drug aceclofenac in illegal Adderall tablets. The largest chromatographic peak had m/z = 354.030 and m/z = 376.012 matching, respectively, the ionic structures (M + H)+ and (M + Na)+ of a molecule M. The accurate mass data generated the molecular formula C16H13Cl2NO4. A screening of the pharmaceutical active substances having that molecular formula together with the MS/MS fragmentation pattern suggested aceclofenac. Aceclofenac structure was unambiguously confirmed by 1H and 13C NMR experiments. The aceclofenac content was 90 mg/tablet (RSD 2%) as detected by quantitative NMR. Information on the identity and content of illegal drugs is required for legal purposes; it supports in evaluating the effective impact on users safety, and it is useful for control laboratories using a targeted approach in their analytical activities.


We adapt the three-dimensional reference interaction site model (3D-RISM) to calculate the potentials of mean force for ion–molecular solution as a difference between the chemical potential of solvation of a cluster of solutes and of individual ones. The method yields the solvation structure around the cluster of solutes in detail. The solvation chemical potential is obtained for the three-dimensional hypernetted chain (3D-HNC) closure as well as for its partial linearization (3D-PLHNC approximation). The solvation chemical potential is obtained in a closed analytical form for both the 3D-HNC and 3D-PLHNC closures. The 3D-RISM integral equations are solved by using the supercell technique. A straightforward supercell treatment of ionic solute in polar molecular solvent leads to a big error in the potential of mean force as well as the solvation chemical potential, which for simple ions in water amounts to about 35 kcal/mol. We elaborated corrections to the 3D-RISM integral equations, alleviating the artif...


Traditional new classical economics is under the prerequisite of symmetrical information assumption. But in the realistic market, inofrmation asymmetry is seen everywhere and has brought about a lot of new economic problems. It has affected rural consumer market and farming product market. So it is neccssary to put forward the corresponding policies and measures.


The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between strategic leadership and organizational justice within the healthcare sector. In the context of the study, the introduced model was tested by a questionnaire instrument with 41 items excluding demographic variables. A total of 320 completed questionnaires were used for analysis. Correlation, regression, T test and Anova analyzes were applied to the research data that obtained by the questionnaire. The study focused on the employees of hospitals in the Diyarbakir province of Turkey. The results suggest that there is a very strong positive linear relationship between strategic leadership and organizational justice variables. The result of the study is consistent with the results of previous research. Also, some disparities were observed among the demographic variables of the study.


Vidic and Haaf (2004) questioned the idea that infants use head information to categorize cats as distinct from dogs (Quinn & Eimas, 1996) and argued instead that the torso region is important. However, only null results were observed in the critical test comparisons between modified and unmodified stimuli. In addition, a priori preferences for the paired test stimuli were not assessed, thus leaving open the possibility that novel category preferences for unmodified stimuli could have been blocked by spontaneous preferences for modified stimul i. Moreover, only a single cat-dog pairing and set of pig parts were used as test stimuli , thereby raising the issue of whether the infants could have been responding to idiosyncratic featural differences between particular exemplars rather than features diagnostic of whole categories. The evidence does not support the conclusion that the torso is important for infants' categorization of cats versus dogs.


The acquisition of condensed samples of exhaled air is a well-known noninvasive method for analyzing the healthiness of the lungs. Unlike other invasive methods as induced sputum or bronchoscopy, the condensate collection is faster and non-aggressive. During breathing, it is interesting to fractionate the sample in two differentiated portions as the first exhaled portion comes from a section of the respiratory way known as Dead Space, while the lasting exhaled portion comes from a section known as Alveolar Space. The liquid collected from the Dead Space contains a low-to-none density of biomarkers, which are mainly contained in the Alveolar Space's breathed air. Novel procedures have shown that separating the samples results in a more precise analysis of the state of the patient, improving the collected data for enhancing the current description of associated diseases. Here we describe a novel device and the associated theoretical bases for detecting and separating the exhaled air based on the source area. The implemented system integrates a closed loop for pressure control which operates on a three-ways balloon valve, based on the instantaneous exhaled amount of carbon dioxide following a proven methodology that dynamically fits the expected measured range a patient, providing a reliable cut-off among air spaces. The device, available in an open repository, besides being far less expensive than commercial devices provides a simpler and shorter method for acquiring samples. Introduction A very common procedure for performing pulmonary examinations through analyzing lung biomarkers is bronchoscopy, a method which can lead to damage in the breathing ways during the examination caused by either the operator of the bronchoscope or the anesthetist, necessary for executing the exam. A recent review analysis from DeBoer et al. (2019) shows more than 10% of procedures with complications. Compared to simpler and more recent methods, performing a bronchoscopy is highly invasive, slow and implicates elevated monetary costs. Among recent methods, the Exhaled Breath Condensate (EBC) is a promising procedure, which disrupt the previous ways to access to the breathing areas as it only requires to have the patient to breath tidally into a closed or partially closed device. It is fully noninvasive and, as it allows to collect and post-process lung biomarkers, it can detect both respiratory and systemic diseases. Current devices implementing this technique produce samples with a low density of biomarkers, as they Towards an autonomous system with exhaled breath separation for cleaner condensed air samples Copyright © 2020 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). Proceedings of the 5th Congress on Robotics and Neuroscience store in a single collecting cap all the condensed air, despite its origin (see a list of commercially available devices in Konstantinidi et al. (2015)). The collected samples, then, mainly derives from conducting airways, being highly diluted lacking the presence of biomarkers. This is a known problem of EBC and is barely assessed by requesting patients to perform slow breathing cycles, having into account that the dilution can remarkably affect the sample composition Horváth et al. (2017). Here, we introduce a novel equipment which is able to separate the exhaled breath into two isolated samples: one collected sample contains condensed air from Dead Space areas (or conducting ways), depositing into another cap condensed air mostly from Alveolar Space areas. Then, this second cap contains the sample collected which is actually used for posterior biomarker's analysis, presenting a higher density and, therefor, efficacy in the collecting procedure and medical evaluation. All codes developed for functioning and performing post-processing analysis, including examples of registered data, are available in an open repository1. Retrieving biomarkers from breathing areas Condensed samples The EBC procedure allows to retrieve biomarkers in a simple, noninvasive fashion. Standard equipment captures exhaled air in an inner camera which has to be cold enough to provoke the condensation of the contained gas. Samples are then stored as liquid or frozen material for immediate or later analysis (Horváth et al., 2017). The procedure for sampling collection only requires to have the patient to breath tidally using a nose clip. While it is common to request subjects to breath over a defined period of time (e.g., 15 min.), as the collected volume depends directly on this time (Liu and Thomas, 2007) the absolute time per patient can variate and be defined online by the medical examiner in order to retrieve a volume sufficient enough for following examinations. Fractionated samples Recent proposals have shown that the efficacy in terms of density of biomarkers, measured as the number of detected biomarkers, can be enhanced in a EBC procedure by separating the exhaled air based on the proximity of its origin. The exhaled air is separated into either proximal – also known as Dead Space (e.g., trachea) – or distal airways – also known as Alveolar Space – (Corradi et al., 2008; Hoffmeyer et al., 2009). This origin may have an important effect in the composition of the collected sample. Air from proximal airways contributes to a major dilution of the sample by injecting condensed water while it can also increase the influence of ambient air into the sample (Reinhold and Knobloch, 2010). Developed equipment considering the separation of exhaled air is commercially unavailable (see e.g., Goldoni et al. (2013)). Its functional capabilities allow them to act as a proof of concept, but lacks of a comprehensive description obstructing its reproducibility, and therefor its usability. Tackling this problem, here we introduce the CK Flow Divider system, a novel equipment capable of performing an automatic separation of the exhaled air into two different collecting units: one for air from Dead Space and another one for air from Alveolar Space. Using an online measure of the exhaled CO2 based on the classical Fowler's Model for classifying the origin of the air (Fowler, 1948) and commercially available equipment (see following section), the CK Flow Divider system constitutes a reproducible functional device for collecting separated condensed samples. The CK Flow Divider system: Functional Separation of Breathing Samples The following section contains a full description of the CK Flow Divider system by introducing its composing parts and giving an architectural view. Each component, as described below, has 1Relevant codes and registered data presented here are publicly available at https://github.com/Sobreviviente/Fractionated_exhaled_breath. Proceedings of the 5th Congress on Robotics and Neuroscience Inhaling Dead-air Storage Alveolar-air Storage CO2>1% CO2>50%


The 2014 cyber attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment is an example of a disruptive event where a nation state utilized cyber tools in order to coerce a target into changing their course of action. ...


A 13-month-old boy accidentally ingested a 5 cm dressmaker's pin. On presentation, the pin was in the duodenum and there was a right inguinal hernia. After 17 days, the pin failed to progress. At surgery, the sac contained appendix perforated by the pin. This is the first case in the literature.


The present invention relates to a method for analyzing masks for photolithography. In this method, an aerial image of the mask in the first focus setting is generated and stored in the aerial image data record. Aerial image data record is transferred to the algorithm that simulates a photolithographic wafer exposure on the basis of the data recording. In this case, the simulation is carried out for a plurality of mutually different energy dose. Then, the predetermined height from the wafer surface, is contours to separate regions with photoresist from regions without photoresist are determined in each case. As a result, i.e., contours, for each of the energy dose is stored in the contour data records with an energy dose as a parameter in each case. Finally, contour data records are combined, are three-dimensional multi-contour data record form having the inverse of the energy dose as a third dimension, on the basis of the transition to a non-zero value from zero in contour, the mask three-dimensional profile of the reciprocal of the energy dose which depends on the position of the upper is produced. This profile, so-called effective aerial image is output, stored, or automatically evaluated. You can do the same in cross-section through the profile described above. .FIELD 1


The shape of bent, double-lobed radio sources requires a dense gaseous medium. Bent sources can therefore be used to identify galaxy clusters and characterize their evolutionary history. By combining radio observations from the Very Large Array Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty centimeters (VLA FIRST) survey with optical and infrared imaging of 36 red sequence selected cluster candidates from the high-z Clusters Occupied by Bent Radio AGN (COBRA) survey (0.35 < z < 2.2), we find that radio sources with narrower opening angles reside in richer clusters, indicating that the cluster environment impacts radio morphology. Within these clusters, we determine 55.5% of our radio host galaxies are brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) and that the remainder are associated with other luminous galaxies. The projected separations between the radio sources and cluster centers and the sizes of the opening angles of bent sources follow similar distributions for BCG and non-BCG host populations, suggesting that COBRA host galaxies are either BCGs or galaxies that may evolve into BCGs. By measuring the orientation of the radio sources relative to the cluster centers, we find between 30% and 42% of COBRA bent sources are outgoing and have passed through the cluster center, while between 8% and 58% of COBRA bent sources are infalling. Although these sources typically do not follow directly radial paths, the large population of outgoing sources contrasts what is observed in low-z samples of bent sources and may indicate that the intracluster medium is less dense in these high-z clusters.


Objective. There were two objectives of the study, first was to identify the barriers as perceived by the patients and providers to access the low vision services and second was to identify the challenges faced by the main providers. Study design. Structured questionnaire based interviews of patients and providers Methodology. To find out the barriers to access of low vision services, the interviews based on structured questionnaire were conducted for two patient groups. The first group consisted of 97 visually impaired individuals attending the department of low vision services at Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital Rawalpindi while the second group included 56 visually impaired individuals attending the four rehabilitation centers/schools for the blind in Rawalpindi/Islamabad. To identify the barriers as perceived by the main providers of low vision services and challenges faced by them the interviews based on structured questionnaire were conducted for 19 low vision service providers. Results. From patients point of view, major barrier to low vision services identified was inability to visit hospital /rehabilitation center alone - 29.8% in hospital group and 33.9% in rehabilitation centers group, while the lack of social support, lack of family support, cost of travelling, long distance, afford ability, hesitation in using devices and lack of satisfaction were other important barriers identified. From providers' point of view, major barrier to uptake of services was the need for repeated follow-ups. Optometrists were the main provider of low vision services contributing to 47.4% of the providers. The major challenge faced by the providers was motivation of patients to use low vision devices. Conclusion. The major barrier to low vision services according to the patients is inability to visit the hospital alone, while according to providers, it is the need for repeated follow up which proves major barrier towards uptake of services. The motivation is the major challenge faced by providers, majority of which are optometrists.


Rice is one commodity that have an important value for Indonesian people food. But the production of rice plant decreased by attacking of insect and bacterial. The bacterialleaf blight caused by Xanthomonas oryzaepv.oryzae. To avoid the bacterial leaf blight could used Trichoderma sp. suspension to induced resistant in rice plant. This research was conducted at the Laboratory of Plant Disease and Greenhouse of Lampung University. This study was conducted from June 2016 to August 2016.The experiment was conducted in a complete randomized design arranged with two factors, namely varieties of rice and kind isolate of Trichoderma sp.. The results of this study showed that the application of Trichoderma sp. reducing the severity of bacterial leaf blight diseaseand the kind isolate of Trichoderma sp. can increase the length rootand height of rice plant.


In the title compound, C15H11N3O4, the six-membered oxazine ring adopts a half-chair conformation and is oriented at an angle of 78.63 (9)° with respect to the pyrrolidine ring of the indoline ring system, which adopts an envelope conformation. The spiro centre C atom is tetrahedral and lies 0.147 (1) A out of the plane of other four pyrrolidone ring atoms. The nitrobenzene and benzene rings exhibit near planar conformations with C—C—C—N and C—C—C—C torsion angles of 178.1 (2) and 178.8 (2)°, respectively. In the crystal, N—H⋯O and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds connect the molecules, generating a sheet-like structure parallel to the bc plane. Within the sheets, pairs of intermolecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds form inversion dimers enclosing R22(8) ring motifs. In addition, the N—H⋯O and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds generate R32(11) and R22(10) graph-set ring motifs extending the two-dimensional structure. A supramolecular R66(28) loop for each set of six molecules is formed by N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds within the extended sheet structure and stabilizes the packing. π–π stacking interactions between the nitrobenzene and benzene rings [intercentroid distance = 3.711 (1) A] and N—O⋯π interactions further consolidate the crystal packing.


Abstract: Heat pipe is an extremely good heat conducting component made from a combination of couple of materials in a specific manner which gives it a head start to conduct the heat from a heat source to heat sink with negligible amount of heat loss in between instantaneously. The study aimed to develop the knowledge of understanding heat pipes by collecting and designing the data available in all types of forms throughout the material spectrum and displaying in such a manner of order from basics to advanced information regarding heat pipe and contribute new insights into the proficiency of considerations while designing and fabrication of heat pipe and look into how change in diameter of heat pipe effects the performance. This paper presents a review of work done by various resaerchers in heat pipe in terms of their design and analysis.


Objective To observe the effects and toxicity of concurrent chemoradiotherapy based on Nedaplatin(NDP) and Taxotere(TXT) for patients with inoperable esophageal cancer.Methods A total of 84 patients with inoperable esophageal cancer were studied and divided into NDP+TXT group,NDP group,TXT group and control group,with 21 cases in each group.All patients were treated by radiotherapy in combination with chemotherapy.In control group,patients were treated with Cisplatin(DDP) plus 5-Fluorouracil(5-FU),with a course of 21 days for 2 courses at least.Results The overall response rate of NDP+TXT group,NDP group,TXT group and control group was 80.95%,52.38%,57.14% and 38.10%.Compared with NDP+TXT group and the other groups,the research had notable significance in statistics(P0.05).The myelosuppression in NDP+TXT group,NDP group and TXT group was more severe than control group(P0.05);the gastrointestinal side effects in control group was more severe than in other groups(P0.05);no statistics difference was found among NDP+TXT group,NDP group and TXT group(P0.05).Conclusion Concurrent chemoradiotherapy based on Nedaplatin and Taxotere is of better curative effect on inoperable esophageal cancer;it is worthy of wide application in clinic.


The therapeutic utility of liver X receptor (LXR) agonists in treating atherosclerosis is limited by an undesired accumulation of triglycerides in the blood and liver. This effect is caused by an increase in the transcription of genes involved in fatty acid synthesis. Here, we show that the primary bile acid, chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), antagonizes the stimulatory effect of the synthetic LXR agonist, T0-901317, on the expression of acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase-α (ACCα) and other lipogenic enzymes in chick embryo hepatocyte cultures. CDCA inhibits T0-901317-induced ACCα transcription by suppressing the enhancer activity of a LXR response unit (−101 to −71 bp) that binds LXR and sterol-regulatory element binding protein-1 (SREBP-1). We also demonstrate that CDCA decreases the expression of SREBP-1 in the nucleus and the acetylation of histone H3 and H4 at the ACCα LXR response unit. The CDCA-mediated reduction in ACCα expression is associated with a decrease in the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) and small heterodimer partner and an increase in the expression of fibroblast growth factor-19 (FGF-19). Ectopic expression of FGF-19 decreases T0-901317-induced ACCα expression. Inhibition of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and/or extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) suppresses the effects of CDCA on the expression of ACCα, SREBP-1, PGC-1α, and FGF-19. These results demonstrate that CDCA inhibits T0-901317-induced ACCα transcription by suppressing the activity of LXR and SREBP-1. We postulate that p38 MAPK, ERK, PGC-1α, and FGF-19 are components of the signaling pathway(s) mediating the regulation of ACCα gene transcription by CDCA.


Tonnge basalt is a relatively small basaltic field situated in the Tigyaing Township, Sagaing Region, Myanmar. This basaltic field is considered as one of the occurrences of younger extrusive rocks along the major strike-slip fault of central Myanmar. The basaltic lava flows erupted and rested upon the Upper Miocene-Pliocene Irrawaddy Sandstone. Petrological and geochemical studies of the Tonnge basalts have not been carried out yet. This paper reports the results of petrological and geochemical investigation on the basalts from Tonnge area. These data have provided insight into the origin and petrogenetic processes during evolution. The petrographic characteristics of the basalts have been studied using polarizing microscope. The major- and trace-element compositions of basalt samples were analyzed using X-Ray Fluorescence. The Tonnge basalts are porphyritic, holocrystalline and consist of phenocrysts of olivine, plagioclase ± clinopyroxene which are set in the fine-grained intergranular groundmass of olivine, pyroxene, and opaque minerals. The basalts show typical characters of alkali olivine basalts. Trace element assemblage of the studied basalts plots on various discrimination diagrams as within-plate basalt erupted in the continental setting. A relatively small volume, monogenetic nature and unique geochemical characteristics of the basaltic lavas suggest that they are derived from a single, short-lived, discrete parental magma as a result of partial melting.


subcommittee of the Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. The initial recommendations of the Committee were published in 1992 as the ' Guidelines for cognitive rehabilitation ' [3] and were based on so called expert opinion that did not take into account empirical evidence on the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation. More recently, a review of the scientifi c literature for cognitive rehabilitation in patients with TBI published from January 1988 through August 1998 (including 11 randomized clinical trials [RCTs]) noted that data on the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation programmes were limited by the heterogeneity of subjects, interventions, and outcomes studied [4] . As a preliminary consideration, we wish to underline that the present status of studies on the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation is still not satisfactory. We are fully convinced that the standards required for the evaluation of pharmacological and surgical interventions also apply to rehabilitation. In particular, it is necessary to show that rehabilitation is effective not only in modifying the impairment, but also in having sustained effects at the disability level. Unfortunately, the majority of RCTs in this area are of poor methodological quality, have insuffi cient sample size, and fail to assess the outcome at the disability level. Many other studies fail to compare intervention with placebo or sham treatment. Before recommendations are advanced, a word of caution is necessary to alert the reader to the fact that there are differences in the classifi cation schemes and rating systems used by different professional societies. Consequently, reviews and recommendations based on such systems may not always be directly comparable. Furthermore, inherent to each classifi cation schema are grey zones, leeway of interpretation, and diffi culties


This study aims to see the effects of ethnomatematics in improving students' mathematical problem skills. This research uses literature study method. In this research, the knowledge, ideas, or findings contained in it are studied, so as to provide theoretical and scientific information related to ethnomatematics in improving the ability of mathematical problems. The data analysis technique includes 3 stages are: 1) administration; 2) synthesis; and 3) identification. From existing studies, learning that applies ethnomathematics in it, both as a medium and as an approach, has a positive impact on the learning process, because learning is more directed and students feel happy while learning, because students can be directly involved in the learning process. The use of ethnomatematics also makes students closer to these lessons, because it uses local culture as a learning medium. Where students are very familiar with the culture in their place of residence. So that these things increase the ability to handle student problems.


A 64-year-old man with metastatic cecal adenocarcinoma on palliative chemotherapy presented with both cholangitis and persistent vomiting. Computed tomography demonstrated a dilated common bile duct and gastric outlet obstruction from a malignant stricture at the second part of the duodenum (D2) involving the papilla (▶Fig. 1). A diagnosis of type 2 combined malignant biliary and duodenal obstruction (CMBDO) was made. Percutaneous biliary drainage was not suitable because of borderline intrahepatic biliary dilatation and patient refusal. The advanced malignancy and ongoing cholangitis precluded surgery. The endoscopic approach was challenging in this case because tumor infiltration of the papilla was causing obstruction and thus prevented conventional endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), and placement of a biliary stent would be difficult following deployment of a duodenal stent. We therefore performed endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)guided choledochoduodenostomy (CDS) using the HOT AXIOS stent (10×10mm; Boston Scientific, Marlborough, Massachusetts, USA) followed by subsequent stenting of the duodenal obstruction using a WallFlex metal stent (22×90mm; Boston Scientific) (▶Fig. 2, ▶Video 1). We highlight the use of the lumen-apposing HOT AXIOS stent to prevent stent migration and bile leak compared with conventional covered biliary metal stents. The enhanced electrocautery delivery system facilitates direct puncture during stent insertion. Without this delivery device, serial dilatation is required during stent insertion, which risks bile leakage [1]. The flanges with lumen-apposing forces also help to prevent bile leak. As CMBDO could lead to cholangitis and recurrent vomiting, palliative options are essential for patient comfort. Treatment options of CMBDO depend on the location and sequence of obstruction [2]. EUS-guided CDS using the HOT AXIOS stent is a feasible therapeutic and palliative alternative for challenging CMBDO when biliary cannulation using conventional ERCP is difficult. Endoscopy_UCTN_Code_TTT_1AS_2AD E-Videos


A 2-yr field trial was conducted on a drained pine bog to measure the dissolution of five phosphorus (P) fertilizers of differing solubility. The rate of fertilizer dissolution was measured using a sequential fractionation which involved pre-extraction with 0.5 M NaCl/TEA followed by 1 M NaOH and a mixed acid (HNO3+HCl+H2SO4) digestion. About 56% of Siilinjärvi apatite, a hard magmatic rock phosphate, dissolved over the 2 yrs. For a commercial P+K fertilizer manufactured from Siilinjärvi apatite and KCl (water-soluble P<0.1%), the corresponding value was 44%. For Moroccan phosphate rock, and a commercial fertilizer manufactured from Moroccan phosphate rock and KCl (water-soluble P=15.8%), the dissolution was about 44% and 58%, respectively. For superphosphate (water-soluble P=79%), the corresponding value was 93%.


Managing toxic waste is one of the country's biggest 5A industrial and environmental headaches, but technology is right around the corner that may make the process safer, cleaner, and eventually cheaper than incineration. Eco-Logic International, / Inc., based in Michigan and / Canada, has developed a process that can completely destroy organochlorines and organic matter, including compounds such as PCBs, dioxins, furans, and chlorinated pesticides. The company's patented gas-phase The "Desi thermochemical process uses a cides, and reduction reaction of hydrogen with organic and chlorinated organic compounds at elevated temperatures. Hazardous contaminants are transformed into excess hydrogen, methane, and a small amount of water vapor. The gases produced in the reaction either recirculate into the process or provide supplementary fuel for the system. And because it is a closed-loop system, no contaminants escape. Currently, incineration is the method of choice to dispose of municipal, medical, and hazardous waste, but evidence indicates that this technology is flawed and may create more problems than most communities are equipped to handle. Under high-temperature combustion, organic compounds containing carbon, hydrogen, and often chlorine are oxidized. Other substances potentially incinerated include sulfur, arsenic, and metals such as chromium, mercury, and lead. Both the toxic emissions produced during the burning On the ro process (sometimes from accisions and tructor." Organic compounds such as PCBs, dioxins, fur, J solvents are destroyed by this process.