Ganglioneuroblastoma is composed of both ganglion and neuroblast cells and is a subset of neuroblastoma, which is one of the most popular malignant tumors of children. This type of tumor typically originates from the abdomen and rarely from the neck. We report a case of cervical ganglioneuroblastoma in this article.A 9 year-old girl was presented as having an elastic hard tumor in the left side of her neck. The tumor located behind the bifurcation of the common carotid artery and no blood flow was detected by either ultrasonic study or magnetic resonance imaging. We performed extirpation of the tumor as a neurinoma, and carried out an additional neck dissection after the tumor was diagnosed as a ganglioneuroblastoma by pathologic study of a frozen section of the tumor. Its origin was thought to be the cervical sympathetic trunk.Complete surgical resection is sufficient treatment for cervical ganglioneuroblastoma in children because it can be detected earlier than abdominal tumors and because radiation therapy and chemotherapy have serious side effects on children.


The proper motion of the faint (V=25.6 mag) neutron star RXJ1856.5-3754 as measured consistently with both the FORS1 optical imager on the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) as well as with the ROSAT High Resolution Imager is presented. With two VLT images obtained with a 0.95 year epoch difference in Apr 1999 and Apr 2000, a proper motion of mu_alpha = 0.326 \pm 0.064" per year to the east and no detectable motion in declination is found, consistent with simultaneous findings by Walter (2001) using three HST observations. Also, by comparing the positional differences between the strong X-ray source RXJ1856.5-3754 and other X-ray sources detected in the same ROSAT High Resolution Imager field (observed in Oct 1994 and Oct 1997), a proper motion of 0.34 \pm 0.12" to the east is detected. This may be the first star, where a proper motion is clearly detected in X-ray images. Additional VLT images taken in half-year intervalls give an upper limit to the parallax of about 51 mas. Furthermore, in archived VLT observations, the first B-band detection of this object is found with B=25.14 \pm 0.41 mag.


Fracture development in Qijia buried hill trap of Huanxiling oilfield has been studied by using fractal theory to find favorable oil and gas accumulation. The result of research is that fractures are most developed in trap 2 and 3, where the most favorable hydrocarbon accumulations in Qijia buried hill are located; fractal theory can quantitatively assess the degree of fracture development in fractured buried hill reservoir.


The present invention provides protein hydrolyzate compositions, method for producing a protein hydrolyzate compositions, and foods containing protein hydrolyzate composition. Protein hydrolyzate composition typically comprises a polypeptide fragment having predominantly either the arginine residue or lysine residue at each carboxyl terminus.


Primary succession was studied on recently de- glaciated areas in front of the Ampere Glacier, Kerguelen Islands (49? 30' S, 69? 30' E). Vegetation, colonization proc- esses and soil development were investigated on seven sites on the outwash plain over a distance of 5 km and representing a > 200-yr old chronosequence. Seven species are involved in the succession, showing four patterns of change: (1) 'pioneer' (Poa kerguelensis, Poa annua, Colobanthus kerguelensis and Ceras- tiumfontanum); (2) 'intermediate' (Festuca contracta); (3) 'late colonizer' (Azorella selago); and (4) 'fluctuating' (Agrostis magellanica). Two of the pioneers are introduced species (Poa annua and Cerastium). The total plant cover increases signifi- cantly with the age of the sites but never exceeds 4.2 %. The plant succession pattern observed in this study appears to be related to soil development. Root architecture and fine particle dynamics in the soil may explain the behaviour of the different species along the chronosequence. The pioneer species have a very shallow root system whereas the intermediate and late colonizers are deeper and longer rooted. The dominance of Azorella selago (Apiaceae) in the oldest community may be attributed to its unique root system in relation to the vertical distribution of silt cappings in the soil.


Archaeological excavations on the black sea coast led to discoveries about the history of ancient greek towns such as chersonesus, pantikopei, olbia, mermekiy, gorgippia, illurat and phanagoria. Construction techniques, building materials and structural solutions (mainly for earthquake prevention) employed at the four sites of olbia, pantikopei, phanagoria and chersonesus, are dealt with in this study. Bibliographic references.


As a part of aircraft electrical power system,LAMS could not only improve the quality of power supply,probability of mission completion and the safety of aircraft,but also reduce the weight and the charge.It can make great progress for our country in aircraft electrical power system.This paper does systemic research of the auto-management technology of LAMS,brings forward a PRI setting method,and makes the control equation and power equation for electrical loads.The results prove that the credibility and maintainability of power supply are improved greatly with this technoloqy.


Objective To assess the role of MTT colorimetric assay in measuring mitochondrial succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) and establish a new way to determine pretransplantational cell viability.Methods Human or rat testicular Leydig cell suspensions were incubated with MTT medium, isopropanol was used to dissolve MTT formazan, then the absorbance of supertants was measured at 563?nm wavelength. Cell culture and testosterone production were used to assess the reliability of MTT colorimetric assay with comparison with Trypan bluedye.Results 1 g/L MTT concentration, 3?h incubation, and isopropanol as a solvent were the best optimum for the cell culture in vitro and testosterone determination showed that MTT colorimetric assay was more sensitive and accurate than Trypan bluedye. MTT colorimetric assay was employed to successfully measure cell viability for 10 cases of human testicular Leydig cell transplantation.Conclusion MTT colorimetric assay provided a reliable, objective, accurate method for determining the pretransplantational cell viability.


In this paper, we present the model of electron beam lithography. This model includes elastic cross section, inelastic cross section, energy-loss rate model and etch rate model. For elastic cross section, Rutherford cross section and Browning's Mott cross section are adopted. For inelastic cross section, Moller cross section and Gryzinsky cross section are used. To calculate energy-loss rate, we use different forms of Bethe formulas. The etch rate model is used to calculate the etch rate. The simulation is implemented with Monte Carlo method for PMMA resist. Various development profiles are obtained through the simulation.


Purpose: Despite recent new recommendations from professional societies regarding the management of diabetes in older adults, it is clear that in routine practice, treatment targets are often ill-suited to the health state of polymorbid elderly diabetic patients.


Objective To discuss whether there is any oxidative damage in the adult offspring rats' brain because of wistar rats exposed to organ phosphorus pesticide chlorpyrifos in early pregnancy.Methods Stomach virus infected dose of 1/50 LD50, 1/100 LD50 group, 1/180 LD50 concentration of CPF and corn oil were given to the mother rats intragastrically from the sixth day that the mother rats getting pregnancy to the twenty-first day after the rats born. The rats were put to death 8 weeks after born, then malondialdehyde(MDA) content, superoxide dismutase(SOD) activity and glutathione peroxidase(GSH-PX) dynamic of brain were tested. Results As the increase of decreasing dose, the vigor of SOD and GSH-PX reduced; the content of MDA increased, and there was a dose-response relationship. There were statistically significant differences in the above indicators between every infected dose and corn oil control group(P0.05).Conclusion There is certain oxidative damage on the brain of 8-week old rat adult offspring because of gestational exposure to low concentration chlorpyrifos.


The spoken and written Chinese in Hong Kong form bilingual language situation. The Cantonese ers read an write in Modern Standard Written Chinese (MSWC) and written Cantonese . This study wants to show the ability of reading MSWC and Cantonese-based written character by elderly Cantonese speakers and the effect of the education ability to discriminate in reading the Cantonese-based and MSWC single characters* The tasks are word recognition and translating task. The result shows the elderly subjects do have different abili ties to translate the Cantonese into MSWC and MSWC into Cantonese. Their ability depend on their education level. Meanwhile , the patterns of errors shown by the subjects also show the subjects' domi nance of written Cantonese over MSWC. The author discuss such findings in the of linguistic studies


With the examples of 93LC46、24LC01B and DS1971,the characteristics of leading feet,the periphery circuit and the working principle of serial E 2PROM chips were introduced,which conduct data transferring by using the protocls of three_thread,two_thread and single_thread.The ways of interface connecting between them and single chip and building the cheap storage application system were also expounded.


The interaction of sound waves with an aqueous suspension of solid particles was analysed experimentally and theoretically. A heretofore unreported effect of particle concentration in the vicinity of a wave-tube centreline was observed. The phenomenon is related to the combined effect of Rayleigh-type acoustic streaming, jet-like streaming (quartz wind) and drift forces occurring in the presence of a sonic wave in the suspension-filled tube.


Objective: To compare influences between laparoscopic and open surgery on humoral immune function and energy metabolism in acute cholecystectomy.Methods: Sixty patients with acute calculous cholecystitis were randomly designated to observational group and control group with 30 cases in each group. Patients in observational group underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy and those in control group were subjected to open cholecystectomy. The surgery-related parameters, and indexes associated with the changes in immune function, energy metabolism and nutrient loss in the two groups were compared.Results: h e operative time, intraoperative blood loss, and time to i rst postoperative l atus and ambulation inobservational group were significantly reduced compared with control group(all P0.05). The levels of IgG, IgM, IgA, C3, C4 and IL-4, and values of resting energy expenditure(REE) and respiratory quotient(RQ) in both group were all decreased signii cantly compared with the preoperative ones, but the decreasing degrees in all the above parameters were less and the duration of their decreases were shorter in observational group than those in control group(all P0.05). h e levels of albumin(ALB) and transferrin(TRF) and the values of triceps skinfold thickness(TSF) and arm muscle circumference(AMC) in both groups at postoperative day 7 were all decreased signii cantly compared with the preoperative ones, but their decreasing amplitudes were all signii cantly less in observational group than those in control group(all P0.05).Conclusion: Laparoscopic procedure for acute cholecystectomy has superior ei cacy than open surgery, and it also has the advantages of lessened immune function alterations and reduced energy loss.


The Dutch distribution network consists of 100% underground cables. The very wet soil and the dense infrastructure were the main reasons for that. The reliability of this network is very high. The total circuit length is more than 90000 km. It consists mainly of paper insulated lead cable, 3-phase belted types. The most commonly used rated voltage is 10 kV. Up till now, the circuit length of XLPE cables is limited, compared to PILC. The early generation of XLPE-cables of the 1970s suffered from water trees. The latest types have tree retardant XLPE insulation and water blocking systems and show good performance. The maintenance of the distribution cable network is guided on a significant scale on the basis of the VLF partial discharge diagnostic mapping method. This method enables the network-owner to focus its maintenance and the replacements on the weak points only. The maintenance costs are reduced considerably, while increasing the reliability of the cable system. This paper starts with a short introduction of the special circumstances in the Netherlands. The network situation is given, with focus on the medium voltage network and the performance of these cable systems. The VLF PD diagnostic method and its results are given.


Overland transport of fecal bacteria in water and their resuspension from bed sediments are important transport mechanisms that help explain the transport of enteric pathogens in watersheds. In this study, multi-year monitoring along with regression relationships between sediment and fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) were used to investigate annual loading in the South Fork Broad River (SFBR) watershed, located in northeast Georgia, USA. Suspended transport was the dominant transport mechanism contributing to in-stream total annual loads for sediment (81.4% to 98.1%) and FIB (> 98%). Annual bedload transport of FIB was small and E. coli (up to 1.8%) contributed more to annual bedload FIB than enterococci (≤ 0.03%). Bedload contributions of FIB increased with the duration of critical discharge exceedance, indicating a prolonged risk of exposure to enteric pathogens during extended periods of high flows, which is important during major storm events. The risk of exposure to enteric pathogens through pathways such as recreational use and drinking water treatment could be much greater because fecal bacteria are released from sediment during higher flows, and dominantly transported in suspension when bedload are not actively moving. Therefore, the combined contribution of fecal bacteria from overland and bedload-associated transport should be considered in risk assessments. Discharge, bedload, and FIB data collected over two years in this study can supplement future hydrologic modeling and microbial risk assessment modeling efforts. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


Impact angle is a key parameter which will affect the impact result of bridge piers.Yet how to determine its value has not been specified in current bridge designing codes.Impact angles of ship near a bridge is closely related with aberrancy angle.So,based on sailing characters,mathematics model is built to show probability distribution of aberrancy ship when it collisions with bridge pier.And key influencing factors for aberrancy angle are also pointed out by numerical example and parameter sensitivity analysis.The result will give a reference to bridge defending design.


The decline in retail growth currently raises many new challenges. It makes some retailers close their offline outlets. This causes all retail business players to need to understand their consumer behavior. One of the consumer behavior is impulse buying, which is 62% in every consumer shopping activity. This research aims to create a customer mapping based on demographic aspects and impulse buying factors retail brands in Malang City. In this study involving 2 retail objects, namely Matahari with a total sample of 213 respondents and Ramayana with a total sample of 168 respondents. The analytical tools in this study use cluster analysis, cross tabulation, and multidimensional scaling. The results of this study found that there were 4 clusters for each research object. Matahari has 4 clusters namely Picky Impulsive Segment, Seasonal Impulsive Segment, Hyper-impulsive Segment, and A Fashionable Segment. Ramayana also has 4 clusters namely Convenience Focus Impulsive Segment, Simple Impulsive Segment, Hyper-impulsive Segment, Un-Impulsive Segment.


Purpose

– This paper aims to present a broader industry-level competitive analysis of a contact lens market.

Design/methodology/approach

– Porter's Five Forces model can be used for a broader and rigorous competitive analysis of a contact lens market to determine the competitive intensity and to form a well-rounded business strategy.

Findings

– The contact lens market is highly competitive and unattractive. Because growth has been stagnant, traditional competition has become more intense to steal share from each other. However, the competition in the market could not be defined narrowly between traditional competition but is broad with substitutes, and bargaining power of customers and distributors. A contact lens manufacturer has to look beyond the traditional competition to not only compete with traditional competitors within the industry but also with substitutes, and bargaining power of customers and distributors.

Practical implications

– This paper will benefit contact lens manufacturers/businesses in forming a well-rounded business strategy.


This paper describes the architecture of the SDSC Storage Resource Broker (SRB). The SRB is middleware that provides applications a uniform API to access heterogeneous distributed storage resources including, filesystems, database systems, and archival storage systems. The SRB utilizes a metadata catalog service, MCAT, to provide a "collection"-oriented view of data. Thus, data items that belong to a single collection may, in fact, be stored on heterogeneous storage systems. The SRB infrastructure is being used to support digital library projects at SDSC. This paper describes the architecture and various features of the SDSC SRB.


The paper describes a theoretical study and exploration of authors in the field of biomechanics. The lung parenchyma is focused, and its elastic behaviour under the physiological mechanical load, pressure change during breathing. Anatomical view to the human respiratory system generally is introduced first together with a more detailed description of the alveolus. Then the appropriate theory is elaborated, aimed on the mathematical model establishing, the finite element method is chosen as the resolving tool. The computational implementation is realized in multi physical software based on the finite element method.


Original scientific paper The main aim of our study is to show the influence of residual stresses on wear and surface ratcheting in the case of line rolling contact. Experiments were carried out on the innovated TUORS (Technical University of Ostrava Rolling Sliding testing machine) testing rig under free rolling and also under a slip ratio of 0,75 %. All specimens used for the experiments were made from R7T steel. A hole-drilling method and an X-ray diffraction method were applied to determine the residual stresses induced by repeated contact loading and technological residual stresses. Mazzu's semi-analytical approach, which makes use of full integration of the Armstrong-Frederick model, was used to simulate ratcheting and wear. The proposed model calibration methodology, based on an inverse approach, allows the model parameters to be determined directly from the measured wear. The results of this study confirm that the observed technological compressive residual stresses lead to lower ratcheting and subsequently also to lower wear rates.


SUMMARY

A technique of transrectal aspiration biopsy of the prostate gland is presented by which material may be obtained for cytological study. This procedure, which may prove useful for detecting early prostatic carcinoma, has been performed about a hundred times without complications of any kind.


To find recent developments and consensus in adult cancer pain therapy around the world and improve adult cancer pain therapy in China. Different practice guidelines on adult cancer pain were searched with the platform currently available on the internet and were compared mainly on pain evaluation, analgesics of WHO three-step ladders and coanalgesics of pain therapy. Comprehensive pain evaluation prior to pain therapy is extremely important. It's also the key point which many guidelines strengthened. Prescribe analgesics according to pain intensity is still the basic principle in pain therapy; Aspirin attend to be less prescribed and the toxicity of NSAIDs is widely concerned; the selection of the second-step analgesics seems to be more flexible. Different compounds should be chosen according to patient's pain quality and individual conditions. Morphine is still the first choice among strong opioids and it can be used in controlling moderate to severe cancer pain. Adult cancer pain therapy needs to be improved in our country. Pain evaluation should be advocated. Selecting suitable analgesics individually is the key point in pain control.


L iberation theology is concrete theology, historical theology. For this reason it is appropriate to question the historical context of this theology. Its development can be observed in the agitated history of Latin America of the last three decades. Consequently, we are going to encounter a liberation theology that reflects on, is reflected by, and re-elaborates the very history of which it consciously forms a part. As concrete theology, liberation theology inserts itself into Latin American society. Base communities, popular movements, and even political parties are key place s from which this theology unfolds. Not only do es liberation theology speak out of these concrete places but it reflects their historical situation in its own development. Therefore its analyses are tightly linked with theories of social science. Its concrete analyses cannot be deduced from its theological positions, but at the same time its theological positions cannot be independent from the results of its concrete analysis. However, liberation theology is not a social science; rather it is theology. In relation to its concrete analysis of historical situations, this theology is developed as a theological dimension of actual his-


A system for treating carbon monoxide for a fuel cell is provided to minimize adsorption of liquid water onto a catalyst, thereby maintaining the catalytic activity, to prevent a delay in the initial driving of the system, and to improve the quality and reaction efficiency of the overall system. A system(100) for treating carbon monoxide for a fuel cell by reducing the concentration of carbon monoxide through selective oxidation of carbon monoxide contained in a reforming gas, comprises: a catalytic reaction unit(40) including a catalyst(41) for accelerating the selective oxidation; a flow path(31) for introducing the reforming gas into the catalytic reaction unit; and a condensed water storage unit(60) for storing the water in the reforming gas, condensed at least partially while passing through the flow path.


The author reflects upon regional economic change and the ways in which this is conceptualised and understood, drawing heavily but not exclusively on some thirty years of research on economy, politics and society in the North East of England. The principal question that this paper addresses is: how are the long periods of continuity, punctuated by occasional major shifts in developmental trajectory and the region's place in the global economy, to be understood? The author seeks to answer this question by exploring the extent to which continuity and change in the region's developmental trajectory can be understood in terms of evolutionary and institutional concepts and the varying engagement of the state with issues of socioeconomic development and change. The value of theoretical plurality in seeking to understand uneven development in capitalism is demonstrated and the limits to public policies that seek to address regional problems indicated.


Autism is a developmental disability that lasts a lifetime and affects the way a person communicates and relates to others and how they experience the world around them. This is why for a person with autism, learning relationship skills can be more tedious than for a Neurotypical person (those who do not have autism). In this internship work you will find the techniques used in an educational institution in England for communication,
learning and relationship processes of students who have autism, accompanied by an analysis from the perspective of social worker about the accompaniment that is use in England with the people who have mental health problems.


Source Crevilles The Essential William H. Whyte offers the core writings of a great observer of the postwar American scene. Included are selections from The Organization Man, Securing Space for Urban America: Conservation Easements, The Last Landscape, The Social Life of Urban Spaces, and City: Rediscovering the Center, as well as many of Whyte's articles from Fortune Magazine. William H. Whyte was an American urbanist, organizational analyst, journalist and people-watcher. Albert LaFarge wa...


Discloses a small base change from e.g. polymorphisms or insert - reliable methods of gene deletion fraction (e.g., fetal fraction) estimates. From a plurality of sets of genes have been used to determine the sequencing data for one or more polymorphic alleles count. For one or more polymorphisms, bondability is allocated, and the fraction determined from the gene and allele counts engagement. Certain embodiments use as a related SNP polymorphism. Retrospective analysis of the disclosed methods can be applied as a target of known polymorphisms that purpose, part of the weight of pre-designed sequencing studies or by changes in the overlapping sequences can be generated from the maternal plasma of coincidence found (or set than any other DNA present in the mixture).


Objective: To compare the history traits of depressive patients concurrent with borderline personality disorder with non-concurrent patients.Methods: HAMD,PDQ-4+,SCID-II were applied to 122 concurrent patients and 100 non-concurrent patients.Results: The concurrent group had a history of earlier-onset,longer course,more suicide attempts,more traumatic events;higher HAMD scores were correlated with the course and relapse of depression.And most sub-scales in PDQ-4+ were different between the two groups.Conclusion: Significant differences between two groups are found.


A lot of research has recently been performed on mobile robots because of their value in human life. In various applications and areas, robotics are used. Maintaining the robot's protection and accessibility is important. If the robot doesn't always enable self-recovery, it will not be able to attain its target. This paper studies a tracked mobile robot control and path planning using the dijkstra's algorithm. Robot Operating System (ROS) is the software prototyping platform. The robot's basic mission and its control mechanism is explained. The analysis is carried out using three ultrasonic sensors requiring a low-effort framework enabling exploration in the robot route zone. In a simulated environment, the presented method was verified and the results showed successful path planning with obstacles avoidance.


AIM:To explore the relationship between the body mass index(BMI) and fatty hepatopathy of different ages and genders,and to provide evidence for early intervention and amelioration of fatty hepatopathy prognosis by the method of epidemiological investigation.METHODS:After health exemination,in the first half year of 2003,a total of 5 571 office workers in the enterprises in Shenzhen were divided into normal group,overweight group and obesity group according to their BMI,given B mode ultrasonography imaging on abdomen and liver function,and then the results were analyzed statistically.RESULTS:①The total incidence rate of adiposity was 32.01%(42.45%for male and 16.53%for female).②The occurrence of fatty liver in the population at various age stages was significantly increased as the increase of BMI(χ2=32.935-380.177,P 0.01).③The incidence rate of abnormality of total fatty liver combining with transaminase was increased as the increase of BMI(χ2=7.635,P 0.05),while no significant difference was observed among various age groups(P 0.05).CONCLUSION:Obesity is a main factor that results in fatty hepatopathy.


The generalization of the self-scattering procedure of the electron trajectory simulation in semiconductors for the arbitrary scattering rates w(p, p′) from the state with momentum p to p′ is suggested. In the method proposed instead of the total scattering rate per unit time v (p) = fw(p, p′) d3p′ the random function ξ(p) with the average value 〈ξ(p)〉 = v(p) is introduced. Such simulation procedure corresponds to the calculation of v(p) along the simulated trajectory by means of the Monte-Carlo method. The comparison of the commonly employed self-scattering procedure with the suggested one is performed.


The severity and outcome of mastocytosis are known to be related to the number and size of mast cells. The standard treatment of this rare dermatological disorder is phototherapy with UVA1 irradiation. Here, the treatment effects were evaluated during the course of phototherapy on a patient with mastocytosis (urticaria pigmentosa). Photomicrographs of CD117 antibody-stained histological sections of the dermis were analyzed using image software programmed with artificial neural networks. The artificial neural networks analyzed the color feature of epidermis, dermis and mast cells. First, mast cells were isolated from epidermis and dermis, and RGB pixels were converted to HSV color space for artificial neural networks training. Secondly, morphology and connective component labeling were used in epidermal pixels classification to determine the scope of dermal areas. Thirdly, regional separation isolated the dermis for the mast cell analysis. Specifically, the number and size of mast cells were quantified. The method has good reproducibility compared with other methods which had larger variance and lower accuracy. We found also that the UVA1 phototherapy was effective as indicated by a post-treatment change in the ratio of mast cell surface to cell number. In addition, we compared similar results based on subjective visual inspection (from 10 human subjects). Both methods of analysis showed a reduction in the number and size of mast cells after phototherapy. But compared with human judgment, the computerized method was superior in accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and reproducibility of the findings.


Food is necessary for every living creature to sustain and enjoy his life. This is why food security becomes a matter of concern in human society and the eradication of hunger a collective war of the comity of nations. The Qur'an being the statute of Islam has declared a very stringent war against hunger in order to ensure sustainable development of human beings as individuals and communities through various exhortations, legislations and institutions. This paper, thematically studies the Qur'an texts on the eradication of hunger as a means of food security for sustainable development to enable man fulfil the purpose of his creation and discharge his responsibility as Allah's vicegerent on earth appropriately. The paper suggests ways to diffuse the Qur'an provisions on the matter into the currents of the modern world and Nigerian nation in particular. It concludes that the Qur'anic measures for granting and guaranteeing food security are the best ways of action against hunger and that the struggle to entrench and sustain the measures is a collective responsibility of individuals, families, communities and governments of all nations irrespective of their religious affiliations.


Attenuating devices are frequently employed in both spoken and written language to weaken the illocutionary force of utterances as well as their directness. In this way, they are associated with expressing linguistic politeness. In scientific discourse, hedges are largely used to express negative politeness since the authors aim to protect themselves against disapproving or critical remarks of text recipients. Linguistically, hedging devices are realised in various ways, e.g. as modal adverbs (possibly, perhaps, probably,...), modal adjectives (possible, (un)likely, probable,...), modal nouns (assumption, possibility, suggestion,...), modal verbs expressing possibility (might, could, would,...), epistemic verbs (assume, seem, appear, suggest,...), approximators such as approximately and roughly, etc. The aim of this paper is to analyse hedging devices in written academic discourse, in particular in English and Czech medical research papers published in medical journals with an impact factor, and compare them with respect to their types, occurrence and communicative functions they perform. In other words, to find out whether the pragmatics of hedging is or is not culture-specific. Hedging devices may be classified from various points of view. In this paper a modified version of Hyland's taxonomy (1998) was adopted.


The plain radiographic and fluoroscopic findings in 511 selected children with congenital heart disease are analysed, with special reference to the localisation of left-to-right shunts and the diagnosis of the following conditions: pulmonary stenosis, with and without associated shunts; complete and partial transposition of the great vessels; single ventricle; truncus arteriosus; tricuspid atresia.


An automatic camera focusing scheme used in video conference is presented.The proposed scheme consists of two phases:focus adjusting and focus monitoring.In the focus adjusting phase,mountain climbing algorithm is used to search the peak point of the focusing criteria function.The focus searching range is reduced by the concept of hyperfocal distance,and the searching step size is adapted dynamically.Therefore,the searching process is speeded up,and good subjective quality of pictures is guaranteed.Moreover,to eliminate the influence of scene changes during the searching process,a return-examination method is used.In the focus monitoring phase,focus adjusting is conditionally triggered based on the results of shot change detection,which helps to guarantee focus quality and avoid frequently refocusing.Experimental results validate the performance and robustness of the proposed scheme.It has been integrated in the products of video conference terminal.


The Greek Atomic Energy Commission (EEAE) is the national competent authority for radiation and nuclear safety and security as well as for the radiation protection of ionizing and artificially produced non-ionizing radiation. The legal framework determines, inter alia , the responsibilities in education and training issues. The EEAE has a range of activities, in providing postgraduate and continuous education and training on radiation protection, and nuclear safety and security, at the national and international levels. At the national level, and particularly in the medical field, the EEAE is a participant in and a major contributor to the Inter-University Postgraduate Program on Medical Radiation Physics. Since 2003, the EEAE has been the Regional Training Center (RTC) for radiation, transport and waste safety of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for the European Region in the English language. Moreover, the EEAE has also been recognized as the IAEA's Regional Training Center (RTC) in nuclear security in the English language since 2013. The EEAE recently proceeded to two significant initiatives: the design of a national program for education and training, and the certification of the Department of Education according to ISO 29990:2010. In this paper, the initiatives taken to enhance the radiation protection system in the country through education and training are presented.


A miniaturization process for three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures fabricated by focused-ion-beam chemical vapor deposition was proposed in this study. Carbon nanostructures with a Ga–C core and C shell were miniaturized by controlling the diameter of the Ga–C core using annealing and removing the C shell using reactive ion etching. The process characteristics were also evaluated. Furthermore, we demonstrated the miniaturization of the 3D structures. As a result, the diameters of carbon nanopillars in an array were miniaturized from approximately 71 nm to approximately 17 nm. In addition, the proposed miniaturization process was useful to sharpen the edges of nanostructures.


Based on long-term field investigation data of Ostrinia furnacalis occurrence in Plant Protection Station of Yutian and the related meteorological data in Yutian meteorological center from 2001 to 2003,2005 to 2007,3 factors controlling Ostrinia furnacalis occurrence were analyzed and the model of Ostrinia furnacalis occurrence was established.The results showed that the intensity of Ostrinia furnacalis(1st generation) occurrence in current year was mainly related to the average temperature and rainfall of May.The forecast model of Ostrinia furnacalis was constituted using the regressive analysis method: Y=88.162 7-0.376 9 X1+0.008 6 X2.The model's fitting rate was 100.62%.The intensity of Ostrinia furnacalis(Second generation) occurrence in current year was mainly related to the average rainfall of August.The forecast model was: Y=-959.079 4+3.877 7 X1.The model's fitting rate was 102.16%.


Welding has been applied to various industries in particular, construction, automotive, aerospace and microelectronics etc. However there are many methods for welding the work pieces and one of the methods among these is vibratory welding. It has the advantages of less investment, more convenient operation, less pollution and shorter manufacturing period. In vibratory welding, work piece vibrates in the whole welding process and it mainly effects the welding solidification to improve the quality. Vibration facilitates the release of dissolved gases and the resulting weld beads greatly exhibit reduced porosity. Mechanical properties of the welds prepared under vibratory conditions are dependent on the structural changes of the welds. Many articles describe the benefits of vibration during welding on mechanical properties of weldments. In this paper, these effects are reviewed and discussed to provide a better understanding of the processes. Understanding of these processes and application of the procedures offer extensive scope for significant cost savings in design and fabrication of welded products. KeywordsVibratory Stress Relief (VSR), Yield Strength (YS), Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS), Heat Affected Zone (HAZ), Manual Arc Welding (MAW), Vibratory Weld Conditioning (VWC), Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW), American Welding Society (AWS), American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI)


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This thesis concerns repetitive structures in words. More precisely, it contributes to studying appearance and absence of such repetitions in words. In the first and major part of this thesis, we study avoidability of unary patterns with permutations. More precisely, we want to see whether there exists an infinite word such that these structures do not appear on it. To begin with, we show that given i, j, k ě 0, the pattern xπi(x)π j(x)πk(x) is avoidable over an alphabet of size 2, 3 and 4, then we prove that there exists a pattern which is unavoidable in Σm, for m ě 6. Later, we try to find stronger results by finding an interval σ such that given i, j, k ě 0, all such patterns are unavoidable over alphabets with m ą σ letters, and avoidable for alphabets with at most σ ́ 1 symbols. The second part of this thesis deals with modeling and solving several avoidability problems as constraint satisfaction problems, using the framework of MiniZinc. Solving avoidability problems like the one mentioned in the past paragraph required, the construction, via a computer program, of a very long word that does not contain any word that matches a given pattern. This gave us the idea of using SAT solvers. Representing the problem-based SAT solvers seemed to be a standardised, and usually very optimised approach to formulate and solve the well-known avoidability problems like avoidability of formulas with reversal and avoidability of patterns in the abelian sense too. The final part is concerned with a variation on a classical avoidance problem from combinatorics on words. Considering the concatenation of i different factors of the word w, pexpi(w) is the supremum of powers that can be constructed by concatenation of such factors, and RTi(k) is then the infimum of pexpi(w) over all words w P Σk . Again, by checking infinite ternary words that satisfies some properties, we show that RTi(3) = 3i 2 + 1 4 if i is even and RTi(3) = 3i 2 + 1 6 if i is odd and i ě 3.


OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of leflunomide for rheumatoid arthritis. METHODS: A total of 120 patients with rheumatoid arthritis were randomly divided into two groups of 60 each: the intervention group was treated with leflunomide and the control group was treated with methotrexate. The clinical effect and adverse reactions in the two groups were followed and compared. RESULTS: The intervention group showed better efficacy than in the control group,and the differences were significant (P 0. 05). CONCLUSION: Leflunomide has been shown to improve patients'condition with good clinical efficacy and safety,and it is thus an active drug for rheumatoid arthritis.


The invention relates to a method for producing populated or unpopulated circuit boards or individual circuits as individual panels (2) from a complete panel (1) having a circuit board base material (4), wherein the respective individual panel (2) is removed from the complete panel (1) using a laser. The individual panel is fastened to the complete panel (1) by means of metal connections (3) before the individual panel (2) is removed; the circuit board base material (4) is removed except for the metal connections (3); and the individual panels (2) are separated from, in particular pressed out of, the complete panel (1) after the circuit board base material (4) has been removed.


Alcoholics do not find a ready welcome in most agencies and clinics. There are probably several reasons for this, but prom inent among them is the strongly en trenched notion that, without exception, alcoholics require long months or even years of treatment. If intake is open to many of these applicants, therefore, they will remain interminably, clutter up the case load, and exclude from service other clients and patients whose prognosis is more favorable.


The burnout heat transfer in curvilinear steam generating channels under steady and unsteady-state conditions and on exposure to a magnetic field is studied. Formulae are suggested for calculating the critical power of the channels


The unidentified IR (UIR) features (also known as PAH features) were discovered in 1973. In the intervening 36 years, they have become a major tool helping us understand the behavior of starforming galaxies in the early universe (e.g. Valiante et al. 2007), as well as of our own interstellar medium and what is observed in nearby galaxies. A very important step in this process was the work of Leger & Puget (1984), who demonstrated that a good approximation to the observed spectra of these UIR features in NGC7027 and the Red Rectangle was obtained from the expected emission of aromatic species (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or PAHs) similar to coronene (C24H12) heated to 600 K. Such a high "effective" temperature might be obtained subsequent to the absorption of a UV photon of around 2000 A. Leger and Puget were building on an important observational study by Sellgren (1984), who realized that the observed near-to-mid IR flux from reflection nebulae could not be interpreted as the emission of classical 0.1 micron-sized grains. She proposed instead the transient heating of "small" few-angstrom-sized grains, and it was a small step from that to large molecules. The net result of all this was that this mixture of large molecules and small grains was the intermediary breaking down the UV emission of young stars into observable IR emission. Moreover, photoelectrons from these species turn out to be an important heat source in the so-called photon-dominated regions or PDRs. The Leger-Puget study of course built on earlier work (the study by Sellgren already cited, as well as earlier suggestions by Platt 1956 and Donn 1968). These authors realized that small (10 A or so) particles could play an important role in interstellar extinction and that "organic" or graphitic material was likely involved. Donn pointed out that graphite can be looked on as a series of layers of polycyclic hydrocarbon stacked upon one another. A somewhat different suggestion came from Duley & Williams (1983), who concluded that aromatic hydrocarbons on grain surfaces might be responsible for the 3.3 μm emission. However, the Leger-Puget article provided a much more all-encompassing identification of the UIR features, together with an understanding of the processes that regulate their relative intensity. Moreover, it paved the way for later work (e.g. Omont 1986) that aimed at putting the physics of the PAHs on a firm footing. Very importantly also, it allowed a clearer understanding of the photoelectric heating process that in many circumstances provides the heat input to neutral interstellar gas. This in turn was decisive input physics for the studies that followed shortly afterwards (e.g. Tielens & Hollenbach 1985) of the structure of the so-called PDRs, which are the interface between luminous young stars and surrounding gas. It is interesting, however, that some of the puzzles posed by Leger and Puget, such as the lack of detection of the UIR bands in absorption, has still not been completely resolved. On the other hand, the results of the ISO and SPITZER missions (e.g. Genzel & Cesarsky 2000; Werner et al. 2004) depend in no small part on the analysis of the "UIR bands", and that in turn is based upon the Leger-Puget paper. In fact, for many purposes, precise knowledge of PAH physics has not prevented their use as an empirical tracer of star formation. History suggests, however, that in the long run understanding the underlying physics will be needed and, for this purpose, the Leger-Puget study remains an essential input.


A previous time-derivative preconditioning procedure for solving the Navier-Stokes is extended to the chemical species equations. The scheme is implemented using both the implicit ADI and the explicit Runge-Kutta algorithms. A new definition for time-step is proposed to enable grid-independent convergence. Several examples of both reacting and non-reacting propulsion-related flowfields are considered. In all cases, convergence that is superior to conventional methods is demonstrated. Accuracy is verified using the example of a backward facing step. These results demonstrate that preconditioning can enhance the capability of density-based methods over a wide range of Mach and Reynolds numbers.


Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen, aspirin,
indomethacin, flufenamic acid and phenylbutazone are used to treat most of the inflammatory
disorders. These NSAIDs are also associated with serious side effects including gastric ulceration,
nephrotoxicity, and bleeding, mainly due to acidic nature. Hence, there is a need to identify highly
potent and safer treatment for inflammatory disorders.

Herein, synthetic hydrazinyl thiazole substituted coumarins and chromones 1-48 were
evaluated for ROS inhibitory activity. ROS were generated from zymosan activated whole blood
phagocytes.

Among all tested compounds, compounds 1 (IC50 = 38.3 ± 7.1 μM), 2 (IC50 = 5.7 ±
0.2 μM), 5 (IC50 = 28.3 ± 3.5 μM), 23 (IC50 = 12.5 ± 3.1 μM), 27 (IC50 = 32.8 ± 1.1 μM), 39 (IC50 =
20.2 ± 1.6 μM), and 42 (IC50 = 43.2 ± 3.8 μM) showed potent ROS inhibition as compared to
standard ibuprofen (IC50 = 54.3 ± 1.9 μM). Whereas, compounds 3 (IC50 = 134.7 ± 1.0 μM), 16
(IC50 = 75.4 ± 7.2 μM), 24 (IC50 = 102.4 ± 1.0 μM), and 31 (IC50 = 86.6 ± 1.5 μM) were found to be
moderately active. Compounds 1, 2, 5, 23, 27, 39, and 42, having potent ROS inhibitory activity
were also screened for their nitric oxide (NO) inhibition. Cytotoxicity was also checked for all active
compounds on NIH-3T3 cell line. Cyclohexamide (IC50 = 0.13 ± 0.02 μM) was used as standard.

Identified active compounds from these libraries may serve as lead candidates for future
research in order to obtain a more potent, and safer anti-inflammatory agent.


In the course of a review of Hanssen, Spanische Grammatik, just published in The Romanic Review II 331, Mr. Lang devotes more than one page (334-35) to my etymology of Duecho (Mod. Phil. VII ['09] 53). Although the tone in which his remarks are made is not warranted by the circumstances, I shall concern myself here wholly with questions of fact. In ? 2 (p. 54) of my article I make the following statement: "Lang, ZrP. XXXII p. 394, refers [in the body of an article]' for doito de etc. to O.Sp. duecho and Prov. duch, [and in a footnote (3) appended to duecho]' to Lanchetas (who deserves no mention),2 to Men~ndez Pidal, Manual ? 122, 2 ducho<ductu, and to ZrP. XIX p. 535. Carolina Michaelis de Vasconcellos, at the latter place, says: 'Ob [doito] auf doctus oder ductus zuriickzufiihren ist, steht tibrigens noch nicht fest.' In a note appended to this statement she seems to favor ductus." Mr. Lang (p. 334) says: "Prof. Pietsch pieced the first two of these notes [i.e. ZrP XXXII 394 notes 38 and 4] and a shred of the passage to which they are appended together, and inserted this patchwork in his article as one of 'the previous attempts to settle the etymology of these forms' (i.e. ducho, duecho)." It ought to be clear to Mr. Lang that a paragraph which specifically connects Du CangeCarpentier and Foerster with the discussion of Fr. duit, Levy with Pr. doch .... , Cornu and Lang with Port. adoitoanddoito, doesnot confine itself to a consideration of the forms ducho, duecho as Mr. Lang strangely assumes. And why I should be charged with piecing together two notes and a shred of the passage to which they are appended, when the attachment of the notes to the passage in question is the work of Mr. Lang himself, I do not understand. Furthermore, if Mr. Lang had read my statements with care, he would have seen that I do not in any part of my article suggest that he had discussed the origin of the Sp. forms ducho, duecho, nor do I 1 Words in brackets are inserted by me. 2 "inde irae et lacrimae." 3 I use only note 3; cf. supra.


Single nucleotide instability (SNI), an increase in spontaneous point mutation rates (MRs) without involvement of microsatellite instability, is present in rat mammary carcinoma cell lines and human breast cancer cell lines. A:T to C:G transversions, which are generally rare, were frequently observed in two rat mammary carcinoma cell lines and in their primary carcinomas, and were considered to be related to the molecular mechanism of SNI. In this study, two known molecular mechanisms that cause increases of A:T to C:G transversions, inactivation of the MutT mammalian homologue (Mth1) gene and overexpression of the DNA polymerase k (Pol k) gene, were analyzed in two rat mammary carcinoma cell lines and 11 rat primary carcinomas. PCR‐SSCP analysis revealed no mutations in the entire Mth1 coding region. Quantitative real‐tune RT‐PCR analysis showed that Mth1 mRNA expression was slightly, but significantly, increased in the primary carcinomas (P=0.001 using GAPDH for normalization, and P=0.002 using histone H4, t‐ test), contrary to our expectation, and was decreased to 1/2 in the cell lines. The expression of Pol k, which is known to be error‐prone with frequent A:T to C:G transversions, was rather decreased in the cell lines and primary carcinomas. Inactivation of Mth1 and overexpression of Pol k were unlikely to have caused SNI in the two rat mammary carcinoma cell lines with a high frequency of A:T to C:G transversions, and searching for other unknown molecular mechanisms is important.


The invention discloses a kind of cervical cells sampling device, including:One sampler is responsible for, a dynamic force generating unit, a cervix uteri localizer, and which can be arranged in sampler supervisor by mobile under the driving of dynamic force generating unit;One sampler, which is movably disposed in cervix uteri localizer under dynamic force generating unit driving, during original state, the sampler head of sampler is limited in cervix uteri localizer, during sampling, stretches out cervix uteri localizer in the sampler head of the driving down-sampler of dynamic force generating unit.


Stanford when assessing the quality of Ph.D. graduates. 5. We thank the APSA office for generously allowing us to use the older directories. 6. Dissertation Abstracts Ondisc is a single database that combines information from the Comprehensive Dissertation Index, Dissertation Abstracts International, American Doctoral Dissertations and Masters Abstracts International. Dissertations from 1861 to present are in the database. 7. The authors on whom we were unable to locate biographical data fall into four major categories: they are either from other disciplines, from foreign universities, from nonacademic institutions, or they have recently retired. The reason for the larger percentage of missing data on biographical information for the earlier twenty-year period is because during that time, fewer authors were members of the APSA and more of them appeared to be from outside the United States. 8. For example, we identified a total of sixty-three authors from DAO that received their Ph.D.'s in other disciplines. Our data also showed a total of 42 authors listed at non-academic institutions (e.g., Brookings Institution) in 1994 or 1973. 9. A school receives credit for a publication when a faculty member publishes in the APSR, regardless of whether it was a singleauthored or multi-authored article. Thus, if a team of four collaborators are all from the same school that school gets credit for four publications. 10. The equation for the Gini coefficient is, G = 1 + 1/N [2(xN + 2xN , + 3xN_2 + . . . + NX,)/N/A]> where N equals the number of APSR authors in the department, xN is the highest number of APSR publications in a department and x, is the smallest, and /x equals the mean number of APSR publications in the department. 11. The purpose here was to determine to what extent the APSR publications were uniformly distributed across the authors who had contributed to the Review rather than determining to what extent the articles were distributed across all the members of each department. If we included all members of each department who have no APSR publications, the coefficients would be much higher. The coefficient values are also surpressed by the fact that very few individuals in the profession publish five or more APSR articles. As a result of how difficult it is to publish in the Review, few departments will ever have a highly skewed distribution for the number of APSR publications contributed by those who published at least once in the Review, hence Gini coefficients for the number of articles in the APSR should be relatively low. 12. The PVI is calculated by multiplying publications by citations and then dividing by 1,000. 13. It might be argued that the PVI, as we calculated it (number of APSR articles times the number of citations), is dominated by the weight of the citations. To examine this possibility we produced another ranking after setting publication counts equal to citation counts and adding the two numbers together. Setting publications equal to citations was accomplished by dividing the mean number of citations by the mean number of publications, then multiplying the number of publications times the resulting number (185.64). The new ranking with equally weighted publication and citation counts is virtually the same as our original ranking, no doubt because number of publications and number of citations are correlated.


Obtaining a large momentum difference between matter wave-packets traversing the two paths in an atom interferometer while preserving the phase coherence is a challenge. We experimentally investigate a pulse sequence in which this momentum difference is obtained by using the matter-wave Talbot effect as an alternative to the conventional light-pulse atom interferometers. An ensemble of coherent atoms (Bose-Einstein condensate) is exposed to a periodic sequence of $2N$ standing wave pulses of far-detuned light. The first set of $N$ pulses in the sequence produces multiple wavepackets with momentum difference up to 28 $\hbar k$ (at $N=5$), by virtue of Talbot resonance. The second set of $N$ pulses reverses the momentum transfer and allows the wavepackets to retrace the path and interfere to retrieve the initial wavepacket. We observe that the degree of reversal and thus the practical performance of the interferometer is sensitive to the initial momentum width of the atomic ensemble.


Abstract : Several points in the fatwa of DSN-MUI about buying and selling murabaha are still a debatable case among Islamic economists because it is deemed to violate the sistem of buying and selling murabaha contained in the books of Islamic jurisprudence. And there are some things in the Islamic banking operations that do not apply the  fatwa of DSN-MUI. Keyword : operation of akad murabaha,  islamic banking


Chinese Northern Song Dynasty screen-type landscape painting is a master of landscape painting in Court painting,Guo Xi's Early Spring as the landscape painting of the model was far-reaching effects,its status in Chinese art history is self-evident.The view manner of screen-type landscape painting and the space environment is closely related to the viewer's experience.Start with the Early Spring,the article divides two parts,which are the flesh viewing experience and view of metaphor,to explore the Northern Song screen-type landscape painting.These two parts offer the new view manner.


Fire risk for building occupants is determined by the time required for safe egress and the time at which untenable conditions develop in building rooms or on the egress routes. In the present study, the CFAST zone model is applied to the simulation of fire development and smoke propagation in multiroom buildings, with the aim of studying the sensitivity of predicted tenability times and quantification of the uncertainties due to variability of the scenario parameters. The building geometries considered are (i) a single room with a door and a window, (ii) three rooms connected by a long corridor, and (iii) two-level configuration with two rooms on the lower floor connected by a vertical vent to a room on the upper floor. Sensitivity indices of the tenability times due to high temperature and smoke obscuration are analyzed. Distribution functions of the tenability times are presented and compared for different building rooms.


Animals move throughout coastal seascapes to disperse, feed, and spawn, including the surf zones of ocean beaches. Yet, the influences of seascape context on surf-zone fish are largely unquantified. We sampled surf-zone fish assemblages with baited remote underwater video deployments at 25 beaches across 50 km of coastline in eastern Australia to determine if variation in the spatial configuration of broader coastal seascapes shapes fish assemblages in different surf-zone habitats. We show that surf zones are not homogenous fish habitats, with offshore bars and nearshore troughs having distinct fish assemblages, shaped by different environmental variables. Fish assemblages of offshore bars were characterized by greater species richness and a higher abundance of indicator species (as identified by Dufrene–Legendre indicator species analysis) when close to rocky reefs and estuaries. In contrast, fish assemblages of nearshore troughs were characterized by greater species richness and a higher abundance of indicator species when far from estuaries, and off wider beaches. Our results highlight the importance of seascape connectivity in structuring surf-zone fish assemblages. Consequently, management approaches need to more thoroughly quantify the effects of seascape connectivity over smaller spatial scales and consider surf zones as key components of broader coastal habitat mosaics.


The present invention relates to a roof rail coupling structure and a roof rail coupling method and, more specifically, to a roof rail coupling structure using a side two-buck structure which includes a floor which forms a bottom of a vehicle body, an inner side coupled towards an upper portion of the vehicle body from both side surfaces of the floor, and a roof rail coupled in a vehicle width direction in an upper portion of the inner side, in which both side ends of the roof rail are coupled to overlap with an upper outer side surfaces of the inner side, and a roof rail coupling method using a side two-buck structure which includes a step wherein a side inner arm is coupled with both side surfaces of a floor which forms a bottom of a vehicle body; a step in which a cross-shaped joint portion is coupled with an upper portion of the side inner arm; a step in which a side inner reinforcing portion is coupled to overlap with the side inner arm and an outer side surface of the joint portion; a step in which a roof rail is coupled in a vehicle width direction with an upper portion of the side inner reinforcing portion and an upper side surface of the joint portion; a step in which a side outer reinforce is coupled with an outer portion of the side inner reinforcing portion; and a step in which a side outer panel is coupled with an outer portion of the side outer reinforce. According to the side structure-roof rail coupling structure and method of the present invention, vehicle body load transmission efficiency is significantly improved and vehicle body strength and vehicle collision performance can significantly be improved.


This paper outlines the use of the mathematical programming modelling language GAMS to solve plastic limit analysis problems. After a review of the close link between limit analysis and mathematical programming, two simple structures are analyzed to impart a flavour of the powerful GAMS language. These examples also serve to show that GAMS can provide a framework for expressing efficiently and transparently the algebraic structural plasticity information contained in plastic analysis models. It is suggested that such modelling languages can play a significant role in promoting the use of mathematical programming methods by engineers for solving engineering plasticity problems


Radial basis function neural networks constitute one type of feedforward neural net that requires a suitable determination of the basis functions so as to work properly. Among the many approaches available in the literature, the one proposed here combines a clustering genetic algorithm with K-means to automatically select the number and location of basis functions to be used in the RBF network. Preliminary simulation results suggest that the proposed hybrid algorithm can be successfully applied to classification problems, leading to parsimonious solutions, with competitive classification rates, when compared with other approaches from the RBF literature.


Significance
 The report adds to a chorus of local and international voices denouncing such abuses as both morally repugnant and strategically wrong. Amid a broader trend of abuses that inadvertently escalate violence, there are also specific incidents that become individual political crises. Such incidents highlight and channel widespread dissatisfaction with incumbents, particularly in Mali and Burkina Faso.

 Impacts
 Token investigations of summary killings in Mali and Burkina Faso could inflame anti-government sentiments.
 French authorities appear to feel increasing pressure to speak out about the alleged abuses too.
 International attention is focusing on abuses in Mali and Burkina Faso, but Niger's standing as the best governed of the three is slipping.


This research examined whether normal-weight people who believe they are overweight expect that other people negatively stereotype them when their appearance becomes relevant. Moreover, it was examined whether these negative "meta-stereotypes" in turn make people feel worthless. Indeed, the first study showed that body weight dissatisfied women automatically activated negative meta-stereotypes about being overweight when they thought their appearance was evaluated. Study 2 revealed that only meta-stereotypes about being overweight, and not traits that are unrelated to the meta-stereotype, mediate the relation between body weight dissatisfaction and self-evaluation. Study 3 replicated this finding by manipulating body weight dissatisfaction. Finally, study 4 revealed that body weight dissatisfied women are especially likely to feel negative about themselves as a result of applying negative meta-stereotypes when their body is visible.


The Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has spread towards all the seven continents. It's very heart-breaking that we lost more than 1.87 million people to the virus and the virus have infected more than 86.5 million people worldwide. Being contagious disease, which can also be fatal, it spreads through various means. Lockdown was imposed on most countries for the safety of its citizens. People could only go out to fulfil essential needs like getting food items, medicines and for other essentials. Proper social distancing and wearing masks were made mandatory. Some shops were forced to close down due to overcrowding and some even went out of business. E-commerce thrived during this period. But this impacted a lot of people, especially local shop owners and small scale businessmen. The Locally Shopping Web App proposes a platform for these local shop vendors to engage their business online, with all the essential features that an ecommerce application should have. The customers can view and place orders from their local shops. Shops within a radius of 5km are identified by computing the Haversine distance of the nearby shop and customer's current location coordinates, which is obtained through a map based interface. They can collect the items at a chosen time slot during checkout for a given shop for which a QR code based token is given. This token system can help us to prevent overcrowding for which at a particular time slot not more than the specified number of customers by the shopkeepers are present at the shop. This system would ensure that local shops don't go out of business, and proper social distancing is maintained so that none of our people get infected while meeting their daily needs.


An introduction to fuzzy set theory is described. Topics covered include: neural networks and fuzzy systems; the dynamical systems approach to machine intelligence; intelligent behavior as adaptive model-free estimation; fuzziness versus probability; fuzzy sets; the entropy-subsethood theorem; adaptive fuzzy systems for backing up a truck-and-trailer; product-space clustering with differential competitive learning; and adaptive fuzzy system for target tracking.


Active magnetic bearing has been adopted to support the rotor by electomagnetic force without mechanical contact and lubrication process. A property of the control system for magnetic bearing is improved in accordance with making higher system gain. If the control system has integral part, an excessive overshoot response is shown by making higher integral gain. Therefore, this paper suggests a PID control system in order to eliminate the overshoot at the first stage and improve response characteristics to an impact disturbance at the status of levitation. The control gain was obtained by LQR design method which has the structure of I-PD control system in the state space. The PID control system containing prefilter has the same structure as the I-PD control system. Therefore, the PID control system adopted is able to be tuned by LQR design method. Finally, this paper shows the effect of the prefilter on the active magnetic bearing system through response experiments for levitation responses.


The Chair of the Stone and Wall Paintings Group reflects on how the cleaning and conservation of the interior of St. Paul's brought into focus a fundamental predicament of conservation.


An experiment was conducted in the context of negative word-of-mouth to examine differences among social networking site (Facebook), personal blog, micro-blog (Weibo), and discussion forum in consumers' perceived credibility, brand attitude and purchase intention. Each of the 190 respondents was randomly assigned to one of the four eWOM platforms. Results showed significant main effect of the treatment on all dependent variables. Another intriguing finding was that consumers' perceptions of site credibility and source credibility were combined as one factor confirmed by factor analysis. This new factor, named as perceived eWOM credibility, is significantly differed among the four sites, such that the credibility of the eWOM message posted on personal blog was rated highest and discussion forum lowest, with micro-blog and social networking site rated between these. Interestingly and explicably, although the overall levels of brand attitude and purchase intention were low after reading the negative review, respondents assigned in discussion forum group showed slightly better attitude toward the brand and greater purchase intention than those exposed to other three eWOM platforms. Implications for both research and practice were discussed.


Abstract: The aim of the present study was to examine the roles of membrane depolarization, calcium influx, and cyclic AMP synthesis in regulating the stability and inactivation of serotonin N‐acetyltransferase activity (NAT) in cultured chick photoreceptor cells. NAT activity was induced by pretreating cells for 6 h with 1 µM forskolin. Cycloheximide was subsequently added, and the rate of loss of enzyme activity (inactivation) was determined. After induction, in the presence of cycloheximide, NAT activity declined with a half‐life of ∼30 min. The rate of inactivation was greatly reduced when depolarizing concentrations of K+, forskolin, 8‐bromoadenosine 3′,5′‐cyclic monophosphate, or 3‐isobutyl‐1‐methylxanthine were added together with cycloheximide. The apparent increase in NAT stability caused by K+ was abolished by addition of EGTA or nifedipine and potentiated by Bay K 8644, indicating the involvement of Ca2+ influx through dihydropyridine‐sensitive channels. MDL‐12330A, an inhibitor of K+‐stimulated cyclic AMP formation, blocked the effect of depolarizing concentrations of K+. This result suggests that the effect of Ca2+ influx on the stability of NAT is at least partially mediated by increased levels of cyclic AMP. Thus, depolarization‐evoked Ca2+ influx and cyclic AMP formation have two roles in the regulation of NAT activity in chick photoreceptor cells. First, they stimulate the de novo synthesis of NAT or a regulatory protein required for NAT activity. Second, they increase the half‐life of the enzyme, presumably by regulating the turnover of existing enzyme molecules.


Observations and 3D MHD simulations of the transverse MHD waves in the solar corona have established that true wave energies hide in the nonthermal line widths of the optically thin emission lines. This displays the need for a relation between the nonthermal line widths and transverse wave amplitudes for estimating the true wave energies. In the past decade, several studies have assumed that the root mean square (rms) wave amplitudes are larger than the nonthermal line widths by a factor of . However, a few studies have ignored this factor while estimating rms wave amplitudes. Thus, there appears to exist a discrepancy in this relation. In this study, we investigate the dependence of nonthermal line widths on wave amplitudes by constructing a simple mathematical model followed by 3D MHD simulations. We derive this relation for the linearly and circularly polarized oscillations, as well as oscillations excited by multiple velocity drivers. We note a fairly good match between mathematical models and numerical simulations. We conclude that the rms wave amplitudes are never greater than the nonthermal line widths, which raises questions about earlier studies claiming transverse waves carry enough energy to heat the solar corona.


The article is aimed at studying the theoretical and methodological foundations of the process of managing and evaluating novelty portfolios at industrial enterprises focused on the international market, as well as at developing recommendations helping to improve their efficiency. The concepts of novelty portfolio (intellectual property portfolio) and innovation portfolio are analyzed, differentiated and further developed. The place and role of the process of novelty portfolio management in ensuring effective international economic activity of an industrial enterprise and its sustainable development are substantiated. A proprietary model for assessing a novelty portfolio and efficiency of its management process at industrial enterprises planning to enter the international market is developed and suggested for use as a basis for ensuring their competitiveness and sustainable development in the context of economy digitalization and the growing number of challenges and threats. Promising research areas on this issue are highlighted, such as developing optimizing programs for novelty portfolios in accordance with the industry specifics; improving the process of forming a novelty portfolio at industrial enterprises through carrying out marketing and patent research as a tool to harmonize stakeholders' interests; and creating favorable conditions for the implementation of an already formed novelty portfolio by introducing relevant strategies in the activities of industrial enterprises as soon as possible


This paper tries to give some answers about the analysis and optimization techniques in dealing with microwave GaAs FET oscillators for MMIC applications. The methods treated here are based on multiharmonic formulation in order to take into account the best approach to the real waveform. Some experimental results are presented in order to validate the general approach.


Background: There is a growing body of literature on complementary, alternative, and integrative medicine (CAIM), which offers a holistic approach to health and the maintenance of social and cultural values. Bibliometric analyses are an increasingly commonly used method employing quantitative statistical techniques to understand trends in a particular scientific field. The objective of this scoping review is to investigate the quantity and characteristics of evidence in relation to bibliometric analyses of CAIM literature. Methods: The following bibliographic databases will be searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, AMED, CINAHL, Scopus and Web of Science. Studies published in English, conducting any type of bibliometric analysis involving any CAIM therapies, as detailed by an operational definition of CAIM adopted by Cochrane Complementary Medicine, will be included. Conference abstracts and study protocols will be excluded. The following variables will be extracted from included studies: title, author, year, country, study objective, type of CAIM, health condition targeted, databases searched in the bibliometric analysis, the type of bibliometric variables assessed, how bibliometric information was reported, main findings, conclusions, and limitations. Findings will be summarized narratively, as well as in tabular and graphical format. Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this scoping review will be the first to investigate the characteristics of evidence in relation to bibliometric analyses on CAIM literature. The findings of this review may be useful to identify variations in the objectives, methods, and results of bibliometric analyses of CAIM research literature.


Abstract A new form of economic cooperation has emerged in the Asia‐Pacific in the form of 'growth triangles' or GTs. GTs have as their basic aim the co‐operative economic development of bordering regions of three sovereign entities. Building on market forces to concentrate infrastructure and industrial development in one transnational triangle of growth, GTs draw upon worldwide trends of decentralization and globalization of production. Despite their common goal, GTs in the Asia‐Pacific region differ significantly in terms of the extent of utilization of market forces versus institutionalization, degree of openness of markets, and geographical and demographic spread. This article examines the various GTs in the Asia‐Pacific region for a new and promising style of economic cooperation.


Rejuvenating Northeast China's traditional industrial base offers a good development chance to the medium-and-small size enterprises.So these enterprises should not focuse on the local market instead on the international market althongh the radio of these enterprises is not large in the national economy.With the change of business modes,the medium-and-small size enterprises in Jilin Province surely can play an important role in rejuvenating Northeast China's traditional industrial base.


The vertical distributions of molecular hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) were determined during spiraling maneuvers from aircraft off the eastern coast of the United States and over the Gulf of Mexico. H2 was always at its lowest levels in the boundary layer, averaging about 500 parts per billion by volume (ppbv). H2 mixing ratios determined in the free troposphere were typically higher (600–700 ppbv) and often suggested a small progressive increase with altitude. Several large free-tropospheric H2 plumes (mixing ratios as high as 1–2 parts per million by volume) were implied by the data. These H2 plumes were not always accompanied by corresponding increases in CO mixing ratios. This result is most difficult to explain when it is noted that the primary atmospheric sources for molecular H2 are considered to be combustion and photochemistry, both of which should be strong CO sources also.


I really appreciated the Back Pages paper on academic general practice.1 It emphasises not only the history but the importance of academic general practice. John Howie warns that the increase in renaming general practice as primary care could mean that general practice may not be a GP-led service in the future. Also, I would strongly underline what Howie writes, 'academic general practice has contributed significantly to the evolving understanding of the …


Phonon dispersion relationships have been determined for the acoustic branches in MnO along the [100], [011] and [111] directions by neutron spectrometry. The measurements have been interpreted in terms of the rigid-ion and the shell model. The rigid-ion model does not fit the data adequately and the shell model, while producing a much better fit to the data, cannot be said to give a satisfactory description.


Article attempts to present one of the solutions towards the problem of flawed and delayed product development. The history behind current most popular product development methodology (waterfall methodology) is traced, as well the problems that this methodology presents such as calendar risks or high employee turnover rate. The methodology that was created to solve those issues is gaining a lot of popularity now, because it offers much more agile way of delivering a software product by splitting the whole development process into manageable iterations. Customer can change the requirements and adapt the product to the market changes from iteration to iteration. However, this new methodology (agile methodology) presents some serious problems as well. This article concentrates tackles the main issue – insurance of the product quality with each iteration. The solution that is presented by the article revolves around creating and maintaining a correct test pyramid, with the specific description of all the layers of the pyramid. A small study was conducted on a sample project, where it was calculated, that test pyramid allowed to decrease the amount of defects by 25 %.


Blood from normal donors and from heterozy‐gotes for adenine phosphoribosyltransferase was stored in ACD, ACD‐adenine, and ACD‐adenine‐phosphate media. The levels of AMP, ADP and ATP along with the enzymes involved in adenine nucleotide metabolism; adenine phosphoribosyl‐transferase, ribose‐5‐P pyrophosphokinase and AMP‐deaminase, were determined at various stages of blood storage in various media. One of the heterozygotes for adenine phosphoribosyltransferase maintained ATP levels poorly in all the media, but another heterozygote maintained ATP levels in a normal fashion. No significant correlation was established between the activities of various enzymes of adenine nucleotide metabolism and the levels of adenine nucleotides at any stage of blood storage in any medium studied.


The accuracy and sensitivity of PCR-based methods for detection of hepatitis A virus (HAV) are dependent on the methods used to separate and concentrate the HAV from the infected cells. The pH and ionic strength affect the binding affinity of the virus to cells. In this study, we initially investigated the effects of pH (4.0–10.0) and metal ions (Fe2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Mg2+, K+, and Ca2+) on the binding of HAV to oyster digestive cells. The lowest relative binding (RB) of HAV to the cells was found at pH 4.0 and in FeSO4 solution (64.6% and 68.1%, respectively). To develop an alternative to antibody-dependent immunomagnetic separation prior to detection of HAV using RT-PCR, the binding of HAV to five lectins, peanut agglutinin (PNA), Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA), Helix pomatia agglutinin (HPA), Ulex europaeus agglutinin (UEA-1) and soybean agglutinin (SBA), was evaluated using ELISAs. SBA showed significantly higher RB to HAV than the other lectins tested. In addition, HAV could be concentrated within 30 min using SBA-linked magnetic bead separation (SMS) prior to the RT-PCR assay. Our findings demonstrate the feasibility of using SMS combined with RT-PCR to detect HAV at dilutions ranging from 10−1–10−4 of a HAV stock (titer: 104 TCID50/mL).


+Hashemi J; Chandrashekar N; Gill B; Slauterbeck JR; Schutt R; Dabezies, ED;Beynnon BD +Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX; University of Waterloo, Ontario, CA; University of Vermont, Burlington, VT email@example.com – firstname.lastname@example.com INTRODUCTION Severe knee ligament trauma, such as Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) disruption, is associated with a dramatic loss of function. Even when ACL reconstruction is performed, there is high likelihood that the injury predisposes the knee to the early onset of osteoarthritis, which eventually progresses to end stage disease. This places an emphasis on the prevention of ACL injuries and has focused research on identifying the risk factors that predispose individuals to these debilitating injures. Previous research has identified an inverse relationship between femoral notch width geometry and risk of ACL injury (a decreased femoral intercondylar notch geometry is associated with an increased risk of ACL injury); however, very little is known about the relationship between geometry of the tibial plateau and the risk of suffering an ACL injury. Prior research has shown that the weight bearing regions of the femoral condyles are spherical in profile and symmetrical between medial and lateral compartments. In contrast, the geometry of the tibial plateau varies widely and differs considerably between medial and lateral compartments of the knee. For example, females have significantly increased posterior directed slope of the medial (MTS) and lateral (LTS) tibial slopes. Similarly, the medial tibial depth (MTD) of concavity has been reported to vary widely between male and female subjects. Recognizing that most non-contact ACL injuries occur during landing from a jump when considerable forces and moments are generated across the knee, and the fact that the geometry of the tibiofemoral joint acts to distribute the magnitude and direction of these forces and moments; we hypothesized that subjects with increased posterior directed slope of their tibia while having a shallower medial tibial depth of concavity would be at increased risk of suffering an ACL injury in comparison to those with decreased posterior slope and increased medial tibial depth


The bibliographical listings in this publication are documentation products associated with the Solar Thermal Power Systems Project carried out by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory from 1976 to 1983. Documents listed herein are categorized as conference and journal papers, JPL external reports, JPL internal reports, or contractor reports (i.e., deliverable documents produced under contract to JPL). Alphabetical listings by title were used in the bibliography itself to facilitate location of the document by subject. Two indexes are included for ease of reference: one, an author index; the other, a topical index.


The dual character of invariance under transformations and definability by some operations has been used in classical work by for example Galois and Klein. Following Tarski, philosophers of logic have claimed that logical notions themselves could be characterized in terms of invariance. In this paper, we generalize a correspondence due to Krasner between invariance under groups of permutations and definability in $\La_{\infty\infty}$ so as to cover the cases (quantifiers, logics without equality) that are of interest in the logicality debates, getting McGee's theorem about quantifiers invariant under all permutations and definability in pure $\La_{\infty\infty}$ as a particular case. We also prove some optimality results along the way, regarding the kind of relations which are needed so that every subgroup of the full permutation group is characterizable as a group of automorphisms.


A method of producing a semifinished confectionary product, such as chocolate or similar, using at least one centrifugal unit for continuously grinding and mixing at least some of the ingredients of said semifinished product, the method comprising the steps of grinding at least a first ingredient to a larger grain size than that of said semifinished confectionery product; mixing the ground said first ingredient with at least one second ingredient inside a processing chamber of the centrifugal unit, by rotating a centrifugal member inside said chamber to move said ingredients inside said chamber along at least one straight, horizontal, simultaneous grinding and mixing path, and to grind and mix the ingredients to form a mixture of the same grain size as said semifinished confectionery product; and taking said mixture out of said chamber through an outlet of said processing chamber.


Thank you for reading alone of all her sex the myth and the cult of the virgin mary. Maybe you have knowledge that, people have search numerous times for their favorite novels like this alone of all her sex the myth and the cult of the virgin mary, but end up in harmful downloads. Rather than reading a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they juggled with some infectious virus inside their laptop.


2-Methyl-1, 3 (2H, 4H)-isoquinolinedione (I) reacted with methylglyoxal to form 1, 1-bis (2-methyl-1, 3-dioxo-1, 2, 3, 4-tetrahydroisoquinolin-4-yl) acetone (IV) in 58% yield. The Michael reaction of 2-methyl-4-phenacylidene-1, 3 (2H, 4H)-isoquinolinedione (II) with malononitrile gave 1H-pyrano [2, 3-c] isoquinoline (VI) and furo [2', 3' : 2, 3] furo [5, 4-c] isoquinoline (VII) derivatives in a ratio of 2 : 3. In the reaction of IV with malononitrile, retrograde Michael reaction occurred and resulted in the formation of 1, 1H-pyrano [2, 3-c] isoquinoline (IX) and 4-3'-furyl-1, 3 (2H, 4H)-isoquinolinedione (X) derivatives. X-Ray structure analyses of VII and IX were performed.


Submitted for the DFD08 Meeting of The American Physical Society Measurement and Modeling of Channel Wall Vibration Subjected to Internal Bubbly Flow1 MINGMING ZHANG, JOSEPH KATZ, ANDREA PROSPERETTI, Johns Hopkins University — The effect of a bubbly flow, injected into both a square and rectangle channels, on channel wall vibrations is studied experimentally and theoretically. The vibrations are measured under various gas void fractions, bubble diameters and channel dimensions. A theoretical model, based on a waveguide theory and bubble dynamics, is developed to predict the dominant frequencies in vibration spectra, the corresponding decay rates and propagation phase speeds. Results show that, compared with no bubble case, the presence of bubbles substantially enhances the power spectral density of vibrations, by up to 27 dB in a square channel and 37 dB in a rectangular channel. The origin of enhanced vibrations is attributed to the excitation of the streamwise propagating pressure waves, created by an initial acoustic energy generated during bubble formation. The model predicts very well the magnitudes and trends of the dominant spectral frequencies, the corresponding decay rates and phase speeds. The frequency, attenuation and phase speed decrease substantially with increasing void fraction but slightly with increasing diameter.


Meeting definition of metabolic syndrome (MetS) requires detection of central obesity (increasing waist circumference, WC) plus any two of the other four factors (hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, hypertension) [1]. Up to date, kidney evaluation is not fully reflected in MetS evaluation. Multiparameter ultrasound (US) can provide accurate information on every MetS sign [2] and for specific detecting type of chronic kidney disease (CKD) [3]. The Aim was to study added diagnostic value of ultrasound diagnosis of chronic kidney disease in patients with MetS for precise diagnosis and patients stratification.

 We included 48 overweight subjects patients (27-75 years; 25 women) with signs of MetS, BMI > 30, waist circumference (WC) > 110. The control group included 50 healthy individuals (26 women), mean age 43 ± 7 years without clinical, laboratory signs of MetS, nephropathy and liver pathology. All patients underwent general clinical, lab tests; abdominal US including precise multiparameter US of kidneys as in [3] measuring shear wave elastography (SWE), Doppler in parenchyma and vessels. We determined fat accumulations measuring VF and subcutaneous (SF) fat thickness (cm) and areas (cm2) on US.

 We detected hypertension (in 62%); hypercholesterolemia (in 45%); hyperuricemia (in 28%); hyperglycemia (in 32%); nephropathy (in 37%), portal hypertension (in 32%) in obese individuals (vs controls p < 0.05). In all patients we found increasing of visceral fat and various abnormalities in kidneys on US, we distinguished patterns in according to constituents of MetS by its definition s follows:
 Diabetic nephropathy included mild decresing or normal kidneys size, thinning parenchyma, low differentiation, clear smooth margings, Doppler showed mild decreasing velocities, increasing of RI in segmental arteries over 0.7 (Figure 1).
 Ischemic pattern associated with advanced atherosclerosis included severe decreasing of size, thinned, hyperechoic parenchyma; decreasing velocities under 25 cm/s., severe increasing of RI over 0.8.
 Hypertension associated nephropathy: mild changes in structure, normal velocities, increased RI (Figure 2). Hypertension correlated with levels of RI.
 Nephropathy in hyperuricemia and gout: signs as in [3] included thinning, increasing echogenicity of kidney parenchyma (P < 0.05), detection of fibrotic changes and small hyperechoic inclusions, hilly margins, anaechoic strips under the capsule, RI increasing in segmental arteries over 0.7.
 "Circular pyramyds pattern" included hyoerechoic circles around pyramids (white pyramid sign, hyperdense renal pyramids sign) with normal size, normal / mild increase of RI. SWE showed increased parenchyma stiffness to 10 ± 1.7 kPa (6–17 kPa) versus 4.2 ± 1.2 kPa (P < .05), showed differences among patterns, highest values were in nephropathy in gout and ischemia.

 Multiparameter ultrasound is effective for detecting and distinguishing patterns of kidney disease in MetS provides additional value for differentiation and modification treatment and targeted prevention. Kidney involvement should be considered in management of MetS.


In this paper,experimental and theoretical modal analyses were conducted for Jiujiang bridge in Fokai highway,which is a prestressed reinforced concrete continuous bridge with variable cross-sections and a main span of 160 m.The layout and procedure of modal test was introduced first and the bridge dynamic characteristics were then identified from the test data using stochastic subspace identification(SSI) method.A finite element model was also established for the bridge and the FEM analysis results were compared to the test ones.The results show that the natural frequencies and mode shapes in the vertical direction from the test and FEM analysis are comparable.The test results are helpful for updating the FEM model and the two studies combined together can provide a base model for bridge health monitoring and damage evaluation.


We characterize all random point measures which are in a certain sense stable under the action of branching. Denoting by $\circledast$ the branching convolution operation introduced by Bertoin and Mallein (2019), and by $\mathcal{Z}$ the law of a random point measure on the real line, we are interested in solutions to the fixed point equation \[ \mathcal E = \mathcal{Z} \circledast \mathcal E, \] with $\mathcal E$ a random point measure distribution. Under suitable assumptions, we characterize all solutions of this equation as shifted decorated Poisson point processes with a uniquely defined shift.


'Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width' was a typically 1960's politically incorrect British TV sitcom about the 'rag trade' with two tailors, one Catholic and one Jewish. However, in popular cult...


This study investigates whether the use of derivatives by US banks have impacted the performance of these banks. Data in this study was collected over the period of 2002-2009, with the study focusing on five US banks. In the first stage of the study financial ratios Return on Assets (ROA), Return on Equity (ROE), Efficiency Ratio, Cost of Funding Earning Assets, Net Interest Margin would be calculated to measure the performances while regression analysis would be used in the second stage to measure the sensitivity of using of the derivatives in these banks to their performance. The result from the study suggested a positive correlation between the banks performance and usages of derivatives. The study also showed a positive correlation between the efficiency of these banks and the usage of derivatives.


In the economic system of present world, a nation's money will be internationalized because of the nation's increasing comprehensive national power. RMB already can be internationalized in some degree. But it still has a long way to go, because Chinese financial market and the system of financial supervision are imperfect, RMB is not convertible under the capital account, the structure of trade is unreasonable, and so on. So the government should reform the nation's financial system further.


Thermistor temperature sensor has serious static nonlinear characteristic and slow dynamic response. When the temperature change rate is too high compared with the response speed of the thermistor, there is an error in the measured temperature. In order to solve this problem, a nonlinear inverse filter was employed. It is composed of a finite impulse response IIR filter and a static nonlinear unit.The coefficient of IIR filter is obtained via experiment, which is an inverse module of sensor's dynamic characteristic. The static nonlinear unit is implemented by the algorithm of table searching and value insertion. The method can be realized without knowing the dynamic model of the sensor. The experimental results show that the method is effective.


A dramatic increase in the number of graduates applying to train as nurses in Newcastle upon Tyne has coincided with the loss of thousands of banking jobs in the city.


Using a photoelectric measurement method, the foaming behavior of sinter from a dissected blast furnace was investigated. The influences of various factors on the foaming were further studied on synthetic specimens.The foaming capacity of sinter decreases with the increase of its reduction degree which has been achieved in the blast furnace, The melt with a basicity of 0.7 to 1.0 foams more intensively than the ultra-acidic and the highly basic ones. The volume of foam exhibits a maximum within a certain range of the gangue content and the temperature,depending on the basicity of melt. An addition of 1.0%~3.5%K_2Ocan intensify the foaming process of acidic and self-fluxing melts.


The potential energy surfaces for the chemical reactions of group 14 carbenes were studied using density functional theory (B3LYP/LANL2DZ + dp). Five group 14 carbene species containing a seven-member ring, 7-Rea-E , where E = C, Si, Ge, Sn and Pb, were chosen as model reactants for this work. Three types of chemical reactions (water addition, imine cycloaddition and dimerization) were used to study the reactivity of these 7-Rea-E molecules. Present theoretical investigations suggest that the relative reactivity of carbenes decreases in the order: 7-Rea-C > 7-Rea-Si > 7-Rea-Ge > 7-Rea-Sn > 7-Rea-Pb . That is, the heavier the group 14 atom (E), the more stable its corresponding 7-Rea-E compound to chemical reaction. This study's theoretical findings suggest that all of the seven-member 7-Rea-E should be readily synthe- sized and isolated at room temperature, since they are quite inert to chemical reaction, except for reaction with moisture. Furthermore, the group 14 7-Rea-E singlet-triplet energy splitting, as described in the configuration-mixing model of Pross and Shaik, can be used as a diagnostic tool to predict their reactivity. The results obtained allow a number of predictions to be made.