The subject of this article is the problem of the supervisory tasks of the National Electoral Commission (the NEC) in relation to electoral committees. Within the meaning of the Polish Electoral Code, the NEC is the most important supervisory body over the observance of the electoral law. While the NEC's supervision does not raise any doubts with regard to lower-level electoral bodies, so controversy arises in the context of entities involved in the electoral process, but which are not part of electoral administration. Among these entities there are mainly electoral committees. In this article the author analyzes the means by which the NEC may influence the activity of electoral committees during the election campaign. In the article the procedure of examining notifications about the establishment of electoral committees was discussed as well as the Commission's impact on committees through guidelines issued by it, explanations and other documents (positions, appeals and information).


We use an all--sky, complete sample of nearby galaxies, extracted from the LEDA data base, to map the optical galaxy density field in the nearby universe. In order to determine this field, we correct the redshift--dependent distances by testing some peculiar velocity field models and we correct the galaxy number density for the incompletion of the galaxy sample at large distances through the derivation of the galaxy luminosity function. Local galaxy density parameters calculated for different smoothing scales are meant to be used in forthcoming statistical studies of environmental effects on galaxy properties.


Michael D. Bayles, argue no less persuasively that coercive sanctions are always negative (force or threats). But none of them tackles the question of what difference it would make which way this controversy is resolved. That is, the controversy is pursued largely independently of careful consideration of the practical or theoretical import of any particular resolution of it. In any case, the efforts of those who undertook to clarify the concept of coercion are largely wasted on the other contributors to the volume. By the time we are half way through the second set of papers, which are concerned principally with the evaluation of coercion, the careful distinctions elaborated in the earlier papers have pretty well disappeared. Thus, in "Coercion and Social Change" Samuel D. Cook identifies as "forms of coercion" the following, among others: a system of rewards and punishments, revolution, various forms of bargaining, insurrections, rebellions, legislation, adjudication, institutionalized norms, symbols, sanctions and incentives, customs, habits of obedience, sheer inertia, and, believe it or not, "perceived perils and risks of adventure" (pp. 119, 133). Although his paper suffers from a good deal of this kind of conceptual imperialism, Cook makes some good points concerning the justification of coercion as an instrument of social reform. He is taken to task, however, by Robert Paul Wolff, who maintains that Cook repeatedly contradicts his own thesis that coercion is ethically neutral. Wolff clearly establishes that Cook does contradict himself, but his own argument in support of the view that coercion is intrinsically evil requires a great deal more elaboration than is provided in his very brief essay here.


Lingua Latina per se illustrata is a Latin coursebook which, based on the inductive- method (MIC) being envisaged by Danish Hans Orberg, is spread non only in Italian schools, but also around the world. In last years, critic academics and enthusiast teachers have been discussing the inductive-method (MIC) or the nature method, unwaveringly promoted in Italy by Luigi Miraglia, but in the available bibliography we lack a general outline which, featuring status questionis, provides a sketch of MIC at the standpoint of its descriptive underpinnings. This contribution aims at giving an interpretation of MIC at light of Second Language Acquisition (SLA), an innovative discipline which studies how human minds are capable of learning a foreign language (L2), different from mother tongue. The SLA theories of Stephen D. Krashen, applied linguistic from USA, are the first attempt of exploration of MIC in order to put teachers' intuitive understandings and convictions about MIC in a more systematic conceptual framework grounded on SLA research.


Daily PM2.5 and water-soluble inorganic ions (NH4+, SO42−, NO3−, Cl−, Ca2+, Na+, K+, Mg2+) were collected at the Hongshan Air Monitoring Station at the China University of Geosciences (Wuhan) (30°31′N, 114°23′E), Wuhan, from 1 January to 30 December 2013. A total of 52 effective PM2.5 samples were collected using medium flow membrane filter samplers, and the anionic and cationic ions were determined by ion chromatography and ICP, respectively. The results showed that the average mass concentration of the eight ions was 40.96 µg/m3, which accounted for 62% of the entire mass concentration. In addition, the order of the ion concentrations was SO42− > NO3− > NH4+ > Cl− >K+ > Ca2+ > Na+ > Mg2+. The secondary inorganic species SO42−, NO3− and NH4+ were the major components of water-soluble ions in PM2.5, with a concentration of 92% of the total ions of PM2.5, and the total concentrations of the three ions in the four seasons in descending order as follows: winter, spring, autumn, and summer. NH4+ had a significant correlation with SO42− and NO3−, and the highest correlation coefficients were 0.943 and 0.923 (in winter), while the minimum coefficients were 0.683 and 0.610 (in summer). The main particles were (NH4)2SO4 and NH4NO3 in PM2.5. The charge of the water-soluble ions was nearly balanced in PM2.5, and the pertinence coefficients of water-soluble anions and cations were more than 0.9. The highest pertinence coefficients were in the spring (0.9887), and the minimum was in summer (0.9459). That is, there were more complicated ions in PM2.5 in the summer. The mean value of NO3−/SO42− was 0.64, indicating that stationary sources of PM2.5 had a greater contribution in Wuhan.


The plasma-laser star (PLS) model for quasars proposed by the author. 1s appiled to explain the absorption spectra ofquasars. The following topics are briefly reviewed (a) Shell stars, especially ;, Cas. The role of metastable states. He 1 13889. (b) High Rydberg states. (c) Multiply-exclted states of atoms (and ions) which lie above the first ionization potential. especiall! the Wu states (metastable states wh~ch cannot autoionize by Coulomb interactions or decay radlatively. Prototype: ls2s2p " P state of the LI I sequence). (d) Dielectronic recombination. The expected shell spectrum of a quasar on the basis of the PLS model is compared with the obserxational data. The absorption lines arising from ordinary excited levels will he her! \+eak as these levels will be strongl! underpopulated (h. e I). The populations of metastable levels belou the first ionization potential and those of the Wu levels will be enhanced due to the dllution of stellar radiation. Consequently. lines arising from these levels are expected to be prominent Those arising from the Wu states will be d~ficult o identlfy as very few of these hdie been obserxed in the laborator). The difficulties in the identificatipn,of ohser\ed lines due to the blend~ng of lines and due to the rather large uncertainties in the measured wavelengths are discussed. The presence of He I13889 In the spectra ofPHL957.1331 + 170.4C25.05. PHL 5200. PliS023:-23. and 1158 + 122 IS noted. A very reasonable explanation of the absorption "hole" at -4020 A in the spectrum of PHL 957 is that i t is due to a transltlon from a Wu le\el to an autolonlzlng level. Also, there is no need of assuming redshifts in the spectra of t u o BL Lac oblects, namely. 0725 + 178and A 0 0 2 3 + 164.


The manufacturing technology of large power laser directly sintering metal powder is introduced, and the process principle is analyzed. The key processing parameters that influence the qualities of drip molding are also represented and analyzed. Some key parameters' referred value ranges are given, and several developing trends are analyzed.


Phoma stem canker, causal agents Leptosphaeria maculans and L. biglobosa, is a major disease of oilseed rape worldwide. Cankers decrease yield by disrupting water and nutrient transport in the stem, resulting in premature pod ripening. Infection by L. maculans results in basal stem cankers that are more severe than the upper stem lesions caused by L. biglobosa. Surveys of populations of L. maculans and L. biglobosa in England and Wales were done in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2006. Oilseed rape stems with basal cankers or upper stem lesions were obtained from different UK regions in June/July before harvest. Identification of L. maculans and/or L. biglobosa was by PCR using species-specific primers. Of the lesions tested, approximately two thirds were identified as colonised by L. maculans and one third as colonised by L. biglobosa. There was regional variation in the occurrence of L. biglobosa; the greatest proportion of L. biglobosa detected from lesions was in north-east England and the least in southern regions of the UK. The results of ongoing experiments into sensitivity of L. maculans and L. biglobosa to fungicides will be combined with the results of this study to improve targeting of fungicide applications for control of stem canker in different regions of the UK.


The piezoelectric head gimbal assembly was designed to compensate the off-track vibration in a harddisk drive. The off-track vibration caused by the torsion and sway vibration modes induces the read-write error rate. Thus, vibration modes of the piezoelectric head gimbal assembly that may causethe off-track positioning are reported in this work. The vibration characteristic of the piezoelectric headgimbal assembly is studied by using the finite element method. The finite element model is validatedby compared with the experimental result. The frequency response function result of the experimentwas measured by using the laser doppler vibrometer at the side of the slider in the horizontal plane.The comparison of natural frequencies and vibration mode shapes shows good agreement betweenthe finite element and experimental results. This research provides a procedure and a validated modelof the piezoelectric head gimbal assembly which is useful for further design and development of itsstructure and the control system to reduce the read-write error due to the off-track vibration.


Numerical comparisons of some models for estimating the power losses due to heat conduction in process of gas-assisted laser cutting are presented in this paper. In spite of differences between these models their results match fairly well.


Ternary Zn-Ni-P alloy thin films were electrochemically deposited from aqueous sulfate electrolytes on mild steel foils. The films were characterized by dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDAX) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to determine their chemical composition and microstructure. The corrosion tests were carried out in a 3.5% NaCl solution. The value of the lowest corrosion rate was of 0.095% and the highest value for the corrosion protection efficiency was of 73.11%. The results have shown the influence of the deposition bath and of the process parameters on the microstructure and properties of the electrodeposited coatings.


.......................................................................................................................................... II Zusammenfasung ............................................................................................................................ III Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................... IV Table of contents ............................................................................................................................. V List of figures .................................................................................................................................... X List of tables .................................................................................................................................. XIII List of abbreviations ....................................................................................................................... XV 1 General introduction and research framework ........................................................................ 1 1.1 Research background.............................................................................................................1 1.1.1 Sustainable management of the water resources .............................................................2 1.1.2 Hydro-economic models ...................................................................................................3 1.2 Research objectives ...............................................................................................................4 1.3 General description of the research area ..............................................................................4 1.4 Research questions and thesis outline ..................................................................................6 1.5 References .............................................................................................................................8 2 Modeling the Impact of Climate Change on Water Availability in the Zarrine River Basin and Inflow to the Boukan Dam, Iran ....................................................................................................... 9 2.


Extramedullary plasmocytoma is an expansion of a single clone of immunoglobulin-secreting plasma cells without evidence of multiple myeloma. It is un uncommon entity that occurs usually in head and neck area. It is radiocurable at average doses while adjuvant chemotherapy is still controversial. Progression rates to multiple myeloma are lower than bone plasmacytoma. We report three cases of extramedullary plasmacytoma and through a literature review we discuss radiation modalities as well as evolutionary aspects.


Water, solutes and membranes have long been the subject of intensive research, and many excellent reviews have brought the major biological problems in focus, have discussed accomplishments, and have outlined unsolved problems. The most interesting results pertain to the role of membranes, whether 'active' or 'passive', which separate different solutions, in other words, membranes at a water–water inerface Liquid gas interfaces have receied less attention, and I therefore wish to review some biological problem which relate to such systems. I shall discuss a variety of phenomena which may have little in common, except that they all bear onthe transition of water between liquid and gas.


The objective of this research is to develop a simple and reliable constitutive model for reinforcing steel bars which includes the effects of bar buckling for use in nonlinear seismic analysis of reinforced concrete (RC) structures. Bar buckling is an important phenomenon in the post-elastic response of RC columns subjected to seismic loads. To facilitate this development, a series of nonlinear finite element simulations were carried out to identify the main parameters controlling the buckling behavior of reinforcing bars. In the first set of simulations, individual bars with varying length to cross-sectional diameter (L/D) ratios were considered while in the second phase full column models with varying longitudinal and transverse reinforcement were simulated. In both cases, the specimens were subjected to axial compressive loading to observe the post-buckling response of the longitudinal bars. Numerical simulations are compared to experimental results and findings from the study provide a basis for developing a new material model for reinforcing steel bars in RC columns.


In this paper,we designed a wind-solar hybrid power system data monitor system based on P89LPC9408 processor.This system can acquire and process the current and voltage signals from solar photovoltaic cells,fan output,battery charging and inverter output,as well as the temperature sensors,wind direction and wind speed sensor signals,etc.And the system can communicates with the PC by RS-485 bus,which can monitor the power station in real-time.


The Jany Coeffirnt demonstrates that the income allocation gap in China has surpassed the cordon that is generally recognized by the world. The primary distribution order has been thrown into confusion. Personal income tax mainly comes from working classes, which means the personal income tax has not functioned well. Therefore, it is necessary to give full play to the function of personal income tax and to make who earn more money to pay more taxes. This is the market economy's inexorable trend and the foundation of social stability as well.


Abstract Background Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC) presents as a result of catecholamine surge. There are increase of TC among COVID-19 patients, which is induced by cytokine storm. TC is previously known as a self-limiting and benign cardiac manifestation, but it has been uncovered that TC can be associated with fatal cardiac outcome due to cardiogenic shock and life-threatening arrhythmia. Clinical Presentation A 54-year-old woman presented to the emergency department with a fever since 9 days before admission accompanied by DOE, PND, and fatigue that worsened since 5 days before admission. Fifteen days before her complaints, she experience bereavement from his son death from motorcycle accident. She was referred from regional hospitals due to respiratory failure necessitating ventilator support. Physical examination revealed normal blood pressure and desaturation. ECG shows tachycardia with global ST-elevation. CXR shows cardiomegaly (CTR 62%) and pneumonia. The laboratory demonstrated increased Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), C-Reactive Protein, Troponin, and positive PCR COVID-19 swab. An echocardiography presented regional wall motion abnormality with apical ballooning appearance and reduced systolic function with LVEF of 51% resembling Takutsubo cardiomyopathy. Despite maximal ventilatory and pharmacology, she experienced malignant ventricular tachycardia not responding to defibrillation and expired in only 6 hours Discussion The presence of cardiac arrhythmia followed by cardiac arrest in COVID-19 patient complicated by TC can be a direct effect of catecholamine surge and myocardial injury or indirect effect from QT-prolongation and inflammatory process. Concurrent COVID-19 pneumonia and TC may progress with dismal prognosis, so that in need of prompt referral system.


In order to achieve cutting transport with air reverse circulation in dry and shallow large-diameter holes of rock-socketed pile, and solve the technical problem with air-lift and pump reverse circulation, a large-diameter reverse circulation bit was innovatively designed based on ejecting theory. Meanwhile, the orthogonal design method and computational fluid dynamics(CFD) simulation technique were applied to explore the application feasibility of ejector theory in use of in air reverse circulation drilling. Through theory analysis, six key geometry parameters of air reverse circulation bit were proved to have direct effect on the function of cutting transport, including the diameter of nozzles(Dn), the number of nozzles(N), the length of nozzles(L), the angle of inclination(θs), the angle of deflection(θd) and the diameter in induced segment(Dg). Each parameter was analysed and optimized to reveal influence law of structural parameters on reverse circulation cutting transport. The results show that the reverse circulation effect of large diameter bit designed based on ejecting theory is absolutely valid and stable. Furthermore, while the supplied air volume of GQF-16 DTH hammer reaches to 50 m3/min and diameter of the bit goes to 1.2 m, a configuration of parameters with Dn=20 mm, N=3, L=50 mm, θs=35°, θd=10°, Dg=50 mm are the most ideal parameter combinations.


Contrary to the perceptions of many Thai policymakers, the rapid growth of trawl fishing in the Gulf of Thailand has not led to the demise of small-scale commercial coastal fishermen. Gill net commercial fishermen continue to persist due to the importance of kin-based labor recruitment and informal credit institutions with middlemen and neighbors. This paper examines access to the means of production among 31 gill net fishermen in a Thai-Chinese community. We suggest that the concept of petty commodity production is a useful way of distinguishing kin-based forms of commercial fishing from other commercial fishing enterprises.


The imaging and operating principles of GE LCV DSA system were described briefly, together with the analysis and discussion of the occurrence for impediment and the repairing management.


Background : Malnutrition has been linked to higher hospitalization rates, decreased physical activity, reduced quality of life, and insuf fi cient dialysis, as well as death and morbidity. 6% e 8% of hemodialysis patients have severe malnutrition, compared to 30% e 65% of patients who have moderate malnutrition. Purpose : To evaluate transferrin as a marker of malnutrition in regular hemodialysis patients. Method : The material of this work comprised hemodialysis patients who were followed up at Al-Agouza Hospitals. Patients were recruited in the duration between (April 2022) and (Oct 2022). Modi fi ed SGA was calculated for all participants according to history, clinical examination, laboratory fi ndings then patients were divided into 3 groups: normal (SGA ¼ 7), mild to moderate ( > 7 & < 35) and severe malnutrition (SGA ¼ 35). The blood samples will be taken before dialysis in a midweek session before anticoagulation to avoid interference with heparin. CBC, CRP, creatinine, Blood urea, S. albumin, Iron pro fi le, ALT, Calcium, phosphorus and Transferrin were assessed. Results : Twenty patients had normal SGA, 53 patients had mild to moderate malnutrition and 7 patients had severe malnutrition. There was statistically substantial variation between the study groups regarding the presence of lower limb edema with higher incidence among severe malnutrition group, a component of modi fi ed SGA score, Ferritin, Albumin, ALT and Serum calcium had higher levels among normal control group than the other 2 groups. Also, mild-moderate malnutrition group had higher levels of transferring than severe malnutrition group with statistically signi fi cant difference. Conclusion :


In the present study, estimation of optimum input parameters corresponding to desired output parameters is carried out for a typical sponge iron process. For this purpose data of rotary kiln of the process are collected. It includes temperatures profiles inside the rotary kiln and flow rates of air, iron ore, feed coal, slinger coal and sponge iron. These data are analysed using ANN and group method of data handling (GMDH) approaches. Sixteen ANN topologies are proposed where TOP-3 is found best, which has mean absolute error (MAE) as 8.42. However, GMDH analysed the data with MAE of 8.72. Optimum values of operating parameters are found through ANN and GMDH approach and compared with that are used in the existing process. It shows that values of input parameters found through ANN can be selected as optimum based on minimum operating cost.


This study aims to examine the underlying reason why consumers do not have the willingness to purchase counterfeit luxury brand by focusing on the effects of personality, perceived quality and attitude towards the behavior of not purchasing counterfeit luxury brands. Personality factor is conceptualized to have six dimensions namely value consciousness, novelty seeking, integrity, personal gratification, status consumption and materialism. A survey on 115 non-purchaser of counterfeit was conducted amongst adults in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. Results revealed that attitude towards counterfeit luxury brands played an important role as it has a positive relationship with intention not to purchase counterfeit luxury brands and value conscious, novelty seeking and integrity. Attitude towards counterfeit luxury brands also has a fully mediation effect on the relationship between novelty seeking and intention not to purchase counterfeit luxury brands. However, novelty seeking consumers do not influence the intention to purchase counterfeit luxury branded product as they have a negative attitude towards the behavior of purchasing the counterfeit brands.


UTILIZATION OF ESTER organic polysiloxanes groups and / or epoxy bonded to silicon atoms via carbon atoms. WITH THEM AMENDING THE SURFACE OF PARTICLE THIN AS Pigments and Fillers, OR FIBERGLASS.


Rubber is an important cash crop for most smallholders in Thailand, where more than 95% of rubber is produced by small farmers who mainly grow rubber trees ( hevea ) as a monocrop (90% of plantations). But monocrops are subject to price fluctuations, and this system is being increasingly replaced by rubber- based agroforestry systems (rubber-AFS). The aim of this study was to assess the main trajectories of farmers who have changed or are moving from monocrop to rubber-AFS. The results show four differ- ent patterns of diversification: growing fruit trees as a monocrop, then changing to rubber-AFS; growing timber trees as a monocrop, then changing to rubber-AFS; changing from monocrop rubber to rub- ber-AFS; starting with rubber-AFS from the beginning. We also found that farm- ers use seven types of crop associations in their plots, depending on the eco- nomic uses of the intercropped trees. A SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) was con- ducted in addition to the economic analysis, with a view to developing guidelines to improve the future of hevea-based plantations.


Making Aid Work brings together a variety of creative approaches to successfully utilizing aid in Sub-Saharan Africa in the twenty-first century. The contributors use Goran Hyden's autonomous-development fund model as an inspiration for the direction of their arguments. The approaches seek a means of promoting the genuine and effective partnerships necessary for accomplishing short-term and long-term objectives in Africa. The essays focus on the development of the managerial capacity and administrative culture that must take place before the development-fund model can be successful. A commitment to promote scientific problem solving at all levels of society and education would be needed to support innovative management training methodologies, and develop strategies for coping with financial pressures. The contributors hope to provide guidelines with the potential for broad impact and lasting benefits that partnerships in North and South Africa can confer.


Distinct subsets of dendritic cells (DCs) are present in blood, probably "en route" to different tissues. We have investigated the chemokines and adhesion molecules involved in the migration of myeloid (CD11c+) and plasmacytoid (CD123+) human peripheral blood DCs across vascular endothelium. Among blood DCs, the CD11c+ subset vigorously migrated across endothelium in the absence of any chemotactic stimuli, whereas spontaneous migration of CD123+ DCs was limited. In bare cell migration assays, myeloid DCs responded with great potency to several inflammatory and homeostatic chemokines, whereas plasmacytoid DCs responded poorly to all chemokines tested. In contrast, the presence of endothelium greatly favored transmigration of plasmacytoid DCs in response to CXCL12 (stromal cell‐derived factor‐1) and CCL5 (regulated on activation, normal T expressed and secreted). Myeloid DCs exhibited a very potent transendothelial migration in response to CXCL12, CCL5, and CCL2 (monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1). Furthermore, we explored whether blood DCs acutely switch their pattern of migration to the lymph node‐derived chemokine CCL21 (secondary lymphoid‐tissue chemokine) in response to microbial stimuli [viral double‐stranded (ds)RNA or bacterial CpG‐DNA]. A synthetic dsRNA rapidly enhanced the response of CD11c+ DCs to CCL21, whereas a longer stimulation with CpG‐DNA was needed to trigger CD123+ DCs responsive to CCL21. Use of blocking monoclonal antibodies to adhesion molecules revealed that both DC subsets used platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule‐1 to move across activated endothelium. CD123+ DCs required β2 and β1 integrins to transmigrate, whereas CD11c+ DCs may use integrin‐independent mechanisms to migrate across activated endothelium.


The article deals with the current problems associated with the negative trend of increasing the load on judges. The approximate ways of solving these problems are also described. Ключевые слова: нагрузка на судей, правосудие, судебная система, качество правосудия.


Terry Balko' certified senior advisor and director of planned giving at Kennesaw State University was elected president of the Georgia Planned Giving Council at their annual meeting in November. Full Text: Contact: Frances Weyand' Director of University Relations at 770−423−6203


In recent years, airport runway extraction has become increasingly important for various engineering applications. Existing approaches for airport runway extraction primarily focus on locating the airport roughly, i.e., determining whether an airport is present or not, but not delineating the airport runway accurately. This study develops a novel method for semiautomatic airport runway extraction from Google earth images by integrating a long straight line finder and a region-based level set evolution (LSE). Specifically, we start by detecting the long straight lines that most likely represent airport runway boundaries in the original images. Then, based on the extracted lines, we propose a method for semiautomatic generation of initial level curves for the LSE. Furthermore, for accurate extraction of the entire airport runways, a fast region-based LSE is used to evolve the initial level curves toward the desired boundaries. Experiments validate that the proposed method is capable of semiautomatically extracting objects with complex geometrical shapes and topological structures from challenging backgrounds. Compared with other state-of-the-art approaches, the proposed method has much fewer parameters and is more computationally efficient while achieving object extraction accuracy comparable to other approaches.


Based on the overall assessment of the price outlook, the dynamics of core inflation – i. e. net of the energy and food components – and the intensity of the transmission of monetary policy to the economy, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) further raised the key interest rates in mid-June by 25 basis points, bringing that on deposits held by banks with the Eurosystem to 3.5 per cent, 4 percentage points higher than in July of last year. The Council also confirmed the discontinuation of the reinvestments under the asset purchase programme, reiterating its intention to continue those linked to the pandemic emergency purchase programme until the end of 2024.


Cu-Cr barrier coatings, with suitably matched thermal and physical properties, are being developed to protect Cu-alloy liners of rocket engine thrusters via the formation of Cr 2 O 3 barriers. The challenge is to maximize Cr 2 O 3 protection with minimal Cr addition, since high Cr content degrades the coating conductivity and ductility. It is shown that, by using an efficient coating technique to produce a refined coating microstructure, adequate protection is achieved even while Cr content is reduced by nearly half from the current state-of-the-art levels.


Objective To explore the value of F wave recording in evaluating the integrity of facial nerve function in the pressure-induced rat models of acoustic neurinomas. Method 58 rats in different groups were conducted facial nerve F wave recording and biotinylated dextran amine (BDA) retrograde tracing in their right whisker muscles one week after establishing models. Analyzing their latencies,amplitudes and F/M rates. 72 hours after BDA injection, the rats were infused with 4% polyoxymethylene,then pontine samples and facial nerves in the CPA cistern were obtained. Pontines were cut into 30μm frozen sections for histochemical staining with avidin-horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-DAB and Nissl' s counterstaining, calculating the positive BDA neurons ratio( BDA+ -N% )in facial nuclear. Facial nerves were cut and stained with toluidine blue for light-microscope inspection, and/or stained for transmission electron microscope observation. Correlating F/M with BDA'-N% and the facial nerve pathological findings. Results F waves can be induced and kept stable in control groups when stimulus are between 0.9-2.5mA. F/M are 97.66% and 97.48% in normal and pseudo-operation group, respectively, when stimulus are 1.4mA; while 77.13%, 48.91% and 11.54% in from small to large tumor model groups(P <0. 001 ) because F waves were delayed in latencies or partly lost. Similarly, BDA+-N% are 98.37% and 97.96% in above two control groups, while 77.28%, 48.28% and 11.55% in from small to large tumor model groups ( P < 0. 001 ). Thus F/M are positively correlated with their own BDA+ -N% in all groups (r = 0. 996, P < 0. 001 ). Facial nerve examinations under light and electron microscope show increasing pathological changes along with increasing "tumor" size. Conclusions The findings of F wave recording in facial nerve may reflect its functional integrity or severity to damage. Therefore, F wave detection may help electrophysiological monitoring during acoustic neurinoma resection and facial nerve function evaluation after surgery.

Key words:
Neumma,acoustic;  Facial nerve;  Pressure-inducod model;  F wave recording; BDA retrograde tracing


The electronic stopping power of a free electron gas on a moving charged particle (ion) in a solid is analyzed in the coordinate system moving with the charged particle. By quantum mechanically treating the momentum transfer between the charged particle and the electron gas, explicit analytic expressions for electronic stopping have been derived for ions of all energies in the nonrelativistic regime. The explicit result reduces to well-known results at both high and low ion energies.


In a recent Insightful article on demand artifacts in consumer research, T. A. Shimp, E. M. Hyatt, and D. J. Snyder, using a 1989 article by J. J. Kellaris and A. D. Cox as backdrop, provided an appraisal of demand artifacts. In this article, we critically evaluate some of the assumptions and conclusions of Shimp et al.'s analysis of the extent to which demand artifacts might explain the 1982 results of G. J. Gorn as analyzed by Kellaris and Cox. In addition, we offer some useful suggestions for minimizing demand problems.


Asset-liability management (ALM) is a term whose meaning has evolved. It is used in slightly different ways in different contexts. ALM was pioneered by financial institutions, but corporations now also apply ALM techniques. In banking, asset and liability management is the practice of managing risks that arise due to mismatches between the assets and liabilities (debts and assets) of the bank. This can also be seen in insurance. Banks face several risks such as the liquidity risk, interest rate risk, credit risk and operational risk. Asset Liability management (ALM) is a strategic management tool to manage interest rate risk and liquidity risk faced by banks, other financial services companies and corporations. ALM is defined as "the process of decision making to control risks of existence, stability and growth of a system through the dynamic balances of its assets and liabilities."


Absolute differential cross sections for the production of D/sup -/ and D/sup 0/ + D/sub 2//sup 0/ have been determined for single and double electron-capture collisions into dissociative states by 1.0- to 5.0-keV D/sub 2/ /sup +/ in Cs vapor. Integrations of the differential cross sections over the angles yield the total cross sections for the production of D/sup -/ and D/sup 0/ + D/sub 2//sup 0/. A theory has been developed of the angular distributions of dissociation fragments resulting from electron capture into dissociative states of diatomic molecular systems. Predictions are made that the angular distribution dsigma/subf//d..omega.. of any fragment f should scale as E/subi//sup -1/ dsigma/subf//d..omega.. = f (E/subi/theta/sup 2/), where E/subi/ is the incident energy of the diatomic molecular ion. The observed distributions fit this scaling law. An interesting structure is found at 23.5 keV deg/sup 2/, which yields information about the dependence of the electron-capture cross section on the internuclear separation of the incident molecular ion during the interaction time. (AIP)


Electron transfer processes at interfaces constitute a large and important class of surface reactions. In addition, the rectifying properties of semiconductor interfaces makes these systems one of the simplest and most efficient systems for converting and storing optical energy. However, the primary events of interfacial electron or hole carrier transfer and competing non-radiative (energy loss) channels are not well understood at surfaces. This research has explored the use of two novel optical techniques, Surface Space Charge Electro-optic Sampling and Surface Restricted Transient Grating Spectroscopy, to obtain the time evolution of the surface spatial distribution of photogenerated charge carriers and the photocarrier population dynamics at semiconductor interfaces, respectively. These studies have shown that carriers arrive at GaAs (100) surfaces on the hundred femtosecond time scale and subsequently undergo interfacial charge transfer on the picosecond time scale to appropriate acceptors. These dynamics are competitive with carrier thermalization processes and support the concept that it may be possible to significantly improve energy conversion efficiencies by minimizing energy loss through carrier thermalization. The exact dynamics still need to be resolved. A new laser system has been developed in the first year of funding that is capable of 10 femtosecond time resolution. This system willmore » have sufficient time resolution to completely resolve both the electron and hole carrier non-radiative relaxation processes as well as the interfacial carrier charge transfer dynamics.« less


1Hellenic Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Athens, Greece; 2National Development & Research Institutes (NDRI), Inc., New York City, New York, USA; 3International AIDS Society (IAS) & the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA); 4Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology & Medical Statistics, National Retrovirus Reference Center, Medical School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece; 5Department of Pharmacology, Medical School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece; 6Laboratory of Drug Regulatory Policies, IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy; 7Medical School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece


We have investigated the thickness-dependent transport properties of La1/3Sr2/3FeO3 thin films grown on SrTiO3 (001) and (111) substrates. At a thickness of ∼40 nm, both films show a clear transition in resistivity associated with the characteristic charge disproportionation at approximately 190 K. The transition temperature of the charge disproportionation is nearly unchanged with decreasing film thickness down to a certain thickness of ∼13 nm for both orientations, while the change in resistivity gradually decreases. Below this thickness, the transition becomes unclear, strongly suggesting the suppression of the charge disproportionation at the critical thickness of ∼13 nm. Furthermore, there is no significant difference in the thickness dependence of La1/3Sr2/3FeO3 thin films between the (001) and (111) orientations. The negligible crystallographic-orientation dependence may reflect the isotropic nature for the domain of charge disproportionation states in La1/3Sr2/3FeO3.


For coal-fired utility boiler,the sootblowing during the operating can lead to series of irreversible process with result of entropy generation.Entropy generation of sootblowing was analyzed from the second law of thermodynamics.The calculation model of entropy generation caused by sootblowing steam pressure-reducing,sootblowing steam mixture,sootblowing steam heat transfer,sootblowing steam exhaust and sootblower motor was built.Calculation was done with the field data of a coal fired boiler.The results indicate that: Various entropy generation of sootblowing around the same heating surface has a greater difference and the entropy generation caused by sootblowing steam mixture has the greatest proportion;the total entropy generation of sootblowing has a descending trend along the flowing direction of flue gas.Because the big value of total entropy generation of sootblowing,it must be considered during the economical analysis of boiler and sootblowing optimization.


Abstract Orchid root samples collected from 4 commercial growers around Hamilton and from the Pukekohe Horticultural Research Station (PHRS), were examined for the intensity of mycorrhizal infections, The orchid roots from commercial growers' glasshouses where orchids had been cultivated for 5-20 years harboured more mycorrhizal fungi than roots collected from PHRS where orchids had been cultivated for about 15 months, The highest infection level recorded in Cymbidium was 88% and in Cattleya was 30%, Comparison of Cymbidium hybrid plants at different ages suggested that mycorrhizal infection increased with the age of the plant. Aerial roots had very low infections, The present study suggests that, once established, naturally occurring orchid mycorrhizal fungi are fairly widespread, and rapidly spread from plant to plant within a glasshouse.


AbstractCorrective or repair maintenance is fixing bugs in programs and is a costly process in both software maintenance and software development. Novice programmers are usually not taught any general strategy for debugging; rather they rely on trial and error methods. This research centered on synthesizing previous research into a syntactic /semantic instrument. A secondary purpose was to use this instrument to determine an error taxonomy and move toward a theoretical framework of error complexity that could be used as a guide in training.


Refractive index andloss properties aremeasured byusing Wbandrectangular waveguide test cell. Measurement ofmaterial properties intheultrahigh frequency region becomes extremely difficult. We haveproposed anovel measurements method utilizing thereflection type test cell fabricated withrectangular waveguide. Fundamental transmission modeinthewaveguide isverysimple andanisotropy oftheLCmaterials caneasily be determined bychanging thedirection ofthemagnetic field applied fortheLCmolecular orientation. Inthis work, weusea Teflon windowforsealing theliquid like LC materials to reduce thereflection oftheMMW signal. Complex refractive indices oftheLCmaterials cansuccessfully bedetermined up to110GHz without anycomplex data analysis.


HOW PROFESSIONAL PROVIDERS ADDRESS THE SELF-ESTEEM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN ADOLESCENT GIRLS LIVING IN LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES Khidhra Smith Poole MSW, LCSW Dr. Joretha Bourjolly MSW, PhD., Dissertation Chair Objective: This study aimed to explore how professionals are addressing the self-esteem of African American girls living in low-income communities. Factors such as gender, race, and socioeconomic status play a significant role in the development of a healthy self-esteem. Given the disproportionately high representation of African American youth among individuals living in poverty, their increased exposure to stress in the context of poverty, and the association between stress and psychological symptoms for African American girls, the search for protective factors that foster resilience for low-income African American girls is particularly important. Methods: A modified grounded theory approach was used to analyze audiotaped transcribed focus group discussions, self-esteem written intervention materials, and direct observation notes from self-esteem interventions conducted by study participants. Fennell's cognitive model of low self-esteem was used as a theoretical framework for this study to help understand which factors contribute to low self-esteem and as a result need to be considered when improving overall self-esteem among African American adolescent girls living in low-income communities. Results: Teaching skills and providing opportunities for girls to practice new skills, guided group discussions and talks, exposure to new experiences, addressing basic needs, healthy relationship building, the positive use of self, spiritual/cultural approaches and the lack of family involvement were all themes that emerged when professionals addressed the self-esteem of African American adolescent girls living in low-income communities. The study also discovered that professionals should find ways to include the primary caregiver when addressing self-esteem with this group. Conclusions: The findings suggest that addressing self-esteem with this group begins with understanding their culture, listening to what they need and observing obstacles faced by these girls to sustain a healthy selfesteem. Implications for social work practice are discussed.


ABSTRACT In a 2006 article, legal scholar Juliet Stumpf coined the term 'crimmigration' intended to reflect the growing convergence between criminal and immigration law in the United States. To date, the robust and insightful debates that have emerged from this intervention are largely centered in legal scholarship and citizenship studies. In this article, I ask what a political economy lens can add to our discussion of crimmigration and argue that, in part, a political economy analysis allows us to parse out important nuances in national crimmigration regimes. Examining the case of settler-colonial Canada, I show how the criminalization of migration has been bound into a broader strategy of carceral expansion as a political-economic response to the financial recession of 2007/08. I argue that the specific means by which prison expansion has taken place, through Public-Private Partnerships, bears significantly on how carcerality has become entrenched in Canadian immigration policy with important implications for those organizing against the criminalization of migration.


Sleep is critical to health and functionality, and several studies have investigated the inherited component of insomnia and other sleep disorders using genome‐wide association studies (GWAS). However, genome‐wide studies focused on sleep duration are less common. Here, we used data from participants in the Coriell Personalized Medicine Collaborative (CPMC) (n = 4,401) to examine putative associations between self‐reported sleep duration, demographic and lifestyle variables, and genome‐wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data to better understand genetic contributions to variation in sleep duration. We employed stepwise ordered logistic regression to select our model and retained the following predictive variables: age, gender, weight, physical activity, physical activity at work, smoking status, alcohol consumption, ethnicity, and ancestry (as measured by principal components analysis) in our association testing. Several of our strongest candidate genes were previously identified in GWAS related to sleep duration (TSHZ2, ABCC9, FBXO15) and narcolepsy (NFATC2, SALL4). In addition, we have identified novel candidate genes for involvement in sleep duration including SORCS1 and ELOVL2. Our results demonstrate that the self‐reported data collected through the CPMC are robust, and our genome‐wide association analysis has identified novel candidate genes involved in sleep duration. More generally, this study contributes to a better understanding of the complexity of human sleep. © 2015 The Authors. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


(57) Abstract: The present invention relates to novel 2-hydroxypropionic acid derivative and a manufacturing method thereof. Based on the mechanism of inhibitory effect on CPT I, 2-hydroxypropionic acid derivative of the present invention has a hypoglycemic action, the derivative, have fewer side effects and has a significant anti-diabetic activity, effectively as anti-diabetic agents it can be used.


To develop a molecular imaging probe for potassium cation based on the chemical shift change of 19F magnetic resonance (MR), thrombin aptamer, whose structure was changed with the selective binding...


We assessed the effectiveness of the implementation of an institutional massive transfusion protocol (MTP) for resuscitation with a 1:1:1 transfusion ratio of packed red blood cell (PRBC), fresh frozen plasma, and platelet units. In a Level I trauma center database, all trauma admissions (2004–2012) that received massive transfusions (≥10 units PRBCs in the first 24 hours) were reviewed retrospectively. Demographic data, transfusion ratios, and outcomes were compared before (PRE) and after (POST) MTP implementation in May 2008. Age, sex, and mechanism of injury were similar between 239 PRE and 208 POST trauma patients requiring massive transfusion. Transfusion ratios of fresh frozen plasma:PRBC and platelet:PRBC increased after MTP implementation. Among survivors, MTP implementation shortened hospital length of stay from 31 to 26 days (P = 0.04) and intensive care unit length of stay from 31 to 26 days (P = 0.02). Linear regression identified treatment after (versus before) implementation of MTP as an independent predictor of decreased ventilator days after adjusting for age, Glasgow Coma Scale, and chest Abbreviated Injury Score (P < 0.0001). Modest improvement in ratios likely does not account for all significant improvements in outcomes. Implementing a standardized protocol likely impacts automation, efficiency, and/or timeliness of product delivery.


We propose a small size fingerprint matching algorithm (4 KB) that can be executed on devices with a low computational power and a limited memory size. The algorithm is based on matching features that are invariant with respect to major transformations like translation and rotation. The matching algorithm has been implemented on a smartcard over the Java Card TM platform. The algorithm has an asymmetric behavior, with respect to the execution time that varies between correct positive and negative matches. The performance in terms of authentication reliability was tested on some databases from the Fingerprint Verification Competition 2002 (FVC2002) .


The medial thigh area remains a troublesome region for body contouring in patients with lipodystrophy and/or skin flaccidity. Liposuction has proven effective in patients who have excess fat deposits but do not have a significant degree of skin laxity. The skin in this area of the body is often thin and inelastic, and in most circumstances where skin laxity is present, liposuction alone fails to remodel and tighten the inner thigh. Thus, it is necessary to combine liposuction with skin excision to achieve acceptable cosmetic results. The purpose of this article is to present the authors' technique of inner thigh lift using a novel dermoadipose flap design, which allows an effective anchoring of the inferior flap of the inner thigh to the adductor major tendon at the pubic bone insertion site. This novel approach creates a strong and stable anchoring site for the inferior inner thigh flap. In the authors' experience this technique has proved safe and effective, has a decreased morbidity, and achieves excellent cosmetic results.


Increasing urban population growth has causing unbalanced development which has a negative impact on green open space. Jambi City has 14.92 ha of green open space. When compared with the area of Jambi City, it is found that green open space is only 8.76%. One of the impacts of reducing green open space is the increase in air temperature in Jambi City every year. This study aims to analyze the effect of vegetation density on green open space on light intensity and air temperature in Jambi City. The research case studies were in Kota Baru, Telanaipura, and Pasar Jambi Districts which selected based on zoning of green open space covered with a density level of rarely, medium and dense (Regulation of the Director of Planning of the Ministry of Forestry Number 3/2014). The effect of vegetation density on light intensity and air temperature was statistically analyzed using Pearson correlation. The results showed that vegetation density in green open spaces had a significant effect on light intensity with a strong correlation value of 0.704. Vegetation density also had a significant effect on air temperature with a moderate correlation value of 0.575.


The action of land remove is being performed.Some people take this action as a land revolution;some people take this action as a gold key to the solution of the land remove in rural area.How shall we treat the action? Through the review of land reform policy changes in rural land,the author of this paper thinks that land remove is inevitable;in the process of land reform,it won't be changed that the owner of land is the collective or our country;at the same time,in order to promote the urbanization and industrialization,land reform should be combined with the construction of the town.


habitus is one of the core concepts raised by Pierre Bourdieu,an acclaimed French sociologist whose works cover a wide range of disciplines.It has led to various translations when his theories were introduced into China.To account for such differences,the paper first traces the origin of this word in western culture,then consults Wiki and draws from professional voices.Finally it calls for a standard and consistent translation of habitus,especially when using it to develop the theories for Translation Study.


Zeolite synthesis using Ombilin coal fly ash at low temperature with alkaline hydrothermal process has been carried out. The used Fly ash was melted by NaOH at a temperature of 550°C. Alkaline hydrothermal processes in zeolite synthesis performed with variations of temperature at 35°C , 45°C and 60°C . The zeolite that obtained was characterized by using Fourier Transform Infra Red (FT - IR), X - Ray Diffraction (XRD) , Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) in combination with EDX . The characterization results showed the formation of zeolite were better when an increasing in temperature processes and the use of sea water as a solvent. On the use of seawater, were obtained sodalit zeolite with the chemical formula Na 8 (Al 6 Si 6 O 24 )Cl 2 .


The development of technology is growing rapidly, along with the needs of communication and information services are increasing, ranging from voice, data, and video services. To meet those needs, fiber optic communication system is one of the answers. Nowadays every place needs fast communication access one of the example is Fave Hotel Cilacap which is growing rapidly in Cilacap area. With the number of users and the increasing level of demand for each user, the design of Fiber To The Building network at Cilacap Hotel Fave is considered strategic, because the user needs will be realized as it should. The method used for this design is using optical system software with GPON technology. This design uses Power Link Budget parameters, Rise Time Budget and Bit Error Rate. The result of manual calculation on power link budget for downlink and uplink is 20,176 dB, using 3 dBm power for downlink, while for uplink use power -3 dBm. The resulting power margin on downlink calculation is 4,824 dB, and for uplink power margin of 0,824 dB. Rise time budget using NRZ coding generated on the downlink calculation is 0.251 ns, and for uplink of 0,2500 ns. And for BER downlink of 1,072 × 10-117, for uplink of 0. In both BER values it is stated to meet the minimum value of BER determined by ITU-T on optical fiber is 10-9.
Keywords : power link budget,rise time budget, BER


This paper focus on modeling the flexural behavior of spun concrete poles reinforced with GFRP bars using finite element analysis. The finite element model was then verified through comparing the results with the results available in the literature. Two poles were modeled using the ANSYS software. The poles were identical to each other, and the only difference was in the number of GFRP bars, one pole having 6 bars and the other 12. Poles were tapered with 20ft (6.1m) long. The results of this paper show that the finite element model used in this study shows a good correlation with the experimental results, and can be used for further studies of spun concrete poles reinforced with GFRP bars.


Western Carolina University instituted a one-year project titled "Enhancement of Two-Year Industrial and Engineering Technology Faculty in Current Quality Assurance Practices. The activities carried out under this project are described.<<ETX>>


ABSTRACT The negative distribution functions exist when the kinematic wave equation of overland flow is solved using the traditional lattice Boltzmann method. To resolve this shortcoming, an improved lattice Boltzmann method is introduced involving the multi-scale expansion of time coordinate (but not spatial coordinate). Based on the improved multi-scale expansion, a multi-scale analysis method and an undetermined coefficient method are used to gain the equilibrium distribution functions. To validate the proposed approach, special experiments with water flows on the impervious and pervious (with soil macropores) slopes have been conducted. The experimental results show that the improved lattice Boltzmann method is effective in describing overland flows; there are no numerical oscillations, and the distribution functions are positive when the relaxation time is from 0.8 to 2.0.


The present invention discloses a process for preparing linezolid. The N- {2 (R) -2 - [(3- fluoro-4-morpholin-4-ylphenyl) amino] ethyl} -2-hydroxy-acetamide and the carbonylation reagent is dissolved in an organic solvent, adding oxide inorganic bases aluminum supported catalyst, controlling the pH of the reaction system in the 8-10, reacted at 20-60 deg.] C; after cooling and extracted, washed, dried, and purified to obtain linezolid solid was recrystallized. Compared with the prior art, the present invention employs the inorganic base is an alumina-supported catalyst, instead of the organic base catalyst, not only improves the utilization of the reaction of atoms, but also improve the cleaning properties and prepared by the reaction of industrial safety, reduce environmental Pollution. The present invention employs the inorganic base as the alumina-supported catalyst preparation method is simple and can be regenerated using the present invention avoids the use of conventional synthetic methods highly toxic, Precursor reagent, improves the cleaning of industrial synthesis, reducing environmental pollution.


This paper describes a case study of building a prototype of an immersive three dimensional (3-D) modeler which supports simple two-handed operations. Designing 3-D objects in a virtual environment has a number of advantages for 3-D geometry creation over designing with traditional computer aided design (CAD) tools. In order to enhance the human-computer interaction in a virtual workspace, two-handed spatial input has been incorporated into a few 3-D designing applications. However, existing 3-D designing tools do not utilize two handed interaction for enhancing the interface sufficiently. Our prototype immersive modeler, VLEGO, employs some features of toy blocks to give flexible two-handed interaction for 3-D design. Features of VLEGO can be summarized as follows: Firstly, VLEGO supports various two-handed operations and hence it makes design environment intuitive and efficient. Secondly, possible location and orientation of primitives are discretely limited so that the user can arrange objects accurately with ease. Finally, the system automatically avoids collisions among primitives and adjusts their positions. As a result, precise design of 3-D objects can be achieved easily by using a set of two-handed operations in intuitive way. This paper describes the design and implementation of VLEGO as well as an experiment for examining the effectiveness of two-handed interaction.


An apparatus (20) for fluid dispensing comprising: a body (22) defining a reservoir (10) of fluid contained therein; a means of task execution supported by the body (22); a set (70) supported by the valve body (22) to provide communication between the reservoir and the medium; a flexible and resilient button (90, 130), mounted on the body (22) for movement between a rest position and depressed position, the button (90, 130) has a dome portion (91, 127) and you can be deflected manually to the depressed position; and a member (100; 120) biasing disposed within the pusher (90, 130) in order to assist in returning the pushbutton (90; 130) to the rest position, wherein the member (100; 120) biasing includes a pair of ribs (107; 161; 127; 122, 123, 124) disposed along an interior of the button (90; 130) and dome portion (91; 127) of the pushbutton (90; 130 ) includes a nozzle (98; 125) projecting inside and the ribs (101, 102; 121, 122; 123, 124) are fixed to the nozzle (98; 125).


Inherited Factor VII (FVII) deficiency is commonest among the rare bleeding disorders. A small number of patients present in infancy with severe bleeding, and many may remain asymptomatic but detected before surgery/invasive procedures. Genetic testing may be helpful in predictive testing/prenatal diagnosis in severe cases.


Across California, most of the freeway on-ramps at urban interchanges are either currently being metered, or proposed to be metered in the near future. The current California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Highway Design Manual (HDM) does not contain specific standards on queue storage design for metered entrance ramps and the standards prescribed in the manual for acceleration lane length design are found to be insufficient at times since at metered on-ramps, approaching vehicles have to stop before picking up speeds in order to merge with mainline traffic. Under this task, data was collected at several metered on-ramps in California and a simulation model was used to analyze the data and develop comprehensive design guidance for metered on-ramps, in the form of a combination of charts and tables, that will help Caltrans designers and operators with ramp metering applications. The standards developed under this research have been incorporated into the latest update to the Caltrans Highway Design Manual and Ramp Metering Design Manual. Additional research is recommended to further investigate the relationship between metering rate and freeway volume to model a traffic responsive metering strategy, to investigate the influence of grade on acceleration performance data to provide adjustment factors for the recommended acceleration lengths, and to figure out what is the required auxiliary lane length for various geometric and traffic conditions.


Why Comics? is a celebration of all that has changed both in comics and for comics over the last generation, written by the person most qualified to host the party. Indeed, our being where we are today owes a good deal to Hillary Chute, who began her career writing some of the field's most intelligent and informative reviews and interviews and went on to write two of the most influential books in comics studies, Graphic Women (2010) and Disaster Drawn (2016). I first met Chute when she was working on her dissertation, and although the decade between us placed me in the role of outside reader on her committee, she was already leading the way forward for all of us in the field.


The Galileo spacecraft will use a Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (NIMS) to study Jupiter s moon, Ganymede. Although the main goal is to study the chemical components in the various surface compositional units, terrain types, craters, polar effects, hemisphere differences, and the atmosphere also will be examined.


Fiber/matrix interface properties and fiber pull-out behavior have a significant influence on the overall mechanical properties of a composite. The properties of the fiber/matrix interface in two ceramic matrix composite material systems were characterized using multiple fiber pull-out testing. The test specimens were double notched across the faces and contain a single row of several fibers partially embedded in the matrix below the notch. After flexurally fatigue pre-cracking the notch, the fibers are simultaneously bordierite and a hybrid combination of continuous silicon carbide fibers and silicon carbide whiskers in a base matrix of cordierite. The results of this investigation indicate substantial improvements to inter-facial shear strength and frictional sliding resistance can be obtained through the addition of whiskers to the matrix.


The ferric oxide catalyst was prepared by the dipping-calcination method using γ-Al_2O_3 as a carrier and the microwave-induced oxidation process was developed to treat phenol in water. The catalyst structure was determined by XRD, XRF and N_2 adsorption. The effects of operating conditions on the catalyst activity, the using life of the catalyst and the reaction kinetics were studied. The results show that α-Fe_2O_3 is loaded on the surface of γ-Al_2O_3 and the content of α-Fe_2O_3 in the catalyst is 3.71%. Under the optimal treatment conditions of phenol concentration of 100 mg/L, microwave power of 400 W, irradiation time of 5 min, catalyst amount of 60 g/L, H_2O_2 concentration of 600 mg/L and pH4, a phenol removal rate of 97.98% is obtained. The catalyst can be reused more than 20 times remaining a phenol removal rate of 96.34%. The oxidation process can be divided into two stages, both of them are in accord with the first-order reaction kinetics.


Consideration was given to the effects of building dams at the entrance to Passamaquoddy Bay between New Brunswick, Canada, and Maine, U.S.A., on the normal migration route of anadromous fish. Situations at filling and emptying gates and at the proposed power house were assessed and provisions to facilitate normal movements of anadromous fish recommended.


Pesticide waste disposal monitoring currently utilizes conventional methods of analysis such as gas-liquid chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. Enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays (ELISAs) have been developed for s-triazine herbicides and many of their environmental degradation products. This paper reports the use of an s-triazine herbicide class-specific ELISA in conjunction with an ELISA for the intermediate product chlorodiamino-s-triazine (CAAT) for measuring s-triazine herbicide ozonation followed by microbiological treatment. For the treatment of atrazine, the ELISAs were very accurate and precise for measuring atrazine and CAAT


Abstract The Youd etal liquefaction resistance curves developed in 2001 to characterize the cyclic resistance of soil based on SPT test are the most used in the context of the Seed and Idriss simplified procedure as a deterministic model. These curves were developed from a modified database of Seed etal. in 1985 with the assumption that the actual peak shear stress (τd) induced at depth h is always less than that predicted by the simplified procedure (τr) of Seed and Idriss (rd= τd/τr<1). By using a suite of equivalent linear site response analyses to adjust the dynamic and the simplified shear stress at depth h, Filali and Sbartai showed in 2017 that the dynamic peak shear stress for some earthquakes is greater than the simplified peak shear stress (rd>1). As in this case, the assumption of the simplified procedure is not verified, Filali and Sbartai have proposed a corrector factor (RC) in the range where rd>1 to adjust the deformable and rigid body. In this paper, we will present a probabilistic study for the evaluation of the liquefaction potential using a database based on SPT measurement compiled after the Chi-Chi Taiwan earthquake, in which the cyclic stress ratio is evaluated using the proposed corrector factor. The objective of this study is to present a probabilistic shape of the cyclic resistance ratio (CRR) curves based on the original simplified method of Seed and Idriss and the corrected version and a new formulation for computing the probability of liquefaction.


The research is connected with the solving the problem of rational utilization of agricultural residues by the creation of resource-saving method for their efficient conversion into value-added products. Wheat straw was used in this work in chemical processing. Treatment was carried out with the application of formic/acetic acid mixture. Thus, cellulosic pulp was obtained. The spent solution was used to precipitate lignin. The structure of lignin was investigated. The results indicated that formic/acetic acid treatment was quite effective in isolating cellulose from wheat straw and in recovering lignin. Wheat cellulose is a promising fibrous material for the application in paper industry. Wheat lignin can be considered as a material for biosorbent preparation.


A detailed description of the feline urological syndrome (FUS) is out of place in this talk as it has been dealt with extensively in the other lectures. It is sufficient to say that FUS is a disease of the lower urinary tract of cats and is usually characterized by one or more of the following clinical signs : haematuria, crystalluria, dysuria and partial or total obstruction of the urinary tract. The crystals most commonly associated with this syndrome are composed of struvite (magnesium ammonium phosphate hexahydrate). Many factors have been associated with FUS and at present it is accepted by most researchers that the disease can occur through several different causes; two or more causes may exist in the same cat. As to the role of diet, it is unlikely that this is the sole cause of FUS (Osborne and others, 1984) but it is certainly one of the more important factors in the disease, and there are several ways in which it can exert an influence. A brief discussion of each of these will now be presented.


PURPOSE: A method for solder-stop structuring of elevations on wafers is provided to simply and reliably produce reliable solder stop and good flank protection of a 3D structure. CONSTITUTION: A resist(11) is deposited on a tip of a 3D(three-Dimensional) structure. Then, a solder stop layer(8) is deposited over the metallization and over the resist(11). The resist(11) on the tip of the 3D structure, including the solder stop layer(8) covering the resist, is subsequently removed so that an Au layer(7) on the tip of the 3D structure is exposed.


Purpose – This study aims to address the credibility effects of refutational versus non-refutational two-sided messages. Additionally, it aims to unravel the moderating role of issue ambivalence and argument type. Design/methodology/approach – A 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects factorial experimental design (N = 853 adolescents) investigates the effect of eight anti-binge drinking and anti-marijuana messages on source and message credibility. Findings – The results show that refutation increases credibility compared to non-refutation. Additionally, a three-way interaction effect is found: credibility depends on the ambivalence of the issue and the argument type. Originality/value – First, this study clarifies the inconsistencies found in previous literature regarding (non-)refutational two-sided messages by addressing two important (and so far neglected) moderating variables. Second, we provide useful new insights for health practitioners who develop campaigns to prevent drug abuse among adolescents.


Enhancement of the properties of zinc oxide (ZnO)-based Schottky diodes has been explored using a combination of plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD) ZnO thin films and silver oxide Schottky contacts deposited by reactive radio-frequency sputtering. The electrical properties of the ZnO thin films were systematically tuned by varying the deposition temperature and oxygen plasma time during PE-ALD to optimize the performance of the diode. Low temperature (80 °C) coupled with relatively long oxygen plasma time (>30 s) PE-ALD is the key to produce ZnO films with net doping concentration lower than 1017 cm−3. Under the optimal deposition conditions identified, the diode shows an ideality factor of 1.33, an effective barrier height of 0.80 eV, and an ON/OFF ratio of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${3.11} \times {10}^{{5}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>.


Documentation will be the base of many agricultural applications in the future.

Automatic data acquisition is the fit way to realize a spatiotemporal high-resolution and safe documentation.

The huge amount of raw data needs to be processed by a easy to use and safe data processing system.

An Internet based data management system can provide safety and effective information management for the farmers - avoiding problems with local installed software.

In the project on hand a first approach has been realized using just free software components.

The system should be developed further on and standards for data interfaces should be defined.

Reservations of the farmers regarding the server-sided data processing could be decreased by publishing more information and education.


Mortality data within the Sentinel Death Tables remain generally uncharacterized. Assessment of mortality data within Sentinel will help inform its utility for medical product safety studies.


Summary form only given. Based upon extensive interviews on three industrialized continents with over 60 large high-technology companies conducted during the 1980s and beyond, the authors discuss a definition of technology strategy, its role in technology management, and its role in achieving and sustaining superior competitive strategy. A model was developed whereby managers have some useful guidelines and suggestions to assess whether or not their companies have an effective technology strategy, how useful it is, and how well it is conceived and applied toward corporate strategic advantage in the global marketplace. The authors have developed several constructs to illustrate technology strategy with emphasis on its strategic relationship to the future competitive position of the company, the acquisition and exploitation of technology within the strategic competitive system for the corporate strategy framework, the relationships between key technology strategy units and various functional and operating units, and an organizational structure approach to managing the strategy.<<ETX>>


In recent years, deep learning algorithms have outperformed the state-of-the art methods in several areas thanks to the efficient methods for training and for preventing overfitting, advancement in computer hardware, the availability of vast amount data. The high performance of multi-task deep neural networks in drug discovery has attracted the attention to deep learning algorithms in bioinformatics area. Here, we proposed a hierarchical multi-task deep neural network architecture based on Gene Ontology (GO) terms as a solution to protein function prediction problem and investigated various aspects of the proposed architecture by performing several experiments. First, we showed that there is a positive correlation between performance of the system and the size of training datasets. Second, we investigated whether the level of GO terms on GO hierarchy related to their performance. We showed that there is no relation between the depth of GO terms on GO hierarchy and their performance. In addition, we included all annotations to the training of a set of GO terms to investigate whether including noisy data to the training datasets change the performance of the system. The results showed that including less reliable annotations in training of deep neural networks increased the performance of the low performed GO terms, significantly. We evaluated the performance of the system using hierarchical evaluation method. Mathews correlation coefficient was calculated as 0.75, 0.49 and 0.63 for molecular function, biological process and cellular component categories, respectively. We showed that deep learning algorithms have a great potential in protein function prediction area. We plan to further improve the DEEPred by including other types of annotations from various biological data sources. We plan to construct DEEPred as an open access online tool.


Although different kinds of foundations have been investigated against an earthquake faulting, the interaction between pile group and dip-slip fault has not yet been fully understood. This letter investigates the interaction between piled raft and normal faulting by means of centrifuge and numerical modelling. In centrifuge test, a piled raft was simulated with a half model for a better observation of fault rupture path under the raft. The loading transfer mechanism was further examined using a three-dimensional finite difference software (FLAC3D). The measured and computed results showed that the piled raft displaced and tilted linearly with the magnitude of faulting. The fault rupture bifurcated into two and diverted towards both edges of the raft. Two types of loading transfer mechanism were identified during faulting. Working load transferred from the raft to the underneath piles, and also from the piles on the side of the hanging wall to the piles on the footwall side, resulting in compression failure of the piles on the footwall side.


Abstract cis-Dicarbonyl-bis(2-methyl-1,3-butadiene)molybdenum(0) (1) and -tungsten(0) (2) were prepared photochemically from tricarbonylmesitylene-molybdenum(0) and aceto-nitrile-pentacarbonyl-tungsten(0), respectively, as thermolabile yellow oils. 2 is obtained as a mixture of two diastereomeric pairs of enantiomers 2a (2a') and 2c (2c'). From 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopic data 2 a (2a') is shown to have C2 symmetry, whereas 2 c (2c') is asymmetric. The NMR signals of 2 c (2 c') are temperature dependent due to an intramolecular 2c⇄2c'-isomerization (⊿G≠250 = 47 kJ · mol-1). A trigonal prismatic transi-tion state with Cs symmetry explains the D-NMR spectroscopic results. The NMR signals of 2 a (2a') are temperature dependent, too. This is taken as evidence for a ligand movement which brings 2a (2a') on the way to a third diastereomeric form 2b' (2b), with no detectable population. The molybdenum complex 1 forms only the isomers la (la') with C2 symmetry.


Tannin polyphenols are produced by plants to protect themselves against natural decay. It is expected that impregnating low-durable timber with tannin extracts of more durable species such as quebracho (Schinopsis balansae) will enhance the durability of the specimens. This biomimetic approach combined with the in situ polymerization of quebracho–hexamine formulations can be a valid alternative to synthetic wood preservatives. In this work, we aim to evaluate the impregnation mechanism as well as the impact of tannin and hardener concentration on the mechanical and leaching resistance properties of treated wood. Compression resistance, surface hardness and leaching resistance of four different common non-durable wood species: spruce (Picea abies), pine (Pinus spp.), poplar (Populus alba) and beech (Fagus sylvatica) impregnated with different concentrations of extract and hexamine are presented. The results show that the mechanical properties of tannin-impregnated timber are enhanced, especially for timber with lower densities. Tannin and hardener concentrations tendentially do not contribute significantly to further increase MOE (modulus of elasticity), MOR (modulus of rupture) and Brinell hardness. Similar results are also obtained when the specimens are tested against leaching: tannin is significantly more water-resistant when cured with hexamine, but higher amounts of hardener do not further improve its water resistance. These findings suggest that quebracho tannin–hexamine formulations are already effective at low concentrations (5 to 10% extract with 2.5 to 5% hexamine).


The present paper deals with the physico-chemical, quantitative phytochemical determination and antimicrobial activity of Butea monosperma (Lamk.) Taub., an important medicinal tree in India. The in-vitro antimicrobial activity of ethanol, chloroform and petroleum ether extracts were studied using MIC (Minimum Inhibitory Concentration) by well diffusion method against pathogenic microbes viz., Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis. Among the solvents used, the ethanol extract was found to be more effective against Bacillus subtilis , and Staphylococcus aureus . The petroleum ether extract did not inhibit Pseudomonas aeruginosa , while the Escherichia coli did not inhibit any type of extract. Activities of the various extracts were comparable to those of standard antibacterial agent ampicillin as control. The results provided evidence that the studied plant might indeed be potential sources of phytochemical constitution and antimicrobial agents and showing that this plant can be used as a complementary source for traditional medicines. Key words: Butea monosperma , Antimicrobial, Physico-chemicals, Phytochemical D. A. Dhale et al. Evaluations of Phytochemical Constituents and Antimicrobial Activity of Butea monosperma (Fabaceae). J Phytol 2/12 (2010) 17-21.


A 37-year-old woman was admitted having suffered progressive swelling in her face, feet and abdomen for 3 months. On examination, she displayed features of right heart failure and was instituted on optimal pharmacotherapy with Diuretics, Digoxin, ACE inhibitors and Beta blockers. However, she continued to remain in a fluid overloaded state.


In India, presently 18 million destitutes and orphan children are being looked after in various orphanages. Each year, about fifty thousand children become destitute as they are abandoned by the helpless parents and unwed mothers. Hundreds of them die from malnutrition and disease due to lack of clean water and inadequate sanitation. Since children constitute the human resource of our country and they are supremely important national asset, it is the duty of the state and the society to take effective steps to secure and safeguard their welfare and to provide opportunities to them to grow and develop their personality in a healthy atmosphere. Moral sense of society compels us to search a solution to the problems of the abandoned children and Intercountry adoption is only one of such solutions. The object of the paper is to analyse the concept of Intercountry adoption as it is existing today. A comparison of the same under the legal framework of India, United States of America and United Kingdom has also been drawn. The way in which the present Indian adoption laws with reference to Intercountry adoptions can be made efficient within the existing legal framework has also been proposed.


The dynamic parameters of micromechanical thermo-resistive directly heated converter are measured in different mediums. The hardware architecture of the designed automated stand on the base of the hardware-software complex NI Elvis II, software and user's interface into LabVIEW environment are described. The results of thermo-resistive transducer's characteristics measurement, received with theproposed stand, have analyzed


At present, abandoned cropland has become a common phenomenon spreading to countries around the world. China has seen widespread abandoned cropland in recent years. However, there are extremely few empirical studies of cropland abandonment and influencing factors nationwide. In this study, survey data from 8071 farmer households in 14 Chinese provinces were used to analyze the degree of cropland abandonment in China and its spatial distribution. A multi-level model was constructed to quantitatively explore the socioeconomic factors affecting the degree of cropland abandonment, at both the farmer and district/county levels. The results show that: (1) the proportion of farmers and the spatial distribution of abandoned cropland are consistent. (2) Chongqing City, Guangdong Province, and Shanxi Province are high-value areas of abandoned cropland, while Shandong, Liaoning, Henan and Jiangsu provinces are low-value areas. (3) Among the differences in cropland abandonment, 68.5% and 31.5% can be explained at the farmer and district/county level, respectively. (4) At the farmer level, all labor and cropland transfer indicators, including land labor quantity per unit area, male agricultural labor ratio, farmers mainly of middle-aged labor, cropland transfer area and cropland subcontract amount, have significant negative effects on the degree of abandoned cropland. There is a significant negative correlation between the value of agricultural operating fixed assets in the agricultural input indicators and the degree of abandoned cropland, but participation in professional, cooperative, economic, agricultural organizations has no significant impact on the degree of abandoned cropland. The per capita disposable income, which represents the quality of life indicator, has a significant positive impact on the degree of abandoned cropland. (5) At the district/county level, the proportion of the total co-working labor force and the transfer rate of cropland are negatively related to the degree of cropland abandonment, and the proportion of the co-working labor force outside the district/county is positively related to the degree of cropland abandonment. In addition, we briefly analyzed the mechanism and process of cropland abandonment from the perspective of farmers' decision-making. Finally, the policy suggestions to alleviate the abandonment of cropland were put forward from the district/county and farmer level, respectively.


We experimentally demonstrate that a differential phase-shift keying (DPSK) receiver employing a Mach-Zehnder delay interferometer (MZDI) with a bit delay of less than one bit combined with maximum likelihood sequence estimation can considerably enhance the tolerance to chromatic dispersion (CD). Furthermore, we analyze the impact of sampling phase and optimize the MZDI bit delay for 10.7-Gb/s nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ)-DPSK demodulation. Our investigation shows that a 4000-ps/nm CD tolerance at 2-dB penalty is feasible for 10.7-Gb/s NRZ-DPSK.


Telecommunication networks with high reliability and high performance are indispensable for realizing the Iot society. The authors have been engaged in the research and development of reliability design of telephone network (PSTN), which is one of nationwide backbone network. This paper summarizes the methodology of reliability design of PSTN and points out the future issues of network reliability design toward IoT society.


We study interpolation polynomials based on the points in ?1,1]×?1, 1] that are common zeros of quasi-orthogonal Chebyshev polynomials and nodes of near minimal degree cubature formula. With the help of the cubature formula we establish the mean convergence of the interpolation polynomials.


We read with interest the report by Blumsohn et al. published in the July issue of the Journal. Based on cosinor analyses of a smaller longitudinal and a larger crosssectional sample, the authors confirmed significant seasonal variations in serum vitamin D levels but were unable to detect any effect of season on serum markers of bone resorption. Because the authors mainly refer to two of our previous studies on circannual changes in bone turnover, we feel obliged to comment on some aspects of their work and on the phenomenon of seasonal variability of bone turnover in general. When it comes to the assessment of temporal fluctuations in biological functions, most people would agree that data obtained from longitudinal studies prevail in significance over those acquired from cross-sectional surveys, no matter how big the latter may be. Including the most recent report in the Journal, a total of about 10 well-designed longitudinal studies investigating the effects of season on bone turnover have been published since 1986. All of these studies show clear seasonality in serum 25(OH)vitamin D [25(OH)D] levels, with a nadir consistently occurring in winter (i.e., January–February). This fall in serum 25(OH)D levels coincides with a significant increase in bone turnover in some but not all studies. A careful analysis of the existing literature provides clues that may help to explain some of these apparent discrepancies. First, several of the negative studies used bone markers with recognized low sensitivity (e.g., serum total alkaline phosphatase, urinary hydroxyproline). As circannual changes in bone turnover are of comparatively small magnitude, these studies may have underestimated the effects of season on bone turnover simply by lack of methodological sensitivity. Second, population characteristics and composition, as well as sample size, seem worth a closer look. For example, in some studies, significant seasonality in bone turnover was observed in women but not in men. There is some evidence that gender is an independent determinant of serum 25(OH)D levels. Also, compared with men, women in Northern Europe seem to require higher serum 25(OH)D levels to maintain normal serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) concentrations. These gender differences may explain, at least in part, why women are at greater risk for subclinical vitamin D deficiency and why studies including predominantly males were unable to show significant seasonal variations in bone turnover. Along these lines, it is interesting to note that all longitudinal studies reporting circannual changes in bone turnover markers also observed a significant seasonal variation in serum PTH levels. Conversely, seasonal changes in serum PTH levels were always absent in the negative studies. Taken together, these observations support the hypothesis that transient secondary hyperparathyroidism on the grounds of subclinical vitamin D deficiency may be the driving force behind the winter increase in bone turnover. When directly comparing the longitudinal studies by Blumsohn et al. and Woitge et al., several important differences should be considered. First, the report by Blumsohn et al. is comprised of only 12 individuals (6 males, 6 females) between the ages of 22 and 44 years. The study by Woitge et al. included 41 subjects (15 males, 26 females) between 25 and 80 years of age. The latter report clearly states that a significant circannual rhythm in bone turnover was observed in only 26 of their 41 individuals, and this phenomenon was absent in men. This negative observation alone would have accounted for 50% of the sample studied longitudinally by Blumsohn et al. Thus, if the longitudinal study by Woitge et al. had included a sample size of only six male and six female subjects, the chances of negative findings would have been greater than 70%. Second, as shown by the authors' and many other groups, most markers of bone turnover are notorious for their high degree of (pre-analytical) variability. This kind of noise becomes a problem, particularly in smaller studies. Third, in addition to studying a larger sample and a wider age range, Woitge et al. also made an effort to generate a comparatively homogeneous population by assessing their subjects' lifestyle (e.g., smoking and alcohol use, calcium intake, physical activity) and anthropometric variables. The report by Blumsohn et al. makes no mention of such information being collected, which is particularly unfortunate in light of their small sample size and previous observations that age, gender, and menopausal status have a strong effect on the magnitude of seasonal changes in bone turnover. Thus, some of the differences in results from these and other reports may be attributable to variances in lifestyle and other confounding factors that were not taken into account in all of the studies. Finally, it is interesting to note that both the crosssectional and the longitudinal studies by Blumsohn et al. reveal significant seasonal variations in serum vitamin D levels. These changes were similar or even identical to those JOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH Volume 19, Number 1, 2004 Published online on December 15, 2003; doi: 10.1359/JBMR.0301218 © 2004 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research


This paper presents a macroeconomic model in a closed economy based on the framework developed by Blanchard (1981), Laban and Larrain (1994), Obstfeld (1994), Barro (1997), Lai (2011), Lai and Fang (2012), and others. In view of the intertemporal substitution effect of consumption, the free adjustment of full employment output and commodity prices and the instantaneous adjustment assumption of commodity prices, the model uses the announcement effect approach of rational expectations to investigate the dynamic adjustment pattern of stock prices. This paper concludes that if the policy authority executes the monetary policy announcement, then the chip effect, the liquidity effect, the dividend effect, the sign and magnitude of the slope between the two unstable arms and the time lag between the policyi¦s announcement and execution are the key factors influencing the dynamic adjustment pattern of the stock price.


Mesopotamia has produced little iconographic or artifactual evidence for perhaps its most indispensable technology.

Keywords:

ancient Near East history;
archaeology;
maritime history


The intricate and complex bio-mechanics of the human hand provides humans with the ability to grasp objects in various ways and interact with the natural environment. The simple act of writing a name or tying the shoes may seem like a tedious task to most, but to a person who has lost a hand, even the simplest of tasks become impossible. While there have been many attempts to recreate the human hand especially with the fast advancement of science and technology and the functionality of prosthetic hands have been improved dramatically, few such prosthetics provide an adequate substitute for a price that ordinary amputees can afford. There is a need for a prosthetic hand that is both practical and affordable. This research aimed to develop a prototype prosthetic hand that meets the requirement of ordinary amputees and has the expected basic functionality. With the consultation from key beneficiary and right hand amputee, the prototype was required to be able to carry up to 10kg weight and compatible with a driving system that has been used by amputees for many years, allowing a proven prototype to be quickly developed into a product ready for the market place.


Smart cement-based nano-reinforced structures have improved properties and are expected to remain intact for a long time. Corrosion attack, mainly through the pores, causes reduction of properties in most materials. Nano-reinforced structural components intended to be used in the construction industry require an understanding of their corrosion resistance behavior. The present work deals with the investigation of chloride penetration mechanisms in mortars modified with multi-walled carbon nanotubes. The tested structures were artificially corroded via salt spray fog and their surface electrical resistivity, as well as their flexural and compressive strengths were assessed. One of the main goals of the study is to evaluate the effect of nanotube concentration on the accelerated corrosion damage. It was observed that the insertion of different percentages of carbon nanotubes affects the mortar chloride penetration, as well as enhances the flexural and compressive response of the material, comparing to plain specimens, due to the filling of pores with sodium chloride. Also, the electrical resistivity of the specimens was evaluated prior and after the exposure of the mortar samples to salt spray fog.


Sal (Shorea robusta Gaertn. f.) occurs gregariously on the southern slopes of the Himalayas and is distributed in Bangladesh, India and Nepal (Figure 1). Sal is one of the major timber-yielding plant species in India, known for its superior quality wood (Satya et al., 2005). S. robusta forests are among the most disturbed types of forest in Southeast Asia (Sapkota et al., 2009), due to their high timber value and socio-economic importance for fodder, fuel-wood, leaf litter and minor forest products.


The present study aimed at understanding the sources of stress and coping ways of girls dwelling in hostel. Sources of stress may vary in different environmental setting. Hostel's environment poses different kind of challenges for students. In India only a few girls are sent to hostel for study purpose as their marriage is given more priority than education. Therefore, 12 hostel girls studying in University of Allahabad were approached in order to collect data. Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was conducted with girls. The FGD was audio recorded with the permission of girls and the audio recording of discussion was transcribed line by line. The Hindi transcription of the discussion was translated into English. Thematic analysis was used for interpreting the data. Patterns regarding different sources of stress were identified. Family related stress, career related stress, marriage related stress, gender discrimination, societal pressure, unhygienic environment of the hostel and adjustment problem with the roommate were the major themes derived from the patterns found in discussion. The themes that were derived for coping ways were: avoidance, back bitching, Faith in God, technology involvement, reliving positive moments of life, diary writing, painting, studying, sharing and meditation.