The present invention relates to a silicon-based molten composition for forming SiC single crystals by a solution method, the composition containing silicon, carbon, and a metal satisfying 0 /70≤ C si so1 ≤ 1.510 with respect to a solubility parameter (C si so1 ) defined by equation (1) below: C si so1 = A - B + μ 1 - μ 2 , Equation (1), wherein in the equation above, A is the first energy (A) of a first evaluation lattice comprising silicon atoms, carbon atoms, and metal atoms, in a silicon crystal lattice comprising the metal and the carbon; B is the second energy (B) of a second evaluation lattice comprising silicon atoms and metal atoms, in a silicon crystal lattice comprising the metal; μ 1 is -5.422 as a constant value, which is the chemical potential obtained by dividing the total energy of diamond crystal structured silicon by the number of silicon atoms present in the unit lattice; and μ2 is -9.097 as a constant value, which is the chemical potential obtained by dividing the total energy of diamond crystal structured carbon by the number of carbon atoms present in the unit lattice.


Part 1 Ecogeography - the study of the natural environment: approach to an integrated study of the natural environment - land surveys of the CSIRO (Australia), analysis of landscapes, integration of the dynamics the geomorphological approach - basic concepts of geomorphology, integration of geomorphology into ecogeography the pedological approach - basic concepts and historical review, the cartographic approach water resources - the state of knowledge, the naturalistic approach - the functioning of a drainage basin, the soil water regime and plant productivity, hydromorphological maps remote sensing and ecodynamics - what is remote sensing?, what remote sensing has to offer, utilization of remote sensing recordings, remote sensing and ecodynamics. Part 2 The management of the rural environment: the rational use of the rural environment - a systems appraoch of the impact of agricultural activities on the natural environment, development of stable environments, more or less stable environments - slowing down of the evolution, restoration, development problems at the regional level planning rational agricultural developments - the degree of tolerance of the natural environment to competing uses, flow chart of steps leading to an agricultural development how to proceed? - posing the problems, preliminary projects, multiple options, sequel and end - projects and follow-up.


Images of acute allergic contact dermatitis, Lyme disease, southern tick–associated rash illness, tick-borne babesiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and brown recluse spider bites.


Phycobiliproteins are water-soluble naturally occurring light harvesting pigments commonly present in cyanobacteria and some eukaryotic algae. Phycobiliproteins are covalently attached linear tetrapyrrole chromophoric group called bilins or phycobilins. Moreover, among which the phycocyanin (Phycocyanin) as the main ingredient。This Phycocyanin is a natural pigment, with high nutrients, can be used as food supplements, but also as a natural pigment used in cosmetics。In addition, can also be used in immunoassay, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer drugs. In this study, cyanobacteria Oscillatoria sp. Wu1 was isolated from seawater around Taiwan, conditions for the production, extraction and purification methods were discussed. The phycocyanin and allophycocyanin content reached 380 mg/g and 103mg/g of dried cell weight in sample from Oscillatoria sp. Wu1 growth conditions: carbon source: 1.0 g-fructose/L, nitrogen source: 0.5 g-urea/L, light intensity: 4300 lux and temperature: 30°C. In addition, the light sources affect the test results found that when the medium containing both carbon / nitrogen source, light sources for Oscillatoria sp. Wu1 in the growth and pigment content of the more obvious. Conversely, when the medium without containing carbon / nitrogen source, light sources of cyanobacteria growth and pigment content of the less obvious. The use of specific wavelengths of light to culture Oscillatoria sp. Wu1 production phycocyanin, places red light (630 nm) light source as training, can achieve the most desired results. In the complex purification process, the use of Molecular gel chromatography to purify. Pure Phycocyanin was finally obtained from Oscillatoria sp. Wu1 with purity ratio (A620/A280) 3.76, further the molecular weight was confirmed by SDS–PAGE.


In this study, we have studied the polymerization of polyethylene wax using metallocene catalysts and its physical properties. Various polymerization conditions were tried for polymerization of polyethylene wax. We have evaluated hydrogen reactivity and studied on characteristics of polymerization effected by ligand structure of metallocene catalysts against Ziegler-Natta catalysts which are widely used for polymerization of polyethylene. We have also checked hydrogen used for chain transfer agent, molecular weight change and distribution by different ratios of ethylene gas. Finally, we suggest proper structure of metallocene catalysts for polymerization of polyethylene wax.


Ti-44.7Al-xLa-yCe(at%) alloys were prepared by mechanical alloying with subsequent traditional powder metallurgy technique.The effect of the different La and Ce contents on microstructures was investigated by using scanning electron microscopy and metallographic microscope.The mechanical property of alloys was measured.The results show that the minim adding of rare earth as La and Ce into TiAl based alloy system have obvious effect on thinning the alloy by machine alloying.The bending strength of Ti-Al alloy is reinforced by the La addition,the bending strength reaches the peak as 0.5at% La addition,and later decreases with the increase in La content.But the bending strength of the alloy decreases rapidly with the increase in Ce content.Meanwhile the bending strength of the alloy with rare earth La is much higher than the addition of Ce.


In a recent paper, analysis of heart valve vibrations has been presented in terms of the modal vibrations of a circular membrane (Lim et a1 1980). Contrary to the authors' belief, however, it is not the first such analysis. The mitral valve has been modelled previously as a pair of semi-circular membranes by Ghista and Rao (1972, 1973). Generalisation of this approach to boundaries of arbitrary shape was subsequently accomplished by Mazumdar and Hearn (1977,1978). The dependence of valve leaflet frequencies on the cube root of the pressure loading has been indicated in the analyses by Ghista and Rao (1972, 1973) and Hearn et a1 (1979). Although it is unfortunate that this duplication of effort has resulted from a lack of awareness of previous research in this area, it is heartening that Lim and his co-workers appear to have derived the same general conclusions.


Grid-GUM is a distributed virtual shared-memory implementation of a high-level parallel language for computational Grids. While the implementation delivers good speedups on multiple homogeneous clusters with low-latency interconnect, on heterogeneous clusters, however, poor load balance limits performance. Here we present new load management mechanisms that combine static and partial dynamic information to adapt to heterogeneous Grids. The mechanisms are evaluated by measuring four non-trivial programs with different parallel properties, and show runtime improvements between 17% and 57%, with the most dynamic program giving the greatest improvement.


Generalized beams of light that are made to turn inside out, creating black nodal areas of total destructive interference are described. As an example we experimentally created an elliptical node from a uniformly illuminated elliptical aperture by use of a lossless phase mask called a q-plate. We demonstrate how a modified phase retrieval algorithm may be used to design phase masks that achieve this transformation for an arbitrary aperture shape when analytical methods are not available. This generic wave phenomenon may find uses in both optical and non-optical systems.


We report surgical risks and complications in patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (CEA) for carotid occlusive diseases by analyzing the results of a nationwide questionnaire. In 1014 patients who underwent CEA in Japan for 2 years from 2000 to 2001, the rate of disabling stroke and death was 1.9%, and in 394 patients who underwent endovascular surgery including stent placement for carotid artery stenosis during the same period, the rate of disabling stroke and death was 4.5%.From our experience of 336 patients who underwent CEA in our institute between 1975 and 2002, ischemic heart disease was a major cause of death during the CEA perioperative and follow-up periods. Combined angiography and careful management of coronary artery stenosis can be expected to decrease the mortality and morbidity in patients treated with CEA. Intraoperative multiple monitoring system using deviation ration topography of EEG, somatosensory evoked potentials, near-infrared spectrophotometry for measurement of cerebral regional SO2 and transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (TCD) is useful to prevent ischemic complications. Postoperative hyperperfusion syndrome can be checked serially and non-invasively by using TCD. The management of acute stroke patients with thrombosed occlusion or sever stenosis of the internal carotid artery is still controversial. Acute stage CEA was taken into consideration to treat the patients only in 5 (9%) of the 54 Japanese institutes which answered the questionnaire.


Recent findings regarding nanofiltration (NF) have led to indications that it can be successfully used for separation of various biological solutions. As a novelty, this paper is the first to investigate the impact of the feed pretreatment process on the NF membrane performance used for separation of 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) fermentation broths. For this purpose, prior to the NF process, the feed was purified by microfiltration (MF) and ultrafiltration (UF) processes. Subsequently, the long-term NF process was carried out with the use of a commercial, flat-sheet, thin-film, polyamide NF270 nanofiltration membrane. Thereinto, to determine the dominant fouling mechanism, Hermia's model was used. With regards to the pretreatment processes performed, it has been determined that the MF membrane (0.14 µm) provided the reduction in the number of bacteria cells present in the permeate, while the UF membrane (450 Da) allowed obtaining the sterile permeate. Consequently, the NF permeate flux for the UF permeate was significantly higher. Analysis of the fouling mechanisms showed that during the separation of the MF permeate, formation of a cake layer on the NF membrane surface was dominant. In turn, with regards to the UF permeate, membrane blocking occurred in two separate phases involving standard blocking and then cake layer formation. Finally, a strategy of NF membrane cleaning with the use of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution has been proposed.


Background: Increasing atention is being p白dto the left atrial appendage (LAA) m the context of risk s廿ati白cationin cardioembolic stroke (CES) and the requirement for meticulous p加mingof percutaneous closure ・device implantation. Howeve1~ detailed systematic assessment of the LAA remains limited. Methods:古田studyevaluated the anatomy and nmchon of LAA田 ing3-dirnensional transesophageal echocardiography (3D-TEE) on 194 consecutive patients older than 50 years old hospitalized exclusively for CES. Pgtients were strati白edinto 3 groups on the basis of cardiac rhy出m: (1) chronic a廿ial白brillation(AF), n = 53; (2) paroxysmal AF, n = 26;但1d(3) no detected AF, n = 115目 Results:Sign出cantdifferences between吐1egroups were observed for anatomical (orifice紅白[OA],depth, diastolic volume) and fLmctional parameters (ejection fraction [EF], flow velocity [FV]), as measured by 3D TEE. The anatomical p紅白neterswere consistently the greatest, and fonctional p紅白neterswere出epoorest, in the group with chronic AF.百lerewere signi五cantinverse correlations betwe凹 them (r=一.3,P = .0003 for deptl1 and EF; r = -.27, P = .0020 for depth and FV; r = -.22, P = .016 for OA and EF; and r = -.38, Pく .0001for OA and FV). Conclusions: LAA mo中hologyand function were s仕onglyaffected by cardiac rhythm disturbances. Patients with chronic AF had tl1e greatest LAA dimensions, areas, and volumes as well as the lowest LAA nmctions. An inverse correlation was observed betvveen LAA size and function.


Background: Severe ocular trauma that causes no light perception (NLP), typically carries a dismal prognosis, and implies no further therapeutic intervention. The present investigation attempts to identify a cohort of patients with ocular injury and verified NLP, who recovered vision of light perception (LP) or did even better as the result of vitreoretinal surgery performed following the open-globe injury. Methods: The study is a retrospective review of the outcomes of surgeries performed at Drishti Netralaya, between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2013, on all cases of ocular injuries with accompanying NLP on presentation. Results: A total of 4721 cases of ocular injuries were presented during the study period, of which 6.2% (324) cases exhibited NLP on presentation. 84% of the NLP group (275) were unwilling for surgery because of severe structural damage or extremely guarded prognosis. These patients were operated either for cosmetic reasons or to remedy the destruction. Only 9% (29) of this group underwent vision salvaging surgery. Among the eyes that underwent surgery, 8(27%) had improvement, with vision ranging from hand motion to finger counting near face. Without exception, patients who did not undergo vitreoretinal surgery either returned to NLP, or became phthisic within a year. Conclusion: Patients with severe ocular injury and NLP occasionally recover light perception (LP) or better vision. Useful vision may be regained if surgical intervention is prompt – in such cases, spontaneous visual recovery occurs within the first week after injury.


OF THE DISCLOSURE Novel polymeric amides are provided by condensing an aromatic diacyl halide with a pre-formed diamine having a central alkylene radical joined to amine ter minated arylene units by sulfonamido linkages. The re curring structural units of the polymer are ordered, i.e., the alkylene and arylene radicals are linked in a regular, consistent manner which does not deviate along the poly mer chain. The novel polymers are thermoplastic and extrudable from the melt. Thus, fibers and film may be fabricated from the polymeric material by conventional melt extrusion methods. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The high level of strength, low moisture sensitivity and other exceptional physical properties of ordered wholly aromatic polyamides, such as described in U.S. Pat. 3,232,910, are well known. These polymers are not, however, thermoplastic because their melting points are near or above their decomposition temperatures. This, of course, precludes the use of the convenient melt ex trusion methods conventionally employed in the fabrica tion of fibers and film. Moreover, because of their in verse solubility-temperature relationships in known good solvents, e.g., dimethyl acetamide and dimethyl sulfoxide, plasticized-melt extrusion is also not possible, i.e., be cause of polymer-diluent phase separation at elevated tem peratures. Attempts have been made to confer thermoplastic prop erties with an attending melt extrusion capability to the wholly aromatic polyamides by incorporating aliphatic moieties into the polymer chain. That is, it was thought that upon combining both aromatic and aliphatic poly amide segments in the form of a copolymer, a product would result having the thermoplastic characteristic of the melt-extrudable nylons together with the highly desired properties of the aromatic polyamides. A polymer com position of this type is described in U.S. Pat. 3,453,244. Although such copolyamides offer certain advantages, as a practical matter, they are not amenable to the pro duction of fiber and film by melt-extrusion methods. This is because the melting points and/or the melt vis cosities are much too high to accommodate successful extrusion of the melt under present practices. Moreover, instability of the melts at elevated temperatures precludes the use of additional heating at higher temperatures to reduce melt viscosity. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide novel aromatic-aliphatic copolyamides having relatively low melting points and melt viscosities. It is another object of this invention to provide an aromatic-aliphatic copolyamide which is thermoplastic. It is a still further object of this invention to provide an aromatic-aliphatic copolyamide from which fibers and filaments may be formed by extrusion from the melt. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The foregoing objects are accomplished in accordance with this invention by providing a linear fiber and film 5


As Americans age, their likelihood of migrating, their reasons for moving, and their destination choices shift dramatically. Baby boomers—born between 1946 and 1964—are entering a stage when moves to rural locales increase, especially to areas with scenic amenities and lower housing costs. "Boomers" have already demonstrated an affi nity for moving to rural and small-town destinations, compared with older or younger cohorts. They led a short-lived rural "rebound" in the early 1990s despite being at an age when career-oriented motivations strongly infl uence migration decisions. Today's 83 million boomers, ranging from age 45 to 63, represent a fourth of the total U.S. population. There has never been such a large share of the workforce approaching retirement. By comparison, 42 million were age 45 to 63 in 1990. Boomers are now poised to signifi cantly increase rural and small-town elderly populations by 2020, with major social and economic implications for their chosen destinations. The size and direction of migration patterns vary ■ considerably by age, and baby boomers are increasingly migrating to rural destinations.


Hydrocarbon-soluble heterobimetallic triethanolaminate derivatives of the type [{M'(OPr i ) 4 } 4 M{(OCH 2 CH 2 ) 3 N} 2 ] (M = Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba; M' = Nb, Ta;) have been prepared by the reactions of hydrocarbon-insoluble homometallic triethanolaminate derivatives M{(OCH 2 CH 2 )N(CH 2 CH 2 OH) 2 } 2 with M'(OPr') 5 in 1:4 molar ratio in benzene. All of these derivatives have been characterised by elemental analyses, spectroscopic [IR, NMR ( 1 H and 1 3 C)] studies as well as molecular weight determinations.


It is the key question touching on the economic result of cascaded reservoirs as a whole for operation water level control at end of year in upper reaches of Yellow River.Basing on the main factors affecting operation water level at end of year in Longyangxia Reservoir,taking into account of the characteristic of unified dispatch of cascaded reservoirs in upper reaches of Yellow River,a simulating dispatch model is established.A comprehensive scheme combining three typical years of water measure and different threshold level is formulated on the premise of meeting the basic need of water overall usage of lower reaches,a reasonable control margin of operation water level of Longyangxia Reservoir at end of year is analyzed focusing on generated energy and desert amount of water probability.It is of referable value to dispatch and operation of Longyangxia Reservoir and other similar yearly regulated reservoirs.


Abstract This paper provides data from a regional dialect of Persian, Hamedanian Persian, where a verb is grammaticalized to be used as epistemic modality marker, frequently used in interrogatives. The verb didan, objectively means 'to see', but subjectivized in many instances to mean 'understand'. However, in this dialect, bini, originally the subjunctive second person singular form of the verb didan 'to see', is used as epistemic marker. It is used in content and polar questions, where uncertainty is a common feature. Our fieldwork data show that the verb didan is used rarely to mean 'to see' and it extended to mark epistemic modality, used as probability marker. This modal marker is only used in questions, which share the stance of uncertainty with epistemic markers. The various features of this grammaticalization path are discussed and an explanation based on egophoricity is provided.


1, the audio decoder (audio decoder) (100; 420) for generating a representation of the upmix signal (apmiks signal) (130; 484A - 484M) based on the representation of the downmix signal (downmix signal) (110; 430), object oriented parametric information (112; 432) and based on the parameters rendering (120; 482), characterized in that it comprises a determinant of parameters of objects (140; 464, 468, 474) operable to generate indices inter-object correlation (142; IOC) set pairs of audio objects, wherein the defined elitel object parameters identifies a signal parameter bit stream data (bitstream bsOneIOC), for selecting between the need to calculate individual values of inter-object correlation parameters in bitstream with a view to deducing indicators inter-object correlation for a plurality of pairs of related audio objects and the need to derive indicators of inter-object correlation for a plurality of pairs of interrelated based audio objects total bitstream for inter-object correlation parameter value; and a signal processor (150; 480) generating a representation apmiks signal representation based downmix signal using inter-object correlation indicators plurality of interconnected pairs of audio objects and rendering information; wherein the object-oriented parametric information (112; 432) is included a signal parameter bitstream (bsOneIOC) and individual values of inter-object correlation parameters in bitstream or the total value for the parameter inter-object correlation bitstream; Object parameters determiner (140; 464, 468, 474), in addition, rate


Squared prediction error (SPE) statistic is frequently used in multivariate statistical process control and its law of variation needs further investigating. The modelling method of principal component analysis (PCA) is introduced. The mean equation of SPE is developed. The analytical relationships of SPE mean and process variables mean and covariance matrix are analyzed. Simulation data from a 3rd order level system are used to validate the results obtained. Some laws of variation of the SPE mean under the variation of mean and covariance matrix of process variables are given. The significance of the laws in the application of process monitoring is explained.


Abstract This roundtable takes up old themes and new perspectives in the field of political history. Scholars engage with six questions across three main categories: the scope of the field, current debates, and teaching. The first two questions ask how we should think about political power and the boundaries of what constitute political history. The section on current debates interrogates the relationship between governing and social movements during the GAPE, and how to situate the political violence of the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot in historical perspective. The final section on teaching takes up two very different challenges. One question is a perennial concern about connecting with students in the classroom about political history. The other dilemma is how to respond to the growing cascade of censorship laws passed by state legislatures that prohibit the teaching of so-called "divisive concepts."


In 1992, the Frankfurt scholar Ingeborg Maus launched a polemical attack against then current narratives of democratic protest, objecting to the languages of 'resistance' or 'civil disobedience' as defensive, servile and insufficiently transformative. This article explores in how far the language of constituent power can be adopted as an alternative justificatory strategy for civil disobedience in transnational protests. In contrast to current approaches that look at states as agents of international civil disobedience-as-constituent power, I suggest we look at political movements. I focus on the example of the Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 (DiEM25) which understands itself as a pan-European movement of civil disobedience, at the same time working towards an articulation and exercise of constituent power among the people(s) of Europe. In the final section, I sharpen the criteria for the invocation of constituent power in transnational protest in distinguishing between its articulation, activation and exercise.


The purpose of this paper is to understand if the strength of water is so important like in the past and to see like this element can be the driving force for redevelopment and urban regeneration of a city- port. The waterfront represents those parts of a city develop from the contact with the water until to involve the inner parts, it is a sort of permeable urban surface where the link with water is able to conjugate the different ways to live this special bond. This view permits to look at the waterfront, not only as a simple urban area well defined, but it is a new method to watch the city that draws the inspiration from the water for its future assets, without to forget its identity. Genoa represents an example of Mediterranean city (such as Marseille, Valencia and Barcelona). Our research brings from a debate among the different actors (University, Planning Section of the Municipality, Port Authority) to an elaboration of some future proposals which underline the different meanings of the relationship with water in the west of Genoa, Pra-Voltri's area: from walking on different levels, above and below the channel specially designed, the opportunity to live (as in previous years) the beach for swimming, recreational and sporting appearance in a new Channel, in the continuation of activities in the existing Pra Channel. These elaborations are designed to determine the functions that the new Channel could take becoming in turn an urban redevelopment tool: the influence of the Channel, in fact, it should reach the city center reconnecting to historical paths and the promenade to become an integral part of the everyday life.


Tensegrity robots, entirely composed of elastic cables and rigid rods, have many excellent properties which have a wide application from complex co-robotics to planetary. Nevertheless, it is still difficult to control tensegrity robots because of their unconventional designs and highly coupled dynamics. Deep reinforcement learning algorithms have been used in a lot of robotic tasks due to their strong perception and decision-making capabilities. However, it often needs to collect a lot of samples, which limits its application. Model-based algorithms can learn with fewer samples but have a sub-optimal result because of the model error. In the paper, we proposed a hybrid method to achieve effective control of tensegrity robots. Firstly, we established the simulation platform via the framework of the positional formulation finite element method. And thens, we use a medium-sized neural network to fit the dynamic model and control the tensegrity robot via model prediction control (MPC). The controlled trajectories are used to initialize the parameters and memory of deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG). We demonstrated that the hybrid algorithm can achieve efficient control of the tensegrity robot. In this work, we have realized full-actuation rolling with a tensegrity robot on a plane and 5° slope surface.


Staphylococcus aureus is a widespread human pathogen, responsible for nosocomial infections and causing diverse diseases including life-threatening ones. Emergence and spread of multidrug resistant S. aureus compel for development of new active molecules. There are nowadays increasing evidences that S. aureus is able to invade and persist into host cells, where bacteria are partially protected from immune response and action of extracellular antibiotics. Using pharmacological models, we wanted to further understand which factors are critical for antibiotic intracellular activity, characterize antistaphylococcal compounds with strong intracellular activity and investigate the predictive value of our in vitro macrophages model of infection through comparison with in vivo studies. Our results showed that acidic medium influences on antibiotic intrinsic activity is a critical factor for intracellular activity towards S. aureus. However, additional parameters, still not elucidated, must play a role in determining intracellular activity. Through activity testing, we showed that quinupristin-dalfopristin, a streptogramin combination, and oritavancin, a newly developped glycopeptide, yield marked intracellular activity regarding to what has already been described in previous studies, including against strains with clinically relevant resistance phenotypes. In the final phase of this study, we assessed activity of plectasin, an antimicrobial peptide currently under development for use in humans, simultaneously in vitro and in vivo. Intracellular activity results obtained in vivo were globally in line with what was observed from in vitro study, therefore suggesting the latter as a relevant screening tool for assessment of antibiotic intracellular activity, although in vivo studies remain essential to achieve a valuable estimation.


The sequences of 16S rDNA,gyrB,grpE,recA of Shigella were analysed for the farther identification of newly found Shigella boydii strain isolated from chicken and the evolutionary position of the new strain was determined.Part of 16S rRNA and other three genes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) from one identified Shigella boydii strains isolated from chicken and the PCR products were cloned and sequenced.These sequences obtained in this study were compared with the related sequneces reported in GenBank by software of DNA analyses.The similarity were gained and phylogenetic tree were constructed.Further evolutionary relationships among chicken Shigella boydii and other related strains were examined based on sequences.Shigella boydii isolated from chicken had the nearest homogeneity with Shigella boydii isolated from human and their homogeneity is 99.6%-100%.Shigella boydii isolated from chicken was in a small cluster with Shigella boydii isolated from human in four phylogenetic trees,and almost all Shigella strains are distributed among E.coli strains.Genes recA and gyrB shown a greater evolutionary divergence than 16S rRNA genes.Sequence analysis of 16S rDNA and gyrB,grpE,recA may be a reliable,rapid and low costs way for identification of Shigella strains.The homogeneity and the phylogenetic tree constructed by these four genes above revealed that the Shigella strain isolated from chicken may be a new species or subspecies of Shigella boydii.


BACKGROUND
Inequalities in opportunities for primary lung cancer surgery due to socioeconomic status exist. We investigated whether socioeconomic inequalities exist in net survival after curative intent surgery at a tertiary university hospital, in Japan.

METHODS
Data from the hospital-based cancer registry on primary lung cancer patients who received lung resection between 2010 and 2018 were linked to the surgical dataset. An area deprivation index, calculated from small area statistics and ranked into tertiles based on Japan-wide distribution, was linked with the patient's address as a proxy measure for individual socioeconomic status. We estimated net survival of up to 5 years by deprivation tertiles. Socioeconomic inequalities in cancer survival were analyzed using an excess hazard model.

RESULTS
Of the 1039 patient-sample, advanced stage (Stage IIIA+) was more prevalent in the most deprived group (28.1%) than the least deprived group (18.0%). The 5-year net survival rates (95% confidence interval) from the least to the most deprived tertiles were 82.1% (76.2-86.6), 77.6% (70.8-83.0) and 71.4% (62.7-78.4), respectively. The sex- and age-adjusted excess hazard ratio of 5-year death was significantly higher in the most deprived group than the least deprived (excess hazard ratio = 1.64, 95% confidence interval: 1.09-2.47). The hazard ratio reduced toward null after additionally accounting for disease stage, suggesting that the advanced stage may explain the poor prognosis among the deprived group.

CONCLUSION
There was socioeconomic inequality in the net survival of patients who received curative intent surgery for primary lung cancer. The lower socioeconomic status group might be less likely to receive early curative surgery.


Henrik Ibsen is the founder of modern drama. He wrote Doll's house – a play which projects female freedom with a protagonist leaving her family house and discovering a new world, this new world is not shown to reader/spectator – Ibsen shows us, in John Gabriel Borkman, two women lost in their particular, personal and immutable realities around a madness fantasy of a male character who intitules this master-piece. This article intends to show how double reality of the female needs exclusively a male madness as the shadows depend on candle.


Demand for hot-dip galvannealed steel has been increased due to it high corrosion resistance, paintability, and formability in automotive industry. Coating of Hot-dip galvannealed steel consists of various Fe-Zn intermetallic compounds. Since the coating is hard and therefore it is very brittle, the surface of steel sheet is easy to be ruptured during second manufacturing processing. This is called as powdering. Hence, various research have been carried out to prohibit powdering for improving the quality of GA steel during second manufacturing processing. This paper performed finite element analysis to evaluate local powdering and compared FEA results with V-bending test. The effects of punch radius and coating strength on the powdering was examined.


In order to establish the supervision schemes for large ships and dangerous cargo ships,help the maritime safety administration to improve the ability of dealing with the various dangerous situation,reduce the drilling cost and risk,a visual navigational environment system is established adopting the technology of the visual reality.In this system,3D entities such as 3D terrains,ships and navigation marks are set up by the help of the visual modeling software of ArcGIS,Creator,etc.3D environment is supervised by Vega to simulate the navigational environment such as fog,day and night.The system has been applied in the supervision project for LNG vessels navigating in Meizhouwan to provide assistance and reference for designing and perfecting the supervision schemes.


Current designs for the symmetrical five-port waveguide junction have residual mismatches that rise to -14 dB over parts of the waveguide bandwidth. The present paper describes the use of a computer model to search for a new design (based on a combination of metallic post, dielectric sleeve and five inductive diaphragms) which yields a residual mismatch that does not exceed -20 dB over the entire waveguide bandwidth. Experimental tests on a WG 16 prototype confirm the results predicted by the computer model. >


Algorithms that search for robust optima often evaluate the effective fitness (robust fitness) based on stochastic approximation schemes. In this setting, finding robust optima can be recast as an optimization problem with an/a uncertain/noisy objective function. This paper studies whether state-of-the-art uncertainty handling techniques, proposed in the context of optimizing noisy objective functions, can be applied for finding robust optima. In this paper, the UH-CMA-ES is modified to handle approximations of the effective fitness. This modified approach, named RO-UH-CMA-ES, is evaluated empirically and compared to other schemes that aim to find robust optima. The experiments on multiple benchmark problems show that the RO-UH-CMA-ES yields comparable results for multi-modal problems and it outperforms other schemes on unimodal problems.


M M Lehman J F Ramil G Kahen Workshop on "Beg, Borrow, or Steal: Using Multidisciplinary Approaches in Empirical Software Engineering Research" ICSE 2000, Limerick, Ireland, June 5, 2000 Dept. of Computing Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine 180 Queen's Gate, London SW7 2BZ tel +44 (0) 20 7594 8214 fax +44 (0) 20 7594 8215 {mml, ramil, firstname.lastname@example.com http://www-dse.doc.ic.ac.uk/~mml/feast Abstract


With the fact that the market economy further developing and improving,the fierce rivalry is begun to change to competition and cooperation.Strategy alliance of enterprise is the outcome of this reform.For being advanced the competitive edge as soon as possible,logistics enterprise also must take effective strategy action.The logistics alliance pattern arises at the historic moment therefore.This thesis have set forth the rationale and characteristic of logistics alliance forms first,analyzed the driving force mechanism of logistics alliance forms secondly,the kind of logistics alliance thirdly,discussed the guarantee mechanism of logistics alliance forms finally.


By 2020, more than 25% of the United States workforce will be aged 55 or older [22]. With an aging workforce that is at or near retirement, there is a need for workforce planning strategies to ensure continued delivery of critical services. This study uses retirement data from the New York City (NYC) government workforce to develop a retirement forecasting application. The application utilizes automatic timeseries forecasts to give retirement projections across several retirement categories such as employee type, agency, and job category. A complimentary model validation tool is also developed for gauging out-of-sample model accuracy.


Consecration of obligation that the individual not be violated certain rights was achieved as a result of a long evolutionary process in which were overcame outdated perceptions, elitist and totalitarian, which opposed the recognition of equality of men and the idea of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. The modern concept of "human rights" is the result of synthesis operations consisting of synthesizing advanced ideas from different countries with a rich moral and political content, made by prestigious lawyers. This notion is an update of the philosophical principles of humanist repeating elements of religious thought and general aspirations of freedom that were expressed with force in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.


Mismatches between highly-standardized laboratory predatory assays and more realistic environmental conditions may lead to different outcomes. Understanding rodents' natural responses to predator scents is important. Thus, field studies on the same and related species are essential to corroborate laboratory findings to better understand the contexts and motivational drives that affect laboratory responses to predator scents. However, there are too few field assays to enable researchers to study factors that influence these responses in genetically variable populations of wild rodents. Therefore, we placed laboratory-style chambers and remote-sensing devices near multiple colonies of two species of wild mice (Apodemus agrarius and Apodemus flavicollis) to test dual-motivational drives (appetitive and aversive) in a 'familiar', yet natural environment. A highly-palatable food reward was offered daily alongside scents from coyotes, lions, rabbits, and both wet and dry controls. In all but two instances (n = 264), animals entered chambers and remained inside for several minutes. Animals initiated flight twice, but they never froze. Rather, they visited chambers more often and stayed inside longer when predatory scents were deployed. The total time spent inside was highest for lion urine (380% longer than the dry control), followed by coyote scent (75% longer), dry control and lastly, herbivore scents (no difference). Once inside the chamber, animals spent more time physically interacting with predatory scents than the herbivore scent or controls. Our findings support the common assumption that rodents fail to respond as overtly to predatory scents in the field compared to what has been observed in the laboratory, possibly due to their varying motivational levels to obtain food. More time spent interacting with scents in the field was likely a function of 'predator inspection' (risk assessment) once subjects were in a presumed safe enclosure. We conclude this sort of chamber assay can be useful in understanding the contexts and motivational drives inherent to field studies, and may help interpret laboratory results. Our results also suggest more attention should be given to subtle behaviors such as scent inspection in order to better understand how, and when, environmental stimuli evoke fear in rodents.


In the epidermis, resident stem/progenitor cells are involved in the complete renewal of the stratified squamous epithelium every 2–4 weeks and thus contribute to tissue homeostasis. In patients with the inherited chronic blistering skin disorder, recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB), however, the epidermal stem cell pool is continually depleted as a result of detachment of full‐thickness epidermis due to lack of the basement membrane protein, type VII collagen (Col 7). Nevertheless, the epidermis in RDEB continues to be renewed, suggesting there may be a mechanism to supplement epithelial stem/progenitor cells from extracutaneous sources. Here, we demonstrate that the detached epithelium from a Col 7‐null mouse model of RDEB will release abundant high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), which mobilizes PDGFRα‐positive msenchymal stem cells from bone marrow into the circulation to repair the blistered skin. We believe that this study has broader implications for clinical medicine in identifying a means of mobilizing and recruiting particular bone marrow cells germane to tissue repair.


The present invention provides a system and method for economic use of the aircraft. The present application relates to systems and methods for providing real-time indication of the economic impact of aircraft operations to aircraft operators. The system and method allows aircraft operators to reduce the economic impact of the aircraft during flight. This analysis and tips to aircraft operators enables operators to make real-time changes during the flight, in order to reduce damage to the life-limited aircraft components, thereby reducing the economy associated with maintenance and parts replacement aircraft operated directly influences. The system and method may also include a pre-flight operations to reduce the economic impact analysis of the flight and post-flight analysis.


Analyzing  the  pronouns which  accompanied  the  notion  of  liberty  in  18th-century Polish political  thought,  the article brings  to  light essential  questions from the borderland between political ideology philosophy and  philosophy of the state. The fact that it was liberty within some community –  ours, rather than that of the individual, mine – is particularly emphasized.  The basis of possessing liberty was the fact of being a citizen of the Commonwealth, or being a nobleman; that is, belonging to a certain society. Only  that guaranteed freedom and it could be fulfilled only within this framework.  It was not only a collective liberty – within a community, everyone enjoyed  liberty personally, deciding for himself individually, which is eloquently illustrated by the unspoken popularity of the pronouns "himself" and "his"  (on "his" own) . Thus, "their" liberty occurs considerably rarely, more often  it is rather "their" slavery – that of the orders different from the noblemen  (szlachta) and that of states which are different from the Commonwealth.  Conceptualizations of community were about to be changed at the end of  the 18th century, when, under the influence of Western theories, more and  more attention was paid  to "my"/"his"  liberty,  the one  that was derived  from nature for every man. However, the vision of "our" liberty turned out  to be exceptionally long-lasting and was revived in the 19th century, when  the loss of independence proved that without the community's liberty, the  very liberty of the individuals who constitute that community is threatened.


[Objective]To understand children's mental health status of Rencheng district for effective interventions to children's unhealthy mental activities as well as cultivation of children's healthy psychology.[Methods]Surveying 1 526 children at 4 to 6-year-old from 20 kindergartens of Rencheng district of Jining,which were randomly selected.[Results]There were total 1 497 effective questionnaires.In terms of verbal expression and digital computation skill,there was significant difference in the group of gender and age(P0.01).Significant difference also existed in the field of children's gender with regard to risk-taking behavior(P0.01),while the difference between senior group and middle group was not significant(P0.05).In ethical standards of public health,girls were better than boys(P0.01),and children in senior group were better than those in middle group(P0.01).In terms of attention focusing,girls did better than boys(P0.01),and children in senior group did better than those in middle group(P0.01).[Conclusion]Children are in a crucial period of the fields including verbal expression skills,risk-taking behavior,public health ethics,attention focusing,etc.Psychological education of children should be strengthened according to the gender and age to promote physical and mental health of children.


This paper describes a technique for measuring the strain-controlled cyclic stress-strain behavior of microspecimens taken from a steel weldment. The specimens have a cross-section 0.3 by 0.3 mm with a gage section approximately 1.4-mm long and are believed to be the smallest specimens that have ever been tested in fully-reversed axially-loaded fatigue tests. The microsample fatigue test system developed allows both strain and stress control. The key feature is the ability to measure strain directly using a laser-based strain gage that measures the relative displacement between two tiny reflective indentations in the specimen surface.


There is a perception that a total laryngectomy has a devastating effect on patients and their families, but only a few studies have addressed long‐term quality of life (QOL) after laryngectomy.


All‐polymer solar cells (all‐PSCs) have received attention in recent years for their desirable properties in power conversion efficiency and long‐term operational stability. However, it is still a big challenge to acquire an "ideal" vertical‐phase distribution of polymer/polymer blends due to the non‐ideal molecular conformations and mixing behaviors. Herein, a ternary‐assisted sequential solution deposition (SSD) strategy is adopted to regulate the vertical compositional profile of all‐PSCs. A favorable acceptor(donor)‐enriched phase near the cathode(anode) can be obtained by a ternary‐assisted SSD strategy. With such a compositional profile, the exciton yield and carrier density can be enhanced by the vertical component gradient. Remarkably, the non‐geminate recombination is suppressed with an improved exciton diffusion length (15.36 nm) that delivers an outstanding power conversion efficiency over 16% of the ternary PM6/PY‐IT:PDI‐2T SSD devices. This work demonstrates the success of ternary‐assisted SSD strategy in reorganizing the vertical‐phase distribution, which provides a feasible route for a potential ternary device construction toward efficient all‐polymer photovoltaics.


The aim of the cross-cultural BeSeCu project is to investigate human behaviour in emergencies and disasters in order to better tailor security-related communications, instructions and procedures with a view to improving evacuation and, ultimately, safety. The project will provide evidence that will be useful to first responders, building designers and those involved in the development of emergency operating procedures for buildings.


....................................................................................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................................. 4 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................................................................ 4 THE PLANT ........................................................................................................................................................................... 4 THE FIBER ............................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Chemical content ............................................................................................................................................................ 5 CURRENT USING AREAS ...................................................................................................................................................... 6 FUTURE USING AREAS ........................................................................................................................................................ 6 CULTIVATION ....................................................................................................................................................................... 8 HARVESTING AND PROCESSING ..................................................................................................................................... 10 Tuxying ............................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Stripping by hand ........................................................................................................................................................ 11 Stripping with spindles .............................................................................................................................................. 13 Stripping by decortication ....................................................................................................................................... 13 Productivity of the different stripping methods ............................................................................................. 14 Drying of fibers ............................................................................................................................................................. 14 BALING AND GRADING OF FIBERS .................................................................................................................................. 15 The grading system ..................................................................................................................................................... 15 THE ABACA BUSINESS ..................................................................................................................................................... 16 The abaca supply and demand .............................................................................................................................. 17 CHALLENGES ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 DISCUSSION .................................................................................................................................................... 18 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................................................ 22 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................................................................. 22 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................................. 24 APPENDIX: ...................................................................................................................................................... 26 V. Waller, A. Wilsby Abaca in the Philippines KTH, Sweden


The air flow field plays a key role in melt blowing. In this article, an optimal design procedure that improves the airflow field of melt blowing is proposed. A parameter, stagnation temperature which is a combination of static temperature and kinetic temperature, is proposed to evaluate the air flow field. The stagnation temperature is obtained via computer simulation, while optimization is accomplished by genetic algorithm. Four main geometry parameters of the slot die: slot width, nose piece width, slot angle, and setback are investigated. The optimal results were achieved in the 40th generation. The results also show that the smaller slot angle and larger slot width can result in the higher stagnation temperature. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010


Loop invariants have long been present in advanced undergraduate and graduate courses on programming methodology or program correctness. Recently there has been an increased interest in using loop invariants in teaching more elementary courses. In this paper, its successful use in teaching elementary programming in a computer literacy course for non-majors is described. The techniques described here, that are necessary in order to work successfully with this population, are also applicable to the teaching of programming to computer science majors.


India is currently in the grip of an explosive epidemic of Type 2 diabetes. We already have more than 60 million people living with diabetes in India, as per latest statistics.1it is even more worrying that more than 50% of individuals with diabetes remain unaware that they have this condition.


In iterative learning conrtol,a common assumption is that the initial state of each iterative is equal to its idea value.This assumption is very important to the stability analysis for the system,to the iterative learning conrtol,ghe distrubance of initial state will directly affect the precision of trajectory tracking.In this paper,a new iterative learning control scheme is presented,in which the forgetting factor is used make down the affection of the initial state disturbance,and the initial state is updated while the convergence of system is guaranteed.Under this interative learning conrtol scheme the initial state and tracking of system will convergence to their idea value.At last,the simulation results for robot system illustrate the effectiveness of the new iterative learning control scheme presented in this paper.


A relay method for receiving signals from the two antennas is input, the received signal in the first frequency band includes two superimposed signals from the transmitting antenna received signal, frequency converting a received signal for the antenna third band, the received signal with another antenna after the frequency conversion are frequency-multiplexed.


THE approximately 60 different types of hereditary Jiearing loss are distinguished from one another by outstanding ̂ associated defects caused by the same gene producing deafness (Konigsmark, 1969). There are, however, at least 12 types of hereditary deafness with no known associated defects (Konigsmark, Mengel, and Berlin, 1969). These can be distinguished at present only by the type of transmission, age of onset, severity, vestibular effects, or frequencies affected. Although there are at least two types of recessive congenital neural hearing loss (Mengel, et al., 1967), no descriptions of persons affected with recessive non-progressive moderate neural hearing loss have been presented. The patients in this report came to our attention during a study of the types of hereditary hearing loss in the community. In each of the families, two or more sibs had a similar moderate non-progressive neural hearing loss, probably congenital. Parents and remaining sibs in each of the families were normal. No cause other than familial was demonstrated for the hearing loss in any of the affected persons. These cases are presented as congenital moderate neural hearing loss,_probably familial in origin.


Relevant parameters that reflect quality loss during frozen storage in filleted and minced Patagonian hake at two different temperatures were determined. Cooked sensory assessment, oxidative rancidity, dimethylamine, formaldehyde, salt soluble protein, free and expressive drip, refractive index, pH and total volatile bases, were evaluated over a lo-month period. Salt soluble protein decreased as formaldehyde and dimethylamine increased. Sensory evaluations and total volatile bases indicated that minced hake remains acceptable after 6 months at −20°C and 12 months at −30°C and fillets remain acceptable for over 12 months both at −20°C and −30°C.


The increasing integration of renewable resources in electricity markets has increased the need for producers to correct their trading position close to real time in order to avoid volatile real-time prices. The closest option to delivery time in European markets is to trade in the continuous intraday market. This market is therefore an attractive trading outlet for assets that target at extracting value from their flexibility. Trading in this market is challenging due to the multistage nature of the problem, its high uncertainty and the fact that decisions need to be reached rapidly, in order to lock in profitable trades. We model the trading problem of a storage unit in the Markov Decision Process framework. We present an approach based on policy function approximation for tackling the problem. We provide relevant parameters for defining our policy, and demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach by comparing it to the rolling intrinsic policy on real historical data. Our proposed approach outperforms the rolling intrinsic policy, which is commonly employed in practice for storage units, by increasing profitability by <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{17.8}\%$</tex-math></inline-formula> on out-of-sample testing for a storage with perfect round-trip efficiency and by <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{13.6}\%$</tex-math></inline-formula> for a storage unit with a round-trip efficiency of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{81}\%$</tex-math></inline-formula>.


Many current Clinical Decision Support Systems which assist clinical diagnosis, are based on a causal condition-symptom relation. To reach more diagnostic precision Ada's Deep Reasoning is substituting this approach with the use of a model based on pathophysiology.


At present,the main method for removing free formaldehyde from urea-formaldehyde resin is adding a reactant that can polymerize with formaldehyde,the removal of formaldehyde is incompletely because of its reversibility.In this paper,another kind of material was added into the system,which reacted with free formaldehyde irreversibly to remove it completely.


Recently, In recognition of outstanding structural performance the use of CFT columns has been increased. Thin steel plates which were bent to be ㄱ-shaped were welded to form square steel tube to efficient use of expensive steel. In addition, since the rib placed at the center of the tube width acts as an anchor, higher load capacity of buckling is acceptable. But, we have developed New shape welded built-up square tube for broader usability which were bent to be ㄱ-shaped and ㅡ-shaped each four unit member were welded. In order to apply the new shape built-up square columns, we predicted structure behavior, stress distribution with parameter b/t and rib or not.


A general use of the adaptive optics requires an ar- tificial guide star created by focusing a laser beam tuned to the sodium D2 line. We propose here a system to monitor the col- umn density of the mesospheric sodium layer which is based on the sodium magneto-optical filter already widely used in so- lar observations. The principal characteristics of this system are high transmission and high spectral resolution which allow to perform measurements in minutes on a relatively small (e.g. 50 cm diameter) telescope, where the filter can easily mounted due to its compactness.


The present invention relates to a wrinkle Qubanqudou scavenger, a person's face can effectively solve the anti-wrinkle Qubanqudou problem that solves technical solution, using kelp powder, seaweed powder, cicada hide powder, wheat bran, vitamin B 1 powder, vitamin B 2 powder, vitamin B 6 and vitamin C powder is made of powder, wherein the powder kelp, seaweed powder, wheat powder and skin cicada a set of packets with bran, vitamin B 1 , B 2 , B 6 and vitamin C powder is a powder pack together, combo powder composition, in use, first kelp powder, seaweed powder, wheat bran powder and cicada skin was poured into water of 100 deg.] C, when the water to cool before adding vitamin B 1 , B 2 , B 6 and vitamin C powder powder, can be fully dissolved after-bonding, the present invention is easy to use, safe, non-toxic side effects, effective, low cost, its application the benefit of mankind.


Electronic, optical, and lattice vibrational properties of β‐Ag2Te are investigated, experimentally using spectroscopic ellipsometry and Raman spectroscopy, and theoretically using the density‐functional perturbation theory (DFPT) for the first time. First‐principles calculations of the electron spectra and dielectric functions are performed with the modified Becke–Johnson (mBJ) exchange potential, which solves the band‐gap problem found with generalized gradient approximations (GGA). The calculated phonon spectra of β‐Ag2Te reveal that low‐frequency optic modes overlap with acoustic modes and should scatter strongly with acoustic modes during heat transport. The possible Ag disorder and strong scattering of acoustic phonons by optic modes lead to an extremely low lattice thermal conductivity of β‐Ag2Te observed in the experiment. The phonon structure was also investigated experimentally using Raman spectroscopy. Three Raman‐active modes were observed and identified at 92, 120.6, and 140.5 cm−1. Symmetry assignments of all the vibrational modes were derived from considerations of point group symmetry.


The Minimal Spanning Tree (MST) is a well-known combinatorial optimization problem that exists in various real-world applications, such as scheduling and pricing of flights, planning truck routes, recommending movies, and providing driving directions. The MST can be solved by various methods, including Prim's and Kruskal's algorithms. In this work, a Quantum Inspired Evolutionary Algorithm (QIEA-MST) is presented as a probabilistic algorithm for solving the problem of finding the minimum cost-spanning tree of a connected weight undirected graph. QIEAs are evolutionary algorithms that use some operators based on the theory of Quantum Computing. These algorithms are population-based stochastic search approaches, where a population of solutions is improved iteratively in order to generate new and better solutions gradually through a process of evolution. The proposed QIEA has been tailored to the MST problem, enabling to solve in reduced iterations. The results of the proposed approach are the same as the well-known optimal approaches of Prim's and Kruskal's. This work represents an intermediate outcome of ongoing research, and future publications will present the computational complexity of the methods and their implementation on various versions of the problem.


This paper describes the activities that have been necessary to design, fabricate, control and test some low-cost test stands independently developed by the students enrolled in the course of Micro-Nano sensors and actuators for the postgraduate course in Industrial Nanotechnologies Engineering of the University of Rome La Sapienza. The construction and use of these test stands are an essential part of teaching and learning methods whose theoretical bases have been presented in the companion paper (Part 1). Each test stand is composed of a compliant structure and a control system, which consists of a programmable control micro-card equipped with sensors and actuators. The compliant structure consists of a compliant mechanism whose geometry is achieved by scaling some previously developed silicon micromanipuators and microactuators up to the macroscale by a factor of 20. This macroscale model offered a kinesthetic tool to improve the understanding of the original microsystems and their working principles. The original silicon micromechanisms have been previously presented in the literature by the research group after design and deep reactive-ion etching (DRIE) microfabrication. Scaling from micro to macro size was quite easy because the original DRIE masks were bestowed to the students in the form of CAD files. The samples at the macroscale have been fabricated by means of recently available low-cost 3D printers after some necessary modifications of the mask geometry. The purpose of the whole work (Parts 1 and 2) was the improvement of the efficiency of an educational process in the field of microsystem science. By combining the two companion papers, concerning, respectively, the theoretical basis of the teaching methods and the students' achievements, it is possible to conclude that, in a given class, there may be some preferred activities that are more efficient than others in terms of advancements and satisfaction.


3 Abstract: In this paper the FPGA implementation of composition of an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) architecture and W avelet transforms for a face detection system is considered. A novel technique is proposed to design the face detection system. First, W avelet Transforms are applied in the input image in order to extract particular features that are detected by a locally connected Multilayer Perceptron network.. W e then propose an FPGA implementation which entails very low logic and memory costs and achieves extremely high processing rates at low clock speeds.


The restricted total least Squares (RTLS) problem is devised for solving over determined set of parametering sensitivities for discrete event dynamic B Ax ≈ in which the date [A;B] are perturbed by errors of the form . These consider nonlinear system that can be described by differential polynomials with the sense of max-algebra D and C are known E is arbitrary but bounded. In this contribution all parameterization of such nonlinear system, can be transformed to linear regression. The method of proof gives an algorithm that can transform the original equation to get linear regression relationship explicitly, in a finite number of steps. This algorithm also gives an excitation for the system. DEC E = *


Aqueous cyanide-ion concentrations can be reduced from 100 ppm to below 1 ppm by oxidation in a porous flow-through reticulated vitreous carbon anode catalyzed by copper. Proper control of solution pH combined with potentiostatic operation maintains high current efficiency. A theoretical model that accounts for interactions between mass transfer and chemical reactions is capable of describing process performance.


Vigor is defined as a condition where healthy seed, when planted directly germinate quickly in different condition or potential groups of seeds to germinate fast, simultaneous and uniform then held a rapid growth in the general condition of the field. Old Seed  will deteriorate. Symptom onset is only visible with a biochemical test or tress test. Continuing deterioration reduce the viability and vigor, even a poor crop performance though despite optimal environment. Experiments Paper Piercing Test is a test performed by germinating the seed vigor between the sand and filter paper. Germinated seed is old and new seed each totaled 50 seed to repeat 4 times, so there are 2 treatment on seed. Experiment Brick Gravel Test is a vigor test using shards of red brick as a medium for germination, with 2 soybean seed treatments, old and new, each amounting to 50 seeds with 4 replications. The results showed that: vigor testing showed that the higher seed vigor longer than the new seeds and media that generate the highest value for all parameters is brick gravel test, but the highest germination percentage achieved on paper piercing test. Key words : vigor, deterioration, brick gravel, paper piercing


Our investigation of the methods of characterizing the porosity of two porous polymeric implant materials have been concluded with the work discussed in this report. The two materials, a porous polyethylene (PPE) and a porous composite of polytetrafluoroethylene and carbon (PTFE-C) have been further investigated by the method of quantitative microscopy. The mean pore volume fractions of 30 samples each of PPE and PTFE-C were found to be 0.48 and 0.69, respectively, and are in good agreement with other measurements of this quantity. The mean intercept length for PPE was found to be 76 pm, and for PTFE-C, 67 urn. Both values are somewhat larger than the average interconnecting pore "diameters" as measured by mercury porosimetry. The reproducibil ity of mercury porosimetry data has been tested by examining 16 samples of PTFE-C in thin sheet form and 6 samples of laminated blocks. The mean and standard deviation of four parameters derived from the mercury intrusion curves were calculated. A high correlation was found between the specific pore volume and the position of the mercury intrusion curve along the pressure axis. A number of random errors pertaining to mercury porosimetry were discovered and are discussed in this report.


Richard Holub CHAIRPERSON The Tutorial Subcommittee strives to offer a tutorial slate that will appeal to a cross section of PCIC attendees depending upon their experience, discipline and responsibilities. Tutorials are intended to help experienced engineers update or renew their knowledge base and to accelerate development of engineers new to the profession. The tutorial program is intended to provide all PCIC attendees with an opportunity to expand their PCIC experience, providing even more value as a result of their conference participation. Any individual, group or company that is interested in presenting a tutorial on a technical subject is encouraged to fill out the form below and submit it to the Tutorial Subcommittee by December 1st each year: Tutorial Proposal Form 1. Title of Tutorial: 2. Abstract: 100 words


Abstract This article attempts to provide a basic characterization of stand-up comedy—that is, a minimal portrait of what comes to mind when one learns that one is about to see a stand-up comic. To that end, the focus will be primarily on the relation of stand-up comedy in terms of themes of temporality, including the structure of stand-up comedy, its rhythm, its delivery, and its contemporaneity.


This volume is the second title in the Postcolonial Literary Studies series from Edinburgh University Press. The aim of the series—in the words of the series'editors, David Johnson and Ania Loomba—is to demonstrate ''how postcolonial studies can re-configure the major periods [of ] literary studies'' (vii). Each title in the series is designed, therefore, both to provide ''a comprehensive survey'' and to be ''an original intervention in its own right'' (vii). Suvir Kaul's contribution to the series fulfills both objectives impressively, offering a commanding synopsis of the field and a provocative challenge for future studies. Kaul argues that colonial relationships were responsible for shaping not only eighteenth-century British literature but also scholarly knowledge and even literacy itself. He advocates a literary historiography that would, finally, account for these facts. Kaul is the author of two previous books on eighteenth-century British literature (as well as the editor of two others on postcolonial subjects). The first delineates the dialectical relationship between poetic authority and political ideology in Thomas Gray's work and explores, in particular, Gray's ambivalent attitude toward British mercantilism and imperialism. The second examines how British poetry from Marvell to Barbauld articulates the mutual interdependence of nation formation and imperial expansion— or, in short, the construction of ''Great Britain.'' His latest book, Eighteenth-


An adeno-associated virus (AAV) comprising an AAV capsid comprising at least one capsid protein VP3 AAV8 having a sequence comprising amino acids 204-738 of SEQ ID NO: 2 or amino acid sequence identical to the least 95% or at least 99% to this, said capsid packaged therein a minigene having a sequence of AAV inverted terminal repeat and a heterologous gene operably linked to regulatory sequences directing its expression in a host cell.


Red sea has about 2,000 km long coast and is the main water resource of Saudi Arabia (Bird, 2010). The capture fisheries and aquaculture sectors provide to the food security of the kingdom populations (FAO, 2020). Sustainable fisheries management is crucial for the most biologically diverse reef communities. Information on food and ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article History: Received: Sept. 19, 2020 Accepted: Oct. 30, 2020 Online: Nov.7, 2020 _______________


The past several decades has seen a huge expansion of the knowledge and research of mitochondrial dysfunction and the role it plays in ageing and age-related diseases [...].


Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has had an effect on human life in many different fields. There have been several attempts to stop the virus from spreading, including working from home, avoiding social gatherings, and practicing hand hygiene. Since the COVID-19 virus can spread through touch and contact, there are WHO recommendations to regularly wash or sanitize hands to lower the risk of infection. Sanitizer storage and dispensing from the bottle would both require manual intervention. And the majority of the hand sanitizers that are currently on the market don't work automatically. In order to lower the risk from contact, this article intends to create an automatic hand sanitizer that is used in hospitals, workplaces, offices, schools, and much more.Here, the system uses an ultrasonic sensor to detect proximity and sends a signal to the microcontroller (Arduino UNO). The controller activates the solenoid valve and pump after processing the sensor data. As a result, a mist nozzle is used to disperse the sanitizing liquid.


Two populations each of Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. and Cenchrus ciliaris L. collected from the Salt Range and Faisalabad were grown under control or saline (150 mM NaCl) conditions. Imposition of salt stress for 30 d decreased shoot and root biomass. However, salt induced reduction was less in the Salt Range populations of each grass species. Better adaptability of the Salt Range populations to salt stress was due to some heritable variation associated with their growth. Although photosynthetic rate along with stomatal conductance and sub-stomatal CO2 were higher in the salt-stressed plants of the Salt Range population of C. dactylon, there was no difference between both populations of C. ciliaris. Similarly, leaf proline was also higher in the Salt Range population of C. dactylon, while there was no difference between both populations of C. ciliaris for proline content. It is suggested that the Salt Range population of C. dactylon was better adapted to salt stress due to high accumulation of proline, which might have protected photosynthetic tissue from salt-induced damage because higher photosynthetic rate was recorded in plants with high proline accumulation. However, high salt tolerance of the Salt Range population of C. ciliaris might be due to factors other than those examined in the present study.


The CO-bubbling effect in cycloisomerization reactions of enynes derived from monoterpenes has been studied using PtCl2, [Rh2Cl2(CO)4] and AuCl3 as catalytic systems. All the precursors are efficient catalysts for the cycloisomerization of O-tethered enynes. The reaction proceeds through exo-dig and endo-dig pathways, which are consistent with the exclusive coordination of the alkyne triple bond to the metal center. The CO ligand not only increases the reaction rates but also induces significant variations in the two reaction pathways. Notably, this effect is also strongly dependent on the nature of the starting enyne. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


IN a previous communication the author [1936] has described some of the principal characteristics of a proteinase and a dipeptidase which appear in the aqueous extracts of germinated wheat seeds. The aim of the present paper is to supply further data with regard to these two enzymes and to amplify certain of the findings already recorded, principally those concerned with the relative stabilities of the proteinase and dipeptidase and with the effect of cyanide upon enzymic activity. EXPERIMENTAL.


According to drilling data,the use of strontium barium method,boron element,boron and gallium ratio method,rubidium potassium and sodium potassium ratio to calculate the sedimentary aqueous environment of the Late Carboniferous(C2b,C2h,C2k)of Santanghu basin,Combination of all methods show that the deposition is terrestrial environment,mainly,the general media for the ancient water fresh is brackish environment[m(Sr)/m(Ba)1.5、m(B)300×10-6].With the formation change from old era to new era,the deposition of the ancient water media group gradually fades: during C2b,the value of paleosalinity from 0.70‰ to 2.63 ‰,during C2h,the value of paleosalinity from 0.33‰ to 2.64 ‰,during C2k,the value of paleosalinity from 1.13‰ to 2.64 ‰.The understanding plays a complementary role for sedimentary environment and tectonic setting of the study of the Late Carboniferous in Santanghu basin,which hase the great significance in Carboniferous oil and gas exploration.


Nitrogen (N) distribution in the annealed Czochralski (CZ) wafer is investigated by secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) imaging measurement. Intensity mapping of secondary ions shows the aggregation of N on the oxygen precipitate in the annealed wafer. Infrared absorption peak caused by interstitial N pairs (N–N pairs) is observed in the as-grown wafer. Based on the experimental results of SIMS and Fourier transform infrared absorption (FT-IR) measurement, behavior of N during annealing for the annihilation of sub-surface void defects is discussed.


In this paper, we consider a mixed equilibrium problem in real Hilbert space.By using the auxiliary principle technique, some new iterative algorithms for solving mixedequilibrium problem are suggested and analyzed. Further, we prove that the sequences generatedby iterative algorithm converge weakly to a solution of mixed equilibrium problem.


The core literacy of discipline embodies the value of discipline in educating people, and the process of cultivating the core literacy of Chinese is also the process of cultivating people by virtue. Around the cultivation of the core literacy of Chinese, the cultivation of students' emotions, attitudes and values are indispensable; It is indispensable to enable students to learn in discovery and exploration; It is indispensable to pay attention to students' real situation and life. Keywords—Chinese; Chinese core literacy; Cultivate character and cultivate people; Educational goal


This work highlights the capabilities of a lipid bilayer-based solvent for butanol extraction. Previous work in our group has shown that lipid bilayers have a high affinity for butanol extraction. Here, we show higher butanol partition coefficients than previously seen in other solvents. Our partition coefficients were found using a quantitative NMR method to allow for in situ measurements to be taken which resulted in higher partition coefficients than previously found by HPLC methods. Two lipids were used for these experiments in order to examine the effect that lipid bilayer phase has on the butanol partition coefficient and we see that a mixed phase bilayer (DPPC/DOPC) resulted in the highest butanol partition coefficient. Additionally, butanol's effect on bilayer size was examined by dynamic light scattering. DPPC vesicles showed the largest change in size when butanol was added due to the smaller spaces in between lipid head groups in a DPPC bilayer. Working in collaboration with Dr. Carmen Scholz's group at the University of Alabama Huntsville, a continuous fermentation was developed that used glycerol as a feedstock for Clostridium pasteurianum. We also utilized our lipid bilayer solvent in an extractive fermentation of these continuous cultures. Our results showed an increase in butanol production and yield at lower dilution rates, which can also be attributed to the extraction of butanol from the system.


Previous studies have shown that neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in bacteremia is higher than nonbacteremia, therefore it could be used as a marker to distinguish both conditions in patients with sepsis .Another study on oncology patients in ICU showed a correlation between the severity of clinical course and the increase of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio. In physiological condition, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio 6. Neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio is a sensitive, fast, cost effective and applicable laboratory test for routine use, therefore this test result can be used as the parameter to assess clinical condition of patients. However, a reference value of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio has never been defined, especially in Makassar City, South Sulawesi Province. The aim of this study was to know the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in a healthy young adult population. A cross sectional study was conducted from March to April 2014, involving residents (specialistic candidates in Medical Faculty, Hasanuddin University, who underwwent medical checkup and voluntarily joined this study. Samples consisted of 198 persons who fulfilled the inclusion criteria with an age range between 24-40 years old, comprising 84 males (42.42%) and 114 females (57.58%). The neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio for all samples was 1.95 (1.15-4.74). Mann Whitney test showed that there was no significant difference of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio between males and females, 1.88 (1.25-4.74) vs 1.95 (1.15-4.12), p=0.65 and neither between the age group 21-30 years old and 31-40 years old, 1.95 (1.21-4.74) vs 1.94 (1.15-4.09), p=0.82.


According to the role and feature of micro controller units( MCU) course,the paper combined with teaching practice,the problems existing in the teaching process of the MCU course is analyzed. The reform of teaching content,teaching method and evaluation ways have been proposed. These measures mobilize the students' learning enthusiasm and initiative,enhance the students' practical ability and practical innovation ability.


Nanoparticles (NPS) of Tin sulfide has been prepared by laser ablation of a solid target (SnS) in water solution. SnS colloidal nanoparticles NPs have been synthesized by laser ablation Nd:YAG (1064nm ,100 pulses, pulse energy= 400mJ) when the solid target Tin sulfide SnS was immersed in water H2O. Structure, topography,morphology Optical studies of the SnS NPS have been studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD) , atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope,tunneling electron microscopy (TEM) and UV-Vis spectrophotometer respectively.


A project team at ThyssenKrupp Materials France started out in 1997 with the idea of developing and providing tool steel grades with specifically defined properties. To date, 15 new powder metallurgy steels plus cold-forming, hot-forming and plastic mold steels have been launched. Alongside their specific mechanical properties and performance features, the higher application and process efficiency of the new steel grades make them particularly advantageous for manufacturing dies or plastic molds. These advantages include extended tool lives, higher dimensional and shape stability, hardness, compressive strength and heat conductivity. Optimizing the new grades mainly involved changing the alloy combinations, resulting in more homogeneous microstructures and improved isotropy.


To improve the efficiency and reduce the noise of forward multi blade centrifugal fans, performance test and flow field measurement with five hole probe at outlet of impeller were carried out for adjustable casings instead of concealed motor. The result shows that the length, diameter and two side ends shape of casing have greater influence on the performance and noise of the fans. And the change of fans performance is mainly caused by the increase of hydraulic loss inside the impeller due to the concealed motor and the low hydraulic efficiency of the impeller.


Complex product systems£¨CoPS£©innovation is a system engineering full of risks and also prerequisite to the comprehensive risk assessment. The innovation risks of CoPS are affected by many factors, and the present methods can£§t meet the requirement for a full-scale assessment of the innovation risks. A comparative study is made of the main assessment methods of CoPS innovation, and a comprehensive risk assessment model is established based on fuzzy analytic hierarchy process£¨AHP£©. With the model, the risk order is arranged from a general point of view, therefore, the allocation of resources is optimized. This model is in line with the contemporary trend of risk assessment research.


Recently, an approach to modeling portfolio-distribution with risk factors distributed as Gram-Charlier (GC) expansions of the Gaussian law, has been conceived. GC expansions prove effective when dealing with moderately leptokurtic data. In order to cover the case of possibly severe leptokurtosis, the so-called GC-like expansions have been devised by reshaping parent leptokurtic distributions by means of orthogonal polynomials specific to them. In this paper, we focus on the hyperbolic-secant (HS) law as parent distribution whose GC-like expansions fit with kurtosis levels up to 19.4. A portfolio distribution has been obtained with risk factors modeled as GClike expansions of the HS law which duly account for excess kurtosis. Empirical evidence of the workings of the approach dealt with in the paper is included.


The paper by Brown et al. in ibid., vol.19, no.4, p.298-301 (1986) suggests that it may be possible to adjust the sensitivity of a fibre optic sensor, in refractive index sensing, by adjusting the core cladding refractive indices of the transmission cable. This suggestion is based on the assumption that the signal response is of the form 1/tan2 theta , where theta is defined by the numerical aperture of the fibre. Subsequent work has shown that this signal response is likely to be true only when the distance between the transmitter and receiver is small-possibly of the order of 2-3 mm.


The "Authors Effect of Showcasing" (AES) is the activity of publishing authors with which they shape by their own free will the formal reference stock of their communications, placing this stock into the showcase of science. This paper reports the results of a decisive control test of the existence of the AES, processing 1175 historically synchronous physics conference communications. Applying methods of bibliometrics and science philology, the manifestation of the AES phenomenon is demonstrated and analyzed in this theoretically most homogeneous domain of scientific literature. The widely differing documentedness in the communications of conferences held on particular topics of physics, especially the great differences in the size of the formal reference stocks in all extent categories of the communications depends solely on the person of the authors. This generally and extremely heterogeneous documentedness is therefore a valid evidence of the existence of the effect and its effective operation in the scientific literature. The correctness of the AES doctrine, including the correctness of two additional theses, has been demonstrated: the relatively diminishing growth of the formal reference stock and specific documentedness with the growth in the extend of communications, and the existence of weakly, moderately, strongly and very strongly documented communications in all extent categories of the communications.


Displacement effects of CO2 and N2 were compared through long core flooding experiments.Simultaneously,CO2 flooding and water-gas alternative injection were investigated.The results show that CO2 is superior to N2 in gas flooding.Low flooding rate contributes to higher displacement efficiency.Low gas-water ratio obtains better oil recovery.


Instead of modeling asset price and currency risks separately, this paper derives the international hedge portfolio, hedging asset price and currency risk simultaneously for estimating the dynamic international optimal hedge ratio. The model estimation is specified in a multivariate GARCH setting with vector error correction terms and estimated for the commodity and stock markets of the U.S., the U.K., and Japan.


The web2.0 applications(represented by SNS,BLOG etc.) often need to upload and handle pictures to get thumbnails.Using ruby on rails development framework,through attachment_fu plug-in can easily achieved all of these functions.This greatly improves the efficiency of web application development,meet user requirements to web2.0 application of continues develop,continuous improvement,continuous innovation.


Chlamydia may be a sexually transmitted communicable disease caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. Within the US, it's the foremost commonly reported bacterial infection. In females, the cervix is that the anatomic site that's most ordinarily infected. This will manifest as cervicitis, urethritis, pelvic disease, perihepatitis, or proctitis.


In this study, we analyze "Discrimination", "Bias", "Fairness", and "Trustworthiness" as working variables in the context of the social impact of AI. It has been identified that there exists a set of specialized variables, such as security, privacy, responsibility, etc., that are used to operationalize the principles in the Principled AI International Framework. These variables are defined in such a way that they contribute to others of more general scope, for example, the ones studied in this study, in what appears to be a generalization–specialization relationship. Our aim in this study is to comprehend how we can use available notions of bias, discrimination, fairness, and other related variables that will be assured during the software project's lifecycle (security, privacy, responsibility, etc.) when developing trustworthy algorithmic decision-making systems (ADMS). Bias, discrimination, and fairness are mainly approached with an operational interest by the Principled AI International Framework, so we included sources from outside the framework to complement (from a conceptual standpoint) their study and their relationship with each other.


To capture the idea that neighboring rms have a stronger impact on rm i than remote, or foreign, rms established in the rest of the world, we nd it natural to assume that b > c > d > 0. In this way, each rm competes symmetrically with its direct competitors. It also competes symmetrically with its indirect competitors, but less ercely because they supply poorer substitutes. We rst describe the spatial setting that generates the demand functions (1). The case when c = d has a avor of monopolistic competition à la Chamberlin (1933), where market competition is a bellum omnium contra omnes . The case when d = 0 corresponds to the Kaldorian approach (Kaldor, 1935), which is based on the idea of local competition. Between these two extremes, there is a myriad of cases in which c > d > 0, so that local and global competition are uni ed.


INTRODUCTION: More than 70% of Canadian carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) operations are now performed outside of the main operating room with field sterility and surgeon administered pure local anaesthesia (1). Is main OR sterility necessary to avoid infection for this operation? This study evaluates the infection rate in performing carpal tunnel surgery using minor procedure room field sterility in Canada.


Existing studies suggest various potential daytime sources of atmospheric nitrous acid (HONO), including photolysis surface reactions and photo-enhanced NO2 conversion on organic surfaces. However, the understanding of daytime HONO sources is still inadequate. In this study, we report the HONO formation on asphalt surfaces under various NO2, VOCs (toluene and hexane), and UV irradiance conditions using a continuous flow chamber. Although no HONO formation was found without light exposure, the light threshold for HONO formation on the asphalt surface was very low, with a total UV (TUV) of 0.7 W m−2. HONO formation on the asphalt surface was linearly dependent on NO2 up to 300 ppb in the presence of VOCs, but no HONO formation was observed with humified air and NO2. HONO production was saturated at high hydrocarbon concentrations and light intensities. The calculated first-order NO2 conversion rate to HONO on the asphalt surface was 1.2 × 10−4 s −1. The observed mean HONO emission flux was 1.3 × 109 molecules cm−2 s −1 with a similar range of those on other urban covered surfaces. The calculated vertical HONO profile using the measured HONO emission flux and 1-D steady state model revealed that the asphalt surface may account for 13% of daytime HONO in the elevated on-road pollutant concentrations in Seoul. However, we show that its HONO contribution could be much higher on real-life road surfaces directly exposed to much higher NO2 emissions from vehicle exhaust.


Self-regulated learning (SRL) has gained ground in today's knowledge societies and contemporary work organizations as an effective way for the employees to manage their own learning. Although literature has given an insight on how individuals regulate their learning, there is currently limited research at the workplace context. From the perspective of the psychological needs that are introduced in the Self Determination Theory (SDT), this study aimed at identifying recurring patterns of learning and working that emerged through the experiences of 39 highly self-regulated knowledge workers concerning specific learning strategies and autonomy. The focus of this research as part of a team project was on the adult working life of the individuals. Semi-structured biographical interviews were used for the data collection and the data was coded. The findings revealed that peer learning and digital technology use as learning strategies and perceived autonomy support provided by the organizations could enable highly self-regulated individuals to meet their basic needs for relatedness, competence and autonomy at the workplace. These results set the ground for future research and practical implications concerning the ways that organizations and Human Resource Development (HRD) practitioners could promote and support SRL as a new way of learning at the workplaces.


It is shown, that the technology of the automated d signing of control systems of dynamic objects on t he basis of use of SADT-diagrammes consists in accomplishing of sequence of stages: the analysis of a class of commitments subject to the decision, developments of prog ram modules, modelling of dynamic object, calculati on of concrete parameters of model, the analysis of resul ts of modelling, decision -making on applicability of the developed system. _____________________________________________________________________________________


Many reduction mammaplasty procedures have been proposed of late. Many rely on intraoperative refinements that demand an advanced level of experience with the technique and invoke a steep learning curve fraught with problems for the novice. The central pedicle reduction mammaplasty technique was introduced by Hester et al in 1985. This technique has been shown to be a safe, reliable, and versatile approach to breast reduction that is applicable to the majority of breast sizes and shapes. Its particular advantages are in the predictability in tailoring the skin envelope and glandular component from preoperative judgement, in the flexibility in the intraoperative execution of the procedure, and in the maintenance of a generous neurovascular supply. These advantages allow for a low complication rate. This technique can easily be taught with a high degree of predictability in planning and execution. A series of approximately 50 consecutive cases is presented with an analysis of the results.


The increasing emphasis on quality and effectiveness in the National Health Service requires occupational therapists to provide evidence of accurate assessment and of the outcomes of interventions, supported by clear and concise documentation. With the merging of two acute hospitals came the opportunity for the occupational therapy services of Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust to audit the process of functional assessment and documentation. A review of the occupational therapy service was undertaken. Standards were set to combine the Modified Barthel Index with negotiated patient goal setting. Practice was then changed to meet the standards. A subsequent audit considered the outcome of occupational therapy. The audit findings reaffirmed the acute occupational therapy focus on activities of daily living. The service identified that patients had low levels of disability according to Modified Barthel Index scores on discharge. Importantly, it was found that the reliability and validity of goal setting as a basic outcome measure was dependent upon therapists' ability to write specific quantifiable goals. The practice benefits included promoting patient involvement, enhancing the evidence base to practice, promoting consistent and effective functional assessment and documentation and reaffirming the unique contribution of occupational therapy as that of assessing a patient's level of function in activities of daily living objectively.


Complementing a study which was published in this journal in 2005 we present explicit calculations of fields predicted by Maxwell's equations both in Lorenz and in Coulomb gauge. Analytic expressions are obtainable, when the source of the fields is an oscillat- ing electric dipole. As before it is found that the fields calculated by different methods are at variance. In addition, the reason for the dis- crepancies is revealed: The retarded integrals turn out not to satisfy the inhomogeneous wave equations which they are supposed to solve.