In modern plant breeding, DNA marker analyses are of increasing importance and, as the methods become more widely adopted, the capacity for high-throughput analyses at low cost is crucial for its practical use. Automation of the analysis processes is a way to meet these requirements. In order to achieve this, while keeping adequate flexibility in the analysis processes, Svalof Weibull AB (SW) has developed a fully automated polymerase chain reaction system. It has been evaluated on barley and canola lines and is capable of analysing up to 2200 samples per day at a cost of 0,24 ? per analysis for marker-assisted selection and quality control of genetically modified organisms. A detailed description of this system is given, and improvements to the throughput and applications are discussed.


Most previous systems for constructing a bilingual dictionary from a parallel corpus have depended on an iterative algorithm, using word translation probabilities to align words in the corpus, and using word alignments to estimate word translation probabilities, and repeating until convergence. While this approach produces reasonable results, it is computationally slow, limiting the size of the corpus that can be analysed and the size of the dictionary produced. We propose a non-iterative approach for producing a uni-directional bilingual dictionary which, while less accurate than iterative approaches, is far quicker, allowing larger corpora to be processed in reasonable time. The approach also allows on-the-fly estimation of translation likelihoods between a pair of terms, meaning that a translation dictionary can be generated with the n most frequent terms in an initial pass, and the translation likelihood of infrequent terms can be calculated as encountered in real documents.


This study is devoted to the architectural and artistic features of the multifunctional concert halls' construction. Since, in our time, more and more often use non-specialized objects for the concert halls' function (stadiums, theaters, clubs), this study is relevant. Also, the interest of researchers in the concert halls' subject is rather mosaic and fragmented, and the works that systematically study the structures' origin in Russian culture, from the standpoint of architectural and artistic features, are still not observed. It should be noted that the formation of a unique architecture image of a multifunctional concert hall will contribute to the tourism sector's development, add prestige to the city and satisfy the growing demand of the population for cultural entertainment and a variety of leisure activities. The article discusses the principles of designing the multifunctional concert halls that can be adapted to various types of concerts (philharmonic, chamber, pop, choreographic, prefabricated), due to the technical equipment that will contribute to the architectural object's novelty. The article presents the results of studies on the conceptual model formation of a multifunctional concert hall for the city of Rostov-on-Don, which is proposed to be located on the left bank of the river Don, west of the Voroshilov bridge. This place is promising for the construction of public buildings with an entertainment function.


Photographic image. Black and white. Image of a girls high school in Bessarabia. Greeting card, like business card, with photograph of two & one half story white building with bare trees in front. Printed on front, "Die Maedchen-Schule in Tarutino/ Herzliche Glueckwuensche zum Neuen Jahre." Inscribed on back, "The girls high school 'Maedchenlyceum' in Tarutino/ Bess[arabia] in the 1920s." Circa 1920s. Courtesy of Dr. Elvire Necker-Eberhardt Collection, 2012.23, GRHC.


This study seeks to understand how students experience learning computer programming, and the implications of those experiences for the quality of their learning. In order to identify the essence of the experiences, different types of artefacts produced by students during teaching are analysed including program code, programming assignment demonstration interviews, course feedback surveys, emails, and comments written on examination papers. The main contribution of this paper is the description, using narratives, of four distinct student experiences of a first programming course: thriving, surviving, drowning and lost. Each narrative shows a unique combination of effective and ineffective learning behaviours.


Converting a pioneering idea of V. V. Sokolov et al. [60] to a geometric object, we introduce a well-defined notion of linear matrix operators in total derivatives, whose images in the Lie algebras g of evolutionary vector fields on jet spaces are closed with respect to the commutation, [imA, imA] ⊆ imA. (*) The images generate involutive distributions on infinite jet bundles J(π) over fibre bundles π, and the operators induce Lie algebra structures [ , ]A on Ω = domA/ kerA. We postulate that the operators are classified by the vector and covector transformation laws for their domains domA, which are related to sections of π by Miura substitutions. The gauge of domA may be independent from transformations of the images imA. This is a generalization of the classical theory with domA ≃ imA ⊆ sym E for recursion operators for integrable systems E , and with domA ≃ îmA ⊇ cosymE for Hamiltonian operators (here the Miura substitutions are the identity mappings in both cases, and the gauge transformations are uniquely correlated). In particular, recursion operators A ∈ Endk sym E that satisfy (*) are solutions of the classical Yang–Baxter equation [Aφ1, Aφ2] = A ( [φ1, φ2]A ) for the Lie algebra sym E ∋ φ1, φ2. If, for r linear differential operators Ai : Ω→ g with a common domain Ω, pairwise commutators of their images hit the sum of images again, we endow the spaces A = ⊕r i=1 k ·Ai of the operators with a bilinear bracket


The Abstraction and Control of Traffic Engineered Networks (ACTN)
defines an SDN-based architecture that relies on the concepts of
network and service abstraction to detach network and service control
from the underlying data plane. This document outlines the overview
of ACTN capability and the applicability of ACTN to Enhanced VPN. In
particular, this document also discusses how ACTN features can fulfill
some of the requirements of the enhanced VPN, which is also known as
VPN+ [VPN+].


A test of visual perceptual speed was administered to 50 deaf and 50 hearing children equated in age, sex, and Performance IQ. The test included 13 subtests varying in stimulus complexity and verba...


In (2, 2)-visual secret sharing (VSS) schemes, a common type of (k, n)-threshold VSS schemes, secret information can be decoded directly through only two shares by using a human vision system. Several studies have analyzed methods of simplifying the decoding process and refining encoding to pass more secret images through two identical shares. However, limited secret images are retrieved, and the quality of the recovered images is low. This paper proposes an advanced (2, 2)-VSS scheme that can embed N secret images into two rectangular shares. Compared with other related VSS schemes, more secret images can be encrypted and the distortion is adjustable in the proposed scheme, yielding more flexibility in theory and practice.


We experimentally demonstrate an 8 × 40 Gb/s all-optical coherent-OFDM system using an on-chip 1 × 8 Fourier-transform based on a modified arrayed-waveguide grating router, showing simultaneous receiving of 8 subcarriers with similar signal qualities.


What is the role of writing in relation to art, and specifically Cathy Wilkes's art? What can writing add? What function might it play? Certainly writing about art can operate as an apparatus of capture that can halt the very work of art. This is often the arrogance of 'theory' that positions itself as master discourse and reads the work through its own particular optics and logics. Here the work becomes an illustration of certain theoretical models – a prop for certain arguments and suppositions. And yet Wilkes's work, in particular, stymies any such interpretive moves, rendering them clumsy if not obsolete. In fact we might say that this is a key modality of Wilkes's work in general: it does not pander to our desire for reassurance; it does not multiply the 'fantasies of realism' as perhaps Jean-Francois Lyotard would say. It 'stops making sense'. Indeed, although there are certainly art historical references, fragments of other signifying regimes and distinct expressive elements that a critic/art historian may be able to seize upon, there is also, as other commentators have pointed out, a resolute toughness that prevents, or at least renders partial, any such 'reading'.


In multiuser MIMO systems, the achievable system data rate as well as quality of service (QoS) of individual users is limited by the inter-user interference (IUI). The interference balancing issue via power allocation can be usually formulated as a nonconvex optimization problem which will become more intractable with nonconvex QoS constraints. In this paper we focus on the challenging QoS-aware optimal power allocation problem, aiming to maximize the system sum rate and guarantee the users' minimum data rates. As a result, a "Polynomial Approximations based on Single Condensation" (PASC) strategy is proposed which transforms the underlying problem to a series of tractable Geometric Programming (GP) problems through single condensation scheme. Extensive simulations have been conducted and the results indicate that PASC is quite suitable to tackle the problem, which can achieve a good balance between the system sum rate and the individual QoS requirements.


Weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) form a promising solution to the dark matter problem and many experiments are now searching for these particles. Using effective field theories to describe the interaction of the WIMP with the Standard Model has proven successful in providing an easy way to compare the different experimental results. In this work, we show how effective operators can be formally derived from a UV-complete underlying theory, and we analyse these operators in different experimental contexts. We put our main focus on the expected sensitivity of the International Linear Collider (ILC) in searching for WIMPs by looking at events with single photons in the final state. Furthermore, we show explicit evaluations of the relic density measurements from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe and the XENON Dark Matter Project direct detection measurements to compare to the expected ILC results. We find that the ILC serves as a unique tool to probe possible WIMP interactions with the Standard Model for dark matter masses below 10 GeV. This extends to masses up to 490 GeV in cases where the interaction is spin-dependent or leptophilic.


The trial production and applicability of cold rolled pole sheets with high strength and actual application on Tian Sheng Qiao 2#、4# generator units are described.By comparing with the foreign material,its chemical composition,mechanical properties,magnetic properties,micro structure and its relation each other are studied and the actual application effect is analyzed and generalized.


Enhanced Oil Recovery in High Salinity High Temperature Reservoir by Chemical Flooding. (December 2011) Mohammed Abdullah. Bataweel, B.S., King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals; M.S., Herriot-Watt University Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. Hisham A. Nasr-El-Din Studying chemical enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in a high-temperature/high-salinity (HT/HS) reservoir will help expand the application of chemical EOR to more challenging environments. Until recently, chemical EOR was not recommended at reservoirs that contain high concentrations of divalent cations without the need to recondition the reservoir by flooding it with less saline/ less hardness brines. This strategy was found ineffective in preparing the reservoir for chemical flooding. Surfactants used for chemical flooding operating in high temperatures tend to precipitate when exposed to high concentrations of divalent cations and will partition to the oil phase at high salinities. In this study amphoteric surfactant was used to replace the traditionally used anionic surfactants. Amphoteric surfactants show higher multivalent cations tolerance with better thermal stability. A modified amphoteric surfactant with lower adsorption properties was evaluated for oil recovery. Organic alkali was used to eliminate the water softening process when preparing the chemical solution and reduce potential scale problems caused by precipitation due to incompatibility between chemical slug containing alkali and formation brine. Using organic alkali helped in minimizing softening required when preparing an alkali-surfactant-polymer (ASP) solution using seawater. Solution prepared with organic alkali showed the least injectivity decline when compared to traditional alkalis (NaOH and Na2CO3) and sodium metaborate. Adding organic alkali helped further reduce IFT values when added to surfactant solution.


This Essay disputes the legal claims set forth in a recent lawsuit that seeks to invalidate a policy of the Department of Homeland Security. The policy gives protection against deportation to unauthorized immigrants who came to the country as children, and the Department defends it as an exercise of prosecutorial discretion. The plaintiffs claim that no such discretion exists, because the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended in 1996, requires that virtually all aliens who entered without inspection be detained and placed in removal proceedings whenever encountered by immigration agents. Closely examining the statutory language and drawing on the author's own extensive involvement as General Counsel of the Immigration and Naturalization Service in the 1996 consideration of legislative amendments and administrative implementation, this Essay makes the case that the plaintiffs' argument misunderstands both Congress's intent and consistent agency practice before and after those amendments.


The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility of rat penile replantation as a new microsurgical training model. The study was performed in 2 parts. Anatomic studies:Fifteen Wistar albino rats were used to study and document the penile vascular anatomy. In 5 rats, dissections were performed after colored silicone injections, while 5 rats were operated under anesthesia to develop the strategy of flap elevation. In the remaining 5 rats, microangiographic study was performed with silicone–lead oxide mixture. Flap studies:As flap studies in 5 rats, penes were elevated based on right-side internal pudendal artery and internal pudendal vein and resutured. In 6 rats, penes were elevated as free flaps, and in 3 rats the penes were implanted in right thigh of the rats being the femoral artery and vein recipient. In the remaining 3 rats, penes were resutured in their original place, with saphenous artery and vein being the recipient and rerouted to the pubic region. At postoperative fifth day, the penes were examined for viability, and selected ones were histologically examined. Rat penis has a dual blood supply from bilateral internal pudendal arteries. Venous drainage is via both crural veins and dorsal vein. One side of the internal pudendal artery and anastomotic vein (branch of pudendal plexus) may be used as the vascular pedicle of the flap. Rat penis may be successfully elevated as a free flap and also may be replanted in its original place.


Fat necrosis is a cause of palpable breast lesions. Sonography is commonly used before mammography in young patients with palpable lumps. We describe a case of isoechoic breast fat necrosis that was detected because of extension to the skin. We are unaware of other reports of an isoechoic appearance of fat necrosis.


In this paper, we are concerned with the properties of the weighted logarithmic matrix norms. A relation between the elliptic logarithmic matrix norm and the weighted logarithmic matrix norm is given. Based on Lyapunov equations, two weighted logarithmic matrix norms are constructed which are less than 1-logarithmic matrix norm and ∞-logarithmic matrix norm, respectively. Then, an iterative scheme is presented to obtain the logarithmically ϵ-efficient matrix norm. Numerical examples are given to illustrate the results.


Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is the most widely grown crop in the world, and India is the second largest wheat producer after China. Introduction of input-responsive, semi-dwarf varieties set the foundation for the green revolution in the mid-1960s. To meet the future challenge of increasing food production with a shrinking land base, new varieties with higher yield potential and increased yield stability have to be developed by using the diverse genetic resource. The objective of this study was to evaluate genetic diversity in 74 wheat genotypes including released varieties in India occupying the pre-green revolution period (before 1965) and post-green revolution period (after 1965) and land races with microsatellite markers. SSRs represent a powerful tool to quantify genetic diversity in wheat. In total, 170 alleles were detected with an average of 3.3 alleles per locus. Overall, 24 rare alleles were present and 11 unique alleles were found in the studied landraces only. A positive correlation was found between the number of alleles and genetic diversity. Genetic relationships as determined by UPGMA (NTSYS-pc) and structure analyses grouped all modern wheat cultivars under one node. The traditional tall varieties released during the pre-green revolution era were clustered along with some of the landraces, indicating that they had possibly been developed through selection among the landraces. Diversity among the released varieties in the post-green revolution era has widened rather than narrowing down. Molecular variance analysis showed that variance was mainly distributed within (91.9%) rather than among (8.01%) the bread wheat varieties and landraces. The diversity obtained within the landraces proves them to be an important reservoir of biodiversity and source of novel alleles for use in breeding programs. Landraces such as MPG 62 and MPG 82 can be used for introgressing rare and unique alleles in the genetic background of high-yielding varieties.


This article analyzes the narratives of 40 partners in white/non‐white interracial relationships about their experiences navigating race across racially homogenous spaces. Both partners of color and white partners constructed rural areas, the South, and suburbs as racially hostile areas they avoided when possible. When discussing the white settings couples frequented socially, however, the narratives of partners of color and white partners diverged. Whereas partners of color characterized these settings as marked by more subtle racism, white partners characterized them as progressive and non‐racist. However, white partners unwittingly contradicted this as they recounted recurrent instances of interpersonal racism. Cognitive dissonance theory posits when individuals' beliefs and/or behaviors are threatening to their self‐concept, they will engage in activities to maintain a positive conception of themselves. Using cognitive dissonance theory as a guiding framework, this article suggests the inconsistencies in whites' narratives reflect a cognitive dissonance in which white partners' self‐concept as progressive and non‐racist is threatened by their association with whites who engage in racist rhetoric. Consequently, white partners dismiss, rationalize, and/or minimize the racism they encounter in order to maintain a positive conception of other whites, and thereby themselves.


Pulse radiolysis, discharge flash photolysis, and laser flash photolysis have been employed to study the recombination reaction H + benzyl {yields} toluene at room temperature. Both H atoms and benzyl radicals were monitored. The same reaction was studied directly in shock waves between 1,300 and 1.650 K. The value of the high-pressure recombination rate constant of (2.5 {plus minus} 0.8) {times} 10{sup 14} cm{sup 3} mol{sup {minus}1} s{sup {minus}1} was found to be independent of the temperature between 300 and 1,650 K. It is argued that high-pressure rate constants for other recombination reactions should also have very small temperature coefficients over wide temperature ranges. Room temperature rate constants for addition of H atoms to toluene, cycloheptatriene, p-xylene, benzene, phenyl, and p-methylbenzyl are also reported.


Cardiotocograph (CTG) was introduced into clinical practice to timely recognise features of the onset of decompensation so that timely action could be taken to avoid hypoxic- ischaemic encephalopathy


This paper presents a new approach for maximizing the capacity of a meshed power system through the use of current limiting conductor (CLiC) modules that clip on to the power line to realize a distributed series impedance. When the CLiC modules sense an overload, they operate in a coordinated manner, without any communications, to gradually increase the line impedance 'pushing' current to other more 'receptive' portions of the network so as to prevent a thermal overload on the line. The resulting network is seen to be self-organizing, automatically diverting current from overloaded to underutilized lines, increasing system capacity and enhancing reliability under (N-1) contingency operating conditions. The simple implementation of the current limiting conductor (CLiC) modules also promises low cost. This paper presents the basic concept, shows simulation and experimental results, and applies the CLiC modules to a 4 bus test system and to the IEEE 39 bus system. The ability to utilize the static and dynamic capacity of the network promises important system-wide benefits including increased line and system capacity utilization; increased reliability; improved operation under contingencies; incremental deployment; and rapid implementation


The total plasma environment that surrounds operating spacecraft includes, in addition to the ambient plasma, the dynamic plasma generated by spacecraft electric propulsion system. Geostationary Earth Orbiting spacecraft solar arrays operating in the presence of a Hall Current Thruster plume are subjected to plasma conditions similar to, or more severe than, those present at Low Earth Orbit where plasma conditions support the susceptibility of electrostatic discharge events, or arcs, on the spacecraft surface. During spacecraft electrostatic discharge events, the return current waveform depends on how rapidly and completely spacecraft dielectric surfaces are discharged by the plasma created by the ESD event as it expands outward, rendering the expansion velocity a critical parameter of interest. The velocity of arc-produced plasma was measured in the LEO-like plume plasma present in the backflow region of an operating 3 cm diameter 300 W cylindrical Hall thruster operating on Xenon gas. Distributed LPs were used in detecting and measuring arc-generated plasma signals, and ultimately in deriving the plasma velocity normal to the test article and horizontal to the test article (across the surface). Primary arc inception thresholds measured on a small number of large area solar cells in a representative Xenon plasma of density revealed a susceptibility at -100 V or below. The occurrence of primary arcs at such bias levels is of critical design importance for spacecraft where spacecraft floating potential approaches this value during HCT operation or at thruster startup.


It finds the torsional vibration model and the formula of torque amplitude factor on the main drive system in a cold tandem mill.The variation curve on torque amplitude factor and the time of bite into blank is obtained.With changing time of bite into blank,the torque amplitude factor is changing.According to the curve,when the blank is bit into,it is judged that whether the torsion of weakness in the main drive system will result to mechanical troubles.The variation curve can be drawn by calculation,which is about the TAF and torsional rigidity of weakness in the main drive system.According to torsional strength conditions,it can judge whether the weakness meets the strength requirement.Considering the curve and torsional strength conditions,it proposes two methods of increasing the torsional rigidity which through appropriately changes the structure and dimensions of weakness,the torque amplitude factor is decreased.


Groundfish surveys carried out between October 1992 and October 1996 were used to describe the demersal assemblages of the northern Benguela along the Namibian coast. Multivariate analyses indicated a clear separation between shelf and slope habitats, which were divided into three and two assemblages respectively. These divisions were distinct, with clear distributional boundaries separating them. Species determining the structure of these divisions and subdivisions and their relative abundances were identified. Depth, bottom temperature, bottom salinity and dissolved oxygen were all significantly correlated with the spatial distribution of the assemblages. Minor changes or shifts in the distribution of assemblages were observed over the study period, although patterns of species associations remained relatively constant.


This paper describes the relationship between industrial design and interaction design in product development activities based on a case study. The case study is grounded on a specific product's design and development activity. This study shows that the most intense collaboration takes place in early phases of the development activity such as concept generation and creation of design alternatives. This study also shows that there are differences in terms of methods, techniques and design languages in approaching the design problem, understanding users between industrial designers and interaction designers. Therefore conducting more case studies regarding this result might contribute to develop thriving techniques, design and representation languages.


In the last few decades, research into cardiovascular risk factors has advanced considerably, and a large number of risk-related variables have become accepted. Haematocrit or haemoglobin (in this communication the two are used interchangeably) were amongst the first laboratory tests to be associated with cardiovascular events. More recently, the old hypothesis has found new support. The Framingham Study correlated the initial haemoglobin level to the risk of stroke [ l ] : a random sample of 5185 men and women, free of cardiovascular diseases, were followed for 1 6 years, during which time 82 strokes occurred. Haemoglobin readings in excess of 1 5 g dL-' (men) or 14 g L-' (women) were associated with a doubling of the stroke incidence. In a population of 1989 men free of coronary heart disease (CHD), 88 cases of CHD developed over 4 years [2]. There was a (nonsignificant) trend for haemoglobin to be higher in the event group (14.8 g L-' in non-events and 15.2 g L-' in myocardial infarctions). When a random sample of 543 men and 180 women was observed for 10 years [3], 147 deaths were recorded. Death rates were significantly elevated both at the lower and higher end of the haematocrit range. When 2 5 30 men and women were followed for 8 7 months [4], 94 individuals had suffered a first stroke. Caucasians with haematocrits above 50 L L-' had a twoto six-fold increase in risk of stroke and CHD. 18 740 women were screened for haematocrit and followed for 3 years [5]. A J-shaped curve characterized the relationship between death rates and initial haematocrit values. The excess risk in the upper end of haematocrits was strongly associated with cardiovascular events. When 1280 male civil servants were tested for haemoglobin and followed for 1 6 years [6], there was a (non-significant) trend for CHD to be associated with haemoglobin levels of 17.5 g or more. In the Stockholm Prospective Study, 3486 men free of circulatory diseases were followed for 14.5 years [7]. During this period, 255 deaths due to ischaemic vascular diseases occurred. The analyses showed haemoglobin to be a major, independent risk factor. When 7895 Japanese men were observed for 6 years, 133 individuals developed stroke [8]. The mean haemoglobin value was 1 L L-' higher in the thromboembolic stroke group compared to strokefree participants. The same project reported strikingly similar results in relation to CHD at the end of its 10year follow-up [9]. At this point, 51 1 new cases were registered. Haematocrit was significantly higher in cases compared to in controls. The Busselton Study followed 1825 men and women for 13 years [lo]. The risk ratio of CHD in the lowest and higher 10% of haemoglobin values was 3.5 for men and > 8.0 for women aged 40-59 years. The Puerto Rico Heart Program studied 8701 men free of CHD for 8 years [ l l ] . In the urban subpopulation the CHD incidence was more than doubled when comparing above 49 L L-' and below 42 L L-' haematocrit subgroups. In the Kupio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study (KMD) study 19 3 1 men were rzndomly selected [ 121 and observed for 3 years. Then 51 men had experienced a first myocardial infarction, and haematocrit was a significant predictor. However, when serum ferritin was entered into the statistical model, haematocrit failed to remain statistically significant. In a cross-sectional study of 1581 men and women, haematocrit was significantly related to symptoms of intermittent claudication [13]. On univariate analysis the odds ratio was 3.4, which was higher than for any other variable measured. These epidemiological data suggest an association between haematocrit and the cardiovascular risk. The most compelling evidence [7, 141 implies that the effect is independent of conventional risk factors.


Based on the least square method, Document[1]establishes an optimization model for determining the weight of index, and obtains a complex weight formula. This paper proves that this formula is equivalent to the arithmetic mean formula, and extends the result.


Thank you very much for reading reading and understanding an introduction to the psychology of reading. As you may know, people have look numerous times for their chosen readings like this reading and understanding an introduction to the psychology of reading, but end up in harmful downloads. Rather than enjoying a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they are facing with some harmful bugs inside their laptop.


Establish a quantitative detection method in micro level of blood on the base of reagent box for detecting the TC, TG, and HDL-C in ordinary amount of blood . Methods: For detection of TC, TG, and HDL-C using two parts of 50μl blood. Each mouse only 110μl of orbit blood can be collected. Using half stuff of the reagent box for serum enzyme reaction and color development, than the reaction liquid is poured into a 600μl cell for TC, TG and HDL-C colorimetric analysis. Results and conclusion: Mice feed on high lipids food for 30 days a hyperlipemia model can be established. By comparison of the preciseness, accuracy and experimental condition with the primitive reagent box detection, it is revealed that the micro amount blood analysis method is reliable.


The continuous n-component Potts model is studied in the framework of Wilson's multiplicative renormalization group. Apart from the isotropic phi 4 interaction, there is another one inherent in the model for n>2. For n>or=4, it is distinct from any phi 4 interaction that has been investigated in detail. Critical exponents are calculated. The n dependence of the fixed points shows new behaviour; in particular for n in the neighbourhood of five, the epsilon expansion must be reformulated as a power series in epsilon 12/.


This article discusses how to generalize the important limit(1+1/x)x=e into generic l∞ type limits.Five propositions are put forward and detailed examples are poovided,which has proved this method an effective and simple solution for the l∞ type limits.


ABSTRACT Bridges are powerful symbols of the overcoming of differences. This is particularly true of the Peace Bridge that spans the international border formed by the Niagara River and links together southern Ontario and western New York. When it was dedicated on August 7, 1927, the Peace Bridge was named to commemorate more than a century of peaceful relations and prosperity between Canada and the United States. Illustrating the close ties the bridge has helped foster, the structure has become the second busiest crossing on the Canadian–American border. Yet, precisely as the two countries commemorated two centuries of peaceful and (largely) harmonious relations since the end of the War of 1812, the governance of the Peace Bridge descended into a crisis that a journalist dubbed the "war of 2012". This paper will describe the circumstances that led to the deterioration of relations between the five Canadian and five American members of the facility's governing board. What emerges from a close account of the debacle is a portrait of the fragility of binational organizations and a reminder of what is required for them to operate smoothly.


We show that the gravitational waves generated by the perturbations of general relativistic black holes can be considered as a direct probe of the existence of dark sector interactions. Working within the framework of Horndeski theory and linear perturbations, we show that dark sector interactions effectively reduce to an interaction charge that influences both scalar and tensor waveforms. Furthermore, we show that the total dark matter field, including the effects of dark sector interactions, satisfies a conservation equation embodying the equivalence principle. We exploit this realization to setup the Regge-Wheeler equation and the coupled Zerilli and scalar wave equations for a Schwarzschild-(anti) de Sitter black hole. We then present numerical integration of the coupled even-parity wave equations for the case of a dark matter particle falling straight down into a Schwarzschild black hole.


This research aims to develop, know the feasibility test, and see teacher responses and student responses to Miss PPL (Advanced Microsoft Power Point) learning media at elementary school. The media was developed by using Microsoft Power Point 2010 applications. The research method used was a development method with an ADDIE model ( Analysis-Design-Develop-Implement-Evaluate). The data obtained were analyzed descriptively quantitative. The result of this study obtained information about the feasibility of the product assessed by the validator from 86.26 with highly feasible category in draft 1 increasing to 95.57 with highly feasible category in draft 2. Teacher response data  was 84.38 with a very good category and student responses score 95.89 with a very good category. Based on the result of the research, it can be concluded that Miss PPL learning media (Advanced Microsoft Power Point) developed is suitable for use and increases the diversity of social science learning media, especially in the diversity of Indonesian society.


Quiz related to cytological examination of pleural effusion in a patient with history of latero-thoracic malignant melanoma. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


There is much evidence to support the contention that the earth's climate is changing. In recent years sustainability – that is, efficient use of resources to ensure a positive legacy for future generations – has been a focus. However, resilience – the ability to withstand calamitous events and maintain utility – is emerging as a complimentary strategy. Concrete, as the second most consumed material after water, is able to contribute to both the sustainability and resilience of the community. The concrete industry has responded to the mitigation requirements to ensure sustainability, while continuing to the durability and resilience of the built environment. Recent developments to reduce the embodied emissions of cement and other concrete binders are discussed. The cement and concrete industry, through the Cement Concretes and Aggregates Australia, is fully involved in communicating the life-cycle benefits of its products. It maintains and active research program (the CCAA Technology Plan) which evaluates improvements and updates metrics, as a means of demonstrating the environmental benefits of concrete. Resilience has been elevated to a Commonwealth government priority. Through the review of building codes and Standards, the ability to provide sufficient resistance in structures by informed choice of building materials is examined. The whole supply chain is involved in this examination and recent developments in rating particular building materials and land use has served to underline the credentials of concrete as both a sustainable and resilient material.


Isolated mixing regions (IMRs) exist widely in the stirred tank when operating with high-viscosity fluid under laminar flow conditions,which becomes a big barrier to efficient mixing. In order to increase the mixing efficiency,chaotic mixing was developed and applied successfully. The principle of chaotic mixing is dynamical perturbation,which can induce chaos within the flow field by destroying the periodicity of the moving fluid particles. Up to now,there are many methods about chaotic mixing in the stirred tanks,such as time-varying rotation,which includes co-reverse periodic rotation and time-periodically fluctuating rotation,eccentric rotation,reciprocating stirring,and so on. All the simulation and experimental research work have indicated that chaotic mixing can significantly improve the performance of the stirred tank and it has a great advantage over the conventional steady stirring methods.


We use a regression discontinuity design to understand the impact of a sharp change in eligibility for Medicaid versus subsidized marketplace insurance at 138 percent of the federal poverty line on coverage, medical spending, health status, and other public program participation. We find a 5.5 percentage point shift from Medicaid to private insurance, with no net change in coverage. The shift increases individual health spending by $341 or 2 percent of income, with larger increases at higher points in the spending distribution. Two-thirds of the increase is from premiums and one-third from out-of-pocket medical spending. Self-rated health and other public program participation appear unchanged. We find no evidence of bunching below the eligibility threshold, which suggests either that individuals are willing to pay more for private insurance or that optimization frictions are high.


This paper compares labour supply behaviour under a uniform education voucher system with one involving a means-tested scheme in which the voucher is subject to a taper or withdrawal rate as parental gross income increases. Particular attention is given to the implications of nonlinear budget constraints. Parents maximise a utility function which includes their consumption, leisure and the human capital of children.The human capital production function has inputs consisting of parental human capital and expenditure on education.


For the research of the change of NOX concentration on pulse combustion in the No.3 heating furnace of wide and thick steel plate factory in xiangtan iron and steel company,a method of the NOX measurement in heat furnace in iron and steel industry was presented,which is to measure NOX in gas after the heat exchanger in order to avoid use of probe in incandescent gas.The results show that the discharge amount of NO was reduced 80% and the gas temperature field is more uniformity on pulse combustion than that on proportion combustion.


Reservations of title clauses have enjoyed mixed fortunes in recent times at the hands of the courts in Britain. On the one hand, the House of Lords has upheld the validity and effectiveness of an 'all-liabilities' reservation of title clause. On the other hand, claims on the part of a supplier to resale proceeds have been rejected in a string offirst instance decisions. Reservation of title has however been viewed more favourably as a phenomenon in New Zealand. In the leading New Zealand case Len Vidgen Ski and Leisure Ltd u Timam Marine Supplies Ltd. a tracing claim succeeded. Moreover in Coleman u Harvey the New Zealand Court of Appeal gave vent to the view that the title of the supplier is not necessarily lost when mixing of goods, which are the subject matter of a reservation of title clause, has occurred. There are now a series of more recent New Zealand decisions, some of them unreported, dealing with many aspects of reservation of title.


Abstract The frequency of hepatitis C (HCV), hepatitis B (HBV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV) I/II was determined in the emergency room of a teaching hospital. Of 909 patients, 19% had at least one infection; 7.8% had HCV, 6.9% HBV, 3.3% HIV, and 2.8% HTLV I/II. The probability that a healthcare worker would have an accident with an infected patient and seroconvert was 4.99 to 24.9 per 100,000 venipunctures for HBV, 5.6 to 8.4 for HCV, and 0.12-0.16 for HIV in our emergency room.


This paper formulates and solves the robust H∞ control problem for discrete‐time nonlinear switching systems. The H∞ control problem is interpreted as the l2 finite gain control problem and is studied using a dissipative systems theory for switched systems. Both state and measurement feedback control problems are formulated as dynamic games and solved using dynamic programming. The partially observed dynamic game corresponding to the measurement feedback control problem is solved by transforming into a completely observed, full state infinite‐dimensional game problem using information states. Our results are illustrated with an example. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Resumen en: Predictive genetic testing is a procedure performed on asymptomatic individuals known to be at risk for developing a hereditary disorder. This kind of ...


Compared with group 1, group 2 gained a significant amount of body mass (1.25 kg; P ≤ 0.05) over the 10 weeks. During the first 5 weeks, group 2 gained a significant amount of fat-free mass (0.72 kg; P = 0.05) compared with group 1. At 10 weeks, group 2 exhibited a trend toward gaining fat-free mass (1.6 kg). No significant changes were noted comparatively for change in percent body fat. In terms of exercise performance (bench press repetitions), group 2 improved significantly (P = 0.001) compared with group 1 after 10 weeks of supplementation. Group 2 also exhibited a trend over 10 weeks compared with group 1 for improvement in leg press repetitions (9.13 vs 5.13).


Provided is a method of preventing a collision of vehicles at an intersection, including calculating position information of a subject vehicle approaching the intersection and position information of an opposite vehicle approaching another approach path to the intersection, calculating intersection approach times of the subject vehicle and the opposite vehicle based on the position information, calculating an approach time difference between the intersection approach time of the subject vehicle and the intersection approach time of the opposite vehicle, and performing a follow-up action depending on the approach time difference.


In this paper, a novel endpoint detection algorithm based on spectrogram row self-correlation is proposed. Initially, the original speech signals are changed into speech spectrogram. In every spectrogram image the self-correlation of each row data is calculated. Therefore, in the coordinate of self-correlation curve the distances of adjacent extremes are chosen as characters used in speech endpoint detection. Compared to 20-30ms set as a basic process unit in the traditional algorithm, 100ms even much longer speech spectrogram image is adopted in the new method. It contributes to extract characters of signals integrally and prompt the speed of speech endpoints detection. The new algorithm was tried and tested in the research of a vehicle speech recognition system. Some practical results gotten in experiments are given in this paper.


The paper analyzes a certain single box malti-cell beam by beam lattice analysis method with Doctor calculational software for bridge.As utilizing present mode,the influence of the factors such as the stiffness of web,interval of pedestal and regidity of diaphragm etc on the static load might be taken into account.


This article aims at developing an external language of description to investigate the problem of why particular groups of students are systematically not provided access to school mathematical knowledge. Based on Basil Bernstein's conceptualisation of power in classification, we develop a three-dimensional model that operationalises the contextual boundaries, the linguistic features and the structure of knowledge, and their respective relations to power on a not too high level of abstraction. The contribution of this article consists of a systematic connection of classification with the latter two dimensions that abides the generative principles of Bernstein's internal language of description. Finally, we illustrate the analytical potential of the three-dimensional model through a brief discussion of one classroom episode.


This study aims to determine students' responses to distance learning in the subjects of Catholic Religious Education and Moral Education at Pato Nonongan Catholic Middle School. The author uses qualitative research methods with interview and documentation techniques. The six informants in this study came from students of class VII and VIII at Pato Nonongan Catholic Middle School. This study reveals that distance learning seems new to students because they are not used to following it. As a result, they feel confused, strange, and unhappy, especially when they have to find new learning tools. For their commitment, they can feel the positive impact of distance learning. Students also learn valuable lessons, including discipline and respect for time. The results of this study can be used as input for teachers and policymakers to take steps to develop better distance learning.


Hurricane Katrina was recorded as the most destructive natural calamity in U.S. history. It has exposed significant flaws in Federal, State, and local preparedness with $96Billion of the estimated loss upon overall industry areas such as housing, food, oil, electricity, communication, health care, retail, entertainment etc. Many reports say that this tragedy was mainly caused by overlooking the impact of Katrina and inappropriate reactions of related emergency agencies. More fundamentally, with respect to the nature of impacts, there was lack of both understanding of the natural disaster impacts and preparedness of public agencies and industries. Therefore research is needed to understand, the direct and indirect impacts of hurricane or other natural calamities on infrastructure and industries. This paper presents the analysis of disaster impacts and inter-relations on infrastructure and associated industries. Disaster impact mechanism and inter-relations based on critical function of industries derived from the extensive literature review and case studies. To develop the framework, service factor was chosen to measure the level of interrelations and proper weights for each inter-relation between infrastructure and associated industries were obtained by surveying experts in the area of disaster mitigation, emergency organizations, and infrastructure management.


In February of 1914 wealthy Boston widow Elizabeth Glendower Evans led a delegation of working women who had an audience with President Woodrow Wilson. She and her working-class sisters had come to urge Wilson to support women's suffrage, and one by one each woman made her statement. Evans had the last word, admonishing Wilson, "Mr. President, I am one of the people who believe in you tremendously, and expect great things from your Administration. I shall expect to hear from you in this matter."1 These were bold words from a woman who did not even have a vote to offer Wilson; however, Evans had arrived at a place in her life where her right to express her opinions in the public sphere seemed wholly reasonable to her. Evans was a reformer, but not in the mold of settlement-founder Jane Addams or physician Alice Hamilton. Evans knew and admired these women and shared many of their beliefs about reform; however, she came to reform from a very different place. While Addams and Hamilton came from middle-class backgrounds, were college-educated, and relied on an alliance of women to achieve their reform goals, Evans was an independent, upper-class woman with no college education. In Evans we have a woman who used her wealth and class privilege to great advantage in achieving her reform goals. The role of class in Progressive-era reform has been addressed in scholarly literature primarily in relation to lower and middle-class women; however, the reform activities of wealthy women are beginning to receive attention. In an effort to enrich our understanding of the role that class played in the reform movement as a whole, this essay will examine how Evans arrived at her commitment to social reform, and how her social and financial resources shaped her reform strategies and gave her a voice in the public sphere. When we reflect on Evans' life over one hundred years after her birth we encounter a paradox. She was a member of the aristocratic Brahmin caste who made improving conditions for the lower class her primary mission in life. Her life was an unusual journey from the provincial world of the social and economic elite of Boston to the expansive world of the intellectual and political elite, not only of Boston, but also of the world. She counted among her friends William James, Louis Brandeis, Robert and Belle La Follette, Felix Frankfurter, Ramsay MacDonald, and other luminaries too numerous to mention. Evans, born in 1856, was a product of the post-Civil War era and Brahmin Boston. As such, Evans was an unlikely promoter of social reform, her pedigree suggesting a much different destiny. She came from "old money" and aristocratic roots. Evans recalls in her memoir that "my father Edward Gardiner hailed from Boston, where he sprang from a conservative and very well-placed family, and my mother whose maiden name was Sophia Harrison Mifflin sprang from an equally well-placed and an equally conservative family in Philadelphia."2 Indeed her great grandfather was Thomas Handasyd Perkins, a wealthy China trade merchant. Perkins was highly respected in Boston for his philanthropic deeds, making generous contributions to the Boston Athenaeum and the Perkins Institution for the Blind, as well as serving in the state legislature for nearly twenty years. Evans' father died when she was three, and she and her family came under the protection of her paternal grandfather, William H. Gardiner, described as "a brilliant social light in Boston."4 She recounted, however, entering a somber household where her grandparents were alienated from "proper" Boston society by their southern sympathies during the Civil War. Unaccountably, Evans reported that within her grandparents' wealthy household she, her mother, and her siblings led an austere existence, her mother "sewing, sewing, sewing all day long and late into the night" to keep their "shabby clothes" in repair.5 It is tempting to attribute her concern for the less privileged to the difficult circumstances of her childhood; however, Evans discounted that notion many years later when a newspaper reporter made that assumption. …


Analyzing monitoring data efficiently is a classic problem in structural health monitoring. A nonparametric test method, the Mann–Kendall (MK) method, was implemented in this study, which is commonly used to detect monotonic trends in a series of environmental data. Using the MK method, three types of time series were studied: the stress time series measured in the concrete prism compression test, the resultant force time series obtained from the pseudostatic test of a reinforced masonry shear wall, and the translation velocity time series detected in a high-rise building. The statistics calculated, as well as the intersections of curves, indicate the trend change in the time series. The results demonstrated that the MK method could efficiently analyze the trend in the engineering time series.


ABSTRACT. In This paper, we present an experimental study of feedback Linearization applied to regulate the DC bus voltage of three-phase shunt Active Power Filter (APF). The feedback linearization controller is introduced to improve tracking performance characteristics, power quality and minimized consumption of the reactive power. To identify the reference currents we used an algorithm based on the Self Tuning Filter (STF). We generate the firing pulses of the IGBT inverter by using a hysteresis current controller, which is implemented on an analog card. An experimental bench has been implemented. It consists an active filter parallel to IGBTs, a nonlinear a load RL, a dSPACE digital prototyping system (DS1104 development board) for generating the references of the harmonic currents and an analog card to realize the control of harmonic currents by hysteresis. The experimental results under steady state and transient conditions is illustrated with signal-flow graphs and corresponding analysis show the feasibility and the effectiveness of the designed active filter, associated with feedback Linearization controller capability in meeting the IEEE 519-1992 recommended harmonic standard limits.


chizophyllum commune (split gill mushroom) is a very common, edible and medicinal mushroom widely distributed in the world, except in Antartica. A research about the suitable growth culture for S. commune mycelia growth was experimented. One of the aims for this study was to find out the credibility of submerged culture potential in reducing the contamination rate and produce higher mycelia production. Another objective was to investigate the effects of interaction between i media and pH on mycelia growth. The S. commune plant material was collected n Agropark in University Malaysia Kelantan (UMK) Jell Campus and the whole experiment process was done in UMK Tissue Culture laboratory. The collected plant material was cultured into Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) medium as stock culture and sub-cultured to treated media for 5 days of incubation before data collection was done. The number of contamination for every treated media was taken. Mycelia dry weight was measured and taken after filtered and dried overnight at 70°C. The optimal growth for the mycelia of the fungus was investigated. The contamination rate in conducting. the experiment between two different state of media, liquid and solid media was identified. The media most suitable for the mycelia growth was obtained in solid Mushroom Complete Media (MCM) treated with two nitrogen sources, peptone and yeast extract at pH 5.0, marked at mean dry mycelia weight at 0.405g. Among the treatment conditions, the minimum mycelia growth was found in Potato Dextrose Broth (PDB) at pH 6.0, results in a mean dry mycelia weight at 0.143g. Results indicated that the different pH level would give different effect on different media on mycelia growth. In comparison with the cultured media, the contamination rate in submerged culture (liquid media) was lower than contamination rate in solid artificial media, in which has proven that liquid media would be a more favourable state of media to be used in mycelia culturing and incubating process with lower contamination probability occurred.


Abstract Loneliness is a significant and independent risk factor for later life depression. This study aimed to validate the Chinese version of the UCLA 3-item Loneliness Scale and to ascertain the cut-off point in detecting depression in community-dwelling older adults. The English version of the UCLA was translated into Chinese by six experienced social workers, clinical psychologists and researchers, and content validity was established by consultation and revision with 10 older adults. 1,919 older adults aged 60 years and over (average age = 76.3±8.0) were recruited from local NGOs, they were interviewed for demographic information, and assessed using the 3-item loneliness scale and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Cronbach's α of the Chinese loneliness scale was 0.87; the average score was 4.0 ± 3.0 out of 9, and it significantly correlated with living alone (r = 0.18, p < 0.001), unmarried (r = 0.12, p < 0.001), no emotional support (r = 0.14, p < 0.001), and depression (r = 0.41, p < 0.001). Using PHQ-9 cut-off score of 5 for mild and above depression, the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.73 ± 0.1 (p < .001, 95% CI 0.71-0.76) with 77% sensitivity and 61% specificity. We determined a cut-off point of 3 for loneliness using the Youden index, which revealed better sensitivity over alternative definitions of loneliness. A cut-off point of 3 in the Chinese UCLA 3-item loneliness scale can reliably identify possible depression in community-dwelling older Chinese.


Symbolically generated network functions for an analog integrated circuit are complicated in general. For this reason a variety of simplification methods have been proposed in the literature. In this work a novel topology-based symbolic simplification method is proposed, which is capable of generating a simplified symbolic network function together with a simplified small-signal circuit. The technique is developed by applying the recently proposed graph-pair decision diagram (GPDD) algorithm that generates a symbolic network function stored in a binary decision diagram (BDD). Two types of element elimination can directly be operated on such a GPDD data structure. The performance variation by eliminating each symbol from the original circuit is assessed by the means of two monitored response metrics (dc gain and phase margin). After sorting the performance loss, those circuit elements with less performance loss are eliminated, resulting in a reduced GPDD which is automatically a simplified network function. A simplified small-signal circuit is available simultaneously after reduction. Applications to two operational amplifier examples confirm the effectiveness of the proposed methodology.


Social theories suggest that individuals expect something in return when they decide to share knowledge. These expectations of benefits vary from tangible incentives provided by organizations to positive feelings aroused by altruistic behavior. The theory of consumption values (TCV) allows a specification of distinct types of benefits (functional, social, emotional, epistemic and conditional) which individuals consider before they decide to share knowledge. Furthermore, the perceived costs of sharing can reduce the perceived value of knowledge sharing. These costs are non-monetary sacrifices (effort and risks) reducing the perceived value of sharing. In this work we develop the perceived value of knowledge sharing as a multidimensional construct, grounded in assumptions of social exchange theory, consumer research and knowledge sharing literature. This conceptualization is intended to serve as a basis for the operationalization of perceived knowledge value in a future study on knowledge sharing intentions.


A series of novel guanidinoglycosides was successfully synthesized. This was accomplished with the use of Mitsunobu conditions as a strategy to convert the glycopyranose anomeric hydroxy group to give the corresponding substituted masked guanidines in high yields. Subsequent deprotection and coupling with Fmoc protected β-amino acid, afforded a series of N,N'-substituted-methyl-isothioureas. Cleavage of Fmoc followed by concomitant cyclization was achieved with a catalytic amount of DBU to give the guanidinoglycosides.


[Objective] The aim was to investigate the effects of temperature on seed germination of different varieties of Carthamus tinctorius L.[Method] Selecting Yumin Wuci,Xinhong No.4,Jihong No.1 as test material,germination test was conducted under different temperature.[Result] The seed germination of C.tinctorius is significantly impacted under different temperatures.The seed germination rate is high during 5-25 ℃,highest germination rate is under 10 ℃ with germination rate 87.89%.In view of difference of ground temperature and atmosphere,optimum temperature range of C.tinctorius seeding is 10-15 ℃.[Conclusion] Cultivating C.tinctorius L.should select proper variety according to local climate conditions.


In the last several years, E-commerce has developed rapidly in China as a convenient means of trade and business, which, however, faces challenges of security issues as well. This thesis covers the current situation of security problem of E-commerce in our country, a summary of the security threats confronted by E-commerce, and solutions from technical, legislative and personal consciousness aspects. The thesis aims at countermeasures and suggestions.


Performing an end-to-end low rectal anastomosis with the linear single stapling technique was first reported in 1979 (Ravitch & Steichen, 1979). An improved circular stapling technique for anterior resection of the rectum, i.e. double stapling technique, overcoming the problems of insertion of the purse-string on the rectum stump and of disparity in size between the rectum and colon was introduced (Knight & Griffen, 1980). Although conventional double stapling technique is mainly performed for tumors greater than 6 cm from the anal verge (Shrikhande et al., 2007), recent prospective case series have described a variation of double stapling technique for ultra-low anterior resection involving vertical transaction of the rectum followed by an anastomosis with a circular stapler which results in a vertically oriented elliptical anastomotic orifice (Sato et al., 2007). Thus, circular stapling anastomosis of the rectum has been widely used and has been regarded as a safe and quick technique, however, the development of anastomotic strictures is the major post-operative complication of this procedure. (Blamey & Lee, 1982; Cade et al., 1981; Fain et al., 1975; Kumar et al., 2011; Kyzer & Gordon, 1992; Leff et al., 1982; Luchtefeld et al., 1989; Marchena et al., 1997; Smith, 1981; Vezeridis et al., 1982). It has been reported that the circular stapled anastomosis has a higher stricture rate than a handsewn anastomosis in the colon (Brennan et al., 1982; Dziki et al., 1991; MacRae & McLeod, 1998; Polglase et al., 1981) and that the incidence of the stricture after the double stapling technique varies from 0 to 30% (Blamey & Lee, 1982; Cade et al., 1981; Gordon & Vasilevsky, 1984; Kumar et al., 2011; Kyzer & Gordon, 1992; Luchtefeld et al., 1989; Marchena et al., 1997; Smith, 1981). The complication of anastomotic stricture associated with stapling is harmful and distressing for patients with anterior resection of the rectum. Dilation is the only treatment and is variously used with techniques such as digital, a sigmoidscope, an esophageal dilator, or balloon dilators. (Cade et al., 1981; Leff et al.,1982; Luchtefeld et al., 1989; Moran et al., 1992; Smith, 1981; Verma et al., 1990; Vezeridis et al., 1982; Whitworth et al., 1988). These techniques, however, have their drawbacks, that is, digital or sigmoidscopic dilation has insufficient effects, and esophageal and balloon dilators need fluoroscopy and other optional equipments, and recurrence is common. Dilators can dilate the deformed and


Competitive intelligence doesn't just mean a trip to the local store to see the competition's finished products—it means gathering business information to gain an advantage in a legal and ethical manner. This book teaches what competitive intelligence is, what a company needs to have a successful intelligence program, where to place an intelligence program, and what sources to use and not use for intelligence. Technology, analysis, and security issues of intelligence are also identified and explored. Book Description Leonard Fuld (Foreword) Publication Date: June 1, 1999. Clique Aqui


A family is presented in which the father and one of his children died, respectively, of pulmonary osteosarcoma and retroperitoneal liposarcoma; another child died of carcinoma of the colon with multiple polyposis; and a third has both a reticulum cell sarcoma and colonic polyps. The familial association of polyposis coli with extra-alimentary sarcomas has not previously been reported, and may be a variant of Gardner's syndrome (multiple polyposis with benign mesenchymal tumors). As in Gardner's syndrome, the familial pattern was consistent with autosomal dominant inheritance of a single mutant, highly penetrant, pleiotrophic gene. Phenotypic differences from Gardner's syndrome and familial polyposis suggest either that there was a separate gene or that the gene for one of these syndromes was expressed differently by modifiers segregating in this family. The development of fatal metastatic carcinoma of the colon in an 11-year-old boy appears to be the earliest recorded instance of this lesion


To better apply the existing preparation techniques of metal fiber arrays and research their development trends,this paper introduces the basic principles and researching status of some preparation technologies like vapor-liquid-solid,drawn,template,chemical vapor deposition and metal surface oxidation-reduction.This article focuses on reviewing template and chemical vapor deposition technologies,moreover,the advantages and disadvantages of these two technologies are pointed out.The research indicates that template and chemical vapor deposition technologies are the most practical preparation methods for metal fibers arrays,and the products prepared by these methods are diverse metal kinds and nano-size.Improving the template and chemical vapor deposition techologies is important for preparing metal fibers arrays.


(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)IntroductionSouth Korea experiences one of rapid population aging in the world. The proportion aging over 60 year old is about 18.5% in 2015 yet is projected to be 41.5% in 2050. According to UN, Korean population composition is one of the youngest among the 34 OECD countries in 2015 but is projected to be one of the oldest in 2050(Would Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision). Aging population produces increasing number of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer Disease (AD), or diseases associated with cognitive decline (CD). Prevalence of AD, for example, is 9.18% in 2012 and is expected to be 15.06% in 2050. Even higher ratio of increases of AD prevalence relative to composition of elderly population over about 35 years may call for further attention to this issue. Furthermore, the care costs in the domains of finance and emotion, with respect to AD or CD are burdensome both for individuals and society, deserving careful and well-planned policies (Kurz et al. 2003; Toseland et al. 2002). Lastly, the fact that there is no medical cure available for individuals with severely impaired cognition may contribute to widespread notion of regarding AD as mysterious and unpredictable diseases and the ways in which to deal with uncertainty are indeed in high social demand, locally and globally.Aforementioned daunting nature of CD does have received wide range of research interests or attentions investigating (a) genetic influences or biological processes of pathological CD and/or, (b) potential risk factors for such diseases processes. Although these lines of past research are important in many respects, we argue that dynamic social processes underlying such disease process have not been fully examined yet. First, previous research taking risk-factor approach has identified various risk-factors for cognitive decline, such as low education level, female, older age, but it has not been clear how these risk factors come to affect cognitive decline. For example, low level of education has been identified as significant risk factor but it remains to be learned whether such low educational risk even accelerates with advancing age. Second, relatedly, previous research documented inconsistent patterns with respect to female disadvantage in cognitive decline. Is it possible to attribute lack of consistent findings of female disadvantage to lack of considering relevant contexts that might have been responsible for the gender difference? Lastly, besides overall research trend of paying insufficient attention to socio-environmental processes, much of previous work examining social processes underlying cognitive decline relied on cross- sectional or short-term follow up data, rendering caution in the extent of statistical inferences or generalization of findings.We address these shortcomings of previous research on cognitive decline by investigating whether or how multiple risk factors such as low level of education, older age, female come to have effects on cognitive decline. In particular, our investigation is centered on testing the extent of socio-environmental influences on cognitive decline by testing female disadvantage hypothesis. In essence, the process is to validate the existence of such disadvantage and, if so, is furthered assessed by more rigorous contingency of basic association such as age and education. To do this, we employ recent five waves of Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing and follow respondents who have successfully completed all follow-up surveys up to 2014, and use random-intercept approach to appropriately examine long term change in the area of research interest. Lastly, Cognitive health score is measured via MMSE (i.e., Mini Mental State Examination).Background1) Fundamental Causes of Health Inequality and Cognitive DeclineFundamental cause theory posits that one's location in hierarchical social position is a fundamental cause of population health disparities because one's social position affects a range of health outcomes through a host of risk factors. …


In this paper we want to present, in a succinct and in a theoretically way, the possible relation between economic liberalization, human development and standard of living in the present society based, more than ever, on knowledge. It is known that economic liberalization is one of the phenomen that manifest themselves in increasingly active manner in recent decades so, nobody can denies its benefits especially on human development - economic and social main objective of all states, regional and global formations. Actually, the progress in human development translates into improved population standard of living. A better life, a decent standard of living for the greater share of people is the real proof of the effectiveness of economic and social processes including liberalization, economic growth and development and the motivation for future efforts to be made in this direction. Our theoretical approach will be made on the basis of some specific indicators characteristic to the analyzed processes, indicators compiled and made available by various international organizations in the field. These statistical figures will enable a comparison between the situation of some representative countries, including Romania.


A new criterion function for radar target identification is presented.According to this criterion function an adaptive nonlinear feature extraction algorithm was developed and compared with the discriminant analysis feature extraction (DAFE) method.Though this criterion is similar with Fisher Criterion in the form,they are widely divergent in essence.While for the similarity we still called this feature extraction method based on this criterion as "minimum and maximum discriminant analysis feature extraction (MMDAFE)".The experiment results show that this new method is practical.And by feature extraction and transform the identification probability is higher than using high resolution range profile directly.Perhaps,this is because there are some redundant information in the range profiles and feature extraction and reduction would remove the effects from the redundant information.


scientific and inhumane legislation, such as has been suggested. A thorough ventilation of this question through the medical press and medical societies of the State would doubtless result in good to the cause. After consultation with several members, the writer offered the following resolutions to the Los Angeles County Medical Society at its regular meeting on January 2, I903, which were adopted without a dissenting vote: WHEREAS, There is a growing tendency on the part of both private Individuals and public officials to regard and classify tuberculosis as a highly contagious disease; and, whereas, such action has a tendency to cause tuberculosis to be associated with such diseases as smallpox, scarlet fever and diphtheria, which are conveyed by simple contact with an infected individual; be it Resolved, That the Los Angeles County Medical Society deeply deplores such action, which is not based on scientific experiment or clinical experience, and believes it to be unwise and unscientiflc; and be it further Resolved, That, while the Los Angeles County Medical Society recognizes tuberculosis to be a communicable disease, and while it would urge every necessary precaution to be put forth to stay its progress, yet it is opposed to all unwise and unnecessary acts which have a tendency to create unnecessary fear on the part of the people and to work undue hardships upon the consumptive individual and his family.


+Comprehensive management is crucial for successful completion of ecological assessments +Assessment processes need to be tailored to accommodate the time, funds, and people available + The most important step in assessments is to define issues that can guide the assessment +Prior to data collection, complete assessment design and contracts between assessment teams and management +Linking assessments to monitoring is key in most adaptive management models


The collapse of the USSR has rendered obsolete post-WWII geopolitical categories. In attempting to discern an "emerging reality," Samuel Huntington has prefigured a "new phase" in the "evolution of conflict." He warns that a "clash of civilizations" looms on the horizon — a clash in which the West will be confronted by a "Confucian-Islamic" alliance. Central to this conflict will be theological differences, technological factors and the uncertain status of the former USSR and its satellites. Already in 1929 Carl Schmitt outlined a similar analysis of the clash of cultures in "The Age of Neutralizations and Depoliticizations" — a lecture delivered at the Sixth Annual Conference of the International Association for Cultural Cooperation, held in Barcelona, Spain, October 16-20, 1939.


This article elucidates the wage differential between formal and informal workers across different sectors, gender, occupation, and industry by using the 61st (2004–2005) and 68th (2011–2012) Rounds of National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) unit-level data. The study emphasizes two things: first, identifying the existence of the absolute wage gap between formal and informal workers and, second, finding the intensity of discrimination in wage between formal and informal workers. The vast body of literature available on this issue identifies gender, caste, religion, and region as the factors causing wage discrimination. This literature makes a shift from these traditional concepts by explaining the importance of job contract as a basis of wage discrimination. This study utilizes the percentage relative gap (PGR) to work out the absolute wage gap between the two types of workers (formal and informal) and thereafter decomposes it to arrive at the source of the wage gap. The study applies the threefold Blinder–Oaxaca (B–O) decomposition method, which categorizes the total wage gap into three parts. The dependent variable chosen for the equation is the natural logarithm of daily wage. While the wage gap between formal and informal workers did not significantly fall during the study period, the results, on the other hand, indicate that the component of discrimination is larger than the component of endowment. This explains the discrimination perpetrated against informal workers in the Indian labor market. Tackling such discrimination necessitates implementation of more proactive policies for achieving wage equality in India.


This study attempts to show that it is myopic to analyse housing protest by merely considering activity only at the local level. The Causes of housing protest, we shall contend, are not usually local, and involve wider social and economic forces in society. An analysis which ignores these is inadequate. Chapter One looks at five ideal-typical models of the agency towards which housing protest has become increasingly directed, the state. Each perspective implies a different view of the state, it's position in society and it's potential for reacting to institutionalised or non-institutionalised protest. Chapter Two considers theories of the local state. As the on-the- spot provider of housing, the local state is the recipient of much housing protest, and we examine the efficacy of the five perspectives for analysing the local state's position. We select three perspectives which have potential for explaining different aspects of protest, namely - the internal workings of the local state, the protest groups themselves, and central/local government relations. Chapter Three examines state involvement in housing, and relates this to the explanations posited by the five perspectives as a test of their efficacy in explaining such involvement. We also examine state housing policy as a basis for protest, and find that such a basis exists in at least three areas of policy. In Chapter Four we consider the protest groups themselves, how and why they form, and barriers to that formation: we also categorise protest activity according to its source, the level of activity, and the types of activity. Chapter Five describes the Gorbals Anti-Dampness Campaign, as an example of housing protest, as well as drawing out some points from an examination of the squatting movement. In Chapter Five end Chapter Six we attempt to relate the theories of the state, and their implications for analysing protest activity to these campaigns, and draw some conclusions from this.


The article deals with the potential of financial security, which forms the system of financial protection of vital interests of subjects of agricultural business. It is proved that under the pressure of the external environment, leverage and financial mechanism tools that trigger the potential of financial security of agriculture can change, risk manifestation and economic depression of enterprises continue or stop. The importance of forming the aggregate value of the potential of financial security in the region is due to its component, which is capable of performing actions to mobilize the real and hidden possibilities of financial resources in a limited time period, to overcome the threats to a safe environment for the functioning of subjects of agricultural business. The priority of financial support of agriculture of Ukraine according to indicators of intensity and efficiency of use of financial resources is singled out. A differentiated approach to the clustering of the k-medium method – indicators of the use of financial resources as interdependence of the factors of the formation of the aggregate magnitude of the potential of financial security of subjects of agricultural business of Ukraine was used. With the help of inductive system analysis, a model of a stable level of potential of financial security capacity based on net profit has been developed. The model is adequate, its statistical quality, significance and reliability are sufficient for forming the forecast level of potential of financial security of subjects of agricultural business of the region. The developed methodology is based on the components of the protection of financial system of economic entities in the conditions of the restrictions of the choice of alternative sources of formation and distribution of financial resources, as well as the likelihood of their use.


This paper analyzes a multi-valve protection of water hammer in long-distance Pipelines based on simulated calculation of the water transition process for a water supply project. Against the problems shown by the results, measures of a multi-valve protection have been taken. As the pipeline has a serious negative pressure phenomenon and thus non-continuous flow of fluid, air valves have been installed at bulging part in the pipeline accordingly; and as to the higher pressure caused by fast-in and slow-out air-inlet (and outlet) valve, excess-pressure escaping valves should be installed in the dry pipe openings so that the pressure in the pipeline must be within the allowable range; in terms of the diversity of operating conditions and valve function and the system equipped with a large number of compound suction and exhaust valves, multi-functional pump control valves are chosen to be installed in the pump.


This paper documents RELAP5 results of the Heated Vacuum Drying System (HVDS) response to overpressurization of TMI canisters. RELAP5 was used to calculate transient pressures when hypothetical overpressurization events are considered. RELAP5 results indicate that the steam flow is friction limited and that a pressure relieve valve adequately relieves the pressure for scenarios involving overpressure in four canisters if the valve functions.


The (parallel) linear transports along paths in vector bundles are axiomatically described. Their general form and certain properties are found. It is shown that these transports are locally (i.e. along every fixed path) always Euclidean ones in a senses that there exist frames in which their matrices are unit. The investigated transports along paths are described in terms of their local coefficients, as well as in terms of derivations along paths.


I use friendships to define trust and collaboration in Second Life. A friendship is created when one resident asks another to be a friend, and the other accepts. During the observation period, the inquiry could be made by right-clicking on the potential friend's avatar or instant messaging the avatar. Thirty-one percent of the study population had one or more friends. These data have some immediate virtues. They are available at low cost on a large, heterogeneous population. They are less subject than traditional network survey data to the vagaries of respondent recall and opinion differences on what constitutes a friendship (Fischer, 1982; Brewer and Webster, 1999; Feld and Carter, 2002; not free from the vagaries, Lewis et al., 2008, but less subject to them). In this case, friendship is clear — it is a consensual right-clicking. That is a damningly vapid image of inworld friendship, "consensual right-clicking," but there is deeper substantive meaning available. When you and I agree to be friends, we each have to decide what privileges to grant one another. The choice is between four categories, given in Table A1 with abbreviated labels for easy reference. Rows distinguish the privileges a person gave to her friend. Columns distinguish privileges reciprocated by the friend. Numerous observations off the diagonal show that friendships often involved one friend having stronger privileges than the other.


One would expect that a Communist state that espoused centralized control and economic planning would have a powerful ministry regulating every facet of the country's energy affairs. After all, few issues in 2008 are treated by the Chinese leadership with more urgency than energy security. However, not only does such a governmental body not exist, repeated attempts to create even a watered-down version have only recently, and painfully, come to fruition.This raises several important questions: Why have efforts to create a centralized energy authority always resulted in failure? Why have Chinese energy companies been allowed to become increasingly defiant of Beijing's dictates? As the elaborate subsidy system to keep down prices for consumers comes apart at the seams, why hasn't Beijing implemented a new energy agenda? And perhaps most provocative of all: Might the government not even have an agenda to implement?


The results of paleosoils studying, buried under burial mounds of pit time near villages Shumaevo and Mustaevo in Orenburg region are regarded in this article. Reconstructions of paleoclimate for the time of pit culture development of the region from 4900±350 to 4300±300 l.n. (cal VR) are conducted. It is shown that generally paleosoils developed in damp climate, and comparatively dry short-time period on the transfer from earlier to developed stage of pit culture was possible.


Objective: This study is to investigate the relationship between serum Apelin-angiotensin II (AgII) expression in children with congenital heart disease (CHD) complicated with pulmonary hypertension (PAH), the severity of the disease and the therapeutic effect, and to further explore its possible mechanism relating to Akt phosphorylation pathway. Methods: A total of 86 children with CHD were enrolled in our hospital from May 2017 to May 2018 and further subdivided into no PAH, mild, moderate and severe groups. The mean pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) was calculated according to echocardiography. Serum Apelin and AgII levels were measured by radioimmunoassay before and 7 days after treatment, and p-Akt/Akt was detected by Western blot. Results: The PAP and AgII levels were significantly increased after 7 days of treatment compared to those before treatment (P < 0.05). There was biggest decrease of PAP level in severe group, followed by moderate and mild group after the treatment (P < 0.05). Apelin and p-Akt/Akt levels in PAH group were significantly lower than that in no PAH group (P < 0.05). The treatment significantly increased Apelin and p-Akt/Akt levels, while there was largest elevation of these levels in severe group compared to mild or moderate group (P < 0.05). Conclusions: The PAP and AgII levels were found elevated in PAH groups, along with significant decrease of Apelin and p-Akt/Akt levels. The treatment can retard the changes of these levels while in severe group, the level was altered markedly compared to mild or moderate group, which provides new insight for the diagnosis and evaluation of PAH progression.


Objective: To assess the application of transurethral resection with bipolar electrosection technique.Methods:39 patients with symptomatic BPH were treated by PKRP. 8 patients with superficial transitional cell carcinoma were treated by PKRBT. All patients were followed up for 1~8 months( postoperatively. Results:For PKRP, the duration of the procedure was 30 to 110 min. No case except two (patients) need blood transfusion during the operation. No transurethral resection syndrom occurred. The peak flow rate increased from 5 mL·s~(-1) to 15 mL·s~(-1). The IPSS decreased respectively. For PKRBT, the (duration) of the procedure was 5 to 30 min. The adductor reflex was found in 2 cases. Conclusion:(Transurethral) bipolar electrosection of hyperplasic prostate and bladder tumor is effective and safe.


MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small molecules that play an essential role in regulating gene expression by post-transcriptional gene silencing. Their study is crucial in revealing the fundamental processes underlying pathologies and, in particular, cancer. To date, most studies on miRNA regulation consider the effect of specific miRNAs on specific target mRNAs, providing wet-lab validation. However, few tools have been developed to explain the miRNA-mediated regulation at the protein level. In this paper, the MoPc computational tool is presented, that relies on the partial correlation between mRNAs and proteins conditioned on the miRNA expression to predict miRNA-target interactions in multi-omic datasets. MoPc returns the list of significant miRNA-target interactions and plot the significant correlations on the heatmap in which the miRNAs and targets are ordered by the chromosomal location. The software was applied on three TCGA/CPTAC datasets (breast, glioblastoma, and lung cancer), returning enriched results in three independent targets databases. Author summary According to the central dogma of molecular biology, DNA is transcribed into RNA and subsequently translated into proteins. However, many molecules affect the amount of protein produced, including microRNAs (miRNAs). They can inhibit the translation or intervene by implementing the decay of target mRNAs. In literature, most works focus on describing the effect of miRNAs on mRNA targets, while only a few tools integrate protein expression profiles. MoPc predicts miRNA-targets interaction by considering the expression of mRNA, proteins, and miRNAs simultaneously. The method is based on the partial correlation measure between mRNAs and proteins conditioned by the expression of the miRNAs. The results on TCGA/CPTAC datasets prove the relevance of the MoPc method both from a computational and a biological point of view.


The catalytic ability of Fe-iminobipyridine complexes ((BPI)FeBr2, BPI = iminobipyridine) for hydrosilylation of both a non-conjugated diene and a conjugated diene was investigated aiming at the pr...


The impurity paramagnetic ion, Cu2+ substitutes Al in the SrLaAlO4 single crystal lattice, this results in a CuO6 elongated octahedron, and the resulting measured g-factors satisfy four-fold axes variation condition. The aggregate frequency width of the electron spin resonance with the required minimum level of impurity concentration has been evaluated in this single crystal SrLaAlO4 at 20 millikelvin. Measured parallel hyperfine constants, A∥Cu, were determined to be −155.7×10−4 cm−1, −163.0×10−4 cm−1, −178.3×10−4 cm−1 and −211.1×10−4 cm−1 at 9.072 GHz (WGH4,1,1) for the nuclear magnetic quantum number MI=+32,+12,−12, and −32 respectively. The anisotropy of the hyperfine structure reveals the characteristics of the static Jahn–Teller effect. The second-order-anisotropy term, ∼(spin−orbit coupling10Dq)2, is significant and cannot be disregarded, with the local strain dominating over the observed Zeeman-anisotropy-energy difference. The Bohr electron magneton, β=9.23×10−24JT−1, (within −0.43% so-called experimental error) has been found using the measured spin-Hamiltonian parameters. Measured nuclear dipolar hyperfine structure parameter P∥=12.3×10−4 cm−1 shows that the mean inverse third power of the electron distance from the nucleus is 〈rq−3〉≃5.23 a.u. for Cu2+ ion in the substituted Al3+ ion site assuming nuclear electric quadruple moment Q=−0.211 barn.


Abstract : CHAIN 92 was originally intended as a single-leg cruise, but problems with radio beacons necessitated a return to Woods Hole on June 9th and return to Site D1 on June 10th. Nine moorings were set (two of which were short-term and were retrieved before the end of the cruise) and one previously-established six-month mooring was retrieved. These moorings were to perform a variety of functions including instrumentation and mooring-line materials evaluation as well as collection of scientific data. Other work included hydrostations, XBT's, current-profile measurements in conjunction with the hydrostations, and radar-transponder tests. (Author)


Introduction The search for a more powerful entity to provide some form of order to the chaotic nature of human existence is a phenomenon that can be seen throughout much of human history. For a Roman, the gods were everywhere, as powerful forces with an interest in all aspects of daily life. Religion formed part of the broad-based homogeneity of the western provinces following the process of cultural transformation after conquest. Inscriptions, sculpture, and temple architecture all point to a similar material culture, and, although there is an apparent continuity in the names of the deities being worshipped from the pre-Roman to the Roman periods, their association with the traditional gods of Rome through syncretism negates the idea of direct continuity. However, religious changes are often overlooked in accounts of the Romanization of the western provinces, and we are left with the rather uncritical concept of 'Romano-Celtic' religion as a hybrid phenomenon. There is a danger of using the archaeological evidence of temples and inscriptions as diagnostic of change, rather than undertaking a more rigorous analysis in order to understand how religion and ritual formed part of this broad-based homogeneity, and the way in which the people of the provinces made sense of how to act and behave within a new social and political world.


Agricultural automation is a varied and challenging field, with tasks ranging from detection to sizing and from manipulation to navigation. These are also precursors to effective plant breeding and management. Making plant measurements by manually scouting is labor-intensive and intractable at large scale. While the cost of gene sequencing has gone down several orders of magnitude in the last couple of years, measuring the physical traits of plants remains a labor-intensive task. This calls for robotic solutions that can measure plant traits with a high throughput. Accelerated by the current developments in the area of deep learning and computer vision, in this thesis, we propose the applications of these advancements for non-contact phenotyping, tactile phenotyping, and vision-based navigation in agricultural fields. For non-contact phenotyping, we propose an architecture that can count plants within 10% of human ground truth counts and measure stalk widths with a mean absolute error of 2.76mm. We then present a deep-learningbased architecture for segmenting and grasping stalks, for tactile measurements, achieving an average grasping accuracy of 74.13% and a stalk detection F1 score of 0.90. We then propose a deep reinforcement-learning based architecture that can learn policies to navigate in agricultural fields without human supervision. We test the same algorithm in simulation and various outdoor scenes. The robot learns to navigate in simulation in as low as 9 minutes of training time. We report the performance of the same algorithm in outdoor track, vineyard and hops plantation. The agent can learn to follow tracks in as low as 1hr 35 minutes on the real robot, learning from scratch.


In this chapter I conduct a regional tour of Southeast Asian game studios.
 Nations like Thailand have adopted primarily an outsourcing approach
 to game development, in the hopes of building up skillsets that could
 later be applied to locally developed games. Other developers located in
 Malaysia have focused on developing educational games, relying on a
 Tiger economic formula of cooperative state, industry, and educational
 alliances. Paradoxically, nations that are relatively more impoverished like
 Indonesia and Cambodia have developed original games drawn from their
 own local cultural fabric. Intended as a potential source of South to South
 game innovation. this chapter also investigates when developers opt to
 globalize for publics abroad, and when they design for more local players.


Abstract The concept of solubility, and its relation to molecular structure, is important for understanding the properties of biological molecules in solution as they interact with the solvent and with each other. To demonstrate the relation between structure, solubility, and buffering capacity, we report a low-cost laboratory exercise using monosodium glutamate (MSG) as a model solute. Students observe how glutamate solution initially resists acidification and how glutamate solubility is first decreased and then restored with acidification. Students should interpret these observations relative to the structure of the solute. This exercise has been employed in introductory level courses for both biology majors and nonmajors and would also be appropriate for AP Biology.