Objective: To assess heamatological modifications associated with natalizumab treatment, and compare with treatment response.
Background: Natalizumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against the α4 integrin on leucocytes (α4β1 and α4β7 subunits), resulting in inhibition of leucocyte adhesion to endothelial vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 and subsequent transmigration into the CNS. Consequently, elevated lymphocyte, eosinophil, and monocyte counts in peripheral blood are reported with treatment. This is mirrored by reduction of white cells in cerebrospinal fluid. Haematopoietic mobilization is also reported, and associated with clinical response, although the underlying mechanism is not fully understood.
Methods: A retrospective audit was conducted on a cohort of 113 MS patients, treated with natalizumab between August 2006 and July 2015. Complete blood counts (CBCs) were analyzed in all patients, before and every three-months during treatment. CBC results were correlated with clinical and radiological response to natalizumab.
Results: In all patients, mean lymphocyte and eosinophil counts rose (mean increase 1.02 and 0.18 x10^9g/liter respectively) within the first three-months of treatment, and remained elevated thereafter. Mean monocyte counts rose continually over nine months. Lymphocytosis (lymphocytes >4 x10^9g/liter) occurred more frequently in patients who responded to treatment (31.7[percnt]) than those who did not (10[percnt]). Atypical/reactive lymphocytes were also more likely to occur in those who responded (36.7[percnt]), than those who did not (10[percnt]). Either could therefore suggest a potential marker of treatment response.
Myeloid and lymphoid precursor cells were seen in four patients who responded to treatment (myelocytes/plasmacytoid cells), and one patient who did not (myelocytes). Immunophenotyping in one patient with lymphocytosis demonstrated B and T-cells, with activation markers (CD38+, CD23+, FMC7+). No CBC changes were associated with malignancy.
Conclusions: This study adds to existing literature of peripheral blood findings associated with natalizumab, findings could also suggest use of CBC differential cell counts as markers for treatment response. Disclosure: Dr. McNicholas has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kearney has nothing to disclose. Dr. Krakar has nothing to disclose. Dr. Jordan has nothing to disclose. Dr. Sharma has nothing to disclose. Dr. Cox has nothing to disclose. Dr. O9Boyle has nothing to disclose. Dr. Tubridy has received research support from Bayer-Schering, the Health Research Board of Ireland and MS Ireland. Dr. Hutchinson has nothing to disclose. Dr McGuigan has received personal compensation for activities with Biogen , Bayer Healthcare, Merck Serono, Novartis, Genzyme, and Teva CNS.


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a computer‐supported collaborative learning (CSCL) research framework.Design/methodology/approach – The framework was developed from a review and synthesis of the literature. More specifically, gaps in the literature were identified and a general framework for future CSCL research was proposed.Findings – This paper proposes a research framework that identifies a fit profile between learning objectives, learning tasks, and technology in CSCL. The fit profile, in turn, is expected to influence users' learning processes and outcomes.Research limitations/implications – This framework can serve as a foundation for future research in CSCL. More specifically, research should give consideration to the collaborative learning objective and task, which will vary in degrees of complexity and cognitive demands. Also, researchers will want to evaluate the level of sophistication of the CSCL technology, as well as its appropriateness for a given objective and task, which...


In this paper, we present a novel three-stream deep feature fusion technique to recognize interaction-level human activities from a first-person viewpoint. Specifically, the proposed approach distinguishes human motion and camera ego-motion to focus on human's movement. The features of human and camera ego-motion information are extracted from the three-stream architecture. These features are fused by considering a relationship of human action and camera ego-motion. To validate the effectiveness of our approach, we perform experiments on UTKinect-FirstPerson dataset, and achieve state-of-the-art performance.


Abstract Rhizophora × lamarckii is a natural hybrid of R. apiculata and R. stylosa, and it is also an endangered mangrove material in China with the exclusive location in Hainan Island. In this paper, we reported and characterized the complete chloroplast genome sequence of R. × lamarckii by assembling from short reads generated using Illumina sequencing. Total chloroplast genome size was 164,325 bp, including inverted repeats (IRs) of 26,325 bp, separated by a large single copy (LSC) and a small single copy (SSC) of 92,433 bp and 19,244 bp, respectively. A total of 121 genes, including 42 tRNAs, eight rRNAs, and 81 protein-coding genes, were identified. The GC content of R. × lamarckii is 34.67%. Phylogenetic analysis using the maximum likelihood algorithm showed that R. × lamarckii is sister to a clade with four species in the order Malpighiales.


According to the cultivating aim of the students majored in secretary and security, the features of clerical work, and current situation of valuing physical exercise instead of literary studying, this paper points out the importance of basic quality cultivating, simultaneously, some teaching methods are suggested.


The personal recovery paradigm in schizophrenia patients require a change of service. One of the changes that can be made to support the schizophrenia recovery process is a change in the concept of the relationship between patients and nurses. Nurse mentorship for schizophrenia patients is a new terminology of innovation in a supportive relationship between health workers and patients. At present, it is not known how the structure, process, and outcome of mentorship to schizophrenia survivors. This study aimed to explain how the structure, process, and outcome of mentoring nurses to schizophrenia survivors. This research is qualitative research using the case study method involving three cases of mentorship conducted in Banyumas Regional Hospital. A total of nine participants were involved in this study which consisted of three nurses as mentors, three schizophrenia survivors, and three caregivers. Data were collected by semi-structured interview techniques, observation, and document review. After in-depth analysis    seven research themes were found. Participants' perception about the structure of mentorship include the theme mentorship requires a variety of abilities of nurses and conditions of survivors who can participate in mentorship. While the mentorship process includes the theme requires patience in mentorship, giving guidance for the recovery of survivors, and facing the recurrence of survivors due to treatment factors. Participants revealed the outcome of mentorship in the theme mentors feel inner satisfaction, and survivors feel more enthusiastic about life. The results of this study provide the view that mentorship has the potential to be developed into quality nursing interventions to support the recovery process of schizophrenia survivors.


The design of soundscape evaluation protocols, realized either in-situ (real-world) or in laboratory conditions, and the assessment of their ecological validity is gaining interest among researchers. This paper reports on an experiment that aims to simulate the listening conditions of interacting with a travel-guide application presenting users with recreations of historically-informed soundscapes, designed to be used in-situ, in a laboratory setting. This was achieved by simulating the real-world soundscapes, which would have surrounded users of the app when used outside, from a periphonic speaker arrangement in a sound-treated space using an 2D ambisonic reproduction of the corresponding data. The evaluation results showed that participants interacted with the travel-guide content in a manner that resembled a real-life situation. That is, they were in general able to recognize and separate the auditory content of the travel-guide from that of the real-world simulated auditory space they where placed within, with some occasional confusions. This study adds to the work on the ecological validity of soundscape evaluations and tries to highlight the boundaries between the two simultaneous soundscape auditions.


Background Noninvasive intraoperative optical biopsy that provides real-time imaging of histoarchitectural (cell resolution) features of brain tumors, especially at the margin of invasive tumors, would be of great value. To assess clinical-grade confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) and to prepare for its use intraoperatively in vivo, we performed an assessment of CLE ex vivo imaging in brain lesions. Methods Tissue samples from patients who underwent intracranial surgeries with fluorescein sodium (FNa)–based wide-field fluorescence guidance were acquired for immediate intraoperative ex vivo optical biopsies with CLE. Hematoxylin-eosin–stained frozen section analysis of the same specimens served as the gold standard for blinded neuropathology comparison. FNa 2 to 5 mg/kg was administered upon induction of anesthesia, and FNa 5 mg/kg was injected for CLE contrast improvement. Histologic features were identified, and the diagnostic accuracy of CLE was assessed. Results Of 77 eligible patients, 47 patients with 122 biopsies were enrolled, including 32 patients with gliomas and 15 patients with other intracranial lesions. The positive predictive value of CLE optical biopsies was 97% for all specimens and 98% for gliomas. The specificity of CLE was 90% for all specimens and 94% for gliomas. The second FNa injection in seven patients, a mean of 2.6 h after the first injection, improved image quality and increased the percentage of accurately diagnosed images from 67% to 93%. Diagnostic CLE features of lesional glioma biopsies and normal brain were identified. Seventeen histologic features were identified. Conclusions Results demonstrated high specificity and positive predictive value of ex vivo intraoperative CLE optical biopsies and justify an in vivo intraoperative trial. This new portable, noninvasive intraoperative imaging technique provides diagnostic features to discriminate lesional tissue with high specificity and is feasible for incorporation into the fluorescence-guided surgery workflow, particularly for patients with invasive brain tumors.


Striking differences in pool-to-pool distributions of an algae-grazing minnow (Campo- stoma anomalum), attached algae (predominantly Spirogyra sp. and Rhizoclonium sp.), and bass (Micropterus salmoides and M. punctulatus) are known to occur in some small Oklahoma streams. This study evaluates the complementarity of bass, Campostoma, and algae at different seasons, and uses in-stream experimental manipulations of bass and Campostoma to determine if the patterns resulted from strong interactions between predators, herbivores, and algae. In a 1-km reach of Brier Creek (south-central Oklahoma), bass and Campostoma distributions in 14 consecutive pools were inversely related in six of seven censuses conducted from 8 November 1982 to 5 September 1983. Bass and Campostoma co-occurred in more than two pools only on two occasions, following the largest floods of the year. Campostoma and algal abundances were inversely related during late summer and in both autumns of this study. This relationship did not hold during the spring, when floods strongly affected algal distributions. During autumn of 1983, we removed bass from a pool, fenced it longitudinally, and added Campo- stoma to one side (1.4 individuals/m2). Over the next 5 wk, standing crop of algae decreased significantly on the Campostoma side but increased on the control side. In a nearby unmanipulated Campostoma pool, standing crop of algae was consistently low. We added three free-swimming bass to a Campostoma pool to evaluate presumptive predator-prey interactions. Within 3 h, the Campostoma moved from the deepest part of the pool to shallow areas. Over the next 5 wk, numbers of grazing Campostoma declined due to behavioral changes, emigration, and (presumably) predation. The standing crop of algae increased significantly 10-13 d after bass addition. In a second bass-addition experiment in June 1984, Campostoma responses were almost identical, and algal standing crop in deeper areas increased significantly after 1 wk. Collectively, our censuses and the experiments indicate that in Brier Creek, biotic interactions strongly influence the pool-to-pool distributions of Campostoma and algae, par- ticularly during long periods of constant low discharge.


This research aims at investigating whether or not the application of story maps model will increase the ability of SLTPN 1 Palembang in re-producing short stories. This research used a classroom action research model, involving 3 cycles. The pre-test conducted before the action showed that none of the 44 students got the score of 75 above. The post-test of cycle I showed that 15 students (34%) got the score of 75 (mean = 55.4). In the post-test of cycle II, 31 students (70%) got the score of 75 (mean 76.6). In the post-test of cycle III, there were 39 students (89%) who got the score of 75 (mean 77.8). The findings indicate that the students ability in reproducing short stories improved as the story maps model was ap-plied. In addition, the students seemed to be more enthusiastic in participating in the classroom activities.


The crystalline to amorphous transition in As and Sb and the corresponding changes in physical properties primarily arises from modifications in the second neighbor distributions. Raman scattering measurements in amorphous β‐As, γ‐As, and a‐Sb are reported that further indicate a progression from quasi‐molecular to nonmolecular character in this series as manifest in the polarization properties of the spectra. It is suggested that this transition indicates variations in structure and reflects an increase in second neighbor interactions in a‐Sb. A comparison of Raman and neutron scattering measurements in β‐As is used to yield information about the frequency dependence of the Raman coupling parameters beyond the elastic continuum regime.


Spatio-temporal alignment of electronic slides with corresponding presentation video opens up a number of possibilities for making the instructional content more accessible and understandable, such as video quality improvement, better content analysis and novel compression approaches for low bandwidth access. However, these applications need finding accurate transformations between slides and video frames, which is quite challenging in capture settings using pan-tiltzoom (PTZ) cameras. In this paper we present a nonlinear optimization approach for accurate registration of slide images to video frames. Instead of estimating the projective transformation (i.e., homography) between a single pair of slide and frame images, we solve a set of homographies jointly in a frame sequence that is associated with a given slide. Quantitative evaluation confirms that this substantively improves alignment accuracy.


Ultimately seamanship, like airmanship, is a matter of maintaining the ability to remain in the medium; that is, the ability to remain safely afloat. In addressing this perpetual requirement the seaman navigator has constantly to satisfy himself that in proceeding he is not standing into danger. Many dangers are locus-related and publicised, so that the modern voyager does not sally forth into the great unknown, as was often the case in the time of Captain Cook. Yet the number of maritime calamities remains constant, despite the continuing improvement of navigational aids. Danger, hazard and peril are those things which frustrate the safe and timely conclusion of a voyage. They encompass, for example, volcanic islands rising out of the sea or, more usually, storms and other inclement weather which cause cargo to shift or cause dynamic failure and the ingress of water or, more usually still, the waywardness of other navigators. Of these categories, the first may be deemed an act of God in response to which man must act as best he can. The second calls for improvements in design, the better to cope with the onslaught of the elements. All call for prescience and seamanship, the better to cope with whatever situation arises. The Rules of the Road provide statutory guidelines for both awareness and action but, in the last resort, the navigator must get and keep his ship out of harm's way as best he may. The essence of the matter is controlled motion, in the environment pertaining and in the domain of the ship. Particular force vectors have to be resolved or controlled if the ship and the persons onboard are not to become prisoners of circumstance, such as collision or being engulfed. A moving floating machine, her entrained water and the water in her future path comprise the domain over which control is vital, and it follows that success must lie in the prescient control of the ship, which can only be achieved by knowledge of the particular characteristics of the particular ship, in the particular circumstances. Such is the essence of good seamanship and the foundation of safe navigation.


Understanding the music score is a fundamental skill in Music learning. It used to be the training of basic skills in the music class before the curriculum reform. However, this skill was gradually marginalized in the initial stage of curriculum reform in that it is too difficult for students to have a delightful learning experience. Since the publication of Criterion for music Curriculum 2011, music score literacy has gained a foothold again. Its theory stage is higher than before. Owing to various causes, teaching this skill is still in a dilemma in practice. With the improvement of compulsory education quality, reading music score as a necessary music skill becomes a vital position again. However, current teaching conditions cannot meet this task. Therefore, this paper chose the music proficiency test of junior school students in an area to analyze the current condition of reading music score and develop the proper improving strategies.


An iterative technique for analyzing the large-scale microstrip interconnect problems is presented in this paper. It entails the use of the RWG triangular discretization for modeling flexibility and the complex image method and FFT for numerical efficiency. Examples of complicated microstrip interconnect configurations are presented.


o Resonance line CV and CVI plasma spectra in the 40 A region indicate a reduced (N /w ) population density inversion of ~4X between n^4 and n=3 excited levels. Inversion between n=5 and n=3 is also observed. The ions are created from a graphite target by a 5 J, 16 ns Nd glass laser 11 2 pulse focused to a 0.5 mm spot, i.e., 2 x 10 W/cm . These ions expand into a gaseous atmosphere (H, He, Ne, Ar, . . . ) . The greatest degree of inversion is observed at "15 mm from the target surface at a pressure of 1-2 Torr in helium or hydrogen. At this distance both ions and neutrals are detected by space and time-resolved spectroscopy, and an electron 16 _ 3


A new method is presented based on trinary logic able to check the state of different control variables and synchronously record the physiological data and behavioral data of behaving animals and humans. The basic information structure of the method is a time-interval of defined maximum duration, called time-slice, during which the supervisor system periodically checks the status of a specific subset of input channels. An experimental condition is a sequence of time-slices subsequently executed according to the final status of the previous time-slice. The proposed method implements in its data structure the possibility to branch like an if-else cascade and the possibility to repeat parts of it recursively like the while-loop. Therefore, its data structure contains the most basic control structures of programming languages. The method was implemented using a real-time version of LabVIEWTM programming environment to program and control our experimental set-up. Using this supervision system, we synchronously record 4 analog data channels at 500Hz (including eye-movements) and the time-stamps of up to 6 neurons at 100kHz. The system reacts with a resolution within 1ms to changes of state of digital input channels. The system is set to react to changes in eye-position with a resolution within 4ms. The time-slices, experimental conditions and data are handled by relational databases. This facilitates the construction of new experimental conditions and data analysis. The proposed implementation allows continuous recording without an inter-trial gap for data storage or task management. The implementation can be used to drive electrophysiological experiments of behaving animals and psychophysical studies with human subjects.


We discuss the instability of uniform superconducting states that contain the pairing correlations belonging to the odd-frequency symmetry class. The instability originates from the paramagnetic response of odd-frequency Cooper pairs and is considerable at finite temperatures. As a result, the pair potential varies discontinuously at the transition temperature when the amplitude of the odd-frequency pairing correlation functions is sufficiently large. The discontinuous transition to the superconducting phase is a general feature of superconductors that include odd-frequency Cooper pairs.


Large fish species often display truncated size distributions related to harvest. In addition, temperature, food availability and density-dependence affect body growth, and together with natural mortality influence population size structure. Here we study changes in body growth, size distributions and mortality in both harvested and non-harvested populations of northern pike over 50 years along the Baltic Sea coast and in Lake Mälaren, Sweden. For coastal pike, body growth has increased coincidentally with increasing water temperatures, yet in the last two decades there has been a decrease of larger individuals. In Lake Mälaren, in contrast, size distributions and body growth were stationary despite similar increases in water temperature. A dominance of slow-growing individuals in older age-classes was evident in all studied populations, also in the no-take zone, suggesting other factors than fishing contribute to the mortality pattern. We propose that increasing temperatures have favoured body growth in coastal areas, but this has been counteracted by increased mortality, causing pike sizes to decline. To regain larger coastal pike, managers need to consider multiple measures that reduce mortality.


Abstract By using general series expansion method, this paper used the more complicated base function {(t - t0)m e−nt| m = 0,1, 2, ; n = 1, 2, } to study the differential equation V′(t) = 1 – V2(t), V(0) = 0. We could obtain a better result than the homotopy analysis method.


Determining when surgery is not appropriate is just as critical as establishing when to operate for certain neurologic diseases. Since the earliest clinical description of an epidural hematoma (EDH), treatment with prompt surgical evacuation has been the standard of care for the prevention of death


The reaction products and intermediates from the interaction of acetonitrile with olefins (oct-1-ene) or alcohols (tert-butyl alcohol) in zeolite H-ZSM-5 at 296 K have been characterized with 13C and 15N solid-state NMR. It has been shown that coadsorption of acetonitrile and olefin on H-ZSM-5 gives rise to the intermediate N-alkylnitrilium cation represents a persistent species inside a zeolite under anhydrous conditions. Upon admittance of water to the pores of the zeolite, the N-alkylnitrilium cation slowly converts into N-alkylamide in accordance with the classic Ritter reaction. In the case of acetonitrile and alcohol, just after coadsorption both the intermediate N-alkylnitrilium cation and the final N-alkyl-amide are identified simultaneously; the former slowly disappears over a few days. Thus, 1) it has been shown that the Ritter reaction can occur not only in liquid acidic media but also on a solid acid catalyst, zeolite H-ZSM-5; 2) N-alkylnitrilium cations have been detected and characterized with solid-state NMR as persistent intermediates in the Ritter reaction for the first time while the reaction proceeds.


Agrarian modernization has come and come again in Mexico, either through brief, convulsive legal and political upheavals or, more patiently if no less devastatingly, through long-drawn-out processes of transformation driven more by economic forces than by revolutions in property relations. The Ley Lerdo of 1857 was clearly of the first sort. The liberal architects of the reform, which divested both the church and peasant communities of their lands, hoped to lay the basis for a society of yeoman farmers on the model of the United States. The reformers, however, were, not unlike the Virginia planters whom they emulated, also landowners who expected to profit from the new opportunities to acquire land. They thought that there was land enough for everyone, but in the end there was only enough for themselves and their peers. Peasant communities were stripped of their patrimonies and peasants reduced to minifundistas on the margins of expanding haciendas. The modernizers who followed, the generation of the cientificos, extended the process in the name of economic rationality, attracting foreign investors to build railroads, expanding and modernizing ancient irrigation systems, and building modern sugar refineries to service plantations grown fat at the expense of peasant communities like Emiliano Zapata's Anenecuilco. The effects of the Ley Lerdo reforms and the agricultural modernization of the Porfirian period were devastating for peasant agriculture and for peasant communities. Sustained peasant insurrection appeared only when sparked by


This paper considers the global robust stability of neural networks with both time-varying and unbounded delays. By employing suitable Lyapunov functions, a set of sufficient conditions are derived for the existence, uniqueness, and global robust stability of the equilibrium point. The results are shown to improve and generalize a previously published result. A example is given to illustrate the correctness of our results.


The invention relates to a method of separating and isolating an acylated derivative of 4-[(S)-4-dimethylamino-1-(4-fluorophenyl)-1- hydroxybutyl]-3-hydroxymethylbenzonitrile by reaction of a mixture of the 4-[(S)-4-dimethylamino-1-(4-fluorophenyl)-1-hydroxy-butyl]-3- hydroxymethylbenzonitrile and an acylated derivative thereof with a compound which form a derivative of the 4-[(S)-4-dimethylamino-1-(4- fluorophenyl)-1-hydroxy-butyl]-3-hydroxymethylbenzonitrile containing a carboxylic acid group. The acylated derivative containing a carboxylic acid group precipitates once it is formed and may easily be separated from the reaction mixture.


With the global demand for renewable energy sources, there is a race in the scientific community to build a highly efficient solar cell. Nanostructured solar cells are a class of photovoltaic devices which is a strong candidate for high efficiency energy generation. Hot carrier solar cells are a kind of nanostructured solar cells, for offering high power conversion efficiency, compared with the conventional single absorber solar cell, through the process of extracting power from photo-generated high energetic carriers prior to thermalization to lattice via phonons. In this paper, we have analyzed the band structure, thermodynamic properties, and hot carrier transport in solar cell.


This study tests contradictory hypotheses regarding the implications of service sector growth in post-industrial societies on gender stratification. Panel analyses of 1970 and 1980 U.S. census datafrom the largest 124 MSAs reveal that increasing employment in service industries reduces the gender gap in median earnings net of changes in human capital and community variables. Findings also support the "deindustrialization thesis" in that service sector growth is economically detrimental to both sexes. However, men's earnings deteriorate at a faster rate than women's earnings resulting in greater similarity between male andfemale earnings. The results imply that men in metropolitan labor markets experiencing greater employment in service industries suffer lower earnings because of dwindling high-wage blue-collar jobs. A larger male service sector component also reduces occupational sex segregation, thus helping to equalize the earnings of men and women. In recent years there has been increasing concern among sociologists and economists regarding the implications of industrial restructuring in the United States for processes of gender stratification. As greater proportions of employees work in industries providing services to organizations and individuals, rather than in the immediate production of tangible goods, the question arises as to how increased service sector employment will affect the relative rewards accruing to men and women in the labor force. Thus far there is no consensus as to whether expanding employment in service industries will increase, maintain, or decrease social and economic rewards between the sexes. The present paper explicates the various positions and assumptions underlying recent speculation and empirical findings on this topic. After discussing shortcomings of the available literature, quantitative analyses directly assess the impact of service sector employment on relative gender earnings.1 *This is a revised version of a paper presented at the 1988 meetings of the American Sociological Association. The suggestions of Janet Saltzman Chafetz, Anthony Gary Dworkin, Paula England, William Form, Jennifer Glass, anonymous reviewers, and the comments of many individuals who have heard various versions of the paper are gratefully acknowledged. The Department of Sociology, the Center for Public Policy, and the Computer Center of the University of Houston provided partial support for this research. Direct correspondence to the author at the Department of Sociology -PGH 3474, University ofHouston, Houston TX 77204. i The University of North Carolina Press Social Forces, March 1991, 69(3):763-783 This content downloaded from 18.104.22.168 on Thu, 15 Sep 2016 04:44:37 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 764 / Social Forces 69:3, March 1991


This paper focuses on the recent progress in coherent optical communication using advanced digital signal processing (DSP) technology. In particular the design of DSP components is presented which are required to realize a 10 Gbaud synchronous optical quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) transmission system. Additionally the measurement results of a preliminary synchronous QPSK transmission setup with distributed feedback (DFB) lasers and real-time digital in-phase and quadrature (I&Q) receiver at a data rate of 1.4 Gbit/s are shown. The minimum bit error ratio (BER) was 1.7ldr10-5, lower than ever reported before for a real-time system with DFB lasers.


The aim of this work was to investigate the electrical behavior of AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel which was coated in a Mn-base pack mixture by pack cementation
method. Area-specific resistance (ASR) of the coated substrates was tested as a function of temperature by annealing the samples from room temperature to 700oC. Also ASR has been investigated as a function of oxidation time during isothermal oxidation at 700oC. Results showed the increase of temperature redounded to the higher values of ASR and also, the coating layer transformed to Mn3O4 and MnFe2O4 spinels during annealing in isothermal oxidation. These spinels caused to decrease the ASR values for coated
substrates (14.38 mWcm2) compared to uncoated substrates (31.25 mWcm2) after 200 h isothermal oxidation.


The utility model relates to an efficient energy-saving high-fire gas stove with a function of recycling residual fire. The gas stove comprises a stove body combustion chamber, a porous atomizing combustor, a fire control device, an igniter and a fan, and is characterized by further comprising a fire collection reflector, a burner high-temperature preheating gas pipe and a residual fire passage outer pipe, wherein the fire collection reflector is arranged in the stove body combustion chamber, the burner high-temperature preheating gas pipe is connected to the lower end of the fire collection reflector, and the residual fire passage outer pipe is arranged outside the burner high-temperature preheating gas pipe and connected to the lower end of the stove body combustion chamber. An upper annular residual fire passage is formed between the stove body combustion chamber and the fire collection reflector, a lower annular residual fire passage is formed between the burner high-temperature preheating gas pipe and the residual fire passage outer pipe, the upper residual fire passage and the lower residual fire passage are communicated, and the end of the lower residual fire passage is provided with a waste gas outlet. The efficient energy-saving high-fire gas stove with the function of recycling residual fire is simple and reasonable in structure, strong in fire, energy-saving, environment-friendly and thorough in combustion.


An experiment in which moving ionospheric disturbances were detected with a narrow beam, slewable, backscattering radar is interpreted in terms of the interaction of radio and ionospheric gravity waves. Since thermobaric resonance (vertical oscillation of the atmosphere at the Brunt frequency) occurs in a horizontal gravity wave duct, the period of the gravity wave is an indication of the altitude of the duct; also, since maximum condensation occurs in a duct, the period is an indication of the height of radio and gravity wave interaction. With this information we conclude that the altitude of interaction was typically about 130 km. From an examination of the experimental geometry and ray tracings of radio waves, we conclude that the experiment was especially sensitive to interactions in the 100- to 150-km altitude interval. This conclusion, and the fact that period indicates height, provide an explanation for the almost constant period of the observed traveling disturbances.


This paper examines notions of power in relation to evidence-informed policy making and explores four key areas. Firstly, I outline contemporary conceptualisations of how power operates in society; secondly, I spotlight the implications of power inequalities for how evidence is used by policy makers (and present the policy 'agora'; a discursively controlled paradigm of ideology and epistemology which serves to distinguish between the types of evidence that policy makers will and won't engage with); thirdly, I then define what I consider as evidence 'misuse'; before finishing with an analysis of why evidence misuse materialises and how its enactment might be minimised.


This paper reports a cell rolling cytometer (CRC) for controllably contacting and transporting cells in suspension using a three-dimensional microtopography coated with adhesion molecules, which enables quantification of cell-surface adhesion dynamics via transit time and lateral position at the single cell level. The cell rolling cytometer comprises slant ridges which not only enhance cell-surface interactions for cell tethering, but also direct the rolling of target cells. This approach enables simple, rapid quantification of cell adhesion to surface-bound molecules such as selectins at the single cell level.


Abstract 942

Background: Emerging evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs) are critical in cancer and adult leukemia by functioning as tumor suppressors and/or oncogenes. Zhang et al identified 32 pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML)-specific miRNA patterns by analysis of bone marrow (BM) samples (1). They also established potential miRNAs as biomarkers for predicting CNS-relapse in pediatric acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). Altered miRNA expression disrupts normal hematopoiesis and might play a role in niche-induced oncogenesis. Dysfunction of mesenchymal stromal cells induces formation of myeloid sarcomas that infiltrate in the surrounding tissues (2). Previously, we described that mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) of the BM microenvironment participate in leukemic stem cell regulation in an in vivo model of the childhood AML stem cell niche(3). These human MSC niches, created in ectopic bioengineered 3D scaffolds, supported leukemogenesis in NOD/SCID mice. Pediatric AML engrafted at 1 month in the MSC-coated scaffolds in the mice and was retained in the niche up to 4 months, after which distant seeding to murine BM, liver and spleen occurred. The bioengineered niche created a sanctuary for quiescent leukemia cells and at 4 months the AML cells exited the niche and spread hematogenously, mimicking leukemia relapse. Analysis of miRNA patterns in our leukemia niche model could provide novel directions for individual risk-adapted therapy in childhood leukemia.

Objective: To analyze miRNA expression patterns of pediatric AML after exposure to the niche microenvironment at different time points.

Design and Method: miRNAs were obtained from primary CD34+ selected AML cells at (d0) Day0= no niche exposure, (1Mo) 1 month =niche engraftment, (4Mo) 4 months=hematogenous spread with leukemic exit from the niche. miRNAs were isolated from single cell suspensions with the mir Vana miRNA isolation kit (Ambion) and analyzed on an Ilumina MicroRNA Expression Profiling single Beadchip (#RNA probes = 1145).

Results: 498/1145 miRNAs expression profiles were selected with a detection p value < 0.00001. Out of 498 miRNAs expressed in the leukemic niche model, 23 were previously described as AML-specific miRNAs (2). 10/23 miRNAs were significantly upregulated and 13/23 were downregulated. Pediatric AML-specific miRNAs – miR100 and miR125b had high expression profile at baseline, but were down regulated upon contact with the niche. AML miR195 and miR193a had low expression at baseline, but miR195 was upregulated on engraftment while miR193a only upregulated at the time of hematogenous spread (niche exit). CNS-relapse in ALL might represent a physiological mechanism of leukemic exit of dormant cells from the niche sanctuary. Consistent with this notion, the same expression profile that was found in CNS-relapse in ALL patients (miR198 up – miR551a downregulated) was seen in our model when AML cells became invasive and exited the niche at 4 months.

![Figure][1]

Conclusion:

Conclusion: (1) Zhang et al. 2009, PloSOne, 4, p1 (2) Raaijmakers et al. 2010, Nature, 464, p852 (3) Vaiselbuh et al, 2010, Tissue Eng Part C Methods, June 29 (ePub)

Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

 [1]: pending:yes


The invention discloses a device for removing in-car moisture by using automobile exhaust. The device comprises a centrifugal blower, an adsorption type roller dehumidifier and an air outlet, all of which are sequentially connected through an air duct. A quarter of the adsorption type roller dehumidifier is a desorption end; an air-cooled condenser is arranged on the desorption end; the desorption end is connected to an automobile exhaust discharger, and three quarters of the desorption end is an adsorption end; both the desorption end and the adsorption end are filled with circulating adsorption silica gel; the air outlet leads to the interior of the car. The device for removing in-car moisture by using automobile exhaust has higher adsorption capacity and adsorption rate, and greater energy efficiency ratio, and greatly reduces emissions of automobile exhaust heat. The device for removing in-car moisture by using automobile exhaust has the beneficial effects that the adsorption type roller dehumidifier is made to run between adsorption and desorption by utilizing automobile exhaust low-grade waste heat, the interior air of the car is dehumidified and purified, the automobile power sources are barely consumed, energy conservation and environment protection are realized, and no waste is produced to the outside, the adsorption capacity and the adsorption rate are higher, and the emissions of automobile exhaust heat are greatly reduced.


Within recent social work literature, the concept of empowerment as a practice perspective has received wide endorsement. In this article, I argue that adopting the notion of empowerment as a framework for practice requires not only that we think differently about professional practice but, more fundamentally, that we think differently about professional knowledge. Using the work of philosopher Jürgen Habermas, particularly the distinction he makes among three arenas of human activity-work, interaction, and power-I outline ways in which the functional and cognitive interests associated with these arenas dictate differing orientations to practice, alternate commitments to various forms of knowledge as applicable in practice settings, and different accounts of practitioner error. Implications for professional education are addressed.


This note describes the Monte Carlo setup used by ATLAS to model multi-boson processes in 13 TeV pp collisions. The baseline Monte Carlo generators are compared with each other in key kinematic distributions of the processes under study. Sample normalization and assignment of systematic uncertainties are discussed. c © 2016 CERN for the benefit of the ATLAS Collaboration. Reproduction of this article or parts of it is allowed as specified in the CC-BY-4.0 license.


The development of energy-efficient Power-to-Heat (PtH) technologies with high power density on a utility scale is a key element in the future of flexible energy systems. Although existing solutions for electric flow heaters (EFH) based on resistance heating have a high efficiency, the process outlet temperature and power output are limited by the lifetime of the contact heating elements. Inductively heated packed bed heaters can achieve higher gas outlet temperatures with a higher power density, which is essential for an efficient process. This paper focuses on the modeling, experimental validation and numerical analysis of inductively heated pebble bed gas heater. Foremost, a model that is based on a 3D finite volume method approach is introduced. After that, an experimental setup for different sphere arrangements is used to obtain results for concept verification and model validation. With the model validated, the design space for the PtH concept is investigated by varying the heat transfer area and material properties of the pebble bed. Design solutions with high energy efficiency above 90% and power density over 5.5 MW/m3 are presented for magnetic as well as non-magnetic materials at laboratory and utility scale.


It was conducted analysis of morpho-physiological and molecular-genetic parameters of isolates T. caries collected from the fields in different agroclimatic zones of the Republic of Bashkortostan. The results suggest that the adverse environmental conditions, including high pesticide load, may contribute to the emergence of new resistant to fungicides forms pathogen T. caries.


The interest in open access and institutional archives in Norway is growing. In 2005, several university libraries, university college libraries and other research libraries met and discussed a joint effort to create institutional archives. The meeting resulted in the Pepia project with BIBSYS as a software partner. The project group decided to use the open source system DSpace as a software platform. A standard DSpace installation runs on a Tomcat servlet container. BIBSYS does not use this container, and we therefore needed to configure DSpace to get it to run successfully on our server. In addition we had some problems with integrating the DSpace development structure with our integrated development environment. Further we needed to create a new build process that effectively could build more than 30 applications from one source code. These changes were quite time consuming, but they were necessary so that we could have an efficient work environment. Out of the box DSpace has many of the functionalities that an institutional archive requires. In spite of this we needed to alter some of the functionality, especially the user management system. DSpace is a complex system, but with the active community we could get the help we needed. BIBSYS Brage, the result of the Pepia project, was launched as a beta version in December 2006. We look forward to develop BIBSYS Brage further, and are confidant that it will become a great system for the consortium.


Framing
the
College
Debate:

 Insights
on
Obama's
Rhetoric
through
the
Capabilities
Approach
 Caitlin
M.
Manak
 Committee
members:
Douglas
Hicks,
Thad
Williamson,
Jennifer
Erkulwater

 President Obama has proposed that the United States increase the number of college graduates by 8 million by 2020 in order to raise national educational standards and to engage in global competition. Obama's policies and rhetoric frequently describe "education as a pathway to success" and "education as a pathway to jobs," but fail to emphasize its comprehensive, intrinsic values. America's national discussion on education needs to shift away from framing higher education merely as pathway to the workforce, and should focus instead on education as a vital part of a well-lived life. To fulfill social justice under the capabilities approach, American leadership should strive to give everyone the genuine choice of pursuing a higher education.


Secondary environmental pollution of scale breeding aroused by the rural biogas projects is the key issue in current rural environmental pollution management,which also contains the agriculture industrialization development and affects the Chinese characteristics agricultural modernization process.A case,which is a six storages network system divided into three layers has been studied on resolving secondary environmental pollution from YHDZ scale breeding ranch with algorithm of Maximum Flow and Minimum Saturated Flow and an efficient method is presented to find the minimum amount of outflow per day for biogas slurry without pollution in scale breeding.


PURPOSE: A nonvolatile memory device and an erasing method thereof are provided to improve an erase operation speed by verifying memory cells connected to an odd bit line according to a verification result of the memory cells and verifying the memory cells connected to an even bit line again. CONSTITUTION: A control unit(160) applies an erase voltage to a P well of a semiconductor substrate with a memory cell block. The control unit firstly verifies the erase state of the memory cells connected to the even bit line of the memory cell block. The control unit applies the erase voltage to the P well by increasing the erase voltage corresponding to the step voltage if a first verification operation result is failed. The control unit verifies the erase state of the memory cells connected to the odd bit line of the memory cell block. If the second verification operation result is failed, the control unit controls a circuit group to perform the first verification operation again after the erase voltage is increased by corresponding to the step voltage and is applied to a P well.


As a seven-year-old child, Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna (1790–1846) first encountered Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. Because she was sick and could not attend the play with her brother, she instead read it at home in a quiet corner, savoring the experience. Fascinated with the character of Shylock and captivated by the story's excitement, Tonna read through the book's pages all night long. This incident, she explains later in her memoir Life of Charlotte Elizabeth, influenced her for many years afterwards. But unlike the positive stories many people tell about their first encounters with life-changing books, Tonna describes the experience as a dangerous moment of temptation, calling books "pernicious sweets" and "polluting idols."1 She also bewails the book's influence, saying, "Oh, how many wasted hours, how much of unprofitable labor, what wrong to my fellowcreatures, what robbery of God, must I refer to this ensnaring book!"2 Her negative response to The Merchant of Venice relates partly to what she sees as its disastrous effects: instead of wanting to read Bible stories, she began to yearn for Shakespeare, and rather than being satisfied with reality, she began to crave romance. With such a view of literature's evils, it is surprising that Tonna not only went on to write pamphlets, treatises, and periodical articles, but also social-problem fiction. In fact, she became one of the first authors to fictionalize the plight of women and children in her industrial novels Helen Fleetwood and The Wrongs of Women. Ivanka Kovačevič and S. Barbara Kanner argue that Tonna was a pioneer in social-problem fiction, breaking


For the economies of the Middle East, the nineteenth century was a period of rapid integration into the world economy. Some of the forces behind this process came from Europe. In the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution, Great Britain and later the Continental economies began to turn towards areas beyond Europe in order to establish markets for their manufactures and also secure inexpensive sources of foodstuffs and raw materials. As a result, European commercial penetration into the Middle East gained new momentum in the 1820s after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Later, starting around mid-century, commercial penetration began to be accompanied by European investments in the Middle East in the forms of lending to governments and direct investment in railways, ports, banks, trading companies, and even agricultural land. A large part of this investment served to increase the export orientation of the Middle Eastern economies.


During the spring of 1977, there were nine admissions for Haemophilus epiglottitis at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. A review of bacteriologic and medical records was therefore undertaken to see if there had been similar "outbreaks" of epiglottitis in the past. Eighty-eight cases of influenzae type b bacteremia with inflammation of the epiglottis were found for the last 22 years. A comparison group of 1,120 children who had meningitis due to H influenzae, Neisseria meningitidis , and Streptococcus pneumoniae from the same period was obtained from a registry that includes all spinal fluid culture-documented cases at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh since 1940. 1 Bacteremic Haemophilus epiglottitis was uncommon at this hospital until the late 1960s (zero to two cases per year), but there has been an average of seven cases per year from 1968 through 1975 and an increase to 17 cases in the last 12 months (Table). The Table


The object of the article: letters from M. Tsvetaeva to A. Teskova (1922 - 1939) as documents of his personal biography, past events, which became a reflection of creative searches and reveal the innermost essence of the poet. The subject of the article: M. Tsvetaeva's self-consciousness and world perception in the emigrant period, which represent the life of the Poet's Soul as much as possible. The article is devoted to the consideration of reflection in the act of writing, deepening loneliness, and a break with the reader. The task is to analyze the letters of M. Tsvetaeva to A. Teskovoy as a literary text, the internal space of which is united by the translation of spiritual unity with a pen pal, to identify semantic dominants. Research methodology: a holistic analysis of letters in the light of the reflection of the methodology of poetic thinking involves an appeal to the structural-semiotic and biographical methods of research. Results: autobiographical episodes in the assessment of reflective self-consciousness are considered. Scope of application of the results: literary studies.


AbstractThe residual stresses produced in the surface layers of KEA145 (AISI H13) tool steel specimens during electrodischarge machining have been measured by the bending-deflection method. Stress-depth profiles were obtained through progressive removal of material by electropolishing. High residual tensile stresses were found in all specimens, decreasing from a maximum – at the surface for the finishing generator and 20 μm below the surface for the roughing generator – to zero at a depth of about 200 μm. The magnitude of the residual stress increased with pulse energy.


This invention relates to the recovery of nickel, and also cobalt if the same be present, contained in iron bearing oxygenated mineral ores including silicate ores and other ores which have been brought to an oxidic form by roasting or an equivalent process. In a most im portant embodiment, it relates to a method of treating nickeliferous, lateritic serpentine type mineral either alone Or in combination with nickeliferous, lateritic limonite ore whereby a high yield of nickel may subsequently be ob tained therefrom by ammoniacal leaching, the process be ing eSpecially adapted to these lateritic ores containing up to about 2 percent nickel which cannot be economically treated by the conventional smelting process ordinarily applied to high-grade nickel ores. It has already been proposed in the literature that nickel be extracted from high-grade nickeliferous garnierite O


INTRODUCTION Dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) are organic contaminants in ground water characterized by low solubility and density greater than water [1]. DNAPL-contaminated aquifers frequently are treated using the remediation technique known as pump-and-treat [2]. The process can reduce the mass of DNAPL contamination to residual saturations by injecting water though injection wells and removing water and contaminant through recovery wells. Residual DNAPL saturations following in-situ water flooding can be as much as 15% of the pore space [1]. Co-solvent flooding is a ground water remediation technology that can be used to enhance the performance of pump-and-treat. Laboratory and field studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of using alcohol solutions to remove residual non-aqueous phase liquids [3, 4]. Commonly used co-solvents are hydrophobic alcohol solutions that can modify DNAPL density to neutral buoyancy and control the risk of downward mobilization of DNAPL globules. The objective of this investigation was to study the efficiency of residual DNAPL removal from porous media by neutral buoyant cosolvent flooding as a function of planar inclination. A two-dimensional (2D) laboratory model was designed, assembled and used to investigate effects of direction of groundwater gradient flow on residual DNAPL recovery using a double-triangle well pattern in the horizontal (x-z) plane. Additional experiments are being conducted with the 2D model oriented at planar inclinations of 30, 60 and 90 degrees. Results of experiments completed in the horizontal plane are shown below. Additional results of experiments conducted at planar inclinations will be included in the final presentation.


Abstract. The use of satellite/UAS technologies in Precision Agriculture (PA) is increasing significantly and the continuous need of such kind of technologies is generating a great economic impact. This study carried out results by using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) and Very Hight Resolution (VHR) satellite imagery for the estimation of topsoil variability. The purpose of this contribution concerns the data analysis over two Production Units by evaluating radiometric response along the surface (e.g., spectral index). Our results concern the integration of UAS and satellite, improving the estimation accuracy of soil homogeneous areas variability, over which to manage agricultural practices. The remote sensing data covered by bare soil were isolated from the vegetative matrix along the study area. Thus, by using a statistical approach through the correlation between remote imagery and specific indices, it could be possible to determine variability in each pedological context, determining the zoning over land plots. According to this, in absence of high-resolution proximal soil sensing instrumentation, remote sensing data analysis can provide preliminary information suitable to establish a weighted topsoil/subsoil sampling campaign.


Long recharge times are one of the main challenges in providing a seamless experience for users of electric vehicles (EVs) during long trips. Recommender systems play a crucial role in optimizing the recharge process and in providing a better overall experience, as witnessed by a number of solutions presented in the literature. Most of these works, however, focused on minimizing waiting times by suggesting where and when to recharge the EV, leveraging for example historical demand patterns and/or real-time information. In this work, we tackle the problem from the different - and complementary - perspective of suggesting relevant and tailored activities users can perform to make the most out of their EV recharge times. To this end, we present a novel recommender system that leverages open data from the OpenStreetMap project and uses a specifically-trained neural embedding model to capture the semantic relationships between user preferences and nearby available activities and Points of Interest (Pois). The recommender system, whose implementation we make freely available for interested researchers and practitioners, provides personalized recommendations to users based on their preferences and past behaviour. We assessed the effectiveness of the proposal by conducting a study involving real users with different backgrounds, and the results showed that the proposal is effective in providing relevant and personalized recommendations to users, during recharge times.


We show that the existence of correlated pairs produced by a down-conversion process in a Bose-Einstein condensate can be probed systematically by exploiting the competition between Beliaev damping and a Raman coupling.


Our objective was to assess the efficacy and safety of a selective bladder‐preserving approach by transurethral resection and sequential chemoradiotherapy in patients with muscle‐invasive bladder cancer. From 1989 through 1997, 40 patients with biopsy‐confirmed bladder cancer, clinical stages T2–4NxM0, were treated with induction by aggressive transurethral resection (TUR) and three cycles of methotrexate, cisplatin, and vinblastine (MCV) chemotherapy. Tumor response was evaluated by cystoscopy and biopsy. In complete responders, the treatment was continued by radiotherapy (60 Gy to the bladder and 50 Gy to pelvic lymph nodes). Radical cystectomy was recommended to patients with residual tumor. Clinical complete response rate to TUR and MCV chemotherapy was 70%. The 4‐year actuarial overall survival rate for the whole series was 80.5%. Among 36 patients who completed chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the 4‐year actuarial survival was 84%, with 82.6% surviving with their bladders intact. Freedom from local failure in complete responders to TUR‐chemotherapy was 84%. Multivariate analysis revealed that the extent of initial TUR and status after TUR‐chemotherapy were independent prognostic factors associated with survival and disease‐free survival. This study confirms that the combination of aggressive TUR and sequential chemoradiotherapy with bladder preservation is an alternative treatment option to primary cystectomy for selected patients with invasive bladder carcinoma. Int. J. Cancer (Radiat. Oncol. Invest.) 90, 287–294 (2000). © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Jo Applin, Eccentric Objects: Rethinking Sculpture in 1960s America New Haven and London, Yale Universit y Press, 2012, 176 pp., 40 colour and 38 b & w illustrations, £35. ISBN 978-0-300-18198-2When you next see a copy of the Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - the one with the sleeve by Peter Blake - look carefully at the figure partly obscured by the lime-green feathered plume in George Harrison's bicorne. That's H. C. Westermann, the American sculptor, and one of the five artists who form the focus of Jo Applin's Eccentric Objects. Applin takes some pleasure in the fact that one of her artists is in the crowd, rubbing shoulders with Mahatma Ghandi, Oscar Wilde, Marilyn Monroe and all those other famous faces that form the backdrop for the Fab Four. It proves he was part of the 1967 zeitgeist. But only partly, inasmuch as only his left eyebrow, forehead and hair are properly detectible. For Applin, his semi-visibility in this famous image is apt, for it provides her with a nice allegory for describing his equivalently 'oblique' standing within the contemporary art scene (p. 115).Applin's recourse to Blake's album sleeve also serves as helpful way of summarizing her art-historical approach to sculpture during 1960s. She selects sculptors - Lee Bontecou, Claes Oldenburg, Lucas Samaras, Westermann and Bruce Nauman - who were all well represented by museums and galleries during the period, yet arguably never quite seem central to histories of that moment. The reason for this is that their art now fails to fit with the critical categories that art historians are inclined to use when discussing this period, such as 'abstraction', 'assemblage', 'minimalism' or 'pop'. Nonetheless, she is clear that these artists do not amount to an alternative tradition: instead she is more interested in charting the ways in which their various trajectories intersect with the more established narratives that have come to define this era. Her rationale is that by approaching sculpture from the perspective of these figures, who otherwise might appear as 'misfits' (p. 141), the tidy, familiar histories of 1960s sculpture begin to unravel, and the entire field starts to look a lot more idiosyncratic, and generally more open.If Blake's Beatles album sleeve is one of the most iconic images from 1960s popular culture, then Donald Judd's essay 'Specific Objects' must surely hold a commensurate status for students of 1960s art. Judd's 1965 review of the work of his contemporaries is one of those essays that is included on reading lists for practically every post-war art history survey course for undergraduates.1 But students are largely encouraged to read it as a manifesto for the newly emerging minimalist tendencies, with which Judd's name would increasingly be associated. The problem, though, is that almost all the art he references in 'Specific Objects' hardly looks 'minimal' by today's standards; in fact it is often a challenge for students to come to terms with the disarming stylistic diversity of his examples. For Applin, however, the heterogeneity of Judd's choices is a source of great interest, and this serves as the starting point for her account. Eccentric Objects is essentially a study of those artists whom Judd enlisted in order to clarify his artistic programme, and by exploring this diverse body of material, she tacitly undermines the coherency of minimalism as a critical category.Judd, however, is not the only critical reference point to which Applin refers. She points out that sculptors such as Oldenburg, Bontecou and Nauman also enjoyed the endorsement of the critic Lucy Lippard, in spite of the fact that her outlook is often seen as extremely different to Judd's. In other words both writers were turning to the same artists to promote their respective positions. In 1966 Lippard curated the group exhibition 'Eccentric Abstraction', with a view to promoting a biomorphic alternative to the hard-edged forms of the increasingly dominant minimalist trend. …


This article discusses BOC's diversification. The author describes an aggressive capital investment program as well as other measures taken by BOC to raise productivity and consolidate its position as the worlds's second largest industrial-gas supplier. The article also reports on BOC's geographical expansion into the Asial/Pacific region.


The mechanism by which obesity influences the metabolism of circulating triglycerides was assessed by determination of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity in adipose tissue and in postheparin plasma of 26 normolipidemic obese and 26 normal-weight subjects. Furthermore, the uptakes of VLDL triglyceride and FFA by adipose tissue in vitro were measured in these two groups. The heparin-releasable LPL activity per weight unit of adipose tissue was similar in obese and normal-weight subjects but the LPL activity per fat cell was on an average twice as high in obese as in non-obese subjects. Also the VLDL triglyceride and FFA uptakes by adipose tissue were similar in obese and non-obese groups when related to tissue weight but both were increased in obese fat cells compared with those of non-obese. When expressed per total body fat, all these parameters of adipose tissue lipid uptake were higher in obese than in normal-weight subjects. In contrast, the obese group did not show any increase in the postheparin plasma LPL activity but rather a tendency for the values to accumulate in the low normal range. Serum triglyceride concentration was not related to any of the LPL activities or to tissue lipid uptake in separate or combined obese and non-obese groups. Serum basal insulin level and insulin response to glucose were significantly higher in the obese than in non-obese subjects but in spite of this, the serum triglyceride level was similar in the two groups. Stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that all the measured parameters of adipose tissue were positively correlated to fat cell size but when the latter was held constant, the fat cell VLDL triglyceride uptake was still related to cell LPL activity and to serum insulin concentration. These results suggest that in obesity the adipose tissue has an increased capacity to remove circulating triglycerides.


Objective
To investigate the clinical value of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in evaluation of inflammation and prediction of cardiovascular events in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients.

Methods
One hundred and eight stable MHD patients were recruited from Dialysis Center of Beijing Tongren Hospital from October 2015 to December 2015. The general information, complete blood count, hsCRP, biochemical test, iron metabolic indicators, pre-dialytic systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were recorded. MHD patients were divided into the low NLR group and high NLR group according to the median of NLR (2.82). All patients were followed up for 18 months, cardiovascular events (CVE) were recorded during this period.

Results
In the high NLR group the dialysis vintage, white blood cell count, neutrophil count, NLR and hsCRP were significantly higher than those in the low NLR group [(88.0±50.4) vs. (62.4±40.6) months(t=2.48, P=0.02), (6.96±1.82)×109/L vs. (5.83±1.33)×109/L(t=3.14, P=0.00), (4.94±1.38)×109/L vs. (3.36±0.87)×109/L(t=6.08, P=0.00), (4.16±1.25) vs. (2.15±0.46) points(t=9.48, P=0.00), (7.85±4.92) vs. (3.13±2.23)mg/L(t=4.97, P=0.00)]. In the high NLR group lymphocyte count and transferrin saturation were significantly lower than those in the low NLR group[(1.25±0.40)×109/L vs. (1.58±0.34)×109/L, t=3.97, P=0.00; (25.7±10.2)% vs. (32.6±17.2)% , t=2.17, P=0.03] . There were no significant differences in age, sex, diabetes proportion, pre-dialytic SBP, pre-dialytic DBP, urea clearence index(Kt/V), hemoglobin, serum ferritin, serum calcium, serum phosphorus, intait parathyroid hormone, albumin, serum creatinine, carbon dioxide binding capacity and blood lipids between the two groups (P>0.05). Bivariate correlation analysis showed that NLR was positively correlated with dialysis vintage and hsCRP ( r=0.311, P=0.01; r=0.574, P=0.00); white blood cell count and neutrophil count were positively correlated with hsCRP (r=0.327, P=0.00; r=0.488, P=0.00). During follow-up period 9 cases of CVE (16.7%) and 20 cases of CVE (37.0%) occurred in the low NLR group and high NLR group, respectively (χ2=5.70, P=0.03). Cox regression analysis showed that age, NLR and serum phosphorus level were risk factors of CVE in MHD patients (HR=1.075, P=0.00, HR=1.646, P=0.00; HR=1.912, P=0.02).

Conclusion
NLR can predict inflammation and is one of the risk factors for CVE in MHD patients.

Key words:
Renal dialysis; Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio; Inflammation; Cardiovascular diseases


concepts through simple visual cues. Prioritizing Qualil)' .\t anagement and Sociotechnlcal \'ariables in Terms of Qualit}" Performance (pp. 3648), Constantine Kontoghicrghes. Oakland University, and Deborah Dembeck, Quality Management and Organization Development Consultant. Thisstudysought to identify the cri tical work environment variables for quality perfonnance in a service organization. The study's theoretical fT'311le\rork wasbased on t.otaI quality management (TQll) and sodoechnical »sems (SfS) theories. The main purpose of this study was 10 identify, prioritize. and describe the most important TQ~t and STS work environment variables fo r quality performance in a marketing services organ ization. Gh'eI1 the lack of unifonn and consistent definition ofthe quality construct, this study operationallzed qualityperformance in tenns ofdistinct and universal measures that could be applicable in a variety of settings. Through empirical analysis thisstudywas able to bridge some of the existing gaps in knowledge by identifying the most critical work environment variables that pertained to distinct quality performance indicators. Further, by re lyingon both TQll and SfS theories. this study has helped create a more holistic conceptual framework for studying quality improvement in a service organization and reinforced the link between the two theories. In this study Kontogbiorghes and Dembeck identified the follow6 QMJVOl, 8, NO. 3/C 2001, ASQ ing TQ~I and STS variables to be critical components for quality performance in a marketing services organization. • Satisfaction with internal


A novel optical frequency shifter using two quasi-phase-matched LiNbO3 wavelength converters, demonstrating 1 THz multi-channel shifting in the C-band is presented. The shifter can convert input channels to destination channels that contain common channels.


Some environmentalists argue that the process of globalisation which has resulted in trade liberalisation, accelerates economic growth and development, and that this promotes polluting activities and speeds the depletion ofnonrenewable resources (A. Y Seita, 1999). Since Malaysia is one of the signatories of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS) which provides equal investment opportunities to foreign investors as domestic service providers including ecotourism, this article explores the legal issues that arise in the globalization of ecotourism.


Objective To investigate effect of oral Climen in reducing side effects,vaginal bleeding,dilatation and curettage after drug abortion.Methods Two hundred patients were enrolled,100 in treatment group and 100 in control group.Patients in treatment group were on Climen nightly from post-op day 1 through day 21,comparing no steroid was given in control group.Patients in both groups were on chemical soup to induce uterus contraction.Volume and duration of vaginal bleeding were recorded and patient was followed in out-patient clinic by week 1,2,3 and menstruation.Results Duration of vaginal bleeding in treatment group was(8.0±2.7)d,comparing to(14±3.6)d in control group,with statistical significance(P0.05).Conclusions Oral Climen can reduce side effects,vaginal bleeding,dilatation and curettage after drug abortion.


The transmutation of minor actinides in a fast reactor is investigated by a new method to investigate the transmutation behavior of individual minor actinides. It is found that Np-237 and Am-241 mainly contributes to the transmutation rate though the transmutation behaviors are very different.


The following general formula (I): (R 1 is a hydrogen atom, an acyl group of C1-8, unsubstituted or substituted C1-8 alkyloxycarbonyl group, any one of an unsubstituted or substituted phenyloxy group, R 2 is a hydrogen atom, C1 to 8 alkyl group, an unsubstituted or substituted benzyl group, an acyl group of C1-8, unsubstituted or substituted C1-8 alkyloxycarbonyl group, among show either unsubstituted or substituted phenyloxy carbonyl group , R 1 is hydrogen atom, and excluding the case R 2 is a methyl group or a hydrogen atom) 3-N-methylamino represented by 1- (2-thienyl) -1-racemic propanol, Alternatively optically active substance of (S, or R-form), provides a means for producing in high yield easily and inexpensively.


Ethiopia is one of the world centers of genetic diversity and origin of barley crop. Now a day the country is conserve many cereal crops under cold room storage, gene bank. One of the conserved crops is barley. Barley is the cereal crop, that mainly grown in the central highland of Ethiopia. The samples of 45 barley accessions were used for the current analysis. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of long term storage factors on nutritional value of barley that tested in 1993 and compare the results with nutritional value of barley that tested after 25 years (2018). Sample preparation and nutritional values were determined by using appropriate standard official procedures, AOAC (Association of Official Analytical Chemists). Descriptive graphs and paired t-test were used to analyze the data obtained on nutritional values of barley crop from two test years. The nutritional value of barley crop after 25 years of storage time was decreased as compared with its nutritional value tested in 1993, except total carbohydrate. As a result, the study found statistically significant difference of average percentage content of crude protein, total mineral ash, moisture and total carbohydrate between 1993 and after 25 years of storage time. The current study concluded that, when the storage time increases, the nutritional values of barley crop were significantly decreased for all nutritional values except crude fat content and total carbohydrate.


The trans-regional work of agricultural machinery is an importance practice for China to proceed with agricultural modernization,and a significant enlightenment for exploring agricultural modernization under smallholders condition.The article starts with analysis of the operational mechanism and institutional performance of trans-regional work of agricultural machinery,and continues with the impacts of elements like rural labor status,size of rural household farm,industrial development of agricultural machinery,government management and services,and agricultural organization on trans-regional work of agricultural machinery,based on which the article gets at the advices for the path to agricultural modernization under the condition of smallholders.


This paper is about the opening of doors in British mental hospitals during (predominantly) the 1950s. It relies on accounts largely taken from the Lancet, Nursing Times and Nursing Mirror to make the point that change came about through a small group of enthusiastic medical superintendents and despite sustained opposition from mental nurses (to the extent to which this can be gauged from a meagre nursing literature). Although the discussion involves only a small number of hospitals, this is because only a small number of open door activists publicized their activities. At the same time, whilst most British hospitals engaged in open door activities, they did so tentatively and perhaps 'on the quiet': it may be conjectured that the open door phenomenon (as we have come to know it) represents only the more visible activities of buccaneering medical superintendents overshadowing other, perhaps more meaningful, changes in the social/institutional lives of patients and their carers. It is surmised here that the push to open the doors stemmed more from pragmatic concerns about the everyday welfare and dignity of patients: the key doctors involved seemed to go about their task without undue theorizing or abstract debate, so that the move to open the doors seems less motivated by discussions about social therapies and more by an awareness of the past coupled with a realization of how awful 'asylum' life had become for many patients. This was evident in Rees's' (1957) presidential address to British psychiatry where he called for a return to the Moral Treatment of previous times. This speech highlights two points: firstly, the received notion of the open door being an invention of the 1950s with its antecedents lying within the era of Moral Treatment and with years of custodial gloom in between: second, it reflects the idea of the charismatic medical superintendent acting


The (110)[001] secondary ecrystallization in Al-killed steel has been studied. Hot-rolled specimens are pre-annealed, cold-rolled, decarburized and isothermally annealed at1163K. The secondary recrystallization occurs during final isothermal anneal in the specimens which ave been annealed prior to cold-rolling in the condition ofa certain range of temperature and time. By the prior anneal, AlN precipitates a a dispersed second phase. The precipitated AlN particles inhibit he normal grain growth and thus induces the secondary ecrystallization. The prior anneal also permits he occurrence of the (110)[001] component inthe primary recrystallized t xture, which grows into the secondary recrystallization grains during final isothermal nneal. The phenomenon is discussed from the viewpoint of dispersed precipitates comparing with the reported behavior inAl-killed steel and 3% Si-Fe. (Received F bruary 23,1980)


This study has been undertaken to investigate the mineralogical properties and morphological features of sand fraction in some soils of Baghdad / Iraq.The morphological features of sand fractions were studied by Polarized optical microscope. Results have shown that the grains of these minerals from samples of sands have different colors, those from the surface horizons have dark brownish spots, due to staining by organic matter, and have a yellowish– to yellowish brown spots due to accumulation of Iron oxides.Results of light minerals indicated that quartz is dominant due to effect of parent material of these soils. Two types of opaque minerals (black and brown) are found, whereas the brown opaque minerals were obvious in heavy minerals.Three groups of transparent heavy minerals are found, stable minerals (Pyroxen and Amphibole), metastable minerals (Epidote and Garnet), and Ultra stable minerals (Zircon and Tourmaline).


We investigate a new approach for the problem of source separation in correlated multichannel signal and noise environments. The framework targets the specific case when nonstationary correlated signal sources contaminated by additive correlated noise impinge on an array of sensors. Existing techniques targeting this problem usually assume signal sources to be independent, and the contaminating noise to be spatially and temporally white, thus enabling orthogonal signal and noise subspaces to be separated using conventional eigendecomposition. In our context, we propose a solution to the problem when the sources are nonorthogonal, and the noise is correlated with an unknown temporal and spatial covariance. The approach is based on projecting the observations onto a nested set of multiresolution spaces prior to eigendecomposition. An inherent invariance property of the signal subspace is observed in a subset of the multiresolution spaces that depends on the degree of approximation expressed by the orthogonal basis. This feature, among others revealed by the algorithm, is eventually used to separate the signal sources in the context of "best basis" selection. The technique shows robustness to source nonstationarities as well as anisotropic properties of the unknown signal propagation medium under no constraints on the array design, and with minimal assumptions about the underlying signal and noise processes. We illustrate the high performance of the technique on simulated and experimental multichannel neurophysiological data measurements.


Modelling large scale systems with natural and artificial components requires storage of voluminous amounts of knowledge/information as well as computing speed for simulations to provide reliable answers in reasonable time. Computing technology is becoming powerful enough to support such high performance modelling and simulation. This dissertation proposes a high performance simulation based optimization environment to support the design and modeling of large scale systems with high levels of resolution.
The proposed environment consists of three layers--modeling, simulation and searcher layer. The modeling layer employs the Discrete Event System Specification (DEVS) formalism and shows how it provides efficient and effective representation of both continuous and discrete processes in mixed artificial/natural systems necessary to fully exploit available computational resources. Focusing on the portability of DEVS across serial/parallel platforms, the simulation layer adopts object-oriented technology to achieve it. DEVS is implemented in terms of a collection of classes, called containers, using C++. The searcher layer employs Genetic Algorithms to provide generic, robust search capability. In this layer, a class of parallel Genetic Algorithms, called Distributed Asynchronous Genetic Algorithm (DAGA), is developed to provide the speed required for simulation based optimization of large scale systems.
This dissertation presents an example of DEVS modeling for a watershed, which is one of the most complex ecosystems. The example shows a well-justified process of abstraction from traditional differential equation models to DEVS representation. An approach is proposed for valid aggregation of spatially distributed systems to reduce the simulation time of watershed models. DEVS representation and spatial aggregation assure relative validity and realism with feasible computational constraints. Throughout the dissertation, several examples of GA optimization are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed optimization environment in modeling large scale systems.


Changes in the communication of information continue to occur along with the advancement of technology in the digital era. Nowadays everyone can work as a journalist even though he or she has never learned the basics of journalism. The public also frequently receive information or news that raise the eyebrows — ranging from disaster threats to information about the political world. The finding of this research is that often information that circulates in the hands of Warganet is a hoax and even hate speech, despite the government efforts to reduce the spread of hoax and hate speech. With this paper, the author aims at disclosing the propaganda elements in the hoax and hate speech in the social media as in the digital era the social media is the most vulnerable in spreading of hoax news and hate speech. By utilising qualitative content analysis, the author discusses five hoax news and hate speeches which are dissected using nine propaganda practices. The conclusion obtained by the author is that the hoax news and hate speech comprise of elements of exaggeration, rhetoric, recognition and influence on a variety of parties, as well as prejudices supplemented by emotions.


Cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) is an economically important vegetable crop which forms a compact head with leaves and grown as biennial for the production of seeds. It is a cool season crop grown in temperate regions and belongs to family Brassicaceae. Cabbage has its centre of origin in Mediterranean regions and now its cultivation is seen all over the world due to its nutritional benefits. It is mostly cultivated under temperate conditions as a rabi season crop and as cool season crop in the tropics. Cabbage production is affected by many fungal, bacterial and viral diseases at different stages of growth and development. Among fungal diseases, clubroot, Alternaria leaf spot and damping off are the most prominent and destructive ones affecting the yield of cabbage. Alternaria leaf spot of cabbage caused by A. brassicicola is a widespread disease affecting the yield of cabbage worldwide.


Midwave infrared (MWIR) band of 3.75 μm is important in satellite remote sensing in many applications. This band observes daytime reflectance and nighttime radiance according to the Earth's and the Sun's effects. This study presents an algorithm to generate no-present nighttime reflectance and daytime radiance at MWIR band of satellite observation by adopting the conditional generative adversarial nets (CGAN) model. We used the daytime reflectance and nighttime radiance data in the MWIR band of the meteoritical imager (MI) onboard the Communication, Ocean and Meteorological Satellite (COMS), as well as in the longwave infrared (LWIR; 10.8 μm) band of the COMS/MI sensor, from 1 January to 31 December 2017. This model was trained in a size of 1024 × 1024 pixels in the digital number (DN) from 0 to 255 converted from reflectance and radiance with a dataset of 256 images, and validated with a dataset of 107 images. Our results show a high statistical accuracy (bias = 3.539, root-mean-square-error (RMSE) = 8.924, and correlation coefficient (CC) = 0.922 for daytime reflectance; bias = 0.006, RMSE = 5.842, and CC = 0.995 for nighttime radiance) between the COMS MWIR observation and artificial intelligence (AI)-generated MWIR outputs. Consequently, our findings from the real MWIR observations could be used for identification of fog/low cloud, fire/hot-spot, volcanic eruption/ash, snow and ice, low-level atmospheric vector winds, urban heat islands, and clouds.


This handbook is a guide to help educators and administrators with the decisions they face in the design of an arts assessment. The guide is divided into two broad parts: Part 1: "Background for Thoughtful Arts Education Assessment"; and Part 2: "Assessment Design in Action." The guide includes: (1) a brief background on the standards and assessment movement; (2) a basic three-phase plan to orchestrate a district or state arts assessment; (3) a set of flexible steps to lead people through planning, developing, and implementing their program design; (4) activities that will help address key issues and make administrative decisions to carry out the assessment; and (5) concrete examples drawn from existing state arts assessment efforts, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Arts Assessment. Contains 17 references. Appended is a performance exercise in dance for grades 9 through 12. (BT) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Envisioning Arts Assessment: A Process Guide for Assessing Arts Education in ,4 School Districts and States. Nancy Pistone Debra Brzoska Council of Chief State School Officers, Washington, DC. Arts Education Partnership, Washington, DC. PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY


In the second half of the 60s – at the beginning of the 70s of the XX th century in the soviet historiography, researching the state views of the outstanding Russian thinker B. N. Chicherin, a discussion appeared, which subject was the scientist's view on the social-political system of Russia. The process of understanding B. N. Chicherin's state doctrine continued in subsequent years, and caused the ambiguous estimations of his intellectual legacy. The objectives of this article are: the research of emerging tendencies in the scientific coverage of the thinker's views, the comparative analysis of soviet historians' works on the stated problem, the revelation of the advantages and disadvantages of the works devoted to the consideration of B. N. Chicherin's paternalistic views.


We have read with interest the article by Bracco et al. and would like to bring some comments to your attention. The article presents the results of a randomised study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of nimesulide vs. rofecoxib in post-operative pain in oral surgery. No formal experimental safety or tolerability evaluations are included in the study design. Nonetheless a series of safety concerns on nimesulide is reported in the discussion and (in our view) unfairly emphasised in an unjustified manner that goes well beyond the context of the article. The discussion is in fact widely unbalanced towards the safety of nimesulide while no mention is made as to the safety of rofecoxib, despite the fact that this aspect has been the object of various and recent debates in the international literature. What puzzles us more about the article as a whole is that it seems to be written in order to discredit nimesulide, rather than offering an unbiased experimental analysis on the efficacy of the two drugs, which represents the primary objective of the study. It is undoubtedly correct to provide accompanying safety information, but if these are not available from comparative data, the information reported should at least be related to data observed in similar studies or clinical conditions. For these reasons, Helsinn Healthcare SA, Switzerland (the company which developed and licensed nimesulide worldwide and possesses a complete scientific knowhow on the product), deems it necessary to give the readers updated evidence-based safety information on nimesulide. The suspensions of nimesulide from the Finnish and Spanish markets, mentioned by the Bracco et al., have been superseded by more recent events. The European Committee on Proprietary Medicinal Products (CPMP) (which was formally asked by the Finnish regulatory authorities in April 2002 to give its opinion on the benefit/risk profile of nimesulide), stated in July 2003, that the benefit/risk profile of nimesulide is favourable. This opinion, which was also reported in a WHO Pharmaceuticals Newsletter, is the result of a 16-monthlong careful evaluation based on the documentation provided by Helsinn Healthcare SA as well as by independent institutions. Additionally, a retrospective cohort study published on July 2003 concluded that the risk of hepatopathy among patients taking nimesulide and other non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is small and there are no significant differences between nimesulide and the other NSAIDs. We would like to conclude by mentioning that a similar evaluation process by the CPMP on coxibs (celecoxib, rofecoxib, etoricoxib, parecoxib, valdecoxib) (started last year, after a request from the French authorities), has recently concluded with the recommendation to reinforce the warnings about patients with gastrointestinal and cardiovascular risks and to add or strengthen warnings concerning the risk of severe skin and hypersensitivity problems. This Letter seeks to emphasise the importance of correct and fair information being given to the journal's readers and to potential prescribers of drugs, with the common aim of safeguarding public health and patient safety.


Aiming at the disadvantages of information overload in early-warning surveillance network,this paper proposes the information distribution on demand based on the regulation of target threat in order to improve the information distribution efficiency.According to the characters of threat targets and objects defended,fuzzy integrated decision and analytical hierarchy process has used to evaluate the values of targets threat.In addition,targets can be filtrated by specific threshold,matched with user campaign demand models dynamically,then push the obtained targets information to users ultimately.Simulation results illustrate that this method can realize information distribution on demand effectively.


We propose two‐photon excitation‐based light‐sheet technique for nano‐lithography. The system consists of 2 π ‐configured cylindrical lens system with a common geometrical focus. Upon superposition, the phase‐matched counter‐propagating light‐sheets result in the generation of identical and equi spaced nano‐bump pattern. Study shows a feature size of as small as few tens of nanometers with a inter‐bump distance of few hundred nanometers. This technique overcomes some of the limitations of existing nano‐lithography techniques, thereby, may pave the way for mass‐production of nano‐structures. Potential applications can also be found in optical microscopy, plasmonics, and nano‐electronics. Microsc. Res. Tech. 78:1–7, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


All tests depended on subjective responses to a tone or noisemaker. Now, with brain stem audiometry, it is possible to measure hearing accurately even in the newborn. The basic principle involves the measurement of minute responses that arise in the auditory pathways in the brain stem as a result of sound stimulation. These impulses, measured with scalp electrodes, are fed into a computer which extracts the responses while cancelling interfering background electrical activity. The test is objective, requiring little cooperation on the part of the child. Best traces are obtained with a sleeping child and sedation is often used. Whenever the parents or the doctor suspects a hearing loss, the matter should be pursued until a conclusion regarding hearing level is reached. Brain stem audiometry, an office procedure requiring approximately one hour, now enables hearing specialists to arrive at a diagnosis and begin appropriate therapy. This technique represents a significant advance in the field of otolaryngology. DERALD E. BRACKMANN, MD


(Here 'in such a case' is short for 'in a situation where the positions of myself and Smith are exactly reversed.') By RGRE, for example, if I hold that it would be all right for me to hit Smith but I refuse to consent to or permit the idea of Smith hitting me in such a case, then I am logically inconsistent-I am refusing to accept the logical consequences of my right-judgment. R. M. Hare is the foremost supporter of the view that 'moral judgments are universal or universalisable prescriptions, permissions or prohibitions'; he makes extensive use of OGREs and RGREs.2 I don't find any WGREs in his writings, but I imagine he would accept that 'Giving women equal legal rights would be wrong' entails 'In such a case: don't give me equal legal rights'. The prescriptivism incompleteness theorem seeks to show that, since


A nonlinear magnetoelectric (ME) response has been investigated in a Metglas/piezofiber laminate by applying a bipolar AC magnetic field (Hac) without a DC magnetic bias. The ME voltage (VME) was measured for various amplitudes of Hac of up to 9 Oe over the frequency (f) range 0.1 < f < 40 kHz. Compared to the linear ME behavior, an anomalous response to f and Hac was observed, which is believed to be associated with the Eddy-current loss in the Metglas layers. A frequency multiplication effect was also observed for VME, which was understood by Fourier analysis of the nonlinearity in the magnetostriction.


Neuroscienze cognitive della musica by Alice Mado Proverbio offers an updated selection of studies on the delicate interweaving between musical practice and brain plasticity. The book provides evidence on how the learning and enjoyment of music can be verified by means of neuroimaging techniques, showing how it determines significant variations in sensory and motor cortical areas as well as in limbic centers, the guardians of emotions. The many topics addressed, from perfect pitch to rehabilitation in Parkinson's and mirror neurons, turn out to be useful in an educational perspective, building a valid framework of reference for any further independent investigation. As a reader and commentator on this text, I hope that readers who, like me, are fascinated with the musical synaptic forest, will be able to follow the story of science without getting lost in dead ends, and fully discover just to what degree we are made of music.


METHODS:
Our study included 5 patients with SFT and 18 patients with schwannoma in the head and neck region for whom pre-operative ADC images were obtained using either 1.5 or 3.0 T MRI system with two b-values. An ADC image that showed the tumor at the largest major diameter was selected for each patient, and a region of interest was set circumscribing the tumor. The histogram distributions of ADC values within the region of interest were compared between SFTs and schwannomas with respect to the mean, standard deviation, median, skewness, kurtosis, and percentile.

RESULTS:
The mean and the median ADC values were significantly higher for schwannomas than in SFTs (p = 0.007 in both). Skewness and kurtosis of ADC histograms were significantly lower for schwannomas than for SFTs (p = 0.002 and 0.005, respectively). ADC values differed greatest between the two tumor groups at the 90th percentile, and were significantly higher for schwannomas than for SFTs (p = 0.005). On receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, the area under the curve for kurtosis, skewness, and the 90th percentile ADC values was 0.92, 0.90, and 0.90, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS:
Our study suggests that skewness on ADC histograms may be the most useful diagnostic factor, followed by kurtosis and the 90th percentile ADC values, for differentiation between SFTs and schwannomas.


Monostrategy classification systems are very limited in the type of knowledge theyican use for decision making. On the other hand, potentially better results are achievable using multistrategy systems that integrate two or more types of knowledge representation and/or multiple inference underlying a decision process. In this paper a decision tree and a neural network technique for competitive integration of heterogeneous local experts are proposed. The local experts are either symbolic rule-based classifiers or neural network based monostrategy learning systems. The integration is simple, as it involves no modification of existing symbolic components. The proposed competitive integration systems are tested versus a previously used cooperative neural network based approach. The experimental results on a small financial advising problem indicate significant performance improvements when using the neural network based competitive integration approach as compared to the results obtained from either the individual classifiers, a decision tree based symbolic integration or a cooperative neural network integration method. The best competitive neural network results are achieved by incorporating prior knowledge and a dynamic neural network local expert into the integrated system.