Variant angina, which is associated with coronary artery spam, is difficult to recognize on routine preoperative evaluation. Coronary spasm results in myocardial ischemia and even lethal arrhythmia in severe cases. Since patients are unconscious and cannot complain of symptoms during general anesthesia, early detection of such an event is difficult, and it could lead to severe bradycardia or cardiac arrest. We report a case of a patient with previously undiagnosed variant angina who experienced severe hypotension and ventricular fibrillation during general anesthesia.


Patient-oriented medical social networks aim to help their users, with different levels of knowledge, by providing information and support on specific medical and health issues. As one of such pioneering networks, the MedHelp includes forums which allow interaction between users seeking health and medical information with other users who know or live in the context of the information, so they can share their experiences. However, there is no explicit control over what is being answered by users. Therefore, filtering and sorting the answers are fundamental tasks. This work presents PERank as a method and a tool which aim to order answers to questions on forums of medical social networks. By manipulating documents about Type 1 Diabetes disease, experimentation results demonstrate the feasibility of PERank for a low number of best-ranked answers being analyzed.


The migration of radionuclides through intact tuff was studied using tuff from Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The tuff samples were both highly zeolitized ash-fall tuff from the Calico Hills and densely welded devitrified tuff from the Topopah Springs member of the Paintbrush tuff. Tritiated water and pertechnetate were used as conservative tracers. The sorbing tracers {sup 85}Sr, {sup 137}Cs, and {sup 133}Ba were used with the devitrified tuff only. Greater tailing in the elution curves of the densely welded tuff samples was observed that could be fit by adjusting the dispersion coefficient in the conventional Advection Dispersion Equation, ADE. The curves could be fit using time dependent dispersion as was previously observed for sediments and alluvium by Dieulin, Matheron, and de Marsily. The peak of strontium concentration was expected to arrive after 1.5 years based on the conventional ADE and assuming a linear K{sub d} of 26 ml/g. The observed elution had significant strontium in the first sample taken at 2 weeks after injection. The peak in the strontium elution occurred at 5 weeks. The correct arrival time for the strontium peak was achieved using a one dimensional analytic solution with time dependent dispersion. The dispersion coefficient as a function ofmore » time used to fit the conservative tracers was found to predict the peak arrival of the sorbing tracers. The K{sub d} used was the K{sub d} determined by the batch method on crushed tuff. 23 refs., 9 figs., 2 tabs.« less


We study the $J/\psi \to \gamma \pi^+ \pi^-$, $\gamma \pi^0 \eta$ reactions from the perspective that they come from the $J/\psi \to \phi(\omega) \pi^+ \pi^-, \rho^0\pi^0 \eta$ reactions where the $\rho^0$, $\omega$, and $\phi$ get converted into a photon via vector meson dominance. Using models successfully used previously to study the $J/\psi \to \omega (\phi) \pi\pi$ reactions, we make determinations of the invariant mass distributions for $\pi^+ \pi^-$ in the regions of the $f_0(500)$, $f_0(980)$ and for $\pi^0 \eta$ in the region of the $a_0(980)$. The integrated differential widths lead to branching ratios below present upper bounds, but they are sufficiently large for future check in updated facilities.


This research is motivated by the importance of optimizing the implementation of community empowerment in a program so that it runs in accordance with the policy implementation plans that have been written and compiled. The implementation of the MAYAJUWITA program is regulated by Perwali No. 2 of 2016 concerning the implementing guidelines for community programs towards a tourism city (MAYAJUWITA). This implementation is proven to run with the attention and detailed implementation of the Government as a whole. This study uses a qualitative descriptive method with data collection techniques using observation, interviews, and documentation studies. The data processing technique uses data reduction, data presentation, drawing conclusions/verification. Research Results The implementation of community empowerment in the MAYAJUWITA program in Blitar City was able to run well because the sub-districts and villages of each Blitar City were able to optimize implementing regulations with the budget provided by the APBD PRO RAKYAT


In this paper, we investigate the existence of random attractor for the random dynamical system generated by the Kirchhoff-type suspension bridge equations with strong damping and white noises. We first prove the existence and uniqueness of solutions to the initial boundary value conditions, and then we study the existence of the global attractors of the equation.


Five Bovine Cases of Tumor with Metastatic Implantation in the Body Cavity CHIHE MASATANI et al.(Tama Meat Inspection Station , Prefecture of Tokyo, et al.) SUMMARY In the past 2 years, 5 bovine cases of tumor indicating metastatic implantation in the serous membrane of the body cavity were encountered at the Tama Meat Inspection Station. They were diagnosed histologically as malignant granulosa-cell tumor, ovarian papillary adenocarcinoma, malignant lymphoma, malignant theca-cell tumor, and mesenchymal chondrosarcoma, respectively. Ovarian papillary adenocarcinoma and malignant theca-cell tumor are rare in Japan. Mesenchymal chondrosarcoma with isletlike aggregation of chondromatous cells and tumorous hyperplasia of fibroblast and reticular cell-like cells has not yet been reported in Japan.


In this paper a detailed analysis on torque ripples of brushless dc drives in both commutation and conduction region is given. A neoteric method for the elimination of torque ripples in BLDC motor by employing PWM_ON_PWM scheme has been introduced by the addition of a buck converter in the entrance of the inverter. PWM_ON_PWM strategy is mainly applied to compensate the commutation torque ripples during commutation period caused by commutation current and it cannot entirely remove the torque ripples that are resulted from current introducing in the turn off phase. Closed loop operation using PWM_ON_PWM scheme with buck converter is used for eliminating the ripples in both conduction and commutation region. The duty cycle of PWM is regulated by using wave function of back EMF and for speed regulation PI controller is used. Simulation results are used for revealing circuit validation.


Periodicities in the brightness variations of HZ Her are analyzed by an original computer program, using published photoelectric observations. There is a stable secondary fluctuation with elements Min I = JD 2,440,814.824 + 1/sup d/.0977 E and an amplitude ..delta..B/sub 1/ = 0/sup m/.33. This fluctuation is responsible for the shift in the humps on the light curve and evidently results from the rotation of one of the components. Two other independent fluctuations are identified, with periods P/sub 2/ approximately 0/sup d/.87 and P/sub 3/ approximately 1/sup d/.62. The mean P/sub 3/ light curve is asymmetrical, perhaps because of pulsations of the primary star.


Abstract Most of the wood bark produced by the forestry production is discarded in spite of containing many kinds of the phytochemical ingredients. The aim of the present study was to identify secondary metabolites from the bark of Larix kaempferi generated as waste material and evaluate their potential as cosmetic agents. Eighteen compounds, including a novel phenanthrene, 4,6,7-trihydroxyphenanthrene-2-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (16), were isolated from the bark of L. kaempferi and identified by matrix assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). In addition, the tyrosinase inhibitory activity of these compounds was evaluated. Procyanidin B7 (18) exhibited the most potent inhibition with IC50 values of 31.0 μM and 61.8 μM when using L-tyrosine and L-dopa as the substrate, respectively, which were similar to those of the positive control, kojic acid. Interestingly, quercetin-3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (10) was shown to possess the tyrosinase inhibition although the other series of 3-glycoylated flavonols were not active, suggesting that the rhamnosyl group at C-3 and the hydroxyl group at C-3ʹ played an indispensable role in the anti-tyrosinase activity. These findings indicate that a number of constituents from L. kaempferi bark may have potential as additives in cosmetics.


With growing competition in the banking sector, banks are focusing their efforts not only by providing better quality products and higher service quality but also to have a competitive edge over its rivals. The aim of this paper is to assess the service quality of the products in the Mauritian Banking Sector. A sample of 110 respondents from different areas was used for this project. The SERVQUAL Model was used to carry out the analysis. The study focused on five service quality dimensions, namely; tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy. The results show that expectations of customers are higher than perceptions indicating that in general customers are disappointed with service quality level. Reliability and empathy were the two factors having the highest gap. Further it was observed that tangibility had the lowest gap showing that customers are mostly satisfied with the way staffs are dressed, appearance and facilities of the banks. It was found that Self Employed respondents and respondents earning 0-8000 were satisfied of bank's staffs approach to answer questions, and speed of which problems are dealt. However respondents in higher income groups are unsatisfied with banks' services. This paper contributes to the existing literature on service quality in the Mauritian banking sector.


Two n‐vertex hypergraphs G and H pack, if there is a bijection f:V(G)→V(H) such that for every edge e∈E(G) , the set {f(v):v∈e} is not an edge in H. Extending a theorem by Bollobás and Eldridge on graph packing to hypergraphs, we show that if n≥10 and n‐vertex hypergraphs G and H with |E(G)|+|E(H)|≤2n−3 with no edges of size 0, 1, n−1 and n do not pack, then either one of G and H contains a spanning graph‐star, and each vertex of the other is contained in a graph edge, or one of G and H has n−1 edges of size n−2 not containing a given vertex, and for every vertex x of the other hypergraph some edge of size n−2 does not contain x.


Listening and speaking are crucial communicative skills. It goes without saying that, under normal circumstances, almost two-thirds of our daily language use is spent on listening and speaking. However, a quite number of students have not yet been provided with the opportunity to acquire listening and speaking appropriately in China, so that there are still a considerable number of students, even university graduates, who are not satisfied with their oral English skills, especially their listening abilities. Therefore, this study attempts to focus on investigating and analyzing the effectiveness and practicality of English listening behavior in English learning. In order to effectively teach and learn, different groups of people should also have relatively appropriate and efficient learning behaviors, so as to enhance the awareness and ability of language input acquisition.


This paper deals with a three-dimensional numerical procedure based on the finite-element method for the modeling of finite-amplitude progressive acoustic waves. The method can predict the nonlinear propagation of acoustic fields produced by sources of arbitrary geometry. Based upon a perturbation method, a second-order analytical study is developed and the numerical procedure is formulated. Basic equations are derived and their ranges of validity established. The analytical validation of the numerical development is presented. An experimental validation is also carried out for the nonlinear acoustic field radiated by a stepped-plate transducer.


Transmission line pulse (TLP) is a useful tool in immunity test of electrostatic discharge (ESD). The pulse width and rising time of TLP waveform is the key point of the anti-static interference test. A TLP generator is built based on the principle of TLP. The generator is used to test and analyze influences of pulse generating line, relay, pulse transmission line, load and the ground wire of the oscilloscope probe, respectively.


A number of spherical storage tanks of different metallurgies were inspected with non-destructive testing methods,i.e.macro testing,MT,UT and RT,etc to find out the potential safety hazard.Most of the defects were repaired by blasting and welding,and the technical requirements and process parameters of repair welding were described.For the remaining defects,safety assessment was performed using two different calculation methods based upon fracture mechanics.In operation,an appropriate coating was applied on the external wall of the tanks for corrosion protection,and H2S in storage media was controlled to prevent SSCC of internal wall.The practices show that the inspection is effective and the defect treatments are practical and reliable,which have ensured the safe operation of spherical tanks.


Conclusions. Modelling the processes of tax budgeting of an enterprise is a serious factor for increasing the efficiency of management decisions. The basics are analytical models and the method of margin analysis. A logistic model of cash flows is used, which makes it possible to assess the results of the interaction of material flows with the dynamics of tax payments and, first of all, on turnover taxes. The use of system dynamics methods allows to improve the process of drawing up short-term and medium-term tax budgets. Based on results of the system dynamics model of the enterprise's cash and tax obligations flow, it becomes possible to assess the parameters of the cash flow plan and the direction of the temporary using of amounts to be paid to the state budget.


Ketene cooled in a supersonic jet is photolyzed at 1,120, 190, and 30 cm{sup {minus}1} above and at 50 cm{sup {minus}1} below the top of the barrier to dissociation on the triplet surface. The barrier is 1,330 cm{sup {minus}1} above CH{sub 2}({tilde X}{sup 3}B{sub 1}) + CO. The rotational-state distributions of CO produced from triplet ketene are measured by vacuum-UV laser-induced fluorescence. These distributions cannot be described adequately by a Boltzmann temperature or by phase space statistical models. An average of 22.4 {plus minus} 1% of the total available energy goes to CO rotation as predicted by an impulsive model using the ab initio transition-state geometry. This indicates that the energy partitioning is determined by the geometry of the transition state with the repulsive force directed along the breaking bond. The fraction of energy going to CO rotation does not depend on the photolysis wavelength. The Gaussian shape of the CO rotational-state distribution can be understood quantitatively in terms of the zero-point motion of the C-C-O bending vibration of the transition state. Even when the excess energy above the top of the barrier is comparable to the barrier height itself, the energy release appears to be completely dynamically controlled.


It is widely recognised that labour has been downplayed in the literature on global value chains (GVCs) and global production networks (GPNs). While several scholars have tried to bring labour "back in" to GVC research, others suggest this agenda does not go far enough and fails to challenge mainstream political and economic assumptions. Taking its cue from calls for a "re-formulated research agenda" for labour in GPNs, this paper uses a case study of capital and labour relations in India's rapidly growing automotive industry to po sit an analytical framework that can sufficiently recognise workers' "co-constitutive" role in the operation, reproduction and restructuring of commodity chains dominated by powerful global corporations.


Lupus erythematosus has a wide variety of cutaneous presentations. An unusual and seldom recognized LE variant is lupus erythematosus tumidus (LET),


The keys to efficient testing are to detect problems as early as possible in the testing phase and to try and detect problems before they reach the customer. Three product offerings of a major software company are examined, and recommendations on how the testing and maintenance processes for these products can be improved are given. The rationale behind these recommendations is based on an analysis of the types of errors being reported in each product, when these errors are found, and in which modules they are found.<<ETX>>


The present investigation deals with preparation of a stable titanium (IV) colloid solution from ammonium oxysulfotitanate (NH4)2TiO(SO4)2∙H2O and oxysulfotitanate TiOSO4∙ H2O solutions. The colloid precursor was used in the synthesis of spherical TiO2 particles with ion-exchange properties. A relationship between the nature of the initial solution, the number of terminal and bridging OH groups in resulting sol, and the sorption properties of hydroxooxotitane prepared by sol–gel method has been established. Studies of the exchange behavior of different cations have confirmed the dominant role of bridged OHgroups.


One hundred strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae, resistant to amikacin and ceftazidime, were tested in vitro for susceptibility to meropenem, imipenem, cefepime and cefoxitin by the E test, and tested for susceptibility to ciprofloxacin by the disk test. All strains tested were highly susceptible to meropenem and imipenem with minimal inhibitory concentrations for 90 percent of the strains (MIC90) of 0.125 and 1 mg/L, respectively. Seventy-seven and 61 percent of strains were susceptible to cefepime and cefoxitin, but with lower levels of activity with MIC90 of 64 and > 256 mg/L, respectively. Only 32 percent of strains were susceptible to ciprofloxacin. All 13 strains resistant to amikacin, ceftazidime, cefepime, cefoxitin and ciprofloxacin were susceptible to meropenem and imipenem. These results suggest that meropenem and imipenem should be recommended as therapy for multiresistant K. pneumoniae infections. Other antimicrobial agents might be useful but should be confirmed with the antimicrobial susceptibility test. Cefoxitin should be used with special caution because of its very high MIC90 .


The author examines alternative methods for generating population estimates. In particular the relative merits of the ratio-correlation and difference-correlation methods are assessed in light of recent studies. (ANNOTATION)


This paper explains the endowment effect, whereby sellers generally demand considerably more for a good than buyers are prepared to pay, and related anomalies. Many decisions, including nominating buying or selling prices, involve uncertainty, and we assert that people experience negative psychological reactions to uncertainty. These reactions can affect a person's valuation of the various options, biasing the person's actions towards the status quo, thus producing the endowment effect. Our model also proposes positive or negative reactions to unlikely prospects, which are able to explain commonly observed behaviour in the presence of ambiguity.


To test the difference of two binomial probabilities, we will apply the Fisher exact test modified by Chernoff (2002), which will be called CMF test. The key idea is to use the P-value of Fisher exact test as a test statistic and this makes it possible to apply the Fisher exact test for more general problems. The numerical comparison with the likelihood ratio test and the Bayes test are also conducted and we find that the performance of CMF test is close to that of the likelihood ratio test and it is satisfactory in various situations. We also give a Kullback-Leibler information number of the margins to for the testing problems which justify the stability of P-values of CMF test.


Autonomous navigation using geomagnetic field is studied in the paper. The system state equations based on the dynamic equation of satellite orbit were built, and the observation equations with geomagnetic field vector as the observable were derived in detail. The traditional Kalman Filter is not applicable to the system due to the nonlinear system; to solve the nonlinear problem of the system, the EKF method for nonlinear system was introduced into the autonomous navigation system using geomagnetic field. At the end simulations were made for the autonomous navigation system using geomagnetic field with Matlab. The results show that the EKF has good performance in stability and convergence, the observation with Geomagnetic vector has higher navigation precision relative to the observation with Geomagnetic size.


BACKGROUND: Mild Behavioral Impairment (MBI) is a neuropsychiatric syndrome describing later-life emergent apathy, mood/anxiety symptoms, impulse dyscontrol, social inappropriateness and psychosis that are not attributable to psychiatric diagnoses. MBI is an at-risk state for incident cognitive decline and dementia, and is associated with dementia biomarkers including amyloid beta; and neurofilament light. Thus, MBI may be an early clinical marker of neurodegenerative disease. In this study, we hypothesized that stratification by MBI in a cognitively normal sample would moderate the signal between Alzheimer disease (AD) genetic risk and cognition. METHODS: Genetic, cognitive and MBI data was available for 3,126 PROTECT study participants over 50 without dementia. A general cognitive composite score was constructed based on scores on paired associates learning, digit span, self-ordered search and verbal reasoning. MBI was assessed using the MBI Checklist. Polygenic scores for AD were split by tertile (representing low, medium and high risk) and the sample was stratified by MBI into those with no symptoms and those with any symptoms. RESULTS: AD genetic risk was associated with poorer cognition in the MBI strata only (MBI: F(2,1746)=4.95, p=0.007; no MBI: F(2,1366)=0.72, p=0.49). The mean difference between low and high genetic risk groups was significant (p=0.005) and the standardised effect size in the MBI sample was higher than in the whole sample. CONCLUSIONS: These findings justify MBI screening to enrich samples with at-risk individuals, and underscore the importance of late-life neuropsychiatric symptoms in cognitive ageing.


This study focuses on the changes to the Social Health Insurance System in Romania, by introducing co-payment. It is an initiative of the Ministry of Health, whose impact seems to be minimal and without any significant relevance to health care providers or for the insured.


New metering technologies can lead the way to the development of low-voltage electrical infrastructure. However, the high level of heterogeneity of potential benefits makes it difficult to define heterogeneous management action. The aim of our investigation is two-fold. First, we need to identify the current aims of the legislator concerning the development of this type of infrastructure and then propose a classification of the potential benefits of smart metering in line with the aims of the legislator's in order to provide the parties involved with a definition of the most suitable and homogeneous management action. Thus, we identified six priority objectives (Competence, Quality, Efficiency, Demand, Safety and Operability). With these we made a classification of the benefits of smart metering. In some cases, benefits are associated with previously untargeted objectives, such as remote field operations and safety. Results also reveal that access to "Accurate data" provided by smart metering has an impact on the six objectives. Consequently, access to information is the key factor and regulators face the challenge of providing access to all the parties involved.

Keywords: Smart Metering, Development, Electrical Infrastructure, Competence, Quality, Efficiency, Demand, Safety, Operability.


We predicted that members of Chinese groups would tend to express personality judgments that establish commonalities among members, whereas members of American groups would tend to express judgments that affirm how members differ. We had groups of five acquaintances (23 groups at one U.S. university, 28 groups at three Chinese universities) rate their own and each other's traits and subjected the round-robin data to social relations model and social accuracy model analyses. As hypothesized, Chinese were more likely to portray their peers as similar to themselves and to each other as indicated by greater perceived self-other similarity and less variance in target ratings; conversely, Americans were more likely to express a shared understanding of what distinguished each group member from others, as indicated by greater distinctive agreement and target variance (consensus). Collectivistic values mediated effects of country on perceived similarity; individualistic values mediated effects of country on consensus and perceived similarity.


Pseudomystus funebris, a new species of bagrid catfi sh is described from blackwater habitats in southern Borneo. The new species can be distinguished from congeners except for P. heokhuii by its unique colour pattern of a pale midlateral stripe and pale oblique bands on the sides of the body. It is distinguished from P. heokhuii in having a shorter adipose-fi n base (14.2-17.7% SL vs. 18.2-22.8), more slender caudal peduncle (7.3-8.9% SL vs. 8.8-10.5), wider head (24.4-26.2% SL vs. 21.7-23.8) and larger eye (11.2-14.7% HL vs. 8.5-10.7) and a slightly convex (vs. evenly sloping) predorsal profi le.


Passage 1 Wandering Comets and Asteroids (3)Comets and asteroids that caused explosions long ago over the sea or in remote locations usually do not catch your attention. You may want to believe that extinction-level impact events are extremely improbable and that they aren't worth thinking about. However, the discovery of a comet by Carolyn and Eugene M. Shoemaker and


Hou Bei is a very particular kind of epitaphs among numerous stele epitaphs of "Han Nan Epitaphs Collection". Hou Bei can be categorized as Hou Fo, Hou Shen, Hou Xiang, Hou Ji, etc. Among these, some Hou Shen epitaphs are attached to Sheng Ci (shrine) epitaphs or both were erected simultaneously. The combination of Sheng Ci and Hou Shen sacrifices/offerings portrays the fusion of Chinese and Vietnamese cultures.Li Zhong Yi Shrine-located in Dong Shan county, Qing Hua province, Vietnam-is the regional shrine with both Sheng Ci and Hou Shen epitaphs. Villagers built this shrine for Li Zhong Yi when he was in the prime of his political power. There are two pieces of steles on both sides of the shrine. Li Zhong Yi's achievements are inscribed in these epitaphs, along with the reasons and ceremonies of worshiping Li Zhong Yi as Hou Shen in the neighboring villages. The illustrated frameworks and ceremonial process of sacrifices/offerings to the God or the deceased provide evidence of the particular Vietnamese culture.This study aims to analyze the four pieces of steles and ten epitaphs to evaluate the correlation of the contents with historical records, as well as to explain the value of epitaphs in historical context. This will help expose the mystery of the Vietnamese Li Hou custom, and provide new insights on China's and Vietnam's cultural relationship.


The present invention, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, obesity, and / or for use in the treatment of a disease or condition is diabetic nephropathy, the NMDA receptor on pancreatic islet targeted general formula ( wherein about morphinan derivative or a physiologically acceptable salt thereof and / or stereoisomers (including mixtures thereof in all ratios) having C


The growth effects of schooling are often assumed to be exaggerated because of feedback effects from growth to schooling. This paper investigates the nexus between productivity growth and schooling at different levels using a sample of 19 OECD countries over the period 1870 to 2006. The empirical estimates show 1) that schooling is independent of expected growth and most other variables that are associated with the present value of schooling; 2) a one-way causality from schooling to growth; and 3) that the growth effects of schooling are increased rather than reduced when schooling is instrumented.


Ropaigealach v. Barclays Bank plc (not yet reported) is another case that attempts to define precisely the relationship between a mortgagee's right to possession of mortgaged premises following default by the mortgagor and the court's ability to defeat or defer this right under its statutory powers. More than that, the Ropaigealach decision illuminates brightly the true extent of a mortgagee's possessory rights and may, if other mortgagees cannot resist the temptation to follow its lead, require the further intervention of Parliament to protect mortgagors of dwelling houses.


Large-scale public projects are evaluated by their B/C ratio, the social benefits divided by the costs. Although both benefits and costs are uncertain, the uncertainty is not typically taken into account. We model the uncertainties of both benefits and costs and propose a new concept of "probability of fulfillment, " the probability that the benefits exceed the costs even after a certain period of time. We further propose a new project-evaluation method under uncertainty by deriving the relationship between the ex-ante criterion for B/C and the probability of fulfillment.


W hile efficacy and safety are proven for all modern glucose-lowering drugs, their tolerability may vary. This is especially true in terms of weight gain. This communication proposes a váro-centric model of diabetes care. This approach helps choose appropriate glucose-lowering therapy, based upon weight (body mass index). The váro-centric model suggests a weight-centric approach to selection of drugs. While respecting the tenets of patient-centred care and good clinical sense, it serves as a clinical and teaching tool for rational prescription in diabetes.


Classical Turbo code suffers from high error floor due to its small Minimum Hamming Distance (MHD). Newly-proposed 3D-Turbo code can effectively increase the MHD and achieve a lower error floor by adding a rate-1 post encoder. In 3D-Turbo codes, part of the parity bits from the classical Turbo encoder are further encoded through the post encoder. In this paper, a novel Bit-Interleaved Coded Modulation (BICM) system is proposed by combining rotated mapping Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) and 3D-Turbo code to improve the Bit Error Rate (BER) performance of 3D-Turbo code over Raleigh fading channel. A key-bit protection scheme and a Two-Dimension (2D) iterative soft demodulating-decoding algorithm are developed for the proposed BICM system. Simulation results show that the proposed system can obtain about 0.8-1.0 dB gain at BER of 10−6, compared with the existing BICM system with Gray mapping QAM.


Drawing upon critical perspectives, this qualitative multiple-case study examines the
self-perceived identities, perceptions and pedagogical practices of four experienced (5+
years of service), white settler teachers currently teaching in an urban school division
located in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. This study explores two research
questions: How do the identities of white settler teachers shape their perceptions of race
and language? How do these perceptions construct their pedagogical practices?
Through analysis of interview data, this study illustrates the ways in which white settler
teachers reproduce discourses of whiteness to maintain colonial racial and linguistic
hierarchies in settler schools today. Findings demonstrate that white settler teachers do
not recognize the significance of their racial and linguistic identities and privilege,
perceiving their identities to be neutral and standard rather than historically and socially
constructed. Colonial discourses of Otherness are present as participants discuss their
understanding of difference in student achievement, belonging and home support of the
Othered identities within their classrooms. Drawing upon these findings, I consider how
whiteness, as an invisible undercurrent within settler schools, is maintained through
"common sense" perceptions, practices and pedagogical practices of white settler
teachers. Furthermore, I discuss how naturalized colonial discourses are comfortable in
conversations amongst white settler teachers and act in a concealed manner to maintain inequity in schools today.
Key Terms: white settler, settler colonialism, pedagogy, racism, teacher identity, settler
schools, whiteness, white privilege


Grid connected Photovoltaic (PV) systems are among the increasingly growing electric power generation units worldwide. The majority of new installations are expected to be residential PVs that are connected into distribution systems. However, the PV hosting capacity of low voltage (LV) grids is limited due to the voltage rise at the point of connection associated with the PV feed-in current. Reactive power management using PV inverters and using the electrical energy storage systems (EESS) are amongst the main solutions for increasing the PV hosting capacity in LV grids. In this paper, a method is developed in order to examine the effect of reactive power absorption by PV inverters on EESS capacity required for overvoltage prevention in LV grids. Simulations show that reactive power absorption can effectively decrease the EESS capacity.


Small dams in inland Australia are key farm infrastructure and are essential for the economic survival of rural business during sustained drought. However, harsh arid climatic conditions result in annual evaporation losses greater than annual water usage. The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of replacing small farm dams with groundwater dams, constructed by filling the farm dams with gravel or sand. Water is then stored in the soil pore space, where evaporation decreases as a function of water depth below the surface of the soil, until at a depth of 0.9m, evaporation is negligible. Although storage volume is reduced, this method may be an efficient alternative to the current unavoidable evaporation losses from open surface waters. Daily evaporation data, and storage efficiency of representative farm dams has been compared to the computed evaporation and storage efficiency from equivalent dams filled with coarse material. Data has been taken for a number of sites in western New South Wales from 1966 to 2006. Results have shown that when the water level is below the surface, evaporation is significantly reduced and water saved, particularly from larger dams in arid regions more than semiarid regions. The study concludes that the application of groundwater dams would be beneficial in arid areas of Australia for larger, deeper storages, however not much benefit is seen in their application in semi-arid regions. Groundwater dams reduce evaporation losses and appear to be an effective storage solution but more detailed simulations over longer climatic periods as well as field trials should be undertaken before they are implemented in Australia.


Variation in the IL28B gene, which encodes interferon-λ, was recently identified as a predictor of response to hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapy (JW


The paper is devoted to the investigation of nonclassical states of the continuous light beams in three coupled Kerr nonlinear waveguides. It is shown that spatially separated entangled beams can be generated in this system.


In recent years, with the popularization of computer and information network technology, the core business of more and more industries has basically realized informatization office. Although the informatization office has brought a lot of convenience to people, the increasingly complex informatization infrastructure equipment has also buried many hidden dangers for people. More and more security incidents are caused by unfamiliarity with these infrastructures. How to use the information infrastructure correctly has become a problem considered by more and more enterprise information security departments, and the position of IT operation and maintenance is born to solve this hidden danger. The IT (Internet Technology) operation and maintenance personnel of each enterprise formulate a set of operational risk quantitative assessment models for the enterprise based on the internal information infrastructure equipment of the enterprise so that the enterprise staff can use these infrastructure equipment efficiently and safely. This paper focused on the quantitative assessment model of IT operation and maintenance operation risk constructed by the digital twin model. The quantitative assessment model of IT operation and maintenance operation risk constructed by the digital twin model was compared with the quantitative assessment model of IT operation and maintenance operation risk constructed by other traditional models. The comparison results showed that the output results of the evaluation model constructed by the digital twin model were closer to the actual results, and the accuracy rate was 35.9% higher than that of the previous operational risk assessment model.


has its origins in the work of Fermat, Euler, Lagrange, and Legendre (see for example [5, Chapter 1]). An integer n is said to be represented by f if there exist integers x and y such that n = f(x, y). An important problem in the theory of binary quadratic forms is to determine the set of positive primes represented by f(x, y). For this problem we restrict ourselves to those f which are (i) primitive, that is GCD(a, b, c) = 1; (ii) irreducible, that is the discriminant D = b2 4ac is not a square; and (iii) positive-definite if D < 0. This avoids those f which represent at most one prime or for which the representation problem can be solved by factoring f. If f satisfies (i), (ii), (iii) it will be called a form for short. Dirichlet in 1840 (see [7, Vol. I, pp. 497-502]) was the first to show that a form ax2 + bxy + cy2 represents infinitely many primes for a certain class of discriminants and Weber [10] in 1882 was the first to give a proof valid for any discriminant. In the seventeenth century Fermat characterized the set of primes represented by the form X2 + y2 He showed that this set consists of the prime 2 together with all primes p 1 (mod 4). If we exclude the prime 2, which divides the discriminant -4 of the form X2 + y2 Fermat's theorem can be stated: for a prime p + 2 we have


We have used scanning tunneling microscopy, atom‐resolved tunneling spectroscopy, and photoemission to investigate the interaction of B with Si(111). Using decaborane as the source of B, we have followed the structural and electronic modifications of the surface as a function of the annealing temperature. In the stable B/Si(111)‐ 7/8 × 7/8 surface, B occupies a novel configuration where it substitutes for a Si atom in the 3rd atomic layer directly below a Si adatom. Because of a Si‐to‐B charge transfer, the top Si adatom layer has no occupied dangling‐bond states and is insulating. As a result, the chemical properties of Si adatoms on the B/Si(111)‐ 7/8 × 7/8 surface are very different from those of the adatoms on the Si(111)‐7×7 surface. We find evidence for doping effects on chemistry that involve short‐range direct dopant‐reactive site interactions. Finally, we report on the electrical characteristics of localized defect sites on the B‐doped Si surface. We found that I–V curves over such sites may show...


Objective: To assess the effect of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and other factors on tuberculosis (TB). Method: A cross sectional study was used to analyze data from the Cape Town Metro East Geographic Service Area (GSA) Electronic TB Register (ETR.net) including adult patients aged 15 years or more, who initiated TB treatment between 1st July 2011 and 30th June 2012. Findings: TB case notification in East GSA was 922 per 100 000 population, of the 12672 TB patients registered, 50% were co-infected with HIV. The incidence of death in co-infected patients was 5% versus 3% in HIV-negative patients, treatment success 67% versus 73% and unfavourable treatment outcome 28% versus 24%. The Khayelitsha sub-district had the highest proportion of TB burden (37%) and coinfection (65%). Fourteen percent of patients had extra-pulmonary TB (EPTB), 66% of whom were coinfected with HIV. In the multivariate analysis HIV (RR 1.2), retreatment (RR 1.4) and sputum smear microscopy not done (RR 1.4) were significantly associated with unfavourable treatment outcome. The Eastern (RR 0.9) and Northern (RR 0.7) sub-districts were less likely to have unfavourable outcomes compared to Khayelitsha. In the stratified analysis retreatment and smear not done were significant risk factor for an unfavourable treatment outcome in both co-infected and HIV-negative patients. Conclusion: The burden of both TB and co-infection was high in this community although HIV prevalence varied. Mortality was higher and treatment completion lower in co-infected patients. Co-infection, previous TB treatment and smear not done were significant risk factors for an unfavourable outcome in all patients.


: "Investment Science" is the core course or elective course of Economics and finance major in colleges and universities, the teaching of investment science in the course of ideological and political education is of great significance for improving students' comprehensive quality and realizing their all-round development. This paper analyzes the ideological and political education goal of the course of "Investment Science" by mining the ideological and political elements contained in the course of "Investment Science", and probes into the teaching practice of the course of "Investment Science" under the ideological and political background of the course, in order to provide some help for the relevant researchers.


94 Background: Bortezomib is a novel first-in-class proteasome inhibitor and received it's FDA approval with twice weekly dosing on day 1, 4, 8 and 11 of a 21-day cycle with weekly complete blood count (CBC). However, subsequent studies have shown that weekly dosing has equal drug efficacy. Our clinical practice at Feist-Weiller cancer center is to administer weekly subcutaneous bortezomib injection after reviewing the CBC. Objective: To analyze hematological toxicities with weekly bortezomib and assess the need for CBC prior to administration of bortezomib. Methods: A retrospective analysis of CBC results was done for every patient receiving bortezomib as part of bortezomib and dexamethasone +/- lenalidomide regimens in a 2-year period (2017-2018). The data extraction was done using Epic Clarity database using an SQL script which identified each treatment duration in minutes between check in and check out, Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) and platelet count on each treatment day. Results: A total of 38 patients received 626 treatment doses of bortezomib. The average patient stay between check-in and check-out was 227 mins. There was very low incidence of grade 3 thrombocytopenia (0.64%) and grade 3 neutropenia (0.32%). There is no evidence of grade 4 cytopenia's or any dose changes from cytopenia's. This data suggests that weekly lab monitoring may not be necessary prior to drug administration. Conclusions: Using this data, we have streamlined our approach for monitoring patients receiving weekly bortezomib. During weekly bortezomib administration, we propose to obtain a CBC on day 1 of every 4 weeks. If either platelet count is less than 75,000 /μl and ANC is less than 1000/μl on day 1, we will monitor labs weekly until count recovery. We believe that this new protocol may result in 75% reduction in the average patient stay for the treatment. It will reduce the need for phlebotomy and lab services. We believe that this change will improve patient satisfaction and an another step forward to efficient and safe patient care at our institute.


DC voltage balance strategy is an important control part for Cascaded H-Bridge Rectifier. Proportional pulse compensation strategy is a typical voltage balance strategy, which can realize DC voltage balance with good performance under special working condition. However, the balance effect may be influenced by load current, and it is hard for self adoption under different load conditions. This paper proposes a kind of improved voltage balance strategy through modeling analysis on the circuit on the basis of this proportional pulse compensation strategy. The load current is introduced to the regulator, so as to better realize DC voltage balance under different load conditions. Simulation and experimental results verify the proposed improved strategy.


A facile method for the conversion of C-F bonds of benzotrifluorides to C-C bonds has been developed using aluminium reagents in the absence of catalysts.


The purpose for undertaking this study was to identify the benefits and problem areas of competency based vocational education (CBVE) as perceived by students, faculty, and administrators at the Cabot Institute of Applied Arts and Technology in the Province of Newfoundland. It was anticipated that this report would identify areas of agreement and disagreement among, between, and within the three groups. -- The study also compared perceptions toward CBVE of faculty who taught academic courses with those who taught courses which were technical or trade specific. The perceptions of students enrolled in business education programs were also compared with those of students enrolled in other pre-employment trade or technical programs at the Institute. -- A review of the literature indicated that many of the problems and benefits associated with CBVE either dealt with its implementation or one of five operational aspects concerning learning activity packages, evaluation and testing, performance objectives, managerial aspects, and attitudes toward CBVE. Therefore, data were gathered by means of three questionnaires, which were developed specifically for this study based on the review of the literature: one for students; one for faculty; and one for administrators. In order to ensure that a valid investigation could be conducted, statements concerning these five operational aspects were developed and five content experts in the area of CBVE asked to judge the validity of each statement, and also to indicate in which of the five categories it should be placed. Only items on which four of the five content experts agreed were used in the questionnaires. -- On the basis of the study it was concluded that differences in the perceptions of academic faculty and technical faculty toward implementation and operational aspects of CBVE were statistically significant at the .1 level. Academic faculty indicated a more negative reaction toward CBVE than did any other group or sub-group. All other groups and subgroups reacted positively to the majority of statements concerning CBVE. Students had a very positive perception of the programs in which they were enrolled and the manner in which they were being taught. They indicated quite strongly that they felt their course material was relevant, that evaluation was meaningful, and that they had a good working relationship with their instructors. -- The findings of this study may have implications for the development of CBVE at the Cabot Institute. Although CBVE appeared to be operating quite well at Cabot there were obvious problems, not so much with students' interpretations, but with those of academic faculty members. Therefore, it was recommended that studies be conducted to determine what faculty and administrators feel are the major problems hindering the successful implementation and operation of CBVE at the Cabot Institute, with particular emphasis on academic courses. There is also a need for longitudinal evaluation to ensure that in the future CBVE is implemented and operated in the best possible manner at the Cabot Institute.


1. Heat internal combustion engine comprising at least one combustion chamber for a gas inlet, containing a mixture consisting of fuel, such as gasoline, and an oxidant such as air, connected to the circuit (A) of said inlet chamber in the inlet gas and a circuit (B) of the exhaust chamber, the exhaust gas recirculation circuit (C, D), connecting the exhaust path to the intake circuit, and a system of regulation of exhaust gas recirculation, characterized in that the control system is arranged to produ drive the exhaust gas recirculation, at least for one working point defined by the engine speed and the torque generated by the engine at which the output from the torque exceeds 50% of the maximum torque dvigatelya.2. Heat engine according to claim 1, wherein the regulation system is configured so that the exhaust gas recirculation modes occurred in a 3-fold excess dvigatelya.3 idle mode. Heat engine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the mixture of fuel and oxidant to said operating point is in a substantially stoichiometric ratio, and ignition occurs is preferably at a time substantially corresponding to the optimal conditions zazhiganiya.4 advance. Heat engine according to claim 1 or 2, which is a supercharged engine by compressing the intake gazov.5. Heat engine according to claim 3, which is a supercharged engine by compressing the intake gazov.6. Heat engine according to one of claims 1, 2, 5, wherein as the engine operation is associated with such parameters as the degree of compression in the combustion chamber, and exhaust recirculation ratio


Objective To investigate the factors associated with tyrosine-methionine-aspartic acid-aspartic acid(YMDD) variation caused by lamivudine therapy for patients with chronic hepatitis B(CHB),and provide a reference for resistance analysis of nucleotide/nucleoside analogue.Methods A total of 63 CHB patients initially treated with unique lamivudine were selected,who were divided into variation group(45 cases) and un-variation group(18 cases) based on whether there was YMDD variation.All the factors concerned were obtained through a questionnaire and analyzed statistically.Results The difference of the HBV DNA-negative-returning rate between the two groups was significant(χ2=4.33,P0.04);the negative-returning rate of HBeAg in the un-variation group was higher than variation group,a significant difference was noted between them(χ2=12.61,P0.01).The differences between the two groups were not significant in terms of patient's compliance,smoking,alcohol drinking,age,and HBeAg positive.Conclusion YMDD variation is not correlated with patient's compliance,smoking,alcohol drinking,age,and HBeAg positive,but associated with long-term HBV DNA positive and no serological response.


Different types of gravitating compact objects occuring in d=5 space-time are considered: boson stars, hairy black holes and perfect fluid solutions. All these solutions of the Einstein equations coupled to matter have well established counterparts in d=4; in particular neutron stars can be modell{\S}ed more or less realistically by a perfect fluid. A special emphasis is set on the possibility -and/or the necessity- for these solutions to have an intrinsic angular momentum or spin. The influence of a cosmological constant on their pattern is also studied.
Several physical properties are presented from which common features to boson and neutron stars clearly emerge.
We finally point out qualitative differences of the gravitational interaction supporting these classical lumps between four and five dimensions.


This paper describes an algorithmic development for the design of stable infinite impulse response (IIR) digital filters with equiripple passbands and peak-constrained least-squares stopbands. Central to the development is a re-formulation of the design problem as an iterative quadratic programming problem where the stability and equiripple passbands and peak-constrained requirements are met by imposing a system of linear inequality constraints while the LSS property is satisfied by minimizing a weighted least-squares type objective function.


The Gippsland Basin Province 3930, located on the southeastern coast of Australia, is formed from two successive failed rifts that developed into a passive margin during the Cretaceous. Formation of this basin is related to the break up of Gondwana, which resulted in the separation of Antarctica from Australia, and the separation of the New Zealand and Lord Howe Rise continental crust from Australia. Coals and coaly shales of Late Cretaceous through Eocene age are the source rocks for oil and gas that accumulated predominantly in anticlinal traps. The basin was Australia's major producing basin until 1996 when daily oil/condensate production from the North West Shelf surpassed it. INTRODUCTION One Total Petroleum System (TPS), Latrobe 393001, is described in the Gippsland Basin Province with one assessment unit, Gippsland 39300101 (Fig. 1). It consists of Upper Cretaceous upper coastal plain coals and coaly shales of the Latrobe Group as the source rock and Upper Cretaceous through Eocene Latrobe Group fluvial, deltaic, and marginal marine sandstones as reservoir rocks (Fig. 2). The available data indicate that the discovered reserves in the Gippsland Basin are derived from these terrestrial coals and coaly shales (Bradshaw and others, 1998; Rahmanian and others, 1990; Howes, 1997; Fielding, 1992; MacGregor, 1994; Hocking, 1976). Nearly three quarters of the estimated discovered recoverable oil and gas reserves are found in anticlines, domes, and rollover traps (Petroconsultants, 1996). Almost 85% of the volume of reserves is in reservoir sandstones of the Latrobe Group (Petroconsultants, 1996). The underlying and adjacent Strzelecki (Lower Cretaceous) and Golden Beach (Lower and Upper Cretaceous, also known as the lower Latrobe) Groups (Fig. 2) may have contributed hydrocarbons to overlying accumulations and adjacent accumulations where vertical and lateral out-of-basin migration paths are considered. Recent work describing the source-rock potential, reservoir quality, and trap preservation of Strzelecki and Golden Beach strata includes Mehin and Bock (1998) and Partridge (1996). These strata will be described here, although, not developed into petroleum systems at this time. The Gippsland Basin has been a significant source of oil and gas in Australia since offshore production began there in 1969. Reserve estimates published by McPhee (1976) listed estimated recoverable reserves of 1,972 million barrels oil (MMBO), 174 million barrels condensate (MMBCond), 469 million barrels liquid petroleum gas (MMBLPG), and 222 billion cubic meters gas (Bm3) (7,840 billion cubic feet gas (BCFG)). It is interesting to note that since offshore production began in 1969 the Gippsland Basin has produced 3,446.5 MMBO and 4,779.5 BCFG with remaining reserves totaling 629.9 MMBO and 4,827.8 BCFG (Mehin and Bock, 1998). Revived exploration efforts for and renewed exploitation of gas reserves to serve growing markets in New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania would be facilitated by the planned new gas pipeline from Victoria to Sydney in New South Wales (Hart's E & P, 1999). PROVINCE GEOLOGY The USGS Province 3930 includes the Gippsland Basin, both onshore and offshore, and portions of the pre-Tertiary platform to the south and northeast totaling 8,1095 square kilometers (km2) (Fig. 3). The province extends from south of Melbourne, Victoria, southeast across Flinders Island to east of Tasmania and northeast to offshore of Cape Ho we at the border with New South Wales (Fig. 1). The Gippsland Basin covers ar onshore and offshore area of Victoria that is approximately 4,600 km2 (Mehin and Bock, 1998). More than 70% of the basin lies offshore. The offshore producing area of the province is in the waters of Victoria. The southern portion of the province is in waters of Tasmania, and the northeastern corner is in waters of New South Wales (Fig. 1). The basin averages 300 km in width and contains sediments more than 8 km thick (Mehin and Bock, 1998). TECTONICS During Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous time, the Gippsland Basin was part of a rift complex several hundred kilometers wide that formed between the Australian Plate/Tasman Fold Belt and the Antarctic Plate (Rahmanian and others, 1990; Etheridge and others, 1987; Falvey and Mutter, 1981). This Bassian Rift System included three major components from west to east, the Otway, Bass and Gippsland Basins (Mehin and Bock, 1998). By mid-Late Cretaceous time, this rift complex was the site of the separation of Gondwana along what is now the southern margin of Australia (Rahmanian and others, 1990). Although the Late Jurassic rift complex was located between Australia and Tasmania, Late Cretaceous separation and creation of ocean crust occurred to the west of Tasmania (Rahmanian and others, 1990; Mehin and Bock, 1998). Separation and creation of ocean crust in the latest Cretaceous Tasman Rift event progressed along the eastern side of Tasmania and Australia, separating (1) the Australian Plate from the continental crust of New Zealand/Lord Howe Rise, and (2) the Antarctic Plate from continental crust of the Campbell Plateau (Rahmanian and others, 1990), leaving Tasmania attached to Australia. Regional extension and development of syn-rift troughs and volcanism, beginning at approximately 96 million years ago (Ma), occurred in the Gippsland Basin and began a history separate from the other two components of the earlier Bassian Rift System (Mehin and Bock, 1998; Hill and others, 1995; Lowry and Longley, 1991). STRUCTURE The Gippsland Basin trends east-west and is comprised of a deep central depression symmetrically bounded by faulted terraces and stable platforms on the north and south. The Northern, or Lakes Entrance Platform, is bounded on the south by the Lake Wellington fault and the Southern Platform is bounded on the north by the Foster fault system (Figs. 3 and 4). Sediments of the basin crop out in the west and are deeply buried offshore and to the east. The deep Central Depression (Central Deep) continues onshore as the Seaspray Depression (Figs. 3 and 4). It lies between the Rosedale fault, which defines the southern edge of the Northern Strzelecki Terrace, and the Darriman fault, which defines the northern edge of the Southern Strzelecki Terrace (Fig. 3). Normal faults trending northwest to southeast, of Early Cretaceous to Early Eocene age, characterize the central depression (Fig. 3) (Ozimic and others, 1987). The major fields are located in anticlinal traps formed by compressional events and shear faults associated with the opening of the Tasman Sea (Fig. 1). Late Eocene to Early Oligocene and Late Miocene age anticlines are generally oriented southwest to northeast and are located in the central depression and on the northern terrace (Ozimic and others, 1987). A variety of Paleozoic rocks underlies the Gippsland Basin Province. Much of the area was covered by glaciers that came from Antarctica, located to the southwest, in Early Permian time (Bowen and Thomas, 1976). The Strzelecki Group is described at various locations as unconformably overlying Permian sediments, Upper Devonian rocks, Lower Devonian rocks, Devonian granite, and in other locations as faulted against Lower Devonian or Silurian beds (Douglas, 1976). At one onshore well location on the Northern Strzelecki Terrace near the Lake Wellington fault, a post-glacial, marginal marine to deltaic Lower Permian sandstone, shale, and siltstone section more than 180 m thick was described overlying folded Ordovician rocks (Bowen and Thomas, 1976; Douglas, 1976). Both crystalline basement and metamorphic basement have been described in onshore wells on the Lakes Entrance Platform. Extrusive igneous rocks were reported in the most southerly well in the province, which is located on the Southern Platform offshore Flinders Island. Jurassic age rocks were reported in wells located onshore on the Southern Strzelecki Terrace in the westernmost area of the province, and on the Northern Strzelecki Terrace near Lake Wellington (Petroconsultants, 1996). DEPOSITION Strzelecki Group The Gippsland Basin includes Lower Cretaceous continental and lacustrine elastics deposited in an extensional rift trend that extended along the modern southern margin of Australia and which had formed between the then connected Australia Plate and the Antarctic Plate of Gondwana. These deposits are known as the Otway Group in the Otway Basin area of the southern margin, which is located northwest of the Bass Basin Province 3907 (Fig. 1), and the Strzelecki Group in the Gippsland Basin. The known extent of the nonmarine Strzelecki Group (Korumburra Group, near offshore; Koonwarra Fish Beds and Tyers Group, Rhyll Arkose, onshore) (Douglas, 1976), is roughly between the Foster fault system to the south and the Lake Wellington fault to the north and from the Gippsland Highlands east, to where the strata are interpreted from seismic data (Figs. 3 and 4) (DPIE, 1998; Mehin and Bock, 1998; Douglas, 1976). The group crops out onshore in uplifted fault blocks of the Gippsland Highlands (Strzelecki Ranges) and northeast of Yallourn, with exposures covering more than 3,900 km2 (Douglas, 1976). The Strzelecki Group is of Early Cretaceous age and was deposited in an eastwest trending rift basin complex that began as a pre-breakup depression and failed rift approximately 130 Ma (Mehin and Bock, 1998). The rift complex was the eastern extension of the Otway and Bass Basins, which also received sediments of similar composition and depositional environment beginning in the Late Jurassic (Bradshaw, 1993). The correlative group in the Otway Basin is a good coaly source rock that sources gas in at least two fields (M. Woollands, written personal commun., 1999). Exploration in the Gippsland Basin has thus far considered the nonmarine Strzelecki Group to be economic basement and unprospective (M. Woollands, written personal commun., 1999), but new research is currently reconside


Indonesia has experienced a great forest fire disaster in 2015. The losses incurred were enormous. But actually the incidence of forest and land fires occurs almost every year. Various efforts were made to cope with the fire disaster. The appearance of a hotspot becomes an early indication of the fire incident both location and time. By studying the location and time of the hotspot's appearance indicates that the hotspot has certain movement patterns from year to year. This study aims to show the pattern of movement of hotspots from year to year that can be used for the prevention of forest and land fires. The method used is time series analysis of land cover and hotspot distribution. The data used were land cover data from 2005 to 2016, hotspot data from 2005 to 2016. The location of this study is the territory of Meranti Kepulauan District. The results show that the highest hotspot is 425 hotspots occurs in the shrubs and bushes. From year to year, the pattern of hotspot movement occurs in the shrubs and bushes cover. The hotspot pattern follows the direction of unused land for cultivation and is dominated by shrubs. From these results, we need to pay more attentiont for the land with the cover of shrubs adjacent to the cultivated land.


ABSTRACT Objectives Researchers have recommended that youth athletes limit their practice volume to the number of hours/week that they are old in years. We examined sport perceptions, burnout, anxiety, and depressive symptoms among youth athletes who did and did not report playing more hours/week of organized sports than their age. Methods Uninjured athletes aged 13–18 years old completed questionnaires documenting demographics, sport participation volume, health and injury history, depressive symptoms, anxiety, burnout, and sport perceptions during a pre-participation physical examination. We grouped participants as those who reported more hours/week in organized sports than their age (exceeds age/volume recommendation) vs. those who reported equal/less hours/week in organized sports than their age (meets age/volume recommendation). Results Of 161 participants, 21% (n = 33) were in the 'exceeds age/volume recommendation' group (age = 15.2 ± 1.3 years; 55% female; 18.7 ± 4.0 hours/week) and 79% (n = 128) were in the 'meets age/volume recommendation' group (age = 15.6 ± 1.2 years; 50% female; 10.2 ± 3.4 hours/week). A higher proportion of the 'exceeds age/volume recommendation' group agreed with the statement 'youth in my sport play too many games before college' than the 'meets age/volume recommendation' group (33% vs. 16%; p = 0.03). After adjusting for the effect of age, sport specialization level, and weight, exceeding age/volume recommendations was associated with the perception that youth in sports play too many games before college (aOR = 3.24; 95% CI = 1.26, 8.29; p = 0.01), while burnout (aOR = 0.99; 95% CI = 0.94, 1.06; p = 0.93), anxiety (aOR = 0.97; 95% CI = 0.84, 1.11; p = 0.65), and depressive symptoms (aOR = 0.90; 95% CI = 0.74, 1.10; p = 0.30) were not significantly related. Conclusion Athletes who spend more hours in sport than their age appear to perceive their competition load during youth sports to be excessive. Coaches and providers should monitor athlete's training hours and perceptions of competition load to offer support and potentially prevent burnout development.


An essential resource for the deployment of 5G technology is the frequency spectrum. A high spectrum provides high data rates and a large bandwidth to support many new devices, applications, and services that meet the needs across multiple domains. However, a high spectrum has a smaller range (10–100 m2) with a sub-6 GHz spectrum. So, it takes careful design for 5G implementation using high frequencies (mmWave). As a result, this research will plan a 5G New Radio (NR) network implementation employing a 28 GHz mmWave frequency. The dense urban scenario research design was carried out by selecting Central Jakarta as the research object. Central Jakarta was chosen as a pilot project because it is feasible in market potential and infrastructure support to pre-pare 5G implementation in Indonesia. The capacity approach considers the data rate and users, while the coverage approach considers Maximum Allowable Path Loss (MAPL) parameters and path loss propagation. A propagation model based on 3GPP TS 38.901 UMi Street. The results of this study indicate that Central Jakarta requires a traffic demand of 4.72 Gbps/km2. In addition, the deployment of a 5G NR network with mmWave frequency based on the capacity planning approach requires 33 uplink and 12 downlink gNobeB. As a result, the coverage area necessitates 738 uplink gNodeB with a coverage area of 69 m2 and 130 downlink gNodeB with a coverage area of 370 m2. Based on these results, the gNodeB needed for Central Jakarta was selected based on downlink coverage with 738 gNodeB.


Youth involved in child-serving systems of care (e.g., child welfare and juvenile justice) often exhibit specific academic performance problems. The magnitude of academic risk among these students is a serious concern given that school attachment, performance, and attainment closely relate to indicators of well-being across the lifespan. It is also important to consider that the experience of maltreatment is linked to both academic difficulty and formal system involvement. This paper highlights recent research focused on the academic performance of children and adolescents involved with child welfare and juvenile justice systems, with specific emphasis on highlighting prevention and intervention strategies that cut across systems. To meet the complex needs of these populations, school psychologists and other support staff should be cognizant of students' academic needs and take a leadership role in collaborating within and across systems to meet them.


Developing nations pursuing the dual goals of development and conservation face high social and political costs in adopting pro-conservation policies. Such costs often hinder in embodying environmental valuation of natural resources into the market prices. This study has dealt with this macro issue by understanding the case-specific implications of intensive agricultural practices on the environment in the state of Punjab. The study is based on the primary data from 80 farmers of Punjab following the paddy-wheat rotation. The input use data of the crops have been used to compute the monetary cost of cultivation and the corresponding environmental cost has been expressed as carbon equivalents (CE). The analysis of variance has been carried out to address the issue of differing efficiencies of production across different landholding categories. The study has revealed that paddy crop is more expensive than wheat crop in both monetary and environmental terms and small farmers demonstrate larger inefficiencies in production as compared to medium and large farmers. Electricity has been found to be the major component for environmental cost for paddy while diesel and fertilizer occupied significant shares for both crops. Moreover, electricity for agricultural purposes being completely subsidized in Punjab, has not been reflected in the monetary cost, thus destroying an important incentive for rational use of resources.


The Jarbidge River drainage in southern Idaho and northern Nevada supports the furthest south population of bull trout (Salvelirtus confluentus) in North America. Resident populations of bull trout inhabit the headwaters of the East and West Forks of the Jarbidge River and several tributary streams. A migratory population of bull trout was also thought to be present in the drainage, but surveys conducted in 1992 in the Idaho portion of the Jarbidge drainage, failed to document the presence of migratory bull trout. We resurveyed pools in the middle portion of the Jarbidge River drainage for the presence of migratory bull trout in July 1994 and August 1995, when water temperatures were suitable for bull trout to be present. We observed bull trout in the West Fork of the Jarbidge River in 1994 and in Jack Creek at its confluence with the West Fork in both 1994 and 1995. Minimum population estimates of migratory bull trout in the middle portion ofthe drainage, based on the number offish we detected in the length of stream surveyed ranged from 10-20 fish/km of stream. We probably did not detect bull trout in the East Fork Jarbidge River because the fish had already moved upstream of our sample reach to more suitable water temperatures. Maximum depth ofthe pools surveyed in the East and West Forks ofthe Jarbidge River averaged 1.0 and 0.9 m, respectively. Many pools also had fairly complex habitat structure formed by boulders and woody debris, indicating both streams provided suitable habitat for migratory bull trout. Two tributary streams, Dave and Deer Creeks, did not appear suitable for migratory bull trout except as movement corridors; maximum pool depths averaged just 0.3 to 0.5 m. During the surveys for bull trout we also collected information on the distribution and abundance of other native fish species. Redband trout (Oncorhynchus tnykiss gairdneri) were the most widely distributed and abundant fish in the drainage.


The supplementation of caffeine is often used to elicit an enhancement of focus, arousal, or performance; however, intra‐individual response to caffeine has been shown to vary the effects of caffeine. Genetic variation of the adenosine receptor, 1976T>C (ADORA2A), has been linked to caffeine sensitivity and is a potential target for understanding individual differences. The TT genotype demonstrates an increased sensitivity to caffeine compared to the TC/CC genotype. The anxiogenic effects, genetic influences, and pharmacological interactions play a role in the ergogenic effects of caffeine.


A novel low loss porous core photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is proposed in this paper for terahertz (THz) wave propagation. In order to investigate the guiding properties and numerical simulations, finite element method based COMSOL v4.2 software is used. Only circular air holes are used in this proposed structure so the design is easy to realize and fabricate. The numerical analysis confirms that, the proposed microstructure fiber exhibits low effective material loss of 0.063 cm−1 at 1.0 THz operating frequency. Moreover, a low confinement loss of 6.9 × 10−3 cm−1 and low bending loss of 1.07 × 10−11 cm−1 is obtained for the optimum designing condition at an operating frequency of 1.0 THz. The other guiding properties such as power fraction, effective area and dispersion are also discussed in this paper.


Pea (Pisum sativum L.) is an important vegetable as well as a pulse crop throughout the world. The effect of rust disease (Uromyces fabae) on the number, size of root nodules and on nitrogenase activity of pea was investigated through pot and field experiments at Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR), Varanasi during 200405 using susceptible cultivar 'Arkel'. Significant reductions in nodulation and the size of root nodules as well as in nitrogenase activity were recorded in infected plants.


The transmittance and absorption spectra of a high‐quality Zn2TiO4 single crystal have been measured along the a‐axes at room‐temperature in the range of 200‐1000 nm. The wavelength dependent refractive index, extinction coefficient, real and imaginary parts of the complex dielectric constant of the Zn2TiO4 crystal have been derived from the measured T and α spectra. By fitting the refractive index spectrum, the Sellmeier dispersion equation of the Zn2TiO4 crystal has been obtained. The validity of Cauchy‐Sellmeier equation has been evaluated in the energy range of 2.90–3.20 eV representing the Urbach tail. Applying the single‐effective oscillator model, the dispersion energy Ed and the oscillator energy E0 have been determined as 18.76 and 5.05 eV, respectively. The obtained dispersion energy Ed takes on ionic crystal value. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


This research shows the results in the application of explosiveness as a set of strength exercises, performed and executed during training team volleyball Fighters Tapi Educational Unit in the period 2016-2017.

The population with which we worked was 90 sophomores School of Educational Unit "Fighters Tapi", the Canton Riobamba, Chimborazo Province.

The proposed work was the development of an annual plan of explosive strength exercises and plyometrics for the development of physical preparation, accompanied by the technical-tactical individual and collective basis during periods of training.

This planning will contribute to increased general and special physical abilities, which is achieved validate the proposal created, for which pedagogical test shall apply. Test vertical jump and jump length test initial and final test of the two variables reaching a higher gain to serve in suspension in volleyball.

One of the aspects most studied by coaches is the quantity and quality of exercise capacity hopping tests to be submitted by players in each game, since in many cases is determined in the result, this puts the explosive force between most important directions of the preparation of the athlete.

Conducting an analysis of power in the lower extremities is obtained as a result the direct impact of hopping tests as a basic element for the optimal development of the foundation of Take Suspended in volleyball.


The Bush administration's efforts to reduce funding for the National Sea Grant College Program and to transfer it from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to the National Science Foundation (NSF) (see Eos, 5 March 2002) appear to be getting a lukewarm reception in Congress.

While the administration advocates the transfer on the grounds that NSF management would improve the program's overall effectiveness, some members of Congress have voiced concerns about the potential loss of many of Sea Grant's education and outreach activities if the program is transferred.


This paper examines high-bandwidth communication from a moving lunar rover to the Earth. Limited available power necessitates precise pointing. However, the motion of a rover over the irregular terrain imposes chassis motion with high angular rates and accelerations making precision pointing difficult. The space environment further complicates the design task. This paper presents: 1) an analysis of the direct communication between a lunar rover and an earth station, and 2) a concept of a pointing mechanism for a lunar rover which may accommodate pointing requirements while satisfying mass and power limits. The paper addresses a lunar rover context, but the problem is general and a successful pointing capability will apply to other applications.


A high-power V-band relativistic orotron on a TM03 oscillation mode has an ovesized (D/k 2.7) electrodynamic structure and diffractive output in the TM02 mode [3]. Single-mode operation of the oscillator is ensured by the cyclotron selection of the working axisymmetric mode, with simultaneous depression of competing non-axisymmetric modes by means of cutting longitudinal slits in the wall of the SWS. The output power is 350 MW with a power conversion efficiency of 31% when using a 3.6 kA, 310 keV electron beam transported in the 3.9 T magnetic field. The modeling demonstrated that the simultaneous application of cyclotron and electrodynamic methods of mode selection in the orotron ensures the single-mode operation of the oscillator. The simulated microwave efficiency of the device is close to the theoretical limit. Furthermore, the orotron retains its efficiency 30% even in the case when the energy of the driving electron beam is reduced to 200 keV. Therefore, it seems to be possible to build a compact pulsed source of millimeter-wave radiation with a power of about 10 W, based on an orotron and a compact high-current electron accelerator.


This work addresses the development, characterization, and optimization of thermal flow sensors for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. The sensors are based on printed circuit board (PCB) technology in order to obtain flexible, robust, and cost-effective devices. The layout comprises a copper heater meander located in the center of the PCB and two additional meanders placed on either side of the heater, acting as temperature sensors. Two different operating modes were investigated. In the first mode, a constant current applied to the heater leads to flow dependent voltage across the heater which depends on the fluid temperature and saturates at higher flow velocities. In the improved second mode, the difference between the mean temperature near the heater and the mean temperature at the sensor's edge is kept constant by an electronic controller. This is a novel approach compared to the common case where the difference between heater and ambient temperature is evaluated. In the proposed quasi-constant temperature mode the heater voltage adjusted by the controller serves as an output signal. It is approximately independent of the ambient temperature and features a good sensitivity over the whole range of interest up to 10 m/s. The sensor development and optimization was supported by FEM simulations.


Within the framework of the project "Development of an integrated resource-saving technology and organization of high-tech production of nanostructures based on carbon and silicon dioxide to improve the properties of building and structural materials", an automated control system for technological thermal vortex enrichment has been created, designed to obtain a modifying additive based on dioxide silicon. The main parameters of the operation of technological lines for thermal vortex enrichment of raw materials, automatic control when threshold values are reached, as well as signaling for the use of control action from automated technological lines are presented. The functions of collecting and primary processing of data, creating control actions, creating and maintaining requests and reporting, providing reporting and data analysis tools are subject to automation. Automation of these functions in the form of a graphical human-machine interface allows for continuous technological control of equipment operation and technological process parameters; ensuring the safety of the technological process in the production of a modifying additive based on silicon dioxide. The collection of data on technological processes and equipment operation, their processing, display and documentation will ensure the optimization of the technological process using advanced visualization tools, modern control algorithms and analysis of the accumulated technological information. Automation of control of the technological process of thermal vortex enrichment will ensure the minimization of the influence of the human factor on the processes of collecting and processing information about the technological process; automatic prevention of the development of emergency situations.


Heritabilities, repeatabilities, and genetic and phenotypic variances for milk yield 3.5% FCM, fat yield and fat percentage in Libyan Holsteins were estimated by lactation using a derivative free; iterative algorithm of REML (MTDFREML). The animal model contained herd-year, calving month, age at calving, permanent environment and animal effects. In all cases, the inverse of the additive genetic relationship matrix was included. Separate estimates were obtained from records projected to 305-d basis and unadjusted data for lactations one through four. Heritabilities were higher for the average of first and second lactations than separate first and second lactations. Heritabilities, repeatabilities and variances for milk yield, fat corrected milk yield (FCM) and fat yield were within the range of values from temperate areas, but those for fat percentage were lower. Age at calving follow patterns similar to those of more temperate areas. There is adequate genetic variance in Libyan dairy herds to make large genetic gains in milk production through conventional selection methods.


The cyclotron resonance of the piezoelectric polaron in n-CdS has been investigated using far infrared spectroscopy at magnetic fields to 90 kOe. Both lamellar grating and Michelson Fourier transform spectrometers were used with a 0.3/sup 0/K Ge bolometer to study the photon energy region from 10 cm/sup -1/ to 60 cm/sup -1/. The theory of Miyake predicts that the frequency of the polaron's cyclotron resonance is shifted from the bare hand electron resonance frequency according to the expression: ..delta omega../sup p//sub c// ..cap omega../sub c/ varies as H/sup -1/ T/sup /sup 2///sup 3//. The magnetic field dependence of the present cyclotron resonance confirms this expression; the cyclotron mass isiezoelectric polaron effects. The bare band mass in n-CdS has also been determined by taking into account the Froehlich polaron interaction in addition to the piezoelectric polaron effects. For H parallel to the c-axis this cyclotron mass is 0.155 +- 0.005 m. The polaron pinning due to the 43 cm/sup -1/ optically inactive phonon has been observed.


A combination of geophysical, geochemical, and geological features suggests that a central part of the Dos Cabezas Mountains probably has considerable potential for blind deposits, chiefly base metals. The area exposes the root zone of a Paleocene( ) volcanic complex and its underlying granitic stocks, which were emplaced next to a major northwest-trending, much reactivated fault zone. The new data, combined with the knowledge of past mining activity in the area, lead them to propose several exploration targets that may lead to ore bodies in breccia pipes along the base of the volcanic pile and along a possible concealed fault or caldera margin.


Engineering Drawing is a fundamental course with highly technical and practical characteristics.Not only systematic theories but also abundant spatial visualization and thinking are involved in it.Here the author summarizes his innovative teaching experience with the aim of helping students reach their full potential and improve their comprehensive abilities and thus making them creative talents.


Background: The challenges of research in economically stunted countries' settings remains a profound concern and is linked to socioeconomic development of these countries. More research is needed ...


The influence of the temperature, air humidity, brightness and their effects on tomato yield growth in protected environment and in the field were evaluated. Two experiments were carried out in different atmospheres from January to May 2002. The cultivar Santa Clara, hybrid Carmen and an accession BGH-320 from the Germplasm Vegetable Bank of Universidade Federal de Vicosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, were used in both experiments. The experiment under protected environment was carried out in a greenhouse type chapel and the other in the field, under natural conditions. In general higher production of fruits was observed on plants cultivated under protected environment than in open field. The Carmen hybrid exceeded the other genotypes in yield in the protected environment. Accession BGH-320 presented lower total yield under protected environment than the other two genotypes. In the field the accession BGH-320 presented higher total yield than Santa Clara cultivar and a similar yield than Carmen. In the field, the commercial yield did not differ among the three genotypes.


Numerical simulations of three dimensions two-phase flow field of tail-pipe SRM under spinning condition are carried out.The differences of the particle trace and particle concentration along the wall of tail-pipe nozzle between the different diameters 10 μm,40 μm,70 μm,100 μm and different spinning velocities 0,100 r/min,300 r/min,500 r/min,1 000 r/min are studied.The results show that:①In comparison with the particle movement trace and particle concentration distributing rule under the no-spinning condition,the particle movement path and time are increased and the change of particle movement rule is obvious under the spinning condition;②With the increase of the spinning velocity,the movement path and area of particles and residence time are increased;③With the increase of the particle diameter,the particle residence time is shortened because the particle inertia has more effects than the trend to revolving effect;④With the increase of the spinning velocity,the particle concentration in surface of conocyl grain is increased,and the particle congregation area is transferred from the fin top to the root of finocyl grain.The particle concentration is reduced in axis of flow path with the increase of spinning velocity.


Disclosed are films, tapes, slit film fibers and melt-spun fibers comprising (a) at least one polypropylene polymer selected from the group consisting of polypropylene homopolymers; random copolymers or block copolymers of polypropylene and ethylene; and random terpolymers or block terpolymers of polypropylene, ethylene and one other olefin; and (b) from 1 to 30 weight % of at least one ethylene/ alkyl acrylate copolymer. The tapes can be stretched (i.e. uniaxially oriented) to provide monofilament slit film fibers. Also disclosed are processes for preparing such fibers. Also disclosed are nonwoven textiles prepared from the melt-spun fibers.


Abstract : The purpose of this program is to facilitate rapid calculation of loads at separation planes on circular cross-section vehicles. The program output yields values of M/P, K, and N where: M = Bending moment, P = Axial load (compression), K = Loading index for maximum tank compression, and N = Loading index for maximum latch tension. No loads are submitted to this program. Only section properties are submitted and the computer then calculates M/P, K and N. (Author)


DNA microarrays are a potentially powerful technology for improving diagnostic classification, treatment selection and therapeutics development. There are, however, many potential pitfalls in the use of microarrays that result in false leads and erroneous conclusions. This paper provides a review of the key features to be observed in developing diagnostic and prognostic classification systems based on gene expression profiling and some of the pitfalls to be aware of in reading reports of microarray-based studies. British Journal of Cancer (2003) 89, 1599 – 1604. doi:10.1038/sj.bjc.6601326 www.bjcancer.com & 2003 Cancer Research UK


Within the archipelago of cultural memory data, library catalogs and systems still comprise some of the most isolated and least penetrable desert islands. Although the library world has made significant strides over the past decade to open its metadata, many individual libraries remain at the mercy of their ILS vendors to implement open protocols, standards, and APIs. At the University of North Texas Libraries, we have been developing a REST API framework for exposing our catalog and ILS metadata, taking our first steps toward breaking our data off this particular island.

Catalog resources that we've modeled so far include bibliographic records (modified from MARC), item-level records, branch location records, item type records, and item status records. We are also working on resources that support a shelf-list browser application, which mix user-supplied data with item and bibliographic metadata and demonstrate a real-world use for the API.

Our framework is not merely an API for our particular ILS. Rather, we are developing a toolset to allow us to extract and re-model our ILS data--to use data derived from our ILS but not necessarily to adhere to ILS data models--and expose the data as RESTful, linked resources. Although our initial efforts have focused on modeling resources that do closely align with ILS entities, future development will include extended models for work- and identity-related resources and possibly extending our APIs to expose linked data (using, e.g., JSON-LD).

Best practices in this area, exposing ILS metadata as RESTful resources, are hard to come by. Given the mixture of metadata practitioners, systems-oriented individuals, and web-oriented individuals that the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI) conferences tend to attract, we hope that presenting a poster about the project in the Best Practices track might allow us to connect with others with whom we might dialog. Ultimately, we believe an exchange of information about our project so far--our approach and practices--would be valuable to us and to others in the DCMI community.


By irradiation, both di(9-anthryl)dimethylsilane and -germane afforded a new type of [4+2] intramolecular addition products that underwent quantitative cycloreversion by thermolysis. The photoproduct from the former was converted to a novel naphthotriptycene derivative.


Transient expression of either a or a1b subunits of the high-conductance Ca21-activated K1 (maxi-K) channel has been achieved in COS-1 cells. Expression has been studied using charybdotoxin (ChTX), a peptidyl inhibitor that binds in the pore on the a subunit. Although some properties of monoiodotyrosine-ChTX (125I-ChTX) binding to membranes derived from each type of transfected cells appear to be identical, other parameters of the binding reaction are markedly different. Under low ionic strength conditions, the affinity constant for 125I-ChTX measured under equilibrium binding conditions is increased ca. 50-fold in the presence of the b subunit. The rate constant for 125I-ChTX association is enhanced ca. 5-fold, whereas the dissociation rate constant is decreased more than 7-fold when the b subunit is present. These data indicate that functional coassembly of maxi-K channel subunits can be obtained in a transient expression system, and that the b subunit has profound effects on 125I-ChTX binding. We postulate that certain negatively charged residues in the large extracellular loop ofb attract the positively charged 125I-ChTX to its binding site on a through electrostatic interactions, and account for effects observed on ligand association kinetics. Moreover, another residue(s) in the loop of b must contribute to stabilization of the toxinbound state, either by a direct interaction with toxin, or through an allosteric effect on the a subunit. Certain regions in the extracellular loop of the b subunit may be in close proximity to the pore of the channel, and could play an important role in maxi-K channel function. High-conductance Ca21-activated K1 (maxi-K) channels display characteristic biophysical and pharmacological properties that distinguish them from other ion channels. Maxi-K channels are activated by both membrane depolarization and intracellular Ca21, and exhibit a large potassium conductance (200–300 pS), as well as high selectivity for this cation. These channels are sensitive to inhibition by external application of a number of peptidyl toxins, such as charybdotoxin (ChTX) and iberiotoxin (1). Maxi-K channels are also modulated by a series of small molecule natural products; indole diterpene alkaloids such as paxilline represent the most potent and selective nonpeptidyl blockers of this channel discovered to date (2); glycosylated triterpene channel agonists, like dehydrosoyasaponin I, bind to the cytoplasmic face of the protein and enhance its activity (3). The maxi-K channel has been purified to homogeneity from tracheal (4) and aortic smooth muscle (5) and shown to be composed of two structurally distinct subunits, a and b. Although expression of the a subunit of the maxi-K channel in Xenopus oocytes yields channels that are activated by Ca21 and voltage (6), coexpression of b with the a subunit has profound effects on the biophysical and pharmacological properties of the channel. In the presence of the b subunit, there is a shift in the midpoint of channel activation of 80–100 mV in the hyperpolarized direction (7–9). This shift is equivalent to that produced by a 10-fold increase in Ca21 concentration. Thus, the b subunit may change the overall conformation of the channel in such a way that the transitions to the open state are more favored. In addition, the agonist activity of the glycosylated triterpenes requires the presence of the b subunit (8). Heterologous expression of the a subunit yields channels that are sensitive to ChTX. This is expected since ChTX binds in the pore formed by four a subunits to block the ion conduction pathway. However, possible contributions of the b subunit to the ChTX receptor have not been explored. In this study, the characteristics of the interaction of monoiodotyrosine-ChTX (125I-ChTX) with membranes derived from COS-1 cells transiently transfected with either a or a and b subunits of the maxi-K channel have been determined. The results of these studies indicate that the b subunit causes a significant enhancement in toxin affinity of ca. 50-fold through an effect on both association and dissociation kinetics. Thus, it appears that certain regions in the large extracellular loop of b are in close proximity to the toxin binding site and may even participate in it and in other aspects of channel function. MATERIALS AND METHODS Materials. Restriction enzymes and pCI-neo vector were from Promega. COS-1 cells (culture CRL1650) were obtained from American Type Culture Collection. All tissue culture media and the LipofectAMINE reagent were from GIBCO. Fetal bovine serum was purchased from HyClone. Recombinant N-glycanase was from Genzyme. Digitonin special grade (water soluble) was obtained from Biosynth Technologies (Skokie, IL). GFyC glass fiber filters were purchased from Whatman. Affinity-purified alkaline phosphatase-conjugated goat anti-rabbit IgG, nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT), 5-bromo4-chloro-3-indoyl phosphate p-toluidine salt (BCIP), Tween 20, Triton X-100, and paxilline were obtained from Sigma. Disuccinimidyl suberate (DSS) was from Pierce. ChTX was obtained from Peninsula Laboratories and radioiodinated as described (10). 125I-Na was obtained from DuPontyNEN. 49,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole was from Molecular Probes. The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be hereby marked ''advertisement'' in accordance with 18 U.S.C. §1734 solely to indicate this fact. Copyright q 1997 by THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE USA 0027-8424y97y942853-6$2.00y0 PNAS is available online at http:yywww.pnas.org. Abbreviations: ChTX, charybdotoxin; 125I-ChTX, monoiodotyrosineChTX; maxi-K channel, high-conductance Ca21-activated K1 channel; DSS, disuccinimidyl suberate. ‡To whom reprint requests should be addressed.


Multi-agent systems (MAS) have been recently used to overcome problems in the control field. The development of distributed control techniques has proven to be an effective approach capable of addressing issues such as communication constraints between agents, modeling of scenarios closer to reality, use of high computational requirements, and understanding of the system complexity. Game theory supports the understanding of interactions between agents, where strategies play a determinant role to maximize agent outcomes. Evolutionary game theory (EGT) has introduced the concept of biological evolution, which has proven to deal with applications that can be modeled using population dynamics.In this work, we consider the replicator dynamics (RD) and propose the use of the Boltzmann model as a base to introduce the Boltzmann-Based Distributed Replicator Dynamics (BBDRD). This novel approach can deal with engineering applications, where the modeling of the system needs no complete information to find the outcome. This proposal allows obtaining a more realistic scenario and gives another perspective to tackle issues with partial information. To understand the behavior of the BBDRD, its use in a smart grid application is validated.


This paper presents a new approach for solving of the economic load dispatch (ELD) problem with valve-point effects using a modified differential evolution (MDE) algorithm. The practical ELD problems have nonsmooth cost function with equality and inequality constraints, which make the problem of finding the global optimum difficult when using any mathematical approaches. The modifications of improved DE by considering the following factors: (1) the scaling factor F, (2) selection scheme, (3) an auxiliary set, and (4) treatment of constraints. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, the numerical studies have been performed for two different test systems, i.e. six and fifteen generating unit systems, respectively. The results shows that performance of the proposed approach reveal the efficiently and robustness when compared results of other optimization algorithms reported in literature.