Purpose of reseach. The paper describes the EXOLITE-REHAB rehabilitation robotic complex which makes it possible to do rehabilitation exercises of lower limbs of patients by performing leg lifting, verticalization, squats and other types of movement. In many countries, research work is underway to create devices that allow a person to move in space when the musculo-skeletal system is damaged.  Therefore, the purpose of this article is to study and set the basic regularities and algorithms based on mathematical models describing the controlled movement of the lower limbs exoskeleton by the example of modeling the movement of the exoskeleton's ankle joint.Methods. The key feature of the complex is the use of a follower-up control system that allows us to provide a prescribed movement of the human ankle joint with a high degree of accuracy in a wide range of parameters' changes. Methods of mathematical modeling of the ankle joint movement are applied, taking into account their subsequent possible use in modeling the movement of exoskeleton links.Results. A kinematic setting of the ankle joint movement trajectory  is used in order to simulate the operation of a robotic system. In order to find the vector of generalized coordinates, the inverse kinematics problem is solved using the vector-matrix method with the application of Jacobian matrix. The results of numerical simulation show high convergence and adequacy of the proposed method.Conclusion. The article considers the method of using a follower-up control system that has a sufficient degree of accuracy of copying the trajectory. The results of modeling the follower-up control system of the EXOLITE-REHAB rehabilitation exoskeleton, working according to the developed algorithm, show that it is able to repeat the required trajectory with sufficient accuracy. In the future, we plan to study the system more deeply on a three-dimensional model with electric drives.


Mathematical modelling of targeted drug delivery system provides a quantitative description of the drug transportation in the Biological system. The path of the magnetic particles in the field of small magnets in the flowing water is described in this study. The motion of these particles in a given magnetic field is obtained solving a set of ordinary differential equations expressed by Newtons law of motion. Scilab 5.4.0 is used to solve the stiff ODE and the trajectories of the particles traced. The results show the potential need for drug targeting using magnetic particles of very small size in the field of small magnets described by Poiseuille flow.


We are living in turbulent and unpredictable times. The triumphal march of liberal democracy and human rights since World War II has slowed down. New authoritarian trends have emerged across the globe. These trends are visible not only in the parts of the world that have not yet taken transitional steps toward open democratic governance, but also in countries with long democratic traditions. In Europe and USA, populist and nationalistic voices are getting louder, and there is a threat of turns from liberal to authoritarian politics. In Asia, authoritarianism remains entrenched in various countries, while neoliberalism keeps making deeper inroads in the region. In Africa and Latin America, progress toward liberal democracy has stalled. Many countries, then, appear to be lurching toward thin democracy and illiberal pseudo-democracy, with governance systems committed to economic neoliberalism but disloyal to political liberalism and its values of equality, tolerance, and moral agency. Perhaps most worrisome is that these antidemocratic transformations are not brought about by military coups or revolutionary takeovers, but by democratic processes and institutions, which are co-opted into legitimizing authoritarian leaders, autocratic policies, and political oppression. In Turkey, a constitutional referendum was held to expand presidential powers beyond democratic norms. Venezuela now appears to be headed down a similar path. In Africa, various countries used elections to reaffirm incumbent leaders refusing to step down. Paul Kagame of Rwanda appears to have received over 98% of the popular vote in a presidential election in which his leading critic, Diane Rwigara, had been disqualified from candidacy together with two other contenders. This left the opposition with one single candidate, without any chance to compete against an incumbent president, who had all the state's resources and media control on his side. In Angola, José Eduardo Dos Santos is finally giving up his hold on the presidency after 38 years – but not before ensuring that his handpicked successor will win the election. These are just a few examples of the disconnect between democratic processes, such as elections, and democratic values, such as respect for citizens' political and moral autonomy and the call for equal participation and tolerance for different political views. Even the United States of America, which styles itself as 'the leader of the free world', displays deeply troubling trends under its new hard-right leadership that challenge the normativity of the values of liberal democracy. A new president, who was democratically elected, although in an electoral process clouded by Russian meddling, is using the power of his office to pursue illiberal and undemocratic ends: to undermine democratic institutions and override the court system; to weaken the system of checks and balances; to declare rhetorical war on the free media; to hollow out, downsize, and disempower government departments, from the State Department to the Environmental Protection Agency; to eliminate regulations and instead rule by tweet; to disdain liberal values by defending fascists, siding with racists, and denigrating minorities and women; and last but not least to install his relatives in positions of power. From Turkey to Africa to the USA, this is how democratic means are used to legitimize anti-democratic outcomes. This trend, often based on populist rhetoric and rising nationalist feelings, seems to be on rise also in Europe. The traditional political map from left to right no longer describes the situation. The divisions between minimum and maximum state in relation to economic neo-liberalism do not


For a direct-detection lidar, the use of single photon detector (SPD) could greatly enhance the detection sensitivity of the lidar system. The insufficient SPD in dynamic range limits its application under strong background environment. The authors use the Neyman-Pearson detection theory to analyse the detection performance of single photon lidar under strong noise environment. As a result, the detection statistics can give a basic guide principle for lidar system design. The detection performance is related to input signal-to-noise ratio and the number of laser pulses that are integrated over. Furthermore, they analyse the influence of the dual detector AND gate, OR gate, and SUM module on detection performance. The SUM module, namely the SPD array, has the best detection performance. Based on this, a superconducting nanowire single-photon detector (SNSPD) array-based lidar is employed for field measurement. The array can make a pre-processing based on the array data in a single frame. It has a better detection performance for SNSPD array compared with that for single SNSPD.


Treatment of Amlanita phalloides poisoning remains disappointing. Prednisone, thioctic acid, vitamin C, penicillin, cytochrome-C, and haemodialysis alone or in combination have been used with variable success.1 2Perfusion of blood over coated activated charcoal has also been tried in a few cases, but always after the onset of acute liver failure. 3 4We have used charcoal haemoperfusion as early as possible after the ingestion of A phalloides to try to fix the toxins before they caused hepatic or renal damage.


In this paper, a faster supervised algorithm (BPfast) for the neural network training is proposed that maximizes the derivative of sigmoid activation function during back-propagation (BP) training. BP adjusts the weights of neural network with minimizing an error function. Due to the presence of derivative information in the weight update rule, BP goes to 'premature saturation' that slows down the training convergence. In the saturation region, the derivative information tends to zero. To overcome the problem, BPfast maximizes the derivative of activation function together with minimizing the error function. BPfast is tested on five real world benchmark problems such as breast cancer, diabetes, heart disease, Australian credit card, and horse. BPfast exhibits faster convergence and good generalization ability over standard BP algorithm.


The birth of new vocational colleges promotes the development of higher vocational education, but at the same time causes a series of crises to it. This paper attempts to find ways for the stable development of higher vocational education: to change out-of-date ideas, standardize administration, and improve teaching quality.


In evaluating the reliability of flip chip on board with solder bumps, only a little is known about moisture-induced failure mechanisms at interconnection level. In order to accommodate the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion of the silicon die and the printed board in a flip chip geometry, an epoxy underfill is commonly applied. This underfill increases the resistance to cyclic temperature loads, but the material is susceptible to moisture ingress. Failure analysis of flip chips from an 85/spl deg/C/85%RH test has shown that swelling of the underfill caused by moisture take up and the resulting hygro-stress is a major driving force for failures at interconnection level. To capture this failure mechanism, a new first order, one dimensional diffusion model for moisture is used. Moisture absorption properties of underfills are experimentally determined by gravimetric vapour sorption experiments at 85/spl deg/C/85%RH. The temperature dependencies of these properties are estimated based on data of similar epoxy moulding compounds. Taking a critical hygro-stress level as failure criterion, an analytical transform is proposed, and an acceleration factor defined. A design rule for accelerated humidity testing is formulated. The acceleration transform is used to plot iso failure-free time diagrams for two flip chip underfills. These diagrams enable predicting of a failure-free time during service life under a variety of temperature and humidity conditions.


Mother cultures propagated in a dairy or cheese plant frequently fail to produce acid at a normal rate, as evidenced by the time required for the culture to coagulate milk. The duration of slow acid production by mother cultures is quite variable and may last for a few days or weeks, or the culture may never produce acid at its previous rate. When a mother culture fails to produce acid satisfactorily, it generally is discarded and a new culture obtained. However, the policy of some plants is to hold a slow acid-producing culture at a favorable growth temperature until coagulation occurs and then make further transfers from it. Future transfers from such a culture may show normal acid production after a few transfers. Cultures obtained from cheese plants and dairies experiencing difficulty with slow mother cultures for periods of rather short duration were found to contain bacteriophage. I t appeared feasible to determine the duration of bacteriophage in a sensitive culture of Streptococcus lactis and to study some of the characteristics of the secondary-growth organisms resulting from the action of bacteriophage. Nichols and Ineson (4) attributed starter recovery in commercial cultures to a mixture of several strains in the starter, some strains being unaffected by bacteriophage. Hunter (2) stated that the mechanism by which resistant forms originate after lysis of a culture by phage has not been explained satisfactorily. Yakovlev (5) noted that secondary-growth cultures were temporarily resistant to bacteriophage when grown on solid media; on liquid media their resistance was permanent but they remained carriers of bacteriophage. Hunter (2) found that under certain circumstances a phage-coccus mixture could be subcultured daily in milk and lysis did not occur. Such cocci, in the presence of symbiotic phage, showed resistance to lysis by other phage strains. Nelson et al. (3) state that the inhibitory principal (bacteriophage) may have a destabilizing effect on the cell when the changes involved in the loss of sensitivity characteristics are effected. The destabilized cell then may undergo either a gain or loss of sensitivity to various filtrates, the direction of the change being conditioned by factors at present unknown. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS Propagation of cultures. Cultures of S. lactis were transferred in skimmilk which had been autoclaved for 15 min. at 15 lb. pressure. An inoculation of approximately 1.0 per cent was employed.


The purpose of this article is to study a nine-switch converter dedicated to feed two induction motors (IM) used in electric vehicle (EV). The work relies on finding a configuration of a power converter with fewer power components for cost and volume reduction. For this we began by modeling this converter in order to study it then we developed a control strategy based on direct torque control with space vector modulation (DTC-SVM) adapted to the global system (converter-machines) integrated in an electric vehicle. The results of simulation of the dynamic behavior obtained make it possible to validate the structure.


In this study, we have investigated the structure–flame-retardant (FR) efficacy relationships of phosphoramidates (PRs) on flexible polyurethane foam (FPUF). FPUFs that contain model monosubstituted secondary PRs, monosubstituted tertiary PRs, and trisubstituted secondary PRs were prepared and evaluated for FR efficacy and thermal decomposition characteristics. The fire test results indicate that methyl ester PRs exhibit better FR behavior, compared to analogous phenyl ester derivatives at equal weight percentage in polyurethane (PU) foams. Within the same class of PRs, the monoallyl derivatives exhibited the highest level of flame retardancy. The multiallyl PR derivatives did not offer any advantage, in terms of improved flame retardancy. Evolved gas analysis from the thermal degradation of PU foams indicates that the PRs are volatilized in the first stage of thermal decomposition and are primarily active in the gas phase with the exception of the triallyl-PR derivative, which is primarily active in the ...


required for migration to Szechwan, for example. In the 1750s such policies were gradually abandoned in mainland China, but not in Taiwan. Although Shepherd compares Ch'ing frontier policy in Taiwan with policies toward south-west China and the north-east, these comparisons could be expanded to include internal migration. The central theme of Shepherd's work is the interaction of Han settlers and plains aborigines and how the Ch'ing government mediated that relationship. He argues persuasively that the Ch'ing government determined whether to promote Han Chinese settlement in frontier areas or support the land claims of indigenous peoples largely on the basis of cost-benefit calculations involving control costs and the potential for land-tax revenues. In Taiwan, this led the Ch'ing state to adopt policies ' unexpectedly solicitous of the land rights of subordinate indigenes' who contributed to state revenue (p. 396). Plains aborigines and Han settlers often shared control of land under the 'two lords to a field' (i-t'ien liang-chu) system found also in parts of mainland China. Plains aborigines held permanent large-rent ownership or subsoil rights; Han settlers acquired rights of permanent tenancy. This system survived until it was abolished by the Japanese colonial government at the beginning of this century. The government was in the long run unable to prevent the Han Chinese colonization of Taiwan. The plains aborigines did not disappear but they did become increasingly acculturated. Resistance to sedentary agriculture, regarded by male aborigines as women's work, gradually broke down as the deer-hunting economy declined. Yet acculturation did not necessarily mean assimilation. Plains aborigines quickly adopted features of Chinese culture that they found attractive, but they adopted slowly Chinese customs in the area of kinship relations. Aboriginal marriage was generally uxorilocal. In aboriginal families the conjugal bond was more important than the father-son relationship that was, ideally, the basis of Han families. Aboriginal women enjoyed a greater measure of freedom than did Han women, and aborigines rejected footbinding and female infanticide. The shortage of Han women on the frontier, however, meant competition for aboriginal wives. Intermarriage furthered the acculturation of plains aborigines. Moreover, Han husbands often gained control of aboriginal land through their wives, and their children were generally raised as Han Chinese. A short review cannot do justice to Shepherd's multifaceted study. It is without doubt the best book in English, and perhaps in any other language, on society and statecraft in Taiwan from 1600 to 1800. It will be complemented by Shepherd's forthcoming historical ethnography of the Siraya, the first group of plains aborigines to come under Dutch and Chinese control.


"Climate Rage: Extractivism and Dispossession in The Olive Tree" is a video essay analyzing the film El Olivo (The Olive Tree, 2016) to explore anger as a response to ecological degradation. The video essay examines the anger of a young, female protagonist in response to the sale of her grandfather's olive tree within the context of Spain's ongoing economic and environmental crisis. The essay considers the impacts of environmental violence on human bodies, particularly women and marginalized groups, and emphasizes the interdependence of self and environment. Introducing the term "ecopathy" to refer to the awareness of being embedded in the environment and the range of emotions it evokes, the essay draws from the foundational work of Black feminist authors like Audre Lorde, who study rage as a transformative emotion and applies this methodology to environmental studies, embracing rage's potential to mobilize communities and challenge the status quo.


ABSTRACT Geo-economic cooperation among neighboring countries has promoted landscape changes across their borders, including impervious surface expansion and/or agriculture-forest conversion, which are often presented but usually ignored. Short-revisit multispectral imagery lays a foundation for delineating these gradual or seasonal landscape changes in border regions. China-Laos Mohan-Boten Economic Cooperation Zone (ECZ), which has been launched in March 2016, has recently witnessed a rapid expansion of impervious surfaces. In this study, Sentinel-2 A/B 10 m images over the Mohan-Boten ECZ from 2017 to 2021, and the Continuous Change Detection and Classification algorithm, which combines spatial filtering and temporal consistency check, have been utilized to identify, correct and reconstruct monthly time-series of impervious surface area (ISA). In addition, the patterns and characteristics of impervious surface expansion under the context of China-Laos geo-economic cooperation have been analyzed and the response of impervious surface expansion to geo-economic cooperation has been evaluated. The results show that Mohan-Boten ECZ and China-Laos Railway are two geo-economic contributors to the expansion of impervious surface in both sides of the border. ISA in the ECZ nearly doubled in only five years. ISA in the Boten side expanded much faster than that of the Mohan side in the first half of the study period and exceeded its counterpart for the first time in February 2019. Moreover, the scale and rates of expansion in the dry seasons were much larger in both sides. Three expansion patterns were recognized in the ECZ. This study highlights the potentials of time-series stack of land cover products in quantifying the impacts of geo-economic cooperation on land use change in border areas and in clarifying how border land use change responds to geo-economic cooperation and/or competition.


: Two classes of cells can be subcultured from human amniotic fluid (F and AF). Ultrastructural features of these cultrued cells were determined using scanning and transmission electron microscopy with particular attention to extracellular material. Results obtained from these two cell types are compared to one another and to cultured human dermal fibroblasts. The F-type cultures have an abundance of extracellular type i collagen fibers, identical with cultured human dermal fibroblasts. No type I collagen fibers are seen in cultures of AF cells. Instead, fine filamentous material is admixed with amorphous material adjacent to cell membranes where epithelial basement membrane glycoprotein has been localized. By scanning electron microscopy parallel arrays of cells are present at confluency of F cultures, typical of cultured dermal fibroblasts. AF cultures show a much looser growth pattern at confluency. On the basis of accumulated evidence, we believe that F-type cells arise from fibrous connective tissue and are fibroblasts, whereas AF cells, the predominant type in early cultures used for prenatal genetic diagnosis, arise from fetal membranes and retain features of trophoblast.


Controlling internal flow in evaporating sessile droplets is desirable across applications ranging from lab-on-chip medical diagnostics, DNA profiling to surface patterning. Diffusion limited evaporation in droplets exhibit very low internal flow velocities [∼O(10−6) m/s]. Enhancement of internal flow is useful for applications which demand in situ mixing at small scale fluidic systems but limited by the low Reynolds number. To overcome this limitation, we present a non-intrusive methodology to enhance flow inside the droplets without affecting its global evaporation pattern. A highly volatile ethanol droplet is positioned asymmetrically in the vicinity of a water droplet. The ethanol molecules are consequently adsorbed asymmetrically on the air-water interface creating a gradient in surface tension. This causes an internal Marangoni convection with flow rates ∼O (103) times higher than a naturally evaporating water droplet. The inter-droplet distance between ethanol-water is used as a control parameter to vary the strength of Marangoni convection. The flow pattern transitions through several regimes from asymmetric to symmetric double toroid once the ethanol droplet completely evaporates. Experimental flow visualization and quantification by micro-particle image velocimetry have been used alongside simple scaling arguments to quantify the physical mechanism at play. We can also switch between different flow patterns by strategic dispensing of ethanol droplets.Controlling internal flow in evaporating sessile droplets is desirable across applications ranging from lab-on-chip medical diagnostics, DNA profiling to surface patterning. Diffusion limited evaporation in droplets exhibit very low internal flow velocities [∼O(10−6) m/s]. Enhancement of internal flow is useful for applications which demand in situ mixing at small scale fluidic systems but limited by the low Reynolds number. To overcome this limitation, we present a non-intrusive methodology to enhance flow inside the droplets without affecting its global evaporation pattern. A highly volatile ethanol droplet is positioned asymmetrically in the vicinity of a water droplet. The ethanol molecules are consequently adsorbed asymmetrically on the air-water interface creating a gradient in surface tension. This causes an internal Marangoni convection with flow rates ∼O (103) times higher than a naturally evaporating water droplet. The inter-droplet distance between ethanol-water is used as a control parameter t...


Recent research in the organizational identification field has called for the consideration of an expanded model of identification, which would include a more thorough treatment of ways an individual could derive his or her identity from the organization. This paper answers that call by operationalizing the expanded model, including identification, disidentification, ambivalent (or schizo) identification, and neutral identification. Survey results from 330 alumni of a major public university demonstrate the model's validity. The study also tests individual, situational, and interactionist predictors of each of the four dimensions of the model, and suggests implications for the future use of the expanded model in organizational identification research.


Evidence is accumulating to support the hypothesis that the action of TSH on the thyroid is mediated by c-AMP. Thus, TSH increased c-AMP in sheep thyroid membrane fractions1 and beef thyroid slices,2 and enhanced adenyl cyclase activity in beef thyroid homogenates.3 The N6-2'-O-dibutyryl ester of c-AMP (dbc-AMP) stimulated both the oxidation of glucose-i-C14 to C1402 and the incorporation of Pi32 into phospholipid,4 and induced pseudopods and intracellular colloid droplets in dog thyroid slices;' these effects are similar to those produced by TSH. However, the relationship, if any, between the various metabolic responses of thyroid tissue to TSH and the well-known rapid enhancing effect of TSH on the synthesis and secretion of thyroid hormone in vivo has not yet been clarified. There have been few reports either of the effects of c-AMI' upon the metabolism of iodine in the thyroid or of the possible mediation by c-AMP of the stimulation of the formation and secretion of thyroid hormones by TSH. Bastomsky and McKenzie6 reported that c-AMP and other adenine nucleotides increased the radioactivity in the blood of mice with prelabeled stores of iodine in the thyroid. Although highly suggestive of a stimulative action of c-AMP on the secretion of iodine, such findings do not exclude extrathyroid mechanisms that might contribute to this rise in radioactivity. The present report describes the prompt stimulation of the formation of thyroid hormone by c-AMP and TSH injected into rats, and similar effects of dbc-AMP and of theophylline. Materials and Methods.-Rats weighing 100 i 10 gm were anesthetized with ether, and the external jugular vein of each was exposed; control groups were given 0.5-ml injections of a saline solution of NaI'31 with carrier iodide directly into the vein, and experimental groups received 0.5-ml injections of a saline solution of NaIF31 with carrier iodide plus the materials being tested. The use of carrier iodide permitted calculation of the quantity of stable iodine that was bound and also ensured that the influx of iodide into the thyroid would exceed the rate at which it was organically bound. The solutions were neutralized with 1 N NaOH before being injected. At either 2 or 90 min after injection, the abdominal aorta of each rat was cut to permit exsanguination, and the thyroid gland was quickly removed. No more than 20 sec elapsed between transection of the aorta and removal of the thyroid. Observations of the cut thyroid veins in another group of animals showed that perfusion of the thyroid fell sharply within 2 sec after transection of the aorta. Each gland was weighed, transferred to a glass homogenizer, and ground with 0.4 ml of an aqueous solution of methimazole (1 mM). To determine the fraction of glandular 1131 present as PB1131, 0.1 ml of homogenate was mixed with an equal volume of human serum, and an aliquot was subjected to ascending paper chromatography with butanol-ethanol-2 N ammonia (5:1: 2). Serum was added to the homogenate to prevent artifactual deiodination of the samples applied to the paper.7' 8 After 18 hr of chromatography, the papers were scanned with a Vanguard strip scanner. The scans revealed only two zones of radioactivity corresponding to the origin and to iodide; these zones were


Malaysian market value for herbal industry was estimated to grow at 10% annually and the total market value of Malaysian herbal industry in 1999 was RM 4.55 billion (Huda et aI., 2007; Zainal, 2007). On the other hands, diabetes mellitus (DM) is a major and growing health problem
since it is the fourth or fifth leading cause of death in most developed countries (Shafie et aI., 2004). In Malaysia, National Health and Morbidity study showed that there was an increase in the prevalence of DM among adults above 30 years old of Peninsular Malaysia from 6.3% in
1986 to 8.8% in 1996 (Chua, 2001). It causes substantial amount of disability, premature mortality, lost of productivity and increased burden on health care budget and facilities


This study examines the formation of Hong Kong identity and its cultural articulation in Chinese identity in the post-handover years. Surveys of Hong Kong identity conducted between 1996 and 2016 demonstrate a set of interlinked yet contradictory findings: (i) the coexistence of both cultural pride in and resistance to cultural icons that represent the Chinese state; (ii) weakening correlations between China and Hong Kong regarding cultural affiliation; and (iii) the growing significance of cultural resistance to China by people who love Hong Kong. The survey results indicate the prevalence of an ambivalent identity in post-handover Hong Kong with regard to the coexistence of opposing attitudes toward Chinese identity. These results provide evidence of the complex cultural bonding between China and Hong Kong in the development of the China–Hong Kong relationship since the handover in 1997.


This short text looks at the topographies of borders under the impact of climate change, arguing that the rapid transformation of our physical environment is also urging us to find new textual and aesthetic modes of addressing and perceiving it. Through the reading of the recent video essay Deep Weather, the artist revisits two remote sites in frontier spaces—the delta in Bangladesh and the Alberta tar sands—and discusses their connection through the atmospheric chemistry.


Two kinds of storage stabilizers B and P were developed.The influence of storage stabilizer content,storage temperature and time on storage stability of modified asphalt was studied,and three storage stabilizers B,P and TOR were compared.The results showed that both B and P could improve the storage stability obviously,the storage stability would be best when the stabilizer content was 2% of asphalt,which could make the D-value between upper and lower softening point reduced from 10.2℃ to 3.5℃ and 1℃ respectively.In addition,B and TOR had the considerable effect,and P was superior to B and TOR.


ABSTRACT. In many radar scenarios, the radar target or the medium is assumed to possess randomly varying parts. The properties of a target are described by a random process known as the spreading function. Its second order statistics under the WSSUS assumption are given by the scattering function. Recent developments in the operator identification theory suggest a channel sounding procedure that allows to determine the spreading function given complete statistical knowledge of the operator echo. We show it is theoretically possible to identify a scattering function of an overspread target from a single received echo and suggest an estimator for the scattering function.


The present invention relates to a quick-hardening concrete composition for repairing and a constructing methods using thereof. The present invention provides a quick-hardening concrete composition for repairing which improves the working environment, reduces environment contamination, has similar or better strength than convention concrete, and is capable of being easily applied to concrete deposition requiring quick-hardening properties.


Non-monochromatic excitations oscillating at complex frequencies can overcome the limits imposed by passivity. We discuss a few examples in which this approach can be successfully implemented in nanophotonic platforms.


This study tests two models of perceptual disconfirmation. Perceptual disconfirmation occurs when individuals have a negative expectation regarding their future conversation partners' demeanor, but after conversing with and influencing their partners' behavior, individuals' assessment of their partners' demeanor becomes more positive. This effect is, so far, novel to computer-mediated communication: When individuals with similar expectancies get acquainted using phone or face-to-face channels their negative preinteraction expectancies persist and assessments remain unchanged. This experiment explored the extent to which questions and disclosures, and partners' disclosive responses, mediated perceptual disconfirmation. Individuals were led to believe that a dyadic conversation partner was either in a bad mood (negative and malleable expectation) or had a bad personality (negative and nonmalleable expectation). After a 30-min online conversation to get acquainted, perceptual disconfirmation emerged, although the verbal strategies did not mediate the effect. This study raises new questions about the process by which individuals who have negative expectancies of their future conversation partners defy these negative expectations and shift their attitudes to become more positive online.


'A Neglected Text of Philo of Alexandria: First Translation into a Modern Language' (pp. 199-207); and S. Wan, 'Abraham and the Promise of Spirit: Points of Convergence between Philo and Paul' (pp. 209-24). The final section, on 'Early Christian Literature', contains the most contributions: W. Adler, 'Abraham's Refutation of Astrology: An Excerpt from Pseudo-Clement in the Chronicon of George the Monk' (pp. 227-41); T.A. Bergren, 'Mother Jerusalem, Mother Church: Desolation and Restoration in Early Jewish and Christian Literature' (pp. 24359); E.G. Chazon, 'A "Prayer Alleged to be Jewish" in the Apostolic Constitutions' (pp. 261-77); V. Hillel, 'Why Not Naphtali?' (pp. 279-88); P.W. van der Horst, 'Twenty-Five Questions to Corner the Jews: A Byzantine Anti-Jewish Document from the Seventh Century' (pp. 289-301); M. de Jonge, 'Sidelights on the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs from the Greek Catena on Genesis' (pp. 303-15); J. Mansfeld, 'Galen, Papias and Others on Teaching and Being Taught' (pp. 317-29); E.G. Mathews, Jr, 'Isaac of Antioch and the Literature of Adam and Eve' (pp. 331-44); R. Nikolsky, 'The Adam and Eve Traditions in The Journey of Zosimus' (pp. 345-56); and finally D. Satran, 'Deceiving the Deceiver: Variations on an Early Christian Theme' (pp. 357-64). The volume closes with a chronological bibliography of Stone's publications (pp. 365-80), plus indexes of modern authors (pp. 381-85) and ancient sources (pp. 386-405). Several papers (Chazon, Mathews, Runia, and Van der Horst) contain editions or translations of texts, a fitting tribute to one who has introduced scholars to dozens of texts through his editions and translations. The topics and quality of all the papers in the volume suggest that their authors made a special point of contributing their very best work. Like the scholarship of Professor Stone, Things Revealed contains many treasures for any specialist of early Judaism or Christianity, and, therefore, for any research university library. It is highly recommended.


When the day has ended and everyone else has fallen asleep, a young boy embarks on an adventure with his friend, the Moon.


The aims this study were focused on the factors that became obstacles or barriers to the role of police investigators of the Republic of Indonesia in the prevention and eradication of the forest destruction against illegal logging in Lebong Regency and to analyze and explain the efforts to overcome obstacles or barriers to role of Police Investigators of the Republic of Indonesia in preventing and combating forest destruction against illegal logging in Lebong Regency in the future. This study was an empirical legal research conducted by examining the primary data by conducting interviews to the respondents. As for the nature of this research was descriptive, and sources of data used are primary data and secondary data, the datathen was analyzed by using qualitative juridical analysis methods. The results of the study and discussion obtained that factors that became obstacles or barriers tothe role of the police investigator of the Republic of Indonesia in the prevention and eradication of the forest destruction against illegal logging in Lebong Regency were the location of the crime scene in Lebong Regency was remotely away from the Police Resort office of Lebong, the lack of coordination between the police investigator of the Republic of Indonesia with investigators from civil servants forestry particularly in Lebong Regency, lack of budgetary funds in conducting the investigation, facilities and infrastructure are inadequate to carry out investigations, the expert witness who are relatively hard to reach from Lebong Regency, that is in the city of Bengkulu, factor of witness testimony in the investigation, and the lack of public participation in Lebong Regency. As the efforts to overcome obstacles or barriers to the role of police investigators in the future were increasing the synergy of coordination between the police investigator of Lebong with investigators from civil servants forestry of Lebong, increasing the budget funds in the investigation, inventorying of all the existing facilities and infrastructure and making proposals of necessities required for the implementation of the investigation, as a procedure to bring in an expert who is relatively far away to come and testify, the case investigator must proactively go to the witness with the budget and the existing means.


UNIPAC is a new two-row tapered roller bearing assembly that has been developed for smaller automobiles that use an independent suspension, and front wheel drive. The new two row assembly offers a complete tapered roller bearing package that is pregreased, preadjusted and sealed. These unique functional characteristics are required of this bearing assembly for the independently sprung driving wheel position. Each functional bearing requirement has been studied and tested to assure satisfctory bearing performance at the most economical bearing price.


In this note we show how to construct a number of nonconvex quadratic inequalities for a variety of physics equations appearing in physical design problems. These nonconvex quadratic inequalities can then be used to construct bounds on physical design problems where the objective is a quadratic or a ratio of quadratics. We show that the quadratic inequalities and the original physics equations are equivalent under a technical condition that holds in many practical cases which is easy to computationally (and, in some cases, manually) verify.


A β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) functionalized magnetic graphene hybrid (mGO-β-CD) has been prepared and its application as an adsorbent for the removal of organic dyes has been investigated. Magnetic graphene hybrids (mGOs) were first synthesized via a chemical precipitation method, and then β-CDs were applied to further functionalize the resultant mGO hybrid. The results demonstrate that the as-prepared mGO-β-CD hybrid exhibits greatly enhanced adsorption performance in water. Acid fuchsin and Rhodamine 6G, the typical dye pollutants, can be effectively removed from their solutions by the mGO-β-CD hybrid. The maximum adsorption capability of the mGO-β-CD hybrid is several times, even hundreds of times higher than that of the reported carbonaceous materials. Moreover, ca. 90% of the dye removal efficiency can be retained after six adsorption–desorption cycles. In addition, the mGO-β-CD hybrid exhibits negligible toxicity toward the normal cells. Conclusively, the resultant mGO-β-CD hybrid proves to be a magnetically separable, efficient and non-toxic adsorbent for dye removal.


A method for face detection and recognition using geometrical relationships of faces is presented in this paper. A gray level of image which is thresholded to produce a binary, edged image is required for face detection step then finding the head outline and then extracting it to perform the process of recognition. A pre-processing step will occur to remove the noise effect and to produce the accurate outline of head curve. The system is composed of a face detection stage presented previously which provides good results maintaining a low computational cost. After the integration of the two stages, several improvements are proposed which increase the face detection and recognition rate and the overall performance of the system. Application of these techniques has led to measurements of characteristic features of the human face with sufficient accuracy to merit later inclusion in full package for automated facial recognition. Good results have been obtained.


Water constitutes a major limiting factor on Romanian Danube Plain areas under rainfed conditions. In this case, the aim of agriculture is to obtain the highest yield per unit of available water. This research, carried out at NARDI Fundulea, during 2010-2014, had as main purpose the determination of tillage practices and residue management influence on water utilization within a winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) – maize (Zea mays L.) – soybean [Glycine max (L) Merr] cropping system. Tillage and crop residue management treatments studied were as follows: (1) chisel tillage, retained crop residues being chopped and incorporated (ciz); (2) zero tillage, retained crop residue chopped and kept on the field in short flat condition (rvt); (3) zero tillage, crop residues kept on the field in short root-anchored condition (1/2rva), and (4) zero tillage, crop residues kept on the field in tall root-anchored condition (1/1rva). The mean crop precipitation index was 58% for all crop rotation cycles. The conventional chisel tillage increases the risk of soil erozion mainly due to crop residues incorporation. Water use efficiency for wheat, maize and soybean ranged from 1.22 to 1.70 kg mˉ3, from 1.70 to 2.50 kg mˉ3, and from 0.09 to 0.55 kg mˉ3, respectively. Based on the results of this research, regarding water utilization vis-a-vis yield levels, we can drow the conclusion that the farmers are not going to see great yield differences in the transition period between cnservative agriculture (CA) and conventional system (chisel tillage), but more evident than the distinctions in the field are the significant positive differences between returns over variable costs, due to the reduced expences required by CA in comparison with the conventional system (chisel tillage). Cuvinte cheie: indicele de interceptare a precipitaţiilor de către culturi, eficienţa velorificării precipitaţiilor, evapotranspiraţia, eficienţa valorificării apei.


Objective  Clinical laboratories in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC) need fundamental improvement because quality laboratory services are essential for the decision‐making capacity of clinicians, health workers and public health authorities. To this end, a tiered accreditation scheme Stepwise Laboratory Improvement Process Towards Accreditation (SLIPTA) was developed by WHO‐AFRO, CDC and others for clinical laboratories in LMIC. One to five stars are accredited to laboratories based on the level of compliance with a checklist. Our aim was to evaluate the quality and applicability of this accreditation scheme compared with international quality standards.


Transport and optical properties of nonideal plasma presents in seven chapters an accessible survey of theoretical and experimental research in the field of nonideal plasmas. The contents of the book are wide-ranging, covering not only transport and optical properties, but also including a systematic treatment of the thermodynamics and analysis of plasma oscillations in nonideal plasmas. The field of nonideal or simply dense plasmas has developed rapidly over the past decades, and it is now characterized by a better understanding of the fundamental processes, although essential properties are still not measured as systematically as under ideal conditions. In this respect, this book is a useful tool and reference for specialists in the field since it presents an accurate picture of current concepts and developments. For those just starting basic research in the field of nonideal plasmas, it provides the necessary theoretical background and explains the experimental techniques to produce and diagnose such media. Central to the book is the discussion of the thermodynamic properties (ionization equilibrium, equation of state). The reason is that any analysis of optical and transport phenomena in nonideal plasmas depends sensitively on the thermodynamic state variables. The high-density corrections relevant to plasmas under extreme conditions are very difficult to calculate, and this book is an attempt to deal with the subject as a whole in a detailed manner. Transport and optical properties of nonideal plasmas features a number of topics not covered in other books on this subject, including generation and diagnostics of dense plasmas, and the application of nonideal plasmas in modern technology. Written by leading experts from the Institute for High Temperatures of the Russion Academy of Science, this book is partly based on pioneering research in nonideal plasmas done in Russia over an extended period of time. This is a well written book for anyone working on topics related to nonideal plasmas.


With the consistent deepening of reform and opening up and the emergence of various thinkings and cultures as the background, the cultural progress in the coastal rural area faces a new situation and many problems. This article discusses this issues from seven aspects.


A previously unknown leucite-related structure has been determined for synthetic CszCdSisO~2. NMR spectroscopy shows that there are five distinct tetrahedral sites (T-sites) occupied by Si and one T-site occupied by Cd in the framework structure, while analysis of the synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction pattern establishes that this material is orthorhombic, Pbca [RI = 13.1%, R wp = 16.1%, Rex p = 13.1%; eight formula units per unit cell; unit-cell parameters a= 13.6714(1), b= 13.8240 (1), c= 13.8939 (1) ,~, V = 2625.83 (6) ,~3]. Tetrahedral cation ordering rates for Si and Cd are sufficiently high for both hydrothermally and dry-synthesized samples to be fully ordered. The symmetry relations between leucites with P2/c and Pbca structures are discussed and it is shown that such materials are related by a displacive phase transition, in which the


This study was conducted to investigate if teachers at urban, rural and suburban elementary schools differ significantly in their sense of self-efficacy. The schools utilized for this research are located in the southeastern United States. Along with being in different geographic areas the schools are also different in their socioeconomic make-up and status. The Teachers' Sense of Efficacy (TSES) created by Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy, was utilized. The authors found that, overall, the teachers at the urban elementary school displayed significantly lower scores on the TSES than did the teachers at suburban and rural schools.


Intensive production can reduce production costs and improve efficiency of larvae culture. This study compared the effects of intensive and semiintensive production on growth, survival, and V-shaped skeletal deformities in juvenile gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata). At the end of the 50-day study, survival was 68.01±0.8%, mean weight was 1.32±0.03 g, and lordosis was 32% among juveniles raised in the intensive system. Survival and mean weight were significantly higher, 92.06±1.1% and 1.61±0.02 g, respectively, among juveniles raised in the semi-intensive system, and none had lordosis (p<0.05). Results suggest that semi-intensive systems are more advantageous than intensive for rearing sea bream juveniles.


Objective: To study the effect of clactionin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in pulpal tissue by traumatic occlusion. Methods: To observe the change of CGRP- immunoreactive nerve fibres in the pulpal tissue of rat by traumatic occlusion at different observation of 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, 15 days and 30 days with immunohistochemical method. Results: The changes of CGRP- immunoreactive nerve fibres in morphology, distribution, and density were induced by traumatic occlusion in pulpal tissue of rat. Conclusions: Traumatic occlusion may lead to the release of CGRP from the pulp nervous terminals, and CGRP may play a role in the progress of pulpal inflammation and repair.


Plumes on Europa would be extremely interesting science and mission targets, particularly due to the unique opportunity to obtain direct information on the subsurface composition, thereby addressing Europa's potential habitability. The existence of water plume on the Jupiter's moon Europa has been long speculated until the recent discover. HST imaged surpluses of hydrogen Lyman alpha and oxygen emissions above the southern hemisphere in December 2012 that are consistent with two 200 km high plumes of water vapor (Roth et al. 2013). In previous works ballistic cryovolcanism has been considered and modeled as a possible mechanism for the formation of low-albedo features on Europa's surface (Fagents et al. 2000). Our simulation agrees with the model of Fagents et al. (2000) and consists of icy particles that follow ballistic trajectories. The goal of such an analysis is to define the height, the distribution and the extension of the icy particles falling on the moon's surface as well as the thickness of the deposited layer. We expect to observe high albedo regions in contrast with the background albedo of Europa surface since we consider that material falling after a cryovolcanic plume consists of snow. In order to understand if this phenomenon is detectable we convert the particles deposit in a pixel image of albedo data. We consider also the limb view of the plume because, even if this detection requires optimal viewing geometry, it is easier detectable in principle against sky. Furthermore, we are studying the loss rates due to impact electron dissociation and ionization to understand how these reactions decrease the intensity of the phenomenon. We expect to obtain constraints on imaging requirements necessary to detect potential plumes that could be useful for ESA's JUICE mission, and in particular for the JANUS camera (Palumbo et al. 2014). Lucchetti et al.: Simulation of Europa's water plume 193


Biodegradable magnesium implants are considered as promising fixation devices in the orthopaedic application to replace the conventional implants with unexpected properties. Extensive applications of magnesium implants are still limited by the uncontrolled corrosion rate in the body fluid and their interactions with the tissue differentiation during bone healing. In addition, the evaluation of the mechanical integrity of implants is essential for stabilisation fractured bones. Therefore, a modelling approach is required to investigate the effect of the degradation process of implants on the healing efficiency of fractured bones. In the present work, a mechano‐regulatory model based on the biphasic stimuli is used to simulate tissue differentiation of fractured tibia. A corrosion damage model is extended by employing a nonlocal integral formulation to describe the pitting corrosion of magnesium implants. The physiological loadings are taken into account in 3D simulations. The simulation results are consistent with the experimental observation in the literature. The present modelling approach provides an efficient tool in the design and the performance evaluation of biodegradable magnesium implants.


Enhanced oil recovery processes focus on recovering oil trapped in reservoir rocks after primary and secondary recovery state by introducing alien agents into reservoirs. Nanoparticles grafted with polymer onto the surface, known as polymer-coated nanoparticles (PNPs), possess better dispersity and stability compared with nanoparticles. In this research, Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles were coated with copolymer (methyl methacrylate) – (2–acrylamide –2–methyl–propanesulfonate) (MMA-co-AMPS) connected via oleic acid bridge, in order to stabilize nanoparticles in salinity and high-temperature environments. Magnetic nanoparticles were synthesized by co-precipitation method. Subsequently, miniemulsion polymerization was carried out to fabricate polymer-coated magnetic nanoparticles. Said material adopted core-shell structure with high dispersity and temperature-stable properties. Structure and morphology of material were characterized by FTIR, DLS, TEM, PXRD, VSM and TGA methods. Obtained nanoparticles with an average size of 16nm and temperature-stable could be utilized in enhanced oil recovery processes.


Hate speech in social media is a growing phenomenon, and detecting such toxic content has recently gained significant traction in the research community. Existing studies have explored fine-tuning language models (LMs) to perform hate speech detection, and these solutions have yielded significant performance. However, most of these studies are limited to detecting hate speech only in English, neglecting the bulk of hateful content that is generated in other languages, particularly in low-resource languages. Developing a classifier that captures hate speech and nuances in a low-resource language with limited data is extremely challenging. To fill the research gap, we propose HateMAML, a model-agnostic meta-learning-based framework that effectively performs hate speech detection in low-resource languages. HateMAML utilizes a self-supervision strategy to overcome the limitation of data scarcity and produces better LM initialization for fast adaptation to an unseen target language (i.e., cross-lingual transfer) or other hate speech datasets (i.e., domain generalization). Extensive experiments are conducted on five datasets across eight different low-resource languages. The results show that HateMAML outperforms the state-of-the-art baselines by more than 3% in the cross-domain multilingual transfer setting. We also conduct ablation studies to analyze the characteristics of HateMAML.


A second‐generation constant force profiler is described combining a capacitance based stylus force probe with interferometric optical metrology to monitor position of the specimen carriage. The probe has a vertical range of 15 μm with a resolution of 0.23 nm and a flat bandwidth response with a −3 dB cutoff at 228 Hz. Passing the output signal through a single pole 200 Hz low‐pass filter, an overall system peak‐to‐peak broadband noise of less than 5 nm is observed. Manufactured primarily from inexpensive materials, the instrument demonstrates a stability of around 1 nm min−1 under controlled laboratory conditions. Using an inexpensive motor/gearbox/micrometer open‐loop drive with velocity variations of up to 20%, profiles showing nanometer repeatability over 15 mm traces are demonstrated. Also shown is a profile of a soft contact lens in the hydrated state. The effect of the contact stiffness on the stylus probe/specimen interaction is illustrated by examining the dynamics of the force probe system while...


It was previously found that Streptomyces sp. P6621 which was isolated by us from soil produces cephamycin C.1) A nitrosoguanidine mutant of this culture designated P6621-7N49 was found to produce additionally two antibiotics which were extractable with n-butanol, not inactivated by P-lactamase of Citrobacter fi•eundii and active against a (3-lactamase-producing strain of Serratia marcescens. After isolation and physicochemical analysis, the new components were demonstrated to be holomycin and N-propionylholothin. Holomycin has been reported previously as a streptomyces product, while N-propionylholothin has been reported only as a chemical derivative .21 This paper deals with isolation and identification of these two components. One ml of spore suspension of Streptomyces sp. P6621-7N49 was inoculated into a 500-m1 Erlenmeyer flask containing 100 ml of seed medium of the following composition : meat extract, 0.3%; Bacto-tryptone, 0.5%; glucose, 0.1%; soluble starch, 2.4 %; yeast extract, 0.5 %; soybean meal, 0.5 % and CaCO3, 0.5 %. The pH was adjusted to 6.8 prior to sterilization. One ml of the seed culture was transferred after 48 hours to a series of 500-m1 Erlenmeyer flasks containing 100 ml of production medium having the following composition: glucose, 0.5%; soluble starch, 2.0%; casamino acids, 1.0%; soybean meal, 1.5%; MgSO4 • 7H2O, 0.05% and CaCO3 0.5%. The pH was adjusted to 7.0 prior to sterilization. Incubation was carried out for two days at 28°C


My primary reservation about Kahlenberg and Marvit's proposal is that, as the authors acknowledge, it protects workers' rights to organize on the basis of individual claims and in so doing, draws attention away from the collective nature of unions. While employers might be less eager to dismiss individual organizers if the authors' proposal were adopted, it is not obvious how it would protect workers from the more common collective threat employers make in the face of organizing efforts—namely, that unionization will compel them to close or relocate their businesses. Each of these employer tactics aims to intimidate workers seeking to organize, but while the former targets individual workers, the latter is directed toward workers as a group. Reservations aside, I urge people to read this book. It presents an intriguing argument about how workers' rights might be strengthened in a politically expedient way and makes clear why such rights are important to our democracy.


This study identified the determinants of voting behavior of electorates in the year 2015 general election in Oyo State, Nigeria.  This was done with a view to ascertain whether gender, age and personal ideology affected the voting behavior of the electorates in the election process. The study which is a survey generated its primary data through the administration of questionnaire on 640 randomly selected electorates from 3 randomly selected local government in Oyo State, Nigeria. The retrieved data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics in the form of means, standard deviation, t-test and multiple regression.The results revealed that age (β = 0.158; t = 4.051; P 0.05) did not directly predict the voting behavior of the electorates. This implied that there was no significant difference between the voting behavior of the male and female electorates (t = -1.488; P >0.05).The study concluded that the Nigerian government needs to harness efforts in educating her citizenry on the essence of voting as a civic duty which should not be affected by age, or gender. This would improve the personal ideology of the electorates to the level that guarantees sustenance of democracy.


* Corresponding author ABSTRACT Informal participation in science is being recognized as an important way of developing science learning both for children and adults. Mobile learning has particular properties that have potential in informal science settings, particularly outside traditional educational settings. Mobile technologies provide new opportunities for learners to engage with science on the move. This paper reviews the impact of participation in informal science settings on some members of the public using the experiences of the iSpot project as a case study. iSpot aims to create and inspire a new generation of nature lovers by getting people to explore, study, enjoy, and protect their local environment. It facilitates an inquiry learning approach to identification of wildlife with support provided by a community developing round the resource. The iSpot project described here provides evidence of the ways in which informal participation in science can be enhanced by the use of technology. We draw on the findings of two case studies within the project - iSpot Mobile and iSpot Local. These demonstrate particular ways in which location-based activity and mobile learning can be developed and have an impact on the informal learning of science.


OBJECTIVE
To compare the impact of the introduction of two distinct sets of star ratings, quality of care and patient experience, on home health agency (HHA) selection.

DATA SOURCES
We utilized 2014-2016 home health Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) assessments, as well as publicly reported data from the Home Health Compare website.

DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS
We identified a 5% random sample of admissions (186,498 admissions) for new Medicare Fee-for-Service home health users.

STUDY DESIGN
This admission-level assessment compared HHA selection before (July 2014-June 2015) and after (February - December 2016) star ratings were published. We utilized a conditional logit, discrete choice model, which accounted for all HHAs that each patient could have selected (i.e., the choice-set) based on ZIP codes. Our explanatory variables of interest were the interactions between star ratings and time-period (pre/post-stars). We stratified our analyses by race, admission source, and Medicaid eligibility. We adjusted for HHA characteristics and distance between patients' homes and HHAs.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
The introduction of star ratings was associated with a 0.88 percentage point increase in the probability of selecting a high quality HHA and a 0.81 percentage point increase in the probability of selecting a highly ranked patient experience HHA. Patients admitted from the community, and black and Medicare-Medicaid dual eligible beneficiaries experienced larger increases in their likelihood of selecting high-rated agencies than inpatient, white and non-dual beneficiaries.

CONCLUSIONS
The introduction of quality of care and patient experience stars were associated with changes in HHA selection; however, the strength of these relationships were weaker than observed in other healthcare settings where a single star rating was reported. The introduction of star ratings may mitigate disparities in HHA selection. Our findings highlight the importance of reporting information about quality and satisfaction separately, and conducting research to understand the mechanisms driving HHA selection.


Features of impulsivity and compulsivity are involved in PG phenomenology, and a large body of literature investigated these aspects primarily using clinical observations and self-report questionnaires. Moreover, cognitive measures of motor inhibition and decision-making abilities may represent promising endophenotypic indicators of behavioural regulation, and deficits in these functions are hypothesised to be implicated in PG. In light of the importance of integrating subjective and objective indicators in psychodiagnostic assessment, the present review will consider findings on phenotypic and endophenotypic indicators of impulsivity and compulsivity in PG. Furthermore, the two main theoretical models proposed for PG will be discussed. An in-depth understanding of the role played by impulsivity and compulsivity within PG is indeed necessary to address diagnostic and treatment issues.


A novel message-passing protocol that guarantees at-most-once message delivery without requiring communication to establish connections, is described. The authors discuss how to use these messages to implement higher level primitives such as at-most-once remote procedure calls (RPC) and describe an implementation of at-most-once RPCs using their method. Performance measurements indicate that at-most-once RPCs can be provided at the same cost as less desirable RPCs that do not guarantee at-most-once execution. The method is based on the assumption that clocks throughout the system are loosely synchronized. Modern protocols provide good bounds on clock skew with high probability; the present method depends on the bound for performance but not for correctness.<<ETX>>


Alicaforsen is an antisense oligonucleotide inhibitor of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 protein expression with activity in subjects with ulcerative colitis and pouchitis.


Introduction It is important that anaesthesiologist plays a significant role in management of cardiac patients for non-cardiac surgery. The cardiovascular systems of patients who undergo non-cardiac surgery are influenced by multiple stress factors. A previously stable patient may decompensate perioperatively, leading to significant morbidity and mortality. Elderly population with its associated health concerns is expanding rapidly. The prevalence of cardiovascular disease increases with age. Elderly people require surgery four times more often than the rest of the population. It is estimated that number of patients undergoing surgery will increase by 25% by 2020, and for the same time period the eldrly population will increase by > 50%. Around 230 million patients undergo anaesthesia for major surgery in the world every year. Seven million develop severe complications associated with these surgical procedures from which one million die (200.000 in Europe). Lee et al. studied 4315 patients undergoing elective non-cardiac surgical procedures. They observed that 2.1% of patients suffered major


Single Best Answer You see a 27-year-old woman 3 months after a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder following an assault. She is still suffering with nightmares, hypervigilance and avoidance. Active monitoring has not helped. What is the SINGLE MOST appropriate management option? Select ONE option only. A. Antipsychotics B. Benzodiazepines C. Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing D. Psychologically-focussed debriefing E. Tricyclic antidepressants


Engineers, on the other hand, were rarely seen in the library. They obtained their highly focused information by reading technical reports and recent conference literature. When I showed Current


Background: Multiple clinical trials have shown that a properly functioning implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator (ICD) is capable of interrupting sudden death caused by ventricular tachyarrhythmias. However, ICDs are complex medical devices, and they do not always perform as expected or they may fail completely. Exposure of ICD recipients to professional or media reports that their specific device type is potentially malfunctioning could negatively influence their psychological status.


The leukaemogenic effect of chemotherapeutic agents after treatment for other malignancies have been well described. Myelodysplastic syndrome secondary to chemo- and radiotherapy (MDS-t) usually develops four to seven years after the initial exposure to chemotherapy frequently involving young patients, shows a high incidence of transformation to AML, is associated with severe cytopenias, trilineage dysplasia, reduced marrow cellularity and fibrosis, and presents an incidence of chromosomal abnormalities of up to 80% of the cases. The most common abnormalities are related to chromosomes 5 and 7. Alkylating agents have been considered the most common drugs associated with MDS-t. High dose chemotherapy used as part of the conditioning regimen prior to bone marrow transplantation as well as traditional regimens such as COPP/ABV and BEACOPP have also been associated with MDS-t. Recently, drugs such as azathioprine, rituximab and cladribine have been reported as causes too. Due to the increasing survival of patients suffering from other malignancies, MDS-t results as a mutagenic effect of these therapies and is related to poor prognosis.


HEREVER land is held as private property, the general VW public, the state, the community, the owner, the operator, the creditor and many other interested parties, attribute to it a "value." When title to such land is transferred under free sale, when an estate is settled, in the course of foreclosure proceedings, when the courts adjudicate tax-delinquent property to the state, or when the courts condemn it under eminent domain, or whenever such property is encumbered, pawned, or deeded in trust, a "value" is determined or expressed in terms of a specific sum of money. When property is sold, the parties to the sale arrive at a compromise between their divergent concepts of the value, meaning the ratio of exchange in the market, and express it in terms of the sales price. In any private enterprise economy, the value of land represents a considered opinion about the comparative usefulness of the specific tract in view of the supply of such land, its peculiar qualities, and the demand for it. The value of land is therefore one of the most powerful devices guiding and regulating the flow of investment into improvements of and on land, the settlement and development of rural areas, and the intensity of land use. The value of the land constantly reflects, moreover, an estimate of the present and future business situation in agriculture and other forms of land use. A sharp, rapid decline in land values leads almost always to a serious crisis in farm credit. Hectic rises in land values lead to speculative investments, increased indebtedness, faulty estimates of the sustained economic yield of the farm enterprise, and a subsequent decline in values. Thus the determination of the value of land, as a measure of its usefulness, is a matter of great private and public concern. In a mature capitalistic economy one might expect, therefore, that the theory, the methodology, the technique, and the institutional organization of farm appraisal would have reached such a high level of perfection that now only subtle refinements need be contemplated.


A theoretical model of the nonlinear spin wave interferometer has been developed. An experimental prototype of the device has been manufactured and investigated. The device application for power-selective suppression of pulsed microwave signals has been demonstrated. The obtained experimental data are in good agreement with the theory.


A lead screw is a mechanical transmission device which transforms rotary motion into translational movement. The main elements are screw and nut which establishes connection among them by the means of threads on respective element. It plays a major role in transferring the load between screw and nut during the travel stroke. This paper investigates the behavior of the lead screw, inside the withdrawal part of the circuit breaker of switchgear, by analyzing the mechanical response of the lead screw system. The various thread parameters such as thread pitch, nominal diameter etc. play an important role in force transmission as well as in overall efficiency of the mechanical system. This study is done by creating models of various thread profile such a square thread, acme thread, trapezoidal thread and simulating the results in the finite element analysis software ANSYS Workbench. This paper focuses on the effect of the thread pitch, nominal diameter, helix angle, screw length on the stress state and deformation within the screw. Also, the influence of screw pitch, screw length and screw nominal diameter on the withdrawal part of the circuit breaker's natural frequency along its whole stroke is carried out using modal analysis.


The invention provides a gamma reference voltage generation device and a displayer, and belongs to the technical field of liquid crystal displaying. The problem that an existing displayer is poor in display due to temperature variations is solved. The gamma reference voltage generation device comprises a gamma reference voltage source and a gamma reference voltage switching module, and the gamma reference voltage source is connected with the gamma reference voltage switching module to be used for providing the gamma reference voltage. The gamma reference voltage generation device further comprises at least one temperature compensation circuit, and the temperature compensation circuit is connected with the gamma reference voltage switching module to be used for compensating the gamma reference voltage, output by the gamma reference voltage switching module, of the gamma reference voltage source according to temperature changes. The displayer comprises the gamma reference voltage generation device.


ABSTRACT Fractions are defined by numerical relationships, and comparing two fractions' magnitudes requires within-fraction (holistic) and/or between-fraction (componential) relational comparisons. To better understand how individuals spontaneously reason about fractions, we collected eye-tracking data while they performed a fraction comparison task with conditions that promoted or obstructed different types of comparisons. We found evidence for both componential and holistic processing in this mixed-pairs task, consistent with the hybrid theory of fraction representation. Additionally, making within-fraction eye movements on trials that promoted a between-fraction comparison strategy was associated with slower responses. Finally, participants who performed better on a non-numerical test of reasoning took longer to respond to the most difficult fraction trials, which suggests that those who had greater facility with non-numerical reasoning attended more to numerical relationships. These findings extend prior research and support the continued investigation into the mechanistic links between numerical and non-numerical reasoning.


Increasing niche applications, growing international markets, and the emergence of advanced rotorcraft technology are expected to greatly increase the population of helicopters over the next decade. In terms of fuselage fatigue, helicopters show similar trends as fixed-wing aircraft. The highly unsteady loads experienced by rotating wings not only directly affect components in the dynamic systems but are also transferred to the fixed airframe structure. Expanded use of rotorcraft has focused attention on the use of new materials and the optimization of maintenance practices. The FAA's Airworthiness Assurance Center (AANC) at Sandia National Labs has joined with Bell Helicopter andother agencies in the rotorcraft industry to evaluate nondestructive inspection (NDI) capabilities in light of the damage tolerance of assorted rotorcraft structure components. Currently, the program's emphasis is on composite rotor hubs. The rotorcraft industry is constantly evaluating new types of lightweight composite materials that not only enhance the safety and reliability of rotor components but also improve performance and extended operating life as well. Composite rotor hubs have led to the use of bearingless rotor systems that are less complex and require less maintenance than their predecessors. The test facility described in this paper allows the structural stability and damage tolerance of composite hubs to be evaluated using realistic flight load spectrums of centrifugal force and bending loads. NDI was integrated into the life-cycle fatigue tests in order to evaluate flaw detection sensitivity simultaneously wiht residual strength and general rotor hub peformance. This paper will describe the evolving use of damage tolerance analysis (DTA) to direct and improve rotorcraft maintenance along with the related use of nondestructive inspections to manage helicopter safety. OVeralll, the data from this project will provide information to improve the producibility, inspectability, serviceability, and cost effectively of rotorcraft components.


Student engagement with instructors on a personal level can appear in the form of teacher's immediacy behaviors, which includes two main kinds of immediacy, verbal and non-verbal. Ellis (2004) found when instructors display communicative behaviors similar to immediacy; students' motivation to learn is likely to increase. Previous immediacy research has neglected to address the determinants and consequences of English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers' immediacy behaviors. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate its determinants as well as consequences by collecting data from a number of EFL teachers and their students. The qualitative data for this study were collected via semi-structured interviews and observations. Two models emerged out of the collected data, including a) the model of the determinants of EFL teachers' immediacy which comprised body gesture, vocal variety, rapport making … b) the model of the consequences of EFL teachers' immediacy including three main categories: affective, cognitive, and perceptive domains. The results of this study showed that among the determinants of teacher immediacy, body gesture and rapport making factors exhibited the highest frequency and among the consequences factors, affective and cognitive were found to be the most frequent ones. The findings can be of particular interest to teachers, educators, and policy makers and can help them in improving the quality of teaching and providing good environment for students to learn. Article visualizations:


Electrification of vehicles is a global concern in the pursuit of cleaner transportation (Stahletal, 2013). Hybridization of electric vehicles has become an important trend, as they can uphold the ...


The article is investigated the features of the author`s genre categories in contemporary Russian prose on the material of genre`s subtitles of novels by Dmitry Bykov.


476 Background: Up today there are no molecular markers to identify mCRC pts candidate to curative liver surgery at high risk of relapse. There are conflicting results about the prognostic role of KRAS mutation in mCRC pts, while BRAF mutation is a well-known negative prognostic factor characterizing a subgroup of mCRCs with a distinct metastatic spread. We analyzed the impact of BRAF and KRAS mutations on relapse free-survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in pts undergoing liver resection with curative intent. Methods: Medical records of pts referred to 3 Italian institutions between 1995 and 2012 were reviewed. 3024 mCRC pts were identified. 401 pts (13.3%) underwent liver resection with curative intent and had adequate follow-up. Mutational status was assessable on 360 samples from primary tumors (n=63), metastases (mts) (n=59) or both (n=238). Primary objective was to evaluate the impact of BRAF mutation on RFS in mCRC pts candidate to liver resection. Secondary objectives were to evaluate the prog...


Abstract The development of smooth, mirror-like surfaces provides insight into the mechanical behaviour of crustal faults during the seismic cycle. To determine the thermo-chemical mechanisms of fault mirror formation, we investigated carbonate fault systems in seismically active areas of central Greece. Using multi-scale electron microscopy combined with Raman and electron energy loss spectroscopy, we show that fault mirror surfaces do not always develop from nanogranular volumes. The microstructural observations indicate that decarbonation is the transformation process that leads to the formation of smooth surface coatings in the faults studied here. Piercement structures on top of the fault surfaces indicate calcite decarbonation, producing CO2 and lime (CaO). Lime subsequently reacts to portlandite (Ca(OH)2) under hydrous conditions. Nanoscale imaging and electron diffraction reveal a thin coating of a non-crystalline material sporadically mixed with nano-clay, forming a complex-composite material that smooths the slip surface. Spectroscopic analyses reveal that the thin coating is non-crystalline carbon. We suggest that ordering (hybridisation) of amorphous carbon led to the formation of partly-hybridised amorphous carbon but did not reach full graphitisation. Calcite nanograins, 100 nm) and new nanograins formed by back-reaction (secondary nanograins,


Uromodulin (Tamm-Horsfall protein, THP) is a glycoprotein uniquely produced in the kidney. It is released by cells of the thick ascending limbs (TAL) apically in the urine, and basolaterally in the renal interstitium and systemic circulation. Processing of mature urinary THP, which polymerizes into supra-molecular filaments, requires cleavage of an external hydrophobic patch (EHP) at the C terminus. However, THP in the circulation is not polymerized, and it remains unclear if non-aggregated forms of THP exist natively in the urine. We propose that an alternative processing path, which retains the EHP domain, can lead to a non-polymerizing form of THP. We have generated an antibody that specifically recognizes THP with retained EHP (THP+EHP) and established its presence in the urine in a non-polymerized native state. In the human kidney, THP+EHP predominantly co-localized with urinary THP in TAL cells, but it was also detected, at lower levels, in other tubular segments. We then developed a customized ELISA to measure THP+EHP and used it on urine and plasma samples from a small cohort of patients hospitalized with liver cirrhosis. On admission, urinary THP+EHP, but not total THP, was significantly lower in patients who subsequently developed acute kidney injury during hospitalization. THP+EHP was also detected in the plasma, albeit at very low concentrations. Our findings uncover novel insights into uromodulin biology by establishing the presence of an alternative path for cellular processing. Our proof-of-principle findings in patients warrant further investigations to establish the utility of THP+EHP as a sensitive biomarker of kidney health and susceptibility to injury.


The electrochemical behavior and the analytical utility of hydrous oxide films, formed on iridium by voltammetric cycling, have been studied by evaluating the dependence of the apparent Standard Electrode Potential (E°′) and the ratio of protons to electrons (p/e) participating in the potential determining equilibria on the charge storage capacity. A model based on electron exchange involving protons in solution and conductive sites on the hydrous oxide surface is proposed and it is shown that an increase in population of the conductive sites can be correlated with an enhancement in proton exchange capacity. The influence of the pretreatment is shown to be an important factor in determining both E°′ and p/e. The implications of these results for the use of hydrous iridium oxide electrodes as potentiometric pH sensors are considered.


The aim of this study was to investigate difference of child's dental fear and agreement between parent/child dyads according to parental rearing style. The subjects were 801 children aged 8 and 11-year old and their parents in Jeonju city. The parents were asked to answer a questionnaire which included four parental rearing style and the Children's Fear Survey Schedule Dental Subscale(CFSS-DS) at home. Also, the CFSS-DS was completed by 8 and 11 years old children in a classroom. Authoritative, permissive, authoritarian and neglectful parenting styles were 53.4%, 45.8%, 0.2% and 0.6% respectively. Authoritative and permissive parents reported 5.7 and 7.5 points higher than dental fear scores reported by their children. At 8 years old, children of authoritative parents were significantly 3.9 points higher than them of permissive parents(p = 0.002). Also, parent/child dyads showed moderate agreement assessing dental fear at aged 8. Parenting styles are related to children's dental fear, and especially 8-year-old girls in authoritative parenting styles have the highest dental fear. However, as age increased, the impact of parental styles on children's dental fear decreased.


Frame-based systems or semantic networks have been generally used for knowledge representation. In such a knowledge representation system, concepts in the knowledge base are organized based on the subsumption relation between concepts, and classification is a process of constructing a concept hierarchy according to the subsumption relationships. Since the classification process involves search and subsumption test between concepts, classification on a large knowledge base may become unacceptably slow, especially for real-time applications. In this paper, a massively parallel classification and property retrieval algorithm on a marker passing architecture is presented. The subsumption relation is first defined by using the set relationship, and the parallel classification algorithm is described based on that relationship. In this algorithm, subsumption test between two concepts is done by parallel marker passing and multiple subsumption tests are performed simultaneously. To investigate the performance of the algorithm, time complexities of sequential and parallel classification are compared. Simulation of the parallel classification algorithm was performed using the SNAP (Semantic Network Array Processor) simulator, and the influence of several factors on the execution time is discussed. >


The effects of probiotic on intestinal microbial flora and its development of weaning rabbits were studied by feeding the daily ration supplemented with 1 kg probiotic per ton feed.The result showed that probiotic might improve the growth state of rabbit intestinal flora,reduce the number of E.coli,increase the number of lactic acid bacteria,maintain the intestinal biological diversity,and stimulate the development of intestinal villi.So the probiotic can maintain a balance of the intestinal microbial flora of weaning rabbit and promote intestinal development.


This research aims at finding: (1) correlation between creativity learn students with achievement manufacture drawing practice students of grades  XI vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar, (2) correlation between computer laboratory facilities with achievement manufacture drawing practice students grades XI vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar, (3)correlation between creativity learn students and computer laboratory facilities with achievement manufacture drawing practice students grades XI vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar.  This research was a correlational-quantitative study. The population of this study was an all of mechanical engineering department vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar students grades XI which it has 104 students and samples used 80 students with simple random sampling technique. In collecting the data, the researcher used questionnaire methods and documentation methods. Questionnaires are used to gather data independent variable that was creativity learn students and computer laboratory facilities, whereas documentation methods were used to gather bound variable achievement manufacture drawing practice, students. The validity test used the product moment formula, the reliability test used the alpha Cronbach formula. The analytical rules test which was used, those are normality test, linearity test, multi co-linearity test, autocorrelation test, and heteroscedasticity. Data analytical techniques used partial correlation and double linear regression. The result of the study shows that: (1) there has a significant positive correlation between creativity learn students with achievement manufacture drawing practice students of grades  XI students of machine engineering department vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar with effective contribution of 54,7%, (2) there has a significant positive correlation between computer laboratory facilities with achievement manufacture drawing practice students of grades XI students of machine engineering department vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar with effective contribution of 20,4%,(3) there has a significant positive correlation between creativity learn students and computer laboratory facilities in a simultaneous manner with the achievement manufacture drawing practice students of grades XI students of mechanical engineering department vocational high school 2 of Karanganyar with effective contribution of 75,1%.


From the reform and opening up to the present, family businesses have become an important pillar of my country's national economy and the most essential push power to the advancement of the Economy of China. At present, more and more family firms come to the top of the hill on the heritage over generations. Meanwhile, the right of owning the firm has changed from the inventor or creators to the descendant ones and it is a must for them to inherit to the advancement. The intergenerational inheritance of family businesses has also had a certain impact on the global economy. At present, China's real economy is in a critical period of transformation and upgrading and industrial upgrading. At the same time, the weakening of the real economy. On the contrary, with the increasing popularity and deepening development of the financial industry, a large number of non-financial companies have turned their investment goals to the financial industry to obtain high returns. Of course, the company's financialization must have its positive side, and naturally, there is also a negative side. There are opportunities for enterprises to obtain high profits, but there are also great investment and management risks. Therefore, before financial investment, we should also fully consider the business risks borne by family enterprises. In addition, because of the particularity of the ownership of family enterprises in China, there are great differences in many aspects compared with other family enterprises and non-family enterprises abroad and internationally. Therefore, there may be some differences in the impact of corporate financialization on them. This study will further study and analyze the internal factors and modes of family business intergenerational inheritance leading to enterprise financialization based on family emotional wealth theory and representative theory, combined with the process of family business intergenerational inheritance and family business financialization. In the theoretical part, it combs the literature, including the definition of intergenerational inheritance, influencing factors, and inheritance content. Through the empirical test of the intermediary effect, this paper analyzes and studies the direct impact and intermediary effect of the proportion of productive investment on the intermediary effect; the role of family business identity (most important for children), re measure explanatory variables, and use PSM, propensity score matching method to test the robustness of regression results.


The objective of this research is to test, examine and provide empirical evidence to the influence of information system software quality, information quality and information system user capabilty toward accounting information system software user satisfaction. Objects in this research are the employees working in conventional bank that uses accounting information system in form of software.
The method used in this research is causal study, a study about causal relationship using convenience sampling method. The data used in this research was primary data. Data was collected from questionnaires given to respondents. The test conducted consists of data quality tests, consisting of validity test, reliability test, and normality test, classic assumption tests, consisting of heteroscedasticity test, and multicollinierity test, and followed by hypothesis testing, consisting of coefficient of determination test, significance of individual parameters test, and simultaneous significance test.
The results of this research showed that information system software quality and information quality have a significant effect on accounting information system software user satisfaction partially, but information system user capability have no effect on accounting information system software user satisfaction. Other than partial research, simultaneous research showed that information system software quality, information quality and information system user capability have a significant effect to the accounting information system software user satisfaction.


Semantic Segmentation of buildings present in satellite images using encoder-decoder like convolutional neural networks is being achieved with relatively high pixel-wise metric scores. In this paper, we aim to exploit the power of fully convolutional neural networks for an instance segmentation task using extra added classes to the output along with the watershed processing technique to leverage better object-wise metric results. We also show that CutMix mixed data augmentations and the One-Cycle learning rate policy are greater regularization methods to achieve a better fit on the training data and increase performance. Furthermore, Mixed Precision Training provided more flexibility to experiment with bigger networks and batches while maintaining stability and convergence during training. We compare and show the effect of these additional changes throughout our whole pipeline to finally provide a set a tuned hyperparameters that are proven to perform better.


This research compares results of micromorphological case studies conducted on four early medieval archaeological sites with differentiated spatialization of human impacts and a varied craft production located in different background environments: humid climate, subzone of mixed forests, floodplain of the Dnieper River (Gnezdovo site); semi-humid climate, subzone of forest-steppe, Middle Volga region (Muromsky Gorodok and Malaya Ryazan' sites); arid climate, cold desert of the Aral region, ancient delta-alluvial plain of the Syr-Darya River (Dzhankent site). Micromorphological studies of habitation deposits revealed clear geographical and geochemical regularities in the occurrence of geogenic (soil, sedimentary and post-sedimentary) features. Intrasoil migration and accumulation of clay and coarser silicate material in textural pedofeatures were described in cultural layers of sites located in forest and the forest-steppe zones. An anthropogenic input of phosphates provokes simultaneous migration and illuvial accumulation of phosphates and clay. In the habitation deposits in steppe landscapes with calcareous lithology, the key background soil process is redistribution and intrasoil accumulation of calcium carbonates. In the alluvial desert landscape, major soil processes are accumulation of gypsum and readily soluble salts. All layers are or were affected by at least some seasonal over-moisturizing that resulted in a variety of redoximorphic features depending on their palaeo- and/or contemporary water regime. The high variety of anthropogenic processes and corresponding microfeatures was grouped as follows: (1) input, output, turbation, compaction; (2) neoformation and migration; (3) pyrogenic processes (products); technological processes (products). The set of anthropogenic features records past human impact in the locality. The higher the variety of anthropogenic features and their general abundance is, the more intensive and variable the human impact which had occurred in the past. At the same time, the occurrence of certain anthropogenic features may indicate not only human-related processes of their formation (or input), but also a contemporary soil environment. This environment can be favorable, or, in the opposite, deteriorative for earlier formed anthropogenic features.


Soilless blueberry ( Vaccinium corymbosum L.) production is an alternative system that is increasing worldwide in surface area. There is little scientific information available as yet on the agronomic management of this cultivation system. The objective of the present study was to evaluate four N rates (0%, 100%, 200%, and 300% of the reference rate) and three water replacement level (70%, 100%, 130%) on leaf biomass production and leaf N concentration previous to winter fall (May and August 2021) in 10 pot-grown blueberry cultivars (Blue Ribbon, Duke, Camelia, Cargo, Last Call, Legacy, Ochlockonee, Suzie Blue, Ventura, and Victoria). An experiment was conducted in south-central Chile (36°55' S) with first-year plants. During the first growing season, results showed interactions between cultivars, N rates, and water replacement levels; there was a synergistic effect between N rates and water replacement levels on leaf biomass production in 'Duke', 'Camelia', 'Ochlockonee' and 'Suzie Blue'. Overall, the highest leaf biomass production in most cultivars was obtained with an N rate ranging from 33.2 to 53.1 g plant -1 season -1 (100% and 200% N rates, respectively) and 100% and 130% water replacement levels. Water consumption during the season fluctuated between 93.79 a 136.23 L season -1 . The highest leaf N concentration in most of the blueberry cultivars was obtained with N rates ranging from 33.2 to 53.1 g plant -1 season -1 and 70% and 100% water replacement levels. Therefore, agronomic management recommendations for N fertilization and water replacement levels in blueberries produced with this growing system cannot be generalized. One-year-old blueberry plants were placed in 35 L pots filled with a 2:2:1 (v/v) mixture consisting of coconut fiber, peat, and perlite with a density of 20 000 plants ha -1 . The assay included 480 plants and 1 row for each cultivar. Ten blueberry cultivars were evaluated: 'Blue Ribbon', 'Duke', 'Camelia', 'Cargo', 'Last Call', 'Legacy', 'Ochlockonee', 'Suzie Blue', 'Ventura', and 'Victoria'. Plants were fertilized twice a week with macro- and micronutrient solutions (Table 2) supplemented with one of four different ammonium sulfate concentrations per treatment. Irrigation was conducted with a drip system from October to April. Ten irrigation lines were placed along the rows of plants to independently irrigate each variety. The treatments were applied at different flow rates with two emitters per plant (Supertif PCND, Rivulis, Kibbutz Gvat, Jezreel Valley, Israel): two emitters at 1.1 L h -1 (70%), one emitter at 1.1 and one at 2.2 L h -1 (100%), and two emitters at 2.2 L h -1 (130%). Plants were irrigated daily at a rate of 2 to 3 min every hour (irrigation events) until substrate saturation (onset of leaching) was reached using an irrigation controller (Pro-C support, Hunter, San Marcos, California, USA). The number of irrigation events per day and the duration of each event were adjusted once a week with a water balance to determine a 100% water replacement level. The water balance was calculated for each variety with four replicates of plants fertilized with 100% N, assuming that the 24 h mean weight loss of the container would be equal to the daily transpiration rate of the plant. Pots and pot plates containing the leachate were removed and weighed with an electronic balance at an accuracy of 2 to 5 g (0.03 to 0.07 mm) on two consecutive days at the same time. Pot changes were used to calculate the total water volumes to control the soil moisture content in the pots according to the following