Economic activities are done by economic agents on the purpose of getting profit. However, in getting the profit, a corporation may not harm or ignore other parties'interest, or in other words, it must be responsible either juridically or socially. The problems to discuss in this study are as follows : (1) To what extent is the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implemented? (2) What factors are to motivate a corporation to implement its Corporate Soocial Responsibility (CSR)? (3) What moral value or what legal principles are to be accommodated by future legislations (ius constituendum) so that a balance between corporative interest and public interest can be archived? The above problems are analyzed under the framework of Justice Theory, Social Contract Theory, Structural and Functional Theory, Stakeholders Theory, and Utilitarianism Theory. Primary and Secondary data are comprehensively processed into narrations and table formats by using empirical jurisdiction approach, and further study about the implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility; the factors motivating a corporation to implement its social responsibility; and to find a model of moral values and legal principles which can be accomodated for future legislation (ius costituendum. In reality, the implementations of CSR are still on the social awareness level, in the form of charity donation and some of CSR implementations are still directed to community affairs. The implementations of Corporate Social Responsibility are influenced by both internal and external drivers of the corporations. Sense of concern on stakeholders is an internal driver of a coporation to implement CSR.


This paper describes the kernel of an Executive being implemented for the Honeywell Experimental Distributed Processor (HXDP) -- a vehicle for research in distributed computers for real-time control. The kernel provides message transmission primitives for use by application programs or higher level executive functions. In the paper we describe the message transmission primitives provided by the kernel and the rationale for their selection based upon the objectives and constraints described in a companion paper.


The criteria for authorship of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, quoted in the instructions to authors in the BMJ,1 are "substantial contributions to (a) conception and design, or analysis and interpretation of data; and to (b) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and on (c) final approval of the version to be published. Conditions (a), (b), and (c) must all be met." In an American study of 200 papers published in or before 1989 one quarter of authors did not contribute substantially.2

I sent a questionnaire to the first authors of all research papers that had three or seven or more authors and were published in five consecutive issues of a …


In this paper, I present evidence for variable agreement with anaphors in Tatar. I show that inflected reflexives trigger co-varying person agreement as DP/nominalization subjects and as complements of postpositions, which appears to contradict the generalization on the anaphor agreement effect (AAE). At the same time, inflected reciprocals induce 3p agreement on external targets. These data are puzzling in two aspects. First, it is unclear how to derive co-varying agreement with inflected reflexives because it cannot be handled as a regular exception to AAE predicted to arise by the agreement-based theory if the antecedent of the anaphor is positioned lower than the agreement target. Secondly, the difference between reflexives and reciprocals with respect to external agreement looks enigmatic. I propose that Tatar reflexives and reciprocals, despite their superficial resemblance, have different internal structures, which in turn bring about differences in their feature sets, and external agreement reveals these differences. As to AAE violations, I propose that the Tatar data can be accounted for under the feature sharing approach whereby the features on the anaphor and on the external probe are first identified as instances of the same feature set and then valued by the anaphor's binder.


In the last month of 2014, Hungary and Croatia were the hosts for the 11th Women's European Handball Championship. Except for the year 2006, Romania participated in all the other editions organised by the European Handball Federation, with the best performance achieved in 2010, when the national team won the bronze medal. In this last edition, Romania finished 9th out of the 16 participating teams, just one point away from the semifinals, and the overall impression was that Romania was very close to another notable result. The aim of this research is to show if Romania's ranking at the end of the tournament is the deserved one and if the handball played during the above-mentioned championship lines up with modern handball trends, based on the statistical analysis provided by the European Handball Federation website, but also based on more analyses personally made by us after watching again the played games. © 2016 Published by Future Academy www.FutureAcademy.org.uk


The Dolichos lablab is a perennial legume potentially, but grew as an annual or biannual in Brazil, and it has qualities which favor its use in animal feed, as the high protein content and high forage production. However, to achieve good results, it is essential that the seeds used are of good quality. Several tests are used to determine the physiological seed quality, among them stand out the tetrazolium test, because it is fast and efficient. Thus, this review aimed to address some aspects of the use of vigor tests in the evaluation of physiology quality of Dolichos lablab seeds.


This paper generalizes and compares the five new effective methods for solving one-dimensional Stefan problem with periodic boundary condition in an variant and invariant domain.Some comments are made to provide useful guidance for the further application of these methods.


EnergyAustralia has been working closely with TransGrid to deliver a safe and reliable power supply to our customers in the Sydney CBD inner suburbs. A joint review was undertaken during the late 1990's to identify solutions to provide additional capacity and improve the reliability of supply. A number of methods was reviewed before deciding to construct a 1.3km, 3.3m by 3.2m cable tunnel connecting a new Transgrid substation with two existing and one new EnergyAustralia substations. A full Environmental Impact Statement was conducted and a Community Working Group (CWG) was formed to identify and work through issues associated with the project. The Cable Tunnel will be fully operational by September 2004 with 9 x 132kV circuits.


Microbial and enzymatic activities of peat soils in a mesotrophic bog of the Altai Republic were analyzed in 2013. Activities of catalase and polyphenol oxidase enzymes were found to depend on the botanical compositions of peat. Peroxidase was found to be more active in the lower part of the peat profile. Parameters of microbial biomass vary slightly with depth. The microflora is active throughout the profile. The peat soil was found to have a stable eco-physiological status.


We present preliminary work on an IDE for formal software development using tabular expressions as the basis for precise specifications and descriptions of software behaviour.


Objective:To briefly discuss the preliminary application and experience of single-port multiple-channel transumbilical laparoscopic ureterolithotomy.Methods:The transumbilical single-port multiple-channel laparoscopic ureterolithotomy was performed on a patient with calculi in the right upper ureter in Aug.2009.Results:The operation was performed successfully in 102min with the blood loss of 50ml.No assistant Trocar was used and the patient was discharged 3 days postoperatively.Conclusions:This new method is a safe and effective procedure with advantages of less trauma and more cosmetic benefit,and is of a fine clinical applicational prospect.


for any nonnegative real λ. The strength of the Chernoff Bound is that one selects λ optimally (more usually near optimally as the calculations are too hard for true optimality and generally we are happy with a reasonable bound) Let X1, . . . ,Xn be independent random variables defined as ±1 with probability 1/2. It is immediate that E[Xi] = 0 and V ar[Xi] = 1. Define also Sn = X1 + . . . + Xn. The Central Limit Theorem says that when n is large Sn ∼ N(0, n). Applying the Chernoff bound, for any λ > 0


Results are presented for computational modeling an electron-optical system of the photomultiplier (PM) having time resolution of 0.5 ns at linear anode current of 0.1 A. Calculations are given for a cathode chamber, intermediate stages and anode unit of the photomultiplier. Calculations were performed with the help of a TAU application package. The developed cathode chamber assures a good focusing of photoelectrons on the first emitter. The configuration of the electron-optical system of the intermediate multiplying stage has a low spread of electron transit times and good focusing properties. The PM anode unit construction assures minimum waveform distortion of output pulses directed into the recording devices and a maximum linearity limit of the pulse light characteristic. Influence of a spatial charge in the anode unit on linear output current restriction has been discussed.


Objective To learn the current hygienic situation of drinking water quality in catering units of Henan province and provide corresponding basis for government supervision departments.Methods 278 drinking water samples collected randomly from hotels, small and medium sized restaurants,school and kindergarten canteens all over the province have been examined to determine the levels of 4 heavy metals including arsenic,lead,cadmium and mercury and 4 microbiological objects of bacterial colonies, coliforms, thermotolerant coliforms and E.coli with GB/T5750-2006.Data have been evaluated by using GB/5749-2006 and heavy metal single factor contaminant index.Results 136 and142 samples were examined in 2011 and 2013, giving qualification rates of 69.1 % and 67.6 % respectively, without statistically significant difference(x2=0.07,P0.05); By examing these 278 samples, there shows no contamination of 4heavy metals and the qualification rates of bacterial colonies, coliforms, thermotolerant coliforms and E.coli are 73.70 %,76.60 %,82.4% and 92.10 %; Qualification rates of centralized, secondary and de-centralized water supply are 71.10 %,88.70 % and 10.70 %, with statistically significant difference(x2=53.79,P0.01); Qualification rates of hotels, small and medium size restaurants, school and kindergarten canteens' water supply are 88.90 %, 57.80 %, 62.50 % and65.40 %, with statistically significant difference(x2=19.91,P0.01).Conclusion The major issue of the drinking water in the catering units of Henan province is microbiological contamination, among which contamination during de-centralized water supply is particularly serious.


The formulas for the observable quantities of the tidal strains of the torsional type are set out in this paper. It is also shown that through observations of the phase lags of the tidal strain, the torsional type deformation can be detected.


The Clinical Management research team, of the Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la Republica, has found that selling of non-medical products and servic...


The aim of this project is to determine the technical viability of the bodywork manufacturing process using the blow-forming technology. Specifically, the blow-forming technology has been studied to be applied to manufacture the A-pillar. The results of using this technology reveal the following:
- Weight and CO2 reduction due to the fact that this technology makes it possible to use thinner high strength steel.
- Passengers' safety improvement.
- Improvement of the driver's sight angle as a result of the smaller section of the A-pillar.
- Reduction of manufacturing costs.
- Reduction of the number of components of the A-pillar.
During the development stage, the following results are also achieved:
- Harden material above 1.500 MPa.
- Up to 20% of A-pillar weight reduction.
- Utilization of material by 95% vs 40% of current use.
- Component number reduction.
Results suggest that the application of the blow-forming technology to manufacture the A-pillar is technically viable and complies with the geometric and manufacturing requirements


Exelon Nuclear (Exelon) designed and constructed an Interim Radwaste Storage Facility (IRSF) in the mid-1980's at LaSalle County Nuclear Station (LaSalle). The facility was designed to store low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) on an interim basis, i.e., up to five years. The primary reason for the IRSF was to offset lack of disposal in case existing disposal facilities, such as the Southeast Compact's Barnwell Disposal Facility in Barnwell, South Carolina, ceased accepting radioactive waste from utilities not in the Southeast Compact. Approximately ninety percent of the Radwaste projected to be stored in the LaSalle IRSF in that period of time was Class A, with the balance being Class B/C waste. On July 1, 2008 the Barnwell Disposal Facility in the Southeast Compact closed its doors to out of- compact Radwaste, which precluded LaSalle from shipping Class B/C Radwaste to an outside disposal facility. Class A waste generated by LaSalle is still able to be disposed at the 'Envirocare of Utah LLRW Disposal Complex' in Clive, Utah. Thus the need for utilizing the LaSalle IRSF for storing Class B/C Radwaste for an extended period, perhaps life-of-plant or more became apparent. Additionally, other Exelon Midwest nuclear stations located in Illinois that did notmore » build an IRSF heretofore also needed extended Radwaste storage. In early 2009, Exelon made a decision to forward Radwaste from the Byron Nuclear Station (Byron), Braidwood Nuclear Station (Braidwood), and Clinton Nuclear Station (Clinton) to LaSalle's IRSF. As only Class B/C Radwaste would need to be forwarded to LaSalle, the original volumetric capacity of the LaSalle IRSF was capable of handling the small number of additional expected shipments annually from the Exelon sister nuclear stations in Illinois. Forwarding Class B/C Radwaste from the Exelon sister nuclear stations in Illinois to LaSalle would require an amendment to the LaSalle Station operating license. Exelon submitted the License Amendment Request (LAR) to NRC on January 6, 2010; NRC approved the LAR on July 21, 2011. A similar decision was made by Exelon in early 2009 to forward Radwaste from Limerick Nuclear Station to its sister station, the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station; both in Pennsylvania. A LAR submittal to the NRC was also provided and NRC approval was received in 2011. (authors)« less


Objective To explore the value of microalbumin and N-acetyl-β-D-Glucosaminidase(NAG)and Cystatin C with combined determination in the diagnosis of early renal lesion.Methods NAG was determined with speed-rate method,mAlb and Cys C were determined with immunoturbidimetic assay.Results MAlb and Cys C and NAG were significantly higher than that of controls.Positive rates of combined determination were higher than that of one marker.Conclusion MAlb and Cys C and NAG are sensitive markers in the early renal lesion,combined determination is important for the diagnosis of early renal lesion.


One of the most important and yet most difficult of the ethical challenges facing technological civilization is 'excessive' consumption in the affluent nations. This includes dissipative use of raw materials and production of waste at rates higher than sources or sinks regenerate. Are design engineers ethically compelled to resist designing new products that abet 'overconsumption'? Should undergraduate engineering curricula be targeted toward avoiding overconsumption? Technical professionals may be uniquely positioned to work against some aspects of overconsumption, and it is worth inquiring into whether and how the topic might be incorporated into engineering education and practice.


The spectral method is an essential way to solve the discrete differentiation and further solve the Ordinary and Partial Differential Equations (ODEs and PDEs). The solution worked out by it shows high accuracy once the grids are defined on a smooth function. The method is so practical that it is widely applied in the fields of vibrations, linear and non-linear waves, fluid mechanics, quantum mechanics, etc. Unlike the finite difference method using the neighboring grids, the article develops the application of Fourier analysis to the interpolation of the spectral method when solving discrete differentiation, which is a global method that can find a more accurate differentiation by involving all the known grids. As a result, one can solve ordinary and partial differential equations by approximating continuous variables into 𝑁 equispaced grids and then applying the spectral method to find the differentiation, where the larger 𝑁 is, the more precise the approximation is.


We report the synthesis and study of two series of amphiphilic block copolymers (BCPs) of which the hydrophilic block is either poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) or poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMA) and the hydrophobic block is a side-chain liquid crystalline polymer (SCLCP) bearing biphenyl mesogens in majority and azobenzene mesogens in minority, namely, a random copolymer of 6-[4-(4-cyanophenyl)phenoxyl]hexyl acrylate with 6-[4-(4-methoxyphenylazo)phenoxyl]hexyl acrylate (P(BiPA-co-Azo)). Samples of both BCPs, PDMA-b-P(BiPA-co-Azo) and PAA-b-P(BiPA-co-Azo), could form large vesicles in aqueous solution with a SCLCP membrane. The BCPs were designed for investigating photoinduced order-disorder transition of the mesogens confined inside the vesicle membrane as a result of the trans–cisphotoisomerization of azobenzene and the LC cooperative effect. From photo-optical measurements on a BCP vesicle solution, we found evidence that a photoinduced LC order–disorder transition could occur inside the vesicle membrane in aqueous solution. Moreover, using a pH-sensitive fluorescent probe, we studied the photo-softening effect on the proton transfer across the vesicle membrane. Similar to plasticization of the vesicle membrane upon addition of a good solvent in aqueous solution, photo-induced softening could increase the rate of proton diffusion from inside to outside of the vesicle through the SCLCP membrane.


Abstract : Discussed is a lubricating and sizing agent for glass fibers consisting of poly(vinyl alcohol), sucrose, metal salts, and water. To improve the physicomechanical properties of the glass fiber and of goods manufactured from it, Ti lactate is used as the metal salt. The following composition is recommended: poly(vinyl alcohol) 1.25 to 1.5, sucrose 0.5 to 0.6, Ti lactate 3.5 to 4.0, and water to 100 percent.


Composite microspheres consisting of molybdenum disulfide, amorphous carbon and reduced graphene oxide (named as MoS2-AC-RGO) have been prepared by a hydrothermal approach combined with the spraying-coagulation process and calcinations step. Intercalation compound of cellulose-MoS2 has been obtained after the spraying-coagulation assisted hydrothermal treatment, which then converts to MoS2-AC-RGO after calcinations. Graphene oxide and cellulose have been utilized as the precursors of RGO and AC, respectively. Thiourea is adopted as both the species for cellulose dissolution and sulfur precursor for MoS2. The suspension of GO and sodium molybdate played also the role as coagulation bath. The influence of cellulose on the structure, morphology and electrochemical performance of the resultant MoS2-AC-RGO microspheres have been investigated based on XRD, SEM, TEM, Raman spectra, TGA and N2 adsorption-desorption technique and electrochemical measurements. The composite microspheres show superior electrochemical properties as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries and exhibit a high reversible capacity of 910 mAhg-1 at current density of 200 mA g-1, excellent rate capability and superior cyclic stability with a capacity of 86% after 70 cycles. The roles of the graphene and cellulose in improving the electrochemical properties of the MoS2-AC-RGO composites are discussed based on the morphology, structure, phase and electrochemical performance studies.


The present paper reports on a statistical effort undertaken for the Macmod project. It reports on the revision and updating of the Tanzanian Input-Output table for 1992. These IO activities are undertaken in order to furnish the Macmod model with production and consumption functions that are up-to-date, commodity specific with respect to inputs, and explicit in respect of the input origin.


p53 is a classic tumor suppressor that functions in maintaining genome stability by inducing either cell arrest for damage repair or cell apoptosis to eliminate damaged cells in response to different types of stress. Posttranslational modifications (PTMs) of p53 are thought to be the most effective way for modulating of p53 activation. Here, we show that SIRT5 interacts with p53 and suppresses its transcriptional activity. Using mass spectrometric analysis, we identify a previously unknown PTM of p53, namely, succinylation of p53 at Lysine 120 (K120), which occurs after DNA damage. SIRT5 catalyzes desuccinylation of p53 at K120, resulting in the suppression of p53 activation. Moreover, using double knockout mice, we validate that the suppression of p53 target gene expression and cell apoptosis upon DNA damage is dependent on cellular p53. Our study identifies a novel PTM of p53 that regulates its activation as well as reveals a new target of SIRT5 acting as a desuccinylase.


During the last decades, the attention on the application of polarimetric methods for biological tissues inspection has been increasing. Nowadays, organic tissue recognition algorithms are of potential interest in different research areas, as for instance, in biomedical applications for the early detection of diseases or the classification of biological structures. Based on the modifications in polarization that light-matter interactions produce, an exhaustive polarimetric analysis of the sample (extraction of dichroism, retardance and depolarization) may unveil the different tissue inherent characteristics and provide a complete description of how the biological structures interact with incident polarized light. By taking advantage of such polarimetric methods tissues characterization, we propose four predictive models corresponding to the recognition of four ex-vivo chicken tissue categories: bone, muscle, tendon and myotendinous junction tissue samples. The implemented multivariant probabilistic models are based on the logistic regression fit of the experimental Mueller matrixderived polarimetric observables (measured at three different wavelengths: 625 nm, 530 nm and 470nm): polarizance P, diattenuation D, depolarization content (Indices of Polarimetric Purity P1, P2, P3 and depolarization index 𝑃Δ), retardance (global, R, and linear δ) and optical rotation Ψ. As a result, we achieve stable predictive models whose output, in terms of sensitivity and specificity indicators, are of 82.6% and 80.6% for bone recognition, 85% and 93.5% for tendon, 86% and 88.8% for muscle and 82% and 71% for myotendinous junction, respectively. Obtained results suggest that these noninvasive methods could be applied in multiple biomedical scenarios such as for early diagnosis of pathologies.


Color is an important feature that dictates the quality and consumer preferences of many fresh fruits and vegetables. In color measurement of fruits, the CIE L*a*b* color space is widely used since it is a uniform color scale. In this study, raw data for the color features of apple varieties were divided into two parts as test and train data in the first stage, analyses were performed on train data and tests were performed on test data. The rules obtained by applying the Find laws algorithm were used to estimate the color index (CI), hue angle (h *) and Chroma (C *) values. In the second stage, raw data were classified by Strict and Liberal options of cluster analysis. Find Laws algorithm was applied to each cluster and 7 different prediction rules were obtained for CI, h*and C* parameters. R values of the rules were compared and the rules with the most accurate outcomes were identified.


Wheat bread rightfully belongs to the greatest inventions of mankind. The concept of wheat quality is very capacious and includes a wide range of characteristics: physical, chemical, rheological and consumer, which are in complex relationships with each other. The main purpose of soft wheat is the manufacture of bakery products. In this regard, the actual task of science is the creation and introduction into production of new varieties with high baking properties. The purpose of the research is to study the variability and relationships of quality traits; identification of the best varieties for use in the breeding process. It was found that the most strongly varying features were the specific work of deformation of the dough (11.7%) and the coefficient of the ratio of dough elasticity to extensibility (23.5%). The results of a correlation analysis on the conjugation of the characteristics of the quality of grain, flour and baking properties are presented. The quality of bread significantly depended on the volumetric yield of bread (r=0.9118) and the specific work of dough deformation (r=0.5119). A significant positive, strong relationship was found between the content of protein and gluten in the grain (r=0.8471). New varieties and lines of winter soft wheat of intensive type, distinguished by a complex of studied traits: the new variety Privolye, lines 1518/18 and 1401/19, are recommended to be used in the breeding process aimed at improving the quality of winter soft wheat grain.


The locally twisted cube is a newly introduced interconnection network for parallel computing, which possesses many desirable properties. In this paper, the problem of embedding complete binary trees into locally twisted cubes is studied.Let LTQn(V;E) denote the n-dimensional locally twisted cube.We find the following result in this paper: for any integern ≥ 2,we show that a complete binary tree with 2n—1 nodes can be embedded into the LTQn with dilation 2.


This research was conducted to find out the general description of the forest and land fires occurrence, to analyze the forest and land fire prevention and control policies, and to provide alternative policies in the field implementation. The results show that hotspots in Jambi Province in the last 5 (five years) (2011 - 2015) were mostly occurred in Tebo, Muaro Jambi and Sarolangun districts, and there were a close relationship between the enhancement of hotspots with acute respiratory infection people in Jambi Province. The regulations and policies implementationon forest and land fires was weak and needed improvement. The strategy of forest and land fire prevention and control policies  are: Increasing the role of law and optimizing the support of central government in overcoming the karhutla disaster; Optimizing the role of regional heads in involving NGOs, communities, and universities in the forest and land fire prevention and control; Strengthen the spatial structuring functionality in the Spatial plans document as an effort to overcome spatial problems; Improving the legislative role in supervision, legislation and budgeting in the prevention and control of forest and land fire; Enforcing law enforcement in the act of violation to the laws and regulations provisions; Improving coordination among institutions and clarifying basic tasks and function of Regional Work Unitand also improving the quality of human resources to overcome the population growth rate and spatial problems.


The second semester Introduction to Engineering course taught by the Department of Engineering Education (EngE) at Virginia Tech contains a semester-long, design-build, teambased project that constitutes a significant portion of each student's grade in the course. For the past three years, EngE has directed students toward the ASEE Engineering Design Graphics Division (EDGD) freshman design challenge as the required design project and EngE has utilized the ASEE project as a vehicle to teach the engineering design process, project management, and graphics communication to first-year engineering students. In years past, the large number of Virginia Tech engineering students has inhibited our ability to provide students with support and facilities during the build phase of their project. In spring 2004, the EngE department enhanced the student design experience by providing workshops where students have supervised access to a shop-like atmosphere. Students get to borrow/use basic tools in a safe environment to perform project construction work. To help motivate the students, winners of previous freshman design competitions are hired to mentor and supervised the freshman teams during these construction workshops.


The present invention is a compound of formula I or II: Its enantiomers, diastereomers, prodrugs, solvates, providing metabolite, or pharmaceutically acceptable salt, the variables that constitute the formula described herein. Compounds of formula I and II, are modulators of metalloprotease, diseases associated with metalloprotease activity, for example, useful arthritis, cancer, cardiovascular disease, skin disorders, in the treatment of inflammatory and allergic conditions.


This briefing paper was researched and written by Clare Coffey and David Baldock of IEEP London, with editorial input provided by Julie Cator and Karen Flanders of WWF European Policy Office and David Schorr of WWF-US. It was commissioned by WWF's European Policy Office in conjunction with the Endangered Seas Campaign and was first presented at Fishing in the Dark, a symposium to promote improved transparency and accountability in fishing subsidies, held 28-29 November 2000 in Brussels, Belgium. The views in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of WWF.


Objective:To study the psychological states of the parents of infants with congenital heart disease and provide scientific methods to improve their reaction ability of stressors.Methods:100 parents were randomly divided into the control group and observation group,50 patients in each group.The control group accepted normal clinical guidence,the observation group on the basis for a period of eight weeks of intervention.The symptoms since the measure(SCL-90),responding to the questionnaire on the way functional testing.Results:Interfere with the observations of the SCL-90 the factors of significance has significant differences(P﹤0.01 or P﹤0.05),except psychotic factor(P0.05).The observation group in the way to reduce the negative response,responding positively increased the way,and,with significant gender difference in meaning(P﹤0.01,P﹤0.05).Conclusion:Understanding of the early-stage psychological condition of the parents of interventions and improvement of their psychological capacity to cope with stress by nursing interventions may significantly improve the clinical outcome of the treatment and nursing of the infants.


A consequence of knee osteoarthritis (OA) is an inability to fully activate the quadriceps muscles, a problem known as arthrogenic muscle inhibition (AMI). The purpose of this study was to determine whether quadriceps gamma-loop dysfunction contributes to AMI in people with knee OA. Fifteen subjects with knee OA and fifteen matched controls with no history of knee joint pathology participated in this study. Quadriceps and hamstring torque (Nm) and electromyography (EMG) were collected during maximum effort isometric contractions. Twenty minutes of 50Hz vibration was then applied to the infrapatellar tendon. After tendon vibration, maximum effort isometric contractions were repeated, with torque and EMG collected in an identical manner. One sample t-tests were undertaken to analyse whether percent changes in torque and EMG differed from zero after vibration in each group. Following tendon vibration, quadriceps torque decreased significantly in the control group (p 0.05). Hamstrings torque was unchanged in both groups (p > 0.05). Similarly, after tendon vibration quadriceps EMG amplitude decreased (p 0.05). EMG amplitude of the hamstrings remained unchanged in both groups (p > 0.05). The results demonstrate that gammaloop dysfunction contributes to quadriceps AMI in patients with knee joint OA. This dysfunction may partially explain the marked quadriceps weakness and atrophy seen in these patients, increasing the risk of disease progression and impairing physical function and quality of life. The recovery of muscle strength and function after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction: Implications for rehabilitation and return to sport.


A new measurement technique for two-dimensional electric field vectors (electric field intensity and its direction) in liquid dielectrics has been developed in this study. The theoretical equation for measuring the electrical field vector is derived for the optical system which consists of a He-Ne laser, polarizer, quarter-wave plate, test cell with nonuniform electric field, nonpolarizing beam splitter, two analyzers and two photo detectors. The effectiveness of the technique is confirmed by comparing the theoretical values and experimental results. Furthermore, the nonuniform electric field vector distributions of the transformer oil in a compound insulation system of liquids and solids are measured. >


The Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) has a typical monsoon climate, with high temperatures and an uneven distribution of precipitation throughout the year. This climate, combined with the geographic position of the LMB, has led to an increase in the frequency of extreme weather events over last decade. However, few previous studies have used remote-sensing data to investigate the impact of such weather events, particularly severe droughts, on biological productivity in the LMB. To address this, we assessed the impact of drought on vegetation productivity in the LMB during 2000–2011 using MOD17 products. Several drought events were identified during this period. Of these, the most severe occurred during 2005 and 2010, although the 2005 drought was both more extensive and more intense. Net primary productivity (NPP) exhibited considerable variation during 2000–2011: the droughts in 2005 and 2010 reduced NPP by 14.7% and 8.4%, respectively. The impact of drought on NPP in 2005 was much greater than that in 2010, likely owing to the longer duration and larger deficit of precipitation in 2005 (which lasted from winter 2004 to spring 2005). Our results demonstrate that severe drought had a greater impact on NPP than mild drought, especially for forests, woodlands, and shrublands. Comparatively, little variation in NPP was found for croplands, even under drought conditions, which were attributed to the wide use of irrigation and the exploitation of water sources during drought periods. Moreover, multi-season croplands in Vietnam experienced only a small reduction in gross primary productivity (GPP) in 2005 compared to one-season croplands in Cambodia, which can be related to the shorter growing periods of the former impacted by droughts.


Observations of the hot X-ray emitting interstellar medium in the Milky Way are important for studying the stellar feedback and understanding the formation and evolution of galaxies. We present measurements of the soft X-ray background emission for 130 Suzaku observations at $75^\circ15^\circ$. With the standard soft X-ray background model consisting of the local hot bubble and the Milky Way halo, residual structures remain at 0.7--1 keV in the spectra of some regions. Adding a collisional-ionization-equilibrium component with a temperature of $\sim$0.8 keV, much higher than the virial temperature of the Milky Way, significantly reduces the derived C-statistic for 56 out of 130 observations. The emission measure of the 0.8 keV component varies by more than an order of magnitude: Assuming the solar abundance, the median value is 3$\times 10^{-4}~ \rm{cm^{-6} pc}$ and the 16th-84th percentile range is (1--8)$\times 10^{-4}~ \rm{cm^{-6} pc}$. Regions toward the Orion-Eridanus Superbubble, a large cavity extending from the Ori OB1 association, have the highest emission measures of the 0.8 keV component. While the scatter is large, the emission measures tend to be higher toward the lower Galactic latitude. We discuss possible biases caused by the solar wind charge exchange, stars, and background groups. The 0.8 keV component is probably heated by supernovae in the Milky Way disk, possibly related to galactic fountains.


Raman instability of the Stoke's component of the scattered electromagnetic wave has been investigated analytically in an n‐type nondegenerate piezoelectric semiconductor plasma subjected to a large longitudinal magnetostatic field. The general dispersion relation has been obtained following the coupled mode theory and considering that the scattering is due to both the molecular vibrations produced due to the pump wave at a frequency equal to that of the transverse optical phonons and the electron plasma wave. The dispersion relation has been solved for both cases of scattered electromagnetic waves (i.e., in the cases of left‐hand and right‐hand circularly polarized waves). The threshold value of the pump amplitude necessary for the onset of instability and the growth rate of the unstable mode well above the threshold have been obtained analytically for both the modes. The relevant experiment has not been reported. It is observed that with the increase in the longitudinal magnetostatic field, the threshol...


Abstract : Report covers laboratory study and clinical trials on a series of chemical formulations to find means of chemically binding agents to skin elements or of permanent absorption to provide long term (7 days) protection from sunburn regardless of heavy sweating or washing actions. Results are reported in detail and tabulated. Two preparations were developed which were effective for long term exposure (4 hr) after single application and were resistant to washing action. Preparations did not interfere with tanning action and were cosmetically acceptable. Two were very effective under conditions of bright sun in dry climate or high elevation and snow environments. Stable binding to skin providing 7-day or longer protection was not achieved. (Author)


Mostly diaphragmatic hernias are due to congenital or secondary to a traumatic rupture of the diaphragm. From this the incidence of congenital diaphragmatic hernias varies from 1: 2000 to 1: 5000 live births. Bochdalec hernia which is the commonest type, accounts for 75-85% of it. This condition is diagnosed antenatally or neonatally, only 5% are presented after neonatal period. We report a rare case of asymptomatic congenital Bochdalec hernia in an adult male prisoner who had died in the prison cell. A 26 year old male was brought dead to a tertiary care hospital where the prison officers stated that the deceased had a sudden attack of respiratory distress and collapsed. Post mortem examination revealed a left sided diaphragmatic hernia with collapsed left lung, mediastinal shift to the right and gangrenous small bowel in the chest cavity. Cause of death was ascertained as acute respiratory distress due to mediastinal shift due to strangulated diaphragmatic hernia. Congenital diaphragmatic hernia in an adult is a diagnostic challenge. The diagnosis should be considered in patients presenting with acute chest or abdominal pain or with chronic vague inconsistent cardio respiratory and abdominal symptoms. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/mljsl.v1i1.7276 Medico-Legal Journal of Sri Lanka 2011; 1(1), Jan-April : 49-51


Objective  Some authors claim that the risk of sacrectomy‐related neurological complications is a serious limitation of abdominosacral resection (ASR). We determined the incidence of neurological complications in patients with a low‐rectal cancer who were treated by ASR.


To promote the miniaturization and integration of devices, various optical components based on hybrid plasmonic waveguides have been proposed such as microring resonators and Y-splitter. However, their footprints are strongly limited by the radiation loss of the bends. Here, we propose and analyze a novel hybrid plasmonic waveguide (NHPW) which can be used to realize sharp bend with little radiation loss. Based on NHPW, ultracompact racetrack resonators are realized. A racetrack resonator with an outer radius of 0.5μm and straight waveguide of 0.1μm is constructed, which has an extinction ration of 12.56dB and a significantly large free space range of 265nm.


Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe CNS injury with irreversible recovery of functions in mammalian species and consequent detrimental of social and psychological condition. It accounts for major ...


Recently deep learning has been playing a major role in the field of computer vision. One of its applications is the reduction of human judgment in the diagnosis of diseases. Especially, brain tumor diagnosis requires high accuracy, where minute errors in judgment may lead to disaster. For this reason, brain tumor segmentation is an important challenge for medical purposes. Currently several methods exist for tumor segmentation but they all lack high accuracy. Here we present a solution for brain tumor segmenting by using deep learning. In this work, we studied different angles of brain MR images and applied different networks for segmentation. The effect of using separate networks for segmentation of MR images is evaluated by comparing the results with a single network. Experimental evaluations of the networks show that Dice score of 0.73 is achieved for a single network and 0.79 in obtained for multiple networks.


Abstract This article seeks to challenge recent narratives about Nazi policies against non-native species. Drawing on heretofore ignored evidence and recent publications that draw a more nuanced picture of Nazi Germany's environmental history, it argues that the topic of non-native species was in fact open to debate in Nazi Germany, without a clear preference for a certain position, let alone a state doctrine. Some people argued that Nazi ideas called for a preference for native plants, while others disagreed or even ridiculed that position without fear of prosecution or worse. Furthermore, it seems that those who argued for native species did so out of opportunistic reasons, rather than authentic ideological convictions. The paper thus argues to continue the discussion over native species without a cliched picture of alleged Nazi policies which threatens to poison an important cross-disciplinary debate.


A 25-year-old Japanese man was referred from an in vitro fertilization centre for an evaluation of malefactor infertility, after 2 years with a history of sterility. He had no history of in ̄ammatory disease in the scrotal contents. Repeated semen analyses showed azoospermia, with a normal seminal volume and fructose level. Both testes were 14 mL and of normal consistency; the epididymis and vas deferens showed no remarkable ®ndings on either side. Ultrasonography showed no tumorous lesion in the bilateral testes. His serum hormone levels were: FSH, 23.8 mIU/mL; LH, 11.9 mIU/mL; prolactin, 17.4 ng/mL; testosterone, 2.2 ng/mL; and oestradiol, 25 pg/mL. Chromosomal analysis showed a normal male karyotype of 46,XY. The patient underwent bilateral testicular biopsy under general anaesthesia. The histopathological examination showed that the seminiferous tubuli contained Sertoli cells but no germ cells, and there was marked amyloid deposition in the basement membrane of the tubules and the vascular walls. A characteristic apple-green birefringence was seen in polarized light. This amyloid deposition was con®rmed by Congo red staining (Fig. 1). The basement membrane of the seminiferous tubuli and the vessel walls showed positive staining. Immunohistochemistry showed that the amyloid was not AA type. To exclude the possibility of a local manifestation of systemic amyloidosis, gastric and rectal mucosal biopsies were taken; no amyloid deposit was found in these specimens. The patient and his wife agreed to undergo arti®cial insemination with donor semen, and they had a child after two attempts. The patient has been examined periodically by scrotal ultrasonography for 4 years; both testes enlarged to 32 mL during this period, and his serum level of testosterone decreased to 1.5 ng/mL.


chronic heart failure (CHF) is well characterized by excessive sympathoexcitation at rest, as well as an exaggerated sympathoexcitatory response to exercise. While sympathetic activation is an initial beneficial compensatory mechanism in CHF to maintain cardiac output and blood pressure, chronic


The purpose of this work is to evaluate the saturation profile of Zubair formation in East Baghdad Field, from log interpretation. The relative accuracy of four methods of porosity evaluation, from three porosity logs (Neutron, Density and sonic logs ) , was tested against measured porosity from cores of eighty nine chosen intervals. The accuracy of each method was evaluated statistically by calculating the correlation coefficient, standard deviation error, average percentage error and absolute average percentage error.The crossplot technique (using triangle method ) of Neutron and Density logs data was found to give the best statistical parameters, hence, it was used to calculate optimum porosity values. It is concluded that the adoption of this method in porosity determination will result in more accurate water saturation determination particularly when using Archie's equation.


A controllable photonic crystal power-splitter is first mentioned which can regulate the splitting ratio by changing the external conditions.The plane wave expansion method(PWE) and the finite-difference time-domain method(FDTD) are employed to study the controllable features of two-dimensional columnar photonic crystal power-splitter filling with the EIT atomic vapor.It is showed that,by changing the Rabi frequency of control light,the splitting ratio of three output branches of the power-splitter can be changed to 1∶5∶0 and 1∶2∶7 when filling the vapor,compared to 1∶0∶0 when unfilling the vapor,for the TM polarized incident light at the range of the normalized frequency 0.349 9~0.350 2 ωe(where ωe=2πc/a).This photonic crystal power-splitter based on electromagnetically induced transparency reduces the difficulty of operating and the requirements of technology and has more operability and more practical value in a certain degree.


The Fe compounds (Et4N)2{[((TSP) (TSPH)Fe]2suc}3) and K[Fe(TSP) (TSPH)prop] · 3H2O3) were characterized by means of 57Fe Moessbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements. In the temperature region from 300 to 390 K the Fe(III) of both compounds undergoes a discontinuous transition from low spin state to high spin state, returning only slowly into low spin state after cooling to room temperature. This process causes a hysteresis behaviour of the magnetic values. The spin crossover is connected with a complex isomerization. Moessbauer spectra of the compounds show a significant asymmetry, which can be explained by relaxation effects according to Blume's theory.


Abstract. Climate has changed over the past century due to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. In parallel, societies and their environment have evolved rapidly. To identify the impacts of historical climate change on human or natural systems, it is therefore necessary to separate the effect of different drivers. By definition this is done by comparing the observed situation to a counterfactual one in which climate change is absent and other drivers change according to observations. As such a counterfactual baseline cannot be observed it has to be estimated by process-based or empirical models. We here present ATTRICI (ATTRIbuting Climate Impacts), an approach to remove the signal of global warming from observational climate data to generate forcing data for the simulation of a counterfactual baseline of impact indicators. Our method identifies the interannual and annual cycle shifts that are correlated to global mean temperature change. We use quantile mapping to a baseline distribution that removes the global mean temperature related shifts to find counterfactual values for the observed daily climate data. Applied to each variable of two climate datasets, we produce two counterfactual datasets that are made available through the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP) along with the original datasets. Our method preserves the internal variability of the observed data in the sense that observed (factual) and counterfactual data for a given day remain in the same quantile in their respective statistical distribution. That makes it possible to compare observed impact events and counterfactual impact events. Our approach adjusts for the long-term trends associated with global warming but does not address the attribution of climate change to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.


No strength data existed for keyaki (Zelkova serrata) full-sized timber because the keyaki used had dimensions of around 180×180 mm or more, even in common houses. Due to the lack of full-sized strength data, the validity of the design strength requirement value of keyaki as full-sized timber was unclear. Moreover, no fundamental data existed to determine the grading method, because the effect of timber quality and defects such as knots on the strength properties also remained unclear. In this study, bending and compressive tests were conducted using full-sized keyaki timber, and these problems were examined. Strength tests using small clear specimens of keyaki were also conducted and compared with the results for full-sized timber and the design strength requirement value. As a result of bending tests using full-sized timber, it was found that the visual grading method and the machine grading method could be applied to keyaki timber as well as to coniferous timber. However, additional study is needed on the effect of grain angle. Based on the results of bending and compressive tests using full-sized timber and strength tests using small clear specimens, it was found that the design strength requirement value of keyaki now in use is reasonable.


Based on an extensive literature study on the most relevant processes associated with dike breaching and the models available, a modelling strategy was developed which consists in the development of a preliminary and a detailed breaching model (LWI Report 910, FLOODsite Report ). Results from the preliminary model give an overview of the breaching process, but indicate that improvements into a more process-oriented detailed model are required (LWI Report 927, FLOODsite Internal Report T06-06-01). This progress report aims to address the development and implementation of the detailed model.


Objective To observe the effect of aspirin on osteoporosis and to explore the effect of different doses or different time of aspirin on adjuvant therapy after osteoporosis in ovariectomized rats. Methods Forty-Two 6-month female wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups: 6 rats in shamoperated(A) group and 36 rats in ovariestomized(OVX) group. The OVX group was divided two groups. Prevention of osteoporosis using aspirin: OVX control group(B), 8.92 mg/kg aspirin group(C), 26.75 mg/kg aspirin group(D). Treatment of osteoposis using aspirin: OVX control group(E), 8.92 mg/kg aspirin group(F), 26.75 mg/kg aspirin group(G). The rats in prevention group were given an intragastric gavage of aspirin after OVX 3 days, while the treatment groups after 12 weeks. Bilateral humerus was collected. Three-point bending eaperiment was performed on the bilateral. The right humerus tested using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Result ①bone mineral(BDM): The BMD in group B was significantly lower than that in group A, C, D. The BMD in group E was significantly lower than that in goup A, F, G(P 0.05). ②Three-point bending lode: The three-point bending lode in the OVX control groups was significantly lower than that aspirin groups(P 0.05). The three-point bending lode in the prevention group was higher than the treatment group of the same dose(P 0.05). Conclusion Aspirin can obviously increase the BMD of ovariectomized osteoporotic mice, and improve the mechanical properties of the bone.


This article provides an in-depth commentary on Henk Borgdorff's pivotal essay The Debate on Research in the Arts. The central thesis is that research in the arts fulfils the criteria of independent scientific research. But this strong thesis cannot be sufficiently substantiated and should therefore be replaced by a less forceful claim. The full commentary has been published in Mythos-Magazin and is available here.


In this letter, a method based on higher order statistics (HOS) has been developed to extract the discriminating feature of the fault-signal from load current of a series-compensated line. A fuzzy logic-based approach has been incorporated to classify these features into different categories indicating various fault and no fault conditions.


In this paper, a new technique is presented for unsupervised change detection in color satellite multi-temporal images. It is accomplished by three stages. First, the color image is modeled into the pure quaternion image. In order to process color image directly, the quaternion mode is introduced, in which the Red, Green and Blue values of each pixel of a color image are represented as single pure quaternion valued pixel. And a color image can be represented as a pure quaternion image. Second, a computationally simple method for singular value decomposition (SVD) is adopted to perform principle component analysis (PCA) on the pure quaternion image. Finally, change detection in a pair of color satellite images can be achieved. Experimental results show the superior of the proposed method over the state-of-the-art methods for change detection.


The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antibiofilm activity against Enterococcus faecalis, compressive strength. and radiopacity of Portland cement (PC) added to zirconium oxide (ZrO2), as radiopacifier, with or without nanoparticulated zinc oxide (ZnO). The following experimental materials were evaluated: PC, PC + ZrO2, PC + ZrO2 + ZnO (5%), and PC + ZrO2 + ZnO (10%). Antibiofilm activity was analyzed by using direct contact test (DCT) on Enterococcus faecalis biofilm, for 5 h or 15 h. The analysis was conducted by using the number of colony-forming units (CFU/mL). The compressive strength was performed in a mechanical testing machine. For the radiopacity tests, the specimens were radiographed together with an aluminium stepwedge. The results were submitted to ANOVA and Tukey tests, with level of significance at 5%. The results showed that all materials presented similar antibiofilm activity (P > 0.05). The addition of nanoparticulated ZnO decreased the compressive strength of PC. All materials presented higher radiopacity than pure PC. It can be concluded that the addition of ZrO2 and ZnO does not interfere with the antibiofilm activity and provides radiopacity to Portland cement. However, the presence of ZnO (5% or 10%) significantly decreased the compressive strength of the materials.


This paper describes the experiments developed and the results obtained in the participation of UNED in the Third Recognising Textual Entailment (RTE) Challenge. The experiments are focused on the study of the effect of named entities in the recognition of textual entailment. While Named Entity Recognition (NER) provides remarkable results (accuracy over 70%) for RTE on QA task, IE task requires more sophisticated treatment of named entities such as the identification of relations between them.


Superconducting fault current limiters (SFCLs) offer a good solution for the increased level of short circuits in power systems. Inductive shield-type SFCLs are one of the most promising categories of the SFCLs. A design has been proposed for a tunable fault current limiter, which has the capability to vary the level of current limitation via varying some control parameters. This increases the utilization flexibility of the SFCL and may result in economic gains. Regarding the ever-growing short-circuit level in the power systems that may demand upgrade or replacement of protection devices, if SFCLs are installed with the proposed structure, several current limitation levels may be available and selected due to the short-circuit level of the system and the nominal rating of different power system devices. The proposed design is verified calculating theoretically the through current of the SFCL and studying the impact of different control parameters on it. Furthermore, a prototype SFCL has been fabricated and has shown the desirable tunable current limitation characteristics.


A method is given which allows an easy and effective computation of domains of attraction for the solutions of a class of second-degree nonlinear and nonautonomous circuits and systems. Both locally and globally attracting domains can be determined in the state-space. The method yields much better results than those obtained using the classical method of quadratic Liapunov functions, as shown by some examples. Furthermore, the results yield interesting information about the actual solutions of the state equations considered.<<ETX>>


Dominant narratives of war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region have emphasised the use of mass rape as a weapon of war that is primarily used against women. Georgina Holmes argues the need to go beyond this reductionist interpretation: mass rape is perpetrated against women, men and boys, and is an extreme form of violence against the community which effectively constitutes 'genocide by attrition'.


Some people use computers because they want to and others do so because they must. Unquestionably, I belong to the second group. I still experience an instant of terror when I push the on button of this complex machine. After all, this simple act might send a fatal virus into all of the computers in the universe or, at the very least, might cause my own machine to explode with such violence that the services of the fire department would be required. However, I find the most baffling characteristic of the computer to be its uncanny routine for organizing and storing information. When I save my work, it is transformed into lists of files and folders, each of which contains lists of titles. Somehow, my original titles include strings of letters that I never created. Rarely can I recall those titles when I need them. When I summon my computer-comfortable colleagues to the rescue and they inevitably ask, "Is it in a file or a folder?" I don't have the courage to ask them once again to describe the difference. With the advent of computers, organizing and retrieving information has become an increasingly complex process. However, only the human mind has the flexibility to choose the most relevant information in a learning task. Gathering and organizing information is insignificant unless one can also identify the information that is useful to the task at hand. All three of this month's feature articles apply a complex process of organizing and retrieving information, and each addresses the process differently. The sequence of learning new skills and information is explored in an article from Norway, which addresses the types of assistance provided by orientation and mobility instructors to their students (Tellevik, Martinsen, Storlilekken, and Elmerskog). The effects of instructor feedback on student attention is a key question in the process of monitoring the learning of orientation and mobility. The findings encourage consideration of how students organize information and focus attention in learning new skills. The results indicate that the ability to demonstrate the skill precedes the application of knowledge and communication about it. The authors emphasize the importance of teaching instructors to shape their assistance to student initiatives, enabling them to organize information effectively.


This paper explores the influence of property market aspirations and sustainability issues upon workplace environments presently influencing office buildings in Australia. Emerging trends and influences are shifting the traditional demand for high-rise office towers toward an alternative or evolved building typology of Sustainable Groundscrapers and


With the people's health requirements and the development of industry, the electrostatic precipitator is widely used in many industrial areas, such as smelting, cement production, electric boilers and so on, as well as in household air purification. In order to improve the frequency of the converter and reduce the switching loss, a phase shift voltage control method based on PID control is introduced in this paper. A serious of problems are also be solved by the method, such as the uncertainty of electrostatic precipitator load, the characteristics of nonlinear and time-varying, and the uncertainty of stray parameters of high frequency transformer which is the core device of the electrostatic precipitator power supply. This method can make use of the stray parameters of high frequency transformer reasonably, so that the power device can work in soft switching state. In the same time, it is suitable for industrial mass production with lower cost but good effect. The results of simulations and experiments show that this voltage modulation mode makes the dusting power supply output 60 kV voltage stably, and has good dynamic performance, which makes the dust removal system more robust.


Heilongjiang Province has experienced a warming trend since 1951,especially since the 1980s,where the warming trend is the most obvious in China.Analysis of the relationship between the changes in paddy planting area and temperature change in Heilongjiang revealed that the stages of change in paddy planting area are corresponding to the stages of temperature change,but the former lags behind the latter by about 4~6 to 2~3years.The rapid increase in paddy planting area and the northward expansion of the paddy fields since the mid 1980s are response to the distinct rising trend of temperature since the 1980s.


This paper presents three generalizations of the Second Incompleteness Theorem of Gödel (see [2]) which apply to a broader class of formal systems than previous generalizations (as, e.g., the generalization in [1]). The content of all three of our results is that it is versions of the third derivability condition of Hilbert and Bernays (see p. 286 of [3]) which are crucial to Gödel's theorem. The second derivability condition plays some role in certain logics, but even there, only in the far weaker form of a definability condition (see Theorem 2). The elimination of the first derivability condition allows the application of the Consistency Theorem to cut-free logics which cannot prove that they are closed under cut. It is Theorem 1 which will probably have primary interest for readers who are not concerned with technical proof theory or with foundations, for it treats logics with quantifiers, and in that case one can dispose entirely of the first and second derivability conditions. The derivation of this result requires a "new twist" on old arguments. Specifically, we use a new variation on the standard self-referential lemma (this is Lemma 5.1 of [l]) to obtain a somewhat different self-referential construction than has previously been employed (this is our lemma in §2 below). With this new construction, we consider the sentence φ which "expresses" the fact: "My negation is provable." Then, using hypotheses associated with Gödel's First Incompleteness Theorem, one shows that ⊢¬φ is impossible in a consistent logic. Finally, using only a version of the third Hilbert-Bernays derivability condition, one shows that the provability of the consistency statement implies ⊢¬φ, and hence that consistency is unprovable.


In order to bring up a contingent team of young teachers in colleges and universities who are satisfied by CPC and the masses,we must deepen the ideological and political education content of them and must guide them to have a firm ideal faith,noble virtue and sentiment,a great heart of love and a firm foundation for the professional development,which aims to lead the young teachers to grow healthy and to burden their mission given by the history era earnestly.


This research attempted to develop an inventory management system for a flexible printed circuit board manufacturer in Thailand. The development began with an investigation of the existing inventory system, which found that the system was quite ineffective causing companies to face serious problems particularly an excessive inventory. The ABC analysis using a multiple criteria inventory classification for the inventory control system was initially applied to identify the most important items. Twenty-seven items were selected to demonstrate the mechanism of the new proposed system. The main objectives are to focus the efficient forecasting technique under stochastic demand and the introduction of fixed replenishment quantity policy to reduce the overall inventory related cost. (R,Q) policy is applied on the forecast demands using the seasonal naive, holt-winters exponential smoothing, autoregressive integrated moving average and afterwards a comparative analysis is conducted on assessing the accuracy of forecasts of demand forecasting technique, it is conventional to use the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). In the implementation process, the proposed system was compared with the current system. The study showed that total savings from implementing the (R,Q) policy to all materials approximately 262.03 million baht of the total inventory cost.


The present invention relates to RSV replication inhibitory activity and having the formula I, azaindole, compounds compositions and methods for preparing these compounds and compositions containing as an active ingredient.


Original title: Maten voor gemeenten 2008.

Measurements for municipalities presents a
national picture of the performance delivered by local authorities and the
costs of doing so. The analyses relate to the period 2001-2006. This is the
sixth time this quantitative and integrated picture has been presented of
municipalities as producers of services.
The report shows that after adjustment for inflation, total spending by local
authorities fell by an average of 0.5% per annum in the period studied.
Spending was still rising in 2002 and 2003, after which it began to fall. This
was partly the result of spending cuts and partly due to the outsourcing of
tasks through privatisation and the granting of autonomous status to a number
of municipal services (education and public transport). After the peak year
2002, which saw strong growth in both spending and staff numbers, this suggests
a delayed reaction by local authorities in the subsequent years to the economic
downturn in the private sector which began in 2001.
In the same period, municipal output fell by an average of 1.2% per annum, so
that the trend in municipal output lagged behind the real increase in spending
by 0.7% per annum. This was because prices of public services rose more quickly
than prices in the private sector. For municipalities, this can be explained
partly by a fall in labour productivity and pay trends that are in line with
the market.

Local authority budgets for 2007 and in particular for
2008 suggest a return to growth. Over the longer term, there is no escaping the
observation that spending and output by the private sector and by public
services in fields such as education, care and safety are rising more quickly
than spending and output in municipal services.

This edition of Measurements for municipalities
also focuses on two special topics, namely key figures in relation to the
recent introduction of the Social Support Act (Wmo) and neighbourhood
development, gentrification and participation. As regards the Social Support
Act, the study looks at a number of factors that influence the price and volume
of domestic help provision. Gentrification is a specific form of neighbourhood
enhancement which entails major investments by private citizens in their own
homes.


ABSTRACT The aims of this study were to investigate the diet and relative abundance of fruit bats in a lowland Malaysian rain forest and to test the hypothesis that the local assemblage structure of fruit bats varies significantly over time in relation to the availability of food. In total, 352 fruit bats of eight species were captured during 72,306 m2 mist-net hours of sampling between February 1996 and September 1999. Three species of fruit bats (Balionycteris maculata, Chironax melanocephalus, and Cynopterus brachyotis) that fed on a wide range of "steady state" and "big bang" food resources were captured continuously throughout the study period, with no significant variation in capture rates over time. In contrast, five species that fed exclusively or almost exclusively on "big bang" food resources were sampled intermittently, with significant temporal variation in the capture rates of two species (Cynopterus horsfieldi and Megaerops ecaudatus). Significant variation in the capture rates of the remaining three species (Dyacopterus spadiceus, Eonycteris spelaea, and Rousettus amplexicaudatus) could not be detected due to small sample sizes. Since ephemeral "big bang" food resources were only sporadically available within the study area and were associated with large canopy trees and strangler figs, these results suggest that food abundance, or the availability of specific food items, may be important factors limiting local fruit bat species diversity in old-growth Paleotropical rain forest. Thus, only three fruit bat species were locally resident within the forest throughout the study period. Therefore, further studies on the ranging behavior and habitat requirements of Malaysian fruit bats are required to assess the adequacy of existing reserves and protected areas.


In individual companies, price is one significant factor in achieving marketing success. In many purchase situations, price can be of great importance to customers. Marketers must establish pricing strategies that are compatible with the rest of the marketing mix. Management should decide whether to charge the same price to all similar buyers of identical quantities of a product (a one-price strategy) or to set different prices (a flexible price strategy). Many organizations, especially retailers, use at least some of the following special strategies: price lining, odd pricing and leader pricing. A company must also choose between everyday low pricing and high-low pricing, which puts noticeably low prices on selected products while having higher prices on all others.


Free auxins were detected and identified in extracts of homogenized aphids using paper chromatography in conjunction with a modified Avena coleoptile bioassay method. Variations in auxin content of extracts of the green bug, Toxoptera graminum (Rondani), and pea aphid, Macrosiphum pisi (Harris) feeding on susceptible or tolerant hosts were measured and possible relationship to the tolerance component of resistance investigated.

The following auxins were detected in significant amounts and identified by RF values in the extract of the aphids feeding on the following susceptible and tolerant hosts: (1) susceptible Reno barley—3-indoleacetic acid (IAA), 3-indolebutyrie acid (IBA); (2) tolerant Dicktoo barley—auxins not present in significant amounts; (3) susceptible Pawnee wheat—indolepyruvic acid (IPA); (4) tolerant Dickinson wheat—auxins not present in significant amounts, growth inhibition present

Extract of pea aphids that had previously fed on susceptible broad bean tissue contained 3-indoleacetic acid (IAA) in significant amounts.

Auxins were found in significant amounts in extract of aphids that had fed on susceptible plants but absent in aphids fed on tolerant varieties.

Auxins present in green bugs and pea aphids were significantly reduced by a short starvation period prior to analyses, which indicated that auxins present in aphids were plant derived rather than synthesized by the aphids. NO evidence that insects can produce auxins was found.

Determining growth substances present in the salivary glands of aphids would provide valuable information as to whether the toxin in salivary juices are plant-derived axons or inhibitors in toxic concentrations or whether the toxins have their source from pertinacious material synthesized by the aphids.

The tolerance component of resistance is closely associated with the free-auxin content of plants and the ability of certain aphids to extract and concentrate these growth substances.


So now it's okay to be a spoiled brat? Three recent trials have begged this very question: Ethan Couch, the Texas teen who appears to have gotten away with murder; Rachel Canning, the New Jersey teen who sued her parents for support and tuition; and prior to these, a lawsuit in the Northeast in which I was an expert witness, where two young adults were suing their father for the way he had handled their inheritance. In all three, my initial reaction was dismay at the ingratitude and sense of entitlement of these young family members. Yet, digging deeper, there is evidence of failure not only of these families, but of our society as a whole.


Tomato is one of the commercially important vegetable crops in India. Recently, an invasive pest Tuta absoluta was introduced to India causing potential yield loss to the tomato crop. Several studies were undertaken on the pest since 2014 to understand the biology, distribution, host range, natural enemies and chemical management of the pest. It is important to understand the current status of the pest at regular time intervals to validate the existing practices and to development suitable management technologies. Thus, current study aims at understanding the spatial variation in the pest incidence in randomly sampled 24 tomato fields in larger tomato growing areas viz., Chikkaballapur and Kolar of southern parts of Karnataka from August to December, 2018. There was no recognizable pattern in spatial distribution of the pest damage on the crop vegetation and the fruit yield. Intensity of pest incidence on different plant canopies as well as fruit yield were observed to be very low to low (0 – 20 per cent) in 70 per cent of the sampled locations. Subsequently, less than 10 per cent of locations showed high pest infestation. Further, in all the locations, 10-22 per cent of yield loss was observed to be due to insect pest, diseases and/or nutritional deficiency in the sampled locations. In the total loss incurred, about 50 percent of the damage caused by the incidence of Tuta absoluta alone. Further studies have to be conducted on the effect of biotic and non-biotic factors on the pest population, effect of prevailing management practices on the natural enemies to understand the current status of the pest in different seasons.


To the Editor:

We have read with interest the recent article published by Circulation Research entitled "Heteromultimeric Kv1 Channels Contribute to Myogenic Control of Arterial Diameter."1 The study adds to an expanding body of evidence suggesting pivotal roles of the voltage-gated potassium channels (KV channels) in vascular smooth muscle cells as regulators of arterial tone. Nevertheless, we feel it is necessary to point out some issues relating to representation of the literature by Plane et al.

A general sentiment conveyed by Plane et al is "This study indicates for the first time the importance of KDR [delayed rectifier potassium] channels composed of KV1 subunits to normal function of arterial resistance vessels via controlling their role in myogenic reactivity." However, although appropriate references are cited, it is not made apparent to the reader that this concept has been documented previously. For example, Cheong et …


Based on the experimental data from simple tension creep test, a creep law of asphalt mortar matzrial is testified and compared. The relationship of stress versus strain of this asphalt mortar under the constant tension load is obtained using the non linear regression analysis, which is well in coincidence with the viscoelastic four parameter liquid model and exponent model.Whereby providing a theoretical basis for solving the practical problems in simple tension creep.


We consider the interaction between a small system modeled by a simple harmonic oscillator (SHO) with a wedge con-stituted by two semi-infinite perfectly conducting plates and also with a perfect conducting cyllinder. Using a formalism based on a master equation, we compute the van der Waals force on the SHO and also the spontaneous emission rates, for zero and nonzero temperatures. We then discuss some of the consequences of our results and also possible extensions for this work.


In this study, we examine those factors generally considered to impact IPO performance to assess the extent to which investment bankers might utilize this information in determining the spread within which the offering price is likely to be set and in setting the offering price. Interestingly, we find no evidence that the variables investigated are related to either IPO offer price spread or the IPO offer price. The implications of these findings are notable, as they raise the issue of what information might account for investment bankers' valuation decisions, as captured in the offer price spread and offer price. This paper develops and tests two propositions. We demonstrate that there is a monotone relation between the (expected) under pricing of an initial public offering and the uncertainty of investors regarding its value. We also argue that the resulting under pricing equilibrium is enforced by investment bankers, who have reputation capital at stake. An investment banker who "cheats" on this under pricing equilibrium will lose either potential investors (if it doesn't under price enough) or issuers (if it under prices too much), and thus forfeit the value of its reputation capital. Empirical evidence supports our propositions. In the IPO market, investors coordinate on acceptable IPO price based on the performance of past IPOs, and this generates an incentive for investment banks to produce information about IPO firms. In hot periods, the information produced by investment banks improves the quality of IPO firms, and this allows ex ante low quality firms to go public and increases the secondary market price, thus synchronizing high IPO volumes and high first day returns. When investment banks behave asymmetrically in information production, the "reputations" of investment banks are interpreted as a form of market segmentation to economize on the social cost of information production.


In its history of decades, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation has gone through an unusual process: from being banned to rebuilding, from transform to splitting. And now it is experiencing a survival crisis. The reasons for its decline are due to many factors, externally and internally. At present, the Party still has conditions and chances to overcome the crisis and rejuvenate, both from the angle of Communist Party of the Russian Federation itself and from the angle of Putin regime. Whether the Communist Party of the Russian Federation can survive and play an important role in Russian political life will depend on the effort of itself after all.


Objective To discuss the hemostasis effects of intrauterine gauze ribbon packing in the treatment of bleeding in patients with placenta previa caesarean section operation. Methods 78patients with placenta previa were randomly divided into the observation group( n = 39) and the control group( n = 39),they were treated with caesarean section,and then the observation group were given intrauterine gauze ribbon packing for hemostasis,and the control group were given suture hemostasis,then the hemostatic effects were contrasted between the two groups. Results There was no mortality in the two groups,the intraoperative and postoperative bleeding in the observation group were significantly less than that in the control group( P 0. 01), intraoperative blood transfusion rates and operative time were significantly lower that the control group( P 0. 05). However,the difference wasn't significantly difference in hysterectomy rate,wound healing rate,postoperative fever rate,and hospitalization time between the two groups( P 0. 05). Conclusion Intrauterine gauze ribbon packing can effectively reduce the intraoperative and postoperative bleeding in patients with central placenta previa treated with caesarean section,so it's worthy of application.


Dipolar coupled magnets proved to have the potential to be capable of successfully performing digital computation in a highly parallel way. For that, nanomagnet-based computation requires precise control of the domain wall nucleation from a well-localized region of the magnet. Co/Pt and Co/Ni multilayer stacks were successfully used to demonstrate a variety of computing devices. However, Ta/CoFeB/MgO appears more promising, thanks to the lower switching field required to achieve a full magnetization reversal, reduced thickness (less than 10 nm), and its compatibility with magnetic tunnel junctions. In this work, the switch of the information is achieved through the application of a magnetic field, which allows to scale more the nanomagnets with respect to current-driven magnetization reversal-based devices and to go toward 3-D structures. We experimentally demonstrate that Ga $^{\mathrm{ +}}$ ions can be used to tune the energy landscape of the structured magnets to provide signal directionality and achieve a distinct logic computation. We prove that it is possible to define the artificial nucleation center (ANC) in different structures with two irradiation steps and that this approach can enable logic computation in ultrathin films by dipolar interaction. Moreover, different from previous studies, the results coming from the irradiation analysis are then used for real logic devices. We present the experimental demonstration of a set of fully working planar inverters, showing that it is possible to reach a coupling field between the input and the output, which is strong enough to reliably implement logic operations. Micromagnetic simulations are used to study the nucleation center's effectiveness with respect to its position in the magnet and to support the experiments. Our results open the path to the development of more efficient nanomagnet-based logic circuits.


Although the coast of the Tarn naki Bight is eroding, it is eroding unnoticed by most people, and there is little public, concern, except for the Wanganui Harbour Board, which is directly affected. In time, of course, a stage will be reached when notice of this encroachment of the sea will have-to be taken and endeavours made to check it.


We prove a result on points of coincidence and common fixed points for three self-mappings satisfying generalized contractive type conditions in cone metric spaces. We deduce some results on common fixed points for two self-mappings satisfying contractive type conditions in cone metric spaces. These results generalize some well-known recent results.


Twelve cows were allotted to three 4 × 4 Latin Squares to evaluate pH, ammonium nitrogen, microbial protein production, number of protozoa in the rumen, plasma and milk urea concentration and balance of nitrogen compounds. Treatments consisted of maize silage or sugarcane with whole cottonseed, at 0, 7 or 14%. There were no differences on pH between sugarcane treatments, despite the reduction of values after the beginning of feeding. Ammonium nitrogen values were kept above 15 mg/dL after 6 hours of the beginning of feeding by maize silage and sugarcane with 7% whole cottonseed treatment. The higher DM and nutrients intake by maize silage treatment implied in less efficient use of nitrogen with higher urine N-urea excretion compared to other treatments (150.6 vs 96.0 mg/kg BW). Sugarcane with 7% whole cottonseed treatment obtained greater amounts of total purines (PT), absorbed purines (PA), microbial nitrogen (207,6 vs 185,2 g/d) and better balance of nitrogen compounds (31,5 vs 15,5) in relation to other sugarcane treatments. The lower DM and EE intake when supplied sugarcane without whole cottonseed resulted on high protozoa counts (129.4 vs 34.0 × 103/mL), higher urine nitrogen excretion and lower microbial protein synthesis compared to other treatments, which indicates lack of energy and protein degradation synchronism, on forage:concentrate ratio proposed by this experiment.


Ostwald solubility coefficients, L, have been determined for 37 gases and vapours in methylene iodide at 298 K, and have been correlated through equation (i), where the solute explanatory log L=-0.74+0.32R 2 +1.34π 2 H +0.83α 2 H +1.19β 2 H +0.87 log L 16 (i) variables are R 2 an excess molar refraction, π 2 H the solute dipolarity/polarisability, α 2 H and β 2 H the solute hydrogen-bond acidity and basicity, and log L 16 where L 16 is the solute Ostwald solubility coefficient on hexadecane at 298 K


CMDBs are critical for ITSM, but difficult to implement successfully. A one-size-fits-all silver-bullet solution for CMDB design is very far away. Patterns can serve as a toolset to aid in CMDB design. Common language for talking about CMDB data and information modeling. Building up a stock of reusable designs. The three exemplary patterns presented... aim to reduce complexity of the CMDB, while maintaining or enhancing utility; do this either by reducing the number of CIs and relationships or by (to achieve a maintainable, easily visualized and understandable model) Are general design patterns, but can serve as a basis for more specific patterns and CI templates (for common components, bits of infrastructure design etc.).


In order to solve the customer service delay and financial risk growth problems due to transaction delays in the integrated payments system (IPS) at a large Canadian Bank, a stochastic simulation model was built using the GPSS/PC simulation language and custom FORTRAN subroutines. These tools were used to analyze the present system and critical parameters, such as service rates of the operators at each suboperation, transaction arrival rates, and arrival patterns were identified and estimated where necessary. Three alternatives, including two automation strategies to increase processing efficiency and a control system to ensure a guaranteed service time were developed which, if implemented, will improve the operation of the IFS. Analysis of the simulation output showed that no single alternative dominates the others although each alternative, on its own, improved the present system with respect to the performance measures studied. A detailed examination of the costs and benefits of each alternative should be completed before the Bank decides on the appropriate strategy for final implementation.


The woolly breakdown is one of the major disorders during cold storage of "Chiripa" peaches. In the present work the effects of controlled atmosphere (CA) on peaches storability were studied, particularly in the control of woolliness. The peaches were harvested with 50N of pulp firmness (PF), 7cmo .L-1of total titratable acidity (TTA), 13,8oBrix of total soluble solids (TSS) and green-white ground color. Peaches were stored in two systems: 1) refrigerated air storage (RA) at 0oC± 0,5oC and 90± 5% of relative humidity (RU) or 2) controlled atmosphere (CA) at 0oC± 0,5oC, 95± 2% of RU, 1,5KPa of O2 and 5kPa de CO2. At the installation of the experiment, 30 days after and 45 days after, samples were collected to evaluate PF, TTA, TSS, woolly breakdown, browning and for organoleptic analysis. These evaluations were done 24 and 72 hours after sampling. The results showed that CA is capable of reducing efficiently the woolliness and maintaining fruit quality for 45 days of storage. In RA this period was less than 30 days with significative losses in the quality.


By W, L. WALLACE, M.D., Syracuse, N. Y. ABSENCE of vagina is acquired or congential. Acquired absence is usually a stenosis, the walls of the vagina being more or less present, even when the passage is entirely closed. It may be caused in utero, the child being born with a vagina closed by a broad adhesion of its mucous membrane; or it may be caused in childhood by scarlet fever or other disease; or in adult life by burns, ulcerations or injuries. On the other hand, congenital absence of vagina is a defect, caused by the failure to develop of the ducts of Muller, from which tubes, uterus, and vagina are formed. It is usually associated with other anomalies, as rudimentary uterus. The external organs, however, are generally normal, as they are developed from outside structures,—the labia, vulva, clitoris, vestibule, urethra appearing as usual. Ovaries are generally present. The first operations done for the construction of a vagina were in the cases of stenosed and imperforate vagina, and were for the purpose of evacuating the pent-up blood. They were done through the perineum with trocar, or knife and fingers, and were not usually undertaken until the uterus and tubes were distended with blood. As these operations were usually fatal from infection, many surgeons refused to operate. (See "Construction of a New Vagina," A. Brothers, American Journal of Obstetrics, September, 1906.) If the uterus and tubes are distended, the operation for imperforate vagina or hymen is always very dangerous. In young girls of sixteen or eighteen who have probably menstruated only


Pointwise order dependencies (PODs) are dependencies that specify ordering semantics on attributes of tuples. POD discovery refers to the process of identifying the set Σ of valid and minimal PODs on a given data set
 D.
 In practice
 D
 is typically large and keeps changing, and it is prohibitively expensive to compute Σ from scratch every time. In this paper, we make a first effort to study the incremental POD discovery problem, aiming at computing changes ΔΣ to Σ such that Σ ⊕ ΔΣ is the set of valid and minimal PODs on
 D
 with a set Δ
 D
 of tuple insertion updates. (1) We first propose a novel indexing technique for inputs Σ and
 D.
 We give algorithms to build and choose indexes for Σ and
 D
 , and to update indexes in response to Δ
 D.
 We show that POD violations
 w.r.t.
 Σ incurred by Δ
 D
 can be efficiently identified by leveraging the proposed indexes, with a cost dependent on
 log
 (|
 D
 |). (2) We then present an effective algorithm for computing ΔΣ, based on Σ and identified violations caused by Δ
 D.
 The PODs in Σ that become invalid on
 D
 + Δ
 D
 are efficiently detected with the proposed indexes, and further new valid PODs on
 D
 + Δ
 D
 are identified by refining those invalid PODs in Σ on
 D
 + Δ
 D.
 (3) Finally, using both real-life and synthetic datasets, we experimentally show that our approach outperforms the batch approach that computes from scratch, up to orders of magnitude.


To investigate the potential for fish tainting from exposure to oil sands extraction wastewaters, rainbow trout were exposed to four different tailings pond wastewaters for a period of 24 hours. Subsequently, the fish were sacrificed, filleted and bile drawn from the gall bladder. Sensory analysis, performed by 10 pre-screened panelists, revealed that each of the four wastewater streams tainted the exposed fish to a detectable degree. Chemical analyses of the fish fillet, wastewater and fish bile revealed the presence of alkylated benzenes and phenols. The total level of phenols detected in the fish tissue was well above reported odour threshold levels. The additional presence of organic sulphur compounds identified in the wastewater suggests that they may also have contributed to the detected level of fish taint.


Humans are social creatures who usually interact directly. But as technology develops, interactions also use the technology. One of the many popular technologies in the 4.0 era is VR technology. An example of this technology is the metaverse, a combination of the real and virtual worlds. This paper presents a research review to analyze the social impact of Virtual Reality: technology with metaverse. This paper uses a systematic literature review (SLR) as the method. The research was conducted based on the RQ that had been made. There are 18 related articles generated from the search, then reviewed. This study concludes that Social VR has three impacts: Social Presence Illusion, Virtual Embodiment, and the Proteus Effect. In addition, we also explain the ways to create a safe social VR environment, such as by playing with family and friends, educating the public about VR technology, and suggesting that the platform provides an age limit for playing in a VR environment.


\p=m-\apparently a stereoscope. This determines "whether both eyes are sluggish, or whether or not the individual can see well enough to do school tasks," and (2) a "metronoscope" (Risley prisms). "The base-in reading indicates the divergence reaction in its relationship to the function of the focus mechanism while the base-out reading indicates the convergence reaction in its relationship to the functioning of the focus mechanism" (sic); and (3) a "Reading Graph" of ocular movement. If the "convergence-divergence response" is considered insufficient, training by prisms is undertaken. The author has not only succeeded in improving this "index" in most instances, but has produced in addition a gain in weight (case 7), cessation of thumbsucking in a 20\x=req-\ year-old man (case 16), relief of "stomach cramps" (case 23), and abolition of head¬ aches occurring only on hot days (case 24). There were no controls. Gordon M. Bruce, MD


GPx‐3 scavenges reactive oxygen species in plasma by catalyzing the reduction of hydrogen peroxide and lipid hydroperoxides using glutathione (GSH) as a reducing co‐substrate. We compared the specific activity of wild type (WT) and Sec73Cys mutant recombinant GPx‐3 (rGPx‐3). rGPx‐3 WT, Sec73Cys, and empty vector cDNAs were transfected in Cos7 cells in the presence of sodium selenite. rGPx‐3 protein was isolated by His‐Gravi Trap purification, determined by Western blot under reducing and non‐reducing conditions, and compared to native plasma GPx‐3. GPx‐3 activity was assessed by a chromogenic assay, a redox‐sensitive fluorescence based endpoint assay, and an in‐gel assay. Western blot demonstrated a 28 kDa band under reducing conditions for WT and Sec73Cys rGPx‐3 and an additional ∼112 kDa band under non‐reducing conditions. An ∼2.5‐fold increase in tetramer‐to‐monomer ratio for Sec73Cys rGPx‐3 was observed compared to WT rGPx‐3. Native plasma GPx‐3 resulted in a tetramer‐to‐monomer ratio of 2.5. The enzyme activity of WT rGPx‐3 was ~3‐fold higher than Sec73Cys with GSH (ANOVA, p<0.01) using the chromogenic assay, and ~2‐fold higher with the redox‐sensitive fluorescence based endpoint assay (ANOVA, p<0.005). The in‐gel assay also showed activity. WT rGPx‐3 is more catalytically active than Sec73Cys. Quaternary structure does not seem to influence intrinsic activity.


: A composite electrode that contains homemade nickel coated carbon micro-particles as active materials and epoxy binder has been prepared. The surface morphology, elemental composition and size distribution of microparticles were investigated using SEM, EDS, AAS, micro Raman spectroscopy and appropriate seizer apparatus. The prepared micro-particles appeared monodispers with 33 μm most numerous particle size diameter and with 10.1 w/w% Ni content. Conventional electrochemical methods like impedance spectroscopy and voltammetry as well as scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) were used for investigation the properties of the composite electrodes. It has been proved that the electrode can be well used for electrocatalytic reduction of CO 2 directly in aqueous monoethanol amine (MEA) solution that frequently are applied for capturing it from power plant flue gases. SECM measurements showed that presence of dissolved CO 2 hinders the hydrogen evolution in aqueous MEA solution.


A graph Γ is called an n-Cayley graph over a group G if Aut(Γ) contains a semi-regular subgroup isomorphic to G with n orbits. In this paper, we review some recent results and future directions around the problem of computing the eigenvalues on n-Cayley graphs.


Discussed are two numerical packages for computing equilibrium structures of liquid crystals. The first uses Frank elasticity in a rectangular geometry in two spatial dimensions. The second uses a tensor order parameter and Landau-deGennes free energy in the geometry of a finite circular cylinder. The Frank code is being used to study the phenomenon of the "stripe phase" in thin nematic films in the bendFreedericksz geometry. The cylinder code is being used to investigate configurations in liquid crystals confined in microscopic cylindrical pores subject to homeotropic anchoring conditions. Preliminary results of these projects are presented.


Both normal hemostasis and pathological thrombosis are due, in part, to the formation of platelet-fibrin thrombi a t sites of blood vessel injury. We have studied this process utilizing a technique developed by Baumgartner' for exposing de-endothelialized segments of rabbit aorta to human blood under controlled flow conditions. Initially our studies focused on factors that influence the deposition of platelets on the subendothelium. More recently, we have utilized this technique for studying fibrin deposition. The results of these studies have demonstrated that platelet and fibrin deposition on the subendothelium are strongly influenced by plasma and cellular factors, by properties of the vessel wall, and by flow.


Glyphosate and AMPA residues in oversprayed and buffered streams were monitored following application of ROUNDUP (2.0 kg/ha) to 45 ha of a coastal British Columbia watershed. Maximum glyphosate residues (stream water, 162 μg/L; sediments, 6.80 μg/g dry mass; suspended sediments, <0.03 μg/L) were observed in two intentionally oversprayed tributaries, dissipating to <1 μg/L within 96 h postapplication. (...)