Background: Brain (b-type) natriuretic peptide (BNP) is released into the circulation in response to ventricular dilatation and pressure overload conditions. Studies linked between levels of BNP and short/long term prognosis in patients of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Aim: To evaluate the brain natriuretic peptide as a predictor of contrast induced acute kidney injury post percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with acute coronary syndrome. Patients and Methods: The study included 60 patients who presented to emergency room with diagnosis of ACS syndrome (ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), non-ST segment elevation MI (NSTEMI) or unstable angina (UA)) who underwent to percutaneous coronary intervention. All participants subjected to history taking, clinical assessment, ECG, echocardiography and laboratory investigation (serum level of Troponin I, creatinine, blood urea and BNP). Results: Considering BNP levels at admission, CIN group has significantly elevated BNP level than non-CIN group (p<0.001). Value of BNP >69.0 pg/mL can strongly discriminate patients with CIN as AUC was 0.861 and p-value was <0.001 with sensitivity and specificity was81.8% & 92.6% respectively. Conclusion: BNP with cutoff value >69.0 pg/mL is a simple and easily measurable biomarker that can predict CIN in patients with acute myocardial infarction.


A theory of multiparty sessions is presented in this paper, where the semantic analysis of global types ensures that the projection onto each participant preserves a strong fairness assumption, i.e., no participant of multiparty sessions will wait for messages that are never sent or will send messages that no other participant will receive. In addition, once a global type is agreed upon by all participants involved, a local protocol from each local viewpoint will be generated as a projection onto each participant using a top-down approach. Furthermore, the introduction of asynchronous communication sub typing allows permutation of actions to raise efficiency, where each local type can be locally refined using our action asynchronous sub typing rules for both dependent and independent messages, which gives a more optimized protocol.


biofluids (amniotic fluid, aqueous humor, bile, bronchial lavage fluid, breast milk, cerebrospinal fluid, colostrum, gastric fluid, pancreatic cyst fluid, peritoneal fluid, platelet-free plasma, platelet-poor plasma, platelet-rich plasma, saliva, seminal fluid, serum, sputum, stool, synovial fluid, sweat, tear fluid and urine), each collected from at least two donors. All fluids were centrifuged and frozen within two hours after collection. Total RNA was isolated from the cell-free supernatant and spike-in RNA controls were added to enable absolute quantification of exRNAs. The RNA content was subsequently characterized in all biofluids using established small RNA and mRNA sequencing workflows. Analysis of the small RNA-sequencing data revealed the presence of small RNA species in all biofluids. Highly variable small RNA concentrations (up to 100 000-fold) and marked differences in RNA biotypes among biofluids were observed. Analysis of the mRNA profiles is currently ongoing. By applying computational deconvolution methods, we aim to identify the cell types and tissues that are contributing to the exRNA repertoire in these biofluids. These novel insights may provide a more rational selection of relevant biofluids for biomarker discovery in various human diseases.


This manuscript describes chamber experiment results on the gas-phase reaction of entkaurene with ozone. Ent-kaurene represents one of the typical diterpenes that emit from biogenic sources. The authors have measured and quantified ent-kaurene using a PTRCIMS and reported its fragmentation pattern. They have further characterized less oxygenated and highly oxygenated reaction products using a PTR-CIMS and a nitrateCIMS, respectively. The results show that the total HOM yield from ent-kaurene ozonolysis is around 2 %, with the oxygen atom number for most of the monomers and dimers below 10. Further, the steady-state concentration of highly oxygenated products decreases as the mass loading of seed particles increases, while less oxygenated products are insensitive to the mass loading changes. The research topic of this paper is novel and the measurement techniques used for product characterization are state-of-the-art. Overall this is a very relevant study fitting perfectly into the scope of ACP.


The introduction of the European Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) ended the quasi-monopoly of national exchanges in equity trading across Europe and many new trading platforms emerged. European trading venues are neither formally linked by technology nor does regulation enforce price-priority across platforms. This raises the question of market integration of fragmented markets. We find that quotes for UK blue chips are closely linked across trading venues and that a high fraction of trades is executed at best available prices. Our results suggest that competition forces competing but disconnected platforms to quote prices as if they were formally linked.


We point out a mechanism for stabilizing expanding turbulent domains in annular flows. This nonlocal mechanism is explained within the context of a Ginzburg-Landau equation for a real amplitude. The expression for the nonlocal term can be derived by analogy with existing calculations in Taylor-Couette flow for Taylor vortices. Numerical results are compared with experiment.


We examine the question of proximity of the global earthquake population to the critical point characterised by the energy E and entropy S based on annual frequency data from the Harvard CMT catalogue. The results are compared with a theoretical model corresponding to a Boltzmann probability density distribution of the form p(E) ∝ E−B−1e−E/θ. The data are consistent with the model predictions for fluctuations in the characteristic energy θ at constant B value, of the form S∼B〈lnE〉. This approximation is valid for large θ, relative to the maximum possible event size, confirming that the Earth is perpetually in a near‐critical state, reminiscent of self‐organized criticality. However, the results also show fluctuations of ±10% in entropy that may be more consistent with the notion of intermittent criticality. A more precise definition of the two paradigms, and a similar analysis of numerical models, are both needed to distinguish between these competing models.


The development of Internet brings the birth of Internet-assistant travel,a new travel pattern which characterizes itself different from traditional types of travel.Its subject-travelers also show different traits from that of traditional ones.This paper defines the two concepts,makes an analysis of the Internet assistant-type of travel and the psychological and behavioral traits of Internet-assistant travelers.It attempts to discover some new features so to provide the related parties with facts for making strategies.


Docker has made another better choice for the establishment and arrangement of the applied operation environment which is different from the traditional virtual machine technology through its own features, however, the imperfect performance monitoring function has constrained the application and development of Docker platform. This article will make a further research on the monitoring target and method of Docker platform based on the existed developmental practice and functions of Docker platforms, which has a certain reference meanings for researching the operation systems and operation monitoring of Docker platforms.


1. The dynamics of synovial joints depends upon the geometry of the articular surfaces, which are always curved. 2. There are two types of articular curvature: ovoid (synclastic) and sellar (anticlastic). 3. The sellar type is mechanically more suited to movements in which sliding is combined with medial or lateral rotation (monodal conjunct rotation). 4. The movement of any hinge-joint is accompanied by a monodal conjunct rotation. This carries the moving part along a path that approximates (at least) to a path of minimal wear. The same is true of the paths of habitual effort-movement (ergodes) of other kinds of joint. 5. Evidence for the foregoing statements is drawn from both normal and abnormal joints, and a clinical application is suggested.


The positive nitrogen peroxide ion is discussed as an ionic constituent of the lower ionosphere in the light of recently observed concentrations at altitudes between 87.8 and 93.2 km. Photoionization and charge exchange reactions appear to be insufficient to account for the positive nitrogen peroxide ion concentration observed at 90 km. A possible alternative reaction is proposed, and its implications are briefly reviewed.


IN the system of stubble-mulch farming (6), which is widely used in the Great Plains area, crop residues are being employed to protect the land against erosion by wind and water. In a few instances wheat straw, commonly used as a mulching material, has been observed to reduce slightly the stand and growth of corn, particularly during wet, cool periods of weather. This led to an investigation of the effect of leachings from straw, sweetclover, and other plant materials on the germination and early growth of corn (12). Since germination and seedling growth were reduced under certain conditions in the laboratory, there is a possibility • that plant residues might contain some chemical substance affecting germination and^growth of corn in the field. The residues might also furnish food for soil microorganisms which could produce some organic substance detrimental to the growth of plants (1, 2, 7, 8, 13). Laboratory investigations were started to discover if possible the cause of stand and growth retardation of corn sometimes observed following wheat with the stubble-mulch method. Microbial growth in the .cultures in many instances not only reduced germination and growth, but caused the roots to grow upward. The purpose of this paper is to give a report on some of the chemical substances and laboratory conditions favorable for the growth of microorganisms that influenced growth and caused roots of corn seedlings to grow upward. The influence of water extract from plant material on corn germination was studied as was the effect of mulching the soil with plant residues.


The purpose of the article is to consider the current state of ESG lending in the Russian economy, the features of ESG rating of Russian financial companies and approaches to potential borrowers, and to identify the most relevant areas for the development of ESG lending to Russian companies. Despite the fact that Russian companies and the Russian economy are under sanctions and the opportunities to enter foreign markets are significantly limited, ESG remains relevant. An analysis of ESG practices in the banking sector conducted in 2022 by Expert RA showed that only large credit institutions follow the ESG concept. More than 50% of the top 20 banks have implemented KPIs for ESG indicators in their lending and investment processes. In the practice of Russian banks, ESG-assessment of credit risks includes indicators of default probability, analysis and evaluation of portfolios in terms of industry/geographical concentrations, exposure limits, borrowing strategies, scenario analysis and/or stress testing. It is concluded that Russian companies in the financial sector use ESG approache for their own strategic development and for lending to their clients, and that government support is required for the ESG transformation of the banking sector.


AbstractThe purpose of this study is to analyze 9th grade physics, chemistry and biology curriculums, which were implemented by the Ministry of Education since the academic year 2008-2009, in terms of scientific literacy themes and the balance of these themes and also to examine the quality of statements about objectives. Physics, chemistry, and biology curriculums were examined and coded independently by two coders who were faculty members in the branch of chemistry, physics and biology education. Cohen's kappa statistic results showed that there was high degree of consistency between coders. Analysis results revealed that the theme the knowledge of science in the chemistry curriculum and the theme the investigative nature of science in the physics and biology curriculums were well emphasized; however, the theme the science as a way of thinking was not adequately emphasized in each of the three curriculums. The findings of the study show that nature of science should be more emphasized in science curriculum to help each of citizens in our country become lifelong learners and have an adequate level of scientific literacy.Key WordsScientific Literacy, Science Curriculums, Nature of Science, Content Analysis.The term "scientific literacy" has become increasingly significant in discussions of the aims and purposes of school science education over the past two decades (American Association for the Advancement of Science [AAAS], 1993; Bybee, 1997; Gehrke, Knapp, & Sirotnik, 1992; National Research Council [NRC], 1996; Shwartz, Ben-Zvi, & Hofstein, 2005). The 1990 UNESCO World Conference on Education for All argued that science education should promote "a world community of scientifically and technologically literate citizens" (Millar, 2006). So, it is seen that many countries give priority to dimensions of scientific literacy in science reforms and development of science curriculum (AAAS, 1990; Driver, Leach, Millar, & Scott, 1996; Koballa, Kemp, & Evans, 1997; Millar & Osborne, 1998). By this way the argument for a broadening of the science curriculum to better meet the needs of all students has shifted from the call for a science for all students (Fensham, 1985) to the call for a scientific literacy focus (Bybee; Goodrum, Hackling, & Rennie, 2001; National Science Teachers Association [NSTA], 1982, 1992). In the basis of philosophy of reform movements in curriculum related with science courses which started in 2004 in Turkey, field literature related with curriculum reforms and philosophy of the curriculums are closely examined and it is aimed to train our students as individuals who have not only acquired knowledge but also thinking process. When the grade dispersion of our students in situation determination studies such as PISA and TIMMS are closely examined, unfortunately it is seen that Turkish students are inefficient in thinking processes especially in scientific process skills (Bagci-Kilic, 2003; Kalender & Berberoglu, 2009). Therefore, in the recent Elementary Education Science and Technology Curriculum the vision of "every citizen to have scientific and technological literacy" is taken as a basis and scientific literacy is defined as "synthesis of skills, attitudes, understanding and knowledge necessary to develop individuals' investigate, critical thinking, problem solving and making decision skills, to become life-long learning individuals and maintain their sense of interest in their environment and the world"(Talim ve Terbiye Kurulu Baskanligi [TTKB], 2005). The change of Elementary Education Science and Technology Curriculum makes it necessary to change curriculums in physics, chemistry and biology courses in secondary education under the effect of these reforms. So, starting from 9th grade physics, chemistry and biology curriculums in 2008-2009, all curriculums of secondary education started to be renewed gradually by Board of Education.In this study, it is aimed to analyze 9th grade physics, chemistry and biology curriculums in terms of scientific literacy themes and the balance of these themes and also to examine the quality of achievement expressions of objectives related with dimensions of scientific literacy emphasized in scientific researches. …


Research on how land suitability affects yields and breakeven prices for switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) grown as a bioenergy crop is lacking for the U.S. Southeast. Data from a 3-yr multilocation experiment at Milan, TN, were analyzed to determine the influence of soil drainage and landscape position on switchgrass yield and farm-gate breakeven price. Plots were seeded in 2004 with 'Alamo' at 2.8, 5.6, 8.4, 11.2, and 14.0 kg ha -1 pure live seed (PLS). Plots were split in 2005 and N was applied at 0, 67, 134, and 201 kg N ha -1 Farm-gate breakeven prices for 5- and 10-yr production contracts were determined by calculating unit production costs from enterprise budgets that varied by input level and yield. Maximum yields occurred at 67 kg N ha -1 on well-drained soils and at higher N levels on less-well-drained soils. Yield response to seeding rate (SR) was insignificant or small relative to other factors. Averaged across treatments, the well-drained upland location suitable for row crops had the largest yield (17.7 Mg ha -1 ) and lowest breakeven price ($46 Mg -1 ) for a 10-yr period. In contrast, the poorly drained flood plain location considered marginal yielded lowest (8.5 Mg ha -1 ) and had the highest breakeven price ($69 Mg -1 ). Breakeven prices were sensitive to yield, N price, and fuel price. Results suggest a lower breakeven price for switchgrass in the U.S. Southeast as compared with other U.S. regions, mainly due to high yields for the Alamo variety.


The rural communities in Sarawak which consist of approximately 22% of the state's population are still relying on expensive and noisy diesel generator sets for a couple of hours every night simply because they are located in remote areas where people have limited access to electrical grid. If electricity is generated by means of potential Renewable Energy (RE) resources which are incorporated with smart microgrid for rural Sarawakians, there are many advantages that could be insightful for the society and the environment. In this paper, the availability of RE resources in Sarawak and their potentials to supply power to rural areas in Sarawak is first discussed. A smart microgrid concept for rural electrification in the state is also discussed to provide an overview on its characteristics and challenges.


Non healing ulcers are a burden to the patient as they are difcult to treat. They also affect patient's quality of life. A series of 2 patients – one with
chronic venous ulcer and other with diabetic foot ulcer were included. Epidermal grafts were harvested and applied using Cellutome epidermal
harvesting system (KCI) with no anesthesia. After transferring the harvest of epidermal blisters, 4 layer compression bandaging was given. Both
the patients tolerated the procedure with no complications involving donor as well as recipient sites. Photographs were taken during various phases
of healing. 1 week follow up showed 63% reduction in wound area. Donor site was completely healed by this time. Reduction in ulcer size of upto
99% was seen in 8 weeks.


Abstract Optimal conditions for the preparation of precipitate phosphors were determined by measurements of the spectral emission distribution under UV excitation (365 nm). The emission of the Mn peak goes with increasing Cd concentration through a maximum, independent of the method the Cd was incorporated. The increasing gain, stimulated by the addition of Cd, is discussed using known energy models.


The German initiative "Industrie 4.0" has introduced various new concepts, e.g., Asset Administration Shell (AAS), in the industrial automation which led to the increase of the available information in the network. Retrieving the endpoints where the data is located in the network became an essential task in order to establish an automated information exchange system. Various working groups have been formed to standardize the AAS structure. In this work, we propose a discovery server concept for asset properties using the standardized AAS. We reinforce the presented concept with a prototype implementation that uses queries to retrieve information based on the property value statement model specified in DIN SPEC 92000.


Owing to their unique features such as thresholding and self‐relaxation behavior diffusive memristors built from volatile electrochemical metallization (v‐ECM) devices are drawing attention in emerging memories and neuromorphic computing areas such as temporal coding. Unlike the switching kinetics of non‐volatile ECM cells, the thresholding and relaxation dynamics of diffusive memristors are still under investigation. Comprehension of the kinetics and identification of the underlying physical processes during switching and relaxation are of utmost importance to optimize and modulate the performance of threshold devices. In this study, the switching dynamics of Ag/HfO2/Pt v‐ECM devices are investigated. Depending on the amplitude and duration of applied voltage pulses, the threshold kinetics and the filament relaxation are analyzed in a comprehensive approach. This enables the identification of different mechanisms as the rate‐limiting steps for filament formation and, consequently, to simulate the threshold kinetics using a physical model modified from non‐volatile ECM. New insights gained from the combined threshold and relaxation kinetics study outline the significance of the filament formation and growth process on its relaxation time. This knowledge can be directly transferred into the optimization of the operation conditions of diffusive memristors in neuromorphic circuits.


The main aim of the paper is to reduce the real power losses and improve the voltage profile in a radial distribution feeder by placement of capacitor allocation taking voltage as a constraint. Fuzzy expert system decides the nodes where the capacitor must be placed in order to compensate both real power loss and improve voltage profile. Then the sizing of the capacitors is modeled by the objective function to obtain maximum savings using Particle Swarm Optimization and Hybrid Particle Swarm Optimization and is compared. A case study with an existing rural 15 bus distribution feeder is presented to illustrate the applicability of the algorithm.


Due to the limited field of view of the pinhole camera, there is a lack of stability and accuracy in camera pose estimation applications such as visual SLAM. In order to solve this problem, a visual SLAM algorithm based on a panoramic camera is proposed to realize high-precision camera pose estimation and 3D sparse feature map construction. The indoor and outdoor experiments show that the proposed visual SLAM system is superior to that based on pinhole camera in both stability and precision, and it provides and effective solution for the localization and navigation of the mobile robots.


The Mold transformers fire retardant and environmentally friendly equipment, such as oil leaks, etc. Since the ship has been used in many places. We analysis of the Marine mold transformer"s temperature with commercial code ICEPAK and we designed the best compact-size of transformer. In particular, this raper used in the AFWF(Air Forced and Water Forced) mold transformer, protection rating of the enclosure must be over 44 (IP code) and the life of the transformer is dependent on the thermal temperature of windings so the designers of transformer are predicted or calculated temperature distribution. In this paper, we pre-simulated of the transformer"s temperature and enclosure before final designed transformer and the results show a satisfactory results with actual temperature rise measurements obtained from thermal imaging camera.


Back in the 1990s we started work on pedagogical agents, a new user interface paradigm for interactive learning environments. Pedagogical agents are autonomous characters that inhabit learning environments and can engage with learners in rich, face-to-face interactions. Building on this work, in 2000 we, together with our colleague, Jeff Rickel, published an article on pedagogical agents that surveyed this new paradigm and discussed its potential. We made the case that pedagogical agents that interact with learners in natural, life-like ways can help learning environments achieve improved learning outcomes. This article has been widely cited, and was a winner of the 2017 IFAAMAS Award for Influential Papers in Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (IFAAMAS, 2017). On the occasion of receiving the IFAAMAS award, and after twenty years of work on pedagogical agents, we decided to take another look at the future of the field. We'll start by revisiting our predictions for pedagogical agents back in 2000, and examine which of those predictions panned out. Then, informed what we have learned since then, we will take another look at emerging trends and the future of pedagogical agents. Advances in natural language dialogue, affective computing, machine learning, virtual environments, and robotics are making possible even more lifelike and effective pedagogical agents, with potentially profound effects on the way people learn.


Neurogenesis in the ventricular layer and the development of cell topography in the ganglion cell layer have been studied in whole‐mounts of human fetal retinae. At the end of the embryonic period mitotic figures were seen over the entire outer surface of the retina. By about 14 weeks gestation mitosis had ceased in central retina and differentiation of photoreceptor nuclei was evident within a well‐defined area which constituted about 2% of total retina area. This area was approximately centered on the site of the putative fovea, identified by the exclusive development of cone nuclei at that location. The area of retina in which mitosis had ceased increased as gestation progressed. By mid‐gestation mitosis in the ventricular layer occupied about 77% of the outer surface of the retina and by about 30 weeks gestation mitosis in the ventricular layer had ceased. Cell density distributions in the ganglion cell layer were nonuniform at all stages studied (14–40 weeks). Densities were highest at about 17 weeks gestation, and by mid‐gestation the adult pattern of cell topography was present with maps showing elevated cell densities in posterior retina and along the horizontal meridian. Cell densities generally declined throughout the remainder of the gestation period, except in the posterior retina, where densities in the perifoveal ganglion cell layer remained high during the second half of gestation. There is a rapid decline in cell density in the foveal ganglion cell layer toward the end of gestation, and it is suggested that the persistence of high densities in the perifoveal region may be related to migration of cells away from the developing fovea. The total population of cells in the ganglion cell layer was highest (2.2–2.5 million cells) between about weeks 18 and 30 of gestation. After this the cell population declined rapidly to 1.5–1.7 million cells. It is suggested that naturally occurring neuronal death is largely responsible for this decline.


Summary The heterostyle Primula vulgaris is a rare and declining species in Northern Belgium; its presence is restricted to a limited number of small landscape elements in a matrix of intensively managed agricultural land. In 1986 and 1999 we recorded numbers of pin-thrum flower morphs in respectively 34 and 89 populations. No structural imbalance in flower morph numbers was found, but imbalances were significantly larger in small populations. Moreover, relative imbalance also increased between 1986 and 1999. Population persistence however, was not correlated with morph imbalance: changes in population size between the two survey periods did not depend on initial flower morph imbalance. Results are compared with other heterostyly-related population research in Primula species and the relative importance of deterministic and stochastic processes for population persistence are discussed. To conclude, the introduction of missing morphs into relic populations with only pin or thrum plants is suggested to reduce pollinator-limited seed set.


WANEP's emphasis on collaborative approaches and in complementing state effort in addressing conflicts was echoed by the former Secretary to the government of Plateau state late Gynang Nyam Shom at the Jos dialogue design meeting (February 3 4, 2011) when he stated "the WANEP dialogue and intervention strategy enhances trust and empowers conflict parties to take ownership of the process". The realization that government and nongovernmental collaboration is critical to mitigate the risks and threats of conflicts has been a driving force for WANEP's interventions at the community, national and regional levels. In this regard, the organization has led several community based dialogue and mediation efforts across the West African region.


Aim: The aim of this article is to determine the knowledge of hand hygiene (HH) practices among eye care workers in a tertiary eye hospital in Nigeria. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of eye care workers at a tertiary eye hospital in Nigeria. Eye care workers, involved with clinical duties, responded to the WHO Hand Hygiene Knowledge questionnaire containing 24 multiple choice questions on HH knowledge. Each correct answer earned one point; zero was given for a wrong answer. Overall scores were expressed in percentage. An overall score of ≥75% was considered as good; 50–74% moderate; and <50% poor knowledge. Data analysis was with SPSS version 23. Results: Fifty-eight workers participated. Thirty-nine (67.2%) were females and 19 (32.8%) were males; the age range was 25–68 years; mean 39.6 ± 7.4 years. The average work experience was 15.3 ± 8.9 years; range 1–40 years. The mean knowledge score was 12.0 ± 2.9 (50%) which is moderate knowledge; range 3–18. Workers who had received training in HH had a significantly higher mean knowledge score than those who did not receive training (12.8 ± 2.3 vs. 11.3 ± 3.2; P = 0.04). There was no statistically significant association between knowledge of HH and age, sex, work experience, and professional category (P > 0.05). Conclusion: HH knowledge of the eye care workers studied is sub-optimal. This has negative implication for hospital infection control. Eye care workers' knowledge of HH can be improved through formal training and frequent rehearsals.


In 2013, the Australian Government was preparing to introduce its mandatory data retention laws, to require telcos to keep 'metadata' on their customers for two years in case the data was needed later for national security or law enforcement purposes.


structural material for the first-wall and blanket components of fusion reactor systems due to their low neutron-induced activation, favorable mechanical properties at high temperatures and good compatibility with lithium coolant. Low-temperature irradiation embrittlement is one of the most important issues determining operation temperature limit. The lowtemperature embrittlement is known to be enhanced by irradiation defects decorated by solute oxygen impurities. It has been reported that small addition of yttrium (Y) was effective to reduce oxygen impurity and improve ductility after neutron irradiation without severe degradation of low-temperature impact properties. 3) Y addition, on the other hand, can degrade high-temperature strength, because Y could scavenge solute oxygen, which is a strong hardening agent in vanadium alloys, by a formation of Y2O3. The effect of Y addition must be evaluated from the view points of both the room temperature hardness and the high-temperature strength. Figure 1 shows Vickers hardness as a function of oxygen concentration. Vickers hardness increased with increasing oxygen concentration. The slope for the trend line for V-4Cr-4Ti alloy and V-4Cr-4Ti-0.15Y alloy was 0.017-0.070 Hv/wppm O and 0.006 Hv/wppm O, respectively. The figure suggests that the hardening by oxygen is suppressed by Y addition. In the previous study, precipitations of Y2O3 were observed in the Y-added alloy. Oxygen concentration in solution is considered to be reduced by the formation of Y2O3. Thus Y addition can moderate solid-solution hardening by oxygen. Figure 2 shows the dependence of tensile strength on test temperature. Between 600 to 700 C, ultimate tensile strength (UTS) for V-4Cr-4Ti alloys slightly increased, while that for V-4Cr-4Ti-0.15Y alloys decreased. UTS at 700 C was decreased with Y addition. The reduction of yield stress (YS), however, was smaller than that of UTS. Thermal and structural analyses on Li cooling channels in fusion blanket have given the maximum equivalent stress as 56 and 35 MPa for a stainless steel and a vanadium alloy, respectively. 5) According to these examples, the design stress required for vanadium alloys will be several 10 to around 100 MPa. The YS and UTS at 700 C for V-4Cr-4Ti-0.15Y-0.011O alloy were 194 MPa and 339 MPa, respectively. The YS (UTS) is 5.5 times (9.7 times) larger than the equivalent stress for the vanadium alloy (35 MPa), and 1.9 times (3.4 times) larger than the expected design stress (100 MPa). Though the design criteria and safety factor to the design stress have not been determined for fusion structural materials, the above margins are considered to be still enough as the safety factor to blanket design. Especially for V-4Cr-4Ti-0.15Y0.011O alloy, the reduction in UTS by Y addition was 25 MPa, however, is thought to be acceptable for the application to structural materials. The effect of Y addition on hardness and tensile properties has been clarified. Y addition suppressed the hardening by oxygen. Y is considered to reduce solute oxygen by the formation of Y2O3. Thus, Y addition moderated the hardening by oxygen impurity to a high level of 0.27 wt%. With Y addition, the UTS was reduced above 700 C. The reduction in UTS by Y addition, however, was as small as 25 MPa at 700 C, which is thought to be acceptable for the application to structural materials.


Geometrical effects on the optical damage in proton exchanged LiNbO 3 waveguides are analyzed. Light intensity thresholds and beam profiles at different intensities have been measured for guides prepared on z- and x-cuts. z-cut α-phase proton exchanged guides show a threshold intensity of the same order of magnitude but slightly greater than x-cut. The more important differences between both guides cuts are a clear asymmetry of beam-profile in x-cut guides as opposite to z-cut and the existence of a chaotic evolution at high intensities only found in x-cut guides. The influence of the proton-exchange time on optical damage threshold has been also investigated in z-cut waveguides to compare them with recent reported data on x-cut guides.


The subject of this text is to determine whether Article 9a of the Law on the National Council of the Judiciary is compatible with the Constitution of the Republic of Poland. In order to answer this question, the relationship that should prevail between the various authorities in a system based on the principle of separation of powers was analyzed. Then, doubts were resolved as to whether the NCJ is a body appearing in the division of powers of the judiciary. In the end, it was concluded that in the RP, the Sejm should have no other creative powers over the judiciary than those expressly provided for in the Constitution of the RP. Otherwise, the chamber is placed in a position of unjustified supremacy vis-àvis the judiciary, and the judicial power provides no guarantee that human freedoms and rights will be decided by independent and impartial courts staffed by independent judges.


This study demonstrates a two-dimensional steady state heat conduction Laplace partial differential equation solution using the bilinear Galerkin finite element method. Heat transfer analysis is of vital importance in many engineering applications and devising computationally inexpensive numerical methods while maintaining accuracy is one of the primary concerns. The method uses structured mesh grid over a two-dimensional rectangular domain and solved using a stiffness matrix for the bilinear elements, calculated using the proposed modified numerical scheme. Several numerical experiments are conducted by controlling the number of nodes and changing element sizes of the presented scheme, and comparison made between analytical solution and software generated solution.


On-line identification of cracks occurring in large structures has attracted the attention of many researchers. Identification becomes difficult when there is no easy access available for investigators to employ conventional nonde- structive evaluation techniques. In this paper, a scheme is presented for identifying the crack location and its extent us- ing vibration response. Numerical studies were carried out on a 1/20th-scale model of the side shell of the structure of a ship. The first natural frequency of the numerical model was 584.3 Hz. The numerical and physical models were ex- cited by a random force having a dominant spectral frequency of 2 Hz. Cracks under investigation occurred at the con- nection between a horizontal and bulkheads and at the intersection between horizontals and a web frame. A scheme using the root mean square of vibration response is presented for identifying cracks occurring in the flange and web of the horizontal. It is demonstrated that the scheme can identify the crack location and size.


Microshield is a partially shielded, planar transmission line in which the center conductor and upper ground planes are surrounded by air and supported by a 1.5 pm thick dielectric membrane. This configuration allows single-mode, TEM wave propagation over a broad bandwidth with very low dispersion and zero dielectric loss. A lower shielding cavity is used to minimize radiation loss, vary the characteristic impedance, and prevent power loss into substrate modes. These properties highlight the potential of microshield as a high performance medium for submillimeter wave transmission. Here we present an overview of the fabrication of microshield lines, and report on the recent progress in the characterization of various circuit structures. Theoretical and experimental results are shown for lowpass filters, transitions to grounded coplanar waveguide, and different resonant stub designs. A description of an ultrafast electro-optic sampling ex eriment using membrane-based coplanar strip transmission lines is also included, and preliminary data is presented for line losses up to 500 GHz.


With the advancement of higher education internationalization, an increasing number of Chinese students choose to study abroad for higher education. However, differing socio-cultural and educational contexts in host countries bring great challenges to their intercultural adaptation. Taking a double first-class university in Shanghai as an example, by using anonymous online questionnaire and interviewing approaches, this study explored the features and challenges of intercultural adaptation encountered by the selected Chinese undergraduate students in this university's Sino-foreign cooperative education programs.


Self-help programmes are recommended as cost-effective initial interventions for the treatment of bulimic disorders. This is a report of the effectiveness of such a programme in routine clinical practice. Twenty-one patients completed the programme and both pre- and post- measures. Patients were treated in a secondary mental health setting over an 11-month period from July 1998 to June 1999. Outcome was assessed using standardized measures and records of symptom levels and drop-out rates. Significant improvements in depression, bulimic symptom and severity were observed. Multi-impulsive clients (as indicated by clinically significant scores on bingeing and two other areas of impulsivity) had similar levels of bulimia but higher depression scores pre-treatment. They made significant gains in most areas but, despite reduction in depression scores, remained significantly depressed. They also made less improvement in disordered attitudes than non-impulsive clients. A global measure of motivation did not predict drop-out or outcome though numbers were small. Patients who used Getting Better Bit(e) by Bit(e) and received motivational enhancement sessions made a greater reduction in fasting behaviour and were less likely to drop out than those who used a more standard CBT programme, but these results could be due to other factors. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The purpose of this research is to find out whether there is or there is not any difference of the financial performance at the banking company before and after the acquisition by PT. Cimb Niaga Bank, tbk. PT. Cimb Niaga Bank, tbk is chosen as research sample by using judgment sampling technique as sample collection technique in this research. While paired t-test sample with SPSS program is used as data analysis technique. Based on the result of analysis with paired t-test, it can be concluded that there 6 financial ratios which have significant differences that are as follow: banking ratio, net profit margin, primary ratio, capital adequacy ratio, credit risk ratio and deposit risk ratio after acquisition the 6 financial ratios show that company financial performance has significant change that happens after the acquisition, besides there are 2 financial ratios who have no significant differences that are: quick ratio and return on equity capital. The financial performance of banking company of PT. Cimb Niaga Bank, tbk, the financial condition after the acquisition shows a good improvement, since the overall results of the financial ratio calculation shows an improvement after the acquisition. The implications of this research are generally indicates that an improvement in financial performance after the acquisition shows that the main motive of the company to make acquisitions are economical motives, so that the purpose of the acquisition is fully achieved.


Telluric absorption lines impact the measuring of precise radial velocities (RVs) from high-resolution ground-based spectrographs. In this paper, we simulate the dependence of this impact on stellar spectral type and extend the work of the first paper in this series, which studied a G-type star, to a synthetic M-dwarf star. We quantify the bias in precise RV measurements in the visible and near-infrared (NIR) from the presence of tellurics in a simulated set of observations. We find that M-dwarf RVs are more impacted by tellurics compared to G-type stars. Specifically, for an M-dwarf star, tellurics can induce RV errors of up to 16 cm s−1 in the red optical and in excess of 220 cm s−1 in the NIR. For a G dwarf, the comparable RV systematics are 3 cm s−1 in the red optical and 240 cm s−1 in the NIR. We attribute this relative increase for M-dwarf stars to the increased concordance in wavelength between telluric lines and stellar Doppler information content. We compare the results of our simulation to data collected for Barnard's star from the iSHELL spectrograph at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. This study was conducted as a follow-up to the NASA probe mission concept study EarthFinder.


It is very important to tandem construction,expression,purification,characteristic research of small peptide gene. In this study,the whole-gene sequence of antibacterial peptide was achieved by means of SOEPCR,constructed gene tandem through isocaudarner method,and constructed recombinant eukaryotic expression vector. Enzyme digest and sequencing showed that gene tandem was equal to the sequence of the designed gene. SDS-PAGE analysis indicated that antibacterial peptide gene expressed highly in pichia pastoris.


Summary The area-excavation towards the centre of the fort has shown that well-defined traces of occupation exist, ranging from the Roman period to the early nineteenth century. The nature of the Roman occupation, though still uncertain in many aspects, is becoming much clearer and can now be divided into phases tentatively linked to a broad historical framework. Early in the fifth century settlement of Germanic type appeared, with which was associated a gilded bronze disc of apparently sub-Roman form. Then followed more regular Saxon occupation, beginning in the late fifth or early sixth century and probably continuing to the eighth or ninth century. The late Saxon period provides a very detailed picture of a hall with its ancillary buildings, land boundaries, and rubbish-tipping area, all of considerable potential significance on more than a local scale. The later periods are more sporadically represented, but interesting correlations can be made between the archaeological evidence and contemporary documentary and graphic accounts. To understand the internal landscape of the fort more clearly it is evident that much more of the central area will have to be fully excavated and this will occupy most of the effort throughout the next five seasons' work. At the same time it is planned to continue with the investigations of the Priory and the Castle, and to devote some time to the outstanding problem of the defences.


Harassment, even of a verbal nature, can pollute the working environment and can destroy the health, confidence and the self-esteem of the victim. Of course, it is up to the claimants in these verbal harassment cases to establish that the behaviour of the employer is unwelcome and unsolicited and that it is offensive to them personally. It is this latter requirement that has caused most difficulty for claimants in these cases. This aspect of obtaining protection against long-standing harassment will be discussed in this article in light of a new decision that considerably broadens the legal protection for victims of harassment.


Six adults with spontaneous dissection of the vertebrobasilar system are reported. Clinically, 2 patients presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage and 4 with brain-stem ischemia. In all patients, angiography demonstrated fusiform dilatation and constrictions of the involved vessel, which were called "pearl and string" sign. Among these, 2 patients of subarachnoid hemorrhage and one patient with definite dissecting aneurysm that did not improve in spite of angiographic monitoring were surgically treated. Three other patients were treated conservatively with rather good clinical results. Ischemic type of vertebrobasilar dissection must be angiographically monitored, because of spontaneous healing of dissection. In dealing with dissection of vertebrobasilar arteries, because only severe headache develops before ischemic symptoms appear, great care must be taken for these patients. MRI is one of the most reliable neuroimaging methods for detecting dissection.


Aim: The main aim of the study is to research the regularities of the anthropogenic transformation and ecogeographical situation of the landscapes on the coastal plain of the Caspian Sea from Pirsaat river to Astara river. The methodological basis of the article is determine dynamic of forests we prepared forests maps of investigation area. For this purpose we used the topo map of the area of 1987, and Google Earth imagines. Then we compared these years' materials, and analyzed conclusions. Results: In the article we have represented results of our investigation materials on the branch of technogenic transformation of the landscapes based on modern methods, and relevant maps are prepared. We have analyzed landscape components, like relief, climate, vegetation cover and etc., dynamics of forests, precipitations and etc. We grouped the anthropogenic activities in the investigation area. Consequently we have determined risks and hazards in the landscapes on the coastal plain of Caspian Sea due to human effects. Transformation characterizes of Salyan and Lankaran, South-eastern Shirvan plains due to anthropogenic effects have researched in the article. Dynamic analyzes of old and modern topo maps, satellite maps, survey with older people let determine transformation degrees and development levels of modern natural and natural-anthropogenic landscapes. Eco systems of the protected areas are compared with landscapes exposed to anthropogenic effects based on analogy method. NDVI, dynamics of technogenic landscapes, forest ecosystems maps allow to create anthropogenic transformation map of the investigation area. We devided investigation are into 5 parts due to transformation degrees: unchanged landscapes that retain their natural structure, poorly transformed landscapes, medium transformed landscapes, strongly transformed landscapes, natural-technogenic landscapes. Then risk and hazards are assessed. System of measures to overcome ecological risks and hazards have been prepared by us. We have determined that 24% of the investigation area (1585 km2) were ecologically protected landscapes. In 26% of the area (1705 km2), natural complexes are poor transformed. In 40% (2598 km2) of natural complexes are moderately transformed, and in 10% (680 km2) of natural landscapes are strongly transformed and belong to high-risk areas. Compiled maps and scientific results can be source in management of risks in the area and in the proper organization of insurance business. Theoretical and practical significance. The results of the research can be used by the research and design institutes of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources. The obtained scientific results will enable the protection of the ecological diversity of landscapes on the plain of the Caspian Sea and optimize natural resource potential of landscapes. Scientific novelty: The obtained scientific results will enable the protection of the ecological diversity of landscapes on the plain of the Caspian Sea and optimize natural resource potential of landscapes.


The present study examined the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES), parental literacy use and shared reading in a sample of native-Dutch (n=47) and Turkish-Dutch families (n=41). Parental literacy use (recreational and educational) and shared reading are characteristics of the cultural capital of the family. The second part of this study examined the relationship between shared reading and academic language use in 4year-old children from the Dutch and Turkish families. The purpose of the present study was twofold. The first objective was to explore if differences in shared reading between native-Dutch and Turkish families, could be explained by differences in parental literacy use. The second intention was to determine if the possible language delay of Turkish children at the beginning of the primary school could be explained by the early shared reading experiences in the family. The focus was on children's production of narrative texts, seen as a common age-appropriate pre-academic text genre. Family SES, parental literacy use and shared reading were measured with a questionnaire, administered during a personal interview with the primary caregiver of the child. Moderate correlations were found between specific components of parent literacy use and shared reading in both the Dutch and Turkish group. Multiple regression analyses indicated that shared reading predicted children's academic language performance only in the Turkish sample, but some direct effects of SES do remain significant.


Physicochemical properties of starch isolated from tuber of Godare [Colocasia esculenta (Araceae)] have been characterised. Amylose content was found to be 24.3%. The starch granules are polygonal to spherical in shape with indentations in some granules. The granules exist as single entities. The starch has normal granule size distribution with mean particle size of 13μm. The true density was found to be 1.347 g/ml. The moisture sorption pattern and swelling power of Godare starch were similar to that of potato starch. The Xray diffraction pattern of Godare starch is typically B-type with distinctive maximum peak at around 17° 2θ. Barbender viscosity (6% on dry basis) showed much lower peak viscosity (157 BU) and breakdown viscosity (6 BU) than potato starch. Godare starch exhibited a DSC gelatinisation temperature of T-onset (63°C), T-peak (68°C) and T-end (75°C) with enthalpy of gelatinisation (ΔH, 11.5 mJ/mg). Keywords: Colocasia esculenta starch, granule size, X-ray diffraction, amylograph, DSC-gelatinisation Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Journal Vol. 24, 2006: 13-22


The paper induced the high performance of the motion control board-GE400-SG,put forward the system of EPS WEDM which composed of hard design based on GE400-SG and software development of motion control,and put forth the control algorithm and strategy of EPS WEDM system with high performance of real-time and accuracy.


As Manfred Hauke has pointed out in a recent article, the question of whether the priest should face the people or not during Mass is more than a matter of personal taste or liturgical prejudice. If the Mass is a meal, then the participants should in some way surround what is (in this view) a table; if it is a (eucharistic) sacrifice, then the priest should lead the people in prayer, facing the east across what is (in this view) an altar. This is a choice that has been strongly stressed by Klaus Gamber, and supported (to some extent, as we shall see) by Joseph Ratzinger, in opposition to the increasing tendency to see the Mass as a meal.


We test a prediction of cumulative advantage theory about enduring life cycle effects of educational mobility on earnings. We identify four mobility groups, by cross classifying parental education (degree/no degree) by that of their offspring (degree/no degree), and study the long-term economic consequences of intergenerational educational mobility. Data for this study come from Swedish population registers, covering birth cohorts between 1953 and 1955. We analyze earnings trajectories of Swedish men and women, in each educational mobility category, over most of their working age life course. We find that that the earnings trajectories cluster in two groups that reflect the educational destination. These results suggest that mobility trajectories in the Swedish labor market does not follow any strong pattern of cumulative advantage, but instead are explained by attainment of human capital. By contrast, complementary analyses of mid-life wealth, not necessarily derived in the labor market, suggest more support for cumulative advantage since those with high-educated parents have much higher levels of wealth. We argue that these contrasting results, between earnings and wealth, serve to highlight the effectiveness of the Swedish welfare regime, particularly in regulating and suppressing inequality in the labor market.


Today, worldwide, there is large research work going on to develop hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) which relieve the nation from the dependence on fossil fuels like petrol, diesel and vehicles which do not pollute the atmosphere. To achieve this objective, HEVs using alternate fuel sources like fuel cells, batteries, capacitors, flywheels are used with an electric drive system. In some HEVs there are more than one drive system, like an electric drive system along with a conventional engine (ICE) based drive system. These drive systems are used in various combinations like series/parallel depending upon the design adopted. In this paper, it is proposed to evaluate the performance of existing and HEVs under development. Based on the study of the HEVs and their performance evaluation, it is proposed to develop an energy system with one or more power sources and an energy management and control sources (EMCS). The EMCS will effectively manage these power sources. These power sources will be tailor made to match a suitable drive system for an HEV. The drive system will be appropriately selected based on the above study. Simulation work is carried out using state-of-the-art software tools like MATLAB - SIMULINK. The simulation results will be validated by comparing with an appropriate baseline specification of HEV.


Oxidative cyclisation of cyclohexadiene–Fe(CO)3 complexes having a hydroxy-group in the β-position of a 5-exoFe- substituent can be effected with either thallium (III) trifluoroacetate or iron(III) chloride on silica gel. The products were readily converted into the title compounds.


Used a standard electroencephalograph of the brand «Neuron-spectrum-1» and a specialized program of narrow-band spectral analysis in the frequency range 0,1-27 Hz and integration time 160 seconds. A number of characteristic features of EEG spectrum envelope function were revealed in the studied patients, and four decisive Signs were identified. For the present study included was identified diagnostic features 1,2 characterized by the synchronization of the hemispheres and reliable a pronounced decrease in the amplitude spectral estimate in the frequency range 0,91-0,95 Hz, 7,26-8,0 Hz. Sign 3 - was associated with increased synchronization of hemispheres and increased amplitude of spectral estimation in the frequency range 3,72-4,033 Hz. Desynchronization of brain hemispheres is a diagnostic symptom 4 was identified in the frequency range of 0,96 to 1,01 Hz. The amplitude of the asymmetry of the spectrum of sign 4 was specific for the separation of 1,2,3 groups of the present study included in severity. The revealed changes of spectrograms are proposed to be used for refinement of pathogenesis and early diagnosis of periodontitis.


Object and purpose of research. Effects of the vane hub cap are investigated regarding hydrodynamic, cavitation and acoustic performance of a ducted propeller as propulsion system. Materials and methods. In the work process two versions of the vane hub cap have been designed to take account of the wake field behind propeller. Experimental investigations of the propulsion system model with a smooth hub cap and designed hub cap are given. Additionally, positions of hub cap vanes with respect to propeller blades (in-between the blades or in wake of the blades) were studied. Main results. The thrust and torque coefficients as well as cavitation numbers were obtained, and the acoustic radiation was measured for the investigated propulsion system arrangements. Conclusion. Comparisons were made and conclusions drawn regarding the efficiency of vane hub cap application.


ABSTRACT The general purpose of this study was to validate the French Psychological Capital Questionnaire (F-PCQ-24) in a French Air Force sample (N = 3,665). One specific aim was to verify what the best measurement model is for PsyCap, notably by using Bifactor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (B-ESEM). Another specific aim was to examine the measurement invariance of the best fitting model for the F-PCQ-24 across gender, rank and tenure. Results supported the superiority of the B-ESEM model of PsyCap with the hope dimension divided into its two components (will-power and way-power). Moreover, multi-group confirmatory factor analyses indicated the measurement invariance of F-PCQ-24 for gender and tenure, while there was a small problem with measurement invariance for rank. Overall, these findings confirm that the F-PCQ-24 is a stable measure of PsyCap and support previous theoretical considerations that PsyCap is a core construct. Implications of these findings, limitations and directions for future research are discussed.


Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are emerging as promising tools to aid in monitoring the smart grid. WSNs can be easily deployed in a wide number of smart grid assets such as substations, overhead power lines and power generation sites. They offer ubiquity and flexibility at a low-cost. However it may be difficult to offer the Quality of Service (QoS) demanded by the smart grid applications with WSNs since sensor nodes share the same wireless communication medium. To overcome this challenge QoS-aware medium access is essential. In this paper, we propose the QoS-aware GTS Allocation (QGA) scheme which aims to reduce the end-to-end delay of delay-critical data while routing delay-tolerant data using unutilized resources. QGA is implemented for a multi-hop, mesh network topology which is the most flexible WSN deployment. In QGA intermediate level sensor nodes run an optimization model in order to perform optimum time slot allocation to minimize the delay of critical data. Meanwhile, delay-tolerant data is buffered until the delay-critical traffic passes through this relaying node. Smart grid monitoring application determined whether data is delay-critical or not based on the alarm values. For instance, a transformer overloading measurement is treated as delay-critical while an ambient measurement corresponding to room temperature is treated as delay-tolerant. We show that QGA significantly reduces the end-to-end delay of high priority traffic.


ABSTRACT Objective: The experience of an illness such as breast cancer is not a static event. Just as physiological needs change as a patient transitions through diagnosis, treatment, to long-term survivorship, so too will their needs for social support. We applied a transitions theory framework to explore how African American women with breast cancer conceptualized and experienced support along their breast cancer journey. Design: We recruited 16 African American women with breast cancer from a regional cancer center in South Carolina to complete qualitative, semi-structured interviews. We iteratively examined verbatim transcripts using thematic analysis. Results: Three core themes emerged: 'I guess she was supposed to': When support meets patient expectations; 'I wasn't expecting that and that just made me feel so good': When reality exceeds expectations; and 'Don't try to make an invalid out of me': When support given wasn't what was desired. Survivors shared how their family, friends and clergy met their needs for emotional (e.g. prayer, sharing affirmations about God) and instrumental support (e.g. cooking meals, house cleaning). They emphasized how receiving emotional support from their healthcare providers was a pleasant surprise. However, survivors also described unexpected disappointments when family members offered support that was un-needed or un-desired. Conclusions: Applying transitions theory, we found that social support is a process of bidirectional negotiation where African American women with breast cancer perceive support as helpful and acceptable depending on who offers support, what type of support is offered, and when it is offered. Members of their social support network (e.g. family, friends, providers) should periodically assess the survivor's evolving needs to ensure the social support harmonizes with the needs and expectations of the survivor.


Science communication research has tended to focus on the perceptions of the public and has often neglected the views of scientists. This article analyzes public outreach and engagement attitudes and activities of women scientists; it is based on a case study conducted in Switzerland. The survey results found that attitudes toward public outreach and engagement activities are the same among men and women scientists, but that activities are done significantly more often by men scientists than by women scientists. A multivariate analysis showed that there is a gender difference in the level of activities even after the effects of position, age, and faculty are removed. Because public outreach and engagement activities may be due to either scientists' initiatives or media initiatives, the author analyzed media contacts. The media contact women scientists less often than men scientists—and this independently of position, age, and faculty. When comparing men's and women's improvements for public outreach and engagement, this study found significant differences that can be used to tailor incentives for each group of scientists.


Employee job satisfaction is critical for every type and nature of organization. When it comes to health sector, it becomes more important to have satisfied workforce in order to provide quality patient care. Notable reports and studies have outlined the grieving issue of lack of job satisfaction amongst nurses. Based on the need and importance of the issue, the current study investigated how job characteristics, team climate and psychological resources can be of value in enhancing nurse job satisfaction. Nurses from public sector hospitals in the Hyderabad Sindh state of Pakistan were targeted. A total of 130 valid responses were taken for final results and analysis through using SmartPLS 2.0. The findings outlined that Esprit de Corps and Task significance does not correlate with nurse job satisfaction. Importantly, psychological resources including self-efficacy and resilience resulted in statistically significant relationship with nurse job satisfaction. The paper mentions findings in detail along with implications and recommendation for future research.


Abstract Quetelet's data on Scottish chest girths are analyzed with eight normality tests. In contrast to Quetelet's conclusion that the data are fit well by what is now known as the normal distribution, six of eight normality tests provide strong evidence that the chest circumferences are not normally distributed. Using corrected chest circumferences from Stigler, the χ2 test no longer provides strong evidence against normality, but five commonly used normality tests do. The D'Agostino–Pearson K2 and Jarque–Bera tests, based only on skewness and kurtosis, find that both Quetelet's original data and the Stigler-corrected data are consistent with the hypothesis of normality. The major reason causing most normality tests to produce low p-values, indicating that Quetelet's data are not normally distributed, is that the chest circumferences were reported in whole inches and rounding of large numbers of observations can produce many tied values that strongly affect most normality tests. Users should be cautious using many standard normality tests if data have ties, are rounded, and the ratio of the standard deviation to rounding interval is small.


In pulse repetition frequency (PRF) agile radar systems, when the target has high velocity or the coherent processing time is too long, the random PRF variations cause the echo pulse to appear to shift across the range unit during coherent accumulation, making it impossible to obtain accurate velocity and range information through coherent accumulation. To address this issue, this paper proposes the utilization of the Keystone transform to correct the range migration caused by random variations in the PRF. Additionally, the non-uniform fast Fourier transform (NUFFT) is applied along the slow-time dimension, enabling accurate acquisition of target velocity and range information through coherent accumulation. Furthermore, in a multi-target scenario, the proposed method enables accurate detection of each target. Simulation test results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in correcting range migration during coherent accumulation in PRF agile radar, thereby accurately obtaining velocity and range information for each target in the multi-target scenario. Moreover, the computational complexity is reduced by utilizing the Chirp-z algorithm, which requires less computational resources, for implementing the Keystone transform.


An analysis of sweet potato flour produced by the same process as cassava flour, to campare the two products with respect to whole meal and total carbohydrate production as well as to nutritional value, yield, and nutrient losses - proteins, sugar and mineral salts - occurring during processing. llicing the roots, without pressing, followed by drying, milling and sifting, is suggested as a way of classifying the flour. The output of sweet potato flour by this process is higher than of cassava flour. Sweet potato produces more carbohydrates than cassava or maize. Drying at 50°C improves the final product.


In this study, 18 synthetic naphthalene derivatives were tested for their inhibitory effects on the activation of neutrophils stimulated with N‐formyl‐methionyl‐leucyl‐phenylalanine (fMLP) or phorbol myristic acetate (PMA). Some of these compounds showed significant antiinflammatory activities. In general, esterification of 1‐naphthalene to compound 14 (2‐hydroxymethyl‐1‐naphthol diacetate; TAC) enhanced the antioxidant activity. Compound 15, N,N‐bis(2‐hydroxy‐1‐naphthylmethyl) amine, has moderate inhibitory activity on neutrophils stimulated with fMLP as compared to Mannich bases of naphthylene derivatives. Either substitution at 1 or 2 position, except TAC, disfavored the inhibitory effects evoked by PMA stimulation. The influence of these compounds on the release of granule enzyme lysozyme‐induced by fMLP was measured. TAC had the highest potency on the inhibition of lysozyme release from rat neutrophil degranulation. The effects of TAC on ionic currents in a mouse neuroblastoma and rat glioma hybrid cell line, NG105‐18, were also investigated with the aid of the whole‐cell patch‐clamp technique. TAC caused an inhibitory effect on voltage‐dependent L‐type Ca2+ current (ICa,L) with an IC50 value of 0.8 µM. The inhibitory effect of TAC on ICa,L may not be caused by its inhibition of superoxide formation. Such an effect may, also in part, affect neuronal function. Drug. Dev. Res. 60:261–269, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


The purpose of this research is to develop an appropriate ANN model of bearing failure prediction. Acoustic emission (AE) represented the technique of collecting the data that was collected from the bearing and this data were measured
in term of decibel (dB) and Distress level. The data was then used to develop the model using ANN for bearing fault prediction model. An experimental rig was setup to collect data on bearing by using Machine Health Checker (MI-IC) Memo assist with MHC Analysis software. In the development of ANN modeling, the result obtained shows that the optimum model was Elman network with training algorithm. Levenberg-Marquardt Back-propagation and the suitable transfer function for hidden node and output node was logsig/purelin combination. Four models were built in this research for multiple step ahead prediction, that were one day ahead model (Modell), seven days ahead model (Model 2), fourteen days ahead (Model 3) and thirty days ahead model (Model 4). In the application part, a computer program was written on bearing failure prediction. This program was implementcd using graphical user interface (OUI) features that can be implemented by using a MA TLAB OUr. In the end, the user was able to use this program as a tool to operate or simulate bcaring failure prediction.


In 1992, the American Academy of Pediatrics discouraged prone sleeping positions because of its association with sudden infant death syndrome. The recommendations prompted the United States Public Health Service to begin the "Back to Sleep Campaign," to promote the habitual practice of placing newborns to sleep in a supine or side‐lying positions. After the Back to Sleep Campaign was initiated, there was a sudden increase in the incidence of deformational plagiocephaly. Therefore, research is warranted regarding effects on the influence of extrinsic forces on the development of the cranium. This study utilized 'traditional' and geometric morphometric techniques to compare the foramen magnum size and shape of Peruvian crania from the Samuel George Morton Collection, largely from Pachacamac and likely to have undergone intentional cranial deformation, to those of craniofacially diverse cultures that were not reputed to practice intentional cranial deformation. The results demonstrate statistically significant differences in the sagittal dimension of the foramen magnum between groups. Likewise, geometric morphometric analysis revealed differences in foraminal shapes between groups. The results of this study suggest that extrinsic compressive forces likely alter the structure of the foramen magnum. These findings should be taken into consideration with regard to modern‐day newborn sleeping positions and positional cranial deformation.


In April of 2004 seven commercially available mosquito traps were compared using a Latin square test design. The Mosquito Magnet Liberty and Liberty Plus performed significantly better than all other traps tested, p < 0.05. Mosquito traps are not a new development; they have been used for more than 50 years for research and surveillance of mosquito populations (Schreck et al. 1970). However, prior to American Biophysics Corp.'s Mosquito Magnet traps, mosquito traps were not commercially available nor were they consumer friendly. Most research traps required the provision of an external power source, i.e. batteries and attractants, such as; light and CO2 (Kline 2002). Soon after the introduction of the Mosquito Magnet line of mosquito traps, many outdoor and "gadget" companies began offering their own mosquito traps to the general public. This study was designed to compare the efficacy of some of these commercially available traps. Seven commercially available mosquito traps were evaluated in this study (Table 1). The testing was conducted in Ft. Myers, Florida, as a neighborhood study. Individual trap sites were chosen that were approximately 80 meters apart. This spacing was designed to prevent trap interference and was based on trap coverage area claims. Following a Latin square design, each trap was randomly placed in one of the chosen sites on day one of testing. Each trap was put together and operated based upon manufacturers' instructions found within the original trap boxes. Traps were rotated at 24 hour intervals, at approximately the same time each day.


Meeting for 6 weeks, the 53-member UN Commission on Human Rights adopted more than 83 resolutions and 14 decisions, the majority by consensus. Among its measures, the commission called for the creation of an open-ended working group to develop policy guidelines for economic structural adjustment programs and their effects upon economic, social, and cultural rights; and the holding of a seminar of experts to develop guidelines on the subject of forced evictions. This report offers a round-up of action with regard to children's rights and abuse, gender issues, the right of people to development, country situations, hostages, indigenous and minority issues, and follow-up to the 1993 Vienna World Conference on Human Rights. Children are being sold for prostitution, pornography, and adoption at an increasing rate worldwide. The commission has therefore called upon governments to take legislative, social, and educational measures to ensure the protection of children from exploitation. Deeply concerned by the persistence of such violations, the commission recommended that states adopt measures to eliminate the existing market for such practices, and asked the group drafting a related optional protocol to the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child to continue its work. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights will provide substantive support to the World Congress against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, to be held in Stockholm in August.


The purpose of this research is to determine the various positive attributes appreciated by the public, and the negative things that need to be improved by the Surabaya government. The sentiment analysis methods, including the Naive Bayes Classifier, Support Vector Machine, and Logistic Regression, are employed to classify the pros and cons of the Surabaya government. The comparison of the three methods demonstrated that SVM gives the best classification accuracy compared to others. Police performance is the highlighted word in the positive category, while traffic congestion is in the negative .


Title of thesis: The Effectiveness of Community Diabetes Mellitus Patient Care After Health Education Program Intervention --Comparison of Pharmacists and Nurses Institution: Graduate Institute of Nursing, Taipei Taipei Medical University Author: Li, Mung-Yeng Thesis director by: Lu, Meei-Shiow, Professor This research is based on the community diabetes medicine service plan from a northern city,expand its service to include pharmacist and the nurse. This is a qusi-experimental study. Subjects are diabetes patients that were selected from the community by screening. After receive consent from the subject, random assignment was used to assign subjects into experimental group(receiving educational intervention from nurse)and control group(receiving educational intervention from pharmacist).The valid sample counts 68 people [experiment set 33 people, matched control 35 people].They provide intervention separately through telephone. Measurement tools include self reported measures on diabetes knowledge, care attitude and care behavior, and health care satisfaction questionnaire. Expert validity was showed by Content validity index (CVI) of 0.86, and reliability was demonstrated by Cronbach' α of0.789. Data analysis with the SPSS 11.0 for Windows software package carry on the analysis including average , standard deviation, frequency, percentage, Independent-t test and the Paired-t, Pearson correlation, the One Way ANOVA, and ANCOVA. According to analysis, there were no difference between groups on basic demographic information except on occupation. Research findings are listed below : 1. The educational interventions which provided by nurse and pharmacist are effective to the diabetes patient care. There are significant improvements on care knowledge, care behavior, HbA1c level, ex-fasting blood sugar, and BMI values. However, no difference was found on care attitude. 2. According to group difference, subjects from experimental group performed better on care knowledge and care attitude. However, subjects from control group had better result on ex-fasting blood sugar. There were no differences on HbA1c level, and BMI value. Evidences support the effectiveness of this 3 months intervention from nurse and pharmacist on diabetes control in the community. 3. There was significant difference on patients' satisfaction between groups. Subjects from the experimental group had more satisfaction than subjects from the control group. 4. On demographic variables, gender had relationship with ex-fasting blood sugar. Subjects' exercise habit, frequency, and duration had positive relationship with care behavior and HbA1c level. Moreover, subjects who used diet and exercise control had more satisfaction with care than subjects who used OHA(Oral Hypoglycemic Agent ). This research compared the effectiveness of pharmacist and nurse who provided three months of health educational intervention and counseling. The results indicate that hygiene educational intervention benefit on the outcomes of diabetes care. Based on the findings from this study, the care mode of chronic disease patient's in the community for the nurses could be established or become the basis of expansion and reference for nurse's professional duty. Keyword: Community diabetes patient. The health educational intervention. Effectiveness of care.


Applying "criminal immunity" in prosecuting bribery crimes and organizational crimes is an important characteristic of American judicial system. The authors expound the connotation, procedure, scope and jurisprudent basis of the "criminal immunity" system, analyze the dilemmas in our country in applying this system directly, emphasize the feasibility and necessity of using "criminal immunity" for reference in prosecuting bribery crimes,and put forward suggestions on principles, contents and procedure of "criminal immunity" in prosecuting bribery crimes.


Government departments prepare and implement various schemes for the benefit of society. Monitoring the progress of these schemes is mandatory to track scheme implementation and for decision making. The methodology adopted by the government is to prepare various formats and ask for a periodic status report from the nodal or executing agency in the field. This methodology of calling for a status report on paper or fax or by phone is cumbersome and time-consuming. The departments of the Government of Maharashtra (India) approached NIC from time to time to prepare an application to automate this work of collecting information. Many monitoring systems were developed for collecting the status of projects from districts offices. From the experience gained in designing and developing these monitoring systems, a new system 'Status Information Management system by NIC' (SIMNUC) was conceptualised, designed and developed. This article describes various features and benefits of using SIMNIC for creating electronic formats and its usefulness to government departments as part of the e-governance initiative.


ATTENDANCE: Interim Provost and VP, Academic Affairs: Dr. Vickie Gentry Interim VP, The Student Experience: Frances Conine VP, Technology, Innovation, and Economic Development: Dr. Darlene Williams (absent) Asst. VP, External Affairs for University Advancement: Dr. Drake Owens Executive VP, University and Business Affairs: Dr. Marcus Jones Chief Financial Officer: Pat Jones (Ex Officio) Dean, College of Arts and Sciences – Dr. Greg Handel Dean, Gallaspy College of Education and Human Development – Dr. Kim McAlister Dean, College of Nursing and School of Allied Health – Dr. Dana Clawson (absent) Dean, College of Business and Technology – Dr. Margaret Kilcoyne Faculty Senate President: Dr. Thomas Reynolds Executive Director Institutional Effectiveness & Human Resources: Veronica Biscoe (absent) Faculty Representative: Dr. Ben Rushing (absent) Staff Representative: Leigh Ann Martin (absent) and Gil Gilson Student Government President: Jacob Ellis Director of Institutional Effectiveness: Frank Hall


In this paper, a new kind of mathematical modeling is studied by providing a five-compartmental system of differential equations with respect to new hybrid generalized fractal-fractional derivatives. For the first time, we design a model of giving up smoking to analyze its dynamical behaviors by considering two parameters of such generalized operators; i.e., fractal dimension and fractional order. We apply a special sub-category of increasing functions to investigate the existence of solutions. Uniqueness property is derived by a standard method based on the Lipschitz rule. After proving stability property, the equilibrium points are obtained and asymptotically stable solutions are studied. Finally, we illustrate all analytical results and findings via numerical algorithms and graphs obtained by Lagrangian piece-wise interpolation, and discuss all behaviors of the relevant solutions in the fractal-fractional system.


The rapid developments in linguistic studies in the twentieth century- the appearance of the Structural linguists and Formalists in particular- has connected literature and linguistics in such a way that the study of the former is in many ways bond to the application of the latter. In this regard, language possesses various functions, one of which is the poetic function which stands against the automatized function of language. The poetic function is achieved through the process of foregrounding, which is a significant literary stylistic device based on the Prague scholar, Jan Mukarovsky"s notions. In simple words, the writer uses the sounds of words or the words themselves in such a way that the reader"s attention is immediately captivated. The aim of the present article is to show how the Iranian modern woman poet, Forough Farrokhzad, has made use of different ways through which foregrounding occurs in her poems. As a result of this technique, the poems move beyond the automatization of the everyday language, and achieve what is called, the poetic function of language.


The paper states the grassland resources in the minority regions of China, analyzes the current situation of the exploitation and utilization of the grassland resources, points out the problems and proposes the countermeasures to achieve the sustainable utilization of the grassland resources.


Piezoelectric-based polymer composite for flexible self-powered materials have been of interest. In this research, the effect of surface treatment on electrical properties of barium titanate/carbon nanotube/polydimethylsiloxane (BT/CNT/PDMS) composites has been studied for acquiring high performance materials. In the preparation of BT/CNT/PDMS nanocomposite, the surface of CNT and BT disperse phases were modified to introduce a functional groups. These chemical treatments devoted to improve the interfacial interactions and dispersion by introduce the strong interaction between BT, CNT and PDMS. The measured electrical outputs of the modified BT based nanocomposites showed higher output voltage than the normal composite. It is indicates that the strong interaction between fillers and polymer matrix is the important factor to improved electrical properties of the composites. Furthermore, the results also shown an enhancement of relative permittivity and maintaining a low loss of polymer nanocomposites, which indicates that the dielectric properties of composites are influenced not only by relative permittivity of the components, but also dependence on interactions between ceramics and polymers.


The high-dispersive silica's were tested as additives into cultural media of parthenogenetic and zygotic embryos porcine in vitro are represented in the article. The cultivation of was established parthenogenetic and zygotic embryos porcine in vitro in media NCSU-23 with supplements of HDS+BSA positively influences produced of embryos on the 5-16-cellular stage of development.


Numerous attempts have been made by aid agencies and policy makers in the Government of South Sudan (GOSS) to address food security issues in post-conflict Southern Sudan. Most of the attempts seem not be addressing the immediate needs of the local farmers. This paper attempts to examine the approaches of aid agencies and GOSS policy makers toward rural recovery and rehabilitation of agriculture. Based on investigations and findings undertaken between September – November 2006 in southern Sudan, aiming to "map food security and natural resources management", it was found that much effort was exerted towards seed aid with little regard to promoting local agricultural production to enhance consumption, infrastructure and market linkages. There is a lack of institutional capacity coupled with continuous change of policies in GOSS. The new policy of GOSS towards rehabilitation of agriculture is in two phases: Phase I includes development and increase of agricultural production to meet internal food needs, and Phase II focuses on increasing production of surplus agricultural commodities for domestic, regional and international markets. These policies are not consistent with agricultural rehabilitation programs and rural development, and have shown little impact in both rural and urban areas. For agricultural production and marketing to succeed it should be supported by a sound policy framework involving all the relevant GOSS institutions. The paper advocates increased involvement of the private sector in provision of agricultural services, and allowing more freedom for research operations and extension services, so that the long run objectives of sustainable food security and economic growth can be realized in Southern Sudan.


In non-preferential electoral systems, where the chances for an MP to get re-elected strongly depend on party elites, we generally assume that political parties have a strong say on the individual agendas of MPs. On the other hand, this assumption has ever hardly been tested empirically, leaving a lot of unexplained variation in the way individual legislators within the same party select the topics they devote attention to. This paper aims to contribute to current studies on political representation by examining the importance of a range of determinants of individual topic selection in Portugal. In particular, it tests the relevance of the characteristics of the electoral district where the MP was elected, his/her links with distinct social groups and his/her committee membership. The institutional characteristics of the Portuguese political system make for a suitable case study to evaluate these hypotheses, as well as a rather conservative one, since the odds of observing MPs catering to their constituency or advancing personal agendas lower in comparison with preferential electoral systems. The paper tackles this question by drawing on a dataset comprising the population of written parliamentary questions (more than 10,000) tabled by Portuguese MPs in the period from 2009 until 2015. Our findings have important implications for our understanding of political representation and the role of individual legislators as one of linkage mechanisms in European democracies.


Information about charitable organizations outside Canada that have received a gift from Her Majesty in right of Canada and their obligations as qualified donees under the Income Tax Act.


Describes an environment to interface final users with a plan-generating system for application domains where cooperative agents are involved. The approach to support the acquisition phase of action and state descriptions is described. A theory to construct meaningful simultaneous actions is outlined by defining a characterization of legal action and state descriptions.<<ETX>>


Until recently, the most common use of reference year data has been related to energy calculation. Representative weather data for use in moisture design calculations is as critical as other parameters required for heat, air, moisture (HAM) simulations e.g., material data or indoor climate data. The objective of ASHRAE's research project, RP-1325 (2010), was to develop a method for generating more representative design weather years for use in heat and moisture performance predictions of building enclosure systems. Existing methods for selecting moisture design reference years have been reviewed. A new method was developed that provides an improved approach for selecting the most critical years in terms of hygrothermal performance. During the development of the method, eight U.S. locations were investigated, with 30 years of hourly weather data for each location. Another four locations were used to validate the accuracy of the method. The new method was applied in selecting the hygrothermal weather year for European location. The performance of six different building enclosure components, 4 walls and 2 roofs, was investigated using existing hygrothermal simulation models. The effect of weather data on the performance of building enclosure components was evaluated. The new method allows for selection of weather years that are among the most severe for the simulated structures. The results show that weather data is an essential component of design criteria.


With the rapid growth of mobile devices and popularity for data-intensive services, LTE Licensed-Assisted Access (LAA) has been proposed to allow coexistence of LTE and Wi-Fi in 5 GHz unlicensed band. Most existing works have been focusing on developing collision avoidance mechanisms to ensure the harmonious coexistence between Wi-Fi and LTE. In this paper, we argue that simply avoiding possible collisions caused by simultaneous transmissions does not fully utilize the unlicensed spectrum. We derive the optimal CCA threshold that enables as many simultaneous transmissions between coexisting LTE and Wi-Fi as possible and exploit successive interference cancellation to further increase the chance of concurrent transmissions. We introduce a Markov-model based approach to quantity the impact of energy detection, concurrent transmission and successful decoding probability on the throughput expressions of LAA and Wi-Fi. Extensive simulations have been presented to validate our proposed theoretical model. Our results show the throughput of Wi-Fi and LAA can be significantly improved under several typical coexistence scenarios.


Major challenges of international business relate to cultural issues. This paper investigates managers' cultural sensitivity in business-to-business relationships with foreign partners. The aim is to investigate the role that individuals play in spanning the cultural boundaries in international business relations. As an empirical inspiration I use recent analysis of supply relations that Finnish companies have established in China. The empirical study investigates relationship establishment processes and key persons as cultural boundary spanners. This exploratory study shows that Finnish managers vary as comes to their distance and consequently their sensitivity to the Chinese culture. It thus begins a conversation on skills of individual managers in crossing cultural boundaries.


Volunteer Computing is a form of network based distributed computing, which allows public participants to share their idle computing resources, and helps run computationally expensive projects. Many existing volunteer computing platforms consist of millions of users, providing huge amount of memory and processing. Due to the rapid growth in the volunteer computing projects, more researchers have been attracted to study and improve the existing volunteer computing system using heterogeneous set of resources. Also, the task distribution and result verification policies incorporated in the popular volunteer computing frameworks are not efficient because much of the user computation is wasted. This paper highlights the drawbacks of existing schemes and proposes a framework for real-time task division, distribution, early detection and mitigation of faults in a volunteer computing system. The main motivation behind this research is to devise a methodology that reduces the overhead incurred by replication. The check pointing scheme proposed triggers intermediate result verification and the grouping of resources aids in the efficient scheduling of work units which improves accuracy of the volunteer cloud. The research will enable the research community to study the available schemes used in volunteer computing and help them fill gaps in existing research.


Does ethnicity play a role in fertility assessment-seeking behaviour of Black women in the United Kingdom (UK)?

 Black women approach an at-home reproductive health and fertility assessment service later in their fertility journey than White women.

 Evidence from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) shows that Black patients access fertility care two years later than the national average in the United Kingdom (UK) (36.4 vs 34.6 years).
 Additionally, previous research has shown different prevalences of reproductive health conditions associated with infertility amongst Black women, such as fibroids and tubal occlusion. In combination with delayed access to fertility care, this may contribute to the lower live birth rates seen in Black patients in the UK.

 A retrospective observational study conducted on 143,251 Hertility Health users who completed a virtual health assessment between September 2020 and January 2023. The health assessment collected self-reported data on age, ethnicity, pre-existing diagnoses of reproductive health conditions, whether they were actively trying to conceive (TTC) and the length of time they had been actively TTC.

 A total of 25.9% users (n = 37,170) indicated they were TTC. The majority of those TTC self-identified as White (82.9%), followed by Asian (7.4%), Mixed (3.6%), Black (4.6%) and 'Other' (1.5%). Summary statistics (mean ± SD and %) regarding age and prevalence of pre-existing conditions of users TTC have been reported. Additional statistical analysis of the associations of time spent TTC between ethnicities was conducted via Chi-squared test (χ2); p values <0.05 were considered significant.

 A significant relationship was observed between time spent TTC and ethnicity; the strongest association was observed between Black and White users χ2 (16, n = 34,706)=120, p < 0.0001). Comparison of time spent TTC, and average age showed that fewer Black women undertook the virtual health assessment at < 6 months of TTC than White women (29.3%, n = 469 vs 34.1%, n = 9820) at a moderately older age (31.3±6.5 years vs 29.8±5.7 years).
 A higher percentage of Black women were TTC for >5 years compared to White women (14.2%, n = 227 vs 8.8%, n = 2544). Additionally, Black women at this time point were approximately four years older than White women (36.9 years ± 6.0 years vs 33.0 ± 5.1 years).
 Secondary analysis of the prevalence of reproductive health conditions associated with infertility indicated that 20.1% (n = 133) and 22.5% (n = 149) of Black women had a preexisting condition at < 6 months and >5 years of TTC, respectively, vs 22.6% (n = 1363) and 19.2% (n = 1158) of White women in the corresponding TTC length groups.

 As the virtual health assessment data was self-reported, there is a risk of recall bias and false reporting. Data was stratified via the main ethnicities and did not take the heterogeneity within ethnic groups or mixed ethnicities into account.

 This data suggests that Black women approach fertility testing services later than White women, which may contribute to the disparities between pregnancy outcomes in the UK and cannot fully be accounted for by preexisting diagnoses associated with infertility. Further investigations are needed to outline the underlying reasons for this.

 not applicable


The complex network framework has been successfully applied to the analysis of climatological data, providing, for example, a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying reduced predictability during El Niño or La Niña years. Despite the large interest that climate networks have attracted, several issues remain to be investigated. Here we focus on the influence of the periodic solar forcing in climate networks constructed via similarities of monthly averaged Surface Air Temperature (SAT) anomalies. We shift the time series in each pair of nodes such as to superpose their seasonal cycles. In this way, when two nodes are located in different hemispheres we are able to quantify the similarity of SAT anomalies during the winters and during the summers. We find that data time-shifting does not significantly modify the network Area Weighted Connectivity (AWC), which is the fraction of the total area of the Earth to which each node is connected. This unexpected network property can be understood in terms of how data time-shifting modifies the strength of the links connecting geographical regions in different hemispheres, and how these modifications are washed out by averaging the AWC.