Unsaturated soils refer to soils in which the pores are not fully filled with water, and its mechanical properties are obviously different from those of saturated soil. The constitutive relationship of unsaturated soil is vitally important to understand the properties of unsaturated soil. This paper introduces the problems encountered in process of studying and understanding the unsaturated soil mechanics, with emphases on the stress variables of unsaturated soils and the importance of observation of the basic concepts and principles in soil mechanics. It is meant to enlighten the beginners to understand the unsaturated soil mechanics. 1. Knowing about constitutive relationship The author has known about constitutive relationship since he was a graduate student. It started with studying Constitutive Equations for Engineering Materials[1], from the basic tensor, strength criterion, loading principle, performing derivation of the partial differential equation of the elastoplastic constitutive relationship over and over again. After some concrete experimental data were obtained, the author tried to modify and study the characteristics of yield surface and plastic potential equation in order to build a new constitutive relationship model. Although the model is very simple in simulation of some concrete experimental phenomena, the author felt proud of it. The programing language FORTRAN, seemed very simple, but it really took the author much time to use this language skillfully. At that time, the postgraduate courses had already provided such courses as elastoplastic mechanics. Although the author just passed the exam, the author felt enthusiastic for this course. Remember that there were assignments required to conduct several sets of triaxial tests to verify the ModifiedCambridge model. There were more than a dozen students but only few were present in laboratory, and I worked hard from beginning to end. Through further studying the literatures, I knew some big people in the field of unsaturated soil mechanics, such as E.E Alonso, D.G. Fredlund and C.W.W. Ng. Alonso had proposed the famous BBM model for unsaturated soils[2]. Fredlund had devoted himself to the application of stress variables in unsaturated soils and the practicality of unsaturated soil mechanics. His research team had put forward a large number of theoretical and practical results in unsaturated soils. Ng is one of outstanding Chinese soil mechanics experts at present. Although these achievements were known from textbooks or literature, they had a greater impact on the author. However, even though they have made many scientific achievements at present, these achievements do not completely cover all the characteristics of geotechnical engineering materials, but just only 4th International Conference on Energy Equipment Science and Engineering IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 242 (2019) 062009 IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/242/6/062009 2 partially affect and improve the engineering application practice. In addition, the constitutive relationship of soils seemed to have caused an upsurge at China and abroad. 2. Study of the constitutive relationship It is no doubt that the constitutive relationship of soils has played a key role. However, it should be applied in practical engineering. Obviously the finite element method is effective and can promote the application of soil constitutive relationship models. The author still remembered the hard years of debugging programs in front of computers in order to apply Alonso model into a finite element code for simulation of some soaking characteristics of expansive soil. By programming the model, checking and compiling again and again, and selecting the appropriate processing tools for preand postprocessing, the study process had a deep impression on the author. The biggest difficulty encountered was that there was no one who the author could have a discussion with. Due to tight time and other reasons, it was impossible to solve an extra linear equation added into the front method. Therefore the author did not complete a coupling program, which is still regrettable. Here the author should thank Owen and Hinton for providing all the source codes for elastic and elastoplastic finite element source code in their work. At present, there are many commercial software codes about modeling rock and soil, and many ways to realize or apply soil constitutive relationships, including finite element and linear difference methods. The author studied several codes such as Flac3D, Plaxis, Geostudio, and deeply felt that these software were just a shell program though they provided various special means such as algorithm improvement and special unit processing as their own characteristics. The constitutive relation of the constitution is the key core of determining the final calculation results. However, limited to the engineers' cognitive levels, simple models such as ideal plastic models are still used for calculation. Although the unsaturated soil seepage is known widely, no distinction has been made between mechanical behaviors of saturated and unsaturated soils. On the other hand, application of advanced constitutive modes usually requires more complex experiment to calibrate model parameters. Taking a calculation case as an example, a simple Mohr Coulomb model is used in the calculation of soil, regardless of whether the object is sand, gravel or clay. The resulted values may not be consistent with the project practice, but their development features and trends should be, which can be used as a qualitative reference. Since the soil is inherently complex and not homogeneous, it is acceptable the calculation results are not consistent in an accurate manner. Moreover, only a few of constitutive relationship models are provided in commercial software. New parameters should be determined by tests for introduction of complex models, which is not feasible for most projects. 3. Stress variables for unsaturated soils Unsaturated soils are soils in which the pores are filled with air and water. The water cannot flow freely since it is hindered by the presence of air. The water in the pores exists in three states, i.e. bulk water and meniscus water and attached water. Stress variables are controversial for unsaturated soils. For saturated soil, there is a definite effective stress principle. However for unsaturated soils, there is no widely accepted effective stress relationship. Nowadays, there are two kinds of stress relations for unsaturated soils, i.e. single variable and dual-stress variables. The former is represented by Bishop's stress[3]: ( ) a a w u u u s s c ¢= + (1) where s ¢is the effective stress for unsaturated soil, s is the applied total stress, a u is the pore air stress w u is the pore water stress and c is the parameter governing the formation of the unsaturated soils. Bishop[3] believed that the value of c was not only mainly related to saturation, but depended on the soil structure, water absorption and dehydration cycles and the influence of saturation change. Jennings and Burland questioned Bishop's expression of effective stress and thought it could not reasonably explain the shrinkage of soil in water[4]. They had conducted a series of consolidation tests, which show that the suction decreases during the process of water absorption and unsaturated soil 4th International Conference on Energy Equipment Science and Engineering IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 242 (2019) 062009 IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/242/6/062009 3 sample shrinks rather than expands in the water body, which does not conform to the changing trend of effective stress. Bishop studied the existing triaxial test shear data and suggested that both the c and stress path effects should be considered at the same time. But Burland[5] believed that from a microscopic point of view, and they should not be combined together. On the one hand, the development of effective stress for unsaturated soils was deeply influenced by Terzaghi's great success. As Shen[6] and Fredlund[7] said, single variable method was meant to extend the research results of saturated soils to unsaturated soils. In the process of exploration of stress variable for unsaturated soils, some new ideas also appeared, such as Bishop[3] suggesting that the path of matric suction and net stress should be considered separately, which is closely related to the exploration of the constitutive relationship of unsaturated soil[8]. Fredlund[9] proposed the concept of independent stress state variables for unsaturated soils. Fredlund[8] deduced the quasi-static equilibrium relationship of the three-phase medium unsaturated soil element, and believed that any pair of the following three stress variables could be used as the stress state variables to describe unsaturated soil. This conclusion is based on the assumption that soil particles are incompressible (one of the basic assumptions used in saturated soil mechanics). Fredlund also defined three pairs of independent stress state variables, as he wrote: " A suitable set of independent stress state variables are those that produce no distortion or volume change of an element when the individual components of the stress state variables are modified but the stress state variables themselves are kept constant. Thus the stress state variable for each phase should produce equilibrium in that phase when a stress point in space is considered." Compared with the Terzaghi's effective stress[3] "The stresses in any point of a section through a mass of soil can be computed from the total principle stresses 1 s , 2 s , 3 s which act in this point. If the voids of the soils are filled with water under a stress u , the total principal stresses consist of two parts. One part u , acts in the water and in the solid in every direction with equal intensity. It is called the neutral stress (or pore-water pressure)


Radiation oncology residents and junior attending have noted widespread shortcomings in residency training that impede the transition from training to autonomous practice. In addition to general autonomy, recurring themes include technical and nontechnical skill competence, including leadership, mentoring


Dear Editors, Martins-De-Souza and colleagues reported elevated levels of apolipoprotein E (apoE) in the cerebrospinal fl uid (CSF) from fi rst-episode schizophrenia patients (Martins-De-Souza et al. 2010). These fi ndings are intriguing in that they may help to confi rm the hypothesis of disturbed cholesterol and phospholipid metabolism in schizophrenia and apoE alongside with other proteins might be a potential diagnostic tool for schizophrenia. However, we have some concerns about the interpretation of their results. ApoE is a 34.2-kDa glycosylated protein characterized by its wide tissue distribution and multiple biological properties. Increasingly more evidence points to the association of apoE with human diseases such as multiple sclerosis, cardiovascular diseases and Alzheimer ' s disease (Kim et al. 2009). In the nervous system, apoE mRNA is produced by astrocytes, nonmyelinating Schwann cells, ependymal cells, and neurons, etc. As there is limited permeability of the blood – brain barrier to apolipoproteins (Mahley et al. 2009), apoE in the CSF is primarily produced by brain tissues and is not derived from plasma. Therefore, local synthesis and production by brain tissue contribute to the homeostasis of apoE in the central nervous system (CNS). As a result, we can widely assume that apoE in the CSF bears great potential to serve as a biomarker for many diseases in the CNS. ApoE produced by mammalian cells is reported exists in different forms, monomers, dimers, modifi ed, unmodifi ed, etc. (Hussain et al. 1989). In this regard, interpretation of results from proteomics as well as Western blotting studies should be with caution. Protein identifi cation based on molecular weight in the above methods may be confounded by the different forms of apoE. The authors revealed elevated levels of apolipoprotein E, apolipoprotein A1 and prostaglandinH2 D-isomerase and confi rmed them with Western blotting. Another concern we would like to address is whether the authors detected the concentrations of albumin and total proteins in the CSF as well as in the serum. The blood – CSF barrier and blood – brain barrier isolate the brain tissue from blood, the integrity of which are determined by a variety of factors including infl ammation, toxicosis, etc. The damage to the blood – CSF barrier (B – CSFB) may result in the leakage of serum proteins into the CSF, which may be another confounder in this study.


In the last years, motivated by the plans for the construction of ADS and RIB facilities, fragmentation and fission reactions at intermediate energies have acquired a greater interest. The physics of such reactions is still a subject of research, and precise experimental data are needed to test the reliability of the theoretical estimations. Experiments on the formation of residual nuclei from U, Pb, Au, and Fe beams on several targets at relativistic energies have already been performed in inverse kinematics with the fragment separator (FRS) at GSI [1]. Some attractive peculiarities of the in-flight separation are that radioactive fragments can be measured before they decay, the whole isotopic distribution can be obtained for every element, and, once the isotopes are identified, their velocities can precisely be evaluated from their magnetic rigidities. This method yields absolute and extremely accurate velocity values. Here, we will present the result of our investigations on the light residues produced in the fragmentation of 1⋅A GeV U + Ti, and we will compare our preliminary results to previous knowledge. An important result concerns the velocities of these residues. Morissey [2] showed that the average longitudinal momentum transfer for residual nuclei with masses close to the mass of the mother nucleus (∆A<50) increases linearly with the mass loss ∆A. Although the validity of this systematic dependence on ∆A could not be proved for large mass loss due to the uncertainties of the measurements, it seemed reasonable to expect that a more violent collision will produce a larger momentum transfer. On the contrary, Lindenstruth [3], analysing the residual nuclei produced in the interaction of gold with several targets, showed that for ∆A>70 the momentum transfer stops definitely to increase and eventually starts slowly to decrease. In the present experiments, the velocities of the reaction products could be determined with high precision, and this allows us to check the finding of Lindenstruth. In figure 1 (left) the mean values of the velocity-spectra of fragmentation residues are collected for several elements. Our preliminary data (∙) are compared with those obtained in the reaction 1⋅A GeV U + Pb [7] (∙), where the acceleration of light elements is even more enhanced. Our results confirm the finding of Lindenstruth in the sense that the momentum transfer does not increase further when the mass loss becomes very important. In addition, we find a clear inversion of the trend for the very light products which are found to be even slightly faster than the projectiles. The reason for this acceleration is not obvious. A possible explanation could be the interaction between the surviving part of the projectile and the expanding fire streak behind it in the later stage of the collision. Another interesting peculiarity of the fragmentation of U is the mean N/Z of the produced elements. In figure 1 (right) the EPAX systematics [4] for a Au projectile (---) and the stability line are reported (). These two reference lines are compared with several experimental data. Results from the reactions 800⋅A MeV Au + p [5] ( ) and 414⋅A MeV Fe + p [6] (∆) follow the EPAX systematics. In these cases, the produced fragments are not far from the mother nucleus. However the reactions 1⋅A GeV U + Pb [7] (∙), 750⋅A MeV U + Pb [8] (∙) and 1⋅A GeV U + Ti (our data) (∙) leave the EPAX evaporation corridor, and the more the produced light-nuclides are far from the mother nucleus, the more neutron-rich they are, up to the point that they even cross the stability line. A possible explanation could be found in the predictions of statistical multi-fragmentation models (see [9]). In these models, the light products emerge from the freeze-out of a low-density configuration. Since most of the excitation energy was spent for the disintegration of the system, their secondary deexcitation starts from rather low temperature. Thus these products have larger N/Z-ratios than the fragments produced as a result of evaporation from the mother nucleus. Properties of light projectile fragments from collisions of massive nuclei have been measured with a high-precision spectrometer. Unexpectedly high velocities and deviations of the N/Z ratio from the evaporation corridor have been found. While the N/Z ratio seems to scale with the mass loss, the velocities also strongly depend on the target nucleus. These features, which seem to be related to multifragmentation, give important information on the dynamics of relativistic nuclear collision.


The present study was conducted to detect the expression of peroxisome proliferators activated receptor gamma coactivator alpha(PGC-1α) gene in skeletal muscles of chicken,and to analyze the expressional difference between fast-growing and slow-growing chicken breeds by SYBR Green I semi-quantitative RT-PCR.The chicken breeds included one Chinese indigenous chicken breed(Qingyuan partridge chicken,slow-growing) and one introduced chicken breed(Recessive White chicken,fast-growing).Total RNA was extracted from gastrocnemius and breast muscles of chickens of different weeks of ages(0,2,4,6,8,10,12).Using β-actin gene as an inner control gene,the relative PGC-1α mRNA expression levels in skeletal muscles of fast-growing and slow-growing chicken breeds were uniformly treated and calculated according to the fluorescence threshold(Ct value).PGC-1α gene was expressed in all development stages in skeletal muscles,and the expression level was the highest at 0 week of age which was significantly higher than that at other developmental stages.The mRNA expression levels of PGC-1α gene in the skeletal muscle of slow-growing breed Qingyuan partridge chicken were higher than those in fast-growing chicken breed Recessive White chicken of same age.PGC-1α mRNA expression in the skeletal muscle of the two chicken breeds followed specific developmental patterns,and might be related to the chicken meat quality.


This article investigates the asymptotic tracking control problem for a class of strict‐feedback nonlinear systems with delayed full‐state constraints and nonparametric uncertainties. It is worth mentioning that delayed constraints, which represent a type of constraints that may be violated initially but required to be satisfied sometime after system operation, are frequently encountered in practice and yet not well addressed in existing works. In addition, it is extremely difficult to guarantee exact tracking performance for nonlinear systems when nonparametric uncertainties are considered in the control design. In this article, we propose a new state‐shifting transformation (SST) and a novel asymptotic Lyapunov function (ALF) to deal with delayed constraints and achieve asymptotic tracking, respectively. The transformed states grow to infinity as the original ones approach their limits, and the tracking errors converge to zero as time goes to infinity if the related ALF is always bounded. Hence, the delayed full‐state constraints and asymptotic tracking can be guaranteed if the boundness of the transformed states and the related ALF are both ensured. For this purpose, a novel fuzzy adaptive backstepping control scheme based on the proposed SST and ALF is developed. And the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is theoretically authenticated and numerically validated.


From a cognitive perspective, this paper examines the semantics of the Korean polysemous verbs kkaia and peskita. These verbs are conceptually related within the same semantic field of manipulative separation and both are roughly translated as 'to peel' in English. Despite their close semantic relationship, the two verbs are argued to have different conceptual imports, and should accordingly be described to bring out their conceptual differences. Another claim is that distinct but associated senses of kkaia and peskita are not arbitrarily created usages, but are rather related to one another in terms of family resemblance relationships. The primary difference between kkaia and peskita is that the landmark of the event kkaia is predominantly a whole object while that of the event peskita is only the outer covering of an entity. The event kkata is also conceived as requiring more energy and effort due to the hardiness and solidarity of the landmark than the event peskita. Furthermore, the corpus I examined shows that some landmarks of kkata provides the conceptual basis of vulgarity.


We consider the problem of allocating finitely many units of an indivisible good among a group of agents when each agent receives at most one unit of the good and pays a non-negative price. For example, imagine that a government allocates a fixed number of licenses to private firms, or that it distributes equally divided lands to households. Anonymity in welfare is a condition of impartiality in the sense that it requires allocation rules to treat agents equally in welfare terms from the viewpoint of agents who are ignorant of their own valuations or identities. We show that the Vickrey allocation rule is the unique allocation rule satisfying strategy-proofness, anonymity in welfare, and individual rationality.


An address-encoding arbiter architecture is presented that is suitable for large asynchronous circuits requiring address event representation readout. It provides improvement in power and speed, while also reducing area. By encoding the address in each layer of the arbiter tree, the address line loads are distributed throughout the tree, thus reducing the maximum single load on a line driver.


In this study, it has been developed the program for predicting the noise spectrum of axial flow fan. The
radiated acoustic pressure is expressed the discrete frequency noise peaks at BPF(Blade passage frequency)
and its harmonics by Wu's method and the line spectrum at the broad band by Wright's method. And this
paper presents the characteristics of a fan noise due to modify the design parameters. Accordingly, it is
obtained the design parameter values for noise reduction of fan.


Natural convection in nearshore waters induced by differential heating has significant biological and environmental impact. The present investigation is concerned with natural convection in a reservoir model induced by periodic thermal forcing at the water surface. A semi-analytical approach coupled with scaling analysis and numerical simulation is adopted to resolve the problem. The scales for temperature and flow velocity, as well as the time lag of flow response to the thermal forcing have been derived. These derived scales have been verified by results from numerical simulations. Flow response at different stages of the periodic forcing has been illustrated through snapshots of isotherms and streamlines. The phase delay of the flow response to the thermal forcing decreases as the length of period increases.


This thesis describes the research on the implementation of all-optical code generation and recognition based on superstructure fibre Bragg grating (SSFBG) for use in Optical Code Division Multiple Access (OCDMA) systems and also in high-speed all-optical packet switched networks.These results highlight the precision and flexibility of the continuous grating writing process and show that the SSFBG technology represents a promising technology not just for OCDMA but an extended range of other pulse shaping, and associated optical processing applications such as required within optical packet switched networks


The implementation of Gender Mainstreaming (Pengarusutamaan Gender, PUG) policies in Indonesia has had a problematic impact on the advancement of women's resources. This is due to a discrepancy between the value system from the West (secular) which is the essence of PUG policy and the value system in Indonesian society. This study was conducted to provide an explanation of the impact of PUG policy implementation in producing a transformation of women's gender identities and roles that are becoming more modern towards the phenomenon of gender communication. This study uses critical discourse analysis from Van Dijk which includes 3 (three) dimensions, namely discourse, cognition, and society, with a micro-macro and power analysis approach. This study found that there is a potential for abuse of power in the interpersonal communication practices of men and women. There are 3 things that become factors: the structure of the mind, the structure of the text (conversation), and the meaning of the message. The operation of gender differences in gender communication practices is supported by sources of legitimacy of cultural belief systems and interpretations of religious teachings. Understanding gender differences and how they operate is beneficial in equal and comfortable communication practices. Gender intelligence will form subjectivity based on the meaning of the coherence or togetherness of the relation pair.


The explanation of First Indonesia Government System through Constitution is that the law of Indonesia is based on Rechtsstaat rather than on morely power (Machtsstaat). After Third amandement to Constitution 2001 Chaphter 1 verse 3 Indonesia is a Law State. Government and Parliament have produced some laws or revised the law. In socialization perspective it is asked what is the Importance of revising the law to people it is not sufficient and in prevention of Corruption suddenly the law changes. For criminal inviting the Concern of Peoples the Decision of trial by Judges does not reflect the Justice and it even distors from the law goal.


The aim of this research was to establish a relationship between motor skills andperformance of specific elements in handball. A battery of 18 motor skills tests was assessed on thesample of 58 male subjects, students of Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, aged 21-23years.Variables of coordination, figure eight running drill with bending under rope, lateral shuffle,agility on the floor, and agility in the air, all indicate to negative projection on the first isolatedcanonical factor, as do the two flexibility tests, shoulder and chest opener with rod and standingshoulder extension were applied as predictor variables and two tests dribbling around thecones (Metikoš and al. 1989) and throwing the ball against the wall (Rogulj and al. 1995).Theoverall results of the canonical correlation analysis indicated to the evaluation of the appliedcanonical model on motor tests in relation to the performance of specific handball elements,to the canonical correlation value of 0.765, with the Chi-Square test value of 320.101, and tostatistically significant correlation of used variables on level p .008. Through further analysis,4 canonical roots were extracted, out of which only the first one was statistically significant (p.008). Through observation of data on the correlation between motor variables and canonicalroots, it can be concluded that the MRCZTL (0.58) and MFEBML (0.56)variables have thehighest projection on the canonical factor, and thus are also most significant in conditioningthe results achieved. Also the MAGKUS (0.55), MBFTAP (0.51) and MBAU1Z (0.51)variables has statisticaly significant results in conditioning the results achieved.Results of thisanalisys are ppointing to the fact that the subjects with lower degree of those motor skills havealso had lower performance of specific handball elements, indicating the need for greater engagementof motor skills in performing the aforementioned elements.


The invention discloses an electric automobile with the wireless reading function and a charging system. The electric automobile with the wireless reading function comprises an automobile body which is provided with a charging socket, a wireless reading module used for reading information of an electronic tag on a charging gun in a charging device is arranged on one side of the socket, and the automobile body is further provided with a wireless transmitting module used for sending information read by the wireless reading module to a wireless receiving module in the charging device. The charging operation process of the electric automobile is simplified, and using convenience is improved.


The present investigation was aimed to evaluate the gender differences on gaming addiction, loneliness, satisfaction with family life and aggression among adolescents. For the purpose, a sample of 350 students was selected from various schools of Chandigarh and those students were involved in the study who likes gaming. Further Gaming Addiction Scale for Adolescents (GASA) by Lemmens, Valkenburg and Peter (2009) was used to identify gaming addicted adolescents. The final sample of the investigation comprised of 43 participants which including 32 males and 11 females. Independent t-test was applied to compare the means. Introduction Gaming has become one of the common pastime among people especially children and adolescents. Gaming and the related behaviors are increasingly prevailing among youth around d (Kuss, 2013). For those people who are fond of gaming believe it to be harmless and a convenient way of entertainment. But due to excessive gaming people are getting addicted to it. According to the Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery, "Video game addiction is described as an impulse control disorder, which does not involve use of an intoxicating drug and is very similar to pathological gambling. Video game addiction has also been referred to as video game overuse, pathological or compulsive/excessive use of computer games and/or video games." Hauge and Gentile, 2003 found that significant gender differences on gaming addiction where male adolescents found to be higher on gaming addiction than female adolescents. Several studies also indicated that gaming addiction adversely affect psychological, emotional and neurological health of adolescents (Higuchi et al., 2005; Meng, Deng, Wang, Guo, & Li, 2015; Spada & Caselli, 2017). Individuals who are addicted to gaming exhibits poor self-control, poor social skills and aggressive behavior (Anderson, Shibuya, Ihori, Swing, Bushman, Sakamoto,...Saleem, 2010; Liau, Neo, Gentile, Choo, Sim, Li, & Khoo, 2015). Rohilla (2018) conducted an investigation to study the prevalence rate of gaming addiction among adolescents and found that among males 62.35% were normal gamers and 37.64% were problem gamers whereas 89.32% females were normal gamers and 10.68% were problem gamers. Due to the severity of problems caused by gaming addiction, DSM-V has incorporated gaming addiction as a disorder under section three and termed as Internet Gaming DisorderIGD (DSMV, 2013). Objective Based on the above literature, present study was aimed to assess the gender differences on gaming addiction among adolescents in Chandigarh. Method For the present investigation study the sample consisted of 350 students of various schools with mean age of 15.5 selected from various schools of Chandigarh city. Written consent was taken from the participants. Out of these 350 candidates only those students were selected in the investigation who responded positively for liking of videogames. It was observed that out of 350 participants 200 like video gaming. After the exclusion of two participants due to various reasons the final sample for the present study comprised of 188 participants. GASA by Lemmens, Valkenburg and Peter (2009) was used to identify gaming addicted adolescents. SWFL by Ramon, Zabriskie and Ward (2013) was used to assess satisfaction with family life. Loneliness and aggression was measured by using De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale by Gierveld and Tilburg (2006) and The Aggression Questionnaire by Buss and Perry 1992. Measures Gaming Addiction Scale for Adolescents (GASA) by Lemmens, Valkenburg and Peter (2009) was used to identify gaming addicted adolescents. The scale comprised of seven items which are to be scored on five point likert scale ("Never-1" "Rarely-2" "Sometimes-3" "Often-4" "Very often-5"). Total score ranges from 7-35. According to Lemmens et al., (2009) those individuals who score "sometimes" or more on all seven items will be termed as monothetic gamers ("pathological gaming"), and those who score "sometimes" or more on at least half of the items will be consider as polythetic gamers (excessive gaming). Those individuals who scored less than that will be consider as normal gamers. For the present investigation the individuals who match the criteria of monothetic and polythetics will be consider as problem gamers. To measure loneliness DeJong Gierveld Loneliness Scale by Gierveld and Tilburg (2006) was used. The scale consists of six items which to be scored on three responses viz. "YesMore or Less-No". There are both negatively stated items (1-3) and positively stated items (4-6). Total score ranges from 1-6 where 1 means that person is least lonely and 6 means person is most lonely. Satisfaction with Family Life Scale (SWFL) by Ramon, Zabriskie and Ward (2013) was used to assess family life satisfaction among adolescents. The scale consists of five items which are to be scored on seven point scale where viz. 1-Strongly disagree, 2-Disagree, 3Slightly Disagree, 4-Neither agree nor disagree, 5-Slightly agree, 6-Agree, 7-Strongly agree. Total score ranges from 1-35 where 1 means least satisfied and 35 means most satisfied. Aggression Questionnaire by Buss and Perry (1992) was used to measure aggression among adolescents. The questionnaire comprised of twenty-nine items which are to be score on 5 point scale where 1 score is given for "extremely uncharacteristic of me", 2 is given for "somewhat uncharacteristic of me", 3 is given for "neither uncharacteristic nor characteristic of me", 4 is given for "somewhat characteristic of me" and 5 is given for "extremely characteristic of me". Total score ranges from 29-145 where higher score indicates most aggressive behavior. January 2018, Volume 5, Issue 1 JETIR (ISSN-2349-5162) JETIR1801088 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 461 Results GASA was used to investigate the gaming addicted adolescents (problem gamers). It was found that out of 188 adolescents 43 participants found to be gaming addicts including 32 males and 11 females. Further results are shown in the form of tables. Table-1: Descriptive Statistics for total Sample Dimensions Gaming Addiction Loneliness Satisfaction With Family Life Aggression N 43 43 43 43 Mean 20.37 11.07 3.26 48.98 Std. Deviation 5.31 3.28 1.43 20.36 Minimum 14 4 1 29 Maximum 33 18 6 100 Table -1 is showing mean, standard deviation (S.d), minimum and maximum values on gaming addiction, loneliness, satisfaction with family life and aggression among total sample of adolescents (N=43). On gaming addiction mean come out to be 20.37, with S.D 5.31. Minimum and maximum scores obtained by the students are 14 and 33 respectively. On loneliness dimension mean score found to be 11.07, S.D come out to be 3.28, minimum score was 4 and maximum score was 18. On Satisfaction with family life dimension mean come out to be 3.26, S.D found to be 1.43, minimum and maximum values emerged as 1 and 6 respectively. On aggression mean value found to be 48.98 with S.D 20.36, minimum and maximum values 29 and 100 respectively. Table-2: Descriptive Statistics for male adolescents Dimensions Gaming Addiction Loneliness Satisfaction With Family Life Aggression N 32 32 32 32 Mean 20.88 10.09 3.16 52.94 Std. Deviation 5.81 2.91 1.57 21.85 Minimum 14 4 1 30 Maximum 33 16 6 100 Table-2 is showing descriptive details among male participants. Mean value for gaming addiction come out to be 20.88 with S.D 5.81. Minimum and maximum values found to be 14 and 33 respectively. For loneliness mean, S.D, minimum and maximum values emerged as 10.09, 2.91, 4 and 16 respectively. For satisfaction with family life dimension man vale emerged as 3.16 with S,D 1.57, minimum value as 1 and maximum value as 6. For aggression mean value found to be 52.94 with S.D 21.85, minimum score was 30 and maximum score was 100. Table-3: Descriptive Statistics for female adolescents Dimensions Gaming Addiction Loneliness Satisfaction With Family Life Aggression N 11 11 11 11 Mean 18.91 13.91 3.55 37.45 Std. Deviation 3.24 2.66 0.93 8.09 Minimum 15 8 2 29 Maximum 27 18 5 55 Table-3 is showing descriptive details among female adolescents where mean, S.D, minimum and maximum score emerged as 18.91, 3.24, 15 and 27 respectively on gaming addiction. On loneliness mean found to be 13.91, S.D found to be 2.66, minimum score emerged as 8 and maximum score emerged as 18. On satisfaction with family life, mean, S.D, minimum and maximum values comes out to be 3.55, 0.93, 2 and 5 respectively. On aggression mean and S.D found to be 37.45 and 8.09. Minimum value and maximum values emerged ad 29 and 55 respectively. Tbale-4: t-test among male and female adolescents Gender Groups N Mean S. D t Gaming Addiction 1 32 20.88 5.81 1.06** 2 11 18.91 3.24 Loneliness 1 32 10.09 2.91 3.83 2 11 13.91 2.66 Satisfaction With Family Life 1 32 3.16 1.57 0.77* 2 11 3.55 0.93 Aggression 1 32 52.94 21.85 2.28** 2 11 37.45 8.09 Group-1: Males, Group-2: Females ** p<0.01, * p<0.05 Table-4 is showing mean difference between male and female adolescents. On gaming addiction t value emerged to be 1.06 ** (p<0.01) which indicates a statistically significant gender difference among adolescents. Mean score for males come out to be 20.88 and for females 18.91 which shows that male participants more addicted gamers than female participants (Fig.1). January 2018, Volume 5, Issue 1 JETIR (ISSN-2349-5162) JETIR1801088 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 462 t-value for loneliness come out to be 3.83 (p>0.05) indicating no statistically significant difference among male and female participants where as mean score for females found to be higher (13.91) than males (10.09) (Fig.2).


Supported by deep learning techniques, remote sensing scene classification, a fundamental task in remote image analysis, has recently obtained remarkable progress. However, due to the severe uncertainty and perturbation within an image, it is still a challenging task and remains many unsolved problems. In this article, we note that regular one-hot labels cannot precisely describe remote sensing images, and they fail to provide enough information for supervision and limiting the discriminative feature learning of the network. To solve this problem, we propose a variational self-distillation network (VSDNet), in which the class entanglement information from the prediction vector acts as the supplement to the category information. Then, the exploited information is hierarchically distilled from the deep layers into the shallow parts via a variational knowledge transfer (VKT) module. Notably, the VKT module performs knowledge distillation in a probabilistic way through variational estimation, which enables end-to-end optimization for mutual information and promotes robustness to uncertainty within the image. Extensive experiments on four challenging remote sensing datasets demonstrate that, with a negligible parameter increase, the proposed VSDNet brings a significant performance improvement over different backbone networks and delivers state-of-the-art results.


Ascorbic acid (AsA) has been identified as a dietary requirement for cultured juvenile penaeid shrimp (Penaeus californiensis and Penaeus stylirostris). A dietary intake of 0.1% was sufficient to prevent nutrition-related deaths among these shrimp. Without sufficient dietary AsA, a deficiency death, Black Death, occurred. This disease is characterized by melanized hemocytic lesions distributed throughout the collagenous tissues of the shrimp' body. The specific requirement for AsA was demonstrated by feeding a special AsA supplement which resulted in the cessation of Black Death among an AsA-deficient population. Normal collagen metabolism and wound repair in two penaeid shrimp (Penaeus californiensis and Penaeus stylirostris) was shown to be dependent upon ascorbic acid (AsA) nutrition. A significantly greater number of mortalities occurred among wounded AsA-deficient shrimp of both species due to poor wound repair than among wounded controls.


An experimental investigation was made of the conditions for time-dependent operation of cw and pulse-periodic CO2 lasers in a system consisting of a laser, an optical discharge, and a reflecting surface. High-frequency (~ 0.1 MHz) and low-frequency (~ 100 Hz) intensity oscillations of the laser radiation were discovered. The high-frequency oscillations appeared when the optical length of the discharge was strongly modulated and the low-frequency oscillations were associated with an oscillatory motion of the discharge plasma in the region of a focus.


Test device (10) for an evaporative emission system: - with a pressure source (26) to generate a pressure in vehicle evaporative emission system, which differs from the ambient pressure; - with a sensor (32) for detecting the pressure generated in the evaporative emission system, and - with an electronic control unit (14) to control the operation of the pressure source (26) and to receive signals from the sensor (32) that report the pressure of the vehicle evaporative emission system over time, wherein the electronic control unit (14) further comprises operates to compare the captured data with the stored data representing the normal base pressures for vehicles without leakage, to determine the presence of a leak in the evaporative emission system.


Angiogenesis is essential during development or when tissue restoration and oxygenation is required. Limited or excessive formation of blood vessels is a hallmark of several pathologies, and many angiogenesis-related pathways are being studied to highlight potential targets for effective angiogenesis-stimulating or inhibiting therapeutic approaches. A few studies point to the adrenergic system as a significant regulator of angiogenesis, directly or indirectly. Functional adrenergic receptors are expressed on endothelial cells and affect their response to the adrenergic system. The latter can also upregulate the release of growth factors by mural cells of the vessel wall, blood cells or cancer cells, thus subsequently affecting endothelial cell functions and angiogenesis. In the present study we summarize up-to-date literature on the known effects of the adrenergic receptors on physiological and pathological angiogenesis.


In a series of papers published in the seventies, Grossberg has developed a geometric approach for analyzing the global dynamical behavior and convergence properties of a class of competitive dynamical systems. In this paper, Grossberg approach is extended to competitive standard cellular neural networks (CNNs), and it is used to investigate convergence of classes of non-symmetric competitive CNNs under the hypothesis that they induce a globally consistent decision scheme.


W HILE the definition of totemism proposed in "Totemism, an Analytical Study" 2 must be pronounced as anything but illuminating, it serves to emphasize the two essential elements in totemism which have to a different degree been insisted upon in all theoretical discussions of the subject. For, if totemism may be designated as a specific socialization of emotional values,3 it contains the two basic factors, the emotional values and the specific socialization. The former constitute the content of totemism, the latter the form. The content of totemic phenomena, that is, the actual beliefs, practices, attitudes involved, were first to arouse the attention of investigators. In McLennan's now obsolete articles on The Worship of Animals and Plants totemism is discussed as an aspect of zoilatric and phytolatric phenomena. That the content of totemism is uppermost in the mind of Frazer of the original Totemism, appears from his classification of the subject into "clan, sex, and individual totemism." The same applies to Andrew Lang. While the significance, in fact, basic character of exogamy in connection with totemism, was recognized by these authors, exogamy, although in those days often referred to as "the social aspect of totemism," really constitutes but part of the totemic content, thus in no sense corresponding to that specific kind of socialization of cultural features, which in recent years has been discussed as the formal aspect of totemism. No essential departure from the older standpoint is noticeable in the work of van Gennep, or in the systematizations of S. Reinach. Similarly oriented are the studies of Jevons, Gomme, Wundt, and Durkheim, for whom totemism is primarily a


. Self-efficacy plays an important role in enhancing English language proficiency. It is one of the important factors in increasing efficiency in SLA. Conducting different research and case studies in this field and comparing the results and distinguishing unique nuances among these researches are important to the development of this subject in SLA. In addition to this, the impact of self-efficacy among EFL teachers needs to be further explored as they are involved in various teaching and learning processes. Furthermore, various self-efficacy tests should be conducted among students, and the direct collaboration of psychologist with EFL teachers is likely to prevent difficulties in learning a second language in this process.


Singing is a natural practice of the human being; From childhood to adolescence, the person experiences many physiological and anatomical changes; however, the change in voice means that many teenagers do not want to continue singing or think they cannot. For this reason, the objective of this article is to analyze the characteristics, pedagogical strategies and benefits of choral singing for adolescents. In this perspective, singing is approached, then its anatomy and physiology are briefly explained, then going into the description of the voice and choral singing in adolescents, didactics of singing and the respective benefits. After different review sources, which concludes, despite the various changes experienced, knowing and applying proper technique, help and properly develop speech, including the different choral singing provides benefits musically, academic, social, physical and personal development.


Further work has substantiated earlier findings that phosphatic fertilizers and farm manure will give adequate control of Pythium root rot of wheat in infested prairie soils. The improvement in growth resulting from these amendments is considered to be due to the production of a larger number of quicker growing roots which lessens the chances for infection and leaves more roots healthy, though the same percentage may be affected as in diseased plants showing severe leaf discolorations. Experiments have failed to indicate that the phosphatic materials increase resistance appreciably. Nitrogenous materials when applied singly had virtually no effect on growth, but once ample phosphorus was added, further nitrogen applications gave substantially greater increases than phosphate alone. Phosphorus is apparently the chief limiting element. No difference was found in preliminary tests in the phosphate-fixing power of browning and normal soils. Typical browning soils responded irregularly to small applications of...


Is MEMS sensor that detects an electromagnetic wave of a specific frequency range is provided. In a preferred embodiment, MEMS sensor, the lower substrate layer and; a pyroelectric layer; a first electrode layer over the substrate layer and; pyroelectric layer and that across the first electrode layer wherein the second electrode layer over, the upper electrode layer is patterned in a periodic structure having an infrared wavelength or less of the period of interest. .FIELD 1


Two dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides such as MoS2 and WS2 have multiple applications in the field of electronics, catalysis, sensors, and energy storage. In particular, molybdenum disulfide has been heavily used in the bulk form for centuries as a solid lubricant and the formation of the two dimensional variant has been investigated through multiple means such as X-ray diffraction and X-ray


ABSTRACT Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were biosynthesized using the aqueous extract ofMentha pulegium leaves and were characterized by Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray fluorescence analysis. The bactericidal activity was assayed by disc diffusion and broth microdilution methods. The cytotoxicity was examined on normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) by MTT assay. SEM and XRD analysis showed the spherical and face-centered cubic nano silver particles with an average size of 29 nm. EDX and XRF spectra exhibited obvious signals in the silver region. The AgNPs displayed antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus followed by Bacillus cereus, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) ranged from 61.5 to 125 µg/mL. No significant cytotoxicity was observed against the PBMCs up to 250 μg/mL of the AgNPs and hence the synthesized AgNPs may be used to treat drug-resistant bacteria in biomedicine.


Objective To investigate the influence of rehabilitation training on the serum hs-CRP level and cardiac function of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).Methods 92 patients with CHF were divided into an observation group and a control group,46 cases for each group.Both groups were treated with conventional anti-HF therapies of diereses and ACE inhibitors.The observation group was additionally treated with rehabilitation training.The treatment effects of both groups were observed.Results After the treatment,the HR and the walking distance in 6 min were better in the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05).The serum hs-CRP level was lower and the LVEF was higher in the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05).Conclusions Rehabilitation training can improve the cardiac function of and reduce the inflammatory reaction of CHF patients and is worth clinical application.

Key words:
Heart failure;  Rehabilitation training;  Serum hs-CRP;  Cardiac function


Evictions result not only from deliberate policies to eradicate housing, as in slum clearance or urban improvement projects, but also as 'side effects' of other public policies. Moreover, communities without access to policy-making and planning processes tend to be more vulnerable. In the Dominican Republic, researchers found that weak local governments and the absence of ways for people to participate in national decisions rendered them unable to influence economic and urban policies that affected their access to shelter.


Brazil is a major producer of sugar cane; its juice is extracted by means of mechanical or manual grinding. Often the manipulators perform other functions concomitantly, representing one of the means of contamination. In view of this, contamination by microorganisms and soils, from transport and storage to consumption, may result from inadequate conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the hygienic and sanitary conditions of cane juice marketed in Teresina, PI. Samples were obtained from randomly selected establishments. Nine samples of cane juice were collected in nature, three in each establishment and nine industrialized samples purchased in a single establishment, of the same brand, three samples each day, making a total of 18 samples. In the samples in nature, coliforms were present at 35oC and at 45oC and absence of Samonella spp in all samples. In the analyzes of the industrialized broth no coliforms were found at 35oC and at 45oC, as well as Salmonella spp in none of the samples. The satisfactory sanitary and sanitary conditions of cane juice commercialized in Teresina, PI, depends on the establishment and if it is industrialized.


I – Real acquaintance versus acquaintance physicalism In the old days physicalists refused to compromise. They not only denied the existence of mental properties over and above physical properties, but also of mental concepts over and above physical/functional concepts. For the old school physicalist mental properties are just physical properties we pick out in virtue of their functional role: the concept 'pain' picks out c-fibres firing as the state that plays 'the pain role' in humans. On such a view, zombies are inconceivable and Mary learns gains no new propositional knowledge when she sees red for the first time.


The invention relates to a networking device applied to a network television and provided with a flip type remote controller. Various videos and audios can be conveniently processed by using an embedded operating system and a high performance processor chip, and can be upgraded online through networking online upgrade of the embedded operating system. According to the networking device provided by the invention, HDMI interfaces which are widely used at present are just reserved in an output module, so that waste of resources due to idle interfaces is avoided, the body is effectively lessened and the production cost is lowered. A set top box provided by the invention is provided with a remote controller searching button which can be used for conveniently searching for the remote controller. Radiating holes are formed for radiation at any time to maintain the temperature of the set top box, and the internal apparatuses are prevented from being damaged due to over-temperature. Radiating holes are formed in the Bluetooth emitting end surface of the remote controller for the convenience of radiation so as to prevent the internal apparatuses of the remote controller from being damaged by overheat. Buttons on the remote controller are flush with the surface of the remote controller, and a flip is arranged on the buttons and covers the buttons when the remote controller is not used, so that misoperation can be prevented.


In this article is sues around research meth odology specific to Aboriginal people will be discussed. A brief historical analysis lays a foundation for the need for unique research methodologies as it per tains to Aborigi nal people both as re searched and re searcher. Contemporary critiques by Aboriginal writers and communities will be pre sented in relation to the limitations and effects of Euro-west ern research methods. Finally, the authors will discuss issues, possibilities and responsibilities around conducting research as Aboriginal researchers.


David Hand The paper by McGuigan in this issue of the BJP examines the frequency of errors in statistical methods presented in papers published in the BJP in 1993. In that year, 248 papers appeared, 164 contained numerical results, and 65 of these contained statistical errors. So, one might infer, some 26% of the papers in the BJP draw potentially doubtful conclusions. Moreover, the level of misunderstanding implied by some of the examples McGuigan cites is frightening.


The working environment for taxi drivers and driving school instructors in summer and winter conditions has been surveyed as to the interior climate conditions. The surveys have been carried out in modern passenger cars representing the models most frequently used as taxi and/or driving school cars in Sweden. These surveys also had the object of studying different devices likely to improve the thermal environment in various conditions. The winter studies showed that in all the studied vehicles the drivers were able to obtain the desired temperatures (approx 25 deg C). However, the temperatures varied considerably with time and space. During short pauses (approx 60 min) a special type of heater proved to have a positive effect on comfort. This effect varied slightly with car model. In summer conditions the average temperature surrounding the driver exceeded +30 deg. C in steady-state conditions. The air conditioning devices tested, increased the comfort. However, air conditioning only is not enough but has to be combined with solar radiation screening in order to reach temperature comfort. (Author/TRRL)


Background: Plant-based diets have been associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. However, the underlying mechanisms are not completely understood, and the evidence using objective approache...


The core proposition of the Fifth Amendment's Double Jeopardy Clause is as intuitive as it is straightforward. After all, if a state could prosecute someone despite her previous conviction or acquittal, then the scope of punishment would be unlimited and its threat unending—the sort of proposition only a tyrant could love. Yet, in Gamble v. United States, the Supreme Court once again blessed a dual sovereignty exception that permits just such duplicative prosecutions. We hardly are the first to question this rule, but we submit the Court's most recent primary mistakes were two. First, the Court began from a conception of constitutional community contrary to our Framers' own; and when one reaches for a grab bag of history, jurisprudence, and commentary, that starting point makes a difference. Second, the Court ignored both the logic of America's founding and recent double jeopardy jurisprudence, both of which strongly counsel against the exception in the federal-state context. We hope that a future Court will be more receptive to the nation's constitutional structure and to the genuine but limited needs of criminal justice.


Basedonthehypothesis thatthenumberof state renewals ofPBNsin(0, t]isa Poisson process, A wayisproposed toreconstruct the continuous-time homogeneous Markovprocess dynamical modelofPBNsfromaHomogeneous Markovchaindynamical modelofPBNs.The matrix oftransition probabilities ofthereconstructedMarkovprocesses isgiven. Itisconcluded that thereconstructed Markovprocess isa Regular Process andfromtheconclusion afewresults of long-run behavior ofthereconstructed Markov process arederived. Theseresults demonstrate the reconstructed Markovprocesses dynamical model ofPBNsisreasonable.


This research was conducted to find out how the implementation of the Roundtable cooperative learning model is significant to increase interest in learning Mathematics in Kelas VIII-2 in SMP Negeri 2 Padangsidimpuan. The participants of this qualitative research were 28 students and the researcher himself was involved as a participant-observer. This research was conducted in two cycles and data collection did by observation and document analysis. The findings were then analyzed qualitatively by explaining and elaborating according to relevant theories. This study proves that the implementation of the Roundtable cooperative learning model significantly increased interest in learning Mathematics in Kelas VIII-2 in SMP Negeri 2 Padangsidimpuan. The implementation of the cooperative learning model seems to be potential in increasing group working, communication skills, and learning outcomes of the students. However, heterogeneous groups seem to be important in group work to make the learning activities interesting and meaningful for students. Hence, relevant studies still recommended gaining significant and better findings.


The KARKONOSZE geodynamic network has been established in the Western Sudetes in year 2000. The GPS network consists of 19 points located on the area of the Karkonosze Mts. and its foreland. The KARKONOSZE network is connected with and also composes western parts of the GEOSUD and SUDETES geodynamic networks. Three measurement campaigns of the local geodynamic network KARKONOSZE were realized (2001-2003). The data from GPS observations was processed using BERNESE v.4.2 software, in the ITRF reference frame with connection to the "Wroclaw" GPS permanent station. In the paper the comparison of preliminary results from data processing of the three GPS KARKONOSZE 2001-2003 campaigns are presented. The horizontal velocity vectors of the stations and geometrical changes of vectors for pairs on network points were calculated to assess changes taking place in the investigated area.


The paper presents the results of the use of pancreatic enzymes in the form of intramuscular injection of pure pancreatic juice obtained from fistulated chickens to broiler chickens. At 7 days of age during the formation of groups, the differences between the control and experimental chickens were 17.9% (p<0.05) in favor of the former. It was found that after the injection of the drug 1 time in 7 days, there was a stimulation of metabolism in the experimental group broilers. By 14 days of age, the differences between the groups were 17.4% (p<0.05), to 21 days of age - 9.1% (p<0.05), to 28 days of age - 5.3%, to 35 - day-old age - 4.9%. Consequently, as the chickens were raised by 28 days of age, the chickens of the experimental group caught up with the live weight of the control ones, and, considering the increase in live weight, even exceeded this indicator (50.1 g/day versus 42.7). The use of parenteral pancreatic juice of chickens at a dose of 0.1ml/kg of live weight of broiler chickens allows to conclude that the drug has a stimulating effect on poultry metabolism, manifested by an increase in live weight gain, an increase in the content of lymphocytes, as an indicator of immunity, activation of protein and mineral metabolism in the body when using an enzyme preparation.


Targeted ultrasound contrast agents, known as microbubbles (MBs), are used to enhance the utility of diagnostic ultrasound molecular imaging. Previous studies, both in vitro and in vivo, have demonstrated that normalized singular spectrum area (NSSA) can be used to differentiate adherent MB signals from free MB signals as well as from background tissue. We developed a simulation approach to test the hypothesis that the intermediate NSSA values observed in adherent MBs were due to small displacements occurring during exposure to blood flow. We also compared the NSSA mapping result from the simulation with the experimental result. A strong linear correlation between the NSSA values in simulation and experiment suggest that our simulation is reproducing the physical interactions occurring in experimental data and giving rise to the observable NSSA.


ABSTRACT Polysulfone-polydimethylsiloxane block copolymers containing Si-O-C bonds were synthesized through the condensation reactions of α,ω-di(hydrogensilyl)polydimethylsiloxane and α,ω-di(chlorosilyl) polydimethylsiloxane oligomers with hydroxy-terminated poly-sulfone, in solution. The synthesized compounds were characterized using IR, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR spectrometry, GPC and DSC analysis. All data agree with the proposed structures.


The purposes of this study were to investigate the run-up speed parameters of the elementary long jumpers and to obtain coaching suggestions on the run-up techniques for the coaches. Subjects were nineteen male and female elementary school long jumpers who participated in an athletics competition held in Japan. The run-up speed was collected by using a laser speed apparatus. There was a significant positive relationship between the official jumping distance and the maximum speed. This study revealed that reaching the maximum run-up speed as close to the take-off line as possible would help to maintain the run-up speed and to obtain large the take-off speed and the jumping distance.


This article will attempt to answer the following question: what has been done to prevent corruption and promote a "good government" in Latin America, what are the results and what explains the current situation? After analyzing very different experiences, the following could be stated: (1) there is at least a formal concern for promoting integrity in several countries, but there are problems of diagnosis and formulation; (2) the examples of implementation failures are far too many in Latin America. In any case, the most important factor explaining failures of design and implementation is the presence of a social trap and a political trap. The social trap is expressed by the incoherence of society itself, which demands honesty from Government, but in practice incentivizes corruption by paying bribes, breaching rules, and demanding privileges within the framework of clientelist networks. The political trap emerges from the strong path dependency effect resulting from the consolidation of patronage or clientelist networks.


UV laser excited fluorescence spectra of the jet‐cooled copper dimer are reported. Cu2 is produced via laser vaporization of the metal inside the throat of a pulsed, supersonic nozzle. Strong fluorescence is observed upon excitation of 63Cu2 in the range 287–324 nm, corresponding to several v'=0 bands of the II–X transition recently found in excitation using resonant two‐photon ionization [Smalley et al., J. Chem. Phys. 78, 2866 (1983)]. The II–X emission spectra are characterized by extremely long progressions in the ground state vibration, enabling us to measure G(v) and ΔGv+1/2 values over the range v=0–72. This data has been fit to yield improved vibrational constants for 63Cu2 X 1Σ+g: ωe =266.43±0.59 cm−1, ωexe =1.035±0.030 cm−1, ωeye =+(1.70±0.58)×10−3 cm−1, and ωeze =−(1.78±0.37)×10−5 cm−1. The G(v) data has also been fit to a near‐dissociation expansion which incorporates the correct limiting behavior of G(v), determined by the asymptotic inverse power contribution to the potential. This fit gives...


River Basin Management (RBM) presents a very complex decision making context. It is characterised with diverse interactions among the natural-physical system, the socioeconomic system that relies upon the water resources of a given river basin and the administrative institutional system responsible for river basin planning and management (Pan, 2011). These complex interactions require full understanding of the various systems components and translation of their interactions into structured formulations as decisions making problems. Such formulations lead towards the development of decision support tools and systems that can aid integrated decision makers and various stakeholders involved in river basin management in their decision making processes.


The literature describes various beneficial effects of the pulse anodizing of aluminum related to the corrosion resistance, hardness, and electronic properties of the oxide layer, the thermal impact during the anodizing process as well as reduced energy consumption. In spite of the considerable improvements, the understanding of basic mechanisms and the specific impact of the applied pulse parameters are still under discussion. Herein, the local development of the electrolyte concentration during pulse anodizing in sulfuric acid is investigated by means of finite element computations. The impact of the thickness of the porous oxide, the applied current density, and the pulse frequency are examined systematically. The results suggest that the electrolyte concentration at the oxide/electrolyte interface can be effectively controlled by applying tailored pulse parameters.


Usually discussions on the question of interpretation in the Langevin equation with multiplicative white noise are limited to the Ito and Stratonovich prescriptions. In this work, a Langevin equation with multiplicative white noise and its Fokker-Planck equation are considered. From this Fokker-Planck equation a connection between the stationary solution and the Tsallis distribution is obtained for different orders of prescription in discretization rule for the stochastic integrals; the Tsallis index $q$ and the prescription parameter (\lambda) are determined with the drift and diffusion coefficients. The result is quite general. For application, one shows that the Tsallis distribution can be described by a class of population growth models subject to the linear multiplicative white noise.


The synthesis of non-cationic meso-(4a-bromoacetamidophenyl)triphenyl-porphyrin H2TPPNHCOCH2Br (6) and its zinc, copper, nickel and cobalt metallo derivatives (7-10) is reported. By means of 3 H assays we observed that non-cationic porphyrins have activity against DNA replication inhibition in mouse melanoma B16 cells. The intercalation of copper (II) porphyrin (3) with plasmid DNA was supported by the hypochromicity observed in the Soret maximum in UV-vis spectroscopy. Fluorescence microscopy corroborates that porphyrins accumulate in the nucleus of the cell.


Introduction Chapter 1: Modern Habitats Chapter 2: Problem Creatures Chapter 3: Surviving History Chapter 4: Growing Wonder Conclusion Notes References


Due to the lifestyle changes caused by mechanization and urbanization, high nutrient availability and an energy dense diet along with decreasing physical activity levels have predisposed people to obesity and type 2 diabetes. This drastic change of life style in Asia also increased the onset of allergic diseases, and changed the type of tumors. For example, the world prevalence of diabetes has been reported on and it is estimated that more than 400 million adults will suffer from diabetes by 2030. Health organizations also reported that the prevalence of type 2 diabetes has reached epidemic levels in Asia and that this epidemic threatens to overwhelm health-care systems in the region. It has been suggested that certain changes in lifestyle can be effective in the prevention of type 2 diabetes, especially for those with impaired glucose tolerance. This is also true for allergies and tumors. In Asian countries, various species of algae have traditionally been considered as foods good for health. In Japan, for example, the Ecklonia species have been thought to improve the properties of blood. The precise function of these algae, however, has not been well analyzed. Here, we have focused on the following two topics. 1) The regulatory effect of algae on the development of type 2 diabetes. At first, we examined the effects of various algae on the blood glucose level in leptin receptor deficient db/db mice and found that gametophytes of Ecklonia kurome (E. kurome) down-regulate blood levels of glucose and triacylglycerol. Sporophytes of E. kurome did not have any effects on these levels. Since we administered the algae homogenates orally, we examined the bacterial flora in the intestine by using 16S rRNA nucleotides as a probe. We found the increase of Lactobacillus species and Bacteroides species in the mice administered with gametophytes of E. kurome. Interestingly, we found that regulatory T lymphocytes (Treg) had decreased in the mice administered with gametophytes of E. kurome. 2) We also examined the effect of gametophytes of E. kurome in wild type mice. We established prediabetic status in C57BL/6J by administrating a high fat diet (HFD) containing 32% fatty acids. We found that gametophytes of E. kurome down-regulated the blood glucose in prediabetic C57BL/6J wild type mice. We found that a cytokine, interferon-γ (IFN-γ) involved in the thermogenesis is also engaged in the regulation of blood levels of glucose and triacylglycerol. We also noted that Treg cells had increased in the absence of interferon-γ. Although we found that both gametophytes and sporophytes of E. kurome down-regulated the Treg cells in prediabetic mice of wild type strain, only gametophytes of E. kurome down-regulated the blood glucose in pre-diabetic wild type mice. This result suggests that Treg cells are down-regulated by substances contained in both sporophytes and gametophytes of E. kurome and that the level of blood glucose is not simply controlled by Treg cells. We summarize the recent advances in the area of regulation of immune responses by edible algae in view of a sustainable society.


Experimental and PDA (three dimensional Particle Dynamics Analyzer) tests have been conducted on the performance and the flow field of a square diffusion cyclone separator (a separator with an inverted conical section which has a square cross-section). Results show that the square diffusion section could improve the separation performance. Efficiency of the cyclone is found to be as high as conventional cyclone at relative lower inlet velocity. The flow field is asymmetrical. The swirling flow at the corner area has a great effect on the efficiency and the pressure drop of the separator. It also facilitates the agglomeration of fine particles, which makes them easy to be removed.


Differential thermal analysis and X-ray powder diffraction are used to study the phase diagram of the HgBr 2 -PbBr 2 system over the entire range of concentrations. This diagram is quasi-binary and eutectic with liquid-liquid phase separation. The eutectic contains 5 mol % PbBr 2 and melts at 240°C. The monotectic occurs at 60 mol % PbBr 2 and 290°C. An a solid solution field based on lead bromide is found. Compounds do not form in the HgBr 2 -PbBr 2 system. Glass formation is not observed.


Land use planning involves making an appropriate decision and selecting a use over other alternatives. A step-by-step methodology was developed to evaluate the optimal combination of regional land use technologies and the spatial allocation. For a realistic approach, a case study (specifically Rivadavia department, Salta, Argentina) is considered, which has deforestation problems and the advance of intensive and extractive agriculture. Five management techniques are considered for the area: precision agriculture (T1), advance livestock farming (T2), payment for ecosystem service (T3), traditional agriculture–livestock farming—Criollo (T4), and traditional forest management—Wichi (T5). A land evaluation on a GIS model is carried out to obtain the land suitability for each technique. Analyzing local experts' opinions using the Markowitz portfolio methodology allows us to obtain an optimal combination of techniques. Finally, a Simplex method analysis linked with the GIS is performed to allocate the five techniques over the territory maximizing land suitability and in compliance with percent surface assignments. The result assigns each GIS polygon to a specific technique, reaching optimal land suitability in 92% of the territory. Natural capital and social attributes had a significant and complex impact on technology choice, but objective and optimized approaches in their allocation were possible and provides valuable information to guide public policies.


It has been recognised for some time that significant whole life cost savings can be achieved through appropriate pro-active maintenance and renewal regimes. In connection with infrastructure earthworks, the most recent figures available indicate that the UK Highways Agency is spending upwards of #12m per annum on 'reactive' slope repair and that year on year costs are increasing almost exponentially. This, together with the requirement to increase capacity and reliability of the existing network, has led the Highways Agency to implement a specific programme of research into earthworks asset management. Currently the majority of geotechnical inspections are undertaken on foot, involving personnel and vehicles on the hard shoulder or lane closures. The Highways Agency has significant concerns about the use of hard shoulders in light of the fact that each year around 250 road users are killed or injured on the UK's motorway hard shoulders. This paper outlines the ongoing research into remote methods of asset assessment to improve speed, safety and repeatability of data collection and reduce disruption to road users. It also seeks to introduce the various techniques that show potential for allowing infrastructure owners to collect asset knowledge data rapidly and remotely. Systems include very high resolution satellite photography, vertical aerial photography, stereo oblique aerial photography, helicopter and fixed wing aircraft borne laser scanning (LiDAR), digital aerial videography, and thermal line scanning. Various operators of other infrastructure networks such as London Underground Limited, Railtrack Great Western Zone, the British Waterways Board and the Scottish Executive were closely involved with the design of the Pilot Scale trial and applications as the remote sensing techniques are likely to extend to other major infrastructure environments. For the covering abstract see ITRD E122683.


Crane equipment (1), the load, in particular a particular container crane for moving a container (9), if necessary safely to one or more electrical or electromechanical driving element (13) and associated memory programmed signals leading to control access is given possible first controller (10), a least in part of a control operation of the first controller based on the safety-related signals given (10) formed for monitoring, if necessary first available memory program performs specific control access to safety-relevant control access operation element when insufficient from the side of the first controller (10) and a second controller (11).


Two broad trends are apparent in the global economy. Firstly, economic power is becoming much more decentralised particularly with sustained growth of a number of large emerging economies led by China, as well as a range of dynamic smaller economies. Many of these economies have accumulated vast financial assets which they are lending back to advanced economies. Most of the latter have experienced enormous increases in debt. Secondly, the US and its allies are seeking to compensate for their declining economic influence by consolidating military dominance in unstable and resource rich regions, resulting in a dramatic increase in military conflict, in refugees, and in some instances, fragmentation and collapse.


partum engorgement was imitated experimentally in rats by subcutaneous ligation of the teat ducts of a number of the glands (the remainder serving as controls) on the day after parturition, and the animals were then allowed to continue nursing their litters. Tied glands became obviously distended in about eight hours and the enlargement appeared to be maximal at twenty-four hours. At this stage, if the ligatures were loosened or the teats cut off under anesthesia, ejection of milk could be elicited by intravenous injection of 5-10 mU oxytocin. Histological examination showed the alveoli to be greatly distended but they were surrounded by an extensive capillary network which was full of blood. When engorgement was allowed to continue for forty-eight hours dramatic changes occurred both in the appearance and the responsiveness of the glands. They had become a dull white colour in marked contrast to the pinkish hue of normal glands. Histological study revealed that the capillary bed had collapsed and was almost devoid of blood cells. At this stage intravenous injection of 5-10 mU oxytocin no longer produced miLk ejection. That this failure to eject milk was due to the reduced capillary circulation rather than to myoepithelial incompetence was shown by the fact that as little as 0*001 mU oxytocin evoked a local contraction response when applied directly to the exposed surface of the gland. Other changes observed in glands engorged for forty-eight hours or more included vacuolation of the alveolar secretory cells which later showed progressive thinning, while the contained milk became thicker in consistency. The mechanism of closure of the mammary capillary bed in engorged glands is still the subject of study. It seems not to be the result of active constriction of the arterioles since these vessels appear unchanged in histological sections; moreover the sympatholytic drug 7337 ("Regitine" Ciba) does not restore capillary patency. It is possible that some substance in the retained milk exerts a direct constrictor effect on the capillaries. Observations on the changes occurring in the glands of rats whose litters have been removed show that the capillaries remain constricted until almost all the milk residue has been resorbed from the alveolar lumina. Shrinkage of the alveoli occurs before this time, so it appears unlikely that the capillary closure is wholly due to passive occlusion arising from the alveolar distension. Whether a constriction of the alveolar capillary bed develops in naturally occurring cases of mammary engorgement is uncertain. However, Pickles (1953) obtained evidence of a reduction in mammary blood flow in primary engorgement of the human breast, and Waller (1952) reported that in such cases posterior pituitary injections often failed to produce milk ejection. The latter finding accords with experience of the comparable condition occurring in pigs. It would seem advisable to commence treatment early, and to use oxytocic extract in preference to whole posterior pituitary extract since the vasopressin content of the latter would intensify mammary vasoconstriction.


This 7-minute video describes how Turning Point's Showbar can be used to manage questions during a presentation and includes useful techniques such as peer instruction and data slicing.


Wastewater discharge into freshwaters is a major source of pathogens. Relationship between bacterial pathogens in 3 paper mill effluents and recipient Owerrinta River was determined under standard microbiological analysis. The THBC of effluents and River ranged from 1.8 X 10 5 -7.2 X 10 6 cfu/ml and 2.0 X 10 3 – 5.5 X 10 4 cfu/ml while the TCBC ranged from 3.1 X104 – 8.8 X 104 cfu/ml and 1.0 X 103 – 2.0 X 104 cfu/ml respectively. Trend in counts for effluents within samples was: Effluent I > Effluent – II > Effluent – III while within river samples was B > C > A. Isolates occurred thus: Escherichia coli (100%), Klebsiella spp. (83.3%), Shigella spp. (66.7%), Salmonella spp. (83.3%), Proteus spp. (33.3%), Pseudomonas spp. (83.3%), Staphylococcus spp. (66.7%), Bacillus spp. (100%), and Citrobacter spp. (11.1%). The effluents contributed to the bacterial load and presence of pathogens, and the counts were above established limits for drinking water.


Abstract Observation of surface winds on the Drakensberg escarpment at Sani Pass reveals a marked diurnal variation of wind direction under clear weather conditions. By night north-westerly gradient winds commonly prevail while by day easterly winds are due to the overflow or a plainmountain circulation onto the 3000 m Lesotho massif at Sani Pass.


The aim of this work was to determine the effective degradability (ED) of CP for differ- ent feed legume seeds and the possible relationship with their physical and chemical characteristics. The ED was measured using nylon bags and rumen outflow rate techniques on three rumen cannulated wethers fed at 40 g DM·kg -0.75 , with a 2:1 (on DM basis) hay to concentrate diet. Nine seed samples of the following legume species were tested: lupin (Lupinus albus L., cultivar multolupa), dwarf chickling (Lathyrus cicera L.) ,c ommon chickling (Lathyrus sativus L.), common vetch (Vicia sativa L.) hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth.), bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia L.), monantha vetch (Vicia monantha Desf.) and field bean (Vicia faba L., variety minor Beck). Two different cultivars of this last species were studied: P69 (sample 1) and Jasper (sample 2). Estimates of ED of dry matter (DM) and crude protein (CP) were obtained for rumen outflow rates of 5.04 ± 0.31%·h -1 , determined for the diet concentrate. The variation of the ED of DM was moderate (from 58.8 to 69.2%) and correlated with the proportion of nitrogen linked to the acid detergent fibre (r = -0.847). Values of ED of CP of these seeds (in the above indicated order) were 79.4, 71.3, 80.7, 75.3, 75.4, 69.3, 76.6, 77.0, and 73.8%. Significant correlations between the ED of CP and the chemical composition or CP buffer solubility were not found. legume seeds / rumen degradability / protein


BACKGROUND
Obesity and insulin resistance increase the risk of laminitis in horses. Pioglitazone (PG) is an insulin-sensitizing drug used in humans that is absorbed after oral administration to horses.

HYPOTHESIS
PG treatment will increase insulin sensitivity and transcript abundance of glucose and lipid transporters in adipose and skeletal muscle tissues.

ANIMALS
Sixteen lean, healthy horses.

METHODS
Eight horses were administered PG (1 mg/kg bodyweight PO) for 12 days before induction of insulin resistance through IV administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Treated and untreated controls (CN; n = 8) were subjected to testing of peripheral insulin sensitivity and biopsies of both subcutaneous (nuchal ligament) adipose tissue and skeletal muscle before and after treatment, and 24 hours after LPS administration.

RESULTS
PG treatment did not improve basal insulin sensitivity (CNs: 1.4 ± 0.3, PG-treated: 1.9 ± 1.3; P > .4) or mitigate LPS-induced insulin resistance (CNs: 0.4 ± 0.3, PG-treated: 0.4 ± 0.3); however, transcript abundance of glucose and lipid transporters was altered in both skeletal muscle and subcutaneous adipose tissue.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE
Either a higher dose or longer treatment period might be required for physiological effects to be observed. PG is a novel therapeutic agent requiring further investigation in horses in order to determine treatment efficacy.


Literally, cubature is the transformation of a volume of arbitrary shapes into a cube of equal volume,1 in the vocabulary of public works this term refers rather to the measurement of this volume. This measurement is generally entrusted to the surveyor whose role has been essential in all civil works, mines and quarries. It is he who raises the geometric state of the place and its evolution through the surveys of dimensioned plans which are at the base of any calculation of cubature. The determination of cubature is important in various fields such as earthworks, quarries, mines, etc. Currently the most used method to meet this need is the conventional total station survey,2 However, this technique only allows surveying, a limited number of points which prevents the faithful representation of the objects and makes the work tedious especially in the case where the geometry of the forms to be raised is complex. In addition, recent technological developments have made two innovative technologies available, namely GPS,3 and Terrestrial Laser Scanners TLS. Through the advantages and richness of the raw product from SLT,4 terrestrial lasergrammetry plays an important role in calculating cubicles.5


'Minzu' (nation or nationality) is a term that appeared in China after the Opium Wars. From 1949, the PRC established a two-level national structure with the term 'minzu': the Chinese nation (zhonghua minzu) at the top and 56 nationalities (minzu) at the bottom. The PRC also adopted the Soviet model in regard to administration of and policies toward the minority 'minzu'. In recent years, amid increased tensions and conflicts among China's 'nationalities' (minzu), an ongoing debate among Chinese scholars has been observed. This paper reviews this debate and clarifies some misunderstandings among different viewpoints.


The aim of this study was to review the literature regarding the impact of rehabilitation on prognosis in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Cardio-rehabilitation is administered routinely in practice over the last two centuries. It underwent significant development in our times and is characterized by an accelerated rate and by the application of very intense exercise. Numerous studies in recent decades prove beyond doubt the benefits of cardio-rehabilitation in patients with acute myocardial infarction. It reflects favourably on the quality of life of patients and on their forecast. In confirmation of this statement are clear evidence of reduced total mortality, cardiovascular mortality and recurrent myocardial infarction in patients conducted cardio-rehabilitation. Article visualizations:


The present study examined the impact of cognitive behavioral group counseling in boosting self-esteem among recidivists. The study was conducted at Sodo and Arba Minch prisons, Ethiopia. This quasi-experimental study used a pre and post-test research design with a control group. During the first stage, the researcher identified recidivists from both prisons. The result revealed that there were 81 and 75 recidivists at Sodo and Arba Minch prisons respectively. All recidivists took the Rosenberg self-esteem scale in order to screen out those who have low self-esteem. Out of these, 21 recidivists of Sodo prison and 24 recidivists of Arba Minch prison were found with low self-esteem. As a result, 21 recidivists of Sodo prison with low self-esteem were assigned into an experimental group and 24 recidivists of Arba Minch prison with low self-esteem were assigned into a control group. Rosenberg Self-esteem scale was used for measuring self-esteem. Participants in the experimental group received group counseling for eight weeks, one day per week, for an hour per session with a total of 8 sessions.


Molecules of the title compound, C7H5NO3S, are linked by paired N—H⋯O=C hydrogen bonds into R22(8) dimers and these dimers are linked into a three-dimensional framework structure by a combination of three independent C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds.


For long-duration automated operation of regenerative life support systems in space environments, there is a need for advanced integration and control systems that are significantly more reliable and safe, and that support error recovery and minimization of operational failures. This presentation outlines some challenges of hazardous space environments and complex system interactions that can lead to system accidents. It discusses approaches to hazard analysis and error recovery for control software and challenges of supporting effective intervention by safety software and the crew.


The purpose of this study was to analyze the humoral immune response of non-pregnant women with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). The study group was consisted of 117 nonpregnant women with RSA and 44 healthy, non-pregnant multigravidas (as a control). The following immunological parameters were analyzed in peripheral blood of two groups of women: the effect of autologous sera on proliferation of lymphocytes stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) or paternal lymphocytes (in mixed lymphocyte reaction--MLR), incidence of MLR-blocking antibodies (MLR-BAbs) incidence of antinuclear and anticardiolipin antibodies. The results show that women with RSA of unknown etiology differ in some parameters of immune response--higher incidence of antinuclear and anticardiolipin antibodies, absence of serum factors suppressing lymphocyte proliferation in response to PHA and paternal alloantigens--in comparison with nonpregnant normal multigravidas.


This article describes the increases in transportation funding in the U.S., noting that bridge projects have become a fiscal priority for state and local authorities. The total amount of spending is expected to be $75.2 billion for bridge and highway improvements in 2007, up 4.5 percent from the previous year. This funding is necessary, the article indicates, as increasing numbers of the nation's bridges are being rated as deficient and requiring improvement. While currently the increase has taken place due to measures at the state level, the collapse of the Interstate 35W Bridge in August 2007 may generate more funding from the federal government. The first of these funds, expected to be around $250 million, are directed at the I-35W Bridge for clean-up and the construction of a new bridge. The article also describes a number of bridge projects in New York and California that will be completed as a result of this increase in funding.


This study aimed to identify the knowledge that young people who are crack users have on HIV and their situations of vulnerability. This is an exploratory, descriptive and qualitative research conducted in a therapeutic community in the city of Fortaleza, between January and March 2012. The study included 10 young men aged between 18 and 24 years. Information was collected through notes in a field diary and semi-structured interviews and data were analyzed using content analysis. The results indicated four thematic categories: who are the users of crack?; knowledge about HIV; prevention; and situations of vulnerability to HIV. The young men showed to have little knowledge about AIDS, especially believing in myths, and they are considered vulnerable to HIV, since they share pipes for the use of crack and lose consciousness favoring the practice of sex with multiple partners and without condoms. The research brings important information for the use healthcare professionals regarding the needs reported by young men and for them to plan educational strategies that might allow a reflection on the theme of drugs and its complex relationship with the various factors surrounding this issue, including HIV.


SUMMARY
Wound dehiscence is generally under-reported, with an estimated >4% occurrence rate in plastic surgery and can be an indicator of increased mortality or remission. In this work, we developed the Lasso suture as a stronger alternative to the current standard patterns that is also faster to perform than the standard "high-tension" wound repair method. To examine this, we dissected caprine skin specimens (SI, VM, HM, DDR, n=10; Lasso, n=9) to create full thickness skin wounds for suture repair using our Lasso technique and four traditional methods: simple interrupted (SI), vertical mattress (VM), horizontal mattress (HM), and deep dermal with running intradermal (DDR). We then conducted uniaxial failure testing to quantify the suture rupture stresses/strains. We also measured the suture operating time with medical students/residents (PGY or MS programs) performing wound repair (10 cm wide, 2 cm deep, 2-0 polydioxanone sutures) on soft-fixed human cadaver skin. Our developed Lasso stitch demonstrated a larger first suture rupture stress compared to all other patterns (p<0.001): 2.46 ± 0.27 MPa vs. SI, 0.69 ± 0.14 MPa; VM, 0.68 ±0.13 MPa; HM, 0.50 ±0.10 MPa; DDR, 1.17 ±0.28 MPa. The Lasso suture was also 28% faster to perform than the gold-standard DDR (264±21s vs. 349±25 s, p=0.027). In summary, we showed that the Lasso has superior mechanical properties compared to all the other studied (traditional) sutures and that the new technique can be performed faster than the current gold-standard (DDR stitch) used for high-tension wounds. Future animal and in-clinic studies will be helpful to confirm our findings in this proof-of-concept study.


This chapter reviews how empiricist philosophy shaped the dominant outside-in thinking in neuroscience that gave rise to the perception-decision-action framework. In contrast, the inside-out framework takes action as the primary source of knowledge. Action validates the meaning and significance of sensory signals by providing a second opinion. The chapter also compares the relationship between "blank slate" and preconfigured brain models. It describes the brain as a sort of "dictionary" with preexisting internal dynamics and syntactical rules, filled initially with nonsense neuronal words. These nonsense words acquire significance for the animal through exploratory action and represent a distinct event or situation. Preconfigured neuronal networks can generalize and provides fast and "good-enough" solutions under many situations, while detailed and precise computation mobilizes a large fraction of brain resources.


Objective A statistically significant improvement in nasal obstruction ratings following septoplasty is not necessarily clinically important. This study aimed to establish useful measures of septoplasty success, namely the minimal clinically important difference and the desirable clinically important difference. Methods Patients rated nasal obstruction on a 0–100 visual analogue scale pre-operatively and at 5.5 months post-operatively. Global outcome rating (completely, much, or somewhat improved, unchanged or worse) served as the anchor post-operatively. Minimal clinically important difference is the visual analogue scale value between 'somewhat improved' and 'unchanged', and the desirable clinically important difference is that between 'much' and 'somewhat improved'. Results Statistically significant improvement in visual analogue scale scores was not clinically important. The minimal clinically important difference (daytime value of 9.5) represented 15.1 per cent improvement and the desirable clinically important difference (daytime value of 28.5) represented 45.2 per cent, without gender or age differences. Conclusion Clinical success can be defined using a minimal clinically important difference of 15 per cent improvement over a patient's baseline value. Other studies' ratings of 'satisfactory' outcome coincided with a desirable clinically important difference of 45 per cent over baseline. These values are suggested as relevant indicators of septoplasty success.


The present study has for objective to propose a model of classification in visual impairment for elderly in rehabilitation program, based on the full cost of exploitation. Starting from the functional profile of the customers at the admission in the clinical program, an experimental approach made it possible to gather the customers in 5 homogeneous groups with regard to the consumption of the financial resources.


The existence of a unique and continuing temperature scale is essential for understanding and investigating historical scientific work which depends on precise temperature values. The determination of the densitytemperature relationships for water and mercury is representative of such work. Chappuis of the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) [1] and Thiesen et al. of the Physikalisch-Technische Reichsanstalt (PTR) [2] carried out extensive studies on the thermal dilatation of water with the temperature scale "́Echelle Normale" (abbreviated "EN") at the end of the nineteenth century. Chappuis performed three sets of experiments using a hard glass dilatometer in 1891 and 1892, and using a platinum dilatometer in 1895, as shown in Figure 1. Prior to the work on water, he carried out similar work on mercury in 1890 using the same glass dilatometer and the same thermometers used in the previous works [3], while