An afforestation method of the inclined plane is provided to recycle the waste material such as bottom ash and to improve the afforestation effect. An afforestation method of the inclined plane comprises the steps of mounting a dry soil material comprising 70 vol% of bottom ash, 20 vol% of the compost prepared by rotting domestic animal excretions and sawdust and 10 vol% of phosphogypsum on the inclined plane; and mounting a wet soil material comprising 70 vol% of bottom ash, 15 vol% of cocopeat, 15 vol% of paper-making fiber and 0.1 vol% of carboxymethyl cellulose on the dry soil material so as to adhered it to the inclined plane.


Abstract : Long Term Goal: We wish to improve our understanding of the measurement of brightness temperature and its relation to wind speed and direction and/or wind stress vector. Scientific Objectives: Examine space/time variability of directional properties of surface waves and wind stress and its relation to brightness temperature. 2. Investigate changes in emissivity with respect to surface roughness, foam coverage and breaking. 3. Explore how other environmental parameters such as rain, water vapor, salinity, temperature affect brightness temperature. 4. Explore scattering issues due to large-scale waves as a function of incidence angle, Bragg type scattering and sea foam. 5. Examine how wind direction signals could be extracted in the microwave brightness temperature measurements over a wide range of frequencies, incidence angles and wind speeds.


The present study depicts the therapeutic effect of Zygophyllum cornutum methanolic extract (ZCME) on metabolic disturbances, oxidative stress in heart and myocardium histological changes in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Three days after diabetes induction, ZCME was administered orally for six weeks (700 mg/kg bw/day). Serum glucose and lipid profile were evaluated. Reduced glutathione (GSH), catalase (CAT) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were measured in heart tissue. The results showed increased levels of blood glucose, total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglyceride (TG) in the diabetic rats. On the other hand, the level of HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) decreased. Compared to the control normal rats, the level of TBARS in heart tissue was markedly increased while GSH and CAT were significantly modified in the diabetic rats. Oral administration of ZCME has normalized serum glucose and lipid profile. TBARS were significantly reduced in heart while CAT and GSH were markedly normalized. Myocardium sections showed the absence of histological changes observed in the diabetic rats. The study suggests that Zygophyllum cornutum may provide a useful therapeutic option in the reversal of metabolic disturbances and oxidative stress-induced cardiac dysfunction in diabetes mellitus.


Objective To investigate the effect of budesonide in adjunctive treatment of children pneumonia clinical curative effect.Methods From 2009 April to 2012 February in our hospital for treatment of 196 cases of infantile pneumonia,were randomly divided into observation group and control group,the control group was given routine treatment,the observation group based on the control group was given budesonide treatment,comparative efficacy.Results The total efficiency of the observation group was 95.92%,the total efficiency of the control group was 85.71%,rales disappear disappearance time of time,cough,wheeze,asthma disappear disappearance time of time and duration of hospitalization of the observation group was significantly lower than that of control group(P0.05).Conclusion Budesonide in the treatment of children pneumonia,can significantly improve the treatment efficacy in children,accelerated recovery.


Of our national literature searches we could not find any case, even though we believe they should exist and that have not been documented. Therefore we justify filing unemployment in our country start casuistry. We wanted to bring the 29 Peruvian Congress this interesting case teaches us that all surgical specimens, like the scrapings and pieces expelled spontaneously, must have the sanction of the pathologist. This seems banal, but not always true and it is therefore appropriate to insist.


The statistic model of air-ground radio communication channel is characterized by the multipath fading,Doppler power spectrum and delay power spectrum.By considering the air-ground radio communication channel as a "two-ray model",the PDF of the received signal envelope,represented with the average power and the Rice factor,is developed.The Doppler power spectrum is derived by assuming that the arrival angle is a Gaussian random variable.The delay power spectrum is presented in terms of the radius of earth curvature.


The theory about enterprises cluster evolvement is much meaningful to cluster management and enterprise strategy making. In this paper, the competition and cooperation among cluster enterprises are analyzed. And four stages (agglomeration, division, innovation and conversion) with their characteristics, risks, government policies and enterprise strategies in each stage are studied. The authors suggest that the competition among cluster enterprises is the essential cause of cluster evolvement and the contradiction between cluster advantages and agglomeration diseconomy is the direct one.


Work to define and develop a full scale Space Station Freedom (SSF) mockup with the flexibility to evolve into future designs, to validate techniques for maintenance and logistics and verify human task allocations and support trade studies is described. This work began in early 1985 and ended in August, 1991. The mockups are presently being used at MSFC in Building 4755 as a technology and design testbed, as well as for public display. Micro Craft also began work on the Process Material Management System (PMMS) under this contract. The PMMS simulator was a sealed enclosure for testing to identify liquids, gaseous, particulate samples, and specimen including, urine, waste water, condensate, hazardous gases, surrogate gasses, liquids, and solids. The SSF would require many trade studies to validate techniques for maintenance and logistics and verify system task allocations; it was necessary to develop a full scale mockup which would be representative of current SSF design with the ease of changing those designs as the SSF design evolved and changed. The tasks defined for Micro Craft were to provide the personnel, services, tools, and materials for the SSF mockup which would consist of four modules, nodes, interior components, and part task mockups of MSFC responsible engineering systems. This included the Engineering Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) testbed. For the initial study, the mockups were low fidelity, soft mockups of graphics art bottle, and other low cost materials, which evolved into higher fidelity mockups as the R&D design evolved, by modifying or rebuilding, an important cost saving factor in the design process. We designed, fabricated, and maintained the full size mockup shells and support stands. The shells consisted of cylinders, end cones, rings, longerons, docking ports, crew airlocks, and windows. The ECLSS required a heavier cylinder to support the ECLSS systems test program. Details of this activity will be covered. Support stands were designed and built for each module to sufficiently move and rotate each module. Secondary structures such as floors, ceilings, bulkheads, standoffs, racks, etc. were developed and built.


As part of the NASA-sponsored Engine Component Improvement (ECI) Program, a feasibility analysis of performance improvement and retention concepts for the CF6-6 and CF6-50 engines was conducted and seven concepts were identified for development and ground testing: new fan, new front mount, high pressure turbine aerodynamic performance improvement, high pressure turbine roundness, high pressure turbine active clearance control, low pressure turbine active clearance control, and short core exhaust nozzle. The development work and ground testing are summarized, and the major test results and an enomic analysis for each concept are presented.


The replicative cycle of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) offers a number of molecular targets for intervention by potential antiviral agents, yet the propensity of the virus to continuously mutate allows the organism to escape inhibition by anti-HIV agents. This review summarises current knowledge on the therapeutic potential of newly identified molecular targets of the virus such as Vpr, Nef, antitat, cyclophilin A, p7 nucleocapsid protein, integrase, leucine zipper as well as the cellular targets, phosphatidic acid and I@ protein. Advances in new inhibitors of the established targets, reverse transcriptase (RT), protease (PR), Tat and Rev are also presented. Emphasis is placed on novel drugs currently in clinical trials, or those showing promise in pre-clinical development. Two sections covering the newly approved anti-AIDS drugs, 3TCTM, saquinavir and stavudine and the merits of combination therapy as a powerful strategy to combat the virus are included, reflecting significant milestones achieved in 1995.


To study the clinical correlations between diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2 and hyperplastic processes of the thyroid gland (TG), we conducted a survey of the participants of Chernobyl accident consequences elimination — 125 men aged 61.95 ± 0.66 years and 24 women aged 62.13 ± 1.34 years (group I), evacuees — 6 men aged 56.00 ± 6.45 years and 18 women aged 58.56 ± 2.07 years (group II), residents of contaminated territories — 32 men aged 59.69 ± 2.13 years and 67 women aged 58.39 ± 1.23 years (group III). The control group consisted of Kyiv residents — 18 men aged 59.00 ± 2.45 years and 34 women aged 57.88 ± 2.61 years diagnosed with DM type 2 and pathology of the TG. Results. The incidence of hyperplastic processes of the TG in patients with DM type 2, who suffered from the disaster, was higher among women (79.2 %) than among men — 45.6 % (χ2 = 9.078; p = 0.003), similarly to the group control — 55.9 and 16.7 %, respectively (χ2 = 7.415; p = 0.007), it was significantly higher among male victims of the accident than in the control group (χ2 = 5.41; p = 0.02). We had established a strong direct correlation between the level of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and body mass index (BMI) (r = 0.799; p = 0.031), glycated hemoglobin (r = 0.999; p = 0.027) among men in the control group. During multivariate analysis, we have found the probable model of the duration of DM type 2 and development of hyperplastic processes in the TG (F = 6.6947; p = 0.00022) and its absence for other indicators, namely: BMI (F = 1.7351; p = 0.15969), TSH (F = 0.29968; p = 0.82559), the C-peptide (F = 0.09665; p = 0.96160) and glycated hemoglobin (F = 0.17955; p = 0.90996). Conclusions. In patients with DM type 2, who suffered from the Chornobyl disaster, the incidence of hyperplastic processes in the TG statistically significantly exceeds the rate in unirradiated individuals and depends on the gender, duration of the underlying disease and its decompensation.


This paper presents an approach to the classification of structured data with graphs. We suggest to use a graph signature in order to solve the problem of complexity in measuring the distance between graphs. We choose a numerical matrix to embed both topological and labeling information. The use of this matrix allows us to use some classical tools of classification, computation of distances or feature selection. After a description of the matrix and the method to extract it, we compare the results achieved on public graph databases for the classification of symbols and letters using this graph signature.


In the development of epithelial prostate gland, the homeobox protein (HOXB13) plays a crucial role. The prostate gland pathogenesis is thought to be aided by the overexpression of HOXB13, which is observed throughout the development of prostatic tissue's malignant transformation. The tumor suppressor protein p21 is hypothesized to be inhibited by HOXB13 in androgen-decient circumstances. To have a deeper knowledge of HOXB13's function in prostate cancer, its crucial cascade partners in the ventral prostate development must be claried. In this review, we discuss the different roles of HOXB13 in other malignancies along with the prostate cancer including its functions such as wound healing, cellular differentiation, and angiogenesis


Emotion recognition in conversations is crucial for building empathetic machines. Present works in this domain do not explicitly consider the inter-personal influences that thrive in the emotional dynamics of dialogues. To this end, we propose Interactive COnversational memory Network (ICON), a multimodal emotion detection framework that extracts multimodal features from conversational videos and hierarchically models the self- and inter-speaker emotional influences into global memories. Such memories generate contextual summaries which aid in predicting the emotional orientation of utterance-videos. Our model outperforms state-of-the-art networks on multiple classification and regression tasks in two benchmark datasets.


Tin (IV)-doped zinc oxide ceramics find its main application as specific gas sensor devices. The sensor ability of the mixture and its particular affinity for a particular gas (selectivity) depends both on the crystalline phases in the microstructure of the sintered semiconductor and on the degree of tin incorporation into ZnO lattice. By means of a highly reactive coprecipitation method it is revealed that the range of solid solution of tin in zinc oxide stays below 0.1 mol % of SnO2 since higher concentrations lead to segregation of a secondary Zn2SnO4 spinel type-phase.


In the present study, researchers used contemporary attachment theory to explore the contributions of adult attachment styles on workers' preferences for relational leadership behaviors. A sample of 617 workers in a retail organization across ten stores throughout the East, South, and Midwest completed measures of relationship attachment style and preferences for leadership behaviors. As hypothesized, findings revealed that workers with preoccupied adult attachment styles expressed stronger preferences for relational leadership behaviors than workers with either dismissive adult attachment styles or fearful attachment styles. Implications of the findings to advance a deeper understanding of workers' leadership behavioral preferences are discussed.


One of the finest railroad stations in the South is the New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal. Automobiles are parked outside the terminal near sidewalks and landscaped areas.


BACKGROUND
Low birth weight (LBW), anaemia and malaria are common in Papua New Guinean women.

METHODS
To identify risk factors for LBW, anaemia and preterm delivery (PTD), pregnant women recruited into a cohort study in Madang, Papua New Guinea, were followed to delivery.

RESULTS
Of 470 women enrolled, delivery data were available for 328 (69.7%). By microscopy, 34.4% (113/328) of women had malaria parasitaemia at enrolment and 12.5% (41/328) at delivery; at each time point, PCR detected sub-microscopic parasitaemia in substantially more. Most infections were with Plasmodium falciparum; the remainder being predominantly P. vivax. Anaemia and smoking were associated with lower birth weight, and LBW (16.7%; 51/305) and PTD (21.8%; 63/290) were common. Histopathologically diagnosed chronic placental malaria was associated with LBW (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 3.3; p=0.048) and PTD (aOR 4.2; p=0.01). Lack of maternal education predisposed to PTD. Sub-microscopic parasitaemia at delivery appeared to increase the risk of LBW. Of the genetic polymorphisms, Southeast Asian ovalocytosis, α(+)-thalassaemia and complement receptor 1 (CR1) deficiency, a CR1 heterozygous genotype was associated with decreased risk of anaemia and substantial but non-significant effects were noted in other comparisons.

CONCLUSIONS
In coastal Papua New Guinea, malaria and anaemia are important causes of adverse pregnancy outcomes.


A visible-light mediated multicomponent cascade reaction of diselenides, alkynes, and sulfur dioxide was developed, multiple C-Se and C-S bonds were constructed, and unexpected β -sulfonylvinylselane compounds in high selectivity for E configuration were generated. β -Sulfonylvinylselane transformation into 1,4-oxathiine 4,4-dioxide and sulfonylethyne derivates was then investigated. A plausible mechanism involving selenium radical-initiated cascade reaction and sulfur dioxide insertion was proposed.


DEFRA has confirmed the isolation of Taylorella equigenitalis (the contagious equine metritis organism [CEMO]) by identification of the agent using PCR and culture from clitoral swab samples taken from an asymptomatic 15-year-old thoroughbred mare in Gloucestershire.

According to the owner, this retired National Hunt race mare has never been covered by a thoroughbred stallion and has never been pregnant, but was unsuccessfully inseminated with semen from a non-thoroughbred stallion last season. This …


Abstract This article explores the changing trajectory of T.E. Lawrence's interaction with the Arab East on the eve of modernity. It traces his pre-First World War scholarly interest in Levantine antiquities (his archaeological expeditions in Syria), through to his subsequent military engagement in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918). An analysis of Lawrence's adoption of various forms of Middle-Eastern attire provides a narrative of the events that led to his metamorphosis from a passive scholar into an active soldier. The article examines the homoerotic strands in Lawrence's assumption of Oriental disguise and highlights its metaphorical significance vis-à-vis the political marriage of British imperial interests and Arab nationalist ambitions in the Arab campaign. The article finally draws on the implications of the Anglo–Arab alliance and its impact on changing the region and altering the image of the 'Unchanging East'.


The invention relates to identification based on nano-particle, which is safeguard and protection of bar code information by means of nano-particle point mixture. The identification coding and a concurrent reader are developed through special spectral characteristic of the nano-particle micron mixture; the point mixture is small and sightless, and consists of absorbable and fluorescent nano-particle; the spectra property can be applied to secure identification marks.


Using three actuators, in this article, we construct a control system for rubber-tired gantry (RTG) cranes to track three actuated outputs and stabilize two unactuated outputs. The controller is designed by utilizing the fast-terminal sliding mode, fractional calculus, and backstepping. Considering that RTG cranes encounter with uncertainties and random winds, an adaptive mechanism is constituted using neural networks to estimate uncertain parameters and unknown winds. A neural observer that reduces the number of sensors by half is also proposed for approximating feedback velocities. By applying these advanced techniques, the control system is endowed with adaptive and robust features. The quality and effectiveness of the control system are investigated by simulation and experimentation.


One of the major concerns identified in the framework of the Neutrino-Factory study is the feasibility of very high gradient RF cavities which are exposed to high radiation. All scenarios rely on fast acceleration and cooling of the muon/pion beam of short lifetime. A net accelerating gradient of 5 MV/m is often stated as a design goal. The operational cavity surface field has therefore to reach about 10 MV/m. This experiment is designed to provide information on the behaviour of an RF cavity in a high radiation field prior to the muon targetry and capture experiment at BNL, initially written as: "A proposal for an R&D Program for Targetry and Capture at a Muon-Collider Source" and now authorized as BNL experiment E951. C.D. Johnson (CERN) proposed to use the proton beam in the existing CERN/AD target area to irradiate the cavity under test (see his proposal: http://cdj.home.cern.ch/cdj/public/rf/Proposal.htm). A frequency at 200 MHz was chosen because of the availability of equipment.


Currently, the cement being used for hemiarthroplasties and total hip replacements by the authors and many other surgeons in the UK is Palacos® (containing 0.5g Gentamicin). Similar cement, Copal® (containing 1g Gentamicin and 1g Clindamycin) has been used in revision arthroplasties, and has shown to be better at inhibiting bacterial growth and biofilm formation. We aim to investigate the effect on SSI rates of doubling the gentamicin dose and adding a second antibiotic (clindamycin) to the bone cement in hip hemiarthroplasty. We randomised 848 consecutive patients undergoing cemented hip hemiarthroplasty for fractured NOF at one NHS trust (two sites) into two groups: Group I, 464 patients, received standard cement (Palacos®) and Group II, 384 patients, received high dose, double antibiotic-impregnated cement (Copal®). We calculated the SSI rate for each group at 30 days post-surgery. The patients, reviewers and statistician were blinded as to treatment group. The demographics and co-morbid conditions (known to increase risk of infection) were statistically similar between the groups. The combined superficial and deep SSI rates were 5 % (20/394) and 1.7% (6/344) for groups I and II respectively (p=0.01). Group I had a deep infection rate 3.3 %(13/394) compared to 1.16% (4/344) in group II (p=0.082). Group I had a superficial infection rate 1.7 % (7/394) compared to 0.58% (2/344) in group II (p=0.1861). 33(4%) patients were lost to follow up, and 77 (9%) patients were deceased at the 30 day end point. There was no statistical difference in the 30 day mortality, C. difficile infection, or the renal failure rates between the two groups. Using high dose double antibiotic-impregnated cement rather than standard low dose antibiotic-impregnated cement significantly reduced the SSI rate (1.7% vs 5%; p=0.01) after hip hemiarthroplasty for fractured neck of femur in this prospective randomised controlled trial.


Abstract A highly efficient approach to the synthesis of the angiotensin II receptor antagonist valsartan (Diovan), one of the most important agents used in antihypertensive therapy today is described. The formation of the aryl–aryl bond represents the key step of its synthesis, which has been done by simple nucleophelic aromatic substitution on aryloxazoline with good yield and purity.


Neurofibromatosis-1(NF-1) is one of the most common single-gene disorders in humans. Patients with NF-1 may present with a wide variety of clinical manifestations. Spinal deformity is the most common musculoskeletal manifestation of NF-1. Rib head dislocation into the spinal canal is not a common entity but if left untreated can lead to serious neurological complications. The present report describes thoracolumbar dystrophic scoliosis with rib head dislocation into the spinal canal in a 28-year-old male who presented with complaint of spinal deformity with gait disturbance. Cobb angles measured 92 degrees of scoliosis (T9-L2), and 110 degrees of kyphosis and also highlights the importance of preoperative planning and radiological imaging for the successful surgical outcomes and our experience of single-stage posterior deformity correction with pedicle screw construct along with rib head excision.


HU Qiao mu,as a leader of CPC Central Committee in his late years,mainly in charge of ideological sphere,started and organized a sharp critical movement against the Japanese right wingers for their amendment of history textbooks,falsifying historical facts,denial of the Nanjing Massacre and other disgraceful actions.He suggested policies and measures,with the help of modern history especially history of imperialists' invasion into China,to carry out patriotic educatin to the Chinese people.He criticized the Japanese right wingers in order to respect history,to keep justice and to promote the friendly relationship between the Chinese and Japanese peoples,which shows his political foresight and patriotic spirit.


The RFCS project SIROCO (2014–17) included research on the further development and optimization of double shear connections with injection bolts to achieve slip‐ and creep‐resistant bolted connections considering various influencing parameters. The type of resin, the curing condition of the resin, the geometrical and mechanical characteristics of the connection and the type of loading were studied. Results showed, for example, that of the five epoxy resins investigated, only RenGel SW404 + HY2404 (Araldite) fulfils the requirements given in Eurocode 3. A bearing stress of 175 MPa is safely allowable in the long‐term without exceeding imposed deformation limits.


Few studies of national character have employed a scientifically drawn sample of an entire nation, although the value of such a sample is generally recognized ( 5 , pp. 62-63 ) . Nations are not homogeneous, and unrepresentative sampling can prove highly misleading. Unfortunately, students of national character rarely have at their disposal a national polling organization; while the commercial pollsters, who control such resources, usually ask questions, such as the choice of candidates in elections, which are too specifically tied to immediate events to throw much light on problems of national character. On rare occasions, however, a reputable national polling organization employs a question that, perhaps inadvertently, probes a rich vein at the level of values and personality. Such a question was employed in 1955 in England by the British Institute of Public Opinion ( 1 ) . Moreover, happily, the identical question had been asked two years earlier in the United States by the American Institute of Public Opinion ( 8) , thus making possible a cross-national comparison. +The samplings are sufficiently close together in time so that the possibility of differences being attributable to historical change can hardly be entertained. The question asked in each country, close to the end of the calendar year, was simply whether the respondent planned to make any New Year's resolutions and, if so, what they were. The replies are of value because such resolutions express a determination to remedy in one's future behavior some perceived inadequacy in one's past behavior. An attempt is being made to reconcile imperfections in one's behavior in the face of day-to-day exigencies with personally or culturally salient values. Thus, not only are values revealed but also possible loci of conflict between incompatible values or between private and official values. The replies reveal, first, that 20% of Americans and 24% of the British planned to make New Year's resolutions. Although this difference is statistically significant by virtue of the large size of the samples, it is not sufficiently large to encourage a firm assertion that more British than Americans make resolutions.


In Ref. [1] a technique to suppress the instability with the help of a reversible electron beam heater was proposed. It employs transverse deflecting cavities synchronized in a way that one of the cavities, located before a bunch compressor, generates a slice energy spread, while the other one removes it after the beam passes through the bunch compressor. In this paper we demonstrate that a reversible heater equivalent to that of [1] can be designed using much simpler elements: bend magnets and quadrupoles in combination with the energy chirp of the beam.


Abstract This paper addresses the one-dimensional stability of non-Brownian concentrated suspensions of solid particles in a viscous, Newtonian host fluid. Recent developments have shown the particle phase pressure to strongly affect suspension stability, but a concensus on the representation of this quantity remains a subject of some controversy. Here, attention is focused on the particle phase pressure that has a viscous origin. The form of this viscous particle interaction is developed for suspensions using an energy dissipation approach, and it is included in the conservation equations for the suspension to determine its effect on sedimenting or fluidized particles at very high concentrations. By means of a linear perturbation analysis, its affect on stability is analyzed, and it is shown to have a highly altenuative and dispersive effect on concentration waves.


Let's assume, like most non technical investors, you are holding stocks and the market is going down. You are worried but you consider yourself a long term investor so have not sold anything. But now you are getting fearful that we may have another GFC, that we are in bear market and that maybe you would be better off selling and coming back later, hopefully when the stocks you sold are cheaper and you can buy them back.


The present paper, which is based on an experiment conducted with thirty-six third year undergraduate students majoring in EFL, proposes an approach to teaching civilisation to make it an important subject that enhancescontent and skills, both of which are necessary in the education of well-versed, thoughtful, and judicious students. In this method, small groups of students combine the use of various books and multimedia assets to investigate a given topic covering a specific time period and dealing with a major development in American history. Students are expected both to find a video clip or a filmand to prepare an original PowerPoint presentation on the basis of predefined questions to explore the main themes and deal with key elements, such as events, facts, dates, terms, treaties, regulations, and people.Contrary to conventional approaches, this method, which partly depends on the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), can support a student-centred learning environment in which students become more active and self-motivated learners and critical thinkers of historical events and facts. Other anticipated secondary benefits from such a pedagogical endeavour in the American civilisation class are the promotion of students' reading, thinking, writing, and speaking skills, as well as the increase of their abilities to navigate the internet and master digital technologies.


Previously, we identified a Plasmodium yoelii YM 140-kDa merozoite protein, designated PyP140, which formed a complex with apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1). Furthermore, we produced a nonprotective monoclonal antibody (MAb), 48F8, that immunoprecipitated metabolically labeled PyP140 and localized the protein to the merozoite's apical end and, less frequently, to the merozoite surface, as observed by immuno- fluorescence assay (IFA). Here, using MAb 48F8, we have identified the pyp140 gene by screening a P. yoelii (cid:1) -Zap cDNA expression library. The pyp140 cDNA covers approximately 90% of the putative open reading frame (ORF) of PY02159 from the P. yoelii NL genome sequencing project. Analysis of the complete gene identified the presence of two introns. The ORF encodes a 102,407-Da protein with an amino-terminal signal sequence, a series of three unique types of repeats, and a cysteine-rich region. The binding site of MAb 48F8 was also identified. A BLAST search with the deduced amino acid sequence shows significant similarity with the Toxoplasma gondii RON4 protein and the Plasmodium falciparum RON4 protein, and the sequence is highly conserved in other Plasmodium species. We produced the cysteine-rich domain of PyP140/RON4 by using the Pichia pastoris expression system and characterized the recombinant protein biochemically and biophysically. BALB/c mice immunized with the protein formulated in oil-in-water adjuvants produced antibodies that recognize parasitized erythrocytes by IFA and native PyP140/RON4 by immunoblotting but failed to protect against a lethal P. yoelii YM infection. Our results show that PyP140/RON4 is located within the rhoptries or micronemes. It may associate in part with AMA1, but the conserved cysteine-rich domain does not appear to elicit inhibitory antibodies, a finding that is supported by the marked sequence conservation in this protein within Plasmodium spp., suggesting that it is not under immune pressure. immunoblot analysis, native proteins that had been transferred electrophoretically onto nitrocellulose membranes and stored at (cid:5) 80°C were used, essentially as previously described (20). Analytical reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), N-terminal sequencing, and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Purified PpPyP140/RON4 protein was acidified with 10% (vol/vol) trifluoroacetic acid (TFA; Fisher Scientific) to a final concentration of 0.1% TFA (vol/vol) and then microcentrifuged at 13,000 rpm for 2 min. Approximately 100 (cid:7) g of PpPyP140/ RON4 was analyzed on a Vydac (Hesperia, CA) C 4 reverse-phase column (2.1-mm internal diameter [ID] (cid:8) 250 mm). The initial mobile phase combined 99% mobile phase A (0.1% [wt/vol] TFA in water) and 1% mobile phase B (0.1% [wt/vol] TFA in acetonitrile). PpPyP140/RON4 was eluted with increasing con-centrations of mobile phase B, with the flow rate maintained at 0.2 ml/min over 60 min. The primary peak was collected, vacuum dried in organic mode (Ep-pendorf Vacufuge), and submitted to the NIAID Research Technology Branch (RTB/NIAID/NIH, Rockville, MD) for mass spectrometry measurements and N-terminal sequencing. Analytical SEC-MALS-HPLC and quasi-elastic light scattering. The purity, identity, and aggregation profile of purified PpPyP140/RON4 were analyzed using size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) with in-line multiangle light scattering (MALS), refractive index, and UV detection (25). A Waters (Milford, MA) model 2695 HPLC instrument, Waters model 2996 PDA detector, Wyatt (Santa Barbara, CA) Dawn EOS light-scattering detector, Wyatt quasi-elastic light- scattering detector, and Wyatt Optilab DSP refractive


Different investment channels are proposed and some countermeasures to increase forest investment under condition of market economy are suggested according to different purposes of forest management.


In this paper, we analyzed the factors of adoption and implemented a predictive model to activate the adoption of animals. Recently, animal shelters are saturated due to the abandonment and loss of companion animals. To address this, we need to find a way to encourage adoption. In this paper, a study was conducted using two data from an open data portal provided by Austin, Texas. First, a correlation analysis was conducted to identify the attributes that affect the result value, and it was found that Animal Type Intake, Intake Type, and Age upon Outcome influence the Outcome Type with correlation coefficients of 0.4, 0.26, and -0.2, respectively. For these attributes, the analysis was conducted using Multiclass Logistic Regression. As a result, dogs had a higher probability of Adoption than cats, and animals subjected to euthanasia were more likely to adopt. In the case of Public Assist and Stray, it was found that the Missing rate was high. Also, the length of stay for cats increased to 12.5 years of age, while dogs generally adopted smoothly at all ages. These results showed an overall accuracy of 62.7% and an average accuracy of 91.7%, showing a fairly reliable result. Therefore, it seems that it can be used to develop a plan to promote the adoption of animals according to various factors. Also, it can be expanded to various services by interlocking with the webserver.


Abstract Petascale archives of Earth observations from space (EOS) have the potential to characterise water resources at continental scales. For this data to be useful, it needs to be organised, converted from individual scenes as acquired by multiple sensors, converted into "analysis ready data", and made available through high performance computing platforms. Moreover, converting this data into insights requires integration of non-EOS data-sets that can provide biophysical and climatic context for EOS. Digital Earth Australia has demonstrated its ability to link EOS to rainfall and stream gauge data to provide insight into surface water dynamics during the hydrological extremes of flood and drought. This information is supporting the characterisation of groundwater resources across Australia's north and could potentially be used to gain an understanding of the vulnerability of transport infrastructure to floods in remote, sparsely gauged regions of northern and central Australia.


A genetic algorithm (GA) is a meta-heuristic computation method that is inspired by Darwin's theory of evolution. GA has a promising future in optimization and search problems. It has caught the interest of researchers in the fields of data science, artificial intelligence, and mathematics among many others. GA depends on various operators which include parent selection, crossover, and mutation. The crossover and mutation operators incorporate diversity in the population. GA has a dependency on genetic diversity just like thriving species of any habitat. In the natural world, isolated species and small populations amplify genetic drift, increasing their chances of loss of alleles including beneficial ones. Existing research in GA has an emphasis on natural selection, however, another mechanism of evolution i.e., Genetic drift is not studied in GA. Genetic drift, like in nature, also affects genetic algorithms as it mimics natural processes. Genetic drift causes fixation of alleles and loss of diversity, making GA provide a sub-optimal solution. This research establishes the negative effects of demographic restrictions on the population as observed in the natural world. Subsequently establishes a link between research in biodiversity and evolution in the natural world to enhance the performance of GA in the digital world.


The effectiveness of standard surgical techniques for inflammatory diseases of nasal and paranasal sinuses has been well established for more than a century. With the recent popularization of endoscopic sinus surgery, however, many of these techniques are now considered radical [1]. The classic transbuccal maxillorhinostomy, described first in 1 893 by George CaIdwell [2] and then in 1897 by Henry Luc of Paris (Caldwell-Luc operation), was one of the most common techniques for the relief of maxillary sinusitis [1]. This operation is now rarely used for chronic hyperplastic rhinosinusitis. It is used mainly for the removal of tumors of the maxillary sinus and for patients in whom intranasal antrostomy or endoscopic decompression of the ostiomeatal complex is not effective [1]. Likewise, in many instances, for patients with chronic hyperplastic rhinosinusitis, procedures such as transantral ethmoidectomy, external ethmoidectomy, external frontoethmoidectomy, and standard intranasal sphenoethmoidectomy have been replaced by endoscopic sinus surgery. The proponents of endoscopic sinus surgery advocate conservative approaches for chronic hyperplastic nasal and paranasal diseases. They argue that limited procedures aimed at mechanical clearance of the ostiomeatal complex might be effective in controlling chronic sinonasal diseases [3]. The anterior ethmoidal air cells and the middle meatal area play important roles as sites of early involvement in most inflammatory sinus diseases, other than those infections arising from a dental origin [3]. Messerklinger [4-6] showed that in most cases, infection spreads from the anterior ethmoidal area and middle meatal region to secondarily affect the maxillary and frontal sinuses. It has been shown that severe mucosal disease in frontal and maxillary sinuses usually resolves when normal ventilation and mucociliary clearance of the middle meatus is restored and ethmoidal disease is eradicated [3]. According to Kennedy et al. [3], the term ostiomeatal unit was coined by H. Naumann, who used it to refer to the complex anatomic structures formed by the anterior ethmoidal area and the middle meatus. Some authors [3] refer to the ethmoidal infundibulum, frontal recess, anterior ethmoidal air cells and their ostia, and maxillary sinus ostium as the ostiomeatal complex. The concept of endoscopic sinus surgery [3] evolved from the work of Hilding [7, 8], Proctor [9, 10], and Messerklinger [4-6] on mucociliary clearance and air flow in the paranasal sinuses and on the importance of establishing drainage and preserving mucosae of the sinuses. Endoscopic sinus surgery is based on the hypothesis that the ostiomeatal complex is the key area in the pathogenesis of chronic sinus diseases [3-6, 11-17]. Minor pathologic changes in the nasal mucosa in the vicinity of the ostiomeatal complex may interfere with mucociliary clearance or with the ventilation of the maxillary, ethmoidal, and frontal sinuses. Because of the increased awareness of the role of these pathologic changes in the ostiomeatal complex and because of the knowledge that endoscopic surgical procedures could be used to correct the underlying problem in this region, with the resultant resolution of secondary mucosal diseases in the frontal, maxillary, and ethmoid sinuses, Kennedy et al. [3] termed this approach functional endoscopic sinus surgery. The underlying principle of functional endoscopic sinus surgery is that the sinus mucosa will return to normal if adequate drainage


Introduction: Among the most areally extensive reservoirs of water ice on Mars, the south polar layered deposits (SPLD) in particular contain compelling evidence of variations in the planet's recent climatological history. The SPLD exhibits interbedded dust of varying thicknesses accumulated at different stages of Mars' recent orbital history [1, 2]. Early analysis of the SPLD stratigraphy was focused along the margins where layers were exposed at the surface [3-5]. Since then, radar instruments in orbit have been used to penetrate the surface of the ice to observe the stratigraphic variations throughout the interior of the SPLD [6-8]. Variations of ice and dust thicknesses show that the SPLD has undergone identifiable erosional and depositional processes before its current stagnation, providing more insight into climate behaviors during its emplacement [9]. Radar investigations have also shown the SPLD interior to exhibit low reflectivity zones, some of which are known to host sequestered carbon dioxide ice that may have played a role in the retention of surface water during past climate conditions [10, 11]. The continued collection of radar data from the SPLD will play a large role in the study of Mars' recent climate history. However, there are observable gaps in the radar datasets that may yield important information about certain parts of the SPLD interior. In particular, the ability of radar to penetrate through the entire SPLD appears to vary with signal frequency [6]. The preliminary work presented here aims to begin addressing the cause of this phenomenon by first mapping out the regions where the signal reaches the base of the SPLD. Methods: Two orbital radar sounders prove useful for studying the SPLD interior. The Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) [12] emits a signal frequency of 20 MHz with a bandwidth of 10 MHz. SHARAD's along-track resolution is 0.3-1.0 km and has a vertical resolution of ~15 m in free space (~8 m in geologic materials). The Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS) instrument aboard Mars Express (MEX) [13] is capable of emitting at 1.8, 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0 MHz with a bandwidth of 1 MHz and an along-track resolution of 5-10 km. The signal reflections are processed to produce radargrams that highlight some of the underlying stratigraphy within the SPLD. One hundred and seventeen incoherently summed SHARAD radargrams [6] covering the south polar region of Mars were analyzed to identify potential basal reflectors. The identified reflectors were then sorted by confidence level with the following classifications: distinct, somewhat distinct/uncertain, and very uncertain. Distinct features are interpreted with high confidence to be part of the basal reflector; they tend to be vertically removed from and do not exactly conform to the shape of the overlying reflectors (Fig. 1). Somewhat distinct/uncertain reflectors are unmistakably visible but can be harder to distinguish as unique from the overlying reflectors of the SPLD. In particular, somewhat distinct reflectors have a strong signal but could be questionable when trying to distinguish from the lowest reflector in a packet of reflectors. Some of the more uncertain reflectors are detected at the edge of the SPLD and often follow the shape of the ground surface just outside the edges of the ice; however, these signals tend to disappear very quickly and are harder to distinguish from overlying reflectors. The very uncertain reflectors are mostly of the same nature


Aquatic Dipterans are a diverse assemblage of insects that make up important components of aquatic ecosystems. Because of their importance in these systems, aquatic dipterans are ideal candidates to monitor water heavy metal pollution. This review summarizes the species diversity of these insects and their potential use for monitoring heavy metal pollution. We describe the influence of heavy metal pollution on the morphological and internal structural changes of aquatic Dipteral insects. Finally, we highlight research into the biochemical and molecular markers that provide sensitive information necessary to detect the very early stages of heavy metal pollution.