Monoterpenes are a diverse class of compounds with applications as flavors and fragrances, pharmaceuticals and more recently, jet fuels. Engineering biosynthetic pathways for monoterpene production in microbial hosts has received increasing attention. However, monoterpenes are highly toxic to many microorganisms including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a widely used industrial biocatalyst. In this work, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for S. cerevisiae was determined for five monoterpenes: β‐pinene, limonene, myrcene, γ‐terpinene, and terpinolene (1.52, 0.44, 2.12, 0.70, 0.53 mM, respectively). Given the low MIC for all compounds tested, a liquid two‐phase solvent extraction system to alleviate toxicity during fermentation was evaluated. Ten solvents were tested for biocompatibility, monoterpene distribution, phase separation, and price. The solvents dioctyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, isopropyl myristate, and farnesene showed greater than 100‐fold increase in the MIC compared to the monoterpenes in a solvent‐free system. In particular, the MIC for limonene in dibutyl phthalate showed a 702‐fold (308 mM, 42.1 g L−1 of limonene) improvement while cell viability was maintained above 90%, demonstrating that extractive fermentation is a suitable tool for the reduction of monoterpene toxicity. Finally, we estimated that a limonane to farnesane ratio of 1:9 has physicochemical properties similar to traditional Jet‐A aviation fuel. Since farnesene is currently produced in S. cerevisiae, its use as a co‐product and extractant for microbial terpene‐based jet fuel production in a two‐phase system offers an attractive bioprocessing option. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2012; 109: 2513–2522. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


Objective
To analyze the molecular characteristics of qnrS-positive Escherichia coli (E.coli) strains resistant to quinolone.

Methods
A total of 57 qnrS1-positive clinical isolates were collected from Fujian Medical University Union Hospital. Plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes [qnrA, qnrB, qnrC, qnrD, aac(6′)-Ib-cr, qepA and oqxAB] and β-lactamase genes (blaCTX-M-1, blaCTX-M-2, blaCTX-M-8, blaCTX-M-9, blaSHV and blaTEM) were detected by PCR and then sequenced. Agar dilution method was used to analyze the antimicrobial susceptibility of the qnrS1-positive strains. Phylogenetic analysis was conducted using PCR. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was performed for phenotyping. Enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR) was used to evaluate the genetic similarity between those isolates. Transferability of the qnrS1 genes carried by the 57 strains was examined by conjugation test with the sodiumazide-resistant E. coli J53 as the recipient strain. Mutations in the quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDR) in those strains were analyzed by PCR.

Results
All of the qnrS1-positive E. coli strains showed high resistance to quinolones. PMQR genes were harbored by 14 (24.6%) isolates. Extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs)-producing isolates accounted for 68.4%. Mutations in the QRDR of gyrA, gyrB, parC and parE genes were found in 56 (98.2%) strains and the most frequent point mutations were S83L (89.5%) in gyrA gene, S80I (54.4%) in parC gene and P415V (28.1%) in parE gene. The qnrS1 gene was successful transferred from 13 (22.8%) isolates to E. coli J53 by conjugation. Five plasmid incompatibility groups were detected. Phylogenetic analysis showed that there were 36 (63.2%), 13 (22.8%), 1 (1.8%) and 7 (12.3%) isolates belonging to groups A, B1, B2 and D, respectively. The 57 qnrS1-positive E. coli strains were assigned to 50 ERIC types and 39 sequence types (ST) based on the results of ERIC-PCR and MLST.

Conclusions
Mutations in the QRDR in E. coli strains were associated with qnrS1 gene and might play a critical role in the dissemination of quinolone-resistant bacteria.

Key words:
qnrS; Escherichia coli; Quinolone resistance; Plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance; Quinolone resistance-determining region


This paper describes the design and implementation of mddc-solv. 1 General Description Written in C++, mddc-solv is a complete solver participating in the category N-ARY-EXT in CSP 2008 Competition. Its design and implementation aim at handling large extensional constraints with high arity, rather than (small) binary or ternary constraints. The overall architecture is as follows: The variable ordering heuristic is dom/wdeg [1], which selects the variable x with smallest |dom(x)| ∑ x∈var(C) w(C) where var(C) is the scope of the constraint C and w(C) is the weight of C. Initially, the weight is one. Whenever a constraint is found inconsistent during propagation, its weight is incremented by one. The weights are never reset. The value ordering heuristic is static, where the most supported value is tried first [6]. Two-way branching is used, with the branch x = a chosen before 6= a. Geometric restart with nogood learning [5] was implemented. The initial cutoff is 3 times the number of variables, and is subsequently multiplied by 1.5 upon restart, which occurs when the number of fails (due to x = a) exceeds the current cutoff. Generalized arc consistency (GAC) is the only consistency available in the solver; in particular, we implemented mddc [4], a coarse-grained GAC algorithm based on multi-valued decision diagram (MDD) [7]. In mddc-solv, all extensional constraints, binary or non-binary, are represented as MDDs. To enforce GAC on a constraint, mddc traverses the MDD recursively and updates the domains of the relevant variables on the fly. Because of the compactness of MDDs, mddc may run exponentially faster, with exponentially less memory, than GAC algorithms based on tables (arrays or bit vectors). Since our current implementation of mddc-solv has no differentiation between boolean and non-boolean constraints, we didn't implement bddc [3], which is a scale-down version of mddc and includes special features such as caching. 2 Kenil C.K. Cheng and Roland H.C. Yap During constraint propagation, the constraint with largest w(C) ∏ x∈var(C) |dom(x)| is checked first. Intuitively speaking, the weight records how often a constraint was found inconsistent in the past, whereas the product of domain's size estimates how likely the constraint is going to be inconsistent with respect to the current search space. The domain of a variable is represented as a set of pruned values, which was implemented with the same sparse set data structure [2] used in mddc. We implemented the table-to-MDD procedure (mddReduce) and the GAC algorithm (mddc) as presented in [4]; some competition-specific changes have been made, which are described in the remaining sections. Readers may refer to the original papers [3, 4] for details. Beforehand, we reproduce the definitions of an MDD and an MDD constraint. Definition 1. A multi-valued decision diagram (MDD) [7] is either the t-terminal (tt), the f-terminal (ff), or a directed acyclic graph of the form G = mdd(x, {a1/G1, . . . , ad/Gd}) where G1, . . . , Gd are MDDs and a1, . . . , ad are distinct integers. Each pair ak/Gk (1 ≤ k ≤ d) is a branch of G, and Gk is a sub-MDD of G. Both tt and ff are used because in the competition mddc has to deal with both positive and negative constraints (the former is defined as a set of solutions while the latter a set of non-solutions). Fig. 1a depicts a small MDD. Definition 2. An MDD constraint (represented by an MDD G) is a logical constraint Φ(G) ≡  True : G = tt False : G = ff ∨d k=1(x = ak ∧ Φ(Gk)) : G = mdd(x, {a1/G1, . . . , ad/Gd}) 2 Building an MDD for an Extensional Constraint Since in the competition, an extensional constraint is represented as its set of (non-)solutions in lexicographical order, we can build the MDD without first constructing a trie explicitly [4]. Fig. 2 illustrates the ideas. 3 Modified mddc for Negative Constraints We slightly modified mddc (lines 1, 2 in Fig. 3) for negative constraints. An overview of mddc-solv 3


Determination of the nitrogen isotopic ratios in different bodies of the solar system provides important information regarding the solar system's origin. We unambiguously identified emission lines in comets due to the 15NH2 radical produced by the photodissociation of 15NH3. Analysis of our data has permitted us to measure the 14N/15N isotopic ratio in comets for a molecule carrying the amine (–NH) functional group. This ratio, within the error, appears similar to that measured in comets in the HCN molecule and the CN radical, and lower than the protosolar value, suggesting that N2 and NH3 result from the separation of nitrogen into two distinct reservoirs in the solar nebula. This ratio also appears similar to that measured in Titan's atmospheric N2, supporting the hypothesis that, if the latter is representative of its primordial value in NH3, these bodies were assembled from building blocks sharing a common formation location.


As a core technology for next-generation wireless communication, intelligent reflecting surfaces (IRSs) provide a new solution to the problems of ever-increasing cost and energy consumption in wireless communication. This letter studies a new application scenario for IRSs—using IRSs for user positioning. Multiple aerial intelligent reflecting surfaces (AIRSs) are deployed in the air to locate users in a certain area. First, we propose an angle-domain approach to obtain the angle of arrival (AoA) information of the direct path between each user and AIRS. Then, we use the AoA positioning strategy at the access point (AP) to locate users. Experimental results show that the proposed positioning strategy has good positioning performance.


Introduction: Multiple myeloma is a monoclonal immunoproliferative neoplasm of B lymphoid cells. Secondary extramedullary plasmacytoma is usually involved in advanced stages. Here we report an unusual presentation of multiple myeloma relapsing as a breast lump focusing on important findings and treatment given. Case Details: A 40-year-old woman with a past history of isolated plasmacytoma of 5th thoracic vertebra, treated with radical radiotherapy 45 Gray in 23 fractions now presented with left breast lump of 2 months duration measuring 2 x 1 cm involving the central quadrant. Ultrasonogram showed a BIRADS V lesion. A core biopsy with IHC was reported as plasmacytoma. Following this multiple myeloma work up was done. Bone marrow study showed 10% plasma cells, serum electrophoresis showed M band, raised ESR with anemia. Patient was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma – International staging system stage III. Results: Patient was started on combination chemotherapy with 6 cycles of Bortezomib, Lenalidomide and Dexamethasone .Following treatment showed only a partial response following which the patient was started on carfilzomib. However, her disease progressed and the patient succumbed to the disease. Conclusion: Extramedullary presentation of multiple myeloma as a breast lump which itself is a rare entity despite treatment has an unfavourable course. Any patient presenting with breast lump should be evaluated carefully mostly if they have a previous history of plasmacytoma/ multiple myeloma. A proper identification of tumour pathology can evade patient from unwanted extensive surgery and thus a delay in definitive systemic treatment.


Objective:To summarize clinical manifestations,histopathological patterns and effective diagnostic method of primary small bowel malignant tumor.Methods:The data of primary malignant tumor of the small intestine confirmed by pathological examination admitted from(1997-2006) The First Affiliated Hospital of An Hui Medical University were retrospectively analyzed.Results:Of the 147cases primary malignant tumors,99 were adanocarcinoma,20 leiomyosarcoma,14 stromal tumors,8 lymphoma and 6 carcinoid(include neurocrionma).In the group of 147 cases,101cases located at duodenum,28 cases at jejunum and 11 cases at ileum,7 cases at mesentery.The most common clicinal manifestations were abdominal pain,janudice,abdomialmass,gastrointestinal haemorrhage etc.Endoscopy,upper GI barinm meal,BUS,CT and MRCP or ERCP were also useful for the intestine tumor.Conclusion:Adenocarcinoma predominates among primary malignant tumor of the small intestine,specific symptom and sign were usually lacking in early stage,combination of endoscopy and imaging examination was useful for diagnosis.


Hydraulic, weighing lysimeters were used for three years to measure the effect of high, saline water tables on irrigation requirement of corn. For each of the years corn was grown with no water table and with combinations of 60 and 105 cm (2. 0 and 3. 5 ft) water-table depths and 0. 66, 3. 0, and 6. 0 dS/m**3**/ water table salinity. The portion of total seasonal evapotranspiration supplied from the ground water was determined. Results indicate that water-table depth affects use by corn much more than the water-table salinities studied. The paper suggests modifications in surface applications of irrigation water when shallow water tables are present.


The present invention automatically load-following to a fall possibility of degradation and control rod of the coil due to the continued operation of the control rod driving device greatly reduced when operation safety and economics of nuclear power plants by improving the life by improving the heat resistance of the coil for the control rod drive device a coil assembly and a production for the control rod driving apparatus can be improved it is an object to provide bangbeopreul. Coil assembly for a control rod drive device which improved the heat resistance of the present invention for implementing this, the coil wire 111, surrounding the outer peripheral surface PEEK (Polyether Ether Ketone) coating layer 112 to consist of coated wire (110 wound in multiple layers ); A coil formed by filling a varnish into the gaps between the coated wire 110 winding in the multi-layer coating (130); The coil coating layer 130 is an insulating tape layer 120 of the coated wire 110 to surround the outer surface of the winding insulation layer by; And a silicon mold (140) surrounding an outer surface of the insulating tape layer 120.


An  interpretation  of  special  theory  of  relativity  is  proposed,  in  which  the  fundamental  arena  of  physical processes is an Euclid three-dimensional space where time exists only as a numerical order of  material  changes  and  the  duration  of  material  changes  is  a  proper,  physical  scaling  function  of  the  numerical  order.  This  model  introduces  interesting  perspectives  in  the  study  of  several  phenomena  inside  special  relativity,  such  as  aberration  of  light,  Doppler  effect,  Jupiter's  satellites  occultation  and  radar  ranging  of  the  planets.


An improved algorithm based on a lifting scheme wavelet transform is proposed to protect the copyright of a cultural relic image during Web sharing.The YCbCr color space is used to ensure the lightness and color sensitivity in a visual system.Then,the Daubechies9/7 biorthogonal wavelet is introduced to transform the image into a frequency domain and to hide watermark information to improve the anti-attacked capability.Meanwhile,a lifting scheme is used to enhance the stability of the algorithm.Finally,in order to increase algorithm's robustness and security,a new embedding method is presented to embed the intermediate and high frequency watermark information into image's high frequency coefficients,and the embedded position is switched dynamically in depending on the neighborhood coefficients.Experimental results indicate that the cultural relic image show a better visual quality after embedding watermark,and the Peak Signal Noise Ratio(PSNR)of the watermarked image is 51.602 4,which is better than that of other algorithms.Compared with LSB and DCT algorithms,the proposed algorithm has good performance in the anti-attack and lossy compression and is suitable for the fields which request high security such as digital museums.


In order to realize the collection, management, visualization, and uploading of real-time information in the paddy field, an information monitoring node based on automatic tracking solar-powered panel is presented in this paper. First, the node consists of information collecting sensors, STM32 MCU, LCD, GPRS module, automatic tracking solar-powered module, and monitoring interface. Second, data gathered from sensors can be displayed on the LCD and sent to the host computer interface. Moreover, host computer can also save the data packages to management server for examination and analysis. Finally, in the practical test, data are gathered every 2 h. At nontest time, the node works in low-power mode to achieve rational use of electric energy. The results of this experiment show that the node can achieve an accurate transmission and display of data, and the power supply system can meet the demand for electricity in continuous rainy days.


Numerous analytical techniques have been used to examine the nature of skin, and in particular the barrier structure of human stratum corneum, including thermal methods (1,2), electron spin resonance (3), and x-ray diffractometry (4,5). One approach has been to use vibrational spectroscopy to probe the molecular nature of the skin, with early work concentrating on the use of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy (6). While the infrared technique has provided valuable insights into the concentration of water in the tissue (7) and has been used successfully to probe the tissue in vivo using attenuated total reflection methods (8,9), infrared is not ideally suited to examine the vibrational modes of biological samples that are naturally hydrated. This is because such materials show interference from water vibrational modes, while the water absorbs strongly the infrared radiation. An alternative vibrational spectroscopic technique is Raman spectroscopy. Raman spectroscopy is both a qualitative and quantitative technique for characterizing materials at the molecular level in terms of molecular normal vibrational frequencies. If a sample is irradiated with an intense beam of monochromatic radiation (usually from a laser) operating at a wavenumber n0, most of the radiation is transmitted by the sample. However, a small portion of the exciting radiation (about 1 photon in 10) scatters elastically with a wavenumber equal to that of the incident radiation. An even smaller fraction (around 1 photon in 10) scatters inelastically with wavenumbers different to the incident radiation. The elastically scattered radiation is known as Rayleigh scattering, whereas the


A novel magnetic polyaniline (PANI)/Fe3O4/Ag nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via in situ polymerization induced by ultraviolet irradiation (λ = 254 nm) in the presence of Fe3O4 nanoparticles and Ag cations as oxidants. The morphology and structure of the newly prepared nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry, X-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, vibrating sample magnetometry, transmission electron microscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The corresponding saturation magnetization for the nanocomposite was about 20.37 emu g−1. The catalytic properties of the nanocomposite were evaluated in the synthesis of biologically and pharmaceutically important pyran derivatives and it was shown to produce high yields, short reaction times and an easy work-up process. The superparamagnetic properties of the nanocatalyst allowed easy separation from the reaction media.


In this chapter we review some important properties of Laplacians, smooth and discrete. We place special emphasis on a unified framework for treating smooth Laplacians on Riemannian manifolds alongside discrete Laplacians on graphs and simplicial manifolds. We cast this framework into the language of linear algebra, with the intent to make this topic as accessible as possible. We combine perspectives from smooth geometry, discrete geometry, spectral analysis, machine learning, numerical analysis, and geometry processing within this unified framework.


Unified L2 caches can lead to runtime interferences between instructions and data, making it very hard, if not impossible, to perform timing analysis for real-time systems. This paper proposes a priority cache to achieve both time predictability and high performance for real-time systems. The priority cache allows both the instruction and data streams to share the aggregate L2 cache; however, instructions and data cannot replace each other to enable independent instruction cache and data cache timing analyses. Our performance evaluation shows that the instruction priority cache outperforms separate L2 caches, both of which can achieve time predictability. On average, the number of execution cycles of the instruction priority cache is only 1.1% more than that of a unified L2 cache.


JlLducation has failed to adjust to the mas sive transformation in Western culture since the rise of elec tronic media. The shift from the era of the printed book to that of television, with its immediacy and global reach, was prophesied by Marshall McLuhan in his revolutionary Un derstanding Media, which at its publication in 1964 spoke with visionary force to my generation of college students in the United States. But those of us who were in love with the dazzling, darting images of TV and movies, as well as with the surging rhythms of new rock music, had been given through public education a firm foundation in the word and the book. Decade by decade since the 1960s, popular culture, with its stunning commercial success, has gained strength un til it now no longer is the brash alternative to organized reli gion or an effete literary establishment: it is the culture for American students, who outside urban centers have little ex posure to the fine arts. I cannot speak for Canadian or Euro pean students, whom I have had little opportunity to observe closely over time. But because the us is the driving media en gine for the world, what happens there may well be a har binger for the future of all industrialized nations. Interest in and patience with long, complex books and po ems have alarmingly diminished not only among college stu dents but college faculty in the us. It is difficult to imagine American students today, even at elite universities, gathering


When the Photovoltaic-Battery Energy Storage System(PV-BESS) systems virtual synchronous generator(VSG) is in normal operation, its output power tracks the dispatch command value, where the PV adopts the maximum power tracking method, and the deviation between the PV output power and the virtual synchronous machine power command is eliminated by energy storage, which stabilises the DC bus voltage and suppresses the overall output power fluctuation of the PV-BESS systems. As energy storage has different characteristics at different charging and discharging depths, its battery life and performance will receive a significant impact when it is in an over-charge or over-discharge state. To address these issues, a grid-connected PV-BESS systems virtual synchronous generator control method is proposed that takes into account the charging and discharging depth of BESS. The inverter, PV and storage are coordinated and controlled according to the storage charge state.


The increasing demand to remove all lead from potable water distribution systems has driven the development of nonleaded brass alloys. Three families of nonleaded brasses that contain < 0.25% lead by weight and have adequate mechanical properties, are now available for drinking water systems. Limited metals‐release studies indicate that the nonleaded alloys contribute much lower levels of lead to water than do leaded brasses under comparable conditions. Although concerns remain about possible failure from dezincification and stress cracking, utilities that have installed nonleaded components do not report compromised performance. Although individual nonleaded components may be more expensive than their leaded counterparts, the increase in overall replacement costs is minimal (i.e., 2‐5%) when taking labor, equipment, and other expenses into account.


The rights of minorities are of little interest in the international community, especially their collective rights. Therefore, states are keen to include these rights in their constitutions to ensure that these rights are regulated under their provisions in their ordinary legislation.
The importance of regulating the collective rights of minorities in constitutions is that they ensure the preservation of the natural characteristics of minorities that are distinct from other population groups living with them in the state, and ensure the exercise of the rights that derive from them, from religious rights, linguistic rights and participation and interaction in Cultural and public life in the country. Although these rights are individual, they can only be exercised collectively.
Iraq has an enormous diversity in the presence of minorities of religious, linguistic and ethnic nationalities in its social fabric. Iraqi minorities are characterized by being minorities with simple or complex characteristics. Iraqi minorities are characterized by minorities with simple or complex characteristics. Because some of them have one characteristic that differs from the rest of the population such as the black-skinned minority, while there are minorities that differ from others more than the characteristics such as Christian minorities of the Assyrians, they combine nationalism with religion.
The Iraqi constitutions stand different positions on the collective rights of minorities. In the monarchy, the Iraqi Basic Law of 1925 stipulated the majority of these rights, whether explicit or implicit whereas the Constitutions of the Republican era prior to 2003, the reference to these rights included only a general and implicit reference.
Whereas, after 2003, the Transitional Administrative Law of 2004 and the Iraqi Constitution of 2005 ensured all the collective rights of minorities, but sometimes they were expressed in vague and vague terms, or restricted to certain minorities.
As a result, this right is violated and violated by the discretionary power of the House of Representatives, which need to be amended in such a way as to guarantee these rights in a more specific and comprehensive manner.


For the last 50 years, sports team samples have played a significant role in mainstream management literature. Prior research has analyzed different kinds of data, such as archival, survey-based, and interviews/observations, from a wide range of sports teams. These teams differ greatly in terms of contexts (i.e., recreational to intercollegiate to professional) and types of interdependence. We explore this body of work and focus on what is germane for the work teams literature as we examine 255 relevant articles spanning the years 1972–2021 in major management, organizational behavior (OB), human resource management (HRM), and strategy journals. Using the input-process-outcome model in our coding process, we identify the relative absence of the study of team processes. We develop a conceptual framework linking team interdependence, team processes, and the initiation and maintenance of these processes. This framework is intended to help guide future research on team processes in the context of sports team samples and enhance the generalizability of this research to the work teams domain. Additionally, we identify an agenda for future research using sports team samples for work groups/teams researchers. Overall, we intend to spur thoughtful and creative future research in the work groups/teams area using the rich field environment that sports teams present.


This paper presents a new optimization method based on the Hybrid Symbiotic organism Search Algorithm (HSOS) for the reconfiguration of a power distribution network for minimizing active power losses and maximizing voltage at each node. The HSOS method is a new metaheuristic algorithm that improves the Symbiotic organism Search (SOS) algorithm. This new technique is a combination of the SOS and the PSO (Particle Swarm Optimization) algorithm. It is applied on an IEEE 33 nodes test network. The results obtained show that HSOS is more efficient than many others metaheuristic algorithms. Keywords: HSOS, metaheuristic algorithm, Power distribution network, PSO, reconfiguration, SOS.


Objectives: Global COVID-19 epidemic has been therapeutic challenge. Convalescent plasma is observed to improve clinical outcomes. This research aims to study whether convalescent plasma therapy reduces the mortality and duration of hospitalization in moderate to severe Covid. Study Design and Setting: This interventional study was conducted after ethical approval at RIUT COVID-19 center from1stJune-30th Nov 2020. Methodology: Hundred Covid patients included; Total 100 hospitalized adult SARS Cov-2 PCR positive with moderate to severe disease who agreed for convalescent plasma transfusion were included. Fifty in plasma transfusion group and fifty in conventional therapy group. Those with contraindications for plasma transfusion, delayed presentation, indoor stay <5 days were excluded. Convalescent plasma was obtained from donors with prior documented SARS CoV-2 infection meeting donor eligibility criteria. 50 cases received convalescent plasma and50 received conventional therapy. Hospital stay and outcome documented. Results: Amongst 100 Covid cases; 44 females and 56 males; mean age 57.88+11.95 years, 74% had moderate covid and 26% severe. Fifty cases received conventional therapy for Covid and 50 received plasma transfusion. Both groups comparable for gender, age, smoking, obesity, and disease severity. Invasive ventilation administered in 25% and was associated with mortality (p=0.004). Mortality observed in 29 cases; 20(69%) in plasma transfusion group Vs. 09(31%) in conventional therapy group (p=0.015). The hospital stay was comparable between two groups The relative risk ratio was 2.22 with 95% CI (1.12-4.39). Conclusions: There was no therapeutic benefit in Covid patients treated with convalescent plasma as compared to conventional treatment


Summary In two experiments we studied possible limitations due to the beam-beam effects in the LHC. In the first experiment we collided high intensity bunches head-on to explore the region for high luminosity collisions. In the second test we reduced the crossing angle in the presence of long range encounters to increase their effects.


We report an interesting case of FitzHugh Curtis Syndrome (FHCS) in a 51-year-old Arab woman with a concomitant gallstone disease. She presented to us with recurrent right hypochondrial pain of 2 years duration, exacerbated by deep breathing, cough, and hiccups not associated with vomiting or nausea. Ultrasound showed tiny 2mm gallstones. Laparoscopy revealed extensive perihepatic "violin string" like adhesions and underwent Laparoscopic Adhesiectomy with Cholecystectomy .FHCS affects the adolescent, sexually active women and in men as well. Till date, only one case reported in a 56yr old female with Fitz Hugh Curtis Syndrome from Mexico [1] . To our knowledge, this is the second instance, such a case reported in a 51 year-old woman postmenopausal status with single partner.


Eosinophilic pustular folliculitis is a rare disorder that is characterized by recurrent crops of papules and pustules localized on seborrheic areas of the body. The etiopathogenesis of the disease is still unknown, but it has been related to infections and immunosuppressive states. This report is the first case to be found to be related to hepatitis C virus infection.


A dynamic optimization model for irrigation management and investment of an individual field is formulated. The model is applicable to situations where soil salinity is a current or potential problem and where drainage flows incur costs. The crop rotation is prespecified and several alternate irrigation systems are available for investment. These differ in application uniformity and cost. The field is assumed to be spatially variable in soil salinity and infiltrated water. The joint distribution of these two variables evolves over time in response to annual volumes of irrigation water and type of irrigation system. Social net benefits are defined as crop revenue net of irrigation costs, production costs, and environmental/disposal costs associated with percolation of water below the root zone. The optimization problem is to choose annual applied water volumes and investment in irrigation systems to maximize the present value of social net benefits.


Two strains,one bacterium PB-1,the other actinomyces PS-5,that can degrade organic PCNB pesticide were selected from soil grown ginseng which had been fertilized PCNB for many years.The strains PB-1 and PS-5 had a good PCNB-degradation capability when the pH value was 5~7 and 6~8 respectively and PB-1 and PS-5 grew better at 20~30 ℃ and 25~35 ℃.The optimum conditions for the strains growth and PCNB-degradation were pH 6 and 28 ℃ for PB-1,and pH 7 and 30 ℃ for PS-5 respectively.The strains PB-1 and PS-5 could degrade 83.5% and 76.9% of initial concentration of 20.0 mg·L-1 PCNB respectively in 4 days.Metal elements had different effects on their growth and degradation capability.Cu2+and Mo6+ion had toxicity for strain PB-1and Mn2+for strain PS-5 within added concentration.Added Fe2+and Co2+ion in culture medium could promote PCNB-biodegradation capability,and the rate of PCNB-degradation increased 8.9% and 7.1% respectively for strain PB-1 than blank test.Added Ca2+ and Zn2+ ion in culture medium could make strain PB-1 grow better,and Mg2+ ion could activate growth of strain PS-5.Fe2+、Ca2+、Zn2+、Cu2+ and Mg2+ ion in culture medium could promote degradation capability of strain PS-5 with varied degrees,and the rate of PCNB-degradation increased 7%~20%.Vitamin B2 and alanine could accelerate the biodegradation of PCNB for strains PB-1 and PS-5,and vitamin C and glycin could only promote strain PS-5,while other growth factors had no significant effects.Electron substances(toluene,sodium citrate and carbinol) and accepting electron(ammoium acetic) substances had different effects on biodegradation capability of the strains.The toluene and sodium citrate could promote biodegradation capability of strain PS-5;the strain PB-1 grew better in culture medium of added sodium citrate.When carbinol was added in culture solution,it could activate growth of strain PS-5.The ammoium acetic in culture solution restrained their growth and degradation capability significantly.Under the experimental conditions,inconsistence was found between bacteria growth and PCNB degradation.


This paper generalizes Ke's (2010) …xed-point method and develops a uni…ed solution method for principal-agent problems with moral hazard under a general setting (i.e., multi-task and multi-signal). We show that the principal's problem with a complicated incentive compatibility constraint, which consists of in…nitely many inequalities, is equivalent to a Lagrangian dual problem with routine equality and inequality constraints. The discovered Lagrangian dual representation only includes the least necessary constraints for individual rationality and incentive compatibility. Thus, we can characterize the optimal contract and solve the principal-agent problem by a routine parametric programming. We provide a set of Kuhn-Tucker optimality conditions that can be applied to …nd a solution, regardless of the validity of the …rst-order approach. We also provide some examples and a comparative static analysis.


. This study aims to produce and develop Lecture Maker in Learning products that meet valid, practical, and effective eligibility criteria. This research is a type of research development or Research and Development (R&D) with a procedural model that adapts the 4-D Model that defines, designs, develops, and disseminates. Data were obtained from a questionnaire given to 2 media experts, two material experts, one linguist, two educators, and 40 students. Based on the average validation test results by five validators of 91%, from the practicality test by two teachers, the results obtained 77%, from the practical test by 40 students received 80% results, and the effectiveness test by 40 students got 78% results. Lecture Maker deserves to be used as a learning medium that meets the criteria of validity, practicality, and effectiveness and can increase students' interest in learning.


This paper is concerned with a control problem of a diffusion process with the help of static mesh sensor networks in a certain region of interest and a team of networked mobile actuators carrying chemical neutralizers. The major contribution of this paper can be divided into three parts: the first is the construction of a cyber-physical system framework based on centroidal Voronoi tessellations ( CVTs ) , the second is the convergence analysis of the actuators location, and the last is a novel proportional integral ( PI ) control method for actuator motion planning and neutralizing control ( e.g., spraying ) of a diffusion process with a moving or static pollution source, which is more effective than a proportional ( P ) control method. An optimal spraying control cost function is constructed. Then, the minimization problem of the spraying amount is addressed. Moreover, a new CVT algorithm based on the novel PI control method, henceforth called PI-CVT algorithm, is introduced together with the convergence analysis of the actuators location via a PI control law. Finally, a modified simulation platform called diffusion-mobile-actuators-sensors-2-dimension-proportional integral derivative ( Diff-MAS2D-PID ) is illustrated. In addition, a numerical simulation example for the diffusion process is presented to verify the effectiveness of our proposed controllers.


Through the comparison test of planting 6 different varieties of wheat in mulching plot and in mulching cultivation land of 12 peasant househlold, and in 6.67hm 2 of demonstration area covered with plastic film. The mode of two row ribbon cropping of wheat has been screened out, which is adaptable to the weather and soil conditions of Kunming. Each 667m 2 area used about 2.5kg plastic film of 0.005~ 0.008mm in depth. The cost is about RMB 20yuan. This technique is simple. Peasant hold it easily. The wheat yield was increased by 28.2%. It is significantly advantageous to solve the problem of peasant poverty in mountainous or half mountainous area.


Fifty years ago, SHOT was designed and created—one could say, engineered—in a careful and strategic way.1 During the subsequent fifty years, SHOT developed into the leading international scholarly society in the history of technology. The maturing of the society and its journal, Technology and Culture, went hand-in-hand with the development of the field of the history of technology. Since the initial breaking-away from the history of science, the history of technology has now acquired all of the characteristics of a well-established scholarly discipline: national and international societies, peer-reviewed journals, book series, newsletters, graduate programs, and professorial chairs.2 Where does SHOT stand today? What are the key problems in the current history of technology? Which roles do I see for historians of technology in our contemporary societies? Rather than providing a descriptive review on the basis of, for example, recent issues of Technology and Culture, I will make a perhaps somewhat provocative argument about the challenges and opportunities that SHOT faces now, at this moment of reaching full maturity at its fiftieth anniversary. Key challenges in the first years centered on defining the subject matter of the history of technology and the methods by which to research it. In his contribution to this set of essays, Tom Hughes recounts discussions on the definition of "technology," and on appropriate approaches to study its relation to civilization and culture. Though the patriarchs of SHOT explicitly thought about their relation to the engineering community and to general


Major world markets are defined in terms of region and country. Changes in supply are indicated and trade patterns of minerals and fuels that reflect competition for these markets. Behind these patterns are changes in policies, new discoveries, and changes in technology. The authors that follow clarify many of these factors. Mineral and fuel flows from supplier to markets are linked to counterflows of capital. The papers that follow contain additional insight into how this capital must be secured and to the new conditions under which it must operate to be a success.


ABSTRACT Drug discovery has brought new molecules for providing better cure for diseases. The process of discovering a new drug from the laboratory to market takes 12–15 years. Industries and academic institutions are exploring the database of earlier approved but kept aside drugs and identifying new use of them. Repurposing focuses on rediscovering the discovered.


Abstract The kinetics of the isotropic-to-smectic A transition of poly(p-biphenylyl acrylate) has been investigated by differential scanning calorimetry. The parameter n of the Avrami equation has been found to be of ca. 3. The calculated formation energy of the nuclei is 40-50 KJ mole−1. From the thermal data, it is concluded that, in this polymer, a fraction of amorphous material is present together with the mesophase, and the relative amounts of the two phases varies with the thermal history.


Livy's history recounts several events that take place, years apart, at the temple of Juno at Croton. A reading, both intertextual and intratextual, of passages having to do with the temple argues that the repeated references to the place form a strand of narrative complementing the main thread of Livy's account of Rome's expansion. Moreover, the temple unites geography and history, for it stands at the edge of each, at the place where Italy ends and the ocean begins and where Livy's narrative meets and responds to those of other writers.


In the work presented we have analyzed the sources of formation the Soviet International Mission in Mongolia. Its development was conditioned by the factors, originated in the second half of the XX-th century (Soviet-Chinese conflict in 1960 years). In 1966 after signing the Soviet-Mongolian treaty the Soviet troops were brought into Mongolia and the Soviet experts began arriving in it. They came to build civil and military objects, mine uranium and copper, work at schools and hospitals. Though the experts from all countries of Eastern block worked in Mongolia, but the majority of them were the citizens of the USSR. They lived in their specific world (community): reserved and hostile to the local people. They formed their own system of consumption of commodities and services, built their (military) cantonments which as a matter of fact were on exterritorial rights. The article is based upon the published memoirs, interview, as well as data from the Internet forums dedicated to problems of the Soviet presence in Mongolia.


Under the condition of emissions trading, the sewage treatment manufacturers participate in emissions transaction, and through the supply chain with the manufacturers can be established. The paper analyzes the rules that the sewage treatment outsourcing fluctuates with the change of discharge transaction under certain circumstances. The paper thus concludes that the largest expected return of the whole supply chain is less than the largest expected return of supply chain in integration supply mode, and studies the existence of the supply chain contractual coordination. The conclusions of this paper contribute to the establishment of sewage treatment supply chain model under the conditions of emissions trading, and promote the sewage treatment industrialization.


Excessive alcohol consumption has a number of negative consequences
for both an individual and their immediate environment. Development
in its broadest sense involves not only economic or social development,
but also the possibility of using new equipment to minimise the negative
consequences of various social phenomena, including alcohol dependence.
One of the opportunities to leverage the changes associated with
both social and technological developments is precisely the implementation
of the Transdermal Alcohol Monitoring System (hereinafter referred
to as the TMSA) into the practice of probation officers in cases related
to the supervision of alcohol-dependent individuals. The main objective
of the article is an attempt to make a (basic) analysis of legal acts with
simultaneous reference to pedagogical aspects in terms of the possibility of implementing the TMSA system in the guardianship service. The paper
uses a descriptive as well as a theoretical and legal method.


Applying steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEPs) on a display system, a novel brain-display interaction (BDI) system was presented. This study further proposed an imperceptible flickering visual stimulus to make a SSVEP-based BDI more practical and promising for biomedical applications, such us glaucoma visual field loss diagnosis.


Ineffective mucociliary clearance (MCC) is a common pathophysiologic process that underlies airway inflammation and infection. A dominant fluid and electrolyte secretory pathway in the nasal airways is governed by the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR). Decreased transepithelial Cl− transport secondary to an acquired CFTR deficiency may exacerbate respiratory epithelial dysfunction by diminishing MCC and increasing mucus viscosity. The objectives of the present study are to 1) develop a model of acquired CFTR deficiency in sinonasal epithelium using hypoxia, 2) investigate whether the polyphenol resveratrol promotes CFTR‐mediated anion transport, 3) explore resveratrol mechanism of action and determine therapeutic suitability for overcoming acquired CFTR defects, and 4) test the drug in the hypoxic model of acquired CFTR deficiency in preparation for a clinical trial in human sinus disease. We hypothesize that hypoxia will induce depletion of airway surface liquid (ASL) secondary to acquired CFTR deficiency and that resveratrol will restore transepithelial Cl− secretion and recover ASL hydration.


New application can be obtained by the integration between carbon nanotube
technology Nano-Electro-Mechanical system (NEMs) and Micro-Electro-Mechanical system
(MEMs). The new application is a transistor, which uses carbon nanotube as the channel between
the source and drain, while MEMs resonator bridges are used as suspending gates.

 preparation process of the electrodes (source/drain), carbon nanotube growth between
electrodes and the characterization of carbon nanotube channel using Raman spectroscopy to study
the time and temperature effect on the quality of Carbon Nanotube channel (CNT-channel), field
emission scanning electron microscope/Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (FESEM) to study CNT
structure.

 The result shows the increasing of quality with the increase of both temperature and time.
Carbon nanotubes exist between electrodes, and the growth direction follow ethanol direction from
source to drain. However, the carbon nanotube growth randomly not aligned. The channel between
electrodes were well etched, this has been approved by EDX result.

 The characterization confirmed the CNT presence between source and drain. Increasing
the growth temperature from 700 to 725 °C enhanced the quality of growing CNTs, which is
clearly shown from Raman information. While, increasing growth time decreased quality, but the
effect not that significant. FESEM characterization shows that CNT growth follows the ethanol
flow from source to drain randomly, while EDX result shows that the channel between the electrodes
was well etched and clear.


Abstract : In From Politics to Reason of State, Maurizio Viroli identifies Machiavelli as the chief mastermind of the transition from the end of politics as the art of establishing a good community to the aim of politics as the pursuit of power. Once a ruler has secured his power, then he can pursue the good of the people, but his chief aim is in securing and preserving his own power. During Machiavelli's time, there was a distinct difference between the concept of politics and that of reason of state. Politics was viewed as those actions taken by a government that would establish the good of the community. Reason of state pertained to those actions taken by a ruler that would enhance his own power and preserve his position. Although these are the definitions that Viroli specifically concentrated upon in his book, this definition of politics as the good of society is too Aristotelian a definition of politics as Viroli himself admits. This paper uses the modem definition of politics identified by Viroli, "any practice of government, legislation, and jurisdiction. Politics incorporates all aspects concerning the governing of a people, regardless of the ultimate goal. Tyranny, as well as democracy, is a form of politics because both deal with methods of governing the people. The moral aspect of politics certainly addresses the end goal, but the methods aspect of politics, those means used to govern the people, exists regardless of the aim. The method aspect incorporates both a science and an art form. There are many explanations for the rationale motivating a leader while he is in power.


We used the Pg-wave arrival times from high-resolution active-source seismic sounding to carry out the tomographic job on the northeastern margin of Qinghai-Tibet plateau,that is,the Tianshui-Wudu area in West Qinling,with finite difference forward and least squares inversing algorithm with irregular meshes.The results indicate that the study area has rich and complex fractures,such as the fluctuant basement and the steep faults mostly extending to great depths and cutting through the basement.The low-velocity zone between Lixian and Xihe reflects the existence of Xi-Li sedimentary basin,the basement of which is about 5 km deep.The pronounced changing of the velocity contour on the east of Wushan is consistent with the fold region nearby.The Chengxian basin has a relatively high and gently changing velocity,the basement depth of which is less than 3 km.Near Lixian there is a near north-south fault,and a low-velocity zone exists beneath about 5 km depth in the tomographic profile,which may be the upwelling channel of the deep mantle substance in the Tibetan Plateau.


H. Putnam has been considered the most Peircean philosopher among the neopragmatists. This note sugests that Putnam pays great atention to the problems Peirce tackled, but he does not share Peirce's thesis on the relation between "practical interests" and science. Therefore, Putnam's realism is more Deweyan and Jamesian than Peircean.


Abstract We examine a definition of the mutual information of two reals proposed by Levin in [5]. The mutual information is where K(·) is the prefix-free Kolmogorov complexity. A real A is said to have finite self-information if I (A : A) is finite. We give a construction for a perfect Π1 0 class of reals with this property, which settles some open questions posed by Hirschfeldt and Weber. The construction produces a perfect set of reals with K(σ) ≤+ KA (σ) + f (σ) for any given Δ2 0 f with a particularly nice approximation and for a specific choice of f it can also be used to produce a perfect Π1 0 set of reals that are low for effective Hausdorff dimension and effective packing dimension. The construction can be further adapted to produce a single perfect set of reals that satisfy K(σ) ≤+ KA (σ) + f (σ) for all f in a 'nice' class of Δ2 0 functions which includes all Δ2 0 orders.


rj peaking of the problems of living next door to a big neighbour, I •J should naturally concentrate on my own country. I do not want my observations to be taken as a total estimate of the relations between Canada and the United States. There are, however, some particular issues that do arise when two nations of disproportionate size and population live side by side and when one of them is stronger militarily, economically and in international stature. This is particularly the case when these two countries share a more or less common geographical area cut off from the rest of the world.


Visitors' risk perceptions have been found to influence the on‐site behaviour of tourists and their intention to return to a destination or to recommend it to others. The present study analyses the perception of tourism risks in the Tyrol, Austria. Building on the psychometric paradigm, participants (N = 207) assessed 15 vacation risks on nine risk characteristics that are derived from psychometric research and completed with characteristics relevant in a tourism context. Findings suggest that additionally to managing the most likely risks, alpine destinations should be prepared to cope with worst case scenarios such as 'potable water poisoning', 'food poisoning', 'breaking of an embankment dam', 'rock fall on a village', 'cable car accident' and 'terrorist attack'. Considering these rather low‐probability risks is of decisive importance since such risks are especially prone to evoke public outrage if they – against all expectations – result in damaging events.


The data base on the environmental behavior and fate of " Tc has been improved substantially since 1979, when the radiological assessment of 99 Tc releases to the atmosphere demonstrated the need for further research. Despite this improvement, there is still much uncertainty in estimating parameter values to predict the transfer of " Tc into terrestrial and aquatic food chains. In this study, numerical simulation techniques are used to produce a probable range of predicted values from estimates of uncertainty assigned to the parameters of radiological assessment models. This range is used to indicate the uncertainty in the model's prediction. The importance of individual parameters and exposure pathways is determined by their relative contribution to this simulated uncertainty index. The major pathways of exposure to humans resulting from airborne emmissions of 99 Tc are those involving the consumption of vegetables, vegetable products, and poultry eggs. Exposure pathways involving the ingestion of milk and meat are negligible by comparison because of a low gastrointestinal tract absorption of Tc by grazing animals. The most important model parameters are related to the mobility of 99 Tc in soil, the incorporation of 99 Tc into the edible portions of crops, its transfer from vegetation to poultry eggs, and its atmospheric deposition. Uncertainty in the dose for individuals exposed to "Tc-contaminated liquid discharges is dominated by the bioaccumulation of this isotope in aquatic food chains and by the possibility that contaminated surface water will be used as a source of drinking water. The results of this study suggest that future reductions in the present estimates of uncertainty will lead to the dismissal of " Tc as an environmentally important radionuclicte, provided that & minimis dose levels are eventually adopted and releases of 99 Tc from individual nuclear fuel cycle facilities will not be substantially larger than 1 Ci/year to the atmosphere and 100 Ci/year to the aquatic environment. These conclusions do not account for the possibility of a large, long-term accumulation and remobili2ation of 99 Tc in aquatic sediment and/or surface soils. Further research is recommended to test situations which may promote these conditions.


Many signals in the real word can be represented as a sum of sinusoids with exponential damping. Considering the Hankel tensor special structure problem, this article discusses an algorithm that can compute the decomposition expression and the rank of the Hankel tensor. For a given n- dimensional Hankel tensor with order m, the Vandermonde rank of Hankel tensor is calculated by iterative method. Then the generating polynomials are constructed, and the decomposition can be determined by solving the generating polynomials, which satisfy a specific condition. The efficiency and accuracy of proposed method can be demonstrated through numerical examples.


Only 2 years ago nitrogen (N) fertilizer supply and price were impacted by a sharp rise in natural gas prices (winter 2000-2001). Another dramatic increase occurred within the past month. Natural gas prices have fluctuated more in recent years because of increased demand for generating electricity and slowed development of new gas supplies. This time, late-winter cold temperatures, high demand for home heating, and world unrest brought depleted supplies and uncertainties in production and pricing.


Available Brazilian literature related to the stages of design and construction of facilities for sport activities, physical education, leisure and recreation, seldom mention the planning phase preceeding these stages. As a consequence, a great amount of such faciities existing in our country only partially, and often precariously, attain their functional expectations. The obvious reason for this is the abscence of methodical and rational planning based on guidelines of proven efficiency, such as those adopted in developed countries. The diffusion and disseminaion of this area of knowledge, as well as the concepts presented here, give the opportunity for professionals involved in the process and conception of facilities designed for the above-stated objectives, to be conscious of the importance of multidisciplinary interaction in the planning, design and construction processes of functional and sustainable facilities of the kind.


We introduce a new three-parameter lifetime model called the odd Birnbaum-Saunders distribution. We construct an extended regression model based on the logarithm of the new distribution, which can be applied to censored data and be more effective in analyzing real data. Maximum likelihood estimation of the model parameters of the new regression model is discussed for complete and censored samples. A modified deviance residual is proposed to assess departures from the log-odd Birnbaum-Saunders error assumption and to detect outlying observations. Real data sets are analyzed for illustrative purposes.


Forkhead‐Box Class O 4 (FOXO4) is involved in critical biological functions, but its response to EGF‐PKB/Akt signal regulation is not well characterized. Here, it is reported that FOXO4 levels are downregulated in response to EGF treatment, with concurrent elevation of COP9 Signalosome subunit 6 (CSN6) and E3 ubiquitin ligase constitutive photomorphogenic 1 (COP1) levels. Mechanistic studies show that CSN6 binds and regulates FOXO4 stability through enhancing the E3 ligase activity of COP1, and that COP1 directly interacts with FOXO4 through a VP motif on FOXO4 and accelerates the ubiquitin‐mediated degradation of FOXO4. Metabolomic studies demonstrate that CSN6 expression leads to serine and glycine production. It is shown that FOXO4 directly binds and suppresses the promoters of serine‐glycine‐one‐carbon (SGOC) pathway genes, thereby diminishing SGOC metabolism. Evidence shows that CSN6 can regulate FOXO4‐mediated SGOC gene expression. Thus, these data suggest a link of CSN6‐FOXO4 axis and ser/gly metabolism. Further, it is shown that CSN6‐COP1‐FOXO4 axis is deregulated in cancer and that the protein expression levels of CSN6 and FOXO4 can serve as prognostic markers for cancers. The results illustrate a pathway regulation of FOXO4‐mediated serine/glycine metabolism through the function of CSN6‐COP1 axis. Insights into this pathway may be strategically designed for therapeutic intervention in cancers.


The effect of soil applications of sodium selenite (Na2SeO3) on the total glycoalkaloid (TGA) and nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) contents of Katahdin potatoes was studied over two storage periods (0 and 5 month) during each of two years. Sodium selenite was banded to the soil at rates of 0.0, 5.6 (2.5), 11.2 (5.0) and 18.0 (7.5) kg/ha (ppm). Selenium treatment, at all levels, resulted in significantly lower TGA and NO3-N contents than the controls. Applications of Na2SeO3 greater than 5.6 kg/ha did not result in further decreases in the TGA and NO3-N content. These results were consistent for the two storage periods.


Abstract : The old world order of a known enemy and predictable arena of battle, with an existing support structure and facilities, is gone. Gone also are adequate defense budgets and automatic advances in weapon systems to assure the fielding of cutting-edge technologies. Potential adversaries in the new world order are many and unpredictable, and the research and development efforts of both the former eastern and western superpowers are being used to upgrade the air forces of nations around the world, friend and foe alike. The result of all these events is a new kind of challenge that must be met with creative solutions in order to assure continued USAF air superiority in any future conflict.


The influence of music on learning has been a growing area of research in psychology. While some researchers have reported that music can impede learning, others have claimed that music can facilitate it. The present study looked at the interaction of musical context, valence, arousal, and task difficulty on recognition. During the study phase, participants were presented with a series of face-name pairings. In the subsequent test phase, they were asked to recognize if the pairings matched the ones they saw during the study phase. Results revealed a significant interaction between arousal, musical context, and task difficulty on recognition performance. On the easy task, recognition performance was better for high arousal music compared to low arousal music when music was played during study only and during test only. On the hard task, performance was better for high arousal music compared to low arousal when music was played during test only, but the effect was reversed when music was played during study only. When music was present during both study and test, arousal did not have an effect on recognition performance on the easy task or the hard task. The results suggest that, in different stages of learning and memory, arousal affects how well information is encoded and retrieved. AROUSAL, CONTEXT, AND TASK DIFFICULTY ON MEMORY 3


Symbol transfer function plays an important role in the active network analysis and synthesis.Nodal analysis method of active network with pathological elements was implemented,which was combined with the Nullor,voltage mirror(VM)and current mirror(CM)equivalences of active components and ideal voltage source.Based on the powerful symbol processing capabilities of Mathematica,symbolic circuit network analysis software was developed to solve the voltage transfer function.


This thesis is a qualitatively investigation, partly based on quantitative data, of the possibility and consequence of introducing oxygen-carrying bed material in the industrial biomass-fired BFB boiler Sävenäs HP3. The boiler is operated by Göteborg Energy and supplies district heat and electricity to Gothenburg. The investigated oxygen-carrying material is LD-slag, a material that is relevant thanks to its availability and low cost. Based on identified risks, an experimental campaign realization for Sävenäs HP3 is proposed. The objective is to introduce and evaluate the effect of LD-slag as bed material with as low risk as possible for the boiler operator. The agglomeration temperature and particle size distribution is determined for LDslag and silica sand in addition to their fludization behaviour. It is concluded that LD-slag performs superbly as bed material, without any tendencies towards agglomeration or attrition. It is found that a batch-wise introduction of LD-slag is the most suitable experimental campaign for Sävenäs HP3. A time-varying bed composition with respect to share of different components is estimated for different batch sizes. A batch of 30 ton LD-slag is determined, ensuring at least 30/70% of LD-slag and silica sand, respectively, for three days. No modifications nor installations of new equipment to the existing process is required to implement the proposed campaign strategy.


Nitrogen balance and myofibrillar protein breakdown were studied in 16 double-muscled Belgian Blue bulls during a low growth period (0.5 kg d−1) (LGP) of 4 mo (L4), 8 mo (L8), or 14 mo (L14) and the subsequent fattening period (rapid growth period, RGP). The control group (CG) was given a conventional fattening diet; the others received a low-energy, low-protein diet during LGP, and the same diet as the CG during RGP. Measurements were made halfway through the LGP, l mo after the beginning of the fattening period, and 1 mo before slaughter. Nitrogen balance was about half of CG (P < 0.001) during LGP, e.g., 50.8, 21.3, 25.8, and 23.8 g d−1, for CG, L4, L8, and L14, respectively. Between LGP and RGP, N balance increased by about 18 g N d−1 above the control in the compensating groups L4, L8 and L14. This was due to the higher digestibility and the higher metabolizability of the nitrogen in the fattening diet. Lower muscle protein accretion during the LGP resulted from decreased synthesis (P < 0.001) and de...


Factors affecting textural characteristics of cooked comminuted fish muscle were investigated. These factors included: time of comminution, presence of NaCl or NaCl and polyphosphates, effect of mechanical deboning, temperature of cooking, and type of heating medium used. Textural characteristics were evaluated objectively using as an index: compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, resilience, and shear strength. The change in the physical state of the protein-water system was determined from the quantity of fluid (expressible fluid) that can be expressed from the specimen subjected to a fixed compression force. With extensive chopping, mechanical strength diminished as the concentration of extractable myosin in the muscle homogenates decreased. Changes in expressible fluid followed changes in physical properties. Formulations with higher moisture contents were more susceptible to adverse changes brought about by mechanical treatments such as chopping. Mechanical strength of the cooked comminuted muscle progressed in the order of increasing strength as follows: no additives, with NaCl, with NaCl and polyphosphates. The presence of polyphosphates allowed increased solubilization of muscle protein and improved water binding. The variation in textural strength of products receiving different preheating treatments appeared to be related to the changes in water binding as shown by the inverse relationship of mechanical strength to the quantity expressible fluid. The textural strength of cooked muscle homogenates decreased in the order of: steamed, water cooked, and smoke-house cooked.


This article focuses on the two main contributions to the contemporary academic debate about the term 'presidentialisation', namely the books by Samuels and Shugart and Poguntke and Webb. The aim is not to rehearse critiques that have already been made about this term or to add another to the list. Instead, the aim is to distinguish between two different ways in which the same term has been applied in the two studies. Both sets of authors are concerned with the same term, but each operationalises it in a different way. Acknowledging these differences allows us to focus on a specific aspect of Poguntke and Webb's account that is absent from Samuels and Shugart's, namely the construction of a grand historical narrative.


: Since ancient times, parrots and their allies (Psittacidae) have fascinated Europeans by their striking colors and notable ability to interact with human beings. The discovery of the New World added new species to the international exotic animal trade, which for many centuries had brought beasts to Europe from Africa and the Orient. Lacking large mammals, tropical Anais do Museu Paulista. São Paulo. N. Sér. v.25


Single-cell sequencing investigates the differences in the proteomic and genetic information available about individual cells by using next-generation sequencing technologies. The sequencing of the whole genome, epigenome, and transcriptome involves the heterogeneous process of diagnosis, progression, and treatment of disease(s). Previous studies showed that only a few selected proteins and RNAs can be measured. However, recent molecular studies suggest that advances in nextgeneration sequencing and whole genome amplification have allowed us to examine the differences among a variety of transcriptomic cells, gene expression, and phenotypic expressions. In our study, we summarized different technologies and their applications at single-cell level in diverse fields such as embryology, oncology, immunology, neurology, microbiology, tissue and organ development, antibody screening, and stem cell research.


Uniformisation[1, 2] is a key technique which allows modellers to extract passage-time quantiles/densities which in turn permits the plotting of probability density and cumulative distribution functions. Uniformisation converts a CTMC (Continuous-Time Markov Chain) into a DTMC (Discrete-Time Markov Chain) with equivalent semantics. This can be used to calculate the probability of completing a passage within a given time t by calculating the probability of completing the passage within a number of iterations, n, of the DTMC and then calculating the probability that the nth iteration is performed within time t. However to calculate the passage-time quantiles we desire we must theoretically perform this calculation for values of n from zero to infinity and sum the probabilities. This can be approximated by calculating for values of n from zero to some finite value if we know that larger values of n will yield negligible probabilities and hence add nothing significant to the summation. This paper discusses two important conditions which ensure that the approximation is appropriate while also reducing the amount of negligible values


This paper investigates the within- and between-tree variability of hardness and basic den- sity in two stands of 11-year-old and 20-year-old maritime pine trees grown in the south-west of France. A slight increase was found in the inner core hardness of the 11-year-old trees (+13.9 %) and in basic density of the 20-year-old pines (6.5 %) with decreasing tree height. Between the 1st and 13th annual rings of the 20-year-old trees, hardness increased by +49.8 % and basic density by +18.7 % on average. These variations were strongly tree-dependent. A significant correlation was found between hardness and basic density, even when each sampling position was considered indepen- dently. (© Inra/Elsevier, Paris.)


The beginning of surgery predates the earliest written records. Initial healing strategies involved a mix of surgery, pharmacy and magic. During antiquity, surgical theory was based on the humoralist view, while practice was largely empiric. In the dark and middle ages, surgery regressed under the dogmatization of ancient texts, which ended when the renaissance started a new wave of empiricism. Surgery was seen as inherently painful and high-risky until the advent of anesthesia and antisepsis. These breakthroughs led to an age of increasing invasiveness of surgical procedures, the time of "great surgeon - great incision". Since the second half of the XX th century, the focus has shifted to minimally invasive and fast-track surgery. Current developments suggest that this approach will endure, with a constantly improving pharmacological and technical support.


Ecofeminism is concerned about relationship between the domination to women and the rule to nature.To set up a more harmonious,developmental,civilized and progressive new society,the opinions,schools as well as the plight in philosophy and practice of Ecofeminism were discribed.The focal point is the analysis of the various Ecofeminism opinions on the relationship between women and nature,reminding people to pay attention to female principle which was gotten more and more neglection.


Background Bronchoscopy is a frequently required procedure in the elderly due to the high prevalence of pulmonary diseases. Bronchoscopy is associated with fears, stress, and anxiety. Aim To evaluate the impact of an educational program on patient knowledge, anxiety level, difficulties, duration, and complications of bronchoscopy procedure in elderly patients. Patient and methods One hundred and fifty patients aged 60 years and older candidates for bronchoscopy were included. The patients were randomly divided into two equal groups: 75 patients received educational guideline (study group); 75 patients did not receive educational guideline (control group). Patient knowledge about bronchoscopy and anxiety level were assessed. The esigned educational program was applied to the study group on the day before the procedure. It included brochures with simple and brief instructions and pictures about bronchoscopy in Arabic language. It also includes the structure of the respiratory system, definition, indications and complications of bronchoscopy, patient preparation before, during and after the procedure, and patient's precautions that should be taken during and after bronchoscopy. Results There were insufficient knowledge and high anxiety scale about bronchoscopy. Knowledge score significantly increased and anxiety scale significantly decreased after providing the patients with educational program (P<0.001 for each). There was significant reduction in the duration of bronchoscopy procedure and the amount of anaesthesia used in the study than in the control group (P<0.001). Difficulties and discomfort were significantly lower in the study group. Conclusion Besides improving knowledge and reducing anxiety score, implementing the designed educational program increases tolerability, easiness and decrease problems related to bronchoscopy.


Municipal bankruptcies are unpredictable. There are several reasons for this statement — municipal bankruptcies are rare, involvement of the state itself in the process varies according to the governing state law, and chapter 9, the Bankruptcy Code chapter governing the municipal bankruptcy process, has many gaps. Congress constructed the modern chapter 9 on a foundation of corporate bankruptcy law, a foundation whose roots — corporate finance — are significantly different from the rules governing municipal finance. In this Article, Professor Moringiello aims a spotlight on the property roots of private bankruptcy law and compares them to the promissory and statutory roots of municipal finance law and makes suggestions for a decision-making framework for chapter 9 cases.


A power system test system is designed using PSCAD/EMTDC software for transient analysis, which can be specifically used for transient studies with Distributed Generators (DGs) or this system can be easily developed as a Microgrid test system. The model is developed based on a section of a practical power system that is Kukuleganga area of the Sri Lanka power system. This includes 132kV transmission system, Kukuleganga hydro power station, five grid substations with 33kV distribution buses and DGs. The developed model is verified through comparing the actual fault data obtained from the Ceylon Electricity Board, Sri Lanka with the results obtained from the developed PSCAD/EMTDC model. The Discrete Wavelet Transform is used to identify the degree of accuracy in verification of the model. The test results are demonstrated for both current and voltage waveforms.


Exploring and developing high‐efficiency electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is desirable yet challenging for cost‐effective transformation of renewable electricity into fuels and chemicals. Herein, a self‐supported electrode of nanoflower‐like Ce‐modified Ni(OH)2 grown on high‐conductivity NiSe2 octahedra nanoparticles is designed and fabricated for the first time. By virtue of i) the high conductivity of the NiSe2 support for favorable electron transfer; ii) the open porous structure from the nanoflower‐like Ce‐modified Ni(OH)2 for beneficial mass transport; iii) Ce doping for efficiently optimizing the energetics for OER intermediates based on density functional theory simulations; and iv) Ce(OH)3 embedding for efficacious oxygen ion exchange and electronic transmission, the electrode exhibits remarkable OER activity with a very low overpotential of 158 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and Tafel slope of 27 mV dec−1, which outperform almost all OER electrocatalysts.


This case study higl11ights the importance of an inlegrated approach to implement energy efficiency improvement measures in an industry, while pointing out the drawbacks of undertaking poorly coordinated sporadic activities. The discussion revolves around one of the energy improvement measures adopted in a cement mill, the introduction of a high efficiency clinker cooler. The case study is based on information and data gathered from different categories of personnel of an integrated cement mill in Sri Lanka,


Future electronic systems will create "ambient intelligence": environments that recognise us, applications which can be used intuitively. Displays will always be a key part of such systems, because visual information provides a densely packed fast link to our brain. European researchers and suppliers are global drivers in display innovation - on the other hand Europe is a major influence on the market for display applications. However, today displays are produced in Asia, European research and development is scattered, and lacks both collaboration and a strong production base. That is why adria, a European network for the displays community, has been formed: Its goal is to substantially enhance the standing of the displays industry in Europe by creating a common knowledge base, by generating a common vision for a display future in Europe and by establishing appreciated services for a future association that will serve as a "one-stop-shop" for the community. To effectively start the discussion, a vision paper1 has been compiled including inputs from 95 individuals from 17 European countries. It describes the state displays research and industry are in today and estimates future developments displays will take towards intelligent systems in the next decade and beyond. Recommendations are made to reinforce the displays industry in a sustainable way building on existing strengths in research, as well as in the materials and equipment sectors. The adria network, its roadmapping approach as well as key projections and findings of the vision paper are described here, going beyond the topic of Organic Light Emitting Diodes alone.


Transport phenomena in contaminated water from waste disposal sites deposited into deep mines are analysed in the paper. Critical transport path for pollutant migration by diffusion of contaminants and buoyancy-driven convection of contaminated water is assumed to be in a vertical cylindrical enclosure. In the first approximation, both transport phenomena are modeled and then numerically simulated separately. The models presented describe ion diffusion and axisymmetric turbulent convection in a vertical cylinder with the radius R=3·5 m heated from the sidewalls. One-dimensional diffusion equation is used for simulating the ion diffusion in an enclosure of height H=1000 m. Three low-Reynolds number two-equation turbulence models contained in the FIDAP 7·5 software package were tested in our computational simulations of the natural convection. Two typical case studies of buoyancy-driven convection represent the aspect ratios H/R=14·3 and H/R=286. The former corresponds to the initial state just after deposition of the surplus water, the latter to the whole height of the cylindrical enclosure filled by the underground water. The numerical results obtained show that ion diffusion is not dangerous as far as the contamination of subsurface water is concerned. On the other hand, it is concluded that the buoyancy-driven convection in the enclosures with the above aspect ratios can lead to the transport of contaminants into subsurface water and hence the protection of receiving waters from contamination must be designed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


✺ 1950's: Finite differences and Rayleigh-Ritz-Galerkin ✺ FD: Young (1950) — over relaxation; faster iterative methods for large systems; 5-point schemes ✺ Courant: Variational method with piecewise linear basis functions leads to a 5-point scheme for the Laplace equation. (forgotten for 20 years) ✺ Decisive step: engineers independently develop finite elements (piecewise polynomial shape functions leads to FD)


This paper proposes a scheme for detecting moving objects (MOs) from a Motion JPEG (MJ) coded video recorded by a stationary camera. The proposed scheme detects MOs without decoding a compressed video, whereas the ordinary motion detecting schemes have to decompress the video. For MOs detection, the correlation based on the positive and negative sign of discrete cosine transformed (DCT) coefficients of video frames is used in the proposed scheme. A DCT sign is encoded separately from its corresponding magnitude, so the signs are directly extracted from a MJ compressed codestream, that is, no need to decompress the coded video. In the proposed scheme, MOs are detected in each 8 × 8-sized block of two adjacent video frames where the block is the MJ compression unit. Experimental results show that an usage of surrounding blocks in a detection decreases both false positive and false negative detections.


The researchers are attempting to develop the alternative fuel which is economical, environment friendly and a simple technology which is easy to understand and to implement. From the study of many researchers we came to know that, biofuels are having the potential need to serve as a fuel in compression ignition engine. In the present work, Simarouba Glauca oil biodiesel blends with diesel were used as a fuel. Further, the effect of compression ratio on the performance parameters such as brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC), brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and brake power (BP) and emissions were investigated in a constant speed direct injection (DI) diesel engine, with varied compression ratios (14.3:1, 15.6:1 and 16.5:1). The test results shown that the Simarouba biodiesel blends at CR 16.5:1 is having good performance with low emission than at CR of 14.3:1 and 15.6:1, except for emissions of


Abstract : The authors of this article created a group of low-nickle carburizing steals which by their physical and mechanical properties are on par with high-nickle steels and possess optimum properties of the carburized layer in parts.


In response to a clear gap in knowledge on the biodiversity of sessile Gnesiotrocha rotifers at both global as well as regional Southeast Asian scales, we performed a study of free-living colonial and epiphytic rotifers attached to fifteen aquatic plant species in Thale Noi Lake, the first Ramsar site in Thailand. We identified 44 different taxa of sessile rotifers, including thirty-nine fixosessile species and three planktonic colonial species. This corresponds with about 40 % of the global sessile rotifer diversity, and is the highest alpha-diversity of the group ever recorded from a single lake. The record further includes a new genus, Lacinularoides n. gen., containing a single species L. coloniensis (Colledge, 1918) n. comb., which is redescribed, and several possibly new species, one of which, Ptygura thalenoiensis n. spec. is formally described here. Ptygura noodti (Koste, 1972) n. comb. is relocated from Floscularia, based on observations of living specimens of this species, formerly known only from preserved, contracted specimens from the Amazon region. In addition, ten of the species recorded are added to the fauna of the Oriental region, twenty-seven are new to Thailand.


Non-equilibrium ionization effects are important in cosmological hydrodynamical simulations but are computationally expensive. We study the effect of non-equilibrium ionization evolution and UV ionizing background (UVB) generated with different quasar spectral energy distribution (SED) on the derived physical conditions of the intergalactic medium at 2 ≤ z ≤ 6 using our post-processing tool 'Code for Ionization and Temperature Evolution' (cite). cite produces results matching well with self-consistent simulations more efficiently. The  He ii reionization progresses more rapidly in non-equilibrium model compared to equilibrium models. The redshift of  He ii reionization strongly depends on the quasar SED and occurs earlier for UVB models with flatter quasar SEDs. During this epoch, the normalization of temperature–density relation, T0(z), has a maximum while the slope, γ(z), has a minimum, but occurring at different redshifts. The T0 is higher in non-equilibrium models using UVB obtained with flatter quasar SEDs. While our models produce the observed median  He ii effective optical depth evolution and its scatter for equilibrium and non-equilibrium considerations, to explain the observed cumulative distributions we may need to consider fluctuating UVB. For a given UVB model, the redshift dependence of the  H i photoionization rate derived from the observed  H i effective optical depth (τeff, H i) for the equilibrium model is different from that for the non-equilibrium model. This may lead to different requirements on the evolution of ionizing emissivities of sources. We show that, in the absence of strong differential pressure smoothing effects, it is possible to recover the T0 and γ realized in non-equilibrium model from the equilibrium models generated by rescaling photoheating rates while producing the same τeff, H i.


Code smells are the indicators of design flaws or problems in source code which require to be resolved to maintain code quality. Copyright © 2019 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). In the literature, various tools and techniques have been proposed to detect code smells; however, those techniques tend to generate spurious false positive warnings, which do not require an action to be taken. Consequently, further approaches have been developed for identification of actionable alerts among them. Those approaches rely on a naive assumption and each alert that is resolved before the latest revision is assumed to be actionable disregarding the priority of it. In this study, we have performed some analysis on alerts that were resolved by the developers and tried to uncover the factors that professional developers use to select code smells to resolve. Focusing on the low priority alerts that are resolved, we investigated the other smells located in the same classes (i.e., collocated smells) and observed the tendency of developers to resolve the low priority issues when they co-occur with the high priority ones in the same file. In addition, applying classification algorithms using the features that cover the information about the neighborhoods of an alert, we observed that the accuracy of actionable alert detection significantly increases.


Large improvements in cancer survival have been seen in the last two decades due to improvement in early diagnosis and treatment. However, inequalities in cancer survival remain, not only between but also within countries; survival varies by gender, age, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Notably, socioeconomic inequalities in cancer survival were observed in England and part of Japan, despite healthcare systems based on universal health coverage. Particularly, colorectal cancer (CRC) has a wide range of variability in its survival by deprivation. For example, 3 to 10% difference in 1-year net survival for CRC between the least and the most deprived has been reported in both countries. However, the mechanisms of socioeconomic inequalities in cancer survival are still not fully understood. I examined whether socioeconomic inequalities in CRC treatment and survival existed in current data, and explored factors associated with the inequalities by investigating data from whole England and Osaka University Hospital in Japan. Firstly, I examined socioeconomic disparities in receipt of major surgery for the primary lesion and the postoperative mortality. Secondly, I examined the socioeconomic gap in CRC survival using flexible parametric models. Lastly, I proceeded to mediation analysis, a novel technique, to investigate the mechanism of survival inequalities. In England, socioeconomic inequalities in survival existed for both colon and rectal cancer in the stages of potential for cure. There were socioeconomic inequalities in receipt of surgery for rectal cancer, and in postoperative mortality for colon cancer in England. In Japan, no socioeconomic inequalities existed in receipt of major surgery and survival. Results of mediation analyses revealed that, in England, reducing emergency presentation for both colon and rectal cancer and improving postoperative care for colon cancer may reduce the survival inequalities. In Japan, further investigation with a larger population is needed to determine the survival inequalities and understand its mechanism.


highly qualified middle school teachers. Excellence in teaching represents a step beyond high qualification. To maintain high qualification and reach for excellence is a never-ending journey. This issue of the Middle School Journal describes the vision; fundamental knowledge; discipline; passion; spirit of inquiry; personal drive to be the best; and caring for, yea even love of, young adolescents that characterize the journey from being a raw recruit contemplating a career in teaching to being revered by your students and their parents to being publicly recognized for excellence. Each of the articles in this issue demonstrates how


Abstract : A versatile digital computer program was developed to provide linear burning rate information on propellants based on pressure-time records obtained from closed bomb firing. Some of the unique features of the program are: a treatment of heat loss based on radiative and convective heat transfer, capability of using single valued or tabular thermodynamic input, allowance for web deviation in the propellant sample, allowance for ignition deviation (flame spread) of the propellant sample, allowance for possible simultaneous burning of propellant and ignition aid, allowance for tabular input of propellant surface versus mass fraction burned (to accommodate unusual geometries), and capability to treat vented vessel operations. The program was set up to operate on an interactive basis on a PDP 11/20 laboratory computer. In practice, once the program is called, the operator is guided in his choice of parameters (thermochemistry, heat loss, ignition deviation, etc.) by a series of prompts. A program overview is presented along with a description of equations, a derivation of the equations, and copies of program output and program listing.


PLTGU is a gas and steam power plant, producing electrical energy of 3x526 MW. The PLTGU generation process has several supporting components, one of which is a three-phase induction motor. It requires a balanced three-phase supply voltage in its operation. The problem that frequently occurs is unbalanced voltage supply, causing an imbalance of current going to the motor stator, if not directly corrected. It causes a high temperature on the motor, possible to cause a fire. Based on the problems, a system for monitoring the protection of steam pump motorcycles due to voltage unbalance based on the Internet of Things is designed.  It used a 1-phase AC Adapter voltage sensor, a current sensor SCT-013, an Arduino Uno as the processor, and a web to display the system. The test results showed that the sensor could work well. It could read voltage with an error percentage not exceeding 1%. The percentage error of the current sensor SCT-013 was 5.15%, but the value difference between the sensor and the Avo meter was 0.01. The system was displayed on the web to make to monitor the motor condition more easily


Adaptive Neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is multi-layer system proposed by Jang, ena bles to increase the performance by integrates the best features of Artificial Neural Networks and Fuzzy inference system into a single framework. It is a p opular framework for solving complex problems. In this pre sent work, an ANFIS is proposed for detection the risk f actor of hypertension. In this work, for training the ANF IS system hypertension patient's data set is collected un er the supervision of physician in clinical trials on hypertension patients in civil hospital. Additional ly, the performance analysis has been performed using the parameters Specificity and Precision. This paper gi ves a comprehensive performance analysis of the proposed approach and compares its results with existing Fuz zy Expert System technique. Simulation results have demonstrated that the proposed technique shows a be tter outcome then existing system in terms of Specificit y and Precision. We obtained that the specificity and pre cision of proposed model results is 93.33% and 98.11% resp . Keywords—Adaptive Neuro-fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS), fuzzy expert system, expert system, hypertension, medical diagnosis.


Tough regulation of heavy metals may justify a bioreactor approach in addition to chemical treatment of FGD wastewater. Two of Duke Energy' coal-fired plants, Belews Creek and Allen (in North Carolina) have installed new biological reactor systems to increase selenium removal to levels not achievable by existing scrubber waste water systems. The ABMet system removes nitrate and selenium in a single step. Progress Energy has installed the system at Roxboro and Mayo Stations, also in North Carolina. 1 fig., 2 photos.


LAMMS (Laser Microprobe Mass Spectrometry) has been used to observe the presence and location of a herbicide on plant lea, es. Leaves from soybean plants, sprayed with imazaquin, a member of the imidazolinone class of herbicides, at varying application rates, were examined by LAMMS without any special preparation. A rapid analysis for imazaquin was obtained confirming the suitability of LAMMS as an organic microprobe analyser. A comparison with standard chemical ionization and electron impact mass spectra of imazaquin showed evidence for laser-induced fragmentation.


The relaxation and transport dynamics of singlet excitons in 100 nm thick, electrochemically prepared polybithiophene films were investigated by monitoring the time evolution of photoinduced bleaching of the S0–S1 absorption and photoinduced absorption (S1–Sn) with femtosecond resolved transient absorption spectroscopy. The decay dynamics of both photoinduced bleaching and photoinduced absorption in the spectral range from 500 to 800 nm are observed to be independent of the pump pulse wavelength and can be fitted by a double exponential, the time constants of which are τ1=120±20 fs and τ2=2±0.3 ps. The fast decay process with ∼τ1=120 fs was ascribed to the transport dynamics of the initially generated free excitons migrating over parallel aligned polymer segments to structural defects acting as traps. The competing process, occurring predominantly in structurally disordered regions, is structural relaxation of the initially generated free excitons to self-trapped excitons decaying with a lifetime of about...


Obesity may occur after long period of disorders in appetite and energy metabolism regulations. With the increasing of obesity incidence, searching for the high effective corpulent-reducing medicine became the common wish of research. Tea has been widely used as healthy drink for thousands of years, its function of corpulent-reducing has brought more and more attention all over the world. In this paper, researches of corpulent-reducing function of tea and its mechanism have been summarized.


This tutorial is especially designed to the beginners in inverse techniques in heat conduction. Internal components of magnetic confinement fusion machines are subjected to significant heat fluxes. In order to estimate the input heat flux on these plasma-facing components, some temperature measurements techniques are used: IR scanner, embedded thermocouples. Through this experimental example; we propose to detail a heat flux estimation procedure associating deconvolution and regularization method (Tikhonov). After a brief presentation of the experimental context and the localisation of the inverse problem, the inversion procedure used and validity domain of the method will be presented. Finally, experimental cases will be treated and presented.


On 18 May 2012, the University announced that discussions are underway to build a consortium to help put the ANU School of Music, and music more generally in the ACT, on a financially sustainable footing.


Abstract A PVC membrane electrode for dysprosium(III) [Dy(III)] ions was constructed, having its basis on benzoxazoleguanidine (BG) as a suitable ionophore. The sensor presents a linear dynamic range of 1.0 × 10−6–1.0 × 10−1 M, with a Nernstian slope of 19.5 ± 0.4 mV decade−1 and a detection limit of 4.7 × 10−7 M. The response time is quick (less than 10 s). It can be used in the pH range of 3.3–8.4, and its duration is at least 2 mo without any considerable, noticeable potential divergence. The recommended sensor revealed comparatively good selectivity with respect to most alkali, alkaline earth, some transition, and heavy metal ions. It was successfully employed as an indicator electrode in the potentiometric titration of Dy(III) ions with EDTA. The membrane sensor also applied to the determination of concentration of Dy(III) ions in soil and sediment samples. Validation with certified reference materials (CRMs) was also carried out.