Summary. Relevance. Despite many surgical techniques that use modern metal fixators, treatment of elderly patients with fractures of the proximal part of the hip still remains relevant.
Objective: to evaluate the functional results of surgical treatment of elderly patients with transtrochanteric fractures of the femur using a cephalomedullary locking nail (PFNA).
Materials and Methods. The study involved 193 elderly patients (mean age 76.2±10.3 years) with transtrochanteric fractures of the femur type 31 A1-A2.1-1.3 (AO/OTA) after osteosynthesis by PFNA cephalomedullar fixator. The functional outcome of the treatment was determined after 1, 3, 12, and 36 months by Harris Hip Score (HHS), radiographic signs of bone union, and the presence of complications. The risk of recurrent trochanteric fractures over the next 10 years was calculated by adapted FRAX scale.
Results. Positive changes were found by HSS, in the dynamics: 51.6 after 1 month, 60.2 after 3 months, 79.7 after 12 months, and 84.4 after 36 months. Within 6 months after the surgery, the following changes were found: secondary displacement of bone fragments with the "cut-out" eruption of the cervical blade in 2.3% (n=3), migration of the cervical component outward in 4.7% (n=6), and inflammation of surgical wound in 3.9% (n=5) of cases. Retrospectively, the average FRAX score was assessed (22.12±1.76).
Conclusions. Stable functional osteosynthesis of transtrochanteric fractures of the femur using PFNA combined with early dosed loading on the injured limb allowed to obtain satisfactory functional results in 95.4% of cases. Secondary displacement of bone fragments with the "cut-out" effect requires a detailed analysis of all possible endo- and exogenous factors and identification of the most significant ones. The 10-year risk of recurrent fractures in patients with trochanteric fractures significantly increases over the age of 70, especially in females, and accounts for the majority of osteoporotic fractures.


Objectives: An accurate and precise spectrofluorimetric methodwas developed and validated for the determination of β-lactam antibiotic named; cefoxitin sodiumin its pure form and powder for injection. Methods: Based on nucleophilic substitution reaction of target drug with 4-chloro-7-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole (NBD-Cl) to form a highly fluorescent fluorophore measured at 540 nm after excitation at 460 nm. Results: Under optimum condition, the proposed method obeys Beer's law in range (0.5-7 µg mL-1) and the reaction mechanisms were presented. Conclusion: The method was validated according to ICH guideline for accuracy, precision and was successfully applied for the determination of the drug in its pure form and powder for injection. The obtained results were statistically compared with those of the reported method and found to be in good agreement.


After
the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, the first day of the 2017-2018 school year
for Aransas Pass ISD was seven weeks later than originally scheduled. This delay
created a major challenge for teachers. "Are we going to be able to achieve
everything we need to for this school year?" asked kinderg


A novel method is presented for visually monitoring a highway automatically when the camera is relatively low to the ground and on the side of the road. In such a case, occlusion and the perspective effects that are due to the heights of the vehicles cannot be ignored. By using a single camera, the system automatically detects and tracks feature points throughout the image sequence, estimates the 3-D world coordinates of the points on the vehicles, and groups those points together to segment and track the individual vehicles. Experimental results on different highways demonstrate the ability of the system to segment and track vehicles even in the presence of severe occlusion and significant perspective changes. By handling perspective effects, the approach overcomes a limitation of commercially available machine vision-based traffic-monitoring systems that are used in many intelligent transportation systems (ITS) applications. Researchers are targeting this system as a step toward a next-generation ITS sensor for automated traffic analysis.


The perchlorinated aromatic nitrogen heterocycles undergo metathesis and approach equilibrium compositions at ca. 600°C in 3 h according to the equation 1,3,5-C3Cl3N3+ C6Cl6⇌ C4Cl4N2+ C5Cl5N; C4Cl4N2 consists of an equilibrium mixture of tetrachloropyrimidine and tetrachloropyrazine which interconvert by way of their cyanogen chloride Diels–Alder adducts.


In this paper the working principles on thyristor inverter circuit of half-bridge series were analyzed.According to the characteristic of thyristor instantaneous over-current,zero input response of second order model was established.Using specific parameters configuration,we conducted the circuit simulation.Through analyses,a conclusion was drawn that the current-limiting inductance obtained in series has a protective effect in inverter failure.


An excellent review of the pulse height analyzer field was published in 1952. The principal new developments have been in analyzers having a large number of channels, which make use of digital computer techniques. The characteristics of these analyzers will be discussed. The gray wedge analyzers for high speed applications and other new ideas will be described. An effort will be made to suggest the advantages and disadvantages of the different types for various applications.


Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a heterogeneous disease with multiple neurological deficits that evolve over time. It is also associated with an increased incidence of neurodegenerative diseases. Accordingly, clinicians need better tools to predict a patient's long‐term prognosis.


where σ is taken as the population standard deviation (universe standard deviation as stated by Baird). By convention, population statistics are always written using lower-case Greek letters. Sample statistics of a population are always written using lower-case English letter. So, s, would represent the standard deviation of a sample of the population (c.f., page 45 of text). Note that the equation for a sample standard deviation is similar to the above equation, with the exception of N-1 in the denominator. See page 44, equation (3-6). Sample standard deviations are always larger than population standard deviations.


Photoconductivity of zinc nitride films prepared by the reactive radio frequency (rf) magnetron sputtering method is reported. It was observed that the as-deposited zinc nitride films did not exhibit photoconductivity whereas the annealed films under ambient conditions above 275 °C indicated some photoconductivity. The photoconductivity of annealed zinc nitrides exhibited at a measurement temperature as high as 100 °C suggesting that the carrier generation was governed by band gap transition. Photoconductivity was observed for the films annealed in air while the films annealed in nitrogen and ammonia ambient did not exhibit any photoconductive phenomenon. The results indicate that the content of nitrogen in the zinc nitride films plays an important role in electronic properties. The effect of annealing on photoconductivity was interpreted as due to the removal of extra nitrogen, which was included in the films during the sputter deposition process.


The imagination of brand image for tourism industry is a combination of antecedents and moderators that create differential effects on customer response to the tourism marketing of the brand. As imagination consider framework of brand image for tourism industry. By constructing a conceptual framework of brand image for tourism industry will build a competitive advantage in the tourism marketplace. Indeed, recent trends in modern tourism marketing have changed tremendously, and study of a conceptual framework is increasingly becoming considerable to keep pace with this change. In this conceptual paper, authors have summarized the literature on currently prevailing concepts and approaches on brand image for tourism industry.


PurposeAs current university students may access information for their study anytime, anywhere with ubiquitous mobile technologies, this research re-examines the roles of study space in students' learning and campus life.Design/methodology/approachA survey was conducted to collect students' opinions and habits regarding the usage of different study spaces. Results in three different academic majors (science and engineering, arts and business) of a comprehensive international university were compared.FindingsThe authors' findings showed a more diversified space usage among students, with the library café increasingly important in students' learning and life while learning commons remain important. However, there were only minor differences among these three study majors towards the learning and entertaining spaces, as these students generally apply inquiry-based learning.Originality/valueWhile some researches have investigated students' usage of university and library learning spaces, few studies have focused on the study space issue in Hong Kong or other metropolises in the East under the current mobile learning environment. This study's insights could help libraries and universities improve the management of their physical spaces to meet student needs.


Premature ejaculation (PE) is a common sexual dysfunction worldwide, and animal models are used to characterize it. We developed a paradigm called the multiple partner choice arena (MPCA), consisting of 4 acrylic cylinders placed crosswise. Each cylinder contains a sexually experienced male rat, and a receptive female rat resides in the central space, able to choose any cylinder for copulation. We have suggested the MPCA as an animal model for assessing PE be-cause male rats in this paradigm display behavior similar to PE in men, achieving ejaculation in less time. This study aims to demonstrate whether the MPCA satisfies the predictive validity criterion, in which the effects of drugs in the animal model should closely resemble those observed in human medical disorders, such as PE. We investigated the effect of 2 SSRIs (SSRI), sertraline and fluoxetine, on male rats' rapid ejaculation in the MPCA. Two groups of male rats (n=8) were tested: saline, sertraline, and fluoxetine. Weekly doses of 1, 3, and 10 mg/kg/day for sertraline and fluoxetine were administered, while the saline group received only the vehicle. Each test involved four males from the same group, treated with identical drug doses, until achieving the first ejaculation in the MPCA. Fluoxetine and sertraline, at the 10 mg/kg dose, significantly prolonged the ejaculation latency. For this reason, the MPCA satisfies the predictive validity criterion as an animal model of PE.


The construction of harmonious library is,first,under the guidance of philosophy of schooling,taking advantage of its own superiority,to provide favorable resources for teaching scientific research,constructing harmony between university and library;second,with reader-oriented,to promote the satisfaction for readers' demands,constructing harmony between library with readers;and third,with librarian-oriented,to promote their quality,to create the harmony among them.


The invention discloses a preparation method for separating a biochemical medicament from small sheep intestine mucosas, in particular a preparation method for producing sodium heparin by using small sheep intestines. The preparation method for producing the sodium heparin by using the small sheep intestines is characterized by comprising the following steps of: preparation of intestine mucosas, enzymolysis, adsorption, elution, precipitation, desalting, dehydration and drying to obtain the sodium heparin. Therefore, the method has the advantages of high yield, low sodium heparin activity loss, stable quality and capability of solving the problem of stink in a sodium heparin workshop by adopting a workshop waste gas purification treatment device; 10,000 to 12,000 small sheep intestine mucosas are needed for producing 100 million units of sodium heparin by using the conventional process, and 6,000 to 8,000 small sheep intestine mucosas are needed for producing 100 million units of sodium heparin by using the preparation method of the invention; and the valence and activity of the sodium heparin are greatly improved so that the production cost is greatly reduced, and the profit is improved by over 40 percent.


This paper presents an improved skeleton extraction from depth video for fall detection based on fast randomized decision forest (RDF) algorithm. Due to the human's body orientation changes dramatically during falling, it reduces the accuracy of tracking. The human's orientation needs to be corrected before the process by RDF. A rotation to correct the orientation is required frame by frame. Experimental results show that with the help of correction our proposed fall detection method could outperform the existing RDF based method.


Impurity contents, microstructures, fracture surfaces and mechanical properties of iridium(Ir) sheets under different processing conditions were investigated by means of glow discharge mass spectrometry(GDMS), optical microscope(OM), scanning electron microscope(SEM) and tensile testing machine. The results indicate that processing condition has great effect on mechanical properties of Ir sheet. The ultimate tensile strength and elongations of 1mm hot rolled Ir sheet were 213.6 MPa and 2.52%, respectively, with a mixture fracture mode of brittle intergranular fracture and brittle transgranular cleavage fracture. The ultimate tensile strength and elongations of 0.1 mm cold worked Ir sheet were 954.1 MPa and 0.55%, respectively, with mainly transgranular brittle fracture. No obviously evidence of plastic deformation was occurred before tensile failure.


The purpose of this study is to innovate the drum tools used in the manufacture of shell charcoal, the process takes 8 to 10 hours, and a lot of smoke that causes pollution, as well as charcoal results obtained only 40%, so the purpose of this study is to increase charcoal results and accelerate combustion time and improve the quality of shell charcoal produced. The Rotary Furnace in this result has specifications: Stainless material and steel Drum Length 130 cm, Diameter 50.0 cm, maximum feed capacity 20 kg, minimum 3 kg The shell has maximum temperature are 300 oC. The innovation of Rotary Furnace has the best operation condition process is at temperature 200oC, the highest yield of 68% with the lowest % loss of 23.4%, the number of fireballs is 20%, and the operating time for making charcoal into briquette are 15-30 minutes.


The article discusses methodological approaches to the implementation of industrial investment projects. To date, the recovery of the economy as a whole is perceived as an increase in gross domestic product (GDP). Industrial projects play a huge role in the country's investment policy. Industrial production is a key link in the economies of countries and is the second largest source of global GDP after the services sector. Modern industry is a key component of the economy of any country, and Russia is no exception. The structure and quality of the products produced by industry plays an important role for the economic climate of the state, thereby determining the economic power and independence of the country. In modern conditions, the problem of the development of domestic industrial production is becoming more and more urgent. The Russian industry needs to modernize and strengthen its positions both in the domestic and foreign markets. However, the problem of the revival and development of industrial production is primarily related to the need to attract large investments in long-term high-risk industrial projects. Large investment projects, such as the construction of highways or industrial facilities, are characterized by a huge period of their implementation and very complex procedures for approving project documentation. Accordingly, such projects are the most risky for banks and private investors. And the higher the risks, the higher the cost of financing. The solution of the above problem requires the creation of mechanisms that facilitate the attraction of investments in large industrial projects. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that today there is a constant development and improvement of the methodology for managing investment and construction projects, but in practice this development does not always lead to an increase in the effectiveness of the projects themselves. In the case of investments in energy, chemical and other industries, as well as in infrastructure development, characterized by huge investments, the choice of the financing method is key to making a decision on the implementation of such a project. It follows from the above that improving the efficiency of implementation and management of industrial investment and construction projects is an important task both for the investment climate of the country and for the development of the industrial sector. The essential result of this research is the formation of methodological approaches to improving the reliability, from the point of view of investors, of large industrial investment projects.


Bacterial spores often survive thermal processing used in the food industry, while heat treatment leads not only to a decrease in the nutritional and organoleptic properties of foods, but also to a delay in fermentation of fermented foods. Selective reduction of undesirable spores without such impediments is an ongoing challenge for food scientists. Thus, increased knowledge of the spore-forming bacteria is required to control them. In this study, the heat resistance results (D100°C) of the spores of four Bacillus species were determined and compared to previous literature, and found that B. cereus has significantly lower heat resistance than the other Bacillus species, B. coagulans, B. subtilis, and B. licheniformis. Using the spores of these strains, this study also evaluated the effects of single and combined supplementation of calcium (0.00–2.00 mM) and manganese (0.00–0.50 mM) on heat resistance (D100°C). The results revealed that the spores of B. licheniformis and B. cereus displayed the smallest heat resistance when sporulated on media rich in calcium. Conversely, B. coagulans spores and B. subtilis spores exhibited the greatest heat resistance when sporulated under calcium-rich conditions. The opposite results (stronger heat resistance for B. licheniformis spores and B. cereus spores, and smaller heat resistance for B. coagulans spores and B. subtilis spores) were obtained when the spores were formed on media poor in the minerals (particularly calcium). Based on the results, the Bacillus species were divided into two groups: B. licheniformis and B. cereus; and B. coagulans and B. subtilis. The study provides valuable insight to selectively reduce spores of undesirable Bacillus species in the food industry.


Studies based on scatology can substantially improve our knowledge of armadillo ecology. This study describes the food habits of armadillo species in the Cerrado area of Mato Grosso, Brazil by examining fecal samples. Collection of feces occurred through walking along linear transects, occasionally capturing free-living armadillos, and finding dead armadillos. In total, 19 samples from 4 species were examined: Priodontes maximus (n = 8), Euphractus sexcinctus (n = 8), Dasypus novemcinctus (n = 2), and Cabassous unicinctus (n = 1). Feces of P. maximus and E. sexcinctus were characterized by their size, odor, and consistency. Feces size did not considerably vary among species, but the odor and consistency were more distinctive. In total, 21 categories of food items were identified. Termites, ants, and beetles were the most frequent prey. Fecal samples of all species also contained high percentages of soil particles. Euphractus sexcinctus had the most diverse diet, including invertebrates, plants, and vertebrates. Dasypus novemcinctus basically consumed Isoptera (5 species). Priodontes maximus and Cabassous unicinctus had less-diverse diets. Diets of certain pairs of species overlapped more than others. Insects were a prey category important to all species, thus leading to overlapping niches. However, when prey biomass was considered in the analyses, the niche of E. sexcinctus was considerably distinct from those of the other species.


Studies have shown that nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) reduce the risk of and mortality from a variety of cancers. Although cyclooxygenase (COX)‐dependent and ‐independent pathways may be involved, the mechanisms responsible for these effects remain unknown. In our study, we found that piroxicam inhibited cell growth in premalignant and malignant, but not normal, human oral epithelial cell lines in a concentration‐ and time‐dependent manner. After 6 days of exposure, the concentration that inhibited growth by 50% was 181 and 211 μM for premalignant and malignant cells, respectively. Piroxicam did not induce apoptosis. The growth inhibitory effect was COX and PGE2 independent. Adding PGE2 or infecting cells with a COX‐1 transgene did not abrogate piroxicam‐induced growth inhibition. After treatment of the premalignant and malignant cell lines with piroxicam, cells accumulated in the S phase of the cell cycle. Upon removal of piroxicam, cells entered the G2 phase. The S phase block was accompanied by a reduction in the protein levels of cyclin A, cyclin B1, cyclin D1, cdc2, PCNA and the c‐jun AP‐1 component. Therefore, piroxicam may exert its growth inhibitory effects selectively on the premalignant and malignant human oral epithelial cells lines via signaling pathways regulating the progression of cells through the S phase of the cell cycle. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


The experience of using the Security and Defense Forces in the anti-terrorist operation and the Joint Forces operation in deterring armed aggression in eastern Ukraine indicates that under modern conditions the combat capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine depend on timely and comprehensive support of their military units. In order to provide comprehensive support, compact institutions, bodies, structures, and military units of logistical support that respond quickly to the needs of the troops are needed. The article reveals the concept and purpose of an integrated support center; the main tasks for the logistical support of military units (separate units) during operations (combat actions) have been identified; the basic indicators of efficiency of functioning and the existing model of functioning of the united support center concerning distribution of functional powers between divisions have been determined. The list of tasks of functioning of the integrated support center where information technologies are applied is defined. The method of solving existing tasks in the process of conducting an operation (combat) is considered to be the use of multi-agent systems. The solution of the issue of integrated automation based on ERP solutions (resources management and planning concept) and WMS (the information system providing warehouse processes management automation) has been offered. The paper summarizes the conclusions that multi-agent systems allow forecasting the availability of stocks at an integrated supply center, to form a rational model of stock management, which is based on non-stochastic demand and is a combination of known models, that will ensure continuity and completeness of military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for their operations (combat actions).


Chochorowski J. 2016. Polish archaeological investigations on linear construction projects – contemporaneity and tradition. Analecta Archaeologica Ressoviensia 11, 289–310 Research excavations accompanying large construction projects have become the most important collective experience for Polish archaeologists over the last twenty years. The lack of substantive control from the state over the selection of the contractors conducting these excavations has resulted in the erosion of the rules of methodologically proper conduct, and even (sometimes) in the excavations losing their status as research activity. Despite having great traditions in the realisation of large-scale programs of archaeological research, the Polish archaeological community proved vulnerable to phenomena such as the loss of corporate solidarity, professional ethos, and sense of mission.


This guide is to assist with research in BSC 652: Community Ecology. Enter a description for the Citation Help page.


Nuclear pollution has become a new form and perhaps more harmful type of pollution that obsesses coastal regions; it has been of increasing concern after the disastrous Fukushima nuclear leak on March 11, 2011. In order to assess the impact of the Fukushima accident on the East China Sea (ECS), a highly resolved model is set up to simulate the evolution of the Cs concentration. Different from previous studies in this regard, here we take into account the radionuclides originally existing in the ocean. It is found that the radionuclides from the Fukushima leak do have reached ECS, though with a concentration far below the harmful level. The major waterways that inlet the radionuclides are Taiwan Strait and the waterway east of Taiwan. The radioactive material tends to accumulate in the ECS until reaching its peak in 2019; afterward, the outflux through Tokara Strait and Tsushima exceeds the influx through the two southern waterways, and the material resumes in 2021 to its original state. The concentration is neither homogeneously nor stationarily distributed; for example, usually in summer, there is a high center over the Subei Bank in the Yellow Sea. This study is expected, should a similar accident happen again, to help decide where to monitor the ocean, and, hopefully, how to get the pollution under control.


Introduction To test the accuracy of the visual and automated bone age assessment base on the Greulich and Pyle (GP) method in healthy Caucasian European children with a Moroccan ethnic origin. Material and methods Moroccan Caucasian (MC) children were retrospectively and consecutively enrolled along with age- and sex-matched control group (CG) of European Caucasian (EC) children enrolled from the general population. The two groups included 423 children aged from 2 to 15 years with a normal left-hand radiograph performed to rule out a trauma between March 2008 and December 2017. One radiologist, blinded to the BoneXpert® (Visiana, Holte, Denmark) estimates, visually reviewed the radiographs using the GP atlas. The BoneXpert® automatically analysed all 423 radiographs. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), linear regression and Bland-Altman plots were performed to describe the agreement between each method and the chronological age (CA) and the agreement between the two methods. Results Visual bone age assessment was related to the CA in both girls (MC ICC 0.97; EC ICC 0.97) and boys (MC ICC 0.95; EC ICC 0.96). Automated bone age assessment was related to the CA in both girls (MC ICC 0.97; EC ICC 0.96) and boys (MC ICC 0.88; EC ICC 0.96). Bland-Altman plots showed an excellent agreement between the two methods in both sexes and ethnicities before puberty especially in Moroccan boys. Conclusion Visual and automatic bone age assessment based on the GP method, previously validated in the general population of Caucasian European children, can be confidently used in healthy Caucasian European children with a Moroccan ethnic origin.


For an in vivo study, six groups of rats fed for 14 days with either plain yoghurt or Aloe vera (AV) supplemented yoghurt (10% and 20%). Serum protein and lipid profiles were assessed. Results from in vivo studies showed a noticeable increase in weight gain, total proteins and globulins over a period of 14 days in experimental animals fed AV yoghurt. Results also showed a reduction of serum triglycerides, Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) and total cholesterol with increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in AV yoghurt fed rats.


In the carribean islands, bananas are cropped on a large variety of soils, distributed according to chrono-topo-climo-sequences. Under intensive monoculture, Vertisols sustain constant yielding crops while Andosols derived from recent ash deposits are associated with yield depletion caused by root damage due to nematodes and the fungus #Cylindrocladium# sp. This paper is aimed at assessing the relationship between soil type and the banana root disease caused by the fungus. A field survey shows that banana root damage is closely related to soil type and weathering stage. The severity in root injury increases with decreasing clay and free Fe, Mn content. A Mn deficiency in banana plants cropped on the Andosols, may possibly influence the banana root tolerance to fungal infection. The weakest root damage occur in the Vertisols. The soil inoculum density of #Cylindrocladium# sp. ranges from 0-4 to 8-37 UFC/g soil in Vertisols and Andosols respectively. Soil receptivity to #Cylindrocladium# sp. is measured in both sterilized and unsterilized conditions in the Ap horizons of three distinct soils : Andosol, Vertisol and Nitisol. The dominant clay minerals in the Vertisol and Nitisol (>70% clay) are smectite and halloysite respectively. In unsterilized conditions, results show that a given damage intensity of 40-60 % injured root surface involves an inoculum density of #Cylindrocladium# sp. amounting to 2 and 20 UFC/ml soil in the Andosol and Vertisol respectively. These soils are respectively strongly and weakly conducive for the banana root disease induced by #Cylindrocladium# sp.; while the Nitisol represents an intermediate situation. relatively to unsterilized conditions, root damage increases in sterilized conditions whatever the inoculum level and similar differences in receptivity are observed between the distinct soils. Abiotic soil factors therefore act on soil receptivity to #Cylindrocladium# sp.


Site Descriptions (ESDs) represent an emerging tool to assist land managers and owners in understanding their landscapes and how they work, or function, in an ecological context. Ecosystem services are those resources and processes supplied by natural ecosystems and sites that can be viewed as benefits to society and, conceptually, natural capital assets with the capacity to be assigned economic values.1 The definitions of ecosystem services were formalized by the United Nations 2004 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA),2 which is a report resulting from a four-year study involving more than 1,300 scientists worldwide. This report grouped ecosystem services into four broad categories: provisioning, such as the production of food and water; regulating, such as the control of climate and disease; supporting, such as nutrient cycles and crop pollination; and cultural, such as spiritual and recreational benefits. Despite the recognition provided in the MA report, there are numerous examples in which the values of ecosystem services go unrecognized, leading to great economic, cultural, biologic, and aesthetic loss. A notable example of a lack of recognition of ecosystem services can be seen in American wetland ecosystems. From the time North America was settled by Europeans until the passage of the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1972 (which made the destruction and conversion of many wetland types illegal), wetlands were drained, filled, and otherwise converted, for use of agricultural production, mining, timber harvest, dam construction, and urban development on immense scales. Events leading to the passage of the CWA resulted in the recognition that those "swampy, mosquito infested, mucky bogs" actually did have value for something besides frogs and the occasional duck. Aided by the proclamation of "No Net Loss" of wetlands by President George Bush in 1989, the American public became aware of the long list of values and ecosystem services provided by wetlands, including groundwater discharge, flood attenuation, sediment stabilization, sediment/ toxicant retention, nutrient removal/transformation, aquatic and wildlife diversity/abundance and habitat, and a wide array of recreation opportunities. Here, we highlight, in examples from the American West, the strong role key wildlife species play in effecting transitions of ecological character and function on specific ecological sites and the services provided by those ecosystems. It is in this intersection where landscape, the potential for transition to or from desired states, the subsequent ecosystem services proffered or reduced, and the often-controversial role of certain wildlife species collide. Understanding how ecological sites can transition from one state to another is poorly understood in many cases. Our interest is in integrating wildlife conceptually and practically into the identification of ESDs; determining how some wildlife can effect transitions is another interest. Wildlife can influence our understanding of sites and their dynamics. Finally, we frame both the potential utility of the ecosystem services concept and its limitations, using examples from key ecological sites. The ecosystem service literature is large and growing, concerning itself with water cycles, energy flow, clean air and water, nutrient cycling, and other ecosystem processes. Here, we will consider ecosystem services more narrowly in the context of transitions among states and wildlife activities, briefly described below. The dynamics of soil-vegetation interactions on ecological sites are described in state-and-transition models (STMs) (Fig. 1). These STMs evaluate how sites in a particular condition, or "state," can change, or "transition," to very different states, in both biological and physical dimensions. Different states or community phases on the same site, in principle, could provide a very different combination of ecosystem services. Across much of the western United States, the majority of existing ecosystems no longer represent historical conditions. This broadly is true because of altered ecosystem processes (changes in "drivers" such as climate and land use)


Abstract This paper presents a new modeling and verification approach for identification of an uncertain vehicle system. The introduced method extends the traditional identification step with a controller design step using the iterative model based controller design scheme. The aim of this modification is to build in a model validation step into the identification to validate the goodness of the identified model. Moreover, the paper illustrates an academic example for the practical application of the theoretical results.


PURPOSE: A method for manufacturing semiconductor devices is provided to be capable of improving a ferroelectric property(that is, the amount of residual polarity) and preventing degradation of a ferroelectric property. CONSTITUTION: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor devices forms the first interlayer dielectric(6) covering an integrated circuit on a semiconductor substrate(1) in which the integrated circuit having at least one diffusion layer is formed. A ferroelectric capacitor(10) consisting of a lower electrode(7), a ferroelectric film(8) and an upper electrode(9) is formed on the first interlayer dielectric(6). The second interlayer dielectric(11) covers the ferroelectric capacitor and the first interlayer dielectric and is formed to have an extension force against the ferroelectric capacitor. The first contact holes reaching the diffusion layer(2) and the lower electrode are formed in the second interlayer dielectric. The first heat treatment is then implemented at the temperature of about 450 Celsius degree under oxygen atmosphere. The first metal line(12) reaching the diffusion layer and the lower electrode through the first contact holes is formed. The third interlayer dielectric(13) covers the first metal line and the second interlayer dielectric and is formed to have an extension force against the ferroelectric capacitor. The second contact holes reaching the upper electrode are formed in the third interlayer dielectric. The second heat treatment is then implemented at the temperature of about 450 Celsius degree under oxygen atmosphere. The second metal line(14) reaching the upper electrode through the second contact holes is formed.


Sm was substituted for Bi in BiNbO4 ceramics and the effects on the sintering behavior and microwave dielectric properties have been investigated. The result show that with increase of Sm content, the sintering temperature increases and the crystalline phase and microwave dielectric properties change. The compositions exhibiting excellent microwave properties can be obtained by controlling the Sm constant in BiNbO4 ceramics.


An experimental study was performed to investigate the axial-flexural load-carrying capacity of concrete-encased and-filled steel tube (CEFT) columns. To restrain local buckling of longitudinal bars and to prevent premature failure of the thin concrete encasement, the use of U-cross ties was proposed. Five eccentrically loaded columns were tested by monotonic compression. The test parameters were axial-load eccentricity, spacing of ties, and the use of concrete encasement. Although early cracking occurred in the thin concrete encasement, the maximum axial loads of the CEFT specimens generally agreed with the strengths predicted considering the full contribution of the concrete encasement. Further, due to the effect of the circular steel tube, the CEFT columns exhibited significant ductility. The applicability of current design codes to the CEFT columns was evaluated in terms of axial-flexural strength and flexural stiffness.


Abstract : ATCCIS Replication Mechanism: *Introduction *ATCCIS Background *The ATCCIS Data Model *The ARM Specification *Using an ARM over Tactical Networks *Discussion


This paper presents an investigation into the changing nature of user involvement in Information System Development (ISD) projects. This analysis shows the representative papers that have been published on user involvement in ISD projects and identifies areas requiring further investigation and research. Considering different project contexts the need for a new approach where an ISD project is steeped within social complexity is proposed. The specific phase of requirements elicitation and the need to consider more than the technical requirements for an ISD project are clearly presented. The systems approach is proposed for considering the "whole" rather than the separate social and technical systems as well as considering the business processes that are associated with the ISD project. It is proposed that creating a shared understanding between users and developers at the very beginning stages of an ISD project will influence a projects success.


A semilinear stochastic equation in a Hilbert space is considered, with nonlinearity of gradient type and constant but possibly degenerate diffusion term. Under suitable assumptions, existence and uniqueness of the solution and some smoothing properties for the associated transition semigroup are proved. In particular, strong Feller property and irreducibility are deduced. The main tools are the Malliavin calculus and the Girsanov Theorem


Abstract The US Green Building Council's (USGBC) LEED guidelines have become the dominant third-party certification program for "green" buildings in the US. Given that buildings use 37% of all ener...


Biodegradable packaging films are important food and pharmaceutical research targets, owning to very significant commercial potential. Edible biodegradable films have several advantages: good physical properties, non-toxicity, biodegradability and availability of raw material. In addition, the films can be consumed along with food, may enhance sensory characteristics, can provide nutrients and may include antimicrobials. Polysaccharides, proteins and lipids constitute a group of biomaterials that readily form biofilms. These natural polymers are incorporated in the cuticular membrane of various plants, together with waxes and an insoluble biopolyester cutin. Cutin is a polymeric network of polyhydroxylated C16 and C18 fatty acids cross- linked with ester bonds. This viscoelastic biopolymer present in different fruit and vegetable processing residues (up to 40 % of the raw tomato is typically removed during industrial peeling) has a potential for biofilm production and thus has economic implications for agriculture waste industry. This work reports methodology of cutin polymer and monomer isolation, i.e. extraction and purification from tomato industrial waste (skins and seeds). For that purpose two extraction procedures were used: the exhaustive treatment of dried tomato peels with organic solvents (methanol, chloroform and chloroform/methanol mixture) and treatment of tomato peels with oxalic acid/ammonium oxalate solution at 90 °C for 24 h to remove the pectinaceous glue that attaches the cuticle to the epidermal layer. After that the waxes were removed by Soxlet extraction with chloroform/methanol (1:1, V/V) mixture. To obtain the pure cutin biopolymer, the dewaxed tomato peels were hydrolyzed with 6 M HCl, under reflux. The cutin monomers were isolated from tomato peels after treatments with methanol and potassium hydroxide/methanol mixture. Subsequently, the extraction was performed by chloroform. The extractive-free cuticular polymer fraction and its depolymerised monomers were characterized using FTIR spectroscopy. The obtained spectra indicate two main infrared features that can be found in cutin material: two strong bands located at 2916 and 2848 cm-1 assigned to the asymmetric and symmetric stretching vibrations of the methylene group, the most repeated structural unit in the cutin biopolyester and the strong absorption bands at 1745 and 1162 cm-1, assigned to the C=O and C-O stretching. The results of this preliminary study confirm that both extraction procedures are efficient, but with second extraction better yield of pure product was obtained. FTIR spectroscopy is useful technique for characterisation and validation of extracted polymer and monomer biocompounds from tomato waste.


Organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells with excellent photovoltaic properties still have some potential for further enhancement in device performance. Charge loss and carrier recombination at interfaces in perovskite solar cells are crucial factors that inhibit the power conversion efficiency. Here, we report a simple approach to overcome the drawbacks via modifying the interfaces between charge transport layers and perovskite layers in the perovskite solar cells with NiO nanocrystals. The optimized device achieves an excellent power conversion efficiency as high as 19.47%. The interface engineering with NiO nanocrystals results in improved interface contact properties, enhanced charge transport dynamics and suppressed charge recombination in the corresponding devices, which further contribute to increased values of open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current density. Therefore, this work provides novel guidelines toward dual interfacial modification engineering to boost the performance of perovskite solar cells.


The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) was initiated to reduce water and wind erosion on marginal, highly erodible croplands by removing them from production and planting permanent, soil-conserving vegetation such as grass. We conducted a ®eld study at two sites in Wyoming, USA, in order to quantify changes in soil C and N of marginal croplands seeded to grass, and of native rangeland plowed and cropped to wheat±fallow. Field plots were established on a sandy loam site and a clay loam site on wheat±fallow cropland that had been in production for 60‡ years and on adjacent native rangeland. In 1993, 6 years after the study was initiated, the surface soil was sampled in 2.5 cm depth increments, while the subsurface soil was composited as one depth increment. All soil samples were analyzed for total organic C and N, and potential net mineralized C and N. After 60‡ years of cultivation, surface soils at both study sites were 18±26% lower (by mass) in total organic C and N than in the A horizons of adjacent native range. Six years after plowing and converting native rangeland to cropland (three wheat±fallow cycles), both total and potential net mineralized C and N in the surface soil had decreased and NO3±N at all depths had increased to levels found after 60‡ years of cultivation. We estimate that mixing of the surface and subsurface soil with tillage accounted for 40±60% of the decrease in surface soil C and N in long-term cultivated ®elds; in the short-term cultivated ®elds, mixing with tillage may have accounted for 60±75% of the decrease in C, and 30±60% of the decrease in N. These results emphasize the need to evaluate C and N in the entire soil solum, rather than in just the surface soil, if actual losses of C and N due to cultivation are to be distinguished from vertical redistribution. Five years after reestablishing grass on the sandy loam soil, both total and potential net mineralized C and N in the surface soil had increased to levels equal to or greater than those observed in the A horizon of the native range. On the clay loam soil, however, signi®cant increases in total organic C were observed only in the surface 2.5 cm of N-fertilized grass plots, while total organic N had not signi®cantly increased from levels observed in the long-term cultivated ®elds. # 1998 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.


Abstract, The purpose of this study was to find out how much influence Moral Guidance by Christian ReligiousEducation teachers on the learning discipline of students in SMP Negeri 3 Balige 2018. The method of thisresearch is descriptive and inferential quantitative research methods. The population in this study were allstudents in Balige 3 Public Middle School in 2018 with a total of 102 people with a sample of 51 people.Data was collected by a closed questionnaire of 30 items. The study was conducted on 51 students who were nottrial respondents and validity and reliability were tested. The results of data analysis show that there is apositive and significant effect of Moral Guidance by Christian Religious Education teachers on the learningdiscipline of the of students in 201 Balige Public Middle School.Research data were analyzed with the following steps: 1) Test requirements analysis: a) test positiverelationships obtained rxy = 0.693 = 0.05, n = 51) = 0.297 thus it is known that there is a positiverelationship between variables X with Y variable. B) Test significant relationship obtained value t =6.734rtable ( = 0.05, dk = n-2 = 49) = 2.021 thus there is a significant relationship between variable X andvariable Y. 2) Test of influence: a) Test the regression equation, obtained a regression equation. b) Test theregression coefficient of determination (r2) = 48.06%. 3) Test the hypothesis by using the F test obtainedFcountt table ( Ftable that is 45,347 2,00 thus H0 is rejected and Ha is accepted that is there is a positiveand significant influence Moral Guidance by the Christian Education teacher on the learning discipline of inPublic Middle School 3 Balige 2018.Kata kunci : Pembinaan Moral, Guru PAK, Disiplin Belajar Siswa


We previously reported the computer model of the human erythrocyte using E-CELL simulation system. The model has three major metabolic pathways including glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway, nucleotide metabolism, and ion transport systems. In this work, we modified this simple model, and the second version was used for simulation experiments as follows: (i)Pathological Analyses of Enzyme Deficiency The simulation experiments of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency were carried out. G6PD is a key enzyme that produces NADPH in the pentose phosphate pathway, and G6PD deficiency is the most common hereditary enzyme deficiency of erythrocyte causes hemolytic anemia. As a result, in this simulation, sequential changes in the quantity of NADPH, GSH, and ATP were observed. However, the depletion of ATP occurred very rapidly compared with that of the real erythrocyte with G6PD deficiency. This difference was presumably due to the lack of pathways producing GSH and the export system of GSSG. We implemented these pathways and several pathways in the proximity of GSH to the model. After the modification, the longevity, predicted from ATP level, of the cell was longer and the ratio of GSH/GSSG was higher. This result indicates that these pathways compensate the reduction of GSH partially, and have a role to ease anemia, a condition of G6PD deficiency. This result can be a good explanation for the fact that G6PD deficiency is the most common cause of anemia. From the standpoint of evolution, if the deficiency has no severe disadvantage for surviving because of these compensation pathways, it would spread. ii) Analyses of the effect of osmotic pressure that changes the cell volume. The second model is capable of simulating osmotic balance and the variable volume. The cell volume is made to increase or decrease until both intracellular and extracellular osmotic pressures became equal. After this improvement, we analyzed the effect of this variable volume on metabolism. We could show the differences between the fixed volume model and the variable volume model. In variable volume model, the change was absorbed more quickly in all ten substances that we tried. Furthermore, the reaction rates, which were oscillating in the fixed volume, were stabilized in the variable volume model. These differences indicated a possibility that the volume, which changes with osmotic pressure, is stabilizing the metabolism. The osmotic balance presumably acts as a sort of feedback system.


Objective: The aim of the study was to radiographically evaluate the result of this minimally invasive technique for the surgical treatment of metatarsalgia. Methods: Radiographic images of 195 osteotomies in 48 patients (65 feet) who were exclusively submitted to the Distal Metatalsal Metaphyseal Osteotomy (DMMO) technique in the central rays (second, third, and fourth metatarsals) with a minimum follow-up of six months were analyzed. Bone healing, metatarsal shortening, and bone healing positioning (central, lateral, or medial) were evaluated. All statistical analysis was performed using the R software, and Wilcoxon statistical tests and Student's t-test paired for continuous variables were used. Results: The mean length of the second metatarsal reduced 7.0mm (p<0.001), the third 6.8mm (p<0.001), and the fourth 6.6mm (p<0.001). In only one case, there was no bone consolidation (second metatarsal). Most osteotomies were consolidated in a central position of the distal fragment. Conclusion: DMMO showed a high rate of bone healing (99.5%), metatarsal shortening, and consolidation in the central position of the distal fragment when performed in the surgical treatment of metatarsalgia. Level of Evidence IV; Case Series.


Graphene oxide films with controlled thicknesses were developed using a self-assembly method. The film exhibited both a giant and switchable nonlinear absorption coefficient of 40000 cm/GW and a nonlinear refractive index of 8 cm2/GW.


PURPOSE: A system for constructing a virtual multicast network is provided to comprise a multicast agent installed in a user PC as well as a virtual multicast router having a multicast router function on a network, and to comprise a multicast management server for managing information on each virtual multicast router, so as to use a multicast service under non-multicast environments. CONSTITUTION: A virtual multicast router(30) performs a dynamic tunneling for data transceiving between the virtual multicast router(30) and other virtual multicast router/multicast agent, by using an IP tunneling/UDP(User Datagram Protocol) tunneling, and manages multicast membership information of the other virtual multicast router and multicast agents. The virtual multicast router(30) transmits multicast data to a multicast agent and other virtual multicast router participating in a specific multicast group, and transmits multicast data between virtual multicast routers. The virtual multicast router(30) checks whether a multicast router exists in a self sub network. If so, the virtual multicast router(30) plays a role of multicast repeater only. A multicast agent(52) uses a dynamic tunneling for multicast data transceiving with the virtual multicast router(30), and uses a UDP tunneling for the dynamic tunneling, then retransmits the data of the virtual multicast router(30) to a multicast application program. The multicast agent(52) limits to TTL(Time to Live) 0 by using an IP multicast while re-transmitting the data, to perform a re-multicast for an operating computer only. A multicast management server(20) performs an IP caching for the multicast agent(52) that requests a retrieval and the retrieved virtual multicast router(30), and performs a caching for the multicast agent(52) or an IP address of the virtual multicast router(30), and a network address as well as the multicast agent(52), an IP address of the nearest virtual multicast router retrieved by the virtual multicast router(30), and the network address.


Eighteen microsatellite markers were analysed with a paternity testing
application using 26 mitogynogenetic Japanese flounder ( Paralichthys
olivaceus ) progeny and their six assumed female-parents. The
amplified products of PCR were analyzed by 8% polyacrylamide gel
electrophoresis. Electrophoresis patterns showed that only one pair of
primers had a monomorphic pattern, and the others were polymorphic.
Cumulate exclusion probability of polymorphic loci was 0.9985 and
cumulate power of discrimination was 0.9999. An effective method was
applied to track the gynogenetic maternal parents of 26 progeny. The
genotypes of six progeny were not completely identical to their mothers
on some loci. The construction of pedigree was perfected by looking at
microsatellite loci from paternity tests which are essential to the
deeper analysis of gynogenetic Japanese flounder.


The implementation of constant-power power supplies communicating with a magnet control system has been demonstrated to be an optimum way to uniformly deposit metal from an inline sputter system. This is an inline DC magnetron sputter deposition process. High equipment reliability (>99% uptime), low defect levels (<4 p.p.m.), and the use of 12-mm-thick targets for metallizing 3000 ft/sup 2/ of substrate area between cathode changes have been achieved. The system is configured to provide layered metal systems with discrete or phased interfaces. Plasma optimization via real-time magnetron control and magnetic field suppression at the beginning of the target life has enabled deposit thickness (and sheet resistivity) variation to be automatically controlled to +or-5% over the 435-in/sup 2/ deposition area throughout the life of the targets.<<ETX>>


Background: More than a quarter of the world's population is between the ages of 10 and24, with 86% living in less developed countries. These young people are tomorrow's parents. The reproductive and sexual health decisions they make today will affect the health and wellbeing of their communities and of their countries for decades to come. Objective: To assess reproductive health service utilization and associated factors among adolescents (15-19 years old) in Goba town. Methods: A community based cross-sectional study design was conducted in Goba town to assess reproductive health service utilization and associated factors among adolescents (15-19 years old). A Structured and pre tested interviewer based questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data was checked for completeness, cleaned manually, and entered in to SPSS version 16.0 for further analysis. Binary and multiple logistic regression analysis were carried out to examine the existence of association between the outcome variables and selected predictor variables. Statistical significance was declared at P≤0.05. The strength of association was interpreted using the adjusted odd ratio and 95% confidence interval (CI). Result: Among those who had sexual intercourse, 150 (71.4%) utilized family planning service and out of all adolescents, 266 (67.3%) utilized voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) service. About 71.9% of sexually experienced adolescents utilized VCT service. The odds of family planning (FP) service utilization among those adolescents who have discussed with their sexual partner were 3 times higher than their counterparts (AOR=3.62(0.155, 0.843). Adolescents who had discussed with peer groups or friends were 2 times more likely to utilize VCT service than their counterparts (AOR=2.046(1.035, 4.403)). Whereas those adolescents who had discussed with health workers were 4 times more likely to utilize VCT service than their counterparts [AOR=4.48(0.201, 0.999 Conclusion: In general, it was found that the majority of adolescents were utilizing family planning and VCT services. Adolescents who have discussed with their sexual partner were more likely to utilize FP service and adolescents who had discussed with peer groups or friends and health workers were more likely to utilize VCT service than their counterparts.


As attribute analysis in marketing becomes more complex, one finds a shifting need for more complex statistical techniques when evaluating data. A shift from examining simple cause and effect relationships to a need for understanding more complicated relationships has brought emphasis to new or little used multivariate techniques. One such technique which seems to have been overlooked is a chi-square technique for analyzing three-dimensional contingency tables. When observations are of three attributes with each attribute having but two classes, the independence of each attribute may be tested by chi-square analysis. This unique procedure was first explored by Bartlett in 1935 [1]. Since Bartlett's early address to the utilization of chi-square for testing independence of dichotomous attributes of a multidimensional contingency table, only a few authors [2, 4-7] have made mention of this seemingly forgotten but useful tool. Essentially a test of the independence of attributes presented in a 2 x 2 x 2 contingency table is a test of second-order interaction among the three dichotomous attributes. A test for second-order interaction among three attributes where one or more of the attributes is polytomous, such as presented in 2 x 2 x 3 or 2 x 4 x 3 contingency tables, is also possible [4, pp. 300-1; 5, p. 105]. A 2 x 2 x 2 table which can be spatially depicted as a three-dimensional contingency table can be subjected to testing for significance of interaction between two classifications for any of the three partitionable 2 x 2 tables. However, when all three attributes are to be considered simultaneously, a test for significant second-order interaction must be undertaken [6]. Such an examination of data provides information about possible relationships among the three attributes not otherwise detectable. It is feasible to find a significant


Photochemical representation technologies coincided with the development of the telegraph, a true externalization of the central nervous system. The configuration of electrical impulses for the exchange of information emerged in the same period, leading to the development of a new communication system; a non-centric system that would liberate humanity from a hierarchical communicative regime. The new informative formula –based on the free-and-direct hypothetical interaction between individuals– was strengthened when the network structure, exemplified by interoceanic cables, made use of the cinematographic image and its halo of objectivity. It is in such a context, and under the same remediation conjugated by the telegraph and the cinematographic image, that we observe the emergence of narratives expressed through certain database aesthetics. In this essay we will study, among other subjects, Dziga Vertov's work and his interest in developing a system in which meaning is produced in an open and free fashion as part of the global interconnection allowed by an electrical network. We will see how narratives during the electric age progressively began to be exclusively based on motion pictures. We will also analyze how Georges Melies realized a system of social relations of entertainment and information, as well as the way in which this great illusionist articulated both film and telegraphy technologies in order to set in motion a social information network based on representations of reality; in other words, a society of the spectacle.


Interpolation is a key element in the assessment the harmonics which appear inside power grids, due to the fact that only some discrete values are sampled from the measurements of real currents or voltages. On the generalized interpolation practice and theory, two steps are mandatory for an optimal performance. First step is to calculate a few coefficients from the input samples. This paper describes a simple algorithm developed in a few steps. Another recursive algorithm was developed from this one. When applied on very short data strings, it provides excellent outputs. This algorithm is divergent and induced big errors if it is applied on a larger number of samples. Error propagation was also studied. Even the errors are important, the method is useful and can be applied successfully on very short intervals. Those coefficients are used to determine the interpolated values on the second step. Some important side errors appear due to the finite length of the coefficients string. This paper presents a method to decrease those errors. The method extends the coefficients string. Some new coefficients are computed at the beginning and the end of the string.


Background A correlation exists between bone mineral density and physical activity level, suggesting that exercise may increase peak bone mass. Back extensor strength has been of major importance and had a strong effect on quality of life in this population. Objectives The aim of the present study was to evaluate the long-term effect of back extensor strengthening exercises on health-related quality of life (QOL) in women with osteoporosis. Methods In this randomized clinical trial, 183 women with osteoporosis were treated with pharmacotherapy and weight-bearing and balance-training exercises. The case group additionally performed back extensor exercises at home. Patients filled out the Persian version of the Short Form (SF-36) QOL questionnaire at baseline and 6 months post treatment. Results At the end, all physical and mental parameters of the SF-36 questionnaire improved significantly in the case group, except for one subscale of mental health, compared to the control group. In the control group, only some physical health dimensions (bodily pain, role limitation, physical function, vitality), and mental health status as a mental health subscale improved. Conclusions considering a major impact of back extensor exercises on improving QOL in women with osteoporosis over the long term, these exercises should be prescribed in routine management of these patients. Disclosure of Interest None declared


Diverticula cells of larval, nymphal, and adult Dermacentor andersoni (Stiles) ticks demonstrated a non-infective phase of 7 to 11 days after engorgement of blood containing Powassan virus. Other organs such as salivary glands, Gene's organ glands, and accessory glands supported virus multiplication. This was demonstrated by infectivity titrations and observations of fluorescent foci when the tissues were stained with Powassan virus antiserum conjugated with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). Transstadial transfer of virus was observed through ecdysis of larvae to nymphs and from nymphs to adults. This occurred both after the ticks had fed on hamsters (which produced a substantial viremia) and guinea pigs (which did not become viremic). Virus was detected only in larval gut and invaded nymphal salivary glands during ecdysis. Infection localized in gut and salivary glands of engorged nymphs and adults and was not detected in adult female accessory and Gene's glands until repletion. Adult males maintained h...


The results of experimental and analytical studies on the characteristics of concrete reinforced with uniformly distributed short wire pieces are presented. The experimental program includes tests on workability, modulus of rupture strength, and compressive strength of 75 batches of concrete; the major variables are water-cement ratio, percentage of steel, and gage and length of wire pieces. Despite the slight loss of workability, preparation of good wire reinforced concrete is quite feasible. Effective wire spacing has been formulated taking into consideration the bond deficiency and probable orientation of the wire pieces both within the interior concrete and near the exterior faces of the specimen. Based on experimental results, a correlation has been obtained between effective wire spacing and tensile strength ratio.


The current business environment is characterized by globalization, technological development, strong competition, plus the growing need to identify opportunities and optimize succeed in this context, organizations require their executives to have excellent management skills particularly in the area of negotiation. community about the importance of preparing for the neg determining a successful outcome (Thompson, 2008; Lewiki, Saunders & Minton, 1999; Ury, 1991; Kennedy, Benson & McMillan, 1986). moving consumer goods companies in Portugal identify differences that may exist between national and multinational companies. was based on literature research and on personal interviews conducted in 22 companies that altogether have a total turnover of approximately 3 billion euros, which is very representative of the large consumer goods sector in Portugal. several areas of possible and desirable improvement, both in the evaluation of each parties and the circumstances in which negotiation takes place, as well as in their strategic and tactical planning.


To meet the business neeols of using and repairing for railway large track maintenance machine, the Using and Repairing Management Information System of railway large track maintenance machine was studied and designed based on the discussing of the design target; the software architecture and main functions were discussed in details, including record management of large machine, the using management of large machine, the repairing management of large machine, the oil and repairable parts management, security management, system management and so on.


This web page lists resources in early childhood education (ECE), care, and development for young children from birth to approximately age 5.


The Chronograph of 354 has been held in high estimation since the beginning of the ninth century. Its illustrations, calendar, consular fasti, Easter table, and lists of urban prefects, bishops of Rome, and martyrs makes it not only a useful and beautiful text but one particularly evocative of the time and place of its creation. In spite of the major studies of this work that have been undertaken since 1850 its history from its creation in Rome in the last months of 353 down to the copying of the surviving manuscripts is still only incompletely understood. The results of modern analysis have left incomplete, contradictory, and often tralatitious conclusions that are in need of a reevaluation from first principles, which is presented here. This reevaluation not only clarifies the historical journey of this text through 1,600 years, but also establishes which texts were, and were not, part of the original compilation in 353.


We present a brief review on spin transverse force, which exerts on the spin as the electron is moving in an electric field. This force, analogue to the Lorentz force on electron charge, is perpendicular to the electric field and spin current carried by the electron. The force stems from the spin-orbit coupling of electrons as a relativistic quantum effect, and could be used to understand the Zitterbewegung of electron wave packet and the quantum transverse transport of electron in a heuristic way.


The use of polyethylene vapour barriers is well integrated into building codes and the Canadian construction industry, a result of significant investment in research and training. Their use has resulted in significant improvement in building envelope air tightness when properly detailed. Contractors and inspectors have developed a strong understanding of the details and practices required to achieve tight and reliable enclosures. However, some groups have expressed concerns that polyethylene vapour barriers may reduce drying and entrap moisture. In particular, problems have been encountered with below-grade walls where inward drying of initial construction moisture within the concrete foundation walls is trapped by polyethylene sheets. Problems have also been identified in above-grade walls where absorptive and non-ventilated claddings are employed. A research program is currently underway to determine the significance/insignificance of potential moisture problems due to plastic sheeting in above-grade and below-grade wall assemblies. The research is aimed to outline cases where performance can be improved, and changes that could reduce inappropriate use. Finally, the research aims to address the benefits/risks with polyethylene sheeting with clearer delineation of the situations in which it is necessary, potentially damaging, and unimportant. This paper presents key findings from the research work and field test results collected to date within the following framework: • The literature review; • Field testing of four common below-grade wall assemblies (with and without polyethylene sheeting) in a southern Ontario home; • Field testing of six common above-grade wall assemblies (with and without polyethylene sheeting) in the University of Waterloo test exposure facility (BEGHut); • Comparison of the field testing data and computer models, to provide validation of the model against this installation. • Extending the test results to broader practice across Canada through computer modeling. Future papers will provide more detailed analysis and computer model verifications after the project is complete.


The process incapability index $C_{pp}$, which provides an uncontaminated separation between information concerning the process precision and process accuracy, has been proposed to measure process performance for industry applications. In this paper, we investigate the reliability of the natural estimator computationally, based on the $\alpha$‐level confidence relative error for various sample sizes. We also develop a decision‐making procedure for judging if the process satisfies the preset quality requirement. The investigation is useful to the practitioners in determining the sample sizes required in their applications for the decisions reliable to the desired level. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Interdigitated dielectrometry sensors (IDS) are used as capacitive sensors to measure the permittivity, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\varepsilon _{r}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, and DC conductivity, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\sigma _{\mathrm{ DC}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, (e.g., dissipation factor tan <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\delta $ </tex-math></inline-formula>) of oils. Both variables can yield the oil's health. However, parasitic capacitances can be a source for a temperature dependence, impreciseness and inaccuracy. This paper shows a design of an IDS that uses deflector electrodes to reduce parasitic capacitance effectively. The design parameter for a next generation IDS that is highly accurate, precise, and effectively insensitive to temperature was determined using finite-element modeling. The air capacitance between 30 °C and 90 °C was stable at <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm{ air}}= 6.27\,\,\pm \,\,0.02$ </tex-math></inline-formula> pF. Measurements of standard transformer oil have shown an accuracy of 99% for <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\varepsilon _{r}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\sigma _{\mathrm{ DC}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. The conductivity detection threshold was as low as 6 pS/m ≈ tan<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\delta = 0.001$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. Additionally, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm {air}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> correlated to 93% with the air humidity. This IDS design can be applied in various applications where accurate permittivity and conductivity monitoring of liquids in environments with temperature fluctuations is required.


Developements in medicine, better informed patients and more complicated medical procedures have increased public interest in regard to errors in treatment.  Heightened public awareness is also reflected in the increaseed number of judicial proceedings related to medical malpractice in many countries worldwide. The total number of prosecutions and other prosecution acts during this period of twelve years was 18,732, an average of 1561 per year ± 352.3 standard deviation. In the analyzed period there were six charges for the crime of medical malpractice, which makes 1 crime per two years. Patient safety may be enhanced by better information, which depends primarily on the doctor's competence, the conditions provided by the institution, the time the doctor can devote to patient, and also on the interest of the doctor to provide services and information to the patient.


AIM
To establish chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) for detecting staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) and C1 (SEC1) and compare its sensitivity and stability with ELISA.

METHODS
The anti-SEB and SEC1 monoclonal antibodies (mAb) were purified by Q Sepharose Fast Flow chromatographic column. The alkaline phosphatase (AP) conjugated mAbs FMMU-SEB.D6 and FMMU-SEC1.C4 were used as detecting antibodies and the FMMU-SEB.B4 and FMMU-SEC1.G8 mAbs were used as coating antibodies in both methods. Phenolphthalein monophosphate (PMP) and lumigen APS-5 were employed as substrates for AP in ELISA and CLIA, respectively. The light was detected and measured by the GENios analyzer (TECAN Group Ltd.). The sensitivities and detect ranges of CLIA and ELISA methods were compared.

RESULTS
Compared with ELISA, CLIA was more sensitive (0.1 ng/mL vs 0.39 ng/mL) and timesaving. Furthermore, the liner range of CLIA was broader than that of ELISA (0.78-50 ng/mL vs 3.125-50 ng/mL).

CONCLUSION
CLIA for detecting SEB and SEC1 are established successfully which may be useful in food monitoring, epidemiology survey and detecting SE contaminated samples in environment.


The author asks if the reduction of hunger in the age of globalization depends upon improving governance at the global level or at the national level. he concludes that hunger, poor rural infrastructure, corruption, discrimination, lack of access to health services, etc. are local problems, most of which must be remedied by national governmental improvement, "one state at a time." "Think locally, then act nationally" is Paarlberg's governance motto.


This is an anthropological case study starting with the experiences of female sex workers.Analysis is made on the cultural characteristics of the female sex workers group and interpretation is given on the cultural connotations of "high-risk group","AIDS" and "condom".Further,examinations are made,from a microscopic perspective,on the ways of them as the subjects of HIV/AIDS prevention in the construction of the knowledge for AIDS,in the attitude toward their identity of "high-risk group" and in the choice of proper methods in favor of themselves.It is highlighted that,to promote the effective prevention and intervention of AIDS,full considerations are expected to the subjectivity of sex workers and that the sex workers are encouraged to get actively engaged in the actions that will change their undesirable situations.


Semi-empirical (PM6) approach was employed to
modelling Cr-Cu dimmer. The obtained bond dissociation energy for such specie
agrees very well with experimental/reference values. It was verified that in the Cr-Cu dimmer,
chromium has only one unpaired electron, meaning that copper behaves, in such
dimmer, as a strong field ligand. Such
results strongly suggest that 1:1 Cr-Cu bronzes must behave as a one unpaired
electron compound and not a five
unpaired electrons one, with, of course, remarkable influences on their
magnetic properties.


The use of administrative datasets as a data source in official statistics has become much more common as there is a drive for more outputs to be produced more efficiently. Many outputs rely on linkage between two or more datasets, and this is often undertaken in a number of phases with different methods and rules. In these situations we would like to be able to assess the quality of the linkage, and this involves some re-assessment of both links and non-links. In this paper we discuss sampling approaches to obtain estimates of false negatives and false positives with reasonable control of both accuracy of estimates and cost. Approaches to stratification of links (non-links) to sample are evaluated using information from the 2011 England and Wales population census.


Soil nailing is an efficient method to stabilize various soil structures. The method has been extensively used for improving stability of slopes. The construction process of Soil nailed walls commonly involve three basic steps: excavation, nail installation and face stabilization. The nails are inserted into ground by either drilling or grouting and are usually arranged in both horizontal and vertical directions. Present research intends to understand soil-nailed walls behavior under dynamic excitations. Employing finite difference method, a three dimensional model has been developed in a proper finite difference code. Soil constitutive behavior for dynamic analyses is predicted taking into account soil hysteresis behavior. To simulate nails cable structural elements are employed and liner structural elements are also utilized for shotcrete facing. Earthquake excitation as dynamic loading is applied at the bottom of model where represents soil subgrade. Having absorbing boundaries used, the boundary conditions are considered to be antisymmetric during dynamic analyses. Effects of different crucial factors are monitored during investigations. Some parameters such as loading frequency content, soil constitutive behavior and soil strength properties have been examined.


Global change that affects mountain environments has many facets, extending beyond the biophysical impacts on temperatures, extreme weather events, melting glaciers and shortened snow cover related to climate change. Global change also has profound impacts on forest cover and composition, land use patterns and systems, water cycles and qualities, soil health and degradation, and agrobiodiversity. And even more broadly, many changes occurring globally have profound socio-economic impacts on mountain people.


The reaction of myocardium to injury is generally characterized by a tissue repair mechanism that is initially beneficial in maintaining tissue integrity but which ultimately has a debilitating effect on cardiac function. The components of this type of wound healing response in the mammalian heart have been the subject of extensive study. Far less understood, however, are the dynamics of inflammation, ECM remodeling and scar formation at the site of injury, as well as compensatory adaptations of adjacent uninjured myocardium such as angiogenesis, cadiomyocyte hypertrophy, and apoptosis in the regenerative response to a myocardial injury. Recent observations in the MRL strain of mice indicate a capacity to heal myocardial injury with a rapid resolution of granulation tissue and little scar tissue, an increase of cardiomyocyte BrdU incorporation and restoration of myocardial architecture/function. The role of stem cells in this process remains to be elucidated for MRL mice. This response to injury, however, suggests epimorphic regeneration rather than repair.


The evolution of some bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity has been investigated during fruit growth and ripening of five pepper cultivars: 'Dracula', 'Pintea', 'Pepperone', 'Bulgarian carrot' (C. annuum) and 'Christmas bell' (C. baccatum var. pendulum). High-performance liquid chromatography was used to quantify the content of capsaicin in the fruit in order to determine the pungency level of analyzed peppers. Pepper fruits were collected at five stages of growth and ripening. Dry matter, soluble solids, ascorbic acid, total phenolics, including total flavonoids, capsaicin content and antioxidant activity were determined at each stage. There were major differences among the cultivars in the accumulation of the bioactive compounds in the fruit during their growth and ripening, although the quantitative accumulation pathway of various components had a similar trend during phenophases. Antioxidant activity and ascorbic acid content increased during growth and ripening of hot peppers, the highest levels being found in the last stage of ripening. The pattern of variation of total flavonoid content was cultivar dependent. In most cultivars, an important increase of the total phenolic and total flavonoid content was observed in the last stage of ripening. Capsaicin content recorded a maximum level in F3 or F4 depending on cultivar, and decreased afterwards until the complete ripening of the pepper fruits. 'Dracula' cultivar was classified as "non-pungent" (fruits are not spicy) while 'Pintea' was classified as "highly pungent", the other analyzed cultivars having an average level of pungency.


you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms Objectives: To assess the 2-year efficacy of a combined medical nutrition therapy and motiva-tional interviewing (MI) pilot study intervention and factors that influenced long-term dietary self-care. Research design and methods: Pilot study participants, African American women with type 2 diabetes, completed a 2-year follow-up study visit, including clinical assessments and completion of a dietary self-care questionnaire and a semi-structured interview. Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to evaluate differences between baseline and 2-year follow-up clinical and dietary self-care outcomes. Hierarchical coding was used to analyze semi-structured interviews and categorize facilitator and barrier themes into subthemes. Subthemes were quantified based on the number of subtheme-related comments. There was a statistically significant decrease (p=0.04) in the frequency of fruit and vegetable intake (baseline: 4 days; IQR: 3.75, 7.0 and follow-up: 3.5 days; IQR: 2.75, 4.0). Dietary self-care barriers and facilitators included internal (eg, motivation) and external factors (eg, social support). Motivation (70 comments) and lack of motivation (67 comments) were the most pervasive facilitator and barrier subthemes, respectively. Conclusion: Overall, diabetes-related clinical and dietary self-care outcomes were improved following a combined medical nutritional therapy/MI intervention, and motivation played an important role in dietary self-care engagement. Future research is needed to assess the added benefit of MI in improving clinical and dietary self-care outcomes and to identify best strategies to support post-intervention dietary self-care engagement.


Abstract It is argued that 12 allegedly empirical "laws" of emotion, formulated by Frijda, are actually non-empirical, that is, a priori and necessarily true. It is shown that they can be derived from plausible definitions of the terms involved and presuppositions (axioms) that cannot be meaningfully denied. Given that the "laws" of Frijda are a priori and necessarily true, the evidence cited in their support must be reinterpreted as merely indicating that the diagnostic and investigatory procedures involved have been adequate. Conversely, evidence not consistent with the laws must be taken to indicate that the diagnostic and investigatory procedures have been faulty. The introduction of formal definitions of psychological terms and explicit statements of what is presupposed (axioms) is important for two purposes. First, it enables one to make a clear distinction between the non-empirical and the empirical which is important in order to prevent a waste of resources on pseudo-empirical research (attempting...


ABSTRACT This study purpose to analyze the use of the phrase scrip Minangkabau language ads on radio ARBES FM Padang city, West Sumatera particular statutes use the phrase in terms of form and meaning. Theory used in thes study is theory proposed by Alwi, dkk (2000) dan Chaer (2007). Fokus of this research is the analysis of scrip Minangkabau language ads in radio ARBES FM Padang city, West Sumatera Barat particular statutes use the phrase in terms of form and meaning. Method used is descriptive method that synthesize the data and make concludions of the report. Results of the study showed (1) sentence based provisions found in the scrip sentence radio ARBES FM advertising in Minangkabau languange is imperative, sentences, ask, and appeal, (2) based on its meaning in the context of the provision is very and use different sentence. For it, it can be concluded that the statutes use the phrase in terms of advertising and its meaning in the form of scrip radio ARBES FM Padang city, West Sumatera is very varied and different. Key words: analysis of the Minangkabau Language, Scrip ads, Radio


Flu is an infectious respiratory disease which is caused by influenza viruses. The most common symptoms of flu are nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Different subtypes of influenza viruses are identified based on the combinations of these antigenic structures. Influenza viruses are negative-sense, single-strand RNA viruses that belong to the family Orthomyxoviridae. Antiviral medications are the current pharmacotherapy of flu because they are approximately 70% to 90% effective in preventing influenza. Influenza virus type A is readily prone to mutations, which can lead to minor antigenic changes (antigenic drift) or major antigenic changes (antigenic shift). These changes can result in viral strains capable of causing either an epidemic or a pandemic, because overall immunity in the population is lower. Flublok is the first trivalent influenza vaccine made using an insect virus (baculovirus) expression system and recombinant DNA technology (i.e., without the use of actual influenza virus), so there is little risk of getting the flu from the vaccine. Flublok is highly purified, has three times the amount of active ingredient in traditional influenza vaccines, and contains no preservatives, antibiotics or adjuvants. It provides protection against the latest strains of influenza by containing the corresponding hemagglutinin antigens for those strains. This review article provides brief information of influenza and its treatment by biotechnology-based vaccines introduced within the past few years.


Objective:Rescue ventilations during bystander resuscitation, although previously considered essential, interrupt the continuity of chest compressions and might have deleterious effects in basic life support. This study was undertaken to analyze the global ventilation/perfusion values of continuous compressions and 30:2 cardiopulmonary resuscitation to determine the effectiveness for each approach in a porcine model of prolonged bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation for ventricular fibrillation. Design:Prospective, randomized animal study. Setting:A university animal research laboratory. Subjects:Twenty-four male domestic pigs (n = 12/group) weighing 30 ± 2 kg. Interventions:All animals had ventricular fibrillation induced by programmed electrical stimulation instruments and were randomized into two groups. Continuous compressions or 30:2 compression/rescue ventilation cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed in each group. Measurements and Main Results:Continuous respiratory variables, hemodynamic parameters, and blood gas analysis outcomes were recorded, and global ventilation/perfusion values were calculated. Alveolar minute volume and global ventilation/perfusion values decreased progressively after ventricular fibrillation, but cardiac output was stable. The global ventilation/perfusion value was higher in the ventilation cardiopulmonary resuscitation group than that in the continuous compression group (p < .0001) and was higher than normal. Coronary perfusion pressure was progressively decreased after 6 mins of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and greatly fluctuated in the ventilation cardiopulmonary resuscitation group. Coronary perfusion pressure was higher in the continuous compression group than that in the ventilation cardiopulmonary resuscitation group after 9 mins of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (p < .05). Values for pH and Pao2 progressively decreased, but there were no significant differences between the two groups, except for pH at 12 mins of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and Paco2 after 3 mins of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Conclusions:In the first 12 mins of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, continuous compressions could maintain relatively better coronary perfusion pressure, Pao2, and global ventilation/perfusion values than 30:2 cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Therefore, rescue ventilation during 12 mins of simulated bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation did not improve hemodynamics or outcomes compared with compression-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation.


A dynamic ECG system with tele-transmitting and receiving function by telephone is designed, which consists of the ECG recorder carried by patients, the ECG receiver used in hospital and the PC computer used to analyze ECG signals. The working principle of the designed system and the software design for the tele-receiving and analyzing of the ECG signals are introduced. This system has realized the tele-receiving and analyzing of ECG signal on the basis of conventional dynamic electrocardiogram.


Root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne spp. are one of the most important pests of tomato crop. Among the promising bio-control agents of plant parasitic nematodes, the bacterial parasite-Pasteuria penetrans has been investigated in detail and found to hold potential for the management of Meloidogyne spp. An experiment was carried out underscreen house conditions of Department of Nematology of CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, to study the effect of organic amendments (neem cake, mustard cake, castor cake and farmyard mannure) on the life cycle development of P. penetrans on M. javanica infecting tomato. All life cycle stages of bacterium viz., microcolony, thallus, quartets, diads, immature spore and mature spore were observed and nematode viz., parasitic J2, spike tail stage, immature and mature female were observed and compared for all the organic amendments. The result revealed that the life cycle of P. penetrans on root-knot nematode was completed in all the organic amendments but, the life cycle was well synchronised with root-knot nematode when it was integrated with mustard cake.There was slight delay in life cycle of bacterium where castor cake, neem cake and FYM were applied. However, both nematode and bacteriumcompleted their life cycle in all the organic amendments.


ESR spectra of ṖCl2 radicals were studied in single crystals of PCl3 made at low temperature and irradiated with γ rays. The principal values and the direction cosines of the hyperfine and g tensors were determined in the temperature range 25–75 K. The relative signs of the couplings, the modes of motion of the radical, and its location in the matrix were determined from the temperature dependence of the hyperfine tensors.


The accuracy of geohydrochemical transport models for simulating groundwater flow, solute transport, and geochemical processes can be established through a validation process. The term validation'' as used here refers to an integrated test procedure for determining (1) the accuracy with which a geohydrochemical transport model simulates the hydrologic and geochemical processes occurring during subsurface migration and (2) how well the model predicts the concentrations of solutes in a contaminant plume at various locations and times. Validation is the process of confirming that the conceptual and numerical models accurately represent processes occurring in the real system. The validation process requires an evaluation of three different model components: (1) generic data sets contained within the numerical code; (2) a site-specific conceptualization; and (3) a site-specific mathematical model. Of these three components, the site-specific conceptualization is the most difficult component to validate, because it depends on not just the model but also the ability of the modeler.


I. British Library, MS Sloane 2275, deserves attention for any variety of reasons. The book provides a major collection of Latin texts composed by the fourteenth-century hermit Richard Rolle "of Hampole" (West Riding, Yorkshire). In addition, the manuscript unusually brings an extensive piece of the central Middle English literary canon, the widely dispersed poem The Prick of Conscience, into contact with sophisticated Latin texts. Finally, as a production, Sloane 2275 is a thorough mess, indeed after Oxford, Magdalen College, MS lat. 93, probably the most difficult book to explain that I have ever run across. (1) The mid-fifteenth-century Sloane manuscript might be described as having a triple focus. Its only extended English, The Prick of Conscience, appears near the book's center and involves, not a consecutive bout of copying, but fits and starts, in three of the eight units in which the book was produced. This segment is wedged between two more extensive endeavors in Latin. The Rolle anthology opens the volume. Excepting some brief filler texts at the end of constituent units, some of them (items 3 and 4) decidedly post factum additions, presentation of Rolle absorbs more than half the book, 150 folios and four of the production units. The Rolle materials here rank among the seven or eight most extensive collections of the hermit's Latin. (2) Moreover, these materials are largely focused upon Rolle's larger and more challenging, nonexegetical texts, actually a minority of the works ascribed to the hermit. Besides Sloane 2275, only BodL, MS Bodley 861, and its probable grandchild Oxford, Corpus Christi College, MS 193, provide readers with the complete set of Rolle's four Latin "treatises." Among fullscale efforts at reproducing Rolle's works, BodL, MS Laud misc. 528; Oxford, Balliol College, MS 224A; Hereford Cathedral, MS O.viii.1 (probably the direct source of Corpus 193); and BNF, MS lat. 15700, all lack the difficult Melos amorist In Sloane 2275, these materials have been presented--and read--with unusual care. The texts are equipped with extensive marginalia--finding notes, "nota" marks, textual corrections. But such extensive annotation occurs in Sloane only in portions dedicated to Rolle. The most extensive materials appear in about the first seventy folios, then through early portions of Incendium amoris (through fol. 85), and resume in Rolle's Super novem lecciones, before ceasing. (4) In those portions, this annotation is accompanied by a great deal of page-foot textual correction; such materials imply not only very thorough engagement with these texts, but an equally conscientious effort at "correction" through consultation of multiple exemplars, an activity evidenced elsewhere in the book. At the end of Sloane 2275, two booklets present Latin devotional/instructional texts. Unlike the Rolle at the head, a collection with minimal parallels, these materials are utterly commonplace. They are texts so canonical in medieval Latin anthologies that they were familiar to, and frequently translated, in whole or in part, by medieval persons writing in English (and are even familiar to monolingual modern English scholars): the pseudo-Augustinian "Speculum peccatoris," Honorius's Elucidarium, Innocent III's De miseria, the pseudo-Bernardine Meditationes ("Multi multa sciunt ..."), for example. I return to consider this Latin/vernacular overlap of textual interests at the conclusion of the essay. Although one can divide the contents of the manuscript into more or less homogeneous chunks of material, their physical transmission is a thorough mess. The seventeen texts are disposed across what I would describe, probably a bit tendentiously, as eight production units, some certainly expansions of already standing copy, some breaking a single text into separate chunks. In addition, the volume evidences the activity of something like a dozen to fifteen scribes, although five hands are responsible for over 90 percent of the whole, the remainder appearing together to provide very short stints in two isolated segments of the book (fols. …


Link prediction has become a significant research problem in deep learning, and the graph-based autoencoder model is one of the most important methods to solve it. The existing graph-based autoencoder models only learn a single set of distributions, which cannot accurately represent the mixed distribution in real graph data. Meanwhile, existing learning models have been greatly restricted when the graph data has insufficient attribute information and inaccurate topology information. In this paper, we propose a novel graph embedding framework, termed multi-scale variational graph autoencoder (MSVGAE), which learns multiple sets of low-dimensional vectors of different dimensions through the graph encoder to represent the mixed probability distribution of the original graph data, and performs multiple sampling in each dimension. Furthermore, a self-supervised learning strategy (i.e., graph feature reconstruction auxiliary learning) is introduced to fully use the graph attribute information to help the graph structure learning. Experiment studies on real-world graphs demonstrate that the proposed model achieves state-of-the-art performance compared with other baseline methods in link prediction tasks. Besides, the robustness analysis shows that the proposed MSVGAE method has obvious advantages in the processes of graph data with insufficient attribute information and inaccurate topology information.