T he W32/Blaster worm burst onto the Internet scene in August of 2003. By exploiting a buffer overflow in Windows, the worm was able to infect more than 1.4 million systems worldwide in less than a month. More diversity in the OS market would have limited the number of susceptible systems, thereby reducing the level of infection. An analogy with biological systems is irresistible. When a disease strikes a biological system, a significant percentage of the affected population will survive, largely due to its genetic diversity. This holds true even for previously unknown diseases. By analogy , diverse computing systems should weather cyber attacks better than systems that tend toward mono-culture. But how valid is the analogy? It could be argued that the case for computing diversity is even stronger than the case for biological diversity. In biological systems, attackers find their targets at random, while in computing systems, monoculture creates more incentive for attack because the results will be all the more spectacular. On the other hand, it might be argued that cyber-monoculture has arisen via natural selection—providers with the best security products have survived to dominate the market. Given the dismal state of computer security today, this argument is not particularly persuasive. Although cyber-diversity evidently provides security benefits, why do we live in an era of relative computing monoculture? The first-to-market advantage and the ready availability of support for popular products are examples of incentives that work against diversity. The net result is a " tragedy of the (security) commons " phenomenon—the security of the Internet as a whole could benefit from increased diversity, but individuals have incentives for monoculture. It is unclear how proposals aimed at improving computing security might affect cyber-diversity. For example , increased liability for software providers is often suggested as a market-oriented approach to improved security. However, such an approach might favor those with the deepest pockets, leading to less diversity. Although some cyber-diversity is good, is more diversity better? Virus writers in particular have used diversity to their advantage; polymorphic viruses are currently in vogue. Such viruses are generally encrypted with a weak cipher, using a new key each time the virus propagates, thus confounding signature-based detection. However, because the decryption routine cannot be encrypted, detection is still possible. Virus writers are on the verge of unleashing so-called metamorphic viruses, where the body of the virus itself changes each time it propagates. …


Abstract : Prototype measurements made at Beltzville Dam were of special interest in that (a) the prototype is very similar in design to the model (which received extensive testing prior to prototype construction); (b) the long, straight conduit (approximately 178 diameters) lent itself to the development of a uniform gradient; and (c) a slug-type flow known as 'burping' had been experienced at the project. Tests were conducted in the 7-ft-diam flood-control conduit and in the water-quality control intake structure. Measurements included: (a) Hydrostatic pressures at seven piezometer pairs along the conduit, (b) pressure fluctuations in the conduit transition zone and downstream of the water-quality control gate, (c) air demand downstream of the control gates, (d) impact pressures in the water intake tower, (e) pressures in the converging vertical bend at the base of the wet well, and (f) high-speed motion pictures of the slug flow at the outlet portal. Good agreement was found between the comparable model and prototype data.


With the presence multipath transport protocols (mptcp), a host can shift some of its traffic from more congested paths to less congested ones. Doing so it can compensate for lost bandwidth on some paths by moderately increasing transmission rates on other routes. But existing multipath proposals concentrate on a rough estimate of network congestion using packet losses, which is not so efficient. This project mainly focuses on multipath congestion control and proposes a modified mechanism for packet data transfer which is based on the packet queuing delay as congestion signals and thus achieves a good performance.


The study presents an analysis of long-term trends in terminal celibacy and primary infertility in South Africa. Sources of data were four population censuses conducted in 1996, 2001, 2007 and 2011, which cover cohorts of women born between 1900 and 1971 (women age 40 years and above at time of census). Terminal celibacy was defined as not being married, widowed or divorced at time of census. Primary infertility was defined as not having had any live birth at time of census. Results showed complex dynamics of both infertility and celibacy. Infertility first declined for cohorts born before 1940 then increased. Celibacy first declined for cohorts born before 1920, then increased. All dynamics varied by population group, by ethnic group, by area of residence, by province of residence, and by level of education. A multivariate analysis indicated that being never-married was the most important factor of infertility, explaining about half of cases. Dynamics of marriage and infertility are discussed in light of the complex population history of the country in the 20 th century. Cultural factors appear critical for explaining levels and trends of celibacy and infertility, far above any socio-economic factor.


Summary This article shows that the filmic depiction of the death of Tessa Quayle, a social activist portrayed by Rachel Weisz, is a memorialised historical allegory of genocide caused by deliberate and lethal clinical trials of drugs conducted throughout Africa. Although the film is set in Kenya, it tells the real story of the clinical genocide committed in Nigeria. The authors of this article do not delve into the academically naïve question of whether or not the film (released in 2005) is a faithful representation of the 2001 novel, for the discrepancies – whether glaringly obvious or tastefully subtle – follow Fernando Mireilles's style and interpretative variorum as a director who is capable of signature adjustments to the face of death. In this case, the death of one white woman (Tessa Quayle) is a synecdoche of the multitudinous African deaths caused by genocide. It is in this sense that the setting (Kenya and not Nigeria) lends credence to the paradoxical representation of the silent genocide in other parts of Africa, beyond Nigeria, through allegorical memorialisation. The authors conclude that the discovery of Tessa Quayle's death is, therefore, a discovery of continental genocide revealed through allegorical representation.


We assessed how a 5‐yr nutrient enrichment affected the responses of different size classes of primary consumers and predators in a detritus‐based headwater stream. We hypothesized that alterations in detritus availability because of enrichment would decrease the abundance and biomass of large‐bodied consumers. In contrast, we found that 2 yr of enrichment increased the biomass and abundance of all consumers regardless of body size. Furthermore, during the fourth and fifth year of enrichment, the abundance and biomass of largebodied primary consumers continued to increase, while small‐bodied primary consumers returned to pretreatment levels. The size structure of a dominant primary consumer (Pycnopsyche spp.) also shifted during the 5‐yr enrichment: its average and maximum individual body size increased in the treatment stream compared with the reference stream. Positive enrichment effects also occurred on small‐bodied predators, but not on large‐bodied predators. Thus, enrichment increased prey body size, but these positive effects on large prey did not propagate up to higher trophic levels to affect large predators. Because consumer body size can be an important species‐specific trait determining population dynamics and ecosystem processes, these observed shifts in consumer size distributions suggest a potentially important pathway for global increases in nutrient enrichment to alter stream structure and function.


The chemical compositions of banana stem were determined and its anatomical structure was analyzed by light microscopy(LM) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The results indicated that the cellulose and holocellulose contents are high and lignin content is low in banana stem.The fiber of banana stem is long and slender,and the helicoidal fiber structure and film structure are found by SEM.


Constructed in 1804, is part of the historic Garrison Area of Barbados and was originally the Rum Store for the British Regiment. The Garrison, its history and surrounding buildings, make up one of the finest examples of a military Garrison in the Western..


Drugs, such as cisapride, have to be withdrawn from clinical uses due to their side effects, i.e., cardiotoxicity. As an agonist, it can activate 5-Hydroxytryptamine 4 (5-HT4) receptors which are localized in sinoatrial node (SAN) and atrium. Our goal was to investigate the actions of cisapride alone and its combined effects with 5-HT4 receptors that impair cardiac pacemaking action potentials (APs) and their conduction using multi-scale models (the Zhang et al. models of APs of rabbit SAN cells and an anatomically detailed 2-D model of the intact SAN-atrium tissue models). At single cell level, the action of cisapride on IKr had positive chronotropic effect in the central SAN cell, but had virtually no effect on the peripheral cell. When its activation to 5-HT4 receptors was also considered, cisapride increased the pacing rate (PR) in centre SAN cell; but decreased it substantially in the periphery SAN cell. At the tissue level of the intact SAN-atrium, cisapride increased the PR and amplified the tachycardia effect of 5-HT4 receptor activation. It altered the activation sequence of cardiac excitation waves and reduced the maximum up-stroke velocity of the atrium. Moreover, early afterdepolarization was observed in the atrium. Our study shed light on the mechanisms of cisapride-induced arrhythmogenesis, suggesting that 5-HT4 receptors activation should be avoided in designing new anti-arrhythmic drugs.


Abstract Electrospinning can produce nanofibers with extremely high surface-to-volume ratio and well tunable properties. The technique has been widely used in different disciplines. To fabricate fibers with required properties, parameters of fabrication should be well controlled and adjusted according to specific applications. Modification of electrospinning devices to align fibers in highly ordered architectures could improve their functions. Enhanced efficiency have also been obtained through the upscaling modification of spinnerets. With the outstanding efficiency, electrospinning has exhibited huge potentials to construct various nanostructures, such as artificial vessel, membrane for desalination and so on.


guaranteed reagents. A 30ml Pt crucible tightly covered with fitted lid was used. The crucible filled with a starting material which was suffi ciently mixed by the hand-shaker was heated up to the maximum temperature in a Kanthal electric furnace. The localized cooling was carried out by blowing air from an air pump to the bottom of the crucible. After a run the hot crucible was removed from the furnace and rapidly cooled to room temperature. ZrO2 crystals were separated by dissolving the flux in hot 30% nitric acid, and were identified by microscopic examination and by X-ray diffraction analysis. At first, a solidus in the system V2O5-ZrO24) was applied to grow ZrO2 crystals by the slow cooling and localized cooling method. Small crys tals up to 0.5mm were grown by the latter method which was of more advantage to grow ZrO2 single crystal than the former. Then, a flux of the system V2O5-Na2O was used to grow ZrO2 crystals. It was found that the crystals grown usually are small size with acicular form, and show the well developed striations running parallel to the c-axis on the {100} and {110} surfaces (Fig. 1). The striations may be related to oscillatory convection due to a change in the solute concentration of the Na2O com ponent5). Fig. 1. ZrO2 crystals grown in the V2O5 Na2O flux (secondary electron image).


This study investigates differences in eighth-grade mathematics students' engagement in standards-based curriculum and instruction practices between blockand traditional-schedule schools. Survey data were gathered from 156 middle level mathematics teachers to access the use of standards-based curriculum and instruction practices in their classrooms. Results indicate there are few differences in curriculum and instruction based on the type of school schedule.


Under the concept of "Industry 4.0", production processes will be pushed to be increasingly interconnected, information based on a real time basis and, necessarily, much more efficient. In this context, capacity optimization goes beyond the traditional aim of capacity maximization, contributing also for organization's profitability and value. Indeed, lean management and continuous improvement approaches suggest capacity optimization instead of maximization. The study of capacity optimization and costing models is an important research topic that deserves contributions from both the practical and theoretical perspectives. This paper presents and discusses a mathematical model for capacity management based on different costing models (ABC and TDABC). A generic model has been developed and it was used to analyze idle capacity and to design strategies towards the maximization of organization's value. The trade-off capacity maximization vs operational efficiency is highlighted and it is shown that capacity optimization might hide operational inefficiency. Abstract Within the aeronautical industry, there has been in the recent years a high effort towards digitalization. This has resulted in a deep transformation of the way of working all through the product lifecycle. This digitization has included the use of scheduling and line balancing support tools, which have been extremely important in the case of the industrialization of new products and existing products re-industrialization. In this case study we present the re-industrialization of a final assembly line from the line balancing point of view. It completes other previous studies that presented the theoretical framework for aeronautical final assembly line balancing. Abstract Within the aeronautical industry, there has been in the recent years a high effort towards digitalization. This has resulted in a deep transformation of the way of working all through the product lifecycle. This digitization has included the use of scheduling and line balancing support tools, which have been extremely important in the case of the industrialization of new products and existing products re-industrialization. In this case study we present the re-industrialization of a final assembly line from the line balancing point of view. It completes other previous studies that presented the theoretical framework for aeronautical final assembly line balancing.


MarketingE-CommercebySodal media is the best way to improve marketing and business widely.The major issues faced with E-commerce and Social media interfacing is cold- start cross-site problem. The cold-start problem occurs at a situation when user is not having the history of purchase records.For the user who does not have a history of purchase records, we have introduced a method of finding the users' interested product without knowing any of the demographic information of the user. The product is recommended on basesof visits i.e., the item which is most likely to be visited by the users occur in the hit list. This product is rated at the top position for the users to purchase. The e-commerce with social media sites uses the strategy of user embedding and product recommendations. The product recommendations are achieved by incorporating LatentDirichlet Allocation(LDA), Re Ranking and Collaborative Filtering algorithms. The proposed framework can enhance the recommendation system by embedding products and users. This shows the potential of solving cold-start cross-site problem across the e-commerce and social media sites and enhances the marketing strategy.


In countries of the Great Lakes region in Central Africa, which are rich in natural mineral resources, small scale mining could contribute to economic welfare and poverty reduction. However, the omnipresent linkage of regional minerals with war and violence causes the buyer side to introduce precautionary measures as the Dodd-Frank Act. These, in turn, lead to either low price for Central African minerals on the international market or even a de facto embargo of minerals originating from the Great Lakes region. We analyse whether formalisation initiatives like the introduction of obligatory tagging systems or voluntary certification programs could mitigate these problems. In a survey carried out in 2012 and 2013 in Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), we find evidence that formalisation does not impair productivity and may improve safety conditions, whereas income related aspects seem to depend on national and regional conditions.


Background: Tandutinib is an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of FLT3, c-KIT, and PDGFR with a single-agent MTD of 525 mg b.i.d. Tandutinib demonstrated single agent anti-leukemic activity in patients with relapsed/refractory AML with FLT3 ITD mutations, with ≥50% decreases in bone marrow and peripheral blast counts in 12/25 patients and 1 CR without platelet normalization. Since tandutinib is synergistic with cytarabine and daunorubicin in vitro , we sought to determine the MTD of tandutinib in combination with standard induction chemotherapy in patients with newly diagnosed AML, with or without FLT3 ITD mutations. Methods: A starting dose of Tandutinib 200 mg b.i.d was administered during induction and consolidation therapy, and for an additional 6 months. Induction therapy consists of cytarabine 200mg/m 2 /day IVCI, days 1–7, plus daunorubicin 60mg/m 2 /day, days 1–3. Consolidation therapy is given as 2–4 cycles of standard (3000mg/m 2 IV every 12h, days 1, 3, 5) or in older patients modified (2000mg/m 2 /day IV, days 1–5) high-dose cytarabine. DLT is defined as failure to recover marrow function (ANC ≥500/μL; platelets ≥20,000/μL), or grade 3/4 non-hematologic toxicity not resolved to grade 2 (except anorexia, alopecia, fatigue) by day 42 of induction therapy, or any unexpected grade 3/4 non-hematologic toxicities. Results: 29 patients have been enrolled: median age 60y (range 26–83); 13M, 16F; 23 de novo , 6 secondary AML; 9 with unfavorable cytogenetics; 5 with FLT3 ITD mutations. Cohort 1 consisted of 7 patients treated with continuous daily dosing of tandutinib 200 mg b.i.d. Due to GI intolerance, the protocol was amended so that tandutinib was administered only on days 1–14 of induction therapy and each cycle of consolidation. Under the amended schedule 8 patients were treated with tandutinib 200 mg b.i.d. (Cohort 2) and 14 patients have been treated with tandutinib 500 mg b.i.d. (Cohort 3). Full safety and efficacy data are available for the 15 patients in cohorts 1 and 2. Diarrhea, nausea and vomiting have been the most common drug-related AEs, and were more frequent with continuous daily dosing of tandutinib. GI tolerance in Cohort 2 has been acceptable, with no patients requiring termination or reduction in tandutinib for GI toxicity. Although continuous dosing was not feasible, no DLTs were seen in Cohorts 1 or 2; one DLT consisting of obtundation not clearly related to tandutinib during induction occurred in Cohort 3, One patient in Cohort 3 experienced non-dose limiting generalized muscle weakness, which reversed within 24 hours after discontinuation of tandutinib. Tandutinib was restarted at a reduced dose in this patient without recurrence. 5/7 patients in Cohort 1 and 6/8 patients in Cohort 2 achieved a CR. PK data have been collected for all 15 patients in Cohorts 1 and 2; median steady state tandutinib concentration was 195 ng/mL (range: 52–486). Conclusions: Tandutinib 200 and 500 mg b.i.d. in combination with standard therapy for newly diagnosed AML appears well tolerated using the amended dosing schedule (days 1–14). Updated results from Cohort 3 (tandutinib 500 mg b.i.d) will be presented.


AbstractIn supervised learning, some real problems require the response attribute to represent ordinal values that should increase with some of the explaining attributes. They are called classification problems with monotonicity constraints. Hyperrectangles can be viewed as storing objects in Rn which can be used to learn concepts combining instance-based classification with the axis-parallel rectangle mainly used in rule induction systems. This hybrid paradigm is known as nested generalized exemplar learning. In this paper, we propose the selection of the most effective hyperrectangles by means of evolutionary algorithms to tackle monotonic classification. The model proposed is compared through an exhaustive experimental analysis involving a large number of data sets coming from real classification and regression problems. The results reported show that our evolutionary proposal outperforms other instance-based and rule learning models, such as OLM, OSDL, k-NN and MID; in accuracy and mean absolute error...


The aim of this work was the assessment of the removal of air pollutants from mobile sources by commercial carbon nanotubes (CNTs). For this, the nanomaterial was characterized by different techniques: SEM, EDS, TEM, XRD, BET, and Raman. Subsequently, the CNTs were packed in a stainless steel filters which was designed from different prototypes that were developed during the investigation. Tests were performed in the TO-913 Verificenter Macrover Auto SAQ. Inc. de CV. The results revealed that particle type sand CNTs loading had greater effects on the efficiencies than the membrane type sand pore sizes tested. When collecting NOx, the efficiencies were observed relatively lower, below 20% for loadings of 0.3 - 1.5 mg/cm2. The studied CNTs were multi-walled: two layers, show a nonlinear growth and morphology varied since they are of different diameters and longitudes, it was observed that half of the nanotubes were coated with amorphous carbon. The composition is mainly carbon and oxygen, iron is also present. The adsorption capacity of CNTs was significantly influenced by the different aspects, like model, brand, fuel, year and the conditions of each car. The removal efficiencies of CNTs filters were shown to range from 10% to 95% in average for the CNTs loadings of 0.2 - 1.6 mg/cm2. When collecting CO, CO2, NOx, HC, the efficiencies were shown to range from 5% to 60% given similar CNTs loadings used.


In order to promote farmers to get rich,investigation and analysis of the forest resources utilization in Xuanwei City were carried on.For the problems such as 'big resources,small industry',insufficient capital investment,uneven distribution of resources etc.,the development measures were proposed,such as increasing investment,strengthening forestry industry,strengthening the construction of service system and management system and so on.


Ambient intelligence applications often use technologies from the computer vision research area to obtain information on its user(s). An existing computer vision application uses pose estimation to obtain real-time full human body poses. This paper describes how this existing application may be adapted to use stereoscopic vision in order to solve problems that persist in usage of singular camera computer vision applications such as occlusion. 1. Context This research took place in the ambient intelligence research area. There, many types of sensors are used to provide ambient intelligence systems with information on its users. One type of sensors which are used in this manner are cameras, which are available and useful in all shapes and sizes. Computer vision is the research area in which the usage of cameras is studied. There, the passive camera sensor is used to extract desired information from an environment. This research is focussed on the use of stereo vision, a part of the computer vision research area, in an ambient intelligence environment. In the Human Media Interaction project 2004 an ambient intelligence system needed to be developed. For this purpose, the Screpe system was conceived, designed and implemented. In this application a user is confronted with a virtual mirror. That mirror contains a virtual representation of the user (which can be anything, varying from a humanoid to an animal) and is augmented with a virtual pet. The user can, via his or her mirror image, interact with the pet using certain predefined gestures. These gestures have been based upon natural human movements to attribute to the systems credibility. The global design of the Screpe ambient intelligence system is depicted in Figure 1. Figure 1. Global design of the Screpe system In Figure 1 the component of the Screpe system on which the interest of this research is focused can be seen; the vision component. I will describe here how the vision component can be realized in the Screpe system. The goal of this specific component in the whole Screpe system is to detect a limited set of gestures made by the user and to pass that information on to the other two components for processing. 1.1 Problem statement There are various possibilities for application of computer vision to obtain the described goal. For starters it is possible to use either a single camera or a set of multiple cameras from which the information is combined. It is also possible to use specialized cameras to obtain information outside the visual spectrum, for instance a infrared camera. However, such hardware was not available and will therefore not be used here. The described goal can be met using a single camera approach because, using various assumptions, an acceptable pose estimation can be obtained [Pop04] [WA97] [Tom02]. The term pose is to be seen as a human pose in a specific time which captures a (part of a) human gesture. An example of such a system is the Posio [Pop04] system in which a human pose is estimated used camera image sequences. However, whilst using a single camera approach various problems will be present: • Occlusion: objects or parts of the to-be-detected object cover (parts of) that object which prevents extraction of information on that occluded (parts of) object. • Depth detection can only be estimated or be achieved using workarounds. By using accurate camera positioning depth can be estimated. It is also possible to enhance the environment with markers which can be used to obtain depth information. By example: if object O is present at marker M than O is at depth D of M. It is, as has been mentioned, also possible to use more than one camera of extract useful information from the environment. The use of multiple cameras to do so is called stereoscopic vision or, in short, stereo vision. Using stereo vision the above problems may (in part) be solved since information from multiple vantage points of the same environment is obtained. Occlusion may still be present whenever all cameras can not see (part of) the occluded object, but in most cases it is reduced to a bare minimum. Depth detection can be achieved when a object-point is visible in all images, the knowledge of the camera positions and the location of the point representations on the images can be used to achieve it. However, using stereo vision a number of problems are also introduced: • A lot of extra mathematics is involved in the form of execution various calculations. For the usage of two cameras this results in: o Two corresponding image-points, both representing the same object-point, need to be identified in both images. This is called stereo correspondence. o An object-point needs to be reconstructed from the two point representations on the images (see Figure 2). This is called stereo reconstruction. o Both images must be of the same timeframe which entails good synchronization of the cameras. This is required in order to make meaningful statements of a dynamic scene. Figure 2. The stereo reconstruction process • It is necessary (in order to execute the above mathematical calculations) to have available the camera parameters, describing the used cameras: o Intrinsic parameters which describe the internal camera properties. These values keep constant no matter the camera setup. o Extrinsic parameters which describe the rotations and translations of all cameras in use relative one point, which can also be, of course, the axis system of one of those cameras. These values change per camera setup and will have to be obtained anew for each new setup. See Figure 3 for an illustration of these camera parameters. Figure 3. Extrinsic camera parameters 2. Goal definition I am interested in, in part thanks to the described problems with stereo vision, how to use stereo vision in combination with the existing Posio pose estimation system to detect user gestures and how to apply that information in the Screpe ambient intelligence system. I therefore ask Can the Posio pose estimation application be adapted to use stereo vision and if so, in what way? Some sub goals can de defined here: • Which methods can be applied to realize the use of stereo vision in this context? • How will the shortcomings of Posio be improved upon by the usage of stereo vision? • To what extend will the stereo vision enhanced version of Posio improve upon the usage of the original Posio system? 2.1 Boundaries Since this research is related to the Screpe Human Media Interaction project the boundaries stated for that project will also be used here. I will therefore not go into detail on those boundaries. Stereo vision will be limited to two cameras which will be used to detect user gestures in the form of pose estimation. At runtime one Caucasian person will be present to prevent ambiguity when more limbs (for example) are present than is expected. This user may be of either sex and is of average height, meaning 1.70 to 1.90 meters. He or she will be present in both camera images during run time. Also, no occlusion caused by environment objects will be present. There will be continuous lighting conditions. Also, there is a limited set of user poses which are to be detected. Below, in Figure 4 a few of these poses are depicted. The poses are limited in such a way that only arm movements are to be detected. Figure 4. Some to-be-detected poses in the Screpe system Also, the two cameras which are used here will be setup in a static camera setup. No changes in this setup are assumed during the usage of the system. To conclude the boundaries which will be used I state that only a proof of concept is to be delivered. I do so since the Screpe system also resulted in a proof of concept. 2.2 Requirements Two Logitech Quickcam cameras are used for this research. These are USB 1.1 cameras with a default resolution of 320x240 pixels and frame rate of 30 fps. A personal computer with a 2 GHz processor is assumed with 512 MB Ram memory, Windows XP and the Direct X 9c SDK. Also, the software package MS Visual C++ is used in combination with the open source imaging library OpenCV. 3. Related work There has been much research on applications of stereo vision and pose estimation. The Alive project [MBP95], related to the Screpe project, uses for example a single camera for user gesture detection via pose estimation. One of the requirements in that work was a clear contrast between user and background which is realized by dressing the user in dark colored clothes whilst keeping the background white. The Pfinder system [WA97] uses blob tracking combined with stereo vision. However, there were no means to make the system robust in its usage. The setup of its stereo configuration is not easily realized. The Posio system [Pop04] which is used in this research describes a pose estimation method for image sequences of a single camera. Also, various techniques for image processing are explained and weighed against each other, also to be found in [Moe01]. One way to solve the stereo correspondence problem is to use a neural network. In [MP00], for example, a Hopfield algorithm was developed which favored the unicity of matches of points of interest in the left and right camera images. A very different approach to the stereo correspondence problem was proposed in [ZABD98]. Here, a continues calibrating system was described which enables a visually impaired person to navigate a simple hallway setup. Depth measurements were computed using a pixel-to-pixel correspondence method using an epipolar geometry constraint. A related study, [SB98], also applied a dynamic recalibration approach. Such an extensive approach to the calibration problem is not needed for this work since I have used a static camera setup. However, the techniques used may be applied for use here. In [FP03] computer vision theory in general is discussed to great extend. Topics of interest are stereo vision and image processing techniques. 4. Approach In this chapter I will


ordinary iron salt to the sewage does not give the same or anything approaching the same results. Two reasons for this suggest themselves, the first being the fact that the iron oxide in the electrical treatment is used just as it is being made, and the second is that the arrangement of the plates and cells ensures the most intimate and thorough mixing of the precipitating agent with the sewage. The two questions to be examined are now the efficiency of the treatment and its cost. As regards the result, we have the sludge and the effluent to consider. It seems to me that the chief point of importance in connection with sludge is its quantity; at anv rate in a non-agricultural district such as that in which Bradford is situated, the quantity is the chief consideration. The electrical treatment possesses this distinct advantage, that, unlike lime, it adds very little to the sewage, and therefore limits the quantity sof sludge to the lowest amount consistent with the removal of the solids from the sewage. It has been found, also, that the grease, etc., present in the sludge tend to make it more easily burnt. The resulting ash contains a slight percentage of iron, and Mr. Webster suggests that this might make an excellent filtering medium, not unlike the polarite in the Acton process. The effluent, as you see from the specimen before you, is bright-looking, with a slight yellowishgreen tinge, due, no doubt, to the small quantity of iron it contains. It has not been found possible in the small laboratory attached to my department to make elaborate analyses of the effluent, even if such were necessary. The analyses which Dr. Arnold Evanswhom I have to thank for the great interest he has taken in this subject, and for the assistance he has given me-and myself have made clearly show that the electrical treatment does produce an effluent which is fit to go into a stream, such as the Bradford Beck. A great many samples have been taken and analyses made, of which the following is a fair example:


Mutants ofplasmid pNT7that cancoexist with plasmid pMB9ingrowing bacteria 'have beenisolated. These mutants showaltered incompatibility properties andincreased copy numbers. Eachmutant hasasingle base change atornear thecenter ofoneofthethree palindromes intheregion that spec- ifies twoRNAspecies: alarger one(primer transcripts) that pro- vides aprimer for DNAreplication andasmaller one(RNAI)that istheincompatibility-specific inhibitor ofprimer formation. In vitro transcription studies show that thesingle base changes affect both theability ofRNAItoinhibit primer formation andthe, sen- sitivity ofprimer formation toinhibition byRNAI.RNAIhy- bridizes totheprimer transcript, andtherate ofhybridization is reduced bythesingle base changes. Based onanalyses ofinhibition ofinvitro primer formation byRNAIandofinvivo properties ofthemutant plasmids, weconclude that incompatibility between twoplasmids canbeattributed toinhibition ofprimer formation ononeoftheplasmids bytheRNAIoftheother. Inhibition of primer formation byRNAIappears tobethemechanism that determines thecopy number ofpNT7andits derivatives. Transcription ofColElDNAbyEscherichia coli RNApoly- merase invitro starts attwosites intheregion required for maintenance oftheplasmid. Transcription from oneofthese sites yields products (primer transcripts) that extend beyond the origin ofDNAreplication. Approximately one-third ofthese products form astable hybrid with thetemplate DNAduring thecourse oftranscription andcanbecleaved byRNaseHto give a555-nucleotide-long


In order to address the lack of reliable methods that can analyze the overall effects of PDEC tower with a spray system, analytical models that predict supply air conditions of the system were implemented into a whole building energy simulation program EnergyPlus. This paper describes the simulation algorithm of the new module to predict the performance of the system. Case studies were performed to verify the capability of the module. The results of the case studies showed that the module adequately predicted the supply air conditions, and it was also capable of estimating energy performance and indoor thermal environment when the system served as a primary cooling system.


Providing the inspection system, especially for use in subterranean drilling operations in underground utility construction and inspection method. The inspection system includes a sensor, the sensor carrier apparatus, and an output device. Sensors are applied to obtain inspection data on the situation in a subterranean drilling operation built in the tunnel. Sensor carrier includes a sensor adapted and adapted for connection to the sensor means for conveying through the tunnel. Output means for receiving an output signal corresponding to the inspection data from the sensors and the signal presented to the operator for interpretation and / or otherwise prepare files and / or recording of inspection data.


The article shows the role of the brand capital in modern economic transformations; considers market and social manifestations of the brand capital; reveals and analyses factors of influence upon formation and functioning of the mechanism of management of the company's brand capital; identifies stages of the process of formation of the brand capital; studies interconnection between functions of management of the brand capital; justifies theoretical and methodical foundations of the model of management of the company's brand capital; formulates author's definition of the model of management of the brand capital; offers a model of management of the company's brand capital; and develops recommendations on organisation of management of the company's brand capital.


This paper presents a novel frequency-responsive control scheme for demand-side resources, such as electric water heaters. A frequency-dependent control law is designed to provide damping from distributed energy resources (DERs) in a fully decentralized fashion. This local control policy represents a frequency-dependent threshold for each DER that ensures that the aggregate response provides damping during frequency deviations. The proposed decentralized policy is based on an adaptation of a packet-based DER coordination scheme where each device send requests for energy access (also called an "energy packet") to an aggregator. The number of previously accepted active packets can then be used a-priori to form an online estimate of the aggregate damping capability of the DER fleet in a dynamic power system. A simple two-area power system is used to illustrate and validate performance of the decentralized control policy and the accuracy of the online damping estimating for a fleet of 400,000 DERs.


Ocean exploitation continues to be a major international growth area. In term of achieving marine sustainable development it is, therefore, the marine ecological carrying capacity influenced by many factors, need to be analyzed, addressed and monitored. The concept and influencing factors of marine ecological carrying capacity were discussed, and a method based on principle component analysis (PCA) and entropy was proposed to quantitatively reveal the change of marine ecological carrying capacity in this paper. Taking Qingdao City as an example, three principal components were extracted from 10 influencing factors by PCA, whose weights were assigned by entropy method. The results show that the marine ecological carrying capacity in Qingdao decreased firstly and then increased from 1998 to 2005, and the value is smallest in 2000. The amount of marine fishery resources, social economic development level and environmental pollution treatment are the three main supporting factors, the economic development and environmental pollution are the two main pressure of marine ecological carrying capacity, which have decreased year by year.


Through specific project examples,this paper elaborates on the technological management measures for concrete construction in winter from three aspects of management of temperature measurement items,management of the temperature measurement data and management of sample items,so as to guarantee the quality of concrete construction in winter and the smooth construction of these projects.


The development of thermal diffusivity, thermal effusivity and heat capacity per unit volume of polymer nanocomposites, based on PVC filled with different concentration of graphene flakes up to 1.3 vol.% have been investigated using photoacoustic technique. The composites were prepared in the form of thin films with relatively small thickness (23–30 μm). Morphological and structural characterizations of the prepared composite films have been performed using laser confocal microscope, SEM and Raman spectroscopy. The composites exhibit an improvement in both thermal diffusivity (175%) and thermal effusivity (136%) of their values for neat polymer at the highest graphene content used. However, with increasing graphene content no significant variations in the measured values of heat capacity were obtained. The experimental results were analyzed using the mixed model for the thermal conductivity of a two-phase system. We obtained good agreement between our results and the predictions of this model at thermal diffusivity (= (1.5 ± 0.07) × 10−4 m2s−1) and thermal effusivity (= (1.83 ± 0.06) × 104 Ws1/2m−2K−1) of fillers. The predicted thermal diffusivity value of graphene flakes is comparable to the published thermal diffusivity of graphene plates. On the other hand, according to the author's knowledge, the thermal effusivity of graphene was not previously studied. However, the thermal effusivity predicted in this work is in fair agreement with that estimated using the reported thermal properties data of graphene.


This article explored career compromise as negotiated by working-class adults pursuing science-related careers. Using a multiple case study method, we focused on eight individuals who participated in an interview about their career choices and then were followed longitudinally for 2 years. All participants were first-generation college students from working-class families and, at the start of the study, were enrolled at a community college. The results highlight key factors that influenced initial compromises including time and financial constraints, family obligations, and lacking requisite skills. In addition, renegotiations of initial career compromises were sparked by plateaus at work, role models, wanting more money, and having limited time. An extended window of time and financial resources were critical for sustained college pursuit 2 years later. Implications for career development initiatives are discussed.


This work proposes a mixed-integer linear programming formulation to optimize the day-ahead operation of the integrated gas and power system. The quasi-steady-state gas flow is combined with the power flow so that the compressible feature of natural gas can be considered. The power-to-gas technology is also modeled together with gas-fired generators to enable bi-directional energy conversion between the gas and power systems. The major advance of the proposed model is that the linepack storage in every pipe can be assessed and optimally utilized. Simulation results show the unit commitment and economic dispatch from the power system perspective. The transient flow in the gas system is also illustrated.


This paper examines the effect of single protrusion and multiprotrusion on the performance of hybrid rocket with the length/initial port diameter (L/D) ratio of 12.5. The fuel used was wax, and the...


Due to the complexities of systems thinking and the communication between independent Cyber-Physical Systems (CPSs) areas through accumulative expansion, several security threats are posed, such as deception of channels for information sharing, hardware aspects and virtual machines. CPSs have become increasingly complex, sophisticated, knowledgeable and fully independent. Because of their complex interactions between heterogeneous virtual and objective components, CPSs are subject to significant disturbances from intended and unintended events, making it extremely difficult for scientists to predict their behavior. This paper proposes a framework for Cyber-Physical Business Systems based on Artificial Intelligence (CPBS-AI). It summarizes several safety risks in distinct CPS levels, their threat modeling and the scientific challenges they face in building effective security solutions. This research provides a thorough overview of current state-of-the-art static capable of adapting detection and tracking approaches and their methodological limitations, namely, the difficulty of identifying runtime security attacks caused by hibernation or uncertainty. The way of identifying the threat and the security attacks in networks reduce the complexities in the communication in CPS. The negligible threats exhibit an inability to be identified, avoided and blocked by Intrusion Prevention Security Systems (IPSSs), and misbehavior in the database of the safety measures is analyzed. Neural Networks (NN) and Variable Structure Control (VSC) are designed to estimate attacks and prevent the risk of threats in tracking applications using a nonlinear monitoring system based on VSC. NN and the VSC evaluate the different attacks based on the nonlinear monitoring system. The evaluation of the proposed CPBS-AI is based on the request time analysis, accuracy, loss and reliability analysis. The overall effectiveness of the system is about 96.01%.


The influence of national institutions, particularly employee representation, on managers' turnaround strategies remains largely unexplored in the literature. Therefore, this paper assesses the pressures that affected two European airline companies, British Airways (BA) and Iberia, and their turnaround responses in a context of economic crisis and austerity, particularly from the perspective of strategic human resource management (SHRM). Our case studies show that when national institutions grant a number of rights to employee representatives, an innovative HRM strategy enables the recovery strategy required to deal with internal sources of decline. In contrast, when national institutions provide fewer rights to employee representatives, there is room for company HRM strategy to challenge or resist institutional pressures. Our research focuses particularly on how coercive pressures exerted by employee representation, according to the legal framework governing labor relations, affect turnaround strategies.


Abstract In this work we consider the large-scale distributed task/target assignment problem across a fleet of autonomous UAVs. By using delayed column generation approach on the most primitive non-convex supply-demand formulation, a computationally tractable distributed coordination structure (i.e. a market created by the UAV fleet for tasks/targets) is exploited. This particular structure is solved via a fleet-optimal dual simplex ascent in which each UAV updates its respective flight plan costs with a linear update of way-point task values as evaluated by the market. We show synchronized and asynchronous distributed implementations of this approximation algorithm for dynamically changing scenarios with random pop-up targets. The tests performed on an in-house built network mission simulator provides numerical verification of the algorithm on a) bounded polynomial-time computational complexity and b) hard real-time performance for problem sizes on the order of hundred waypoints per UAV.


Aerodynamics simulation of an aircraft in real time may create financial impact and the time consumptions. Performing aerodynamic analysis using software tools may reduce the above said impacts in nature. In our work, a civilian aircraft model called Boeing 747-400 has been considered for study. Aircraft is modeled using Solid works 2014 with necessary boundary conditions and the same is analyzed using Ansys 14.5. Study describes the complete model structure generation and the aerodynamic analysis includes the preprocessor, modeling, mesh generation and the post processor of the Boeing 747 model.


Objective:To explore the differences of classic and improved Coombs' test in the determination of anti-A(B) IgG titers and its clinical application in preventing HDN.Methods:To get the anti-A(B) IgG titers of 303 pregnant women by classic and improved coombs' test,and calculate the positive rate,sensitivity and specificity.Results:The positive rate of Anti-A(B) IgG titers of classic and improved Coombs' test is 16.17% and 17.49% seperately,the two results were not different(P0.05).Serum anti-A(B) IgG titers were ≤1∶32,1∶64,1∶128,≥1∶256,as the standard of classic Coombs' method,the sensitivity and specificity of improved Coombs'test were 97.96% and 99.39%.Conclusion:The results of classic and improved Coombs' test in the determination of anti-A(B) IgG titers of pregnant women have the good consistency,but the improved Coombs' test takes less time,and its operation is simpler,beneficial for clinical promotion.


High on the political and social agenda are the levels of domestic energy use, of carbon emissions, and of fuel poverty. Strategies to reduce these levels should ensure that the health and well-being of residents are protected and improved. Thermal discomfort in housing ranges from being uncomfortable to serious health impacts. Avoiding thermal discomfort maintains well-being and protects the health of, in particular, the most susceptible members of the population. This position paper defines thermal discomfort, examines how it can be measured, and looks at the health impacts of low and high temperatures. Factors that increase susceptibility to low and to high temperatures, both human and building related, are identified and discussed. This paper shows that there are similarities between some of these factors, and that tackling these together will provide protection for those most at risk from exposure to high and low temperatures. Strategies aimed at reducing susceptibility to both excess heat and excess cold are suggested.


This paper assesses the management and use of water, a scarce resource in a semi arid region. Water use and management in semi arid areas is crucial as is water to local livelihoods. It is shown in this paper that a sound institutional setting can be a panacea to a number of Common Property Resources Management dilemmas. It is also highlighted that social networks or moral economy are important in determining access to, and management of water resources. These social networks are the basic fabric of society. Albeit these social networks are very subtle, it is crucial that outsiders; researchers, the donor community and other related development organisations, unravel and understand these networks before making any far fetched recommendations on resource management and use.


A comparison of observations with several earth satellites reveals that the inner edge of the outer radiation zone of electron Ee > 1.6 Mev intensities has moved outward from L ≃ 2.2 in mid-1958 to L = 3.0 in late 1964. This outward motion in the outer radiation zone occurs during the declining phase of solar activity cycle 19 and strongly suggests a systematic change of the average value of one or more of the solar wind parameters over this time period.


The demand for super alloys of extraordinary hardness and confrontation for automobile and aeronautical applications. However, the metal cutting of super alloys like Inconel 718 are very tough because of various factors like the formation of built up edges, increased machining forces, increased machining temperature, high tool wear, etc. These reasons may lead to poor surface finish, reduced tool life and improper chip formation. The edge dimensions of tool inserts play a vital in the orthogonal machining of aerospace super alloys which are hard to machine alloys. This tool insert geometry also directly have an influence in chip formation mechanism which in turn panels the chip morphology. In this paper, orthogonal machining test on Inconel 718 have been conducted to examine the impression of the edge geometry in machining outputs like surface roughness, machining forces, temperature and cutting insert wear. The consequence of machining constraints are also studied on the above mentioned outputs. Cutting edges are modified using Wire EDM technique. Silicon Nitride and Cubic Born Nitride tool inserts were used for orthogonal machining. This paper is mainly focused to compare the machining outputs beforehand and later alteration of tool insert geometry. The tool cracks and built up edge formation by means of microscopic images were inferred and examined. The parameters which are to be varied in the experiment are defined by L9 orthogonal array. The metal cutting was developed in AdvantEDGE software to analyse conforming stress dissemination.


Sprouting angiogenesis describes the process of new capillaries growing from a preexisting vasculature and can be observed in the human body under various conditions. In a physiological context, angiogenesis mainly takes place during embryogenesis and fetal development. Under pathological conditions, angiogenesis can be observed to take place during wound healing, thrombosis and tumor growth (Folkman 2007). Whereas new capillaries grow in a controlled manner during wound healing and thrombosis and stop growing once the pathology has been alleviated, this is not the case for tumor-induced angiogenesis (Folkman 2007). Angiogenesis as induced by tumors can persist for years, leading to the formation of a disorganized and leaky vasculature (Folkman 2007). Despite the inefficiency of this vasculature, it supplies the tumor with nutrients and growth factors, which allow for increased tumor cell proliferation and growth. In addition, the leaky vasculature enables single cancer cells or cell clusters that detach from the primary tumor to enter the vascular system and metastasize to remote organs. Anti-angiogenic therapy, although comparatively young, has already been established as the fourth pillar of cancer therapy (Folkman 2006) (next to surgery, radiation and chemotherapy). Regulation of tumor-induced angiogenesis can help establishing more efficient pathways for drug delivery in the naturally leaky and inefficient blood vessels (Saharinen and Alitalo 2003). Inhibition, on the other hand, restrains nutrient supply, decreasing the growth rate of the tumor and reduces the risk of metastasis by preventing cell clusters from entering the vasculature (Folkman 2006). However, complete inhibition of angiogenesis promoting hypoxia (state of


This paper presents an enhanced high-sensitivity micro resonant temperature sensor with axial stain amplification structure. With the external temperature variation, an amplificated axial strain of micro-resonator vibration beam will be produced because of the materials with different thermal expansion coefficients of the micro resonator and package. This will result in a larger resonant frequency shift of the device with temperature change. The theory and analysis of frequency variation is illustrated with temperature sensitivity achieving 309Hz/K. Experimental test shows that actual frequency variation with temperature change of 20K is about 252Hz/K. Simulation match with measurement moderately and can be utilized to optimally design high-sensitivity temperature sensor before the costly fabrication.


Studies of the production, transport, and radiative losses of impurities in present‐day tokamak divertors provide input necessary for the design of future burning‐ plasma machines. Several types of information rely on detailed analysis of emission profiles. These include ion temperatures, ion flows along field lines, and impurity production mechanisms. Temperatures and flows are determined from Doppler broadening and shifts by comparing measured line shapes to theoretical profiles that include the nonlinear Zeeman/Paschen‐Back effect. The two major production mechanisms for atomic carbon are physical and chemical sputtering. These processes can be distinguished by comparing atomic and molecular fluxes, which requires modeling the band emissions of CD and C2. They can also be differentiated from measurements of effective temperatures of C I (best profile fits to thermal distributions). Careful inspection of profiles that give high effective temperatures reveals that they are not actually Gaussian but have ...


Aim: Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is determined by the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and a low value of this parameter is related to neurological pathologies and infants mortality. This study aims to assess the utility and the advantages of HRV analysis by means of phase-rectified signal averaging (PRSA), a technique that obtains curves that are useful to determine the development of the ANS in preterm infants, with less obtrusive monitoring compared to electroencephalography. Methods: For a preliminary study, 24-hour ECGs were taken in NICU at the University Hospital in Leuven, from 12 babies: 4 were term, 4 were born preterm but reached a term postmenstrual age, and 4 were preterm. Heart rate tracks of segments of 27 minutes were extracted and analyzed with the PRSA technique. The curves obtained were quantified by the slope and by an acceleration/deceleration related parameter (AC/DC). Two independent analyses on acceleration and deceleration were carried out to visualize the effects of the sympathetic and parasympathetic system separately. Moreover, the immediate response and the response after 5 seconds were taken into account. Results and Conclusion: All the results were compared and validated with traditional HRV parameters. The results of slope and AD/DC in both types of analysis are promising in providing a simple parameter to assess neurological development deficiency in order to allow faster and preventive intervention. Further studies are needed in a larger population.


This paper deals with the crash astern performance of a controllable pitch propeller and a fixed pitch propeller . The model ship used in this investigation was a SR174B4 Panamax-type bulk carrier equipped with a large-diameter low-speed propeller. The self propulsion factors were subjected to a quasi-steady treatment from which the stopping ability of a full-size ship was estimated. The most important factors affecting the stopping ability was the maximum reverse pitch angle in the case of CPP and the maximum number of reverse revolutions in the case of FPP.


A one-year-old nondescriptive hen was presented with a swelling at the caudal abdomen. Based on the findings of physical examination the condition was diagnosed as egg bound syndrome and was decided for conservative treatment. The egg was removed manually after proper lubrication with liquid paraffin. The bird recovered well and no further complications were reported. Keywords: egg bound condition, nondescript hen, liquid paraffin Cite this Article Thangamani A, Kumar PR, Prasad BC. Successful Management of Egg Bound Condition in Nondescript Hen (Gallus gallus domesticus)—A Case Report. Research & Reviews: Journal of Veterinary Science and Technology. 2017; 6(3): 1–2p.


• If we are to achieve SDG 2 sustainably, we need a reimagined food system that does not polarise agricultural production and the conservation of forest resources. This calls for land management that promotes the maintenance of biodiversity and integrated land-use planning. This is especially evident when examining the relationship between SDG 2 and the other SDGs, most of which are concomitantly contingent on each other.


Quantum arithmetic must be built from reversible logic components. This is the driving force for the proposed novel 3/spl times/3 reversible gate termed TKS gate having two of its outputs working as 2:1 multiplexer. The proposed TKS gate is used to design a reversible half adder and is further used to design multiplexer based reversible full adder. The multiplexer based full adder is further used to design reversible 4/spl times/4 Array and modified Baugh Wooley multipliers. A novel 4/spl times/4 multiplier architecture with reversible logic is also proposed in which the partial products can be generated in parallel and their additions are reduced to logarithmic steps. In the proposed multiplier, all the operations are decomposed into levels, thereby significantly reducing the power consumption through a control circuitry which will switch off those levels which are not active. Thus, this work provides the initial threshold to building of complex systems which can execute more complicated operations. The reversible circuits designed and proposed in this paper form the basis for an ALU of a primitive quantum CPU.


Effect of Arms' Muscle Strength Exercise Through Pull  Up on Improving of performance of Speed Track for the Athletes of Indonesian Rock Climbing Federation, Banjarbaru . This research uses the quasi experimental method. The population in this research are all the athletes of Indonesian Rock Climbing Federation, Banjarbaru. Population using the total sampling technique.Data collected in the form of quantitative data are the data of testing result on speed tract. The result of analysis on the differences of the results of the pretest and the posttest shows that performance of speed tract indicates t-count= 4.440 with p = 0.004;  p is lower than 0.05 (p <0.05), thus  t-count is significant. The result of research shows that: there is an effect of pull up exercise on the performance of  speed tract for the athletes of Indonesian Climbing Federation, Banjarbaru. Keywords: Effect, pull up, and performance of Speed Track.


Many economists have argued that prolonged fiscal expansions contribute to current account imbalances. The purpose of this paper is to explore this phenomenon in the case of Sub-Saharan Africa countries during the period 1980 to 2007. In the framework of panel cointegration test, panel VAR Granger Causality analysis and a reduced-form consumption function, the paper evaluates the validity of the conventional (Keynesian) view and the Ricardian Equivalence Hypothesis in Sub-Saharan Africa economies. The major findings of this study are: First, as a priori expectation, a unidirectional causality that runs from current account deficits to budget deficits (termed as current account targeting by Summers (1988)) has been found for oilimporting Sub-Saharan Africa countries. In these countries exchange rate is found to be the main mediating variable in linking the two deficits. Second, for oil-exporting countries, while the findings from Granger causality test is in accordance with the Ricardian Equivalence Hypothesis, the restriction test from the estimation result of the reduced-form consumption function shows rejection of the pure Equivalence Hypothesis. One line of argument for the acceptance of the Keynesian Proposition for oil-exporting countries is that a rising consumption (both private and government) fueled by rising oil revenues eventually leads to current account deterioration. A policy implication resulting from these findings is that managing the current account deficit as well as the debt burden offers a scope for improvement in the budget deficits.


The purpose of this study was to evaluate in vitro the bond strength of repairs in composite resins, using different surface treatments. Forty composite resin specimens were artificially aged and divided in four groups (n=10) as follows: Group 1 (control) – composite resin + adhesive system + composite resin; Group 2 – composite resin + scratches executed with a coarse diamond bur (# 2135 KG Sorensen) + adhesive system + composite resin; Group 3 – composite resin + orifices executed with a coarse diamond bur (# 1031 – KG Sorensen) + adhesive system + composite resin; Group 4 – composite resin + aluminum oxide sandblasting + adhesive system + composite resin. After surface treatment, an adhesive system was applied according to manufacture's instructions and a composite resin cylinder was fabricated using a Teflon mold (2.1 mm in diameter). Then, specimens were subjected to thermal cycling and stored for 24 hours at 37oC. Shear bond strength was tested in an Instron testing machine at crosshead speed of 1 mm/min. Data were analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey test. Results: The average values in MPa (±SD) were: G1 14,7 (± 5.0) B; G2 24,1 (± 5.4) A; G3 – 15.61 (± 3.24) B; G4 – 17.99 (± 9.03) A,B. Values with the same letter did not demonstrate significant difference at 5%. ANOVA demonstrated significant difference among the groups (0,0059). Group 2 had the highest shear bond strengths. It was concluded that the scratches performed on the nanocomposite resin improved the shear bond strengths.


The study aimed to identify mathematics teachers' attitudes toward employing educational technologies at the Negev region schools in teaching mathematics and to identify if there are any statistical differences in mathematics teachers' attitudes toward employing educational technologies at the Negev region schools in teaching mathematics at the level α≥0.05  based on  gender, experience and the educational qualification variables. The sample of the study included 20 teachers ( 10 males \ 10 females ) whom were randomly selected. To achieve the goals of the study , the researcher developed the  30-items  " Mathematics teachers' attitudes toward employing technology in teaching mathematics'   questionnaire. Result  indicated that there is a negative attitude towards Employing Educational Technologies in Teaching Mathematics and also indicated statistical differences in averages based on gender and these differences were in favor of female teachers , and differences that are attributed to experience in favor of experience of  (5 – 10 Years). and differences that are attributed to the educational qualification  in favor of higher studies certificates. In light of the results the researcher concluded with recommendations for future research and those concerned in teaching methods. Keywords: Mathematics' Teachers / Attitudes / Educational Technologies/ Negev Schools in Israel DOI : 10.7176/JEP/10-2-11


Finite-energy Airy optical beams were first observed in 2007 [1], followed by much research on these freely-accelerating, non-diffracting beams [2]–[4]. Several variants of the original Airy beam have since been studied, one of which is a radially-symmetric version known as the ring-Airy beam (RAB); this beam has several intriguing properties, such as the ability to strongly autofocus [4]. The form of the ring-Airy beam is\begin{equation*}u(x,y,z = 0) = A\cdot{\text{Ai}}\left( {{r_0} - \sqrt {{x^2} + {y^2}} } \right)\exp \left( {a\left( {{r_0} - \sqrt {{x^2} + {y^2}} } \right)} \right),\tag{1}\end{equation*}with Ai the Airy function, a a decay parameter, A the amplitude of the field, and r0 a radial parameter controlling the form of the field [3]. It has already been revealed that a single RAB exhibits interesting dynamics in a Kerr medium [2], including a low-intensity region and a double focus – the position of the former being controllable by altering the degree of the medium's nonlocality. These features have been argued to be potentially useful for optical trapping [2].


Chronic and repeated exposures of morphine accelerate adenylate cyclase (AC) signaling and reduce analgesic efficacy, a condition known as opioid tolerance. Non-opioid neurotransmitters can modulate the development of opioid tolerance, but the mechanism has not been fully clarified. We found that analgesic tolerance to morphine developed with significant delay in mice lacking vasopressin V1b receptors (V1bRs) and in mice administered with a V1bR antagonist, but not in V1a-deficient mice. In rostral ventromedial medulla (RVM), V1bRs and μ-type opioid receptors (MORs) were co-expressed. In HEK cell model, the V1bR was constitutively phosphorylated and associated with β-arrestin 2. Complex formation between V1b-β-arrestin 2 and MOR was necessary for AC sensitization. Genome editing and deletion of the leucine-rich segment in V1bR carboxyl-terminus, which was necessary for β-arrestin 2 binding, increased morphine analgesia. These findings indicated that inhibition of V1bR provides a novel approach to enhance morphine analgesia without accelerating analgesic tolerance.


BACKGROUND :Increasing need of reaching to accuracy of diagnosis has increased the number of investigations like MRI where some patients become uncooperative by various reasons. To carry out these investigations successfully general anesthesia is employed to make patient cooperative especially pediatric age group. OBJECTIVE : The objectives of the study are to compare the cardiovascular, respiratory parameters, recovery profile and incidence of adverse events in both ketofol(KP) and propofol(P) group. RESULTS : the results in both the groups were clinically and statistically significant. Ketofol maintains better hemodynamic stabilityand has better recovery profile. CONCLUSION : Ketofol results in greater hemodynamic stability with fewer side effects and is safe and hence can replace propofol as an induction agent for short duration procedures.


A methodology is presented to generate a propagation fade time series based on the hypothesis that the fade rate statistics fully determine the attenuation and the fade duration statistics and thus allow to generate time series not only replicating statistically the events of a measured fade time series but also allowing to generate events embedded into its statistics but not evidenced. The approach is relying on the availability of measured time series. The results of this work in progress show that the approach is promising. The fade duration statistics results are not conclusive but the time correlation of the generated and reference time series tends to indicate a good representation. The methodology can be used in computer simulations to test the performance of rain fade countermeasure algorithms over many more fading events than there are in the measured time series as well as over fading events not present but statistically probable.


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The following sections are included:ABC's of Breaking into the Chinese E-commerce BusinessThe 25-Step Process to Enter the Chinese E-commerce Market


In the process of oilfield development geological study,the correlation relationship and connectivity of the sandbody could be scertained by single oil layer correlation method.that based on"cycle correlation,step control and "distinctive treatment for different facies belt" Because of great changes on the continuity and thickness stability of sandbody,it is difficult to show true features of sandbody by simple methods.It is according to make different correlation model by changes of sedimentary microfacies.The paper describes for methods of multi-inter-well correlation and sandbody connectivity on the basis of sedimentary microfacies and sandbody genesis relationship.(1)The distribution of the single fluvial sandbody is characterized by lateral changes quickly,especially thickness of sandbody,and presence of multi-microfacies pattern,thereby forming a variety of connected relationship of sand body.There are three main correlation patterns for connected relationship that include are concerned by which are stacking pattern of multi-periods fluvial sandbody,sandbody facies-change and single incised channel body.(2)It is complex type.for the connected relationship of delta front facies sandbody.It is the key of correlation for delta to correctly determine the relationship of isochronous surface and iso-lithology surface,and It can be considered as the correlation method of isochronous surface and iso-lithology surface for the delta sedimentary facies.Oil layer connectivity and injection-production relationship,single side up horizontal sandstone layer connectivity,depends largely on well spacing density and single sand body.Which drilled the single sandbody.


In the nineteenth century, John Romilly Allen confidently claimed that the iconography of the Crucifixion with the robed or 'fully draped' Christ was a phenomenon of Celtic art, found in Scotland, Ireland and Wales, distinguishable from the 'Saxon' type in which Christ wore a loin-cloth. Other features of the Saxon type were the presence of the sun and moon above the arms of the cross, instead of angels as in Ireland; and the figures of the Virgin and St John at the foot of the cross, without the spear- and sponge-bearers, the latter pair appearing only exceptionally at Alnmouth, Northumberland; Aycliffe, County Durham; and Bradbourne, Derbyshire. Clearly two different versions were identified in this analysis, but no attempt was made to clarify the chronological relationship between the examples cited, and only the geographical distribution of a small number of examples was considered. Romilly Allen's confidence in distinguishing 'Celt' from 'Saxon' on the basis of art styles, even for the pre-Viking period, is not always shared today, as the continuing discussion of the origins of several important manuscripts shows. The terms 'Insular' and 'Hiberno-Saxon' used to describe much of the art from the sixth century to the eighth underline die perceived difficulties.


Hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (hBNNS) have various promising applications in dielectric and thermal conductive materials. However, in the bottom‐up method, well‐crystallized hBNNS could only be attained at very high temperatures. In this paper, a facile halide‐assisted hydrothermal assembly (HAHTA) method for the low‐temperature synthesis of well‐crystallized hBNNS is prepared. In HAHTA, the lateral growth of hBNNS is enhanced by the halide addition in the precursor, and the dimension reaches several micrometers. In addition, the obtained hBNNS enhance the oxidization resistance of vanadium dioxide (VO2) though the formation of a VO2/hBN composite, which is meaningful in facilitating the potential applications of VO2 as smart phase transition materials.


the role of the respiratory therapist in a variety of settings. The CCM-L discussion continues to demonstrate the unique position that we therapists hold in the United States. Indeed, our role has been defined by the system in which we operate, leading us to become "physician extenders." This is certainly contrasted by the European-based approach, where a physician is in the intensive care unit 24 hours a day, obviating the need for someone else to function as his eyes, ears, and hands. Scott Singer goes further with an article on training residents to function as therapists at Giesinger Medical Center. While I can imagine the red flags that must have initially been raised as therapists felt that their "turf" was being violated, I was happy to note the positive results that the program demonstrated. Indeed, it has been my experience that positive contact with other health care professionals in training reaps significant rewards years afterwards. Three years ago I presented an abstract at a state level Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) conference. While there I ran into a familiar face that I had not seen in approximately a decade. While he was in medical school, this gentleman, now a trauma surgeon, had run blood gases at the VA Medical Center in Washington, DC. I was one of two full time night therapists employed at the VA at that time. One night he asked if he could follow me for part of the shift to see what I did and help him understand my role and responsibilities. Never realizing the potential fruits that such an experience would bear, I agreed, and the next Friday night he worked, we spent a few hours rounding on ventilator patients, discussing various modalities and changes, and showing how respiratory therapists fit into the health care team. Ten years later, I found that he had instituted respiratory-based ventilator and therapy protocols on his patients and had started several respiratory-based research projects. As we chatted and caught up on old times, this physician intimated to me that most of his interest in respiratory — and his realization that therapists could be used to assist him — came from that one night of exposure to our field. He went on to state that had I not been interested in sharing my experiences with him in that regard, he is not sure he would have come to realize our utility so quickly, because, "no one else was interested" in teaching him about our field. It is sad that there is still an overwhelming fear that if we share our knowledge with other members of the health care team, it will result in our being replaced by those other members. My experience has been completely the opposite — demonstrating professional competence to other professionals serves to enhance our jobs and improve patient care. Other professionals are busy enough within their own areas of expertise and do not wish to have "our" job responsibilities added to their own. Initiation of good, firm professional relationships throughout the health care continuum can only serve our profession well. n Adult Acute Care Bulletin


Current Australian Greenhouse Office (AGO) methodologies for wastewater treatment focus mainly on emissions associated with energy use (e.g. electricity and fuel consumption). Quantifying fugitive emissions from wastewater systems is an area of uncertainty for the industry, with less developed and less reliable methodologies. This level of uncertainty in the wastewater industry's "carbon profile" is unacceptable in the emerging business environment of carbon pricing, and managerial commitments to "carbon neutrality". Methane and nitrous oxide emissions have much higher global warming potentials than carbon dioxide. This study reviews existing knowledge on their production in wastewater systems and defines their relative importance compared to emissions from energy usage in both wastewater systems and other economic sectors. Further areas of research were identified, to provide sound guidance to water authorities. An interim draft methodology for fugitive greenhouse gas emissions from Australian wastewater systems was proposed for consideration by the AGO.


This article proposes high-gain, high-output-power, and high-power-added efficiency (PAE) power amplifiers (PAs) by adopting an output power maximized (OPM) maximum achievable gain (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\text {max}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>)-core with the transmission line (TL)-based zero-degree power combiners (ZDCs) and zero-degree splitters (ZDSs). By utilizing the proposed small- and large-signal two-port network parameter-based analysis for implementing the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\text {max}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-core, the last-stage OPM <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\text {max}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-core can maximize large-signal output power and small-signal gain at the same time. In addition, by adopting the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\text {max}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-concept in all amplifying stages, the amount of gain per stage can be maximized, leading to higher PAE. For implementing the low-loss power combining (PC) and splitting networks, ZDC and ZDS are adopted. By adopting the proposed OPM <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{\text {max}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-core and ZDCs and ZDSs, six-stage 250-GHz two- and four-way PC PAs are implemented in a 65-nm CMOS process. The two PAs achieve <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$P_{\text {sat}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> of 9.2 and 10.5 dBm, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text {OP}_{1\,\text {dB}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> of 6 and 7.7 dBm, PAE of 4.6% and 2.8%, and power gains of 28 and 26 dB at 245 and 243 GHz, respectively.


This monograph is concerned with a number of penalty-function techniques for solving a constrained-minimization or nonlinear-programming problem. These techniques are designed to take into account the constraints of a minimization problem or, since almost none of the problems arising in practice have interior minima, to approach the boundary of the constraint set in a specifically controlled manner. The monograph starts therefore with a classification of penalty functions according to their behaviour in the neighbourhood of that boundary. Appropriate convexity and differentiability conditions are imposed on the problem under consideration. Furthermore, certain uniqueness conditions involving the Jacobian matrix of the Kuhn-Tucker relations are satisfied by assumption. This implies that the problem has a unique minimum x with a unique vector -;;; of associated Lagrangian multipliers. Under these conditions the minimizing trajectory generated by a mixed penalty-function technique can be expanded in a Taylor series about (X,Ü). This provides, as an important numerical application, a basis for extrapolation towards (X,ü). The series expansion is always one in terros of the cantrolling parameter independently of the behaviour of the mixed penalty function at the boundary of the constraint set. Next, there is the intriguing question of whether some penalty functions are easier or harder to minimize than other ones. Accordingly, the condition number of the principal Hessian matrix of a penalty function is studied. It comes out that the condition number varies with the inverse of the controlling parameter, independently of the behaviour of the mixed penalty function at the boundary of the constraint set. The parametrie penalty-function techniques just named can be modified into methods which do not explicitly operate with a cantrolling parameter. They may be considered as penalty-function techniques adjusting the cantrolling parameter automatically. It is established how the ra te of convergence of these methods depends on the vector u of Lagrangjan multipliers associated with x, on the boundary properties of a penalty function, on a weight factor p attached to the objective function and on a relaxation factor(!. The metbod of eentres is a remarkable exception: its rate of convergence depends on the number of active constraints at x, and on p and IJ· The computational advantages and disadvantages of the penalty-function techniques treated in the monograph are discussed. There is an appendix presenting an ALGOL 60 procedure for constrained minimization via a mixed parametrie first-order penalty function.


Competitive binding of two mixtures of inhibitors to bovine carbonic anhydrase H (BCAII) was studied using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). The first mixture contained inhibitors with hydrocarbon/fluorohydrocarbon linker groups and with an 800 fold span of binding constants. The second contained inhibitors with dipeptide extensions synthesized using the solid phase method. Noncovalent enzyme-inhibitor complexes were observed from solutions in 10 mM ammonia acetate having abundances consistent with their relative binding constants measured in solution. The inhibitor with highest affinity was readily identified in an equimolar mixture. The inhibitors with very low affinity were identified to form specific complexes as well. Several control experiments including acidifying the solution or removing the Zn metal from the enzyme resulted in the disappearance of the enzyme-inhibitor complexes, (mass spectrometrically) observed complexation and characterization of biomolecular binding. Good correlation between gas phase inhibitor ion abundances and their binding constants in solution were observed. Structural information and relative binding constants of masses were obtained using Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FTICR-MS) through multi-stage dissociation experiments. These results support the role of ESI-FTICR-MS in the study of specific noncovalent associations from solution, and show that its unique capabilities can be exploited to extend studiesmore » to large mixtures of inhibitors in drug leads discovery.« less


Objective To evaluate the quality of Rotundine Tablets from several manufacturers using different stripping curves.Methods 0.1 mol/L HCl,acetate buffer(pH 4.0) and phosphate buffer(pH 6.8) were used as the dissolution media and stripping curves were determined by FODT-601 Fiber-optic Medicine Dissolution Process Real Time Test System.Results A comparision of the stripping curves by using different dissolution media indicates that the dissolution process of tablets from different manufacturers was quite different.Conclution There is significant difference in the quality of Rotundine Tablets from several manufacturers.


In the past one or two years most developing countries have implemented various types of anti-crisis measures. These measures are quite effective, but they should not be regarded as efforts to abandon the current models. Taking into consideration of today's global financial crisis and also the past experience and lessons of the developing countries in pursuing economic and social progress, developing countries should pay more attention to the following points when they adjust and improve their development models in the post-crisis era: take a positive attitude towards globalization; deal properly the relationship between government intervention and market mechanism; adhere to outward orientation; encourage financial innovation; seek a "green recovery"; never neglect the imperative need of promoting social development.


In radiotherapy, it is sometimes necessary to treat large or awkwardly shaped structures with two or more adjacent radiation beams, rather than a single beam. An even dosage across the junction between two fields may be obtained for all depths if the fields are orientated so that the planes representing their adjacent edges (e.g., the 50% decrement) are made to coincide. Half-beam lead blocks have been used in this way to match orthogonal fields, where the beam edges are butted together in a vertical "match plane" (Williamson, 1979). Unfortunately half-beam blocks reduce the length of the fields available, and moreover, as they cover a large area they must either be heavy or allow a substantial penetration of the beam. Some radiotherapy machines allow one collimator block to be moved to the centre to produce this form of treatment. Apart from beam shaping, the half-beam block is used to orientate the beam in a manner additional to that provided by the gantry angle. This effect may, however, be obtained by...


vision, at its junction with the Asiatic continent, contains the extensive kingdoms of Achern or Assam, and Ava, with the district of Arracan, on the east margin of the Bengal Gulf. This portion is traversed from north to south by the river Irrawaddy, which separates towards the southern extremity of the peninsula into numerous branches, inclosing low, flat, and, in general, woody deltas, and which at length find their way into the sea, along a space of coast, extending in a sinuous direction, be-


The thesis from the current problems exist in the theses of music students,to discuss the lack of information literacy education in music institutions and the relationship between thesis writing and information education.Meanwhile,the thesis by analyzing the reasons of the problems exist in the music students' thesis,suggesting that college teachers should actively promote the information retrieval teaching and measures of raising the informational quality of music students.


The kinetics and thermodynamics of protein folding is investigated using low friction Langevin simulation of minimal continuum mode of proteins. We show that the model protein has two characteristic temperatures: (a) Tθ, at which the chain undergoes a collapse transition from an extended conformation; (b) Tf(< Tθ), at which a finite size first‐order transition to the folded state takes place. The kinetics of approach to the native state from initially denatured conformations is probed by several novel correlation functions. We find that the overall kinetics of approach to the native conformation occurs via a three‐stage multiple pathway mechanism. The initial stage, characterized by a series of local dihedral angle transitions, eventually results in the compaction of the protein. Subsequently, the molecule acquires native‐like structures during the second stage of folding. The final stage of folding involves activated transitions from one of the native‐like structures to the native conformation. The first two stages are characterized by a multiplicity of pathways while relatively few paths are involved in the final stage. A detailed analysis of the dynamics of individual trajectories reveals a novel picture of protein folding. We find that afraction of the initial population reaches the native conformation without the formation of any detectable intermediates. This pathway is associated with a nucleation mechanism, i.e., once a critical number of tertiary contacts are established then the native state is reached rapidly. The remaining fraction of molecules become trapped in misfolded structures (stabilized by incorrect tertiary contacts). The slow folding involves transitions over barriers from these structures to the native conformation. The theoretical predictions are compared with recent experiments that probe protein folding kinetics by hydrogen exchange labeling technique. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Preface 1. Background 2. About this Manual Purpose of the Manual How the Manual is Organised Users of the Manual 3. The Programme Session 1. Setting the Scene Session 2. The Concept, Extent, Nature, Causes, Consequences and Definition of Gender-based Violence Session 3. The Legal Framework Session 4. Sharing Experiences and Challenges Session 5. The Framework for Addressing GBV Session 6. Developing the Plan of Action 4. The Facilitator's Guide About The Facilitator's Guide Session 1. Setting the Scene Session 2. The Concept, Extent, Nature, Causes, Consequences and Definition of Gender-based Violence Summary Session 3. The Legal Framework Session 4. Sharing Experiences and Challenges Session 5. The Framework for Addressing GBV Session 6. Development of the Plan of Action Evaluating the Workshop Ice-Breakers, Openers/Methods for the Introduction Session Case Studies and Critical Incidents Key Informant Views References


: Alzheimer's disease (AD), also known as dementia in traditional Chinese medicine, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease, which is progressive and irreversible. The etiology of AD is still unknown, and the current medication can only delay its process. Alzheimer's disease impairs the patient's thinking, memory and independence, affects the patient's social viability and quality of life, and even death. Polygala tenuifolia is a traditional Chinese medicine, which has the functions of tranquilizing mind and improving intelligence, soothing heart and kidney, dispelling phlegm and opening orifices, and reducing swelling, etc. At present, many studies have shown that Polygala tenuifolia and its chemical components can improve the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, which is a potential ideal drug. Alzheimer 's disease ( Alzheimer 's disease ), referred to as AD, also known as dementia in traditional


scribe in only 48 (3%) of 1431 consultations overall, but in 15 (20%) of 74 consultations involving DTCA drug requests. Marc Lacroix questions physicians' ambivalence about prescriptions for requested DTCA drugs, focusing on treatment choices that would have been "unlikely" for other similar patients. Our decision to separate "possible" and "unlikely" choices from "very likely" choices was made a priori, to distinguish prescriptions with any degree of ambivalence from those without ambivalence in a manner that was sensitive to physicians' legal and moral responsibility for prescribing decisions. However, if we instead compare "unlikely" with "possible" and "very likely" choices, as Lacroix suggests, neither the direction nor the magnitude of effect changes. Physicians were still significantly more likely (5/60 or 8.3%) to judge requested DTCA drugs to be "unlikely" choices for other similar patients than nonrequested drugs (7/500 or 1.4%) (unadjusted odds ratio [OR] 6.8, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.8– 26.2; adjusted OR 9.4, 95% CI 2.8– 32.0; unit of analysis is each newly initiated prescription; analysis performed by a general estimation equation with adjustment for age, sex, health status, income, education, drug payment, and physician's sex and graduation year). Finally, we could find no evidence to support Lacroix's suggestion that DTCA leads to savings in health care costs.


Glycosphingolipids are a diverse family of biologically important glycolipids. They are directly involved in various molecular recognition events. Besides variations on the lipid component, more than 300 naturally occurring glycosphingolipid glycans have been identified. However, only a limited number of glycosphingolipids has been synthesized so far. Most of these compounds are produced by chemical synthetic approaches. Several enzymatic and chemoenzymatic approaches have been recently developed for the synthesis of these important glycoconjugates. Most recently, highly efficient one-pot multienzyme (OPME) systems have been combined with facile C18-cartridge-based purification schemes for high-yield and cost-effective production of glycosphingolipids. Glycosphingolipid structures that have been synthesized and the different strategies applied are summarized here. Future efforts are needed to expand the repertoire of synthetic glycosphingolipids, not only to provide standards and probes for research, but also to facilitate the development of potential glycosphingolipid-based diagnostics and therapeutics.


ABSTRACT Cholesteric liquid crystals with helicoidal molecular architecture are known for their ability to selectively reflect light with the wavelength that is determined by the periodicity of molecular orientations. In this paper, the broadband reflective polymer stabilised cholesteric liquid crystal (PSCLC) films in the near infrared region have been fabricated by introducing the chiral dopant-loaded white carbon black. The non-uniform pitch distribution can be anchored by adjusting the diffusion time of chiral dopants, UV intensity and polymerisation temperature, as well as the concentration of polymerisable monomers. The reflection bandwidth was broadened from 300 nm to 840 nm. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) proved the non-uniform pitch distribution in the composites. In this paper, the investigated results suggested the correlation between diffusion time, polymerisation conditions and reflection bandwidth. Graphical abstract


The diet composition of Mullus barbatus and M. surmuletus in relation to ontogeny was compared to evaluate resource partitioning between these sympatric spe...


Background: Contraception and sexual health are a fundamental human right and an integral part of women's health services. Postpartum period is the unique opportunity for counseling and availing contraception. COVID-19 pandemic hindered routine and special services like postpartum clinics has negative impact on family planning services.
Aims and Objectives: The objective of study was to compare the change in contraceptive services due to COVID-19 in two consecutive financial years (2019–2020 and 2020–2021) at Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Materials and Methods: An institution-based, retrospective, and cohort study was carried out in Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College and Hospital among the users of contraceptive services at the department of family planning for the financial year 2019–2020 and 2020–2021. During the period, 226,700 beneficiaries attended department of family planning for the financial year 2019–2020 and 98,584 beneficiaries attended department of family planning for the financial year 2020–2021. Template was generated in MS excel sheet and analysis was done on SPSS software.
Results: During the year 2019–2020, 94.73% availed combined oral contraceptives while in the year 2020–2021, 93.97% availed combined oral contraceptives. Lap ligation was decreased by 96.42%, post-abortion ligation was decreased by 85%, Interval IUCD was decreased by 79.62% and PAIUCD was decreased by 76%. During the year 2019–2020, OCP was used by the maximum beneficiaries, that is, 219,654 while in the year 2020–2021 OCP was used by 97,353 beneficiaries.
Conclusion: During COVID-19 pandemic, family planning services suffer a huge setback as it is does not came under emergency services. With the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and continuous need for contraception, there is a need to refocus and motivate eligible couples for long-acting reversible contraceptive methods with significantly lower failure rates.


In March 2021, the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) established a Working Group on Priorities for Science, Medicine, & Public Health After COVID-19 to develop guidance for consideration by U.S. government agencies and other stakeholders. While the priorities are wide-ranging, they are also interconnected and overlapping. There is a need for a coordinated, strategic approach to make progress in all priority areas.