Objectives: To compare the compressive strength of a bone substitute material (α-BSM™) to cancellous bone when used to fill a defect void in a cadaver model of a Schatzker II split depression fracture of the lateral tibial plateau. Design: Randomized, paired design. Setting: Biomedical engineering laboratory. Patients: Twenty-six human tibias were harvested from 13 cadavers. Three pairs of tibia fractured during preparation and were excluded. The remaining 10 matched pairs were randomized to fixation by using the bone substitute material or cancellous bone. Intervention: A split depression fracture of the lateral tibial plateau was created in each tibia by using reproducible methods. This fracture was stabilized with a stainless steel L-plate and screws and either α-BSM™ or cancellous bone to fill the defect void. Main Outcome Measurements: Stiffness of the elevated fragment in compression, total depression of the joint at 1000 N. Results: The α-BSM™ bone substitute displayed significantly greater stiffness than cancellous bone constructs in Schatzker II split depression fractures of the lateral tibial plateau (P < 0.0001). Plateau defects displaced significantly less at 1000N when using α-BSM™ in comparison to cancellous bone (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: In this cadaveric study, α-BSM™ is an effective bone substitute compared with cancellous bone graft for stabilizing split depression fractures of the lateral tibial plateau.


Summary In [11], the definitions of forward difference, backward difference, and central difference as difference operations for functions on R were formalized. However, the definitions of forward difference, backward difference, and central difference for functions on vector spaces over F have not been formalized. In cryptology, these definitions are very important in evaluating the security of cryptographic systems [3], [10]. Differential cryptanalysis [4] that undertakes a general purpose attack against block ciphers [13] can be formalized using these definitions. In this article, we formalize the definitions of forward difference, backward difference, and central difference for functions on vector spaces over F. Moreover, we formalize some facts about these definitions.


This study examined the behaviour of waxes, stigmastadienes, acidity, peroxides number, spectrophotometric indexes, and fatty acid trans isomers during ageing. Four different kinds of oils were studied (extravirgin, lampante, refined, raw pomace) at room temperature (in the dark and in the light) at 40°C (as maximum storage temperature) and also at 60, 80, and 100°C. It is pointed out that, during storage, the parameters waxes and K270 after passing through alumina can increase significantly and cause a wrong judgement on the oil quality.


In this paper a.d.c. spectral model of the DFB laser is described. The description is based on the coupled wave theory for corrugated optical waveguides. The analysis is carried out in the spectral domain for a continuum of wavelengths. As such, the model is inherently capable of capturing the effects of all the longitudinal lasing and non-lasing modes.


Water potential and stomata) conductance are important indicators of the response of vegetation to manipulations of riparian systems. However, inter- pretation of measurements of these variables is not al- ways straightforward. An extensive monitoring program along the Carmel River in central California, carried out by the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, provides examples of the complications that can arise in practice. The Monterey Peninsula Water Management District (MPWMD) has monitored riparian vegetation along the Carmel River since 1981. A large data set has been developed, and been presented and analyzed in various reports (DMA Consulting Engineers 1985; McNeish 1986; Williams and Matthews in press; Williams and others submitted; Woodhouse 1983, 1984). This paper describes the history of this effort, and reviews some of the complications encountered in interpreting the data, particularly from the point of view of environmental management. A possible subtitle would be: "Problems in Proving the Obvious."


The validity of reflection-back-to-the-fiber SNOM (scanning near-field optical microscopy) has been unduely questioned by an erratic approach curve that disputed the enhancement of near-field reflectance. It is shown now that only truncated (broken) tips without metal coating do not experience the enhancement when approached close to shear-force distance. However, sharp uncoated tips continue to show up the near-field enhancement, and chemical contrast on rough surfaces continues to be of basic value at submicroscopic resolution. It is pointed out how a good tip may be immediately differentiated from a broken one. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


We investigate the time dependence of correlation functions in the central spin model, which describes the electron or hole spin confined in a quantum dot, interacting with a bath of nuclear spins forming the Overhauser field. For large baths, a classical description of the model yields quantitatively correct results. We develop and apply various algorithms in order to capture the long-time limit of the central spin for bath sizes from 1000 to infinitely many bath spins. Representing the Overhauser field in terms of orthogonal polynomials, we show that a carefully reduced set of differential equations is sufficient to compute the spin correlations of the full problem up to very long times, for instance up to ${10}^{5}\ensuremath{\hbar}/{J}_{\mathrm{Q}}$ where ${J}_{\mathrm{Q}}$ is the natural energy unit of the system. This technical progress renders an analysis of the model with experimentally relevant parameters possible. We benchmark the results of the algorithms with exact data for a small number of bath spins and we predict how the long-time correlations behave for different effective numbers of bath spins.


A novel and cost-effective adaptive optics system for imaging the retina is presented. The system synchronizes linear LED illumination patterns from a digital light projector to electronic rolling shutter detection in a CMOS camera, permitting real-time adjustments of the confocal aperture width and position to optimize the visualization of capillary flow and photoreceptor cones.


THE THREE GREAT QUESTIONS Alexis de Tocqueville, Frederick Jackson Turner, and Simon Kuznets have set out the fundamental questions that dominate consideration of inequality in the nineteenth century. Their questions, posed in 1835, 1893, and 1955 respectively, have not yet been definitively answered. Nor are answers close at hand, for these questions pose difficult methodological issues, relate to changing values concerning inequality and economic opportunity, and require quantitative evidence on poorly measured distributions of income and wealth as well as information about economic opportunity. Yet each of the questions retains its interest and relevance to judgments today about economic equality in the nineteenth century. From May 1831 to February 1832 Alexis de Tocqueville, in the company of Gustave de Beaumont, made his epic journey through North America, traveling west across New York to the frontier in Michigan, then northeast into Canada, down to Boston, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, west to Cincinnati, Nashville, and Memphis, down the Mississippi to New Orleans, overland to Washington, and back to New York City. Tocqueville and Beaumont were entertained by various levels of society, which they interviewed extensively, and observed with dispassion and insight the structure of this strange new democracy.


The direct epoxidation of olefins using monooxygenases offers the realistic prospect of stoichiometric conversion of a pro-chiral substrate into an enantiomerically pure product. A number of microbial systems are available in which the mechanism of oxygen activation, and consequently the oxygen reactivity, differs. This paper discusses some of the merits and potential problems associated with these different systems.


The invention discloses a system for realizing the time synchronization of base station (BTS), comprising a BTS; a time emitting station for generating the clock information, encoding and modulating the time-encoded clock information and itself position information to get the wireless information to be transmitted; a time receiving module for receiving the wireless signal of time emitting station, demodulating and decoding the wireless signal to get the clock information and the position information of time emitting station, while processing the time-decoding on the attained clock information to get the absolute clock information, and according the position information and absolute clock information of said time emitting station to calculate the present clock information to be transmitted to the BTS. The invention also discloses a method for realizing the time synchronization and with The invention the time synchronization of BTS can be realized with lower cost.


CDAPT, ISSN 2701-939X Peer reviewed article 2021, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 40-48 DOI 10.25367/cdatp.2021.2.p40-48 Received: 18 May 2021 Accepted: 15 June 2021 Available online: 26 June 2021 In fashion industry, creative ideas and new products appear in new collections of brands presented in several ways, such as fashion week, exhibition etc. Iranian menswear also had the same strategy, but because of features of their customers, usually they use same designs and products in their new collections. Achieving new products in fashion industry can be related to design and technology aspect. Here we are looking for important factors affecting new products in Iranian menswear and also aiming at understanding which strategy are utilized in these product lines. Firstly this is done by gathering data from the Iranian Fashion association and 3 big Iranian menswear brands, secondly by interviews with experts from Iranian menswear brands, looking for answers of the study question. Twelve factors released from literature of study are divided in four sections: fabric sector, garment and accessories sector, and market sector. In 2010decade, Iranian menswear brands focused on the technology factor in their new products, but during recent years, they changed their mind and now change direction to design departments. These phenomena happen due to the impact of social media on Iranian culture, with social media changing the behavior of the Iranian customer. Generally, accessing the directors of menswear brands was difficult, and during their interview they tried to hide some information. New products were an important factor in increasing market of any menswear brand. This study helps them to utilize the best strategy depending on their customers and market. This study confirms a new product's impact on customer behavior and culture which could be difference with time.


This review covers the sessions SH 3.1–3.5: "Galactic cosmic rays in the heliosphere" of the 26th International Cosmic Ray Conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah, in August 1999. The subtopics are modulation models, long-term variations, gradients, anisotropies, and spectra, composition & charge state. Noteworthy contributions include a number of new models, numerical simulations of transport coefficients—including the first of the drift coefficient—that highlight the continuing problems with perpendicular transport, various other attempts to pin down the spatial and rigidity dependence of the diffusion tensor, charge-dependent modulation and especially the role of the wavy current sheet, and the Gnevyshev gap during solar maximum conditions.


Diplomatically isolated and confronted with the second Intifada, Israel chose 9/11 to strengthen its relationship with Washington in the context of the fight against terrorism. Since this change, the Israeli-Palestinian balance of power has been profoundly changed. Ten years later however, the Obama administration is trying to adopt an attitude of distance with respect to Israel, but the threat of terrorism seems to have weakened and thus questions the system put in place by Tel-Aviv after 9/11.


The manage decision making are discussed by the example of training programs optimizing. The optimization criteria to select the effective ways to teach subjects in the first years of training in medical universities. The transformation of medical knowledge are recommend to base on the "spiral of knowledge".


Momentum term technique is an efficient resolution to accelerate the convergence speed of adaptive blind source separation (BSS) algorithms, however, the BSS algorithm combined with a momentum term also suffers from the tradeoff between the fast convergence speed and small misadjustment error. In order to alleviate such compromise, an optimal variable momentum factor method is used to boost the separating performance of the nonlinear principal component analysis (NPCA) BSS algorithm. At first, by using the projection approximation, the cost function of the NPCA algorithm can be represented as a quadratic function of the momentum factor. Then the optimal momentum factor is obtained on the basis of the gradient decent technique, which makes the cost function descend in the fastest way during each iteration. Simulation experiment results manifest that the modified algorithm can improve the convergence speed and decrease the final misadjustment error more effective compared with the classical NPCA algorithms and the fixed momentum factor NPCA algorithms.


This case study concerned clinical safety and behavioral-pharmacological intervention with an 18-year-old man who had autism spectrum disorder and high-frequency aggression toward care providers at a specialized school. A multicomponent behavior support plan included antecedent, differential reinforcement, environmental modification, and physical management procedures subsequently combined with psychotropic medication (aripiprazole). Clinical safety components emphasized comprehensive care provider training, continuous supervision, function-based treatment, and prevention-focused strategies. The behavioral-pharmacological intervention eliminated implementation of aggression-contingent physical restraint and was associated with increased transition compliance during the school day. Throughout the 7.5 months duration of the study, there were no injuries to the participant or other students and a single injury was sustained by one care provider. Intervention effects were long-standing, and care providers rated their training, implementation fidelity, and therapeutic outcome favorably.


Glioblastoma multiforme is the most common and aggressive primary brain tumor, with median survival of approximately 10 months and only 5% of patients surviving greater than 5 years after treatment (1). Surgery and radiotherapy are the main treatment modalities for primary brain tumors, but the associated risks are high when infiltrative tumors are positioned near sensitive regions in the brain. Nanoshells, nanoparticles characterized by a spherical silica core and a gold shell, may provide the opportunity to treat brain tumors in a minimally invasive manner, reducing the risk associated with treatment. Upon exposure to a near-infrared laser, nanoshells convert light energy into heat that can thermally ablate cancerous cells (2). Targeted photothermal ablation of human glioma and medulloblastoma cells has already been demonstrated with this technique in vitro (3).Copyright © 2010 by ASME


. The object of the present paper is to study the Trans-Sasakian structure on a manifold with Lorentzian metric. Several interesting results are obtained on the manifold. Also conformally (cid:135)at Lorentzian Trans-Sasakian manifolds have been studied. Next, in three- dimensional Lorentzian Trans-Sasakian manifolds, explicit formulae for Ricci operator, Ricci tensor and curvature tensor are obtained. Also it is proved that a three-dimensional Lorentzian Trans-Sasakian manifold of type ( (cid:11);(cid:12) ) is locally (cid:30) - symmetric if and only if the scalar curvature r is constant provided (cid:11) and (cid:12) are constants. Finally, we give some examples of three-dimensional Lorentzian Trans-Sasakian manifold.


The TSR1(thermosensitive rescued)gene associated with the secretion of proteins of the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica was site-directed mutagenesis,restricted and spliced to obtain a series of deletion mutants.These mutants would be useful for studing the function of different domains of TSR1 gene in yeast Yarrowia lipolytica


In recent years it is required to store/retrieve a huge quantum of documents across network in World Wide Web (WWW) due to the wide spread usage of computers across the globe. This has placed many challenges to the Information Retrieval (IR) system like fetching of relevant documents matching with user's query, classification of electronic documents etc. Clustering is an unsupervised learning that partitions the available documents into several clusters based on the similarity between the documents. The problem of clustering has become a combinatorial optimization problem in IR system due to the exponential growth in information over WWW. In this paper, a novel Hybrid Ant Algorithm, a blended scheme of Tabu Search and Ant Colony Optimatization algorithm has been proposed to form better quality clusters with documents of similar features. The viability of the proposed algorithm is tested over ma few standard benchmark datasets and the numerical experimental results reveal that the proposed algorithm yields promising quality clusters compared to other ones produced by K-means algorithm.


▼ years have witnessed a growing awareness of new aspects of paraneoplastic processes in neurological diseases. The discovery of new subgroups of paraneoplastic encephalitis syndromes with remarkably good response to immune therapy has spawned renewed clinical and scientifi c interest. Knowledge of these subgroups and associated autoantibodies is of direct therapeutic consequence and thus of the utmost importance for clinicians. New scientifi c insights into these syndromes shed light on issues concerning their reversibility, initiation and on paraneoplastic processes in general. Recently published data from a large European registry off er new information on epidemiology. Furthermore, the increasing utility of monoclonal antibodies in neurology is likely to off er new therapeutic avenues for the future. Nevertheless, the abundance of new autoantibodies and syndromes leads to confusion and uncertainty. This review article summarises new and important well-established aspects of paraneoplastic neurological syndromes, their new classifi cation, pathophysiology and treatment.


Abstract An experimental Al–Cu–Li–Mg–Ag–Zr type alloy in the form of 13.7 mm thick plates was studied for its fusion characteristics using gas metal arc welding (GMAW) and pulsed gas metal arc welding (P-GMAW). High copper 2319 filler of 1.6 mm diameter was used. The burn-off characteristics of 2319 filler wire in GMAW and P-GMAW were experimentally determined, including the relation between pulse current and pulse duration for the desired one-drop detachment per pulse (ODPP) condition and feasible range of pulse parameters. The effect of welding parameters on bead geometry and shape relationships was investigated through beadon-plate experiments in the welding current range above the spray transition current. Reasonably good weld beads were obtained in P-GMAW at currents as low as 194 A and welding speeds of 45 cm min–1. P-GMAW yielded significantly higher weld penetration compared to GMAW.


The three mutually reinforcing components of masculine violence as formulated by Michael Kaufman are violence against women and children violence against other men and violence against oneself. The violence triad occurs in societies based on structures of domination and control. Acceptance of masculinity occurs during psychological development when the boy internalizes a series of social relations based on gender becoming the personification of these relations. Masculinity is precisely defined especially during adolescence when the pain and fear implied by repression of the feminine and passive side begin to become evident. Expressions of masculinity differ according to class nationality race religion and ethnicity. Masculine violence against women is the most common personalized form of violence in the lives of most adults and is the clearest expression of the relative power of the two sexes. Violence against other men is evident at all societal levels from fist fights to corporate competition to warfare. All men have experienced hitting and teasing but their resulting feelings of hostility are not always expressed and a network of clubs teams and organizations exists to provide refuges where men may feel secure. The absence of safe means of emotional expression and dialogue cause a wide array of emotions to be transferred into anger and hostility part of which the man may direct at himself in the form of feelings of guilt self-hatred or physical or psychological symptoms.


the aim of the study was to determine the effect of the amount of nitrogen dosed in supercritical state to polymer melt on structure and physical properties of large-scale molded pieces from polyamide pa6 gF30, obtained in the process of microcellular injection molding with gas dosage using MuCell® method. apart from the reduction of the density at a level of about 15 % for samples with the highest nitrogen content, the increase of the impact resistance of samples pa6 gF30 was observed. the other investigated mechanical properties were maintained at a good level.


In this paper, we consider the problems from the area of sublinear-time algorithms of edge sampling, edge counting, and triangle counting. Part of our contribution is that we consider three different settings, differing in the way in which one may access the neighborhood of a given vertex. In previous work, people have considered indexed neighbor access, with a query returning the i-th neighbor of a given vertex. Full neighborhood access model, which has a query that returns the entire neighborhood at a unit cost, has recently been considered in the applied community. Between these, we propose hash-ordered neighbor access, inspired by coordinated sampling, where we have a global fully random hash function, and can access neighbors in order of their hash values, paying a constant for each accessed neighbor. For edge sampling and counting, our new lower bounds are in the most powerful full neighborhood access model. We provide matching upper bounds in the weaker hash-ordered neighbor access model. Our new faster algorithms can be provably implemented efficiently on massive graphs in external memory and with the current APIs for, e.g., Twitter or Wikipedia. For triangle counting, we provide a separation: a better upper bound with full neighborhood access than the known lower bounds with indexed neighbor access. The technical core of our paper is our edge-sampling algorithm on which the other results depend. We now describe our results on the classic problems of edge and triangle counting. We give an algorithm that uses hash-ordered neighbor access to approximately count edges in time Õ(n/є √m + 1/є2) (compare to the state of the art without hash-ordered neighbor access of Õ(n/є2 √m) by Eden, Ron, and Seshadhri [ICALP 2017]). We present an Ω(n/є √m) lower bound for є ≥√m/n in the full neighborhood access model. This improves the lower bound of Ω(n/√є m) by Goldreich and Ron [Rand. Struct. Alg. 2008]) and it matches our new upper bound for є ≥ √m/n. We also show an algorithm that uses the more standard assumption of pair queries ("are the vertices u and v adjacent?"), with time complexity of Õ(n/є √m + 1/є4). This matches our lower bound for є ≥ m1/6/n1/3. Finally, we focus on triangle counting. For this, we use the full power of the full neighbor access. In the indexed neighbor model, an algorithm that makes Õ(n/є10/3 T1/3 + min(m,m3/2/є3 T)) queries for T being the number of triangles, is known and this is known to be the best possible up to the dependency on є (Eden, Levi, Ron, and Seshadhri [FOCS 2015]). We improve this significantly to Õ(min(n,n/є T1/3 + √n m/є2 √T)) full neighbor accesses, thus showing that the full neighbor access is fundamentally stronger for triangle counting than the weaker indexed neighbor model. We also give a lower bound, showing that this is the best possible with full neighborhood access, in terms of n,m,T.


The ultimate load and collapsing modes of steel frames under combined vertical and horizontal forces are investigated through finite element (FE) modelling and limit analysis. Consideration is given to a frequently overlooked problem which is the kinematics arising from the actual rotation of the plastic hinges under axial force and bending moment. This fact draws attention to the necessity of a careful assessment of the limit analysis approaches, a fact that might be seen as somewhat in line with the outcome from famous paradoxes, such as the one by Stüssi and Kollbrunner (1935), which can only be solved by making reference to both elastic and plastic deformations. As a result, it can be shown that in such a manner, it is possible to obtain a handy tool capable of competing with much more computationally expensive methodologies. The approach may be relevant to practising engineers dealing with code prescriptions and standardization committees.概要研究目的通过有限元分析和极限分析, 研究了在纵向和横向载荷下钢框架的最大负荷和坍塌模式, 并考虑了塑性铰链在轴向力和弯曲力矩的作用下在实际旋转时的运动学。研究方法在垂直和水平方向载荷共存的情况下, 基于轴向力和弯曲力矩的交互作用, 研究延性框架的极限载荷和坍塌模式对产生于塑性铰链的真实运动学的敏感性。 通过两个基本的案例和通过成功地评估非线性有限元分析和直接实施的极限分析步骤, 并利用 MATHEMATICA®, 揭示了其敏感性。重要结论在标准规程的框架下, 即使在最简单的案例中, 极限分析的主要结果也会考虑在坍塌时的运动学, 这与设计和加固的目的都是相关的。 如果没有对所有的结构元件的轴向力和弯曲力矩的交互作用进行合理的计算, 塑性铰链的定位计算可能得出不正确的坍塌机理和误导性的安全系数。 就具体方面而言, 本文清楚地表明, 在设计新的结构或者为现有结构进行加固时, 即使是使用看起来已经非常完备的经典步骤, 也必须非常小心。 本文的模型可以为处理规程设计的执业工程师和标准化委员会提供参考。


A method for describing and analysing an experiment involving the efflux time from a vessel isgiven. It follows a process modelling approach together with numerical solution and parameteridentification using a spreadsheet. The method produces a flexible model that can be applied to avariety of fluid mechanics problems and teaches a generic set of tools useful to practising engineers.


Reactions of adenosine nucleosides with halogen substituted acetaldehydes and malonaldehydes have been studied and pseudo first-order rate constants have been determined. All the reactions yield 1,N6-etheno adducts, and with malonaldehydes, in addition to this, 11-formyl-1,N6-etheno adducts are also formed. Particular attention has been paid to the formation of the formyletheno products. The results obtained suggest that the reactions of adenine base with halogenated acetaldehydes and malonaldehydes are basically similar. It also seems that in reactions of halomalonaldehydes with adenosine, the etheno and formyletheno products are formed through the same initial reaction pathway i. e. the attack of the 6-amino group of the adenine base at the carbonyl carbon atom of the aldehyde.


The invention relates to a household appliance 1 for care of laundry items, comprising a housing 2 and a movably arranged in the housing 2, tank 4, 5, and is connected to at least one damper 7, which is connected to the container 4, 5 and having at least a fastening device 8 is connected to the housing 2 and / or the tank 4, 5, wherein the fixing device 8 comprises an elastically deformable member 9, wherein the deformable member 9 in the axial direction between the damper 7 and the housing 2 and / or between the damper 7 and the container 4, 5 is arranged and the housing 2 and / or the container 4, 5 facing first elastically deformable Verformteil 10 and the damper 7 facing second elastically deformable Verformteil 11 has, which with a plurality of elastically deformable with the first Verformteil 10 connecting strips 12 of the deformable member 9 connected.


With the speedy development of manufacturing in our country,the demand to skilled workers especially high skilled workers is increasing rapidly.But the lack of skilled workers has become the bottleneck factor which will restrict our manufacturing's development and upgrade.The paper analyzes the main causes of the lack of skilled workers and thus gives the project of building the incentive mechanism of skilled workers.


Information workers and software developers are exposed to work fragmentation, an interleaving of activities and interruptions during their normal work day. Small-scale observational studies have shown that this can be detrimental to their work. In this paper, we perform a large-scale study of this phenomenon for the particular case of software developers performing software evolution tasks. Our study is based on several thousands interaction traces collected by Mylyn, for dozens of developers. We observe that work fragmentation is correlated to lower observed productivity at both the macro level (for entire sessions), and at the micro level (around markers of work fragmentation); further, longer activity switches seem to strengthen the effect. These observations are basis for subsequent studies investigating the phenomenon of work fragmentation.


students. From that sharing evolved the project later to be labeled, "Smiles Across the Miles." Two central concerns existed in both our middle schools: (1) As middle school educators, how do we help our students break down their self imposed wall of cultural/heritage/racial "isolationism" while, (2) at the same time, help them develop a positive self-image that utilizes their leadership skills in productive purposes and reachable goals. In brainstorming we considered Pen Pals, Video Pen Pals, School Newspaper and Yearbook Exchanges, VCR taping of each other's school functions and other activities. Finally the idea of a student leadership exchange emerged, along with the adoption of each other's building as sister schools. With these ideas in our heads, we departed from New Orleans confident that we could and would promote cultural understanding among 1,800 students. Back in our respective states, New Mexico and Michigan, the ideas developed in New Orleans were discussed with the building principals. Both sets of admini strators were positive about the project, but needed to see these ideas presented in a written grant-project format so that all parties involved could secure support from both central offices before gong out into the community to establish school-commu nity partnerships and support. Within one week of our return from


In winter of 1997, an archaeological discovery occurred on the outskirts of Jerusalem, holding great significance for our understanding of the earliest development of the Qur↩ānic traditions. Approximately halfway between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, just to the east of the main highway, a group of archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority engaged in a salvage operation unearthed a large octagonal church, which our late ancient sources identify as the church of the "Kathisma of the Theotokos," or the "Seat of the God-Bearer." As the present article will demonstrate, this church was originally associated with the Nativity of Christ, but eventually came to be linked with the commemoration of Mary's death and, more importantly, with certain events from the Holy Family's legendary flight into Egypt, as described in several early Christian apocrypha. The new church's connection with both Christ's Nativity and the flight into Egypt is particularly important, since it is (to my knowledge) the only place where these two early Christian traditions meet, outside of the Qur↩ānic account of Jesus' Nativity. There is a great deal more, however, than just this mere coincidence to suggest that traditions associated with this shrine influenced the development of early Islamic tradition. The church of the Kathisma was converted into a mosque in the early eighth century, and its mosaics indicate that the recycled sacred space probably continued to commemorate the Nativity of Jesus, as the Christian shrine had before the Arab conquests. Moreover, the significance of this shrine in early Islam is underscored by the important ar-


A theory is developed for the shape of the ferromagnetic resonance line of polycrystalline ferrites with hexagonal crystal structure. The theory is applicable if the anisotropy field is much larger then the saturation magnetization. It predicts the occurrence of several absorption peaks whose locations and intensities depend on the magnitudes of the various anisotropy constants. For intermediate values of the anisotropy constants two absorption peaks should occur on the low‐field side of ω/γ if K1 0. Experimental results on various hexagonal compounds are in good qualitative agreement with the theory.


We read with great interest the article by MoctezumaVelazquez et al., which extensively discussed the major ongoing controversy with nonselective beta-blockers (NSBBs). Currently, the dosing of NSBBs (namely, propranolol and nadolol) is based on the titration of heart rate (HR). The basis for this titration strategy comes from the original NSBB trials, which have no scientific validation. Patients with ascites usually have high resting HR, and higher doses of NSBBs might be necessary to achieve a desired HR target. It can cause detrimental effects on already impaired systemic hemodynamics. Moreover, only a third to a half of the patients achieve a hemodynamic response with NSBBs. Hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) measurement is the only method to assess the response, and dosing based on such an invasive procedure is impractical. Hence, there is an urgent need for HVPG measurement and HR titration–independent strategies for treatment with NSBBs. Several potential strategies are as follows:


By analyzing the short circuit transformation, the forceacting on droplets and the control theory of the STT, a mathematical modeland a simulation model of the STT dynamic process were established. Itanalyzes systemically the influence of wire feed speed, melting rate andthe variations of droplet on arc length, and founds its mathematical model.This paper also compares the influences of different control mode of thecurrent on the dynamic characteristic of the welding system in the STT pe-riods. Different simulation models were taken into experiment, the simula-ted results corresponds with the experiment results, which proved the SIM-ULINK models to be correct. The results show that output control modecan reduce the current more rapidly to meet the need of STF control sys-tem than invert-loop control mode.


Of late the thickly populated North Indian district of Madhu bani in the State of Bihar has experienced ferments in the life of peasants. The seeds of political awakening among small peasants, sharecroppers and landless agricultural workers were sown by the communist Party of India (CPI) in the late 'forties and have now burgeoned into a vociferous section resisting the exploitative char acter of the landowning class. Even the former Zamindars, influen tial Muhanths and powerful landowners admit that there is a fast growing consciousness among their erstwhde dependents who had once been mute and inarticulate and who meekly bore with repres sion. The Madhubani peasant agitation is primarily a struggle of sharecroppers for their rightful cla;ms. A close scrutiny of the back ground and nature of the struggle of bataidars between 1967-75 launched by the CPI is intended here. The emphasis will be chiefly on the agrarian setting of the region, the programmes and objectives of the struggle, the organisation aimed at the realisation of these goals and the shaping influences of the movement. The analysis will be concluded with some general observafions on theoretical and methodological issues.


Although there are a growing number of programs working to reduce stigma few of these programs have been evaluated particularly at the community level. Documentation and evaluation of these pioneering efforts is essential so that successful program elements can be replicated and scaled up. To help fill this gap ICRW the Muhimbili University College of the Health Sciences (MUCHS) the Horizons Program of Population Council and Family Health International (FHI) conducted an evaluation of a community-based effort to reduce stigma in a peri-urban community in Tanzania. Results: People recognize stigma. Both fear and value drivers of stigma remain high. Fear-driven stigma is hard to shift despite high knowledge of HIV. Individuals exposed to KPE activities reported less stigmatizing attitudes. Community members observed more instances of discrimination / enacted stigma. Balozi leaders are a promising entry point for intervention. KPE's program did not reduce stigma community wide. The stigma indicators performed solidly over time. (Excerpts)


We have investigated the Vanadium- (V) substituted Ni–Zn–Co ferrites where the samples are prepared using the solid-state reaction technique. The impact of V5+ substitution on the structural, magnetic, dielectric and electrical properties of Ni–Zn–Co ferrites has been studied. The XRD analysis confirms the formation of a single-phase cubic spinel structure. The lattice constants have been calculated both theoretically and experimentally along with other structural parameters such as bulk density, x-ray density and porosity. The FESEM images are studied for analyzing the surface morphology. FTIR measurement confirms spinel structure formation. The saturation magnetization (M s), coercive field (H c) and Bohr magnet on (μ B) are calculated from the obtained M-H loops. The temperature-dependent permeability is studied to obtain the Curie temperature. The frequency and the composition dependence of permeability are also analyzed. Frequency dependent dielectric behavior and ac resistivity are also investigated. An inverse relationship is observed between the composition dependent dielectric constant and ac resistivity. The obtained results such as the electrical resistivity, dielectric constants and magnetic properties suggest the appropriateness of the studied ferrites in microwave device applications.


Spraying dilute hydrogen peroxide onto blood or clots that obscure gastroduodenal bleeding sites has been shown to improve visualization of underlying lesions during endoscopy by hydrolyzing hemoglobin and rendering it translucent (Gastrointest Endosc 1999; 49:518). To further assess the use of hydrogen peroxide for this purpose, investigators conducted a single-center prospective study involving 81 patients with acute nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding who …


In a propylene polymerization loop reactor,polymerization rate,fluid transport,and cost of post-treatment after polymeric process and polymer properties may be affected by polymer particle size distribution,especially when a co-polymerization technology including olefin polymerization fluidized-bed reactor is followed.In order to investigate the effects of operation parameters and kinetics parameters on the polypropylene particle size distribution in the loop reactor,a steady-state particle size distribution model was developed,in which the flow type in the loop reactor,polypropylene particle dynamics and the particle growth were taken synthetically into account based on the mass balance and solid population balance.The result showed that for uniform size catalyst feed,by increasing either initial catalyst size or the reaction temperature of the main polymeric reactor,the polypropylene particle size distribution in loop reactors became boarder and shifted to larger size,in comparison with the reaction temperature,the effect of catalyst particle size was obvious.The effect of propylene feed rate on polypropylene particle size distribution was much smaller.It's also shown that the ratio of catalyst masses with different sizes in the case of multi-size catalyst feed strongly affected not only the average polypropylene particle size,but also the particle size distribution in the loop reactor.Bimodal polypropylene particle size distribution can be obtained by using a catalyst feed with a distinct particle size distribution.


Abstract : This report contains the testing and test results performed on the 30mm cartridges. Packed 10 strips/metal container, 11 cartridges/strip (110 cartridges total). This report contains the testing and test results performed on the 30mm cartridge. The XM592 container (PN 10542565) will pack nine different types of 30 mm cartridges in accordance with drawing no. 12902718. Since all nine types are packed identically and have the same weight, the inert 30mm cartridge was used for the Performance Oriented Packaging certification. Tests were performed in accordance with Performance Oriented Packaging test regulations.


The clinicopathological manifestation of mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the esophagus are reported in two cases. Barium swallow and endoscopy revealed infiltrating and constricting appearances. The tumors were grossly indurated, with or without ulceration. Histologically, the tumors were composed of a mixture of glandular cells which contained signet ring cells and squamous cells. In two cases, the tumor cells invaded into the adventitia, with lymph node metastasis. Two patients died of wide-spread metastasis within 1 year after operation. Our results and previous reports suggest that mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the esophagus is extremely aggressive and has a poor prognosis.


In this paper, the properties of coincidence points of mappings acting between $(q_1,q_2)$-quasimetric spaces are studied. For a pair of mappings, we obtain estimates for the distance from a point to the coincidence points set and intersection of the respective graphs of the mappings. In addition, the stability of coincidence points is studied. A generalization of Lim's lemma is obtained.


An accounting and scenario-based modeling platform called the Long-range Energy Alternative Planning System (LEAP2000, recently updated as LEAP2005) is used to construct a multi-sectoral model of the energy system of the ROK. The R0K2005 model simulates the ROK's energy system for each year between 2002 and 2017. Each of the scenarios begins in the year 2001 and projects energy paths under assumptions used in the different "scenarios" prepared to model different policy options. The GHG emissions from energy use in the ROK's energy system were calculated using "Tier 1" average emissions factors, according to Revised lPee Guidelines for National GHG Inventories. The Technology and Environmental Database (TED), which is a part of LEAP2000 (and LEAP2005), allows each technology within the demand and transformation sectors to be directly linked to emissions factors in TED, with individual links to [pee Tier 1 factors chosen by the model user based on the sector concerned and the fuel type of the technology to which the emission factor is assigned. Total greenhouse gas emissions were calculated in terms of global warming potential (GWP) in CO2 equivalent units.


The invention concerns an intraocular implant wherein in the connecting zone (4), the haptic part (3) connected to the optics (2) is located on the optics (2) edge. The optics (2) consists of a flexible lens, capable of being folded or rolled when the implant (1) is being inserted in the anterior chamber. In the connecting zone (4), the connection between the optics (2) and the haptic part (3) is rigid.


Films of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) have been sulfonated by solid–gas phase reaction using gaseous sulfur trioxide (SO3) of different concentrations in nitrogen. The effect of concentration of SO3 in an SO3 + N2 gas mixture and time of sulfonation on solvent and gas barrier properties of sulfonated HDPE films was studied by determining toluene and oxygen permeability of HDPE films sulfonated with different concentrations of SO3 for different times. The color developed in sulfonated HDPE films during sulfonation could be bleached by aqueous sodium hypochloride solution. The effect of sodium hypochloride solution treatment on oxygen permeability of sulfonated HDPE films was also studied. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Most quasars with extended radio structures have the classical linear double structure (Class II) which is also characteristic of the most luminous radio galaxies. A very small fraction of quasars do, however, show deviations from the classical double structure which are similar to the distortions observed in some low luminosity radio galaxies, e.g., bent double sources. Among radio galaxies, structural distortions seem to be associated with membership in a cluster of galaxies. Indeed, Scott and Hintzen, 1978, have suggested that such distortions might be indicators of cluster membership for quasars as well. To test this hypothesis and examine the physics of distorted quasars, we have mapped the quasars 3C 270.1 and 3C 275.1 in both I and P using the VLA A-Array at 20 cm and 6 cm. Our high resolution (0.1 arc sec at 6 cm) and high dynamic range (200:1) observations demonstrate that the displaced components reported previously for these sources are indeed connected with the quasars themselves and, therefore, the distortions are not simply projection effects. We also report the discovery of a very narrow northwesterly pointing jet in the quasar 3C 275.1.


Four general topics are discussed in this article. The first section uses data fromthe Rochester Youth Development Study to explore the development of antisocial careers across the life course. The second section presents interactional theory's explanation of offending. The theory recognizes that antisocial careers can begin at any point, from childhood through adulthood, and identifies causal influences associated with varying ages of onset. It then offers an explanation for changing patterns of offending. The third section presents an intergenerational extension of the theory, focusing specifically on the major pathways that mediate the impact of a parent's own adolescent antisocial behavior on the chances that his or her children will also show antisocial behavior. The final section tests key parts of this intergenerational theory using data from the Rochester Intergenerational Study. Adolescent antisocial behavior has indirect effects on a child's early delinquency, mediated by the disruption it causes to the parent's development and his or her subsequent style of parenting.


Listening comprehension has been acknowledged to comprise both a difficult and a neglected language skill in the school classroom. The aim of the present research has been to investigate the improvement of the listening comprehension of EFL learners and especially, the listening comprehension of B2 level Greek candidates preparing for various language proficiency exams via the instruction of listening comprehension strategies. Therefore, the current study has set to examine the effect of explicit listening strategy instruction on EFL learners' performance in listening tests. In order for such an investigation to be performed two listening strategy training programmes (i.e. pilot and main study) were designed and implemented with actual candidates for the most popular B2 level language proficiency exams (e.g. ECCE, FCE, PTE, KPG) available in the Greek market. The present research focused on B2 level language proficiency exams which have proven to gather the greatest bulk of candidature and any relevant findings would be of great assistance to any interested party. The investigation of listeners' strategy use and selection involved mainly the distribution of relevant questionnaires whereas, a detailed analysis of the listening tasks involved in the EFL learners' exam preparation material was performed based on automatized programmes such as Praat, Coh-Metrix, Web Vocabprofile etc. along with specific theoretical models for question and response classification (e.g. Shohamy & Inbar, 1991; Bachman, 1990). The current study has revealed a positive relationship between explicit strategy instruction and listening performance regardless of EFL learners' target language proficiency exams, age, proficiency etc. Moreover, the present research has highlighted the significance of task characteristics in EFL learners' strategy use by indicating that the same candidates apart from some strategies that were proven to be common regardless of the exam at hand, opted for different listening comprehension strategies in order to complete different listening tests. As a result, one of the main contributions of the study is a suggested inventory of listening comprehension strategies that has comprised the outcome of all the relevant findings of the listening strategy training programmes. This inventory which has included both general and task specific listening comprehension strategies could serve as a substantial exam preparation tool for EFL test takers and instructors who wish to improve listening comprehension. The current research has also emphasized the role of task characteristics in candidates' strategy instruction. Therefore, another contribution of the current research is the provision of a strategy instruction framework for the implementation of listening strategy training programmes. In addition, the aforementioned task analysis has revealed apart from the different requirements of the listening comprehension modules of the language proficiency exams under investigation, specific task characteristics which should be taken into serious consideration by EFL instructors along with both test designers and item writers. Finally, the present study has discussed issues such as the current practice of listening comprehension at school and has pointed out the need for the incorporation of strategies in the instruction of listening comprehension in the future.


The effect of quantum fluctuations in magnetic materials has been a subject of an increasing number of investigations. This may be related, on the one hand, to the problem of magnetism in high‐temperature superconductivity, and on the other hand, to artificial materials such as magnetic superlattices and thin films. In this report, we are interested to the case of the triangular antiferromagnet with quantum Heisenberg spins of magnitude 1/2 interacting with each other via nearest‐neighbor (nn) and next‐nearest‐neighbor (nnn) bonds. The system with only nn, although simple, has been widely studied because it possesses several interesting properties due to the frustration, in particular the classical ground‐state (GS) spin configuration is noncolinear. Two questions that have been widely studied are the energy and the value of local magnetization in the GS. Several methods have been tried: exact diagonalization of small clusters, variational wave functions, and Holstein‐Primakoff technique, among others. Th...


Background and Purpose— Atherosclerosis is a systemic inflammatory disease. We demonstrated previously that high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) is associated with short-term progression of carotid atherosclerosis. We now investigated whether baseline levels of hs-CRP predict midterm clinical outcome in these patients. Methods— We prospectively studied 1065 of 1268 consecutive patients who were initially asymptomatic with respect to carotid artery disease and were investigated with serial carotid ultrasound examinations at baseline and after a 6- to 9-month interval. Patients were followed-up clinically for the occurrence of cardiovascular events, a composite of myocardial infarction, percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass graft, stroke, and death. Results— We recorded progression of carotid stenosis in 93 patients (9%) after 6 to 9 months, and 381 cardiovascular events in 337 patients (27%) during a median of 3 years of clinical follow-up (interquartile range, 2.5 to 3.5 years...


(1) at least 90 mole percent terephthalic acid residues, naphthalenedicarboxylic acid residues or diacid residues comprising these combinations; diols containing and (2) at least 90 mole percent 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol residues comprising the residues, the total comprises 100 mole percent diacid residues and a total of 100 mole% diol residues, a biaxially oriented polyester film produced from a polyester; film of the polyester has the formula ( In actual film temperature of Tm [Tm is the melting point of the polyester as measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)], the film being heat set is disclosed while maintaining the dimensions of the stretched film.


In this brief, we propose a new trench power MOSFET with strained-Si channel that provides lower on-resistance than the conventional trench MOSFET. Using a 20% Ge mole fraction in the Si1- Gex body with a compositionally graded Si1 - xGex buffer in the drift region enables us to create strain in the channel along with graded strain in the accumulation region. As a result, the proposed structure exhibits 40% enhancement in current drivability,28% reduction in the on-resistance, and 72% improvement in peak transconductance at the cost of only 12% reduction in the breakdown voltage when compared to the conventional trench-gate MOSFET. Furthermore, the graded strained accumulation region supports the confinement of carriers near the trench sidewalls, improving the field distribution in the mesa structure useful for a better damage immunity during inductive switching.


1074-7427/$ see front matter 2013 Elsevier Inc. A http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nlm.2013.02.003 ⇑ Corresponding author. Address: School of Biolog Box 36716-41167, Damghan, Iran. Fax: +98 5247146. E-mail addresses: email@example.com (K. Abrari), (A. Rashidy-Pour). 1 Co-corresponding author. Address: Department an ogy, School of Medicine, Semnan University of Medic 38111, Semnan, Iran. Although no single widely accepted animal model of PTSD has been established to date, the single prolonged stress (SPS) animal model has been partially validated as a model for PTSD. SPS rats mimic the pathophysiological abnormalities and behavioral characteristics of PTSD, such as enhanced fear response to the traumatic cue (conditioned fear response) and hyper arousal (the sensitized fear response). In the present study we are looking at PTSD-like symptoms in rats. We examined whether Systemic administrations of b-estradiol could alleviate PTSD-like symptoms that are induced by SPS model. In this study, electric foot shocks (two 4s, 1 mA with an interval of 30 s) were given to Adult ovariectomized rats 1 day after SPS procedures. Additionally, b-estradiol (45, 90, and 180 lg/kg) or sesame oil (vehicle) were injected immediately after foot shock and before Tests 2 and 3. After different incubation times, one (Test 1), two (Test 2), and three (Test 3) weeks later, the conditioned or sensitized fear responses were measured (Percent of freezing during test) by re-exposing the stressed rats to the shock chamber or a neutral tone in a novel environment. Three other groups were shock, control and sham groups. Ovariectomized rats of Shock group received shocks conducted through the procedure described below on. Animals in control (Ovariectomized rats) and Sham groups (Only submitted to surgery without removal of the ovaries), neither were exposed to the SPS procedure nor received an electrical shock. Also, these three groups were tested for fear responses three times. Findings indicated that rats who received electric shock the day after SPS exhibited both enhanced conditioned and sensitized fear responses in comparison to the control group. b-estradiol in 45 lg/kg dose could reduce both types of fear responses. b-estradiol exert an inhibitory influence on contextual fear conditioning (hippocampal-dependent) and on sensitized fear conditioning (amygdala-dependent). Single injection of this dose is enough for CFR alleviation but at least twice injections are necessary to reduce sensitized fear response. Overall our data demonstrate that multiple injections of b-estradiol, dose dependently, could alleviate both SPS induced conditioned and sensitized fear responses, as signs of PTSD. 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


heating module for heating the solid material, such as beads (B) at a given temperature, characterized in that it comprises: - a heating trough (M1) comprising a crucible (M11) for receiving the material heat, and a burner (M13) for heating the crucible (M11) and the material to be heated, - a cap (M2) removably mounted on the heating trough (M1) for closing the crucible (M11).


Background/Purpose: Acute pancreatitis (AP) progresses with pathological changes. Therefore, the prognosis of the disease can be quite variable. In severe pancreatitis, local or systemic complications with high mortality may occur. Treatment of patients after diagnosis of AP depends on early assessment of disease severity. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of predicting pancreatitis severity and prognosis by comparing computerized tomography (CT) scan findings with Ranson criteria. Methods: Patients aged 18 years and over who applied to our hospital with the diagnosis of AP between January 2018 and December 2020 were included in the study. We retrospectively analyzed 190 patients in order to determine the severity and prognosis of pancreatitis by comparing CT scan findings and Ranson criteria. Demographic, clinical, radiological and laboratory data of the patients at the time of admission were retrospectively analyzed. In laboratory data, hematocrit (HTC) decrease, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) increase, serum calcium (Ca) level, partial arterial oxygen pressure (PaO2), base deficit and fluid sequestration were evaluated. On CT findings, pancreatic expansion, pancreatic density, peripancreatic fluid collection, intra-abdominal ascites, peripancreatic fatty tissue heterogeneity, presence of peripancreatic lymph nodes


Jean Rhys's Voyage in the Dark was one of her early novels; published in 1934 to little acclaim, it was only really resurrected when she underwent her curious renaissance in the later 1960s. Read now, it is I think – at least for me – a terrifying book. It tells, I suppose one might say, the story of Anna: lacking parents, in one sense or another, she is brought to England from the Caribbean by her aunt Hester, who effectively abandons her. She drifts from the life of a chorus girl into semi-prostitution, whatever that might mean, and becomes pregnant – she has no idea who the father might be. She undergoes an agonising abortion, whereupon the novel abruptly ends with Anna dreaming of beginning life all over again. To say that is to suggest that we end our reading of the text on a note of redemption, but this is in fact the opposite of the case. Anna's dream of rebirth is exactly that, a dream: the reader feels at no point that such a rebirth could actually be possible; what has been done has been done and cannot be unravelled. Besides, we have no compelling reason to believe anything Anna says: she spends most of her time, as she and various other characters in the novel say, half-asleep; she is permanently exhausted and spends weeks on end in bed, retreating from the always 'cold' world of London and England. It is not that she is a victim: to suppose such would be far too simple. Rhys has an advanced and extraordinary insight into notions of collusion, which I need to try to explain.


The Orthogonal Matching Pursuit (OMP) algorithm has been intensively applied for its simple structure and reconstruction efficiency. However, the reconstruction accuracy of OMP algorithm still needs to be improved. Though the OMP-based algorithms, LAOMP algorithm and KOMP algorithm proposed in recent years have significantly improved reconstruction performance while it can lead to fairly high computational complexity. In this paper, we propose an improved method for OMP-based algorithms using fusing strategy and demonstrate its superiority. We use the double intersection method to fuse the estimated support set from algorithms with low computational complexity to get an atomic set with high accuracy. This is used as an initial support set to improve the LAOMP algorithm and KOMP algorithm. According to the simulation results, compared with the original algorithms, the reconstruction accuracy of the improved algorithms increases to some extent while the reconstruction time sharply decreases and the performance is more remarkable as the computational amount of the original algorithms increases.


New methods are proposed to localize multiple current dipoles from spatio-temporal biomagnetic data obtained with SQUID magnetometers. The proposed methods are based on subspace fitting (SF) and weighted subspace fitting (WSF) frameworks that have been developed originally in the field of array signal processing. When time series from multiple dipoles are strongly correlated or multiple dipoles are closely spaced, these methods outperform the multiple signal classification (MUSIC) proposed by Mosher et al. [1]. Results are presented using these methods for simulated data and experimental magnetocardiogram data. The WSF criterion produced significantly better results compared with the MUSIC and the SF criteria.


Network-based English teaching is a new important educational model in college English teaching.It's the combination of network and multi-media and a method of multi-media teaching to communicate through network.This paper explores network-based English teaching form the prospective of constructivism,specially emphasizes the importance of network-based English teaching designing and put forward some principles for it.


The business environment in modern markets has changed dramatically. The constantly changing environment affects the overall efficiency and competitiveness of businesses. The way of pursuing business nowadays depends heavily on utilising new strategies, creativity, innovations and technologies. This paper is purposively designed to study the linkages between multisensory marketing factors, including sight, sound, taste, smell and touch experiences on non-financial performance in the foodservice sector. In assessing the linkages, the study used customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, service quality, repeat purchase and positive word-of-mouth as dependent variables to assess non-financial performance derived from organisational factors. A quantitative approach was the major method used and a self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted with a sample size of 482 consumers who patronised restaurant services across the Kumasi Metropolis in Ghana. Hypotheses were tested through statistical tools using SPSS and Analysis of Moment of Structures (AMOS 23.0). Factor analysis was conducted using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) supported by maximum likelihood estimation to test the proposed hypotheses from the data collected for the study. The results of the test demonstrated that all five multi-sensory marketing factors influenced non-economic performance. The study provides support for the significance of multi-sensory marketing to enhance non-financial performance of firms in the foodservice sector. The proposed research framework can be of practical value to firms as practitioners can benefit from the outcomes of the study to achieve a competitive advantage. It is proposed that the study should be replicated in different contexts to find the similarity of results along with new findings and perspectives. How to cite this paper: Isaac, N., Keelson, S.A. and Yiadom, E.B. (2023) The Effect of Multi-Sensory Marketing on Non-Economic Performance of Ghana's Restaurants. Open Access Library Journal, 10: e9655. https://doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1109655 Received: December 5, 2022 Accepted: June 13, 2023 Published: June 16, 2023 Copyright © 2023 by author(s) and Open Access Library Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access


Introduction : The pituitary gland is an endocrine gland varying in size by gender and age group and based on the diseases affecting the individual. Knowing the normal size of a pituitary gland is therefore crucial in the diagnosis and prognosis of diseases of the gland. The present study was conducted to measure the normal height and anteroposterior diameter of the pituitary gland in men and women aged 15 to 40 in Kerman. The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 119 subjects admitted to Fatemeh Zahra Imaging Center in Kerman selected through non-probability convenience sampling and who had no history of diseases of the sellar and parasellar region, pituitary gland disorders (especially those requiring surgery) or taking medications affecting corticosteroid or prolactin levels and who were not pregnant or lactating. The height and anteroposterior diameter of participants' pituitary gland was measured by a mid-sagittal T1 sequence MRI. The data obtained were analyzed in SPSS-19 using the ANOVA and the independent t- test. Results: group showed that the height of the gland decreases in women by the increase in age and that its mean height is significantly higher in the 15-20 age group (p=0.005) compared to in the other age groups. There were no statistically significant differences in the height of the pituitary gland in men by age group (P= 0.37). The mean anteroposterior diameter was 9.96±1.44 mm in the female subjects and 10.02±1.18 mm in the male subjects, showing no statistically significant differences (P=0.8). The surface of the pituitary gland was flat in more than half of the cases, while it was concave or convex in the other cases. Conclusion: These measurements were performed on a healthy sample of the Iranian population from different age groups and can therefore be used as a point of reference for the evaluation of the pituitary gland in patients.


Segmental construction of prestressed concrete (PSC) girder bridges has, in recent years, been widely used in many countries. In these segmentally built PSC bridges, many construction joints exist, requiring the coupling of tendons to introduce continuous prestress through the superstructure of bridges. The aim of this paper was to closely examine the complex stress distributions around tendon coupling joints in PSC girders. A comprehensive experimental program was set up, and a series of test members were studied to identify the effects of tendon coupling. Results show that longitudinal and transverse stress distributions of PSC girders with tendon couplers are much different from those not having tendon couplers. Approximate amounts of reinforcement are required around coupled joints to avoid serious cracking. This fact is not reflected in current design codes and must be considered for safer and more reliable PSC bridge girder design.


Extracellular vesicles (EVs) including apoptotic bodies (ABs), microvesicles (MVs), exosomes (EXOs) and cell derived artificial nanovesicles (NVs) are important mediators of cell-to-cell communication, in part by transferring bioactive molecules such as DNA, mRNA, miRNA, siRNA, proteins, and lipids. These EVs are released by many cell types, including melanoma cells, and are found in many body fluids. EVs derived from various cell types differ in their molecular composition making them as important diagnostic and prognostic markers. The overall aim of this thesis was to use small-RNA sequencing techniques to define the molecular RNA cargo in the EV subsets described above as well as to examine the functional relevance of the EV-associated miRNA and siRNA on recipient cells. Characterization of EVs showed distinct RNA profiles in ABs, MVs, and EXOs, and there were significantly greater amounts of total RNA in EXOs compared to ABs and MVs. Small RNA sequencing revealed distinct repertoires of noncoding RNAs in the EV subsets. EXOs contained unique sets of miRNAs, which were shown to be differentially expressed in melanoma tumors compared with benign naevi in previously published studies, thus making them potentially useful as carriers of therapeutic agents. This study demonstrates that distinct sets of RNA molecules are present in subsets of EVs, and this provides unique insights into the contribution of extracellular RNA in cancer development and progression. The BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib inhibited the growth of in vitro melanoma cell cultures, and EVs isolated from the treated cells had significantly higher RNA and protein contents compared to EVs from non-treated cells. Small RNA sequencing revealed distinct non-coding RNA species with significant alterations in miRNA between treated and non-treated cell-derived EVs. Moreover, treated cells and the EVs derived from them showed significant upregulation of miR-211 in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, when vemurafenib-treated cell-derived EXOs were transferred to BRAF cells, KCNMA1 and IGF2R, genes that are known to play roles in tumor progression, were down-regulated and this resulted in growth attenuation. Overall, miR-211 could be used as a biomarker of response in patients diagnosed with BRAF-mutant melanoma. This study also provides the framework for further investigations into the function of miR-211 in melanoma cells and EVs as well as in cells that might receive miRNA from EVs. Artificial EXO-mimetic NVs were developed by serial extrusion, and they showed similar characteristics as EXOs. Exogenous loading of GFP-siRNA in NVs led to down-regulation of GFP in endothelial cells. Cell-derived NVs carrying endogenously expressed Myc-siRNA showed significant down-regulation of human cMyc both transcriptionally as well as translationally in lymphoma cells. These NVs were efficiently loaded with siRNA and were taken up by recipient cells resulting in the reduction of target gene expression. In conclusion, this study suggests that EXO-mimetic NVs can be a platform for delivering siRNA to cells. Taken together, EVs have significant therapeutic potential. EVs have emerged as a novel and functionally important vehicle of cell-cell communication that can mediate multiple biological effects. In addition, these vesicles might provide unique signatures that can be used as biomarkers of response to drug treatment.


In this article, Joaquin Garcia Roca answers some questions about his latest book, Jovenes , Universidad y compromiso social: una experiencia de inserc ion comunitaria . In this book a project of community insertion with roots in the university community is narrated, which began in 1994. The goal of the project was to try that the students knew a reality that a priori was strange and hidden to them. Following that experience guide your own life.


Since the 1990s, persistent efforts have been made to advance computer technology, and using "open system" idea to integrate large scale computer systems has become the develepment trend. With the development of technology, the challenge of traditional open system is facing the severe challenges and new standard and technology are needed to realize high intelligent collaboration and mobility in the open system. Based on the reason that a perfect open system depends on the implementation of interoperability, a new mechanism and the prospect of the next generation open system are discussed interoperability as research object and using mobile agent as research tool.\;


The bis(olefin) complex [C5Me5Co(C2H3SiMe3)2] (6) reacts with pyridine at 22 °C to give the pyridine olefin complex [C5Me5Co(C2H3SiMe3)(C5H5N)] (7). The addition of excess pyridine does not result in the formation of a bis(pyridine) adduct. Thermolysis of solutions of 7 in benzene-d6 results in catalytic H/D exchange which incorporates deuterium from the solvent into coordinated olefin. Pyridine dissociation generates a 16-electron intermediate which is formulated as the reactive species. At long times deuteration of the coordinated pyridine is also observed via shuttling of deuterium from the solvent to the olefin ligand and then to the pyridine. The reaction of 6 with pyridine-d5 results in the analogue 7-d5. Thermolysis of 7-d5 shows preference for H/D exchange at the ortho positions of coordinated pyridine, which has been explained by the formation of η2-coordinated intermediates. Reaction of 4-phenylpyridine with 6 yields the analogous pyridine adduct [C5Me5Co(C2H3SiMe3)(4-C6H5-C5H4N)] (12), which wa...


The alkali-tolerant xylanase gene of Bacillus pumilus A-30 was cloned by PCR. The positive clones were screened on the selected LB agar plates supplemented with 0.2% oat spelt xylan by Congo red staining method. The recombinant plasmid from one positive clone was used for further characterization and DNA sequencing. In Eschericia coli, the xylanase gene could be expressed by the recombinant plasmid and the activities in extracellular, intracellular and periplasmic fractions were 0.159 IU mL -1, 0.322 IU mL -1 and 0.007 IUmL -1 respectively. The xylanase had optimal activity at pH 7.0, and retained more than 60% of the activity even at pH 9.0. Fig 4, Ref 14


In this paper, a self-routing permutation network based on a binary radix sorting network has been proposed. It has O(log/sup 2/ n) propagation delay and O(n log/sup 2/ n) hardware complexity with bit-parallel input. The hardware complexity can be reduced to O(n log n) with bit-serial input. The binary radix sorting network is recursively constructed by log n stages of bit sorting networks. The bit sorting network is then constructed by a proposed self-routing reverse banyan network. It has O(log n) propagation delay and O(n log n) hardware complexity. The proposed reverse banyan network has been fully verified by Verilog Hardware Description Language in logical level. The VLSI design of its switching elements is simple and regular.


The city of Shijiazhuang has solved the problem of the "last kilometer" of the public transport. However, the public has insufficient awareness of the use of bicycles. To improve the utilization rate of Shijiazhuang bike sharing and in a questionnaire, this paper analyzes the present situation of the application of bicycle Shijiazhuang sharing, using statistical analysis and using SPSS software concrete study of the main reasons of the lack of bike sharing utilization and accordingly put forward to step up investment in a Shared bicycle parking bays distribution carries on the reasonable planning advice. At the same time, simplify the use of bike sharing way, under the capital safety guarantee of the user, make the bike sharing to effectively improve the utilization rate of situation. Introduction With the rapid development of economy in our country, the rapid increase of urban population, which can lead to traffic jams and pollution of the environment problem increasingly serious, and as a heavy pollution in Shijiazhuang city is facing these problems particularly. Public transportation development is to solve urban traffic problem is simple and effective way. Shared bike travel not only environmental protection low carbon, and meet the needs of residents travel "the last kilometer", and with the country's emphasis on environmental protection, share the development of the bicycle industry attention will increase. At the beginning of January 2017, the bike sharing was officially launched in Shijiazhuang. More than half a year later, the bike sharing was developing rapidly in Shijiazhuang, and gradually affected the way of traveling of Shijiazhuang residents. In the backdrop of the environmental protection, the national environmental policy, therefore, "bike sharing" arises at the historic moment, and accompanied by Shijiazhuang underground opening. Analysis of the Current Situation of Cycling Application in Shijiazhuang The Disorderly Stop is Obvious In the present economic development of "sharing economy" become a new breakthrough, bike sharing has become a new trend of urban development, along with the continuous development of bike sharing and an increase in the number of people using the bike sharing also is in rapid growth, questionnaire showed that 73% of people think disorderly parking place is a bike sharing, In this context, the bike sharing disorderly parking place not only affects the city of shijiazhuang, also easy to cause chaos, increase traffic pressure. The Vacancy Rate Increases With all the bike sharing competition between enterprises and companies to share the bicycle last on the "mode", lead to serious beyond market just need to input the number of demand, cause serious waste of resources. Shijiazhuang in 2017 invested more than 30 Shared bicycle. With bike sharing number increasing, the capital of the company will be more and more heavy burden, recover the cost will be more serious, at the same time, also lead to sharing a bike the vacancy rate is higher and higher, the problem of insufficient bike sharing utilization will be more and more prominent. The Cost of Bike Sharing Is Too High Bike sharing as a new service, money is a key issue, But the deposit as an important point of profit


Abstract: Some studies show that multimedia can improve knowledge. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of knowledge about HIV/AIDS through multimedia and lecture methods plus. The study design was quasi-experimental, while the sampling method with purposive sampling. The total sample of 50 respondents from the Ministry of Health polytechnic student of midwifery Manado consisting of 2 groups: a multimedia learning with 25 respondents and group learning with lectures plus 25 respondents. Data analysis was performed using the t test.
The results showed that the method of multimedia experience average increase in knowledge about HIV/AIDS was 7.04 with SD 3.38, while lectures plus increased an average of 3.48 with SD 1.82. Mean difference between both methods was of 3.56 with 95% CI (2.01 to 5.10) and p = 0.00 (α <0,05). Conclusion that there is an increase in knowledge through education with multimedia and lecture method but more effective methods of multimedia to enhance the students' knowledge of HIV/AIDS.

Keywords: Knowledge, Multimedia, HIV/AIDS


We study properties of geodesic foliations on the flat, n-dimensional torus. Using the isomorphism of the Hodge star, we obtain some facts concerning compact totally geodesic surfaces (which are the leaves of geodesic foliations). We compute the p-module of a geodesic foliation. On the basis of these results, we derive a kind of reciprocity formula for the product of modules of two orthogonal foliations. We relate this product with the number of intersections of their leaves. We also obtain a formula for a product of modules of a finite number of geodesic foliations.


Measures of interpersonal relations of non‐epileptic patients to epileptic were studied in search of answers to two questions: what is the initial attitude of non‐epileptic patients to epileptic patients; and, do any changes in attitude occur during time spent together in hospital? In order to study these personal relations, a formal analysis of preferences was carried out. Twenty‐two non‐epileptic patients admitted to the Neurology and Epileptology Department, Medical Centre for Postgraduate Education, Warsaw were studied. Subjects were asked to rank‐order (from 1 to 9 points) suggested ways of distributing the profits of a hypothetical joint (e.g., with a room‐mate) money‐earning venture. The experimental procedure for each patient was repeated for all three room‐mates. Preferences were assessed three times — the day after admission to hospital, after 11 days and after 21 days in hospital. Following this procedure, it was possible to trace the dynamics of the patients' interpersonal relations. The data were correlated (Spearman's rs) and submitted to analysis of variance (MANOVA) with repeated measures. Analysis of the attitudes of patients with non‐epileptic neurological disorders towards epileptic patients revealed a dynamic tendency — from negative (measures one and partly two) to positive attitudes after three weeks spent together in hospital (measure three).


The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a model for intensive training of consulting teachers, and to explore whether the consulting teachers who received intensive training performed differently from those who received standard training. While both groups of teachers fulfilled satisfactorily the administrative aspects of the job, significant differences were found in favor of the group receiving intensive training in all aspects of the job relating to instructional improvement. The findings and their implications for the training of consulting teachers are discussed.


This paper aims to expose two possible views about knowledge of essences in Thomas Aquinas. On the one hand there is the critique of knowledge of philosopher Jacques Maritain, who will question that man's access to the essences of things would be as simple as usually occurs. This situation leads us to what we call a gnoseologycal stance. On the other hand, we try to show that there is probably another horizon of different reading supported by the French philosopher. And this horizon can lead us to understand Aquinas' claims from a viewpoint that we call metaphysics.


Abstract : For the first time, charging and discharging of traps in the dielectric of state-of-the-art RF MEMS capacitive switches were characterized in detail. Densities and time constants of different trap species were extracted under different control voltages. It was found that, while charging and discharging time constants are relatively independent of control voltage, steady-state charge densities increase exponentially with control voltage. A charge model was constructed to predict the amount of charge injected into the dielectric and the corresponding shift in actuation voltage. The model was verified against the actuation-voltage shift under accelerated test conditions and found to be in good agreement with the experimental data. Both modeled and measured data suggested that the dielectric-charging effects can be accelerated by duty cycle and peak voltage of the actuation waveform.


The goal of this set of experiments is to measure the parameters of the dynamic models developed for each component of the solar cooling system, specifically: (1) thermal time constants of each solar system component under flow and stagnant conditions; (2) transit time, of a slug of heat, through each component under different flow rates; (3) heat gain or loss coefficients for each component under different flow rates; and (4) characterize the interface region between the various components under stagnant conditions. The experimental system used is the CSU Solar House III system. Only the east set of collector arrays was used for the experimental validation studies. This report describes the experiments, and the experimental results, for the collection loop only.


A new self-report measure of adolescent free time motivation (FTMS-A) based in self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000) has been developed. The scale measures five forms of motivation (amotivation, external, introjected, identified, and intrinsic motivation) and is appropriate for use with young adolescents (ages 12–15). Using confirmatory factor analysis, examination of each of the motivation subscales indicated minimally acceptable levels of fit. The test of the overall model without modification was also minimally acceptable. The deletion of two items improved the fit and provides preliminary evidence of the validity of the FTMS-A, however, future replication of this finding is needed.


An absolute encoding method is presented which adapted to large scale non-contact linear measurement based on research of the encoding method of traditional absolute encoder. The measurement of large scale displacement is achieved utilized the absolute periodically encoding method based on the measurement pole with two different cycling absolute position encoding code tracks. The method has some characteristics such as simple encoding track, high precision, low cost and so on. So the method is propitious to generalizability and application.


In the article the use of documents of the Nuremberg process in books «Eventually» and «Nuremberg War Crimes Trials» is considered.


We report novel macroscopically aligned carbon and graphite whiskers prepared from self-assembled helicene-like helical poly(m-phenylene) (PMP) derivatives with whisker morphologies. The PMP derivatives bearing carboxylic acid moieties were synthesized through esterolysis of the alkyl side chains and used as carbonization precursors. Polarizing optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy observations showed that the randomly aligned whisker morphologies of the PMP derivatives were preserved during the carbonization, even at 800 °C. Furthermore, graphite whiskers were prepared with heat treatment at 2600 °C for the carbon whiskers. Next, two types of oriented substrates were prepared through polytetrafluoroethylene rubbing and stretching methods. The PMP films with macroscopically aligned whisker morphologies were prepared by annealing polymers on the oriented substrates. The carbon and graphite whiskers with macroscopically aligned morphologies were then prepared through heat treatment. The aligne...


An iterative learning identification method is proposed for curve identification problems. The basic idea is to convert the curve identification problem into an optimal tracking control problem. The measured trajectories are regarded as the desired trajectories to be optimally tracked and the curve to be identified is taken as a virtual control function. A high-order learning updating law is applied. A convergence condition is obtained in a general problem setting. Two case studies, which are related to the aerodynamic drag coefficient curve extraction from actual flight testing data, are presented to show the practical usefulness of the proposed method.


ABSTRACT Mirtazapine, a commonly used antidepressant, has a relatively safe side effect profile and is commonly used in the elderly for treatment of depression. It has been proposed as being particularly suitable for patients with depression associated with insomnia and weight loss. Although mental status changes and perceptual abnormalities secondary to its use are rare, special care needs to be taken, especially while starting treatment or while increasing the dose. We report three cases of auditory, musical and visual hallucinations associated with the use of mirtazapine.


Insoluble forms of phosphorus (P) may be converted to soluble P by phosphatesolubilizing organisms living different soil ecosystems to make them available for plant roots to be absorbed. In this study, isolation of rhizobacteria and screening of their ability for phosphate solubilization was done. A total of 25 isolates were obtained from upland rice rhizosphere in Isabela province, Philippines. Measuring the solubilizing efficiency revealed that seven out of 25 isolates were found to be promising phosphate-solubilizers showing clearing zone around the colony. Moreover, phosphorus solubilization index (PSI) of the isolates ranged from 1.25 to 1.60 and results obtained are higher than other observations indicating that strains of bacteria isolated are effective phosphate-solubilizers. Furthermore, these PSB could serve as efficient biofertilizer candidates for improving the P nutrition of the crop. This observation can be a promising contribution to cropping system of upland rice, which is constrained by drought leading to inefficient P acquisition. If further developed, this can be eco-friendly and prove to be cost effective strategy to improve upland rice production particularly in the Philippines.


research is thorough and convincing, he leaves room for the reader to question his/her own interpretations of the works of the period. In doing so, Gouveia's analysis invites further study of the period; he aptly demonstrates that there remains opportunity for new understandings of even the most renowned works, giving hope to scholars and students alike. Vanessa Valdés The City College of New York


A high efficient charge pump circuit is integrated in a poly-silicon thin film transistor display panel which generates 4-voltage levels. The charge pump circuits using level shifters and regulators for DC-DC converter adopt a multi-phase voltage converter structure to supply the positive and negative voltage source for the panel, ranging from +9V to -4.5V, required by the column multiplexer and gate driver circuit. The input voltages and clock signals to the charge pump are 2.5V and 5V or less, and decreases the operational frequency of the charge pumps.


Collocations can be defined as words that occur together significantly more often than it would be expected by chance. Many natural language processing applications such as natural language generation, word sense disambiguation and machine translation can benefit from having access to information about collocated words. We approach collocation extraction as a classification problem where the task is to classify a given n-gram as either a collocation (positive) or a non-collocation (negative). Among the features used are word frequencies, classical association measures (Dice, PMI, chi2), and POS tags. In addition, semantic word relatedness modeled by latent semantic analysis is also included. We apply wrapper feature subset selection to determine the best set of features. Performance of various classification algorithms is tested. Experiments are conducted on a manually annotated set of bigrams and trigrams sampled from a Croatian newspaper corpus. Best results obtained are 79.8 F1 measure for bigrams and 67.5 F1 measure for trigrams. The best classifier for bigrams was SVM, while for trigrams the decision tree gave the best performance. Features which contributed the most to overall performance were PMI, semantic relatedness, and POS information.


Employing hydrodynamic simulations of structure formation in a ⁄CDM cosmology, we study the history of cosmic star formation from the \dark ages" at redshift z » 20 to the present. In addition to gravity and ordinary hydrodynamics, our model includes radiative heating and cooling of gas, star formation, supernova feedback, and galactic winds. By making use of a comprehensive set of simulations on interlocking scales and epochs, we demonstrate numerical convergence of our results on all relevant halo mass scales, ranging from 10 8 to 10 15 h i1 Mfl. The predicted density of cosmic star formation, _ ‰?(z), is broadly consistent with measurements, given observational uncertainty. From the present epoch, _ ‰?(z) gradually rises by about a factor of ten to a peak at z » 5 i 6, which is beyond the redshift range where it has been estimated observationally. In our model, fully 50% of the stars are predicted to have formed by redshift z ' 2:14, and are thus older than 10.4 Gyr, while only 25% form at redshifts lower than z ' 1. The mean age of all stars at the present is about 9 Gyr. Our model predicts a total stellar density at z = 0 of ›? = 0:004, corresponding to about 10% of all baryons being locked up in long-lived stars, in agreement with recent determinations of the luminosity density of the Universe. We determine the \multiplicity function of cosmic star formation" as a function of redshift; i.e. the distribution of star formation with respect to halo mass. At redshifts around z ' 10, star formation occurs preferentially in halos of mass 10 8 i10 10 h i1 Mfl, while at lower redshifts, the dominant contribution to _ ‰?(z) comes from progressively more massive halos. Integrating over time, we flnd that about 50% of all stars formed in halos less massive than 10 11:5 h i1 Mfl, with nearly equal contributions per logarithmic mass interval in the range 10 10 i 10 13:5 h i1 Mfl, making up » 70% of the total. We also brie∞y examine possible implications of our predicted star formation history for reionisation of hydrogen in the Universe. According to our model, the stellar contribution to the ionising background is expected to rise for redshifts z > 3, at least up to redshift z » 5, in accord with estimates from simultaneous measurements of the H and He opacities of the Lyman-fi forest. This suggests that the UV background will be dominated by stars for z > 4, provided that there are not signiflcantly more quasars at high-z than are presently known. We measure the clumping factor of the gas from the simulations and estimate the growth of cosmic HII regions, assuming a range of escape fractions for ionising photons. We flnd that the star formation rate predicted by the simulations is su‐cient to account for hydrogen reionisation by z » 6, but only if a high escape fraction close to unity is assumed.


In this paper we consider the problem of steering a linear system to an unknown setpoint that is defined as the minimizer of an optimization problem. We give a gradient-based solution as well as a gradient-free approximation that, in the spirit of extremum seeking control, only requires measurements of the objective function. We further show that in both cases dynamic output feedback can be used if full state measurements are not available.


A systemic approach is adopted to describe the production of coffee in Latin America by referring to typical examples with planters playing the leading role. The Don Jose production unit is ordinary enough to serve as a prototype of the family farm turned toward the world market. Through it, we glimpse various factors in interaction, the rationale of operations and the dynamics involved. Other patterns are pointed out, in particular the plantation that is an agricultural enterprise. The many adjustments made in time and space lead us to consider the notion of "thresholds." It is more operational for understanding the evolution of coffee-producing systems than the single factor of plantation size or than an analysis simply based on the repercussions of price variations.


This thesis is focused on establishing a private rehabilitation clinic in the city of Ostrava. Composition of business plan in general, characterization of services with specification in health care and possibilities of entrepreneurship in Czech Republic are described in the theoretical part. Practical part of the thesis consists of analysis of the legislation requirements and necessities related to establishing new business in the field of rehabilitation, specifically in physiotherapy. Furthermore macro-environment and mid-environment analysis in the city of Ostrava were created. Based on results of the analysis the business plan has been created and his applicability has been evaluated.


Background: There is now evidence that schizophrenia and deficit schizophrenia are neuroimmune conditions and that oxidative stress toxicity (OSTOX) may play a pathophysiological role. Aims of the study: To compare OSTOX biomarkers and antioxidant (ANTIOX) defenses in deficit versus non-deficit schizophrenia. Methods: We examined lipid hydroperoxides (LOOH), malondialdehyde (MDA), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), sulfhydryl (-SH) groups, paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity and PON1 Q192R genotypes, total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter (TRAP) as well as immune biomarkers in patients with deficit (n=40) and non-deficit (n=40) schizophrenia and healthy controls (n=40). Results: Deficit schizophrenia is characterized by significantly increased levels of AOPP and lowered -SH, and PON1 activity, while no changes in the OSTOX/ANTIOX biomarkers were found in non-deficit schizophrenia. An increased OSTOX/ANTIOX ratio was significantly associated with deficit versus non-deficit schizophrenia (Odds ratio=3.15, p<0.001). Partial least squares analysis showed that 47.6% of the variance in a latent vector extracted from psychosis, excitation, hostility, mannerism, negative symptoms, psychomotor retardation, formal thought disorders, and neurocognitive test scores was explained by LOOH+AOPP, PON1 genotype + activity, CCL11, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, IgA responses to neurotoxic tryptophan catabolites (TRYCATs), whereas -SH groups and IgM responses to MDA showed indirect effects mediated by OSTOX and neuro-immune biomarkers. Discussion: Our findings indicate that with increasing overall severity of schizophrenia, neuroimmune and neuro-oxidative (especially protein oxidation indicating chlorinative stress) toxicities become more prominent and together with lowered antioxidant defenses and impairments in innate Preprints (www.preprints.org) | NOT PEER-REVIEWED | Posted: 9 May 2020 doi:10.20944/preprints202005.0145.v1


The evolution of manufacturing has given rise to computer-aided manufacturing, reconfigurable manufacturing systems and technology-intensive manufacturing. This in turn requires that new options for computing capability are investigated.


Self-healing concrete has emerged as one of the prospective materials to be used in future constructions, substituting conventional concrete with the view of extending the service life of the structures. As a proof of concept, over the last several years, many studies have been executed on the effectiveness of the addition of self-healing agents on crack sealing and healing in mortar, while studies on the concrete level are still rather limited. In most cases, mix designs were not optimized regarding the properties of the fresh concrete mixture, properties of the hardened concrete and self-healing efficiency, meaning that the healing agent was just added on top of the normal mix (no adaptations of the concrete mix design for the introduction of healing agents). A comprehensive review has been conducted on the concrete mix design and the impact of healing agents (e.g., crystalline admixtures, bacteria, polymers and minerals, of which some are encapsulated in microcapsules or macrocapsules) on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete. Eventually, the remaining research gaps in knowledge are identified.