In an effort to further probe metal binding to metallo-β-lactamase L1 (mβl L1), Cu(Cu-L1) and Nisubstituted (Ni-L1) L1 were prepared and characterized by kinetic and spectroscopic studies. Cu-L1 bound 1.7 equivalents of Cu and small amounts of Zn(II) and Fe. The EPR spectrum of Cu-L1 exhibited two overlapping, axial signals, indicative of type 2 sites with distinct affinities for Cu(II). Both signals indicated multiple nitrogen ligands. Despite the expected proximity of the Cu(II) ions, however, only indirect evidence was found for spin-spin coupling. Cu-L1 exhibited higher kcat (96 s−1) and Km (224 μM) values, as compared to the values of dinuclear Zn(II)-containing L1, when nitrocefin was used as substrate. The Ni-L1 bound 1 equivalent of Ni and 0.3 equivalents of Zn(II). Ni-L1 was EPR-silent, suggesting that the oxidation state of nickel was +2; this suggestion was confirmed by 1H NMR spectra, which showed relatively sharp proton resonances. Stopped-flow kinetic studies showed that ZnNi-L1 stabilized significant amounts of the nitrocefin-derived intermediate and that the decay of intermediate is rate-limiting. 1H NMR spectra demonstrate that Ni(II) binds in the Zn2 site and that the ring-opened product coordinates Ni(II). Both Cu-L1 and ZnNi-L1 hydrolyze cephalosporins and carbapenems, but not penicillins, suggesting that the Zn2 site modulates substrate preference in mβ1 L1. These studies demonstrate that the Zn2 site in L1 is very flexible and can accommodate a number of different transition metal ions; this flexibility could possibly offer an organism that produces L1 an evolutionary advantage when challenged with βlactam containing antibiotics. β-Lactams are inexpensive and widely-used antibiotics against microbes since the 1940's(1). There are three different major classes of β-lactams, penicillins, cephalosporins, and carbapenems, that have been used clinically. However, most microorganisms have obtained the ability to either pump the β-lactams out of the cell via transporter proteins (2) or to hydrolyze these compounds by secreting β-lactamases into the periplasm or milieu (3). Four distinct classes of β-lactamases have been identified (4). Unlike class A, C, and D β-lactamases, which utilize an active site serine as a nucleophile, class B β-lactamases, metallo-β-lactamases or Mβl's, are a group of enzymes that require Zn(II) to hydrolyze β-lactams (5). There have been >50 Mβl's identified and categorized into three subgroups, according to amino acid sequence homology, the requirement of Zn(II) (1 or 2) for maximal activity, the identity of the metal *To whom correspondence should be addressed: Michael W. Crowder, e-mail: E-mail: email@example.com, phone: (513) 529-7274, fax: (513) 529-5715. ‡This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (AI056231 to BB, and EB001980 to the Medical College of Wisconsin) and Miami University/Volwiler Professorship (to MWC). Supporting Information Additional supplemental material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org. NIH Public Access Author Manuscript Biochemistry. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2010 April 7. Published in final edited form as: Biochemistry. 2009 April 7; 48(13): 2981–2989. doi:10.1021/bi802295z. N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript N IH PA Athor M anscript binding ligands, and substrate preference. Although the amino acid sequence homology is less than 30% between the different subgroups of Mβl's, the Zn(II) binding motif, HXHXD, is highly-conserved (5). Most Mβl's have a Zn1 site, consisting of three histidines and one bridging hydroxide, and a relatively more variable Zn2 site, consisting of two histidines (or one histidine and one cysteine in B1 and B2 Mβl's), one aspartate, one terminally-bound water, and the bridging hydroxide (Figure 1). Since the electronic configuration of Zn(II) is Ar[d10], which makes the metal center in Mβl's spectroscopically-silent with the most common techniques (6), Zn(II) has often been replaced by Co(II), resulting in catalytically-active analogs that can be characterized by a number of common spectroscopic techniques (7–10). The Zn(II) ions have also been substituted with Cd (II) in Mβl CcrA (11), and this analog was catalytically-active and was characterized with 119Cd NMR spectroscopy (12). While the Mβl's demonstrate a preference for Zn(II) binding, Crowder and coworkers have recently reported that the metallation of Mβl L1 depends on the bioavailability of metal ions (13). In these studies, L1 was shown to bind Fe, Zn(II), and Mn. This result suggests that L1 contains a highly-flexible metal binding site like that previously reported for plant glyoxalase 2's (14,15), raising the question of whether other 1st row transition metal ions could bind to L1. In this work, we explored whether Niand Cucontaining analogs of L1 could be prepared, and we characterized the resulting analogs using spectroscopic and kinetic studies. These studies demonstrate that Cuand Ni-containing analogs of L1 are active and suggest that the flexible metal binding site in L1 offers organisms an evolutionary advantage by being able to produce an enzyme that confers antibiotic resistance in environments containing transition metal ions other than Zn(II). Experimental Procedures Preparation of Niand Cu-containing analogs of L1 Mature L1 (M-L1) was over-expressed as previously described, and 100 μM NiSO4 or CuSO4 were added to the minimal medium during cell growth and protein production (16, 17). After protein over-expression the E. coli cells were centrifuged for 15 minutes (8,200 × g), and the cell pellet was resuspended in 300 mL of 50 mM Hepes (4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1piperazineethanesulfonic acid), pH 6.0. The suspension was centrifuged for 15 minutes (8,200 × g), and the resulting pellet was resuspended in 50 mM Hepes, pH 6.0. The cells were lysed by using a French press as previously described (18), and the mixture was centrifuged for 25 minutes (23,400 × g). The cleared, crude protein solution was loaded onto a 25 mL SPSepharose column that was equilibrated with 50 mM Hepes, pH 6.0, and bound proteins were eluted from the column using a linear 0 – 500 mM NaCl gradient in the same buffer. L1 typically eluted at 80–120 mM NaCl, and the fractions were analyzed for the presence of L1 by using SDS-PAGE, as previously described (18).


Future demographic trends in Canada are examined; the authors conclude that continuing urbanization and demographic aging will be the dominating factors. They stress the need to develop social policies to benefit the growing number of elderly people living in cities and to increase their ability to contribute to society. (ANNOTATION)


Serpentine, whose main component is magnesium silicate hydroxide (MSH), has excellent friction properties. To explore the self‐repair mechanism of pure MSH under natural working conditions, MSH was synthesised by hydrothermal method and modified with oleic acid (OA). The optimal concentration of OA‐MSH was added to the air‐conditioning compressor simulator. The self‐repairing layers were studied by scanning electron microscope, Raman, and transmission electron microscope. The results show that OA‐MSH is well uniformly dispersed in lubricating oil and has significant anti‐friction performance. When the concentration is 1.0 wt%, the friction performance is best. The surface self‐repairing layer is composed of a 1.5 μm thick transition layer and a 20 nm amorphous carbon‐based film under the conditions of air‐conditioning compressors. There are dislocation cells, nanocrystals, and Mn2(Fe2+, Mg)5Si8O22(OH)2 in the transition layer. The formation mechanism of the self‐repairing layer on piston surface can be divided into three stages: nano‐crystallisation, mechanical alloying and lubricating oil crack deposition.


Abstract 1. The composition of allantoic fluid from Japanese quail was measured from days 9 to 14 of incubation. 2. The effect of the inhibitor of urate synthesis, allopurinol, upon weight, electrolytes and urate of allantoic fluid was investigated in eggs subject to different rates of water loss. The composition of plasma and the solid fraction of allantoic fluid was also investigated. 3. During the second half of incubation allantoic fluid water weight decreased, as did pH, and sodium, chloride and bicarbonate concentrations. Fluid urate and potassium concentrations increased, but osmolality was unchanged. 4. Allantoic urate and electrolyte concentrations were greatest, and fluid weight lowest, in eggs subject to high water loss. 5. Allopurinol reduced the total urate of allantoic fluid, and increased osmolality and electrolyte concentrations. Allopurinol had no effect on plasma osmolality. 6. It is concluded that in eggs of high water loss allantoic fluid osmolality was reduced by sequestration of sodi...


This work aims to introduce concepts about Γ–algebra calculate relative to Γ–algebra and outer measure in relation to Γ–algebra are examples. After that, we establish a relationship between them. The notions of null-additive and weakly null-additive as two generalizations of measure and extreme measure are introduced and studied too.


Limit processes for sequences of partial sums of non-linear regression residuals are obtained under assumptions on regressor functions imposed by Jennrich (1969). The limit process and covariance kernel are calculated explicitly for functions of exponential type.


According to the invention there is provided a smoking article (100) comprising a tobacco rod (104) and a mouthpiece (101). The mouthpiece (101) comprises at least one segment and a wrapper circumscribing the at least one segment and defining a mouth end cavity (106). The mouthpiece (101) is in axial alignment with the tobacco rod (104) and has a rod end adjacent the tobacco rod (104) and a mouth end opposite the rod end. One or more indicia are applied to the inner surface of the wrapper portion defining the mouth end cavity (106). There is also provided a method for the manufacture of mouthpieces, and smoking articles according to the invention.


A central goal of secondary mathematics is for students to learn to use powerful algebraic strategies appropriately. Research has demonstrated student difficulties in the transition to using such strategies. We examined strategies used by several thousand 8th-, 9th-, and 10th-grade students in five different school systems over three consecutive years on the same algebra problem. We also analyzed connections between their strategies and their success on the problem. Our findings suggest that many students continued to struggle with algebraic problems, even after several years of instruction in algebra. Students did not reflect the anticipated growth toward the consistent use of efficient strategies deemed appropriate in solving this problem. Instead a surprisingly large number of students continued to rely on strategies such as guessing and checking, or offered solutions that were unintelligible or meaningless and not useful to the researchers. Even those students who used algebraic strategies consistently did not show the anticipated improvement of performance that would be expected from several years of continuing to study mathematics.


After analyzing the combustion mechanism deeply,this paper purposes a novel method of thermal efficiency's online estimation based on temperature only.The applications show that the estimation has satisfied performance for its accuracy and reliability.An efficiency way for application of thermal efficiency control system is given.


Objective To explore the method and effective of improved laparoscopic incisional hernia repair. Methods The clinical data of the Xinjiang People's Hospital from January 2005 to June 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. Results Of all the 120 cases,4 cases were converted to open operation and 86 cases were applied with closed laparoscopic incisional hernia repair. The operation time was 40 to 240 mins with a mean of( 107 ± 41) min and after 1 to 3 days,the patients could be active. The mean of hospitalization time lasted 2 to 20 days with a mean of( 7. 3 ± 3. 4) days. 105 patients were followed up for 1 to 93 months. Only4 cases were recurred with a recurrence rate of 3. 8%. No complication of chronic pain was found. Conclusions Laparoscopic incisional hernia repair was minimally invasive with less complications.


Well defined BiOI nanolamellas and BiSI nanorods have been synthesized by a solventless method. The phase identity, morphology, growth orientation, and conversion from lamella to rod have been investigated. Several experimental facts suggest that the growth orientations of BiOI nanolamellas and BiSI nanorods are guided by their corresponding crystal structure motifs. The optical band gaps of BiOI and BiSI are measured to be 1.97 and 1.61 eV, and the visible light photocatalytic activity of BiOI lamellas is primarily measured.


The invention discloses a mobile intelligent purifier which is used for intelligently purifying indoor air and the ground. The mobile intelligent purifier comprises a ground purifying device (1), an air purifying device (2), a mobile mechanism (3) and a control device (4), wherein the air purifying device (2) is arranged on the ground purifying device (1); the mobile mechanism (3) is arranged below the ground purifying device (1); the control device (4) comprises a monitoring mechanism (41) and a control mechanism (42); the monitoring mechanism (41) is connected with the mobile mechanism (3) through the control mechanism (42); the control mechanism (42) monitors the air pollution condition of air in all areas through the monitoring mechanism (41), controls the mobile mechanism (3) to move according to the monitoring result and further drives the ground purifying device (1) and the air purifying device (2) on the ground purifying device (1) to move to an areas where the pollution conditions of indoor air are serious; the mobile intelligent purifier is simple in structure and wide in application range; the mobile intelligent purifier can be used for intelligently purifying the indoor air and the ground, can conveniently and freely move, and realizes real-time monitoring and fixed-point purification for different areas in a room.


A means of providing the feedback necessary for an associative memory is suggested by self-trapping, the development of localization phenomena and order in coupled physical systems. Following the lead of Hopfield (1982, 1984) who exploited the formal analogy of a fully-connected ANN to an infinite ranged interaction Ising model, we have carried through a similar development to demonstrate that self-trapping networks (STNs) with only near-neighbor synapses develop attractor states through localization of a self-trapping input. The attractor states of the STN are the stored memories of this system, and are analogous to the magnetization developed in a self-trapping 1D Ising system. Post-synaptic potentials for each stored memory become trapped at non-zero valves and a sparsely-connected network evolves to the corresponding state. Both analytic and computational studies of the STN show that this model mimics a fully-connected ANN.


A transmission power control method and an RNC(Radio Network Controller) are provided to enable the RNC to notify a UE(User Equipment) of an E-DPCCH(Enhanced Dedicated Physical Control Channel) transmission power offset before the UE becomes in an SHO(Soft Hand Over) state, thereby surely transmitting the E-DPCCH even after the UE is transferred to the SHO state. An RNC determines that a UE for sending an E-DPCCH for the first cell only transmits the E-DPCCH for the first cell and the second cell except the first cell. The RNC determines an E-DPCCH transmission power offset corresponding to an offset received from transmission power of a DPCCH, based on the determination. The RNC notifies the UE of the E-DPCCH transmission power offset. The UE determines transmission power of the E-DPCCH sent to the first and second cells, based on the notified E-DPCCH transmission power offset. The UE sends the E-DPCCH to the first and second cells by using the determined transmission power.


Acquired cholesteatoma which occurs as sequelae to the chronic otitis media, has proved to cause many complications when left undetected and untreated. The extension of the cholesteatoma in mastoid and middle ear occurs frequently. Cholesteatoma is traditionally diagnosed by otoscopic and microscopic examination and treated by exploratory surgery. It is necessary to know the type of extension of cholesteatoma and to decide the type of surgery to be done. The hidden areas in the middle ear, which cannot be well assessed by otomicroscopy alone, CT scan and X - ray, have proved to be valuable diagnostic tools. This study helps to establish the accuracy with which the preoperative radiological findings and the clinical findings are correlated with the surgical diagnosis of cholesteatoma. Study was conducted on 60 patient. Study showed that CT finding of temporal bone correlated well with surgical findings.


Fetal cardiac intervention has developed over the last two decades in Europe and North America to prevent irreversible deterioration in the fetal heart caused by morphological cardiac malformation. Technique, patient selection, and effects of the intervention have been clarified through challenges faced by fetal cardiologists worldwide. The intervention is performed by direct puncture of the fetal heart through the maternal abdomen. The procedure is significantly invasive for the fetus and requires a high level of surgical skill. Severe congenital heart diseases, including critical aortic stenosis, pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum, and hypoplastic left heart syndrome with highly restrictive foramen ovale, are targets for the intervention. Fetal cardiac intervention is an important treatment for severe congenital heart disease in utero and is desired early introduction into clinical practice in Japan.


Finding meaning in life is important for maintaining physical and mental well-being. Obtaining a deeper understanding of activities that patients with cancer find meaningful is essential in improving cancer care and increasing meaning in life in these individuals. The sample of the present study consisted of patients with cancer (N = 61) who reported their levels of financial strain and listed types of activities that they found most meaningful as a part of an online study. Participants engaged in activities that could be grouped into four broad domains (companionship, personal responsibility, recreation, and existential). In addition, results showed that financial strain was associated with higher preference for activities in the existential domain and lower preference for activities in the recreation domain. Future researchers could extend this study by exploring why certain activities are found to be more meaningful and how to combat the influence of financial strain in cancer.


Here, the electronic behavior of half-Heusler NaAuS is studied using PBEsol exchange correlation functional by plotting the band structure curve. These bands are reproduced using maximally localized Wannier function using WANNIER90. Tight-binding bands are nicely matched with density functional theory bands. By fitting the tight-binding model, hopping parameter for NaAuS is obtained by including Na 2s, 2p, Au 6s, 5p, 5d and S 3s, 3p orbitals within the energy interval of -5 to 16 eV around the Fermi level. In present study, hopping integrals for NaAuS are computed for the first primitive unit cell atoms as well as the first nearest neighbor primitive unit cell. The most dominating hopping integrals are found for Na (3s) – S (3s), Na (2px) – S (2px), Au (6s) – S (3px), Au (6s) – S (3py) and Au (6s) – S (3pz) orbitals. The hopping integrals for the first nearest neighbor primitive unit cell are also discussed in this manuscript. In future, these hopping integrals are very important to find the topological i...


There are almost as many definitions for Facilities Management (FM) as there are people trying to define it. Because FM can offer different levels of service, some variations in its definition are legitimate.


The early diagnosis of diseases in patients is a key objective of biomedical
science and one of the most important factors in the treatment of diseases
such as cancer. The early detection of cancer can make the di erence between
a successful treatment and the dead of the patient.
Ovarian cancer is diagnosed at late clinical stage in more than 80% of
patients and the 5-year survival rate is around 35% of population, while in
early diagnosed patients it exceeds 90%. The aim of this work
is to present techniques for the early detection of ovarian cancers based in
probabilistic analysis of proteomic spectra.


In this chapter, we propose the complementary model of culture and creativity (CMCC) to account for three pairs of contrasting forces that characterize the manners in which individuals manage their cultural experiences and that produce impacts on creative pursuits. We theorize three bidimensional psychological processes that explain the effects of culture on creativity: (a) stereotyping versus destabilizing cultural norms, (b) fixating on one cultural mindset versus alternating between cultural frames, and (c) distancing from versus integrating cultures. We contend that a broader and diversifying cultural experience offers an impetus to break down cultural confines, to oscillate between a variety of cultural perspectives, and to synthesize a multitude of ideas from different cultures, which can bring about discernible enduring benefits to creativity. We discuss the CMCC by putting it in the perspective of the state-of-the-art empirical findings on culture and creativity.


Exchange of letters constituting an agreement between the Governments of the Benelux States (the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Kingdom of the Netherlands) and the Government of the Republic of Albania on the abolition of visa requirements for diplomatic passports. The Hague, 9 June 2005


The present paper reviews the recent results achieved in the ICRF‐DC experiments performed in helium/hydrogen mixtures in the non‐circular tokamaks ASDEX Upgrade and JET and first tests of the ICRF discharges in helium/oxygen mixtures in the circular tokamak TEXTOR. Special emphasis was given to study the physics of ICRF discharges. A new recipe for safe and reliable RF plasma production [〈ne〉∼(3–5)×1017 m−3, Te∼(3–5) eV] with improved antenna coupling efficiency (by 1.5–3 times) and improved radial/poloidal homogeneity was proposed and successfully tested: coupling the RF power in the FW‐IBW mode conversion scenario in plasmas with two ion species. The first results on ICRF wall conditioning in helium/hydrogen and in helium/oxygen mixtures are analyzed.


Effective, permanent tuning of the whispering gallery modes (WGMs) of p-i-n doped GaN microdisk cavity with embedded InGaN quantum dots over one free spectral range is demonstrated by irradiating the microdisks with a ultraviolet laser (380 nm) in DI water. For incident laser powers between 150 and 960 nW, the tuning rate varies linearly. Etching of the top surface of the cavity is proposed as the driving force for the observed shift in WGMs and is supported by experiments. The tuning for GaN/InGaN microdisk cavities is an important step for deterministically realizing nanophotonic devices for studying cavity quantum electrodynamics.


Business need to balance their profitm aking activities with activities that act in the best interest ofenvironment and society as social responsibility. This social responsibility assist not only for brandbuilding for the company but also proven for boosting the employee moral and increase i nproductivity.Social responsibility can be treated as ethical framework that consist of businessas well as governance.The social responsibilities broadly covers environmental sustainability, philanthropic approach, ethicalbusiness practices and econom ic responsibility. The economic contribution in terms of CSR(Corporate Social funding is vital and can be counted as creating the 'shared value'.In this paper the study of this last aspect (i.e. ecomonic responsibility) is considered to analyse thespending of Indian companies . The secondary data of expenditure on specifically CSR budget of fewselected Indian companies was compiled and analysed to understand the transformative role ofbusiness in social (specifically economic) responsib


In the radiological department, the computed tomography (CT) scan process has become a greater radiation dosage that contributes to all medical X-ray treatments. Many studies throughout the world have found that CT accounts for just 5% of all operations conducted yet accounts for 34% of yearly radiation exposures in all medical X-ray treatments. Similarly, other studies have found that CT accounts for 17% of all operations conducted worldwide but accounts for 49% of total yearly doses in all medical X-ray treatments. Because diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) are one of the ways of optimizing a dose in a CT procedure, the goal of this review is to provide a DRLs for adults who undergo chest and abdomen CT scan examinations in northern India, based on research for this region and comparing with international values to see if better optimization protocol is being practiced. DRLs for the chest are 18.35mGy for CT dose index volume (CTDIvol) and 765 mGy.cm for dose length product (DLP), according to this review, while DRLs for the abdomen are 18.25 mGy and 1870.75 mGy.cm for CTDI (vol) and DLP, respectively. As a result, all of the DRLs examined had greater values than the international values compared, with the exception of CTDI (vol) of International Commission on Radiological Protection 2007 publications. CT technology is in desperate need of an update. In the northern region, optimizing methods, including exposure and technical parameter selection, should reduce dose fluctuations.


The phlegmonous inflammation which affects the interstitial or cellular substance of the abdomen, and in many instances involving that of the pelvis, is a subject of deep interest and importance both to the general practitioner and the accoucheur. It demands their serious attention, not only from its great frequency, its alarming urgency and rapid progress in some individuals, its obscure and lingering course in others, but. especially from the fatal results which may ensue both when it occurs after parturition and in those who have never been pregnant. Although this form of inflammation has attracted much attention recently, under the designation of pelvic abscess, it is far from being


The goal of this study is to numerically investigate the flow in a detonation engine. A simplified mathematical model of a two-phase chemical reaction, including the induction period and the subsequent reaction period was used. The gas was assumed to be inviscid, and the one-stage Arrhenius model for chemical reaction rate was employed. Spatial discretization of the fluxes vector normal to the direction of cell boundary is made on the basis of two similar TVD-schemes: the slightly improved version of the Harten scheme and the Chacravarthy Osher scheme. The suggested algorithm was also used for numerical simulations of flows in channels with constrictions.


This chapter considers how reflective practice demonstrates a cyclical potential; of self-reflexivity and reviewing personal, critical processes, and maintaining ongoing capacities for exploration and discovery. The chapter views the self-critical and selfaffirming processes of an improvising musician, and the meaning-making derived from autoethnographic objects, collaborations and collectives, within communities of practice and the wider creative music politic. The chapter utilizes autoethnography to critically self-reflect the author's learning journey as educator-practitioner-researcher and the 'double-consciousness' inherent as both insider and outsider to these paradigms. Issues of meaning in artefact and creative practices are explored and addressed, and the development and enhancement of self from performing artist to multi-dimensional performative researcher, and the self-critical awareness ushered by this journey.


Hugh's origins, but rightly notes the swift popularity his work found in England. On the characteristic Victorine balance between profound biblical scholarship and equally profound spirituality, he has little new to say: but he expounds helpfully both the development of Hugh's complex symbolism, a kind of mandala', and the elements of his teaching on man's reintegration in charity through suffering. The aim is to trace Hugh's thought through one of his recurrent themes, Noah's Ark: hence the main body of the work consists of De Area Noe Morali, i-iv and De Vanitate Mundi, i, ii. Only nine pages are left for an over-brief excerpt on the three stages of prayer from the Ecclesiastes commentary, and for the De Substantia Dilectionis. The selection is thus somewhat disappointing. While it is both reasonable to expect a sizeable block of a scholar's thought in any anthology, and true that the cream of Hugh's spiritual writings is already available in translation, this proportion seems very one-sided. Surely translation implies an appeal to a public wider than just the medievalist? For such a public something from the influential Expositio in Hierarchiam Coelestem, especially Book ii, might well have been included. It can undoubtedly be classed as 'spiritual writing' and would have given another instructive slant on Hugh's thought. The translation is usually felicitous, but inevitably reflects variations in Hugh's eloquence. Compare, for example, the splendid oratory of 122-3 wi** the pedestrian 'cubits in the height of the several storeys' (70). An irritating typographical feature of this series is its undiscriminating pagetitling. It is impossible to check, without constant reference to the Table of


This paleo-elevation reconstruction is based on a compilation of >300 studies including: 1. Stable isotope paleoaltimetry data 2. Stratigraphic data from foreland basins 3. Paleobotany, paleontology, palynology, and fossil leaf physiognomy 4. Climatic indicators of elevation 5. Identification and dating of paleosurfaces, and river incision estimates 6. Thermochronology 7. Structural data and shortening estimates Lydian M. Boschman, ETH Zürich Mauricio A. Bermúdez, Uni de Colombia, Sogamoso Fabien L. Condamine, CNRS Montpellier So far, only results from the paleoelevation reconstruction. Phylogenetic analysis is still work in progress... Apologies!


In their classic article, "Culture as Disability," McDermott and Varenne (1995) retell the fable of the seeing man who, upon finding himself in the "country of the blind" thought he could easily rule it. His efforts were fruitless because he could not make sense of their world. Daily life was set up for the blind to be successful. The seeing man was shocked by the idea that what was considered a privilege (his eyes) in one setting could be his handicap in another. Although McDermott and Varenne used this story to illustrate how culturally determined the notions of "able" and "disabled" are, I believe the seeing man's arrogance has further application to how teachers and teacher educators can approach White privilege. The story I tell is my own version of the seeing man (with a gender and race twist). It is about a small group of White pre-service teachers in a mostly Latina(o) teacher education cohort as they began their first semester in the Multicultural Teacher Training (MTT) (1) program at a large public university in the southwest. It is about how Whiteness can become both a handicap and an opportunity instead of a privilege. This process, which I refer to as "de-privileging Whiteness," pushes White pre-service teachers to re-examine their own perspectives as culturally constructed (Geertz, 1973) and their version of the world as just that, a version. The White pre-service teachers I concentrate on were given a reason to see themselves as "White" and to see their own version of the world as one of many. In their early MTT classes, they were misled and ill prepared by their own cultural understanding of education, especially when it failed to give them the tools to participate successfully in class. They often made mistakes, putting their "foot in their mouth" so to speak. At the same time, the Latina(o) students were empowered to speak their mind and disagree with the White students, something that is less common in other education classes at the same campus and at other universities in the U.S. (Montecinos, 2004). How this de-privileged space was manifested in the MTT classroom is the focus of this article. Whiteness and Teacher Preparation Critical Race theorists and Whiteness Scholars (Delgado, 1997; Ladson-Billings, 2001; Pollack, 2004; Sleeter, 2003; Sleeter & McClaren, 1995; Tatum, 1999; Thompson, 2003) have been pushing teacher educators to look closely at the reproduction of White privilege, which the often quoted Peggy Macintosh (1989) defines as "an invisible package of unearned assets which I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was meant to remain oblivious" (Maher & Tetreault, 1997; McIntyre 1997; Sleeter, 2001) These sets of privileges are passed from generation to generation, through the family, classrooms and other institutions in society like banks, schools, and the media. (Helms, 1990; King, 1991; Lipsitz, 1998) In her definitive article, Whiteness as Property, Cheryl Harris (1993) said "The fundamental precept of Whiteness--the core of its value--is its exclusivity" (p. 1789). In other words, Whiteness as an identity (and a marker of power) is linked to its insistence on being the only version of right, good, and worthy, to the exclusion of other versions of being. Still, we know very little about the contexts that push White teacher education students to see themselves as racialized, cultural beings. Usually, as Ladson-Billings (2004) recently said, "Most members of the dominant society rarely acknowledge themselves as cultural beings. They have no reason to." Some argue there is an urgent need to overturn "the normalcy and neutrality of White privilege" (Villenas & Deyhle, 1999) but we have few examples of how this can happen. (See Hytten & Warren, 2003; Marx & Pennington, 2003) If we know that 85% of teachers are White (NCEI, 2005) and students of color are growing at 43%, even 57% in the west, then it seems problematic to graduate White teachers who haven't thought deeply and critically about the relativism of their own perspective. …


Spaceflight simulation studies use chow diets while spaceflight studies use a semi-purified &et. To determine whether the differences in these diets would affect the changes in unweighted bone, we compared the effects of purified vs chow diet on bone parameters, urinary calcium, plasma estradiol, and urinary corticosterone (CORT) in sexually mature female Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats fed purified AIN-93G or chow diet were kept ambulatory (AMB) or subjected to a spaceflight simulation model of unweighted hindlimbs (HLS) for 38 days. Body mass of treatment groups was similar although food intake and caloric density of the diets differed. Both HLS diet groups showed similar decreases in bone mineral content and mechanical strength in unweighted femurs compared to AMB (p<0.05). However, femur length was lower (p<0.05) in the chow-fed than AIN-93G fed groups. Urinary calcium excretion was greater in chow than AIN-93G fed rats, consistent with the higher level of calcium in the diet. Plasma estradiol was lower in HLS than in AMB fed AIN-93G, but similar in HLS and AMB chow fed groups. Femur mineral content was related to plasma estradiol (r(sup 2) =0.91, p<0.00l). Urinary CORT excretion was increased during initial HLS and elevated in HLS/chow-fed rats. Diets did not appear to affect the osteopenia induced by unweighting, but effects on bone growth, calcium excretion, plasma estradiol and urinary CORT do not support the view that these diets can by used interchangeably in bone studies.


The geochemistry and toxicity of chromium is controlled by its valence state. Chromium is a redox active 3d transition metal with a wide range (− to +6) of possible oxidation states; however only Cr(III) and Cr(VI) are stable. Hexavalent Cr(VI) can be readily reduced to the trivalent state by Fe2+, S2−, organic compounds, wetland plants, and several species of microorganisms. The associated mechanisms of Cr(VI) reduction are technologically and biologically important because they convert a toxic, mobile element into a less toxic, immobile form. Reduction of Cr(VI) by the bacterium, Shewanella oneidensis (previously classified Shewanella putrefaciens strain MR-1), was studied by absorption spectrophotometry and in-situ, environmental cell (EC) - transmission electron microscopy (TEM) coupled with electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Shewanella oneidensis (S. oneidensis), a gram-negative, facultative bacterium is capable of respiring aerobically and anaerobically using a variety of compounds, including O2, Fe(III), Mn(IV), NO2−, NO3−, SO2, SO32−, thiosulfate (S2O32−), trimethyamine oxide, fumarate, U(VI), and Cr(VI) as terminal electron acceptors.


Seeds of 9 tall fescue (Festuca arundinaceae Schreb.) cultivars (Apache, Arid-III, Barvado, Da Vinci, Eldorado, Prospect, and Tomahawk), 2 of which were newly introduced (Brigantine and Jaguar 4G) in 2014, were used to investigate the effects of different NaCl concentrations (0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 mM) on their germination rate, shoot and root length, shoot and root fresh weight, shoot/root ratio and salt tolerance index (STI). The experiment was designed as a completely randomized with four replicates at the laboratory of Kizilirmak Vocational High School, Cankiri Karatekin University, in 2014. The results showed that different salinity treatments had statistically considerable effects on the germination rate, shoot and root length, shoot and root fresh weight, shoot/root ratio, and salt tolerance index (STI). The values of these parameters were reduced with increasing salt concentration. In all parameters, considerable decreases occurred with 100 mM concentration and the lowest values were obtained from 200 mM. The overall findings suggest that the Apache, Da Vinci, Prospect, and Tomahawk varieties were more tolerant than the other ones.


The paper discusses the modelling and identification possibilities of acausal synchronistic cognitive networks concerned as a hypothetical `artifacts' of collective unconscious processes. This part of the paper deals with the analysis and interpretation via `joint observations' of Jung and Pauli.


Background: General anaesthesia is an altered physiological state characterized by reversible loss of consciousness, amnesia ,analgesia and some degree of muscle relaxation.no single agents can produce these desired effects.It involves inhalational anaesthetics,induction agents, opioids, neuromuscular blockers. Combination of all these drugs will produce the optimal anaesthesia which is known as balanced anaesthesia. Airway management is an integral part of general anaesthesia, which includes direct laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation. Objective: To compare the efficacy of two different doses of esmolol to attenuate the hemodynamic response during laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation. Methodology: The present comparative cross sectional study was conducted by the Department of Anaesthesia at Vinayaka Missions KirupanandaVariyar Medical College and Hospital, Salem from December 2019 – May 2021. The comparative study was done between two study groups with Group A receiving 50 mg of IV Esmolol and Group B Receiving 100 mg of IV Esmolol, A total of 60 study patients who met the inclusion criteria were included in the Study and divided into 30 subjects in each group. Results: The mean age of the patients in Group A was 37.3 (12.0) years with a minimum of 18 years and a maximum of 60 years.


Objective To monitor drug resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(AECOPD).Methods 216 strains of pseudomonas aeruginosa with automatic VITEK 32 in sputum samples were analyzed.Results Ciprofloxacin had the lowest antibiotic resistance(10.47%) in 86 strains of pseudomonas aeruginosa separated in 2003,while Cefepime had the lowest rate(10.39%) in 2004,and in 2005 the rate was 11.32%.Conclusions Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the common infectious bacterium in AECOPD,and therefore monitoring its resistance to antibiotics can provide early and effective therapy for these patients.


The aim of this study is to analyze the concept of space and investigate the theory of power, the effects of power and panopticism over the characters in the plays of Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot and Endgame, and Ferhan Şensoy's Gule Gule Godot (Good Riddance Godot). Theories on space, power and panopticism of Michel Foucault form philosophical background of the study. The study is comprised of five chapters.
The first chapter introduces the research questions and the second discusses Michel Foucault and his philosophy. The third elaborates the Theatre of the Absurd, Samuel Beckett, Turkish Traditional Theatre and Ferhan Şensoy and outlines the plots and the background of the plays in question. The fourth chapter addresses the research questions and carries the discussion forward into analysis of the plays. Detailed analysis and the discussion of the concept of space is presented for all three plays. The six principles of heterotopias of Foucault are examined in the plays in detail. Power in the plays is scrutinized and how the characters are affected by power is analyzed and discussed. The effect of panopticism is studied and the manners of the characters against panopticism is investigated.
The final chapter of the study synthesizes the answers to the research questions. The answers that are found in the plays shed light to the societies that the plays belong to. The findings demonstrate that Şensoy's characters are more hopeful for their future than Beckett's. Beckett's characters are either in restrained action or in total confinement. Şensoy's characters even after psychological and physical destruction recover quickly and try to establish their own authority. Personal ties among the characters are stronger in Good Riddance Godot than they are in Beckett's plays. In Beckett's plays, there is an interchangeable power relationship between the characters, and this power relation is based on mutual need. On the other hand, there is a pure and sincere friendship among people in Good Riddance Godot.
All the characters in the three plays studied are waiting but in different manners and with different expectations. They all want to change their circumstances and try to find answers to the questions mostly about themselves and the world around them. In Beckett, the questions remain unanswered, but in Şensoy, the main problem is at least answered.


As an important part of the marine economy and an important guarantee for the development of the coastal areas, the development of China's coastal port logistics is insufficient and the port logistics and the local economic development are not in harmony. Based on the perspective of synergetic theory, this paper analyzed the multiple subjects and multi-layer structure of port logistics, based on the cooperative mechanism of port logistics, process mechanism and external mechanism, built the model of port logistics coordination degree, carried out quantitative analysis on the coordination degree of the coastal port logistics in Zhejiang province and further studied the port logistics coordination mechanism. Based on the coordination degree of Zhejiang coastal port logistics and the present situation of Zhejiang coastal port logistics, this paper put forward the policy recommendations.


Cooperative estimation/guidance for a team of missiles is the topic of this paper. An example scenario is considered where an aircraft simultaneously launches several cooperative defending missiles as a countermeasure against an attacking homing missile. A new reduced-order estimation scheme based on information sharing to cooperatively estimate the relative states and the unknown parameters of the attacking missile is proposed. Each defending missile shares its own noise-corrupted line-of-sight angle measurement with the rest of the team. The observability of this multi-line-of-sight measuring environment is enhanced by cooperatively imposing nonnegative relative intercept angles between consecutive defenders. The ability of the proposed strategy to protect the targeted aircraft is studied for a two-defender case via extensive Monte Carlo simulations. The effect of different values of the commanded relative intercept angle on the pure estimation as well as on the intertwined guidance-estimation performan...


The intelligence is the prime determinant on which humans are both distinguished and considerably unique among all the creatures in this universe. With the advent of the field of Artificial Intelligence, the era of automation has revolutionized the human life. The AI may well be a modeling of the human intelligence. For humans are, to a first approximation, intelligent; they can perceive, act, learn, reason, and communicate successfully despite the enormous complexity of the tasks. Since humans react differently to the functioning of different automated systems, it is imperative to understand, what the impact of automation on human machine interaction is. The interaction between humans and fully automated facilities or machines is a key issue for the researchers in the field of Psychology, Robotics and Ergonomics. This paper focuses on few important aspects the automated systems on human behaviour in different settings and examines the effects produced by them. This study is an evaluation of the effects of automation on the human behavior and to elucidate on both positive and negative impacts of automation on human behavior.


This study tested whether individual sensitivity to an auditory perceptual cue called amplitude rise time (ART) facilitates novel word learning. Forty adult native speakers of Polish performed a perceptual tasktestingtheir sensitivity toART,learned associations betweennonwordsandpictures This research has been funded from the National Science Centre Poland grant Individual Cognitive Abilities and Second Language Acquisition of Vocabulary [UMO-2016/20/S/HS6/00051] We thank Micha ł Remiszewski, Dominika Szczerbi n´ ska, and Emilia Ż ak for their help with EEG data collection. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for helping us improve the manuscript. TheexperimentinthisarticleearnedanOpenDatabadgefortransparentpractices.Thematerialsare available at https://osf.io/3fxgc/ of common objects, and were subsequently tested on their knowledge with a picture recognition (PR) task. In the PR task participants heard each nonword, followed either by a congruent or incongruent picture, and had to assess if the picture matched the nonword. Word learning ef fi ciency was measured by accuracy and reaction time on the PR task and modulation of the N300 ERP. As predicted, participants with greater sensitivity to ART showed better performance in PR suggesting that auditory sensitivity indeed facilitates learning of novel words. Contrary to expectations, the N300 was not modulated by sensitivity to ART suggesting that the behavioral and ERP measures re fl ect different underlying processes.


For the optimal control problem of linear population dynamics with age-dependence and spatial structre, we demonstrated the existence of solutions of the optimal control problem and, by the conception of normal cone, we also obtained the first order necessary conditions of optimal problem. Our results extend the corresponding research of linear models.


We describe a set of experiments using machine learning techniques for the task of extractive summarisation. The research is part of a summarisation project for which we use a corpus of judgments of the UK House of Lords. We present classification results for naïve Bayes and maximum entropy and we explore methods for scoring the summary-worthiness of a sentence. We present sample output from the system, illustrating the utility of rhetorical status information, which provides a means for structuring summaries and tailoring them to different types of users.


Background: Executive function (EF) is important in effortful
 behavioural regulation, so may play an important role in determining sedentary behaviour (SB)
 and physical activity. However, it is also the case that physical activity leads to improved
 cognitive (and particularly executive) functioning. We investigated within-person associations
 between EF and SB using an ecological momentary assessment design, with time-lagged analysis
 used to unravel any direction of causality. Methods: 65 adults (50f, M age = 38.9) wore a
 hip-mounted accelerometer (measuring SB) and completed repeated Go/NoGo tasks (measuring EF
 resources) on a wrist-mounted electronic device every waking hour over 7 consecutive days. SB
 was defined as the number of mins/hour where activity counts were <100. Statistical analysis
 used multilevel modelling. Findings: Within individuals, increased SB in the prior hour was
 associated with poorer Go/NoGo task performance (p < .05). Poorer-than-usual Go/NoGo task
 performance was not associated with SB in the following hour (p = .41). Discussion: Increased
 SB in daily life leads to an immediate reduction in EF, but we found no evidence that momentary
 declines in EF promote increased SB.


Background and Objectives: The role of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration (EUS FNA) for mediastinal lesions has long been recognized, but case reports on pericardial aspiration ± biopsy and biopsy of intra-cardiac lesions are also increasingly being described. A 58-year-old female with a history of left breast carcinoma underwent a mastectomy with chemoradiotherapy in 2008. She had a tumor recurrence in 2014 with malignant pleural and pericardial effusions. A transthoracic pericardiocentesis (TTP) was done once in November 2015 for symptomatic pericardial effusion. In March 2016, she presented with progressive dyspnea. A transthoracic echocardiograph showed a posteriorly located pericardial effusion (29 mm) with diastolic collapse of the right atrium. She was unsuitable for both TTP (due to poor window) and pericardial fenestration (in view of the history of pleurodesis, previous thoracic instrumentation, and poor prognosis). Therefore, a transesophageal drainage with EUS scope was performed. Methods and Results: The pericardial sac was punctured with a 19-gauge needle (EchoTip®, Cook Medical) and 245 ml of hemorrhagic fluid was aspirated. There were no immediate or late complications. The patient experienced symptomatic improvement, significant reduction in the size of the pericardial effusion, and absence of diastolic right atrial collapse. She remained asymptomatic with no recurrence of effusion. She died 5 months later from pneumonia. Conclusions: EUS-guided pericardiocentesis may be an alternative for TTP in selected cases.


This meeting focused on the problems facing the pharmaceutical industry, given the need for faster and higher throughput toxicity testing, and how emerging technologies are being applied to address this need. Inevitably, the emphasis was on in vitro approaches, in particular, genomics-based technology such as transcript profiling, but due attention was paid to the necessity of relating in vitro-derived data to toxic endpoints in vivo. A number of technology-providing companies were given the opportunity to draw attention to their proprietary systems and explain how they might be applied to drug safety assessment. Finally, a session was devoted to a discussion of available 'in silico' systems and how these are being developed and refined as the need for computer-based screening increases.


In the title compound, C14H15ClO2S, the cyclopentyl ring adopts an envelope conformation. In the crystal, molecules are linked through weak intermolecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. The crystal structure also exhibits a slipped π–π interaction between the furan and benzene rings of neighbouring molecules [centroid–centroid distance = 3.784 (3) Å, interplanar distance = 3.199 (3) Å and slippage = 2.021 (3) Å].


We have investigated a dual-ended readout detector based on two silicon photo-multipliers (SiPMs) using a 30 mm long cerium-doped lutetium-yttrium oxyorthosilicate ( Lu0.5Y1.4Si0.5:Ce, LYSO) crystal to study the feasibility of a time-of-flight (TOF) and depth-of-interaction (DOI) positron emission tomography (PET). To improve the timing resolution in the dual-ended readout detector, a novel meantime measurement was employed. The meantime was obtained by averaging two signal arrival times at two SiPMs, each of which was attached to both ends of the LYSO crystal. The meantime method minimizes the arrival time difference along the crystal. Both timing and DOI resolutions using the meantime method were better than those of a single-ended readout detector.


The Mg-Fe nanocomposite synthesized by spark erosion of pure Mg and Fe electrodes was investigated by X-ray diffraction, Mossbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements. From the X-ray diffraction measurements Mg, MgO, and α-Fe were recognized. According to the Mossbauer spectra analysis, iron atoms were identified in α-Fe, Fe in Mg/MgO (mf), and Fe 1-x O phases. The mf phase consists of an amorphous part (paramagnetic down to 20 K), weak ferromagnetic Fe in Mg, and fcc iron clusters (particles) which are antiferromagnetic below T N 60 K. Measurements of the thermomagnetic curves show spin-glass-like behaviour of the as-prepared powder. Transformation of the mf phase in α-Fe and Fe 1-x O phases was observed after annealing at temperatures above 200°C.


A partial system ofNdP04-NaP03-Nd(P03)3 in the ternary system Nd 2 O 3 -Na 2 O-P 2 O 5 was investigated and its phase diagram is proposed. Thermoanalytical methods and X-ray powder diffraction were employed. In the composition range under examination, two ternary compounds occur, which melt incongruently and have the formulae NaNd(PO 3 ) 4 (m.p. 866°C) and NaNdP 2 O 7 (m.p. 790°C). Two quasi-binary sections, NdPO 4 -NaNd(PO 3 ) 4 and NaNdP 2 O 7 -NaNd(PO 3 ) 4 have been identified.


Based on the analysis of mean daily,maximum and minimum temperature,precipitation and sunshine in Binhai county,the characteristics of interannual variation and seasonal variation was studied.The annual mean,maximum and minimum temperature was increased gradually,especially for the last 10 years,and the rank of the increased rate was winterspringautumnsummer.The annual precipitation decreaed gradully at a rate of about 16.6mm per 10 years.However the precipitation in summer and winter showed an increasing trend,and that of spring and autumn showed a decreasing trend.For the last 10 years,the increase rate of summer precipitation was obvious,and winter precipitation changed from increasing to decreasing,the spring and autumn precipitation changed from decreasing to increasing.The sunshine decreased obviously since 1990s.


Date The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we Find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards Of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. Quantitative modeling of the reaction/diffusion kinetics of two-chemistry photopolymers Thesis directed by Associate Professor Robert R. McLeod Optically driven diffusion in photopolymers is an appealing material platform for a broad range of applications, in which the recorded refractive index patterns serve either as images (e.g. data storage, display holography) or as optical elements (e.g. custom GRIN components, integrated optical devices). A quantitative understanding of the reaction/diffusion kinetics is difficult to obtain directly, but is nevertheless necessary in order to fully exploit the wide array of design freedoms in these materials. A general strategy for characterizing these kinetics is proposed, in which key processes are decoupled and independently measured. This strategy enables prediction of a material's potential refractive index change, solely on the basis of its chemical components. The degree to which a material does not reach this potential reveals the fraction of monomer that has participated in unwanted reactions, reducing spatial resolution and dynamic range. This approach is demonstrated for a model material similar to commercial media, achieving quantitative predictions of index response over three orders of exposure dose (~1 to ~10 3 mJ cm-2) and three orders of feature size (0.35 to 500 microns). The resulting insights enable guided, rational design of new material formulations with demonstrated performance improvement.


Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can occur while a person is getting old and it is associated with more serious cognitive deteriorations than the normal ageing-related ones. As it may involve a significant decrease in the quality of life, health status and independence of the elderly, the early diagnosis and a personalized assistance become crucial in this ageing worldwide context. Current and emerging technologies provide the needed support for implementing appropriate new models of healthcare delivery. This paper highlights how RO-SmartAgeing system, which aims to provide customized monitoring and assistance for an elderly in his home, is designed for addressing a particular health condition as MIC. The associated smart environment is presented, together with the data flow chart and architecture, with an emphasis on MIC approach.


We review recent advances in using mathematical models of the relationship between the brain structure and function that capture features of brain dynamics. We argue the need for models that can jointly capture temporal, spatial, and spectral features of brain functional activity. We present recent work on spectral graph theory based models that can accurately capture spectral as well as spatial patterns across multiple frequencies in MEG reconstructions.


Ryan Johnson reviews Mark Harrison, Medicine in an Age of Commerce and Empire: Britain and its Tropical Colonies, 1660–1830 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010), pp. x + 353, £65.00, hardback, ISBN: 9780199577736.


s u MM ary . – The travancore Tortoise, Indotestudo travancorica (Family Testudinidae) is a medium-sized tortoise (straight carapace length [SCL] up to 331 mm) endemic to the mountain ranges of the Western Ghats in southwestern India. The taxonomy of the genus Indotestudo has recently been revised, and I. travancorica is considered a distinct species. It is found in semi-evergreen, evergreen, moist deciduous, and bamboo forests, as well as in rubber and teak plantations, occurring mostly near streams and marshes, with a home range of 5.2–34 ha. Travancore Tortoises are omnivorous; their diet encompasses grasses to mollusks and they occasionally scavenge on dead animals. They breed from November to March in captivity, have a clutch size of 1–5 eggs, and hatchlings measure 55–60 mm SCL. The major threats to this species are hunting and habitat loss. Conservation measures should focus on protection, identification of crucial tortoise habitats, and increasing awareness among local communities. D istri B ution . – India. Endemic to the Western Ghats, across the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu of southwestern India. s ynony M y . – Testudo travancorica Boulenger 1907, Testudo (Indotestudo) travancorica, Geochelone travancorica, Geochelone (Indotestudo) travancorica, Indotestudo travancorica. su B species . – None recognized. s tatus . – IUCN 2011 Red List: Vulnerable (VU A1cd) (assessed 2000); CITES: Appendix II,


The Universal Visualization Platform (UVP), developed at UMass Lowell, is a general Java-based framework for information visualization and analysis. The UVP contains many advanced and novel features added by various researchers over the last six years, and many visual-analytic tools of the UVP have been tailored for use in specific applications. Tool extentions and modifications were difficult to implement due to the various requirements placed on them by the system, the most burdensome of which being selection interaction and session monitoring support. We developed a new framework, JyVis, to support ease of tool modification, extention, and development, even for non-developers. JyVis is a visualization framework based on an architecture comprised of two layers: a low-level visualization framework written in Java, and high-level program elements written in Jython (a freely available implementation of the high-level, dynamic, object-oriented language Python seamlessly integrated with the Java platform). The key features that distinguish JyVis from other visualization systems are that all JyVis tools are themselves Jython scripts, pluggable, and end-user-programmable. JyVis provides support for session logging and replay. This is accomplished by having all significant state changes occur via scripts, and recording those scripts to a cumulative session history file for later replay. The ability to define tools with a small amount of code is enabled by a rich set of high-level visualization primitives (graphical objects which automatically support selection interactions) and UI widgets (UI building blocks which automatically support session logging and replay). JyVis architecturally supports most features of the UVP, including multiple visualizations, multiple selections, multiple datasets, linking and brushing of selections between visualizations, pluggable visual-analytic tools, session logging with the ability to replay previous sessions, kinetic displays, sonification, and voice annotation. The ability to access and use tools across the internet, and the ability to have a shared system state across many distributed users via simple text communication is also architecturally supported by JyVis.


Process model based control (PMBC) refers to methods that use a nonlinear process model directly--without linearization--for process control. Nonlinear IMC and GCC have been compared on an idealized SISO CSTR. Both methods gave nearly the same performance throughout a wide range of reactor nonlinearity. A SISO heat exchanger was used to further study GMC. The CSTR was an open loop unstable, lumped parameter process without deadtime and with a large sample time to process time constant ratio. By contrast, the heat exchanger was an open loop stable, distributed parameter process with transport delay and a small sample to process time constant ratio. In spite of these differences, GMC gave robust control over a wide range of process nonlinearity while remaining relatively insensitive to process-model mismatch. Optimally tuned GMC parameters, performed equally well for both linear and nonlinear process extremes. By contrast, nonlinear IMC filter parameters must change with process nonlinearity. Additionally, it is illustrated that GMC can yield excellent results even with a steady state process model.


The anticline belt of the Langa region is located in the south of the Tahe oil field.It bears the condition for developing of non-anticline straps and is suitable for using the broadband seismic inversion technology to predict reservoirs.But the exploration level in this region is low.The authors introduced the fundamental principles,realizations and procedures of the broadband constrained seismic inversion and used this method to predict the reservoirs in the Langa region for the first time.Nine wells were used during the procedure of constrained inversion.The comparison between the inversion results and the drilling outcomes shows that the upper and middle oil sets are consistent well with the drilling and logging explanation reservoir,the top of the lower oil belt agrees well,while the inner and bottom have some differences from the drilling results.The development belts of sand bodies as well as lithologic traps were located and ultimately the drilling targets were pointed out.This method can predict the reservoir lithology and spreading regularity more accurately in such places where the exploration level is low.And it has some guiding significance in further exploring and developing oil fields and lowers the risk of exploration.


Along with the wide-adoption of Serverless Computing, more and more applications are developed and deployed on cloud platforms. Major cloud providers present their serverless workflow services to orchestrate serverless functions, making it possible to perform complex applications effectively. A comprehensive instruction is necessary to help developers understand the pros and cons, and make better choices among these serverless workflow services. However, the characteristics of these serverless workflow services have not been systematically analyzed. To fill the knowledge gap, we survey four mainstream serverless workflow services, investigating their characteristics and performance. Specifically, we review their official documents and compare them in terms of seven dimensions including programming model, state management, etc. Then, we compare the performance (i.e., execution time of functions, execution time of workflows, orchestration overhead of workflows) under various experimental settings considering activity complexity and data-flow complexity of workflows, as well as function complexity of serverless functions. Finally, we discuss and verify the service effectiveness for two actual workloads. Our findings could help application developers and serverless providers to improve the development efficiency and user experience.


PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the cooling performance by increasing a flow velocity of a cooling liquid flowing in an inter-shaft cooling groove to increase a flow rate.SOLUTION: A water jacket structure of an internal combustion engine includes: a cylinder block 1 having a block-side water jacket 10; a cylinder head 2 having a head-side water jacket 40; and a gasket 3 installed between the cylinder block 1 and the cylinder head 2. The block-side water jacket 10 has an introduction part 11, a first channel 15, and a second channel 16 opposite to the first channel 15 across a cylinder bank. An inter-shaft cooling groove 13 for communicating the first channel 15 with the second channel 16 is provided on a partition 1b separating adjacent cylinders 1a. The gasket 3 has an inter-shaft through-hole 33 in a position stretching between the second channel 16 and an end 13a on the second channel 16 side of the inter-shaft cooling groove 13.


Abstract In this paper, I examine Hong Kong's identity and citizenship through the Chinese landscape painting, Mountain Palace, by Dong Yuan. Specifically, I ask: how can a reading of Mountain Palace using Jullien's concepts of presence and absence provide insights into current issues of identity and citizenship in Hong Kong? I argue that citizenship is not a static identity but a manifestation of historical processes in a constant state of becoming. Rather than focusing on political tensions or recolonization, I suggest that Hong Kong is already part of Mainland China, but its unique identity needs to be recognized.


The composition and equation of state of dense fluids and plasmas is calculated within the chemical picture. While dissociation is important for molecular fluids such as hydrogen, the excitation of higher ionization stages is relevant for e. g. noble gases and metal plasmas. Results for the Hugoniot curves of hydrogen‐helium mixtures which are relevant for astrophysical applications are shown. The composition of beryllium plasma at solid statelike densities and at temperatures of several eV is determined and compared with new experimental results. (© 2003 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


Some of the problems associated with Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations of three dimensional ionic and dipolar systems are discussed, with emphasis on the use of periodic boundary conditions (PBC). It is shown that analogous problems may arise in two dimensional systems provided that the interactions are two dimensional electrostatic interactions, that is, interactions derived from the two dimensional Laplace equation. The PBC hamiltonian is evaluated by considering the appropriate two dimensional lattice sums, and a computable form for the effective pair interactions in PBC developed. The idea of an external dielectric constant is introduced and its effects included in the PBC hamiltonian. Formulae for evaluating the dielectric constant from a simulation with any external dielectric constant are given. Perturbation formulae showing the effects on the structure and mean square dipole moment of a dipolar system which are caused by a change in external dielectric constant are derived. A formula ...


ABSTRACT Metaphysics has a problem with plurality: in many areas of discourse, there are too many good theories, rather than just one. This embarrassment of riches is a particular problem for metaphysical realists who want metaphysics to tell us the way the world is and for whom one theory is the correct one. A recent suggestion is that we can treat the different theories as being functionally or explanatorily equivalent to each other, even though they differ in content. The aim of this paper is to explore whether the notion of functionally equivalent theories can be extended and utilized in the defence of metaphysical realism, drawing upon themes from structuralism in the philosophies of mathematics and science in which the specifics of theories do not matter as long as the relations in which they stand to other theories are maintained. I argue that despite its initial attractiveness, there are significant difficulties with this proposal. Discovering these obstacles (most probably) thwarts the realist structuralist project, but reveals interesting features of metaphysical systems.


The potential for using quantitative techniques in feminist post-structuralist research has been obscured by the pervasiveness of the quantitative/qualitative dualism within the discipline. In this paper I discuss the possibility that quantitative approaches may be uncoupled from masculinist versions of science in ways that are consistent with the goals of feminist post-structuralist research. To illustrate these ideas, I explore the politics of counting—both the political power of statistical representations of oppression and also the role of counting in revealing the operation of power relations. My examinations of the persistence of the quantitative/qualitative dualism—despite the potential power of quantitative approaches in feminist work—raise questions about how our academic biographies reinforce these ontological divisions. Specifically, I raise questions about the influence of our academic socialization on our engagement with the particular ontologies we employ and (perhaps) reject.


This paper offers a commentary on Gordon Tullock's various contributions to economics and social science. Tullock's methodology and style, and various critical appraisals of Tullock's work are discussed. The importance of Tullock's work and its significance for the future of economics are also assessed. Copyright 1995 by Oxford University Press.


Tax is an obligation that must be paid by both private and public entities of income or earnings to the government aimed at development activities in all fields. To this research to study the effect of the imposition of value added tax and motor vehicle tax at progressive rates on consumer purchasing power and the sampling technique used purposive sampling. The office SAMSAT Denpasar city as a place of study covers an area of Denpasar North, East, West and South by making consumers taxpayers as much as 100 people in the sample with slovin method. Multiple linear regression analysis technique is done with the results of the imposition of value added tax and motor vehicle tax at progressive rates on consumer purchasing power has a significant negative impact. The imposition of value added tax and motor vehicle tax with progressive of them has a negative impact on consumer purchasing power.


The impact of the shade tree Erythrina poeppigiana on soil total C and N concentrations, at three different positions relative to the tree, and for three different soil depths, was compared using six pairs of farms (organic and conventional) with similar management and environmental conditions for each pair. C and N concentrations within the 0-5 cm layer were similar for all positions in the organic system, but in the conventional system higher C and N concentrations were found close to the shade tree vs. the positions 2 in from the trunk (5.04 vs. 4.03% for C and 0.44 vs. 0.35% for N). The average soil C and N concentrations in organic farms were higher than conventional farms (5.06 vs. 4.35%; 0.42 vs. 0.37%, respectively). (Resume d'auteur)


Electric power enterprises need to establish a multi-level service system to satisfy the large customers and general customers better.And establishing a differentiated service system for general customers is a significant effective part.This article studies the theoritical basis and feasibility of establishing general customers' differentiated service system,and gives rational suggestions against the characteristics of electric power enterprises in China.


We contend that the SEC and other international regulators could improve independence and corporate governance even further if they required mutual fund compliance officers to be totally independent of management, by not allowing them to be employees of investment adviser companies.The direct reporting relationship established by Rule 38a-1 between mutual fund compliance officers and boards of directors sets the industry apart from corporate America, in general, where compliance/ethics officers typically report to management. We assert that the increased board involvement in ethics and compliance-related matters that results from the new SEC regulations allows mutual fund boards to govern more effectively. The new SEC regulations require mutual fund compliance officers to report directly to the board of directors. The board is also now responsible for hiring/firing, and for approving the compliance officer's compensation. After a literature review and a survey of compliance officers and mutual fund board members, we conclude that SEC Rule 38a-1 represents a positive step toward increasing compliance officer independence in the mutual fund industry in the United States. We examine recent SEC regulations that are intended to increase the independence of mutual fund compliance officers. We examine recent SEC regulations that are intended to increase the independence of mutual fund compliance officers. The new SEC regulations require mutual fund compliance officers to report directly to the board of directors. The board is also now responsible for hiring/firing, and for approving the compliance officer's compensation. After a literature review and a survey of compliance officers and mutual fund board members, we conclude that SEC Rule 38a-1 represents a positive step toward increasing compliance officer independence in the mutual fund industry in the United States. The direct reporting relationship established by Rule 38a-1 between mutual fund compliance officers and boards of directors sets the industry apart from corporate America, in general, where compliance/ethics officers typically report to management. We assert that the increased board involvement in ethics and compliance-related matters that results from the new SEC regulations allows mutual fund boards to govern more effectively. We contend that the SEC and other international regulators could improve independence and corporate governance even further if they required mutual fund compliance officers to be totally independent of management, by not allowing them to be employees of investment adviser companies.


To date, both viral and nonviral vectors have been exploited for delivery of gene-based therapies to target cells/tissues. Despite high efficiency of the viral vectors (e.g., retroviruses and adenoviruses), these vectors appear to be immunogenic and potentially harmful when used in clinical gene therapy protocols (Ferber, 2001b). Besides, the preparation and purification of the viral vectors appear to be laborious, cost-prohibitive and not amenable to industrial-scale manufacture. Nonviral vectors such as cationic lipids (CLs) and cationic polymers (CPs) have been categorized as advanced materials and their low immunogenicity, lack of pathogenicity, and ease of pharmacologic production continue to make them attractive alternatives to viral vectors (Medina-Kauwe et al., 2005). However, these vectors may also suffer from relatively low levels of gene transfer compared to viruses. Thus, the drive to advance these vectors continues resulting in considerable progresses in improved transfection efficiency. Nonviral vectors (in particular cationic gene delivery systems) are able to bind and enter the target cells, however they yield low gene expression. No substantial information is available on interactions of these vectors with cellular biomolecules. Since these medicaments tend to act at genomic levels, thus understanding the genomic impacts of the nonviral vectors may help develop more efficient gene delivery systems. Nonetheless, this needs recruitment of high throughput screening methodologies. To date, exploitation of the "omics" concepts (e.g., genomics, proteomics and metabolomics) is going to change the face of pharmacotherapy towards significantly more advanced and efficient pharmaceuticals (e.g., gene based nanomedicines) with minimal adverse consequences (Aardema & MacGregor, 2002). Enormous efforts have also been devoted for application of the global gene expression profiling in pharmacologic and toxicological investigations. The gene expression profiling technology has been primarily exploited for identification of underlying mechanisms for toxicity of pharmaceuticals and their genomic signatures, by which the safety liabilities can be determined and manifestations of undesired genotoxicity can be prohibited (Suter et al., 2004; Yang et al., 2004). This methodology can be successfully used for the discovery and development of any chemicals and pharmaceuticals including gene delivery nanosystems. The main focus of the current book chapter is to provide some useful information about "genocompatibility" and


A power hybrid is any circuit solution that dissipates more than 5 W/in/sup 2/ and incorporates more than one packaging technology. There are a number of developments now used in manufacturing power hybrids, and a key one is direct-bonded-copper isolation-substrate technology. The author describes this technique as well as heavy wire bonding and other techniques. The mixing of packaging technologies is discussed and the application of power hybrids to power supplies and uninterruptible power supplies is described.


The paper discusses the innotation of real estate price stabability, analysizes the important supply and demand force from the angle of market attendant, and finally gives the concrete institution supply.


Political culture in transforming West-European Nations seems to be increasingly influenced by "Politikverdrossenheit" and "anomia". The empirical analyses presented in this article focus on diffuse or generalized political support. Presently, some structural locations of the respondents inverstigated seem to have hardly any influence on diffuse political support. On the other hand, some assumptions about a straightforward, linear decline of political support have to be qualified according to findings about economic and electoral cycles. A moderate restrengthening of diffuse and diffuse-specific political support which has taken place between 1993 and 1995 has been underestimated by some authors yet. In several aspects, Eastern Germany still shows relatively low degrees of generalized satisfaction, but some other nations in Western Europe are indicating even larger degrees of simple 'political alienation' or critical self-expression towards governmental institutions and democracy. ZA-Information 39 95


We characterize that the image of the embedding of the Q‐polynomial association scheme into the first eigenspace by primitive idempotent E1 is a spherical t‐design in terms of the Krein numbers. Furthermore, we show that the strengths of P‐ and Q‐polynomial schemes as spherical designs are bounded by a constant. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 19:167‐177, 2011


The majority of methods of severe plastic deformation (SPD) used for producing ultra-fine grained (UFG) and nano materials involve the non-uniform distribution of strains in the workpiece. To make the refinement of grains uniform, interlinked operations are used in which either the orientation of the workpiece or the type of SPD is changed in some sequence. Each operation has its own set of control parameters affecting the output result. As a result, the optimization of the total chain of operations becomes very difficult, especially taking into account that each stage of material processing comes from the previous one with a certain non-uniformity of the structure. To deal with such types of problems the capability of tracing the transformation of the microstructure and accounting for its effect on mechanical properties in finite element modeling (FEM) is required. There are a number of detailed physical models of grain refinement and texture formation, but very often they are too complicated for practical engineering simulations. The mechanics of SPD are also studied and simulated in many works, but normally it is assumed that material is uniform, isotropic and its properties don't change during deformation. In this paper a microstructurally-coupled FE model of the SPD process is proposed. The question of selection and verification of macroscopic and microscopic constitutive relations is discussed. The results of a simulation made in QForm are analyzed and compared with some initial experimental data.


The implementation of computer based systems (CBSs) is commonly guided by constraints imposed by the particular domain of the CBS. Domain-specific programming is a convenient way to provide a domain expert with a language that is customized to the particular constraints and assumptions of the domain.. The careful thought and design that precede the development of any domain-specific visual language restrict the programmer from illegal formalisms, and allow for the rapid determination of the validity of the "program". Usually, the domain-specific visual language is designed and produced using a metamodel of some sort. Occasionally, similar domains can benefit from models created according to the ontology of this original metamodel, but usually some amount of model-transformation is required to give validity of the transformed models. This paper presents a visual language for transforming domain-models that can express the mapping between the meta-models of the "input" (i.e. the "old" domain) and the "output" (i.e. the "new" domain), and uses graph-rewriting techniques to transform the "old" domain-models into the appropriate "new" form.


We present a case in which a complex brain anomaly was detected in a consanguineous patient in the second trimester. At 29 weeks, bilateral retinal nonattachment was detected on a follow-up sonogram. The combination of retinal nonattachment and a complex brain anomaly is pathognomonic for Walker-Warburg syndrome. In some cases of Walker-Warburg syndrome, molecular diagnosis is possible. A 17-year-old patient, gravida 1, was referred to our tertiary center fetal clinic at 23 weeks' gestation due to brain anomalies. The patient and her husband are first cousins, and there are many consanguineous marriages in their families. The medical history was unremarkable. The family history of the husband's mother included 3 pregnancy terminations due to fetal brain anomalies. Combined transabdominal and transvaginal multiplanar sonography at 23 weeks showed a single male fetus with severe triventricular hydrocephaly and a ruptured cavum septi pellucidi (Figure 1, A and B), a dysplastic, small, and upwardly rotated vermis (9.6 mm in craniocaudal diameter) lacking the typical fissures (Figure 1C), and abnormal sulcation with an underdeveloped sylvian fissure and parieto-occipital fissure, consistent with lissencephaly. The cerebellar hemispheres were of normal size. There were no extracranial abnormalities. Comparative microarray analysis results were normal, and many homozygote areas were found, as expected from the consanguinity status. The patient declined termination of pregnancy due to religious considerations. A follow-up sonogram at 29 weeks showed bilateral cone-shaped echogenic lines extending from both sides of the lens toward a single point at the posterior aspect of the ocular globe, representing retinal nonattachment (Figure 1D). A diagnosis of WalkerWarburg syndrome was suggested. Fetal magnetic resonance imaging was not offered, as it would not have affected case management. On retrospective examination of the 23-week images, retinal nonattachment was not evident at that time. An elective cesarean delivery was performed at 37 weeks due to severe macrocrania. Physical examination of the neonate was remarkable for a tense fontanel, low-set ears, general hypotonia with limb hypertonicity, a small left parietal cephalocele, and a head circumference of 43 cm. Neonatal brain magnetic resonance imaging on day 7 was remarkable for an aqueductal obstruction, severe hydrocephalus with a ruptured cavum septi pellucidi, type 2 lissencephaly, cerebellovermian hypoplasia, a Z-shaped, kinked brain stem, and a small left parietal cephalocele. On ophthalmic examination, bilateral total retinal nonattachment was observed. The findings were consistent with Walker-Warburg syndrome. The infant was discharged home at the age of 2 months with a feeding gastrostomy and ventriculoperitoneal shunt. A genetic workup comparing DNA of this infant and DNA from the other malformed fetuses in the family was initiated; its results were pending at the time of submission. Walker-Warburg syndrome1 is a genetically heterogeneous autosomal recessive disorder with brain and eye malformations, profound mental retardation, congenital muscular dystrophy, and early death. It has been estimated that mutations in the POMT1 (protein-O-mannosyltransferase 1) gene in the 9q34 chromosome region account for approximately 20% of cases.2 The phenotype commonly includes lissencephaly, cerebellar malformations, hydrocephalus, hypoplasia of cerebral midline structures, and


Objective: The objective of this study was to develop a simple, efficient, specific, precise and accurate Reverse phase High Performance liquid chromatographic method for the simultaneous estimation of Metformin Hydrochloride (MET) and Gliclazide (GLZ) in bulk drugs and combined dosage form. Methods: The separation method was carried out using reverse phase C18 column; Inertsil ODS – 3V (250 mm x 4.6 mm x 5μm). The mobile phase used was a mixture of Phosphate buffer (1.625 gm of Potassium Di Hydrogen Ortho Phosphate and 0.3 gm of Di Potassium Hydrogen Ortho Phosphate in 550 ml water); pH 4.8 and Acetonitrile in the ratio of 55:45 (v/v) at isocratic mode and eluents were monitored at 234 nm using UVVisible spectrophotometer as the detector. Results: With the optimized method, the retention times of MET and GLZ were found to be 2.420 and 4.270 respectively with theoretical plate count and asymmetry as per the ICH limits. The method has shown a good linearity in the concentration range of 60-140µg/ml for Metformin and 38µg/ml for Gliclazide with Regression coefficient (R2) of 0.9956 and 0.9981. The percentage assays were found to be 99.66% and 100.56% respectively for MET and GLZ. Limit of detection and Limit of quantitation values were found to be 1.51µg/ml and 4.59µg/ml for Metformin Hydrochloride, 0.02µg/ml and 0.07µg/ml for Gliclazide respectively. The method was found to be accurate (with percentage mean recoveries 100.141% for Metformin HCl and 100.223% for Gliclazide), precise, robust, stable and specific. Conclusion: The proposed method was validated in accordance with ICH guidelines and hence can be successfully applied to the simultaneous estimation of MET and GLZ in tablet formulations.


Experimental studies on the sterility of the potato plant have beenl hitherto undertaken by many authors. Front the results of these investigations Aye are generally inclined nun to believe that it is neither connected with the hybrid nature of the plant nor the nutritive correlation within its body, but rather due to environmental conditions or certain special nature of the plant itself). Inthe present investigation the writer has eonfirined cytologically that such influence ofthe environment upon the fertility of this plant c ;usists mainly in temperature. The varieties of the potato plant used in the preset t work are as follows : Gratiola,* Parnassia,* Pirola,* Iarschal Hindenburg.* Z)eodara,* Tuno,* Belladonna,* Pepo*, Snow Flake, Green M4 uiitain, American Fonder , Rural New Yorker, Michigan, Burhunk's Seedling, Xemuro1M urasaki and Ekishira u. Among these, varieties seed tubers of those with ail* were Imported in this country from. Germany a, few years ngo. The materials were taken from the plants which were ascertained not to have been attacked by the mosaic diseasein the previous and those years wlien t1w investi


Objective To explore the effect of Echinococcus multilocularis protoscoleces on the activation of host hepatocyte MAPK(mitogen-activated protein kinase) signaling pathways.Methods BRL3A rat hepatocytes and HepG2 human hepatocellular liver carcinoma cells were dispensed into 25 cm2 culture flasks for co-culturing.The experimental group(treated with protoscoleces): BRL3A or HepG2 cells incubated with almost 3 000 protoscoleces for 12,24,48,72,96 and 120 h.The experimental group(treated with U0126): BRL3A or HepG2 cells were pretreated with 20 μmol/L U0126 for 3 h and then infected with E.multilocularis.The cells were harvested 12,24,48,72 96 and 120 h postinfection and subjected to Western blot.Results As a result of co-culturing with BRL3A,the expression of p-ERK significantly increased at 48 h(P0.05) and the expression of p-JNK and p-p38 increased slightly at 12,24,and 48 h according to Western blot.As a result of co-culturing with HepG2,the expression of p-ERK significantly increased at 72 and 96 h while the expression of p-JNK and p-p38 did not change.The expression of p-ERK was inhibited by treatment with U0126.Conclusion E.multilocularis protoscolex-derived cytokines and hormones such as EmIns,EmBMP1/2,EmAct,and egfd may bind to corresponding host hepatocyte receptors,thus affecting the activation of MAPK signaling pathways in vitro.


Objective: To evaluate the hypothesis that muscle metabolism produces during exercise recovery a lasting vasoconstriction. Design and Method: 22 hypertensive subjects (male, age 58.4 sd 6.6) not taking any medication at least 1 week, with at basal level SBP 162 mmHg sd 15, DBP 92 mmHg sd 9, HR 78 bpm sd 11, SV 65 ml sd 8, underwent exercise test until maximal theoretical work (150 W sd 15) attained in 10 min sd 1. Using Finometer (Finameter, Nederland) we measured Blood Pressure, Heart Rate and Stroke Volume beat to beat, also by QuarkB2 (Cosmed, Italy) we analysed VO2, VCO2, Breath Rate and Tidal Volume. We calculate off-line RR intervals and Diastolic BP variability to obtain in frequency domain, by detrended autoregressive spectrum, the ratio LowFrequency (0.04–0.15 Hz) HighFrequency (0.15–0.4 Hz), or sympathetic-vagal balance (LF/HF) at basal level, at peak exercise, at 1 min and at 4 min recovery. We calculate the exponential equation of oxygen debt and time constant (tau). Results: We find during recovery a dissociation between heart rate reduction (-30% sd 5% at 1 min) and pressure lowering (-8% sd 3% of Mean BP); a negative correlation between Mean BP at peak and VO2 max (R = - 0.49 p = 0.02); a positive correlation between Total Peripheral Resistance at 1 min recovery and oxygen debt (R = 0.55 p = 0.01); a positive correlation between LF/HF diastolic BP at 1 min recovery and oxygen debt (R = 0.62 p = 0.002); a positive correlation between LF/HF diastolic BP at 4 min recovery and oxygen debt (R = 0.58 p = 0.005); a positive correlation between Mean BP at peak and tau (R = 0.68 p = 0.001). Heart rate variability during recovery is not related with oxygen debt. Conclusion: We hypothesize that in hypertensive subjects the muscular metabolism during isotonic exercise affects the peripheral vasoconstriction through acidosis. Sympathetic-vagal balance is useful parameter to evaluate the splitting heart rate and blood pressure effects at recovery.


The ability to influence the temporal shape of short optical pulses1 provides access to many promising applications. For instance, high capacity optical fiber communication systems based on a wavelet decomposition of the available time-bandwidth product rely on a specific shape of the optical wavelets2.


In this paper, the surface condition of a pseudomorphic two-dimensional (2D) GaN layer, grown on the surface of an AlN/Al2 O3 heterostructure, before and after ammonia flow switch-off/on cycles has been investigated by analyzing it using Atomic Force Microscopy with Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy. It is experimentally shown that after 5 cycles the GaN layer morphology is a smooth surface with three dimensional (3D) GaN islands lying on it. The smooth layer is "frozen" and does not transform into 3D islands after switching off the ammonia flow. It is also found that the 2D morphology of the original GaN layer is not fully restored after ammonia turn off/on cycles. The experimental results have been explained according to the formerly proposed theoretical model. Thus, the presence of a "frozen" GaN layer is explained by the transition of ammonia fragments (excluding hydrogen) to "tightly bound" states on its surface. The incomplete reversibility is due to the inhibition of material diffusion from the 3D GaN islands by the particles in the "tightly bound" positions.


Median cleft of lower lip and mandible is a rare anomaly. This Cleft has also been described as Cleft No. 30 of Tessier's classification. In minor forms only lower lip is cleft. Frequently, the cleft extends into the mandibular symphysis and the tongue is attached to the cleft alveolar margin. At times the tongue may be bifid or absent, hyoid absent, thyroid cartilage underdeveloped, strap muscles atrophic, manubrium sterni absent, clavicles widely spaced etc. The earliest report of this anomaly was by Couronne' in 1819. Since then very few cases have been reported in literature with variations. We describe a male child who presented at the age of 6 months with an ectopic salivary gland on the dorsum of the tongue in addition to median cleft of lower lip, ankyloglossia and notching of the mandible. Excision of mass on dorsum of tongue, release of ankyloglossia and lip from the alveolus followed by repair was done. No bony work was done since the mandible was only notched. On post-operative follow-up at 18 months, dentition was delayed in both maxillary as well as mandibular teeth and there was a gap between the lower central incisors. At the age of 2 years 4 months, the dentition is still not complete and the gap between the lower central incisors is very apparent. There is a supernumerary upper central incisor on right side. There is no mobility between the two segments of mandible. Speech is normal. A regular follow-up will be done to study the eruption of permanent central incisors at the age of 7 years and till eruption of all permanent teeth to assess the occlusion and to decide whether any bony work is needed or not.


Along the federal roads of the Rostov region, Krasnodar Territory and the Stavropol Territory, it is increasingly possible to find clean plantations consisting of one or two tree species, with a completely destroyed bush belt. In 62 % of the plots studied, the shrub belt is represented by species of scumpia (Cotinus coggygria, 17 %), terna (Prunus spinosa, 9 %), elm (Ulmus parvifolia, 5 %), maple (Acer tataricum, 3 %), that is, resistant to anthropogenic and climatic factors steppe The bush belt in protective roadside strips plays a significant role in the accumulation of soil moisture (by 6.3 %), humus (by 2.4 %), in reducing the noise load (by 25 dB). Ancestral and overband shrubs make it possible to create a dense structure of forest strips, which fully performs protective functions both from drifts of the highway bed with snow, and to reduce the negative impact of vehicles on adjacent landscapes. The study of the phytomeliorative role of the shrub belt in existing roadside plantations is a relevant area of research for the further development of recommendations for the creation and maintenance of protective roadside plantings in the steppe zone of southern Russia.


Aldophosphamide semicarbazone was synthesized from 4-hydroxycyclophosphamide and characterized by infrared and proton magnetic resonance analysis. The synthetic specimen was shown to be identical, by thin-layer chromatographic comparison in four solvent systems, to an alkylating semicarbazone derivative of an aldehyde produced in a model oxygenase system. The structural identification of aldophosphamide semicarbazone and its identity with the product from cyclophosphamide in a model oxygenase system provides direct evidence for the intermediacy of aldophosphamide in the major metabolic pathway of cyclophosphamide.


As the title denotes, I suggest we think differently about family business succession. I propose to rethink succession from a problem to a practice. This means that succession is not a problem to s ...


In this paper, it is introduced that M20 double berth steering room has been successfully developed base on the existing M20 steering room of LZ11001 truck. Sectional joint welding has been employed to heighten the top cover so as to enlarge the space of the steering room, which breaks through the conventional structure of die forming a complete steel sheet. Thus, solving the problem of requirements of double berth in steering room for long distance transportation.