Despite recent efforts to elucidate the regulation of stomatal movement, many components within the branched pathways of guard cell abscisic acid (ABA) signaling remain to be identified. Here, we show results supporting the involvement of nitric oxide (NO) as a new component of this signaling pathway. NO is a short life bioactive molecule first described as a toxic compound, but now recognized to be an important signal and effector molecule both in animal and plant cell physiology. Even though NO research in plants is not as advanced as in animals, in the last decade NO was proved to participate in many key physiological processes such as growth, pathogen defense reaction, development, programmed cell death, and stress tolerance (Foissner et al., 2000; Pedroso et al., 2000; Beligni and Lamattina, 2001a). In plants, as in animals, NO was proved to interact with other signaling elements such as cADPR, lipids, cGMP, ion channels, Ca , and others. In addition, much evidence is appearing lately about cross talk between NO and some plant hormones during adaptive responses to adverse conditions (Hausladen and Stamler, 1998; Durner and Klessig, 1999; Jacob et al., 1999; Beligni and Lamattina, 2001b; Wendehenne et al., 2001). Furthermore, it is now becoming clear that a network constituted at many levels is operating during plant responses to stress stimulus (Knight and Knight, 2001). ABA is one of the most studied phytohormones due to its key participation in different physiological events throughout the whole plant cycle. Under drought stress conditions, ABA accumulates in leaf tissue, generating a net loss of guard cell turgor that led to stomatal closure, thus reducing transpirational water loss. ABA-induced stomatal closure involves a net increase in guard cell cytoplasmic Ca concentrations. Furthermore, cADPR, ryanodine receptors, and phospholipases C and D have been also involved as second messengers in this signaling pathway (MacRobbie, 1998; Jacob et al., 1999; Sanders et al., 1999; Schroeder et al., 2001b). Even though NO was recently reported to induce stomatal closure in Vicia fava epidermal strips, there is no information about how NO induces this response (Garcı́a Mata and Lamattina, 2001). In this work, we provide strong evidence on the existence of an NO-mediated action in ABA-dependent stomatal closure. V. fava epidermal strips were treated with increasing concentrations of ABA in the presence of increasing concentrations of the NO releaser sodium nitroprusside (SNP). As expected, both ABA and SNP induced stomatal closure in a dose-dependent manner. However, at the higher concentration assayed (1 and 10 m ABA; 10 and 100 m SNP), the stomatal closure percentage of the combined treatment was significantly lower than in those experiments done with either ABA or SNP alone (Fig. 1). The synergism observed between ABA and NO may reflect two weak signals in the same pathway that augment each other. Thus, small and rapid changes in both ABA and NO concentrations can determine variations in percentages of stomatal closure and probably explain the spatial and temporal heterogeneity in stomatal behavior, as has been already described (Mott and Buckley, 2000). Although this assay presented an evidence of a putative ABA-NO interaction, to test if endogenous NO also takes part of the ABA signaling pathway, we tested the effect of the specific NO scavenger 2-(4carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl3-oxide (c-PTIO) on the ABA-induced stomatal closure. Figure 2A shows that in the presence of c-PTIO, the percentage of open stomata remained constant through all the tested ABA concentrations, showing that the guard cells were not responding to ABA treatment. The difference in the pore width between ABA treatment in the presence or absence of c-PTIO can be clearly observed under an optical microscope (Fig. 2B). In addition, when 200 m SNP was added after the ABA c-PTIO treatment, the stomatal closure was induced again, showing that the c-PTIO-mediated inhibition of ABA-induced stomatal closure is reversible (Fig. 2A, inset). All together, these data suggest that NO might be acting downstream of the ABA-induced signaling cascade. Given the cross talk between ABA and NO, we wanted to know the variations of endogenous NO during the ABA-induced stomatal closure. With that aim, epidermal strips were loaded with the permeable NO sensitive fluorophore 4,5-diaminofluorescein diacetate (DAF-2 DA), which allows the 1 This work was supported by Agencia Nacional de Promoción Cientı́fica y Tecnológica (grant no. PICT 1– 6496 –99 to L.L.), by Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientı́ficas y Técnicas (grant no. PIP 0898/98 to L.L.), and by institutional grants from Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (Argentina). * Corresponding author; e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com; fax 54 – 223– 475–3150. www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/doi/10.1104/pp.011020.


This paper examines the effect of race, context, and white public space on the extent to which speakers articulate, hyperarticulate, hypo-articulate, or glottalize word-final English alveolar stops -/t/ and -/d/ in the controlled environment of the quadrennial US Presidential Inaugural Prayer. It shows that African-American speakers hyperarticulated and articulated /t,d/ more frequently than the white speaker, who hypo-articulated and glottalized /t,d/ consistently, especially on words like God, Lord, and Christ. These results suggest that the highly formal context required African-American speakers to perform /t,d/ to index themselves as authorities to an unfamiliar, white audience, while the white speaker did not consider race to influence listeners' judgements of him, allowing him to index familiarity and trustworthiness.


Pedestrian detection is a popular research topic from the last decade. Most of the pedestrian identification models are based on face recognition algorithms. It is a difficult task to detect and track individual pedestrians based on these algorithms because there is a compulsion that their faces should be towards the camera. This limitation makes face recognition algorithms inefficient to detect pedestrians from the backsides. In this paper, we proposed a method for pedestrian detection using marker recognition. Multiple pedestrians are detected and then tracked based on markers attached to their backsides. Attaching markers on back-side of pedestrians helps to recognize them even when they are looking the other way. After the marker is recognized, the unique character related to that marker is displayed as a 3D object. This marker-based pedestrian detection is carried out using a mobile phone system and can be applied to embedded systems. The proposed method makes it possible to recognize up to three pedestrians located at different positions from the camera.


We experimentally study THz energy coupling among an array of identical parallel-plate waveguides in close proximity, with their unconfined sides facing each other. We observe stronger coupling with larger plate separations and longer propagation paths.


Objective:To study the criterion in ultrasound diagnosis and the natural course of fetal hydronephrosis.Methods: Renal ultrasound was performed in 3000 fetal,criterion for diagnosis of hydronephrosis was a renal pelvis with an anterior-Posterior diameter(AP)greater than or equal 6mm.The fetal were classified Into 4 groups according to the grade of hydronephrosis and were followed up regularly for at least l year.Group Ⅰ:only renal pelvis dilatation,6~10mm;Group Ⅱ:only renal pelvis dilatation,10mmAP15mm;Group Ⅲ:renal pelvis and calyoes dilatation,AP15mm;Group IV:renal pelvis and calyoes dilatation,15mmAP.Results: In group,all cases of hydronephrosis resolved;In groupⅡ,hydronephrosis resolved in 8 cases,relieved in 1 case;In GroupⅢ,hydronephrosis relieved in 2 case,unchanged in 1 case;In Group IV,hydronephrosis relieved in 1case,unchanged In 1 case,worsed in 1 case.Conclusions : For fetal hydronephrosis with an AP less than or equal 15mm,without calyoes dilatation,the hydronephrosis is relatively a benign condition.Most of them could disappear spontaneously.If hydronephrosis with calyoes dilatation,and 10mmAP≤15mm,the hydronephrosis may remain stabilized or unchanged,close follow-up is warranted.For fetal hydronephrosis with AP greater than 15mm,gestation should be stopped.


Helvine-group minerals have characteristic chemical compositions and textures and occur in different environments within magmatic–hydrothermal deposits. However, their origin is still unclear. There are several quartz-vein beryllium deposits with different element assemblages existing in southeastern China; these include the Dawan Be-Mo, Qidushan Be-Zn-Sn, and Taoxikeng Be-W deposits. We present the chemical composition of helvine-group minerals analyzed by electron probe microanalysis and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, in addition to zircon sensitive high-mass-resolution ion microprobe U-Pb and cassiterite laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry U-Pb ages. The zircon and cassiterite U-Pb data indicate that the Qidushan deposit formed during the Late Cretaceous (127–132 Ma). The electron probe microanalysis data show that the helvine-group minerals from the three deposits are helvine and/or danalite. A wide variety of different trace elements display high concentrations in the different deposits [e.g., helvine-group minerals from the Dawan deposit are rich in Li, B, Sc, V, Ga, Y, Sn, Cs, Th, and U; those from the Qidushan deposit are rich in Sc, Cd, and Sn; whereas those from the Taoxikeng deposit are rich in Y, Cd, Sn, Ta, and total rare-earth elements (ΣREE). The material analyzed from the Dawan deposit has the highest concentrations of Li (28.03–134.96 ppm), Sn (126.01–709.24 ppm), Sc (108.10–287.64 ppm), Cs (0–37.24 ppm), Th (4.78–112.63 ppm), and U (0.79–4.13 ppm). The material analyzed from the Taoxikeng deposit has the highest concentrations of Y (594.95–899.95 ppm), Cd (22.63–25.21 ppm), Ta (0.41–0.86 ppm), and ΣREE (281.69–451.79 ppm). However, those from the Qidushan deposit have the lowest concentrations of Y (10.21–37.70 ppm), Sn (0–26.88 ppm), U (0–19.06 ppm), Eu (0–0.14 ppm), and Cs (being below the detection limit). All of them are rich in heavy REEs but poor in light REEs, with distinctive REE patterns. Our results reveal that both crystallographic substitution and fluid composition control the enrichment of trace elements in helvine-group minerals. The textures and trace element compositions of helvine-group minerals can represent various parageneses and ore-forming fluid compositions. We propose that the δEu values and (La/Yb)N ratios can be used as markers to discriminate the genesis of helvine-group mineral precipitated from different environments based on the chemical compositions and the origin of ore-forming fluids.


Objective: As a traditional medicinal plant listed in the Chinese Pharmacopeia, Physalis alkekengi L. var. franchetii (Mast.) Makino (PAF) has a long medicinal history and high economic value. PAF has immunomodulatory properties and can be used to treat acute lung injury and eczema. The aim of this study is to solve the problems of extraction and purification of active components from PAF. Materials and Methods: The solvent to be used for extraction and its concentration, the solid-to-liquid ratio, and extraction duration were investigated using a single-factor experiment. An orthogonal design (L9[34]) was used to determine the optimum extraction conditions. After optimization, the sample's concentrations and flow velocity, the eluents and their velocity, adsorption time, and the removed water volume were measured. The content of the five steroids in the sample was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). We also investigated the anti-inflammatory property of PAF calyxes before and after purification. Results: The optimum extraction and purification processes were determined by single-factor analysis. AB-8 was identified as the best macroporous adsorption resin for enrichment. After optimization, the average total steroid content was 71.83%, and the average recovery was 90% after purification. Among the five steroid components detected by HPLC, physalin F showed the highest content. Furthermore, the sample obtained after purification could significantly inhibit paw edema by egg whites induced. Conclusions: An environmentally-sustainable, efficient, and stable process was first optimized for enriching and purifying total steroids from PAF. The process has the potential for further development and utilization in the pharmaceutical industry.


The history of modern constitutions in South Korea began in 1948. According to the 9th constitutional revision of 1987 currently in force, the Korean people are the constituent power. Nevertheless, in the debate on constitutional reform that set in with democratisation in 1987 the will of the people plays only a minor role. Instead the political elites on purpose stir up debates on constitutional reform as a political gimmick to improve their public standing. One wonders what significance the constitution as such has for Korean politicians. Therefore, in this paper, largely on the basis of reports in the mass media, the topography of the political discourses on constitutional reform during the period 2005-11 is presented. It is shown that traditional and authoritarian traits are still prevalent (of paramount importance) among the political elites. In traditional Korean society the monarch and the political elite established their rule by imposing laws on their subjects. For the South Korean authoritarian rulers before 1987 the constitution was a means to secure and prolong their power. This traditional mode of elitist thinking formed during the authoritarian past is the most fundamental problem and obstacle in the present debate on constitutional reform in South Korea.


In this paper, a thermal management concept for future intercity and long-distance vehicles is described in which the waste heat from a fuel cell system was being used for heating the cabin inlet air. To this end, various waste heat utilization concepts are created with different location of heat-exchanges and PTC-heaters and then modeled in the simulation environment Modelica/Dymola. From the obtained simulation results, a suitable waste heat utilization concept is examined in the entire vehicle.


followed the perforation, anid the child became rather blanched. There seenmed to ie a Iew slight and transient convulsive movements of the f.ace anid clenchini of the hands. No compression wvas employed this time, but merely cold applied, and three grains of grey powder ordered every night. The child was again brought to the Hospital four days after the second puncture. The head had not enlarged to the same extent! as before. The child had not been so drowsy, but was rather restless. The appearance was much more animated. The dose of grey powder was increased. Ten days more elapsed before the child was again brought to the Hospital. The motlher stated, that during that tirme the child had continue,dTt to improve in health, and had shown more animation. Tiie head continued of about the same size as before. Not having seen or heard of the child for three weeks after this, Mr. (hippendale proceeded to inquire at the mother's residence; but unfortunately the family had left a short time before, fAnd the landlord was unable to infornm him where they had gone. He learned, however, that the baby had died about ten days previously, apparently from iinnutrition; that the head and naot, in his opmion,increased in size, and that there had been no convulsions.


In this letter, a novel index modulation multiple access (IMMA) scheme is proposed in the quasi-static MIMO channel. In the proposed scheme, the transmit information bits are divided into two parts, IMMA bits and coded bits. The IMMA bits are employed to select the active compressed sensing codeword transmitted in the first phase, and determine the IMMA pattern. The encoding bits are LDPC encoded, modulated, and transmitted in the second phase through IMMA. In the multiuser detection, the IMMA patterns and active channels are first estimated by approximate message passing (MP) algorithm. Then, the encoding bits are decoded by MP algorithm based on the joint LDPC and IMMA factor graph. Finally, computer simulations are given to demonstrate the performance of the proposed scheme.


Abstract This study copes with the problem of ventilation in existing educational environments in terms of indoor air quality (AIQ), comfort and energy consumption. In accordance with international regulations, densely occupied environments such as school classrooms need high air change rates in order to provide sufficient fresh air. Nevertheless, in Italian schools, it is rare to see mechanical ventilation systems or natural systems that are mechanically controlled. This means that it is necessary for the users to control air changes by opening or closing the windows. This aspect often causes discomfort and bad air quality, as well as high energy consumption. This paper presents the experimental results of a monitoring session held in an occupied classroom of the high school ITIS V. Volterra in Ancona, Italy, in winter 2009. Various ventilation strategies were implemented, and performance measured in terms of indoor air quality and environmental comfort. Monitoring included questionnaire assessments. Comparisons were also made with IAQ regulations and energy consumption. Optimised solutions are suggested.


Since Graphplan was proposed, intelligent planning has become a research focus in AI. This paper provides a new algorithm that extends Least Committed Graphplan to handling conditional effects. Different from the previous work on it, we employ the sub-mutex relations between action components, which makes the construction of planning graph much faster. In addition, we distinguish brotherhood components and non-brotherhood components, and treat them respectively during solution extraction, in which efficiency of plan synthesis can be improved greatly. The algorithm can find the valid plan just as Graphplan can do, and the problems handled by the algorithm are more than those of Graphplan. Moreover, because of wide application of intelligent planning, our research is very helpful to the development of robotology, natural language understanding, intelligent agent and so on.


After the electrical switching operation under load (charge) who were elevated temperature since the arc and corrosion and wear, its function falls below the allowable limit, the need to replace the electrical contacts. Or some trace elements mixture (18) is inserted to a depth represents the position of wear or corrosion of contacts need to be replaced. When exposed due to wear or corrosion of these trace elements (18) are released into the oil surrounding the contacts, or other media, thereby indicating excessive wear. Or once a preselected temperature has been reached, i.e. the release of a number of indicator material into the surrounding medium from the surface of the one or more switching elements.


The invention relates to an ignition mechanism of a barbecue oven. The ignition mechanism comprises a sealed air inlet duct formed by a plurality of baffles in a surrounded mode. A combustion oven body is arranged at one end of the air inlet duct, and the other end of the air inlet duct is connected with a mounting cavity in a sealed mode. An air inlet mechanism is arranged in the mounting cavity, and air inlets communicating with the air inlet duct are formed in the peripheral face of the combustion oven body. Air generated in the rotating process of blades of the ignition mechanism of the barbecue oven enters the air inlet duct and enters the combustion oven body from the air inlets, oxygen needed by combustion of fuel in the combustion oven body is provided, and therefore the combustion degree of the fuel in the combustion oven body is controlled, and the purpose of controlling the combustion temperature is achieved.


AI is becoming increasingly important in cybersecurity. AI-based products detect risks and secure systems and data. Cybercriminals can use technology to launch more sophisticated attacks. AI-based security is in demand due to cyberattacks. With the adoption of AI technology, GDPR requires most countries to have legal measures to protect their citizens' data and privacy. Data protection and privacy issues arise when using AI technology. AI use must comply with GDPR, including obtaining consent for data processing, ensuring data accuracy, and giving individuals the right to access, correct, or delete their data. Organisations must also be transparent about how their AI makes decisions and not discriminate against individuals or groups. This study examines Malaysia's GDPR compliance on AI usage, data protection, and privacy in light of current concerns. This study analyses primary and secondary sources using doctrinal research. In 2022, Malaysia's banking, healthcare, and telecommunications sectors were hit by data breaches, indicating that AI is increasing data breaches. Thus, the government must examine citizen data protection and privacy concerns and re-examine its governance, including legal and regulatory mechanisms, to see if it conforms to international norms and consider reforms.


The Iranian species of the genus Holopyga (Hymenoptera: Chrysididae) were investigated. Specimens were collected during four years of field research between 2010 and 2013, in northern and southern provinces of Iran. Twenty one species and subspecies were recognized, of which four species and one subspecies were recorded for the first time from Iran: Holopyga beaumonti Balthasar, 1953; H. fascialis Linsenmaier, 1959; H. ignicollis Dahlbom, 1854; H. inflammata inflammata (Förster, 1853) and H. jurinei Chevrier, 1862. Geographical distribution of all species and morphological diagnostic characteristics of the newly recorded species are given. The number of Holopyga species and subspecies in Iran is now raised to 21.


Abstract. Improvements in our capability to reconstruct ancient
surface-ocean conditions based on organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst
(dinocyst) assemblages from the Southern Ocean provide an opportunity to
better establish past position, strength and oceanography of the subtropical
front (STF). Here, we aim to reconstruct the late Eocene to early Miocene
(37–20 Ma) depositional and palaeoceanographic history of the STF in the
context of the evolving Tasmanian Gateway as well as the potential influence of
Antarctic circumpolar flow and intense waxing and waning of ice. We approach
this by combining information from seismic lines (revisiting
existing data and generating new marine palynological data from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Hole 1168A)
in the western Tasmanian continental slope. We apply improved taxonomic
insights and palaeoecological models to reconstruct the sea surface
palaeoenvironmental evolution. Late Eocene–early Oligocene (37–30.5 Ma)
assemblages show a progressive transition from dominant terrestrial
palynomorphs and inner-neritic dinocyst taxa as well as cysts produced by
heterotrophic dinoflagellates to predominantly outer-neritic/oceanic
autotrophic taxa. This transition reflects the progressive deepening of the
western Tasmanian continental margin, an interpretation supported by our new
seismic investigations. The dominance of autotrophic species like Spiniferites spp. and
Operculodinium spp. reflects relatively oligotrophic conditions, like those of regions
north of the modern-day STF. The increased abundance in the earliest Miocene
of Nematosphaeropsis labyrinthus, typical for modern subantarctic zone (frontal) conditions, indicates a
cooling and/or closer proximity of the STF to the site . The absence of
major shifts in dinocyst assemblages contrasts with other records in the region
and suggests that small changes in surface oceanographic conditions
occurred during the Oligocene. Despite the relatively southerly
(63–55∘ S) location of Site 1168, the rather stable oceanographic
conditions reflect the continued influence of the proto-Leeuwin Current
along the southern Australian coast as Australia continued to drift
northward. The relatively "warm" dinocyst assemblages at ODP Site 1168,
compared with the cold assemblages at Antarctic Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site U1356, testify to the
establishment of a pronounced latitudinal temperature gradient in the
Oligocene Southern Ocean.


This article introduces CREATOR, a new generic simulator for assembly programming, developed by the ARCOS group at the UC3M. CREATOR is a new, highly intuitive, and portable simulator that runs from a web browser (no installation needed). This simulator comes with the MIPS32 and RISC-V (32IMF) instruction set. Nevertheless, CREATOR allows, from the simulator itself, to edit and define other instruction sets (instructions, format, registers, etc.). Even more, CREATOR allows the definition of the parameter passing convention to be used in the instruction set. Once each particular instruction set (MIPS32, ARM, RISCV, etc.) has been defined, students can use CREATOR to edit, compile, execute and debug programs written in the associated assembler. The simulator also allows checking that the developed programs comply with the parameter passing convention defined for the instruction set. CREATOR lets us create subroutine libraries that can be loaded and linked to other assembly programs developed in the simulator. All CREATOR features allows teacher to design and deploy practical laboratories more adapted to the desired teaching goals. That improves the teaching experience of the assembly language frequently used in different subjects such as Computer Architecture or Computer Structure. The experience of its use has been very positive in the past courses for students and teachers in both the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and the Universidad Castilla la Mancha (UCLM).


The scope of Sustainable HCI research is expanding to include the broad sociotechnical and ecological contexts of computing. We examine the intersection of environmental sustainability, technology, and the law. By studying the legal dispute between a platform service that facilitates crowd-sourced waste disposal and the local government's regulation of waste management, we step through an evolving debate on the meaning of care and responsibility for the environment. When faced with the municipality's claimed monopoly on responsibility for waste management, the platform argues for the paradigms of individual responsibility, designing for user needs, and personalised and on-demand digital services. In arguing against this framing, the municipality highlights the gap between the law, its interpretation, and the idealistic values of technology-driven environmental care. We contribute to the framing of environmental care within Sustainable HCI as a locally constructed, regulated, and contested aspect of technology design and appropriation.


The combined effects of stress level and material cross-anisotropy should be considered when constructing failure criterion for cross-anisotropic soils. Test results for cross-anisotropic soils were analyzed. Based on the hypothesis that the smaller the angle between the SMP (spatially mobilized plane) and the depositional plane is, the lower the strength. The function of cross-anisotropic peak strength is proposed for cross-anisotropic soils. A transformed stress tensor is proposed as function of cross-anisotropic peak strength and stress tensor. In the transformed stress space, cross-anisotropic soils can be assumed as isotropic material. A three-dimensional cross-anisotropic failure criterion was proposed by combining the transformed stress tensor with the isotropic SMP failure criterion. The criterion is validated through comparisons with experimental data of cross-anisotropic Santa Monica Bench sand and San Francisco Bay Mud. The comparisons demonstrate that the proposed cross-anisotropic failure criterion can reasonably describe the effect of cross-anisotropy on soil strength.


Poly(1-oxotrimethylene) (ECO) was dissolved in an aqueous composite metal salt solution, and the ECO solution was heated at different temperatures and then used for wet spinning. Within a certain heating time, ECO fibers with a tenacity of 17.6 cN/dtex (2.3 GPa) or greater were successfully produced through hot drawing 16–17 times after drying. Over a certain heating time, however, the strength of the ECO fibers drastically decreased. A higher heating temperature shortened the heating time at which the drastic decrease in the maximum tenacity began. On the basis of ultraviolet measurements of the undrawn fibers, heating ECO in the aqueous composite metal salt solution promoted the thermal degradation of ECO because of aldol condensation or Paal–Knorr furan synthesis. The thermal degradation due to these intermolecular or intramolecular crosslinking reactions was resistant to the molecular orientation of ECO by the hot drawing of the undrawn fibers and reduced the strength of the ECO fibers by producing defects in the filament. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 100: 3358–3363, 2006


This article presents an original predictive strategy, based on a new mid-term forecasting model, to be used for trading physical electricity futures. The forecasting model is used to predict the average spot price, which is used to estimate the Risk Premium corresponding to electricity futures trade operations with a physical delivery. A feed-forward neural network trained with the extreme learning machine algorithm is used as the initial implementation of the forecasting model. The predictive strategy and the forecasting model only need information available from electricity derivatives and spot markets at the time of negotiation. In this paper, the predictive trading strategy has been applied successfully to the Iberian Electricity Market (MIBEL). The forecasting model was applied for the six types of maturities available for monthly futures in the MIBEL, from 1 to 6 months ahead. The forecasting model was trained with MIBEL price data corresponding to 44 months and the performances of the forecasting model and of the predictive strategy were tested with data corresponding to a further 12 months. Furthermore, a simpler forecasting model and three benchmark trading strategies are also presented and evaluated using the Risk Premium in the testing period, for comparative purposes. The results prove the advantages of the predictive strategy, even using the simpler forecasting model, which showed improvements over the conventional benchmark trading strategy, evincing an interesting hedging potential for electricity futures trading.


Primary Care is the doorway to the health system but there are barriers, which often block the access. Our goal was to assess the disease profile, the origin and the reasons why patients were sent to Outpatient Primary Care services. 252 patients have answered questionnaires on the following points: age, sex, place of residence, the reason and the cause for having been sent to this kind of treatment, conclusions and diagnostic results (ICPC2). Most of them were women between 45 and 64 years of age, 25% came from other cities. Most of them were sent to this kind of treatment from the Pedro Ernesto University Hospital (33%), but half of the patients did not undergo regular medical treatment. The most common diagnoses were circulatory and endocrinal-metabolic problems, which could have been cared for in the primary and secondary levels of health care. The results suggest disorganization of the health system in our city and state, especially as far as primary care is concerned, and shows the need for actions aimed at reorganizing the system in both, in the city and in the state of Rio de Janeiro.


Adolescent students have a strong desire for independence,like to act out of their own will. However,they are blind in thinking and behavior and will take obvious childish actions because of the age. As a head teacher,he or she needs to knowthe psychological characteristics of adolescent students and understand their abnormal behaviors;in class management,he or she needs to make analyses and research and use psychological techniques skillfully according to the children's psychological characteristics. Under their psychological guidance,students will achieve their educational purpose.


This paper presents a new method to automatically decompose general Mixed Integer Programs (MIPs). To do so, we represent the constraint matrix for a general MIP problem as a hypergraph and relax constraints by removing hyperedges from the hypergraph. A Breadth First Search algorithm is used to identify the individual partitions that now exist and the resulting decomposed problem. We propose that good decompositions have both a small number of constraints relaxed and small subproblems in terms of the number of variables they contain. We use the multiobjective Nondominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) to create decompositions which minimize both the size of the subproblems and the number of constraints relaxed. We show through our experiments the types of decompositions our approach generates and test empirically the effectiveness of these decompositions in producing bounds when used in a Lagrangian Relaxation framework. The results demonstrate that the bounds generated by our decompositions are significantly better than those attained by solving the Linear Programming relaxation, as well as the bounds found via random and greedy constraint relaxation and decomposition generation.


Historically-informed Performance Encounters Music Education and Examination: the Case of Vivaldi's RV 356 In the past decades, Historically Informed Performance (HIP) has had a strong impact on mainstream musical performance and, to some extent, on music education. At the same time, while there is plenty of early music in the performance tutorial literature and in examination syllabuses, the HIP elements reflected in these pieces are typically handled in different ways on stage and in recordings on the one hand, and in educational and examination contexts on the other. Should HIP concepts and practices be introduced at early stages of learning? In cases such as Vivaldi's Vivaldi's Violin Concerto in A Minor, RV 356, how did the work become popular in the tutorial literature and performance examinations, bearing in mind that the edition by Tivadar Nachéz (1859–1930) – widely-used in this area, often without any acknowledgment to him – heavily revised Vivaldi's original, turning it into a piece in an almost romantic style? What are the implications of the different editions of RV 356 that are included in today's performance tutors and examination syllabuses issued by ABRSM and other bodies such as the Central Conservatory and Shanghai Conservatory in China?


Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics,diagnosis and therapy of primary lymphoma in the small intestine.Methods:The clinical data of 6 cases with primary small intestine lymphoma from 1997 to 2012 were retrospectively studied,and the clinical features were summarized.At the same time a review of literature was made.Results:The main clinical features of these patients consisted of occult bleeding in digestive tract,mild abdominal pain,abdominal mass and gradual losing of body weight.However,the positive rate is lower.It play important role in support of the diagnosis of this disease for MSCT and MRE.The postoperative pathology of all the patients wasnon- Hodgkin's lymphoma,4 were B cell type,2 were T cell type.There were 4 cases with regional node metastases by pathologic examination.4 cases were maken surgical resection,2 were maken Chemotherapy,2 deaths.Conclusion:The effective inspection method can improve the preoperative diagnosis of small intestinal tumor,and reduce the incidence of the disease diagnosis.Operation treatment is the main method of the disease,after the surgery with chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment can improve the survival rate of patients.


The wider Central European region and the Czech lands have, as the proverbial "crossroads of European history", always been the subject of scholarly research by historians. Český historický atlas. Kapitoly z dějin 20. století [Czech Historical Atlas. Chapters from the History of the 20th Century], published in print in 2019, is yet another Czech historiographic publication in this vein, presenting selected historical events of the Czech lands and the wider related area in the 20th century. It is an important follow-up to the Akademický atlas českých dějin [Academic Atlas of Czech History], published in 2014. The new atlas follows the trend of making full use of the Internet, web services, HTML5 and other digital technologies in cartographic production. It is accompanied by a web map portal, work on which is an extension of the focus of the Czech Academy of Sciences' Institute of History. The aim of the portal is not to be an exhaustive encyclopaedia of historical events, but to provide a summary of interesting topics discussed within Czech historical research in the last few decades that have not yet been fully captured cartographically, as a number of new themes and especially new perspectives on history have appeared since the end of the communist era. This paper discusses the issue of transferring existing maps prepared for printed atlases into the web environment, including the design of the entire web portal containing map applications and other related content. It describes the basic steps of the transfer process and explores in detail the difficulties arising in it, especially the suitability and compatibility of the selected web technology. It also pays attention to the basic requirements of the electronic portal as such, the need to formalise the structure, and the presentation of historical information through a story, i.e. the need to link maps to other information. Technical solutions and related issues are the subject of the demonstration part of the paper, which also explores the content of the web atlas and its target audience. In general, web map portals seem to provide a trajectory along which historiographic maps are likely to develop in the future.


Background Parity increases the risk for coronary heart disease; however, its association with metabolic syndrome among women in low-income countries is still unknown. Objective This study investigates the association between parity or gravidity and metabolic syndrome in rural Bangladeshi women. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in 1,219 women aged 15–75 years from rural Bangladesh. Metabolic syndrome was defined according to the standard NCEP-ATP III criteria. Logistic regression was used to estimate the association between parity and gravidity and metabolic syndrome, with adjustment of potential confounding variables. Results Subjects with the highest gravidity (> = 4) had 1.66 times higher odds of having metabolic syndrome compared to those in the lowest gravidity (0-1) (P trend = 0.02). A similar association was found between parity and metabolic syndrome (P trend = 0.04), i.e., subjects in the highest parity (> = 4) had 1.65 times higher odds of having metabolic syndrome compared to those in the lowest parity (0-1). This positive association of parity and gravidity with metabolic syndrome was confined to pre-menopausal women (P trend <0.01). Among the components of metabolic syndrome only high blood pressure showed positive association with parity and gravidity (P trend = 0.01 and <0.001). Neither Parity nor gravidity was appreciably associated with other components of metabolic syndrome. Conclusions Multi parity or gravidity may be a risk factor for metabolic syndrome.


This chapter contains sections titled: Initial Drivers and Motivations, Research and Technology Development: From Experimental Actions to Mainstream Scheme?, A Libre Software Technology Strategy?, Information Technology for Administrations, Information Technology for Development and Social Inclusion, A Software and Information Commons Perspective on the Crisis of Intellectual Rights, Notes


Foamed materials in general, and aluminium foams in particular, demonstrate a number of interesting properties due to their porous structure, which makes them usable in a wide range of applications. The possibility of absorbing the energy is one of the most interesting properties of foams. The use of lightweight porous materials with high specific strength has attracted much interest in the transportation industry in order to improve safety. Recently, foamed aluminium has frequently been used in various absorbers of kinetic energy (buffers of automobiles, trains, trams). This paper studies the influence of reinforcement in the form of steel rods on compression behaviour of aluminium foams.


Peter J. Nürnberg is a Managing Partner of Xtructure, LLC, a company founded in 2002 to provide network modeling and simulation tools. He received his M.S. (1994) and Ph.D. (1997) in Computer Science at Texas A&M University, working on hypermedia and structural computing infrastructures. He spent two years at the University of Aarhus, Denmark, before moving to Aalborg University Esbjerg, Dennmark. He also spent one year at Graz University of Technology, Austria. He has served as Chair of SIGWEB (2003-2006), Program Chair of ACM Hypertext 2006, General Chair ACM Hypertext 2000 and of ACM Digital Libraries 2000, and an Associate Editor of ACM Transactions on the Web.


In this study, the optimization of the fractal-like architecture of porous fibrous materials related to permeability, diffusivity, and thermal conductivity was analyzed by applying the established theoretical models. It was observed that the ratio of dimensionless permeability over dimensionless effective diffusivity decreased with the decrease of porosity and tortuosity fractal dimension, respectively, which implied that lower porosity and tortuosity fractal dimension were beneficial to wind/water resistant fabric, as it reduced the ratio of dimensionless permeability over dimensionless effective diffusivity. Besides, it was found that the ratio of the dimensionless total effective thermal conductivity over dimensionless effective diffusivity increased with tortuosity fractal dimension, which implied lower tortuosity fractal dimension was beneficial to clothing insulation, as it reduced the ratio of dimensionless total effective thermal conductivity over dimensionless effective diffusivity. The optimization results indicated that fabrics with more aligned fibers were preferred for protective clothing, as the low tortuosity fractal dimension implied fibers in the fibrous materials should be more aligned.


A medium-sized coffinfish, 183 mm total length and 170 g body weight, Chaunax pictus Lowe 1846, a species previously unrecorded in the Mediterranean Sea, has been trawled recently on deep-sea red shrimp grounds near the Sentinelle Bank (off the Algerian coast, central Mediterranean Sea).


The main causes of eroding blast furnace gas transport pipe by the dry dusting process are acidic liquid made from chlorion,coal gas temperature.The solutions are given,for example,use of the dechloridizing process,installation of atomizer and cyclone dust collector.


Nitrogen and hydrogen absorptions have been carried out in order to discuss the influence of interstitial atoms on the magnetovolume effects for the La(FexAl1−x)13 (x=0.83 and 0.86) compounds. The average magnetic hyperfine field and the Curie temperature TC of nitrides are lower than that of hydrides. The volume expansion due to the nitrogen absorption is about twice that due to the hydrogen absorption. Comparing the change in TC of the nitrides with that of hydrides and the pressure effect on TC, the hybridization between the Fe 3d and N 2p orbital should be taken into consideration in the lower TC of nitrides.


Automation has widespread applications and uses in industries and is gradually finding its way into our daily lives. One of the implementations of automation is in an automated path planning system, which is still being extensively researched. The system can plan a path from a starting point while detecting its surroundings to navigate to the endpoint given to it. The prime example of automatic path planning that is being heavily researched and invested in is automated cars, where a car can be driven on the road without a human driver. In this paper, we aim to show our work in creating a bot that uses the A* algorithm to create an automated path planning robot. We have prepared a bot that is programmed to be able to move in a path free of collision in an environment of dynamic obstacles, which is a realistic scenario if the bot were to be used practically. The environment would resemble a real-world scenario house and multiple rooms or locations in the floor plan. The bot will track the obstacle data in real time and navigate through the area to reach the given goal location autonomously.


Real Estate market and real estate development process provide significant data for understanding the formation of "built environment" and the "urban processes". All the same, for a long period of time it was evaluated as the background in which urban relations take place and was also assumed to be relatively passive. The economical structure that has been changing since 80's, in relation with the real estate market, gave rise to important transformation in cities. From then on, focus on the subject accelerated. It can be observed that in terms of literature there are three main approaches evaluating the issue. While neo-classical approach identifies "the real estate" from the perspective of supply&demand, political economy approach interprets the issue in the context of the flow of capital to "constructed area" during the capital accumulation process and lastly institutionalist approach by evaluating "the more concrete", concentrates on the instutions shaping the process.


Many cloud computing vendors offer a preemptible class of service for rented virtual machines. In November 2017, Amazon.com changed the pricing mechanism for its preemptible "spot instances" so that prices would change more "smoothly." This paper analyzes the effect of this change on spot instance prices. It examines the prices immediately before and after the mechanism change to determine the extent to which prices themselves changed. It then compares the 90-day period immediately after the change in mechanism to the next 90-day period. Finally, it compares the two most recent 90-day periods (ending on October 15, 2018). Our results indicate that in addition to smoothing prices, the mechanism change introduced generally higher prices which is a trend that continues.


The mechanical alloying (MA) of high entropy alloys (HEA) and the production of nano-crystalline powders by ball milling have attracted much attention from researchers in recent decades owing to their several advantages. MA induces high energy impacts on the powder by collision between balls and particles causing severe plastic deformation, repeated fracturing and cold welding of the particles. There are two methods to prevent the severe cold welding: the first one is to decrease the temperature of the milling vial and the second one is to add process control agent (PCA) to the powders [1, 2]. Typically, a PCA is an additive used in the milling process in order to control the balance between the fracture and cold welding of particles. In addition to severe plastic deformation and cold welding of particles, the oxidation of powders also can be controlled using an adequate PCA. The aim of this work is evaluate the particle size distribution (PSD), morphology, and oxidation of HEA using different PCA during MA.


The utility model discloses a novel peritoneal cavity drainage tube which comprises a conical body and a drainage hose connected with the conical body, wherein a plurality of drainage holes are formed in the drainage end of the drainage hose; the drainage output end of the drainage hose is provided with a branch tube communicated with a hose cavity of the drainage hose; a pore cavity penetrating through the axial length of the conical body is arranged in the conical body; a core tube is arranged in the drainage hose; one end of the core tube is connected with the conical body and is communicated with the pore cavity of the conical body, and the other end of the core tube extends out of the branch tube; the front end of the drainage hose is sleeved with an air bag; an air guide tube which is integrally fixed with the cavity wall of the drainage hose is arranged on the inner wall of the drainage hose along the length direction of the drainage hose; the front end of the air guide tube is communicated with the air bag, and the rear end of the air guide tube extends out of the side wall of the rear end part of the drainage hose and is connected with an inflatable ball. During abdominal surgery, the possibilities of easiness in bleeding, infection or displacement of other organs and even formation of internal hernia are reduced, and the medical work of medical staff is facilitated.


Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology, January-March 2012, Vol 15, Issue 1 the muscles become spasmodic, starting with the head and neck in the form of trismus and risus sardonicus, eventually spreading to every muscle in the body, with nearly continuous convulsions getting worse with the slightest stimulus.The convulsions progress, increasing in intensity and frequency until the backbone arches continually. Convulsions are followed by postictal depression. Death comes from asphyxia or by exhaustion from the convulsions. The subject dies within 2–3 h of exposure.[1]


A Virtual Private Network (VPN) offers a secure connection over an insecure network such as the Internet. Driven by an ever expanding mobile workforce and by the need for a cheaper alternative to private leased lines, the security community responded with a variety of VPN solutions deployed in a diverse array of software and hardware. Traditional VPNs offer good netto-net (site-to-site) connections but often require intense configuration and may have problems with NAT. In order to provide mobile users with an alternative to the configuration-intensive traditional VPN, clientless web browser based SSL VPNs were developed. The clientless SSL VPNs allow users to connect securely with only a web browser, however, at what cost?


The influence of globalization has also made its impact on adolescent lifestyle. This is due to adolescent exposure to various international society lifestyles which differ in values from local socio-cultural and Islamic values. Lifestyles which contradict with Islamic teachings are not permissible in the context of the Muslim society in Malaysia.Thus, this research is conducted to examine the forms of adolescent lifestyle in Malaysia.The purpose is to identify the forms of lifestyle practised by adolescents inBandar BaruPermas Jaya, Johor Bahru, Malaysia. For this purpose, the researcher has conducted a field study on 510school adolescents of Permas Jaya National Secondary School. Questionnares used consists of 15 questions covering three forms of lifestyle, i.e., consumptive, modern and hedonistic.Research findings are analysed using descriptive statistical technique explained in the form offrequency(f), percentage (%) and mean.Findings show that adolescents in Bandar BaruPermas Jaya, Johor Bahru, Malaysia practise three forms of lifestyle. However, on comparison, the modern lifestyle is on the whole practised by the majority of adolescents in Malaysia. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n6s1p271


This work evaluates the influence of combining twisted fins in a triple-tube heat exchanger utilised for latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) in three-dimensional numerical simulation and comparing the outcome with the cases of the straight fins and no fins. The phase change material (PCM) is in the annulus between the inner and the outer tube, these tubes include a cold fluid that flows in the counter current path, to solidify the PCM and release the heat storage energy. The performance of the unit was assessed based on the liquid fraction and temperature profiles as well as solidification and the energy storage rate. This study aims to find suitable and efficient fins number and the optimum values of the Re and the inlet temperature of the heat transfer fluid. The outcomes stated the benefits of using twisted fins related to those cases of straight fins and the no-fins. The impact of multi-twisted fins was also considered to detect their influences on the solidification process. The outcomes reveal that the operation of four twisted fins decreased the solidification time by 12.7% and 22.9% compared with four straight fins and the no-fins cases, respectively. Four twisted fins improved the discharging rate by 12.4% and 22.8% compared with the cases of four straight fins and no-fins, respectively. Besides, by reducing the fins' number from six to four and two, the solidification time reduces by 11.9% and 25.6%, respectively. The current work shows the impacts of innovative designs of fins in the LHTES to produce novel inventions for commercialisation, besides saving the power grid.


Abstract The effect of acetazolamide (4 mg/kg-day) on calcium and phosphate metabolism in four patients with type I pseudohypoparathyroidism was contrasted with the effects produced by a 36-h calcium infusion. Whereas both acetazolamide and calcium infusion resulted in comparable increases in serum ionized calcium levels, acetazolamide treatment was associated with a 100% increase in the fractional excretion of phosphate, whereas calcium infusion was associated with a 70% decrease in this parameter. The increment in the fractional excretion of phosphate observed during acetazolamide occurred independent of changes in urinary cAMP excretion, while calcium infusion was attended by a significant decrease in urinary cAMP. Despite the fact that both acetazolamide treatment and calcium infusion resulted in similar decrements in circulating immunoreactive parathyroid hormone levels and similar filtered loads of calcium, calcium clearance was increased during calcium infusion whereas it was not altered by acetazo...


In eighteenth century England, children were rarely fed at regular intervals and when fed little attention was paid to what they ate. Among the first to stress the benefits of eating meals regularly was the Apothecary, James Nelson (1710-1794), whose thoughtful and widely known book, An Essay on the Government of Children contained the following:
 . . . Nothing is more conducive to Health than a Habit of eating meals regularly. Children accustomed to eat all Day long are seldom healthy; besides, that it makes them disorderly, and often throws a Family into Confusion to gratify all their little Humors. The proper Breakfast is ... milk and Water with Bread, or milk-porridge, or Rice-milk, their Dinner should be made of one Dish, only, unless by great chance a passing Taste of a second; they should either eat a great deal of Bread, or blend their Meat with Greens, Turnips, or other Garden Stuff; Pickles and all high sauces should not be touch'd by them; and their Meal should be washed down with Water or light Small Beer. Their Supper may, like their Breakfast, sometimes be varied, as to the Auxiliary; Bread is to be the Repast; yet a small portion of Butter, Cheese, Fruit, or Tart, may in their Turn accompany it: the Vehicle the same as the Dinner. But should a Child at intermediate Times, especially before Dinner, complain of Hunger, and fasting long might make it's Stomach ach (sic); in that Case nothing so good as a bit of Bread; and if used to it, it will eat it as eagerly as the greatest Dainty; but to see Children walk about a house with Tarts or Bread and Butter in their Hands, daubing every thing and every body they touch, is certainly wrong; being not only detrimental to their Health, but to their manners too, as it is inexpressibly vulgar.1


The next-to-leading order QCD corrections for $\chi_{bJ}$, the p-wave bottomonium, to $J/\psi$ pair decay processes were evaluated utilizing NRQCD factorization formalism. It was determined that the scale dependence was depressed with NLO corrections, and hence the uncertainties in the leading order results were greatly reduced. The total branch ratios were found to be the order of $10^{-5}$ for all three $\chi_{bJ}\rightarrow J/\psi J/\psi$ processes,indicating that they were observable in the LHC and super-B experiments.


The article is devoted to the founder of Russian neonatology, one of the initiators and active builders of the Soviet system of maternity and infancy care, the manager and head of the first domestic research institution in the field of pediatrics, George Nestorovich Speransky. There are consistently described stages of G.N. Speransky multifaceted activity on the management of the national system of maternity and infancy care, the creation of neonatology as a scientific discipline, the education and advanced training of pediatricians and neonatologists, the introduction of a new system of specialized training of pediatricians at pediatric faculties, the activation of scientific societies of pediatricians. The ways of the further development of domestic pediatrics, new horizons in the creation and implementation of domestic and global pediatric projects aimed at improving the quality of life and timely comprehensive medical care for children are indicated.


The SLAC NLC design for a next-generation linear collider utilizes multibunching (acceleration of a train of bunches on each RF fill) to increase the luminosity and energy efficiency. It is necessary to control the energy spread of the beam, in order to minimize chromatic emittance dilution and be within the energy acceptance of the final focus. It is anticipated that the NLC may run with bunch trains having length equal to a substantial fraction of the filling time. Multibunch energy simulation methods and compensation schemes appropriate to this regime are presented.<<ETX>>


The present invention relates to a shield mask structure of sputtering for the black matrix deposition, to a shielding mask structure that allows to more particularly to enlarge the deposition range of the black matrix to be deposited on the glass to increase the utilization efficiency of the glass. To this end, the configuration within a sputtering chamber for depositing a black matrix on the glass, and that in the with masking holes ion flow shield mask, the area masking of holes forming the said shield mask at least equal to or greater than that of the glass area It proposes a shield structure of the sputter mask for depositing a black matrix according to claim.


[1] This first paper in a two part series summarizes the current theory and the data-driven solar wind model for simulating dynamic spectra of type II radio bursts. It also introduces performance metrics and techniques for extraction of model shock parameters from these dynamic spectra. We use an iterative downhill simplex method which compares two dynamic spectra and quantitatively assesses and improves the agreement using two figures of merit: the first is based on the correlation function and the second is based on a normalized differences over the data set. By maximizing the agreement we are able to extract the input model shock parameters to within 30% or better when using model solar winds of increasing complexity. The effects on the spectra predicted and on the figures of merit from changing the model shock parameters and solar wind model are also investigated. The iterative downhill extraction method is then applied to the type II dynamic spectrum predicted using a realistic model solar wind and a shock model estimated for an observed type II event. The shock parameters are recovered to within 10% of the correct solution.


Chlorhexidine is used routinely for asepsis in craniofacial surgeries. A solution containing a lower concentration of chlorhexidine diluted with alcohol has been developed to decrease chlorhexidine-related side effects. Herein, we report a case of chemical corneal burn caused by hexitanol solution (2% chlorhexidine + 72% ethanol) in a patient after undergoing closed reduction for nasal fracture under general anesthesia. Although the presumptive exposure time of the cornea was short, slit-lamp examination revealed epithelial defects. The patient received conservative care with extensive saline irrigation and conservative treatment with 0.3% gatifloxacin, 1% prednisolone, and carbomer eye drops. Among the various antiseptic solutions, ethanol markedly decreases cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner by inducing cell lysis, even after short exposure. Moreover, chlorhexidine induces corneal toxicity, necessitating corneal transplantation. Therefore, surgeons should be aware of the complications associated with the use of chlorhexidine or alcohol-containing antiseptics and the use povidone for its low ocular toxicity.


Recent findings indicate that gamma radiation can contribute to the embrittlement of reactor materials. Material tests of components of the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory have shown that the level of the measured radiation embrittlement exceeds the expectations resulting from fast neutron fluence. Only, if additionally material damaging effects of gamma rays were included into the consideration, the observed rate of displacements per atom (DPA) comes in conformity with the theory [1]. The higher efficiency of γ-rays in producing freely-migrating defects [2] can further influence the embrittlement of reactor materials. These new findings may affect future safety assessments of reactor pressure vessels.


Building on research conducted over the last ten years, this dissertation explores how local understandings and manifestations of gender violence are changing as women and men learn about human rights and gain access to state-based forms of justice. Wife abuse in coastal Ecuador is often explained as a result of machismo and an enduring culture of violence. I challenge this conception by demonstrating how political, economic and social processes normalize gender violence, and by showing how transnational human rights discourses are reshaping gender relations, structures of impunity, and the visibility of particular forms of violence. Inhabitants in this historically marginalized region are using alliances with transnational NGOs to negotiate their relationship to the state. Human rights, transnational alliances, and improved access to justice offer powerful openings for local women and families, but their empowering potential is delimited by growing social and economic vulnerability and the discrepancies between rights-based subjectivities and preexisting understandings of the self. Ultimately, I argue that human rights – as concept, as practice, and as discourse – reorganize power in ways that warrant both optimism and critique.


To explore whether immunuopathological mechanism is connected with the joint lesion of osterorthritis(OA),synovium-lymphocytes were phenotypically analysed using methed of immunofluroscence for 6 patients with OA.The concentration of IL-10,IL-12 and sFasl in synovium were also determined with ELISA.The data we obtained showed that in all of the patients,most of the T cells in synovium were CD8 positive(67.0%±14.6%)while the percent of CD4 positive cells was (15.0%±12.8%).Meanwhile,the concentration of IL-12 in the synovium was much higher(203.84±49.2)pg/ml than that of IL-10 (37.8±14.5)pg/ml (P0.05).The level of IL-10 and IL-12 in serum from same patients were lower,(43.37±14.2)pg/ml and (45.58±10.6)pg/ml respectively.In contrast,the concentration of the sFasL was very low in the synovium fluid but reached high level in serum(153.90±56)pg/ml.Our data strongly indicated that there were T cells in the synovium fluid.The imbalance of IL-12 and IL-10 may involved in the pathogenesis of OA.


Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii and is a serious publichealth problem that can be fatal in immunocompromised individuals or congenital infections.Congenital toxoplasmosis disease results from transplacental parasite transfer to the fetus duringchildbirth or primary infection of the mother or acute relapse. The clinical manifestations aredifferent for neonates, with potentially fatal or debilitating consequences that primarily affect thecentral nervous system and/or generate ocular involvement. Depending on the gestational stage,the current treatment of congenital toxoplasmosis is limited to the use of spiramycin or, in fetalinfection, supported by the combination of pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine associated with folinicacid. However, these regimens may be toxic to the embryo/fetus. Therefore, research has examinedalternative therapies for this infection and thus the aim of this manuscript was to review the mainstudies involving different compounds as potential treatments for congenital toxoplasmosis. Amongthe compounds most frequently cited in the literature as an alternative therapy for congenitaltoxoplasmosis, were artemisinin, atovaquone, azithromycin and diclazuril. It was observed thatartemisinin and atovaquone may have teratogenic dose-dependent effects. Already azithromycinand diclazuril have shown promising results when used in murine models or cell culture, but theireffectiveness has not been fully confirmed in humans. The compounds mentioned here, despite stillbeing in experimental and clinical trials, add new data and perspectives for the treatment of infection.


The methods currently used in the evaluation of development impact represent only a fraction of the research methods used in political science, sociology, psychology and other social sciences. Systems thinking and complexity science, causal inference models not limited to counterfactual analysis, and mixed approaches with fuzzy quali-quanti boundaries have shown potential for application in development settings. In addition, evaluation research needs to be explicit on values and learning needs to be maximized across a wide range of stakeholders. As a consequence, a key challenge in development impact is mastering a broad range of approaches, models and methods that produce evidence of performance in a variety of research settings and fields.


European Art History steadfastly continues to classify artistic production according to national schools. This system of categorization inevitably leads to defining the national character of a people through its art. This is not to deny that regional differences are important in European art history. However, for the most part, regional differences have little to do with nations as such – if only because these nations were usually created long after the work of art in question, which is being used to assert national characteristics. Far more serious, however, is the fact that by assessing national divergences, the similarities between works of art from different regions of Europe fall into second place. During the past few years, Dutch art historians have become increasingly aware of the importance of the European dimension when studying the art of the Low Countries. But this new research will only produce important results when it goes hand in hand with a fundamental reconsideration of art history and nationalism.


Introduce the characteristic of steel structure ridge and pillar for the large steel roof truss structure,put forward the view of plank location and connecting,welding.Specific introduces the bonding technology of ridge and the way of correcting.


Palladium is not ferromagnetic, not antiferromagnetic and not superconducting, but no one could call it a normal metal. If we exclude manganese and plutonium, there is no metal that exerts so powerful a fascination over anyone who has ever been concerned with its nature and properties; and since no one therefore can be impartial with respect to various theories of these it must be emphasised that this report on the Conference is a personal view. After the pioneer work of Mott in the I ~ ~ O S , palladium took up the role of the archetypical transition metal, that is one in which a narrow d-band containing some empty states was overlapped by a broad free-electron like s-band which dominated the conductivity. Since it is not ferromagnetic it was felt to be simpler than nickel, which it otherwise seemed to resemble as closely as or more closely than the Periodic Table would lead us to expect; and although this also meant that magnetisation evidence for the number of empty d-states was lacking, there was much indirect evidence (especially from alloys) to support the view that this number was close to the 0.6 per atom found for nickel. Discussions of magnetic properties were based on the high density of d-band states at the Fermi energy (indicated by the large value of the linear term in the low temperature specific heat), while the electrical properties were believed to be explicable in terms of s-like current carriers being scattered predominantly to d-like states. Much of this picture has recently been called into doubt. The de Haas-van Alphen data of Vuillemin and Priestly seem to require a number close to 0.36 for the s-electrons (and hence for the d-holes), galvanomagnetic data make a very large difference in s-electron and d-hole effective masses unlikely, and the very recent theories of persistent spin fluctuations of Doniach, Schrieffer and their co-workers imply that these make the traditional interpretation of the low temperature specific heat very uncertain. This last point should not be regarded as purely hypothetical, for experimental studies of the effects of magneticmoment-bearing impurities by susceptibility, neutron scattering, and paramagnetic resonance techniques have agreed in indicating that exchange interaction effects in the d-band of palladium can by no means be regarded as a small perturbation, and hence low-lying excitations of a non single-particle type must be considered. The Conference had as its aim an examination of the new situation and as its achievement a reconciliation of much of the traditional view with the new theories and results. It seemed as if the final doubts of those who hesitated to believe in 'paramagnons' (the


Northrop Grumman, one of the nation's leading aerospace companies, opted to deploy Six Sigma in one of its programs in an effort to build the highest quality product in the least amount of time for the lowest possible price. What makes this experience u..


A kinematic algorithm is proposed to extend existing constructions of strain tensors from atomistic data to decouple elastic and plastic contributions to the strain. Elastic and plastic deformation and ultimately the plastic spin, useful quantities in continuum mechanics and finite element simulations, are computed from the full, discrete deformation gradient and an algorithm for the local elastic deformation gradient. This elastic deformation gradient algorithm identifies a crystal type using bond angle analysis (Ackland and Jones 2006 Phys. Rev. B 73 054104) and further exploits the relationship between bond angles to determine the local deformation from an ideal crystal lattice. Full definitions of plastic deformation follow directly using a multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient. The results of molecular dynamics simulations of copper in simple shear and torsion are presented to demonstrate the ability of these new discrete measures to describe plastic material spin in atomistic simulation and to compare them with continuum theory.


In the present study, ultrasound assisted encapsulation of peppermint flavor (core material) in gum Arabic (GA; wall material) was carried out in the presence of Tween 80 surfactant. It is well known that the intense environment generated due to cavity collapse in the presence of ultrasonic irradiations help in the preparation of fine emulsion which enhances the encapsulation efficiency of flavor. In this work, the use of ultrasound during encapsulation of peppermint flavor in GA, enhances the encapsulation efficiency to 87%. The effect of various parameters such as flavor concentration, GA concentration, and inlet temperature and feed rate during spray drying on encapsulation efficiency, product yield and particle size was studied. Also, the encapsulation of peppermint flavor in GA was confirmed using Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. The particles size of obtained nanoparticles after spray drying is in the range of 45.2–255.7 nm. This encapsulation process is believed to enhance the shelf life and stability of flavors that may be protected from outside environment by reducing its reactivity. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Components of the peppermint flavor are first of all mono and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons and their oxygenated derivatives, and also phenylpropanoids. These are volatile substances sensitive to oxygen, light, moisture, and heat. Stability and shelf life of peppermint flavor will be lower when it is in liquid state because it is very sensitive to outside environment. This ultrasound assisted encapsulation process improves the processing time and encapsulation efficiency in lesser time which improves its stability and shelf life. Upon investigation of effect of direct exposure of peppermint oil to acoustic cavitation with bath and probe type and obtained FTIR patterns, its properties were found to be unaffected with acoustic cavitation. Further, in the present work, the effect of ultrasonication is little after encapsulation of peppermint flavor in gum Arabic wall material. Further the produced encapsulated materials are having uniform particle size distribution which can be prepared at industrial scale.


• Installation of a wideband " UWL " receiver covering the band 0.7 GHz to 4.0 GHz on the Parkes 64-m telescope, together with the 20cm Multibeam receiver, would allow more than 90% of current Parkes observations to be made with no receiver changes, greatly improving the efficiency of Parkes operations. • The digital receiver system could be configured for all types of pulsar observation (except multibeam searches) as well as spectral-line, background and source polarisation observations and VLBI. • The UWL receiver covers the entire ASKAP band and hence can provide vital short-spacing data for ASKAP as well as make possible a highly sensitive real-time interferometer for ASKAP follow-up studies. • The UWL receiver would significantly improve the sensitivity of all pulsar timing observations , including those for the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array, and make possible unique studies of frequency-dependent phenomena such as interstellar dispersion, scattering and Faraday rotation as well as studies of pulsar emission mechanisms. • Development of the state-of-the-art UWL receiver and signal processing system will allow Parkes to maintain its role in producing high-impact science and the CASS engineering groups to maintain their world-leading expertise into the SKA era. • Coping with the inevitable RFI across the very wide band of the UWL receiver is obviously of paramount importance. With careful attention to receiver linearity and the use of adaptive RFI filtering, at least 90% of the band should be available for astronomy 95% of the time. • The receiver could be built in two years or less, allowing Parkes to remain competitive for at least the next 8 – 10 years. • National and international collaborations will allow cost sharing and there are possibilities for external funding that can be explored.


Background/Aim: H2S is a novel vasoactivator. To verify the hypothesis that H2S may act as an endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) in the rat cerebrovasculature, the role of H2S in endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF)-mediated responses was investigated. Methods: Cystathionine-γ-lyase (CSE) was knocked down with an siRNA technique. Artery diameter, hyperpolarization and Ca2+-activated K+ (KCa) current were measured. Results: CSE knockdown was indicated by a decrease in protein and mRNA expression in the rat middle cerebral artery (MCA) and cerebral basilar artery (CBA). Acetylcholine (ACh) induced significant hyperpolarization and vasodilation in endothelium-intact MCA and CBA. Removal of the endothelium abolished these responses. The nitric oxide (NO) synthase inhibitor <smlcap>L</smlcap>-NAME, but not the PGI2 production inhibitor indomethacin, significantly inhibited ACh-induced hyperpolarization and vasodilation in the CBA. In the presence of <smlcap>L</smlcap>-NAME and indomethacin, ACh-induced hyperpolarization and vasodilation in the MCA and CBA were attenuated. The non-NO/PGI2-mediated responses were abolished by the KCa channel blockers charybdotoxin and apamin. In the cerebral arteries from the CSE knockdown rat, non-NO/PGI2-mediated responses were significantly attenuated, and the remaining responses were abolished by charybdotoxin and apamin or the CSE inhibitor propargylglycine. CSE knockdown did not affect <smlcap>L</smlcap>-NAME-sensitive responses in the CBA. Sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) augmented the KCa current in CBA vascular smooth muscle cells. Conclusion: EDHF-mediated responses in rat cerebral arteries were due to H2S activating the KCa channel.


Ideal wound dressing materials should meet the requirements including maintaining a local moist environment, good surface absorbance for wound exudate, decreasing wound surface necrosis, and avoiding the lack of moisture in the wound. Common treatments for infections caused by skin diseases, resulting in extensive damage and often cause the death of people. In this project, the electrolytic solution of carboxymethylcellulose / calcium alginate / propolis was used to fabricate suitable fiber diameter and uniform distribution. Cellulose is suitable for the grafting of a myriad of chemical groups because of the ample availability of hydroxyl groups, and Propolis was selected in this research due to its excellent properties, such as accelerating wound healing and cell growth and antibacterial growth. The optimum electrospinning conditions were achieved at a voltage of 20 kV, with a spacing of 20 cm from the syringe to the collecting plate and a rate of 15 ml / h. Then, to evaluate the properties of the scaffold. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), infrared Fourier transform (FTIR), mean of weight loss were performed. Finally, for testing the cellular survival of the samples MTT test was performed and a mechanical test was performed on the specimens. The scaffold degradation rate was linear and resulted in its complete destruction in 21 days. Cytotoxicity testing of scaffolds yielded acceptable results. A suitable structure for porosity and permeability was obtained in calcium carboxymethylcellulose/calcium alginate/propolis scaffold and this scaffold is a good candidate for application in skin tissue engineering.


Traditional methods of detecting animals in paddy fields and farms include the use of human eyes to witness animal movements. It is not possible for human beings to monitor animal movements continuously throughout the day. So there is a need for specialized detection of animals particularly which enter the paddy fields and farm land of human beings. The methods used for the recognition of the animals include segmentation and object detection process. In the segmentation process frame differencing is used which is followed by thresholding. In the process of frame differencing two consecutive frames are subtracted which will leave only the moving objects. The process of segmentation is followed by object detection. There is a state of art overview to go through the work done by people in this field. After studying several object detection methods, finally the scale invariant Fourier transform method is selected owing to several advantages as compared to its counterparts.


This article discusses cultural differences in healthcare settings and cultural influences on health communication from a cross-cultural perspective. The knowledge of cultural differences in healthcare can promote healthcare providers' self-awareness and their better understanding of patients' attitudes and behavior,which in turn helps to improve healthcare service in cross-cultural healthcare settings.


In this article we present a computationally efficient method for finding multiple structural breaks at unknown dates based on regression trees. We outline the procedure and present the results of a simulation study to assess the performance of the method and to compare it with the procedure proposed by Bai and Perron. We find the tree-based method performs well in long series which are impractical to analyze with current methods. We apply these methods plus the CUSUM test to the market share of Crest toothpaste between 1958 and 1963.


Abstract Wearable and movable lodged health monitoring gadgets, micro-sensors, human system locating gadgets, and other gadgets started to appear as low-power communication mechanisms and microelectronics mechanisms grew in popularity. More people are interested in energy capture technology, which turns the energy created by motion technology into electric energy. To understand the difference in motor skill levels, a nonlinear feature-oriented method was proposed. A bi-stable magnetic-coupled piezoelectric cantilever was designed to detect the horizontal difference of motion technology. The horizontal difference was increased by the acceleration generated by the oscillation of the leg and the impression betwixt the leg and the ground during the movement. Based on the Hamiltonian principle and motion technique signal, a nonlinear dynamic model for energy capture in motion technique is established. According to the shaking features of human leg motion, a moveable nonlinear shaking energy-gaining system was the layout, which realized the dynamic characteristics of straight, nonlinear, mono-stable, and bi-stable. The experimental outcome shows that nonlinearity can effectively detect the difference of motion techniques. The experimental results of different human movement states confirm the benefits of the uncertain bi-stable human power capture mechanism and the effectiveness of the electromechanical combining design established. The nonlinear mono-stable beam moves in the same way as the straight mono-stable beam in the assessment, but owing to its higher stiffness, its frequency concentration range (13.85 Hz) is moved to the right compared to the linear mono-stable beam, and the displacement of the cantilever beam is reduced. If the velocity is 8 km/h, the mean energy of the bi-stable method extends to the utmost value of 23.2 μW. It is proved that the nonlinear method can understand the difference in the level of motion technique effectively.


Case 4. Zones on regulated streams, downstream of a dam, upstream of a zone with data suitable for calculating the index with unregulated tributaries joining the main stem.. Preamble The aim of the Sustainable Rivers Audit (Audit) is to provide ongoing assessment of river health in the Murray-Darling Basin. However, river health has never been systematically assessed across the Basin. This means that it is not possible to conduct informed discussion on river health and the factors affecting it, or to determine the effectiveness of current river management initiatives. To address this deficiency, a framework is being established in order to conduct an effective Basin wide assessment of river health (see Scope of the Sustainable Rivers Audit, June 2000). The index of river health being derived for the Murray-Darling Basin integrates indices for five environmental themes (fish, hydrology, macroinvertebrates, physical habitat and water quality) and reports condition at a river-valley scale. This report outlines the development of a hydrological index for incorporation within the broader River Health Index. Introduction Flow is the maestro that orchestrates pattern and process in river systems (Walker et al. 1995). The literature is replete with examples suggesting that flow is one of the most important elements in determining the physical, chemical and biological processes occurring within any river system. A river's flow regime shapes the river channel and determines the nature and distribution of riverine sediments. These features, in association with flow and water chemistry, control the distribution, physiology and abundance of organisms, as well as the dynamics of riverine communities. Australian rivers like those of the Murray-Darling system have some of the most variable flow regimes in the world (Finlayson and McMahon 1988). From a human perspective, they are unreliable water resources and have required extensive flow modification. Large floods that breach the river banks and cover vast tracts of land are a feature of the rivers of the Murray-Darling Basin, as are periodic droughts. These events can result in large costs to rural communities. However, the animals and plants inhabiting these systems are well adapted to the variability. In fact the ecological integrity of these rivers, particularly in the lowland areas, depends upon periodic lateral movements of water onto the floodplain as well as substantial drying out periods. A number of key aspects of flow have been identified as having particular ecological significance. Their ecological importance can be assigned to one of four …


Bru over Otra is a newly constructed pedestrian bridge located in the Norwegian city of Kristiansand. The bridge has an overall length of 180m and provides a 4m clear width route for both pedestrian and cycle traffic over the Otra River.The bridge is made up of six spans (25m+5x32m+25m) with four piers located within the river and one located in a public park. The bridge is curved in plan and elevation, allowing for the change in level between both embankments.The deck structure is a multicell continuous steel box girder. The maximum deck depth of 0.9m is constant all long the bridge, although the transversal section is tapered at the edges.In the case of the substructure, the challenging conditions related to ice loads and the construction of the foundations and columns inside the river flow were crucial to establish their design.


The analyzes the concept and components of the administrative and legal status of citizens in the informational sphere. It proposes to allocate such rights of citizens in this sphere, as the right to: (a) access to information, (b) the free flow of information, (c) protection against the destructive (harmful) information and (d) on the gap information, (e) the protection of personal data, and (e) the right to information. The article emphanzes the obligation to provide certain information and observe the mode of access. It also states that a further guarantee of the right to information requires that the rights of citizens to protection from harmful and forbidden information by establishing administrative responsibility for such acts.


Trough the need investigation of teaching method reform on health care service marketing for the undergraduates majored in health administration,based on the students' need and the situation of our university,we introduced case teaching method,preparing for the case collection in the context of health reform in China and executing the new teaching method.In the end of the course,we analyzed its effect by using questionnaire and in-depth interview.


It is known that the equatorial electric field plays an important role in low-latitude ionospheric plasma distribution especially at disturbance time. In this study, we propose an empirical model for real-time ionospheric correction during storm time, based on the theory that the ionospheric disturbances during the initial and main phases are mainly caused by the zonal electric field disturbances. The performance of the model during three intense storms is evaluated and compared with another empirical correction model, STORM. The results show that some sharp increase of foF2 could be captured by our model. This indicates that the disturbance field should be included in low-latitude storm-time ionospheric corrections.


The samples used for testing have been taken from different directions at corresponding angles to the rolling direction.These samples have been used for investigating the structure and mechanical properties of AZ21B magnesium alloy plate after different thermal tensile deformations.The results show that samples took along the rolling direction present property changing with the temperature changing,the tensile strength decreases with the temperature rising,while the elongation increases.Due to the strong texture produced during rolling,the magnesium alloy plate produces anisotropy of mechanical property.The tensile strength of the sample cut at angle of 0° between rolling direction is the highest at temperature of 25℃,150℃,200℃ and 250℃.When the thermal deformation being done at temperature 300℃ and 350℃,the highest mechanical property appeared at the angle of 90° between the rolling direction.Some twin crystals come out during tensile deformation at temperature of 25℃ to 250℃,while the tensile stretching is going under temperature above 250℃ the dynamic recovery and recrystallization happened.When tensile stretching goes at room temperature the tough-fragile break appeared obviously at the section of the sample.


Abstract:The Tow Valley Fault Zone in north-east Ireland consists of number of ENE-WSW trending major fault segments and shorter N-S ones with different dips, downthrows and geophysical characteristics. The fault zone is associated with high magnetic gradients and a marked north-westerly decrease in gravity. Modelling of gravity data suggests that near Garvagh (south-west) and Ballycastle (north-east) the major fault plane dips to the north-west at about 20°-25° whereas the central section dips at 56° to the north-west. Thick sediments (c. 2.4km), mainly Permo-Triassic in age, occur beneath the Tertiary basalts north-west of the fault zone. Ground-based magnetic profiles across the fault zone yield a range of signatures. At some localities the fault is characterised by a 1km-wide zone of fracturing in the Tertiary basalts. Seismic data indicate that the fault zone continues offshore to the north-east of Rathlin Island.


Introduction Stiffening of the aorta results in increased pulse wave velocity (PWV), the propagation velocity of the blood motion. Aortic stiffness has been shown to correlate with aging [1], but is also indicative of atherosclerotic alterations and as a measure of cardiovascular risk [2]. Quantification of peripheral PWV (e.g. iliac, femoral and popliteal arteries) has received much less attention but a few studies indicate peripheral PWV may be preferable as a marker for vascular disease. Unlike aortic PWV, peripheral PWV does not increase with age [3], it may be more specific to the presence of early systemic atherosclerosis. The descending portion of the aorta is typically imaged in an oblique sagittal or coronal plane [4] but this approach is not suited for visualizing the peripheral arteries due to increased tortuosity and reduced vessel diameter. Here, we introduce a non-triggered projection-based method for quantifying PWV of the descending aorta and the segment extending from the abdominal aorta to both femoral arteries to complement aortic PWV [5]. Preliminary results are consistent with values found in literature. Methods In order to quantify PWV along two distal arterial sites we acquire velocity-encoded projections at both locations after exciting them essentially simultaneously with two successive RF pulses of different frequencies. Temporal resolution of 12 ms (TR=6 ms) was achieved by sampling only the center k-space line ky = 0 repeatedly with two-step velocity-encoding to map the complex difference (CD) signal intensity during the cardiac cycle. CD between velocity-encoded projections retains only signal from the moving spins and represents average signal across the lumen in the projection direction (perpendicular to the readout direction). At the onset of systole (flow velocity << vmax), thus CD intensity is proportional to velocity. For example, sin φ and φ will differ by less than 5% even at v=0.5vmax with VENC~1.33vmax. Thus, absolute quantification of velocity is not necessary since the propagation time of the pressure wave is estimated near the "foot" of the wave (v<0.5vmax) where |CD| is proportional to velocity. The major benefits of |CD| over velocity mapping are insensitivity to patient motion and much simpler post-processing. For details of the "foot-to-foot" approach to estimate propagation time from time-resolved |CD| curves, see [5]. A velocity-encoded GRE pulse sequence was used (FOV=356 mm, voxel size 1.32 x10 mm, TE/TR=4.0/6.0 ms, bandwidth=893 Hz/pixel, flip angle=20, VENC ranging from 150 to 250 cm/s, and slice separation distance of 240 to 400 mm). All studies were performed at 3T system (Siemens Tim Trio) using two body matrix coils placed on the chest and abdomen or abdomen and upper thigh area. Results Figs 1a, b show axial images of iliac (white arrows) and femoral arteries acquired simultaneously with dual RF excitation. Figs 1c, d are the corresponding time-resolved projection |CD| images of iliac and femoral arteries. Fig 1e is a sample |CD| intensity curve computed from the projection images in Figs 1c,d. Similarly, Figs 1 f, g show axial images below the pulmonary artery and of the abdominal aorta proximal to the aorto-iliac bifurcation. Figs 1h, i are the corresponding |CD| images. Table 1 lists the average PWV and standard deviations over 8-10 heart-beats for three healthy male subjects. As expected, peripheral PWV values are larger than the central PWV and qualitatively agree with those values found in the literature.


The growth of the species Liolaemus occipitalis was analysed in a coastal population of Rio Grande do Sul. The comparative analysis of growth rate was carried out between 32 males and 45 females throughout one year. Taking into consideration the well‐defined seasonality of this temperate zone, the ontogenetic development (size and weight) was observed. Sexual dimorphism was evident from the viewpoint of size, females always being smaller. The annual growth curve of the individuals from this population is similar to that of lizards from temperate zones, with maximum rates in spring and growth rates close to zero in winter. Among the species of Liolaemus studied so far, L. occipitalis proves to be one of the smallest.


This paper surveys the recent academic empirical economic literature on the main current infrastructure policy issues in developing and transition economies--infrastructure is defined here as all the facilities used to deliver energy, water and sanitation, telecommunication and transport services. The survey tries to provide an unbiased coverage of the discussions on the linkages between infrastructure and, respectively, institutions, growth, equity, finance and corruption. The bulk of the analytical evidence draws on quantitative analytical assessments of the key lessons on these interactions from the 1990s and of the early part of the 2000s. In the process, the paper provides a rough blue print for a research agenda on infrastructure since one of the main overarching lessons is that the knowledge gap is not a small one. The main policy conclusions of the paper can be summarized as follows. First, the data gaps are so large that they impede an effective monitoring of the evolution of performance in terms of access, efficiency, equity or fiscal costs for most sub-sectors. As a consequence, there is less global accountability in this sector than in health or education. Governments should spend as much time benchmarking and assessing the performance of public operators as they do or would do for private operators to increase the accountability of the sector and minimize costs to the users and the taxpayers. Second, the debate on the growth relevance of infrastructure shows that investment planning and policy coordination in infrastructure or improvements in the assessment of the sectoral dimensions of fiscal sustainability analysis are not "textbookish" concerns of the past, they are still essential to avoid bottlenecks slowing down national and/or regional growth or distorting urban vs. rural resource allocation decisions. Third, the experience of the last 15 years shows that most countries will be better off working out a partnership with the private sector to achieve sustained efficiency gains and minimize fiscal financing requirements. However, not every sector of every country has been or will be able to achieve this. Moreover, even when these partnerships will be possible, the main responsibility for financing many of the investment needs will fall onto the taxpayers rather than the residential users, at least in capital intensive transport and water and sanitation. Fourth, the recent experience also shows that to ensure the sustainability of reforms and to ensure the fair distribution of their gains, possible trade-offs between efficiency and equity need to be diagnosed very early on in the reform process—and the tools to do so are available, they are simply not used as widely as they are in other sectors such as education or health. Fifth, the research on poverty shows that if there is a political will to address the infrastructure needs of the poor in the short to medium run and if the country can't generate the tax revenue to finance well targeted direct subsidies, well targeted inter-user, inter-usage or inter-regional cross-subsidies can deliver. Finally, the research on corruption shows that there is no simple institutional solution to reduce its impact in the sector. Based on the evidence available so far, the international infrastructure community does not yet have strong specific recommendations, besides the obvious ones on the need to generate information to increase accountability. This may be the main new area for research emerging from this survey because it touches on all the dimensions of infrastructure policymaking.