We introduce the infinite regionalized policy presentation (iRPR), as a nonparametric policy for reinforcement learning in partially observable Markov decision processes (POMDPs). The iRPR assumes an unbounded set of decision states a priori, and infers the number of states to represent the policy given the experiences. We propose algorithms for learning the number of decision states while maintaining a proper balance between exploration and exploitation. Convergence analysis is provided, along with performance evaluations on benchmark problems.


In studies on the changes of electrolyte excretion in unilateral tartrate nephrosis and on the added effect of removal of the normal kidney on the acid-base balance, it was thought advisable to determine the effect of high blood-urea values on the acid-base balance ofthe blood, because possibly the changes in osmotic equilibrium brought about by the increase in urea might change the electrolyte balance. Streicher (1928) found that injections of 10-20% urea solutions in sufficient amounts to raise the blood urea nitrogen of dogs to as high as 328 mg. urea N/100 ml. produced drops in the C02 content of the plasma of from 15-3 to 20-8 ml./100 ml. of plasma, the C02 estimations being made when the blood urea was from 14 to 130 mg./100 ml. above the normal level. He also reported that the blood chloride and calcium were raised and the potassium lowered.


Traceability system containers configured to track primary packages produced in a packaging system comprising a packaging line configured for producing and packaging primary containers to form secondary packaging, producing secondary packages in sequential order and formed with primary packaging under consecutive order; wherein the tracking system packaging is configured to: - calculate, for each secondary package, a sequence number of primary packaging for the first primary packaging in secondary packaging and a sequence number of primary packaging for the last primary package in the secondary container; - calculating, for each secondary package production time of primary packaging for the first primary packaging in secondary packaging and production time of primary packaging for the last primary package in the secondary package according to the sequence numbers corresponding primary packaging; and - storing in a record time of production of primary packaging for the first and last primary packaging in secondary packaging, along with identifiers associated secondary container; and wherein the tracking system packaging is further configured to calculate a time of production of primary packaging by: - identifying a production lot of segments of consecutive time so that in each time slot, the number of primary containers produced per unit time is constant; - calculating the number of primary containers produced from the start of the production batch to the end of a time slot according to the following formula: ** ** Formula where: ACCPN is the number of primary containers produced from the start of the batch of production until the end of a timeslot, TSSN is a sequence number time slot, and NPi is the number of primary packages produced during one time slot with sequence number segment same time ai, where NPi > = S · Di, where S is the speed filling machine, expressed in primary packages per second, during the time slot, and Di is the length of time segment, expressed in seconds. - identification of the first time segment of the production batch for which the following relationship holds: ** ** Formula where PPSN is the sequence number of primary packaging; - calculating the time of production of primary packaging according to the following formula: ** ** Formula where: PPPT production time is primary packaging; and AT is the start time of the timeslot identified.


Wheat, barley, sugerbeet, potato, alfalfa, and corn are common crops produced in Iran, which need the most virtual water volume compared to other crops. Determination of the virtual water for these crops would assist in better management of water resources. The main objective of this study is to find out the best technique for estimating and mapping of virtual water. In this research, the virtual water volume was determined by crop water requirement and crop yields using three ANN structures as well as ANFIS technique. Based on RMSE and R the comparison of obtained results predicted through the applied ANNs structures indicate that the RBF outperforms the other models for estimating virtual water for wheat, potato, corn, and barley. Moreover, a comparison between RBF and ANFIS revealed that ANFIS is a promising model, which can be efficient mathematical tool for estimation of crop"s virtual water.


This paper illustrates an interesting result on application of Ionic Polymer Metal Composite (IPMC) as a partially compliant smart actuator. A four‐bar mechanism is designed and developed in which the conventional rigid link rocker is replaced with an IPMC link to increase the work volume. Simulations are based on the effective length of IPMC and are obtained following Euler‐Bernoulli approach for each input voltage. It is demonstrated that controlling the bending of IPMC, work volume of the mechanism can be increased. An experimental set up of four‐bar mechanism is developed and experiment is conducted to validate the simulation results. The results prove that a definite work volume is possible by controlling the bending of IPMC.


Abstract A module M is called poor whenever it is N-injective, then the module N is semisimple. In this paper the properties of poor modules are investigated and are used to characterize various families of rings.


The cosmological constant is a fundamental problem in modern physics, and arises at the intersection between general relativity and quantum field theory. In this paper we show how the cosmological constant problem can be solved by X-particles of dark energy with the repulsive force proportional to energy density.


For centuries, humans have used plants in several fields, such as perfumery, pharmacology and food, thanks to their properties discovered by chance [1]. The genus Cedrus is an ancient genus known from the Tertiary with a broad distribution, it includes four species: Atlas cedar, Lebanon cedar, Himalayan cedar and Cyprus cedar [2]. The area occupied by natural cedar is divided into three large areas, Lebanon (160000 ha), Himalaya (500000 ha) and Morocco and Algeria [3]. Morocco has a natural variety of very diverse aromatic plants [4]. These aromatic plants are at the origin of products with very high added value which can contribute to the economic development of the country, and which could constitute an important capital for its sustainable development [5]. These many aromatic species that can provide essential oils, are used in various fields for their therapeutic and organoleptic properties, including fragrant (perfumery, cosmetic) [2,6]. Materials and Methods


Abbreviations and notes: N = nitrogen; P = phosphorus; K = potassium. Precision agriculture is often associated with technology or other data-gathering methods to make site-specifi c decisions regarding farm management. However, it has evolved into more than just tools and technology, it is an approach to wholefarm management that recognizes and incorporates spatial and temporal variability into the decision-making process for producers with varying levels of access to technology. The key component of PA in many regions is a global navigation satellite system such as the Global Positioning System (GPS). The satellites are used for precise navigation of equipment and geo-referenced positioning to collect high-resolution information from crops and soils. GPS-based manual guidance technologies have been popular for a decade or so in several countries, but in recent years, more producers and custom applicators have switched to automated guidance. A recent survey conducted in the Midwest USA, indicated that over 80% of custom applicators are using automated guidance (Erickson and Widmar, 2015). Other highly adopted automated technologies are GPS-enabled sprayer section control with nearly 75% of custom applicators offering this service and harvest monitors (nearly 60% usage among farmers). Automated guidance results in greater accuracy of each pass across the fi eld during planting, fertilization, and pesticide application resulting in optimization of inputs and a reduction in fi eld time by approximately 17% (Watson and LowenbergDeBouer, 2004). In maize production, the elimination of skips and multiple seed drops within the row greatly improves the stand establishment and results in increased yield and profi tability. Wade and Douglas (1990) reported that uneven plant distribution can reduce grain yield up to 30%, while Doerge et al. (2002) similarly reported that individual plant yields were maximized when plants were within 5 to 7 cm of equidistant spacing. Mechanized planters that can deliver precisely spaced, single seeds are ubiquitous in developed farming systems, but socioeconomic barriers in many developing countries have limited the opportunities for adoption of this technology and much of the maize is planted by hand. Even in these conditions, precision seeding (equidistant spacing) has been shown to increase yield by an average of 1,130 kg/ha compared with the farmer practice (Chim et al., 2014). Adoption of these automated types of technologies that don't depend on site-specifi c information to extract value has been rapid and steady, while adoption of others that require agronomic calibration (such as variable-rate technology) have been slower growing. However, the adoption of these services has been increasing at a faster rate the past few years as prescription methodology has improved (Erickson and Widmar, 2015). One of the site-specifi c technologies that is growing rapidly in popularity for maize production is variable rate seeding. Most of these applications are map-based, with management zones created using soil sampling data, crop yield history, and other soil and crop information collected using remote or proximal sensing. It is well documented that areas within fi elds possess different characteristics that affect crop performance and should be managed accordingly. The basic objective is to increase seeding rate in those areas where yield potential is higher and plant fewer seeds in areas of lower yield potential. A study in Virginia that is part of the IPNI Global Maize project (IPNI, 2017a) is evaluating the effect of variable rate seeding on maize yield. In 2015 and 2016 a comparison By Steve Phillips and Kaushik Majumdar The Role of Precision Agriculture in Closing Maize Yield Gaps


Cognitive Radio Network (CRN) aims to reduce spectrum congestion by allowing secondary users to utilize idle spectrum bands in the absence of primary users. However, the overall user capacity and hence, the system throughput is bounded by the total number of available idle channels in the system. This paper aims to solve the problem of limited user capacity in basic CRN by proposing a 2-tier CRN that allows another tier (or layer) of secondary users to transmit, in addition to the already existing set of primary and secondary users in the system. Markov Models are designed step-wise to map the interaction between primary and secondary users in both tiers by including suitable traffic distribution models and system parameters. Spectrum handoff is also incorporated in the developed Markov Models. Performance analysis is carried out in terms of SU transmission, dropping, blocking and handoff probabilities along with mathematical formulation of the overall SU throughput in 2-tier CRN. It confirms better spectrum utilization in spectrum handoff enabled 2-tier CRN over basic CRN with enhancement in quality of service for secondary users in terms of reduced dropping and blocking probabilities.


This article looks at how freight and passenger railroads in the U.S. are approaching the issue of security. At a conference hosted by the American Public Transportation Association, the Association of American Railroads, American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association, and the Railway Supply Institute, it was confirmed that a layered approach combining intelligence and technology is needed for protecting railroads. The issue of hazardous materials transportation is addressed, with the article mentioning a new hazmat regulation proposed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) While the proposal has numerous requirements that would regulate the handling of hazardous materials, it also has railroad administrators concerned about the ensuing restrictions that might ultimately create a burden and cost to the industry, economy, and consumers.


Cervical ectopic pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy and occurs in less than 0.01% of pregnancies [1]. It occurs when a pregnancy implants itself into the cervical canal [1]. The aetiology of Cervical ectopic pregnancy is largely unknown, but possible risk factors include previous dilatation and curettage, Asherman's syndrome, previous caesarean section and IVF [2,3]. Cervical ectopic pregnancies are dangerous, due to possible erosion of the cervical blood vessels causing life threatening bleeding [4]. Due to the rare occurrence of cervical ectopic pregnancy, there is no nationalised recommendations or trials as to the most appropriate treatment option. Treatment options include Methotrexate IM [5], dilatation and curettage [6], hysterectomy, and since 1995, Uterine Artery Embolization (UAE) [7]. This case represents a successful outcome following treatment of cervical ectopic pregnancy treated with UAE. It was effective as a fertility-sparing method, as she had a further successful live term birth, with no complications such as miscarriage or premature ovarian insufficiency.


Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the oral health beliefs and cultural specificity of multicultural families. Methods: Subjects were 179 adults from multicultural families living in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. The surveys and interviews were performed between June and November 2014 in the subjects' native languages (English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean). The surveys were conducted using a self-administration method and a face-to-face interviewing method with the assistance of translators. Results: Perceived barrier of oral health belief scores were higher in Vietnamese and Korean spouses than those from other countries (P<0.05). Cultural specificity scores were highest among the Japanese and lowest among the Vietnamese (P<0.01). Conclusions: Multicultural families showed different oral health beliefs and cultural specificities. Therefore, future oral health care programs for multicultural families should consider cultural differences and adaptations.


Objective To clone and express Schistosoma japonicum(Sj) p50 immunophilin gene,and to purify its protein. Methods To amplify p50 immunophilin′s complete coding sequence(CDS) from adult worm mRNA by RT-PCR.cDNA of p50 immunophilin gene was cloned into the pET30a(+)vector.The recombinant plasmid was transformed into E.coli BL21(DE3)and expressed,then the expressed products in E.coli were purified by affinity chromatography column. Results p50 immunophilin gene cDNA sequence was obtained and then successfully cloned into pET30a(+)vector.p50 immunophilin fusion protein was expressed after induced by IPTG and purified with(His)6 at the N terminus. Conclusion Sjp50 immunophilin gene was successfully cloned,expressed and fusion protein was purified,which gave the basis for further study especially as a vaccine.


Atom probe tomography (APT) technique has been improved significantly, making it a wellestablished nano-analysis tool in the field of material science. It has been extensively applied to the investigation of different types of materials due to its ability to map the distribution of single atoms in a material in real space on a nearly atomic scale [1]. In this paper, we investigate the details of the laser pulse mode APT analyses, in particular the laser induced specimen-heating effect using an interface reaction in an Al-Li alloy as a model system. This alloy is known to have a low-temperature, metastable, miscibility gap [2]. It has been shown that under classical conditions of ageing of this alloy, including solution treatment, fast quench to room temperature and thermal ageing at intermediate temperatures (e.g., 100–200°C), the precipitation behavior was dominated by the presence of the metastable phase with an L12 structure [3]. The influence of the laser power on the morphology, the composition, and the diffusion of the constituents of the precipitates in the aluminum-lithium-based alloy is identified during an APT analysis. Prior to the laser exposure all sample were prepared by ageing an Al2wt.%Li binary specimen at 190 °C for 3h to produce comparable initial state with an average diameter of (14.2±3) nm and a number density of (10±0.1)x10 m as confirmed by APT-voltage pulsing analysis. A simple model is used to explain the observed experimental behavior and to estimate the corresponding tip-apex temperature for various laser energies. APT analyses were performed with both a CAMECA laser assisted wide angle tomographic atom probe (LAWATAP) for the field ion microscopy (FIM) mode and the CAMECA local electrode atom probe (LEAP 4000X HR). Data were acquired utilizing either the voltageor the laser pulse mode. A diode-pumped (Nd: YAG) solid-state laser operating in the frequency tripled ultraviolet region with a wavelength of 355 nm, a pulse duration of approximately 12 ps and a repetition rate of 200 kHz was used. The laser pulse energy was systematically varied through the following values: 10, 30, 40, 50, 60, 80, and 100 pJ. The reconstruction algorithm used was the standard evolution algorithm [4].


The idea of using a crystal lattice or a superlattice as an undulator for a free electron laser is explored. A purely classical treatment of relativistic positrons channeling through the proposed structure is performed in a self‐consistent fashion involving the wave equation for the radiating electromagnetic field and the kinetic equation for the positron distribution function. The (positive) gain coefficient for a forward radiating field is obtained in closed form. Matching the Kumakhov channeling resonance to the undulator frequency further enhances the gain. This result, combined with a feedback mechanism arising from Bragg diffraction within the basic crystal lattice, leads to an instability of the radiation inside the crystal. A simple threshold condition involving the atomic scattering factor and the net gain is formulated. Finally, a numerical estimate of the Kumakhov‐enhanced gain coefficient is made for the (110) planar channeling in a strain‐modulated Si superlattice.


Libbie McQUILLAN: The Francophone Bande Dessinee: An Introduction Yves COTINAT [TANITOC]: Style, havanes & vanites Charles FORSDICK: Exoticising the Domestique: Becassine, Brittany and the Beauty of the Dead Laurence GROVE: BD Theory Before the Term 'BD' Existed Judi LOACH : De nouvelles formes naissent: Le Corbusier and the bande dessinee Laurent MARIE: Le Grele 7/13: A (Communist) Children's Guide to the Resistance Wendy MICHALLAT: Pilote: Pedagogy, Puberty and Parents Matthew SCREECH: Jean Giraud / Moebius: Nouveau Realisme and Science Fiction Teresa BRIDGEMAN: Figuration and configuration: mapping imaginary worlds in BD Ann MILLER: Narratives of Adolescence, Ethnicity and Masculinity in the Work of Baru Dominique Le DUC: Femmes en Images et Images de Femmes: L'Heroine de La Femme Piege d'Enki Bilal Libbie MCQUILLAN: Les Bidochon assujettis academiques Roger SABIN: Some Observations on BD in the US Murray PRATT: 'The Dance of the Visible and the Invisible': AIDS and the Bande Dessinee James STEEL: Let's party! Asterix and the World Cup (France 1998)


As the leading technology of the fourth industrial revolution of mankind, artificial intelligence has important theoretical significance and practical value for promoting the development of the sports industry. This article uses research methods literature and logical analysis to conduct detailed research on the theoretical logic, power sources, and realistic paths of artificial intelligence to promote the development of the sports industry, and put forward relevant suggestions. The research believes that: to strengthen the application of artificial intelligence in the transformation and upgrading of the traditional sports industry; to encourage the cultivation of new industries, new formats and new models for the development of artificial intelligence and the sports industry; to build a platform carrier for artificial intelligence to promote the development of the sports industry is the sports industry in the new era, the development path of mutual promotion and joint promotion with artificial intelligence.


The design and operation of a Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) for continuous water vapour profiling over extended periods of time is described. The system, based on an injection seeded Ti:sapphire laser, was designed for high accuracy measurements in the lower troposphere and unattended stable operation. The aims are fully achieved, with practically continuous operation for more than 7 months at the time of writing and the operation continuing. The system is described, operation characterised, and examples of measurements provided.


Home environment monitoring and automation helps to secure the home from accidental hazards and provides convenience to the user. Due to the recent technological developments in the field of communications, several authors are implementing Internet of Things (IoT) based embedded systems. In this paper, we implement an embedded system based on IoT consisting two subsystems, one subsystem for monitoring various home environment parameters such as temperature, humidity, gas leakage, occurrence of any fire accident, and rain, and another subsystem for automatic lighting control in the home based on the measurement of light intensity. The system is built using Arduino Mega 2560, several sensors and NodeMCU as a Wi-Fi module. The necessary software is developed in Embedded C using the Arduino Integrated Development Environment (IDE). The sensor data is fed to the Arduino which checks the set threshold conditions, and then uploads the information about each environment parameter on to the Cloud Message Queue Telemetry Transport (MQTT) webserver as well as MQTT dashboard android application. PIR sensor detects any motion in the room and turns on the light in the presence of a living being inside the room. This helps saving the energy consumption. The SSR dimmer circuit and light dependent resistor (LDR) are used to control the light intensity of the bulb based on the lighting in the room.


Sewer rehabilitation is one control option for relieving wet-weather sanitary sewer overflows by reducing rainfall dependent inflow and infiltration. The prioritization of rehabilitation activities is based on the physical condition of a collection system, which is usually only partially known. Linear regression methods have been used to estimate the condition of the unobserved set of pipes based on relationships derived from the observed set of pipes. This method can provide unsatisfactory relationships between the sewer condition and measured independent variables, resulting in highly uncertain rehabilitation cost estimates. Discriminant analysis has been effective at weighing the costs of misclassifying pipes and deriving least-cost classification rules. Classification rules may be derived within a data-mining framework using evolutionary algorithms or with logistic regression methods. The estimated spatial distribution of deficient pipes may then be refined on an aggregated scale with a bootstrap estimate of classification error. The result is a screening and prioritization tool for providing cost estimates for rehabilitation and replacement activities. This method is demonstrated with an 8,919 pipe sanitary sewer system in Vallejo, Calif.


An escalating elderly population has necessitated a corresponding need for social workers trained in gerontology and who can practice in nursing homes. In order to enhance professional knowledge and skills, the authors present a teaching model that uses an apprenticeship framework to help students develop social work skills in working with elderly residents in long term care facilities. Responses to student reaction worksheets were analyzed in order to assess student experiences, the progress of skill development and the amelioration of bias as a relationship develops develops between client and social worker. The authors propose the use of a "reflective practicum" enhanced by group processes as a way to enhance training.


This article explains how the dearth of executive clemency and parole has led to some prosecutors reducing terms of incarceration for particular defendants post-sentencing. California has passed the first law to encourage prosecutors to order "second look" hearings for prisoners they deem worthy. Elsewhere, prosecutors have in rare circumstances renegotiated plea deals to reduce terms of incarceration. Prosecutor-driven "second look" policies should be considered one of many tools that could help reduce the U.S. incarceration rate. Such policies will thrive only in localities where reducing incarceration is politically palpable. The "second look" paradigm is also unlikely to be viable in the federal context, due to skepticism from the Department of Justice.


Spam researchers and security personnel require a method for determining whether the URLs embedded in email messages are safe or potentially hostile. Prior research has been focused on spam collections that are quite insignificant compared to real-world spam volumes. In this paper, researchers evaluate 464 million URLs representing nearly 1 million unique domains observed in email messages in a six day period from November 2014. Four methods of customization and randomization of URLs believed to be used by spammers to attempt to increase deliverability of their URLs are explored: domain diversity, hostname wild-carding, path uniqueness, and attribute uniqueness. Implications of the findings suggest improvements for "URL blacklist" methods, methods of sampling to decrease the number of URLs that must be reviewed for safety, as well as presenting some challenges to the ICANN, Registrar, and Email Safety communities.


A finite element program, GROSEEP, was developed to estimate the groundwater seepage from the surficial aquifer into Indian River lagoon along a selected cross-section in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The model is a general purpose model and can be used at other cross-sections. Model results using a single layer indicate that groundwater seepage could be an important freshwater source into the lagoon. Sensitivity analysis using a three-layer model predicted that among other parameters the presence of windows in the clay layers could significantly affect seepage rates into the lagoon. Estuaries are areas where sea water is measurably diluted with freshwater from land drainage. One of the most important characteristics of an estuary is its effectiveness as a habitat for marine species. Since species tolerances for salinity vary, it is possible for salinity to be too high or too low for specific species at certain times of the year. Gunter, Ballard, and Venkataramaiah (1973) found that dilution of salt water by excess fresh water or vice versa can have a definite and sometimes drastic effect on the flora and fauna of the affected area. The Indian River lagoon, a semi-enclosed area where freshwater mixes with saltwater, can be defined as an estuary or as a lagoon. It extends 155 miles from Volusia to Palm Beach County and is approximately 227 square miles in area. The width and depth of the lagoon vary between 0.5 to five miles and three to ten feet, respectively. Circulation and flushing of Indian River lagoon are greatly influenced by freshwater inflows. Principal freshwater sources are natural streams, rainfall, direct land runoff, a number of wastewater treatment plants and groundwater. Glatzel (1986) estimated annual values for inputs due to precipitation, controlled discharge (through canals), anthropogenic flows, and non-point runoff to be 32.0, 49.0, 26.0 and 13.0 billions of cubic feet, respectively. Glatzel also noted that groundwater input from the surficial aquifer could not be estimated because of lack of sufficient data. South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD, 1987) concluded that only groundwater could account for a relatively constant, background flow of freshwater into the St. Lucie Estuary. Annual seepage was estimated to be between 60 and 600 ft per foot of shoreline. Gu, Iricanin and Trefry (1987), reported that in samples taken from Eau Gallie Harbor interstitial water chlorinity decreased linearly from 10700 ppm to 3500 ppm over a length of a core approximately 11.8 inches long. This decrease suggested that groundwater may be seeping through the sediments. The results of these studies, indicating that groundwater flow could be a major freshwater input into the lagoon, lead to the present research study. 170 FLORIDA SCIENTIST [Vol. 53 Indian River lagoon has two watersheds: a natural watershed formed by natural topographic highs on both sides of the lagoon, and a more extensive watershed drained by several canals that link the mainland and the barrier islands to the lagoon. The boundaries of the natural watershed are generally considered to be the Atlantic Coastal Ridge on the mainland and the high ridge in the barrier islands east of the lagoon. Since water table elevations usually conform to the natural topography, the groundwater divide in the surficial aquifer is considered to be along these ridge lines. The direction of regional groundwater flow in the surficial aquifer, within the confines of the groundwater divides on either side of the lagoon, is perpendicular to the lagoon (Toth, 1987). Thus, the surficial aquifer can provide a continuous flow of groundwater into the lagoon and act as a non-point source. Methods—Groundwater seepages can be estimated by solving partial differential equations that describe the conservation of fluid mass during flow through a porous medium. A detailed description of these equations is provided by Pinder and Gray (1977). The equations are solved by using numerical methods such as the finite difference or the finite element methods. Eyre (1985) simulated the flow of groundwater and the effects of future groundwater development by using a two-dimensional finite element model. Attia and co-workers (1986) used a two-dimensional finite element model to simulate groundwater flows in the aquifer underlying the Nile Valley of Egypt. A general purpose Galerkin two-dimensional finite element model developed by Pandit (1982) was also used to predict steady and unsteady groundwater flow rates below an impervious dam. The results from this model were quite close to analytical results. In this study, a finite element model GROSEEP (Groundwater Seepage) was developed to quantify the non-point groundwater flow into the lagoon. GROSEEP is a modified version of the model developed by Pandit (1982). Description of Selected Site and Lithology—The subsurface system in central coastal Florida consists of a surficial aquifer and the confined Floridan Aquifer, separated by the relatively impermeable Hawthorn Formation. Groundwater levels in the surficial aquifer, along the groundwater flow direction, are required to operate the finite element model, GROSEER A section on the southern end of St. Lucie County was selected for this study after assessment of all available data (Fig. 1). This section was selected mainly because of the existence of five wells, STL 173, STL 174, STL 175, STL 176, and STL 177, which were located along the direction of regional groundwater flow. Three additional two inch diameter PVC pipe shallow monitoring wells, IRL 1 (Indian River Lagoon 1) through IRL 3, were installed by the authors on the barrier island to determine the location of the water-tabledivide on the east side of the lagoon. Well IRL 4 was installed on the mainland to pinpoint the location of the water table on the west side of the lagoon. An added advantage in using this cross-section was that groundwater elevation in wells STL 175 and STL 176 had been measured by a water stage recorder from March 1975 to October 1978 by the USGS and these data were available for analysis. The average monthly groundwater elevations in STL 176 for 1975 and 1976 are shown in Table 1. No. 3, 1990] PANDIT AND EL-KHAZEN—GROUNDWATER SEEPAGE 171


The fat content in oats grain varied depending on a cultivar genotype and conditions of its cultivation: from 2,9% for Zhorga cultivar up to 6,5-6,6% for Alaman, Pegas and Skakun cultivars. The high fat samples fraction (> 6,1%) in Pegas and Bitik cultivars makes up to half of all investigated, and in Skakun and Alaman cultivars – up to third of all analysed. The maximal values on a fat content in groats allocates theALaman, Arman (8,6%), Nicola (8,1%) and Pegas (8,0%). The Number of high oil samples was is highest (according to a fat content in a kernel) at a level of 7,1-8,0% and above 8%) among cultivars as: Nicola (75+25%)> Pegas (75%)> Skakun (67%)> Alaman (55%). Acording to average fat content regions located in the following order: the East (5,6-5,9%)> the North (5,4%)> the West (4,9%)> the South (4,3-4,5%)> КЗО (3,7-4,4%). The fat parity in a kernel/seed varies on regions from 1,20 up to 1,57 on average values. As a whole the fat content in a seed defines it in a kernel with correlation level r=0,82 and negatively connected with a hullness level (-0,49 up to-0,78). Cultivars is allocated with the oleine acid content (> 40 %), cultivars Alaman and Zhorga have rather lowered linolenic acid content.


In this paper, a Hammerstein system is proposed to describe the rate-dependent hysteresis nonlinearity of a piezoelectric actuator. The MPI model is employed to represent the nonlinear block of this system. An identification method for the system is given. Based on this system, a PID feedback controller combined with an inverse compensation in the feed forward loop is proposed for tracking control. Simulation of tracking control shows that the control method is effective.


Operational planning in China is perhaps more important today than ever before owing to the ongoing expansion of urban rail in the country. As urban rail networks increase in size and complexity, new lines added to them significantly alter both their topologies and operational characteristics. Thus, appraisal of alternative lines from the perspective of operation while planning is crucial. In this study, a method to forecast demands for new lines and obviate the effects of their addition, in terms of overcrowding in urban rail networks, was developed based on smart card data from existing networks. Using the card data and forecasted demand, transfer demand and section load can be estimated through the route choice model, and hence the influence of new lines on the operation of the network can be analyzed. The results of application of the proposed method to a case of line extension of a network in Beijing showed that it effectively prevented overcrowding by fewer interchanges on the line extension. Approximately 63% of passengers desiring an interchange on the target line altered their interchange from the station that had acted as bottleneck to the new interchange. Consequently, the headway of the feeding line was reduced from 6 min to 3.5 min. Hence, the capacity mismatch problem no longer occurred.


Infection control is important to the wellbeing of our patients and for that reason we have infection control procedures in place. Keeping your hands clean is an effective way of preventing the spread of infections. We ask that you, and anyone visiting you, use the hand sanitiser available at the entrance to every ward before coming in to or after leaving the ward. In some situations hands may need to be washed at the sink using soap and water rather than using the hand sanitiser. Staff will let you know if this is the case. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in children & young people


The present study examines internal migration in Israel within a core-periphery spatial structure between the years 1961 and 1987....[The author analyzes] the balance of migration over the period under study utilizing graphic analysis and [develops] a matrix of origin and destination according to quantity of migrants and according to their socio-economic characteristics. The principal conclusion is that over a period of time the balance of migration in the core regions becomes less positive while in the periphery it becomes less negative. (EXCERPT)


To locate and recognize ground-based targets in forward- looking IR (FLIR) images, 3-D faceted models with associated pose pa- rameters are formulated to accommodate the variability found in FLIR imagery. Taking a Bayesian approach, scenes are simulated from the emissive characteristics of the CAD models and compared with the col- lected data by a likelihood function based on sensor statistics. This like- lihood is combined with a prior distribution defined over the set of pos- sible scenes to form a posterior distribution. To accommodate scenes with variable numbers of targets, the posterior distribution is defined over parameter vectors of varying dimension. An inference algorithm based on Metropolis-Hastings jump-diffusion processes empirically samples from the posterior distribution, generating configurations of templates and transformations that match the collected sensor data with high prob- ability. The jumps accommodate the addition and deletion of targets and the estimation of target identities; diffusions refine the hypotheses by drifting along the gradient of the posterior distribution with respect to the orientation and position parameters. Previous results on jumps strate- gies analogous to the Metropolis acceptance/rejection algorithm, with proposals drawn from the prior and accepted based on the likelihood, are extended to encompass general Metropolis-Hastings proposal den- sities. In particular, the algorithm proposes moves by drawing from the posterior distribution over computationally tractible subsets of the param- eter space. The algorithm is illustrated by an implementation on a Silicon Graphics Onyx/Reality Engine. © 1997 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers. (S0091-3286(97)02404-5)


This study entitled "Analysis of Factors Affecting Central Java Manpower in 2014". The objective is to analyze the effect of regional gross domestic product, the district minimum wage, the human development index of the labor force in Central Java in 2014. The dependent variable in the form of labor (TK), while the independent variable in the form of regional gross domestic product (GDP), the minimum wage district (UMK), the human development index (HDI). This study used cross section data with multiple linear regression analysis method Last Ordinary square (OLS). To test, the validity of the models tested include: normality test, linearity test, classic assumption test (test multicollinearity, heteroscedasticity test and autocorrelation test). Followed by statistical analysis include: t-test, F, R2 and interpretation.
The results showed that, the results of calculation of data normality test with a model Jarque Bera normal distribution, the results of linearity test with a model of Ramsey Research regression model be linear, the results of classic assumption test shows that there are no issues multicolinearity, no problem heterokedastisitas, and no problems autocorrelation ; T test results showed that the variable gross regional domestic product is significant and positive effect on labor, human development index is significant and positive effect on employment, while variable minimum wage and the district does not significantly negatively affect employment. F test results showed that the model used to exist, nterpretation R2 shows that the dependent variable can be explained by the independent variables in the model variation of 5%.


Type IIP supernovae (SNe IIP) have recently been proposed as metallicity ( Z ) probes. The spectral models of Dessart et al. (2014) showed that the pseudo-equivalent width of Fe ii λ 5018 (pEW 5018 ) during the plateau phase depends on the primordial Z , but there was a paucity of SNe IIP exhibiting pEW 5018 that were compatible with Z < 0 . 4 Z ⊙ . This lack might be due to some physical property of the SN II population or to the fact that those SNe have been discovered in luminous, metal-rich targeted galaxies. Here we use SN II observations from the untargeted (intermediate) Palomar Transient Factory [(i)PTF] survey, aiming to investigate the pEW 5018 distribution of this SN population and, in particular, to look for the presence of SNe II at lower Z . We perform pEW 5018 measurements on the spectra of a sample of 39 (i)PTF SNe II, selected to have well-constrained explosion epochs and light-curve properties. Based on the comparison with the pEW 5018 spectral models, we subgrouped our SNe into four Z bins from Z ≈ 0 . 1 Z ⊙ up to Z ≈ 2 Z ⊙ . We also independently investigated the Z of the hosts by using their absolute magnitudes and colors and, in a few cases, using strong-line diagnostics from spectra. We searched for possible correlations between SN observables, such as their peak magnitudes and the Z inferred from pEW 5018 . We found 11 events with pEW 5018 that were small enough to indicate Z ≈ 0 . 1 Z ⊙ . The trend of pEW 5018 with Z matches the Z estimates obtained from the host-galaxy photometry, although the significance of the correlation is weak. We also found that SNe with brighter peak magnitudes have smaller pEW 5018 and occur at lower Z . six Z is reported for the host and at the SN position as measured from three di ff erent methods: (1) the luminosity-metallicity relation (LZ), (2) the luminosity-color-metallicity relation (LCZ), and (3) the strong-line diagnostic (O3N2; Pettini & Pagel 2004). When computing the metallicity at the SN distance from the host-galaxy center, we converted the average Z gradient in units of DeVRad g − 1 by multiplying the metallicity gradient by 0.3, which is the typical ratio between DeVRad g − 1 and the isophotal radius in the g band. The isophotal radius, isoA g, is available only for the SDSS galaxies in the DR7. The host of PTF10vdl is not detected, those of PTF09fma, PTF11hsj, and PTF11hzt are not in the SDSS footprint. We exclude these hosts from the analysis presented in Fig. 4. The vast majority of our SN hosts are in the optimal M g − α ( g − r ) range where the LCZ relation was calibrated. The adoption of a standard gradient for all the host galaxies is a strong assumption and could lead to erroneous local metallicity estimates for some of the SNe if their actual gradient is significantly di ff erent from ours, as it could be for dwarf galaxies.


At a time when other organs of the media appear to have moved beyond concerns about the facts - which increasingly seem to be viewed as incidental to good stories - the Anglo-Celt has a proud tradition of reporting the news in a way which lets the facts shine through. I congratulate you for sticking with those standards and no doubt this will be the reason why discerning readers and advertisers will stick with the Anglo-Celt moving forward.


- Printed circuit board (PCB) is base of any electronics/electrical equipment. A PCB provides the connectivity to the electronic component such as resistor, capacitor, coils, pots, diodes, FET, transistor, ICs, transformer etc. to form a complete electronic circuit. In the present scenario, the existence of electronics equipment's cannot be imagined without a PCB. The PCBs are not only providing the connectivity among the electronic components but also reduces the size and increases the efficiency of the electronic equipment. Broadly the PCBs may be divided in two categories i.e. single layer PCBs and multi-layer PCBs. One can easily find the contribution of electronic industries in each and every field of our daily life i.e. entertainment, communication, education, R&D, Public Services, Defence, Transport, Agriculture, health care services etc. With the growing demand of electronic equipment's/appliances in every sphere of human beings the electronic industry is growing up with a very fast rate. Similarly, the demand of micro servicing industries such as assembling/mounting of electronic component on PCBs to meet the requirement of the small/medium/large scale electronic industries is also increasing. This Paper Discuss what is the future scope of PCB board fabrication and manufacturing in industries. Our Conclusion show that the PCB manufacturing and fabrication is very fast growth in future.


Data collected by mobile devices can augment surveillance of epidemics in real time. However, methods and evidence for the integration of these data into modern surveillance systems are sparse. We linked call detail records (CDR) with an influenza‐like illness (ILI) registry and evaluated the role that Icelandic international travellers played in the introduction and propagation of influenza A/H1N1pdm09 virus in Iceland through the course of the 2009 pandemic.


The formation of low‐mass stars and brown dwarfs and their disks is a hot observational topic. Such studies also holds important keys for the clarification of the planet formation mechanism. Because of its proximity (150 pc) and young age (30–50 Myr), the IC2391 open cluster is an ideal location for such studies.We present the results of a deep optical survey of IC 2391 performed by using the Wide‐Field Imager at the ESO 2.2 m telescope. These data, in combination with near‐infrared photometry from 2MASS, allowed us to uncover new low‐mass members and brown dwarfs in IC 2391 and put further constrains on the shape of the low‐mass initial mass function (IMF) in this cluster, which is currently under debate. Moreover, by using data from the Spitzer space telescope, we identify a dozen of possible debris‐disk objects in the cluster and investigate their disk properties using appropriate models of circumstellar disks.The formation of low‐mass stars and brown dwarfs and their disks is a hot observational topic. Such studies also holds important keys for the clarification of the planet formation mechanism. Because of its proximity (150 pc) and young age (30–50 Myr), the IC2391 open cluster is an ideal location for such studies.We present the results of a deep optical survey of IC 2391 performed by using the Wide‐Field Imager at the ESO 2.2 m telescope. These data, in combination with near‐infrared photometry from 2MASS, allowed us to uncover new low‐mass members and brown dwarfs in IC 2391 and put further constrains on the shape of the low‐mass initial mass function (IMF) in this cluster, which is currently under debate. Moreover, by using data from the Spitzer space telescope, we identify a dozen of possible debris‐disk objects in the cluster and investigate their disk properties using appropriate models of circumstellar disks.


We exploit the computational capability of deep convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture and the natural interpretability of the co-occurrence matrix (CM) to learn deep co-occurrence features (DCOFs). The DCOFs represent the statistics of the co-occurrences of pixels thus overcoming the black box nature of traditional deep representation learning while at the same time solving the inherent computational difficulty of CM. We propose a parametric co-occurrence matrix (PCM) model to approximate the CM with multivariate Gaussian functions, and have developed three approaches to decomposing the PCM model into linear and nonlinear operations such that the model can be easily implemented using standard CNN operations and to learn the DCOFs of arbitrary shapes. The CNN implementation of the PCM model, termed PCMCNN, can be used as a standard plugin module of a deep learning system and adaptively learns the DCOFs for downstream applications. We demonstrate the broad applicability of the DCOFs and their effectiveness in fine-grained image classification tasks such as texture classification and GAN (generative adversarial network) image detection. The introduction of the PCMCNN module makes it much more compact and efficient than conventional implementations of deep learning models, achieving comparable classification performances to state of the art methods on a variety of benchmarking datasets with models that are more than 30 folds smaller and 11 times less complex. The small model size for learning the DCOFs makes the new method particularly effective for few shot classification of large number of texture categories where the small number of training samples can easily cause traditional deep learning models to overfit. This work shows the potential benefits of combining the principles of traditional handcrafted features and deep representation learning to take advantage of both for advancing state of the art.


Selenium sulfide (SeS2) nano photocatalyst was prepared by a facile electrochemical method and characterized by XRD, scanning electron microscope, Energy dispersive X-ray analysis and IR spectroscopy. The XRD showed that SeS2 is amorphous and has an average crystallite size of 41.26 nm which has a triclinic structure. The photocatalytic activity of the sample was evaluated by the degradation of textile dye indigo carmine in aqueous solutions under ultraviolet radiation. The photocatalytic decolourization of the dye follows first-order kinetics. High efficiency was achieved at a very low concentration of 0.003 g of SeS2 nanoparticle. Easy separation from suspension by spontaneous sedimentation and reusability of the catalyst make these photocatalysts suitable for waste water treatment. Evidently, the anti-bacterial activity of SeS2 is considerable compared with the standard drug. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


The recent surge in envy research has brought with it a line of inquiry differentiating between "benign" and "malicious" envy. "Benign" envy involves the motivation to improve the self, leading to socially desirable reactions. "Malicious" envy involves the motivation to harm the envied other, leading to socially undesirable reactions. We suggest that studying "benign" and "malicious" envy involves confounding envy with its outcomes, which causes confusion and impairs the understanding of envy. We discuss the roots of this differentiation, the theoretical and methodological challenges it involves, and its negative ramifications for envy research. We provide theory and findings showing that envy, conceptualized and measured as a unitary construct, can lead to a wide range of reactions, both socially desirable and undesirable, depending on personal and situational moderators. Therefore, we believe the distinction between "benign" and "malicious" envy is unwarranted and advocate for the use of envy as a unitary construct.


MRS Energy & Sustainability —A Review Journal publishes reviews on key topics in materials research and development as they relate to energy and sustainability. Review topics include new R&D of both established and new areas; systems integration; and objective application of economic, sociological and governmental models, enabling research and technological developments. The reviews are set in an integrated context of scientific, technological and sociological complexities relating to environment and sustainability.


The radiosensitivity of mouse zygotes fertilized in vitro (BC3F1 ovum x ICR sperm) to X-rays has been measured as a function of time from fertilization to first cleavage. The dose of X-rays (LD50) required to prevent development of 50% of the zygotes to the blastocyst stage in vitro varied markedly depending on the time of irradiation from about 40 to 400 R. Sensitivity is relatively low shortly after sperm entry and becomes extremely high (LD50, 40 R) at the stage just before pronuclear formation (4 to 6 hr after insemination). In the later pronuclear stage (12 hr of fertilization) the sensitivity becomes low (LD50, about 400 R), and it increases again just before first cleavage.


Recently, economists have shown a rapidly growing attention for the field of artificial intelligence (AI). This contribution does not discuss the technology of AI, or its applications to econometrics, business. finance or management. Instead, we explain the signi ficance of AI for economic theory; in particular for the theory of decentralized economies. Are you after truth? Yeah. But I don't know what we mean by truth in our business. I don't see economics as pushing that deeply in some respects. We're programming robot imitations of people, and there are real limits on what you can get out of that. (Lucas in [26], p. 49)


Atomic processes in plasmas are reviewed. Databases for atomic numerical data are important to provide data for plasma diagnostics and modeling. We have constructed a database of autoionizing state energy levels and dielectronic satellite lines for plasma diagnostics. The database is available though WWW. INTRODUCTION Various kinds of atomic and molecular processes take place in plasmas and understanding these processes is important for diagnostics and investigating plasmas. Spectral lines bring us information on plasmas, such as ionization stages, electron density and temperature, ion density and temperature, radiation loss, or magnetic field strength. Emission lines produced by charge transfer processes between impurity ions and a neutral beam are often used for plasma diagnostics in fusion plasmas. For such diagnostics and plasma modeling atomic and molecular data are necessary and the database system, as a compilation of numerical atomic data and their retrieval system, is important and useful. There are some numerical databases available through WWW, such as the numerical database of wavelengths and transition probabilities made by NIST [1] and others. NIFS has the retrievable numerical database systems AMDIS for cross sections of ionization, excitation, and recombination by electron impact and CHART for cross sections of ionization and charge transfer by ion-atom collisions [2]. Recently IAEA has established a general search engine GENIE connecting several databases in the web to search for oscillator strength/transition probabilities (6 databases) and electron impact ionization and excitation cross sections (2 databases) [3]. The world around the atomic databases becomes more convenient with this system for users, since it covers the main data categories for users interests. However, there is no available database for inner-shell satellite lines and dielectronic satellite lines, which can be important for plasma diagnostics and modeling. Here we briefly review atomic processes in plasmas, spectral line intensity, and a new database system for dielectronic satellite lines. ATOMIC PROCESSES Various atomic processes govern microscopic plasma conditions. Abundance of ions are determined mainly by balance of electron-impact collisional ionization and radiative, dielectronic, and three-body recombination in laboratory plasmas. Photo-ionization becomes important for some astrophysical plasmas. Ionization and recombination rates depend on electron temperature. Ions are excited by electron impact collision or by photon absorption and emit spectral lines. Charge transfer processes between ions and neutral beams or neutral atoms in peripheral region of tokamak and stellarator plasmas also make excited ions or atoms and lead to line emission. Radiation of spectral lines, of continuum radiation due to radiative recombination, and of bremsstrahlung causes an energy loss from the plasma. Spectral line intensities can be calculated by a so-called collisional-radiative model (CRM). The CRM obtains population densities of excited states with assumption that time scales for collisions or radiation are fast enough to be in steady state for excited states. A set of rate equations for excited states is to be solved. Transitions between excited states become more important when the electron density becomes higher, and a coronal model in which a line intensity is determined only by collisional excitation from the ground state is not applicable to most laboratory plasmas. Following is an example of a rate equation for population density ni of excited state i of qth ion (A), in which ionization and recombination processes with next ionic-state ion A and recombination due to charge transfer with neutral hydrogen are included. H i H q e q q i q e q q i q i i j q i j q j e i j q i j q j i j q j i q i e i j q j i q i q i X n n n n n S n A n n C n A n n C n dt dn 0 1 0 , 1 1 0 1 , , , , , 0


The objectives of this research were to find out the implementation of teaching strategies by English teacher for deaf students and the challenges faced by the English teachers in using teaching strategies for deaf students. This research used qualitative method as the research method and case study as the research design. To obtain the data, observation, interview and documentation were used. The result of the research showed and infered that frequent teaching strategies applied by teacher in teaching English for deaf students were direct teaching and cooperative strategy. The reserach also revealed the challenges encountered by the teacher during teaching english to the deaf students were due to communication problems.  Sometimes the students made mistakes in understanding words because of similar lip movements to other words; they got difficulties in differentiating similar words; they had limited vocabularies; and they were the lack of background knowledge. These led to the need of getting more the students' attention, adapting the material and media, and repetition in delivering the material.


Extensive soft-tissue uptake after strenuous physical exercise and/or trauma has been observed with bone scanning agents. Reports since 1984 suggest that muscle damage secondary to strenuous exertion is more common than realized, an observation that has assumed an important role in the last decade because of the evolution of sports medicine practices. Furthermore, although localization of the phosphate bone scanning agents following exercise has been recognized since 1978, there is no one explanation for the exact mechanism by which these bone-seeking agents are concentrated in injured skeletal tissues and muscles.


In a land where everything from the imperial regalia onwards is often arranged in threes, one familiar cast of characters goes by the name of the 'Three Merchants of Japan'. These are the traders of Omi, Osaka and Ise; their territory - a broad swathe of central Honshu where, in the early modern era, they fostered the growth of the 'Three Great Cities': Kyoto, Osaka and Edo. Another archetypal figure notably absent from this group is the Hakata merchant. In the late medieval period the Hakata merchant had been locked in competition with entrepreneurs from Sakai over the profits from the tally trade, but his own experience of commercial enterprise stretched back several centuries before, encompassing networks not just in Japan but across maritime East Asia. Now into the twenty-first century, the enduring memory of the Hakata merchant is once again a prominent feature of the cultural landscape. Keywords:cultural networks; Hakata merchant; Ise; Japan; maritime trade; Omi; Osaka


Twelve uncastrated healthy black Bengal goats, 12 month old and of almost similar body weights were divided into two groups (infected and non-infected control) of six animals each. In infected bucks mean body weight decreased significantly (P<0.05) 12 weeks post infection (7.83±0.39 kg vs the pre inoculation weight of (8.66±0.49 kg). During the experimental period infected animals exhibited intermittent fever and severe anaemia. Histopathological changes revealed emphysema and atelectasis of alveoi in lungs, necrosis of hepatocytes and swollen Kupffer cell in liver necrosis of renal tubules and presence of casts in kidney, blocked and necrosed haemosideriosis hyperplastic changes of white pulp in splean, skeletal muscles, intramuscular edema, degeneration of muscle fibers with loss of striation, brain oedema and atrophy of thyroid follicles.


A significant curve modeling technique has been introduced with a view to its applications in geometric modeling, computer graphics and computer-aided design. It is a new spline method using quadra...


Our proposed framework of strategic ethics management is assumed to improve both economic and ethical goals of Multinational Enterprises (MNEs). Especially, we considered financial values of these two mutually exclusive objectives so that this framework will allow MNEs to consider financial performance of business operations and ethical business conducts.  With positive correlation between ethical business conducts and long-term financial performances, the strategic ethics management should be able to use business ethics as competitive advantages in global operations to increase long-term profitability.


Background Synthesizing and characterizing aptamers with high affinity and specificity have been extensively carried out for analytical and biomedical applications. Few publications can be found that describe structure–activity relationships (SARs) of candidate aptamer sequences. Methodology This paper reports pattern recognition with support vector machine (SVM) classification techniques for the identification of streptavidin-binding aptamers as "low" or "high" affinity aptamers. The SVM parameters C and γ were optimized using genetic algorithms. Four descriptors, the topological descriptor PW4 (path/walk 4 - Randic shape index), the connectivity index X3A (average connectivity index chi-3), the topological charge index JGI2 (mean topological charge index of order 2), and the free energy E of the secondary structure, were used to describe the structures of candidate aptamer sequences from SELEX selection (Schütze et al. (2011) PLoS ONE (12):e29604). Conclusions The predicted fractions of winning streptavidin-binding aptamers for ten rounds of SELEX conform to the aptamer evolutionary principles of SELEX-based screening. The feasibility of applying pattern recognition based on SVM and genetic algorithms for streptavidin-binding aptamers has been demonstrated.


When we examine a culture's attitude toward dreaming and vision experiences, we bring to light the archetypal force fields that inform the basic shape of the collective consciousness. Dreams are of the natural world, events of nature, and follow ancient, mythic patterns of influence. Shamanic cultures understand the power of dreaming, and in such cultures dreams are ritually cried for, or quested after because of their power to align people and communities with sacred intentionality. In the attempt to overpower and displace the native cultures of this country, our "patriarchal, urban culture of conquest" has damaged much of our dream grounding and inhibited our desire and capacity for tending the natural world (inner and outer) in sacred, mythically meaningful ways. In this essay, I sketch the nature of dream reality in this country prior to, and following European colonization, and explore how a culture's relationship with dreaming reflects and influences people's impulses toward war and peace, destruction, and preservation.


Contact-free technology has a great potential in different medical areas such as personal health monitoring and telemedicine. One of the physiological parameters that can be measured with this type of technology is the heart rate. The pulse is proportional with the physical effort or mental stress, its measurement being an important issue in sport, medicine and psychology. In this paper we present an analysis of the accuracy of the heart rate detection using a high speed camera for recording a color video with the face of a person. The recordings were done both from frontal view and from profile and they were resampled to different frequencies between 10 and 240 frames per second. From our tests we may conclude that it was not the high frequency but the quality of the videos recorded with a high speed camera that allowed us to reduce the time needed to obtain the heart-rate up to 5 seconds. We have also noticed that the results are influenced by the errors generated in the resampling process of the video signal.


By making use of the quotient singular value decomposition (QSVD) of a matrix pair, this paper establishes the necessary and sucien t conditions for the existence of and the expressions for the general solutions of the linear matrix equation AXA T + BY B T = C with the unknown X and Y , which may be both symmetric, skew-symmetric, nonnegative denite , positive denite or some cross combinations respectively. Also, the solutions of some optimal problems are derived.


Objective To observe the effect of angiotensin-Ⅱ type Ⅰantagonist losartan on serum procollagen type Ⅰ(PINP),type Ⅲ(PⅢNP),type IV(CL-Ⅳ) and hyaluronic acid(HA) and heart function,left ventricular end-diastolic diameter in acute myocardial infarction(AMI) patients.Methods 56 patients suffered from acute myocardial infarction were divided into two groups randomly.One group accepted losartan 50 mg/d,the other did not.The serum procollagen type Ⅰ,type Ⅲ,type Ⅳ,HA were measured at the first day,one week,one month,three months after the myocardial infarction by radioimmunoassay.The heart(ejection) fraction and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter were measured at one month after the AMI.Result The procollagen type Ⅰ,type Ⅲ,type Ⅳ and HA were increased in AMI patients significantly and the ratio of procollagen type Ⅰto type Ⅲ was decreased and the latter was positively related with left ventricular ejection fraction(r=0.856,P0.05) and negatively related with left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(r=-0.730,P0.05).Losartan could control this change and has good effect on heart function.Conclusion Losartan can extracellular matrix from remodelling in AMI heart and have good effect on heart function.


Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for rectal carcinoid tumors.Methods Twenty-three patients with rectal carcinoid tumors underwent enteroscopy and the clinical data were analyzed,and 21 patients with tumor diameter < 2 cm were treated by ESD.Results In addition to 2 patients transferred to surgical department for partial surgical resection of anus rectal carcinoid tumors,the remaining 21 patients underwent ESD resection under endoscopy,all cases were pathologically confirmed with rectal carcinoid tumors,all survived after operation,followed up to now,no recurrence,and no liver metastasis.Conclusions ESD resection is a safe,economic and practical method for rectal carcinoid tumors,and it can be used as the preferred method.

Key words:
Rectal carcinoid tumors;  Endoscopic submucosal dissection(ESD)


The ground seeds of Ricinus communis, given by stomach tube in single doses to rabbits, caused severe symptoms of poisoning, lethal in three rabbits which received the dose of 2 g/kg and in one of four rabbits which received 1 g/kg; the other three rabbits which received the lower dose, showed slight to moderate symptoms and recovered. Three other rabbits, which received 0.5 g/kg, showed only slight symptoms. The period between administration of the seeds and death or recovery, varied from 12h47min to 68h08min, and from 3 to 6 days, respectively. First clinical symptoms after the administration of the seeds were observed about 8 hours in the lethal cases and in those where the animals showed more than slight symptoms, and about 24 hours in the cases with only slight symptoms. The course of the poisoning varied from 4 to 56 hours in the lethal cases and from 2 to 5 and half days in the cases with recovery. The clinical signs consisted mainly in digestive distress; the animals showed inappetence or anorexia. Faeces were generally scarce, with bolus altered in form and size, dark, sometimes soft, with mucus. There were manifestations of colic. The most evident post-mortem findings were in the small intestine and cecum, which had liquid contents; its wall was congested and edematous, and fibrine covered the mucosa as pseudomembranes or was found in the lumen as flakes and or filaments. The most important histological changes were seen also in the small intestine and cecum. In the formar there was coagulative necrosis associated with congestion/ hemorrhages of the mucosa and submucosa which also showed edema. Similar lesions were seen in the cecum, but these were less marked, with exception of the edema of the submucosa. In colon and rectum the changes were slight or absent. Necrosis with marked caryorhexis of the macrophages, which migrated to the upper mucosal layer, was seen in the lymphoid follicles of the appendix vermiformis and in one case also of the rudimentary cecum.


The method is to transcend the essence of the student in the field of relations
with teachers. Studying the role of the body as a tool to achieve the learning
goal. Comparison of the tools of a living human teacher, which is in front of the
monitor screen and the screen image of a student who is deprived of natural tools
(hearing, sight, touch, etc.). What exactly will give rise to the transition and long
stay of human consciousness where there is no language of the human body,
which identifies our state in the living space of art and education?


ABSTRACT The Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) G protein-coupled receptor (vGPCR) is a constitutively active, highly angiogenic homologue of the interleukin-8 (IL-8) receptors that signals in part via the cytoplasmic protein tyrosine phosphatase Shp2. We show that vGPCR contains a bona fide immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif (ITIM) that binds and constitutively activates Shp2.


In this paper the tendencies of development of fixed broadband technologies is considered. The perspective way of development of xDSL broadband access technologies is shown and the main problems of implementation of this way is identified. The "vectoring" compensation crosstalk method with parallel operation of transmission systems in the multipair telephone cables is considered. The xDSL-systems modeling at the domestic Tn type cables using the "vectoring" is completed and the comparison of the achievable transmission rates these systems without using and using the "vectoring" system is performed.


This study proposes an iterative cost optimization methodology for reinforced concrete T-beams under flexural and shear effects. In this research work the principle design objective is to minimize the total cost of beam after full filling all the requirements according to IS 456:2000 and in other case of ductile detailing, additional requirements according to IS 13920:1993 are used. To optimize, the overall cost of beam is used as objective function and the codal requirements are used as design constraints. Gravitational search (GSA) algorithm is employed for the optimization process and combined with the reinforced concrete design according to IS 456:2000 plain and reinforced concrete code of practice. Some design examples of RC T-beams and their parametric sensitivity have also been studied.


Background: Leukocyte infiltration plays an important role in the pathogenesis and progression of myositis, and is highly associated with disease severity. Currently, there is a lack of: efficacious therapies for myositis; understanding of the molecular features important for disease pathogenesis; and potential molecular biomarkers for characterizing inflammatory myopathies to aid in clinical development. Methods: In this study, we developed a simple model and predicted that 1) leukocyte-specific transcripts (including both protein-coding transcripts and microRNAs) should be coherently overexpressed in myositis muscle and 2) the level of over-expression of these transcripts should be correlated with leukocyte infiltration. We applied this model to assess immune cell infiltration in myositis by examining mRNA and microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles in muscle biopsies from 31 myositis patients and 5 normal controls. Results: Several gene signatures, including a leukocyte index, type 1 interferon (IFN), MHC class I, and immunoglobulin signature, were developed to characterize myositis patients at the molecular level. The leukocyte index, consisting of genes predominantly associated with immune function, displayed strong concordance with pathological assessment of immune cell infiltration. This leukocyte index was subsequently utilized to differentiate transcriptional changes due to leukocyte infiltration from other alterations in myositis muscle. Results from this differentiation revealed biologically relevant differences in the relationship between the type 1 IFN pathway, miR-146a, and leukocyte infiltration within various myositis subtypes. Conclusions: Results indicate that a likely interaction between miR-146a expression and the type 1 IFN pathway is confounded by the level of leukocyte infiltration into muscle tissue. Although the role of miR-146a in myositis remains uncertain, our results highlight the potential benefit of deconvoluting the source of transcriptional changes in myositis muscle or other heterogeneous tissue samples. Taken together, the leukocyte index and other gene signatures developed in this study may be potential molecular biomarkers to help to further characterize inflammatory myopathies and aid in clinical development. These hypotheses need to be confirmed in separate and sufficiently powered clinical trials.


The paper deals with regulatory issues related to cloud computing that include interrelationships with broadband connectivity, data protection and privacy, quality of cloud services and competitive market development. Cloud computing architecture and service models are presented on the base of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and International Telecommunication Union approaches. Regulatory aspects of cloud computing are discussed in the context of smaller countries and smaller national economies Special attention is paid to communication service providers in the role of cloud service providers, and electronic communications market in smaller countries with majority of micro enterprises and SMEs as potential cloud service users. Regarding market development, short SWOT analysis of the Croatian case and elements of European cloud computing strategy are discussed.


The article is concerned with the principles and methods of turgid and hard winter wheat varieties selection. The scheme of selection, volume of selection materials being processed in all the sections of the selection process, observations and evaluations having been conducted are described. It is pointed out, in particular, that it is for the first time in the history of our native selection practice, that new winter wheat varieties of macaronigroats type triticum -turgidum, have been developed.


Tin phosphate. a tetraval ent metal acid salt. has been synthesized and characteri zed . The H+ ions contained in the struclUr,iI hydroxy l groups of the IIna sa lt s are labile and hence the IIlat eri al can be used as a solid acid catalyst. Esterification reaction has heen chosen as a model reacti on and acetate esters of c thyl. II -Propyl. II-butyl and benzy l alcohols ha ve been prepared by varying the mole rati o of alcohol to acid and amollnt of catal ys t.


Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic bacteria from fresh and saltwater plankton. Its excessive accumulation in recreational and drinking waters is known as algal bloom that could potentially affect human health. . They are mainly seen in summer, in freshwater waterways and can reach the ocean coasts.This is a bibliographic review based on the publications registered in PubMed-Medline, BVS (Virtual Health Library that includes SciELO, LILACS, IBECS), Springer, Science Direct, Portal Timbo, and obtained with the terms "cyanobacteria", "cyanotoxins", "Microcystine", "algal blooms", "pediatrics", "children", "recreational" "intoxication" "exposure" without year of publication limits. The review aims to update knowledge about cyanotoxins and their effect on human health; analyze risk scenarios of exposure to cyanobacteria, particularly in children, and reinforce preventive measures for exposure, as well as to promote actions from the health sector.The clinical manifestations of recent exposure poisoning are general malaise, skin and mucous irritation, respiratory symptoms and even liver insufficiency in severe cases. It is necessary to include these blooms in the pathogenesis of these clinic cases and relate them to the exposure using the monitoring of blooms in the country.Exposure to cyanobacteria is an emerging health risk. The scientific evidence of the last years consolidates knowledge on the effect of exposure to cyanobacteria on human health. Recently, bathing, children's games, and sand intake on coasts with high levels of contamination have been identified as a risk scenario for children. Evidence of cyanotoxin hepatoxicity is even scarcer, although there are documented cases. The beach monitoring system allows health teams to incorporate the suspicion of exposure to cyanobacteria and possible contact with their toxins, to make an early diagnosis and participate in the prevention of exposure.


Line source arrays (LSAs) are used for large scale sound reinforcement, aiming at the synthesis of highly spatial aliasing-free sound fields for the whole audio bandwidth. Numerical optimization of the loudspeakers' driving functions can considerably improve the homogeneity of the intended sound field. In this paper we propose enhanced visualization techniques characterizing the array performance. This may lead to a more convenient interpretation of the LSA radiation behavior. By additionally recommended technical quality measures the LSA design and the optimization requirements might be improved. The approach is exemplarily discussed for fictitious LSA models. Based on a least-mean-square error optimization using a loudspeaker weight energy constraint, the driving functions are derived. It is shown by means of the visualizations and measures why this optimization scheme being common practice in sound field synthesis applications is inappropriate for the problem at hand and that spatial aliasing has a large impact on the synthesized sound fields. We recommend to incorporate the proposed quality measures as criteria for future optimization approaches.


Long-term care is not covered by Medicare or private insurance. Medicaid pays for long-term care for the poor and those who qualify after paying out of pocket for care. This article discusses the financing challenges in the context of aging baby boomers and fiscal constraints.


In the current work, a series of three-dimensional finite element analyses have been carried out to understand the behaviour of pre-existing single piles to adjacent tunnelling by considering the tunnel face pressures and the relative location of pile tips with respect to the tunnel. The numerical modelling has analysed the effect of the face pressures on the pile behaviour. The analyses have concentrated on the ground settlements, the pile head settlements, the changes of apparent pile capacity and the shear stress transfer mechanism at the pile-soil interface. The head settlements of the pile(vertical distance between the pile and the tunnel: 0.25D, where D is the tunnel diameter) directly above the tunnel crown with the face pressure(50% of the in-situ horizontal soil stress at the tunnel springline) decreased by about 38% compared to corresponding settlements with the minimum face pressure(25% of the in-situ horizontal soil stress at the tunnel springline). Furthermore, the smaller the face pressure the larger the tunnelling-induced ground movements, the axial pile forces and the higher the degree of the shear strength mobilisation at the pile-soil interface. When the piles were outside the tunnel influence zone, compressive pile forces were developed to due to tunnelling. It has been found that the ground settlements and the pile settlements are heavily affected by the face pressures and the position of the pile tip from the tunnel. In addition, the computed results have been compared with relevant previous studies reported in the literature. The behaviour of the piles has been extensively examined and analysed by considering the key features in great details.


A mathematical model based on minimal thermal resistance and equal law of specific equivalent thermal conductivity is developed to discuss the heat transfer characteristics of ablative thermal insulating material from the mesoscopic scale. Based on the statistical results of mesoscopic parameters, the microstructure unit cell model was established to analyze the influence rule of mesoscopic parameterization which includes the size, distribution, and positional relation of microsphere and fiber. The results show that the equivalent thermal conductivity decreases with the density, size, distribution area, and distance of microsphere and the space distance and volume fraction of fiber decreasing. Besides, the equivalent thermal conductivity will become larger when more quality of heat transfers along the fiber direction. Exploring the relationship between the macroscopic heat transfer process and the microstructure is meaningful for exploring the heat transfer behavior of thermal insulating material and improvement of the processing technology.


This article presents an approach to modeling the Choreography the Web Services based constraints in order to achieve a certain degree of automation in its defi nition. This propose the definition from the point of view structural and dynamic components of the Web Services Choreography, with a view to their subsequent representation in terms of a Problem Verification Restrictions. In the work describe in this paper, experiments for analyse el performance compared with other approaches, our experiments show that the model is appropriate to achieve automation in the description Process Choreography Services.


More on Cover Illustrations I think the cover of the March 1984 issue of Communications is striking, attractive, gently humorous, graphically informative as to the subject of the leading article, and clever in identifying the situation as a game which was appropriately written about by a game theorist*. I hope the magazine will continue to resist the pressure to equate professionalism with dullness and stuffiness. Gene Dallaire quotes Smart (April 1984 Communications, p. 294) "The computer networks we have right now are very specialized, very narrow in their reach. ARPANET is basically for DoD contractors. And CSNET goes mainly to select computer science departments. What we need is a national network such that any university can access a remote supercomputer somewhere." Larry Smarr's University of Illi-nois (Urbana-Champaign campus) is currently connected to such a network. It is called BITNET and is open to all universities and academic institutions and has been in existence since May 1981. Each university in the network is required to have a 9600 baud line to another university. Currently there are 175 computers in this network (May 1984). The network is modeled after IBM's internal VNET network (RSCS protocol), one of the largest in the world today, with over 1400 nodes. The network supports the following operating systems: VM, VMS, UNIX and MVS (which comprise 95 percent of all operating systems running at universities today). Work is under way to include 100 percent of all operating systems into this network , which is growing at the rate of 10 nodes per month. In addition, IBM is currently supporting EARN (European Academic Research Network) which is being modeled after BITNET and is currently going through the process of linking to BITNET. This will allow Larry Smarr to sit in Germany and have his jobs run on an American supercomputer in America and get the results back in Germany. The problem has now come full circle. Those interested in receiving further information are urged to con-EDUCOM, a non-profit consortium of 500 colleges and universities, received a grant from IBM in June to develop a BITNET information center. According to Jack McCredie, EDU-COM's president, presently there are no Class VI supercomputers on BITNET. However, discussions are under way to connect Minnesota's CRAY 1 and Purdue's CYBER 205 to the network. ARPANET, BITNET, and CSNET are currently working with the Office of Advanced Scientific Computing of the National Science Foundation …


The article presents the results of monthly numbers examining of birth in Russia. The analysis of seasonal birth rate variations was based on official state statistics data for the period from 2006 to 2012 and the data of expert survey. Classical seasonal decomposition (additive model) was applied to identify seasonality, and the experts' opinions were used to verify statistical estimates. The analysis shows that there are seasonal fluctuations in Russian fertility dynamics: the highest values of Russian birth rate are observed during 3 months – in July, August and October, and the lowest levels – in January, February and April. The results of an expert survey shows the birth seasonality in Russia responds to variety of factors among which there are the following four: social, biological, religious and psychological ones. For some months their effect on the fertility can be restrictive and for the other period the impact of these factors can be stimulative. For some months the impact of the only one factor can appears and for the other months several factors can affect fertility simultaneously.


: Totemism is an important notion in the lives of people in Africa and the world over. Certain customs and beliefs identify different people across the world; totems play a significant part in Dagaaba beliefs and activities. However, there has not been much research on clans and their totems among the Dagaaba. The research was conducted out in four villages in and around Jirapa. Sigri, Ullo, Sabuli


A solution is obtained for the field of a dislocation pileup in the presence of a linear stress gradient by means of Hilbert transforms. The method can be extended to stress contours that are general power laws as a function of position. The forces on the pileup tip are somewhat weaker than those for the constant stress case for pileups of the same width and with the same maximum stress.


Prof. Wang forms own unique needling manipulatio n method and theory of Deqi (arrival of qi) in clinical and teaching practice o f more than 30 years. The present paper systematically introduces the origin, me chanisms, indications, concrete manipulation, reinforcing-reducing manipulation and theory of "Tiaodong Point", and so on, so as to provide effective thi nking and way for treatment of nervous, muscular and motor disorders.


This contribution deals with the phenomenon of foreign fighters
in Ukraine. The author analyses risk and threats to the
security of NATO countries connected with the activities of
such fighters on the territory of Ukraine (including the
separatist republics) and their return to home countries.


A statistically designed laboratory study has been completed which utilized controlled environment exposure chambers to assess both direct and synergistic effects of air pollutants and other environmental factors in 6 different classes of materials. Economically important materials (including weathering steel, and galvanized steel) were exposed to controlled environments of clean air and polluted air. A 2-level factorial arrangement was selected as the experimental design. While the corrosion of weathering steel is normally a parabolic function of time, in the relatively short 100 hours exposure, the corrosion data was essentially linear with time. Based on analyses of variance of the experimental data, the important factors controlling corrosion were concentration of S02, relative humidity, and temperature. The interaction between S02 and relative humidity was significant at a lower confidence level. The other pollutants and their interactions did not cause significant effects. The corrosion of galvanized steel was essentially linear with time. An analysis of the variance of the polluted air data indicated that of 15 possible direct and interaction effects, only sulfur dioxide (S02) and relative humidity were important factors in accelerating corrosion of galvanized steel.


PurposeThis paper attempts to investigate the effect of corruption on the real and accrual earnings management of target firms in the process of mergers and acquisitions.Design/methodology/approachThe sample includes target firms from the European area that participate in mergers or acquisitions announced during 2010–2020. The preliminary empirical part estimates the level of earnings management during the period two years before the deal's announcement to identify whether the sample follows the manipulation behavior that the literature suggests for target firms. The primary empirical analysis focuses on the impact of corruption on real and accrual-based earnings management proxies, employing regression models and two alternative proxies for corruption. The existing literature points out that the combination of low levels of corruption and an integrated legal system reduces earnings manipulation.FindingsThe findings provide strong evidence for systematic downwards accounting manipulation practices, whereas the findings for real earnings management are not significant. The findings of the main empirical part show that corruption is positively associated with accrual-based manipulation and negatively related to real earnings management. In essence, in economies with a high level of transparency, managers adopt the manipulation of operating activities as a less detectable practice of earnings management instead of engaging in accounting procedures.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature highlighting the diversification of these firms' manipulation strategies according to the national level's corruption status.


ABSTRACT Macroinvertebrate communities inhabiting exotic Eurasian milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum L.) and native water stargrass (Heteranthera dubia (Jacq.) MacM.) macrophytes were studied from March 1999 to June 2000 in experimental ponds constructed to simulate reservoir wetlands. Although macrophyte architecture explained some variation in macroinvertebrate abundance between the two macrophytes, most variation was explained by the sampling months. Total number of macroinvertebrates was positively correlated with epiphyton biomass, and epiphyton biomass was significantly different between the two plant species and among sampling months. Taxa richness did not vary between the two plant types. Chironomid larvae were the most abundant organisms and were dominated by Apedilum elachistum on both plant species. Annual production of five chironomid species was estimated by the size-frequency method. Apedilum elachistum exhibited the highest productivity- 9.9 g dry wt m−2 y−1 of plant surface area on M spicatum and 8.5 g dry wt m−2 y−1 on H. dubia.


Sociologists' preoccupation with Western race and ethnic models has led to the distortion, or neglect, of Third World contexts, and has retarded the development of frameworks adequate for broad comparative analysis. The Zimbabwe setting illustrates two of many issues requiring more rigorous examination: (1) changing scale of ethnic boundaries, and (2) the effect of countervailing or coinciding factors on ethnic intensity. Contrary to prevailing expectations, the organizational potential of large-scale modem boundaries can be seen in Zimbabwe's pattern of ethnicity; the main determinants of intensity have tended to diminish ethnic cleavages among the general citizenry. If sociology's comparative method is to flourish, the study of ethnicity and its impact on societal development and change in less advanced areas of the world should not go, by default, to other disciplines.


OBJECTIVE
To study the association of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) with overweight or obesity in children.

METHODS
A total of 2889 healthy children and 702 overweight or obese children aged from 7 to 18 years who had received a physical examination were enrolled. Height, body weight, waist circumference, and blood pressure were measured, and the biochemical indicators including blood glucose, blood lipids, ALT, and insulin were detected. The insulin resistance index were calculated.

RESULTS
The ALT level was significantly higher in boys than in girls. Along with the increase of BMI, the ALT level increased in the normal, overweight, and obese groups in both boys and girls. ALT was correlated with BMI, waist circumference, triglyceride, and insulin resistance index. Among the overweight or obese children, the boys with the increased ALT level had higher BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein and insulin resistance index than the boys with normal ALT level (P<0.05); the girls with the increased ALT level had higher waist circumference, blood pressure and insulin resistance index and lower high density lipoprotein than the girls with normal ALT level (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
ALT is correlated with overweight and obesity and metabolic disorders caused by overweight and obesity such as dyslipidemia and insulin resistance.


Five costellarid species are described as new to science, among them Vexillum {Costellarià) leucophryna n. sp. and V. (C.) vespula n. sp. exclusively from deep water off the Philippines. V. (C.) pyropus n. sp. is described from South Africa, Reunion Island, Philippines and Ogasawara Islands (Japan); it is compared with V. (C.) macandrewi (Sowerby, 1874). V. (C.) stossieri n. sp. was hitherto solely found off South Africa (100-120 m) and is distinguished from V. (C) hilare (Kuroda & Habe, 1971) and V. (C.) nodai Turner & Salisbury, 1999. V. (C.) vicmanoui n. sp. is recorded from the southern and central Philippines as well as from the Ogasawara and Ryukyu Islands; it is compared with V. (C.) takakuwai Cernohorsky & Azuma, 1974, V. (C.) acupictum (Reeve, 1844), V. (C.) choslenae Cernohorsky, 1982, V (C.) elliscrossi Rosenberg & Salisbury, 1991, and V. {P.) cithara (Reeve, 1845). The widely neglected V. (C.) perrieri (Dautzenberg, 1929) is probably a valid taxon which replaces Mitra turricula A. Adams, 1853, a junior homonym, which was originally described from unknown locality, but has turned out to live in shallow water (1-30 m) of several Indo-West Pacific locations (Mozambique to the Fiji Islands); it is differentiated from V. (C.) turriger (Reeve, 1845) and V. (C.) humile (Hervier,


A scoping study of spent fuel cask transportation accidents was performed to provide the NRC with an assessment of existing information and to recommend, on a priority basis, the additional information that should be obtained to allow specification of increasingly realistic source terms. The scope was limited to the escape of radionuclides from the cask to the environment resulting from severe accidents. The accident environment definition associated with a severe accident is the starting point and was selected not for its realism but to allow sensitivity studies on the remaining variables in the accident scenario. However, given this accident definition, the remainder of the evaluation of the accident scenarios is to be as realistic as possible. Information was found to be inadequate to make correlations between accident severity and radionuclide release. Generally, cask and fuel rod thermal-hydraulic data and analytical capability were found to be reasonably adequate; however, data and analytical capability for evaluating structural response to impact are not. Radionuclide behavior information is adequate for noble gases but generally inadequate for most volatile radionuclides and for fuel particulates. A series of gauging calculations were performed to permit prioritization of the information needs, and research recommendations were made in eightmore » areas.« less


Abstract Lung cancer is among the leading causes of death worldwide. Cytotoxic and free radical scavenging activities of anhydrous hederagenin, isolated from Cussonia arborea Hochst. ex A. Rich were evaluated on human NCI-H460 lung cancer cells, OH•and DPPH•. The structure was unambiguously deduced largely bysingle-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The metabolite displayed significant cytotoxic activity (IC50 = 20.27 μg/mL). It scavenged hydroxyl radical by 90.2% and bleached purple color of DPPH (IC50 = 49.6 μg/mL) at 1.0 mg/mL.The crystal belongs to the orthorhombic space group P21, with unit cell parameters a = 12.2865(19) Å, b = 16.414(3) Å, c = 13.441(2) Å. Our findings suggest that hederagenin may have the potential to provide significant natural defense againsthuman lung cancer.


Laser interference patterning on top of a thin film and inside a crystal is a powerful tool today to create the desired patterns for optical data processing. Here, we demonstrate reversible and irreversible laser interference patterning on a metal-organic framework (MOF) thin film through the water desorption and thermal decomposition processes, respectively. The irreversible interference pattern with a period of the strips of up to 5 µm has been realized, and its morphology has been characterized using confocal Raman and reflection spectroscopy as well as atomic force microscopy. We revealed that reducing the distance between the interference maxima from 10.5 to a record of 5 µm for MOFs yields a 10-fold increase in the surface roughness of the irreversible pattern; on the other hand, the reversible laser pattern provides a completely non-destructive effect of variable optical contrast. The experimental results obtained open up prospects for the use of MOF crystals as photosensitive materials in the template drawing of the desired patterns for different application scopes.