How exactly should the relation between a veridical perception and a corresponding hallucination be understood? I argue that the epistemic notion of 'indiscriminability', understood as a lack of evidence for the distinctness of things, is not suitable for defining this relation. Instead, we should say that a hallucination and a veridical perception involve the same phenomenal properties. This has further consequences for attempts to give necessary and sufficient conditions for the identity of phenomenal properties in terms of indiscriminability, and for considerations about the phenomenal sorites.


In the presence of 100 mM glucose antimycin A inhibits the respiration of the yeast S. carlsbergensis by 94%, but does not affect the K+ efflux, Mn2+ influx or the synthesis of high molecular weight polyphosphate (HPP). Therefore phosphorylation at the respiratory chain level is not involved in HPP synthesis or Mn2+ accumulation. Zn2+ similar to Mn2+ induces K+ efflux and HPP synthesis, while Co2+ and Ni2+ fail to produce these effects. The extracellular K+ (1-5 mM KCl) completely inhibits the HPP synthesis and reduces Mn2+ uptake by 40%. NaCl (60 mM) inhibits the HPP synthesis by 28%. Nigericin, candicidin and FCCP plus valinomycin completely prevent the HPP synthesis. The prolonged accumulation of Zn2+ and Mn2+ is accompanied by HPP conversion into low molecular weight polyphosphate (LPP). The HPP synthesis in response to the K+ efflux may be regarded as a specific regulatory mechanism, which increases the energy efficiency of yeast metabolism.


AIM
To examine blood flow in renal and intrarenal arteries and its changes in the acute pharmacological test with captopril in patients with chronic glomerulonephritis (CGN).

MATERIAL AND METHODS
Renal circulation was studied in 50 patients with CGN using ultrasound dopplerography (USDG) of renal vessels on the unit GE Logiq 400 CL PRO Series. The velocity and indices of peripheral blood resistance in the major renal artery (RA) and in intrarenal arteries were estimated. In 26 patients the blood flow was studied again after intake of 50 mg captopril.

RESULTS
Poor renal blood flow was registered in cortical parenchyma in 36% CGN patients (with chronic renal failure in 75%). Multifactorial regression analysis has demonstrated that only blood creatinine was independently related with slowing down of the blood flow at the level of RA and intrarenal arteries. Morphological index of activity correlated with resistance indices while a high sclerosis index correlated with blood flow slowing. Older patients had higher resistance indices. Captopril significantly accelerated blood flow and insignificantly changed indices of peripheral resistance including those in CRF patients.

CONCLUSION
Poor blood flow in the cortical layer of renal parenchyma in CGN, according to USDG, occurs rather frequently and was associated with CRF and older age of the patients. Blocking of renin-angiotensin system at the level of angiotensin II formation improves renal blood flow in most of the patients.


Today's enterprise networks are distributed to different geographical locations and applications are more centrally located, information represents the most important asset. With the growing number of data communication services, channels and available software applications, data are processed in large quantities and in a more efficient manner. This technological enhancement offers new flexible opportunities also measure security threats poses in the networks. These threats can external or Internal, external threats divided as hacking, virus attack, Trojans, worms etc. There are thousand and thousand of different viruses these days which improve every day. Although the wild spread of new and strong viruses, it still infects and spread only with user's permission. This research paper highlights the phases of computer virus, computer virus, history of worst computer attack, type of computer virus with effect on computer & few examples of virus on their types, working of computer virus, and problem occur due to virus in computers. Keywords— Network, Virus, Security threats, Hacking, Attack of Computer Virus, Major attacks & Life Cycle of Computer Virus.


A CAMAC-based mobile automated high-speed transient data recording and transmission system developed for gathering underground nuclear test data in remote areas at the Nevada Test Site is described. The system, which is comprised of a NOVA-820 computer and measurement instrumentation packages interfaced via CAMAC modules, permits baseline and zero-time data to be recorded and transmitted automatically in digital form via microwave data links to a central computer complex for reduction, display, and analysis. The modular software packages developed for this sytem provide maximum flexibility and efficiency in the tailoring of control and monitoring procedures to match the data requirements of particular tests.


Si-based resonant interband tunneling diodes (RITD) with spacer thicknesses varying from 1 to 16 nm were grown and fabricated. The effect of spacer thickness on the peak-to-valley current ratio (PVCR), peak current density Jp, and voltage swing was studied. By increasing the tunneling spacer thickness up to 16 nm, RITDs with a J p of as low as 20 mA/cm2 with an associated PVCR of 1.6 were obtained, which are suitable for low-power tunnel diode SRAM applications. With the previously reported highest RITD Jp of 218 kA/cm2, a Jp spanning nearly seven orders of magnitude can be obtained by engineering the tunneling spacer thickness and doping densities, thus demonstrating tremendous flexibility to optimize Jp for different circuit applications (logic, memory, and mixed-signal). Using a low-current-density RITD developed in this paper, a bread-boarded one-transistor tunneling-based SRAM (TSRAM) memory cell with low standby power consumption was demonstrated. This is the first report of a Si-based TSRAM memory circuit using Si-based RITDs. The result demonstrates the potential of Si-based tunnel diodes for low-power memory applications


The past forty years have witnessed spectacular progress in precision measurements, beginning with the first coherent optical source, the HeNe CW laser. Almost immediately, the pioneers of the stable laser epoch introduced optical heterodyne techniques to explore the stability of the laser's optical frequency, expecting the few milliHertz linewidth predicted by the Schawlow-Townes formula for phase diffusion, and instead finding myriad physical processes that broaden and jiggle optical frequencies far beyond that narrow range. After a huge time and learning effort, most of these technical limitations can now be overcome. The paper is intended to offer a bystander/sometimes-participant's view into the advances in laser tools and the exciting scientific/technical worlds that were opened by them. Roughly one "zillion" further clever inventions and techniques have added capability to the laser and have enabled many bursts of productive research. Now, after nearly forty years of incremental progress, the astonishing reality is that within the past one year - absolute optical frequency measurements have suddenly become feasible, simple - even routine. This welcome and unexpected progress is based on the merger of techniques from the ultrastable lasers and the ultrafast lasers research communities. In a very real sense, these research objectives seem to be the exact opposites - the most unchanging versus the most quickly changing.


The body content of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium is important, not only from the structural or supporting aspect, but also from the aspect of cellular function. Membrane integrity, nervous tissue conduction, neuromuscular excitability, muscle contraction, hormone secretion, intermediary metabolism and synthesis, to mention but a few activities, are all influenced by these elements. The normal body content and turnover of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium are outlined, together with a brief description of their physiological roles, emphasizing intracellular functions rather than their predominance within the skeleton. Regulatory mechanisms, particularly for calcium, involving vitamin D and its metabolites, parathormone, and possibly calcitonin, are discussed within the context of maintaining normal body content and turnover. Homeostatic mechanisms maintaining plasma concentrations in health and disease, as far as they have been identified, are also outlined. Lastly, disorders of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium turnover are considered from the aspect of altered plasma concentrations of these substances. Throughout emphasis is given to common problems and their practical management. Metabolic bone disease and uncommon disorders of bone and bone mineral are not discussed specifically.


The unconditional expectation of social welfare is often used to assess alternative macroeconomic policy rules in applied quantitative research. It is shown that it is generally possible to derive a linear-quadratic problem that approximates the exact non-linear problem where the unconditional expectation of the objective is maximised and the steady-state is distorted. Thus, the measure of policy performance is a linear combination of second moments of economic variables which is relatively easy to compute numerically, and can be used to rank alternative policy rules. The approach is applied to a simple Calvo-type model under various monetary policy rules.


Grind-hardening was done on 65Mn steel with a conventional surface grinder and a corundum-grinding wheel. Research was conducted to probe into microstructures and properties of the hardened layer under varied depth of cut and cooling conditions. Results show that the hardened layer does not change noticeably in their martensitic structures and micro-hardness, which is ranged between 810-870HV. When the depth of cut increases or the dry grinding technique is adopted, the hardened layer becomes thicker accordingly. Under the condition of dry grinding with the depth of cut 1.0mm, the hardened layer depth reaches 2.0mm. It can find applications in grinding and metal surface modification field.


In an abrasive tool the abrasive is the main part undertaking grinding work, thus, the grinding effects mainly depend on the types and properties of the abrasive. The strength and fracture property of the abrasive grain in a synthetic diamond abrasive tool have a direct influence on the operational performance of the tool. Generally, it is expected that the strength and protrusion height of the grain are as same as possible. The strength and fragmenting property of the abrasive grain hinge on its crystal shape and regularity and completeness, internal vice, impurity content and impurity distribution pattern. The abrasive grains must be sorted and classified to make their grain sizes and their properties consistent with each and all. In this paper, the author discusses the basic properties and related performances of synthetic diamond abrasives. Elementary discussion is made separately on improving the vibration sorting, introducing the magnetic separation, applying the heavy liquid separation, exploring the floatation technology and using the selective fragmentation principle. In addition, here are presented the basic methods for precise sorting of synthetic diamond abrasives and their general principles. Practices have proved these methods effective and feasible.


This article reports on a study undertaken to critically consider the intersections between special events and social reform through the empirical lens of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade and its presentation of same sex marriage (marriage equality), which has become a significant contemporary political ans social issue in Australia. The Parade is the public highlight of a festival that celebrates lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex identities and which has become an internationally significant tourism event, attracting large numbers of both domestic and international tourists.
Yet, the holding of such an important event, now in its 39th year, which publicly acknowledges and celebrates alternative sexualities, is contrasted with the systemic discrimination and prejudice based on sexual and gender identity that continues to persist in contemporary Australian society. The absence of marriage equality is one such form of discrimination. Participant observation of the 2014 parade together with interviews with a number of prominent members of the gay and lesbian community enabled the extent to which the Parade is able to facilitate a broader understanding of the marriage equality issue to be critically understood.


Nowadays multimedia applications emerge on portable devices everywhere. These applications typically require a high amount of computational power together with real-time performance. Another requirement is that they must be reconfigurable i.e. that the application or the characteristics of the application can be modified at will. The performance requirement often drives the design towards a hardware implementation while the reconfigurability requirements are better served by a software implementation. We try to reconcile these two requirements by exploring a third implementation option: FPGAs. By using an FPGA we can achieve both the performance and the flexibility that is needed for multimedia applications. In the RESUME project we are designing a scalable wavelet video decoder as a proof of concept. In this article we explore through analytical means the question of whether an FPGA implementation can be used to reach the performance goals. We find that modern FPGAs offer enough computational power to obtain real-time performance, but that reaching the necessary memory bandwidth will be a challenge. Keywords—Multimedia, reconfigurable hardware, scalable wavelet video, HW resource estimation


ABSTRACT A novel Double Averaged Navier-Stokes equation model has been developed to simulate flows in vegetated open channels. Turbulence is modelled by the Spalart-Allmaras closure with a modified length scale, which is dependent on a zero-plane displacement parameter relating to the vegetation characteristics. The dispersive stress is modelled by a sub-length scale closure and the secondary current effect is modelled by a phenomenological expression. The simulation results show that the model is accurate for flows over vegetation with areal density ranging from 170 m–2 to 12,000 m–2. The computed dispersive stress and velocity dip are in reasonable agreement with the available experimental data. The effects of porosity and dispersive stress on the mean velocity and Reynolds stress are found to be minor. The model works well for gradually-varied flow over vegetation and predicts accurately the Manning roughness coefficient for flows over vegetation with low to high areal density.


Reservoir sedimentation is a major concern in the operational management of dams and appurtenant structures. The increasing volume of sediments deposited in reservoirs leads to a loss of water storage, undermining the purpose itself of the dam for human use or protection. The deposition of sediments (mostly fine) in the vicinity of the dam's operational structures, such as bottom outlets and power intakes, may result in partial or total blockage of these structures. To cope with these problems, it is essential to determine the sediment balance of the reservoirs, by assessing the origin and quantity of the in- and out-fluxes of sediments. This paper presents a methodology to determine the annual sediment balance of a system of interlinked reservoirs across several decades, as well as its application to the alpine hydropower cascade formed by the Oberaar, Grimsel and Raterichsboden reservoirs located in Switzerland. At that aim, the annual sediment fluxes and the sedimentation rates of each reservoir were characterized. Also, the percentage of fine sediments (dm < 10 μm) included in the total sedimentation rate was estimated. The results reveal that the annual sedimentation rate of the lowermost reservoir of the system (Raterichsboden) is highly altered by the flushing operations of the reservoir upstream (Grimsel). Also, for the uppermost reservoir of the system (Oberaar), the volume of fine sediments deposited annually can reach up to 46% of the total sedimentation rate.


What are the key drivers of bankruptcy? Not the obvious signs, such as receivables out of control, debt covenants being exceeded, loose cash controls, or weak realationships with vendors, but the causes? This articles discusses four strategic issues that cause bankruptcy, and provides examples of each.


Brazil approaches its 2018 election with an economy that is gradually recovering from the deepest recession in its recent economic history. However, for many Brazilians, the recovery has not yet translated into new and better jobs, or rising incomes. This book explores the drivers of future employment and income growth. Its key finding: Brazil needs to dramatically improve its performance across all industries in terms of productivity if the country is to provide better jobs for its citizens and generate lasting gains in incomes growth for all. This is particularly important as Brazil is aging rapidly and the boost the country has enjoyed thanks to its young and growing labor force in the past decades will disappear in just a few years' time. The book recommends a change in the relationship between the state and business, from rewarding privileged incumbents to fostering competition and innovation—together with supporting workers and firms to adjust to the demands of the market. The book is addressed to all scholars and students of Brazil's economy, especially those interested in why the country's economic performance has not kept up with earlier achievements since the reintroduction of democracy in the mid-1980s. Its conclusions are urgent and pertinent but also optimistic. With the right policy mix, Brazil could enter the third century of its independence in 2022 well on track to join the ranks of high income countries.


Objective: To critically appraise the literature exploring the surgical treatment of degenerative lumbosacral stenosis in dogs.
Background: Several surgical procedures to treat degenerative lumbosacral stenosis (DLSS) in the dog have been reported, however, definitive criteria for surgical technique preference are currently lacking (1).
Evidentiary value and methods: A critical appraisal tool that examined the conduct and reporting of studies on the results of surgical treatment of DLSS was designed and, after a systematic search and screening of the literature, a critical appraisal was performed in 20 papers.
Results: Results showed that 18/20 studies included did not clearly report inclusion and exclusion criteria and in 14/20 it was unclear whether consecutive inclusion of participants was applied. 19/20 studies reported age, breed, and sex of the participants, and 13/20 did not report duration and prevalence of clinical signs. In 13/20 studies, it was considered that the condition was not measured in a standard and reliable way. Objective outcome measures were used in 7/20 studies.
Conclusion and application: The results demonstrate that there is room for improvement in the conduct and reporting quality of case series so that rigorous data can be generated and analysed, to inform research design, guide clinical practice, and improve veterinary healthcare delivery.


1. Eight strains of bacteria able to grow on styrene as a sole source of carbon and energy had been isolated prior to this project. The aim of the project was to discover the pathway for the metabolism of styrene in one of these strains, preferably a novel pathway. 2. Initial characterisation of these eight strains using growth experiments and simultaneous induction led to the selection of three strains for further work, and they were tentatively identified as coryneform bacteria. Simultaneous induction tests on one strain, a possible Rhodococcus sp., suggested that styrene was probably metabolised through phenylacetic acid, a well-established pathway for styrene degradation. The results from another of the three strains were not clear cut. The third strain was clearly using a novel pathway, and so it was selected for further study. 3. The organism which was selected for most of the work described in this thesis, strain 26, was identified as Rhodococcus rhodochrous. A method was developed to grow this strain in a fermenter containing a minimal salts medium, with styrene vapour supplied in the air supply. For larger quantities of cells, a nutrient broth medium was used, with styrene supplied as vapour in order to induce the enzymes involved in styrene degradation. 4. R. rhodochrous 26 is able to grow on styrene, toluene, ethylbenzene and 1-phenylethanol. Simultaneous induction experiments showed that growth on each of these substrates resulted in the ability to oxidise all of the others. 5. Oxidative responses to possible intermediates in known pathways of toluene metabolism showed high activities with toluene cis-glycol and 3-methylcatechol, with lower activities towards other possible substrates. This led to the proposition that a similar pathway was being used for styrene metabolism. 6. Styrene cw-glycol was produced by Pseudomonas putida from styrene, and identified by and n.m.r.. This substrate was oxidised by extracts of R. rhodochrous 26 which had been grown on styrene, in an NAD-dependent reaction. There was also an NAD-dependent oxidation of toluene cw-glycol. Ion exchange chromatography of extracts, coupled with a heat denaturation test, strongly indicated that both toluene c/5-glycol and styrene cz5-glycol were oxidised by the same enzyme. 7. Under anaerobic conditions, in the presence of NAD, extracts transformed styrene cz5-glycol into a compound identified by g.c.-m.s. as vinylcatechol. Toluene cis- glycol was transformed to methylcatechol by the same system. 8. Intact cells incubated with styrene and 3-fluorocatechol (as an inhibitor of catechol oxygenase activity), accumulated a compound identified by g.c.-m.s. and n.m.r. as 3-vinylcatechol. 2-Fluoromuconic acid, identified by and n.m.r., also accumulated under these conditions. 9. When intact cells were incubated with styrene and 3-fluorocatechol in an atmosphere of 50% 18O2 and 50% 18O2, g.c.-m.s. analysis demonstrated the presence of two molecular ions for vinylcatechol, M and M-i-4, showing that initial ring attack is due to a dioxygenase. 10. When grown on styrene, R. rhodochrous 26 accumulated a compound identified by and n.m.r. as 2-vinylmuconic acid. Up to 40% of the styrene substrate may be converted to this product. There was no sign of further metabolism of this product in either growth medium or cell extracts. A similar accumulation of muconic acid was noticed when R. rhodochrous 26 was grown on benzyl alcohol. Cell extracts did not seem to metabolise cis, cis-muconic acid, the expected product of benzyl alcohol breakdown through an ortho cleavage pathway. 11. It was not possible to detect any styrene dioxygenase activity in extracts using an oxygen electrode or spectrophotometric methods. 12. Extracts of R. rhodochrous 26 which had been grown on styrene contained catechol 1,2-oxygenase and catechol 2,3-oxygenase activities. The two enzymes were clearly separated by ion exchange chromatography, each appearing as a single peak. Both enzymes could oxidise catechol, 3-methylcatechol, 4-methylcatechol and vinylcatechol. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).


Participation in immune reactions of main morphological skin structures (epidermal cells, skin associated lymphoid tissue, macrophagal and vascular systems) is described. Cooperation of these systems in immune reaction by means of complementary receptors on the cell membranes, adhesive molecules, cytokines and lymphokines is discussed. Primary malignant skin lymphomas are considered as tumors of the skin immune system.


Results of dielectric measurements as a function of frequency are presented for the curing of an epoxy resin. By considering the change in the time occurrence of the peak in magnitude of the dissipation factor, and also by comparing this with the results for the cured resin, it is concluded that such peaks are not the result of either gelation or an alpha -relation process. The results were interpreted on the basis of a model considering the growing polymer dipoles to be in solution, the solvent being the unreacted monomer and hardener. If simplifying assumptions are made, it proved possible to estimate the activation energy for the curing process. The value of 41 kJ/mol (0.42 eV) compared favorably with the results obtained by other workers for similar systems. >


This chapter outlines a history of the concept of ius gentium. It is intended to serve as a contribution to the intellectual history of international law, from Late Antiquity to Early Modern Times. The historical role played by the concept in the framing of international law is not easy to evaluate, as the oldest traces of Roman 'public international law', in the sense of law regulating relations between polities, are actually found within ius fetiale. It is, in fact, difficult to arrive at a clear understanding of ius gentium in the history of Ancient and Medieval legal thought, due to a semantic stratification dating back to Roman Antiquity: on the one hand, a fundamental ambiguity exists in the relationship between ius naturale and ius gentium (as in Gaius' definition, Dig. 1.1.9, possibly under Ciceronian influence) – on the other, the latter, first classified as a branch of the ius privatum (Ulpian, Dig. 22.214.171.124), was later understood as including public law institutes (Hermogenian, Dig. 1.1.5) and even institutes mainly relating to foreign relations (Isidore of Seville, Etymologiae V.6 = Decretum c. 9, d. 1). The simple juxtaposition of these definitions within Justinian's compilation and Gratian's Decretum raised several theoretical issues for Medieval jurists, and generated a significant scholarly debate. Firstly, following Dig. 1.1.4 and Dig. 1.1.5, glossators argued that ius naturale and ius gentium – not, as would be claimed by later jurists, Roman law as a whole – formed the ius commune. Secondly, commentaries on Dig. 1.1.5 analysed the various legal institutes listed within the passage, focusing particularly on dominium and obligations. Thirdly, both jurists and theologians elaborated extensively upon the connections between ius gentium and ius naturale: they first drew a distinction between ius naturale primaevum and secundarium, and then reformulated this distinction in such a way that ius gentium itself was split into ius gentium primaevum and secundarium. Many words were to be expended on this distinction until well into Early Modern Times, in the course of a discussion which recent scholarship has studied in depth. This chapter, however, will focus less on this doctrinal debate during the the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries than on the transformation undergone by ius gentium as it developed into a ius inter gentes specifically regulating relations between political communities. Special attention will be paid to diplomatic theory, which has proven to be a particularly interesting field within which to fully evaluate the slow emergence of the state as the only legitimate subject of international law.


Motivation: Mass spectrometry allows sensitive, automated and high-throughput analysis of small molecules such as metabolites. One major bottleneck in metabolomics is the identification of 'unknown' small molecules not in any database. Recently, fragmentation tree alignments have been introduced for the automated comparison of the fragmentation patterns of small molecules. Fragmentation pattern similarities are strongly correlated with the chemical similarity of the molecules, and allow us to cluster compounds based solely on their fragmentation patterns. Results: Aligning fragmentation trees is computationally hard. Nevertheless, we present three exact algorithms for the problem: a dynamic programming (DP) algorithm, a sparse variant of the DP, and an Integer Linear Program (ILP). Evaluation of our methods on three different datasets showed that thousands of alignments can be computed in a matter of minutes using DP, even for 'challenging' instances. Running times of the sparse DP were an order of magnitude better than for the classical DP. The ILP was clearly outperformed by both DP approaches. We also found that for both DP algorithms, computing the 1% slowest alignments required as much time as computing the 99% fastest. Contact: firstname.lastname@example.com


This was a qualitative exploratory study, which aimed to investigate how health professionals working in delivery care perceive the humanization of the birth process. 17 professionals who work in the area were interviewed. The data were obtained through semi-structured interviews and processed through thematic analysis. During the data analysis 3 categories emerged: the meaning of humanization of birth; the humanization practice in the studied services; and difficulties of the humanization process. The results show that the humanization of birth care is not yet a common practice in most of the studied hospitals and that the staff is not prepared to provide a humanized and qualified service for mothers and newborns. We conclude that it is essential to change the biomedical model from a mainly technical approach to an approach that values the social and cultural aspects of pregnancy and delivery.


Psychological tests are subject to two distinct forms of bias. The first form, measurement bias, occurs when individuals with equal standing on the trait measured by the test, but sampled from different subpopulations, have different expected test scores. Relational bias, the second type of bias, exists with respect to a second variable if a measure of bivariate association differs across groups. Empirical studies have found little evidence of relational bias. Two recent court cases, however, seem to have been more influenced by considerations of measurement bias than by the literature concerning relational bias. Unfortunately, a consequence of both court cases is that the respective test makers must select items for future tests on the basis of a statistic (proportion correct) that is inappropriate for evaluating measurement bias. More sophisticated approaches may also suffer from methodological difficulties unless special precautions are taken. In this article, tests of English and Mathematics Usage are analyzed by measurement bias methods in which several steps are taken to reduce methodological artifacts. Many items are found to be biased. Nonetheless, the sizes of these effects are very small and no cumulative bias across items is found.


The main TJ-II results since 2012 are presented in this overview. Impurity confinement is studied showing an isotopic dependence of impurity confinement time, asymmetries in parallel impurity flows in TJ-II ion-root plasmas and impurity density asymmetries within a flux surface. In addition, first observations of electrostatic potential variations within the same magnetic flux surface are presented. Evidence of the impact of three-dimensional magnetic structures on plasma confinement and L–H transitions is also presented. The leading role of the plasma turbulence is emphasized by the observed temporal ordering of the limit cycle oscillations at the L–I–H transition. Comparative studies between tokamaks and stellarators have provided direct experimental evidence for the importance of multi-scale physics to unravel the impact of the isotope effect on transport. Novel solutions for plasma facing components based on the recently installed Li-liquid limiters (LLLs) have been developed on TJ-II, showing the self-screening effect of evaporating liquid lithium, protecting plasma-facing components against heat loads, and tritium inventory control. Regarding plasma stability, magnetic well scan experiments show that traditional stability criteria, on which the optimization of stellarator configurations is based, may miss some stabilization mechanisms. Further effects of ECRH on Alfvénic instabilities are investigated, showing that moderate off-axis ECH power deposition modifies the continuous nature of the Alfvén eigenmodes, and frequency chirping sets in. This result shows that ECH can be a tool for AE control that might be ITER and reactor-relevant.


The long-term Baikal Deep-Sea Experiment on study of macroscopic entanglement and advanced response of nonlocal correlation detectors to natural random dissipative processes is conducting. There are both advanced and retarded nonlocal correlations, which correspond to the same direction of causality. However, time reversal causality prevails over usual time respecting one. It is the most prominent property of macroscopic entanglement and manifestation of quantum principle of weak causality. In particular, there is an advanced response to the random component of solar activity, which can be used for the forecast of this component.


We aimed to determine whether exercise‐induced elevations in systemic concentration of testosterone, growth hormone (GH) and insulin‐like growth factor‐1 (IGF‐1) enhanced post‐exercise myofibrillar protein synthesis (MPS) and phosphorylation of signalling proteins important in regulating mRNA translation. Eight young men (20 ± 1.1 years, BMI = 26 ± 3.5 kg m−2) completed two exercise protocols designed to maintain basal hormone concentrations (low hormone, LH) or elicit increases in endogenous hormones (high hormone, HH). In the LH protocol, participants performed a bout of unilateral resistance exercise with the elbow flexors. The HH protocol consisted of the same elbow flexor exercise with the contralateral arm followed immediately by high‐volume leg resistance exercise. Participants consumed 25 g of protein after arm exercise to maximize MPS. Muscle biopsies and blood samples were taken as appropriate. There were no changes in serum testosterone, GH or IGF‐1 after the LH protocol, whereas there were marked elevations after HH (testosterone, P < 0.001; GH, P < 0.001; IGF‐1, P < 0.05). Exercise stimulated a rise in MPS in the biceps brachii (rest = 0.040 ± 0.007, LH = 0.071 ± 0.008, HH = 0.064 ± 0.014% h−1; P < 0.05) with no effect of elevated hormones (P= 0.72). Phosphorylation of the 70 kDa S6 protein kinase (p70S6K) also increased post‐exercise (P < 0.05) with no differences between conditions. We conclude that the transient increases in endogenous purportedly anabolic hormones do not enhance fed‐state anabolic signalling or MPS following resistance exercise. Local mechanisms are likely to be of predominant importance for the post‐exercise increase in MPS.


Based on an ethnographic analysis of volunteer management practices in faith-based organizations in Zambia, this article outlines the dilemmas that these organizations face when deploying volunteers. Due to financial constraints, most of these organizations have to rely on voluntary work from local residents in order to realize their goals. I show that when the volunteers' work is concerned with social problems that are deemed to be controversial, faith-based organizations are at pains to demonstrate that their aims and activities should be categorized as 'social work' or 'humanitarian assistance', and not as activist (party) political engagement. Yet since volunteers are only loosely linked to these organizations in respect to their formal status, in practice they have a great deal of leeway in how issues are handled. This means that some of them use their commitment to volunteering to pursue their own political agendas. The article explores the strategies that faith-based organizations use to navigate the challenges that this kind of 'partisan volunteering' pose.


Regulation of transcription involves numerous specific protein-nucleic acid interactions. We have utilized photochemical crosslinking to identify interactions between Escherichia coli transcription proteins and the nascent RNA in several transcription complexes, including initiation, elongation, and antitermination complexes. We have developed new nucleotide analogs, 5-APAS-UTP and 5-APAS-CTP, which are tagged with photocrosslinking groups on base positions that do not interfere with normal Watson-Crick base-pairing. These analogs are incorporated at internal positions in RNA by E. coli RNA polymerase without disrupting RNA secondary structures. We have also used 8-azido-ATP, which can be incorporated uniquely into the 3' end of the RNA, to analyze interactions at the enzyme active site. Interactions between the RNA and the polymerase subunits, and the effect of various transcription factors, including NusA, NusB, NusE, and NusG, have been examined in complexes containing RNAs from 4 to approximately 80 nucleotides. At almost every RNA position examined, both the beta and beta' subunits are contacted, but never the alpha subunit or NusA. An effect of NusA on the core labeling has been observed in some complexes, however. Sigma is contacted by nucleotides within three nucleotides of the +1 position on the DNA.


Abstract: Salt sensitivity is a key risk factor for cardiovascular disease and renal injury. Alterations in renal nitric oxide may contribute to salt-dependent increases in blood pressure and tissue damage. Therefore, we assessed the expression of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms in the kidney and the effects of nNOS inhibition on renal injury, inflammation, and oxidative stress in the female mRen2.Lewis rat (mRen), a model of salt-sensitive hypertension. We find that a high-salt diet (4% sodium) significantly reduced endothelial NOS mRNA (2.6-fold) and protein (1.5-fold) but increased nNOS mRNA (2.4-fold) and protein (1.9-fold) in the renal cortex of these animals. Immunostaining for nNOS also seemed higher in macula densa and cortical tubules of the rats fed a high-salt diet. Circulating nitrate and nitrite levels were reduced, including the tissue levels of the NOS cofactor tetrahydrobiopterin. Cortical markers of oxidative stress (4HNE, 8-OH-deoxyguanosine) and fibrosis were increased; however, mRNA levels of the NAD(P)H oxidase components NOX4, p22phox, and p47phox were reduced. Chronic treatment with the nNOS inhibitor N5-(1-Imino-3-butenyl)-L-ornithine did not influence systolic blood pressure after 4 weeks but significantly attenuated albuminuria, renal fibrosis, inflammation, and indices of oxidative stress. We conclude that an increase in nNOS expression in conjunction with reduced levels of cortical tetrahydrobiopterin may stimulate oxidative stress and renal injury in the salt-sensitive female mRen2.Lewis rat.


This article looks at the issues facing libraries as they seek to manage and communicate rights negotiated in an ever increasing number of licences for online resources. It addresses the work that JISC Collections and EDItEUR have been engaged in to develop machine-readable licence expressions of JISC Collections licences that are suitable for import into library systems. The article explores the potential benefits such work offers to the UK academic community, as well as the issues and challenges JISC Collections has faced in this work.


This paper proposes a Situation Design that designs not only the experience of behavior itself, but also the experience of the environment around the behavior. The research question of this paper is how to motivate children to paint. To find answers, we implemented an iPhone application. The app we came up with was The World Is Canvas; using it, one will be able to enjoy coloring based on a Situation Design. We adopted physical interaction, the function of which is to paint on the screen with fingers, as a design of a painting experience itself. We also adopted social interaction as a design of the environment around behavior, with the goal of offering fun. For social interaction, we adopted a mobile device with a network connection and a function to generate a draft for coloring by using a photo taken by the user. We conducted user evaluation tests on 111 children to analyze their user experience, and we demonstrated that they enjoyed themselves through these approaches.


Recently, the porous cast-iron bonded (PCIB) diamond grinding wheel has been developed. Hence, it was thought that the grinding performance of the PCIB diamond grinding wheel depends on the porosity, which is the major property of a porous material. However, the influence of the porosity on the mechanical properties of the PCIB diamond grinding wheel has not been studied.In this paper, the atomized cast-iron-diamond composite sintered bodies, which had several grain volume percentages and porosities, were made by the pulse electric current sintering method. The Young's moduli and the bending strengths of these sintered bodies were measured. The relationships between those mechanical properties and the structures of the sintered bodies were examined. The results were as follows:(1) Both the Young's modulus and the bending strength of the composite sintered body increased as the porosity decreased.(2) The diamond grain size did not affect the Young's modulus, and influenced the bending strength under the experimental conditions of this study.(3) The Young's modulus depended on the diamond grain volume percentage. In the case where the atomized castiron sintered body (hereinafter referred to as the matrix) in the composite sintered body had the same porosity, the Young's modulus increased with increasing diamond grain volume percentage.(4) The bending strength of the composite sintered body with the same porosity as in the matrix depended on the bending strength of the matrix.


INSPIRE-SAT 7 is a French 2-Unit CubeSat (11.5 × 11.5 × 22.7 cm) primarily designed for Earth and Sun observation. INSPIRE-SAT 7 is one of the missions of the International Satellite Program in Research and Education (INSPIRE). Twice the size of a 4 × 4 Rubik's Cube and weighing about 3 kg, INSPIRE-SAT 7 will be deployed in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in 2023 to join its sister satellite, UVSQ-SAT. INSPIRE-SAT 7 represents one of the in-orbit demonstrators needed to test how two Earth observation CubeSats in orbit can be utilized to set up a satellite constellation. This new scientific and technological pathfinder CubeSat mission (INSPIRE-SAT 7) uses a multitude of miniaturized sensors on all sides of the CubeSat to measure the Earth's energy budget components at the top-of-the-atmosphere for climate change studies. INSPIRE-SAT 7 contains also a High-Frequency (HF) payload that will receive HF signals from a ground-based HF transmitter to probe the ionosphere for space weather studies. Finally, this CubeSat is equipped with several technological demonstrators (total solar irradiance sensors, UV sensors to measure solar spectral irradiance, a new Light Fidelity (Li-Fi) wireless communication system, a new versatile telecommunication system suitable for CubeSat). After introducing the objectives of the INSPIRE-SAT 7 mission, we present the satellite definition and the mission concept of operations. We also briefly show the observations made by the UVSQ-SAT CubeSat, and assess how two CubeSats in orbit could improve the information content of their Earth's energy budget measurements. We conclude by reporting on the potential of future missions enabled by CubeSat constellations.


Integrated high-Q coils are much sought after because they enable high-quality radio-frequency circuits that do not rely on off-chip discretes. We present a novel surface micro-machined inductor with its coil axis parallel to the substrate plane. Coils fabricated on standard unaltered low-resistance silicon exhibit record-high-quality factors (Q) of over 70 at 1 GHz. The devices are made by three-dimensional (3-D) self-assembly of stress-engineered structures fabricated with standard semiconductor batch processing techniques. We also designed, fabricated, and characterized silicon Bi-CMOS L-C oscillators built around these coils. Compared side by side against state-of-the-art planar spirals, they produce a 12.3 dB lower phase noise at 100 kHz offset, and 14.6 dB after normalizing to frequency and power.


As an alternative to hybridoma technology, the antibody phage library system can also be used for antibody selection. This method enables the isolation of antigen-specific binders through an in vitro selection process known as biopanning. While it has several advantages, such as an avoidance of animal immunization, the phage cloning and screening steps of biopanning are time-consuming and problematic. Here, we introduce a novel biopanning method combined with high-throughput sequencing (HTS) using a next-generation sequencer (NGS) to save time and effort in antibody selection, and to increase the diversity of acquired antibody sequences. Biopannings against a target antigen were performed using a human single chain Fv (scFv) antibody phage library. VH genes in pooled phages at each round of biopanning were analyzed by HTS on a NGS. The obtained data were trimmed, merged, and translated into amino acid sequences. The frequencies (%) of the respective VH sequences at each biopanning step were calculated, and the amplification factor (change of frequency through biopanning) was obtained to estimate the potential for antigen binding. A phylogenetic tree was drawn using the top 50 VH sequences with high amplification factors. Representative VH sequences forming the cluster were then picked up and used to reconstruct scFv genes harboring these VHs. Their derived scFv-Fc fusion proteins showed clear antigen binding activity. These results indicate that a combination of biopanning and HTS enables the rapid and comprehensive identification of specific binders from antibody phage libraries.


The Kv7 (KCNQ) channel family, comprising voltage-gated potassium channels, plays major roles in fine-tuning cellular excitability by reducing firing frequency and controlling repolarization. Kv7 channels have a unique intracellular C-terminal (CT) domain bound constitutively by calmodulin (CaM). This domain plays key functions in channel tetramerization, trafficking, and gating. CaM binds to the proximal CT, comprising helices A and B. Kv7.2 and Kv7.3 are expressed in neural tissues. Together, they form the heterotetrameric M channel. We characterized Kv7.2, Kv7.3, and chimeric Kv7.3 helix A-Kv7.2 helix B (Q3A-Q2B) proximal CT/CaM complexes by solution methods at various Ca(2+)concentrations and determined them all to have a 1:1 stoichiometry. We then determined the crystal structure of the Q3A-Q2B/CaM complex at high Ca(2+) concentration to 2.0 Å resolution. CaM hugs the antiparallel coiled coil of helices A and B, braced together by an additional helix. The structure displays a hybrid apo-Ca(2+) CaM conformation even though four Ca(2+) ions are bound. Our results pinpoint unique interactions enabling the possible intersubunit pairing of Kv7.3 helix A and Kv7.2 helix B while underlining the potential importance of Kv7.3 helix A's role in stabilizing channel oligomerization. Also, the structure can be used to rationalize various channelopathic mutants. Functional testing of the chimeric channel found it to have a voltage-dependence similar to the M channel, thereby demonstrating helix A's importance in imparting gating properties.


Background Irisin is a myokine implicated in lipid and glucose metabolism. The objective of this study is to examine the effect of a body weight reduction on the serum irisin level and physical indicators in obese Japanese patients without diabetes. Methods The subjects were 22 patients (male/female, 5/17; age, 46.1±16.0 years; body mass index [BMI], 36.9±5.0 kg/m2) who completed a 6-month body weight reduction program at our clinic. The program included diet, exercise therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. Blood parameters, body composition, exercise tolerance, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and serum irisin were determined before and after intervention, and relationships among changes in these data were examined. Results There were significant decreases in body weight and BMI after the intervention. Irisin before the intervention was significantly positively correlated with HOMA-IR (r=0.434, P<0.05). The mean irisin level showed no significant change after the intervention in all participants. However, improvements in % body fat, subcutaneous fat area, triglycerides, and fasting glucose were significantly greater in patients with an increase in irisin compared to those with a decrease in irisin after the intervention. Patients with an increase in irisin also had significantly lower fasting insulin (9.7±4.8 vs. 16.4±8.2, P<0.05) and HOMA-IR (2.2±1.1 vs. 3.7±1.6, P<0.05) after the intervention, compared to patients with a decrease in irisin. Conclusion Body weight reduction did not alter irisin levels. However, irisin may play important roles in fat and glucose metabolism and insulin resistance, and the effects of body weight reduction on irisin kinetics may be a key for obesity treatment.


Nanozymes with intrinsic enzyme-like characteristics have attracted enormous research interest in biological application, due to their higher catalytic stability and activity than many natural enzymes. However, there is still a lack of facile approach for real-time evaluating the catalytic activity of nanozymes in living system, which limits their application in precise treatment of disease. Herein, we develop a novel manganese-semiconducting polymer-based nanozyme (MSPN) with oxidase-like activity for dynamically reporting the catalytic activity of itself in acid-induced cancer therapy via ratiometric near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF)-photoacoustic (PA) molecular imaging. Notably, MSPN possess oxidase-like activity in tumor microenvironment, owing to the mixed-valent MnOx nanoparticles ((Mn II ) 1 (Mn III ) 1.56 (Mn IV ) 1.4 O 6.14 ), which can effectively kill cancer cells. Because the semiconducting polymer (PFODBT) is conjugated with oxidase-responsive molecule (ORM) via amide bond, the catalyitic activity of nanozyme can be correlated with the ratiometric sginals of NIRF (FL 695 /FL 825 ) and PA (PA 680 /PA 780 ). Therefore, our integrated catalyitic and imaging platform represents an innovative strategy that can not only achieve effective catalyitic activity in vivo, but also be used to real-time monitor the nanozyme acitivity itself, which may provide new ideas for predicating anticancer effiecncy of nanozymes in biological condition.


[Cardinal Martini, archbishop emeritus of Milan, and currently scholar in residence in Jerusalem, delivered this inaugural address on November 17, 2004, during a three-day international congress held at the Gregorian University on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Canadian Jesuit Bernard J. F. Lonergan (1904–1984). The congress explored the contribution of Lonergan to Christian theology and, in particular, his proposal for a new methodology capable of assuring the internal unity of theology as well as fostering its many integrations with the natural and human sciences, historical research, philosophical reflection, and other types of knowing. Cardinal Martini in his lecture brought out the person of Lonergan as well as his ecclesial and cultural significance.]


For sustainable agriculture, the contentious input of peat in growing media needs to be replaced by a substitute with the best possible water-holding capacity (WHC). Wood from fast growing poplar trees, cultivated in short rotation coppices (SRC), is a suitable alternative if it is processed correctly in a twin-screw extruder. The processing parameters, such as the aperture setting of the extruder, moisture content, and specific energy demand (SED), during twin-screw extrusion, as well as their influence on fibre properties such as WHC and particle size distribution, are investigated. SRC-poplar wood chips from clone Max3 are the raw material used for this research. As a result, the best volume-based WHC (75%) at −1 kPa suction tension was achieved for dry extruded wood chip fibre at an aperture setting of 15 mm and an SED of 340 kWh*t−1. The smallest SED of 140 kWh*t−1 was measured at apertures of 35 mm and 40 mm, which resulted in a volume-based WHC of approximately 30% and a dry matter mass flow during processing of 0.289 t*h−1 (40 mm). The particle size distribution of semi-dry wood chips has the highest fine fraction as well as the smallest coarse fraction. Conclusively, poplar wood can be processed fresh and dry into fibre at an acceptable SED, which results in an acceptable WHC.


Our aim is better understanding of the theoretical heat-energy demand of different types of urban form at a scale of 500 m × 500 m. The empirical basis of this study includes samples of dominant residential building typologies identified for Paris, London, Berlin, and Istanbul. In addition, archetypal idealised samples were created for each type through an analysis of their built form parameters and the removal of unwanted 'invasive' morphologies. The digital elevation models of these real and idealised samples were run through a simulation that modelled solar gains and building surface energy losses to estimate heat-energy demand. In addition to investigating the effect of macroscale morphological parameters, microscale design parameters, such as U-values and glazing ratios, as well as climatic effects were analysed. The theoretical results of this study suggest that urban-morphology-induced heat-energy efficiency is significant and can lead to a difference in heat-energy demand of up to a factor of six. Compact and tall building types were found to have the greatest heat-energy efficiency at the neighbourhood scale while detached housing was found to have the lowest.


Platelet microparticles from patients with systemic sclerosis prompt endothelial cell activation, neutrophil recruitment, and lung fibrosis. Platelets nurture neutrophil damage Systemic sclerosis, or scleroderma, is a complicated inflammatory fibrotic disease involving multiple organs. Different immune cells contribute to the pathology of systemic sclerosis. Maugeri et al. investigated mechanisms that could contribute to endothelial damage in patients. They observed that activated platelets from patients produced microparticles that induced neutrophil activation, including autophagy and neutrophil extracellular trap production. These microparticles expressed the damage-associated molecular pattern HMGB1, and accordingly, an HMGB1 inhibitor prevented this neutrophil activiation. Inhibiting microparticles to interrupt this platelet-neutrophil axis may be helpful to prevent endothelial damage, thereby disrupting disease pathogenesis. Endothelial cell damage and platelet activation contribute to sustained vasculopathy, which is a key clinical characteristic of systemic sclerosis (SSc), also known as scleroderma. Microparticles released from activated platelets in the blood of SSc patients (SSc-microparticles) are abundant and express the damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) HMGB1. SSc-microparticles interacted with neutrophils in vitro and in immunocompromised mice and promoted neutrophil autophagy, which was characterized by mobilization of their granule content, enhanced proteolytic activity, prolonged survival, and generation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Neutrophils migrated within the mouse lung, with collagen accumulation in the interstitial space and the release of soluble E-selectin by the vascular endothelium. Microparticle-neutrophil interaction, neutrophil autophagy and survival, and generation of NETs abated in the presence of BoxA, a competitive inhibitor of HMGB1. Consistent with these results, neutrophils in the blood of SSc patients were autophagic and NET by-products were abundant. Our findings implicate neutrophils in SSc vasculopathy and suggest that platelet-derived, microparticle-associated HMGB1 may be a potential indicator of disease and target for novel therapeutics.


Summary Although there are numerous algorithms that have been developed to identify structural variation (SVs) in genomic sequences, there is a dearth of approaches that can be used to evaluate their results. The emergence of new sequencing technologies that generate longer sequence reads can, in theory, provide direct evidence for all types of SVs regardless of the length of region through which it spans. However, current efforts to use these data in this manner require the use of large computational resources to assemble these sequences as well as manual inspection of each region. Here, we present VaPoR, a highly efficient algorithm that autonomously validates large SV sets using long read sequencing data. We assess of the performance of VaPoR on both simulated and real SVs with regards to various features including accuracy and sensitivity of breakpoint evaluation and report a high fidelity rate. Availability https://github.com/mills-lab/VaPoR Contact email@example.com Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.


This project examined the unique needs of boys in education. Biologically and physically, male students' developmental needs differ from their female counterparts. As a result, their educational needs are typically underserved and misunderstood in the standard co-educational classroom. This misunderstanding has led to a gap in educational achievement with girls outperforming boys throughout their school careers, from kindergarten through college. The purpose of this study is to establish the validity of boys' differential needs. Five elementary school teachers, awarded their teaching credential within the past six years and within their first six years of teaching, were recruited to participate in an interview examining their knowledge of the specific needs of boys in education and their experiences regarding such. Questions were semi-structured in nature. Consistent with the literature review, results indicated abundant experience with sex-related differences in behavior but generally without the knowledge of why and without informed strategies to address them. Major findings included consistent conveyance of boys' behavior as immature, encompassing references to self-control, distractibility, talkativeness, and impulsivity. Additionally, teachers unanimously reported feeling unprepared by their teaching programs for the different challenges they face in the classroom surrounding the topic of boy related needs. Based on these findings, a review of teacher credential programs is recommended in order to incorporate training that better equips future educators to deal with relevant issues of classroom management as well as developmentally appropriate milestones in students' lives, biologically, cognitively and physically. XY Needs in Education 5 Chapter


This paper examines the dialectical role of science in its promotion of public policy and the manner in which scientific autonomy has been challenged to further political ambition. Various episodes in the ever expanding technological reach of the marriage of science and politics is historically recounted to demonstrate the threat to scientific self-rule and to individual scientists who have been relegated to instrumentally functional roles. It is argued that the emergent class status of scientists has been subverted by the triumvirate of technology, industry and religion. Moreover, science has met its greatest challenge from those entities which understand how the use of technology and scientific discovery translate into regulatory measures.


Printing machinery's reliability is one of the most important index parameter and good dynamic characteristics are essential for high speed printing press. The dynamic characteristic is predictable for printing machine with dynamic design. With the complexity of printing technique and printing machine, information, such as load on components is lack, leading to the difficulty of dynamic model solving and further more the dynamic parameters needs to be verified. Firstly, according to the dynamic design method, a dynamic design process based on measuring information for printing machine was put forward. Secondly, on the basis of principle and structure analysis to typical printing machine, dynamic characteristics measurement item and method was determined. With a wallboard of a two-color offset press acting as an example, the utilizing method was illustrated through dynamic modeling, theoretical model analysis, experiment model analysis based on vibration measurement and comparing the theoretical and experimental results. Finally, a Dynamic Design Assistant Platform based Vibration Measurement for Printing Machine was developed and had been used in 10 kinds of printing machine measurement and analysis. The conclusion shows that the tolerance of the theoretical model analysis results and experiment results is allowed. A new approach for new printing machine design and optimal design for existed printing machine is given.


A self-aligned fabrication process for capacitive fixed-fixed beam RF microelectromechanical system (MEMS) components is disclosed. It enables the scaling of the critical dimensions and reduces the number of processing steps by 40% compared with a conventional RF MEMS fabrication process. RF MEMS varactors with beam lengths of 30 are demonstrated by using the self-aligned fabrication process, and the performance of a four-by-four RF MEMS varactor bank is discussed as well. At 20 GHz, the measured capacitance values range between 180.5 and 199.2 fF. The measured capacitance ratio is 1.15 when a driving voltage of 35 V is applied, and the measured loaded -factor ranges between 14.5 and 10.8. The measured cold-switched power handling is 200 mW.


Hydatid disease is a parasitic infection caused by Echinococcus granulosus (EG), characterized by cystic lesions in the liver, lungs, and rarely in other parts of the body. Lungs and liver are the most frequent sites involved. Simultaneous lung and liver cysts are observed in less than 10% of the cases. Hydatid cysts are found more frequently in the lungs of children and adolescents than in their liver, while most cysts in adults are hepatic and relatively few are in the lungs. The hydatid serology results are often negative in patients with isolated pulmonary hydatidosis, and hence may not be helpful in problematic cases. Radiologic approach to the intact, complicated, or ruptured pulmonary hydatid cysts includes a CT scan following the chest radiograph. Thoracic CT may be supplemented with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and occasionally with ultrasound (US) in clarifying a pleural-based hydatid cyst as extrapleural, pleural, or parenchymal.


Background Knowledge of the genetic variation underlying Primary Immune Deficiency (PID) is increasing. Reanalysis of genome-wide sequencing data from undiagnosed patients with suspected PID may improve the diagnostic rate. Methods We included patients monitored at the Department of Infectious Diseases or the Child and Adolescent Department, Rigshospitalet, Denmark, for a suspected PID, who had been analysed previously using a targeted PID gene panel (457 PID-related genes) on whole exome- (WES) or whole genome sequencing (WGS) data. A literature review was performed to extend the PID gene panel used for reanalysis of single nucleotide variation (SNV) and small indels. Structural variant (SV) calling was added on WGS data. Results Genetic data from 94 patients (86 adults) including 36 WES and 58 WGS was reanalysed a median of 23 months after the initial analysis. The extended gene panel included 208 additional PID-related genes. Genetic reanalysis led to a small increase in the proportion of patients with new suspicious PID related variants of uncertain significance (VUS). The proportion of patients with a causal genetic diagnosis was constant. In total, five patients (5%, including three WES and two WGS) had a new suspicious PID VUS identified due to reanalysis. Among these, two patients had a variant added due to the expansion of the PID gene panel, and three patients had a variant reclassified to a VUS in a gene included in the initial PID gene panel. The total proportion of patients with PID related VUS, likely pathogenic, and pathogenic variants increased from 43 (46%) to 47 (50%), as one patient had a VUS detected in both initial- and reanalysis. In addition, we detected new suspicious SNVs and SVs of uncertain significance in PID candidate genes with unknown inheritance and/or as heterozygous variants in genes with autosomal recessive inheritance in 8 patients. Conclusion These data indicate a possible diagnostic gain of reassessing WES/WGS data from patients with suspected PID. Reasons for the possible gain included improved knowledge of genotype-phenotype correlation, expanding the gene panel, and adding SV analyses. Future studies of genotype-phenotype correlations may provide additional knowledge on the impact of the new suspicious VUSs.


The National Water-Quality Assessment is based on intensive investigations of stream and ground-water quality in selected major hydrologic basins (study units) of the United States. One objective of the national assessment is to comparatively evaluate water-quality conditions within and among the different study units. Methods were developed to compare the waterquality conditions of 20 study units that were studied during 1992-1995. Two approaches were taken: (1) water-quality conditions for each study unit were ranked in relation to the findings for all study units, and (2) water-quality conditions for each study unit were compared to established criteria for the protection of human health and aquatic life. Separate rankings were developed for several major characteristics of water quality by using selected combinations of measured values for individual constituents or properties. The water-quality characteristics that were evaluated for streams were nutrients and pesticides in water, organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in bed sediment and tissue, semivolatile organic compounds and trace elements in bed sediment, fish community degradation, and stream habitat degradation. The water-quality characteristics that were evaluated for ground water were nitrate, pesticides, volatile organic compounds, dissolved solids, and radon. The water-quality rankings are relative strictly to the distribution of conditions measured at sampling sites included in developing the method. Sites in the first 20 National Water-Quality Assessment study units include a broad range of environmental settings, but are not a statistically representative sample of the Nation. To supplement the relative rankings, established water-quality criteria were used to indicate where particular constituents may have adverse effects, and thus merit further investigation. Established water-quality criteria, which provide consistent benchmarks for national comparisons of individual constituents, were selected from a variety of sources and applied to specific constituents in the specific medium (water or sediment) appropriate for each criterion.


In pregnancies complicated by diabetes, foetal lung maturation depends on a good control of maternal blood glucose values. In poorly controlled maternal diabetes, foetal hyperinsulinaemia may cause a delay in pulmonary maturation. There was no single case of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in 112 pregnant class B-F diabetic patients that we treated with high doses of insulin. Furthermore, in a controlled randomized trial of diet versus insulin treatment in class A diabetes we found no differences in perinatal mortality in patients with adequate metabolic control. In pregnancies complicated by Rh isoimmunization, determination of phosphatidylglycerol in amniotic fluid is a more reliable marker of foetal lung maturity than is the lecithin/sphingomyelin ratio. The marked decrease in perinatal mortality due to Rh incompatibility observed in recent years depends on several factors including administration of corticosteroids to the mother to prevent RDS, irrespective of whether amniotic fluid parameters indicate foetal lung maturity.


Genomics has become a ground-breaking field in all areas of the life sciences. The advanced genomics and the development of high-throughput techniques have lately provided insight into whole-genome characterization of a wide range of organisms. In the post-genomic era, new technologies have revealed an outbreak of prerequisite genomic sequences and supporting data to understand genome wide functional regulation of gene expression and metabolic pathways reconstruction. However, the availability of this plethora of genomic data presents a significant challenge for storage, analyses and data management. Analysis of this mega-data requires the development and application of novel bioinformatics tools that must include unified functional annotation, structural search, and comprehensive analysis and identification of new genes in a wide range of species with fully sequenced genomes. In addition, generation of systematically and syntactically unambiguous nomenclature systems for genomic data across species is a crucial task. Such systems are necessary for adequate handling genetic information in the context of comparative functional genomics. In this paper, we provide an overview of major advances in bioinformatics and computational biology in genome sequencing and next-generation sequence data analysis. We focus on their potential applications for efficient collection, storage, and analysis of genetic data/information from a wide range of gene banks. We also discuss the importance of establishing a unified nomenclature system through a functional and structural genomics approach.


Optimizing complex engineering problems may demand large computational efforts because of the use of numerical models. Global optimization can be established through the use of evolutionary algorithms, but may demand a prohibitive amount of computational time. In order to reduce the computational time, we incorporate in the global optimization procedures a physics-based fast coarse model. This paper presents a two-level genetic algorithm (2LGA) for electromagnetic optimization. This algorithm employs the global convergence properties of the genetic algorithm, where acceleration of the optimization results from the fast computations of the coarse model (low level) and where accuracy is guaranteed by using a limited number of fine model (high level) evaluations. Using the coarse model, we iteratively build surrogate models (intermediate levels) where metamodels produce surrogate models which approximate the fine model. The proposed algorithm comprises internal parameters which are self-tunable. We applied the 2LGA to the optimization of an algebraic test function, to the optimization of a die press model (TEAM Workshop Problem 25) and to the optimization of an octangular double-layered electromagnetic shield. The results show that the 2LGA is converging to the optimal solutions as the traditional genetic algorithm and that the acceleration is dependent on the accuracy of the low level. An acceleration factor of more than two can be achieved.


During the 1980s, a debate opened up about the meaning of the concept of 'free movement of persons' enshrined in the Treaty of Rome 1957. Some Member States felt that this should apply to EU citizens only, which would involve keeping internal border checks in order to distinguish between citizens of the EU and non-EU nationals. Others argued in favour of free movement for everyone, which would mean an end to internal border checks altogether. The Schengen Agreement was signed in 1985 in the village of Schengen, on the borders of Luxembourg, France and Germany. Having decided to implement the intention expressed in that agreement of bringing about the abolition of checks at their common borders on the free movement of persons and facilitating the transport and movement of goods, it could be argued that the Schengen acquis has made it easier for human traffickers to break down internal EU borders in the true spirit of the agreement; after all Schengen's main purpose was to remove all controls at internal land, sea and airport frontiers. Today there are about 3–4.5 million people living in the EU without any legal papers, with an estimated 400,000 people a year being trafficked into Member States. This means that particularly women and children sans papiers are without legally protected human rights. It is questionable whether international law enforcement agencies, such as Europol, Interpol or the FBI, are truly collaborating in the field of human trafficking, since their different intelligence systems do not really talk to each other yet, exacerbated by Europol's insistence on eleven language multi-lingualism. Ultimately, trafficking of humans only adds to the funding of global terrorism. Besides being a human rights issue, trafficking in humans is a public health concern due to the widespread infection of HIV/AIDS, and other sexually transmitted diseases; it is a transnational organized crime and socio-economic issue. For this reason it is important that all law enforcement agencies, particularly in Europe, ought to make cooperation in this field its priority. Though a variety of measures have been taken in order to maintain internal security, it is becoming increasingly obvious that organized criminal gangs from largely Eastern Europe, Russia and the Ukraine are well versant in the coordination of visas and illegal passports in order to bypass border controls between Member States. Passengers travelling between the eight Schengen countries are not subjected to stringent passport or identity checks, and when using air travel, leave from domestic rather than international airport terminals (apart from the UK and Ireland). This has resulted in some atrocious human trafficking casualties: in 1998, 90 Romanian illegal immigrants were rescued from a sealed truck in Italy, suffering from asphyxiation. In the same year, dozens of Sri Lankans died after a driver left them locked-up in a container lorry at the Austro-Hungarian border and in 1999, 173 people were reported drowned in the Adriatic Sea, attempting to cross from Albania to Italy.


Many firms that were involved in large-scale corporate frauds had strong corporate codes of ethics and values statements. These firms were also subject to considerable social pressures to be mindful of their reputations; frauds are "negative reputational events." Notably, the frauds not infrequently involved possible, or even outright, illegality. Why didn't these strong forces—strong codes of ethics and firms' clear interest in maintaining a good reputation, as well as the fear of legal liability—do more to prevent the frauds? It seems hard to imagine that serious misdeeds could occur if the top management was committed to preventing them. But top management, especially the CEOs, are sending messages declaring precisely such a commitment. Might they be sending, verbally or nonverbally, other, countermanding or dilutive, messages? Our aim here is to raise this issue and consider how it might be explored.


Computer mediated group collaboration, particularly in the design and engineering disciplines, is in need of better applications that suit the needs of effective exchange of information. Multi-touch surfaces offer the capabilities to augment and better enable face-to-face interaction with digital content and applications. This paper presents the design, development and testing of SketchTop, a multi-touch sketching application for collocated design collaboration.


A hydrostable anionic porous drug carrier MOF with a bcu topology constructed from trinuclear clusters, [(Me2NH2)2Zn3(fdc)4]n·DMA (1) (fdc = 2,5-furandicarboxylate, DMA = dimethylacetamide), was synthesized and structurally characterized. TGA, PXRD, and water vapor sorption results show high thermal and water stability for the framework. 1 exhibits a 3D framework with rectangular channels of 10.0 × 7.7 and 6.1 × 7.8 A2 along the b axis. Desolvated 1 adsorbs around 17.2 wt% 5-fluorouracil and the cumulative release value of 5-fluorouracil at 72 h was about 93.3% in PBS (pH 7.4) at 37 °C. Results of in vivo zebrafish toxicity tests and in vitro MTT assays of 1 at different concentrations reveal that 1 is nontoxic.


In this article, we focus on the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) as a discursive practice. Instead of asking whether the figures in the BSC correspond to reality, or whether they serve the users' purposes and behave according to their intentions, we have chosen to analyse how the BSC partakes in shaping the world it is intended to reflect. Two case studies will be presented in order to demonstrate how the BSC works in this respect. In the first case, the main issue is how the BSC both naturalizes alleged cognitive limitations among managers and induces them to replace everyday knowledge with highly selective representations. After that, the BSC is shown to operate simultaneously as a strait-jacket on strategic intentions and as a constituent of new patterns of action-but in ways that are loosely coupled to strategic intentions.


The disintegration of Biopol-coated cardboard, polylactide fabric and film was studied using three different procedures: adding the samples directly to the compost pile, and placing them in the pile in nylon bags as well as in steel frames. Cellulose-based sausage casing, polyethylene and Mater-Bi ZF03U were also tested in steel frames as reference samples. Direct addition of the samples to the compost pile had no detrimental effect on the decomposition of compost biowaste. The use of steel frames proved to be good a method for testing samples like packaging materials. Both polylactide samples and Biopol-coated cardboard degraded completely in the steel frames. The results showed that composting activity parameters should be followed during composting before any conclusions can be made about the compostability of the samples. The compost produced from the polymer samples showed no toxicity in the plant growth test with barley and radish seeds performed at the end of the experiment.


Following requirements of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, most U.S. states require utility companies to adopt interconnection and net metering policies, allowing customers to become prosumers who both consume and produce electricity, generating electricity using distributed renewable energy technologies, connecting to the existing electric utility grid and receiving compensation for excess electricity generation. This paper reviews existing interconnection and net metering policies instituted by investor owned utilities (IOUs) across the U.S., specifically focused on policies regulating installations of small scale, residential or Tier 1 (a term used to indicate policies applicable to smaller scale rather than larger scale, although the size at which DG systems are classified as either Tier 1 or higher tiers varies by utility). Publicly available data from each IOU reveal inconsistencies in interconnection and net metering policies, within states and even within individual companies. In addition, accurate information is often unavailable to consumers. Perhaps most importantly, results suggest that compensation for excess distributed generation often lacks transparent articulation in utility policy. The results of this study provide important insight into interconnection and net metering policies for distributed renewable energy generation, as states and utilities continue to modify interconnection and net metering policies in response to increased adoption of distributed renewable energy systems.


A single-institution prospective pilot clinical trial was performed to demonstrate the feasibility of combining [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 radiopharmaceutical therapy (RPT) with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for the treatment of oligometastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer. Methods: Six patients with 9 prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-positive oligometastases received 2 cycles of [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 RPT followed by SBRT. After the first intravenous infusion of [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 (7.46 ± 0.15 GBq), patients underwent SPECT/CT at 3.2 ± 0.5, 23.9 ± 0.4, and 87.4 ± 12.0 h. Voxel-based dosimetry was performed with calibration factors (11.7 counts per second/MBq) and recovery coefficients derived from in-house phantom experiments. Lesions were segmented on baseline PSMA PET/CT (50% SUVmax). After a second cycle of [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 (44 ± 3 d; 7.50 ± 0.10 GBq) and an interim PSMA PET/CT scan, SBRT (27 Gy in 3 fractions) was delivered to all PSMA-avid oligometastatic sites, followed by post-PSMA PET/CT. RPT and SBRT voxelwise dose maps were scaled (α/β = 3 Gy; repair half-time, 1.5 h) to calculate the biologically effective dose (BED). Results: All patients completed the combination therapy without complications. No grade 3+ toxicities were noted. The median of the lesion SUVmax as measured on PSMA PET was 16.8 (interquartile range [IQR], 11.6) (baseline), 6.2 (IQR, 2.7) (interim), and 2.9 (IQR, 1.4) (post). PET-derived lesion volumes were 0.4-1.7 cm3 The median lesion-absorbed dose (AD) from the first cycle of [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 RPT (ADRPT) was 27.7 Gy (range, 8.3-58.2 Gy; corresponding to 3.7 Gy/GBq, range, 1.1-7.7 Gy/GBq), whereas the median lesion AD from SBRT was 28.1 Gy (range, 26.7-28.8 Gy). Spearman rank correlation, ρ, was 0.90 between the baseline lesion PET SUVmax and SPECT SUVmax (P = 0.005), 0.74 (P = 0.046) between the baseline PET SUVmax and the lesion ADRPT, and -0.81 (P = 0.022) between the lesion ADRPT and the percent change in PET SUVmax (baseline to interim). The median for the lesion BED from RPT and SBRT was 159 Gy (range, 124-219 Gy). ρ between the BED from RPT and SBRT and the percent change in PET SUVmax (baseline to post) was -0.88 (P = 0.007). Two cycles of [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 RPT contributed approximately 40% to the maximum BED from RPT and SBRT. Conclusion: Lesional dosimetry in patients with oligometastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer undergoing [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 RPT followed by SBRT is feasible. Combined RPT and SBRT may provide an efficient method to maximize the delivery of meaningful doses to oligometastatic disease while addressing potential microscopic disease reservoirs and limiting the dose exposure to normal tissues.


Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has been considered as a promising technique to achieve high data rate transmission in mobile environment. However, they are very sensitive to nonlinear effects due to high peak to average power ratio (PAPR). This paper proposes an efficient technique for reducing the PAPR of OFDM signals. The reduction in PAPR of the OFDM signal is obtained through Zadoff-Chu matrix transform (ZCMT) precoding based partial transmit sequence (PTS).The obtained results show that this precoding scheme is an attractive solution of the PAPR problem of OFDM signals.


Inactivation of p53 has been implicated in many types of tumors particularly in non-small cell lung carcinoma, one of the most common cancers in which p53 mutation has been frequently identified. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of p53 status on the regulation of tumor susceptibility to specific CTL-mediated cell death. For this purpose, we used a cytotoxic T lymphocyte clone, Heu127, able to lyse the human autologous lung carcinoma cell line, IGR-Heu, in a HLA-A2-restricted manner. Direct genomic DNA sequencing revealed that IGR-Heu expresses a mutated p53 at codon 132 of the exon 5 which results in the loss of p53 capacity to induce the expression of the p53-regulated gene product p21waf/CIP1. Initial experiments demonstrated that IGR-Heu was resistant to Fas, TNF, and TRAIL apoptotic pathways. This correlated with the lack of p55 TNFRI, Fas, DR4, and DR5 expression. The effect of wild-type (wt) p53 restoration on the sensitization of IGR-Heu to autologous CTL clone lysis was investigated following infection of the tumor cell line with a recombinant adenovirus encoding the wt p53 (Adwtp53). We demonstrate that the restoration of wt p53 expression and function resulted in a significant potentiation of target cell susceptibility to CTL-mediated lysis. The wt p53-induced optimization of tumor cell killing by specific CTL involves at least in part Fas-mediated pathway via induction of CD95 expression by tumor cells but does not appear to interfere with granzyme B cytotoxic pathway.


p53 protein conformation is an important determinant of its localization and activity. Changes in p53 conformation can be monitored by reactivity with wild-type conformation-specific (pAb-1620) or mutant conformation-specific (pAb-240) p53 antibodies. Wild-type p53 accumulated in a mutant (pAb-240 reactive) form when its proteasome-dependent degradation was blocked during recovery from stress treatment and in cells co-expressing p53 and MDM2. This suggests that conformational change precedes wild-type p53 degradation by the proteasome. MDM2 binding to the p53 N terminus could induce a conformational change in wild-type p53. Interestingly, this conformational change was opposed by heat-shock protein 90 and did not require the MDM2 RING-finger domain and p53 ubiquitination. Finally, ubiquitinated p53 accumulated in a pAb-240 reactive form when p53 degradation was blocked by proteasome inhibition, and a p53-ubiquitin fusion protein displayed a mutant-only conformation in MDM2-null cells. These results support a model in which MDM2 binding induces a conformational change that is opposed by heat-shock protein 90 and precedes p53 ubiquitination. The covalent attachment of ubiquitin may "lock" p53 in a mutant conformation in the absence of MDM2-binding and prior to its degradation by the proteasome.


Publishing lectures on the web, or lecture casting, can have several advantages [1] and student experiences from using lecture casts have been very positive [2]. For example students are not bound to a specific time and place and there are possibilities to watch whole or parts of lectures several times. However, the use of lecture casts is not very widespread, and there are a number of reasons why a teacher might be hesitant to lecture casting. In this roundtable we presents the results and experiences from using one specific method of lecture casting which address a number of these reasons. 1) teachers' anxiety over appearing in a video, 2) cost and ease of producing and distributing the lecture and 3) difficulties to update lecture casts. The method is to use narration-mode in PowerPoint and to publish the result using BrainShark, one of several available web-based tools for publishing narrated PowerPoint lectures on the web. This method has several advantages. First, publishing only voice and slides is a lower mental barrier for the lecturer than to also include a video of the lecturer. Second the technical threshold is very low. The only equipment needed is the computer with the PowerPoint presentation and optionally an external microphone. The entire production and distribution is also handled by the lecturer alone, no technical personnel is needed which also greatly reduces the cost and administrative overhead of publishing lectures. Third, the lecture-casts are easy to update, since individual slides can be added, removed, or re-recorded without re-recording the entire lecture. Our tests show that the production time of recording and distributing a lecture cast is only marginally longer than giving the lecture in class, and that no technical expertise or extensive instructions are necessary, making the method available to all teachers.


This dissertation presents a Multi-scale Adaptive Sampling (AS) framework for combining measurements arriving from mobile robotic sensors of different scales, rates and accuracies, in order to reconstruct a parametric spatio-temporal field. The proposed sampling algorithm, "EKF-NN-GAS", is based on the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), Radial Basis Function (RBF) Neural Networks and Greedy Search Heuristics. This novel AS algorithm responds to real-time measurements by continuously directing robots to locations most likely to yield maximum information about the sensed field. EKF is used to derive quantitative information measures for sampling locations. In addition, the localization uncertainty of the robots is minimized by combining the location states and field parameters in a Joint-EKF formulation. This feature is critical in GPS-denied environment such as inside buildings or underwater.
Secondary objectives such as sampling duration, computational cost and energy are minimized by adding several extensions called "Greedy Adaptive Sampling" (GAS) heuristics. The issue of thorough sampling in dense regions is addressed using Clustered Adaptive Sampling. Drawbacks of local searching approach used in GAS are overcome with Non-uniform Grid Size AS and Multi-step AS. The proposed sampling algorithms are compared with traditional raster-scanning through many examples. Results indicate that the proposed parametric algorithm provides faster convergence with less number of samples. This dissertation also addresses issues of efficient partitioning of the sampling area, distribution of computations and communication for adaptive sampling with multiple robots. The performance of the algorithm was experimentally validated using indoor multi-robot testbed at ARRI's DIAL lab (Distributed Intelligence and Autonomy Lab).
A real world scenario of mapping of forest fires is addressed in this thesis in conjunction with the proposed sampling algorithm. Our strategy combines measurements arriving at different times from sensors with different field of view (FOV) and resolution, such as ground, air-borne and space-borne observation platforms. In practice, such robots could be equipped with thermal imaging, topographic mapping and other sensors for measuring environmental conditions.


A wide range of applications used on wireless sensor networks requires the location information of sensor nodes. Some conventional localization techniques employ GPS or other location-tracking devices installed on sensor nodes. On the other hand, other methods provide location information by taking into account node connectivity only. One example of such methods is a multidimensional scaling-MAP (MDS-MAP), which provides the most accurate location information to date. MDS-MAP, however, has a computational overhead of O(n^3) in a network of n nodes and also it intrinsically generates significant localization accuracy error in an environment with holes. This paper proposes a cluster-based MDS scheme for range-free localization, CMDS for short, which addresses the shortcomings of MDS-MAP and yields higher accuracy in all environments. Simulation results demonstrate that in a sensor network environment with holes, the proposed scheme gives up to 23% improvement in localization accuracy over hierarchical MDS (HMDS), which is an enhanced version of the conventional MDS-MAP.


Bioavailabilities of oral rumen-protected and non-protected formulations of sulfamethoxazole (SMS) were compared in ruminating calves, since in vitro degradation of SMX in ruminal fluid was confirmed. The coated with a gastric-acid-soluble polymer and uncoated formulations were administered to 3 calves through a catheter. Neither formulation could produce sufficient blood concentration of the drug, though the bioavailability of SMX for the coated formulation was higher than that for the uncoated formulation. It was suggested that the rumen-protected drug could improve the bioavailability by escaping from degradation in the rumen, but scarcely attain the effective levels in blood.


Magnetic fluid was invested in 20thcn 60s, and nowadays, it is used as an effective way for mechanical seal. This paper follows the seal requirements of stirred reactor rotating axis, analyzes the applicability for its seal condition. Meanwhile, in this paper the magnetic field is calculated by numerical simulation, the free boundary of magnetic fluid is analyzed in conditions of static seal and dynamic seal. The boundary analysis for magnetic fluid seal can directly show its position, when the boundary of magnetic fluid moves to the lower extreme of pole teeth, it can be considered the seal is invalid. This is a simple way to supervise the magnetic fluid seal.


Objectives: In 10–30% of women, vaginal birth results in levator ani tears which are associated with female pelvic organ prolapse. Prevention of levator trauma may reduce the future prevalence of this condition. The Epi-No is an inflatable balloon device designed to stretch the vagina and perineum in late pregnancy. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of Epi-No use on pelvic floor integrity. Methods: This was a prospective randomised controlled trial. 200 nulliparous women (singleton pregnancy at 33–37 weeks' gestation) were recruited. All were invited for a 2nd assessment >= 3 months postpartum. All participants had an interview and 4D translabial ultrasound at both appointments. Participants were randomised into the control or Epi-No group. Women in the intervention group were instructed in the use of the device from 37 weeks onwards. The primary outcome parameter was levator avulsion. Modified intention to treat (ITT) and treatment received analysis were performed. Results: 96 women were randomised to the control group, 104 to the Epi-No group. There were no significant differences in obstetric variables. 145 women (73%) had a second assessment 5.6 (2.3–22.1) months postpartum. There were 13 avulsions (3 bilateral, 10 unilateral), with the risk halved in the Epi-No group (6% vs. 13%, P = 0.19). Similar findings were obtained after adjustment for known confounders such as antepartum BMI, intrapartum use of epidural, length of 2nd stage and forceps delivery. The treatment received analysis yielded similar results. Conclusions: In this randomised controlled pilot study we found a weak trend towards a lower incidence of levator avulsion in the Epi-No group. While the intention to treat analysis showed a halving of risk, the unexpectedly low prevalence of avulsion in our population has resulted in insufficient power. Based on these findings an ITT study would need a sample size of 660 women to show a reduction in the incidence of levator avulsion by 50%.


The objectives of this study were to evaluate the eff ects of substituting barley with wet sugar beet pulp silage at diff ering levels on fattening performance, carcass quality and cost. To achieve this objective, a barley based diet (control diet) was prepared. Then, three diets were prepared by substituting 35% (35% WSBPS diet), 70 (70% WSBPS diet) and 100% of barley energy with wet pulp silage (100% WSBPS diet). A total of 48, 6-7 month old, male, Akkaraman lambs were utilized in the study. Lambs were randomly allotted into one of four groups based on initial body weights. Each group was also divided into 4 subgroups with 3 lambs within each subgroup and fed with one of four diets for a period of 75 days. Daily feed intake of each subgroup was determined weekly. All of the lambs were weighed bi-weekly to determine weight gains. Six lambs from each treatment group were slaughtered at the end of the experiment to determine carcass quality. Costs of each kg of diet DM and 1 kg of live weight gain for each diet were calculated. Initial live body weights of lambs fed diff erent diets were similar, ranging from 23.48 to 25.03 kg (P>0.05). Overall daily weight gains of lambs fed diff erent diet were also similar throughout the experiment and were 0.160, 0.182, 0.182, and 0.160 kg for control, 35%, 70% and 100% WPS diets, respectively (P>0.05). Hot and cold carcass weights, carcass tight, leg and loin weights were not statistically diff erent among groups (P>0.05), but back weights were greater in sheep fed 75% WSP diet compared with control (P<0.05). Addition of WSBP silage into diets decreased both costs of diets and 1 kg live weight gain in a linear way. It can be concluded that energy provided by barley can be substituted with energy of WSP silage up to 70% without aff ecting fattening performance, carcass features and can greatly reduce production cost in lambs based on the results of the present study.


This study aims at investigating the impact of agricultural policies on structural change process in the French farming sector. As farms may behave differently, a mixture modeling approach is applied in order to account for unobserved farm heterogeneity. A multinomial logit specification is used for the transition probabilities and the parameters of the model are estimated by maximum likelihood method using the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm. An empirical application to an unbalanced panel over 2000-2013 shows that the French farming sector consists of a mixture of two types of farms with transition processes very different. The results also show that the impact of subsidies from the First and the Second Pillars of the Common Agricultural policy (CAP) depends on the type membership of farms. I thus argued that agricultural policy assessment should pay more attention on potential unobserved heterogeneity in farms' behavior.


The tendency of connecting the Power Electronic loads and distributed power plants through Power Electronic converters is increasing day by day. These Power Electronic converters and loads are the sources of harmonics and reactive power which greatly affect the performance of the power system network. In a weak power grid, the voltage unbalance and non-sinusoidal regimes are very common. Under such circumstances not only the controllability of the power grid itself but also the controllability of the electronic connected to power system equipment's is heavily affected. So, power quality of the modern power grid (smart grid) is an important issue to address. To overcome the problem of power quality, recent efforts have been made on active filtering. The active power filters have gained much more attention because of excellent performance to mitigate the harmonic and reactive power issues. But the performance of the active filters depends upon the control theory that is employed to formulate the control algorithm of the active filter. A shunt active power filter with controller based on Instantaneous active and reactive power (p-q) theory has been purposed to verify its performance and ability to compensate the harmonics and reactive power. The advantage of p-q theory is that it is instantaneous and works in time domain. The shunt active power filter connected to AC distribution system in the presence of different shares of Power Electronic loads is investigated. It has been investigated through simulations that even under unbalanced and distorted conditions of AC distribution supply voltage and unbalanced loading, shunt active filter is able to produce the unity power factor and mitigate the harmonics (THD) specified by power quality standards. Matlab/Simulink is used as a simulation tool for the research.