To improve fuel economy of conventional vehicles and the driving range of electric
vehicles, reducing the aerodynamic drag is of particular interest. As electric vehicles
typically have lower cooling power requirement, reducing the aerodynamic drag
induced by cooling air is of utter importance.
This study investigates alternative under-hood cooling flow solutions, with the target
of reducing cooling drag for battery electric vehicles (BEV). Two different approaches
of positioning the vehicle's heat exchangers (in series and in parallel) with
a number of different air inlet and outlet configurations have been evaluated using
CFD simulations. The geometry of the open grille DrivAer Model have been
used to a large extent in this work, including a simplified electric powertrain and
an alternative cooling module. For this work, a Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes
(RANS) method utilizing the k-" turbulence model have been implemented in the
commercial CFD software STAR-CCM+.
The results show that a similarly low cooling drag can be obtained from positioning
heat exchangers both in series and in parallel. When heat exchangers are positioned
in parallel, the results indicate high mass flow rate and low drag potential for side
positioned inlets including air outlets located at the front arc of the wheel houses.
Furthermore, results indicate that low positioned air inlets are more drag efficient
than those positioned higher on the front bumper. The results of this study should
serve as an suggestion towards under-hood cooling flow solutions for battery electric
vehicles.


Background The goal of this study was to identify interventions that anesthesiologists can make to decrease total costs of a postanesthesia care unit (PACU). Methods Data were collected retrospectively from patients who underwent ambulatory surgery at our tertiary care center. Results Supplies and medications accounted for only 2% of PACU charges. Personnel costs, which depend on the peak number of patients in the PACU, accounted for almost all PACU costs. If nausea and vomiting could have been eliminated in each patient who suffered this complication, without causing sedation, the total time to discharge for all patients would have been decreased by less than 4.8% (95% confidence interval < 7.3%). Arrival rates to and times to discharge from the PACU followed triangular and log‐normal distributions, respectively. Computer simulations, using published times to discharge for drugs with "faster recovery," such as propofol, showed that the use of these drugs would only decrease PACU costs if operating rooms were consistently scheduled to run later each day. Such earlier discharge also might be beneficial if used at night, but only if the PACU could close after a single patient leaves. However, reasonably achievable decreases in the times to discharge for all patients undergoing general anesthesia are unlikely to substantively decrease PACU costs. In contrast, arranging an operating room schedule to optimize admission rates would greatly affect the number of PACU nurses needed. Conclusions Anesthesiologists have little control over PACU economics via choice of anesthetic drugs. The major determinant of PACU costs is the distribution of admissions.


This paper focuses on the development of the machinery industry in the postwar high growth period of Japan, and aims to identify the significance of the government's industrial policy in bringing about this major shift in the nation's industrial structure. By reviewing relevant existing studies, we will first identify the overall framework of support measures under the Act on Temporary Measures for the Promotion of the Machinery Industry (Act No. 154 of 1956) and show how a two-step screening procedure in selecting eligible companies—i.e., technical screening and financing screening—facilitated the introduction of appropriate technologies to the machinery industry, thereby improving the competitiveness of machinery products in terms of both quality and prices. We will also examine how these positive effects on the targeted industry helped user industries—e.g., finished products manufacturers that use machinery tools and equipment as parts and components for their products—to improve their products and reduce production costs. In this regard, it should be noted that the rationalization of basic industries such as steel, petrochemical, and electricity generation and the resulting lower material prices also helped reduce the cost of machinery production. Thus, the remarkable development of the machinery industry in the high growth period should not be attributed solely to the support measures specifically targeted at the machinery industry. Instead, it should be seen as the fruit of multiple industrial policy measures. While the support measures for the machinery industry as manufacturers of parts and components contributed to the development of user industries as manufacturers of finished products, a closer look at those finished products manufacturers engaging mainly in processing and assembling reveals that cost reductions via enhancing labor productivity were very limited because labor's share in their income was on the rise at the time. This suggests that the growth of Japanese finished products manufacturers in the high growth period and their rise in international competition were achieved mainly through improved efficiency in their purchasing activities, namely, lower costs of parts and components, leaner inventories, and reductions in the related financing costs. And it is for this reason that the role of the Act on Temporary Measures for the Promotion of the Machinery Industry was considered so significant. Meanwhile, the expansion of such labor-intensive processing and assembling operations led to sustainable job creation, which in turn provided the foundation for high economic growth.


In this study, titanium dioxide (TiO2) films were prepared on Corning glass substrates by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering and treated without and with O2 plasma conditions, and then were used to fabricate metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) ultraviolet (UV) photodetectors (PDs). The effects of the changes on TiO2 films were investigated by using field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), photoluminescence (PL) system and four-point probe measurement. With a 360-nm illumination and 5 V applied bias, it was found that the responsivities of the fabricated TiO2 PDs without and with 2 minutes O2 plasma treatment were 36 and 153 A/W, respectively.


asterbottens fargrika stenskatter - Spatiala presentationer och analyser av skifferfynd i Vasterbottens lan(The colorful stone treasures of Vasterbotten – Spatial presentations and analysis of slate artefacts in Vasterbotten County)This essay pertains to the spatial distributions and analysis of slate artefacts in Vasterbotten County, Sweden. The authors aim is to give answers the issues of what the distribution patterns of slate artefacts can tell us about the prehistoric humans in this area. By using GIS software and geospatial analysis the author strengthens the theories about separate interior and coastal economies, as well as the theory that the main share of production of slate artifacts are linked in the interior of the County, the author also refers to earlier research, both domestic and international. The theories of non-pragmatic preferences by the late Mesolithic and Neolithic people for red colored slate are also added to. Finally the author suggests a usage of slate daggers as tools for the preparation of felled, larger animals, rather than the daggers being primarily a weapon or of symbolic value.


Mixture item response theory (IRT) models include a mixture of latent subpopulations such that there are qualitative differences between subgroups but within each subpopulation the measure model based on a continuous latent variable holds. Under this modeling framework, students can be characterized by both their location on a continuous latent variable and by their latent class membership according to Students' responses. It is important to identify anchor items for constructing a common scale between latent classes beforehand under the mixture IRT framework. Then, all model parameters across latent classes can be estimated on the common scale. In the study, we proposed Q-matrix anchored mixture Rasch model (QAMRM), including a Q-matrix and the traditional mixture Rasch model. The Q-matrix in QAMRM can use class invariant items to place all model parameter estimates from different latent classes on a common scale regardless of the ability distribution. A simulation study was conducted, and it was found that the estimated parameters of the QAMRM recovered fairly well. A real dataset from the Certificate of Proficiency in English was analyzed with the QAMRM, LCDM. It was found the QAMRM outperformed the LCDM in terms of model fit indices.


---------------------------------------------------------------------***--------------------------------------------------------------------Abstract Session management in distributed Internet services is traditionally based on username and password, explicit logouts and mechanisms of user session expiration using classic timeouts. Emerging biometric solutions allow substituting username and password with biometric data during session establishment, but in such an approach still a single verification is deemed sufficient, and the identity of a user is considered immutable during the entire session. Additionally, the length of the session timeout may impact on the usability of the service and consequent client satisfaction. This paper explores promising alternatives offered by applying biometrics in the management of sessions. A secure protocol is defined for perpetual authentication through continuous user verification. The protocol determines adaptive timeouts based on the quality, frequency and type of biometric data transparently acquired from the user. The functional behavior of the protocol is illustrated through Mat lab simulations, while model-based quantitative analysis is carried out to assess the ability of the protocol to contrast security attacks exercised by different kinds of attackers. Finally, the current prototype for PCs and Android smartphones is discussed.


This comparative case study addresses a timely issue engaging researchers involved in the internationalisation of Nordic Higher Education, in the context of Sweden and Finland. The study examines a hypothetical imaginary in the transition between university international policy statements and their understandings from the position of a globalised episteme. The investigation forms a tag-project as part of a funded large international research project examining ethical internationalism in times of global crises, involving a partnership between more than twenty higher education institutions in excess of ten countries across five continents. The data was collected using a mixed-methods design, whilst being controlled across the matched data collection period in 2013-2014. Data consisted of policy texts, surveys and interviews. The current research inquiry reports on a within and across comparative analyses of certain policy texts and follow-up interviews with university management. The results yield logical support for a global higher education imaginary driving internationalisation in ways which reveal paradoxical associations between the imagined and the real worlds of international scholar-practitioners.


This article explores analogy as a communicative tool used by parents to relate children's past experiences to unfamiliar concepts. Two studies explored how similarity comparisons and relational analogies were used in parent-child conversations about science topics. In Study 1, 98 family groups including 4- to 9-year-olds explored two science museum exhibits. Parents suggested comparisons and overtly mapped analogical relations. In Study 2, 48 parents helped first- and third-grade children understand a homework-like question about infections. Parents suggested relational analogies and overtly mapped analogical relations for children. Use of relational analogies was positively associated with scores on a post-task measure of understanding. These studies suggest that parents help children learn about unfamiliar science topics by suggesting personally relevant or culturally pervasive analogies and by elaborating unfamiliar and non-obvious analogical relations.


In the last decades, power grids and other energy transmission networks have received attention from the network literature. In this work, we studied one of the most important static features of power grids, their topology, with focus on the Brazilian Power Grid (BPG). We obtained the spatial structure of the BPG from the ONS (Electric System National Operator), consisting of its high-voltage transmission lines, electric stations and substations. Some traits had to be ignored, such as the local low-voltage substations and as well the dynamic features of the network. We analyzed the complex network of the BPG and its statistics, such as the mean degree, the degree distribution, the network size and the clustering coefficient to characterize the complex network. We also detected critical locations in the network and, therefore, points that are more susceptible to cascading failures and even to blackouts. Our results show that the BPG is functional against random failures, regarding random removal of links and connections, in terms of the size of the largest cluster. We observe that when a fraction ρ of the links are randomly removed, the network may break down into smaller, disconnected parts. However, the largest component of the power grid remains connected. We believe that even a static study of the network topology can help to identify the critical situations and also prevent failures and possible blackouts.


Abstract : The fiscally constrained environment in which the Air Force executes its mission places great emphasis on accurate cost estimates for planning and budgeting purposes. Inaccurate estimates result in budget risks and undermine the ability of Air Force leadership to allocate resources efficiently. This thesis evaluates the current method used by the Air Force and introduces new methods to forecast future Flying Hour Program costs. The findings suggest the current forecasting method's assumption of a proportional relationship between cost and flying hours is inappropriate and the relationship is actually inelastic. Prior research has used log-linear least squares regression techniques to forecast Flying Hour Program cost, but has been limited by the occurrence of negative net costs in the underlying data. This research uses time series and panel data regression techniques while controlling for flying hours, lagged costs, and age to create net costs models and an alternative model by separately estimating the two components of net costs which are charges and credits. Finally, this research found neither the proportional, net costs, nor charge minus credit models is a superior forecaster. As such, the models introduced in this research may be used as a cross check for the current method.


Effects of organic acids found in fruit s on human health have been appreciated by both researchers and consumers in recent years. Sugar, macro and micro nutrient contents are also traits exposing taste and nutritional value . This study was carried out to determine the organic acid s, sugars, macro-micro nutrient contents in grape must of some grape cultivars (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Silfoni, cv. Agin Beyazi, cv. Kis Kirmizisi, cv. Okuzgozu and cv. Ercis Uzumu) grown in Van province of Turkey. The organic acid values (citric, tartaric, malic, succinic, lactic, fumaric and acetic acids) varied a lot in the cultivars. The highest individual organic acid value (24. 33 g tartaric acid l -1 ) was determined in cv. Agin Beyazi. There was no detected sucrose in the grape cultivars, but the highest amo unt of fructose and glucose (17. 947 g 100 ml -1 and 16.670 g 100 ml -1 , respectively) were determined in cv. Silfoni. There was generally a variance in macro and micro nutrient contents in the cultivars, but cv. Kis Kirmizi had the highest micronutrients except manganese.


Modeling and thermal cycling of a high temperature pressure sensor packaging is presented. The packaging is based on the green-state milling of alumina to the desired geometry and conduits for the electrical conductors, followed by sintering of the ceramics with the electrical conductors inside. The electrical interconnections are based on silver. For short term operation, the package can be exposed to temperatures close to the melting temperature of silver (961°C). It has shown operational in temperature cycling above 600°C for more than 1800 hours. Modeling of the package show that the stress in the electrical interconnections are close to the yield stress of silver at 20°C. The stress free temperature in the modeling was set to 850°C. Temperature induced stress and strains in the packaging and a fatigue simulation are performed. The package is generic and can be converted to fit most geometries and high temperature applications.


The real-world data tends to be heavily imbalanced and severely skew the data-driven deep neural networks, which makes Long-Tailed Recognition (LTR) a massive challenging task. Existing LTR methods seldom train Vision Transformers (ViTs) with Long-Tailed (LT) data, while the off-the-shelf pretrain weight of ViTs always leads to unfair comparisons. In this paper, we systematically investigate the ViTs' performance in LTR and propose LiVT to train ViTs from scratch only with LT data. With the observation that ViTs suffer more severe LTR problems, we conduct Masked Generative Pretraining (MGP) to learn generalized features. With ample and solid evidence, we show that MGP is more robust than supervised manners. Although Binary Cross Entropy (BCE) loss performs well with ViTs, it struggles on the LTR tasks. We further propose the balanced BCE to ameliorate it with strong theoretical groundings. Specially, we derive the unbiased extension of Sigmoid and compensate extra logit margins for deploying it. Our Bal-BCE contributes to the quick convergence of ViTs in just a few epochs. Extensive experiments demonstrate that with MGP and Bal-BCE, LiVT successfully trains ViTs well without any additional data and outperforms comparable state-of-the-art methods significantly, e.g., our ViT-B achieves 81.0% Top-1 accuracy in iNaturalist 2018 without bells and whistles. Code is available at https://github.com/XuZhengzhuo/LiVT.


MgB2 is a two electronic-bands, two energy gaps superconductor with a high Tc of 39K and unusual properties such as temperature and field dependent anisotropy. Superconducting hexagonal single crystals of pure and Al, C, Mn and Fe doped MgB2 phase have been grown at a pressure of 30 kbar using cubic anvil technique [1-2] to study the intrinsic properties of MgB2. The superconducting transition of doped MgB2 single crystals can be tuned in a wide temperature range between 10 and 39 K by adjustment of the nominal composition. Al [1], Mn and Fe are substituted on the Mg position of MgB2 and C [2] on the B position. Introduction of disorder by substitution is partly observed. In order to elucidate structure/properties relationships we have carried out x-ray single crystal measurements on doped MgB2 single crystals (the composition varies between 1 and 15 % doping material). Additional temperature dependent measurements on pure MgB2 and Mn doped MgB2 has been carried out.


Results are presented from the first year of a 2-year study to evaluate the effects of grazing system (intensive-early stocking or IES vs season-long grazing or SLG) with or without a pasture-phase implant (Synovex-S ®) on grazin g and subsequent finishing performance. Compared to a SLG system, IES resulted in faster rate of gain on pasture and more beef produced per acre, although SLG resulted in greater total pasture gain per animal. Implanting improved rate of gain and increased beef per acre, particularly for IES steers. In the feedlot, IES steers gained weight faster and more efficiently than SLG steers. However, SLG steers had greater final live weights and carcass weights at a common backfat thickness . Pasture-phase implanting did not affect feedlot performance. For heavier SLG steers, final feedlot weights combined with a higher proportion of total gain being made on pasture offset their slower gains and higher cost of production. Implanting IES steers prior to grazing resulted in a numerical improvement in final feedlot weight and net return.


We propose a new least squares based estimation algorithm for carrier frequency offset and frequency dependent I/Q imbalance compensation with very low complexity for direct conversion receivers. Compared to conventional algorithms, our proposed estimation has considerably lesser computation due to a reduced order least squares step. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm has about 1.5dB better accuracy in CFO estimation compared to conventional algorithms and it can completely eliminate I/Q imbalance based on BER performance results. We also showed that the proposed algorithm needs only a minimum 3rd order FIR filter to effectively remove an infinite impulse response modeled I/Q imbalance.


Rule-based expert systems are those in which a certain number of IF-THEN rules are assumed to be true. Based on the verity of some assertions, the rules deduce as many new conclusions as possible. A standard technique used to make these deductions is forward-chaining. In forward-chaining, the program or 'inference engine' cycles through the rules. At each rule, the premises for the rule are checked against the current true assertions. If all the premises are found, the conclusion is added to the list of true assertions. At that point it is necessary to start over at the first rule, since the new conclusion may be a premise in a rule already checked. Therefore, each time a new conclusion is deduced it is necessary to start the rule checking procedure over. This process continues until no new conclusions are added and the end of the list of rules is reached. The above process, although quite costly in terms of CPU cycles due to the necessity of repeatedly starting the process over, is necessary if the rules contain 'pattern variables'. An example of such a rule is, 'IF X IS A BACTERIA, THEN X CAN BE TREATED WITH ANTIBIOTICS'. Since the rule can lead to conclusions for many values of X, it is necessary to check each premise in the rule against every true assertion producing an association list to be used in the checking of the next premise. However, if the rule does not contain variable data, as is the case in many current expert systems, then a rule can lead to only one conclusion. In this case, the rules can be stored in a graph, and the true assertions in an assertion list. The assertion list is traversed only once; at each assertion a premise is triggered in all the rules which have that assertion as a premise. When all premises for a rule trigger, the rule's conclusion is added to the END of the list of assertions. It must be added at the end so that it will eventually be used to make further deductions. In the current paper, the two methods are described in detail, the relative advantages of each is discussed, and a benchmark comparing the CPU cycles consumed by each is included. It is also shown that, in the case of reasoning under uncertainty, it is possible to properly combine the certainties derived from rules arguing for the same conclusion when the graph approach is used.


Study Design. Retrospective case series. Objective. Our goal was to assess whether en bloc resection had an impact on survival. Summary of Background Data. Osteogenic sarcoma occurs rarely in the mobile spine, but when it does, the prognosis is poor. Wide resection is recommended for osteogenic sarcoma of the extremities, but wide resection is difficult and often dangerous in the spine. The goal of this study was to examine whether en bloc removal of osteogenic sarcomas in the mobile spine improves survival. Methods. We performed a retrospective review of all cases of high-grade, osteogenic sarcoma of the mobile spine treated with high-dose methotrexate and adrimaycin–based chemotherapy between 1985 through 2005. There were 9 male patients and 8 female patients. Patients were followed for a median of 38 months or until death, and surviving patients were followed for a minimum of 6.4 years. Patients were grouped on the basis of whether they underwent en bloc spondylectomy. The Enneking stage and Weinstein, Boriani, and Biagini stage, as well as the pre- and postoperative Frankel grades, were collected on all patients. Local recurrence and metastasis data were collected for all patients. Overall survival was calculated using Kaplan-Meier methods with the log rank test utilized to evaluate the effect of en bloc resection on survival. Results. Twelve (71%) of 17 patients with osteogenic sarcoma of the mobile spine died. Median disease-specific survival for the entire cohort was 38.1 months (standard error 29.6; 95% confidence interval 0–96). Nine patients underwent en bloc resection. Median overall survival for patients after en bloc resection was 77.3 months (standard error 62; 95% confidence interval 96) versus 17 months (standard error 6.5; 95% confidence interval 4–29.6) (P = 0.09). Eleven (65%) of 17 patients developed pulmonary metastasis, and 9 of those 11 died from their disease (P = 0.04). Six (35%) patients developed a local recurrence, and all 6 died from their disease (P = 0.07). Conclusion. Osteogenic sarcoma of the mobile spine presents a significant challenge, and most patients die from their disease in spite of aggressive surgery and chemotherapy. Metastastic disease is associated with a worse prognosis. There is a trend toward improved survival with en bloc resection when compared with intralesional resection. Osteogenic sarcoma of the mobile spine is rare and historically has a very poor prognosis. We reviewed our cases of osteogenic sarcoma of the mobile spine to assess whether modern en bloc resection improved survival. Survival remains poor, but there is a trend toward improved survival with en bloc resection.


Abstract Sulphur isotope ratio measurements (δ34S) of diagenetic pyrite are commonly used to identify S sources and mechanisms of sulphide formation in basinal sediments. This study reports such data for a diagenetic pyrite nodule from the Brent Group sandstones of the northern North Sea at three sampling scales: 50 cm (core subsample), 500 μm (laser microprobe) and 50 μm (ion microprobe). Similar δ34S variations are found by the laser and ion microprobe techniques. There is a very wide range in δ34S (<-10‰ to >+50‰) within the nodule and isotopically heavy S (δ34S >+20‰) is common at all scales. The nodule δ34S distribution does not fit a Rayleigh fractionation pattern. The laser microprobe sampling at 100-500 μm scales seems to be adequate to characterize S isotope variations in this material.


The accelerated cooling of steel plates is an already standard process that increases the competitiveness of this product and their users, as it allows the adoption of a leaner alloy design and the development of new mechanical property combinations with improved weldability. The maximum cooling rate achievable under industrial conditions depends on plate thickness, from 80°C/s 10 mm to about 1°C/s 80 mm, in order to assure minimum temperature gradients along plate thickness and greater uniformity of mechanical properties. The main process variants of this process apply cooling over different temperature ranges: interrupted accelerated cooling, between 800 and 500°C, and direct quenching, between 900 and 200°C. In the first case it is aimed at a microstructural grain refining effect; in the latter one a fully marten- sitic microstructure is desired. The advantages promoted by these new process routes are already benefit- ing the main fields of application of heavy steel plates, like shipbuilding, civil construction, linepipes, pen- stocks, and so on. This paper is a brief status report about this technology and its future developments.


Although the literature converges regarding the reasons why and how networks of technology alliances are formed, there is still lack of agreement on what constitutes an optimal network structure, once it has been formed. The aim of this paper is to fill this void and to determine what constitutes an optimal network structure for exploration and exploitation within the context of technological innovation. We differentiate among a firm's direct ties, indirect ties and degree of redundancy and analyze their role in the pharmaceutical, chemical and automotive industry. Regarding the role of direct ties, in combination with indirect ties, we find two alternative alliance network structures that are effective for both exploitation and exploration. We also find that redundancy in a firm's alliance network has a positive effect on exploitation. This is not the case for exploration, however, which seems to reveal a new insight into the role of redundancy when firms explore new technological fields. A final point is that our findings remain largely invariant across the three industries, enhancing the generalisability of our results.


This study examines the relationship between exporting and various performance measures including total factor productivity, using the annual plant-level panel data on Korean manufacturing sector during the period of 1990 to 1998. The two key questions examined are whether exporting improves productivity (learning) and/or whether more productive plants export (self-selection). This study provides evidence supporting both self-selection and learning-by-exporting effects, with both effects being more pronounced at around the time of entry into and exit from the export market. Thus, positive and robust cross-sectional correlation between exporting and total factor productivity is accounted for by both selection and learning effects. These results are in contrast with Aw, Chung, and Roberts (2000) who do not find any strong evidence of self-selection or learning in Korea. Similar effects are observed when shipments or employment is considered as a performance measure. Overall, this study suggests that the benefits from exporting have been realized not only through resource reallocation channel but also TFP channel in Korea.


The outbreak of coronavirus and the infectious disease it causes (COVID-19) have taken different paths around the world, with countries experiencing different rates of infection, case prevalence and mortality. This simultaneous yet heterogenous process presents a natural experiment for understanding some of the reasons for such different experiences of the same shock. This paper looks at the privatization of healthcare as one key determinant of this pattern. We use a cross-section dataset covering 147 countries with the latest available data. Controlling for per capita income, health inequality and several other control variables, we find that a 10% increase in private health expenditure relates to a 4.3% increase in COVID-19 cases and a 4.9% increase in COVID-19 related mortality. Globalization also has a small positive effect on COVID-19 prevalence, while higher hospital capacity (in beds per 1,000 people) is significant in lowering COVID-19 mortality. The findings suggest caution regarding policies which privatize healthcare systems in order to boost efficiency or growth in the short-run, as these reduce countries' long-term preparedness for dealing with pandemics.


The growing use of digital records in organizations creates a challenge of preservation and archival of these records. The entities dealing with the care and keeping of digital records include governmental organizations at the local and national level that must retain evidence of policy and administration, history-oriented institutions that keep cultural heritage for posterity, financial, medical, legal and plethora of other organizations and businesses. Archiving and preserving digital records requires IT infrastructure and personnel to run the infrastructure. Recently, Cloud Computing has gained momentum in the IT world as one of the options for dealing with the challenges of electronic record management, thanks to the maturity of network protocol infrastructure, virtualization technology and a price-based Service Level Agreement structure. This paper discusses the characteristics and challenges of long term digital preservation that motivate the concept of a specialized Digital Preservation Cloud Service. In response to these challenges, a scalable and evolvable Content Server System Architecture is proposed here, which can constitute the core of a Digital Preservation Cloud. The proposed architecture with its SOA paradigm, layers, and open interfaces will be capable of servicing different levels of service requirements for long term archiving, preservation, search, and access.


A cohort of 40 male children with Posterior Urethral Valves (PUV) seen in the Paediatric Nephrology/Urology Unit of the University College Hospital, Ibadan are presented. They were reviewed with the aim of determining the clinical course of the disease in a developing country where the facilities for active intervention are not always available. Even though 50% of the patients became symptomatic in the first week of life only 22.5% presented in the whole of the neonatal period. Thirty-seven and a half per-cent (37.5%) presented in the post-neonatal infancy period and the rest beond the first year of life. The interval between the onset of symptoms and definitive therapy was up to three years in some patients. Only 2 patients had antenatal diagnosis of the PUV by ultrasonography. The major renal complications were: (1) Urinary Tract Infections in 40%; (2) Acute Renal failure--10%; (3) Chronic Renal failure--7%; 4) Type IV Renal Tubular Acidosis--10% (5) Sustained hypertension--4.8%. The extra-renal complications were anaemia (30%), malnutrition (10%). Five of the patients died giving a case fatality rate of 12.5%, mainly from overwhelming infections and renal failure. Many of our patients had delayed presentation even though symptomatic and that may partly explain the complications and the poor outcome seen in the short term.


BACKGROUND
 The aim of this review was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of ubrogepant in patients with acute migraine.

 OBJECTIVE
 To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of ubrogepant in patients with acute migraine.

 METHODS
 We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and clinicaltrials.gov from inception to JULY, 2019. Randomized controlled trials of the efficacy and/or tolerability of ubrogepant for migraine were included. Meta-analysis was conducted by RevMan 5.3 software.

 RESULTS
 A total of 4 RCTs involving 4 163 patients were included. The meta-analysis showed that:compared to the control group, the percentage of participants with PF, the percentage of participants with PR, the percentage of participants with SPF, the percentage of participants with SPR,the absence of phonophobia in sound,the absence of phonophobia in light and the absence of nausea (RR=1.31,95%CI:1.18~1.45,P<0.00001, RR=1.63,95%CI:1.46~1.82,P<0.00001, RR=1.22,95%CI:1.15~1.29,P<0.00001, RR=1.32,95%CI:1.22~1.42,P<0.00001, RR=1.16,95%CI:1.05~1.27,P=0.002), all the differences were statistically significant.

 CONCLUSIONS
 For adult patients with acute migraine, ubrogepant could effectively abort the acute attack. High-quality, adequately powered RCTs are needed to fully evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of ubrogepant for acute migraine.

 CLINICALTRIAL
 PROSPERO registration number CRD42019145125


"Several papers analyse the issue of serial correlation in real estate markets and the impact of this stylised fact on asset allocation choices. However, while momentum and contrarian strategies have been thoroughly tested for equities, their application to real estate markets has been mainly restricted to REITs and other investment vehicles (e.g.property companies). The finance literature suggests that serial correlation in asset returns represents only one of the possible explanations of underreaction and overreaction behaviours in equity markets, other main factors being cross-serial covariances and systematic overperformance. We test the impact of longmemory processes on momentum strategies. We choose to explore direct real estate investments because their monthly returns show a high pattern of autocorrelation. In line with previous empirical studies n e.g. Lo-MacKinlay [RFS,1990], Lewellen [RFS, 2002], Pan et al [JEF, 2004] n we find that the ""smoothing factor"" is not sufficient to explain the presence of significant overperformances. We also prove that momentum strategies still earn a higher performance when returns are unsmoothed. "


My brother said it's just withdrawal from the ecstasy. It's such a high, he told me, that a normal low is so far down it's like jumping off a building. Just don't do it too often,he said. You might rewire your brain and your normal will never be the same again. He told me this while he helped me look for the stolen painting last weekend. When I told my landlord the painting from the second floor stairwell was ripped off the wall at a party my roommate Sandra and I had thrown, I'd steeled myself to hear it was irreplaceable. But he told me he thought he'd bought the print from a vendor outside the Met, and if I wanted to make things right, I would find a copy, buy it, hang it, and we would pretend the whole thing never happened. I'm relieved that at least this one problem might have a solution, so this is my second weekend getting off the subway at 86th and Lex and hiking my way over to the Met in search of a replacement for the stolen print.


Surface soil organic carbon (SOC) content is among the first-order controls on the rate and extent of Arctic permafrost thaw. There is a large discrepancy in current SOC estimates in Arctic tundra, where sparse measurements are unable to capture SOC complexity over the vast tundra region. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data are sensitive to surface vegetation, roughness, and moisture conditions, and may provide useful information on surface SOC properties. Here, we investigated the potential of multitemporal Sentinel-1 C-band SAR data for regional SOC mapping in the Arctic tundra through principal component analysis (PCA). Multiple in situ SOC datasets in the Alaska North Slope were assembled to generate a consistent surface (0–10 cm) SOC and bulk density dataset (n = 97). The radar VV backscatter shows a strong correlation with surface SOC, but the correlation varies greatly with surface snow, moisture, and freeze/thaw conditions. However, the first principal component (PC1) of radar backscatter time series from different years shows spatial consistency representing dominant and persistent surface backscatter behavior. The PC1 also shows a strong linear correlation with surface SOC concentration (R = 0.65, p<0.01), and an exponential relationship with bulk density (R = −0.65, p<0.01). The resulting predicted SOC maps show much lower soil bulk density and higher SOC concentration in the southern shrub tundra area than in the northern coastal region, consistent with in situ data. Our analysis shows that it is possible to separate the effects of different factors on the radar backscatter response using PCA and multitemporal SAR data, which may lead to more effective satellite-based methods for Arctic SOC mapping.


Vital portrays mourning experienced under unusual conditions. Whereas usually the physical body of the dead person is gone, here it is present. Hiroshi caresses Ryoko's body, cuts it open, explores it. Her body is attended to in almost every scene in the film. Whereas usually we engage with the deceased through memory, here it is absent. To begin with Hiroshi cannot recall anything about the accident, and little about Ryoko. Thus the film presents to us a negation of mourning: instead of a flood of memories and an absent body (its absence marked by a disposal ceremony), here we have no memories and a present body.

How does mourning take place under such conditions? In this chapter I will explore two trajectories of such mourning. The first is the epistemic process Hiroshi undergoes. In order to mourn Ryoko, he must first remember their shared past. His journey from epistemic impotence - complete amnesia - to fully recollecting their shared past and particularly the crash in which she died is also a journey of mourning. In order to mourn, a process of overcoming or forgetting (in some sense), Hiroshi must first remember. The film examines the roles memory and forgetfulness play in mourning.

The second trajectory, uniquely captured in Vital's unusual setting, is the haptic nature of Hiroshi's mourning, paralleled by haptic cinematic techniques. Hiroshi's mourning is a tactile engagement with Ryoko's cadaver but also a process of reacquainting himself with the world. Two haptic processes take place in the film: one of closure, the other of opening up. The first process is Hiroshi's gradual remembrance of Ryoko and their shared past through exploring her cadaver. This remembrance is a prelude to mourning, a process of closure and ending. The second is Hiroshi's reunification with the world, which he must learn to inhabit anew after his accident. This is a process of regeneration, rebirth and reparation. Throughout most of the film Hiroshi is bewildered, puzzled, overwhelmed by the world. Like the film itself, Hiroshi tries to make sense of the world by engaging with its textures, surfaces, images and colours. This hermeneutic process is depicted via a phenomenological study of Hiroshi's movements, touch, hearing and reflexivity. This phenomenological focus is mirrored in the viewer's reactions to the film. The film moves, touches, disgusts and awes the viewer in a process parallel to Hiroshi's.


We investigated whether a cholic acid (CA)-supplemented diet and marginal iron deficiency (MID) diet influence hepatic lipid accumulation and iron balance in rats for two weeks. The CA diet enhanced hepatic lipid accumulation and modulated iron metabolism such as enhancement of fecal iron excretion, reduction in iron absorption, and no alteration in plasma iron levels. The MID diet did not alter hepatic lipid concentrations with reduced iron concentration in the liver and plasma. In combination, influence of the CA supplementation on the hepatic iron concentration was opposite between iron sufficient and MID conditions. In the liver, the CA diet enhanced lipocalin 2 expression whereas the MID diet enhanced transferrin receptor 1 expression and reduced hepcidin expression. This study revealed an involvement of 12-hydroxylated bile acids in regulation of hepatic iron concentration under MID condition.


This paper explores the narratives of 21 "persistent and serious young offenders" as they move through the youth justice process and attempt to stop their offending behaviours. Drawing upon Maruna's (2001) work in "Making Good", the paper discusses the ways in which young offenders construct complex and evolving narratives about their pasts, presents, and desired futures; employ common narrative devices to make sense of their stories; and follow similar narrative forms in which redemption and identity change are central to their process of desistance. The paper also explores the system in which these narratives are embedded and argues that the increasingly punitive, managerial and control-based "new penology" (Feeley and Simon, 1992) of the young justice system is incongruous with, and neglectful of, the narratives of the young people in its charge. Finally, the paper questions the place (if any) of young offenders' narratives and changing identities within a "culture of control" (Garland, 2001), and considers discourses of "normality", and dominant narratives around "acceptable" behaviour, alongside the dynamic, revisable and contextual narratives of young offenders.


Abstract. Leaf area index (LAI) is an important essential biodiversity variable due to its role in many terrestrial ecosystem processes such as evapotranspiration, energy balance, and gas exchanges as well as plant growth potential. A novel approach presented here is the retrieval of LAI using thermal infrared (8–14 μm, TIR) measurements. Here, we evaluate LAI retrieval using TIR hyperspectral data. Canopy emissivity spectral measurements were recorded under controlled laboratory conditions using a MIDAC (M4401-F) illuminator Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometer for two plant species during which LAI was destructively measured. The accuracy of retrieval for LAI was then assessed using partial least square regression (PLSR) and narrow band index calculated in the form of normalized difference index from all possible combinations of wavebands. The obtained accuracy from the PLSR for LAI retrieval was relatively higher than narrow-band vegetation index (0.54


Crop rotation and cultural practice may influence soil residual N available for environmental loss due to crop N uptake and N immobilization. We evaluated the effects of stacked vs. alternate-year crop rotations and cultural practices on soil residual N (NH4-N and NO3-N contents) at the 0–125 cm depth, annualized crop N uptake, and N balance from 2005 to 2011 in the northern Great Plains, USA. Stacked rotations were durum (Triticum turgidum L.)–durum–canola (Brassica napus L.)–pea (Pisum sativum L.) (DDCP) and durum–durum–flax (Linum usitatissimum L.)–pea (DDFP). Alternate-year rotations were durum–canola–durum–pea (DCDP) and durum–flax–durum–pea (DFDP). Both of these are legume-based rotations because they contain legume (pea) in the crop rotation. A continuous durum (CD) was also included for comparison. Cultural practices were traditional (conventional tillage, recommended seeding rate, broadcast N fertilization, and reduced stubble height) and improved (no-tillage, increased seeding rate, banded N fertilization, and increased stubble height) systems. The amount of N fertilizer applied to each crop in the rotation was adjusted to soil NO3-N content to a depth of 60 cm observed in the autumn of the previous year. Compared with other crop rotations, annualized crop biomass N was greater with DCDP and DDCP in 2007 and 2009, but was greater with DDFP than DCDP in 2011. Annualized grain N was greater with DCDP than CD, DFDP, and DDFP and greater in the improved than the traditional practice in 2010 and 2011. Soil NH4-N content was greater with CD than other crop rotations in the traditional practice at 0–5 cm, but was greater with DDCP than CD and DDFP in the improved practice at 50–88 cm. Soil NO3-N content was greater with CD than other crop rotations at 5–10 cm, but was greater with CD and DFDP than DCDP and DDCP at 10–20, 88–125, and 0–125 cm. Nitrate-N content at 88–125 and 0–125 cm was also greater in the traditional than the improved practice. Nitrogen balance based on the difference between N inputs and outputs was greater with crop rotations than CD. Increased N fertilization rate increased soil residual N with CD, but legume N fixation increased N balance with crop rotations. Legume-based crop rotations (all rotations except CD) reduced N input and soil residual N available for environmental loss, especially in the improved practice, by increasing crop N uptake and N immobilization compared with non-legume monocrop.


One of the new transformations in the scope of maritime transportation about shipping documents includes non-paper (electronic) maritime transport documents. Three principal functions of a bill of lading in maritime transportation comprise receipt of carriage of good, reason for carriage contract, and title document. The majority of studies are about to realize the functions of carriage receipt and reason for carriage contract within substitution of electronic documents, such as replacement of paper bill of lading with an electronic bill of lading. While there is not the same conclusion about the function of the title document and this doubt on the result is beyond the replacement of paper documents with electronic documents caused by ambiguities in considering the bill of lading as a title document of goods and function of a bill of lading as a title document. In general, the transfer of a bill of lading does not mean the transfer of ownership while ownership is transferred through a contract of goods' sale and bill of shading is considered as a document that indicates a property of goods to facilitate transactions within commercial operations.


Mutations in the metabolic enzyme isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) were recently found in ∼80% of WHO grade II-IV gliomas. These mutations inhibit the enzyme9s ability to convert isocitrate to α-ketoglutarate and, instead, confer a novel gain-of-function resulting in the conversion of α-ketoglutarate to 2-hydroxglutarate. However, the fundamental mechanism(s) by which these mutations affect glioma cell growth remain unclear. IDH1 and 2 function as homodimers in the cytosol and mitochondria, respectively. Dimerization is mediated by interactions between the two clasp domains of each IDH protein and dimeric IDH contains two active sites each composed of amino acid residues from both subunits. Thus, the dimerization of IDH is vital for its enzymatic role within the cell. Interestingly, IDH mutations have been observed as heterozygous events in glioma cells suggesting that the cells require the wild-type IDH protein in order to function. To examine and visualize the interaction between wild-type and mutant IDH proteins, we employed the protein-protein interaction assay: Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation (BiFC). This approach is based on the formation of a fluorescent complex though the association of two fragments of a fluorescent reporter protein fused to two proteins of interest. An interaction between the proteins facilitates association between the two fragments to produce a bimolecular fluorescent complex. Since IDH1 has a C-terminal peroxisomal targeting sequence, the N-terminal 172 amino acid residues of Venus (VN) were fused to the N-terminus of wild-type IDH1 and residues 155-238 amino acids of Venus (VC) were fused to the N-terminus of mutant IDH1. IDH2, however, has an N-terminal mitochondrial targeting sequence and thus the N-terminal and C-terminal fragments of Venus were fused to the C-terminus of wild-type and mutant IDH2, respectively. 293FT cells were transfected with each fluorescent reporter construct and counterstained with nuclear and cytosolic markers to confirm complex formation and cellular localization. Approximately 60% of the cells showed evidence of IDH complex formation. We confirmed localization to the cytosol/peroxisomes and mitochondria for wild-type and mutant IDH1 and IDH2 heterodimers, respectively, and observed that, in the case of IDH1, wild-type and mutant heterodimers demonstrate physiologically normal activity compared to inactive mutant IDH1 homodimers. Conversely, we observed no significant difference between wild-type and mutant IDH2 heterodimers when compared to mutant IDH2 homodimers. This data suggests that mutant IDH1 requires wild-type IDH1 in order to be enzymatically active while mutant IDH2 does not require wild-type IDH2. To determine the effect of wildtype and mutant IDH heterodimer formation on glioma cell growth, we plan to assess the tumorigenic potential of IDH1 heterodimers either alone or in concert with other known glioma genetic abnormalities in vivo. Citation Format: Gemma L. Robinson, Matthew R. Guthrie, Marytheresa Ifediba, Matthew W. VanBrocklin, Sheri L. Holmen. Defining the role of mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase in malignant glioma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 2438. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-2438


Nowadays a wide range of highly efficient hardware components are available as possible building blocks for parallel distributed systems, however many questions arise on the software side. There is no common solution for optimal distribution of co-operating tasks, and performance prediction is also an open issue. Efforts are focused on creating and making use of mathematical models in a precise domain, namely applications making moderate computation effort on a relatively large amount of data. The possibilities to predict and to minimize execution times are investigated in a cluster of workstations environment, where the data transfer system is expected to become the performance bottleneck. The use of the presented generic model is shown on the example of a parallel integer sorting algorithm: formulas are built up to provide the expected execution times and to approximate the optimal cluster size. Finally, the predicted and the measured execution times of the sorting algorithm are compared for different problem and cluster sizes.


Of 132 women with endometriosis, almost one-fifth had peritoneal pockets. Two-thirds of the structures had endometriosis either around the rim or inside. Since one-third of the pockets lacked endometriosis and fibrosis was not present as a possible cause, endometriosis does not seem to have been the likely primary cause. Rather, such peritoneal invaginations and endometriosis may be ontologically related to a separate codevelopmental factor.


Depletion studies provide a way to understand the chemical composition of interstellar dust grains. We here examine 23 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) optical afterglow spectra (spanning 0.6 ≤ z ≤ 5.0) and compare their silicon and iron dust-phase column densities with different extinction curve parameters to study the composition of the interstellar dust grains in these high-redshift GRB host galaxies. The majority of our sample (87 per cent) show featureless extinction curves and only vary in shape. We observe strong correlations (with $\gt 96{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ significance) between the total-to-selective extinction, RV, and the dust-phase column densities of Si and Fe. Since a large fraction of interstellar iron is locked in silicate grains, this indicates that high Si and Fe depletion leads to an increase in the fraction of large silicate grains and vice versa. This suggests that silicates play a vital role to induce the entire extinction at any wavelength. On the other hand, the far-ultraviolet (UV) extinction is usually attributed to the presence of small silicates. However, we find no trend between the far-UV parameter of the extinction curve, c4, and the abundance of Si and Fe in the dust phase. We, therefore, propose that the far-UV extinction could be a combined effect of small (probably nanoparticles) dust grains from various species.


A real time hand tracking and gesture recognition approach which can deal with dynamic backgrounds is presented. This approach is based on computer vision. It segments hand from dynamic backgrounds using the color-based and appearance-based methods. Then, it locates the hand according to marker on the hand. Last, it recognizes the gesture based on geometry constraint of hand. In comparison with the traditional approaches, it provides a good real time performance, is easy to realize, does not require a stationary camera and is not sensitive with intensity different because its gesture recognition does not depend on the templates. Moreover, an augmented assembly system using the presented approach is described. The experiment result of the augmented assembly system demonstrated the effectiveness and robustness of our approach.


Welcome to the Glucksman Library guide supporting the School of Law in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Welcome and Contact


ABSTRACT Many international legal experts believe that the Philippines v. China arbitration award of 12 July 2016 represents a game changer for South China Sea dispute settlements because the award has brought a breathtaking legal clarity to the complex disputes. This article argues that the sweeping nature of the award had a very paradoxical effect on Chinese policy. The arbitration ruling has led to the hardening of China's claims, but it has also raised a new readiness among Chinese policymakers to renew negotiations. The sweepingness of the award makes it hard for the Philippines to reach a negotiated compromise with China on the basis of the award, but it also presents a surprising political opportunity in regional politics for the major actors involved to lower tensions and recalibrate policies. Although China's new readiness to negotiate is welcome, the overall impact of the three-and-a-half-year-long arbitration is likely to create a deadlock in negotiations in the near future. Paradoxically, this may raise the importance of political and power-centred approaches to regional dispute settlements, as the legal approach embodied by arbitration continues to meet Chinese defiance.


Background:
                  COVID-19 related acute illness is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE).

                  Objective:
                  These evidence-based guidelines of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) are intended to support patients, clinicians and other health care professionals in decisions about the use of anticoagulation in patients with COVID-19.

                  Methods:
                  ASH formed a multidisciplinary guideline panel, including patient representatives, and applied strategies to minimize potential bias from conflicts of interest. The McMaster University GRADE Centre supported the guideline development process, including performing systematic evidence reviews (through November 2021). The panel prioritized clinical questions and outcomes according to their importance for clinicians and patients. The panel used the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach to assess evidence and make recommendations, which were subject to public comment. This is an update to guidelines published in February 2021 as part of the living phase of these guidelines.

                  Results:
                  The panel made one additional recommendation. The panel issued a conditional recommendation in favor of therapeutic-intensity over prophylactic-intensity anticoagulation in patients with COVID-19-related acute illness who do not have suspected or confirmed VTE. The panel emphasized the need for an individualized assessment of thrombotic and bleeding risk. The panel also noted that heparin (unfractionated or low-molecular-weight) may be preferred because of a preponderance of evidence with this class of anticoagulants.

                  Conclusions:
                  This conditional recommendation was based on very low certainty in the evidence, underscoring the need for additional, high-quality, randomized controlled trials comparing different intensities of anticoagulation in patients with COVID-19-related acute illness.


ABSTRACT Heritage preservation is a broad topic that affects virtually all fields of human activity. One of them is industrial heritage which is, among others, represented by the construction of dams. The assessment of such constructions, which could be important from the point of view of heritage preservation and potentially be declared cultural monuments, should be based on the analysis and historical development of the particular society. It should reveal which constructions can be found in a selected area and how they are divided. Dams include hundreds of constructions. A professional heritage officer, who is to decide whether to process and submit a proposal for the inclusion of a dam in the list of cultural heritage, thus faces the problem of how to carry out the analysis effectively. This article describes a procedure for using both cluster analysis and scaling method to categorise a set of 119 dams to be able to identify exceptional, so-called iconic, structures. By comparing the selection of significant representatives of dams created by the application of the two methods, which proved to be appropriate in terms of the industrial heritage preservation, a majority concordance is reached.


The control of the catalytic power and fidelity of DNA polymerases involves the complex combined effect of the protein residues, the Mg2+ ions, and the interaction between the DNA bases. In an attempt to advance the understanding of catalytic control, we analyze the effect of the protein residues, taking human DNA polymerase beta as a model system. Specifically, we examine the ability of different theoretical models to reproduce the effect of ionized residues on the transition state (TS) binding energy and the corresponding k(pol)/KD. We also explore the role of the Mg2+ ions in the binding and catalysis processes. The application of the microscopic linear response approximation (LRA) and the semimacroscopic PDLD/S-LRA methods to a benchmark of mutational studies produces a semiquantitative correlation and indicates that these methods can provide predictive power. However, pre-steady-state and steady-state kinetic studies currently available do not give a unique benchmark, owing principally to widely varying experimental conditions. We believe that a more uniform experimental benchmark is needed for further refinement of the theoretical models. The analysis of the correlation between the results obtained by a rigorous thermodynamic cycle and by simpler approximations indicates that the protein reorganization between the open, i.e., unbound, form and the closed form does not change the magnitude of the calculated mutational effects in a major way for the experimental data used in this study. The use of the PDLD/S-LRA group contributions allows us to construct energy-based correlation diagrams that can help toward understanding the coupling, i.e., transfer of information, between the base-binding and catalytic sites and to gain a deeper insight into the molecular basis of DNA replication fidelity. Our analysis suggests that the allosteric matrix obtained by subtracting the correlation matrix of the correct and incorrect base pairs should prove useful in exploring the information transfer occurring between the base-binding and catalytic sites. This type of treatment should be especially effective when coupled with structural studies of polymerase-DNA-base mispair ternary complexes and studies using polymerase double mutants. We discuss the potential of direct calculations of binding energy of the TS in a rational design of TS analogues and in drug design.


Capacitive storage (e.g., double layer capacitance and pseudocapacitance) with Na+ stored mainly at the surface or interface of the active materials rather than inserted into the bulk crystal is an effective approach to achieve high rate capability and long cycle life in sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). Herein, atomically thin Co3O4 nanosheets are successfully synthesized and grown directly on the stainless steel mesh as an anode material for SIBs. This anode delivers a high average capacity of 509.2 mAh g−1 for the initial 20 cycles (excluding the first cycle) at 50 mA g−1, presents excellent rate capability with an average capacity of 427.0 mAh g−1 at 500 mA g−1, and exhibits high cycling stability, which significantly outperforms the electrode prepared from conventional Co3O4 nanostructures, the electrode prepared by conventional casting method, and previously reported Co3O4 electrodes. The superior electrochemical performance is mainly attributable to the atomic thickness of the Co3O4 nanosheets and the direct growth method in electrode processing, which lead to remarkably enhanced surface redox pseudocapacitance and interfacial double layer capacitance. This Na+ capacitive storage mechanism provides a promising strategy for the development of electrode materials with high energy and power densities and ultralong cycle life for SIBs.


Visualization researchers have been increasingly leveraging crowdsourcing approaches to overcome a number of limitations of controlled laboratory experiments, including small participant sample sizes and narrow demographic backgrounds of study participants. However, as a community, we have little understanding on when, where, and how researchers use crowdsourcing approaches for visualization research. In this paper, we review the use of crowdsourcing for evaluation in visualization research. We analyzed 190 crowdsourcing experiments, reported in 82 papers that were published in major visualization conferences and journals between 2006 and 2017. We tagged each experiment along 36 dimensions that we identified for crowdsourcing experiments. We grouped our dimensions into six important aspects: study design & procedure, task type, participants, measures & metrics, quality assurance, and reproducibility. We report on the main findings of our review and discuss challenges and opportunities for improvements in conducting crowdsourcing studies for visualization research.


Text-guided image manipulation tasks have recently gained attention in the vision-and-language community. While most of the prior studies focused on single-turn manipulation, our goal in this paper is to address the more challenging multi-turn image manipulation (MTIM) task. Previous models for this task successfully generate images iteratively, given a sequence of instructions and a previously generated image. However, this approach suffers from under-generation and a lack of generated quality of the objects that are described in the instructions, which consequently degrades the overall performance. To overcome these problems, we present a novel architecture called a Visually Guided Language Attention GAN (LatteGAN). Here, we address the limitations of the previous approaches by introducing a Visually Guided Language Attention (Latte) module, which extracts fine-grained text representations for the generator, and a Text-Conditioned U-Net discriminator architecture, which discriminates both the global and local representations of fake or real images. Extensive experiments on two distinct MTIM datasets, CoDraw and i-CLEVR, demonstrate the state-of-the-art performance of the proposed model. The code is available online (https://github.com/smatsumori/LatteGAN).


Scott (2000) explained patterns of earnings management as taking a bath and income minimization. Taking a bath can be made during periods of organizational stress or reorganization, including the hiring of a new CEO. If a firm must report a loss, management may feel compelled to report a large one. Consequently, it will write off assets, provide for expected future costs, and generally clear of decks. This will enhance the probability of future reported profits. Income minimization is similar to taking a bath, but fewer extremes. A politically visible firm may choose patterns during periods of high profitability. Policies that suggest income minimization include rapid write-offs of capital assets and intangibles, expensing of advertising and R&D expenditures. The objective of this study is to investigate which pattern of earnings management chosen by management during economic crisis in Indonesia. Therefore, there are differences on earnings management between before the economic crisis and during the economic crisis in Indonesia. To test the hypothesis of this study, data are collected from Jakarta Stock Exchange for manufacturing companies. There are 27 companies. The result of this study suggests that management is most likely to make income decreasing to taking a bath.Keywords: earnings management, economic crisis, taking a bath, and income minimization.


Introduction: Sawmill workers are exposed to hazards and subsequent health problems. A workplace risk assessment and risk control measures will reduce morbidity and mortality. The objectives of this study are to identify health problems and carry out a workplace risk assessment among sawmill workers in Abakaliki. Methodology: This is a descriptive cross sectional study. All workers who met the inclusion criteria were studied. Information on occupational history, health problems, awareness and usage of personal protective equipment was obtained using an interviewer administered semi structured questionnaire. Workplace risk assessment was carried out. Result: Two hundred and four respondents were interviewed. Mean age was 29.3±9.6years, majority (93.1%) were males. The common health problems identified were injuries from log of wood (57.4%), Cough (47.5%), chest pain (42.1%), cut by machine (25%). Perceived worsening of health status since employment was reported by 95.4% of the respondents. Majority (69.6%) had worked in the sawmill for 2-5years and spend 8-10 hours at work (78.4%). Majority (85.3%) were aware of PPE, only 39.5% reported they had used them always. Hand glove (74.1%) was the most frequently used. Unawareness of PPE (29.8%), non-availability (21.1%) and cost (17.5%) were the commonest reasons for non-use. The major hazards identified in the workplace risk assessment were exposure to wood dust, unguarded moving parts of machinery, poorly designed workstations, poor housekeeping, fire hazards and noise. Risk control measures were inadequate. Conclusion: The most prevalent health problems were respiratory symptoms and injuries. The workplace risk assessment showed that the work environment was not safety compliant. Keywords: Sawmill Workers, Risk assessment, Health Problems


Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness among the American working population. The purpose of this study is to establish a new diabetic animal model using a cone-dominant avian species to address the distorted color vision and altered cone pathway responses in prediabetic and early diabetic patients. Chicken embryos were injected with either streptozotocin (STZ), high concentration of glucose (high-glucose), or vehicle at embryonic day 11. Cataracts occurred in varying degrees in both STZ- and high glucose-induced diabetic chick embryos at E18. Streptozotocin-diabetic chicken embryos had decreased levels of blood insulin, glucose transporter 4 (Glut4), and phosphorylated protein kinase B (pAKT). In STZ-injected E20 embryos, the ERG amplitudes of both a- and b-waves were significantly decreased, the implicit time of the a-wave was delayed, while that of the b-wave was significantly increased. Photoreceptors cultured from STZ-injected E18 embryos had a significant decrease in L-type voltage-gated calcium channel (L-VGCC) currents, which was reflected in the decreased level of L-VGCCα1D subunit in the STZ-diabetic retinas. Through these independent lines of evidence, STZ-injection was able to induce pathological conditions in the chicken embryonic retina, and it is promising to use chickens as a potential new animal model for type I diabetes.


The human neuropeptide Y4 receptor (Y4R) and its native ligand, pancreatic polypeptide, are critically involved in the regulation of human metabolism by signaling satiety and regulating food intake, as well as increasing energy expenditure. Thus, this receptor represents a putative target for treatment of obesity. With respect to new approaches to treat complex metabolic disorders, especially in multi-receptor systems, small molecule allosteric modulators have been in the focus of research in the last years. However, no positive allosteric modulators or agonists of the Y4R have been described so far. In this study, small molecule compounds derived from the Niclosamide scaffold were identified by high-throughput screening to increase Y4R activity. Compounds were characterized for their potency and their effects at the human Y4R and as well as their selectivity towards Y1R, Y2R and Y5R. These compounds provide a structure-activity relationship profile around this common scaffold and lay the groundwork for hit-to-lead optimization and characterization of positive allosteric modulators of the Y4R.


The next generations of mobile networks 5G and beyond, must overcome current networks limitations as well as improve network performance.
Some of the requirements envisioned for future mobile networks are: addressing the massive growth required in coverage, capacity and traffic; providing better quality of service and experience to end users; supporting ultra high data rates and reliability; ensuring latency as low as one millisecond, among others.
Thus, in order for future networks to enable all of these stringent requirements, a promising concept has emerged, self organising networks (SONs).
SONs consist of making mobile networks more adaptive and autonomous and are divided in three main branches, depending on their use-cases, namely: self-configuration, self-optimisation, and self-healing.
SON is a very promising and broad concept, and in order to enable it, more intelligence needs to be embedded in the mobile network.
As such, one possible solution is the utilisation of machine learning (ML) algorithms.
ML has many branches, such as supervised, unsupervised and Reinforcement Learning (RL), and all can be used in different SON use-cases.

The objectives of this thesis are to explore different RL techniques in the context of SONs, more specifically in self-optimization use-cases.
First, the use-case of user-cell association in future heterogeneous networks is analysed and optimised.
This scenario considers not only Radio Access Network (RAN) constraints, but also in terms of the backhaul.
Based on this, a distributed solution utilizing RL is proposed and compared with other state-of-the-art methods.
Results show that the proposed RL algorithm outperforms current ones and is able to achieve better user satisfaction, while minimizing the number of users in outage.
Another objective of this thesis is the evaluation of Unmanned Aerial vehicles (UAVs) to optimize cellular networks.
It is envisioned that UAVs can be utilized in different SON use-cases and integrated with RL algorithms to determine their optimal 3D positions in space according to network constraints.
As such, two different mobile network scenarios are analysed, one emergency and a pop-up network.
The emergency scenario considers that a major natural disaster destroyed most of the ground network infrastructure and the goal is to provide coverage to the highest number of users possible using UAVs as access points.
The second scenario simulates an event happening in a city and, because of the ground network congestion, network capacity needs to be enhanced by the deployment of aerial base stations.
For both scenarios different types of RL algorithms are considered and their complexity and convergence are analysed.
In both cases it is shown that UAVs coupled with RL are capable of solving network issues in an efficient and quick manner.
Thus, due to its ability to learn from interaction with an environment and from previous experience, without knowing the dynamics of the environment, or relying on previously collected data, RL is considered as a promising solution to enable SON.


The reliability of wireless sensor networks (WSN) depends on both network connectivity and sensing coverage. Common-cause failures (CCF) can contribute significantly to the WSN unreliability. This paper considers the problem of modeling and evaluating the coverage-oriented reliability of WSN subject to CCF. Our approach is computationally efficient due to the use of a progressive reduction scheme, reduced ordered binary decision diagrams, as well as a decomposition and aggregation scheme for considering CCF. A hierarchical clustered WSN is used as an example to illustrate the basics and advantages of our approach


Applications such as optical data storage, optical computing, and optical interconnects require optical systems that manipulate binary-valued images. Such an optical system can be viewed as a two-dimensional array of binary communication channels. This perspective is used to motivate the use of pagewise mutual information as a metric for optical system analysis and design. Fresnel propagation and coherent imaging both are analyzed in terms of mutual-information transmission. An information-based space-bandwidth product is used to analyze the trade-off between the numerical aperture and the number of image pixels in a coherent 4f system. We propose a new merit function to facilitate information-based optical system design. Information maximization and bit-error-rate minimization both are possible with the new radially weighted encircled-energy merit function. We demonstrate the use of this new merit function through a design example and show that the information throughput is increased by 8% and the bit-error rate is reduced by 36% when compared with systems designed with traditional criteria.


The bargain made between an employer and his employees has many characteristics setting it apart from bargaining in other phases of business. One of those distinctive characteristics is that the employer ordinarily bargains as an individual or as a corporate person with standardized, well-defined, and centralized control, whereas his workers bargain as an unincorporated association in the management of which varying degrees of democratic control are found. Therefore, in seeking an understanding of the processes of collective bargaining, a study of control within the union becomes important insofar~as the location of that control affects the making of an agreement. Distribution of power between the raik and file and union representatives assumes importance during three phases of the collective bargaining process: when the original agreement is made, when disputes arise under that agreement, and when, negotiations having reached the breaking point, a strike threatens. On any of these three occasions an employer may find democracy so real within the labor organization that he must deal with officers having no authority save that of leadership, or he may discover autocratic rule so complete that labor racketeering is possible. On the other hand, a worker may find his vote to be of extreme importance for a collective settlement, or he may be forced to accept what his elected representatives claim to be the best possible contract.1


It has recently been discovered that anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA) are present in 50% of patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Assays for detecting ACPA have been shown to have very good diagnostic and predictive characteristics, and they may facilitate the identification of patients with early arthritis who need aggressive treatment. In addition to their diagnostic and predictive properties, ACPA have also provided new insights into the pathophysiology of RA. The specific association of certain genetic and environmental risk factors with ACPA-positive but not with ACPA-negative RA, has led to new concepts of the underlying pathogenetic mechanisms. The fact that ACPA-positive patients have a more severe disease course with greater joint destruction has also fueled the hypothesis that ACPA themselves may be pathogenic. Although there is no direct proof for this intriguing theory so far, it is clear that ACPA allow the classification of RA patients into two different disease subsets that are associated with distinct pathophysiological mechanisms and clinical outcomes. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, potentially destructive, arthritis which has a large impact on patients' quality of life(1). It has become clear that in order to be able to prevent disease progression and joint destruction, RA needs to be diagnosed early, which requires diagnostic markers which can reliably predict disease development and progression(2). Some of the most attractive diagnostic markers are autoantibodies. Rheumatoid factor (RF) has long been known to be a marker of future RA development(3), but more recently, a better diagnostic and predictive marker has emerged in the form of anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA).


A certified reference material (CRM) of brown algae is being developed at the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM), European Commission, Joint Research Centre, in order to supply academic and industrial analysts with a new tool useful in the environmental analysis of trace metals. Sixty kg of raw brown algae (species Fucus vesiculosus) was collected from two different sites in Galway (Ireland) and processed according to ISO 34 and ISO 35. A large amount of milled and sieved (at <125 μm) algae material was bottled and subjected to detailed homogeneity and stability tests with regard to the parameters to be certified. The between bottle homogeneity of the total element content of As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, Se and Zn was assessed via a dedicated test, which confirmed the suitable homogeneity of the candidate CRM. The short term stability of the material when stored at high temperature (60°C) for up to 4 weeks was also considered, confirming no degradation under the conditions applied. Milled and sieved algae was also checked for water content by using KarlFischer titration and several oven temperatures (from 85°C to 110°C) in order to establish the most reliable water determination method for the material. Along with these studies, a long term stability isochronous study and the characterisation of the total element content for the above-mentioned metals by using an inter-laboratory comparison approach are in progress, so as to finalise production and release onto the market the brown algae CRM for trace metal analysis.


Due to its molecular structure, methane provides several advantages as fuel for internal combustion engines. To cope with nitrogen oxide emissions high levels of excess air are beneficial, which on the other hand deteriorates the flammability and combustion duration of the mixture. One approach to meet these challenges and ensure a stable combustion process are fuelled prechambers. The flow and combustion processes within these prechambers are highly influenced by the position, orientation, number and overall cross-sectional area of the orifices connecting the prechamber and the main combustion chamber. In the present study, a water-cooled single cylinder test engine with a displacement volume of 0.5 l is equipped with a methane-fuelled prechamber. To evaluate influences of the aforementioned orifices several prechambers with variations of the orientation and number of nozzles are used under different operating conditions of engine speed and load. The orifices and therefore the intermediate products of the combustion emanating the prechamber are either aimed towards the squish area of the main chamber or perpendicular to the piston surface. With a constant diameter of the orifices the overall flow area varies proportional to the number of nozzles. Thereby, the impact of timing and duration of the methane injection into the different prechambers, the extension of the lean misfire limit and a variation of the ignition timing are investigated. To rate the overall combustion process the exhaust emissions of unburnt hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides are examined. Considering the reference point the combustion duration was reduced between 30 and 45 percent compared to conventional spark plug operation using prechambers, whereby the combination of number and orientation of orifices plays an important role. Copyright © 2017 SAE International.


We describe the layout and the capabilities of a new aberration-corrected low-energy electron microscopy (LEEM) and photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM) facility, which features real- and reciprocal-space spectroscopy. This new setup, named Electronic, Structural, and Chemical Nanoimaging in Real Time (ESCHER), was recently installed at Leiden University. It has three major instrumentation-related goals. First, we aim to reach the ultimate spatial resolution facilitated by aberration correction using an electron mirror, together with advanced electron detection. Second, we want to develop and exploit the spectroscopic possibilities of LEEM and PEEM in a standard laboratory environment. To this end, ESCHER is equipped with an inline energy filter and advanced photon sources. Third, we plan to extend the sample temperature range down to approximately 10 K, which is significantly lower than that achieved to date. Combined, these efforts will broaden the scientific reach of LEEM and PEEM beyond the areas of surface and materials science and into the realms of biosciences and life sciences. Here, we also present images of the first experiments performed with ESCHER focused on the growth of graphene on SiC(0001).


A fungating tumour of the breast causes distress to those living with the illness and creates many challenges to the nurses who care for them. Control of malodour, exudate, haemorrhage and cosmetic acceptability creates complex wound care problems. Managing to live and maintain a sense of normality must take account of the palliative and chronic nature of this illness. This study utilises the grounded theory research method to discover the main concerns of nurses who care for this group of clients and how they continually resolve them. Three women who have this condition have provided information that adds and lends support to how the nurses provide care. This thesis argues that finding what works and what doesn't work is the core process that resolves the main concern of striving to maintain a sense of normality in life activities. Problemsolving, wound care and wider psychosocial problems initiate the process of finding what works and what doesn't work. Through making sense of the situation by gaining an understanding of the women's situations, being non-judgemental and building trusting relationships, the ability to find what works and what doesn't work is more likely to be achieved. This must take account of the physical, cultural and professional considerations that impact on the nurse's ability to provide appropriate care. The consequence of finding what works and what doesn't work is that the nurses' practice has the capacity to be transformed. This study provides insight into the creativity and complexity that characterises expert community nursing practice in caring for this particularly challenging group of clients.


Background & objectives: Human parainfluenza virus (HPIV) accounts for a significant proportion of lower respiratory tract infections in children as well as adults. This study was done to detect the presence of different subtypes of HPIV from patients having influenza like illness (ILI). Methods: Throat and nasal swabs from 232 patients with ILI who were negative for influenza viruses were tested by multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(mRT-PCR) for the detection of human parainfluenza virus. All samples were inoculated in rhesus monkey kidney (LLC-MK2) cell line. Results: Of the 232 samples, 26(11.2%) were positive by mRT-PCR and nine (34.6%) showed cytopathic effect with syncytium formation for HPIV and all were HPIV-3 serotype, other serotypes like 1,2,4 were negative. The HPIV-3 strains (HN gene) were sequenced and analysed. Two novel mutations were identified at amino acid residues 295 and 297. Interpretation & conclusions: The mRT-PCR assay offers a rapid, sensitive and accurate diagnostic method for detection of HPIV which enables early detection and control. In our study there was a predominance of HPIV among 1-5 yr age group and the school going age group was less affected. Further studies need to be done to characterize HPIV isolated from different parts of the country.


An ill-posed problem which involves heterogonous data can yield good results if the weight of observations is properly introduced into the adjustment model. Variance component estimation can be used in this respect to update and improve the weights based on the results of the adjustment. The variance component estimation will not be as simple as that is in an ordinary adjustment problem, because the result of the solution of an ill-posed problem contains a bias due to stabilizing the adjustment model. This paper investigates the variance component estimation in those ill-posed problems solved by the truncation singular value decomposition. The biases of the variance components are analyzed and the biased-corrected and the biased-corrected non-negative estimators of the variance components are developed. The derivations show that in order to estimate unbiased variance components, it suffices to estimate and remove the bias from the estimated residuals.


Abstract. Recent decades have seen an increasing tendency to exclude the phenomenon of personality from the metaphysical investigation of personal identity. We are advised not to confuse personal identity as a philosophical subject, namely as the metaphysical issue of specifying what it is that makes a person staying numerically identical over time, with the psychological question of 'personal identity' which asks what makes someone the individual person they are with their particular character and history. However, one might be unsatisfied with this. If (as common sense takes for granted) persons are to be conceived of as beings possessing a personality, should there not be some more than superficial connection between personality and personal identity in the philosophical sense? This paper investigates this question by revealing the guiding – metaphysical – assumptions behind the claim that personality and personal identity must be treated separately as well as by presenting the metaphysical alternative brushed aside by the adherents of this claim. In fact, so I argue, there are two opposing views of the relation between personality and personal identity, these being grounded in two opposing metaphysical models of what a person is: the substance model and the bundle model of the person. However, it turns out that ultimately both competing models fail for fundamental reasons, which raises the question of what a way out of the dilemma might look like.


In this paper, we study the data broadcast issue in wireless networks with directional antennas. We are given an Access Point(AP) and a set of clients served by the AP. Our task is to schedule the transmission of AP by using directional antennas such that the total delay for all clients to receive a broadcast packet is minimized. Directional antennas allow transmission energy to be concentrated on a narrow range along a direction, which can significantly increase the data rate of clients. However, there is a difficult issue in using directional antennas for data broadcasting. If the AP transmits the signals through a single lobe, the data rate of the clients covered by this lobe can be high but it takes more number of transmissions to cover all clients. On the other hand, if the AP transmits the signals through multiple lobes, it takes less number of transmissions for all clients to receive the data, but the signal strength decreases and the data rate drops. We study this tradeoff between the number of transmissions and the data rate. We prove that the data broadcasting problem is NP-hard and we propose a two-phase method to solve the problem. In the first phase, we use singlelobes to cover all clients such that the total transmission delay is minimized. In the second phase, we group these single-lobes into a set of multi-lobes. The goal is again to minimize the total transmission delay. The solution for each subproblem is optimal. Simulation results show significant improvements of performance compared with state of the art algorithms.


Background: Swedish health care organizations (HCOs) are changing using management concepts such as Lean, in attempts of improving efficiency, quality of care and work environment. Since there are pre-conditional challenges for operative managers to engage in change, HCOs tend to assign supportive functions such as change agents (CAs) to facilitate change. Research on the use of CAs in HCOs is sparse, thus the aim of this study explores role assignments and conditions of formally appointed CAs contributing to care process redesign. Methods: A purposive sample of three Swedish hospitals initiating Lean-inspired care process redesign during 2010–2011 was done. In-depth interviews were held with fifty-one key functions during change. Focus group interviews were conducted with thirty-eight health care professionals. Data were analysed by content analysis. Results: Top managers' goal was to have operative management responsible for change during care process redesign, with support from assigned CAs. Organizing of CAs varied concerning, e.g. their hierarchical positions, job descriptions and practices, and conditions to act as driving forces towards change. Being granted formal power, having earned legitimacy and credibility, clarity regarding roles and responsibilities in change; a good sense of timing and ability to build relationships and trust, were identified as beneficial for CAs to support change. Conclusions: Role assignment and organizing of CAs varies. A position closer to the operative levels, formalized and clarified responsibilities, earned legitimacy and timing support adaptation and alignment of planned change, such as Lean-inspired care process redesign.


Brotowali ( Tinospora tuberculata Beaumae), Meniran ( Phyllanthus niruri L. ). Bengle (Zingiber cas - sumunar Roxb. ) and Tapak limau ( Elephantopus scaber L .) are four plants that have been known to have antipyretic property. To confirm the antipyretic property, materials obtained from The Balai Penelitian Tanaman Obat Tawangmangu, Surakarta (Central Java) were tested on fever induced rats. The fever depressing effect of 750 mg symplicium/100 g body weight on ratsdid not differ significantly that of 30 mg sodium salicylate/100g body weight. No dosage-response relationship was seen in the four symplicia, and thterefore it is not advisable to recommend the use of those symplicia as antipyretis.


Background. The Israeli Transplant Law grants priority in organ allocation to patients signing a donor card. Liver transplant candidates get additional 2 points on their Model for End Stage Liver Disease score for signing a donor card, 0.1 points for a relative holding a card, and 5 points if a relative donated an organ. We studied the effect of the priority program on waiting list mortality and allocation changes due to priority. Methods. Using Israeli Transplant data of 531 adult liver transplant candidates with chronic liver disease listed between 2012 and 2018 we compared waitlist mortality and transplant rate of candidates with and without priority. Then we analyzed liver allocations resulting from additional priority points and followed outcome of patients who were skipped in line. Results. Of the 519 candidates, 294 did not sign a donor card, 82 signed, 140 had a relative sign, and for 3, a relative donated an organ. The rates of waitlist mortality in these 4 groups were 22.4%, 0%, 21.4%, and 0%, respectively, and the transplant rates were 50%, 59.8%, 49.3%, and 100%, respectively. Of the 30 patients who were skipped because of priority, 24 subsequently underwent transplant, 2 are on the waiting list, and 4 died within 0.75, 1.75, 7, and 17 mo. Conclusions. The 2 points added to the Model for End Stage Liver Disease score were associated with lower waitlist mortality and higher transplant rate for candidates signing a donor card without significantly affecting access to transplant during allocation. Further research and consideration of optimal policy when granting priority for candidates signing a donor card should continue.