In this study, functionalization of CNT and CNF was done using oxidative acid
treatment with concentrated HCl and HN03 solution mixture at 3: 1 ratio. Various
process variables such as duration, mode of treatment, agitation and temperature
are controlled, and consequently the functional groups growth on the surfaces of
both CNT and CNF was determined extensively by the aid of Fourier Transform
Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The study proceeds by synthesizing the PAN/CNTCNF
polymer nanocomposite fiber using electrospinning technique. The study used
PAN polymer solution containing 10 wt % mixture of CNT: CNF at various ratios of
8: 2,2: 8,6: 4, and 4: 6. Some critical criterions of operational parameters such as
applied voltage (12 kV, 12.5 kV, 13 kV) and working distance (13 cm, 14 cm, 15
cm) were also being optimized beforehand. The available evidences supported that,
the optimal operational parameter set was found to be at 15 cm, 13 kV set division
as validated by series of scrutinized characterization assessments; where the set up
successfully produced the thinnest average nanofiber diameter at 318 nm with the
range of 288 to 340 nm. The graphitized nanocomposite fiber was then assessed
and characterized comprehensively based on its morphological and elementary
study using FESEM-EDX, thermal stability behaviour using TGA and DSC,
crystallography assessment by XRD analysis, and conductivity study via EIS. Based
on the overall assessment of various field of characterizations, overwhelming
evidences has led to the confirmatory conclusion, corroborating PB15Z as the best
electrospun PAN/CNT-CNF nanocomposite fiber with an exceptionally thin fiber
diameter of 280 nm with 232 nm to 304 nm in range. It possessing the highest
carbon content approximately 80 % in total and a good conductivity value recorded
at 2.3555 x 10-4 S/m. The fiber also showed the most stable behaviour under
intense heat exposure, withstanding the thermal introduction with gradual decrease
of weight without any sudden and major fluctuation of weight.


This book contains a wealth of information on visual functions as they relate to the ability to meet the requirements of various occupations. Its two authors are well qualified in their respective fields. Verriest, a Belgian ophthalmologist, has written extensively on visual acuity, perimetry, and on both congenital and acquired deficiencies of color perception. His coauthor, Hermans, contributes knowledge of ergonomics, which has been defined as "fitting the task to the man," and by its converse "fitting the man to the task." Procedures for testing acuity, visual fields, color vision, dark and light adaptation, errors of refraction, accommodation, depth perception, and so forth are clearly and simply described. It is hoped that these sections will encourage greater interest among ophthalmologists in tests of visual function that will supplement objective methods in the evaluation of ocular diseases and anomalies. The book also includes valuable discussions pertaining to the establishment of visual


A participatory crop improvement (PCI) project in Gujarat, India targeted the high potential production system (HPPS) devoted largely to rice and wheat. An NGO, the Action for Social Advancement (ASA), led this project. A new rice variety that was not officially recommended for cultivation in Gujarat greatly reduced farmers' costs of production and has spread widely. Several institutional impacts followed from the project. ASA is now leading projects that are based on the PCI approach, and has recognized the need for changes in regulatory frameworks that control the release and popularization of varieties. ASA is now beginning to actively advocate such changes. Plant Sciences Research Programme: Highlights & Impact. Participatory Crop Improvement. Page 83. _______________________________________________________________________________________


A serotonergic pathway is apparently involved in parasite-host interactions. Previous studies conducted in our laboratory showed increased rates in oxygen consumption and alterations in body posture in the crab Hemigrapsus crenulatus parasitized by the acanthocephalan, Profilicollis antarcticus. Such changes may be related to the functions described for biogenic amines in crustaceans. During the infective stage the acanthocephalans live freely in the hemocelomic cavity, suggesting that the possible alteration induced by biogenic amines may be related to their neurohormonal function in crustaceans. To test whether the presence of P. antarcticus produced neurohormonal changes in its intermediate host, H. crenulatus, we analyzed serotonin and dopamine levels in the host using HPLC with electrochemical detection. Two groups of 11 female crabs were studied; one group was artificially inoculated with two cystacanths while the other was used as the control. Our results show a dramatic increase in hemolymph dopamine, but not serotonin in H. crenulatus parasitized by the acanthocephalan P. antarcticus. Our results, along with those reported by Maynard (1996), suggest a parasite-specific strategy involved in the behavior alteration caused by the acanthocephalans on their intermediate host. The use of a biogenic amine as a mechanism of interaction by the parasites gives them an endless number of alternative potential actions on their intermediate hosts.


The IEEE 802.11(TM) medium access protocol is based on carrier sensing, and contention, i.e., collision avoidance of frame transmissions from different radio stations. This contention-based protocol is discussed in this paper and extended for the usage in multiple parallel frequency channels, in which a multi-channel station groups channels for increasing its own achievable throughput. We discuss a capture effect that occurs if single-channel and multi-channel stations operate in parallel. Methods to enable multi-channel stations and single-channel stations to coexist by sending out redundant preambles, frame headers, and control frames on each individual frequency channel before the channels are grouped, are studied. Single-channel "legacy" stations operating in one of the grouped channels can then detect that the data frame that follows is not intended for them. We provide a first analytical evaluation for the expected efficiency of the proposed modifications.


In mammalian cells, multiple cellular processes, including gene silencing, cell growth and differentiation, pluripotency, neoplastic transformation, apoptosis, DNA repair, and maintenance of genomic integrity, converge on the evolutionarily conserved protein KAP1, which is thought to regulate the dynamic organization of chromatin structure via its ability to influence epigenetic patterns and chromatin compaction. In this minireview, we discuss how KAP1 might execute such pleiotropic effects, focusing on genomic targeting mechanisms, protein-protein interactions, specific post-translational modifications of both KAP1 and associated histones, and transcriptome analyses of cells deficient in KAP1.


During the period June 1977-January 1978 a microfilariaemia survey was conducted for the first time in 27 villages (population: 9,300) of Vientiane province of Laos. A total of 2,339 persons, 1,372 males, 967 females, mostly adults, were blood tested between 2000--2400 hours; one thick smear, approximately 20 c.mm, was collected from each one and stained with 10% Giemsa for 30 minutes; only one positive was detected with microfilaria of W. bancrofti in a 22-year-old male; unusually the sheath was well stained. Two cases of elephantiasis of the left leg in two middle-aged women were also diagnosed during the clinical survey. All the three cases were probably infected in the north-eastern province of Houa Phanh.


6 Past variations in climate and tectonics have led to spatially and temporally varying 7 erosion rates across many landscapes. In this contribution I examine methods for 8 detecting and quantifying the nature and timing of transience in eroding landscapes. At a 9 single location, cosmogenic nuclides can detect the instantaneous removal of material or 10 acceleration of erosion rates over millennial timescales using paired nuclides. Detection 11 is possible only if one of the nuclides has a significantly shorter half-life than the other. 12 Currently, the only practical way of doing this is to use cosmogenic in-situ C alongside 13 a longer lived nuclide, such as Be. Hillslope information can complement or be used in 14 lieu of cosmogenic information: in soil mantled landscapes, increased erosion rates can 15 be detected for millennia after the increase by comparing relief and ridgetop curvature. 16 This technique will work as long as the final erosion rate is greater than twice the initial 17 rate. On a landscape scale, transience may be detected based upon disequilibria in 18 channel profiles or ridgetops, but transience can be sensitive to the nature of transient 19 forcing. Where forcing is periodic, landscapes display differing behavior if forcing is driven 20 by changes in base level lowering rates versus changes in the efficiency of either channel 21 or hillslope erosion (e.g. driven by climate change). Oscillations in base level lowering 22 lead to basin averaged erosion rates that reflect a long term average erosion rate despite 23 Simon M. Mudd, Detection of transience; revised manuscript for ESPL. 2 strong spatial heterogeneity in local erosion rates. This averaging is reflected in Be 24 concentrations in stream sediments. Changes in hillslope sediment transport coefficients 25 can lead to large fluctuations in basin averaged erosion rates, which again are reflected 26 in Be concentrations. The variability of erosion rates in landscapes where both the 27 sediment transport and channel erodibility coefficients vary is dominated by changes to 28 the hillslope transport coefficient. 29 Introduction 30 Gone are the days when geomorphologists thought of landscapes as experiencing a 31 period of 'rejuvenation' followed by a dignified, if not dull, period of gradual adjustment 32 (c.f., Davis, 1899). We now understand the Earth's crust to be constantly in motion, with 33 faults rupturing and plates buckling under tectonic stresses, all leading to surface 34 deformation (e.g., Kirby and Whipple, 2010). In addition, there is now growing recognition 35 that the mantle also has a role to play, as large scale convection, mantle plumes and 36 diapirs are thought to lead to vertical displacements over geologic timescales (e.g., 37 Rohrman and van der Beek, 1996; Saunders et al., 2007; Braun, 2010; Hartley et al., 38 2011; Moucha and Forte, 2011). In addition, plutonism can lead to density differences 39 that drive uplift (e.g., Braun et al., 2011). Isotope records show beyond doubt that our 40 planet's climate varies wildly and sometimes abruptly, with ice sheets growing and 41 shrinking (e.g., Dansgaard et al., 1993) and sea levels rising and falling by tens of meters 42 (e.g., Lambeck and Chappell, 2001). 43


-Today's environment every individual is facing the global competition. They have multi task and managerial decision at several stages. A manual method of decision making becomes complex and it requires intelligent modeling techniques to get the desired results. It also helps us to select the best suitable element from a set of alternatives by minimizing the effort and maximizing the benefit. If the decision makers feel that the data are in imprecise form, involving vague and linguistic descriptions then the fuzzy set theory is a modeling tool for solving such complex systems. Fuzzy set theory is suitable to use when the modeling of human knowledge and human evaluations are needed. Fuzzy program considers random parameters as fuzzy numbers and constraints are treated as fuzzy sets. In fuzzy mathematical program, membership function is used to represent the degree of satisfaction of the decision makers' expectations about the objective function level and the range of uncertainty of coefficients. In this paper, laptop features are considered for choosing the best one. Purchasing of laptop is challenge due to wide variety of sizes, compact to carry, versatile enough to run demanding applications, features and prices etc. It is a best tool for doing research work or play at home. To overcome this selection process, a suitable technique is required. TOPSIS is one of the selection procedure techniques which provide a base for decision –making processes where there is limited number of choices but each has large number of attributes. Thus, it presents a comparative analysis of MCDM and FMCDM methods in the context of laptop selection decision making.. However, the comparative analysis has shown that the Fuzzy TOPSIS method is better suited to the problem of laptop selection in regard to changes of alternatives and criteria, agility and number of criteria and alternative laptops. Thus, this comparative study contributes to helping researchers and practitioners to choose more effective approaches for laptop selection. Suggestions of further work are also proposed so as to make these methods more adequate to the problem of laptop selection.


Ten nonfluorescent Pseudomonas strains isolated from water-soaked lesions on cotyledons of plants of five Citrullus lanatus (watermelon) plant introductions were characterized and compared phenotypically with 22 other pseudomonads. The strains were distinguished phenotypically from other known plant pathogenic pseudomonads. The watermelon bacterium was aerobic. Cells were rod-shaped, gram negative, and motile by means of a single polar flagellum. They were nonfluorescent and grew at 41°C but not at 4°C. Oxidase production and the 2-ketogluconate reaction were positive. The 10 strains utilized β-alanine, L-leucine, D-serine, n-propanal, ethanol, ethanolamine, citrate, and fructose for growth. No growth occurred with sucrose or glucose. Their deoxyribonucleic acid base composition was 66 ± 1 mol% guanine plus cytosine. The bacterium is phenotypically similar to P. pseudoalcaligenes but differs from it in being pathogenic to watermelon, Cucumis melo (cantaloupe), Cucumis satiwus (cucumber), and Cucurbita pepo (squash). The name P. pseudoalcaligenes subsp. citrulli is proposed for the new subspecies, of which strain C-42 (= ATCC 29625) is the type strain.


Code smells are symptoms of poor design and implementation choices. Previous studies empirically assessed the impact of smells on code quality and clearly indicate their negative impact on maintainability, including a higher bug-proneness of components affected by code smells. In this paper, we capture previous findings on bug-proneness to build a specialized bug prediction model for smelly classes. Specifically, we evaluate the contribution of a measure of the severity of code smells (i.e., code smell intensity) by adding it to existing bug prediction models based on both product and process metrics, and comparing the results of the new model against the baseline models. Results indicate that the accuracy of a bug prediction model increases by adding the code smell intensity as predictor. We also compare the results achieved by the proposed model with the ones of an alternative technique which considers metrics about the history of code smells in files, finding that our model works generally better. However, we observed interesting complementarities between the set of buggy and smelly classes correctly classified by the two models. By evaluating the actual information gain provided by the intensity index with respect to the other metrics in the model, we found that the intensity index is a relevant feature for both product and process metrics-based models. At the same time, the metric counting the average number of code smells in previous versions of a class considered by the alternative model is also able to reduce the entropy of the model. On the basis of this result, we devise and evaluate a smell-aware combined bug prediction model that included product, process, and smell-related features. We demonstrate how such model classifies bug-prone code components with an F-Measure at least 13 percent higher than the existing state-of-the-art models.


Web databases contain a huge amount of structured data which are easily obtained via their query interfaces only. The query results are presented in dynamically generated web pages, usually in the form of data records, for human use. The automatic web data extraction is critical in web integration. A number of approaches have been proposed. The early work is most based on the source code or the tag tree of the page. Recent approaches use the visual feature to extract data information, which are better than the previous work. However, these approaches still have inherent limitation. In this, we propose a novel approach that makes use of visual features to extract data information from web page, including the data records and the data items. The results of this experiment tests on a large set of query result pages in different domain show that the proposed approach is highly effective.


Which comes first, divine agency or the calculations of diviners? Both are integral to divination, other predictive methods, and the 'hatching out' of new creation stories among the Nuosu of Southwest China. In this article, I present ethnography on divination in which eggs evoke the person's position in the world while the bodies or bones of chickens are indices of health or prosperity. When cracking open raw eggs, peeling open slaughtered chickens, or reading chicken bones, diviners creatively draw upon the assistance of spirits and their own calculatory reflections in ways that encourage internal variation within their craft. Through case studies on illnesses and a new family tradition, I show that Nuosu inhabit a hybrid world that features cosmological proliferation, to which the creativity of divination responds.


Despite marked advances in breast cancer therapy, basal-like breast cancer (BBC), an aggressive subtype of breast cancer usually lacking estrogen and progesterone receptors, remains difficult to treat. In this study, we report the identification of MELK as a novel oncogenic kinase from an in vivo tumorigenesis screen using a kinome-wide open reading frames (ORFs) library. Analysis of clinical data reveals a high level of MELK overexpression in BBC, a feature that is largely dependent on FoxM1, a master mitotic transcription factor that is also found to be highly overexpressed in BBC. Ablation of MELK selectively impairs proliferation of basal-like, but not luminal breast cancer cells both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, depletion of MELK in BBC cells induces caspase-dependent cell death, preceded by defective mitosis. Finally, we find that Melk is not required for mouse development and physiology. Together, these data indicate that MELK is a normally non-essential kinase, but is critical for BBC and thus represents a promising selective therapeutic target for the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01763.001


Almost two decades ago, it was postulated that homoeopathic remedies could deliver their benefits by interacting with the genetic blueprint. Over the years, the results of many homeogenomic gene expression studies have confirmed this postulate. The results of homeogenomic studies have begun to recognize which of the estimated 25,000 human genes are targeted by different homoeopathic remedies and how the expression profiles of these targeted genes are rearranged. From a mechanistic standpoint, seminal homeogenomic studies have shown that homoeopathic remedies can also facilitate epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation. This is an important discovery because DNA methylation plays an important role in the control of the expression of many genes. Understanding of the genes targeted by different homoeopathic remedies, taken together with information about the function of the protein/s encoded by the targeted gene/s provides a further complementary approach to homoeopathic remedy selection. In this review, as an example, we show how the results of homeogenomic studies support the applicability of frequently used homoeopathic remedies in patients suffering from cancer, particularly with respect to upregulation of the gene TP53. This review also outlines how the results of homeogenomic studies may also provide further help with potency selection and optimum dosage regimen.


We present a novel hierarchical modeling method for layout representation learning, the core of design documents (e.g., user interface, poster, template).
Existing works on layout representation often ignore element hierarchies, which is an important facet of layouts, and mainly rely on the spatial bounding boxes for feature extraction.
This paper proposes a Spatial-Structural Hierarchical Auto-Encoder (SSH-AE) that learns hierarchical representation by treating a hierarchically annotated layout as a tree format.
On the one side, we model SSH-AE from both spatial (semantic views) and structural (organization and relationships) perspectives, which are two complementary aspects to represent a layout.
On the other side, the semantic/geometric properties are associated at multiple resolutions/granularities, naturally handling complex layouts.
Our learned representations are used for effective layout search from both spatial and structural similarity perspectives.
We also newly involve the tree-edit distance (TED) as an evaluation metric to construct a comprehensive evaluation protocol for layout similarity assessment, which benefits a systematic and customized layout search.
We further present a new dataset of POSTER layouts which we believe will be useful for future layout research.
We show that our proposed SSH-AE outperforms the existing methods achieving state-of-the-art performance on two benchmark datasets.
Code is available at github.com/yueb17/SSH-AE.


In this paper, biocomposites materials based on date palm fibres (untreated or treated with corona discharge) as reinforcing elements and polylactic acid matrices were prepared and characterized. The objective of this study was to evaluate the mechanical properties of these biocomposites by modification of date palm fiber by using corona discharge treatment which results in a surface oxidation. The morphology of processed biocomposites was studied by scanning electron microscopy. It was found that treated fibers of the reinforced composite showed superior mechanical properties as compared with untreated fiber reinforced composites due to the enhanced adhesion between the treated date palm fiber and the polylactic acid matrix. Changes in the surface chemistry were investigated with Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy. Moreover, morphological studies by scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that better adhesion between the treated fiber and the matrix was achieved. Such studies are of great interest in the development of environmentally friendly composites from biodegradable polymers.


The Geospatial Delhi Limited (GSDL), a Govt. of NCT of Delhi Company formed in order to provide the geospatial information of National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCTD) to the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and its organs such as DDA, MCD, DJB, State Election Department, DMRC etc., for the benefit of all citizens of Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD). This paper describes the development of Geospatial Map based Election portal (GMEP) of NCT of Delhi. The portal has been developed as a map based spatial decision support system (SDSS) for pertain to planning and management of Department of Chief Electoral Officer, and as an election related information searching tools (Polling Station, Assembly and parliamentary constituency etc.,) for the citizens of NCTD. The GMEP is based on Client-Server architecture model. It has been developed using ArcGIS Server 10.0 with J2EE front-end on Microsoft Windows environment. The GMEP is scalable to enterprise SDSS with enterprise Geo Database & Virtual Private Network (VPN) connectivity. Spatial data to GMEP includes delimited precinct area boundaries of Voters Area of Polling stations, Assembly Constituency, Parliamentary Constituency, Election District, Landmark locations of Polling Stations & basic amenities (Police Stations, Hospitals, Schools and Fire Stations etc.). GMEP could help achieve not only the desired transparency and easiness in planning process but also facilitates through efficient & effective tools for management of elections. It enables a faster response to the changing ground realities in the development planning, owing to its in-built scientific approach and open-ended design.


SUMMARY: The influence of Mg2+-limitation, compared with carbon-limitation, on bacterial concentration, and on protein, carbohydrate, RNA and DNA contents of Aerobacter aerogenes cultures (grown in the chemostat at several dilution rates) was determined. In both types of culture the bacterial protein, carbohydrate and DNA contents varied slightly, and the RNA content grossly, with changes in dilution rate. Bacterial yield varied with growth rate, and to a marked degree in the Mg2+-limited culture; this resulted from Mg2+ control of RNA synthesis. A growth-rate independent stoichiometry between RNA and Mg2+ was observed; 4 moles of RNA nucleotide were synthesized per mole of Mg2+ present in the culture. The protein and RNA distributions between cellular components varied with growth rate. The ribosomal fractions increased with increasing growth rate, as did the RNA:protein ratios in these fractions, in both cultures. Mg2+-limited bacteria contained little polysaccharide; washed suspensions of such organisms synthesized polysaccharide from glycerol at a low rate as compared with C-limited bacteria. Added Mg2+ stimulated polysaccharide synthesis by Mg2+ limited bacteria but not by C-limited bacteria. Washed suspensions of bacteria were induced to synthesize β-galactosidase. With cultures grown at three different dilution rates, the rates of enzyme synthesis in C-limited bacteria were twice those found with Mg2+-limited bacteria, though both had equal ribosome contents.


Objective The Bacterial Meningitis Score, a derived and validated clinical decision rule, identifies children with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pleocytosis who are at very low risk of bacterial meningitis. Low-risk features include the following: negative CSF Gram stain, CSF absolute neutrophil count (ANC) <1000 cells/μl, CSF protein <80 mg/dl, peripheral blood ANC <10 000 cells/μl and no seizure at or prior to initial presentation. The study objective of the present work was to calculate the performance of the Bacterial Meningitis Score by performing a meta-analysis of all published validation studies. Methods A meta-analysis of all studies published between 2002 and 2012 was performed, evaluating the performance of the Bacterial Meningitis Score in children with CSF pleocytosis. Study quality was assessed using the assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies instrument and then the test performance of the prediction rule was calculated. Results From 8 studies, 5312 patients were identified, of whom 4896 (92%) had sufficient clinical data to calculate the Bacterial Meningitis Score. Bacterial meningitis was diagnosed in 1242 children (23% of study patients). The combined sensitivity of the Bacterial Meningitis Score for bacterial meningitis was 99.3% (1224/1233; 95% CI 98.7% to 99.7%), specificity 62.1% (2274/3663; 95% CI 60.5% to 63.7%) negative predictive value 99.7% (2274/2283, 95% CI 99.3% to 99.9%), positive likelihood ratio 2.6 (95% CI 2.5 to 2.7) and negative likelihood ratio 0.01 (95% CI 0.01 to 0.02). Conclusions The Bacterial Meningitis Score is a highly accurate clinical scoring system that could be used to assist clinical decision making for the management of children with CSF pleocytosis.


PurposeThis paper aims to address how national culture moderates the relationship between job characteristics and job satisfaction.Design/methodology/approachThe authors examine the most recent data collected from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) in 2015 from a group of 33 countries. Hofstede's cultural model is used to represent and measure national culture.FindingsOne of the most significant findings from the authors' two-level regression analysis is that having an interesting job contributes more to job satisfaction in individualistic countries than in collectivist countries. The authors also find that the newly introduced cultural dimension indulgence vs restraint has some significant moderating effect on the relationship between job security, salary, the perceived interest of a job and job satisfaction. Job security also seems to contribute less to job satisfaction in societies that are long-term oriented.Practical implicationsThis study provides further support for a more careful, nuanced examination of job motivation theories. Multinational companies should understand the needs of their employees and diversify their compensation packages accordingly. More attention should be paid to job design in individualistic or indulgent-oriented countries to create a satisfying job experience.Originality/valueThe authors examine the most recent data from ISSP and extend the literature by incorporating two additional cultural dimensions from Hofstede's model as moderators.


Valuation studies addresses how values are made in valuation practices. A next —or rather previous—question becomes: what then makes valuation practices? Two oppositional replies are starting to dominate how that question can be answered: a more materially oriented focus on devices of valuation and a more sociologically inclined focus on ineffable valuation cultures. The debate between proponents of both approaches may easily turn into the kind of leapfrog debates that have dominated many previous discussions on whether culture or materiality would play a decisive role in driving history. This paper explores a less repetitive reply. It does so by analyzing the puzzling case of the demise of solidarity as a core value within the recent Dutch health care system of regulated competition. While "solidarity among the insured" was both a strong cultural value within the Dutch welfare-based health system, and a value that was built into market devices by health economists, within a fairly short time "fairness" became of lesser importance than "competition". This makes us call for a more historical, relational, and dynamic understanding of the role of economists, market devices, and of culture in valuation studies.


The knock down and insecticidal effects of the plants Tagetes minuta, Lippia javanica, Lantana camara, Tagetes erecta and Eucalyptus grandis were evaluated against Anopheles arabiensis mosquitoes in thatched round huts in Mumurwi village. Leaves from these plants were smouldered in order to provide mosquito repellent smoke. Complete knock down was provided 40 minutes after mosquitoes were exposed to smoke of T. erecta, 60 minutes to smoke of T. minuta and E. grandis and 120 minutes to smoke of L. javanica. Complete knock down of mosquitoes could not be provided by L. camara within the 140-minute exposure period. The KT50 (time required to knock down 50% of the mosquitoes) values were 24.985 minutes (T. minuta), 34.473 minutes (T. erecta), 59.119 minutes (L. javanica), 59.828 minutes (L. camara) and 25.245 minutes (E. grandis). The KT90 (time required to knock down 90% of the mosquitoes) values were 48.060 minutes (T. minuta), 50.169 minutes (T. erecta), 178.341 minutes (L. javanica), 140.220 minutes (L. camara) and 47.998 minutes (E. grandis). Mortality rates 24h after exposure were 40% (T. minuta), 100% (T. erecta), 75% (L. javanica), 90% (L. camara) and 100% (E. grandis). In conclusion, smoke from the plants T. erecta, T. minuta and E. grandis had very fast knock down rates with T. erecta, L. camara and E. grandis killing over 90% of the An. arabiensis mosquitoes. Plant smoke is important in mosquito control.


1. The effects of food intake and the fatty acid composition of the diet on the hepatic stearoyl-CoA desaturase activity of obese-hyperglycaemic (ob/ob) mice were investigated. 2. Obese mice fed on a commercial mouse diet, ad libitum, had 6.5-fold more activity per liver cell than had lean mice. 3. On a diet containing 14% corn oil the activity was 65% less in obese mice and 62% less in lean mice compared with animals fed on the commercial diet. 4. Feeding with 14% saturated fat in the diet doubled the activity in lean mice compared with those on the commercial diet, but had no effect on the activity in obese mice. 5. Obese mice fed on the corn-oil diet contained a higher proportion of linoleic acid in the liver lipids than did lean mice fed on the commercial diet, but the acyl-CoA desaturase activity was 125% higher than in the lean mice. 6. Limiting the food intake of obese mice by pair-feeding with lean mice decreased their acyl-CoA desaturase activity when the animals were fed on the saturated-fat diet, but the activity remained 75% higher than in lean mice, whereas in obese mice pair-fed on the corn-oil diet the activity was the same as in lean mice. 7. During starvation the acyl-CoA desaturase activity in livers from obese mice decreased more slowly and proportionately less than in livers from lean mice. 8. It is concluded that increased substrate supply as a result of hyperphagia and not low concentration of linoleic acid is the main factor causing high acyl-CoA desaturase activity in obese mice.


Oral keratinocytes are the first cells in contact with tobacco components and are capable of producing various inflammatory mediators, including PGE2 and IL-1. The purpose of this study was to examine PGE2 and IL-1 concentrations in nicotine-exposed oral keratinocyte cultures. Gingival keratinocyte cultures were established from healthy gingival tissues obtained from 7 subjects. Cultures were divided into 4 groups exposed to serum free medium (control), 0.1 microM, 10 microM or 1 mM nicotine for 4, 24 or 48 h. Using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, PGE2 and IL-1 alpha were quantified in culture supernatants; IL-1 alpha and beta were also measured in lysed cells. A repeated measures analysis of variance was used to identify significant differences over time and treatment. Nicotine exposure did not significantly alter PGE2 levels at any given time period; however, PGE2 quantities declined significantly (p = 0.0001) over time. At both 24 and 48 h, IL-1 alpha concentrations in lysates from 1 mM nicotine-exposed cells were significantly (p < 0.01) greater than those for all other treatments. Interleukin-1 alpha quantities also declined significantly (p = 0.037) over time in the cultures. Interleukin-1 beta concentrations were elevated, albeit not significantly, in the 1 mM treated cells at 24 and 48 h. Cell viability, mass and counts were not affected by nicotine treatment; these parameters increased significantly (p < 0.005) over time. In summary, nicotine treatment significantly increased IL-1 alpha concentrations in cultured keratinocytes; however, PGE2 synthesis was not altered. Elevated IL-1 production by keratinocytes may have implications in tobacco-induced lesions, given the central role IL-1 plays in tissue response to injury.


The Mae Ngat Somboonchol Dam, located in Chiang Mai Province of northern Thailand, was constructed to serve the purposes of irrigation and electricity generation for the region. This hydroelectric dam is located on the Mae Ngat River, which is a tributary of the Ping River.  The aim of this experiment was to study the diversity and abundance of the population of caddisflies in this river. Seven sampling sites, including 2 upstream and 5 downstream sites, were monitored monthly for adult male caddisflies using a light pan trap device over 1 year (June 2013 – May 2014). A total of 3,844 male specimens belonging to 16 families and 94 species were caught. However, the total abundance of caddisflies was higher at the upstream sampling sites than at the downstream sampling sites. The top three most abundant species found to be present in this river were Oecetis scutulata MARTYNOV, 1936, Setodes argentiguttatus GORDON & SCHMID, 1987 and Cheumatopsyche globosa ULMER, 1910, respectively. The species compositions of the upstream and downstream sites differed. 44 specimens of the species Trichoptera were represented exclusively at the upstream sites. Examples of this include Macrostemum fenestratum ALBARDA, 1887, Setodes endymion MALICKY & CHANTARAMONGKOL, 2000, Hydropsyche camillus MALICKY & CHANTARAMONGKOL, 2000 and Ecnomus jojachin MALICKY & CHANTARAMONGKOL, 1993. The 23 species exclusively represented in the downstream sites included Aethaloptera sexpunctata KOLENATI, 1859, Cheumatopsyche banksi MOSELY, 1942, Oecetis tripunctata FABRICIUS, 1793 and Ecnomus votticius MALICKY & CHANTARAMONGKOL, 1993. There were 50 newly recorded species while 18 species were absent when compared to a previous study from 2009. The diversity and abundance also differed during each month of collection. The highest numbers of trapped male caddisflies were found from April to May, which were 352 and 292, respectively. The upstream sites contained a higher number of caddisflies and a greater level of diversity than the downstream sites.


One of the most important components of an absorption air-conditioning/heat pump system is the absorber, where the refrigerant water vapour is absorbed into the liquid solution. While absorption systems have been in use for several years, the complex transport phenomena occurring in the absorber are not fully elucidated yet. Thus, an attempt is made to model the absorption process of water vapour in aqueous solutions of lithium bromide considering a falling-film, vertical-tube absorber. The proposed analysis is based on the formulation of four differential equations describing the spatial variation (parallel to the tube-axis) of solution mass, temperature, mass fraction and coolant temperature. The system of ordinary differential equations is numerically solved using a non-stiff numerical method. Thermophysical properties and especially, heat and mass transfer coefficients are calculated using widely-accepted and reliable relationships, which are extracted from the literature using recently published information on wavy-laminar flows. In the present study, the questionable assumption of treating the water vapour as an ideal gas is heavily modified utilizing. Consequently, the hypothesis of saturated water vapour at the steam-solution interaction surface is revised by introducing an energy difference between the superheated steam and the liquid water within the binary solution. The last correction encouraged us to compare theoretical results for solution temperature, mass fraction and mass flow rate, which were obtained using both assumptions. It was proved that the initial treatment causes an underestimation of the absorbed steam mass and correspondingly, an underestimation of solution temperature and mass fraction at the mass exchange interface. An attempt is made also to identify the effect of mass transfer coefficient on the effectiveness of the absorption process and on the energy differences between the superheated steam and the liquid water either as pure substance or as component of the binary mixture. It was shown that the increase of mass transfer coefficient leads to an increase of steam mass transfer rate and to a corresponding decrease of solution temperature slope at the entrance of a tube. Correspondingly, the increase of mass transfer coefficient results in an increase of heat of absorption and heat of dilution at the same variation range of the solution mass fraction.Copyright © 2002 by ASME


The improbable voyage of the schooner Amistad and the court proceedings and diplomatic maneuverings that resulted from that voyage form one of the most significant stories of the nineteenth century. When Steven Spielberg chose the Amistad case as the subject of his 1997 feature film, he finally brought it the attention the case had long deserved, but never received. The Amistad case energized the fledgling abolitionist movement and intensified conflict over slavery, prompted a former President to go before the Supreme Court and condemn the policies of a present Administration, soured diplomatic relations between the United States and Spain for a generation, and created a wave of interest in sending Christian missionaries to Africa.


Vladimir Mikhailovich Bekhterev was a Russian innovative neuroscientist, extraordinary in the study, diagnosis, and research in the fields of neurology, psychology, morphology, physiology, and psychiatry. Considering the ample and multifaceted scientific feats, only some are touched in a very brief manner. However, it is necessary to highlight his contributions to neurology, with the description of structures, signs and syndromes, to physiology, including reflexology, which later underpinned behaviorism, to psychology, including objective psychology and suggestion. His accomplishments and legacy remained until the present days. Some comments about the scenery that involved his death are also presented.


Low salaries, a limited amount of full-time teaching positions, and alternative systems of allocating teaching hours lead teachers to look for additional jobs in other schools. Although this is a more common phenomenon of teacher labor markets in developing countries, teachers who teach specific subject areas are in general more likely to hold positions in more than one school. Yet, little is known about the impact of multiple school jobs on teachers' productivity. This paper sheds some light on this issue by examining whether students' outcomes are affected when their teachers work in more than one school. We use longitudinal data of students and teachers from the municipality of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, over a period of 7 years and exploit within teacher-school-grade variation in the number of school jobs over time. We found consistent patterns suggesting that an increase in the number of school jobs lead to a decrease in student test scores. The negative effect of multiple school jobs ranges from 0.03 to 0.06 standard deviations. The effects are much larger for female teachers, ranging from 0.05 to 0.11 standard deviations. Low income students are also more negatively affected when their teachers teach in more than one school at a time. Lastly, results suggest that an increase in the number of non-teaching hours, which include time for lesson preparation, is a more important mechanism for explaining the effect of multiple school jobs than an increase in the amount of teaching hours spent inside the classroom.


Paraphilias are defined by DSM-IV-TR as sexual disorders characterized by "recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges or behaviors generally involving (1) nonhuman objects, (2) the suffering or humiliation of oneself or one's partner, or (3) children or other nonconsenting persons that occur over a period of 6 months" (Criterion A), which "cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning" (Criterion B). DSM-IV-TR describes 8 specific disorders of this type (exhibitionism, fetishism, frotteurism, pedophilia, sexual masochism, sexual sadism, voyeurism, and transvestic fetishism) along with a ninth residual category, paraphilia not otherwise specified (NOS).


This study was to identify challenges and contribution of informal financial services on rural households' livelihood in selected Woredas of Gamo Gofa Zone. A multistage sampling technique was employed. Primary data on households' motives, challenges and contribution of informal financial services were collected from household heads and focus group discussants. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Users reported the transaction cost to access the service in informal financial services is low while others reported that the service is responsive for immediate problems. Users also reported that the service doesn't need any criteria to be member while and some households are using informal financial service because of no more options available in the area. Others reported that the participation in the service has social benefit as it increases social networks, connectedness and the service doesn't need collateral. Lack of legal support, lack of trainings, administration of members, small money size, undocumented money transfer are among challenges of informal financial services. Informal finance contributed as source of money for non-farm activities partially and fully. Legal support, training and linking informal and formal financial service institutions need future intervention.

 Key words: Informal finance, challenges, contribution.


Introduction It has been argued that the relationship between depression and diabetes is bi-directional, but this hypothesis has not been explicitly tested. We conducted two separate cohort studies, based on Taiwan's National Health Insurance claims, to determine the bi-directional prospective relationships between depression and type 2 diabetes. Methods The first cohort analysis identified all 390 011 diabetic patients in 2000 and the same number of randomly selected non-diabetic beneficiaries. The second cohort analysis identified 5847 depressive patients and a random sample of non-depressive beneficiaries of the same number in 2000. The subsequent information on incident depression and diabetes was retrieved from ambulatory cares from 2000 to 2006. We evaluated the age-and sex-specific relative hazards of depression/diabetes in relation to diabetes/depression with Cox proportional hazard regression model adjusted for potential confounders. Results The first cohort analysis noted a covariate adjusted HR of 1.43 (95% CI 1.38 to 1.48) for incident depression among diabetes. The second cohort analysis noted that the depressive patients experienced significantly elevated HR (2.02, 95% CI 1.80 to 2.27) for incident diabetes. Conclusion The two cohort studies provided support for the bi-directional prospective relationships between diabetes and depression, with a stronger association noted for the depression predicting onset of diabetes. We also noted that the bi-directional relationships were most obvious in younger (<35 years) patients, regardless of gender.


The postcolonial writer and the translator of literary works possess similar literary challenges. Both are required to explicate unfamiliar elements from an original cultural source or text in a way that is comprehensible to a contemporary global audience. However, for the postcolonial writer this can amount to a certain didactic quality to the literary work, which is a devalued aesthetic within contemporary literary standards. As such, the writer incorporates translative elements in his creative process to get around the problem. To demonstrate this, I analyze and compare the works of two authors, Raja Rao and Eileen Chang. I argue that Raos incorporation of the Kannada language into Kanthapura strategically resists prevailing standards of cultural explication, while Eileen Changs initial draft of Lust, Caution, written in English as The Spyring, engages in overt cultural explication that fails to capture the nuances of its translated version. The intentional construct of linguistic and aesthetic permutations in both works can be characterized as an act of translation.


COPYRIGHT © 2023 Deverett. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. Anesthesia for non-traditional consciousness


We address the problem of high-rank matrix completion with side information. In contrast to existing work dealing with side information, which assume that the data matrix is low-rank, we consider the more general scenario where the columns of the data matrix are drawn from a union of low-dimensional subspaces, which can lead to a high rank matrix. Our goal is to complete the matrix while taking advantage of the side information. To do so, we use the self-expressive property of the data, searching for a sparse representation of each column of matrix as a combination of a few other columns. More specifically, we propose a factorization of the data matrix as the product of side information matrices with an unknown interaction matrix, under which each column of the data matrix can be reconstructed using a sparse combination of other columns. As our proposed optimization, searching for missing entries and sparse coefficients, is non-convex and NP-hard, we propose a lifting framework, where we couple sparse coefficients and missing values and define an equivalent optimization that is amenable to convex relaxation. We also propose a fast implementation of our convex framework using a Linearized Alternating Direction Method. By extensive experiments on both synthetic and real data, and, in particular, by studying the problem of multi-label learning, we demonstrate that our method outperforms existing techniques in both low-rank and high-rank data regimes.


Recycling wastes are a practical solution to reduce its detrimental effects. Many problems have arisen recently due to the rapid expansion on the quantity of waste. In this work, a practical solution was presented. The waste was mixed with wet clay to form a mixture that molded under pressure to form a wet brick. The wet bricks were entered into big ovens and during the firing process, porosity was induced inside them. The induced porosity enhanced the thermal insulation, decreasing the density, producing good brick durability with acceptable mechanical properties of the fired brick, in addition to that, a preservation in natural resources could be achieved. Following ASTM standards the values of the specific heat, dry density, thermal conductivity, cold and boiling absorption coefficient and both wet and dry compressive strength were measured with good accuracy.


Septicemia and meningoencephalitis developed in 10 pastured cattle 7 months to 3 years of age. Two unrelated herds were involved. Necropsy findings were similar to those previously reported in cattle infected with a Haemophilus-like organism, including multifocal hemorrhages in some muscles, suppurative polyarthritis, and multifocal hemorrhagic thrombi in the brain. A Haemophilus-like organism was isolated from one animal. It was characterized by growth on blood agar or tryptose agar plus a feeder streak under raised carbon dioxide tension, and lack of response to Haemophilus growth factors X and V.


In this paper we investigate whether learners of L2 English show knowledge of the Definiteness Effect (Milsark, 1977), which restricts definite expressions from appearing in the existential there-insertion construction. There are crosslinguistic differences in how restrictions on definiteness play out. In English, definite expressions may not occur in either affirmative or negative existentials (e.g. There is a/*the mouse in my soup; There isn't a/*the mouse in my soup). In Turkish and Russian, affirmative existentials observe a restriction similar to English, whereas negative existentials do not. We report on a series of experiments conducted with learners of English whose L1s are Turkish and Russian, of intermediate and advanced proficiency. Native speakers also took the test in English, Turkish, and Russian. The task involved acceptability judgments. Subjects were presented with short contexts, each followed by a sentence to be judged as natural/unnatural. Test items included affirmative and negative existentials, as well as items testing apparent exceptions to definiteness restrictions. Results show that both intermediate and advanced L2ers respond like English native speakers, crucially rejecting definites in negative existentials. A comparison with the groups taking the test in Russian and Turkish confirms that judgments in the L2 are quite different from the L1, suggesting that transfer cannot provide the explanation for learner success.


Horses involved in road traffic accidents (RTAs) are commonly presented to veterinarians with varying types of injuries. The aim of this study was describe the pattern and severity of traffic accident-related injuries in horses in a single hospital population. Medical records of horses either hit by a motorized vehicle or involved in RTAs whilst being transported from 1993 to 2015 were retrospectively reviewed and the following data was extracted: Signalement, hospitalisation time, month in which the accident happened, cause of the accident, place of the accident and type of vehicle hitting the horse. Further the different body sites injured (head, neck, breast, fore limb, abdomen, back and spine, pelvis and ileosacral region, hind limb, tail and genital region), the type of injury (wounds, musculoskeletal lesions and internal lesions) and the presence of neurological signs were retrieved from the medical records. 34 horses hit by motorized vehicles and 13 horses involved in RTAs whilst being transported were included in the study. Most of the accidents where horses were hit by motorized vehicles occurred during December (14.7%) and October (14.7%), horses were most commonly hit by cars (85.3%) and the
majority of accidents occurred on main roads (26.5%). In 29.4% of the cases, horses had escaped from their paddock and then collided with a motorized vehicle. Most of the accidents with horses involved in RTAs whilst being transported occurred during April (30.8%) and June (23.1%). In 76.9% of the cases the accident happened on a freeway. In the horses hit by motorized vehicles the proximal hind limbs were the body site most commonly affected (44.1%), followed by the proximal front limbs (38.2%) and the head (32.4%). When horses were involved in RTAs whilst being transported the proximal fore limbs (61.5%), the proximal hind limbs (53.8%) and the distal hind limbs, back and head (38.5% each) were the most common injured body sites. Wounds were the most common type of injury in both groups(85.3% hit by motorized vehicle, 76.9% transported ones). In horses hit by a motorized vehicle 35.3% suffered from fractures, in 20.6% a synovial structure was involved and in 5.9% a tendon lesion was present. 14.7% suffered from internal lesions and 14.7% showed neurologic symptoms (40% peripheral, 60% central neurologic deficits). On the other hand, in horses involved in a RTA whilst being transported 30.8% suffered from fractures. There were no synovial structures injured and no tendon injuries were present. Furthermore there were no internal lesions present and only one horse involved in a RTA showed central neurologic symptoms. Injuries of horses being hit by a motorized vehicle were more severe than when horses were protected by a trailer and involved in an RTA whilst being transported. The study has been able to identify the different injury types of traffic accident-related injuries in horses. Awareness of the nature of these injuries is important, to avoid underestimation of their severity.


Abstract We use an empirically validated high-resolution three-dimensional ice-sheet model to investigate the mass-balance regime, flow mechanisms and subglacial characteristics of a simulated Younger Dryas Stadial ice cap in Scotland, and compare the resulting model forecasts with geological evidence. Input data for the model are basal topography, a temperature forcing derived from GRIP δ18O fluctuations and a precipitation distribution interpolated from modern data. The model employs a positive-degree-day scheme to calculate net mass balance within a domain of 112500 km2, which, under the imposed climate, gives rise to an elongate ice cap along the axis of the western Scottish Highlands. At its maximum, the ice cap is dynamically and thermally zoned, reflecting topographic and climatic controls, respectively. In order to link these palaeoglaciological conditions to geological interpretations, we calculate the relative balance between sliding and creep within the simulated ice cap, forecast areas of the ice cap with the greatest capacity for basal erosion and predict the likely pattern of subglacial drainage. We conclude that ice flow in central areas of the ice cap is largely due to internal deformation, and is associated with geological evidence of landscape preservation. Conversely, the distribution of streamlined landforms is linked to faster-flowing ice whose velocity is predominantly the result of basal sliding. The geometry of the main ice mass focuses subglacial erosion in the mid-sections of topographic troughs, and produces glaciohydraulic gradients that favour subglacial drainage through low-order arterial routes.


Optical absorption spectra of quantum well excitons in KCl-KBr and RbCl-KBr alternating multilayer structures are studied. The absorption bands of excitons confined in the well exhibit blue shifts and steeper rise as compared with the bulk exciton band. These spectral characters are explained in terms of the quantum confinements. A sinusoidal potential profile of the multilayer is proposed to explain the interface-mixture effect and is confirmed by the observed spectra. A simple model of the sinusoidal well is also proposed.


As a feature selection technique in rough set theory, attribute reduction has been extensively explored from various viewpoints especially the aspect of granularity, and multi-granularity attribute reduction has attracted much attention. Nevertheless, it should be pointed out that multiple granularities require to be considered simultaneously to evaluate the significance of candidate attribute in the corresponding process of computing reduct, which may result in high elapsed time of searching reduct. To alleviate such a problem, an acceleration strategy for neighborhood based multi-granularity attribute reduction is proposed in this paper, which aims to improve the computational efficiency of searching reduct. Our proposed approach is actually realized through the positive approximation mechanism, and the processes of searching qualified attributes are executed through evaluating candidate attributes over the gradually reduced sample space rather than all samples. The experimental results over 12 UCI data sets demonstrate that the acceleration strategy can provide superior performance to the naive approach of deriving multi-granularity reduct in the elapsed time of computing reduct without generating different reducts.


These studies were undertaken to analyse the genetic control of the immune response to an oligomeric protein and the role of individual subunits in the regulation of the response. Human adult haemoglobin (Hb) was selected as a model for these studies because it is a well‐characterized protein and its antigenic structure is being determined in our laboratories. Mice of various congenic strains were immunized with Hb and the lymph node cells from Hb‐primed mice were challenged in vitro with Hb, and its α‐chain and β‐chains as well as an appropriate control antigen. Lymphocyte proliferation was determined by 3H‐thymidine incorporation. The data collected indicated that mice of the H‐2b and H‐2d haplotypes were high responders while H‐2k, H‐2s, H‐2q and H‐2j haplotype mice were low responders to Hb. Studies with H‐2 recombinant strains indicated that the immune response to Hb and its subunits is determined by genes in the I‐A subregion and the D end of the H‐2 complex. The significance of these findings in terms of control and regulation of the overall response to native Hb are discussed.


Progress in organizational psychology (OP) research depends on the rigor and quality of the methods we use. This paper identifies ten methodological barriers to progress and offers suggestions for overcoming the barriers, in part or whole. The barriers address how we derive hypotheses from theories, the nature and scope of the questions we pursue in our studies, the ways we address causality, the manner in which we draw samples and measure constructs, and how we conduct statistical tests and draw inferences from our research. The paper concludes with recommendations for integrating research methods into our ongoing development goals as scholars and framing methods as tools that help us achieve shared objectives in our field.


ABSTRACT This study aims to analyze the income received by farmers and to measure the marketing efficiency of oyster mushroom in Purbalingga Regency. It used survey method with primary data collected through questionnaire-based interviews. The sample consists of 22 farmers using census and 24 intermediary traders obtained by snowball sampling. Data analysis techniques used in this study are income analysis, marketing margin, farmer's share, marketing costs, marketing profit and marketing efficiency. The results show that there are three marketing channels for oyster mushroom in Purbalingga: channel I (farmers ─ consumers), channel II (farmers ─ village collectors  ─ retailers ─ consumers), and channel III (farmers ─ village collectors ─ wholesalers ─  processor ─ consumers). The results show that the marketing of oyster mushrooms in Purbalingga Regency has not been efficient. The study also indicates that the shorter the marketing channel, the greater the farmer's share. Therefore farmers and the local government should take efforts to shorten the marketing channel. Keywords: revenue, marketing channels, marketing margin, farmer's share, marketing costs, marketing profit, and marketing efficiency


The leaf photosynthetic characteristics of Lycoris aurea, the monthly dynamics in lycorine and galantamine contents in its bulb and the correlation among the photosynthetic characteristics and the lycorine and galantamine during the annual growth period were studied by using LI-6400 portable photosynthetic measurement system, high performance liquid chromatography and SPSS13.0 software. The results show that the leaf net photosynthetic rate of L. aurea differs monthly with the maximum of 12.05 μmol m -2 s -1 and minimum of 7.07 μmol m -2 s -1 in December and April, respectively; the content of both lycorine and galantamine in L. aurea bulbs also alters monthly with maxima of about 0.53 and 0.09 mg g -1 , corresponding to the largest accumulation periods of December and March, respectively; and minimum of 0.21 and 0.03 mg g -1 in January respectively; and there is a certain correlation between the net photosynthetic rate and lycorine and galantamine contents. The lycorine content in bulbs of L. aurea is higher in winter with lower light illumination and relative humidity. Photosynthesis intensity and environmental factors affect accumulation of lycorine and galantamine in L. aurea bulbs and the optimum harvest seasons of the bulbs for extracting lycorine and galantamine are in December and March, respectively.


Current statistical language modeling techniques, including deep-learning based models, have proven to be quite effective for source code. We argue here that the special properties of source code can be exploited for further improvements. In this work, we enhance established language modeling approaches to handle the special challenges of modeling source code, such as: frequent changes, larger, changing vocabularies, deeply nested scopes, etc. We present a fast, nested language modeling toolkit specifically designed for software, with the ability to add & remove text, and mix & swap out many models. Specifically, we improve upon prior cache-modeling work and present a model with a much more expansive, multi-level notion of locality that we show to be well-suited for modeling software. We present results on varying corpora in comparison with traditional N-gram, as well as RNN, and LSTM deep-learning language models, and release all our source code for public use. Our evaluations suggest that carefully adapting N-gram models for source code can yield performance that surpasses even RNN and LSTM based deep-learning models.


Meiotic recombination initiates via DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) generated by SPO11 topoisomerase-like complexes. Recombination frequency varies extensively along eukaryotic chromosomes, with hotspots controlled by chromatin and DNA sequence. To map meiotic DSBs throughout a plant genome, we purified and sequenced Arabidopsis SPO11-1-oligonucleotides. DSB hotspots occurred in gene promoters, terminators and introns, driven by AT-sequence richness, which excludes nucleosomes and allows SPO11-1 access. A strong positive relationship was observed between SPO11-1 DSBs and final crossover levels. Euchromatic marks promote recombination in fungi and mammals, and consistently we observe H3K4me3 enrichment in proximity to DSB hotspots at gene 5'-ends. Repetitive transposons are thought to be recombination-silenced during meiosis, in order to prevent non-allelic interactions and genome instability. Unexpectedly, we found strong DSB hotspots in nucleosome-depleted Helitron/Pogo/Tc1/Mariner DNA transposons, whereas retrotransposons were coldspots. Hotspot transposons are enriched within gene regulatory regions and in proximity to immunity genes, suggesting a role as recombination-enhancers. As transposon mobility in plant genomes is restricted by DNA methylation, we used the met1 DNA methyltransferase mutant to investigate the role of heterochromatin on the DSB landscape. Epigenetic activation of transposon meiotic DSBs occurred in met1 mutants, coincident with reduced nucleosome occupancy, gain of transcription and H3K4me3. Increased met1 SPO11-1 DSBs occurred most strongly within centromeres and Gypsy and CACTA/EnSpm coldspot transposons. Together, our work reveals complex interactions between chromatin and meiotic DSBs within genes and transposons, with significance for the diversity and evolution of plant genomes.


The popularization of digital technology has made shooting digital photos and using related applications a part of daily life. However, the use of flash, to compensate for low atmospheric lighting, often leads to overexposure or glossy reflections. This study proposes an auto-detection and inpainting technique to correct overexposed faces in digital photography. This algorithm segments the skin color in the photo as well as uses face detection and capturing to determine candidate bright spots on the face. Based on the statistical analysis of color brightness and filtering, the bright spots are identified. Finally, bright spots are corrected through inpainting technology. From the experimental results, this study demonstrates the high accuracy and efficiency of the method.


This paper presents an energy management system (EMS) for a stand-alone droop-controlled microgrid, which adjusts generator outputs to minimize fuel consumption and also ensures stable operation. It has previously been shown that droop gains have a significant effect on stability in such microgrids. Approximate relationships between these parameters and stability margins are therefore identified, using qualitative analysis and small-signal techniques. This allows them to be selected to ensure stability. Optimized generator outputs are then implemented in real-time by the EMS, through adjustments to droop characteristics within this constraint. Experimental results from a laboratory-sized microgrid confirm the EMS function.


This dissertation concerns the description of possessive constructions in Tongugbe, one of the many dialects of the Ewe language, which is spoken in south-eastern Ghana, along the Volta River. It presents a detailed description of the constructions; and explores the relationship that exists between clausal possessive constructions and locative and existential constructions. In addition to this, the work presents a first outline grammar of Tongugbe. The grammar presents notably preliminary findings on the duration contrast in tones of Tongugbe and a rich demonstrative paradigm. The possessive constructions can be grouped into attributive, predicative and external possessor constructions. It is shown that the structural configurations of attributive possessive constructions are functionally motivated. It is also demonstrated that structural variations in predicative possessive and external possessor constructions correspond to differences in meaning. Finally, it is argued that, synchronically, clausal possessive constructions and locative and existential constructions are not reducible to a single structure. The view supported here then is that each construction is a form-meaning pair.


PURPOSE
To assess the extent of osseointegration with rough-surface implants and new bone formation (NBF) within human freeze-dried bone blocks (h-FDB) grafted over rabbit calvaria.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 18 rectangular h-FDB blocks were stabilized bilaterally to the calvaria of nine New Zealand rabbits by two mini titanium screws each. A total of 18 rough-surface implants (5.0 × 6.0-mm) were placed, 9 simultaneously (immediate placement [IP]) on one side and 9 at 3 months after block grafting (delayed placement [DP]) on the contralateral side. At 12 weeks after the second surgical procedure, block biopsies were harvested and processed for histologic analysis. Morphometric measurements consisted of bone-to-implant contact (BIC) and the extent of NBF from the calvarial surface and outward into the block. A paired t test was applied for statistical analysis.

RESULTS
All h-FDB blocks were integrated, and the implants showed clinical stability. Histologically, the BIC was primarily between the apical end of the implants and the host rabbit calvaria. Bone growth between the implant threads was minimal and inconsistent among all animals. Morphometric measurements showed that the mean BIC of the IP and DP implants with the blocks was 10.50% ± 5.99% and 23.06% ± 9.58%, respectively (P < .001). NBF was observed primarily in the cancellous compartment of the block adjacent to the recipient calvarial bed. The extent of NBF into the block around the IP and DP implants was 9.95% ± 8.41% and 12.90% ± 11.07%, respectively (P = 0.2).

CONCLUSION
In this model, a significantly lower BIC was demonstrated when implants were placed simultaneously with h-FDB block grafting compared to those placed in a two-stage mode. However, both techniques showed limited osseointegration.


Although advances have been made in the treatment and prevention of peritoneal dialysis (PD) peritonitis, these infections are still a significant source of technique failure, morbidity, and mortality in the end-stage renal disease population. Currently, it is unclear whether PD patients who experience an episode of peritonitis early in the course of their therapy are more vulnerable to the complications of peritonitis. Using retrospective data collected at the Toronto General Hospital Home Peritoneal Dialysis Unit between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2004, we compared technique and patient outcomes between PD patients developing "early-onset" peritonitis and a matched control group of PD patients. "Early-onset" peritonitis was defined as peritonitis occurring within 3 months of PD catheter insertion. Outcomes included survival on PD or the combined endpoint of technique failure (transfer to hemodialysis) or death. The early-onset cohort was younger than the control group and had a higher peritonitis rate (1.18 episodes vs. 0.28 episodes per patient-year). Gram-positive micro-organisms, particularly coagulase-negative staphylococci, were the most common cause of peritonitis. At the conclusion of the study, 8 patients (38.1%) in the early-onset cohort had transferred to hemodialysis, 2 patients (9.5%) had died of cardiac complications, and 11 patients (52.4%) remained on PD. The combined rate of technique failure and death in the early-onset group was almost twice as high as that in the control group (0.282 vs. 0.175 per patient-year). Time to the composite end-point of technique failure or death did not significantly differ between the two groups (p = 0.26). In summary, there is an important trend toward increased death and technique failure in PD patients who develop peritonitis early in the course of their PD therapy.


Buildings constructed with cold formed steel (CFS) framing have shown great potential as a modern efficient building system. However, full understanding of their lateral structural behavior, particularly the contribution from non-designated systems, under seismic events is limited. The current North American Standards provide information that can be used to design CFS framed steel sheet shear walls which meet the seismic demands for lowto mid-rise (3-6 story) buildings. However, there is a paucity in experimental data to support design guidelines for taller mid-rise (>6 stories) and high-rise buildings (>10 stories), where large lateral load resistance is required. Moreover, existing code guidelines are based primarily on experiments involving shear walls subject to quasi-static monotonic and reversed cyclic loading protocols. In the current research project, shear walls placed in-line with gravity walls were tested at full-scale first under a sequence of increasing amplitude (in-plane) earthquake motions, and subsequently (for select specimens) under slow monotonic pull conditions to failure. Experiments were performed at the NHERI Large High-Performance Outdoor Shake Table at the University of California, San Diego. The selection of wall details was motivated by a CFS archetype building designed at 4 and 10 stories, as well as available experimental data. This paper documents the experimental response and physical damage observations of four wall specimen pairs in the test program. These particular specimens adopt compression chord stud packs with a steel tension tie-rods assembly, are either unfinished or finished on their exterior face, and laid out in a symmetric or asymmetric fashion. In addition, both Type I and "Type II" shear wall detailing are investigated.


Based on accelerated carbonation test, the variation of the carbonation resistance of ordinary concrete (C40 grade) with early age wet curing time, clinker and CaO content was studied. Results indicate that the carbonation coefficient and the accelerated carbonation depth of the concrete increased obviously with a reduction in the wet curing time at early ages, the clinker or CaO content in binder and the compressive strength at 28 d age. For example, in conditions of curing schedules with 28, 7, 3, 2 and 1 d wet curing at 20 °C with above 95% RH at early ages and then 0, 21, 25, 26 and 27 d air curing at 20 °C with 60% RH, respectively, carbonation coefficients of the concrete incorporated with 15% fly-ash and 25% slag were 1.83, 2.71, 3.61, 4.67 and 5.50 mm/a0.5 respectively, and thus it can be seen that the calculated times when concrete cover (25 mm) was completely carbonated naturally in now atmosphere (0.04% CO2) were 191, 104, 52, 31 and 20 years respectively. It is possible to predict the potential carbonation coefficient of the concrete from its clinker or CaO content in binder and from its compressive strength at 28 d age in conditions of the certain wet curing time at early ages.


Architectural design is a complex process as a result of two prominent characteristics of choice making: 1) multiple designs can fit into one intended purpose, which raises the question: how to choose the design that fits best, and 2) a multitude of decision makers have an interest in the design process, which is the problem of group choice making. The application of the field of decision theory is aimed at finding tools, methodologies and software to help people, or groups of people, make better choices. The scientific foundation of selection (choice) is preference measurement. The correctness of a decision analysis methodology is determined by the correctness of the scales used for measuring preference. All classical models of the theory of measurement generate scales to which the operations of addition and multiplication are not applicable. A new methodology called Preference Function Modeling (PFM) offers a correct model for the measurement of preference and for the selection of the most preferred alternative. In its current form however, PFM is an evaluation methodology, helping decision makers to choose the most preferred design alternative from a set of already existing alternatives. In the domain of architecture a design methodology is needed, where the design alternatives are not known a priori. The Preference-Based Design procedure proposed in this thesis offers a design methodology in which the feasibility of considered alternatives is established using the concept from the Open Design Linear Programming (LP) technique of defining an alternative as a combination of decision variable values within negotiable constraints. The PFM algorithm is used to rank the feasible design alternatives on preference. The relevance of this thesis is two-fold: 1. The quality of decisions is improved, since only feasible designs are taken into consideration. 2. The acceptance of decisions is improved, since all decision makers can see that their interests are genuinely taken into account.


Binary Decision Diagrams (BDDs) can be graphically manipulated to reduce the number of nodes and hence the area. In this context, ordering of BDDs play a major role. Most of the algorithms for input variable ordering of OBDD focus primarily on area minimization. However, suitable input variable ordering helps in minimizing the power consumption also. In this particular work, we have proposed two algorithms namely, a genetic algorithm based technique and a branch and bound algorithm to find an optimal input variable order. Of course, the node reordering is taken care of by the standard BDD package buddy-2.4. Moreover, we have evaluated the performances of the proposed algorithms by running an exhaustive search program. Experi-mental results show a substantial saving in area and power. We have also compared our techniques with other state-of-art techniques of variable ordering for OBDDs and found to give superior results.


Prior research on juvenile court processing indicates that legal and extralegal factors impact outcomes at judicial disposition. Less is known, however, if the combined effects of certain characteristics influence decision-making. Applying the liberation hypothesis, this study investigates the interactive effects of a juvenile's age, race/ethnicity, and offense severity on dispositional outcomes. Using all adjudicated complaints from North Carolina between 2011 and 2018, results suggest that irrespective of a juvenile's age, youth of color had greater odds of receiving residential placement than community-based sanctions. Regardless of offense severity, Black youth were treated more punitively than Hispanics and Whites. Findings underscore the importance of acknowledging disparities in case outcomes and creating programming options within juvenile justice to meet the needs of youth of color.


Significant gender-based health inequalities have been observed across Europe, with women reporting worse health than men. Still, there has been little examination of how the gender–health gap has changed over time, and how it has been shaped by societal gender equality. We used data from the Statistics on Income and Living Conditions Eurostat database (EU-SILC), involving 2,931,081 participants aged 25–64, for 27 European countries. Logistic regressions were performed to model the association between self-reported bad health and gender, in general and over time. Analyses were stratified by employment, education, and clusters of countries according to levels of Gender Equality Index (GEI). Adjusting for age, year, and country, bad health was 17% more likely among women, but this disadvantage ceased after accounting for education and employment. Gender–health inequalities were larger among countries with higher GEI scores and among low-educated groups. The gender–health gap did not reduce significantly between 2004 and 2016, in general and within subgroups. Although societies are becoming more equal, persistent inequalities in employment and income still lead to sustained health differences between men and women.


Purpose of review Esophageal varices and Mallory Weiss syndrome are the two major esophageal bleeding disorders. Although there have been major breakthroughs in the treatment of peptic ulcer bleeding, the management of esophageal bleeding disorders remains a challenging problem. This review focuses on studies published in the previous 12 months that provide further understanding of the appropriate treatment of various esophageal bleeding disorders. Other uncommon causes of esophageal bleeding are also discussed. Recent findings With the advances in endoscopic and pharmacologic treatments, mortality resulting from variceal hemorrhage has been substantially reduced. Band ligation is the first-line endoscopic treatment of esophageal variceal hemorrhage. Vasoactive agents such as somatostatin analog and terlipressin are both safe and effective pharmacologic treatments of esophageal variceal hemorrhage. Use of a nonselective β-blocker is still the most widely accepted treatment for both primary and secondary prophylaxis. However, the effectiveness of β-blockers is limited by intolerance and nonresponders in a significant proportion of patients. Thus, endoscopic band ligation is used increasingly as an alternative strategy for primary prophylaxis. A transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt should be reserved as rescue therapy for failure of medical and endoscopic treatments. In recent years, noninvasive surrogate markers have been reported to identify high-risk patients with large esophageal varices. Platelet count, spleen diameter, and their ratio are accurate predictors of esophageal varices in patients with cirrhosis. The endosonographic measurement of the cross-sectional surface area predicts the risk of variceal hemorrhage. For Mallory Weiss syndrome, endoscopic clipping is an emerging treatment modality, especially for deep laceration with risk of perforation. Summary A combination of various clinical, laboratory, and endosonographic parameters accurately predicts the risk of variceal hemorrhage. A streamlined screening strategy allows more cost-effective use of endoscopy and prompt prophylactic treatment for high-risk esophageal varices.


Background: Microbial penetration inside the implant's internal hole creates a bacterial reservoir that is related with an area of inflamed connective tissue opposite the fixture-abutment junction and this can affect with the health of the peri-implant tissue. Chlorhexidine (CHX) has been used to prevent internal implant contamination as a 0.2% solution, a varnish or gel. Aim: To evaluate the aerobic/anaerobic bacterial count-reduction potential of 2% CHX gel placed, at the time of surgery, in the implant screw hole over a period of minimum 90 d, and to monitor the periodontal health status of all patients, throughout the study. Material and methods: Ten partially edentulous patients received 30 DI and these implants were randomly allocated in to: Group I (test) 15 implants applied by flap or flapless surgery with 2% CHX gel application. Group II (control) 15 implants applied by flap or flapless surgery without CHX gel application. All patients were examined clinically to determine their oral health status by examination of their plaque index, PLI, Gingival index GI, Bleeding on probing, BOP, and probing pocket depth, PPD, every two weeks throughout the study. Three months later, the plaque sample was collected from the internal hole of fixture and was sent for bacteriological examination. Results: The present study shows highly significant reduction of aerobic count of bacteria from 52.1% to 100%. Also, anaerobic bacterial count was reduced from 64.6% to 100% for group that received 2% CHX gel in screw hole of implants at time of surgery. When compared, the count of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria (CFU) between test and control group, a significant reduction was found. Conclusion: The use of 2% CHX gel at the time of placement can significantly reduce bacterial counts in the implant screw hole, and this effect can be maintained for 90 d or longer.


Most researchers focus on the gait characteristics of hip and changed angle of knee joints, gait characteristics of foot is still less attention, also apply wavelet packet to analysis more detailed information of characteristics' data, and use the support vector machine algorithm to reduce the randomness, it has their unique advantages in the small sample. Summarized the above three points of the paper, the paper proposes a new gait recognition method to extract trajectory of tiptoe, uses wavelet packet to analyze it, then applies SVM for classification and recognition. Tested at the NLPR database of Chinese Academy of Sciences of 45 camera angle, we observed that the recognition rate has significantly increased, we observed that the algorithm is an effective identification method.


Melioidosis is a life-threatening infection caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei, mainly found in Southeast Asia. Recently, African foci have been identified, although reports remain mostly anecdotal. In Africa, multiple febrile diseases have been erroneously attributed to malaria in the past, and many cases of fever remain mis- or undiagnosed. Vigilance for previously under-recognized pathogens may enhance our understanding of disease epidemiology and facilitate improvement of patient care. Melioidosis may be such a condition. We summarize data on melioidosis in Africa and discuss the future directions for epidemiological, clinical and bacteriological studies. We conclude that searching for old bugs in new places is no academic treasure hunt but a clinically relevant activity to pursue.


High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has developed rapidly in recent years and is used frequently for clinical treatments in Asia and Europe with increasing clinical use and clinical trial activity in the US, making it an important medical technology with which the medical physics community must become familiar. Akin to medical devices that deliver treatments using ionizing radiation, HIFU relies on emitter geometry to non-invasively form a tight focus that can be used to affect diseased tissue while leaving healthy tissue intact. HIFU is unique in that it does not involve the use of ionizing radiation, it causes thermal necrosis in 100% of the treated
tissue volume, and it has an immediate treatment effect. However, because it is an application of ultrasound energy, HIFU interacts strongly with tissue interfaces, which makes treatment planning challenging. In order to appreciate the advantages and disadvantages of HIFU as a thermal therapy, it is important to understand the underlying physics of ultrasound
tissue interactions.
The first lecture in the session will provide an overview of the physics of ultrasound wave propagation; the mechanism for the accumulation of heat in soft-tissue; image-guidance modalities including temperature monitoring; current clinical applications and commercial devices; active clinical trials; alternate mechanisms of action (future of FUS).
The second part of the session will compare HIFU to existing ionization radiation techniques. The difficulties in defining a clear concept of absorbed dose for HIFU will be discussed. Some of the technical challenges that HIFU faces will be described, with an emphasis on how the experience of radiation oncology
physicists could benefit the field.
Learning Objectives:
1.
Describe the basic physics and biology of HIFU, including treatment delivery and image guidance techniques.
2.
Summarize existing and emerging clinical applications and manufacturers for HIFU.
3.
Understand that thermal ablation with HIFU is likely the first of several applications of the technology
4.
Learn about some similarities and differences between HIFU and ionizing radiation in terms of physics and biological effects.
5.
Learn about some of the technical challenges HIFU faces that might benefit from the experience of radiation oncology
physicists including treatment planning improvements, quality assurance procedures, and treatment risk analysis.
David Schlesinger receives research support from Elekta Instruments, AB.
Matt Eames is an employee of the Focused Ultrasound Foundation which supports research and clinical trials. Dr. Eames conducts research which is supported by the Focused Ultrasound Foundation.


This study was carried out in 2015 to assess the level of resistance of sibling species of Anopheles gambiae complex the principal malaria vector from Bichi in Kano state to three classes of insecticides; (DDT, Permethrin and Bendiocarb) approved by World Health Organization (WHO) for vector control with the aim of obtaining baseline susceptibility and resistance data by evaluating the potency of brands of insecticides used against the mosquito vector in the area where the disease is prevalent. An. gambiae larvae collected from ecologically contrasting breeding sites were reared to adults in the laboratory. Adults from the F1 progeny were assayed for resistance using the WHO adult insecticide susceptibility bioassay protocol. The mosquitoes were exposed to DDT, permethrin and bendiocarb belonging to 3 classes of insecticides. The individual sibling species were identified molecularly and the molecular resistance mechanisms characterized by SINE and kdr PCR methods respectively. The An. gambiae populations tested revealed high level of resistance to DDT and permethrin but less resistant to bendiocarb. Analysis of the genetic composition of the vector population revealed predominance of An. coluzzii (> 77%). L1014F and L1014S kdr mutations correlated to insecticide resistance phenotype expression. This study indicates differential distribution of the resistant genotype of Anopheles malaria vector between ecologically different habitats in the area. This insecticide resistance represents a threat to vector control tool and should be monitored. The information obtained could be useful in decision and planning making for vector control programs in the region. Key words—Anopheles coluzzii, Anopheles gambiae, Insecticides, Malaria control, resistance, Susceptibility


We introduce in a dynamic–contracting framework with moral hazard the possibility of recapitalization as an alternative to liquidation when a firm is in financial distress. This is achieved by considering a loss–averse agent and by allowing (but not requiring) the latter to inject additional capital into the firm when necessary. We show that firm recapitalization may arise in an optimal, long–term contract. As a consequence, we find that there are two mechanisms at a firm's disposal so as to deal with financial difficulties: one corresponds to a recapitalization process, the other to a liquidation one. The choice of mechanism is based on a cost–benefit analysis.


A combination of mandates, credits, and subsidies are employed in the US to encourage biofuel production. Recent demands for reduced federal spending have increased scrutiny of these incentives just as many are set to expire if not soon renewed by Congress. In this context, it becomes important to understand what impacts ethanol production has had on food and fuel markets and what changes can be expected if ethanol production is eliminated. We report here on a modeling study of these questions. Using a computable general equilibrium model that captures the market effects of the various interactions among fuel production, imports, exports, and consumption in equilibrium, we study two policy scenarios to elucidate the effects of ethanol production: (1) a future hypothetical scenario in which ethanol production is eliminated at the end of 2011 and (2) a historical counterfactual scenario in which ethanol production was eliminated in 1999, before it became a substantial proportion of US fuel markets. We evaluate these relative to a baseline scenario in which corn ethanol production peaks at 15 Bg/yr (in 2012) and stays fixed.We also examine the sensitivity of model outputs along two parameter dimensions: the price elasticity of the global oil supply and the elasticity of US consumer demand for gasoline. Within acceptable ranges for both parameters, we find that wholesale gasoline prices between 2000 to 2010 would have been 1.7-2.5% higher on average without the contribution of ethanol to the fuel supply. For 2012 viewed apart, this effect is substantially stronger, showing a 6-8.6% increase in the wholesale gasoline price in the no-ethanol scenario.Further, due to the fact that simulation results in these scenarios generally show prices for crude oil and refined petroleum increasing faster than those for corn and corn-based ethanol, the price disparity continues to grow larger even after ethanol production peaks in 2012. In 2025, the difference between the wholesale gasoline price in the baseline and no-ethanol scenarios is 12.5%, with a sensitivity range from 7.0 to 23.6%.We compare these results to a series of recent estimates of similar measures from Xiaodong Du and Dermot Hayes. We find that both their published results [Du and Hayes, 2009] and a recent unpublished extension of these results [Du and Hayes] imply a consistently much larger price effect of ethanol production (a 16% average increase between 2000 and 2010 relative to the mean and a 41% marginal increase in 2010). Regarding their recent unpublished extension [Du and Hayes], we discuss a number of compounding circumstances that could contribute in whole or in part to these very high estimates. While we cannot compare our results directly to either of the estimates, because of significant methodological differences, we conclude that their highly nonstandard treatment of fuel imports and the selection of elasticity parameters well below typical values is likely responsible for the high result. Although highly inelastic fuel supply conditions, such as might lead to large price spikes given sudden supply shocks in ethanol production, are certainly not impossible in the very short run, we note two points: (1) a return to the peak levels of gasoline imports of 2006 itself could make up for more than half the fuel lost from a complete elimination of fuel ethanol, and (2) given the size of the ethanol production market in the US and the import market for sugarcane based ethanol, we find it unlikely that a single disturbance, be it from drought or public policy, could provide as strong a shock as considered in Du and Hayes (i.e., a complete and immediate elimination of all fuel ethanol production).


Adolescent interpersonal violence victimization is an adverse childhood experience and a serious public health problem for youths, their families, and communities. Violence victimization includes dating violence, sexual violence, and bullying. Youth Risk Behavior Survey data for 2019 were used to examine physical and sexual dating violence; sexual violence by anyone; and bullying victimization, whether on school property or electronic, of U.S. high school students by sex, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity. In addition, this report explores frequency of dating violence and frequency of sexual violence among students who reported these forms of victimization and presents composites of dating violence and bullying. Findings reveal that 8.2% of students reported physical dating violence; 8.2% reported sexual dating violence; 10.8% reported sexual violence by anyone, of which 50% of cases were by a perpetrator other than a dating partner; 19.5% reported bullying on school property; and 15.7% reported electronic bullying victimization during the previous 12 months. Approximately one in eight students reported any dating violence, and one in four reported any bullying victimization. Female students; lesbian, gay, and bisexual students; and students not sure of their sexual identity reported the highest prevalence estimates across all five violence victimization types, any and both forms of dating violence, and any bullying victimization. Non-Hispanic white students reported the highest prevalence of bullying victimization. Among students experiencing physical or sexual dating violence or sexual violence by anyone, the most common frequency reported was one time during the previous year; higher frequency was more prevalent among male students compared with female students. These findings provide a contextual understanding of the prevalence of interpersonal violence of U.S. high school students, highlighting those with highest prevalence. Findings can be used by public health professionals to guide prevention efforts with youths in schools and communities.


Online group work has been identified as an important issue in Web-based education for a long time. With the prevalence of instant messaging in adolescents, more and more students opt to choose this emerging synchronous communication medium for online group project discussion. In this paper, we-intention to use instant messaging for online group project discussion was examined and a research model of we-intention was proposed and empirically tested with 482 students in China. The research model explains 43.2% of the variance in we-intention and attitude, anticipated emotions, group norms and social identity are found statistically significant. Implications for both researchers and practitioners are discussed.


Polymorbidity and old age are rather the rule than the exception in hospitalised patients. Malnutrition is common in such patients and should be identified by appropriate screening and assessment measures in order to devise a nutrition plan and act accordingly. Unlike in the UK or The Netherlands, malnutrition screening and nutrition teams are not mandatory for German hospitals. Malnutrition and, in particular, sarcopenia are indicators of a nutrition associated risk or increased morbidity and mortality. Malnutrition can affect patients of any medical discipline and, therefore, is managed most efficiently by the interdisciplinary and multiprofessional nutrition team. By this approach goal directed nutrition therapy can improve morbidity and mortality of hospitalised patients.