Mutation of compact silting objects is a fundamental operation in the representation theory of finite-dimensional algebras due to its connections to cluster theory and to the lattice of torsion pairs in module or derived categories. In this paper we develop a theory of mutation in the broader framework of silting or cosilting t-structures in triangulated categories. We show that mutation of pure-injective cosilting objects encompasses the classical concept of mutation for compact silting complexes. As an application we prove that any minimal inclusion of torsion classes in the category of finitely generated modules over an artinian ring corresponds to an irreducible mutation. This generalises a well-known result for functorially finite torsion classes.


Abstract Habitat alterations resulting from land‐use change are major drivers of global biodiversity losses. In Africa, these threats are especially severe. For instance, demand to convert land into agricultural uses is leading to increasing areas of drylands in southern and central Africa being transformed for agriculture. In Zimbabwe, a land reform programme provided an opportunity to study the biodiversity response to abrupt habitat modification in part of a 91,000 ha dryland area of semi‐natural savannah used since 1930 for low‐level cattle ranching. Small‐scale subsistence farms were created during 2001–2002 in 65,000 ha of this area, with ranching continuing in the remaining unchanged area. We measured the compositions of bird communities in farmed and ranched land over 8 years, commencing one decade after subsistence farms were established. Over the study period, repeated counts were made along the same 45 transects to assess species' population changes that may have resulted from trait‐filtering responses to habitat disturbance. In 2012, avian species' richness was substantially higher (+8.8%) in the farmland bird community than in the unmodified ranched area. Temporal trends over the study period showed increased species' richness in the ranched area (+12.3%) and farmland (+6.8%). There were increased abundances in birds of most sizes, and in all feeding guilds. New species did not add new functional traits, and no species with distinctive traits were lost in either area. As a result, species' diversity reduced, and functional redundancy increased by 6.8% in ranched land. By 2020, two decades after part of the ranched savannah was converted into farmland, the compositions of the two bird communities had both changed and became more similar. The broadly benign impact on birds of land conversion into subsistence farms is attributed to the relatively low level of agricultural activity in the farmland and the large regional pool of nonspecialist bird species.


This paper highlights the effects of short selling activity on the profitability and investment premiums. Recently, Fama and French (2015) extend their three-factor asset pricing model by adding profitability and investment factors. Using short interest as a proxy to measure the short selling activity, we find that the stocks without shorting show significant higher profitability premium, while short selling activity has no impact on the investment premium. We also provide evidence that the profitability premium is more likely than the investment premium to be associated with the sentiment-driven mispricing, and short sellers are skilled at eliminating sentiment-driven mispricing. Collectively, our results suggest that the two new Fama-French factors have different underlying attributions. While the profitability premium is more consistent with cash flow-based interpretation, the investment premium is more consistent with risk-based interpretations.


Abstract In automated fibre placement (AFP) process, gaps and overlaps parallel to the fibre direction can be introduced between the adjoining tapes. These gaps and overlaps can cause a reduction in strength compared with pristine conditions. Finite element modelling is an effective way to understand how the size and distribution of such gaps and overlaps influences the strength and failure development. Many modelling work showed that out-of-plane waviness and ply thickness variations caused by gaps and overlaps play an important role in inducing the strength knock-down; however, there has been a lack of effective way to explicitly model the ply waviness, which constrained the relevant research. In this work, 3D meshing tools were developed to automatically generate ply-by-ply models with gaps and overlaps. Intra-ply and inter-ply cohesive elements are also automatically inserted in the model to capture the influence of splitting and delamination. Out-of-plane waviness and ply thickness variations caused by gaps and overlaps are automatically modelled. Models with various sizes and distribution of gaps and overlaps were built to predict the reduction of strength as a function of the magnitude and type of the defects. Results of gap and overlap models will be used to guide future experimental characterization of simulated AFP process defects, manufactured by hand layup from pre-preg tape.


IL-27 is formed by the association of a cytokine subunit, p28, with the soluble cytokine receptor EBV-induced gene 3 (EBI3). The IL-27R comprises gp130 and WSX-1. The marked difference between EBI3−/− and WSX-1−/− mice suggests that p28 has functions independent of EBI3. We have identified an alternative secreted complex formed by p28 and the soluble cytokine receptor cytokine-like factor 1 (CLF). Like IL-27, p28/CLF is produced by dendritic cells and is biologically active on human NK cells, increasing IL-12- and IL-2-induced IFN-γ production and activation marker expression. Experiments with Ba/F3 transfectants indicate that p28/CLF activates cells expressing IL-6Rα in addition to the IL-27R subunits. When tested on CD4 and CD8 T cells, p28/CLF induces IL-6Rα-dependent STAT1 and STAT3 phosphorylation. Furthermore, p28/CLF inhibits CD4 T cell proliferation and induces IL-17 and IL-10 secretion. These results indicate that p28/CLF may participate in the regulation of NK and T cell functions by dendritic cells. The p28/CLF complex engages IL-6R and may therefore be useful for therapeutic applications targeting cells expressing this receptor. Blocking IL-6R using humanized mAbs such as tocilizumab has been shown to be beneficial in pathologies like rheumatoid arthritis and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. The identification of a new IL-6R ligand is therefore important for a complete understanding of the mechanism of action of this emerging class of immunosuppressors.


We use a statistical tropical cyclone (TC) model, the North Atlantic Stochastic Hurricane Model (NASHM), in combination with sea surface temperature (SST) projections from climate models, to estimate regional changes in U.S. TC activity into the 2030s. NASHM is trained on historical variations in TC characteristics with two SST indices: global–tropical mean SST and the difference between tropical North Atlantic Ocean (NA) SST and the rest of the global tropics, often referred to as "relative SST." Testing confirms the model's ability to reproduce historical U.S. TC activity as well as to make skillful predictions. When NASHM is driven by SST projections into the 2030s, overall NA annual TC counts increase, and the fractional increase is the greatest at the highest wind intensities. However, an eastward anomaly in mean TC tracks and an eastward shift in TC formation region result in a geographically varied signal in U.S. coastal activity. Florida's Gulf Coast is projected to see significant increases in TC activity relative to the long-term historical mean, and these increases are fractionally greatest at the highest intensities. By contrast, the northwestern U.S. Gulf Coast and the U.S. East Coast will see little change.


Up to the present time nematodes have been considered to be pseudocoelomatic organisms (Turk, 1903; Goldschmidt, 1906; Chitwood and Chitwood, 1950). These authors failed to observe true membranes completely surrounding the organs and separating them from the body cavity and were only able to detect net-like tissues arising from mesenchymatous cells covering or partially supporting the organs (pseudocoelomatic membranes and mesenteries) and series of isolated cells (coelomocytes) (Chitwood and Chitwood, 1950). Observations by Grimaldi De Zio and Morone De Lucia in 1974 revealed the presence of a true membrane completely enveloping the gonads of species of Longidorus (Micoletzky) Filipjev and Xiphinema Cobb (Dorylaimida: Longidoridae). Further studies with the electron microscope, carried out in the Laboratorio di Nematologia agraria, have confirmed these observations and have led to the discovery of a similar structure along the digestive tract and lining the somatic muscles.


Bioturbating animals modify the original mineralogy, porosity, organic content, and fabric of mud, thus affecting the burial diagenetic pathways of potential hydrocarbon source, seal, and reservoir rocks. High-sensitivity, synchrotron rapid scanning X-ray fluorescence elemental mapping reveals that producers of phycosiphoniform burrows systematically partition redox-sensitive trace elements (i.e., Fe, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, and As) in fine-grained siliciclastic rocks. Systematic differences in organic carbon content (total organic carbon >1.5 wt%) and quality (Δ13Corg~0.6‰) are measured between the burrow core and host sediment. The relative enrichment of redox-sensitive elements in the burrow core does not correlate with significant neo-formation of early diagenetic pyrite (via trace metal pyritization), but is best explained by physical concentration of clay- and silt-sized components. A measured loss (~–15%) of the large-ionic-radius elements Sr and Ba from both burrow halo and core is most likely associated with the release of Sr and Ba to pore waters during biological (in vivo) weathering of silt- to clay-sized lithic components and feldspar. In conclusion, this newly documented effect has significant potential to inform the interpretation of geochemical proxy and rock property data, particularly from shales, where elemental analyses are commonly employed to predict reservoir quality and support paleoenvironmental analysis.


Patients with myelomonocytic and monocytic AML are often resistant to current standards of care. LILRB4, an immunosuppressive myeloid checkpoint, is expressed in myelomonocytic and monocytic AML and CMML. Preclinical evaluation of a novel anti-LILRB4 IgG1 monoclonal antibody, IO-202, demonstrated 3 mechanisms of action: 1) activation of effector T-cells; 2) prevention of leukemic blast infiltration; and 3) killing of LILRB4-high blasts via ADCC and ADCP.
 IO-202 exhibits high affinity binding to human LILRB4, blocking APOE binding and activation of LILRB4. Inhibiting this pathway activates T-cell cytotoxicity against leukemic cells, reversing T-cell suppression mediated by AML cells in vitro. In a syngeneic mouse AML model, IO-202 increases CD8+ T cells, resulting in tumor growth inhibition. In mouse xenograft models, IO-202 inhibits AML tumor growth, prolongs survival, and blocks tissue infiltration of leukemia cells. IO-202 depletes leukemic cells expressing high levels of LILRB4 in vitro through ADCC and ADCP. In cynomolgus monkeys IO-202 exhibited the expected PK profile. In a GLP 4-week repeated-dose IV toxicity study with a 10-week recovery period in cynomolgus monkeys, IO-202 was well-tolerated at all doses tested, up to 180 mg/kg/dose. IO-202-related microscopic findings were noted in the brain, spleen and lung; the microscopic finding of mild multifocal gliosis at ≥60 mg/kg/dose was considered adverse. At the end of the recovery period, all findings showed signs of complete or partial reversibility. TheNOAEL was 20 mg/kg, providing a sufficient safety margin for the clinical starting dose of 0.03 mg/kg. The nonclinical assessment provides a comprehensive understanding of IO-202 and is adequate to support its evaluation in the proposed Phase 1 study.
 Study Design and Methods
 Major inclusion criteria for the phase 1 study (NCT04372433) include: 1) Age > 18; 2) Relapsed AML with myelomonocytic or monoblastic/monocytic differentiation or CMML and has failed treatment with available active therapies; 3) adequate renal/hepatic function; and 4) ECOG 0-2.
 Major exclusion criteria include: 1) HSCT within 60 days, on calcineurin inhibitors, or chronic GVHD; 2) chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or investigational agents within 7 days; 3) significant cardiac disease; 4) active infection; 5) uncontrolled CNS leukemia; and 6) hyperleukocytosis (> 25 x 109/L, although hydroxyurea is permitted).
 The primary objective is assessment of safety and tolerability at increasing doses of IO-202 to estimate the MTD or MAD, and select the RP2D. Secondary objectives include characterizing PK, immunogenicity, and preliminary anti-leukemia activity. Biomarker evaluation will include changes in blasts and immune cells, cytokine profiling, LILRB4 expression level and receptor occupancy, and MRD assessment.
 Dose escalation will employ an accelerated titration scheme to minimize exposure to low-dose levels, with conversion to a 3+3 design with the occurrence of > Grade 2 AEs. The RP2D will be determined by the totality of data including the MAD or MTD, PK, PD, and AEs during a 28-day DLT evaluation period.
 After RP2D determination, an expansion cohort will be enrolled to assess the preliminary efficacy of IO-202 in R/R myelomonocytic and monocytic AML. In addition to descriptive statistics for AEs, PK, PD, and response rates, a Bayesian estimation of DLTs will be performed to further assess safety. If there is a >80% probability of DLTs being > 20%, the study will be paused to further evaluate the safety findings.
 A planned protocol amendment will evaluate combination therapies with IO-202, including IO-202 + azacitidine.

 DiNardo: Jazz: Honoraria; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Takeda: Honoraria; Novartis: Consultancy; Calithera: Research Funding; MedImmune: Honoraria; Daiichi Sankyo: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; ImmuneOnc: Honoraria; Notable Labs: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Agios: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Syros: Honoraria; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding. Pollyea:Karyopharm: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy; Agios: Consultancy; Celgene/BMS: Consultancy; Pfizer: Consultancy; Takeda: Consultancy; Daiichi Sankyo: Consultancy; Abbvie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy; 47: Consultancy, Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy; Glycomimetics: Other; Syros: Consultancy; Syndax: Consultancy. Konopleva:Reata Pharmaceutical Inc.;: Patents & Royalties: patents and royalties with patent US 7,795,305 B2 on CDDO-compounds and combination therapies, licensed to Reata Pharmaceutical; Forty-Seven: Consultancy, Research Funding; Calithera: Research Funding; Ablynx: Research Funding; Cellectis: Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy, Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sanofi: Research Funding; Kisoji: Consultancy; Ascentage: Research Funding; Stemline Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Rafael Pharmaceutical: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy; F. Hoffmann La-Roche: Consultancy, Research Funding; Eli Lilly: Research Funding; Agios: Research Funding. Hong:Roche: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Immune-Onc Therapeutics, Inc.: Current Employment. Huang:Immune Onc Therapeutics, Inc: Current Employment; Roche: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Exelixis: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Song:Immune Onc Therapeutics: Current Employment; Roche: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Wieland:Immune-Onc Therapeutics: Consultancy. Woodard:Immune-Onc Therapeutics, Inc: Current Employment; Bellicum, Inc: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company, Ended employment in the past 24 months. Liao:Immune Onc Therapeutics: Current Employment. Zhang:Immune-Onc Therapeutics: Research Funding. Patel:Celgene: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; DAVA Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria; France Foundation: Honoraria; Agios: Consultancy. Aribi:Seattle Genetics: Consultancy.


ABSTRACT Explanations of aggressive and antisocial behaviour often refer to impairments in self-regulation, or the ability to implement control over ones thoughts, emotions and behaviours. However, the evidence that impaired self-regulation is associated with antisocial behaviour is somewhat mixed, and is likely to depend on the type (e.g. reactive versus proactive aggression) and severity of the antisocial behaviour. The amygdala and prefrontal cortex are critically involved in the process of self-regulation, and neuroimaging and behavioural methods, including the role of executive functions, have been used to study abnormalities of prefrontal structure and function in individuals who display aggressive and antisocial behaviours. The functioning of these circuits is also influenced by activity of the autonomic nervous system, and a robust and consistent relationship has been observed between low resting heart rate and violent and non-violent crime. Understanding the mechanisms underlying this relationship may lead to the development of interventions aimed at reducing aggressive and antisocial behaviour based on a well-defined mechanism of change. Neuroimaging and physiology research on heart-brain interactions offers new insights in to the role of self-regulation in aggressive and antisocial behaviour, and for understanding who might benefit the most from interventions aimed at improving self-regulation.


In most transmission channels, bandwidth is at a premium and an important attribute of any good digital signaling scheme is its ability to make efficient use of the bandwidth. Conventional Nyquist-type pulse amplitude modulation signaling schemes, which are designed to eliminate intersymbol interference, achieve high data rates only at the expense of a large number of signal levels. In many applications, correlative coding or partial response signaling, which introduces intersymbol interference in a controlled way, is able to achieve high data rates with fewer levels and hence with better error rate performance. In addition to higher data rates, correlative schemes achieve convenient spectral shapes and have error-detecting capabilities without introducing redundancy into the data stream. This paper explains how correlative schemes work and why they are advantageous.


Electroencephalography (EEG) is a technique that can be used in non-invasive brain-machine interface (BMI) systems to register brain electrical activity. The EEG signals are non-linear and non-stationary, making the decoding procedure a complex task. Deep learning techniques have been successfully applied in several research fields, often improving the results compared with traditional approaches. Therefore, it is believed that these techniques can also improve the process of decoding brain signals in BMI systems. In this work, we present the implementation of two deep learning-based decoders and we compared the results with other state of art deep learning methods. The first decoder uses long short-term memory (LSTM) recurrent neural network and the second, entitled EEGNet-LSTM, combines a well-known neural decoder based on convolutional neural networks, called EEGNet, with some LSTM layers. The decoders have been tested using data set 2a from BCI Competition IV, and the results showed that the EEGNet-LSTM decoder has been approximately 23% better than the competition-winning decoder. A Wilcoxon t-test showed a significant difference between the two decoders (Z = 2.524, p = 0.012). The LSTM-based decoder has been approximately 9% higher than the best decoder from the same competition. However, there was no significant difference (Z = 1.540, p = 0.123). In order to verify the replication of the EEGNet-LSTM decoder on another data, we performed a test with PhysioNet's Physiobank EEG Motor Movement/Imagery dataset. The EEGNet-LSTM presented a higher performance (0.85 accuracy) than the EEGNet (0.82 accuracy). The results of this work can be important for the development of new research, as well as EEG-based BMI systems, which can benefit from the high precision of neural decoders.


Suppose that Landowner purchased a twenty-acre parcel that is subject to a perpetual conservation easement that limits development to one residential structure. Donor's objectives in granting the easement were to preserve open space, swampland, and a lake located on the parcel. Greenacres, a nonprofit charitable corporation with 501(c)(3) status, owns the right to enforce the easement. Donor claimed a charitable income tax deduction for the easement.


BACKGROUND
During the Croatian War of Independence, 1991-1995, Croatian soldiers were exposed to traumatic and stressful events. Certain number of soldiers who took part in the war, developed depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Stress is one of the etiological factors in the development of myofascial pain (MPS), although the mechanism of these processes is not entirely understood. The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of myofascial pain among Croatian war veterans with depression and PTSD, association between MPS and severity of depression, to describe the most common locations of trigger points in the region of head and neck, and to find out if there is any association in frequency between MPS and endotracheal intubation.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS
A total of 101 Croatian war veterans suffering from PTSD and depression participated in the current study. Diagnosis of myofascial pain was based on detailed anamnestic history and careful clinical examination.

RESULTS
Our findings showed a high rate of myofascial pain among Croatian war veterans, with occipital region and right temporal region as the most common places of trigger points. Higher severity of depression was accompanied by a higher percentage of subjects with MPS. Finally, there was no significant association between endotracheal intubation and development of MPS among the war veterans.

CONCLUSIONS
It can be concluded that the rate of myofascial pain among Croatian war veterans is high and therefore it must be considered in patients with depression and PTSD. Moreover, the severity of depressive symptomatology seems to be related to the presence of myofascial pain.


A novel single-feed broadband circularly polarized patch antenna is proposed. The proposed antenna has a simple structure, consisting of a corner-truncated square radiating patch, an L-shaped ground plane, and a probe feed. Through a via hole in the vertical ground of the L-shaped ground plane, the radiating patch is easily excited by a probe feed oriented in the same plane as the patch, and circular polarization (CP) radiation over a wide frequency range (>10%) is achieved. Experimental results of a constructed prototype with the center operating frequency at about 2500 MHz showed that the antenna has an impedance bandwidth (1.5:1 VSWR) of about 30%, a 3-dB axial-ratio CP bandwidth of about 10.4%, and a gain level of 8.5 dBi or larger within the CP bandwidth. In addition to the low cost of the proposed antenna due to its simple structure, the obtained CP performance is among the best that have been reported for single-feed single-element patch antennas.


When a tennis ball rests on top of a basketball and both drop to the floor together, the tennis ball is projected vertically at high speed. A mass-spring model of the impact, as well as air track data, suggest that the tennis ball should be projected at relatively low speed. Measurements of the forces on each ball and the bounce of vertically aligned superballs are used to resolve the discrepancy.


Contemporary understandings of the concept of organisational alignment in the management and education literature are predominantly strategic and structural in nature. While researchers have postulated cognitive aspects of the concept of organisational alignment, no definitive conception of a cognitive dimension has been proffered. Furthermore, while strategic and structural aspects of organisational alignment are considered important in research-based proposals, an understanding and agreement is yet to be fully established in the education literature regarding the significance of cognitive processes, for whole school capacity building.
Based partly on the researcher"s interest in the nature of cognitive processes in organisations, and partly on a review of authoritative literature on the concepts of organisational alignment and capacity building, the aim of the doctoral study was twofold: first, to explore the core underlying processes of cognition that emerge within a school"s professional learning community upon completing a whole school revitalisation process emphasising strategic and structural aspects of alignment; second, to explore the impact of emergent cognitive processes on capacity building for whole school improvement.
Data were collected through various methods such as in-depth individual interviews; focus groups; mindmapping; observations and focused conversations with teachers from two Singaporean schools that had undergone a three-year trial implementation of a whole school revitalisation program entitled Innovative Designs for Enhancing Achievement in Schools (IDEAS). This program emphasises strategic/structural alignment in its core processes and also recognises the importance of shared cognition. The research data were analysed using procedures underpinning the constructivist approach to grounded theory methodology. The collection, analysis and interpretation of data occurred in four distinct stages that resulted in two conceptual frameworks emerging: (1) an explanatory framework of the emergence of organisational cognisance and (2) the conceptual model of the impact of organisational cognisance on enhanced school capacity.
The explanatory framework of the emergence of organisational cognisance comprises five elements: "schema"; "factors of influence"; "factors of support"; "cognitive change dynamics"; and the core concept of "the emergence of organisational cognisance". The framework details the developmental nature of the effect of whole school revitalisation on the emergence of organisational cognisance.
The insights gained into the construct of organisational cognisance were explored through further data analysis to help enhance current understandings of school capacity building. To this end, a conceptual model that details the impact of organisational cognisance on enhanced school capacity was constructed out of the second data analysis. The model captures an understanding of organisational cognisance as a vital source in developing aspects of personal capacity, interpersonal capacity and professional capacity for enhancing schoolwide capacity.
The significance of the research resides in two postulations: first, of a cognitive dimension to the concept of organisational alignment; second, of its importance for school capacity building.


Applying a sociolinguistic approach to the study of neologisms,
 this paper discusses the actuation and diffusion of new words in Early Modern
 English (EModE; 1500–1700) and draws some parallels with word coining in the
 comparable but more recent period of Early Modern Finnish (EModF; 1810–1880).
 The success of this exercise ultimately depends on the data and tools available
 for ascertaining the status of neologisms in a broader synchronic and diachronic
 context. The use of historical dictionaries and digital databases shows that
 many words that were earlier considered particular innovations in EModE are now
 up for re-evaluation. Determining their actual moments of coinage and entry into
 the language may be beyond historical lexicology and lexicography, but the new
 tools make it possible to better monitor their provenance and process of
 diffusion over time.


Abstract A phenotypic resistance test based on recombinant expression of the active HIV protease in E. coli from patient blood samples was developed. The protease is purified in a rapid one-step procedure as active enzyme and tested for inhibition by five selected synthetic inhibitors (amprenavir, indinavir, nelfinavir, ritonavir, and saquinavir) used presently for chemotherapy of HIV-infected patients. The HPLC system used in a previous approach was replaced by a continuous fluorogenic assay suitable for high-throughput screening on microtiter plates. This reduces significantly the total assay time and allows the determination of inhibition constants (Ki). The Michaelis constant (Km) and the inhibition constant (Ki) of recombinant wildtype protease agree well with published data for cloned HIV-protease. The enzymatic test was evaluated with recombinant HIV-protease derived from eight HIV-positive patients scored from sensitive to 'highly resistant' according to mutations detected by genotypic analysis. The measured Ki values correlate well with the genotypic resistance scores, but allow a higher degree of differentiation. The non-infectious assay enables a more rapid yet sensitive detection of HIV protease resistance than other phenotypic assays.


Background: Onychomycosis; fungal infection of nails account for about half of the nail diseases. Common site of involvement is toenails. Various etiological agents including dermatophytes, yeasts and non-dermatophytic moulds (NDM) are responsible. It is difficult to treat onychomycosis as compare to other dermatophytic infections because of the inherent slow growth of the nail. Aim: To diagnose etiological agents of onychomycosis on KOH, Calcofluor white (CFW), KOH treated Nail Clipping with Periodic Acid Schiff (KONCPA) and SDA culture. Objectives: 1) To determine the fungal etiological agents of onychomycosis. 1) To correlate clinical parameters with the mycological findings. Methods: The study was carried out in department of Microbiology, MGIMS, Sewagram, Wardha. A total of 44 cases with signs of onychomycosis were enrolled in the study which were subjected for microscopic examination by 20% KOH, CFW and KONCPA. Mycological culture was done on Sabouraud's dextrose agar (with and without antibiotics). Results: On analysis, the positivity by 20% KOH andCFW was 45.5%, 63.4% respectively while by KONCPA it was found to be 25%. In 38.6% fungal cultures revealed growth. At present, the etiological agents were dermatophytes (12.5%), especially Trichophyton rubrum, nondermatophytic isolates (75%) include Aspergillus spp., Penicillium species, Rhizopus and Candida spp. (8.3%). In our study toenails were affected in 84% and distolateral subungual onychomycosis (DLSO) was the commonest clinical presentation. Conclusion: Along with dermatophytes, NDM and yeasts are also important etiological agents of onychomycosis in our set up.


Middle ear infection is one of the most common childhood diseases that causes inner ear pathology, resulting in hearing loss and communication disorders. The presence of sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in the extended high frequency range (8–20 kHz) in children with otitis media histories has been well established. Pathological changes of the cochlear lateral wall and the organ of Corti have been reported in animal models of experimental otitis media (OM). The results of inoculation of Streptococcus pneumoniae in the middle ear suggest that bacterial OM can produce damage of both outer and inner hair cells. This damage may be a significant factor in temporary and permanent SNHL associated with bacterial OM. Bacteria, bacterial products and inflammatory mediators crossing the round window membrane are known to cause structural as well as biochemical changes of inner ear tissues and lead to the functional damage of the inner ear through the disruption of inner ear homeostasis and auditory transduction system. Many factors, namely, cytokines, nitric oxide or other oxygen derived radicals, prostaglandins, leukotrienes, platelet activating factors and bacteria-derived toxins are all involved in the processes that lead to altered expression of proteins, structural damage and apoptotic changes in the inner ear. Moderate SNHL was reported in the higher and middle frequencies after placing of IL‐2 or IL‐8 on the round window membrane. More recently, leakage of Evans blue dye from the vessels in the cochlear lateral wall after intraperitoneal injection of LPS in chinchillas was reported, indicating the possible disruption of the blood labyrinth barrier. An increased understanding of host and pathogen interactions as well as more detailed clarification of the mechanisms of inner ear tissue damage by inflammatory mediators and bacterial products is necessary for the better treatment of OM and prevention of SNHL.


Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPAR γ) is a nuclear receptor that mediates the antidiabetic effects of thiazolidinediones. PPAR γ is present in adipose tissue and becomes elevated in fatty livers, but the roles of specific tissues in thiazolidinedione actions are unclear. We studied the function of liver PPAR γ in both lipoatrophic A-ZIP/F-1 (AZIP) and wild type mice . In AZIP mice, ablation of liver PPAR γ reduced the hepatic steatosis, but worsened the hyperlipidemia, triglyceride clearance, and muscle insulin resistance. Inactivation of AZIP liver PPAR γ also abolished the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of rosiglitazone, demonstrating that, in the absence of adipose tissue, the liver is a primary and major site of thiazolidinedione action. In contrast, rosiglitazone remained effective in non-lipoatrophic mice lacking liver PPAR γ , suggesting that adipose tissue is the major site of thiazolidinedione action in typical mice with adipose tissue. Interestingly, mice without liver PPAR γ, but with adipose tissue, developed relative fat intolerance, increased adiposity, hyperlipidemia, and insulin resistance. Thus, liver PPAR γ regulates triglyceride homeostasis, contributing to hepatic steatosis, but protecting other tissues from triglyceride accumulation and insulin resistance.


Significant "breathing effect" calls for exploring efficient strategies to address the intrinsic issues of silicon anode of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). We here report a controllable synthetic route to fabricate the silicon-carbon hybrids, in which porous silicon nanoparticles (p-SiNPs) are loaded in void carbon spheres by forming the yolk-shell p-SiNPs@hollow carbon (HC) nanohybrids tunable. A set of controlled experiments accompanying with systematic characterizations demonstrate that the void space and mass loading of Si can be adjusted in an effective way so that the nanostructure can be optimized with achieving improved electrochemical performance as anode of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The optimized p-SiNPs@HC nanohybrids show excellent performance as anode for Li-ion battery, delivering a capacity of more than 1400 mA h g-1 after 100 cycles at 0.2 A g-1 and 720 mA h g-1 at a high current density of 4 A g-1. The present work may provide us with an attractive and promising strategy for advancing Si-based anode materials due to advantages of tunable structure of silicon-carbon nanohybrids for optimizing electrochemical performance.


To evaluate the possibility of information leakage (tapping) by observing electromagnetic disturbance radiated from a PC display, the most straightforward way is to reconstruct the displayed image from the measured signal using a special receiver. However, such a receiver is neither popular nor commercially available. Therefore, we propose two types of evaluation methods that are based on (1) the measurement of the difference in level when different images are displayed, and (2) the measurement of the frequency component of the horizontal sync signal within the electromagnetic disturbance. In both proposed methods, we only need a spectrum analyzer that is commonly used for EMI measurement.


ABSTRACT
Deaths related to exsanguination are not rare; however, most are related to large-caliber blood vessel or organ disruption. This article reports 2 deaths from external hemorrhage arising from superficial lower extremity trauma in persons with peripheral vascular disease and anticoagulant therapy. The first involved a 78-year-old woman who was found unconscious in her home by a relative, with a plastic bag tied around her left foot and evidence of profuse hemorrhage arising from a left great toenail partial avulsion injury. The second involved a 48-year-old male resident of an adult group home who was involved in a physical altercation with a group home employee, who reportedly kicked the decedent in the right shin, resulting in extensive hemorrhage and death. The cases highlight the fact that lethal exsanguination can occur from superficial trauma. Persons with peripheral vascular disease and those taking anticoagulants may be at particular risk for such deaths.


The literature review demonstrates that a mechanism exists that enhances fatigue life of asphalt concrete mixtures as rest periods are introduced in fatigue testing. Results are presented and analyzed from controlled displacement, cyclic crack propagation tests in which rest periods were randomly introduced. The results demonstrate that a "healing" mechanism does indeed result in the requirement of a greater level of work to drive a crack following a rest period than was required before the rest period was introduced. The effort to identify the mechanism of chemical healing in the microcrack process zone is confounded by the concomitant occurrence of viscoelastic relaxation. Schapery's correspondence principle of nonlinear viscoelastic media was successfully used to separate viscoelastic relaxation from chemical healing. Application of the procedure of separating out the viscoelastic relaxation yields a method by which to quantify chemical healing in the microcracks of the process zone preceding the macrocrack. Chemical healing as a function of rest periods is quantified using a healing index based on pseudo-energy-density. This healing index is presented for three asphalts of varied composition.


The 2006 convective season across the MidMississippi Valley region was one of the busiest in recent memory. The number of severe weather reports received within the Weather Forecast Office (WFO) St. Louis (LSX) County Warning Area (CWA) in 2006 has become one of the largest within recent years. A widespread damaging wind and tornado event occurred during the afternoon and early evening of 2 April 2006 and affected much of the WFO LSX CWA. Ten tornadoes occurred within the WFO LSX CWA with the greatest concentration of tornadoes and subsequent structural damage occurring over parts of central and southwest Illinois. Three of the tornadoes caused F2 damage, one F1 damage while the remaining six tornadoes produced F0 damage. The storm system was responsible for two fatalities and twenty injuries. The majority of the injuries occurred across southwest Illinois where one large department store, nearby businesses and homes were severely damaged by a tornado in the Fairview Heights – O'Fallon area in St. Clair County Illinois. It is well known that bow echoes and quasi-linear convective systems QLCSs often produce swaths of strong to severe straight-line winds generally F0-F2 in damage intensity (Fujita 1978). Recent numerical simulations have shown that damaging surface winds may be created by meso-y scale vortices or mesovortices that often form along the leading edge of the bow echo (Trapp and Weisman, 2003). These mesovortices have been observed along the leading edge of QLCSs at low-levels (generally 0-3/4 km) at or north of the bow apex (Funk 1999, Przybylinski et al. 2000, Atkins and Przybylinski 2000, and Atkins et al. 2005). In addition to the damaging winds mainly focused along the southern periphery of the mesovortex, non-supercell tornadoes have also been documented during the life time of these circulations. However, not all mesovortices become tornadic. The characteristics between non-tornadic and tornadic mesovortices are not well understood. During the early afternoon two lines of discrete storms with a few embedded supercells formed over parts of north-central through central Missouri. As the line traversed east into east-central Missouri several storm mergers and interactions lead to a nearly solid QLCS with embedded bowing segments within the line. The merger of the two convective lines to the north occurred as the system crossed the _______________________________________________ *Corresponding author address: Ron W. Przybylinski NOAA / National Weather Service, St. Charles, MO. e-mail: email@example.com Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. Extensive wind damage occurred over the immediate St. Louis metropolitan area while non-supercell tornadoes and wind damage occurred over parts of west-central and southwest Illinois. Some of the greatest structural damage occurred along the path of the tornadic mesovortices over the Fairview Heights – O'Fallon Illinois area similar to the 10 June 2003 St. Louis bow echo event. A brief description of the mesoscale environment is discussed in Section 2. Section 3 provides a radar overview of the event and the damage that was created. Detailed radar and damage survey / mesovortex track information will be presented in this section. This is followed by a survey of the structural characteristics of the mesovortices that were identified and a comparison to other tornadic and non-tornadic circulations from previously studied cases.


Exercise behavior research typically suffers from attrition and other forms of missing data. In studies that suffer from this common malady, several researchers have demonstrated that correct maximum likelihood estimation with missing data can be obtained under mild assumptions concerning the missing data mechanism. Model estimation with distinct missing data patterns can, in many cases, be carried out utilizing existing structural equation modeling software that allow for the simultaneous analysis of mean and covariance structures for multiple groups. Findings are discussed in relation to the utility of latent variable structural equation modeling techniques for analysis with incomplete data in the study of social-psychological determinants of exercise behavior.


The seventh goal of the MDGs is to ensure environmental sustainability which includes as its targets: increasing access to new technologies to support sustainable development by making information about sustainable practices more widespread, and bringing new technologies to rural areas such that people will be able to have better access to information and employment without having to migrate to urban areas; these would without doubt help to system the flow of rural-urban migration and as well stem the growth of slums. Good quality housing as a basic need is lacking for a sizeable number of people around the globe but seem most severe in developing economies including Nigeria. Also few houses are available, especially in the urban centers, to the ever increasing number of workers in both formal and informal sectors. The debates on the direction of housing and welfare policy have often been guided by assumptions derived from a preponderance of Anglo-American cases and perspectives. The purpose of this study is to present an alternative approach to housing policies especially in Nigeria; and we have come to the inescapable conclusion that housing is a social responsibility which cannot be left to the free play of market forces. This study therefore recommends the need to strengthen institutions and overhaul systems and processes for a more virile housing sector such that a balance between the urban housing units and the rural housing units could be attained.


Passive wavelength division (de)multiplexer (WDM) devices are required as basic building blocks for WDM-based on-chip optical interconnects. In this application, many copies of the devices will be placed throughout a single die, requiring that the device occupy as small a footprint as possible. Furthermore, it is critical that the demultiplexing characteristics be very uniform from device to device, therefore the device must be tolerant to small fabrication variations. There are various wavelength demultiplexer designs that lend themselves to on-chip integration with CMOS integrated circuits and that could potentially reach the above specifications. In this presentation we will show the layout and simulation of demultiplexer designs based on cascaded Mach-Zehnder wavelength splitters and on Echelle gratings and compare these to measurement results of realized devices. The results on the Mach-Zehnder devices show that this type of device is relatively sensitive to process variations. A fit of a device model to the measured curves shows that the device variations result primarily from random phase errors in the optical delay lines, which are probably due to small width variations in the waveguides. This problem should be strongly reduced in devices based on Echelle gratings, because in this case the light does not propagate through channel waveguides in the part of the device that shapes the optical response. This assumption is confirmed by the measurement results, which show good demultiplexer response and excellent reproducibility between devices.


Innovation Paper: With ever-increasing numbers of students entering university, large classes are becoming the norm rather than the exception for universities in many parts of the world such as Australia and some areas of the USA. This is particularly true in technical degrees such as engineering and IT. Cohorts of around 700 or even 1000 students are no longer uncommon. With so many students it can be difficult for academics to manage the administration of these classes, taking time away from curriculum development and teaching duties. Hundreds of email enquiries grace the modern academics' inbox, and in addition, increasingly there are multiple communication channels to monitor such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, LMS discussion forums, LMS instant messaging, and many more.The IT industry has had a long history of dealing with large volumes of enquiries or in the case of software development, 'bug' reports. Further, tools developed by the IT industry have increasingly been seen outside the IT sector to help with nonIT service delivery. This project sought to use IT industry knowledge and tools to manage the administration of our large first-year engineering class Introduction to Engineering Projects, a project subject that sees approximately 1000 students per year asymmetrically split between approximately 700 students in the first semester and approximately 300 students in the second semester. To that end, in the second semester of 2021 (July – November) we implemented a service management tool, Atlassian's Jira Service Management Cloud, to manage our large volume of student enquiries, replacing traditional emails and most other communication channels.While we discovered these tools can be complex to set up, once set up they significantly improved academic-student communication and communication management. The tool allowed for emails to also feed into the enquiry portal, simplifying where students submit enquiries to coordination staff. Staff found it easier to respond to queries, clarity on which enquiries had been dealt with or who was responsible for responding to open enquiries, and students found we communicated with them in a timely manner. A further trial will be run in our larger first semester in 2022 (March – June). We would recommend academics consider IT service management tools for communication/query management of their large classes, especially where responsibility for responding to enquiries is delegated among a team and not just a single individual.


The presence of acute or chronic respiratory failure is often seen as a terminal phase of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. A great variability in end-of-life practice is observed in these patients mainly because physicians are not always able to correctly predict survival. There is a need for a clear discussion about decision making earlier than when acute respiratory failure ensues. Indeed, a perceived poor quality of life does not necessarily correlate with a clear willingness to refuse invasive or noninvasive mechanical ventilation. It has been suggested to start palliative care earlier, together with curative and restorative care, when there is an increased intensity of symptoms. The patients eligible for palliative care are those complaining of breathlessness, pain, fatigue and depression, which in some studies accounted for a prevalence much higher than 50%. Among comfort measures for palliation, oxygen is frequently prescribed even when the criteria for long-term home oxygen therapy are not met; however, when compared with air, no benefits on dyspnoea have been found. The only drug with a proven effect on dyspnoea is morphine, but not when it is delivered with a nebuliser. Finally, noninvasive ventilation may be used only as a comfort measure for palliation to maximise comfort by minimising adverse effects.


Myeloid progenitor cells were highly purified from normal human bone marrow by positive immunoselection with high-affinity monoclonal antibodies linked to magnetic beads and were successfully infected in vitro with the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). From 99 to 100 percent pure bone marrow cells expressing the CD34 phenotypic marker were obtained. These cells were devoid of mature myeloid or T cell surface and intracellular markers as analyzed by immunohistochemical staining and flow cytometry. HIV-1 particles were detected by supernatant reverse transcriptase activity and transmission electron microscopy 40 to 60 days after infection. Viral particles were predominantly observed assembling and accumulating from within intracellular membranes, while phenotypically the cells were observed to have differentiated into CD4+ monocytes. These studies have important implications in understanding the pathogenesis of HIV-1 as well as the possible cause of certain of the observed hematologic abnormalities in HIV-1 infection. They also indicate that the bone marrow may serve as a potentially important reservoir of HIV-1 in the body.


The demand for flexible devices including solar cells, memories and batteries has increased rapidly over the past decades. In most flexible devices, polymer-based materials are used to enable the mechanical deformations such as bending or folding. Shape Memory Polymers (SMPs) is a high molecular compound polymer with flexibility and shape recovery characteristics. In this work, flexible shape memory device was fabricated by simply coating the conducting material, carbon nano-tube (CNT), on a shape memory polymer. Furthermore, durability of the device under various type of mechanical deformations was assessed. It is believed that the result of this work will aid in realization of a stretchable and wearable electronic device for practical applications.


Marshall (2005) developed the concept of characteristic structure of a street network as a characteristic set of indicators extracted from the street network through a process which he called "route structure analysis". In this paper we propose an integrated process for street network generation and route structure analysis embedded in a parametric urban design process. The street generator is compatible with a larger system aiming at the production of parametric urban designs. The system has been built in a parametric CAD environment and encompasses a method for interactive urban design allowing for dynamic visual responsiveness to morphological change and data change. The street network generator, presented in this paper, is based on a recursive rule which subdivides rectangles within the bounding box of a site area. For each set of goal inputs a street network is generated and "complexity" and "relative connectivity" are calculated through a semiautomatic procedure.


Background: Different studies have been done on Hypericum anti-depressant effects, but only a few ones have documented in vivo anti-inflammatory properties of Hypericum following systemic administration. Objectives: This survey was designed to evaluate the potential effects of Hypiran, a hydro-alcoholic extract of St. John's Wort, for the treatment and controlling inflammation in animal models of ulcerative colitis. Methods: In this experimental study, ulcerative colitis was induced in the male Wistar rats by luminal instillation of acetic acid. Animals in the treatment groups received Hypiran (150 mg/kg PO) or Prednisolone (4 mg/kg PO) daily for 10 consecutive days. At the end, the rats were sacrificed and the disease activity index, the levels of malondialdehyde, myeloperoxidase, nitric oxide, total protein and the concentration of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 were assessed in the colonic homogenized tissue specimens. Results: The results showed that both therapies with Hypiran and Prednisolone could regress the clinical scores and the mortality rate of ulcerative colitis in a comparable manner. The levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and myeloperoxidase activity were down-regulated in the guts of Prednisolone treated rats more than Hypiran groups. Nevertheless, Hypiran decreased the levels of IL-6, nitric oxide and malondialdehyde more significantly than Prednisolone. Conclusions: Collectively, these data suggest that the Hypiran may be used as a natural source to alleviate the signs of rat model of ulcerative colitis.


Background Endothelial dysfunction is an early step in the formation of atherosclerotic lesions and can be quantified by the degree of flow mediated vasodilation (FMD) of the brachial artery. FMD is a predictor of cardiovascular (CV) events in the general population (1% lower FMD is associated with 13% increase in risk of future CV events) and is lower in patients with inflammatory joint diseases (IJD) compared to the general population. Furthermore, restoration of endothelial function to normal levels has been proposed as one of the important factors being involved in the regression of atherosclerotic plaques. Objectives Our aim was to investigate the effect of long-term rosuvastatin therapy on FMD in patients with IJD and who had carotid artery plaque(s). Furthermore, we evaluated associations between change in FMD (ΔFMD) and change in carotid plaque height, arterial stiffness [aortic pulse wave velocity (aPWV) and augmentation index (AIx)], lipids, rheumatic disease activity and inflammatory variables. Methods Eighty-five statin naïve patients with IJD and ultrasound verified carotid artery plaques (rheumatoid arthritis: 53, ankylosing spondylitis: 24, psoriatic arthritis: 8) received rosuvastatin treatment for 18 months to obtain low density lipoprotein cholesterol goal ≤1.8 mmol/L. All patients underwent assessment of FMD, aPWV, AIx and carotid ultrasound at baseline and at study end. Change in FMD from baseline to study end was analyzed using paired-samples t-test. Furthermore, multiple linear regression analyses, adjusted for age, gender and use of biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, were applied to evaluate associations between ΔFMD and change in carotid artery plaque height, aPWV, AIx, lipids, disease activity/inflammatory variables and medication. In addition, the mean diameter of the brachial artery as a result of FMD was plotted against time at baseline and 18 months. Results The patient cohort had a median (IQR) age of 61.0 (56.0-67.0), a predominance of females (60%) and a median (IQR) disease duration of 18.0 (8.3-26.0) years. The mean ± SD FMD was significantly improved from 7.10±3.14% at baseline to 8.70±2.98% at study end (p<0.001). Multiple linear regression analyses with ΔFMD as the dependent variable revealed that the FMD improvement was linearly associated with the improvement in arterial stiffness as measured by AIx: β (CI): -0.09 (-0.18, 0.00) (p=0.05) and carotid plaque height regression: β (CI): -3.10 (-4.95, -1.25) (p=0.001). ΔFMD was not associated with changes in lipid levels, disease activity, inflammatory variables or medication. The mean diameter of the brachial artery as a result of FMD was plotted against time at baseline and 18 months is shown in figure. Conclusions Long-term intensive lipid lowering with rosuvastatin improved endothelial function measured by FMD in IJD patients with atherosclerotic disease. The statin-induced improvement in endothelial function was linearly associated with reduced arterial stiffness and carotid artery plaque regression. Thus, our results support the hypothesis that restoration of endothelial function plays an important role in the regression process of atherosclerosis. Disclosure of Interest None declared


Implanted foreign bodies of certain shapes, especially large non‐perforated polymer films, induce subcutaneous sarcomas in a high percentage of mice and rats; in contrast, implants of other shapes, e.g., perforated or minced films or Millipore filters with 0.45 μm pores, are non‐carcinogenic or only weakly carcinogenic. Experiments described in this report have shown that when carcinogenic non‐perforated film was removed at 3.5 months after implantation and one of the "non‐carcinogenic" foreign bodies listed above was implanted into the same subcutaneous sites, a high percentage of sarcomas was induced. The same non‐carcinogenic or weakly carcinogenic foreign bodies implanted in the mice after total body γ irradiation or after single injection of ethylnitrosourea induced subcutaneous sarcomas in significantly higher percentages of animals than the same foreign bodies implanted in control mice. Our data suggest that foreign bodies of "non‐carcinogenic" or "weakly carcinogenic" shapes can act as efficient promoters of subcutaneous carcinogenesis initiated by other agents such as implanted "carcinogenic" foreign bodies, ionizing radiation or chemical carcinogen.


Despite almost 50 years of research on the use of microbubbles as ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs), the promise of high resolution dynamic perfusion imaging has not been fulfilled. This is due to the fact that the echogenicity enhancements from small clusters of bubbles in microvessels remain difficult to detect in the presence strong tissue echogenicity. A well-known pulse inversion (PI) method has been successful in exploiting the nonlinear behavior of UCAs and has led to enhanced myocardium and vascular imaging procedures. However, PI imaging has limited dynamic range due to noise amplification (fundamentally a subtraction method) We have recently proposed the use of the post-beamforming Volterra filter for separation of linear and non-linear echoes and maintaining very high dynamic range in addition to effective suppression of additive Gaussian noise. This method was shown to match or exceed the performance of PI imaging in static imaging of UCAs in flow phantoms. In this paper, we present in vivo results of UCA imaging using the cubic component of a third-order Volterra filter, together with a pixel-wise estimate of a temporal-perfusion index (TPI). We show that the TPI can be designed as a spatio-temporal estimator of the perfusion activity to provide separation between UCA activity and changes due to tissue motion due to breathing and/or pulsation. This is achieved using UCA injections with clinically-relevant concentrations and imaging at normal scanner setting, i.e. no sacrifice of bandwidth as may be necessary when using PI imaging. The results also demonstrate the high resolution nature of TPI imaging in both axial and lateral dimensions.


OpenPMU is an open platform for the development of phasor measurement unit (PMU) technology. A need has been identified for an open-source alternative to commercial PMU devices tailored to the needs of the university researcher and for enabling the development of new synchrophasor instruments from this foundation. OpenPMU achieves this through open-source hardware design specifications and software source code, allowing duplicates of the OpenPMU to be fabricated under open-source licenses. This paper presents the OpenPMU device based on the Labview development environment. The device is performance tested according to the IEEE C37.118.1 standard. Compatibility with the IEEE C37.118.2 messaging format is achieved through middleware which is readily adaptable to other PMU projects or applications. Improvements have been made to the original design to increase its flexibility. A new modularized architecture for the OpenPMU is presented using an open messaging format which the authors propose is adopted as a platform for PMU research.


1. The onset of neuromuscular blockade following i.v. injection of atracurium 0.3, 0.4, or 0.5 mg/kg; vecuronium 0.08 or 0.1 mg/kg; and succinylcholine 1.0 mg/kg was studied in 205 adult patients during induction of anesthesia by means of the compound action potential (EMG) of the hypothenar muscle, which was indirectly stimulated via the ulnar nerve above the wrist, using the Datex Relaxograph. At the same time, the intubation conditions at 0.5, 1, 2, or 3 min after injection were assessed using a scoring system (Crul 1983) related to ease of laryngoscopy, movement of vocal cords and coughing, and reflex movements of the extremities. 2. Neuromuscular blockade and intubation conditions 2 min after administration of atracurium 0.3 mg/kg were 60 +/- 10% and 8.7 +/- 0.3; after 0.4 mg/kg 74 +/- 4% and 10.3 +/- 0.3; and after 0.5 mg/kg 86 +/- 5% and 11.8 +/- 0.2. After 0.08 mg/kg vecuronium 76 +/- 3% and 7.4 +/- 0.5 were recorded and after 0.1 mg/kg 85 +/- 6% and 10.5 +/- 0.4. Motor blockade 1 min after succinylcholine was 98 +/- 2% and intubation conditions scored 11.3 +/- 0.3. Relating intubation conditions to neuromuscular blockade yielded a close correlation and surprisingly good or very good intubation conditions (score more than 10) at a motor blockade of 80% (resp. 20% transmission). 3. Although succinylcholine is still the muscle relaxant with the most rapid onset of action, the new drug atracurium seems to satisfactorily facilitate tracheal intubation within an acceptably short time interval of 2 min after injection.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Marland and colleagues (1999) conducted a comparison of two large, "(partially) independent" efforts to estimate national emissions of CO2. . . . The two estimates for the United States differed by only 0.9%, but the absolute value of this difference was greater than total emissions from 147 of the 195 countries analyzed. the atmosphere, countries and companies analyze CO2 emissions and trade emissions permits, and individuals try to be environmentally sensitive. It is not surprising that there is a need to estimate emissions and to understand the accuracy of these estimates. There has been considerable discussion about the challenges of measuring carbon sources and sinks in the biosphere, but there has been less recognition that emissions from fossil-fuel combustion are also subject to uncertainty. How accurate are CO2 emissions estimates, and how accurate do they need to be? Can we measure the emissions from fossil-fuel combustion well enough to understand their implications for the global carbon cycle, to know whether a country that agrees to reduce emissions by x% has achieved its goal, or to be sure that a company that buys permits to offset its emissions has received what it paid for? CO2emissions are actually measured in only a few places, and then with still considerable


Background Idiopathic scoliosis (IS) is a common musculoskeletal condition with a multi-factorial aetiology characterised by a three-dimensional torsional deformity of the spine. Objectives To ascertain the current level of knowledge on IS among registered practising physiotherapists who expressed an interest in orthopaedic, muscular, manual and manipulative therapy in South Africa (SA). Method An online survey was used to collect the data. The questions were based on an existing questionnaire, validated by a South African panel of experts in the field of musculoskeletal physiotherapy and updated based on the 2016 Society of Scoliosis Orthopaedic Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT) guidelines for the assessment and management of IS. Results Two hundred and twenty-three physiotherapists spread across the nine provinces of SA met the inclusion criteria and were included in our study. Our findings showed that about one-third (33.6%) of the physiotherapists could answer more than 50% of these questions correctly, and 16.5% could answer 70% of the questions correctly in relation to the widely accepted guidelines on IS management. Conclusion The participants had a poor understanding of the diagnosis and treatment involved in managing patients with IS and a lack of knowledge regarding the methods of conservative treatment for scoliosis. Future studies should be aimed at assessing intervention strategies to improve the knowledge of IS in physiotherapists in SA, especially regarding diagnosis and identifying appropriate management strategies. Clinical implications Physiotherapists are often the first contact practitioners for patients presenting with scoliosis and therefore need to have the necessary clinical knowledge on the assessment and management of IS. Our study can improve the awareness among the South African physiotherapists regarding IS and its complex presentation and management.


Second-order cone programming (SOCP) is one of the common methods used to solve AC network-constrained unit commitment (UC) problems. The main shortcoming of this approach is the computational complexity increasing exponentially with the system size. Additionally, under high-system loading conditions, the results may not be exact. To address these issues, we propose a decomposition algorithm. First, we linearise quadratic relaxation for the UC conic formulation. Next, we apply an outer approximation algorithm that selects optimal cuts at each iteration. Numerical experiments show the effectiveness of the algorithm compared to the standard SOCP.


The Authors report their experience with the surgical treatment of incisional hernias over the period from July 2000 to June 2004 in the Division of General Surgery of the Department of Surgical Sciences of the University of Foggia where 22 patients were operated on. Nine of them had an incisional hernia of considerable size, while in the other 13 patients the hernia was less voluminous. The authors emphasise the essential role of synthetic prostheses (polypropylene) which now replace and supersede the reabsorbable ones which have fallen into disuse due to the lack of guarantees regarding their strength over lengthy periods. An interdisciplinary approach is now mandatory for a pathology which requires the contribution of many different healthcare operatives such as cardiologists, respiratory physiopathologists, physiokinesitherapists, endocrinologists and resuscitators who all share in the work of the surgeon who represents the last link in the chain and has the technical task of resolving the basic pathology. The technique adopted for the larger incisional hernias was a Ramirez abdominoplasty, the first step of which consists in a very meticulous separation of the different structures of the abdominal wall followed by synthesis of the different anatomical layers with the application of polypropylene meshes. Our results in terms of intra- and postoperative mortality, complicating diseases and hospitalisation are compared with those reported in other studies using the Rives technique.


Ergene River Basin is the most significant aquatic habitat for Thrace Region and also one of the most polluted watersheds in Turkey. The objectives of this study were to determine some essential-toxic element accumulations in drinking water of settlement areas located in Ergene River Basin and evaluated the water quality in terms of local public health. Drinking water samples were collected from 30 stations in dry (summer) season of 2018. Cluster Analysis (CA) was used to classify the investigated elements and villages and Weighted Arithmetic Water Quality Index (WAWQI) was used to assess the water quality. According to results of elemental CA, 11 statistically significant clusters were formed in terms of elemental densities and according to results of locational CA, 3 statistically significant clusters were formed in terms of drinking water qualities. According to results of WAWQI, the risk sequence of the elements in drinking water of the system as follows: Se > As > Mo > B > Ba > Cr > Pb > Mn > Ni > Cd > Cu. Although Ergene River Basin is known as a very contaminated freshwater ecosystem, it was determined that the groundwater of the basin has I. - II class water quality, in general. Selenium accumulations detected in almost all the investigated villages exceeded the drinking water limit of 10 ppb. Arsenic, boron and molybdenum accumulations detected in some villages exceeded the drinking water standards. Although concentrations of some elements in some locations were exceed the limit values and recorded as quite high levels, the majority of investigated element concentrations in drinking water of the basin have been found to be in the range of human consumption standards.


To meet the system scheduling requirements of open hybrid real-time systems, an open adaptive real-time scheduling framework, called OARtS (open adaptive real-time scheduling), is presented in this paper, which comprises three key components: accept control, scheduling server and adaptive control. To guarantee the schedulability in the open environment, OARtS only accepts the task whose computing bandwidth requirement is no higher than the system's spare one. To schedule multi-constraint tasks, a two-layer scheduling mechanism is introduced. In the mechanism, the scheduling server components provide concurrent scheduling mechanism for multi-constraint tasks, and each of them is assigned to a bandwidth-independent computing bandwidth and has its specific scheduling policy to schedule its own task queue. To adapt to the change in the open environment, the adaptive control tries to tune the real-time service level so as to make full use of the system computing capability; to adapt to the uncertainty of execution time of the soft real-time task, a fuzzy control engine is used to regulate the task's computing bandwidth according to fuzzy rules of the scheduling error so as to eliminate the scheduling error and to get a satisfactory soft real-time performance.


By school age, some bilingual children can score equivalently to monolinguals in receptive vocabulary but still lag in expressive vocabulary. In this study, we test whether bilingual children have greater difficulty with lexical access, as has been reported for adult bilinguals. School-aged French–English bilingual children were given tests of receptive vocabulary and picture naming. The bilingual children's performance was compared to English monolinguals'. We found that bilingual children scored slightly lower on some measures of comprehension and lower on producing the target word. The bilinguals were more likely to correctly identify the target picture even if they had not produced the name. The differences in comprehension but not production could be statistically accounted for by the variation in receptive vocabulary. These results suggest that, school-aged bilinguals can be close to monolinguals in receptive vocabulary but have a harder time accessing the exact word for production. We discuss reasons for this difficulty with lexical access and strategies that children used when they did not produce the target word.


After having briefly reviewed the different subjective and objective procedures for interpreting Bone Marrow Biopsies from the standpoint of evaluating Bone Marrow Cellularity, the authors propose a method for overall morphological examination, controlled by a rapid evaluation by means of an integrator ocular. This simple, reliable and easily reproducible "semi-subjective" technique seems useful in routine pathological diagnosis, particularly to compare successive Bone Marrow Biopsies from the same patient when treated by antimitotics, or to study the changes of the hematopoietic tissue in the area of medullary metastasis.


This paper explores the divergent theoretical developments in the UK and US disability studies and posits some explanations for these differing trajectories. History, politics, space, place and the search for identity have all played important roles. These emergent and hotly debated developments add a wealth of material to the epistemological project. The recent collections by Barnes et al. (2002) Disability studies today, and Snyder et al. (2002) Disability studies: enabling the humanities, will be used as pivotal works. However, the question remains as to what explanatory power discourses developed within western metropolitan national cultures have for exploring the experience of disability in cultures on the peripheries. This analysis is being undertaken by an English born academic, who has been living in Australia for over 20 years and has been keenly watching and participating in the transatlantic battles over the past decade.


A novel aberration correction method based on the maximization of the acoustic intensity at the focus of a transducer array is presented. The potential of this new adaptive focusing technique is investigated in for ultrasonic focusing in biological tissues. The acoustic intensity is maximized non-invasively through the measurement or indirect estimation of the beam energy at focus for a series of spatial coded emissions. The acoustic energy at the desired focus location can be indirectly estimated from the local displacements induced by the ultrasonic radiation force of the beam. Based on these displacement estimates, this method allow the precise estimation of the phase and amplitude aberrations and consequently the corrections of aberrations along the beam travel path. The proof of concept is first performed experimentally using a large therapeutic array with strong simulated phase aberrations (up to 2pi). Displacements induced by the ultrasonic radiation force at the desired focus are indirectly estimated using the time shifts of backscattered echoes recorded on the array. The phase estimation is deduced accurately using a direct inversion algorithm. The corrected beam focusing quality is controlled using the needle hydrophone. A sharp focus is restored and a strong increase of the acoustic intensity at focus is obtained. Secondly, the technique is tested experimentally using a linear imaging array through a real aberrating layer. Acoustic intensity is indirectly estimated using focal displacements measurements obtained using conventional speckle tracking of backscattered echoes. A strong improvement of both spatial resolution and sidelobes level is found. Ultrasonic adaptivefocusing; HIFU; Transcranialtherapy;


This paper proposes an explanation of the apparent scope inversion attested in sentences pronounced with a rise fall intonation contour. It argues that a left-peripheral quantifier pronounced with a (fall-)rise is in topic position (Spec, TopP). A topic phrase must refer to an individual already present in the domain of discourse-that which will be predicated about in the sentence. Non-individual-denoting expressions, among them quantifiers, can also be made suitable for the topic role if they are assumed to denote a property which the rest of the sentence predicates some higher-order property about. A quantifier functioning as a contrastive topic denotes a property of plural individuals, and its apparent narrow scope arises from the fact that it is considered to be a predicate over a variable inherent in the lexical representation of the verb.


In this paper parallel implementation of out-of-core Cholesky factorization is used to introduce the Parallel Out-of-Core Linear Algebra Package (POOCLAPACK), a flexible infrastructure for parallel implementation of out-of-core linear algebra operations. POOCLAPACK builds on the Parallel Linear Algebra Package (PLAPACK) for in-core parallel dense linear algebra computation. Despite the extreme simplicity of POOCLAPACK, the out-of-core Cholesky factorization implementation is shown to achieve in excess of 80% of peak performance on a 64 node configuration of the Cray T3E-600. The insights gained from examining the Cholesky factorization have been applied to the much more difficult and important QR factorization operation. Preliminary results for parallel implementation of the resulting OOC QR factorization algorithm are included.


University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com Since the wrenching plant closings of the 1970s and 1980s, the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) have adopted Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOP) as one way to secure employment. While job retention, where possible, is an unquestionable advantage of ESOPs, what happens to worker self-definitions of their unions when they become owners? More precisely, how does employee ownership affect the workers' traditional commitment to the values of unionism? The objective here is to examine how ownership in America changes how workers interpret, define, and use their unions. To measure the effects of ownership on union identity two propositions were formulated and measured: employee ownership reduces the workers' conception of the union as a countervailing shopfloor power, and employee ownership changes what union workers value about their unions. Tentative findings reveal that there may be sufficient differences between the perceptions of workers in unionized ESOPs and in conventionally owned unionized shops to suggest the potency of ownership as an identity variable.


Sustainability represents the UK construction industry's most important and indeed challenging issue, placing it at the forefront of both current debate and government policy. As pressure increases on the industry to embrace its principles, a radical shift is required in the awareness, understanding and cultural acceptance of its potential benefits. Whilst a shift is slowly being realised at a strategic level, delivering sustainable construction in practice remains a challenge. Not least due to a lack of sustainability awareness and engagement amongst construction professionals revealed by successive quantitative surveys, and a need to raise sustainability literacy levels. In an attempt to understand why construction professionals give so little credence and genuinely struggle to attain sustainable construction in practice, eight in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted in North West England. The research explored their awareness, understanding and literacy levels of sustainability and how this impacts their ability to deliver the concept at both theoretical and applied levels. Findings suggest that whilst practitioners exhibit a strong awareness at a theoretical level, this often is highly individual in interpretation promoting inconsistency within and across projects. At an applied level, construction professionals observed a gap in the application of the sustainable construction in practice due to 1) a tick box mentality enshrined in sustainability appraisal tools such as BREEAM; 2) an isolation from key decisions related to sustainability, and 3) a lack of awareness amongst client organisations. The research concludes by proposing further data collection to both expand the sample and contrast these preliminary findings with professionals who desire a more sustainable model of delivery.


Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurological disease affecting 5-8 percent of school going children with symptoms persuading into adulthood in about 60 percent of cases. ADHD severity correlates positively with circadian delay i.e. retarded sleep timing and day time sleepiness, suggesting that treatment interventions focussed at advancing circadian phase may make better day time sleepiness. Hence, the present research work aimed to formulate circadian rhythm based press-coated tablets of atomoxetine hydrochloride in morning hours by increasing adrenal hormones in the brain. The core tablets formulated by direct compression and press coated with HPMC K100M and MCC and the release compared with natural polymers Guar gum (6000 cps) and Xanthan gum (1800 cps). The three level two factorial design and one-way Anova employed to evaluate the effect of natural and synthetic polymers on drug release and lag time. IR spectrophotometer study showed that all the excipients were compatible with the drug. The stability study carried out for the desired optimized formulation for a period of 3 months and showed insignificant difference.


Minor League Baseball is a half-billion dollar a year industry in the United States. It has grown to its current state under an umbrella of protection from U.S. antitrust statutes. Beginning with the Federal Baseball decision in 1922, the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that professional baseball is exempt from both the Sherman and Clayton Acts— the seminal federal government statutes regarding antitrust. This status is unique; no other professional sport enjoys such immunity. If the exemption were lost, the effects on this staple of American culture would likely be extremely disruptive. Throughout this project, I analyzed the effects that a change in the application of federal antitrust law would have on two aspects of the game: 1) the player development agreements between the major league franchises and their minor league affiliates, and 2) the standard player contracts signed by every minor league player, which bind them to the team that drafted them until well after they make it to the major leagues. After finding that a change in the way the courts interpret past decisions would prevent both of these aspects from operating the way they have in the past due to concerns over their anticompetitive effects, I consider the likelihood that these changes would actually be made. The court system's reluctance to violate precedent; the effect of the antitrust "rule of reason," which allows for some anticompetitive activity provided that the actions yield even greater "pro-competitive benefits;" and the antitrust exemptions provided specifically for labor agreements arranged through collective bargaining are all considered during the process of finding that Minor League Baseball is most likely secure in its desire to remain unimpacted by federal antitrust law. While previous discussions have focused solely on the major leagues, this study builds on their work to look at the effects the antitrust laws have on the minor league game. I K A L E I D O S C O P E 2 0 0 7 3


How the experience of science‐based Ph.D. students working in or funded by Australian Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) compares with their peers in regular university science‐based departments is the key focus of this article. CRC doctoral programmes that integrate industry needs with professional development offer an alternative to traditional research training, emphasizing producing 'industry‐ready' graduates with a broader educational experience linked to the needs of research users. The overall experience of both groups, their attitudes to collaboration with industry and where their studies are leading them are analysed. Of particular interest is whether CRC‐related Ph.D. students have more positive attitudes towards their training, towards industry and research and development (R&D) partnerships with industry than those outside CRCs and to what extent both favour the idea of careers in industry. Findings, based on a survey of Ph.D. students in two Australian research‐intensive universities, indicate that the CRC research training experience has much to commend it. This suggests that in reforming doctoral education programmes, universities would do well to further examine the effectiveness of aspects of this alternative.


The incidence and demographic data of cancer is the important basis for cancer prevention. Lip, oral cavity and pharyngeal cancers (LOCP) have a variety of geographic distribution and multiple risk factors. This study aims to describe and compare the epidemiological profile of LOCP cancers. A retrospective study was done and the data of LOCP cancer patients, admitted during the year 2017 at Coimbatore Medical College Hospital was collected. A total of 441 LOCP cases were recorded, of which most cases belonged to the age group of 51-70 years and male gender. The most common subtypes are mouth and tongue. The increased incidence of LOCP cancer and its subtypes associated with smoking and tobacco points to the pivotal role of these risk factors in the pathogenesis of LOCP cancers. Hence better awareness and stringent measures is the need of the hour of the decrease the ongoing burden of these cancer types.


Recent studies focus on the development of energy supply systems when applying the principles of distributed generation. They consist in the organization of energy supply from several energy sources, different in types and characteristics (photovoltaic cells, wind power plants, microturbine plants, diesel power plants). The purpose of such events is to bring energy facilities closer to consumers, reduce the loss of generated electricity, and reduce dependence on the fossil fuels. However, with all the advantages, distributed generation is associated with the number of technical problems. One of them is the complexity of relay protection systems due to the influence of additional electrical power from the distributed generation units. This requires the development of new algorithms and protection schemes to ensure selectivity and increase the sensitivity of relay protection. The article is devoted to the creation of a distance protection algorithm in the distributed generation systems. The integrated approach was applied, including the scientific analysis, processing, as well as the study of the results of theoretical and experimental research in the field of relay protection. The developed set of measures for the protection of distribution networks was analyzed. The results of the work done can be used when considering the influence of the parameters of protected connections in the operating conditions of the electrical complexes in a network with the distributed generation on the efficiency of distance protection. The conclusions presented by the authors allow to increase the sensitivity and selectivity of distance protection in emergency situations.


Mandibular arches of H.H. stage-22 embryonic chicks were divided into halves (lateral/medial; cephalad/caudal; or proximal/distal) and grafted to the chorioallantoic membranes of host embryos. All six halves formed both cartilage and membrane bone. Epithelial-mesenchymal recombinations performed between half mandibles showed (a), that the cephalad half of the mandible contained more chondrogenic cells than did the caudal half, (b), that the proximocaudal quarter of the mandible contained more osteogenic cells than the remainder of the mandible, and, (c), that the epithelium of the caudal half was more osteogenically inductive than was the cephalad epithelium. Differential distribution of mesenchymal cells and differentially inductively active epithelia are both components of this epithelial-mesenchymal interaction.


AZD6738 is a potent and selective inhibitor of ataxia telangiectasia and rad3 related (ATR) kinase with the potential to be used in the clinic. We report the discovery of a morpholino-pyrimidine series and its subsequent optimisation to the pre-clinical candidate AZD6738 which has a good overall balance of potency, selectivity, pharmacokinetic and biopharmaceutical properties suitable for oral dosing. ATR is a serine/threonine protein kinase involved in DNA damage response signalling caused by DNA replication associated stress. Activation of ATR at stalled replication forks leads to suppression of replication fork origin firing, promotes repair and S/G2-cell cycle checkpoints to prevent premature mitosis and maintain genomic integrity. Failure to resolve damage leads to genomic instability and if sufficiently high, cell death. Stalled replication forks may collapse leading to formation of DNA double stranded breaks and activation of the ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) kinase. ATM works in conjunction with ATR to efficiently resolve replication associated DNA damage creating a co-dependency with loss of one leading to a greater reliance on the other to maintain genomic stability. ATM is frequently inactivated across B-cell malignancies, head and neck, breast and lung cancers through chromosomal deletion, promoter hypermethylation or mutation. ATM-deficient tumours are hypothesised to be more reliant on ATR for survival and specific inhibition of ATR may lead enhanced anti-tumour activity while minimizing normal tissue toxicity. AZD6378 has the potential to test the clinical efficacy of ATR inhibition in cancer patients as monotherapy against ATM-deficient tumours or in combination with chemo or radiotherapy. Citation Format: Clifford D. Jones, Kevin Blades, Kevin M. Foote, Sylvie M. Guichard, Philip J. Jewsbury, Thomas McGuire, Johannes W. Nissink, Rajesh Odedra, Kin Tam, Pia Thommes, Paul Turner, Gary Wilkinson, Christine Wood, James W. Yates. Discovery of AZD6738, a potent and selective inhibitor with the potential to test the clinical efficacy of ATR kinase inhibition in cancer patients. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2348. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-2348


There are considerable differences in remuneration and environment between crowd-sourced workers and the traditional laboratory study participant. If crowd-sourced participants are to be used for information retrieval user studies, we need to know if and to what extent their behavior on information retrieval tasks differs from the accepted standard of laboratory participants. With both crowd-sourced and laboratory participants, we conducted an experiment to measure their relevance judging behavior. We found that while only 30% of the crowd-sourced workers qualified for inclusion in the final group of participants, 100% of the laboratory participants qualified. Both groups have similar true positive rates, but the crowd-sourced participants had a significantly higher false positive rate and judged documents nearly twice as fast as the laboratory participants.


Information evaluation, the fundamental theme of this book, is by no means a new idea, and is profitably used in a number of domains (physical, economical, biological, demographical and many more). Yet the establishment of a method, and the attempt to establish a certain rigor of this practice as part of an overall process, are, without a doubt, attributable to the domain of Defense. The origin of information, as well as its content, plays a crucial role both in a strategic and tactical context. Far from being reserved to espionage or data encoding, information evaluation is quite rightly considered to be an essential step in the preparation of a maneuver, the understanding of a situation in a theater of operations, or the making of a decision at a politico-strategic level. In this chapter, we begin by presenting the doctrinesError! Bookmark not defined. in force regarding information evaluation (which does not necessarily mean that they reflect the real-world uses and practices of military intelligence personnel). Then, from a purely conceptual point of view, we hold up some of the shortcomings of these definitions and their associated underlying uses. These various theoretical difficulties could potentially cause very damaging practical consequences, in that they make any attempt at information evaluation impossible and, therefore, may have repercussions throughout the process of which information evaluation is a part. These open-ended issues, which are by no means exhaustive, will serve us in putting Chapter written by Philippe CAPET and Adrien REVAULT D'ALLONNES.


We present an unusual case of neurocysticercosis supported by characteristic lesions on computed tomography and positive serum and CSF titres. The patient came to medical attention on various occasions over a decade with three clearly separate neurological presentations (acute psychosis, cerebral infarction, and hydrocephalus) before diagnosis was made.


A catastrophe is under way. A hypermalignant form of capitalism is entangled with ecological collapse, unfathomable inequality, ruthless privatization of the commons, the dismantling of democracy, intensifying xenophobia, "new Jim Crow" racism, permanent war, and the destruction of higher education as a space for critical and creative inquiry. This malignancy often manifests remarkable capacities to outmaneuver even modest efforts to avert the worst, let alone more ambitious movements to generate powerful alternatives that lean in fundamentally better directions. Formal politics are confined to narrowing channels that keep shifting rightward, while a vast portion of what goes on even in the "critical" portions of the academy has become hyperprofessionalized in ways that often lack both transformative vision and serious contact with movements trying to make real change. Pragmatic sensibilities too often lose connection with the creative provocations, affective intensities, and expansive horizons of radical vision. Scholarly sensibilities increasingly focus on discursive industries of hermetic tertiary literature that shed less and less light on matters of increasing urgency. For a long time, powers that might resist neoliberalism and generate alternatives have grown less creative and less powerful, while vicious gamechanging dynamics of rapacious powers are modulating and on the move. As hopeful movements around democratizing education, climate justice, racism, austerity, solidarity economics, migration, and broadbased community organizing are beginning to rumble, how might we regenerate more promising forms of academic work and politics? This book is written in the midst of scholarly, pedagogical, and activist movements along various edges between scholarship and practice. My aim has been to inhabit these edges as ecotones—rich evolutionary zones of tension and pregnant commingling between differentyetrelated ecological communities,


Rapping has long been used by people who are from the margin of society as a way to give a voice (Campbell, 2005; Ibrahim, 1999). As a member of the marginalized group and as the first and only Asian who claimed a seven-time victory on Freestyle Friday on Black Entertainment Television (BET), Jin Au-Yeung has received a noticeable amount of attention. At the same time, he has faced a lot of unfavourable experience as an Asian rapper in American society. This study employs Fairclough's (1989) model of CDA approach to find out how Jin constructs his identity and establishes his ideology through his lyrics, and how his construction of identity and establishment of ideology reflect the social practice in American society. Fifteen songs written by Jin were chosen for the analysis according to the three interrelated stages in CDA: description, interpretation and explanation. Results show that Jin constructs his personal identities as a professional rapper and as a Chinese American and establishes his ideology of having one human nation despite the difference in races through his rap lyrics. These are achieved through the co-occurrence of "I" and "to be", and promoted through the use of rhyming and code-switching. It was also interpreted that Jin's personal identities and ideology are shaped through the social ideology on Asian Americans, which is probably reflected through the social practice in American society.


Boundary representations (BRep) of three-dimensional solids are complex data structures that have to be created with topological and geometrical integrity. In many applications, the boundary of a solid may he specified as a list of polygons. In this paper, we consider the problem of constructing a BRep solid model from a list of polygons with the assumption that the points of each polygon lie in plane within some small tolerance, that two polygons do not penetrate each other, and that together the polygons enclose a volume. The algorithm works with any boundary representation based on direded edges and capable of representing nonmanifold edges and vertices, and accommodates a measure of numerical inaccuracy. lTbis work has be= supported in pm-l by NSF Grant CCR.86-19S17 to Purdue Universily.


The reason why the female gender has a significantly higher risk factor to respiratory illnesses compared to males is not known, although some researchers speculate that sex hormones may interfere in the proneness to these diseases. The physiologic hormonal fluctuation during the menstrual cycle is known to induce changes in nasal epithelium and lung inflammation. The aim of this study is to analyze how the hormonal cycling of female mice is affected by near-ambient levels of pollution. Particulate matter (PM) was concentrated by an ambient particle concentrator (APC). 14 Male (M) Balb/C mice were divided into two groups: without exposure to PM (M/A;control group) and exposed to PM. 28 Female Balb/C were divided into four groups, according to the estrous cycle. Only female mice from proestrus (PE) and estrus (E) were enrolled. Those from PE were divided into two subgroups: with and without exposure to PM (PE/PM and PE/A). Mice from E were also divided into two subgroups: with and without exposure to PM (E/PM and E/A). Neutral and acidic nasal mucus content was quantified in epithelium through morphometry. Inflammatory cells were analyzed by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). APC exposure in M/PM increased both neutrophils in BAL (p=0.031) and neutral mucus content (p=0.016) from nasal epithelium, when compared to PE/PM. No statistical difference was observed to E/PM. In the M/A group, it was observed an increase in both total BAL (p=0.042) and macrophages (p=0.043) when compared to PE/A. These findings indicate that near-ambient levels of PM exposure promoted a higher neutrophil recruitment in male than in female mice in proestrus.