An international law dimension of the Internet seems to be emerging. This dimension is not limited to the framework of constraints of existing international law on national or regional efforts towards Internet regulation, but is also about the creation of new international law. It is increasingly clear that various international organizations already compete with each other on this turf of international Internet regulation. If the crucial aspect of Cyberspace regulation is code, as Lessig argues, then the question will be: How can we make sure that code is not hijacked by powerful private vested interests or by countries more advanced in computer technology, thereby imposing their values on others. One answer would be to take the questions about code to the arena of public international law. All will depend on the will of the international community — and, particularly, the will of individual states — to insist on dealing with the subject of Internet regulation as a subject of 'valid international interest' in the public international law arena on a truly multilateral basis.


Interferometric synthetic aperture radar data are often obtained on the basis of repeated satellite acquisitions. Errors in the satellite orbit determination, however, propagate to the data analysis and may even entirely obscure the interpretation. Many approaches have been developed to correct the effect of orbital error, which sometimes may even distort the signal. Phase contributions due to other sources, such as surface deformation, atmospheric delay, digital elevation model error, and noise, may reduce the accuracy of the orbital error estimation. Therefore, a more sophisticated approach for estimating the effect of orbital errors is required. In this paper, wavelet multiresolution analysis is employed to distinguish between the effects of orbital errors and other components (e.g., deformation signal). Next, a robust regression approach is applied to estimate the effect of orbit errors as a ramp. After describing the concept of this approach, we present a validation test using a synthetic data set. As in a real case study, the method is applied to an interferogram that was formed over the Tehran area in northern Iran. The validation test demonstrates that the orbital ramp can be estimated with a precision of 3 mm. Thus, a similar precision may be obtained in real cases such as the examined data set from over the Tehran area.


An implicit iterative algorithm, based on the continuous moving least square (CMLS), is developed to simulate material mixing in Friction Stir Welding (FSW) process. Strong formulation is chosen for the modeling of the mechanical problem in Lagrangian framework to avoid the drawback of numerical integration. This algorithm is well adapted to large deformations in the mixing zone in the neighborhood of the welding tool. We limit ourselves to bidimensional viscoplastic problem to show the performance of the proposed implicit algorithm. The results show that the proposed algorithm can be employed to simulate FSW.


In this article, we provide new structural results and algorithms for the Homotopy Height problem. In broad terms, this problem quantifies how much a curve on a surface needs to be stretched to sweep continuously between two positions. More precisely, given two homotopic curves $\gamma_1$ and $\gamma_2$ on a combinatorial (say, triangulated) surface, we investigate the problem of computing a homotopy between $\gamma_1$ and $\gamma_2$ where the length of the longest intermediate curve is minimized. Such optimal homotopies are relevant for a wide range of purposes, from very theoretical questions in quantitative homotopy theory to more practical applications such as similarity measures on meshes and graph searching problems.
We prove that Homotopy Height is in the complexity class NP, and the corresponding exponential algorithm is the best one known for this problem. This result builds on a structural theorem on monotonicity of optimal homotopies, which is proved in a companion paper. Then we show that this problem encompasses the Homotopic Frechet distance problem which we therefore also establish to be in NP, answering a question which has previously been considered in several different settings. We also provide an O(log n)-approximation algorithm for Homotopy Height on surfaces by adapting an earlier algorithm of Har-Peled, Nayyeri, Salvatipour and Sidiropoulos in the planar setting.


The Supreme Court should grant review of the Federal Circuit's decisions in Oracle v. Google for two compelling sets of reasons. First, the Federal Circuit's decisions conflict with this Court's seminal decision in Baker v. Selden, 101 U.S. 99 (1879), misinterpret Congress's codification of this Court's fundamental channeling principle and related limiting doctrines, and upend nearly three decades of sound, well-settled, and critically important decisions of multiple regional circuits on the scope of copyright protection for computer software. By various measures — economic output and growth, employment, international competitiveness, strategic national defense — the computer software industry is among the most significant in the United States. As the digital revolution continues to unfold, the software industry's importance will only grow. The balance of intellectual property protection for the software industry drives innovation and competition in this critical economic sector. The Federal Circuit's decisions revive and exacerbate circuit splits that had largely been resolved through the evolution of well-reasoned regional circuit authority.

Second, the Federal Circuit's handling of the Oracle v. Google cases flies in the face of Congress's clear intent in creating a specialized national appellate patent tribunal. Unlike regional courts of appeals, the Federal Circuit does not have general authority to interpret non-patent intellectual property law. Rather, Congress mandated that the Federal Circuit must apply the copyright law of the regional circuit court in which resides the district court that heard a case involving a patent infringement claim. By failing to apply Ninth Circuit copyright law faithfully in the Oracle v. Google decisions, the Federal Circuit has established itself as the de facto national appellate software copyright tribunal in direct contravention of legislative directive and intent. By the readily available option of bringing software copyright and patent claims in the same complaint, any software company can secure exclusive Federal Circuit appellate jurisdiction over all issues and thereby circumvent regional copyright law and insulate its decisions from regional circuit copyright authority. As a result, it is essential that the Supreme Court grant review to address the clear circuit splits created by the decisions below and restore Congress's division of appellate authority.


We enhance the vanilla adversarial training method for unsupervised Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) by a diffusionGAN. Our model (1) injects instance noises of various intensities to the generator's output and unlabeled reference text which are sampled from pretrained phoneme language models with a length constraint, (2) asks diffusion timestep-dependent discriminators to separate them, and (3) back-propagates the gradients to update the generator. Word/phoneme error rate comparisons with wav2vec-U under Librispeech (3.1% for test-clean and 5.6% for test-other), TIMIT and MLS datasets, show that our enhancement strategies work effectively.


In Solitary Sex Thomas Laqueur aims to provide a comprehensive explanation for the anxiety (both medical and moral) over masturbation which gripped the western world from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. While the study is an important contribution to the debate on this problem, it is marred by lack of specificity, a disproportionate focus on the eighteenth at the expense of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, insufficient attention paid to the contribution of religious ideologies, relevant medical history, such as developments in disease theory, the therapies devised to control the problem (particularly male and female circumcision), and a tendency to decorporialise the body. In this review article an attempt is made to indicate the strengths of the study while suggesting vital questions which the author has failed to pursue.


The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of overhanging margins and associated periodontal status in 100 patients who had received completed treatment by final year dental students. Pockets, bleeding on probing and clinically detectable overhanging margins were recorded on all posterior teeth. Overhanging margins on approximal restorations were detected by use of bitewing radiographs. 1319 teeth were examined in which 2117 restored surfaces were evaluated. Of these, 1186 (56%) had overhanging margins. 62% of all approximal restorations had overhanging margins while 35% of buccal and 40% of lingual restorations had overhanging margins. 59% of new approximal restorations placed in previously unrestored surfaces had overhanging margins, and 595 overhanging margins identified on pre-treatment radiographs were still present on post-treatment radiographs. 64.3% of pockets adjacent to overhanging margins were greater than 3 mm, compared with 23.1% of pockets adjacent to unrestored surfaces and 49.2% of pockets adjacent to restorations without overhanging margins. A similar association existed between restorative status and bleeding. 32% of pockets adjacent to overhanging margins bled on probing compared with 10.5% of pockets adjacent to unrestored surfaces and 21.6% of pockets adjacent to restorations without overhanging margins. Periodontal disease was more severe when overhangs were present. However, when approximal overhanging margins were adjacent to an edentulous space, the periodontal effects were lessened. When adjacent to neighbouring teeth, overhanging margins also significantly affected the periodontal status of those teeth.


All rings are assumed to be associative and unital. A module is said to be integrally dosed (semiinjective) if all the endomorphisms of its finitely-generated submodules (its submodules) extend to the whole modules. A ring is said to be right-invariant (left-invariant) if all its right (left) ideals are ideals. A ring without non-zero nilpotent elements is said to be reduced. A ring is said to arithmetic (leftdistributive) if Α η (B + Q = Α η Β +Α η C for any ideals (left ideals) A, B, and C in it. The expressions "Noetherian ring", "invariant ring", and so on, mean that the corresponding left and right conditions hold.


Rechargeable zinc metal batteries (RZMBs) are emerging as promising candidates to replace lithium‐ion batteries due to their low cost, safety, and stability under ambient atmosphere. As the conductive substrates lower the actual current density, it is considered a chemical strategy to resolve the dendrite issue of RZMB. Herein, we propose to use the carbon nanofiber as a conductive substrate for the anode of RZMBs, which was prepared via heat treatment of electrospun PAN‐derived nanofiber. Through CV and SEM results performed at a constant current rate of 20 mA cm−2, the optimum amount of zinc deposited on the CNF was determined to be 10 mAh cm−2. Symmetric cell test for 400 hours showed 60.1% reduction in plating/stripping overpotential when zinc deposited carbon nanofiber was used. This overpotential reduction was attributed to the macroporous structure of ZnCNF and the preferred orientation of zinc to the (002) plane as confirmed by post mortem analyses. RZMB full cells pairing ZnCNF with β‐MnO2 were configured to deliver the 5C‐rate capacity of 106.54 mAh g−1, which was higher 34.13 mAh g−1 with bare zinc. Finally, the long‐term cyclability of ZnCNF|| MnO2 with much lower N/P ratio of 18.0 was confirmed, demonstrating the capacity retention of 89.4%, greater than 73% of bare zinc||MnO2 cell with the N/P ratio of 234.6 over 300 cycles.


Extracts from Glycosmis pentaphylla roots, and stem heart wood and bark of Spondias pinnata when tested in vitro, showed potent Anthelmintic activity on the earthworm, Pheretima posthuma. Methanolic extract of G. pentaphylla was more active than its chloroform extract (p<0.001), while stem heart wood Methanolic extract of S. pinnata was also more potent than the bark extract.


The purpose of this report is to present the first documented application of GammaTile to an intra-cranial tumor of a patient with a symptomatic radiosensitive connective tissue disorder, a case where there were significant concerns with standard oncologic strategies. We hypothesized that GammaTile ® (GT Medical Technologies, Tempe, Arizona, USA) would also be advantageous in the application of intra-cranial tumors in patients with conditions of increased radiosensitivity. We generated a standard external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) plan consisting of an overall 1.5 cm expansion to 59.4 Gy in 1.8 Gy fractions. Also, we developed a CyberKnife (Accuray, Sunnyvale, CA, USA) plan with a 5 mm expansion on the surgical cavity prescribed to 60 Gy in 30 fractions, to make an EBRT comparison using the same prescription volume as GammaTile. We report the first published application of GammaTile ® brachytherapy to an intra-cranial malignancy in a patient with limited scleroderma. The dose delivered by GammaTile was compared to the dose that would be delivered with both typical volumes and small volumes of EBRT. The maximum dose delivered to the scar and scalp by GammaTile was reduced to half of that from other external beam techniques (~25 Gy vs. ~55 Gy). MRI imaging at 6 months and 12 months post-resection demonstrated no evidence of disease recurrence nor radiation necrosis. At the 12-month follow-up visit, the surgical scar was well-healed with no skin changes to the surrounding scalp. Dosimetrically and clinically, this report highlights the successful application of GammaTile to an intra-cranial tumor bed in a patient with scleroderma.


The critical point theory for earthquakes was originally proposed to explain the scaling relations observed in earthquakes, including the Gutenberg‐Richter frequency‐ magnitude relation and the Omori's law for aftershocks. In this model, main shocks, their foreshocks and aftershocks are all associated with the formation of a correlated, cooperative spatial region with high stress. Until now, only indirect evidence of the existence of these correlated regions has been reported. Here in this paper we present observations and analyses that allow us to directly map the high stress, spatially correlated regions preceding four major earthquakes, i.e. the 1992 Landers (California), 1995 Kobe (Japan), 1999 Chi‐Chi (Taiwan) and 1999 Hector Mine (California) earthquakes. We therefore conclude that the locations and extent of large main shocks and their immediate aftershocks can be determined from seismicity data taken prior to the main shocks, and provide additional evidence in support of the critical point theory for earthquakes.


This paper reviews data on the natural history of symptoms in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and describes some of the problems encountered in analysing longitudinal data in this population. Data on cognition, functional ability and psychiatric or behavioural symptoms have all been obtained from AD patients. Because of attrition, the length of follow-up is not uniform for all patients and neither is the frequency of evaluation. Furthermore, patients enter longitudinal studies with a wide range of symptom severity and longitudinal decline in cognition and function is distinctly non-linear. Behavioural symptoms do not progress regularly in AD but are episodic phenomena not closely related to cognition or function. Strengths and limitations of various analytic techniques used for hypothesis testing with these longitudinal data are described.


This paper presents a hybrid parallel task-placement strategy that combines work stealing and work dealing to improve workload distribution across nodes in distributed shared-memory machines. Existing work-dealing-based load balancers suffer from large performance penalties resulting from excessive task migration and from excessive communication among the nodes to determine the target node for a migrated task. This work employs a simple heuristic to determine the load status of a node and also to detect a good target for migration of tasks.
 Experimental evaluations on applications chosen from the Cowichan and Lonestar suites demonstrate a speedup, with the proposed approach, in the range of 2% to 16% on a cluster of 128 cores over the state-of-the-art work-stealing scheduler.


The chromatin--nuclear membrane complex was isolated from the interphase nuclei of rat liver. The complex contains all the structures typical for the nuclear membranes in situ, i.e. pores, inner and outer membranes, fibrous layer and chromatin layer made up of nucleomeric granules (phi 20-30 nm) attached to the inner nuclear membrane. The content and molecular weight of DNA in the complex depend on the duration of treatment of the nuclei with DNAase. This DNA does not differ from the total nuclear DNA in terms of its molecular heterogeneity (reassociation kinetics) and frequency of pyrimidine oligonucleotides of different lengths (n = 1-8), but contains by 25% less 5-methylcytosine. The chromatin bound to the nuclear membrane has a far lower amount of histone H1 and is, in all probability, a special fraction of nuclear DNP.


The potential of combined ERS/JERS-1 SAR images for land cover classification was demonstrated for the Raco test site (Michigan) in recent papers and articles. The authors' goal is to develop a classification algorithm which is stable in terms of applicability in different geographical regions. Unlike optical remote sensing techniques, radar remote sensing can provide calibrated data where the image signal is solely determined by the physical (structural) and electrical properties of the targets on the Earth's surface and near subsurface. Hence, a classifier based on radar signatures of object classes should be applicable on new calibrated images without the need to train the classifier again. This article discusses the design and applicability of a classification algorithm, which is based on calibrated radar signatures measured from ERS-1 (C-band, vv polarized) and JERS-1 (L-band, hh polarized) SAR image data. The applicability is compared in two different test sites, Raco, Michigan and the Cedar Creek LTER site, Minnesota. It was found, that classes separate very well, when certain boundary conditions like comparable seasonality or soil moisture conditions are observed.


A method for segmenting water bodies in optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite images is proposed. It makes use of the textural features of the different regions in the image for segmentation. The method consists in a multiscale analysis of the images, which allows us to study the images regularity both, locally and globally. As results of the analysis, coarse multifractal spectra of studied images and a group of images that associates each position (pixel) with its corresponding value of local regularity (or singularity) spectrum are obtained. Thresholds are then applied to the multifractal spectra of the images for the classification. These thresholds are selected after studying the characteristics of the spectra under the assumption that water bodies have larger local regularity than other soil types. Classifications obtained by the multifractal method are compared quantitatively with those obtained by neural networks trained to classify the pixels of the images in covered against uncovered by water. In optical images, the classifications are also compared with those derived using the so-called Normalized Differential Water Index (NDWI).


Introduction: Galactomannan (GM) is a component of Aspergillus cell wall. The usefulness of GM levels in body fluids is still unclear. We evaluated the utility of Bronchoalveolar Lavage (BAL) GM testing in patients with suspected pulmonary Aspergillosis. Aims and Objectives: To assess the utility of BAL Galactomannan assay in diagnosis of pulmonary Aspergillus infections Methods: 90 consecutive patients with suspicion of pulmonary Aspergillosis, based on pre-defined clinic-radiological parameters, were included in our study. BAL samples obtained via fibre optic bronchoscopy were tested for routine microbiology and Galactomannan(GM). Data was collected and multivariate analysis done. Results: 50 patients (55.56 %) were found to have BAL GM >0.8, a cut off considered as positive. 13 samples were fungal smear/fungal culture positive for Aspergillus spp. and BAL GM was positive in 11 of these samples (84.62%; p=0.04794) with a mean GM of 1.65. 39 patients with negative fungal smear/culture but BAL GM positive (mean GM=0.97) were also prescribed systemic anti-fungal drugs and clinico-radiological improvement was seen in these patients. BAL GM was positive in 18 of 20 patients with bronchiectasis (90%; p=0.0011) and in up to 65 % patients with asthma or COPD. Smoking history or biomass fuel exposure also showed a trend towards positivity with BAL GM value. Conclusion: In patients with suspicion of pulmonary Aspergillosis, BAL galactomannan level was found to be a better marker than fungal smear/culture. While microbiological and histopathological evidences are gold standard to diagnose fungal infections, our study shows that in patients with negative fungal smear or culture, BAL Galactomannan can be conclusive for diagnosis.


There was only one decision released by the Supreme Court of Canada this year which squarely fell within the realm of Aboriginal law, Quebec (Attorney General) v. Moses. This decision is significant in part because it is the Supreme Court of Canada's first foray into interpreting a recent treaty: the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. Prior to this, all of the jurisprudence had considered treaties that had been entered into between the 1700s3 and the early 1920s. In hearing these cases, the Supreme Court has developed a complex series of unique principles for interpreting the terms of Crown-Aboriginal treaties. This case presented the opportunity for the Supreme Court to provide guidance on whether and how these principles of interpretation apply in the context of more recent treaties. This matter is of general concern given that many treaties have been negotiated in the last few decades. The two sets of reasons in this case illustrate a harsh split, as the five-member majority and the four-member dissent disagreed on fundamental aspects of the law. The majority seemed to conclude that the treaty was to be interpreted largely as though it is a contract. The dissent, on the other hand, considered how the existing principles of treaty interpretation apply in the circumstances in which this specific treaty was entered into. As a result, the majority established that the proper approach for interpreting modern treaties — like interpreting contracts — is to focus on the plain meaning of the words in the document. The dissent, on the other hand, endorsed an approach which places the words into the context in which the treaty was negotiated, and which interprets those words in light of the intentions of the signatories. These vastly divergent approaches led to two radically different sets of reasons.


Since it began operating in the 1990s in
 northern Uganda, the LRA has inflicted enormous suffering on
 millions of civilians in several countries of the Great
 Lakes and Central African regions. In the 1990s and early
 2000s, suc¬cessive Ugandan People s Defense Force (UPDF)
 operations in northern Uganda largely drove the LRA into the
 DRC and what is now South Sudan, and after 2008, into the
 CAR. Armed conflict negatively affects women and men in
 different ways and results in gender-specific dis¬advantages
 which are not always recognized or ad¬dressed in mainstream
 conflict and reconstruction programs and policies. The
 Learning on Gender and Conflict in Africa Program (LOGiCA)
 aims to increase gender-specific programming in
 post-conflict Sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on
 de¬mobilization and reintegration (D&R) in the Great
 Lakes region (GLR), and gender specific issues arising from
 armed conflict including psy¬chosocial aspects.


Both diet quality and sleep duration of children have declined in the past decades. Several studies have suggested that diet and sleep are associated; however, it is not established which aspects of the diet are responsible for this association. Is it nutrients, food items, diet quality or eating behaviours? We surveyed 2261 grade 5 children on their dietary intake and eating behaviours, and their parents on their sleep duration and sleep quality. We performed factor analysis to identify and quantify the essential factors among 57 nutrients, 132 food items and 19 eating behaviours. We considered these essential factors along with a diet quality score in multivariate regression analyses to assess their independent associations with sleep. Nutrients, food items and diet quality did not exhibit independent associations with sleep, whereas two groupings of eating behaviours did. 'Unhealthy eating habits and environments' was independently associated with sleep. For each standard deviation increase in their factor score, children had 6 min less sleep and were 12% less likely to have sleep of good quality. 'Snacking between meals and after supper' was independently associated with sleep quality. For each standard deviation increase in its factor score, children were 7% less likely to have good quality sleep. This study demonstrates that eating behaviours are responsible for the associations of diet with sleep among children. Health promotion programmes aiming to improve sleep should therefore focus on discouraging eating behaviours such as eating alone or in front of the TV, and snacking between meals and after supper.


Background: Hirschsprung-associated enterocolitis (HAEC) is a major contributor in the mortality of Hirschsprung disease (HSCR) patients that can occur both preoperatively and post-operatively. Several cut-off values of HAEC score have been used, i.e., ≥10 and ≥4. Here, we compared the HAEC frequency after transanal endorectal pull-through (TEPT) using two cut-offs of scoring system and associated them with the risk factors. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis was conducted using medical records of HSCR patients who were aged ≤18 years old and underwent TEPT at our institution, Indonesia between 2009 and 2016. HAEC was determined using the scoring system with cut-off values of ≥10 and ≥4. Results: Seventy subjects were used in the final analysis, consisting of 44 males and 26 females. There was a significant difference in one HAEC finding between the ≥10 and ≥4 cut-off groups; diarrhea with explosive stools (p = 0.002). The HAEC frequency was 5/70 (7.1%) and 49/70 (70%) patients using cut-off values of ≥10 and ≥4 (p < 0.0001), respectively. We found that patients with anemia (i.e., iron deficiency anemia) had a higher risk of HAEC after TEPT than patients with normal hemoglobin level with OR of 3.77 (95% CI = 1.28–11.1; p = 0.027), while no associations were found between other variables, including sex, age at diagnosis, age at definitive therapy, albumin level, and nutritional status and HAEC following TEPT (p = 0.87, 0.15, 0.33, 0.26, and 0.60, respectively). Also, no associations were observed between maternal education level, mother's age at pregnancy and gestational age and HAEC after definitive surgery (p = 0.10, 0.46, and 0.86, respectively). Conclusions: This report is the first study comparing two different cut-off values of scoring system to evaluate the HAEC frequency after TEPT and results suggest further using cut-off of ≥4 to expand the diagnosis of HAEC. Moreover, we also show for the first time that hemoglobin level is a strong risk factor for the HAEC development after TEPT.


The use of symptom validity assessment has become commonplace in clinical neuropsychological evaluations. However, clinicians often struggle with how to provide patients with feedback regarding invalid responding or effort, because of the sensitive nature of the information that must be conveyed. A conceptual framework for providing such feedback is outlined in clinical neuropsychological evaluations, and recommendations for how to handle complaints are offered. Our feedback model is not meant to apply to individuals referred by attorneys or other non-clinical third parties (e.g., independent medical examination companies).


Viereck, L.A.; Dyrness, C.T.; Batten, A.R.; Wenzlick, K.J. 1992. The Alaska vegetation classification. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-286. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 278 p. The Alaska vegetation classification presented here is a comprehensive, statewide system that has been under development since 1976. The classification is based, as much as possible, on the characteristics of the vegetation itself and is designed to categorize existing vegetation, not potential vegetation. A hierarchical system with five levels of resolution is used for classifying Alaska vegetation. The system, an agglomerative one, starts with 888 known Alaska plant communities, which are listed and referenced. At the broadest level of resolution, the system contains three formations-forest, scrub, and herbaceous vegetation. In addition to the classification, this report contains a key to levels I, II, and III; complete descriptions of all level IV units; and a glossary of terms used.


In the past, the water industry met new demand by increasing supply. In many instances governments provided excessive and free supply in pursuit of political objectives such as settlement of remote land. These policies generated inefficient and low-value use and in many instances created environmental problems. Sometime during the 1970s, community concern over the environmental impact and rising marginal costs of increasing supply caused the emergence of a shift in policy paradigms towards demand management, under which increased demand can only be satisfied through a reallocation of existing scarce resources between competing users. Australia is one of the countries in the world that has most comprehensively pursued this new policy paradigm, and provides an excellent case study of the policy change process within the context of a developed country. This article analyzes the Australian policy process from a broad policy-making perspective, as well as from a community-based perspective, with emphasis on the period since 1990.


Quality education is determined by students' learning achievement for education. Learning achievement is influenced by several factors such as motivation, interests and learning habits. Motivation, interests and study habits are very involved in the learning process. Students who have high motivation and interest in learning and good study habits will get a good learning achievement index. Data obtained from the evaluation of obstetric department, a decline in student achievement index in the second semester with a GPA range of 1.26. The aim is to find out the relationship of motivation, interests and habits of learning with performance index. The study was conducted at Department Midwifery Poltekkes Bengkulu. The study design was cross sectional with a simple random technique (94 people). Secondary data taken from the evaluation department of obstetrics and primary data obtained directly from respondents through questionnaires. Analysis of data with 2 stages, namely univariate with the frequency distribution table to see the picture of motivations, interests and habits of learning and student achievement index, and bivariate analysis with the Chi - Square to see the relationship between motivation, interests and habits of learning with existing research prestasi.Hasil index significant relationship between learning motivation with achievement indices with p = 0.022 (p <0.05), a significant correlation between interest in learning with performance index with a value of p = 0.041 (p <0.05) and a significant correlation between study habits with performance index with a value of p = 0.047 (p <0.05).


Propofol is an intravenous sedative-hypnotic agent indicated for induction and maintenance of general anesthesia as well as for sedation of intubated, mechanically ventilated adults in intensive care units (ICU). Propofol is characterized by a phenolic structure similar to that of α-tocopherol, and presents antioxidant properties that have been demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo. The aim of the present review is to evaluate the antioxidant properties of propofol in various models and whether or not it may be considered an efficient therapeutic tool in counteracting oxidative stress during general anesthesia and sedation in ICU.


Nanophotonic perovskite solar cells have been fabricated by infiltrating methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) into the interstices of the quasi-single-crystalline TiO2 nanodendrite (ND) array. The TiO2 ND array in the active layer serves as not only the nanophotonic light trapping structure but also the electron transport medium for enhancing both light harvesting and electron collection to challenge the issue of short electron diffusion length in MAPbI3-based solar cells. Finite difference time domain simulation results indicate that the ND in the MAPbI3 matrix exhibits superior light trapping performance compared to the nanorod (NR), which can well explain the comparable light harvesting in the MAPbI3–TiO2 ND and the MAPbI3–TiO2 NR solar cells although the MAPbI3 amount in the former is ∼10% less. Moreover, the branches developed from the trunks of the NDs will extract the photoelectrons from MAPbI3 to reduce the electron transport length in the MAPbI3 matrix. The higher internal quantum efficiencies, especially at longer wavelengths, confirm the enhanced electron collection in the MAPbI3–TiO2 ND solar cell. Compared to the MAPbI3–TiO2 NR solar cell, the 22% and 25% enhancements in the average Jsc and PCE are respectively attained in the MAPbI3–TiO2 ND solar cells.


With the shenfun Python module (github.com/spectralDNS/shenfun) an effort is made towards automating the implementation of the spectral Galerkin method for simple tensor product domains, consisting of (currently) one non-periodic and any number of periodic directions. The user interface to shenfun is intentionally made very similar to FEniCS (fenicsproject.org). Partial Differential Equations are represented through weak variational forms and solved using efficient direct solvers where available. MPI decomposition is achieved through the {mpi4py-fft} module (bitbucket.org/mpi4py/mpi4py-fft), and all developed solver may, with no additional effort, be run on supercomputers using thousands of processors. Complete solvers are shown for the linear Poisson and biharmonic problems, as well as the nonlinear and time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau equation.


A recent theory assigns a single scalar 0 ≤ r ≤ 1 to pin-jointed plane trusses, characterising their geometric sensitivity with respect to small displacements of individual joints. Here we investigate how r is varying in n × m minimally rigid quadrangulations and find that nontrivial patterns correspond both to maximal and minimal values of r.


Why do sovereign governments create judicial institutions and grant these institutions the power to rule their actions invalid? Once such a court is created, under what conditions is that court able to rule against these governments and get compliance with their rulings? Finally, how might the influence of the court change over time? This study presents a general theory of judicial institutions that provides a unified answer to these three questions. I argue that governments create judicial institutions to help solve collective action problems endemic to operating under a common regulatory regime. Once established, a court in its institutional "infancy" is capable of facilitating compliance with that regulatory regime's rules but only consistent with the purpose for which the governments created the court. And finally, once the court has earned the trust of a government's public, its ability to enforce the regulatory regime's rules qualitatively expands. In demonstrating this last point, I derive how and why publics can rationally come to believe that supporting a court, if there was a conflict between its government and the court, would be in that public's interest.


Molecular dynamic simulations were performed to study the characteristics of particle flows in a toroidal trap driven by the ion drag under the influence of gravity, interparticle forces, and friction with a neutral gas background. This paper is focused on the influence of the driving force and the strength of friction on the dynamics of the dust flow and its different regimes. For small values of the ion drag, the particle flow exhibits instabilities with strong velocity fluctuations, while for high values of the ion drag, a quiescent particle flow is obtained. The transition from unstable flows to quiescent flows is studied in detail.


We generalize the local model of primordial non-Gaussianity by promoting the parameter fNL to a general scale-dependent function fNL(k). We calculate the resulting bispectrum and the eect on the bias of dark matter halos, and thus the extent to which fNL(k) can be measured from the large-scale structure observations. By calculating the principal components of fNL(k), we identify scales where this form of non-Gaussianity is best constrained and estimate the overlap with previously studied local and equilateral non- Gaussian models.


A special mechanism/mode of plastic deformation occurring through stress-driven rotations of deformation-distorted grain boundaries (GBs) in nanowires, micropillars, thin films and subsurface areas of bulk solids with nanocrystalline and ultrafine-grained structures is theoretically described. The suggested approach serves as a generalization of the theoretical ] TUO RiUfQTCfYTr[ DXicFUf@Ud PTUcSbYRYWcdbUccTbYfU bdQ tions of regular (non-distorted) low-angle tilt boundaries composed of periodically arranged lattice dislocations in crystals. In the exemplary case of nickel specimens with nanocrystalline and ultrafine-grained structures, it is found that the rotations of deformation-distorted GBs are energetically favorable processes in wide range of GB parameters. Each energetically favorable GB rotation is specified by its equilibrium rotation angle eq associated with the energy minimum. Dependences of eq on applied stress, GB misorientation and other geometric characteristics of a rotating GB are calculated which show the trends in realization of stress-driven rotations of deformation-distorted GBs in nanocrystalline and ultrafine-grained solids. Also, combined splitting and rotations of deformation-distorted GBs are theoretically described as energetically favorable processes in wide ranges of parameters characterizing GB configuration. These processes result in formation of nanoscale grains in nanocrystalline and ultrafine-grained solids. Our theory is consistent with the corresponding experimental data reported in the literature.


We study a dynamic model of opinion formation in social networks where individuals repeatedly engage in discussion (similarly to the DeGroot model). As our main contribution, we allow agents to misrepresent their opinion in a conforming or counter-conforming way. Conformity of all agents is a sufficient condition for convergence of opinions. Studying these long-run opinions in detail, we show that an agent's social influence on the group opinion is increasing in network centrality and decreasing in the degree of conformity. Moreover, assuming that the initial opinion is a noisy signal about some true state of the world, we study how conformity affects the efficiency of information aggregation or the "wisdom" of the society. We provide the optimal distribution of conformity levels in the society and show which agents should be more conforming in order to increase wisdom.


Paraneoplastic neuropathies occur in various settings. This article focuses on recent neuroimmunologic findings regarding paraneoplastic neuropathy. Entities such as sensorimotor and sensory neuropathy, sensory neuronopathy; motor, autonomic, demyelinating and vasculitic mononeuropathies; and cranial nerve lesions and neuropathies in association with leukaemia and paraproteinaemas are discussed. Finally, the article considers the issue of 'overlap' syndromes--the occurrence of several paraneoplastic phenomena in the same patient.


As a result of improvement in technological opportunities and internet media, there have been changes and transformations both in implementation and principle in public relations practices which are based on the cycle of sharing the right message at the right time with the right audience and evaluating the results to source the new studies. Enterprises which actualize the components of corporate reputation such as social responsibility, product and service quality, financial performance, human resource management and the value of the employees the organization's vision of the future and past assessments in collaboration with their stakeholders, design their perceptions in a positive way. Corporate reputation of the organizations which actualize their target audience with transparent and clear messages through corporate posts in internet and social media, improves and becomes entrenched day by day based on reliability principle. In this study, literature review, analysis and interpretation on the role of managing the perception of corporate messages in social media are conducted. Moreover, two-way symmetrical model of public relations examples that use the Internet's technological capabilities are presented and analyzed. Thus, social media messages which source perception management and reputation management are examined and interpreted with random sampling method.


We demonstrate a method for dispersion compensation based a on constant-period fiber Bragg grating imprinted into a tapered fiber (T-FBG). This technique is more convenient than the conventional approach based on chirped fiber Bragg gratings made using chirped phase masks. Using a uniform phase mask, the chirp and dispersion of the T-FBG is determined by the taper shape, and can be varied by changing the tapering parameters. We show that the T-FBG is capable of dispersion compensation of a few meter long fiber laser, resulting in soliton mode-locking.


A mild, selective and efficient Nazarov cyclization of divinyl ketones catalyzed by phosphomolybdic acid (PMA) is described. The process demonstrates a broad substrate scope with functional group tolerance under short reaction times. PMA supported on silica gel is more efficient than the bulk catalyst and is recycled up to three times without significant activity loss.


We present a study on the feasibility of the automatic detection of atrial fibrillation (AF) from cardiac vibration signals (ballistocardiograms/BCGs) recorded by unobtrusive bed-mounted sensors. The proposed system is intended as a screening and monitoring tool in home-healthcare applications and not as a replacement for ECG-based methods used in clinical environments. Based on the BCG data recorded in a study with ten AF patients, we evaluate and rank seven popular machine learning algorithms (naive Bayes, linear and quadratic discriminant analysis, support vector machines, random forests as well as bagged and boosted trees) for their performance in separating 30-s long BCG epochs into one of three classes: sinus rhythm, AF, and artifact. For each algorithm, feature subsets of a set of statistical time-frequency-domain and time-domain features were selected based on the mutual information between features and class labels as well as the first- and second-order interactions among features. The classifiers were evaluated on a set of 856 epochs by means of tenfold cross validation. The best algorithm (random forests) achieved a Matthews correlation coefficient, mean sensitivity, and mean specificity of 0.921, 0.938, and 0.982, respectively.


A 21-year-old male was admitted with severe right arm and hand tremors after a thalamic hemorrhage caused by a traffic accident. He was also suffering from agonizing pain in his right shoulder that manifested after the tremor. Neurologic examination revealed a disabling, severe, and irregular kinetic and postural tremor in the right arm during target-directed movements. There was also an irregular ipsilateral rest tremor and dystonic movements in the distal part of the right arm. The amplitude was moderate at rest and extremely high during kinetic and intentional movements. The patient underwent left globus pallidum internus and ventral intermediate thalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation. The patient improved by more than 80% as rated by the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin Tremor Rating Scale and Visual Analog Scale six months after surgery.


Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. (Orobanchaceae) in Poland: taxonomical position, distribution and habitat requirements The paper presents current distribution of Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. in Poland, including the new localities which were found in Podzamcze (Kraków-Częstochowa Upland) and Cząstków Stary (Kielce Upland). Taxonomical position as well as some diagnostic features that differ O. bartlingii from O. alsatica are presented. Habitat requirements and plant communities in which the species was recorded are discussed.


The thermal transport properties of porous silicon and nano-hybrid "porous silicon/water" systems are presented here. The thermal conductivity was evaluated with equilibrium molecular dynamics technique for porous systems made of spherical voids or water-filled cavities. We revealed large thermal conductivity enhancement in the nano-hybrid systems as compared to their dry porous counterparts, which cannot be captured by effective media theory. This rise of thermal conductivity is related to the increases of the specific surface of the liquid/solid interface. We demonstrated that significant difference for more than two folds of thermal conductivity of pristine porous silicon and "porous silicon liquid/composite" is due to the liquid density fluctuation close to "solid/liquid interface" (layering effect). This effect is getting more important for the high specific surface of the interfacial area. Specifically, the enhancement of the effective thermal conductivity is 50 % for specific surface area of 0.3 (1/nm), and it increases further upon the increase of the surface to volume ratio. Our study provides valuable insights into the thermal properties of hybrid liquid/solid nanocomposites and about the importance of confined liquids within nanoporous materials.


The author, a law professor and former deputy sheriff, discusses the problems attending the extensive discretion given to police officers on the job. The book focuses primarily on the decision to arrest and on the development of the mechanisms to control the discretionary nature of that decision. Convinced that individual prejudices can and do play a part in arrest decisions, Professor Williams evaluates alternatives designed to produce impartial and controlled law enforcement. He concludes that only through the collective efforts of the police, state and local government officials, and the judiciary can effective guidelines be formulated and implemented. Harvard Law Review


The structure of the lung, with its delicate network of airspaces and capillaries, means that gravity has a profound influence on its function. Studies of lung function in the absence of gravity provide valuable insight into how, for we Earth-bound individuals, its unavoidable effects shape our lung function. Gravity causes uneven ventilation in the lung through the deformation of lung tissue (the so-called Slinky effect), and uneven perfusion through a combination of the Slinky effect and the zone model of pulmonary perfusion. Both ventilation and perfusion exhibit persisting heterogeneity in microgravity, indicating important other mechanisms. However, gravity serves to maintain a degree of matching of these two processes, so that the ventilation/perfusion ratio, and thus gas exchange, remains efficient. Therefore, while both ventilation and perfusion are more uniform in spaceflight, gas exchange is seemingly no more efficient than on Earth. Despite the changes in lung function when gravity is removed, the lung continues to function well in weightlessness. Unlike many other organ systems, the lung does not appear to undergo structural adaptive changes when gravity is removed, and so there is no apparent degradation in lung function upon return to earth, even after 6 months in space. The structure of the lung means that gravity has a profound influence on its function http://ow.ly/sZEZt


Measles virus (MeV) represents one of the main causes of death among young children, particularly in developing countries. Upon infection, MeV controls both interferon induction (IFN) and the interferon signaling pathway which results in a severe host immunosuppression that can persists for up to 6 mo after infection. Despite the global biology of MeV infection is well studied, the role of the plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) during the host innate immune response after measles vaccination remains largely uncharacterized. Here we investigated the role of pDCs, the major producers of interferon in response to viral infections, in the development of adaptive immune response against MeV vaccine. We report that there is a strong correlation between pDCs population and the humoral immune response to Edmonston Zagreb (EZ) measles vaccination in 9-month-old mexican infants. Five infants were further evaluated after vaccination, showing a clear increase in pDCs at baseline, one week and 3 months after immunization. Three months postvaccination they showed increase in memory T-cells and pDCs populations, high induction of adaptive immunity and also observed a correlation between pDCs number and the humoral immune response. These findings suggest that the development and magnitude of the adaptive immune response following measles immunization is directly dependent on the number of pDCs of the innate immune response.


In the most of the Natural language processing problems, we have to model pair of sequences. The Parts Of Speech tagging (PoS) is the best solution for this type of problems. In POS tagging problem, our goal is to build a proper output tagging sequence for a given input sentence. The tag sequence is same as the input sequence. To get the POS tagging we have used the Hidden Markov Model (HMM) along with the Stanford POS parser in this paper.


In this article, we take stock of provincial higher education institutions in India, which—advertently or not—have not yet caught the attention of policy makers. However, these institutions employ the majority of the teachers and cater to the needs of the majority of students in the country.


The mandibular condyle from 20-day-old rats was examined in the electron microscope with particular attention to intracellular secretory granules and extracellular matrix. Moreover, type II collagen was localized by an immunoperoxidase method. The condyle has been divided into five layers: (1) the most superficial, articular layer, (2) polymorphic cell layer, (3) flattened cell layer, (4) upper hypertrophic, and (5) lower hypertrophic cell layers. In the articular layer, the cells seldom divide, but in the polymorphic layer and upper part of the flattened cell layer, mitosis gives rise to new cells. In these layers, cells produce two types of secretory granules, usually in distinct stacks of the Golgi apparatus; type a, cylindrical granules, in which 300-nm-long threads are packed in bundles which appear "lucent" after formaldehyde fixation; and type b, spherical granules loaded with short, dotted filaments. The matrix is composed of thick banded "lucent" fibrils in a loose feltwork of short, dotted filaments. The cells arising from mitosis undergo endochondral differentiation, which begins in the lower part of the flattened cell layer and is completed in the upper hypertrophic cell layer; it is followed by gradual cell degeneration in the lower hypertrophic cell layer. The cells produce two main types of secretory granules: type b as above; and type c, ovoid granules containing 300-nm-long threads associated with short, dotted filaments. A possibly different secretory granule, type d, dense and cigar-shaped, is also produced. The matrix is composed of thin banded fibrils in a dense feltwork. In the matrix of the superficial layers, the "lucency" of the fibrils indicated that they were composed of collagen I, whereas the "lucency" of the cylindrical secretory granules suggested that they transported collagen I precursors to the matrix. Moreover, the use of ruthenium red indicated that the feltwork was composed of proteoglycan; the dotted filaments packed in spherical granules were similar to, and presumably the source of, the matrix feltwork. The superficial layers did not contain collagen II and were collectively referred to as perichondrium. In the deep layers, the ovoid secretory granules displayed collagen II antigenicity and were likely to transport precursors of this collagen to the matrix, where it appeared in the thin banded fibrils. That these granules also carried proteoglycan to the matrix was suggested by their content of short dotted filaments. Thus the deep layers contained collagen II and proteoglycan as in cartilage; they were collectively referred to as the hyaline cartilage region.


Despite effective hepatitis B virus (HBV)‐DNA suppression, HBV RNA can circulate in patients receiving nucleoside/nucleotide analogues (NAs). Current assays quantify HBV DNA by either real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which uses DNA polymerase, or transcription‐mediated amplification, which uses reverse‐transcriptase (RT) and RNA polymerase. We assessed the effect of RT capability on HBV‐DNA quantification in samples from three cohorts, including patients with quantified HBV RNA. We compared the HBV‐DNA levels by real‐time PCR (cobas HBV, Roche 6800/8800; Xpert HBV, Cepheid), transcription‐mediated amplification (Aptima HBV, Hologic), and real‐time PCR with added RT capability (cobas HBV+RT). In the first cohort (n = 45) followed over 192 weeks of NA therapy, on‐treatment HBV‐DNA levels were higher with cobas HBV+RT than cobas HBV (mean difference: 0.14 log10 IU/mL). In a second cohort (n = 50) followed over 96 weeks of NA therapy, HBV‐DNA viral load was significantly higher with the cobas HBV+RT and Aptima HBV compared with the cobas HBV test at all time points after initiation of NA therapy (mean difference: 0.65‐1.16 log10 IU/mL). A clinically significant difference was not detected between the assays at baseline. In a third cohort (n = 53), after a median of 2.2 years of NA therapy, we detected HBV RNA (median 5.6 log10 copies/mL) in 23 patients (43.4%). Median HBV‐DNA levels by Aptima HBV were 2.4 versus less than 1 log10 IU/mL in samples with HBV RNA and without HBV RNA, respectively (P = 0.0006). In treated patients with HBV RNA, Aptima HBV measured higher HBV‐DNA levels than Xpert HBV and cobas HBV. Conclusion: Tests including an RT step may overestimate HBV DNA, particularly in samples with low viral loads as a result of NA therapy. This overestimation is likely due to amplification of HBV RNA and may have an impact on clinical decisions.


The linear stability of the Stokes layers generated between a pair of synchronously oscillating parallel plates is investigated. The disturbance equations were studied using Floquet theory and pseudospectral numerical methods used to solve the resulting system. Neutral curves for an extensive range of plate separations were obtained and when the plate separation is large compared to the Stokes layer thickness the linear stability properties of the Stokes layer in a semi-infinite fluid were recovered. A detailed analysis of the damping rates of disturbances to the basic flow provides a plausible explanation of why several previous studies of the problem have failed to detect any linear instability of the flow. To compare more faithfully with experimental work the techniques used for the channel problem were modified to allow the determination of neutral curves for axisymmetric disturbances to purely oscillatory flow in a circular pipe. Critical Reynolds numbers for the pipe flow tended to be smaller than their counterparts for the channel case but the smallest critical value was still almost twice the experimentally reported result.


A large variety of substances are used in building materials to improve their properties. In recent years, attention to organic additives used, for example, in renders, façade paints or roof sealing sheets has increased as these compounds have been detected in urban stormwater runoff and surface waters. In this paper, we show the extent of emissions induced by rain events in two study sites in Berlin. For this purpose, stormwater runoff from roofs, façades, and in storm sewers was sampled and analysed over a period of 1.5 years in two residential catchments. Results show that, in particular, the biocides diuron and terbutryn from façades, the root protection agents mecoprop and MCPA in bituminous sheeting, and zinc from roofs and façades reach concentrations in the stormwater sewer that exceed limit values for surface waters. Additionally, transformation products of the biocides were also detected. However, many other analysed substances were below the quantification limit or inconspicuous in their concentration levels. The emissions, modelled with the software COMLEAM, demonstrate that in urban areas the limit values in smaller surface waters are exceeded during wet weather. Furthermore, the orientation of the buildings to wind-driven rain is essential for the emitted load from façades. The calculated mass balances of both catchments show that a major portion of all substances remains on-site and infiltrates diffusely or in swales, while the remaining portion is discharged to stormwater sewers. For example, in one of the two study sites, <5% of diuron emissions are discharged to surface waters. Infiltration, in particular, is therefore a crucial pathway of pollution for soil and groundwater. Measures for source control are proposed to mitigate the leaching of environmentally relevant substances from construction materials.


This paper emphasizes the need for adequate nutrition in order to sustain normal growth in adolescence. The special needs of the adolescent athlete and the pregnant teenager are also reviewed. Adolescent athletes require added nutrient intake for optimal performance. And, if pregnancy occurs, it imposes severe nutritional demands on the adolescent which must be met to prevent low birthweight infants. Although many teenagers consume a good deal of their food outside of the home, there seems to be little evidence of widespread nutritional deficiencies except with respect to iron. However, there is a high incidence of obesity and anorexia among female adolescents and these disorders are discussed.


Introduction: obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (SAOS) is a common disease in the general population. However, studies in the elderly are few and their results are discordant Aim: to compare clinical profile and compliance to continuous positive airway pressure(CPAP) between old and young patients with severe SAOS Methods: prospective study including 80 patients with severe SAOS diagnosed between 2010 and 2011 and followed up of 4 years. Our population is divided into 2 groups:
 G1: 63 patients with age G2: 17 patients with age ≥65 years. Results: we reported 53 women and 27 men.The mean age was 51 years in G1 and 70 in G2. Elderly patients were more likely to be obese and to have significantly more chronic comorbidities (p=0,01) ( hypertension: 88,2%, arrhythmias 29,4%, coronary artery disease 29,4%, dyslipidemia29,4%, diabetes 83,3% and hypothyroidism 50%). Old patients are more likely to report daytime somnolence (Epworth scale:11, 6), depression (23,5%), restless sleep (59%) and morning fatigue (64%), and less likely to report breathing pauses (35%), and frequent snoring(94%). There are no significant difference in severity of sleep apnea, in terms of AHI (51,9) and median desaturation index (33,3) between the 2 groups. In long term use of CPAP, elderly population was more compliant with a respectively median daily use of 4.77, 5.52, 5.55 and 5.37 hours at 3, 6, 12 and 24 months. Finally, CPAP side effects were significantly more common in young people (p=0.01) Conclusion: Untreated severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality in the elderly, and adequate treatment with CPAP may significantly reduce this risk.


In April 2008, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) was informed of the possible downgrading of its "A" status within the UN system, due to its apparent failure to comply with the Paris Principles relating to the status of national human rights institutions. This article explores this threat to downgrade SUHAKAM and the actions which it stimulated on the part of the Malaysian government and SUHAKAM itself. It argues that despite expectations by government and civil society at the time of its establishment, SUHAKAM has directly challenged government on major human rights issues on a number of occasions. At the same time, it has had difficulty persuading government to give effect to its recommendations and has as a consequence drawn strong criticism from civil society for failing to protect human rights that are within the government's power to rectify.


Most economic assessments of grasshopper damage are based on how much plant tissue insects consume or destroy without considering factors that influence the ability of individual plants and communities to respond to damage. Properly grazed perennial warm-season grasses, such as blue grama [Bouteloua gracilis (H.B.K.) Lag. ex Griffiths], can withstand considerable defoliation. We investigated the effects of heavy defoliation on blue grama rangeland by caging bigheaded grasshoppers [Aulocara elliotti (Thomas)] during early, mid, and late growing seasons for 2 years in southwestern New Mexico. Peak standing crop (PSC) of blue grama defoliated in the early-season was the same as that in cages protected from defoliation both years. However, peak standing crop of blue grama was reduced in cages defoliated during the mid and late growing seasons in both years. The importance of midseason feeding was compounded by significant changes in relative proportions of various herbage categories in the standing crop. Forbs and sedges made up a larger percentage of the total forage production at PSC after mid-season defoliation during both years. On rangelands where blue grama is dominant, even very high densities of early-season grasshoppers may not influence herbage production. Substantial declines in grasshopper densities observed before summer rains during both years should influence management decisions. Unless early-season forb production is an important part of a ranch management plan, the damage potential of early- and mid-season grasshopper species may be lower on southwestern rangelands where mid- to late-summer precipitation patterns occur than reported in the literature for other areas of the western United States due to later maturation of warm-season grasses. In most years, depending upon precipitation patterns, there may be adequate growth following heavy early-season herbivory to feed both livestock and grasshoppers.


We study the MMV (Multiple Measurement Vectors) compressive sensing setting with a specific sparse structured support. The locations of the non-zero rows in the sparse matrix are not known. All that is known is that the locations of the non-zero rows have probabilities that vary from one group of rows to another. We propose two novel greedy algorithms for the exact recovery of the sparse matrix in this structured MMV compressive sensing problem. The first algorithm models the matrix sparse structure using a shallow non- linear neural network. The input of this network is the residual matrix after the prediction and the output is the sparse matrix to be recovered. The second algorithm improves the shallow neural network prediction by using the stacking operation to form a deep stacking network. Experimental evaluation demonstrates the superior performance of both new algorithms over existing MMV methods. Among all, the algorithm using the deep stacking network for modelling the structure in MMV compressive sensing performs the best.


Bioethical issues related to the manipulation of embryonic stem cells have hindered advances in the field of medical research. For this reason, it is very important to obtain adult stem cells from different tissues such as adipose, umbilical cord, bone marrow and blood. Among the possible sources, dental pulp is particularly interesting because it is easy to obtain in respect of bioethical considerations. Indeed, human Dental Pulp Stem Cells (hDPSCs) are a type of adult stem cells able to differentiate in neuronal-like cells and can be obtained from the third molar of healthy patients (13-19 ages). In particular, the dental pulp was removed with an excavator, cut into small slices, treated with collagenase IV and cultured in a flask. To induce the neuronal differentiation, hDPSCs were stimulated with EGF/bFGF for 2 weeks. Previously, we have demonstrated that during the differentiation process the content of cellular prion Protein (PrPC) in hDPSCs increased. The cytofluorimetric analysis showed an early expression of PrPC that increased after neuronal differentiation process. Ablation of PrPC by siRNA PrP prevented neuronal differentiation induced by EGF/bFGF. In this paper, we illustrate that as we enhanced the isolation, separation and in vitro cultivation methods of hDPSCs with several easy procedures, more efficient cell clones were obtained and large-scale expansion of the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) was observed. We also show how the hDPSCs, obtained with methods detailed in the protocol, are an excellent experimental model to study the neuronal differentiation process of MSCs and subsequent cellular and molecular processes.


Lupinus albus has been grown commercially in Australia since the 1970s and has long been regarded as resistant to phomopsis caused by Diaporthe toxica. Isolates capable of infecting L. albus were collected following an outbreak of phomopsis in 2004 in southern New South Wales. Glasshouse screening of L. albus cultivars with the pathogen revealed that genotypes differ in their response to D. toxica with some current cultivars having useful resistances. Several breeding lines and old cultivars were susceptible in either vegetative or reproductive tissue or both. The commonly grown commercial cultivar Kiev Mutant was moderately susceptible in all tissues assessed. A principle component analysis gave weak to moderate correlation (r = 0.14 to r = 0.54, depending on the two-way comparison) between vegetative and reproductive tissue, which is suggestive that resistance in different tissues may be under distinct genetic control. The germination of infected seed from the outbreak in 2004 was severely compromised, and much of the seed harboured the pathogen. A survey of 171 commercial seed samples from 2004 to 2006 showed that phomopsis discoloured seed was present in only 20 samples, all of them confined to southern New South Wales. While the pathogen presents a risk to L. albus cropping zones in southern New South Wales, it is not widely spread at this stage. However, vigilance is required to prevent infected seed from being sown so that the disease can be kept in check.


SETTING
University-affiliated hospital in South Africa.

OBJECTIVE
To assess the time to diagnosis and the yield and laboratory cost of diagnostic procedures in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) associated tuberculosis.

DESIGN
Cohort study.

PATIENTS
Adult HIV-infected patients with newly-diagnosed tuberculosis admitted over a 2-year period.

RESULTS
A total of 141 admissions fulfilled the case definition. Sputum smear yield (43% overall) correlated strongly with chest radiograph appearance but not with CD4+ lymphocyte count. Sputum smear yield was approximately 40% per sample sent, resulting in a high cumulative yield when > or = three samples were sent. Smear of sputum or wide needle lymph node aspirates were the most cost-effective diagnostic methods. Significant diagnostic delay occurred in sputum smear-negative patients. Most patients with sputum smear-negative tuberculosis had either pleural effusions or lymphadenopathy. Lymph node biopsy had a high diagnostic yield even in patients with symmetrical nodes, but was under-utilised in this group. There was unnecessary expenditure on cultures, with many patients having several positive cultures.

CONCLUSION
Repeated sputum smear examination produces a high cumulative yield in HIV-associated tuberculosis. Considerable savings in laboratory utilisation and bed occupancy would have been made if a streamlined diagnostic approach with greater use of lymph node aspirate and early pleural or lymph node biopsy had been followed.


ABSTRACT Increasing global pressure to enhance teacher quality has led to increasing numbers of new ITE programmes, yet there is a dearth of policy studies interrogating exactly how both macro and micro-policy processes combine to shape the development of these programmes. This article examines one particular new programme – the MSc Transformative Learning and Teaching (MSc TLT) – and rather than presenting one coherent narrative of programme development, identifies three distinct cultural spaces in which ITE exists: the political space, the professional space and the university space. An analysis is provided of the way(s) in which the development of the MSc TLT has been supported or resisted in each of these cultural spaces. The analysis challenges the dualist notion of 'official' v. 'counter' narratives, instead revealing a series of compliant or disruptive narratives across the various spaces, contributing a new way of understanding the development of new ITE programmes.


The standard of care for treatment of early-stage lung cancer continues to be definitive surgery with lobectomy or pneumonectomy. However, there are patients who refuse surgery or due to several factors, including high operative risk, are not surgical candidates. Fractionated, standard-dosed radiation has been shown to offer suboptimal control and survival rates. In these patients, stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is increasingly becoming a viable, safe, and effective alternative to surgery. An emerging and expanding body of evidence is showing the technical feasibility and ablative properties of relatively short courses and high doses of SBRT. This review will focus on the emergence of the technique, the current status of its use and the future directions of study that will further define how we use SBRT in the treatment of early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).


The housing is one of the basic requirements for ensuring the well-being of the people's life is always preserved.The National Housing Policy has been practiced through the implementation of the Third Malaysia Plan as the government's efforts to ensure all people have their own homes. Based on The Third Malaysia Plan (1976-1980), one of the essential objectives of social in Malaysia
development is to meet the needs of housing; especially the lower–income group savour the facilities of adequate housing.Therefore, the government should continue to emphasize the necessity of providing adequate housing, quality and affordable housing to meet the needs of the targeted group. Generally, a policy statement written into guidelines on actions to be undertaken to improve the welfare of society (King et al, 2000) and also the government's action plan to improve the well-being of the country. In the context of housing, housing policy development seen as a way for the government to intervene to ensure sufficient housing supply to meet the demand for urban homeowners and fulfilling social
responsibilities of government.


The segmentation of magnetic resonance (MR) brain images into white matter (WM), gray matter (GM) and cerebrospinal uid (CSF) play an importantrole in diagnostics and research of brain diseases. A multitude of approaches to automatic brain tissue segmentation have been reported in literature. In this paper, we evaluate the effectiveness of a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) by reducing the segmentation task to a classication problem, an area in which CNNs have proven effective. Our CNN implementation analyses the neighborhood around each voxel to correctly classify the tissue type. The network was trained and evaluated on the IBSR in accordance with the comparison methodology for segmentation algorithms presented in Valverde et al. The results show promising performance and potential for the voxel based CNN approach to brain tissue segmentation.


In this paper, reduction of scour around group of two and three piers using geotextile layer has been carried out for the case of clear-water flow over uniform sediment. The results reveal that geotextile layer has a considerable effect in both delaying and reducing scour. The effect of geotextile in delaying souring is more evident in third pier than first and second pier. Also when the width of the geotextile layer is decreased the effect of geotextile layer in reduction of scour depth is decreased as well. When the size of geotextile increased the delay time is increased. Moreover, geotextile layer reduces down-flow and horseshoe vortex in each three piers as the same performance of collar. Results show that the efficiency of geotextile in reduction of scour depth in rear pier is larger than the other piers due to a weaker down flow at upstream face of the rear pier. The maximum scour depth was observed at upstream face of the front pier for both two and three piers.


In contrast to dog associated human rabies cases decline year by year due to the rabies vaccination coverage rates increase in China, ferret badger (FB, Melogale moschata)–associated human rabies cases emerged in the 1990s, and are now an increasingly recognized problem in southeast China. To investigate epidemiology, temporal evolution dynamics, transmission characterization and pathogenicity of FB-associated rabies viruses (RABVs), from 2008 to 2018, we collected 3,622 FB brain samples in Jiangxi and Zhejiang Province, and detected 112 RABV isolates. Four FB-related lineages were identified by phylogenetic analysis (lineages A–D), the estimated Times to Most Recent Common Ancestor were 1941, 1990, 1937 and 1997 for lineages A–D respectively. Furthermore, although no FB-associated human rabies case has been reported there apart from Wuyuan area, FB-RABV isolates are mainly distributed in Jiangxi Province. Pathogenicity of FB-RABVs was assessed using peripheral inoculation in mice and in beagles with masseter muscles, mortality-rates ranging from 20% to 100% in mice and 0 to 20% in beagles in the groups infected with the various isolates. Screening of sera from humans with FB bites and no postexposure prophylaxis to rabies, revealed that 5 of 9 were positive for neutralizing antibodies of RABV. All the results above indicated that FB-RABV variants caused a lesser pathogenicity in mice, beagles and even humans. Vaccination in mice suggests that inactivated vaccine or recombinant subunit vaccine products can be used to control FB- associated rabies, however, oral vaccines for stray dogs and wildlife need to be developed and licensed in China urgently. IMPORTANCE In recent years FB-associated rabies virus has been identified as a major life-threatening pathogen in some districts in China. To understand the risk to public health and the contemporary dynamics, the present study conducted extensive investigations on FB rabies, distribution, virus isolation, phylogeny analysis, pathogenicity determination of various FB rabies virus strains, besides, serologic epidemiology survey to those whom bit by FB was also collected. The results show that the majority of FBs dwell in southeast China, like Jiangxi and Zhejiang Province, Phylogenetic analysis indicates that all isolated FB RABVs evolved from dogs, and the FB RABV can separate into 4 distinct lineages distributed relatively independent in different areas. The isolate strains differ in pathogenicity, although they have relatively lower pathogenicity compared to dog rabies virus according to our study, the need for further study to licensed oral vaccines and FB RABV pathogenesis is emphasized in order to control rabies.


To efficiently solve large, dense, complex linear systems that arise in the electric field integral equation (EFIE) formulation of electromagnetic scattering problems, a new modified incomplete LU (ILU) preconditioner is developed and used in the context of the generalised minimal residual iterative method accelerated with the multilevel fast multipole method. The key idea is to perturb the near-field impedance matrix of EFIE with the principle value term of the magnetic field integral equation operator before constructing ILU preconditioners. Numerical experiments indicate that this new perturbation technique is very effective with the ILU preconditioner and the resulted ILU preconditioner can reduce both the iteration number and the computational time substantially.


In the standard cosmological model, the merger remnant of the Milky Way and Andromeda (Milkomeda) will be the only galaxy remaining within our event horizon once the Universe has aged by another factor of ten, ~ 1011 years after the Big Bang. After that time, the only extragalactic sources of light in the observable cosmic volume will be hypervelocity stars being ejected continuously from Milkomeda. Spectroscopic detection of the velocity-distance relation or the evolution in the Doppler shifts of these stars will allow a precise measurement of the vacuum mass density as well as the local matter distribution. Already in the near future, the next generation of large telescopes will allow photometric detection of individual stars out to the edge of the Local Group, and may target the ~ 105±1 hypervelocity stars that originated in it as cosmological tracers.


Twenty patients with sub-acute and chronic pericarditis under went closed thorax pericardial biopsy. In three cases the examination brought to light a diagnosis of tuberculosis and in one of a tumoural origin. In 16 cases in which the aetiology was that of a non-specific pericarditis, the value of this examination, integrated into the context, is discussed.


The aquarium fish occupies an important place in hobby industry. When to increase the profit
margin in trading, despite of filling a small amount of oxygen and water into plastic packages,
they put into a large number of aquarium fish were identified from wholesalers. This leads to
stress on the fish. The quality of water inside the package deteriorates for reasons such as
rapid breathing and metabolic intensity. During transport or after, this situation can lead a
portion of fish to death. This is resulted being pecuniary and interest loss from this hobby.
Anesthetic agent is added to prevent this situation from carrying packages. Most of these
chemicals are not organic. Clove oil, containing the active ingredient eugenol, has been
determined to be an inexpensive and effective fish anaesthetic. It is known to be used safely in
aquaculture. In Aquaculture practical studies have been used such as tags, transportation,
shipping, vaccine etc. It is known that Clove oil is not harm to the environment. For the users
it is in a safe substance. This study is determining the lowest dose of clove oil of transport or
handling of some aquarium fishes for reduces their stress.
Keywords: clove oil, eugenol, anaesthesia, sedative, aquarium fish, ornamental fish


The wind energy sector grew continuously in the last 17 years, which illustrates the potential of wind energy as an alternative to fossil fuel. In parallel to physical architecture evolution, the scheduling of maintenance optimizes the yield of wind power plants. This paper presents an innovative approach to condition monitoring of wind power plants, that provides a system-level anomaly detection for preventive maintenance. At first a data-driven modeling algorithm is presented which utilizes generic machine learning methods. This approach allows to automatically model a system in order to monitor the behaviors of a wind power plant. Additionally, this automatically learned model is used as a basis for the second algorithm presented in this work, which detects anomalous system behavior and can alarm its operator. Both presented algorithms are used in an overall solution that neither rely on specialized wind power plant architectures nor requires specific types of sensors. To evaluate the developed algorithms, two well-known clustering methods are used as a reference.


Hybrid antibiotics mederrhodins A and B were produced by a recombinant strain consisting of the medermycin-producing Streptomyces sp. strain AM7161 containing part of the gene clusters for actinorhodin biosynthesis of Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). Mederrhodin A has a hydroxyl group at the C-6 position of the medermycin molecule, and mederrhodin B is dihydromederrhodin A. The antimicrobial activity of mederrhodin A resembled that of medermycin. Mederrhodin B was almost devoid of antimicrobial activity.


Abstract This article discusses how new trends for decentralised and integrated protection and local development of mountain landscapes have appeared in recent management practice, and how decentralised protection and management models could contribute to integrated and dynamic local development practice. Case studies performed on two larger protected areas and two regional parks based on local initiatives and agreements show that the two trends are quite visible in Norwegian mountain landscape management, but only to a certain extent. Our suggestions for promoting these trends are to consider: (1) revising the protected area regulations managed by the nature protection authorities to also include local development as a specific purpose; (2) transferring the protected area responsibility to the land use planning authorities; and (3) using regional parks as a framework for integrated and decentralised development within the existing restrictions and possibilities.


Abstract. Hidden integration of 79 GHz sensors behind plastic and painted fascia represents a challenging task since both electromagnetic and car body design constraints have to be met. This paper compares different possibilities for low-cost integration of radar sensors. Based on a model for stratified media, a study of the most important parameters such as bandwidth, angle and tolerances is shown. Our results suggest that for plastic fascia, the requirements of future radar sensors can be met with low-cost matching. Even with metallic paints, the requirements imposed by modern 79 GHz radar sensors can be met under certain conditions.


The use of Wind Energy for Electrical Power generation has increased considerably over past few decades and emphasis is continuously given for its integration with power grids. It has been found difficult to keep doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) connected to grid under various dynamic conditions like Fault, etc. One of the most important parameters of the system where wind turbine generators (WTGs) are connected is voltage profile at the point of common coupling (PCC). Superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) can improve the dynamic performance of a wind turbine equipped with DFIG during voltage sag and swell events. The converter and the chopper of the SMES unit are controlled using a hysteresis current controller (HCC) and a fuzzy logic controller (FLC), respectively. Detailed simulation will be carried out using MATLAB/SIMULINK software to highlight the impact of the SMES unit in improving the overall system performance under voltage profile.


In Montgomery County (1990 population: 209,085), Alabama, an epidemic of early syphilis (ES) (i.e., primary, secondary, and early latent) involving 1010 cases occurred from August 1990 through November 1991 (Figure 1). From June 17 through November 7, 1991, the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) and CDC initiated an intervention campaign to reduce the incidence of ES; the intervention increased case-finding primarily through partner notification (PN) and cluster investigations.* This report assesses the intervention campaign by describing 1) the results of PN/cluster investigation interviews during the intervention, 2) the relation between reported crack cocaine use and PN/cluster investigation results, 3) a comparison of interview results for the first 6 weeks of the campaign (i.e., early campaign period) with the 6-week period immediately before the campaign (i.e., precampaign period), and 4) the syphilis morbidity trends for 1990 and 1991.


Camilleri, T.T.A., Warne, M.T. & Holloway, D.J., March 2017, Review and clarification of Bungonibeyrichia Copeland, 1981 (Ostracoda) from the upper Silurian–Lower Devonian of New South Wales, Australia. Alcheringa xx, xx. The abundant and diverse beyrichioid ostracod faunas preserved in Silurian and Devonian silisiclastic strata of the Lachlan Orogen in southeastern Australia include specimens of the genus Bungonibeyrichia. Bungonibeyrichia copelandi sp. nov. is proposed for the fossil material, originally misidentified at species level, on which the description of this genus was based. The new species is nominated as the type species for Bungonibeyrichia in accordance with Article 70.3 of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Bungonibeyrichia is distinguished from other beyrichioid genera on the basis of a distinctive combination of lobe, velum and crumina features. Tamara T.A. Camilleri* [firstname.lastname@example.com] and Mark T. Warne* [firstname.lastname@example.com], Deakin University, Geelong, School of Life and Environmental Sciences & Centre for Integrative Ecology, (Melbourne Campus), 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, Victoria 3125, Australia; David J. Holloway [email@example.com], Museums Victoria, GPO Box 666, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, Australia. *Also affiliated with Museums Victoria, GPO Box 666, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, Australia.


Teachers' on-the-job interactions with colleagues impact their effectiveness, yet little research has explored whether and how teacher performance predicts these interactions. Drawing on 5 years of social network data from one school district, we explore the relationship between teacher performance and teachers' instructional advice and information interactions. Results demonstrate that higher performing teachers are not more likely to be sought out for advice; instead, higher performing teachers are more likely to seek advice. Although school staff report they can identify the "best" teachers, they generally do not rely on student test scores, instead relying on more readily accessible indicators of performance. These findings have important implications for policy and practices that seek to promote desired interactions among teachers.


Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that leads to destructive changes and dysfunction of the joints. Ultrasound (US) is used in current practice as an early diagnostic method for detecting structural damage to articular surfaces. US changes in early RA are considered as one of the ways of predicting disease outcomes. Objectives: to detect power doppler (PD) contribution in evaluation of radiographic RA progression in long term. Methods: 85 RA pts, mean age 53,0 [44,0; 61,0] yrs, mean disease duration 8 [4; 24] months were treated by Treat-To-Target concept. After first year of therapy management was following real clinical practice rules until the termination of the study (4 years FUP). The wrist, MCP2 and MCP3, PIP2, PIP3, MTP2 and MTP5 joints of the clinically dominant side were examined by US (GS and PD). Clinical, laboratory parameters and US examination was performed at baseline, at Mo 3, 6, 9 and 12. The X-ray was conducted before treatment and in the end of the study. Structural damage progression was evaluated by change in the Sharp van der Heijde score (ΔSHS) between baseline and 4 year. We categorized pts into 5 groups according to the occurrence of positive PD: 1) without PD throughout the observational period [the negative (N)], 2) positive PD limited to the period from the baseline to Mo 3 [the therapeutic response (R)], 3) positive PD limited to the period from the baseline to Mo 6-9 [the therapeutic late-response (LR)], 4) intermittent occurrence of PD in the observational period [the intermittently positive (IP)] and 5) with persistent positive PD throughout the observational period [the persistently positive (PP)]. Results: 80% of pts had PD synovitis at baseline. PD-synovitis dropped from 2 [1,0; 6,0] to 0 [0,0; 2,0] scores at Mo 12. RA progression by 4 years FUP was identified in 13% of pts. The X-ray erosion score at 4 years FUP in these groups – N, R, LR, IP and PP - were dependent by PD from baseline to Mo 12 (mean level 1 [0; 2]; 2 [0; 4], 3 [0; 5], 1 [0; 2] and 4,5 [1; 10] respectively), but statistically significant differences were found between N and PP groups. Cox multivariate analysis identified that presence PD-synovitis at baseline was associated with risk of radiographic progression at 4 years (HR 3,68 95% CI 1,03 – 13,15, р = 0,045). Conclusion: Thus, PD-synovitis has a prognostic value for increasing destructive radiographic changes. References: no Disclosure of Interests: None declared


The macro-features of the surface layer of a 'fresh' cometary nucleus are modelled by assuming that the dust and the snow particles of which it consists both have a mass distribution index of 1.65, and that the dust/gas mass ratio is 0.45. Conclusions are drawn as to how this model helps us to understand the cometary sublimation process and the cometary surface layer. The latter most probably consists of weak, low-density, friable, slightly dusty snow. Its ability effectively to support even the small weight of, say, the Rosetta landing probe is in considerable doubt.


This paper presents a novel method of identifying coal type based on mechanistic methods. The ratio of the resonance line spectrum of a luminous flame and the continuous spectrum at the same wavelength eliminates the influence of temperature on spectral intensity. The atomic line spectra of Na and K are typical and significant over continuous flame spectra. The concentrations of elemental Na and K in the flame are exclusively relative to coal type and composition. Using an experimental furnace and charge-coupled device (CCD) optical spectrometer apparatus, the continuous spectra and atomic line spectra of Na and K elements were sampled from coal flames in real time. An empirical fitting method was used to simplify the formulas of absorption strength and flame temperature calculation, and rational solutions were obtained by using an iterative algorithm. Due to the change in reaction rate and absorption by soot particles, the relative contents of Na and K in a flame vary with the temperature and absorption strength. Arrhenius's equation for temperature compensation was adopted. Compensation for soot density in the furnace was also satisfied by an exponential expression. At any one sampling position, the compensation parameters were identical for all coal types. After compensation for temperature and density of soot particles, the relative strength of the Na and K signals and the ratio between them uniquely matched the coal type burnt in various conditions. The results were replicated and verified in various conditions, and the response time of the system was of the order of seconds.


Three dimensional integration technology has the potential to provide enhanced performance and device density gains beyond that available from technology scaling alone. However, it provides plethora of design choices for system designers. The full exploitation of the benefits of 3D integration requires a system-level exploration flow which can facilitate in finding an optimal 3D design by comparing possible early design choices. In this paper we present a flow for fast system-level exploration useful for path finding studies. The flow enables users to explore the tradeoff between different stacking and partitioning schemes in terms of performance, power, and temperature. We also present a free open source design kit compiler, FreePDK3D45 and a tool for fast floorplan evaluation of TSV-based digital architectures, Pathfinder3D. The open source design kit and architecture evaluator can help the community to research, learn and explore the various aspects of 3D integration. Using the proposed flow and design kit, we present a case study of 3D integration of a Network on Chip. This case study demonstrates system-level comparisons of the performance, power and temperature of different homogenously partitioned stacking schemes.


Background: Corona viruses are not new to us, and there are 15 different variants known to us. In the last 20 years, this is the fourth coronavirus outbreak, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) seems to be the deadliest among all, with the ability to continue producing more contagious variants. In this mini-review, we highlighted the genotypic variance of the pathogenesis of COVID-19.
Methodology: The article tracks the history and the genotypic variance of Corona virus. The literature was searched using the terms COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Corona virus, genotypic variance etc. via Google Scholar, and PubMed.
Results: Comparative modelling and molecular studies revealed some essential variations in the intermolecular interaction between Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) alleles and SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. This shows an interesting result for two ACE-2 alleles, rs73635825 (S19P) and rs143936283 (E329G), their low binding affinity and lack of some of the critical residues in the complex formation with SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. This may be suggestive of intrinsic resistance to some scale against the SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Conclusion: The SARS-CoV-2 S protein appears to be a promising immunogen for protection, but its role in preventing transmission is still unclear.


Findings from the 2008-2009 Transport Canada project, Methodologies for Identifying and Ranking Sustainable Transport Practices in Urban Regions (Wellar, 2008d) reveal that the research methodologies, methods, and techniques from a number of disciplines apply to the process of making decisions about sustainable transport practices. Evidence in that regard is provided by: 1) the results of keyword-based literature searches; 2) the responses of municipal governments to a survey on the methodologies, methods, and techniques that are used; and 3), the commentaries of experts on the methods and techniques that could be used. The findings are presented in eleven project reports which can be accessed at: http://www.wellarconsulting.com/. This presentation first outlines the major elements and findings of the Transport Canada project. We then suggest how the Operations Research or Operational Research, and Management Sciences (OR/MS) fields could build on that project to enhance the OR/MS contribution to the body of methods and techniques used by municipal governments in making decisions about identifying, adopting, and implementing sustainable transport (ST) practices. The third part of the presentation introduces several OR/MS-based initiatives that we believe could significantly expand the research agenda that has been initiated by the Transport Canada project. Our emphasis in this regard is on drawing attention to what we perceive to be fundamental needs that arise as a result of the empirical lessons learned from the Transport Canada project.


Dual-process theories (DPT) of cognition posit that performance differences in reasoning stem from an interplay between heuristics-based processing (i.e., System 1) and more controlled, rule-based processing (System 2). Emerging evidence suggests that solving classic base-rate problems via Bayesian inference depends on adequately inhibiting the prepotent representations elicited by System 1 (De Neys, 2014). We propose that DPTs may benefit probabilistic models of reasoning by providing a framework on which to map individual difference predictions (e.g., how inhibitory capacity, prior knowledge, and motivation influence adherence to probabilistic rules). We present a dual-process computational model that implements various normative (i.e., Bayesian) and non-normative rules, which in turn are probabilistically fired based on a functional relationship between relative (de)activations of each system and variability in agents' inhibitory capacity and motivation. Simulation results map onto behavioral data and replicate a variety of base-rate performance patterns, including base-rate neglect.


Advances in graphic engines and software tools have facilitated the development of visual interfaces based on 3D virtual environments (VEs). These interfaces use interactive 3D graphics to represent visual and spatial information and allow natural interaction with direct object manipulation. Particularly in the training field, interactive 3D graphics offers effective, near-real-world representations, supporting learning-by-doing and case-based reasoning approaches. Although researchers have proposed and practiced many development guidelines on 2D graphical user interfaces, few contributions have addressed the systematic development of user interfaces based on 3D graphics and their possible extension to other media. We've addressed this problem in the construction of several VEs and we've organized our experience in a set of guidelines. We demonstrate their use by describing a virtual training environment called VECWIT (Virtual Environments for Construction Workers' Instruction and Training) that we developed to test the suitability of a VE as a complementary tool supporting education and training for construction workers' safety.