Implementing a united atom model, we apply self-consistent field theory to study structure and thermodynamic properties of spherical micelles composed of surfactants that combine an alkyl tail with a charged lysine-based dendritic headgroup. Following experiments, the focus was on dendron surfactants with varying tail length and dendron generations G0, G1, G2. The heads are subject to acetylation modification which reduces the charge and hydrophilicity. We establish a reasonable parameter set which results in semiquantitative agreement with the available experiments. The critical micellization concentration, aggregation number, and micelle size are discussed. The strongly charged dendronic surfactants micelles are stable for generation numbers G0 and G1, for progressively higher ionic strengths. Associates of G2 surfactants are very small and can only be found at extreme surfactant concentration and salt strengths. Micelles of corresponding weaker charged acetylated variants exist up to G2, tolerate significantly lower salt concentrations, but lose the spherical micelle topology for G0 at high ionic strengths.


We have recently developed a new L-lysine-producing mutant of Corynebacterium glutamicum by "genome breeding" consisting of characterization and reconstitution of a mutation set essential for high-level production. The strain AHP-3 was examined for L-lysine fermentation on glucose at temperatures above 35 degrees C, at which no examples of efficient L-lysine production have been reported for this organism. We found that the strain had inherited the thermotolerance that the original coryneform bacteria was endowed with, and thereby grew and produced L-lysine efficiently up to 41 degrees C. A final titer of 85 g/l after only 28 h was achieved at temperatures around 40 degrees C, indicating the superior performance of the strain developed by genome breeding. When compared with the traditional 30 degrees C fermentation, the 40 degrees C fermentation allowed an increase in yield of about 20% with a concomitant decrease in final growth level, suggesting a significant transition of carbon flux distribution in glucose metabolism. DNA array analysis of metabolic changes between the 30 degrees C and 40 degrees C fermentations identified several differentially expressed genes in central carbon metabolism although we could not find stringent control-like global induction of amino-acid-biosynthetic genes in the 40 degrees C fermentation. Among these changes, two candidates were picked out as the potential causes of the increased production at 40 degrees C; decreased expression of the citrate synthase gene gltA and increased expression of malE, the product of which involves regeneration of pyruvate and NADPH.


The current revision of international accounting standards for pensions is an occasion for a confrontation over the representations of pension currencies. The characteristics of the monetary relationships between state and household are being profoundly modified by the emerging view of pension rights as a debt owed by mutual pension schemes. This study attempts to describe the reconfigurations implied by extending the application of the notion of debt to all pension systems.


Nowadays, crime rate in Indonesia are increasing. People attempt crimes in many different various ways. One of the most frequent acts we met is by changing appearance, and changing their voice to trick the target. Therefore it is very important for us to know who we are talking to. Different emotions can be an obstacle for us to recognize the voice of the other person. This research is conducted to learn more about voiceprint recognition by processing emotional speech signals in Indonesian language using Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficient (MFCC) for its features and Support Vector Machine (SVM) to classify the features. The result suggests that the recognition can achieve about 92% of the level of accuracy.


Antioxidant activity assays were conducted using water (H) and methanolic (M) extracts of sixteen cultivars from indigenous wild bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L. var. abbreviata Seringe, MCA) in Taiwan. The scavenging activities against 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydroxyl radicals were different among MCA cultivars and the concentrations of 50% scavenging activity (IC50) for the effective cultivar was 181 μg/mL (H) and 246 μg/mL (M) in the former extract and 148 μg/mL (H) and 37 μg/mL (M) in the latter. For inhibitory activities against Cu(superscript 2+)-induced low-density-lipoprotein peroxidation, most MCA cultivars at 4000 μg/mL (especially for M extracts) showed protective activities and were equivalent to 0.8 mM Trolox by thiobarbituric acid reactive substance assays. These useful data may help promote the use and further research of MCA as an antioxidant in the health food industry.


This article analyses the interpretation of the phrase "received by, accrued to or in favour of" in the gross income definition of the Income Tax Act, as applied to illegal receipts. During the last few decades, South Africans have been victims of a number of Ponzi-type schemes. In MP Finance,1 the Supreme Court of Appeal considered whether illegal receipts received by the Krion Ponzi-type scheme should be included in gross income. After considering the relationship between the taxpayer and the fiscus, the court concluded that, as from a specified juncture, the taxpayer received the amount for its own benefit and it should therefore be included in gross income. The court recognised that the contractual relationship between the investor and the scheme (taxpayer) could in fact be void, resulting in the investor having a right to recover the investment from the taxpayer. The court did not consider whether the levying of income tax on amounts received by the operator of the scheme could infringe on the investor's right to property espoused under the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996. It is submitted that the levying of tax does infringe on this right as it reduces the amount that could be recovered from the scheme because the original investment in the scheme is void.


The European Union and Japan initiated the issue of RoHS, the directive about the
restriction of hazardous substances, which prohibits certain hazardous substances in electronic
equipment - including lead - application.
Due to the directive the use of lead free solder alloys is spreaded, however the Pb in the form of
contamination may be appear under technological process. The lead impurity has significant effect
on microstrucutre and lifetime so it is necessary to carry out detailed examinations.
In this paper the study of intermetallic compounds in six-element, Pb impured, thermal cycles testsubjected,
Sn-Ag-Cu (SAC) solder alloy is demonstrated.


FACTS (flexible AC transmission system) devices such as static compensators (STATCOMs) have long been used to solve utility voltage problems. Generally these have been on large-scale installations on interconnected systems providing economies of scale benefits for the utilities. Recent developments and availability of smaller capacity, modular STATCOMs have proved to be just as useful for utilities in addressing a wider array of problems-from voltage regulation of weak transmission systems to multiple just-in-time installations to prevent voltage collapse and improve system stability and reliability. BC Hydro, Vancouver Canada, recently installed a small STATCOM, an 8 MVA D-VAR/sup /spl trade// device, in their system at Fort St. James substation to prevent voltage collapse in the 66-kV long radial system and as a means to defer costly transmission reinforcement. This paper outlines the system analysis, procurement, installation and performance of the D-VAR at Fort St. James along with modeling and other applications of small STATCOM devices such as D-VAR for transmission and distribution applications.


Gene fusion detection in cancer samples can provide tumor-specific information for cancer research, clinical diagnosis and targeted treatment. Common fusion detection methods such as qPCR and FISH are restricted to known fusion junctions and limited in the number of genes that can be detected in parallel. In contrast, RNA sequencing is a powerful approach for simultaneous discovery of all possible fusion junctions in a single reaction. But, the sequencing depth required for sensitive detection of fusions from whole-transcriptome libraries can be cost-prohibitive. Here we describe a cancer-specific capture-based approach for fusion detection by RNA sequencing that requires only a fraction of the sequencing depth of whole-transcriptome methods. We designed oligo probes that densely target coding regions of over 200 clinically relevant gene fusions and cancer-associated genes. This oligo panel was used to capture cancer-specific fusions from total RNA-Seq libraries. We used commonly studied cancer cell lines including MCF-7, K562, PC-3, LnCAP, A431 and Universal Human Reference RNA (UHRR) to compare the sensitivity of fusion detection across three RNA-Seq library prep methods: (1) cancer panel library capture (2) whole-transcriptome library capture and (3) PolyA selection. We show that probes targeting individual exons can robustly capture well-characterized cancer gene fusions such as BCR-ABL and BCAS4-BCAS3, as well as translocations where fusion junctions are unknown. Furthermore, these comparisons demonstrate the enhanced sequencing efficiency of the targeted cancer panel, while maintaining highly accurate quantitation of gene expression. We show that selective enrichment of RNA-Seq libraries with cancer-specific capture probes enables high-resolution mapping of genomic rearrangements in patient cancer samples, even those derived from FFPE, facilitating sequencing studies that were not previously possible. Citation Format: Lisa C. Watson, Stephen M. Gross, Irina Khrevtukova, Smita Pathak, Claire Attwooll, Jason Goode, Anthony Mai, Gary P. Schroth. Highly sensitive fusion transcript detection and quantification in cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 4884. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-4884


This review of corneal topography has three sections: 1. a brief introduction to how corneal topography instruments work. A quantitative comparison of the relative accuracy of slope based and position based instruments is presented. 2. a summary of and commentary on the newly issued ANSI standards for corneal topography. 3. an examination of problems still facing corneal topography.


By means of satellite photograph originally analyzed by Oliver et al., it is shown that the polar-front jet stream and the subtropical jet stream do not behave as entities in regions where they approach each other closely. A cross-over of flow is observed whereby the subtropical current overrides, and merges with, the polar-front jet.


I assess the theoretical basis for the existence of a relationship between the size of a firm's foreign footprint (its multinationality) and its performance. I argue that multinationality results from a firm's choice between coordinating internally the stages of its value chain and letting them be organized on the market and hence that there are no reasons to expect net gains from an increase or a decrease in multinationality, the only profitability impact coming from a firm having made the wrong choice and being over- or under-integrated compared to the optimum. I then show that the way the literature has operationalized multinationality does not match the theoretical arguments it has advanced. I conclude that a reassessment of the literature is overdue and point to some new directions.


Based on the Schrodinger–Bohm model, we have derived an effective conduction-band edge (ECBE) equation by eliminating the density gradient term. When applied to the Monte Carlo (MC) simulation of the quantum corrected Boltzmann transport equation (BTE), this method has the advantage of not being affected by density fluctuations. The utility and accuracy of the ECBE method are tested on a simple problem of charge confinement in an infinite potential well and also those of particle tunnelling of a step potential barrier. Both results indicate that the ECBE method is a viable approach to the quantum correction of the BTE.


Abstract In this study, denim fabrics were produced with yarns obtained from cotton fibers (CO), recycled cotton fibers obtained from yarn wastes (r-CO), and fibers produced from recycled PET bottles (r-PET). Enzyme and stone washing processes were applied systematically on these fabrics. Mass per unit area, breaking force, elongation at max force, tear strength, air permeability, and circular bending rigidity of fabrics were measured. The findings showed that r-CO fiber has negative effect on tear and breaking force. Breaking force, elongation at max force, and tear strength values of the fabrics increased depending on the increase in r-PET content. However, fabric handle was negatively affected associated with the r-PET ratio due to the increase in stiffness. Mass per unit area, breaking force, air permeability, and circular bending rigidity values of fabrics decreased after the washing processes. The effect of fibers on enzyme- or stone-washed fabrics showed a change according to finished fabrics. It can be said that fabrics containing r-PET are more resistant than cotton and recycled cotton in various aggressive denim washing methods such as bleaching or different washing process conditions such as rising temperature, and time.


This survey was designed to investigate whether male and female postdoctoral researchers (PDRs) in physics and chemistry had different experiences and whether this then affected their long-term career intentions. A total of 776 PDRs completed the survey. Most of the analysis was confined to those who stated their gender and declared that they worked in a chemistry or physics department. Statistical significance was tested using Chi-squared test. Overall, more differences were found between chemists and physicists than between the genders, indicating that there may be important cultural differences between the disciplines. Where gender differences were found, they were generally greater between male and female chemists than between male and female physicists. The data also highlighted that appraisal, induction and mentoring were still not commonplace in many departments and less than half of postdoctoral researchers actually felt valued within their department. It is clear, therefore, that more needs to be done to improve the experience of PDRs in physics and chemistry, regardless of gender or discipline.


In this paper we prove that a star of Kn and a cycle of n copies of Kn are cordial. We also get condition for maximum value of e f (1) − e f (0) and highest negative value of e f (1) − e f (0) in Kn, where f is the binary vertex labeling function on the vertex set of Kn.


1. The movement of materials and organisms between ecosystems is a common process in nature. 2. In the present study we investigate the hypothesis that the movement of consumers between ecosystems depends not only on the differences in productivity between ecosystems and prey availability, but also on these animals' biological characteristics. 3. To address this hypothesis we investigated the changes in abundance, habitat utilization and diet of the lizard Microlophus atacamensis along its geographical range on the coast of the Atacama Desert. Within this range, intertidal rocky shore communities do not show important variations in their species composition and abundance, but terrestrial communities show a steep gradient of productivity associated with the increase in rainfall from north to south. 4. Our results show that the use of intertidal habitats and the consumption of intertidal prey by M. atacamensis change within its geographical range: in the North, the species uses intertidal areas and behaves as an herbivore consuming mostly algae, whereas in the South it expends most of the time in terrestrial habitats as a carnivore mainly of arthropods. 5. Our study gives new evidence for cross-ecosystem connections created by consumer movement between habitats of contrasting but variable productivity levels.


| Chicken anemia virus (CAV) is a ubiquitous pathogen of chickens causing economically important disease in commercial flocks, around the globe. The present study was designed to assess the epidemiological, molecular and pathological characteristics of CAV from field infections in forty unvaccinated commercial broiler flocks in three Egyptian provinces. Important clinical features such as stunting, depression and mortalities ranged from 3-31.25% were observed. Post-mortem examination revealed pale liver, enlarged spleen and severe thymus and bursal atrophy; whilst, the major histopathologic findings were lymphoid depletion and focal hepatic necrosis. The characteristic apoptotic patterns were confirmed using TUNEL assay. Moreover, a serologic survey was performed using ELISA assay to detect CIA virus (CAV)-specific antibody. A total of 85% of the examined flocks was found seropositive while, CAV DNA was detected in 65% of the examined flocks using PCR. The phylogenetic analysis of two Egyptian CAVs indicated their grouping close to viruses previously reported from China and the Middle East. The characterized viruses were distinct from viruses recently reported from Egypt and from rest of the Africa. Furthermore, genetic matching indicated that circulating CAVs in Egypt carry marked variations compared to a commercial CAV vaccine strain (Nobilis® CAV P4) and old Egyptian CAV isolates of 1990s. Taken together, the present study highlights the significance of CAV in Egypt and proposes further studies to systemically compare the genetic divergence and vaccine matching. These findings are fundamental in any effort to control avian pathogens in the country.


Abstract:This essay considers some of the ethical implications of intersections of anger and gender in the genre of the dramatic monologue. Drawing from Virginia Woolf's observations in A Room of One's Own and an essay on EBB, I link Woolf's meditations on the fictitious "I" to the problematics of its use in EBB's "The Runaway Slave at Pilgrim's Point." Although the features of the genre can still cause productive debate, the "I" is the pedestal upon which all dramatic monologues stand, absolutely and inevitably, and I argue that we have not yet fully come to terms with the ethics and ontology of this speaking subject, the implicated "I." The Runaway Slave articulates for herself, in the course of her speaking, a form of discursive self-possession, of human being, and yet the poem also enacts the speaker's racialized displacement from the genre itself.


Conventional haematoxylin, eosin and saffron (HES) histopathology, currently the gold-standard for pathological diagnosis of cancer, requires extensive sample preparations that are achieved within time scales that are not compatible with intra-operative situations where quick decisions must be taken. Providing to pathologists a close to real-time technology revealing tissue structures at the cellular level with HES histologic quality would provide an invaluable tool for surgery guidance with evident clinical benefit. Here, we specifically develop a stimulated Raman imaging based framework that demonstrates gastro-intestinal (GI) cancer detection of unprocessed human surgical specimens. The generated stimulated Raman histology (SRH) images combine chemical and collagen information to mimic conventional HES histopathology staining. We report excellent agreements between SRH and HES images acquire on the same patients for healthy, pre-cancerous and cancerous colon and pancreas tissue sections. We also develop a novel fast SRH imaging modality that captures at the pixel level all the information necessary to provide instantaneous SRH images. These developments pave the way for instantaneous label free GI histology in an intra-operative context.


KLERK, Vivian de (ed). Focus on South Africa. HEUGH, Kathleen ; SIEGRUN, Amanda and PLUDDEMANN, Peter (eds.). Multilingual education for South Africa. KASCHULA, Russell H. and ANTHONISSEN, Christine. Communicating across cultures in South Africa : towards a critical language awareness. LANHAM, L. W. ; LANGHAM, David ; BLACQUIERE, Arie and WRIGHT, Laurence. Getting the message in South Africa. Intelligibility. Readibility. Comprehensibility. MESTHRIE, Rajend (ed.). Language and social history. Studies in South African sociolinguistics.


Background While complications of deep inferior epigastric artery perforator flaps are known and well documented, a thorough literature review revealed no other reports of a patient developing a chyle leak following the use of the internal mammary vessels for recipient vessels in autologous breast reconstruction. Case A 55-year-old woman underwent free autologous breast reconstruction. She developed a chyle leak during the postoperative period. This was verified through a computed tomography scan and fluid analysis demonstrating a high triglyceride count and the presence of chylomicrons. The leak resolved with conservative measures including compression and a low-fat, high-protein diet. Discussion The presence of chyle leak following dissection of the internal mammary vessels is a unique complication of autologous breast reconstruction. There have been reports of lymph leaks following mastectomy, but these are mostly reported in the axilla. A history of radiation to the contralateral breast and aberrant anatomy may have contributed to the complication. Treatment of chyle leaks ranges from conservative management to the use of total parenteral nutrition and somatostatin analogs to surgical intervention. Conclusion While altering practice patterns based on a single case is not usually suggested, this complication does intimate that dealing with lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes in the chest should be done deliberately to prevent lymphatic leaks.


Objective and Aims: The number of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and the presence of circulating tumor microemboli (CTM) were determined in the peripheral blood of patients with liver cancer (LC). The relationship between CTCs, CTM, clinicopathologic features, and prognosis of LC was analyzed. The objective of this study was to determine the diagnostic and prognostic value of CTCs/CTM in LC. Subjects and Methods: Patients with LC were enrolled between May 2013 and August 2017, and 67 patients were included in the study. Overall survival curves were built using the Kaplan–Meier method and the log-rank test to identify risk factors. The results were analyzed using a Cox proportional hazards model and expressed as hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Results: CTCs and either CTCs or CTM were detected in 27 patients (40.3%) and 29 patients (43.3%). CTM were found in four patients. One-year, 3-year, and 5-year survival rates were 42%, 20%, and 15%, respectively. Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), number of CTCs, presence of CTM, and positive CTC/CTM were associated with survival time. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that alpha fetoprotein (AFP), number of CTCs, and presence of CTM were independent risk factors for survival in patients with LC. Conclusion: There was no significant correlation between the number of CTCs, the presence of CTM, and clinicopathologic factors. AFP, number of CTCs, and presence of CTM were independent risk factors for survival in patients with LC.


Introduction:
 Fanconi Anemia (FA) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by bone marrow failure (BMF), constitutional anomalies and high risk of developing cancer. Distinguishing FA from severe aplastic anemia (SAA) can be challenging especially in asyndromic patients. We undertook a clinical and laboratory cohort study of adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients with a diagnosis of FA treated at our institution to characterize the clinical features in our population, and conducted a prospective translational study to explore integration of a genomic and proteomic approach for improved diagnosis and molecular characterization of FA.
 Methods:
 Data on FA patients was obtained from an institutionally approved BMF database and hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) database. Further data was obtained from a register of chromosomal breakage (CB) analysis results. Index cases were identified if they were older than 14 years of age at the time of diagnosis or under the care of adult hematology with a clinical diagnosis of FA based on the presence of BMF and abnormal CB, or clinical phenotype with the presence of homozygous FA related genes. Family pedigrees were constructed based on history.
 In addition, patients presenting with BMF were enrolled onto an institutionally approved study investigating proteomic biomarkers and genomics of BMF syndromes. Consented peripheral blood samples and/or extracted DNA were subject to either panel based next generation sequencing (NGS) testing as part of the Saudi Genome Project or subjected to whole exome sequencing (WES) by external lab.
 For proteomic analysis, peripheral blood plasma (PBP) samples from 6 patients with FA, 10 SAA patients and 7 normal controls were subjected to expression proteomics using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).
 Result:
 Patients and clinical features: 55 patients (26 M, 29 F) in 30 families were identified. While 18 patients (32%) were referred with a diagnosis/suspicion of FA, in 26 (47%) FA was diagnosed at our institution. The most frequent anomaly was short stature (14 patients, 25%), skin changes (7, 12%), urogenital abnormalities (7, 12%), dysmorphism/craniofacial abnormalities (7, 12%), hands anomalies (4, 7%); 12 (22%) had no recorded anomalies. 18 patients (33%) developed a malignancy either before or after diagnosis of FA: solid tumors in 5 (9%), AML and/or MDS in 15 (27%); 3 (5%) of these patients had both solid tumors and AML/MDS.
 Diagnostic Tests: 35 patients (63.6%) had a positive CB analysis with diepoxybutane (DEB) or mitomycin-C (MMC) testing; in 5 patients (9%) DEB testing was borderline and 3 (5%) had a normal CBA but had a diagnostic phenotype+/- family history and presence of a homozygous mutation in a known FA related gene. 14 patients had cytogenetic abnormalities and abnormalities involving chromosome 1 were the most frequent (50%).
 Mutation Analysis: Mutational analysis was available for 12 (22%) cases; homozygous mutations in FA genes were identified in 10 patients (18%) in 7 families (23% of families): FANCA (5 patients/3 families); BRIP1 (2/2); FANCP (1/1); FANCD2 (2/1). In one case, post matched sibling (HSCT) blood sample revealed a known pathogenic heterozygous c.2632G>C,p.Glu878Gln mutation in FANCA, suggesting a carrier donor.
 Proteomic analysis: Over 1650 unique PBP protein species were identified of which 605 were significantly differentially expressed (≥ 2 to ∞ - fold change & p < 0.001) between SAA /FA/ normal control subjects (Fig 1a). DNMT3A, Kinase Insert Domain Receptor (KDR) and TGFB-1 was found to be highly expressed in SAA versus FA, while ATM and APOB were highly expressed in FA versus SAA (Fig.1b).
 Treatment outcomes: 36 out of 55 patients (65%) received HSCT. Actuarial survival of HSCT (n=37) and non-HSCT (n=14) patients was 70% and 77%, respectively. Treatment details were not available on 6 (11%).
 CONCLUSION:
 We report the first characterization of AYA patients with FA in Saudi Arabia. Our report emphasizes the need for a high index of suspicion of a diagnosis of FA in BMFs. CB may be falsely negative in cases, and panel based and/or WES based NGS testing increases diagnostic accuracy; in this cohort, mutations in FANCA were the most frequent (50%). Occurrence of hematological and solid tumors is a significant risk in these AYA patients. We also report proteomic panels as potential biomarkers that distinguish FA from SAA and may provide mechanistic insights.

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


We present an accurate model and procedures for predicting the common physical design characteristics of standard cell layouts (i.e., the interconnection length and the chip area). The predicted results are obtained from analysis of the net list only, that is, no prior knowledge of the functionality of the design is used. Random and optimized placements, global routing, and detailed routing are each abstracted by procedural models that capture the important features of these processes, and closed-form expressions that define these procedural models are presented. We have verified both the global characteristics (total interconnection length and layout area) and the detailed characteristics (wire length and feedthrough distributions) of the model. On the designs in our test suite, the estimates are very close to the actual layouts.


Some open pits in China are severely threatened by hidden cavities under benches which are always inaccessible and unmapped. The first thing to be well considered is safe and precise cavity detection, as the conventional detection methods cannot output a clear cavity vision, a three-dimensional laser measurement system is employed to perform detection, which is deployed from the surface through boreholes. The results from the scanner demonstrated very well the detailed level of information that can be collected in a cavity using this method, with the cavities' layout under various benches being fully mapped. As detected cavities are always in horizontal and vaulted roof shape, two different theoretical calculation methods are proposed to analyze the cap rock stability for different roof shape. And also, the three-dimensional solid model generated through scanned laser data is used for stability numerical simulation by converting the data format into the one that recognized in corresponding software. Furthermore, acoustic emission technique is adopted to carry out long term real time rupture monitoring in cap rock, and four kinds of typical monitoring results are discussed which represent the rupture behavior in cap rock of unstable cavity, stable cavity, cavity with large working drill above and cavity beside explosion site. Thus, a complete safety evaluation system for such cavity will be established to ensure safe operation above.


The basic principle of the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Eighth Amendment is that the phrase "cruel and unusual" must draw its meaning from "the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society." To implement this principle, the Court has considered whether "objective indicia" of prevailing com-munity norms — such as the number of states that impose the punishment — support the finding of a national consensus against the punishment being challenged.The Court's reliance on objective indicia has been subjected to sus-tained scholarly criticism. While largely persuasive, the conventional critique has several shortcomings, the most significant of which is the failure of other scholars to provide a viable alternative to the Court's objective indicia approach. In this Article, I propose a novel alternative methodology based on a version of strict scrutiny for suspect classes of punishments, offenses, and offenders. This proposal is timely because the Supreme Court recently indicated for the first time, in Miller v. Alabama, that it is poised to abandon the objective indicia approach. Miller does not provide a comprehensive replacement approach, however, leaving a methodological vacuum to be filled. The strict scrutiny approach provides a framework to flesh out the Court's new attitude at a time when there is a rare opportunity to influence the Court's constitutional decisionmaking.


In this paper, I argue for the instability of an increasingly popular position about how metaphysicians ought to regard parsimony. This instability is rooted in an unrecognized tension between two claims. First, we as metaphysicians ought to minimize the number of ontological kinds we posit. Second, it is not the case that we ought to minimize the number of ideological expressions we employ, especially when those expressions are of the same ideological kind (e.g. the compositional predicates "is a part of" and "overlaps"). I argue that the two claims are in tension with one other. At the very least, minimizing the number of ontological kinds posited entails minimizing the number of expressions employed---more specifically, the "ontologically committing" predicates. But, plausibly, the tension runs deeper than that. I suggest that minimizing the number of ontological kinds just is a specific way of minimizing the number of ideological expressions employed in stating a theory. The two activities target the same aspect of reality, the world's metaphysical structure. I end by evaluating three different responses to this puzzle. Ultimately, I suggest that metaphysicians should treat the minimization of the number of ideological expressions as more important than it currently is treated.


Cerium oxide nanoparticles have unique catalytic properties which make it a promising regenerative and a great free radical scavenger especially in the biomedical applications. Cerium oxide catalytic properties are affected by the relative fraction (%) of Ce3+ which in turn depends on the particle size. In the preset work, the catalytic properties of cerium oxide have been improved by increasing the relative fraction (%) of Ce3+. In order to reach this goal cerium oxide has been prepared in the nano-scale and the effect of treating these prepared nanoparticles by ionizing radiation of each cold plasma and gamma on the relative fraction (%) of Ce3+ has been studied.


The global burden of cancer necessitates rapid and ongoing development of effective cancer therapies. One promising approach in this context is the repurposing of existing non-cancer drugs for cancer indications. A key to this approach is selecting the cellular targets against which to identify novel repurposed drugs for pre-clinical analysis. Protein kinases are highly sought-after anticancer drug targets since dysregulation of kinases is the hallmark of cancer. To identify potential kinase-targeted drug candidates from the existing portfolio of non-cancer therapeutics, we used combined in silico and in vitro approaches, including ligand-based 3D screening followed by biochemical and cellular assessments. This strategy revealed that the anti-viral drug rilpivirine is an Aurora A kinase inhibitor. In view of previous findings implicating Aurora A kinase in abnormal cell cycle regulation, we also examined the influence of rilpivirine on the growth of T47D breast cancer cells. Herein, we detail the identification of rilpivirine as an Aurora A kinase inhibitor, its molecular basis of inhibitory activity towards this kinase, and its Aurora A-mediated anticancer mechanisms in T47D cells. Our results illustrate the value of integrated in silico and in vitro screening strategies in identifying repurposed drug candidates and provide a scientific basis for further exploring the potential anticancer properties of the anti-viral drug rilpivirine.


The crossed beam technique has been used to study charge transfer in proton-atomic hydrogen collisions between 40 and 130 keV. A proton beam from a Van de Graaff accelerator was arranged to intersect a modulated beam of atomic hydrogen derived from a furnace source. The flux of fast neutral atoms produced by charge transfer in the beam intersection region was measured by a method based on double electrostatic deflexion of the proton beam. The ratio of the charge transfer cross section Q1 in atomic hydrogen to that in molecular hydrogen Q2 was determined by comparing the signals when the beam from the furnace was mainly atomic and when the beam was entirely molecular. Above 50 keV, measured ratios Q1 / Q2 were consistently less than ½. Absolute values of Q1, which represent total cross sections for capture into all states of atomic hydrogen, were obtained by reference to known values of Q2. Above 50 keV, the results agree fairly well with theoretical values due to Jackson & Schiff. When considered in conjunction with the low energy data of Fite and his collaborators, the results suggest that capture into excited states in the range 20 to 50 keV occurs to a greater extent than that predicted by Jackson & Schiff.


This paper investigates whether political instability leads to volatile inflation using a panel of 49 African countries. The study uses novel measures of political instability, particularly the state failure index and state fragility index. In the field of political instability and inflation volatility, this is the first study to measure inflation volatility as the conditional variance of inflation estimated from GARCH (1, 1) model. Adopting the system-generalized method of moments estimator for linear dynamic panel models for the sample period 1985-2009, the study documents a positive statistically significant effect of political instability on inflation volatility.


Cellular metabolism of folic acid in general and dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) in particular has proven to be an intriguing target for experimental chemotherapy agents in the treatment of both cancer and infectious disease. The attractiveness of this approach stems from the central role of DHFR in the maintenance of cellular concentrations of reduced folic acid cofactors, which are essential for the synthesis of both purine and pyrimidine nucleotides. The success of methotrexate as a clinical antineoplastic drug over several decades has added to the impetus for discovery of new antifolates. The development of trimetrexate (TMTX), a nonclassical 2,4-diaminoquinazoline antifolate, represents one of the more recent attempts to exploit this important mechanism of action clinically. Clinical studies with TMTX were approached with great enthusiasm for several reasons (1-3). This compound is a potent inhibitor of both mammalian and protozoal DHFR; it had demonstrated a high level of antitumor activity against a broad range of experimental neoplasms and, perhaps most importantly, had shown the capability of overcoming two of the potential mechanisms for clinical methotrexate resistance. The ability to circumvent cellular resistance resulting from decreased drug transport or low-level elevations of cellular DHFR was viewed as an advantage of potentially great significance. Phase I trials were carried out on a number of schedules, and several consistent features emerged (4-9). The toxic effects were very reminiscent of those of other antifolates, with mucositis and myelosuppression predominating. There was marked variability among patients in tolerance to the drug. Sporadic instances of serious toxic effects occurred at or near the starting dose for several schedules, but the reasons for these observations were not evident in any single trial. Evidence of antitumor activity was seen in a number of diseases even in these early studies. The majority of phase II trials were initiated with a schedule of daily doses for 5 days; this approach was supported by the striking schedule dependency observed in P388 leukemia in mice receiving multiple daily doses (1). The unacceptably high incidence of severe and lifethreatening toxic effects observed in the initial phases of these trials prompted Eisenhauer and her colleagues to review the characteristics of patients entered in their studies and Grem et al. to review the experience in National Cancer Institute-sponsored phase I trials for characteristics that might herald these untoward effects. The important information these analyses yielded is found in these two reports in this issue of the journal. The authors have concurrently identified hypoalbuminemia or hypoproteinemia as significant predictors of excessive TMTX toxicity. The Canadian group (Eisenhauer et al.) also demonstrated that the presence of liver metastases confers an increased risk for toxic effects, and they suggested that this risk is additive with that of low serum protein levels. Grem et al., in analyzing a distinctly different patient population, demonstrated that patients with leukemia have an increased sensitivity to the toxicity of TMTX and that the dose and schedule of administration were important determinants of toxic effects when the larger variability of both parameters intrinsic to phase I trials became a factor.


The thermodynamic framework of repeated interactions is generalized to an arbitrary open quantum system in contact with a heat bath. Based on these findings, the theory is then extended to arbitrary measurements performed on the system. This constitutes a direct experimentally testable framework in strong coupling quantum thermodynamics. By construction, it provides many quantum stochastic processes and quantum causal models with a consistent thermodynamic interpretation. The setting can be further used, for instance, to rigorously investigate the interplay between non-Markovianity and nonequilibrium thermodynamics.


DNA cross-linked hydrogel was used as a matrix for synthesis of gold nanoparticles. DNA possesses a strong affinity to transition metals such as gold, which allows for the concentration of Au precursor inside a hydrogel. Further reduction of HAuCl4 inside DNA hydrogel yields well dispersed, non-aggregated spherical Au nanoparticles of 2-3 nm size. The average size of these Au nanoparticles synthesized in DNA hydrogel is the smallest reported so far for in-gel metal nanoparticles synthesis. DNA hybrid hydrogel containing gold nanoparticles showed high catalytic activity in the hydrogenation reaction of nitrophenol to aminophenol. The proposed soft hybrid material is promising as environmentally friendly and sustainable material for catalytic applications.


The canonical Wnt-signal pathway is a major signaling system in cancer cells as well as stem/progenitor cells. It is well-known that binding of Wnt molecules to cell surface receptors, including a Frizzled (Fz) protein and LDL receptor-related protein 6, initiates a transduction cascade leading to stabilization of the transcription coactivator β-catenin, which then enters the nucleus to form a transcriptional complex with T cell factor (TCF) or lymphoid enhancer factor (LEF) to activate the expression of TCF/LEF downstream genes, such as cyclin D1 (CCND1) and c-Myc. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate nuclear localization of β-catenin and its transcriptional activation are not fully understood. Here we demonstrate that the protein lysine methyltransferase SMYD2 methylates β-catenin at lysine 133, which is located in an amino-terminal domain (NTD), and regulates nuclear transport of β-catenin. After treatment with SMYD2-specific siRNAs in hepatocellular carcinoma SNU475 and SNU449 cells, we fractionated cell components and conducted western blot analysis and found that nuclear localization of β-catenin was significantly decreased after knockdown of SMYD2; we also confirmed this result by immunocytochemistry. In addition, we prepared a lysine 133-substituted β-catenin mutant expression vector and transfected it into 293T cells with a SMYD2 expression vector. We observed that protein amount of lysine 133-substituted β-catenin in the nucleus is significantly lower than that of wild-type β-catenin by western-blot and immunocytochemical analyses. These results indicate that SMYD2-mediated methylation plays a critical role in the nuclear transport of β-catenin in cancer cells. This is a novel mechanism of the canonical Wnt-signal pathway regulated by lysine methylation. Citation Format: Xiaolan Deng, Yusuke Nakamura, Ryuji Hamamoto. SMYD2-mediated lysine methylation regulates nuclear transport of beta-catenin in human cancer cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 4403.


Abstract : This report contains NTSB recommendations and all FAA responses to Board recommendations that were delivered to the Board during the applicable quarter. In addition, the report includes NTSB requests and FAA responses concerning reconsiderations, status reports, and followup actions. The Table of Contents for this report reflects only those NTSB recommendations which are still open pending FAA action (i.e., those that have not been designated as 'Closed' by the NTSB as a result of acceptable action). Accordingly, the Table of Contents may reflect a number of multiple recommendations (example: A-80-27 through 29), but background material is included only for those recommendations which remain in an 'Open' status. Background information for those recommendations which have been closed is available in FAA headquarters files. (Author)


Urine samples were collected before breakfast from 94 normal volunteers (41 males and 53 females) aged 25-70 years. Salsolinol (SA) was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), and dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine were determined using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). SA levels were significantly higher in the urine of male moderate drinkers (MDs) than in male seldom or non drinkers (SNDs). In females, however, a significant difference of urinary SA levels was not observed between MDs and SNDs. There was a sex difference of urinary SA levels among SND subjects, i.e., females showed a higher SA than males. Urinary catecholamines were not significantly altered by long-term moderate alcohol drinking in either sex. There was no correlation between urinary levels of dopamine and SA. These results indicate that urinary SA can be increased by long-term drinking even in normal, not alcoholic subjects.


Norfloxacin (NOR), widely employed as an anti-bacterial drug, has poor oral bioavailability. Nano based drug delivery systems are widely used to overcome the existing oral bioavailability challenges. Lipid–Polymer Hybrid Nanoparticles (LPHNs) exhibit the distinctive advantages of both polymeric and liposomes nanoparticles, while excluding some of their disadvantages. In the current study, NOR loaded LPHNs were prepared, and were solid amorphous in nature, followed by in vitro and in vivo evaluation. The optimized process conditions resulted in LPHNs with the acceptable particle size 121.27 nm, Polydispersity Index (PDI) of 0.214 and zeta potential of −32 mv. The addition of a helper lipid, oleic acid, and polymers, ethyl cellulose, substantially increased the encapsulation efficiency (EE%) (65% to 97%). In vitro study showed a sustained drug release profile (75% within 12 h) for NOR LPHNs. The optimized NOR LPHNs showed a significant increase (p < 0.05) in bioavailability compared to the commercial product. From the acute toxicity study, the LD50 value was found to be greater than 1600 mg/kg. The molecular modelling studies substantiated the experimental results with the best combination of polymers and surfactants that produced highly stable LPHNs. Therefore, LPHNs proved to be a promising system for the delivery of NOR, as well as for other antibiotics and hydrophobic drugs.


This paper presents the current problem of investigation of the effect of implementation of improved methods of the life cycle stages organisation to online community management. The online community life cycle is the sum of the stages of organisation and development of online community. The current approaches of scientific researches of social processes within the WWW are analysed. The types of life cycles are distinguished and implemented in the online community management. The algorithm of life cycle stages of the online community is designed. The total quality of the life cycle stages execution and quality of the life cycle stages execution of Lviv Polytechnic online community from 2013 till 2016. Currently, the appropriate study and development of community management hardware and software provoke the most interest because online communities are a widespread and popular phenomenon, and the existing management software for them is imperfect and not complex.


Currently, large size shipyards have performed the generating of piece and the nesting using shipbuilding-oriented CAD program, which requires high skilled operator and costs a lot. So, medium and small size shipyards have pursued other way to obtain the generating and the nesting due to an economic and a technical problems. Therefore, this research is to develop a program for the generating of pieces with parametric macro method and a STRIP program for the nesting of pieces by PC.


Herein we report a mild synthesis of propargyl silanes from terminal alkynes. We exploit a bromonaphthyl-substituted silane as a silylmethyl electrophile surrogate, which participates in a Sonogashira reaction after an aryl-to-alkyl Pd-migration. Twenty-seven propargyl silanes were obtained in up to 88% yield. The obtained products were versatile building blocks that can be used in addition to electrophiles, triple bond hydrogenation or silyl group cleavage with acid or fluoride sources.


Infertility is a problem affecting 10-12% of couples. Zinc is necessary for growth, sexual maturation and reproduction. Semen analysis is helpful in ascertaining the evidence of spermatogenesis, sperm transport, sperm quantity and quality and also provides clue to the functioning of the accessory glands i.e. seminal vesicles and prostate. The present study was conducted in 50 oligospermic infertile males and control group consisting of 25 normospermic known fertile males. Semen and Serum samples were obtained from each case in study as well as control group. Semen and serum were processed by wet ash method. The seminal and serum zinc levels of each case in study and control group were estimated. Statistically, serum zinc and semen zinc levels were significantly lower in infertile patients than fertile males. A significant correlation was observed between serum and semen zinc levels in study group.


The application of cut-off grinding tools on reinforced concrete results in a significantly increased wear compared to the conventional fields of application. Strategies to compensate this effect include the utilization of higher grain concentrations in the cutting segments or a deterministic grain distribution. In order to enable an adequate and adapted design of a deterministic grain pattern, first single grain scratch experiments were carried out. On that basis the width material removal factor kw has been introduced. kw enables the design of different adapted, deterministic (and stochastic) cut-off grinding wheels. Results from cutoff grinding experiments with different tool prototypes show that tools with a higher grain concentration and deterministic distribution perform best in the given field of application. The developed design algorithms proved to be adequate for an adapted layout of cut-off grinding tools.


After many years of delays, the €1.7 billion Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research, an extension of the GSI Helmholtz Center for Heavy Ion Research near Darmstadt, Germany, may finally get built. At a council meeting on 27 and 28 June, the partner countries—eight European Union members plus India and Russia—concluded that they have enough money to cover a €320 million budget gap; they will now seek building permits from the German government. Still, some countries have yet to commit their share of the missing cash, including Russia, which had agreed to bear about 18% of FAIR9s total construction cost, the second largest contribution after Germany9s 70%.


Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect of wheat phytase as a structural decomposer of inflammatory nucleotides, extracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and uridine diphosphate (UDP) on HT-29 cells. Methods Phosphatase activities of wheat phytase against ATP and UDP was investigated in the presence or absence of inhibitors such as L-phenylalanine and L-homoarginine using a Pi Color Lock gold phosphate detection kit. Viability of HT-29 cells exposed to intact- or dephosphorylated-nucleotides was analyzed with an EZ-CYTOX kit. Secretion levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and IL-8) in HT-29 cells exposed to substrate treated with or without wheat phytase were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Activation of caspase-3 in HT-29 cells treated with intact ATP or dephosphorylated-ATP was investigated using a colorimetric assay kit. Results Wheat phytase dephosphorylated both nucleotides, ATP and UDP, in a dose-dependent manner. Regardless of the presence or absence of enzyme inhibitors (L-phenylalanine and L-homoarginine), wheat phytase dephosphorylated UDP. Only L-phenylalanine inhibited the dephosphorylation of ATP by wheat phytase. However, the level of inhibition was less than 10%. Wheat phytase significantly enhanced the viability of HT-29 cells against ATP- and UDP-induced cytotoxicity. Interleukin (IL)-8 released from HT-29 cells with nucleotides dephosphorylated by wheat phytase was higher than that released from HT-29 cells with intact nucleotides. Moreover, the release of IL-6 was strongly induced from HT-29 cells with UDP dephosphorylated by wheat phytase. HT-29 cells with ATP degraded by wheat phytase showed significantly (13%) lower activity of caspase-3 than HT-29 cells with intact ATP. Conclusion Wheat phytase can be a candidate for veterinary medicine to prevent cell death in animals. In this context, wheat phytase beyond its nutritional aspects might be a novel and promising tool for promoting growth and function of intestinal epithelial cells under luminal ATP and UDP surge in the gut.


Phase solubility behavior of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) at 25 degrees C in various molar solutions of poloxamer 188 (P188) in water was observed and their binary solid dispersions (BSD) at different weight ratios were prepared by a simple, rapid, cost effective, uncomplicated and potentially scalable low temperature melting method. BSDs were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and evaluated for improved solubility at 25 degrees C and 37 degrees C and in-vitro release of CoQ10 at 37 degrees C in distilled water. Solubility of CoQ10 increased with increasing concentrations of P188 in water. Gibbs free energy (deltaG(o)tr) values were all negative indicating the spontaneous nature of CoQ10 solubilization and decreased with increasing concentration of P188 demonstrating that the reaction conditions became more favorable as the concentration of P188 increased. DSC and SEM analysis indicated that the homogeneity of dispersion was not at the molecular level. However, BSDs exhibited a remarkably improved aqueous solubility and dissolution of CoQ10.


The objective of this study is to determine the impact of using social media and its impact on students' performance and success. This research tries to identify the relationship between students' use of social networks and their success in their studies. It tries also to fi nd out whether time spent impacts students' performance and success. Whether students use social media more for entertainment or for teaching and information sharing purposes. The paper uses a quantitative approach for collecting the primary data. The data was collected by surveying 255 respondents from South East European University. The data analyses were done by SPSS so" ware program. Cronbach alpha is used for testing the validity and reliability of variables used in this study. The hypotheses were tested using One Simple T-test. The obtained empirical results show that a great number of students are aware of advantages and disadvantages by the social media. Thus, due to a great percent of times spent on social networking activities, the performance and the success of students suff er setbacks which could lead to a poor performance and they might fail to create a balance between the social media and academic activities. Furthermore, it is about their addiction, the loss of time leading to consequences in their academic development, and they are also infl uenced to a great extent negatively by the social networking sites, because their a$ ention is focused on cha$ ing and music while their academic activities are neglected. Finally, based on the results of survey, we can conclude that impact of social media on the academic performance of students should focus more on the positive side than on the negative side to achieve balance. Hence, creating more pages for research and academic activities will enable students to improve their performance, thereby avoiding a distraction which leads to deviation from their academic work.


One of the most frequent challenges in routine diagnostic assessment of cervical biopsies consists of some lesions in which histological features of HPV infection are either inconsistently present or only mildly/focally evident. We named them Atypical Lesions (AL) because differential diagnosis with metaplastic/reactive lesions and LSIL is difficult. It would be important to identify among them those lesions that are really HPV-associated. We studied 52 AL cases to evaluate whether the morphological features and the proliferation index, assessed by Mib1 (Ki67) immunostaining, would be useful to better understand the real nature of AL, with relation to the HPV presence and to the proliferative activity HPV induced. By univariate analysis, koilocytosis was found to be the only relatively sensitive and specific morphologic parameter associated with HPV status (74% sensitivity, 72% specificity, 77.0% PPV). Mib1 index was not proven to be either a sensitive or a specific method (40.7% sensitivity, 64.0%, specificity and 55.0% PPV). Nevertheless, when AL were stratified by the three investigated features (koilocytosis, Mib1 immunostaining and HPV-DNA presence), they could be divided in subgroups consisting of normal cases (lacking of all the three studied features) reactive/repair changes, mimics of koilocytosis, latent, sub-clinical infection, cytopathic infection, without replicative activity (all of them at least lacking of one of the studied features) and finally, proliferative infection cases, in which all the three features were present. The last group showed high probability to harbour HR-HPV DNA (91% of cases). In conclusion, AL appear as a very heterogeneous group of lesions, in which Mib1 assessment alone is not sensitive and specific enough to distinguish HPV negative from HPV positive lesions. Nevertheless, the Mib1 together with koylocitosis, could be useful to identify cases with HPV infection and increased proliferative activity that are at high risk of harbouring HR-HPV DNA and that could have a greater clinical rilevance.


This study of religious thought and social life in early America focuses on the career of Joseph Bellamy (1719-1790), a Connecticut Calvinist minister noted chiefly for his role in originating the New Divinity-the influential theological movement that evolved from the writings of Bellamy's teacher, Jonathan Edwards. Tracing Bellamy's contributions as a preacher, noted controversialist, and church leader from the Great Awakening to the American Revolution, Mark Valeri explores why the New Divinity was so immensely popular. Set in social contexts such as the emergent market economy, the war against France, and the politics of rebellion, Valeri shows, Bellamy's story reveals much about the relationship between religion and public issues in colonial New England.


Main topic of this work is development of educational games that can be used on mobile devices. Paper describes a novel approach to educational game defining and interpretation. Idea is based on extracting knowledge, game rules and scenarios outside the program thus enabling reusability. On the other hand by applying a layered approach to educational game interpretation we enable use of the same educational game on different devices and platforms. Purpose of this is to take learning outside classrooms and homes and provide a fun and interesting way of learning anytime, anywhere. Paper shows an example adventure game that is created following this methodology.


Abstract In China, entrepreneurs hailing from ethnic Chinese transnational technology networks have linked up with global capital to create hybrid firms that combine relatively efficient foreign financing with a strategic commitment to intensive utilisation of domestic resources to create their core corporate competencies. This article refers to these firms as global hybrid firms and to development driven by these firms as hybrid-led development. Hybrids, given their generally small scale and scope, work best in sectors exhibiting disaggregated value chains, fast clockspeeds and high technology-intensity. Patent data demonstrates that hybrids outperform other firms generally and especially in sectors exhibiting these three characteristics.


Oxidative stress (OS) is implicated in 80% of idiopathic male infertility (IMI) patients where exposure to redox active environmental toxicants such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) may play. In the present study the seminal exposome of various PAH was analyzed in two separate cohorts including 43 fertile donors and 60 IMI patients by HPLC and receiver operator characteristic curve was applied to find out the cut-off limits. Furthermore, spermatozoa from both the groups were subjected to label free liquid chromatography mass spectroscopy (LC-MS/MS) followed by bioinformatics analysis to elucidate the molecular mechanism(s) involved and the key proteins from the affected pathways were validated by western blot along with oxidative modification of proteins. Of the 16 standard PAH 13 were detected in the semen. Receiver Operator Character (ROC) Curve analysis (AUCROC) revealed the PAHs having most significant effect on fertility are of the following order Anthracene<benzo(a)pyrene<benzo[b]fluoranthene<Fluoranthene<benzo(a)anthracene<indol (123CD)pyrene<pyrene<naphthalene<dibenzo(AH)anthracene<fluorene<2bromonaphthalene <chrysene<benzo(GH1)perylene. Benzo[a] pyrene is invariably present in all infertile patients while naphthalene is present in both fertile and IMI group. Of the total 773 detected proteins (Control: 631 and PAH: 717); 71 were differentially expressed (13 underexpressed, 58 overexpressed) in IMI patients resulting in impaired mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative phosphorylation, DNA damage, Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) signalling, xenobiotic metabolism and induction of NRF-2 mediated oxidative stress response (increased in 4-hydroxynonenal and nitrosylated protein adduct formation, and declined antioxidant defence). The increased GSH/GSSG ratio in patients may be an adaptive response to metabolize the xenobiotics via conjugation as evidenced by overexpression of AHR and Heat shock protein 90 beta (HSP90β) in patients. Seminal PAH concentrations, oxidative protein modification along with protein markers (e.g. AHR and HSP90β) may help in better prediction and management of IMI. Contribution of environment borne PAH in semen should not undermined in infertility evaluation.


We are interested in this theorem for two reasons. It is used in the author's construction of generic generators (see the forthcoming [11]). Secondly the authors of [6] introduced a derived model construction producing a model of determinacy in which all sets of reals are universally Baire. The above theorem shows how to build such models from determinacy rather than large cardinals (see Corollary 5.4). Along the way of proving Theorem 0.1, we fill in some gaps in descriptive inner model theory. In particular, we outline the process of getting N ∗ x -like models used in [12] (see [12, Theorem 2.25]). We still leave one gap. The proof of Theorem 1.7 is not given as the full proof will go beyond the scope of this paper. However, we believe we have given enough outline so that the interested reader can prove it. I would like to thank the anonymous referee for a long list of corrections. The author was supported by the NSF Career Award DMS-1352034.


Many defense systems have a critical need for high-precision, complex optics. However, fabrication of high quality, advanced optics is often seriously hampered by the lack of accurate and affordable metrology. QED's Subaperture Stitching Interferometer (SSI®) provides a breakthrough technology, enabling the automatic capture of precise metrology data for large and/or strongly curved (concave and convex) parts. QED's SSI complements next-generation finishing technologies, such as Magnetorheological Finishing (MRF®), by extending the effective aperture, accuracy and dynamic range of a phase-shifting interferometer. This workstation performs automated sub-aperture stitching measurements of spheres, flats, and mild aspheres. It combines a six-axis precision stage system, a commercial Fizeau interferometer, and specially developed software that automates measurement design, data acquisition, and the reconstruction of the full-aperture figure error map. Aside from the correction of sub-aperture placement errors (such as tilts, optical power, and registration effects), our software also accounts for reference-wave error, distortion and other aberrations in the interferometer's imaging optics. The SSI can automatically measure the full aperture of high numerical aperture surfaces (such as domes) to interferometric accuracy. The SSI extends the usability of a phase measuring interferometer and allows users with minimal training to produce full-aperture measurements of otherwise untestable parts. Work continues to extend this technology to measure aspheric shapes without the use of dedicated null optics. This SSI technology will be described, sample measurement results shown, and various manufacturing applications discussed.


We investigate selectivity bias in the evaluation of biotech hybrid productivity. The analysis is applied to experimental data on Wisconsin corn yields from 1990 to 2010. Relying on a Heckman-like factor that accounts for selectivity, we find evidence of selection bias, indicating that some of the observed yield advantage associated with GM hybrids can be attributed to their conventional genes. We document how the rising market concentration of biotech firms has contributed to increasing selectivity bias in corn yield. The impact, however, is offset by the negative effect of the rising adoption rate of GM corn on selectivity bias. Copyright 2013, Oxford University Press.


In going beyond the NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) concept, Devine-Wright (2009)
posited a place-based approach highlighting the role of social representations of place
for understanding responses to energy infrastructure projects. Existing studies (Devine-
Wright & Howes, 2010; Anderson, 2013) have investigated the ways in which
representations of diverse forms of place change are anchored and objectified
symbolically based on existing social representations of place. These studies have
shown that the degree of fit between representations of place and proposed place change
can be seen to inform community responses to different developments. There is
however, a dearth of research investigating the symbolic fit of power line projects
amongst existing representations of the English countryside, despite the fact that such
projects are both highly controversial and key to ensuring delivery of low-carbon energy
policy targets. This paper thus sought to explore social representations of a proposed
power line development in Southwest England and their symbolic fit with
representations of nearby countryside areas, given the increased deployment of lowcarbon
energy infrastructure in this locale. Five focus groups were conducted with
residents of a town in North Somerset, to highlight residents' co-constructed place and
project-based social representations. Findings from thematic data analysis suggest that
those representing the nearby countryside as replete with existing grid infrastructure
objectified the power line proposal as an acceptable and 'familiar' form of place change.
Conversely, those representing the countryside as 'natural' tended to objectify the
proposal as industrialising this locale, objecting to it on this basis. This study reveals the
utility of adopting Social Representations Theory to understand responses to proposed
energy infrastructure developments given the UK low carbon transition, and suggests
that grid companies could enhance acceptance by seeking to minimise the 'industrial'
nature of such projects.


To investigate the plasma levels of prolactin during treatment with aripiprazole and their relationship to extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS), the levels of prolactin were measured and episodes of EPS were reviewed in 129 inpatients treated with aripiprazole or olanzapine. The mean level of prolactin in the aripiprazole group was significantly lower than that in the olanzapine group (male: 2.5 vs. 23.5; female: 5.8 vs. 38.4 ng/mL, p < 0.01). In the male aripiprazole subjects, a significant negative correlation between prolactin levels and the dosage was found (p < 0.01) and, at some (but not all) dosages, extrapyramidal symptoms occurred in the subjects with the lowest prolactin levels. These results suggest that aripiprazole could act as a "net antagonist" in the nigrostriatal pathway, and that the development of EPS may be associated with lower prolactin levels in male subjects. Simultaneously, aripiprazole acts as a strong dose-dependent "net agonist" in the tuberoinfundibular pathway, and causes severe hypoprolactinemia that may be associated with adverse events in aripiprazole monotherapy.


Among the many ways to model signals, a recent approach that draws considerable attention is sparse representation modeling. In this model, the signal is assumed to be generated as a random linear combination of a few atoms from a prespecified dictionary. In this work, two Bayesian denoising algorithms are analyzed for this model-the maximum a posteriori probability (MAP) and the minimum-mean-squared-error (MMSE) estimators, both under the assumption that the dictionary is unitary. It is well known that both these estimators lead to a scalar shrinkage on the transformed coefficients, albeit with a different response curve. We derive explicit expressions for the estimation-error for these two estimators. Upper bounds on these errors are developed and tied to the expected error of the so-called oracle estimator, for which the support is assumed to be known. This analysis establishes a worst-case gain-factor between the MAP/MMSE estimation errors and that of the oracle.


Myocardial preservation has centered around the deep hypothermia with metabolic arrest to save energy loss. We evaluated the efficacy of histidine buffered cardioplegia containing 100 mM histidine formulated to promote anaeraboic energy production in a blood perfused canine heart subjected to 24 hours or 30 hours ischemia. The hearts were flushed with 100 mM histidine containing buffered solution (HBS) in one group and a second group and University Wisconsin solution (UWS) in a third group. The hearts were preserved at 4 degrees C for 24 hours in one and third group, and for 30 hours in a second group, then reperfused with autologous blood in an isolated heart perfusion apparatus. Standardized stroke volume, ejection fraction, developed pressure and end-systolic elastance were measured at 2 hours after reperfusion and compared with control non-preserved hearts. Better recovery of cardiac performance was attained in the hearts preserved with histidine containing cardioplegia for 24 hours or 30 hours than that in UW group. Although cardiac performances in the hearts preserved with histidine cardioplegia for 30 hours was worse than that in 24 hours preserved heart for 24 hour, those were comparable if low dose or high dose cathecolamine was given. We concluded that the histidine containing cardioplegia provides effective preservation of the canine heart with superior recovery of pump performance after 24 hours or 30 hours of preservation by buffering proton and lactate to promote anaerobic glycolysis.


Ready-to-eat (RTE) food is widely used, and younger age groups are increasingly purchasing these items. This study investigated college students' consumption of RTE foods and food-related behaviors such as dietary habits, lifestyle, eating out behaviors, and demographic characteristics. We used quantitative methods to gather data. A questionnaire was developed from previous studies and was self-administered to college students in Daejeon, Republic of Korea. Descriptive analysis, ANOVA, and Chi-square tests were conducted to investigate RTE food consumption behaviors and food-related lifestyle factors. A total of 285 data points was entered for analysis. This study found that BMI and gender significantly impacted dietary habits. Residence type and gender showed significant effects on dining out partners. Furthermore, results showed the time of snack consumption and RTE food were similar, suggesting that a snack was replacing college students' meals or that they might consider RTE food as a snack, or vice versa. A nutrition intervention program for college students should be implemented to encourage a healthy diet.


In this paper we address the problem of quantitative classification of Cayley automatic groups in terms of a certain numerical characteristic which we earlier introduced for this class of groups. For this numerical characteristic we formulate and prove a fellow traveler property, show its relationship with the Dehn function and prove its invariance with respect to taking finite extension, direct product and free product. We study this characteristic for nilpotent groups with a particular accent on the Heisenberg group, the fundamental groups of torus bundles over the circle and groups of exponential growth.


Canonical correlation analysis is a technique to extract common features from a pair of multivariate data. In complex situations, however, it does not extract useful features because of its linearity. On the other hand, kernel method used in support vector machine is an efficient approach to improve such a linear method. In this paper, we investigate the effectiveness of applying kernel method to canonical correlation analysis. Keyword: multivariate analysis, multimodal data, kernel method, regularization


Neonatal infection is the highest contributor to neonatal death and The most important
neonate factor causing to infection is prematurity or LBW. Antimicrobial therapy
should be chosen based on maternal history, bacterial profile, and antimicrobial
susceptibility pattern in each neonatal intensive care unit. The objective of this study
was to determine bacterial profile and antimicrobial susceptibility pattern in neonatal
intensive care unit of Dr. Soetomo Hospital, Surabaya as a reference for the selection
of empiric antibiotics.
Descriptive observational study was carried out on preterm neonate who are
diagnosed with neonatal bacteremia and have positive blood culture in the period
January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015. The data were obtained from culture records.
In result there were 119 cases of bacteremia in preterm neonate with positive culture.
bacteremia was dominant in low-birth-weight (LBW) preterm neonate (67,2%).
Gram-negative bacteria were the leading cause of bacteremia in preterm neonate in
this study. Isolated bacterial pathogens were predominantly Klebsiella pneumoniae.
Most of the gram-negative bacteria still have high susceptibility to Meropenem,
except Acinetobacter baumannii and Stenotophonas maltophilia has low susceptibility
to Beta-Lactam class and combination Beta-Lactam class-Inhibitor Beta-Lactamase,
but it has high susceptibility to Cotrimoxazol. In general, the Gram-negative bacterial
have the highest susceptibility to Meropenem and the lowest susceptibility to
Penicillins.
In conclusion Isolated bacterial pathogens were predominantly Klebsiella
pneumoniae. Most of the gram-negative bacteria still have high susceptibility to
Meropenem, except Acinetobacter baumannii and Stenotophonas maltophilia. In
general, the Gram-negative bacteria have the highest susceptibility to Meropenem and
the lowest susceptibility to Penicillins.


In the Hellenistic-Roman period the Jews faced the urgent problem of determining the permissible and impermissible in contact with other cultures of the ancient world. One of its aspects was the question of statues of pagan deities, kings and emperors. They were not only in temples, but also in public spaces — streets, markets, courthouses, etc. The Jews were faced with these sculptures both in the Diaspora and in Palestine. The prescriptions contained in the Pentateuch were, in practice, hard to follow in their totality. The Second Commandment forbids the Jews from creating idols (Ex 20, 4, Deut. 5, 8), and it was perfectly possible to observe, but other instructions were obviously impossible (Ex 23, 24; Ex 34, 13). Philo of Alexandria and Josephus Flavius informed us about the first problems connected with sacred images, and later the discussion about them would become the main theme of the third chapter of the treatise "Avodah Zarah", which is part of the Babylonian Talmud.
In our paper we consider three issues discussed in "Avodah Zarah": the definition of a cult statue; the definition of a place that served the worship of gods; and the "desacralization" of the cult statues. Rabbis of the 2nd–4th centuries CE created a list of formal attributes that made it possible to distinguish a sacred sculpture from a decorative statue (the presence of a scepter, a bird, a ball, a snake, etc.), but in addition, the attitude of the Gentiles themselves to these statues played an important role. The fundamental role here is played by Gamaliel's words about the permissibility of using the thermae, if it's decorated with the statue of Aphrodite. In addition, Y. Furstenberg directly points to the parallels between the destructive actions produced by the Romans in the rituals of damnatio memoriae, the curse of the memory of the "bad" emperor, and the principles by which the rabbis are guided in establishing the permissible and unauthorized.


Based on hypothesis testing, methods of sensor management used in target detection and localization are studied. The detector used in this problem can operate in 揻ocused mode?and 揵road search mode? The former mode offers higher detection and localization accuracy but less coverage area than the latter. It is supposed that a signal source is to be detected and localized with a sequence of tests, each may use different mode. The goal of sensor management is to build an object function for selecting proper mode in the sequence of tests in order to improve the detection performance. In this contribution, A method of maximum a posteriori probability is presented, and methods of maximum correct detecting probability and minimum cost function based on Bayesian Reasoning are discussed. The performance of the three methods are analyzed and compared. The method of maximum correct detecting probability is modified through the simulating process.


Nanocrystalline ferromagnetic La0.7 Ca0.3 MnO3 perovskites with magnetoresistance effect have been successfully prepared by mechanical alloying. Thermal transformation of the amorphous phase, resulting from ball milling, to perovskite structure was studied by differential scanning calorimetry. Following the law of mass action, we discuss the crystallization dynamics of the amorphous phase. The activation energy for crystallization transformation is calculated to be about + 1.25 kJ g-1 . The characterization of resistivity (T ) for La0.7 Ca0.3 MnO3 perovskites has also been investigated. At low temperature T , (T ) has a direct-proportion dependence on T 2 . With increasing annealing temperature, the slope of the -T 2 curve decreases. The temperature dependent magnetoresistance effect at temperature far below the Curie temperature can be well expressed as the equation / 0 = p 1 - p 2 T 3/2 - p 3 T 5/2 .


The Irish Sea has strong tidal oscillations of heights up to 9 m at springs, and is the meeting point of cold-temperate and lusitanian faunas. Well defined tidal fronts exist at the northern thip (Malin Head) and on the east coast around Strangford Lough. The distribution of the fauna and flora of the intertidal zone at these fronts show clear discontinuities, due in part at least to the degree of mixing through tidal energy. The contribution of other factors, notably that of estuarine warming in summer, of dispersive influences at headlands, and of barren stretches of sandy coasts, subject to severe scour, all contribute to the quantitative biogeographical distribution of northern and southern elements of the Western European marine flora and fauna. In conclusion, the influence of tidal fronts and of other factors is discussed in relation to biogeographical limits of intertidal species outside Europe. The paper emphasises that persistent frontal systems have influences extending beyond the pelagic environment.


An increasing requirement in web mapping applications is the ability to directly capture and edit spatial features via the browser. This functionality cannot be done with standard HTML as it does not provide a rich enough user interface, enabling only simple graphic features to be created. There are a number of techniques currently used to provide the richer environment required to enable this functionality, including Java applets, ActiveX plugins and Microsoft VML (Vector Markup Language).


Software drives innovation and success in todays business world. Yet critical software projects consistently come in late, defective, and way over budget. So whats the problem? Get ready for a shock, because the answer to the problem is to avoid reality altogether. A new IT practice and technology called Service Virtualization (SV) is industrializing the process of simulating everything in our software development and test environments. Yes, fake systems are even better than the real thing for most of the design and development lifecycle, and SV is already making a huge impact at some of the worlds biggest companies. Service Virtualization:Reality Is Overratedis the first book to present this powerful new method for simulating the behavior, data, and responsiveness of specific components in complex applications. By faking out dependency constraints, SV delivers dramatic improvements in speed, cost, performance, and agility to the development of enterprise application software. Writing for executive and technical readers alike, SV inventor John Michelsen and Jason English capture lessons learned from the first five years of applying this game-changing practice in real customer environments. Other industriesfrom aviation to medicinealready understand the power of simulation to solve real-world constraints and deliver new products to market better, faster, and cheaper. Now its time to apply the same thinking to our software. For more information, see servicevirtualization.com. What youll learnYou will learn why, when, where, and how to deploy service virtualization (SV) solutions to mitigate or eliminate the constraints of an unavailable or unready service system by simulating its dependent components in order to deliver better enterprise software faster and at lower cost. In particular, you will learn step-by-step why, when, where, and how to deploy the following SV solutions: shift-left infrastructure availability performance readiness test scenario management Who this book is for This book is not only for IT practitioners on engineering, testing, and environments teams engaged in the development and delivery of enterprise software, but also for executives of companies in all sectors who need to understand and implement emergent opportunities to improve the time to market and overall competitiveness of any outward-facing business strategy that has a software application component. Table of ContentsForeword by Burt Klein Chapter 1. Introduction Service Virtualization Briefly Defined Key Practices Enabled by SV Shift-Left Infrastructure Availability Performance Readiness Test Scenario Management Navigating This Book Chapter 2. The Business Imperative: Innovate or Die Consumers Have No Mercy Business Demands Agile Software Delivery Increased Change and Complexity for IT Simulation Is Not Just for Other Industries Chapter 3. How We Got Here From Monolithic to Composite Apps Todays Complex Service Environments From Waterfall to Agile Development Chapter 4. Constraints: The Enemy of Agility Unavailable Systems and Environments Conflicting Delivery Schedules Data Management and Volatility Third Party Costs and Control Chapter 5. What is Service Virtualization? The Opposite of Server Virtualization Creation of a Virtual Service Maintaining Virtual Services What Kinds of Things You Can virtualize Virtual Service Environments (VSEs) Chapter 6. Where to Start with SV? Pick a Hairy Problem Identify Stakeholders Set Real Value Goals for Releases Avoid Inappropriate Technologies Chapter 7. Capabilities of Service Virtualization Technology Live-Like Development Environment Automation Eliminates Manual Stubbing and Maintenance Enables Parallel Dev and Test No more Availability Problem Platform-Neutrality Chapter 8. Best Practice #1: Shift-Left Reducing Wait Time Early Component and System Testing Define SV from Capture Define Incomplete SV from Requirements Expected Results Customer Example Chapter 9. Best Practice #2: Infrastructure Availability Finding Over-Utilized Resources Virtualizing Mainframes Avoiding Big IT Outlays Expected Results Customer Example Chapter 10. Best Practice #3: Performance Readiness Virtualizing Performance Environments Informing Performance from Production Expected Results Customer Example Chapter 11. Best Practice #4: Test Scenario Management Managing Big Data Shielding Teams from Volatility Massively Parallel Regression Testing Expected Results Customer Example Chapter 12. Rolling out Service Virtualization Who Pays for Service Virtualization? Overcoming Organizational Challenges Who Manages a VSE? Should I Have More Than One? Key Skills and Roles in a Virtual IT World Chapter 13. Service Virtualization in the DevTest Cloud Constraints of Cloud Dev and Test Achieving Elastic Cloud Environments Chapter 14. Assessing the Value Key Metrics for Success Areas for Improvement Chapter 15. Conclusion The Industrialized Software Supply Chain Innovate and Thrive Whats Next for SV? Glossary About the Authors


Mortality rates for juvenile black flying-fox (Pteropus alecto) are presented from data collected in the Northern Territory of Australia (12°24–13°03S) between 1992 and 1998. Forearm size data were used to construct a two-stage life table for each sex. Mortality rates from birth to adult size (170 mm) varied between sexes, between camp-sites and between years, and ranged from 0.43 to 0.80. Overall, the mortality rates from birth to adult size were 0.70 for females (n = 846) and 0.63 for males (n = 990). These rates represent annual juvenile mortality rates of 0.57 for females and 0.47 for males, given that females reach adult size at 14.8 months of age and males at 16.3 months of age. The maximum age of P. alecto recorded in this study was 4.5 years. The mean lifespan of females reaching adulthood would need to be seven years for a stable population size to be maintained, but may be shorter given that the mortality rates may have been over-estimated. The mortality rates and lifespan of P. alecto are not unusual amongst Chiroptera or small mammals in general.


There is a rapid advancement in wireless communication technology providing the network services anytime and anywhere. 4G communication systems are being developed to solve the various problems the current communication systems (3.5G, 3G, and 2.5G). The increasing dependency of people on telecommunication resources is pushing even more current technological developments in the mobile world. Within the wide range of issues related to 4G wireless networks, due to the scope of the ISSTA conference, in this presentation we highlight some segments of wireless networks that will be based on spread spectrum (including UWB) physical layer and mainly discuss only network adaptability and reconfigurability issues.


The OFF-state degradation of n-channel laterally diffused metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) silicon-controlled-rectifier electrostatic-discharge (ESD) devices for high-voltage applications in standard low-voltage complementary MOS technology is studied. Based on experimental data and technology computer-aided design simulations, impact ionization induced by conduction-band electrons tunneling from an n+ poly-Si gate to an n-well is identified to be the driving force of device degradation. Device optimization is proposed, which improves both OFF-state and ESD reliability.


To determine whether body mass index ≥30 kg/m2 affects morbidity and mortality rates in patients undergoing surgery for type A acute aortic dissection, we conducted a retrospective study of 201 patients with type A dissection. Patients were divided into 2 groups according to body mass index (BMI): nonobese (BMI, <30 kg/m2; 158 patients) and obese (BMI, ≥30 kg/m2; 43 patients). Propensity score matching was used to reduce selection bias. The overall mortality rate was 19% (38/201 patients). The perioperative mortality rate was higher in the obese group, both in the overall cohort (33% vs 15%; P=0.01) and in the propensity-matched cohort (32% vs 12%; P=0.039). In the propensity-matched cohort, patients with obesity had higher rates of low cardiac output syndrome (26% vs 6%; P=0.045) and pulmonary complications (32% vs 9%; P=0.033) than those without obesity. The overall 5-year survival rates were 52.5% ± 7.8% in the obese group and 70.3% ± 4.4% in the nonobese group (P=0.036). In the propensity-matched cohort, the 5-year survival rates were 54.3% ± 8.9% in the obese group and 81.6% ± 6.8% in the nonobese group (P=0.018). Patients with obesity (BMI, ≥30 kg/m2) who underwent surgery for type A acute aortic dissection had higher operative mortality rates and an increased risk of low cardiac output syndrome, pulmonary complications, and other postoperative morbidities than did patients without obesity. Additional extensive studies are needed to confirm our findings.


An ongoing debate in ecology concerns the relative importance of competition in driving community patterns, especially along gradients of disturbance and productivity. We used a null model to address this question by testing for non-random organization of forest species according to maximum height, a trait associated with competitive ability for light. Specifically, we compared the species present in 409 different temperate forest plots with the pool of potentially present species (n639 species), spanning a 50 000 km 2 area of southern Ontario, Canada. In contrast to current theory, coexisting forest species were neither more similar (i.e. convergent), nor more different (i.e. limiting similarity) in maximum height than expected by chance. However, coexisting forest species had larger maximum heights on average, and their maximum heights were more symmetrically distributed than expected by chance, suggesting that competition has reduced the representation of smaller plant species within plots (i.e. higher turn-over of species with smaller maximum heights among forest plots). We explored the possibility that our findings resulted from smaller species having relatively narrower niches; however, a conclusive test of this explanation will require knowledge of fundamental, rather than realized niche breadth. We also tested the prediction that the influence of competition changes along gradients of productivity and disturbance by examining how the effect size of our null model tests changed along these gradients. We observed that species with smaller maximum heights were increasingly under-represented in more productive forest communities, suggesting an increased role for competition in determining species membership in more productive communities. In contrast to theory, however, the effect size of our tests did not significantly change along a gradient of forest disturbance. In summary, we found evidence that maximum species height plays a significant role in driving the non-random organization of plant species among hundreds of mature forest plots, and that this role is more pronounced in more productive forest plots.


Program comprehension (PC) is a research field that has been extensively studied from different points of view, including human program understanding and mental models, automated program understanding, etc. In this paper, we discuss algorithm recognition (AR) as a subfield of PC and explain their relationship. We present a method for automatic AR from Java source code. The method is based on static analysis of program code including various statistics of language constructs, software metrics, as well as analysis of roles of variables in the target program. In the first phase of the method, a number of different implementations of the supported algorithms are analyzed and stored in the knowledge base of the system as learning data, and in the second phase, previously unseen algorithms are recognized using this information. We have developed a prototype and successfully applied the method for recognition of sorting algorithms. This process is explained in the paper along with the experiment we have conducted to evaluate the performance of the method. Although the method, at its current state, is still sensitive to changes made to target algorithms, the encouraging results of the experiment demonstrate that it can be further developed to be used as a PC method in various applications, as an example, in automatic assessment tools to check the algorithms used by students, the functionality that is currently missing from these tools.


The processing of numerical information is a dominant feature of everyday life. Whether it is in the context of financial transactions, such as shopping for groceries or in gauging how many people are in a room, we are constantly using numerical information to guide our behavior and make decisions. While there has been much more attention placed on literacy and its importance for life success, there is clear evidence to suggest that basic numerical and mathematical skills play a critical role in determining an individual's life success. Furthermore, there is abundant evidence that low numeracy skills are associated with substantial costs to society at large (Butterworth, Varma, and Laurillard; Bynner and Parsons, 1997; Duncan et al., 2007). In view of this, a better understanding of how the ability to process numerical information develops could lead to improvements in how these skills are taught and used by individuals to improve their lives across the globe. As an extension of this, improving numerical skills among individuals will have benefits for society at large as it will lead to a stronger working force and thus measurable economic improvements. The focus of the review will be on the foundations of number processing abilities upon which higher-level abilities, such as mental arithmetic are built. In this way, the literature review does not provide a comprehensive overview of the development of numerical and mathematical skills, but rather explore the foundational systems underlying numerical and mathematical abilities. By doing so the review aims to identify key variables that characterize foundational competencies of numerical abilities that can be used in the context of educational assessments and become targets for educational interventions. It is a central contention of the present review that in order to improve the early acquisition of numerical competencies, a focus on foundational systems is necessary. If the foundations are well set then the system can develop optimally.


The six-dimensional CC-pol interaction potential for the water dimer was used to predict properties of the dimer and of liquid water, in the latter case after being supplemented by a nonadditive potential. All the results were obtained purely from first principles, i.e., without any fitting to experimental data. Calculations of the vibration-rotation-tunneling levels of (H(2)O)(2) and (D(2)O)(2), a very sensitive test of the potential surface, gave results in good agreement with experimental high-resolution spectra. Also the virial coefficients and properties of liquid water agree well with measured values. The present model performs better than published force fields for water in a simultaneous reproduction of experimental data for dimer spectra, virials, and properties of the liquid.


4,5-Dicyano-1H-[1,2,3]-Triazole (DCTz) exhibits a very low proton affinity. This makes it a possible water replacement for proton transport in high temperature polymer electrolyte membranes. A detailed investigation is carried out to define various physical properties as well as the proton transfer characteristics of DCTz. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that DCTz as well as DCTz salts are thermally stable at high temperature (> 100°C). 1 H NMR spectra reveal proton exchange in DCTz solutions. The NMR spectroscopy reveals the dependence of proton transport on concentration, temperature and the presence of excess protons added as acid dopants.


Deglutition syncope has been demonstrated in isolated case reports, the first being described over 50 years ago. It is thought to be caused by a hypersensitive vagotonic reflex in response to esophageal dilation after swallowing. It can cause syncope due to complete atrioventricular (AV) block and acute reduction of cardiac output. Although rare, its lethality is worthy of discussion, as early recognition can offer complete treatment with placement of a pacemaker. A 54-year-old man presented with 30 years of lightheadedness and syncope, followed by disorientation and tremors, after eating sandwiches or drinking carbonated beverages. He initially was evaluated by a neurologist. Work-up included cardiac 2D transthoracic echocardiogram, electroencephalogram, swallow stud, pulmonary function tests, electrocardiogram, and cardiac stress testing. All tests were within normal limits, and it was determined that he was suffering from convulsive syncope and deglutition syncope. Referral to the cardiac electrophysiology department with tilt-table testing accompanied by swallow evaluation was then recommended. The tests demonstrated marked vagal response resulting in sinus bradycardia with second-degree AV block and pauses up to 3.5 seconds. Patient experienced near syncope. A rate-responsive, dual-chamber Boston Scientific pacemaker with DDDR programming was implanted. Patient has remained asymptomatic at follow-up.