ObjectiveCerebral blood flow (CBF) estimation with C15O2 PET usually assumes a single tissue compartment model and a fixed brain–blood partition coefficient of water. However, the partition coefficient may change in pathological conditions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes in the partition coefficient of water in pathological regions and its effect on regional CBF assessment. MethodsThe study protocol included 22 patients with occlusive cerebrovascular disease to compare the partition coefficients among three regions (infarction area, noninfarct hypoperfusion area, and contralateral area) in the pathological brain (analysis A), and to compare the CBF estimated by using a fixed partition coefficient and CBF estimated using floating partition coefficients (analysis B). ResultsThe partition coefficient in the infarction area (0.55±0.07 ml/g) was lower than that in the contralateral normal cortex (0.68±0.05 ml/g), whereas noninfarct hypoperfusion area did not show a significant change (0.67±0.06 ml/g). As a result, the use of a fixed partition coefficient of normal volunteers (0.70 ml/g) resulted in an underestimation in regional CBF by 12% in infarction area (P<0.05), whereas the estimation errors were smaller and induced no significant difference in the noninfarct hypoperfusion area or in contralateral areas. ConclusionThe partition coefficient is stable except for the infarction area, and CBF estimation using a fixed partition coefficient of normal volunteers provides clinically appreciable information in patients with cerebrovascular disease.


The ASINPHAR@2action project aims at raising awareness to arterial stiffness (AS) and early vascular aging (EVA) through a community pharmacy–based intervention. This preliminary analysis is focused on the analysis of the proportion of participants with increased AS and the identification of its main determinants. We performed an observational cross‐sectional study of participants enrolled in 11 community pharmacies in Portugal, between April and November 2017. Blood pressure (BP) and arterial function parameters were measured with a validated device. Clinical and demographic information was gathered, as well as the estimation of global cardiovascular risk, health‐related quality of life, and dietary profile. Cholesterol and glycaemia were taken from a recent laboratory bulletin. The cohort includes 658 participants with a mean age of 57.3 ± 16.3 years, 66% women. Brachial BP was 126.6 ± 16.4 mm Hg and 79.9 ± 11.5 mm Hg, and central BP was 115.8 ± 15.4 mm Hg and 81.2 ± 11.6 mm Hg, respectively, for systolic and diastolic BP. Mean pulse wave velocity (PWV) was 8.5 ± 2.3 m/s, and the augmentation index was 23.6 ± 15.6%. The proportion of participants with increased AS was 19.8%. The overall best‐fitting model for AS included age, gender, aortic PP, visceral fat, HDL cholesterol, AIx@75, total vascular resistance, hypertension, and diabetes, corresponding to an AUC of 0.910 (CI: 0.883, 0.937; P < 0.001) in the ROC curve analysis. The preliminary results of this pioneering large‐scale study measuring arterial function in community pharmacies provide the grounds for the operationalization of subclinical target organ damage screening in pharmacies, as a strategy to improve cardiovascular risk monitoring and to promote adherence to treatment.


From one of highly unpalatable red algae Plocamium leptophyllum for the marine herbivorous gastropod Turbo cornutus, halogenated monoterpenes were isolated as potent feeding inhibitors against not only this herbivorous gastropod but also other herbivores including the abalone Haliotis discus, the top shell Omphalius pfeifferi and the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus intermedius. One of them was identified by spectroscopic analysis as aplysiaterpenoid A which was previously isolated from the red alga P. telfairiae as well as the sea hare Aplysia kurodai.


Summary Within 4 days after whole body x-irradiation (650 r), globule leucocytes were reduced to 1-2% of their normal number in the intestine of the rat. Reestablishment of normal numbers of cells began toward end of the first week after irradiation and was completed by the 5th week. The effect of irradiation on globule leucocytes was chiefly a local one, being prevented by shielding the intestine with lead during irradiation. Only with the LDioo 30 days dosage (800 r) was there a significant reduction in number of globule leucocytes in lead-shielded intestinal segments. This appeared to be the indirect result of stress induced by irradiation, since the effect was prevented by hypophysectomy. Hypophysectomy alone reduced markedly the number of intestinal globule leucocytes.


Consumers are holders of important information in the management and planning of business development. The purpose of the study is to analyze consumer attitudes towards various processed milkfish and analyze the performance of product attributes of various processed milkfish in Glagah District, Lamongan Regency. The data analysis method used is descriptive analysis, Fishbein attitude model and Importance Performance Analysis (IPA). The results showed that the respondent's assessment of the processed otak-otak and smoked milkfish stated a neutral attitude, and the respondent's assessment of the shredded milkfish and crackers stated a positive attitude. The performance attributes of various processed milkfish included in quadrant I measure the processed otak-otak and the processed abon. Attributes included in quadrant II are taste and price for processed otak-otak, smoked, and crackers, while shredded milkfish only have tasted attributes. Attributes included in quadrant III are product packaging and ease of access for all kinds of milkfish preparations. Attributes included in quadrant IV are the size of the product for shredded and milkfish crackers. It does recommend that producers of otak-otak and smoked milkfish improve their products to get a positive attitude from customers.


A laboratory study comparing the Widal slide agglutination test using local antigens produced by Mekar Jaya Diagnostica (SAT-MJD) with imported antigens (Murex, Abbott) was carried out on 55 sera of typhoid fever patients with positive blood culture and 56 sera of non-typhoid febrile patients. The SAT-MJD antigens consisted of a mixture of 5 different phage-types of S. typhi dominantly found in Indonesia. This study revealed the following results: the diagnostic sensitivity of local and imported antigens was 83.93%, the diagnostic specificity of local antigens was higher than the imported antigens ie 82.14% compared with 64.28%, the diagnostic efficiency of local antigens was 82.88% compared with 73.87% of the imported antigens. The diagnostic positive and negative predictive values of the local antigens were 80.70% and 83.63%, respectively. The imported antigen revealed diagnostic positive and negative predictive values of 69.69% and 80%, respectively. The diagnostic specificity and efficiency of local antigens were significantly different (p < 0.02 and p < 0.05) from the imported antigens. The local antigens have some advantages. There was no variation in within-run and between-day test, compared with a 6.6% variation shown by the imported antigen. The test results obtained 5 minutes after mixing the serum with antigens reduced the possibility of false-positive and false-negative results. The cost of local antigens is lower than the imported antigens. Based on these data, the Widal SAT-MJD has a reliable diagnostic value and can be used in small laboratories, such as primary health centers (Puskesmas).


This paper studies the mechanism for the equity of payments for using the Colombian health system, defined as the possibility of consuming services when the need arises, regardless of the individual's resources. The incentives produced by the payment system are studied, as well as a particular case of a homogeneous population. Health services are grouped together according to type of risk, and the variations in service consumption are determined as a function of income. If the mechanism is equitable, the frequency of service use in different socioeconomic levels should be the same for pathologies and treatments with high risk and vulnerability.


This paper provides a survey on investigations that deal with the effects of hyperfractionation. The influence of relevant parameters on treatment results is explained. Furthermore, clinically practicable hyperfractionated treatment schedules for therapy of head and neck tumours are proposed. Clinical and experimental reports reveal that with hyperfractionation two strategies can be realised: 1. Late normal tissue reactions can be reduced without changing total dose. In this case local tumour control rate remains unchanged. 2. To enhance tumour control rates a higher total dose can be administered, if late reactions were dose limiting in the reference schedule. In this case a reduced dose per fraction and an appropriately increased total dose will leave late reactions unchanged. Applying two fractions per day the dose per fraction should not exceed 1.4 Gy. Otherwise severe acute reactions could require treatment interruption. A time interval of at least six hours between fractions reduces the risk of acute and late reactions considerably.


The primary issue in this case concerns about a manager's engagement toward employees in an organisation. The low level of attitude displayed by the manager creates a negative impact on employees' performance. The organisational outcome is also affected by the negative attitude of the managers. In this case, the key issue is about the employees' satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the negative attitude of the manager. The positive mind-set of employees is affected, and they develop dissatisfaction with the negative mentality of the manager. The case also investigates the aspect of resistance to changes, whereby, negative thinking is reduced, and positive management thinking among employees and managers in the organisation is increased. Overall, this case describes a management dilemma on how employees' job satisfaction levels caused serious levels (turnover intention increased) in the commercial banking industry. Survey instruments have been used to measure employees' attitude or behaviour. The finding indicated that 60 percent of the negative attitude of manager caused dissatisfaction among employee. In this case, the dissatisfaction among employees was due to the negative behaviour of the manager who penalised staff who could contribute towards the success of a project. In addition, dissatisfaction was also due to the lack of recognition received, whereby, achievement rewards were given to the manager who lacked in the contribution of knowledge and ideas for the company development.


Introduction: For a velocity profile in turbulent flows, the flow conditions in the vicinity of the wall are described by logarithmic law of the wall. However, it has been extensively verified that the log-law does not apply in the outer region of the boundary layer. For example, in free surface flows, the law of the wall holds only for 20 percent of the flow depth from the wall. Coles (1956) conducted an important advancement and argued that away from the wall, the deviations of the profiles of measured velocity from those obtained from the law of the wall could be explained by another universal law, called the wake-law. Combining both laws (wall and wake), a complete approximation to the time-averaged velocity profile in turbulent flows is then feasible (White, 1991). On the other hand, the fundamental problem of characterizing the mean velocity profile in sediment-laden flows remains unresolved. While existence models have been developed to estimate velocity profile, but there is a lack of generalization in the sediment-laden flows. For several decades, it has been controversial about the effects of suspended sediment on hydraulic characteristics of the flow, including flow resistance and velocity distribution. Fig. 1 shows the variations of velocity distribution due to introduction of the suspended sediment. As it is seen in this Figure, the suspended sediment moves faster than the water in the inner layer; on the other hands, there is a velocity-lag due to the introduction of sediment into the outer layer. Accurate estimate of the rate of sediment loads is important in sediment-laden flow. Because velocity distribution is one of the required parameters to estimate the sediment discharge. Until now, many equations have been introduced by many researchers for estimating the velocity distribution in open channels. Generally, there are two different views about the velocity distribution in sediment-laden flows. The first view suggests that the log-law is also applied in the sediment-laden flows and von Karman constantly decreases with increasing sediment concentration. Such researchers as Vanoni (1946), Einstein and Chen (1955), Elata and Ippen (1961) supported this idea. Another view is that von Karman constantly does not decrease with increasing sediment concentration and velocity distribution deviates from the main region of the flow. Because of these contradictions about the effects of suspended sediments on characteristics of the flow and given the existence of several developed models , this question may be raised whether which one is markedly superior to the others or what model gives accurate results in the sediment-laden flow. No attempt was made to make an exhaustive comparison of the models with available experimental data. The present study evaluates and discusses the performance of seven models, by comparing these with experimental data selected from four sources. Then these equations will be assessed using the experimental data, and the best model will be introduced by means of statistical analysis.
Materials and Methods: In this paper, the velocity distribution of sediment-laden flow has been investigated. Such equations as Log-law, modified log-law, wake-law, modified log-wake, log-modified wake, and parabolic law have been studied. The accuracy of each equation has been assessed by using statistical analysis. The mean average error (MAE) is a quantity used to measure how close predictions are to the eventual outcomes. The root-mean-square error (RMSE) is a frequently used measure of the differences between value predicted by a model or an estimator and the values actually observed. Determination coefficient (R2) is a number that indicates how well data fit a statistical model. Experiment data related to Wang and Qian (1989), Vanoni (1946), and Coleman (1981) have been used to test the proposed models. In most data sets, the width-depth ratios are less than 5, i.e., the maximum velocity occurs below the water surface. Thus, the boundary layer thickness is defined as the distance from the bed to the maximum velocity position, where the velocity gradient is zero.
Results and Discussion: The accuracy of each equation has been assessed using some statistical indices. The results showed that the log-wake velocity distribution in both the inner and outer regions estimated the velocity values with reasonable accuracy (with a relative error of 5%). It is recommended that this equation is used to calculate the suspended sediment discharge. On the other hand, parabolic-law doesn't have a good accuracy and it will cause large errors (with a relative error up to about 15%). In addition logarithmic distributionsare only able to estimate accurately the velocity in the inner region. It was also found that in sediment-laden flows, in the region where y/h ≥ 0.2, the effect of sediment concentration can be neglected as the sediment concentration becomes very low. Therefore, it is more reasonable to look for an equation having acceptable accuracy in the inner layer.


Abstract The aim of this article is to compare diameter and stiffness, displacement, and strain in a five-strand versus four-strand hamstring graft for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Eight matched pairs of lower extremities underwent four-strand or five-strand hamstring graft reconstruction. Diameter was significantly higher in the five-strand versus the four-strand construct (p = 0.002). No significant difference was found between the groups in construct displacement or stiffness. Significantly higher strain was observed in the inner limb versus the outer limb in the four-strand construct (p = 0.001) and in the inner limb versus the fifth limb in the 5-strand construct (p = 0.004). A fifth limb added to a four-strand hamstring graft significantly increased graft diameter but did not significantly change stiffness or displacement, suggesting that attachment of additional graft material via suture did not provide for full incorporation of the added limb into the graft at time zero. The inner limb in both constructs absorbed significantly greater load than did other limbs. The use of suture to attach additional material to a four-strand hamstring graft may not contribute to improved biomechanical qualities of the graft at time zero.


Family presence during resuscitation (FPDR) has been an ongoing topic of discussion in many hospital emergency departments throughout the United States. With the current emphasis promoting patient- and family-centered care, families are now exercising their right to be present at the bedside during resuscitation. With or without a policy, there is continued resistance to allow families to remain with their loved ones during resuscitation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if an evidence-based educational intervention would increase physicians' and nurses' knowledge, attitudes, and compliance with allowing FPDR. This quasi-experimental study evaluated 30 attending physicians' and 65 registered nurses' knowledge of an existing family presence policy and their attitudes toward family presence post-educational intervention in an emergency department setting. Compliance of family presence was observed for 2 months pre- and post-educational intervention. Results show that most physicians and nurses either were not sure or were not aware that there was an existing written policy. The study demonstrated that nurses agree more than physicians that the option of FPDR is a patient/family right. The results also showed that the educational intervention had no effect on the physicians and nurses attitudes for FPDR, but it did change behaviors. Of the events involving professionals who were exposed to the educational intervention, family members were present 87.5% of the time. In contrast, only 23% of the events involving professionals who did not receive the educational intervention had families present. Ongoing staff education will heighten awareness to FPDR, make the staff more comfortable with families being present, and will presumably continue to increase invitations for FPDR.


The steam generator in a PWR primary coolant system is one of the pieces of equipment made in China for the Qinshan nuclear power plant, Zhejiang. It is a crucial unit belonging to the category of nuclear pressure vessel. The purpose of this research work is to carry out an examination of the weld quality of the steam generator under fatigue loading and to assess its reliability by using experimental results of a fatigue test of the nuclear pressure vessel steel S-271 (Chinese Standard) and of qualified tests of welded seams of a simulated prototype of the bottom closure head of the steam generator. A guarantee of weld quality is proposed as the quality assurance of safety for the China National Nuclear Safety Supervision Bureau. The results of the reliability analysis reported in this work can be taken as supplementary material for a Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) of the Qinshan nuclear power plant. According to the requirement of Provision 2-1500 CYCLIC TESTING, ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section 3, Rules for Construction of Nuclear Power Plant Components, a simulated prototype of the bottom closure head of the steam generator was made in this work for the qualified tests. Qualifiedmore » tests with small sample size present a problem which is difficult to solve in reliability analysis, and are therefore of interest. Here, the authors offer proposals attempting to solve this problem.« less


One of the most valuable uses of the reception history of biblical texts is the way it enables interpreters to see how specific exegeses of texts are tied to the hermeneutical framework within which they are read. Romans 1:3–4 presents an interesting and important test case. Modern interpretations tend to construe these verses primarily within a history-of-religions framework, seeking historical clues to support a particular version of an early, and most often adoptionist, Christology. Ancient interpretations, on the other hand, overwhelmingly read these verses as supporting a dogmatic construal of the two natures of Christ, using the text primarily to support the real humanity of Christ. Reception history allows one to see that both ancient and modern readings of Rom 1:3–4 are intimately related to their specific hermeneutical frameworks. This article suggests that the primary matrix of meaning for these verses is, in the first instance, Paul's own letter to the Romans, and it seeks to integrate these verses within Paul's broader argumentation in Romans.


Obesity has recently become one of the major health care problems because of its related morbidity and mortality. Despite all recommended treatments, incidence of obesity increases all over the world. New treatment approaches are needed for an immediate solution to this problem. The family physicians, who have key roles in management of non-communicable diseases, might produce important knowledge to guide practice, by using qualitative and quantitative research methods together.


BACKGROUND
The extent to which awareness of chronic disease (CD) diagnosis affects one's healthy food knowledge, self-efficacy and intentions or healthy dietary and physical activity (PA) behaviours remains unexplored among Inuit in Canada.

METHODS
A food frequency questionnaire and an adult impact questionnaire were used in a cross-sectional study to collect self-reported data on daily energy and nutrient intake, PA and the diagnosis of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and cancer amongst adult Inuit and their family members. Associations between awareness of personal and family CD status and healthy food knowledge, self-efficacy and intentions, percentage of energy consumed from non-nutrient-dense foods and PA were assessed via ordinal logistic regression.

RESULTS
Of the 266 participants, those who self-reported CD for both themselves and their relative(s) were more likely to have high healthy food knowledge [odds ratio (OR)=2.45] than those who did not. Reporting hypertension and heart disease amongst only relatives increased the likelihood of high knowledge (OR=5.20) and intentions (OR=5.10) for healthy eating. Heart disease in both participants and their relatives was associated with high levels of PA (OR=12.24). However, there were no associations when only participants (but not their relatives) reported having CD. A joint effect between a high level of education and awareness of CD was positively related to high food knowledge (OR=38.93). An inverse association between awareness of CD and unhealthy eating was not observed.

CONCLUSIONS
Awareness of a relative having a CD was a more important factor in increasing knowledge and, to a lesser degree, self-efficacy or intentions to eat healthy than participants' awareness of personal CD. However, awareness was not associated with lower non-nutrient-dense food intake.


In semi-arid regions of West Africa, tiger bush veg etation is a striking example of a selforganised, banded vegetation pattern. It consists o f regularly arranged woody stripes alternating with areas free of vegetation, whereby the distance betw een the vegetation stripes increases with decreasin g precipitation. In this study, the floristic and str uctural pattern of tiger bush in Burkina Faso, its current distribution and the relationship between floristic and structural pattern were studied. Five subareas within the study area were chosen for a systematic field survey. Data collection took place along nine continuous belt transects. Occurance of ligneous sp ecies was recorded. Diversity indices, the relative frequency and the Importance Values of these specie s were calculated. For frequent species, quadrate variance and new local variance values (TLQV and NL V) were calculated, and the relationship between habitat factors and the occurrence of dominating wo ody species was tested. The scales of the underlyin g pattern varied and re-occurring patch sizes were no t detectable. In many areas, tiger bush vegetation had completely disappeared or had been dramatically red uc over the last 50 years probably as a result of increased anthropogenic pressure and grazing. Still existing tiger bush stands are often degraded. 27 ligneous species from 11 plant families were record ed, Pterocarpus lucens , Combretum micranthum , Guiera senegalensis and Boscia senegalensis being most frequent species. Coverage of the woody layer was between 8 and 90%, with mean heights between 5 to 8m and low diversity indices. Soil crusts and the occurrence of woody species were always negativ ely associated with each other. G senegalensis showed high coverage in the herb zone where rejuven ation of woody plants occurred. Where present, the ground layer of tiger bush vegetation was highly di fferentiated. Variance values for P. lucens were always higher than those of C. micranthum and G. senegalensis . With one exception, the size pattern in the different transects was not uniform. The variances of the diversity indices were small. Studying patte rn of tiger bush has a potential to monitor further clima tic nd human impacts in semi-arid ecosystems; this study can be used as baseline documentation for fut u e studies in the same area. Future studies should also look at seedling establishment and biomass dis tribution and at the plant-to-plant relationship an d its role for the pattern organisation.


Amongst ruminant livestock diseases, the gastrointestinal GIT helminths and protozoan parasite infections result in a significant socio-economic concern worldwide. During the period between October 2017 and November 2018, a total of 788 fresh fecal specimens from cattle n = 303 and sheep n = 485 were screened for the presence of gastrointestinal helminths and protozoan parasites in two historical regions Crisana and Banat of western Romania. Laboratory processing of fecal samples with the simple salt flotation Willis and sedimentation techniques, followed by microscopic analysis revealed that 86.1% of cattle and 92.6% of sheep were found to be positive for at least one parasitic stage of GIT helminths and/or protozoa. Five endoparasites were identified in both cattle C and sheep S , and their prevalence was as follows: Eimeria spp. 24.1% C , 43.7% S ; Balantidium spp. 10.2% C , 1% S ; Fasciola/ Paramphistomum spp. 55.8% C , 75% S ; Dicrocoelium spp. 14.2% C , 3.2% S ; and Strongylid eggs 46.9% C , 71.3% S . In addition, Toxocara spp. 0.3% genera were found in cattle, while Nematodirus spp. 24.5% and Moniezia spp. 3.5% were observed only in sheep. The strongylid infections were significantly more prevalent P < 0.05 in cattle older than 8 years, while the coccidial ones were positively associated P < 0.05 with sheep younger than 2 years. The study provides useful information for veterinary practitioners in order to develop effective prevention and control strategies against gastrointestinal parasitic infections in the studied regions.


Aims
Guidelines support use of drug combinations in most hypertensive patients, and recently treatment initiation with two drugs has been also recommended. However, limited evidence is available on whether this leads to greater cardiovascular (CV) protection compared to initial monotherapy.

Methods and results
Using the healthcare utilization database of the Lombardy Region (Italy), the 44 534 residents of the region (age 40-80 years) who in 2010 started treatment with one antihypertensive drug (n = 37 078) or a two-drug fixed-dose combination (FDC, n = 7456) were followed for 1 year after treatment initiation to compare the risk of hospitalization for CV disease associated with the two treatment strategies. To limit the confounding associated with non-randomized between-group comparisons, data were also analysed by: (i) matching the two groups by the high-dimensional propensity score (HDPS) and (ii) comparing, in patients experiencing one or more CV events (n = 2212), the CV event incidence during subperiods in which patients were prescribed mono- or FDC therapy (self-controlled case series design). Compared to initial monotherapy, patients on initial FDC therapy showed a reduced 1 year risk of hospitalization for any CV event (-21%, P < 0.01). This was the case also when groups were compared according to the HDPS analysis (-15%, P < 0.05). Finally, in patients experiencing CV events, the event incidence was much less when, during the 1 year follow-up, they were under FDC therapy than under monotherapy (-56%, P < 0.01). The reduced risk of hospitalization was always significant for ischaemic heart disease and new onset atrial fibrillation, and included hospitalization for cerebrovascular disease and heart failure when monotherapy and FDC therapy were compared within patients.

Conclusion
In a real-life setting, a comparison of the incidence of early CV events during antihypertensive monotherapy and FDC shows that the latter strategy leads to a more effective CV protection. This scores in favour of a two-drug FDC strategy as first step in the hypertensive population.


In a situation in which the market economy is regarded as so important and decisive as to induce the emergence of a market society, the notion of the «sacred» becomes essential. The market is perfectly legitimate as a forum of negotiations, but it has a purely instrumental value. A market society is a contradiction in terminis. Only the concept of the Sacred, despite its ambiguity, can preserve and enhance the final values on which a society is built (justice, love, human recognition, interpersonal dialogue).


Peptides from scorpion venom have been previously studied for use in the prevention and treatment of various types of cancer in folk medicine. The present study investigated the anti-proliferative effects and mechanisms of the low molecular weight (~3 kDa) BmK scorpion venom peptides (LMWSVP) on human hepatoma (SMMC 7721) and cervical carcinoma (HeLa) cells. The data indicated that LMWSVP inhibited the growth of SMMC 7721 cells, but had no effect on the growth of HeLa cells. SMMC 7721 cells were more sensitive, with a higher affinity, to LMWSVP as compared with HeLa cells. In addition, LMWSVP induced apoptosis of SMMC 7721 cells by upregulating the expression of caspase-3 and downregulating the expression of Bcl-2. These data provide an experimental basis for further purification and application of LMWSVP for use as an anti-tumor drug in clinical trials.


Purpose: This basic research tries to provide planning concept of elderly housing which can cope with the needs of the aged society. Methods: This study has been conducted mainly by literature investigation research. Previous researches include Universal and Barrier-Free Design, Elderly Housing Standards, Elderly Welfare Act and other related acts, various papers related to elderly housing, and so on. To set up the Planning concept of elderly housing, elements or indices of previous studies have been comparatively analysed. Results: Elderly housing has been divided into individual type, group type and facility type according to the residents` health and operation system of the housing. This paper focuses on the individual type among three categories. Seven concepts of the elderly housing have been derived as the outcome of this research - Safety, Accessibility, Amenity, Distinguishment, Adaptability, Convenience, and Sociality. Implications: This concept will provide the planning direction on the construction and renovation for Elderly Housing in the future.


The six known highly dispersed fast radio bursts are attributed to extragalactic radio sources, of unknown origin but extremely energetic. We propose here a new explanation - not requiring an extreme release of energy - involving a body (planet, asteroid, white dwarf) orbiting an extragalactic pulsar. We investigate a theory of radio waves associated to such pulsar-orbiting bodies. We focus our analysis on the waves emitted from the magnetic wake of the body in the pulsar wind. After deriving their properties, we compare them with the observations of various transient radio signals in order to see if they could originate from pulsar-orbiting bodies. The analysis is based on the theory of Alfv\'en wings: for a body immersed in a pulsar wind, a system of two stationary Alfv\'en waves is attached to the body, provided that the wind is highly magnetized. When destabilized through plasma instabilities, Alfv\'en wings can be the locus of strong radio sources convected with the pulsar wind. Assuming a cyclotron maser instability operating in the Alfv\'en wings, we make predictions about the shape, frequencies and brightness of the resulting radio emissions. Because of the beaming by relativistic aberration, the signal is seen only when the companion is perfectly aligned between its parent pulsar and the observer, as for occultations. For pulsar winds with a high Lorentz factor, the whole duration of the radio event does not exceed a few seconds, and it is composed of one to four peaks lasting a few milliseconds each, detectable up to distances of several Mpc. The Lorimer burst, the three isolated pulses of PSR J1928+15, and the recently detected fast radio bursts are all compatible with our model. According to it, these transient signals should repeat periodically with the companion's orbital period. The search of pulsar-orbiting bodies could be an exploration theme for new- or next-generation radio telescopes.


We show that coherent phase effects may play a relevant role in the nonlinear propagation of partially incoherent waves, which lead to unexpected processes of condensation, or incoherent soliton generation in instantaneous response nonlinear media.


Abstract The distribution of Fe3+-kaolinite, Al-goethite and Al-hematite and their contents of Fe and Al in bauxites and ferricretes are controlled by water activity, dissolved silica activity, temperature and particle size. The proposed model, based on ideal solid-solution equilibria in the Fe2O3-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O system, takes into account water and silica activities. By using the same considerations as those previously developed for the Fe2O3-Al2O3-H2O system, the model calculates the amounts of coexisting phases, Al or Fe substitution ratios in goethite, hematite or kaolinite, and the stability field distributions of the minerals under various conditions. Thermodynamic equilibrium conditions and element distributions within the mineral constituents are shown to be dependent on the parameters cited above. The model yields results compatible with natural observations on lateritic profiles.


Aspergillus species are regularly involved in human broncho-pulmonary diseases, mainly in immunocompromised patients. The essential oils extracted from three different plants were tested for their inhibitory effect on the growth of five pathogenic Aspergilli including Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus versicolor and Aspergillus terreus which are pathogens with clinical importance. The results of the antimicrobial tests showed that the isolated essential oils inhibited the growth of Aspergillus species to varying degrees. The Ocimum basilicum oil completely inhibited the mycelial growth and spore germination of A. terreus and A. fumigatus at 200 and 250 ppm. In addition, this oil showed a very strong antifungal activity against the mycelial growth and spore germination of A. flavus and A. versicolor with 97.7, 97.5, 91.2 and 93.5%, respectively, when compared with control. The essential oil extracted from Eucalyptus globulus also exhibited significant antifungal activity against the Aspergillus species tested. This oil completely inhibited the mycelial growth and spore germination of A. fumigatus. Conversely, Nigella sativa oil exhibited moderate inhibitory activity against all the tested Aspergillus species. The present study supports the proposition that plant essential oils may have a role in both pharmaceutical and agricultural practices.


Aza(bisoxazoline) ligands were attached to various polymeric supports and the resulting immobilized ligands were evaluated in copper(I)-catalyzed asymmetric cyclopropanations. The efficiency of these transformations depends greatly on the polymeric support, on the protocol being applied for the immobilization of the ligands, and on the preparation of the catalysts.


Background. The connection and interplay between upper and lower airways have long been established and have served as basis for the "Allergy Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma" /ARIA/ global guideline. Control is considered the most important indicator of adequate management of both diseases and questionnaires have been developed as simple tools to assess it. The aim of our study was to explore the concordance between asthma control and rhinitis control in a random population of patients with both asthma and rhinitis by means of internationally recognized questionnaires for control validated in Bulgarian language. Methods. 35 patients, [mean age 33, range 12 - 63 years], with rhinitis and asthma were recruited for the study. The level of asthma control was assessed by the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) and that of rhinitis control by theRhinitis Control Assessment Test (RCAT) recently validated in Bulgarian language. Results. Out of the 25 patients with controlled asthma. 21 (84, 0%) were with controlled rhinitis, while out of the 10 uncontrolled asthmatics 9 (90, 0%) were with uncontrolled rhinitis. The discordant results were 4 patients with uncontrolled rhinitis in the controlled asthma group and 1 patient with controlled rhinitis in the uncontrolled asthma group. There was a highly significant inverse correlation between the ACQ and RCAT 1: R=-0.64, P Conclusion. Control of asthma and control of rhinitis were highly concordant in a random population of patients with both diseases. The relatively higher number of discordant cases of uncontrolled rhinitis among controlled asthmatics reemphasizes the need to actively seek and treat nasal symptoms in asthma patients.


Abstract This article explores how the concept of minority national-cultural autonomy (NCA) has been defined and practiced in contemporary Estonia, combining data from interviews and previously unanalyzed archival sources to trace debates and policymaking processes back to 1988 and ascertain: why (and for whom) NCA was adopted; the functions ascribed to NCA institutions; and the effectiveness and legitimacy of the model in the eyes of different "noncore" ethnic communities. In so doing, the article uses NCA as a fresh lens for analyzing the more general politics of post-Soviet state and nation-building in the country, situating this case within the "Quadratic Nexus" framework. Estonia's NCA law is generally viewed as irrelevant to ongoing issues of diversity governance in the country. However, Finnish and Swedish minority autonomies have been established and, in recent years, there have been three applications to establish a Russian NCA. None have been approved, and yet some authors see them as evidence that NCA could (and should) have a role to play in bringing about a more meaningful accommodation of ethnic diversity. Having reviewed the evidence, however, the article concludes that this claim is misplaced.


With the recent development of multiprimary display devices, the three primary colors (red, green, and blue) of a conventional display need to be decomposed into control values for a multiprimary display (MPD) under the constraints of tristimulus matching. To achieve tristimulus matching between such different display systems, the MPD color signals need to be estimated based on a device-independent color space, such as CIEXYZ or CIELAB. Yet, since the focus of a MPD is to display motion picture data, the color space conversion and multiprimary control value decomposition must be simplified. Accordingly this paper presents a color signal decomposition method for a MPD using a three-dimensional look-up-table (3D LUT) in linearized LAB space. Linearized LAB space satisfies the linearity and additivity required for the color space conversion, and can easily construct a 3D LUT that considers the lightness, chroma, and hue. In addition, to reproduce moving picture data in a MPD, the proposed decomposition method uses a 3D LUT structure to reduce the hardware complexity and processing time. First, a 3D LUT that contains the gamut boundary points of the MPD is created to decompose the multiprimary control values. The chroma and multiprimary color signals for the gamut boundary are then stored in the 3D LUT along with the quantized hue and lightness values. Next, a quadrangular pyramid composed of four gamut boundary points and one lightness point on an achromatic axis is generated according to the input linearized LAB values. Consequently, MPD color signals can be obtained for the input values by interpolating between the multiprimary color signals for the gamut boundary points and the lightness point on an achromatic axis. Furthermore, additional gamut boundary points within 10° of the hue are used to interpolate the input values in regions that involve an abrupt change in the multiprimary control values to achieve a smooth change of hue. As a result, the proposed method guarantees computational efficiency and color signal continuity. Plus, less memory space is required when compared with conventional color decomposition methods.


Introduction: The past three decades have witnessed a growing rate of cesarean worldwide without causing any improvement in rates of mortality of mother and child. The majority of these deliveries have been due to non-medical reasons. Considering the optional delivery type, this research was conducted on primiparous women in Bandar Abbas based on the health belief model. Materials and methods: The present descriptive/ analytic research was conducted on 210 primiparous women visiting the healthcare centers of Bandar Abbas. Sampling was done based on randomized cluster sample selection method. The instrument was a questionnaire designed by the researcher based on the health belief model and perusal of the related literature. Data were collected by a questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS software version 16, chi-square and ANOVA tests. P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: From among the 210 participants, 73.8% of them were found to have had natural delivery, 26.2% had surgical delivery. The average age of mothers was 24.56±4.96 years (minimum 15 and maximum 43 years). Their average age of marriage was 21.23±5.16 years. No significant correlation was found between educational level, occupation, income and delivery type. A significant correlation on the other hand was observed between the constituents of health belief model and delivery types. Conclusion: It appears that enacting appropriate instructional plans by the medical staff can be effective in raising women's susceptibility and perceived severity of the consequences of cesarean. Moreover, it can help to raise women's trust in their ability for natural delivery and to cut down on unnecessary caesarians.


Electric arc furnaces draw power in pulses at approximately 5-6 Hz. This pulsing load is generally modeled as step-load-step-unload where the step is a complete load and complete unload. This step in power creates a step in the electrical torque of a generator supplying electricity to the electric arc furnace. This step in torque creates a torsional interaction that can be potentially damaging to interconnecting shafts and possibly other parts of the generator rotor train. In the worst case the generator would be completely loaded and completely unloaded during each pulse. This paper presents a description of a simple system that could be used to investigate this torsional response. PSCAD/EMTDC is used as the tool to perform this investigation. The simulation results and possible prescriptions are presented.


Space geodetic estimates of the rate of Nazca-South America convergence and Nazca-Pacific spreading averaging over several years show that present day rates are significantly slower than the 3 million year average NUVEL-1A model. The implied rates of deceleration are consistent with longer term trends extending back to at least 20 Ma, about the time of initiation of Andes growth, and may reflect consequences of ongoing subduction and construction of the Andes, e.g., increased friction and viscous drag on the subducted slab as the leading edge of South America thickens.


Mutual support is an interactional communication process. Taking an interactional approach to support requires group participants be viewed not only as targets and recipients but also as sources and providers of various types of support. An analysis was performed on the interactions of a group listserve and model of online interactional support. The aim was to explore the communication process children follow. The analysis revealed self-disclosure was used in the support group in three distinct ways. Its function for the support recipient is to initiate a transactional relationship with another member for the purpose of attracting social support through the open expression of concerns and frustrations. It is then used by the support provider to demonstrate that coping is possible for the recipient through the reciprocal self-disclosure of similar concerns and situations with which the member has successfully dealt. The third use of self-disclosure was to share reciprocal social companionship relationships.


We consider the problem of counting the population size in the population model. In this model, we are given a distributed system of n identical agents which interact in pairs with the goal to solve a common task. In each time step, the two interacting agents are selected uniformly at random. In this paper, we consider so-called uniform protocols, where the actions of two agents upon an interaction may not depend on the population size n. We present two population protocols to count the size of the population: protocol Approximate, which computes with high probability either [log n] or [log n], and protocol CountExact, which computes the exact population size in optimal O(log n) interactions, using Õ (n) states. Both protocols can also be converted to stable protocols that give a correct result with probability 1 by using an additional multiplicative factor of O(log n) states.


As a student modeling technique, knowledge tracing is widely used by various intelligent tutoring systems to infer and trace the individual's knowledge state during the learning process. In recent years, various models were proposed to get accurate and easy-to-interpret results. To make sense of the wide Knowledge tracing (KT) modeling landscape, this paper conducts a systematic review to provide a detailed and nuanced discussion of relevant KT techniques from the perspective of assumptions, data, and algorithms. The results show that most existing KT models consider only a fragment of the assumptions that relate to the knowledge components within items and student's cognitive process. Almost all types of KT models take "quize data" as input, although it is insufficient to reflect a clear picture of students' learning process. Dynamic Bayesian network, logistic regression and deep learning are the main algorithms used by various knowledge tracing models. Some open issues are identified based on the analytics of the reviewed works and discussed potential future research directions.


Purpose: To determine whether using younger donor tissue for Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) surgery influences clinical outcomes. Methods: Scroll tightness, unscrolling time, rebubble rate, and preoperative and 3- and 6-month postoperative endothelial cell density (ECD) and endothelial cell loss (ECL) were compared for 661 DMEK grafts prepared from younger (aged younger than 50 yrs, n = 81) and older donors (aged 50 yrs or older, n = 580) with Student t test, χ2 test, or Mann–Whitney U test. Results: There was no difference in overall unscrolling time (younger donors: 3.1 ± 3.1 min, older donor: 2.9 ± 2.7 min, P = 0.503). Experienced faculty surgeons, compared with fellows, had a significantly lower unscrolling times for both younger donors (2.4 ± 2.3 vs. 4.6 ± 3.9 min, P = 0.002) and older donors (2.5 ± 2.1 vs. 3.7 ± 3.3 min, P <0.001). Rebubble rates were not statistically different between younger (12.3%) and older donors (15.0%, P = 0.527). Three-month ECD was higher in grafts from younger compared with that in those from older donors (2138 ± 442 vs. 1974 ± 470 cells/mm2, P = 0.024). Six-month ECD was similar for younger (1972 ± 509 cells/mm2) and older donors (1947 ± 460 cells/mm2, P = 0.585). There was no difference in 3- or 6-month ECL comparing younger (3-mo: 24.3% ± 13.4%; 6-mo: 31.1% ± 15.2%) with older donors (3-mo: 25.9% ± 15.5%, P = 0.489; 6-mo: 27.8% ± 15.1%, P = 0.231). Conclusions: DMEK grafts prepared from younger donors exhibited similar unscrolling times, rebubble rates, and 3- and 6-month ECL compared with older donors. Experienced surgeons might begin to accept DMEK grafts from younger donors with confidence.


This article explores the possibility that an analysis of racism in the United States and sectarianism in Northern Ireland inspired by literary, psychotherapeutic, religious and philosophical conceptions of metaphor might yield new insight into the two situations by attending carefully to similarities and differences between them. Following brief summaries of the current state of racism in the U.S. and sectarianism in Northern Ireland, the article offers two perspectives from the field of psychotherapy that seem particularly germane to both situations. Then we turn to the political philosophy of Hannah Arendt for a reflection on the unpredictability and irreversibility of human action, and what can be done within the limits of those conditions. Finally, we find in contemporary broad-based community organizing in the tradition of Saul Alinsky our closing metaphor: interracial and interfaith citizens organizations as crucibles that enable citizens and people of faith to imagine a way forward in societies struggling with racist and sectarian histories.


This paper examined the moderating role of company size on the relationship between sustainability practices (social, environmental and economic) and performance of companies in the construction industry in Malaysia. A total of 247 out of 389 construction companies located in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, Malaysia responded to the questionnaires. The study found that economic and environmental practices of sustainability were positively and significantly related to company performance. However, a social practice of sustainability has no relationship with company performance. Finally, the company size was found to have no moderating effect on the relationship between all sustainability practices (social, environmental and economic) and company performance. The unexpected results of the company size may be due to the lack of understanding and unwillingness of companies in the construction industry to change and adopt sustainability practices. In addition, inadequate enforcement in respect of laws and regulations may have contributed to the lack of sustainability practices implemented in construction industry.


The focus of this paper is on how humans reproduce their knowledge and understanding, their know-what and their know-how, in forms outside of themselves through inscription. The paper develops the analysis of inscription technologies in two phases. The first involves an examination of specific technologies and their relation to the cultivation of individual and group skills as well as organizational routines. The second phase takes up the question of how the representation of knowledge influences the potentials for inscription. The essence of the argument is that new opportunities are emerging for scripting reproduction of human expression and works, with the potential for transforming the rate and direction of both variety production and selection. The 'inherent' capabilities of these new scripting techniques are profound and they may serve to produce new expressions that differ as significantly from our current literate culture as our own culture differs from the oral culture of pre-literate societies. Copyright 2003, Oxford University Press.


This paper proposes a secure data aggregation and source-channel coding algorithm, called SAC, for implementing secure data aggregation and compression along with error correction in wireless sensor networks by employing multiple-input turbo (MIT) code that we have recently introduced for source and channel coding. If there is no direct communication between two sensor nodes, SAC implements Slepian-Wolf coding principles in performing source encoding using MIT code. However, if there exists an explicit communication between two sensor nodes, the node that has more residual energy performs data aggregation and source encoding. When the bit error rate is not acceptable, MIT code is used for channel coding as well. Security is achieved by encrypting the data with shared keys. To reduce energy consumption, latency, and memory size requirements, MIT code employs partial interleavers.


Despite tremendous research efforts to identify regulatory factors that control energy metabolism, the prevalence of obesity has been continuously rising, with nearly 40% of US adults being obese. Interactions between secretory factors from adipose tissues and the nervous system innervating adipose tissues play key roles in maintaining energy metabolism and promoting survival in response to metabolic challenges. It is currently accepted that there are three types of adipose tissues, white (WAT), brown (BAT), and beige (BeAT), all of which play essential roles in maintaining energy homeostasis. WAT mainly stores energy under positive energy balance, while it releases fuels under negative energy balance. Thermogenic BAT and BeAT dissipate energy as heat under cold exposure to maintain body temperature. Adipose tissues require neural and endocrine communication with the brain. A number of WAT adipokines and BAT batokines interact with the neural circuits extending from the brain to cooperatively regulate whole-body lipid metabolism and energy homeostasis. We review neuroanatomical, histological, genetic, and pharmacological studies in neuroendocrine regulation of adipose function, including lipid storage and mobilization of WAT, non-shivering thermogenesis of BAT, and browning of BeAT. Recent whole-tissue imaging and transcriptome analysis of differential gene expression in WAT and BAT yield promising findings to better understand the interaction between secretory factors and neural circuits, which represents a novel opportunity to tackle obesity.


The adoption of electric heating and cooking has begun to reach' such large proportions that the average distribution system is unable to take care of the increased load. As the domestic power load in all probability will increase until every house is electrically equipped, this paper has endeavored to lay out a distribution sysem to take care of this class of business and to estimate the revenue to be derived from it. Units of load, consumption and revenue were taken from tests conducted in different parts of the city and applied to a definite section of the city thought to be representative, as it contained every class of house, with schools, churches, etc. In view of the results obtained, it would seem that this business would be profitable at a still lower rate, and that it would be advisable for the central station man to make provision for this increased load when rebuilding any lines in the future.


For the purpose to elucidate the formation and the mechanism of lipid peroxidation products in the serum following irradiation, rabbits were irradiated once withe 1000R over the whole body, and serum lipid proxidation products as well as proxidation products in each lipid fractions were measured as TBA level. In addition, a study was made on the correlation between the peroxidation product and the change of fatty acids, and the following results were obtained. 1) The whole lipid content of serum: The whole lipid content was found to have increased about 2.6 times that before the irradiation by 24 post-irradiation hours, and even after the lapse of 48 hours such a tendency persisted. 2) Serum whole TBA level: By 24 post-irradiation hours the whole TBA level increased markedly up to about 6.5-fold that before the irradiation. 3) Lipid content of fraction: Except for cholesterol, every lipid fractions are found to have increased after irradiation. Especially marked is the increase of triglyceride. 4) TBA level of fractionated lipid: There is seen a marked increase of cholesterol ester, which proctically occupied entire serum TBA value. Next marked was the increase of phospholipid, and quantitatively it was classified that the increases seen in triglyceride and free fatty acids are not concerned with the rise in the free fatty acid content and TBA level. 5) Serum lipid contents and TBA level infasting: By taking the level of serum lipid 24 hours after the start of fasting as one, the serum lipid levels were studied at 48 and 72 hours after the start of fasting, and it was found that both serum lipid and TBA levels rose only very slightly. 6) Changes of fatty acids: The relative ratio of palmitic acid of the whole fatty acids increased after irradiation, and the ratio of linolic acid and linolenic acid was decreased by irradiation while by 48 hours the relative ratio of linolic acid was decreased to about 1/5 that before irradiation, and the relative ratio of linolenic acid was markedly decreased to about 1/35.


In 2006, the Chief Medical Officer for England published the report Good Doctors, Safer Patients in a call for strengthened regulation of the medical profession. The changing relationship between patients and doctors in the United Kingdom arises from the interplay between societal expectation and clinical governance, personal formation and professional practice, private being and public doing. The wisdom of professional practice is in the habits of professionals, a practical wisdom that is the reflex of professional identity. Socialization into a profession is the formation of such identity through the legitimate peripheral participation of the apprentice, oriented towards the contingent granting of admission to the community of practice. The conditional nature of continued insider status, permitting members to interact with clients across the professional boundary, is essential to the contract through which the profession enjoys the privileges conferred by society. The governance of the profession is therefore also necessarily circumscribed, a political reality that is currently evidenced in the regulation of medical practice in the United Kingdom.


Driven by the increasing demand of high performance computing (HPC) systems in scientific and commercial computing on one hand and the limitation of todays processor technology (memory wall, frequency wall, power wall) on the other hand there is a growing interest in highly scalable and high-performance computer architectures based on application-optimized processors and computation technology. Examples of specialized high-performance processors are graphic processing units (GPUs) and game processors, e.g. the Cell/B.E. processor, which are capable of performing more than the specific computations for which they were designed. A big challenge especially in HPC is to integrate those specialized processors into a system architecture which is able to provide the I/O and sustained system performance in a massively parallel computation system. An example is the worldpsilas fastest supercomputer with a peak performance of 1.7 petaflops which is a hybrid design based on standard dual-core and specialized game processors which are connected by a specific I/O expansion board. Another highly innovative and scalable computer design based on game processors is the so-called ldquoQCD parallel computer based on cell technologyrdquo (QPACE) which consists of an application-optimized network chip implemented on FPGA overcoming the I/O limitations of existing network chips. This talk will provide an overview and insight into the QPACE architecture concept with focus on the application-optimized network implemented on FPGAs and will discuss scalable computer design concepts in HPC based on specialized high performance processors.


Attitude Formation and Change follows on naturally from its predecessor, Studies on the Effects of Mass Communication, the first paper published by the Television Research Committee. Appointed by the Home Secretary to initiate and co-ordinate research into the influence of television and other media on the development of the social attitudes and moral concepts of young people. The main concern dealt with in this paper is the source of attitudes; the development of attitudes; the function of attitudes and the changes of attitude. It is also a worthy survey of all similar studies on Attitude Formation and Change during the past ten to fifteen years. The working paper itself is divided into four sections dealing with the study of attitudes, the nature of attitudes, the formation of attitudes and the function of attitudes, followed by a lengthy chapter on the problem of Attitude Change, central to the work of the Television Research Committee, but also to most other areas of human relationships. It is written in an effort to facilitate the appropriate interdisciplinary approach so essential towards a full understanding of mass communication in our society. There are two necessary and helpful appendices to the working paper, one on &dquo;Moral Development&dquo; and the other by Maria Johoda on &dquo;Research Methods&dquo;. Both add to the stature of this second working paper of the Television Research Committee summarized by their Secretary, Mr. J. D. Halloran, Director, Centre for Mass Communication Research, University of Leicester. If we have had a tendency to think of the communication process as one way then this book should have caused a change of attitude, so necessary if we really


Background: The immunomodulatory receptor TIGIT (T-cell Immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domains) is a novel inhibitory immune checkpoint present on activated T cells and NK cells in multiple cancers. In preclinical models, co-inhibition of the TIGIT and PD-L1/PD-1 pathways improved anti-tumor activity compared to either agent alone. Tiragolumab (tira or MTIG7192A) is a humanized IgG1/kappa monoclonal antibody (mAb) that binds TIGIT to prevent its interaction with its ligand PVR (CD155). In this first-in-human dose-escalation study, we report the preliminary safety and anti-tumor activity of tira as a single agent and in combination with atezolizumab (atezo) in patients with advanced solid tumors. Methods: Enrolled patients, ECOG PS 0-1, had advanced tumors for whom standard therapy did not exist or was ineffective. Patients received escalating doses of tira alone IV Q3W alone (Phase Ia) or in combination with atezo 1200 mg IV Q3W (Phase Ib) to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and continued until disease progression, intolerable toxicity, or patient/investigator decision. Study objectives included evaluation of safety and tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics, and anti-tumor activity of tira alone or tira + atezo. Data cut-off date was April 2019. Results: 73 patients with multiple tumor types were treated in dose-escalation (24 in Phase Ia, 49 in Ib with tira + atezo). In Phase Ia and Phase Ib, median age was 60 and 54 years, ECOG 0 for 29% and 27% of patients, and those who received ≥ 3 prior therapies were 67% and 57%, respectively. No DLTs were observed. Across doses, treatment-related AEs occurred in 67% in Phase Ia and 59% in Phase Ib (Grade ≥ 3: 4% and 4%, respectively), and most common AEs were fatigue (38%) in Phase Ia and anemia (31%) in Phase Ib. Exposure of tira increased with increasing dose, and saturation of nonlinear PK occurred at tira doses ≥ 100 mg Q3W. Complete and sustained occupancy of peripheral TIGIT receptors was observed at tira doses ≥ 30 mg Q3W. In Phase Ia, there were no objective responses, but SD of > 4 months duration was observed (n=4). In Phase Ib, there were 3 responses, which all occurred in PD-L1 positive tumors (2 non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC]: 1 CR, 1 PR; and 1 head/neck squamous cell carcinoma: PR) with two patients not receiving prior immunotherapy (CIT-naive). Therefore, expansion cohorts were initiated in PD-L1-positive CIT-naive indications in Phase Ib. In the metastatic NSCLC expansion cohort (n=14) ORR was 50%, with 1 CR and 6 PRs; DCR was 79%, and the safety profile was similar. Conclusions: Tira monotherapy or combined with atezo was well-tolerated and had an acceptable safety profile across all dose levels. Preliminary anti-tumor activity was observed in Phase Ib with tira + atezo in CIT-naive PD-L1-positive tumors, including NSCLC, and enrollment is ongoing in these expansion cohorts. Citation Format: Johanna C. Bendell, Philippe Bedard, Yung-Jue Bang, Patricia LoRusso, Stephen Hodi, Michael Gordon, Sandra D9Angelo, Sandra D9Angelo, Jayesh Desai, Elena Garralda, Antoine Italiano, Myung-Ju Ahn, Andres Cervantes, Zev Wainberg, Emiliano Calvo, Marta Gil-Martin, Maria Martinez-Garcia, Rastilav Bahleda, Philippe Cassier, Jean-Pierre Delord, Amy Prawira, Ignacio Melero, Leisha Emens, Emanuela Romano, Karen Miller, Robert W. Hsieh, Cloris Xue, Kari Morrissey, Patrick Twomey, Kelly Gash, Namrata S. Patil, Jane Grogan, Raymond Meng, Byoung Cho, Tae Won Kim. Phase Ia/Ib dose-escalation study of the anti-TIGIT antibody tiragolumab as a single agent and in combination with atezolizumab in patients with advanced solid tumors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr CT302.


Using the conformal equivalence of translational KMS states on chiral theories with dilational KMS states obtained from restricting the vacuum state to an interval (the chiral inversion of the Unruh-effect) it was shown in a previous publications that the diverging volume (length) factor of the thermodynamic limit corresponds to the logarithmic increase in the attenuation length of the localization-caused vacuum polarization cloud near the causal boundary. This is not a coincidence but rather a structural consequence of the fact that both operator algebras are of the same unique von Neumann type which is completely different from that met in quantum mechanical algebras. Together with the technique of holographic projection this leads to the universal area proportionality. The main aim in this paper is to present a derivation which is more in the spirit of recent work on entanglement entropy in condensed matter physics, especially to that of the replica trick as used by Cardy and collaborators. The essential new ingredient is the use of the split property which already has shown its constructive power in securing the existence of models of factorizing theories.


Almost all multicore processors use a shared-memory architecture due to its simple programming model. Recently, however, the message-passing mechanism is also drawing attention due to its potentially better scalability. In this work, we demonstrate that a hybrid communication mechanism supporting both message passing and shared memory can provide both higher performance and energy efficiency. This 16-core processor has 3 key features: (1) A cluster-based hierarchical architecture supporting both shared-memory and message-passing communication. (2) A cache-free memory hierarchy with an extended register file, small private memory and moderate shared memory to avoid complex cache coherence issues and achieve high energy efficiency by keeping data accesses local. (3) A hardware-aided mailbox mechanism to accelerate the synchronization procedure between different processor nodes. With these techniques, our multicore processor can provide high performance for many applications. Chip test results show that its maximum clock frequency is 800MHz and typical power consumption is 320mW, when running basic applications with clock gating at 1.2V at room temperature.


University and college students fall within the age range of 15-24 years, the age group which is categorized as vulnerable to high rates of HIV infection and risky sexual practices. However, few studies on risky sexual behaviour have been conducted with college students in South Africa. The objectives of the study were to assess the risky sexual behaviors, HIV risk perceptions, and consistent condom use of students at Technical Vocational Education and Training colleges (TVET). A cross-sectional survey was conducted among students recruited from twelve TVET colleges using a structured self-administered questionnaire. Bivariate and multivariate analysis were computed using Stata software package version 13. Of the 3,674 students who participated in the survey, 2,947 (80.7%) reported being sexually active, and 2,408 (73.6%) had sex in the last three months. Over a third (n=1,096, 34%) reported multiple partnerships in the last 12 months, and more male students (n=699, 64%) reported multiple sexual partnerships. Over two-thirds (n=1,821, 66.6%) reported condom use during the last sexual intercourse, and only half (n=1,624, 52.7%) reported consistent condom use. A high proportion (n=2,589, 78.8%) can ask a partner to use a condom, and 1,632 (53.7%) would refuse sex without a condom. More male students 416 (52.3%) would not refuse sex when a condom is not used. Three quarters (n=2,709, 74%) had ever tested for HIV and 2,121 (65.2%) know their partner's HIV status. A high proportion (n=2,909, 83.4%) of the students perceived themselves at risk of HIV infection, and male students were less likely to report high-risk perceptions. The high occurrence of risky sexual behaviours increased the students' vulnerability to HIV infection. Intervention programs to prevent the spread of HIV in higher education institutions should take into consideration the gender differences in risky sexual behaviour observed among the students.


The application of the diphosphonate EHDP (ethane-I-hydroxy-I,I-diphosphonate) prior to the commencement of a calciphylactic experiment (SELYE) inhibits the interstitial calcification and fixation of apatite in the pancreas of female rats (dosage: 20 mgEHDP i. p. per 150 g body mass). Thus the inhibitory potency of EHDP on soft tissue calcification is confirmed. Previously, on the basis of experimental results, a therapeutic administration of this substance in the field of clinical pancreatology could not be derived because the most of human intraductal calculi is composed of calcium carbonate.


Microwave-assisted quaternization of glycine (GLY) resulted in the synthesis of an efficient catalyst, quaternized glycine (QGLY), for the solventless synthesis of cyclic carbonates from epoxides and CO2 under mild reaction conditions. Density functional theory was used to simulate the synergistic influence of the COOH group and the halide ion of QGLY in enhancing the catalytic activity.


Objective: To monitor the antimicrobial resistance and drug-resistance genes of Yersinia enterocolitis, Y. intermedia and Y. frederiksenii recovered from retailed fresh poultry of 4 provinces of China. Methods: The susceptibility of 25 isolated Yersinia spp. to 14 classes and 25 kinds of antibiotics was determined by broth microdilution method according to CLSI (Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute). The antibiotic resistance genes were predicted with antibiotic resistance genes database (ARDB) using whole genome sequences of Yersinia spp. Results: In all 22 Y. enterocolitis tested, 63.7% (14 isolates), 22.8% (5 isolates), 4.6% and 4.6% of 1 isolates exhibited the resistance to cefoxitin, ampicillin-sulbactam, nitrofurantoin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, respectively. All the 25 isolates were multi-drug resistant to more than 3 antibiotics, while 64.0% of isolates were resistant to more than 4 antibiotics. A few Y. enterocolitis isolates of this study were intermediate to ceftriaxone and ciprofloxacin. Most Yersinia spp. isolates contained antibiotic resistance genes mdtG, ksgA, bacA, blaA, rosAB and acrB, and 5 isolates recovered from fresh chicken also contained dfrA1, catB2 and ant3ia. Conclusion: The multi-drug resistant Yersinia spp. isolated from retailed fresh poultry is very serious in the 4 provinces of China, and their contained many kinds of drug-resistance genes.


The invention discloses a spherical two-degree-of-freedom parallel robot joint which mainly comprises a fixed platform, a mobile platform and four motion branch chains connecting the fixed platform and the mobile platform, wherein each motion branch chain consists of a lower connecting rod, a middle connecting rod and an upper connecting rod; the lower connecting rod is connected with the fixed platform through a rotary pair or a spherical pair; the lower and middle connecting rods are connected through a rotary pair or a spherical pair; the middle and upper connecting rods are connected through a rotary pair or a spherical pair; the upper connecting rod and the mobile platform are connected through a rotary pair or a spherical pair; the four motion branch chains are mutually connected through four coupling connecting rods and a central connecting rod; and one end of the coupling connecting rod is fixedly connected with the middle connecting rod in the motion branch chain while the other end is connected with the central connecting rod through a rotary pair. The spherical two-degree-of-freedom parallel robot joint disclosed by the invention can realize spherical two-degree-of-freedom rotation of the mobile platform relative to the fixed platform, has the advantages of small volume, high rigidity, high precision, large rotation working space and the like and can be widely applied to the fields such as robots and particularly bio-robots..


TECHNOLOGYTSUKUBA, JAPAN-- A recent meeting here highlighted advances in a technology that has the potential to one day replace the cathode ray tube (CRT) by using an electric field rather than heat to wrest electrons from an emitter material. This technology, called field emission, is now being used with more durable materials that promise slimmer, more energy-efficient, and portable displays for personal computers. Researchers are also applying field-emission technology to microscopes, image sensors, and other devices that have traditionally used electron guns, like those in CRTs, as electron sources.


5-Fluorouracil (FU) is a halogenated nucleobase analog that is widely used in chemotherapy. Here we show that 5-hydroxymethyl-2′-deoxyuridine (hmUdR) synergistically enhances the activity of FU in cell lines derived from solid tumors but not normal tissues. While the cytotoxicity of FU and hmUdR was not directly related to the amount of the modified bases incorporated into cellular DNA, incubation with this combination resulted in dramatic increase in the number of single strand breaks in replicating cancer cells, leading to NAD-depletion as consequence of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis and S phase arrest. Cell death resulting from the base/nucleoside combination did not occur by apoptosis, autophagy or necroptosis. Instead, the cells die via necrosis as a result of NAD depletion. The FU-related nucleoside analog, 5-fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine, also displayed synergy with hmUdR, whereas hmUdR could not be replaced by 5-hydroxymethyluracil. Among other 5-modified deoxyuridine analogs tested, 5-formyl-2′-deoxyuridine and, to a lesser extent, 5-hydroxy-2′-deoxyuridine, also acted synergistically with FU, whereas 5-hydroxyethyl-2′-deoxyuridine did not. Together, our results have revealed an unexpected synergistic interaction between deoxyuridine analogs and FU in a cancer cell-specific manner, and suggest that these novel base/nucleoside combinations could be developed into improved FU-based chemotherapies.


The Gossip detector, being a GridPix TPC equipped with a thin layer of gas, is a promising alternative for Si tracking detectors. In addition, GridPix would be an interesting way to read out the gaseous phase volume of bi-phase Liquid Xe cryostats of v-less double beta decay and rare event (i.e. WIMP) search experiments.


The unrestrained monitor reduces monitoring load, but the variety of physiological value is limited. We propose a new method for measuring oxygen desaturation frequency by analyzing Cheyne-Stokes-like breathing curves based on the fact that the characteristic pattern of the curve occurs at a high probability at oxygen desaturation. We confirm the effectiveness of our proposal in experiments on patients with sleep apnea and other disorders. This proposal is applicable to any sensors that monitor breathing curves and in calculating physiological values using unrestrained monitors at home and in screenings examination at hospitals having no special equipment.


The notion of Non-Locality (NL) in physics has great epistemological implications and impact on the perceptive of Reality. Numerous counter intuitive experimental results that clearly violate Bell's inequality have prompted several physicists to believe in 'mysterious' non-local correlations particularly in quantum systems of EPR type. Not commenting much on whether NL is true or not, our contention is that NL, in general, leads to the concept of holistic universe and further to a global concept of 'Consciousness-Centered-Cosmos' (CCC) as almost inevitable rational outcome. These suggestions though ostensibly unorthodox, are rather within rational and legitimate frame work of science. Our reasoning is quite distinct from the erstwhile doctrine of the role of consciousness in the measurement problem and state vector reduction although the latter may add further credence to the our contention. We address particularly the implications NL and discuss certain related aspects of new quantum world view in general. The less recognized association of the principles of uncertainty with locality, causality, the arrow of time and reality are brought out. Perhaps these underpinnings are much less appreciated than necessary.


The coupling code based on the variational method has been extended so that it can be applied to a toroidal antenna array used in fast wave current drive (FWCD) experiments. The self-consistent poloidal current profile on the current strap can be obtained with the variational method. The current straps are separated by solid septa in order to suppress the mutual coupling between adjacent antennas. The coupling properties of the loop antenna array for FWCD experiments on JFT-2M are in agreement with calculations. One problem is that the high toroidal refractive index spectrum (Nz) excited by the loop antenna array couples to a low density plasma. However, the steep electron density gradient near the plasma edge improves the coupling of the high Nz spectrum


This thesis describes the preparations, magnetic, Mossbauer, and other investigations of some new iron(II) complexes of various xanthate anions ROCS[2](Rxn), where R = cyclohexyl (Ch), 2-methylcyclohexyl(2-Me-Ch), Me or Et. All complexes were handled under nitrogen or in vacuo because they are very air-sensitive. The adducts Fe(Chxn)[2] L[2], where L = methanol, ethanol, pyridine, 3-methylpyridine, 4-methylpyridine, 3,5-lutidine, 3,5-dichloropyridine, or iso-quinoline have been found to be magnetically-normal, high-spin, distorted octahedral iron (II) complexes. The complexes Et[4]N[Fe(Chxn)[3]] and Bu[4]N[Fe(Chxn)[3]] were prepared for comparison and they also contain high-spin iron (II), but, as expected from the presence of six identical donor atoms, have smaller quadrupole splittings than the base adducts. Mossbauer spectra of the complex Fe(Chxn)[2] (3,5-lutidine)[2] prepared by one method showed four peaks indicating that two iron sites were present, but a different preparative procedure gave a product showing only two peaks. The complexes Fe(Chxn)[2] and Fe(2-Me-Chxn)[2]. H[2]O are antiferromagnetic and are believed to be S-bridged polymers. Mossbauer investigations of Fe(Chxn)[2] showed that two iron sites are present. This may be due to the simultaneous presence of five-coordinate dimers and six-coordinate polymers. The complexes Fe (Mexn)[2](py)[2] and Fe(Etxn)[2](py)[2] have been isolated as solids for the first time. Various investigations, including X-ray powder photography, have confirmed that the dithiocarbamato-complexes Fe(R[2]NCS[2])[2] fall into two classes according to the nature of the R group. When R = Et, Pr[n], or Bu[n], a dimeric five coordinate structure is suggested from the very large quadrupole splittings (4.2 mm s[-1]) obtained. When R = CH[3] or R[2] = C[4]H[8] co-ordinate structure is suggested by the smaller quadrupole splittings (~2.5 mm s[-1]). Complexes of o-aminobenzenethiol Fe(C[6]H[4]NH[2]S)[2], [2]-mercaptoethylamine Fe(NH[2]CH[2]CH[2]S)[2]. H[2]O, dicyclo-hexyldithiophosphate Fe[(C[6]H[11]O)[2]PS[2]][2], and dicyclopentyldithiophosphate Fe[(C[5]H[9]O)[2]PS[2]][2] have been obtained. The first two compounds have been shown to be antiferromagnetic, and the others were magnetically-normal. The diamagnetic nitrosyls Fe(Rxn)[2](NO)[2], in which R = ethyl, methyl and cyclohexyl, have also been isolated. Their infrared spectra suggest cis-configurations. Some Schiff's Base-iron nitrosyls of the type Fe-salen NO where salen = NN'-ethylene bis(salicylid-eneimine have been re-investigated.


Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) leads to death on average 2–4 years after the onset of symptoms. Although many people with the disease decide in favour of life-sustaining measures, some consider hastening death. The objectives of this review are to provide an insight into the following questions: (1) How do people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (PALS), their families and health care professionals (HCPs) communicate about life-sustaining and life-shortening options? (2) What are the challenges for all involved in decision making and communication about this topic? To answer these questions, we searched eight databases for publications in English and German on end-of-life issues of PALS. We included texts published between 2008 and 2018, and updated our search to May 2020. Sources were analysed in MAXQDA using deductively and inductively generated codes. After the final analysis, 123 full texts were included in this review. We identified a wide range of communicative challenges and six different and, in part, opposite communication patterns: avoiding or delaying communication on end-of-life issues, openly considering dying and actively seeking assistance, ignoring or disregarding patients' wishes, discussing and respecting the patients' wishes, engaging in advance care planning and avoiding or delaying advance care planning. The literature reveals a very heterogeneous response to end-of-life issues in ALS, despite several good-practice suggestions, examples and guidelines. We derive a strong need for harmonization and quality assurance concerning communication with PALS. Avoiding or delaying communication, decision making and planning, as well as ignoring or disregarding the patient's will by HCP can be judged as a violation of the ethical principles of autonomy and non-maleficence.


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of topic sensitivity and the research design techniques of forced answering (FA) (i.e. cannot proceed if leave an answer blank) and response options (use of "prefer not to answer" (PNA) option) on respondent motives for participating in an internet-based survey. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected in a field experiment in Hong Kong using a 2×2×2 factorial design. Variables manipulated were topic sensitivity, use of FA, and response options. The dependent variables were eight specific motives which were obtained from responses to the survey participation inventory (SPI). Findings – Topic sensitivity has a significant influence on seven of the eight motives. The use of FA does not appear to affect motives. In contrast, the use of the response option "PNA" has a significant effect on all motives except "obligation". The SPI appears to be a viable measure to the use with Hong Kong online panellists, and perhaps with other Asian and non...


In view of the intense pressures being exerted on Spanish public opinion to induce it to consent to the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia, it is necessary to defend the dignity of natural death as the end of every human life.

The life of a human being is inviolable due to its intrinsic dignity, a dignity which can not be subject to gradations since it is universal, independent of the age, health or autonomy situation of an individual; a dignity which is radically linked to the fundamental rights of all human beings.

That dignity, which is inherent to every human life, entails the right of every person to life, a right that cannot be waived. It is the inexcusable duty of the government to protect it and to take care of it, even when the person, its holder, seems not to value it.

In compliance with this duty, the most responsible governments recognize the right of every person to the most advanced health treatments. It is contradictory to accept this and to deliberately promote the ending of the life of those who may arrive at situations of weakness, dependency on others, and/or terminal disease.


The measurement of nitrogen dioxide at the parts-perbillion level is described. The experimental arrangement consists of two optical fibers placed on opposite sides of and in contact with a liquid film (14-57 μL in volume) supported on a U-shaped wire guide and two tubular conduits (one of which constitutes the means for the delivery of the liquid). Light from a green (555 nm) light-emitting diode enters the liquid film, composed of Griess-Saltzman reagent The transmitted light is measured by a referenced photodetection arrangement Sample gas flows past the droplet at a low flow rate (typically 0.10-0.25 L/min). The response is proportional to the sampling period and the analyte concentration. The limit of detection for this nonoptimized arrangement is estimated to be <10 ppb by volume for a 5 min sample. Some unusual characteristics are observed. The initial absorbance, when most of the analyte/reaction product is still near the surface, is higher than that when the content of the droplet is fully mixed. The signal depends on the sample flow rate in a nonmonotonic fashion, first increasing and then decreasing with increasing sampling rate ; the specific chemistry involved in the collection and determination of NO 2 may be responsible.


The best safety for the mother and her unborn child while driving a car is the proper use of a seat belt. Only a correctly constructed and fitted lap-shoulder safety harness should be used. The instruction to wear a seat belt and to wear it correctly should be part of the pregnancy-care-program for each physician.


We have reported a 4.6F/sup 2/ NOR cell with a gate length of 0.3 /spl mu/m. The lightly doped source (LDS) junction is adopted to extend the effective channel length. The word line and source line pitch are significantly decreased with the self-aligned contact processing and W-pad source interconnection. Moreover, the LDS NOR cell shows the improved retention capability and the reduced oxide trapping.


In past few decades, a lot of research has been done in the field of machining to improve the quality of machined surface. Out of these machining operations, drilling is widely used in the areas of marine and aerospace for assembly requirements. Titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V, owing to its vast applications, is regarded as an important material for these industries. Ti-6Al-4V is categorized as difficult to machine material. Based on above stated facts, an experimental study was conducted on the dry drilling of Ti-6Al-4V. The objective of this study was to establish the correlations between drilling parameters such as feed rate and spindle speed, and quality of machined surface which is evaluated in terms of drill hole diameter deviation, exit burr height and surface roughness.


ABSTRACT This paper attempts to open out investigations in ECEC by working beyond anthropocentric accounts of gender. Drawing upon feminist new materialist philosophies we ask whether it might be possible to reconfigure ideas about gender that recognise it as produced through everyday processes and material-affective entanglements. In order to do this, we work with Montessori materials, spaces and practices to grapple with the ways that gender is produced through human-material-semiotic encounters. By focusing on familiar Montessori objects, we follow diffractive lines of enquiry to extend investigations and generate new knowledge about gender in ECEC. This shift in focus allows other accounts about gender to find expression. We argue gender can be encountered as more than an exclusively human matter; and we go on to debate what that might potentiate (i.e. that if gender is fleeting, shifting, and produced within micro-moments there is freedom to break free from narrow framings that fix people, such as 'the Male Montessorian', in unhelpful ways). An approach that foregrounds affect and materiality makes a hopeful, generative and expansive contribution to the field. Abbreviation: ECEC, Early Childhood Education and Care


Many important aspects of the mechanism(s) abetting renal ammonia metabolism in man have remained unresolved. This review will summarize the advantages of cell culture and the stable isotope 15N techniques for the investigation of the biochemical mechanism(s) regulating renal ammoniagenesis. The application of these techniques for the study of renal ammonia metabolism has demonstrated a broad metabolic and biochemical similarity between intact kidney cells and those in culture. Renal cells in culture may provide a useful model for scrutinizing various aspects of renal ammoniagenesis.


Background Despite a risk of harm, the past 20 years have seen dramatically increased participation in snow sports such as skiing, and particularly, snowboarding. This period has also seen revolutions in piste maintenance and paradigm developments in the use of safety equipment. Consequently, the numbers and characteristics of injury may be very different from those traditionally quoted. Purpose To compare and evaluate the injury patterns among skiers and snowboarders in a North American ski resort in 1996 and 2013. Study Design Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods Questionnaire-based cross-sectional studies were carried out independently in a North American ski resort between the dates of March 6 and April 11 in both 1996 and 2013. Demographic data and information about incident circumstances were collected from injured patients who visited the local on-site clinic. Data were compared statistically to assess for significant changes in injury characteristics between the 2 time periods. Results The 1996 report consisted of 148 injured participants, and the 2013 study included 156 participants. Results from 2013 demonstrated significant increases in helmet use, the number of snowboarders injured, and shoulder injuries. Injury was also more likely in those aged 46 to 55 years, those never having had professional instruction, or those with rented equipment. Significant reductions were seen in those injured with other people close by and in the 36- to 45-year age group. Overall, the knee was the most commonly injured body part in both periods (1996: 31%, n = 38; 2013: 33%, n = 36), although upper limb injuries were predominant in snowboarders. Conclusion Snow sports injury characteristics of patients presenting to a ski resort medical clinic have changed between 1996 and 2013. These findings can be used to further inform safety recommendations and areas to target with further research.


We introduce Synthetic Environments (SEs) and Reward Networks (RNs), represented by neural networks, as proxy environment models for training Reinforcement Learning (RL) agents. We show that an agent, after being trained exclusively on the SE, is able to solve the corresponding real environment. While an SE acts as a full proxy to a real environment by learning about its state dynamics and rewards, an RN is a partial proxy that learns to augment or replace rewards. We use bi-level optimization to evolve SEs and RNs: the inner loop trains the RL agent, and the outer loop trains the parameters of the SE / RN via an evolution strategy. We evaluate our proposed new concept on a broad range of RL algorithms and classic control environments. In a one-to-one comparison, learning an SE proxy requires more interactions with the real environment than training agents only on the real environment. However, once such an SE has been learned, we do not need any interactions with the real environment to train new agents. Moreover, the learned SE proxies allow us to train agents with fewer interactions while maintaining the original task performance. Our empirical results suggest that SEs achieve this result by learning informed representations that bias the agents towards relevant states. Moreover, we find that these proxies are robust against hyperparameter variation and can also transfer to unseen agents.


Abstract Pyrochlore-type (A2B2O6O') ceramics are considered for the immobilization of highly radioactive waste. Understanding the alteration process of such potential nuclear waste form materials in aqueous media is critical for the prediction of their long-term stability in a nuclear repository. Current models on pyrochlore alteration are based on a diffusion-controlled hydration and ion exchange process. However, we present results of a hydrothermal experiment at 200 °C with a natural, polycrystalline pyrochlore and 18O-enriched aqueous solution, which are not compatible with a process based on solid-state diffusion. TOF-SIMS and confocal μ-Raman mapping of the run product revealed the occurrence of 18O-enriched alteration zones with sharp chemical gradients to relict unreacted areas when compared to the extent of the alteration zones. The data are consistent with a pseudomorphic reaction that involves the dissolution of the pyrochlore parent accompanied by the simultaneous reprecipitation of a defect pyrochlore at a moving dissolution-reprecipitation front.


The purpose of this paper is to review our experience with the treatment of nerve injuries in the upper extremity. Since 1950 We have had an opportunity to treat 325 cases of this type. Tables 1, 2, and 3 summarize the nerves which were injured and the level of the injury. In those cases in which more than one nerve was injured, as in multiple lacerations of the digits or combined median and ulnar nerve lesions in the Wrist, the injury is counted as a single case. This group of patients was treated between January, 1950, and January, 1957. The follow-up period varies from one to seven years. Age and Sex One hundred ninety-five of these patients Were men and eighty-one women. There is no difference in the results of nerve repair attributed to the patient's sex. Forty-nine of the patients were 14 years of age or younger (Table 4).


The forward puzzle is traditionally explained as the presence of a covariance-risk premium, market friction or limits to arbitrage. Recently, Liu and Sercu, working on intra-ERM rates for the DEM, presented evidence consistent with career risk considerations: portfolio managers shun assets with danger signals. In this paper, we test the external validity of this finding: we compare floating rates to band regimes, and strong base currencies to weak ones. We find that both the exchange rate regime and base currency strength influence the evidence on various theories: floating and strong intra-ERM rates weakly support market friction or limit-to-arbitrage theories, while the HKD and weak intra-ERM strongly support the career risk effect. We also decompose forward premium into a short-term filtered component and a long memory trend. The filtered component is good at recognising danger signals or 'extreme' observation effects for band regime rates and weak floaters, while the trend works best for strong floaters. Lastly, the filtered premium provides the best fit, consistent with the idea that it has a closer link to expectations than the trend component.