The recent monkeypox or mpox outbreak has been a global concern. The present study evaluated the global research outputs, research trends, and topics of published research on monkeypox using a bibliometric approach. The Scopus database was searched for terms associated with "monkeypox" or "monkey pox" up until 19 November 2022. Maps and bibliometric indicators of the retrieved documents were shown and analyzed. A total of 1,422 documents were obtained from Scopus. Other than monkeypox, the most commonly used terms included epidemic, disease outbreaks, smallpox vaccine, and orthopoxvirus. In total, 90.3% of the documents were published between 2002 and 2022. The United States, the United Kingdom, and India were the top three countries in terms of productivity. Most of the institutions were from the United States. The International Journal of Surgery, the Journal of Medical Virology, and the Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease are some of the top journals currently publishing research on monkeypox. Tecovirimat, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), homosexuality, and pandemic are emerging topics related to monkeypox.


ABSTRACT
 The current study investigated the characteristics and mechanism of the invertebrate immune priming using Galleria mellonella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae (host) and Photorhabdus luminescens TT01 (pathogen) as a model. The following parameters of the G. mellonella larvae primed by hemocoel injection of heat-killed cells of TT01 or Bacillus thuringiensis HD-1 were determined at designated times after priming and then compared and analyzed systematically: mortality of the primed larvae against TT01 infection (immune protection level), hemocyte density, phagocytosis and encapsulation abilities of hemocyte, and antibacterial activity of cell free hemolymph (major innate parameters). The results showed that 1) immune priming increased survival of the larvae against a lethal infection of TT01 and the levels and periods of protection correlated positively to the priming dose; 2) the changes on the levels of protection and the major innate parameters of the larvae primed with either TT01 or HD-1 followed a similar pattern of the convex curve, although the levels and the timing of changes differed significantly among the four innate immune parameters and between two priming bacteria; and 3) the immune protection level at a time after priming was correlated to the overall level of four innate immune parameters of the primed larvae. The current study demonstrated that the immune priming phenomenon of G. mellonella larvae has low level of specificity, and it was achieved mainly by the regulation on the quantity and activity of major innate immune parameters, such as hemocytes, antimicrobial peptides, and enzymes.


Eight Bahian patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis who had 20 or more ulcerative lesions of short duration are described. Of five identifications of isolated parasites, four were Leishmania braziliensis braziliensis and one was L. mexicana amazonensis. All but one had positive Montenegro tests initially, and all did after treatment. All had circulating anti-leishmanial antibodies and five responded well to glucantime therapy suggesting a functioning immune response. This is quite different to the anergic hansenoid leishmaniasis seen with L. mexicana amazonensis infections in Brazil. Possible reasons for the occurrence of this type of leishmaniasis are briefly discussed.


The author analyses discussion that took place between S. Frank and S. Lurje concerning "Vekhi" ("Landmarks"). In this context, the author's objective is to show the evolution of S. Frank's outlook on culture and religion, which developed in three stages: the humanistic individualism, the religious humanism, and the Christian realism.


The objective of the present study was to draw up a Spanish adaptation for university students of the School Burnout Inventory (SBI) 9-item scale. This entailed a double adaptation, on the one hand from English into Spanish and then from secondary school students to university students. The scale was applied to 578 university students (25.7% men; 74.3% women) from different regions in Spain. The findings indicate that the University students-SBI has the same structure as the original version in English for secondary school students. This was confirmed by factor analysis that pointed to the existence of three factors: Exhaustion, Cynicism and Inadequacy . Furthermore, the three subscales showed acceptable reliability (between .77 and .70) In addition to this, indications of validity were found using eighteen external correlates and seven contrast scales. Finally the SBI-U constitutes a potentially useful instrument for evaluating academic burnout in university students.


Abstract The aim of this study was to compare the training effects based on repeated sprint ability (RSA) (with one change of direction) with an intensive repeated sprint ability (IRSA) (with two changes of direction) on jump performance and aerobic fitness. Eighteen male basketball players were assigned to repeated sprint ability and intensive repeated sprint ability training groups (RSAG and IRSAG). RSA, IRSA, squat jump (SJ), countermovement jump (CMJ) and Yo-Yo intermittent recovery level 1 test were assessed before and after four training weeks. The RSA and IRSA trainings consisted of three sets of six sprints (first two weeks) and eight sprints (second two weeks) with 4-min sets recovery and 20-s of sprints recovery. Four weeks of training led to an overall improvement in most of the measures of RSA, but little evidence of any differences between the two training modes. Jump performance was enhanced: CMJ of 7.5% (P < 0.0001) and 3.1% (P = 0.016) in IRSAG and RSAG respectively. While SJ improved of 5.3% (P = 0.003) for IRSAG and 3.4% (P = 0.095) for RSAG. Conversely the Yo-Yo distance increased 21% (P = 0.301) and 34% (P = 0.017) in IRSAG and RSAG respectively. Therefore, short-term repeated sprint training with one/two changes of direction promotes improvements in both RSA and IRSA respectively but the better increase on jump performance shown a few changes on sprint and endurance performances.


The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of factors including self-reported gender, first semester GPA, college credit earned in high school, participation in study abroad, major, and use of supplemental instruction (SI) on retention and academic success of 719 undergraduate students who enrolled in engineering during the fall of 2013 at Northeastern University. Our previous research has shown that use of SI in high school resulted in higher course grades and higher GPAs through a student's fourth semester. This study was undertaken to evaluate the impact of SI and other factors on retention and academic performance over a five-year period. Data for gender, pre-matriculation college credit, cumulative GPA, major, and registration status at the end of each semester from Fall 2013 through Summer 2018 were obtained from the University for 211 female and 508 male engineering students who entered at the start of the Fall 2013 semester. Data for participation in group and one-on-one tutoring was available from attendance logs for these forms of SI offered to first-year students. This information was analyzed for the effects of gender, number of college credits earned in high school, and participation in first-year SI on retention, graduation rate, GPA, and frequency of both change-in-major and study abroad after each semester. We found that male and female students' GPAs at the end of their first semester at Northeastern University correlated positively with not only their fourth semester GPAs, but also their graduation GPAs. Females had higher five-year rates of graduation, as well as higher mean GPAs at graduation compared to males. The amount of college credit earned in high school influenced students' academic performance in college. A lack of pre-matriculation college credit had a significant negative effect on males, with males without pre-college credit having lower retention and graduation rates and lower GPAs at every time point compared to their male peers who entered with college credit. In contrast, the retention and graduation rates, as well as GPAs of females without pre-enrollment college credit did not differ significantly from their female peers with credits. Overall, females used SI at higher rates than their male counterparts. Furthermore, females entering without college credit used first-year SI at markedly higher rates than their female peers who entered with college credit and male counterparts who entered with and without college credit. In summary, these results show a link between first semester GPA and graduation rates, demonstrate that college-level coursework taken during high school is correlated to college graduation GPA for males, and suggest that SI usage during the first semester of college by females without college credit may explain why females achieve higher levels of academic success throughout their undergraduate careers.


Restoring forest landscapes is critical in the face of continued global forest loss and degradation. In this article, we explore some challenges underlying the delivery of global commitments to restore forest landscapes. We propose that three fundamental questions need to be resolved upfront for the effective implementation of Forest Landscape Restoration and related commitments: (1) What social and ecological landscape objectives are being sought through Forest Landscape Restoration? (2) How are specific areas being selected for restoration? (3) How is success measured when restoring forest landscapes? We believe that there is an urgent need to adequately answer these questions to successfully implement political commitments for large‐scale forest restoration.


Purpose To evaluate association between equivalent dose in 2 Gy (EQD2) to rectal point dose and gastrointestinal toxicity from whole pelvic radiotherapy (WPRT) and intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT) in cervical cancer patients who were evaluated by rectosigmoidoscopy in Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University. Materials and Methods Retrospective study was designed for the patients with locally advanced cervical cancer, treated by radical radiotherapy from 2004 to 2009 and were evaluated by rectosigmoidoscopy. The cumulative doses of WPRT and ICBT to the maximally rectal point were calculated to the EQD2 and evaluated the association of toxicities. Results Thirty-nine patients were evaluated for late rectal toxicity. The mean cumulative dose in term of EQD2 to rectum was 64.2 Gy. Grade 1 toxicities were the most common findings. According to endoscopic exam, the most common toxicities were congested mucosa (36 patients) and telangiectasia (32 patients). In evaluation between rectal dose in EQD2 and toxicities, no association of cumulative rectal dose to rectal toxicity, except the association of cumulative rectal dose in EQD2 >65 Gy to late effects of normal tissue (LENT-SOMA) scale ≥ grade 2 (p = 0.022; odds ratio, 5.312; 95% confidence interval, 1.269-22.244). Conclusion The cumulative rectal dose in EQD2 >65 Gy have association with ≥ grade 2 LENT-SOMA scale.


This is both an exciting and challenging time to be a child and adolescent psychiatrist. New findings are changing our knowledge of childhood psychopathology. This Special Report discusses current developments in diagnosis, treatments, and problems for children and adolescents.


This Act amends Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 199.590 to add the following language: "No person, agency, institution, or intermediary shall be a party to a contract or agreement which would compensate a woman for her artificial insemination and subsequent termination of parental rights to a child born as a result of that artificial insemination. No person, agency, institution, or intermediary shall receive compensation for the facilitation of contracts or agreements as proscribed by this subsection. Contracts or agreements entered into in violation of this subsection shall be void."


It has been suggested in an early study that sulfanes may serve as a source of sulfur contained in hydrogen sulfide sources. We have performed derivatization of sulfanes, known to be present in the "Novonukutskaya" mineral water. The presence of polysulfanes in balneotherapeutic sulfide waters was confirmed by the HPLC-UV and chromato-mass spectrometric techniques. Derivatization of inorganic polysulfides was achieved by using the reaction with methyl iodide. It was shown that polysulfanes contained in the examined samples were metastable and disintegrated into So and H2S. Almost all molecular zero-valent sulfur was present in the form of S8. The application of HPLC allowed to determine the equilibrium concentration of molecular sulfur. The presence of the above compounds in therapeutic sulfide waters raises the question of the mechanism of their curative action. The authors hypothesize that it may be related to the high therapeutic potency of the substances obtained by steam distillation from the "Novonukutskaya" mineral water.


In an ongoing longitudinal qualitative cohort study of cancer patients' needs and preferences across the cancer journey, we harvested a subset of accounts pertaining to conversations between patients and their clinicians around clinical trials. Recognising these conversations as a departure from the more routine discourses of clinical care, in that they enter into new dimensions of investment and motivation on the part of clinicians, we engaged in both secondary analysis of banked data and focussed interviewing of cancer patients to better understand how cancer patients describe communications in relation to decisions pertaining to clinical trials participation. Using constant comparative techniques informed by the interpretive description approach to applied qualitative methodology to guide a systematic analysis of this set of data, we documented patterns and themes across patient accounts. The resulting thematic depiction of clinical trials discourses from a patient perspective contrasts with assumptions apparent in the professional literature relating to the clinical advantage of trials participation, and illuminates aspects of patient-clinician interaction that are particularly amenable to disruption within this delicate and nuanced discourse. Findings from this study have implications for our understanding of the complexities of cancer communication at the delicate intersection of patient care and knowledge generation.


Background Esophagus squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a sort of cancer that occurs in the esophageal epithelial tissue. This study performed integrated bioinformatics analysis of Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) datasets GSE32424, GSE29968, and GSE130078. Collagen type XI alpha 1 (COL11A1) was identified as the hub gene in ESCC progression. The involvement of COL11A1 in ESCC development was next determined using in vitro functional tests. Methods Hub genes were identified through integrated bioinformatics analysis. The real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was implemented for detecting the expression of COL11A1 mRNA in esophageal cancer cells. KYSE-30 cells were transfected using a vector encoding COL11A1. The proliferation of cells was determined using the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. Detection of the cell migration and invasion was made through making use of the transwell test. The development of ESCC cells in vivo was evaluated in naked mice. The interplay among COL11A1 and microRNA-335-5p (miR-335-5p) was discovered using a luciferase reporter experiment. Results In vitro studies showed the upregulation of COL11A1 in ESCC cell lines obtained from ESCC patients and upregulation of COL11A1 was correlated with poor disease-free survival of ESCC patients, thereby implying an oncogenic involvement of COL11A1 in ESCC. Overexpression of COL11A1 enhanced the proliferation of ESCC cells, invasion, and migration; whereas COL11A1 knockdown impeded the proliferation of ESCC cells, invasion, and migration. Additionally, miRNA pathway analysis in combination with TargetScan's online prediction and the luciferase reporter assay suggested miR-335-5p targeting and negatively regulating the COL11A1 3' untranslated region (3'UTR) within ESCC cells. MiR-335-5p overexpression diminished the development of ESCC cells. Additionally, co-expression of COL11A1 ameliorated the repressive influence of miR-335-5p overexpression on the growth and metastasis of ESCC cells. Conclusions Using comprehensive bioinformatics analysis, the current study identified COL11A1 as an oncogene in ESCC. The mechanistic studies indicated that COL11A1 promoted ESCC cell progression and that miR-335-5p negatively regulated the expression of COL11A1 in ESCC.


6 If the banking industry had its own museum, a sort of financial Smithsonian, there would be an exhibit tucked in some corner with a placard reading, "The Age of the Core Deposit." As you entered you'd see a glass case stuffed with plush toys, some carrying names quaintly reminiscent of banks past. You'd see a Crocker Spaniel, a Hubert the Harris Lion, an old Chase Banker Bear, and all their fellows. Another case would contain china and glassware, the items that would draw in housewives week after week to add to passbook accounts. A glint of light from shiny metal would, of course, draw your attention to a special display of toasters, so ubiquitous an item in the bank marketing arsenal of yore that they inspired jokes. Only the historical-minded likely would ever visit this shrine to the age when Regulation Q still ruled. Though that era was only about 20 years ago, it seems longer gone than that. And while a few deposit premiums can still be found, customers in today's more demanding world mostly want three things: return, return, and return. A widening arsenal for a changing war Bankers are having to adapt to a new world of funding. Deposits are still essential, but banks must frequently be cagier than they once were to get them. This is an age when depositors not only shop their local banks and thrifts, but compare what banks offer to mutual funds and more. It is an age where comparative shopping around the entire nation is as close as any personal computer with a modem, on a web site operated by Bank Rate Monitor (www.bankrate.com, for the curious). Brokered deposits no longer carry the stigma they used to, though many community bankers we talked to still shy away from them. There are advances to be had, for members, from the Federal Home Loan Bank System, though some community bankers tend to regard advances as a fire extinguisher, rather than a prime source. There are cooperative efforts between cash-poor community banks and those community banks with excess cash available for loan participations. The epitaph for the traditional deposit-gathering mindset can be plainly read in statistics quoted by Mike Brosnan, acting senior deputy comptroller for capital markets. Brosnan notes that as recently as 1989, money market funds held $1 trillion in funds, while the banking system held $2.5 trillion in deposits. At the end of 1996, Brosnan notes, money market funds held $3 trillion, while bank deposits came in around the same number. "There's been a secular shift in how consumers are apportioning their money," says OCC's Brosnan. The flip side of this, according to Brosnan, is banks' lending activity. In 1985, the loan-to-deposit ratio for all banks was 77%. In 1996, he says, that ratio came in at 89%. And some banks don't even care for the traditional loan-to-deposit ratio as a representative measure of their activity any longer, reflecting the alternative funding methods some have explored. At Park National Bank, Newark, Ohio, for instance, the ratio of choice is the "loan-to-assets," according to John W. Kozak, vice-president, investments. Park National frequently uses repurchase agreements--borrowings from companies and local governments secured by items in the bank's investment portfolio--to fund its assets. While the trend has not grown to alarming proportions, indicating instability, some observers worry about the relative growth of loans versus deposits. While total loans increased by 7.1% in the third quarter of 1996 compared to the same period in 1995, according to FDIC statistics, interest-bearing deposits, which account for the majority of bank deposits, rose only 3.9%. Noninterest bearing deposits rose by 12.9% in the same period over 1995's third quarter, but these deposits account for a much smaller portion of banks' liabilities. The chart below shows a four-year trend based on all types of deposits. …


Attic spaces belong among the most popular forms of housing or working. The most common reasons why people prefer this form of living are for example the efficient utilization of the land, lower costs of utility connection, better contact with environment and that it has a very positive impact on the human well-being. Thanks to the sloped window plane the daylight distribution inside of these spaces is very specific. In addition, they are critical regarding to overheating during summer period, so it is also necessary to analyse them in terms of thermal comfort. In our case, a daylight distribution on the working plane of a simple attic office room with different roof slope was determined. The thermal comfort was analysed by means of simulation program Design Builder, where the exact virtual model of the above-mentioned room was created. The aim of this contribution is to compare the results of daylight distribution above the working plane at different roof slope and orientation and to evaluate the effect of the window plane slope on the thermal comfort inside of the room during summer period.


In this paper, we propose a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image despeckling method based on patch ordering and transform-domain filtering. Logarithmic transformation with bias correction is applied to the original SAR image to transform the multiplicative noise model into the additive model. Then, we adopt a two-stage filtering strategy. The first stage is coarse filtering which can suppress speckle effectively. In this stage, we extract the sliding patches from the logarithmic SAR image, and order them in a smooth way by a simplified patch ordering algorithm specially for SAR images. The ordered patches are filtered by learned simultaneous sparse coding (SSC), a technology recently advanced in image processing. Then, the coarse filtering result is reconstructed from the filtered patches via inverse permutation and subimage averaging. The second stage is refined filtering which can eliminate small artifacts generated by the coarse filtering. In this stage, the sliding patches are extracted from the coarse filtering result and ordered in the same way. Then, we apply 2-D wavelet hard-thresholding to the ordered patches and reconstruct the refined filtering result. The final result is obtained by taking exponential transformation to the refined filtering result. An algorithm based on the proposed strategy is presented in detail and the parameters are selected for fast and effective realization. Experimental results with both simulated images and real SAR images demonstrate that the proposed method achieves state-of-the-art despeckling performance in terms of peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR), structural similarity (SSIM) index, equivalent number of looks (ENLs), and ratio image.


In this study, we apply a recently developed local similarity method to detect long‐period long‐duration (LPLD) seismic events using 1‐month continuous waveforms recorded by a nodal array from the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) community wavefield experiment in Oklahoma. The local similarity method detects seismic events by correlating waveforms at each station with its neighboring stations. Using this method, we visually identify 21 potential tremor‐like LPLD events lasting more than 300 s during the 1‐month period. However, with beamforming analysis, we find that the source locations and waveform characteristics of these events are consistent with train‐generated seismic signals from the nearby Union Pacific railway. Additional evidence includes amplitude decay away from the railway track, and similarities in frequency–time contents with other confirmed train‐generated seismic signals. This case study highlights the need of dense‐array observations to distinguish between natural and anthropogenic LPLD seismic signals.


Proponents of the negative and restrictive language regarding homosexuality in the United Methodist Discipline have protested that the legislation is ignored or violated by many within the denomination. Such resistance has a long history. This article highlights historical examples from United Methodism and its predecessor bodies when clergy, laity, bishops, and conferences rejected, through their actions, legislation passed by the General Conference. Issues include rebaptism, women's lay rights, women's clergy rights, clergy performing marriages for divorced persons, clergy smoking, and alcohol. The point of the illustrations is not that General Conference actions are meaningless. Some violations are inconsequential and properly ignored. Other actions strike at the heart of who we are and are rightfully enforced. But the rejections here remind us that legislation must rest on a shared consensus that the rules are necessary, right, and consistent with John Wesley's passion that all come to know the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ.


Metaverse, Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), Cryptocurrencies, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Service Robots etc. are a rapidly expanding field with an ever-increasing number of terms and community-specific jargon. A new term is not always accompanied by something truly novel. In addition to verbal "pseudo-innuendos" and "crypto-slang" introduced with the intent of attracting attention quickly, there are several significant new developments. The issue with this development is that the risk of "Babylonian language confusion" is growing exponentially. Our observations indicate that this risk is particularly prevalent in the dialogue between science and practice. This book hopes to contribute to the clarification with quick access to all key terms. Obviously, many online marketplaces, platforms, encyclopedias, and glossaries already exist. However, our pre-book analysis has revealed that neither is even close to completion, sometimes with imprecise language and often with contradictory definitions and explanations. This glossary provides quick access for managers, students, and professors alike who are faced with the topics in their daily work. Students may keep track of the web 3.0's numerous terms as they study it. Instructors, teachers, and professors may use it as a guide for a consistent use of Metaverse, NFT, Cryptocurrency, and Blockchain terminology. Although, the more than 1,300 explanations of the individual terms are scientifically based, the focus is on easy understanding of the terms. The authors have made an effort to provide clear and concise definitions, an application-focused perspective, and simple language.


Targets set by the UK Office for Students require highly academically selective UK universities to enrol a greater percentage of students identified as least likely to participate in higher education. Such students are typically at a disadvantage in terms of levels of academic preparedness and economic, cultural and social capital. Drawing on eighteen interviews with first-generation students at Durham University, we identify five sites of pressure: developing a sense of belonging within the terms of an elite university culture, engagement in student social activities, financial worries, concerns about academic progress, and self-transformation. Based on these insights, we argue that support for first-generation scholars will require that universities recognise and redress elitist cultures that discourage applications from prospective first-generation scholars and prevent those who do enrol from having the best educational and all-round experience.


A vast range of archaeological studies could be construed as studies of consumption, so it is perhaps surprising that relatively few archaeologists have defined their scholarly focus as consumption. This review examines how archaeology can produce a distinctive picture of consumption that remains largely unaddressed in the rich interdisciplinary consumer scholarship. Archaeological research provides concrete evidence of everyday materiality that is not available in most documentary records or ethnographic resources, thus offering an exceptionally powerful mechanism to examine complicated consumption tactics. In a broad archaeological and anthropological context, consumption studies reflect the ways consumers negotiate, accept, and resist goods' dominant meanings within rich social, global, historical, and cultural contexts.


Increasing access to health services and the introduction of primary health care are the cornerstones of transforming healthcare initiatives in South Africa. Sustainability of healthcare provision in rural and under-resourced areas is secured by legislation of a year-long community service (CS) contract with graduating healthcare practitioners. This study explored how the first cohort of physiotherapists experienced their year-long CS and how they felt their undergraduate training prepared them for practice. A survey was conducted at the end of 2003 amongst the first cohort of CS physiotherapists who emerged from the physiotherapy programme of a South African university. All 23 of the graduates from the 2002 final year class were invited to participate in the study. A self-administered open-ended questionnaire was faxed to the participants. Twenty of the 23 questionnaires were completed and returned within a month. The questionnaires were coded and the data were analysed using content analysis methodology. The results were categorised into emerging patterns. CS physiotherapists assessed their preparation for practice largely in relation to the technical skills that were acquired through the curriculum. Community-based physiotherapy practice in under-resourced areas was under-emphasised in the curriculum in relation to practice opportunities within hospital and institution-based settings. The curriculum was found not to advance the role of physiotherapists as socially responsive agents and appeared to pay little attention to knowledge underpinning socio-cultural and inter-professional relations. Physiotherapy academic knowledge alone was inadequate to support novice physiotherapists within under-resourced communities in their multiple roles as clinician, manager of physiotherapy department, as member of a multidisciplinary team, health educator and advocate for social justice.


Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) is a process to densify, homogenize, and stabilize diverse biomass feedstocks. The water requirements of HTC need to be assessed to determine commercial feasibility. This current research work focuses on the effects on HTC of using recycled process water for multiple process cycles. Loblolly pine was treated in hot, compressed water at 200, 230, and 260°C for 5 min with a 5:1 water:biomass mass ratio. Liquid product was separated and recycled for reuse in HTC, nine cycles at 200 and 230°C and five cycles at 260°C. The solid products (biocarbon) were characterized by their mass yields, higher heating values (HHVs), and equilibrium moisture content (EMC), whereas in the liquid samples, total organic carbon (TOC) content and pH were determined. With successive recycling, biocarbon mass yield increases by 5–10% above the yield recorded for the initial cycle at each temperature investigated, whereas biocarbon HHV is essentially unchanged. The aqueous TOC is increasingly concentrated with the number of cycles and reaches an equilibrium. The EMC results suggest that the effects of recycling process water on hydrophobicity of the biocarbon are negligible. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 33: 1309–1315, 2014


Objective To generate initial data on the frequency and effect of symptomatic adverse events (AEs) associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) drug therapy from the patient perspective. Methods We conducted an exploratory online survey asking patients with RA to indicate whether they currently or had ever experienced the 80 different symptomatic AEs included in the Patient-Reported Outcomes of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (PRO-CTCAE). Results were summarized to report their frequency, and regression models were used to estimate their associations with RA medication use and overall bother. Results The 560 patients who completed the survey and reported taking ≥ 1 RA medication (disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs [DMARDs], steroids, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs [NSAIDs]), had a mean disease duration of 8 years, and were on a wide range of DMARDs. The number of symptomatic AEs experienced in the past 7 days was none (6%), 1–10 (28%), 11–20 (28%), and > 20 (38%). Overall, most participants reported that side effects bothered them somewhat (28%), quite a bit (24%), or very much (15%). In multivariable regression analyses, current prednisone and NSAID use were associated with the greatest number of current side effects (26 and 22, respectively). Many of the strongest associations between current symptomatic AEs and medication use aligned with known side effect profiles. Conclusion In this exploratory online survey, patients with RA reported frequent symptomatic AEs with their medications that are bothersome. Further work is needed to develop and validate a measure for use in patients with rheumatic disease.


Due to the environmental hazard that had been contributed from limestone mining activity to the surrounding area, waste cockle shell has been identified as a visible alternative for replacing limestone as source of calcium carbonate. Instead of escalating the potential risk of depleting of hills to excavate calcium carbonate, waste cockle shell is much more sustainable due to the annual production of the aquatic species that is recorded to be more than 40,000 metric ton per year. This study will focus on idea of conceptual production plant with a main objective to produce calcium chloride from waste cockle shell. Several designs are proposed with feasibility study conducted accordingly. To conclude, cockle shell is one of the best alternatives to limestone in producing calcium chloride. Cockle shell does not cause any environmental impact and it help to reduce solid waste produce from domestic waste, in particular cockle shell waste.


Prior knowledge of possible routes is undoubtedly an added value for autonomous navigation in irregular agricultural terrains. This information is particularly important when it involves the navigation of a monitoring robot, which necessarily carries a wide range of expensive sensors and when the vineyard presents a non-uniform configuration and extends over a very highly uneven terrain. In such case, a small navigation positional error can result in a large vertical deviation and consequently, a serious fall, which may damage or even destroy the robot. This article presents an automated way of deriving possible routes in this kind of terrain using three curve-skeleton algorithms for the 3D surfaces of the vineyard where the robot may navigate. The skeleton curves and real trajectory were represented in a graphical user OpenGL application developed for this purpose. A thinning, a geometric and a distance field algorithm were used for this study. The skeleton curves were compared with a real navigation path made by an expert when driving a tractor while spraying of the vineyard. In order to meet expert recommendations, the thinning algorithm was validated as the most suitable to achieve the aim of the study as it minimizes the quadratic average distance function applied to the skeleton points and the real trajectory. The limits of the most suitable curve-skeleton will be used as decision making points to establish navigation criteriafor next step path planning.


This study investigated the sensitivity of foreign direct investment to macroeconomic variables in Nigeria for the 1986 to 2016 period. The study adopted foreign direct investment as the dependent variable, while gross domestic product, unemployment rate, inflation, government expenditure, exchange rate, interest rate, population and openness to trade were proxies for independent variables. The Ordinary Least Square (OLS) estimates revealed that inflation rate, population and openness to trade have significant positive influence on foreign direct investment, while economic growth has a negative though significant influence on FDI. Furthermore, unemployment, exchange and interest rates exert negative and insignificant influence on FDI inflows into Nigeria all in the short run. Therefore, FDI inflow to Nigeria is sensitive to changes in economic growth, inflation, population and openness to trade, hence the sensitivity of FDI to population size is of greater magnitude. From this findings, it is recommended, among other things, that the government should tackle unemployment and corruption problems frontally, while the managers of the Nigerian economy should also focus on controlling interest rate and maintaining the stability of exchange rates in order to attract, enhance and improve FDI inflows to the country.


Vector quantization (VQ) is a efficient technique for data compression with a minimum distortion. VQ is widely used in applications as speech and image coding, speech recognition, and image retrieval. This paper presents a novel fast nearest- neighbor algorithm and shows its application to speech recognition. The proposed algorithm is based on a fast pre- selection that reduces the search to a limited number of code vectors. The presented results show that the computational cost of the VQ stage can be significantly reduced without affecting the performance of the speech recognizer.


Experiments on a recombination plasma with pulse plasma flow have been performed in the linear divertor simulator TPD-SheetIV. The pulse plasma flow was generated using a switching circuit controlled by the electric potential of the adjacent floating electrode in the plasma source. The duration of the pulse was 0.3 ms at a frequency of 50 Hz. The time dependence of the electron density ne, temperature Te, and energy distribution function fe(E) were measured using a Langmuir probe. The ionization and recombination events are analyzed using the Collisional-Radiative model, taking into account high-energy electrons.


This study describes the sexual behaviour of the adult male and female tammar wallaby from the time a female gives birth to the end of post-partum oestrus. Eleven females were continuously observed from around the time of birth until up to 3 h after the last observed mating attempt. Males began to associate with females from around the time of birth, thus females appear to be attractive to males at, but not prior to parturition. Females subsequently allowed males to mate with them from 1.3±0.8h (mean±S.D.) post-partum, although the first ejaculation was delayed until 1.8±0.8h after birth owing to intense intermale aggression directed towards any male which attempted to mate with an oestrous female. Mating chases, in which a post-partum female was pursued by several males, were observed from 1.3±0.8h post-partum. All of this mating activity usually occurred within the first 6h after birth.


The supraoptic nucleus (SON) of the hypothalamus is responsible for maintaining osmotic stability in mammals through its elaboration of the antidiuretic hormone arginine vasopressin. Upon dehydration, the SON undergoes a function-related plasticity, which includes remodeling of morphology, electrical properties, and biosynthetic activity. This process occurs alongside alterations in steady state transcript levels, which might be mediated by changes in the activity of transcription factors. In order to identify which transcription factors might be involved in changing patterns of gene expression, an Affymetrix protein-DNA array analysis was carried out. Nuclear extracts of SON from dehydrated and control male rats were analyzed for binding to the 345 consensus DNA transcription factor binding sequences of the array. Statistical analysis revealed significant changes in binding to 26 consensus elements, of which EMSA confirmed increased binding to signal transducer and activator of transcription (Stat) 1/Stat3, cellular Myelocytomatosis virus-like cellular proto-oncogene (c-Myc)-Myc-associated factor X (Max), and pre-B cell leukemia transcription factor 1 sequences after dehydration. Focusing on c-Myc and Max, we used quantitative PCR to confirm previous transcriptomic analysis that had suggested an increase in c-Myc, but not Max, mRNA levels in the SON after dehydration, and we demonstrated c-Myc- and Max-like immunoreactivities in SON arginine vasopressin-expressing cells. Finally, by comparing new data obtained from Roche-NimbleGen chromatin immunoprecipitation arrays with previously published transcriptomic data, we have identified putative c-Myc target genes whose expression changes in the SON after dehydration. These include known c-Myc targets, such as the Slc7a5 gene, which encodes the L-type amino acid transporter 1, ribosomal protein L24, histone deactylase 2, and the Rat sarcoma proto-oncogene (Ras)-related nuclear GTPase.


Very little has been written on sarcoma of the intestines and many errors have crept into its consideration. Conclusions have been drawn from its supposed analogy to carcinoma of the intestines which the facts do not warrant. Prominent among these errors are: the accepted opinions as to the most common locations of the tumor, the early involvement of neighboring organs and the liability to produce obstruction. Few of our text-books on surgery refer to the subject. The "International Text-Book of Surgery" (1900) says: "It may occur in any portion of the intestine—the cecum seems to be a favorite spot and several resections of this portion have been successfully performed for sarcoma." 1 The "American Text-book of Surgery" 2 says that as sarcoma of the intestines usually gives rise to symptoms of obstruction, and consequently comes under surgical treatment usually after extensive infiltration, it is questionable if it is prudent to


The book contains fourteen chapters. Most of the theory appertaining to servomechanisms is included in Chapters 3 and 11. Chapter 3 describes the step, ramp, and steady-state sinusoidal response of a proportional servo. with viscous friction and inertial loading. The response is illustrated for varying degrees of damping, and the relevant formulae are quoted. A discussion of stability concludes this chapter. Unfortunately a clear exposition using logarithmic gain and phase plots (which have already been introduced) is lacking. One of the consequences of this omission is that the reader is not in a position to apply any of the networks, described in Chapter 11, to stabilise a servomechanism.


Evaluating foraging behavior of bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) and filling information gaps for their habitat requirements is important for population level management in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota. Our objectives were to: (1) evaluate the overall summer foraging area post lambing use during July and August for standing herbage with the modified Robel pole (1.27 cm bands) with visual obstruction readings (VOR) related to clipped herbage at ground level; (2) calibrate the Robel pole visual obstruction (bands) with clipped vegetation; and (3) develop guidelines for monitoring the landscape of the bighorn sheep foraging areas. The study area is located in a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa ) savanna with few shrubs and dominated with native grasses. Each transect had 10 visual obstruction (bands) stations spaced 10 meters apart with 4 visual obstruction readings at each station. At 4 stations, total vegetation was clipped at ground level within a 0.25-m2  circular hoop. Clipped standing herbage ranged from 418 kg/ha to 3731 kg/ha with a mean of 1519 kg/ha. VOR measurements ranged from 0.2 cm to 14.9 cm with a 3.9 cm mean. Calibration of the modified Roble pole (visual obstruction of bands) with transect means using linear regression reliability predicted average clipped standing herbage (dry weights) within the bighorn sheep foraging area. The relationship was significant (R2  = 0.65; F1, 27  = 50.75, P  < 0.01). Cluster analysis (ISODATA) applied to the pole readings (VOR) and herbage resulted in 3 categories: short, intermediate and tall. We recommend 14 Robel pole transects (100 m in length) for VOR measurements within key foraging areas for future monitoring of herbaceous biomass for bighorn sheep. Foraging sites were in areas with little overstory tree canopy, close to rocky escape terrain, and where abundant grasses and forbs had little woody debris. The modified Robel pole provides a simple, reliable and cost effective alternative to clipping vegetation and obtaining dry weights.


Introduction: Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic cancer, whose high mortality rate is partly due to late diagnosis. Tumor-specific markers that can be detected in early stages of the disease could probably improve treatment results. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic value of serum levels of osteopontin in patients with epithelial ovarian tumors. Patients and methods: Twenty five patients with ovarian cancer and 25 patients with pelvic masses and 25 healthy women were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were taken from the patients from the first two groups before surgery and the healthy controls donated blood at the same time. Osteopontin serum level was measured by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay method using human osteopontin enzyme immunoassay kits. Finally osteopontin levels before surgery were compared between groups. Results: The mean age in patients with ovarian cancer, benign tumor and normal group were 35.1, 32.4 and 31.6 years respectively. The most prevalent clinical symptom in almost half of patients with either benign or malignant pathology was abdominal pain. The average level of CA125 and osteopontin in ovarian cancer patients was 1818.4 and 9.6, respectively. The average level of CA125 and osteopontin in epithelial ovarian tumors was significantly higher than other groups. Significant linear relationship was detected between CA125 and osteopontin. Conclusion: Our study results support the fact that commitment measurement of osteopontin and CA125due to their significant increase among the ovarian cancer patientscould be helpful in early detection of ovarian cancer.


Customized TALENs and Cas9/gRNAs have been used for targeted mutagenesis in zebrafish to induce indels into protein-coding genes. However, indels are usually not sufficient to disrupt the function of non-coding genes, gene clusters or regulatory sequences, whereas large genomic deletions or inversions are more desirable for this purpose. By injecting two pairs of TALEN mRNAs or two gRNAs together with Cas9 mRNA targeting distal DNA sites of the same chromosome, we obtained predictable genomic deletions or inversions with sizes ranging from several hundred bases to nearly 1 Mb. We have successfully achieved this type of modifications for 11 chromosomal loci by TALENs and 2 by Cas9/gRNAs with different combinations of gRNA pairs, including clusters of miRNA and protein-coding genes. Seven of eight TALEN-targeted lines transmitted the deletions and one transmitted the inversion through germ line. Our findings indicate that both TALENs and Cas9/gRNAs can be used as an efficient tool to engineer genomes to achieve large deletions or inversions, including fragments covering multiple genes and non-coding sequences. To facilitate the analyses and application of existing ZFN, TALEN and CRISPR/Cas data, we have updated our EENdb database to provide a chromosomal view of all reported engineered endonucleases targeting human and zebrafish genomes.


In this Article, we give a simple criterion for the regularity of a tri-linear mapping. We provide if f : X×Y ×Z −→W is a bounded tri-linear mapping and h : W −→ S is a bounded linear mapping, then f is regular if and only if hof is regular. We also shall give some necessary and sufficient conditions such that the fourth adjoint D of a tri-derivation D is again tri-derivation.


The effect of corticosteroid administration on the complement-independent clearance of IgG-sensitized erythrocytes was examined in guinea pigs. 51Cr-labeled guinea pig erythrocytes coated with a known amount of high-avidity IgG antibody were injected into control and cortisone-treated C4-deficient guinea pigs, and cell survival was determined. In these animals with a genetically controlled total deficiency of the fourth complement component, cell-bound antibody does not activate the biologically active complement components; clearance is therefore complement independent. At low levels of sensitization, cortisone completely inhibited the splenic sequestration of IgG coated red cells. As the amount of antibody coating the red cell was increased, higher cortisone doses were required to decrease the rate and magnitude of clearance. Eventually a level of erythrocyte sensitization was reached where cortisone did not significantly alter the clearance pattern compared to untreated controls. The cortisone effect was present by 3 days but required 5-7 days before it was maximal. No evidence was found to suggest that cortisone decreased the affinity of the antibody for the red cell membrane. Rather, the most likely explanation for these results is that cortisone affects the interaction between IgG on the erythrocyte surface and its receptor on splenic and hepatic macrophages. This experimental model of immune hemolytic anemia parallels those cases of warm-antibody-mediated disease in which complement plays no role. These findings suggest that a major clinical effect of cortisone therapy may be to decrease complement-independent erythrocyte clearance, thereby inducing a remission even in the presence of a positive antiglobulin test.


Generally, deposition mechanism of diamond particle is mainly embedding effect in the kinetic spray process. Accordingly, in spite of high cost, helium gas was employed as process gas to get high diamond fraction in the composite coating. In this study, the deposition behavior of bronze/diamond by kinetic spray process was compared using different process gas (helium and nitrogen). Bare (mean size of 5 ㎛, 20 ㎛) and nickel coated diamond (mean size of 26 ㎛) were deposited on Al 6061-T6 substrate with fixed process temperature and pressure. For comparison with experimental results, plastic deformation behavior of nickel layer was simulated by finite element analysis (using ABAQUS/Explicit 6.7-2). The size, broken ratio, and fraction of diamond in the composite coating were analyzed through scanning electron microscopy and image analysis method. The uniform distribution and deposition efficiency of diamond particles in the coating layer could be achieved by tailoring the physical properties of the feedstock.


Neuron analysis provides insights into how knowledge is structured in representations and discovers the role of neurons in the network. In addition to developing an understanding of our models, neuron analysis enables various applications such as debiasing, domain adaptation and architectural search. We present NeuroX, a comprehensive open-source toolkit to conduct neuron analysis of natural language processing models. It implements various interpretation methods under a unified API, and provides a framework for data processing and evaluation, thus making it easier for researchers and practitioners to perform neuron analysis. The Python toolkit is available at https://www.github.com/fdalvi/NeuroX.Demo Video available at: https://youtu.be/mLhs2YMx4u8


Abstract. This article presents a chip-scale package (CSP) with conformal and uniform structures for white light-emitting diodes used in lighting and backlight unit (BLU) applications. The CSP structures produce higher light extraction efficiency and lower assembly-dependent packaging compared with conventional surface-mounted devices (SMDs). Simulation results show that compared with SMDs, the luminous efficiency of CSP structures is 8.81% higher in lighting applications and 9.43% higher in BLU applications. This is likely due to light loss in the light bowl of the SMDs. Moreover, CSPs with a conformal phosphor structure exhibit low assembly dependence and redundancy, and rb-CSPs with a conformal structure are a more effective light source in both lighting and BLU applications.


In classic crime fiction the demonic is located first in the crime, which mobilizes the reparative function of narrative, and then in the criminal, whose identification ensures the security of the community. The pleasure of reading such texts is bound up with the localization and erasure of the demonic forces. However, the contemporary roman noir in France (particularly the works of Modiano and Japrisot) rewrites the elements of crime fiction, presenting texts without these triumphant conclusions — texts in which the protagonist is simultaneously victim, criminal and detective. They are, I suggest, part of an alternative tradition of the demonic in French fiction, which understands its force to be chronic rather than acute, a structural component of subjectivity. In this article I explore a psychoanalytic reading of these protagonists and of the demonic in its chronic manifestation, drawing on Žižek's reading of Lacan and placing this in contradistinction to the work of Freud. I shall also reconsider the reading experience, proposing, as an alternative to the plot-driven desire for closure, the possibility of reading for the demonic, with its concomitant desire for unpleasure and sustained radical ambiguity.


While the role of surgery in the management of refractory focal epilepsy is established, it is much less frequently used in the treatment of status epilepticus (SE). With the exception of hemispherectomy in the epilepsia partialis continua of Rasmussen's encephalitis, current literature on the subject comprises a handful of small case series and anecdotal reports of disparate surgical procedures (Table 1), almost exclusively where SE is deemed refractory (RSE). In the situation of RSE caused by radiologically and/or electrophysiologically definable focal brain pathology, the role of surgical resection would appear an intuitive and logical one, although it does not often translate into clinical practice. Given its potential as a life-saving intervention, there is requirement for a better definition and understanding of the place of surgery in the modern management of SE.


To microbiologists, the term macroecology may conjure iconic images of wildebeests grazing in African savannahs or hummingbirds pollinating flowers in a tropical rain forest. Contrary to what the name implies, macroecology is not the ecological study of macroscopic organisms. Rather, macroecology is the study of ecological relationships through patterns in abundance, distribution, and diversity. In this paper, we highlight some of the pressing questions, challenges, and opportunities for microbial macroecology.


This paper describes a real-time system for detecting people in infrared video taken by a re-locatable camera tower suitable for border monitoring. Wind effects cause the camera to sway, so typical background modeling techniques prove difficult to apply. Instead, detection is performed using a supervised classifier over a set of seven Scale Invariant Image Moments. Blobs images are generated with a simple application of thresholding and dilation, yielding a set of possible targets. For each potential target, the Scale Invariant Moments are computed and classified as "Person" or "Non-Person." We present three methods for training the classifier: Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), Quadratic Discriminant Analysis (QDA), and a two-layer Neural Network (NN). We compare the accuracy for the three methods. Results are presented for sample videos, showing acceptable accuracy while maintaining real time throughput. The key advantages of this method are real-time performance and tolerance of random ego motion.


The surface of YbBa2Cu3O7-δ single crystals was investigated using a scanning tunneling microscope at room temperature in air. Growth steps with step heights equal to the lattice parameter c as well as steps with step heights of multiples of 1.35 c were obtained. On smooth surfaces atoms arranged in a 3.8 A square lattice could be resolved. We observed a tunneling-induced etching effect leading to an etch pit on the surface. Furthermore, by applying voltage pulses with amplitude > 5.0 V and duration > 100 μs holes with diameters of ∼ 150 nm could be produced. Scanning tunneling spectroscopic measurements were performed yielding I-V and ln I-s characteristics. The extremely small effective barrier height of ϕ = 0.3 eV inferred from d ln I/ds may be caused by dirt between the surface and the tip.


A spectrophotometric method for the determination of the single components in a mixture of 6,7-dihydroxycoumarin and its methoxy derivatives is described. The method is based on the determination of 6,7-dihydroxycoumarin after complexation with molybdophosphoric acid in buffered solution and of 6-hydroxy-7-methoxy-, 7-hydroxy-6-methoxy- and 6,7-dimethoxycoumarin by treatment with sodium methylate solution followed by difference absorbance measurements. This procedure has also been applied successfully to the study of the methylation reaction of 6,7-dihydroxycoumarin.


It has been considered that urban air mobility (UAM), also known as drone-taxi or electrical vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL), will play a key role in future transportation. By putting UAM into practical future transportation, several benefits can be realized, i.e., (i) the total travel time of passengers can be reduced compared to traditional transportation and (ii) there is no environmental pollution and no special labor costs to operate the system because electric batteries will be used in UAM system. However, there are various dynamic and uncertain factors in the flight environment, i.e., passenger sudden service requests, battery discharge, and collision among UAMs. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel cooperative MADRL algorithm based on centralized training and distributed execution (CTDE) concepts for reliable and efficient passenger delivery in UAM networks. According to the performance evaluation results, we confirm that the proposed algorithm outperforms other existing algorithms in terms of the number of serviced passengers increase (30%) and the waiting time per serviced passenger decrease (26%).


The centrality of human-machine weapon systems is a key aspect of postmodern war. Since 1939 such systems have proliferated while improved interfaces have led to several types of actual cyborg soldiers. As the crisis of postmodern war deepens it is producing a series of quite different militarized bodies. Cyborgs proliferate in type so it is no surprise that we have pilot-cyborgs and teleoperators, info-cyborgs (from political operatives to clerks and including all the servants of the computers and weapons systems), and various fighting cyborg soldiers and sailors. There has also been a resurgence of a type of irregular warrior that many commentators describe as bestial. It is not a coincidence that while humanity is on the verge of producing real posthumans (quite possibly for military applications) so-called 'prehuman' types of war have broken out across the globe. War is based on bodies and its skewed logics have driven many cyborgian developments. Now, both war and our cyborg society are involved in a linked crisis fuelled by the relentless march of technoscience that has made modern war impossible and posthumans probable. The future of the human, and of a multitude of potential posthumanities, will largely be determined by how this crisis is resolved.


Background: Skull base tumors are one of the challenging lesions for every neurosurgeon because of benignity and technological advances in recent years. Review of approaches and results of our operations and complications. Materials and Method: We studied retrospectively our patient's documentations 1385-1391 in Shahriar and Alinasab hospital.Results: Fifty two cases (52) includes; 26 meningioma, 16 hypophiseal adenoma, 4 acoustic schewanoma, 2 trigeminal schewanoma, 2 epidermiod cyst, 1 fibrous dysplasia, 1 chemodetoma. Six of the 52 patients died because of (1) vascular instability two cases (meningioma, trigeminal schewanoma), (2) pneumonia 1 case (adenoma), (3) increased intracranial pressure and edema 1 case, (4) pulmonary emboli 1 case, (5) temporal edema.Conclusion: Advances in microsurgical techniques and approaches of skull base surgery have promoted the outcomes of these tumor surgeries, even in general center without advances equipment. Keywords: Skull Base Tumors; Benign; Approach; Complication


In the recent years, extensive studies have been done to design space-time codes appropriate for communications over fading channels in multiple input-multiple output (MIMO) systems. Most of these designs have been based upon the assumption that the channel fading coefficients are uncorrelated hence independent jointly Gaussian random variables. Naturally the best strategy in such situations that the elements of the channel matrix are independent is to employ diversity techniques to combat the adverse effects of these fading media and thus the most famous space-time codes, i.e., orthogonal and trellis codes have been designed with an eye to realizing the maximum attainable diversity order in a MIMO system. In this paper, we will remove this almost ever-present yet practically difficult to meet condition and shall introduce a new linear space-time block code that due to having some inherent redundancy as well as diversity is wellsuited to correlated fading channels. We will discuss the properties of the proposed code, derive its maximum likelihood (ML) decoder and provide simulation results which show its superiority to the highly used orthogonal space-time block codes in a wide range of signal to noise ratios in correlated fading channels.


A dynamic quasi-Newton method for uncalibrated, vision-guided robotic tracking control with fixed imaging is developed and demonstrated. This method does not require calibrated kinematic and camera models. Robotic control is achieved at each step through minimizing a nonlinear objective function, by taking quasi-Newton steps and estimating the composite Jacobian at each step. The Jacobian is estimated using a dynamic recursive least-squares algorithm. Experimental results demonstrate the validity of this approach.


The SERS spectrum of hydroquinone, adsorbed on nanoparticles of titanium dioxide is analyzed. It is pointed out that the enhancement is stronger for larger mean size of nanoparticles that is in an agreement with the electrostatic approximation. In addition it is found that there are the lines, which are forbidden in usual Raman spectra. Along with this there is the enhancement, caused both by the normal and tangential components of the electric field. This result is in agreement with the theory of SERS on semiconductor and dielectric substrates. Discovery of the forbidden lines indicates sufficiently large role of the strong quadrupole light-molecule interaction in such a system.


Multiple sclerosis frequently results in a wide range of symptoms which often coexist, creating a complex pattern of disability. Chief among these symptoms, both in relation to their frequency and their impact on the patient, are spasticity, ataxia and fatigue. This chapter discusses the pathological basis and current treatment of these symptoms and stresses the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to their management, producing a comprehensive care plan which incorporates these and any other coexisting problems.


Differential Evolution (DE) is quite powerful for real parameter single objective optimization. However, the ability of extending or changing search area when falling into a local optimum is still required to be developed in DE for accommodating extremely complicated fitness landscapes with a huge number of local optima. We propose a new flow of DE, termed DE with individuals redistribution, in which a process of individuals redistribution will be called when progress on fitness is low for generations. In such a process, mutation and crossover are standardized, while trial vectors are all kept in selection. Once diversity exceeds a predetermined threshold, our opposition replacement is executed, then algorithm behavior returns to original mode. In our experiments based on two benchmark test suites, we apply individuals redistribution in ten DE algorithms. Versions of the ten DE algorithms based on individuals redistribution are compared with not only original version but also version based on complete restart, where individuals redistribution and complete restart are based on the same entry criterion. Experimental results indicate that, for most of the DE algorithms, version based on individuals redistribution performs better than both original version and version based on complete restart.


Based on simple analytical equations, short circuit current density (JSC) of the organic bulk heterojunction solar cells has been calculated. It is found that the optical interference effect plays a very important role in the determination of JSC; and obvious oscillatory behaviour of JSC was observed as a function of thickness. At the same time, the influence of the carrier lifetime on JSC also cannot be neglected. When the carrier lifetime is relatively short, JSC only increases at the initial stage and then decreases rapidly with the increase of active layer thickness. However, for a relatively long carrier lifetime, the exciton dissociation probability must be considered, and JSC behaves wave-like with the increase of active layer thickness. The validity of this model is confirmed by the experimental results.


Rationale Antielastin autoimmunity has been hypothesised to drive disease progression in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The proposed mechanism is currently disputed by conflicting data. The authors aimed to explore antibody responses against elastin in a large and extensively characterised COPD population and to assess elastin-specific peripheral T-cell reactivity in a representative subgroup. Methods Antielastin antibodies were analysed with indirect ELISA on the plasma of 320 patients with COPD (Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease 1–4) and 143 smoking controls. In a second group of 40 patients with COPD and smoking controls, T-cell responses against extracellular matrix (elastin, collagen I and collagen V) were determined with enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (EliSpot) (interferon γ (IFNγ) and interleukin-2) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells and compared with the responses of 11 never-smoking controls. Results Antielastin antibody titres were not elevated in patients with COPD compared with smoking controls and even decreased significantly with increasing severity of COPD (p<0.001). Lower antielastin antibody titres were also found in a subgroup of patients with CT-proven emphysema. Elastin-specific INFγ-mediated T helper 1 responses could not be revealed in smoking subjects with and without COPD. Collagen I-mediated T-cell responses were also absent, which contrasted with a significant increased anticollagen V response in the smoking controls and patients with COPD compared with the never smokers (p=0.008). Collagen V-mediated T-cell responses could not discriminate between patients with COPD and smoking controls. Conclusion A systemic immune response against elastin could not be identified in patients with COPD. By contrast, collagen V-mediated autoimmunity was increased in the subgroup of smokers and may potentially contribute to the pathogenesis of COPD.


Image matching techniques can nowadays provide very dense point clouds and they are often considered a valid alternative to LiDAR point cloud. However, photogrammetric point clouds are often characterized by a higher level of random noise compared to LiDAR data and by the presence of large outliers. These problems constitute a limitation in the practical use of photogrammetric data for many applications but an effective way to enhance the generated point cloud has still to be found. In this paper we concentrate on the restoration of Digital Surface Models (DSM), computed from dense image matching point clouds. A photogrammetric DSM, i.e. a 2.5D representation of the surface is still one of the major products derived from point clouds. Four different algorithms devoted to DSM denoising are presented: a standard median filter approach, a bilateral filter, a variational approach (TGV: Total Generalized Variation), as well as a newly developed algorithm, which is embedded into a Markov Random Field (MRF) framework and optimized through graph-cuts. The ability of each algorithm to recover the original DSM has been quantitatively evaluated. To do that, a synthetic DSM has been generated and different typologies of noise have been added to mimic the typical errors of photogrammetric DSMs. The evaluation reveals that standard filters like median and edge preserving smoothing through a bilateral filter approach cannot sufficiently remove typical errors occurring in a photogrammetric DSM. The TGV-based approach much better removes random noise, but large areas with outliers still remain. Our own method which explicitly models the degradation properties of those DSM outperforms the others in all aspects.


Purpose: The objective of this article is to analyze the factors that influence the adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) by SMEs in Colombia. Design/methodology: To prove empirically these hypotheses, we administered a questionnaire to a sample of 474 SMEs in Colombia regarding the adoption of ICT and independent variables identified in the literature. Then, we conducted a series of multiple regression models using the data we obtained. Findings: We developed a model that identifies a positive relation between new business opportunities that ICT offer and their adoption level. Likewise, this research identified that a lack of confidence in ICT's security and privacy, a perception of ICT cost-benefit unbalance have a negative impact on the implementation of these technologies. Research limitations/implications: This study has limitations that are inherent to cross-sectional research. These restrict the possibility of conducting dynamic analysis between independent and dependent variables. Likewise, the generalization of results is circumscribed to a geographical context and the type of enterprises surveyed. Practical implications: The results of this research provide valuable contributions to decision-making by SMEs' directors and to public policies that foster the implementation of ICT in SMEs based on an analysis of benefits and barriers found in this study. Originality/value: In view of a lack of empirical work that analyzes the implementation of technology in enterprises in emerging countries, this study provides a valuable contribution to the creation of knowledge when attempting to explain the implementation of ICT using a representative sample of SMEs in Colombia identifying the quantitative form of the impact of the benefits and barriers of these technologies.


Photoplethismographic imaging (PPGi) enables the estimation of heart rate without body contact by analyzing the temporal skin color changes from video recordings. Motion artifacts and atypical facial characteristics cause poor signals and currently limit the applicability of PPGi. We have developed a novel algorithm for locating cheek and forehead region of interests (ROI) with the aim to improve PPGi during challenging situations. The proposed approach is based on the fusion of RGB and far-infrared (FIR) video streams where FIR ROI is used as fall-back when RGB alone fails. We validated and compared the algorithm against the detection based on single sources, using videos from 8 subjects with distinctively different face characteristics. The subject performed three scenarios with incremental motion artifact content (head at rest, intensive head movements, speaking). The results showed that combining the two imaging sources increased the detection rate of cheeks from 75% (RGB) to 92% (RGB+FIR) in the challenging intensive head movement scenario. This work demonstrated that FIR imaging is complementary to simple RGB imaging and when combined, adds robustness to the detection of ROI in PPGi applications.


To encourage diversity, branches may vary contracts' priorities across slots. The agents who match to branches, however, have preferences only over match partners and contractual terms. Ad hoc approaches to resolving agents' indifferences across slots in the Chicago and Boston school choice programs have introduced biases, which can be corrected with more careful market design. Slot-specific priorities can fail the substitutability condition typically crucial for outcome stability. Nevertheless, an embedding into a one-to-one agent--slot matching market shows that stable outcomes exist and can be found by a cumulative offer mechanism that is strategy-proof and respects unambiguous improvements in priority.


Resources focusing on Japanese Americans in the Sacramento Region and California, with emphasis on immigration and relocation camp experiences. Notable Archival Collections and Community Resources


The induced uniaxial anisotropy field H/sub k/ in very thin Ni/sub 79/Fe/sub 21/ films, sandwiched by seed and protective Ta layers, was investigated. Films prepared by an ultra-high vacuum sputtering process show a very sharp fiber texture of fcc- perpendicular to the film plane, even with a thin film of 3 nm. The H/sub k/ value was found to decrease as the film thickness decreased below 20 nm, even after an annealing procedure in a magnetic field. The change in the induced anisotropy energy K/sub u/ was measured as a function of the temperature while applying a dc magnetic field parallel to the hard axis of magnetization. The value of K/sub u/ of as-deposited thin films decreases significantly with increasing temperature from 50/spl deg/C to 100/spl deg/C and the K/sub u/ reduction in a film of 5 nm reaches /spl sim/40%. It is likely that this K/sub u/ reduction is mainly caused by realignment of atom pairs at film surfaces along the field direction. This is supported by the low activation energy of the K/sub u/ reduction process. It is successfully shown that the high mobility of surface atoms should disrupt the alignment of atom-pairs parallel to the field direction during the film deposition and annealing process, resulting in the formation of magnetically isotropic layers at surfaces. The thickness of this isotropic layer was estimated to be /spl sim/0.8 nm and the isotropic surface-layer is likely to reduce the H/sub k/ value of very thin films.


Origin and course of the articular branch of the axillary artery was recorded in 151 (43.9%) out of 344 axilla during the routine dissection. The branch was observed in 60.5% right side and 39.4% left side of male axilla, whereas in 55.5% right and 44.4% left side of female axilla and the difference was found significant (P < 0.001) among the gender. The orientation of the articular branch on right and left side was of similar proportion in both the sexes. The articular branch entered into the shoulder joint either upper, middle or lower part of the capsule of joint. This articular branch originated mostly from the lateral aspect of second part of the axillary artery below to the origin of the lateral thoracic artery. This is a rare observation and is of importance to clinicians dealing with the shoulder joint.


Service quality in the banking sector is an important issue in an era where financial crisis is dominating the world economy. This paper assesses customer's expectations and perceptions of service quality in the banking sector in Mauritius through the use of the Servqual questionnaire which was circulated among the customers of two major banks in Mauritius which hold more than 2/3 of the market share in the Mauritian Banking Business. The customers were assessed on the tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy via the Principal component analysis (PCA). From the analysis, it was clear that these major banks should re-design their strategies linked to staff training, employee involvement and rewarding system.


With the development of the satellite network technology, the satellite network in the future will be one heterogeneous and complex. Analyzing the inadaptability of the traditional network management technology, integrate the policy-based network management into the satellite network, realize the policy engine function by the policy engine management functional design, software selection, policy formulation and match. Thus improved the systempsilas reusability and flexibility, saved the systempsilas resources, enhance the policy match speed.


ABSTRACT OBJECTIVES: Pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by deficits in social interactions, communication impairments, and the presence of restricted interests and stereotyped behaviours. The issue of diagnostic stability, course, and prognosis of PDDs is an increasing focus of research studies. The aim of this study is to evaluate the individuals who were previously diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorders–not otherwise specified (PDD–NOS) (one of the sub-diagnoses of PDDs) under age six years with respect to their current diagnoses. METHODS: The participants were selected among the patients who were diagnosed with PDD–NOS under six years of age in our outpatient clinic. We obtained 208 patients' file records. We were able to reach 92 patients' parent by telephone and 58 parents accepted to voluntarily participate. After the excluded cases, finally 51 patients were evaluated in this cross-sectional naturalistic follow-up study. Children Autism Rating Scale (CARS) and Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS) were administered to participants; Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC) was completed by their parents. RESULTS: There were 44 (86.3%) male and 7 (13.7%) female participants in the study. The current mean age was 8.62 years (SD = 2.25). The mean age at the time of first diagnosis was 3.56 years (SD = 1.22). The mean duration of the follow-up period was 5.05 years (SD = 2.27). Forty-five (88.2%) of 51 patients remained to have one of the PDDs (23 autistic disorder, 22 PDD–NOS) according to DSM-IV-TR. Six patients (11.8%) did not meet the diagnostic criteria of any PDDs. Two of these six patients diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and one with mild-level intellectual disability. CONCLUSIONS: It was observed that 11.8% patients who diagnosed as PDD–NOS less than six years old were found to be off the PDD spectrum. PDD–NOS diagnosis stability was found 43.1% and 45.1% of the patients moved to another PDD diagnosis. These findings should be supported with further studies in Turkey, by increasing sample size, and follow-up duration for understanding the course.


to be found in Professor Picon's study. Tn Part II of the work lie deals with the respective merits of the 'principle of equal sacrilii-e ' and 1 lie ' principle of minimum sacrifice ' as the foundation of a system of taxation. Different types of taxes are then examined and tested —the income tax, death duties, taxes on property, land value, monopoly value and windfalls, and customs and excise duties. The author's exceptional powers of analysis are perhaps most evident in his treatment, in the final chapter, of the proposal for a capital levy. J. U. B.


We describe a highly improved atomic force microscope for quantitative nanomechanical measurements in liquids. The main feature of this microscope is a modified fiber interferometer mounted on a five axis inertial slider which provides a deflection sensitivity that is significantly better than conventional laser deflection based systems. The measured low noise floor of 572.0fm∕Hz provides excellent cantilever amplitude resolution. This allows us to operate the instrument far below resonance at extremely small cantilever amplitudes of less than 1 A. Thus linear measurements of nanomechanical properties of liquid systems can be performed. In particular, we present measurements of solvation forces in confined octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane and water with amplitudes smaller than the size of the respective molecules. In general, the development of the instrument is important in the context of quantitative nanomechanical measurements in liquid environments.


Cardiac transplants are performed sporadically or not at all in the majority of predominantly Muslim countries in the Middle East. We examined our experience in 76 patients who underwent heart transplantation between January 2005 and May 2010 in our center in Saudi Arabia. Excluded were 50 transplants performed between 1989 and 2004, due to incomplete data. Primary outcomes were complications, 30-day and late mortality rates, and 1-year survival. The heart transplant activity between 2005 and 2010 (15.0 per year) was 4.5-fold higher than that between 1989 and 2004 (3.3 per year). There were 61 (80%) men and 15 (20%) women, with a mean age of 35 years (range, 13–57 years). The mean waiting list time was 64 days (range, 1–262 days), and hospital stay was 30 days (range, 12–166 days). Major complications were infection (10), low-grade rejection (9), reoperation for hemorrhage (8), and sternal dehiscence (2). The 30-day mortality was 7.8% (6/76). Actuarial survival was 87.4% at 1 year and 81.5% at 3 years. A hospital in a Muslim country can increase cardiac transplant activity with excellent 30-day mortality and early survival comparable to that in worldwide counterparts.


Bacterial spot (BS), caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. Vesicatoria (Xcv), severely affects the quality and yield of pepper. Thus, breeding new pepper cultivars with enhanced resistance to BS can improve economic benefits for pepper production. Identification of BS resistance genes is an essential step to achieve this goal. However, very few BS resistance genes have been well characterized in pepper so far. In this study, we reanalyzed public multiple time points related to RNA-seq data sets from two pepper cultivars, the Xcv-susceptible cultivar ECW and the Xcv-resistant cultivar VI037601, post Xcv infection. We identified a total of 3568 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between two cultivars post Xcv infection, which were mainly involved in some biological processes, such as Gene Ontology (GO) terms related to defense response to bacterium, immune system process, and regulation of defense response, etc. Through weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we identified 15 hub (Hub) transcription factor (TF) candidates in response to Xcv infection. We further selected 20 TFs from the gene regulatory network (GRN) potentially involved in Xcv resistance response. Finally, we predicted 4 TFs, C3H (p-coumarate 3-hydroxylase), ERF (ethylene-responsive element binding factor), TALE (three-amino-acid-loop-extension), and HSF (heat shock transcription factor), as key factors responsible for BS disease resistance in pepper. In conclusion, our study provides valuable resources for dissecting the underlying molecular mechanism responsible for Xcv resistance in pepper. Additionally, it also provides valuable references for mining transcriptomic data to identify key candidates for disease resistance in horticulture crops.


OBJECTIVE
To present our experience in 58 children (37 female, 21 male) aged 4 to 18 years (mean +/- SD = 14.9 +/- 2.7) with rheumatic mitral valve disease who underwent surgical reconstruction.

METHODS
They were divided in four groups according to the abnormalities of the mitral apparatus: Group I had mitral regurgitation due to lesions located in the valvar structures with normal valvar movement (n = 1, 2%), group II mitral regurgitation with lesions located mainly in subvalvular structures with valve prolapse (n = 11, 19%), group III with mitral regurgitation due to lesion located both in valvular and subvalvular structures and restricted valvar motion (n = 38, 65%), and group IV included patients with stenosis (n = 8, 14%).

RESULTS
Surgical mortality was 5% (3/58) and three patients (5%) were reoperated immediately. The 52 remaining patients were followed from 6 to 108 months (mean 45.8 +/- 30.1 months, 199 patient-years). Six cases were reoperated in the follow-up (3.0% per patient-year). The functional class using the criteria of the New York Heart Association was evaluated before and after the procedure: class I raised from two to 42 patients whereas it decreased in the others (class II from 13 to 7, class III from 38 to 3, class IV from 5 to none; p < 0.001). The cardiothoracic index decreased from 0.61 +/- 0.064 before surgery to 0.55 +/- 0.069 after surgery (p < 0.001). Thirty patients (57%) were evaluated with echo-Doppler in the follow-up period. There were no deaths in the follow-up period.

CONCLUSIONS
Our data shows that reconstructive surgery of the mitral valve with rheumatic involvement offers good immediate and late results, with a low reoperation rate, avoiding the use of prosthetic valves as a first option.


This paper studies two optimal sliding mode control laws using integral sliding mode control (ISM) for some spacecraft attitude tracking problems. Integral sliding mode control combining the first order sliding mode and optimal control is applied to quaternion-based spacecraft attitude tracking manoeuvres with external disturbances and an uncertainty inertia matrix. For the optimal control part the state dependent Riccati equation (SDRE) and Control Lyapunov function (CLF) approaches are used to solve the infinite-time nonlinear optimal problem. The second method of Lyapunov is used to show that tracking is achieved globally. An example of multiaxial attitude tracking manoeuvres is presented and simulation results are included to verify the usefulness of these controllers.


Rubella virus (RUBV) contains a plus-strand RNA genome with two ORFs, one encoding the non-structural replicase proteins (NS-ORF) and the second encoding the virion structural proteins (SP-ORF). This study describes development and use of a trans-encapsidation system for the assembly of infectious RUBV-like replicon particles (VRPs) containing RUBV replicons (self replicating genomes with the SP-ORF replaced with a reporter gene). First, this system was used to map signals within the RUBV genome that mediate packaging of viral RNA. Mutations within a proposed packaging signal did not significantly affect relative packaging efficiency. The insertion of various fragments derived from the RUBV genome into Sindbis virus replicons revealed that there are several regions within the RUBV genome capable of enhancing encapsidation of heterologous replicon RNAs. Secondly, the trans-encapsidation system was used to analyse the effect of alterations within the capsid protein (CP) on release of VRPs and subsequent initiation of replication in newly infected cells. Deletion of the N-terminal eight amino acids of the CP reduced VRP titre significantly, which could be partially complemented by native CP provided in trans, indicating that this mutation affected an entry or post-entry event in the replication cycle. To test this hypothesis, the trans-encapsidation system was used to demonstrate the rescue of a lethal deletion within P150, one of the virus replicase proteins, by CP contained within the virus particle. This novel finding substantiated the functional role of CP in early post-entry replication.


This paper attempts to analyses the Vijayanagar architecture in Vellore especially the Jalkanteswarar (Jwarakanteswara) temple. The paper analyses the patronage it received from rulers and the artisans in preserving the art and architecture. The first section contexualizes the historical background of the temple and events of the period. second section analyses the art and architecture of the temple and its significance and the conclusion at the end of the same section.


Transgender and intersex athlete inclusion and exclusion from single-sex sports is an area of ongoing conversation and change. This article discusses the separation of male and female athletes, looking at the scientific reasoning, the Australian legislation, Australian case law and sport-specific policies. The role of sports' policies and case examples for transgender and intersex athletes are investigated along with the concepts of discrimination and legality. The article concludes that policies and regulations can be discriminatory while still being lawful if they meet relevant exceptions - as outlined by legislation and set out by courts. More research is required in the area of the potential advantage that transgender and intersex athletes may have in both individual and team single-sex sports before definitive statements regarding inclusion or exclusion can be made.


Industrial research, including pharmaceutical research, is increasingly using liquid chromatography techniques. This involves the production of large quantities of hazardous and toxic organic waste. Therefore, it is essential at this point to focus interest on solutions proposed by so-called "green chemistry". One such solution is the search for new methods or the use of new materials that will reduce waste. One of the most promising ideas is to perform chromatographic separation using pure water, without organic solvents, as a mobile phase. Such an approach requires novel stationary phases or specific chromatographic conditions, such as an elevated separation temperature. The following review paper aims to gather information on stationary phases used for separation under purely aqueous conditions at various temperatures.


We retrospectively reviewed 60 fractures of the tibial plafond treated by either an ankle-sparing diaphyseal-epiphyseal technique using the Ilizarov ring fixator or by an ankle-spanning technique using a monolateral articulated external fixator. The Ilizarov ring fixator was applied in 24 fractures and the monolateral articulated transarticular external fixator in 20. Both techniques were combined with limited open reduction and internal fixation of the articular surface if necessary. Between three and nine years after the injury, all patients returned for clinical and radiological assessment and evaluation of ankle function using the modified Mazur score. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of age, gender, mechanism of injury, type of fracture or length of follow-up. The mean functional ankle score was 86 points for the Ilizarov group and 82 points for the articulated fixator group. The difference was not significant (p = 0.07). There were no significant differences between the groups with regard to the radiographic score and late complications. Patients treated with the Ilizarov ring fixator had significantly better ankle and subtalar movement. We conclude that both techniques of external fixation are satisfactory methods of treatment for fractures of the tibial plafond, but that the total arc of movement of the joint is preserved better without bridging the ankle.


We report the impact of tunnel oxide nitridation (TON) on the evolution of random telegraph signal (RTS) and quick electron detrapping (QED) and investigate their microscopic origin. Applying nitridation at the SiO2/Si interface increases both Fermi level (RTS) and general midgap (QED) defects in fresh devices. However, it slows down additional defect generation and demonstrates improvement after severe program/erase cycling. Results from low-frequency 1/f noise indicate that TON aggravates RTS for high energy defects but hardens low energy defects, resulting in improved postcycled RTS. The suggestive defect chemistry is that strong Si-N bonding replaces relatively stable (but distorted) Si-O bonding, rather than passivating high energy dangling bonds. The Si-N bonding also causes more interface bonds to break, reducing strain and improving immunity against Fowler-Nordheim stress.


Detecting traversable road areas ahead a moving vehicle is a key process for modern autonomous driving systems. A common approach to road detection consists of exploiting color features to classify pixels as road or background. These algorithms reduce the effect of lighting variations and weather conditions by exploiting the discriminant/invariant properties of different color representations. Furthermore, the lack of labeled datasets has motivated the development of algorithms performing on single images based on the assumption that the bottom part of the image belongs to the road surface.
In this paper, we first introduce a dataset of road images taken at different times and in different scenarios using an onboard camera. Then, we devise a simple online algorithm and conduct an exhaustive evaluation of different classifiers and the effect of using different color representation to characterize pixels.


As has become tradition, executive directors of United States' presidential bioethics committees offer reflections about their experience shortly after the orderly shutdown of the commission staff. After the records are filed according to government records regulations; after all the staff members, who are hired into temporary positions that must be renewed every two years, have secured permanent employment; after preparations are made to ensure that the next commission staff (should there be one) has a budget and standard operating procedures in order to begin its work in a timely manner; after the lights are turned out for the last time, the executive director makes the final climb up the stairs into the sunlight and reflects on the whirlwind. There is much about my work with the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues that deserves comment, but one aspect of the commission that has been especially valuable to me is its work to educate the nation on bioethical issues. This is, moreover, a contribution in which the commission staff was central, and it is one that, as an ethics educator myself, I will cherish deeply.


Very low birth weight infants often have multiple predisposing conditions for the development of invasive candidiasis. In patients with systemic candidiasis, the kidney is vulnerable to the formation of cortical abscesses or obstructive intrarenal masses ("fungus balls"), usually at the ureteropelvic junction. Ureteropelvic junction obstructive fungal uropathy necessitates invasive debridement to restore renal function. A very low birth weight infant, infected with Candida, was first seen with hypertension, renal insufficiency, and urine cultues positive for fungus; obstructive bladder fungus ball was diagnosed by ultrasography. Mechanical disruption with amphotericin B bladder irrigation was accomplished via ultrasographic guidance, relieving renal obstruction and insufficiency. Systemic antifungal therapy was completed with amphotericin B and flucytosine. The first reported case of bladder obstructive fungal uropathy in a neonate is added to a review of 16 cases of neonatal renal obstructive uropathy.


In this paper, we propose wrapped boosting that is extension of boosting algorithm for robust online action recognition. Boosting algorithm is one of ensemble learning algorithm and is also known as a feature selector. In our previous work utilizing boosting, we achieved automatic feature selection and robust model-based action classifiers which had very small calculation cost based on posture information of human body joints. However, which joints we should allocate posture sensors to must be given by humans in advance. Our new learning framework of wrapped boosting provides not only automatic feature selection but also automatic sensor allocation to proper joints of humans for target actions. We evaluated our algorithm targeting gait motion based on motion data fetched by motion capturing system. In consequence, wrapped boosting was able to select proper joints to which limited sensors should be attached, and to construct more robust classifiers compared to constructing classifiers with all joints available. Classifiers constructed only with existing boosting algorithm were subject to over-fitting to training data.


Quantum mechanical calculations for material modeling using Kohn-Sham density functional theory (DFT) involve the solution of a nonlinear eigenvalue problem for N smallest eigenvector-eigenvalue pairs, with N proportional to the number of electrons in the material system. These calculations are computationally demanding and have asymptotic cubic scaling complexity with the number of electrons. Large-scale matrix eigenvalue problems arising from the discretization of the Kohn-Sham DFT equations employing a systematically convergent basis traditionally rely on iterative orthogonal projection methods, which are shown to be computationally efficient and scalable on massively parallel computing architectures. However, as the size of the material system increases, these methods are known to incur dominant computational costs through the Rayleigh-Ritz projection step of the discretized Kohn-Sham Hamiltonian matrix and the subsequent subspace diagonalization of the projected matrix. This work explores the potential of polynomial expansion approaches based on recursive Fermi-operator expansion as an alternative to the subspace diagonalization of the projected Hamiltonian matrix to reduce the computational cost. Subsequently, we perform a detailed comparison of various recursive polynomial expansion approaches to the traditional approach of explicit diagonalization on both multi-node central processing unit and graphics processing unit architectures and assess their relative performance in terms of accuracy, computational efficiency, scaling behavior, and energy efficiency.