The incidence of skin cancers, both nonmelanoma and melanoma, is increasing in the United States. The ultraviolet radiation, mainly from sun, is considered the major cause for these neoplasms. While nonmelanoma skin cancers are far more numerous, melanoma remains the most challenging. This is because melanoma can become extremely aggressive and its incidence is increasing worldwide due to lack of effective early detection, as well as disease recurrence, following both surgery and chemotherapy. Therefore, in addition to better treatment options, newer means are required to prevent melanomas from developing. Chemoprevention is a reasonable cost‐effective approach to prevent carcinogenesis by inhibiting the processes of tumor initiation, promotion and progression. Melanoma is a progressive disease, which makes it very suitable for chemopreventive interventions, by targeting the processes and molecular pathways involved in the progression of melanoma. This review discusses the roles of various chemopreventive agents such as NSAIDs, statins, vitamins and dietary agents in melanoma and highlights current advancements and our perspective on future of melanoma chemoprevention. Although considerable preclinical data suggest that melanoma may be prevented or delayed by a numerous chemopreventive agents, we realize there are insufficient clinical studies evaluating their efficacy and long‐term safety for human use.


The paper proposes to use the aviation gravimetric system, the sensing element of which is gravimeter, to measure gravity acceleration anomalies. The motion equation of the aviation gravimetric system, which includes the presence of additional amendments, neglect of which leads to significant measurement errors of gravity acceleration anomalies, was determined. The analysis of the motion equation of the aviation gravimetric system was conducted, and its functional diagram was determined. The analysis of methodological errors in the aviation gravimetric system, in case of random motion of the base, was carried out. The sensitivity changes of the output signal of the aviation gravimetric system to measurement errors of the aircraft motion parameters: velocity and vertical acceleration of the aircraft, latitude, altitude, were studied. The requirements for the measurement accuracy of the aircraft basic motion parameters were defined.


Abstract The genus Lepidocephalichthys is revised and diagnosed as having the seventh and eighth pectoral rays modified in the mature male. Other cobitids have different pectoral rays modified (second ray in Cobitis). The 17 valid species of Lepidocephalichthys are discussed and compared. Fifteen species are redescribed: L. annandalei, L. arunachalensis, L. berdmorei, L. coromandelensis, L. furcatus, L. goalparensis, L. guntea, L. hasselti, L. irrorata, L. jonklaasi, L. lorentzi, L. manipurensis, L. micropogon, L. thermalis, and L. tomaculum; and two new species are described from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar. Lepidocephalichthys kranos, new species, is distinguished from all other Lepidocephalichthys except L. irrorata by having conspicuous scales on top of the head and from L. irrorata by its more anterior dorsal fin placement and larger size. Lepidocephalichthys alkaia, new species, is distinguished from all other Lepidocephalichthys by a dark stripe extending from the snout, through the orbit, and continuing to the terminus of the caudal fin. Acanthophthalmus sandakanensis is reassigned from Lepidocephalichthys to Pangio based on its modified first and second pectoral rays. Sexual dimorphism in Lepidocephalichthys is discussed, as are the validity and taxonomic history of forked-tailed species. Species are illustrated, and a taxonomic key to species is provided.


The Multi-Scale Thermo-Hydrologic (MSTH) process model is a modeling abstraction of them1 hydrology (TH) of the potential Yucca Mountain repository at multiple spatial scales. The MSTH model as described herein was used for the Supplemental Science and Performance Analyses (BSC, 2001) and is documented in detail in CRWMS M&O (2000) and Glascoe et al. (2002). The model has been validated to a nested grid model in Buscheck et al. (In Review). The MSTH approach is necessary for modeling thermal hydrology at Yucca Mountain for two reasons: (1) varying levels of detail are necessary at different spatial scales to capture important TH processes and (2) a fully-coupled TH model of the repository which includes the necessary spatial detail is computationally prohibitive. The MSTH model consists of six ''submodels'' which are combined in a manner to reduce the complexity of modeling where appropriate. The coupling of these models allows for appropriate consideration of mountain-scale thermal hydrology along with the thermal hydrology of drift-scale discrete waste packages of varying heat load. Two stages are involved in the MSTH approach, first, the execution of submodels, and second, the assembly of submodels using the Multi-scale Thermohydrology Abstraction Code (MSTHAC). MSTHAC assembles the submodels in amore » five-step process culminating in the TH model output of discrete waste packages including a mountain-scale influence.« less


In this paper, a calculation formula on spherical pattern of tide-isostasy model is established. The calculation indicated that for the oceanic crust plate which central angle is over 90°, a huge value (its equivalence is 108 N) of accumulative force moment in the crustal isostatic movement caused by tide can trigger off relative motion of plate,resulting in earthquake and volcanic eruption. The seismic wave features during the year 2001-2004 is an obvious example. The paracycles, i.e. 4, 12, 60, 36, 243, 372 and 396 years of tidal fluctuation can provide an explanation for some respective natural disasters. For example, La Madre paracycle about 60 years corresponds to the global disasters,earthquake and typhoon disasters.


The problems presented in 53 families by the presence of handicapped children arising from cerebral palsy, poliomyelitis, Erb's palsy, talipes, arthrogryposis multiplex congenita and trauma, were studied in Benin City, Nigeria. Among other things, most fathers were found to be indifferent to their handicapped children and there was a highly significant difference in attitude between educated and enlightened fathers of handicapped children, and their barely educated counterparts. A statistically significant proportion of handicapped children were prevented from going to school because of their disabilities and in half of the families studied, occasional squabbles arose because of the presence of a handicapped child. It is suggested that Nigeria and similar developing countries should lay emphasis on health education in their on-going primary health care schemes.


Our work tries to demonstrate how neuroscience is gaining increasing spaces in pedagogy as biology of human mental processes; at the same time pedagogy can help neuroscience to define and clarify the processes that need to be studied to arrive at a deep understanding of biology of the human mind in educational processes. The attempt to achieve common epistemological basis in order to study and refine educational practices, urged by the availability of many neuroscientists to take charge organic layers of complex social behaviors, allows to predict the implications of this combination applied to educational processes, converging pedagogical, psychological, biological studies and correlating their scientific languages from theoretical to applied research. Our work is aimed at creating a new way of thinking in pedagogical sciences, without distinctions between mind and brain, biology and experience, nature and culture: it is is based on the idea that, despite the genetical and constitutional factors play an important role in the development of the human mind, human relations and cultural and social factors implicated in education, through neuroplasticity, can shape the development of the brain and mind and promote a good quality of cognitive, social, emotional functioning. We base our reflections on personalistic anthropology, which connects causality, physiology and phenomenology considering the brain not as a mechanism but as organism with its own teleology, in mutual relationship with the environment, where the human being is a symphony of physical, psychological, social self.


This study is devoted to the search for new scientific and technical solutions in the field of renewable energy sources, in particular biofuels. Biomass is the main fuel for green energy, accounting for two thirds of the energy produced from renewable sources. The further development of the industry depends on the improvement of the equipment and technologies used in it. On the example of a cleaning apparatus, a new technology for prototyping its parts using a robotic module is shown and tested. The use of plastics as parts of technological equipment is a modern trend and may be due to the low adhesion strength of various substances to the surface of these parts due to poor wettability and low values of the surface energy of these materials compared to metals.


Dongli Gugakdang located in Gochang, which is the holy ground for pansori, is a theater constructed to succeed to the cultural works by Shin Jae-hyo for descendents. Dongli Gugakdang was a special theater for performances and transfer of pansori and was remodeled from March 2013 through April 2014 due to its aged facilities. Therefore, accurate data are needed to see if remodeled Dongli Gugakdang has secured sufficient acoustic performance as a special theater for pansori. From this perspective, this study aimed to measure and evaluate architectural acoustic performance in remodeled Dongli Gugakdang. The data from this s tudy are expected to be useful in securing proper acoustic performance to design and remodel a similar theater for Korean traditional classical music and a special theater for pansori.


This study was conducted with aim of investigation of malaria vector hematophagic tendencies base on seasonal activities as well as geographical region in a malaria endemic area, Kahnouj, south of Iran. It was conducted for 14 months from Apr. 2002 up to the end of May 2003. It was based on collection of female anopheline from different shelters and exam their blood meal via ELISA test methods. Five vectors active in the study area were: Anopheles fluviatilis, An. stephensi, An. dthali, An. culicifacies, and An. superpictos. The dominant anopheline in hilly area was An. fluviatilis sibling species T. This species was active during whole year and reached to a peak in December. In contrast, the dominant species spread in flat region was An. stephensi, which shows strongly endophilic behavior with two seasonal activity peaks. Anthropophilic index for An. fluviatilis and An. stephensi was estimated 2.68% and 0.5%, respectively. Population of other species was too low and did not show propensity for human blood. The most malaria cases occurred in the hilly area whereas An. fluviatilis is an actively dominant species. It seems that An. fluviatilis is responsible for transmission of malaria in hilly districts of Kahnouj. Malaria transmission in the study area is much influenced by residents rest habits while a wild vector, An. fluviatilis shows exophilic behavior and uses microclimate shelters to obtain human blood. Use of personal protection such as bed nets instead of residual spraying may be considered as an effective measure in malaria control in hilly regions.


Zygomatic fractures are among the most common fractures to the facial skeleton. However, because no standard and reliable method of evaluation is available to assess postoperative patients, we often rely on photographs and subjective assessments. A portable mirror stand device (MiRS), which is a new method for the standardization of photography, was developed in our institution. Used with image analysis software, this device provides a new method for evaluating outcomes after the open reduction and internal fixation of zygomatic fractures. The portable mirror stand device was set up in our outpatient clinic at the Cleft Craniofacial Center at Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital. Photographs of 11 postoperative patients were taken using the device, and they were analyzed both manually and using image analysis software (ImageJ 1.46) for symmetry. The two methods were then compared to assess the correlation and agreement of the results. The measurements taken using the manual method and the software-assisted method did not differ significantly, which indicated the good agreement between the two methods. The results of the symmetry achieved atour center were similar to other centers in the Asian region (ΔZy = 3.4±1.5 mm, ΔBc = 2.6±1.6 mm, ΔCh = 2.3±2.4 mm) compared with (ΔZy = 3.2±1.7 mm, ΔBc = 2.6±1.6 mm, ΔCh = 2.3±2.5 mm). The treatment of zygomatic fracture a tour center achieved good results. The portable mirror stand device assisted the image analysis software (ImageJ 1.46), which could be beneficial in assessing symmetry in postoperative zygomatic fracture patients.


Abstract The use of crosslinked polystyrene anion-exchange resin as a support for borohydride ions made it possible to reduce conjugated olefinic bonds selectively under very mild conditions. The isolation of the reduced products by a simple filtration and evaporation process is another interesting feature of this reaction.


C3H/He and B6C3F1 show much higher liver cancer susceptibility than C57BL/6J mice. We studied the hypothesis that this difference might result from failure of apoptosis. Hepatocarcinogenesis was induced by a single dose of N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), followed by phenobarbital (PB) for up to 90 weeks. We observed (1) earlier appearance of putative preneoplastic foci (PPF), hepatocellular adenoma (HCA), and carcinoma (HCC) in C3H/He than in C57Bl/6J mice and (2) an increase of hepatocellular DNA synthesis in C3H/He and C57Bl/6J mice, compared to normal liver, via PPF and HCA to HCC. PB enhanced DNA synthesis and growth of PPF, in the C3H/He strain only, and of HCA and HCC of both strains. Apoptoses were rare in unaltered livers as well as in preneoplastic lesions, but tended to increase in HCA and HCC of both strains. PB lowered apoptotic activity in PPF of C3H/He mice, but enhanced it in HCA and HCC of C57Bl/6J mice at late stages. In conclusion, the strain difference in growth rates of PPF and tumors is largely determined by higher rates of cell proliferation in C3H/He mice, with and without promotion by PB. Moreover, in C57Bl/6J mice the promoting effect of PB was restricted to HCA and HCC and was not seen in PPF. Apoptosis was generally low and was not a major cause of the strain difference in tumor susceptibility. In contrast with rat liver, inhibition of apoptosis appears to be a minor determinant of tumor promotion in mice.


PURPOSE
Patients with metastatic breast cancer who are pretreated with anthracyclines frequently receive taxane-based combinations. This phase III study compared the efficacy and safety of gemcitabine-docetaxel (GD) with capecitabine-docetaxel (CD) in advanced breast cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Patients were randomly assigned to GD (G 1,000 mg/m(2) days 1 and 8; D 75 mg/m(2) day 1) or CD (C 1,250 mg/m(2) twice daily days 1 through 14; D 75 mg/m(2) day 1) every 21 days. Comparison of progression-free survival (PFS) was the primary objective.

RESULTS
Patient characteristics were balanced between arms (N = 305). Median PFS was 8.05 months (95% CI, 6.60 to 8.71) for GD and 7.98 (95% CI, 6.93 to 8.77) for CD (log-rank P = .121). Overall response rate (ORR) was 32% in both arms, and overall survival (OS) was not different between arms (P = .983). Time to treatment failure (TTF; defined as discontinuation, progressive disease, death as a result of any cause, or the start of a new anticancer therapy) was superior in the GD arm (P = .059). Hematologic toxicity was similar in both arms, except for grades 3 to 4 leukopenia (GD, 78%; CD, 66%; P = .025) and transfusions (GD, 17%; CD, 7%; P = .0051). Grades 3 to 4 diarrhea, mucositis, and hand-and-foot syndrome were significantly higher in the CD arm. Fewer patients in the GD arm discontinued because of drug-related adverse events (13% v 27% in CD; P = .002).

CONCLUSION
No difference was observed between GD and CD arms in PFS, ORR, and OS. TTF was longer in the GD arm. These findings, combined with a nonhematologic toxicity profile that favors GD over approved doses of CD, suggest that gemcitabine may be a better option than capecitabine in combination with docetaxel in this clinical setting.


The hindbrain is responsible for controlling essential functions such as respiration and heart beat that we literally do not think about most of the time. In addition, cranial nerves projecting from the hindbrain control muscles in the jaw, eye, and face, and receive sensory input from these same areas. In all vertebrates that have been studied, the hindbrain passes through a segmented phase shortly after the neural tube has formed, with a series of seven bulges—the rhombomeres—forming along the anterior‐posterior extent of the neural tube. Our current understanding of vertebrate hindbrain development comes from integrating data from several model systems. Work on the chick has helped us to understand the cell biology of the rhombomeres, whereas the power of mouse molecular genetics has allowed investigation of the molecular mechanisms underlying their development. This review focuses on the special insights that the zebrafish system has provided to our understanding of hindbrain development. As we will discuss, work in the zebrafish has elucidated inductive events that specify the presumptive hindbrain domain and has identified genes required for hindbrain segmentation and the specification of segment identities. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Raspberry cane midge is a serious pest of raspberries. The larvae feed in natural splits in the primocanes and these feeding wounds allow entry of infection by several fungi. The complex of larval feeding and fungal infection is termed midge blight. Midge blight leads to poor vigour of second-year canes with fewer fruit-bearing lateral shoots. Efficient control is difficult to achieve due to the sheltered place where the larval feeding and the short lifespan of adults. Monitoring of the male flight period is possible with sex pheromone traps.
This thesis includes trials conducted in the season of 2007 in a raspberry plantation situated in the south of Sweden. In 2006, the presence of the raspberry cane midge in the plantation was confirmed by large catches in the pheromone. The trials in 2007 included two pheromone traps that were deployed for monitoring of male midges in an unsprayed row of the raspberry cultivar Tulameen. In the same row the presence of larvae and eggs in primocanes were studied by making artificial splits, in which female midges laid their eggs. The results from the pheromone traps showed flight of male midges from late April until the beginning of October. The highest trap catches were recorded from the middle of July to late August with peak trap catches of 400-500 male midges per trap and week. The highest number of eggs and larvae in the artificial splits were found in July with 12 eggs and larvae per cm split. The increase of male midges trapped in pheromone traps in August was not followed by higher number of larvae and eggs in splits. This is results could be due to the presence of more natural splits later in the season leading to a dilution effect. Also predation of anthocorid bugs and predatory gall midges could have decreased populations of larvae in splits.
An additional study was conducted to investigate possible interference between pheromone traps. The results indicate that traps placed in close vicinity (7 and 20 metres apart) show a decrease in number of trapped midges, thus monitoring traps should be placed more than 20 metres apart to give representative data of the male flight pattern.


Rapid changes in the global environment, as well as the fierce competition among hospitality companies to obtain competitive benefits are well-prepared leadership, high-performing employees and innovative approaches. Leadership, employee performance, and innovation are key factors that help the hotel industry remain competitive and provide excellent services. This paper aims to investigate the mediating effect of employee performance on transformational leadership style and organizational innovation in the hotel industry in Makkah and Madinah, Saudi Arabia. In this regard, studies that are related to the hotel industry in Saudi Arabia are scarce. This research, therefore, contributes to the hospitality industry studies, as well as the hoteliers. Seventy-two local and international five-star hotels in Makkah and Madinah are selected for the study analysis, and rank-and-file employees are targeted as the respondents. A total sample of 371 respondents is studied. A Google link containing the survey form is administered to the employees through the departments' heads at the selected hotels. The obtained data are statistically analyzed using SmartPLS. The findings showed that there is a positive mediation of creativity between intellectual stimulation and inspirational motivation on product innovation. This will, in turn, promote organizational innovation.


Capacitive sensor for measuring water level has successfully been fabricated and characterized. Capacitive water level sensor has been fabricated using coaxial cylinder with an inner and outer radius at 0,955 and 1,435 cm, respectively. The cylinders have a length of 82 cm. The study was used water and air as dielectrics for filling in the space of two cylinders. The design of sensor based on the principle of cylindrical capacitor with two dielectrics. Measurements of water level repeated three times to ensure an accuracy of data. The ruler was used as calibrator for measurement of water level. The result showed that the capacitive water level sensor can be used to measure water level with the maximum of standar deviation around 1,40, when the system was used to measure increased water levet at 50 cm and standar deviation minimum at 0,01 occured when it was used to measure decreased water level at 0 cm. Range of measurement was 0,16 -78,99 cm with an average error value when measurements of increased and decreased water level was 2.30 and 1.75%, respectively.


The most diagnostic features of the eolian cross-bedding of Mustang Island are: 1) the large percentage (27%) of cross-beds that have dip angles greater than 30 degrees and the high mean inclination (24 degrees ); and 2) the bimodality of dip directions with modes to the N. and WSW. The bimodality is attributed to the migration of asymmetrical pyramidal dunes, a dune form that develops as an intermediate step in the transformation of barchan to longitudinal dunes as sand migrates inland. The mean standard deviation of dip azimuths of Mustang Island cross-beds (75 degrees ) is intermediate between most fluvial and marine cross-beds; it is based, however, on a bimodal distribution. The Mustang Island dunes indicate that eolian cross-bedding need not be either highly unidirectional or highly dispersed, and need not be characterized by sets of great thickness.


The purpose of study was to determine the provitamin A value through beta-carotene analysis of five Brazilian leafy vegetables: carrot leaves (Daucus carota L.), beet leaves (Beta vulgaris L.) "serralha" (Sonchus oleracea L.), mint (Mentha piperita LL.) and celery leaves (Aplum graveolens. L.). Two analysis methods were used: open-column chromatography (OCC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Two analysis methods were used: open-column chromatography (OCC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Recovery tests were done for both methods and 92% of recovery was obtained for OCC and for HPLC 102%. The provitamin A value obtained for these leaves, using OCC were: 491 RE/100 g for carrot, 1097 for beet, 1390 for "serralha", 1016 for mint and 911 for celery. The results obtained using HPLC were 495 RE/100 g for carrot leaves, 1095 for beet leaves, 1472 for "serralha" leaves, 940 for mint leaves and 908 for celery leaves. We concluded that both methods presented good recoveries, are similar for determination of provitamin A in the leaves and they can be used for routine analysis. These five leaves can be as an inexpensive and easily obtained sources of provitamin A in Brazil.


GnRH plays a critical role in regulating mammalian reproductive development and function. At the level of the anterior pituitary, GnRH binds to the GnRH recetor (GnRHR) on the cell surface of pituitary gonadotropes. Here, it activates intracellular signal transduction pathways to effect both the snthesis and intermittent release of the gonadotropins LH and FSH. These hormones then enter the systemic circulation to regualte gonadal function, including steroid hormone synthesis and gametogenesis. The response of pituitary gonadotropes to GnRH correlates directly with the concentration of GnRHR on the cell surface, which is mediated, at least in part, at the level of gene expression. A number of endocrine, paracrine, and autocrine factors are known to regulate GnRHR gene expression. This article reviews in detail the role of the GnRHR in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis and the factors mediating expression of this gene. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate transcription of the GnRHR gene will further our knowledge about the role of this receptor in mammalian reproductive physiology in health and disease.


Lutsenko Sergey - Consultant of the Control Department of the Presidential Administration of Russian Federation. Address: 8/5 Staraya Ploshchad, Moscow, 103132, Russian Federation. E-mail: email@example.com article studies the decisions of shareholders and the influence of the decision-making process on the corporate policy. Due to the discretionary powers, shareholders can participate in the management of the company directly. On the other hand, due to the absence of professional skills it can delegate this responsibility to the company's management. Thus, conferring powers to the management, the shareholder can incur losses. Russian companies are prone to conflicts between shareholders and management. The reason of such conflicts is a high remuneration to the executives. The directors fix high payments for themselves acting ultra vires. Distributing the remunerations is a prerogative of general meeting of shareholders. Serious conflicts in the Russian companies can arise among shareholders. The aim of the disputes is the control of cash flows in the company. Resolving conflicts among shareholders of the company and directors may be achieved by the model of business target-setting. To create motivation within the board, shareholders initiate options in the company, thereby, matching the payment to the directors to concrete results of the company (increase in the profitability of assets, capitalization of the company's value, increase in productivity). One of the primary goals of the corporate right is providing balance of their legitimate interests between shareholders and management of the company which, in turn, is reached if the parties are guided by the interests of the company, instead of short-term personal interests. Avoiding conflicts, is possible creating mechanisms facilitating to regulate the activity of the directors and make recommendations, arranging supervising services which would trace legitimacy of the transactions made by the directors. The purpose of the analysis is to identify relations among shareholders and between shareholders and the board. In particular, the following issues will be covered: aspects of general meetings (decisions to increase capital stock, a preemptive right to acquire of shares), high remuneration to the executives (arranging stock options). Research of the decisions of shareholders on the corporate policy is accompanied with case practice.


From the sum of the indications already given by the case history with regard to age and mode of starting and evolution, as well as from the objective examination with regard to site and the radiological examination as regards the x-ray aspect and the particular figurative manifestations, it is already possible to form some idea at least concerning the presence or otherwise of the bone tumour and its benign or malignant character, or in some cases even the type of tumour. Logically the diagnosis must generally by made on the basis of the mentioned laboratory examinations, hospital observation, biopsy and histological examination, naturally taking into consideration the various factors for and against, to which reference has already been made. In any case, since this is not the place for a study of the individual bone tumours or for differential diagnosis of the various bone tissues, it would seem that, for the purpose of being able to recognise or even only suspect the presence of a bone tumour in good time for it to be sent to hospital for effective treatment, the mentioned alarm and recognition criteria should be borne in mind as soon as any doubt is felt by the general practitioner; and such doubt should arise fairly easily, since it is always better to be over-suspicious than under-suspicious.


Three decades of clinical research on repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has yielded one clear treatment indication in psychiatry for major depression disorder (MDD). Although the clinical response equals the standard treatment algorithms, the effect sizes on the beneficial outcome remain rather modest. Over the last couple of years, to improve the efficacy in resistant depression, two new avenues have been developed: personalization and intensifying rTMS treatment. For the latter, we retrospectively compared accelerated high-frequency rTMS (arTMS) with accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation (aiTBS) in the refractory depressed state. Although the clinical efficacy was not significantly different between both protocols, our observations substantiate the potential of the accelerated stimulation to shorten the treatment duration from the depressed state to the response state. Any time gain from the depressed state to the recovered state is in the patients' interest.


Acoustic ranging based indoor positioning solutions have the advantage of higher ranging accuracy and better compatibility with commercial-off-the-self consumer devices. However, similar to other time-domain based approaches using Time-of-Arrival and Time-Difference-of-Arrival, they suffer from performance degradation in presence of multi-path propagation and low received signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in indoor environments. In this paper, we improve upon our previous work on asynchronous acoustic indoor positioning and develop ARABIS, a robust and low-cost acoustic positioning system (IPS) for mobile devices. We develop a low-cost acoustic board custom-designed to support large operational ranges and extensibility. To mitigate the effects of low SNR and multi-path propagation, we devise a robust algorithm that iteratively removes possible outliers by taking advantage of redundant TDoA estimates. Experiments have been carried in two testbeds of sizes 10.67m × 7.76m and 15m × 15m, one in an academic building and one in a convention center. The proposed system achieves average and 95% quantile localization errors of 7.4cm and 16.0cm in the first testbed with 8 anchor nodes and average and 95% quantile localization errors of 20.4cm and 40.0cm in the second testbed with 4 anchor nodes only.


In this study, we have examined the patterns of VOCs released from used Tedlar bags that were once used for the collection under strong source activities. In this way, we attempted to account for the possible bias associated with the repetitive use of Tedlar bags. To this end, we selected the bags that were never heated. All of these target bags were used in ambient temperature (typically at or below 30°C). These bags were also dealt carefully to avoid any mechanical abrasion. This study will provide the essential information regarding the interaction between VOCs and Tedlar bag materials as a potential source of bias in bag sampling approaches.


Previous numerical investigations of the degree and nature of short-range order around the Curie temperature, TC, in Fe using spin spirals and other regular configurations have been limited almost exclusively to d-band-only models. The authors report on calculations that fully include SPD hybridisation which is known to be important in itinerant systems. The local moments and total energies which they obtain are rather different from the previous results and substantiate a recent hypothesis of Heine and Joynt (1988) who suggested coarse-grained disordering on the scale of the Stoner wavevector. It is found that to a first approximation Fe behaves like a Heisenberg ferromagnet but the corrections obtained from different configurations have contradictory implications. This suggests the existence of multi-atom forces. The authors obtained a value for the spin wave stiffness in excellent agreement with experiment and comment on the implications of the results for models of the disordering of Fe around TC.


The development of a dermatotoxicokinetic (dTK) model for p-nitrophenol (PNP), a common metabolite from a variety of compounds and a biomarker of organophosphate (OP) insecticide exposure, may facilitate the kinetic modeling and risk assessment strategy for its parent compounds. In order to quantify and then clarify in vivo-in vitro correlation of PNP disposition, multicompartment kinetic models were formulated. Female weanling pigs were dosed with [14C]PNP intravenously (150 microg in ethanol, n = 4) or topically onto non-occluded abdominal skin (300 microg/7.5cm2 in ethanol, n = 4). PNP and p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucuronide (PNP-G) profiles were determined in plasma and urine in addition to total 14C quantitation in many other samples. Disposition parameters (rate constants, Ftop, T12, T1/2Ka, AUC, Vss, Clp, MAT, and MRT) and the simulated chemical mass-time profiles on the dosed skin surface and in the local, systemic, and excretory compartments were also determined. Total recoveries of 97.17 +/- 4.18% and 99.80 +/- 2.41% were obtained from topical and intravenous experiments, respectively. Ninety-six hours after topical and intravenous application, 70.92 +/- 9.72% and 98.65 +/- 2.43% of the dose were excreted via urine, and 0.55 +/- 0.16% and 0.51 +/- 0.10% via the fecal route, respectively. Peak excretion rate and time were also determined. It was suggested by experimental observation and modeling that urinary 14C excretion correlates with the systemic tissue depletion profile well and may be used as a biomarker of PNP exposure. This study also supports the strategy of using urinary PNP as a biomonitoring tool for OP pesticide exposure, although some precautions have to be taken. The strategy used in this study will be useful in comprehensive dTK modeling in dermal risk assessment and transdermal drug delivery.


The structural, electronic, and optical properties of hydrogenated silicene have been studied under different pressures using first-principle calculations. The binding energy and band structure have been calculated for two stable structures: Chair (C-) and Boat (B-) in the range of 0–21 GPa external pressure. The behavior of stability and energy bandgap have been analyzed under different external pressures. The stability has been verified using binding energy and phonon data. The C- and B- structures have zero bandgaps at 21 GPa and become unstable. The optical properties of B-configuration have been studied in the energy range of 0–20 eV. Five optical parameters such as conductivity threshold (σth), dielectric constant ε(0), refractive index n(0), birefringence Δn(0) and plasmon energy (ħωp) have been calculated for the first time under different pressures. The calculated values are in good agreement with the reported values at 0 GPa.


Discovery of effective treatment for Alzheimer disease (AD) depends upon the availability of outcome measures that exhibit good sensitivity to rates of longitudinal decline on global functional performance. The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study-Activities of Daily Living inventory (ADCS-ADL) is a frequently used functional endpoint in clinical trials for AD that assesses patient functional ability on the basis of informant ratings of patient performance on a variety of everyday tasks. Previous research has shown that the items comprising the ADCS-ADL are sensitive to characteristic longitudinal trajectories in AD. However, standard procedures for combining information from individual items into an overall test score may not make full use of the information provided by informant responses. The current study explored an application of item-response theory (IRT) techniques to the calculation of test scores on the ADCS-ADL. Using data from 2 ADCS clinical trials on mild-to-moderate AD patients we found that IRT based scoring increased sensitivity to change in functional ability and improved prospective statistical power of the ADCS-ADL as an outcome measure in clinical trials.


294 ALOT OF PEOPLE HAVE PROBLEMS with the human female orgasm, ranging from women who have difficulty in achieving sexual satisfaction to pharmaceutical companies trying to develop a female version of Viagra. Films like When Harry Met Sally take advantage of the cryptic nature of female orgasm to point to how easy it is to fake. Biologists, too, have problems with female orgasm, or at least its evolution, because it is an enigmatic trait compared with many others.Women can conceive without orgasm, making it less directly connected with reproductive success and hence fitness than male orgasm, which virtually always accompanies ejaculation.What is more, most women do not experience orgasm during so-called "unassisted" intercourse, in other words, without additional stimulation of the clitoris before, during, or afterwards. Freud thought that this type of orgasm was more mature than one resulting from clitoral stimulation, and although his ideas have largely been debunked, they have left a legacy of assigning ranks to female sexual response, so that women worry that their orgasms are somehow inferior or abnormal. The orgasm has also taken its place in the battle about adaptationism, with scholars debating whether female orgasm evolved through natural selection in much the same way as morphological traits, because they enhanced the ability of


Powerful states often use tools of economic statecraft, such as foreign aid and other financial policy instruments, in a bid to "purchase" influence as well as establish regional leadership among their neighbors. How and why do these states undertake similar economic statecraft strategies and policies? The article examines the evolution of infrastructure financing policy of China and Japan and identifies the ever changing and, yet at the same time, mirroring interaction between the two countries' development finance practices. We argue that emulation and competition have led to the process of policy diffusion between these two countries. The competition between these two foreign aid leaders in East Asia especially after China's Belt and Road Initiative has shaped the region's infrastructure development dynamics as they strive to move the equilibrium outcome to their advantage. Such equilibrium through the policy diffusion process has important implications on global development governance.


BACKGROUND
HIV-1 reservoir is early established during PHI. It is reduced, but not extinguished by early therapy: DNA containing cells are still detectable after months of successful viremia suppression. To define the best method to measure low level viral replication, we determined the extent of HIV reservoir in 11 acutely infected patients and evaluated how it is renewed even during successful treatment.

METHODS
Eleven acutely infected HIV patients were included in the study. Three where not treated with antiretroviral drugs while 8 underwent early aggressive antiretroviral treatment (HAART) which, in 3 cases, was associated to cyclosporin A (CsA) administration. HIV viremia was monitored by commercially available methods while HIV-DNA and cellular RNA quantitation were obtained by in house PCR and RT-PCR respectively, in the gag region.

RESULTS
Significant CD4 recover and HIV viremia suppression were reached in a mean period of three to six months in all treated patients. The course of the HIV-DNA and of cellular HIV RNA reduction showed a similar trend. This variation was slower, if compared to plasma viremia and never reached undetectable levels, justifying the rebound of viremia observed at therapy interruption.

CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest and confirm that complete abolition of viral replication is not achieved and viral reservoir may be re-expanded even after short term rebound of viremia. Scheduling of possible structured therapy interruption should be designed based on multiple virological parameters and on the individual characteristics of the patients.


We have studied the ground-state properties of para-hydrogen in one dimension and in quasi-one-dimensional configurations using the path-integral ground-state Monte Carlo method. This method produces zero-temperature exact results for a given interaction and geometry. The quasi-one-dimensional setup has been implemented in two forms: the inner channel inside a carbon nanotube coated with H2 and a harmonic confinement of variable strength. Our main result is the dependence of the Luttinger parameter on the density within the stable regime. Going from one dimension to quasi-one dimension, keeping the linear density constant, produces a systematic increase of the Luttinger parameter. This increase is, however, not enough to reach the superfluid regime and the system always remain in the quasicrystal regime, according to Luttinger liquid theory.


We give a Bishop-style constructive analysis of the statement that a continuous homomorphism from R onto a compact metric abelian group is periodic; constructive versions of this statement and its contrapositive are given. It is shown that the existence of a minimal period in general is not derivable, but the minimal period is derivable under a simple geometric condition when the group is contained in R. A number of results about one-one and injective mappings are proved en route to our main theorems. A few Brouwerian examples show that some of our results are the best possible in a constructive framework.


With the rapid development of the Internet industry, people's awareness of social practice participation has gradually increased. The way of public comment and expression of emotion has gradually changed from the original information media to the multimedia Internet platform. Accompanied by, various contradictions are easy to escalate and intensify. How to monitor the network public opinion in time and analyze it so as to take effective measures to deal with it is the key to solve social contradictions. Agricultural network public opinion also belongs to network public opinion. In view of the large amount of information related to agriculture generated by the network media such as news, forum, post bar, micro-blog, and the difficulty of public opinion monitoring, this paper puts forward the construction of agricultural net events in a timely manner and quickly take corresponding measures to pay attention to and guide the development of public opinion. Agriculture Internet Public Opinion (AIPO) is one of the important research directions of online public opinion. With the improvement of the quality of life, more Internet users have begun to pay attention to the "wood, oil and salt" and other agriculture-related grievances in daily life. How to do well in agricultural network is particularly important. work public opinion monitoring system under the cloud environment. The system uses the network crawler technology to capture the data related to agriculture, and uses the Principal Component Analysis method to reduce the dimension. In public opinion analysis, the nearest neighbor classification algorithm KNN is used to classify public opinion, and similarity rearrangement technology is used to filter duplicate information. The results show that the agricultural network public opinion monitoring system in the cloud environment proposed in this paper can detect the public opinion information and carry out scientific warning in time, which is of great significance in the agricultural field.


From the days of the dancehalls to the emergence of pop in an explosion of colour in the 60s, through the 70s and New Wave, Rip It Up will feature global stars and independent local heroes from pop's early days right up to today's outstanding newcomers.

Artists and bands to be featured include Lonnie Donegan, Gerry Rafferty, the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Lulu, The Rezillos, Midge Ure, Simple Minds, The Skids, Big Country, Garbage, Franz Ferdinand, Young Fathers, and many more. The exhibition will be brought to life through original stage outfits and instruments, many loaned by the artists themselves, plus memorabilia, props, film and, of course, music.


. This is an overview and a preview of the theory of mixed motives of level ≤ 1 explaining some results, projects, ideas and indi-cating a bunch of problems.


We study the problem of folding of the regular triangular lattice in the presence of bending rigidity K and magnetic field h (conjugate to the local normal vectors to the triangles). A numerical study of the transfer matrix of the problem shows the existence of three first order transition lines in the (K,h) plane separating three phases: a folded phase, a phase frozen in the completely flat configuration (with all normal vectors pointing up) and its mirror image (all normal vectors pointing down). At zero magnetic field, a first order folding transition is found at a positive value K_c=0.11(1) of the bending rigidity, corresponding to a triple point in the phase diagram.


Abstract The revision or drafting of strategic documents is a consequence of and a reflection of changes in the international security environment. The attitude of a state or a supranational entity towards these documents is the best indicator of the state of »strategic culture« in that state or entity. NATO, the EU and many other Allies have over the past period overhauled or adopted completely new strategic documents in the defence and military fields. The Slovenian Armed Forces have also carried out the process of devising the draft Military Strategy of the Republic of Slovenia. The article presents an analysis of this process as a contribution to further exchange of views and systematization of military thought in the Slovenian Armed Forces.


The policy environment for community forest management in Asia ranges from being supportive to absent to opposing. Where enabling policies do exist, local stakeholders often do not know their rights and responsibilities. Where such policies are absent or opposing, the challenge has been to gain recognition for continuing informal practices of forest access and management. This paper draws lessons from two regional programs - the Small Grants Programme for Operations to Promote Tropical Forests (SGP-PTF) and the Community Forest Management Support Programme for Southeast Asia (CFMSP). Combined, the two programmes supported 276 projects of community-based, nongovernment and government organizations in eight countries (Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam) from 2001-2007. Both programmes supported stronger community voice in policy development through linkages between communities, local government and field-level line agencies, as well as supporting community bodies to take issues forward in wider policy discussions. The need to nest local efforts to manage the commons within supportive frameworks has been noted by key commons theorists; the challenge has been how to achieve this. These programmes' experiences highlight that, with the right kind of support, community level bodies can develop and use linkages with each other, with local government and higher-level policy to strengthen governance and livelihoods.


This new title provides practical guidance for people who are planning to buy and sell a formally insolvent/close to formally insolvent company or business. It will guide the potential purchaser through the various stages in the acquisition process providing material on the pitfalls of such acquisitions. It includes the necessary tools to fully evaluate the proposed acquisition while highlighting any likely problems. Structured in such a way to consider all the relevant issues arising from both the vendor's and purchaser's perspective.


Nanoparticles measures from 1 to 100 nanometers in diameter are chemically different from their corresponding bulk materials and their potential toxicity can vary according to dozens of characteristics, such as size, surface area and coating. In 2009 researchers claimed that nanoparticles were responsible for lung damage. Two workers in a printing factory in China in Beijing died (Nature 460,932/2009). Researchers at a meeting said that safety testing was needed for products containing nanoparticles, products that can be absorbed by the body like; food, cosmetics and perfumes in which nanoparticles are used in their colors or in their textures. The workers who work in an occupational exposure to nanotubes and nanoparticles are at great risk. The nanoparticles like: carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles of titanium dioxide and silver are under investigation to find out about the most toxic one via high–through put screening. Nowadays a lot of products that we have in marketplace which are labeled "nano-enabled" mean that they contain nanoscale particles. They are designed with nano to give them some beneficial features. In 2007, approximately $147 billion worth nano-enabled commercial and consumer products were sold. Nanotechnology has spread widely in the market, but it has shown mounting concerns over the human health effects. They have a very small size 100 nano-meters or less.


The paper analyses the opportunities and problems of investment in rapidly growing markets like Belarus. It was analyzed economy and investment legal background in Belarus, investment attractiveness of the real estate market, opportunities for foreign investment. In the past years the real estate market in Belarus has been booming. It is especially true for the capital and to a lesser extent n for Belarusian province. However, in relation to the province the term ilesseri is not quite appropriate. Thus, while in Minsk price of the real estate during the past four years has grown almost three times higher, in the other developing Belarusian cities it has grown twice higher. The current rate of the prices is obviously not the limit. It is proved by the growing demand for the real estate objects, resulting in the rapid and continuous increase of the prices. This is happening despite of the annual increase of building volumes and constant stimulation of the construction programs (especially in rural areas) by the government. The paper identifies problems affecting the registration of the rights to real estate, property development and formation of the legal environment. It is also aimed at identifying the obstacles in property purchasing, particularly in its organizational framework that hinder development of the real property market. The paper also assesses transaction cost of this particular purchase for the parties involved (i.e. seller and buyer or investor) and compares it with the similar data for several European countries.


Recent randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the superiority of endovascular treatment (ET) over medical management in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke patients with anterior circulation emergent large vessel occlusions (ELVOs). Due to such accumulating evidence, expanding ET has become of paramount importance. Advancements in modern technology have enabled the use of mobile stroke units, telestroke networks, mobile neuroendovascular teams, and smartphone applications that shorten the time window to treatment and, thus, make patients more amenable to ET. Additionally, modifying stroke-screening tools to make them more accessible to first responders and the creation of stroke registries can provide further opportunities for ET.


This paper claims that there is no such thing as the correct answer to the question of what is logical form: two significantly different notions of logical form are needed to fulfil two major theoretical roles that pertain respectively to logic and semantics. The first part of the paper outlines the thesis that a unique notion of logical form fulfils both roles, and argues that the alleged best candidate for making it true is unsuited for one of the two roles. The second part spells out a considerably different notion which is free from that problem, although it does not fit the other role. As it will be suggested, each of the two notions suits at most one role, so the uniqueness thesis is ungrounded1.


The results of epidemiological studies of populations exposed to electromagnetic fields are summarised in respect of general health, cataracts, suicide, and birth outcome. It is concluded that the bulk of the evidence suggests that there are no effects at exposures below the limits advised by NRPB and INIRC. Some studies have indicated minor changes in components of the cerebrospinal fluid and in blood cell concentrations and function after exposures at or close to the advised limits. Although they appear to have no effect on health or performance, these need to be confirmed by further studies. For the average female user of visual display units there is no evidence of any influence on birth outcome.


It is generally believed that liposomes modified with polyethylene glycol (PEG) have no or lower immunogenicity. However, based on many recent literatures, when the PEGylated liposomes were repeatedly applied to the same animal, the immune responses occurred. The first injection of PEGylated liposomes resulted in a reduction in the circulation time and an increase in hepatic and splenic accumulation of the second dose of PEGylated liposomes in a time-interval, which was called "accelerated blood clearance (ABC)" phenomenon. Such immunogenicity of PEGylated liposomes presents a barrier in the research of liposomal formulations and their use in the clinics. This review focused on the definition, the method of verification, the development of the reason for ABC phenomenon, influencing factors of ABC phenomenon, and discussed if other PEGylated nanocarriers also induce ABC phenomenon.


Electrical conductors are, arguably, the most important component of industrial and commercial electrical distribution systems as electrical conductors, or just conductors, facilitate the interconnections between a source (e.g., generator, renewable energy source, utility, electrical distribution panel, etc.) and load (e.g., wall outlet, control panel, motor, etc.). However, for typical electrical system installations, electrical conductors are rarely given the attention deserved. In general, the selection of the conductors becomes a fine balancing act of meeting the minimum National Electric Code (NFPA 70) requirements for minimum ampacity and the economics of choosing aluminum versus copper. This can lead to conditions where conductors are not adequately sized for the conditions they are exposed to, which can result in premature failure of cable insulation. This paper presents a simple approach to proper conductor selection, with an emphasis on maximizing the thermal life of cable insulation.


Treatment of cell suspension cultures of French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) with polysaccharide elicitor molecules from cell walls of the anthracnose fungus, Colletotrichum lindemuthianum, results in the rapid accumulation of isoflavonoid phytoalexins, deposition of wall-bound phenolic compounds and synthesis of hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins. These changes are dependent upon a highly selective induction of gene products, including the enzymes L-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, cytochrome P450-dependent cinnamic acid 4-hydroxylase, chalcone synthase, chalcone isomerase, prolyl hydroxylase and protein: arabinosyl transferase. Use of in vivo labelling, in vitro translation and RNA blot hybridization techniques has shown that these elicitormediated changes arise from rapid but transient induction of enzyme synthesis, resulting from the accumulation of specific mRNAs. Similar phenomena are observed in bean hypocotyls at the onset of phytoalexin synthesis in response to infection by incompatible and compatible races of C. lindemuthianum. In bean, both L-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and chalcone synthase are encoded by multigene families and, at the protein level, both exhibit subunit and intact enzyme polymorphism. A number of less than full-length phenylalanine ammonialyase copy DNAs containing identical open reading frames have been produced from mRNA from elicitor-induced bean cells. Analysis of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase genomic clones predicts the presence of enzyme forms of differing amino acid sequence. In cultured bean cells, elicitor differentially induces the two apparent phenylalanine ammonia-lyase iso-forms with the lowest Km values. In addition to transcriptional control of the appearance of specific gene products, post-translational processes may result in increased subunit polymorphism for phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, and in the activation of chalcone isomerase. Changes in endogenous phenylpropanoid intermediate pools may signal the rapid removal of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity, in addition to exerting less specific inhibitory effects on the formation and/or activity of the mRNAs encoding phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and other phytoalexin biosynthetic enzymes.


A case of pityriasic dermatitis in which the histologic findings mimicked mycosis fungoides was examined ultrastructurally. Large numbers of mycosis-like cells were found in the dermis and within epidermal spongiotic vesicles. Such cells occur in the epidermal and dermal infiltrates of primary T-lymphocyte disorders, notably in mycosis fungoides, the Sézary syndrome, and parapsoriasis en plague. However, they have also been found in the dermal infiltrates of benign dermatoses, in some skin tumors, and occasionally in normal controls. They share ultrastructural features with transformed T lymphocytes. It is emphasized that cells with this morphology may be found in the skin in any condition involving T-cell transformation or dysplasia. The mere presence of cells with this morphology within skin infiltrates is insufficient evidence for the diagnosis of primary T-cell dyscrasia.


ABSTRACT This article aims to bring together post-Marxist discourse theory and the critique of political economy in the context of the debate on the Marxian theory of value. Although Laclau and Mouffe criticized Marxism for its economic reductionism, they did not connect this to a comprehensive critique of Marx's writings on value and labor. The merit of considering the theory of value in more detail is underscored by discourse theory's relative silence on the capitalist economy. By drawing on the work of Postone and Elson, it will become clear that there are largely two ways to interpret Marx's theory of value: either as an essentialist theory of price and exploitation, or as a historically specific theory of the constitution of social labor relations in capitalist society. By teasing out Laclau's implicit understanding of Marx's value theory, the article argues that it is in fact his essentialist interpretation of the labor theory of value that constitutes an obstacle toward grasping the social relations of labor and commodity production from a discourse-theoretical perspective. This clears the ground toward approaching Marx's value theory from a post-Marxist perspective, which would grasp the social relations of abstract labor as a hegemonic formation.


Tyrosinase model systems pinpoint pathways to translating Nature's synthetic abilities for useful synthetic catalysts. Mostly, they use N-donor ligands which mimic the histidine residues coordinating the two copper centres. Copper complexes with bis(pyrazolyl)methanes with pyridinyl or imidazolyl moieties are already reported as excellent tyrosinase models. Substitution of the pyridinyl donor results in the new ligand HC(3-tBuPz)2 (4-CO2 MePy) which stabilises a room-temperature stable μ-η2 :η2 -peroxide dicopper(II) species upon oxygenation. It reveals highly efficient catalytic activity as it hydroxylates 8-hydroxyquinoline in high yields (TONs of up to 20) and much faster than all other model systems (max. conversion within 7.5 min). Stoichiometric reactions with para-substituted sodium phenolates show saturation kinetics which are nearly linear for electron-rich substrates. The resulting Hammett correlation proves the electrophilic aromatic substitution mechanism. Furthermore, density functional theory (DFT) calculations elucidate the influence of the substituent at the pyridinyl donor: the carboxymethyl group adjusts the basicity and nucleophilicity without additional steric demand. This substitution opens up new pathways in reactivity tuning.


The relation between the spectra of operator pencils with unbounded coefficients and of associated linear relations is investigated. It turns out that various types of spectrum coincide and the same is true for the Weyr characteristics. This characteristic describes how many independent Jordan chains up to a certain length exist. Furthermore, the change of this characteristic subject to one-dimensional perturbations is investigated.


Stimulated emission depletion (STED) fluorescence microscopy is a diffraction-unlimited microscopy. We report a method of analyzing the intensity distribution in the focal region. The method takes both the coherence and the vector properties of the light into account. By using the Gaussian Schell model to describe the cross-spectral density function of the incident beam, we show that the coherence that exists between the electric field at any two points is one of the factors that limit further increase of the spatial resolution in STED fluorescence microscopy.


A general preparative method for multifunctional halogeno(cyano)cuprate materials in ionic liquids is developed in this work. Under ionothermal conditions, alkylimidazolium-based ionic liquids serving as solvent, charge-compensating, and structure-directing agent, as well as reactant lead to 12 members of the novel hybrid halogeno(cyano)cuprate family with a general formula of [R1R2R3IM]b+c-a[CuaXb(CN)c] (R1R2R3IM = alkylimidazolium cations, X = halide anions). X-ray single-crystal diffractions show that diverse inorganic halogeno(cyano)cuprate components vary from discrete complexes (1 and 2), one-dimensional (1D) chains (3-7), two-dimensional (2D) layer (8), to three-dimensional (3D) open frameworks (9-12). 1 and 2 are of zero-dimensional discrete structures containing triangular [CuX3]2- anions. In complexes 3-7, pentagonal bipyramidal [Cu2X3] units are bridged by CN groups to give 1D [Cu2X3(CN)]2- inorganic chains, which are charge-balanced by the surrounded alkylimidazolium cations. 2D inorganic [Cu5ClI2(CN)4]2- layer in complex 8 is alternately packed with [VMIM]+ organic cations. In complex 9, left- and right-handed Cu-CN helical chains connect each other to give a 3D open framework, which are further entrapped by 1D zigzag Cu-CN chains and [PMIM]+ cations. Diverse unique Cu(I) atoms and cyanide or halide bridging groups in 10, 11, and 12 are extended into 3D anionic open frameworks with 1D channels, which are occupied by alkylimidazolium cations. For all hybrid halogeno(cyano)cuprate complexes, the extensively existing C-H···X or C-H···π hydrogen bonds help to stabilize the ultimate supramolecular packing structures. Notably, the distances between adjacent Cu(I) centers range from 2.420(2) to 2.989(2) Å in all polymeric frameworks, which indicate strong Cu···Cu interactions. Thanks to the cooperation of conjugate π electron cyanide systems with halide ions and/or Cu···Cu interactions, compounds 1-12 all demonstrate strong solid-state photoluminescence and semiconducting performance. Specially, hybrid halogeno(cyano)cuprates reported herein first exhibit excellent photocatalytic degradation of organic dye. To the best of our knowledge, fewer than 10 crystalline halogeno(cyano)cuprate compounds were obtained before this work, although different synthetic routes have been involved. Clearly, the discovery of this large hybrid material family under ionothermal conditions is important for the further development of novel functional halogeno(cyano) filled-shell d10 metal crystalline materials.


Unfair business practices hamper the growth of the European Single Market in both instances of practices directed to consumers and to other businesses. The digital revolution, while generating unprecedented trade opportunities, is amplifying the magnitude of this hazard. Though not tuned yet along the notes of the digital challenge, the EU law has largely contributed to the emergence of a European Private Law aimed at discouraging unfair practices, particularly when they may harm the interests of consumers. After briefly comparing some of the main aspects of national regimes on BtoC and BtoB unfair practices, this article addresses the issue of private enforcement of consumers' and businesses' rights when affected by unfair practices. Progressively eroding the principle of national procedural autonomy, EU law is deeply changing national enforcement systems in the area of fundamental rights. More than providing rules, the EU relies on general principles such as effectiveness, proportionality, dissuasiveness. These three principles, here presented as a triad, help examining the potentials and shortcomings of current enforcement mechanisms as developed at national level, distinctively for BtoC and BtoB relations. Whereas remedial innovation is emerging in the design of civil remedies against BtoC unfair practices, enforcement of business rights still largely relies on the tools provided by general contract, tort or unfair competition law, so heading to results that are not always consistent with the aim of an effective, proportionate and dissuasive protection. Within a multilevel system of rights' protection, the application of the triad poses a major challenge for which comparative analysis and inter-institutional and inter-professional dialogue are pivotal. Of course, this dialogue shall not be confined within the boundaries of the European Single Market; among other factors, the digital revolution suggests that the need for an effective protection of consumers' and businesses' rights is a global concern.


Emotions are an indispensable component of our daily lives. Nonetheless, brain-computer interface (BCI) systems have not achieved the requisite level to interpret emotions. Programmed feeling acknowledgment based on BCI frameworks has been a point of extraordinary inquiry within the final few decades. Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals are one of the significant assets for these frameworks EEG may be a physiological flag recorded from brain work out within the frame of brain waves through the scalp. The most advantage of utilizing EEG signals is that it reflects the genuine feeling and can effectively be prepared by computer frameworks. A dummy dataset can be used and filled with EEG data to compute and categorize these signals generated from EEG signals. The dataset used here is Seed, and it can be accustomed by a machine learning technique called the K-nearest neighborhood (KNN) algorithm to systematize the data. Experimental performance achieved through the categorizing values of 94.06% during the classification in the Seed. This proposed method shows that emotion recognition like positive, neutral, and negative is possible through EEG signals.


This paper reports the results of a two-year study on the chemical characteristics and phytoplankton assemblages in the western (Como) and eastern (Abbadia Lariana) sub-basins of Lake Como. The data were collected from September 1997 to August 1999 in the frame of an investigation financed by the Provincial Administration of Como and Lecco. Over the period of study TP concentrations ranged between 6-46 μg P l-1 at Abbadia, and 5-50 μg P l-1 at Como. Reactive phosphorus ranged between 6-31 μg P l-1 at Como, and 6-25 μg P l-1 at Abbadia. By the end of the study, 85 taxa belonging to six algal groups were identified. Chlorophyta (Chlorophyceae and Conjugatophyceae) (30) were the best represented, followed by Bacillariophyceae (23), Cyanoprokaryota (8), Cryptophyceae (6), Chrysophyceae (6) and Dinophyceae (6). The time variation of chlorophyll a (0.5-9.72 μg l-1), phytoplankton density (177-64925 cell. ml-1) and biovolume (21-6665 mm3 m-3) showed the same trend, with the lowest and maximum values recorded during winter and from spring to summer, respectively. In order to compare the seasonal succession in the two sub-basins, cluster analysis and non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination were used jointly. Multivariate analysis showed i) a substantial homogeneity in the time seasonality of the dominant phytoplankton assemblages in the two sub-basins and ii) a clear differentiation of summer phytoplankton from the other seasonal phases. From a purely quantitative point of view, there were dissimilarities between the two stations. The western sub-basin showed a greater algal production than Abbadia, especially in spring and summer. Despite the strong reduction of TP since the 1980s, the results of investigations carried out during the 1990s indicated a substantial stability of phytoplankton . It is emphasised that a reduction in biomass and shift in species composition will be possible only by assuring a severe control of the nutrient loads.


Clustering support with a single-system image view for large-scale Web servers is important to improve the system scalability in processing a large number of concurrent requests from Internet, especially when dynamic content generation using CGI or other protocols becomes increasingly popular. This paper studies a two-level scheduling framework with a master/slave architecture for clustering Web servers. Such an architecture has advantages in dynamic resource recruitment, fail-over management and it can also improve server performance compared to a at architecture. The key methods we propose to make this architecture eecient are the separation of static and dynamic content processing, low overhead remote execution, and reservation-based scheduling which considers both I/O and CPU utilization. This paper provides a comparison of several scheduling approaches using experimental evaluation and analytic modeling. The results show that proper optimization in resource management can lead to over 65% performance improvement for a xed number of nodes, and can achieve more substantial improvement when considering idle resource recruitment.


The performance of linear prediction of fullband and subband signals is described in terms of the respective prediction gain. The subband prediction gain is characterized in terms of the fullband signal power spectral density and the frequency response of the subband filters. For Gaussian fullband signals, the asymptotic subband prediction gain can never be larger than the asymptotic fullband prediction gain. Simulation results compare fixed and adaptive fullband and subband prediction gains for Gaussian sources and speech. For speech, the subband prediction gain can exceed the fullband prediction gain. >


Abstract The aim of our study was to investigate the prevalence of surgery on the nose prior to first time diagnosis of nasal polyps. We interviewed 60 patients who presented to the ENT Department at the Royal South Hants Hospital Southampton and were diagnosed as suffering from nasal polyps for the first time. Patients who suffered from cystic fibrosis or known primary ciliary dyskinesia were excluded. The average length of time of nasal blockage as the main symptom prior to the diagnosis of nasal polyps was less than two years. Out of the 60 patients six (10 per cent) had had previous nasal surgery. Out of these six patients, only four patients had a previous procedure on the nose that could be considered to be related to the later diagnosis of nasal polyps. Only one patient had had radiological investigation of his sinuses in the past. We conclude that polypoid nasal disease is a de novo diagnosis with a relatively short history in the majority of patients and not preceded by a long history of ENT investigations nor surgery on the nose.


Prosthetic rehabilitation of severely worn teeth with loss of vertical dimension is difficult due to limited space and the need for complex treatments. To improve aesthetics, maintain anterior tooth relationships, and provide space for the prosthesis, effective treatment alternatives are needed to increase the Occlusal Vertical Dimension (OVD). This will reduce the need for invasive procedures and endodontic treatments. For optimum treatment, accurate measurements of the OVD, interocclusal resting area, and central relationship recordings are needed. The contours of the facial soft tissues should be examined. Before beginning the full mouth rehabilitation, it should be kept in mind that severe abrasion does not always result in the loss of vertical dimension, and it does not necessarily eliminate all defective occlusal interactions. In preventive and restorative dentistry, managing tooth wear and attrition is a fascinating subject. One of the treatment alternatives after a confirmed diagnosis is full mouth reconstruction along with identifying the sources. It is complex and difficult to manage dental attrition. A clinical evaluation of the patient following the cementation of temporary fixed restorations or the use of a diagnostic splint or temporary removable prosthesis can assist in determining the OVD. It is recommended to utilise fixed restorations rather than a removable appliance to increase OVD since patient adaptation is predictable. In the present case, the vertical dimension was restored with an improvement in both function and aesthetics, providing a satisfactory clinical outcome.


A study was carried out to look at the utilization of cowpea based diets on performance characteristics and haematology of broiler chickens.  Raw cowpea, dehulled cowpea, dehulled cooked cowpea and dehulled roasted cowpea grains were fed to broiler chickens in an eight week feeding trial. A total of two hundred (200) day old unsexed broiler chicks of Marshall strain were allotted into five dietary treatments. Feed intake and growth were significantly ( P 0.05) differences were however obtained in weight gain, FCE and PER of birds fed control diet and those fed dehulled cooked cowpea in this study. Birds fed dehulled roasted cowpea also had marginal reductions in weight gain, FCE and PER when compared to those fed dehulled cooked cowpea based diet. The haematological studies showed lower ( P < 0.05) values of haemoglobin, red blood cells, packed cell volume and white blood cells of birds fed raw cowpea and dehulled cowpea respectively. The best significant indices in this study were however obtained in birds fed dehulled cooked cowpea. Bang. J. Anim. Sci. 2016. 45 (1): 62-68


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Use of Guglielmi detachable coils (GDCs) has proved to be a promising endovascular treatment for intracranial aneurysms. This study aimed to evaluate midterm clinical and radiologic outcomes of this treatment in Hong Kong Chinese patients, 68% of whom had small aneurysms (< or =5 mm).

METHODS
We included 97 consecutive patients in whom GDCs were placed with curative intent. The patients presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage (n = 80) or mass effect (n = 17). The aneurysms measured 5 cm +/- 2.8 mm; 68% were < or =5 mm. All patients were followed up clinically for an average of 54.5 +/- 20.9 months and radiologically with sequential digital subtraction angiography at 6 and 18 months.

RESULTS
Total occlusion of the aneurysm was successfully achieved in 71.1% of patients after the initial treatment and in 82.5% after subsequent treatments. The retreatment rate was 17.5%. Procedure-related complication and mortality rates were 11.3% and 0%, respectively. The overall mortality was 5%, including mortality due to treatment failure in 1%. Neurologic outcomes were excellent in 77% of patients. Improved neurologic status, unchanged status, and deteriorated status was noted in 61.5%, 22%, and 16.5% of patients, respectively, at the end of the follow-up period. Intrinsic differences existed between Chinese and Western patients regarding the size of the aneurysm at presentation, periprocedural complications, and progression patterns of anatomic outcomes.

CONCLUSION
Endovascular coiling with GDCs is a reasonably effective and safe treatment for intracranial aneurysms in this group of Hong Kong Chinese patients, with favorable clinical and radiologic outcomes.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the efficacy and safety of the third-generation aromatase inhibitor letrozole in the treatment of McCune-Albright syndrome (MAS) girls with peripheral precocious puberty.

METHODS
Twenty-one MAS girls with peripheral precocious puberty treated in Pediatrics Department of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from March 2012 to June 2017 were enrolled in the study. Patients presented with repeated vaginal bleeding, premature breast enlargement, café-au-lait spots or dysplasia of bone fibers, and low levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH); and the congenital adrenal hyperplasia, estrogen-producing tumors, and exogenous estrogen intake were excluded. Letrozole were administrated at a dose of 0.5-2 mg·m -2·d -1 for 6 to 12 months. The patients were observed for changes in breast staging, vaginal bleeding, sex hormone levels, liver function and bone age changes, and changes in uterine and ovarian volume.

RESULTS
After treatment, bone age/chronological age (BA/CA)was decreased from 1.23±0.30 to 1.11±0.18 ( P < 0.01); the predicted adult height (PAH) increased from (156.2±5.9)cm to (158.4±2.1)cm after treatment ( P < 0.05); the vaginal bleeding was reduced and the estradiol level decreased, while the teststosterone level and the uterus showed no significant increase, and no adverse reactions such as ovarian torsion and abnormal liver function were observed.

CONCLUSIONS
Precocious puberty is one of the most common endocrine manifestations in MAS. Our findings suggest that letrozole may be an effective and safe therapy to precocious puberty in girls with McCune-Albright Syndrome.


Abstract A vagrant black-browed albatross Thalassarche melanophris bred with a grey-headed albatross T. chrysostoma on Marion Island at least four times between 2000 and 2009 (and continued to return to the colony until at least 2019). The eggs failed to hatch in three breeding attempts, but the pair fledged a chick in the 2006/07 breeding season. Genetic sexing identified the black-browed albatross as female and she shared all eight sampled microsatellite alleles with the chick, whereas the grey-headed albatross social parent did not match the chick. The fledgling was banded and re-sighted in its natal breeding colony in 2016 and 2018, when it displayed an intermediate black-browed x grey-headed albatross phenotype, similar to a putative hybrid photographed at sea off Australia. These results suggest that the black-browed albatross cuckolded its social mate with another grey-headed albatross in 2006/07. The failures of the other three breeding attempts at the egg stage possibly indicate genetic incompatibility with the social partner.


Four different PCR primers were specifically designed to amplify a fragment of cypD gene from isolated Bacillus cereus group strains. Amplification was carried out using these primers. Among all isolates, strains designated as CYPPB-1, 2 and 3 possess cypD gene. Phylogenetic and comparative sequence analysis revealed differences among the sequences of isolated B.cereus group strains as well as those from the public databases. Sequences of all three B. cereus group isolates clustered with that of B. cereus G9842 and there is high similarity between sequences of CYPPB-1 and 3 where as CYPPB-2 showed a little variation. Further microscopic and 16S rDNA analysis indicated that CYPPB-1, 2 belongs to B.cereus while CYPPB3 to B.thuringiensis. Comparative translated aminoacid sequence analysis with respect to B.cereus 14579 revealed that serine instead of proline at position 570 in all three isolated strains and histidine instead of glutamine at position 602 in CYPPB-1 and 3 strains. This diversity of CYP102A in B. cereus group may signify potential resource of different bifunctional cytochrome P450 monooxygenases.


Compact accelerators of the future will require enormous accelerating gradients that can only be generated using high power laser beams. Two novel techniques of laser particle acceleration are discussed. The first scheme is based on a solid-state accelerating structure powered by a short pulse CO2 laser. The planar structure consists of two SiC films, separated by a vacuum gap, grown on Si wafers. Particle acceleration takes place inside the gap by a surface electromagnetic wave excited at the vacuum/SiC interface. Laser coupling is accomplished through the properly designed Si grating. This structure can be inexpensively manufactured using standard microfabrication techniques and can support accelerating fields well in excess of 1 GeV m−1 without breakdown. The second scheme utilizes a laser beatwave to excite a high-amplitude plasma wave, which accelerates relativistic particles. The novel aspect of this technique is that it takes advantage of the nonlinear bi-stability of the relativistic plasma wave to drive it close to the wavebreaking.


The purpose of this study is to describe the effectiveness of the model glasser learning based on local wisdom on the speaking skills of SMA Negeri 1 Galang students. This type of research is a quasi experimental type with the design of The One-Group Pretest-Posttest. Pretest observations were carried out on a group of respondents who were then given treatment. Researchers will compare the effectiveness of the learning model on the results before and after being given treatment. The sampling used in this study is a group sample (Cluster Sampling) because this sampling does not interfere with the teaching and learning process in the classroom. Therefore, the sample of this study involved 36 students in class XA4. The results in this study were at the pretest or before the implementation of the learning model, it reached an average of 54.61 in the less category. Skill assessment results students' speaking at the posttest or after the implementation of the learning model there was an increase reaching 74.44 in the good category, therefore based on the results of the prettest and posttest there were differences in the results of the speaking skills of class X students of SMA Negeri 1 Galang before and after using the glasser learning model based on local wisdom. Based on the data analysis of students' speaking skills at the pretest and posttest, it was obtained t count = 12.01 at a significant level of 0.05 (95% confidence level) at df = 35 obtained t table = 2.031. Then t count = 12.01 > t table = 2.0315, so it can be concluded that H 0 is rejected and Ha is accepted, glasser model based wisdom effective in improving skills speak SMA Negeri 1 Galang students.


This empirical study aims at identifying the English consonant sounds that are mispronounced by native speakers of Palestinian Arabic. It also aims to explore the pattern of errors that Palestinian speakers follow in speaking English. Two main questions have been explored in the study: 1) what are the most common mispronounced English consonants produced by Palestinian students? and 2) what patterns do these students follow in so doing? 20 undergraduate students from the English Department at An-Najah National University are observed and their English is recorded to identify the problematic consonant sounds. The study results show that the most problematic sounds include /p/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/, /ɹ/, and /ŋ/. In the light of the findings, the researchers recommend that the best way to learn the pronunciation of a second language is by listening to native speakers of that language and by practicing it regularly.


Background High-quality hospice care is dependent on an expert caring and resilient workforce who can cope with the significant physical and emotional demands of palliative care. Consequently, hospices employ a range of strategies to support and develop their staff, but it is not clear which are the most helpful, the best value or whether certain combinations are needed. Though ethical considerations are a prominent and common source of distress for hospice staff, clinical ethics rarely receives as explicit or frequent attention within hospices when compared to other support structures. Methods We critically reviewed the staff support and development structures at a large hospice in southeast England, spanning: informal colleague support, reflective practice sessions, teaching, line management and specific additional support such as clinical supervision, Clinical Ethics Committee (CEC) and Schwartz Rounds. Results Our review identified, then compared and contrasted, the key mechanisms of staff support and development: – CEC (what is the 'right thing' to do) – Reflective Practice (how to best go about doing the 'right thing') – Clinical Supervision (being personally able to do the 'right thing') – Schwartz Rounds (how doing the 'right thing' feels). Conclusion Appropriate staff support and development is vital for hospices to deliver high quality, sensitive and individualised patient care. Four mechanisms appeared pivotal in their ability to support and develop staff in their professional roles. Despite clear overlaps, appreciation of their differences was fundamental in understanding their collective benefit: – CECs: being ethical – Reflective practice: being organised – Clinical supervision: being educated – Schwartz Rounds: being human. Subsequently, we propose the 'Support of Care Cycle' where each element informs the next in a virtuous spiral. As interdependent, to miss any component would undermine a hospice's staff support and development structures. Thus, hospices need to provide all four of these cornerstones, including the often neglected clinical ethics.


Complex agriculture projects directly affect the welfare of over half the world's population, are a key Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), and account for the single most extensive human activity across 40% of the world's surface. Furthermore, they are highly susceptible to environmental, social, and economic pressures such as climate change, cyclical pandemics, market disruptions, and diminishing arable land. These issues are also becoming increasingly vital in dint of the fact that population growth is placing increasing pressure on sustainable priorities. However, a recent scientometric review indicates a significant paucity in the extant literature on agriculture projects, with a pressing need for further research to examine sustainable project management practices from an institutional perspective. This research, therefore, aims to respond to this gap in the literature by drawing on Institutional Theory through a multi-case study of Agriculture Co-operative Institutions (ACIs). These are often viewed as valuable vehicles to deliver agricultural projects which can benefit communities, especially in emerging markets. Initial findings from two rounds of fieldwork as well as an extensive literature review suggest that ACIs as value-based organisations embedded within institutional contexts help stimulate elements of agility in project management processes, to deliver sustainable outcomes for their members and external stakeholders. Agile ACI project managers can also stimulate innovative outcomes across broader sustainable agriculture projects. It is the aim of this research also to undertake a larger cross-country comparison with international research cases. Therefore, this study will aim to not only contribute to critical project management discourse and knowledge but also to uncover agile project management practices for future pressing policy development and implementation to help foster greater sustainable agriculture project processes.


Current deep learning adaptive optimizer methods adjust the step magnitude of parameter updates by altering the effective learning rate used by each parameter. Motivated by the known inverse relation between batch size and learning rate on update step magnitudes, we introduce a novel training procedure that dynamically decides the dimension and the composition of the current update step. Our procedure, Dynamic Batch Adaptation (DBA) analyzes the gradients of every sample and selects the subset that best improves certain metrics such as gradient variance for each layer of the network. We present results showing DBA significantly improves the speed of model convergence. Additionally, we find that DBA produces an increased improvement over standard optimizers when used in data scarce con-ditions where, in addition to convergence speed, it also significantly improves model generalization, managing to train a network with a single fully connected hidden layer using only 1% of the MNIST dataset to reach 97.79% test accuracy. In an even more extreme scenario, it manages to reach 97.44% test accuracy using only 10 samples per class. These results represent a relative error rate reduction of 81.78% and 88.07% respectively, compared to the standard optimizers, Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD) and Adam.


CD81 is a component of the CD19/CD21 signaling complex in B cells. CD81 was originally discovered as target of an anti-proliferative antibody in a human B cell lymphoma. However, the exact role of CD81 in B cell function is not known. Here we studied B cells from CD81 knockout mice. We demonstrate that upon BCR induction these B cells flux higher intracellular free calcium ion; increase the phosphorylation of BCR-related proximal and distal substrates and increase their proliferation. Similarly, polyclonal activation of CD81-deficient B cells with LPS induced increased proliferation and antibody secretion. Consistent with these intrinsic B cell capabilities, CD81-deficient mice mounted significantly higher immune response upon antigenic stimulation. In addition, bone marrow perisinusoidal B cells (IgM+IgD+) capable of mounting T-independent immune responses against blood-borne pathogens were over represented in CD81-deficient mice. These cells also displayed increased calcium influx kinetics as splenic B cells and produced higher amounts of antibody after polyclonal stimulation. Taken together, these results suggest that CD81 is involved in suppressing B cell activation.


Proton transfer between N and O in the hydrogen-bonded system (H3NHOH2)+ is studied by ab initio molecular orbital methods. Potential energy curves are calculated at the hartree–Fock level using the 4–31G basis set for hydrogen bond lengths R(NO) varying from the equilibrium value of 2.664 to 3.10 A. Short hydrogen bonds are associated with asymmetric single-well potentials in which the minimum corresponds to the NHO configuration. For longer R(NO) separations, the potential is of double-well form, including both NHO and NHO as minima. It is found that the height of the energy barrier to proton transfer is sensitive to both stretches and bends of the hydrogen bond. Continuous changes in the electron density are monitored at various stages of proton transfer via density difference maps and Mulliken population analyses. The initial loss of density from the proton-accepting molecule during the first half of the transfer is accelerated during the second half. A correlation is drawn between the energetics of transfer in a number of systems and the net charge lost by the proton-acceptor group.


The literature on innovation has traditionally seen imitation processes as harmful to the development of new technologies, adverse for growth and detrimental to the welfare of consumers, producers and society at large. However, as we show in our paper, despite this widespread belief, imitation processes have a significant and positive impact on economic activity. Among other effects, they allow excluded consumers access to new products, stimulate competition in the innovation process, encourage innovative activity and constitute a first step in developing more complex innovations. Therefore, as we will show through the development of two models -and despite the assertions of many politicians, interest groups and economists-, a lower strength patent system and an increase in the activities of imitation could i) increase the benefits to industry as a whole ii) lead to greater social surplus.


The purpose of this project is to explore the GPU for general purpose computing. The GPU is a massively parallel computing device that has a high-throughput, exhibits high arithmetic intensity, has a large market presence, and with the increasing computation power being added to it each year through innovations, the GPU is a perfect candidate to complement the CPU in performing computations. The GPU follows the single instruction multiple data (SIMD) model for applying operations on its data. This model allows the GPU to be very useful for assisting the CPU in performing computations on data that is highly parallel in nature. The compute unified device architecture (CUDA) is a parallel computing and programming platform for NVIDIA GPUs. The main focus of this project is to show the power, speed, and performance of a CUDA-enabled GPU for digital video watermark insertion in the H.264 video compression domain. Digital video watermarking in general is a highly computationally intensive process that is strongly dependent on the video compression format in place. The H.264/MPEG-4 AVC video compression format has high compression efficiency at the expense of having high computational complexity and leaving little room for an imperceptible watermark to be inserted. Employing a human visual model to limit distortion and degradation of visual quality introduced by the watermark is a good choice for designing a video watermarking algorithm though this does introduce more computational complexity to the algorithm. Research is being conducted into how the CPU-GPU execution of the digital watermark application can boost the speed of the applications several times compared to running the application on a standalone CPU using NVIDIA visual profiler to optimize the application.


The primary design goal in cellular technology is to provide high data rate services to its customers while still maintaining energy-efficient transmission over the network. The road to move forward is through deployment of highly densified network topologies. The emergence of these network topologies has also opened up research opportunities on how to exploit their physical layer (PHY) characteristics in order to improve the overall security. In this paper, we analyze the performance of a heterogeneous network that combines massive MIMO technology and small cell networks via spatial soft-cell scheme. An optimization model is formulated that minimizes the total power consumption of the network while satisfying certain degree of Quality-of-Service (QoS) and PHY security. Furthermore, we extend the optimization model to consider uncertainty in the eavesdroppers' channel state information (CSI). Potential tradeoff between PHY security and energy efficiency was investigated. We provide promising results showing that employing massive MIMO at the base station and placing multiple operator-deployed small cell nodes can significantly improve energy efficiency and capacity of the cellular network while providing adequate level of security, even with imperfect knowledge of eavesdropper CSI.


This paper reviews the possible mechanisms underlying bladder overactivity and discusses the targets for pharmacological treatment of this disorder. Damage to the brain (cerebrovascular disease, etc.) induces bladder overactivity by reducing suprapontine inhibition. Currently, attention has focused on C-fiber bladder afferents that may concern the mechanisms for bladder overactivity resulting from various etiologies such as spinal cord lesions, bladder outlet obstruction and bladder hypersensitivity disorders. With regard to the pathophysiology of idiopathic overactive bladder, both myogenic and neurogenic mechanisms may be involved in involuntary detrusor contraction. Since an intravesical capsaicin or resiniferatoxin was shown to have favorable therapeutic effects, afferent C-fiber neurons become a new target for pharmacological treatment. C-fiber neurons are known to contain tachykinins and other peptides as neurotransmitters. When released, tachykinins can influence via NK receptors bladder activity. In addition, evidences suggest that ATP receptors (P2X3) and prostaglandin receptors in afferent C-fiber neurons may play a role in mediating bladder overactivity. Thus, NK-antagonist, P2X3-antagonist and PG receptor-antagonist may be potential therapeutic drugs in the near future. beta 3-Adrenoceptor agonist is an another candidate drug for the treatment of the overactive bladder. Finally, it is important to notice that in any etiology including an idiopathic one, antimuscarinic drugs can improve bladder overactivity, although dry mouth and constipation are inevitable side-effects.


This paper focuses on the physical-mathematical model of liquid atomization in the spray pattern of an ejection nozzle. A flow field of a gas phase behind the nozzle section is computed using the Ansys Fluent package. Dynamics of molten metal droplets in the gas phase within a trajectory approach is calculated. Using the presented model, numerical calculation results are given.


Pneumocephalus is a known complication of skull base surgery, but is rarely seen by orbital surgeons. We report a case of postoperative mental status changes after exenteration due to tension pneumocephalus. After surgical and medical management, the patient's pneumocephalus resolved and she recovered fully. Risk factors for tension pneumocephalus, mechanism, clinical presentation, and management techniques are discussed.