The main purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effects of total isoflavones from Radix Puerariae (PTIF) in diabetic rats. Diabetes was induced by a high-fat diet and intraperitoneal injection of low-dose streptozotocin (STZ; 40 mg/kg). At 26 weeks onwards, PTIF 421 mg/kg was administrated to the rats once daily consecutively for 10 weeks. Metabolic profiling changes were analyzed by Ultraperformance Liquid Chromatography-Quadrupole-Exactive Orbitrap-Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap-MS). The principal component discriminant analysis (PCA-DA), partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), and orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were used for multivariate analysis. Moreover, free amino acids in serum were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector (HPLC-FLD). Additionally, oxidative stress and inflammatory cytokines were evaluated. Eleven potential metabolite biomarkers, which are mainly related to the coagulation, lipid metabolism, and amino acid metabolism, have been identified. PCA-DA scores plots indicated that biochemical changes in diabetic rats were gradually restored to normal after administration of PTIF. Furthermore, the levels of BCAAs, glutamate, arginine, and tyrosine were significantly increased in diabetic rats. Treatment with PTIF could regulate the disturbed amino acid metabolism. Consequently, PTIF has great therapeutic potential in the treatment of DM by improving metabolism disorders and inhibiting oxidative damage.


In the light of the events surrounding the Seattle Ministerial in December 1999 and the fate of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment, increasing attention is being paid not only to the substance of trade policy but to the processes through which it is effected. Growing realization of the need to enhance transparency and legitimacy in trade policy decision-making is reflected in debates on the openness of the multilateral processes most obviously represented by the World Trade Organization. Somewhat less attention has been paid to ways in which national trade policy processes are adapting to these pressures. The article argues the need to redress the balance and suggests that it is possible to analyse the development of at least some national trade policy environments in terms of a shift from a 'club', through an 'adaptive club' to a 'multistakeholder' model. These are examined with specific reference to the development of the latter in the Canadian and European Union contexts.


Cell adhesion to the extracellular matrix triggers the formation of integrin-mediated contact and reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. Examination of nascent adhesions, formed during early stages of fibroblast spreading, reveals a variety of forms of actin-associated matrix adhesions. These include: (1). small ( approximately 1 microm), dot-like, integrin-, vinculin-, paxillin-, and phosphotyrosine-rich structures, with an F-actin core, broadly distributed over the ventral surfaces of the cells; (2). integrin-, vinculin-, and paxillin-containing "doublets" interconnected by short actin bundles; (3). arrays of actin-vinculin complexes. Such structures were formed by freshly plated cells, as well as by cells recovering from latrunculin treatment. Time-lapse video microscopy of such cells, expressing GFP-actin, indicated that long actin cables are formed by an end-to-end lining-up and apparent fusion of short actin bundles. All these structures were prominent during cell spreading, and persisted for up to 30-60 min after plating. Upon longer incubation, they were gradually replaced by stress fibers, associated with focal adhesions at the cell periphery. Direct examination of paxillin and actin reorganization in live cells revealed alignment of paxillin doublets, forming long and highly dynamic actin bundles, undergoing translocation, shortening, splitting, and convergence. The mechanisms underlying the assembly and reorganization of actin-associated focal adhesions and the involvement of mechanical forces in regulating their dynamic properties are discussed.


A four-channel optoelectronic integrated receiver array operating at the wavelength near 850 nm has been fabricated on a single GaAs substrate by using metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiodes (PD's) and metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MESFET's). The largest integration scale for a monolithic receiver and uniform characteristics among circuit channels have been achieved due to the structural simplicity and the process-compatibility of this array. Also, an extremely small capacitance of MSM-PD, 0.10 pF, has lead us to obtain a high-speed operation up to a bit rate of 1.5 Gbit/s, NRZ, and a low noise characteristic exhibiting an equivalent input noise current as small as 5 pA/Hz1/2. These results have indicated the suitability of MSM-PD/MESFET's circuits for large-scale multichannel optoelectronic integration of receivers.


Modern machine learning paradigms, such as deep learning, occur in or close to the interpolation regime, wherein the number of model parameters is much larger than the number of data samples. In this work, we propose a regularity condition within the interpolation regime which endows the stochastic gradient method with the same worst-case iteration complexity as the deterministic gradient method, while using only a single sampled gradient (or a minibatch) in each iteration. In contrast, all existing guarantees require the stochastic gradient method to take small steps, thereby resulting in a much slower linear rate of convergence. Finally, we demonstrate that our condition holds when training sufficiently wide feedforward neural networks with a linear output layer.


The electromagnetic environments of war-field are intricate and complex, there exists a significant challenge to RWR/ESM Radar Warning Receiver / Electronic Support Measure for recognizing radar emitter signals. Because of the computing ability of RWR/ESM is limited by the hardware, the traditional liner algorithm of radar emitter recognition need a long time ,which cannot adapt to the electromagnetic environments. In this paper, considering the front-end of RWR system is frequency dividing receiver, then the frequency dividing method can also be used to the radar sample database. The radar sample database is divided into some radar sample sub database by the front-end frequency of RWR, and using K nearest neighbor algorithm in radar sample sub database to decrease the computing time. We compared the computing time of the tradition liner algorithm and of the K Nearest Neighbor algorithm in radar sample sub database, and the results of simulation showed that the improved K Nearest Neighbor mating algorithm is efficient. Keywords—Radar emitter recognition, K Nearest Neighbor algorithm, Frequency dividing, RWR/ESM


We surveyed New Zealand parents of autistic children to identify their perceived barriers and facilitators to accessing support services, including the influence of a family's level of financial resourcing. A total of 173 completed surveys were analysed. Service pathway factors were the greatest barrier experienced by participants, whereas facilitators related to providers tended to be most helpful. Lower family income was associated with a higher number of reported barriers. Both lower family income and having a child who identified their gender as non-binary were predictive of rating the extent of barriers higher. Parents of younger or of non-speaking autistic children on average reported a greater number of facilitators. Implications of these results for support service delivery and potential areas for future research are discussed. Lay abstract Parents might have problems in getting support services for their autistic child due to certain barriers. However, there might also be things that can ease or facilitate parents' access to support services. In this study, New Zealand parents were asked about their experiences in getting support services for their autistic child. We also looked at differences in reported barriers and facilitators based on several demographic factors with a focus on family level of financial resourcing. A total of 173 parents completed a survey. The results suggested that parents experienced several barriers, particularly related to service pathways. Facilitators were also experienced, predominantly related to providers. Financial resourcing predicted the number of parent-reported barriers. Both lower level of family financial resourcing and having a non-binary child predicted parents' rating of the extent of barriers. Child age and level of speech were predictors for reports of experiencing a higher number of facilitators, with parents of younger children or of non-speaking autistic children reporting a greater number of facilitators. We discuss how these results may be useful to support service delivery and identify areas for future research.


In this research, ultrafiltration membrane made of Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) was employed to recover the lubricating oil from the waste oil in tandem with other treatment methods. FESEM was also used to analyze the structure of the membrane. The resultant recycled oil was monitored with Rheometer, FTIR and UV Spectrometer and it was found that the method successfully removed ˃90% of contaminants and heavy metals from the waste oil and improved the properties of the oil. The proposed method proved to be very economical and gave very promising results to reclaim the waste engine oil that can be re-used for various purposes. Also, the rheological behavior of engine oil is studied by a proposed mathematical model. Given that the suggested model was non-linear, the Gauss-Newton (GN) algorithm was employed to determine the ideal values for the model parameters. The experimental results obtained for virgin, waste and recycled lubricating oils from rheometer were used for validation of the model. The proposed model was compared with Reynold's exponential model based on statistical methods (co-efficient of determination (R2) and mean square error (MSE)). It was found that that the proposed model can predict the change in viscosity with temperature with very high degree of accuracy (>99%).


AID, a DNA-directed cytidine deaminase, plays a critical role in somatic hypermutation and immunoglobulin class switching in maturing B-lymphocytes. Unlike site specific recombinases such as RAG1/2, AID is a promiscuous DNA damaging enzyme that deaminates cytidines at sites throughout the genome. AID expressing cells become critically dependent on the homologous recombination factor RAD51 to repair DNA double strand breaks that result from these off target deamination events. We have developed a novel small molecule, CYT01B, which inhibits RAD51 response to DSBs and is potent to a much greater extent in AID expressing cells. Previously, we have shown this molecule to have activity in mouse lymphoma xenograft models that constitutively express AID. Here we present new preclinical characterization data of CYT01B in solid cancer models. We first analyzed the frequency and levels of AID overexpression in solid tumor data in The Cancer Genome Atlas. Multiple solid tumor types displayed ectopic AID expression, including breast cancer, sarcoma, melanoma, pancreatic cancer, lung cancer, and head and neck cancers with about 30% of the patient samples 4-fold above the baseline expression level. We then tested CYT01B in several solid tumor derived human cell lines. We observed a correlation between AID expression and activity. Cell lines with low ectopic expression of AID had EC50 values in the low micromolar range (~2µM), while those without AID expression gave EC50 values of about 5µM and higher. Next, we examined the activity of our small molecule in 14 different PDX models with various levels of AID expression. These models included renal, head and neck, lung, pancreatic, ovarian, colorectal, and breast cancer samples. We observed a wide range of tumor growth inhibition across the different models (0% to 60%+), which tended to correspond with AID expression; the higher the AID expression the greater the observed tumor growth inhibition. Taken together, these data demonstrate that CYT01B shows anti-cancer activity in a range of solid tumor models. Overall, this provides the basis for continued development of CYT01B as an AID/RAD51 synthetic lethal therapeutic for solid cancers. Citation Format: Melinda Day, Tyler Maclay, Kevin Mills. A novel RAD51 inhibitor, CYT01B, shows anti-cancer activity in preclinical models of AID expressing solid tumors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4730.


The Economics-Across-the-Curriculum approach encourages the integration of economic concepts into various disciplines. This paper describes several creative lesson ideas about teaching Unemployment which were field-tested by high-school teachers who attended a multi-day workshop at a not-for-profit institution in Massachusetts. We hope that these ideas will inspire high school teachers to try them in their classrooms. Any subject area can be a fruitful ground for the infusion of economics, economic text analyses, or quantitative literacy concepts.


The flux density which a cooled laser mirror can handle without catastrophic damage is predicted to be limited in typical situations by absorbing defects on the optical surface rather than by mirror reflectance. In this case, failure is predicted to occur either through coating damage in the vicinity of the defect or by burnthrough of the cooled faceplate following vapor barrier formation at the coolant-faceplate interface. Expressions are developed which predict the limiting defect size for a given flux density as a function of (1) thickness and composition of the faceplate, (2) transport properties and fluid mechanics of the liquid coolant, and (3) conditions generating a hydrodynamic crisis at the liquid coolant stagnation boundary beneath the defect. This parametric analysis can be used to optimize faceplate thickness as a function of mirror material, coolant flow, coating damage threshold, heat exchanger design, and the expected maximum size and absorption of multilayer film coating defects. According to this analysis, for thin faceplates the optimum faceplate thickness may be determined by the coating process rather than by average heat transfer considerations.


A sampled-data method for determining the frequency responses of DC-DC switching converters (SCs) within the f/sub s//2 limit is proposed in this paper. The method is conceived to treat DC-DC SCs operating in any mode which involves internally controlled switching instants (ICSI), regardless of their number and location. The formulation of the method is based on the recursive use of the relation between the state at neighbouring switching instants within the switching period. Some examples of applications to DC-DC SCs are proposed, including the comparisons between the forecastings of the method, the experimental measurements and the results obtained by means of other techniques of analysis.


Microsatellite markers, also known as simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers have been useful for the detection of genetic diversity. Twenty-four rice cultivars carrying good quality traits were evaluated for genetic diversity using 164 SSR markers. A total of 890 alleles were detected by 151 polymorphic markers with an average of 5.89 per locus. Out of these markers, 89 generated a total of 147 rare alleles. Based on Shannon's diversity index, an overall genetic diversity of 0.71 was revealed indicating a high level of genetic variation among these cultivars. Polymorphism information content (PIC) values of the markers ranged from 0.18 (RM420) to 0.91 (RM473B) with an average of 0.68 per marker. Cluster analysis of these cultivars enabled to identify 3 groups at 40% level of similarity with additional sub-clusters within each group. Group 1 corresponded to the 8 japonica subspecies, whereas Groups 2 and 3 comprised the indica. Cultivars under groups 1 and 2 are known for their aroma and good cooking and eating quality traits. Between the 2 rice subspecies, indica gave more alleles than japonica and likewise displayed a higher genetic diversity. Genetic diversity of indica was high on chromosome 11, while that for japonica was high on chromosome 2. The study revealed that SSR markers facilitated the classification of these cultivars according to their subspecies. The results also indicated that these quality rice cultivars exhibited a higher genetic diversity and therefore very useful for rice breeding programs, especially for genetic mapping studies and eventually for application of marker-assisted selection (MAS) in the programs.


ABSTRACT In this article we present a didactic proposal for teaching linear algebra based on two compatible theoretical models: emergent models and mathematical modelling. This proposal begins with a problematic situation related to the creation and use of secure passwords, which leads students toward the construction of the concepts of spanning set and span. The objective is to evaluate this didactic proposal by determining the level of match between the hypothetical learning trajectory (HLT) designed in this study with the actual learning trajectory in the second experimental cycle of an investigation design-based research more extensive. The results show a high level of match between the trajectories in more than half of the conjectures, which gives evidence that the HLT has supported, in many cases, the achievement of the learning objective, and that additionally mathematical modelling contributes to the construction of these linear algebra concepts.


An active noise control (ANC) system utilizing a genetic algorithm for reduction of noise in duct is described. A continuous genetic algorithm with a heuristic crossover method was applied in the controller of the system. The ANC system was tested on a laboratory stand. Measurements of the efficiency of the system related to basic parameters of the genetic algorithm were performed. A comparison of the effectiveness of ANC system based on the genetic algorithm to the system based on the LMS algorithm is presented.


Ultrasonic inline inspection (ILI) tools have been used in the oil and gas pipeline industry for the last 14 years to detect and measure cracks. The detection capabilities of these tools have been verified through many field investigations. ILI ultrasonic crack detection has good correlation with the crack layout on the pipe and estimating the maximum crack depth for the crack or colony. Recent analytical developments have improved the ability to locate individual cracks within a colony and to define the crack depth profile. As with the management of corroding pipelines, the ability to accurately discriminate active from non-active cracks and to determine the rate of crack growth is an essential input into a number of key integrity management decisions. For example, in order to identify the need for and timing of field investigations and/or repairs and to optimize re-inspection intervals crack growth rates are a key input. With increasing numbers of cracks and crack colonies being found in pipelines there is a real need for reliable crack growth information to use in prioritizing remediation activities and planning re-inspection intervals. So as more and more pipelines containing cracks are now being inspected for a second time (or even third time in some cases), the industry is starting to look for quantitative crack growth information from the comparison of repeat ultrasonic crack detection ILI runs. This paper describes the processes used to analyze repeat ultrasonic crack detection ILI data and crack growth information that can be obtained. Discussions on how technical improvements made to crack sizing accuracy and how field verification information can benefit integrity plans are also included.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


The present work presents a design procedure for the structure, joints and actuator system of a composite material rudder of a regional jet. The main structural parts and supporting mechanism of the rudder are modeled as a multi body system. Several analyses are performed assuming the parts as rigid bodies. The preliminary analyses are important for the preliminary sizing of the actuator and joints. This simplified model serves as the basis for the development of a model including structural flexibility. This model accurately describes the mechanical behavior of the system and is used to verify the design.


This work examines the classic utilitarian vs. intellectualist debate in cognitive ethnobiology from a new perspective. It challenges the notion that classifications based on utility are artificial, that is, necessarily constructed from a few special characteristics. The paper involves a new analysis of ethnographic data collected by the author over multiple field sessions from 2004 to 2010 in nine Aguaruna villages in Amazonas, Peru. In previous work, Aguaruna participants described uses, along with sensory and ecological characteristics of local tree species. They also stated which tree folk genera they consider related to each other as "companions," typically placing taxa together in natural groupings. This new synthesis took the descriptions of uses and physical characteristics for a sample of 41 Aguaruna tree folk genera and subjected both to hierarchical cluster analysis to see which would better reproduce the folk classification. Use data performed nearly as well as sensory data in reproducing the natural groupings of trees. This makes sense considering that plant uses tend to be based on physical properties (including presence of secondary compounds) that related species will often share.  Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE


In this paper we show that a one-to-one correspondence exists between any dark energy model and an equivalent (from a cosmological point of view, in the absence of perturbations) quartessence model in which dark matter and dark energy are described by a single perfect fluid. We further show that if the density fluctuations are small, the evolution of the sound speed squared, c2s, is fully coupled to the evolution of the scale factor and that the transition from the dark matter to the dark energy dominated epoch is faster (slower) than in a standard ΛCDM model if c2s > 0 (c 2 s < 0). In particular, we show that the mapping of the simplest quintessence scenario with constant wQ ≡ pQ/ρQ into a unified dark energy model requires c 2 s < 0 at the present time (if wQ > −1) contrasting to the Chaplygin gas scenario where one has c 2 s > 0. However, we show that non-linear effects severely complicate the analysis, in particular rendering linear results invalid even on large cosmological scales. Although a detailed analysis of non-linear effects requires solving the full Einstein field equations, some general properties can be understood in simple terms. In particular, we find that in the context of Chaplygin gas models the transition from the dark matter to the dark energy dominated era may be anticipated with respect to linear expectations leading to a background evolution similar to that of standard ΛCDM models. On the other hand, in models with c2s > 0 the expected transition from the decelerating to the accelerating phase may never happen.


Objective Evaluate the incidence of and risk factors for behavioural problems in twin–twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) survivors treated with fetoscopic laser coagulation. Design Observational cohort study. Setting National referral center for fetal therapy, Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands. Patients Behavioural outcome was assessed in 417 TTTS survivors, at the age of 2 years. Interventions Parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist for their twins. Antenatal, neonatal and follow-up data including Bayley III and a neurological exam were recorded from the medical database. Main outcome measures The incidence of and risk factors for behavioural problems. Results 332 twin pregnancies (664 fetuses) were treated with fetoscopic laser for TTTS between 2008 and 2015. For 517 children eligible for follow-up, 417 (81%) Child Behavior Checklist questionnaires were completed. The study group was born at a mean gestational age of 32.8 weeks±3.2. Total behavioural problems within the borderline to clinical range were reported in 8% (95% CI 5.9 to 11.2) of survivors, compared with 10% in the general Dutch population (p=0.12). No difference between donors and recipients was detected (p=0.84). Internalising and externalising problems were reported in 9.4% (95% CI 6.9 to 12.6) and 11.5% (95% CI 8.8 to 15.0), respectively. Severe neurodevelopmental impairment was more frequent in the children with behavioural problems. High maternal educational level was associated with lower behavioural problem scores. Conclusion Parents of twins treated with fetoscopic laser therapy for TTTS do not report more behavioural problems compared with general population norms. More behavioural problems are reported in children with severe neurodevelopmental impairment.


Crude plant extracts of ringworm cassia, Cassia
alata L. and turmeric, Curcuma longa L. were prepared by either hot
water or organic solvents such as ethanol and ether. Various concentrations of
the crude extract were then subjected to an in vitro test for their
effectiveness on mycelia growth inhibition against some important plant pathogenic
fungi such as Alternaria alternata, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Fusarium oxysporum fsp. lycopersici, Sclerotium
rolfsii, Phytophthora infestans and Pythium sp. in comparison
to commercial fungicides such as copper oxychloride and mancozeb. Reduction of
the fungal growth was significantly obtained with C. longa extracts and the best median effective inhibitory concentration (IC50)
value of 6.07, 6.50 and 7.13 mg/ml was from the ethanol extract
for S. rolfsii, C. gloeosporioides and F. oxysporum fsp. lycopersici respectively. While all extracts from C. alata were almost the least
effective against these fungi. The efficacy of C. longa extracts
therefore, provided an alternative regime for the control of the fungal
diseases and a promising appreciable choice for a replacement of chemical
fungicides.


Author(s): Wu, Huiwen | Advisor(s): Chen, Long | Abstract: We construct a preconditioner for solving the linear least square problems, which are simplest and most popular arising in data fitting, imaging processing and high dimension data analysis. The existed methods for solving least squares problems either has a large computational cost or depends highly on the condition number of the matrix. Recently, there is a surge of interest in developing randomized algorithms for solving least squares problems for the purpose of efficiency and scalability. We construct a new preconditioner equipped with sampling procedure to reduce computational complexity and apply Gauss Seidel iterations to grab the high frequency component of the solution, which reduces the dependence of performance of the conditioner number. Experimental studies compared with Conjugate Gradient Descent method (CG) are presented on six different simulations including dense Gaussian matrix, `semi Gaussian' matrix, Sparse random matrix, `UDV' matrix and Graph Laplacian matrix and a non-negative constrained problem to show the effectiveness of the proposed preconditioner. A general scheme for solving non-constraint convex and smooth minimization problem $ \min_{x \in \mathcal V} f(x)$ is developed in this thesis. The scheme does gradient descent on each subspace based on a stable space decomposition of $\mathcal V$. With assumptions of Lipschitz continuous of the gradient on $\mathcal V$ and its subspaces, convexity or strong convexity on $\mathcal V$, we prove linear convergence for strongly convex objective function for both non-uniform sampling and uniform sampling. For non-uniform sampling, the convergence depends on the expected condition number, and for uniform sampling, the convergence depends on the supreme condition number. Moreover, we also show sublinear convergence for convex function. Numerical examples on Nestrov's worst function and linear regression both outperform randomized coordinate method. We conclude that our scheme generalizes the gradient descent methods, randomized (block) coordinate descent methods and full approximation scheme.


Wildfires affect and change the burned sites' condition, functionality, and ecosystem services. Altered hydrologic processes, such as runoff, increased streamflows, and sediment transport, are only a few examples resulting from burned soils, vegetation, and land cover. Such areas are flood-prone and face risks of extreme peak flows, reduced infiltration, water pollution affecting habitats, and hydromorphological changes. In this study, we present the different post-fire erosion and flood protection treatments that have been developed to avoid and mitigate the consequences and risks mentioned above. We categorize them into Land, Channel, Barrier, and Road treatments and analyze their types, such as cover-based methods, barriers, mulching, in-channel treatments, such as check dams, seeding, or even chemical treatments. Examples of how such treatments were used in real cases are provided, commenting on their results in flood and erosion protection. We found that cover changes were more effective than barriers, as they provided an immediate ground-cover increase in both Mediterranean and US sites. We explore the factors that play a role in their effectiveness, including storm duration and intensity, topography and slopes, land cover and uses, treatment implementation-installation, as well as fire-related factors such as burn severity. These factors have different effects on different treatments, so we further discuss the suitability of each one depending on the site's and treatment's characteristics. The outcomes of this work are expected to improve the understanding of the practical aspects of these treatments, providing for the first time a synthesis of the available knowledge on the multiple complex factors that can determine their efficiency.


The Supreme Court's decision in the Dobb's case has given rise to confusion in the medical community, mostly concerning the specific definition of an abortion and what procedures are acceptable. Catholic bioethics has a long history of examining the ethical issues surrounding procedures used in vital conflict situations and other instances where direct or indirect abortion may be the preferred treatment. This article lays out the important points and ethical dimensions surrounding some of the most common pregnancy related interventions and provides guidance to physicians seeking to treat both patients in a manner that acknowledges their value as human beings.


For many years, many academics and practitioners have paid attention to the increasing popularity of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its relationship with financial performance. They have shown that creating social and sustainable responsibility can strengthen the organization's financial performance as the organization can achieve its current needs without compromising the ability to meet future needs. While much theoretical and empirical evidence has been provided to support this argument in developed countries, this topic is under-researched, and the outcomes are controversial in developing countries. Therefore, this paper aims to examine and investigate the relationship between corporate social responsibility and financial performance in Vietnamese organizations. The dataset includes 27 firms listed on the stock market exchanges in Ho Chi Minh city (HOSE) and Hanoi (HNX) from 2015 to 2019. The disclosure approach is adopted to measure corporate social activities; four areas were developed: environment, community, employee and product, customer, and supplier practices. Return on average equity (ROE) and return on average assets (ROA) are two proxies for measuring financial performance. The research results confirm the existing literature with a strong correlation between employees and returns on average assets.


ABSTRACT This work deals with the landslides affecting the area surrounding the village of San Martino sulla Marrucina and involving the neighboring municipalities of Casacanditella and Filetto. The geological and geomorphological settings of this area are being discussed. The enclosed maps have been realized following a multidisciplinary approach, based on morphometric, geological, and geomorphological analyses and supported by air-photo interpretation, dendrochronology, and satellite SAR interferometry (InSAR). The map is organized in four sections: orography (on the upper part), geological map (on the upper right part), main geomorphological map (in the central left part, 1:7,500 scale), and multitemporal analysis (in the lower part). The aforementioned multi-temporal assessment of landslides was performed according to the geomorphological evidence-based criteria and the past ground displacement measurements were obtained by dendrochronology and InSAR. The aim of the study is to understand the evolution in time and space of this landslide area, focusing on the corresponding kinematics.


Aims. Periodic variability in young stellar objects (YSOs) offers indirect evidence for an active dynamical mechanism. Starspots, accretion, stellar companions, and disk veiling can contribute to the photometric variability of YSOs.

Methods. As part of an ongoing study of the ρ Oph star forming region, we report the discovery of 92.6 day periodic variations for the Class I YSO YLW 16A, observed over a period of three years. A SED model was fit to available photometric data for the object.

Results. We propose a triple-system with an inner binary with a period of 93 days eclipsed by a warped circum-binary disk. The nature of the secondary is unconstrained and could be stellar or sub-stellar. We confirm the discovery of a tertiary companion at a projected separation of ~40 AU that could account for the circum-binary disk warp. This light curve and model is similar to the model we proposed for WL 4 in previous work. Understanding these systems may lead to insights about the nature of stellar evolution and planetary formation, and provide valuable benchmarks for future theoretical modeling and near- and mid-infrared synoptic surveys of YSOs.


Employing a clinical approach to the categorization of newborn cardiovascular defects, a list of probabilities has been prepared to aid the pediatrician who is confronted with the common problem of the severely ill newborn heart patient. This study presents the analysis of 155 newborn cardiac autopsies along with 10 surgical successes. These cases were selected from 187 autopsied live-born neonates with major cardiovascular malformations by excluding patients with associated severe non-cardiac disease and major non-cardiac malformations.
 One-half of the neonatal deaths occurred during the first week with a stepwise decrease in the succeeding weeks. Hypoplastic left heart (rudimentary left ventricle with aortic or mitral stenosis or atresia) was the commonest malformation (37 cases). The second most frequent was complete transposition of the great vessels (25 cases). Most newborns with these two defects died in the first week of life, indicating the urgent need for attention to infants with such anomalies. In contrast, in patients with other malformations, deaths were spread throughout the first month. Neonates who died with combinations of major defects composed the third largest group in this series, emphasizing the difficulties in diagnosis and treatment.
 Ventricular septal defects, and patent ductus arteriosus were found to be uncommon causes of death or severe distress in the first month of life.
 As a result of these findings it is evident that a large number of newborns in severe distress from cardiovascular malformations will have defects which are beyond help. However, in many newborn cardiacs, the defects can be relieved or made less severe. Consequently, it is felt by the authors that a newborn infant who is seriously ill due to a suspected cardiac anomaly should be regarded as both a medical emergency and as a potential surgical emergency. Such a patient should be transferred at once to an institution where all facilities and personnel are available for complete investigation and for surgery. Cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography should be performed as soon as the pediatric cardiologist feels that these tests are indicated, often within a matter of hours. This will frequently be in the first days or even in the first twenty-four hours of life. The techniques, problems, and hazards involved in such studies have been presented in detail by Rowe. A maximum of information should be sought inasmuch as the additional risk is usually more than compensated for by the increased accuracy and completeness of the diagnosis. Admittedly, the risk of cardiac catheterization and selective angiocardiography is high in a seriously ill newborn cardiac, perhaps of the order of 5 to 10%, but if this hazard is balanced against the extremely high one of death in a matter of hours or days from the underlying disease, there will be little hesitation about proceeding with the investigation.
 In certain instances it may be advisable to perform surgery without prior cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography. Such unusual instances involve severely ill newborns in whom the clinical diagnosis seems clear and for whom surgery may be lifesaving. The outstanding example of this is the infant who has the classical findings of pulmonic stenosis with an intact ventricular septum, and who appears to be dying in heart failure. Here the risk of cardiac catheterization may outweigh that of surgery. Other instances include occasional critically ill patients with typical findings of coarctation of the aorta, tetralogy of Fallot, complete transposition of the great vessels, vascular rings, and the rare patent ductus arteriosus in whom the clinical diagnosis is obvious.
 The authors believe that an aggressive approach to the diagnosis and treatment of the distressed newborn cardiac will substantially improve his chances for survival.


While the dark matter content within the most-massive giant and smallest dwarf galaxies has been probed – spanning a range of over one million in mass – an important observational gap remains for galaxies of intermediate mass. This gap covers K-band magnitudes of approximately −16 > MK > −18 mag (for which dwarf galaxies have B−K∼ 2). On the high-mass side of the gap are dwarf elliptical (dE) galaxies that are dominated by stars in their inner regions. While the low-mass side includes dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies that are dark matter dominated and ultracompact dwarf (UCD) objects that are star-dominated. Evolutionary pathways across the gap have been suggested but remain largely untested because the 'gap' galaxies are faint, making dynamical measurements very challenging.
With long exposures on the Keck telescope using the Echelle Spectrograph and Imager instrument, we have succeeded in bridging this gap by measuring the dynamical mass for five dwarf galaxies with M_K ∼ −17.5 (M_B ∼ −15.5). With the exception of our brightest dwarf galaxy, they possess relatively flat velocity dispersion profiles of around 20 km s^(−1). By examining their 2D scaling relations and 3D fundamental manifold, we found that the sizes and velocity dispersions of these gap galaxies reveal continuous trends from dE to dSph galaxies. We conclude that low-luminosity dE galaxies are dominated by stars, not by dark matter, within their half light radii. This finding can be understood if internal feedback processes are operating most efficiently in gap galaxies, gravitationally heating the centrally located dark matter to larger radii, whereas external environmental processes, which can strip away stars, have a greater influence on dSph galaxies, resulting in their higher dark matter fractions. UCD objects appear to be more similar to massive compact star clusters than to small galaxies. Our dynamical study of low-mass dE galaxies provides further constraints on the processes that shape some of the smallest and most-numerous galaxies in the Universe.


Objectives
Determine the effects of an 8-wk chronic consumption of two different blueberry varieties at varying doses on calcium balance, calcium kinetics, bone microarchitecture and polyphenol metabolism and distribution in ovariectomized rats.

Methods
Eighty 5-mo old ovariectomized rats were sorted by weight and block-randomized to an 8-wk chronic feeding treatment of a polyphenol-free (control), 2.5% or 5% `Montgomery ´ (Mont) rabbiteye blueberry (V. ashei) or 5% wild lowbush blueberry (Wild BB) (V. angustifolium) (% w/w). During week 0 and week 8, rats went through a calcium balance study to determine calcium absorption and retention. At the end of week 8, rats were dosed with 45Ca and serial blood draws were done from baseline up to 48 h post-dose to map Ca kinetics. At sacrifice, the right femur was collected to determine differences in bone strength and microarchitecture of trabecular and cortical bone through MicroCT and a three-point bending test. A 24 h urine collection was done at baseline and during week 8 of treatment to determine urinary phenolic acid excretion and the left femur bone marrow phenolic acid accumulation through UPLC-MS/MS.

Results
A blueberry enriched diet had no effect on cortical bone microarchitecture, with a trend towards increased trabecular bone protection (p = 0.08). No differences were observed in bone strength. During baseline, a 2.5% Mont diet significantly increased Ca retention, but the effect was lost after the 8 weeks of treatment when rats had stabilized to treatment. Calcium kinetics showed that Mont 5% significantly increased Ca absorption and bone turnover (p < 0.05), while Mont 2.5% and Wild BB 5% did not. An accumulation of hippuric acid in the bone marrow was detected with the Mont blueberry treatments and it was significantly and positively correlated with bone deposition. The metabolism of phenolic acids was significantly affected by a chronic consumption of the treatment diets, resulting in significant phenolic acid profiles and excretion shifts.

Conclusions
A blueberry-enriched diet had minimal effects on bone after stabilized to ovariectomy and the effects differ depending on blueberry variety and dose.

Funding Sources
National Institute of Health (NIH) and National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).


Machine-learning automation tools, ranging from humble grid-search to hyperopt, auto-sklearn, and TPOT, help explore large search spaces of possible pipelines. Unfortunately, each of these tools has a different syntax for specifying its search space, leading to lack of portability, missed relevant points, and spurious points that are inconsistent with error checks and documentation of the searchable base components. This paper proposes using types (such as enum, float, or dictionary) both for checking the correctness of, and for automatically searching over, hyperparameters and pipeline configurations. Using types for both of these purposes guarantees consistency. We present Lale, an embedded language that resembles scikit learn but provides better automation, correctness checks, and portability. Lale extends the reach of existing automation tools across data modalities (tables, text, images, time-series) and programming languages (Python, Java, R). Thus, data scientists can leverage automation while remaining in control of their work.


Abstract: Public programs should be considered as components of the overall societal welfare system in which social, economic, political, and biophysical factors interact. Evaluation of the effectiveness of public programs should recognize that they are an integral part of the overall societal welfare system. Evaluating programs as individual entities with specific objectives is not likely to yield information of critical importance to public decision-makers. With the continuing fiscal restraints, there is a need for strategic information on the overall performance of public programs. Existing techniques for broadening the focus of evaluations are not sufficient. This article discusses a holistic approach for evaluating public programs and examines a national performance databank for managing the results of such evaluations.


The paper describes the use of advanced space diets of three prime crews who made 96-, 140- and 175-day flights aboard Salyut-6. It is concluded that the diets facilitated maintenance of a good nutrient status, high work capacity and normal health condition.


Using the Coherent states of many fermionic degrees of freedom labeled by Graßmann variables, we introduce the noncommutative (precisely non anti-commutative) Graßmann star product. The covariance of star product under unitary transformations, particularly canonical ones, is studied. The super star product, based on supercoherent states of supersymmetric harmonic oscillator, is also considered.


Autonomous Driving Systems (ADSs) are safety-critical systems, and safety violations of Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) in real traffic will cause huge losses. Therefore, ADSs must be fully tested before deployed on real world roads. Simulation testing is essential to find safety violations of ADS. This paper proposes MOSAT, a multi-objective search-based testing framework, which constructs diverse and adversarial driving environment to expose safety violations of ADSs. Specifically, based on atomic driving maneuvers, MOSAT introduces motif pattern, which describes a sequence of maneuvers that can challenge ADS effectively. MOSAT constructs test scenarios by atomic maneuvers and motif patterns, and uses multi-objective genetic algorithm to search for adversarial and diverse test scenarios. Moreover, in order to test the performance of ADS comprehensively during long-mile driving, we design a novel continuous simulation testing technique, which runs the scenarios generated by multiple parallel search processes alternately in the simulator and can continuously create different perturbations to ADS. We demonstrate MOSAT on an industrial-grade platform, Baidu Apollo, and the experimental results show that MOSAT can effectively generate safety-critical scenarios to crash ADSs and it exposes 11 distinct types of safety violations in a short period of time. It also outperforms state-of-the-art techniques by finding more 6 distinct safety violations on the same road.


A serum prepared with proteins from Salmonella paratyphi C precipitates indiscriminately the proteins from numerous heterologous Salmonellae. After different absorptions, that eliminate all the antibodies induced against common E. coli and Salmonellae determinants, a specific precipitation of a S. paratyphi C protein which is identical with that of an S. paratyphi B protein is evident in agar gel diffusion.


Seven years ago, some operators in the United States began geo-engineering completions to more efficiently stimulate unconventional horizontal wells. Typically, engineers and geoscientists rely on expensive open-hole logs or the over-simplified use of gamma ray to infer mechanical rock properties along the lateral. Engineers then select treatment stage intervals and place perforation clusters in similarly-stressed, "like rock" to minimize the geomechanical variability. Instead of traditional open-hole logging, this paper discusses geo-engineering applications of drill bit geomechanics.
 Drill bit geomechanics is an innovative method for formation evaluation and reservoir characterization. It uses direct, continuous, high-resolution measurements of drilling vibrations recorded downhole. Using earthquake seismology models, one can infer rock properties from the measured drilling vibrations. These rock properties include Poisson's Ratio, Young's Modulus of Elasticity, and the presence of fractures perpendicular to the horizontal well. In this study, the Operator collected drill bit geomechanics data while drilling a new well ~8-34 ft below three existing horizontal wellbores, with over seven years of continuous production. The study well was a 9,500-ft lateral in the Bakken Formation in North Dakota. Using drill-bit-geomechanics-derived rock properties, the operator could confidently geo-engineer a completion, accounting for reservoir depletion from the older wells.
 The drill bit geomechanics data showed dramatic changes in mechanical properties and fracturing where the study well intersected the older wells' stimulated reservoir volumes (SRVs). The operator had a general idea of the wells' SRVs from microseismic data acquired during two wells' stimulations. Using the drill bit geomechanics data from the study well, the operator could more effectively constrain the drainage ellipses from the sparse microseismic data. The operator geo-engineered a 27-stage completion by combining "like rock" of the same reservoir pressure. Measured Instantaneous Shut-In Pressures (ISIPs) during the completion showed significantly lower ISIPs for the partially-depleted stages closest to the older wells. Thus, combining similarly-pressured stages was critical to the completion's success. Well performance has proven to be excellent for the area, even when compared to wells without depletion from older producing wellbores.
 As shown in this case study, drill bit geomechanics is an economic, useful tool to identify depletion and accurately measure rock properties and fractures at a very high resolution.


The development of offshore wind farms requires advanced knowledge and technology, particularly with regard to the design and installation of foundation systems. Offshore wind turbine foundations, such as monopiles, cannot be adequately designed without in-depth analysis of soil-foundation interaction under environmental cyclic loads, such as those induced by wind and marine waves. Serviceability criteria for offshore monopiles include the estimation of long-term, permanent tilt under long-lasting cycling. In the lack of well-established analysis methods, both experimental and computational studies have been carried out in the last decade to support the fundamental understanding of cyclic monopile–soil interaction mechanisms, and in turn the conception of engineering methods for monopile tilt predictions. With regard to the case of monopiles in sandy soil, this paper summarises recent work on the 3D finite element (FE) modelling of monopile tilt based on the SANISAND-MS model proposed by Liu et al. (2019) [1], which enables realistic simulation of cyclic sand ratcheting and densification around the pile. Overall, the presented numerical results confirm the suitability of the SANISAND-MS 3D FE framework as well as, however, its high computational costs. To foster more efficient application to geotechnical design, it is shown how the same theoretical framework on which the SANISAND-MS formulation is based, can be exploited to derive 1D pile-soil interaction models for the p-y-type analysis of cyclically loaded monopiles. In this respect, the importance of preliminary 3D FE modelling and linking to site investigation data (e.g., CPT profiles) is recognised as key to the practical calibration and use of cyclic p-y models.


Nigeria is currently being confronted by serious security challenges which include armed violence, stealing, Assault, ritual killing, violent conflict between groups, rapes, cultism or gang violence etc. These constitute immediate threats to security and development of the country. Lack of organized system of data collection, storage and analysis has been the major problem confronting the Nigeria Police in combating all forms of criminal activities in the country. The seriousness of crimes and violence in our society have led many people in deadly fear and people haunted by fearful thought of being mugged in the street, assaulted or vulnerable for rapping Protection of lives and security of properties by the police is the one of primary key function and Atiba Local Government Area of Oyo State is not an exception of these security challenges . Police is being an official of government and society saddled with the responsibilities for  preventing and control of crimes and to dislodged the activities of these criminals. The study was aimed at applying Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques in analyzing crime pattern to determine its effectiveness and forecast the need for intelligence-led policing in the study area. Methodology involved database design, acquisition of geometric data from Ikonos satellite image and attribute data through social survey. Georeferencing and digitizing of satellite image was carried out in ArcGIS 10.0 software and spatial analyses performed included overlay operations, spatial query, buffering and road network analysis while the final information derived from the database were presented as maps.


Stroke often causes disability in the patients who survive. This condition may affect the quality of life. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between disability and the quality of life in stroke patients at Poly Neurology Kraton Hospital of Pekalongan. This study used the Modified Rankin Scale to measure body function (disability) and the short version of the Stroke-Specific Quality of Life Scale (SS-QOL-12) to measure the quality of life. This cross-sectional study used convenience sampling to recruit 78 respondents. Simple linear regression was used to analyse the data. The R2 produced was 0.126 and the beta score was -0.122, meaning that every increase of one unit in the Modified Rankin Scale decreased the quality of life by 0.122 units. This study therefore revealed that physical function was significantly correlated with quality of life among stroke patients.
Keywords: Modified Rankin Scale, Stroke-Specific Quality of Life Scale, stroke


The aerodynamic oral-nasal factors related to the speech of two groups of cleft-palate children were evaluated. One group presented hypernasality and the other group presented normal nasal resonance. The aerodynamic parameters evaluated were oral pressure, nasal flow, and flow-pressure ratio (nasal flow/oral pressure). Oral temperature readings were also obtained. These parameters were evaluated under three conditions (1) blowing, (2) vocalizing the vowel /i/, and (3) reading eight sentences representing two different rhythm patterns, two types of consonant loadings, and two conditions of syllable stress. The findings revealed significant differences between the hypernasal and normal resonance groups in flow-pressure ratio, oral pressure, and nasal flow while subjects were reading sentences. However, only a small proportion of the variability in these aerodynamic measurements could be accounted for based on the classification of hypernasality or normal nasal resonance. Oral-nasal aerodynamic studies done during speaking activity are more useful clinically than blowing activity or saying vowel sounds. No aerodynamic differences were noted between the two groups for the different rhythm and stress patterns and phonemic loadings within the sentences used.


PurposeDespite the theoretical advancements of market orientation and firm performance, there is a paucity of research regarding SMEs in Indonesia. Customer and competitor orientation were examined as two distinct constructs as per the literature, as it has been questioned for its robustness. They have been used synonymously, even though customer orientation is operationalised as a component of a market orientation construct. There is support for the argument from a theoretical point of view to keep customer orientation and competitor orientation separate. The objective of this research was to empirically test market orientation concepts on firm performance and assessing customer and competitor orientation separately. Furthermore, it also tests whether innovation plays a mediating role.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 309 small and medium-sized firms was found eligible for this study. Structural Equation Modelling was used to analyze the data. A multi-industry sample of firms was used to strengthen the generalisability of the results. The sample was acquired from two databases of SMEs directory in Kudus and Pati, East Java Indonesia, participants were randomly selected.FindingsThe findings show that innovation mediates the relationship between competitor orientation and firm performance, while competitor orientation had no significant relationship with firm performance. Customer orientation was found to positively influence firm performance.Originality/valueThe role of innovation as a mediator within SMEs in a developing country opens up avenues for further research among other developing countries. By examining both the concepts of customer and competitor orientation separately and establishing relationships, we validate support for this argument both from a methodological and theoretical point of view.


Report on the IEA Workshop held at Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America, 16-18 March 1998. Recent experience with the use of tritium fuel in the TFTR and JET, together with progress in developing the technical design of ITER, has expanded the technical knowledge base for tritium issues in fusion. This paper reports on an IEA workshop that brought together scientists and engineers to share experience and expertise on all fusion related tritium issues. Extensive discussion periods were devoted to exploring outstanding issues and identifying potential R&D avenues to address them. The presentations, discussions and recommendations are summarized.


Total intravenous anaesthesia for patients with osteogenesis imperfecta SiR-Osteogenesis imperfecta (011, an inherited autosomal dominant trait, has several anaesthetic implications. We recently encountered two children (10and 12years-old respectively) with 01 scheduled for reconstructive orthopaedic procedures under general anaesthesia. In both cases anaesthesia was induced with propofol (2.5 rngkg-') and alfentanil (25 pg-kg-') and after achieving an appropriate anaesthetic depth a laryngeal mask airway (LMA) was gently inserted with the head in neutral position. Anaesthesia was maintained with a continuous infusion of propofol (100-200 pgkg-'.min-') and alfentanil (0.5-3.0 pg.kg-'.min-'), and supplemented with a mixture of 60:40% air and oxygen from a Siemens 900C ventilator in a CPAP mode. The patients were allowed to breath spontaneously while the Sp02, ETco2, temperature and the other vital signs were continuously monitored, and were within the normal limits. At the end of surgery, ten min after discontinuation of the propofol and alfentanil infusions, the patients were awakened smoothly. No perioperative complications were encountered. Patients with 01 have increased bone fragility and recurring fractures necessitating repeated surgical interventions. The main anaesthetic implications of 01 are: fragility of the cervical spine, mandible and teeth, kyphoscoliosis and abnormal platelet function. Other associated problems include aortic and mitral regurgitation, cleft palate and increased metabolic rate (Salem 1983). Tracheal intubation should be carried out with extreme caution due to the increased risk of damage to the teeth, mandible and cervical spine (Libman 1981). Because of the sporadic coincidental association between 01 and malignant hyperpyrexia (MH) (Rampton et al. 1984), drugs that may trigger MH should be avoided. Spinal and epidural anaesthesia may be hazardous due to the possibility of coincidental spina bifida and spine fractures. In the' view of these risk factors, we conclude that continuous infusions of propofol and alfentanil while using the LMA, might be a safe approach to anaesthetic management of the patients suffering from 01. PETER SZMUK MD TIBERIU EZRI MD DAVID S~ROKER MD Department of Anaesthesia, Kaplan Hospital 76100 Rehovot, lsrael Correspondence to: P. Szmuk MD


The present work demonstrates that by using computer calculation on load-deformation curves it is possible to obtain a good deal of useful information on the mechanical properties of material for suturing. The mechanical properties of Prolene, Ethilon and surgical steel loops were investigated. The testing of the loops was performed on a materials testing machine. The load deformation curves were fed into a calculator by a digitizer (Hewlett-Packard 9830 system). A number of examples are given on the practical importance of the different mechanical parameters. Further the investigation showed that the physical characteristics of the materials in Prolene and Ethilon vary with the size of the threads.


Corrosion of reinforcing steel in concrete structures causes concrete cracking, steel diameter reduction and eventually loss of safety. In infrastructure this is mainly due to penetration of chloride ions from de-icing or marine salts. Conventional repair means heavy, labour intensive and costly work, and economic pressures (time and money) work against the required quality level. Consequently, conventional repair is short lived in many cases in practice. Corrosion reappears quickly and the structure needs to be repaired again after a relatively short time, further increasing life-cycle cost. A completely different situation comes about with Cathodic Protection (CP) of steel in concrete as a repair method. Cathodic protection has been applied to concrete structures with corrosion damage for more than 25 years. This paper reports experience and data of costs for maintaining CP systems, based on an inventory of CP systems in the Netherlands installed between 1987 and 2010. For 105 structures with CP, performance and maintenance data were obtained. The large majority provides corrosion protection for a long time. Degradation of components and overall systems seems to occur in limited numbers. Failure of components and total systems as a function of age is quantified. On the average, the time until minor repairs of parts are necessary is about 15 years. Global failure of the anode, which necessitates near complete replacement of the system, is rare. Based on the statistical analysis of field data, the cost of maintaining a CP system was modelled in terms of life cycle cost. © 2012 Taylor & Francis Group.


The common response to infection is infiltration of the affected tissue by inflammatory cells. It is now recognized that the epithelium plays a crucial role in this immunological process by producing an array of proinflammatory cytokines including interleukin‐8, tumour necrosis factor‐α, monocyte chemotactic protein‐1, granulocytemacrophage colony‐stimulating factor, extractable nuclear antigen‐78 and others. The response of the intestinal epithelium to bacterial pathogens is particularly intriguing because it is literally bathed by normal bacterial flora and bacterial components/products yet remains immunologically quiescent despite this potentially hostile environment. In contrast, when challenged by bacterial pathogens, intestinal epithelial cells exhibit a vigorous immunological response. Our laboratory has, therefore, focused on the immune response of intestinal epithelial cells when confronted by a specific bacterial pathogen, enteropathogenic Escherichia coli.


We identified an important issue when supporting a large scale networked virtual environment (NVE) with a server cluster. This issue is similar to the process migration issue on the parallel computing study and we refer it as the avatar migration problem. That is, when an avatar of an NVE is moving from one region managed by a server to another region managed by a different server, the client site may perceive abrupt screen change due to the different contents managed by these two servers. This paper proposes equations to solve this problem and elaborates the proposed avatar migration mechanism with state diagrams. The implementing architecture is also given in this paper. Our experiments that successfully show the efficiency of the proposed mechanism are given at the last.


An elastic seton has been used in more than 35 patients in the surgical management of anterior abscess-anal fistula and anterolateral anal fistula in women. Elastic setons are applicable in the treatment of other complicated abscess-anal fistulas. The advantage of this method is the good functional result, with a minimal deformity of the anus. The treatment can be administered with a minimal number of hospital days or, in some instances, on an an outpatient basis.


M. Friedman and L. B. Strang2l suggested that treatment with intramuscular corticotrophin would avoid the effect of steroids in suppressing the growth of asthmatic and nephrotic children, and they showed an impressive promotion of growth in children treated with corticotrophin. On the other hand, long-term intramuscular therapy is not welcomed by children. On balance it seems that oral corticosteroids are still the drugs of choice both for the initial treatment and for the infrequent relapses. Review of the literature suggests that the safest steroids are prednisolone and prednisone. A small number of children with the nephrotic syndrome do not respond to steroids from the beginning. These children not infrequently have haematuria.22 In renal biopsies proliferative or membranous changes may be seen on light microscopy3 and immunoglobulin deposits can be shown 'by fluorescent microscopy.5 Differential protein clearance may show unselective proteinuria,7 and the serum levels of beta1-C globulin may be reduced." A patient with these findings is very unlikely to benefit from prolonged treatment with steroids. Recently a number of centres have published encouraging results from the use of immunosuppressive drugs in relatively small series of steroid-resistant cases.24-2" These claims remain to be substantiated, and the results of two multi-centre trials recently started will be awaited with great interest. If these immunosuppressive drugs are proved to be effective they may also have a place in treating the patients who suffer frequent relapses, who at present so often also suffer from the side-effects of steroid therapy.


Abstract : The objectives of this research were to use X-ray crystallography and various spectroscopies, especially circular dichroism, nuclear magnetic resonance and circularly polarized luminescence, to probe the nature and extent of the interaction between macrocyclic polyether complexes and cations, and between the resulting complexes and anions, as well as to determine the influence that complexation exerts on the conformation of the polyether. Eighteen optically active macrocyclic polyethers, with ring sizes between 12 atoms and 24, were synthesized. In each case chirality was conferred by 2 or 4 methyl substituents on the macro ring. Ten of the compounds incorporated one or two benzene rings, these providing the chromophore which displayed circular dichroism due to the influence of the dissymmetric macro ring fused to them. In other cases the electronic transition either occurred in the cation complexed by the polyether or in an associated anion. Examples of the former were Eu (III) and Tb (III), of the latter nitrate and nitrite.


Ichnological analysis, particularly assessing bioturbation index, provides critical parameters for characterizing many oil and gas reservoirs. It provides information on reservoir quality, paleodepositional conditions, redox conditions, and more. However, accurately characterizing ichnological characteristics requires long hours of training and practice, and many marine or marginal marine reservoirs require these specialized expertise. This adds more load to geoscientists and may cause distraction, errors, and bias, particularly when continuously logging long sedimentary successions. In order to alleviate this issue, we propose an automated technique to determine the bioturbation index in cores and outcrops by harnessing the capabilities of deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) as image classifiers. In order to find a fast and robust solution, we utilize ideas from deep learning. We compiled and labeled a large data set (1303 images) composed of images spanning the full range (BI 0–6) of bioturbation indices. We divided these images into groups based on their bioturbation indices in order to prepare training data for the DCNN. Finally, we analyzed the trained DCNN model on images and obtained high classification accuracies. This is a pioneering work in the field of ichnological analysis, as the current practice is to perform classification tasks manually by experts in the field.


The Doublet III data acquisition computer system acquires, archives, and processes over three megabytes of data from each shot of the experiment. A shot lasts 1-2 seconds and occurs every 5-6 minutes with 50-100 shots/day. The data acquisition system has been configured to efficiently handle the increasing quantity of data as new plasma instruments are added (five megabytes within a year) and to provide interactive capability during operations. The configuration is a dual CPU system with a dual port disk and bulk core memory. One CPU is devoted to acquisition and archiving while the other CPU is for analysis and interactive use. This system has enabled improved shot-to-shot processing of plasma data thus providing guidance to the physics operations team. A planned upgrade of Doublet III will require data handling of over 20 megabytes/ shot.


Chronic heart failure shows an increasing prevalence and extremely high rate of both hospital admission and readmission. Thus, in recent years there has been a growing interest in the development of more effective strategies for disease management. The existing literature shows programs involving multidisciplinary teams, specialized clinics, that employ a systematic approach and provide continuity of care, frequently involving a specialized nurse dedicated to comprehensive management. These experiences reported a favourable effects on clinically relevant outcome, including readmission, quality of care and cost of care. A recent randomized trial conducted by Krumholtz and colleagues emphasises the importance of patient's education and support intervention, without medical management components. This model was effective in reducing readmissions and in-hospital costs. On the basis of these data, patients education and support should be considered a "non-pharmacological therapy" for heart failure patients.


Multiple access is the base for increasing the capacity in multi-user communication networks. However, the growing demand for higher data rates and the number of users who requires communication services has led to the scarcity of orthogonal resources in current wireless communications. On the other hand, integrating the satellite within terrestrial networks as an initiative of 3GPP since its Release 15 entails the need for new forms of multiple access between terrestrial and non-terrestrial users. This paper studies constellation schemes as a new domain to enhance the state-of-the-art multiple-access techniques for future communication technologies employing non-coherent communications with massive MIMO. In addition, we propose a hybrid model between the classic access methods such as Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), the emerging models of non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) and the proposed domain of the constellation based on non-coherent massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) schemes. This model is discussed for different scenarios in satellite communications that help increase the system's capacity and avoid interference between terrestrial and non-terrestrial users.


Buruli ulcer (BU) is one of the 17 neglected tropical diseases for which the World Health Organization has adopted resolutions to improve treatment. BU was previously described as a relatively painless condition; however, recent research has indicated that some patients experience substantial pain. The objective of this study was to explore patients' experiences of pain and their expectations for its treatment. Semistructured interviews were conducted in a BU-endemic region of Ghana. Interviews were held with former BU patients (N = 20) and community controls (N = 19). Former patients were asked about BU-related pain and their expectations for its treatment. The interviews were conducted in October 2014, and were audiotaped, translated and transcribed into English, and then qualitatively analyzed. Of the 20 former BU patients interviewed, 19 (95%) reported experiencing pain, with patients reporting pain as a consequence of the ulcer and wound management. Some participants expressed pain through crying, whereas others did not openly express pain, sometimes because they feared the repercussions of doing so. Patients wanted to receive pain relief; however, many were unable to name a medication. Nonpharmaceutical options were cited as being an alternative. Many BU patients experience pain; however, former patients and community members alike appear to have a limited knowledge about available pain relief. A low-cost alternative to medication may be the use of nonpharmaceutical means for pain relief. Routine pain assessment may reduce patients' fear and unwillingness to express pain. Awareness of such issues will be valuable when implementing a BU pain relief guideline.


The 1S0-3P0 clock transition frequency nuSr in neutral 87Sr has been measured relative to the Cs standard by three independent laboratories in Boulder, Paris, and Tokyo over the last three years. The agreement on the 1 x 10(-15) level makes nuSr the best agreed-upon optical atomic frequency. We combine periodic variations in the 87Sr clock frequency with 199Hg+ and H-maser data to test local position invariance by obtaining the strongest limits to date on gravitational-coupling coefficients for the fine-structure constant alpha, electron-proton mass ratio mu, and light quark mass. Furthermore, after 199Hg+, 171Yb+, and H, we add 87Sr as the fourth optical atomic clock species to enhance constraints on yearly drifts of alpha and mu.


Assisted reproductive technologies are essential in modern cattle breeding. The relevance of in vitro embryo production (IVP) has been increasing around the world, particularly in Brazil. Acknowledging the positive effect of IVP regarding the utilization of female reproductive potential, its productivity can be improved. Methylation pattern of DNA in oocytes is a key factor for the improvement of IVP efficiency because it is related to oocyte competence. The objective of this study was to evaluate the methylation pattern of a differentially methylated region (DMR) located in the exon 10 of the imprint gene IGF2 in immature and in vitro-maturated oocytes from different follicle sizes. Small follicles (1-3 mm in diameter) and large follicles (≥8.1 mm in diameter) were dissected from slaughterhouse ovaries, and the COC were removed. Immature and in vitro-maturated oocytes, presenting the first polar body, were denuded and frozen in PBS at -80°C until DNA extraction. After extraction, DNA was treated with sodium bisulfite using EZ DNA Methylation™ Kit (Zymo Research, Orange, CA, USA). Bisulfite-treated DNA was amplified in a 2-round PCR strategy (nested-PCR), the amplicons purified with Geneclean® III Kit (MP Biomedicals, Irvine, CA, USA), cloned using pGEM®-T Easy Vector System (Promega, Madison, WI, USA), and sequenced. The number of follicles and in vitro maturation data were analyzed with chi-square test, and the methylation status of 27 CpG islands was analyzed with Student (normal distribution) or Mann-Whitney tests in the Prophet software (BBN Systems and Technologies, Cambridge, MA, USA). Cumulus-oocyte complexes from ≥8.1-mm follicles presented greater percentages of viable oocytes (40.5%) and nuclear maturation (60.6%) (P ≤ 0.05). Immature oocytes from 1- to 3-mm follicles were less methylated (33.33%) than those from ≥8.1-mm follicles (83.69%). After in vitro maturation, oocytes from ≥8.1-mm follicles were less methylated (18.51%) than the immature oocytes from ≥8.1-mm follicles (83.69%) and 1- to 3-mm maturated oocytes (49.62%). The less methylated pattern in the oocytes from ≥8.1-mm maturated follicles can be associated with greater competency of those oocytes, because this was the expected pattern. The lower level of methylation in the immature oocytes group (1- to 3-mm follicles) can be associated with the incomplete establishment of imprinting reprogramming pattern. Finally, we concluded that the methylation pattern of DMR, in the last exon of the IGF2 gene, can be used as a molecular marker for epigenetic reprogramming status in oocytes, helping the development of new IVP protocols. Supported by Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology and CAPES.


For almost as long as there has been recorded information, there has been a perception that humanity has been overloaded by it. Concerns about 'too much to read' have been expressed for many centuries, and made more urgent since the arrival of ubiquitous digital information in the late twentieth century. The historical perspective is a necessary corrective to the often, and wrongly, held view that it is associated solely with the modern digital information environment, and with social media in particular. However, as society fully experiences Floridi's Fourth Revolution, and moves into hyper-history (with society dependent on, and defined by, information and communication technologies) and the infosphere (a information environment distinguished by a seamless blend of online and offline information actvity), individuals and societies are dependent on, and formed by, information in an unprecedented way, information overload needs to be taken more seriously than ever. Overload has been claimed to be both the major issue of our time, and a complete non-issue. It has been cited as an important factor in, inter alia, science, medicine, education, politics, governance, business and marketing, planning for smart cities, access to news, personal data tracking, home life, use of social media, and online shopping, and has even influenced literature The information overload phenomenon has been known by many different names, including: information overabundance, infobesity, infoglut, data smog, information pollution, information fatigue, social media fatigue, social media overload, information anxiety, library anxiety, infostress, infoxication, reading overload, communication overload, cognitive overload, information violence, and information assault. There is no single generally accepted definition, but it can best be understood as that situation which arises when there is so much relevant and potentially useful information available that it becomes a hindrance rather than a help. Its essential nature has not changed with changing technology, though its causes and proposed solutions have changed much. The best ways of avoiding overload, individually and socially, appear to lie in a variety of coping strategies, such as filtering, withdrawing, queuing, and 'satisficing'. Better design of information systems, effective personal information management, and the promotion of digital and media literacies, also have a part to play. Overload may perhaps best be overcome by seeking a mindful balance in consuming information, and in finding understanding.


Despite it is widely distributed in South America, there are few data about the anatomy of the Crab-eating fox. Once the domestic dog can be used as model for clinical and surgical approaches, the anatomical differences found between the Crab-eating fox and the domestic dog are important. The aim of this study is to describe the supplied areas of the femoral artery and its respective branches in Crab-eating Fox (Cerdocyon thous) and compare them with domestic dogs. Two pelvic limbs from one adult male animal originated from the Niteroi Zoo were used. The vascular system was filled with neoprene latex and fixed with 10% formalin to make the dissection easier. The results displayed similar arrangement for the branches of the femoral artery of the Crabeating Fox in comparison with domestic dogs, except for the Lateral circumflex femoral artery. This artery not only supplied the Satorius muscle, Quadriceps femoris muscle but also the ventral part of the lateral abdominal wall. This study brings data to applied anatomy and biodiversity.


The paper combines Tobin'sQ theory of real investment with the capital asset pricing model to produce a new and relatively simple procedure for the valuation of real assets using the income approach. Applications of the new method are provided.


To investigate the semi-quantitative method for evaluating lipid accumulation in livers, male C57BL/6J mice (CON), HFD mice characterized with the mild fatty liver induced by high-fat diet, and KKAy mice charactered with the moderately severe fatty liver induced by high-caloric diet were used. The lipid accumulation was estimated by the histological examination (HE staining) and the content of hepatic triglyceride, separately. Echo-intensity of two selected regions along the ultrasound transmission direction was recorded using a small animal ultrasonographic system, and the echo-intensity attenuation coefficient was calculated. Correlation between the echo-intensity attenuation coefficient and the content of hepatic triglyceride was analyzed by the Spearman's rank correlation analysis. The results showed that the lipid accumulation in livers increased significantly in both HFD and KKAy mice compared with CON mice and it was more serious in KKAy mice than that in HFD mice. The values of echo-intensity attenuation coefficient were also increased in sequence according to group. These values were positively associated with the content of hepatic triglyceride (r = 0.744, P < 0.01). In conclusion, the echo-intensity attenuation coefficient is a simple, impersonal, and non-invasive method for evaluating the hepatic lipid accumulation. It can be used to research the process and the treatment of fatty liver diseases in mice.


Gain switching phenomena of quantum well (QW) lasers diode is described by using a SPICE equivalent circuit model, which is based on the three-level rate equations. Effects of gain switching frequency, some laser diode parameters and dc and rf drive conditions on the full-width half maximum (FWHM) of gain switched pulses are investigated. It is shown that FWHM of pulses decrease as the rf current increased, at a constant frequency. However, the FWHM of pulses increases as the dc bias is increased. FWHM decreases also for small value of gain compression parameter whereas the variation in carrier lifetime in the well does not significantly affect the FWHM of generated pulses. It is also shown that as the frequency is increased, FWHM start to increase.


Perinatal psychiatric illness is a known complication of pregnancy and childbirth. Risk factors for Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD) are well established, and validated screening questionnaires to assess risk factors and symptoms are readily available. Several national governing bodies recommend screening women for pregnancy and postpartum mood disorders; however, these recommendations do not designate which screening questionnaires to use, when to administer the questionnaires, or how to proceed after screening assessment. This paper outlines the background of PMAD, screening recommendations, and the design of a quality improvement project aimed at implementing a PMAD screening protocol at Lawrence OB-GYN Specialists, a women's health care clinic at LMH Health in Lawrence, Kansas. The Ottawa Model of Research Use guided the project (National Collaborating Center for Methods and Tools, 2017). A pre-protocol survey assessed the clinic environment, including screening practices, as well as opinions and knowledge about PMAD. The screening protocol implemented at the 16-week prenatal appointment included the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Antenatal Risk Questionnaire (ANRQ), a clinical pathway, a resource and referral list, and written patient education. A post-protocol survey assessed the opinions of clinic staff regarding the usefulness of the protocol. Outcomes were measured by survey responses and screening questionnaire data. Information obtained from this project will assist obstetrical offices in screening, identifying, and referring pregnant women at risk for perinatal mental illness.


To make preschool inclusion successful and to have children gain the expected benefits, teachers need to be provided with functional teacher training programs that foster positive attitudes and provide them with a meaningful experience. The purpose of the study was to investigate the readiness of educators of preschool education institutions in Kyiv to work in inclusive classrooms. In the process of integration into the European community, Ukraine has focused on educational reforms, in particular, the creation of conditions for the introduction of inclusive education in educational institutions. The parameters of the research are taken into account, such as attitude to the idea of inclusion, possession of the necessary arsenal of pedagogical practices, understanding of barriers and ways to overcome them on the way to the organization of inclusive education. A structured questionnaire of preschool teachers attempts to reveal their attitudes towards inclusive education in general and to assess the conditions that promote or hinder the emergence of willingness and willingness to work in an inclusive group. The results of the study showed that a significant number of educators have a negative attitude to the idea of inclusion, believing that children should study in special groups or in special institutions (but not boarding schools). Educators name a number of barriers that prevent them from being positive about inclusive education, and underestimate their readiness for such work.


This work presents an investigation on wear prediction of multibody system including dry revolute clearance joint using a computational methodology. A procedure to analyze multibody system in which wear is present at revolute joints is presented. The study involves integrating a dynamics model of the mutibody system with clearance joint into a wear prediction procedure. The contact model in clearance joint is established using a hybrid nonlinear contact force model and the friction effect is considered by using a modified Coulomb friction model. The wear modeling of revolute clearance joint in multibody systems is presented based on the Archard's wear model. Finally, an academic four-bar multibody mechanical system with revolute clearance joint is used as numerical example application to perform the investigation.


The study analyses the percentage of influenza vaccination in health care workers of a big university hospital in Milan during the season 2006/2007. The percentage of vaccinated subjects was 19.8%. The frequency of vaccination has also been assessed according to sex, age, job and school title. Observed data indicates that the number of vaccinated sanitary workers is far below the levels reached in other European countries and in the USA. Thus, in order to reach a higher adhesion to vaccination programs, sensitisation campaigns are necessary.


Background It was gradually accepted that endoscopic fragment biopsy (EFB) diagnosis cannot accurately guarantee the absence of higher-grade neoplasms within the lesion of the digestive tract. There are no well-established predictors for histopathologically upgrade discrepancies between EFB diagnosing colorectal low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (LGIN) and endoscopic resection (ER) specimens. Methods A total of 918 colorectal LGINs was histopathologically diagnosed by EFB, including 162 cases with upgrade discrepancy and 756 concordant cases. We compared clinicopathological data of EFB and ER specimens between these two groups. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify predictors for this upgrade histopathology. Results The predominant upgrade discrepancy of LGINs diagnosed by EFB was upgrades to high-grade dysplasia (114/918, 12.4%), followed by upgrades to intramucosal carcinoma (33/918, 3.6%), submucosal adenocarcinoma (10/918, 1.1%), and advanced adenocarcinoma (5/918, 0.5%). NSAID history (OR 4.83; 95% CI, 2.27-10.27; p < 0.001), insufficient EFB number (OR 2.99; 95% CI, 1.91-4.68; p < 0.001), maximum diameter ≥ 1.0 cm (OR 6.18; 95% CI, 1.32-28.99; p = 0.021), lobulated shape (OR 2.68; 95% CI, 1.65-4.36; p < 0.001), erythema (OR 2.42; 95% CI, 1.50-3.91; p < 0.001), erosion (OR 7.12; 95% CI, 3.91-12.94; p < 0.001), surface unevenness (OR 2.31; 95% CI, 1.33-4.01; p = 0.003), and distal location of the target adenoma (OR 3.29; 95% CI, 1.68-6.41; p < 0.001) were associated with the histologically upgrade discrepancies. Conclusion NSAID history, insufficient EFB number, adenoma size and location, and abnormal macroscopic patterns are potential predictors for upgrade histopathology of LGINs diagnosed by EFBs. The standardization of EFB number and advanced imaging techniques could minimize the risk of neglecting the potential of this upgrade histopathology.


Introduction It has now become common wisdom that there is a link between management practice and the culture of a given society. There have, however, been few studies that deal with the way in which educational institutions shape industrial administration (Fligstein and Byrkjeflot 1996). This may be due to the strong influence of neo-classical economic thought, in which the education system in itself does not matter because, in the last instance, it is shaped by the economy. Managers are understood to be calculators responding to market stimulus, and also in their search for new managerial recruits and their demand for education. In the current wave of cross-national cultural studies, on the other hand, managers and educational systems are presumably pre-programmed by a given society's culture (Hofstede 1993; Lessem and Neubauer 1994). This sudden jump from economic determinism to culturalism seems unfortunate. In the authors' view, there ought to be a relationship between the patterns of recruitment and qualification in management and what kind of industrial structures and strategies emerge in a given geographical area. Knowledge-producing institutions matter because they influence and shape the groups and personalities that are recruited to the executive positions; because of their impact on the way in which they interpret their own activities; and thus also how they legitimate what they do when confronted with opposition or insecurity.


This paper studies how housing prices react to an information shock due to the update in the most popular home valuation algorithm. I find that housing prices react gradually to the information shock: while the reaction in the first month is small, a 1% increase in the online appraisal leads to a 0.65% increase in sale prices 12 months after the shock. The magnitude of the reaction in a ZIP Code increases with its average trading volume over the sample period. In ZIP Codes with top 5% average trading volume, I find that a 1% increase in the online valuation leads to a 1.6% increase in sale prices 12 months after the shock, suggesting overreaction to the information shock. Findings in this paper indicate that machine-learning-based online valuations causally affect housing market transaction prices.


Balanced fertilization is one of the most important factors for increasing yield and improving the quality of wheat crop. In human nutrition PA / Zn ratio is an important factor and nutrients absorption will be reduced by high levels of PA / Zn ratio in diet. Effect of Phosphorus and Zinc fertilizer application to increasing the quality of nourishment in winter wheat a field experiment was carried out from 2008 to 2009 in researching Karaj region. In a factorial experiment with a randomized complete block design and three replicates per treatment, tree levels of P (0, 100 and 200 kg.ha-1 as DAP), two levels of Zn (0 and 40 kg.ha-1as zinc sulfate) and 300 kg.ha-1 urea fertilizer added to the trial plots. All other management practices were done in conventional methods. The seeds were Pishtaz variety that was planted. The Anova results showed that the effect of different rates of P and Zn on chemical characteristic of wheat grain was significant (P < 0.05). P and Zn increased the P and Zn grain concentration also increased grain protein and total grain nitrogen. The interactive effect of P and Zn on above characteristic was significant (P < 0.05) the best treatment in this study was obtained in Zn1P1. The effect of P on the PA/Zn ratio of grain was significant at 5% level and increased it (87.1%) but Zn application significantly (P < 0.05). As far the results of this study reveal that consumption of these two fertilizers it's significant on flour pH and acidity. For reduction of PA / Zn ratios balanced and have a good quality wheat flour, fertilization especially Zn application and apply P fertilizers only on the basis of soil testing are necessary. * Corresponding Author: Amirpouya Sarraf  firstname.lastname@example.com International Journal of Biosciences | IJB | ISSN: 2220-6655 (Print) 2222-5234 (Online) http://www.innspub.net Vol. 5, No. 4, p. 82-87, 2014


Resource sharing between book-ahead (BA) and instantaneous request (IR) reservation often results in high preemption rate of on-going IR calls. High IR call preemption rate causes interruption to service continuity which is considered as detrimental in a QoS-enabled network. A number of call admission control models have been proposed in literature to reduce the preemption rate of on-going IR calls. Many of these models use a tuning parameter to achieve certain level of preemption rate. This paper presents an artificial neural network (ANN) model to dynamically control the preemption rate of on-going calls in a QoS-enabled network. The model maps network traffic parameters and desired level of preemption rate into appropriate tuning parameter. Once trained, this model can be used to automatically estimate the tuning parameter value necessary to achieve the desired level of preemption rate. Simulation results show that the preemption rate attained by the model closely matches with the target rate.


Dengue disease has been a major health problem in many tropical and sub-tropical countries since the early 1900s. On the other hand, according to a 2017 WHO fact sheet, Chikungunya was detected in the first outbreak in 1952 in Tanzania and has continued increasing until now in many tropical and sub-tropical countries. Both these diseases are vector-borne diseases which are spread by the same mosquito, i.e. the female Aedes aegypti. According to the WHO report, there is a great possibility that humans and mosquitos might be infected by dengue and chikungunya at the same time. Here in this article, a mathematical model approach will be used to understand the spread of dengue and chikungunya in a closed population. A model is developed as a nine-dimensional deterministic ordinary differential equation. Equilibrium points and their local stability are analyzed analytically and numerically. We find that the basic reproduction number, the endemic indicator, is given by the maximum of three different basic reproduction numbers of a complete system, i.e. basic reproduction numbers for dengue, chikungunya and for co-infection between dengue and chikungunya. We find that the basic reproduction number for the co-infection sub-system dominates other basic reproduction numbers whenever it is larger than one. Some numerical simulations are provided to confirm these analytical results.