To evaluate partner notification of opposite-sex sexual partners of AIDS patients as a means of limiting sexual and vertical transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the authors examined the first 27 months of their experience with partner notification. Overall, of 145 AIDS patients eligible to participate, 51 (35%) were interviewed and identified 135 opposite-sex sexual partners. Of the 135 partners, 59 (44%) were interviewed and 34 (25%) were tested, resulting in the diagnosis of 7 (5%) HIV-infected partners. Refusal rates for index patients and partners were low (9% and 12%, respectively). Costs for the program were $454 per partner interviewed and $2,203 per seropositive partners identified. The authors conclude that although partner notification is more expensive than more widely targeted AIDS prevention and education efforts, its ability to target case finding, education, and counseling to women at highest risk of infection makes it potentially cost-effective for prevention of vertically transmitted HIV infection.


".... enough scientific knowledge has accumulated so that considerable improvement in the nutritional health of people all over the world could be realized, if only this knowledge were effectively applied." This quotation from the summary of the first chapter, "Nutrition Education," could just as well be the compelling reason for this volume and for the entire series. "Nutrition education is the responsibility of many people in various disciplines. This reality serves to re-emphasize the need for adequate education in nutrition within the basic training of all persons in health and allied fields." The chapters on present concepts in diet therapy and on certain aspects of the history of dietetics could serve as orientation to ways in which nutritional information can be applied therapeutically and in the promotion of health. The effectiveness of programs to modify food habits and the need for social scientists to assist in the development and evaluation of such activities are also reviewed. Scientific knowledge is presented through comprehensive chapters on the metabolism of vitamin A and carotene, the influence of proteins on the absorption and metabolism of vitamin A, an appraisal of the evidence for recently recommended protein allowances, bone pathology in experimental malnutrition, and on the fate of selenium in animals. With advisory editors from seven countries and papers coming from four different countries, the term "World" in the title is appropriate. With papers on the application of nutrition knowledge, the term "Dietetics" is also appropriate. Volume 5 is a welcome addition in this series which has something for everyone concerned with health. JOHN H. BROWE HOUSING AND SOCIETY-By Glenn H. Beyer. New York, N. Y.: Macmillan (60 Fifth Ave.), 1965. 595 pp. Price, $8.95.


With the global progress of industrialization and digitization, an individual's material needs are gradually sublimated to the pursuit of life satisfaction and spiritual pleasure. The Cultural and Creative Industry (CCI) has been formed accordingly based on this phenomenon and many firms are developing towards culture, environment, art, literature, and other aspects. According to the literature, these firms exist in the form of micro businesses or workshops through a local foundation and are less capable of marketing, promotion, and connecting with new consumer groups. Over decades, governments have attached greater attentions to the development of the Micro Cultural and Creative Industry (MCCI) and set about implementing relevant grants, programs, and professional guidance mechanism. However, the question of why MCCI is still faced with considerable difficulties regarding product management and brand marketing remains ambiguous. This knowledge gap becomes the focal motivation for this article. The study is to ascertain the issue and advise the operators and managers of MCCI on how to determine their products for Profitable Core Trade (PCT) and establish marketing strategies in line with the industrial characteristics. The results and marketing guidelines presented in this study are expected to enable the operators and firms of MCCI to properly establish their respective marketing strategies and channels, and, moreover, proactively to achieve further sustainable business.


AIM
The present study has aimed to produce a cutaneous substitute, bringing together stem cells (mesenchymal stem cells) and keratinocytes, and an electrospun biomaterial.

MATERIALS & METHODS
Three groups of scaffolds were studied: group 1, poly-dl-lactic acid (PDLLA); group 2, hydrolyzed PDLLA (PDLLA/NaOH) and group 3, PDLLA/Lam - a PDLLA/NaOH scaffold linked to laminin protein. They were characterized by physicochemical and biological parameters.

RESULTS
As a result, the scaffolds presented well-formed and randomly distributed fibers. Group 3 showed the greatest hydrophilic characteristics. Group 1 showed a greater degradation rate after 14 days. Groups 2 and 3 presented molecular weight of about 40-50 Da. In general, group 3 showed the best results concerning cell adhesion and viability.

CONCLUSION
This study associated two revolutionary fields, stem cells and nanotechnology, for use in regenerative medicine.


Background and purpose Flow disruption with the WEB-DL device has been used safely for the treatment of wide-necked bifurcation aneurysms but the stability of aneurysm occlusion after this treatment is unknown. This retrospective multicenter European study analyzed short- and midterm data in patients treated with WEB-DL. Methods Twelve European neurointerventional centers participated to the study. Clinical data, pre- and post-operative, short-, and midterm images were collected. An experienced interventional neuroradiologist independently analyzed images. Aneurysm occlusion was classified in 4 grades: complete occlusion, opacification of the proximal recess of the device, neck remnant, and aneurysm remnant. Results Forty-five patients (34 females and 11 males) aged 35 to 74 years (mean: 56.3 +/- 9.6 years) harbouring 45 aneurysms treated with the WEB device were included. Aneurysm locations were middle cerebral artery in 26 patients, posterior circulation in 13, anterior communicating artery in 5, and internal carotid artery terminus in 1. Forty-two aneurysms were unruptured. Good clinical outcome (mRS < 2) was observed in 93.3% of patients. Adequate occlusion (Complete occlusion, opacification of the proximal recess, or neck remnant) was observed in 30/37 patients (81.1%) in short-term follow-up (median 6 months) and in 26/29 patients (89.7%) in midterm follow-up (median 13 months). Worsening of aneurysm occlusion was observed in 2/28 patients (7.1%) in midterm follow-up. Conclusions The results suggest WEB treatment of wide-neck bifurcation aneurysms offers stable occlusion in aneurysms that are usually unstable. Additionally, our data show that opacification of the WEB recess can be delineated from true neck or aneurysm remnant. Disclosures L. Pierot: 2; C; Sequent. J. Klisch: None. J. Gauvrit: None. I. Szikora: None. M. Leonardi: None. T. Liebig: None. N. Nunzi: None. E. Boccardi: None. F. Di Paola: None. M. Holtmanspötter: None. W. Weber: None. E. Calgliari: None. B. Lubicz: None.


This narrative addresses the issue of fisheries law, a specialist area combining aspects of international law, EU law, legislation from the UK and the devolved administrations and the common law. The research appraised and analysed marine fishing rights, the ownership of the UK marine fishery and the establishment of marine protected areas both under UK and aspects of EU law. The research adopted a doctrinal method triangulated via professional examples adopting aspects of action research.

The scientific research, on which this research drew, established that there is a serious decline in UK fisheries and an urgent need to bring in measures to safeguard the fishery.

The research found significant failings in the common law public right to fish, which designated the UK's entire marine area as a fishery without apparent reasonable limitations as to use. It found that the absence of a stated public owner of the fishery with clear public duties makes it difficult to secure the public interest.
It also highlighted the absence of clarity in the creation of derivative rights in the public fishery such as fishing quota, estimated in 1999 to be worth £1 billion. The research demonstrates the significant shortfall in the number of statutory marine protected areas created under the Marine Acts and raises concerns that these statutory measures could lead to paper parks with no active management measures. It shows the effectiveness of the application of the Habitats Directive to protect European marine sites and concludes that other European legislation could similarly be used to protect the marine environment from fisheries.

It also found a lack of a coherent narrative relating to the mechanics and powers and duties of UK fisheries managers and concluded that there should be more comprehensive guidance on UK fisheries law, as the last comprehensive fishery texts date from the nineteenth century.

The research recommends new Fisheries Acts to remedy some of the apparent defects in UK fisheries law.


Man's natural progress, including development of global science and technology increase. Republic of Croatia, like other countries in central, southern and eastern Europe, undergoing a war period, and a period of political, economic, social and the other transition. Change, however, has not been confined only to these various areas, but has affected all sectors economic, social, civil and military defense and specially, the health sector where a various infectious diseases play one of major role. One of areas where the effect of change is certainly being felt is in the global and health sector. The main feature of infectious diseases comes from their global occurrence. Infective diseases are permanent danger for population, environment and determinant of health status. In the past, infective diseases and great epidemics of infective diseases resulted in high incidence, morbidity and mortality and dominant ireverse effect. Therefore, the world community has to study these infections and try to develop efficient approaches to their diagnosis, prophylaxis and treatment. Civil defense, Health policy, the structure and organization of defense and health services and most importantly, health status have all been affected by the transition, which started in 1990 and still continuing.


This study provides an analysis of the costs and benefits of emigration for Georgia, with an emphasis on emigration to the EU. In the concluding section we dwell on the consequences of a possible liberalization of EU migration policies with regard to Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries, and how such a policy change would affect the flow and composition of migration from Georgia to the EU. The study estimates the costs and benefits of migration through the prism of recent economics developments in Georgia and in particular the sweeping liberalization reforms of recent years. While Georgia remains a poor country, its geopolitical position as a Western outpost in the Caucasus and Central Asian region, its role as a key trade and transportation hub, the superior quality of its bureaucracy, lack of corruption, etc., provide a very different context for migration processes, turning migration into a circular phenomenon, a major factor in modernizing the Georgian economy, society, and politics. The EU should give due consideration to this phenomenon as it (re)considers its policy on migration with regard to Georgia and, potentially, other EaP countries.


We propose a semianalytical solution for evaluation of field distributions around a long opening in a metallic conductive half space excited by a three-dimensional current-carrying inducer at arbitrary frequency. The governing Helmholtz equation is solved in three dimensions by separation of variables. The solution is obtained by developing a two-dimensional (2-D) Fourier series model and using exponential functions in the third dimension. To expand all possible field distributions in the metal, we assume it as a lossy material with very large loss-tangent. The displacement current in the metal opening is regarded to have a nonzero value accordingly. After imposing boundary conditions and mode matching technique, a system of AX=B is solved to obtain the unknown coefficients. The proposed model is found to be consistent with the existing 2-D model and in excellent agreement with those obtained numerically using a finite integration code.


Aims:
 Although overall U.S. stroke mortality rates have declined significantly since the 1950s, stroke rates remain high for African-Americans (AA). Disparities are most evident in those ≤65, and AA/white mortality ratio among men aged 45-54 years is 3.7. Care approaches targeting young AA men could improve disparities. This National Institute of Health (NIH)-funded study compared a novel behavioral TargetEd MAnageMent Intervention (TEAM) vs. treatment as usual (TAU) in 38 young (< age 65) AA men with stroke or TIA.

 Methods:
 A community- engaged process was used to refine an existing behavioral intervention. Participants were then randomly assigned to TEAM (N=19) or TAU (N=19). TEAM was assessed for feasibility, acceptability, and fidelity, and efficacy in comparison to TAU on medication adherence, stroke risk factors (blood pressure, diabetes control/HbA1c, lipids) and health behaviors. Qualitative assessment evaluated the perspectives of intervention participants.

 Results:
 Sample mean age was 52.1 (SD 7.4). Half had TIA and half had stroke. Mean body mass index was 31.4 (SD 7.4). Baseline systolic blood pressure mean was 129 (SD 16.6) and diastolic mean was 84 (SD 11.1). Baseline non-adherence (missed medication) was only 5.9% (SD 14.4). There were 14/38 (36.8%) with diabetes, with mean HbA1c of 8.0, SD 1.8. Baseline serum lipids were all within desirable targets. At 12 weeks, TEAM participants had a significantly lower rate of hypertension. This difference was maintained at 24 weeks, but was no longer statistically significant. Mean systolic pressure was significantly lower in TEAM at 24 weeks (p =.03), and diastolic pressure was lower in TEAM at 12 weeks compared to TAU (p <.05). HDL cholesterol was better in TEAM at 24 weeks (p=.03). Other biomarker and health behaviors were similar between groups. While mean HbA1c was not assessed in TAU due to small sample size, HbA1c improved in TEAM. There was minimal improvement in adherence. Qualitative results suggested improved awareness of risk factors as well as positive effects of group support.

 Conclusions:
 TEAM can engage AA men, and has potential to improve stroke risk-factors. Qualitative findings suggest that effects might be enhanced with a slighter longer duration and including older AA and women.


Mucinous cystadenoma of the testis is a very rare tumor. Herein, we report a case of mucinous cystadenoma arising in the testis of a 61-year-old man, along with a literature review. Computed tomography showed a 2.5-cm-sized poorly enhancing cystic mass. Grossly, the tumor was a unilocular cystic mass filled with mucinous material and confined to the testicular parenchyma. Histologically, the cyst had a fibrotic wall lined by mucinous columnar epithelium without atypia. Immunohistochemical staining was positive for cytokeratin 20 and CDX2, as well as focally positive for cytokeratin 7. The pathologic diagnosis was mucinous cystadenoma.


ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate factors related to the mental health of Peruvian older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study had a cross-sectional and observational design. A total of 274 older adults in Lima, Peru (Mage = 67.86) filled out a sociodemographic survey, the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale, Mental Health Inventory-5, Patient Health Questionnaire-2 item, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale. A Structural Equation Model (SEM) was estimated to test an a priori model that relates the sociodemographic variables, COVID-19 Anxiety, psychological well-being, anxiety and depression. The model fit indices indicated a good fit to the data. The socio-demographic variables explained 23.8% of the variance of the COVID-19 Anxiety (R2 = .238). Socio-demographic variables explained 50.5% of psychological well-being variance, 52% of anxiety and 46.9% of depression. Also, sex, work; being diagnosed with COVID-19; family member with COVID-19 diagnosis; and time of exposure to COVID-19 information had statistically significant effects psychological well-being, anxiety and depression. In conclusion, some sociodemographic characteristics and COVID-19 anxiety affect the psychological well-being, anxiety and depression. The findings may allow for a better understanding of the mental health of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic and guide government responses to detect, anticipate and minimize its impact on the mental health of this population.


Digital medicine might transform healthcare more fundamentally than the introduction of anesthesia or germ basis theory of disease. Already, tens of thousands of "medical apps" are available for smartphones. These computer applications can measure blood pressure, pulse, lung function, oxygenation level, sugar level, breathing rate and body temperature — and can even diagnose skin cancer, analyze urine, take an echocardiogram. In Fall 2013, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has asserted regulatory authority over mobile medical applications and other digital medical services, threatening to chill, if not, destroy this innovation. This Article argues that the FDA stands on firm legal ground regulating medical devices that invasively measure bodily functions or take physical specimens. On the other hand, the FDA's exercise of jurisdiction over applications that simply process information, or use approved medical devices to provide medical information, like 23andMe, a genome analysis firm against which the FDA brought enforcement proceedings, raise legal concerns. In particular, because these medical applications simply process information, the First Amendment places them beyond the FDA's regulatory reach.This paper adds to the debate on the First Amendment, information and computer code. Building on recent Supreme Court decisions, this paper shows how code and applications that create healthcare information are protected speech. Given digital applications' capacity to produce pools of data that researchers can mine for clinical and epidemiological insights and given government funding of medical services, healthcare data and production are scientific and political speech, deserving of full First Amendment protection.


(1) Background: Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs) have pleiotropic roles including canonical DNA-damage response (DDR) pathways. PARP inhibition is initially proposed as a synthetic lethal interactor with cancer harboring homologous recombination deficiency (HRD), thus becoming a key therapeutic option for genetically-defined subsets of patients. Recently, there has been increasing evidence supporting the expansion of PARP-targeted therapy beyond HRD. Besides, synthetic lethality pathways for PARP-targeted therapy are being studied extensively due to the rapidly developed resistance to PARP inhibitors (PARPi).
(2) Methods: We perform integrative pharmaco-transcriptomic analyses by correlating the drug response profiles of clinically-approved PARPi olaparib with the transcriptomes of solid cancer cell lines (n=659) to establish PARPis responsive gene signatures, which are then evaluated for their reliability using independent drug response datasets, and applied to identify tumor subsets primed for PARPi and potential targets synergistically interacting with PARPi.
(3) Results: Based on the pharmaco-transcriptomic correlation analysis, we delineate gene signatures to predict the sensitivity and resistance to olaparib in pan-solid cancer cells, which is confirmed by independent drug response datasets. In further exploring the PARPi sensitivity signature, we identify IDH1/2 (isocitrate dehydrogenase 1/2)-mutated low-grade glioma (LGG) and NEUROD1-driven small cell lung cancer (SCLC) as potential subsets for prioritized PARPi, highlighting relaunching PARPi as a promising and innovative strategy to target these malignancy subtypes. Interestingly, the PARPi responsive signatures display a high degree of heterogeneity in the correlation with the curated HRD signatures across TCGA pan-solid cancer cohort, suggesting that these signatures predictive of PARPi responsiveness are HRD-independent. With the PARPi resistance signature, we identified several potentially synthetic lethal interactors with PARPi, e.g. dasatinib, EGFR, or MEK inhibitors.
(4) Conclusions: The established PARPi responsive (sensitive/resistant) signatures in solid tumors exhibit robustness in identifying cancer subtypes that are highly primed for PARP-targeted therapy, and combined targets that synergistically augment the efficacy of PARPi.


The pattern and characteristics of diving of two male blue-eyed shags Phalacrocorax atriceps were studied, using continuous-recording time-depth recorders, for a total of 15 consecutive days during which the depth, duration, bottom time, ascent and descent rates and surface intervals of 674 dives were recorded. Deep dives (> 35 m, averages80–90 m, max. 116 m) were twice as common (64% versus 34%) as shallow dives (< 21 m and 90% < 10 m). Deep dives were long (averages 2.7-4.1 min, max. 5.2 min) with half the time spent near maximum depth and fast travel speeds (averages 1.0-2.4 m s−1). Shallow dives were short (average 0.5 min, max. 1.3 min), without bottom time and with slow travel speeds (0.1–0.6 m s−1). The time spent at depth and the diet (mainly benthic fish and octopus) is consistent with benthic foraging; the function of shallow dives is uncertain. Male shags forage mainly in the afternoon in3–5 distinct bouts of diving. Within bouts (and shorter homogeneous sequences of diving) surface intervals are consistently2–3 times the preceding dive duration; in other shags the reverse is the case. Blue-eyed shag diving depth, duration and pattern is extreme amongst shags; and the relationship between dives and surface intervals suggests that they may regularly exceed their aerobic dive limit.


Considering the high incidence of infectious mononucleosis, the clinical recognition with pathologic confirmation of myocarditis due to this disease is rare. This complication has been known for many years, having been described by British authors, 1 who noted cardiac dilatation and transient murmurs occurring in cases of "epidemic cervical adenitis." Reports of electrocardiographic changes date back to Longscope, 2 who noted inverted T waves. With more routine use of the electrocardiograph the incidence of transient abnormalities, such as T-wave changes and conduction disturbances, has been found to be quite high, occurring in 41% of one series. 3 In a recent editorial evaluation of the subject, Houck 4 reemphasized the need for cautious interpretation of T-wave changes, stating that they may occur in the presence of fever, drugs, and autonomic nervous system disturbances. A review of the literature reveals a paucity of pathologic material available for the study of myocardial involvement


This text examines the values, beliefs, and rhetoric of the chief opponents of gay rights - the organizations of the Christian right. It traces the emergence of their antigay agenda and explores how and why the Christian right made antigay activity a top priority, and how it both extends and departs from their past politics. Combining the insights of sociology, legal studies, political science, history and literary criticism, the text discusses the Christian right's representation of male homosexuality and lesbianism. It illustrates the movement's ambivalence toward rights discourse on homosexuality, gender and race. Finally, the book shows how the Christian right balances its anti-state rhetoric with its ambitions for religious rule by examining Colarado's statewide repeal of local gay rights legislation through Amendment 2.


A 2-year-old male Tosa was admitted for treatment of a non-healing wound on the right forelimb. Skin tests were unremarkable; however, the lesion contained severe proliferative tissue. Surgical treatment was conducted due to the extensive skin defect and granulation tissue present. Following removal of the proliferative tissue, the wound was closed using the adjustable horizontal mattress suture method with multiple punctate relaxing incisions. The proliferative tissue healed completely after the surgical treatment. This technique can be considered an alternative treatment for the proliferative tissue when conditions require a skin graft or flap after surgical treatment.


The Optimized Duration of Clopidogrel Therapy Following Treatment With the Zotarolimus-Eluting Stent in Real-World Clinical Practice (OPTIMIZE) trial1 contributes to the body of evidence supporting an improved safety profile of second-generation drug-eluting stents compared with first-generation models.2 However, although it is tempting to simplify the question of the duration of dual antiplatelet therapy to one of stent model or generation, data must be carefully viewed in the context of multiple patient and clinical trial characteristics other than the type of stent involved.


This study examined the differences between a multi-campus sample of university students who reported consistent participation in formal leadership development programs (n=414) and a comparison sample (n=153) with no prior experience across three diverse postsecondary institutions in the United States. Both samples were matched with regard to gender and racial identity, prior self-reported high school leadership training experience, and selfreported possession of formal leadership positions in co-curricular student organizations. Results suggest that students who report past consistent participation in postsecondary leadership training report levels of leadership capacity no different than those with no training. In addition, like their peers they also possess a cognitive model of leadership capacity that fails to differentiate leader self-efficacy, motivation to lead, and leadership skill.


We compare Einstein-Boltzmann solvers that include modifications to General Relativity and find that, for a wide range of models and parameters, they agree to a high level of precision. We look at three general purpose codes that primarily model general scalar-tensor theories, three codes that model Jordan-Brans-Dicke (JBD) gravity, a code that models f(R) gravity, a code that models covariant Galileons, a code that models Ho\v{r}ava-Lifschitz gravity and two codes that model non-local models of gravity. Comparing predictions of the angular power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background and the power spectrum of dark matter for a suite of different models, we find agreement at the sub-percent level. This means that this suite of Einstein-Boltzmann solvers is now sufficiently accurate for precision constraints on cosmological and gravitational parameters.


Smallholder farming in sub-Saharan Africa keeps many rural households trapped in a cycle of poor productivity and low incomes. Two options to reach a decent income include intensification of production and expansion of farm areas per household. In this study, we explore what is a "viable farm size," i.e., the farm area that is required to attain a "living income," which sustains a nutritious diet, housing, education and health care. We used survey data from three contrasting sites in the East African highlands—Nyando (Kenya), Rakai (Uganda), and Lushoto (Tanzania) to explore viable farm sizes in six scenarios. Starting from the baseline cropping system, we built scenarios by incrementally including intensified and re-configured cropping systems, income from livestock and off-farm sources. In the most conservative scenario (baseline cropping patterns and yields, minus basic input costs), viable farm areas were 3.6, 2.4, and 2.1 ha, for Nyando, Rakai, and Lushoto, respectively—whereas current median farm areas were just 0.8, 1.8, and 0.8 ha. Given the skewed distribution of current farm areas, only few of the households in the study sites (0, 27, and 4% for Nyando, Rakai, and Lushoto, respectively) were able to attain a living income. Raising baseline yields to 50% of the water-limited yields strongly reduced the land area needed to achieve a viable farm size, and thereby enabled 92% of the households in Rakai and 70% of the households in Lushoto to attain a living income on their existing farm areas. By contrast, intensification of crop production alone was insufficient in Nyando, although including income from livestock enabled the majority of households (73%) to attain a living income with current farm areas. These scenarios show that increasing farm area and/or intensifying production is required for smallholder farmers to attain a living income from farming. Obviously such changes would require considerable capital and labor investment, as well as land reform and alternative off-farm employment options for those who exit farming.


A series of double-stranded, cyclic oligodeoxynucleotides with non-nucleotide bridges have been synthesized, and their physicochemical properties and susceptibility to enzymes have been investigated. These bridged duplexes are of potential interest for their binding properties to transcription factors and other DNA-binding proteins. Triethylene glycol has been employed as the bridge to alter the lipophilicity of the duplex and avoid the potential for enzymatic cleavage. The synthetic route involved the synthesis of a 3'-phosphorylated, nicked double-stranded precursor with the final internucleotide bond being formed chemically using a water soluble carbodiimide. These bridged duplexes have high thermal dissociation temperatures, and the Tm for a triethylene-bridged 20 base pair duplex was higher than that for the corresponding pentathymidylate-bridged duplex. EcoR I endonuclease cleaved a ligated, bridged duplex at a slower rate than the corresponding unmodified duplex, whereas the unligated, bridged duplex was cleaved more rapidly. Sufficient amounts of the bridged octamer and dodecamer were prepared for proton NMR spectroscopic studies, and 2D COSY and NOESY spectra were obtained. The results indicate that the ligated duplex has a B-form conformation.


Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrythmia, especially in older adults. AF represents 1% of emergency department (ED) visits a third of which are de novo or recurrent. While the diagnosis is given quickly by reading the electrocardiogram (ECG), its management both remains complex. European guidelines have been published in 2016.

 Our study aimed to investigate guidelines implementation in French ED.

 Prospective national multicenter study (clinical trials NCT 03836339) and core interpretation of ECG. Consecutive patients admitted in 32 French ED for AF confirmed by ECG were prospectively included. Clinical characteristics at admission were recorded by the physician. The 3-months telephone follow-up was ensured by one operator.

 From 1/10/2018 to 30/11/2018, 1369 patients with AF were included, of whom 295 (21.55%) had a de novo AF. Patients were 80 [65; 87] years old, 51.17% of men, 71.53% self-ruling, 91.53% living at home, 65.42% transported by firemen or by ambulances and 4,07% by a mobile intensive care unit. Twenty-six (8.84%) patients had a history of stroke or transient ischemic stroke and none of them on anticoagulants. CHA2DS2-VASC score was performed in 66.78% of patients and was 0 in 14 (7.11%) patients. HAS-BLED score = 2 [1; 3]. At admission 50.17% of patients received anticoagulants, of whom 49.32% a non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant, 0.68% Vitamin K antagonists, 50.68% UFH or LMWH. Beta-blockers were administered in 102 (24.01%) patients and amiodarone in 38 (12.89%). Cardiac echography has been performed in 20.34% of patients. Atrial fibrillation was the primary diagnosis in 42.71% of patients. It has been associated to a pneumopathy in 25.17% of patients, a pulmonary embolism in 4.76% and acute alcoholism in 1.36% of them. Precipitating factor was often undetermined. The discharge to the home concerned 18.64% of patients, 26.78% of patients were hospitalized in ED hospitalization unit, 23.05% in cardiology or intensive care unit. At 3 months, 49% of patients were on anticoagulants, of whom 90% on non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants, 95% of them didn't report any bleeding event and 41.77% of them were able to have a cardiology consultation within three months. Three-months mortality was about 22.09%, and rehospitalization rate about 22.89%.

 It seems to be a reticence to initiate anticoagulation of patients admitted to ED with a de novo AF. It could be explained by both the advanced age of the patients and the lack of an organized access to a systematic cardiology consultation at discharge. Patients with chronic AF are subject to high mortality at 3 months and a significant risk of readmission. The application of the guidelines could be optimized by a better training program and the implementation of a dedicated pathway of care.

 Type of funding source: Private company. Main funding source(s): Bayer


Although much attention has been paid to how media use and interpersonal discussion motivate people to engage in political persuasion, and despite recent efforts to study the role of digital media technologies, less is known about the creation of news and public affairs content online. This study sheds light on how online content creation works alongside other communicative behaviors, such as news use and political discussion, to affect attempted political persuasion. Using two-wave panel survey data, we find that political discussion and citizen news creation mediate the relationships between online and traditional news use, on one hand, and attempted persuasion, on the other. Furthermore, strength of partisanship moderates the relationship between content creation and attempted persuasion. Findings are discussed in light of their implications for the political communication and public sphere processes.


We describe here several novel properties of the human a1G subunit that forms T-type calcium channels. The partial intron/exon structure of the corresponding gene CACNA1G was defined and several a1G isoforms were identified, especially two isoforms that exhibit a distinct III-IV loop: a1G-a and a1G-b. Northern blot and dot blot analyses indicated that a1G mRNA is predominantly expressed in the brain, especially in thalamus, cerebellum, and substantia nigra. Additional experiments have also provided evidence that a1G mRNA is expressed at a higher level during fetal life in nonneuronal tissues (i.e. kidney, heart, and lung). Functional expression in HEK 293 cells of a full-length cDNA encoding the shortest a1G isoform identified to date, a1G-b, resulted in transient, low threshold activated Ca currents with the expected permeability ratio (ISr > ICa > IBa) and channel conductance (;7 pS). These properties, together with slowly deactivating tail currents, are typical of those of native T-type Ca channels. This a1Grelated current was inhibited by mibefradil (IC50 5 2 mM) and weakly blocked by Ni ions (IC50 5 148 mM) and amiloride (IC50 > 1 mM). We showed that steady state activation and inactivation properties of this current can generate a "window current" in the range of 265 to 255 mV. Using neuronal action potential waveforms, we show that a1G channels produce a massive and sustained Ca influx due to their slow deactivation properties. These latter properties would account for the specificity of Ca influx via T-type channels that occurs in the range of physiological resting membrane potentials, differing considerably from the behavior of other Ca channels.


Colloidally grown (II-VI) semiconductor nanoplatelets display significantly smaller lateral dimensions than their mechanically exfoliated 2D van der Waal (vdW) semiconductor counterparts. Here, we show that a seeded growth procedure allows us to significantly extend the lateral area of atomically precise nanoplatelets to the mesoscale (>1 μm^2). Using CdTe nanoplatelets as a model system, we optimize reaction parameters to expand a variety of nanoplatelets with different thickness and compositions. In situ spectroscopy results demonstrate that large NPLs grow through a mechanism of lateral ripening of seeds. Correlative optical spectroscopy and electron microscopy measurements show that the photoluminescence displays resolvable spatial inhomogeneities, similar to 2D semiconductors. Overall, these mesoscale nanoplatelets can be analogized to vdW semiconductors, with the added advantages of scalable colloidal synthesis, thickness tunability and solution processability.


Imaging spectroscopy refers to methods for identifying materials in a scene using cameras that digitize light into hundreds of spectral bands. Each pixel in these images consists of vectors representing the amount of light reflected in the different spectral bands from the physical location corresponding to the pixel. Images of this type are called hyperspectral images. Hyperspectral image analysis differs from traditional image analysis in that, in addition to the spatial information inherent in an image, there is abundant spectral information at the pixel or sub-pixel level that can be used to identify materials in the scene. Spectral unmixing techniques attempt to identify the material spectra in a scene down to the sub-pixel level. In this paper, a piece-wise convex hyperspectral unmixing algorithm using both spatial and spectral image information is presented. The proposed method incorporates possibilistic and fuzzy clustering methods. The typicality and membership estimates from those methods can be combined with traditional material proportion estimates to produce more meaningful proportion estimates than obtained with previous spectral unmixing algorithms. An analysis of the utility of using all three estimates produce a better estimate is given using real hyperspectral imagery.


The effect of Ca2+ antagonist drugs on Ca2+ uptake and Na+-induced Ca2+ release by isolated rabbit heart mitochondria has been studied using arsenazo III and dansylaziridine-labeled troponin C as Ca2+ indicators. Mitochondria accumulated 20 nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein by a respiration-dependent process. A23187, carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone, or Na+ induced a release of Ca2+ from Ca2+-loaded and ruthenium red (RR)-treated mitochondria. Ca2+ antagonist drugs had no effect on the Ca2+ uptake process or on Ca2+ release induced either by A23187 or by carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone but they were effective in inhibiting the Na+-induced Ca2+ release process. The drug concentrations that resulted in 50% inhibition of Na+-induced Ca2+ release were 7, 12, 13, 66, and 150 microM for diltiazem, prenylamine, fendiline, nifedipine, and verapamil, respectively. In the absence of RR, the net amount of Ca2+ released by Na+ was less than that which occurred in the presence of RR due to the simultaneous operation of both the Ca2+ uptake and the Ca2+ release processes. Under these conditions, the inhibition of Ca2+ uptake by RR brought about a complete release of Ca2+ from the mitochondria, and the inhibition of the Na+-induced Ca2+ release by diltiazem resulted in an apparent uptake of Ca2+ by the mitochondria. These results indicate that diltiazem and certain other Ca2+ antagonist drugs may be selective inhibitors of the Na+/Ca2+ antiporter in heart mitochondria much like ruthenium red is a selective inhibitor of the Ca2+ uniporter.


Natural fractures are a crucial factor in determining fracture and well spacing in horizontal wells. Their attributes affect the created fracture network and thereby the well producivity and EUR. However, information about the properties of natural fractures is seldom available. In this study, we used a detailed core description from the Hydraulic Fracture Test Site (HFTS), funded by the DOE and an industry consortium, to obtain in-situ natural fracture distribution data. The data was used as input into a hydraulic fracturing simulator to model fracture growth in the presence of natural fractures. The results obtained were then compared with field observations of cores taken from a slant infill well drilled into the hydraulically fractured rock.
 The core taken from the slant well located adjacent to the hydraulically fractured well is used to characterize the natural fractures (density and orientation). A two-dimensional discrete fracture network (DFN) is generated based on the core description. Nine coring operations are simulated on the created DFN to generate synthetic core descriptions. Attributes (length and density) of natural fractures are calibrated to match the results obtained from simulated coring operations with real core data. Multi-stage hydraulic fracturing simulations are performed using the calibrated DFN, and the results are presented in this paper.
 The core analysis identified three different types of fractures: hydraulic fractures, intact natural fractures, and natural fractures activated by hydraulic fractures. The density and orientations obtained from the core description provide valuable insights on the complex fracture growth behavior. The number of created fractures (propped and unpropped) far exceeds the number of perforations. This indicates the formation of complex fracture networks likely caused by the interaction of the hydraulic fracture with natural fractures and bed boundaries during propagation. A heel-side bias of fluid and proppant distribution within a stage was also observed. The effect of inter-stage stress shadowing on fracture growth could also be inferred.


In the present paper is given the calculation of the real building object by using the model of a two-layer beam of variable rigidity on an elastic basis. The lower layer of a two-layer beam simulates the foundation, and the upper - the structure, at the same time is considered the weight of each layer. The characteristics of the upper layer change on length. To solve this problem were used an analytical and numerical methods of calculation. On the basis of the calculations can make the following conclusion: for the calculation of system «structure-foundation-basis» for the stage of pre-proposals it is advisable to apply the simplified model as sandwich beams and plates on elastic basis.


Heat generation due to drilling during spinal surgery is potentially hazardous to nerves. Saline irrigation is often performed to prevent such local heating, but sometimes floods and obscures the operative field. We have developed a spray-irrigation system for attachment to high-speed drills, which sprays saline solution with an air-jet in the direction of the surface cut by the drill. We anticipated that this air jet would create a clearer operative view by displacing excess fluid, and would also provide an added cooling effect greater than that of irrigation with saline. This study was designed to evaluate these predicted effects of the spray-irrigation system compared to conventional irrigation. A thermography study was performed to confirm the cooling effect of the spray-irrigation system. A plaster board coated with adhesives was drilled at 100,000 rpm along a 10-cm line for a duration of 20 seconds. Thermograms were recorded every minute, without cooling, with irrigation, and with the spray-irrigation system. To examine the operative views, continuous drilling for a period of seconds was performed with conventional irrigation and with the spray-irrigation system. Local heating was inhibited by the spray-irrigation system to 14-30% of that with irrigation. A clear operative field was maintained during continuous drilling using the spray-irrigation system through the air-jet action of the system. The spray-irrigation system can simultaneously provide effective cooling and a clear operative field during surgical manipulations with high-speed drills.


The Media, Public Opinion and British Foreign PolicyBy Ambrose AkorDoctor of Philosophy (PhD) 2011The University of ManchesterAbstractAre foreign policy officials responsive to policy preferences of the mass media and the public in making their decisions? That question has dogged scholars for decades but there has been little agreement among them on what is the true nature of mass media- and public opinion-foreign policy link. In terms of mass media impact, there are two media theories which dominate the debate. First, the CNN Effect theory claims that, by their nature, the mass media have the power to compel policy officials to adopt their policy preferences. Second, the Manufacturing Consent theory counters with the claim that foreign policy is too serious a matter for officials to yield to mass media demands. Scholars are similarly divided on the impact of public opinion on foreign policy. Lacking in almost all the known studies is an appreciation that foreign policy emerges out of a process involving policy stages. These policy stages have different characteristics. In addition to the nature of those stages in themselves, relationships between policy actors - including the mass media, the public and officials - are different in those stages. Officials tend to react differently at each stage of policy when pressured by the mass media and public opinion. Therefore, in this study, I propose that we will have a better understanding of mass media and public opinion influence on foreign policy officials if we study official responsiveness or sensitivity at the stages of the foreign policy process ? policy initiation, policy implementation and policy review. I further argue that official responsiveness to mass media and public opinion depends largely on the stage of policy. For this research, I carried out a case study of Britain?s war with Iraq in 2003 to test my theory. Principally, I tried to answer the question: Does foreign policy officials? responsiveness to mass media and public opinion depend on the stage of policy? I found that official response to the mass media and public opinion was not as precise as suggested by the dominant camps in the debate. More importantly, Official response to mass media and public opinion varied in the stages of policy. Specifically, I found that British officials were most responsive to mass media and public opinion at the policy initiation stage, very unresponsive at the implementation stage and even more unresponsive at the policy review stage. As a result of the variations in official responsiveness at the stages, I argue that there is a need to re-evaluate the way we study mass media- and public opinion-foreign policy link. To better understand the impact of the mass media and public opinion on foreign policy, I conclude that we need to examine how policy actors interact at different stages of the foreign policy process.


Through silicon via (TSV) is the key technology for 3-D integrated circuits (3-DICs) which could vertically stack homogeneous or heterogeneous dies with the high performance and density. To evaluate the electrical characteristics of TSV at the high-frequency transmission, the skin effect and surface roughness effect are necessary to be considered. However, these effects would significantly result in the TSV equivalent resistance under the high operating frequency. Thus, it is important to investigate the carbon nano tubes (CNTs) TSV which has less skin effect intrinsically. In this work, we analyze the advantage of CNTs as TSV compared to the conventional filling materials such as copper (Cu). Furtherly, we also propose the equivalent circuit model of TSV and its multi-layer structure to simulate the electrical behaviors with different TSV pitch, height, diameter, and stacking layers by using ANSYS designer and high-frequency structure simulator (HFSS). Based on the frequency-domain analysis, it can be found that CNTs TSV has the lower frequency-dependent loss than Cu due to the lower equivalent resistance. In a summary, CNTs could be a promising TSV filling material at the high-speed transmission frequency based on our study.


abstract The FIFA Soccer World Cup hosted by South Africa over June and July of 2010, was a month-long event, decided by 64 matches played in ten stadiums spread over nine South African cities. During this time, approximately 1,4 million visitors came to South Africa, and an estimated 3.1 million people attended the matches (wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_FIFA_World_Cup; sourced 26 November 2010). This Perspective raises a set of issues that will require careful consideration and deliberate action, if we are to prevent ongoing gender inequality, discrimination and the reinforcement of damaging gender stereotypes within the context of international sporting events, such as the World Cup. For each issue raised, drawing on the South African Commission for Gender Equality's (CGE) experience, the Perspective outlines some suggestions on what host governments and cities should build into their planning and agreements for future international sporting events, to ensure gender inclusivity, and respect for the human righ...


We use explicit representation formulas to show that solutions to certain partial differential equations can be represented efficiently using artificial neural networks, even in high dimension. Conversely, we present examples in which the solution fails to lie in the function space associated to a neural network under consideration.


Objective: We conducted a longitudinal cohort study comparing the effect of acupuncture on the risk of dementia in Taiwanese individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Design and Participants: A national health insurance database was used to identify 15 440 newly diagnosed TBI patients 20 to 70 years old between 1998 and 2007. Of the identified patients, 6308 received acupuncture following the onset of TBI (acupuncture users) and 9132 patients did not receive acupuncture (nonacupuncture users). Measures: All enrollees were followed until the end of 2012 to record incident cases of dementia. A Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to compute adjusted hazard ratios for the relationship of acupuncture use with dementia. Results: During the follow-up period, 249 acupuncture users and 810 nonacupuncture users developed dementia, corresponding to incidence rates of 6.11 and 9.64 per 1000 person-years, respectively. Use of acupuncture was significantly associated with a lower risk of dementia. Those who received more than 5 sessions of acupuncture benefited most from it. Conclusions: Adding acupuncture to the clinical management of patients with TBI may benefit these patients by decreasing their risk of developing dementia.


The algorithm calculates the exact cumulative distribution of the two-sided Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic for samples with few observations. The general problem for which the formula is needed is to assess the probability that a particular sample comes from a proposed distribution. The problem arises specifically in data sampling and in discrete system simulation. Typically, some finite number of observations are available, and some underlying distribution is being considered as characterizing the source of the observations.


Abstract  In the dawn of cardiac surgery in the 1940s to 1950s, Alexander A. Vishnevsky assembled together a fine team of surgeons and conducted intense surgical research that resulted in clinical application of modified Blalock‐Taussig shunt, cavo‐pulmonary shunt, and paved the way to clinical orthotopic heart and lung transplantation and coronary bypass surgery in Russia. The team of surgeons lead by Vishnevsky also performed the world's first cavo‐pulmonary shunts and experimental orthotopic heart and lung transplantation. Herein, we describe the pioneering contributions of Vishnevsky and his team to cardiac surgery.


TiO/sub 2/ - doped zirconium layers were deposited on silica substrate. It has been shown, that using a new hot target magnetron sputtering method it is possible to manufacture thin polycrystalline, dielectric films on amorphous substrate from metallic target even if post-deposition annealing was not done. Using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) examinations crystalline phases of rutile were found both in as-deposited and in annealed samples. Scanning electron micrographs showed polycrystalline morphology with homogenous distribution of crystallites.


Three bis(N-alkyldithiocarbamato)cadmium(II) complexes [Cd(S(2)CNHR)(2)] (1, R = n-C(3)H(7); 2, R = n-C(5)H(11); 3, n-C(12)H(25)) were prepared by metathesis of the corresponding lithium salt, Li[S(2)CNHR], with cadmium chloride. The crystal structures of 2 and 3 consist of planar molecular units of [Cd(S(2)CNHR)(2)] connected by intermolecular Cd.S interactions to give a one-dimensional chain. The chains are connected by a network of intermolecular N-H.S hydrogen bonds between the dithiocarbamato nitrogen atom and bridging sulfur atoms in neighboring chains. In solution, the (113)Cd NMR spectrum of 2 is dependent on concentration and temperature, indicative of a dimerization equilibrium mediated by similar Cd.S intermolecular bridging interactions. In the solid state, thermal gravimetric analyses show that all three complexes decompose smoothly via a heterolytic C-S bond cleavage reaction to give the corresponding alkyl isothiocyanate and cadmium sulfide as the primary products, with the formation of primary amine and CS(2) as coproducts. These products can result only from the net transfer of protons between N-alkyldithiocarbamato ligands in the solid state. Thus, the C-S bond cleavage reaction is interpreted in terms of the topochemical arrangement of molecular units in the crystalline state, which provides a pathway for proton transfer between ligands via N-H.S hydrogen bonds. Decomposition was also initiated by addition of a tertiary amine to a solution of [Cd(S(2)CNHR)(2)]. This confirms that C-S bond cleavage must be coupled to deprotonation of the -NH group, and explains why dialkylated derivatives [Cd(S(2)CNR(2))(2)] are inert to this particular mode of C-S bond cleavage. This system thus constitutes an unusual example of heterolytic, nonoxidative C-S bond cleavage that appears to proceed by a topochemical transfer of protons, which has implications for C-S bond cleavage processes in single-source precursors for II-VI semiconductor materials.


THIS chapter is a review of noneducational research and theory about formal organizations (1953 to 1959). Business organizations, government bureaus, armies, labor unions, and voluntary associations are the types of organizations dealt with here. To avoid duplication of material which has previously appeared in the REVIEW (30) this chapter will concern itself with the organizational behavior as treated in sociology and "administrative science," with its focus on those processes which represent organizational constraints upon relationships among individuals.


The temperature dependences of the critical resolved shear stress (CRSS) governed by the Peierls mechanism in pure NaCl type crystals, those in pure bcc transition metals, those by dissociated dislocations in covalent crystals of the diamond and the zinc blende structures and those by perfect dislocations at low temperatures in zinc blende crystals have been demonstrated to be roughly scalable with respect to the non-dimensional normalization of the CRSS by the shear modulus G and the temperature by Gb3/kB, where b is the strength of the Burgers vector and kB the Boltzmann constant. Furthermore, CRSS vs. T relations have been shown to be scaled universally by normalizing respectively the CRSS by the estimated Peierls stress τp and the temperature by the kink-pair energy parameter of (τp/G)1/2(bd)3/2G/kB, where d is the period of the Peierls potential.


Aim To evaluate the relative importance of climate, productivity, environmental heterogeneity, biotic associations and habitat use by cattle to account for the species richness of trees, shrubs and herbs across the Subantarctic–Patagonian transition. Location An area of c. 150 · 150 km, within the transition zone between the Subantarctic and Patagonian subregions on the eastern slope of the Andes (c. 39–42� S, 70–72� W). Methods All vascular plants found at each one of 50 (10 · 10 m) sampling plots were counted to estimate the local tree, shrub and herb species richness. Path analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between the richness of the three life-forms and plant cover, dried litter biomass, mean annual temperature, annual precipitation, daily temperature range, substrate heterogeneity and number of faecal pats. Principal coordinates of neighbour matrices was used to model the spatial autocorrelation of the data. Results Total plant species richness showed a unimodal pattern of spatial variation across the transition. Richness responded positively to indirect effects of precipitation mediated through plant cover, but there was a negative overall effect of precipitation on richness towards the west of the transition, most strongly for trees. An increase in substrate heterogeneity promoted a local increase in herb and shrub richness; the richness of trees increased in sites with steeper slopes. Canopy closure had a direct negative impact on herb richness; it also increased the local accumulation of litter, which negatively affected shrub and herb richness. The impact of habitat use by cattle negatively affected herb richness in areas to the east of the biogeographical transition. Main conclusions We suggest that the importance of indirect climatic effects mediated by vegetation cover can account for species richness patterns across this transition, most strongly for woody species, which supports the productivity hypothesis. The southern temperate forests towards the west may represent a deviation from the predictions of the water–energy dynamics hypothesis. Dissimilar spatial patterns of variation in the richness of woody and herbaceous species, and their different responses to climatic and heterogeneity variables across the transition, suggest that plant life-form influences the plant species richness–environment relationships.


In order to automatically identify a set of effective mammographic image features and build an optimal breast cancer risk stratification model, this study aims to investigate advantages of applying a machine learning approach embedded with a locally preserving projection (LPP) based feature combination and regeneration algorithm to predict short-term breast cancer risk. A dataset involving negative mammograms acquired from 500 women was assembled. This dataset was divided into two age-matched classes of 250 high risk cases in which cancer was detected in the next subsequent mammography screening and 250 low risk cases, which remained negative. First, a computer-aided image processing scheme was applied to segment fibro-glandular tissue depicted on mammograms and initially compute 44 features related to the bilateral asymmetry of mammographic tissue density distribution between left and right breasts. Next, a multi-feature fusion based machine learning classifier was built to predict the risk of cancer detection in the next mammography screening. A leave-one-case-out (LOCO) cross-validation method was applied to train and test the machine learning classifier embedded with a LLP algorithm, which generated a new operational vector with 4 features using a maximal variance approach in each LOCO process. Results showed a 9.7% increase in risk prediction accuracy when using this LPP-embedded machine learning approach. An increased trend of adjusted odds ratios was also detected in which odds ratios increased from 1.0 to 11.2. This study demonstrated that applying the LPP algorithm effectively reduced feature dimensionality, and yielded higher and potentially more robust performance in predicting short-term breast cancer risk.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the molecule mechanism of the anti-fibrotic effects of Chinese herbal drugs (Qidan granules) in rats.

METHODS
The male rats were randomly divided into four experimental groups: normal group, model group, Qidan group, tetrandrine group. Every group had 10 rats. Normal group were treated with physiologic saline while others were treated with silicon dioxide (50 mg/rat) by intratracheal instillation to induce silicosis. On 30th day Qidan group and Tetrandrine group were treated with Qidan granules (3125 mg/kg) or treated with tetrandrine (22 mg/kg) respectively. All the rats were scarified after 5 months. Lung/body coefficient was measured. Content of hydroxyproline was measured by alkaline hydrolysis. The gene expression of transforming growth factor-beta1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was examined by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The gene expressions of transforming growth factor-beta1, transcription factor Smad 3 and Smad 7 in lung were analyzed by using immunohistochemical technique (SP) and the image analysis.

RESULTS
Model group mainly had Grade III approximately IV silicotic nodule while Qidan group and tetrandrine group had Grade II silicotic nodule. In Qidan group and tetrandrine group, lung/body coefficient and content of hydroxyproline and expression of transforming growth factor-beta1 and Smad3 in lung and expression of transforming growth factor-beta1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were lower than those in model group (P < 0.05). Expression of Smad 7 in lung was higher than model group (P < 0.05). Injury of kidney occurred in tetrandrine group.

CONCLUSION
Qidan granules and tetrandrine could inhibit expression of both Smad 7 and transforming growth factor-beta1 and promote expression of Smad 3. Qidan granules and tetrandrine could inhibit remarkably silicotic fibrosis in rats. Qidan granules are safer than tetrandrine.


The N-heterocycle carbene (NHC)-catalyzed dual Stetter cascade reaction is discovered through coupling of β-nitrostyrene with phthalaldehyde under mild conditions to furnish valuable aryl-naphthoquinones. The generality of the new reaction is validated through the development of a C-C and O-C bond forming Stetter cascade reaction using salicylaldehydes to obtain functionalized dihydroisoflavanones. The mild NHC organocatalysis is successfully employed for the construction of optically pure sugar-based naphthoquinones and dihydroisoflavanones. Herein, NHC is found as a unique and powerful organocatalyst to construct homoatomic C-C cross-coupling, heteroatomic O-C bond formation, and cascade cyclization utilizing NO2 as a leaving group at ambient temperature. A mechanistic pathway of the new metal-free catalysis is predicted on the basis of our ESI-MS study of the ongoing reaction and literature.


Endoluminal stent placement is safe and effective in the treatment of symptomatic ostial stenoses of the vertebral artery (VA) and proximal subclavian artery (SCA). However, determining the relative importance of an individual lesion on angiography is difficult when VA and SCA stenoses are concurrent. Pressure-sensing wires help in determining the functional significance of coronary artery stenosis. We present a case of ipsilateral VA and SCA stenoses in which a pressure-sensing wire was used in making interventional decisions.


This module takes a bird eye view of the historical pattern of globalization, with special reference to trade flows and it examines the role played by Russia in this process. The module starts by describing the historical waves of globalization since 1870s and the latest patterns in the process of trade liberalization. It then looks at the geographical distribution of world trade flows, in absolute terms and with reference to the size of domestic economies. It then looks at the role of Russia. It examines the trends of Russia's share of world trade and of the share of trade over GDP since 1990. It then looks at the sectoral and geographical distribution of Russia's trade.


A 15-yr old boy presented with low backache for 4 months associated with weakness of left lower limb. MRI of lumbosacral spine showed a sacral lesion with intraspinal and presacral soft tissue extension with neural compression. A diagnosis of tuberculosis was considered in the view of high prevalence in this part of the world, however biopsy revealed Ewing's sarcoma. Ewing's tumor of sacrum is rare, but should be suspected in low backache in children. Differential diagnosis for a sacral lesion includes tuberculosis, pyogenic osteomyelitis, lymphoma, chordoma, osteosarcoma and Ewing's sarcoma. MRI is sensitive in detecting these lesions but is nonspecific requiring histopathological examination for confirmation.


This study discusses the Arab Spring revolutions that took place in the Arab World a few years ago by reviewing the historical relationship of the crisis of Arab thought (religious, political and modernist) describing it as a cumulative product which accumulated in Arab mentality and formed an ideological path that was difficult to abandon. This was one of the most important factors for the deterioration of the Arab renaissance concept in ideological composition and one of the most prominent reasons for the failure of the revolutions that swept the Arab states demanding the regimes' downfall or political and democratic reform. The study also brings to light the revolution concept throughout history and presents the most important opinions of researchers in their view of the Arab Spring from different perspectives and ideologies. The study attempts to analyse the framework of the revolutions' reality by revealing the most important characteristics of the revolutions in each country and their transformation into civil and sectarian wars in some states, and their success in others. Keywords: Arab Spring, revolution, Renaissance, Islamic Caliphate, politic, Thought, Secularism, Political Islam


Objective. To analyze clinical manifestations of cervicobrachial syndrome and identify their relationship with sagittal imbalance using data of MRI and radiological examination.Material and Methods. Clinical manifestations of cervicobrachial syndrome associated with degenerative changes in the spine were studied in 22 patients. Clinical examination, radiography of the cervical spine, electroneuromyography of the upper extremities, and MRI study were performed. The intensity of the pain syndrome was assessed by VAS, and the quality of life – by the NDI questionnaire. The sagittal balance of the cervical spine was evaluated according to the following characteristics: angle of T1 slope, atlantoaxial (C1–C2) angle, degree of shift of the center of gravity of C2–C7, and Cobb angle.Results. The pain intensity in cervicobrachial syndrome correlates with sagittal balance changes in the C2–C7 Cobb angle (r = 0.656; p < 0.05), the angle of T1 vertebra slope (r = 0.520; p < 0.05), and in the degree of shift of the center of gravity of C2–C7 (r = 0.756; p < 0.02). Differences between MRI and radiological results of the sagittal balance measurement are not significant (p < 0.04).Conclusion. The study of the sagittal balance can be included in the algorithm for diagnosing osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. The MRI, along with spondylography, can be used to assess the state of sagittal balance. Understanding the identified relationships can help in determining the program of etiopathogenetic treatment of patients with cervicobrachial syndrome with obligatory including the sagittal balance correction in the program.


The swine pathogen Streptococcus suis is a Gram-positive bacterium which causes infections in pigs, with an impact in animal health and in the livestock industry, and it is also an important zoonotic agent. During the infection process, surface and secreted proteins are essential in the interaction between microorganisms and their hosts. Here, we report a comparative proteomic analysis of the proteins released to the extracellular milieu in six human clinical isolates belonging to the highly prevalent and virulent serotype 2. The total secreted content was precipitated and analyzed by GeLC-MS/MS. In the six strains, 144 proteins assigned to each of the categories of extracellular or surface proteins were identified, as well as 680 predicted cytoplasmic proteins, many of which are putative moonlighting proteins. Of the nine predicted signal peptide-I secreted proteins, seven had relevant antigenic potential when they were analyzed through bioinformatic analysis. This is the first work comparing the exoproteome fraction of several human isolates of this important pathogen.


Embedded systems are increasingly expected to provide good performance at low cost. As the characteristics of compiled code can have an impact on the overall cost of an embedded system, a compilation strategy must be cost aware as well as achieve high performance. As one major factor for system cost is their execution time. On the other hand, code size is an important issue due to limited memory of some embedded systems. Thus, cost-effective optimization strategies that are able to perform a good trade-off between code size and performance improvement are needed. Mobile ad-hoc networks (MANETs) are random, self-configurable and rapidly deployable networks without any infrastructure. The data is moved between the memory and these registers by means of Load and Store instructions. The word length of the Nios II processor is 32 bits. All registers are 32 bits long. Byte addresses in a 32-bit word are assigned in little-endian style, in which the lower byte addresses are used for the less significant bytes of the word. The Nios II architecture uses separate instruction and data buses, which is often referred to as the Harvard architecture. In this paper, we review some existed mobility models of ad-hoc network and compare such methods with each other. Also, at the end of this paper, we will suggest new novel model, which has more optimality in comparison with the existed models.


Full electronic control of the carrier-envelope phase in a train of sub-6-fs laser pulses has been achieved with simultaneous reduction of the pulse energy noise to unprecedented levels. Few-cycle femtosecond optical waveforms can now be synthesized with precisely reproducible electric and magnetic Fields.


Recently, multi-atlas segmentation (MAS) has achieved a great success in the medical imaging area. The key assumption of MAS is that multiple atlases encompass richer anatomical variability than a single atlas. Therefore, we can label the target image more accurately by mapping the label information from the appropriate atlas images that have the most similar structures. The problem of atlas selection, however, still remains unexplored. Current state-of-the-art MAS methods rely on image similarity to select a set of atlases. Unfortunately, this heuristic criterion is not necessarily related to segmentation performance and, thus may undermine segmentation results. To solve this simple but critical problem, we propose a learning-based atlas selection method to pick up the best atlases that would eventually lead to more accurate image segmentation. Our idea is to learn the relationship between the pairwise appearance of observed instances (a pair of atlas and target images) and their final labeling performance (in terms of Dice ratio). In this way, we can select the best atlases according to their expected labeling accuracy. It is worth noting that our atlas selection method is general enough to be integrated with existing MAS methods. As is shown in the experiments, we achieve significant improvement after we integrate our method with 3 widely used MAS methods on ADNI and LONI LPBA40 datasets.


Different neural systems are involved in animal navigation depending on the type of task. Experimental studies support the idea that the hippocampus is necessary to learn a spatial representation required to navigate toward hidden goals (place response), whereas the dorsolateral striatum is involved in the learning of stimulus-response associations when navigating toward visible (or cued) goals. These systems compete for action selection according to the characteristics of the task, previous experience (e.g. raining procedure) or endogenous factors. This paper reviews both experimental data on the theory of multiple memory systems involved in navigation, and a recent computational model of action selection based on the competition of place and cue responses learnt during training. The model implements separately the two types of response, i.e. place response and stimulus response. Furthermore, competition takes place to select which behaviour will actually be performed. The model was tested in a simulated environment using a protocol analogous to those used in experiments with animals.


Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 47, 2006

2996

The head and neck squamous cell carcinoma(HNSCC) affects an estimated 500,000 patients annually worldwide. At present, the combination therapy of chemotherapeutic agents, cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil(5-FU), has been used as a standard therapy for advanced HNSCC. In our previous report, E1B 19kDa-deleted adenovirus, Ad-mTERT-Δ19, which encode the E1A gene driven by the uniquely modified m-hTERT promoter, elicited enhanced viral replication and cytopathic effects in a cancer cell-specific manner. For the aim of improving the therapeutic efficacy for HNSCC cancer, we investigated the value of different combinations of various chemotherapeutic agents combined with Ad-mTERT-Δ19. We assessed the cytotoxic activity of each combination in four different HNSCC cancer cell lines, utilizing MTT assay. The induction of apoptosis was also synergistically increased in cancer cells treated with Ad-mTERT-Δ19 and chemotherapeutic agents, demonstrated by FACS analysis and TUNEL assay. Overall, this study presents strong evidence for a synergistic effect when treatment of Ad-mTERT-Δ19 is combined with chemotherapeutic agents.


ABSTRACT A series of substituted platinum(II) complexes with a chelating N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand and a bidentate monoanionic auxiliary ligand (acetylacetone) have been investigated by using the density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) methods, to explore their electronic structures, absorption and emission properties, and phosphorescence quantum efficiency. The influence of different substituted groups on photophysical properties of complexes studied has been detailedly analyzed. The lowest energy absorption and emission wavelengths calculated are comparable to the available experimental values. In addition, ionization potential (IP), electron affinities (EA), and reorganization energy (λ) were obtained to evaluate the charge transfer and balance properties between hole and electron. The calculated results also show that, due to a lower , larger3MLCT contribution, and higher value, the complex 5 owns possibly the largest kr value among these complexes. The theoretical studies could provide useful information for the candidated phosphorescent platinum(II) material for use in the organic light-emitting diodes.


This topic studies about adolescent development in hadis perspective. The method used in this research is explorative where the writer explored all hadis relating to this topic which have been classified according to the way of hadis research. After analizing some hadis, the writer concludes that adolescent education is very important to bring them reach the maturity. In this case, parents play important role to guide the children to explore their potency through education that is given in the early age


Tibial condyles in 11 patients with knee joint osteoarthrosis were analyzed by subchondral bone morphometry using 11 static parameters. The results were evaluated by comparison with the grade of joint cartilage degeneration in relation to the external, intermediate, and internal areas of the tibial condyle. The bone morphometric data also were analyzed according to the depth of layers, from the surface to the depth of 2000 microns of the bone. A parallel relationship between the bone volume/bone formation activity and the Mankin grade of cartilage degeneration was noted in both medial and lateral condyles. Bone resorption activity in the medial condyle was found only in the external and intermediate areas; it was extremely low in the lateral condyle. Throughout the observation areas, the values of bone volume in relation to depth were highest in the superficial layer with a gradual decrease as the depth increased. The bone formation activity was highest in the superficial layer in the lateral condyle, whereas in the medial condyle, it was highest in the layer between 1000 and 1500 microns in depth. The bone resorption activity showed no variations according to the depth. The progression of joint cartilage degeneration was associated with remodeling of the underlying subchondral bone.


We model the area allocation decision problem for a fixed size crop farm under random yields and prices for a risk-averse farmer. We assume that in the short run, the variable input expenses are fixed per hectare and per crop (an assumption that is motivated by our data). Therefore the cost function depends only on the non-stochastic area allocation. The first order conditions of the model involve integrals across functions of random variables that do not in general have closed form solutions. Numerical simulation techniques are used to calibrate the parameters of the cost function. The two sources of randomness, price and yield, are combined into a single random variable, the yield-in-value. Based on examination of panels of yield-in-value data, we assume independence across the yield-in-value distributions and that the farmers know these distributions. We have modeled the sugar quota constraint, the Common Agricultural Policy subsidies and set-aside, and one Agri-Environmental Measure called "buffer zone".


INTRODUCTION
Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) has become an accepted therapeutic modality for the treatment of intractable pain syndromes, primarily used today in the settings of failed back surgery syndrome, neuropathic back and limb pain. The use of spinal cord stimulators for peripheral nerve field electrostimulation is becoming increasingly recognized as a safe, effective alternative for chronic pain conditions that are refractory to medical management and do not respond to traditional dorsal column stimulation. Advances in technology have allowed for minimally invasive percutaneous placement of multipolar leads with complex programmable systems to provide patient- controlled relief of pain in precisely targeted regions. With these improvements in hardware, the use of Peripheral Nerve Field Stimulation (PNFS) appears to have an untapped potential for providing patients with pain relief for a wider range of underlying conditions than was previously believed possible. We present three cases, each with a different etiology of chronic abdominal pain: one with inguinal neuralgia, one with chronic pancreatitis, and one with pain following liver transplant. Each patient was refractory to conventional medical approaches. For all three patients, PNFS provided significant relief from pain, enabling patients to decrease or discontinue their opioid medications and to enjoy significant improvement in their quality of life. We conclude that PNFS is a safe, effective and minimally invasive treatment that may be used successfully for a wide variety of indications including chronic abdominal pain.


The aim of this work is to compare different ion chambers available for dose measurements in small fields used in intensity modulated radiotherapy. Some dosimetric aspects, related to these small radiation fields, i.e., lack of electronic lateral equilibrium and steep dose region, must be evaluated, in order to obtain an accurate technique implementation. Furthermore, the size of the sensitive volume of the chambers compared with the mapping of the beams or segments needs consideration. If the size of the chamber is too large for the flatness of the field, the measurement can deviate from the expected absorbed dose at a point. We propose a comparison of various dosimetric values between different microionization chambers with respect to a smaller dosimeter, such as the diamond detector.


Recently, damaged pavement such as potholes are increasing owing to the climate change and poor road maintenance systems. Potholes can generate critical damages such as flat tire, wheel damage and impact on the lower part of a vehicle. Moreover, sudden braking and steering wheel operation due to the potholes can cause vehicle collision and major accidents. One of the solution to address these problems is to automatically detect potholes and store the information database systems for necessary corrective measures. In our previous studies, we proposed a pothole detection algorithm using various features in 2D images that improved the existing methods and accurately detected a pothole. However, our previous algorithm showed poor detection results with blurry pothole images because the feature information for distinguishing a pothole from road pavement was unclear. In this study, we redesign our previous algorithm in order to enhance the feature information from blurry images.


Stress urinary incontinence is a common problem in women. Accurate diagnosis of this condition is necessary for successful surgical treatment. Currently, many tests are popular. The relative value of these tests, in terms of usefulness, accuracy and practicality, has not been tested in the past. With this aim, we have compared the results from three of the most commonly performed tests, namely physical examination, urodynamics and roentgenography. It is our opinion that physical examination in the standing position is the simplest and most accurate test. Cystometrogram is important, although the yield is small. We do not advise the routine use of urethral pressure profile. For accurate determination of anatomic deformity, roentgenographic examination is the most accurate test.


Explorers began to push into the vast uncharted areas of the West in 1804, when Captains Lewis and Clarke ascended the Missouri River, crossed the Rocky Mountains into the headwaters of the Columbia River, and followed that stream to the Pacific Ocean. The honor of being the first white man to see Great Salt Lake is claimed for a number of explorers and trappers who visited the region in the twenties and thirties of the Nineteenth Century. Among these were Etienne Provot and James Bridger, who were in the region in 1824–25, each quite unaware of the other's activities and discoveries.

In 1833 Captain B. L. E. Bonneville dispatched a party from his camp at Green River, Wyoming, for the purpose of exploring Great Salt Lake. This party attempted to make a circuit of the lake, chart its outline, and trap all the streams en route, but the attempt was abandoned because the great barren salt plains west of the lake were so hazardous that the party was in grave danger of perishing.


At first glance, it seems odd that a paper should be concerned with the place of story-telling in scientific studies when researchers such as ethnographers have long used this technique. However, the growth of knowledge generated through the extensively used classical research inquiries of qualitative and quantitative approaches has created a kind of mandarin and sheltered culture where anything that does not fall within these paradigms is received with skepticism, making it possible that indigenous ways of knowing, such as story-telling, be accepted feebly by the scientific communities. The argument presented in this paper is that to remove stories from empirically accepted research tools is to silence indigenous communities by depriving them of using a mode consistent with their culture and their ways of understanding the world they live in. Supporting this argument are discussions and examples focusing on aspects such as the nature and structure of stories; the social meaning of stories; potential benefits of using stories; methodological challenges in using story-telling as a research tool; the nature of story-telling and accompanying challenges of using new technologies such as photovoice. It is concluded that researchers who are skeptical about using story-telling are in danger of mimicking forces which have destroyed the cultures of many indigenous communities and silenced these communities with their strange and foreign ways of knowing. Using story-telling is a way of averting the use of mainstream theories that do not respect indigenous identity, culture, experiences and ways of knowing. Recommendations point to the need to bring together researchers and scholars whose current interest is in indigenous communities to discuss a number of issues including (i) story's dependability, (ii) the relationship between the researcher and the narrator who claims to have the right to narrate, (iii) authorship of stories, and (iv) intelligibility. When issues such as these are still being considered, it is an indication that story-telling is still evolving into a potent research tool.


Abstract The study of P-lability in languages in which the relationship between transitive and intransitive predication can be characterized as radical P-alignment must take into account the formal distinction between weak and strong lability, and the semantic distinction between argument structure modifying and argument structure preserving lability. Radical P-alignment is particularly common among Daghestanian languages in which some authors operating with a loose definition of P-lability have argued that P-lability is pervasive, whereas others have argued that, in the same languages, P-lability is exceptional. On the basis of more precise definitions, it is shown that, in the languages in question, all transitive verbs exhibit a behavior whose characterization as a type of lability may be controversial, depending on the definition of lability, whereas some of them only show a behavior that stands closer to prototypical lability. This paper argues that the observation of causativization is particularly relevant to the analysis of lability in such languages.


The author of the article undertakes an attempt to address the issue of the creative development of studying youth within the framework of the assimilation of arts management innovative technologies. The content of the article is structured upon the basis of art and management interaction which reveals the current potential of the introduction of arts management technologies into the practice of educational institutions. The author discloses the specifics and the peculiarities of arts management technologies in the development of cultural and creative initiative of students through the example of using art project methods. The article proves that the implementation of innovative technologies is carried out on the basis of the interdisciplinary pattern and the integration of different aspects of activity, primarily the structural (organizational) and the aesthetic ones.


X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) of the Rare Earth (RE) 3d levels yields sharp peaks near the edges as a result of strong, quasi-atomic 3d{sup 10}4f {yields} 3d{sup 9}4f{sup n+1} (M{sub 4,5}) transitions that contain a wealth of spectroscopic features. XAS is a useful technique for the characterization of 4f-occupancy, 4f-hybridization, and valence in RE-containing materials. The XAS measurements of the single crystal RE-orthophosphates, as well as a range of Cedoped ({approx}1--30%) LaPO{sub 4} hosts were performed at the 3d edge in the total electron yield mode at beamline 8-2 at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL). The XAS spectra of the RE ions in the orthophosphate matrix generally resemble that of the corresponding RE metal and emphasize the major contribution of the trivalent state to the electronic transitions occurring at the 3d edge. There is no energy shift of the La and Ce absorption peaks with Ce doping and furthermore, no additional transitions are observed in either spectral region. However, accompanying the Ce doping there is a significant narrowing of the La absorption peak full width half maximum that contrasts to the Ce features that exhibit no contraction. The La and Ce spectra indicate that the Ce-doping of LaPO{sub 4}more » is purely substitutional.« less


Alexander, Leigh E. (Ph.D., Psychology and Neuroscience) Beyond Eating Intentions: The Role of Working Memory Capacity in Moderating the Effects of of Restrained Eating and Implicit Food Activation on Eating Behavior Dissertation directed by Professor Akira Miyake Abstract: Restrained eating refers to individuals who consistently attempt to limit their intake of calories to reduce body weight (Herman & Polivy,1980). Restrained eaters have been noted for failures at converting dieting intentions into eating behavior (Stroebe, 2008). The primary goal of these studies was to determine what differentially contributes to eating behavior in women with highly restrained eating styles when: a) eating intentions alone do not predict intake, and b) someone is exposed to temptation. Given the self-regulatory nature of eating behavior, individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) was expected to moderate the effect of restrained eating on food intake, over and above the impact of intentions. WMC was also expected to moderate the effect of implicit food activation, which has been shown to influence food choices. It was found that WMC moderated the effects of restrained eating and implicit food activation on self-report intake of unhealthy food. Unrestrained eaters ate less unhealthy food as WMC increased, and this effect was even stronger when implicit food activation was lower. WMC also moderated the effect of restrained eating and implicit food activation on intake of M&Ms. When WMC was lower, restrained eaters ate more M&Ms as implicit food activation increased. There was no effect of restrained eating or implicit food activation when WMC was higher. These results show the importance of considering the balance of control processes (i.e., WMC), explicit and implicit attitudes in determining food intake. The practical implications for regulating dieting and eating behavior are discussed.


The cultivation of quinoa has gained increasing interest in Europe. Different European varieties exist, but more research is required to understand the individual variety characteristics for end-use applications. The objective of this study is to evaluate the agronomic performance of 13 quinoa varieties under North-West European field conditions during three growing seasons (2017–2019). Furthermore, seeds were qualitatively characterized based on characteristics and composition. Yield differed among varieties and growing seasons (0.47–3.42 ton/ha), with lower yields obtained for late-maturing varieties. The saponin content varied from sweet to very bitter. The seeds contained high protein levels (12.1–18.8 g/100 g dry matter), whereas varieties had a similar essential amino acid profile. The main fatty acids were linoleic (53.0–59.8%), α-linolenic (4.7–8.2%), and oleic acid (15.5–22.7%), indicating a high degree of unsaturation. The clustering of varieties/years revealed subtle differences between growing seasons but also reflected the significant interaction effects of variety and year. Most varieties perform well under North-West European conditions, and their nutritional content is well within the values previously described for other cultivation areas. However, optimal yield and quality traits were not combined in one variety, illustrating the importance of breeding for adapted quinoa varieties.


In this paper, we propose iterative algorithms for solving image restoration problems. The iterative algorithms are based on decoupling of deblurring and denoising steps in the restoration process. In the deblurring step, an efficient deblurring method using fast transforms can be employed. In the denoising step, effective methods such as the wavelet shrinkage denoising method or the total variation denoising method can be used. The main advantage of this proposal is that the resulting algorithms can be very efficient and can produce better restored images in visual quality and signalto-noise ratio than those by the restoration methods using the combination of a data-fitting term and a regularization term. The convergence of the proposed algorithms is shown in the paper. Numerical examples are also given to demonstrate the effectiveness of these algorithms.


It has been hypothesised that attitudes minimising, justifying and normalising stalking exist in the community, influencing whether or not stalking is recognised, and potentially affecting the responses of police and others to whom victims turn for support. This study investigates the nature of these attitudes as measured using the Stalking Related Attitudes Questionnaire (SRAQ). Two hundred and forty-four community members and 280 police officers in Victoria, Australia (total sample 61% male, mean age=43.3, SD = 13.3) completed the SRAQ. Full information factor analysis identified three underlying stalking-related attitudes: "stalking isn't serious", "stalking is romantic" and "victims are to blame". Males endorsed all to a greater extent than females, whereas police and community only differed in that police believed stalking to be more serious. Stronger stereotype endorsement was related to judgements of not guilty in a fictional stalking case. These results indicate that attitudes and beliefs that downplay, excuse and normalise stalking behaviour can be measured, and have some influence on recognition of stalking behaviour.


The standard radius of curvature at a point q(s) on a smooth curve can be defined as the limiting radius of circles through three points that all coalesce to q(s). In the study of ideal knot shapes it has recently proven useful to consider a global radius of curvature of the curve at q(s) defined as the smallest possible radius amongst all circles passing through this point and any two other points on the curve, coalescent or not. In particular, the minimum value of the global radius of curvature gives a convenient measure of curve thickness. Given the utility of the construction inherent to global curvature, it is also natural to consider variants of global radii of curvature defined in related ways. For example multi-point radius functions can be introduced as the radius of a sphere through four points on the curve, circles that are tangent at one point of the curve and intersect at another, etc. Then single argument, global radius of curvature functions can be constructed by minimizing over all but one argument. In this article we describe the interrelations between all possible global radius of curvature functions of this type, and show that there are two of particular interest. Properties of the divers global radius of curvature functions are illustrated with the simple examples of ellipses and helices, including certain critical helices that arise in the optimal shapes of compact filaments, in �-helical proteins, and in B-form DNA.


The alternating-current losses in superconducting multifilament BiSCCO-2223 tapes and a 3.15-m single-phase test cable were measured at 77 K using an electrical transport method. The cable had an inner diameter of 42 mm; it was composed of a single layer of 31 multifilament tapes and had a critical current of Ic = 4.1 kA. The measured losses of the tapes were found to be in good agreement with the Norris ellipse (NE) model. The losses of the cable were, for high currents, found to be bounded by the monoblock and independent NE models.


Faults are the leading cause of time consuming and cost wasting during software life cycle. Predicting faults in early stage improves the quality and reliability of the system and also reduces cost for software development. Many researches proved that software metrics are effective elements for software fault prediction. In addition, many machine learning techniques have been developed for software fault prediction. It is important to determine which set of metrics are effective for predicting fault by using machine learning techniques. In this paper, we conduct an experimental study to evaluate the performance of seven popular techniques including Logistic Regression, K-nearest Neighbors, Decision Tree, Random Forest, Naive Bayes, Support Vector Machine and Multilayer Perceptron using software metrics from Promise repository dataset usage. Our experiment is performed on both method-level and class-level datasets. The experimental results show that Support Vector Machine archives a higher performance in class-level datasets and Multilayer Perception produces a better accuracy in method-level datasets among seven techniques above.


Texas Southern University (TSU) is a commuter campus with students, faculty, and staff traveling from the Greater Houston area to the university. Over the past few years, the TSU campus has made marked improvements to move towards a "greener" more sustainable campus with less impervious coverage. Despite this commitment, the campus still has not addressed how the university will decrease its carbon footprint and change the way people arrive at the campus. Adopting a multi-facetted approach to commuting where faculty, staff, and students have the sustainable commuting options: i.e. rideshare, transit, drive, and bicycle, as viable alternatives to get to the university. The literature and practices currently in use show these strategies are already working well at other campuses and could prove success at TSU as well.