The infectious male urethritis is characterized by the urethral discharge, which is clear or purulent due to the number of leucocytes. Infection occurs mostly in sexual intercourse. Neisseria gonorrhoeae today causes only about 20-30% of the infections. Gramnegative bacteria are demonstrable by microscopic examination of the urethral discharge, otherwise by cultivation. Ureaplasma and chlamydia trachomatis, an intracellular growing bacterium, are the most frequent agents in infectious urethritis. They are often found together, the cultivation requires special laboratory conditions. They are common saprophytis bacteria within the urethra (u. urealyticum in up to 50%), their number of colony forming units of urethritis, like yeasts, viruses, trichomonas are rare. The treatment of gonorrhoic urethritis is done by penicillin or spectinomycin. Infections by u. urealyticum and c. trachomatis are treated with tetracyclin. Although spontaneous healing is not uncommon, therapy should be performed with respect to the high risk of following prostatitis and epididymitis.


In this work, we model the network slice provisioning as an optimization problem including novel mapping and provisioning requirements rising with new 5G radio and core function placement policies. We propose an MILP-based formulation that joins different functional splitting strategies with different network function sharing policies and novel mapping continuity constraints from 5G specifications. We show by numerical simulations the impact of taking into full and partial consideration these peculiar sets of novel technical constraints.


OBJECTIVE
It has been demonstrated in preliminary studies that rifampin, a semisynthetic antibiotic and known inducer of hepatic cytochrome P450 3A4, reduces serum concentrations of total bile acids only in individuals with liver disease and elevated serum bile acid levels.

METHODS
We studied the effect of rifampin on concentrations of surrogate serum markers of cholesterol and bile acid synthesis as well as of cholesterol absorption in 10 male subjects before and after administration of rifampin (600 mg/day) for 6 days. Cholesterol and its precursors were analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography (GLC), bile acid intermediates and individual bile acids by isotope-dilution methods using GLC-mass spectrometry (MS) or by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

RESULTS
Treatment with rifampin resulted in a 70% increase (p = 0.008) of the serum concentration of the bile acid precursor 7alpha-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one, which is a marker for bile acid production. Serum total cholesterol was not altered, however, treatment with rifampin elevated the ratio of lathosterol to cholesterol, an indicator of cholesterol synthesis, by 23% (p = 0.037). Interestingly, serum concentration of total bile acids decreased slightly by 29% (p = 0.022), mainly due to a lowering of the secondary bile acid, deoxycholic acid (-60%; p = 0.005).

CONCLUSION
A 6-day treatment with rifampin induces a reduction of deoxycholic serum concentrations in healthy men associated with a moderate increase of serum markers of bile acid and endogenous cholesterol synthesis.


Objectives: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a One Health problem in which fluoroquinolone resistance has caused great concern. The aim of this study is to estimate factors related to fluoroquinolone resistance involving the professionals and antimicrobial consumption (AMC) in human and animal fields. Methods: A country-level panel data set in Europe from 2005 to 2016 was constructed. The dependent variables were measured by Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Pseudomonasaeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) resistance rates to fluoroquinolones. Both the static and dynamic panel data models were employed to estimate the above factors associated with the resistance rates. Results: The 10% increase in the number of medical staff and veterinary professionals per 100,000 population were significantly correlated with the 32.44% decrease of P. aeruginosa and 0.57% decrease of E. coli resistance rates to fluoroquinolones (Coef. = −3.244, −0.057; p = 0.000, 0.030, respectively). The 10% increase in the human AMC was correlated with 10.06% and 8.04% increase of P. aeruginosa resistance rates to fluoroquinolones in static and dynamic models (Coef. = 1.006, 0.804; p = 0.006, 0.001, respectively). The 10% increase in veterinary AMC was related to a 1.65% decrease of P. aeruginosa resistance rates to fluoroquinolones (Coef. = −0.165, p = 0.019). Conclusions: The increases in medical and veterinary professionals are respectively associated with the decrease of P. aeruginosa and E. coli resistance rates to fluoroquinolones. The increase in human AMC is also associated with increase of P. aeruginosa resistance rates, while the increase in veterinary AMC was found to be associated with a decrease in resistance rate for P. aeruginosa.


Aim
It has been shown by a great number of studies that the correct use of adrenaline auto injectors prescribed to patients with anaphylaxis is associated with the design of the auto injector, in addition to training. The aim of this study was to compare the skills of adults in using two different auto injectors prescribed to patients with anaphylaxis.

Material and Methods
Parents of patients aged between 1 and 18 years who referred to allergy outpatients were included in the study.

Results
A total of 630 volunteers from nine centers were included in the study. Four hundred fifty-seven (72.5%) of the participants were females and 235 (37.3%) were undergraduates. The rate of showing all the steps of auto injector trainers correctly by the participants was found as (60.2%) (n=379) for EpiPen and 42.9% (n=270) for Penepin (p<0.001). The most frequent mistake with both auto injector trainers was the step of "place appropriate injection tip into outer thigh/press the trigger so it clicks." When the preferences of the volunteers were asked after training and application, 527 (83.7%) chose EpiPen, stating that it was easier and simpler to use.

Conclusions
Our study showed that the correct usage rates of both adrenaline auto injectors were much lower than expected and there could be mistakes in the application of both. It could be appropriate to make improvements in the design of Penepin, which is still the only available adrenaline auto injector in Turkey, such that its application steps will be simpler and quicker.


Abstract Objective: To create age-based scoring procedures for the BISCUIT-Part 2, an assessment measure of comorbid psychopathology in infants and toddlers aged 17–37 months. Method: The standard deviation from the mean method was used to develop separate age-based cutoffs for those with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and those with non-ASD related developmental delays, using a sample of 2867 infants and toddlers and their parents. Results: As age increased in those with ASD, higher cutoff scores were indicated. Less variation was seen in the cutoff scores established for those with non-ASD related delays. Conclusion: The findings suggest that as children with ASD grow older, symptoms of comorbidity become more prevalent and easier to detect. The implications of these results, as well as possible areas of future research, are discussed.


The different solvent extracts of Raphanus Sativus L. leaves (Family: Brassicaceae) were tested for antidiabetic activity using alloxan induced diabetic rats and compared with standard. The results expressed that aqueous extracts had shown significant protection and maximum reduction in blood glucose was observed in alloxan induced diabetic rats (p<0.001). The results of this comprehensive study reveal that R. sativus L leaves showed statistically significant Antidiabetic activity in comparison to the standard glibenclamide.


A stronomer Fritz Zwicky first proposed dark matter in 1933 to explain the discrepancy between observed rotational velocities of galaxies in the Coma Cluster and expected rotational velocities based on the gravitational potential from the visible matter. Ever since, many studies have built a strong case for the existence of dark matter. Observations of the rotation curves of spiral galaxies, measurements of the temperature fluctuations in the cosmic background radiation, and gravitational-lensing images of distant galaxies clearly show that there is far more mass distributed uniformly throughout galaxies than what can be accounted for by the matter contained in the stars and dust. The question is not whether cold dark matter exists. The question is whether it consists of some type of particle and how such a particle might be detected and identified. The Axion Dark Matter eXperiment (ADMX) has now reported results from its latest search for one of the leading dark matter particle candidates—the axion [1]. Thanks to unprecedented detection sensitivity, ADMX has been able to probe, for the first time, the parameter space favored by both of the two most popular axion dark matter models. While the ADMX Collaboration has found no evidence for axions, the results represent a technical breakthrough in the ability to probe axion parameter ranges that were previously out of reach.


Background. Self-administered plantar myofascial release with a tennis ball is a widely used technique to increase flexibility and range of motion, but it is unclear how effective this technique is on static and dynamic balance and injury risk in volleyball players.
The aim of the study is to determine the immediate effect of short-term (90 s duration) plantar myofascial release on the static and dynamic balance and injury risk of females playing volleyball.
Methods. The study involved 26 female volleyball players who were randomly assigned to one of two groups. Subjects in the control group (n=13) received no intervention and were retested for 180 s. since initial testing. The participants of the study group received self-administered plantar myofascial release of 90 s duration with tennis ball for one leg and 90 s duration on the other leg (all together duration 180 s). A modified star excursion (Y test) test was used to assess dynamic balance. Static balance was assessed by the Flamingo test.
Results. Myofascial release improved (p<0.05) the result of dynamic balance in only one direction – anterior, standing on both the left and right leg, in the control group – posterolateral, standing on the right and left leg, posteromedial – standing on the right leg (p<0.05). No differences were found between groups. The static balance of subjects in both groups during the retest did not differ (p>0.05) from the initial assessment. The combined dynamic balance score improved (p<0.05) only in the control group that had a rest break instead of the intervention. No significant differences were found in static balance results either between groups or within groups.
Conclusions. Immediate short duration plantar myofascial release was not effective on static and dynamic balance and injury risk in volleyball players. The effect of short-term myofascial release did not differ from that of no intervention.
Keywords: balance, volleyball, myofascial release, injury risk.


High-speed processing of yarns into carpet and textile consumer products generally requires application of friction-reducing coatings onto the fibers. Such coatings, often totaling up to 1 1/2 - 2 wt% as applied both by the original fiber manufacturer and additionally by the final product manufacturer, facilitate trouble-free movement of the fibers across surfaces and through guides associated with weaving and other manufacturing operations. These yarn spin finishes unfortunately present significant air- and water-pollution concerns in the final stages of production. Their volatilization during heat-setting of yarns generates appreciable emission of VOC air pollutants in both the ambient and the workplace atmospheres. Their removal by product-washing operations results in spin finishes typically contributing up to 60-70% of the COD pollution load of wastewater effluents from carpet manufacturing plants. Due primarily to lack of uniformity of the fiber coating achieved by conventional application methods, excess spin finish is routinely dispensed at the time of "spinning" polymeric fibers to ensure satisfactory performance. Furthermore, it is topically applied to the peripheral surface of the coalesced fiber bundle and not more effectively onto the individual filaments, which comprise the bundle as they issue from the spinnerets; typically 60-120 such filaments are brought together to comprise one fiber threadline. This paper reports the theoretical basis of an electrostatics-based process and engineering prototype for the precharging of high-speed dielectric-filament arrays, the electrohydrodynamic spray application of charged spin finish thereon, and the net charge balance/neutralization of such coated fibers. Prototype evaluations on-line at a full-scale 15 m/s polymeric-fiber production unit will subsequently be presented.


Blockchain technology is one among the recent innovations in the computing industry. Blockchains have gathered a widespread interest in the industry mainly due to their security promise. Despite the anticipated benefits of Blockchains, there are several limitations which make the technology less suitable in large scale applications such as banking, one being low throughput. Several initiatives to improve the throughput of Blockchains are being tried out both in the academia and the business worlds but no systematic classification of the initiatives and the strategies used has been done. This study explores Blockchain performance improvement initiatives and classify the initiatives by the improvement strategy used. This study has found that, out of 365 articles on the area of Blockchain performance, 300 were solution proposals aimed at improving the performance of Blockchains. The most used strategies in these proposals were alternative to PoW, sharding and multi-chain architecture.


In recent years, computerized online tests play a significant role to judge the learning of the students in their academics. The conventional process of examining students for academic performance take a long time and thus, identifying and understanding the learning behaviors at that time is very crucial and difficult. The pen and pencil tests that are used to assess the student's learning way by the teachers take a lot of time. Thus, a computerized test can serve as an early mechanism for testing the students wherein the evaluation results are produced immediately and thus, reducing the time for the teachers for further assessment. The students learning and understanding behaviors are reflected through their scores and performances in these tests. The present model helps the teachers to predict the weak learners and their area of weakness in studies so that special coaching and interests can be given on such students to improve their academics strength. In recent years, the JAVA programming language is extensively used for several kinds of examinations. This web-based testing environment is a JAVA based application through which the results are analyzed and are visualized to students and the reports are provided as feedback to the teachers. The analysis uses regression to predict the performance based on the y value calculated. The correlation coefficient between the average score and average time spent on chapters was found to be 0.474, which indicates the moderate correlation between them. This kind of examination helps students to self-evaluate their learning results and thus, can improvise on weaker areas.


703e Reply: natural Evolution of Seroma in Abdominoplasty Sir: We would like to thank Dr. Huang et al. for their observations about our study. Regarding the question about incidence and prevalence, a definition will help us to understand these terms better. According to the McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine,1 incidence is the rate of occurrence of new cases of a disease or condition in a population at risk during a given period. Prevalence, instead, according to the Mosby's Medical Dictionary,2 is the number of all new and old cases of a disease or occurrences of an event during a particular period. In the Methods section, page 693e, it is written, "Cases presenting a fluid volume greater than 20 ml for the five regions combined were considered positive for seroma.8 Ultrasound-guided aspiration was performed in patients with fluid collections greater than 20 ml." It means that every patient who presented seroma (>20 ml) had aspiration. Therefore, if there was seroma in these cases at a new point in time, it was counted as a new case of seroma in the evaluated time point and the term incidence was used. Ideally, if we could leave the seroma being formed by accumulation along the timeline of the studied points, it would be a perfect model, but this is not what occurs in real life. If a seroma is detected by a plastic surgeon, it should be aspirated to avoid a capsular formation and a consequent pseudobursa. This is the reason why seroma had to be aspirated and the term incidence was used rather than prevalence. Seroma is a very frequent complication after abdominoplasty. We have been studying this complication for 10 years now, since we started our study on quilting suture efficacy, which was published in 2007.3 In all of these articles,4,5 we have shown that the beginning of seroma formation is not soon after the operation. The reason for that is still unknown, and this is what new studies should focus on. As the composition of seroma is similar to the lymphatic fluid, possibly seroma formation is related to the section of lymphatic natural Evolution of Seroma in Abdominoplasty Sir: W read with great interest the article entitled "Natural Evolution of Seroma in Abdominoplasty."1 We congratulate the authors on finding the highest incidence of seroma on postoperative day 11. Based on the data from Figure 3, there should be some overlap among patients with seroma formation at different time points. However, by definition, the incidence of seroma formation on postoperative day 18 should not include the patients with seroma since postoperative day 11; otherwise, the parameter should be prevalence instead of incidence. According to the authors' practice, suction drains were removed when output was less than 40 ml in 24 hours. If the output is 39 ml on postoperative day 2, the drains will be removed on postoperative day 3. However, if fluid collection is over 20 ml on postoperative day 3, which is possible in practice, seroma formation will be identified by ultrasound, because the definition of seroma is fluid collection greater than 20 ml. Therefore, the indication for drain removal might be adjusted to output less than or equal to 20 ml in 24 hours. A possible explanation for the low incidence of seroma on postoperative day 4 might be the presence of suction drains, because many patients still have their suction drains in place. We suggest that data on complications would be available with more details, such as local infection, hematoma, and others. The authors wrote that "all patients still had suction drains on postoperative day 4" on page 695e. However, Table 2 of the article mentioned that the minimum time to drain removal was 3 days. Those figures seem to be paradoxical. Seroma is an important complication associated with abdominoplasty, and we hope there will be more large scale investigations in this field. DOI: 10.1097/PRS.0000000000001662


ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED vii LIST OF TABLES viii LIST OF FIGURES ix LIST OF APPENDICES xi


Photocatalytic oxidation has shown promise as alternative technique to conventional techniques though lack of efficient catalyst is a major problem in commercial application. In the current work, a transition metal, Fe (iron), is doped into the TiO2 catalyst by coprecipitation method assisted by ultrasound with an objective to achieve reduced particle size and better characteristics. Optimization study for the parameters associated with the synthesis was performed resulting in the best conditions of ultrasonic power (120 W), irradiation time (30 min), temperature (35ºC) and Fe doping (0.4 mol%). Using characterization techniques of Particle size analysis, XRD, FTIR, UV-Vis bandgap analysis and BET analysis, the comparison of the catalysts obtained using ultrasound assisted and conventional approach was performed. The particle size obtained by ultrasound assisted process (US catalyst) was 348 nm which is much lesser than size of catalyst prepared conventionally (CV catalyst) as 1069 nm. XRD and FTIR analysis demonstrated the superiority of the US catalyst over the CV catalyst. The UV-Vis bandgap analysis established the reduction of bandgap from 3.2 eV to 2.8 eV due to doping of Fe. BET analysis showed the improvement of surface area from 19.413 m2/g to 40.603 m2/g due to the use of ultrasound. The photocatalytic oxidation of Acid Scarlet 3R dye was performed, where US catalyst showed 48.2% degradation, higher than the CV catalyst where degradation was 34%. Overall the work has shown the methodology to obtain efficient catalyst based on doping of Fe and the effect of ultrasound also demonstrating better photocatalytic activity.


Galluzzi • Management of Neuropathic Pain T International Association for the Study of Pain defines neuropathic pain as "initated or caused by a primary lesion or dysfunction in the nervous system" and due to disordered peripheral or central nerves.1 The disorder can be caused by compression, transection, infiltration, ischemia, or metabolic injury to neuronal cell bodies, or in combination. Neuropathic pain may be classified as either peripheral or deafferentation (central) in origin.2 Examples of the former include diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), antineoplastic therapy– or HIVinduced sensory neuropathy, tumor infiltration neuropathy, phantom limb pain, postmastectomy pain, complex regional pain syndromes (reflex sympathetic dystrophy), and trigeminal neuralgia. Deafferentation syndromes resulting in neuropathic pain include multiple sclerosis (MS), spinal cord injury (SCI), central poststroke pain, and Parkinson disease. Bennett3 provided incidence estimates of common types of neuropathic pain and concluded that if neuropathic low back pain is included in the total, approximately 3.8 million individuals in the United States alone suffer from this disorder. Bowsher4 calculated that there might be as many as 1 million patients with PHN in the United States. Such painful conditions are likely to increase as the population continues to age; eg, herpes zoster, diabetes mellitus, cerebrovascular accidents, Parkinson disease, and cancer are diseases of aging. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy, second only to low back pain–associated neuropathy, is estimated to account for 600 cases per 100,000 (Table 1); these cases are certain to increase as the population of those with diabetes mellitus continues to increase.


Biological toxins are a heterogeneous group produced by living organisms. One dictionary defines them as "Chemicals produced by living organisms that have toxic properties for another organism". Toxins are very attractive to terrorists for use in acts of bioterrorism. The first reason is that many biological toxins can be obtained very easily. Simple bacterial culturing systems and extraction equipment dedicated to plant toxins are cheap and easily available, and can even be constructed at home. Many toxins affect the nervous systems of mammals by interfering with the transmission of nerve impulses, which gives them their high potential in bioterrorist attacks. Others are responsible for blockage of main cellular metabolism, causing cellular death. Moreover, most toxins act very quickly and are lethal in low doses (LD50 < 25 mg/kg), which are very often lower than chemical warfare agents. For these reasons we decided to prepare this review paper which main aim is to present the high potential of biological toxins as factors of bioterrorism describing the general characteristics, mechanisms of action and treatment of most potent biological toxins. In this paper we focused on six most danger toxins: botulinum toxin, staphylococcal enterotoxins, Clostridium perfringens toxins, ricin, abrin and T-2 toxin. We hope that this paper will help in understanding the problem of availability and potential of biological toxins.


Aged-related declines in cognition, especially working memory and executive function, begin in middle-age and these abilities are known to be mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and more specifically the dopamine (DA) system within the PFC. In both humans and monkeys, there is significant evidence that the PFC is the first cortical region to change with age and the PFC appears to be particularly vulnerable to age-related loss of dopamine (DA). Therefore, the DA system is a strong candidate for therapeutic intervention to slow or reverse age related declines in cognition. In the present study, we administered a novel selective, potent, non-catechol DA D1 R agonist PF-6294 (Pfizer, Inc.) to aged female rhesus monkeys and assessed their performance on two benchmark tasks of working memory – the Delayed Non-match to Sample Task (DNMS) and Delayed Recognition Span Task (DRST). The DNMS task was administered first with the standard 10 s delay and then with 5 min delays, with and without distractors. The DRST was administered each day with four trials with unique sequences and one trial of a repeated sequence to assess evidence learning and retention. Overall, there was no significant effect of drug on performance on any aspect of the DNMS task. In contrast, we demonstrated that a middle range dose of PF-6294 significantly increased memory span on the DRST on the first and last days of testing and by the last day of testing the increased memory span was driven by the performance on the repeated trials.


End-of-Life Dreams and Visions Abstract: End-of life dreams and visions (ELDVs) or so-called death bed phenomena are transcendent experiences at the end of life that can be visual, auditory and/or kinesthetic, and often include visions of (deceased) loved ones, close friends or perceptions of places, travels, bright lights, or music. ELDVs typically occur weeks to hours prior to death and may comfort the dying and prepare spiritually for the end of life. Such experiences are frequently reported by dying individuals, the prevalence varying between 30 and 80%, but in the clinical context ELDVs are usually neglected, but interpreted and treated as pathological changes in the brain that result in, and from, delirium. This article tries to enlighten the occurrence, the contents and meanings of ELDVs in dying persons as opposed to delirium and night dreams using findings from the literature and from clinical observations. Implications of these conclusions for palliative care and the therapeutic relevance of ELDVs when taking care of dying individuals and their loved ones will also be discussed.


New (R)-4-benzamido-5-oxopentanoic acid derivatives were synthesized by a stereoconservative procedure and evaluated in vitro for their capacity to inhibit the binding of [125I](BH)-CCK-8 to either rat peripheral (CCK-A) or central (CCK-B) CCK receptors, or the binding of [3H]pentagastrin to rabbit gastric glands, as well as to inhibit, in vivo, the acid secretion induced by pentagastrin infusion in the perfused rat stomach. The parent compound of this series (lorglumide) is the first nonpeptidic, potent and selective antagonist of the CCK-A receptor. Chemical manipulations of the structure of lorglumide led to the discovery of selective antagonists of the CCK-B/gastrin receptors. Structure-activity relationships are discussed. Some of these new derivatives exhibit different affinities with rabbit gastric gland cells and rat cortex membranes, suggesting that the stomach gastrin receptor (arbitrarily termed CCK-B1 receptor) is not as closely related to the CCK central receptor (termed CCK-B2) as previously hypothesized. The antigastric activity of the most potent compound of the series, i.e. (R)-4-(3,5-dichlorobenzamido)-5-(8-azaspiro[4.5]decan- 8-yl)-5-oxopentanoic acid (compound 28, CR 2194) was further evaluated in vivo: in the first hour after administration the compound inhibits acid secretion induced by pentagastrin infusion, in both cat and dog (in the cat with gastric fistula and in the dog with Heidenhain pouch), with ID50s (mg/kg) of 15.5 (iv) (cat), 8.7 (IV) (dog) and 24.2 (oral) (Heidenhain dog). The characteristics of CR 2194, that is, the selectivity for the gastrin receptor, the simple nonpeptidic molecular structure, and the activity after oral administration, indicate that this compound is a useful tool in the study of the biological effects of gastrin and a potential agent for diagnostic or therapeutic use.


: The relative importance of regional specialization and diversity has been under constant debate in the field of economic geography. At present, China has entered a period of transformation and upgrading, changing its economic growth momentum. It is necessary to understand and evaluate the spatial effect of industrial diversity in order to choose a reasonable path for regional development. In view of the internal relationship between industries, evolutionary economic geographers divided diversity into related variety and unrelated variety according to the degree of correlation between industries, which provide a new analytical framework for explaining the internal mechanism of regional economic effect of variety. This article summarized the concepts and measurement methods of variety, and discussed the relationship between different types of variety and regional economic development and its internal mechanism. Through a literature review, it is found that related variety and unrelated variety play an important role in improving regional productivity, resisting external shocks and maintaining stability, and promoting employment, innovation, and other aspects through knowledge spillover and portfolio effect, but the process is relatively complex. Considering industrial characteristics, regional scope, location, development stage, and other factors, there is a nonlinear relationship between variety level and regional growth. It is proposed that the focus of future research should begin from the following aspects: 1) Expand the meaning of relatedness to define variety in a broader sense and further consider the role of the relatedness of other factors, such as market and institutional variety, in the spatial effects of regional variety, while not only limiting it to similarities but also taking into account complementarities. 2) Further examine how firms and actors at the micro level discriminate and absorb knowledge from related and unrelated industries, and how multiple forms of proximity affect the knowledge restructuring process in related and unrelated domains. 3) Fully consider the characteristics of regional heterogeneity and the scope and conditions of regional variety at different temporal and spatial scales to provide theoretical support for the effective implementation of policies in different administrative divisions. 4) Existing studies are mostly based on the experience of Western countries, lacking an overall assessment of related and unrelated diversities in China and its pattern of change over a long period of time. It is necessary to take full account of the institutional contexts of different countries in order to further deepen and complement the theoretical framework and research results of evolutionary economic geography.


Each of the two mutants isolated from a fliC (=hag, flagellin‐deficient) Escherichia coli strain made motile by a plasmid carrying the fliC gene of Salmonella muenchen by selection for motility in the presence of anti‐d (Salmonella flagellar antigen) serum had both lost and gained one or more subfactors of the wild‐type antigen. In one more mutant codon 246 was GAC (alanine) instead of GCC (asparagine); the other had a deletion of 105 base pairs, explicable by a 10bp direct repeat, starting at bases 782 and 887. The in vitro removal of a 48bp EcoRV(631)/EcoRV(679) fragment produced plasmid pLS408, which was found to lack a subfactor of wild‐type antigen d but able to confer motility on flagellin‐negative Salmonella sp.(and used for insertion of epitope‐specifying oligonucleotides at its EcoRV site). Immunoblotting with absorbed and unabsorbed sera from rabbits immunized with E. coli with wild‐type or mutated antigen d showed that the fusion proteins specified by λ gt11 with the N‐terminal part of gene lacZ joined to a restriction fragment coding for residues 145–391 of flagellin gave the same patter of parent‐specific and mutant‐specific reactions as the flagellate bacteria. Four out of five similarly selected mutants had the same 105bp deletion as the first‐isolated mutant; the fifth had a 72bp deletion made possible by a 7‐base pair direct repeat, starting at positions 649 and 721. All these changes in serological character without loss of function affected segment IV, specifying residues 182 to 308 of the total of 505, where there is little homology between different flagellar antigen alleles.


The study investigates the relationship between corporate governance and the performance of banks in Ghana in terms of their financial performance. Primary and Secondary data were collected through the administration of interview questionnaires and from the Ghana Association of Bankers respectively. In analyzing the data, panel data methodology was used. The findings show that large board size, long serving CEOs, size of audit committee, audit committee independence, foreign ownership, institutional ownership, annual general meeting and dividend policy are positively related and associated with the financial performance of banks in Ghana. The banks are encouraged to adopt good corporate governance practices to improve on their financial performance and also protect the shareholders. Most importantly, the regulatory authorities must ensure compliance with good corporate governance and apply the appropriate sanctions for non-compliance to help the growth and development of the banking sector. The main contribution of the study to knowledge lies in its effort in strengthening corporate governance beyond the rights and responsibilities of different stakeholders in the management of a firm into areas involving the relationship between finance providers and a firm, compliance with legal, ethical and environmental needs of the society among others. This contribution has in no small way helped in enhancing my understanding about the interpretations which have shaped the corporate governance in relation with performance of the firm both in theory and practice.


During the past years, the International Conference on Medical Image Computing and Computer Assisted Intervention (MICCAI) has become a premier international conference with in-depth papers on the multidisciplinary fields of medical image processing, computer-assisted intervention and medical robotics. The conference brings together clinicians, biological scientists, computer scientists, engineers, physicists and other researchers and offers them a forum to exchange ideas in these exciting and rapidly growing fields. The seventh edition of MICCAI was held in Saint-Malo, Brittany, France from 26 to 29 September 2004, the first time in France since the conference was formed in 1998. One objective of the 2004 edition was to encourage contributions strengthening the links between clinical applications and innovative biomedical science and engineering research, with a special emphasis on validation issues. The impact of MICCAI increases each year and the quality and quantity of submitted papers was very remarkable. The conference attracted an overall attendance of 607 participants from more than 30 different countries. The program committee received 516 full submissions (8 pages in length) and 101 short communications (2 pages) from 36 different countries and 6 continents; a figure below shows the distribution of Miccai 2004 submissions per world regions. All submissions were reviewed by up to 4 external reviewers from the Scientific Review Committee and a primary reviewer from the Program Committee. All reviews were then considered by the MICCAI 2004 Program Committee, resulting in the acceptance of 235 full papers and 33 short communications. The normal mode of presentation at MICCAI 2004 was as a poster; in addition, 46 papers were chosen for oral presentation. All of the full papers accepted were included in the proceedings1 in 8-page format. All of the accepted 2-page short communications were also included, and appeared at the meeting as posters. A figure below shows the distribution of accepted contributions by topic, topics being defined from the primary keyword of the submission. Of all papers presented, 14 were selected for possible inclusion in this special issue of Medical Image Analysis on MICCAI 2004. The selection was based on the suitability of the subject matter for MedIA, original comments, MICCAI awards and scores from the conference peer review, along with the quality of the presentations and posters during the meeting. The authors were asked to expand their conference articles in order to reach the level of an archived journal publication in quality and detail. After all, 7 of the 14 invited papers made their way through the regular review process of Medical Image Analysis and could be included in this issue, two of them having received a specific award during the conference (Perperidis et al. and Valtorta and Mazza papers). One of the most important trends in current research in medical image analysis follow the evolution of the biomedical imaging community by incorporating new spatio-temporal dimensions to the anatomical and functional data acquired and used, and by matching these observations with physically based models. This leads to better understand how normal and pathological organs behaves and also participates to integrate new effectors and image data during computer assisted interventional procedures (surgery, interventional radiology, ...). The seven papers we selected for this issue reflect this trend, with particular emphasis on analysis of time varying images with data fusion and incorporation of physically based models (Perperidis et al., Sermesant et al.), segmenting highly difficult images of normal and pathological organs (Jackowski et al. on high dimensional DT-MRI data and Prastawa et al. on low SNR neonatal brain MRI), or jointly modelling and segmenting anatomical structures (Tsai et al.), building realistic physically based models (Valtorta and Mazza) and finally integrating intra-operative imaging modalities during computer assisted interventional procedures (Burschka et al.). Finally, we would like to thank all the reviewers who devoted their time and effort to help us. Their contribution, together with the significant support from the publishing office, the MICCAI program board, and the MICCAI organizing board made this special issue possible within the time limits of the tight editorial schedule.


By Introduction. —The Mesozoic periods are in Scotland represented only by a number of isolated patches of strata situated in the Highlands and Western Isles, which have been preserved from the destructive effects of denudation either through having been let down by great faults among the Palaeozoic rocks, or through being sealed up under vast masses of Tertiary lavas. The Cretaceous rocks, exhibiting very interest-ing characters and yielding a beautiful series of fossils, were discovered by the author of the paper during the past year on the mainland and in several of the islands of the west of Scotland. The Jurassic rocks, which were first described by Murchison, are now shown to present a remarkable contrast with their equivalents in England, in being constituted, throtighout their whole thickness,


In this paper we provide a method to separate the markup from product differentiation from other sources of market power, i.e. collusive behavior or market intransparency, based on the estimation of a single reduced form equation. We apply this method to a sample of 118 German breweries, since beer is a differentiated product and at the same time the sector has repeatedly been subject to collusive behavior. Our empirical results show that the "general" markup goes beyond the markup from product differentiation, but the latter accounts for most of the deviation of prices from marginal costs. Moreover, typically for a market with monopolistic competition, we observe average costs above marginal costs and, hence, a high markup does not necessarily translate into a high a profit margin.


Background Given the magnitude of increasing heart failure mortality, multidisciplinary approaches, in the form of disease management programs and other integrative models of care, are recommended to optimize treatment outcomes. Remote monitoring, either as structured telephone support or telemonitoring or a combination of both, is fast becoming an integral part of many disease management programs. However, studies reporting on the evaluation of real-world heart failure remote monitoring programs are scarce. Objective This study aims to evaluate the effect of a heart failure telemonitoring program, Connected Cardiac Care Program (CCCP), on hospitalization and mortality in a retrospective database review of medical records of patients with heart failure receiving care at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Methods Patients enrolled in the CCCP heart failure monitoring program at the Massachusetts General Hospital were matched 1:1 with usual care patients. Control patients received care from similar clinical settings as CCCP patients and were identified from a large clinical data registry. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality and hospitalizations assessed during the 4-month program duration. Secondary outcomes included hospitalization and mortality rates (obtained by following up on patients over an additional 8 months after program completion for a total duration of 1 year), risk for multiple hospitalizations and length of stay. The Cox proportional hazard model, stratified on the matched pairs, was used to assess primary outcomes. Results A total of 348 patients were included in the time-to-event analyses. The baseline rates of hospitalizations prior to program enrollment did not differ significantly by group. Compared with controls, hospitalization rates decreased within the first 30 days of program enrollment: hazard ratio (HR)=0.52, 95% CI 0.31-0.86, P=.01). The differential effect on hospitalization rates remained consistent until the end of the 4-month program (HR=0.74, 95% CI 0.54-1.02, P=.06). The program was also associated with lower mortality rates at the end of the 4-month program: relative risk (RR)=0.33, 95% 0.11-0.97, P=.04). Additional 8-months follow-up following program completion did not show residual beneficial effects of the CCCP program on mortality (HR=0.64, 95% 0.34-1.21, P=.17) or hospitalizations (HR=1.12, 95% 0.90-1.41, P=.31). Conclusions CCCP was associated with significantly lower hospitalization rates up to 90 days and significantly lower mortality rates over 120 days of the program. However, these effects did not persist beyond the 120-day program duration.


Recent advances in lithium-ion battery modeling suggest unequal but controlled and carefully timed charging of individual cells by reduce degradation. This paper compares anode-side film formation for a standard equalization scheme versus unequal charging through switches that are controlled by deterministic dynamic programming (DDP) and DDP-inspired heuristic algorithms. A static map for film growth rate is derived from a first-principles battery model adopted from the electrochemical engineering literature. Using this map, we consider two cells that are connected in parallel via relay switches. The key results are the following: 1) optimal unequal and delayed charging indeed reduces film buildup, and 2) a near-optimal state feedback controller can be designed from the DDP solution and film growth rate convexity properties. The simulation results indicate that the heuristic state feedback controller achieves near optimal performance relative to the DDP solution, with significant reduction in film growth compared to charging both cells equally, for several film growth models. Moreover, the algorithms achieve similar film reduction values on the full electrochemical model. These results correlate with the convexity properties of the film growth map. Hence, this paper demonstrates that unequal charging may indeed reduce film growth, given certain convexity properties exist, lending promise to the concept for improving battery pack life.


Current work deals with the design of a microcontroller based local unit to acquire signals from a set of sensors and locally diagnose the air quality. The local unit permits the interface with standards atmospheric and meteorological sensors, as well as the communication with a central unit by message passing protocol, via GSM. A fuzzy inference system has been developed to perform the approximate reasoning process as performed by a human, based on the perception of the environment conditions. The decision algorithm is based on a performance criterion, the one that forces the emergence of the pollution level with minimum communication and maximum environment safety. The processes running at the local unit have been modularly designed within the frame of a client/server architecture to ease its gradual growing and maintenance. The local unit bi-directionally communicates with several central units that record and visualize stationary data and acts at the reception of an emergency message. The Communication is performed either following a remotely programmed pattern, event based or under the user demand.


Leather industries covers a wide chain of production and indirectly contributes to the economic flow. The different stages used in leather processing led to produce huge solid waste volumes. Because of the great effectiveness of amino acids as naturally chelates for minerals, the present study was carried out to recycling leather waste into its protein hydrolysate by CaO hydrolysis. The Leather protein hydrolysates (LPHs) was used to prepare metal-leather protein hydrolysate chelates (Cu2+-, Zn2+-& Fe2+-LPHCs) and some of their physical properties (i.e. λ-max, FTIR spectra, color, melting point) and biochemical properties as its antibacterial activity, as well as using as micronutrient elements for plant were evaluated. Results showed that the Cu2+-LPHC gave the highest value of melting point and λ-max than other chelates. All chelates shifted the vibration bands toward a higher frequency than LPH/CaO. Metal-leather protein hydrolysate (M-LPHCs) had antibacterial activities against E. coli, B. cereus and Micrococcus spp. mostly with Zn-LPHC and Fe-LPHC. These complexes also increased the growth characteristics and mineral absorption of spinach plants in hydroponic nutrient solution than that of mineral salts (CuSO4, ZnSO4 and FeSO4). Finally, the study concluded that M-LPHCs can be used as antimicrobial agent, micronutrients for plant and support the minerals bioavailability in animals.


Fragment Molecular Orbital based‐Molecular Dynamics (FMO‐MD, Komeiji et al., Chem Phys Lett 2003, 372, 342) is an ab initio MD method suitable for large molecular systems. Here, FMO‐MD was implemented to conduct full quantum simulations of chemical reactions in explicit solvation. Several FMO‐MD simulations were performed for a sphere of water to find a suitable simulation protocol. It was found that annealing of the initial configuration by a classical MD brought the subsequent FMO‐MD trajectory to faster stabilization, and also that use of bond constraint in the FMO‐MD heating stage effectively reduced the computation time. Then, the blue moon ensemble method (Sprik and Ciccotti, J Chem Phys 1998, 109, 7737) was implemented and was tested by calculating free energy profiles of the Menschutkin reaction (H3N + CH3Cl → +H3NCH3 + Cl−) in the presence and absence of the solvent water via FMO‐MD. The obtained free energy profiles were consistent with the Hammond postulate in that stabilization of the product by the solvent, namely hydration of Cl−, shifted the transition state to the reactant‐side. Based on these FMO‐MD results, plans for further improvement of the method are discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2009


BACKGROUND
Primary intracranial hemorrhage (PICH) is responsible for about 10% of all strokes and is associated with a grave prognosis with high morbidity and mortality rates.

OBJECTIVES
To familiarize the reader with new insights gained in the field of PICH over recent years.

METHODS
The authors conducted a MEDLINE search on studies related to the diagnosis and therapy of PICH. The authors also formed an expert committee of the Israeli Neurological Society that discussed the epidemiology, prevention, diagnosis and therapy of PICH and present their conclusions herein.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
PICH is a common and serious disorder with ominous prognosis. A large proportion of all PICH could theoretically be prevented if appropriate therapeutic interventions would be applied in advance. This holds especially true for lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Conservative therapy continues to be the most appropriate therapy form to date although it only marginally improves patient outcome and survival. Surgical interventions have not proved to be superior to conservative therapy thus far, except for certain forms of PICH as detailed in the article. However, newer surgical techniques that are currently undergoing randomized studies could perceivably improve patients survival and outcome.


We all know that normal operations with pyrotechnic compositions or other energetic materials, apart from the desired effect (e.g.: controlled blast from high explosives, propulsive power resulting from propellant gas pressure, various visible or sound effects from fireworks...) lead to the release of various products (gases, vapours, aerosols) in the environment, in relation with the chemicals, the reactions involved and some physical parameters. Although discussed from time to time by experts, and contrary to the case of 'conventional' fires, toxicity and environmentally related questions associated with burning pyrotechnics, have received far less attention than they actually deserve. Therefore, this paper supports an analysis of our current understanding of the sole toxicity problems (acute toxicity, sub-acute toxicity concerns...) emerging with all types of burning pyrotechnics, at the light of what has been established to address 'normal' fires in built environments. The paper provides an analysis of the regulatory context, lessons from past accidents, typology of chemistry and reactions of pyrotechnics, and some contribution to the analysis is supported by experiments on smoke powders, one significant family of products belonging to pyrotechnics. Eventually, a discussion is proposed to envisage pathways to go further in learning on those important issues.


A precise routine method is essential for the rapid identification of pathogenic mycobacterial species to support our publicly maintained health care management systems to efficiently treat and control and emerging tuberculosis pandemic that is threatening populations of global third world economies. To date, many conventional and more recently developed molecular genotyping methods are employed to this end. However, current technologies are limited in respect in that they are time consuming nature and dependent on highly skilled technical personnel expertise. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been recently reported as reliable, economical, and highly efficient method for both bacteria, yeast and to a limited extent for mycobacterial strain identification. Unlike other microbes, a major impediment exists in the efficient extraction of cellular proteins from mycobacteria, especially due to their complex cell wall associated lipid structure. In this study, the manufacturer prescribed mycobacterial sample preparation method for MALDI TOF MS is modified and optimised to generate more efficient cellular protein extraction for efficient biotyping. In this regard, the newly developed sample preparation method is inclusive of a glass bead cellular disruption/delipidation followed by a chloroform-methanol solvent extraction event. Interestingly, the data from this locally based study shows that newly developed method generates unique and highly reproducible mass spectra profiles. A new and independent main spectral profile reference library (CMEFA-MSP) representing clinically relevant American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) mycobacterial strains and clinical isolates was established and subsequently used to unequivocally identify 110 (n = 100) blind-coded clinical mycobacterial isolates to the species level that displayed log score values of ≥2.3. This strongly suggests that MALDI-TOF MS when used in conjunction with the CMEFA sample preparation protocol has potential as a simple and cost-effective alternative for the unambiguous identification of clinically important mycobacteria.


Background The Synovitis, Acne, Pustulosis, Hyperostosis and Osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a rare autoinflammatory disorder of skin and bone that can be classified with the inflammatory spondyloarthropathies (1). Genetic predisposing factors for SAPHO syndrome have been long suspected because of (i) reported familial clustering of the syndrome - although most cases are sporadic - (2), and (ii) the existence of two mouse models of the syndrome (the cmo and Lupo strains), each with a different spontaneous recessive mutation in the Pstpip2 gene (3,4). Previous studies excluded a role for the genes PSTPIP2, LPIN, NOD2, IL1RL2, IL1RN, IL36RN and SIGLEC15 in the pathogenesis of the syndrome (5,6). Objectives Identify and validate candidate genes involved in the pathogenesis of familial SAPHO syndrome by performing whole-exome sequencing (WES) of affected subjects and unaffected relatives. Methods We investigated a cohort of 44 SAPHO subjects that includes 5 families segregating the syndrome. After obtaining written informed consent, we extracted DNA from peripheral blood samples by using automated magnetic-bead technology (Chemagen). Exomes captured with Agilent SureSelect V5+UTR kit were subjected to paired-end sequencing on an Illumina HiSeq200 sequencer (Sistemas Genόmicos). Candidate genes and putatively pathogenic variants were identified by using Variant Analysis software (Ingenuity). Validation was undertaken by Sanger sequencing, segregation analysis and functional assays when appropriate. Results We identified several potentially pathogenic variants in our cohort in genes whose products are potentially involved in the pathogenesis of SAPHO syndrome. In affected subjects we also found variants known to predispose to autoinflammatory/autoimmune disease in genes such as NOD2/CARD15. Conclusions WES is a very powerful tool to investigate the genetic factors underlying rare inherited autoinflammatory disorders that cannot be analyzed by classical genetic methods such as positional cloning. References Clin Exp Rheumatol 1988; 6: 109-112. Joint Bone Spine 2007; 74: 123-126. Bone 2006; 38: 41-47. Blood 2006, 107; 3350-3358. J Rheumatol 2010; 37; 401-409. Ann Rheumat Dis 2013; 72 - Suppl 3; 169. Disclosure of Interest : None declared DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.4251


Chromogranin A (CGA) and chromogranin B (CGB) are acidic proteins stored in secretory organelles of endocrine cells and neurons. In addition to their roles as helper proteins in the packaging of peptides, they may serve as prohormones to generate biologically active peptides such as vasostatin-1 and secretolytin. These molecules derived from CGA and CGB, respectively, possess antimicrobial properties. The present study demonstrates that plasmatic levels of both vasostatin-1 and secretolytin increase during surgery in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Vasostatin-1 and secretolytin, initially present in plasma at low levels, are released just after skin incision. Consequently, they can be added to enkelytin, an antibacterial peptide derived from proenkephalin A, for the panoply of components acting as a first protective barrier against hypothetical invasion of pathogens, which may occur during surgery. CGA and CGB, more commonly viewed as markers for endocrine and neuronal cells, were also found to have an immune origin. RNA messengers coding for CGB were amplified by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in human monocytes, and immunocytochemical analysis by confocal microscopy revealed the presence of CGA or CGB or both in monocytes and neutrophils. A combination of techniques including confocal microscopic analysis, mass spectrometry measurement, and antibacterial tests allowed for the identification of the positive role of interleukin 6 (IL-6) in the secretolytin release from monocytes in vitro. Because IL-6 release is known to be strongly enhanced during CPB, we suggest a possible relationship between IL-6 and the increased level of secretolytin in patients undergoing CPB.


Around 1903–04 there was an outstanding number of sacral design competitions in Hungary, two of which at first glance seem very similar, and their juxtaposition even seemed to be a way of drawing more general conclusions. the Ministry of agriculture was looking for plans for churches in designs for villages to be settled by the state treasury, while the archdiocese of Kalocsa was looking for designs for Catholic churches to be built on the outskirts of subotica. the calls for proposals were for buildings of roughly the same size, a year apart, both seeking a solution to a pressing, long-standing problem. the problem was architectural, simply put: many churches were missing. the tendering process was not cheap, but it was the most efficient way to obtain many plans at once.Comparing the competitions, various aspects were taken into account, firstly, the similarities and differences between the procedures, which were mainly due to the characteristics differences between of the institutions commissioning the work. the second was an architectural analysis, clarifying issues of building size, and then we looked at the characteristics of the design and layout. in this context, we reviewed the texts of the judging reports and made general observations on the two juries. the longer more extended, more professional review was analysed with the aim of reconstructing from the comments, summarising the criteria of the critique, the possible ideal types against which the judges compared the entries.As a result, we have registered a kind of transition in sacral architecture in the mid-1900s, in which traditional form and spatial shaping were dominant, but also the signs of a later formalisation that would come to fruition in the 1910s. this transition can also be observed in professional texts on architecture, which evolved into professional writing that flourished in the years leading up to the First World War.


The purpose of this paper is to present the perceptions and experiences of Electronic Commerce (EC) implementation in Australia. The study is investigated from the perspective of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and the framework of implementation is represented by the extent of deployment. Based on the sample of about 115 small businesses in Australia, this paper uses regression modelling to explore and establish the factors that are related to the extent of deployment in EC. A multiple regression analysis shows that seven factors: perceived relative advantage, trialability, observability, variety of information sources, communication amount, competitive pressure, and non-trading institutional influences, significantly influence the extent of EC deployment by SMEs in Australia. The results and interpretations have some implications for managers in determining the appropriateness of deploying EC strategies to achieve profitability and operational efficiency.


This activity provides an understanding to online game lovers about the importance of saving and investing from an early age and sharing other investment knowledge in the world of capital markets. This community service activity was carried out at the Semanggi Coffee Shop with participants, namely all members of the Pekanbaru Mobile Legend community. The result of this activity is that members of this online gaming community know and understand about the capital market and the products traded in the capital market.
This service activity is carried out in several stages, namely at the initial stage the team conducts a briefing to prepare the materials and equipment needed, including: training materials, assignment letters, participant attendance lists, and consumption. In the final session, the activity was carried out by explaining the stock trading simulation using the IPOT application. When the simulation is carried out, participants see in real time the activity of stock trading transactions that occur on the Indonesian stock exchange.


Electroluminescence (EL) and photoluminescence (PL) imaging and stressing techniques are presented that are useful characterization tools for SiC epitaxial layers grown for power devices. Both EL and PL techniques are non-destructive, and the PL imaging is non-contact. These features are important for qualifying epitaxial layers before subjecting the layers to the time-consuming and costly process of device fabrication. By imaging at various emission spectral bands, the spectral information are correlated to the geometric features in the images. This correlation enables the differentiation of dissimilar defects having similar geometric shapes. Row average plots of images at various emission spectral bands revealed that threading dislocations (TDs) have strong emission above 900 nm and that basal plane dislocations (BPDs) have a broad spectral emission that are most easily distinguished in the range between 738 nm and 870 nm. The correlation between spectral information and the image features clearly distinguished TDs and BPDs from other defects, such as, organic substance and other surface blemishes. In addition to identifying the defects, understanding their origin can be useful in developing low-defect growth techniques. The defect origination depth is one of the important information for understanding defect origin. Two schemes for determining the defect origination depth are presented. Varying the focus depth by adjusting the objective lens height is a crude but quick scheme. Stressing the epilayer to grow the BPDs till they reach the surface or the epilayer/substrate interface is more time-consuming but more accurate. The scheme of varying the focus was demonstrated using PL imaging on a 50-mm thick n- epilayer with no p+ anode layer. Adjusting the focus on a partial dislocation in the n- epilayer revealed segments of the partial coming more in focus near the epilayer/substrate interface, suggesting the defect origination depth was at or near the interface. The stress and growth scheme was demonstrated on a straight string of half loop defects in a 100-mm thick n- epilayer. During electrical stressing, BPDs emanated from the half loops and eventually propagated to the surface at a lateral distance of 250 mm. With the basal plane at an 8° offcut from the surface, the origin of the BPDs was calculated to be 35 mm below the surface, suggesting the defects to be introduced during the growth process. Either EL or PL technique can be used with any of these two schemes to determine the defect origination depth. However, the PL technique has the benefit that the p+ anode layer and the procedure for forming a metal grid are not required.


Over the past years, the equilibrium sorption of gases in polymers has been intensively studied. Mostly, glassy polymers were investigated because of their excellent selective mass transport properties. This work does not focus on the equilibrium sorption but on the kinetics to reach the equilibrium. We developed a new experimental method measuring the sorption-induced dilation kinetics of a polymer film. Carbon dioxide and glassy, aromatic polyimides were chosen as model systems. Low-pressure experiments demonstrate that the measured dilation kinetics represent the sorption kinetics. A significant delay between the sorption and dilation kinetics is based on the fact that dilation kinetics occurs simultaneously with the concentration increase in the center of the polymer film. High-pressure experiments reveal significant differences in dilation kinetics compared to low-pressure experiments. Generally, three regimes can be distinguished in the dilation kinetics: a first, fast volume increase followed by two much slower regimes of volume increase. The magnitude of fast and slow dilation kinetics strongly depends on the swelling history of the polymer sample. The results of the experiments are analyzed in the light of a model relating the fast dilation kinetics to a reversible Fickian dilation and the slower dilation kinetics to an irreversible, relaxational dilation.


The measured rate coefficients (preexponential factors and activation energies) of the trapping‐mediated, dissociative chemisorption of methane, ethane, and propane on Pt(110)‐(1×2), and ethane on Ir(110)‐(1×2) are reported and discussed. Moreover, the probabilities of primary and secondary C–H bond cleavage for propane activation on Pt(110)‐(1×2) have been evaluated.


In our previous issue (Volume 11, Number 1), we published an article by Alvarez et al. entitled "Reducing the Hazards from Stored Spent Power-Reactor Fuel in the United States." In response to an invitation by the Editor to the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the NRC has now published a critical review of the article and submitted it to the Journal for publication. We publish it here, along with a response by the authors of the original article.


Why, then, the world's mine oyster, Which I with sword will open. Shakespeare (1564–1615) OCEANIA In the south of Southeast Asia, Alocasia or dryland taro, perhaps originating in India or Burma, has been under cultivation for at least 7,000 years. Wetland (Colocasia) taro, yams, and (probably) dry and wet land rice came along later. Yet, as mentioned earlier, a mystery is why the Austronesian farmer-pioneers, who sailed off to settle the Philippines and the East Indies at about this time (6000 bce ), were accompanied by taro, yams, pigs, and dogs, but not rice. The most logical answer is that rice had not yet become a staple in Southeast Asia. But it is not a particularly satisfactory answer because, despite many ensuing waves of Pacific pioneers, when the Europeans first entered the world's largest body of water, rice was absent from the whole of the Pacific, save for the Mariana Islands. Did rice somehow get lost from the horticultural complex? Or were taro and yams just easier to cultivate? The pioneers originated in Southeast Asia and neighboring New Guinea, and their initial waves fanned out into the Philippines and the East Indies. These were an Austronesian-speaking people whose descendents, with their distinctive Lapita pottery, became the ancestors of the Polynesians. Around 3,500 years ago they launched epic voyages of exploration and colonization, moving swiftly in their double-hulled canoes to establish settlements in Fiji, and then in Samoa and Tonga – the latter two islands becoming jump-off points for the eventual settlement of the rest of Polynesia, ending with Hawaii around 1,500 years ago and New Zealand some 1,000 to 2,000 years ago.


Molecular events such as cis/trans isomerization of Xaa-Pro tertiary amide bonds in peptides and proteins are slow on the overall time scale of the formation of a final biostructure and are, therefore, rate limiting. In order to pursue a better understanding of the molecular events underlying such slow interconversions, we applied the recently introduced pseudo-proline (PsiPro) concept as a tool to study the dynamics of Xaa-Pro bonds by determining the kinetics and thermodynamics of cis/trans isomerism. We show that enhanced isomerization rates of tertiary amide bonds prior to a PsiPro unit in short model peptides is due to lowered transition state barriers. In addition, pronounced effects upon the dynamics of the reversible transition between helix I and II of oligoprolines containing one or several PsiPro units were observed.


Abstract Among the personal hobbies which Horace recommends his young friend Lollius conduct at a discreet distance from his potens amicus is the re-enactment of the battle of Actium, which should only be undertaken in the privacy of his father's estate. Critics have noted that the potential offence in this seemingly affirmative celebration of the 'miracle of Actium' lies in the casting of Lollius' brother as his opponent, thus acknowledging the civil nature of the battle which was at least downplayed, if not elided, in official discourse. They have overlooked, however, the further subversive element in Horace's reference to 'whichever of the two (alterutrum)' Victory crowns. This presents the counterfactual possibility, both in the Epistle and in the naumachia which serves as a parallel mimesis, that Antony might have won the battle of Actium. This instance of 'sideshadowing' demands to be set in a number of contexts, such as the use of counterfactuals in historiographical depictions of battles and the phenomenon whereby some public naumachiae had outcomes contrary to that of the historical battle they were re-enacting. In particular, the very possibility of an Antonian victory renders the Augustan principate contingent, in opposition to the providential, teleological inevitability with which it, and especially its foundational battle, were depicted elsewhere in Augustan poetry. Such an interpretation is supported by Lucan's allusion to this passage in his Dyrrachium episode, the only other non-Lucretian instance of alterutrum in extant Latin poetry.


In Mexico, there are pests causing economic losses in citrus,  one of them is Diaphorina citri, vector of the disease called  Huanglongbing (HLB). Previous studies have measured  different aspects in citrus producers, but the perception of  relevant actors in urban areas, such as lemonade owners  have not been evaluated. This study was carried out in 2013  in the city of Cuitlahuac, Veracruz and aimed to measure the  information acquired on HLB from two groups: owners of  lemon plants (Murraya paniculata) and executive staff of  the citrus packing plants. It was found that a high proportion  of managers of the packers are the ones who have more  information, regarding the owners of lemon plants, on issues  related to the national priority phytosanitary campaign  against HLB such as: vector, disease transmission, as well  as campaign messages on disease and vector control. Most  of the interviewees in both groups were unaware that the  lemongrass could be source of HLB inoculum as well as  vector hosts. Dispite the diffusion campaigns, there is  disinformation in relation to the problematic, particularly with respect to lemongrasss. The most outstanding is that  the inhabitants are willing to remove these plants from their  gardens or change them for others.


Remotely Aircrafts (RA), popularly known as Drones, are capable tools to generate highly accurate remote sensing products with a great potential perspective for use in the Environmental Audit process, performing previously exclusive tasks of manned aircrafts. However, because it is a relatively recent technology, it is justified the need to consider the applicability of its use in environmental studies. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the potentialities and applications of Drones in the Environmental Audit process, as well is present a methodology for data acquisition and identification of environmental impacts, listing the conformities and nonconformities of the audited enterprise, giving subsidy for an effective planning of actions to minimize impacts. Orthomosaics generated by the Drone in this studied case was used to carry out a compliance audit, based on the applicable legislation and regulations, being a fundamental tool to verify the real situation of the mining company through the legislation in force in the country, giving support to the implementation of corrective actions of detected nonconformities. In view of the obtained results it was possible to conclude that Drone presented promising quickly and low cost data, proving to be an important tool in environmental audits, providing necessary information to carry out an effective planning and implementation of corrective actions of detected non-adjustments, considering the principle of reparability of environmental damage, which obliges the polluter and the predator to recover and/or indemnify the damages caused.


Countless apt locutions from French have entered the English language, some becoming everyday phrases, others tossed around recklessly by film critics and gourmets. Until now there hasn't been a single handy source a non-French speaker could turn to for explanation - or riposte. In Je Ne Sais What? Jon Winokur, author of The Portable Curmudgeon, explores the French expressions, maxims, and literary allusions that grace English. With his customary finesse, Winokur offers definitions and often brief etymological notes and illustrative quotations for such Gallicisms as cherchez la femme, savoir vivre, nom de guerre, demi-monde, sang froid, and c'est la vie. Unlike Franglais, the hybrid of French and English which has the French Academy in a furor over phrases like les chicken nuggets, Frenglish, as Winokur defines it, is grammatically correct French that enriches English discourse. A nonpareil companion to Eugene Ehrlich's Amo, Amas Amat and More, which helped make Latin a living language once more, Je Ne Sais What? is both a practical reference and a word lover's bon ami. The perfect browsing antidote to ennui, the perfect gift for Francophiles, armchair linguists, and crossword addicts, this delightful guide to the language of love, fashion, food, and diplomacy explains the French everyone uses but few fully understand.


Conflicting evidence points to either a strengthening or weakening Walker Circulation over the 20th century based on changes in sea surface temperature and sea level pressure gradients between the western and eastern Pacific. Since small changes in Pacific temperature gradients connected with the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) are related to global climate anomalies, it is of paramount importance to develop robust indices of their past behaviour. Here, we reconstruct the difference in sea surface temperature between the west and central Pacific during ENSO based on the Last Millennium Paleo Hydrodynamics Data Assimilation since 1000 AD. We demonstrate that the strength of the West Pacific Gradient (WPG) is related to stronger atmospheric circulation and remote precipitation anomalies during both historical El Niño and La Niña events and societally relevant drought teleconnections. A strong negative WPG coupled with a strong zonal Pacific temperature gradient is associated with enhanced megadroughts between 1400 AD and the late 16th century. The 20th century stands out as the period with most extreme swings between positive and negative WPG conditions. We conclude that the WPG serves as a powerful index of Pacific Walker Circulation variability and their associated global climate teleconnections.


This article attempts to highlight the importance of theoretical linguistics and empirical cognitive linguistics studies for the practical teaching of Spanish as a second language. Looking at the domain of subject pronominal use as an example, I endeavor to show how formal linguistics can be useful to language instructors. This is a significant enterprise since language instructors could benefit from both a better understanding of the linguistic properties of the languages they teach and what psycholinguistic studies have revealed about the nature of adult language learning in general.


The fast growth of high bandwidth wide area networks has allowed the building of grids, which are constituted of PC clusters and/or parallel machines. Grids enable the design on new numerical simulation applications. For example, it is now feasible to couple several scientific codes to obtain a multi-physic application. In order to handle the complexity of such applicatio- ns, software component technology appears very appealing. However, most current software component models do not provide any support to transparently and efficiently embed parallel codes into components. This paper describes a first study of GridCCM, an extension to the CORBA Component Model to support parallel components. The feasibility of the model was evaluate thanks to the implementation of the model above two CCM prototypes. Preliminary performance results show that bandwidth is efficiently aggregated.


ABSTRACT Microemulsions are one of the best candidates as novel drug delivery system because of their long shelf life, improved drug solubilization with ease of preparation and administration. Microemulsions are thermodynamically stable and optically isotropic liquid solutions of oil, water and amphiphile. They have emerged as novel vehicles for drug delivery which allow controlled or sustained release for ocular, percutaneous, topical, transdermal, and parenteral administration of medicaments. Microemulsions can be easily distinguished from normal emulsions by their low viscosity, transparency and more accurately their thermodynamic stability. Microemulsions have great range of applications and uses such as in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, cutting oils, biotechnology, food, cosmetics, analytical applications, environmental detoxification etc. The main objective of this review paper is to discuss Microemulsions as drug carrier system with other possible applications.


ARQUIVOS DE MEDICINA, 19(1-2): 55-65 In the early part of the twentieth century, pioneering studies on the deficiency state of pellagra in experimental animals showed that water-soluble tissue extracts could be effective in treating diseases. Further studies showed that one part of the heat-stable fraction from the mentioned extract, called yellow growth factor, had fluorescent properties. This was later purified and named riboflavin. Until 1932, when the landmark discovery of the ''yellow enzyme'' containing an isoalloxazine ring and a phosphate group was made, the physiological role of the yellow growth factor remained obscure. The synthesis of riboflavin, accomplished in 1935, was followed by the identification of the two active coenzyme forms, flavin mononucleotide (FMN) in 1937 and the clarification of the structure of flavin adenine dinucleotide in 1938, this formed from FMN. As a water-soluble vitamin, riboflavin plays a part in a variety of oxidation-reduction reactions. Flavin mononucleotide and flavin dinucleotide act as active coenzyme forms of riboflavin that participate in a variety of reactions in the human body. Riboflavin has an important role in the fat metabolism disturbances. Through deficiency and supplementation studies and effects on the structure and function of the small intestine, riboflavin has a role in iron handling. Riboflavin is associated with compromised oxidant defense. Flavin adenine dinucleotide acts as the co-factor for 5,10 Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, an important enzyme, which participates in the remethylation pathway for homocysteine metabolism. Homocysteine is located at a critical metabolic crossroad and therefore both pathways, remethylation and transsulfuration; and directly and indirectly impacts all methyl and sulphur group metabolism occurring in the body. Poor vitamin status could promote higher homocysteine levels. In addition, high levels of homocysteine could be considered conditional risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Riboflavin has also been ascribed a role in the protection against certain cancers and cataracts. Key-words: Riboflavin, homocysteine, iron handling


Workload management for cloud databases must deal with the tasks of resource provisioning, query placement and query scheduling in a manner that meets the application's performance goals while minimizing the cost of using cloud resources. Existing solutions have approached these three challenges in isolation, and with only a particular type of performance goal in mind. In this paper, we introduce WiSeDB, a learning-based framework for generating holistic workload management solutions customized to application-defined performance metrics and workload characteristics. Our approach relies on supervised learning to train cost-effective decision tree models for guiding query placement, scheduling, and resource provisioning decisions. Applications can use these models for both batch and online scheduling of incoming workloads. A unique feature of our system is that it can adapt its offline model to stricter/looser performance goals with minimal re-training. This allows us to present alternative workload management strategies that address the typical performance vs. cost trade-off of cloud services. Experimental results show that our approach has very low training overhead while offering low cost strategies for a variety of performance goals and workload characteristics.


This research aims to review determine protein level of meat tillers (F1) quails female breederwas treated supplemented turmeric powdersin feeds. This research using an experimental method with completely randomized design (CRD). The animals test used 45 tillers quail female its breederwas treated supplements turmeric powders, divided in 3 (three) treatment, i.e. K0: Tillersquails female which breeder was not treated supplements turmeric powders in feed. K1: Tillersquails female which breeder was treated turmeric powder 54 mg/head/day in feed. K2: Tillersquails female which breeder was treated turmeric powder 108 mg/head/day in feed. Tillersjapanese quail not given any treatment, only the standard feed and maintained until 60 days. Data is taken from meat protein content, daily feed intake and body weight. Data were analyzed with analysis of variance (ANOVA) with assisted program SPSS 16, the results show a real difference, then continued with Duncan test with 95% confidence level (α=0.05). The results showed that effect of turmeric powder on breeder can lower daily feed intake, but can increase the protein content of the meat, so the feed efficiency is increased in tillers japanese quails female of breeder was treated turmeric powder. Keywords: Coturnix c oturnix japonica L., M eat protein content , Japanese quail, Turmeric powder.


The aim of the paper is to serve as a reminder of Polish economic migrations to and from Belgium between 1918 and 1952, largely absent from the collective memory of Poles or frequently identified with migrations to and from France. Based on the account of the Szotek family, collected in accordance with oral history methodology, the authors present the family's complex story of migration: first a journey from Ujków Stary to the Charleroi coal basin in Belgium and then a return to Poland, where they lived again in Ujków Stary, then in Zalesie and Bystrzyca Kłodzka, only to finally return to Ujków Stary. The family's reasons behind the decision to go to Belgium and then re-migrate to their homeland helps to comprehend the historical context of economic migration to and from Belgium, as outlined by the authors. The issue of adaptation of emigrants in the country of settlement, and then their adjustment as re-emigrants to the new reality forged by the authorities of the "democratic" Polish People's Republic occupies an important place in the paper.


We have several objectives in this article. Firstly, we return to the category of semiosphere due to its dialectical and polysemic character, but we also introduce some reflections in order to analyze more complex cultural productions. In this same sense, the category of internal and external semiotic border allows us to present the cultural, intercultural, and transcultural translation problems that are articulated with the dynamic changes of every culture. Secondly, we examine the category of culture and articulate it with the no-culture, with the anti-culture, which would lead to propose three types of semiosphere: cultural semiosphere, noncultural semiosphere, and anti-cultural semiosphere, which introduce controversial aspects that must be considered. Thirdly, we study Iuri Lotman's latest approaches on the unpredictable in cultural processes, assuming assumptions of complexity and transdisciplinarity that are present in all his work.


This study focused on the identification of conceptually meaningful groups of individuals based on their joint self-concept differentiation (SCD) and self-concept clarity (SCC) scores. Notably, we examined whether membership in different SCD-SCC groups differed by age and also was associated with differences in psychological well-being (PWB). Cluster analysis revealed five distinct SCD-SCC groups: a self-assured, unencumbered, fragmented-only, confused-only, and fragmented and confused group. Individuals in the self-assured group had the highest mean scores for positive PWB and the lowest mean scores for negative PWB, whereas individuals in the fragmented and confused group showed the inverse pattern. Findings showed that it was psychologically advantageous to belong to the self-assured group at all ages. As hypothesized, older adults were more likely than young adults to be in the self-assured cluster, whereas young adults were more likely to be in the fragmented and confused cluster. Thus, consistent with extant theorizing, age was positively associated with psychologically adaptive self-concept profiles.


It is known that ternary complexes of myosin subfragment 1 (S1) with ADP and the Pi analogs beryllium fluoride (BeFx) and aluminum fluoride (AlF4-) are stable analogs of the myosin ATPase intermediates M* x ATP and M** x ADP x Pi, respectively. Using kinetic approaches, we compared the rate of formation of the complexes S1 x ADP x BeFx and S1 x ADP x AlF4- in the absence and in the presence of F-actin, as well as of the interaction of these complexes with F-actin. We show that in the absence of F-actin the formation of S1 x ADP x BeFx occurs much faster (3-4 min) than that of S1 x ADP x AlF4- (hours). The formation of these complexes in the presence of F-actin led to dissociation of S1 from F-actin, this process being monitored by a decrease in light scattering. The light scattering decrease of the acto-S1 complex occurred much faster after addition of BeFx (during 1 min) than after addition of AlF4- (more than 20 min). In both cases the light scattering of the acto-S1 complex decreased by 40-50%, but it remained much higher than that of F-actin measured in the absence of S1. The interaction of the S1 x ADP x BeFx and S1 x ADP x AlF4- complexes with F-actin was studied by the stopped-flow technique with high time resolution (no more than 0.6 sec after mixing of S1 with F-actin). We found that the binding of S1 x ADP x BeFx or S1 x ADP x AlF4- to F-actin is accompanied by a fast increase in light scattering, but it does not affect the fluorescence of a pyrene label specifically attached to F-actin. We conclude from these data that within this time range a "weak" binding of the S1 x ADP x BeFx and S1 x ADP x AlF4- complexes to F-actin occurs without the subsequent transition of the "weak" binding state to the "strong" binding state. Comparison of the light scattering kinetic curves shows that S1 x ADP x AlF4- binds to F-actin faster than S1 x ADP x BeFx does: the second-order rate constants for the "weak" binding to F-actin are (62.8 +/- 1.8) x 10(6) M-1 x sec-1 in the case of S1 x ADP x AlF4- and (22.6 +/- 0.4) x 10(6) M-1 x sec-1 in the case of S1 x ADP x BeFx. We conclude that the stable ternary complexes S1 x ADP x BeFx and S1 x ADP x AlF4- can be successfully used for kinetic studies of the "weak" binding of the myosin heads to F-actin.


The article examines the scientists' views of the evolution on economic security and an approach to solve problems of the economic security in different countries of the world at different times. The essence of economic security based on the visions of scientists has been studied so that three groups of definitions of the economic security are defined and its impartiality with regard to the development of globalization processes is proved. The paper highlights the components of economic security and proves its structure in which there are three essential elements: economic independence, stability and sustainability of the national economy, the ability to self-development and progress.


The secretion of oxytocin by the corpus luteum is thought to stimulate the episodic release of PGF-2 alpha from the uterus, thereby contributing to luteolysis. In pregnancy corpus luteum function is maintained, and secretion of oxytocin, or its actions on the uterus, appear to be inconsistent with the successful establishment of gestation. Protection against the effects of oxytocin is ensured by a number of mechanisms, including the cessation of luteal oxytocin secretion, which is evident by Day 20 after mating in sheep, and the maintenance of low levels of the oxytocin receptor in the uterus.


The present study is a pragmatic study about the pragmatic transfer in the
application of suggestion strategies by the students of Semarang State University.
There were five objectives guiding this study: (1) to describe the students'
suggestion strategies in Bahasa Indonesia as their native language, (2) to describe
the students' suggestion strategies in English as their target language, (3) to
describe the differences between the suggestion strategies applied in Bahasa
Indonesia and English, (4) to describe the differences between male and female
students in the application of suggestion strategies, and (5) to explain how the
pragmatic transfer occurs in the suggestion strategies by the students of State
University of Semarang.
This study applied descriptive qualitative research. The data were
collected by implementing the Naturalized Role Play which is proposed by Tran
(2010) from three situations. The participants of this study were 32 graduate
students consisting of 16 female students and 16 male students as the informants
and two conductors. The data of this study were classified and analyzed
qualitatively and quantitatively based on Hossein Abolfathiasl (2013: 239), Li
(2010), and Kasper (1992) classification of pragmatic transfer which is classified
into two classifications; pragma-linguistic and socio-pragmatic transfer.
The result of the study showed that there were a total number of 656
suggestion strategies; 308 suggestion strategies in Bahasa Indonesia and 348
suggestion strategies in English. The most often strategies applied in Bahasa
Indonesia and English were conventionally indirect strategies, but the application
in English has more percentage than in Bahasa Indonesia. Although the most
often strategies applied were conventionally indirect, but the students tend to use
more direct strategy in Bahasa Indonesia than in English. The students focused on
hearer oriented in realizing the suggestion strategies, either in Bahasa Indonesia or
English. Based on the gender difference, female students applied suggestion
strategies more direct than male students whether they responded the same or
different gender. Pragmatic transferred occurred since the students transferred
their L1 suggestion strategies to their L2. Both pragmalinguistic and
sociopragmatic transfer occurred in the application of suggestion strategies. For
the next researchers, more social variables such as relationship, status, and power
should be considered in order to make this kind of study more comprehensive.


We proposed a low-frequency absorber comprised of a hexagonal honeycomb structure is presented and demonstrated. The acoustic metamaterial of the hexagonal honeycomb structure with different folding numbers n is investigated via finite element simulations to solve COMSOL multi-physics commercial software. This technique is design to expose the influence of thickness and eccentric hexagonal designs to improve acoustic performance. A hexagonal honeycomb structure made of a soft polymer is constructed. The effect of the folding number on the absorption peak is studied, and the results indicate that a more significant folding number can dramatically increase the absorption peak frequency with the absorber decreasing thickness. The impact of structural parameters for honeycomb structure designs is demonstrated to produce a low-frequency sound absorber. To achieve unitary sound absorption at low frequencies results via adjusting the inner and outer thicknesses with the folding number n. we show influenced the hexagonal folding number and adjusting the internal parameters of the acoustic metamaterial to paving the path for creating an ideal sound absorber


This paper introduces a novel way to improve the settling time of transitions between different walking controllers. This improvement is achieved by commanding a sequence of intermediate transitions to the target controller. As a result, the state of the system enters the domain of attraction of the target controller closer to the fixed point of the Poincaré Map. The method is applicable to any walking robot with one degree of underactuation. The problem is expressed as a Markov Decision Process and then solved with Reinforcement Learning. In order to simplify the stability analysis of underactuated walking the Hybrid Zero Dynamics framework is utilized. Another advantage of using the Hybrid Zero Dynamics is the dimensionality reduction of the state representation in the Markov Decision Process. The experimental results suggest that the proposed methodology performs better than a one-step transition for 84.34% of all the considered transitions for a simulated walking robot matching the parameters of RABBIT [1].


We argue that the most plausible characterisation of the norm of truth—it is permissible to believe that p if and only if p is true—is unable to explain Transparency in doxastic deliberation, a task for which it is claimed to be equipped. In addition, the failure of the norm to do this work undermines the most plausible account of how the norm guides belief formation at all. Those attracted to normativism about belief for its perceived explanatory credentials had better look elsewhere.


Abstract The effects of a magnetic field (1, 3 and 5 mT), applied during short- (1, 3, 5, 30 and 60 minutes) and long-term (from the beginning of embryogenesis) exposure, on melanophores of the European whitefish, Coregonus lavaretus and vendace, Coregonus albula, were investigated. Short-term magnetic field exposure effects on the behaviour of melanophores at the stage when the eye and body pigment on whitefish and vendace were distinctly visible in the embryos. The short-term embryo exposure to the magnetic fields induced the pigment of the body cells to move to the central parts of the cells. In the control, we did not observe displacement of the pigment within the melanophores. The long-term exposure to the magnetic field was found to delay the pigment appearance in the eyeballs and on the body of embryos of both investigated species. The number of melanophores in the body of embryos exposed to the magnetic fields was lower than that in the control. The pigment showed an increasing tendency to concentrate in individual embryonic and larval cells with increasing magnetic field strength. Melanophore index in embryos and larvae of whitefish and vendace was found to differ significantly between the control and all the magnetic field treatments. Our results can be extrapolated to other organisms and will allow us to broaden the knowledge on pigment cell magnetoreception in vertebrates.


Human peripheral nerves obtained by biopsy from patients suffering from neuromuscular disorders have been studied by x-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. Few abnormal diffraction patterns have yet been recorded and their significance is not yet established. Electron micrographs have revealed wide variations in the numbers of myelinated fibres included in the nerve trunks and have facilitated a detailed study of the Schwann cell-axon relationships in the large numbers of unmyelinated fibres always present. Some indications of demyelination have been encountered.


The present work is aimed at developing thermal and electrical models which are capable of estimating the two dimensional thermal and electrical performance of a PV module under given meteorological conditions. The thermal modeling has been developed in COMSOL Multiphysics software environment and the electrical modeling has been carried out in PSIM software environment. The main objective of the electrical model is to investigate the I-V and P-V characteristics of an 80W thin film PV module with and without cooling at varying surface temperature and irradiation. In the thermal model, the dependence of module surface temperature, electrical efficiency, and thermal efficiency on water flow velocity is investigated. The results obtained from the proposed electrical and thermal models are validated experimentally. The results showed that the maximum electrical, thermal and net energy efficiency values of cooled PV module are 9.92%, 55.6%, and 65.4%, respectively. Variation of water flow velocity experiences no significant temperature change in the coolant water exiting the module and results in a slight change of both the module surface temperature and electrical efficiency.