The purpose of our study is to examine the effects of alignment and misalignment between supervisor's work-to-family interruptive behaviors and subordinate's tolerance for such interruptions on the latter's well-being and engagement. Based on 582 supervisor-subordinate dyads, we find that alignment (the degree of similarity between the supervisor and subordinate) is not always significantly better than misalignment. In fact, our results show that when supervisor shows a low level of work-to-family interruptive behaviors while subordinate has a high tolerance for such interruptions increases subordinate's well-being and engagement. When supervisor shows a high level of work-to-family interruptive behaviors while subordinate has a low tolerance for such interruptions, subordinate's well-being and engagement decrease. Implications and future research directions are discussed.


Radial forging of metallic materials requires both high temperatures and large plastic deformation. During this process, non-metallic inclusions (NMIs) can debond from the metallic matrix and break apart, resulting in a linear array of smaller inclusions, known as stringers. The evolution of NMIs into stringers can result in matrix load shedding, localized plasticity, and stress concentrations near the matrix-NMI interface. Due to these factors, stringers can be detrimental to the fatigue life of the final forged component, especially when present near a free surface. By performing a finite element model of the forging process with cohesive zones to simulate material debonding, we contribute to the understanding of processing induced deformation and damage sequences on the onset of stringer formation for both Type 1 and Type 2 alumina NMIs in a Ni-200 matrix. Through a parametric study, the interactions of forging temperature, strain rate, strain per pass, and interfacial decohesion on the NMI damage evolution metrics are studied, specifically NMI particle separation, rotation, and cavity formation. For Type 2 alumina NMIs, embedded in a Ni-200 matrix, the simulations indicate that at temperatures below 800 °C, particle separation dominates the NMI damage sequences, whereas at temperatures between 900 °C - 1000 °C, below an interfacial bond strength of 178 MPa, cavity formation is the dominate damage evolution mechanism, resulting in matrix load shedding and stress concentrations around the NMI.


Applying the integral a priori estimates method, the existence and uniqueness of the global solution for the dissipative Hasegawa-Mima equation with initial periodic boundary condition was proved.


Entorhinal cortex (EC) is one of the first cerebral regions affected in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The pathology propagates to neighboring cerebral regions through a prion-like mechanism. In AD, intracellular calcium dyshomeostasis is associated with endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. This study was designed to examine hippocampal ER stress following EC amyloidopathy. Aβ1-42 was bilaterally microinjected into the EC under stereotaxic surgery. Rats were daily treated with 30 μg of isradipine, nimodipine, or placebo over one week. Passive avoidance and novel object recognition (NOR) tasks were performed using shuttle box and NOR test, respectively. GRP78/BiP and CHOP levels were measured in the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) by western blot technique. The glutathione (GSH) level and PDI activity were also assessed in the hippocampus by colorimetric spectrophotometer. Aβ treated group developed passive avoidance and novel recognition memory deficit compared to the control group. However, treatment with calcium channel blockers reversed the impairment. BiP and CHOP level increased in the hippocampus following amyloidopathy in the EC. PDI activity and GSH level in the hippocampus decreased in the Aβ treated group, but calcium channel blockers restored them toward the control level. In conclusion, memory impairment due to EC amyloidopathy is associated with ER stress related bio-molecular changes in the hippocampus, and treatment with L-type calcium channel blockers may prevent the changes and ultimately improve cognitive performance.


Background
 Azacitidine (Aza) in combination with donor lymphocyte infusions (DLI) is an established treatment option for pts with relapse of myeloid malignancies after allo-SCT. Accounting for its immunomodulatory and anti-leukemic properties, we considered Lenalidomide (Len) to be a synergistic partner for Aza and DLI that may further improve response rate and outcome. To investigate the tolerability and efficacy of the combination of Aza, Len and DLI as first salvage therapy for relapsed MDS, AML and CMML after allo-SCT we performed a prospective, multicenter, single-arm phase-II trial. Results from two safety interim analyses have previously been reported. Here, we report the final results from this investigator-initiated trial.
 Design/Methods:
 Patients with relapse of MDS, AML and CMML after first allo-SCT were eligible. Envisaged treatment according to the protocol consisted of up to 8 cycles Aza (75 mg/m 2/d d1-7, every 28 days) and up to 3 DLI with increasing T cell dosages (0.5×10 6 - 1.5×10 7 cells/kg). Len was administered concomitantly for 21 days of a 28-day cycle. Following a positive first interim safety analysis in 10 patients the daily dose of Len was increased from 2.5 to 5mg. The primary endpoint of the study was safety, while secondary efficacy endpoints included response type and rates, time to and duration of response and overall survival.
 Results:
 Overall, 50 pts with molecular (n=29, 58%) or hematological (n=21, 42%) relapse of MDS (n=24, 48%), AML (n=23, 46%) or CMML (n=3, 6%) detected after median of 233 days (range, 98 to 2659) after allo-SCT were included. Fourteen patients (28%) received Len at a daily dosage of 2.5 mg and 36 patients (72%) at a daily dosage of 5 mg with no DLTs observed in the interim analyses. Median number of Len cycles per patient was 7 (range, 1 to 8) with no differences between the two dose levels. Concomitantly, 34 pts (68%) received at least one DLI (median: 3, range: 1-11).
 Overall response rate (ORR) during treatment was 56% (CR n=25, 50%, PR n=3, 6%). ORR and CR rates did not differ between Len dose levels. Of interest, CR rate did not differ between pts treated at the stage of molecular relapse and those initiated at hematological relapse (52% vs. 48%). Median time to CR was 112 days (range 1-286) corresponding to 4 cycles (range 1 to 8). At the time of data lock, 20 patients (80%) were still in CR without additional therapy for a median of 15 months, while 5 patients (20%) had relapsed again after a median of 8 months. With a median follow-up of 20 months median OS was 21 months and 1-year OS rate 65%.
 While therapy-related CTC grade III/IV neutropenia (92%), thrombopenia (80%) or anemia (36%) occurred frequently, drug-related non-hematological adverse events (AE) >grade II were rare and mainly consisted of gastrointestinal toxicity (6%), laboratory findings (28%) and infections (22%). Twenty-three pts (46%) developed acute GvHD including 5 patients (10%) with grade III/IV aGvHD, and 26 pts (52%) chronic GvHD (mild n=10; moderate n=11; severe n=5). During the study period, 3 secondary malignancies (squamous cell, basal cell and vulvar carcinoma) occurred. There were no therapy related deaths.
 Conclusion:
 Len up to a dosage to 5 mg/day can be safely added to the combination of AZA and DLI without excess of GvHD and toxicity. Furthermore, these data suggest that the combination of Aza, Len and DLI has promising clinical activity for relapse of myeloid malignancies after allo-SCT and is able to induce durable responses and survival in a substantial proportion of pts.

 Schroeder: Celgene: Honoraria, Other: Travel support, Research Funding. Stelljes: Kite/Gilead: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; MSD: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Celgene/BMS: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Medac: Speakers Bureau; Amgen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Holtick: Celgene: Honoraria; Sanofi: Honoraria. Germing: Janssen: Honoraria; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Honoraria, Other: advisory activity, Research Funding; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria; Novartis: Honoraria, Research Funding. Kröger: AOP Pharma: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria, Research Funding; Gilead/Kite: Honoraria; Jazz: Honoraria, Research Funding; Neovii: Honoraria, Research Funding; Novartis: Honoraria; Riemser: Honoraria, Research Funding; Sanofi: Honoraria. Kobbe: Celgene: Research Funding.

 Lenalidomide is not licensed for AML, CMML and advanced MDS except for MDS with isolated del5q


We study the propagation of electromagnetic fields in forest media in a frequency band between 100 and 300 MHz. We develop an exact coherent model in order to compute the electromagnetic field of a received wave after multiple scattering from the elements of the medium, in and outside the forest. We propose simplifications for the model of the forest and approximations for the electromagnetic method to reduce the computing time. We use and simulate a DORT based method to detect and locate a hidden target in the medium. We develop this method to adapt it to a real configuration and we apply it to measurements in anechoic chamber.


We consider cosmological perturbations caused by modulated inflaton velocity. During inflation, the inflaton motion is damped and the velocity is determined by the parameters such as couplings or masses that may depend on light fields(moduli). The number of e‐foldings is different in different patches if there are spatial fluctuations of such parameters. Based on this simple idea, we consider "modulated inflation" in which the curvature perturbation is generated by the fluctuation of the inflaton velocity. This talk is based on our recent papers Ref. [1].


There is debate as to whether the acrosome reaction is necessary for sperm incorporation after intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Ultrastructural evidence is presented to show that the acrosome reaction could occur in the ooplasm before sperm incorporation in mature human oocytes or the acrosome could be discarded intact before sperm incorporation in immature oocytes, matured in vitro. Both germinal vesicle and growing follicular oocytes showed sperm chromatin decondensation, with discarded acrosomes close to the sites of incorporation, and were able to form male pronuclei. This is probably the first report of microfertilization of a growing oocyte with a reticulate nucleolus by ICSI. The acrosome reaction, when it occurs, is preceded by acrosome swelling and is followed by vesiculation of surface membranes exposing the inner acrosome membrane, as observed on the surface of the zona during IVF or in the perivitelline space after subzonal sperm injection. These sperm were probably capacitated at the time of ICSI. There was subtle evidence of leaching of the acrosomal matrix from intact discarded acrosomes and from partially depleted acrosomes attached to decondensing spermheads. These sperm were probably not fully capacitated at the time of ICSI. It is concluded that both the acrosome reaction and acrosome deletion are possible prerequisites to sperm incorporation after ICSI.


The co-shaping of technology and values is a topic of increasing interest among philosophers of technology. Part of this interest pertains to anticipating future value change, or what Danaher (2021) calls the investigation of 'axiological futurism'. However, this investigation faces a challenge: 'axiological possibility space' is vast, and we currently lack a clear account of how this space should be demarcated. It stands to reason that speculations about how values might change over time should exclude farfetched possibilities and be restricted to possibilities that can be dubbed realistic. But what does this realism criterion entail? This article introduces the notion of 'realistic possibilities' as a key conceptual advancement to the study of axiological futurism and offers suggestions as to how realistic possibilities of future value change might be identified. Additionally, two slight modifications to the approach of axiological futurism are proposed. First, axiological futurism can benefit from a more thoroughly historicized understanding of moral change. Secondly, when employed in service of normative aims, the axiological futurist should pay specific attention to identifying realistic possibilities that come with substantial normative risks.


The present study sought to evaluate concomitant alterations of behavioral and sleep patterns of arthritic rats. Rats were implanted with electrodes for polysomnographic recordings and submitted to the model of arthritis by a subcutaneous (s.c.) administration of Freund adjuvant in the posterior right paw and saline in the posterior left paw. The SHAM group was injected with saline in both paws, whereas the control group (CTL) was not submitted to any manipulation. Behavioral tests were carried out twice before induction of arthritis, on the second day of arthritis, and once a week afterwards until the eighth week. Body weight, colonic temperature, and measurements of the injured paw were carried out on the same days. Arthritic rats presented a reduction of total sleep time, increased latency to synchronized sleep, augmented number of episodes of synchronized sleep, reduction of sleep efficiency, more stage shifts, and increased total alert time. Moreover, these animals presented a lower pain threshold than control and SHAM animals. This reduction was observed on the second day of arthritis and remained so reduced until the end of the study. The data appear to indicate a relationship between altered sleep pattern and increased pain sensitivity in arthritic rats.


The first example of a practical and direct trifluoromethylthiolation reaction of unactivated aliphatic CH bonds employs a silver-based reagent. The reaction is operationally simple, scalable, and proceeds under aqueous conditions in air. Furthermore, its broad scope and good functional-group compatibility were demonstrated by applying this method to the selective trifluoromethylthiolation of natural products and natural-product derivatives.


Fosfomycin, an antibiotic discovered in Spain, has a unique chemical structure and pharmacologic features that are promising for clinical therapy. It is only partially absorbed orally, with relatively low blood levels. Intramuscularly, however, absorption is complete with peak blood levels 3-5 times as high as orally, and rapid intravenous injections give serum concentrations almost twice as high as intramuscularly. Some accumulation occurs with all three routes, and concentrations in excess of 1,000 mug/ml are consistently obtained in the urine with parenteral doses every 6 h. The serum half-life is 1.5-2 h, urinary excretion is by glomerular filtration, the antibiotic is not bound to serum proteins, and the volume of distribution is large. Diffusion into tissues and body fluids is good. Thus, the pharmacologic characteristics of fosfomycin along with its low toxicity make it comparable in these respects to other well-established antibiotics.


Radiation-induced primary radicals in lithium formate. A material used in EPR dosimetry have been studied using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), electron nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) and ENDOR-Induced EPR (EIE) techniques. In this study, single crystals were X irradiated at 6−8 K and radical formation at these and higher temperatures were investigated. Periodic density functional theory calculations were used to assist in assigning the radical structures. Mainly two radicals are present at 6 K, the well-known CO2•– radical and a protonated electron-gain product. Hyperfine coupling tensors for proton and lithium interactions were obtained for these two radicals and show that the latter radical exists in four conformations with various degrees of bending at the radical center. Pairs of CO2•– radicals were also observed and the tensor for the electron-electron dipolar coupling was determined for the strongest coupled pair, which exhibited the largest spectral intensity. Upon warming, both the radical pairs and the reduction product decay, the latter apparently by a transient species. Above 200 K the EPR spectrum was mainly due to the CO2•– (mono) radicals, which were previously characterized as the dominant species present at room temperature and which account for the dosimetric EPR signal.


By means of antiserum (purified by affinity chromatography) directed against adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) 11-24, cell bodies and beaded axons were visualized in rat brain. The ACTH-like immunoreactivity (ACTH-LI) was primarily located in the hypothalamus (cells and axons). Fibers were scattered throughout thalamus, amygdala, periaqueductal gray area, and reticular formation. There was no change in the distribution of ACTH-LI in rats that had been subjected to hypophysectomy. This distribution of ACTH-LI parallels that of beta-lipotropin and is altered by specific lesions in a similar fashion. The presence of ACTH-LI in cells and beaded axons in brain raises the possibility that it is a neuroregulator functioning as a neurotransmitter, neuromodulator, or neurohormone.


We examined the left ventricular cardiac structure and the diastolic function in patients with isolated systolic hypertension (ISH; SBP > or = 160 mmHg and DBP < 90 mmHg) in the elderly. We studied 17 patients with ISH, 24 age-matched patients with essential hypertension (EHT; DBP > or = 90 mmHg) and 17 normotensive controls (NT; SBP < 140 mmHg and DBP < 90 mmHg). EHT were divided into two groups based on the mean wall thickness (MWT) of the left ventricle. Group 1 patients (EHT-I, n = 12) had a MWT < 10 mm and group 2 patients (EHT-II, n = 12) had a MWT > or = 10 mm. We measured left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (LVDd), end-systolic dimensions (LVDs), left ventricular mass index (LVMi) and left ventricular isovolumic relaxation time (IRT) to assess the left ventricular cardiac structure and the diastolic function by M-mode echocardiography. LVDd was significantly smaller in ISH than in NT, EHT-I and EHT-II (P < 0.01). Relative wall thickness was greatest in ISH because of both the decreased chamber size and the increased left ventricular wall thickness. LVMi in ISH was similar to that in EHT-I, but IRT in ISH was significantly longer than that in EHT-I (P < 0.05). These results suggest that ISH in the elderly shows a left ventricular concentric hypertrophy and a severely impaired diastolic function.


The molecular mechanisms controlling organ size during plant development ultimately influence crop yield. However, a deep understanding of these mechanisms is still lacking. UBIQUITIN-SPECIFIC PROTEASE14 (UBP14), encoded by DA3, is an essential factor determining organ size in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Here, we identified two suppressors of the da3-1 mutant phenotype, namely SUPPRESSOR OF da3-1 1 and 2 (SUD1 and SUD2), which encode the E3 ligases MOS4-ASSOCIATED COMPLEX 3A (MAC3A) and MAC3B, respectively. The mac3a-1 and mac3b-1 mutations partially suppressed the high ploidy level and organ size phenotypes observed in the da3-1 mutant. Biochemical analysis showed that MAC3A and MAC3B physically interacted with and ubiquitinated UBP14/DA3 to modulate its stability. We previously reported that UBP14/DA3 acts upstream of the B-type cyclin-dependent kinase CDKB1; 1 and maintains its stability to inhibit endoreduplication and cell growth. In this work, MAC3A and MAC3B were found to promote the degradation of CDKB1; 1 by ubiquitinating UBP14/DA3. Genetic analysis suggests that MAC3A and MAC3B act in a common pathway with UBP14/DA3 to control endoreduplication and organ size. Thus, our findings define a regulatory module, MAC3A/MAC3B-UBP14-CDKB1; 1, that plays a critical role in determining organ size and endoreduplication in Arabidopsis.


ObjectiveTo investigate whether acupuncture reduces the duration and intensity of crying in infants with colic. Patients and methods: 90 otherwise healthy infants, 2–8 weeks old, with infantile colic were randomised in this controlled blind study. 81 completed a structured programme consisting of six visits during 3 weeks to an acupuncture clinic in Sweden. Parents blinded to the allocation of their children met a blinded nurse. The infant was subsequently given to another nurse in a separate room, who handled all infants similarly except that infants allocated to receive acupuncture were given minimal, standardised acupuncture for 2 s in LI4.ResultsThere was a difference (p = 0.034) favouring the acupuncture group in the time which passed from inclusion until the infant no longer met the criteria for colic. The duration of fussing was lower in the acupuncture group the first (74 vs 129 min; p = 0.029) and second week (71 vs 102 min; p = 0.047) as well as the duration of colicky crying in the second intervention week (9 vs 13 min; p = 0.046) was lower in the acupuncture group. The total duration of fussing, crying and colicky crying (TC) was lower in the acupuncture group during the first (193 vs 225 min; p = 0.025) and the second intervention week (164 vs 188 min; p = 0.016). The relative difference from baseline throughout the intervention weeks showed differences between groups for fussing in the first week (22 vs 6 min; p = 0.028), for colicky crying in the second week (92 vs 73 min; p = 0.041) and for TC in the second week (44 vs 29 min; p = 0.024), demonstrating favour towards the acupuncture group.ConclusionsMinimal acupuncture shortened the duration and reduced the intensity of crying in infants with colic. Further research using different acupuncture points, needle techniques and intervals between treatments is required.


We outline the difficulties in classifying paraphilias as mental disorder and summarise the changes to this diagnostic category in DSM-5. We review the research on the epidemiology and aetiology of paraphilias, and provide guidance on assessment and referral options for general psychiatrists when they encounter patients who may meet diagnostic criteria for a paraphilic disorder. Empirical evidence for effective treatments for paraphilias is limited, and specific treatment services are scarce, particularly for individuals presenting with legal paraphilias or those who are committing paraphilic sexual offences but who have not been convicted.


23 The FANTOM5 consortium recently characterized 38,554 robust hu24 man enhancers from 808 cell and tissue types using the Cap Analysis of 25 Gene Expression technology. We used the distribution of guanine and 26 cytosine nucleotides at enhancer regions to distinguish two classes of en27 hancers harboring distinct DNA structural properties. A functional anal28 ysis of their predicted gene targets highlighted one class of enhancers as 29 significantly enriched for associations with immune response genes. More30 over, these enhancers were specifically enriched for regulatory motifs rec31 ognized by TFs involved in immune response. We observed that immune 32 response enhancers were cell type specific, preferentially activated upon 33 bacterial infection, and with long-lasting response activity. Looking at 34 chromatin capture data, we found that the two classes of enhancers were 35 lying in distinct topologically-associated domains and chromatin loops. 36 Our results suggest that specific DNA sequence patterns encode for classes 37 of enhancers that are functionally distinct and specifically organized in the 38 human genome. 39


Early diagnosis and complete resection of a tumor mass are the most important factors that im- prove prognosis and prevent recurrence. Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) is a recently developed technique for gathering and displaying nuclear medicine images. Ten pa- tients were suffering from tumor recurrence were studied using panoramic radiography and SPECT. Rcsults of this study revealed that lesion type, border definition, alveolar bone loss and teeth relation of recurrent benign and malignant tumors were clearly identified on panoramic radiographs with sta- tistical significancedifference<P<O.OOOI) comparedto SPECTfindings. Soft tissue involvement, vascularity, bone uptake and abnormal ratio were clearly identified on SPECT scan with statistical significance difference(P<O.OOO1) compared to panoramic radiographs. There was no statistical sig- nificance difference regarding bone affection, only one case was identified on SPECT scan and not on panoramic radiograph. We can conclude that SPECT complement rather than replace radiog- raphy, Periodic long-term radionuclide scanning should be recommended for all asymptomatic pa- tients given the risk of rcsidual and/or reactivating tumoral tissue with benign or malignant be- havior, lastly, the size of the lesion on SPECT scan is exaggerated than the size on panoramic radiographs due to bone scanning gives the actual bone involvcment which is very important in le- sions of high recurrence for determination of the suitablc safcty margins to prevent recurrence.


Denoising auto-encoders (DAE)s were proposed as a simple yet powerful way to obtain representations in an unsupervised manner by learning a map that approximates the clean inputs from their corrupted versions. However, the original objective function proposed for DAEs does not guarantee that denoising happens only at the encoding stages. We argue that a better representation can be obtained if the encoder is forced to carry out most of the denoising effort. Here, we propose a simple modification to the DAE's objective function that accomplishes the above goal.


It is widely accepted that Indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) is potentially valuable for maintaining biodiversity within linked social-ecological systems, and cultural landscapes in particular. However, IEK is declining globally, along with biodiversity. Adaptive co-management frameworks incorporating both Indigenous and scientific knowledge systems have the capacity for greater success than frameworks embedded within a singular world view. A major challenge exists, however, in identifying pathways for the integration of these knowledge systems. The need to integrate both IEK and science into management is widely recognised; various approaches have been trialled but there are few successful examples. Cooperative research using joint learning is emerging as one potentially useful approach. Here we present an example of applying co-research in a cultural landscape in Australia, the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, where we aimed to develop linked cultural and biophysical indicators of ecosystem condition. Our approach was founded on five stakeholder-defined core principles for research. The study revealed seven determinants of successful implementation within these principles: strong Indigenous governance; problem-framing and conceptualisation; relationship building; data collection and management; considerations of scale; agreed dissemination of results; and evaluation. We identify cooperative problem-framing as one of the most important determinants, and argue that by starting the co-research process with this task, co-research can assist the equitable convergence of IEK and contemporary natural resource management, thereby potentially enhancing social-ecological system resilience and sustainability.


To evaluate the usefulness of precipitin tests as a screening method to detect hypersensitivity pneumonitis, we compared persons with precipitins to organic antigens with precipitin-negative subjects from the same population of 1,072 office workers participating in a health survey examination. Thirty-three of the 53 persons with preciptins to Micropolyspora faeni, Thermoactinomyces vulgaris, T. candidus, pigeon serum, aspergillus, alternaria, pullularia, penicillium, cephalosporium, trichoderma, and phoma were matched according to age, sex, height, and smoking habits with precipitin-negative subjects. The subjects completed a self-administered standard questionnaire, they were interviewed and examined, chest radiograms were taken, and pulmonary functions were evaluated at rest and during mild and moderate exercise. No significant differences were found between the 2 populations in any of the pulmonary function measurements. In addition, clinical and radiologic evidence failed to distinguish between the 2 groups. No cases of hypersensitivity pneumonitis were found. In this population, precipitins had no apparent relationship to long disease. The frequency of precipitins was considerably higher than the frequency of hypersensitivity pneumonitis. We concluded that the detection of hypersensitivity pneumonitis in population surveys attempting to establish prevalence of the disease cannot be accomplished by the simple analysis of serum precipitating antibodies but requires, in addition, a more complex analysis of historical, radiologic, and immunologic data.


A laboratory method that uses antibodies to check for certain antigens (markers) in a sample of tissue. The antibodies are usually linked to an enzyme or a fluorescent dye. After the antibodies bind to the antigen in the tissue sample, the enzyme or dye is activated, and the antigen can then be seen under a microscope. Immunohistochemistry is used to help diagnose diseases, such as cancer. It may also be used to help tell the difference between different types of cancer.


The case fatality rate for H5N1 influenza virus infections in humans is considerably higher than that for seasonal influenza virus infections. Respiratory failure due to acute respiratory distress syndrome is a complication of severe H5N1 disease. Zeng et al. (p. 667– 678) show that, unlike seasonal influenza viruses, H5N1 influenza virus can target human pulmonary endothelial cells for efficient replication, resulting in high virus loads and an overwhelming immune response. These results shed light on the pathogenic mechanisms of pulmonary endothelial injury associated with H5N1 influenza virus infections.


This paper gives a brief description of the Controlled On/Off Loads Library (COOLL) dataset. This latter is a dataset of high-sampled electrical current and voltage measurements representing individual appliances consumption. The measurements were taken in June 2016 in the PRISME laboratory of the University of Orleans, France. The appliances are mainly controllable appliances (i.e. we can precisely control their turn-on/off time instants). 42 appliances of 12 types were measured at a 100 kHz sampling frequency.


Several cases of lung cancer lying within giant bullae have been reported in recent years, such that some authors have posited an association between the two diseases. We describe a patient with a diagnosis of giant bulla in the right lung who presented carcinoma of the lung found within the bulla ten years later. After carrying out a MEDLINE (CD-ROM 1980 to 2000) search of the literature, we agree with other authors on the need to follow the course of patients with bullous lung disease in order to detect the possible development of lung cancer and initiate early treatment.


The aim of this paper is to present new results on the convergence of relative Pareto efficient sets and the lower semicontinuity of relative Pareto efficient point multifunctions under perturbations. Our results extend some results of Luc et al. [16, Theorem2.1], Bednarczuk [4, Theorem 4] and [5, Proposition 3.1], Lucchetti and Miglierina [17, Proposition 3.1]. Some remarks and examples are provided for analysing the results obtained and for comparing them with the preceding results.


For more than a decade, a film showing the spalling behavior and failure of a concrete Ibeam has been shown on numerous occasions at conferences and workshops (two times during the previous spalling workshop). The film was taken during a test series on I-beams with thin webs, 80 mm, performed at SP more than 14 years ago. The original report from the tests is available in Swedish only. This article contains a description of the experiments performed as part of the project together with extra unpublished data from an experiment performed on a beam produced at the same time, 5 years after the original experiment. Significantly, while extreme spalling was observed in the original experiments, during this experiment the tested beam did not spall.


In practice, the imperfect channel state information can degrade the optimization performance of a cognitive system, especially yielding the detrimental violation of the interference constraint perceived by the primary users. This paper investigates the linear transceiver design in cognitive downlink systems with the imperfect channel knowledge, aiming at minimizing the mean square error of the secondary network subject to both the transmit and interference power constraints. Two methods are proposed to solve the optimization problem. The first alternating method decomposes the non-convex primal problem into two subproblems. Each of them is converted to the standard convex optimization forms. The second method is based on the reformulation of the primal problem into a two-loop optimization problem in which a more efficient gradient projected method applies. We also prove the condition to achieve Karush-Kuhn-Tucker optimality. The effectiveness and robustness of the proposed solutions are validated by the simulation result.


Excessive weight and body fat among currently serving active component members have a detrimental effect on operational effectiveness and increase the risk of both acute and chronic health effects related to overweight and obesity. During 2011-2015, the number and prevalence of active component members who received at least one clinical overweight diagnosis increased steadily (2011: n=71,168; 4.5%; 2015: n=113,958; 7.8%). Annual prevalences of clinical overweight increased most rapidly between 2011 and 2013, then remained relatively stable for the remainder of the surveillance period. Continued emphasis on improving "nutritional fitness" as well as physical fitness should continue as a priority of military medical and line leaders at every level.


Cities are implementing additional urban green as a means to capture CO2 and become more carbon neutral. However, cities are complex systems where anthropogenic and natural components of the CO2 budget interact with each other, and the ability to measure the efficacy of such measures is still not properly addressed. There is still a high degree of uncertainty in determining the contribution of the vegetation signal, which furthermore confounds the use of CO2 mole fraction measurements for inferring anthropogenic emissions of CO2. Carbonyl sulfide (OCS) is a tracer of photosynthesis which can aid in constraining the biosphere signal. This study explores the potential of using OCS to track the urban biosphere signal. We used the Sulfur Transport and dEposition Model (STEM) to simulate the OCS concentrations and the Carnegie Ames Stanford Approach ecosystem model to simulate global CO2 fluxes over the Bay Area of San Francisco during March 2015. Two observation towers provided measurements of OCS and CO2: The Sutro tower in San Francisco (upwind from the area of study providing background observations), and a tower located at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore (downwind of the highly urbanized San Francisco region). Our results show that the STEM model works better under stable marine influence, and that the boundary layer height and entrainment are driving the diurnal changes in OCS and CO2 at the downwind Sandia site. However, the STEM model needs to better represent the transport and boundary layer variability, and improved estimates of gross primary productivity for characterizing the urban biosphere signal are needed.


Psychological climate for innovation (PCI) has received little attention in sales research, although psychological climate as a general construct has been studied extensively in social psychology. This study examines two outcomes of PCI in the sales context: salespeople's creativity and voluntary turnover intention (VTI). We conceptualize and test a partial mediating mechanism composed of learning orientation and job satisfaction. Data collected from a sample of business-to-business salespeople from multiple companies in the northeast United States provide general support for the model. Overall, PCI is found to enhance sales creativity and reduce VTI. It positively affects salespeople's learning orientation and job satisfaction, and learning orientation further enhances job satisfaction and sales creativity. However, job satisfaction actually reduces creativity. While PCI positively influences creativity through learning orientation, it exerts a negative effect through job satisfaction. Finally, we find that PCI reduces VTI both directly and indirectly through its positive effects on learning orientation and job satisfaction. The results offer insights and challenges for sales managers on how to retain a learning and creative sales force in an innovative work environment.


The Sichuan earthquake, Mw 7.9, struck the Longmen Shan range front, in the western Sichuan province, China, on 12 May 2008. It severely affected an area where little historical seismicity and little or no significant active shortening were reported before the earthquake (e.g. Gu et al., 1989; Chen et al., 1994; Gan et al., 2007). The Longmen Shan thrust system bounds the eastern margin of the Tibetan plateau and is considered as a transpressive zone since Triassic time that was reactivated during the India-Asia collision (e.g., Tapponnier and Molnar, 1977, Chen andWilson 1996; Arne et al., 1997, Godard et al., 2009). However, contrasting geological evidences of sparse thrusting and marked dextral strike-slip faulting during the Quaternary along with high topography (Burchfiel et al., 1995; Densmore et al., 2007) have led to models of dynamically driven and sustained topography (Royden et al., 1997) limiting the role of earthquakes in relief building and leaving the mechanism of long term strain distribution in this area as an open question. Here we combine C and L band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) offsets data from ascending and descending paths to retrieve the three dimensional surface displacement distribution all along the earthquake ruptures of the Sichuan earthquake. For the first time on this earthquake we present near field 3D co-seismic surface displacement, which is an important datum for constraining modelled fault geometry at depth. Our results complement other Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) and field analyses in indicating that crustal shortening is one of the main drivers for topography building in the Longmen Shan (Liu-Zeng, 2009; Shen et al., 2009; Hubbard and Shaw, 2009). Moreover, our results put into evidence a small but significant amount of displacement in the range front that we interpret as due to slip at depth on a blind structure. We verify this hypothesis by inverting the data against a simple elastic dislocation model.We discuss this result and its implications for understanding strain partitioning during the Sichuan earthquake.


Extracellular action potentials were recorded from developing dissociated rat neocortical networks continuously for up to 49 days in vitro using planar multielectrode arrays. Spontaneous neuronal activity emerged toward the end of the first week in vitro and from then on exhibited periods of elevated firing rates, lasting for a few days up to weeks, which were largely uncorrelated among different recording sites. On a time scale of seconds to minutes, network activity typically displayed an ongoing repetition of distinctive firing patterns, including short episodes of synchronous firing at many sites ( network bursts). Network bursts were highly variable in their individual spatio-temporal firing patterns but showed a remarkably stable underlying probabilistic structure (obtained by summing consecutive bursts) on a time scale of hours. On still longer time scales, network bursts evolved gradually, with a significant broadening (to about 2 s) in the third week in vitro, followed by a drastic shortening after about one month in vitro. Bursts at this age were characterized by highly synchronized onsets reaching peak firing levels within less than ca. 60 ms. This pattern persisted for the rest of the culture period. Throughout the recording period, active sites showed highly persistent temporal relationships within network bursts. These longitudinal recordings of network firing have, thus, brought to light a reproducible pattern of complex changes in spontaneous firing dynamics of bursts during the development of isolated cortical neurons into synaptically interconnected networks.


This research aims firstly; to describe the construct of identity and local wisdom of Samin community in Kemantren village, Kedungtuban, Blora, Central Java, secondly; to explain change and continuity of their identity and local wisdom facing globalization. This research is descriptive qualitative, synthesis of library and field research. Library research studies the teaching and history of Saminism in general. Field research digs their identity and local wisdom through observation and unstructured interview. Informants were chosen purposively. The research was conducted on June-August 2007. The results are firstly; the construct of identity of Saminism comprises the identity of historicity, dress, language, house, marriage, and in agriculture. Their local wisdom was seen in personal attitude, social harmony attitude, and attitude towards nature. Secondly; there are factors and actors involving in change of their identity and local wisdom. There are external and internal factors, structural and cultural actors. The continuity of their identity and local wisdom goes through internalization, limitation of education, self sufficiency, and endogamy.


After noting the lack of enthusiasm of several well-known scholars concerning the adoption of both methodological holism and methodological individualism in its several versions, this paper shows that institutional individualism is a different mode of explanation from both of these and also that it is not the same thing as the so-called Popperian programme of situational analysis. Institutional individualism is a mode of explanation that yields non-systemic and non-reductionist explanations at the same time as it allows for the incorporation into economic theories and models of the many formal and informal institutional aspects surrounding all human interactions, whether these interactions take place within stable structures of legal rules and social norms or whether they attempt to change the said rules and norms. Finally, the paper shows that it is possible for old institutionalists to make institutional individualist analyses of institutional changes while retaining the remaining methodological assumptions of the school. The same is true for new institutionalists. Some examples are offered from both camps.


We report here the highest resolution near-IR imaging to date of the HD 141569A disc taken as part of the NICI Science Campaign. We recover 4 main features in the NICI images of the HD 141569 disc discovered in previous HST imaging: 1) an inner ring / spiral feature. Once deprojected, this feature does not appear circular. 2) an outer ring which is considerably brighter on the western side compared to the eastern side, but looks fairly circular in the deprojected image. 3) an additional arc-like feature between the inner and outer ring only evident on the east side. In the deprojected image, this feature appears to complete the circle of the west side inner ring and 4) an evacuated cavity from 175 AU inwards. Compared to the previous HST imaging with relatively large coronagraphic inner working angles (IWA), the NICI coronagraph allows imaging down to an IWA of 0.3". Thus, the inner edge of the inner ring/spiral feature is well resolved and we do not find any additional disc structures within 175 AU. We note some additional asymmetries in this system. Specifically, while the outer ring structure looks circular in this deprojection, the inner bright ring looks rather elliptical. This suggests that a single deprojection angle is not appropriate for this system and that there may be an offset in inclination between the two ring / spiral features. We find an offset of 4+-2 AU between the inner ring and the star center, potentially pointing to unseen inner companions.


In this paper, we present a frame synchronization method which consists of the non-orthogonal superposition of a synchronization sequence and the data. We derive the optimum detection criterion and compare it to the classical sequential concatenation of synchronization and data sequences. Computer simulations confirm the benefits of the non-orthogonal allocation for the case of short frames, which makes this technique particularly suited for the increasingly important regime of low latency and ultra- reliable communication.


Abstract Introduction: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women irrespective of race or ethnicity, and about half of these deaths are caused by coronary artery disease. Several studies have reported that cardiovascular diseases manifest themself with a delay of about 7–10 years in women and that they have higher in-hospital mortality. It has not yet been established whether female gender itself, through biological and sociocultural differences, represents a risk factor for early in-hospital mortality in ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI). The aim of our study was to identify the angiographic particularities in women with STEMI from North East Romania. Material and Methods: For one year, 207 (31.7%) women and 445 (68.3%) men diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction were hospitalized in the Cardiology Clinic of the "Prof. Dr. George I. M. Georgescu" Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in Iași, Romania. Results: The highest incidence of symptom onset was between 6:00 a.m. and 12:00 a.m., this morning polarization being more obvious in women. Within the first two hours of admission to the hospital, coronary angiography was performed in 78.1% of men and only 67.3% of women, the difference being statistically significant (p <0.05). We found that a large number of women had multivascular coronary disease (47.9% vs. 42.3%). At the same time, we found that left main disease and multivascular disease were more frequent in women than in men (3.8% vs. 0.7%, p = 0.001 for left main plus two-vessel disease, and 19.4% vs. 14.8%, p = 0.0005 for three-vessel disease). Conclusions: In women, coronary events began more frequently in the morning, with atypical symptoms; also, fewer women presented to the hospital within the first 12 hours after the onset of the acute event. Compared to men, women from North East Romania present a higher incidence of multivascular atherosclerotic coronary lessions, indicating a higher severity of STEMI in the female population from this geographical area.


Objectives This study was to evaluate the performance of the newly developed information system (IS) implemented on July 1, 2014 at three public hospitals in Korea. Methods User satisfaction scores of twelve key performance indicators of six IS success factors based on the DeLone and McLean IS Success Model were utilized to evaluate IS performance before and after the newly developed system was introduced. Results All scores increased after system introduction except for the completeness of medical records and impact on the clinical environment. The relationships among six IS factors were also analyzed to identify the important factors influencing three IS success factors (Intention to Use, User Satisfaction, and Net Benefits). All relationships were significant except for the relationships among Service Quality, Intention to Use, and Net Benefits. Conclusions The results suggest that hospitals should not only focus on systems and information quality; rather, they should also continuously improve service quality to improve user satisfaction and eventually reach full the potential of IS performance.


Driveshafts are one of the most important members of the drivetrain that transmits the power and rotational movement from the engine to the rear axles. In light duty commercial vehicles, the multi- piece driveshafts have elastomeric parts called center bearing. The driveshaft center bearing usually consist of a rolling element bearing isolated in rubber and with a bracket configuration for attaching it to the vehicle chassis structure. The duty of the center bearing of the multi-piece driveshafts on the vehicle is the vibration damping function thanks to the elastomeric structure. Center bearing is an important sub-component of the multi-piece driveshaft which determines frequency response characteristic of driveshaft. The manner in which it is attached to the vehicle, whether directly to the under body or to the chassis frame, it can have a considerable effect on the center bearing's capability of providing optimum isolation and reducing the transmission of disturbances to an acceptable level in a given application. Due to both real road conditions and operation time, the elastomeric structure and the rolling ball bearings are damaged in time and the level of vibration and noise can cause disturbance on the vehicle. In this study, a test systematic has been developed to determine the change in noise characteristics of center bearing sub-assembly during the real time operation of the driveshaft. The noise characteristics of center bearing sub-assembly before and after the tests were compared and investigated.


A very simple, highly selective and non-extractive spectrophotometric method for the trace amounts of copper(II) has been developed. 2,4-Dihydroxyacetophenone acetoylhydrazone(DAAH) has been proposed as a new analytical reagent for the direct non-extractive spectrophotometric determination of copper(II). The reagent reacts with copper(II) in acidic medium(pH 4.0) to form a pale yellow coloured 1: 1 (M : L) complex. The reaction is instantaneous and the complex shows maximum absorbance at 370 nm. The molar absorptivity and Sandell's sensitivity are found to be 1.02 x 10 4 L mol -1 cm -1 and 0.623 μg cm -2 respectively. The system obeys Beer's law in the range, 0.22.0 μg/ml of copper(II). The method is highly selective for copper and successfully used for determination of copper in vegetable samples.


The reuse of agro-industrial waste assumes great importance today. Pinhão is the seed of Araucaria angustifolia, which is native to the mountains of southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. The coat is a by-product of this seed and is rich in phenolic compounds. The present study aimed to use the residue as a precursor material for the production of nanocellulose through the mechanical defibrillation process and perform the characterization of the films and the gel to investigate the effect on the physical and regenerative properties when incorporated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The modulus of elasticity was higher when the MFC of pinhão was added to the PVA. Film and gel had their cytotoxicity tested by MTT assay using 3T3 fibroblast and Schwann cancer cells, and a migration assay was also performed using the scratch test on HaCat keratinocyte cells. For the scratch test, film and gel samples with low concentration presented a complete scratch closure in 72 h. Molecular docking was performed and quercetin had the ideal interaction score values, so it was used with the PACAP protein which presented a slightly moderate interaction with the protein synthesis of Schwann cells, presenting compactness of the compound after 14 ns.


Using the electron probe X-ray microanalysis technique, the elemental composition of otoconia was analysed in both young and old normal pigmented guinea pigs. Calcium concentration in both the utricular and the saccular otoconia was lower in the old animals, which indicates that the loss of calcium from otoconia and/or decrease in calcium ion uptake may occur in the old animals. The present study has established that calcium and other elements (P, S, Cl and K) in the otoconia of the young animals are related via a linear function, indicating that P, S, Cl and K are present in the mineral phase of the otoconia. The associations of Ca-P, Ca-K and Ca-S are not maintained in the old animals. It has been suggested that the aging phenomenon may influence the ionic metabolism in the vestibular end organs resulting in the altered mineral composition of otoconia.


Inherently, the operational processes of a large number of digital communication systems are based on input events. Therefore, Discrete Event-Based System (DEVS) model is an appropriate tool to model such systems. On the other hand, as communication networks become more popular, congestion control becomes more vital. This necessitates the design and development of a suitable model that is able to represent the complete behavior of the network traffic as much as possible. Many researchers have attempted to develop a model first, and then at the next step, develop a good controller for the communication system. In other words, modeling and control are usually treated as two separate issues. However, it seems that treating the modeling and control issues simultaneously may improve the performance and efficiency of communication systems significantly. In other words, the idea is to develop a model which is naturally similar to the system and at the same time is intelligent enough for self-adaptation so that real-time updates of the system's states are possible. General Fuzzy Automata (GFA) is a discrete-event-based formalism and is thus naturally similar to communication systems. Due to the fuzzy nature of GFA, it is possible to incorporate the advantages of fuzzy control. Therefore, in this paper, GFA is proposed as a tool for the modeling and control of communication systems. Simulation studies show that the GFA-based approach is superior to the classical ATM switch in the usage of a system's resources and system performance.


The process of shodhana i.e. purification is designed for the alteration of the original properties of a substance. The concept of shodhana is being practiced in ayurvedic medicines since samhita kala. Term shodhana indicates the pharmaceutical process of purification of various metals and minerals which is essential before administering them into alchemical as well as therapeutic purpose, and this term is broadly used for Samskara. It was highly accepted by the Pioneers of Rasashastra (8th Century A.D.). Specifically for metals, to convert them into consumable, assimilable, body friendly, form it is important that their compact, hard structure be broken. Vang dhatu is grouped in putilohas and is extensively used in ayurvedic medicinal system for management of some critical diseases like prameha, klaibya etc. Shodhana and Marana are the basic procedures adopted for making these foreign and wild elements, body friendly and tamed to provide maximum benefit. There are a number of procedures explained in rasashatriya texts regarding Shodhana of vang dhatu. The Present paper is a sincere attempt to study physico chemical characteristics of vang dhatu purified by three different methods.Â


As the basis of injection metallurgy, an impinging gas jet on a liquid bath surface was simulated and experimentally verified. The SPH simulation of the gas-liquid two phase flow was developed by using the XSPH method, and the calculation speed was considerably increased with the use of general-purpose computing on graphics processing units. For N 2 gas – water bath system, the simulated shapes and penetration length of the cavity were in good agreement with the experimental results, and the three modes of cavity were reproduced by the calculation. N 2 gas–molten iron bath system was also simulated. The cavity mode was "dimpling mode" for all calculations.


Temporal networks are essential for modeling and understanding systems whose behavior varies in time, from social interactions to biological systems. Often, however, real-world data are prohibitively expensive to collect or unshare-able due to privacy concerns. A promising solution is 'surrogate networks', synthetic graphs with the properties of real-world networks. Until now, the generation of realistic surrogate temporal networks has remained an open problem, due to the dif-ficulty of capturing both the temporal and topological properties of the input network, as well as their correlations, in a scalable model. Here, we propose a novel and simple method for generating surrogate temporal networks. By decomposing graphs into temporal neighborhoods surrounding each node, we can generate new networks using neighborhoods as building blocks. Our model vastly outperforms current methods across multiple examples of temporal networks in terms of both topological and dynamical similarity. We further show that beyond generating realistic interaction patterns, our method is able to capture intrinsic temporal periodicity of temporal networks, all with an execution time lower than competing methods by multiple orders of magnitude.


Current ocean wave observation is achieved by separate battery-powered sensing and signal transmission modules. Owing to the limited electrical supply and information channel space, the long-time span observation is restricted and only wave height and period information rather than the whole wave profile are sent back to the receiver. In this work, a self-powered ocean wave observation system was achieved by a developed polymer network liquid crystal (PNLC)-based smart reflector powered by a tailored triboelectric nanogenerator embedded with one-way overrunning clutches. The off-shore smart reflector modulated the on-shore emitted laser light, where ocean wave motion information can be revealed from the remotely detected reflected laser light without cable connections. The ocean wave rise and fall are distinguished by the developed one-way overrunning clutch, which selects the TENG to power the PNLC. Through the developed paradigm, ocean wave sensing and signal transmission can be achieved simultaneously, which is fully self-powered and free-of-cable. The flume-based self-powered ocean observation was performed with demonstrated wave height and period sensing accuracies of 92.66 and 97.32%, respectively.


In this case series, Margaret Ballis, a soon-to-be Darden School of Business graduate, is about to begin her dream job at a leading investment management firm. On her way to becoming a fund manager, she cannot help wondering about her future success. Ballis is trying to assess her ability to consistently outperform the stock market; she questions whether it is even possible to achieve persistent performance as a fund manager. Using data downloaded from Morningstar, Inc., on 2,852 mutual funds, students are prompted to investigate whether funds that beat the S&P 500 Index benchmark during a five-year period are more likely to beat the Index over the next five-year period. Students are asked to take a closer look at the "hot hand" phenomenon by investigating investors' reactions to streaks of outperformance and examining whether funds that outperformed their peers several years in a row also outgrow their peers in terms of size.The A case (UVA-F-1621) can be used to support an introductory class in data analysis with an emphasis on PivotTables, data filtering, and regressions. The B case (UVA-F-1622) can be used to support a more advanced financial analysis for students with some exposure to the CAPM model. There are two supplemental spreadsheets: one for students (UVA-F-1621X) and one for instructors (UVA-F-1621TNX).

Excerpt

UVA-F-1621

Rev. Aug. 16, 2012

Ballis's Benchmark (A)

As Margaret Ballis, a second-year student at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, boarded the bus for Foxfield, a popular spring social event, she couldn't help thinking that her life in Charlottesville, Virginia, would soon be over. Although she had come to business school at the height of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, she had found her dream job at a leading investment management firm. She was convinced her two years at Darden had paid off already. She was well prepared to be an outstanding research analyst and was on her way to becoming a fund manager.

Nonetheless, something was bothering her as her summer 2010 start date approached. As fund manager, would she be able to consistently outperform the stock market? By the time she retired from the job, would she have achieved anywhere near the consistent performance of such greats as Peter Lynch, the famed fund manager who beat the market 11 of 13 years?

Ballis couldn't get away from the industry's advertising. She heard its usual disclaimer everywhere. From Fidelity, "Past performance is no guarantee of future results." From Vanguard, "The performance data shown represent past performance, which is not a guarantee of future results." She knew the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with its amendment to Rule 482 in 2003 required mutual funds to include in their advertising "a statement that past performance does not guarantee future results," but Ballis hadn't thought much about its intent in terms of consumer protection.

. . .


Summary: The efficient search of global optimal solutions is an important contemporary subject. Different optimization methods tackle the search in different ways. The gradient based methods are among the fastest optimization methods but the final optimal solution depends on the starting point. The global search using these methods is carried out by providing many starting points. Other optimization methods like evolutionary algorithms that mimic the natural processes like evolution, and simulated annealing that emulates the metal cooling process via annealing can find the global optima but are criticized due to high computational expense. The adaptive simulated annealing algorithm has been proposed to be an efficient global optimizer. This algorithm is implemented in LS-OPT. A few analytical examples and meta-model based engineering optimization examples are used to demonstrate the efficiency of the global optimization using ASA. The optimization results are also compared with the existing LFOPC and genetic algorithm optimization methods.


The American Crisis: Travel Notes - This paper comments on an editorial on the American crisis published in the New York Times by Professor Casey Mulligan, University of Chicago. According to Mulligan, the crisis is nothing more than a financial fluctuation: the banks should not be bailed out, other financial actors can take care of business investments, the delay in investment and consumption is not a big problem and public intervention is therefore useless. This paper argues, instead, that the current crisis is not primarily financial but originates from a prolonged shock that hit income distribution. The share of labour declined, while the share of capital increased. To sustain returns on capital it was necessary to force lending to consumers. In the short term both monetary and fiscal policy are needed, but in the mid-to-long run it is necessary to return to a more balanced income distribution. EconLit Classification: E250, E620, E650 Keywords: Financial and Economic Crisis, Banks Bail-Out, Income Distribution


Rice is a staple food commodity consumed by 95% of Indonesia's population in addition to corn, sago and sweet potato. That rice consumption reached 139.15 kg per capita per year, far exceeding the world average consumption of 60 kg per capita per year. However, the high consumption of rice, not accompanied by a significant increase in rice productivity annually. Generally, post-harvest pests that exist in the deposited material is from the Coleoptera class, one of them is Sitophilus Oryzae L. Pest controls Sitophilus Oryzae L until now still use chemical pesticides and fumigation. Fumigants used in fumigation in Bulog warehouses today consist of Phosphine and Methyl bromide. The use of chemical pesticides in pest control has many negative impacts. The problem of environmental pollution is a clear consequence, besides the use of chemical pesticides in Indonesia has destroyed 55% of pest species and 72% of biological control agents. Therefore, it is necessary to replace environmentally friendly pesticides, One alternative choice is the use of vegetable pesticides. The vegetable pesticide is one of the pesticides which material comes from plants. This research uses Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with one factor. The treatment used in this research is 13 treatments with 3 replications, resulting in 39 units of experimental unit. Unit placement is done randomly on 39 barriers available. The results show that the treatment of repellent and antifeedant plant extracts affected on the population of rice lice and rice damage by rice lice. Plants that are able to make the population of rice lice decline namely Wuluh starfruit with a dose of 50 grams and which is able to reduce the damage of rice that soursop leaves with a dose of 40 grams


In order to help talented athletes to attain the highest possible level in both their sport and education, Topsport Talent Schools (TTS) were founded in the Netherlands in 1991. This research aims to investigate the effect of attending a TTS on the sport and education performance levels of talented athletes. A retrospective study was conducted amongst 242 (former) talented athletes from six sport federations. Results indicate that attending a TTS did not influence the current and highest attained sport performance levels of talented athletes (at both junior and senior level). Neither were talents who had attended a TTS more satisfied about the combination of school and sport, nor were they more motivated for their sport. Furthermore, results indicated that talents who had attended TTS were less motivated to do well in school; also they attained lower educational levels in both their secondary school and further education.


In his love songs, Heinrich von Mügeln demonstrates how he as a Sangspruch poet aspires to mastery (Meisterschaft). This is characterised by a complex and varied use of imagery relating to nature, which allows the poet to surpass the representation and negotiation of love in the Minnesang tradition both rhetorically and conceptionally. The texts also draw on learned knowledge and should be read taking the concepts of natural philosophy of the so-called School of Chartres into account. Using the example of the first three songs, the article shows to what extent the texts thus occupy a position that is as significant as it is exemplary in the lyric history of the late Middle Ages.


Recently, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) attract a great deal of research attention, and are envisioned to support a variety of applications, including building monitoring, environment control, wild-life habitat monitoring, forest fire detection, industry automation, military, security, and health-care. Over the years, we have seen a variety of hardware platforms for WSNs to facilitate developing WSN applications. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive review of existing hardware platforms for WSNs. We first present the hardware architecture of a wireless sensor node. We then survey the major hardware platforms for WSNs and present a comparison of these hardware platforms. Finally we present some recommendations from the perspectives of hardware platform developers and hardware platform users. The authors hope that making information about existing hardware platforms will assist researchers working in this area to appreciate the diversity of platforms available to them and to help them select the most appropriate platform for their purposes.


This article presents new symbolic solutions for the problem of pore elasticity and pore pressure. These techniques are based on the classic theoretical approach proposed by M. A. Biot [1]. The new symbolic solutions differ from the well-known approximations of the functions proposed for the 2D pore elasticity problem. Both new symbolic and numerical solutions are then applied to solve problems arising in offshore design technology, specifically dealing with the penetration of a gravitybased rig installed in the Arctic region of the North Sea of Russia. All symbolic approaches are based on solutions of the linear problem of the pore elasticity for homogeneous soil. The new symbolic solutions are compared with Biot's solutions.


We describe 2 cases of diffuse fasciitis with eosinophilia (DFE) associated with prolonged exposure to the industrial solvent trichloroethylene (TCE). The medical and personal histories, examinations, and laboratory and pathological investigations were reviewed and summarized. The 2 case reports, representing the first and 2nd cases of DFE associated with TCE, were compared with 8 reported cases of systemic sclerosis associated with TCE and suggest a direct association between TCE exposure and the development of fasciitis (DFE).


In this paper we obtain some fixed point results for a class of nonexpansive single-valued map- pings and a class of nonexpansive multi-valued mappings in the setting of a metric space. The contraction mappings in Banach sense belong to the class of nonexpansive single-valued mappings considered herein. These results are generalizations of the analogous ones in Khojasteh et al. (Abstr. Appl. Anal. 2014 (2014), Article ID 325840).


All dairy processors depend on a continuous supply of high-quality bulk milk from milk producers to be able to distribute liquid milk and dairy products. Mastitis, inflammation of the bovine udder, is the most common disease in dairy cows, and leads to altered milk composition and impaired milk quality. The somatic cell count (SCC) is currently used as a marker for udder health, and indirectly, for bulk milk quality, but because it is somewhat insensitive and unspecific, there has been an interest to find alternative markers. The main objective of this thesis was to acquire more knowledge about two potential markers for bulk milk quality: polymorphonuclear leukocyte count (PMNC) and α-lactalbumin (α-LA). Another objective was to study if the combination of α-LA, haptoglobin (Hp) and serum amyloid A (SAA) in an acute phase index (API) could be useful as an alternative marker for bulk milk quality. Bulk milk samples were collected from Swedish dairy farms and analyzed for PMNC, α-LA, SCC, haptoglobin (Hp), serum amyloid A (SAA), fat, lactose, total protein and casein contents, casein number, protein composition, proteolysis and coagulating properties. An API was calculated for each sample by combining results on α-LA, Hp and SAA. Samples with high PMNC had a lower casein number than samples with low PMNC, while samples with high SCC had lower lactose and casein contents, lower casein number and more proteolysis than low SCC samples. There was no significant difference in the inflammatory markers SCC, PMNC, Hp and SAA between milk samples containing low, medium or high concentrations of α-LA. Differences between α-LA groups were, however, found in some milk quality parameters as high α-LA concentration was related to low concentrations of αs1-, αs2- and β-casein, and high concentrations of lactose and β-lactoglobulin. High API was related to low lactose content and casein number. In conclusion, PMNC and α-LA were not considered more useful markers of inflammation and milk quality in bulk milk than SCC, which is currently used.


COVID-19 has forced quarantine measures in several countries across the world. These measures have proven to be effective in significantly reducing the prevalence of the virus. To date, no effective treatment or vaccine is available. In the effort of preserving both public health and the economical and social textures, France and Italy governments have partially released lockdown measures. Here, we extrapolate the long-term behavior of the epidemic in both countries using a susceptible-exposed-infected-recovered model, where parameters are stochastically perturbed with a lognormal distribution to handle the uncertainty in the estimates of COVID-19 prevalence and to simulate the presence of super-spreaders. Our results suggest that uncertainties in both parameters and initial conditions rapidly propagate in the model and can result in different outcomes of the epidemic leading or not to a second wave of infections. Furthermore, the presence of super-spreaders adds instability to the dynamics, making the control of the epidemic more difficult. Using actual knowledge, asymptotic estimates of COVID-19 prevalence can fluctuate of the order of 10×106 units in both countries.


Background: mixed urinary incontinence (MUI) is defined as the complaint of involuntary loss of urine, associated with urgency and also with effort. Urodynamic studies (UDS) are widely considered the gold standard investigation for determining the type of incontinence.
 Aim of the Work: It evaluates the safety and efficacy of transobturator tape (TOT) procedure in treatment of women with mixed urinary incontinence.
 Patients and Methods: this study was carried out at Ain Shams Urology Department and National institute of urology and nephrology in the period from October 2017 to may 2018. This Study included 20 female patients with MUI who failed to respond to medical treatment and other forms of conservative methods. Post operative evaluation was carried out at 2 weeks, 3, and 6 months following operation.
 Results: Our study showed statistically significant cure rate for urge component 12 cases (60%), and also significant cure rate for stress component 17 cases (85%), no statistically significant difference in the cure rate depending on the age factor by dividing the patients into two groups group below forty (11 cases) and group above forty (9 cases).
 Conclusion: our study showed statistically significant cure rate for urge component 12 cases (60%), and also significant cure rate for stress component 17 cases (85%). The limitations in our study were small number of patients and short time of postoperative follow-up. We advocate that the TOT procedure should always be tried in the management of mixed urinary incontinence in female population as it is an effective and simple procedure.


Poor crop establishment, high weed infestation, and consequent yield loss are major concerns for dry-seeded rice (DSR). Flooding after seeding helps in managing weeds but reduces seed germination and crop stand. Anaerobic germination (AG)-tolerant rice genotypes could overcome these problems in DSR. Screenhouse experiments were established to evaluate the effect of seed sowing depth (SD) (0.5 cm, 1 cm, and 2 cm) and flooding depth (FD) (saturated, 2 cm, and 5 cm) on crop establishment, early growth, and weed competitiveness in DSR using AG-tolerant genotypes (Khao Hlan On, Ma-Zhan Red, IR64+AG1, and IR64). Echinochloa crus-galli, Ludwigia hyssopifolia, and Cyperus difformis were used in the weedy treatment. Rice plants reached maximum emergence 9–13 days later under flooding compared with saturated conditions. Crop emergence decreased by 12–22% at 0.5 and 1 cm SD and by 48–60% at 2 cm SD, when combined with 2 or 5 cm FD compared with saturated conditions. The 2 cm SD reduced seedling emergence by 23–42% in Khao Hlan On and Ma-Zhan Red, by 62–70% in IR64+AG1, and by 90–92% in IR64 under flooding. Initial growth in rice plant height was slow under flooding but increased progressively after the seedlings emerged from water and the final height was not affected by FD. Leaf area, total shoot biomass, tiller density, and leaf number per pot of rice were higher at 1 cm SD (P< 0.05), but decreased drastically at 2 cm SD under flooding. The emergence of E. crus-galli and L. hyssopifolia decreased by 53–65% and 89–95%, respectively, but increased by 49–68% in C. difformis under 2 and 5 cm FD, respectively, compared with saturated conditions. The shoot biomass of the weeds followed the same trend. Khao Hlan On showed the highest weed-competitive ability under all FD while the biomass of IR64+AG1 and IR64 decreased by 10–14% due to weed competition under 2 cm FD. The 1 cm SD showed better growth for all genotypes under different FD. The 2 cm FD is sufficient to have a significant control of problematic weed species. The tolerance of AG of rice genotypes should be further enhanced to increase their weed-competitive ability.


Objective: Markers which are used for classification into two groups, such as patient / healthy, benign/malignant or prediction of optimal cut off value for diagnostic test and evaluating the performance of diagnostic tests is evaluated by Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve in the diagnostic test researches. In classification accuracy research, some variables such as gender and age, commonly is not similar in groups. In these cases, covariates should be considered to estimate in the area under ROC and covariate adjustment for ROC should be performed. This study aims to introduce methods in the literature for the effect of covariate adjustment and to present an application with sample from the health field. Material and Methods: In the study, we introduced methods used in the literature for covariate adjustment and prediction of the area under ROC curves as well as an application with data from the field of urology. In this study, 105 PSA (prostate specific antigen) measurements were taken in order to examine the covariate effect for the age variable and to assess the diagnostic performance of PSA measurements with regard to pathologic methods. Results: Covariate effect were found statistically significant with 0.733 parameter estimation of the age in ROC curves analysis with PSA data (p<0.001). According to the methods (Non-parametric (empirical), non-parametric (normal), semi-parametric (empirical), parametric (normal)) that estimates of the area under ROC curves which is obtained without covariate effect were found 0.708, 0.629, 0.709 and 0.628, respectively, by using PSA measurements. Area under the curve that obtained by covariate adjustment were significantly lower as compared to the traditional ROC with estimation 0.580, 0.577, 0.582 and 0.579. Conclusion: Area under the ROC curves should be estimated with adjustment according to the covariates that could affect the markers value of diagnostic tests performed in concert with matching designs in research.


OBJECTIVE
A number of organic conditions may mimic the symptoms of an eating disorder, however, gastric outlet obstruction mimicking anorexia nervosa has rarely been reported.

METHOD
We report the case of a 51-year-old female admitted to an eating disorders unit with an initial diagnosis of anorexia nervosa.

RESULTS
The patient's upper gastrointestinal symptoms and weight loss were found to be secondary to gastric outlet obstruction from a gastric adenocarcinoma. Coincidental psychosocial stressors and past psychiatric history, among other factors, had confounded the diagnosis.

DISCUSSION
Organic causes of weight loss and upper gastrointestinal symptoms need to be fully excluded prior to making the diagnosis of an eating disorder, particularly when there are atypical features in the presentation.


Abstract : Studies of the Army Officer Corps following the Vietnam conflict indicated that the Army had serious leadership problems. As a result, the Army placed a major emphasis on leadership study and training. The Army, as well as numerous civilian leadership experts, have begun to realize that a leader performs a very complex role that can not be condensed into a simple theory or management course. This realization includes recognition that the human to human tasks a leader performs equate to leadership, and leadership is the foundation on which a successful leader is built. The Army's interest in leadership spread to the Army Medical Department and many began to see improved leadership as a key to the future and a solution for many Medical Department problems. One problem for which good leadership is seen as a partial solution, is retention of skilled medical personnel. This study defines major leadership characteristics and behaviors that subordinates expect from their leaders. It presents results of a leadership survey of Army Medical Specialist Corps (AMSC) Officers which ascertained to what degree they see their leaders as having the identified leadership attributes. It also determined what impact their first AMSC leader had on their decision to remain on active duty. Consistent strengths and weaknesses were observed with a strong correlation between leadership quality and an officer's decision to remain on active duty following completion of the initial obligation. Recommendations are made for future AMSC leadership training.


The two‐parameter Weibull distribution is one of the most widely applied probability distributions, particularly in reliability and lifetime modelings. Correct estimation of the shape parameter of the Weibull distribution plays a central role in these areas of statistical analysis. Many different methods can be used to estimate this parameter, most of which utilize regression methods. In this paper, we presented various regression methods for estimating the Weibull shape parameter and an experimental study using classical regression methods to compare the results of the methods. A complete list of the parameter estimators considered in this study is as follows: ordinary least squares (OLS), weighted least squares (WLS, Bergman, F&T, Lu), non‐parametric robust Theil's (Theil) and weighted Theil's (WeTheil), robust Winsorized least squares (WinLS), and M‐estimators (Huber, Andrew, Tukey, Cauchy, Welsch, Hampel and Logistic). Estimator performances were compared based on bias and mean square error criteria using Monte‐Carlo simulations. The simulation results demonstrated that for small, complete, and non‐outlier data sets, the Bergman, F&T, and Lu estimators are more efficient than the others. When the data set contains one or two outliers in the X direction, Theil is the most efficient estimator. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


OBJECTIVE
A fully closed-loop insulin-only system was developed to provide glucose control in patients with type 1 diabetes without requiring announcement of meals or activity. Our goal was to assess initial safety and efficacy of this system.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
The multiple model probabilistic controller (MMPPC) anticipates meals when the patient is awake. The controller used the subject's basal rates and total daily insulin dose for initialization. The system was tested at two sites on 10 patients in a 30-h inpatient study, followed by 15 subjects at three sites in a 54-h supervised hotel study, where the controller was challenged by exercise and unannounced meals. The system was implemented on the UVA DiAs system using a Roche Spirit Combo Insulin Pump and a Dexcom G4 Continuous Glucose Monitor.

RESULTS
The mean overall (24-h basis) and nighttime (11 PM-7 AM) continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) values were 142 and 125 mg/dL during the inpatient study. The hotel study used a different daytime tuning and manual announcement, instead of automatic detection, of sleep and wake periods. This resulted in mean overall (24-h basis) and nighttime CGM values of 152 and 139 mg/dL for the hotel study and there was also a reduction in hypoglycemia events from 1.6 to 0.91 events/patient/day.

CONCLUSIONS
The MMPPC system achieved a mean glucose that would be particularly helpful for people with an elevated A1c as a result of frequent missed meal boluses. Current full closed loop has a higher risk for hypoglycemia when compared with algorithms using meal announcement.


The purpose of this study was to determine what factors contributed to bowed string students' perceived tuning independence or perceived ability to tune their instrument without assistance. Eight hundred and twenty-six 6th through 12th grade string students participated in the study. Subjects were administered the Tuning Study survey form. Based on the findings from this study, it was found that grade level and/or years of study, intonation confidence, individual and class tuning procedures, type of reference pitch provided in tuning procedures, and private lesson study, contributed to students' perceived tuning independence. In order to foster tuning independence, it is recommended that teacher intervention and feedback be provided to help develop students' confidence in their ability to hear when a string is out of tuned, to provide procedures to help students develop pitch discrimination when tuning strings individually, that a reference pitch be provided from a student instrument and not one from a piano or electronic tuner, and that students be encouraged to study privately.


In your opinion, does HIV prevention work or not? Figures show that the epidemic will become even worse than the current annual pace of 5 million people contracting HIV and other 3 million dying due to AIDS (UNAIDS, 2003). Given the fact that redressing the social determinants of HIV/AIDS has been showing critical deficiencies to halt this epidemic, a highly effective and affordable HIV vaccine is the biggest hope we have to stop the spread of HIV. Based on this rationale, the question is: what can communicators do to accelerate the development of this vaccine?


No mouse model is currently available where the induction of type 2 diabetes on an atherosclerotic background could be achieved without significant concomitant changes in plasma lipid levels. We crossbred 2 genetically modified mouse strains to achieve a model expressing both atherosclerosis and characteristics of type 2 diabetes. For atherosclerotic background we used low-density lipoprotein receptor–deficient mice synthetizing only apolipoprotein B100 (LDLR−/− ApoB100/100). Diabetic background was obtained from transgenic mice overexpressing insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF-II) in pancreatic beta cells. Thorough phenotypic characterization was performed in 6- and 15-month-old mice on both normal and high-fat Western diet. Results indicated that IGF-II transgenic LDLR−/−ApoB100/100 mice demonstrated insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, and mild hyperinsulinemia compared with hypercholesterolemic LDLR−/−ApoB100/100 controls. In addition, old IGF-II/LDLR−/−ApoB100/100 mice displayed significantly increased lesion calcification, which was more related to insulin resistance than glucose levels, and significantly higher baseline expression in aorta of several genes related to calcification and inflammation. Lipid levels of IGF-II/LDLR−/−ApoB100/100 mice did not differ from LDLR−/−ApoB100/100 controls at any time. In conclusion, type 2 diabetic factors induce increased calcification and lesion progression without any lipid changes in a new mouse model of diabetic macroangiopathy.


The Family Group Conference is a participatory model of decision making with families in child protection. It is a legal process that brings together the family, including the extended family, and the professionals in a family-led decision-making forum. Bringing together extended family and professionals to discuss child protection concerns can create a highly charged dynamic. Workers are challenged by family, family are challenged by workers, and family members challenge each other. Practice is also exposed to wider scrutiny as professionals also challenge the work. This article briefly describes the development and practice of family group conferencing as a family-centred legal process in Aotearoa, New Zealand. It then examines the findings of a study exploring the dynamics emerging from family group conference practice from the perspective of the coordinators who convene them. Family group conferencing as a family strengthening practice is discussed.


The rail sector is a sector with a significant impact on European industry and it is therefore important that it follows the current innovative trends. We live in an increasingly digitised society but, until now, digitisation has not been a priority issue for the sector as the rules that apply to the entire value chain have hindered the digitisation process. Even so, technologies are not enough, and innovation must be implemented in companies at the organisational and employee level. The RailActivation project has experimented with workplace innovation to foster innovation capabilities in the railway sector, providing elements for companies to remain as innovative and competitive as possible, as well as to have additional tools to adapt to these challenges. In order to help in this process, this article proposes a series of recommendations based on the lessons learnt during the implementation of the project. These recommendations establish a link between policy and workplace innovation practices and could be a reference framework for further research and policy. The suggested policy recommendations are focused on companies and policy makers and are based on the results obtained from the different consultations with the stakeholders involved in this research.


This paper develops a general equilibrium, continuous time model where portfolio constraints generate mispricing between redundant securities. Constrained consumption-portfolio optimization techniques are adapted to incorporate redundant, possibly mispriced, securities. We demonstrate the necessity of mispricing for equilibrium when agents are heterogeneous enough. The construction of a representative agent with stochastic weights allows us to characterize prices and allocations, given mispricing occurs, in a general setting. Under logarithmic preferences, we provide explicit conditions for mispricing and closed-form expressions for all economic quantities. Existence of an equilibrium when mispricing occurs with positive probability is verified in a specific case. We demonstrate how mispricing induces agents to engage in riskless arbitrage trades.


Complexity reduction of optimal linear receiver is considered in a scenario where both the number of single antenna user equipments (UEs) K and base station (BS) antennas N are large. Two-stage beamforming (TSB) greatly alleviates the high implementation complexity of large scale multiantenna receiver by concatenating a statistical outer beamformer (OBF) with an instantaneous inner beamformer (IBF) design. Using asymptotic large system analysis, we propose a novel TSB method that adjusts the dimensions of user specific OBF matrices based on the projection of the optimal minimum mean square error (MMSE) vectors into the beam domain. The beam domain is first divided into S narrow sectors such that each sector contains D DFT beams. Then, so called deterministic equivalents are computed for the amplitude-projection of the optimal MMSE vectors into each sector in asymptotic regime where N, K and D grow large with a non-trivial ratio N/K = C and N/D = S. Given the approximations for the sector specific values, the structure and dimension of each UE specific OBF vector are optimized based on the statistical channel properties and the amount of overlap among users in angular domain. The numerical analysis shows that the attained SINR values closely follow the optimal MMSE receiver while the computational burden is greatly reduced.


The paper demonstrate the design and simulation study of 2D vertical double- gate MOSFET (VDGM) with an excellent short channel effect (SCE) characteristics. With the gate length of 50 nm, body doping of 3.5 times 1018 cm-3 and oxide thickness, TOX = 2.5 nm, a good drive current ION of 7 muA/mum and a low off-state leakage current IOFF of 2 pA/mum was explicitly shown. Besides that, the subthreshold characteristics also highlighted a reasonably well-controlled SCE with subthreshold swing SubVT = 89 mV/decade and threshold voltage VT = 0.56 V. The analysis of body doping effects for SCE optimization and drive current trade-off was also done for an overall investigation and limit of the VDGM.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of the study is to assess body hydration in patients with posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). PVD, one of the most common eye diseases, is associated in both research and the collective image with reduced daily water intake, but this finding is not supported by strong evidence in the literature.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Based on Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT) evaluation, different PVD stages are identified: absent posterior vitreous detachment, partial posterior vitreous detachment (P-PVD), or complete posterior vitreous detachment (C-PVD). BIA is a simple, non-invasive bedside method used to assess body composition. Patients underwent BIA and completed a floaters symptoms. 30 patients were enrolled and divided into two groups according to the degree of vitreous detachment, in P-PVD (n=12) and C-PVD (n=18). Patients underwent BIA and completed a floaters symptoms questionnaire. BIA measured the Resistance (R), Reactance (Xc), Phase Angle (PhA), Total Body Water (TBW), Extracellular Water (ECW), Fat Mass (FM), Fat-Free Mass (FFM), and Body Cell Mass Index (BCMI). Finally, patients received a test to assess adherence to the Mediterranean diet (Mediterranean Diet Test Score, MDTS) with the addition of daily water intake.

RESULTS
Relevant data were obtained from the BIA evaluation: the values of R and Xc were lower in the P-PVD group than C-PVD group (respectively 417.08±58.12 Ω vs. 476.94±51.29 Ω p=0.006 and 41.33±8.23 Ω vs. 50.61±7.98 Ω p=0.004). Instead, patients in the P-PVD group reported higher values of TBW and ECW than C-PVD group (respectively 44.13±7.57 L vs. 37.96±6.27 L p=0.021 and 21.03±4.06 L vs. 17.24±2.63 L p=0.004).

CONCLUSIONS
In the present study, we reported a significant correlation between vitreous pathology and anthropometric and BIA measurements.


Different methods for topographic correction of Landsat Thematic Mapper images have been assessed in the context of mapping vegetation types. The best results were obtained with a variation of the C method, which takes into account the overcorrection of low illuminated slopes by the original C method. The performance of this method was tested using two criteria: the changes in the spectral characteristics of the image and the reduction in standard deviation of each vegetation type after the correction.


This study explores a new method to maximize the visible-light-driven photocatalytic performance of organic-inorganic hybrid polyoxometalates (POMs). Experimental and theoretical investigations of a family of phosphonate-substituted POMs show that modification of grafted organic moieties can be used to tune the electronic structure and photoactivity of the metal oxide component. Unlike fully inorganic polyoxotungstates, these organic-inorganic hybrid species are responsive to visible light and function as photocatalysts (λ > 420 nm) in the decomposition of a model environmental pollutant. The degree of photoactivation is shown to be dependent on the nature of the inductive effect exerted by the covalently grafted substituent groups. This study emphasizes the untapped potential that lies in an orbital engineering approach to hybrid-POM design and helps to underpin the next generation of bespoke, robust, and cost-effective molecular metal oxide photoactive materials and catalysts.


The issue of food insecurity in Nigeria reaches the climax as COVID-19 pandemic and the necessary lockdowns are in progress Nigeria that is popularly known as the giant of African, suddenly realizes its handicap in food production due to the nation's inability to feed the masses As a result, the lockdown to curtail the spread of coronavirus disease becomes ineffective in Nigeria due to hunger This study employs simple statistical methods such as simple percentages, tables, charts, regression analysis and graphs to highlight the stunted growth of agriculture in Nigeria and why it is almost impossible for the inhabitants to cope with the scourge of hunger following the compulsory lockdown necessitated by COVID-19 pandemic The study employs time-series data that cover a period from 2008 to 2019 from the World Data Atlas and CBN Statistical Bulletin The findings reveal that food security is not yet feasible in Nigeria The contribution of agriculture to national economic growth is still meagre The t-statistic result shows that the crop production level cannot feed the population Each crop production has an insignificant impact on the people The crop production declines from 26 7% in 2008 to 12 5% in 2019 and cannot measure up with the increasing population of Nigeria Fishing and forestry are too intangible to reckon with, while livestock farming contributes only 2 2% in 2008 and declines to 0 9% in 2019 The study also finds evidence that Nigerians cannot cope with COVID-19 lockdowns and recommends the strengthening of the agricultural sector to guarantee food security in the country © 2020 All Rights Reserved