Indonesia needs no introduction to commodity economists interested in the world rice market, or to development economists interested in structural change and the role of agriculture in economic development. In half a century, Indonesia has been transformed from a leading exporter of rice to the world's largest importer of both commercial and concessional rice. And through the writings of Boeke, Indonesia has served as the model for the elucidation of dualism, a concept that permeates nearly all aspects of development economics. It is appropriate to lead this sequence of articles on rice policy in Asia with the Indonesian essay. The development of the discussion is straightforward. Following a review of the agronomic and economic setting of Indonesian rice culture is a discussion of the history of rice policy, a history dating back to the seventeenth century. With the discussion of modern rice policy comes an attempt to make explicit the interaction of objectives, policies, and constraints. The goal is to understand what drives the system, what the overriding objectives are, and which constraints most closely condition the policy choices. The essay closes with an evaluation of modern Indonesian rice policy and a prognosis that tentatively rejects the historical determinism that constantly lurks in the background of any discussion of rice policy in Indonesia.


The three most common paradigms used to develop leadership prescriptions are the empirical, biographical, and ideological. The empirical paradigm is subdivided into quantitative and qualitative versions. Similarly, there are two forms of the biographical paradigm: historical and autobiographical. The ideological paradigm involves an appeal to religious, spiritual, or ethical principles sometimes contained in a revered text. Understanding leadership prescription paradigms is useful to instructors and trainers because it makes explicit the underlying assumptions and limitations on practical applications.


A simple kinetic spectrophotometric method was developed for the determination of josamycin in its dosage forms and spiked human plasma. The method is based on reaction of the drug with 3-methylbenzothiazolin-2-one hydrazone/ferric chloride system for a fixed time of 20 min at 70 degrees C and measuring the produced color at 665 nm. The absorbance-concentration plot is rectilinear over the range of 5.0-30.0 microg/mL with detection limit of 1.0 microg/mL (1.2 x 10(-6) M). The determination of josamycin by the fixed concentration and the rate-constant methods is also feasible with the calibration equations obtained, but the fixed-time method proved to be more applicable. The procedure was successfully applied to commercial tablets. The results obtained were favorably compared with those given by reference methods. The method was further extended to the in vitro determination of josamycin in spiked human plasma. The recovery (n = 8) was 100.76 +/- 3.43%. The stoichiometry of the reaction between the drug and the reagent was studied by adopting the limiting logarithmic method, and a proposal of the reaction pathway was presented.


Poultry meat and eggs are the most popular animal products in the South Pacific region but domestic production is insignificant and does not meet demand. High cost of inputs (feed, day-old chicks and equipment) and access to market are major constraints which limits poultry production in most countries of the region. The local industry is mainly traditional, based on 'family poultry' (FP) with few large scale commercial systems. The result of this has been massive importation of poultry products mainly from Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America. This paper presents the current state of poultry industries in selected countries (Fiji and Samoa) of the region. Major challenges and opportunities of the industries are discussed.


Received Jun 1 th , 2017 Revised Aug 20 th , 2017 Accepted Oct 18 th , 2017 The unnecessary use of antibiotics has given rise to antibiotic resistance and for this reason is a cause of growing concern in contemporary health care contexts. Antibiotic resistance means that an antibiotic is losing or has lost the ability to kill a given bacteria and/or to prevent it from reproducing. The result: an increase in the number of patients suffering from and even dying of infections. Resistant bacteria continue to increase in number, as they survive the antibiotic designed and used to kill them. The disease induced by the bacteria lasts longer, therefore, than would have been the case were the bacteria not antibiotic resistant. Thus, prolonged treatment and/or even death results together with an increase in cost associated with these outcomes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the interactions among the bacteria, immune system cells, and antibiotics in a Repast Simphony 2.1 agent-based simulation environment modeled to observe the effects of the antibiotic resistance in the infection process. According to our results, increased antibiotic resistance constitutes a serious threat to the success of established methods used in the treatment of bacterial infections. Keyword:


BACKGROUND
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is now worldwide considered the elective therapy for biliary lithiasis. Morbidity, mortality and conversion rates reported in the literature are assessed between 1 and 6%, 0 and 0.9%, 3.6 and 7.2% respectively. Data on personal experience with 1019 attempted laparoscopic cholecystectomy are reported.

METHODS
In the period between 1991 and 1997 1019 laparoscopic cholecystectomy were performed. Patients were 361 males and 658 females (ratio M:F 1:2), with an average age of 51 years (range 5-85). Indications were: 647 symptomatic cholelithiasis, 28 hydrops, 121 empyemas, 76 cholecystocholedocolithiasis and 13 alithiasic cholecystopathy.

RESULTS
Conversion was necessary in 61 cases, with a conversion rate of 6%. Mean duration of surgery was 65 minutes (range 30-240) with a mean hospital stay of 2.1 days (range 1-10). No deaths occurred in our series, with a morbidity rate of 1.8% (18 cases, 7 major and 11 minor). Only 1 case of bile duct injury (0.1%) is reported.

CONCLUSIONS
In consideration of low conversion rate, low early and late morbidity, absence of bile duct injury, advantages for the patient and the opportunity of evolution of this surgery, laparoscopic cholecystectomy can be considered the standard treatment for biliary lithiasis.


Silane coupling agent (SCA) plays an important role in the improvement of adhesive properties of the silicone rubber (SR) sealant. In this study, three trifunctional silane coupling agents, (γ-aminopropytriethoxysilane (APTES), (γ-Glycidoxypropyl) methyldimethoxysilane (GDMMS), and 3-(Trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (MPS), were used as blend additive in SR, and the effect of silane coupling agents on the properties of SR was studied. The results showed that the bond strength of samples with different combination of APTES/GDMMS, GDMMS/MPS, or APTES/MPS, was significantly improved than those of single silanes. Silanes with polar group make contribution to the bond strength increase of SR sealant. The highest bond strength value (0.53 MPa) was obtained using the combination of APTES and GDMMS. The study of the samples with (APTES and GDMMS) showed that the bond strength and tensile strength of SR increase with the increasing amount of SCA. Further increase in the SCA content makes the bond strength and tensile strength of SR sealant decrease. The increase in the amount of SCAs makes the failure modes of samples convert from adhesive failure to cohesive failure. Tack-free time decreased linearly as the amount of SCA loading increased, while the hardness increased. It can be deduced that the trifunctional SCA has catalytic effect on the crosslinking action of SR sealant. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013


This paper considers the application of trellis coded modulation (TCM) techniques to synchronous direct-sequence code-division multiple-access (S-DS/CDMA) communication over frequency-selective fading mobile radio channels. The effect of an optimum adaptive coherent RAKE receiver structure is studied and an exact analytical expression for the pairwise error probability is obtained. This expression is used to evaluate the average BER upper bound through the transfer function bounding technique. The influence over the average BER of various system parameters like the number of active users, receiver complexity, set of sequences or sequence length are considered.


The attention for the replacement of peat in growing substrates is increasing due to its environmental and economic advantages. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the impact of peat substitution by new type olive mill pomace and its compost on the vegetative activity of potted olive trees. A new type of humid pomace (hP) derived from an innovative two phase extraction system and its derived compost (C-hP) are used as total or partial (50% vol/vol) replacement of peat in olive growing substrate. The main chemical characteristics (moisture, water extractable organic carbon, total nitrogen, C/N ratio and electrical conductivity) of the hP and C-hP were measured. In order to evaluate the effects of the peat substitution on the plants vegetative activity, measurements of mortality, plant height, leaf net photosynthesis and plant growth (through final destructive measurements) were carried out. The use of hP resulted in a significant increase of the salinity of the substrate. The water extractable organic carbon concentration was higher in all substrates where peat was ewplaced and in particular when C-hP was used. The total replacement of peat with hP caused 100% mortality of the plants while C-hP can substitute peat up to 50% without causing a significative reduction of the final plant growth.


Aortic valve replacement is the second most common cardiothoracic procedure in the UK. With an ageing population, there are an increasing number of patients with prosthetic valves that require follow-up. Imaging of prosthetic valves is challenging with conventional echocardiographic techniques making early detection of valve dysfunction or complications difficult. CT has recently emerged as a complementary approach offering excellent spatial resolution and the ability to identify a range of aortic valve replacement complications including structural valve dysfunction, thrombus development, pannus formation and prosthetic valve infective endocarditis. This review discusses each and how CT might be incorporated into a multimodal cardiovascular imaging pathway for the assessment of aortic valve replacements and in guiding clinical management.


Human Capital plays an important role in organization. It is the heart of the organization strategy. Many factors embeded in it. Public Service employees as government human capital instead of the contract employees. The quality of the Public Service Employee has recently become a major issue. It is widely known that Public Service employee is lacking of disciplin. The issue discuss most in Public service employee's disciplinary is absentheeism. This study presents factors that influence the Public Service employee's disciplinary in Faculty of Medicine of Diponegoro University. This research purposes will support the decision – making process to increase the Faculty of Medicine of Diponegoro University employee's disciplinary, this study proposing some models analyzed by SEM. The study population is administration staffs in Faculty of Medicine of Diponegoro University for both Public Service employees and contract employees. The respondents are 120 employees whose given some questionaires related to the study. The result of the data analysis shows that the human capital is influenced by knowledge sharing, empowerment and workplace environment. Whilst human capital influences employee's disciplinary positively.


Molecular coating of nanoparticles represents probably the most important and, at the same time, critical step to design new nanostructured magnetic materials. The interaction between molecules and surface atoms leads to a strong modification of surface magnetic properties, that are one of the key points in the physics of magnetic nanoparticles. In this paper the magnetic properties of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles (⟨D⟩ ≅ 4–8 nm) coated with oleic acid have been investigated in order to clarify the role of the molecular coating on the interparticle interactions and surface anisotropy. An increase of magnetic anisotropy (i.e., coercive field and anisotropy constant) with particle size is observed in coated nanoparticles, indicating that the magnetic anisotropy is governed mainly by its magneto-crystalline component. The removal of molecular coating induces a strong increase of anisotropy, because of the increase of its surface component, as indicated by the increase of exchange bias field.


Evaluations were made of the a,a,a-trifluoro-2,6-dinitroN,N-dipropyl-p-toluidine (trifluralin) distribution patterns produced by eight incorporating implements. The power rotary cultivator concentrated the trifluralin in the top inch when operating at a 4-inch depth, while the disk, operated at the same depth, concentrated the trifluralin at a point 2 to 3 inches below the surface. All the remaining implements resulted in more than 80% of the recovered trifluralin in the top inch, except for isolated treatments with the Richardson and Lilliston tools. Surface applications resulted in less trifluralin recovery than from any implement. The disk resulted in the highest recovery and was two to three times greater than the recovery from the surface application. The recovery from the Richardson, Lilliston, and Ro-Wheel was 1.5 to 2 times greater than the recovery from the Mix-A-Product, field cultivator, and spike harrow.


Abstract Treatment of osteomyelitis requires prolonged hospital stay, lengthy antibiotic therapy and adequate surgical debridement. Outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy (OPAT) is a new approach to reduce patient discomfort and hospital costs. Teicoplanin, a glycopeptide antibiotic with a long half-life (72 hours), is one of the most useful drugs for OPAT. We performed a pilot study to assess the safety and efficacy of three-times weekly teicoplanin in the treatment of methicillin-resistant (MR) acute staphylococcal osteomyelitis. Ten patients with acute post-traumatic osteomyelitis were enrolled. Pathogens were MR Staphylococcus aureus (5 patients) and MR coagulase-negative staphylococci (5 patients). After a loading dose of 400 mg b.i.d. for 3 days, patients were treated with an intravenous dose of 1000 mg on Mondays and Wednesdays and with a 1200 mg dose on Fridays. Teicoplanin trough levels were maintained within a 10 to 20 mg/L range. If hardware removal had been possible at enrollment, treatment was carried out for at least 4 weeks. If, on the contrary, hardware removal had not been possible, teicoplanin was administered as sup-pressive therapy until hardware removal. Treatment was successfully performed in 9 out of 10 patients, whereas in one patient only improvement was achieved. Side effects were not recorded. Three times weekly teicoplanin seems to be a valuable option in the treatment of acute MR staphylococcal osteomyelitis. Further studies are warranted in order to better define the role of this new administration schedule in this field.


This study examines the behavior of institutional investors in Sweden. Institutional investors consist of mutual funds, insurance companies, pension funds, closed-end investment companies and foundations. The aim of this study is to investigate how these institutional investors act based on Hirschman´s theory of exit and voice. The theory implies that an owner has two different options in response to decline in firms; to either sell the possession (exit), or hold the possession and try to affect a change (voice). Based on the results we intend to categorize the institutional owners. The study also cover the development of institutional governance policies and how the content of these documents have changed over time.


In this paper we will improve some results previously obtained,
showing that the so called $\varphi$-category of a pair of
manifolds is infinte uncountable under certain topological
conditions on the two given manifolds.


Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has not been investigated among Iranian industrial workers. The present paper aimed to study the influence of the socio-demographic, health and work-related factors on HRQOL among Iranian industrial workers. In this cross-sectional study, participants were 280 workers of two factories. The Persian version of World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief (WHOQOL-BREF) was used to assess the HRQOL. A questionnaire was developed to assess the socio-demographic, health and work-related factors. Results showed that the means (SD) of physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment domains of HRQOL were 13.2 (2.7), 13.3 (2.6), 14.2 (3.5) and 12.6 (2.5), respectively. A multiple linear regression showed that types of job, exercise activity, working schedule, sleep quality, smoking, and conflict between work and social life were significantly associated with physical health domain; whereas, working schedule, marital status, working demand, sleep quality, BMI, and conflict between work and individual life were significantly associated with psychological health domain. Working schedule, working demand, sleep quality, conflict between work and individual life, and having children over two years were significantly associated with social relationship domain; however, working demand, working schedule, smoking, sleep quality, working hour, job satisfaction, marital status and exercise activity were significantly associated with environment domain. Collectively, work-related factors including unhealthy working conditions, unsafe working environments, long working hours, irregular working schedules, and the lack of occupational training may negatively influence the HRQOL of workers. To improve workers' HRQOL, intervention programs should focus on improving work environment, working schedule, occupational training and restricting working hours.


To investigate the effects of Coriolis force on two-dimensional laminar and turbulent boundary layers, quantitative experiments were performed. A numerical evaluation was also carried out utilizing the Monin-Oboukhov coefficient including the effect of rotation. From the experimental results, the boundary layer development was found to be promoted on the unstable side and suppressed on the stable side, in comparison with the case of zero-rotation. In the stable boundary layer, the critical Reynolds number for relaminarization was observed to increase as rotation number was decreased. Calculated results were seen to predict the stabilizing effect of Coriolis force fairly well.


The primary goal of this study was to identify ethnic differences in battered women's use of health, mental health, and spiritual coping strategies, as well as differences in the perceived helpfulness of each strategy. The authors recruited a sample of 376 African American and Caucasian victims of interpersonal violence from various sites. In comparison with Caucasian women in the sample, African American women were significantly more likely to report using prayer as a coping strategy and significantly less likely to seek help from mental health counselors. The 2 groups did not significantly differ in terms of the extent to which they sought help from clergy or medical professionals. African American women found prayer to be more helpful than did Caucasian women.


This study examines the co-variates that separate patients who presented an emergent condition without a physician referral and were admitted through the hospital emergency department (ED) from their counterparts who were referred by a physician for the treatment of an elective or urgent condition and were admitted through the admissions department. The analysis was based on 295,945 inpatient admissions in 1999 to short-term acute-care hospitals in Oklahoma. Employing hospital admission as the unit of analysis, logistic regression was used to examine the differential likelihood of admission without a physician referral and through the ED of the uninsured, Medicare beneficiaries, Medicaid recipients, African Americans and Native Americans. The results of the logistic regression analysis indicated that Medicaid recipients and the uninsured were more likely than their commercially-insured counterparts to be admitted, without a physician referral, to an acute-care hospital in Oklahoma following an evaluation in the ED. The findings also suggest that African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Native Americans were more likely than their white counterparts to be admitted through the ED without benefit of a physician referral.


This study aims to describe the quality of principals' managerial capabilities, supervisors' coaching quality, PAI (Pendidikan Agama Islam/Islamic education) teachers' performance in Madrasa Aliyah (equal to senior high school level), and the relationship among those three aspects. The research method used in this study is an explanatory survey that tries to connect each variable. The respondent of the research was 57 teachers of PAI in a madrasa aliyah in Pekanbaru. The data were obtained through questionnaire. To analyze the data, the study used Bivariate correlation, regression, and coefficient of determination test. Having performed the necessary statistical computations, this study found out that principals' managerial abilities, supervisors' coaching quality, and PAI teachers' performance were all categorized into sufficient. Regarding correlation, it has been proven that there was positive correlation between the teachers' performance and principals' managerial abilities, between principals' managerial abilities and supervisors' coaching quality, and between teachers' performance and supervisors' coaching quality. These results imply that there is a need of those three aspects enhancement in madrasa aliyah so that that madrasa can compete with public schools both in academic and non-academic aspects.


What does it mean to represent events from the Holocaust in a graphic novel? And what if this is done not in the stark design of Art Spiegelman's Maus but in the light ligne claire (known from Tintin)? This paper explores the discursive practices surrounding The Search, a graphic novel produced specifically to teach children and young adults about the Holocaust. It asks how (novel) forms of subjectivation are articulated in the everyday, mundane practices of educational media workers. Drawing on poststructuralist theories of the subject and close micro-analysis of language (and semiotic) practices, the paper presents extracts from ethnographic observations of a team of authors designing teaching and learning materials to accompany The Search. These materials – and their practices of production – are participating in transforming memories of the Holocaust and thus (co)producing forms of globalisation. Findings suggest that while the Holocaust has traditionally been seen as a matter of 'national' responsibility, The Search and its teaching materials invite readers to see it as (global/universal) 'individualised' responsibility. Students are subjectivated as global subjects: Firstly, as universal-ethical subjects and, secondly, as contingency-tolerant subjects. These materials thus constitute a mundane, everyday element shaping new ways of being.


Heat treatment of a submerged-cultured flor sherry, with or without oxygen, decreased the flor character. Some apparent gain occurred in other aspects of sherry character, but indications are that the desired complexity can be produced more easily by other methods, such as blending, than by heating under the conditions tested. Table and dessert wines heated in the presence of oxygen-filled headspace (40 cc per about 750 ml of wine) changed in ways that were predominantly undesirable. Nitrogen hydrogen or carbon dioxide for dispacing the dissolved and headspace oxygen seemed equivalent in effect. In contrast to oxygen, these gases appeared in these tests behave as if inert and to have effect upon flavor changes during heating of the wine because oxygen had been displaced. Warming dessert wines at 128°F for up to 20 days in the presence of these inert gases caused definite chemical and sensory quality changes, most of them favorable. These changes appeared small, however, compared to the favorable effects produced in two table wines, particularly the white wine. Further studies have shown that not every wine responds equally favorably, though many are capable of improvement. In selected table wines, heating in the complete absence of oxygen for 15-30 days at about 128°F (53.4°C) produces definite improvement in bottle bouquet and increased complexity. An, negative factor can be a loss in grape aroma, if any is present. The nature of the bottle bouquet produced is discussed, along with its similarity to bouquet in bottled white table wines aged 3 to 4 years at wine-cellar temperatures. The conditions of the reaction of bottle bouquet formation appear to preclude enzymatic participation in the reaction because the temperature coefficient appears normal yet the products become noticeable only after a relativey long time at temperatures causing relatively rapid protein denaturation. This new treatment appears worthy of further trial. It appears to be capable of producing improved table wines with agedtype flavor from selected, pretested standard wines otherwise lacking notably high quality or desirable aroma. Blending such aged-type wine with fruity aromatic young wines might enable production of better white and light red table wines than if the fruity wine were itself subjected to long bottle aging.


This paper describes realtime and robust tracking of a planar motion target by matched filter implemented on the CMOS+FPGA vision system. It is required to obtain positional and angular signals around 1,000 Hz to control a mechanical system. A vision sensor must obtain visual features of a target object, synchronizing its sampling rate to the sampling rate of the control. The CMOS+FPGA vision system has been proposed to realize 1,000 Hz visual feedback. Matched filter can compute the position of a target robustly against occlusion, change of illumination, and background texture but requires much computation time since it includes 2D Fourier transform of images. Thus, matched filter algorithm is implemented on the system so that the matched filter can be performed in realtime. First we briefly introduce the CMOS+FPGA vision system. Second, we summarize the algorithm of matched filter to describe the design of the circuit performing matched filter on an FPGA. Finally, we show the experimental results of planar motion tracking by matched filter implemented on the system.


Summary.  We propose a model of transitions into and out of low paid employment that accounts for non‐ignorable panel dropout, employment retention and base year low pay status ('initial conditions'). The model is fitted to data for men from the British Household Panel Survey. Initial conditions and employment retention are found to be non‐ignorable selection processes. Whether panel dropout is found to be ignorable depends on how item non‐response on pay is treated. Notwithstanding these results, we also find that models incorporating a simpler approach to accounting for non‐ignorable selections provide estimates of covariate effects that differ very little from the estimates from the general model.


Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is growing in popularity as a strength-based approach to organization and whole system development. Despite numerous accounts on AI's outcomes positively impacting on organizations and persons, a dearth of quantitative studies exists measuring AI's impact on individual-level outcomes. This quantitative study investigates how participating in AI impacts on individuals' psychological capital (PsyCap) through fulfilling their basic psychological needs (BPN) for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Results, based on data from 213 participants who worked in social profit organizations and either belonged to a group with AI experience or without AI experience, indicate that satisfying the need for competence mediates the relationship between participating in AI and the PsyCap dimensions self-efficacy, optimism, resilience, and hope. Furthermore, results show that participating in AI satisfies the three BPN. Next to theoretical implications, the article provides insights into how leaders of change can build organizations in which people thrive.


Most Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia have a relatively high number of traffic fatalities involving occupants of 4-wheel vehicles. The frontal impact collisions have been identified as the cause of most passenger vehicle occupant deaths. Therefore, a better understanding of real-world frontal crashes is needed in support of decision-making processes for future frontal crash test programs. One of the important elements to examine is the occupant injury patterns based on real-world crashes. Furthermore, different frontal crash configurations may result in different levels of injury severity. The objective of this study is to analyze the driver injury and body part injury levels based on police-reported frontal crashes in Malaysia. Road crash cases from 2015 to 2019 were obtained from Bukit Aman Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT), Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM). 81% of the cases comprised frontal crashes (full width & offset) while the rest involved sideswipe cases. Most of the drivers sustained no injury (70.77%) whereas 11.11%, 8.77%, and 6.87% suffered fatal injury, injury, and severe injury, respectively. The most frequent fatal cases among drivers involved injuries to multiple body regions for both configurations. The chi-square test revealed a significant association between the frontal crash configuration and driver injury level. The average odds ratio for fatality in frontal crashes compared to sideswipe configurations was 6.29. The rate of driver fatality per one crash has also increased marginally over the years. The study findings provide some information to support the recommendation that a full-width configuration is considered in future ASEAN NCAP frontal crash tests. Further research is also needed to fully understand real-world frontal crash impacts in Malaysia.


Polymerization kinetics of polyacrylamide gels, cross‐linked with the following: N,N′‐methylenebisacrylamide (Bis), N,N′‐bisacrylylcystamine (BAC), N,N′‐ diallyltartardiamide (DATD), N,N′(1,2‐dihydroxyethylene) bisacrylamide (DHEBA) and ethylene diacrylate (EDA), have been studied. The gels are polymerized directly in a spectrophotometer quartz cuvette and the kinetics followed at 283 nm (disappearance of the double bond) or at 600 nm (Tyndall effect due to turbidity of Bis, DHEBA and BAC gels). The order of reactivity of the various cross‐links appears to be: Bis ≅ DHEBA > EDA ≅ BAC ≫ DATD. The last cross‐link, (DATD), was found to actually be an inhibitor of gel polymerization, leading to highly unpolymerized gels, especially at high %C values. Bis and DHEBA gels, at 3 to 5 %C levels, are fully polymerized within 30 min at room temperature, while EDA and BAC gels, in the same %C range, require at least 3h. All cross‐links, when used above 10 %C, display quite slow polymerization kinetics, requiring overnight reaction for good conversion of monomers into polymer chains. When polymerizing liquid linear polyacrylamide (without cross‐link), an initial concentration of > 5% should be used and the reaction continued overnight, at room temperature or higher, for acceptable polymerization efficiency. On the basis of these data, a new structural model for highly cross‐linked gels is proposed.


Endothelin (ET) receptor antagonists are potentially novel therapeutic agents in chronic kidney disease and resistant hypertension, but their use is complicated by sodium and water retention. In animal studies, this side effect arises from ETB receptor blockade in the renal tubule. Previous attempts to determine whether this mechanism operates in humans have been confounded by the hemodynamic consequences of ET receptor stimulation/blockade. We aimed to determine the effects of ET signaling on salt transport in the human nephron by administering subpressor doses of the ET-1 precursor, big ET-1. We conducted a 2-phase randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study in 10 healthy volunteers. After sodium restriction, subjects received either intravenous placebo or big ET-1, in escalating dose (⩽300 pmol/min). This increased plasma concentration and urinary excretion of ET-1. Big ET-1 reduced heart rate (≈8 beats/min) but did not otherwise affect systemic hemodynamics or glomerular filtration rate. Big ET-1 increased the fractional excretion of sodium (from 0.5 to 1.0%). It also increased free water clearance and tended to increase the abundance of the sodium–potassium–chloride cotransporter (NKCC2) in urinary extracellular vesicles. Our protocol induced modest increases in circulating and urinary ET-1. Sodium and water excretion increased in the absence of significant hemodynamic perturbation, supporting a direct action of ET-1 on the renal tubule. Our data also suggest that sodium reabsorption is stimulated by ET-1 in the thick ascending limb and suppressed in the distal renal tubule. Fluid retention associated with ET receptor antagonist therapy may be circumvented by coprescribing potassium-sparing diuretics.


ABSTRACT: Background: The aim of this study was to characterize the burden of illness of migraine in Canada. The primary objective was to estimate the annual direct medical resource use and associated costs in migraine patients who failed at least two prophylactic therapies for migraine. Methods: Adults with at least four migraine days per month and who had failed at least two prophylactic migraine therapies were included. Participation in a clinical trial within 12 months of enrollment was the sole exclusionary criterion. Patient demographic and clinical characteristics, migraine-related treatment and medical history, and direct medical resource utilization were collected through a retrospective medical chart review. Data on patient characteristics, lifestyle factors, treatments, medical resource utilization, out-of-pocket expenses, and indirect costs were collected through a cross-sectional patient survey. The patient survey also included validated patient-reported outcome instruments to assess migraine impact on quality of life and work productivity loss. Results: In total, 287 migraine patients were included. The mean time since migraine diagnosis was 14.3 years and patients experienced a mean of 14.1 migraine days per month. The total estimated annual cost of chronic migraine (CM) was $25,669 per patient, while the annual total costs for high-frequency episodic and low-frequency episodic migraine (EM) were estimated to be $24,885 and $15,651, respectively. Conclusion: Migraine is associated with moderate to severe disability. This results in substantial economic burden, directly from healthcare costs such as prescription medications and indirectly through lost work productivity. We also observed that patients with high-frequency EM experience significant burden, similar to that observed for patients with CM.


Diabetes mellitus is characterised by hyperglycaemia, lipidaemia and oxidative stress and predisposes affected individuals to long-term complications afflicting the eyes, skin, kidneys, nerves and blood vessels. Increased protein glycation and the subsequent build-up of tissue advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) contribute towards the pathogenesis of diabetic complications. Protein glycation is accompanied by generation of free radicals through autoxidation of glucose and glycated proteins and via interaction of AGEs with their cell surface receptors (referred to as RAGE). Glycationderived free radicals can damage proteins, lipids and nucleic acids and contribute towards oxidative stress in diabetes. There is interest in compounds with anti-glycation activity as they may offer therapeutic potential in delaying or preventing the onset of diabetic complications. Although many different compounds are under study, only a few have successfully entered clinical trials but none have yet been approved for clinical use. Whilst the search for new synthetic inhibitors of glycation continues, little attention has been paid to anti-glycation compounds from natural sources. In the last few decades the traditional system of medicine has become a topic of global interest. Various studies have indicated that dietary supplementation with combined anti-glycation and antioxidant nutrients may be a safe and simple complement to traditional therapies targeting diabetic complications. Data for forty two plants/constituents studied for anti-glycation activity is presented in this review and some commonly used medicinal plants that possess anti-glycation activity are discussed in detail including their active ingredients, mechanism of action and therapeutic potential.


An electric powering system that consists of plug-in modules was developed about ten years ago to overcome certain limitations of the traditional hardwired electric reticulation used in South African gold mines. The applications in which this equipment has been used are reported and the reliability, safety, and costs of this approach compared with hardwired electric reticulation are examined. Improvements too the basic design, some of which have already been implemented, are also discussed. >


The steady-state localization of medial-Golgi enzymes is likely to involve retrograde transport pathways; however, the trafficking of these resident enzymes through the Golgi stack is unclear. To investigate if the medial-Golgi enzyme beta-1,2-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I (GlcNAc-TI) is transported to the late Golgi, a modified GlcNAc-TI bearing an N-glycan site on the C-terminus was constructed. The modified GlcNAc-TI was demonstrated to be functionally active in vivo, and was localized to the Golgi stack of transfected cells. In stable Chinese-hamster ovary (CHO) cell clones, the N-glycosylated GlcNAc-TI carried sialylated complex N-glycan chains. Pulse-chase studies showed that the majority of GlcNAc-TI was sialylated within 60 min of synthesis. Treatment of transfected CHO cells with Brefeldin A resulted in the glycosylated GlcNAc-TI bearing endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase H resistant chains; however, the sialylation of glycosylated GlcNAc-TI was dramatically reduced. These data imply that, in CHO cells, newly synthesized GlcNAc-TI is transported rapidly through the Golgi stack to the trans-Golgi network, suggesting that GlcNAc-TI continuously recycles from the late Golgi. Furthermore, this data suggests that retrograde transport pathways play an important role in establishing the asymmetric distribution of GlcNAc-TI within the Golgi stack.


The recent realization of memristors, nanodevices exhibiting non-volatile resistive switching, has sparked tremendous interest for applications in fields such as nonvolatile memories. Here we report unipolar resistive switching in Pt/MgO/Ta/Ru structures, with an oxide barrier thickness of only 15 nm. No electroforming process was required to achieve resistive switching and an ohmic conduction mechanism is associated with the ON state. We observed an inverse dependence of the ON state resistance on the SET current compliance and average values of 1.61 V and 1.38 V for the SET and RESET voltages, respectively. We show the stability of the switching for over 40 cycles and a clear separation of the ON (10¹ Ω) and OFF (10² Ω) states during at least 10⁴ s.


We propose a network flooding algorithm for wireless ad hoc networks based on a pure physical layer design. The idea is to let the nodes in the network act as asynchronous relays to a specific leader, generating an avalanche of signals which we call opportunistic large array (OLA). The accumulation of power in the medium coming from the interfering signals constructs a signal space for each receiver node that can be acquired through training or blindly. The acquisition of the signal space allows the leader to flood the network without higher layer intervention. Compared to other approaches that are based on the network layer and use point-to-point links to flood the network, we show that the proposed flooding algorithm achieves higher efficiency in the end-to-end delay and has a higher delivery ratio due to the accumulation of energy. In fact, a major contribution of this paper is mapping the multiple-access network problem into a single user problem and then using signal processing techniques to solve it instead of networking algorithms.


ABSTRACT Nonbelieved memories (NBMs) highlight the independence between distinct metamemorial judgements that contribute to the experience of remembering. Initial definitions of NBMs portrayed them as involving the withdrawal of belief in occurrence despite sustained recollection. While people rate belief for their NBMs as weaker than recollection, the average difference is too small to support the idea that autobiographical belief is completely withdrawn in all cases. Furthermore, autobiographical belief and recollection ratings vary considerably across NBMs. In two studies, we reanalysed data from prior studies to examine whether NBM reports reflect a single category or multiple sub-categories using cluster analytic methods. In Study 1, we identified three sub-types of NBMs. In Study 2 we incorporated the concept of belief in accuracy, and found that two of the clusters from Study 1 split into two clusters apiece. All clusters were characterised by higher recollection than belief in occurrence ratings, and clusters were differentiated by the degree of difference between these variables. In both studies the clusters were discriminated by a number of memory characteristic ratings and by reasons reported as leading to the alteration of belief. Implications for understanding the remembering of past events and predicting the creation of NBMs are discussed.


The objective was to quantify the incidence of tarsal lesions and level of hygiene by stall bed type. Cows were scored on 100 dairies from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana, Iowa, and New York in the fall and winter. Thirty-eight dairies used rubber-filled mattresses (RFM), 27 had sand beds, 29 had waterbeds, and 6 used compost packs (CPk). Stocking density, stall dimensions, bedding amount, bedding frequency, and type of bedding were recorded. One pen of early-lactation multiparous cows on each dairy was scored based on injury of the tarsal joints at the lateral and medial surfaces and tuber calcis at the dorsal, lateral, and medial surfaces. A tarsal score of 1 represented hair loss, 2 was moderate, and 3 indicated severe swelling. Differences between bed types in the percentages of cows with lesions were tested with one-way ANOVA by lesion severity and incidence, with farm as the experimental unit. Cows on sand beds or waterbeds had fewer lesion scores of 1, 2, and 3 than those on RFM. The percentages of score 1 were 54.6 +/- 4.4 (RFM), 22.5 +/- 4.7 (sand), and 29.8 +/- 4.3 (waterbed), whereas the percentages of score 2 were 14.0 +/- 1.4, 2.3 +/- 1.5, and 5.0 +/- 1.4, and of score 3 were 3.0 +/- 0.4, 0.2 +/- 0.4, and 0.4 +/- 0.4. Cows on CPk had no lesions. Hygiene scores ranged from 1 to 5, with 1 being clean and 5 soiled. The percentages of hygiene score 1 were 0 (compost), 0.4 (RFM), 0.4 (sand), and 0.4 (waterbeds); those with score 2 were 79.0, 84.0 +/- 0.01, 73.2 +/- 0.01, and 80.4 +/- 0.01; with score 3 were 20.3, 15.2 +/- 0.01, 23.8 +/- 0.01, and 18.6 +/- 0.01; with score 4 were 0.8, 0.005 +/- 0.001, 0.006 +/- 0.001, and 0.025 +/- 0.003; and with score 5 was 0 for all bed types. Cows on RFM and waterbeds had improved hygiene compared with cows on sand beds. There was no difference in somatic cell count (SCC) by bed type. The percentage of cows in fourth lactation or greater on waterbeds (19.8 +/- 1.8) was greater than those on RFM (13.3 +/- 1.6) or on sand (13.5 +/- 1.8). The percentage culled was lower for cows on waterbeds than on RFM (22.8 +/- 1.5 vs. 29.4 +/- 1.4). Score 3 tarsal lesions were correlated (r = 0.60) with SCC. The length of the sand bed was correlated with a greater percentage of mature cows. The SCC was correlated with the percentage of cows reported lame on the day of the visit (r = 0.45) and with neck rail height (r = -0.26). On dairies with RFM, severe lesions (r = 0.60), death losses (r = 0.52), and percentage of the herd reported lame on the day of the visit (r = 0.52) were all correlated with the SCC. Dairies with higher percentages of lesions had higher SCC, death losses, lameness, and culling rates. Adding bedding several times per week may reduce the incidence of lesions.


Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by six months or more of chronic, exaggerated worry and tension that is unfounded or much more severe than the normal anxiety most people experience. People with this disorder usually expect the worst; they worry excessively about money, health, family, or work, even when there are no signs of trouble. They are unable to relax and often suffer from insomnia and an inability to concentrate. Many people with GAD also have physical symptoms, such as fatigue, trembling, muscle tension, headaches, irritability, or hot flashes.


Eighty seven referrals with Prader-Willi syndrome and 49 with Angelman's syndrome were studied. High resolution cytogenetics was performed on all probands. Molecular studies, performed on the proband and both parents in each case, utilised multiple probes from within and distal to the 15(q11-13) region in order to establish the presence of DNA deletion or uniparental disomy. In addition, FISH, with probes at D15S11 and GABR beta 3 from the Prader-Willi syndrome/Angelman's syndrome region, was performed on a subset of 25 of these patients. In the referral group with Prader-Willi syndrome, 62 patients had a normal karyotype and 25 were deleted on high resolution cytogenetics. Twenty nine were found to be deleted with DNA techniques. In the Angelman's syndrome group, 37 had a normal karyotype and 12 were deleted on high resolution cytogenetics while 26 were deleted on molecular studies. The diagnosis was reassessed in 35 referrals with Prader-Willi syndrome and 11 with Angelman's syndrome following a non-deleted, non-disomic result. Of individuals who were neither deleted nor disomic on DNA studies, a false positive rate of 11.4% (4/35) for Prader-Willi syndrome and 16.7% (2/12) for Angelman's syndrome was found for a cytogenetically detected deletion. The false negative rate for deletion detected on high resolution cytogenetics was 19.5% (12/62) for Prader-Willi syndrome and 35% (13/37) for Angelman's syndrome. Thus high resolution cytogenetics was shown to be unreliable for deletion detection and should not be used alone to diagnose either syndrome. There were no discrepancies with FISH in 25 cases when FISH was compared with the DNA results, indicating that FISH can be used reliably for deletion detection in both syndromes.


ABSTRACT Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the colon is an exceedingly rare clinical diagnosis with few cases reported in the literature. We report a case of a 61-year-old man with a medical history of cutaneous SCC of the penis who presented with hematochezia and was found to have metastatic SCC to the distal transverse colon. To our knowledge, this is the first case of colonic SCC presenting as a metastatic disease from a primary penile site.


Managing the global threat of Zika requires innovative solutions. This article examines the potential of Digital Participatory Surveillance to support the management of global disease outbreaks by enabling citizens to report signs of infection. We discuss the status of the current evidence-base, contextual factors influencing user engagement and data quality, challenges for evaluation, and unique aspects of Zika with implications for design. We also suggest priorities for research, development and practice, to help translate the theoretical benefits of these methods into meaningful improvements in outbreak monitoring and public health.


As healthcare costs continue to rise, the importance of delivering high-value healthcare increases. The volume of carpal tunnel release surgeries performed annually generates a significant cost burden for the healthcare system. The fundamental expenses of carpal tunnel release surgery are facility fees, anesthesia fees, and surgeon fees. Performing open carpal tunnel release surgeries in the clinic utilizing local anesthesia and field sterilization minimizes facility and anesthesia costs. We compared patient outcomes, as measured by infection and revision rates, between hospital-based, ambulatory surgery center-based, and clinic-based carpal tunnel release operations. Three hundred and eighty-eight patients were treated with isolated mini-open carpal tunnel release procedures by three fellowship-trained hand surgeons: 12 patients had hospital-based procedures, 229 had ASC-based procedures, and 147 had clinic-based procedures. All procedures were performed using a mini-open approach. No patients were diagnosed with deep infections post-procedurally, irrespective of venue. Our results show no significant difference in outcomes between venues. Therefore, we conclude that the outcomes of open carpal tunnel release surgeries performed in the clinic were not inferior to carpal tunnel release operations performed at the ambulatory surgery center or the hospital. The cost savings from field sterilization, local anesthesia, and the absence of a facility fee provide an opportunity to expand high-value care.


abstract While southern Africa is defined by deep rifts of homophobia and transphobia, queer youth navigate this environment in innovative and creative ways. In this Profile I will explore, through the use of a participatory visual workshop, dubbed Art for Activism, the experiences of queer youth in this region. The Profile will explore the possibilities which this workshop offers to queer youth, the challenges experienced by queer youth and the strategies they use to deal with these challenges. I argue that creative approaches, like the Art for Activism workshop, allows for dislocation to be a successful strategy to engage queer youth.


Understanding the mechanism by which nanotubes penetrate cell membranes is challenging from multiple perspectives. As a drug delivery system, boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) have a similar structure to carbon nanotubes but with B-N bonds instead of C-C bonds. Through a remarkable series of direct and indirect observations within specific cells, these nanotubes are popularly attributed as superior penetrant into cell membrane. Suitable functional groups and polymers are often needed to enhance the biocompatibility and solubility of BNNTs and CNTs in biological media. In addition, to figure out the effect of functional groups, the nanostructures without functional groups were first examined together with their anticancer drugs (fluorouracil and letrozole). All partial charges of the drug and nanotube have been investigated through population analysis. After that, with a total of 40 simulations (MD and SMD simulations), various analytical techniques were employed to examine the interaction between drugs and nanotubes with POPE, which is a class of phospholipids existing in biological membrane, in aqueous media. Noteworthy among these techniques is the mean-squared displacement analysis to compare the diffusion rate of nanocarriers and the radial distribution function analysis, which was utilized to compare water concentrations surrounding nanotubes. Additionally, the stability of the drug within the nanotube was assessed through mass center distance analysis. The diffusion coefficients of the nanotube-membrane complex were compared against various chemical agents by employing mean squared displacement analysis. The findings of the study revealed that the tethering of tetra ethylene glycol results in the augmentation of the water molecules surrounding the nanotubes while simultaneously enhancing the durability of the drug being conveyed. Nonetheless, the addition of tetra ethylene glycol resulted in a reduction in the nanocarrier's diffusion coefficient.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.


Abstract The clonal sedge Carex humilis forms rings of densely aggregated ramets in a dry grassland community in Central Europe. We describe the small-scale spatial variation, both in abiotic factors and vegetation, in relation to these rings. Compared to the surrounding vegetation the cover of plants, other than C. humilis, was significantly lower both in the central area of rings and within the rings themselves. The vegetation structure was also different. The soil was more fertile in the central area and within the ring than in the surroundings, measured both directly and by the abiotic response values of the vascular plants. We conclude that neither resource depletion nor competition from other plants were likely to be responsible for the low ramet density in the central area of C. humilis rings. Instead, we suggest that the ring form is caused either by the deposition of growth inhibiting substances or by intrinsic morphological rules. Nomenclature: Tutin et al. 1964–1993.


Background: Lipid accumulation product (LAP) is a novel biomarker of central lipid accumulation related to diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk. In this study, we assessed the association of LAP with glucose homeostasis, lipid profile parameters, and some clinical parameters about fast food-taking habits of diabetic patients. This study evaluated the relationship between lipid accumulating product (LAP) with insulin resistance and metabolic syndromeinfast food-taking patterns in the Bangladeshi type 2 diabetic population.
Methods: Three hundred and seventy-five T2DM subjects as cases and three hundred and seventy-five healthyindividuals as control were assessed for anthropometric and biochemical measurements. LAP was calculated as [waist circumference (cm)–65]×[triglycerides (mmol/L)] in men, and [waist circumference (cm)–58]×[triglycerides (mmol/L)] in women. Associations of LAP with fasting glucose, insulin, insulin resistance index, and lipid profile levels, were assessed. Fast food-taking habits per week were also taken from the study subjects. Some clinical parameters (BMI, blood pressure, and waist-hip ratio) were also measured.
Results: LAP was significantly correlated with glycemic markers like FBG, ABF,F. Insulin,HBA1C, HOMA-IR, HOMA B%, and Serc-HOMA in type-2 DM subjects. The p-value was less than 0.001. This study was alsosignificantly (p=<0.001) correlated with lipidemic markerslike TAG &LAP in type-2 DM subjects.LAP was significantly associated with BMI, waist-hip ratio (WHR), SBP, and DBP in T2DM subjects. Multiple comparisons of LAP with fast food-taking habits in the study population showed that mean LAP was significantly (p<0.02) higher in the positive fast food-taking habit-containing study group.
Conclusion: LAP was significantly correlated with insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome in T2 diabetic subjects.The favorable, fast food-eating habit-containing study group had considerably greater LAP.
Bangladesh J Medicine 2022; 33: 10-17


In this work, an approach for transposing solutions to the multiple constant multiplication (MCM) problem to obtain a sum of product (SOP) computation with minimum depth is proposed. The reason for doing this is that solving the SOP problem directly is highly computationally intensive when adder graph algorithms are used. Compared to using sub-expression sharing algorithms, which has a lower computational complexity, directly for the SOP problem, it is shown that the proposed approach, as expected, results in lower complexity for the SOP. It is also shown that there is no obvious way to construct the MCM solution in such a way that the SOP solution has the minimum theoretical depth. However, the proposed approach guarantees minimum depth subject to the MCM solution given as input.


Although several research strategies have been developed in the last decades, the current therapeutic options for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease are limited to three acetylcholinesterase inhibitors: galantamine, donepezil and rivastigmine. However, they have only offered a modest improvement in memory and cognitive function. Moreover, these drugs show side effects, and relatively low bioavailability among other problems. These features limit their use in medicine and they lead to a great demand for discovering new acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. In addition to its important role in cholinergic neurotransmission, acetylcholinesterase also participates in other functions related to neuronal development, differentiation, adhesion and amyloid-β processing. Acetylcholinesterase accelerates amyloid-β aggregation and this effect is sensitive to peripheral anionic site blockers. Both features have lead to the development of dual inhibitors of both catalytic active and peripheral anionic sites. These compounds are promising disease-modifying Alzheimer's disease drug candidates. On the other hand, due to the pathological complexity of Alzheimer's disease, multifunctional molecules with two or more complementary biological activities may represent an important advance for the treatment of this disease. All these features are described in detail in the present chapter.


Despite the rampant popularity of space, alien and futuristic imagery in popular culture, little scholarship has recognised the impact of such themes on popular music. This article explores the complex relationship between the numerous uses of space, alien and techno futuristic themes in popular music and the construction of various marginalised identities. Arranged roughly chronologically from early 1950s rock and roll to late 1990s techno, I discuss how many artists, such as Bill Haley, David Bowie and George Clinton, have used such imagery to promote various nonconformist ideologies and identities ranging from African-American empowerment to Gay and Lesbian agendas. This article also relates developments in scientific space research and popular science fiction culture to corresponding uses of space and alien imagery in various forms of popular music. In general, popular music's use of futuristic space and alien themes denotes a related neo-Gnostic withdrawal and alienation from traditionally dominant cultural structures in an attempt to unite us with a common 'other' that transcends divisions of race, gender, sexual preference, religion or nationality.


In this paper, the dynamics of a novel 2-DOF planar Translational Parallel Manipulator (TPM) is analyzed. The suggested TPM is made up of two PPa (Prismatic-planar Parallelogram) legs. Since all the linear actuators are mounted on the base, the proposed TPM can be applied for high speed positioning applications. The Lagrangian equations of the first type is employed to derive the inverse dynamic equations. It is shown that the analytical inverse dynamics equations match very well with ADAMS simulations. These analytical inverse dynamics equations will be used for the real-time computed torque control in the further work.


Background: Asthma is often associated with atopy. Cluster analysis shows the prevalence of atopy varies in different phenotypic groups of asthma from 50-90% but no longitudinal studies have assessed how this changes throughout childhood [1]. Our aim was to assess whether atopy precedes an asthma diagnosis, what proportion of asthmatics is atopic at different ages and how these change during childhood, to help decipher the link between the two. Methods: We collected data from a longitudinal birth cohort of 253 subjects, the Perth Infant Asthma Follow up study. A detailed respiratory questionnaire, lung function and skin prick testing were performed at 1, 6 and 12 months, 6, 11, 18 and 24 years. Asthma was physician diagnosed only and atopy was defined by a positive skin prick test. Results: The percentage of asthmatics with atopy rose from 50% at 6 years to 100% at 24 years. Of those with atopic asthma and full sequential data, an atopy diagnosis preceded that of asthma in 45% of cases (n=21) and both were diagnosed in the same time period in 55% (n=26). This was not significantly different. Of those with a history of asthma at 24 years, 90% (n=60) had been diagnosed by 11 years. All subjects with onset of asthma after 11 years of age were atopic. Atopy was less frequent in those with early transient asthma than persistant asthma after 6 years of age (65% vs 80%, p=0.045). Conclusion: The prevalence of atopy is higher in young adult asthmatics than as young children. Both diseases were diagnosed at a similar age in more than 50% of cases, suggesting a common predecessor, rather than a causal relationship.
 Haldar, P., et al., Cluster analysis and clinical asthma phenotypes. AMJRCCM 2008. 178 (3):218-24.


The aggregation of macrocyclic oligocholates with introverted hydrophilic groups and aromatic side chains was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy and liposome leakage assays. Comparison between the solution and the membrane phase afforded insight into the solvophobically driven aggregation. The macrocycles stacked over one another in lipid membranes to form transmembrane nanopores, driven by a strong tendency of the water molecules in the interior of the amphiphilic macrocycles to aggregate in a nonpolar environment. The aromatic side chains provided spectroscopic signatures for stacking, as well as additional driving force for the aggregation. Smaller, more rigid macrocycles stacked better than larger, more flexible ones because the cholate building blocks in the latter could rotate outward and diminish the conformation needed for the water-templated hydrophobic stacking. The acceptor-acceptor interactions among naphthalenediimide (NDI) groups were more effective than the pyrene-NDI donor-acceptor interactions in promoting the transmembrane pore formation of the oligocholate macrocycles.


Results of morbidity and medical care surveys of the Santiago's population are presented in this paper. A random sample of 1,000 dwellings with 4,700 people was selected and studied 3 times, in 1993 and 1994. All health events (acute and chronic morbidity, health examinations, dental care) and main features of medical care were registered in the interviews which covered a 2-week period each time. The population sample had similar characteristics than the results of the last Population and Dwellings Chilean Census. Health events were registered with high frequency: 56% of the families had one or more members with chronic disease; 51% with acute diseases; 46% with emotional troubles; 24% had dental care; 17% health examination and 6% different types of injuries. Frequency of medical care during the fortnight period was 5.6% out of total population of acute diseases; 1.0% of injuries; 4.9% for chronic diseases, 3.9% of health examinations and 5.6% of dental care. Frequency of diseases was significantly higher among women (50%) than in men (33%) and in poor people than in higher socioeconomic levels. Most of the acute disease were respiratory illnesses followed by communicable diseases, skin troubles and rheumatologic disorders. The most important detected chronic diseases were blood hypertension, diabetes mellitus, bronchial asthma and alcoholic addiction.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


We report on the design, calibration and in-flight performance of a sun sensor, which is used to determine the attitude of a balloon-borne telescope. The device uses a position-sensitive detector (PSD) in a pinhole camera. By determining the position of the image of the Sun on the PSD, the orientation of the sun sensor and the boresight of the telescope relative to the Sun can be determined. The pinhole sun sensor (PSS) was first flown in the December 2010 flight of the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope with Polarization (BLAST-Pol). In flight the PSS achieved an accuracy (combined azimuth and elevation) of about 0.18°. The accuracy could be improved by increasing the distance between the pinhole and the PSD, but the field-of-view of the PSS would be reduced.


ABSTRACT In this work, Geobacillus sp. TF16 phytase was separately immobilized in chitosan and Ca-alginate with the efficiency of 38% and 42%, respectively. These enzymes exhibited broad substrate specificity. Maximal relative phytase activity was measured at pH 5.0 and 95°C and pH 3.0 and 75°C for chitosan and Ca-alginate, respectively. The enzymes were highly stable in a wide pH and temperature range. Values of Km and Vmax were determined as 2.38 mM and 3401.36 U/mg protein for chitosan, and 7.5 mM and 5011.12 U/mg protein for Ca-alginate. The immobilized enzymes showed higher resistance to proteolysis. After 4 h incubation, hydrolysis capacities of chitosan- and Ca-alginate immobilized enzymes for soymilk phytate were calculated as 24% and 33%, respectively. The chitosan- and Ca-alginate immobilized phytases conserved its original activity after 8 and 6 cycles of reuse, respectively. The features of the enzymes were very attractive and they might be useful for some industrial applications.


This correspondence presents a method for designing linear-phase square-root (SR) FIR digital filters that alleviate the effect of receiver timing jitter. We take a newly conceived parameter, the "roughness" of the analog/FIR-SR filter impulse response, into account. We show that the error-performance of a system employing a matched SR filter pair, in the presence of receiver timing jitter, is more strongly related to how well the roughness parameter is minimized, than it is to the maximizing of the eye width caused by the Nyquist pulse. Design examples validate the proposition that the proposed method can lead to improved error performance of a high-order QAM communication system in the presence of receiver clock jitter.


The hydration of glycine is investigated by comparing the structures of bare glycine to its hydrated complexes, glycine.H(2)O and glycine.(H(2)O)(2). The Fourier transform infrared spectra of glycine and glycine.water complexes, embedded in Ar matrices at 12 K, have been recorded and the results were compared to density functional theory (DFT) calculations. An initial comparison of the experimental spectra was made to the harmonic infrared spectra of putative structures calculated at the MPW1PW91/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. The results suggest that bare glycine adopts a C(s) symmetry structure (G-1), where the hydrogens of the amino NH(2) hydrogen-bond intramolecularly with the carboxylic acid C horizontal lineO oxygen. Also observed as minor constituents are the next two lowest-energy structures, one in which the carboxylic acid (O-)H group hydrogen-bonds to the amino NH(2) group (G-2), and the other where intramolecular hydrogen bonding occurs between the NH(2) and the carboxylic acid O(-H) groups (G-3). The abundances of these structures are estimated at 84%, 9% and 8%, respectively. The least favored structure, G-3, can be eliminated by annealing the matrix to 35 K. Addition of the first water molecule to G-1 takes place at the carboxylic acid group, with simultaneous hydrogen bonding of the water molecule to the carboxylic acid (C=)O and (O-)H. The results are consistent with the predominance of this structure, although there is evidence for a small amount of a hydrated G-2 structure. Addition of the second water molecule is less definitive, as only a small number of intense infrared modes can be unambiguously assigned to glycine.(H(2)O)(2). Anharmonic frequency calculations based on second-order vibrational perturbation theory have also been carried out. It is shown that such calculations can generate improved estimates (i.e., approximately 2%) of the experimental frequencies for glycine and glycine.H(2)O, provided that the potential energy surfaces are modeled with high-level ab initio approaches (MP2/aug-cc-pVDZ).


In this article, we discuss the negotiation of the situated common ground in classroom conversations. Decision making on socioscientific issues (SSI) includes norms of diverse funds of knowledge and interests. Arguments and justification may include warrants that cannot necessarily be weighed on the same scale. We discuss Roberts' Visions 1 and 2 of scientific literacy as framing the common ground of classroom discussions. Two teacher–student dialogue sequences with 11th grade students from the Norwegian research project ElevForsk exemplify the negotiation of the situated common ground and the students' deliberations. Our analysis examines what goes on in the thematic content, as well as at the interpersonal level of language use. Further, we suggest that different framings may complement each other and provide a space for the students' emerging scientific conceptual development as well as for deliberation as a form of emerging procedural knowing.


We theoretically investigate optical detection of a weak classical force acting on a free particle in a dissipative coupling optomechanical system with a degenerate parametric amplifier (PA). We show that the PA allows one to achieve the force sensitivity far better than the standard quantum limit (SQL) over a broad range of the detection frequencies. The improvement depends on the parametric gain and the driving power. Moreover, we discuss the effects of the mechanical damping and the thermal noise on the force sensitivity. We find that the robustness of the force sensitivity much better than the SQL against the mechanical damping and the thermal noise is achievable in the presence of the PA with a high parametric gain. For the temperature $T = 1$ K, the improvement in sensitivity is better by a factor of about 7 when the driving power is set at a value corresponding to the SQL with no PA.


The pa package provides tools for conducting performance attribution for long-only, single currency equity portfolios. The package uses two methods: the Brinson-Hood-Beebower model (hereafter referred to as the Brinson model) and a regression-based analysis. The Brinson model takes an ANOVA-type approach and decomposes the active return of any portfolio into asset allocation, stock selection, and interaction effect. The regression-based analysis utilizes estimated coefficients, based on a regression model, to attribute active return to different factors.


Foreign direct investment (FDI) and foreign remittance have been the main sources of external capital inflows for many developing countries. FDI has been credited as the main driver of rapid economic growth in many Asian countries/regions in recent decades. However, this effect of FDI on long-run economic growth has not been observed in Latin American countries. Now, the question is whether FDI and an increase in foreign remittances in the past two decades have achieved expected positive results in terms of economic growth for emerging economies. This study uses a generalized method of moments (GMM) dynamic panel model to quantify the impacts of FDI and foreign remittances as sources of foreign capital for Asia and Latin America. Our findings suggest that FDI and remittances perform differently in different regions in terms of their impacts on GDP growth. Countries that have specific policies (i.e., industrial policy, domestic content requirement, and export production targets) for FDI are likely to derive more significant benefits from FDI and remittances. Developing countries that are emerging or lagging should learn from the countries with positive outcomes and implement similar policies.


This paper presents an algorithm for achieving mutual exclusion in Distributed System. The proposed algorithm is a betterment of the already existing Token Ring Algorithm, used to handle mutual exclusion in Distributed system. In the already existing algorithm, there are few problems, which, if occur during process execution, then the distributed system will not be able to ensure mutual exclusion among the processes and consequently unwanted situations may arise. The proposed algorithm will overcome all the problems in the existing algorithm, and ensures mutual exclusion among the processes, when they want to execute in their critical section of code.


The authors measured event-related potentials with a craving manipulation to investigate the neural correlates of drug cue reactivity in 13 adolescents who are cannabis dependent (CD; ages 14-17). The P300 responses to marijuana (MJ) pictures (MJ-P300) and control pictures (C-P300) were assessed after handling neutral objects and again after handling MJ paraphernalia (MJP). Self-reported drug craving and heart rates also were measured. MJ-P300 were larger than C-P300 (p < .001), and both the MJ-P300 and craving increased significantly after handling MJP (p = .002 and p = .003, respectively), with no association between the magnitude of craving and MJ-P300. Heart rates were not affected by handling MJP. The results showed that adolescents who are CD have an attentional bias to MJ stimuli that increases after handling marijuana paraphernalia. Generally, the results are consistent with what has been reported for adult heavy chronic cannabis smokers, although there were some differences that require further investigation.


It is predicted that nuclear spin conversion in molecules can be efficiently controlled by strong laser radiation resonant with the rovibrational molecular transition. The phenomenon can be used for substantial enrichment of spin isomers, or for detection of very weak (10-100 Hz) interactions in molecules.


The Matthew Effect has been one of the best known principles in adult education, implying that the ones who have more formal education at earlier phases of life participate more in education in adulthood. This qualitative research explores how the Matthew Effect works under migration, focusing on the experiences of the Turkish immigrants in Germany. The documentary analyses of the narrative interviews in the study reveal that the Matthew Effect among immigrants works depending on the formation of the immigrant habitus. The factors to mediate the making of the immigrant habitus are social and cultural capital, gender, the hysteresis effect, and affections such as expectations from the host society, biographical regrets, and the sense of belonging to the collective identity of the immigrants.


X/sub L/-band waveguide switches, using PIN diodes for the switching elements, were developed in the SPST, SP2T, SP4T, and SP8T configurations. At the frequency of 7.75 GHz, for which they were tuned, they exhibited insertion losses on the average of 0.1, 0.4, 0.6, and 1.1 dB, respectively. In all cases, the signal going out of each switch port when turned OFF decreased in excess of 29 dB. The bandwidth of each switch, whose values are indicated, is narrower for the switch which has the larger number of ports or which contains diodes of lower capacitance. Semiempirical formulas are developed which predict performance characteristics of the SPST switch in particular.


AIM
The aim of this study was to study the inflammatory response to open revascularization of an ischemic leg in terms of activation of white blood cells (WBC), platelets and endothelial cells.

DESIGN
prospective study.

METHODS
Venous samples from 21 patients suffering critical limb ischemia (CLI) were drawn before, and 4 weeks after (20 patients) revascularization. Total WBC, differentiated WBC, and platelets were counted. Expression of CD11b/CD18 on granulocytes and monocytes and CD41 on platelets was measured by flow cytometry. Soluble endothelial markers (sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, sE-selectin and sP-selectin) were analysed with ELISA.

RESULTS
WBC and granulocyte count decreased in the subgroup of patients with ulcer and gangrene but no change in activation of WBC was recorded. The endothelial marker sICAM-1 decreased while VCAM-1 increased following surgery, most evident in the subgroup with ulcers and gangrene.

CONCLUSIONS
This study shows that revascularization of CLI does not significantly influence the inflammatory response in patients with rest pain only, but a limited response of down regulation was found in the ulcer/gangrene patients probably as an effect of healing ulcers.


Designing an efficient field emission source requires theoretical optimization of electron emitters' geometrical distribution over the surface for its best performance in terms of current density. Seven and nineteen bundles of CNT arrays arranged in different models are analysed in detail using a computational theory in CST studio suite software based on the particle tracking mode. A three dimensional model has been employed to calculate FE properties with high accuracy. Simulations were carried out for a particular number of CNTs of constant height and radius located at fixed distances from each other and arranged in different geometrical patterns. Among all patterns, rectangular arrangement of CNTs is found to produce the maximum current. The edge effect and screening effect are incorporated in calculating total emission current and are found to diminish the contribution of inner rings 10% or less than that of maximum contribution. These findings can be employed as guideline to fabricate pattered CNT structures experimentally for industry applications. Copyright © 2014 VBRI press.


A new multi-objective optimization control strategy for urban intersection is proposed, which takes the degree of smooth and the degree of equilibrium as objectives. The new method is not limited to the traditional basic traffic parameters, such as delay and queue length.etc, but Applying data fusion technology, by multiple integrating on the basic traffic parameters, the real-time multi-objective values are achieved. The degree of the smooth quantitatively denotes the forced travel time extension because of traffic signal control, saturated traffic flow.ect. The degree of equilibrium denotes the equilibrium degree of traffic flow in space. Illustrating an intersection in Beijing, a simulation model in Paramics is built. The simulation results show that the proposed multi-objective control methods can not only reduce the traffic flow delay, but also makes traffic flow distributing equilibrium in each phase of intersection. This approach is consistent with Chinese saturated traffic flow characteristics.


It was my first sustained exposure to the significant differences between law in theory and law in action—a theme that was largely ignored in my primarily black-letter legal education. As most readers will know, the LRCC survived for more than twenty years, producing, in its early years, a substantial array of independent research, 2 before becoming, in the words of Roderick Macdonald, "increasingly duplicative" of policy work undertaken by the Department of Justice. 3 Four years after the closure of the LRCC, the Law Commission of Canada (LCC) was created. 4 Under the successive presidencies of Macdonald and Nathalie Des Rosiers, the LCC embarked on a series of research projects that reflected the inclusive and multidisciplinary values of its mandate. 5 Sadly, in 2007, a mere ten years after its founding, the LCC was abolished by a brutally expedient and cowardly political decision to simply cease its funding. 6 By doing so, the government avoided the full debate and vote in the House of Commons, which would have been required by a decision to repeal the enabling legislation. Constructing Crime is the final publication emanating from the LCC's traditionally named, but radically conceived,


Previously, we showed that live Salmonella-containing phagosomes (LSP) recruit early acting Rab5 and promote fusion with early endosomes, thus avoiding transport to the lysosomes. Therefore, live Salmonella survive in a specialized compartment. Here we show that scavenger-receptor-mediated intracellular delivery of muramyl dipeptide (MDP) to macrophages leads to efficient killing of Salmonella both in vitro and in vivo. To understand the intracellular trafficking modulation of Salmonella by delivery of MDP, we investigated the levels of endocytic Rab proteins, which are the major regulators of vesicular transport. Western blot analysis reveals reduced Rab5 and enhanced Rab7 content in the maleylated bovine serum albumin-MDP (MBSA-MDP)-treated cells. The reduced content of Rab5 in the treated cells and on phagosomes inhibits the fusion of Salmonella-containing phagosomes with early endosomes, and the enhanced Rab7 content in these cells facilitated targeting of LSP to lysosomes, which contain cathepsin D and vacuolar ATPase, for killing. In vitro reconstitution of lysosomal transport demonstrated that a reduced content of Rab5 and an enhanced level of Rab7 in MBSA-MDP-treated cells is primarily responsible for targeting Salmonella to lysosomes. Intracellular delivery of MDP thus offers a general strategy against macrophage-associated infections caused by intracellular pathogens that survive in the host cell by resisting transport to lysosomes.


The dynamics of internal cycling of nitrogen were studied in the southern hemisphere conifer miro [Prumnopitys ferruginea (G. Benn. ex D. Don) de Laub.], which has an indeterminate growth habit. In a 2-year experiment, P. ferruginea seedlings were supplied with nutrient solutions consisting of two different concentrations of nitrogen (5 and 0.5 mM) and phosphorus (1.33 and 0.133 mM) in the first year, and two concentrations (5 and 0.5mM) of a 15N-labelled nitrogen solution in the second year. Growth and nitrogen content of new foliage were shown to be largely dependent on seedling nitrogen status at the end of the first year, and only weakly dependent on nutrient supply in the second. An average of 70% of total nitrogen in new foliage was remobilised from storage in the first 63 d after flushing began. The remainder of new-foliage nitrogen was derived by root uptake from the nutrient supply in the second year. There was some response of nitrogen uptake to high nitrogen supply in the second year where seedlings had been nitrogen deficient at the end of the first year. However, it was concluded that the indeterminate growth habit of P. ferruginea did not distinguish its pattern of nitrogen storage and remobilisation from that of determinate conifers.


Mobility is the need of the hour— computing and communication devices of today are omnipresent and operate in heterogeneous environment. Terminologies such as ―Always Best Connected‖, ―Seamless Mobility‖ are considered as key features of Next Generation Wireless Networks (NGWN). The challenge for Next Generation Wireless devices is ensuring end-to-end connectivity by seamlessly migrating between Heterogeneous wireless technologies (viz. Wireless LAN, WiMax, Cellular, UMTS, and LTE etc.) This process of handover between different wireless technologies referred to as Vertical Handovers/Handoffs has significant importance among industry and academia researchers. The prime objective of this paper is to provide a one-stop literature store on basics of Handovers, Classifications, Algorithms, Factors influencing Handovers and desirable features of Handover mechanisms for NGWN.


The Authors report a study on a group of 47 patients affected by serositis (pleuritis, pericarditis, pleuro-pericarditis) of suspected viral origin. Two serum samples were taken from each patient at different times and were tested with many viral antigens by the complement fixation technique. The discussion is carried out on the lines followed by the majority of people in giving importance to their viral etiology and the viruses involved as agents of serositis are reported. In the present study 18 patients (38%) showed a significant rise of antibodies for viral antigens and therefore their disease might be due to viral etiology: 5 influenza viruses, 1 parainfluenza, 1 coxsackie, 1 RSV, 3 mumps virus, 5 CMV, 1 adenovirus.


Aim. To study in comparison immunoregulatory properties of dominant and associative microsymbionts metabolites in human large intestine's eubiosis and dysbiosis. Materials and methods. 260 strains of bifidobacteria used as dominant microbiota, 132 cultures of conditionally pathogenic bacteria and fungi used as associative microsymbionts from 122 intestinal microsymbiocenoses. The cytokines production was studied in cultures of mononuclear cells co-cultivated with microsymbionts' supernatants. The results were processed statistically (Statistica 10.0). Results. In eubiosis, dominant and associative microsymbionts showed immuno regulatory properties heterogeneity. In the case of phlogogenic cytokines, the associates equally exhibited stimulation / suppression / no effect on cytokines, except for enterococci and bacteroids, stimulating IL-8 secretion, and lactobacilli, inducing IFNy. Dominants were characterized by a unidirectional effect: IL-10 secretion stimulation and TNFa, IFNy and IL-17suppression, while retaining the induction of IL-10 in dysbiosis. In contrast, supernatants of the associates combined the opposing cytokines production: the early proinflammatory cytokine TNFa, the immunoregulatory cytokine IFNy and the antiinflammatory cytokine IL-10. Conclusion. Intestinal homeostasis in eubiosis is supported by differentiated effects of microsymbionts' metabolites on the production of antiinflammatory, immunoregulatory cytokines with the formation of an optimal balance, limiting inflammatory and autoimmune reactions. The dominance of the immunoregulatory properties remains intact in the conditions of dysbiosis, and the variety of effects on pro-/antiin-flammatory cytokines is limited in the associates.


OBJECTIVE
Six recent genome scans of different systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) multiplex family cohorts showed multiple putative susceptibility loci. In the present study, we examined 4 previously identified loci to replicate findings of significant linkage to 1q23 and 16q12, and to support findings of suggestive linkage to 14q21-23 and 20p12 in a cohort of 115 multiethnic nuclear families containing 145 SLE-affected sibpairs.

METHODS
Model-free, multipoint linkage analyses (SIBPAL2, SAGE version 4.0) and exclusion mapping (GeneHunter) were performed.

RESULTS
Linkages to 1q23 (peak at D1S2675, mean allele sharing [MAS] 0.56; P = 0.003) and to 16q12 (peaks between D16S753 and D16S757, MAS 0.57; P = 0.003) were confirmed, but linkage evidence at 20p12 was weak and inconsistent (MAS 0.52-0.56; from P = 0.005 to P not significant). Evidence for linkage to 1q23 and 16q12 was stronger in 68 non-Caucasian affected sibpairs than in 77 Caucasian affected sibpairs. Exclusion mapping ruled out linkage at 14q21-23 (lambda(s) [sib recurrence risk or genotypic risk ratio] = 1.8). Because the pericentromeric region of chromosome 16 has been identified by genome scans in several autoimmune diseases, we postulated that it might harbor an autoimmune modifier gene. To explore this possibility, we tested for an interaction between 16q12 and 1q23, and between 16q12 and 20p12. Haplotype sharing at 1q23 increased concomitantly with increased haplotype sharing at 16q12 (P = 0.008 by nonparametric Jonckheere-Terpstra exact statistical test). No evidence supporting an interaction between 16q12 and 20p12 was observed. Analysis of sibpairs sharing 2 alleles at 16q12 also showed increased allele sharing at 1q23 (MAS from 0.56 to 0.65).

CONCLUSION
These data support the presence of SLE susceptibility genes at 1q23 and 16q12, particularly in non-Caucasians. The skewed distribution of haplotypes suggests that genetic interaction of these two loci may affect SLE susceptibility.


The relative extinction of solar and infrared radiation by dry and clean air molecules, has been estimated through a theoretical determination of the ratio referred ordinarily as the Greenhouse Parameter (GP). In a first approach, it was calculated assuming that terrestrial air only consists of a simple mixture of oxygen and nitrogen. The method used here is based on the application, in an inverse procedure, of an homogeneous, plane-parallel, and time-independent grey model, which employs the Eddington approximation as a solution to the radiative transfer equation, both in the solar and the infrared spectral regions and, which has the GP value as an input free parameter. The best value of the GP was estimated calibrating the local temperature profile for four types of uniform surface (snow, desert, vegetation and ocean), with average albedos known in these spectral regions, adopting air surface temperature values which were chosen for an assumed micro or local climatological environment according to an average radiative criterion. With this result, it was possible for an estimation of the infrared opacity for the air layer implicated in this model and also the mean extinction coefficient in this spectral range to be calculated. The results predicted are compared with results obtained indirectly from the data provided by other authors. Although its validation is constrained solely to the radiative model applied it seems that the value of the GP obtained is more accurate than the one initially available.


Genetic Programming has been very successful in solving a large area of problems but its use as a machine learning algorithm has been limited so far. One of the reasons is the problem of overfitting which cannot be solved or suppresed as easily as in more traditional approaches. Another problem, closely related to overfitting, is the selection of the final model from the population. In this article we present our research that addresses both problems: overfitting and model selection. We compare several ways of dealing with ovefitting, based on Random Sampling Technique (RST) and on using a validation set, all with an emphasis on model selection. We subject each approach to a thorough testing on artificial and real--world datasets and compare them with the standard approach, which uses the full training data, as a baseline.


To determine the effects of transplacental exposure to diethylstilboestrol (DES) on the fertility and endometrial hormonal receptors of the offsprings, timed pregnant OFA rats were treated with DES (10, 20, 50 and 100 micrograms/kg/day, subcutaneous) on days 10 to 18 of gestation (long time) or days 13 to 18 of gestation (short time). Only the lowest dosed groups (10 micrograms/kg/day, short and long times, and 20 micrograms/kg/day, short time) gave birth to living offsprings. The fertility of the male and female offsprings was determined postnatally by a breeding technique and appeared to be strongly decreased among females of all groups (70 to 100% of sterility) and slowly decreased among males (12 to 26% of pathological fecundity). Progesterone receptor concentrations were significantly decreased for treated group (0.40 and 0.44 pmol/mg cytosol proteins) versus control group (0.74 pmol/mg cytosol proteins). Estradiol receptor concentrations were significantly higher for long time treated groups (0.26 pmol/mg cytosol proteins) versus control or short time treated groups (0.15 and 0.13 pmol/mg cytosol proteins).


Porous sintered nickel oxide electrodes were prepared by cathodic electroprecipitation from metal nitrate solutions and characterized by slow (0.1 mV/s) voltammetry in 6 mol/l KOH. Presence of iron or zinc ions resulted in decrease of electrode charging ability and similar changes in voltammograms were observed for both ions. Removal of iron or zinc ions and introduction of lithium ions partially restored the electrode and corresponding voltammogram to original conditions. Presence of cobalt in the electrode material diminished substantially the influence of zinc ions on the electrode properties.


The numerator and denominator of the left-hand side of the Gjedde–Patlak–Rutland (GPR) equation for measurement of blood fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) clearance into tissue (Ki) are the standardized uptake values (SUVs) of tissue and blood, respectively. The extent to which normalized time (NT) in the GPR equation exceeds real time depends on half-time of clearance of 18F-FDG from blood. A literature review shows that NT is fairly constant, about 100 min at 60 min postinjection of 18F-FDG, in keeping with our own finding of no significant difference in maximum SUV in blood 60 min postinjection of 18F-FDG between 39 patients with 18F-FDG-avid malignancy on routine PET/CT (1.74±0.31) and 21 patients with normal PET/CT (1.79±0.32), and similar blood glucose levels (BGLs). Volume of distribution (V0) in the GPR equation is ∼0.4 ml/ml for brain and ∼0.9 ml/ml for lean liver. Using these values of V0 and an NT of 100 min, we used the GPR equation to calculate Ki from our own published values of SUVliver/SUVblood and SUVbrain/SUVblood at 60 min postinjection, obtaining 0.0045 ml/min/ml for liver and 0.036 ml/min/ml for brain at BGL of 5 mmol/l. These values for Ki at this BGL are close to literature values of Ki, which for liver and brain are ∼0.0033 and ∼0.035 ml/min/ml, respectively. We conclude, therefore, that following division with blood pool SUV, tissue SUV becomes a closer surrogate of Ki. This division also eliminates the controversy over which whole body metric to use in the calculation of SUV.


Precise prediction of lithium‐ion cell level aging under various operating conditions is an imperative but challenging part of ensuring the quality performance of emerging applications such as electric vehicles and stationary energy storage systems. Accurate and real‐time battery‐aging prediction models, which require an exact understanding of the degradation mechanisms of battery components and materials, could in turn provide new insights for materials and battery basic research. Furthermore, the primary barrier to meaningful artificial intelligence/machine learning for accelerating the prediction period is the exploitation of accurate aging mechanistic descriptors. This review comprehensively summarizes the evolution of deterioration mechanisms at the material and cell level in different environments and usage scenarios, including the intricate relationships between aging mechanisms, degradation modes, and external influences, which are the cornerstones of modeling simulation and machine learning techniques. Recent advances in electrochemical models coupled with internal battery degradation mechanisms as well as identification and tracking of aging parameters are shown, with particular emphasis on electrode balance and the anticipated trend of machine learning‐assisted reliable remaining useful life prediction. Precise simulation prediction of cell level aging will continue to play an essential role in advanced smart battery research and management, enhancing its performance while shortening experimental sequences.


Functional imaging studies opened a new way to understand the neural activity underlying pain perception and the pathomechanism of chronic pain syndromes. In the last twenty years several results of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have been published about examining the different aspects of complex pain experience. The aim of these studies is to understand the functioning of the pain control system, the so-called pain matrix, activated by acute nociceptive stimulus. Another important field of pain research is the investigation of neuronal processes underlying chronic pain, since the pathomechanism of this is still unclear. Our review aims to provide insight into the methods of pain research using fMRI and the achievements of the last few years.


Abstract From momentary metaphorical allusions to "unraveling," or "stitching," to more elaborately built philosophical models that directly employ the likenesses of folded and/or patchworked cloth, the regular repetition of fabric(ated) references—punctuated by the physical refrain of turning, cloth-like pages—in the works of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari cleverly makes the relationships between "our bodies," which are largely understood through clothed pleats, and the matter-content-expression of "their books" exceedingly palpable. This article aims to unpack this aspect of Deleuze and Guattari's projects and to explore the implications it has not only for our immediate experiences of "the book" and/or "the textile," but also for the traditional plays between man, beast, and technology that have been historically related through the technology of cloth and which have served to, in part, justify the human's neatly ordered dominance in the world. As a means of embarking on this project, the article considers Deleuze and Guattari's works alongside a cast of other figures preoccupied with various fabrics, namely the matador, various (textile) artists including Eran Schaerf, and even one's own self and wardrobe, and recasts all of these figures' texts and textiles as "text(ile)s."


People with intellectual disabilities face an exceptionally high risk of being victims of sexual abuse and thereby becoming involved in the criminal justice system. Coping effectively with this system is enough of a challenge for those without disability, but it is far more difficult for the intellectually disabled. As a result, greater attention needs to be paid to their needs. From the opposite perspective, dealing with people with intellectual disabilities is a challenge for experts in forensic and criminal law practice. This short report presents the background, design, and preliminary findings of a study examining how far the police, judges, prosecutors, forensic-psychiatric experts, forensic-psychological experts, and social workers are able to ensure that victims with intellectual disabilities experience procedural fairness by taking their particular needs into account in everyday criminal proceedings.