BACKGROUND
Mass medical migration from Pakistan to more developed counties pose a threat to the professional resources of Pakistan. The aim of our study is to assess magnitude of the brain drain and to assess reasons behind it.

METHODS
A Cross-sectional study, using convenience non-probability sampling, with sample of 201 Ayub Medical College graduates. A simple questionnaire was designed on Google Forms, comprising of three sections including bio data, intentions to emigrate and the last part evaluating work environment, training and personal factors associated with the desire to train abroad. Data was analysed using SPSS version 20.0, descriptive statistics were calculated and Chi square test was used to determine association between various groups of push and pull factors and the intention to train abroad. A significance level (p-value) of less than 0.05 was used.

RESULTS
Over half (63.68%) of our participants wanted to emigrate, and out of the remaining 71.6% would consider it in the future if given the opportunity. Overall, more males wanted to train overseas as compared to females, and the United Kingdom was the most popular destination. The leading factor push factors behind wanting to move abroad were quality of training and a poor work environment. While family commitments and costly examinations were the main reasons to stay in Pakistan.

CONCLUSIONS
A significant number of young doctors are planning on pursue training/careers abroad. If this large-scale brain drain is not addressed on time, it can have various implications in the future. Hence the Government and Medical authorities must take action in order to prevent further loss.


Dramatic advances have been made in the treatment of HER2+ breast cancer over the past 15 years. As a result of HER2-directed therapy, survival in the both the early stage and metastatic settings has improved substantially. This improvement in survival has been accompanied by decreases in treatment-associated toxicity and improvements in quality of life. In spite of these advances, numerous challenges remain. Metastatic HER2+ disease remains incurable, and the vast majority of women with HER2+ metastatic disease ultimately succumb to their illness. In the setting of early stage disease, there is a need to identify which patients require more treatment than the present standard, which would do equally well with less, and which patients need an entirely different treatment program. Clinical data strongly suggest that HER2+ breast cancer is not a monolithic force. A better understanding of the underlying heterogeneity of HER2+ breast cancer is needed, and this understanding will assist in answering many of the unresolved questions. The most critical clinical challenges include: 1) What approaches can be used to delay and ultimately avoid drug resistance? 2) How can we treat and/or prevent brain metastases? 3) Which patients can be treated with adjuvant regimens that minimize or entirely avoid chemotherapy? 4) What is the optimal treatment for patients with small tumors and negative lymph nodes? 5) What trial designs are needed the vast majority of patients are doing well and recurrence rates are very low, but there is still some room for improvement. If we are going to eliminate mortality from HER2+ breast cancer, creative, collaborative, and multidisciplinary, approaches will be needed.

Citation Information: Cancer Res 2013;73(24 Suppl): Abstract nr MS02-1.


Abstract Blends of high density polyethylene (HDPE) and biodegradable polymers – polylactic acid, PLA, poly(∊-caprolactone), PCL and Mater-Bi® (thermoplastic starch (TPS) with PLA or PCL) – were prepared in a co-rotating twin-screw extruder, together with polyethylene modified with maleic anhydride (PE-g-MA) used as compatibiliser. The mechanical and rheological properties, morphology and potential for biodeterioration of polymeric materials were evaluated. Blends with PLA showed a reduced elongation at break but an increased Young's modulus while the addition of PCL led to materials with a greater elongation at break and a lower Young modulus. The rheological results evidenced that HPDE and the blend with the highest TPS level exhibited the highest viscosity. The microbial growth test carried out to evaluate the potential for biodeterioration of the blends, using a pure culture of Pseudomonas fluorescens, indicated that HDPE/PCL had a lower resistance to bacterial attack than the blend of HDPE/PLA. This was verified by a higher cell number on its surface after 10 weeks of incubation. The addition of 30% starch to the HDPE/PLA blend enhanced its biodeterioration potential, the same was not observed in the case of the HDPE/PCL blend containing just 18% starch.


The rise of regulation is perhaps one of the most critical transformations of the capitalist system. Not surprisingly, this development has triggered a surge in the interest in regulation in social and political sciences since the 1990s. A contested notion, regulation can denote different meanings and can be understood in different ways. Given this multiplicity of meanings, studying regulatory cooperation requires exploring some fundamental elements to understand the main concepts and approaches used, and to capture its multiple levels and dimensions. The adopted denominations and utilized concepts are many—"regional regulatory cooperation," "regional regulatory regime," "regional regulatory integration," "regulatory regionalism," and "regional regulatory governance," among others—and each captures, in its own way, particular dimensions or aspects of the field. In terms of levels, whereas a rich and dense literature has attested to the fact that global governance increasingly proceeds through transnational regulations, studies with a focus on the regional level are scant, especially when compared to the former, and remain scattered under various labels and denominations. However, regulatory cooperation leads to the creation of regulatory spaces that blur the distinction not only between the national and global arenas, but also between the national and the regional. Studies have thus translated these theoretical claims into empirical research showing that there is a growing regulatory cooperation space at the regional level, where various constellations of actors and networks that bridge the state and nonstate, and public and private, distinctions operate across levels and policy sectors. Analyses and scholarship on regulation and regulatory cooperation have made relevant progress, and in so doing, they have opened new avenues for research to explore and understand the place and role of regulatory cooperation and regions in a complex regulatory world.


The effects of ibogaine, an alkaloid isolated from the bark of the African shrub, Tabernanthe iboga, on the development of tolerance to the antinociception action of morphine, U-50,488H and [D-Pen2,D-Pen5]enkephalin (DPDPE), which are mu-, kappa- and delta-opioid receptor agonists, respectively, were determined in male Swiss-Webster mice. Mice were rendered tolerant to opioid receptor agonists by injecting morphine (20 mg/kg, s.c.), U-50,488H (25 mg/kg, i.p.) or DPDPE (20 microg/mouse, i.c.v.) twice a day for 4 days. Ibogaine (20, 40 or 80 mg/kg, i.p.) given twice a day for 4 days did not alter the tail-flick latency. Ibogaine (40 or 80 mg/kg, i.p.) injected 10 min before each injection of morphine inhibited the development of tolerance to the antinociceptive action of morphine, however, the lower dose of ibogaine (20 mg/kg, i.p.) was ineffective. Ibogaine (20, 40 or 80 mg/kg, i.p.) given prior to the injection of U-50,488H or DPDPE did not modify the development of tolerance to their antinociceptive action. It is concluded that ibogaine inhibits selectively the development of tolerance to the antinociceptive action of mu- but not kappa- or delta-opioid receptor agonists in mice.


Abstract Background and Aim: At present, tick-borne borreliosis is the most common infectious disease transmitted by ticks in Europe, Asia, and North America. This study aimed to examine the epizootiological aspects of the natural nidality of tick-borne borreliosis in Moscow region (the Russian Federation). Materials and Methods: A total of 2,537 ticks representing two species were collected, namely, Ixodes ricinus and Dermacentor reticulatus. The activity, number of ticks, and Borrelia infestation rates were investigated during a high season, that is, from early spring to mid-autumn. Results: In May, amount of I. ricinus spp. was found 2.5 times more than those representing D. reticulatus spp. (p≤0.01). In June, August, and September, the amount of I. ricinus was 9.0 (p≤0.0001), 2.0 (p≤0.05), and 5.0 times higher, respectively, compared to D. reticulatus. In the first 10 days of April, the amount of D. reticulatus was 3 times higher than that of I. ricinus (p≤0.02); in the next 10 days, their amounts were equal (p≥0.05) and in the last 10 days the amount of I. ricinus exceeded that of D. reticulatus (p≤0.05) by 1.5 times. In general, Borrelia afzelii, and Borrelia garinii, were detected. In addition, the naturally occurring tick-borne borreliosis pesthole was revealed in the Moscow region. Conclusion: Borrelia infection rates for ticks comprise 30%. An increase in Borrelia tick infestation was detected within the vicinity of populated areas. The amount of ticks directly depends on the temperature (20°C-25°C) and moisture (from 50%) values.


— Some young children claim to have memories of a previous life, and they often show behaviors that appear related to the memories. This pilot study examined the psychological functioning of such children in the United States. Fifteen participants, ages 3–6 years, underwent testing with the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (fourth edition) and the Children's Apperception Test. Their parents completed the Survey Form of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, the Child Behavior Checklist, the Child Dissociative Checklist, and the Family Questionnaire. The children's composite intelligence scores on the Stanford-Binet were greater than one standard deviation above the mean, with relative strengths in verbal reasoning and quantitative reasoning. On the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, the children scored significantly above average in daily living skills, motor skills, and on the overall composite score. Thirteen of the 15 children obtained low scores on the Child Dissociative Checklist, indicating no dissociative thought patterns in most participants. The Child Behavior Checklist averages all fell within the normal range, revealing no clinically significant behavior problems. Results on the Children's Apperception Test revealed no unusual themes, and the families did not show any distinct patterns of functioning on the Family Questionnaire. Young children who claim to remember previous lives show high intelligence, and testing revealed no evidence that their reports arise from psychopathology.


Plasmon-enhanced Raman scattering is a powerful approach to detecting and characterizing proteins in live and dynamic biological systems. However, the selective detection/enhancement of specific residues as well as spectral diffusion and fluctuations have complicated the interpretation of enhanced Raman spectra and images of biological matter. In this work, we demonstrate that the amino acid tryptophan (Trp) can capture an electron from an excited plasmon, which generates a radical anion that is resonantly enhanced: a visible excited electronic state slides into resonance upon charging. This surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) mechanism explains the persistence of Trp signatures in the SERS and TERS spectra of proteins. Evidence for this picture includes the observation of visible resonances in the UV-Vis extinction spectrum, changes in the ground state vibrational spectrum, and plasmon-resonance dependent behavior. DFT calculations support the experimental observations. The behavior observed from the free Trp molecule is shown to explain the SERS spectrum of the Trp-cage protein. In effect, resonant Raman scattering from radicals formed through plasmonic excitation represents an under-investigated mechanism that may be exploited for chemical sensing applications.


Coverage, insight and understanding of illegal fishing are understood and adhered to in Indonesian positive law is stealing fish and have a big impact on the economy of the country. Therefore, the essence of regulation and prosecution of illegal fishing in Indonesia should be understood in the prosecution of large-scale illegal fishing, which is generally carried out by foreign fleets, foreign vessels are illegal, which has also resulted in harming the country's economy (Indonesia) trillions of dollars each year. With the model and the type of large-scale theft and harm the national economy, the handling of the regulations should be directed at / to overcome the evils of large-scale and complicated (sophisticated), which belong to the type of crime white collar crime or corporate crime. Know and understand the ins and outs as well as the existence of corporate crime, for law enforcement is a necessity in this modern era, this paper therefore focuses on two keywords (key word) illegal fishing and corporate crime. Knowing and understanding the concepts and regulations surrounding corporate crime and illegal fishing be an important contribution in the process of law enforcement. With the understanding of illegal fishing and corporate crime will be a strong foundation for any legal practitioner, especially of law enforcement in the event proceeds and determine the type and classification of appropriate criminal and law enforcement especially true for judges to dare and did not hesitate to impose sanctions on each involved in illegal fishing or corporate offenders. With a firm and clear sentences, and certainly, the law enforcement officers not only enforce the law and justice but also has saved the country's economy, by preventing potential loss of national wealth, as the implementation of the function of law as an instrument of social engineering. Keyword: Illegal Fishing, Crime Corporation, Breaktrhough of criminal Law


This article presents a survey of ad hoc networking protocols that have used concepts such as centrality metrics and community formation from the area of social network analysis, which is seen as a network measurement task that deals with structural properties of the network graph. We recognize the synergy among social network analysis and ad hoc networking as a fertile research area that can provide significant advances for the design of network protocols, especially in environments where the communication is opportunistic in nature and therefore cannot be easily or efficiently described as an optimization problem, and other systematic approaches like cross-layer optimization are more difficult to apply.


SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITYThe National Science Foundation (NSF) is expanding its program of mathematics institutes to bring visiting researchers from second-tier universities into the mainstream. This month, the NSF announced plans to fund three institutes for a total of approximately $8 million per year for 5 years. Two are the existing institutes at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Minnesota; the third is a new institute at the University of California, Los Angeles.


Most of anti-tumor factors are designed to kill selectively cancer cells; in most cases this action is related to the ability of the above substances to induce apoptosis. One of potent anti-apoptotic mechanisms is based on Hsp70 protein. Since the level of this protein is often higher in malignant tumors than in normal tissues, the aim of this study was to establish whether the elevated Hsp70 content may influence the process of apoptosis induced by anti-tumor drugs in cancer cells population. The increase of intracellular content of Hsp70 in human leukemia U-937 cells was attained by a mild heat stress or by transfection of cells with the human hsp70 gene. The elevation of Hsp70 quantity, irrespective of the way it was performed, leads to the inhibition of apoptosis in cells treated with two substances, etoposide or adriamycin. The inhibition of apoptosis was accompanied with the reducing of the share of cells with fragmented nuclei and with the delay in caspase activation. It is suggested that in addition to the previously discovered targets, whose activity is suppressed by the Hsp70 chaperone, this protein can inhibit the activity of caspase-3 and -7; this delays the onset of apoptosis in part of a cancer cell population.


Abstract This research investigated the Cone calorimetric analysis of the fire retardant properties of cow horn ash particles (CHAp) bio-additives and aluminium trihydrate (AH) in banana peduncle fibre reinforced polyester composites. Cone calorimeter was used to obtain combustion information of CHAp and AH control formulated composites.  The analysis presented similar fire properties with CHAp incorporated composites exhibiting delayed ignition time of 25%, increased end of burning time of 14.24 per cent, and reduced total heat release rate of 9.07% for the developed composites. The developed BPF/CHAp/polyester produced composites of justified fire retardancy, which would find relevance in the engineering industries. CHAp incorporated in the developed composites presented valid fire-retardant properties compared with AH fire retardant additive composites used as the control and would suffice as an alternative to the expensive, non-environmental friendly fire retardants.


This paper describes joint effort of BUT and Telef\'onica Research on development of Automatic Speech Recognition systems for Albayzin 2020 Challenge. We compare approaches based on either hybrid or end-to-end models. In hybrid modelling, we explore the impact of SpecAugment layer on performance. For end-to-end modelling, we used a convolutional neural network with gated linear units (GLUs). The performance of such model is also evaluated with an additional n-gram language model to improve word error rates. We further inspect source separation methods to extract speech from noisy environment (i.e. TV shows). More precisely, we assess the effect of using a neural-based music separator named Demucs. A fusion of our best systems achieved 23.33% WER in official Albayzin 2020 evaluations. Aside from techniques used in our final submitted systems, we also describe our efforts in retrieving high quality transcripts for training.


A model defined by half the Lagrangian (the highly nonlinear part) of the Skyrme model is investigated. Two classes of bosonic solutions are obtained. It is shown that, although the field configurations of these two classes are different, the energy densities for the two classes take the same form.


The author describes some of the lessons he and his hospital learned during the process of converting from an in-house security program to a contract service one. To achieve a positive outcome, early open communications and sensitivity to the incumbent staff are crucial, he says.


This paper analyzes the effect of social security and lump sum layoff payment in an economy with an informal sector and savings, where the search effort is unobserved. I characterize the optimal consumption/search/non-participant strategy assuming that workers are risk averse and that formal jobs last forever. After including job destruction shocks I solve the model numerically, and focus on the effects of lump sum layoff and social security payments on workers' decision to be formal, informal or non-participant. I find that severance payments protect formal workers against the unemployment risk. With severance payments workers do not over-accumulate to protect themselves against unemployment, instead they increase the search effort through the re-entitlement effects. In this respect my work resembles that of Coles (2006). I find that in the steady state a high severance payment increases the proportion of formal workers while reduces the proportion of informal workers and those who decide not to participate in the labor market. Even though the optimal policy with severance payment is generous, I find that in the steady state the unemployment rate is low and welfare improves.


Biomechanics is the study of the structure and function of biological mechanics. I went abroad to the Mayo Clinic to learn biomechanics, and participated in the following research. Because the prediction of rotator cuff extensibility is clinically important for pre-surgical planning for rotator cuff repair, we determined the feasibility of B-mode ultrasound and Shear Wave Elastography (SWE) in predicting the extensibility of the rotator cuff muscle on cadaveric specimens with cuff tears of varying sizes. Eleven fresh frozen cadaveric shoulders were obtained, and the size of the rotator cuff tears was determined as follows: small, medium, large, massive, and intact/no tear. After the SWE modulus of the superficial and deep muscles was measured, the force applied to the supraspinatus tendon and displacement were recorded while the supraspinatus tendon was axially stretched. A regression analysis was preformed to investigate the association between tendon displacement and SWE modulus. There was a significant negative correlation between the displacement of the supraspinatus tendon and the SWE modulus of the superficial and deep muscles. SWE ultrasound may predict the extensibility of the supraspinatus musculotendinous unit, independent of the size of the supraspinatus tendon.


Dolomitic lime (DL) is one of the most commonly used fertilizer amendments in nursery container substrates. It is used to adjust pH of pine bark substrates from their native pH, 4.1 to 5.1, up to about pH 6. However, additions of DL have been shown to be beneficial, inconsequential, or detrimental depending on the crop to which it is applied and irrigation water quality. Carbonate ions from DL cause a rate-dependent change in pH.Dolomitic lime can adjust pH of pine bark up to 6.5, after which there is little change regardless of how much additional DL is added. Changes in pH affect the rate of nitrification in pine bark substrates. The rate of nitrification can impact the quality of some plants that are sensitive to ammonium toxicity, as well as affect nitrogen leaching from containers. Changes in pH also affect micronutrient availability in pine bark substrates. Dolomitic lime provides an abundant source of calcium (Ca) andmagnesium (Mg) for plant uptake. However, the additional Ca andMgmight also suppress potassiumuptake in plants.


With the advent of a multi-operator regime in the sector of cellular mobile services, users became sensitive to the quality of service (QoS), and, as a result service providers started offering differentiated services. Each operator shall ensure the promised QoS to every subscriber even during busy hours of a day when the network operates at the maximum load. During off-peak hours the load on the network decreases. As a result, the network designed to meet the QoS requirement during busy hours of a day leaves a large amount idle resource during off-peak hours of the day. In this scenario, a service provider faces the problem of maximizing revenue while satisfying resource and QoS constraints. A dynamic differentiated pricing strategy (DDPS) for the cellular mobile service is a solution to the above problem. In this paper, we have proposed a DDPS which, to the best of our knowledge, is the first of its kind in the literature. We have compared the performance of our proposed solution with the static differentiated pricing strategies (SDPSs) with respect to revenue earned and average network resource utilization. The experimental results show that our proposed solution provides a substantial improvement over the SDPSs


Cache eviction algorithms are used widely in operating systems, databases and other systems that use caches to speed up execution by caching data that is used by the application. There are many policies such as MRU (Most Recently Used), MFU (Most Frequently Used), LRU (Least Recently Used) and LFU (Least Frequently Used) which each have their advantages and drawbacks and are hence used in specific scenarios. By far, the most widely used algorithm is LRU, both for its $O(1)$ speed of operation as well as its close resemblance to the kind of behaviour that is expected by most applications. The LFU algorithm also has behaviour desirable by many real world workloads. However, in many places, the LRU algorithm is is preferred over the LFU algorithm because of its lower run time complexity of $O(1)$ versus $O(\log n)$. We present here an LFU cache eviction algorithm that has a runtime complexity of $O(1)$ for all of its operations, which include insertion, access and deletion(eviction).


It is important to know the maximum solid solubility( C max ) of various transition metals in a metal when one designs multi component alloys. There have been several semi empirical approaches to qualitatively predict the C max , such as Darken Gurry(D G) theorem, Miedema Chelikowsky(M C) theorem, electron concentration rule and the bond parameter rule. However, they are not particularly valid for the prediction of C max . It was developed on the basis of energetics of alloys as a new method to predict C max of different transition metals in metal Ti, which can be described as a semi empirical equation using the atomic parameters, i e, electronegativity difference, atomic diameter and electron concentration. It shows that the present method can be used to explain and deduce D G theorem, M C theorem and electron concentration rule.


Abstract Objectives To investigate the risk of developing salivary gland tumors associated with the use of mobile phones. Content There have been a number of epidemiological studies conducted to assess for a possible association between mobile phone usage and the development of intracranial tumours, however results have been conflicting. We conducted an extensive literature search across four different databases was conducted. After selecting the articles relevant to the area of study, a total of seven studies were included in this meta-analysis, with no restrictions set on publication date or language. Studies were qualitatively assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. No significant association between the use of mobile phones and salivary gland tumors was observed (OR=1.06, 95% CI=0.86–1.32). No evidence for publication bias was detected. Summary and Outlook Our findings indicate no significant association between mobile phone usage and salivary gland tumours. However, there were many limitations encountered in these studies, suggesting that the observed result may not be an accurate estimate of the true carcinogenic risk of mobile phones, especially for heavy long-term users. In fact, the studies included in this meta-analysis highlight the need to correctly define exposure assessment in order to ascertain the risk of a certain variable.


This paper proposesa novel joint reconstruction algorithm to decode sets of correlated images from distributively compressed images. We consider a scenario where the images captured at different viewpoints are encoded independently using transform-based coding solutions (e.g., SPIHT) with a balanced rate distribution among different cameras. A central decoder jointly processes the compressed images and reconstructs an image pair by exploiting the inter-view correlation. The central decoder first estimates the underlying correlation model from the independently decoded images and it is eventually used for the joint signal recovery. The joint reconstruction is cast as a constrained convex optimization problem that reconstructs a total-variation (TV) smooth image pair that satisfies with the estimated correlation model. At the same time, we add constraints that force the reconstructed images to be as close as possible to the compressed views. We show by experiments that the proposed joint reconstruction scheme outperforms independent reconstruction in terms of image quality, for a given target bit rate.


Neural Processes (NPs) are popular methods in meta-learning that can estimate predictive uncertainty on target datapoints by conditioning on a context dataset. Previous state-of-the-art method Transformer Neural Processes (TNPs) achieve strong performance but require quadratic computation with respect to the number of context datapoints, significantly limiting its scalability. Conversely, existing sub-quadratic NP variants perform significantly worse than that of TNPs. Tackling this issue, we propose Latent Bottlenecked Attentive Neural Processes (LBANPs), a new computationally efficient sub-quadratic NP variant, that has a querying computational complexity independent of the number of context datapoints. The model encodes the context dataset into a constant number of latent vectors on which self-attention is performed. When making predictions, the model retrieves higher-order information from the context dataset via multiple cross-attention mechanisms on the latent vectors. We empirically show that LBANPs achieve results competitive with the state-of-the-art on meta-regression, image completion, and contextual multi-armed bandits. We demonstrate that LBANPs can trade-off the computational cost and performance according to the number of latent vectors. Finally, we show LBANPs can scale beyond existing attention-based NP variants to larger dataset settings.


RSA is the well-known Public Key Cryptographic Algorithm invented in 1985 which is more powerful even today because of its hardness in factoring the public modulus. The algorithm begins by considering two large prime numbers and all the remaining calculations are based on these two numbers. Once we are able to find any one prime factor successfully from the Public modulus which leads to cracking RSA. Many Cryptographers working hard to find a novel approaches for factorization. This paper deals with the study of different algorithms used for factorization and their key features in RSA. In the concluding part of this paper, the Author would like to explain a novel approach which looks fair for Carmichael Numbers


Intermittent hypoxia (16 hr/day for 3 days) resulted in decreases in the succinic dehydrogenase, uricase and catalase activities of guinea pig liver. In the controls fasted to duplicate the weight loss of the hypoxic group, decreases in uricase and catalase but not in succinic dehydrogenase were seen when the activities were expressed on a wet weight basis. Decreases in the enzyme activities per unit nitrogen in fasted animals are attributable to enzyme inactivation with subsequent accumulation of nonenzymatic nitrogen which diluted the existing enzymatic protein. In the hypoxic animals, there was a true loss of liver protein nitrogen. No differences in sedimentation characteristics were found for the particles containing succinic dehydrogenase activity in the normal, fasted or hypoxic livers. Uricase, in the hypoxic liver alone, showed a greatly increased sedimentability, apparently as a result of a change in the physical state of the uricase-containing particles.


Bone-specific drug delivery is important for the treatment of osteoporosis and osseous metastases. Bisphosphonates are currently the major drugs used in this treatment. The clinical action of bisphosphonates on bone has been clarified and the molecular structure has been improved in order to obtain higher efficiency. By mimicking the chemical structure of bisphosphonate, we have synthesized polyphosphoester ionomers to modify the surface of phospholipid vesicles as novel bone-specific drug carriers. The ring-opening copolymerization of cyclic phosphoester monomers bearing ethoxy and benzyloxy groups was performed by using cholesterol as an initiator. The deprotection of benzyl groups from the copolymers results in the production of amphiphilic polyphosphoester ionomers (CH-PHE). Small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) composed of 1, 2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) vesicles mixed with CH-PHE were prepared. The ζ -potential of the vesicles was decreased by immobilization of CH-PHE; the amount was influenced by the structure and fraction of CH-PHE. The release rate of 5-carboxyfluorescein from the vesicles could be controlled by changing the fraction of DOPC and CH-PHE.


In this paper we analyze the structure of the class of discrete-time linear stochastic systems in terms of the geometric theory of stochastic realization. We discuss the role of invariant directions, zeros of spectral factors, and output-induced subspaces in determining the systems-theoretical properties of the stochastic systems. A prototype interpolation problem for recovering lost state information is discussed, and it is shown how it can be solved via Kalman filtering recursions tying together the state processes of a family of totally ordered splitting subspaces.


This study engages in an empirical analysis of the relationship between the rule of law and human development in the world order. Its goal is to determine whether lasting development can be achieved in emerging states without progress in the rule of law. The study relies on seven empirical models which plot seven separate human development indices against the rule of law index. Based on the empirical models, the study proposes a set of development paths for emerging nations which account for the possible ways in which emerging states achieve development. The study also recognises other development paths which take account of malignant development challenges occurring where there is specific resistance to development programs. Based on the evidence in the empirical models, the study concludes that the rule of law and human development are essential to one another to ensure development in emerging states and therefore police and other personnel working in these environments should modify their operational policies to implement this conclusion.


PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to detect the differentially expressed microRNA-186-5p in cervical cancer samples and to uncover its influence on the development of cervical cancer.

METHODS
Differentially expressed microRNA-186-5p was detected in cervical cancer tissues and normal cervical tissues. Its influences on clinical features and prognosis of cervical cancer patients were analyzed. Regulatory effect of microRNA-186-5p on migratory potential in HeLa and C33-A cells was examined. In addition, the target gene binding to microRNA-186-5p was searched and its involvement in the malignant development of cervical cancer was determined.

RESULTS
MicroRNA-186-5p was downregulated in cervical cancer patients, especially those with lymphatic metastasis or distant metastasis. High metastasis rate and poor prognosis were seen in cervical cancer patients expressing a low level of microRNA-186-5p. Overexpression of microRNA-186-5p inhibited migratory ability of cervical cancer cells. FZD3 was the downstream gene binding to microRNA-186-5p, which was upregulated in cervical cancer samples. Besides, it was capable of reversing the role of microRNA-186-5p in inhibiting migratory ability of cervical cancer cells.

CONCLUSIONS
MicroRNA-186-5p is lowly expressed in cervical cancer samples, and it inhibits the metastasis in cervical cancer cells by targeting FZD3.


Purpose of reviewMyeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are a heterogeneous population of immature cells that are considered as potential therapeutic targets. Indeed, MDSCs have been shown to suppress immune responses to several types of tumor cells and blocking their suppressive activity may adequately enhance immune response against tumor antigens. On the contrary, the activity of MDSCs may be desirable in suppressing unwanted immune responses such as allograft rejection and might be involved as non-T regulatory cells in the induction and maintenance of transplantation tolerance. In addition, recent data reported that MDSC also control innate immune responses suggesting that MDSC might be important players in controlling ischemia reperfusion injury. Recent findingsHerein, we focused on the few recent studies questioning the possible role played by MDSCs in solid-organ transplantation as well as in experimental models of graft versus host disease. SummaryA growing body of evidence demonstrates that MDSCs are important physiological regulators of innate and adaptive immunity. Now, accumulating studies suggest that this concept can be transposed to the early and late transplantation immunity. Nevertheless, additional studies with mechanistic approaches in animal together with studies in human are required to better define their position and their interactions with immunosuppressive drugs.


Using a functional-integral approach, we have determined the temperature below which cavitation in liquid helium is driven by thermally assisted quantum tunneling. For both helium isotopes, we have obtained the crossover temperature in the whole range of allowed negative pressures. Our results are compatible with recent experimental results on {sup 4}He. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}


Understanding market integration in developing countries is an important issue in current research. This study is an attempt to analyze wheat market integration in Pakistan. Previous research on the subject has attempted at analyzing market integration in Pakistan's south and north Punjab regions, mainly relying on co-integration only and not considering advanced dynamic models and transaction costs to analyze the degree of integration. Therefore, this study is a first attempt to analyze the extent of market integration in the whole country using a dynamic model. Monthly wholesale price data of five regional markets from January 1988 to April 2011 are used for this study. Price series were tested for stationarity with the Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) test and it was found that all prices are integrated of order one, commonly written as I(1). Cointegration was also identified in all price series pairs using Johansen's co-integration test. The Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) was then applied to the data to analyze the extent of market integration. As a result, it was found that the adjustment to shocks or disequilibrium was higher for the Lahore and Rawalpindi markets as compared to the Hyderabad and Peshawar markets. It might be because of the high consumption, low production and developed infrastructure in these regions. Adjustment coefficients were significant for most of the market pairs. The Threshold Vector Error Correction Model (TVECM) with a band of non-adjustment was applied to incorporate transaction costs, without relying on observations for these costs, which were not available for the study. It was found that linear ECMs or VECMs provide misleading results as compared to TVECMs. Short-run adjustments in the TVECM model provide mixed results depending on regimes as well as markets. Strong adjustments were found in the upper regime, which shows that when price differences are above the second threshold markets tend to adjust significantly.


Background: Shared reading has many benefits to children's language and literacy development. The practice of shared reading varies widely among different cultural groups and is influenced by sociocultural factors. Promotion of shared reading in the healthcare setting has been shown to be effective in many western countries. Very little data are available from other nations, particularly those in the Middle East about parental experiences and attitudes towards shared reading with children. The aim of this study was to explore sociocultural factors that influence shared reading with children in Jordan, a low-middle income Arabic speaking country. Methods: We used survey methodology to collect information on shared reading from a sample of parents of children 3-8 years of age presenting to the Jordan University Hospital Pediatrics clinic in Amman, Jordan. Data were also gathered through solicitation of narrative unstructured comments from parents. Qualitative and statistical data analysis were performed. Findings: Mothers universally believed that shared reading is beneficial for children. However, only a small minority (16.4%) reported reading to their children daily. Shared reading behaviors correlated with frequency of mothers' personal reading and with the number of books in the home. Mothers indicated a preference for culturally appropriate books, written in classical Arabic and books having a moral or a lesson. Barriers to shared reading included a perceived lack of encouragement of this practice from society and schools and lack of access to books and public libraries.Discussion: Promotion of shared reading is an effective way to enhance the literacy of children from varying ethnic and cultural backgrounds and represents an opportunity to reduce health disparities worldwide. Understanding regional sociocultural dynamics is an essential factor in planning successful interventions to promote literacy. We identified barriers to reading as well as cultural values that may be leveraged to enhance shared reading in Jordan.


Increases in evapotranspiration (ET) from global warming are decreasing streamflow in headwater basins worldwide. However, these streamflow losses do not occur uniformly due to complex topography. To better understand the heterogeneity of streamflow loss, we use the Budyko shape parameter (ω) as a diagnostic tool. We fit ω to 37-year of hydrologic simulation output in the Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB), an important headwater basin in the US. We split the UCRB into two categories: peak watersheds with high elevation and steep slopes, and valley watersheds with lower elevation and gradual slopes. Our results demonstrate a relationship between streamflow loss and ω. The valley watersheds with greater streamflow loss have ω higher than 3.1, while the peak watersheds with less streamflow loss have an average ω of 1.3. This work highlights the use of ω as an indicator of streamflow loss and could be generalized to other headwater basin systems.


Abstract Preparing students to be effective citizens is a longstanding goal of public education. Historical content provides illustrative opportunities for civic learning. Teaching about the Holocaust exemplifies this approach. Employing an experimental research design with 865 secondary school students, we analyze effects on civic outcomes from learning about the Holocaust through a school-sponsored trip to a Holocaust museum. We find that lessons about the Holocaust increase students' support for civil liberties and deepen historical content knowledge, but decrease religious tolerance. High school students and those from college-educated households drive increases in support for civil liberties, and these students are more likely to donate to human rights causes as a result of the intervention. Middle school students and those from less-educated households drive the negative religious tolerance effect. These findings suggest that history lessons can produce meaningful impacts on civic educational outcomes. However, a stronger educational foundation that comes with engaging with challenging political issues may be a vital prerequisite to avoid undesirable consequences.


BACKGROUND
Valosin-containing protein (VCP) is associated with anti-apoptotic function and metastasis via activation of the nuclear factor-kappaB signaling pathway. In the present study, association of VCP expression with prognosis of gingival squamous cell carcinoma (GSCC) was examined.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
VCP expression in 74 patients with GSCC (34 males and 40 females) with ages ranging from 42 to 85 (median 66) years was evaluated by immunohistochemistry, in which staining intensity in tumor cells was categorized as either weaker (level 1) or equal to/stronger (level 2) than that in the endothelial cells.

RESULTS
Twenty-four (32.4%) cases showed level 1 and 50 (67.6%) level 2 VCP expression. Patients with level 1 GSCC showed a significantly better 5-year survival rate than those with level 2 GSCC (5-year overall survival: 100% versus 84.9%, P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed VCP expression level, lymph node metastasis and pT(TNM) to be independent factors for overall survival. Patients with GSCC at stages I and II showed favorable prognosis regardless of VCP expression status, whereas at stages III and IV, patients with level 1 VCP expression showed better survival rates than those with level 2 expression.

CONCLUSION
Prognostic significance of VCP expression level in GSCC was demonstrated.


The present study focuses on the way novice teachers, who are part of a one-year postgraduate diploma in post-primary teaching, have opted to negotiate their status as school teachers. In particular, it asks why novice teachers prefer to hide as they scramble to learn how to teach. On the basis of three separate interviews spaced out though the teaching year 2009 (January, March, May), a team of university-based tutors probed for student reactions to competence-based issues. Adopting a sociocultural perspective, this study drew upon roughly 10% of the pre-service student cohort (n = 17), each in a different placement location. The study looked, in particular, at their negotiating power, particularly the effect of school supports for their reality as learners. Findings suggest that without quality mentoring support, our pre-service teachers prefer to become 'invisible' as learners. Three pre-professional stances are identified: fragile, robust and competitive. The key finding is that none of these pre-professional stances mitigate pre-service students' lack of negotiating power. On the other hand, informal school-based supports can help students considerably.


This proceeding presents the result of the first study of the long-range hadron correlations in pp collisions with a constraint on collision geometry. The constraint is implemented by requiring events in which a Z boson is produced. Selecting collisions with hard scattering causes the impact parameter distribution to be different from the inclusive pp collision. The analysis uses 19.4 fb−1 of √ s = 8 TeV pp data obtained by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The correlations between the charged-particle pairs in relative azimuthal angle over the transverse momentum range from 0.5 GeV to 5 GeV are studied as a function of the charged particle multiplicity of the event. The number of charged particle tracks and the correlation functions are corrected to account for the significant pileup contribution present in the events. The correlation in the Z-tagged events is found to be independent of multiplicity, and its magnitude is 8 ± 6% larger than that in inclusive pp events.


Constitutive activities of the liver cytochromes P450 1A1, 1A2, 2C6 and 2B1 were lower in rats with the acute experimental pancreatitis during ten days of this disease. In rats pretreated with a single dose of Arochlor 1254 on the second day of pancreatitis activities of these enzymes remained elevated to the tenth day. Thus, acute pancreatitis caused long-term suppression of microsomal monooxygenase system, whereas induction by Arochlor 1254 increased cytochromes P450 activity in both control animals and in rats with pancreatitis.


Stress dependency and anisotropy of dynamic elastic properties of shales is important for a number of geophysical applications, including seismic interpretation, fluid identification, and 4D seismic monitoring. Using SayersKachanov formalism, we developed a new model for transversely isotropic (TI) media that describes stress sensitivity behavior of all five elastic coefficients using four physically meaningful parameters. The model is used to parameterize elastic properties of about 20 shales obtained from laboratory measurements and the literature. The four fitting parameters, namely, specific tangential compliance of a single crack, ratio of normal to tangential compliances, characteristic pressure, and crack orientation anisotropy parameter, show moderate to good correlations with the depth from which the shale was extracted. With increasing depth, the tangential compliance exponentially decreases. The crack orientation anisotropy parameter broadly increases with depth for most of the shales, indicating that cracks are getting more aligned in the bedding plane. The ratio of normal to shear compliance and characteristic pressure decreases with depth to 2500 m and then increases below this to 3600 m. The suggested model allows us to evaluate the stress dependency of all five elastic compliances of a TI medium, even if only some of them are known. This may allow the reconstruction of the stress dependency of all five elastic compliances of a shale from log data, for example.


Part I. Basic Concepts and Issues for Multidimensional Interventions with Children. 1. A Multidimensional Approach to Intervention with Children. 2. Professional, Ethical, and Legal Issues. 3. Contemporary Issues: Managed Mental Health Care, Brief Therapies, and Empirically Supported Therapies for Children. 4. Assessment: The First Step. 5. Therapeutic Interventions with Children: Art and Science, Process and Outcome. Part II. Therapeutic Interventions with Children: Theory and Practice 6. Psychodynamic Theory. 7. Psychodynamic Interventions. 8. Child-Centered Theory. 9. Child-Centered Interventions. 10. Behavioral and Cognitive-Behavioral Theory. 11. Behavioral and Cognitive-Behavioral Interventions. 12. Family Systems Theory. 13. Family Systems Interventions. Part III. Multidimensional Interventions with Children: Other Therapeutic Strategies. 14. Consultation. 15. Psychopharmacotherapy and Other Interventions for Children. 16. Integrated Approaches to Intervention. References. Appendix A. ACA Code of Ethics. Appendix B. APA Code of Ethics. Appendix C. NASW Code of Ethics. Name Index. Subject Index.


Abstract.  The highly endemic diversity of the Yun-Gui plateau lakes has decreased severely in recent decades. Protecting these native species is a challenge, in part because their biology and population ecology remain unexplored. We investigated 1 focal endangered gastropod species (Margarya melanioides) in 1 plateau lake: 1) to quantify spatiotemporal variation in population abundance and size structure, and 2) to identify the key variables influencing these variations. Density was 0.068 individuals/m2 with an estimated total population size of 2.1 × 107 individuals. The size-frequency distribution was skewed toward larger, mature individuals (40.0–60.0 mm), a result indicating that the population is aging. Population size structure showed high spatial heterogeneity, and density was highest in the north-central region of the lake. Redundancy analysis indicated that human-induced environmental degradation strongly controlled the spatial patterns in size-structure. This species has experienced a remarkable decrease in range and population size over the past 50 y, and the population probably will collapse by 2015. The decline could be attributed to demographic drift, environmental filtering, human harvesting, and its limited dispersal ability. Our studies should give useful information for building efficient conservation strategies for M. melanioides and other threatened plateau gastropods. Further studies are needed on the population ecology and reproductive biology of M. melanioides, particularly on its reproductive behavior and size-specific survivorship.


Traditionally in Denmark, rainwater detention basins are designed based on an input box rain with a given return period and a constant outflow from the basin. The water authorities specify the outflow rate in order to avoid erosion in the recipient. Intensity-Duration-Frequency (IDF) curves are used as a prerequisite for the method. Given the design return period, and varying the duration of the box rain, the basin volume that prevents spill from the basin can be determined. By analysing for a series of outflow rates, a basin volume curve for the selected return period can be developed. The current practice is revisited, and a new analytical solution for the duration of the design rain is found.

A constant outflow rate for the basin is, however, not always a realistic assumption, and thus there is a risk for underestimation. An alternative design method has been analysed, assuming that the outflow from the basin takes place corresponding to at linear reservoir with maximum outflow rate equal to the one specified by the water authorities. The method is described in detail, and the results compared with those of the current guidelines.


Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has been an important nosocomial pathogen worldwide for more than four decades. Community-acquired MRSA infections, generally occurring in previously healthy persons without recognizable risk factors for health care setting-related MRSA, are emerging as serious clinical and public health concerns. The most frequent of these community-based infections include skin and soft tissue infections and necrotizing pneumonias. A majority of causative communityacquired MRSA (CA-MRSA) isolates are associated with genes that encode the virulence factor, Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) toxin.
Aims & Objectives: To describe six cases of CA-MRSA pneumonia recently admitted to our community hospital in Florida, and discuss the epidemiology, clinical features, and management of these expanding infections.
Methods/Study Design: The medical records of six patients with radiographically-confirmed pneumonia and positive sputum cultures for MRSA at the time of hospitalization at the Lawnwood Regional Medical Center and Heart Institute, Fort Pierce, Florida, from December 2006 through January 2007, were retrospectively reviewed. All patients were seen by one of the authors (DO), an infectious diseases consultant. Lawnwood Regional Medical Center is a 341-bed, acute care institution and regional referral center for four counties of Treasure Coast, FL. The hospital institution review board gave permission for this study.
  Results/Findings: Six patients (5 men, 1 woman) with CA-MRSA pneumonia were identified. The mean patient age was 57 years (range, 32-79 years). Three patients had no history of previous hospital admission, while two patients had been last hospitalized two years prior to the study admission. Three elderly patients had known co-morbidities predisposing to pneumonia including carcinoma of the lung (2 patients), and cirrhosis, diabetes mellitus, chronic renal failure, COPD, and cardiomyopathy (1 patient each). Sputum samples were collected at the time of admission and all grew MRSA. Two isolates were resistant only to oxacillin, while four were also resistant to levofloxacin (3 isolates), erythromycin (2 isolates), ciprofloxacin (1 isolate), and/or clindamycin (1 isolate). One patient had concurrent Pseudomonas bacteremia, and another had Pseudomonas isolated from sputum culture in addition to MRSA. All patients had abnormal chest radiographs; three had focal unilateral pneumonia, two had bilateral pneumonia, and one had a lung abscess. The latter patient also had evidence of metastatic infection with sternoclavicular osteomyelitis. Three patients required ventilatory support; two of these subjects died and one was discharged to hospice care. None of the six patients had any epidemiologic connection to one another.
Conclusion: CA-MRSA is becoming an increasingly important cause of communityacquired pneumonia in many parts of the world, and in these regions empiric antibiotic treatment guidelines should be reconsidered.


Background: Indications for surgery during pregnancy have increased. Specifically fetal interventions have increased from conditions that were considered lethal like twin-twin transfusion syndrome and severe fetal anemia to non-lethal conditions like myelomeningocele. The optimal anesthetic agent for in utero surgery is yet to be determined. Success of the procedure is often dictated by the efficacy of the anesthetic to immobilize the fetus without over-sedating mom. Remifentanil is used as preferred agent due to its short half-life however pharmacokinetics in pregnancy is unknown. Objective: To determine the pharmacokinetic parameters of remifentanil in a mid-trimester pregnant patient population undergoing fetal intervention. Study Design: A validated liquid chromatography assay with ultraviolet absorbance was employed to estimate maternal serum remifentanil levels. Blood samples were obtained at baseline and at selected time points: 5, 15, 30, 45, 60 min after the beginning of the remifentanil infusion and at 15, 30, and 60 min post end of infusion. Results: Ten pregnant patients were enrolled in the study however only eight patients had sampling obtained at all time points. The mean gestational age was 22.2 (±2.7) weeks, maternal age was 27.8 (±5.1) years and body mass index was 29.6 (±6.3). After receiving a continuous infusion of remifentanil, mean total dose was 975.3 μg, Cmin was 2.0 ng/mL and Cmax was 8.4 ng/mL. A two-compartment model best described the plasma remifentanil data. Mean pharmacokinetic parameters were: volume of distribution (Vdc) = 124.6 L (16.2–530.8 L), maternal remifentanil total clearance (Clt) = 170.7 L/h (17.7–486.9 L/h), and half-life (t½) = 0.6 h (0.2–0.9 h). The maternal remifentanil area under the curve (AUC) ranged from 2.7 to 21.7 μg/L*h. The mean alpha-acidic glycoprotein was 124.8 mg/dL (81.3–149.8). Conclusion: The pharmacokinetic profile of remifentanil in pregnant women is similar to previously reported general population profiles. This data did provide potential rationale for the clinical observations why when remifentanil is dosed based on non-pregnant guidelines, it did not uniformly provide adequate fetal immobilization as per anecdotal perception of operating fetal surgeons. These findings are important for the development of further clinical studies to optimize dosing for surgery during pregnancy including the estimation of placental transfer and total fetal exposure.


The aim of this study was to develop and validate a simplified steady state mathematical model to predict temperature distribution in a commercial poultry house equipped with a negative pressure ventilation system and internal misting. The model was validated with data obtained experimentally during the summer. For external temperature conditions of 26, 27, and 29 °C, the best combinations of energy generated by misting (qmisting), ventilation rate (V), global heat loss coefficient for the roof (Ut), and global heat loss coefficient for the wall (Upar) were encountered to maintain the majority of the installation with temperatures within the optimal thermal comfort range for the birds (24 to 29 °C).


Sodium ion battery is one of the promising rechargeable batteries due to the low-cost and abundant sodium sources. In this work, a monolithic sodium ion battery based on a Na3 V2 (PO4 )3 cathode, MoS2 layered anode, and polyether-based polymer electrolyte is reported. In addition, a new kind of polysulfonamide-supported poly(ethylene glycol) divinyl ether based polymer electrolyte is also demonstrated for monolithic sodium ion battery via in situ preparation. The resultant polymer electrolyte exhibits relatively high ionic conductivity (1.2 mS cm-1 ) at ambient temperature, wide electrochemical window (4.7 V), and favorable mechanical strength (25 MPa). Moreover, such a monolithic Na3 V2 (PO4 )3 /MoS2 sodium ion battery using this polymer electrolyte delivers outstanding rate capability (up to 10 C) and superior cyclic stability (84%) after 1000 cycles at 0.5 C. What is more essential, such a polymer electrolyte based soft-package monolithic sodium ion cell can still power a red light emitting diode lamp and run finite times without suffering from any internal short-circuit failures, even in the case of a bended and wrinkled state. Considering these aspects, this work no doubt provides a new approach for the design of a high-performance polymer electrolyte toward monolithic sodium ion battery with exceptional rate capability and high safety.


The Soviet Union was characterized by an array of holidays related to socialist ideology and nation building, including May Day and Victory Day in May, Women's Day in March and Revolution Day in November [Lane 1981; Serbyn in press]. While the effects of the fall of the Soviet Union on daily life have been extensively documented, folklorists have yet to examine its concomitant effects on these socialist holidays. This paper, which examines the evolution of one of these holidays, is based on data collected at the fifty-sixth celebration of Victory Day (May 9, 2001) in Novosibirsk and in interviews with five Novosibirsk residents, all ethnic Russians. My informants, all residents of Novosibirsk ranging in age from 27 to 65, were raised with these holidays. For these people, they constitute a tradition akin to calendar rituals in the Russian village. The Soviet national holidays, primarily an urban phenomenon, united city residents and celebrated seasonal change (e.g. May Day was not only a celebration of the worker, but also of the coming of spring) as well as furthered political aims. At the present time, Labor Day and Revolution Day are almost exclusively Communist celebrations, despite the fact that they remain national holidays. However, Victory Day is celebrated by a large proportion of the population in the Russian territory of the former Soviet Union. (1) Here I examine why celebration of this holiday has survived nearly intact when other Soviet holidays are much more restricted in practice. In addition, I shall discuss whether the Soviet functions of the holiday have still been preserved or whether the holiday serves other purposes in the post-Soviet world.


Extracellular matrix and basement membrane alterations were identified in human corneas after radial keratotomy. Ten normal and five radial keratotomy autopsy corneas (two at 6 months post surgery, and three at 3 years post surgery) were studied by immunofluorescence with antibodies to 28 extracellular matrix and basement membrane components. Outside of radial keratotomy scars, all studied components had a normal distribution. Of stromal extracellular matrix, only type III collagen accumulated around the scars. The basement membrane around epithelial plugs had a normal composition except for type IV collagen. Its alpha1-alpha2 chains, normally present only in the limbal basement membrane, appeared around all plugs. alpha3 and alpha4 chains were very weak or absent in these areas, contrary to nonscarred areas. This basement membrane pattern was similar to the normal limbal but not to the central corneal pattern. Keratin 3 also had a limbal-like, suprabasal expression in the plug epithelium. The stroma around the scars accumulated tenascin-C, fibrillin-1, types VIII and XIV collagen, all of which were absent from normal corneal basement membrane and extracellular matrix. Only tenascin-C showed less staining in anterior scars 3 years post surgery than 6 months post surgery, but still persisted in posterior scars. Incomplete scar healing was evident even 3 years post radial keratotomy. It was manifested by the accumulation of abnormal extracellular matrix in the anterior and posterior scars and by the limbal-like pattern of type IV collagen isoforms in the basement membrane around epithelial plugs.


ABSTRACT Many viral oncolytic approaches against cancer are based on the ability of specific viruses to replicate in tumors expressing components of the constitutively activated Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways and/or inhibited or dysregulated alpha/beta interferon (IFN-α/β) response pathways. A major issue when considering these approaches is their applicability to tumors that lack activated Ras. To identify the effector mechanisms activated by oncolytic viruses, we investigated inhibition of proliferation of the prostate cancer line LNCap by the recombinant TR-NS1 influenza A virus, a genetically attenuated influenza A/PR8/34 virus expressing a truncated nonstructural protein (NS1) of 126 amino acids. LNCap cells lack constitutively activated MAPK, extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), and p38 and are resistant to death by IFN-α. Truncation of the NS1 protein of influenza viruses is known to result in viral attenuation due to a reduced ability of the NS1 to inhibit the IFN-α/β response. Infection with TR-NS1 virus rapidly activated ERK-1 more than ERK-2 in LNCap cells. Importantly, TR-NS1 virus infection transiently inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in LNCap cells. Addition of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and interleukin 12 (IL-12) to TR-NS1 virus-infected LNCap cells (TR-NS1-LNCap) resulted in faster elimination of TR-NS1-LNCap cells compared with LNCap cells. Moreover, TR-NS1-LNCap cells induced IFN-γ in PBMC. The levels of IFN-γ were amplified by IL-12. TR-NS1-LNCap cells also induced tumor-lytic cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL). These CTL lysed noninfected LNCap cells in a CD8-dependent manner. Activation of cellular immunity to tumor cells by viruses is an intriguing effector pathway, which should be especially significant for elimination of human tumors that lack activated Ras.


In the 77 reference strains for Klebsiella K types, there are 17 strains (22.1%) of Klebsiella planticola, 6 strains (7.8%) of Klebsiella oxytoca, 1 strain (1.3%) of Klebsiella terrigena, and 53 strains (68.8%) of Klebsiella pneumoniae. The species K. planticola, which was originally isolated from botanical and aquatic environments and hence thus named, was also identified at high incidence (81 strains, 18.5%) among the 439 recent clinical isolates of Klebsiella species. Among these K. planticola strains of hospital origin, 52 (64%) were isolated from sputum, 17 (21%) from urine, and the remaining 12 (15%) from other sources. The capsular types of these isolates were determined by the gel precipitation reaction. Seventy of 81 K. planticola isolates (86.4%) were typable by antisera to Klebsiella reference strains for K types and the K types of the clinical isolates distributed to 35 kinds of K types. The proportion of typable strains among clinical isolates of K. planticola was very similar to those in K. pneumoniae (87.5%) and K. oxytoca (86.0%).


ABSTRACT Following a long-distance outbreak of Legionnaires' disease from an industrial air scrubber in Norway in 2005, a seroepidemiological study measuring levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM antibodies to Legionella pneumophila was performed with a polyvalent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. One year after the outbreak, IgG levels in employees (n = 213) at the industrial plant harboring the scrubber and in blood donors (n = 398) from the outbreak county were low but significantly higher (P ≤ 0.002) than those in blood donors (n = 406) from a nonexposed county. No differences in IgM levels among the three groups were found after adjustment for gender and age. Home addresses of the seroresponders in the exposed county clustered to the city of the outbreak, in contrast to the scattering of addresses of the seroresponding donors in the nonexposed county. Factory employees who operated at an open biological treatment plant had significantly higher IgG and IgM levels (P ≤ 0.034) than those working >200 m away. Most of the healthy seroresponders among the factory employees worked near this exposure source. Immunoblotting showed that IgG and IgM antibodies in 82.1% of all seroresponders were directed to the lipopolysaccharide of the L. pneumophila serogroup 1 outbreak strain. In conclusion, 1 year after the long-distance industrial outbreak a small increase in IgG levels of the exposed population was observed. The open biological treatment plant within the industrial premises, however, constituted a short-distance exposure source of L. pneumophila for factory employees working nearby.


Here, M. Eugene Boring traces the role that early Christian prophets played in the transmission of sayings of Jesus and in the way these sayings were taken up into the canonical Gospels. He also examines Jesus' sayings to uncover the imprint that any might bear of having been handed on by early Christian prophets. Convincingly, he shows that early Christian prophets re-presented authentic sayings of Jesus, or modified Jesus' sayings, or even uttered new sayings in the name of the exalted Jesus. Clearly written and closely reasoned, this book sheds light on a much neglected area of Gospel research.


As supply chain activities become more dispersed among customers, suppliers and service providers, there is an increased need for customers and suppliers to work together more closely. Supply chain integration (SCI) has been a highly researched topic during the last 20 years. A meta-analytic approach is used to provide a quantitative review of the empirical literature in SCI, and examines relevant design and contextual factors. Eighty independent samples across 86 peer-reviewed journal articles, yielding a total of 17,467 observations, were obtained and analyzed. While general support exists in favor of the positive impact of SCI on firm performance in the literature, this research helps clarify mixed findings that presently exist. Our results indicate that there is a positive and significant correlation between SCI and firm performance. Additional subgroups and moderators are tested and provide nuanced views of the scope and specific dimensions of SCI, firm performance and their relationships.


In this paper we describe a two-component BRET (bioluminescence resonance energy transfer)-based method to detect vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) molecules in unknown samples as the basis for subsequent in vivo use. A luminescent VEGF binding molecule, which binds in the receptor binding motif of VEGF, is used as the energy donor, transferred to a fluorophore-coupled VEGF binding molecule (acceptor), which binds to the neuropilin binding motif of VEGF, thus enabling energy transfer from the donor to the acceptor molecule. This leads to the emission of light at a longer wavelength and thus the generation of an increased BRET signal only when VEGF is bound to both the donor and acceptor molecules. We further describe a novel BRET pair that uses the Renilla reniformis mutant luciferase RLuc8 and the chemically engineered fluorophore PerCP-Cy5.5®, which exhibits superior peak separation of approximately 300 nm. The implantation of capsules consisting of the two BRET components in solution, permeable for VEGF for its in vivo detection, would provide a new and improved method for monitoring VEGF-induced pathologies and thus an adjustment of therapy to patient needs.


Background: Cognitive impairment in schizophrenia can result in considerable difficulty in performing functions of daily life or social rehabilitation. Cognitive impairment in schizophrenia is related to various factors, such as the psychotic severity, aging, medication, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). To date, however, no studies investigating the impact of these factors on cognitive functioning in chronic schizophrenia patients have been performed. Objective: The aim of this study is to identify those factors that influence the cognitive functioning in patients with chronic schizophrenia. Methods: Sixty-five of 116 long-term hospitalized chronic schizophrenia patients (63.8 ± 12.1 years old, M/F = 29/36) were enrolled this cross-sectional study. We investigated the relationship among the patients' age, psychotic severity, treatment medication, serum BDNF levels, and cognitive functioning (measured by the Japanese-language version of the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia; BACS-J). Additionally, we performed a multivariable linear regression analysis. Results: According to the partial correlation analysis, certain parameters [i.e., age, chlorpromazine (CP) equivalent, biperiden (BP) equivalent, and serum BDNF] were significantly correlated with cognitive functioning, including working memory (WM), motor function (MF), attention and processing speed (AP), and executive function (EF). For the multivariate analysis, the MF component, which had the highest correlation, was selected as the dependent variable, and the independent variables included age, Manchester Scale for chronic psychosis (ManS) total score, CP equivalent, BP equivalent, serum BDNF, estimated full scale IQ, and years of education. According to the multiple regression analysis of this model, R (multiple regression coefficient) was 0.542, the adjusted R2 (coefficient of determination) was 0.201, and only BP equivalent (β = −0.305, p = 0.030), but not age, ManS score, CP equivalent, or serum BDNF, could significantly explain MF at the 5% significant level. Conclusion: In conclusion, aging, medication (administering more antipsychotics or anticholinergics), and serum BDNF concentration are significantly correlated with cognitive dysfunction in chronic schizophrenia patients but not with the severity of psychotic symptoms. Furthermore, only the anticholinergic dosage had a significant causal relationship with MF. Thus, the use of anticholinergics in chronic schizophrenia patients with deteriorating cognitive functioning must be reconsidered.


Duodenal ulcer is associated with Helicobacter pylori almost in 90-100% of cases. Severe disease of the stomach adenocarcinoma is caused by infection with Helicobacter pylori in 70-90% of cases. Persons infected with this bacterium were proven statistically to be in group of the increased risk of the development of gastric cancer. Helicobacter pylori expresses a spectrum of virulence factors which cause dysregulation of intracellular signaling pathways in a host cell, that reduces the resistance to neoplastic transformation. In the review there are presented data about identified to the present time deregulated miRNAs associated with H.pylori diseases, including cancer of the stomach, and a few data on their biological significance. The growing number of studies confirming the involvement of miRNAs in various stages of carcinogenesis from gastritis to the formation of metastases demonstrates the importance of the new directions of the research.


AIM
(i) To assess the impact of primary root canal treatment on the perceived quality of life amongst a cohort of Jordanian patients, (ii) to assess this cohort's satisfaction of their primary root canal treatment, and (iii) to evaluate the association of the level of training and experience of clinicians with these two parameters.

METHODOLOGY
A systematic random sample of 302 subjects was selected from patients who attended undergraduate, graduate and specialty clinics of Jordan University of Science and Technology. Participants were interviewed before and two weeks after completion of root canal treatment. The study instrument included the Oral Health Impact Profile questionnaire (Dugas et al. 2002) and seven semantic differential scales. Data analyses included descriptive statistics and nonparametric analyses.

RESULTS
More than 90% of subjects reported improvements in the sense of taste, pain, eating, altering food temperature, self-consciousness, waking up during sleep, interruption of meals, difficulty to relax and difficulty to sleep after root canal treatment. There was no significant difference in terms of improvement amongst patients treated by specialists, graduate students or undergraduate students. The overall semantic differential score of intraoperative pain, pleasantness, chewing ability and general satisfaction was about 8. Satisfaction of root canal treatment by specialists was higher in terms of time involved, intraoperative pain, pleasantness and general satisfaction than those treatments by undergraduate students. Patients treated by specialist were least satisfied with the treatment cost compared to those patients treated by graduate or undergraduate students.

CONCLUSIONS
The impact of root canal treatment on the quality of life was apparent. Satisfaction with root canal treatment approximates 8 on the semantic differential scale with preference for specialists over dental students.


The Great Recession marks the worst downturn since those of the early 1980s. A large literature considers how the public safety net responded to this shock. We instead consider the responsiveness of one dimension of the private safety net. Families can react to negative shocks by moving in with relatives or downsizing. We use across-state over-time variation to estimate the effects of cycles on living arrangements, paying particular attention to young adults. We find living arrangements are cyclical, but effects are small. Surprisingly given the press attention, we find no evidence that things are different in the Great Recession.


This paper presents a hybrid approach to spatial indexing of two dimensional (2D) data. It sheds new light on the age old problem by thinking of the traditional algorithms as working with images. Inspiration is drawn from an analogous situation that is found in machine and human vision. Image processing techniques are used to assist in the spatial indexing of the data. A fixed grid approach is used and bins with too many records are sub-divided hierarchically. Search queries are pre-computed for bins that do not contain any data records. This has the effect of dividing the search space up into non rectangular regions which are based on the spatial properties of the data. The bucketing quad tree can be considered as an image with a resolution of 2x2 for each layer. The results show that this method performs better than the quad tree if there are more divisions per layer. This confirms our suspicions that the algorithm works better if it gets to "look" at the data with higher resolution images. An elegant class structure is developed where the implementation of concrete spatial indexes for a particular data type merely relies on rendering the data onto an image.


In experiments on male rats the influence of different degree of saturation of rats organism with testosterone on gastrotoxicity of diclophenac-sodium, nomesulide and celecoxib was investigated. It was shown that testosterone promoted increase of damaging action of NSAIDs on the stomach. After gonadectomy the multiplicity and severity of gastric lesion were by 2,5 less than in intact rats. Replacement therapy with testosterone increased ulcerogenic action of diclophenac by 2,9 times in comparison with rats after gonadectomy. Excessive introduction of testosterone promoted more intensive gastrotoxicity in comparison with intact rats. Investigation of biochemical markers of protective barrier s of gastric mucosa in male rats has shown that testosterone is the factor which decreases stomach mucosal defense. Gonadectomy of male rats increases production of glycosaminoglycanes, nitrite/nitrates (by 17,7%), and SOD activity (by 16,9%) and at the same time decreases MDA level (by 17,3%). Substitutive and excessive introduction of testosterone caused opposite effect. Introduction of diclophenac sodium during 7 days resulted in macroscopic changes in gastric mucosa and was accompanied with decreasing of glycosaminoglycanes, nitrite/nitrates and SOD activity and increasing of MDA level. These changes directly correlated with  the level of saturation with testosterone in male organism. Thereby accounting level of androgen saturation in organism of male rats gives possibility to correct the dose of NSAIDs and opens new perspectives for selection of optimal drug-correctors of NSAIDs gastrotoxicity.


Abstract Objective: We describe the clinical and imaging studies of 11 full-term babies with neonatal stroke. We classify the neonatal non-hemorrhagic strokes as thrombotic, embolic, or global vascular insufficiency and determine if this classification is improved by adding magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) to conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). Methods: Clinically, eight of the 11 babies presented with seizures, one with apnea, and two with lethargy. Conventional MRI and DWI were used to classify each infarct as being either borderzone or vascular distribution. The location of infarction revealed the presumed vascular pathophysiology. Results: Infants were classified as having either embolic (bilateral middle cerebral artery, n=1), global ischemic (bilateral borderzone, n=2), or thrombotic infarction (unilateral middle cerebral artery, n=7; bilateral posterior cerebral arteries, n=1). DWI and MRS detected a small infarct better than conventional MRI in one patient. MRA showed abnormal intracranial arteries in three, all of who were in the thrombotic group. Even though MRS was more sensitive than conventional MRI in detecting ischemia/ infarction in one patient, in another there was no detectable lactate in the stroke region found on conventional MRI. Clinical presentation was similar in global ischemia and focal infarctions, but newborn stroke was more likely to present with lateralizing focal motor seizures. Seizures were the most common presenting sign, with a paucity of other focal neurological deficits. Conclusion: MRI is the best approach to determine stroke pathophysiology. Brain infarction frequently presents with seizures. We speculate that the location and distribution of infarction might determine stroke timing, pathophysiology and outcome. Ongoing clinical studies will likely clarify this speculation.


The purpose of this indexed bibliography is to organize and collect the literature references on waste generation and treatment, characteristics, inventories, and costs. The references were captured into a searchable information file, and the information file was sorted, indexed, and printed for this bibliography. A completion of approximately 1100 references to nuclear waste management, the first of a series, is completed. Each reference is categorized by waste origin (commercial, defense, institutional, and foreign) and by subject area: (1) high-level wastes, (2) low-level wastes, (3) TRU wastes, (4) airborne wastes, (5) remedial action (formerly utilized sites, surplus facilities, and mill tailings), (6) isolation, (7) transportation, (8) spent fuel, (9) fuel cycle centers, and (10) a general category that covers nonspecific wastes. Five indexes are provided to assist the user in locating documents of interest: author, author affiliation (corporate authority), subject category, keyword, and permuted title. Machine (computer) searches of these indexes can be made specifying multiple constraints if so desired. This bibliography will be periodically updated as new information becomes available. In addition to being used in searches for specific data, the information file can also be used for resource document collection, names and addresses of contacts, and identification of potential sources of data.


We report the creation and full determination of several quantum states of motion of a Be ion bound in a rf (Paul) trap. The states are coherently prepared from an ion which has been initially laser cooled to the zero-point of motion. We create states having both classical and nonclassical character including thermal, number, coherent, squeezed, and \Schrodinger cat" states. The motional quantum state is fully reconstructed using two novel schemes that determine the density matrix in the number state basis or the Wigner-function. Our techniques allow well controlled experiments on decoherence and related phenomena on the quantum-classical borderline.


Attention-based models have recently shown great performance on a range of tasks, such as speech recognition, machine translation, and image captioning due to their ability to summarize relevant information that expands through the entire length of an input sequence. In this paper, we analyze the usage of attention mechanisms to the problem of sequence summarization in our end-to-end text-dependent speaker recognition system. We explore different topologies and their variants of the attention layer, and compare different pooling methods on the attention weights. Ultimately, we show that attention-based models can improves the Equal Error Rate (EER) of our speaker verification system by relatively 14% compared to our non-attention LSTM baseline model.


The relationship between polymorphism of the bovine lymphocyte Ag (BoLA)-DRB3 gene and resistance and susceptibility to persistent lymphocytosis (PL) caused by bovine leukemia virus (BLV) was investigated. Exon 2 of the BoLA-DRB3 gene was cloned from animals with BoLA haplotypes previously found to be associated with resistance and susceptibility to PL. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of the amino acids Glu-Arg (ER) at putative Ag binding residues 70 and 71 only in BoLA haplotypes associated with resistance to PL. This correlation was confirmed in a case control study (n = 26) using an allele-specific polymerase chain reaction for the detection of ER at residues 70-71. These results provide a molecular basis for Ir gene control of resistance and susceptibility to PL and suggest that the cellular immune response is important in preventing the in vivo spread of BLV infection.


Polyunsaturated lipids are an essential component of biological membranes, influencing order and dynamics of lipids, protein-lipid interaction, and membrane transport properties. To gain an atomic level picture of the impact of polyunsaturation on membrane properties, quantum mechanical (QM) and empirical force field based calculations have been undertaken. The QM calculations of the torsional energy surface for rotation about vinyl-methylene bonds reveal low barriers to rotation, indicating an intrinsic propensity toward flexibility. Based on QM and experimental data, empirical force field parameters were developed for polyunsaturated lipids and applied in a 16 ns molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of a 1-stearoyl-2-docosahexaenoyl-sn-glyerco-3-phosphocholine (SDPC) lipid bilayer. The simulation results are in good agreement with experimental data, suggesting an unusually high degree of conformational flexibility of polyunsaturated hydrocarbon chains in membranes. The detailed analysis of chain conformation and dynamics by simulations is aiding the interpretation of experimental data and is useful for understanding the unique role of polyunsaturated lipids in biological membranes. The complete force field is included as Supporting Information and is available from http://www.pharmacy.umaryland.edu/faculty/amackere/research.html.


Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi Author Dawei Feng Name of the doctoral dissertation Thermodynamic Measurements on Alloys and Compounds in Ag-Au-Se and Ag-Pd systems by the Electromotive Force Method Publisher School of Chemical Technology Unit Department of Materials Science and Engineering Series Aalto University publication series DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS 172/2014 Field of research Metallurgy Manuscript submitted 1 August 2014 Date of the defence 28 November 2014 Permission to publish granted (date) 28 October 2014 Language English Monograph Article dissertation (summary + original articles) Abstract Gold and silver chalcogenides are significant minerals and major carriers of precious metals, and silver palladium alloy is one of the most important silver alloys with various industrial applications. The Ag-Au-Se ternary system and the Ag-Pd binary system have been investigated by the electromotive force (EMF) method in this study.Gold and silver chalcogenides are significant minerals and major carriers of precious metals, and silver palladium alloy is one of the most important silver alloys with various industrial applications. The Ag-Au-Se ternary system and the Ag-Pd binary system have been investigated by the electromotive force (EMF) method in this study. For the Ag-Au-Se ternary system, the numerical values of the standard thermodynamic functions of the compounds Ag2Se (naumannite), AuSe, and Ag3AuSe2 (fischesserite) have been determined by the EMF method in a solid-state galvanic cell with superionic conductor RbAg4I5 and AgI as solid state electrolyte. The compounds Ag2Se, AuSe, and Ag3AuSe2 were synthesized from pure elements in evacuated quartz glass ampoules and then examined to be homogenous by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS). According to the experimental data on the EMF versus temperature, the analytical equations were obtained for the polymorphic forms of the compounds Ag2Se, AuSe, and Ag3AuSe2. The temperature-dependent relationships of the Gibbs energy of formation on the compounds Ag2Se, AuSe and Ag3AuSe2 in their polymorphic forms and the standard thermodynamic functions of the compounds within the temperature range were also obtained. For the Ag-Pd binary system, thermodynamic measurements of silver-palladium binary alloys have been performed over the temperature range 450–750 K by the EMF method with the superionic conductor AgI as the solid electrolyte. The activity and partial molar Gibbs energy of silver were obtained for Ag-Pd alloys over the whole composition range and the thermodynamic properties of palladium were calculated using the Gibbs-Duhem equation. The results show that chemical activities of silver exhibit negative deviations over most of the composition range, and the activities of palladium are characterized by both negative and positive deviations from the ideal Raoultian behavior. The results also show the minimum integral enthalpy of mixing on Ag-Pd alloys is located at 60 at.% Ag. The thermodynamic properties of the Ag-Au-Se ternary system and the Ag-Pd binary system obtained are significant for the production and recycling of precious metals. Moreover, the EMF method has been improved by advanced cell design, gas purification system, as well as temperature measurement, which can be used as an experimental tool for thermodynamic measurement for other alloys and compounds.


Introduction: There is growing interest in assessing physical activity in daily life (PADL) in chronic lung diseases. However, PADL has never been studied in adult subjects with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (nCF-BCt). Aim: To compare the functional and clinical characteristics between physically active (PA, ≥ 7,500 steps/day) and not physically active (nPA, Methods: Eighty subjects (50 women) were evaluated. PADL was assessed according to number of steps taken, calculated over three consecutive days (Yamax, PW-610 model, Tokyo, Japan). The subjects underwent spirometry, an incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT), bioelectrical impedance (fat-free mass index, FFMi), and cardiopulmonary exercise testing. Dyspnea was determined using the Medical Research Council (MRC) scale, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using St. George9s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ). Results are shown in Table 1. Conclusion: nPA subjects with nCF-BCt have higher dyspnea levels and worse pulmonary function, functional capacity, and HRQoL than PA subjects do.


"You can't manage what you don't measure"; organisations are quantifying the capability of their manufacturing process to measure and manage 'quality'. Six Sigma offer several tools, which helps measure the performance of a process. The process capability analysis is one such tool, which helps measure whether the process is proficient of producing consistent products that meet the standards. According to Dr Genichi Taguchi variability of the process has to be controlled even though the process is meeting all the specifications. Process capability analysis helps to reduce variability in the production processes. Process capability indices (PCIs) measure the capability of the process numerically. Process capability indices are used to explain a manufacturing process ability to produce items as per the voice of the customer (i.e. within the specified limits) and compare the intrinsic variability in a process with the customer's design. Capability index is important, since it simplifies complex information about the process to a single unit less number.


The sovereign debt crisis in Greece and other periphery countries is a yardstick for the viability of the European project: if Greece defaults and exits the Euro-zone, then the entire European architecture will be questioned. This article examines the origins of the Greek debt crisis and argues that the key sources of the debt are the economic and political factions that have dominated Greek politics since the fall of the Colonels in summer 1974 amidst the Cyprus calamity. These factions (political parties, comprador economic interests etc.), whose policy actions and preferences are amalgamated with the interests of Euro-Atlantic elites, are now being severely undermined, both politically and economically, as the prosperity of the Greek middle classes is eroded following two years of harsh austerity measures imposed on the Greek ruling factions by those Euro-Atlantic elites. Furthermore, this article outlines ways out of the Greek debt crisis, putting into test some reasonable policy proposals that are being widely discussed in Greece and abroad.


By surveying conceptions of SLU Alnarp's resources and competence among its students and
personnel, this thesis has the purpose of inventing identity, positioning and image of SLU
Alnarp. The underlying idea is that the analysis of the opinions of the students and the
personnel will provide the SLU management with new ideas and general advice for an
innovative strategy for success.
Four quantitative interviews with selected representatives from different staff groups were performed. In order to obtain a differentiated view of the employee thoughts and opinions on the university, five persons were selected to be interviewed – all with different types of responsibilities. Furthermore, students were asked to fill out a questionnaire, which was sent out by e-mail. To get a representative picture, and of course to get as much response as possible, the questionnaire was sent out to all of the university's students.
The interview results and the student questionnaire results were analyzed with emphasis on
key conception notions as identity, positioning and image. For the purpose of being able to give adequate advice on an innovative future success strategy, a model of the type "Blue Ocean Strategy" was applied. This model has the advantage of being precise in the output suggestions for improvement, which are the result of its application.
To summarize, the investigation shows significant shortage in the current general picture of SLU Alnarp. It is evident that the conception of the university is not in line with the one desired by its management. This thesis gives concrete suggestions of how the misconceptions, and sometimes incongruities, can be dealt with. The conclusions that are drawn are based on the fact that survival of any university in much relies on active management of its identity. In the end, such management will strengthen the university's market position and image.


The purposes of this research were: (1) to study the overview of the Adversity Quotient (AQ) of students in private universities; (2) to develop a Non-Formal education activity model based on Neo-humanist concepts and collaborative learning; (3) to experiment and study conditional factors and problems after using the NonFormal education activity model. This research was made in quasi-experimental research approach consisting of a Non-randomized control group with a pretest/posttest design. The sample group was 40 freshmen from Dhurakij Pundit University. The sample group was divided in half using matched pairs. There were twenty students in each group: one was the experimental group and the other was the control group. The procedures consisted of three phases: 1) studying the overview of AQ of students in private universities, 2) developing the Non-Formal education activity model based on Neo-humanist concepts and collaborative learning to enhance AQ, and 3) testing and studying factors and problems derived from the application of the Non-Formal education activity model. The findings were as follows: (1) as a whole, AQ of students in private universities was at a moderate level. (2) The Non-Formal education activity model based on Neo-humanist concepts and collaborative learning to uplift AQ consisted of five factors: a) the instructional planning, b) the arrangement of learning experiences, c) evaluation, d) learners' roles, and e) Teachers' roles. (3) The findings were as follows: a) AQ scores and learning achievement scores of the experimental group after the experiment were significantly higher than the scores measured before the experiment at .01. b) After the experiment, AQ scores of the experimental group were significantly higher than those of the control group at .01. c) After the experiment, the collaborative learning behavioral scores were at 87.22 %. In addition, the participants reported that the Non-Formal education activity model was appropriate in its learning objectives, contents and cognizance, training techniques, evaluation, learners' roles, and teachers' roles. However, what should be considered before the application of this model? Moreover, what follow-up studies should be accomplished after the application of the model? Moreover, there were some obstructive factors that might have affected the training. These included management policy, support from the organizations, the characteristics of the learners, and the arrangement of activities.


The challenges of textiles that can generate and store energy simultaneously for wearable devices are to fabricate yarns that generate electrical energy when stretched, yarns that store this electrical energy, and textile geometries that facilitate these functions. To address these challenges, this research incorporates highly stretchable electrochemical yarn harvesters, where available mechanical strains are large and electrochemical energy storing yarns are achieved by weaving. The solid‐state yarn harvester provides a peak power of 5.3 W kg−1 for carbon nanotubes. The solid‐state yarn supercapacitor provides stable performance when dynamically deformed by bending and stretching, for example. A textile configuration that consists of harvesters, supercapacitors, and a Schottky diode is produced and stores as much electrical energy as is needed by a serial or parallel connection of the harvesters or supercapacitors. This textile can be applied as a power source for health care devices or other wearable devices and be self‐powered sensors for detecting human motion.