ABSTRACT In recent decades, since the collapse of bipolarity, relations between Russia and the United States have been constantly moving back and forth between limited cooperation and limited conflict. The logic of this movement and its trajectory are determined by cultural–psychological, internal political, and international factors. All three levels of factors are examined, along with the conflictual nature of Russian–American relations and prospects for their further development. Apparently, competing messianic concepts, radically different internal political processes, a lack of firm economic ties, and rivalry at the international level are preventing both countries from changing the existing trajectory of relations.


Regenerative medicine aspires to reduce reliance on or overcome limitations associated with donor tissue-mediated repair. Structural bone allografts are commonly used in orthopedic surgery, with a high percentage of graft failure due to poor tissue integration. This problem is aggravated among elderly, those suffering from metabolic conditions, or those undergoing cancer therapies that compromise graft healing. Toward this end, we developed a synthetic graft named FlexBone, in which nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite (50 wt%) was structurally integrated with crosslinked poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) hydrogel, which provides dimensional stability and elasticity. It recapitulates the essential role of nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite in defining the osteoconductivity and biochemical microenvironment of bone because of its affinity for biomolecules. Here, we demonstrate that FlexBone effectively absorbed endogenously secreted signaling molecules associated with the inflammation/graft healing cascade upon being press-fit into a 5-mm rat femoral segmental defect. Further, when preabsorbed with a single dose of 400 ng recombinant human (rh) bone morphogenetic protein-2/7 heterodimer, it enabled the functional repair of the critical-sized defect by 8-12 weeks. FlexBone was stably encapsulated by the bridging bony callus and the FlexBone-callus interface was continuously remodeled. In summary, FlexBone combines the dimensional stability and osteoconductivity of structural bone allografts with desirable surgical compressibility and acquired osteoinductivity in an easy-to-fabricate and scalable synthetic biomaterial.


The emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections calls for novel strategies for effective bacterial inhibition and wound healing. Phototherapeutic approaches are promising in treating bacterial infection because of their high efficiency, noninvasiveness, and few side effects; however, their antibacterial effect is limited by the formation of biofilms in wounds. Herein, we report novel composite nanoparticles (mPt/ICG-αA NPs) combining mesoporous platinum (mPt) nanoparticles, indocyanine green (ICG) and α-amylase (αA) for combating MDR bacteria and treating wound infection, which integrates a triple bacterial inhibition mechanism arising from the combination of photodynamic therapy (PDT), photothermal therapy (PTT) and α-amylase enzymatic activities. The combination of mPt and ICG significantly enhances the effect of PTT and the temperature can be increased up to 80.8 °C to induce efficacious bacterial degeneration. Meanwhile, mPt/ICG-αA (mPIA) NPs with a low concentration of 25 μg mL-1 exhibited a remarkable catalase activity (CAT) and could continuously decompose endogenous H2O2 into O2 in a hypoxic microenvironment, thereby enhancing the PDT effect to achieve broad-spectrum bactericidal activity. mPIA NPs showed excellent MDR antibacterial efficiency against both Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. coli), and the bactericidal rate reached up to 99.0% and 97.2% with single 808 nm near-infrared light irradiation, respectively. mPIA NPs also exhibited an excellent ability to destroy biofilms and biocompatibility. Animal experiments further suggested that mPIA NPs could achieve the successful repairment of wounds infected with S. aureus in living systems, while this platform demonstrated negligible toxicity towards mice. Considering the superior performances of mPIA NPs, the synergistic αA-CAT-PDT-PTT boosted therapeutic activity presented in the current work provides a promising method to effectively fight against biofilm-related infectious diseases and wound healing.


Accurate ground-based cloud image categorization is a critical but challenging task that has not been well addressed. One of the essential issues that affect the performance is to extract the representative visual features. Nearly all of the existing methods rely on the hand-crafted descriptors (e.g., local binary patterns, CENsus TRsansform hISTogram, and scale-invariant feature transform). Their limited discriminative power indeed leads to the unsatisfactory performance. To alleviate this, we propose "DeepCloud" as a novel cloud image feature extraction approach by resorting to the deep convolutional visual features. In the recent years, the deep convolutional neural network (CNN) has achieved the promising results in lots of computer vision and image understanding fields. Nevertheless, it has not been applied to cloud image classification yet. Thus, we actually pay the first effort to fill this blank. Since cloud image classification can be attributed to a multi-instance learning problem, simply employing the convolutional features within CNN cannot achieve the promising result. To address this, Fisher vector encoding is applied to executing the spatial feature aggregation and high-dimensional feature mapping on the raw deep convolutional features. Moreover, the hierarchical convolutional layers are used simultaneously to capture the fine textural characteristics and high-level semantic information in the unified manner. To further leverage the performance, a cloud pattern mining and selection method are also proposed. It targets at finding the discriminative local patterns to better distinguish the different kinds of clouds. The experiments on a challenging ground-based cloud image data set demonstrate the superiority of the proposition over the state-of-the-art methods.


Abstract. A fully integrated Atmospheric-Ocean-Hydrology Model (BALTIMOS = Baltic Integrated Model System) has been developed using existing model components. Experiment and model design has been adapted to the Baltic basin with a catchment area of approximately 1 750 000 km 2 . A comprehensive model validation has been completed using large meteorological and hydrological measurement database. Comparing the calculated runoff from the integrated and non-integrated model system with measurements for three different representative subbasins and the entire Baltic basin, the effect of the integrated model is described. The results display a good agreement between measured and calculated runoff. The effect of the integrated model is rather negligible looking at computed mean values: There is no significant difference between mean monthly runoff of the integrated and non-integrated model during the year with the exception of spring. There is a delay of one month with regard to peak runoff for the non-integrated model in spring caused by different interactive processes during the melting period.


This study explores the relationship between financial social learning opportunities and financial behaviors of college students. Data were collected from 15,797 college students age 18 and over throughout the United States during spring and fall semesters of 2008. Financial behaviors were related to age, race, marital status, school rank, income level, loan amount, and qualification for financial aid. Results suggest important relationships exist between financial behaviors and financial social learning opportunities. Students who budget and save tended to have higher scores on the social learning opportunities indices than those who do not budget and save. Financial behaviors were positively related to social learning opportunities when controlling for demographic and financial characteristics.


Objective: Galectin 3 (GAL3) as biomarker of cardiac fibrosis was evaluated in general population and in patients with heart failure, but data on patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) are sparse. The aim of this study is to assess GAL3 values in patients over 55 years with AF after sinus rhythm restoration. Design and method: 33 patients with AF without history of cardiovascular diseases, after sinus rhythm restoration, who were randomized in pilot clinical trial of one-year placebo-controlled treatment with spironolactone, were analyzed for baseline values of GAL3, other important demographic factors, cardiovascular risk profile, including presence of hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, hyperuricemia, etc. We also correlated the results of GAL3, assessed by ELISA method, with the coronary calcium score in 17 patients. The Pearson's correlation and multiple linear regression analyses of log transformed GAL3 with other important predictors were performed. Results: The mean age of the participants was 66.58 ± 8.12 years, 12 patients (36%) were females. The mean GAL3 was 15.2 ± 7.64 ng/ml, significantly increased with age category (Table 1, ANOVA p = 0.12 for linear trend weighted for the numbers of subjects) and showed a trend of higher values in female - mean difference 2.01 ng/ml (95% CI −7.7—3.67, p = 0.47). Figure. No caption available. GAL3 was significantly correlated only with baseline creatinine – r = 0.36, p = 0.04 and eGFR – r = −0.45, p = 0.009. The multiple linear regression revealed that age (&bgr; = 0.42, p = 0.005) and serum creatitine (&bgr; = 0.17, p = 0.013) in the one model and the eGFR (&bgr; = −0.28, p = 0.009) in the other were the only significant predictors of elevated GAL3 values, after adjustment for various important factors. Conclusions: Galectin-3 increases with age and tends to be higher in female patients over 55 years with restored sinus rhythm after AF. As a marker of fibrosis it is linearly increasing with renal function impairment.


The surface potential (SP) morphology on thin films of tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum (Alq3) was investigated with Kelvin probe force microscopy. Thin Alq3 films of 100 nm were prepared on ITO/glass substrates, Au/mica substrates, and n-Si substrates. Cloud-like morphologies of the SP undulation with 200-400 nm in lateral size were observed for all three types of the substrates. New larger peaks were observed in the cloud-like morphologies when the surfaces were exposed shortly to a light, while the SP average was reduced monotonically. The nonuniform distribution of charged traps and mobility was deduced from the SP undulation morphology and its photoexposure dependences.


Abstract The link between environmental exposure to aluminium, mammalian toxicity and agricultural productivity has focused attention on the relationship between the environmental geochemistry of Al and its potential toxicity. Recent work has questioned the accuracy of previously reported baseline levels of aluminium in tropical well waters. In this work we investigate the validity of these observations and their influence on criteria for the determination of water quality. Data are presented for two contrasting study areas in Uganda in which c. 50 water samples were collected from a variety of water sources and subsequently analysed to identify concentrations of dissolved Al and of ligands that potentially control its environmental mobility and toxicty. Determinands included: pH, temperature, redox potential, conductivity, alkalinity, major and trace cations and anions and TOC. Determination of Al by ICP-AES before and after sonication confirmed that sonication of samples filtered to 0.40 μm during sampling resulted in increased Al concentrations in solution. This effect is considered to be consistent with the aggregation of a non-labile colloidal Al on the addition of acid and confirms observations made by other researchers in Malawi. However, on-site analysis of samples using pyrocatechol violet indicated negligible free or labile Al present in the sampled waters and suggests that the majority of Al undetected by routine ICP-AES analysis is present in a non-labile form of relatively low potential toxicity.


The present paper presents a dissertation summary on a diversity of governance mechanisms for sustainability: fiscal policies, regulatory mechanisms and organizational forms. It points out that a knowledge gap of the dissertation is to have effective governance mechanisms for sustainable development, especially for corporate social responsibility and sustainable household waste management. Therefore, the combinations of fiscal, regulatory and organizational mechanisms in favour of resolving social and environmental issues are important to be taken into account. The paper emphasizes the reasons that make the dissertation important and relevant for the readers. The paper discusses the research objectives, research questions and research methods of the dissertation as well. The levels of analysis and structure of the dissertation are also presented. The paper elaborates also on the conclusions and discussions derived from the four chapters of the dissertation. Finally, the paper provides final remarks of the dissertation and its implementation for future research, policy makers and municipalities as well as for sustainable development.


Image matching has been one of the most fundamental issues in computer vision over the decades. We propose a method based on utilizing feature lines in order to achieve more robust image matching, which includes feature line detection, feature vector description and matching, and the devised rotation invariant fea- ture line transform. The feature vectors have the properties of rotation and scaling invariance. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method. Compared with the famous power- ful algorithm scale invariant feature transform, the proposed method is more insensitive to noise, and the selected distinctive locations of features are more disperse. For a certain sequence of images, which contain strong lines, the proposed method is more efficient. Using the feature lines obtained by our method, it is possible to match two scene images with different rotation angles, scales, and light distortion, and the steps of matching are simpler. © The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Distribution or repro- duction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI. (DOI: 10.1117/1.JEI.23.5 .053002)


ECO2FUME ® is a cylinder gas formulation of phosphine that was developed for the grain industry for use in SIROFLO ® systems. ECO2FUME can be applied rapidly and can readily be used to top up PH3 concentrations during a fumigation, a feature used in SIROFLO. It avoids problems with unexpended residues of PH3-generating compounds, which can occur when using solid PH3-generating formulations. These attributes give ECO2FUME the potential for treatment of produce requiring shorter duration fumigations than those used for grain. Research on the development of alternatives to methyl bromide for disinfestation of cut flowers for export, led to the registration of ECO2FUME for this purpose in Australia in March 1999. Fumigation requirements are an exposure time of 15 h with an initial PH3 concentration of 1 g m -3 and a minimum temperature of 15oC. Further work is in progress on produce with much longer shelf life than flowers and for which longer exposure times of up to 48 h have been used. The potential for use of ECO2FUME for disinfestation of oranges infested with larvae of the Queensland fruit fly Bactrocera tryoni, has been demonstrated. It has been shown to be effective in controlling eggs, larvae and pupae of the lightbrown apple moth Epiphyas postvittana, on pears, and larvae of the codling moth Cydia pomonella, in apples without injuring the produce.


Lapatinib, targeting the human epidermal growth factor receptor family members HER1 and HER2, has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for use in metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. However, resistance to lapatinib remains a common challenge to HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. Until now, the molecular mechanisms of acquired resistance to lapatinib (ALR) have remained unclear. With no definite biomarkers currently known, we aimed to screen for key biomarkers in ALR. In this research, we identified 55 differentially expressed genes (DEGs, 20 upregulated, 35 downregulated) through bioinformatic analysis using microarray datasets GSE16179, GSE38376, and GSE51889 from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The related gene function was explored using the Gene Ontology (GO) function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed with the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes (STRING) and Cytoscape. The functional enrichment of the DEGs was analyzed, including negative regulation of the B cell apoptotic process, DNA replication, solute:proton symporter activity, synthesis, and degradation of ketone bodies, and metal sequestration by antimicrobial proteins. Analysis of seven hub genes revealed their concentration mainly in DNA replication and cell cycle. Survival analysis revealed that MCM10 and SPC24 may be related with poor prognosis in patients with ALR. Meanwhile, the prediction model of lapatinib sensitivity was constructed, and emerging role of the model was further analyzed using several webtools. In conclusion, hub genes are involved in the complex mechanisms underlying ALR in breast cancer and provide favorable support for treatment of ALR in future.


Three yeast species, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Trichosporon cutaneum and Torulopsis albida (Cryptococcus albidus) respond in a simple auxanographic spot test to the presence of aneurin, aneurin split products and cocarboxylase. Differences in the behaviour of these three species towards the different biologically active entities make it possible to differentiate between these substances and to identify them. Moreover, from the appearance of the auxanogram conclusions can be drawn regarding certain dynamic aspects of aneurin metabolism such as velocity of uptake, storage and splitting of aneurin, or of its derivatives. The test is not only qualitative but also, within certain limits, quantitative.


Abstract Background: Cigarette smoke contains the tobacco-specific lung carcinogen NNK and other carcinogens and toxicants. 2-Phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), a natural product found as a conjugate in cruciferous vegetables, can inhibit the metabolic activation and lung carcinogenicity of NNK in rodents. Intake of a broccoli sprout beverage containing high levels of sulforaphane can increase urinary excretion of benzene and acrolein metaboites. Glutathione S-transferases (GST) catalyze the conjugation of carcinogens and toxicants with glutathione enhancing their urinary excretion, thus functional GST genotypes may modify the effect of PEITC. Methods. The goal of this randomized phase 2 clinical trial with a crossover was to determine if PEITC inhibits the metabolic activation of NNK and enhances the detoxification of benzene, acrolein and crotonaldehyde. Eighty-two smokers were completed the trial. The smokers smoked cigarettes containing deuterium labeled [pyridine-D4]NNK to allow measurement of metabolic activation. The subjects were randomly assigned to one of two arms: PEITC-placebo, or placebo-PEITC. During the 1-week treatment period, each subject took PEITC (10 mg in 1 ml of olive oil, 4 times per day). There was a 1-week washout period between the PEITC and placebo periods. Three 24h urine samples were collected during each of the 2 treatment periods. The NNK metabolic activation ratio: [pyridine-D4]hydroxy acid/total [pyridine-D4]NNAL, and the mercapturic acids of benzene, acrolein and crotonaldehye in urine were quantified using validated LC-ESI-MS/MS methods. The linear mixed model with random effect was used to examine the PEITC effect. Results. Overall, PEITC treatment significantly reduced the NNK metabolic activation ratio by 7.7% (P = 0.023), and increased the detoxification metabolites of benzene by 24.6% (P = 0.002) and acrolein by 15.1% (P = 0.005), but had no effect on crotonaldehyde (5.5%, P = 0.148). PEITC had stronger effects in subjects with GST null genotype. PEITC reduced the NNK metabolic activation ratio by 15.6% (P = 0.039), and increased detoxification metabolites of benzene by 95.4% (P Conclusion. The results of this trial demonstrate that PEITC inhibits the metabolic activation of NNK in smokers, and has a stronger effect on the detoxification of environmental carcinogens and toxicants such as benzene, acrolein, and crotonaldehyde. A more pronounced effect of PEITC in subjects lacking both GSTM1 and GSTT1 genes supports the epidemiological findings of stronger protection of dietary isothiocyanates against the development of lung cancer in such individuals. [Grant support: NCI R01CA122244]. Citation Format: Jian-Min Yuan, Jian-Min Yuan, Irina Stepanov, Sharon E. Murphy, Sharon E. Murphy, Renwei Wang, Steven G. Carmella, Heather H. Nelson, Heather H. Nelson, Dorothy Hatsukami, Stephen S. Hecht. A randomized phase 2 clinical trial of PEITC on detoxification of tobacco-specific and non-specific carcinogens and toxicants. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 4347.


Supplementing theoretical studies on the protection of a-c rotating machines against impulse waves and previous tests on individual protective devices, a comprehensive series of tests on over-all protective schemes has been made. As a result, definite conclusions are drawn regarding the proper lightning protection for machines connected directly to overhead lines or connected through transformers, giving consideration to the type of transformer connection. Considerable information also is obtained on the propagation of surges through windings, and on the surge impedances of machine windings.


Rice blast (Pyriculariaoryzae Cavara) is one of the most devastating diseases affecting the rice crop in across the world. Systemic fungicides are used for the suppression of blast diseases caused by fungal pathogens. Propiconazole and Carbendazim are commercial chemical control products available in markets for the control of the fungal pathogen. An experiment was conducted to examine the effectiveness of systemic fungicide on suppression of rice blast incidence in farmers' field during wet seasons in 2016. The treatments consisted of the use of different levels of propiconazole and Carbendazim on 'Rato Basmati' a landrace rice variety. The experiments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The disease was scored according to the standard scale developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). Disease severity and Area under Disease Progressive curve (AUDPC) was computed based on that scale score. Propiconazole and Carbendazim at different levels reduce disease development than no treatment (control). But its efficacy was not consistent. The magnitude of disease suppression by Propiconazole was high as compared to Carbendazim. The application of propiconazole at the rate of 1.5 ml effectively reduced disease severity and AUDPC at different dates. So propiconazole at the rate of 1.5 ml thrice at weekly intervals is effective to reduce the disease development


Goals of gerontological nursing include maximizing health and confronting functional impairments. The health of older adults is often fragile because of age-related change, complicated by chronic illnesses. Identification of changes in health status permits responsive care and consultation but requires proficiency in physical assessment. In 1995, research was conducted in Alberta, Canada, on registered nurse case managers' reported use of assessment skills. Nineteen continuing-care facilities in 1 of 17 provincial health regions participated (N = 189). After expert review and pilot testing, questionnaires were distributed to two independent groups: nurse administrators/staff development coordinators and case managers (response rate = 73%). Qualitative data were subjected to descriptive, interpretive, and pattern coding. Reported are factors constraining or facilitating physical assessment in continuing care. Neuman's concept of the created environment provided a factor-organizing framework. A holistic view of environment and data source triangulation increased confidence in the comprehensiveness and credibility of results.


GOALS
In the present study basic arithmetic induced rearrangements in functional connections of the brain were investigated by using graph theoretical analysis what becomes increasingly important both in theoretical neuroscience and also in clinical investigations.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS
During mental arithmetic operations (working) memory plays an important role, but there are only a few studies in which an attempt was made to separate this effect from the process of arithmetic operations themselves. The goal of our study was to separate the neural networks involved in cognitive functions.

METHODS
As an attempt to clarify this issue the graph-theoretical "minimal spanning tree" method was used for the analysis of EEG recorded during task performance. The effects of passive viewing, number recognition and mental arithmetic on PLI based minimal spanning trees (MST) were investigated on the EEG in young adults (adding task: 17 subjects; passive viewing and number recognition: 16 subjects) in the θ (4-8 Hz) frequency band.

RESULTS
Occipital task relevant synchronization was found by using the different methods, probably related to the effect of visual stimulation. With respect to diameter, eccentricity and fraction of leafs different task-related changes were found.

DISCUSSION
It was shown that the task related changes of various graph indices are capable to identify networks behind the various relevant dominant functions. Thus the "minimal spanning tree" method is suitable for the analysis of the reorganization of the brain with respect to cognitive functions.


(1) Context: Your stomach hurts and you wonder if it was the food served at lunch. You wonder if anyone else is having the same problem. You are thinking about your friend Mary. You say: Mary bibid diniih daats'í. Mary 3poss.stomach 3S.hurt DAATS'Í Translations: 'I wonder if Mary's stomach is hurting.' 'Does Mary's stomach hurt?' 'Mary's stomach might hurt, or it might not.' 'Mary's stomach might hurt.'


Advanced integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plants promise to be efficient and environmentally friendly systems to utilise solid fuels for the production of electricity and heat. An IGCC system consists of a gasifier, producing a low calorific value (LCV) fuel gas, and a gas turbine in which the LCV fuel gas is being combusted. At this time some demonstration IGCC plants have been commissioned in the United States and Europe. A sound understanding of the interaction between the gasifier and the gas turbine combustor is critical for successful operation of an IGCC system. Reliable theoretical and experimental information on the characteristics of the gas turbine as a whole and the combustor as such, leading to this information is needed prior to commercialisation of these IGCC systems. The combustion of natural gas in gas turbine combustors has been studied extensively. The combustion of coal-derived LCV fuel gas however has been studied in much less detail.To obtain more fundamental data on the combustion of LCV fuel gas, a 1.5 MW pressurised fluidised bed gasifier (PFBG) with a separate pressurised topping combustor (PTC) has been designed, built and operated at Delft University of Technology (The Netherlands). The maximum system pressure is 10 bar. Experiments have been performed at 8 bar, using recirculated flue gas, steam and oxygen as gasifying agents. The produced LCV fuel gas is combusted in an oxygen blown PTC. In this way a flue gas with a high carbon dioxide concentration can be obtained from which the carbon dioxide can be removed more easily than from flue gases. A numerical model has been constructed to simulate the combustion of the LCV fuel gas in the PTC.A detailed description of the test rig will be given. The first experimental results will be described and compared with simulation results obtained with the commercial Computational Fluid Dynamics code Fluent version 4.3. Finally the future work will be described.© 1997 ASME


OBJECTIVE
To observe the effects of the acupuncture on the gastric motivity in patients with functional dyspepsia (FD).

METHODS
Ninety FD patients were randomly divided into 3 groups: the treated group, the control groups, 1 and 2, 30 patients in each group. Patients in the treated group received acupuncture treatment, those in the control group 1 and group 2 orally took Cisapride and Marzulene-s granule respectively. Changes in scores of symptoms, electrogastrographic figure, gastric emptying time estimated by B-ultrasonic examination and plasma level of motilin in the 3 groups before and after treatment were observed.

RESULTS
Symptoms were obviously improved in the treated and control group 1 after treatment, which were better than those in the control group 2 (P < 0.01). Gastro-electric frequency and rhythm in the treated group and control group 1 were improved more significantly than those in before treatment (P < 0.01). Gastric emptying time and plasma motilin improved in the treated group and the control group 1 after treatment, when compared with before treatment, the difference was significant respectively (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
Acupuncture could significantly improve the gastric motivity of FD patients.


This study aims to determine the factors that influence the behavior of investor overconfidence in Yogyakarta. This study uses questionnaire distributed to 100 randomly selected respondents. A total of 80 questionnaires were used, hile the other 20 were disqualified because of unallocated or incomplete answers. The data were processed using SPSS measuring devices stepwise regression. This research gets the result and overconfidence of investor is influenced by variables advice, while age, gender, experience, past performance and management qualifications not influence toward overconfidence investor Keywords: Behavioral Finance, Overconfidence, Age, Gender, Experience, Past Performance, Advices, Management Qualifications, Investor Shares in Yogyakarta.


Background
Evidence from several specialties suggests that practice patterns developed in residency influence the quality and cost of care long after completion of training. Improving the quality, cost, and patient experience of care (the "Triple Aim") is foundational to future health systems change.

Objective
We measured variation in Triple Aim measures among family medicine residency programs in a regional quality improvement collaborative (I3 Population Health Collaborative).

Methods
We calculated medians and interquartile ranges for each of 11 Triple Aim measures and compared them with median splits of population and practice characteristics, including payer mix, patient race and age, electronic health record used, registry use, and National Committee for Quality Assurance patient-centered medical home recognition.

Results
All 22 participating family medicine residency programs provided baseline data. The number of practices reporting data on individual measures ranged from 9 to 17 (41%-77%). We found variation averaging 51% across all measures, from a low of 12% for readmission rates to 94% for emergency department visit rates. Variations were stable over time. We found no significant relationships between practice or population characteristics and measures, nor between practice characteristics and outcomes variation.

Conclusions
The 22 family medicine residency programs in our study showed substantial variation in quality, cost, and patient experience of care. These variations did not appear to result from differences in practice characteristics, payer mix, or patient demographics.


Abstract 2513 Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease with well-known clinical and pathological aspects, characterized by the acquisition of somatic mutations in haematopoietic progenitors leading to disruption of differentiation. However, the genetic etiology of AML, which include gene mutations and chromosomal aberrations, is largely unknown. Altered forms of genes that differ by a single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been shown to predispose individuals to AML development. Recently it has been reported that interindividual differences based on detoxification genes polymorphisms may contribute to the AML susceptibility. Human cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes play a key role as phase I enzymes in the metabolism of drugs and environmental chemicals. Several CYP enzymes metabolically activate procarcinogens to genotoxic intermediates. CYP2B6 blocks the transformation of precarcinogens to their biologically active forms that provoke chromosomal instability and leukemia. CYP2B6 G 516 T SNP change the aminoacid sequence (Gln172His), resulting in enzymatic inactivation. Thus, individuals homozygous for the mutant allele (T/T) or heterozygotes (G/T) present decreased enzymatic activity. We performed a case-control study in a large series of AML patients to investigate the potential relation between genotype of CYP2B6 G 516 T SNP and the risk of de novo AML. We also compared the genotypic frequencies in AML patients in respect to chromosome abnormalities, FAB classification and clinical characteristics. The CYP2B6 G 516 T genotyping was performed on 195 de novo AML patients at diagnosis and 215 sex and age matched healthy controls using a PCR-RFLP assay and LightSNP assay. Unstimulated bone marrow cells were used for karyotypic analysis and karyotypes were described according to ISCN. Statistical analysis was performed using Chi-square test and P Karyotypic analysis was successfully performed in 97.8% of AML patients at diagnosis. Among them, 136 (69.7%) showed clonal karyotypic abnormalities. The genotypic distribution in patients and healthy groups was statistically significant and showed: homozygous wild type G/G 54,5% vs 67.2%, heterozygotes G/T 40.4% vs 27.5% and homozygous mutant T/T 6.7% vs 5.5% respectively ( p CYP2B6 genotype (p=0.069), which focuses primarily on an increase frequency of heterozygotes G/T in AML-M2 patients (61.4% vs 27.5%, p =0.000) and homozygous mutant T/T in AML-M6 patients (40% vs 5.4%, p =0.006).No differences in genotypic distribution of CYP2B6 genotype was noticed between male and female AML patients or among AML patients and healthy control group. Among females, the frequency of the mutant variant T was significantly increased in AML patients comparing to the healthy subjects (p=0.024).Interestingly, patients with aberrations of chromosomes 5 and/or 7 [−5/del(5q), −7/del(7q)], which confer a poor prognosis, showed a statistically increased frequency of the homozygous mutant T/T genotype in contrast to patients with favorable prognosis chromosome abnormalities such as inv(16), t(8;21), t(15;17) ( p =0.044). The increased frequency of mutant allele leading to reduced enzyme activity suggests that the CYP2B6 gene may be a predisposing factor for the development of AML. Furthermore, the CYP2B6 G 516 T polymorphism seems to be associated with the presence of lesions on chromosomes 5 and / or 7 which are poor prognostic lesions in AML. Therefore, the high frequency of mutant genotypes (G/T and T/T) of CYP2B6 G 516 T SNP in these cytogenetic groups may be involved in the development of these specific chromosomal abnormalities. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


This report provides an estimate of the leak rate from the emergency pump well in L-basin that is to be expected during an off-normal event. This estimate is based on expected shrinkage of the engineered grout (i.e., controlled low strength material) used to fill the emergency pump well and the header pipes that provide the dominant leak path from the basin to the lower levels of the L-Area Complex. The estimate will be used to provide input into the operating safety basis to ensure that the water level in the basin will remain above a certain minimum level. The minimum basin water level is specified to ensure adequate shielding for personnel and maintain the ''as low as reasonably achievable'' concept of radiological exposure. The need for the leak rate estimation is the existence of a gap between the fill material and the header pipes, which penetrate the basin wall and would be the primary leak path in the event of a breach in those pipes. The gap between the pipe and fill material was estimated based on a full scale demonstration pour that was performed and examined. Leak tests were performed on full scale pipes as a part of thismore » examination. Leak rates were measured to be on the order of 0.01 gallons/minute for completely filled pipe (vertically positioned) and 0.25 gallons/minute for partially filled pipe (horizontally positioned). This measurement was for water at 16 feet head pressure and with minimal corrosion or biofilm present. The effect of the grout fill on the inside surface biofilm of the pipes is the subject of a previous memorandum.« less


The world is calling for forensic science in proving the truth for the justice of sophisticated cases. The impact of separation between religion and science and the negligence of viewing forensic science from the maqasidic perspective left a huge gap in shariah literatures thus resulting forensic science to become exclusive and alien to Islamic law. Failure in understanding fundamentals of forensic science worsens the situation by giving negative implications towards the incompetency of Islamic law. This study aims to identify forensic science elements in Muslim scholars' view on the admissibility of al—qarz'nah in Islam, to analyse the relationship of forensic science elements with maqc'lsid al—shari'ah from its transferability through reported forensic science cases, to analyse fundamental framework of forensics in Islam, and to propose for a fundamental recommendation of forensic science as integration with al—qarinah towards achieving maqc'zsid al-sharf'ah. This qualitative research used Grounded Theory and content analysis method to obtain research objectives. Constant comparative approach on theoretical samples and descriptive, inductive, and deductive approaches on selected primary and secondary sources of data were used in the analysis process with the assist of Atlas.ti version 7 as a software analysis tool. A total of 117 forensic science elements were found which built four key fundamentals namely; 'forensics jurisprudence', 'human capital', 'forensic analysis', and 'accreditation'. The transferability interpreted from the theory towards selected thematic forensic cases proved that all four key fundamentals do exist in preserving the five essential values of human life. In achieving maqc'lsid al—shari'ah, 'forensics jurisprudence' fundamental acquires a comprehensive understanding of forensics application towards accomplishing the ma 'c'tlc'lt that comprises historical reviews, the terminology of fiqh forensics, the reasoning of forensics through istidldl in usulfiqh and its relationship with maxims. As for the adaptation for shariah legal purposes, 'human capital' fundamental highlights a holistic approach in achieving maqc'lsid al- shari'ah through forensic science education and training as well as fulfilling the competency of experts. The 'forensic analysis' fundamental incorporates level of doubt in analysis, ethics, presumptive and confirmatory test, instruments, crime laboratories epistemology, and analysis held by a shariah entity as salient features to minimise Shubhah. These features contribute to the suggestion of establishing forensics laboratory for shariah legal purposes. The 'accreditation' fundamental reviewed six standards in forensic science; ISO 9001, MS 1900, ISO 17025, MS 2300, SAMM, and ASCLD program. Among all, only ISO 9001 is not complied with shariah principles. The combination of these five standards ensures the quality assurance of forensics application to achieve maqc'zsid al—sharf'ah. Thus, the integration of forensic science with al—qarinah through its fundamentals is proven possible to realise maqc'tsid al—sharf'ah. This study suggests that the four fundamentals should be given priority and evaluation in raising the bar of forensic science in Islam.


Advances in both sensor technologies and network infrastructures have encouraged the development of smart environments to enhance people's life and living styles. However, collecting and storing user's data in the smart environments pose severe privacy concerns because these data may contain sensitive information about the subject. Hence, privacy protection is now an emerging issue that we need to consider especially when data sharing is essential for analysis purpose. In this paper, we consider the case where two agents in the smart environment want to measure the similarity of their collected or stored data. We use similarity coefficient function (FSC) as the measurement metric for the comparison with differential privacy model. Unlike the existing solutions, our protocol can facilitate more than one request to compute FSC without modifying the protocol. Our solution ensures privacy protection for both the inputs and the computed FSC results.


Abstract This paper aims at bridging Mathematical Modelling and Mathematics Education by studying the opinion dynamics of students who work in small groups during mathematics classrooms. In particular, we propose a model which hinges upon the pioneering work of Hegselmann and Krause on opinion dynamics and integrates recent results of interactionist research in Mathematical Education. More precisely, the proposed model incorporates the following features: 1) the feelings of each student towards the classmates (building upon the so-called \I can" -\you can" framework); 2) the different levels of preparation of the students; 3) the presence of the teacher, who may or may not intervene to drive the students towards the correct solution of the problem. Several numerical experiments are presented to assess the capability of the model in reproducing typical realistic scenarios.


The photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) experiment can measure the distribution of particle sizes by measuring dynamic fluctuations of intensity of scattered light. A way to analyse particle sizes from PCS is to calculate the auto-correlation function of the detected intensity. In order to get accurate result, we need a photon correlator with small sampling time and large-scale dynamic range. This paper presents not only a linear photon correlator but also a multiple-tau correlator implemented by high performance Xilinx field programmable gate array (FPGA). In the photon correlator, the works of counting, delaying, multiplying and accumulating are all completed in one FPGA chip. The Verilog-HDL is adopted in the design of FPGA modules. Experimental results indicate that this correlator can be applied in the analysing of ultra-fine particle sizing.


In the era of huge datasets, the top- search becomes an effective way to decrease the search time of top- objects. Since we suppose locally ac- cessible data only, the multidimensional indexes containing all attributes to- gether seem to be more effective than a distribution of each attribute to a sepa- rate index. Therefore we introduce the top- search algorithm over grid file - the multidimensional index not used for the top- search yet. Grid file does not require computation with all attribute values together like R-tree, R*-tree (i.e. computation of area, perimeter) nor a metric like M-tree. Grid file can be used directly for indexing any type of attributes with natural ordering. Our experi- ments show that grid file, R-tree and R*-tree offer much better performance of the top- search than separated B + -trees and table scan.


During the past 20 years the use of microtraining as a method for training professionals in communication skills has attracted considerable attention. In this paper, the microtraining approach is explained briefly, in terms of the development of microteaching and microcounselling, as a means of training teachers and counsellors respectively. One interesting aspect of the training of teachers is then focused upon, namely the use of microcounselling in the preparation of in-service teachers for the role of school counsellor. The nature of teaching and counselling activities are compared and contrasted, and the resultant difficulties in training teachers to act as counsellors are high-lighted. Finally, a number of procedures for trainers involved in such training are listed, whereby teachers can be encouraged to more readily adopt a style of behaviour appropriate for the counselling context.


The identification and molecular cloning of a feline leukemia virus (FeLV) isolate (FeLV-FAIDS) that consistently produces immunodeficiency syndrome has allowed prospective investigation of events that occur in the prodromal phase of disease. Using a T-lymphocyte colony forming assay (T-CFU-Ic) we have demonstrated that a drastic depletion of circulating T-CFU-Ic prefigures the development of clinical immunodeficiency disease in inoculated cats and correlates with the appearance and replication of the FeLV-FAIDS variant genome in serially collected bone marrow samples. During the same presymptomatic time period, no significant alterations in conventional mitogen-induced lymphocyte blastogenic responses or in circulating lymphocyte numbers were evident. Thus T-CFU-Ic assay but not conventional mitogen-driven blastogenesis identified animals destined to develop immunodeficiency syndrome. The correlation among T-CFU-Ic depletion, the replication of the lymphocytopathic FeLV-FAIDS variant genome in hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues, and the onset of clinical disease, infers that ablation of a colony-forming T lymphocyte progenitor subset is important in the early pathogenesis of feline retrovirus-induced immunodeficiency syndrome.


Ovarian cancer (OvCa) is the fifth leading cause of death among woman in USA. OvCa remains a fatal disease because of the lack of accurate early diagnostic methods as well as the heterogeneous nature of the disease itself. The cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis states the existence of a sub-population of cells in tumors that has the ability to self-renew as well as generating a fully differentiated tumor tissue. CSCs are also postulated to be resistant to conventional therapies, which might explain the recurrent nature of many cancers. We have recently identified a novel cellular structure in the ascites of NOD/SCID mice engrafted intraperitoneally with an OvCa cell line, consisting of free-floating chains of 4-72 cells with an extensive pericellular glycocalyx. We termed these structures "catenae" (Latin for "chains"). Catena develop by symmetric self-renewal and each cell retain tumor initiating function when transplanted in NOD/SCID IL2Rγ null mice. To elucidate the transcriptomic terrain and analyze expression of known and novel biomarkers, we performed RNA sequencing of catena using the SOLiD platform. We obtained more than 110 Million single reads of which ∼ 60% mapped uniquely to the human genome. Using this powerful technology, we detected expression of 15494 genes with RPKM values higher than 0.3 for which there are 42931 alternatively spliced transcripts. Roughly 3.5% of these alternative-splicing events seem to be novel. By using the aligned reads we detected 14361 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) which, after filtering, lead to 199 genes with novel SNPs. We also used the cancer genome atlas (TCGA) public database to determine whether any of these SNPs might be responsible for fast recurrence of ovarian cancer or shorter life span of patients. Furthermore, we detected novel fusion genes, which might lead to molecular classifications in ovarian CSCs. Once validated, these SNPs and fusion genes might prove to be pharmaceutical targets for eradication of ovarian cancer or improving patients' lives. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-98. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-LB-98


OBJECTIVE
We are often asked to evaluate the postoperative elbow using MRI. In this article, we present both the normal appearance of the reconstructed ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) and a spectrum of UCL graft abnormalities at MR arthrography.

CONCLUSION
The UCL is the primary medial stabilizer of the elbow during flexion and is susceptible to injury, particularly in overhead throwing athletes. In the setting of UCL injury, ligament reconstruction is the principal surgical procedure available to restore stability and function and to relieve pain with activity. We have found MR arthrography useful in assessing the reconstructed UCL.


UV blood-irradiation (UBI) using the ImmunoModulator (IM) is in clinical studies for treatment of patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV). Preclinical studies suggest UBI could be also effective against cancer. To further explore this potential, a patient with an aggressive prostate cancer that has recently become androgen-refractory was treated with UBI using the IM. Cancer progression was monitored by means of prostate specific antigen (PSA). Prior to treatment with UBI PSA level increased exponentially over 6 months with a doubling time of 2.3 months. After treatment PSA level increased at a slower rate of 4.0 months doubling time. It is concluded that UBI treatment using the IM has an inhibitory effect on the growth of prostate cancer, presumably by stimulating a cellular immune response. Since androgen-refractory prostate cancer is invariably fatal, clinical studies with the IM are warranted for this indication.


Cyclin D1 is a critical oncogene involved in the regulation of progression through the G1 phase of the cell cycle, thereby contributing to cell proliferation. This is mediated through interaction of cyclin D1 with its catalytic partners, the cyclin-dependent kinases, and the subsequent phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma protein. Cyclin D1, in turn, is regulated by mitogenic stimuli. We demonstrate that transforming growth factor-alpha (TGFalpha) induces cyclin D1 mRNA in esophageal squamous epithelial cells, and this appears to correlate with increased cyclin D1 protein expression and cyclin-dependent kinase 6 activity. The induction of cyclin D1 transcription by TGFalpha is mediated in part through the induction of the early growth response protein (Egr-1) and its subsequent binding of Egr-1 to a cis-regulatory region spanning nucleotides -144 to -104 of the cyclin D1 promoter. The Egr-1 binding activity to the cyclin D1 promoter appears to require de novo protein synthesis and is not influenced by Sp1 binding to overlapping Sp1 motifs. Taken together, these data provide evidence that TGFalpha enhances cyclin D1 transcription through the induction of Egr-1 binding to a cis-regulatory region in the cyclin D1 promoter. This has important mechanistic implications into the transcriptional regulation of cyclin D1 by an essential proproliferative growth factor and cell cycle progression.


This is a preliminary study in order to understand how free-stream turbulence increases heat transfer. Effects offree-stream turbulence on instantaneous heat transfer were investigated in a wall jet flow. Heat transfer traces obtained by a hot-film probe flush-mounted with the surface showed an intermittent structure with definite peaks at certain time intervals. The number of peaks per unit time increased with increasing turbulence intensity. A wall jet test rig was designed and built. The initial thickness and the velocity of the wall jet were 10 cm and 24.4 m/s, respectively. The hot-film probe, which was flush with the surfaces, was positioned at cm intervals on the surface in the flow direction. The profiles of mean velocity and axial component of the Reynolds stress were measured with a horizontal hot-wire probe. Space correlation coefficients for u' and q' were obtained in the vertical direction to the wall. This paper concentrates on the effects of turbulence level on instantaneous heat transfer at the wall. It is speculated that the intermittent structures of the heat transfer traces are related to burst phenomena and increase in heat transfer is due to increased ejections (bursts) at the wall with increasing turbulence levels.


A modern web document typically consists of many kinds of information. Besides the main content which conveys the primary information, a web document also contains noisy contents such as advertisements, headers, footers, decorations, copyright information, navigation menus etc. The presence of noisy contents may affect the performance of applications such as commercial search engines, web crawlers, and web miners. Therefore, extracting main contents from web document and removing noisy contents is an important process. In this paper we present an approach for extracting main content from web documents which combines classification tasks and heuristic approaches.


The PMS (Particle Measuring Systems, Boulder, Colorado) nonvolatile residue monitor (NVR monitor) has been used to measure residues in isopropyl alcohol, tap water, and solutions prepared by dissolving different salts in deionized (DI) water. The instrument was operated in the batch and on-line modes mostly with the heater on. The manufacturer's calibration was confirmed with KCl solutions of different concentrations. The results show that the instrument responded linearly to the concentration change of solutes in DI water and had excellent repeatability. However, the instrument's response depends strongly on the solutes.


This thematic set contains seven papers arising from the session of the same name at the 18th General Meeting of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA), held in Edinburgh in September 2002. This session was a combination of two separate original proposals: a session on Intraplate Alkaline Magmatism that was to be a follow-up to the 'Friends of the Gardar' conference held in Birmingham 6 years before; and a separate session on Recycling of Volatile Elements through the Mantle, which was to be sponsored by Eurocarb, a European Science Foundation Network. The combined session was very successful, with a wide range of papers being presented, and was followed by a very popular wine reception!

The set of papers below represents to some extent the range of presentations at the IMA meeting, although the 'Friends of the Gardar' theme comes through strongly, and the first four papers provide …


Salbutamol is a potent beta 2-adrenoceptor agonist given to patients with bronchial asthma who are frequently hypoxemic. The aims of this study were to document the influence of chronic hypoxia on salbutamol tissue concentrations and on salbutamol effect on total respiratory resistance. To this purpose, salbutamol (60 micrograms/kg) was administered intravenously to four groups of six rabbits exposed to four experimental conditions: (1) control rabbits breathing air, (2) histamine-induced bronchoconstriction in rabbits breathing air, (3) animals with chronic hypoxia, (4) histamine-induced bronchoconstriction in animals with chronic hypoxia. The area under salbutamol plasma concentration time curve (0 to 45 min) was not affected by these experimental conditions. Compared with control rabbits breathing air, following histamine-induced bronchoconstriction, salbutamol concentrations rose by 40 to 50% in lung and heart (p < 0.05). Hypoxia did not affect salbutamol distribution in these organs; however, in hypoxic animals, histamine-induced bronchoconstriction increased salbutamol concentrations only in the heart (p < 0.05), without affecting those in the lung. Compared with rabbits breathing air and with histamine-induced bronchoconstriction, the effect of salbutamol was reduced in rabbits under chronic hypoxia and histamine-induced bronchoconstriction (p < 0.05). We conclude that chronic hypoxia reduces salbutamol effect on pulmonary resistance, possibly by decreasing salbutamol lung concentrations.


Google Trends data have been used to investigate various themes on online information seeking. It was unclear if the population from different parts of the world shared the same amount of attention to different mask types during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to reveal which types of masks were frequently searched by the public in different countries, and evaluated if public attention to masks could be related to mandatory policy, stringency of the policy, and transmission rate of COVID-19. By referring to an open dataset hosted at the online database Our World in Data, the 10 countries with the highest total number of COVID-19 cases as of 9th of February 2022 were identified. For each of these countries, the weekly new cases per million population, reproduction rate (of COVID-19), stringency index, and face covering policy score were computed from the raw daily data. Google Trends were queried to extract the relative search volume (RSV) for different types of masks from each of these countries. Results found that Google searches for N95 masks were predominant in India, whereas surgical masks were predominant in Russia, FFP2 masks were predominant in Spain, and cloth masks were predominant in both France and United Kingdom. The United States, Brazil, Germany, and Turkey had two predominant types of mask. The online searching behavior for masks markedly varied across countries. For most of the surveyed countries, the online searching for masks peaked during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic before the government implemented mandatory mask wearing. The search for masks positively correlated with the government response stringency index but not with the COVID-19 reproduction rate or the new cases per million.


Tanzania in 1986 went through a reform programme of shifting from central planned to a marketeconomy in that, trade, exchange and interest rates were liberalized and more than half of the 400 parastatals were closed down and/or privatised. In the second round of reforms that took in 1996 included institutional and structural reforms, at this time further transformation to a market economy, public administration and investment in key development sectors (education, health, agriculture, water, roads) took place. Such transformations resulted in increased macroeconomic stability and growth levels averaging 6 percent last year. In line with national reform programme, the University of Dar es Salaam developed a Corporate Strategic Plan 1993-2008 (UDSM, 1994) and revised it in 2004 for the period 2004 to 2013 (UDSM, 2004). The Corporate Strategic Plan categorically states its intention to exploit all areas of strength and opportunities offered by the current institutional and national policies of liberalization. One such an area that both the national and UDSM Corporate Strategic Plan emphasis is the public private partnership (PPP) or public to public collaboration in investment ventures. The University identified five potential group areas of UDSM resources that are worthy of the investors' consideration (UDSM, 2001). Chungu (2002) found that land based investments and knowledge/professional skills investments have higher income returns to the UDSM. This paper therefore focuses on land based investments and attempts to demonstrate a successful PPP collaborative venture initiated in May 2002 and charts out its associated factors to such a success. The Mlimani City project is the case on hand while the project on Information Communication Technology Special Economic Zone (ICT-SEZ) is the second forceful coming project initiated in year 2005. These two projects have taken 116 acres of University out of 268 envisaged for investment. The impacts of these two projects to the University and its surrounding communities as well as the nation at large are discussed. The paper concludes with possible challenges that the University have learnt from the Mlimani City project and how those milestones could be useful lessons for ICT-SEZ, a project which is on its infant, and also, to other incoming PPP collaborative investments.


In the paper, we propose a robust PID tuning method using fuzzy neural network (FNN) based on robust gain and phase margin (GM/PM) specifications. The designed PID controller is available for the interval plant family. We can use the trained FNN system to determine the parameters of PID controllers that are based on the robust GM/PM. To determine the robust GM/PM, the Kharitonov 32 extreme systems are used. Therefore, the FNN system is able to automatically tune the PID controller parameters with different GM/PM specifications, so that neither numerical methods nor graphical methods have to be used. This makes it easy to tune the controller parameters to have the specified robustness and performance. Simulation results are shown to illustrate the effectiveness of the robust PID controller scheme.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate indoor air pollution in hospitality venues in Argentina.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
PM₂.₅ levels were measured in a convenience sample of venues in 15 cities with different legislative contexts following a protocol developed by Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

RESULTS
554 samples were collected. Across all 5 smoke free cities the mean PM₂.₅ level was lower during daytime vs. evening hours, 24 vs. 98 PM₂.₅ respectively (p=.012). In the three cities evaluated before and after legislation, PM₂.₅ levels decreased dramatically (p<0.001 each). Overall, PM₂.₅ levels were 5 times higher in cities with no legislation vs. smoke free cities (p<0.001). In cities with designated smoking areas, PM₂.₅ levels were not statistically different between smoking and non-smoking areas (p=0.272). Non-smoking areas had significantly higher PM₂.₅ levels compared to 100% smoke free venues in the same city (twofold higher) (p=0.017).

CONCLUSIONS
Most of the participating cities in this study had significantly lower PM₂.₅ levels after the implementation of 100% smoke free legislation. Hence, it represents a useful tool to promote 100% smoke free policies in Argentina.


Structurally similar economies sharing the same wage-setting institutions tend to grow at the same rate, thus preserving their differences in levels of output per capita and employment rate, if the value of the workers' outside options is rigid and equal across economies. In this case, i) multiple balanced growth paths can be possible, ii) the sustainable rate of growth is higher in economies with competitive wage determination than it is in unionized economies, and iii) this growth differential becomes larger in the presence of an integrated capital market. As the workers' outside option depends on fiscal transfers responding to changes in levels of output and employment, there is convergence in levels across structurally and institutionally similar economies. In this case, i) economies with competitive wage setting converge at higher levels of output per capita and employment rate than do unionized economies, ii) economies with the same wage-setting institutions converge at higher levels if the tax rate and the fiscal transfers in favour of the jobless are reduced, and iii) the steady-state ("natural") rate of employment characterizing a regional economy is higher—other things being equal—the lower is the steady-state rate of employment of the other region, when a central government pays equal benefits to all jobless households living in this two-region economy.


Lipid antigens are presented on the surface of cells by the CD1 family of glycoproteins, which have structural and functional similarity to MHC class I molecules. The hydrophobic lipid antigens are embedded in membranes and inaccessible to the lumenal lipid-binding domain of CD1 molecules. Therefore, CD1 molecules require lipid transfer proteins for lipid loading and editing. CD1d is loaded with lipids in late endocytic compartments, and lipid transfer proteins of the saposin family have been shown to play a crucial role in this process. However, the mechanism by which saposins facilitate lipid binding to CD1 molecules is not known and is thought to involve transient interactions between protein components to ensure CD1-lipid complexes can be efficiently trafficked to the plasma membrane for antigen presentation. Of the four saposin proteins, the importance of Saposin B (SapB) for loading of CD1d is the most well-characterised. However, a direct interaction between CD1d and SapB has yet to be described. In order to determine how SapB might load lipids onto CD1d, we used purified, recombinant CD1d and SapB and carried out a series of highly sensitive binding assays to monitor direct interactions. Using equilibrium binding analysis, chemical cross-linking and co-crystallisation experiments, under a range of different conditions, we could not demonstrate a direct interaction. This work establishes comprehensively that the role of SapB in lipid loading does not involve direct binding to CD1d. We discuss the implication of this for our understanding of lipid loading of CD1d and propose several factors that may influence this process.


Molecular electronics holds great promise to realize the ultimate miniaturization of electronic devices and the investigation of charge transport properties through molecules tethered between pairs of electrode contacts is one of the most active areas of contemporary molecular electronics. To date, metallic materials have been widely used as the electrodes to construct molecular junctions, where desired characteristics are outstanding stability, conductivity, and fabricability. However, there is an increasing realization that new single molecule electrical junction functionality can be achieved through the use of non-metallic electrodes. Fundamental studies suggest that carbon based materials have the potential to be valuable alternative electrode materials for molecular electronics in the next generation of nanostructured devices. In light of the discussion above, we symmetrically investigate the possibility of constructing non-metallic molecular junctions and the corresponding charge transport properties through such junctions by replacing the common gold electrodes with graphene electrodes. We have measured the electrical conductance of a molecular junction based on alkanedithiol/alkanediamine chains sandwiched between a gold and a graphene electrode and compared the effects of anchoring groups in graphene based junctions. We also studied the technical effects of molecule-electrode contacts by comparing methods for capturing and measuring the electrical properties of single molecules in gold−graphene contact gaps. The decay obtained by STM based I(s) and CP-AFM BJ techniques, which is much lower than the one obtained for symmetric gold junctions, is related to the weak coupling at the molecule−graphene interface and the electronic structure of graphene. This asymmetric coupling induces higher conductance for alkanediamine chains than that in the same hybrid metal−graphene molecular junction using thiol anchoring groups. Moreover, we introduce an efficient data sorting algorithm and demonstrate its capacity on real experimental data sets. As a consequence, we suggest that novel 2D materials could sever as promising electrodes to construct nonsymmetric junctions and the use of appropriate anchoring groups/techniques may lead to a much lower decay constant and more conductive molecular junctions at longer lengths.


In this paper we have analyzed the connections between entropy, reversibility, irreversibility, the H theorem and transport equation of Boltzmann and the Poincare's recurrence theorem. These topics are usually studied separatelly in many papers and books, but they are not analyzed globally in order to obtain the connections between them as we have done here. We have written the paper following a simple and didactic approach in order to have a readable text to undergraduate physics students.


PURPOSE: Biomarker-driven master protocols represent a new paradigm in oncology clinical trials, but their complex designs and wide-ranging genomic results returned can be difficult to communicate to participants. The objective of this pilot study was to evaluate patient knowledge and expectations related to return of genomic results in the Lung Cancer Master Protocol (Lung-MAP). METHODS: Eligible participants with previously treated advanced non–small-cell lung cancer were recruited from patients enrolled in Lung-MAP. Participants completed a 38-item telephone survey ≤ 30 days from Lung-MAP consent. The survey assessed understanding about the benefits and risks of Lung-MAP participation and knowledge of the potential uses of somatic testing results returned. Descriptive statistics and odds ratios for associations between demographic factors and correct responses to survey items were assessed. RESULTS: From August 1, 2017, to June 30, 2019, we recruited 207 participants with a median age of 67, 57.3% male, and 94.2% White. Most participants "strongly/somewhat agreed" with statements that they "received enough information to understand" Lung-MAP benefits (82.6%) and risks (69.5%). In items asking about potential uses of Lung-MAP genomic results, 87.0% correctly indicated that the results help to select cancer treatment, but < 20% correctly indicated that the results are not used to confirm cancer diagnosis, would not reveal risk of developing diseases besides cancer, and would not indicate if family members had increased cancer risk. There were no associations between sociodemographic factors and proportions providing correct responses. CONCLUSION: In a large National Clinical Trials Network biomarker-driven master protocol, most participants demonstrated incorrect knowledge and expectations about the uses of genomic results provided in the study despite most indicating that they had enough information to understand benefits and risks.


[1] One of the best-studied aspects of the K-Pg mass extinction is the decline and subsequent recovery of open ocean export productivity (e.g., the flux of organic matter from the surface to deep ocean). Some export proxies, including surface-to-deep water δ13C gradients and carbonate sedimentation rates, indicate a global decline in export productivity triggered by the extinction. In contrast, benthic foraminiferal and other geochemical productivity proxies suggest spatially and temporally heterogeneous K-Pg boundary effects. Here we address these conflicting export productivity patterns using new and compiled measurements of biogenic barium. Unlike a previous synthesis, we find that the boundary effect on export productivity and the timing of recovery varied considerably between different oceanic sites. The northeast and southwest Atlantic, Southern Ocean, and Indian Ocean records saw export production plummet and remain depressed for 350 thousand to 2 million years. Biogenic barium and other proxies in the central Pacific and some upwelling or neritic Atlantic sites indicate the opposite, with proxies recording either no change or increased export production in the early Paleocene. Our results suggest that widespread declines in surface-to-deep ocean δ13C do not record a global decrease in export productivity. Rather, independent proxies, including barium and other geochemical proxies, and benthic community structure, indicate that some regions were characterized by maintained or rapidly recovered organic flux from the surface ocean to the deep seafloor, while other regions had profound reductions in export productivity that persisted long into the Paleocene.


Transections of the brain of rabbit reveal that electroencephalographic arousal produced by injections of adrenaline takes place at the midbrain level, while mescaline and 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine induce such arousal lower in the brainstem, at the medullary level.


The deformation effects in electronic spectra of the ternary layered semiconductors TlGaS2, TlGaSe2 and TlInS2 are considered. It is shown that the influence of hydrostatic pressure, thermal expansion and variation of composition in solid solutions on the band gap of the crystals investigated can be described in the framework of one common model of deformation potentials. This model appears to be close to that of layered semiconductors of the A3B6 group, attesting to the fact that the main principles of formation of band structure in these two groups of layered crystals are the same.


All papers published in this volume of IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science have been peer reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing. • Type of peer review: Single-anonymous: authors' identities are known to the reviewers; reviewers' identities are hidden from authors. • Conference submission management system: The paper submission management system is carried out online via the https://ocs.usu.ac.id/ICONART/iconart2021 page. The author must register first and then log in to upload the manuscript via that page. • Number of submissions received: The total number of submissions was 136 papers. • Number of submissions sent for review: For reviewing processes, only 106 papers (77.9%) were reviewed and the rest (30 papers) were rejected because of the low quality. • Number of submissions accepted: The number of accepted papers was 106 • Acceptance Rate (Number of Submissions Accepted/Number of Submissions Received X 100): The Acceptance Rate was 77.9% • Average number of reviews per paper: The average number of reviews is two revisions per paper • Total number of reviewers involved: The total number of reviewers involved was 17 reviewers, consisted of experts, professionals, and scientific committees who fulfil expected standards of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing. • Any additional info on review process: The criteria in accepting papers were based on conference topic suitability, data precision, systematics of English writing, and similarity check results using Turnitin (less than 25%). • Contact person for queries: Name : Prof. Mohammad Basyuni, Ph.D Affiliation: Universitas Sumatera Utara Email : email@example.comfirstname.lastname@example.com


Background Control of breathing, heart rate, and body temperature are interdependent in infants, where instabilities in thermoregulation can contribute to apneas or even life-threatening events. Identifying abnormalities in thermoregulation is particularly important in the first 6 months of life, where autonomic regulation undergoes critical development. Fluctuations in body temperature have been shown to be sensitive to maturational stage as well as system failure in critically ill patients. We thus aimed to investigate the existence of fractal-like long-range correlations, indicative of temperature control, in night time rectal temperature (Trec) patterns in maturing infants. Methodology/Principal Findings We measured Trec fluctuations in infants every 4 weeks from 4 to 20 weeks of age and before and after immunization. Long-range correlations in the temperature series were quantified by the correlation exponent, α using detrended fluctuation analysis. The effects of maturation, room temperature, and immunization on the strength of correlation were investigated. We found that Trec fluctuations exhibit fractal long-range correlations with a mean (SD) α of 1.51 (0.11), indicating that Trec is regulated in a highly correlated and hence deterministic manner. A significant increase in α with age from 1.42 (0.07) at 4 weeks to 1.58 (0.04) at 20 weeks reflects a change in long-range correlation behavior with maturation towards a smoother and more deterministic temperature regulation, potentially due to the decrease in surface area to body weight ratio in the maturing infant. α was not associated with mean room temperature or influenced by immunization Conclusions This study shows that the quantification of long-range correlations using α derived from detrended fluctuation analysis is an observer-independent tool which can distinguish developmental stages of night time Trec pattern in young infants, reflective of maturation of the autonomic system. Detrended fluctuation analysis may prove useful for characterizing thermoregulation in premature and other infants at risk for life-threatening events.


ABSTRACT Maintenance therapy after autologous stem cell transplantation, as well as continuous regimens for older, transplant ineligible patients, are emerging as an effective strategy to control the minimal residual disease that persists after response to initial treatments and is the main cause of relapse in patients affected by multiple myeloma (MM). However, though such approaches have consistently demonstrated in clinical trials to be able to delay disease recurrence, thus improving progression-free survival and, at least in some studies, overall survival, the use of these long term therapies (LTTs) in the daily clinical practice is not uniformly applied and some questions remains unanswered. This article aims to provide a synthetic discussion of the most consistent data on novel agent-based LTTs in newly diagnosed MM, to recognize the best candidate for these treatments and to describe a landscape of their possible future application.


This study suggested techniques to reduce burning rate and their effects for the AP thermoplastic composite propellant. Burning rate obtained through ground tests using a small size motor were analyzed to investigate the effects of AP particle size and LiF of 0.5~2.0% on the inhibition reaction for the PEBAX/AP thermoplastic propellant. The results showed that utilization of large size particle of AP and addition of LiF under 2.0% can reduce the burning rate sufficiently and their quantitative effects were suggested in this paper.


The competition for talents in the modern society is constantly intensifying. College students not only have good physical and psychological quality but also bear hardships and stand hard work and adapt to the fast-paced working environment in order to adapt to the development of the times. With the advent of the era of big data, advanced technology has been applied to physical exercise and development, providing opportunities and challenges for the development of sports. Therefore, this paper focuses on the impact of expanding training on college sports training through extensive surveys on college students' outward bound training. The results show that data are the key data of analysis, which can be used to analyze college students' physical functions and other indicators scientifically and effectively. Universities should develop appropriate outward bound training according to the characteristics of the students themselves. The project helps to improve the sports performance and psychological and physical quality of college students. We hope to provide theoretical reference for experts and scholars who study the development of college sports.


Background Podoconiosis is one of the neglected tropical diseases, and it is a nonfilarial elephantiasis caused by prolonged barefoot exposure to irritant soil. This is manifested by slowly progressive swelling of the foot and lower leg which may lead to an irreversible disability among affected people. Podoconiosis is an entirely noncommunicable preventable disease with a low-cost preventive mechanism. This study is aimed at assessing the magnitude and factor affecting Podoconiosis in Waghmra zone, Amhara region, Ethiopia, 2019. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 808 household members. A multistage sampling method was used to select study participants. A pretested semistructured questionnaire, observation, and clinical screening were used to collect data. The data were entered using EpiData version 4.2 and analyzed using SPSS version 24.0. Both bivariable and multivariable logistic regression models were fitted to identify factors associated with Podoconiosis. Odds ratio with 95% confidence interval was computed to determine the level of significance; in multivariable analysis, variables with a P value less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Result According this study's results, 4.3% of study participants were affected by Podoconiosis. A family number of four and above [AOR = 3.29, 95% CI (1.013-10.661)], family income of less than 500 ETB [AOR = 3.69, 95% CI (1.271-10.727)], distance from a health facility greater than 3 km [AOR = 6.69, 95% CI (1.610-27.863)], no shoe wearing habits [AOR = 5.02, 95% CI (1.969-12.778)], age at first wearing of shoes at 10 and above [AOR = 4.46, 95% CI (1.792-11.102)], and no feet washing habits [AOR = 3.87, 95% CI (1.516-9.883)] are significant factors of Podoconiosis. Conclusion Creating awareness about the importance of shoe wearing, feet hygiene, and building infrastructure such as a road, health facility, and water supply were essential preventive strategies. Training about early diagnosis and effective management of lymphedema, giving emphasis on hygiene education and sanitation program, and reporting any suspected Podoconiosis case as early as possible are some of the recommendations forwarded.


Optical scan electronic voting machines employ software components that are customized for each specific election. Such software components are critical from a security and integrity point of view, as they define ballot layout and outcome reporting facilities. The possibility of these components to be tampered with presents a major concern as incorrect election results may be produced due to either malicious interference or accidental corruption. Erroneous results caused by tampering or corruptions can go unnoticed in the absence of testing and auditing, and the errors may not be detectable by election officials/poll workers using the pre-election testing procedures that rely on the machines themselves. This paper presents an actual auditing process for the AccuVote Optical Scan Voting Terminal (AV-OS) (manufactured by Premier Election Solutions) and the ensuing results from a recent statewide audit, showing that thorough auditing of a large sample of voting hardware, specifically the memory cards that contain custom software components, is both practical and informative. We argue that memory card audits are crucial in providing timely information and maintaining the integrity of the electoral process. To substantiate this claim, we present as part of our results hard evidence of inadequate reliability of certain hard-ware components used with the voting terminals, and indications of marginal procedural compliance on the part of the poll workers. These audits were performed without any access to the manufacturer's source code or the documentation regarding the design or the internal workings of the AV-OS terminal. We conclude the paper with several observations based on what was learned during the memory card audit process and offer recommendations aimed at enhancing the integrity of elections.

The audits presented in this paper were performed on request of the Office of the Secretary of the State of Connecticut.


BACKGROUND
Dorsal root ganglion stimulation (DRGS) treats discrete, localized areas of neuropathic pain. But there are no long-term results available so far.

OBJECTIVES
We studied the long-term outcome of DRGS used in the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain.

STUDY DESIGN
A prospective, longitudinal single center investigation.

SETTING
Academic medical center in Germany.

METHODS
Patients (age >18 years) with chronic neuropathic pain in the hands, back, legs, knees and feet were prospectively examined. After a successful test-trial (duration of 3-14 days, pain decrease > 50%), a permanent generator was implanted. The patients were re-examined after 1 year, 2 years and 3 years. We used the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), the Pain Disability Index (PDI), the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), and, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) for our assessments.

RESULTS
We included 62 consecutive patients (27 females, 35 males, mean age 56.8 years, with an age range from 28 to 82 years, 62/51 to permanent conversion) during the time period from March 2012 until March 2016. Fifty-one patients had a successful test-trial and a generator was implanted subsequently. Results after 3 years: the VAS dropped from Mdn = 8 to Mdn = 4 (P = 0.0001). The PDI decreased from Mdn = 45 to Mdn = 23 (P = 0.003). The PCS decreased from Mdn = 34 to Mdn = 21 (P = 0.001). The BPI dropped from Mdn = 73 to Mdn = 30 (P = 0.003). The BDI decreased from Mdn = 36 to Mdn = 21 (P = 0.010). Fourteen patients showed complications (27.4%).

LIMITATIONS
This study is limited by the small number of patients in the single groups of the different pain locations.

CONCLUSION
DRGS may be an effective long-term method of treating discrete, localized areas of chronic neuropathic pain. We would recommend DRGS for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain in such areas.

KEY WORDS
Knee pain, foot pain, hand pain, groin pain, neuromodulation, dorsal root ganglion stimulation, chronic neuropathic pain, paresthesia mapping.


With its irresistible dance beat, strong bass line, and straightforward harmonies and lyrics, "zouk" has become wildly popular in the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe. This book complete with a compact disc and numerous illustrations and musical examples provides a thorough introduction to the sound, lyrics, choreography, and social milieu of this vibrant and infectious new music. "This invigorating reference work and companion CD of the Antilles' sexy "zouk" dance sound will lift readers out of their easy chairs "and" their complacency about the nonreggae aspects of Caribbean pop. . . . ["Zouk"] is a landmark achievement." Timothy White, "Billboard""


Men should not cry or should be "tough" enough. Womenshould not dress or playlike a boy.People act like a man or womanand anything against this is thought of as unmasculine or unfeminine. One's inability to hold fast to the relative gender role is appropriately rebuffed and definitely hushed in unwavering adherence to the heteronormative codes. This paper means to investigate the transsexual voices which are stifled by the standards of heteronormative codes and those that do not fit in with this binary are consigned to the edges and skilfully destroyed. The paper additionally talks about how society is confounded between the term sexual orientation.It also enquires into the role of power that characterizes "Truth" whichcan be comprehended as an orderly strategy which produces, disperses, manages and flows.


Introduction: One thousand children with anorectal malformation (ARM) are born in Mexico every year. In spite of surgical correction, these children continue to present functional fecal problems (constipation and fecal incontinence). We conducted an Intestinal Rehabilitation Program (IRP) which consists of an initial rectal disimpaction followed by administration of stimulant-type laxative (senna), with favorable results. The objective of this paper is to describe the effectiveness of the Intestinal Rehabilitation Program/bowel management program (IRP/BMP) in children with constipation secondary to surgically corrected ARM. Materials and methods: A descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional study, describing which was the IRP effectiveness in children with constipation secondary to ARM. The effectiveness was measured by means of a construct of three variables (presence of daily bowel movements, absence of fecal staining, and having a plain abdominal radiograph without fecal residue in left colon and rectum after passing stool). All children who had surgically corrected ARM and constipation in two referral centers were included. Results. One hundred and fifty one children with ARM were included: 21.85% had fecal incontinence, and 67.33% had constipation. Of this group 88.1% showed good response to the BMP. The mean dose of sennoside was 8.45 mg/kg, 95% CI: 5.94-11.12 mg/kg (199.5 mg total dose, 95% CI: 139.50-259.50 mg). Colicky abdominal pain occurred in 5.8% of the patients. Discussion. The use of sennoside has had a positive impact on our patients by means of colonic and rectal emptying without fecal soiling. Key words: Constipation, Anorrectal Malformation, Bowel Managment Program, Sennoside.


The authors have based their book on 110 cadaver specimens, and they present the normal gross and histologic anatomy of the pharyngoesophageal region. The book is an attempt to define the exact location of the function of the cricopharyngeous (which, interestingly, was first described by Valsalva in 1717) which the authors preferred to call the pharyngoesophageal sphincter. They found this sphincter to be a 1 to 2 cm long segment similar to the lower esophageal vestibular complex which the authors also recently investigated; their findings were published in 1963. The second chapter deals with the gross anatomy and has excellent gross photographs of the cadaver specimens illustrating that particular part of the anatomy described in the text. The photographs are generous in size, well-labeled, and do much to enhance the description and references made to the areas throughout the book. The third chapter deals with the embryology and histology of


Success has been demonstrated in rehabilitation from certain injuries while using positive-pressure treadmills. However, certain injuries progress even with the lighter vertical loads. Our purpose was to investigate changes in muscle activation for various lower limb muscles while running on a positivepressure treadmill at different amounts of body weight support. We hypothesized that some muscles would show decreases in activation with greater body weight support while others would not. Eleven collegiate distance runners were recruited. EMG amplitude was measured over 12 lower limb muscles. After a short warm-up, subjects ran at 100%, 80%, 60%, and 40% of their body weight for two minutes each. EMG amplitudes were recorded during the final 30 s of each stage. Most muscles demonstrated lower amplitudes as body weight was supported. For the hip adductors during the swing phase and the hamstrings during stance, no significant trend appeared. Positive-pressure treadmills may be useful interventions for certain injuries. However, some injuries, such as hip adductor and hamstring tendonitis or strains may require alternative cross-training to relieve stress on those areas. Runners should be careful in determining how much body weight should be supported for various injuries to return to normal activity in the shortest possible time. 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.


This study assessed collection development policy at National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Library in Nigeria. The study set out to find out if there exists a collection development policy at NOUN library. The research design adopted for the study was a descriptive survey. The population of the study was stratified into two main categories namely users of the library and the library staff. In selecting the students and lecturers convenient sampling technique was employed to select the students from the school. The total population for the study made up of library staff, faculty members and the students were used. Therefore, sample size for the study was two hundred (200) made up of 100 students, 50 faculty members and 50 library staff. Data for the study was collected through interviews, Observation and questionnaires. Simple statistics was used to analyze the questionnaire. The findings of this study revealed that NOUN library has no written and approved collection development policy but it has stocked both print and non-print materials for their users. Keywords : Assessment, Collection, Development, Policy, National, Open, University, Nigeria


Deflazacort is a poorly water-soluble drug and is practically insoluble in water. The objective of this study was to improve the solubility of deflazacort by using as solubility enhancer β-cyclodextrin and also to study the effect of the water-soluble polymer PEG 4000 on solubility of the deflazacort:β-cyclodextrin binary system. The inclusion complexes of deflazacort with β-cyclodextrin in 1:1 w/w, 1:2 w/w and 1:3 w/w proportions were prepared by kneading, microwave irradiation and freeze-drying techniques. The in vitro dissolution study showed improved dissolution rate for deflazacort for freeze-dried binary deflazacort: β-cyclodextrin 1:2 w/w complex, as compared to ternary deflazacort:β-cyclodextrin: PEG 6000 1:2 w/w complexes, plain deflazacort, physical mixtures and complexes prepared by kneading and microwave technique. This was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, powder x-ray diffraction study, scanning electron microscopy and 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy study. Thus, deflazacort:β-cyclodextrin complex with improved solubility was successfully developed using freeze drying technique.


The adoption of information security model, implementation of policies and fitness for any information security standard is rare for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) because, often, the complexity of the rules. As these organizations contribute to much of the national economy, being the largest employers in Brazil, it was necessary to research ways to try to fill the gap. For this purpose the present study analyzed with real sample of 48 SMEs, through a questionnaire, which the vision of information security for SMEs and proposed a model simplifying controls 133 of ISO / IEC 27002 for just 22. This simplified model was , later also validated via questionnaire with ICT professionals in SMEs.


The content of antistaphylococcal antitoxins--antialphastaphylolysins was examined in the blood serum of three groups of blood donor volunteers. It is shown that volunteer blood donors immunized according to two schemes with prophylactic purposes may be a source of antistaphylococcal plasma. Additionally antistaphylococcal plasma may be obtained from non-immune donors showing high titers of antialphastaphylolysins revealed by the screening method.


This article provides a TWAIL critique of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [UNFCCC] in the aftermath of the 21st Conference of the Parties in Paris in December 2015. It engages with criticisms from the social and climate justice movement that the UNFCCC is promoting forms of "carbon colonialism" or "CO2lonialism" through its support for and establishment of international carbon trading and offsetting strategies. It proposes that using a jurisdictional approach to examine how the authority of the UNFCCC is authorized can provide key analytical tools to understand the regime. The article examines the way in which the regime is authorized by an invocation of "common concern" even as it promotes policies that marginalize the interests of those already most vulnerable to climate change. It concludes by suggesting that climate justice movements already are building different forms of commonality and that these alternative commonalties represent important new ways of thinking about global action on climate change.


The vibrational Stokes shift of the OH stretching transition nu(OH) of water is the shift between the ground-state absorption and the excited-state (v=1) emission. A recent measurement on HOD in D(2)O solvent [S. Woutersen and H. J. Bakker, Phys. Rev. Lett. 83, 2077 (1999)] of a 70 cm(-1) redshift, and a subsequent calculation of a 57 cm(-1) redshift using equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations [C. P. Lawrence and J. L. Skinner, J. Chem. Phys. 117, 8847 (2002)] were in good agreement. We now report extensive measurements of the vibrational Stokes shift in HOD/D(2)O using an ultrafast IR pump, Raman probe method. The vibrational Stokes shift is seen to depend on the pump pulse frequency and on time delay; by varying these parameters it can be made to range from 112 to -32 cm(-1) (negative values indicate a blueshift in the excited state). The equilibrium vibrational Stokes shift is actually a negative rather than a positive quantity. Possible reasons for the disagreement between experiment and theory are briefly discussed.


RF MEMS Switches are rapidly replacing the FET & PIN based switches as they offer a large spectrum of advantages over the traditional switches, most notable of which are their high isolation, low insertion loss, ultra low power consumption and high bandwidth. The spectrum of materials available to designers for the manufacturing of various components of these switches is continuously expanding. This calls for a systematic approach in material selection, looking into the parameters of the switch which need to be optimized for better performance, and how a particular material choice affects these parameters. This paper looks into the types of RF MEMS switches, characterizes a few parameters which affect their performances, and suggests using the Ashby approach that for low pull-down voltages, high switching speeds and lower losses, Barium Strontium Titanate (BST) is the best material choice for the dielectric layer, and Aluminum and Silicon Dioxide are the best choices for the membrane. Keywords—Ashby Approach, Material Selection, RF MEMS Switches


This article intends to discuss the importance of the ego-psychology towards the psychoanalytical interpretation of the aesthetic experience. Its focus is based on the Ernst Kris original work, therefore it intends to present certain basis of his aesthetical thinking. In this case, however, it will suggest one certain reading which emphasizes the problem of sublimation as a drive destination - and not as a defense mechanism - in within this relationship between art and psychoanalysis; hence, it brings out a phenomenon that crosses the psychoanalytical thinking since its first conception.