In this work, a simple method to prepare white light emissive diodes based on quantum dot (QD) colloidal solutions using mixed carbon QDs (CQDs) and CsPbI3 perovskite (PQDs) is reported. The right combination generates emission across the entire visible spectrum upon ultraviolet excitation. The white light emission of the final films provides high and stable color rendering index of 92%, tuning the chromaticity coordinates of the emission through the applied voltage. By varying the CsPbI3 QD concentration, a mixture is obtained that emits the "warm", "neutral", and "cold" white light sought for many indoor lighting applications, or to approximate the visible region of the solar spectrum, respectively. Remarkably, the material syntheses are low cost and truly scalable. In addition, colloidal mixtures of CQDs and CsPbI3 PQDs show a facile deposition for light‐emitting diode (LED) application, showing white electroluminescence, indicating that both kinds of QDs are stable during LED operation. Last but not least, the photoluminescence quantum yield of the colloidal mixtures is higher (up to 75%) than single white emitters, showing itself as a promising system for white emission with tunable properties.


Clinical signs, complete blood counts and bone marrow differential counts at the time of diagnosis were investigated in 75 consecutive patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia in a study of prognostic parameters. All patients were followed until death (62 patients) or for a mean follow-up time of 69 months (13 patients). Clinical signs and hematological values were analyzed by univariate and multivariate statistical methods. The only parameter relevant to mean survival time in multivariate analysis is the percentage of bone marrow myeloblasts at diagnosis. Patients with less than 5% myeloblasts at diagnosis had a mean survival time of 48 months compared with 16 months for those with greater than or equal to 5% (p less than 0.01).


There have been few management concepts, even including 'Total Quality', 'World Class Manufacturing' and 'Excellence' to have generated such enormous media interest so quickly as the phenomenon of Business Process Redesign (BPR). The IT community in particular has latched on to the concept, although since its inception it has broadened its appeal. This paper discusses the significant issues relating to BPR and makes a distinction between business re-engineering and business process redesign. Based on a study of a number of organizations who claim to be active, the essential ingredients of BPR are presented. The paper then identifies how organizations are managing their redesign initiatives and presents emerging themes. The paper concludes with some of the lessons learned from the research to date and addresses the vital issues of whether BPR is hype, hope or hypocrisy.


Abstract STUDY QUESTION Which couples with unexplained subfertility can expect increased chances of ongoing pregnancy with IVF compared to expectant management? SUMMARY ANSWER For couples in which the woman is under 40 years of age, IVF is associated with higher chances of conception than expectant management. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY The clinical indications for IVF have expanded over time from bilateral tubal blockage to include unexplained subfertility in which there is no identifiable barrier to conception. Yet, there is little evidence from randomized controlled trials that IVF is effective in these couples. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION We compared outcomes in British couples with unexplained subfertility undergoing IVF (n = 40 921) from registry data to couples with the same type of subfertility on expectant management. Those couples on expectant management (defined as no intervention aside from the advice to have intercourse) comprised a prospective nation-wide Dutch cohort (n = 4875) and a retrospective regional cohort from Aberdeen, Scotland (n = 975). We excluded couples who had tried for <1 year to conceive and also those with anovulation, uni- or bilateral tubal occlusion, mild or severe endometriosis or male subfertility i.e. impaired semen quality according to World Health Organization criteria. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS We matched couples who received IVF and couples on expectant management based on their characteristics to control for confounding. We fitted a Cox proportional hazards model including patient characteristics, IVF treatment and their interactions to estimate the individualized chance of conception over 1 year—either following IVF or expectant management for all combinations of patient characteristics. The endpoint was conception leading to ongoing pregnancy, defined as a foetus reaching a gestational age of at least 12 weeks. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE The adjusted 1-year chance of conception was 47.9% (95% CI: 45.0–50.9) after IVF and 26.1% (95% CI: 24.2–28.0) after expectant management. The absolute difference in the average adjusted 1-year chances of conception was 21.8% (95%CI: 18.3–25.3) in favour of IVF. The effectiveness of IVF was influenced by female age, duration of subfertility and previous pregnancy. IVF was effective in women under 40 years, but the 1-year chance of an IVF conception declined sharply in women over 34 years. In contrast, in woman over 40 years of age, IVF was less effective, with an absolute difference in chance compared to expectant management of 10% or lower. Regardless of female age, IVF was also less effective in couples with a short period of secondary subfertility (1 year) who had chances of natural conception of 30% or above. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION The 1-year chances of conception were based on three cohorts with different sampling mechanisms. Despite adjustment for the three most important prognostic patient characteristics, namely female age, duration of subfertility and primary or secondary subfertility, our estimates might not be free from residual confounding. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS IVF should be used selectively based on judgements on gain compared to continuing expectant management for a given couple. Our results can be used by clinicians to counsel couples with unexplained subfertility, to inform their expectations and facilitate evidence-based, shared decision making. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) This work was supported by Tenovus Scotland [grant G17.04]. Travel for RvE was supported by the Amsterdam Reproduction & Development Research Group [grant V.000296]. SB reports acting as editor-in-chief of HROpen. Other authors have no conflicts.


Purpose
The mobile shadow information technology (IT) phenomenon is both completely misunderstood and negatively explored by those participating inside the organizational ecosystem. It represents all internet-based software, any other solutions for communications or employees' sharing without any formal authorization or approval from the IT department. Such behavior can lead to a security breach of the organization's data privacy, as these risks could disseminate it without the organization fully knowing. Recent research identifies that shadow IT is rarely covered from the knowledge sharing and knowledge protection (KP) perspective. This paper aims to provide an insight on how mobile shadow IT as a phenomenon could impact KP of an organization as a whole.

Design/methodology/approach
This is an exploratory study based on a qualitative approach. The authors conducted interviews with 11 IT users to answer the main research question. The interview guidelines were divided into three parts: types of mobile shadow IT and occurrence; KP nature in the workplace; and mobile shadow IT impact on KP.

Findings
The research findings identified that most interviewees use mobile shadow IT without any notice or permission from their IT departments. This sharing also negatively impacts the KP in the organization. The most common mobile shadow IT applications are the clouded type like Dropbox, Google Drive and WhatsApp. Interviewees are using mobile shadow IT mainly because organizations do not provide suitable tools to communicate efficiently. The authors concluded that mobile shadow IT harms KP with no security and privacy on what is being shared because this process is unmonitored by the organization.

Practical implications
For adequate knowledge and data protection, IT departments need to take more actions and efforts. This study can help IT decision-makers cope with the technology changes while understanding mobile shadow IT impacts. This study also offers insight regarding types of applications that can be used as an alternative tool for employees rather than using unauthorized applications. This research shows that medium-sized organizations are free to use these applications, which can cause damage to organizations.

Originality/value
This research is arguably among the first to explore the interviewees' perspectives on how mobile shadow IT impacts KP. This paper also provides theoretical and practical insights by identifying the three primary constructs and how mobile shadow IT usage can affect KP.


OBJECTIVE
To examine peripapillary choroidal thickness in healthy controls and in patients with glaucoma who have focal, diffuse, and sclerotic optic disc damage.

METHODS
Healthy controls (n=92) and patients with glaucoma who have focal (n=34), diffuse (n=35), and sclerotic (n=34) optic disc damage were imaged with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (12° circular scan protocol centered on optic nerve head). Peripapillary choroidal thickness was measured as the distance between the automatically segmented retinal pigment epithelium/Bruch's membrane and the manually outlined interface between the posterior choroid and the anterior border of the sclera in eyes in which the anterior scleral border was visible over more than 85% of the scan circumference.

RESULTS
The anterior scleral border was visible in 76 controls (83%) and 89 patients (86%). Peripapillary choroidal thickness in healthy controls decreased linearly with age (-11 μm/decade; P.001; r2=0.16), with a predicted value of 137 μm at age 70 years (95% prediction interval, 62-212 μm). While this value was similar in patients with focal and diffuse optic disc damage (126 and 130 μm, respectively; P=.22 compared with controls), it was approximately 30% lower in patients with sclerotic optic disc damage (96 μm; P.001 compared with controls).

CONCLUSIONS
The peripapillary choroid of patients with glaucoma who have sclerotic optic disc damage was approximately 25% to 30% thinner compared with that in patients with focal and diffuse optic disc damage and with that in healthy controls. The role of the choroid in the pathophysiology of sclerotic glaucomatous optic disc damage needs further investigation.


This study aimed to consider the in vitro and in vivo effects of the Stachys lavandulifolia methanolic extract (SLME) (2.5, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 µg/mL) against Leishmania major infection. The in vitro antileishmanial effects of SLME was studies on promastigote and amastigote forms of L. major. The effect of SLME on the nitric oxide (NO) and apoptosis, secretion of Th1/2 cytokines, and infectivity rate in macrophages cells were also studies. The cytotoxicity of SLME on human (THP-1) and murine (J774-A1 cell) macrophage cells was investigated through the measuring the 50% cytotoxic concentrations (CC50). Moreover, the in vivo effects of SLME for healing the cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) lesions in infected BALB/c mice studied by assessing the lesions size and the parasite load during four weeks of treatment. The calculated 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) valuesfor SLME and meglumine antimoniate (MA) against the promastigote stage were 23.4 and 71.1 µg/mL, respectively. For amastigote stage, the IC50 values for SLME and MA were 39.3 µg/mL and 44.3 µg/mL, respectively. Followed by 28 days' topically therapy with SLME at doses of 50 and 100 mg/kg/day, the CL lesions size as well as parasite load were significantly (p<0.001) reduced; such that the recovery percentage of the infected mice was 80% and 97% after treatment with SLME at the dose of 50 and 100 mg/kg, respectively. SLME also markedly induced the NO production and apoptosis; whereas decreased infection rate in macrophage cells. After incubation of infected macrophages with SLME, the level interferon gamma was meaningfully (p<0.001) elevated as a dose-dependent response; in contrast, release of interleukin 10 (IL-10) and IL-4 markedly (p<0.001) decreased. The CC50 value for SLME against THP-1 and J774-A1 cell was 996.4 µg/mL and 741.3 µg/mL, respectively. The calculated selectivity index of >10 for SLME and MA confirmed their specificity to amastigotes and the low toxicity for macrophages. Our results showed the potent effects of SLME in eliminating and controlling Leishmania parasites in both in vitro and in vivo assays. Based on the current experimental study, SLME can be suggested as an alternative medicine for the isolation and production of a new agent for treating CL caused by L. major. Although, we found some cellular mechanisms of SLME against Leishmania parasites, but, additional surveys are necessary to specify the accurate mechanisms of action, toxicity, and its efficacy mainly in human subjects.


Fluorescein-labeled oligonucleotides as DNA-probes were synthesized and used to monitor hybrid formation, namely to detect DNA or oligonucleotide sequence in solution. The introduction of fluorescein to oligonucleotides was carried out by oxidation of a hydrogen phosphonate linkage with ethylenediamine or hexamethylenediamine as a tether and by a subsequent labeling of the primary amine moiety by FITC. Fluorescence anisotropy, r, was adopted as an index to monitor the behavior of F-probe in solution. An increase in the anisotropy was observed upon an increase in the chain-length of F-probe. When F-Probe formed a hybrid with its complementary oligonucleotide in solution, the r value increased compared to that of F-Probe itself. These observations clearly indicate that measurements of r in solution will readily lead to the monitoring of the presence of a hybrid in solution. Consequently, it is promising to detect a certain nucleic acid sequence in solution using fluorescent-labeled oligonucleotides.


We present our development experience and recent results for the MLPerf Tiny Inference Benchmark on field-programmable gate array (FPGA) platforms. We use the open-source hls4ml and FINN workflows, which aim to democratize AI-hardware codesign of optimized neural networks on FPGAs. We present the design and implementation process for the keyword spotting, anomaly detection, and image classification benchmark tasks. The resulting hardware implementations are quantized, configurable, spatial dataflow architectures tailored for speed and efficiency and introduce new generic optimizations and common workflows developed as a part of this work. The full workflow is presented from quantization-aware training to FPGA implementation. The solutions are deployed on system-on-chip (Pynq-Z2) and pure FPGA (Arty A7-100T) platforms. The resulting submissions achieve latencies as low as 20 $\mu$s and energy consumption as low as 30 $\mu$J per inference. We demonstrate how emerging ML benchmarks on heterogeneous hardware platforms can catalyze collaboration and the development of new techniques and more accessible tools.


Graphene oxide (GO) has attracted attention in materials science and engineering due to its large aspect ratio and dispersibility in polar solvent including water. It has recently been applied to direct-ink-writing (DIW) printing to realize the fabrication of three-dimensional structures, suggesting a wide variety of potential applications. Without post-processing, DIW printing requires yield stress fluids to fully build three-dimensional objects. The key properties of these inks are the yield stress and the viscoelastic properties during yielding. DIW ink rheology has therefore received significant interest in materials science, as well as mechanical and chemical engineering. Despite this interest, the yielding process has not been clearly elucidated and understanding yielding remains an outstanding problem. In this study, we discuss the yielding behavior of GO colloids via oscillatory rheology by decomposing the total strain into the recoverable and unrecoverable parts through iterative experimental techniques. The recoverable and unrecoverable responses represent viscoelastic solid and plastic properties, respectively, and they are used to determine the averaged storage and dissipation of energies. By mapping these contributions, we more clearly elucidate the yielding behavior of the GO colloids and suggest guidelines for energy efficiency. Beyond the specific lessons learned regarding the DIW-relevant rheology of GO colloids, our study contributes to an evolving development of material-centric and energy-focused methods for understanding the out-of-equilibrium rheological physics associated with the yielding of soft materials.


The current work addresses a virtual environment with self-replicating agents whose decisions are based on a form of "somatic computation" (soma - body) in which basic emotional responses, taken in parallelism to actual living organisms, are introduced as a way to provide the agents with greater reflexive abilities. The work provides a contribution to the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Artificial Life (ALife) in connection to a neurobiology-based cognitive framework for artificial systems and virtual environments' simulations. The performance of the agents capable of emotional responses is compared with that of self-replicating automata, and the implications of research on emotions and AI, in connection to both virtual agents as well as robots, is addressed regarding possible future directions and applications.


Wolves are charismatic emblems of wilderness. Dogs, which descended fromwolves, are models of urbanity. Do free-ranging dogs revert to pack living, or are their societies only reminiscent of a wolfish heritage? Focusing on behavioral ecology, this is the first book to assess societies of both gray wolves and domestic dogs living as urban strays and in the feral state. It provides a comprehensive review of wolf genetics, particularly of New World wolves and their confusing admixture of wolf, coyote, and dog genomes. Spotte draws on the latest scientific findings across the specialized fields of genetics, sensory biology, reproductive physiology, space use, foraging ecology, and socialization. This interdisciplinary approach provides a solid foundation for a startling and original comparison of the social lives of wolves and free-ranging dogs. Supplementary material, including a full glossary of terms, is available online at www.cambridge.org/9781107015197.


Default Inferences in Metaphor Interpretation.- MDD Approach for the Development of Context-Aware Applications.- Of Situations and Their Neighbors.- Conceptual Analysis of Interdisciplinary Scientific Work.- Towards a Methodology for Context Sensitive Systems Development.- Meaning, Contexts and Justification.- Local Context Selection for Aligning Sentences in Parallel Corpora.- Context in Use for Analyzing Conversation Structures on the Web Tied to the Notion of Situatedness.- Using Context for the Extraction of Relational Views.- Context Modeling: Task Model and Practice Model.- Context Modeling: Context as a Dressing of a Focus.- Service-Context Unified Knowledge Representation for Autonomic Adaptation.- Goal Reasoning with Context Record Types.- Context-Oriented Domain Analysis.- A Semantics for Changing Frames of Mind.- The Influence of Task Contexts on the Decision-Making of Humans and Computers.- Context and Design Agents.- On Relating Heterogeneous Elements from Different Ontologies.- ReCQ: Real-World Context-Aware Querying.- Objective vs. Subjective Scales: The Challenge That the Scale Type Poses to the JUDGEMAP Model of Context Sensitive Judgment.- Similarity Measurement in Context.- Delimited Continuations in Operating Systems.- Explanations and Context in Ambient Intelligent Systems.- Context-Sensitivity of Human Memory: Episode Connectivity and Its Influence on Memory Reconstruction.- Enhancing Just-in-Time E-Learning Through Machine Learning on Desktop Context Sensors.- Coping with Unconsidered Context of Formalized Knowledge.- OCCAM: Ontology-Based Computational Contextual Analysis and Modeling.- User Profiling with Hierarchical Context: An e-Retailer Case Study.- Context-Aware Security Management System for Pervasive Computing Environment.- VIVACE Context Based Search Platform.- AcroDef: A Quality Measure for Discriminating Expansions of Ambiguous Acronyms.- Risk Context Effects in Inductive Reasoning: An Experimental and Computational Modeling Study.- Representing Context in Web Search with Ontological User Profiles.- Thai Text Coherence Structuring with Coordinating and Subordinating Relations for Text Summarization.- Three Interactions Between Context and Epistemic Locutions.- Do You Believe What Eye Believe?.- Investigating the Specifics of Contextual Elements Management: The CEManTIKA Approach.- Distributed Document Contexts in Cooperation Systems.- Integrating Engineering, Cognitive and Social Approaches for a Comprehensive Modeling of Organizational Agents and Their Contexts.- Fields as Dimensions of Context: An Application of Bourdieu's Sociological Theory to Modelling of Context of Social Action.- Context Sensitivity: Indexicalism, Contextualism, Relativism.- An Operational Definition of Context.


Programming software to setup acquisition channels during device operation has been developed for the TJ-II remote participation system. The software follows a three-tier model. A first tier (client tier) groups client software containing only user interface code. A second tier (middle tier) includes code for authorization, authentication, and query processing. A third tier (data tier) consists of a relational database server for managing configurations. Multi-platform characteristics are provided by web browsers (client tier) and web servers (middle tier). This architecture avoids that data acquisition system controllers provide access control, database support, or graphic user interface resources. Therefore, computation capabilities of these systems can mainly be devoted to data handling. LabView (from National Instruments) has been used as programming language in the acquisition systems. This design allows a very transparent management of signals, independently on hardware modules and systems.


Peroxynitrite is a potent oxidant formed by the rapid reaction of the free radicals nitric oxide (NO) and superoxide. It causes airway hyperresponsiveness and airway epithelial damage, enhances inflammatory cell recruitment, and inhibits pulmonary surfactant. Asthma is characterized by increased airway hyperresponsiveness, airway epithelial shedding, and inflammation. We examined the production of peroxynitrite and the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in airways of asthmatic patients compared to normal control subjects. We also performed a double‐blind, crossover randomized‐order, placebo‐controlled study on 10 asthmatic patients to study the effects of inhaled glucocorticoid treatment (Budesonide) on the formation of peroxynitrite and NO. Fiberoptic bronchial biopsies were examined by immunohistochemistry with antiserum to nitrotyrosine, a marker of protein nitration by peroxynitrite. We also examined the expression of iNOS by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization, and measured exhaled NO by chemiluminescence. We correlated the airway production of peroxynitrite with pulmonary functions and airway responsiveness. In airway passages of control subjects, there was weak or no nitrotyrosine immu‐noreactivity. In contrast, there was strong immuno‐reactivity for nitrotyrosine in the airway epithelium and inflammatory cells in the airways of persons with asthma. Budesonide treatment resulted in a significant reduction in nitrotyrosine immunoreactivity. Expression of iNOS was evident in the airway pithelium of controls and asthmatic patients, but was significantly more abundant in asthmatic patients. The presence of nitrotyrosine in the airway epithelium (r= −0.841, P < 0.0001; r = −0.771, P = 0.0004) and inflammatory cells (r= −0.727, P = 0014; r= −0.681, P = 0.004) correlated inversely with methacholine PC20 and forced expiratory volume in 1 s, respectively. Asthma is associated with increased peroxynitrite formation in the airways, which is reduced after Budesonide treatment. The potent oxidant peroxynitrite may contribute to airway obstruction and hyperresponsiveness and epithelial damage in asthma.—Saleh, D., Ernst, P., Lim, S., Barnes, P. J., Giaid, A. Increased formation of the potent oxidant peroxynitrite in the airways of asthmatic patients is associated with induction of nitric oxide synthase: effect of inhaled glucocorticoid. FASEB J. 12, 929–937 (1998)


A new near-infrared fluorophore 2-(2-Aminoethyl) pyridine-tricarbocyanine (1) was rationally designed and synthe-sized as a
fluorescent probe for detection of Cu2+ with high selectivity. The
response of Probe 1 is based on the
fluorescence quenching upon
binding to Cu2+. The sensing performance of the proposed Cu2+-sensitive
Probe 1 was then investigated. The
probe can be applied to the quantification detection of Cu2+ with a
linear concentration range covering from 4.8 × 10-7 to 1.6 × 10-4 mol/L and a detection limit of 9.3 × 10-8 mol/L. The experimental results showed that the response of 1 to Cu2+ was independent of pH in medium condition (pH 6.0-8.0),
and exhibited excellent selectivity towards Cu2+ over other common
metal cations.


The Interactions curriculum and professional development program is designed to support high school teachers in their transition to the physical science Next Generation Science Standards. Through curriculum materials, an online portal for delivering the digital materials, interactive models of molecular phenomena, and educative teacher guide, teachers are able to support students in bridging the gap between macroscopic and sub-microscopic ideas in physical science by focusing on a modeling and explanation-oriented exploration of attractions and energy changes at the atomic level. During the fall semester of the 2015-16 school year, The Learning Partnership conducted a field test of Interactions with eleven teachers who implemented the curriculum across a diverse set of school districts. As part of the field test, The Learning Partnership examined the impact of teachers' inquiry-based teaching practices on student learning and identification with the scientific enterprise. The results indicate that students had statistically significant growth in learning from the beginning to end of unit 2 and that the extent to which teachers engaged students in inquiry had a positive statistically significant influence on the growth rate and a statistically significant indirect impact on students' identification with the scientific enterprise.


Abstract Remote sensing systems like radars and lidars are frequently used in atmospheric measurement campaigns. Because of their different wavelengths, they operate in different scattering regimes. Combined use may result in new measurement options. Here, an approach to estimate raindrop size distribution using vertical velocities measured by a lidar–radar combination is introduced and tested using a 2-μm Doppler lidar and a 35.5-GHz cloud radar. The lidar spectra are evaluated to deduce air motion from the aerosol peak and the fall velocity of the raindrops from the rain peak. The latter is weighted by the area (D2) of the scatters. The fall velocity derived from radar measurements is weighted by D6 (Rayleigh approximation). Assuming a size-dependent fall velocity and an analytical description of the drop size distribution, its parameters are calculated from these data. Comparison of the raindrop size distribution from the lidar–radar combination with in situ measurements on the ground yields satisfying...


Denoising of images by the Wavelet conversion is widely researched. The image reconstruction in the Fresnel transform technique is done through several signal stages, and each stage in the process has quite different signal pattern. Therefore, executing the noise removal processing, denoising, using the Wavelet conversion in each stage becomes possible. We obtained the most excellent denoising result when we applied the Wavelet-denoising in the reconstructed image stage. Moreover, if the Wavelet-denoising using the same Mother-Wavelet was done in two signal stages of the image reconstruction process in the Fresnel transform technique, it was confirmed to be able to improve the image S/N more greatly compared with the case when the Wavelet-denoising was done only in a single stage.


We used the subspecies hybrid F1 oocytes (Holstein/Chinese Yellow cattle) recovered by ovum pickup (OPU) as recipient cytoplasts to improve the development of bovine cloned embryos. Ten Holstein cattle, four Chinese Yellow cattle, and four hybrid F1 bovines were subjected to OPU once a week. In total, 44, 110, and 42 OPU sessions were respectively performed for hybrid cattle, Holstein cattle and Chinese Yellow cattle. The mean numbers of punctured follicles for hybrid and Yellow cattle were higher than for Holstein cattle (11.4 ± 0.5 and 11.7 ± 0.5 vs. 10.1 ± 0.7, mean ± SE), but the recovery rate for Holstein cattle was higher than that for hybrid and Yellow cattle (76.2% vs. 70.3% and 66.6%); therefore, recovered oocytes per session were similar in hybrid, Holstein, and Yellow cattle (8.0 ± 0.5, 7.7 ± 0.4 and 7.8 ± 0.5, respectively). No difference was shown in the quality of the recovered oocytes among the three breeds. The three kinds of recipient oocytes had a maturation rate of 72–73% (256/353, 614/847, and 238/327, respectively). Matured oocytes were used as recipients without selection, and same batch cumulus cells collected from Holstein cow were used as donor cells. The nuclear transfer procedure was essentially as described by Park et al. (2004 Mol. Reprod. Dev. 69, 365–374). Cleavage rate of reconstructed embryos was similar in the hybrid, Holstein, and Yellow groups (66%, 66%, and 75%, respectively). However, the blastocyst rate from the cleavage embryos (51% vs. 37% and 27%), cell number of each blastocyst on Day 8 (135 ± 4.1 vs. 116 ± 3.6, and 101 ± 4.2), and the percentage of Grade A blastocysts (54% vs. 42% and 29%) in the hybrid group were higher than in the Holstein and Yellow groups. The proportion of blastocyst production on Day 7 was greater in the hybrid group than in the Holstein and Yellow groups (89% vs. 71% and 63%). The blastocyst rate from morula in the hybrid group (84%, 37/44) was significantly higher than in the Holstein group (63%, 52/83) and the Yellow group (59%, 24/43). Taken together, these results strongly show that hybrid recipient oocytes can improve the development of cloned bovine embryos. It is suggested that the genetic heterogeneity of the hybrid recipient cytoplasm would lead to more possibilities of reprogramming and embryo development. Table 1. Effect of different recipient oocytes on development of cloned embryos This work was supported by the Chinese "863" High-Tech Plan Program (Grant No. 2002AA206201).


In this country, and in North America, ischaemic heart disease is the commonest single cause of death, and as the condition has been defined as 'the cardiac disability, acute or chronic, arising from reduction or arrest of the blood supply to the myocardium in association with disease processes in the coronary arteries' (WHO, 1957), the key to the problem should lie in these arteries. So it may, but after years of intensive study we are still completely ignorant about the relationships between arterial atheroma in general and coronary atheroma; between coronary artery disease and the occurrence and significance of thrombosis therein, and indeed between the basic pathological findings and the major clinical manifestations of ischaemic heart disease, namely, angina pectoris and myocardial infarction.


Abstract The purpose of the current work was to extend the study of the effect of temperature on silage microbiology, with or without formic acid, and on the aerobic stability of corn and vetch-grain silages. The silage samples were ensiled in 1.0-l anaerobic jars, with and without formic acid, at room (20°C) or elevated temperatures (30–37°C). After 45 days of ensiling, the silages were subjected to an aerobic stability test at room (20°C) and elevated (30–37°C) temperatures. The most intensive deterioration occurred at 30–37°C. Samples incubated at 30–37°C had the highest yeast and mould count, most prolific CO2 production. The finding of the current study suggests that formic acid may decrease mould growth in silage samples. Unfortunately, formic acid does not reduce aerobic deterioration rate of silages. Applying a 5 g/kg formic acid on corn and vetch-grain silages was not very effective at high temperatures.


The Mobius cubes are created, by rearranging in a systematic manner, some of the edges of a hypercube. This rearrangement results in smaller distances between processors; where distance is the number of communication links which must be traversed. The authors show that the n-dimensional Mobius cubes have a diameter of about n/2 and expected distance of about n/3. These distances are a considerable savings over the diameter of n and expected distance of n/2 for the n-dimensional hypercube. The authors show that the Mobius cubes have a slightly more complicated algorithm than the hypercube. While the asymmetry of the Mobius cubes may give rise to communications bottlenecks, they report preliminary experiments showing the bottle necks are not significant. They compare their Mobius cubes to other variants and indicate some advantages for the Mobius cubes.<<ETX>>


Science fiction is a genre in which anything is possible. It therefore comprises the perfect litmus test of any given culture's prevailing hopes and fears about the future. One such source of anxiety that has been particularly conspicuous in works of fiction since the Industrial Revolution is the development of automata and other machines – specifically, whether they might eventually become strong or intelligent enough to overthrow their creators. As elucidated in this essay, fears about some sort of robot uprising fit into a more general worry among dominant groups about a reversal of fates between them and an oppressed group. The cyborg character, however, complicates this formula because it is a hybrid of human and machine, a boundary figure. This is a clear, perhaps uncomfortable reminder that the Other is also the Same. This thesis will examine five key examples from the last five decades of literature about cyborgs, namely: The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey; 'The Girl Who Was Plugged In' by James Tiptree Jr.; Proxies by Laura J Mixon; 'Silently and Very Fast' by Catherynne M Valente; and Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. These texts will be combed through for examples of the ways in which cyborgs might disrupt binary understandings of identity and thereby challenge real-life social hierarchies. Most important to this investigation is the potential of cyborg disembodiment – that is, any kind of cybernetic separation of the consciousness from an organic body – to confuse how identities are perceived and constructed.


The evolution of the Spaceborne Imaging Radar (SIR) has lead to a multipolarizatio n, multifrequency synthetic aperture radar (SAR) with variable imaging geometry which will be ready for flight on the Earth Observing System (Eos). Nominally, this SAR will be a three frequency (L -, C- and X- bands) system with quadpolarization available for the L- and Cbands. It will be capable of acquiring multiincidence angle data using electronic beam steering and other imaging geometries by mechanically pitching, yawing and rolling the antenna. The capabilities of the Eos SAR, particularly acquisition of cross polarized and high incidence angle data, depend on the altitude of the platform on which the SAR flies and improve significantly at lower altitudes. The Eos SAR will provide a unique new data set and will play a key role in understanding the Earth's global processes alone and synergistically with other Eos instruments.


The S2 state of the Oxygen Evolving Complex (OEC) of Photosystem II (PSII) shows high-spin (HS) and low-spin (LS) EPR signals attributed to distinct structures based on computation. Five-coordinate MnIII centers are proposed in these species but are absent in available spectroscopic model complexes. Herein, we report the synthesis, crystal structure, electrochemistry, SQUID magnetometry, and EPR spectroscopy of a MnIIIMnIV3O4 cuboidal complex featuring five-coordinate MnIII. This cluster displays a spin ground state of S = 5/2, while conversion to a six-coordinate Mn upon treatment with water results in a spin state change to S = 1/2. These results demonstrate that coordination number, without dramatic changes within the Mn4O4 core, has a substantial effect on spectroscopy.


Despite recent progress, computational visual aesthetic is still challenging. Image cropping, which refers to the removal of unwanted scene areas, is an important step to improve the aesthetic quality of an image. However, it is challenging to evaluate whether cropping leads to aesthetically pleasing results because the assessment is typically subjective. In this paper, we propose a novel cascaded cropping regression (CCR) method to perform image cropping by learning the knowledge from professional photographers. The proposed CCR method improves the convergence speed of the cascaded method, which directly uses random-ferns regressors. In addition, a two-step learning strategy is proposed and used in the CCR method to address the problem of lacking labelled cropping data. Specifically, a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) classifier is first trained on large-scale visual aesthetic datasets. The deep CNN model is then designed to extract features from several image cropping datasets, upon which the cropping bounding boxes are predicted by the proposed CCR method. Experimental results on public image cropping datasets demonstrate that the proposed method significantly outperforms several state-of-the-art image cropping methods.


Introduction: Putative chloride salt deposits have been detected in Mars Odyssey THEMIS daytime infrared images. The mid-IR spectra of these deposits are characterized by an unusually high apparent emissivity in processed data at shorter wavelengths in comparison to surrounding units [1]. CRISM visible to near infrared (VNIR) FRT and HRL images covering these deposits also indicate the presence of this probable chloride salt based on a red spectral slope lacking distinctive absorptions throughout the 1-2.7μm range and a lack of the 3μm water absorption band in spectra ratioed to spectrally neutral material [2]. However, diffuse reflectance spectra of halite taken in the laboratory setting do not result in a red spectral slope in the near infrared [3]. We hypothesize that this red spectral slope is due to the mixing of chloride with a feldspar mineral such as labradorite, which is found on the Martian surface, and shows a slope in this region due to the Fe 2+ absorption band centered at about 1.3μm [4]. Here we report on diffuse reflectance spectra of labradorite and halite mixtures. By investigating the effect of adding various amounts of labradorite to halite, we hope to find a suitable combination which allows for the red spectral slope viewed in the ratioed CRISM spectral data. Methodology: CRISM data were investigated in areas where putative chloride deposits are observed in THEMIS daytime decorrelation stretched (DCS) images. We confirmed the unique spectral character of these deposits by extracting the atmospherically corrected THEMIS emissivity spectra from the images. CRISM DCS images were made using CRISM multispectral summary products [1, 5]. To display phyllosilicates in association with the chloride deposits, red, green and blue were assigned to the reverse of the IR spectral slope parameter, D2300 (2.3μm drop off), and HCPINDEX (high calcium pyroxene) respectively. An example of this can be seen in Figure 1, where the putative chlorides appear to be red, phyllosilicates appear to be green and pyroxene appears to be blue. Spectra were extracted from atmospherically corrected CRISM hyperspectral image cubes by averaging pixels over areas bearing chloride (red) and phyllosilicate (green). In order to remove any remnant atmospheric effects or instrumental errors, these spectra were then ratioed to regions in the image that were considered to be spectrally neutral. Generally dust is the desired spectra for conducting ratios, however the Figure 1. Projected CRISM image FRT0000A102_07 mapped where red, green and blue are chloride, phyllosilicate and pyroxene respectively. Boxes indicate pixels where spectra of glowing terrain and phyllosilicate have been averaged and the neutral region that is used in spectral ratios (Figure 2). Colors in this figure correspond with those in the ratioed CRISM spectra.


This study examined the significant role of multimedia among EFL learners in influencing motivation and creativity. The sample of the study included 50 female students of fourth level, from Shaqra University, College of Arts and Science at Shaqra, English Language Department in the academic year 2018-2019 who were studying English as a foreign language, in Saudi Arabia. The pre-post oral tests, pre-post written tests, and interviews for college teachers were three techniques that were used for data collection. The preoral and pre-written tests were administered to assess the actual level of the students while the post-oral and postwritten tests were given to check the progress made by the students after they were taught with multimedia. The data of the study were analyzed using the statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). The main findings of the study indicated that teaching through multimedia has a positive effect on the students' performance. The use of multimedia also increases students' motivation and creativity in learning. Finally, there are some recommendations for English teachers and learners of English language.


Bleeding conditions are common but are often missed or ignored because serious hemorrhage occurs only occasionally and usually can be managed and controlled by transfusion of blood or plasma. There has been, nevertheless, a growing demand to detect bleeders, and attempts have been made to devise a screening test for this purpose. Because hemostasis is a complex physiological process, the prospect of finding one single test to establish defective hemostasis is remote. Fortunately, it is possible to achieve this goal fairly satisfactorily by a combination of four simple tests: bleeding, clotting, prothrombin, and prothrombin consumption times. Even mild bleeding states can be detected and usually definitively diagnosed. Each of the tests requires a minimum of skill and no special equipment, thereby making this battery of procedures available to hospitals with limited laboratory facilities. It is the purpose of this presentation to point out the clinical application and interpretation of the


' On a cold day at Port Hudson National Cemetery last week, I shivered as a pair of Marine sergeants solemnly folded an American flag. My friend John Wrenn had lost his battle. He was 62 years old. He had recurrent pancreatic cancer…. Following a simple, richly personal service, the U.S. Marine Corps paid the veteran final respect, standing at attention through the haunting playing of taps, carefully folding the flag from his coffin and presenting it to his widow. ' Laurie Smith Anderson, Journalist, The Advocate, Baton Rouge, December 8th, 2006.

John H. Wrenn

John Harry Wyckoff Wrenn was our former student and our friend. He was born in Jackson, Michigan, and spent his younger years in Arlington Heights, Illinois, where he was known by most of his school friends as Jack. His father, Webster Wrenn, was much older than his mother and was a veteran who had been stationed in China during the Boxer Rebellion. Jerry Orgler, John's childhood buddy, remembers well that 'Web' was a conservative and tough father who believed in protocol and in following the rules. Web's military experience fascinated John, and by his freshman year in high school he began talking non-stop about joining the military. After his graduation he volunteered for the United States Marine Corps, and was stationed at Camp Pendleton, California from 1962 to 1965. During his time at Camp Pendleton, he was sequestered for the weeks of basic training and by January 1963 he confided to his friend Jerry that his belief in the value of the military was still strong, and he was proud of his service, but military life and the Marines were not for him. To George he once said the Marine Corps was an important period of his life that taught him a lot: especially 'never …


5329 Objective: Chemosensitivity testing is thought to be a useful method for selecting susceptive agents or eliminating resistant agents prior to treatment. However, one unsolved problem is that these assays require a relatively large amount of tumor tissue, which hampers wide clinical application. For example, conventional MTT assay usually requires 50,000 cells /well for determining chemosensitivity. In order to minimize the sample size for chemosensitivity testing, we have developed a highly sensitive assay using ATP bioluminescence methods. Materials and Methods: Human gastric cancer cell line MKN-45 was used for the basic experiment. Cells were plated onto 96-well microplates at a concentration of 2,000, 1,000, 500, 250 cells / well and then anti-cancer drugs were added at various concentrations, and were cultured for 72 hrs. Cell viability was determined by ATP bioluminescence assay using highly sensitive synthetic firefly luciferase and compared with that in MTT assay. In clinical samples, obtained from 64 patients with various kinds of cancers, cells were plated at 20,000, 10,000, 5,000cells /well, and drug sensitivity was determined by the ATP assay in a similar manner. Results: In the basic examination using gastric cancer cell line, intracellular ATP levels showed significant linear correlation with the number of cells ranging from 10 to 1,000,000 cells/ml. The ATP assay could detect drug sensitivity regardless number of cells applied, while MTT assay failed to do so. Minimal number of cells for MTT assay were considered to be >50,000 cells /well. In clinical samples, chemosensitivity testing was evaluable at any concentration of cells applied in 47 of 64 samples (73%), and the results were always consistent regardless of cell concentration. Consideration: ATP bioluminescence assay enables reproducible chemosensitivity testing for a much smaller size of cancer cells as compared to MTT assay, suggesting a wide clinical application for chemosensitivity testing with small sample such as biopsy specimen.


Abstract Objectives To determine the effect of gestational age at delivery on maternal and neonatal outcomes in preterm prelabor rupture of membranes (PPROM) and assess various predictors of neonatal and infant mortality in these pregnancies. Methods United States birth data from CDC-National Center for Health Statistics natality database for years 2004–2008 was used to identify singleton pregnancies with PPROM and delivery from 32 0/7 to 36 6/7 weeks. Controls were singletons at 37–40 weeks, without PPROM. Maternal and neonatal complications reported by all states were analyzed along with neonatal outcomes such as chorioamnionitis and hyaline membrane disease, reported by a subgroup of states. OR (95% CI) were calculated after adjusting for preeclampsia, diabetes, chronic hypertension, maternal race, and infant sex. Results There were 134,502 PPROM cases and similar number of controls. There was a significant decrease in need for prolonged ventilation, hyaline membrane disease, 5 min Apgar score <7, and NICU admission with advancing gestational age. Placental abruption decreased and chorioamnionitis and cord prolapse were not different between 34 and 37 weeks. We found reductions in early death, neonatal death, and infant mortality with advancing gestational age (p<0.001 for each). Gestational age at delivery was the strongest predictor for early death, neonatal death, and infant mortality in PPROM. These differences persisted after adjusting for antenatal steroid use. Conclusions We provide population-based evidence showing a decrease in neonatal complications and death with advancing gestational age in PPROM. Gestational age at delivery in pregnancies with PPROM is the strongest predictor of mortality risk.


The events surrounding the Deepwater Horizon (Macondo) disaster have changed the face of deepwater operations. Safety and environmental systems (SEMS) plans and capping or containment capabilities are required to meet current Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) permitting requirements for the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). More generally, industry must identify the operational risks associated with future deepwater operations and specify their plans for responding to those risks, in order to maximize the effectiveness of methods to prevent and respond to potential future releases of hazardous, polluting hydrocarbons. This paper describes a study of public BSEE (previously MMS and BOEMRE) data on incidents involving releases of formation fluids to the environment. The purpose of this study was to provide a factual basis for identifying the operational risk of hydrocarbon releases in offshore operations as a starting point for additional work on identifying opportunities to reduce the frequency, severity, and consequences of such releases, especially for deepwater operations.Incidents reported over the past 15 years were reviewed and organized in a spreadsheet. A total of 90 non-pipeline incidents were identified as including enough description to be useful. Most of these incidents were spills greater than 50 barrels (bbls), but blowouts, fires, and explosions are important and included. To the extent possible, the review determined: the flow path taken from the formation to the point in the well or production system where the fluids were released, the release point, the barriers that were used to reestablish control, and what can these events tell us about potential future deepwater events.It is notable that most of these releases occurred in shelf operations rather than deepwater (water depth ≥ 1,000 ft), which was expected due to the much larger number of wells on the GOM shelf. Nearly two-thirds of the releases happened during active drilling, completion, workover, or well-servicing operations. The remaining events occurred during other operations, particularly production, and include two spills after the wells were plugged and abandoned (P&A'd). The number of blowouts per year was relatively small, varying from 2 to 9 for the 15 year period. The number of blowouts has remained roughly constant despite the recent decrease in the rig activity level. Similarly, the size of most spills was relatively small, if the Macondo event is excluded. Nevertheless, the data gives a factual basis for identifying the kinds of events that could lead to future catastrophes if not prevented or identified and controlled successfully.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


It has previously been shown that nano-meter sized vesicles (30–100 nm), exosomes, secreted by antigen presenting cells can induce T cell responses thus showing the potential of exosomes to be used as immunological tools. Additionally, activated CD3+ T cells can secrete exosomes that have the ability to modulate different immunological responses. Here, we investigated what effects exosomes originating from activated CD3+ T cells have on resting CD3+ T cells by studying T cell proliferation, cytokine production and by performing T cell and exosome phenotype characterization. Human exosomes were generated in vitro following CD3+ T cell stimulation with anti-CD28, anti-CD3 and IL-2. Our results show that exosomes purified from stimulated CD3+ T cells together with IL-2 were able to generate proliferation in autologous resting CD3+ T cells. The CD3+ T cells stimulated with exosomes together with IL-2 had a higher proportion of CD8+ T cells and had a different cytokine profile compared to controls. These results indicate that activated CD3+ T cells communicate with resting autologous T cells via exosomes.


Abstract Radar data collected by a network of ships, shore stations and aircraft over the eastern Pacific from mid-February to the end of June 1965, have been studied. Analyses of these radar data and concurrent TIROSIX photographs were made. The data sample included deep cyclones with extensive radar-detected precipitation, weaker cyclones with localized rainfall, cold anticyclones with extensive air mass showers, and blocking anticyclones with no precipitation. In the latter case it has been found that the appearance of the cloud cover is a good indicator of areas of anomalous radio propagation. Models have been prepared that illustrate the varying patterned association of cloud and rainfall characteristic of such synoptic situations. Such associations range from comparable cloud-precipitation areas through scattered showers where only a portion of the clouds contain precipitation, to complete absence of precipitation within large areas of low stratiform clouds or fog as in a blocking anticyclone.


Relativistic outflows in the form of jets are common in many astrophysical objects. By their very nature, jets have angle-dependent velocity profiles, Γ=Γ(r, Θ, φ), where Γ is the outflow Lorentz factor. In this work we consider photospheric emission from non-dissipative jets with various Lorentz factor profiles, of the approximate form Γ ≈ Γ0/[(Θ/Θj)p + 1], where Θj is the characteristic jet opening angle. In collimated jets, the observed spectrum depends on the viewing angle, Θv. We show that for narrow jets (ΘjΓ0 l few), the obtained low-energy photon index is α ≈-1 (dN/dE / Eα), independent of viewing angle, and weakly dependent on the Lorentz factor gradient (p). A similar result is obtained for wider jets observed at Θv ≈ Θj. This result is surprisingly similar to the average low-energy photon index seen in gamma-ray bursts. For wide jets (ΘjΓ0 g few) observed at Θv g Θj, a multicolour blackbody spectrum is obtained. We discuss the consequences of this theory on our understanding of the prompt emission in gamma-ray bursts.


Amniotic fluid cells obtained by transabdominal amniocentesis at 15–17 weeks of gestation and cultured for 15 and 21 days were separated into three fractions by density gradient centrifugation in Percoll. Each fraction (or peak) corresponded to the following densities: peak A, 1·02–1·03 g/ml; peak B, 1·04–1·05; peak C, 1·05–1·06. Peak A was composed of both non‐viable and viable cells; the latter adopted the morphology of epithelial cells in culture. Peak B contained a mixture of fibroblasts and epithelioid cells and peak C had only epithelioid cells. The variability of N‐acetyl‐β‐hexosaminidase and alkaline phosphatase activities was reduced in peaks B and C as compared to that of peak A and of unseparated cells suggesting that more defined and homogeneous cell types for enzymatic determinations can be obtained by centrifugation in Percoll density gradient. In prenatal diagnosis of biochemical defects, the separation of cells would permit a more precise diagnosis by eliminating enzyme variability due to the presence of different cell types or non‐viable cells.


The authors describe a novel approach to the problems of topic and speaker identification that makes use of large-vocabulary continuous speech recognition. A theoretical framework for dealing with these problems in a symmetric way is provided. Some empirical results on topic and speaker identification that have been obtained on the extensive Switchboard corpus of telephone conversations are presented.<<ETX>>


There is increasing interest in the use of accelerators in computer systems. Accelerators are processor-attached hardware units that can perform certain functions faster than the conventional general purpose processor. In this paper, we describe the VICTORIA PowerPC architecture, which is based on the iVMX accelerator technology. The iVMX accelerator extends the existing VMX architecture with indirect register addressing. That approach greatly extends the architected space of registers and opens the door for highly optimized vector algorithms that can sustain very high processing rates. The large space of registers is directly controlled by the executing code and offers a sufficiently large storage to hold sizeable intermediate results. This helps reduce the negative effects of limited memory bandwidth and high memory latency. The iVMX accelerator is an example of in-line accelerator; that is, the instructions that drive the accelerator are part of the same stream that drives the main processor. Compared to off-line accelerators, which execute their own instruction stream, in-line accelerators present a much more convenient programming model.


Context Fibromyalgia is a disease of exclusion. There is a huge overlap between symptoms of fibromyalgia and a lot of rheumatic, endocrinal, and metabolic diseases. Confirming the diagnosis of fibromyalgia might mask the diagnosis of a lot of conditions especially with the lack of periodic reevaluation to fibromyalgia patients. Objective The aim was to evaluate the diagnosis of fibromyalgia in unresponsive patients after more than a year of diagnosis. Patients and methods This is a cross-sectional observational study performed on 100 patients diagnosed with primary fibromyalgia for more than 1 year and that showed no response to two or three lines of treatments. Patients were investigated for erythrocyte sedimentation rate, rheumatoid factor, antinuclear antibody, in addition to serum vitamin D levels, total serum calcium, serum phosphorus, thyroid-stimulating hormone, parathormone hormone, and Dual energy Xray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scan. Patients were regrouped after laboratory investigations into two groups. Group I are patients who showed no abnormalities in their laboratory investigations. Group II are patients who showed abnormalities in their laboratory investigations. Functional assessment was performed for all patients by the fatigue assessment scale, insomnia severity index, and the visual analog scale for pain for patients in the beginning of the study and after 6 months. Results Less than 20% of the patients remained with no abnormality in their laboratory investigations, while about 80% showed laboratory abnormalities for other associated conditions. Conclusion Fibromyalgia patients showing response to treatment should be investigated on a regular basis even for markers that were shown to be normal. Treatment of any associated condition can improve symptoms of fibromyalgia dramatically.


This paper presents a differential protection approach for large high quality power transformers that have low inrush currents of about 3.14 times rated currents. Such transformers have low second harmonic level, which results in conventional differential protection malfunction. A scheme for internal faults and inrush currents discrimination based on both discrete Fourier transform DFT and discrete Wavelet Transform DWT is proposed. The proposed method has been designed based on the percentage of the sum of wavelet transform coefficients D1 and fundamental differential current (based on a 1 kHz sampling rate). It has been tested by extensive EMTP/ ATP simulations for different faults and switching conditions on El Tebbin Power Plant 220/21 kV generator/power transformer. It is proved that it has a high capability for discrimination even in the case of inrush with low second harmonic content and internal fault currents with high second harmonic component. All tests proved that the proposed scheme is reliable, accurate, and fast.


ABSTRACT This article describes of an elective wildlife tourism management course at the University of Lapland. This teaching/learning course focused on blending theories used in place-based education to help students better grasp and explore their philosophical understanding of culture, nature, and wildlife and how these affect management actions. The research used arts-based methodologies as a tool to document and facilitate individual and group reflection. Experiential learning was used to explore how managers can help to create sustainable places to live, work, and visit through the co-creation of more ethical management practices that benefits local communities, incorporates a sense of place, and protects the ecosphere. The main outcomes of the course were to inspire further learning about environmental philosophy outside of the classroom and to help students push the boundaries of their own philosophical understanding of culture, nature, and wildlife.


Most publications reviewed in these pages are addressed by an expert in the field to other experts or to readers who have a general knowledge of the subject. Wolfgang Kasack's book, one in a series of "Life and Works" of men and women of some distinction or notoriety in all walks of life, is addressed to the general reader and presupposes no previous knowledge of Fedor Dostoevskii, Russian or any other literature, or Russia. Yet the book is far more than an introduction to Dostoevskii and the Russia of his age. In subtle, entirely unobtrusive fashion, the reader is given lessons in literary theory, psychology, philosophy, and history. How does Kasack do it? Most of all, by letting Dostoevskii speak, as much as possible verbatim, in direct quotations from his works and letters. In masterful fashion, selected passages are quoted to introduce the reader to the generative idea, the plot, the emotional drift, and the stylistic flavor of Dostoevskii's major works. Only one example can be presented here: some twenty pages devoted to Crime and Punishment. After a page of information on the title (the German title Schuld und Siihne is explained to be a mistranslation), publication (contemporaneous with War and Peace, in the same journal), and basic idea (the transgression of human and of God's laws, and the consequences) as well as the rationale for a detective novel where the search for the murderer is replaced by the development of the murderer's attitude toward his crime, the actvial presentation of the novel begins with a nearly complete quotation of Marmeladov's story as told by him to Raskol'nikov. A direct quotation of the murder scene follows. Then a brief paragraph informs the reader that Porfirii, the examining magistrate, who suspects that Raskol'nikov is the murderer but has nothing to prove it, "allows the suspect to develop his theory about the difference between the rights of ordinary and extraordinary people" (53). A brief paragraph confirms that Raskol'nikov, who considers himself extraordinary, has no sense of guilt. Next comes the dream in which Raskol'nikov relives the murder in fear and horror, then Porfirii puts his cards on the table to Raskol'nikov hoping to make him confess, but to no avail. Now Sonia Marmeladov is introduced, as Raskol'nikov confesses his crime to her. The final ten pages are composed of quotations of consecutive scenes in the course of which Sonia's love and Christian faith finally break Raskol'nikov's pride, and we hear that "he was seized by an irresistible power and flung himself down at her feet, weeping and embracing her knees." Kasack adds: "This clear avowal of Christianity is a distinguishing mark of Dostoevskii's late works including the great novels" (71). Kasack has successfully separated the true art of Dostoevskii from the literature of which it is inevitably a part. His book will serve his German readers well. I hope that it will find imitators.


OBJECTIVE
To analyze adolescents clinically diagnosed with asthma, in terms of the physiological changes occurring during acute hypoxia and during a maximal stress test.

METHODS
This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study involving 48 adolescents (12-14 years of age) who were divided into three groups: mild intermittent asthma (MIA, n = 12); mild persistent asthma (MPA, n = 12); and control (n = 24). All subjects were induced to acute hypoxia and were submitted to maximal stress testing. Anthropometric data were collected, and functional variables were assessed before and after the maximal stress test. During acute hypoxia, the time to a decrease in SpO2 and the time to recovery of SpO2 (at rest) were determined.

RESULTS
No significant differences were found among the groups regarding the anthropometric variables or regarding the ventilatory variables during the stress test. Significant differences were found in oxygen half-saturation pressure of hemoglobin prior to the test and in PaO2 prior to the test between the MPA and control groups (p = 0.0279 and p = 0.0116, respectively), as was in the oxygen extraction tension prior to the test between the MIA and MPA groups (p = 0.0419). There were no significant differences in terms of the SpO2 times under any of the conditions studied. Oxygen consumption and respiratory efficiency were similar among the groups. The use of a bronchodilator provided no significant benefit during the hypoxia test. No correlations were found between the hypoxia test results and the physiological variables.

CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that adolescents with mild persistent asthma have a greater capacity to adapt to hypoxia than do those with other types of asthma.


In-cell touch sensor that can be integrated with display pixel circuit using dual gate InGaZnO thin-film transistor is proposed. Under bottom gate operation, device characteristics are not sensitive to light illumination. On the contrary, light can lead to evident subthreshold leakage when operated with top gate. This behavior allows touch sensor to be realized by sensing the ambient light using top gate operation, without affecting normal bottom gate operated devices in display pixel. Further, the proposed operation method of touch sensor needs no additional fabrication and cost, and even black matrix is not required either.


Different approaches to the philosophy and description of measurement have evolved over time, and they are still evolving. There is not always a clear demarcation between approaches, but rather a blending of concepts and terminologies from one approach to another. This sometimes causes confusion when trying to ascertain the objective of measurement in the different approaches, since the same term may be used to describe different concepts in the different approaches. Important examples include the terms "value," "true value," "error," "probability" and "uncertainty." Constructing a single vocabulary of metrology that is able to unambiguously encompass and harmonize all of the approaches is therefore difficult, if not impossible. This paper examines the evolution of common philosophies and ways of describing measurement. Some of the differences between these approaches are highlighted, which provides a rationale for the entries and structure of the August 2006 draft of the 3rd Edition of the International Vocabulary of Metrology – Basic and General Concepts and Associated Terms (VIM3) [1].


The article discusses Cyprian Norwid's contacts with more distant relatives: Euphemia Tudor, daughter of Frederic Tudor and wife of the diplomat Michal Kleczkowski; and Ketty Carter, wife of Colonel Kornel Kleczkowski (and after his death, wife of Thomas Edward Kierkpatrick). Both these couples were used by Norwid as subject to his deliberations on mixed marriages of Poles with American and English women. The author is painstakingly collecting any available data on both Norwid's relatives, hoping for her knowledge of the relationships to expand.


Oral administration of yessotoxin (YTX) has been reported to induce ultrastructural alterations in rodent cardiac muscle. To study its effects on various fundamental aspects of cardiac muscle cells activity, that is, cell beating, Ca(2+) and cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) levels, as well as cell vitality, a primary culture of rat cardiomyocytes was used. Patch-clamp recordings, Ca(2+) imaging, and cAMP assays were performed on cultured cardiomyocytes to characterize YTX effects on the cell beating frequency. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazole-2-yl)-2,5-biphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and sulforhodamine B (SRB) tests were carried out to determine its effect on cardiomyocytes viability. Videoimaging techniques showed a time- and concentration-dependent reduction in the beating frequency after 1, 5, and 24 h incubation with YTX (0.1-1 microM). This effect was neither associated to the uncoupling between the membrane electrical activity and Ca(2+) release from intracellular stores nor to the impairment of the mechanisms controlling the Ca(2+) homeostasis. In addition, 1 microM YTX did not modify basal cAMP levels in cardiomyocytes. MTT and SRB assays revealed that incubation of cardiomyocytes with YTX (0.01-1 microM; 24, 48, and 72 h) caused a decrease in cell viability in a concentration- and time-dependent way. This effect was still evident in cardiomyocytes exposed to YTX for 1, 5, and 24 h and cultured up to 72 h in YTX-free medium. Our results demonstrate that, at nanomolar concentrations, a short incubation with YTX causes an inhibition of the beating activity and an irreversible reduction of viability of cardiac cells in vitro.


Researchers have found computer self-efficacy (CSE) to be important to technology adoption. Past research has treated CSE as a unitary concept. This paper proposes that CSE has two dimensions-internal and external. The idea that CSE has internal and external dimensions is based on attribution theory, which identifies the human tendency to attribute events to causes that are either internal or external to the self. The internal CSE dimension focuses on how individuals perceive their capacity to use computers independently (i.e., without help). The external CSE dimension focuses on how individuals perceive their ability to use computers with human assistance and other forms of external support. Using items drawn from the Compeau and Higginspsila CSE instrument, this paper examines each dimension's relationship to computer anxiety and perceived ease-of-use of information technology. The paper also reports on six studies that examine this proposal, and contributes to the literature by identifying two distinct CSE dimensions, developing theory-driven explanations for their relationships to constructs within the CSE's nomological network, and empirically establishing that they have distinct effects. Implications for research and practice are presented.


This chapter defines sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and provides a brief review of the history, current knowledge, pathology, and possible mechanisms of death. The authors conclude with considerations of other selected causes of sudden, unexpected infant death.


There has been intense interest in treating neurodegenerative conditions by passive immunotherapy. Here we describe the treatment of mice infected intraperitoneally (ip) with 104.6 infectious units of Rocky Mountain Laboratory (RML) prions, with bi-weekly injections of ip anti-prion monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Mab ICSM18 (prion protein (PrP) epitope 143–153) raised to recombinant PrP, and ICSM35 (prion protein epitope 93–105) raised to an alternatively folded form of PrP, were both used at doses of 1 mg/week, or 0.25 mg/week. Treatment was given when prion infection was well established, 30 days after inoculation. Treatment resulted in a reduction in disease-related PrP (PrPSc) in the spleen and a significant extension in survival with both mAbs. ICSM18 showed a dose response and was more potent than ICSM35 with a 40% survival at 300 days postinfection using a dose of 1 mg/week. mAb treatment did not disrupt the normal function of the immune system. We have successfully demonstrated that the course of RML prion infection in mice can be safely attenuated by the early treatment with anti-PrP mAbs, at lower doses than previously reported. Humanised versions of these two mAbs will undergo safety-testing prior to manufacture for first-in-man study.


The aim of the research is to stand on the concept of Islamic education as a comprehensive and broad concept that includes all that matters to a person in his life, as it is an independent and integrated educational system characterized by its fixed origins, original curricula, goals, purposes and various methods. The researcher used the method of analytical inductive. This research included several chapters where the first chapter included Islamic education, its definition, its elements and its importance, and the second chapter foundations of Islamic education, while the third chapter talked about the sources of Islamic education The research reached the following results: Attention to Islamic tradition and Islamic culture in all fields in general and the media in particular. And the importance of knowledge and knowledge and its value to man, and the importance of moral values in the stewardship of life. At the end of the research, the eternity of the Creator's existence was emphasized, and the unseen things that transcend human sense were explained.


Abstract In 1954 and 1955, I conducted studies on 4 beaver (Castor canadensis) colonies in Routt County, Colorado, USA, to develop a reliable and practical census method. In fall of 1955, these colonies were trapped to extirpation to obtain accurate counts and colony compositions. I established photo stations and took a series of photographs approximately every 5 years, in late September, from 1955 to 2005 to document beaver-population dynamics and beaver-pond successional changes after complete beaver removal. The number and configuration of dams, ponds, and canals remained remarkably similar, with maintenance conducted by succeeding generations of beaver. Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) and autumn willow (Salix serissima) boundaries also remained stable, but conifers slowly encroached. At 3 of 4 colony sites, beaver did not attempt to construct food caches for overwintering. By fall of 2005, the fourth site was also without a cache. Carrying capacity of these areas was likely limited by severe winter weather at 2,620-m to 2,900-m elevations, aspen depletion, pond-depth reduction, and sustained grazing by cattle. Although beaver carefully maintained dams, pond depths were reduced in most cases. This slow transition from an aquatic to a terrestrial system is a natural progression in this region.


Objective To investigate platelet activation and deposition in human saphenous vein and internal mammary artery grafts following coronary artery bypass in vitro and in vivo, as well as inhibition of activation by the platelet selective nitric oxide donor S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO). Design Controlled in vitro and in vivo studies. Setting Tertiary cardiac centre. Patients 24 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery requiring vein and artery grafts. Interventions In vitro: human platelet rich plasma was perfused through segments of vein and artery, with or without GSNO 10-6 M, and the platelet count was measured in the effluent. In vivo: indium-111 labelled antibody against the platelet α granule protein GMP-140 was injected at the end of coronary bypass grafting and γ counts were compared between vein and artery grafts with or without systemic infusion of GSNO (40 nmol/min). Results In vitro: platelet count in perfused vein (< 70% of baseline) decreased more than in artery segments (89–94% of baseline) (p < 0.001). The platelet count was unchanged with GSNO in vein and artery segments. In vivo: γ counts were greater at all time points over vein than artery grafts (p < 0.05), and were reduced by infusion of GSNO (p < 0.05). Conclusions Platelet activation is greater in vein than in artery grafts in vitro and in vivo. Activation, which contributes to early vein graft failure, was inhibited by GSNO.


Disturbance of left ventricular function leads to an impairment of ventilation: airway resistance increases, while pulmonary compliance is reduced. We therefore studied the effect of inhalable bronchodilators (Fenoterol, Ipratropium bromide) on oscillatory airway resistance in 16 patients with an acute left heart failure. The results show that the resistance can be significantly reduced to normal values by the bronchodilators. Fenoterol has the greatest spasmolytic potency, but Ipratropium bromide is also effective. Recompensation of left heart function alone does not lead to comparable acute effects on airway resistance. The possibility of immediate improvement of ventilation through the use of inhalable bronchodilators should therefore be considered in the treatment of acute left heart failure.


Some tremendous technological advancements in the present 21st century have culminated in far-reaching developments in the administrative system of universities, especially in the developed nations. This work investigated the relationship between students' emanagement variables such as automated admission, online course registration, computerised hostel allocation and university administration effectiveness in Nigeria. It adopted a descriptive research design. Three null hypotheses were postulated and tested at the .05 level of significance. The population for the study comprised all 27,826 full time undergraduate students out of which 1600 participants were selected through stratified random technique. A self-designed validated and reliable (r = .87) questionnaire was used for data collection. Findings from the study revealed a weak, positive and significant relationship between university administration effectiveness and automated admission (r = .171; p < .05). There is also strong, positive and significant relationship between university administration effectiveness and online course registration (r = .891; p < .05). Finally, strong, positive and significant relationship is also discovered between university administration effectiveness and computerised hostel allocation (r = 0.721; p < .05). Premised on the study findings, the article recommends among other things that the university authority should ensure that websites are being updated regularly, and are more user-friendly. Also, the university should re-consider the installation of free Wi-Fi on campus to enable better internet connectivity for students and staff.


EffEcts of statins upon antigEn-spEcific lymphocytE activation in patiEnts with rhEumatoid arthritis: an in vitro study abstract. Collagen type II (Col II) is among the proposed candidate autoantigens initiaiting rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Statins have been shown to have anti-inflammatory and immunomodulating properties. Mechanisms of statin effects upon the autoantigen-induced T lymphocyte activation in RA patients are still unknown. The aim of present study was to evaluate the effects of mevastatin upon Col II- and anti-CD3- induced (PBMC) activation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from RA patients. PBMC from active RA patients (DAS28 - 6.6±0.64) were stimulated with antibodies specific for either anti-CD3 or anti-Col II. The cultured cells were treated with mevastatin at different concentrations. Mevalonic acid, geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate (GGpp) and farnesyl pyrophosphate (Fpp) were added to cultures. Mevastatin at concentration of 10 μM caused significant reduction of Col II-induced PBMC proliferation and of IFNγ production. These mevastatin effects were partially reversible by addition of mevalonic acid, GGpp, and Fpp. Mevastatin did not influence the anti-CD3 induced PBMC activation. In conclusion, mevastatin is able to suppress antigen- specific T-cell stimulation in RA patients, due to decreased production of mevalonic acid metabolites.


By the standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO), working conditions in Europe are relatively enviable. This chapter, however, highlights a number of trends that are both counterproductive for companies and harmful for employees and the community. Over the past twenty years, the conditions and forms of work organisation have been changing in ways that no longer meet the evolution of the working population. In particular, they no longer match the high and 'expressive' expectations of ever more qualified employees, the increasing number of women in the labour market, changing lifestyles and an ageing workforce. During this time, the notion of 'quality of work' has sometimes been high on the political agenda. It is now being taken into consideration at the European level thanks to the new European Pillar of Social Rights and the concept of sustainable work. This chapter explores academic and political discourses on the quality of work and provides a review of working conditions in Europe and current challenges in this area. It is based on successive waves of the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) conducted by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound). In conclusion, we ask whether the notion of sustainable work can be incorporated into the ILO's forward-looking approach and become a decisive factor in the future of the world of work.


We investigated the anti-cancer activity of alginate coated chitosan nanoparticles (CHNP) encapsulating cell-permeable dominant negative survivin (SR9) with locked nucleic acid (LNA) aptamers targeting EpCAM and nucleolin (termed as "nanobullets") in vitro (2D and 3D cell culture models) and in vivo (colon cancer mouse xenograft model). We incorporated three LNA modifications in each sequence in order to enhance the stability of these aptamers. Confocal microscopy revealed binding of the LNA-aptamers to their specific markers with high affinity. The muco-adhesive nanobullets showed 6-fold higher internalization in cancer cells when compared to non-cancerous cells, suggesting a tumour specific uptake. A higher intensity of nanobullets was observed in both the periphery and the core of the multicellular tumour spheroids compared to non-targeted CHNP-SR9. The nanobullets were found to be the highly effective as they led to a 2.26 fold (p < 0.05) reduction at 24 h and a 4.95 fold reduction (p ≤ 0.001) in the spheroid size at 72 h. The tumour regression was 4 fold higher in mice fed on a nanobullet diet when compared to a control diet. The nanobullets were able to show a significantly high apoptotic (p ≤ 0.0005) and necrotic index in the tumour cell population (p ≤ 0.005) when compared to void NPs. Therefore, our nanoparticles have shown highly promising results and therefore deliver a new conduit towards the approach of cancer-targeted nanodelivery.


In the first of five experiments, three of four adult ducks who had been reared in visual isolation gradually developed strong approach responses towards a moving panel of colored lights. Experiment 2 provided evidence that the ducks' approach response reflected the same sort of social attachment that is typically formed to moving objects by newly hatched ducklings. Experiment 3 revealed that the fourth duck would not approach the moving stimulus even after additional exposure to it, but would approach a conspecific after group housing had been enforced for seven days. In Experiment 4, none of five adult chickens who had been reared in visual isolation developed approach responses towards the moving stimulus, even though in Experiment 5, newly hatched chicks approached the stimulus quite readily. Taken together, these findings (a) indicate that ducks retain the ability to form filial-type attachments to novel objects throughout their lives, and (b) offer preliminary evidence that chickens do not retain this ability into adulthood.


From Swift monitoring of a sample of active galactic nuclei (AGN) we found a transient X-ray obscuration event in Seyfert-1 galaxy NGC 3227, and thus triggered our joint XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations to study this event. Here in the first paper of our series we present the broadband continuum modelling of the spectral energy distribution for NGC 3227, extending from near infrared (NIR) to hard X-rays. We use our new spectra taken with XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and the HST Cosmic Origins Spectrograph in 2019, together with archival unobscured XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and HST Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph data, in order to disentangle various spectral components of NGC 3227 and recover the underlying continuum. We find the observed NIR-optical-UV continuum is explained well by an accretion disk blackbody component (Tmax = 10 eV), which is internally reddened by E(B − V) = 0.45 with a Small Magellanic Cloud extinction law. We derive the inner radius (12 Rg) and the accretion rate (0.1 M⊙ yr−1) of the disk by modelling the thermal disk emission. The internal reddening in NGC 3227 is most likely associated with outflows from the dusty AGN torus. In addition, an unreddened continuum component is also evident, which likely arises from scattered radiation, associated with the extended narrow-line region of NGC 3227. The extreme ultraviolet continuum, and the 'soft X-ray excess', can be explained with a 'warm Comptonisation' component. The hard X-rays are consistent with a power-law and a neutral reflection component. The intrinsic bolometric luminosity of the AGN in NGC 3227 is about 2.2 × 1043 erg s−1 in 2019, corresponding to 3% Eddington luminosity. Our continuum modelling of the new triggered data of NGC 3227 requires the presence of a new obscuring gas with column density NH = 5 × 1022 cm−2, partially covering the X-ray source (Cf = 0.6).


Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate partial magnetic source (MS) effect on natural convection (NC) flow of a ferrofluid flow in a cavity with sinusoidally heated vertical walls. The combination of ferrohydrodynamics and magnetohydrodynamics due to the variable magnetic field (MF) and magnetite nanoparticles in one part of the cavity, and the classical NC in the other part of the cavity are concerned.

Design/methodology/approach
The dimensionless equations in stream function-vorticity form are numerically solved by radial basis functions (RBF) based collocation method.

Findings
A remarkable change in fluid flow and heat transfer is noted if the MS location is close to the left sinusoidally heated wall. In particular, the average Nusselt number is the smallest for the middle centered partial MF through the left wall at a large Hartmann number.

Research limitations/implications
RBF collocation approach is limited to small geometries due to the obtained solution globally in the entire domain of the problem.

Practical implications
If the partial restriction of the effect of MF is done in real life, it would be a control parameter at some required/requested areas of the concerned problem.

Social implications
This is a physical problem.

Originality/value
If the proposed idea of partial variable MF is able to be applied to a system in real life, it would be a good controller on fluid flow and heat transfer. RBF-based methods are also alternative numerical procedures to solve heat transfer and fluid flow problems.


The aims of the present work were to study the effects of chronic NO inhibition on liver cirrhosis and to analyze its relationship with liver and kidney damage markers. Two inhibitors of NO synthesis (inducible NO synthase (iNOS) inhibitor, aminoguanidine (AG), and nonselective NOS inhibitor, L-nitroarginine methyl ester (L-NAME)) were administered for 6 weeks to bile duct ligated (BDL) rats 3 days after surgery. The present study showed that BDL was associated with liver injury and renal impairment. BDL increased liver NO content and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity. This was corroborated by increased oxidative stress, TNF-α, TGF-1β, and MMP-13 genes overexpression. Although both drugs reduced NO synthesis and TNF-α gene overexpression, only AG improved renal dysfunction and liver damage and reduced liver oxidative stress. However, L-NAME exacerbated liver and renal dysfunction. Both drugs failed to modulate TGF-1β and MMP-13 genes overexpression. In conclusion, inhibition of NO production by constitutive nitric oxide synthase (cNOS) plays a crucial role in liver injury and renal dysfunction while inhibition of iNOS by AG has beneficial effect. TNF-α is not the main cytokine responsible for liver injury in BDL model. Nitric oxide inhibition did not stop the progression of cholestatic liver damage.


Clinicians may rely on medical coding systems such as International Classification of Diseases (ICD) to identify patients with diseases from Electronic Health Records (EHRs). However, due to the lack of detail and specificity as well as a probability of miscoding, recent studies suggest the ICD codes often cannot characterise patients accurately for specific diseases in real clinical practice, and as a result, using them to find patients for studies or trials can result in high failure rates and missing out on uncoded patients. Manual inspection of all patients at scale is not feasible as it is highly costly and slow. This paper proposes a scalable workflow which leverages both structured data and unstructured textual notes from EHRs with techniques including NLP, AutoML and Clinician-in-the-Loop mechanism to build machine learning classifiers to identify patients at scale with given diseases, especially those who might currently be miscoded or missed by ICD codes. Case studies in the MIMIC-III dataset were conducted where the proposed workflow demonstrates a higher classification performance in terms of F1 scores compared to simply using ICD codes on gold testing subset to identify patients with Ovarian Cancer (0.901 vs 0.814), Lung Cancer (0.859 vs 0.828), Cancer Cachexia (0.862 vs 0.650), and Lupus Nephritis (0.959 vs 0.855). Also, the proposed workflow that leverages unstructured notes consistently outperforms the baseline that uses structured data only with an increase of F1 (Ovarian Cancer 0.901 vs 0.719, Lung Cancer 0.859 vs 0.787, Cancer Cachexia 0.862 vs 0.838 and Lupus Nephritis 0.959 vs 0.785). Experiments on the large testing set also demonstrate the proposed workflow can find more patients who are miscoded or missed by ICD codes. Moreover, interpretability studies are also conducted to clinically validate the top impact features of the classifiers.


Background
 The myeloproliferative neoplasm myelofibrosis (MF) is associated with reduced overall survival (OS) compared with the general population (Hultcrantz M, et al. J Clin Oncol. 2012;30[24]:2995-3001; Price GL, et al. PLoS One. 2014;9[3]:e90299). The Janus kinase 1 and 2 inhibitor ruxolitinib (RUX) was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in November 2011 for the treatment of adult patients with intermediate- or high-risk MF based on data from the phase 3 COMFORT trials, which showed significantly improved OS in patients who received RUX (Verstovsek S, et al. J Hematol Oncol. 2017;10:156). Understanding the clinical benefit of RUX in real-world practice requires an understanding of changes in patient outcomes for those exposed to RUX compared with those never exposed to RUX, both before and after approval. The aim of this analysis was to assess the OS of patients newly diagnosed with intermediate- to high-risk MF before RUX approval, and for those who were RUX-unexposed vs -exposed in the post-RUX approval time frame.
 Study Design and Methods
 All data from the Medicare Fee-for-Service claims database (Parts A/B/D) from January 2010 to December 2017 were used to identify patients who were ≥65 years old (intermediate-1 or higher risk MF due to age) with ≥1 inpatient claim or ≥2 outpatient claims with a documented MF diagnosis. The index date was the date of the first qualifying MF claim; ≥12 months of pre-index continuous medical and pharmacy enrollment was required. Patients with evidence of an MF diagnosis ≤12 months before the index date were excluded. Patients with a diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome, hematologic malignancies (leukemias, multiple myeloma, and lymphomas), or solid tumors either ≤12 months before, on, or any time after index were also excluded in a stepwise manner. The study sample was classified into 3 groups: patients diagnosed with MF pre-RUX approval (index year 2010-2011; no post-index exposure to RUX); those diagnosed with MF post-RUX approval and unexposed to RUX (index year 2012-2017); and those diagnosed with MF post-RUX approval and exposed to RUX (index year 2012-2017). One-year survival rate and risk of mortality were estimated using Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards regression analyses, adjusting for baseline demographic and clinical characteristics. OS was measured from the index date until death or end of follow-up. Patients without a death date were censored at disenrollment or the end of the study period, whichever occurred first.
 Results
 Among eligible patients with an MF diagnosis (N=1677), median age was 78 years, 39.8% were male, and 84.1% were white. The analysis included 278 patients diagnosed pre-RUX approval (all RUX-unexposed) and 1399 diagnosed post-RUX approval (RUX-unexposed, n=1127; RUX-exposed, n=272). Median follow-up for the pre- and post-RUX approval groups was 12.5 and 11.3 mo (RUX-unexposed, 10.2 mo; RUX-exposed, 14.0 mo), respectively. In the pre-RUX approval group, 119 (42.8%) patients had a valid death date compared with 436 (31.2%) in the post-RUX approval group (RUX unexposed, n=382 [33.9%]; RUX exposed, n=54 [19.9%]). The 1-year survival rate (95% CI) was 55.6% (49.4%-61.3%) for the pre-RUX approval group, 72.5% (69.5%-75.2%) for the post-RUX approval RUX-unexposed group, and 82.3% (76.7%-86.7%) for the post-RUX approval RUX-exposed group (Figure). The risk of mortality was lowest among RUX-exposed patients (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.36; 95% CI, 0.26-0.50; P<0.0001 vs the pre-RUX approval group). Patients in the post-RUX approval group who had never been exposed to RUX also had a lower risk of mortality, although less pronounced than RUX-exposed patients, compared with the pre-RUX approval group (adjusted HR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.56-0.80; P<0.0001).
 Conclusions
 In this real-world study of US patients diagnosed with intermediate- or high-risk MF, 1-year OS was improved in patients diagnosed after RUX approval compared with before RUX approval. Notably, in the post-RUX approval time frame, 1-year OS was greater for those who received RUX than for those who did not receive RUX. These findings complement the survival benefit results demonstrated in the COMFORT studies using real-world data.

 Verstovsek: Gilead: Research Funding; NS Pharma: Research Funding; Genentech: Research Funding; Incyte Corporation: Consultancy, Research Funding; CTI Biopharma Corp: Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sierra Oncology: Consultancy, Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Research Funding; ItalPharma: Research Funding; Protagonist Therapeutics: Research Funding; PharmaEssentia: Research Funding; Blueprint Medicines Corp: Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Roche: Research Funding; Promedior: Research Funding. Parasuraman:Incyte Corporation: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Yu:Incyte Corporation: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Shah:Avalere Health: Current Employment. Kumar:Avalere Health: Current Employment; Incyte Corporation: Other: Avalere Health is a paid consultant of Incyte Corporation. Xi:Avalere Health: Current Employment; Incyte Corporation: Other: Avalere Health is a paid consultant of Incyte Corporation. Harrison:Gilead Sciences: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; CTI Biopharma Corp: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Shire: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Roche: Honoraria; Sierra Oncology: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Speakers Bureau; Incyte Corporation: Speakers Bureau; AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria; Promedior: Honoraria.


The acoustic impedance of a transducer may be matched to that of the surrounding medium by means of a metal screen. When operating in air, transmission increases of nine decibels have been obtained by placing correctly selected and positioned screens in front of a crystal transducer. The device narrows the response curve of a sharply resonant transducer only slightly, while the directional characteristics are not measurably altered. The situation is somewhat analogous to the non‐reflection coating of optics. For purposes of analysis, more useful analog is that of a transmission line containing a discontinuity. Experiments with woven and perforated screens of different geometric forms have been performed and the results evaluated.


The use of hydrocolloids-based microparticles in the field of bioactives microencapsulation is an area of great interest and research. However, their industrial scale production and their application in food products holds many technological challenges. The objective of this study was to investigate the microencapsulation of tryptophan, used as model active, into alginate microparticles obtained using the fluid gel route, as an easy industrial method for their production. Several alginate fluid gels, loaded with different amounts of tryptophan, were produced and characterized by particle size, rheological properties and encapsulation efficiency, then in vitro release kinetics using a dialysis approach were studied. Although the produced materials were unable to highlight a correlation between operating parameters and release kinetics, alginate fluid gels showed the ability to slow down the release of the drug compared to a water solution of tryptophan. Obtained microspheres showed very small sizes, which makes them suitable for the enrichment and delivery of actives in food products.


The Rock Wool Board (RWB) is widely used in the building exterior insulation all over world. As polymer affects hardening of plate, meaning it acted as a basic binder in this work and gave a smooth texture, ease of carrying and workmanship in different sizes and shapes. PVA was studied at the rates of PVA %4, %5, %6.66, %10, %20, results showed that 6.66% is the best percentage, through tensile and bending tests, this percentage was use with polyurethane with rates of PU 1, 0.5, 0.333, 0.25, 0.2 It is found that the ratio 0.333 is the best ratio to give good mechanical properties of bending, tensile and elongation. This percentage was fixed on different percentages of polymer (PU/PVA) as %2.5, %5, %10, %15, %20 and examinations were performed on these percentages and percentage %10 was best, this percentage was adopted. Another study in change of the rock wool with rates of %5, %7.5, %10, %12.5, where it was found that best percentage of the rock wool is 12.5% after studying mechanical and physical properties.