ABSTRACT Tacrolimus (TAC) is a potent and well-tolerated immunosuppressive drug, but serious side effects including nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity have been reported. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and resveratrol (RSV) exhibit hepatoprotective effects in liver diseases. We investigated the hepatoprotective effect of UDCA and RSV against TAC induced hepatotoxicity. We divided 40 male rats into five equal groups: A) control group, B) TAC group, C) TAC + UDCA group, D) TAC + RSV group, E) TAC + UDCA + RSV group. We administered 0.5 mg/kg TAC once daily, 25 mg/kg UDCA twice daily and 10 mg/kg RSV once daily. The drugs in the experimental groups were given by gavage from the first day of the study and continued for 21 days. Histopathologic and biochemical analyses were performed on day 22. In group B, serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF), interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), total oxidative status (TOS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were higher compared to group A, and catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels and total antioxidant status (TAS) were lower compared to group A. Severe cellular swelling, degeneration and focal necrosis were more evident in group B than in groups C–E. Histopathological improvement was observed in groups C–E, where UDCA and RSV were combined, compared to group B. We found that UDCA and RSV, together or separately, protected the liver against oxidative stress damage caused by TAC.


. Ground-based measurements of upper atmospheric parameters, such as temperature and wind velocity, can be made by observing airglow emissions that have a well-defined altitude profile and that are known to be representative of the emitting region. We describe the optical observatory at Maynooth (53.23 ° N, 6.4 ° W) at which two instruments, a Fabry-Perot interferometer and a Fourier transform spectrometer, are used to record atmospheric airglow emissions in Ireland at visible and near-infrared wavelengths, respectively. Descriptions of the instruments, data acquisition, and analysis procedures are provided, together with some sample results. Optical Engineenng33(12), 3853-3860 (December 1994).


Abstract The most common ventilation system in residential buildings in Ukraine is natural ventilation. In recent years, due to increased tightness of structures, an increase in the content of synthetic finishing materials in them, the quality of microclimate parameters deteriorated. One of the measures to improve the parameters of indoor air in residential buildings is the use of mechanical inflow and exhaust ventilation system. In this article the regulatory documents concerning the design of ventilation systems in Ukraine and Estonia and the requirements for air exchange in residential buildings are considered. It is established that the existing normative documents in Ukraine are analogous to European norms, which allow design the system of ventilation of residential buildings according to European standards. However, the basis for the design of ventilation systems in Ukraine is the national standards, in which mechanical ventilation, unfortunately, is provided only for the design of high-rise buildings. To maintain acceptable microclimate parameters in residential buildings, it is advisable for designers to apply the requirements for designing ventilation systems in accordance with European standards.


Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has shown remarkable success in the treatment of hematologic malignancies. Unfortunately, it has limited efficacy against solid tumors, even when the targeted antigens are well expressed. A better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of CAR T cell therapy resistance in solid tumors is necessary to develop strategies to improve efficacy. Here we report that solid tumors release small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) that carry both targeted tumor antigens and the immune checkpoint protein PD-L1. These sEVs acted as cell-free functional units to preferentially interact with cognate CAR T cells and efficiently inhibited their proliferation, migration, and function. In syngeneic mouse tumor models, blocking tumor sEV secretion not only boosted the infiltration and anti-tumor activity of CAR T cells but also improved endogenous anti-tumor immunity. These results suggest that solid tumors use sEVs as an active defense mechanism to resist CAR T cells and implicate tumor sEVs as a potential therapeutic target to optimize CAR T cell therapy against solid tumors.


ABSTRACT Pigs infected with hemolytic F4+ strains of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli often develop septicemia secondary to intestinal infection. We tested the hypothesis that inactivation of hemolysin would reduce the ability of F4+enterotoxigenic E. coli to cause septicemia in swine following oral inoculation. Inactivation of the hemolysin structural gene (hlyA) did not decrease the incidence of septicemia in the gnotobiotic piglet model.


Lotso lwa Batlhware by T. O. Mogwe (written in Tswana). Forms part of the van Warmelo Collection housed at the University of Pretoria.


In three-dimensional O(N) models, we investigate the low-momentum behavior of the two-point Green's function G(x) in the critical region of the symmetric phase. We consider physical systems whose criticality is characterized by a rotational-invariant fixed point. In non-rotational invariant physical systems with O(N)-invariant interactions, the vanishing of space-anisotropy approaching the rotational-invariant fixed point is described by a critical exponent ρ, which is universal and is related to the leading irrelevant operator breaking rotational invariance. At N = ∞ one finds ρ = 2. We show that, for all values of N ≥ 0, ρ 2. Non-Gaussian corrections to the universal low-momentum behavior of G(x) are evaluated, and found to be very small.


Tracking multiple speakers with microphone arrays is used for practical applications such as video conferencing. An important task is the integration of multiple arrays with correct associations of multiple concurrent speakers. A singlearray tracking approach based on CASA is extended here to probabilistic tracking with multiple arrays in order to handle a varying number of moving speakers over time and assign the concurrent localizations of multiple sensors to the speakers. Tracking is done simultaneously in angular and Euclidean space. The effectiveness of the method is shown with recordings of real speakers in a reverberant conference room by evaluation on the publicly available AV16.3 corpus.


Abstract On the basis of clinical literature pertaining to borderline personality disorder, it was hypothesized that individuals with borderline personality features would show evidence of self–esteem and affective instability. In addition to this instability, it was hypothesized that these individuals would show evidence of stronger reactions to daily interpersonal stress (i.e., lability). These hypotheses were examined through the employment of an experience–sampling design. The present findings suggest that individuals with borderline personality features possess unstable low self–esteem as well as negative affect that is high and unstable. Individuals with borderline personality features were also found to possess self–esteem and feelings of rejection that were labile in response to daily interpersonal stress.


We confirm Odijk's scaling laws for (i) the average chain extension; (ii) the variance about the average extension; and (iii) the confinement free energy of a wormlike chain confined in a rectangular nanochannel smaller than its chain persistence length through pruned-enriched Rosenbluth method (PERM) simulations of asymptotically long, discrete wormlike chains. In the course of this analysis, we also computed the global persistence length of ideal wormlike chains for the modestly rectangular channels that are used in many experimental systems. The results are relevant to genomic mapping systems that confine DNA in channel sizes around 50 nm, since fabrication constraints generally lead to rectangular cross-sections.


One hundred and two patients with body mass indices of 37 kg.m−2 or greater were interviewed in an outpatient assessment clinic over an 18‐month period. All had been listed for elective surgery under general anaesthesia. All patients were given an explanation of the problems of morbid obesity in relation to anaesthesia. Three options were then offered to the patients: 1) to proceed with general anaesthesia as planned; 2) to undergo the planned procedure under some form of regional anaesthesia, or 3) to postpone surgery and attempt to lose significant amounts of weight. At this initial consultation, 24 patients chose option 1, 21 patients chose option 2, and 52 patients chose option 3. Four patients decided not to have the planned surgery. One patient decided to have his surgery performed at another hospital under general anaesthesia. Of the 52 patients who opted to lose weight, only eight succeeded in reducing their body mass index (BMI) by 3 or more during the period of the study. Of these eight, only four had reduced their BMI to below 35. In this study, an explanation of the problems of obesity in relation to anaesthesia, in advance of the date of surgery, had a significant effect on the type of anaesthesia chosen by most morbidly obese patients that were interviewed. Unfortunately, of those who decided to try and lose weight, only the occasional patient achieved significant weight loss. Although a laudable and advocated aim, optimization of patients with regard to their weight proved impractical in our study.


We report that a 63-year-old Chinese female had acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) in which trisomy 21 (+21) was found as the sole acquired karyotypic abnormality. The blasts were positive for myeloperoxidase, and the immunophenotype was positive for cluster of differentiation 19 (CD19), CD33, CD34, and human leukocyte antigens (HLA)-DR. The chromosomal analysis of bone marrow showed 47,XX,+21[2]/46,XX[18]. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) showed that three copies of AML1 were situated in separate chromosomes, and that t(8;21) was negative. The patient did not have any features of Down syndrome. A diagnosis of CD19-positive AML-M5 was established with trisomy 21 as a sole acquired karyotypic abnormality. The patient did not respond well to chemotherapy and died three months after the diagnosis. This is the first reported case of CD19-positive AML with trisomy 21 as the sole cytogenetic abnormality. The possible prognostic significance of the finding in AML with +21 as the sole acquired karyotypic abnormality was discussed.


According to the needs of meteorological operations, for upgrading the network link at the national level, it is combined with the current network structure to realize MSTP+MPLS VPN link hot backup. The relevant agreements and core technologies which involve two kinds of link of MSTP and MPLS VPN are deeply analyzed. The configuration of the two kinds of network link structure is focused. The advantages of these two kinds of link for backup each other are fully explained. The bearing and transmitting meteorological business performance of the hot backup link is validated to realize the weather system of double security, to make the weather business transmission quality assurance of higher, and to give full play to the role of meteorological guards.


It is by and large perceived that a phenomenon known as "globalization" is quickly modifying lives in each and every edge of the planet. However, it is somewhat difficult to characterize globalization and when it started. Social researchers and various historians have proposed a wide range of theories to define the beginning stages for the historical backdrop of globalization. An attempt has been made to identify the various stages that led to the present process of global convergence: the consolidation of Asian and Indian Ocean networks beginning about a millennium ago, the new sea routes opened by European expansion about five centuries ago, and the Industrial Revolution of two centuries ago. The time when societies came closer together can be distinguished from the rest of human history which was dominated by divergent forces that divided human communities from each other. After World War 2 and till mid 70s most less developed countries (LDCs) and newly industrializing countries (NICs) implemented a closed economy, import-substitute industrialization model with excessive interventionism and protectionism. The outcomes were slow growth due to balance of payments crises and worsening income distribution due to inflation. This required empowering private ventures and direct private investments (DPIs), flexible exchange regime, freer foreign trade, and implementation of privatization. Although 1997-98 global financial crisis slowed the flow of funds and DPIs, yet globalization proceeded generally.


The discovery of Frank-Kasper (FK) phase in block copolymer (bcp) has prompted the progress of the field of soft quasicrystals. In principle, the formation of FK phase from the supercooled liquid phase of the bcp micelles should involve the mass transport of constituent molecules to transform the unimodal distribution of micelle size into the multimodal distribution prescribed by the volume asymmetry of the Voronoi cells in the FK phase. Here we present a new regime in which the Laves C14 phase of bcp developed below the glass transition temperature of the micelle core, where the mass transport was inhibited by the immobile block chains forming the core. The bcp micelle comprising a glassy core and a soft corona resembles the fuzzy colloid and the strong van der Waals attraction between the cores directs their organization into C14 phase to minimize the interparticle interaction energy under the metastable condition.


A transparent low-profile polarization-insensitive metamaterial absorber with ultrawideband microwave absorption is presented. A fractional bandwidth of 125.2% (4.3-18.7 GHz, absorptance > 90%) is achieved using a simple patterned resistive metasurface. The thickness of the absorber is only ∼0.086 times the upper-cutoff wavelength. The experimental results agree with full-wave simulation results. A Cu-metal-mesh ground plane enhances the shielding efficiency and visible transparency. Radar cross-sections (RCS) are reduced across all reflection angles, over frequencies spanning the C, X, and Ku bands. With its visible-wavelength transparency, low profile, polarization insensitivity, excellent absorption, and wideband RCS reduction, the proposed absorber has wide applicability.


Abstract. In this study, artificial neural networks, including both multilayer perception and the radial basis function neural networks, are applied for modeling and forecasting the maximum and time variation of storm surges at the Tanshui estuary in Taiwan. The physical parameters, including both the local atmospheric pressure and the wind field factors, for finding the maximum storm surges, are first investigated based on the training of neural networks. Then neural network models for forecasting the time series of storm surges are accordingly developed using the major meteorological parameters with time variations. The time series of storm surges for six typhoons were used for training and testing the models, and data for three typhoons were used for model forecasting. The results show that both neural network models perform very well for the forecasting of the time variation of storm surges.


We demonstrate that viscoelastic mechanics of striated muscle, measured as elastic and viscous moduli, emerge directly from the myosin crossbridge attachment time, tatt, also called time-on. The distribution of tatt was modeled using a gamma distribution with shape parameter, p, and scale parameter, β. At 5 mM MgATP, β was similar between mouse α-MyHC (16.0 ± 3.7 ms) and β-MyHC (17.9 ± 2.0 ms), and p was higher (P < 0.05) for β-MyHC (5.6 ± 0.4 no units) compared to α-MyHC (3.2 ± 0.9). At 1 mM MgATP, p approached a value of 10 in both isoforms, but β rose only in the β-MyHC (34.8 ± 5.8 ms). The estimated mean tatt (i.e., pβ product) was longer in the β-MyHC compared to α-MyHC, and became prolonged in both isoforms as MgATP was reduced as expected. The application of our viscoelastic model to these isoforms and varying MgATP conditions suggest that tatt is better modeled as a gamma distribution due to its representing multiple temporal events occurring within tatt compared to a single exponential distribution which assumes only one temporal event within tatt.


This article provides a critical analysis of the Supreme Court's qualified immunity doctrine, which protects public officials from constitutional tort damages actions when their conduct does not violate...clearly established...constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known. It argues that there exists an irresolvable tension between the Court's objective that constitutional tort cases be terminated at an early stage of litigation and the inherently fact-based nature of the reasonableness inquiry that lies at the heart of the doctrine's analytical framework. The article surveys the Court's ill-fated and ill-advised attempts to refine the doctrine in a manner that consciously disregards the complex role of facts in constitutional adjudication. The first part of the article describes how the Court's early immunity decisions shaped the doctrine and its procedural structure in order to circumvent or avoid the factual issues that dominate much constitutional tort litigation. Next, the article discusses four recent Supreme Court decisions that purport to guide lower courts in the proper adjudication of immunity claims. It argues that the manner in which these cases refine qualified immunity is driven by the Court's desire to eliminate, or at least minimize, messy factual conflicts that might impede early dismissal of civil rights claims. After illustrating this new understanding of the recent cases, the article examines why the Court denies that factual conflicts often impede the resolution of qualified immunity claims. First, it asserts that the Court treats the inherently factual reasonableness inquiry in qualified immunity claims as purely legal questions because of its desire that judges, rather than juries, resolve such claims. Thus, the Court's characterization of qualified immunity serves an allocative function. Next, the article contends that the Court has allocated decision making power in this way because it remains uncomfortable with the idea that qualified immunity is just that - qualified. In other words, the Court's recent efforts to refine qualified immunity reflect its wish to move the doctrine toward something resembling absolute immunity. Finally, the article criticizes the Court's role in this tacit transformation and argues that its actions obscure public discourse about the costs and benefits of constitutional torts as a means of ensuring compliance with constitutional norms.


ABSTRACT Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that leads to the disease COVID-19, has resulted in significant challenges for the medical and psychiatric communities. Much like other clinicians during this global pandemic, forensic evaluators have been faced with the difficult task of continuing their clinical work, while helping to maintain the safety of their examinees, support staff, correctional personnel, and themselves. As such, the implementation of telehealth appears to be a viable alternative to in-person evaluations, but questions regarding the fidelity of these forensic evaluations remain at the forefront. The goal of this paper is to examine data relevant to conducting forensic evaluations using telehealth platforms. We offer both pros and cons of using telehealth videoconferencing to conduct forensic evaluations, so that the forensic evaluator may make an informed decision regarding whether they plan to utilize this technology. Additionally, we discuss considerations for training in the delivery of telehealth services. This paper concludes with a discussion of areas for future research, such as the examination of modifications practitioners have made to their practice and the reliability of forensic opinions conducted over telehealth. We end by suggesting telehealth is the path forward for forensic evaluation, regardless of public health status.


BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of "after washing" imaging in interpretation of dacryoscintigraphy as a functional imaging technique used in evaluation of tearing problems. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 300 nasolacrimal systems were studied. 100 μCi of technetium-99m sodium pertechnetate as drops of activity (10 μL) were placed into the inferior fornix of each eye. Dynamic images were obtained for 15 minutes in the sitting position. "After washing" phase was done by placing a drop (10 μL) of normal saline in each eye and external ocular massage for an additional 10 minutes. The imaging patterns for each eye in the first dynamic phase and after washing phase were recorded, separately. RESULTS: First dynamic phase demonstrated a sensitivity of 97.4% and specificity of 22.6%. After washing phase showed a sensitivity of 91.2% and specificity 75.5%. After washing test, the obstruction pattern changed to "patent nasolacrimal duct" or "further progression" of the radiotracer to the nasolacrimal duct in the 25.1% and 24.4% of the nasolacrimal systems, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: After washing imaging is a useful method in dacryoscintigraphy which can improve the specificity of scan for diagnosis of lacrimal duct obstruction. It can also improve the localization of obstruction level in the lacrimal systems. KEY words: after washing imaging, tear drainage system, dacryoscintigraphy Nucl Med Rev 2018; 21, 2: 75–78


In this study, the authors consider an H∞ filtering problem for discrete-time singular systems with lossy measurements. The authors introduce the stochastic variable satisfying Bernoulli random binary distribution to model the measured outputs. This measurement mode can be used to characterise the effect of data-loss in information transmissions across limited bandwidth communication channels over a wide area. The authors design a filter to cope with the losses, which ensures not only the mean-square stochastic stability but also a prescribed H∞ filtering performance for filtering the error singular system. They also derive sufficient conditions for the existence of such a filter. Finally, the authors give a numerical example to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


Background. Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia is one of the leading cause of death among the ICU patients. The most important questions related to treatment of patients with Pneumonia are determination of prognostic factors, the severity criteria and diagnostic markers of disease duration. Platelets, as basic cells of hemostasis play a significant role in inflammation and immunity as a trigger in pathogenesis of many diseases. Mean platelet volume (MPV) reflects the severity of illness's outcome and might have and prognostic value. The aim of the study — to determinate the dynamic of MPV assessment in patients with Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia and its prognostic value. Materials and methods. A 45 patients with confirmed diagnosis of Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia with average hospital duration of 16 days (7–32) were divided in two groups according to the outcome of illness. Group 1 included 27 of survived patients, while group 2 consisted of 18 deceased patients. The complex laboratory tests were performed in order to assess the coagulation system. The Complete Blood Count panel and determination of morphological characteristics of platelets (MPV, platelet large cell ratio (P-LCR), platelet distribution width (PDW)). Results. The increase of MPV registered in first days of disease has been noted in both groups. Although in repeated measurements shown that MPV was more increased in group of deceased patients and it has been high throughout all period of hospitalisation. Conclusions. MPV reflects the activity of platelets and most probably it has a prognostic value. The increase of MPV (as the Δ in MPV level at admission and discharge from hospital) might been related to worsen of outcome in patients with Hospital-Acquired pneumonia.


Coverage includes- David D. Busch has been demystifying arcane computer and imaging technology since the early 1980s. However, he had a successful career as a professional photographer for a decade before he sat down at the keyboard of his first personal computer. Busch has worked as a newspaper photographer, done commercial studio and portrait work, shot weddings, and roved the United States and Europe as a photojournalist. His articles on photography and image editing have appeared in magazines as diverse as Popular Photography and Imaging, Petersen's PhotoGraphic, Rangefinder, and The Professional Photographer, as well as computer magazines such as Macworld and Computer Shopper. He's currently reviewing digital cameras for CNet and Computer Shopper. Full-color book with excellent illustrations. Written by a working photographer and well-known author in the digital photography field. Full-color images clearly illustrate each hands-on lesson.


This paper aims to evaluate the goodput performance of the IEEE 802.11 a wireless local area network (WLAN) from both the media access control (MAC) layer and physical (PHY) layer perspectives. From the physical layer perspective, we analyze the packet error rate performance of the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) based WLANs under the generalized Nakagami fading channel. According to the Chernoff bound analysis in the Nakagami fading channel, we derive the approximate packet error rate for the IEEE 802.11a WLAN with different data rates and fading parameters. Furthermore, we propose an efficient channel driven rate adaptation (CDRA) scheme. Through a PHY/MAC cross-layer analysis, we demonstrate that the goodput of the CDRA scheme indeed approaches to that of the optimal dynamic programming based rate adaptation method, while avoiding the complex calculations in selecting transmission parameters as the optimal method.


Abstract The formation of C-C bonds at the anomeric center of carbohydrates has become an important area in organic synthesis.1 The Lewis acid catalyzed addition of carbon nucleophiles to electrophilic sugar derivatives is the most popular method generally affording α-C-glycosides in the pyranose series. Because of the kinetic anomeric effect2 of the ring oxygen, the pyran oxonium species usually accepts nucleophiles from the α-face.3 It is, however, surprising that C-glycosyl derivatives of 2-azidosugars have been scarcely reported in the literature4,5 in spite of their interest as precursors of potential inhibitors for various hexosamine transferases.


When developing new designs, debugging the prototype is important to resolve application malfunction. During this board design debug, often a few pins of an IC are measured to check signals. Access to these pins is becoming more difficult due to packages like BGA. The JTAG port is an efficient mechanism to gain more access to the ICs. A method is presented to reconfgure the boundary scan chain to any desired length and to access pins involved in the debugging. The method is used asynchronously or synchronously to the test clock. In asynchronous mode high transfer frequencies are possible. For synchronous mode two different variants are described where the data throughput is determined by the intermediate logic. Both modes have proven to work on an FPGA and all implementations fully retain compliancy to the IEEElI49.1 standard.


Understanding the drivers (internal and external) that determine the productivity of marine ecosystems is challenging. For example, the correct estimate of recruitment is essential to estimate fish stock abundance. In this Theme Section, 5 papers explore the effect of fishing and climate on population structure across sub-Arctic ecosystems. The studies focus on how temperatureand fishing-induced changes in spatial and demographic population structure affect recruitment and population growth rate. The results suggest common patterns, but also highlight differences in the relative importance of fishing and climate among the populations and ecosystems examined.


Since 1997, computer programmers have worked to develop social networks that make it possible for users to connect with others who share common interests. One of the newest introductions into the world of social networks is Twitter, a micro-blogging site that restricts user posts to 140 characters or less. The worth of the Internet has increased as individual users have realized the value of connecting with other people, changing the perception of the Web from "a one-way broadcasting or publishing medium" to a one that allows individuals to create valued interpersonal networks. Internet-based communication channels can also pass along information to consumers and diffuse data to a group of individuals who are in one's inner circle. Individuals around the world use Twitter to learn and then share their knowledge with other users. Therefore, the medium stands as a one of the powerful new ways we use the Internet to diffuse information within networks of individuals who are alike in their beliefs. The paper details content themes within the online discussion of H1N1 and parallels between individuals' use of Twitter and how this use of the medium helped individuals make a decision on whether or not to vaccinate themselves and their families.


Plasma wakefield acceleration (PWFA) holds much promise for advancing the energy frontier because it can potentially provide a 1000-fold or more increase in acceleration gradient with excellent power efficiency in respect with standard technologies. Most of the advances in beam-driven plasma wakefield acceleration were obtained by a UCLA/USC/SLAC collaboration working at the SLAC FFTB[ ]. These experiments have shown that plasmas can accelerate and focus both electron and positron high energy beams, and an accelerating gradient in excess of 50 GeV/m can be sustained in an 85 cm-long plasma. The FFTB experiments were essentially proof-of-principle experiments that showed the great potential of plasma accelerators.
The FACET[ ] test facility at SLAC will in the period 2012-2016 further study several issues that are directly related to the applicability of PWFA to a high-energy collider, in particular two-beam acceleration where the witness beam experiences high beam loading (required for high efficiency), small energy spread and small emittance dilution (required to achieve luminosity).
The PWFA-LC concept presented in this document is an attempt to find the best design that takes advantage of the PWFA, identify the critical parameters to be achieved and eventually the necessary R&D to address their feasibility. It best benefits from the extensive R&D that has been performed for conventional rf linear colliders during the last twenty years, especially ILC[ ] and CLIC[ ], with a potential for a comparably lower power consumption and cost.


Abstarct. Phosphatase activities were determined in the 0-20-, 20-40and 40-60-cm layers of a brown luvic soil submitted to a complex tillage (no-till and conventional tillage), crop rotation (2and 3crop rotations) and fertilisation [mineral(NP) fertilisation and farmyard-manuring] experiment. It was found that the activities decreased in the order: acid phosphatase activity > alkaline phosphatase activity. Each activity decreased with increasing sampling depth. No-till –in comparison with conventional tillage – resulted in significantly higher soil phosphatase activities in the 0-20-cm layer and in significantly lower activities in the deeper layers. The soil under maize or wheat was more phosphatase-active in the 3than in the 2-crop rotation.In the 2-crop rotation higher soil phosphatase activities were recorded under wheat than under maize. Farmyard-manuring of maize – in comparison with its mineral fertilisation – led to a significant increase in each activity.


Thirty-seven newly diagnosed patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who were not in complete remission (CR) after induction chemotherapy with cytarabine and daunorubicin followed by intermediate-dose cytarabine and amsacrine, were treated with mitoxantrone and etoposide in a prospective, open multicenter study. The aim was to examine the efficacy and the toxicity of mitoxantrone and etoposide in a patient population with bad prognosis because of refractoriness to two standardized induction courses. Twelve patients attained CR (32.4%). Responders were found only among the patients with documented susceptibility (i.e. partial remission) to the previous therapy. In responding patients the median remission duration and disease-free survival was 15+ months (range 3-52+). Toxicity was mainly hematologic and characterized by prolonged hypoplasia; one patient died in aplasia. Granulocytes and platelets recovered unexpectedly early in six of 22 non-responders. This study suggests that AML patients refractory to two standardized chemotherapy courses can still attain a durable CR after an additional course, here with mitoxantrone and etoposide, provided they show some responsiveness to the previously given cytostatic drugs.


As machine learning becomes democratized in the era of Software 2.0, one of the most serious bottlenecks is collecting enough labeled data to ensure accurate and fair models. Recent techniques including crowdsourcing provide cost-effective ways to gather such data. However, simply collecting data as much as possible is not necessarily an effective strategy for optimizing accuracy and fairness. For example, if an online app store has enough training data for certain slices of data (say American customers), but not for others, collecting more American customer data will only bias the model training. Instead, we contend that one needs to selectively collect data and propose Slice Tuner, which collects possibly-different amounts of data per slice such that the model accuracy and fairness on all slices are optimized. At its core, Slice Tuner maintains learning curves of slices that estimate the model accuracies given more data and uses convex optimization to find the best data collection strategy. The key challenges of estimating learning curves are that they may be inaccurate if there is not enough data, and there may be dependencies among slices where collecting data for one slice influences the learning curves of others. We solve these issues by iteratively and efficiently updating the learning curves as more data is collected. We evaluate Slice Tuner on real datasets using crowdsourcing for data collection and show that Slice Tuner significantly outperforms baselines in terms of model accuracy and fairness, even for initially small slices. We believe Slice Tuner is a practical tool for suggesting concrete action items based on model analysis.


Background Lupus nephritis (LN) affects up to 50% of patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). The B-lymphocyte is pivotal in SLE and autoantibody production. B-lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS) and a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) are important for the activation and maintenance of B-cells. Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate serum levels of BLyS and APRIL in patients with LN, in order to clarify how these levels are affected by conventional immunosuppression. Through comparison with clinical data and correlation with autoantibodies, we further aimed to evaluate BLyS and APRIL as potential biomarkers for LN in comparison to conventional serology. Methods Sixty-four patients with active biopsy-ascertained LN (52 proliferative LN, PLN; 12 membranous LN) and 64 individually matched controls were included. After induction therapy a follow-up biopsy was performed. Serum samples at baseline and follow-up were analyzed for BLyS, APRIL, autoantibodies and complement levels. The renal biopsies were assessed according to the International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society (ISN/RPS) classification system for LN1 and scored for Activity Index (AI) and Chronicity Index (CI)2. Clinical response (CR) was defined as ≥50% reduction in proteinuria, normal or improved renal function and inactive urinary sediment. Histopathological response (HR) required ≥50% improvement in AI. Results Comparing patients to controls, baseline BLyS levels were significantly higher in patients (p<0.001) and remained unchanged after treatment. APRIL levels were significantly higher in patients at baseline (p=0.005), but not at follow-up. Among PLN patients, the decrease of APRIL was significant only in responders (p=0.009 for CR, p=0.01 for HR). Significant decreases of anti-dsDNA (p<0.001) and anti-C1q (p<0.001) were observed in PLN patients. Low baseline BLyS levels (<1.5 ng/mL) predicted treatment response, attaining a positive predictive value of 92% for CR among PLN patients. No correlation was found between BLyS/APRIL and anti-dsDNA, anti-C1q, C3 or C4, at either baseline or follow-up. However, significant correlations were found between DBLyS and Danti-dsDNA in the combined patient group (rs=0.47, p<0.001), and among PLN patients (rs=0.49, p<0.001). Conclusions Our results indicate that APRIL is of importance in PLN, and stress the need to evaluate BLyS as a candidate non-invasive prognostic biomarker of treatment response in LN. References Weening JJ, et al. The classification of glomerulonephritis in systemic lupus erythematosus revisited. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology: JASN. 2004 Feb;15(2):241-50. Austin HA, 3rd, et al. Prognostic factors in lupus nephritis. Contribution of renal histologic data. The American journal of medicine. 1983 Sep;75(3):382-91. Disclosure of Interest : None declared DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.3863


Silicon monoxide is a promising anode candidate because of its high theoretical capacity and good cycle performance. To solve the problems associated with this material, including large volume changes during charge-discharge processes, we report a ternary hierarchical silicon oxide-nickel-graphite composite prepared by a facile two-step ball-milling method. The composite consists of nano-Si dispersed silicon oxides embedded in nano-Ni/graphite matrices (Si@SiOx /Ni/graphite). In the composite, crystalline nano-Si particles are generated by the mechanochemical reduction of SiO by ball milling with Ni. These nano-Si dispersed oxides have abundant electrochemical activity and can provide high Li-ion storage capacity. Furthermore, the milled nano-Ni/graphite matrices stick well to active materials and interconnect to form a crosslinked framework, which functions as an electrical highway and a mechanical backbone so that all silicon oxide particles become electrochemically active. Owing to these advanced structural and electrochemical characteristics, the composite enhances the utilization efficiency of SiO, accommodates its large volume expansion upon cycling, and has good ionic and electronic conductivity. The composite electrodes thus exhibit substantial improvements in electrochemical performance. This ternary hierarchical Si@SiOx /Ni/graphite composite is a promising candidate anode material for high-energy lithium-ion batteries. Additionally, the mechanochemical ball-milling method is low cost and easy to reproduce, indicating potential for the commercial production of the composite materials.


A TCSP-like concurrent language is extended with an operator for action refinement which plays a role similar to that of procedure-call for sequential languages. The language is given a denotational semantics that fully expresses causality in terms of Causal Trees. These are Synchronization Trees where each arc has a richer labelling containing, besides an action name, also the set of backward pointers to those arcs "causing" the present action. An operational semantics reflecting causality is also defined in SOS style by a causal transition system, the unfoldings of which are causal trees. The denotational and operational semantics agree up to causal bisimulation, which is proved to be a congruence for ail the operators of the calculus; notably, for the refinement operator. Also, a complete set of axioms is provided that characterizes the congruence classes of causal bisimulation for finite agents. The main result of the paper is an operational semantics firmly based on a view of action refinement as purely semantic substitution. Therefore, its operational definition provides a "parallel copy rule," i.e., the concurrent analogous of the classic "copy rule" for sequential languages.


Five different diets were tested to feed artificially-WSSV (white spot syndrome virus) infected Penaeus monodon in high density, and the body length and body weight before and after 20-day experiment were measured and the survival rate calculated. The result shows that the group fed with Artemia salina nauplii had the best, while that of shrimp flakes the worst, in growth performance among all the groups (P0.01). The group of shellfish took the second place, and that with shellfish, the third. The fish-feeding group grew faster than the one with artificial feed. By infecting with WSSV on Day 12, an obvious (P0.05) difference occurred among groups. In addition, the death rate of WSSV-infected group was must higher. The analysis results of semi-quantitive PCR show no WSSV infection before but after the experiment when all showed positive sign of infection.


ABSTRACT
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) continues to be a major global public health issue, which targets the human immune system. The using of ARVs in the treatment of HIV / AIDS increased life expectancy for PLHIV (People With HIV / AIDS). This study aims to determine the description of the using of ARV drugs in outpatients of the HIV / AIDS Clinic and assessed their suitability with established treatment standards. This research was carried out in a descriptive non-experimental manner, with data collection carried out retrospectively, used patient prescription data from April to December 2017. The results of quantitative studies showed 87% were male patients, and the largest age group was 20-29 years (39%) . Class of antiretroviral drugs used were Nucleoside / Nucleotide Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs), Non-Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NNRTIs), and Protease Inhibitors (PI), with a combination of antiretroviral drugs most was the combination of first-line tenofovir + lamivudine + efavirenz (69%) while the second-line drug zidovudine + lamivudine + lopinavir / ritonavir  was 1%. The most commonly used comorbid drug was cotrimoxazole. For qualitative data, the accuracy of combination and dose of ARV drugs was 100% in accordance with Permenkes No. 87/ 2014, with 79% of patients adhered to antiretroviral treatment every month. The potential for most ARV drug interactions with other drugs for the moderate category was zidovudin + cotrimoxazole (11%) which occured pharmacokinetically by decreasing renal clearance of zidovudine and glucuronide metabolites. In conclusion, the pattern of used of ARV drugs had met the standard of Permenkes No.87/2014, with the most used were the first line combination of tenofovir + lamivudine + efavirenz.


This paper analyses how the central bank's role in the monetary institutional setting can affect the unification process of the overall financial supervision architecture. Using indicators of monetary commitment and central bank independence, we claim that these legal proxies show an inverse link with financial supervision unification. Therefore, the trade off still holds between the supervisory and the central bank involvement per se, however, monetary commitment and independence do also matter. In this respect, in an institutional setting characterized by a central bank deeply and successfully involved in supervision, or legally independent, a multi-authority model is likely to occur. ♦ The authors are indebted for helpful suggestions to Helge Berger, Chip Chappell and Lucia Dall Pellegrina. All remaining errors are the authors' responsibility.


The noise suppression effects of nanogranular magnetic film CoFeHfO on the transmission lines on a printed circuit board were investigated by finite element modeling. Two kinds of transmission lines with CoFeHfO thin film, microstrip line (MSL) and coplanar waveguide (CPW), were simulated in the frequency range of 0.1–10 GHz by HFSS™ and their power absorption and S parameters were analyzed. The numerical simulation showed that soft magnetic film CoFeHfO with a high magnetic permeability and electrical resistivity could greatly reduce the noise of the transmission lines. With the magnetic film, the S21 quickly dropped ∼10 dB and the power absorption reached ∼0.6 at 10 GHz. In order to further enhance the noise suppression, the electrical resistivity of the magnetic thin film was varied from 16 to ∞ µΩ·cm in the simulation, and the strongest noise suppression was obtained at an electrical resistivity of ∼1.6×105 µΩ·cm, which indicated that an optimal electrical resistivity was needed for magnetic material. In addition, the noise suppression mechanism was studied by the analysis of the electric field distribution near the transmission line.


Conserved semaphorin-plexin signaling systems govern various aspects of animal development, including axonal guidance in vertebrates and epidermal morphogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Here we provide in vivo evidence that stimulation of mRNA translation via eukaryotic initiation factor 2alpha (eIF2alpha) is an essential downstream event of semaphorin signaling in C. elegans. In semaphorin/plexin mutants, a marked elevation in the phosphorylation of eIF2alpha is observed, which causes translation repression and is causally related to the morphological epidermal phenotype in the mutants. Conversely, removal of constraints on translation by genetically reducing the eIF2alpha phosphorylation largely bypasses requirement for the semaphorin signal in epidermal morphogenesis. We also identify an actin-depolymerizing factor/cofilin, whose expression in the mutants is predominantly repressed, as a major translational target of semaphorin signaling. Thus, our results reveal a physiological significance for translation of mRNAs for cytoskeletal regulators, linking environmental cues to cytoskeletal rearrangement during cellular morphogenesis in vivo.


(iso-) osmolar compounds in 75 and 4% of patients, respectively. Out of 52 patients, 8 had renal impairment. Repeat exposure to iodinated contrast media during subsequent cardiac catheterisation carries the risk of recurrent CIE, even despite pre-medication with anti-histaminergic agents and corticosteroids. However, and similar to the case by Yen et al., reports have been published of patients with a history of CIE undergoing repeat cardiac catheterisation with limited contrast volume and adequate hydration, who experienced no adverse sequelae.


The organisation and kinetics of charges at solid and soft interfaces play a central role in biological signalling processes and are vital for energy storage technologies as well as our understanding of heterogeneous catalysis. At the molecular-scale, such interfacial behaviour remains stubbornly difficult to characterise, due to the short-ranged interactions between ions, their aqueous solvent and surface groups. Thus, continuum-scale models quickly break down, especially close to the interface and with high charge densities.

This thesis addresses the question of ionic organisation using atomic force microscopy (AFM), which uniquely combines sub-nanometre spatial resolution and the ability to probe relatively long timescales. The use of small oscillation amplitudes allows the topography of the ionic layer to be mapped while simultaneously extracting physical properties from the sample or the interface itself, with time resolution spanning from tens of milliseconds to minutes.

The structure of ions at hydrophilic interfaces is shown to be delicately sensitive to the charges' molecular structure (in the case of larger buffering agents) and their charge density (for simple alkali cations). Specifically, the cations' interactions with a model lipid membrane and the waters around it lead to an attractive correlation energy which generates nanoscale networks that evolve over the course of many seconds. These ionic structures directly reduce the effective stiffness of the lipids, providing a mechanism for the spontaneous control of membranes' mechanical properties.

These ionic networks are significant in the case of confined fluids and provide an efficient means of lubrication even under high pressures in sub-nanometre gaps. When sheared, such fluid films are revealed to be non-Newtonian, with dynamics that depend on the velocity and lengthscale of the motion. The results highlight the greatly damped kinetics of ions and water molecules at interfaces, and shed light on the mechanisms behind their transport through and along biomolecules.


Smith is the forerunner of the free banking theory. Smith develop the law of reflux which asserts that private banks cannot over-issue because the convertibility rule and the market mechanism induce banks to supply just the amount of money that public want to hold. The real bills doctrine of Adam Smith has been misinterpreted and just propose a solution to the law of reflux. Smith is a forerunner too of information asymmetry theory. He shows that banks are confronted with information asymmetry when they discount doubtful bill, and it is in their interest to control actively the quality of their claims.


The ultracompact low-mass X-ray binary X1916–053, which is composed of a neutron star and a semidegenerate white dwarf, exhibits periodic X-ray dips of variable width and depth. We have developed a new method to parameterize this dipping behavior to systematically study its variations. This can help in further understanding binary and accretion disk behaviors. Observations by the Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer from 1998 clearly show a 4.87 day periodic variation in the dip width. This is probably due to nodal precession of the accretion disk, although an epoch-folding search finds no significant sidebands in the spectrum. From the negative-superhump model of Larwood et al., the mass ratio can be estimated as q = 0.045. Combining more than 24 years of historical data, we find an orbital period derivative orb/Porb = (1.62 ± 0.34) × 10−7 yr−1 and establish a quadratic ephemeris for the X-ray dips. This period derivative seems inconsistent with the prediction from the standard model of binary orbital evolution proposed by Rappaport et al. On the other hand, Tavani's radiation-driven model can properly account for the period derivative, although the large mass outflow predicted by this model has never been observed in this system. With the best ephemeris, we find that the standard deviation of the primary dips is smaller than that of the secondary dips. This means that the primary dips are more stable than the secondary dips. Thus, we conclude that the primary dips of X1916–053 occur from the bulge where the accretion stream encounters the rim of the disk, rather than the inner disk ring as previously proposed by Frank et al.


The efficiency of multiple pattern matching is the core technology of Deep Packet Inspection and it is important to the real word of internet traffic analysis. In this research we propose a new multiple pattern matching technique for the fixed pattern in the packet load, which is called I-HASH multiple various position pattern matching algorithm. It is used to improve the matching speed through the preprocessing. Proposed algorithm is implemented in our experiments and compared with the existing method. The results demonstrate that our algorithm is much more effective than STRCMP algorithm, especially when the number of patterns is quiet large. This will be extraordinarily helpful in the areas of Internet application identification system and network intrusion detection system and so on, which contain huge amounts of fixed patterns.


Bisphosphonates are used effectively for many medical conditions, such as multiple myeloma, Paget's disease, osteoporosis, etc. However, recently, osteonecrosis of the jaw was observed in patients receiving long-term bisphosphonate therapy, including oral administration. This osteonecrosis is refractory, and complete recovery is not guaranteed despite a standard treatment protocol being established by many associations related to oral and maxillofacial surgery. The treatment outcome of oral bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ) is reported with a review of the relevant literature


The activity of energy-dependent Ca2+-accumulation systems in rat thymocytes mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in control and at the early stage of X-irradiation or H2O2-induced apoptosis were determined in experiments using the model of digitonin-permeabilized cells with addition of thapsigargin and ruthenium red. The mitochondrial Ca2+-transporting system proved to be more sensitive to both apoptotic stimuli. The stationary level of Ca2+, accumulated in mitochondria and initial rate of Ca2+ accumulation in ER were reduced 15 min after H2O2 treatment. The parameters of mitochondrial Ca2+-accumulation system in irradiated cells were decreased 30 min after irradiation. Cyclosporin A almost completely inhibited DNA fragmentation in irradiated and partly--in peroxide-treated cells. The mitochondrial calcium homeostasis imbalance is suggested to be an early event in thymocytes apoptosis initiation.


 Abstract —Linear induction motors are superior to rotary induction motors in direct drive systems because they can generate direct forward thrust force independent of mechanical transmission. However, due to the large air gap and cut-open magnetic circuit, their efficiency and power factor are quite low, which limit their application in high power drive systems. To attempt this challenge, this work presents a system-level optimization method for a single-sided linear induction motor drive system. Not only the motor but also the control system is included in the analysis. A system-level optimization method is employed to gain optimal steady-state and dynamic performances. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed optimization method, experimental results on a linear induction motor drive are presented and


Last year, the University of Arizona (UA) abruptly dismissed Marguerite Kay, a prominent researcher on aging, after a series of faculty-led investigations concluded that Kay had manipulated data and seriously mismanaged her lab. But supporters nationwide are rallying to her cause, and a legal decision is pending. Her foremost advocate insists that the scientific misconduct charges against Kay were played up by administrators who resented Kay9s challenges to their decisions on lab resources and service fees. The former UA vice president for research, who coordinated the initial Kay investigation, however, says these allegations are unfounded.


Background: Transforming peripheral noninvasive measurements to obtain central hemodynamic quantities, such as cardiac output (CO) and central systolic blood pressure (cSBP), is a highly emerging field [1,2]. However, no holistic investigation has been performed to assess the amount of information contained in each peripheral measurement for the prediction of central values. This can be attributed to the inherent difficulty of creating a complete and accurate database; mainly due to the invasive nature of the gold standard techniques [3,4]. Methods: To meet this need, we exploit synthetic data from a previously validated cardiovascular model (CVm) [5]. Our study relies on peripheral quantities including brachial pressure, heart rate (HR), and pulse wave velocity (PWV) simulated by the CVm. A Random Forest model was trained using 2744 synthetic instances and, subsequently, was tested against a subset of 800. Correlations and feature importances of the input parameters were reported (Figure 1). Results: Our results demonstrated that precise estimates of CO and cSBP were yielded with an RMSE of 0.39 L/min and 1.39 mmHg, respectively (Figures 2 and 3). Low biases were observed, namely 0.03 ± 0.39 L/min for CO and −0.08 ± 1.39 mmHg for cSBP. PWV, HR, and brachial pulse pressure were found to be the most correlated features with CO, whereas brachial SBP was plausibly shown to be the significant determinant of cSBP for our model (Figures 4 and 5). Conclusion: These findings pave the way for better devising central hemodynamics' predictions. In the future, our ultimate goal is to examine the sensitivity of cardiac parameters estimation (i.e., elastance) to noninvasive peripheral measurements.


A new model for hard-real-time tasks-the recurring branching task model-is introduced, which is capable of modelling some restricted forms of conditional real-time process code. This model generalizes earlier models such as the sporadic task model and the generalized multiframe task model. It is shown that feasibility analysis in this model-determining whether a system of several recurring branching tasks that share a processor can all be scheduled to always meet all deadlines-can be performed efficiently, in pseudo-polynomial time.


This study is an assessment of local government administration as an instrument of grassroots development in Nigeria, using Owerri Municipal Council as a case study. With a well-structured questionnaire supported with oral interviews, data were generated from one hundred and seventy municipal council staff stratified into three categories of top management, middle and low cadres. Employing the Spearman"s Rank Coefficient as the main statistical tool of analysis, the study revealed among others that a significant relationship exists between the state of infrastructure and grassroots development in Nigeria and between the level of ineffective local government administration and the extent of job creation among the local populace. Further findings showed that a significant relationship exists between insufficient skilled manpower and the level of grassroots rural-urban migration as well as between ineffective local government administration and the level of grassroots participation in democratic activities. Following these findings, the study therefore, concluded thus: that the state of infrastructure is poor, resulting in low grassroots development in Nigeria. Similarly, the study inferred that ineffective local government administration led to poor resource management, which in turn impeded grassroots job creation, and that lack of skilled manpower fuelled rural-urban migration in Nigeria, while ineffective local government administration was a significant determinant factor to poor grassroots participation in democratic processes in Nigeria. Therefore, prominent among others, the study advocated for an upward review of the revenue sharing formula in favour of the local governments being a grassroots government closest to the populace, while sanctioning erring personnel who may be tempted to engage in funds misappropriation.


The thesis describes research into graphical notations for software engineering, with a principal interest in ways of formalizing them. The research seeks to provide a theoretical basis that will help in designing both notations and the software tools that process them.

The work starts from a survey of literature on notation, followed by a review of techniques for formal description and for computational handling of notations. The survey concentrates on collecting views of the benefits and the problems attending notation use in software development; the review covers picture description languages, grammars and tools such as generic editors and visual programming environments. The main problem of notation is found to be a lack of any coherent, rigorous description methods. The current approaches to this problem are analysed as lacking in consensus on syntax specification and also lacking a clear focus on a defined concept of notated expression.

To address these deficiencies, the thesis embarks upon an exploration of serniotic, linguistic and logical theory; this culminates in a proposed formalization of serniosis in notations, using categorial model theory as a mathematical foundation. An argument about the structure of sign systems leads to an analysis of notation into a layered system of tractable theories, spanning the gap between expressive pictorial medium and subject domain. This notion of 'tectonic' theory aims to treat both diagrams and formulae together.

The research gives details of how syntactic structure can be sketched in a mathematical sense, with examples applying to software development diagrams, offering a new solution to the problem of notation specification. Based on these methods, the thesis discusses directions for resolving the harder problems of supporting notation design, processing and computer-aided generic editing. A number of future research areas are thereby opened up. For practical trial of the ideas, the work proceeds to the development and partial implementation of a system to aid the design of notations and editors. Finally the thesis is evaluated as a contribution to theory in an area which has not attracted a standard approach.


The study is diffusion bonding of Mg-AZ31 and Al-6061 under pressure and no pressure by using the direct bonding method. After bonding process, characteristics phase in interface and bonding boundaries of Mg-AZ31/Al-6061 were characterized . The diffusion formation was observed by SEM. Aluminum solid solution and Mg17Al12 alloy phase was proved by analysis of XRD. In the process of measurement, crystalline structure of nearby interface characteristics phase was analyzed in detail by TEM. Based on the above analysis, the crystal model of the magnesium alloy and aluminum alloys was established under pressure, and the bonding mechanism was discussed. The results show that the bonding materials could be bonded under no pressure and the structure of bonding interface is more optimized than pressure.


The need for launch opportunities for nanosatellite missions is ever increasing as the number of nanosatellites in development increases. Nanosatellites are typically launched as secondary, also known as auxiliary payloads, on missions to minimize launch costs. This creates managerial and technical challenges for integrating multiple nanosatellite programs as auxiliary payloads with primary missions. The priority of the integration team is to minimize impacts and risks to the primary spacecraft and the launch vehicle that are present with auxiliary satellites. Early identification of requirements for nanosatellites and their deployment devices is necessary to increase the opportunity for success of a nanosatellite rideshare mission. This paper discusses management and integration challenges for nanosatellite missions that are launched as auxiliary payloads on United States launch vehicles and techniques for addressing these challenges.


A protocol and architecture are presented in order to achieve consensual knowledge bases (i.e. bases in which knowledge is expressed in a formal language and which are considered as containing the state of the art in some research area). It assumes that the construction of the base must and can be achieved collectively. The architecture is based on individual workstations which provide support for developing a knowledge base: formal expression of knowledge through objects, tasks and qualitative equations annotated with hypertext nodes and links. It also provides tools for detecting similarities and inconsistencies between pieces of knowledge. These bases can be grouped together in order to constitute a new reference knowledge base. The process for constructing this last base mimics the submission of articles to peer-reviewed journals. This is achieved through a protocol for submitting knowledge to the group base, confronting it with the content of that base, amending it accordingly, reviewing it by the other knowledge bases and finally incorporating it. The system is to be used by researchers in the field of genome sequencing.


Femoral nerve neuropathy secondary to an ilipsoas muscle haematoma is an emergency. Computed tomography is generally accepted as the radiological examination of choice. A case is reported to disclose the complementary value of ultrasonography in diagnosis and treatment. Immediate surgical drainage is warranted in case of an iliopsoas haematoma secondary to anticoagulation therapy with subsequent femoral nerve palsy


This course guide contains information about and links to resources relevant to the CEE4441 (Civil Engineering Design Project) library instruction session.


Aims Children with down syndrome (DS) often have qualitative impairments in their social communication and interaction skills. Many (<10%) will be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but often at a later age than their peers, due to "diagnostic overshadowing". An audit in 2013 suggested that 15% of children with DS had ASD. This study aimed to review this finding and associated patient characteristics. Methods A retrospective analysis of community records of children with DS, aged 0–18 years, was undertaken between September and November 2015. The prevalence of ASD in DS was established and patient demographics, comorbidity and type of diagnostic assessment recorded. Results 93 children were included in the study (Figure 1). 15 (16.1%) had confirmed ASD (mean age at diagnosis was 7.5 years, range 4–13 years) and a further 16 (17.2%) had social communication difficulties but no formal diagnosis. 9 (60%) children with ASD underwent a formal multidisciplinary (MD) autism assessment with a paediatrician and speech and language therapist. The remaining 6 (40%), were diagnosed by a paediatrician in a "virtual" MD clinic, where additional information from other professionals was reviewed. Comorbidity and demographics are summarised in Table 1 . All children with ASD had variable hearing impairment with 3 (20%) requiring hearing aids; 1 (6.7%) had epilepsy; 1 (6.7%) had anorectal malformation; and 10 (66.7%) had congenital heart disease. 6 (40%) were attending mainstream educational settings when diagnosed.Abstract G597(P) Figure 1 Prevalence of Autism spectrum disorder in children with down syndrome and type of diagnostic assessment used Conclusion The prevalence of ASD is higher than expected in this cohort of children with DS. Those diagnosed with ASD, benefited from a multidisciplinary diagnostic assessment – albeit "virtual" in some cases. Most children had associated medical comorbidity, which was not unexpected. Correct and early diagnosis of ASD means that parents and professionals are better able to understand and support the child with DS, using autism specific strategies. The dual diagnosis should facilitate a child's access to appropriate educational and health resources (including transition to adult services) and bespoke communication and behavioural interventions. Professionals should be mindful of "diagnostic overshadowing" and consider ASD earlier in childhood.Abstract G597(P) Table 1 Demographic details and medical comorbidity in children with down syndrome and autism spectrum disorder


ABSTRACT Territories provide important breeding and nonbreeding resources for many bird species. Most songbird territory research has been conducted in temperate regions during the breeding season, a situation in which primarily males appear to defend territories and for only a few months. In the tropics, however, both females and males of many species may defend territories year-round and for multiple years, yet few studies have verified this with marked or radio-tagged birds. To assess territory stability in both sexes between seasons and years, we examined similarity in territory size, location, and overlap with neighbors between the breeding and nonbreeding seasons and 2 subsequent breeding seasons in a tropical resident songbird, the Troupial (Icterus icterus). Mated females and males maintained similar-sized, tightly overlapping territories that had considerably less overlap with neighbors than each other. Both sexes maintained similar-sized territories in the breeding and nonbreeding seasons and between years. The location of territory centers and extent of overlap with neighbors was also similar between seasons and years. Divorce and/or territory switching appeared to be uncommon, but upon disappearance of a mate, both sexes often replaced the mate to maintain the territory. Our work quantitatively verifies for both sexes the year-round territorial behavior expected for this and many tropical species. Such territory similarity and stability likely plays a role in song, plumage, and sex role similarities also seen in female and male Troupials.


This paper shows that global capital markets cannot, by themselves, achieve net transfers of financial capital between countries and that both the integration of global financial markets as well as the integration of global goods markets are needed to achieve net transfers of capital between countries. Frictions (barriers to mobility) in one or both of these markets can impede net transfers of capital between countries, produce the Feldstein and Horioka (1980) results, and prevent real interest rates from being equalized across countries. Moreover, there is empirical evidence that barriers to the mobility of goods and services are an important obstacle to international capital mobility.


Abstract An ω-squared model suggested by Hanks and McGuire has had impressive success in predicting measures of strong ground motions over a broad range in moment magnitude. There remains the question of how the ground motion spectra should scale for earthquakes large enough to rupture the entire width of a seismogenic zone, i.e., earthquakes for which the usual similarity principles do not apply. The scaling law proposed in this paper takes as its fundamental postulate that the high-frequency level of the acceleration spectrum is proportional to the square root of the rupture area for all earthquakes, not just those for which the similarity principles apply. The spectrum corresponding to the proposed scaling law is controlled by two corner frequencies, one inversely proportional to the rupture length and the other inversely proportional to the rupture width. The proposed law agrees with the Hanks-McGuire model below the value of moment corresponding to rupture of the whole width of the seismogenic zone. A stochastic kinematic model is devised for the purpose of making ground motion predictions corresponding to the proposed law. The spectrum of the stochastic kinematic model can be written in terms of the product of two factors, one controlled by the corner frequency related to rupture length and the other by the corner frequency related to rupture width. Above their respective corner frequencies both factors are proportional to frequency raised to a power. The two exponents are chosen in order to make the spectrum correspond to the proposed law, but it is noteworthy that both exponents can easily be justified on other grounds. The exponent in the factor controlled by the corner frequency related to rupture width corresponds to the square root singularity in slip velocity exhibited by Kostrov9s solution for a constant stress relaxation propagating at constant velocity. The exponent in the factor controlled by the corner frequency related to rupture length has the value implied by the well-established proportionality between average dislocation and rupture length, on the assumption that dislocation is a random function of position along the fault. Predictions of peak horizontal acceleration, velocity, and response spectra corresponding to the proposed law are made with the stochastic kinematic model and also using random vibration theory. The two sets of predictions show good agreement. The predictions are consistent with strong-motion data for shallow earthquakes in western North America, within the scatter of the data and the uncertainty of the parameters of the proposed law. The predictions differ by more than a factor of two from a simple extrapolation of the Hanks-McGuire model only at moment magnitudes more than one unit greater than the critical magnitude corresponding to rupture of the entire width of the seismogenic zone. It is likely that few if any such earthquakes ever occur.


Sixty hospitalized elderly cardiac patients were tested using the Geriatric Functional Rating Scale (GFRS) and were followed four months postdischarge. Significant relationships were found between GFRS scores and readmission status. These data substantiate the potential usefulness of GFRS as a predictive instrument to identify those high-risk hospitalized elderly cardiac patients who need social-health services in the posthospital recovery period.


Alluvial fans of alpine torrents are both natural deposition areas for sediment discharged by floods and debris flows, and preferred sites for agriculture and settlements. Hazard assessment on alluvial fans depends on proper identification of flow processes and their potential intensity. This study used LiDAR data to examine the morphology of the alluvial fan of a small alpine stream (Moscardo Torrent, Eastern Italian Alps). A high-resolution DTM from LiDAR data was used to calculate a shaded relief map, plan curvature and an index of topographic roughness based on the standard deviation of elevation within a moving window. The surface complexity of the alluvial fan, also influenced by human activities, clearly arose from the analysis. The surface roughness, defined here as the local topography variability, is compared with a previous classification of the fan surface based on field surveys. The results demonstrate that topographic analysis of ground based LiDAR DTM can be a useful tool to objectively investigate fan morphology and hence alluvial fan hazard assessment.


Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic success rates of pulpotomized primary molar teeth restored with a compomer material with using United States Public Health Service (USPHS) criteria. Methods: In 173 primary molars of 156 child patients, aged within 4–9 years (mean age: 6.1±1.4 years), conventional pulpotomy treatment were performed. The teeth treated using calcium hydroxide, formocresol or ferric sulphate. After pulpotomy procedure, teeth were restored with compomer material. The teeth were evaluated as clinically and radiographically during a period of 12–24 months. Both of success of pulpotomy treatment and also restorative material (compomer material) were evaluated during follow-up period. The data were assessed with chi-square test. Results: At the end of the first year, 45% of initial treated teeth were checked, but only 18% were checked at the end of the second year. The first year success rates in the groups treated with CH, FC, and FS were 87.5%, 95%, and 79%, respectively, and, as the number of controllable patients was lower, the success rates on available teeth were determined to be 88.3% and 80%, respectively, according to the materials at the end of the second year. Restorations having been made, they were analyzed in accordance with USPHS criteria. Conclusions: At the end of the first year, 67.5% of compomer restorations were detected to be original and healthy and at the end of the second year, 57% were deemed healthy. No statistically significant relationships were found between marginal adaptation, secondary caries and pulpotomy success (chi-square test, P>.05). Among the three groups, there is no significant difference in terms of success. The least successful age group was defined as 4–6 years.


The purpose of this study was to evaluate, through a meta-analysis study, whether the use of computer-based systems reported in the literature improves the metabolic control of diabetic patients. On the retrieved papers, a set of meta-analysis studies were performed: first the difference of HbA1c between cases and controls at follow-up was evaluated (sign test); then the difference between cases and controls in the total variation of HbA1c from the beginning to the end of the trial was considered (method of effect sizes). The latter methodology was reapplied also on three more homogeneous article subgroups. The sign test was performed on 16 papers: in two of them, the HbA1c level was higher in the intervention group than in the control group at follow-up: it is unlikely that this is a random occurrence (p < 0.01). The method of effect sizes was first applied to 13 papers, as in the others some needed data were missing: the results obtained showed a statistically significant amelioration of metabolic control in the intervention group in comparison to the control group (p < 0.01). A progressive reinforcement of this outcome was obtained on the trial subgroups. Our study supports the hypothesis that the use of computer-based systems can be an effective means of improving metabolic control. The differential benefit obtained in the amelioration of HbA1c does not justify, by itself, the applicability of such systems into clinical practice; additional investigations should be carried out to evaluate the enhancement of other clinical and organizational indicators.


The present study was made to sort out the problems related to breeding, feeding, veterinary care, marketing and financial management practices faced by the members and non-members of dairy co-operatives of weaker section's communities and to suggest suitable measures to overcome these problems in Saharanpur district of U.P. in the year 2008-09. The data were collected from 75 members and 75 non-members of dairy co-operatives of weaker section's families (small, marginal farmers and landless labourers) through interview schedule. The major problems reported by members and non-members of dairy co-operatives were related to breeding i.e. lack of availability of improved breed, distance location of artificial insemination centre and another problem was related to feeding i.e. lack of knowledge about balanced feeding, nonavailability of green fodder throughout the year, the other problem was related to veterinary care i.e. distant location of veterinary hospitals, no knowledge about vaccination schedule and another problem related to marketing and finance i.e. lack of finance for working capital and low price of milk and lack of marketing facilities in the village were perceived as the most serious problems faced by members and nonmembers of dairy co-operatives. The non-members of dairy co-operatives face major problems with high severity in comparison to members of dairy co-operatives. Thus, there is a need to remove these problems to increase dairy business through weaker section's families to raise their income.


Staphylococcus aureus strain type USA300 is an important human pathogen. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry has been used successfully for rapid identification of S. aureus at the genus and species levels. Here, it was hypothesized that MALDI-TOF could be used to identify USA300 organisms at the strain level. A genetic algorithm model using ClinProTools software (Bruker Daltonics) was built using 47 isolates of USA300 S. aureus and 77 non-USA300 S. aureus isolates. Three mass/charge peaks (5932, 6423 and 6592) were found to be discriminators between the groups of isolates. The model was validated using 224 test isolates: 197 of 224 test isolates were correctly classified as 'USA300 family' or 'non-USA300'. The sensitivity of the model was 0.87, with a specificity of 0.89, positive likelihood ratio of 8.19 and negative likelihood ratio of 0.15. The three-peak intensity MALDI-TOF model designed and tested in the current study can be used to rapidly identify USA300 family S. aureus isolates with reasonable sensitivity and specificity.


Author(s): Maldonado, Carlos | Advisor(s): Franke, Megan; Wagoner, Richard | Abstract: Past research has shown slightly mixed results about the relationship between community college academic counseling and Latino student experiences. Latino student experiences with academic counseling have been shown to be positive within the context of a special program. However, researchers have not examined how academic counseling is related to course access for Latino students. Given limitations of past research, this dissertation sought to examine counselor and Latino student perceptions of academic counseling within the contexts of mathematics and English course placements. I studied two large and diverse community colleges in southern California utilizing an embedded multiple case study design. A total of 34 counselors and 28 Latino students were interviewed using snowball and purposive sampling techniques. Other data collected were: field observations, screenshots of college websites, course catalogs, and other relevant documents and artifacts. Relative Autonomy of the State and Social Identity Contingencies were invoked as guiding theoretical perspectives. The major finding was a relationship between academic counseling and course access for Latino students, and three themes described such relationship. The first theme was a relationship between counselor perceptions about the placement test and perceived accuracy of course placements. Counselors reported that course placements were mostly accurate and did not need cross checking. The second theme was that there was a relationship between counselor perceptions of resources and their perceived role in course placement counseling. Counselors reported that for some students course placements were not accurate, but counselors could not conduct cross checks because they did not have access to the necessary complex resources of authority and ability assessment. The third theme was a relationship between counselor perceptions of Latinos and perceived accuracy of remedial course placements for Latinos. While counselors reported that flaws in course placement accuracy were inevitable, Latino students' remedial course placements were an exception.


In one of New Zealand's worst disasters, international rescue teams from around the world responded to the Christchurch earthquake. To ensure interoperability and effectiveness of such global rescue responses, an international body under the auspices of the United Nations has established guidelines for these rescue teams, including a standardised search marking system for damaged and collapsed structures. The aim of this research was to evaluate whether responding teams adhered to the guideline when applying such markings. From hundreds of photographs, 153 images were visually analysed using a novel qualitative evaluation tool known as the Search Marking Adherence Score (SMAS). An online survey of responders (n=68) gathered further qualitative and further quantitative data. It was found that search markings were generally well applied but some team types performed better than others. New Zealand Response Teams scored the highest, followed by International teams, then New Zealand Task Forces. The analysis also leads to several practical recommendations to enhance the search marking specifications within the international guideline.


The paper presents observations of gravity wave‐induced temperature disturbances in the Martian atmosphere obtained with the mid‐infrared (MIR) spectrometer, a channel of the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite instrument on board the Trace Gas Orbiter (ACS/TGO). Solar occultation measurements of a CO2 absorption band at 2.7 μ m were used for retrieving density and temperature profiles between heights of 20 and 160 km with vertical resolution sufficient for deriving small‐scale structures associated with gravity waves. Several techniques for distinguishing disturbances from the background temperature have been explored and compared. Instantaneous temperature profiles, amplitudes of wave packets and potential energy have been determined. Horizontal momentum fluxes and associated wave drag have been estimated. The analyzed data set of 144 profiles encompasses the measurements made over the second half of Martian Year 34, from the Solar longitude 165° through 355° . We observe enhanced gravity wave dissipation/breaking in the mesopause region of 100–130 km. Our analysis shows no direct correlation between the wave amplitude and Brunt‐Väisälä frequency. It may indicate that convective instability may not be the main mechanism limiting gravity wave growth in the middle atmosphere of Mars.


Summary form only given. 16-bit Asian language texts are difficult to compress using conventional 8-bit sampling text compression schemes. Recently the word-based text compression method has been studied with the intention of compressing Japanese and Chinese texts individually. In order to compress a large number of small-sized Japanese documents, such as groupware and E-mail, we applied a semi-adaptive word-based method to Japanese at DCC'98. To further enable multilingual text compression, we also applied a static word-based method to both the Japanese and Chinese texts and evaluated compression characteristics and performance using a computer simulation.


BACKGROUND Femoral vessel catheterisation is generally avoided in the neonatal period because of technical difficulties and the fear of complications. AIM To review the use of femoral arterial and venous catheters inserted percutaneously on the neonatal intensive care unit. METHODS Infants admitted to one of two regional neonatal intensive care units who underwent femoral vessel catheterisation were identified. Information collected included basic details, indication for insertion of catheter, type of catheter and insertion technique, duration of use, and any catheter related complications. RESULTS Sixty five femoral catheters were inserted into 53 infants. The median gestational age was 29 weeks (range 23–40). Twenty three femoral arterial catheters (FACs) were inserted into 21 infants and remained in situ for a median of three days (range one to eight). Twelve (52%) FACs remained in place until no longer required, and four (17%) infants developed transient ischaemia of the distal limb. Forty two femoral venous catheters (FVCs) were inserted into 40 infants and remained in situ for a median of seven days (range 1–29). Twenty seven (64%) FVCs remained in place until no longer required, and eight (19%) catheters were removed because of catheter related bloodstream infection. CONCLUSIONS FACs and FVCs are useful routes of vascular access in neonates when other sites are unavailable. Complications from femoral vessel catheterisation include transient lower limb ischaemia with FACs and catheter related bloodstream infection.


The design of a high-frequency radar antenna making possible the detection of echoes from the ionized trails produced by very small meteors is described. Preliminary results indicate that the radar system, when fully completed, will be capable of detecting meteors down to the 15th visual magnitude, thus making possible radio studies of meteors five visual magnitudes smaller than the smallest which have heretofore been systematically investigated at back reflection. The results of these studies are expected to provide new information on the amount and distribution of interplanetary matter, the contribution of meteoric ionization to the lower ionosphere, and the radio propagation characteristics of vhf ionospheric scatter and meteor burst communication systems. The results of some preliminary measurements of meteors down to the 14th magnitude are presented. Other possible applications of the antenna are discussed.


Spark discharge generated by a nanosecond positive high-voltage pulse over a water surface at atmospheric pressure in air was studied using a high speed camera system. Faint streamers form near the pin electrode and propagate towards the water surface. The time for the streamer propagating across the air gap was estimated to be about 50 ns to 60 ns with a propagation velocity of ~ 1.3 ? 105 m/s. It was found that the water conductivity and the gap distance have no significant effect on the propagation velocity of the streamer. After the streamers touch the water surface a brilliant spark channel forms across the air gap. The maximum diameter at the middle of the spark channel is about 1 mm, and approximately contracts with a radical velocity of about 2.0 ? 103 m/s. No significant dependence of the maximum diameter and decay velocity of the spark channel on the water conductivity and the gap distance were recognized in the present work. The maximum conduction current for a gap distance of 5 mm is significantly larger than that for a gap distance of 10 mm at the same water conductivity, and shows an increasing tendency with increasing water conductivity for a fixed gap distance. Based on the maximum conduction current, the effect of water conductivity and gap distance on the electron density of the spark discharge plasma at the peak current was investigated. Within the range studied, the electron density in the spark channel is about 1015 cm?3 and increases with water conductivity at a fixed gap distance.


The paper gives a general review of an investigation on some problems on motion in the relativity theory. We begin by discussing the motion of a single particle in a weak gravitational field and obtain both the linear and angular equations of motion; this is followed by brief accounts of the problem of two bodies and that of a rotating rod. In each case considered the equations of motion arise as conditions of integrability of the relativity equations for empty space. Only one of these problems has previously been treated by this method, this being the case of two bodies not connected by a material tension. However, this investigation, which was carried out by Einstein, Infeld and Hoffmann, introduces difficult ideas relating to the use of certain spatial surface integrals; in the present paper we avoid the use of these integrals. An essential feature of the work is that we take a first-order solution for the particular problem considered and substitute this solution in the quadratic terms of Gμv and then build up a second-order solution. This method can be employed when we discuss the interior of matter; and, as an example, we conclude the paper by investigating the case of a rotating mass of liquid of constant density.


Objective: One of the mechanisms proposed in the etiology of psychiatric disorders is the immunological and inflammatory processes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet/ lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte/lymphocyte ratio (MLR) and mean platelet volume (MPV) levels as an inflam-matory marker in childhood-onset psychiatric disorders and to evaluate the inflammation parameters in the etiology. Methods: The hemogram data of 165 patients with early onset schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depressive disorder and anorexia nervosa and 70 healthy children and adolescents were evaluated. In this study, artificial neural net-works (ANN) are used for artificial intelligence-based computer aided system (CAS) design which can be able to help pediatric psychiatry specialists to diagnose easily and quickly. The data belonging to the patients were subjected to the normalization process in the designed system. Then, normalized data was entered to ANN and five outlets including four diseases and one test group were determined. The ANN model used has features of multilayer sensor network design. A three-tier cross validation method was used to test the success of the designed system. The three-tier cross- validation method is further divided into three parts. In each stage the first part was used for the test and the second and third parts was used for training. Results: The accuracy value of the model were calculated as 99%. Conclusion: These results show that the designed model gives robust and reliable results and can help the physicians in prediagnosis and differential diagnosis in clinical practice.


For maximum oxidation efficiency and minimum amount of jarosite, a total of 30 experimental runs were conducted and the experimental data fitted to the experimental quadratic model. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that the model was highly significant. Three dimensional plots were illustrated to depict the interaction between all the factors. The experimental results indicated that, the optimal conditions for the desired objects were 1.3, 7 g/l, 141 rpm and 35°C for the media initial pH, Fe 2+ ion concentration, agitation rate and temperature, respectively. Using the regression model, a maximal oxidation efficiency of 55% and minimum jarosite precipitation of 0.34 g/l were achieved with the consideration of the optimal condition for the parameters at the end of 26 days of operation. The experiment was carried out under optimal condition and resulted in efficient oxidation and jarosite amount of 52% and 0.32 g/l, respectively. Similar values were predicted by the model. According to these results, the response surface methodology was not only applied to determine the significance information on the interaction between the factors, but also was conducted at optimal conditions for the desired objectives. It was also concluded that, the mixed culture isolated from the hot spring had the potential to oxidize ferrous to ferric irons.


Analysis of microbial community composition and ureC genes was studied by using Polymerase Chain Reaction-Denatured Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) approach. The aim of this study was to describe the abundance and diversity of ureC gene bacteria from tropical rain forest and oil palm plantations in Jambi Province, Sumatera, Indonesia. The abundance of bacteria was calculated through the method of Most Probable Number (MPN). Shannon-wiener analysis and DGGE profile showed that the diversity of microbial ureC gene in oil palm plantation was higher than that of the tropical rain forest. The abundance profile of microbes towards the depth was increased. The microbial abundance in oil palm plantations was higher than tropical rain forest.


This position paper argues that the Baldwin effect is widely
misunderstood by the evolutionary computation community. The
misunderstandings appear to fall into two general categories.
Firstly, it is commonly believed that the Baldwin effect is
concerned with the synergy that results when there is an evolving
population of learning individuals. This is only half of the story.
The full story is more complicated and more interesting. The Baldwin
effect is concerned with the costs and benefits of lifetime
learning by individuals in an evolving population. Several
researchers have focussed exclusively on the benefits, but there
is much to be gained from attention to the costs. This paper explains
the two sides of the story and enumerates ten of the costs and
benefits of lifetime learning by individuals in an evolving population.
Secondly, there is a cluster of misunderstandings about the relationship
between the Baldwin effect and Lamarckian inheritance of acquired
characteristics. The Baldwin effect is not Lamarckian. A Lamarckian
algorithm is not better for most evolutionary computing problems than
a Baldwinian algorithm. Finally, Lamarckian inheritance is not a
better model of memetic (cultural) evolution than the Baldwin effect.


This study examined the design of a target Enterprise Architecture (EA) that can enable Micro-finance Institutions (MFIs) in Uganda improve financial service delivery to communities through use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). Pride Micro-finance Limited (PML) was investigated with specific focus on their mission and goals, business processes, information/data, applications, actors, and technological infrastructure. Data was collected from two branches of PML using questionnaires, observation and document reviews. This data was analysed qualitatively and the results of the analysis indicated that PML faces a number of challenges in financial service delivery; like inability to reach out to its customers in a cost effective manner, inefficient ways of processing customer information, and data/information security risks. Based on findings from this study, a target EA capable of enabling PML reach out to its customers in a more sustainable, efficient, and effective manner was designed and recommendations for its implementation made. Key words · Enterprise architecture · Information and communication technologies · Financial service delivery


Anesthesia has developed to the point where long-term outcomes are important endpoints. Elderly patients are becoming an increasingly large part of most surgical practices, consistent with demographic shifts. Long-term outcomes are particularly important for this group. In this review, we discuss functional outcomes in the elderly. We describe the areas of cognitive change and frailty, both of which are specific to the elderly. We also discuss prevention of surgical infections and emerging evidence around hemodynamic alterations in the operating room and their impact on long-term outcomes.


This reflective paper aims to provide an opportunity to the readership in the field of transformative education in order to engage them with reflective practices as professional development approach. In academia, writing reflective papers, using multi-paradigmatic research design, for readers believing in post/positivist views is a challenging task. However, innovative editors of journals encourage to create new knowledge through un/conventional approaches. I used Jack Whitehead's paper (i.e., the review of my doctoral study- Creating living-educational-theory: A journey towards transformative teacher education in Pakistan) and my own reflections as lived experiences to carry out this study. Moreover, I employed reflexivity as an approach to meaning making to serve the purpose of data analysis in this paper. The key findings of this study show that Jack Whitehead skillfully captures key learning outcomes of the doctoral study and synthesized some deep insights very precisely. He created a space for future researchers especially action researches and self-study practitioners to think about how to engage with multi-epistemic approaches in order to experience transformative learning. It is recommended to encourage reflective writings on un/conventional studies to develop a clear understanding of the existing state of teacher education and nature of the journey of transformative teacher education in the academia.