The purpose of this study is to investigate the behaviour of hybrid reinforced concrete frame with pumice brick masonry infill under static lateral loading. The term hybrid herein is referred to the frame composed of precast block masonry unit and cast in-place reinforced concrete beams. Parameters considered in this study were frame opening representing doors and windows commonly used in the wall system. Six types of frame namely FS, FB, FDE, FDC, FWE and FWC designation for solid frame, bare frame, frame with door opening at edge, frame with door opening at centre, frame with window opening at edge and frame with window opening at centre respectively were considered. Test results indicated that the FS has a maximum lateral strength greater than that of FB. The lateral strength of FS was about 3.68 of FB. The frames with various openings have lateral strength nearly 2.3 of lateral strength of the bare frame, FB. Ductility factor of the frames varied from 2.4 to 4.92. The residual strength of the frame with openings were varies between 2.33 and 3.35 of the bare frame. The stiffness of the infilled frames with opening were varied from 3.56 to 3.67 of the bare frame. The presence of openings in the infilled frame did not affect the frame stiffness considerably.


This paper presents a continuously tunable nonradiative dielectric waveguide (NRD) phase shifter based on liquid crystal (LC) technology at W-band. LC is inserted in the NRD's dielectric core to obtain tunability. Compared to other dielectric waveguides, which are prone to radiation losses, the NRD is radiation free even at bends and discontinuities. A maximum differential phase shift of 280° was achieved with an electric biasing voltage of ±150 V, accompanied with insertion losses between 2.9 dB to 4.9 dB, resulting in a maximum Figure-of-Merit of 85 °/dB.


In April 2019, the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School hosted a faculty consultation on the integrated system for truth, justice, reparation, and nonrepetition, created as a result of the peace accord between the Colombian government and the FARC guerrillas in 2016. President Juan Manuel Santos and Carr Center faculty called upon leading voices in the field of transitional justice to share perspectives on the Colombian peace process and to formulate recommendations. The discussion was organized into four sessions focusing on the main components of the peace process: reparations, justice, truth, and nonrepetition.


[1] Models of watershed behavior are beginning to incorporate lidar (light detection and ranging) topography measurements with resolutions of the order of 1 square meter, but this increase in the availability of high-quality data is outpacing the ability to make the best use of them. At issue is the conceptual lens through which the data are analyzed, particularly when investigating hydrologic behavior at different scales. Scaling parameters are used to break down the masses of data into groupings that fit within certain constraints that can then be analyzed for trends, and watershed research has traditionally used either stream order—a measure based around how many tributaries a body of water has—or the upstream catchment area to make these divisions. To best make use of the available high-resolution topography data,Gangodagamage et al. propose a new scaling parameter based on what the authors refer to as the "directed distance from the divide." The technique involves calculating, for each point in a watershed, the longest distance from that point to a drainage divide, taking into account variations in topography and recognizing that water only flows downhill. When two of these paths converge, the shorter is treated as a tributary to the longer, with this process being repeated until the entire watershed culminates in one major river. From these calculations the watershed can be broken down and analyzed using ensemble statistics based on flow paths of different lengths. (Water Resources Research, doi:10.1029/2010WR009252, 2011)


Environment sensing systems and positioning systems such as GPS (Global Positioning System) are requirements for logistics supply chains, especially refrigerated cargo systems that require environment sensing data. In this paper, we state our system requirements and compare our proposed solution with other existing solutions. Our proposed system focuses on the cold chain tracking system to provide locations of vehicles and monitor the temperature of refrigerated cargo carried by the vehicles. The system includes Android phones with GPS module on the vehicles, a website for the visual control by using Google Map API, and a web service acts as a bridge between Android phones and


Objective: To determine the prognosis of treated hypertensive type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetic patients with overt nephropathy. Design: A controlled, prospective, parallel, 5-year follow-up trial. Setting: The tertiary care centre of the Heinrich Heine University Hospital in Dusseldorf, Germany. Patients and interventions: A sequential sample of 91 hypertensive patients with overt diabetic nephropathy participated in a diabetes treatment programme. Thereafter 45 patients received intensified antihypertensive therapy including blood pressure self-monitoring and self-adjustment of antihypertensive drug treatment with the goal of permanent normalization of blood pressure values below 140/90 mmHg. The remaining 46 patients were administered routine antihypertensive therapy and formed the control group. At baseline both groups were comparable in age, sex, metabolic control and renal function. The groups differed at baseline in their duration of diabetes and blood pressure values, which were higher in the intensified antihypertensive therapy group. Outcome measures: Total mortality and the need for renal replacement therapy. Main results: Blood pressure control was significantly improved in patients who were subjected to intensified antihypertensive therapy, whereas it deteriorated in the group of patients who received routine antihypertensive therapy. At follow-up, primary end points of the study occurred in five (11 %) patients of the intensified therapy group and in 19 (41%) patients of the routine therapy group. According to life table analysis, intensified antihypertensive therapy was associated with less frequent primary end points (P= 0.0058) and longer survival (P=0.01). The differences between the groups remained significant after adjustment for covariates in the proportional hazards model. Conclusion: Participation in a treatment programme aimed at intensification of antihypertensive therapy is associated with a reduction of mortality in hypertensive type 1 diabetic patients with overt nephropathy.


A novel amphiphilic thermosensitive star copolymer with a hydrophobic hyperbranched poly (3-ethyl-3-(hydroxymethyl)oxetane) (HBPO) core and many hydrophilic poly(2-(dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA) arms was synthesized and used as the precursor for the aqueous solution self-assembly. All the copolymers directly aggregated into core-shell unimolecular micelles (around 10 nm) and size-controllable large multimolecular micelles (around 100 nm) in water at room temperature, according to pyrene probe fluorescence spectrometry and 1 H NMR, TEM, and DLS measurements. The star copolymers also underwent sharp, thermosensitive phase transitions at a lower critical solution temperature (LCST), which were proved to be originated from the secondary aggregation of the large micelles driven by increasing hydrophobic interaction due to the dehydration of PDMAEMA shells on heating. A quantitative variable temperature NMR analysis method was designed by using potassium hydrogen phthalate as an external standard and displayed great potential to evaluate the LCST transition at the molecular level. The drug loading and temperature-dependent release properties of HBPO-star-PDMAEMA micelles were also investigated by using indomethacin as a model drug. The indomethacin-loaded micelles displayed a rapid drug release at a temperature around LCST.


The electrical and photoluminescence properties of heavily doped GaAs:Zn(100) layers grown by liquid phase epitaxy from gallium and bismuth solutions at various temperatures have been studied. It is shown that a new line at 1.35 eV appears in low-temperature photoluminescence spectra of the layers doped at a level over . It is found that this line is associated with a novel defect. The concentration of defects increases with the doping level proportionally to the concentration of free holes to the power . The exponent is independent of the growth solution used (gallium or bismuth) and growth temperature. It has been found that the defect is a neutral complex consisting of native point defects of GaAs - an antisite defect of gallium in an arsenic site and two arsenic vacancies.


False Bay is the largest coastal embayment along South Africa's coastline. Despite notable contributions of various historical observational studies on the circulation within False Bay and the associated physical processes driving these flows, there remains significant uncertainty largely because the studies to date have been undertaken over short durations and on limited spatial scales. This article aims to expand upon the findings of these historical observational studies by providing a thorough evaluation of intra-annual hydrodynamics within False Bay, with particular emphasis on providing greater definition on current circulation. To evaluate the effects of different processes on coastal hydrodynamics, a 3D hydrodynamic model was developed which included the influence of spatially varying wind forcing and daily averaged temperature-depth profiles on the model boundaries and atmospheric heat exchange. The model results relating to current circulation are consistent with historical studies that described a cyclonic (clockwise) circulation within the bay under southeasterly wind conditions. The development of this cyclonic pattern is primarily caused by the spatially varying wind field. During warmer months, upwelling events were noted at Cape Hangklip. Interestingly, under northwesterly wind conditions, the model results deviated from historical findings by showing a spatially uniform current field across the bay. Under these conditions, strong bottom return currents are generated, which contribute significantly to cold-water intrusion events within the bay.


This article examines the relationship between nutrition and family medicine, highlighting the importance of a comprehensive approach to health. It presents a review of the literature on the influence of nutrition on various medical conditions and highlights the need to address nutrition as an integral part of medical care. In addition, the benefits of healthy eating are discussed and practical recommendations for the implementation of nutritional interventions in the field of family medicine are provided. Ultimately, it is concluded that the incorporation of nutrition into family health care can have a significant impact on the prevention and management of chronic diseases, improving the quality of life of patients.


A rescue airway device is used when conventional methods of intubation fail to achieve control of the airway. Although the laryngeal mask airway is often used in the operating room should endotracheal intubation fail, the esophageal-tracheal double-lumen airway represents another alternative rescue airway device. Nurse anesthetists may encounter patients with an in situ esophageal-tracheal double-lumen airway placed in the field; in some locales, it is used as the primary approach to airway management by emergency services personnel. The most commonly used esophageal-tracheal double-lumen airway device is the Combitube (TYCO Healthcare, Pleasanton, Calif), which will be used to illustrate insertion techniques needed in the use of esophageal-tracheal double-lumen airways. Nurse anesthetists should familiarize themselves with the function and placement of the device in case it is needed.


Since late 2007, Indian technology company Financial Information Networks and Operations (FINO), in collaboration with the state government of Andhra Pradesh and several partner banks, has delivered payments from two separate government programs (the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and Social Security Pensions (SSP)) to beneficiaries using a platform based on smartcards and mobile smartcard readers. In this report, we describe the smartcard payment system and analyse its impact on the beneficiaries of the programs and the efficiency of program delivery. Our analysis reveals that, the smartcard payment system has resulted in greater convenience and empowerment for beneficiaries and reduced fraud at the back end. With the smartcard payment scheme, beneficiaries spend fewer days waiting for payments to become available and less time waiting in line at transaction points for their payments to be processed. In addition, anecdotal evidence suggests that the use of smartcards, by ensuring that payments to female beneficiaries are delivered to the beneficiaries themselves and not their husbands or brothers, has resulted in increased women's empowerment. Further, we uncover limited evidence that the smartcard system has reduced levels of fraud in NREGA and SSP by a) identifying fictitious beneficiaries during the enrolment stage and b) by making it more difficult for NREGA supervisors to over-report work done. In the last half of this report, we describe FINO's plans to offer savings accounts to beneficiaries using the smartcards and investigate the potential for other additional financial services or government benefits to be delivered as well. Due to the current extremely low levels of access to savings products by NREGA workers and SSP pensioners, we predict that the addition of savings products is likely to have significant impact on the financial inclusion of beneficiaries. However, we find no other suitable services which could relatively easily be delivered via the existing payment system.


Background: It has been demonstrated that moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) leads to generation of reactive oxygen species and inflammation. We evaluated whether continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment progressively improves oxidative stress and inflammation, and whether an association exists in severe OSA patients between severity of OSA and biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation. Methods:Forty patients with severe OSA (apnea hypopnea index, AHI: 37.8 ± 5.8 /h) that were newly diagnosed using polysomnography were recruited. Patients received CPAP treatment for six months. Patients were assigned to CPAP and nonCPAP treatment groups in equal numbers. The levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), neutrophils to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were measured prior to and after three and six months of therapy. Results: AHI was positively correlated with MDA (r = 0.4728, p < 0.01), ALT (r = 0.6081, p < 0.001), AST (r = 0.6299, p < 0.001), NLR (r = 0.3943, p < 0.05), PLR (r = 0.3319, p < 0.05), and hs-CRP (r = 0.5728, p < 0.001). In the CPAP but not in non-CPAP treatment group, MDA, AST, NLR, PLR, and hs-CRP levels (p < 0.001), and ALT (p < 0.05) levels were improved after three and six months of treatment. After six months, MDA levels decreased further compared to MDA levels at three months, and this decrease was significant (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that CPAP therapy in severe OSA patients produces clinical benefits by improving oxidative stress and inflammation progressively, and that severity of OSA is correlated with oxidative stress and inflammation.


The purpose of this study is to analyze the potential for energy savings because the laundry industry consumes a lot of energy and water. If the laundry industries are not controlled, it will cause serious environmental and energy problems. The audit activity was divided into three stages. Pre-audit stage, the auditors were divided into groups with clear details of tasks and responsibilities, starting with conducting energy audits on the floor, analyzing statistical data, and process flow. Site audit stage; conduct an audit on the floor from the beginning to the end of the process, then collecting and confirming the statistical data for energy and production. Post-audit stage, complete the audit report that will be submitted or presented to the laundry management, which consists of; audit findings with loss or savings analysis, accompanied by recommendations for further improvement. The results show that there are many savings opportunities, especially by overcoming the energy wasted in the production process. Improvements can be made by overcoming energy waste and controlling energy consumption and production more efficiently, implementing renewable energy technology such as solar dryer and hybrid photovoltaic and thermal (PVT) collector, and then considering industrial revolution 4.0 with IoT and ICT.


Software producing organizations are increasingly using model driven development platforms to improve software quality and developer productivity. Software architects, however, need to decide whether the platform generates code (that might be compiled) or if the model is immediately interpreted by an interpreter embedded in the application. Presently, there is no clear guidance that enables architects to decide for code generation, interpretation, or a hybrid approach. Although the approaches are functionally equivalent, they have different quality characteristics. An exploration is done on the quality characteristics of code generation versus interpretation as a model execution approach. A literature study is done to gather quantitative data on the quality characteristics of the two model execution approaches. The results of this study are matched with observations made during a case study. With the resulting support method architects of model driven development platforms can avoid costly wrong choices in the development of a model driven development platform.


Charged particle radiotherapy can be traced back to 1954 when Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory launched proton therapy. After experimentation with different kinds of particles, including neutrons, mesons, helium ions, and neon ions, the National Institute of Radiological Sciences in Japan started using carbon ions for cancer treatment. Proton therapy has the physical advantage of the Bragg peak, which can well realize the high-dose distribution in the tumor target volume and the low-dose distribution in surrounding normal tissue, so proton therapy has found wide applications in the field of ion radiotherapy. Nevertheless, the physical dose distribution and biological characteristics of carbon ions are significantly superior to those of other particles. Compared with the conventional photon radiotherapy, carbon ion radiotherapy stands outwith its favorable radiophysical and biological advantages.1 In the current clinical practice, heavy ion radiotherapymainly refers to the carbon ion radiotherapy. So far, although some textbooks and publications have provided references for standardized applications of ion radiotherapy, there has not yet been any consensus to guide clinical practices. With the rapid development of ion radiotherapy in China, and the increase of proton and heavy ion therapy centers, ion radiotherapy, which serves as a promising radiotherapy technology, has been applicable to more and more indications. Nevertheless, there has not yet been a guideline to guide ion therapy clinical practices based on national circumstances


Active restoration (AR) is a novel lightpath restoration scheme proposed to guarantee a certain degree of survivability in WDM optical networks with a reasonable tradeoff between capacity requirement and restoration time. An analytical model has been proposed to analyze the restoration probability behavior of a connection request in optical networks employing AR based on the assumption that all the backup routes of the connection are independent. In a real AR-based optical network, however, the backup routes of a connection are likely to be correlated since they may share some common links along their routes. Therefore, an analytical approach was proposed to model the restoration probability of the connection by considering all the possible correlation between any two of its successive backup routes. Although the proposed approach achieves better approximation to the restoration probability, it overestimates the restoration probability of the connection when its non-successive backup routes are being correlated. However, considering all the possible correlations among backup routes is computationally intractable. In this paper, we conduct a comprehensive performance analysis for AR-based optical networks. In particular, we propose a novel analytical framework for modelling the restoration probability of a connection when the possible correlations among any three successive backup routes are fully incorporated


Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the ideals informing the social strategy of Marzotto, an Italian family business in the textile industry, during the rise and fall of the fascist regime and to compare it with the main concepts of social responsibility theory that developed from the 1950s onwards. Because Italy at that time was a family-based economy, subject to a dictatorial government, it offers an interesting context of investigation that is similar to various contemporary emerging countries.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a company's public social report and various published histories, the historical case study of this Italian family business and its pioneering social strategy is reconstructed. Through the identification of the social practices and the ideals underlying the strategy, the analysis finds similarities and differences with the traditional concepts from social responsibility literature.

Findings

The study finds that Marzotto's social strategy traces some dimensions of social responsibility theory for it was a voluntary and discretional act by the business owner; it was based on the necessary balance between economic and social aims; and it was focusing only on social issues. Instead, the "social" spectrum is found to have a different meaning in the Marzotto strategy with respect to the "social" in the traditional theory because it was limited to a local level and limited groups of stakeholders.

Practical implications

By showing the relevant role of business-owners in social responsibility awareness, this study has implications for contemporary practice. It suggests that the educating business-owners about social responsibility and the development of bottom-up rather than top-down social initiatives will be crucial in contemporary similar contexts. The results also open to new research opportunities on corporate social responsibility in the past to explain contemporary differences among its implementation in different countries.

Originality/value

The research brings awareness to social responsibility in the past in a context other than traditional Western countries and to its differences and similarities with the established social responsibility framework. It is the first study on past social practices that makes use of primary sources to support the analysis.


"Accused criminals get a fair trial. They are assumed innocent until proven guilty. Bugs deserve justice, too." Thus Siy encourages readers to look at the facts about a host of commonly mistrusted and detested insects before passing judgment on their threat to humans. After an informative opening chapter that clarifies definitions of insects and bugs, the book presents chapters on true bugs; beetles; butterflies and moths; bees, ants, and wasps; and true flies; wrapping up with some conclusions on the relative risks each group poses. The gimmick of "accused" insects (complete with Wanted poster) rapidly wears thin, but readers can easily brush that patter aside and concentrate on the engrossing descriptions of attributes and behaviors. For many readers, though, Dennis Kunkel's photomicrographs are likely to upstage the text. Produced with a scanning electron microscope, the original black-and-white pictures have been highlighted with brilliant, saturated colors to accent structures of the insects' bodies. Simply studying the pictures in conjunction with their captions (enlargement factors are consistently included) is a richly informative and visually rewarding experience. End matter includes a glossary, lists of sources in a variety of media, and websites of particular interests to students and teachers, as well as an index. EB


Conventional feature-based and model-based gaze estimation methods have proven to perform well in settings with controlled illumination and specialized cameras. In unconstrained real-world settings, however, such methods are surpassed by recent appearance-based methods due to difficulties in modeling factors such as illumination changes and other visual artifacts. We present a novel learning-based method for eye region landmark localization that enables conventional methods to be competitive to latest appearance-based methods. Despite having been trained exclusively on synthetic data, our method exceeds the state of the art for iris localization and eye shape registration on real-world imagery. We then use the detected landmarks as input to iterative model-fitting and lightweight learning-based gaze estimation methods. Our approach outperforms existing model-fitting and appearance-based methods in the context of person-independent and personalized gaze estimation.


The continual reachability set, the set of initial states of a constrained dynamical system that can reach a target at any desired time, is introduced. The properties of this set are investigated and its connection with maximal reachability constructs is examined. Owing to this connection, efficient and scalable maximal reachability techniques can be used to compute the continual reachability set. An approximation of this set based on ellipsoidal techniques is presented. The results are demonstrated on a problem of control of anesthesia.


As big audit firm can provide better audit quality which results in good monitoring to support effective corporate governance system, this study aims to determine the relationship between corporate governance mechanisms, such as board and audit committee structures, and use of big audit firms as a monitoring function of Thai listed firms. To examine this relationship, the logistic estimator is applied for the data of 442 listed firms in the Thai stock market for 15 years from 2001 to 2015. The results from the logistic analysis show that good corporate governance mechanisms have association with use of big audit firms; that is, board independence, and audit committee meeting frequency have significant positive relationship with selecting big audit firms as monitoring tool of Thai listed firms, but dual role of leadership on board results in the opposite association.


Robot egomotion can be estimated from an acquired video stream up to the scale of the scene. To remove this uncertainty (and obtain true egomotion), a distance within the scene needs to be known. If no a priori knowledge on the scene is assumed, the usual solution is to derive "in some way" the initial distance from the camera to a target object. This paper proposes a new, very simple way to obtain such a distance, when a zooming camera is available and there is a planar target in the scene. Similarly to "two-grid calibration" algorithms, no estimation of the camera parameters is required, and no assumption on the optical axis stability between the different focal lengths is needed. Quite the reverse, the non stability of the optical axis between the different focal lengths is the key ingredient that enables to derive our depth estimate, by applying a result in projective geometry. Experiments carried out on a mobile robot platform show the promise of the approach.


JAPANA Japanese materials scientist who has done pioneering work on blue light-emitting diodes has decided not only to leave industry for academia, but to leave Japan for the United States. He hopes his move will send a message to his native country to rethink its veneration of seniority and credentials over objective measures of performance. Combined with a stifling bureaucracy, the rigid academic hierarchy prevents scientific stars from shining as brightly as they might elsewhere.


Abstract : The solution of large sparse systems of linear is an important application of parallel computers. In this paper, we give a unified presentation and compare the performance of three distributed schemes to compute the Cholesky factor of a large sparse symmetric positive definite matrix on a local-memory parallel processor. (kr)


Personal health and environment is being aimed recently to show increase in preferences of eco-friendly cosmetics with longing of clean nature, and environment on pure plant ingredients. This study has the purpose of inquiring components and types of magazine advertisement in eco-friendly cosmetics and to analyze the model characteristics. The standards of analysis were classified as product, face, background, article, arrangement of colors, image, and eco-friendly factors. The results of this study are as follow. First, in inquiring the general characteristics of the magazine advertisement in eco-friendly cosmetics, the results were shown as the order of attention on product, face, background, article, arrangement of colors, image and eco-friendly factors. Second, in inquiring the components and types of magazine advertisement in eco-friendly cosmetics, the results showed an attentive difference in product, face, background, article, arrangement of colors and eco-friendly factors. Third, in inquiring relationships of model characteristics between domestic and foreign eco-friendly cosmetics, the results showed lots of domestic cosmetics advertising direct advertising, product type emerged was a lot of character type emerged. International cosmetics advertising, indirect advertising and highlighting the many articles that appeared prominently type is characterized.


PURPOSE
To assess dosimetric differences in IMRT lung stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) plans calculated with Varian AAA and Acuros (AXB) and with vendor-supplied (V) versus in-house (IH) measured Hounsfield units (HU) to mass and HU to electron density conversion tables.

METHODS
In-house conversion tables were measured using Gammex 472 density-plug phantom. IMRT plans (6 MV, Varian TrueBeam, 6-9 coplanar fields) meeting departmental coverage and normal tissue constraints were retrospectively generated for 10 lung SBRT cases using Eclipse Vn 10.0.28 AAA with in-house tables (AAA/IH). Using these monitor units and MLC sequences, plans were recalculated with AAA and vendor tables (AAA/V) and with AXB with both tables (AXB/IH and AXB/V). Ratios to corresponding AAA/IH values were calculated for PTV D95, D01, D99, mean-dose, total and ipsilateral lung V20 and chestwall V30. Statistical significance of differences was judged by Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test (p<0.05).

RESULTS
For HU<-400 the vendor HU-mass density table was notably below the IH table. PTV D95 ratios to AAA/IH, averaged over all patients, are 0.963±0.073 (p=0.508), 0.914±0.126 (p=0.011), and 0.998±0.001 (p=0.005) for AXB/IH, AXB/V and AAA/V respectively. Total lung V20 ratios are 1.006±0.046 (p=0.386), 0.975±0.080 (p=0.514) and 0.998±0.002 (p=0.007); ipsilateral lung V20 ratios are 1.008±0.041(p=0.284), 0.977±0.076 (p=0.443), and 0.998±0.018 (p=0.005) for AXB/IH, AXB/V and AAA/V respectively. In 7 cases, ratios to AAA/IH were within ± 5% for all indices studied. For 3 cases characterized by very low lung density and small PTV (19.99±8.09 c.c.), PTV D95 ratio for AXB/V ranged from 67.4% to 85.9%, AXB/IH D95 ratio ranged from 81.6% to 93.4%; there were large differences in other studied indices.

CONCLUSION
For AXB users, careful attention to HU conversion tables is important, as they can significantly impact AXB (but not AAA) lung SBRT plans. Algorithm selection is also important for small targets in low density lung.


Fault-based testing strategies test software by focusing on specific, common types of faults. The coupling effect hypothesizes that test data sets that detect simple types of faults are sensitive enough to detect more complex types of faults. This paper describes empirical investigations into the coupling effect over a specific class of software faults. All of the results from this investigation support the validity of the coupling effect. The major conclusion from this investigation is the fact that by explicitly testing for simple faults, we are also implicitly testing for more complicated faults, giving us confidence that fault-based testing is an effective way to test software.


Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the importance and contribution of human capital, combined with human resources and research and development (R&D) measures, to nurturing company resilience as new knowledge and human capital artifices to face challenges derived from globalization, competitiveness, and the knowledge-based economy.

Design/methodology/approach

By means of structural equation modeling with latent variables, a new type of synthetic index is developed, with which the evolution and incidence of human capital structure, human resources development, and R&D in the company's accumulated resiliency can be tested.

Findings

The results indicate a remarkable contribution of human capital to company resilience (standardized path coefficient 0.8365; p<0.0001 and R2=0.7486). Differences in company-nurtured resilience are related to categories such as productivity, products diversification, human capital structure, human resources management, innovation results, technology, and a productive environment.

Research limitations/implications

The main limitation is that the applied literature on this topic is scarce in economics and focused on company survival.

Practical implications

Management for resilience requires the development of the ability to balance efficiency in the short term with adaptability in the medium and long term. Recruitment and training and development policies should consider the role of emotions and motivation in creative thinking and innovation.

Originality/value

Most research on the topic has been conducted within the ecological resilience approach. The adaptive resilience approach is considered an integrated framework based on the internal perspective of company capabilities, the theory of complex adaptive systems, and the Schultz-Nelson/Phelps view on human capital.


We report theoretical calculations of the transition probability errors introduced by microwave leakage in Cs fountain clocks, which will shift the clock frequency. The results show that the transition probability errors are affected by the Ramsey pulse amplitude, the relative phase between the Ramsey field and the leakage field, and the asymmetry of the leakage fields for the upward and downward passages. This effect is quite different for the leakage fields presenting below the Ramsey cavity and above the Ramsey cavity. The leakage-field-induced frequency shifts of the NIM5 fountain clock in different cases are measured. The results are consistent with the theoretical calculations, and give an accurate evaluation of the leakage-field-induced frequency shifts, as distinguished from other microwave-power-related effects for the first time.


Three major types of GABAergic interneurons, the parvalbumin-(PV), somatostatin-(SOM) and vasoactive intestinal peptide-expressing (VIP) cells, play critical but distinct roles in the cortical microcircuitry. Their inhibitory functions are shaped by their specific electrophysiology and connectivity. To study how this diversity contributes to the dynamics and signal processing in the cerebral cortex, we developed a multi-layer model incorporating biologically realistic parameters of these interneurons from rodent somatosensory cortex. With in vivo data as criteria, the model shows plausible resting-state activity and responses to sensory stimulation. With a protocol of cell-type-specific stimulation, network responses when activating different neuron types are examined. The model reproduces the experimentally observed inhibitory effects of PV and SOM cells and disinhibitory effect of VIP cells on excitatory cells. In addition, responses of VIP cells to cell-type-specific stimulation provide predictions for future experiments. We further create a version of the model incorporating cell-type-specific short-term synaptic plasticity (STP). While the ongoing activity with and without STP is similar, STP modulates the responses of SOM and VIP cells to cell-type-specific stimulation, presumably by changing the dominant inhibitory pathways. Our model can serve to explore the computational roles of inhibitory interneurons and short-term synaptic plasticity in sensory functions.


Since the industrial revolution mankind has been dependent on fossil hydrocarbon fuel for a very large proportion of total energy needs. Many of the fluid forms also had lower sulphur content than coal and were therefore more attractive from the environmental impact standpoint. Combustion of sulfur-containing compounds in fossil fuels emits sulfur oxides, which can cause adverse effects on health, environment and economyTherefore, there is a need to develop technologies that can remove sulphur pollutants.The stringent new regulations to lower sulfur content in fossil fuels require new economic and efficient methods for desulfurization of recalcitrant organic sulfur. Hydro desulfurization of such compounds is very costly and requires high operating temperature and pressure. Biotechnology offers an alternative way to process fossil fuels. There have been several important advances in the elucidation of the mechanisms of biodesulfurization. The low sulphur fuels, however, are limited in supply and future energy needs indicate that, until alternate non-hydrocarbon energy sources can be fully developed, there will be an increasing reliance on heavier hydrocarbons, including coal, heavy oils, bitumens, etc., all of which tend to be relatively high in sulphur.This article highlighting the great importance of the biodesulfurization process like how biotechnology may provide a 'greener' way to avoid acid rain, Molecular biology and metabolic engineering.


Our unit was established in 1972 as Laboratory of Clinical Immunology in the Department of Nephrology, Medical Academy, Sofia Since 1985 it was expanded in Division of Clinical and Transplantation Immunology. Transplantation activity includes: HLA typing (serology and DNA) of all kind of recipients and donors, alloantibody screening and crossmatching (basic microlymphocytotoxicity, DTT and flowcytometry tests). Immunologic evaluation of patients prior to and after transplantation is also performed for individualization of immunosuppressive therapy and discrimination between rejection, CMV infection and cyclosporine toxicity. Since 1983 till now 1662 candidates for kidney transplantation were immunologically tested and registered in Bulgaria. During the same period 293 donors (109 cadaveric and 184 living related) were also typed. The number of transplanted patients from the waiting list is 221. 123 transplantations (76 from cadaveric and 52 from living related donors) were performed in our country and the rest abroad. Because of the imbalance in numbers between cadaveric and living related donors and recipients, the waiting time for transplant candidates has increased, and tragically, the high percentage of patients are dying or become unsuitable while awaiting transplantation. In the field of bone marrow transplantation our laboratory performs the tissue typing of patients and all available members of the immediate family in order to search for histocompatible sibling donor. As recipient numbers continue to grow, both in absolute terms and relative to the number of available donor organs, our histocompatibility laboratory attempts to provide the best possible immune testing to ensure an optimal transplant outcome.


Big things come in small packages; a particularly apt description of small cell deployment in cellular networks. Small cells have a big role to play in orchestrating a cellular network that can overcome the explosive mobile traffic upsurge at little cost to the network operator. However, if left unchecked, a large-scale small cell deployment can substantially increase the network energy consumption with strong ecological and economic implications. In this article, we introduce energy-efficient SLEEP mode algorithms for small cell base stations in a bid to reduce cellular networks' power consumption. The designed algorithms allow the hardware components in the BS to be astutely switched off in idle conditions, such that the energy consumption is modulated over the variations in traffic load. Three different strategies for algorithm control are discussed, relying on small cell driven, core network driven, and user equipment driven approaches. Based on a mixed voice and data traffic model, the algorithms present energy saving opportunities of approximately 10-60 percent in the network with respect to no SLEEP mode activation in small cells, coupled with additional capacity incentives.


This paper analyses the relationships between illness and structures of authority in the oasis of Dunhuang in the late 20th century and during the time of the Guiyijun regime which ruled the area as an independent warlord state from the middle of the 9th to the beginning of the 11th century. Both the medieval and the modern systems for dealing with illness in Dunhuang are analysed here as part of a larger problem of threat as an inherent element in any order of authority. In this paper, illness is taken as a political and administrative problem, both in the sense that political forces are mobilised around it and in the sense that political and administrative structures give illness an organisational form. Guiyijun systems of storage and structures of governance in the political and familial realms are understood as the reference point for the strategies deployed in the face of illness 'events' and as explanatory frameworks closely linked to accounts of dysfunction in the internal order of the body. The late 20th century order of disease management in Dunhuang forms a counterpart to these medieval structures, despite the major differences in the forms for responding to and attacking illness in the oasis in the public health regimes of the modern era and in the medical and ceremonial practices used a millennium before.


ABSTRACT While many studies point to a positive relationship between phonological skills and reading in English, little is known about these relationships for children learning to read in Arabic. Arabic orthography is considered deep if it is not vowelized but shallow if it is vowelized. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among reading ability, phonological, semantic, orthographic and syntactic skills in Arabic. The participants were 143 Arab children, aged 8‐11, in Arab villages of central Israel. They were administered working memory, visual, oral close, phonological, word recognition, spelling, orthographic, and word attack tests. The results showed that word recognition test was highly correlated with phonological skills, semantic processing, syntactic knowledge and short‐term memory. Poor readers showed a significant lag in the development of these skills, the problems being most significant at phonological and semantic levels and less so at the visual levels. The similarities and...


A GaAs laser array multispot source has been fabricated in which the array is bonded to a silicon substrate, which also contains an accurately aligned collimating lens and an array of fiber lightguides. The coupling efficiency of each laser to its corresponding lightguide is greater than 50%. The package is cooled by a thermoelectric cooler, allowing cw, room-temperature operation of the array at 5 mW output per fiber. This source is useful for multichannel optical-communication applications.


We have used the Keck I telescope to image at 11.7 and 17.9 μm the dust emission around ζ Leporis, a main-sequence A-type star at 21.5 pc from the Sun with an infrared excess. The excess is at most marginally resolved at 17.9 μm. The dust distance from the star is probably ≤6 AU, although some dust may extend to 9 AU. The mass of observed dust is ~1022 g. Since the lifetime of dust particles is about 104 yr because of the Poynting-Robertson effect, we robustly estimate at least 4 × 1026 g must reside in parent bodies, which may be asteroids if the system is in a steady state and has an age of ~300 Myr. This mass is approximately 200 times that contained within the main asteroid belt in our solar system.


A new absorbance sensor based on long-period fiber gratings (LPFGs) is presented, The measurand is coated on the cladding of the LPFG. It is found that the depth of the stop band of the LPFG spectrum will be strongly affected by the absorbance of the measurand if an optimum coating thickness is selected. The analysis shows that within the optimal thickness range, the cladding modes could transform into the overlay modes and interact with the measurand more effectively. An absorbance sensitivity of 7 × 103 is available when the sensor structure is optimized.


Nowadays, brain computer interfaces have become very popular in rehabilitation therapy, tools to help people with disabilities, daily application and videogames. There exist different models that use different types of brain signals. One of them is the model that employs sensorimotor rhythms, based on motor imagery. This work describes a semi-supervised method to classify motor imagery signals of the hand, foot, and a class that indicate inactivity, or relaxation. The classifier uses features obtained with statistical moments, and independent component analysis. Two classifiers were evaluated, one based on the k-means which achieved a performance of 85.16% during training, and 85.76% in validation. The other classifier tested was based on the knn. This classifier had a training performance of 90.45% and 90.64% in validation.


This chapter provides an overview of the computational approaches developed for exploring the modular organization of protein interaction networks. A special emphasis is placed on the module finding tools implemented in three freely available software packages, VisANT, Cytoscape and MATISSE, as well as on their biomedical applications. The selected methods are presented in the broader context of module discovery options, ranging from approaches that rely merely on topological properties of the underlying network to those that take into account also other complementary data sources, such as the mRNA levels of the proteins. The author will also highlight some current limitations in the measured network data that should be understood when developing and applying module finding methodology, and discuss some key future trends and promising research directions with potential implications for clinical research.


Software architects and engineers frequently face reoccurring problems, when implementing cloud computing applications, leading towards reduced productivity and an increased time to market factor. These issues can be faced by the commonly known concept of patterns. Thus, researchers identified and documented patterns for the cloud computing domain, to preserve gained knowledge about cloud application architectures and service offerings [FLMS11, FLR+12]. These patterns can be used to from the foundation of aggregated cloud computing applications. Dependent on the corresponding cloud service model, such applications require different provisioning steps, which can be performed by individually implemented actions or can be executed by pre-provided cloud services. Yet, these cloud computing patterns are offered in non-technical, written form, which does not allow to aggregate corresponding implementation binaries to pattern-based applications. Therefore, this thesis combines software product line engineering methods, open source build management tools, and open source infrastructure management tools to implement a software product line for cloud computing patterns, which allows to reduce human-driven efforts to implement aggregated cloud computing applications. This approach enables the possibility to create, aggregate and customize cloud computing pattern implementations; and store them in a so-called pattern template catalogue. Hence, each pattern, stored in such a catalogue, is associated with so-called customization points, which allow to adapt instantiated patterns to individual needs. To accomplish these challenges, Apache Maven [Mava], an open source build management tool, is extend with means to create, customize and aggregate pattern-based cloud computing applications. Corresponding provisioning tasks are accomplished, by combining PuppetLabs' Puppet [Pup] and pre-offered cloud provisioning services. Pattern-specific customization points are stored within a serialized, so-called variability model, embedded in each pattern. Moreover, the presented structure model allows to decouple direct pattern dependencies through common interfaces, which allows to switch pattern implementations transparently, without adapting dependent patterns. Furthermore, combinable reference patterns are presented and discussed, to provide a proof of concept of the implemented software product line approach.


At present the restructuring technology is preferred by the meat processors for the production of low cost, convenient meat products. To improve the functionality, products quality and acceptance of the processed meat various vegetative binders and extenders can be incorporated in the formulation. The present study was envisaged to incorporate Hydrated Colocasia Flour (HCF) at three different levels viz., 5, 7.5 and 10% in Extended Restructured Chicken Block (ERCB), by replacing lean meat in pre-standardized formulation. The products were subjected to analysis for physico-chemical, sensory, textural properties and storage quality. Cooking yield, water activity and moisture percentage increased with increasing level of incorporation of HCP, however, protein and fat percent, pH and Shear force value of products decreased with increase in the level of incorporation. Among the sensory attributes, product with 7.5% HCF showed significantly higher values (P<0.05) for general appearance, flavor, texture and overall acceptability in comparison to control. Springiness, gumminess and chewiness values showed an increasing trends with increasing extender levels, however all other parameters of texture profile analysis showed decreasing values other than hardness, which did not differ significantly (P<0.05) in comparison to control. The microbiological quality and the changes in pH value were studied for the storage period of 15 days and it was found that the products could be safely stored under refrigeration (4 ± 1°C) temperature in LDPE pouches for 15 days without marked deterioration in sensory and microbiological quality. On the basis of sensory scores, physico-chemical properties and the microbial study the optimum incorporation level of HCF was adjudged as 7.5%.


We present a statistical shape model approach for automated segmentation of the proximal humerus and scapula with subsequent bone-cartilage interface (BCI) extraction from 3D magnetic resonance (MR) images of the shoulder region. Manual and automated bone segmentations from shoulder MR examinations from 25 healthy subjects acquired using steady-state free precession sequences were compared with the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC). The mean DSC scores between the manual and automated segmentations of the humerus and scapula bone volumes surrounding the BCI region were 0.926  ±  0.050 and 0.837  ±  0.059, respectively. The mean DSC values obtained for BCI extraction were 0.806  ±  0.133 for the humerus and 0.795  ±  0.117 for the scapula. The current model-based approach successfully provided automated bone segmentation and BCI extraction from MR images of the shoulder. In future work, this framework appears to provide a promising avenue for automated segmentation and quantitative analysis of cartilage in the glenohumeral joint.


Objective: To report a patient with Parkinson's disease presenting with a combined vestibular, oculomotor and postural syndrome dependent of deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus. Methods: In a systematic monopolar review, eye, head and trunk position in roll and pitch plane were documented as a function of stimulation amplitude and field direction. Repeat ocular coherence tomography was used to estimate ocular torsion. The interstitial nucleus of Cajal (INC), zona incerta (ZI) and ascending vestibular fiber tracts were segmented on MRI using both individual and normative structural and connectomic data. Thresholded symptom-associated volumes of tissue activated (VTA) were calculated based on documented stimulation parameters. Results: Ipsilateral ocular tilt reaction and body lateropulsion as well as contralateral torsional nystagmus were elicited by the right electrode in a current-dependent manner and subsided after DBS deactivation. With increasing currents, binocular tonic upgaze and subsequently body retropulsion could be elicited, consistent with an irritative effect on the Interstitial Nucleus of Cajal (INC). Symptom-associated VTA was found to overlap with the dorsal zona incerta (dZI) and the lateral ipsilateral vestibulothalamic tract (IVTT), while lying in close proximity to the medial IVTT and rather distant to the INC proper. As described in non-human primates, a ZI-to-INC, "incerto-interstitial" tract (IIT) with contact to the medial-uppermost portion of the VTA could be traced. By ways of directional current steering laterally to both tracts, therapeutic response could be preserved while vestibular side effects were minimized. Conclusion: Unilateral stimulation of mesencephalic vestibular-related circuitry induces an ipsilateral vestibular, oculomotor and postural roll-plane syndrome, which converts into a combined pitch-plane syndrome, when functional activation expands to the bilateral INC. The phenomenology of the roll-plane syndrome in this patient points to an activation of INC neurons by DBS, hypothetically via a potentially aberrant incerto-interstitial pathway. Directional current steering proved useful in managing this rare side effect.


Quantum chemical calculations have for some time predicted that perfluorinated polyhedral organic molecules should exhibit a low-energy LUMO consisting of the overlapping inward-pointing lobes of the C–F σ* orbitals. Accordingly, these molecules should be able to encapsulate an electron within the interior of their cavities. Inspired by the recent confirmation of this prediction for perfluorocubane, we have sought to identify additional perfluorinated cage molecules capable of this remarkable behavior, which we refer to as the perfluoro cage effect (PCE). Using DFT calculations with multiple well-tested exchange-correlation functionals and large STO-QZ4P basis sets, we have identified several systems including [n]prismanes (n = 3–6), [n]asteranes (n = 3–5), twistane, and two norbornadiene dimer cages that clearly exhibit the PCE. In other words, they exhibit a low-energy LUMO belonging to the total symmetric irreducible representation of the point group in question and adiabatic electron affinities ranging from somewhat under 1 eV to over 2 eV. A pronounced size effect appears to hold, with larger cages exhibiting higher electron affinities (EAs). The largest adiabatic EAs, well over 3 eV, are predicted for perfluorinated dodecahedrane and C60. In contrast, the PCE is barely discernible for perfluorinated tetrahedrane and bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane.


We have many of anonymizing networks which provide users to access services of server anonymously. Anonymity has received increasing attention in the literature due to user awareness of their privacy. Nowadays, anonymity provides protection to users to enjoy network services without being traced. Anonymizing networks such as Tor allow users to access Internet services privately by using a series of routers to hide the client's IP address from the server. . Web site administrators routinely rely on IPaddress blocking for disabling access to misbehaving users, but blocking IP addresses is not practical if the abuser routes through an anonymizing network. As aresult, administrators block all known exit nodes of anonymizing networks, denying anonymous access to misbehaving and behaving users alike. To address this problem Nymble is developed, a system in which servers can "blacklist" misbehaving users. We present extensions to nymble framework for anonymizing blacklisting schemes. First, we provide a mechanism to nymble manager to track blacklisting of user in multiple linking windows while preserving anonymity of the users. Some users always look to misbehave wi th servers; there major intention is to make the server down. The problem with nymble is nymble manager blacklist a user for one likability window (i.e. 1 day), on the other day again he can misbehave with same server or other server. He can continue it as his everyday activity as Nymble manager doesn't have any mechanism to identify such type of users while preserving anonymity. To address this problem, we present a method which can identify such users, while preserving anonymity and nymble manager with id entified information can decide upon how much time to blacklist a misbehavinguser. We also suggest some algorithms which are changed in comparison to existing nymble.


The number of applications relying on inference from machine learning models is already large and expected to keep growing. For instance, Facebook applications issue tens-of-trillions of inference queries per day with varying performance, accuracy, and cost constraints. Unfortunately, existing inference serving systems are neither easy to use nor cost effective. Developers must manually match the performance, accuracy, and cost constraints of their applications to a large design space that includes decisions such as selecting the right model and model optimizations, selecting the right hardware architecture, selecting the right scale-out factor, and avoiding cold-start effects. These interacting decisions are difficult to make, especially when the application load varies over time, applications evolve over time, and the available resources vary over time.
We present INFaaS, an inference-as-a-service system that abstracts resource management and model selection. Users simply specify their inference task along with any performance and accuracy requirements for queries. Given the currently available resources, INFaaS automatically selects and serves inference queries using a specific model that satisfies these requirements. INFaaS autoscales resources as model load changes both within and across inference workers. It also shares workers across users and models to increase utilization. We evaluate INFaaS using 44 model architectures and their 270 model variants against serving systems that rely on users for model selection and pre-load models, fix the scale policy, or use dedicated hardware resources. Our evaluation on realistic workloads shows that INFaaS achieves 2$\times$ higher throughput and violates latency SLO goals 3$\times$ less frequently, while maintaining high utilization and having overheads that are less than 12% of millisecond-scale queries.


Using Legendrian immersions and, in particular, Legendre curves in odd-dimensional spheres and anti-de Sitter spaces, we construct new examples of Hamiltonian-minimal Lagrangian submanifolds in complex projective and hyperbolic spaces, including explicit one-parameter families of embeddings of quotients of certain product manifolds. We also give new examples of minimal Lagrangian submanifolds in complex projective and hyperbolic spaces. Making use of all these constructions, we get Hamiltonian-minimal and special Lagrangian cones in complex Euclidean space as well.


Innovations in technology emerged with digitalization affect all sectors, including supply chain and logistics. The term "digital supply chain" has arisen as a relatively new concept in the manufacturing and service sectors. Organizations planning to utilize the benefits of digitalization, especially in the supply chain area, have uncertainties on how to adapt digitalization, which criteria they will evaluate, what kind of strategies should be developed, and which should be given more importance. Multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approaches can be addressed to determine the best strategy under various criteria in digital transformation. Because of the need to capture this uncertainty, fermatean fuzzy sets (FFSs) have been preferred in the study to widen the definition domain of uncertainty parameters. Interval-valued fermatean fuzzy sets (IVFFSs) are one of the most often used fuzzy set extensions to cope with uncertainty. Therefore, a new interval-valued fermatean fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (IVFF-AHP) method has been developed. After determining the main criteria and sub-criteria, the IVFF-AHP method has been used for calculating the criteria weights and ranking the alternatives. By determining the most important strategy and criteria, the study provides a comprehensive framework of digital transformation in the supply chain.


The ozone layer has been under surveillance since the discovery of the ozone hole over Antarctica in the early eighties. Since then, the abundance of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) regulated by the Montreal Protocol have peaked by the mid or end of the nineties depending on latitudes and have now started a slow decrease considering the atmospheric lifetimes of these compounds. As a consequence, the ozone layer has stabilized and shows early signs of recovery. While the decrease of ODS content is expected to be the dominant cause of the future long-term evolution of stratospheric ozone, climate change effect and natural variability of the atmosphere still hinder the unambiguous detection of recovery expected from ODS decrease. Indeed, the very low ozone content observed during the Arctic winter 2010/2011 was caused by a very peculiar dynamical situation in the Northern Hemisphere, together with the still high levels of ODS in the stratosphere (WMO, 2014). The detection of the small signal of recovery is also a challenge for the current ozone global observing system, in particular regarding ozone vertical distribution. In that case, quantification of long-term ozone trends requires the combination of satellite records characterized by different frequency sampling and vertical resolution, after careful verification of their long-term stability and mutual consistency using reference ground-based monitoring networks. This presentation will review the current understanding of ozone recovery in various stratospheric regions, both regarding its total content and vertical distribution.


Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is a term used to describe measurement of blood pressure (BP) at regular intervals and can be an important diagnostic tool, especially for hypertensive patients. Since traditional cuff-based measurement of blood pressure is not convenient for a continuous, ABPM measurement, one approach that is being explored is pulse wave velocity (PWV), which is known to be correlated with blood pressure. However, an easily wearable and reliable system has not been realized to date. In this work, we examine the feasibility and design requirements for measuring PWV using two photoplethysmography sensors placed 4 cm apart on the arm. Measurements of PWV in vivo were made with our system and we showed that PWV measurements changed in accord with induced variations in blood pressure of the subject. Furthermore, we examined the minimum requirements for the sampling rate and bit resolution for the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) in our system with error in PWV measurement as the criterion. Our results show the feasibility of measuring PWV at small distances and outlined the design requirements for an ABPM device.


Pollen tube polar growth is a key cellular process during plant fertilization and is regulated by tip-focused exocytosis and endocytosis. However, the spatiotemporal dynamics and localizations of apical exocytosis and endocytosis in the tip region are still a matter of debate. Here, we use a refined spinning-disk confocal microscope coupled with fluorescence recovery after photobleaching for sustained live imaging and quantitative analysis of rapid vesicular activities in growing pollen tube tips. We traced and analyzed the occurrence site of exocytic plasma membrane-targeting of Arabidopsis secretory carrier membrane protein 4 and its subsequent endocytosis in tobacco pollen tube tips. We demonstrated that the pollen tube apex is the site for both vesicle polar exocytic fusion and endocytosis to take place. In addition, we disrupted either tip-focused exocytosis or endocytosis and found that their dynamic activities are closely correlated with one another basing on the spatial organization of actin fringe. Collectively, our findings attempt to propose a new exocytosis and endocytosis-coordinated yin-yang working model underlying the apical membrane organization and dynamics during pollen tube tip growth.


The media is a powerful force that can affect the welfare of the domiciled dog population. Dogs have long been in human stories and their depictions can create demand for the breeds shown. While previous research has found that this effect can last for up to ten years after the release of a movie, how this phenomenon occurs is unknown. This paper examines if how a dog is portrayed in a movie is associated with a subsequent change in American Kennel Club breed registrations for that breed. Following a systematic literature review, four key themes were identified in how dogs are portrayed in the media; dogs portrayed as heroes, as anthropomorphised, as embodying the ideals of Western societies (Whiteness and heteronormativity) and as boundaries between wilderness and human society. Forty movies from between 1930 to 2004 were analysed, resulting in 95 dog characters scored, and hierarchical multiple linear regression was run. Movies with dogs portrayed as heroes were followed by significant increases in the number of American Kennel Club breed registrations for the breed shown, while anthropomorphised dogs were followed by significant decreases in the number of dogs registered for up to five years after a movie's release. These results indicate that how dogs are portrayed may be an important driver of demand for breeds. Future work should investigate whether these portrayals may have negative welfare implications for real dogs by leading to owners having unrealistic expectations for dogs or increasing demand for dogs with in-breeding related disorders.


This essay on graduate music education is in response to an article by David Hebert on challenges and solutions in online music teacher education that appeared in the online journal, Research and Issues in Music Education, 5(1). I found the article stimulating because so little has been written on the topic of music teacher education at the graduate level. It appears that graduate music education in institutions of higher learning is locked into traditions that online programs are ready to challenge. In this essay I consider this challenge from a traditionalist viewpoint to determine if an online approach is a feasible option to music education at the doctorate and master's levels. Specifically, I seek to determine what the nature of graduate degrees in music education are or should be, if online and traditional curricula are in agreement in fulfilling these requirements, and if some variant or compromise is appropriate in developing music teachers at the graduate level. Doctoral Music Education The principal objective of the doctoral curriculum in music education (specifically the Ph.D., but also, in some cases, the D.M.A. and Ed.D.) is to develop scholars who do research. Most universities and colleges expect their faculty to participate in the discovery of new knowledge and to publish their findings in refereed journals. Scholarly productivity has become synonymous with the awarding of tenure. While teaching and service are additional components included in tenure decisions at most schools, it is common knowledge that without a publication record most professors find it almost impossible to be promoted to tenured ranks. Therefore, doctoral students take courses that emphasize the research process, and are expected to produce a dissertation that reflects a major research investigation. Impart Knowledge The coursework in the doctoral curriculum typically focuses on four main areas: music theory, music history (western and nonwestern), music education, and research. The delivery for courses in these areas is very much a book-lecture format. Professors present lectures based upon assigned readings, and assessment is made via written tests. In addition, papers and/or projects are regularly required. This traditional approach seems to adapt well to online delivery where knowledge is the key element. Students electing online courses have the advantage of moving through content at their own pace and at a schedule that does not require set class attendance. The educational goal to "impart knowledge" in a flexible format is one of the strengths of online programs. A dissertation is the culminating research project in the doctoral curriculum. Each student chooses a topic and works closely on a major research investigation with a faculty member. I have worked with students via the Internet in the dissertation process, and while I prefer the one-on-one rapport established when working in person with a student, there is no reason that a student cannot fulfill the dissertation requirement while working with the director online. Preliminary discussion when formulating the dissertation topic could be more difficult than a face-to-face meeting, but such work also can be accomplished via the telephone. A dissertation is basically a knowledge component requiring the student to work more independently as he or she develops the capacity to do research. The online process is amenable to this process. Grow in Musical Skills It is my experience that most doctoral students in residence desire to continue their development as musicians. Many will continue to study in their applied areas, and some, hoping to find college jobs that include an ensemble component, continue their study of conducting. An ensemble requirement is common among schools of music, and doctoral students can be found in the ranks of choruses, bands, orchestras, and operas. …


Proceedings: AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011‐‐ Apr 2‐6, 2011; Orlando, FL

Cox-2 and FoxM1 are extensively studied and both have been implicated in colorectal carcinogenesis. Therefore, the FoxM1 may represent a novel therapeutic target, and thus the development of agents that will target FoxM1 is likely to have significant therapeutic impact on human cancer. We studied COX2 and FoxM1 expression in a tissue microarray cohort of more than 400 colorectal carcinomas, Cox-2 and FoxM1 signaling in in vitro in CRC cell lines. Incidence of Cox-2 and FoxM1 expression in all CRC cases was 66.2 %(245/370) & 53.8%(211/392) respectively. Cox-2 expression in all CRC's(Stage I – IV) was associated with an aggressive phenotype characterized by poorly differentiated tumors, lymph node metastasis, histology type of mucinous carcinoma and proliferative marker Ki-67. Interestingly Cox-2 expression was associated with expression of FoxM1 (p=0.0226). Considering the fact that both Cox-2 and Foxm1 have been implicated in colorectal carcinogenesis and the potential therapeutic utility of both these markers we grouped our cases based on expression on Cox-2 and FoxM1 in Stage II and Stage III CRC's only. Co-expression of both Cox-2 and FoxM1 was seen in 42.4% (104/245) of CRC's and was again associated with an aggressive phenotype characterized by by poorly differentiated tumors, lymph node metastasis, histology type of mucinous carcinoma, proliferative marker Ki-67, overexpression of MMP9(p=0.0061) and KRAS mutations(p=0.0011). Kaplan Meier survival analysis in the Stage II-III subgroup showed that both over-expression of Cox-2(p=0385) and co-expression of Cox-2 and FoxM1 (p=0.0228) was associated with poor overall survival. In the multivariate analysis using Cox Proportional Hazard model for multiple factors like age, gender, tumor differentiation and co-expression of Cox-2 and FoxM1 the relative risk was 1.77 for co- expression of Cox-2 and FoxM1 (95% CI 1.05-3.03); p = 0.0317) and 1.58 for tumor differentiation. (95% CI 0.85-2.80; p =0.1417). Thus, co-expression of Cox-2 and FoxM1 was an independent prognostic marker for poor overall survival in the Stage II-III subset of colorectal carcinoma. Our in vitro studies showed that co-inhibition of FoxM1 and Cox-2 with pharmacological inhibitors resulted a synergistic effect on apoptosis in CRC cell lines. Cox-2 siRNA and NS398 treatment had no effect on the expression of FoxM1. Similarly treatment of Xenografts tumors in nude mice had no effect on FoxM1 expression suggesting that FoxM1 is functional upstream of Cox-2. These findings demonstrates that Co-expression of Cox-2 and FoxM1 play critical role in the pathogenesis of CRC and a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of stage II and III CRC.

Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2147. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-2147


Background: Chronic sinusitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma are conditions that frequently coexist. Nasal sinus disease may contribute to poor control of asthma; this suggests that sinonasal involvement might be a risk factor for asthma severity and morbidity. Proposed mechanisms of this interaction include the presence of postnasal drip, nasobronchial reflex or systemic effect of mediators released from inflamed paranasal sinus tissue. Objective: In the present study, we sought to investigate the relationship of sinonasal inflammation as assessed by coronal sinus computerized tomography (CT) scanning, nasal cytology score, and asthma severity. Methods: Twenty-five children with asthma were recruited from the Pediatric Respiratory Clinic of Ain Shams University. Their ages ranged from 5-13 years with a mean age of 7.78 years. Twenty healthy children who were age- and sex-matched and who had normal sinus CT scans were selected as the control group. Patients were subjected to asthma severity assessment, nasal cytology, total serum IgE assay, and paranasal CT scanning and scoring. Results: Sinus CT scoring showed abnormalities in 88% of asthmatic children, and sinus CT scores correlated positively to asthma severity. Nasal cytology scores for eosinophils and neutrophils correlated positively with sinus CT scores. The most frequent symptoms associated with sinusitis were rhinorrhea (68%) and nasal obstruction (40%). The maxillary sinus was the most frequently affected one followed by the ethmoid sinus. Pathological features included mucosal thickening, osteomeatal complex occlusion, and polyp formation. Conclusion: Computed tomography scan is a useful diagnostic tool for assessment of sinus disease in asthmatic children. Rhinosinusitis is a common asthma comorbidity. Nasal eosinophil or neutrophil score >0.5 provides a better predictive value for rhinosinusitis compared to total serum IgE. Keywords: computerized tomography, nasal sinus, asthma, sinusitis, allergic rhinitis, children Egypt J Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2003; 1(2):94-101


The detection of the singleton attractors is of great significance for the systematic study of genetic regulatory network. In this paper, we design an algorithm to compute the singleton attractors and pre-images of the strong-inhibition Boolean networks which is a biophysically plausible gene model. Our algorithm can not only identify accurately the singleton attractors, but also find easily the pre-images of the network. Based on extensive computational experiments, we show that the computational time of the algorithm is proportional to the number of the singleton attractors, which indicates the algorithm has much advantage in finding the singleton attractors for the networks with high average degree and less inhibitory interactions. Our algorithm may shed light on understanding the function and structure of the strong-inhibition Boolean networks.


Sternal nonunion as a result of cardiac intervention or trauma remains a morbid condition with serious sequelae. Patients often report pain with breathing, coughing, and/or movement. The authors present two patients that were diagnosed with sterile nonunion after cardiac procedure (1) or trauma (1). The cardiac patient presented after 48 months after his cardiac procedure; trauma patient presented 24 months after the accident.Diagnosis was made based on the clinical triad of sternal instability, pain, and absence of infection. Management with open stabilisation using titanium implants (Strasbourg Thorax Osteosyntheses System-STRATOS, MedXpert GmbH, Heitersheim, Germany) was performed in both patients. This was the first experience, using such implants in Lithuania. There was no incidence of subsequent infection. Pain previously due to chest instability completely resolved in both patients. The bone healing was assessed clinically with the absence of instability and pain and follow-up chest radiographs.


Chromium is a highly abundant element and is present in its ionic form in most of the effluent streams. As a consequence, improved and innovative methods of waste water treatment have been developed to remove these metal ions. In this work we used flower waste biomass as a biosorbent to remove Cr from tannery effluent through column experiments. The sorption capacities of biosorbent (fine, coarse and rough grades) were also evaluated by employing chemical pretreatments viz., sodium hydroxide, acetic acid, glutaraldehyde and hydrogen peroxide. The order of percentage removal of Cr using the above pretreatments is: 10% hydrogen peroxide < raw powdered-FWB < 2% glutaraldehyde < 10% acetic acid < 0.1 N sodium hydroxide. Among the different grades of biosorbents used, fine grade adsorbed more Cr (70%) than that of coarse (64%) and rough (62%) sorbents. The removal percentage of Cr from tannery was analysed by using atomic absorption spectroscopy, the functional groups which are responsible for adsorption was examined by Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy and the amorphous behaviour of FWB facilitating metal biosorption was indicated by the X-ray diffractogram. This study showed that pretreated flower waste biomass is a potential sorbent of Cr, which could be successfully used to reduce the Cr content in tannery effluent.


The concepts of bipolar queries and queries with preferences are studied. Various interpretations of the former, recently defined by Dubois and Prade, are discussed. The latter was defined by Chomicki together with a new relational algebra operator winnow. The fuzzy version of the winnow operator is proposed. It is shown how it may be used to express a selected interpretation of the bipolar queries


The purpose of this study is to clarify the effectiveness and significance of the health education method through using traditional folk song "Lam" in Lao PDR.The study was conducted at a village in Vientiane city with 48 participants. Firstly we collected quantitative data by questionnaire survey and then conducted group interview after listening "Lam" for HIV/AIDS prevention. The qualitative data was analyzed by basic procedure of KJ method.The result showed that the participants with older than 20-year old (p<0.05) and lower education (p<0.05) tended to prefer "Lam". Through the qualitative analysis, eight categories were extracted ; 1) Interest for Lam talking about HIV/AIDS, 2) Perception for a risky sexual behavior, 3) Knowledge on the HIV/AIDS infection routes, 4) Commitment for HIV/AIDS prevention, 5) Needs for the health education methods, 6) Suggestion for HIV/AIDS education, 7) Consortium with people living with HIV/AIDS, and 8) Characteristics of Lam and its advantages. After listening Lam, the participants received knowledge about HIV/AIDS and formed attitude for HIV/AIDS prevention. This process was influenced by the characteristics of Lam and its advantage such as entertainment, educational function and traditional communication.These result suggested that Lam which has entertainment and educational function can be utilized as an effective media for Lao people to improve knowledge and promote better attitude and behavior. In addition, the educational method through using traditional communication media such as Lam might be effective for the people to memorize and communicate information.


As the contemporary phenomenon of school bullying has become more widespread, diverse, and frequent among adolescents in Korea, social big data may offer a new methodological paradigm for understanding the trends of school bullying in the digital era. This study identified Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF) and Future Signals of 177 school bullying forms to understand the current and future bullying experiences of adolescents from 436,508 web documents collected between 1 January 2013, and 31 December 2017. In social big data, sexual bullying rapidly increased, and physical and cyber bullying had high frequency with a high rate of growth. School bullying forms, such as "group assault" and "sexual harassment", appeared as Weak Signals, and "cyber bullying" was a Strong Signal. Findings considering five school bullying forms (verbal, physical, relational, sexual, and cyber bullying) are valuable for developing insights into the burgeoning phenomenon of school bullying.


Piper nigrum, also known as black pepper, is an economically and ecologically important crop of the genus Piper. It has been titled as the king of spices due to its wide consumption throughout the world. In the present investigation, the chloroplast genome of P. nigrum has been assembled from a whole genome sequence by integrating the short and long reads generated through Illumina and PacBio platforms, respectively. The chloroplast genome was observed to be 161,522 bp in size, having a quadripartite structure with a large single copy (LSC) region of 89,153 bp and a small single copy (SSC) region of 18,255 bp separated by a copy of inverted repeats (IRs), each 27,057 bp in length. Taking into consideration all the duplicated genes, a total of 131 genes were observed, which included 81 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNAs, 4 rRNAs, and 1 pseudogene. Individually, the LSC region consisted of 83 genes, the SSC region had 13 genes, and 18 genes were present in each IR region. Additionally, 216 SSRs were detected and 11 of these were validated through amplification in 12 species of Piper. The features of the chloroplast genome have been compared with those of the genus Piper. Our results provide useful insights into evolutionary and molecular studies of black pepper which will contribute to its further genetic improvement and breeding.


MATLAB is a popular dynamic programming language used for scientific and numerical programming. As a language, it has evolved from a small scripting language intended as an interactive interface to numerical libraries, to a very popular language supporting many language features and libraries. The overloaded syntax and dynamic nature of the language, plus the somewhat organic addition of language features over the years, makes static analysis of modern MATLAB quite challenging. A fundamental problem in MATLAB is determining the kind of an identifier. Does an identifier refer to a variable, a named function or a prefix? Although this is a trivial problem for most programming languages, it was not clear how to do this properly in MATLAB. Furthermore, there was no simple explanation of kind analysis suitable for MATLAB programmers, nor a publicly-available implementation suitable for compiler researchers.
 This paper explains the required background of MATLAB, clarifies the kind assignment program, and proposes some general guidelines for developing good kind analyses. Based on these foundations we present our design and implementation of a variety of kind analyses, including an approach that matches the intended behaviour of modern MATLAB 7 and two potentially better alternatives.
 We have implemented all the variations of the kind analysis in McLab, our extensible compiler framework, and we present an empirical evaluation of the various analyses on a large set of benchmark programs.


Two lineages of influenza B virus currently co-circulate and have distinct antigenicity, termed Victoria and Yamagata after the B/Victoria/2/87 and B/Yamagata/16/88 strains, respectively. We analyzed antibody titer dynamics following PCR-confirmed influenza B virus infection in a longitudinal community-based cohort study conducted in Hong Kong from 2009–2014 to assess patterns in changes in antibody titers to B/Victoria and B/Yamagata viruses following infections with each lineage. Among 62 PCR-confirmed cases, almost half had undetectable hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) antibody titers to the lineage of infection both pre-infection and post-infection. Among those infected with influenza B/Victoria who showed an HAI titer response after infection, we found strong rises to the lineage of infection, positive but smaller cross-lineage HAI titer boosts, a small dependence of HAI titer boosts on pre-infection titers, and a shorter half-life of HAI titers in adults. Our study is limited by the low HAI sensitivity for non-ether-treated IBV antigen and the incapacity of performing other assays with higher sensitivity, as well as the mismatch between the B/Yamagata lineage circulating strain and the assay strain in one of the study seasons.


The specific Bhumi Desha attributes specific type of geo-climatic conditions. The predominance of Dosha (body humors) of specific Bhumi Desha (geologicregions) influences the human beings and is reflected in their Prakruti (Health constitutions). Considering this unique contribution, one can inculcate the appropriate preventive and curative measures for an individual depending upon Doshic imbalance (disease). The geo-ecological parameters of each Bhumi Desha as per present context are not dealt anywhere. Therefore, there is a need of proper identification and mapping of such regions into different types of Bhumi Deshabased on the Ayurvedic fundamentals so as to develop and implement the appropriate preventive and curative measures for an individual.


The symbiosis between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and fruit tree plants is a sustainable strategy for producing seedlings. However, information for Dipteryx alata Vogel., a native species, is still scarce. Thus, this study aimed to identify the most promising AMF inoculum for producing D. alata seedlings and their effects on growth. Seedlings were inoculated with Clareoideoglomus etunicatum, Gigaspora albida, Gigaspora margarita, a mixture of these three species, and an uninoculated control. Height, diameter, and chlorophyll index were evaluated at 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, and 180 days after seedling transplanting, while biomass production, quality index, dependence, and mycorrhizal efficiency were evaluated at 180 days. Greater diameter and height values were observed for D. alata seedlings at 180 days and inoculated with G. albida, G. margarita, and the mixture. AMF of the genus Gigaspora positively contributed to biomass production and seedling quality. D. alata seedlings show high mycorrhizal dependence on G. albida and G. margarita inoculum, which had good mycorrhizal efficiency. AMF, especially those of the genus Gigaspora, favor the production of high-quality D. alata seedlings.


Abstract In polymer composites, montmorillonite nanosheets are crucial as fire retardants, reinforcers, anti-corrosives, detoxifying agents and ultraviolet-protection agents. However, the quality of montmorillonite nanosheets can be improved by optimizing the raw bentonite purification process in which undesirable phases are removed. Optimization of Iranian calcium bentonite purification for nanomontmorillonite synthesis considering various parameters based on various physical approaches to dispersion and ultrasonication was investigated; the calcium bentonite purification was performed using sodium hexametaphosphate followed by either sedimentation or centrifugation, and the nanomontmorillonite synthesis was performed using ultrasonic treatment. The effects of suspension concentration, milling type, pH and centrifugation duration and speed on the separation of various impure phases were evaluated qualitatively and optimized. The raw and purified bentonite and the synthesized nanomontmorillonite were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The cation-exchange capacity was also measured in the raw and purified samples. Optimal experimental conditions in the dispersed samples were achieved at a 2.5 wt.% concentration of bentonite suspension and planetary milling at pH 7. While the ultrasonic treatment was more effective than the dispersion approach for cristobalite elimination, a smaller lateral size of the montmorillonite sheets, optimized at 0.5 wt.% concentration of the suspension, was achieved. The increased cation-exchange capacity after the purification improved the exfoliation and delamination of montmorillonite nanosheets in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide as the surfactant. The interplanar spacing of (001) planes of 15 Å in raw bentonite shifted to 21 Å and 19 Å in purified and non-purified samples, respectively, after synthesis.


Addiction along with drug use disorders requires exposure to addictive agents. The renowned addictive agents include drugs such as alcohol, nicotine, and other hard drugs. Individuals who are susceptible to addiction include those who are increasingly exposed to the addictive agents. Nicotine use and abuse of alcohol are the most abused substances in the globe. These substances are responsible for the increasing mortality in both developing and developed worlds. The risk factors for addiction range from genetic factors to environmental factors. Alcohol dependence is mostly attributed to the short (S) allele. Similarly, this dependence is also linked to the environmental factors. Like alcohol, nicotine dependence is also linked to genetic factors. Various genetic studies indicate that nicotine dependence is heritable as there are many genes responsible for inheritance of smoking behavior. This study however notes that addiction to drugs is as a result of either heritable or inheritable factors. The study used 2000 smokers, 3000 alcohol addicts and 3000 cannabis dependents as the population for research. The researchers evaluated the contributions of genes to substance dependence. The results of the study showed that genetic and environmental factors contributed significantly to the addiction disorder.


In a time of economic constraints and increasing competition for places, negotiating "the transition" from school to university has become crucial for students' educational success. Writing holds a dominant place in the academy as a mechanism of assessment. Therefore, exploring the writing practices of students as they move from school to university offers a valuable lens into how students negotiate the complex and multiple demands of moving between educational and disciplinary contexts. This paper will explore what insights an analysis of instantiations of students' discourses of writing (Ivanic, 2004) can offer to develop a rich picture of how students experience their writing "in transition". The data presented is taken from an ethnographic-style project that followed a group of British students from A-levels (HSC equivalent) to their second year of university study. Ivanic's framework of discourses of writing offers a useful analytic tool, allowing analysis of the sets of beliefs and assumptions that students draw on when engaging in and talking about writing and can be applied to different kinds of data collected around students' writing. Discourses of writing also provide an organising frame for exploring how students' understandings of writing change as they move between educational and disciplinary contexts. This analysis shows that the ways students' understand their writing are not only influenced by various discourses, which can change as students move between school and university, but understandings are individual, situated and context-dependent. The role of emotions, students' "face work" (Goffman, 1967) and the dominant force of assessment emerge as significant areas for further development.


The battery energy storage systems (BESSs) have been increasingly installed in the power system, especially with the growing penetration rate of the renewable energy sources. However, it is difficult for BESSs to be profitable due to high capital costs. In order to boost the economic value of BESSs, this paper proposes a hierarchical energy management system (HiEMS) to aggregate multiple BESSs, and to achieve multi-market business operations. The proposed HiEMS optimizes the multi-market bids considering a realistic BESS performance model, and coordinates the BESSs and manages their state of charge (SOC) values, according to their price penalties based on dynamically generated annualized cost. By taking part in the energy market and regulation market at the same time, the cost-performance index (CPI) of the BESS aggregation is greatly improved. The impact of photovoltaic generation (PV) on system performance and CPI is also studied.


The goal of this research is to compile information on Commelina diffusa 's traditional applications, phytochemistry, and pharmacological activity. Scientific databases such as PubMed, Google, Google Scholar, and Research gate were searched using certain keywords. It's been used for centuries to treat urinary tract infections, swellings, inflammation, diarrhoea, hemorrhoids, conjunctivitis, and ophthalmia. Alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, cardiac glycosides, terpenoids, and steroids were discovered by phytochemical analysis. The existence of 21 phytochemical components was confirmed by GC-MS spectrum profiles, the majority of which were sterols, terpenoids, and alkanes. Commelina diffusa contains anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, and antifungal, nephro-protective, hepatoprotective, diuretic and CNS depressant properties, according to scientific evidence. Toxicologically, there was no evidence of toxicity. More research is needed to determine the processes that mediate the plant's bioactivities in connection to therapeutic purposes, as well as to look into any potential toxicity in preparation for future clinical trials.


This paper aims at tackling the problem of signal detection in flat-fading channels. In this context, receivers based on the expectation propagation framework appear to be very promising although presenting some critical issues. We develop a new algorithm based on this framework where, unlike previous works, convergence is achieved after a single forward-backward pass, without additional inner detector iterations. The proposed message scheduling, together with novel adjustments of the approximating distributions' parameters, allows to obtain significant performance advantages with respect to the state-of-the-art solution. Simulation results show the applicability of this algorithm when sparser pilot configurations have to be adopted and a considerable gain compared to the current available strategies.


Introduction: Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a psychiatric illness with recurring depressive episodes during particular seasons, mostly winter. Bupropion is effective in the preventive treatment of SAD and is probably also effective in the acute treatment of SAD. Areas covered: This review covers the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of bupropion. The authors also evaluate bupropion's clinical efficacy as well as its safety and tolerability. Expert opinion: Bupropion is available in an immediate release formulation, as well as a sustained release formulation and an extended release (XR) formulation. The XR formulation is recommended for SAD due to its ease of use and is the only formulation currently used as a therapy. Due to the predictable nature of SAD, the use of bupropion XR is considered a relevant treatment option. Bupropion's efficacy is shown in three trials that started in autumn at a time when SAD symptoms were not yet present although treatment effects were relatively small compared with a placebo. Bupropion was also shown to have efficacy in an open-label study. That being said, in order to reach definitive conclusions about its efficacy with acute treatment of SAD, more placebo-controlled trials are needed.


A theoretical study of the transition taking place in magnetic bubble lattices (MBLs) on cooling the film has been performed. It is shown that, if the MBL was formed at room temperature, then, on cooling the film, spontaneous transitions occur from the initial MBL to a lattice with a larger domain period and diameter. The nature of these transitions is that of first-order phase transitions and they are accompanied by a change in the total number of domains in the specimen. The phase diagram or the MBL formed in thin bismuth-thulium garnet films is calculated; there is good agreement with experimental results.