Background: Infection prevention surveillance for cross transmission is often performed by manual review of microbiologic culture results to identify geotemporally related clusters. However, the sensitivity and specificity of this approach remains uncertain. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis can help provide a gold-standard for identifying cross-transmission events. Objective: We employed a published WGS program, the Philips IntelliSpace Epidemiology platform, to compare accuracy of two surveillance methods: (i.) a virtual infection practitioner (VIP) with perfect recall and automated analysis of antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST), sample collection timing, and patient location data and (ii) a novel clinical matching (CM) algorithm that provides cluster suggestions based on a nuanced weighted analysis of AST data, timing of sample collection, and shared location stays between patients. Methods: WGS was performed routinely on inpatient and emergency department isolates of Enterobacter cloacae, Enterococcus faecium, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at an academic medical center. Single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) were compared within core genome regions on a per-species basis to determine cross-transmission clusters. Moreover, one unique strain per patient was included within each analysis, and duplicates were excluded from the final results. Results: Between May 2018 and April 2019, clinical data from 121 patients were paired with WGS data from 28 E. cloacae, 21 E. faecium, 61 K. pneumoniae, and 46 P. aeruginosa isolates. Previously published SNV relatedness thresholds were applied to define genomically related isolates. Mapping of genomic relatedness defined clusters as follows: 4 patients in 2 E. faecium clusters and 2 patients in 1 P. aeruginosa cluster. The VIP method identified 12 potential clusters involving 28 patients, all of which were "pseudoclusters." Importantly, the CM method identified 7 clusters consisting of 27 patients, which included 1 true E. faecium cluster of 2 patients with genomically related isolates. Conclusions: In light of the WGS data, all of the potential clusters identified by the VIP were pseudoclusters, lacking sufficient genomic relatedness. In contrast, the CM method showed increased sensitivity and specificity: it decreased the percentage of pseudoclusters by 14% and it identified a related genomic cluster of E. faecium. These findings suggest that integrating clinical data analytics and WGS is likely to benefit institutions in limiting expenditure of resources on pseudoclusters. Therefore, WGS combined with more sophisticated surveillance approaches, over standard methods as modeled by the VIP, are needed to better identify and address true cross-transmission events. Funding: This study was supported by Philips Healthcare. Disclosures: None


Identifying the sequence and structural content of residues that compose the core of amyloid fibrils is important because core regions likely control the process of fibril extension and provide potential drug targets. Human γD-crystallin is an eye lens protein that aggregates into amyloid fibrils under acidic conditions. In this manuscript, we use a pepsin enzymatic digest to isolate the core of the amyloid fibrils. The sequence of the core is identified with MALDI MS/MS and its structure is probed with 2D IR spectroscopy and (13)C isotope labeling. Mass spectrometry of the digest identifies residues 80-163 as the amyloid core, which spans most of the C-terminal domain, the linker, and a small portion of the N-terminal domain. From 2D IR spectroscopy of the digested fibrils, we learn that only the C-terminal domain contributes to the amyloid β-sheets while the N-terminal and linker residues are disordered. A comparison to the native crystal structure reveals that loops and α-helices in the native state must undergo conformational transitions to β-strands upon aggregation. These locations may be good drug binding targets. Besides providing new information about γD-crystallin, this study demonstrates the complementarity of mass spectrometry and 2D IR spectroscopy to obtain both sequence and structure information that neither technique provides individually, which will be especially useful for samples only available in microgram quantities.


We present a flow-level performance evaluation for a umts hsdpa network. The results provide thorough insights into the performance impact of a number of key system, environment and traffic aspects, e.g. terminal location, the presence of intercellular interference, the intrinsic feedback delay in the channel quality indications, soft combining of retransmissions and the applied packet scheduling scheme. The contribution of the identified key aspects in the experienced service quality and spatial fairness is assessed by evaluating gradually more 'complete' scenarios.


The authors report a case of parotid lithiasis localized to the deep lobe of the gland, which was discovered only after surgical operation.


The compatible actions played an important role before determining the nonabelian tensor product of groups. Different compatible pair of actions gives a different nonabelian tensor product even for the same group. The aim of this paper is to determine the exact number of the compatible pair of actions for the finite cyclic groups of p-power order where p is an odd prime. By using the necessary and sufficient number theoretical conditions for a pair of the actions to be compatible with the actions that have p-power order, the exact number of the compatible pair of actions for the finite cyclic groups of p-power order has been determined and given as a main result in this paper.


This article surveys the evolution of the historical literature on France and the origins of the Second World War. It links history writing about French institutions and policy-making to wider trends in French politics and society as well as to various approaches to understanding the history and culture of France. It argues that for many years the historiography was dominated by narratives of decline within France which were rooted in long-standing traditions of interpreting the French past in terms of decline, fall, and renewal. These were exacerbated by war-time and post-war political score-settling and by the increasing political dominance of Gaullism during the 1960s and 1970s. It also identifies a tendency among American and especially British historians to view French history and politics as terminally in a state of crisis as well as a Cold War tendency towards the militarization of historical interpretations of the inter-war period. It then traces the emergence of a fully fledged revisionist view linked, at least in part, to the growing prominence attributed to financial and industrial issues by the international historians of the 1960s and 1970s. It ends with a plea to move towards methodologies that focus on the interrelationship between cultural and material factors as the most promising means of taking the study of this important subject forward.


Introduction: The direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) apixaban and rivaroxaban have simplified the treatment of acute venous thromboembolism (VTE). Phase III randomized controlled trials demonstrated each DOAC to have similar or better safety and efficacy profiles to vitamin K antagonists, while network meta-analyses suggest that apixaban might be associated with fewer bleeding events than rivaroxaban. Trial limitations and lack of direct comparison between these agents make it impossible to know which DOAC confers the best risk-benefit ratio. The COBRRA (COmparison of Bleeding Risk between Rivaroxaban and Apixaban) pilot feasibility study (NCT02559856) was designed to determine if it is feasible to conduct a large randomized multicenter trial comparing apixaban to rivaroxaban for the treatment of acute VTE. Methods: Adult patients with symptomatic acute VTE were eligible for randomization to apixaban or rivaroxaban in an open-label fashion. The exclusion criteria were: had received >72 hours of therapeutic anticoagulation; creatinine clearance 120 Kg; known Child-Pugh B or C liver disease; active bleeding; active malignancy; pregnancy/breastfeeding; and use of contraindicated medications. Patients were followed on anticoagulation for 3 or 6 months. The pilot trial was conducted in 4 Canadian centers that are part of the CanVECTOR network. Two sites are established Thrombosis research centers and the other 2 sites are emerging research centers with minimal established research infrastructure. The primary outcome was recruitment of at least 2 patients per month per site over a mean of 6 months recruitment. Secondary outcomes included major bleeding, clinically relevant non-major bleeding, and minor bleeding events; recurrent VTE; VTE related deaths; and all-cause mortality. Results: Seventy-two patients were enrolled with mean recruitment of 4 patients per month at experienced sites and 2 patients per month at new sites. Baseline clinical characteristics are available in Table 1. Thirty-four patients were randomized to apixaban with mean age 58 years; 37 patients were randomized to rivaroxaban and had mean age of 63 years. Follow up visits are ongoing at three participating sites and results will be available in October 2017. No patients have been lost to follow up. Conclusions: This pilot trial is the first direct comparison of rivaroxaban and apixaban for acute VTE treatment. Recruitment targets were met hence we demonstrated feasibility of the main trial. The sample size of the full study is estimated to be 2760 patients. With recruitment rates similar to those observed in this pilot study, we would need at least 10 experienced centers and 8 emerging sites to ensure enrolment is completed over 4 years. Secondary outcome reporting will be available for the 59th ASH Annual Meeting. Disclosures Castellucci: BMS: Honoraria; Bayer: Honoraria; Leo Pharma: Honoraria; Boehringer-Ingelheim: Honoraria; Pfizer: Honoraria. Le Gal: Bayer: Honoraria; BMS: Honoraria.


Given a Lie algebra s, we call Lie s-algebra a Lie algebra endowed with a reductive action of s. We characterize the minimal s-Lie algebras with a nontrivial action of s, in terms of irreducible representations of s and invariant alternating forms. As a first application, we show that if g is a Lie algebra over a field of characteristic zero whose amenable radical is not a direct factor, then g contains a subalgebra which is isomorphic to the semidirect product of sl2 by either a nontrivial irreducible representation or a Heisenberg group (this was essentially due to Cowling, Dorofaeff, Seeger, and Wright). As a corollary, if G is an algebraic group over a local field K of characteristic zero, and if its amenable radical is not, up to isogeny, a direct factor, then G(K) has Property (T) relative to a noncompact subgroup. In particular, G(K) does not have Haagerup's property. This extends a similar result of Cherix, Cowling and Valette for connected Lie groups, to which our method also applies. We give some other applications. We provide a characterization of connected Lie groups all of whose countable subgroups have Haagerup's property. We give an example of an arithmetic lattice in a connected Lie group which does not have Haagerup's property, but has no infinite subgroup with relative Property (T). We also give a continuous family of pairwise non-isomorphic connected Lie groups with Property (T), with pairwise non-isomorphic (resp. isomorphic) Lie algebras.


We consider the following problem that arises in assembly planning: given an assembly, identify a subassembly that can be removed without disturbing the rest of t,he assembly. Solutions to this problem have been presented when the motions allowed for the sep aration are of certain restricted types. In this paper, we generalize these solutions to allow arbitrary relative motions between the two subassemblies. The generalization is based on a configuration space construction that makes explicit the spatial interferences between every pair of parts for every relative motion. Based on this construction, we can simultaneously determine (1) the path by which a subassembly can be removed and (2) the parts contained in the subassembly. While the algorithms resulting from this construction may in the worst case require time exponential in the length of the removal path, the expected complexity for realistic assemblies is an open question.


The adiabatical mechanism of the oscillations of the broadened cross sections produced by collisions of Rydberg alkali atoms with ground-state atoms of an ambient alkali gas is presented. The dependence of the oscillations of the cross sections on the principal quantum number n arises due to the oscillations of the mixing parameter for the pseudocrossing between the 3P ion state energy curve of the ambient gas atom and the Rydberg state dependent on n. The latter oscillations are generated by the oscillations of the Rydberg electron wavefunction in the coordinate space. The numerical results obtained are in good agreement with the experimental data for different colliding pairs. The matching of the adiabatical picture and the conventional impulse approximation is discussed.


In this paper, a distributed multimedia application framework is proposed. The framework is based on Model-View-Controller of Smalltalk-80. Multimedia applications are developing as a popular. However, development of highly interactive multimedia applications for today's high-powered computer is complex and time consuming. An application framework is typically composed of mixture of abstract and concrete classes along with a model of interaction and control flow among the classes. The application framework has "hooks" to allow an application programmer to plug in objects that represent the functionality unique to this application. The distributed processing of multimedia information enables advanced application areas like video conferencing, video on demand and improves the performance in other areas. Thus, it is necessary that an application framework be built for distributed multimedia.


The concept of information warfare encompasses the use of information and communication technologies to gain an advantage over a potential opponent. The information warfare is the manipulation with the information that trusts the goal, so that the goal should make decisions about its interests in the interests of opponents. Information structures are treated as systems that process different types of information, provide storage and access to users. Such structures may enclose neural networks, self-learning systems etc. They need to be ready to learn, respond to threats and ensure their safety, which is topical in today's information warfare. The paper will examine theoretical aspects of ensuring the security of information structures from the system theory point of view. The description of information structures, analysis of their security protocols will be given. The knowledge base of the information structure can be a neural network, the training of which is secured from external interference. The research presents a description of a potential counteraction against the threats of information warfare against information systems (AI based on artificial neural networks). The CORAS methodology for risk analysis in case of threats to information structures was discussed.


There is growing interest within the climate change and development community in using seasonal forecast information to reduce the losses to agriculture resulting from climate variability, especially within food-insecure countries. However, forecast systems are expensive to establish and maintain, and therefore gauging the potential economic return to investments in forecast systems is crucial. Most studies that evaluate seasonal forecasts focus on developed countries and/or overlook agriculture's economywide linkages. Yet forecasts may be more valuable in developing regions such as East Africa, where climate is variable and agriculture has macroeconomic importance. We use computable general equilibrium and process-based crop models to estimate the potential economywide value of national seasonal forecast systems in Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia. Stochastic seasonal simulations produce value distributions for forecasts of varying accuracy and varying levels of farm coverage. A timely and accurate forecast adopted by all farmers generates average regional income gains of US$113 million per year. Gains are much higher during extreme climate events and are generally pro-poor. The forecast value falls when forecast skill and farm coverage decline. National economic and trading structures, including the importance of agricultural exports, are found to be major determinants of forecast value. Economywide approaches are therefore needed to complement farm-level analysis when evaluating forecast systems in low-income agrarian economies.


In mammals, facial branchiomotor (FBM) neurones are born in ventral rhombomere (r) 4 and migrate through r5 to dorsal r6 where they form the facial motor nucleus. This pattern of migration gives rise to the distinctive appearance of the internal genu of the facial nerve, which is lacking in birds. To distinguish between extrinsic cues and intrinsic factors in the caudal migration of FBM neurones, this study takes advantage of the evolutionary migratory difference between mouse and chick in generating mouse-chick chimaeras in ovo. After the homotopic transplantation of mouse r5 and/or r6 into a chick embryo, chick ventral r4 neurones redirected their cell bodies towards the ectopic mouse source and followed a caudal migratory path, reminiscent of mouse FBM neurones. In a second series of grafting experiments, when mouse r4 was transplanted in place of chick r4, mouse r4 neurones were unable to migrate into chick r5, although mouse and chick cells were able to mix freely within r4. Thus, these data suggest that local environmental cues embedded in mouse r5 and r6 are directly involved in initiating caudal migration of FBM neurones. In addition, they demonstrate that chick FBM neurones are competent to recapitulate a migratory behaviour that has been lost during avian phylogeny.


We analyzed the effect of exogenous human leukocyte interferon (IFN)-alpha on measles virus (MV) replication in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). The release of infectious virus was progressively reduced by increasing concentrations of IFN-alpha, and blocked with an IFN-alpha concentration of 1000 U/ml. In order to detect a possible target of this inhibitory effect, viral transcription and translation events were analyzed. The synthesis of MV mRNAs was reduced, but not blocked, in the presence of IFN-alpha. However, this effect was not specific on the viral RNAs, but due to a general inhibition of RNA synthesis in IFN-treated PBMC. The expression of viral polypeptides was also inhibited in a dose-dependent manner by exogenous IFN-alpha, but a low level of protein synthesis was detected by both Western blotting and immunofluorescence techniques, even with the maximum amount of IFN-alpha used (1000 U/ml). These findings account for a partial maintenance of the viral replicative cycle, even when the production of infectious virus is blocked. Moreover, the effect of IFN-alpha is not specifically targeted on the virus macromolecular synthesis.


The web is more and more used as a platform for fullfledged, increasingly complex information systems, where a huge amount of change-intensive data is managed by underlying database systems. From a software engineering point of view, the development of such so called DataWeb applications requires proper modeling methods in order to ensure architectural soundness and maintainability. The goal of this paper is twofold. First, a framework of requirements, covering the design space of DataWeb modeling methods in terms of three orthogonal dimensions is suggested. Second, on the basis of this framework, eight representative modeling methods for DataWeb applications are surveyed and general shortcomings are identified pointing the way to nextgeneration modeling methods.


Materials based on nanocrystalline magnesium oxide attract great attention of researchers. The main property of MgO is its pronounced basic properties. MgO nanoparticles find use in organic synthesis as heterogeneous basic catalysts of reactions such as aldol reaction, amide synthesis, Michael reaction and etc. [1]. MgO is a prospective sorbent material for the capture of CO 2 and chloroorganic compounds [2]. It is used as a support in traditional heterogenous catalysis in processes ofdry reforming and CO 2 methanation. However, MgO-based catalysts are not widely applied in industry. One of the reasons is the absence of large-scale manufacturing of such materials with high specific surface area (SSA). On the lab-scale level, one of the most prospective approaches is alkoxide sol-gel synthesis of Mg(OH) 2 gels followed by supercritical drying. This method is easily scalable and produces MgO with SSA as high as 350 m 2 /g after calcination at 500 °C. Recently, we developed a modified "one - step" approach to the synthesis of two-and three-component oxide systems based on MgO [3-5]. In this approach, soluble inorganic salts serve as precursors. The parameters of the process such as pH can be adjusted to obtain optimal porous structure and dispersion of an active component. In this work the approach was applied to the preparation of 1 wt.% Pd/MgO catalysts. The samples were studied via nitrogen adsorption, TEM and UV-vis spectroscopy. Catalytic activity in CO oxidation was evaluated in prompt thermal aging (PTA) mode to test thermal stability.


We have investigated electron stimulated desorption of , , and ions from selected surface phases of oriented CO molecules physisorbed on graphite using electron energies in the range 0 - 70 eV. In the case of the negative ions we observe, at high coverage, several dissociative attachment resonances below an electron energy of 18 eV, which are absent from the low-coverage (1 - 3 ML) regime. By contrast, a previously unobserved resonance at 19.5 eV in the yield is apparent only in the monolayer. We also find that the onset of positive ion desorption varies between the different monolayer phases selected and we attribute this behaviour to the different orientation of the physisorbed molecules in the selected phases. These results indicate that structural effects influence the desorption process in a subtle, but measurable way.


Background: The Plantaris and Palmaris longus muscles are small vestigial muscles having a small muscle belly and a long tendon, the Plantaris muscle is sandwiched between the Soleus and Gastronecmeus muscles present in the calf whereas, the Palmaris longus is present in the flexor compartment of the forearm. Though vestigial they are being used as autografts in various reconstructive surgeries. The aim of this study was to compare the percentage of agenesis of Palmaris longus and Plantaris in South India population and to discuss their clinical importance. Method: The Plantaris and Palmaris longus muscles were dissected in 30 adult embalmed cadavers (60 lower limbs), 10 females and 20 males, the average age of the cadavers was between 40-60 years. Variations pertaining to agenesis, aberrancy of its attachment in its origin and insertion were observed and noted. Result: It was observed that in each specimen there were variations in the thickness and length of Plantaris muscle and tendon. Agenesis of Plantaris was observed bilaterally in a male cadaver only, with the incidence of 3.33%.Whereas, agenesis of Palmaris longus was unilateral right sided 3.33% and on the left side 1.66%, seen in female cadavers only. Conclusion: The tendons of Plantaris and Palmaris longus muscles, which were once thought to be vestigial and degenerating structures, can be of maximum use as graft materials in various plastic & reconstructive surgeries, without producing residual defects. After reviewing the literature it was noted that the Palmaris longus muscle has been well understood and discussed compared to the Plantaris muscle.


Decades of feminist research has revealed the dismal labor conditions for women in global supply chains. Given this reality, why does Walmart use women in its supply chain as icons of female empowerment? Combining the Marxist notion of a "spatial fix" with a feminist analysis of symbolic resources, we develop the concept of a "gender fix" to understand a growing field of corporate programs that use women as symbolic resources to restore the image of firms as ethical actors. The gender fix encompasses a wide range of corporate empowerment strategies to capture a broad pattern of action. A second term is necessary to situate Walmart's particular empowerment strategy within its corporate positioning as leader of a vast supply chain network. We identify Walmart's particular empowerment strategy as "outsourcing feminism." Walmart's use of the outsourcing feminism strategy stems from its commanding position in supply chains, which allows it to extract a symbolic surplus from women business owners from whom it sources products. When Walmart argues that it uplifts these women, its strategy targets the consumer end of the supply chain, emphasizing sourcing practices that promote a racially diverse, selfless, and middle-class femininity. In so doing, Walmart deflects attention from the treatment of women in other segments of its supply chain (e.g., its stores and factories).


Beef and milk production industries represent the largest agricultural industries in
the United States with a retail equivalent value of approximately $112 billion (USDA,
2008). Infertility is the major problem for mammalian reproduction. In the United States
approximately 66% of cows are bred by Artificial Insemination (AI), but only ~50% of
these inseminations result in successful pregnancies. Infertility can occur either from
male factor (spermatozoon) or female factor (oocyte) and male contributes approximately
40% of cases. Infertility costs the producer approximately $5 per exposed cow for every
1% reduction in pregnancy rate. In spite of its millions of dollars in economic impact, the
precise molecular events/mechanisms that determine the fertilizing potential of an oocyte
and spermatozoon are not well defined. The thesis of my doctoral dissertation is that
proteomics-based systems biology modeling of bovine oocyte and spermatozoon can
facilitate rapid understanding of fertility. To test this thesis, I needed to first identify the
proteins associated with bovine oocyte and its associated cumulus cells, and
spermatozoon. The next step was functional annotation of the experimentally confirmed
proteins to identify the major functions associated with the oocyte, cumulus cells and
spermatozoon, and finally, generate a proteomics based systems biology model of bovine
oocyte and cumulus cell communication and male fertility. The results of my dissertation established the methods that provide afoundation
for high-throughput proteomics approaches of bovine oocyte and cumuluscell biology
and allowed me to model the intricate cross communication between oocyte and cumulus
cells using systems biology approaches. Proteomics based systems biology modeling of
oocytes and cumulus cells identified the signaling pathways and proteins associated with
this communication that may have implications in oocyte maturation. In addition,
systems biology modeling of differential spermatozoa proteomes from bulls of varying
fertility rates enabled the identification of putative molecular markers and key pathways
associated with male fertility. The ultimate positive impact of these results is to facilitate
the field of biomedical research with useful information for comparative biology, better
understanding of bovine oocyte and spermatozoon development, infertility, biomarker
discovery, and eventually development of therapies to treat infertility in bovine as well as
humans.


The closed Friedman cosmological model, based on noncommutative geometry, is presented. Two global effects exhibited by the model are discussed. The first effect is the "generation of matter out of geometry". Gravitational field equation in this model has the form of the eigenvalue equation for the Einstein operator. It turns out that the eigenvalues of this operator reproduce components of the energy‐momentum tensor. The second effect concerns the existence of the initial and final singularities. Because of the strongly probabilistic character of the noncommutative dynamics on the fundamental level, although singularities do exist, they are probabilistically irrelevant.


Abstract. The stability control is one of the major technical difficulties in the field of highway subgrade construction engineering. Building deformation model is a crucial step for InSAR time series deformation monitoring. Most of the InSAR deformation models for deformation monitoring are pure empirical mathematical models, without considering the physical mechanism of the monitored object. In this study, we take rheology into consideration, inducing rheological parameters into traditional InSAR deformation models. To assess the feasibility and accuracy for our new model, both simulation and real deformation data over Lungui highway (a typical highway built on soft clay subgrade in Guangdong province, China) are investigated with TerraSAR-X satellite imagery. In order to solve the unknows of the non-linear rheological model, three algorithms: Gauss-Newton (GN), Levenberg-Marquarat (LM), and Genetic Algorithm (GA), are utilized and compared to estimate the unknown parameters. Considering both the calculation efficiency and accuracy, GA is chosen as the final choice for the new model in our case study. Preliminary real data experiment is conducted with use of 17 TerraSAR-X Stripmap images (with a 3-m resolution). With the new deformation model and GA aforementioned, the unknown rheological parameters over all the high coherence points are obtained and the LOS deformation (the low-pass component) sequences are generated.


Winter geometrid moths exhibit sexual dimorphism in wing length and female‐specific flightlessness. Female‐specific flightlessness in insects is an interesting phenomenon in terms of sexual dimorphism and reproductive biology. In the winter geometrid moth, Protalcis concinnata (Wileman), adult females have short wings and adult males have fully developed wings. Although the developmental process for wing reduction in Lepidoptera is well studied, little is known about the morphology and the developmental pattern of short‐winged flightless morphs in Lepidoptera. To clarify the precise mechanisms and developmental processes that produce short‐winged morphs, we performed morphological and histological investigations of adult and pupal wing development in the winter geometrid moth P. concinnata. Our findings showed that (a) wing development in both sexes is similar until larval‐pupal metamorphosis, (b) the shape of the sexually dimorphic wings is determined by the position of the bordering lacuna (BL), (c) the BL is positioned farther inward in females than in males, and (d) after the short pupal diapause period, the female pupal wing epithelium degenerates to approximately two‐thirds its original size due to cell death. We propose that this developmental pattern is a previously unrecognized process among flightless Lepidoptera.


Previous studies from several laboratories have established that adenovirus is a common cause of severe childhood bronchiolitis. The observation that children with an established history of bronchiolitis subsequently developed unremitting airways obstruction even after adequate steroid therapy led us to postulate that this bronchial obstruction might be due to persistence of an adenoviral infection. This hypothesis was tested by performing bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) on a group of 34 children with a mean age of 5 yr (range, 14 mo to 14 yr) who showed an unfavorable response to standard corticosteroid and bronchodilator therapy. Analysis of cytospin preparations of BAL fluid at the light-microscopic level, using a monoclonal antibody to detect adenoviral antigens, demonstrated that capsid protein was present in 31 of 34 (94%) of the children examined. Limited repeat studies within 1 yr showed 6 of 8 (75%) were positive twice when tested on two occasions, and that three were positive in all occasions when sampled three times. Cultures of the BAL fluid were also positive for adenovirus in six of six cultures performed, indicating that the virus was in some cases replicating. Similar studies of control patients without persistent asthma showed no evidence of adenovirus. We conclude that persistent and/or latent adenoviral infection may contribute to the pathogenesis of childhood asthma in which there is an unfavorable response to steroid and bronchodilatation therapy.


Our analysis is about the role of emotions and moral values in economical analysis. We use the theory of emotions of Livet (2002) in order to understand the behaviour of individuals alternatively in the Akerlof (1991)'s model of undue obedience and in a public good experiment. We argue that the emotional process permits us to reveal to ourselves our true preferences or values. We thus claim that recent economic analysis should take into account the role of emotion not only as a psychic cost or even a rational tool but also as a useful warning process.


The main aim of this research work is to perform the morphological operations with reduced time complexity and area complexity. Morphological operation is the key element in any image processing. Finding the maximum and minimum using a window of defined size will imply to the morphological dilation and erosion respectively. So the proposed algorithm should be fast in the comparison and sorting, this way the time complexity could be reduced. It's believed that the anchor concept will fetch this cause. The idea behind this is it fixes a pixel and setting it as the center pixel all the surrounding pixels will be processed. Moreover this is now been implemented for rectangular structuring element. This paper attempts the same for flat and 3D structuring elements. Hyper-spectral Imaging is a developing zone of remote detecting applications. Hyper-spectral pictures incorporate more extravagant and better otherworldly data than the multi-spectral pictures got previously. Hyper-otherworldly pictures are described by an exchange off between the unearthly and spatial resolution. The principle issue of the hyper-ghostly information is the generally low spatial goal. For arrangement, the serious issue brought about by low spatial goal is the blended pixels. Blended pixels alluded to the pixels which are involved by more than one land spread class. In the proposed procedure another strategy is utilized to address the issue of blended pixels and to get a better spatial goal of the land spread characterization maps. The strategy misuses the upsides of both picture bunching methods and phantom dimming calculations, so as to decide the fragmentary plenitudes of the classes at a sub-pixel scale. Spatial regularization by Flank planning method is at last performed to spatially find the got classes at sub-pixel level.


Protein translocation begins with the efficient targeting of secreted and membrane proteins to complexes embedded within the membrane. In Eukarya and Bacteria, this is achieved through the interaction of the signal recognition particle (SRP) with the nascent polypeptide chain. In Archaea, homologs of eukaryal and bacterial SRP-mediated translocation pathway components have been identified. Biochemical analysis has revealed that although the archaeal system incorporates various facets of the eukaryal and bacterial targeting systems, numerous aspects of the archaeal system are unique to this domain of life. Moreover, it is becoming increasingly clear that elucidation of the archaeal SRP pathway will provide answers to basic questions about protein targeting that cannot be obtained from examination of eukaryal or bacterial models. In this review, recent data regarding the molecular composition, functional behavior and evolutionary significance of the archaeal signal recognition particle pathway are discussed.


Biofeedback in Disordered Defecation (Fecal Incontinence / Obstipation) In gastroenterology, biofeedback training has been shown to be the treatment of choice for 2 groups of patients with disordered defecation: those suffering from fecal incontinence or spastic pelvic floor syndrome. Biofeedback is based on the fact that electrical impulses, generated by an active muscle, can be fed back in the form of audible and visible signals, so that the patients can be taught to recognize and consciously influence normally unconscious body functions such as anal sphincter contraction, rectal sensation or pelvic floor muscle function. In fecal incontinence as well as in spastic pelvic floor syndrome controlled studies have shown biofeedback training to be superior compared to conventional treatment modalities with success rates ranging between 50 and 80%, depending of the efficacy criteria applied. In both cases, a diagnostic strategy to select patients who would profit from this therapy is most important. An analysis of the published biofeedback studies for anorectal dysfunction shows that, although biofeedback is a useful tool in the treatment of these dysfunction, the mechanisms involved in its efficacy are unclear and standardization criteria are still to be found for diagnostic evaluation of patients as well as for outcome evaluation. This article describes the historical development of biofeedback training, the clinical protocols for treating patients with fecal incontinence or spastic pelvic floor syndrome, and gives a short summary of the published studies.


Student belongingness is important for successful study paths, and group work forms an important part of modern university physics education. To study the group dynamics of introductory physics students at the University of Helsinki, we collected network data from seven laboratory course sections of approximately 20 students each for seven consecutive weeks. The data was collected via the SocioPatterns platform, and supplemented with students' major subject, year of study and gender. We also collected the Mechanics Baseline Test to measure physics knowledge and the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey to measure attitudes. We developed metrics for studying the small networks of the laboratory sessions by using connections of the teaching assistant as a constant. In the network, we found both demographically homogeneous and heterogeneous groups that are stable. While some students are consistently loosely connected to their networks, we were not able to identify risk factors. Based on our results, the physics laboratory course is equally successful in building strongly connected groups regardless of student demographics in the sections or the formed small groups. SocioPatterns supplemented with surveys thus provides an opportunity to look into the dynamics of students' social networks.


The introduction of fillers into various materials improves its technological, physical and mechanical properties, and leads to a decrease in cost. The main areas of application of natural and synthetic calcium carbonate as highly dispersed fillers are: the construction industry, the production of Portland cement, mineral fertilizers, glass, paper, polymer composite materials, paints and varnishes, and rubbers. A promising direction at present is the use of production by-products as fillers, for example, conversion calcium carbonate - a waste product from the production of a complex mineral fertilizer - nitroammophoska. However, its use in the above areas is limited by the content of water-soluble nitrogen-containing impurities, impurities of heavy metals, strontium carbonate, phosphates, etc. The analysis of scientific, technical and patent literature on methods of purification of conversion calcium carbonate has been carried out. These methods are based on the extraction of impurities from the initial product of calcium carbonate production - a melt of calcium nitrate tetrahydrate by precipitation with various reagents, followed by the isolation of an insoluble precipitate (impurities) and processing of the purified melt into calcium carbonate and nitroammofoska. A method is proposed for the extraction of acid-tonic-soluble iron-containing impurities from the initial calcium nitrate melt in order to obtain a cleaner by-product - conversion calcium carbonate, which will expand the scope of its application. An effective method is to dilute the initial calcium nitrate melt with a 60% solution of ammonium nitrate to a calcium content of 12-13%, followed by the isolation of an acid-insoluble precipitate in a vacuum filter, conversion of the purified calcium nitrate solution with ammonium carbonate and separation of the resulting suspension in a drum filter. The described method can reduce the amount of iron-containing impurities by more than 50%.


China has been on the road towards a transition from a centrally planned economy to a market economy since 1978. The rapid industrialization and urbanization has put significant pressure on the environment. Water pollution in China is developing from traditional pollution with conventional pollutants to a compound type of pollution with new and old pollutants interacting with each other, and from a pollution-dominant industry to the coexistence of industrial pollution and agricultural pollution. Traditional water management schemes are not able to meet these challenges. Water resource management, in order to adapt to the new situation, is therefore being reformed.

The main research question in this study is that "how can China improve its transition towards sustainable water resource management, from a governance perspective?" The purposes of this study are to provide policy makers and scholars with a clear background for understanding the regulatory instruments with regard to water resource management in China and to contribute towards improving Chinese policy and legal framework for water resource management. This research is analytical, applied and qualitative with a cross-disciplinary feature, which covers both law and public policy. It applies a three-step diagnostic method and a meta-framework of governance to approach water issues in China. The major research methods of this study include desk research, a case study approach, and a comparative approach.


UNLABELLED
We assessed the reliability of a continuous ambulatory radionuclide monitoring system (the VEST system, Capintec, Inc., Ramsey, NJ) for measurement of left ventricular performance during exercise in the upright and supine positions.

METHODS
Sixteen healthy male volunteers (aged 32-46 yr; mean age 37 +/- 4 yr) were studied. All volunteers underwent ergometer exercise testing in both the upright and supine positions, and left ventricular performance was determined with the VEST system.

RESULTS
The resting heart rate, systolic blood pressure, pressure rate product, relative end-diastolic volume, relative end-systolic volume and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) all showed no differences between the upright and supine positions. At peak exercise, the heart rate, systolic blood pressure and pressure rate product showed no differences between the upright and supine positions. In the upright position at peak exercise the relative end-diastolic volume was increased (83% +/- 9% to 91% +/- 11%, p < 0.001); the relative end-systolic volume remained unchanged (34% +/- 3% to 33% +/- 15%), and LVEF was significantly increased from 58% +/- 6% to 66% +/- 11% (p < 0.01). In the supine position at peak exercise, the relative end-diastolic volume remained unchanged (85% +/- 5 to 83% +/- 7%), the relative end-systolic volume was increased (35% +/- 5% to 43% +/- 13%, p < 0.01), and LVEF was decreased from 58% +/- 5% to 48% +/- 17% (p < 0.01). These results indicated inferior data collection by the VEST system in the supine position.

CONCLUSION
Since the detector of the VEST system may be too small, the data collection is impaired during exercise in the supine position by shifting the heart with deep respiration. The VEST system is very useful for determining left ventricular performance when applied in the sitting or upright position. However, in the supine position during exercise, the use of the VEST system should be avoided because it might indicate an artifactual deterioration of left ventricular performance.


ABSTRACT Background and Objective: Type D personality has been associated with increased perceptions of stress. As Type D individuals have been noted to report lower social support and greater perceptions of negativity in social interactions, this study examined if the association between Type D personality and life events stress was mediated by these social relationships. Design: A cross-sectional design. Methods: Undergraduate students (N = 197) completed questionnaires assessing Type D personality, social support, negative social relationships, and life events stress. Results: Unadjusted analyses revealed that Type D individuals perceived their life events to be significantly more stressful than non-Type D individuals. Type D individuals also reported increased perceptions of negative social relationships and lower social support. Finally, the association between Type D personality and life events stress was mediated by perceptions of negative social relationships. However, when controlling for the main effects of negative affectivity and social inhibition, Type D was not significantly associated with social relationship or life events variables. Further, effects appeared to be primarily driven by negative affectivity. Conclusion: These results support recent findings in the Type D literature that have identified null effects of Type D when controlling for negative affectivity.


The behavior of construction workers has a significant impact on the overall safety climate of a project. The purpose of this paper is to figure out the evolutionary pattern of workers' unsafe behavior and to minimize its occurrence. We constructed a two-sided evolutionary game model consisting of workers and managers to explore the focal point of interest, strategy equilibrium conditions, and behavior evolution process. The experimental results of stability analysis and system dynamics show that there are two stable states in all four cases, (Safe behavior, Negative management) as well as (Unsafe behavior, Negative management). The lower the initial willingness of workers to behave unsafely, the faster they reach a safe steady state. By contrast, managers' strategy choices have a certain lag. Workers are discouraged from choosing unsafe behavior under both the positive incentive of raising bonuses and the negative incentive of raising fines. And the sensitivity of the two incentives is similar. For indirect effect risk loss, when it is effectively controlled during safe construction, workers quickly gravitate toward safe behavior. These findings provide a reference for construction safety management. Several practical suggestions were proposed from three perspectives: the worker, the manager, and the site safety climate, focus on the theme of reducing unsafe behavior and achieving a virtuous cycle of safety climate.


Halite (NaCl) and hydrohalite (NaCl·2H 2 O) have been found in the bottom sediments of Lake Bonney. These salts are in contact with the hypersaline bottom waters of the lake at depths below 28 m and occur with gypsum and calcite; a porous algal mat may be growing on at least a portion of the deposit. Hydrohalite formed during the coldest parts of the year is believed to be converted to halite during the slight warming during the austral summer. Thus, hydrohalite is only present on a year-to-year basis, whereas halite is preserved for long periods.


Purpose We hypothesize the first visual dysfunction in transitioning to early and intermediate age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is delayed rod-mediated dark adaptation (RMDA), owing to impaired photoreceptor sustenance from the circulation. This analysis from the Alabama Study on Early Age-related Macular Degeneration 2 provides insight on our framework's validity, comparing RMDA and other visual tests among older normal, early, and intermediate AMD eyes. Methods AMD disease severity was determined via fundus photos using the Age-Related Eye Disease Study nine-step system. Visual functions evaluated were RMDA 5°, acuity, contrast sensitivity (photopic, mesopic), and light sensitivity for a macular grid (scotopic, mesopic, photopic). Presence versus absence of subretinal drusenoid deposits (SDD) was identified through multimodal imaging. Results One eye from each of 481 persons (mean age, 72 years) was evaluated. All visual functions were significantly worse with increasing AMD disease severity. Using z-scores to standardize visual function measures across groups, the greatest difference in probability density functions between older normal and intermediate AMD was for RMDA. Early and intermediate AMD eyes with SDD present had longer rod intercept times than eyes with SDD absent. SDD absent eyes also exhibited delayed RMDA and wide probability density functions relative to normal eyes. Conclusions Among the visual functions evaluated, RMDA best discriminates among normal, early AMD, and intermediate AMD eyes. The Alabama Study on Early Age-related Macular Degeneration 2 will evaluate whether AMD's natural history confirms our hypothesis at the 3-year follow-up. Translational Relevance Results support a sequence of visual function impairments in aging and AMD, suggesting RMDA as a promising outcome for evaluating interventions in early disease.


Background: Vertebral venous collaterals (VVC) were often found in patients with bilateral transverse sinus stenosis (BTSS). The purpose of this study was to investigate the physiological role of VVC in BTSS patients.Methods: The index of TSS was used in the assessment of BTSS severity. Subjects underwent a standard lumbar puncture to measure the intracranial pressure (ICP). Papilledema and tinnitus were evaluated by using Frisén's grade and questionnaires for tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), respectively. The intensity and impact of headache was assessed by using 10-point Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) and six-item Headache Impact Test (HIT-6).Results: BTSS group had more patients with severe intracranial hypertension (IH) and less patients with normal ICP. BTSS patients had higher ICP than normal controls. Further analysis on VVC showed that VVC decreased the elevated ICP in BTSS patients and exerted no impact on ICP in normal controls. A similar incidence of VVC in BTSS patients and normal controls were found. BTSS patients with normal ICP and mild IH exhibited a higher incidence of VVC compared with those with severe IH. VVC, rather than the severity of BTSS, regulated the ICP. Furthermore, VVC alleviated IH-related clinical manifestations including papilledema and tinnitus in BTSS patients.Conclusions: The present study demonstrated BTSS is correlated with IH. The presence of VVC, which is postulated to be congenitally formed, normalizes the elevated ICP and alleviated IH-related symptoms in BTSS patients. VVC may be used as an indicator of relatively low ICP in BTSS patients.Trial registration: This study was registered retrospectively on 07/28/2020 (NCT04492332).


Interlayer coupling and stacking order play essential roles in shaping the exotic electronic properties of two-dimensional materials. Here, we employ restacked TaS2─a novel transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) with weak vdW bonding and twisted angles─to investigate the strain effects of interlayer modulation on the electronic properties. Under pressure, an unexpected transition from metallic to semiconducting-like states occurs. Superconductivity coexists with the semiconducting-like state over a wide pressure range, which has never before been observed in TMDs. Upon further compression, a new superconducting SC-II state emerges without structural evolution and gradually replaces the initial SC-I state. The emerging SC-II state exhibits robust zero-resistance superconductivity and an ultrahigh upper critical field. The abundant electronic state changes in RS-TaS2 are strongly related to band-structure engineering resulting from pressure-induced interlayer stacking angle modulation. Our results reveal the remarkable effect of interlayer rearrangement on electronic properties and provide a special way to explore the unique properties of 2D materials.


The peculiarities of public administration of the organizational process of the system for ensuring the development of cluster structures in the economy have been determined. The tasks of the public policy in the system of information support for the development of an innovation cluster and the use of corresponding information potential and intellectual capital have been identified. The problems and possible socio-economic conflicts in the system of implementation of the public policy on ensuring the development of the innovation cluster have been systematized. The conceptual approach to the process content of the public policy on information support for innovation clusters of the economy has been presented. The algorithm for implementing the public policy on information support for the development of innovation clusters has been proposed. The structure of the mechanism of public administration on the use of information resources for the development of innovation clusters in the economy of Ukraine has been proposed. It has been stated that the development and implementation of the public information policy for the development of clusters are based on the conceptual principles of their functioning, goals, and objectives, which are focused on the direct formation and implementation of the information potential of clustering participants.
Keywords: public policy, information support, development, innovation clusters, mechanism, economy, public administration, clustering, development.


Objective: This study was conducted to explore the incidence of Intraventricular Hemorrhage in preterm neonate. Method: The study was conducted in the neonatal unit of the department of Pediatrics. It included all the preterm neonates under 36 weeks of gestational age who were admitted in neonatology unit. The study included both male and female babies. The age of babies at time of admission was <24 hrs. Cranial USG was done at the age of 1, 3, and 7 days. Results: The incidence of IVH in these patients turned out to be 55%. According to age, patients less than 24hrs were 30(54.54%), patients between 24hrs to 72hrs were 17(30.90%) whereas patients between 72hrs to 7days were 7(12.72%). Conclusion: The incidence of IVH in these patients turned out to be 55%.


In this study, different plasma-activated liquids were evaluated for their antimicrobial effects against Escherichia coli, as well as for their cytotoxicity on mammalian cells. The PALs were prepared from distilled (DIS), deionized (DI), filtered (FIL), and tap (TAP) water. Additionally, 0.9% NaCl saline solution (SAL) was plasma-activated. These PALs were prepared using 5 L/min air gliding arc plasma jet for up to 60.0 min of exposure. Subsequently, the physicochemical properties, such as, the oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), the pH, the conductivity, and the total dissolved solids (TDS) were characterized by a water multiparameter. The PALs obtained showed a drastic decrease in the pH with increasing plasma exposure time, in contrast, the conductivity and TDS increased. In a general trend, the UV-vis analyses identified a higher production of the following reactive species of nitrogen and oxygen (RONS), HNO2, H2O2, NO3−, and NO2−. Except for the plasma-activated filtered water (PAW-FIL), where there was a change in the position of NO2− and NO3− at some pHs, The higher production of HNO2 and H2O2-reactive species was observed at a low pH. Finally, the standardized suspensions of Escherichia coli were exposed to PAL for up to 60.0 min. The plasma-activated deionized water (PAW-DI pH 2.5), plasma-activated distilled water (PAW-DIS pH 2.5 and 3), and plasma-activated tap water (PAW-TAP 3.5) showed the best antimicrobial effects at exposure times of 3.0, 10.0, and 30.0 min, respectively. The MTT analysis demonstrated low toxicity of all of the PAL samples. Our results indicate that the plasma activation of different liquids using the gliding arc system can generate specific physicochemical conditions that produce excellent antibacterial effects for E. coli with a safe application, thus bringing future contributions to creating new antimicrobial protocols.


: Background: The dietary inflammatory index (DII) is thought to be related to many healthy events. However, the association between the DII and sarcopenia remains unclear. Methods: The meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the effects of the DII on the risk of sarcopenia utilizing available studies. Up to September 2022, Cochrane, PubMed, Web of Science, Medline, and EMBASE databases were searched to evaluate the relationships between the DII and sarcopenia. A random-effects model was used to calculate the effect size and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Result: Eleven studies with 19,954 participants were included in our meta-analysis. The results indicated that a high DII increased the risk of sarcopenia (OR = 1.16, 95%CI [1.06, 1.27], p < 0.05). The result of the dose–response analysis showed that the risk of sarcopenia increased by 1.22 times for each 1-point increase in the DII score (OR = 1.22, 95%CI [1.12, 1.33], p < 0.05). Conclusion: The meta-analysis demonstrated that the DII is associated with sarcopenia. Considering some limitations in this study, more studies are needed to verify this relationship.


Sandstone bodies in the Sunnyside Delta Interval of the Eocene Green River Formation, Uinta Basin, previously considered as point bars formed in meandering rivers and other types of fluvial bars, are herein interpreted as delta mouth‐bar deposits. The sandstone bodies have been examined in a 2300 m long cliff section along the Argyle and Nine Mile Canyons at the southern margin of the Uinta lake basin. The sandstone bodies occur in three stratigraphic intervals, separated by lacustrine mudstone and limestone. Together these stratigraphic intervals form a regressive‐transgressive sequence. Individual sandstone bodies are texturally sharp‐based towards mudstone substratum. In proximal parts, the mouth‐bar deposits only contain sandstone, whereas in frontal and lateral positions mudstone drapes separate mouth‐bar clinothems. The clinothems pass gradually into greenish‐grey lacustrine mudstone at their toes. Horizontally bedded or laminated lacustrine mudstone onlaps the convex‐upward sandstone bars. The mouth‐bar deposits are connected to terminal distributary channel deposits. Together, these mouth‐bar/channel sandstone bodies accumulated from unidirectional jet flow during three stages of delta advance, separated by lacustrine flooding intervals. Key criteria to distinguish the mouth‐bar deposits from fluvial point bar deposits are: (i) geometry; (ii) bounding contacts; (iii) internal structure; (iv) palaeocurrent orientations; and (v) the genetic association of the deposits with lacustrine mudstone and limestone.


PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
In vitro experiments are particularly useful for studying kinematic changes in the normal knee exposed to experimental conditions simulating different disease states. We developed an experimental protocol allowing a kinematic analysis of the femorotibial and femoropatellar joints in healthy knees and after implantation of a knee prosthesis, using a central pivot to simulate active loaded movement from the standing to sitting position.

EXPERIMENTAL SETUP
An experimental device was designed to apply force to the femur of a cadaveric specimen including the femur, the patella and the tibia. The tibia was angled in the sagittal plane and the femur was free to move in space in response to the geometric movement of the knee joint, the capsuloligamentary structures, the quadriceps tendon and gravity. Variation in the length of the quadriceps tendon controlled the flexion-extension movement. The experimental setup included computer-controlled activation allowing continuous coordinated movement of the femur relative to the tibia and of the tibia relative to the ground. Standard activations simulated movement from the standing to the sitting position.

STUDY PROTOCOL
Five pairs of fresh-frozen cadaver specimens including the entire femur, patella, tibia and fibula, the capsuloligamentary and intra-articular structures of the knee, the superior and inferior tibiofibular ligaments and the quadriceps tendon were studied. The quadriceps tendon was connected to the computer-guided activation device. Reflectors were fixed onto the anterior aspect of the femur, the superior tibial epiphysis and the center of the patella. Anatomic landmarks on the femur, the tibia, and the patella were identified to determine the plane of movement of each bone in the three rotation axes and the three translation directions. Three infrared cameras recorded movements of the reflectors fixed on the bony segments and, by mathematical transformation, the movement of the corresponding bony segment, displayed in time-course curves.

RESULTS
The precision of the measurements, evaluated in a previous study, was +/- 1.5 degrees for rotation and +/- 0.5 mm for translation movements. Three acquisitions were made for each experiment and produced results differing less than one degree. A qualitative analysis of femorotibial and femoropatellar kinematics was achieved for the normal knee. The automatic internal rotation of the femur during flexion was observed and the patellar kinematics were defined with six degrees of freedom.

DISCUSSION
This experimental setup enables a comparison of the kinetics of a normal knee with the kinetics observed after implantation of a prosthesis on the same knee. The kinetic analysis does not involve a succession of static states but rather a continuous movement generated by the action of the quadriceps that can be loaded, simulating partial weight bearing. Using the markers fixed directly on the bones, this in vitro study allowed remarkably precise and reproducible measurements. The movements simulated regularly encountered clinical situations. The quality of the movement recorded for a given prosthesis thus provides an accurate approach to the quality of the prosthesis. The goal is not to define the exact kinematics of the normal knee but rather to compare the kinematics of the normal knee with that of the same knee after prosthesis implantation allowing an accurate method for assessing prosthesis design and studying the influence of different parameters, particularly the ligaments. Concomitant study of femorotibial and femoropatellar kinematics provides further information rarely found in the literature.


With recent developments in direct imaging techniques using x-ray and neutron imaging, there is an increasing need for efficient test setups to study the mechanical and/or transport behavior of porous rocks. Bespoke designs from commercial suppliers are expensive and often difficult to modify. This paper presents a novel design of a portable triaxial cell for imaging deformation (and a suggested adaptation to introduce fluid transport) through rocks/sand/soil under the triaxial states of stress representative of those encountered in the case of groundwater aquifers or subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs. The design philosophy and the parameters are detailed so that interested researchers can use this experimental setup as a template to design and modify triaxial cells to suit their own experimental requirements. The design has been used in two imaging beamlines: Imaging and Material Science & Engineering (IMAT), ISIS facility, Harwell, Oxfordshire, UK, and BT2 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Center for Neutron Research, Gaithersburg, MD, USA. The mass attenuation coefficients extracted from the 2D radiograms of the triaxial cell were compared with those reported in the literature. Further suggestions for the adaptation of the triaxial cells for studying the mechanics of deformation and fracture in rocks are included.


In the late-20th century, gay literature has earned a place at the British and American literary tables, spawning its own constellation of important writers and winning a dedicated audience. This collection of probing interviews represents an attempt to offer a group portrait of the most important gay fiction writers. Featured authors include David Leavitt, Edmund White, Michael Cunningham, Andrew Holleran, Scott Heim, and Alan Hollinghurst.


ABSTRACT This paper examines the lived experiences of children who interacted with tourists in a performance-based orphanage in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The orphanage was perceived by poor Cambodians as the only opportunity for their children to access food and education and a place to care for children when parents migrated for work. In recent years, however, orphanages in the majority world have come under increasing international pressure because many are associated with children's rights abuses. As a result, the Cambodian Government committed to closing many orphanages and reintegrating 30 per cent of institutionalised children back into their family's care. The children's narratives were collected through child-focused participatory research. The findings provide a deeper understanding of the children's lives, their aspirations and the extent to which the orphanage provided for their rights and human development. The findings are pertinent for other communities and organisations advocating children's rights-based development and educational initiatives.


—The paper presents COMDES-II - a software framework for distributed control systems. The framework provides for systematic top-down specification of distributed applications: a system is conceived as a composition of embedded actors that communicate transparently by exchanging labeled messages (signals), and actors are composed from reusable executable components (function blocks). The framework and its software components have been validated in a number of real-time control experiments, including the Production Cell Case Study. The paper presents the software design models of the Production Cell control system, based on COMDES-II , focusing on the system engineering aspects of the software design. The latter has been formally verified using the Uppaal verification tool. To that end, a method has been developed to transform the COMDES-II interaction diagram into an Uppaal model, using networks of automata representing system actors, as well as controlled objects from the Production Cell environment. The developed control system design has been tested via hardware-in-the-loop simulation involving a real-time control network and an animated computer model of the plant.


Generating categories and classifications is a common function in life science research; however, categorizing the human population based on "race" remains controversial. There is an awareness and recognition of social-economic disparities with respect to health which are sometimes impacted by someone's ethnicity or race. This work describes an endeavor to develop a computable ontology model to represent a standardization of the concepts surrounding culture, race, ethnicity, and nationality - concepts misrepresented widely. We constructed an OWL ontology based on reliable resources with iterative human expert evaluations and aligned it to existing biomedical ontological models. The effort produced a preliminary ontology that expresses concepts related to classes of ethnic, racial, national, and cultural identities and showcases how health disparity data can be linked and expressed within our ontological framework. Future work will explore automated methods to expand the ontology and its utilization for clinical informatics.


Abstract:Through an analysis of varying configurations of the persona of David in some Qumran scrolls, I argue for an approach to the study of ancient pseudepigraphy that prioritizes manuscripts over reconstructed and idealized literary works. Three data sets ground the study: three fragments from Cave 4 that contain Pss 33 and 69; 4Q522, a paraphrase of Joshua that incorporates Ps 122; and finally two groupings of 11QPsa, the Ascents collection and the material following "David's Last Words." I observe how the "I" voice of a given psalm or group of psalms joins third-person description to constitute David's authorial persona in ways distinctive to the text inscribed on a given manuscript. Accordingly, this article aligns with studies that see the enlargement and mutability of authorial figures in the expanding archive of early Jewish literature and with more recent calls to view texts as material objects that reflect their context of production.


This review analyses existing literature, including authors' own data, describing the results of clinical trials which assess safety and efficacy of insulin Glargine (Lantus?) in children and adolescents, as well as peculiar features of T1D management in this age group, including the challenge of reducing the rate of hypoglycemia while maintaining adequate glycemic control. The article also discusses various issues in T1D management in children and adolescents, including the role of glycemic control in development of vascular complications, hypoglycemia and the variability of glycemia. The data confirm the high efficacy of Lantus insulin in respect to metabolic control, including the decrease in the incidence of hypoglycemia and in variability of glycemic profile, the safety of its clinical use in treatment of children, including young children, and adolescents, as well as its ability to improve the quality of life for patients and their parents.


Introduction: There is little known about the epigenetics of prostate severity. One‐carbon metabolism genes in conjunction with folate and B‐vitamins influence DNA repair mechanisms and methylation patterns. Better understanding of the relationship of gene activity that may potentially be altered by nutrient intake can provide new strategies for decreasing the prevalence of advanced prostate cancer. The goal of this project is to determine the association of one‐carbon cycle genes in relation to prostate cancer outcomes. Materials and Methods: We studied prostate cancer patients with one‐carbon genotypes (604 European American, 92 African American.) The genes of interest included CBS, MTHFD1, MTHFR, MTRR, MTR, SHMT1, TYMS, SLC19A1 and TCN2. Data were analyzed with race stratification. Odds ratios (OR) were calculated by logistic regression models adjusted for age and percent African ancestry (African‐Americans only.) These models were used to examine case‐case associations analyzing tumor stage, grade and aggressiveness (high stage and high grade combined) and age at onset. Cox regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) for the incidence of biochemical failure after treatment. Multi‐SNP associations were conducted in European American cases only using risk scores derived from the per allele ORs from a combination of 6 SNPs (MTHFD1 R653Q, MTHFR A222V, MTRR L333V, MTR D919G, SHMT L474F, TCN R259P) and 9 SNPs (the 6 mentioned previously plus CBS 68bp Ins, SLC19A1 61bpDel and Tyms 3UTRdel6.) Results: Genotypes involved in one‐carbon metabolism differed significantly by race. Among African‐American cases, a significant protective association was found for SLC19A1 61bpDel for aggressive disease (OR=0.1, 95% CI=0.01–0.9, additive model.) Associations with biochemical failure in European Americans were observed for recessive carriage of MTR D919G (HR=2.8, 95% CI=1.1–7.3) and MTRR K350R (HR=4.3, OR=1.1–16.3, additive model.) In the multi‐SNP model, biochemical failure was associated with the risk scores of 9 SNPs (HR=0.77, 95% CI=0.61–0.94.) No additional associations were observed for other clinical characteristics of prostate cancer. Conclusions: These results suggest that one‐carbon metabolism genotypes in combination may be associated with prostate cancer in specific subgroups. Multi‐SNP models may provide more information than single SNP analyses for studying complex genetic pathways. Additional research of gene interactions and effects of nutrient intake may provide clues about prevention and treatment of prostate cancer, especially in groups at high risk for poor outcomes. Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2010;3(1 Suppl):B122.


A prototype optical bionic microphone with a dual-channel Mach–Zehnder interferometric (MZI) transducer was designed and prepared for the first time using a silicon diaphragm made by microelectromechanical system (MEMS) technology. The MEMS diaphragm mimicked the structure of the fly Ormia Ochracea's coupling eardrum, consisting of two square wings connected through a neck that is anchored via the two torsional beams to the silicon pedestal. The vibrational displacement of each wing at its distal edge relative to the silicon pedestal is detected with one channel of the dual-channel MZI transducer. The diaphragm at rest is coplanar with the silicon pedestal, resulting in an initial phase difference of zero for each channel of the dual-channel MZI transducer and consequently offering the microphone strong temperature robustness. The two channels of the prototype microphone show good consistency in their responses to incident sound signals; they have the rocking and bending resonance frequencies of 482 Hz and 1911 Hz, and their pressure sensitivities at a lower frequency exhibit an "8"-shaped directional dependence. The comparison indicates that the dual-channel MZI transducer-based bionic microphone proposed in this work is advantageous over the Fabry–Perot interferometric transducer-based counterparts extensively reported.


Fuel feeding and inhomogeneity of fuel typically cause fluctuations in the circulating fluidized bed (CFB) process. If control systems fail to compensate the fluctuations, the whole plant will suffer from dynamics that is reinforced by the closed-loop controls. This phenomenon causes reducing efficiency and the lifetime of process components. In this paper we address the problem of online mass flow prediction, which is a part of control. Particularly, we consider the problem of learning an accurate predictor with explicit detection of abrupt concept drift and noise handling mechanisms. We emphasize the importance of having domain knowledge concerning the considered case and constructing the ground truth for facilitating the quantitative evaluation of different approaches. We demonstrate the performance of change detection methods and show their effect on the accuracy of the online mass flow prediction with real datasets collected from the experimental laboratory-scale CFB boiler.


Antiphospholipid (aPL) syndrome, or APS,--a cluster of conditions that includes arterial or venous thromboses and thrombocytopenia, as well as recurrent fetal loss associated with elevation of aPL antibody--has been reported to occur 2-5 times more frequently in women than men. Strong familial associations lead to the suspicion that aPL positivity, estimated to be present in 2% of the population, is a heritable trait in some cases. Currently, 2 major categories of the illness are recognized--primary and secondary. Secondary APS may be associated with autoimmune disease, malignancy, infectious disease, or drug-induced states. Two assays, one for lupus anticoagulant antibodies and the other for anticardiolipin (aCL) antibodies, are recognized to be the gold standards for serologic diagnosis of the disease. Despite extensive attempts at international standardization of aCL test results, no consensus exists for a value beyond which the test is considered positive. Interestingly, a "dose-effect" relationship for aCL antibody titers has been noted--higher titers of the antibody correlate with increased numbers of thrombotic events. An experimental assay for antibody against beta 2-glycoprotein 1 (beta-2-GP1), a phospholipid-binding protein, may become the most important assay for aPL. Skin findings in APS include livedo reticularis, ulceration, gangrene, or purpura, and, when present, may be the key to diagnosis of this sometimes insidious syndrome. Anticoagulation, usually with warfarin, is the mainstay of therapy, although steroids, immunosuppressive agents, hydroxychloroquine sulfate, and plasmapheresis may all be beneficial adjunctive therapy.


Significant advancements in biotechnology have resulted in the development of numerous fundamental bioprocesses, which have consolidated research and development and industrial progress in the field. These bioprocesses are used in medical therapies, diagnostic and immunization procedures, agriculture, food production, biofuel production, and environmental solutions (to address water-, soil-, and air-related problems), among other areas. The present study is a first approach toward the identification of scientific and technological bioprocess trajectories within the framework of sustainability. The method included a literature search (Scopus), a patent search (Patentscope), and a network analysis for the period from 2010 to 2019. Our results highlight the main technological sectors, countries, institutions, and academic publications that carry out work or publish literature related to sustainability and bioprocesses. The network analysis allowed for the identification of thematic clusters associated with sustainability and bioprocesses, revealing different related scientific topics. Our conclusions confirm that biotechnology is firmly positioned as an emerging knowledge area. Its dynamics, development, and outcomes during the study period reflect a substantial number of studies and technologies focused on the creation of knowledge aimed at improving economic development, environmental protection, and social welfare.


A full-custom switched-capacitor transient analog waveform storage and reconstruction integrated circuit containing 4096 sample and hold cells has been designed, fabricated, and tested. The switched capacitor array (SCA) is organized as 16 parallel channels of 256 serially addressed samples per channel with multiplexed and buffered analog output. Signal sampling frequencies of up to 100 MHz have been accomplished, with a dynamic range, measured at 10 MHz, of at least 8000 to 1. The circuit operation and performance are described, limits on performance are examined, and future implementations are discussed. >


The chemical reactivity of hydride complexes can be predicted using bond strengths for homolytic and heterolytic cleavage of bonds to hydrogen. To determine these bond strengths, thermodynamic constants describing the stability of H(+), H˙, H(-), and H2 are essential and need to be used uniformly to enable the prediction of reactivity and equilibria. Due to discrepancies in the literature for the constants used in water, we propose the use of a set of self-consistent constants with convenient standard states.


Objective This study was to determine the bacterial diversity and monitor the community dynamic changes during storage of vacuum-packaged sliced raw beef as affected by Lactobacillus sakei and Lactobacillus curvatus. Methods L. sakei and L. curvatus were separately incubated in vacuumed-packaged raw beef as bio-protective cultures to inhibit the naturally contaminating microbial load. Dynamic changes of the microbial diversity of inoculated or non-inoculated (control) samples were monitored at 4°C for 0 to 38 days, using polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). Results The DGGE profiles of DNA directly extracted from non-inoculated control samples highlighted the order of appearance of spoilage bacteria during storage, showing that Enterbacteriaceae and Pseudomonas fragi emerged early, then Brochothrix thermosphacta shared the dominant position, and finally, Pseudomonas putida showed up became predominant. Compared with control, the inoculation of either L. sakei or L. curvatus significantly lowered the complexity of microbial diversity and inhibited the growth of spoilage bacteria (p<0.05). Interestingly, we also found that the dominant position of L. curvatus was replaced by indigenous L. sakei after 13 d for L. curvatus-inoculated samples. Plate counts on selective agars further showed that inoculation with L. sakei or L. curvatus obviously reduced the viable counts of Enterbacteraceae, Pseudomonas spp. and B. thermosphacta during later storage (p< 0.05), with L. sakei exerting greater inhibitory effect. Inoculation with both bio-protective cultures also significantly decreased the total volatile basic nitrogen values of stored samples (p<0.05). Conclusion Taken together, the results proved the benefits of inoculation with lactic acid bacteria especially L. sakei as a potential way to inhibit growth of spoilage-related bacteria and improve the shelf life of vacuum-packaged raw beef.


Second harmonic generation (SHG) is a second-order nonlinear optical process that has symmetry constraints confining signal to regions lacking a center of symmetry. Using SHG microscopy, a variety of tissue structures have noninvasively been imaged by virtue of intrinsic signal generated by structured proteins such as collagen fibrils in connective tissues or the actomyosin lattice of muscle cells. In biochemistry and structure biology, the high-level structures of DNA and protein macro-molecules are similar in constructing mechanism, although DNAs consist of deoxynucleotides and proteins of amino acid residues. The principal purpose of present work is to detect the SHG signal from different DNA samples by spectral imaging technology based on two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) and SHG. These DNA samples include the solution of genomic DNA and extracted nuclei, and cultured living cells. Results show that we can obtain the SHG signal from solution of genomic DNA and extracted nuclei in routine condition, but nothing from cultured cell nuclei. After adding a little of absolute ethanol (less than 5% by volume) in culture medium, the SHG signal is detectable in the interested region of nuclei. The findings suggest that the interaction between ethanol and DNA in living cell gives rise to the shift of molecular conformation, and this shift changes some nonlinear optical properties of DNA molecules.


The purpose of this paper is to review the recent results of the authors in the area of infectious disease modeling by means of branching stochastic processes. This is a new approach involving age-dependent branching models, which turned out to be more appropriate and flexible for describing the spread of an infection in a given population, than discrete time ones. Concretely, Bellman–Harris and Sevast'yanov's branching processes are investigated. It is justified that the proposed models are proper candidates as models of infectious diseases with incubation period like measles, mumps, avian flu, etc. It is worth to notice that in general the developed methodology is applicable to the diseases that follow the so-called SIR (susceptible–infected–removed) scheme in terms of epidemiological models. Two policies of extra-vaccination level are proposed and compared on the ground of simulation examples.


— Mobile devices, such as mobile phones and personal digital assistants, have gained widespread popularity. These devices will increasingly be networked, thus enabling the construction of distributed applications that have to adapt to changes in context, such as variations in network bandwidth, battery power, connectivity, reachability of services and hosts, and so on. In this paper we describe CARISMA, a mobile computing middleware which exploits the principle of reflection to enhance the construction of adaptive and context-aware mobile applications. The mid-dleware provides software engineers with primitives to describe how context changes should be handled using policies. These policies may conflict. We classify the different types of conflicts that may arise in mobile computing and argue that conflicts cannot be resolved statically at the time applications are designed, but, rather, need to be resolved at execution time. We demonstrate a method by which policy conflicts can be handled; this method uses a micro-economic approach that relies on a particular type of sealed-bid auction. We describe how this method is implemented in the CARISMA middleware architecture, and sketch a distributed context-aware application for mobile devices to illustrate how the method works in practise. We show, by way of a systematic performance evaluation, that conflict resolution does not imply undue overheads, before comparing our research to related work and concluding the paper.


S98 Table 1. Differences between dietary deficient and sufficient mice post CLP induced sepsis. Data is expressed as median values. Sufficient (n = 7) Deficient (n = 8) p-value


Abstract The diversity and flexibility of life offers a wide variety of molecules and systems useful for biosensing. A biosensor device should be robust, specific and reliable. Inorganic arsenic is a highly toxic water contaminant with worldwide distribution that poses a threat to public health. With the goal of developing an arsenic biosensor, we designed an incoherent feed-forward loop (I-FFL) genetic circuit to correlate its output pulse with the input signal in a relatively time-independent manner. The system was conceived exclusively based on the available BioBricks in the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts. The expected behavior in silico was achieved; upon arsenic addition, the system generates a short-delayed reporter protein pulse that is dose dependent to the contaminant levels. This work is an example of the power and variety of the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts, which can be reused in different sophisticated system designs like I-FFLs. Besides the scientific results, one of the main impacts of this synthetic biology project is the influence it had on team's members training and career choices which are summarized at the end of this article.


We propose a nonparametric method to determine the functional form of the noise density in discrete-time stochastic volatility models of financial returns. Our approach suggests that the assumption of Gaussian noise is often adequate, but we do observe deviations from Gaussian noise for some assets, for instance gold.


Background: The purpose of this study was to (1) Determine the effect of computed tomography (CT) on identification of fractures involving the posterior malleolus, (2) determine its effect on operative indications, and (3) determine its effect on the overall operative plan. Methods: Patients with ankle fractures involving the posterior malleolus were identified. Only injuries with complete preoperative plain radiographs and a CT scan were included. Spiral tibia fractures and pilon variants were excluded. The plain radiographs were deidentified, randomized, and presented to 3 orthopedic surgeons. They were asked 3 questions: (1) Is this fracture simple or complex? (2) Does the injury require direct visualization and reduction? and (3) How would you position the patient and approach the fracture? The same process was repeated for the CT scans. A total of 376 posterior malleolus injuries were identified and 25 met the inclusion criteria. Results: A complex fracture pattern was identified on 44% of plain radiographs and 56% of CT scans. The surgeons chose to operate in 84% of cases based on plain radiographs and 92% of cases based on CT scan. The observers changed their operative approach or positioning 44% of the time after reviewing CT images. The interobserver and intraobserver correlation coefficients were moderate. Conclusion: The use of CT scan changed operative positioning and approach in 44% of cases. There was no significant change in characterization or operative indications when comparing plain radiographs to CT scan. CT scan may be a valuable tool in the management of ankle fractures involving the posterior malleolus. Level of Evidence: Diagnostic Level III, comparative series.


About 100 new children in Sweden require care at a tertiary pediatric ward each year for severe liver disease. These children are at risk for both severe gastrointestinal bleeding, which may be life threatening, and intraor extrahepatic thrombosis. Both proand anticoagulant factors are synthesized in the liver and their levels decrease as liver failure progresses. Coagulation factors are thus used as prognostic tests. The balance between proand anticoagulant mechanisms, although maintained in liver disease, seems to be instable and can easily tip towards either bleeding or thrombosis. The coagulation system in children undergoes age-specific changes and the etiology and/or pathogenesis of pediatric liver diseases is different than in adults. The aims of this thesis were to improve the treatment and the analysis of coagulation defects in pediatric liver disease and also to improve the prognostic evaluation in liver disease. In Study 1 children with liver disease were treated with recombinant FVIIa due to life threatening bleeding or as prophylaxis prior to invasive procedures. In the first group, the bleeding decreased in 50% of the evaluated occasions and a combination of rFVIIa and octreotide in gastrointestinal hemorrhage was advantageous. In the second group, rFVIIa was useful as prophylactic treatment before various diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. In Study 2 the thrombin generation test was evaluated in children with liver disease, with and without increased bleeding risk. The results were compared to age-matched healthy controls. This assay did not provide additional information compared to routine coagulation tests. In Study 3 the correlation between bile acids and coagulation factors was investigated. In children with markedly elevated levels of bile acids, i.e. above 200 μmol/L, the levels of coagulation factors increased with rising levels of bile acids, despite a worse clinical outcome. In an in vitro study, no interference between bile acids and coagulation factor concentrations was detected. In Study 4 the Owren method for analyzing INR in patients with liver disease was assessed. Plasma samples from adult patients with liver disease were analyzed at eight laboratories. The coefficient of variance between the laboratories was 5.3%, which is low. Additionally, the ISIVKA and ISIliver were determined and the difference between them was below 10%. These results show that the previously reported high interlaboratory variability regarding INR in patients with liver disease does not constitute a problem when Owren-based reagents are used. Conclusion: rFVIIa is beneficial for selected patients with severe bleeding and as prophylactic treatment. However, with current knowledge regarding coagulation in liver disease, new treatment strategies aiming to maintain the hemostatic balance in critical situations need to be studied. The thrombin generation test did not provide more information than routine tests. A modified method might be more successful. Coagulation factors may be questionable as prognostic markers in patients with highly elevated bile acids. The mechanisms behind the effect of high bile acids on the coagulation system are very important targets of further studies. Finally, Owren-based reagents for measurement of INR in patients with liver disease provide a solution to the problem with high interlaboratory variability seen internationally. This thesis adds important information regarding several aspects of the coagulation in children with liver disease and highlights directions for future research.


To elucidate the nature and kinetics of DNA strand breaks caused by low-energy Auger electron emitters, we compared the yields of DNA breaks in supercoiled pUC19 DNA in the presence of the (.)OH scavenger dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) after the decay of (125)I (1) in proximity to DNA after minor-groove binding ((125)I-iodoHoechst 33342, (125)IH) and (2) at a distance from DNA ((125)I-iodoantipyrine, (125)IAP). DMSO is efficient at protecting supercoiled plasmid DNA from the decay of (125)I free in solution (dose modification factor, DMF = 59 +/- 4) and less effective when the (125)I decays occur close to DNA (DMF = 3.8 +/- 0.3). This difference is due mainly to the inability of DMSO to protect DNA from the double-strand breaks produced by groove-bound (125)I (DMF = 1.0 +/- 0.2). Additionally, the fragmentation of plasmid DNA beyond the production of single-strand and double-strand breaks that is seen after the decay of (125)IH and not (125)IAP (Kassis et al., Radiat. Res. 151, 167-176, 1999) cannot be modified by DMSO. These results demonstrate that the mechanisms underlying double-strand breaks caused by the decay of (125)IH differ in nature from those caused by the decay of (125)IAP.


Abstract Populations of the only two flowering plants native to the Antarctic have recently increased in number and size possibly due to climate warming. We have undertaken a preliminary study of the population genetics of one of these species by surveying variation in amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP) within the Antarctic Hairgrass, Deschampsia antarctica. Populations of D. antarctica from two widely separated regions of the maritime Antarctic, namely Signy Island in the north and Léonie Islands 1350 km farther south, were characterized by low genetic diversity (only 15.95% of total genetic variation found within populations). Populations from the northern and southern maritime Antarctic were genetically distinct from each other (FCT = 37.10%), and low levels of historical gene flow occurred among them (Nm = 0.05). This genetic structure suggests that new populations of D. antarctica are founded by one or few individuals, which mainly reproduce by self-fertilization and/or vegetative propagation. Vegetative reproduction and selfing are, therefore, likely to have been key factors in the establishment of D. antarctica at new sites in the Antarctic during recent years.


In summary, we have demonstrated fully integrated high-speed ADC performance characteristics with process variations. The ADC corner lot study verified that process variations such from poly resistors and BJT-β and emitter area size can affect the ADC dynamic performance. The optimum ADC performances were achieved by setting the corner process as Lot 6 conditions which are maximum BJT-β and minimum BJT emitter area, while keeping the poly resistors values and without changing the ADC chip design.


BACKGROUND
A significant number of citizens, including a great proportion of doctors, both psychiatrists and doctors of other specialties, decided to emigrate from Croatia after Croatia entered the EU in 2013. Aim of research was to investigate possible differences in satisfaction with life and work between 3 groups: emigrants psychiatrists (EP), emigrants physicians of other specialties (E), and psychiatrists currently working in Croatia (C).

SUBJECTS AND METHODS
Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI), Work Ability Index (WAI) and some qualitative research questions were used in an anonymous online survey which was conducted in autumn 2019. Link to the survey was shared on different social networks, while 138 physicians were approached directly by e-mail. Response rate: 87% for EP group (representative sample for group of psychiatrist emigrants from Croatia), 48% for E group, and 28% for C group. In total, 62 physicians, 44 of them emigrants (20 EP and 24 E). This study was voluntarily led. Psychiatrists from our sample emigrated mostly to Scandinavia in 65% of cases and to West Europe in 30% of the cases. Other physicians emigrants from our sample emigrated to Middle Europe in 29%, to West Europe in 25%, and to Scandinavia in 42% of the cases.

RESULTS
Satisfaction with standard of life, future security and life achievements are significantly higher in EP than in C. Satisfaction with integration in community and satisfaction with close relationships are significantly higher in E than in EP. WAI score of the 3 groups placed them all in the same category "good work ability". For all emigrants and their family members, major challenges after emigration were found to be communication (language), integration into the community, and loss of friends and family connections. 70% of emigrants plan to return to Croatia in the future, depending on better living conditions (income), change in the political situation in Croatia (reduction of corruption), and change in people's mentality.

CONCLUSIONS
This voluntary study showed high satisfaction with life and good work ability among psychiatrists who emigrated from Croatia, together with some challenges for them and their family members with language, work, integration into the community, and loss of friends and family connections. Majority plan to return to Croatia depending on political and economic changes in Croatia.


The aim of this project is to carry out an aerodynamic performance analysis of a paraglider by using simulation computational programs with low time cost and computational requirements, but still effective approach obtaining reliable results. To achieve this objective, a 3D analysis of the wing will be done using PARACHUTES, a simulation program based on a flow potential theory approach, complemented with an unsteady low order panel method. To consider viscous phenomenon, boundary layer thickening effects and flow separation, a 2D analysis will be done using XFOIL simulation program. To perform this study, the CAD 3D model has to be parameterized and the boundary conditions has to be properly configured previously for the acquisition of accurate results. Moreover, to complement it with the 2D analysis, these geometries are obtained from the 3D CAD model and some parameterization has been also done. First, a study of the pressure coefficient and velocity distribution contours will be done. Then, a 2D comparison of two airfoils that conform the wing will be analyzed. Next, the common aerodynamic parameters will be determined and studied: lift coefficient (CL), drag coefficient (CD), pitching moment coefficient (CM). The equations that define the previous parameters are also determined. Finally, a comparison between the results obtained in this project with CFD simulation results provided by Niviuk Gliders is performed.