Qualitative but ordered random variables, such as severity of a pathology, are of paramount importance in biostatistics and medicine. Understanding the conditional distribution of such qualitative variables as a function of other explanatory variables can be performed using a specific regression model known as ordinal polytomous regression. Variable selection in the ordinal polytomous regression model is a computationally difficult combinatorial optimisation problem which is however crucial when practitioners need to understand which covariates are physically related to the output and which covariates are not. One easy way to circumvent the computational hardness of variable selection is to introduce a penalised maximum likelihood estimator based on some well chosen non-smooth penalisation function such as, e.g., the `1-norm. In the case of the Gaussian linear model, the `1-penalised least-squares estimator, also known as LASSO estimator, has attracted a lot of attention in the last decade, both from the theoretical and algorithmic viewpoints. However, even in the Gaussian linear model, accurate calibration of the relaxation parameter, i.e., the relative weight of the penalisation term in the estimation cost function is still considered a difficult problem that has to be addressed with caution. In the present paper, we apply `1-penalisation to the ordinal polytomous regression model and compare several hyper-parameter calibration strategies. Our main contributions are: (a) a useful and simple `1 penalised estimator for ordinal polytomous regression and a thorough description of how to apply Nesterov's accelerated gradient and the online Frank-Wolfe methods to the problem of computing this estimator, (b) a new hyper-parameter calibration method for the proposed model, based on the QUT idea of Giacobino et al. and (c) a code which can be freely used that implements the proposed estimation procedure. 2012 ACM Subject Classification Mathematics of computing → Regression analysis


In his eighteenth-century Memoirs, criminal Stephen Burroughs tells of his campaign to establish a library in Bridgehampton, New York. When the town elders discover the plan, they insist upon reviewing Burroughs's choices. Undercurrents of other debates spill over into what would otherwise merely be some quibbling over book selections. In a series of vividly recounted public meetings, Burroughs pits the local elders against himself and "the People." These book wars are clearly situated in ideological struggles regarding rationalism and the role of reading in general; but, more significantly, they are situated in a representational context that by its very genre—that of the rogue narrative—calls into question the role of individual interpretation and literary influence.


Many obligate or facultative intracellular bacteria pose a critical problem in clinical microbiology diagnosis as a result of their fastidious growth or lack of growth in conventional culture media. Molecular diagnosis is based on the analysis and demonstration of nucleic acids (DNA and RNA). In the field of infectiology, it combines laboratory medicine with the technology of molecular genetics to identify infectious pathogens. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) is used for the detection and localization of nucleotide sequences in various samples while preserving cell integrity. For more than 30 years, FISH methods have in constant evolution with the development of rRNA-targeted probes and synthetic molecules, such as PNA, which have contributed to the development of this technique in various fields by research and diagnostic laboratories. We describe here a panel of infectious diseases due to intracellular bacteria for which FISH diagnosis has proven its effectiveness. FISH techniques were applied in cases of blood-culture-negative endocarditis, respiratory infections, gastrointestinal diseases, mycobacterial infections, highly pathogenic microorganisms and other fastidious bacteria such as spirochetes. FISH has been proven to be applicable to various samples and for diverse infectious diseases, it can be used as a complementary tool for the diagnosis of infectious diseases by intracellular and fastidious bacteria.


When estimating discrete choice models, the attributes of the choice alternatives are a key component of most model specifications. Measures of time or duration are common types of attributes investigated by analysts. Examples include travel time in the field of transportation, life expectancy in health economics, and product life in marketing. Other attributes are linked to time, in that they are a measure of the quality of the alternative either at some point in time, or for some length of time. For example, travel time when driving is sometimes broken down into time in one of several driving conditions, such as freeflow, slowed down and stop-start (e.g., Hensher 2001). Essentially, the aggregate time attribute is decomposed, such that it represents the sum of time spent in various conditions. Other possible applications include time in various crowding conditions when travelling by train (the focus of this study), the quality of cycling infrastructure along a route, the deterioration of health over a life expectancy, and the degradation of performance of a phone over the length of its life. This paper is an investigation of these types of attributes, which we refer to as time-varying attributes (TVAs). A similar concept called common-metric attributes has been suggested in the literature (Layton and Hensher 2010), which refers to attributes that have the same metric and might be processed in certain ways, such as aggregation. However, TVAs are a specific case of common-metrics attributes, and relate explicitly to time under certain conditions. This paper will consider motivations for the use of TVAs, the additional insights that may be gained, the various challenges such as the representation of risk, the elicitation of values in a revealed preference context, and the presentation of TVAs in discrete choice experiments (DCEs). Empirical results from a study into train crowding will be presented. The time-varying aspect of TVAs recognizes that the attribute performance or level may realistically change over a length of time. The attribute is likely to be continuous in nature (e.g., crowding levels), or have some degree of ambiguity about the levels (e.g., driving conditions). In practice, breaking the attribute down into specific categories or conditions is necessary, just as it is often necessary to restrict the number of attribute levels when designing DCEs. For example, whilst there has been a shift in recent years to the use of many crowding levels in the public transport crowding literature (e.g. Whelan and Crockett 2009; Hensher et al. 2011; Li and Hensher 2011, 2013), there will be some limit to the number of crowding levels that can be applied. Such restraint is particularly important for TVAs, as potentially all conditions might be experienced, with time attached to each level, and the extra respondent burden might outweigh any potential behavioural insights. In the present study into train crowding, we utilized five intuitive conditions: time sitting with adjacent space, time sitting next to a stranger, and time standing at three different levels of crowding. Each condition lasts for a certain length of time, which may be zero. The use of TVAs allows a number of possibilities to be investigated whilst keeping the overall time/duration in a reasonable range. Sensitivities to certain conditions can be estimated without having to assign that condition to the entire time, where the latter may be very unrealistic (for example, standing in heavy crowding for a long trip). Non-linear responses to certain conditions can be more effectively tested, over the full domain of the time/duration. Finally, thresholds on certain conditions can be tested. For example, if a train user must ever stand, there may be a penalty beyond the value of standing travel time savings. There has been an increasing interest in integrating risk into discrete choice models (e.g., Rasouli and Timmermans 2014; Hensher et al. 2011a). However, the attributes considered typically vary over one dimension only, including for time/duration attributes. For example, the overall travel time may be allowed to vary (e.g., Senna 1994). Risky outcomes are complicated for TVAs, as not only may the aggregate time measure vary, but the component time measures as well. Under risk, we can consider the TVAs to be multivariate random variables. In this paper, we investigate the risk attitudes towards TVAs, by using a mean-variance model (see Li et al. 2010) using an appropriate variance measure that considers all dimensions/conditions of the attribute. Additionally, we test for further threshold effects, which are present if a certain condition is ever experienced by a decision maker, across multiple outcomes. When using revealed preference data, the collection of individual data on TVAs may be complicated by their multidimensional nature, as the individual needs to recall time spent under potentially arbitrary conditions chosen by the analyst. Obtaining information on TVAs when the outcomes vary complicates matters further, as the attribute varies both across the conditions, and across outcomes. In this paper, we draw upon the elicitation literature (see Garthwaite et al., 2005) for guidance on how this may be achieved. The inclusion of risky outcomes for TVAs in DCEs presents a challenging integration exercise for the respondent, and this paper will consider alternative ways that this can be achieved. In addition to discussing various considerations around TVAs, this paper will present empirical evidence from a train crowding study conducted in Sydney in late 2016. In the study, commuters who travel to work by train must conduct an elicitation exercise, which provides information on the variability of crowding that they experience. Respondents also complete three types of DCE, each with a different type of presentation of crowding. In one format, a single crowding level is presented per choice alternative. In another format, each alternative includes the amount of time spent travelling in up to five crowding conditions. In the final format, three crowding experiences are presented per alternative, each with times for up to five crowding conditions, and an associated probability of occurrence. We leverage the TVA approach to provide insight into train crowding through the specification of non-linearities, thresholds, and the handling of risk. In doing so, we also address one of the criticisms made by Wardman and Whelan (2011) of the crowding literature: that use of a single crowding condition is unrealistic and implausible. The TVA approach makes the choice exercise more credible in this context, and could do so in other literatures that use DCEs as well, in particular health and marketing. References Garthwaite, P. H., Kadane, J. B., & O'Hagan, A. (2005). Statistical methods for eliciting probability distributions. Journal of the American Statistical Association , 100(470), 680–701. Hensher, D. A. (2001). The valuation of commuter travel time savings for car drivers: evaluating alternative model specifications. Transportation , 28(2), 101–118. Hensher, D. A., Rose, J. M., & Collins, A. T. (2011). Identifying commuter preferences for existing modes and a proposed Metro in Sydney, Australia with special reference to crowding. Public Transport , 3(2), 109–147. Hensher, D.A., Greene, W.H., Li, Z. (2011a). Embedding risk attitude and decision weights in non-linear logit to accommodate time variability in the value of expected travel time savings. Transportation Research Part B , 45, 954–972. Layton, D., & Hensher, D. A. (2010). Aggregation of common-metric attributes in preference revelation and implications for willingness to pay. Transportation Research Part D , 15(7), 394–404. Li, Z. and Hensher, D.A. (2011). Crowding and public transport: A review of willingness to pay evidence. Transport Policy , 18, 880-887. Li, Z. and Hensher, D.A. (2013) Crowding in Public Transport: Objective and Subjective Measures, Journal of Public Transportation , 16 (2), 107-134. Li, Z., Hensher, D.A. and Rose, J.M. (2010). Willingness to Pay for Travel Time Reliability for Passenger Transport:  A Review and some New Empirical Evidence. Transportation Research Part E , 46 (3), 384-403. Rasouli, S., Timmermans, H. (2014). Applications of theories and models of choice and decision-making under conditions of uncertainty in travel behavior research. Travel Behaviour and Society , 1, 79–90. Senna, L.A.D.S. (1994). The influence of travel time variability on the value of time. Transportation , 21(2), 203–228. Wardman, M., & Whelan, G. (2011). Twenty years of rail crowding valuation studies: evidence and lessons from British experience. Transport Reviews , 31(3), 379–398. Whelan, G., & Crockett, J. (2009). An investigation of the willingness to pay to reduce rail overcrowding. International Conference on Choice Modelling, Harrogate, England.


This paper presents research combining an agent-based modeling and simulation paradigm with game theory for an in silico historical analysis of the Bay of Biscay submarine war during WWII. The U-boat threat was of great concern to the Allies, prompting initial operational research efforts to devise counterstrategies. Focusing search efforts in the Bay of Biscay enabled an effective Allied response. Using the historical record as a means to create a reasonably accurate model of the U-boat campaign, we allow the resulting agents within the model to adapt their strategies to counter-opposition strategies. Model output data are examined with respect to the historical record and game theory. The results hold promise for extending the agent-based modeling paradigm into more complex military-based domains.


SPKI/SDSI is a framework that combines a simple public-key infrastructure and a simple distributed security infrastructure with a means of defining local name spaces. It allows principals, which can be a person or an organization, to locally create groups of principals and delegate rights to other principals or groups of principals by issuing certificates. To prove authorizations, principals need to search for necessary certificates that are, in general, in the form of certificate trees. This paper defines a framework based on SPKI/SDSI which allows principals to give weights to certificates. Weights can be used to address many authorization issues such as access control of limited resources. The paper shows a connection between SPKI/SDSI and the theory of pushdown systems, and presents an algorithm that solves the authorization problem by computing minimum-height certificate trees.


Make-up examination is an examination organized by the teaching management department for specific students. Generally speaking, students who fail the normal assessment or pass the exam can apply for the make-up examination. This paper introduces ecological viewpoints into the teaching management in colleges and universities, explores how to improve the system of make-up examinations and reexaminations, puts forward important measures to solve the problem, and applies the suggested measures to the teaching management process of make-up examinations and reexaminations of the School of Humanities and Laws in 6 semesters of 2014-2016. As can be seen from the statistic data of examinations, the make-up examination and reexamination rates are respectively reduced by half before the reform, showing that the reform measures are effective with practical application value.


Abstract Transport and its major part of transport means is currently based on the internal combustion engine principle. For these engines, the primary energy source is oil, natural gas, coal, biomass and others. These primary energy sources and their processing in refineries and factories are used to produce products that are used to drive engines - fuels. From what energy sources these fuels will be produced and what technology will be used to process and produce them is also an important. This whole process must take the reduction of total emissions into account. Future fuels can be considered synthetically produced diesel or hydrogen, which can later significantly affect the decrease in emissions from their processing, production and subsequent combustion of these more environmentally friendly types of fuels. This article processes analyses and development of basic pollutants, total emissions and energy consumption in the Slovak Republic and the EU. In the second part there is an evaluation of the emissions trend development in transport in the EU and Slovakia.


We conducted a simulation study to evaluate performance of surplus production models (SPMs) with a time-varying intrinsic growth rate (SPMTVr) for stocks with predation-driven changes in productivity. Data sets were simulated using an age-structured, linked, predator–prey model of Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus), a forage fish native to the Northwest Atlantic, and Atlantic striped bass (Morone saxatilis), its primary predator, with differing time series of fishing mortality on both predator and prey. Simulations generated test data sets for Atlantic menhaden SPMs that included either a static or time-varying intrinsic growth rate parameter. The SPMTVr largely produced more accurate, less variable estimates of exploitation rate and biomass than models with static intrinsic growth. We also applied SPMTVr to empirical Atlantic menhaden catch and survey data for 1964–2016. The SPMTVr fit the survey data well, estimated an intrinsic growth rate time series that mirrored long-term juvenile survey trends, and produced biomass and exploitation rate trends that mirrored a statistical catch-at-age model. The SPMTVr estimated dynamic, maximum sustainable yield (MSY)-based reference points that reflected changing stock productivity.


The more competition the e-commerce company and the development of technology company in Indonesia, website of Zalora Indonesia traffic rank declining. Measuring the quality of website by using WebQual 4.0 will help manage the web to be able to adjust the quality of the web with user perception.  The research aims to make design of Data Flow Diagram model to measure website quality using WebQual 4.0 based on user satisfaction variable. A case study was conducted on the Zalora Indonesia website. Data Flow model is used to make design of system model recommendation, while WebQual 4.0 method is used to measure website quality to user satisfaction. The research data using primary data in the form of questionnaires involving 384 respondents in the city of Bandung who had transacted on the website Zalora Indonesia. Data analysis technique applies descriptive analysis. Based on the research result on the quality of the website Zalora Indonesia, simultaneous positive and significant impact on user satisfaction Zalora Indonesia website. t test result showed that three variables partially have a posotive impact on user satisfaction Zalora Indonesia website is usability quality, information quality and service interaction quality, with Information quality variable has largest impact. Therefore, the modeling system using the Context Diagram-Data Flow Diagram focused on information quality variable.


A case of post-chemotherapy gynecomastia is reported in a 40 years old male patient with a tumor of seminomatous germinal cells with no evidence of tumoral reappearance or augmentation of the chorionic gonadotropin hormone. The existence of primary hypogonadism was tested. A differential diagnosis was performed and possible physiopathological mechanisms of the gynecomastia were analyzed in a patient previously treated for testicular cancer.


Recent years have seen a proliferation of mobile devices connected to the internet, including connected cars. These systems send a stream of position annotated messages when requesting location based services. The position information in turn can be used to improve those services. Here, we focus on online map matching of the most recent position of a connected vehicle on a road map. This information, aggregated and privacy aware, can serve as a basis e.g. for machine learning algorithms used to improve traffic prediction. We describe a system for online map matching in the backend that implements a state of the art algorithm based on a Hidden Markov Model. This system uses only open source software and open data. The development of the map matcher was motivated by a perceived lack of a scalable system in the open source realm. We discuss its role as part of a scalable backend system designed to provide spatially aware services.


The research investigated the patterns of use on two long-distance walking routes in the Republic of Ireland. Surveys were conducted on the Burren Way in County Clare and the East Munster Way in Counties Tipperary and Waterford. GIS-based mapping was used, in conjunction with participative mapping techniques which took place during focus group sessions and the paper concentrates on this aspect of the research. Focus group participants were voluntary members of the walking routes' management committees. The process of participation and the data gathered for the GIS is outlined. The study presents a GIS developed in the context of natural resource management with the inputs of the voluntary management committee's local knowledge. It also offers a consideration of visitor behaviour and preferences in relation to landscape character and rural tourism.

Further data collection took the form of user questionnaire surveys, surveys of local accommodation providers, and online surveys of visual preferences. While all of the data collection methods, when used alone, have their drawbacks, the combination of various methods produced an interdisciplinary and wide-ranging picture of the patterns of use of the two routes, based on user behaviour and preferences and on the behaviour of local walkers and the route management committee. As well as providing a "snapshot in time" view of route usage, the information collected during research was used for future planning and management. It was used to identify possible diversions and improvements to the existing route, as a means of predicting where walkers would prefer to walk, while also attempting to protect the local environment by diverting walkers away from the most fragile environments.


We present the results of ab initio study of electronic and magnetic properties of Gd(In1−xSnx)3 alloys carried out with the use of FP-LAPW method. Our precise ab initio calculations for the rst time uniquelly con rmed experimentally based predictions that the ground state magnetic structure of the alloys is antiferromagnetic and that upon the In/Sn substitution the magnetic structure undergo transition, changing the antiferromagnetic ordering from the (π00)-type for the GdSn3 compound to the (ππ0)-type for the GdIn3 one. Moreover, calculations gave an explanation of the oscillatory variation of density of states at Fermi level indicated by XPS measurements.


OBJECTIVE
This analysis was designed to assess the pooled safety and tolerability of once-daily hydromorphone extended release (ER) (OROS® hydromorphone ER) in opioid-naïve and opioid-tolerant patients with chronic cancer or noncancer pain.

DESIGN
Safety results were pooled from 13 controlled and uncontrolled clinical studies, with varying approaches to dosing and titration, pain etiology, and duration of exposure.

PATIENTS AND INTERVENTIONS
Of the 3,075 patients in the pooled population, 2,335 (76 percent) received at least one dose of OROS hydromorphone ER, with a duration of dosing of up to 1.5 years; 420 patients were treated for at least 6 months and 141 for longer than 1 year.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
The primary outcome measure was the occurrence of adverse events (AEs). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the incidence of AEs in the overall population as well as according to baseline characteristics.

RESULTS
Overall AE incidence with OROS hydromorphone ER treatment was 80.5 percent (1,880/2,335 patients). The most common treatment-related AEs were constipation (28.9 percent, 674 patients) and nausea (22.7 percent, 529 patients), and most cases were mild to moderate in severity. The incidence of overall AEs did not undergo a notable change over time. Opioid-related AEs were higher in patients ≥65 years of age, female patients, and opioid-naïve patients. Serious adverse events (SAEs) were reported by 10.2 percent (239) of patients. A total of 64 deaths occurred, none of which were considered related to OROS hydromorphone ER treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
OROS hydromorphone was generally well tolerated in short- and long-term studies and demonstrated a consistent AE profile over time.


The DELPHI Hadron Calorimeter was conceived more than ten years ago, as an instrument to measure the energy of hadrons and hadronic jets from e/sup +/e/sup -/ collisions at the CERN collider LEP. In addition it was expected to provide a certain degree of discrimination between pions and muons. The detector is a rather simple and relatively inexpensive device consisting of around 20,000 limited streamer plastic tubes, with inductive pad read-out, embedded in the iron yoke of the 1.2 T DELPHI magnet. Its depth is at minimum 6.6 nuclear lengths. The electronics necessary for the pad read-out was designed to have an adequate performance for a reasonable cost. This detector has proved over six years of operation to have an entirely satisfactory performance and great reliability, for example less than 1% of the streamer tubes have failed and electronic problems remain at the per mil level. During the past two years an improvement programme has been under way. It has been found possible to use the streamer tubes as strips, hence giving better granularity and particle tracking, by reading out the cathode of individual tubes. The constraints on this were considerable because of the inaccessibility of the detectors in the magnet yoke. However a cheap and viable solution has been found. The cathode read-out leads to an improved energy resolution, better /spl mu/ identification, a better /spl pi///spl mu/ separation and to possibilities of neutral particle separation. The simultaneous anode read-out of several planes of the endcaps of the detector will provide a fast trigger in the forward/backward direction which is an important improvement for LEP200. On the barrel the system will provide a cosmic trigger which is very useful for calibration as counting rates at LEP200 will be very low.


Using 200 fs Ti:sapphire laser pulses to ionize and fragment NO molecules, we showed through the measurement of ion yield and the correlation maps of ion fragments that the fragmentation process is principally due to dissociative recombination. This latter process means stretching the molecule which will lead to enhanced ionization at larger internuclear distance.


PURPOSE
Taking the physician sourced observation that "wasting time is always more expensive than saving it" leads naturally to the conclusion that effective and efficient patient-centred healthcare delivery systems are highly desirable targets for the National Health Service (NHS) and similar providers. But has "joined up healthcare" even been achieved, and if so, how? What procedures must be in place to maximise the chances of its occurrence? This paper aims to investigate these issues.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH
This paper answers these questions experientially via "Insider Action Research" projects plus careful critique of published case studies.

FINDINGS
Recurring themes for effective improvement of healthcare delivery organisations emerge in the paper, as do identification of the inevitable barriers to change.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE
The paper takes stock of NHS service developments in a broader theoretical light.


Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) have shown expressive performance on graph representation learning by aggregating information from neighbors. Recently, some studies have discussed the importance of modeling neighborhood distribution on the graph. However, most existing GNNs aggregate neighbors' features through single statistic (e.g., mean, max, sum), which loses the information related to neighbor's feature distribution and therefore degrades the model performance. In this paper, inspired by the method of moment in statistical theory, we propose to model neighbor's feature distribution with multi-order moments. We design a novel GNN model, namely Mix-Moment Graph Neural Network (MM-GNN), which includes a Multi-order Moment Embedding (MME) module and an Element-wise Attention-based Moment Adaptor module. MM-GNN first calculates the multi-order moments of the neighbors for each node as signatures, and then use an Element-wise Attention-based Moment Adaptor to assign larger weights to important moments for each node and update node representations. We conduct extensive experiments on 15 real-world graphs (including social networks, citation networks and web-page networks etc.) to evaluate our model, and the results demonstrate the superiority of MM-GNN over existing state-of-the-art models.


In order to improve the surface quality of continuously cast steel, two new casting processes imposing a magnetic field are developed. One is the imposition of an intermittent high frequency magnetic field from the outside of a mold and the other is a synchronizing imposition of the intermittent high frequency magnetic field with mold oscillation. To distinguish the characteristics of the processes, the meniscus dynamic behavior was investigated in molten gallium as simulator of molten steel and the meniscus deformation was numerically analyzed. The surface quality was examined in the cast tin used as simulator of steel. The imposition of the high frequency magnetic field reduces the effect of mold oscillation on dynamic pressure in a flux channel between molten metal and a mold and suppresses the deformation on meniscus shape. The intermittent high frequency magnetic field suppresses the surface wave motion generated by mold oscillation. When the timing of the magnetic field imposition is synchronized with the period including the lowest position in the stroke of mold oscillation, the better surface quality is obtained than that synchronized with the period including the highest position. The amount of electric current required to get the same surface quality decreases in the order of the imposition of continuous high frequency magnetic field, the imposition of intermittent high frequency magnetic field and the synchronizing imposition.


In this study, it was aimed to investigation of effectiveness of edutainment software used computer assisted teaching in comparison to traditional teaching method at the comprehension by the students' of nucleus, chromosomes, genetic information, genetic code, gene, allele gene, and DNA genetic concepts in Lycee 1 curriculum. In this quasi experimental type study, there were two chosen groups and each of these groups consisted of 24 students accepted as one treatment and one control group according to the results of pre-studies. The treatment group was instructed by edutainment software through computer assist while the control group was instructed by traditional methods. To measure students' at the groups academic achievement genetic concepts achievement test (GBT), to identify the misconceptions the genetic concepts concept test (GKT) and to determine the attitudes towards biology lessons biology attitude scale (BTO) was applied at the beginning and at the end of the research as pre-test and post-test. While the collected data evaluated there can be seen that appropriately implemented edutainment software used teaching and learning processes reduced the misconceptions but did not exactly disappeared. Key words: Computer assisted instruction; edutainment software; evaluation of educational technology.


Objective . Women with heart disease have an increased risk of obstetric and fetal events, which peaks during labor. The aim of this study was to evaluate pregnancy outcomes of car-diopathic patients followed in a tertiary care hospital in terms of delivery outcome (mode of delivery, rate of cesarean sections and postpartum bleeding) compared to a control group. Materials and Methods . A retrospective study was conducted at Careggi University Hospital between 2019 and 2021, comparing a cohort of 157 cardiopathic patients (218 pregnancies) to 2662 controls delivered in the same period. Results . Our population was divided according to mWHO classification of maternal cardiovascular risk: 73 class I, 51 class II, 24 class II-III, 8 class III, 1 class IV. Of 218 pregnancies, 150 were candidated for vaginal delivery, which was successful in 116 patients (77.3%). Although the rate of medical induction resulted similar between the groups, the indication for induction in most of the study group (66.6%) was the cardiac disease alone. Rate of emergency cesarean sections of cardio-pathic patients was not higher


Computer morphometry revealed statistically significant (P less than 0.001) decrease in the number and area of nucleoli and ribosomal gene activities (as demonstrated by AgNOR staining) in primary mouse embryonal fibroblast cultures infected by oncogenic adenovirus SA7(C8). Even more drastic increased in these parameters was found when serum-depleted cultures were infected. There were no effects on nucleolar and AgNOR parameters in mock-infected cultures. It is suggested that an increase in the ribosomal gene activity may reflect synthesis of SA7(C8) early gene products in target cells.


Background and aims The aim of the study was to assess the safety of regional anesthesia in end-stage renal disease patients related to platelet function. Methods The study included patients with ESRD on two different types of renal replacement therapy (HD; PD), which were treated in the Department of Nephrology, Hypertension, Dialysis and Transplantation in Clinical Hospital Center Zagreb, during a 3-month period. During the regular visit, together with blood sampling for standard laboratory parameters, an additional 2 ml of blood was taken from all patients who met the inclusion criteria, after providing the informed consent. Platelet function testing was performed on platelet function analyzer (PFA-200) that 'in vitro' simulates the process of aggregation and platelet activation. Results are reported as the closure time in seconds for COL-EPI and COL-ADP cartridges. Data for analysis were taken from the medical records. Control group included healthy individuals. Results The study included 44 patients with ESRD undergoing regular HD (n=32) or PD (n=12). Although there were no significant differences in COL/EPI and COL/ADP tests, more than 50% of HD patients had COL/EPI test values above the upper limit indicating abnormalities in platelet aggregation. Those findings correlate with higher chance for bleeding in HD group. Conclusions According to the results of this study, platelet function testing in ESRD patients, prior to regional anesthesia, could support the safety of the procedure. Clinical relevance of these findings should be further investigated.


Background The variability in physicians' attitudes regarding electronic health records (EHRs) is widely recognized. Both human and technological factors contribute to user satisfaction. This exploratory study considers these variables by comparing emergency medicine physician experiences with EHRs in the United States and Norway. Objective This study is unique as it aims to compare individual experiences with EHRs. It creates an opportunity to expand perspective, challenge the unknown, and explore how this technology affects clinicians globally. Research often highlights the challenge that health information technology has created for users: Are the negative consequences of this technology shared among countries? Does it affect medical practice? What determines user satisfaction? Can this be measured internationally? Do specific factors account for similarities or differences? This study begins by investigating these questions by comparing cohort experiences. Fundamental differences between nations will also be addressed. Methods We used semistructured, participant-driven, in-depth interviews (N=12) for data collection in conjunction with ethnographic observations. The conversations were recorded and transcribed. Texts were then analyzed using NVivo software (QSR International) to develop codes for direct comparison among countries. Comprehensive understanding of the data required triangulation, specifically using thematic and interpretive phenomenological analysis. Narrative analysis ensured appropriate context of the NVivo (QSR International) query results. Results Each interview resulted in mixed discussions regarding the benefits and disadvantages of EHRs. All the physicians recognized health care's dependence on this technology. In Norway, physicians perceived more benefits compared with those based in the United States. Americans reported fewer benefits and disproportionally high disadvantages. Both cohorts believed that EHRs have increased user workload. However, this was mentioned 2.6 times more frequently by Americans (United States [n=40] vs Norway [n=15]). Financial influences regarding health information technology use were of great concern for American physicians but rarely mentioned among Norwegian physicians (United States [n=37] vs Norway [n=6]). Technology dysfunctions were the most common complaint from Norwegian physicians. Participants from each country noted increased frustration among older colleagues. Conclusions Despite differences spanning geographical, organizational, and cultural boundaries, much is to be learned by comparing individual experiences. Both cohorts experienced EHR-related frustrations, although etiology differed. The overall number of complaints was significantly higher among American physicians. This study augments the idea that policy, regulation, and administration have compelling influence on user experience. Global EHR optimization requires additional investigation, and these results help to establish a foundation for future research.


Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) are used as contrast agents in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic particle imaging (MPI) and resulting images can be used to guide magnetothermal heating. Alternating magnetic fields (AMF) cause local temperature increases in regions with SPIONs, and we investigated the ability of magnetic hyperthermia to regulate temperature-sensitive repressors (TSRs) of bacterial transcription. The TSR, TlpA39, was derived from a Gram-negative bacterium, and used here for thermal control of reporter gene expression in Gram-positive, Bacillus subtilis. In vitro heating of B. subtilis with TlpA39 controlling bacterial luciferase expression, resulted in a 14.6-fold (12-hour; h) and 1.8-fold (1-h) increase in reporter transcripts with a 9.0-fold (12-h) and 11.1-fold (1-h) increase in bioluminescence. To develop magnetothermal control, B. subtilis cells were coated with three SPION variations. Electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy revealed an external association with, and retention of, SPIONs on B. subtilis. Furthermore, using long duration AMF we demonstrated magnetothermal induction of the TSRs in SPION-coated B. subtilis with a maximum of 4.6-fold increases in bioluminescence. After intramuscular injections of SPION-coated B. subtilis, histology revealed that SPIONs remained in the same locations as the bacteria. For in vivo studies, 1-h of AMF is the maximum exposure due to anesthesia constraints. Both in vitro and in vivo, there was no change in bioluminescence after 1-h of AMF treatment. Pairing TSRs with magnetothermal energy using SPIONs for localized heating with AMF can lead to transcriptional control that expands options for targeted bacteriotherapies.


District Resto & Bar is one of the public spaces which is one of the industries engaged in Restaurant and bar. The purpose of this study is to analyze external factors and internal factors in District Resto & Bar in developing business in order to improve competitiveness. The research aims to formulate a strategy to implement District Resto & Bar. The strategy formulation starts from the analysis of the internal environment, external environment and industry environment of business, then using IFE matrix and EFE matrix scores to determine the position of District in IE matrix. The purpose is finding a suitable strategy to be implemented for District. The result of the IE matrix shows that café is at quandrant V "Hold and Maintain", so the suitable strategy to be applied is the market penetration strategies and product development startegies. Implementation of the strategy consist of implementation of management strategies, organizational strategies of human resources, operational strategies, and financial strategies.


The hard tissue of the Japanese pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata, consists of two layers, the outer prismatic layer, bearing calcite, and the inner nacreous layer, bearing aragonite. An EDTA-insoluble fraction of the prismatic layer of P. fucata was extracted with urea. In-vitro crystallization experiments showed that this urea-soluble fraction contained the factor(s) that promoted the growth of calcite crystals. We purified a protein from this fraction and deduced the internal amino acid sequences EYDFDRPDPYDP and EYDFERPD. We performed 3′ RACE using primer DPPF1, encoding EYDFDRPDPYDP, and an oligo-dT adapter primer and amplified a fragment of approximately 300 bp. We screened cDNA libraries using the 300 bp fragment and obtained two clones that we named prismin 1 and 2. Both cDNAs encode proteins of 51 amino acids. Homology searches revealed 91% amino acid identity between prismin 1 and 2. The synthetic peptide DFDRPDPYDPYDRFD, corresponding to the carboxy terminal region of prismin 1, has calcite growing activity and calcium binding capability, showing that the carboxy-terminal region is a functional domain. Prismin 1 is expressed strongly in the outer edge and in the inner part of the mantle tissue. However, immunoblot analysis revealed that prismin protein exists only in the prismatic layer, not in the nacreous layer, despite the presence of the mRNA. Therefore, we conclude that prismin is a novel prismatic layer-specific calcite growth factor.


Based on the stabilisation of the molecular motion by the chiral residue, novel optically active biphenylic chiral dopants for nematic liquid crystals were developed. This molecular congestion was obtained by introducing mesogenic residues on the 2,2'-positions of the chiral biphenyl; this led to a novel molecular architecture that was found to be efficient. The synthesised optically active biphenyls were characterised with very short cholesteric pitches when used as chiral dopants in nematic liquid crystals. The synthesis of the enatiomerically pure biphenyl dopants and their preliminary physicochemical characterisations are described.


The spin system with two-axis anisotropy is considered. The temperature dependence of the probability of transition from the metastable state due to quantum and thermal fluctuations is determined. The method of calculation is based on exact correspondence between the spin system and a particle moving in a potential field.


Dominant subordinate relationships are formed as the result of social conflict and are maintained at least in part by communication. At this time, little is known about the neural mechanisms that are responsible for coordinating the social behaviours (e.g. aggression) that occur in association with the formation and maintenance of these relationships. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the role of oxytocin (OXT) within the medial preoptic anterior hypothalamic continuum (MPOA‐AH) in the control of aggression in female hamsters. OXT injected into the MPOA‐AH immediately before testing significantly reduced the duration of aggression in a dose‐dependent manner. Injection of an OXT antagonist 30 min before testing significantly increased the duration of aggression. In contrast, the duration of aggression was not altered when hamsters were tested either 30 min after injection of OXT or immediately following injection of an OXT‐antagonist. These data support the hypothesis that OXT release within the MPOA‐AH regulates social behaviours important in the formation and maintenance of dominant subordinate relationships in female hamsters.


We report that polyaniline nanowire arrays (PANI-NAs) can serve as a tunable terminal polymeric mediator for bacterial extracellular electron transfer (EET) by members of the genus Shewanella. Multiple oxidation levels of PANI at different applied potentials lead to multiple abilities in mediating EET, while the aligned nanostructures enable enhanced local topological interactions with microbes and hence efficient electrical interaction. PANI-NA therefore exhibits a unique property that allows for efficient EET reactions to proceed in a controlled manner.


The neutron diffraction measurement with the H/D isotopic substitution technique has been carried out on the aqueous 21 mol% hydrochloric acid solutions, in order to investigate the short-range structure in the concentrated aqueous acid solution, in comparison with the structural information available on liquid pure water. Observed partial structure factors : aHH(Q), aXH(Q), and aXX(Q) (X: O, Cl), determined by the least-squares fitting analysis, have exhibited that the nearest-neighbor intermolecular hydrogen-bond distances, r(H···H) and r(O···H), between oxonium ion and water molecule in the 21 mol% hydrochloric acid solution were 2.02 ± 0.05 and 1.69 ± 0.02 A, respectively; such values are much smaller than those in liquid pure water. Consequently, a strong intermolecular hydrogen bond between oxonium ion and its nearest-neighbor water molecules is concluded to be present in the concentrated aqueous hydrochloric acid solution.


Arthrospira (Spirulina) maxima (SM) is a cyanobacterium that has a long history of being used as human food. In recent years, several investigations have shown its beneficial biological effects, among which its antioxidant capacity has been highlighted. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of SM on body weight, glycemia, sexual behavior, sperm quality, testosterone levels, sex organ weights, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes in diabetic male rats (a disease characterized by an increase in reactive oxygen species). The experiment consisted of six groups of sexually expert adult males (n = 6): (1) control (vehicle); (2) streptozotocin (STZ)-65 mg/kg; (3) SM-400 mg/kg; (4) STZ + SM-100 mg/kg; (5) STZ + SM-200 mg/kg; and (6) STZ + SM-400 mg/kg. Sexual behavior tests were performed during the first 3 h of the dark period under dim red illumination. Our results showed that SM significantly improved sexual behavior and sperm quality vs. diabetic animals. Likewise, while the enzymatic activities of SOD and GPx increased, TBARS lipoperoxidation decreased and testosterone levels increased. In view of the findings, it is suggested that SM may potentially be used as a nutraceutical for the treatment of diabetic male sexual dysfunction due to its antioxidant property.


: In this study, a control scheme for the stand-alone generation system based on brushless doubly-fed machine (BDFM) is presented. The output voltage amplitude and frequency are kept constant under variable rotor speed and load by regulating the amplitude and frequency of the control winding (CW) current of BDFM appropriately. The control scheme utilises a CW current vector controller as the inner loop, and a power winding voltage amplitude controller and a frequency controller as the outer loop. The proposed control scheme has been implemented on a prototype BDFM designed for the variable-speed stand-alone ship shaft generation application. Moreover, the satisfactory dynamic performance and low total harmonic distortion of the output voltage in the proposed stand-alone generation system is verified by experiments with two kinds of typical loads: three-phase induction motor load and three-phase RL inductive load. t ω a angular speed of the dq reference frame U 1 , U 2 voltage amplitudes of PW and CW I 1 , I 2 current amplitudes of PW and CW


The conditions of the chromosomes inside the nucleus in the Rabl configuration have been modelled as self-avoiding polymer chains under restraining conditions. To ensure that the chromosomes remain stretched out and lined up, we fixed their end points to two opposing walls. The numbers of segments N, the distances d1 and d2 between the fixpoints, and the wall-to-wall distance z (as measured in segment lengths) determine an approximate value for the Kuhn segment length kl. We have simulated the movement of the chromosomes using molecular dynamics to obtain the expected distance distribution between the genetic loci in the absence of further attractive or repulsive forces. A comparison to biological experiments on Drosophila Melanogaster yields information on the parameters for our model. With the correct parameters it is possible to draw conclusions on the strength and range of the attraction that leads to pairing.


The promotion of 'active' ageing in later life has been a key development in recent health policy. These changes not only challenge the prevalent view of old age as an inevitable process of biological decline but signify the tendency of lay and expert discourses to increasingly use the notion of risk. Older people's social identities also need to be negotiated in the context of positive (active/freedom/fluid) and negative (passive/dependence/decline) images of ageing. This thesis explored older people's social identities; meanings about lifestyles, emotions, and bodies; and the salience and limitations to 'risk' and 'reflexivity' within everyday life. The research involved the intersection of in-depth qualitative interviews with photo-elicitation with 50 men and women aged between 50 and 96 years. Thematic analysis using Atlas Ti was undertaken. Three interconnected themes emerged:
1) Participants experienced their bodies as a taken-for- granted aspect of their everyday lives until moments when an awareness of the body interrupted their daily activities. At these moments the everyday visibility of the body was heightened and participants reflected on their own meanings and identities about ageing.
2) Emotions were significant as participants described their everyday lives and social interactions. There was a continual tension between inner (private) subjective feelings and experiences of emotions and the outer (public) bodily and spatial expression of these emotions.
3) Reflexive meanings about risk were multifaceted as participants drew upon diverse discourses when making choices about health-related lifestyles. A sense of embodied vulnerability associated with ageing was evident.
Meanings and perspectives associated with ageing bodies were therefore central to everyday experiences of growing older. Alternative images of ageing were intertwined within the accounts of the participants as they fluctuated between a sense of ageing as a time of possibilities and a heightened awareness of their embodied vulnerabilities.


Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of SHP465 mixed amphetamine salts (MAS) in children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Methods: This randomized, double-blind dose-optimization study enrolled children and adolescents (6–17 years) meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision ADHD criteria and having baseline ADHD Rating Scale IV (ADHD-RS-IV) total scores ≥28. Participants were randomized 1:1 to placebo or dose-optimized SHP465 MAS (12.5–25 mg) for 4 weeks. Total score change (baseline to week 4) on the ADHD-RS-IV (primary endpoint) and the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement (CGI-I) scale score at week 4 (key secondary endpoint) were assessed using linear mixed-effects models for repeated measures. Safety and tolerability assessments (secondary endpoints) included treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and vital sign changes. Results: Of 264 randomized participants (placebo, n = 132; SHP465 MAS, n = 132), 234 (placebo, n = 118; SHP465 MAS, n = 116) completed the study. The least squares mean (95% confidence interval) treatment difference significantly favored SHP465 MAS over placebo for ADHD-RS-IV total score change from baseline to week 4 (−9.9 [−13.0, −6.8]; p < 0.001; effect size = 0.80) and CGI-I score at week 4 (−0.8 [−1.1, −0.5]; p < 0.001; effect size = 0.65). TEAE frequency was 46.6% (61/131) with placebo and 67.4% (89/132) with SHP465 MAS; no serious TEAEs were reported. TEAEs reported at a frequency of ≥5% and ≥2 times the placebo rate were decreased appetite, insomnia, irritability, nausea, and decreased weight. Mean ± standard deviation increases (baseline to final on-treatment assessment) were higher with SHP465 MAS than placebo for pulse (5.7 ± 11.78 vs. 0.7 ± 10.79), systolic blood pressure (3.8 ± 9.15 vs. 2.1 ± 8.72), and diastolic blood pressure (4.0 ± 8.23 vs. 0.5 ± 7.45). Conclusions: SHP465 MAS demonstrated superiority over placebo in improving ADHD symptoms and global functioning in children and adolescents with ADHD. The safety and tolerability profile of SHP465 MAS was consistent with that of SHP465 MAS in adults and other long-acting psychostimulants in children and adolescents.


We describe the vision system for Alvin, the Autonomous Land Vehicle, addressing in particular the task of road-following. The system builds symbolic descriptions of the road and obstacle boundaries using both video and range sensors. Road segmentation methods are described for video-based road-following, along with approaches to boundary extraction and the transformation of boundaries in the image plane into a vehicle-centered three dimensional scene model. The ALV has performed public road-following demonstrations, traveling distances up to 4.5 km at speeds up to 20 km/hr along a paved road, equipped with an RGB video camera with pan/tilt control and a laser range scanner.


Adolescence was a part of growth and development processes, i.e. transition
era from childhood to adulthood. In this phase, a child experienced growth rapidity,
physical and psychological changes. Therefore, adolescent was very susceptible to
experience psychosocial problems, i.e. psychic or psychological problems occured
as the result of social changes. There was a changing processes biologically and
also psychogical influenced by various factors, such as society, coeval friend, and
mass media as well. We learned to leave something characterized as childish. At
the same time we learned behaviour pattern changes as a new attitudes of adult
people. The research purpose is for knowing peer counsellor execution influenced
adolescent reproduction health toward student attitudes in unwanted pregnancy
anticipation. The type of this research is analytical observational with crosssectional
design. The population in this research is student aged 17 th years old in
SMKN 1 Mojokerto. 123 students taken from simple random sampling had passed
inclusion criteria . We used independent variable, peer counsellor execution and
dependent variable is pregnancy anticipation (knowledge, attitude, action). We
concluded that Ho rejected because statistical test value of p (sig.) is 0.000 < 0,05
so there was an influence between peer counsellor execution about reproduction
health toward student attitudes in unwanted pregnancy anticipation in SMKN 1
Mojokerto. As a result, there was influenced of peer counsellor execution in
adolescent reproduction health toward student behavior of unwanted pregnancy
anticipation in SMKN 1 Mojokerto. We sunggested that educators and national
family planning and coordination organization (BKKBN) officers would apply peer
counsellor activities throughout schools in order to improve students knowledge
about reproduction health.


: The development of new antimicrobial agents is important for public health. Libidibia ferrea (jucá or pau-ferro) is a species of Fabacea family widely used in folk medicine for its numerous therapeutic properties, which indicates the presence of compounds of pharmacological interest, including flavonoids and tannins, which are responsible for several biological activities, as well as antimicrobial activity. Thus, the objective of this work was to technologically develop an ointment based on L. ferrea and to evaluate its antimicrobial potential. The physicochemical characterization of the powder (particle size distribution, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), loss on drying and total ash determination), the characterization of the fluid extract (determination of pH, relative density and dry residue, phytochemical prospection and determination of total flavonoid content (TFC)), and tests for antimicrobial activity of the extract and ointment based on the extract were performed. The powder was classified as moderately thick, with values of 0.3499% and 0.0635% of loss on drying and total ash determination, respectively; thermogravimetric analysis revealed three mass loss events; the fluid extract present pH value of 4.29; relative density of 0.98276 g/mL and dry residue of 3.0984%. Tannins, saponins and flavonoids were found in the phytochemical prospection. The ethanolic extract of Libidibia ferrea seeds and the ointment based on the extract showed promising antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, and Klebsiella pneumoniae strains. In conclusion, the developed ointment presented the potential to be used as an antimicrobial agent against microorganisms responsible for major infections.


Efforts to insure long-tenured displacement workers against earnings losses from unemployment spells and lower wages on subsequent jobs have led to an array of government and employer programs. A policy typology is proposed to impose order on these programmatic efforts. The basic typology involves the familiar distinction between (i) separation benefit type – fixed sum severance or unemployment-linked – and (ii) financing type – insurance or savings. In this four-way categorization, severance savings accounts are the least familiar, perhaps because they are often mislabeled as unemployment insurance savings accounts (UISA). A third policy dimension – the job separation events that trigger plan payouts – is also fundamental to understanding program performance and consequences. Indeed insurance plan performance converges on that of savings plans as the range of insured events and their likelihoods expand. Severance "savings" plans require payouts other than for involuntary separation, most commonly for retirement, which highlights the link with pensions. Conversely the severance properties of pension plans vary with ownership rights (vesting) and "rollover" rules. Forced savings plans that also permit fund access for house purchases and/or human capital investments (provident funds) are an obvious extension of strict severance savings plans.


Investigation of gender specialization in plants has led to several theories on the evolution of sexual dimorphism: reproductive compensation, based on enhanced reproductive efficiency with gender specialization (flowers should be larger on dioecious plants); Bateman's Principle, based on sex-specific selection (display for pollinator attraction in males and seed set in females); and intersexual floral mimicry, based on mimicry of a reward-providing gender by a non-reward providing gender (reduced dimorphism in dioecious plants due to increased spatial separation of male and female flowers). These theories were evaluated in Ecballium elaterium, which contains two subspecies, elaterium (monoecious) and dioicum (dioecious). Our results show that flowers of the dioecious subspecies are larger and allocate more to reproductive organs than do flowers of the monoecious subspecies. Both subspecies are sexually dimorphic (male flowers larger than female flowers). Variance in flower size among populations is greater in the dioecious subspecies. Finally, there is sufficient genetic variation to enable ongoing response to selection; genetic correlation constraints on independent response of female and male flowers may be stronger in the monoecious subspecies. Our findings provide support for aspects of all three theories, suggesting that the evolution of floral dimorphism is based on a complex interplay of factors.


Simple Summary The popularity of various breeds of dog and, by extension, the ancestors of at least a portion of the crossbred population varies over time. As pedigree dogs tend to exhibit breed-specific behaviour, the loads of both adaptive and less adaptive canine behaviours within society might also be expected to vary with trends in popularity, assuming that a breed in decline is not always replaced by increasing demand for a new similarly tempered breed. Using average breed behaviours from a large online survey of dog behaviour, we organised 82 pedigree breeds into six clusters and tracked the absolute and relative numbers of American Kennel Club registrations of breeds in these behaviour clusters in 1926–2005. Our data show that there is lability in the demand for breeds of the six behavioural clusters over time. Regardless of whether behavioural differences are causative of changes in demand or merely a consequence of it, changes in the types of behaviour in the pedigree population have implications for urban planning, the demand for dog training and veterinary behavioural services and the nature of human–canine interactions. Shifts in breed demand reveal an important aspect of canine behavioural epidemiology worthy of future study. Abstract Drawing on American Kennel Club (AKC) puppy registration numbers for approximately 82 varieties of pedigree dogs between 1926 and 2005, the current article analyses behavioural reports on 32,005 dogs of these varieties reported through the Canine Behavioural Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ). Cluster analysis of C-BARQ scores indicates that the 82 breeds fell into six clusters. Average scores for each of the 14 behavioural subscales and 22 miscellaneous traits in C-BARQ were calculated for each cluster, and the breeds in each cluster with average scores most similar to the cluster averages were selected as titular breeds. Titular breeds for each cluster were the Maltese terrier, the Great Dane, the Akita, the Australian shepherd, the American Staffordshire terrier, and the Weimaraner. Using the AKC data, we tracked longitudinal trends in annual registration numbers of breeds of each cluster over the period from 1926 to 2005. This period was subdivided into periods with differing overall trends by fitting natural cubic splines to the overall raw trend and considering both the spline and its derivative curves. Differences in the absolute numbers of dogs and trends in registrations over nearly 80 years were identified: an Early period (1926–1944, during which total registration numbers were very low); a Mid-Century Period (1945–1971, during which total registration numbers were tending to rise from year to year); a First Decline (1972–1979, a brief period during which registration numbers experienced a trend of more gradual decline); a Recovery (1980–1992, where registration numbers began to gradually rise again); and a Second Decline (1993–2005, a second sustained period of falling registration numbers, more dramatic than the first decline). The current article describes the ways in which the clustered behaviour of dogs associate with these trends. That said, there is no compelling evidence that shifts in the popularity within or between the clusters reflect consumer canine behavioural preferences. Understanding historic trends in the demand for certain canine behavioural traits could help veterinary and urban animal management stakeholders to anticipate future needs for education and infrastructure.


Stereological methods were used to examine fibrin -type fibrinoid deposition in the intervillous spaces of human placentas collected during gestation (12 -41 weeks) and from term pregnancies at low (400 m) and high (3.6 km) altitude. The main aim was to test predictions about the relationships between fibrinoid deposits and either the volume of intervillous space or the surface area of (intermediate + terminal) villi. Fields of view on Masson trichrome-stained paraffin sect ions were selected as part of a systematic sampling design which randomised section location and orientation. Relative and absolute volumes were estimated by test point counting and surfaces by intersection counting. Apparent differences were tested by ana lyses of variance and relationships by correlation and regression analysis. Fibrinoid volume increased during gestation and correlated positively with intervillous volume and villous surface area. However, relative to intervillous volume, the main increase in fibrinoid occurred towards term (36-41 weeks). At high altitude, placentas contained more intervillous space but less fibrinoid. At both altitudes, there were significant correlations between fibrinoid volume and villous surface area. In all cases, cha nges in fibrinoid volume were commensurate with changes in villous surface area. Whilst findings lend support to the notion that fibrinoid deposition during normal gestation is influenced by the quality of vascular perfusion, they also emphasise that the extent of the villous surface is a more generally important factor. The villous surface may influence the steady state between coagulation and fibrinolysis since some pro -coagulatory events operate at the trophoblastic epithelium. They occur notably at site s of trophoblast de-epithelialisation and these arise following trauma or during the extrusion phase of normal epithelial turnover.


An explicit understanding of false belief develops around the age of four years. However, tasks based on spontaneous responses have revealed an implicit understanding of belief and other theory of mind constructs in infants in their second year of life. The few longitudinal studies that have examined conceptual continuity of theory of mind from infancy to early childhood have reported mixed findings. Here we report two longitudinal experiments to investigate the developmental relation between implicit and explicit theory of mind. No link was observed in the first experiment between false belief and intention understanding measured at 14 and 18 months with the violation of expectation paradigm and tasks measuring explicit and implicit false belief at four or five years of age. In the second experiment, infants aged 18 months were tested with a battery of tasks that measured knowledge inference and false belief. They were then tested with the theory of mind scale at five years of age. The parents completed the Children's Social Understanding Scale (CSUS) and the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ). As in the first experiment, there were no associations between early and later forms of theory of mind. We suggest that these findings do not support the view that there is conceptual continuity in theory of mind development.


A compact multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antenna with a small size of 26×40 mm2 is proposed for portable ultrawideband (UWB) applications. The antenna consists of two planar-monopole (PM) antenna elements with microstrip-fed printed on one side of the substrate and placed perpendicularly to each other to achieve good isolation. To enhance isolation and increase impedance bandwidth, two long protruding ground stubs are added to the ground plane on the other side and a short ground strip is used to connect the ground planes of the two PMs together to form a common ground. Simulation and measurement are used to study the antenna performance in terms of reflection coefficients at the two input ports, coupling between the two input ports, radiation pattern, realized peak gain, efficiency and envelope correlation coefficient for pattern diversity. Results show that the MIMO antenna has an impedance bandwidth of larger than 3.1-10.6 GHz, low mutual coupling of less than -15 dB, and a low envelope correlation coefficient of less than 0.2 across the frequency band, making it a good candidate for portable UWB applications.


The purpose of this project was to assess poultry grower residue, or litter (manure plus absorbent biomass), as a fuel source for Community Power Corporation's small modular biopower system (SMB). A second objective was to assess the poultry industry to identify potential ''on-site'' applications of the SMB system using poultry litter residue as a fuel source, and to adapt CPC's existing SMB to generate electricity and heat from the poultry litter biomass fuel. Bench-scale testing and pilot testing were used to gain design information for the SMB retrofit. System design approach for the Phase II application of the SMB was the goal of Phase I testing. Cost estimates for an onsite poultry litter SMB were prepared. Finally, a market estimate was prepared for implementation of the on-farm SMB using poultry litter.


The fi rst St Gallen Advanced Prostate Cancer Consensus Conference (APCCC) Expert Panel identi fi ed and reviewed the available evidence for the ten most important areas of controversy in advanced prostate cancer (APC) management. The successful registration of several drugs for castration-resistant prostate cancer and the recent studies of chemo-hormonal therapy in men with castration-naïve prostate cancer have led to considerable uncertainty as to the best treatment choices, sequence of treatment options and appropriate patient selection. Management recommendations based on expert opinion, and not based on a critical review of the available evidence, are presented. The various recommendations carried differing degrees of support, as re fl ected in the wording of the article text and in the detailed voting results recorded in supplementary Material, available at Annals of Oncology online. Detailed decisions on treatment as always will involve consideration of disease extent and location, prior treatments, host factors, patient preferences as well as logistical and economic constraints. Inclusion of men with APC in clinical trials should be encouraged.


Abstract. The detailed understanding of surface–atmosphere exchange fluxes of reactive trace gases is a crucial precondition for reliable modelling of processes in atmospheric chemistry. Plant canopies significantly impact the atmospheric budget of trace gases. In the past, many studies focused on taller forest canopies or crops, where the bulk plant material is concentrated in the uppermost canopy layer. However, within grasslands, a land-cover class that globally covers vast terrestrial areas, the canopy structure is fundamentally different, as the main biomass is concentrated in the lowest part of the canopy. This has obvious implications for aerodynamic in-canopy transport, and consequently also impacts on global budgets of key species in atmospheric chemistry such as nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3). This study presents for the first time a comprehensive data set of directly measured in-canopy transport times and aerodynamic resistances, chemical timescales, Damkohler numbers, trace gas and micrometeorological measurements for a natural grassland canopy (canopy height = 0.6 m). Special attention is paid to the impact of contrasting meteorological and air chemical conditions on in-canopy transport and chemical flux divergence. Our results show that the grassland canopy is decoupled throughout the day. In the lowermost canopy layer, the measured transport times are fastest during nighttime, which is due to convection during nighttime and a stable stratification during daytime in this layer. The inverse was found in the layers above. During periods of low wind speed and high NOx (NO+NO2) levels, the effect of canopy decoupling on trace gas transport was found to be especially distinct. The aerodynamic resistance in the lowermost canopy layer (0.04–0.2 m) was around 1000 s m−1, which is as high as values determined previously for the lowest metre of an Amazonian rain forest canopy. The aerodynamic resistance representing the bulk canopy was found to be more than 3–4 times higher than in forests. Calculated Damkohler numbers (ratio of transport and chemical timescales) suggest a strong flux divergence for the NO–NO2–O3 triad within the canopy during daytime. During that time, the timescale of NO2 uptake by plants ranged from 90 to 160 s and was the fastest relevant timescale, i.e. faster than the reaction of NO and O3. Thus, our results reveal that grassland canopies of similar structure exhibit a strong potential to retain soil-emitted NO due to oxidation and subsequent uptake of NO2 by plants. Furthermore, photo-chemical O3 production was observed above the canopy, which was attributed to a deviation from the NO–NO2–O3 photostationary state by a surplus of NO2 due to oxidation of NO, by e.g. peroxy radicals. The O3 production was one order of magnitude higher during high NOx than during low NOx periods and resulted in an underestimation of the O3 deposition flux measured with the EC method.


Electrospun ionic nonwovens are obtained by green electrospinning of aqueous dispersions. The resulting nonwovens are termed as chameleon nonwovens since their surface properties can be tailored in a large variety by coating of different functionalities following the protocol of the layer‐by‐layer process (LBL). The dimensional stability of the electrospun fibers in the chameleon nonwovens is achieved by photo‐cross‐linking after electrospinning and thereby overcoming the repulsive forces of the ionic moieties in the fibers. Depending on the nature of the ionic moieties different materials are coated by LBL including dyes, antibacterial materials, silver, and gold nanoparticles. Enhanced coating efficiency for coating of metal nanoparticles is observed when the chameleon nonwovens were precoated by a polyelectrolyte.


Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are two forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), where the role of gut but not skin dysbiosis is well recognized. Inhibitors of TNF have been successful in IBD treatment, but up to a quarter of patients suffer from unpredictable skin adverse events (SkAE). For this purpose, we analyzed temporal dynamics of skin microbiota and serum markers of inflammation and epithelial barrier integrity during anti-TNF therapy and SkAE manifestation in IBD patients. We observed that the skin microbiota signature of IBD patients differs markedly from healthy subjects. In particular, the skin microbiota of CD patients differs significantly from that of UC patients and healthy subjects, mainly in the retroauricular crease. In addition, we showed that anti-TNF-related SkAE are associated with specific shifts in skin microbiota profile and with a decrease in serum levels of L-FABP and I-FABP in IBD patients. For the first time, we showed that shifts in microbial composition in IBD patients are not limited to the gut and that skin microbiota and serum markers of the epithelium barrier may be suitable markers of SkAE during anti-TNF therapy.


The suppression tuning properties of the 2 f1-f2 distortion-product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) were measured in 16 ears of normally hearing human subjects. DPOAE were elicited by fixed, low-level primary tones in four frequency regions with the second primary tone frequency f2 at 1, 2, 4, and 6 kHz. For various suppressor frequencies, suppression of the DPOAE was measured as a function of the suppressor tone level, enabling the assessment of the threshold and the growth of suppression. Depending on the distance of the suppressor tone to f2, there were marked differences in the suppression behavior of different suppressor frequencies. The threshold of suppression was minimal slightly above f2 and hardly increased with increasing frequency, but increased continuously with decreasing suppressor frequency. The growth of suppression, however, did not systematically change below f2, but decreased rapidly above f2. Both changes resulted in asymmetrical, V-shaped suppression tuning curves. They were sharply tuned to a frequency slightly above f2, with Q10 dB values up to 7.87. This is consistent with the assumption that the main source of the DPOAE is at the f2 site. In some cases, the DPOAE was particularly sensitive to suppressor tones near the DPOAE frequency. In one individual case, facilitation was found for corresponding frequency-level ranges of the suppressor tone. This may suggest a secondary emission source at the distortion product place.


Hemostasis is a result of interactions between fibrillar structures in the damaged vessel wall, soluble components in plasma, and cellular elements in blood represented mainly by platelets and platelet-derived material. During formation of a platelet plug at the damaged vessel wall, factors IXa and VIIIa form the "tenase" complex, leading to activation of factor X on the surface of activated platelets. Subsequently, factors Xa and Va form the "prothrombinase" complex, which catalyzes the formation of thrombin from prothrombin, leading to fibrin formation. An enhanced expression of negatively charged phosphatidylserine in the outer membrane leaflet resulting from a breakdown of the phospholipid asymmetry is essential for the formation of the procoagulant surface. An ATP-driven and inward-acting aminophospholipid "translocase" and a "floppase" counterbalancing this have been postulated to maintain the dynamic state of phospholipid asymmetry. A phospholipid-nonspecific "scramblase," believed to be responsible for the fast breakdown of the asymmetry during cell activation, has recently been isolated from erythrocytes, cloned, and characterized. An intracellular calcium-binding segment and one or more thioesterified fatty acids are probably of importance for calcium-induced activation of this transporter protein. Cytosolic calcium ions also activate the calcium-dependent protease calpain associated with shedding of microvesicles from the transformed platelet membrane. These are shed with a procoagulant surface and with surface-exposed P-selectin from the alpha-granules. Theoretically, therefore, microvesicles can be involved in both coagulation and inflammation. Scott syndrome is probably caused by a defect in the activation of an otherwise normal scramblase, resulting in a relatively severe bleeding tendency. In Stormorken syndrome, the patients demonstrate a spontaneous surface expression of aminophospholipids. Activated platelets and the presence of procoagulant microvesicles have been demonstrated in several clinical conditions, such as thrombotic and idiopathic thrombocytopenia, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and HIV-1 infection, and have been found to be associated with fibrin in thrombosis. Procoagulant microvesicles may also be formed from other cells as a result of apoptosis.


Vortioxetine is a novel drug for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). It has been reported that vortioxetine exhibits positive effect on the acute stage of MDD, while it can effectively prevent the recurrence of MDD during the maintenance period. Currently, the results of systematic reviews on vortioxetine are insufficient since several efficacy measures, such as the 24-Items Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HADRS-24) total score and other safety factors have not been evaluated. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of different doses of vortioxetine on the treatment of adult patients with MDD via assessing more efficacy and safety indicators. The clinical, double-blind, parallel and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the effect of vortioxetine on MDD were retrieved from PubMed\Medline, EBSCO, Embase, Cochrane Library, OVID, Web of Science and clinical trial registration websites from database inception to November 2022. A total of two investigators independently screened the included references and independently evaluated their quality. The meta-analysis was performed using Revman 5.0 software. The present systematic review was registered in PROSPERO (registration no. CRD42018106343). In the present study 11 RCTs were included, with a total of 4,908 adult patients with MDD. More specifically, 1,158 patients were included in the 5-mg vortioxetine group, 736 in the 10-mg group, 298 in the 15-mg group, 864 in the 20-mg group and 1,852 in the placebo group. All 11 studies were randomized, double-blinded and parallel control trials, and all publications were evaluated as high quality. The meta-analysis results showed that patients in the 5-, 10- and 20-mg vortioxetine groups exhibited significantly higher Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) response (≥50%) and remission (≤10%) rates compared with the placebo group (P<0.05). The pooled analysis also revealed a statistically significant change in the total score of HADRS-24, MADRS, Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS), Clinical Global Impression Scale-Improvement (CGI-I) and HADRS-24 response rate in the 10- and 20-mg vortioxetine groups compared with the placebo group (P<0.05). However, no statistically significant changes in the total score of HADRS-24, MADRS, SDS, CGI-I and HADRS-24 response rate were obtained in the 5-mg group compared with the placebo group (P>0.05). Furthermore, the most common adverse events were nausea, hyperhidrosis, insomnia and vomiting, the incidence of which was increased with higher doses of vortioxetine. Overall, the results suggested that vortioxetine administration at doses of 5-20 mg was significantly effective and safe compared with placebo in the treatment of MDD. However, 5 mg vortioxetine displayed no difference in the HADRS-24, MADRS, SDS and CGI-I total scores, and HADRS-24 response rate. Furthermore, patient treatment with increasing vortioxetine doses was associated with good tolerance and high safety. Nevertheless, more multi-center, high-quality and long-term RCTs are still needed to support the aforementioned findings.


This chapter examines the Shareholder Primacy Norm (SPN) as a widely acknowledged impediment to corporate social responsibility (CSR), including how this relates to Stakeholder Theory. We start by explaining the SPN and then review its status under US and UK law and show that it is not a legal requirement, at least under the guise of shareholder value maximization. This is in contrast to the common assertion that managers are legally constrained from addressing CSR issues if doing so would be inconsistent with the economic interests of shareholders. Nonetheless, while the SPN might be muted as a legal norm, we show that it is certainly evident as a powerful social norm among managers and in business schools— reflective, in part, of the sole voting rights of shareholders on corporate boards and of the dominance of Shareholder Theory. We argue that this view of CSR is misguided, not least when associated with claims of a purported legally enforceable requirement to maximize shareholder value. We propose two ways by which the influence of the SPN among managers might be attenuated: extending voting rights to non-shareholder stakeholders or extending fiduciary duties of executives to non-shareholder stakeholders.


Background: Management of diabetes needs regular blood tests and insulin injections. Various kinds of medical instruments like insulin pens, needles, syringes, lancets etc. are used as part of self-care. While sharp disposal is strictly regulated in most hospital settings, this is not the case in community. Objective: To assess the awareness and practices regarding the disposal of sharps among diabetic patients Methods: Over 3-month period diabetic patients were interviewed regarding sharps disposal, using a structured questionnaire. Assuming 95%lack of awareness, 20% relative precision, 5% type 1 error, sample size calculated was 456. Descriptive statistics were used. Results: There were a total of 479 patients, with 252 (52.61) women. There were 303 (63.25%) patients on insulin and 98 (32.34%) of them used pen devices. Mean age was 60.4 ± 11.5 and mean duration of diabetes was 13.5 ± 8.9 years. Mean HbA1c was 9.3 ± 2.1%. Most of our patients 437 (91.81%) were not aware of proper ways to dispose sharps. 359 (75.26) deposited in common household trash. 320 (66.81) eventually disposed in their backyard and 137 (29%) burned it. Conclusions: Inappropriate disposal of sharps pose risk not only to scavengers but also to our environment. It is necessary to educate our patients regarding sharps disposal. Policy makers should be made aware in order to establish facilities for proper disposal of such hazardous sharps in the community and implement the same.


Due the active introduction into the medical process of new stomatological technologies and materials, the requirements of practicing doctors to the quality of postdegree educacion become higher. Inclusion of the innovative technologies into the training process, the improvement of manual skills methods mastering, the transition from information reporting forms of material giving to more active ones, the improvement of the department material and technical equipment quality, allow to improve the quality of the dentists training increase.


This paper uses the three spatial design workshops D-Thinking Urban Strategy; Re-Ts >> Space(s) Innovation, and ZHUuGROUND 14 as the intellectual framework to evaluate experimentation as a pedagogical model in current interdisciplinary design education. The three workshops were conducted by the independent teaching and research organization, the Research Institute for Experimental Architecture (RIEAch), between 20 I 0 and 2014. Two were conducted in affiliation with Swedish academic institutions, and one with an academic institution in Hong Kong. Conclusions from the three workshops combine to spearhead a critical analysis of experimentation as an inclusive part in the current training of spatial design across disciplines. RIEAch, which was co~ founded by Lebbeus Woods in 1988, is a global network of architects, academics, and artists dedicated to advance experimentation in the fields of architecture and urbanism. With its headquarters in Bern, Switzerland, the educational section of the organization operates primarily as a plug~ in component to accredited curricula. The teaching methodology exercised by RIEAch adheres to Woods's discourse on experimental architecture, which this article reads as a radical approach to the concepts of, and the synergies between, autonomy, tectonics, and process. While Woods's teaching methodology primarily addresses the discipline of architecture, RIEAch's objective is to broaden the target group and thus also address the disciplines related to urbanism, such as landscape architecture and urban design. This expanded field of disciplinary stipulation requires pedagogical adjustment. Taking Hasse Plattner's design thinking as the lens through which to systematize Woods's teaching method, RIEAch has developed a teaching methodology that consolidates a series of learning objectives for interdisciplinary design education, such as large scale modelling, open-ended design processes, and social interaction through design. This paper has been developed accordingly, hence the objective to intersect historical and theoretical provisions with recent student works to evaluate the aptitudes of experimentation as a pedagogical model in current interdisciplinary design education. The paper celebrates Woods's approach to teaching through a process where each author's contribution is clearly legible within a collaborative whole. The paper traces and synthesizes Woods's learning method to extrapolate RIEAch's teaching methodology. It traces the application of Plattner's design thinking to identify the pedagogical adjustment and consolidate methods for interdisciplinary design teaching. It synthesizes the outcomes of the three workshops to stipulate strategies for experimentation as a pedagogical model, and to discuss their nature of inclusiveness with the disciplines of architecture and urbanism.


With the increase of digital and networked media in everyday life, researchers have increasingly turned their gaze to the symbolic and cultural elements of technologies. From studying online game communities, locative and social media to YouTube and mobile media, ethnographic approaches to digital and networked media have helped to elucidate the dynamic cultural and social dimensions of media practice. The Routledge Companion to Digital Ethnography provides an authoritative, up-to-date, intellectually broad, and conceptually cutting-edge guide to this emergent and diverse area. Features include: a comprehensive history of computers and digitization in anthropology; exploration of various ethnographic methods in the context of digital tools and network relations; consideration of social networking and communication technologies on a local and global scale; in-depth analyses of different interfaces in ethnography, from mobile technologies to digital archives.


564 Background: With the increasing use of screening mammography, the proportion of ≤ 1 cm invasive breast cancer is increasing. Identification of breast cancer molecular subtypes has resulted in a better appreciation of the biologic heterogeneity, which is not fully explained by clinicopathologic features including staging system. The aims of this study were: 1) to identify the risk factors of systemic metastases in patients with ≤ 1 cm invasive breast cancer and 2) to investigate the patients group at greatest risk of such failure even in these small tumors.

METHOD
Data were collected retrospectively in the breast cancer registry of our institution for patients with invasive breast cancer from October 1994 to December 2004.

RESULTS
Of 4,036 patients who received curative breast cancer surgery, 466 patients who had T1a or T1b breast cancer were identified. 39 patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy were excluded in this study. Ipsilateral axillary lymph node involvement was found in 13% (57/427) at the time of surgery. Axillary lymph node involvement was much more common in HER-2 positive group (33% vs 11%, p < 0.0001) and triple negative (TN) group (24% vs 11%, p = 0.002) than in hormone receptor positive group. During median 61 months of follow-up, overall 10 year estimated distant relapse-free survival (DRFS) and overall survival (OS) were 95% and 92%, respectively. Multivariate analysis was conducted in 370 (T1aN0, T1bN0) patients, who had no lymph node involvement. In Cox-regression model, HER-2 positivity and triple negativity were identified as independent prognostic factors to predict DRFS [Hazard ratio (HR) 8.8, p = 0.003 for HER-2 positive group; HR 5.1, p = 0.026 for TN group] and OS (HR 5.0, p = 0.067 for HER-2 positive group; HR 11.1, p = 0.017 for TN group) in T1bN0 tumors. Limiting to T1aN0 tumors, statistical significance was not maintained.

CONCLUSIONS
Even though T1aN0 and T1bN0 tumors have been known to have a relative low risk of systemic failure, anti-HER-2 directed therapy for HER-2 positive group and new innovative adjuvant systemic treatment for TN group in patients with T1bN0 tumor should be considered. Prospective adjuvant trials should be warranted in these subgroups of patients. No significant financial relationships to disclose.


Interactions were examined between stage of change transitions and intraindividual increases or decreases in the processes of change, pros and cons of smoking, and situational temptations longitudinally. A total of 786 ever smokers was assessed 2 times, 6 months apart, with respect to the transtheoretical model (TTM) constructs. Two significant discriminant functions within initial precontemplators and 1 significant function within initial contemplators were found. Ten out of 15 TTM variables contributed to at least 1 function. The functions mainly distinguished between preabstinence (precontemplation, contemplation, or preparation) and abstinence (action or maintenance) stages of change, that is, between current and former smokers. This is one of the few studies providing a longitudinal validation of the postulates of the TTM.


We examine changes in El Niño and Southern Oscillation (ENSO)/Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) relationship under the global warming using coupled climate models participated in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4). The temporal structure for the ENSO–PDO relationship is changed remarkably. The relationship between ENSO and PDO during the boreal winter (December, January and February) becomes stronger so that there would be more frequent in phase occurrence of ENSO and PDO (i.e. El Niño—a positive phase of PDO or La Niña—a negative phase of PDO). As PDO could constructively interfere with the ENSO‐related climate when ENSO and PDO are in phase, in the future one may expect stronger climate signal because of ENSO in the midlatitude. The IPCC AR4 model also shows that the Pacific North America‐like pattern is slightly shifted eastward and much stronger. We also discuss the possible reason for these changes. Copyright © 2012 Royal Meteorological Society


This study presents six machine learning models in the prediction of student success in a technology-mediated environment. Student behavioral attributes with a learning management environment have proven to be a significant determinant in forecasting students' performance. This study attempts to provide the model with optimum accuracy to determine students who need assistance to improve their educational performances and other learning outcomes. We examined the impacts of SMOTE data re-sampling and the effect of attribute selection in this study. The models' performances were enhanced with the resampling method as the imbalanced dataset was identified to have performed poorly. Attribute Selection with the top ten attributes and 10-fold cross-validation offer best performances. The six predictive models utilized in this study are Linear Discriminant Analysis, Logistic Regression, Classification and Regression Tree, K-Nearest Neighbour, Naïve Bayes Classifier, and Support Vector Machines. Classification and Regression Tree model and Linear Regression had the best accuracy score of 0.86 after 10-fold cross-validation and top ten attribute selection. This study concludes that student behavioral attributes are useful predictors of student success.


Development of perilobular hepatic fibrosis in rabbits after experimental ligation of the common bile duct was studied by microscopy. Twelve hours after the ligation, the lobular boundaries assumed prominence by appearance of row(s) of congested sinusoids around the distended perilobular canals of Hering. Seven days later, the lobular laminae limitans around such canals of Hering revealed myxomatous ballooning degeneration forming well defined inter-lobular bands (ILBs). On day 15 post-ligation, the residual sinusoidal endothelial-lining cells in the ILBs manifested hyper chromasia and occasional mitotic activity. It was followed, on days 25 and 35, by proliferation (hyperplasia) of the sinusoidal endothelium cells forming the portal tract like fibrotic tissue in the perilobular bands. These findings, showed the course of interlobular bridging necrosis along the bile preductules at the lobular circumferences and subsequently indigenous origin of the fibrotic tissue in the ILBs from the residual cells in the affected parenchyma independent of the portal tracts.


Background The incidence of keratinocyte carcinomas is high and rapidly growing. Approximately 80% of keratinocyte carcinomas consist of basal cell carcinomas (BCC) with 50% of these being considered as low-risk tumors. Nevertheless, 83% of the low-risk BCC patients were found to receive more follow-up care than recommended according to the Dutch BCC guideline, which is one visit post-treatment for this group. More efficient management could reduce unnecessary follow-up care and related costs. Objectives To study the efficacy, cost-utility, and budget impact of a personalized discharge letter for low-risk BCC patients compared with usual care (no personalized letter). Methods In a multi-center intervention study, a personalized discharge letter in addition to usual care was compared to usual care in first-time BCC patients. Model-based cost-utility and budget impact analyses were conducted, using individual patient data gathered via surveys. The outcome measures were number of follow-up visits, costs and quality adjusted life years (QALY) per patient. Results A total of 473 first-time BCC patients were recruited. The personalized discharge letter decreased the number of follow-up visits by 14.8% in the first year. The incremental costs after five years were -€24.45 per patient. The QALYs were 4.12 after five years and very similar in both groups. The national budget impact was -€2,7 million after five years. Conclusions The distribution of a personalized discharge letter decreases the number of unnecessary follow-up visits and implementing the intervention in a large eligible population would results in substantial cost savings, contributing to restraining the growing BCC costs.


We present the first example of a short-term uplift transient within the long-term stagnant forearc of the Arica Bend, northernmost Chile. We date a storm deposit embedded into fan delta sediments, which were deposited close to sea level and are now located ~40 m higher. The radiocarbon age is ca. 10 ka, yielding an average uplift rate of ~4 mm/yr. During the Holocene, the section has been dissected by the Lluta River, the long profile of which shows geomorphic response to coastal uplift. However, the coast of the Arica Bend is characterized by million- year-scale relative subsidence and current global positioning system surveyed quiescence. We therefore interpret the inferred uplift signal to represent a transient increase in uplift rates throughout the Holocene. Similar short-term transients have been globally documented in relation to various subduction zone settings, although their causes still remain a matter of debate and need further investigation. We propose that periods of increased surface uplift may also occur in long-term quiescent forearcs, possibly due to temporal variations of plate interface properties (i.e., strength and/or seismic locking) that induce thickening beneath the coast.