Several tests are currently marketed for measuring the amount of gluten in food products and to determine whether products are gluten-free. Of these tests, the Codex Alimentarius approved the R-Biopharm R5 ELISA as the gluten detection standard. This test is based on recognition by a monoclonal antibody (mAb) of five amino acidlong peptide sequences, which are abundantly present in the gliadin proteins of wheat gluten. Another mAb-based test recognises specific peptide sequences of six amino acids (G12 ELISA, Romer Labs). Both tests enable estimating the total amount of gluten (gluten = gliadin x 2) in a wheat product. As the number and composition of coeliac disease (CD) epitopes vary between gliadins and glutenins, among varieties, and between wheat, rye and barley, there is no direct relationship between the estimated gluten content and the presence of CD epitopes. Many research groups have raised epitope-specific T cell clones (TCCs) from patient biopsies that can be used for detection of specific CD-immunogenic gluten epitopes. Such CD epitopes are specific nine amino acid-long peptide sequences rich in prolamin (P) and glutamin (Q) residues. Recently, a list of internationally agreed CD epitopes has been published [1]. Unfortunately, T cell-based tests are mostly qualitative, indicating the presence or absence of a particular epitope, and they are unable to quantitate the overall CD-immunogencity of a given wheat variety. Proper quantitation of CD epitopes is relevant because the amount of non-CDimmunogenic gluten proteins can differ among wheat varieties and genomes (ploidy levels) [2], and the CD-immunogenicity of individual epitopes can be different according to the patient's sensitivity profile [3,4]. Already a single amino acid substitution in a T cell epitope, especially from proline (P) to serine (S), may abolish T cell binding and thus eliminate the epitope's CD-immunogenicity [5]. Therefore, gluten detection in the context of coeliac disease should be in line with the internationally agreed list of CD-relevant epitopes. To overcome the shortcomings of mAb-based and T cell-based tests, new approaches are now under development, especially based on genomic and proteomic analysis, aiming at the identification of the profile of CD-immunogenic epitopes of individual wheat species and varieties (for breeding and selection), and at quantitation of CD epitope-containing gluten proteins or fragments in foods (for food diagnostics).


We analyse a set of optical-to-near-infrared long-slit nuclear spectra of 16 infrared-luminous spiral galaxies. All of the studied sources present H2 emission, which reflects the star-forming nature of our sample, and they clearly display H I emission lines in the optical. Their continua contain many strong stellar absorption lines, with the most common features due to Ca I, Ca II, Fe I, Na I, Mg I, in addition to prominent absorption bands of TiO, VO, ZrO, CN, and CO. We report a homogeneous set of equivalent width (EW) measurements for 45 indices, from optical to NIR species for the 16 star-forming galaxies as well as for 19 early-type galaxies where we collected the data from the literature. This selected set of emission and absorption-feature measurements can be used to test predictions of the forthcoming generations of stellar population models. We find correlations among the different absorption features and propose here correlations between optical and NIR indices, as well as among different NIR indices, and compare them with model predictions. Although for the optical absorption features the models consistently agree with the observations, the NIR indices are much harder to interpret. For early-type spirals the measurements agree roughly with the models, while for star-forming objects they fail to predict the strengths of these indices.


Background: Anaemia affected population includes male, females as well as children and is a common problem that has been seen in western India. Megaloblastic Anaemia is common in India but regarding its prevalence and causative factors data is insufficient. The most common cause of megaloblastic anaemia includes deficiency of folic acid and Vitamin B12. Due to vegetarian lifestyle of the people the deficiency of Vitamin B12 is more common rather than the other macronutrient. In today's time, only iron and folic acid is provided by Anaemia control or prophylaxis program. This issue needs focus and hence this study has been chosen. Objective: To focus on the incidences of Megaloblastic Anaemia in Western India and analyse the possible causative factors. Materials and Methods: Patients with a haemoglobin <10 g/dl and peripheral smear findings consistent with megaloblastic anaemia present in the hospital over a period of 2 months will be included in the study. Patient's diet, drug intake, present symptoms and other history will be taken into account. Recording of complete blood counts, peripheral film examination, reticulocyte count and cobalamin and folate assays will be done. Patients suffering from chronic disease like renal disease, cancer, tuberculosis, liver disease etc., Will be excluded from the study. All data will be collected and statistically evaluated. Results: In the current study, 500 patients who were admitted to the gynaecology, paediatric, and medical wards were all assessed. These patients were all eligible to participate. They were divided into three groups based on the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) value, serum assay, and peripheral smear results: Macrocytic, normocytic, and microcytic anaemia. A megaloblastic blood film or low serum indicators along with the normal MCV value were categorised as having macrocytic anaemia. A total of 100 patients had macrocytic anaemia identified. The distribution of sexes was: 70 (male), 30 (female). There were discovered to be 55% of patients with cobalamin deficit and 8% of patients with folate deficiency. Every patient were vegetarians, coming from a poor socioeconomic status. Conclusion: The diagnosis of Megaloblastic anaemia was done through complete blood counts, red cells and assays of two vitamins. Majority of patients having megaloblastic anaemia was due to deficiency of cobalamin. Poor diet in cobalamin or folate were the contributing factors in Megaloblastic anaemia. Prevention can be done through awareness camps and education programmes and also through proper diet. Vitamin B12 should be included in the diet of patients along with iron and folic acid.


The few prethaw observations of tundra carbon fluxes suggest that there may be large spring releases, but little is known about the scale and underlying mechanisms of this phenomenon. To address these questions, we combined ecosystem eddy flux measurements from two towers near Barrow, Alaska, with mechanistic soil‐core thawing experiment. During a 2 week period prior to snowmelt in 2014, large fluxes were measured, reducing net summer uptake of CO2 by 46% and adding 6% to cumulative CH4 emissions. Emission pulses were linked to unique rain‐on‐snow events enhancing soil cracking. Controlled laboratory experiment revealed that as surface ice thaws, an immediate, large pulse of trapped gases is emitted. These results suggest that the Arctic CO2 and CH4 spring pulse is a delayed release of biogenic gas production from the previous fall and that the pulse can be large enough to offset a significant fraction of the moderate Arctic tundra carbon sink.


Eighty six adult female patients with multibacillary leprosy were included to study the sex hormone profile LH, FSH, and prolactin, as well as their gynecological events like menstrual function and fertility status. A third of the patients gave a history of irregularity of periods. The mean levels of LH and FSH were significantly higher in patients with multibacilary leprosy vis-à-vis the controls. Of the 24 married women with irregularity of periods, 12 (50%) were infertile. Seven of these patients had elevated levels of FSH and LH, almost reaching castration levels.


Abstract We systematically study the effects of collisions on the overall dynamical evolution of dense star clusters using Monte Carlo simulations over many relaxation times. We derive many observable properties of these clusters, including their core radii and the radial distribution of collision products. We also study different aspects of collisions in a cluster taking into account the shorter lifetimes of more massive stars, which has not been studied in detail before. Depending on the lifetimes of the significantly more massive collision products, observable properties of the cluster can be modified qualitatively; for example, even without binaries, core collapse can sometimes be avoided simply because of stellar collisions.


We conducted a cross-sectional study among 302 healthy Japanese male workers to make a mechanistic approach to the association between personality types and cancer; two types of personality, the emotionally unstable-introvert and the emotionally stable-extravert, were compared with each other in lifestyle, mental stress status, and biological markers such as plasma levels of neurotransmitters and NK activity of peripheral lymphocytes. We first found that emotionally unstable-introverts have a more unhealthy lifestyle associated with low NK activity than among stable-extraverts, along with higher sensitivity to mental stress (also known to suppress NK activity) than stable-extraverts. Second, emotionally unstable-introverts were found to have in fact decreased NK activity along with higher plasma levels of noradrenaline, when compared with stable-extraverts. Our results thus demonstrate that emotionally unstable-introverts have a decreased capacity of immunological host defense against cancer, which is possibly due to two factors, unhealthy lifestyle and high sensitivity to mental stress.


Paradental cyst is classified as an inflammatory cyst, and its occurrence in the anterior maxillary region is very rare. Several hypotheses have been put forward on the etiopathogenesis among which the formation of cyst secondary to inflammatory destruction of the periodontium and alveolar bone can be attributed to the present case. A 26-year-old male patient reported with loosened maxillary anterior teeth. After clinical and radiological examination, extraction of teeth #12, #11, #21, and #22 followed with immediate implant placement was planned. During extraction of #21, incidentally, a cyst was noted to be attached to the apices of #21 tooth. Implants were placed at #12, #11, and #22 sites, and socket of #21 was debrided thoroughly, followed by the placement of graft. A histopathological study of the cyst revealed it to be a paradental cyst. The patient was followed up for 6 months, and no recurrence of cystic lesion was noted. When immediate implant placement is being planned, considerations to the periodontal and periapical disease status of the teeth being extracted are crucial to achieve better treatment outcomes.


PurposeThe UN forecast of a 3-degree Celsius global temperature increase by 2,100 will exacerbate excessive heat. Population growth, urban densification, climate change and global warming contribute to heat waves, which are more intense in high-density environments. With urbanisation, vegetation is replaced by impervious materials which contribute to the urban heat island effect. Concurrently, adverse health outcomes and heat- related deaths are increasing, and heat stress affects labour productivity. More green infrastructure, such as green walls, is needed to mitigate these effects; however maintenance costs, OH&S issues and perceptions of fire risk inhibit take up. What if these barriers could be overcome by a green Wallbot? This research examines the feasibility of integrating smart technology in the form of a Wallbot.Design/methodology/approachThe research design comprised two workshops with key stakeholders; comprising green wall designers and installers, green wall maintenance teams, project managers and building owners with green wall installations, horticulture scientists, designers and mechatronics engineers. The aim was to gain a deeper understanding of the issues affecting maintenance of green walls on different building types in New South Wales Australia to inform the design of a prototype robot to maintain green walls.FindingsThe Wallbot has great potential to overcome the perceived barriers associated with maintaining green walls and also fire risk and detection. If these barriers are addressed, other locations, such as the sides of motorways or rail corridors, could be used for more green wall installations thereby increasing mitigation of UHI. This innovation would be a welcome addition to smart building technology and property maintenance.Research limitations/implicationsThis is a pilot study, and the sample of stakeholders attending the workshops was small, though experienced. The range of green walls is varied, and it was decided to focus initially on a specific type of green wall design for the prototype Wallbot. Therefore other types and sizes of green walls may suit other specifications of Wallbot design.Practical implicationsTo date, no robot exists that maintains green walls, and this innovative research developed a prototype for trialling maintenance and inspection.Originality/valueTo date, no robot exists that maintains green walls. No study to date has assessed stakeholder perceptions and developed prototype Wallbot technology.


Steroid receptor coactivator (SRC) proteins interact with glucocorticoid receptors in a ligand-dependent manner to enhance transcription. Although glucocorticoids are essential for normal brain maturation, little is known about the presence or regulation of SRC proteins in the developing central nervous system. In the current study we demonstrated that SRC-1 was highly expressed in the fetal limbic system (hippocampal CA3>CA1/2>CA4>dentate gyrus) at gestational d (gd) 40 (term, approximately 70 d), whereas SRC-2 was undetectable at all time points. Hippocampal SRC-1 mRNA and protein expression were reduced in male and female fetuses with advancing gestation. In contrast, SRC-1 mRNA levels increased significantly in the dentate gyrus near term. Repeated maternal injection (1 or 10 mg/kg on gd 40, 41, 50, 51, 60, and 61) with synthetic glucocorticoid had no effect on fetal limbic SRC-1 expression at gd 62 in either sex. SRC-1 and SRC-2 mRNA expression in the anterior pituitary did not change over the second half of gestation and was unaffected by prenatal exposure to synthetic glucocorticoid. In conclusion, SRC-1 expression undergoes spatial, temporal, and region-specific regulation during development, and limbic and pituitary SRC-1 and SRC-2 are not regulated by glucocorticoids in late gestation. Developmental changes in limbic SRC-1 expression probably have important consequences on steroid receptor signaling, which is known to be critical for brain maturation in late gestation.


Objective. Biological levels of localized colon tumors are needed for the diagnosis and prevention of colon cancer. Numerous biomarker studies are produced currently through research. We investigated some peptides with the aim of identifying biomarkers for colorectal cancer and lymphatic and hepatic metastasis. Materials and methods. A total of 100 patients with histologically proven colorectal cancer and 60 normal volunteers were included in this study. Preoperative serum was collected for analysis. Human neutrophil peptides levels (HNP) were assayed by solid phase RIA (Radio Immun Assay) based on monoclonal antibodies. Results. The HNP-1, -2 and -3—also known as a-defensin-1, -2 and -3—are present in elevated concentrations in the plasma from colorectal cancer patients. Conclusion. Preoperative high plasma HNP 1–3 levels are associated with colorectal cancer. The HNP 1–3 levels may procure information on patients with lymph node or hepatic metastasis.


In today's ever more technology-centric world, most of the business are now using online system. Online ticketing system is being used by many business and sectors. In this final year project, developing an integrated online bus ticketing system that integrates all bus operators in one mobile apps. The objectives of the project is to solve problems in current online ticketing system where all bus operators operates individually and create an apps that combine all bus operators in one system. Using this particular system, the apps can compare all bus operators in terms of time, date, price, availability and routes. The users will be given various alternatives and make the best choices before buy bus tickets. This system will reduce the time and increase efficiency of existing online bus ticketing system. This system can provides an easy, fast and smart reservation procedure to overcome existing systems. Users can perform online ticket reservation anytime and anywhere with less time consuming and energy. They can check availability of the ticket with their mobile phones rather than website. Bus Ticket Comparison apps aims to assist passengers such as tourist and student with their travelling by allowing them to search ticket easily with simple procedures rather than browsing from one website to another.


Summary Statement Femorotibial constraint is a key property of a total knee arthroplasty (TKA) prosthesis and should reflect the intended function of the device. With a validated simulation methodology, this study evaluated the constraint of two TKA prostheses designed for different intentions. Introduction TKA prostheses are semi-constrained artificial joints. Femorotibial constraint level is a major property of a prosthesis and should be designed to match the device9s intended function. Cruciate Retaining (CR) prostheses are usually indicated for patients with a functioning posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). For patients without a fully functioning PCL, CR-Constrained (CRC) prostheses with additional built-in constraint may be indicated. A CRC prosthesis usually consists of a CR femoral component and a tibial insert which has a more conforming sagittal profile to offer an increased femorotibial constraint. This study evaluated the anterior-posterior (AP) constraint behavior of two lines of prostheses (CR and CRC) from a same TKA product family. Using a validated computer simulation approach, multiple sizes of each product line were evaluated. Methods Both the CR and CRC prostheses are from the same TKA product family (Optetrak Logic, Exactech, FL, USA) and share identical femoral components and tibial baseplates. The CRC tibial inserts have a more conforming sagittal profile than the CR tibial inserts, especially in the anterior aspect. Three sizes (sizes 1, 3, and 5) from each product line were included in this study. Computer simulations using finite element analysis (FEA) were performed to evaluate the femorotibial constraint of each prosthesis per ASTM F1223 standard [1]. The simulation has been validated by comparison with physical testing (more details submitted in a separate paper to CORS 2013). Briefly, FEA models were created using 10-node tetrahedral elements with all materials considered linear elastic. The tibial baseplate was distally fixed and a constant compressive force (710 N) was applied to the femoral component. Nonlinear Surface-Surface-Contact was established at the articulating surfaces, as well as between the tibial insert and the tibial baseplate. A coefficient of friction of 0.1 was assumed for all articulations [2]. The femoral component was driven under a displacement-controlled scheme to slide along AP direction on the tibial insert. Constraint force occurring at the articulation was derived from the reaction force at the distal fixation; thus, the force-displacement curve can be plotted to characterise the constraint behavior of the prosthesis. A nonlinear FEA solver (NX Nastran SOL601, Siemens, TX, USA) was used to solve the simulations. Results The force-displacement curves predicted by the simulation exhibited the hysteresis loop appearance for both CR and CRC prostheses. The profile of the curves was generally consistent across different sizes for both product lines. The anterior constraint of the CRC prosthesis was significantly greater than the CR prosthesis. The posterior constraint of the CRC prosthesis was also slightly greater. Larger sizes exhibited reduced constraint compared to smaller sizes. Discussion/Conclusion The increased constraint of the CRC prosthesis revealed in the study is consistent with the geometrical characteristics and the functional intent of the device. The CRC tibial insert is expected to provide significantly greater anterior constraint than the CR prosthesis to prevent paradoxical femoral translation when the patient9s PCL is not fully functioning. The CRC tibial insert is also expected to provide slightly increased posterior constraint due to its elevated posterior lip. The observed hysteresis loop appearance is consistent with physical testing and the existence of friction. The reduced constraint on larger sizes is functionally desirable to offer proportional translation freedom. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of the simulation approach in quantifying the constraint behavior of different TKA prosthesis designs.


Whether water molecules of cometary and/or solar wind origin migrated to and accumulated in cold permanently shadowed areas at the lunar poles has long been debated from the perspective of scientific interest and expectations for future utilization. Recently, high reflectance condition was observed inside the lunar South Pole Shackleton Crater for the 1064.4 nm of the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and the high reflectance was explained to perhaps be due to a surface frost layer in excess of 20% water‐ice. Here we investigate the crater with the Selenological Engineering Explorer Multi‐band imager that has nine bands in the visible to near‐infrared range, including a 1050 nm band (62 m/pixel resolution). Part of the illuminated inner wall of Shackleton Crater exhibits high reflectance at 1050 nm but also exhibits the diagnostic 1250 nm spectral absorption, a signature that is consistent with naturally bright purest anorthosite.


When students study the discipline of statistics, a domain that can be remote and abstract for them, it is critical that they understand what the numbers mean and how those numbers help people arrive at decisions. This paper presents different approaches that help students learn how researchers actually work with statistics and shows how students can develop skills by communicating statistical results to others. The paper proposes that writing about data enhances student learning. It outlines writing strategies to bring the domains of research and experience together. In the author/educator's classes, students use small data sets to provide descriptions of what the numbers tell them, interpreting the data with an eye to the importance of personal perspective and historical context in their conclusions. They assess larger and more complicated data sets and write essays about the results. The paper finds that these assignments allow students to (1) learn to translate numbers into comprehensible, nontechnical language; (2) show them how the same data set can provide data that could lead to conflicting interpretations; (3) help them learn how to identify appropriate uses of the data; (4) convince them that, although the numerical results of research may be incontrovertible, the meaning of those numbers emerges only when someone uses them to draw a conclusion; and (5) illustrate that the "truth" of the meaning of data is often dependent on perspective and historical context. Contains 3 notes, a figure, a table, 6 references, and a sample data set. (BT) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.


Sixty‐nine patients with advanced breast cancer treated with cytotoxic chemotherapy were randomized to receive concomitantly either norethisterone acetate (progestogen group) or a placebo (placebo group). Objective responses were seen in 53% of patients in the progestogen group and 61% of patients in the placebo group. The median duration of response was the same for both groups (38 weeks). Three out of ten patients in the placebo group, who received subsequently the progestogen on relapse, had a further objective regression. The overall survival in the two groups was similar, although in a sub‐group of patients who had operable tumors, but a subsequent short disease‐free interval, survival was significantly better in the placebo group. There was less myelosuppression in the progestogen group, who were able to receive higher doses of cytotoxic drugs. Less nausea and vomiting occurred in the progestogen group, but other subjective side effects were similar. It is concluded that there is no advantage therapeutically in combining cytotoxic chemotherapy and progestogen therapy and, in some patients, better results are obtained using the two treatments sequentially. Cancer 42:1680–1686, 1978.


The signalling mechanisms responsible for the hydrolysis of sphingomyelin mediated by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) [1, 25(OH)(2)D(3)] and interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) in HL-60 cells were investigated. IFN-gamma was found to increase selectively the activity of cytosolic, Mg(2+)-independent, neutral sphingomyelinase. The treatment of HL-60 cells with the combination of 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) and IFN-gamma had an additive effect on sphingomyelin hydrolysis, ceramide release and the activity of cytosolic, Mg(2+)-independent, neutral sphingomyelinase. The pretreatment of HL-60 cells with staurosporine, chelerythrine chloride and bisindolylmaleimide abolished the activity of sphingomyelinase in response to 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) and IFN-gamma. Calphostin C, which acts on the regulatory site of protein kinase C (PKC), and Gö 6976, a selective inhibitor of Ca(2+)-dependent PKC isoforms, inhibited the effect of 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) but had no effect on the IFN-gamma-mediated increase in activity of sphingomyelinase. Isoform-specific antibodies were used to deplete different PKC isoforms from cytosol before the treatment of the cytosolic fraction with 1,25(OH)(2)D(3), arachidonic acid (AA) and PMA. The depletion of PKC isoforms beta(1), beta(2), epsilon, eta, mu, zeta and lambda had no effect on the activation of sphingomyelinase induced by 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) or by AA. The depletion of PKC alpha from the cytosol completely abolished the effect of 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) on sphingomyelinase activity but had no effect on the AA-induced activity of sphingomyelinase. PMA had no effect on the activity of sphingomyelinase in either untreated or alpha-depleted cytosol but significantly increased the activity of sphingomyelinase when added to cytosol depleted of PKC delta. Moreover, PMA inhibited the effect of 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) on sphingomyelinase activation but the inhibitory effect was abolished by prior depletion of PKC delta from the cytosol. These studies demonstrate that 1,25(OH)(2)D(3)-induced activation of sphingomyelinase is mediated by PKC alpha. Furthermore, PKC delta had an inhibitory effect on sphingomyelinase, suggesting that the difference between the 1,25(OH)(2)D(3)- and PMA-mediated effects on sphingomyelin turnover depends on the specific regulation of the PKC alpha and PKC delta isoforms.


The effects of anthocyanin-rich extract of the calyces of Hibiscus sabdariffa (HS) Linn and ascorbate on the 2, 4- dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH)-induced changes in the levels of antioxidant enzymes of rabbits were evaluated in this study. The organs examined were the blood, brain and liver. Thirty male adult rabbits used for the study were divided into six groups. Group 1, the control took only water while animals in groups 2,3,5 and 6 received 100 mg/kg body weight of the extracts once daily for 28 days. After 22nd day of treatment, the rabbits in groups 4, 5 and 6 received 28 mg/kg body weight of DNPH for the remaining 5 days of treatment, after which the animals were sacrificed. Exposure of rabbits to DNPH (28 mg/kg body weight) caused significant (P<0.05) increase in catalase and superoxide dismutase activities relative to the DNPH-free group. The activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase was also significantly (p<0.05) elevated in the serum following DNPH treatment when compared to control. However, pre-treatment with (100 mg/kg body weight) HS anthocyanins and ascorbate separately provided varying degrees of protection against DNPH-induced biochemical changes. Relative to the controls, the extract and ascorbate treatments significantly (P<0.05) decreased the activities of the antioxidant enzymes. Examined separately and compared, both treatments appeared to have offered effective protection against DNPH-induced oxidative damage, though the anthocyanin isolate appeared to be more effective in this capacity. Our findings show that Hibiscus sabdariffa anthocyanins are probably more potent antioxidants than ascorbate.


Principles of the object-oriented approach to development of the software for modeling longitudinal dynamic processes and processes of train's progress are stated in this paper. Besides this, a method of differential equations system's integration was analyzed and chosen.


Abstract Superplastic deformation behavior of a Zn-0.3 wt.% Al was investigated. Grain sizes of 1 ㎛ and 10 ㎛ were obtained by a thermomechanical treatment. A series of load relaxation and tensile tests were conducted at various temperatures ranging from RT (24℃) to 200℃. A large elongation of 1400% was obtained at room temperature in the specimens with the grain size of 1 ㎛. In the case of specimens with the grain size of 10 ㎛, relatively lower elongation at room temperature was obtained and, as the temperature increases above 100℃, a high elongation of about 400 % has been obtained at 200℃ under the strain rate of 2×10 -4 /s. Dynamic materials model (DMM) has been employed to explain the contribution from GBS of Zn-Al alloy. Power dissipation efficiency for GBS was evaluated as above 0.4 and found to be very close to the unity as strain rate decreased and temperature increased, suggesting that GBS could be regarded as Newtonian viscous flow. Key Words


The goal of structural health monitoring (SHM) are effective recognition and identification of possible structural damage, estimation of the actual state of a structure, and its potential for further exploitation, and finally, assessment of the eventual need for reparation. This research attempts to describe steps and procedures for SHM in order to locate possible damages to the structural and non-structural elements of buildings due to earthquakes. The target structure for SHM, in this study, is the Urban Disaster Prevention Research Center (UDPRC), located in Tsukuba, Japan. The SHM procedure is an addition to the regular monitoring of the UDPRC building for the purpose of detecting damage sustained since the building's original construction. The SHM methodology, described in this paper, consists of analyzing strong motion acceleration records from the year 1999 till 2012, and microtremor acceleration records from 2009 and 2011. Dynamical properties of the structure (natural frequencies, damping ratios, mode shapes) and parameters related to stiffness are extracted from the records by applying parametric system identification methods (ARX, ARMAX and N4SID). The changes of these parameters in time indicate the possible occurrence of damage to the building. Damage detection and localization have been performed by tracing the history of changes in the extracted dynamical parameters and storey stiffness during the observed period. The results obtained demonstrate the tendency of natural frequencies and storey stiffness to decrease, and damping ratios to increase due to aging and exposure of the structure to strong ground motion. A loss in frequency and stiffness is most evident in the year 2011, after the Great East Japan earthquake.


Extracted from text ... Book review
Lizard Social Behavior. Stanley F. Fox, J. Kelly McCoy and Troy A. Baird
(eds.). 2003. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London.
US$89. 438 pages, 21 colour photographs, 81 black & white figures, 55 tables.
ISBN 0-8018-6893-9.
75
African Journal of Herpetology, 2003 52(1): 75-76.
For more than 30 years, lizards have been
viewed as "model organisms" for the study
of physiological ecology, and especially for
studies of whole-organism locomotor performance.
At the same time, studies of lizard mating
and social behaviour have slowly yet
steadily accumulated in the literature. Now,
after having arguably snuck in through ..


Industry-wide voluntary agreements are touted as a means for corporations to take more corporate social responsibility (CSR). We study what type of joint CSR agreement induces competitors to increase CSR efforts in a model of oligopolistic competition with differentiated products. Consumers have a willingness to pay for more responsibly manufactured products. Firms are driven by profit, and are also possibly intrinsically motivated, to invest in CSR efforts. We find that cooperative agreements directly on the level of CSR reduce CSR efforts compared to competition. Such agreements throttle both for-profit and intrinsic motivation for CSR. CSR efforts only increase if agreements are permitted solely on output. Such production agreements, however, reduce total welfare in the market and raise antitrust concerns. Taking externalities into account may help justify a production agreement under a broader welfare standard, but not agreements on CSR directly. Moreover, simply requiring a higher CSR level by regulation while preserving competition always gives higher within-market welfare.


Polyphenols derived from a variety of plants have demonstrated antimicrobial activity against diverse microbial pathogens. Legionella pneumophila is an intracellular bacterial pathogen that opportunistically causes a severe inflammatory pneumonia in humans, called Legionnaires' Disease, via replication within macrophages. Previous studies demonstrated that tea polyphenols attenuate L. pneumophila intracellular replication within mouse macrophages via increased tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production. Sorghum bicolor is a sustainable cereal crop that thrives in arid environments and is well-suited to continued production in warming climates. Sorghum polyphenols have anticancer and antioxidant properties, but their antimicrobial activity has not been evaluated. Here, we investigated the impact of sorghum polyphenols on L. pneumophila intracellular replication within RAW 264.7 mouse macrophages. Sorghum high-polyphenol extract (HPE) attenuated L. pneumophila intracellular replication in a dose-dependent manner but did not impair either bacterial replication in rich media or macrophage viability. Moreover, HPE treatment enhanced both TNF and IL-6 secretion from L. pneumophila infected macrophages. Thus, polyphenols derived from sorghum enhance macrophage restriction of L. pneumophila, likely via increased pro-inflammatory cytokine production. This work reveals commonalities between plant polyphenol-mediated antimicrobial activity and provides a foundation for future evaluation of sorghum as an antimicrobial agent.


Single-head broccoli production has been increasingly popular among Brazilian olericulture farmers, although there is still little information regarding its nutrition. The aim of this paper was to study dry matter and nutrient uptake rate in single-head broccoli. The experiment was conducted during the period from March to May 2006 in Itatiba, SP, Brazil. The experimental design was completely randomized, with four repetitions. Plant samples were taken at 15, 25, 35, 45, 55, 65 and 75 days after transplanting (DAT), in order to determine leaf, stem and inflorescence dry matter and nutrients in each period. The plant had slow growth until 35 DAT, with little dry matter accumulation, increasing afterwards until the end of crop cycle. The largest dry matter accumulation occurred between 45 and 55 DAT, with an estimated increase of 2,068.75 mg plant -1 day -1 . Nutrient absorption followed the plant dry matter accumulation curve. From its formation, inflorescence becomes the main sink of all nutrients in the broccoli plant. Accumulated nutrients, in decreasing order, were N > K > Ca > Mg > S > P > Fe > > Mn > Zn > B > Cu, respectively.


The aim of the study is to better understand adolescents' sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs in order to inform the design of interventions and policies that improve access to and use of adolescent SRH services in Niger. A mixed-methods study was conducted and included: (i) a quantitative analysis of Niger's Demographic Health Survey/Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (DHS/MICS) 2012; (ii) 17 focus group discussions conducted in urban and rural areas among 128 adolescents; and (iii) a set of recommendations to improve access to and use of SRH services for adolescents in the country. The study found that age at first marriage among adolescent females is 15.7 years and is followed soon thereafter by sexual debut (15.9 years). According to focus group discussions (FGDs), adolescent's boys and girls start spending time together at 12 years in urban areas and 10 years in rural areas; this may lead to sexual intercourse in exchange for material and financial resources. Over 70 percent of adolescents have given birth by 18 years of age. Although knowledge about modern contraception is high (73 percent among female adolescents 15-19 years of age), the majority of adolescent girls do not use contraception due to societal and cultural beliefs. Moreover, FGDs reveal that the main barriers to use of SRH services is a lack of privacy and confidentiality, as well as finances, despite the government's elimination of user fees. The government has increased supply side interventions for adolescents and prioritized adolescents on the national agenda by approving the Family Planning Action Plan (2012-2020) and the National Plan for Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (2011), however these plans need to be monitored and evaluated to determine their effectiveness in reaching this population group. There is also a need to increase multi-sectoral demand-side interventions in the country.


Fetal heart motion is an important diagnostic indicator for structural detection and functional assessment of congenital heart disease. We propose an approach towards integrating deep convolutional and recurrent architectures that utilize localized spatial and temporal features of different anatomical substructures within a global spatiotemporal context for interpretation of fetal echocardiography videos. We formulate our task as a cardiac structure localization problem with convolutional architectures for aggregating global spatial context and detecting anatomical structures on spatial region proposals. This information is aggregated temporally by recurrent architectures to quantify the progressive motion patterns. We experimentally show that the resulting architecture combines anatomical landmark detection at the frame-level over multiple video sequences-with temporal progress of the associated anatomical motions to encode local spatiotemporal fetal heart dynamics and is validated on a real-world clinical dataset.


N and P are essential macronutrients for all organisms. How shifts in the availability of N or P affect fungal communities in temperate forests is not well understood. Here, we conducted a factorial P × N fertilization experiment to disentangle the effects of nutrient availability on soil-residing, root-associated, and ectomycorrhizal fungi in beech (Fagus sylvatica) forests differing in P availability. We tested the hypotheses that in P-poor forests, P fertilization leads to enhanced fungal diversity in soil and roots, resulting in enhanced P nutrition of beech, and that N fertilization aggravates P shortages, shifting the fungal communities toward nitrophilic species. In response to fertilizer treatments (1 × 50 kg ha−1 P and 5 × 30 kg ha−1 N within 2 years), the labile P fractions increased in soil and roots, regardless of plant-available P in soil. Root total P decreased in response to N fertilization and root total P increased in response to P addition at the low P site. Ectomycorrhizal species richness was unaffected by fertilizer treatments, but the relative abundances of ectomycorrhizal fungi increased in response to P or N addition. At the taxon level, fungal assemblages were unaffected by fertilizer treatments, but at the order level, different response patterns for saprotrophic fungi among soil and ectomycorrhizal fungi on roots were found. Boletales increased in response to P, and Russulales decreased under N + P addition. Our results suggest that trait conservatism in related species afforded resistance of the resident mycobiome composition to nutritional imbalances.


Article Information The present study aimed at examining the relationship between self-efficacy and organizational commitment with job satisfaction of office employees of Esfarayen County. Research method can be categorized as descriptive, correlation research. The study population consisted of all office employees who worked in 2014-2015 in offices in Esfaraen County of which 248 employees were selected using stratified random sampling. Data was collected through administrating three questionnaires, Sherer self-efficacy, Meyer and Allen organizational commitment and Barry Field-Roth job satisfaction. The results of data analysis using Pearson's correlation and multivariate regression showed that there was a significant positive correlation between self-efficacy and organizational commitment with job satisfaction of employees, and they predict it positively. Among different types of organizational commitment, affective commitment, normative commitment and continuance commitment were of significant positive relationship with job satisfaction of employees; however, only affective commitment and continuous commitment predicted it positively. The results obtained from data analysis using independent two-sample t-test showed that there was no difference between male and female employees' job satisfaction. The results of one-way analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference in different age groups, different years of services and different levels of education for job satisfaction of employees. The result suggested that employees who had higher organizational commitment and self-efficacy were of higher job satisfaction.


BOUT++ is a software package designed for solving plasma fluid models. It has been used to simulate a wide range of plasma phenomena ranging from linear stability analysis to 3D plasma turbulence and is capable of simulating a wide range of drift-reduced plasma fluid and gyro-fluid models. A verification exercise has been performed as part of a EUROfusion Enabling Research project, to rigorously test the correctness of the algorithms implemented in BOUT++, by testing order-of-accuracy convergence rates using the Method of Manufactured Solutions (MMS). We present tests of individual components including time-integration and advection schemes, non-orthogonal toroidal field-aligned coordinate systems and the shifted metric procedure which is used to handle highly sheared grids. The flux coordinate independent approach to differencing along magnetic field-lines has been implemented in BOUT++ and is here verified using the MMS in a sheared slab configuration. Finally, we show tests of three complete models: 2-field Hasegawa-Wakatani in 2D slab, 3-field reduced magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) in 3D field-aligned toroidal coordinates, and 5-field reduced MHD in slab geometry.


The awareness of the threat posed by Lightning Electromagnetic Pulse (LEMP) and High Power Microwaves (HPM) against the operational reliability of electric systems is rapidly growing. This has led to an increasing need for reliable tools, experimental as well as theoretical, for design, analysis and verification of system immunity against electromagnetic threats. This thesis presents four main studies of electromagnetic interaction:Firstly, we present measurements of common-mode (CM) voltages induced in a residential low-voltage power installation (LVPI) network exposed to LEMP. The sequences of induced voltage events during the complete duration of a negative cloud-to-ground (CG) flash, a positive CG flash, and a cloud flash (CC) are presented simultaneously with the incident electric field. In addition to the return strokes in CG flashes, we found that other discharge events, notably the bipolar pulse trains associated with the initiation of both CG lightning and cloud lightning, determine the transient lightning electromagnetic environment of electric systems and components.Secondly, the induced voltages due to broad and narrow impulse current injection into the shield of 48 m long signal and power cables were studied in order to simulate the coupling of LEMP to shipboard cable networks. Single- and multi-point grounding were studied for proposing an appropriate grounding philosophy for ships.Thirdly, we have studied microwave, 0.5 to 18 GHz, field-to-wire coupling for some basic wire geometries in Anechoic Chamber (AC) and Reverberation Chamber (RC). Receiving parameters, such as the antenna receiving cross section, σw, and the effective antenna length of the wire, he, are presented. The ratio between the maximum and average values of σw may exceed 10 to 15 dB in the AC, the average being equal to σw measured in the RC. These large variations of σw measured in an AC, as a function of the direction and polarization of the incident field, imply a substantial risk for obtaining too low values of σw since, for realistic radiated susceptibility (RS) tests in an AC, only a few angles of incidence can typically be afforded. Furthermore, σw measured in the RC follows a χ2-distribution with two degrees of freedom, which it does not do in the AC. Fourthly, we present measurements of microwave field-to-Printed-Circuit-Board coupling for single-sided PCBs, double-sided PCBs and multi-layer PCBs performed in RC. Receiving parameters are presented. σw measured for PCBs in the RC is found to follow a χ2-distribution with two degrees of freedom. The impedance-matched σw is bounded by λ2/8π. he of the traces on the PCBs is found to be roughly bounded by the wavelength λ.


We have developed a microfluidic chip for colorimetric Cu2+ detection. In this chip, it is facile to do colorimetric Cu2+ detection based on gold nanoparticles. This method has a dynamic detection range from 0.75 to 50 µmol/L with only 20 µL solution including detection reagents and sample. The result can be readout by naked eye and photographed by digital cameras. With the help of image processing software, we could measure the RGB value and calculate the Blue/Red ratio for more accurate quantification. Tap water could be detected in this portable chip.


Three groups of students—19 hard of hearing, 20 deaf, and a control group of 36 typically developing hearing readers—were compared on their ability to process written words at the lexical level and on their comprehension of words within the structure of a sentence. Findings generally suggested that severe prelingual hearing loss does not prevent the development of word processing strategies adequate for efficient processing of written words at the lexical level, although such hearing loss seems to put individuals at risk of failure in internalizing syntactic knowledge crucial for proper processing of words at the sentence level. Evidence further indicated that neither the amount of functional hearing (deaf vs. hard of hearing), the hearing status of their parents (hearing impaired vs. hearing), nor the use of sign language as a primary communication mode was a direct cause in this regard.


In recent years, there has been a rapid growth of location-based social networking services, such as Foursquare and Facebook Places, which have attracted an increasing number of users and greatly enriched their urban experience. Typical location-based social networking sites allow a user to "check in" at a real-world POI (point of interest, e.g., a hotel, restaurant, theater, etc.), leave tips toward the POI, and share the check-in with their online friends. The check-in action bridges the gap between real world and online social networks, resulting in a new type of social networks, namely location-based social networks (LBSNs). Compared to traditional GPS data, location-based social networks data contains unique properties with abundant heterogeneous information to reveal human mobility, i.e., "when and where a user (who) has been to for what," corresponding to an unprecedented opportunity to better understand human mobility from spatial, temporal, social, and content aspects. The mi ing and understanding of human mobility can further lead to effective approaches to improve current location-based services from mobile marketing to recommender systems, providing users more convenient life experience than before. This book takes a data mining perspective to offer an overview of studying human mobility in location-based social networks and illuminate a wide range of related computational tasks. It introduces basic concepts, elaborates associated challenges, reviews state-of-the-art algorithms with illustrative examples and real-world LBSN datasets, and discusses effective evaluation methods in mining human mobility. In particular, we illustrate unique characteristics and research opportunities of LBSN data, present representative tasks of mining human mobility on location-based social networks, including capturing user mobility patterns to understand when and where a user commonly goes (location prediction), and exploiting user preferences and location profiles to inv stigate where and when a user wants to explore (location recommendation), along with studying a user's check-in activity in terms of why a user goes to a certain location.


"Generation X" is phrase that has gained entry into modern management literature. Generation X managers are expected to shoulder leadership responsibilities to steer future organizations towards excellence. However, not much research work has been carried out in Indian context to study the characteristics and preferences of Generation X and influence behavioural training on their interpersonal competence. Hence a study was conducted to study the influence of behavioural training on the interpersonal competence of Generation X managers. Data for the study were collected from 243 Generation X managers from a population of 353. The respondents were from nine companies that belonged to seven manufacturing industries. This paper presents the profile of Generation X managers, establishes the need of the study, the methodology adapted to collect the data for the study and discusses the findings of the study. Key w ords : Generation X, Interpersonal Competence, Behavioural Training


Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is a global response in plants induced at the site of infection that leads to long-lasting and broad-spectrum disease resistance at distal, uninfected tissues. Despite the importance of this priming mechanism, the identity of the mobile defense signal that moves systemically throughout plants to initiate SAR has remained elusive. In this paper, we describe a new metabolite, N-hydroxy-pipecolic acid (N-OH-Pip), and provide evidence that this molecule is a mobile signal that plays a central role in initiating SAR signal transduction in Arabidopsis thaliana. We demonstrate that FLAVIN-DEPENDENT MONOOXYGENASE 1 (FMO1), a key regulator of SAR-associated defense priming, can synthesize N-OH-Pip from pipecolic acid in planta, and exogenously applied N-OH-PIP moves systemically in Arabidopsis and can rescue the SAR-deficiency of fmo1 mutants. We also demonstrate that N-OH-Pip treatment causes systemic changes in the expression of pathogenesis-related genes and metabolic pathways throughout the plant, and enhances resistance to a bacterial pathogen. This work provides new insight into the chemical nature of a mobile signal for SAR and also suggests that the N-OH-Pip pathway is a promising target for metabolic engineering to enhance disease resistance.


Abstract Up to the present, exploration of the UK Lower Cretaceous deep-water sandstone play has been confined largely to the Moray Firth basins. The Lower Cretaceous of the Central Graben area has been modelled previously as predominantly shale-prone, and hence unattractive to exploration. There is a growing realization that this may not be the case. Since seismic imaging of Lower Cretaceous sandstones is known to be poor whether hydrocarbon-bearing or water-wet, a robust depositional model must be constructed from well and regional geological data in order to predict sandstone distribution and geometry, and hence to aid identification of potential hydrocarbon traps. Of the hundreds of wells drilled in the Central Graben area that targeted deeper Jurassic-Triassic reservoirs, virtually all have been located on the flanks of the graben, or on intra-graben highs. However, 71 of these wells have proved sandstones or traces of sandstone within the Lower Cretaceous, giving grounds for optimism that more substantial deep-water sandstone developments may be present within the graben depocentres. Twenty-six leads have been identified within these depocentres; most of these are located within stratigraphic traps in interpreted detached basin floor fans.


The aim of this article is to analyse masculinity and experimental practices among plasma physicists. The study is based on ethnographic field work with observations and interviews among experimental plasma physicists in a laboratory in the United States. Through daily practices and hands-on situations, the experimental plasma physicists defined their experimental work as strongly associated with masculinity. Both practices and discourses about working with the experiments were fringed with connotations of a craft, of strength and physical efforts. Together, the practices and discourses were used as marks of identity for the laboratory and for the group of physicists within.


High-performance electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding materials possess features of light weight, flexibility and excellent EMI shielding effectiveness. However, continuous efforts are still needed to satisfy the urgent demand for electromagnetic pollution shielding. In this study, a lightweight and flexible hybrid film with a multi-scale double-continuous conductive network (TiO2/SiO2@PPy) and sandwich structure (TiO2/SiO2@PPy@rGO) was prepared via a delicate structure design of electrospun TiO2/SiO2 nanofibers. The hybrid film worked as an effective dissipative medium, leading to a high EMI shielding effectiveness of approximately 30 dB in the X band (8-12 GHz) and excellent specific EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) of ∼13 829 dB cm2 g-1. The hybrid film has a tensile strength of 2.71 MPa, while its density is only 0.089 g cm-3. The hybrid films maintained good electrical and EMI shielding properties after repeated bending, indicating their favorable flexibility. The delicate structure-design strategy of the electrospun nanofibers presents a practicable way to prepare lightweight and flexible hybrid films for high-performance EMI shielding materials in flexible electronics, military and healthcare applications.


Self-consistent solutions for triaxial mass models are highly non-unique. In general, some of these solutions might be dynamically unstable, making them inappropriate as descriptions of steady-state galaxies. Here we demonstrate for the first time the existence in triaxial galaxy models of an instability similar to the radial-orbit instability of spherical models. The instability manifests itself when the number of box orbits, with predominantly radially motions, is sufficiently large. N-body simulations verify that the evolution is due neither to chaotic orbits nor to departures of the model from selfconsistency, but rather to a collective mode. The instability transforms the triaxial model into a more prolate, but still triaxial, configuration. Stable triaxial models are obtained when the mass contribution of radial orbits is reduced. The implications of our results for the shapes of dark-matter halos are discussed. Subject headings: galaxies: elliptical and lenticular, cD - stellar dynamics - methods:numerical, (cosmology:) dark matter


Detection of driver cognitive distraction is critical for active safety systems of road vehicles. Compared with visual distraction, cognitive distraction is more challenging for detection due to the lack of apparent exterior features. This paper presents a novel real-time detection algorithm for driver cognitive distraction by using support vector machine (SVM). Data are collected from 26 subjects, driving in typical urban and highway scenarios in a simulator. The chosen urban scenario is the stop-controlled intersection and the highway scenario is the speed-limited highway. Driver cognitive distraction while driving is induced by clock tasks which compete with the main driving tasks for visuospatial short working memory. For each subject, distracted driving instances and the equal number of non-distracted driving instances were collected (24 for urban scenario and 20 for highway scenario in total). Features concerning both driving performance and eye movement are used for training and validation. The proposed algorithm have correct rate of 93.0% and 98.5% for highway and urban scenarios respectively. Results also show that driver distraction can be recognized 6.5 s to 9.0 s after its happening, indicating good performance of the detection algorithm.


Ranpirnase (Rap) is an amphibian ribonuclease showing anti-tumor activity in clinical studies. We have previously reported that targeted delivery of Rap by chemical conjugation or recombinant fusion with antibodies specific for CD22, CD74 and Trop-2 could enhance its in vitro cytotoxicity as high as 10,000-fold in selected malignant cell lines. The DOCK-AND-LOCKTM (DNLTM) platform technology is a powerful method to construct novel agents of defined composition and retained bioactivity by site-specific conjugation of two types of modules, one containing the dimerization and docking domain (DDD) of cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA), referred to as the DDD module, and the other bearing the anchoring domain (AD) of an interactive A-kinase anchoring protein (AKAP), referred to as the AD module. Among the distinctive features of DNL are the spontaneous formation of a dimer of the DDD module and the self-assembly of the DDD module with the AD module into a non-covalent complex, which is subsequently rendered covalent with disulfide bonds to enhance stability in vivo. The amino acid sequences of a pair of DDD and AD linkers useful for the DNL conjugation are termed DDD2 and AD2, respectively. To further explore the potential of Rap-based immunotoxins, we expressed a DDD2-module of Rap in E. coli and linked the resulting dimer of Rap to an AD2-module of a humanized IgG (expressed in myeloma cells) at each of the carboxyl termini of either the light chain (the CK-format) or the heavy chain (the CH3-format), thus producing a class of novel immunoRNases with quadruple Rap. To date, we have evaluated a pair of such constructs, 22* -Rap and 22-Rap, comprising four copies of Rap linked to the CK or CH3 termini of epratuzumab (humanized anti-CD22), respectively, in a panel of CD22-expressing human lymphoma/leukemia cell lines, which include Burkitt lymphoma (Daudi, Raji, Ramos), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (REH, 697, and RS4;11), and mantle cell lymphoma (Granta-519 and Jeko-1). The results of the MTS assay indicated that 22* -Rap was highly active (EC50 ≤ 1 nM) against Daudi, Ramos, Raji, REH, 697, RS4;11, and Granta-519 cells. Comparable cytotoxicity with EC50 values in the subnanomolar range also was observed for 22-Rap in Ramos, Daudi and Jeko-1 cells. In contrast, neither the individual DNL components (IgG-AD2 or Rap-DDD2), tested alone or in combination, nor E1* -Rap, the counterpart of 22* -Rap, generated by substituting epratuzumab with hRS7 IgG (humanized anti-Trop-2), showed notable cytotoxicity. In a disseminated Daudi xenograft model in which treatment with 10 or 20 µg of 22* -Rap (q4dx4) started 7 days after intravenous inoculation of the tumor cells, all 10 mice (5 in each group) survived over 126 days and were tumor-free, whereas the control groups, treated with saline, epratuzumab (25 µg, q4dx4), or the same dose-schedule of nonspecific control, E1* -Rap, succumbed within 36 days. These promising results, together with the findings that 22* -Rap at 10 nM was marginally toxic to B cells and other hematological cells in PBMCs, encourage further development of 22* -Rap or 22-Rap for therapy of CD22-expressing lymphomas and leukemias. Disclosures: Liu:IBC Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Stock option, Stock option Other; Immunomedics, Inc.: Employment, Stock option Other. Cardillo:Immunomedics, Inc.: Employment, Stock option Other. Goldenberg:Immunomedics: Employment, stock options, stock options Patents & Royalties. Chang:IBC Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Stock option, Stock option Other; Immunomedics, Inc: Employment, Stock option Other.


Competition authorities need to obtain intelligence and evidence of antitrust violations so as to be able to punish the antitrust violators and create deterrence. The best information will usually be in the hands of the antitrust violators themselves. The first part of this article gives an overview of the legal instruments which are available to the European Commission and the competition authorities of the Member States in order to collect intelligence and evidence of violations of Articles 81 or 82 EC from the undertakings that have committed these violations or from their staff. The limitations flowing from the privilege against self-incrimination are discussed in particular. The second part of the article contains an economic analysis of the use of direct force, compulsion and leniency as three methods to obtain intelligence and evidence from antitrust violators, including an economic interpretation of the privilege against self-incrimination. Comparing the strengths and weaknesses of the use of direct force, compulsion and leniency, it appears that a combination of these instruments is required for effective and efficient antitrust enforcement.


The study assessed carbon stocks of Hanang mountain forest, Tanzania. Thirty-four sample plots (40 × 50 m) were established along an altitudinal gradient. All trees with diameter at breast height ≥10 cm were identified and measured, and herb species and soil were sampled from four 1 × 1 m quadrats within 10 × 10 m subplots. Mean carbon stock was 48.37 and 0.26 t C ha-1 for tree and herb species, respectively. Soil organic carbon (SOC) was 64.2, 41.93 and 31.0 t C ha-1 in the upper, mid and lower layers, respectively. It was found that there was significant difference in tree carbon (p 0.05) in herbaceous carbon and SOC in the three layers along an altitudinal gradient. Tree carbon was low compared to other tropical areas where allometric models were employed. In contrast, SOC was high compared to other similar forests in the tropics. Anthropogenic threats will likely diminish the SOC hence conservation measures are needed.

 Key words: Carbon, stocks, altitudinal gradient, soil organic carbon (SOC).


There is considerable evidence to implicate T cells in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). They initiate and sustain inflammation and therefore are attractive targets for immunotherapy. Several strategies targeting T cells have been tried in RA. The use of monoclonal antibodies to deplete T cells have been used extensively but with little success. Studies have shown that T cell depleting antibodies produce profound peripheral blood lymphopenia but they are less effective in depleting lymphocytes in the joint. Since clinical efficacy is likely to depend on depleting almost all synovial lymphocytes, high doses of monoclonal antibodies would have to be given. However, the invariably severe peripheral blood lymphopenia induced by such a regimen is likely to result in profound immunosuppression. Therefore, this strategy has been abandoned and recent attempts have been made to induce tolerance in RA. In animal models of RA, treatment with high dose non-depleting anti-CD4 monoclonal antibody protects them from arthritis induced by injection of streptococcal cell wall. In addition, it leads to a state of anergy which protects the animals from arthritis induction without further treatment with anti-CD4 monoclonal antibody. This is currently being used in clinical trials of RA. Other tolerance inducing treatment strategies include T cell or T cell receptor vaccination and oral tolerance. The former is particularly difficult since the rheumatoid arthritogenic antigen and the pathogenic T cell remain unknown. The latter has shown promise in placebo controlled trials although the ideal dosage remains unknown. The mechanism of action of oral tolerance involves either immunosuppressive T cell cytokines, T cell anergy or depletion.


The global demand on chemicals and fuels is exponentially increasing. At the same time, the excessive exploitation of fossil-based resources for the coverage of this demand has a high environmental impact, motivating the production of green chemicals and biofuels from renewable resources. Nowadays, the microbial production of green chemicals and fuels gains increasing attention, especially due to the ease in the construction of metabolically engineered microorganisms with high production capacities. This ease was achieved via the development of efficient genome engineering tools. This thesis describes the development of novel genetic tools for mesophilic and thermophilic bacteria, for metabolic engineering purposes. More specifically, here is reported: 1) the development of the first CRISPR-SpCas9-based genome engineering tools for the mesophilic bacteria Rhodobacter sphaeroides and Pseudomonas putida, as well as for the moderate thermophilic bacterium Bacillus smithii, 2) the in vitro characterization of one of the first reported thermotolerant Cas9 homologs, denoted as ThermoCas9, as well the development of the first CRISPR-ThermoCas9-based genome engineering tools for strictly thermophilic bacteria, and 3) the use of the developed tools for the metabolic exploration and exploitation of the moderate thermophilic bacterium B. smithii, towards the characterization of its acetate production pathway and the enhancement of its dicarboxylic acids productivity.


ABSTRACT
Lesbian and bisexual women may be at an increased risk for gynecologic infections and breast cancer due to a higher prevalence of factors such as obesity, smoking, and lower pregnancy rates. This article discusses the role of healthcare professionals in preventive screening for breast and gynecologic cancers and promoting healthy living in these patients by avoiding smoking, maintaining an ideal body weight, and limiting alcohol consumption.


A new carbazole- containing polymer has been synthesized for further photophysical studies. Efficient synthesis of the substituted methyl methacrylate has been accomplished via microwave assisted synthesis of 1 - chloro - 4 - carboxy - 5, 6, 7, 8- tetrahydrocarbazole followed by further steps, such as reduction of the 4-substituted methyl carboxylate, dechlorination of the ring and at last, the reaction of the 4 - hydroxymethyl - 9 - ethyl carbazole with methacryloyl chloride. The resulting monomer was then polymerized free-radically to form the polymer, having a distribution Mw/Mn of 2.6.


Background Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is a common congenital heart disease causing some blood in the aorta to flow into the pulmonary artery (PA), resulting in dilatation of the left atrium (IA) and left ventricle (LY), increased B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) level, and the development of h eart failure. Objectives To evaluate the clinical course, changes in heart size and function, and BNP level after transcatheter closure of PDA using the Amplatzer® duct occluder (ADO). Methods This quasi-experimental study used a one-group, pretestposttest design, and was done on PDA patients who underwent transcatheter closure using ADO. The outcomes measurements were performed four times, namely, before the procedure and at one, three, and six months after the procedure. Results were compared using a serial time analysis. Outcomes measured were heart failure scores, chest x-ray (CXR) and echocardiography findings, and plasma BNP level. Results There were 23 PDA patients enrolled, of which 12 were females. Subjects' median bodyweight was 11 (range 6.6 to 55) kg. Prior to PDA closure, 12 subjects had mild heart fa ilure (class II) and 7 had moderate heart failure (class III). On follow-up at one month after the procedure, all subjects had improved heart failure scores (P<0.0001), and no heart failure was found on further follow up. Likewise, there was a decreased mean cardiothoracic ratio (CTR) from 58 to 55% at 1-month (P = 0.001), and also from 55 to 52% at3-month follow up (P<0.0001), but no further decrease was found afterwards (P = 0.798). The left atrium/aorta (LA/Ao) ratio measured by echocardiography also showed a statistically significant decrease from 1.6 prior to the procedure to 1.3 (P<0.0001) in the first month, but it remained stable afterwards. Diastolic function, represented by peak E and A waves also significantly decreased from 127 and 91 cm/sec, before the procedure, to 90 and 68 cm/sec, respectively, at 1 month follow-up (P <0.0001 and P < 0.0001, respectively) . However, there were no statistically significant changes in E/ A ratio, ejection fract ion and fractional shortening. Plasma BNP level significantly decreased from 58 pg/mL before the procedure to 28 pg/mL at 1 month follow-up (P= 0 .001), but no further significant decrease was observed afterwards. Conclusion After PDA closure with ADO, we observe significant improvements in heart failure scores, heart size, diastolic function, and BNP level of our subjects especially in the first month after the procedure.


We report on the properties of suprathermal electrons observed over three discrete auroral arcs from a sounding rocket. By applying shifted kappa distributions and analyzing kappa parameters (density, temperature, and kappa), we found three novel characteristics to provide clues to understand the auroral acceleration mechanisms and magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling processes. First, the auroral potential drop was proportional to the inverse square of kappa, consistent with previous theoretical investigations by Dors and Kletzing ( ). The observed dependency was slightly stronger than their calculations, suggesting additional contributions from nonlinear plasma processes. Second, the polytropic relation showed nonadiabatic (near isothermal) state of the source electrons. This can provide a restriction on the pressure balance issues in the plasma sheet convection. Third, there was a clear difference in the polytropic and kappa indices for the first arc as opposed to the second and the third arcs, suggesting different source locations in the plasma sheet for the precipitating electrons that cause these nearby arcs.


Using software agents as next generation flexible components and applying reuse technologies to rapidly construct agents and agent systems have great promise to improve application and system construction. Agent-based approach in software engineering is regarded as a promising technique in the development of software. First, a principle and method structured data object based for simplifying the complex information system development and evolution is discussed, and a structured object-based agent component framework is proposed. Second, one of the implementation details about a structured object-based agent component is discussed. Finally, an application instance developed by this method is introduced.


Invertebrate aquatic assemblages in ponds from Mediterranean wetlands are composed of organisms belonging to different taxonomic groups, which present a wide range of sizes (from small rotifers to large crustaceans or insects). Although they are often sampled and analyzed separately, the ecological links among these organisms should be considered, especially in very shallow waters. In our study, invertebrate assemblages (including micro-, macrozooplankton and macroinvertebrates) were characterized in eight shal- low lakes from Mediterranean wetlands in Southeastern Spain. A great spatial and temporal variability in the assemblages and in some environmental features was observed. The community was dominated in abundance and species richness by rotifers in most of the water bodies. Fish greatly contributed to the differences in community composition, as fishless ponds presented abundant and diverse cladoceran populations. Nutrient and chlorophyll-a concentration, conductivity and macrophyte cover had also a great influence on these as- semblages, especially in micro- and macrozooplankton. The temporal changes observed in some of these vari- ables affect the proportion of invertebrate biomass of the different groups along the study period. All this environmental heterogeneity produces similar responses in the invertebrate groups, in general well adapted to salinity changes or high trophic conditions. Although the heterogeneity and human disturbances can increase regional diversity, they can cause the disappearance of valuable habitats, and finally, the homogeneity in invertebrate assemblages.


Abstract 270 HIT is an immune thrombocytopenic disorder associated with a high risk of thrombosis. Mechanistic studies have focused on circulating platelet factor 4 (PF4)/heparin complexes and on the subsequent activation of platelets. We and others have shown that binding of PF4 to cell surface glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) not only makes platelets critical targets in the pathogenesis of HIT, but monocytes and neutrophils as well. Our previous observations that monocyte depletion using clodronate-laden liposomes prior to induction of HIT in a passive immunization model mitigated the prothrombotic state, but paradoxically exacerbated initial thrombocytopenia, suggest that our understanding of the relationship between monocyte activation, platelet activation, thrombocytopenia and thrombosis is unsettled. Chondroitin sulfate is the predominant GAG expressed by platelets; therefore, they bind PF4 less avidly than monocytes, which have a cell surface rich in heparan and dermatan sulfates. Based on this cell-type difference in surface affinity for PF4, we hypothesized that: 1) monocytes and perhaps other vascular cells bind PF4 and form surface PF4/HIT antigenic complexes preferentially when compared with platelets, and 2) depletion of this high-affinity (monocyte) "sink" shifts PF4 binding to platelets making them more targeted. Flow cytometric analysis of whole mouse and human blood support these hypotheses as monocytes bind ∼100-fold more FITC-labeled human (h) PF4 than platelets or red blood cells and ∼10-fold more than neutrophils or lymphocytes. When isolated platelets and white blood cells are admixed, the amount of exogenously added hPF4 bound to platelets is inversely related to the leukocyte:platelet ratio. In vitro, exposure of whole blood to the HIT-like monoclonal antibody KKO plus recombinant hPF4 generated an intense platelet activation characterized by binding of annexin V and factor Xa, consistent with formation of coated platelets. Importantly, formation of coated platelets was attenuated by monocyte depletion from whole blood samples or by inhibition of thrombin by PPACK. We then infused KKO into transgenic mice expressing hPF4 and hFcgRIIA to induce HIT and followed the temporal profile of antibody binding to various cell types. Binding of KKO to monocytes was detected within 30 min of injection. These monocytes remained the predominant target over the first 4 hrs, after which binding decreased as the circulating monocytes were depleted. The mechanism and implications of this relatively late monocytopenia during HIT is under study. However, these data provide an explanation of how clodronate-laden monocyte depletion prior to inducing HIT exacerbated thrombocytopenia in the murine model of HIT, while decreasing the prothrombotic state: Early in the disease when PF4 is limited, monocytes selectively bind the PF4 and are targeted by HIT antibodies, which induces tissue factor and generates thrombin, but limits initial thrombocytopenia. Later, after induction of large amounts of TF, activated monocytes are cleared, shifting the target of antigen-antibody interactions to the surface of platelets, enhancing their response to available thrombin, thereby establishing a feed-forward prothrombotic cycle and more platelet clearance. In conclusion, we propose that HIT evolves from a monocyte-focused to a platelet-focused disease and that early intervention to prevent monocyte activation provides a new important potential therapeutic target for intervention at the earliest stages of disease recognition that may become less effective as time passes. Disclosures: Cines: Amgen Inc.: Consultancy; GlaxoSmithKline: Consultancy; Eisai: Consultancy.


Variable impedance apparatus such as a static VAr compensator (SVC) and a variable series capacitor (VSC) can improve the steady-state stability of a power system if they are located appropriately. The present paper proposes an index for identifying the location of SVC and VSC in large scale power systems for effective damping. The index is called LIED (location index for effective damping) by the authors. Since LIED can be computed quickly for large scale power systems which have more than two hundred generators without conducting a number of digital simulations and eigenvalue analyses, it is valuable for the system planner who needs to identify the effective location of SVC and VSC. The proposed index is applied to the New England test system and its validity is demonstrated through digital simulations. >


This paper presents a review of back-tracking geometry not only for single axis but also for two-axis tracking and analyses the corresponding energy gains. It compares the different back-tracking strategies with the ideal tracking in terms of energy yield concluding, on the one hand, that back-tracking is more useñil for single horizontal axis than for the single vertical one, and on the other hand, that back-tracking is more efficient when applied in the primary axis of a two-axis tracker. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


In a control group (n = 12) the histamine content of the liver was 1.42 microgram/g tissue and the activity of the histamine-degradating enzyme, HMT, 421.5 pmol/(min . mg protein). In patients with affections of the biliary tract (n = 12) the histamine content was significantly raised to 3.09 microgram/g tissue and the HMT activity slightly diminished [349 pmol/(min . mg protein)]. The lowest values of HMT activity were found in the livers of those patients with histologically proven damage of liver cells.


This paper provides a review of digital image correlation method for in-plane displacement measurements, as well as the variants of digital image correlation algorithms. After a broad literature review on digital image correlation, we found that it is clear that digital image correlation algorithms could be divided into two groups according to the image analysis performed in the spatial domain or the spectral domain. The state of the art in both groups is described and a comparison between them is demonstrated in the paper. Digital image correlation method, as one of experimental mechanics techniques, is broadly applied to research and engineering. As an example, digital image correlation applications for thermomechanical property characterization and thermomechanical reliability in electronics packaging are demonstrated and discussed


By changing the polarization of less than 7 fs input pulses ,that was coupled into the single mode birefringent photonic crystal fiber, we achieved both polarization and power modulation of the anti-Stokes line simultaneously.


A natural question about Quantum Field Theory is whether there is a
deformation to a trivial gapped phase. If the underlying theory has an
anomaly, then symmetric deformations can never lead to a trivial phase.
We discuss such discrete anomalies in Abelian Higgs models in 1+1 and
2+1 dimensions. We emphasize the role of charge conjugation symmetry in
these anomalies; for example, we obtain nontrivial constraints on the
degrees of freedom that live on a domain wall in the VBS phase of the
Abelian Higgs model in 2+1 dimensions. In addition, as a byproduct of
our analysis, we show that in 1+1 dimensions the Abelian Higgs model is
dual to the Ising model. We also study variations of the Abelian Higgs
model in 1+1 and 2+1 dimensions where there is no dynamical particle of
unit charge. These models have a center symmetry and additional discrete
anomalies. In the absence of a dynamical unit charge particle, the Ising
transition in the 1+1 dimensional Abelian Higgs model is removed. These
models without a unit charge particle exhibit a remarkably persistent
order: we prove that the system cannot be disordered by either quantum
or thermal fluctuations. Equivalently, when these theories are studied
on a circle, no matter how small or large the circle is, the ground
state is non-trivial.


Cores of green wood taken from Eucalyptus pilularis and Pinus patula trees with a standard 5-mm increment borer reduce in diameter with time. This reduction occurs in both the longitudinal and tangential axes. The rate of reduction is exponential and is at a maximum immediately after sampling, cores reaching a constant diameter in about 24 to 48 hours. In some cases the reduction approaches 0.05 mm and is considered to be a significant variable where such cores are used for the Polge/Thiercelin method of growth stress analysis. As this reduction was not reproducible in cores taken from rewetted dry wood, it is considered to be due to growth stresses rather than the cutting action of the borer.


There are good grounds for arguing that the state should decide on the form of medical provision for children. One of these is that typically the state is better able to make informed decisions because it has access to all the latest medical research. Another is that occasionally there are epidemics in schools and it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that illnesses should not be spread unnecessarily. In this case, it might justifiably order compulsory vaccination.


The roles of molecular techniques in ocular pathology include: a) aiding the understanding of disease pathogenesis; b) establishing diagnoses; c) predicting prognosis; d) predicting therapy response; and e) detecting residual disease. Examples of recent developments in molecular pathology include better understanding of the sonic hedgehog pathway in BCC; polyomavirus MCPyV in Merkel cell carcinoma; microsatellite instability in sebaceous carcinoma; fusion oncogenes in adenoid cystic carcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma; and A20 gene deletions in conjunctival MALT lymphoma. Molecular techniques, such as IgH-PCR and TCR-PCR, are required regularly for the confirmation of the diagnosis of ocular B- and T-cell lymphomas, respectively. Molecular methods are used for prognostication in uveal melanoma, in combination with the clinical and histomorphological features of these tumours. The presence of monosomy 3 and polysomy 8 was initially detected using FISH but MLPA, aCGH, aSNP and GEP, have been introduced in various ocular oncology centres, providing more detailed information. It is hoped that next generation sequencing will provide potential targets for improved therapies in ocular malignancies.


A new method of determining X-ray scattering factors by dynamical interference is described. The theoretical background to the interference effect is discussed in detail and an expression for relating the fringe period to the structure factor is developed. The method relies on anomalous transmission and is therefore most suitable for measurements on nearly perfect crystals of high atomic weight. It also has the attractive property of being insensitive to slowly varying lattice strains. Applying the method to the 220 reflexion of silicon a value of 8.487 ± 0.017 for the atomic scattering factor has been obtained using Mo Kα1 radiation. This value is in excellent agreement with the author's previous results using the Pendellosung method.


Byzantine agreement (BA) is a distributed consensus problem where $n$ processors want to reach agreement on an $\ell$-bit message or value, but up to $t$ of the processors are dishonest or faulty. The challenge of this BA problem lies in achieving agreement despite the presence of dishonest processors who may arbitrarily deviate from the designed protocol. The quality of a BA protocol is measured primarily by using the following three parameters: the number of processors $n$ as a function of $t$ allowed (resilience); the number of rounds (round complexity); and the total number of communication bits (communication complexity). For any error-free BA protocol, the known lower bounds on those three parameters are $3t + 1$, $t + 1$ and $\Omega(\max\{n\ell, nt\})$, respectively, where a protocol that is guaranteed to be correct in all executions is said to be error free.
In this work, by using coding theory we design a coded BA protocol (termed as COOL) that achieves consensus on an $\ell$-bit message with optimal resilience, asymptotically optimal round complexity, and asymptotically optimal communication complexity when $\ell \geq t\log n$, simultaneously. The proposed COOL is an error-free and deterministic BA protocol that does not rely on cryptographic technique such as signatures, hashing, authentication and secret sharing (signature free). It is secure against computationally unbounded adversary who takes full control over the dishonest processors (information-theoretic secure). We show that our results can also be extended to the setting of Byzantine broadcast, aka Byzantine generals problem, where the honest processors want to agree on the message sent by a leader who is potentially dishonest. This work reveals that coding is an effective approach for achieving the fundamental limits of Byzantine agreement and its variants.


Three species of biennial breeding southern hemisphere albatrosses — Diomedea san- fordi from the Chatham Islands, D. antipodensis from Antipodes Island and D. exulans from South Georgia — were tracked using CLS-Argos satellite system during the 1990s. Harness attachment and duty cycling of transmitters enabled long-term deployments covering both the breeding and non- breeding ranges. The feeding ranges for breeding birds of each species were different. D. sanfordi foraged over continental shelves to the shelf edge, whereas D. antipodensis and D. exulans ranged widely over deep water to the shelf edge. Mapping of satellite-determined locations for D. sanfordi and D. antipodensis showed that the demarcation was between the 1000 and 2000 m undersea con- tour. Non-breeding D. sanfordi wintered over the Patagonian shelf or over the Chilean shelf. There they were virtually confined to seas over the continental shelves of 1000 m, and on less steep slopes to 200 m depth. These data provide the best evidence yet of habitat preference and segregation consis- tent across breeding and non-breeding seasons for closely related seabirds.


A novel distributed strain and temperature fast measurement method in Brillouin optical time-domain reflectometry (BOTDR) system based on double-sideband (DSB) modulation is proposed. The single-wavelength probe light is modulated into dual-wavelength probe light with a fixed phase difference by using carrier suppressed DSB modulation. The interaction between the Brillouin scattering signals corresponding to dual-wavelength probe light forms a Brillouin beat spectrum (BBS). The distributed temperature and strain are obtained by only measuring the peak power trace of the BBS and one of the slope power trace of the two Brillouin gain spectrum (BGS) corresponding to dual-wavelength probe light. The proposed method does not require scanning the Brillouin spectrum and does not require using optical fibers with multiple Brillouin scattering peaks as sensing fibers, and thus features fast measurement speed and wide variety of sensing fiber types. In a proof-of-concept experiment, the temperature uncertainty of 1.3 °C and the strain uncertainty of 36.3 με are respectively achieved over a 4.5-km G.657 fiber with 3 m spatial resolution and 30 s measurement time. The experimental measurement uncertainties of temperature and strain of the proposed method are almost equivalent to that of the method by using BGS scanning and special fibers.


Background: The access to affordable medicines is counted as a challenge, despite international measures taken towards cost containment and price regulation. Objective: To identify and review the literature on international approaches related to medicine price regulation, control, and its effectiveness. Methods: In this scoping review, peer-reviewed research and review articles, discussion papers, public documents relating to medicine pricing policies were reviewed. The search strategy was structured according to STARLITE principles. The key search terms and phrases were "medicine prices", "causes of high medicine prices", " approaches towards medicine prices control", "national medicine policies", "international approaches towards medicine price control", "containment policies", and "effects of pricing policy on medicine". Results: Medicine pricing and price regulation policies were drafted and implemented with no optimal results and things don't seem to have improved much and remain as the distant goal. These policies were either less comprehensive, outdated and fell short in implementation especially in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) due to lack of funding, infrastructure or trained professional task force. Overall, none of the policy options was preferred. Multi-pronged policy options crafted in local context are required to tackle the issue. Conclusion: The authors identify gaps in the literature and propose advanced research in the area to strengthen the healthcare system by improving medicine pricing system in each country.


Service Level Agreement (SLA) is a contract between a service provider and different levels of users in the organization. SLA lays out the metrics by which a service is measured, as well as penalties should the expected service levels are not met. SLA reduces the amount of job schedule based on IT support services and transfers all IT-related problems to the service provider. Existing SLA approaches have several limitations including pricing strategy, incident handling, and documentation. A more "customized" approach needed for SLA Hardware based on the organization's mission and vision. Adopting the SLA also act as a KPI (Knowledge Performance Index) for the internal services that reflect back to the company performance and users experiences. This paper proposes a research framework study for such as framework based on strong theoretical foundation and industry best practice and can be apply to organization or company that does not have the SLA system on the IT service support environment. This adoption SLA only for IT hardware (Break and Fix)


We have previously shown that the steroid hormone-mediated transcriptional activation of the chicken vitellogenin II gene (VTGII) in the liver is accompanied by a series of chromatin structural changes, including the formation of two sets of 5'-proximal nuclease-hypersensitive sites and the demethylation of a single 5'-flanking MspI site which lies within a region of DNA that recently has been shown by Jost and co-workers to specifically bind the estrogen receptor complex in vitro. To assay the stability and possible functional significance of these induced structural changes, we transiently activated the VTGII gene during embryonic development and then allowed the chickens to hatch and grow for various periods of time before analyzing their livers. By 7 weeks posthatching all of the induced 5'-flanking hypersensitive sites had decayed. Moreover, the loss of these sites occurred without consequence to the "memory effect," that is, these structural features did not need to be present in hormone withdrawn birds to allow this gene to be activated more rapidly in response to a secondary presentation of estradiol. Although the demethylation was more stable, it also appeared not to be the basis of the memory phenomenon. The birds that still exhibited memory after 25 weeks of hormone withdrawal were not more extensively demethylated within the receptor-binding site than were the birds which failed to show memory at this age. A similar uncoupling of these two parameters was also observed when embryos were first injected with submaximal doses of estradiol and then assayed 1 week after hatching; the chickens which acquired memory were not demethylated to any greater extent than those which did not acquire memory. Other parameters that may be relevant to memory are discussed.


While the global number of resettled refugees rises annually, the summaries of research on refugee health needs in countries of asylum remain sparse. We conducted a systematic review of published research on refugee health in Canada in order to: (i) identify studies addressing health outcomes among refugees recently resettled in Canada; (ii) identify general trends in health research conducted in Canada among refugee populations; (iii) identify significant gaps in current knowledge of health-related issues among refugees recently resettled in Canada; (iv) evaluate the quality and consistency of available information; (v) develop a summary of available research results; and (vi) identify priorities for future research. A search of several major citation indices resulted in the analysis of 196 research reports after reviewing more than 5,000 articles. This review is timely, systematic and inclusive; furthermore, potential biases in methodology are clearly assessed. The results indicate an immediate need to address specific gaps in health knowledge for refugee populations and lead us to draw five primary conclusions. First, mental health outcomes dominate the research landscape. Second, cross-sectional studies are most commonly the study design of choice. Third, studies examining some aspect of health among refugees from Asia dominate the literature. Fourth, there is a notable lack of information on cardiovascular diseases and its antecedents. Fifth, indications show that screenings for pre-existing conditions are biased towards communicable diseases. These findings have implications for health monitoring, evaluation and policy affecting the health of refugees resettled in Canada and elsewhere.


This session focussed on two inter-related issues: (I) performance assessment for spoken language systems and (2) experience to date in speech corpora collection for these systems. The session included formal presentations from representatives of SRI International, MIT's Laboratory for Computer Science, BBN Systems and Technologies Corporation, and Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science.


In complex systems' development, it is necessary to understand how things depend on each other in order to plan and control the development task. Ericsson, a major supplier of telecommunication systems all over the world, has successfully used a construct called the system anatomy for this purpose. The anatomy shows, in a compact way, the crucial functional dependencies in the system. Since the anatomy has had a profound practical impact, it is relevant to analyse how this construct can be grounded also theoretically. In this paper, we present such a grounding in which the anatomy and its associated plans are seen as manifestations of affordances. These affordances enable different groups of actors to reconcile their actions. Besides affordances, the theory is grounded in the Russian theory of activity and the Activity Domain Theory. The findings indicate that the suggested theory is a promising socio-technical approach that may complement existing approaches for development of complex systems.


An advantage of stereovision-based motion analysis is that the depth information is available, thus motion can be estimated more precisely in 2.5D stereo coordinate system (SCS) constructed by the depth and the image coordinates. In this paper, stereo global motion in SCS, which is induced by 3D camera motion in real-world coordinate system (WCS), is parameterized by a fiveparameter global motion model (GMM). Based on such model, global motion can be estimated and identified directly in SCS without knowing the physical parameters about camera motion and camera setup in WCS. The reconstructed global motion field accords with the spatial structure of the scene much better. Experiments on both synthetic data and real-world images illustrate its promising performance.


The high-voltage pulse source is a key component in systems that generate high-power microwave (HPM) radiation. Different types of high-voltage pulse sources have different characteristics and interact differently with the radiation source. This paper presents a circuit simulation study of the interaction between a vircator load and three different high-voltage pulse sources. The voltage pulse sources considered, which have previously been studied experimentally, are a Marx generator, a high-voltage system based on a small explosively driven magnetic flux compression generator and a cable-based generator. The circuit simulation models have been validated by different experiments. The different voltage sources generate different shape, amplitude and duration of the voltage pulse. The effect of these differences on electric power deposition in, and impedance of, the vircator are discussed.