The reasons for the changes in the values of the UK national reference standards of EMF and resistance are discussed. The agreed values for the Josephson constant and the von Klitzing constant are given, together with a brief discussion of the evidence upon which these values are based.


This dissertation studies the critical aspect of local governance in the North Carolina Community College System. The researcher concentrated on the question of local trustee service on the 58 community college/technical college/technical institute boards in the North Carolina system and sought to expand the knowledge base concerning the areas of (1) trustee selection, (2) criteria for service, and (3) length of trustee service. The study sought to answer the following questions: (1) What are the criteria upon which the selection of local boards of trustees is based? (2) By what methods or by what governing agencies are local trustees selected (elected or appointed)? (3) What is the length of service for board of trustee members? In addition, the study surveyed state community college leaders to find out their perceptions of the current trustee governance policy and several key issues surrounding this policy. Data were collected from a review of the available literature on the subject, a study of the legal policies of community colleges in other states, interviews with key leaders in the North Carolina Community College System, and a survey of community college presidents and trustee chairmen.


This paper discusses conceptual basis for assessment and analysis of model quality relating to formalized description of technologies. The authors give indicators used to assess formalized and textual descriptions of technologies. They raise some questions concerning the analysis of technologies that enable to make a list of indicators. The paper examines decomposition structures of specific technologies and provides the calculations of introduced coefficients.


Background: Hearing loss is a common sensory impairment in humans which half of its causes are genetic reasons. Genetic hearing loss can be divided into the two types of syndromic and non-syndromic, which 80% of non-syndromic cases is Autosomal Recessive Non-Syndromic Hearing Loss. The aim of the present research is to determine the contribution of DFNB2 locus (MYO7A gene) in causing an autosomal recessive hearing loss in the one group of the deaf families of Khuzestan province. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 26 families with autosomal recessive hearing loss (with 4 patients) and negative for GJB2 mutations in Khuzestan province. 22 families suffered from ARNSHL and 4 families suffered from Usher syndrome. Linkage analysis was performed by using STR (Short Tandem Repeat) markers related to DFNB2 locus. Each family's genotype was determined by PCR-PAGE method. Furthermore, haplotypes drawing and LOD score calculations were performed. Results: From 26 families with hearing loss participating in this research, following genetic linkage analysis and haplotypes drawing, two families (7.7% of the families) showed linkage to DFNB2 locus. One family (4.5%) suffered from ARNSHL and another family suffered from Usher syndrome. Conclusion: The results of the present research show that the contribution of DFNB2 locus in causing hearing loss in the population of Khuzestan province was similar to other studies conducted in Iran and this locus with other important loci should be considered to check in the hearing loss panel.


Genome-wide association studies have revealed a large number of genetic associations with autoimmune diseases. Despite this progress, the mechanisms underlying the contribution of allelic variants to the onset of immune-related diseases remain mostly unknown. Our recent meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of multiple sclerosis (MS) identified a new susceptibility locus tagged by a single nucleotide polymorphism, rs17824933 (p = 3.8 × 10−9), that is found in a block of linkage disequilibrium containing the CD6 gene. Because CD6 plays an important role in maintenance of T cell activation and proliferation, we examined the biologic phenotypes of the risk-associated allele. In this article, we report that the MS susceptibility allele in CD6 is associated with decreased expression of full-length CD6 in CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. As a consequence, proliferation is diminished during long-term activation of CD4+ T cells from subjects with the risk allele. Selective knockdown of full-length CD6 using exon 5-specific small interfering RNA induces a similar proliferation defect of CD4+ T cells from subjects homozygous for the protective allele. Exon 5 encodes for the extracellular binding site of the CD6 ligand ALCAM, which is required for CD6 stimulation. In CD4+ T cells from subjects with the risk allele, exon 5 is consistently underexpressed, thereby providing a mechanism by which the allele affects proliferation of CD4+ T cells. These findings indicate that the MS risk allele in the CD6 locus is associated with altered proliferation of CD4+ T cells and demonstrate the influence of a disease-related allelic variant on important immunological characteristics.


This paper introduces the Multimodal Chile & Venezuela Protest Event Dataset (MMCHIVED). MMCHIVED contains city-day event data using a new source of data, text and images shared on social media. These data enables the improved measurement of theoretically important variables such as protest size, protester and state violence, protester demographics, and emotions. In Venezuela, MMCHIVED records many more protests than existing datasets. In Chile, it records slightly more events than the Armed Conflict Location and Events Dataset (ACLED). These extra events are from small cities far from Caracas and Santiago, an improvement of coverage over datasets that rely on newspapers, and the paper confirms they are true positives. While MMCHIVED covers protest events in Chile and Venezuela, the approach used in the paper is generalizable and could generate protest event data in 107 countries containing 97.14% of global GDP and 82.7% of the world's population.


Background Previous preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated that zoledronate might inhibit neointimal hyperplasia at least partly by inhibiting the proliferation, adhesion and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). However, whether zoledronate influences fibroblasts' proliferation and activation, which also play a key role in neointimal hyperplasia and vascular remodeling, remains largely unknown. In the present study, the effect of zoledronate on fibroblasts was investigated and the underlying molecular mechanisms were examined. Methods After treatment with zoledronate, changes in biological behaviors, including the morphology, proliferation, cell-cycle distribution and migration of fibroblasts (NIH3T3 cells), were observed. The expression of α-SMA, TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 and the level of Smad2/3 phosphorylation in cultured fibroblasts were examined by Western blot. In vivo expression of α-SMA and TGF-β1 was assessed by immunohistochemical staining. Results It was shown that the typical fibroblast cell morphology was altered after zoledronate exposure. Cultured fibroblasts treated with zoledronate displayed dose-dependent inhibition of cell proliferation due to cell-cycle arrest in the S phase. Cell migration activities were also dose dependently suppressed by zoledronate treatment. Expression of α-SMA in cultured fibroblasts was significantly reduced by zoledronate treatment. Further analysis showed decreased expression of TGF-β1 and α-SMA by periadventitial delivery of zoledronate in the rat carotid balloon-injury model. The expression of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 and the phosphorylation of Smad2/3 in cultured fibroblasts were significantly inhibited by zoledronate treatment. Conclusion Our findings demonstrated that zoledronate can inhibit the proliferation, migration and activation of fibroblasts via the TGF-β signaling pathway and revealed a novel mechanism of zoledronate action against neointimal hyperplasia.


Biodiesel, as a promising substitute for fossil diesel oil, has nevertheless a main disadvantage, which is oxidized easily. The oxidation degrades its quality and causes disturbances to the machine during operations. Therefore, antioxidant is commonly used in biodiesel. However, the common antioxidant used, namely pyrogallol, has a poor solubility in biodiesel due to the polarity difference. Therefore, this research focused on the modification of pyrogallol by attaching palmitic acid molecule to the benzene ring of pyrogallol molecule through the Friedel-Crafts acylation. The product was characterized by TLC and 1H NMR spectroscopy. It was found that the reaction produced a new product, 1.1' -(4,5,6-trihydroxy-1,3-phenylene)bis(hexadecane-1-one). The new product was subjected to a solubility test and an antioxidant activity evaluation. The result showed that the solubility limit of the product was at 2500 ppm, which was significantly higher than pyrogallol analyzed using one sample t-test. However, using DPPH method, it was found that the antioxidant activity of the new product was slightly lower than pyrogallol as the IC50 value of the new product was 18.44 ppm, and pyrogallol's was 3.07 ppm.


Relation between loss in the family and child's socialization is stressed in many psychological and educational works Experienced loss is a very difficult matter for a child, who tries to internalize his/her family's traditions, values and also to form his/her identity – self I. Self identification in this article is mostly defined as a specific feature of children (age 7–11). On the one part it is self identification with other people, their groups, and satisfying the need to belong to some of those social groups on the emotional basis. On the other part it is quite a complicated psychological phenomenon, which helps to take some other person's characteristics and perceive them as one's own. The social interactions with others, especially with family members, is an important component of children's identification to whom and also forming their self I. In other words, through membership the self-awareness and social identities are created, and also that reveals the individuality of a child's interaction with him/herself and with others. It was stated that experienced loss in the family negatively affects self-identification processes: grieving children have more negative attitudes towards their home and parents, and also they do not feel so good while being at home. Besides, these children have also more negative than positive attitude towards school and their own status among peers (they have pointed out that nobody misses them when they are not in class, that they have no one to share their sadness or happiness with etc.). All that negatively affects these children's openness, self-confidence, and self-control. The experienced loss has many negative effects on grieving children's attitude towards themselves (they tend to think as having no friends at school, that it is difficult for them to find some new friends etc.).


This paper studies the synchronization problem for a network of identical discrete‐time agents with unknown uniform constant communication delay. When the agents are non‐introspective, the problem is solvable via a decentralized low‐gain‐based synchronization controller if the delay satisfies the proposed upper bound. When the agents are introspective, the synchronization problem can be solved with arbitrary bounded communication delay. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Virtuous physicians seem to have become a rarity in modern day medical practice. Many patients and physicians feel that the profession of medicine is not living up to its own standards and expectations. It is the contention of the author that the Muslim physician, guided by the two primary sources of Islamic Law, the Qur'an and the Sunna, will possess the necessary character traits of a good physician. In this article I argue that the Muslim physician who abides by the Qur'an will live a contented life, will be trusted by his/her patients and community, and will be in line with the recently enacted Western principles of medical ethics.


Hybrid simulation (HS) is a modeling approach based on combining System Dynamics, Discrete Event Simulation, and/or Agent Based Simulation into a single model. There have been many benefits identified for utilization HS for planning and decision-making across many sectors. However, the lead time and skills requirements for developing HS models is usually greater than single methodology models. This position paper proposes that in order to improve and speed up the development of HS models, the decision to hybridize should be taken at the earliest possible point, i.e. when investigating the system and defining the problem. To this end, five system based characteristics have been proposed as decision points that help modelers to make such decisions. The paper concludes by suggesting a number of research avenues to follow for further improvements, whilst highlighting further challenges related to the availability of skills and tools for developing HS models.


An accelerating Universe can be accommodated naturally within non-critical string theory, in which scattering is described by a superscattering matrix $ that does not factorize as a product of S -a ndS y -matrix elements and time evolution is described by a modied Liouville equation characteristic of open quantum-mechanical systems. We describe briefly alternative representations in terms of the stochastic Ito and Fokker-Planck equations. The link between the vacuum energy and the departure from criticality is stressed. We give an explicit example in which non-marginal $tring couplings cause a departure from criticality, and the corresponding cosmological vacuum energy relaxes to zero al aquintessence.


This paper presents a review of results on nonlocal problems, functional-differential equations, and their applications, obtained during several last years. The following research areas are covered: the Kato square root problem for functional-differential operators, Vlasov equations and their applications to the modelling of high-temperature plasma, specific properties of differential-difference equations with incommensurable translations, degenerate functional-differential equations and their applications, functional-differential equations with contractions and extensions of independent variables, and operational methods for parabolic and elliptic functional-differential equations.


We study generalized additive models, with shape restrictions (e.g. monotonicity, convexity and concavity) imposed on each component of the additive prediction function. We show that this framework facilitates a non‐parametric estimator of each additive component, obtained by maximizing the likelihood. The procedure is free of tuning parameters and under mild conditions is proved to be uniformly consistent on compact intervals. More generally, our methodology can be applied to generalized additive index models. Here again, the procedure can be justified on theoretical grounds and, like the original algorithm, has highly competitive finite sample performance. Practical utility is illustrated through the use of these methods in the analysis of two real data sets. Our algorithms are publicly available in the R package scar, short for shape‐constrained additive regression.


Polyurethane (PU) nanofibers were fabricated by solution blowing. The effects of polymer concentration, gas pressure and temperature on morphology and diameter of fiber were discussed. The results show that the fiber with mean diameters in 100nm- 400nm range was successfully obtained, and when the mass fraction of the solution increases, the diameter of the fiber increases. On the whole, the evenness of the fiber diameter tends to decrease. The gas pressure and the temperature affect the fibers' diameter, and as the gas pressure increase, the diameters of the fiber decrease, while the fiber diameter is gradually larger as the temperature increasing.


Today, logistics sector, particularly in container haulage industry, is dealing with million shipments of cargo every day, origin and destination, size, weight, content, and location are all tracked across the global delivery network. in and out containers at the port can cause the port congestion and additionally are going to affect driver to deliver the cargo to the customer at the right time. Due to that matter, container haulage invariably received lots of complaint by the customer concerning the delay of the cargo without customer grasp precisely situation that faced by a driver in order to deliver the customer's goods. The delay of this cargo may occur as a result of waiting time at the port terminal, customs clearance, road congestion, bad weather, and the breakdown of truck and shortage of driver. All this information is late received by the customer and it will affect the level of customer satisfaction. This study proposed to conduct a research about the Information Real-Time Delivery Systems IRTD through the Internet of Things (IoT) that can give the information of real-time monitoring and updated delivery systems to related parties. Thus, these papers focuses on the current process of the information notification delivery model to the related parties and resolve the uncertainties delays by redesign model of information real-time delivery system at haulage industry. Furthermore, this research will determine the utilization benefit of IRTD system at haulage industry. Business Process Redesign model will be adopted in this study as a holistic guidance about a development model of IRTD integrated IoT technology as an improvement in haulage industry environment.


Introduction : It was suggested that specific plants may reduce cancer's resistance to chemotherapy. Resistance inhibits apoptosis, as well as other fundamental anti-cancer protective mechanisms. Soy bean has been found to reduce cellular stress and repair DNA damage caused by drought or parasites, and can transfer this defense mechanism to other plant species as well. The aim of this study is therefore to conduct a systematic comparison of the effect of soy bean formulation (FSWW08) on gene expression in in vitro human breast cancer cell line, and in in vivo in blood circulating tumor cells (CTC), after oral consumption of FSWW08 by patients suffering from breast-, ovarian-, and prostate cancer. Method : In vitro gene expressions studies were conducted with the human breast cancer cell line BT-474 that was exposed to doxorubicin or FSWW08, either alone or in combination. Ovarian-, prostate-, and breast cancer patients received FSWW08 for 30 days. CTC were extracted from their blood according to an established protocol. Gene expression evaluations were conducted before and after treatment. Results : In vitro, the multi-drug resistance (MDR) protein was reduced by FSWW08, but was increased by doxorubicin. The combination of FSWW08 and doxorubicin, however, showed a protective effect against the increase of MDR in physiologic concentrations, increased, however, also in high experimental concentrations of both agents. The expression of several cancer-related protective genes, such as tumor suppressor factors p21, p38 and p53, was improved by FSWW08 in vitro and in vivo , which helped cell differentiation and new tissue formation. Additionally, the BAX/Bcl 2 ratio was improved, in vitro , as well as gene expression of estrogen receptor beta, NF-IoB, MAP kinase, c-JUN, and matrix metalloproteinase 9, together with an increase of VEGF expression in vivo in CTC. Conclusion : It was demonstrated that FSWW08 improved the gene functions related to DNA repair and stress in human blood CTC and resistance marker, in vitro , when applied in combination with doxorubicin. As such, larger in vitro and in vivo clinical studies that investigate single botanical compounds from other plants, are warranted.


Many catalysts for the Beckmann rearrangement has attracted researchers attention for their efficiency in catalytic activity and easy to handle during the rearrangement. Efforts are continued for developing new environment friendly catalytic system for the Beckmann rearrangement. In this article, we are going to present some catalysts used for Beckmann rearrangement of ketoximes to corresponding amides.


Covalently-functionalised graphene (FG) was successfully obtained by grafting m-isopropenyl-α, α′-dimethyl benzyl isocyanate (m-TMI) to graphene oxide (GO) followed by the chemical and solvothermal reduction of GO. The FG sheets were hydrophobic and stable in polar solvents such as N,N-dimethylformamide. The reactive vinyl-benzyl groups of m-TMI attached to FG copolymerised with methyl methacrylate to produce graphene/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composites. The FG sheets were well dispersed in PMMA and formed strong interfacial bonds with the matrix, contributing to large increases in elastic modulus (+72.9%) and indentation hardness (+51.2%) at 1% loading by weight. The incorporation of FG into PMMA changed its elastic-plastic behaviour; hence, a decrease in the plasticity index and an increase in recovery resistance were observed for the resulting composites due to the increased portion related to the elastic work. The onset decomposition temperature and glass transition temperature of neat PMMA increased by 100 °C and 12.7 °C, respectively, by the addition of 1 wt% FG. Herein, in situ copolymerisation of monomers and well-suspended FG promotes the exfoliation of graphene associated with strong chemical bonding with the polymer matrix. This report provides a promising and facile method for fabricating high-performance polymeric composites.


Fusion is seen by many as the ultimate energy source, capable of providing safe, clean and sustainable energy. Research has been carried out into fusion since the 1920s and substantial progress has been made. While the ultimate goal of providing energy from fusion remains elusive there is a clear understanding of the tasks that must be achieved to make fusion
energy a reality.

Deuterium and tritium (DT) offer a high probability of fusion when compared to any other combination of isotopes. Consequently DT fusion is the focus of all large scale fusion research programmes. As there is no natural source of tritium, fusion reactors are being designed with tritium breeder blankets to ensure self-sufficiency. The research contained
within this thesis contributes to the ongoing development of breeder blankets for fusion reactors in terms of reducing their cost and improving their performance. The thesis follows a general theme of varying material composition to better utilise the local neutron spectra within fusion breeder blankets. The novel contributions of this thesis are as follows:

The first contribution of this thesis is a technique that improves the accuracy of simulations involving time varying tritium production [171]. The technique identifies a minimum spacial resolution that should be used when performing burn-up studies in solid-type breeder blankets. Previously the tritium production with respect to time has been overestimated due
to lack of spatial segmentation within the breeder blanket.

Following on from this a parameter study was carried out to ascertain a more optimal composition for breeder blankets. The results of this study allows blanket designers to minimise the cost of the blanket while increasing the heat generated or maximising the tritium produced.

The composition of breeder blankets operating with a DD neutron source was also optimised. This allows breeder blankets to create tritium from DD plasmas more efficiently. The use of DD plasmas to generate tritium is a proposed method of negating the need for an external supply of tritium to start up reactors.

The sustainability of fusion is investigated and a method of reducing the use of beryllium within breeder blankets is presented. Blankets utilising this method were also shown to generate more heat, produce more tritium and showed lower peak heating. Varying the isotopic composition of materials was considered as a method to reduce helium production and improve the material properties without additional activity [132]. For the first, time cost benefit analysis of isotopically tailored materials in fusion reactors has been carried out and various methods to offset the enrichment cost have been identified.

Multilayer blankets are investigated as a method of increasing the tritium production and are shown to achieve tritium production levels that are unobtainable for blankets with a uniform composition. Higher tritium production from blankets is particularly necessary in reactor designs that involve a reduction in the blanket volume.

The composition of structural materials used within breeder blankets was also investigated. New material compositions are considered that offer reduced helium production. Additionally, materials that potentially offer improved material properties (e.g. fracture toughness and yield stress) are shown to be achievable. This is achieved by the addition of enriched Ni or Mo; the enrichment of the natural element allows it to be reintroduced
without significant increase in activity.

The final chapter summarises the research carried out, makes recommendations with regards to the design of future breeder blankets and presents further research opportunities.


In both solution and the solid phase, a variety of ketone oxime anions have been treated with 4-substituted-2-fluorobenzonitriles to give the corresponding nucleophilic aromatic substitution aryloxime adducts. Under aqueous acidic conditions, these adducts underwent cyclization to give the corresponding ketones. Suzuki and amide coupling reactions were also successfully performed on two resin-bound oximes followed by subsequent cyclorelease to give ketone product in good yields and purities. [reaction--see text]


Set-point control aims at finding a policy that can track a set point that varies over time. Such control objectives are central in industry, yet multi-goal Reinforcement Learning methods are typically evaluated on other environments. The paper therefore proposes the use of a combination of feedback based amplitude aided exploration, simulated ensemble model training, together with policy optimization also over integrated errors, to arrive at a trained multi-goal policy that can be directly deployed to real-world nonlinear set-point control systems. The claim is supported by experiments with a real-world nonlinear cascaded tank process and a simulated strongly non-linear pH-control system


Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the attitudes of dental students toward dentistry and the difficulties they face during their preclinical operative dentistry education, especially its practical aspect. Methods: About 100 third-year dental students answered a paper-based survey questionnaire (response rate = 90.90%), which was prepared and distributed in April 2019. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 22 (IBM SPSS, Turkey), and a one-way ANOVA test was used to determine the students' competence for patient treatment based on their difficulty scores. Results: No statistically significant relationship was identified between the participants' difficulty scores and grade point averages (p > 0.05). The students who felt ready for their clinical dental education phase—due the following year—had statistically significant lower difficulty scores than those who felt incompetent and uncertain (p: 0.005; p < 0.05). Notably, there was no statistically significant difference in the difficulty scores (p > 0.05) between the participants who felt incompetent and uncertain. Conclusion: Dental practice plays an important role in preclinical operative dentistry education. Therefore, dental students should be adequately prepared for operative preclinical practice, which can be achieved by offering more preclinical practice through collaboration with educators.


The Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action (NAMA) is the new kid on the block in the battle against climate change. The NAMA is the most decisive instrument devised to address the fact that today the only source of growing emissions are the world's developing countries. But as it is based purely on voluntarism it crucially depends on financing models that can lift the concept off the ground. This book provides the first insights as to how this concept can deliver on its promise - and challenges some of the fundamental mantras in international climate change collaboration.


It is keeping values and encouraging value-creation that has been interpreted as the main aims of accessio since Roman Law. Whereas the traditional system of accessio brings about more questions theoretically and practically than those it was intended to resolve. While the Chinese Property Law is being enacted, it's necessary to re-review the systems and conceptions of accessio according to the principle of Occam's Razor and so to construct a sophisticatedly simple new system.


Two groups, each of seven pony mares, were maintained from 17 October to 15 February (120 days) in the University Biotron where temperature and daily photoperiod were regulated to simulate normal conditions for that period (control group) or those normally applicable from 1 March to 1 July (treated group). Follicular growth, ovulation rate and oestrous behaviour were determined daily by rectal palpation, and by teasing with a stallion. By Day 69 of treatment, all ovarian end-points (number of follicles greater than 10 mm, number of follicles greater than 20 mm, average follicle diameter and diameter of the largest follicle) were significantly greater in treated than control mares. Oestrous behaviour was evident in all the mares in the treated group, but was not recorded in any of the control group mares; two of the treated mares ovulated. After removal from the environmental control chambers, the experimental and control mares first ovulated on an average of 147 days and 227-6 days, respectively, after the beginning of the project. Mares in both groups cycled regularly after the first ovulation and were in anoestrus again at about the same time in the following winter.


Aim: The aim of this study is to gain insight into the disease progression and behavior of primary cholesteatoma in a cohort of patients who did not have surgery using non-echoplanar diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW MRI) serial monitoring. Methods: Retrospective longitudinal observational study of 12 cases of middle ear cleft cholesteatoma diagnosed between 2009 and 2014 where surgery was not performed for various reasons. All cases were monitored radiologically with non-echoplanar half-Fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin-echo diffusion weighted imaging annually for a median period of 23 months (between 11 and 45 mo) to evaluate for changes in disease volume and direction of growth. Results: Of the 12 cases, there was one outlier where the cholesteatoma growth was disproportionately high compared with the rest of the cases outside the standard deviation range. A third of the cases had radiological evidence of cholesteatoma growth. The mean growth was about 11.9% of the initial disease volume per year. Seven out of the 12 cases had radiological evidence of cholesteatoma regression in terms of size, with three cases having negative follow-up DW-MRI scans as early as 17 months. The mean regression rate was much higher than the mean growth rate at 54.3% of the initial disease volume per year. The direction of greatest growth is craniocaudally. Conclusion: Within the limits of our longitudinal study, we have shown that by monitoring with non-echoplanar diffusion weighted imaging, cholesteatoma can progress or regress when left untreated by surgery. The greatest progression was recorded in the craniocaudal direction.


1. Pheromones are chemical signals that function not only as mate attractors, but may also relay important information to prospective mates. In order for the information to be reliable, the signal must be costly to produce and this is likely to result in condition dependent expression of the signal. 2. We present results from two experiments on the grain beetle Tenebrio molitor examining phenotypic condition dependence of pheromones and patterns of female preference for pheromones. We also analysed condition dependence of two measures of immunocompetence: encapsulation response and phenoloxidase activity. 3. By manipulating the nutritional condition of the males we found that the attractiveness of the male pheromones to virgin females was condition-dependent, indicating that the production of the pheromones is affected by the condition of the male. We also found that the phenoloxidase activity of the males was affected by the nutritional condition of the male but that encapsulation rate was not. 4. Our results show that pheromones are condition-dependent signals, the quantity of which females use in their mate choice.


Abstract : No matter how one spins it, North Korea's nuclear test of October 9, 2006 represents a major defeat for U.S. foreign policy.[1] Pyongyang torpedoed the stalemated six-party talks on its nuclear proliferation and also called what it sees as Washington's bluff, i.e. that America can put enough pressure on North Korea' by imposing sanctions on the DPRK's foreign banking after the six parties' preliminary agreement in September, 2005 and by placing human rights on the negotiating agenda that it will collapse, circumventing the need for detailed engagement with Pyongyang over proliferation. Indeed, if anything, the test shows Pyongyang's continuing self-confidence about the future. A careful analysis of propaganda, policy, and planning leads to a high degree of skepticism about the possibility that North Korea is focused on mere survival: simply maintaining a self-defense capability, engineering a modest economic recovery, and coexisting peacefully with South Korea. Pyongyang appears to have far more ambitious intentions, and nothing indicates absolute desperation on the part of North Korean leaders.... The indications are that Pyongyang envisions a bright future-it is considering significant economic changes and examining foreign systems as models. Furthermore, this test virtually ensures that imposed regime change is now off the table as far as the other members of the six-party talks are concerned. First the DPRK's proliferation, like all other preceding ones, is a declaration of independence that it alone will control its destiny. In this case the DPRK has declared its independence not only of the United States or the Nonproliferation Treaty regime, but also of China and to a lesser degree Russia. It will now be much more difficult for any foreign states to influence its foreign and defense policies.


This paper deals with a two-stage cluster sampling problem. At the first stage k clusters are drawn at random, and then at the second stage ra p-dimensional correlated observations are chosen under each cluster, which may be linearly related to certain covariates. The data of this type can be represented by a cluster regression model with suitable distributional assumption for the errors. In this paper, it is assumed that the error vector of the linear model follow an rap-dimensional elliptically contoured ?-distribution. Many elliptical distribution theory results are developed in the literature under the assumption that these ra p-dimensional errors are uncorrelated. But, in the case of cluster sampling, errors are usually assumed to be equicorrelated. We, therefore, introduce a suitable np X np covariance matrix for ? p-dimensional errors which takes the common intra-cluster correlation into account. We then study the likelihood inferences for the regression parameters (coefficients of the covariates) of the (linear) cluster regression model. Maximum likelihood estimators (m.l.e.) of the regression parameters are found to be more efficient than the generalized least squares estimators for smaller values of the degrees of freedom parameter of the elliptically contoured /-distribution. The asymptotic (k ?? oo) distribution of the m.l.e. of the regression coefficients is also given. Further, a factor analysis model is studied. Based on the assumption that ra p-dimensional observations are uncorrelated and they follow rap-dimensional elliptically contoured /-distribution, we have developed Neyman's partial score test for testing the suitability of the number of factors. The test statistic has asymptotically ? distribution with suitable degrees of freedom. Moreover, the test is asymptotically optimal.


High blood pressure is one of the most important health problems. Self-care is an effective method to control this
disease. The objective of the current research was to determine self-care behavior predictors in patients with high
blood pressure admitted to Bastak city health centers based on the BASNEF model. This research is cross-sectional
type of descriptive-analytical study. The research sample included 180 patients with high blood pressure admitted
to Bastak city health centers. They were randomly selected through multi-stage sampling method. Data were
collected using a questionnaire including three sections of demographic information, knowledge, and
questionnaire based on BASNEF questions. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS18 software and
descriptive statistics of frequency, relative frequency, mean, and standard deviation, and analytical statistics of
logistic regression, linear regression, Pearson correlation, and Chi-square. The mean age of the research samples
was 50.62 ± 7.549. Based on the findings, the constructs of attitude (p = 0.001) and empowering factors played
significant role in predicting self-care behaviors (p <0.001). With an emphasis on empowering factors, BASNEF
model can be used as a framework to develop educational interventions for self-care.


During L. donovani infection in golden hamsters, tremendous hepatic damage was observed as apparent from increased activities of glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, glutamate pyruvate transaminase, succinate dehydrogenase, glucose-6-phosphatase and acid ribonuclease. The levels of cytochrome P-450 and related monooxygenases, viz. aniline hydroxylase and aminopyrine-N-demethylase registered significant decrease in infected animals. Sodium stibogluconate, a standard antileishmanial drug, though caused the removal of parasites from infected tissues, but did not help in the recovery of deranged hepatic markers. The results explain the higher mortality of stibanate treated infected animals as compared to untreated animals infected with L. donovani.


Systematic optimization of modern powertrains, and hybrids in particular, requires the representation of the system by means of Backward Quasistatic Models (BQM). In contrast, the models used in realistic powertrain simulators are often of the Forward Dynamic Model (FDM) type. The paper presents a methodology to derive BQM's of modern powertrain components, as parametric, steady-state limits of their FDM counterparts. The parametric nature of this procedure implies that changing the system modeled does not imply relaunching a simulation campaign, but only adjusting the corresponding parameters in the BQM. The approach is illustrated with examples concerning turbocharged engines, electric motors, and electrochemical batteries, and the influence of a change in parameters on the supervisory control of an hybrid vehicle is then studied offline, in co-simulation and on an HiL test bench adapted to hybrid vehicles (HyHiL).


In this paper, we argue for a view of case marking that does not treat case as the passive realisation of other morpho-syntactic properties of a construction but as independently bringing information to a clause. This different view of case entails that precise functions of case-marked expressions may be determined by the interaction of the case marking, the meaning of the host noun, the semantics of any predicate of which it is an argument and other contextually given factors. With respect to Estonian, it is argued that there is only one 'structural' case, the genitive, and this case marks non-subject, or oblique, dependency on some head. The partitive case, we argue, is semantically partitive in all its uses, except that the partitive meaning can be obscured or even eliminated depending on contextual factors. The nominative is merely the absence of case, associated with no specific positions or semantic effects.


Quantitative phenotyping of downy mildew sporulation is frequently used in plant breeding and genetic studies, as well as in studies focused on pathogen biology such as chemical efficacy trials. In these scenarios, phenotyping a large number of genotypes or treatments can be advantageous but is often limited by time and cost. We present a novel computational pipeline dedicated to estimating the percent area of downy mildew sporulation from images of inoculated grapevine leaf discs in a manner that is time and cost efficient. The pipeline was tested on images from leaf disc assay experiments involving two F1 grapevine families, one that had glabrous leaves (Vitis rupestris B38 × 'Horizon' [RH]) and another that had leaf trichomes (Horizon × V. cinerea B9 [HC]). Correlations between computer vision and manual visual ratings reached 0.89 in the RH family and 0.43 in the HC family. Additionally, we were able to use the computer vision system prior to sporulation to measure the percent leaf trichome area. We estimate that an experienced rater scoring sporulation would spend at least 90% less time using the computer vision system compared with the manual visual method. This will allow more treatments to be phenotyped in order to better understand the genetic architecture of downy mildew resistance and of leaf trichome density. We anticipate that this computer vision system will find applications in other pathosystems or traits where responses can be imaged with sufficient contrast from the background.


The three high molecular weight (HMW) forms of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) have a distinct intracellular localization and differentially affect cell mobility and growth compared with the fourth 18-kDa form. To characterize further the effects of the 18-kDa and HMW forms of FGF-2, we have examined their ability to modulate integrin expression. Transfected NIH 3T3 cells expressing only 18-kDa FGF-2 exhibited increased cell surface levels of α5β1, whereas cells expressing only HMW FGF-2 exhibited cell surface α5β1 levels similar to parental cells. When cells synthesizing 18-kDa FGF-2 were transfected with a cDNA encoding a dominant negative FGF receptor, α5β1 cell surface levels decreased. Immunoprecipitation of biosynthetically labeled cells indicated that expression of 18-kDa FGF-2 increased the biosynthesis and rate of maturation of α5. Northern blot analysis showed that 18-kDa FGF-2 increases the level of the α5 subunit mRNA but does not affect β1 subunit transcript levels. Experiments utilizing luciferase reporter gene activity revealed increased α5 promoter activity in cells expressing 18-kDa FGF-2 indicating that the enhanced α5 transcript level is due to modulation of the transcription rate. Therefore, interaction of 18-kDa FGF-2 with FGF receptors results in changes in α5β1 biosynthesis and processing. In contrast, endogenous expression of HMW FGF-2 does not mediate this effect.


Social media use among students has infiltrated into dental education and offers benefits but may also cause problems. The aim of this study was to explore and compare current social media usage among dental undergraduate students from two countries—Malaysia and Finland. A self-administered structured online questionnaire was used. WhatsApp, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat were the services that were most familiar to the respondents from both countries. There were differences between the students from the two countries among the most preferred platforms. The most frequently used applications were WhatsApp (91.1% of students in Malaysia and 96.1% in Finland used it very frequently) and Instagram (74.3% of students in Malaysia and 70.0% in Finland used it very frequently). Students in Malaysia spent significantly more hours per week using the platforms as study tools than students in Finland. Over 80% of the Finnish dental students reported that lack of knowledge was not an issue in social media usage, while 85% of Malaysian students felt that lack of knowledge prevented them from using social media platforms frequently. The findings offer evidence that dental students used social media extensively.


Vomiting nausea (Emesis Gravidarum) is a reasonable symptom and often occurs in first trimester pregnancies. Vomiting nausea is caused by increased esterogen hormones, HCG factors, changes in liver glycogen metabolism, and psychological factors. The treatment of vomiting nausea in pregnancy consists of pharmacology and nonfarmalogy. Nonpharmacological therapy is performed by diet setting, emotional support, and acupressure. Nonpharmacological therapy is a type of complementary therapy that can be used as an intervention to overcome nausea, among others: acupressure, acupuncture, relaxation, and therapy. The purpose of this study is to find out the effect of acupressure complementary therapy in reducing vomiting nausea (Emesis Gravidarum) in pregnant women trimester I. The research method used is Quasy Experiment Design with one group pretest and posttest design approach. Sampling techniques use proportional random sampling. Instruments used to measure vomiting nausea are questionnaires. The collected data is analyzed using the Wilcoxon test.


Fulfilling the potential of the colloidal semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) in electrically driven applications remains a challenge largely since operation of such devices involves charged QDs with drastically different photo-physical properties compared to their well-studied neutral counterparts. In this work, the full picture of excited state dynamics in charged CdSe QDs at various time-scales has been revealed via transient absorption spectroscopy combined with electrochemistry as direct manipulation tool to control the negative charging of CdSe QDs. In trions, excited states of single charged QDs, the additional electron in the conduction band speeds up the hot electron cooling by enhanced electron-electron scattering followed by charge redistribution and polaron formation in picoseconds timescale. The trions are finally decayed by Auger process in 500 ps timescale. Double charging in QDs, on the other hand, decelerates the polaron formation process while accelerates the following Auger decay. Our work demonstrates the potential of photo-electrochemistry as a platform for ultrafast spectroscopy of charged species and paves a way for further studies to develop comprehensive knowledge of the photophysical processes in charged QDs more than the well-known Auger decay preparing their use in future optoelectronic applications.


Spermatogenic failure has been recognized as the most severe presentation of male infertility in humans. Although it usually results in azoospermia. Approximately 30 to 60% of such men have sparse foci of sperm production within their dysfunctional testes, which can be extracted and used for in vitro fertilization techniques to produce a viable offspring. The scope of spermatogenic failure-related infertility covers a wide spectrum from genetic studies to hormonal control, microsurgical and medical therapy to assisted reproduction techniques, as well as innovative stem cell research aiming at creating artificial gametes. From a medical perspective, the management of men with spermatogenic failure seeking fertility involves a series of steps that includes the differential diagnosis of azoospermia, selection of the candidates for surgical sperm retrieval using molecular biology diagnosis, identification of those who could benefit from medical and surgical interventions prior to sperm retrieval, application of the best method to surgically retrieve testicular spermatozoa, and the use of state-of-art in vitro fertilization techniques. A coordinated multidisciplinary effort involving urologists, andrologists, geneticists, reproductive endocrinologists and embryologists will offer the best possible chance of achieving a biological offspring to men with spermatogenic failure.


While building maintenance is now recognized as a measure for sustainable development, the impacts are increasing and pose risks to sustainable development. However, attempts to increase consideration of sustainable practice in residential buildings have not yielded positive results. Behavioral practice has potential for change, so in this study the behaviors of maintenance service providers are explored to investigate the understanding of the supply side in the sustainable housing supply chain and marketplace. The results indicate that the major factors that impact sustainable maintenance behavior is a poor understanding of maintenance organizations towards sustainable residences. A maintenance behavioral model is presented to prompt interest in sustainable-maintenance management.


Case Presentation A 73-year-old male presented to the emergency department complaining of pain in his right eye for four weeks. He denied any trauma, and the pain was accompanied by ptosis, proptosis, swelling, redness, blurred vision, and a frontal headache. On examination, conjunctival arterialization was also appreciated. Magnetic resonance imaging and angiography showed evidence of a carotid cavernous fistula for which the patient underwent successful transvenous coiling and embolization. Discussion Carotid cavernous fistulas are classified as higher flow, direct fistulas or lower flow, indirect fistulas; the latter is more insidious in onset. Classic symptoms include conjunctival arterialization, proptosis, ptosis, palpebral edema, ocular palsy, vibratory sensation, elevated intraocular pressure without pupillary or visual acuity deficits, and headache. The treatment of choice is transvenous embolization.


Unified gas transmission system which includes about 140 thousand kilometres of pipelines has been developed in Russia. The mains of pipelines cross the regions with difficult natural and climatic conditions, that originates specific distinctions during the fulfilling of the diagnostic works.Conception of the main gas transmission pipelines that is based on the determination of potential danger parts and individual inspection of each large-scale gas transmission pipeline has been presented in this work. Estimation procedure of flaw detection results with the purpose of operational capability prognostication of a gas transmission pipeline is also shown in this paper. The fields of application of the early and standard diagnostics are considered, and the analysis of possibility of inpipe and outpipe (from the ground) flaw detection is given in the conditions of Russia too. Practical samples of the diagnostics of gas transmission pipelines and technological equipment in several regions (Orenburg, West Siberia, Central Russia) are presented also.Integrated inspection program of RAO "Gazprom" gas transmission pipelines is shown and the main procedures of its realization beginning since 1995 are given in this document.Copyright © 1996 by ASME


Helicobacter pylori is a bacterial pathogen specialised to colonise and persist the gastric mucosa and to cause severe gastroduodenal disease. A major disease-associated bacterial component is a type IV secretion system (TFSS) encoded by the cytotoxin-associated genes pathogenicity island (cagPAI). Among the multiple responses in H. pylori-infected epithelial cells, the induction of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, cell spreading and motility associated with the "hum mingbird" phenotype appear strictly dependent on the functional transporter complex in the cagPAI. H. pylori is also capable of occasionally entering epithelial cells and manipulates the host immune system for immune evasion. Attached bacteria actively translocate the CagA protein into epithelial cells by a TFSS-dependent process and translocated CagA undergoes tyrosine phosphorylation in the carboxy terminal EPIYA sequence repeat motif (Y-972) by kinases of the Src family. Furthermore, we have identified a novel TFSS in H. pylori involved in horizontal DNA-transfer. Host cell signalling events and cellular phenotypes provoked by the cagPAI, the investigation of mechanisms related to gastric cancer as well as the development of a Salmonella based live recombinant vaccine are in the focus of additional departmental activities.


We investigated how inhibition of mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake affects transmitter release from mouse motor terminals during brief trains of action potentials (500 at 50 Hz) in physiological bath [Ca2+]. When mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake was inhibited by depolarizing mitochondria with antimycin A1 or carbonyl cyanide m‐chlorophenyl‐hydrazone, the stimulation‐induced increase in cytosolic [Ca2+] was greater (> 10 μm, compared to ⩽ 1μm in control solution), the quantal content of the endplate potential (EPP) depressed more rapidly (∼84 % depression compared to ∼8 % in controls), and asynchronous release during the stimulus train reached higher frequencies (peak rates of ∼6000 s−1 compared to ∼75 s−1 in controls). These effects of mitochondrial depolarization were not accompanied by a significant change in EPP quantal content or the rate of asynchronous release during 1 Hz stimulation, and were not seen in oligomycin, which blocks mitochondrial ATP synthesis without depolarizing mitochondria. Inhibition of endoplasmic reticular Ca2+ uptake with cyclopiazonic acid also had little effect on stimulation‐induced changes in cytosolic [Ca2+] or EPP amplitude. We hypothesize that the high rate of asynchronous release evoked by stimulation during mitochondrial depolarization was produced by the elevation of cytosolic [Ca2+], and contributed to the accelerated depression of phasic release by reducing the availability of releasable vesicles. During mitochondrial depolarization, the post‐tetanic potentiation of the EPP observed under control conditions was replaced by a post‐tetanic depression with a slow time course of recovery. Thus, mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake is essential for sustaining phasic release, and thus neuromuscular transmission, during and following tetanic stimulation.


The history of the chemotherapy of tuberculosis is reviewed, with emphasis on the newer experimental drugs such as ethambutol, kanamycin and 4,4'-di-isoamyl oxythiocarbanilide. The recognised regimens in tuberculo-therapy are discussed briefly in order that the current status of streptomycin may be appreciated. The chemistry of the aminoglycoside antibiotics is reviewed in detail, evidence of the recently assigned structures of the neomycin-paromomycin group and the kanamycins being cited as well as the more classical degradation and structural determination of streptomycin. Suggested biogenetic pathways and recent mode of action studies are noted, the introduction being completed by an inventory of synthetic derivatives of this group of antibiotics. The remaining points of the chemistry of dihydrostreptomycin to be elucidated are discussed. This includes confirmation of the configuration of the glycosidic linkages, and direct proof of the nature and ring form of dihydrostreptose, the central moiety of dihydrostreptomycin. Early workers degraded the trisaccharine dihydrostreptomycin with methanolic hydrogen chloride into the diguanidinoinositol, streptidine, and the methyl glycoside of the glucosaminidem dihydrostreptobiosaminide, the latter is composed of the methyl lyxofuranoside, dihydrostreptose, linked glycosidically to the hexosamine, N-methyl-L-glucosamine. Further acid degradation, however, led to destruction of the dihydrostreptose and this was not isolated. D-glucosaminides are known to be very stable to acid hydrolytic conditions, a stability attributed to the positive charge on the amino nitrogen group causing repulsion of the proton and suppressing formation of the intermediate carbonium ion. N-Substitution of the methyl D-glucosaminides with an electron withdrawing group has been shown to facilitate glycosidic cleavage; the formation of an electronically neutral substituted amino group, such as the acetamido group, apparently allowing protonation of the glycosidic bond. Hydrolysis of the N-substituted glucosaminides, however, is accompanied by removal of the substituting group, and the rate at which this occurs at the expense of glycosidic hydrolysis is apparently dependent on the electrophilic properties of the substituting group. In this present work dihydrostreptose was obtained from the L-glucos-aminide methyl dihydrostreptobiosaminide by application of the above theories. The N-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)-(DNP), N-acetyl- and, N-tosyl-derivatives of methyl dihydrostreptobiosaminide have been prepared, the N-acetyl derivative has been obtained by a variety of routes. Samples of N-methyl-D and L-glucosamine and some novel N-acyl derivatives have been also prepared for comparison by paper chromatography with various hydrolysis products. The acid hydrolysis of methyl N-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)-dihydrostreptobiosaminide has been investigated in detail; paper chromatographic results showed that hydrolysis had occurred with 2N hydrochloric acid. The hydrolysis of methyl N-acetyldihydrostreptobiosaminide yielded a small sample of dihydrostreptose, which was characterised as the free sugar and the monoacetate. Methyl N-acetylstreptobiosaminide dimethylacetal the analogous derivative of streptomycin under the same acid conditions gave only N-methyl-L-glucosamine, the streptose moiety being degraded. Deamination of methyl dihydrostreptobiosaminide with 1,2,3-indane trione hydrate was attempted unsuccessfully, as was cation-exchange hydrolysis of this compound. Enzymatic cleavage of methyl N-acetyldihydrostreptobiosaminide was also unsuccessful under the conditions tried. The second section of the thesis is devoted to glycosides of dihydrostreptobiosaminide. Methods of glycosidation, the Koenigs-Knorr, the Helferich and the Fischer syntheses are reviewed. Transglycosidation the acid-catalysed replacement of the methyl by another aglycone was attempted with methyl dihydrostreptobiosaminide and yielded the benzyl, phenyl, ?-bromoethyl, cyclohexyl, m-cresyl and anisyl glycosides. No mechanism has heretofore been proposed for this substitution. An examination of its relation to the Fischer glycoside synthesis suggests that the furanose ring of dihydrostreptose would facilitate the reaction and that the ease of glycosidation provides indirect evidence of the nature of this ring in dihydrostreptobiosaminide. The phenyl and ?-bromoethyl dihydrostreptobiosaminide have been tested in vitro against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance studies of various dihydrostreptomycin derivatives are also interpreted.


Methods based on order statistics are often used in finance, quality control, data and signal processing, especially when signals of interest are immersed in impulsive noise. These allow to include rank information by increasing the dimension of the problem. In large dimension problems, we are usually required to know only the second order statistics. In this article we use a rank-one quadratic measurement model based on sketches to estimate the correlation matrix for ordered data. Furthermore, we exploit this matrix's structure to design a convex relaxation optimization problem to recover the matrix. This reconstruction takes a number of measurements proportional to the original size of the problem (without ordering). We provide simulations to show the reconstruction performance of the proposed scheme, and the robustness of this estimation when uniform noise is present.


Congress is now in recess and will return to work on September 7, leaving only 4 weeks to complete action on a number of key science funding bills. Fiscal year 1994 begins on October 1.

On the "must-do" list for Congress upon its return is Senate consideration and final House and Senate passage of HR2491, the VA, HUD, Independent Agencies Appropriations bill. Both the National Science Foundation and NASA are independent agencies funded under HR2491.


The Information technology scenario is undergoing a vast and fast transition during these days. A global library or world of information is at our finger tips now. The personal services that are being imparted by the reference librarians to their users have also wide impact in the present world. Do the users still require the same service that they were getting so far from the reference librarians when the Global Library is before them? Do they need to approach the reference desk for any help of the same nature of the early days? Do the reference librarian need to equip himself with new devices to meet the challenging situation? These are the problems discussed in the article.


Black men who have sex with men (BMSM) in the United States are disproportionately affected by HIV. Using a qualitative approach, the authors describe the healthcare experiences of BMSM in New York State and Atlanta, GA, exploring the social issues that influence barriers to care, communication, and adherence in medical settings. Racial and sexual discrimination socially displace BMSM, and are often compounded by negative encounters within medical institutions. The internalization of these experiences influences healthcare utilization, HIV testing, communication, and adherence behaviors among members of this population. Increasing the number of ethnic and sexual minority providers, expanding current definitions of cultural competency curricula at academic institutions, targeting future research efforts on BMSM, and improving the structural and communication barriers within healthcare settings should be incorporated into our HIV prevention and routine healthcare interventions for BMSM.


A general analysis of the evolution of phase locking in an RF linac-driven Michelson resonator free-electron laser (FEL) is presented. By providing a delay of one RF period in the secondary arm of the interferometer, successive optical pulses can be coupled at the beamsplitter, so that they build up from noise with a definite phase relationship. Phase locking is described in terms of longitudinal mode decay by extracting the mode losses directly from the passive frequency response of the resonator. The analyses predict significant mode structure simplification in microsecond macropulses, so that high-resolution spectroscopy is feasible on RF linac-driven FELs. Simulations of the perfectly tuned Michelson resonator FEL are described from spontaneous radiation to saturation, using a one-dimensional pulse propagation code. Excellent agreement with the analytical results in the small-signal regime is demonstrated. >


Washington State Route 20 (SR-20) in Northwest Washington passes through the Deception Pass State Park. The portion of SR-20 within the park was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the mid-1930s. As part of this work, the CCC built a stone masonry bollard and log rail system to delineate the edge of the road and prevent early-model vehicles from leaving the roadway. Because of their age, quality of workmanship, and importance to the surroundings, the park's bridges and log rail are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. Previous attempts to replace this rail with a crashworthy system were unsuccessful because of the concern that the aesthetic and historic integrity of the park be preserved. A new approach adopted by the Washington State Department of Transportation began with understanding the context of the highway and the concerns of the other stakeholders. In addition, the stakeholders were educated on the safety issues. As a result, a solution was developed and was acceptable to all. The primary solution involved the development of a new barrier that replicated the appearance of the original log rail. This barrier was crash tested in accordance with NCHRP Report 350 TL-2 criteria and is available for use at other locations at which an aesthetic barrier is desired.


Whilst most hedgerow functions depend upon hedgerow structure and hedgerow network patterns, in many ecological studies information on the fragmentation of hedgerows network and canopy structure is often retrieved in the field in small areas using accurate ground surveys and estimated over landscapes in a semi-quantitative manner. This paper explores the use of radar SAR imagery to (i) detect hedgerow networks; and (ii) describe the hedgerow canopy heterogeneity using TerraSAR-X imagery. The extraction of hedgerow networks was achieved using an object-oriented method using two polarimetric parameters: the Single Bounce and the Shannon Entropy derived from one TerraSAR-X image. The hedgerow canopy heterogeneity estimated from field measurements was compared with two backscattering coefficients and three polarimetric parameters derived from the same image. The results show that the hedgerow network and its fragmentation can be identified with a very good accuracy (Kappa index: 0.92). This study also reveals the high correlation between one polarimetric parameter, the Shannon entropy, and the canopy fragmentation measured in the field. Therefore, VHSR radar images can both precisely detect the presence of wooded hedgerow networks and characterize their structure, which cannot be achieved with optical images.


Breast cancer screening with mammography is strongly advocated by some and rejected by others. Discussions in the medical literature focus on the beneficial and unfavourable effects of breast cancer screening. Among the latter are the suggested excess mortality rate of screen-detected breast cancer patients, the high number of unnecessary biopsies, the possibility of overdiagnosis and subsequent unnecessary treatment, and the occurrence of interval breast cancer cases. It is concluded that screening can to a certain extent prevent women from dying of breast cancer but some negative effects are unavoidable. However, adequate training of the screening team can minimize the number of unnecessary biopsies and the occurrence of interval cancers. Research is needed to evaluate the natural course of so-called 'minimal' lesions, and to optimize screening tests. The search for new (imaging) techniques is needed to detect lobular cancers in dense breasts.


Aim To examine the relationship of C1 metabolites of the methionine cycle with the risk of subclinical atherosclerosis (SA) in the Chinese population. Methods A total of 2,991 participants aged 45–75 years old were included for data analyses based on the baseline data of the Guangzhou Nutrition and Health Cohort. Three core serum methionine metabolites including serum S-adenosylmethionine (SAM), S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH), and homocysteine (Hcy) were measured by UPLC-MS/MS. SA was determined by B-mode ultrasound measured carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) at the common artery and bifurcation segments. Multivariable logistic and linear regression models were performed to estimate the associations of C1 metabolites of the methionine cycle with SA risk or CIMT. Results After controlling for potential cofounders and other C1 metabolites, in comparison with the lowest quartile, participants in the highest quartile had lower risk of SA by 27.6% (OR = 0.724; 95% CI:0.563–0.93, Ptrend = 0.007) for SAM and 32.2% (OR = 0.678; 95% CI:0.538–0.855, Ptrend < 0.001) for SAM/SAH, while increased SA risk by 27.9% (OR = 1.279; 95% CI: 1.065–1.535, Ptrend < 0.001) for SAH. No significant association was observed for Hcy with SA after further adjustment of SAH and SAM. The results of multivariable linear regression showed similar findings. The highest two standardized coefficients were observed for SAH (β = 0.104 for CCA and 0.121 for BIF, P< 0.001) and SAM/SAH (β = −0.071 for CCA and −0.084 for BIF, P< 0.001). Subgroup analyses suggested more evident associations of SAH with SA were observed in participants of higher cardiovascular risk profiles. Conclusion Our cross-sectional data showed higher serum SAH, but lower SAM/SAH were independently associated with increased risk of SA among the Chinese middle-aged and elderly population.


ABSTRACT The rapid development of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has brought great harm to physical and mental health of the public. This study aims to investigate the psychological status and sleep quality of the Chinese public during the outbreak of the COVID-19 and its related factors. The survey was conducted from February 17th to February 26th, 2020 in southwestern China. The snowball sampling method was used to invite subjects. Demographic data were collected, and mental status and sleep quality were assessed by the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale (GAD-7), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Descriptive, univariate, and correlation analyses were used to investigate risk factors for psychological status and sleep patterns. A total of 1509 adults (713 males and 796 females) were enrolled in this study. The overall prevalence of anxiety, depression, and decreased sleep quality were 22.3%, 32.2% and 35.4%, respectively. Compared with females, male population has witnessed a higher prevalence of anxiety symptoms (25.1% vs 20.4%, P= 0.007) and depressive symptoms (34.6% vs 30.0%, P= 0.027). In addition, age, marital status, living situation, involvement in anti-pandemic work, basic health status and work status were significant risk factors for anxiety or depression (P< 0.05). During the COVID-19 outbreak, psychological problems and sleep disorders were prevalent among the Chinese public. More attention should be paid to males, the elderly, the solitary, the unemployed, front-line workers in pandemic prevention, and patients with chronic diseases.


BackgroundPrevious data demonstrated an increased incidence in congenital lung malformations (CLM) and hypothesised a link with maternal obesity.MethodA retrospective case-control study (1994-2017) including all cases of CLM and matched controls (N=114 pregnancies). For each diagnosis of a baby diagnosed antenatally with CLM, two controls were selected. Primary outcome measure was mean Body Mass Index of women of affected pregnancies.ResultsThe women in affected pregnancies had a greater BMI (26.7 ±5.2kg/m2 (n=38)) than the control women (24.6±4.7 kg/m2 (n=76)) (p=0.03). 60.5% (n=46) of women in the control group and 39.5% (n=15) women in the CLM group had a normal BMI (<25kg/m2). Women with a BMI > 25kg/m2 had a 1.53 relative risk (RR) of having an affected baby (p=0.02, 95% CI 1.05-2.24). ConclusionObesity is not associated with increased rates of CLM. There is a small clinical difference in the BMI of women affected by CLM.


A meme is an part of media created to share an opinion or emotion across the internet. Due to its popularity, memes have become the new forms of communication on social media. However, due to its nature, they are being used in harmful ways such as trolling and cyberbullying progressively. Various data modelling methods create different possibilities in feature extraction and turning them into beneficial information. The variety of modalities included in data plays a significant part in predicting the results. We try to explore the significance of visual features of images in classifying memes. Memes are a blend of both image and text, where the text is embedded into the image. We try to incorporate the memes as troll and non-trolling memes based on the images and the text on them. However, the images are to be analysed and combined with the text to increase performance. Our work illustrates different textual analysis methods and contrasting multimodal methods ranging from simple merging to cross attention to utilising both worlds' - best visual and textual features. The fine-tuned cross-lingual language model, XLM, performed the best in textual analysis, and the multimodal transformer performs the best in multimodal analysis.


The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides food assistance to low-income women, infants, and children who are nutritionally or medically at risk. Launched in 1974, WIC provides supplemental food, nutrition education, and access to health services. Support for WIC has grown along with increasing evidence that the program's benefits to public health exceed its costs. For example, WIC's share of food assistance expenditures grew to 8 percent in 1991 from 5 percent in 1980. Average monthly participation in 1991 was over 250 percent higher than in 1980 (table 1).


Background/Aims: In 1996, Nebraska became the first state in the United States to establish a Parkinson's disease (PD) Registry. The objectives of this study were to determine the most common comorbid conditions among PD patients receiving inpatient and outpatient services in Nebraska between 2004 and 2012, and to examine whether PD patients had increased risks of these conditions. Methods: Statewide linkage was performed between Nebraska PD Registry data and hospital discharge database. The cohort comprised of 3,852 PD inpatients and 19,260 non-PD inpatients, and 5,217 PD outpatients and 26,085 non-PD outpatients. Referent subjects were matched to PD patients by age at initial hospital admissions or visits, gender, and county of residence using systematic random-sampling method. Results: Compared to non-PD inpatients, PD inpatients were at higher risks for dementia (relative risk [RR] 2.29; 95% CI 2.14–2.45), mood disorders (RR 1.57; 95% CI 1.44–1.70), gastrointestinal disorders (RR 1.15; 95% CI 1.06–1.25), and urinary tract infections (RR 1.33; 95% CI 1.22–1.45), while PD outpatients had higher risks for spondylosis (RR 1.23; 95% CI 1.09–1.38), genitourinary disorders (RR 1.48; 95% CI 1.29–1.69), gastrointestinal disorders (RR 1.59; 95% CI 1.38–1.84), and dementia (RR 2.83; 95% CI 2.38–3.37) than non-PD outpatients. Conclusions: The findings highlight PD as a multisystem neurodegenerative disorder, and this information is crucial for creating strategies to better prevent and manage PD complications.


Abstract Under hypoxic conditions, cells are more resistant to cell killing by ionizing radiation by a factor of 2.5 to 3, potentially compromising the efficacy of radiotherapy. It has been shown recently that hypoxic conditions alone are sufficient to generate mutations in vitro and in vivo, likely due to the creation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and a decrease in mismatch and homologous recombination DNA repair activity. These factors are known precursors to the onset of genetic instability and poor prognosis. We have previously characterized the flow cytometry mutation assay and its sensitivity to detect significant mutant fractions induced by genotoxic agents that are not detected by other mammalian assays. Here we measure the mutant fraction induced by hypoxia. CHO AL cells cultured at <0.1% O2 for 24 h generated a significant mutant fraction of 120 × 10−5 and had growth kinetics and survival characteristics similar to those obtained with other mutagens. We investigated the role of ROS by treating cells with the radical scavenger DMSO, which significantly reduced hypoxia toxicity and mutagenesis. Single cells were sorted from the mutant population, and the resulting clonal populations were stained for five antigens encoded by genes found along chromosome 11 to generate mutant spectra. The mutations were primarily large deletions, similar to those in background mutants, but the frequency was higher. We have demonstrated that hypoxic conditions alone are sufficient to generate mutations in mammalian cells in culture and that the spectrum of mutations is similar to background mutations.


ABSTRACT International service learning (ISL) is included in an increasing number of courses at post-secondary levels of education, including programs which educate future occupational therapy practitioners. There is a limited amount of literature and research concerning best practices for course-based occupational therapy education featuring ISL experiences, in particular within developing countries. The purpose of this paper is to (a) to review key literature on ISL, (b) explicate key elements which can help design course-based ISL experiences; and (c) suggest areas for further research and development of course-based ISL. The seven elements of focus that provide a base to guide occupational therapy educators who create ISL courses with an immersion component in a country with a developing economy are discussed, as well as future challenges and possibilities when providing occupational therapy services to a global society.


Type I interferon (IFN) production by innate immune cells is critical to prime spontaneous T cell responses against solid tumors. Until recently, the tumor-derived signals which stimulate host type I IFN production have remained elusive. However, emerging data suggest that tumor-derived DNA is sufficient to induce IFN-β production in responding cells through activation of a cytosolic DNA sensing receptor called STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes). STING-mediated IFN-β production, in turn, leads to functional priming of antigen-specific T cells which mediate tumor rejection in pre-clinical solid tumor models. However, because of their disseminated growth pattern, hematological cancers, such as acute leukemia, may not release sufficient quantities of DNA upon apoptosis to activate the STING pathway in innate immune cells, such as dendritic cells (DCs). The failure of acute leukemias to induce a type I IFN response may contribute to their ability to generate T cell tolerance in the host. Thus, we hypothesized that activating the STING pathway would promote a type I IFN response sufficient to facilitate DC-mediated priming of leukemia-specific T cells and to prolong survival of mice with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Murine C1498 AML cells engineered to express a model peptide antigen called SIY (C1498.SIY) were inoculated intravenously into syngeneic C57BL/6 mice which were then treated with a selective murine STING agonist, DMXAA (5,6-dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid), or vehicle control. Preliminary experiments confirmed that DMXAA administration resulted in robust IFN-β production by C57BL/6 spleen cells (90-fold induction over vehicle control-treated spleen cells). STING pathway activation via DMXAA treatment of C1498.SIY-bearing animals resulted in a massive expansion (10-fold over vehicle control-treated animals) of endogenous SIY antigen-specific T cells as determined by SIY/K b pentamer analysis. Intracellular cytokine staining of SIY-peptide restimulated spleen cells from DMXAA-treated, leukemia-bearing animals, revealed that the expanded SIY-specific CD8+ T cells were functionally active, and produced high-levels of IFN-γ. To determine if this enhanced immune response translated to a benefit in survival, C1498.SIY AML cell-challenged mice were treated with a single dose of DMXAA or vehicle control five days after tumor inoculation. Among mice treated with DMXAA, 80% of mice rejected the leukemia and survived long-term, while control-treated mice succumbed to AML within approximately 3 weeks, as expected. DMXAA-treated mice surviving a primary C1498.SIY cell challenge also rejected a secondary challenge with parental C1498 cells (SIY-negative), suggesting the DMXAA treatment led to potent immunological memory against native C1498-expressed antigens. DMXAA treatment of mice following a systemic challenge with parental C1498 cells also led to enhanced survival compared to control-treated animals. This effect was T and or B cell-dependent, as DMXAA treatment of RAG-/- mice had no effect on survival. Collectively, these data suggest that DMXAA-mediated activation of the STING pathway upstream of type I IFN potently enhances adaptive immunity to AML which culminates in prolonged survival or even disease cure in treated animals. It will be important to determine whether the STING pathway may be successfully manipulated in other murine leukemia models. If so, then STING may be a promising therapeutic target to enhance endogenous immunity in AML patients. Citation Format: Emily K. Curran, Xiufen Chen, Leticia Corrales, Justin Kline. Activation of the STING pathway enhances immunity and improves survival in a murine myeloid leukemia model. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Hematologic Malignancies: Translating Discoveries to Novel Therapies; Sep 20-23, 2014; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2015;21(17 Suppl):Abstract nr A10.


Although nitrogen is a key element in organic molecules such as nucleic acids and proteins, the timing of the emergence of its modern biogeochemical cycle is poorly known. Recent studies on the antiquity of the nitrogen cycle and its interaction with free oxygen suggests the establishment of a complete aerobic N biogeochemical cycle with nitrification, denitrification, and nitrogen fixation at about 2.68 Gyr. Here, we report new bulk nitrogen isotope data for the 2.72 billion‐year‐old sedimentary succession of the Tumbiana Formation (Pilbara Craton, Western Australia). The nitrogen isotopic compositions vary widely from +8.6‰ up to +50.4‰ and are inversely correlated with the very low δ13C values of associated organic matter defining the Fortescue excursion (down to about −56‰). We propose that this 15N‐enrichment records the onset of nitrification coupled to the continuous removal of its derivatives (nitrite and nitrate) by denitrification. This finding implies an increase in the availability of electron acceptors and probably oxygen in the Tumbiana depositional environment, 300 million years before the oxygenation of the Earth's atmosphere.


At the turn of the last century, writers like Atha Westbury and Hume Cook were asking whether Australia had its own fairies, its own fairy tale lore. They attempted to fill the perceived lack of traditional fairy-tale narratives with their own published works of fairy tale. The titles authors chose for their collections – for instance, Olga Ernst's Fairy tales from the land of the wattle and Annette Kellermann's Fairy tales of the south seas and other stories – often revealed an overt wish to build a fairy-tale tradition that was distinctly and uniquely Australian. While some of these tales simply relocated existing European tales to the Australian context, most used classic fairy-tale tropes and themes to create new adventures. Other writers and collectors, like K Langloh-Parker, Sister Agnes and Andrew Lang, sought to present Indigenous tales as examples of local folk and fairy tales – a project of flawed good intentions grounded in colonial appropriation. These early Australian publications are largely forgotten and, in many ways, the erasure or forgetting of narratives that were often infused with colonial attitudes to gender, class, race, is far from regrettable. And yet there was a burgeoning local tradition of magical storytelling spearheaded by the delicate fairies of Ida Rentoul Outhwaite's brush and the gumnut babies of May Gibbs that celebrated the Australian environment, its flora and fauna, populating and decorating new tales for the nation's children.


Many studies conducted in the past have shown how the higher education can be a stressful period in a student's life. A student's life during this period is usually accompanied by various stressors unsettling him inwardly, physically and emotionally. This is a retrospective study with the aim to identify the factors influencing the status of perceived stress level among the students studying Masters of Science. This study is entirely based on the primary data collected in University Campus, Tribhuvan University, Nepal. A representative sample of 300 students was taken for the study on the basis of proportion of students in each department out of total students. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. Descriptive analysis was made using statistical tools like mean, median, standard deviation, maximum, minimum, cross-tabulations etc. The determination of significant explanatory variables was made using chi-square test and binary logistic regression. Out of 300 sample students, 41% of them perceived stress during the past month prior to the study. The study also revealed that factors like perception towards last academic performance of the students, where the students are living in and mean psychological stress of the students have significant role for varying status of perceived stress level among the students under study. Keywords: Perceived stress, binary logistic regression, odds, M.Sc. students Cite this Article Bipin Poudel, Madhav Kumar Bhusal. Analysis of Factors Associated with Perceived Stress Level among the Masters of Science Students of University Campus, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Nepal. Research & Reviews: Journal of Statistics . 2018; 7(2): 1–6p.


The number of universities offering distance learning courses in power systems has increased significantly over the last few years. Therefore, it has become critical to evaluate distance learning with respect to student learning, pedagogy, delivery media, logistics, and cost. This paper presents the results of a survey conducted to determine distance learning resources in power systems. Benefits of distance learning and a brief history of distance learning in power systems at Kansas State University are also provided. The different media for delivery of lectures to students are discussed and some strategies for interaction between faculty and students to improve learning are presented.


We study the persistence of ETF premiums and discounts. Following a day of high or low premiums, or premiums or discounts over NAV, ETFs tend to maintain a premium or discount for as many as five days, though there is some regression to the mean. Premiums also predict distinct patterns of returns on the following day. Overnight prices drop following a high premium, but high-premium ETFs have significantly higher returns the next day. Surprisingly, the NAV returns over the next day also tend to be positive. Discounts show a similar but opposite pattern, with smaller magnitudes. We conclude that ETF premiums and discounts have some ability to predict future returns, including the fundamental returns of the underlying assets.


Efficient clearance of apoptotic cells by efferocytosis is important for tissue homeostasis. Impaired efferocytosis leads to the accumulation of cell debris, which is regarded as a trigger in chronic inflammation and autoimmune diseases. Patients with hematological neoplastic disorders such as multiple myeloma (MM) exhibit high blood levels of apoptotic microparticles. The present study investigated whether these high levels of apoptotic microparticles are associated with insufficient dead cell clearance. Blood samples were collected from patients with MM immediately prior to and 3, 7 and 10 days after the initial cycle of bortezomib-based therapy. In addition, bone marrow aspirates (BMA) were collected prior to and following therapy. Prior to therapy, a 52% reduction in efferocytosis by blood monocytes was observed compared with the healthy controls (P<0.017). This was associated with an elevated number of 7-AAD+ dead cell remnants in the blood flow as well as in BMA. A portion of the blood samples contained active caspase 3. The subsequent bortezomib-based therapy had no effect on efferocytosis, although the quantity of dead cell remnants decreased. This reduction was associated with a decline in cluster of differentiation 8 (CD8)+ and CD4+ T cells and an increase in the number of monocytes. However, of 28 distinct soluble immune-modulating molecules (i.e. chemokines, cytokines and soluble co-stimulators) only C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), CCL24 and sCD27 were affected by bortezomib-based therapy. The levels of all other molecules remained unchanged or were below the detection threshold in all samples. The present study results revealed that the presence of dead cell remnants in the blood and bone morrow of patients with MM is associated with impaired efferocytosis by monocytes; however, its contribution to inflammatory events during MM remains unclear.


In this paper we provide new evidence on the predictability of aggregate stock market returns, and new time series of the expected excess returns on common stocks. We extract aggregate discount rate news from equity portfolio returns and use this information to construct estimates of expected excess market returns. We find that a linear combination of the lagged returns on the market portfolio, on small firms with high book-to-market ratios and on large firms with low book-to-market ratios contains information about future market returns over horizons of a few quarters. In contrast, the lagged returns on the market portfolio and 6 portfolios formed on the basis of dividend yield provide information that is useful for predicting market returns at business cycle horizons or longer. Moreover, the conditioning information we find is largely uncorrelated with commonly used predictor variables such as the market dividend yield and the CAY variable of Lettau and Ludvigson. Further analysis suggests that the level of predictability found cannot be attributed to data-mining bias.


Summary form only given. Femtosecond coherent light sources emitting in the mid-infrared are of particular interest for a number of applications like environmental sensing, medicine, metrology, material processing and telecommunications. Among the alternatives, Cr-doped chalcogenide-based crystalline lasers are the most compact, robust and cheap.For decade pulse energy of these lasers were limited at the level of 1-2 nJ. Finally Cr:ZnS laser with 3.8 nJ pulse energy and 550 mW average output power producing 69-fs pulses was demonstrated very recently [1]. Power scaling of femtosecond crystalline oscillators is not a simple task. The pulse energy of these systems is limited by the pulse breakup due to high third-order optical nonlinearity of the active medium. Increasing the output power over the certain limit result in either multiple-pulsing or harmonic mode-locking regimes. In order to overcome that, the intracavity power density inside the active medium should be reduced. That could be done by using the technique of chirped-pulse-oscillator (CPO). This technique is well-established in fiber and Tisapphire lasers, and has recently been demonstrated with the Cr:YAG and Yb-doped thin-disk lasers. For Cr:ZnSe the analytical theory [2] predicts pulse energies up to 0.5 μJ [3] and initial demonstration of CPO technique has already been performed for Cr:ZnSe as well as Cr:ZnS lasers [4]. We report the successful demonstration of Cr:ZnS CPO pulse energy over 8 nJ. The laser was build on the basis of a classic 4-mirror astigmatically-compensated cavity and was pumped by 1.61 μm cw polarized 5-W Er:fiber laser. The mode-locking was achieved using soft-aperture Kerr lens effect. The compensation of the group-delay dispersion was performed by the chirped mirror. The pulses having the duration ranging from 0.8 to 2 picoseconds were obtained at the pulse repetition rate of 105 MHz. The laser average output power reached 0.88 W with 26% slope efficiency. At output powers over 750 mW we observe leakage of 3-5 % of energy into higher-order modes, visible as the narrow spectral lines. The input-output curve, typical autocorrelation trace, and laser emission spectra for different output pulse energies are shown in the Figure 1.


Abstract Ixodes vespertilionis is a tick parasitizing on the bodies of bats. In our study, the complete mitogenome of I. vespertilionis was determined by using Illumina sequencing technology. The mitogenome was 14,559 bp in size and was predicted to encode 37 genes including 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes, and one control region. The gene order of the mitogenome is identical to Argasidae and non-Australasian Prostriata. The phylogenetic analysis by the Maximum-likelihood method reveals that I. vespertilionis is phylogenetically closest to Ixodes simplex. These data provide novel reference for further studies on the population genetics and phylogenetics of ticks.


This study aimed at identifying the cognitive and skills needs of young women getting married by monitoring the reality in the rehabilitation program of young women getting married. This study adopted the qualitative approach, which focuses on studying the phenomena, the individuals, communities, and institutions in various fields and describing them to reach a deeper understanding. The study used two methods to collect data and information from the research sample. The Focus group tool, which was used with a purposive sample of (21) young women getting married and who attended the qualification program of young women getting married. The other tool was interviews with the trainers. The researcher had individual interviews with all the seven trainers. The results of this study revealed that the most important knowledge according to trainers is the psychological knowledge and the medical knowledge. The results showed also that the most important skills required in this program from the trainer's point of view were house management, grooming and personal care, and emotion control. The most important knowledge that has gained the favor of young women getting married in this program are psychological and medical knowledge. The most significant skills that young women getting married need are: the skill if dealing with the husband, the skill of emotion control, the skill of emotions management, the skill of planning, and the skill of problem solving. The study recommended using the rehabilitation programs with couples getting married and making such programs as a condition of the marriage contract. The study also recommended establishing a department in the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, which supervises the providers of pre-marriage counseling courses.


and fun at the same time? Did you guess the fabulous middle school student? It's true! They have multiple personalities at any given day, hour, or moment. These young adolescents (fifth through eighth grade) are energizing, inquisitive, and thoroughly unpredictable. In this environment, one never gets bored, and if you are observant, you will discover that improvisation, flexibility, and patience will help you smile and enjoy each and every day. Other means of staying refreshed and energized include getting adequate sleep and exercise such as walking, working out, running, or yoga. Equally important, you must develop a sense of humor, visit often with friends and a support group, and be willing to laugh with the students. Honestly, teaching general music in middle school is most rewarding and I love these kids! I am a firm believer that general music plays a valuable role in shaping the young adolescent. Hopefully, the following teaching tools and suggestions from my 30+ years of experience will inspire you to teach general music to the middle school student.


As the use and value of social networks continues to expand and creatively grow, the question of how to attract people to the various sites becomes an important question. This research focuses on interactivity and its role in user satisfaction with a social network site. A model is put forth that focuses on factors that help answer these questions. A survey was conducted with 164 users of social networking websites (i.e. Facebook, Linkedin & Twitter) regarding technology acceptance, marketing related factors and user satisfaction. We find that perceived interactivity (in terms of control) and level of focus/concentration do affect an end user's satisfaction with a social network along with antecedents from the technology acceptance model (TAM). These findings suggest both TAM related factors and marketing related factors both impact the user experience on a social networking site.


We investigate the intensity enhancement and the duration of starburst episodes triggered by major galaxy interactions and mergers. We analyze two large statistical datasets of numerical simulations. These have been obtained using two independent and different numerical techniques to model baryonic and dark matter evolution that are extensively compared for the first time. One is a Tree-SPH code, the other one is a grid-based N-body sticky-particles code. We show that, at low redshift, galaxy interactions and mergers in general trigger only moderate star formation enhancements. Strong starbursts where the star formation rate is increased by a factor greater than 5 are rare and found only in about 15% of major galaxy interactions and mergers. Merger-driven starbursts are also rather short-lived, with a typical duration of activity of a few 10 8 yr. These conclusions are found to be robust, independent of the numerical techniques and star formation models. At higher redshifts where galaxies contain more gas, gas inflow-induced starbursts are neither stronger nor longer than their local counterparts. In turn, the formation of massive gas clumps, results of local Jeans instability that can occur spontaneously in gas-rich disks or be indirectly favored by galaxy interactions, could play a more important role in determining the duration and intensity of star formation episodes.


The authors described a case of viral stomatitis of the type of hand, foot and mouth disease with mucosal and skin manifestations in an adult with a significant rise of neutralizing antibodies against the Coxsackie B4 virus.


Within the knowledge-based view firms co-operate because they are motivated either by a desire to access or to acquire capabilities. This paper combines these two aspects by drawing on the literature on distributed innovation processes as well as that on dynamic capabilities. It contends that firms co-operate because they are motivated by the desire to gain access to complementary capabilities and to match internal explorative and exploitative search with their external counterparts that are present in complementary domains of knowledge. The contention is examined empirically within the UK's biotechnology sector. Specifically, it is suggested that dedicated biotechnology firms co-operate primarily because they wish to exploit technological capabilities that are matched with exploration of knowledge in demand. Established firms co-operate primarily because they seek first to exploit demand capabilities, and second to engage in the exploration for, and the beneficial use of technological knowledge. The findings help our understanding not only of the motives behind inter-firm co-operation, but also of the way in which co-operative agreements can be initiated and managed in their nascent phases.