Background Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is an inflammatory enzyme involved in the pathogenesis and prognostic of Hodgkin lymphoma. We previously reported that expression of COX-2 on Reed-Sternberg cell is a major independent, unfavorable prognostic factor in patients with early Hodgkin lymphoma treated with ABVD (Blood 2012; 119: 6072). The relationship between COX-2 expression and poor prognosis has been associated with pathogenic phenomena such as induction of angiogenesis, chemoresistance through induction of antiapoptotic mechanisms such as up-regulation of bcl-2 or resistance to Fas, or promotion of invasion through induction of some metalloproteinases. As patients in our series were treated with ABVD +/- radiotherapy, we aim to analyze the role of radiotherapy on the adverse prognostic factor of COX-2 RS expression.

Methods In the present study, we investigated the prognostic value of COX-2 expression in a large (N = 143), uniformly treated early Hodgkin Iymphoma (HL) population from the Spanish Network of HL using tissue microarrays. Univariate and multivariate analysis was done, including the most recognized clinical variables and the potential role of administration of adjuvant radiotherapy.

Results Median age was 31 years; there was B-symptoms or bulky disease in 30% of patients; ECOG PS > 1 in 6%, EORTC score > 1 in 84% and 66% received radiotherapy. The expression of COX-2 defined a subgroup with significantly worse prognosis. Accordingly, the 46 (32%) COX-2+ patients had a PFS at 5 years of 72% versus 86% of COX-2- patients (P = .017). Similarly, the OS at 5 years also differed for both groups, with 82% and 94% for COX-2+ and COX-2-, respectively (P = .004). By multivariate analysis, COX-2 expression (HR = 2.76), B symptoms (HR = 2.34), and administration of RT (HR = 0.32) were independently associated with PFS, whereas only ECOG PS (HR = 9) and COX-2 RS expression (HR = 4.81) were independently associated with OS.

Considering patients COX-2+, those that received RT had a significantly better 5y-PFS (80% versus 54% if no RT; p = .008). In contrast, COX-2- patients only had a modest non-significant benefit from RT in terms of 5y-PFS (90% versus 79%; p=0.13). When compared the outcome of patients receiving RT considering the expression of COX-2 on RS we found a non-significant 10% difference in terms of PFS between COX-2+ and COX-2- patients (p=0.09) while this difference between the two groups was important (25%) in patients non receiving RT (p=0.04).

Conclusions COX-2 RS expression is an adverse independent prognostic factor in early HL. Radiotherapy overcome the worse prognosis associated to COX-2 expression on RS acting in a chemotherapy-independent way. COX-2 RS expression may be useful to determine patients with early HL candidates to receive consolidation with RT.

Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


In this paper we demonstrate the use of grid-based computing in revealing aspects of intrusion detection data which were difficult to reveal some years ago due to constrained computing resources. Exploiting the grids for their computing resources can rapidly turn into a tedious task, entailing solid technical knowledge about the grid. Grid application (and) frameworks are the category of tools that make the use of the grid much simplified for the scientist with interest solely on the computing resources. Mining security data is a task, we believe, that can be better served using the grid. Here, we attempt to reveal new insights in intrusion detection data, such as the well known KDDCUP'99 data set.


This paper reports the rapid synthesis, characterization, and photovoltaic and sensing applications of TiO2 nanoflowers prepared by a facile low-temperature solution process. The morphological characterizations clearly reveal the high-density growth of a three-dimensional flower-shaped structure composed of small petal-like rods. The detailed properties confirmed that the synthesized nanoflowers exhibited high crystallinity with anatase phase and possessed an energy bandgap of 3.2 eV. The synthesized TiO2 nanoflowers were utilized as photo-anode and electron-mediating materials to fabricate dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) and liquid nitroaniline sensor applications. The fabricated DSSC demonstrated a moderate conversion efficiency of ~3.64% with a maximum incident photon to current efficiency (IPCE) of ~41% at 540 nm. The fabricated liquid nitroaniline sensor demonstrated a good sensitivity of ~268.9 μA mM−1 cm−2 with a low detection limit of 1.05 mM in a short response time of 10 s.


We will extend the Fourier restriction inequality for quadratic hypersurfaces obtained by Strichartz. We will consider the case where the hypersurface is a graph of a certain real polynomial which is a sum of one-dimensional monomials. It is essential to examine the decay of a one-dimensional oscillatory


Abstract The Great Curassow (Crax rubra) is a Neotropical bird with a wide distribution; it is classified under different threat categories and is listed as a vulnerable species by the IUCN. The Official Mexican Standard, the NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, indicates that the Great Curassow is a threatened species, and the subspecies Crax rubra griscomi, which is restricted to the island of Cozumel, is classified as critically endangered. Habitat loss and fragmentation, hunting, overexploitation, and illegal trade are among the main factors that have placed the bird at an endangered status. The objective of the present study was to determine the genetic structure and variation of the species within the Mexican populations of Crax rubra by using three mitochondrial markers, and one nuclear marker (COI, ND2, Cyt b, and MUSK). We used 47 samples obtained by noninvasive collection (feathers) including the two different color phases of the female plumage: dark brown and barred (rare in Mexico). Gene flow between the remaining populations is recent and extensive, even between the continental and the island population (C. r. griscomi). The results indicate that the subspecies C. r. rubra and C. r. griscomi do not present a marked genetic differentiation because the second exhibits an exclusive haplotype and a shared haplotype. With this study, we provide the first genetic-geographic approximation of the curassow in Mexico, where a gradual geographic differentiation is observed between the western and eastern populations of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and we provide a baseline for future studies. Finally, the information obtained indicates that important genetic diversity persists in the Mexican populations of the Great Curassow and that sufficient conservation within the ecosystems of these subspecies can be obtained by protecting them from overexploitation and by conserving and restoring their habitat.


The use of advanced analytics techniques has become pivotal for the Digital Transformation of the Oil and Gas Industry. Most of these models are used to predict and avoid the off-spec behaviors of both equipment and functional units of the plant and also for predicting overshooting events in advance allows plant's operators to avoid production down-time.
 From a Machine Learning perspective, predicting off-specs situation and peaks in time signal is a complex task, due to the great rarity of events. For the very same reason, using standard data science measures – like Area Under the Curve (AUC), Recall and Precision – can lead to misleading performance indicators. In fact, a model that predicts no off-spec would have a high AUC just because of the unbalanced classes, leading to many false alarms. In this paper we present a business-oriented validation framework for big data analytics and machine learning models applied to a upstream production plant. This allow to evaluate both the effort required to operators and the expected benefit that could be achieved.
 The validation metrics defined take the classical Data Science measures to the business domain. This allow to adapt the model to the very specific use case and end user addressing the specific upstream plants constraints. This framework allows to define the optimal tradeoff between effort required and preventable events, providing statistics and KPIs to evaluate it. Normalized Recall (NR) takes into account both the percentage of events intercepted and the effort required, in terms of Attention Time (AT), when the operator should pay attention to the equipment involved. Plant operators can now have an idea of the results they can achieve with respect to the maximum effort required. Moreover, to prove the goodness of the model, we defined the lift in the NR as the ratio of the model NR and the NR that would be obtained by randomly distributing the same number of alarms.
 We applied this framework to specific use cases obtaining an expected recall of 40-50% with an expected effort of 5-10% of the time (considering more than 6 months). The effort is actually lower, since the operator is not requested to be fully committed to the alarm. The innovative framework developed is able to demonstrate the real operating capability of the analytics implemented on field, highlighting both the effort required to operators and the accuracy of machine learning tools.


Our small empirical stock-flow model for the Dutch economy, which endogenizes the adjustment dynamics to (un)employment search equilibria, identifies two mechanisms that caused persistente in labor market adjustments: (i) job competition from non-participants, and (ii) asymmetrie adjustments to cyclical shocks. At the core of the model is an estimated matching function. Using Dutch flow data for the period 1970-1997 we tind that the search effectiveness of individuals on welfare benefits and non-participation is 0.33 respectively 0.05 of the search effectiveness of individuals receiving unemployment insurance. In accordance with actual developments in the reference period, our model simulations show that, when the flow from non-participants into the labor market rises permanently, the unemployment rate rises quickly and stabilizes at a higher leve1 whereas employment continues to rise. Yet, a sensitivity analysis with altemative assumptions on the type of supply shocks and the reaction of labor demand to these shocks indicates that the adjustment dynamics, and hence the degree of persistente, depend much on the search behavior of non-participants.


This article considers the tax compliance costs incurred by the large corporate sector.
Using a survey of large and very large businesses and international groups in Australia, and
drawing on the findings of other studies, the authors compare and contrast the current
burden with the burden encountered by such businesses in Australia and elsewhere in
recent years. They identify key trends in the compliance cost profile of the large corporate
sector and possible explanations for those trends. They also discuss the factors that are
perceived by survey respondents to give rise to high compliance costs. Finally, they
provide insights into the relationship between the tax-risk positions taken by Australian
firms in the large corporate sector and the compliance cost profiles of those firms.
The research outcomes are both confirmatory and insightful. They confirm key
findings from the literature that tax compliance costs are significant, regressive, and not
reducing over time, but also provide new insights into the compliance cost profile of the
large corporate sector—an area of research that has previously been largely unexplored.
The research suggests that, apart from business size, the number of taxes that the entity
has to comply with is a significant predictor of the level of tax compliance costs. In addition,
it suggests that, after controlling for size, entities that have been identified as a significant
compliance risk by the tax authority have higher compliance costs than those with lower
risk classifications. Besides these statistically measurable determinants, the study
suggests that three broad drivers of tax compliance costs are perceived by taxpayers: the
complexity and uncertainty of tax rules, the administrative compliance requirements
imposed by tax authorities, and international exposure.


We provide the first estimates of ethnic segregation between 1850 and 1940 that cover the entire United States and are consistent across time and space. To do so, we adapt the Logan-Parman method to immigrants by measuring segregation based on the nativity of the next-door neighbor. In addition to providing a consistent measure of segregation, we also document new patterns such as the high levels of segregation in rural areas, in small factory towns and for non-European sources. Early 20th century immigrants spatially assimilated at a slow rate, leaving immigrants' lived experience distinct from natives for decades after arrival.


This paper presents a micro-robotic bio-manipulation system for automated cell injection, addressing two key challenges. First, this paper reports a human interference-free determination of material deposition destinations based on image processing of the cell structures. Depending on the applications, foreign materials could be deposited inside the nucleus of the cell or outside but still inside the cytoplasm of the cell. Recognition of the nucleoli boundary brings us basic cell structure information, which consequently provides high flexibility to determine the deposition destinations, with no need of the destinations to be selected by an operator. Second, the paper presents a visual servo control design which moves the micropipette tip to the targeted position and deposits foreign materials to that point autonomously. The visual servo control allows the motion settle time within 0.5 sec., with an accuracy of one pixel, which are highly desirable in automated cell injection applications.


Adhesive pili on the surface of pathogenic bacteria comprise polymerized pilin subunits and are essential for initiation of infections. Pili assembled by the chaperone-usher pathway (CUP) require periplasmic chaperones that assist subunit folding, maintain their stability, and escort them to the site of bioassembly. Until now, CUP chaperones have been classified into two families, FGS and FGL, based on the short and long length of the subunit-interacting loops between its F1 and G1 β-strands, respectively. CfaA is the chaperone for assembly of colonization factor antigen I (CFA/I) pili of enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), a cause of diarrhea in travelers and young children. Here, the crystal structure of CfaA along with sequence analyses reveals some unique structural and functional features, leading us to propose a separate family for CfaA and closely related chaperones. Phenotypic changes resulting from mutations in regions unique to this chaperone family provide insight into their function, consistent with involvement of these regions in interactions with cognate subunits and usher proteins during pilus assembly.


Although many wide-ranging taxa occur in Madagascar, phylogeographic studies for most of these species are still lacking. This is especially the case for snakes, where of more than 100 endemic species, the population structure of only two species has so far been examined. Here, we examine genetic population structure of one of the most common snakes of Madagascar, Mimophis mahfalensis (Grandidier, 1867). This taxon is the only representative of Psammophiinae in Madagascar, where the majority of species in this subfamily is distributed throughout mainland Africa. Applying an integrative approach, where both morphological data and genetic results from coalescent species delimitation analyses are considered, we determine that Mimophis mahfalensis is composed of two distinct taxa: M. mahfalensis in the central montane and southern parts of Madagascar, and a second new species restricted to the north and north-west, which we describe here. We also examine the colour pattern polymorphism exhibited in Mimophis, which has been previously hypothesized as sexually dimorphic and/or geographically correlated. However, we find all three colour morphs in both sexes, and both species of Mimophis. Our work highlights the importance of phylogeographic studies that examine wide-ranging taxa to detect cryptic species diversity, even amongst species that are common, or have been previously considered to be well known. www.zoobank.org/lsid:zoobank.org:pub:9791DC0B-49E5-4571-884C-4AA85EAF2472


The authors strive to present the social status of women in Croatian cities in the 19 and early 20 centuries on the example of the multilingual city of Osijek. The main goal of the paper is to determine the social position of women at that time and to examine whether and to which extent it was influenced by their knowledge of three languages spoken in the multilingual milieu of the city: Croatian, German, and Hungarian. The corpus of the research encompasses job announcements and advertisements related to women in two local newspapers in the German language Die Drau and Slawonische Presse that were published in the city of Osijek in the late 19 century and the early 20 century. In the introduction, the political background of Croatian society at that period is presented, and relevant legal regulations are analyzed from the point of view of the history of law. In the main part, newspaper announcements and advertisements concerning women and their multilingualism are researched and discussed from the perspectives of pragmatic linguistics and sociolinguistics. The method used in achieving this goal was fieldwork research into the original issues of two local newspapers in the German language Die Drau and Slawonische Presse, saved at the State Archives of Osijek. The research includes all the issues of Slawonische Presse from 1870 to 1918 and Die Drau from 1870 to 1927. In the final part, conclusions are drawn on the social status of women as influenced by their knowledge of two or more languages spoken in the multilingual city of Osijek in the 19 and early 20


Passive microwave systems are traditionally characterised in the frequencydomain with a vector network analyser (VNA). The measurement of antennas typically takes place in an anechoic chamber where the interference from spurious reflections and outside noise is minimised. Despite the high level of accuracy achieved with this approach, such facilities have high costs associated with them. Recent publications have demonstrated the characterisation of antennas using a step-function time domain reflectometer (TDR) along with frequency-domain processing techniques. Localisation of the measurement in time prior to transformation allows for the dismissal of unwanted spurious reflections, eliminating the need for an anechoic chamber. An alternative technique is proposed whereby an impulse generator is employed in place of the step generator in a TDR. The advantage conferred by "impulse TDR" (ITDR) is that more energy is available at higher frequencies than with conventional step TDR, leading to a higher bandwidth and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The theoretical result is compared with measurement.


Stress echocardiography is a tool for assessing the extent and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) during physical or pharmacological stress. Transient worsening of regional left ventricular (LV) function during stress is a well-recognized abnormality of inducible ischemia. We present the case of a 57-year-old female with risk factors for CAD who was referred for a dobutamine stress echocardiogram for complaints of typical angina. It was interpreted as positive for inducible ischemia, but using unconventional criteria. Unfortunately, this study had reduced sensitivity due to LV hypertrophy. All LV wall segments were not clearly seen to comment on regional contractility, and an abnormal cardiac tilt from its axis was noted, suggestive of ischemia along the anteroseptal, anterior and lateral walls. Following this, a coronary angiogram showed diffuse CAD. The cardiac axis with the presence of a tilt as a potential measure of ischemia is previously unrecognized. The idea invokes a mathematical principle based on the direction and the magnitude of the vector of opposing walls during contractility. Simply implying that ischemic segments might contract in the same direction, vector magnitude will be less prominent; hence, "axial tilt" will occur. Prospective studies are needed to validate the feasibility and reproducibility of this abnormality in the assessment of ischemia and its viability in clinical practice.


Evidence suggests that macrophage pyroptosis promotes the progression of diabetic atherosclerosis. Spermine, a natural cellular metabolite, demonstrates a protective effect against cardiovascular diseases. However, whether spermine has a protective effect against macrophage pyroptosis caused by high glucose (HG) and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) conditions remains to be elucidated. To investigate the protective effect of spermine and the related underlying mechanism, THP-1 macrophages were treated with HG/ox-LDL, spermine, or the specific nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) inhibitor ML385. Cell viability was detected using CCK-8, cell membrane permeability was analyzed using lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and Hoechst/propidium iodide staining and pyroptosis-related gene and protein expression levels were evaluated using polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis. Spermine showed a potent preventive effect on THP-1 macrophage pyroptosis and oxidative stress induced by HG/ox-LDL. Cells treated with spermine showed increased cell viability, reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, decreased LDH levels in the supernatant and reduced cell swelling. In addition, spermine significantly reduced NLR family pyrin domain containing 3, cleaved caspase-1, N-gasdermin D and IL-1β expression, as well as IL-1β levels in the supernatant. This demonstrated that the inhibition of pyroptosis and oxidative stress due to spermine was Nrf2 dependent. Furthermore, spermine enhanced Nrf2 nuclear translocation, thereby increasing heme oxygenase-1 and NADPH quinone oxidoreductase-1 expression, which subsequently reduced ROS production. In addition, the anti-pyroptotic and antioxidant effects of spermine were reversed by ML385 inhibition of Nrf2. It was concluded that spermine prevented macrophage pyroptosis and increased ROS overproduction by activating the Nrf2 pathway. The data suggested that spermine may be a potential novel drug for the treatment of diabetic atherosclerosis because it targets macrophage pyroptosis.


This paper aimed to present a critical analysis from the educational leadership perspective for the Jordanian teachers' resistance to use of the fingerprint attendance system and tried to identify the reasons of this issue and provided a group of recommended resolutions. This paper also reviewed the related theories, models, and approaches to support the process of explanation and discussion. Furthermore, This paper identified four themes during the discussion about the reasons behind teachers' resistance to use of the fingerprint attendance system, these themes are: The Jordanian MOE did not follow the required strategies and procedures to implement the intended change successfully, and to avoid or overcome the resistance of teachers, The ambiguity about the reasons behind intended change and the reasons behind teacher's resistance, The MOE did not consider the principles of rationality while making the decision of change and The MOE did not consider The TMA before using this of new technology. Furthermore, this paper recommended presented theoretical underpinning and models, and satisfactory and helpful for both the decision makers and teachers.


The interaction of plasma microfields with radiating atoms and ions causes a line broadening that governs both the half-width and shift of the spectral line, i.e., the intensity distribution in frequency is altered to reflect the presence of the plasma. The line shifts are of particular interest both for their intrinsic value in terms of providing insight into the fundamental nature of the underlying physical processes affecting the emission of radiation as well as its diagnostic value in the study of high-density plasmas. In addition, exact wavelengths of spectral lines of highly charged ions are required in the determination of line opacities and level positions for x-ray-laser transitions. The sensitivity of spectral line shift is investigated in the impact approximation for a variety of assumptions using the distorted-wave with exchange approach. The formalism is applied to the Lyman-alpha line of hydrogen and ionized helium to determine the influence of various assumptions on the line shift as well as identifying the differences between a neutral and ionized radiator. The results are compared and contrasted with a number of other calculations and experimental measurements. (AW)


In the presence of a stoichiometric amount of CrCl(3) and trimethylchlorosilane (TMSCl), nucleophilic addition of arylzinc compounds 1c-h to arylaldehydes 2a,b,g smoothly proceeded at room temperature to yield corresponding benzhydrols 4a-f in good yields. From arylzinc compounds 1a,b, 3-aryl-1(3H)-isobenzofuranones 3a-f were given by the CrCl(3)-mediated reaction with arylaldehydes 2a-f. Diaryl ketones 5a-e were obtained in good yields by the addition of excess amount of benzaldehyde as an oxidant to the resulting solution after the CrCl(3)-mediated reaction between arylzinc compounds 1c-g and arylaldehydes 2b,g was completed. In the nucleophilic additions of arylzinc compounds 1a,d,f to alkyladehydes 6b-f, the treatment of arylzinc compounds with CrCl(3) was required prior to the addition of the aldehydes in order to prevent the fast protodezincation of arylzinc compounds by the enolizable aldehydes. In these CrCl(3)-mediated nucleophilic additions of arylzinc compounds to aldehydes, arylchromium(III) species are probably reactive intermediates.


Thirty-three patients who have suffered with dysphagia to solids and liquids for a varying number of years are reviewed. They all had a history and radiologic findings suggestive of achalasia of the esophagus. Thirty-one of the cases who had uncomplicated achalasia benefited from a transthoracic modified Heller's procedure. Lower esophageal diaphragm and carcinoma arising in the proximal half of the distal third of the esophagus occurred in association with achalasia in two patients. Over 90 percent had symptomatic relief of their symptoms. The only mortality was recorded in a patient who had palliative esophagogastrectomy for associated carcinoma. A properly performed anterior extramucosal esophagomyotomy is the safest and most effective procedure available, even in places with minimal facilities.


A study was conducted during rainy (kharif) seasons of 2005 to 2007 at Bhuj to find out possibility of increasing production of clusterbean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L. Taub.) and sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) through spatial arrangement and nutrient management. The soil was gravelly-sandy loam with shallow depth (21 cm) and pH 8.7. The clusterbean equivalent yield (919 kg/ha), net returns (Rs 7 440/ha), benefit: cost ratio (1.80) and sustainable yield index (0.74) were higher with clusterbean + sesame (2:1) intercropping system over the sole crop of clusterbean (710 kg/ha, Rs 5 945/ha, 1.68 and 0.71 respectively). Irrespective of cropping systems, application of 20 kg N/ha + 5 tonnes farmyard manure/ha recorded significantly higher clusterbean-equivalent yield (1 036 kg/ha), net return (Rs 1 1171/ha), benefit: cost ratio (2.14) and sustainable yield index (0.80) over 40 kg N/ha alone and absolute control. The row ratio of 2:1 in clusterbean + sesame intercropping fertilized with 20 kg N + 5 tonnes farmyard manure/ha may be recommended to get more economic benefit and sustained yield in arid region.


Background: β-lactamases viz., extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL), AmpC, and metallo β-lactamase (MBL) production in Klebsiella pneumoniae has led to a serious concern about septicemic neonates in Neonatal Intensive Care Units due to high resistance against commonly used antimicrobials. Purpose: To study the prevalence of ESBL, AmpC, and MBL production in K. pneumoniae isolates in neonatal septicemia, to check antimicrobial susceptibility to various drugs including tigecycline; and to assess burden of multiple drug resistance (MDR). Materials and Methods: Total 24 clinical isolates of K. pneumoniae isolated from 318 blood samples of suspected cases of neonatal septicemia were studied. Isolates were screened for ESBL, AmpC, and MBL production by Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) disk method, AmpC cefoxitin screen, and imipenem, meropenem, ceftazidime disk screen respectively; and confirmation was done by CLSI phenotypic disk confirmatory test, AmpC sterile disk method, and imipenem ethylenediamine tetracetic acid double disk synergy test respectively. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by Kirby-Bauer′s disk diffusion method. Efficacy of tigecycline was evaluated using United States Food and Drug Administration guidelines. Results: Of the 24 K. pneumoniae isolates, co-production of AmpC + MBL was found in more number of isolates (67%) ( P < 0.0001) compared to single enzyme production (ESBL and MBL 8% both, AmpC 12.5%). Rate of resistance for penicillins and cephalosporins was highest. Susceptibility was more for imipenem, co-trimoxazole, and meropenem. Nonsusceptibility to tigecycline was low (21%). A total of 23 (96%) isolates were MDR. Conclusions: Routine detection of ESBL, AmpC, and MBL is required in laboratories. Carbapenems should be kept as a last resort drugs. Trend of tigecycline susceptibility has been noted in the study. Continued monitoring of susceptibility pattern is necessary to detect true burden of resistance for proper management.


Abstract
This chapter analyses the presence of Russian feminists and female LGBTIQ+ activists within US-American mainstream media. In the course of a multimedia discourse analysis, it briefly raises questions of who becomes featured and how, to argue that current debates marginalise Russian queer female, trans*gender and intersex voices, compared to those of male queers. One exception to this trend is the case of the journalist and activist Masha Gessen. Together with Nadya Tolokonnikova of the protest group Pussy Riot, Gessen seems to represent Russian queers and feminists within US media. Although marginal, compared to the presence of US feminisms, especially popular culture figures such as Beyonce Knowles-Carter or Lady Gaga, the two women become frequently featured within US news media and beyond. Frequently, those articles, interviews and discussions of their work open up a debate, or rather comparisons, between US values and Russian values, questions of modernity, progress and civilisation. Equally often, the female Russian dissidents are pictured as 'Putin's victims' – the female versions of David fighting against Goliath – by focussing especially on their physical vulnerability and their female bodies. In this vein, feminism is constructed as inherently 'Western', while the bodies that carry out such feminisms and most of all their country of origin is entirely 'othered'. Comparing the (self-)representations to other voices of female Russian dissent within US media, the author critically discuss the Western gaze of US mainstream media, its victimising strategies and homonationalistic construction of US identity and US nation in rejection of a 'backward' homophobic Russia.


We examine the utility of Structure from Motion (SfM) point cloud products to generate a digital terrain model (DTM) and estimate canopy heights in a woodland ecosystem in the Texas Hill Country, USA. Very high spatial resolution images were acquired with a Canon PowerShot A800 digital camera mounted on an unmanned aerial system. Image mosaicking and dense point matching were accomplished using Agisoft PhotoScan. The resulting point cloud was classified according to ground/non-ground classes and used to interpolate a high resolution DTM which was both compared to a DTM from an existing lidar dataset and used to model vegetation height for fifteen 20 × 20 m plots. Differences in the interpolated DTM surfaces demonstrate that the SfM surface overestimates lidar-modeled ground height with a mean difference of 0.19 m and standard deviation of 0.66 m. Height estimates obtained solely from SfM products were successful with R2 values of 0.91, 0.90, and 0.89 for mean, median, and maximum canopy height, respectively. Use of the lidar DTM in the analyses resulted in R2 values of 0.90, 0.89, and 0.89 for mean, median, and maximum canopy height. Our results suggest that SfM-derived point cloud products function as well as lidar data for estimating vegetation canopy height for our specific study area.


BACKGROUND The surgical treatment for retro-odontoid pseudotumor (ROP) remains controversial. Posterior C1 laminectomy without fixation occasionally leads to postoperative enlargement of ROP. Because its pathogenesis is associated with atlantoaxial instability, atlantoaxial fixation with C1 laminectomy is commonly performed. Atlantoaxial fixation usually includes transarticular fixation and screw-rod fixation. However, these methods have some issues. That is, in transarticular fixation with C1 laminectomy, the bone grafting area is challenging to obtain. In screw-rod fixation with C1 laminectomy, extensive bleeding occurs at times if the lateral atlantoaxial joint is exposed to the transplant bone grafts. OBSERVATIONS Herein, the authors report a case of ROP treated with combined C1–2 transarticular screw fixation and C1 laminoplasty with interlaminar bone transplant, which can help achieve adequate spinal cord decompression and can simultaneously secure the bone grafting area between the laminae. In addition, the volume of intraoperative blood loss decreased. Postoperative magnetic resonance imaging showed sufficient decompression of the spinal cord at the C1 level, and computed tomography performed after 6 months revealed bone union between the C1 and C2 laminae. LESSONS Combined C1–2 transarticular screw fixation and C1 laminoplasty with interlaminar bone transplant is a useful method for ROP.


Introduction: Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) belong to the pervasive neurodevelopmental disorders. The prevalence of ASD has increased significantly throughout recent decades, bringing the overall estimated prevalence to 11.3 per 1000 children. ASD is characterized by severe difficulties in reciprocal social interaction, stereotyped patterns of behavior and profound impairments in verbal and nonverbal communication. Materials and Method: In this experimental study, 150 children with ASD, who referred to psychiatry clinics of children in two Mashhad academic Hospitals-Iran, were enrolled. At the first, they divided into 3 groups (N=50 patients in each group). All groups were educated and treated with Holistic Multidimensional Treatment Model (HMTM) method but for different periods: one, two, and three years. Data analysis was done using ANOVA and ANCOVA test. Results: 78% of participants were boys. According to the results, 26% of participants after one year treatment, 44% after two years and 52% after three years treatment improved. The participants' symptoms of behavioral, cognitive and physical function declined in 3 groups significantly (p<0.05). Conclusion: The results suggest that holistic multidimensional treatment model has been effective in treatment of children with autism spectrum disorders in all the three groups, regardless of the gender and age. Whatever treatment period would be longer, recovery process would be more effective in children with ASD spectrum.


Alba is an educational assistant for children in preschool age, with the purpose to facilitate the learning and skills development related to order, stimulate their memory with songs. The agent also promotes orderly behavior related to the organization. Use of their toys and improves the communication skills with other kids. Kindergarten teachers control Alba through a smartphone.


We report a facile one-step chemical method to synthesize partially reduced TiO2 nanotube arrays (NTAs). The NaBH4 treatment introduces oxygen vacancies on the surface and interior of TiO2. Oxygen vacancy extends the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 NTAs from the UV to visible light region, and enhances the electrical conductivity as well as charge transportation. Surface oxygen vacancies serve as charge carrier traps as well as adsorption sites where the charge transfer to adsorbed species inhibits the surface charge recombination, whereas bulk oxygen vacancies tend to act as charge carrier traps where e–h recombination occurs. The optimally reduced TiO2 NTAs yield a photocurrent density of 0.73 mA cm−2 at 1.23 VRHE and a highest photoconversion efficiency of 1.31% at a rather low bias of 0.40 VRHE under a standard AM 1.5G solar illumination. Not only does the incident photon to current conversion efficiency (IPCE) spectrum increase in the UV region, but photoactivity in visible light also emerged. Surface oxygen vacancies, serving as electron donors, cause a noticeable negative flatband shift and increase the donor density of TiO2 NTAs 2-fold. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra confirm the presence of oxygen vacancies on the surface and interior of TiO2. Benefitting from the oxygen vacancy, a narrowed band gap of 2.46 eV and suitable localized states for hydrogen production are observed.


Abstract. We present an interval of dual lobe reconnection during which interplanetary magnetic field lines are captured by the magnetosphere by reconnecting at high latitudes in both the Northern and the Southern Hemispheres. This event was identified using measurements of the ionospheric convection flow and observations of the aurora using the SuperDARN radars and the IMAGE spacecraft. A cusp spot, characteristic of northward IMF, is clearly visible for a 30 min period enabling the ionospheric footprint of the Northern Hemisphere merging gap to be accurately determined. During the interval a strong burst of sunward flow across the dayside open/closed field line boundary (OCB) is observed, which we interpret as the reconfiguration of the magnetosphere following a burst of reconnection. Noon-midnight and dawn-dusk keograms of the aurora show that the polar cap shrinks during the interval indicating that a large amount of flux was closed by the reconnection. Using the SuperDARN potential maps it is possible to calculate that the amount of flux closed during the interval is 0.13 GWb which represents approximately 10% of the pre-existing polar cap. The number of ions captured by the burst of dual lobe reconnection was calculated to be ~2.2×10 31 , more than sufficient to populate a cold, dense plasma sheet. That a dense plasma sheet was not subsequently observed is discussed in terms of subsequent changes in the IMF.


The positive switched 2D linear systems described by the Roesser models are addressed. Necessary and sufficient conditions for the asymptotic stability of the positive switched system are established for any switching. The considerations are illustrated by numerical examples.


ABSTRACT
 Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) was considered as a biotechnological tool for plant stress tolerance improvement and degraded ecosystem restoration. However, the variations in the effects of AMF species and abundance on plant performance under stress condition have to be still investigated. The study was conducted to evaluate the mechanisms of five AMF species, single or mixture, on Leymus chinensis stress tolerance along a saline-alkaline gradient. The results showed that AMF enhanced plant stress tolerance by promoting plant growth, enhancing nutrient absorption, maintaining ion balance, and improving photosynthetic efficiency. Funneliformis mosseae, Rhizophagus intraradices and the mixture treatments had more beneficial effects than Diversispora versiformis and Acaulospora scrobiculata inoculations. Plant grown under high stress level exhibited more benefits from AMF symbiosis. Our study suggests that not only presence of AMF, but also the species and abundance should be considered to reveal the exact effects of AMF on plant saline-alkaline tolerance and degraded grassland restoration.


Introduction: Periodontal disease is a common chronic inflammatory disease, considered as a primary cause of tooth loss due to the destruction of periodontal tissues. Various studies have shown that vitamin D has anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties and plays a significant role in musculoskeletal health. There is strong evidence that vitamin D deficiency may increase the likelihood of osteoporosis and osteopenia as well as chronic inflammatory diseases such as periodontitis. Materials &Methods: This case–control study included 30 females with moderate or severe chronic periodontitis (CP) and 30 periodontally healthy females. The mean age of the CP group and the control group was 34 years. Indices of Probing depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL) and bleeding index (BI) as well as the serum level of vitamin D (1,25(OH)2D) were measured in both groups. The statistical analyses including t-tests, Pearson correlation coefficient and odd ratio. Results: There was a significant indirect relationship between the serum level of vitamin D and the periodontal indices (p 0.05). Conclusion: It is recommended that serum levels of vitamin D in patients with chronic periodontitis be measured and then if necessary, treatment should begin.


Thyroid hormones act directly on transcription by binding to TRalpha1, TRbeta1, and TRbeta2 nuclear receptors, regulating many aspects of postnatal development and homeostasis. To analyze precisely the implication of the widely expressed TRalpha1 isoform in this pleiotropic action, we have generated transgenic mice with a point mutation in the TRalpha1 coding sequence, which is expressed only after CRE/loxP-mediated DNA recombination. The amino acid change prevents interaction between TRalpha1 and histone acetyltransferase coactivators and the release of corepressors. Early expression of this dominant-negative receptor deeply affects postnatal development and adult homeostasis, recapitulating many aspects of congenital and adult hypothyroidism, except in tissues and cells where TRbeta1 and TRbeta2 are predominantly expressed. Both respective abundance and intrinsic properties of TRalpha1 and TRbeta1/2 seem to govern specificity of action.


Abstract In this study, a series of Co-based catalysts with alkali metal carbonate promoters were prepared to investigate the interrelation between promotion effect of these carbonates and catalytic performance for aniline hydrogenation to cyclohexylamine in vapour phase. The chemical promoters Li2CO3 and Na2CO3 leading to decrease in catalytic activity of cobalt catalysts for aniline hydrogenation. Catalysts with K2CO3 and Cs2CO3 loadings have practically no catalytic activity for hydrogenation of aniline. Results of TPD of aniline proved that presence of alkali metals carbonates restricts the adsorption of aniline on the surface of cobalt catalysts. Further, it was found that the addition of Na2CO3 greatly enhances the catalytic selectivity towards the cyclohexylamine and inhibits the consecutive reactions of cyclohexylamine leading to formation of by-products such as dicyclohexylamine and N-phenylcyclohexylamine.


Dimensionality reduction and feature selection is an important aspect of electroencephalography based event related potential detection systems such as brain computer interfaces. In our study, a predefined sequence of letters was presented to subjects in a Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP) paradigm. EEG data were collected and analyzed offline. A linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classifier was designed as the ERP (Event Related Potential) detector for its simplicity. Different dimensionality reduction and feature selection methods were applied and compared in a greedy wrapper framework. Experimental results showed that PCA with the first 10 principal components for each channel performed best and could be used in both online and offline systems.


In recent years, harassment and violent attacks against Jews and Muslims have become issues of concern in many Western countries. However, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are often framed as essentially different phenomena, not least as a result of political polarization and deeply divided opinions on both immigration and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The present volume challenges this view and argues that anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are largely related phenomena and linked to xenophobic ideas in the general population. The study is based on varied and comprehensive survey data on attitudes towards Jews and Muslims in Norway, including the attitudes and experiences of the two minority groups themselves. Moreover, it supplements survey analysis with qualitative research, exploring the discursively constructed boundaries of what can or cannot be said about Jews and Muslims. Focused on the rich material of the Norwegian case, the volume thus offers new perspectives for the study of prejudice in general.


Student's mental health problems have been explored previously in higher education literature in various contexts including empirical work involving quantitative and qualitative methods. Nevertheless, comparatively few research could be found, aiming for computational methods that learn information directly from data without relying on set parameters for a predetermined equation as an analytical method. This study aims to investigate the performance of Machine learning (ML) models used in higher education. ML models considered are Naïve Bayes, Support Vector Machine, K-Nearest Neighbor, Logistic Regression, Stochastic Gradient Descent, Decision Tree, Random Forest, XGBoost (Extreme Gradient Boosting Decision Tree), and NGBoost (Natural) algorithm. Considering the factors of mental health illness among students, we follow three phases of data processing: segmentation, feature extraction, and classification. We evaluate these ML models against classification performance metrics such as accuracy, precision, recall, F1 score, and predicted run time. The empirical analysis includes two contributions: 1. It examines the performance of various ML models on a survey-based educational dataset, inferring a significant classification performance by a tree-based XGBoost algorithm; 2. It explores the feature importance [variables] from the datasets to infer the significant importance of social support, learning environment, and childhood adversities on a student's mental health illness.


This book includes comprehensive and unique strategies for teaching evidence-based practice(EBP) for all types of learners across a variety of educational and clinical practice settings. The concrete examples of teaching assignments provided in the book bring the content alive and serve as a useful, detailed guide for how to incorporate this material into meaningful exercises for learners.


A series of cores from a 7-ha glacial kettle, 600 m above sea level, provides information on the development of a Sphagnum peat bog and the late Quaternary vegetation and climate history of the south-central Adirondack Mountains, New York. Within the kettle, stratified drift that dates to about 11,000 yr B.P. is overlain by varved glacial-lake sediment, gyttja, and peat. The fossil pollen samples at Brandreth Bog were compared with 1,618 modern pollen samples using squared chord distance. The degree of similarity between fossil and modern pollen samples was calibrated using comparisons among modern samples from different vegetation regions. Modern pollen analogs were identified for all of the fossil samples at Brandreth Bog, and the vegetation and climate associated with these modern analogs were used to interpret the vegetation and climate history near the site. The numerically derived pollen assemblage zones at Brandreth Bog are broadly similar to those for other sites in the region. A forest similar to the current boreal forest succeeded treeless vegetation and spruce woodland around Brandreth Bog before about 10,200 yr B.P. A pine-dominated forest was present by 9,600 yr B.P. Continued warming of the climate allowed a hemlock-rich mixed conifer-hardwood forest to grow around Brandreth Bog after 7,000 yr B.P., and spruce and fir became less plentiful. After a sharp decline in the amount of hemlock around Brandreth Bog at 4,700 yr B.P., birch, maple, beech, and pine became the primary forest constituents. Spruce and fir trees increased in number near Brandreth Bog after 4,000 yr B.P., a development indicative of a reversal of the general warming trend that typified the early Holocene. By 2,000 yr B.P., a bog mat had closed over the lake basin. A rise in the abundance of ragweed pollen about 125 yr B.P. reflected European settlement, probably to the south. Correlation among five cores at the study site provided evidence of sediment focusing in the former lake basin.


This report is the final product of a follow-up study undertaken after the completion of the comparative analysis of organization and performance of cotton sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa, a study published by the World Bank in 2008. The objective of this complementary study is to assess the advantages and disadvantages of the main available technologies to separate the lint from the raw cotton, roller ginning and saw ginning, and carry out an economic analysis of the respective benefits of these two technologies for cotton producing countries of Sub-Saharan Africa. The study shows that the choice of ginning technology is an important factor of performance and is in turn influenced by the cotton sector structure. The type of ginning technology also has an impact on lint quality, and, as roller ginning is less damaging to the fiber than saw ginning, it can generate a price premium. The overall economic advantage of roller gins vs. saw gins appears to be significant in the Sub-Saharan African context, and likely to increase in the future as the demand for quality is becoming more and more stringent. Thus, although there are technical and organizational issues to address in order to fully capture the benefits of the technology, the introduction of roller ginning is likely to improve the competitiveness of African cotton and facilitate the transition towards more competitive cotton sectors.


THE specimen was obtained by operation from a man, age 31, who was sent to me suffering froni a urethral fistula. His history was that two years previously he had a peri-urethral abscess, which was incised, and a urinary fistula resulted. The cause of the abscess was not clear from the patient's story.


Questions of complicity emerge within a range of academic disciplines and everyday practices. Using a wide range of case studies, this book explores the concept of and cases ofcomplicityin an interdisciplinary context.It expands orthodox understandings of the concept by including the notion of structural complicity, revealing seemingly inconsequential, everyday forms of complicity; examining different kinds and degrees of individual and collective complicity; and introducing complicity as a lens through which to analyse and critically reflect upon social structures and relations. It also explores complicity through a series of cases emerging from a variety of academic disciplines and professional practices. Its various chapters reflect on, amongst other things, the complicity of politicians, self-proclaimed feminists, health care workers, fictional characters, social movement activists and academic defenders of torture.


The author considers the use of specialized computing methods in the design of analog systems. Such systems are characterized by simultaneous sets of relations which are nonlinear in the controlling system parameters. These relations are also typically subject to constraints imposed by the physical parameters of the components used, and also the design specifications which must be met. The design method described consists of an iterative approach involving computational tools which implement optimization and symbolic analysis. Such an approach permits a desirably high degree of designer interaction in the application of the method.<<ETX>>


This study seeks to understand how humans impact the dietary patterns of eight free-ranging vervet monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) groups in South Africa using stable isotope analysis. Vervets are omnivores that exploit a wide range of habitats including those that have been anthropogenically-disturbed. As humans encroach upon nonhuman primate landscapes, human-nonhuman primate interconnections become increasingly common, which has led to the rise of the field of ethnoprimatology. To date, many ethnoprimatological studies have examined human-nonhuman primate associations largely in qualitative terms. By using stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope analysis, we use quantitative data to understand the degree to which humans impact vervet monkey dietary patterns. Based on initial behavioral observations we placed the eight groups into three categories of anthropogenic disturbance (low, mid, and high). Using δ13C and δ15N values we estimated the degree to which each group and each anthropogenically-disturbed category was consuming C4 plants (primarily sugar cane, corn, or processed foods incorporating these crops). δ13C values were significantly different between groups and categories of anthropogenic-disturbance. δ15N values were significantly different at the group level. The two vervet groups with the highest consumption of C4 plants inhabited small nature reserves, appeared to interact with humans only sporadically, and were initially placed in the mid level of anthropogenic-disturbance. However, further behavioral observations revealed that the high δ13C values exhibited by these groups were linked to previously unseen raiding of C4 crops. By revealing these cryptic feeding patterns, this study illustrates the utility of stable isotopes analysis for some ethnoprimatological questions.


Background Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) are known as non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSCs), and they account for approximately 90% of all skin cancers. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is expressed in NMSC and in premalignant cutaneous lesions (actinic keratosis). Methods Immunohistochemistry was performed with COX-2 antibodies in skin biopsies (paraffin tissue archival blocks) from 28 cases with SCC and 33 cases with BCC. Results COX-2 was immunostained in a total of 61 cases. There was no staining or weakly positive staining in 73.8% of the cases (45 cases), and there was moderate or strong positive staining in 26.3% of the cases (16 cases). COX-2 was expressed in 42.4% of the BCC cases and in 57.1% of the SCC cases. There was a significant relationship between positive COX-2 staining and SCC (P = 0.016). Conclusions In this study, SCCs were significantly correlated with the expression of COX-2. In addition, COX-2 was more frequently expressed in SCC than in BCC. The largest diameters of the SCC were significantly correlated with the expression of COX-2. There were no significant associations between COX-2 staining and clinicopathologic features such as the ulceration of the tumor, its anatomic localization, patient gender, the histologic grade of the SCC and the morphological subtype of the BCC.


Practical application of graphene require accurate determination of the number of layers. In this paper we demonstrate a reliable and efficient approach for determining the number of graphene layers. Plots of contrast spectra against number of graphene layers transferred on Borosilicate glass substrates for RGB image, R, G, and B channels were found to increase linearly. The R channel contrast values for one to four graphene layers were found to be 0.076(R), 0.083(R), 0.090(R), and 0.097(R) respectively. Similarly, the G contrast channel values were obtained as - 0.032(G), -0.023(G), -0.015(G), and -0.007(G) whereas B channel gives 0.004(B), 0.011(B), 0.019(B), and 0.026(B) for SLG, BLG, Tri-layer and Tetra-layer graphene respectively. The contrast values for SLG in RGB transmission regions were found to be 0.076(R), -0.032 (G), and 0.004(B). Our experimental results deviate from theoretical contrast of SLG transferred on SiO2 (285nm )/Si, Quartz, Al2O3 (72 nm)/Si and Hexagonal-BN crystal substrate. This deviation is shown to arise from the unappreciable optical absorption of the Borosilicate substrate in the visible spectrum range. Contrast imaging is therefore a reliable method with the R contrast channel providing the highest contrast leading into increased resolution of the detection level of samples.


The objectives of this project are to determine the feasibility of and develop optimum conditions for the use of colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration (CEUF) methods to remove and recover radionuclides and associated toxic non-radioactive contaminants from polluted water. The target metal ions are uranium, plutonium, thorium, strontium, cadmium, and lead along with chromium (as chromate). Anionic or amphiphilic chelating agents, used in conjunction with polyelectrolyte colloids, provide a means to confer selectivity required for removal of the target cations. This project entails a comprehensive study of the effects of solution composition and filtration unit operating parameters on the separation efficiency and selectivity of ligand modified colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration (LM-CEUF) processes. Problem areas identified by the Office of Environmental Management addressed by this project include removal of hazardous ionic materials from ground water, mixed waste, and aqueous waste solutions produced during decontamination and decommissioning operations. Separation and concentration of the target ions will result in a substantial reduction in the volume of material requiring disposal or long-term storage.


In the center of our paper are two counterexamples showing the independence of the concepts of global smoothness preservation and variation diminution for sequences of approximation operators. Under certain additional assumptions it is shown that the variation-diminishing property is the stronger one. It is also demonstrated, however, that there are positive linear operators giving an optimal pointwise degree of approximation, and which preserve global smoothness, monotonicity and convexity, but are not variationdiminishing.


The purpose of this study was to identify the Sexual and Reproductive Health
(S&RH) needs of the Deaf community in Ghana who communicate in the Ghanaian Sign
Language (GLS). The study was a participatory needs assessment, utilizing the Concerns Report Method (CRM) as the framework. The study utilized a two-phase, sequential, mixed methods design, consisting of three focus groups to assist in the development of a survey followed by a needs assessment survey. Personal observations, review of documents, discussions with a S&RH professional were conducted to clarify data from the focus groups and survey.
A total of 179 participants were involved in the study, of which 26 were focus group participants and152 were survey respondents. One S&RH professional served as a key informant. All participants, except for the key informant, were members of the Deaf community and were considered well informed about issues in the community. Study findings indicated that deaf people's level of knowledge on many S&RH issues was marginal and many unmet S&RH needs were reported and associated with communication, institutional, and attitudinal barriers that limited their access to vital S&RH information and services. Lack of accessible information was compounded by the high illiteracy rate in the Deaf community.
While the findings suggest that the S&RH needs of the Deaf community in Ghana were not different from the general population, the assessment revealed unique


In a close proximity of a human-robot collaboration production system, safety monitoring has a paramount importance to ensure the human operator is being well protected throughout the collaborative operation with the robot manipulator. Due to the requirement to allow overlapping of working envelopes between these two parties, physical separation or two-dimensional sensory system is not effective as the safety measure for the production system. In the early development, safety monitoring by stereo vision system with two cameras was introduced to track the human operator's motion throughout the operation. Camera is used to capture images for tracking of color areas on the human operator. The image coordinates by particle filter and human body model are combined to estimate the 3D positions for the human motion monitoring. However, several weaknesses were observed in this development. For instance, due to the fixed camera viewing direction, occlusion of the detecting areas can severely affect the effectiveness of the safety monitoring. Therefore, one additional camera is added into the system to produce three pairs of stereo vision to improve the robustness towards lost tracking and occlusion tolerance. Hand position tracking experiment is conducted to evaluate the performance of the 3D position estimation.


Abstract The Tecate cypress (Cupressus forbesii) is a tree species associated with chaparral ecosystems in southern California and northern Baja California, Mexico. It is fire-adapted, its regeneration triggered by the opening of serotinous cones when adult trees are burned. Surveys made in the 1980s by others suggested that some Tecate cypress populations were declining, and some authors suggested that increased fire frequency in southern California was a major factor for this decline. We asked whether current population trends were still negative for Tecate cypress 20 years later, and whether population growth was associated with fire return interval length. Based on demographic, survival, and growth-rate data, we calculated the rate of population increase (&lgr;) for the 4 known California populations of Tecate cypress (Coal Canyon-Sierra Peak in Orange County and Guatay Mountain, Otay Mountain, and Tecate Peak in San Diego County). The rate of population increase was positively associated with fire return interval length, which varied among populations. A 40-year or longer fire return interval corresponded to &lgr; > 1, suggesting the population trend is positive, while a fire return interval shorter than 40 years corresponded to &lgr; < 1, suggesting that populations burning more often than once every 40 years are declining.


Abstract Five hundred and five city government‐employed bus drivers (GED) and 506 self‐employed drivers (SED) who were primarily taxi drivers attending annual health check‐ups were studied. A two‐step survey was applied. Data on basic demographics were collected, the 12‐item Chinese Health Questionnaire (CHQ), Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST), Drug Abuse Screen Test (DAST) questionnaires were administered and urine drug screening for amphetamine and benzodiazepines was performed in all subjects. Subjects with MAST scores ≥3, DAST ≥5 from both groups and CHQ ≥4 for the GED group and CHQ ≥7 for the SED group were regarded as a high‐risk group; and subjects with normal MAST, DAST and CHQ results serving as the comparison group were invited for further interview by psychiatric specialists using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. The mean CHQ scores were 0.94 ± 1.53 for the GED group and 2.08 ± 2.42 for the SED group. The mean MAST scores for the GED and SED groups were 0.23 ± 0.58 and 0.38 ± 1.12; and the mean DAST scores were 1.03 ± 0.85 and 1.41 ± 1.89, respectively. The positive rate for benzodiazepines in urine screening by enzyme immunoassay was 8.3% for the GED group, and 8.5% for the SED group. After specification using liquid chromatography, this rate reduced to 4.6% and 3.7%, respectively. Only one subject in the SED group tested positive for urine amphetamine. The SED group had a higher rate of neurotic problems, psychiatric diagnosis and a higher frequency of substance use than the GED group. These findings suggest that different work style of commercial drivers may contribute to this phenomenon. The rate of psychiatric diagnosis was significantly higher in the high‐risk subjects from both groups. Questionnaires such as CHQ, DAST and MAST are useful tools to screen out subjects at high risk of psychiatric disorders during routine health checks in labor workers.


This study analyzes Korean fairly tales in order to clarify the categories,
values and attitudes of prosocial behavior. Objects of this research are thirty
eight volumes of Korean fairy tales and analyzes using content analysis.
The findings of this study are as follows. Firstly, the categories of prosocial
behavior in Korean fairy tales are helping, no greed, pietyA, sharing,
brotherhood, cooperation, no stealing, sincerity, keeping prornise. and etc.
Secondly, the values and attitudes of prosocial behavior lies the promotion of
virtue and reproval of vice thinking of rewarding the good and punishing
the wicked, life respect, returning a favour, piety and brotherhood. Thirdly,
comparison of prosocial behavior in Korea and the Westems commonly
shows helping and sharing, cooperation, consolation, caring, keeping prornise,
honesty. but are different from those in several aspects.


Abstract.
 The mechanism behind the female-biased sexual size dimorphism in snakes (SSD) is usually linked to a delay in females' maturation and/or higher growth rates during their immature phase. Studies on growth rates of immature snakes have been focused on sex differences related to feeding rates instead of food conversion rates. We tested the hypothesis that growth rates of immature female lanceheads are higher than that of immature males and determined if this difference is related to differential food conversion rates between genders. During 18 months, we collected data on growth rates in juveniles from a litter of a species (Bothrops fonsecai) with a female-biased sexual size dimorphism under a controlled feeding regime. Our results showed that females, even receiving the same amount of food than males, presented higher growth rates in all parameters measured (snout-vent length, mass, stoutness, snout-vent length-specific growth rate and mass-specific growth rate). Our data support a mechanism of establishment of sexual size dimorphism in a female-biased species apart from feeding rates but linked to a different feeding conversion between sexes. Based on our results, we also suggest that these differences in feeding conversion must be linked to sexual differences in energy assimilation efficiency.


BACKGROUND
Affordability plays an important role in the utilisation of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and non-IVF fertility treatments. Fertility treatments are associated with increased risk of multiple births. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between the affordability of fertility treatments across US states and the percentage of multiple births due to natural conception, non-IVF treatments, and IVF, and the association between these percentages and state-specific multiple birth rates.

METHODS
State-specific per capita disposable personal income and state-specific infertility insurance mandates were used as measures of affordability. Maternal age-adjusted percentages of multiple births due to natural conception, non-IVF treatments, and IVF were estimated for each state using birth certificate and IVF data. Scatter plots and regression analysis were used to explore associations between state-level measures of affordability, the percentage of multiple births due to natural conception and fertility treatments, and state-specific multiple birth rates.

RESULTS
In 2013, age-adjusted contributions of natural conception, non-IVF fertility treatments, and IVF to multiple births in US were 58.2, 22.8, and 19.0% respectively. States with greater affordability of fertility treatments had higher percentages of multiples due to IVF and lower percentages due to natural conception. Higher percentages of multiples due to IVF and lower percentages due to natural conception were associated with higher state-specific multiple birth rates.

CONCLUSION
Increasing affordability of fertility treatments may increase state-specific multiple birth rates. Policies and treatment practices encouraging single-gestation pregnancies may help reduce multiple births resulting from these treatments.


This paper presents a new standpoint on the analysis of the space-vector modulation (SVM) in three-phase inverters. By means of a three-dimensional (3D) approach, a mathematically and physically sound explanation of the modulation process is obtained. As it is well known, a three-phase two-level voltage source inverter has eight switching states, which give rise to eight generating vectors (two of them are the zero-vectors). Taking into account that the reference voltage vector is synthesized by these generating vectors, it seems interesting to translate the reference vector from the natural a-b-c reference base to a new one, which is directly based on the generating vectors (generating base). In this new base, one of the three unitary vectors always follows the direction of the zero-vectors (zero-sequence axis). Moreover, in a three-leg full-bridge (TLFB) inverter, the voltage synthesized over the zero-sequence axis does not appear in the load side. Therefore, it is logical to cancel the contribution of the zero-vectors on the inverter output in order to obtain the maximum use of the dc-link voltage. This cancellation is really easy when the reference vector is expressed on the new generating base, since it is only necessary to eliminate the zero-vectors direction component. As a result of this analysis, a very efficient three-dimensional space-vector modulation (3D-SVM) algorithm is introduced. In this algorithm, the modulator input variables are given in the natural a-b-c reference frame. The proposed modulation method rests on the well-known carried-based modulation technique, and avoids trigonometric calculations, definition of optimal sequences, and control of the switching intervals. The proposed 3D-SVM technique is verified by simulation and experiment


To investigate how leg preference affects net efficiency (ηnet), we examined central and peripheral hemodynamics, muscle fiber type, activation and force of preferred (PL) and non-preferred (NPL) leg. Our hypothesis was that PL greater efficiency could be explained by adaptations and interactions between central, peripheral factors and force. Fifteen young participants performed single-leg extension exercise at absolute (35W) and relative (50%peak power-output (Wpeak)) workloads with PL and NPL. Oxygen uptake, photoplethysmography, Doppler ultrasound, near-infrared-spectroscopy deoxy-hemoglobin [HHb], integrated electromyography (iEMG), maximal isometric force (MVC), rate of force development (RFD50-100) and muscle biopsies of both vastus lateralis, were studied to assess central and peripheral determinants of ηnet. During exercise executed at 35W, ηnet was 17.5±5.1% and 11.9±2.1% (p<0.01) in NP and NPL respectively, while during exercise at the 50% of Wpeak, was in PL = 18.1±5.1% and in NPL = 12.5±1.9 (p<0.01). The only parameter correlated with ηnet was iEMG which showed an inverse correlation for absolute (r=-0.83 and -0.69 for PL and NPL) and relative workloads (r=-0.92 and -0.79 for PL and NPL). MVC and RFD50-100 were higher in PL than in NPL but not correlated to ηnet. This study identified a critical role of leg preference in the efficiency during single-leg extension exercise. The whole spectrum of the central and peripheral, circulatory and muscular determinants of ηnet did not explain the difference between PL and NPL efficiency. Therefore, the lower muscle activation exhibited by the PL is likely the primary determinant of this physiological phenomenon.


When the lever-pressing behavior of five rats was maintained by a DRL schedule (reinforcement was scheduled only when a specified waiting time between successive responses was exceeded), collateral behavior developed that apparently served a mediating function. In two cases this behavior did not arise until the experimental environment included pieces of wood that the rats started to nibble. When collateral behavior first appeared, it was always accompanied by an increase in responses spaced far enough apart to earn reinforcement. If collateral behavior was prevented, the number of reinforced responses always decreased. Extinction of lever pressing extinguished the collateral behavior. Adding a limited-hold contingency to the schedule did not extinguish collateral behavior. It appears that the rat can better space its responses appropriately when concurrently performing some overt collateral activity. The amount of this activity apparently comes to serve as a discriminative stimulus. To assume the existence of internal events that serve as discriminative stimuli in temporal discriminations is, at least under some circumstances, unnecessary.


This article addresses collaborative concept learning in a MAS. In a concept learning problem an agent incrementally revises a hypothetical representation of some target concept to keep it consistent with the whole set of examples that it receives from the environment or from other agents. In the program SMILE, this notion of consistency was extended to a group of agents. A surprising experimental result of that work was that a group of agents learns better the difficult boolean problems, than a unique agent receiving the same examples. The first purpose of the present paper is to propose some explanation about such unexpected superiority of collaborative learning. Furthermore, when considering large societies of agents, using pure sequential protocols is unrrealistic. The second and main purpose of this paper is thus to propose and experiment broadcast protocols for collaborative learning.


This article presents a qualitative study designed to examine the long-term career objectives of individuals building careers as community engagement professionals (CEPs). CEPs administratively support engagement between a college or university and broader communities. We employed a team data analysis approach called consensual qualitative research to describe the long-term career objectives of CEPs and infer drivers, or key influences, of future career pathways. Data were drawn from 314 responses to the open-ended survey question "What are your long-term career objectives?" Findings offer insight into the professional lives and roles of CEPs by articulating the body of long-term career objectives that inform a diversity of career trajectories in the field. We review the study purpose, relevant literature, research methods, findings, and implications for future research.


The incorporation of sustainable practices in the supply chain management (SCM) has become recurrent in the business environment, resulting from a social reflection on the need to seek new development alternatives. In this context, the objective of this paper is to verify the existence of sustainable practices throughout the supply chain of coffee in the Cerrado Mineiro Region (CMR) and to understand the effects of this adoption regarding Green SCM.  This paper focus on the relationship between producers and collective organizations, such as cooperatives and development foundations. To this end, a case study was carried out with the representatives of the supply chain members in CMR, which included coffee producers, cooperatives and a development foundation. It was verified the predominance of practices focused on environmental issues, followed by social and, finally, economic ones. It is also highlighted that the data identified allow us to understand that the development of sustainable strategies can bring positive effects to the agents studied. Considering that these aspects, evidently, improve the relationship of supply chain members, making it more collaborative. The results contribute to the systemic understanding of the way in which sustainability has been incorporated and operationalized in coffe supply chains in CMR.


This tutorial aims to introduce the fundamentals of adversarial robustness of deep learning, presenting a well-structured review of up-to-date techniques to assess the vulnerability of various types of deep learning models to adversarial examples. This tutorial will particularly highlight state-of-the-art techniques in adversarial attacks and robustness verification of deep neural networks (DNNs). We will also introduce some effective countermeasures to improve robustness of deep learning models, with a particular focus on adversarial training. We aim to provide a comprehensive overall picture about this emerging direction and enable the community to be aware of the urgency and importance of designing robust deep learning models in safety-critical data analytical applications, ultimately enabling the end-users to trust deep learning classifiers. We will also summarize potential research directions concerning the adversarial robustness of deep learning, and its potential benefits to enable accountable and trustworthy deep learning-based data analytical systems and applications.


Under the term global blockage, the cumulative induction of wind turbines in a wind farm has been recently suspected to be responsible for observed overestimations of the energy yield in large-size wind farms. In this paper, the practice of modeling this effect after linear superposition of single turbine inductions, calculated with three of the most recent analytic models, is compared to Large-Eddy-Simulations of idealized wind farms. We compare the models across two different farms, composed of 9 and 49 turbines, with two different heights of the atmospheric boundary layer, 300 and 500 m. The results show that the differences between the analytical models are negligible while they substantially differ from the LES results. The linear superposition of induction consistently underestimates the upstream velocity deficit with an error that increases as the wind farm size grows and the ABL height decreases. Also when calculating the power output at the turbines of the farm, the analytical models considered do not agree well with the LES. These comparisons reveal that the farm interactions with the atmospheric boundary layer may highly outclass the turbine induction in determining the extent of the global blockage effect. Therefore, we present a first dimensional approach to the problem based on LES, aimed at simplifying its characterization.


Hybridization between the European smooth and palmate newts has recurrently been mentioned in the literature. The only two studies that attempted to quantify the frequency of hybridization and gene admixture between these two species came to strikingly opposite conclusions. According to Arntzen et al (1998, 42 allozymes), hybrids are rare in nature and introgression negligible, while according to Johanet et al (2011, 6 microsatellites), introgressive hybridization is significant and widespread across the shared distribution range. To clarify this question, we implemented high-throughput SNP genotyping with diagnostic biallelic SNPs on 965 specimens sampled across Europe. Our results are in line with Arntzen et al, since only two F1 hybrids were identified in two distinct French localities, and no further hybrid generations or backcrosses. Moreover, reanalysis of 78 of the samples previously studied by Johanet et al. (2011) using our SNPs panel could not reproduce their results, suggesting that microsatellite-based inference overestimated the hybridization frequency between these two species. Since we did not detect methodological issues with the analyses of Johanet et al., our results suggest that SNP approaches outperform microsatellite-based assessments of hybridization frequency, and that conclusions previously published on this topic with a small number of microsatellite loci should be taken with caution, and ideally be repeated with an increased genomic coverage.


The objective of this study was to determine the chlorine nutritional requirement of Japanese Quails during the laying phase, based on performance and egg quality parameters. A total of 240 Japanese quails were distributed according to a randomized block design, with five treatments and six replicates, with 8 birds each. The experiment lasted 84 days, divided in four cycles of 21 days each. Treatments consisted of a basal diet formulated to meet the nutritional requirements, except for chlorine, and four supplementation levels with ammonium chloride, generating the levels 0.8; 1.6; 2.4; 3.2 and 4.0 g/kg. The parameters evaluated were: feed intake (g/bird/day), egg production (egg/bird/day), egg weight (g), egg mass (g), egg mass conversion (g/g), conversion per dozen eggs (kg/dz), weight of yolk (g/100 g of egg), albumen (g/100g of egg) and shell (g/100 g of egg), specific gravity (g/cm 3 ) and shell thickness (mm). As a result of this study, feed intake, egg weight, weights of albumen, yolk, shell and specific gravity were not affected by treatments. There was a quadratic behavior for egg production, egg mass, egg mass conversion, conversion per dozen eggs and shell thickness according to the chlorine levels in the diets, with the requirements for those parameters established at 1.54; 1.37; 1.39 and 2.78 g/kg, respectively. The recommendation is 1.39 g/kg of chlorine and 244.22 mEq/kg of electrolyte balance in diets for Japanese quails.


Picture slides provide vivid visual impressions to aid clinical students in making diagnosis. They are very important complimentary teaching materials. This clinical materials were captured during clinical sessions on ward rounds and specialist consultations. The case scenarios developed around the picture slides are intended to achieve the following objectives.


Physical periodontal measurement is plagued by many confounders which result in aberrant values. Replicate measurements can reduce the number of aberrant values, the measurement error, and the variance of site-specific measurements. This study aimed to reduce the variance of site-specific measurements by using a new clinical algorithm (the Option-4 algorithm) for an automated disk probe. A single clinician recorded full-mouth relative attachment levels (RAL) at one visit in 32 patients (mean age 45.5 years) with moderately advanced chronic adult periodontitis. RAL was recorded over two passes at six sites per tooth (4,675 sites). The algorithm accepted the first and second pass RALs (RAL1 and RAL2) if their difference was < or = 1 mm, otherwise a maximum of two further RALs (RAL3 and RAL4) were recorded until the difference between any two RALs was < or = 1 mm (SAL1 and SAL2): 4,048 sites (86.6%) required two recordings, 580 sites (12.4%) required three recordings and 47 sites (1%) required four recordings. Correlation coefficients for RAL1 and RAL2 and SAL1 and SAL2 (4,675 sites) were both > or = 0.91 (P = 0.00). Site-specific variances were calculated for RAL1 and RAL2 and SAL1 and SAL2. The mean of the RAL1/RAL2 site-specific variances (A) was 0.45 mm2 (range 0.00 mm2 to 35.28 mm2) whilst the mean of the SAL1/SAL2 variances (B) was 0.09 mm2 (range 0.00 mm2 to 0.5 mm2): the respective medians were 0.08 mm2 and 0.02 mm2. The study demonstrated high intra-examiner RAL reproducibility. The Option-4 algorithm produced an 80% reduction in the mean site-specific variance of RAL1/RAL2 (Y) and a 75% reduction in the median site-specific variance of RAL1/RAL2 (y = [(A - B)/A] x 100).


This study aimed at exploring, based on the current states and status of onboard training ship, plans to improve the boarding training management for fisheries high school. The results were as follows. The problems with the management of onboard training ship were summarized as the following four types. Firstly, The most training ships throughout the country became superannuated. Secondly, the safe equipments for training ships were necessary to compensate the defects to fall short of the international safety management standards. Thirdly, the problems could result from the dualized system between ownership and management, since training ships were owned by metropolitan and provincial education offices and operated by management centered schools. Fourthly, middle technicians such as professional fisheries manpower were not easily supplied with. The plans to improve the above problems were as in the following. Firstly, support and help of Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries were needed to launch new onboard training ships which substitute for the superannuated. Secondly, new onboard ships were required to be launched according to the updated international safety management standards. Thirdly, Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology should hold onboard training. Fourthly, on-site onboard training expertise, systemic management, safety, etc. should be compensated through industry-university-institute collaboration.


Abstract. The ability to identify individuals is essential for determining population demographics of a species, but traditional marking techniques, such as passive integrated transponder tags, are often limited to individuals that meet minimum size thresholds. Visible implant elastomer (VIE) and visible implant alpha (VI Alpha) tags are promising methods for marking small-bodied individuals. However, the efficacy and health effects of VIE and VI Alpha tags are not established for many, increasingly imperiled, herpetofauna. Over a 12-mo period, we examined tag retention, tag readability, VIE tag color readability, and effects on growth and body condition of VIE and VI Alpha tags in larval Eastern Hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis), a species of conservation concern. We observed 100% retention of VIE tags and 80% retention of VI Alpha tags over 1 yr. Readability degraded over time for both tag types but was consistently higher for VIE relative to VI Alpha tags. Degradation in readability over time increased our reliance on a 450-nm-wavelength VI light to read VIE tags but had more severe implications for VI Alpha codes, which were illegible after 4 mo. Pink- and green-colored VIE tags performed similarly well and we found that neither VIE nor VI Alpha tags negatively affected growth or body condition of larval hellbenders. Our findings collectively suggest that VI Alpha tags are an unviable tagging method, but VIE tags were safe and effective for identifying unique larval hellbenders up to 1 yr.


A novel moderately thermophilic and halophilic bacterium, designated strain M0105T, was isolated from mangrove sediment collected in the Beibu Gulf, south China. The isolate is Gram-negative, non-motile and rod-shaped bacterium with smooth colonies of pale-yellow appearance. Growth occurs at 15-46℃ (optimum 37-40℃) and pH range of 6.0-10.0 (optimum pH 8.0-9.0). It required 1-7% NaCl (optimum 3-5%) for growth. Strain M0105T was affiliated to the family 'Rhodobacteraceae', sharing the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with Limibaculum halophilum CAU 1123T (96.8%). The major menaquinone Q-10 and the dominant unsaturated fatty acid (C18:1ω7) in this family were also detected in the strain M0105T. The genome sequence possesses a circular 4.1 Mb chromosome with a G+C content of 67.9%. Strain M0105T encoded many genes for cellular stress resistance and nutrient utilization, which could improve its adaptive capacity to the mangrove environment. Values of conserved proteins (POCP), average nucleotide identity (ANI), average amino acid identity (AAI) and DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) between the isolate and closely related species were below the proposed threshold for species discrimination. Information from phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic analyses proposed that strain M0105T should be assigned to a novel genus within the family 'Rhodobacteraceae'. Thus, we suggested that the strain M0105T represents a novel species in a new genus, for which the name Thermohalobaculum xanthum gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of the type species is M0105T (=BGMRC 2019T=KCTC 52118T =MCCC 1K03767T=NBRC 112057T).Six supplementary figures and two supplementary tables are available with the online version of this article.


The Export-Import Bank is an independent U.S. government agency that is charged with financing and promoting exports of U.S. goods and services. The Bank operates under a renewable charter, the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945, as amended, and has been authorized through September 30, 2006. Congress has amended the Bank's charter at times to meet various objectives, primarily U.S. foreign policy and international economic goals. These amendments restrict the Bank's activities relative to particular types of economic activities or have acted to advance other U.S. goals and objectives, such as improving workers' rights, protecting the environment, or protecting U.S. jobs.


This thesis project has been written and accomplished in collaboration with8848 Altitude AB. The goal was to develop a spine protection for skiers andsnowboarders. The background to this was to develop a protective gear thatwas so easy to use so that there are no real arguments not to use it. At the sametime as simplicity and plainness were important it could not compromise withsafety.The result was a vest with a tight fit and a removable spine protection thatis placed in a pocket in the back of the vest. The tight fit makes sure that thespine protection it always in the correct place and gives the best protection.The protective pad is molded in a material from a company named 3do. Thematerial is based on intelligent molecules that make the material soft andflexible in its natural structure but when a force is applied to the material itinstantly becomes rigid and absorbs the shock. The pad also has a hole patternthat ventilates heat and moist.The vest is made from a fabric that has been infused with activated coal fromcoconuts. The technology comes from Cocona Fabrics who uses recycledcoconut shells from food industry waste. The activated coal enables the fabric toventilate heat and moist in a very effective way. The activated coal also reducesodors. The technology is totally natural and is not harmful to the human bodyor the environment.Using these materials and technologies makes it possible to create a protectivegear, which is flexible and easy to use and at the same time protects the spinefrom shocks. It can also ventilate heat and sweat effectively, which makes itmore comfortable for the user.


Recent developments like the significant introduction of renewable energy sources to the electricity networks worldwide have led to more frequent and extended operation of fossil power plants in part load conditions. As a result the typical load spectrum of large steam turbines used for electricity generation has changed over the last years and will continue to do so.A number of papers has already been published on how to optimize the water-steam cycle and the steam turbine from a thermodynamical and aero-dynamical point of view for this new load regime in order to improve the average efficiency. But the changed load regime also poses a challenge for the mechanical design and structural integrity assessment of steam turbines.Reason for this is that the rated conditions are not necessarily the most challenging boundary conditions and therefore not necessarily a suitable, conservative envelope for all other load cases for mechanical design. Pressures decrease, but steam temperatures in part loads can increase and heat transfer coefficients and the influence of radiation on the component temperatures change.With an increasing demand for and a wider range of part load operation it for this reason becomes more important than ever to consider these load cases in the mechanical design.This paper uses a large, double-flow intermediate pressure steam turbine as an example to investigate the impact of extended part load operation on the design. Both an analytical model and finite element calculations are used to compare from a structural integrity point of view a low part-load load case and the rated load case and to evaluate the significance of heat radiation.Copyright © 2013 by Siemens Energy, Inc.


A contemporary challenge for the scalability of quantum networks is developing quantum nodes with simultaneous high photonic efficiency and long-lived qubits. Here, we present a fibre-packaged nanophotonic diamond waveguide hosting a tin-vacancy centre with a spin-1/2 $^{117}$Sn nucleus. The interaction between the electronic and nuclear spins results in a signature 452(7) MHz hyperfine splitting. This exceeds the natural optical linewidth by a factor of 16, enabling direct optical nuclear-spin initialisation with 98.6(3)% fidelity and single-shot readout with 80(1)% fidelity. The waveguide-to-fibre extraction efficiency of our device of 57(6)% enables the practical detection of 5-photon events. Combining the photonic performance with the optically initialised nuclear spin, we demonstrate a spin-gated single-photon nonlinearity with 11(1)% contrast in the absence of an external magnetic field. These capabilities position our nanophotonic interface as a versatile quantum node in the pursuit of scalable quantum networks.


Biodiesel has intrinsic lubricating properties due to the presence of long chain fatty acids, which significantly help to reduce engine wear and tear. Poultry waste as an alternative energy source could aid in reducing greenhouse gases. Biodiesel acknowledges environmental issues as it is less toxic than diesel and is biodegradable too. It is much safer to handle due to its high flash point and consequently, air quality improves dramatically. From the energy point of view, as a renewable source of energy, it helps in energy conservation and ensures regular availability for production of fuel. The chicken feather meal with moderate fat content was utilized to produce biodiesel. In this study, blends were prepared with biodiesel and consist of fatty acid alkyl esters and diesel at different concentrations namely: 0%, 20%, 40%, 60% and 80%. These were analyzed for their engine performance characteristics. The blends from B20 to B80 fuels showed the decreased concentration of CO and NOx emissions at variable load when compared to diesel. The engine performance parameters such as brake power output, brake horse power and specific fuel consumption proved that the biodiesel from chicken feather meal can be used as an alternative fuel.


We present a feasibility study with several magnetic field configurations for creating spin-dependent forces that can split a low-energy ion beam by the Stern–Gerlach (SG) effect. To the best of our knowledge, coherent spin-splittings of charged particles have yet to be realised. Our proposal is based on ion source parameters taken from a recent experiment that demonstrated single-ion implantation from a high-brightness ion source combined with a radio-frequency Paul trap. The inhomogeneous magnetic fields can be created by permanently magnetised microstructures or from current-carrying wires with sizes in the micron range, such as those recently used in a successful implementation of the SG effect with neutral atoms. All relevant forces (Lorentz force and image charges) are taken into account, and measurable splittings are found by analytical and numerical calculations.


A Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM) is one of the most important scanning probe tools available to study and manipulate matter at the nanoscale. In a STM, a tip is scanned on top of a surface with a separation of a few Å. Often, the tunneling current between the tip and the sample is maintained constant by modifying the distance between the tip apex and the surface through a feedback mechanism acting on a piezoelectric transducer. This produces very detailed images of the electronic properties of the surface. The feedback mechanism is nearly always made using a digital processing circuit separate from the user computer. Here, we discuss another approach using a computer and data acquisition through the universal serial bus port. We find that it allows successful ultralow noise studies of surfaces at cryogenic temperatures. We show results on different compounds including a type II Weyl semimetal (WTe2), a quasi-two-dimensional dichalcogenide superconductor (2H-NbSe2), a magnetic Weyl semimetal (Co3Sn2S2), and an iron pnictide superconductor (FeSe).


This title provides readers with an invaluable guide to conditioning your body for improved power, agility, and overall fitness. This superb new volume - for men and women - from award-winning personal fitness trainer Paul Collins, presents readers with practical, easy-to-follow exercises to condition your body for athletic and sports performance. "Functional Fitness" provides step-by-step coaching advice and workouts utilizing body weight, fitness balls, medicine balls, plyometrics, resistance bands, stability and speed training equipment - all of which have been specifically designed to coordinate your muscular framework for improved dynamic agility and power. This is a must-have volume for anyone interested in dramatically improving their sporting and athletic performance.


OBJECTIVE
This study examined the factors associated with nurses' willingness to respond in a disaster.

BACKGROUND
Nurses are key personnel in case of disasters, and therefore, understanding factors associated with willingness to respond is important.

METHODS
Questionnaires were distributed to 200 nurses recruited from 2 public hospitals in Seoul, Korea. Data were collected in January and February 2018 and 181 responses were analyzed.

RESULTS
Factors predicting willingness to respond in a disaster among public hospital nurses were level of education, self-efficacy, and disaster management competency.

CONCLUSIONS
Providing well-organized disaster preparedness and response training programs would enhance nurses' level of knowledge about disasters. In addition, training could improve nurses' self-efficacy and disaster management competency, which should enhance willingness to respond in a disaster.