Absolute protection of mobile agents from attacks by malicious hosts is an open research problem. We propose a software based paradigm whereby an agent is protected from various static and dynamic attacks from a malicious host of an unknown hardware configuration, for a specific period of time. This time interval is computed by restricting the maximum resources that may be available to the adversary and the time complexity of the critical static and dynamic attacks that it may launch. We employ the technique of oblivious hashing (OH) using overlapped instructions, with pointer aliasing to thwart static analysis and instant code modifications. The host is required to obtain the aggregate OH value of the whole agent by executing it in an unobtrusive environment and to send it back to the agent originator within the specified time interval. To provide unobtrusive environment, we employ various x86 platform specific techniques and external timing analysis to thwart major dynamic attack tools like debuggers, virtual machines and emulators. The resulting increase in resilience to static and dynamic attacks compounds the difficulty of a malicious host to manipulate agent's execution, thus increasing the reliability of the agent system.


This study was conducted a small textile industry and aims to assess and investigate the practices used in the implementation of quality management systems and tools to ensure process improvement. The purpose, therefore, is to implement the quality system and also analyze the management practices and tools used to ensure quality, comparing practices and showing the results in productivity and product quality. The research was conducted through a case study, we intend to analyze the reality of the organization in making the visit on-site observation. A case study can thus elucidate a number of issues on the development of quality in the textile industry of small, checking possible kinds of inefficiency or improvement points unexplored. To verify that the controls of the company to support the implementation of quality management system were conducted evaluation, analysis, testing and monitoring in all sectors.


This study was carried out to examine the prediction of ship's manoeuvrability in initial design stage. New parameter representing basic hull form and stem shape were proposed. Captive model test were carried out to investigate the correlation coefficient between hydrodynamic coefficient and hull parameter. The results showed which parameter are positive correlation with hydrodynamic coefficient. Moreover correlation was examined between stem hull shape and ship's manoeuvrability. New empirical formulas for hydrodynamic coefficients were proposed These results can be used to predict a ship's manoeuvrability in initial design stage.


On the Ground The bark, leaves, and berries of western juniper trees in Oregon can cause abortions in late-term pregnant cattle. The percentage of the abortion-causing compounds varied from tree to tree in a location, as well as between locations across Oregon, but did not appear to vary across time. Cattle producers who winter cattle in pastures with western juniper trees should take cautions such as denying late-term pregnant cattle access to these pastures, providing adequate feed and shelter, maintaining pregnant cattle in good body condition, changing calving schedules to late spring or early fall, and, if abortions do occur, seeking veterinary care for any postpartum complications.


In this paper, we present the method that improve alarm security system using the electronic circuits added the emergency lamp by our proposed Algorithms. In conventional method the emergency lamp of warning & alarm system didn't work perfectly its performance because of battery with short life. For improving this problem we, using Periphera1 Interface Controller IC, designed the circuit added the emergency Samp for an warning & alarm system and for prevention against stopping the electric current, and compared our proposed method with conventional method.
By designing the circuit to stop up over charge we can extend life of battery, use for a stoppage of electric current in emergency and according to the lightness around. Therefore we are very convenient and profitable in our life.
In the future we will study the method to lower the cost of architecture for practical utilization.


CADTH recommends that Zepzelca not be reimbursed by public drug plans for the treatment of stage III or metastatic small cell lung cancer (SCLC).
While evidence from a clinical trial demonstrated that some patients had disease that responded during treatment with Zepzelca, without a control group there is uncertainty in how much the observed responses were due to Zepzelca treatment rather than chance.
There was too much uncertainty in the reviewed evidence to determine how Zepzelca compares to other treatments used in Canada in terms of delaying disease progression, improving survival, and minimizing side effects.
It is unclear whether Zepzelca meets any of the needs identified by patients: improving survival, delaying disease progression, relieving cancer symptoms, minimizing side effects, and maintaining or improving quality of life.


The stability of the amorphous phase with respect to the liquid phase in metal–silicon systems is modeled thermodynamically as a second-order phase transformation. The glass transition temperature of amorphous silicon is estimated according to the experimentally determined heat of crystallization and the Third Law of Thermodynamics. The feasibility of the model has been demonstrated using the Pd–Si, Co–Si, and Au–Si systems as examples. The predicted glass transition temperatures and heat of formation of the amorphous phase are consistent with available experimental data. The predicted amorphization stabilization at low temperatures in the Co–Si systems agrees with experimental observations.


Objective
To investigate the effects of melatonin on the oxidative stress and signaling pathways of apoptosis-related genes following testicular torsion/detorsion in male rats.

METHODS
Twenty-four healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a control, a torsion and a melatonin group of equal number. The torsion model was made in the animals of the latter two groups by 720° torsion of the left testis for 2 hours. The rats of the torsion and melatonin groups received intraperitoneal injection of isotonic saline and melatonin (17 mg/kg) respectively at 15 minutes prior to detorsion. At 24 hours after modeling, testis tissues were collected from the rats for detection of the apoptosis of the germ cells by flow cytometry (FCM), analysis of the expressions of Fas, Fas ligand (FasL) and Bax mRNA by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), measurement of the cytochrome C content released from the mitochondrion by Western blot, and determination of the total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) and the levels of myeloperoxidase (MPO) and malodialdehyde (MDA) by spectrophotometry.

RESULTS
Compared with the torsion group, the rats treated with melatonin showed significantly increased normal testicular cells ([77.81 ± 6.52]% vs [88.61 ± 7.93]%, P < 0.05), decreased early apoptotic germ cells ([16.74 ± 3.16]% vs [6.97 ± 1.65]%, P < 0.05), down-regulated expressions of Fas ([4.52 ± 0.29] vs [2.66 ± 0.37], P < 0.01), FasL ([2.82 ± 0.30] vs [1.73 ± 0.18], P < 0.01) and Bax mRNA ([2.39 ± 0.18] vs [1.50 ± 0.14], P < 0.01), reduced levels of cytochrome C ([1.40 ± 0.38] vs [0.67 ± 0.30], P < 0.01), MPO ([0.52 ± 0.15] vs [0.19 ± 0.10] U/g prot, P < 0.01) and MDA [6.37 ± 1.73] vs [3.98 ± 0.90] nmol/mg prot, P < 0.01) and elevated T-AOC ([0.76 ± 0.25] vs [1.55 ± 0.32] U/mg prot, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS
Melatonin has a significant protective effect on spermatogenesis after testicular torsion by regulating the expressions of apoptosis-related genes and increasing T-AOC in the testis tissue.


Recently, Quantum Theory (QT) has been employed to advance the theory of Information Retrieval (IR). Various analogies between QT and IR have been established. Among them, a typical one is applying the idea of photon polarization in IR tasks, e.g., for document ranking and query expansion. In this paper, we aim to further extend this work by constructing a new superposed state of each document in the information need space, based on which we can incorporate the quantum interference idea in query expansion. We then apply the new quantum query expansion model to session search, which is a typical Web search task. Empirical evaluation on the large-scale Clueweb12 dataset has shown that the proposed model is effective in the session search tasks, demonstrating the potential of developing novel and effective IR models based on intuitions and formalisms of QT.


BACKGROUND
The effects of dietary l-arginine (Arg) on immunosuppression following infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) inoculation in broiler chickens were evaluated. The design of this study was a 5 × 2 factorial arrangement (n = 5) with five Arg concentrations (starter: 9.9, 13.9, 17.6, 21.3 and 25.3 g kg(-1) ; grower-finisher: 9.5, 13.5, 17.1, 20.1 and 23.6 g kg(-1) ) with or without IBDV inoculation (IBDV or saline inoculation at 14 days). Chickens were sampled at 2, 4 and 6 days post-inoculation (DPI) and 42 days of age.

RESULTS
The IBDV inoculation decreased (P = 0.05) CD3(+) , CD4(+) , and CD8(+) T cell counts at 2 days post-inoculation (DPI) and monocyte counts at 6 DPI; and reduced (P < 0.05) bursal interleukin-1β (IL-1β) mRNA expression at 2 DPI and serum IL-6 concentration at 4 DPI. Increasing Arg concentration increased (P < 0.05) CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell counts at 2 DPI, linearly increased (P = 0.05) CD3(+) T cell counts in IBDV-inoculated groups and monocyte counts in control groups at 4 DPI; increased (P < 0.05) serum IL-6 concentration in IBDV-inoculated groups at 2 DPI; and increased (P < 0.05) serum anti-IBDV antibody titres at 42 days of age.

CONCLUSION
Varying concentrations of Arg supplementation attenuated IBDV inoculation induced immunosuppression via modulating circulating T cell sub-populations.


Two cases are reported of third ventricle masses that were clinically and radiographically indistinguishable from pure colloid cysts. A 21- and a 36-year-old man presented with a 5-year and 10-day histories of headache, respectively. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging revealed smooth, homogeneous masses in the anterior third ventricle that were iso- to hyperintense on T1-weighted MR images and hyperintense on T2-weighted images. There was little enhancement with intravenous contrast material. In both patients, craniotomies were performed and histopathological examination revealed xanthogranulomas of the choroid plexus with only microscopic foci of colloid cyst-like structures. These cases illustrate that xanthogranulomas of the third ventricle may clinically and radiologically mimic pure colloid cysts, that a range of MR imaging signals can be seen, and that craniotomy rather than stereotactic aspiration is the indicated treatment.


This paper presents a viable quaternion-based complementary observer (CO) that is designed for rigid body attitude estimation. We claim that this approach is an alternative one to overcome the limitations of the extended Kalman filter. The CO processes data from a small inertial/magnetic sensor module containing triaxial angular rate sensors, accelerometers, and magnetometers, without resorting to GPS data. The proposed algorithm incorporates a motion kinematic model and adopts a two-layer filter architecture. In the latter, the Levenberg Marquardt algorithm preprocesses acceleration and local magnetic field measurements, to produce what will be called the system's output. The system's output together with the angular rate measurements will become measurement signals for the CO. In this way, the overall CO design is greatly simplified. The efficiency of the CO is experimentally investigated through an industrial robot and a commercial IMU during human segment motion exercises. These results are promising for human motion applications, in particular future ambulatory monitoring.


Adam is the important optimization algorithm to guarantee efficiency and accuracy for training many important tasks such as BERT and ImageNet. However, Adam is generally not compatible with information (gradient) compression technology. Therefore, the communication usually becomes the bottleneck for parallelizing Adam. In this paper, we propose a communication efficient {\bf A}DAM {\bf p}reconditioned {\bf M}omentum SGD algorithm-- named APMSqueeze-- through an error compensated method compressing gradients. The proposed algorithm achieves a similar convergence efficiency to Adam in term of epochs, but significantly reduces the running time per epoch. In terms of end-to-end performance (including the full-precision pre-condition step), APMSqueeze is able to provide {sometimes by up to $2-10\times$ speed-up depending on network bandwidth.} We also conduct theoretical analysis on the convergence and efficiency.


Collections of preserved terrestrial and freshwater plants and animals, made since the earliest expeditions to the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic, have been the basis of our understanding of the biological composition of individual areas as well as of ecosystems in general. Systematic studies of these collections have elucidated patterns of evolution, dispersal and community structure in these southern polar biomes. During the modem era these collections continue to provide for taxonomic validation of pure and applied research in Antarctica. They are also becoming increasingly important as historical sources of information on oceanlatmosphere circulation changes, global "greenhouse" warming, ozone depletion and background levels of global pollution. Representative collections of Antarctic organisms and the databases of ecological information associated with them are also vital for environmental management initiatives and the formulation of conservation policy in Antarctica. In the face of increasing scientific, logistic and tourist activity in the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic, protection of sensitive biota and ecosystems and control of human impacts are new imperatives recognized by the Antarctic Treaty under the Protocol on Environmental Protection. The work of the British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Resource Centre is highlighted and a summary of information on the BAS plant collections and computer database is given. The value of electronic datalinking between institutions with Antarctic collections is assessed, and the potential of Geographical Information Systems as frameworks for Antarctic biological databases is also discussed.


SUMMARY The evolutionary adaptations of functional genes to life at high pressure are not well understood. To elucidate the mechanisms of protein adaptation to high pressure, we cloned the myosin heavy chain (MyHC) cDNA from skeletal muscle of two deep-sea fishes, Coryphaenoides yaquinae and C. armatus, and two non-deep-sea fishes, C. acrolepis and C. cinereus. The MyHCs of deep-sea fishes have a unique structure in two loop regions, loop-1 and loop-2, in comparison with those of non-deep-sea fishes. The loop-1 region of deep-sea fishes has a Pro residue and the loop-2 region, which is an actin-binding site, is shorter than the same region in non-deep-sea fishes. The amino acid substitution in the loop-1 region is expected to be mainly involved in ATPase activity, whereas the deletion in the loop-2 region affects the association of MyHC with actin filaments at high pressure. In addition, the MyHC of deep-sea fishes has biased amino acid substitutions at core positions in the coiled-coil structure of the rod region. These amino acid substitutions are likely to decrease the cavities in the coiled-coil structure and consequently make the structure more compact and unaffected by high pressure. Together, these results indicate that amino acid substitutions can adaptively alter the pressure sensitivity of a protein even if they do not directly influence core structure.


The objective of this study was to develop first aid guidelines, based on expert consensus, that provide members of the community with information on how to assist someone who is thought to be developing or experiencing an eating disorder. An online Delphi study was carried out with expert panels consisting of 36 clinicians, 27 care-givers and 22 consumers. The panel members rated statements that described potential first aid actions. If between 80 and 100 percent of all three panels rated a statement as either Essential or Important, the statement was endorsed as a guideline. Three rounds were conducted before consensus was reached. From a total of 456 statements, 200 were endorsed as guidelines. A cohesive guideline document was developed by writing the endorsed statements into sections of prose based on common themes. Clinicians, care-givers and consumers were able to reach consensus about guidelines for eating disorder first aid. Further research is needed to evaluate their efficacy.


PurposeThis study focuses on historic buildings and site preservation (HBSP), which forms part of cultural heritage amidst rampant demolishing and seeming neglect of such heritage in Ghana. The purpose of this study is to assess public awareness of the importance of HBSP in Kumasi.Design/methodology/approachThe study combines qualitative and quantitative research methods. Primary data were collected through questionnaires and interviews based on a purposive sampling technique. Respondents were residents of Kumasi.FindingsThe study revealed that awareness of the importance of HBSP is dependent on the demographic variables. The young generation below 30 years seems more aware of the importance of HBSP.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited by the fact that respondents were not willing to reveal income levels. Laws governing cultural heritage, including HBSP at the MMDAs, was not studied in detail and could be an area for further research.Practical implicationsThis study brings out the need to be aware of the importance of HBSP and train staff to enforce laws governing HBSP in six metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) as part of Ghana's urban regeneration. This study further raises awareness among residents for sustainable architectural heritage preservation in Ghana.Originality/valueThe concept of HBSP is not popular in Ghana. This academic paper apparently assesses the level of awareness of the importance of HBSP among residents in Kumasi with an aim to identify and train staff of MMDAs on laws governing HBSP.


Digital particle image velocimetry records high resolution images and allows the identification of the position of points in different time instants. This paper explores the efficiency of the digital image-technique for remote monitoring of surface velocity and discharge measurement in hyper-concentrated flow by the way of laboratory experiment. One of the challenges in the application of the image-technique is the evaluation of the error in estimating surface velocity. The error quantification is complex because it depends on many factors characterizing either the experimental conditions or/and the processing algorithm. In the present work, attention is devoted to the estimation error due either to the acquisition time or to the size of the sub-images (interrogation areas) to be correlated. The analysis is conducted with the aid of data collected in a scale laboratory flume constructed at the Hydraulic laboratory of the Department of Civil, Environmental, Aerospace and of Materials Engineering (DICAM)—University of Palermo (Italy) and the image processing is carried out by the help of the PivLab algorithm in Matlab. The obtained results confirm that the number of frames used in processing procedure strongly affects the values of surface velocity; the estimation error decreases as the number of frames increases. The size of the interrogation area also exerts an important role in the flow velocity estimation. For the examined case, a reduction of the size of the interrogation area of one half compared to its original size has allowed us to obtain low values of the velocity estimation error. Results also demonstrate the ability of the digital image-technique to estimate the discharge at given cross-sections. The values of the discharge estimated by applying the digital image-technique downstream of the inflow sections by using the aforementioned size of the interrogation area compares well with those measured.


Loss‐of‐function mutations and deletions of the SOX2 gene are known to cause uni‐ and bilateral anophthalmia and microphthalmia as well as related disorders such as anophthalmia‐esophageal‐genital syndrome. Thus, anophthalmia/microphthalmia is the primary indication for targeted, "phenotype first" analyses of SOX2. However, SOX2 mutations are also associated with a wide range of non‐ocular abnormalities, such as postnatal growth retardation, structural brain anomalies, hypogenitalism, and developmental delay. The present report describes three patients without anophthalmia/microphthalmia and loss‐of‐function mutations or microdeletions of SOX2 who had been investigated in a "genotype first" manner due to intellectual disability/developmental delay using whole exome sequencing or chromosomal microarray analyses. This result prompted us to perform SOX2 Sanger sequencing in 192 developmental delay/intellectual disability patients without anophthalmia or microphthalmia. No additional SOX2 loss‐of‐function mutations were detected in this cohort, showing that SOX2 is clearly not a major cause of intellectual disability without anophthalmia/microphthalmia. In our three patients and four further, reported "genotype first" SOX2 microdeletion patients, anophthalmia/microphthalmia was present in less than half of the patients. Thus, SOX2 is another example of a gene whose clinical spectrum is broadened by the generation of "genotype first" findings using hypothesis‐free, genome‐wide methods. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


We examined Canadian host-society children's prosociality (i.e., emotions and behaviors that reflect care for the welfare of others) toward refugee newcomer peers and the role of parental socialization (i.e., frequency of parent-child conversations about refugee newcomers) in children's refugee-specific prosociality. The sample included 168 children (ages 6, 9, and 12 years; 51% girls; 58% European ethnicity) and their primary caregivers. We interviewed children to assess their ethical guilt-related emotions (based on emotions and reasoning) in response to a hypothetical vignette depicting prosocial omission involving a refugee newcomer peer or a non-refugee peer (between-subjects manipulation). A donation task was used to assess prosocial behavior wherein children were given the opportunity to donate chocolate coins to a refugee newcomer peer. Parents reported on how often they typically engage in conversations with their children about refugees and about inclusion. Children experienced similar intensities of ethical guilt-related emotions in the refugee compared with the nonrefugee condition, and donations to refugees increased across age groups. Furthermore, children whose parents engaged them in more frequent conversations about refugees expressed stronger ethical guilt-related emotions toward refugee peers (but not toward host-society peers), and donated more to a refugee peer. No significant associations between conversations about inclusion more broadly and refugee-specific prosociality were found. Encouraging parents to have conversations with their children that focus on the experiences of refugees may be important for fostering kindness between refugees and host-society children. Ultimately, these findings may contribute to initiatives that focus on promoting the inclusion of refugee newcomers in their postmigratory societies.


Irosustat is a novel steroid sulphatase inhibitor for hormone-dependent cancer therapy. Its structure is a tricyclic coumarin-based sulphamate which undergoes de-sulphamoylation in aqueous solution yielding the sulphamoyl-free derivative, 667-Coumarin. The aim of the present work was to study the in vitro metabolism of Irosustat including its metabolic profile in liver microsomes and hepatocytes, the potential species differences, and the identification of the main metabolites and of the enzymes participating in its metabolism. Irosustat was extensively metabolized in vitro , showing similar metabolite profiles among rat, dog, monkey and humans (both sexes). In liver microsomes, the dog appeared as the species that metabolized Irosustat most similarly to humans. Marked differences were found between liver microsomes and hepatocytes, meaning that phase I and phase II enzymes contribute to Irosustat metabolism. Various mono-hydroxylated metabolites of Irosustat and of 667-Coumarin were found in liver microsomes, which mostly involved hydroxylations at the C8, C10 and C12 positions in the cycloheptane ring moiety. 667-Coumarin was formed by degradation but also by non-NADPH-dependent enzymatic hydrolysis, probably catalyzed by microsomal steroid sulphatase. The main metabolites formed by hepatocytes were glucuronide and sulphate conjugates of 667-Coumarin and of some of its mono-hydroxylated metabolites. The major P450 enzymes involved in the transformation of Irosustat were: CYP2C8, CYP2C9, CYP3A4/5 and CYP2E1. Moreover, various phase II enzymes (UGTs and SULTs) were capable of conjugating many of the metabolites of Irosustat and 667-Coumarin, however, the clinically relevant isoforms could not be elucidated.


The purpose of this study is to analyze degree of geographic maldistribution of physicians and changes in the distributional pattern in Korea over the years 1980-1985. In assessing the degree of disparity in physician distribution and in identifying changes in the distributional pattern, the Gini index of concentration was used. The geographical units selected for computation of the Gini index in this analysis are districts (Gu), cities (Si), and counties (Gun). Locational data for 1980 and 1985 were obtained from the population census data in the Economic Planning Board and regular reports of physicians in the Korean Medical Association. The rates of physicians located counties to whole physicaians were 10.4% in 1980 and 9.6% in 1985. In term of the ratio of physicians per 100,000 population, rural area had 9.18 physicians in 1980 and 12.95 in 1985, 7.13 general practitioner in 1980 and 7.29 in 1955, and 2.05 specialists in 1980 and 5.66 in 1985. Only specialists of genral surgery and preventive medicine were distributed over 10% in county and distribution of every specialists except chest surgery in county increased in 1955, comparing with that rates of 1980. The Gini index computed to measure inequality of physician distribution in 1985 indicate as follows; physicians 0.3466, general practitioners 0.5479, and specialists 0.5092. But the Gini index for physicians and specialists fell -15.40% and -10.42% from 1980 to 1985, indication more even distribution. The changes in the Gini index over the period for specialists from 0.3639 to 0.4542 for districts, from 0.2510 to 0.1949 for cities, and 0.5303 to 0.5868 for counties indicate distributional change of 24.81%, -22.35%, and 10.65% respectively. The Gini indices for specialists of neuro-surgery, chest surgery, plastic surgery, ophthalmology, tuberculosis, preventive medicine, and anatomical pathology in 1985 were higher than Gini indices in 1980.


Instead of being merely an important embodiment of regional productivity, the manufacturing industry also serves as a significant sector of economic operation and the supply chain system that is highly dependent on resources and the environment. Studying the spatial pattern of the manufacturing industry and its environmental effect is extremely significant for optimizing the spatial layout of urban industry, allocating production factors in a rational manner, and promoting the green transformation of industry. In this regard, this study aimed to further reveal the spatial pattern characteristics of the regional manufacturing industry and its impact on PM2.5. Using data from micro-enterprises in the manufacturing industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, its spatial pattern characteristics are explored and an econometric model is constructed to analyze the impact of the manufacturing industry on PM2.5 by comprehensively applying approaches including kernel density estimation, nearest proximity index, and Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition. Three research conclusions were drawn: (1) an obvious "core-edge" feature is present in the spatial distribution of the manufacturing industry in the studied area showing an apparent pattern of "high in the east and low in the west". The core density of the manufacturing industry in the central cities is significantly higher than that in the surrounding cities. (2) In the manufacturing industry and its subdivisions, the characteristics of spatial agglomeration are unveiled, while the agglomeration and spatial differences are diminished during the study period for the spatial equilibrium of the manufacturing industry. (3) A significantly positive impact is exerted on PM2.5 pollution that is not limited to local cities by the manufacturing industry, which, due to the development differences within the study region, is also heterogeneous. In view of this, policy proposals for aspects such as forging a green manufacturing cluster area, establishing an industrial integration development platform, giving play to regional advantages and technological potential, etc., are put forward in this study, so as to provide a useful reference for optimizing the industrial pattern and promoting the green transformation of industries.


We extend recent work on the connection between loopy belief propagation and the Bethe free energy. Constrained minimization of the Bethe free energy can be turned into an unconstrained saddle-point problem. Both converging double-loop algorithms and standard loopy belief propagation can be interpreted as attempts to solve this saddle-point problem. Stability analysis then leads us to conclude that stable fixed points of loopy belief propagation must be (local) minima of the Bethe free energy. Perhaps surprisingly, the converse need not be the case: minima can be unstable fixed points. We illustrate this with an example and discuss implications.


Abstract Utilization of AC/zirconium oxide (ZrO2) for the removal of 4-octylphenol (4-OP) from aqueous solution has been studied under simulated visible-light as a cost effective technique. To draw complete images for the prepared materials, a series of characterization methods was performed. Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) data has proved that AC has high surface area and total pore volumes that are decreased after incorporation of ZrO2. Morphologically, TEM showed massive quantity of ZrO2 spherical shape nanoparticles loaded with carbon and EDX showed the uniform distribution of all the prepared materials. The photocatalytic performance has been traced via adopting a matrix effect analysis to correlate the photodegradation of 4-OP in the presence of visible light as a time function, pH, photocatalyst dose and initial concentration of 4-OP. The positive impact of AC content in AC/ZrO2 composite on the adsorption of 4-OP was strikingly observed with expanding the AC content in AC/ZrO2 composite up to 33% (wt/wt). Almost 97% of the 4-OP was removed within 180 min under simulated visible light. The optimum reaction conditions for 95% removal of 4-OP were 120 min, 1 g L−1 catalyst dose at pH 8. The photocatalytic degradation of the 4-OP was well fitted with pseudo first-order L-H kinetic model.


When compressed tablets were produced, it was found that, owing to plastic deformation, the polymers flowed round the active agent particles, dependently on their elastic modulus and ball thrust hardness. A log-log plot of active agent liberation against porosity as a function of pressing pressure yielded a linear relationship. The embedding of active agents in liquid phase separation products by coacervation causes that the liberation of the active agents depends on their wettability by the high-colloid phase. The wetting behaviour of the high-colloid phase is controlled by the relative ratio of the dipole moments of the solvent and the non-solvent or, if these dipole moments are equal, by the hydrogen bridge parameter according to Gordy. In cases where the embedding of active agents via the state of the solution of the polymers necessitates the removal of the solvent, the temperature at which the removal is performed may be of importance to the liberation of the active agent. When the solvent is removed at a temperature above its boiling point, the liberation rate is likely to increase, especially with lowboiling solvents.


In this work, six Tunisian local biomasses, namely ziziphus wood (ZW), almond shells (AS), olive stones (OS), vine stems (VS) and date palm leaflets (DPL) and trunks (DPT) were slowly pyrolyzed under inert atmosphere at a heating rate of 5 °C/min through thermogravimetric (TG) analyses. The thermal degradation of samples involves the interaction in a porous media of heat, mass and momentum transfer with chemical reactions. Heat is transported by conduction, convection and radiation and, mass transfer is driven by pressure and concentration gradients. Thermal degradation curves have been studied with minute details for each degradation step. The Coats–Redfern model was used to extract the kinetic parameters from the TG data, then the kinetic parameters such as the activation energy, the pre-exponential factor and the order of the reaction were calculated. Results showed that the total mass losses amounts and kinetics are dependent on the type of the used biomass. Moreover, the devolatilization could be described by the first order model, while the char formation stage was better described by the second and third order reactions model. The physicochemical characteristics of these samples were also determined. The volatile matter (VM) content varies considerably, with values ranging from 67.19% for AS to 77.4% for ZW. The maximum values were obtained for ZW and VS with values of 77.4% and 71.9%, respectively. The lowest value (67.19%) was determined for AS. In addition, the ash contents vary between 0.8% for OS and 5.66% for DPT. ∗Corresponding author. ISSN (electronic) : 1878-1543 https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/chimie/ 2 Jemaa Mabrouki et al. The ashes vary significantly from one sample to another, with the values being even lower than 1% for OS, whereas the higher values in the DPT is 5.66%. Further, activation energies corresponding to main devolatilization regions were 59.5, 47.0, 55.8, 41.1, 89.1, 45.2 kJ/mol for ZW, AS, OS, VS, DPL, and DPT respectively. Among all the tested biomasses, the ZW and VS appear to have an important potential to be used for energy production.


Abstract The effect of magnesia burnt at 800-950°C on the properties, especially the shrinkage, of alkali-activated slag cement (AASC) was experimentally studied. Experimental results show that, although adding 4%-8% lightly-burnt magnesia may shorten the setting time and slightly reduce the compressive strength of AASC, it can remarkably reduce the shrinkage of AASC. The results also show that the setting time of AASC with a certain amount of magnesia increases with the burning temperature, and that the flexural and compressive strengths of AASC decrease with the increase of the additive amount of magnesia. Generally, the adverse effect of magnesia decreases with the increase of the burning temperature, and the shrinkage-reducing effect of magnesia increases with the additive amount of magnesia. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses show that some magnesia particles in the hardened AASC paste at a 28-d age remained unhydrated, and that the compactness decreased a little as magnesia was added. We can also conclude that magnesia burnt at 850-950°C can be used to reduce the shrinkage of AASC only when its additive amount does not exceed 8%; otherwise, the setting time may be too short, and the flexural and compressive strengths may severely decrease.


A proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic study of horse apomyoglobin was undertaken in order to define the regions of myoglobin that are and that are not structurally affected by the binding of the prosthetic group. It was found that, in spite of the poor spectral resolution, a number of spin systems could be identified by using standard correlated methods. Four clusters consisting mostly of hydrophobic residues were detected by nuclear Overhauser spectroscopy, two of which involved the tryptophan side chains. Extensive similarities to nuclear Overhauser spectroscopy data collected on the carbonmonoxy form of holomyoglobin suggested tentative assignments for several residues. It appeared that distinct cores of side chains on the distal side of the binding pocket and between the A, B, G, and H helices maintain the same packing as they do in holomyoglobin and apomyoglobin reconstituted with protoporphyrin IX.


Combustion processes leading to the formation of valuable products of chemical technology and metallurgy — acetylene, carbon black, starting materials for acid manufacture, metal oxides, ferro-alloys, refractory compounds, etc. — are surveyed with emphasis on the possibilities and the advantages of combustion as a technical chemical procedure. Prospects for the widespread utilisation of combustion processes in chemical technology and metallurgy are examined on the basis of specific examples. Certain aspects of the development of combustion theory in connection with technical problems are discussed. A list of 78 references is included.


A comprehensive experiment was conducted to study the accumulation pattern and determination of three important bioactive compounds namely withaferin-A (WA), 12-deoxywithastramonolide (WO) and withanolide-A (WD) and its determination by the liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS-MS) method in root, stem, fruits and leaves of Withania somnifera. A rapid and sensitive LC-ESI-MS-MS method was developed and validated for the determination of these three important bioactive compounds, having same molecular weight. The multiple reaction monitoring method was established by two transitions for each analyte and intense transition used for quantification. Separation of the three analytes was achieved within a run time of 5 min on an RP-18 column using a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and 0.1% acetic acid in water in an isocratic condition. The developed method was validated as per the ICH guidelines. The developed method was found to be suitable for identification and quantification of WA, WO and WD in different plant parts such as roots, stems, fruits and leaves of W. somnifera. The accumulation of WA was highest in leaves samples (8.84 ± 0.37 mg/g) and it was 2.23, 5.85 and 27.26 times higher than its concentration in fruits, stems and roots, respectively. WO and WD contents were highest (0.44 ± 0.016 and 0.72 ± 0.016 mg/g, respectively) in root.


The desert-steppe region of southern Mongolia is susceptible to drought and extreme winter weather (dzud) that in combination form Mongolia's worst natural hazard. Low precipitation and high climatic variability in this dryland environment impact the landscape and affect pastoralism, the dominant rural lifestyle. Using the Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI), this paper identifies drought occurrence in South Gobi Province, Mongolia. It then examines the relationship of drought with climate factors, interaction with vegetation (derived from Normalised Difference Vegetation Index - NDVI - data), and local human and livestock populations, and the dzuds of 1999–2001. Results show that drought is recurrent in the region, reaching extreme intensity most recently in 2005–2006. In contrast with the prevailing concept of drought impacting dzuds, the study did not find a connection between drought and dzud in South Gobi Province. Though repeated events, these natural hazards occur independently in the region. Climatic variables show increasing temperatures (>1°C), fluctuating precipitation patterns and a decline in vegetation cover. The principal long-term correlation of drought is with human population rather than natural factors, dzud or livestock numbers.


This article studies postwar propaganda as an instrument of British containment of militant nationalism in Nigeria, 1945—60. It seeks to elucidate the mechanisms, dynamics and impacts of the stratagems, subsumed under propaganda but presented as public relations for acceptability, which characterized the decolonization process in Nigeria. By using the historical method based on archival and newspaper sources ignored by previous scholars, the article establishes, contrary to conventional wisdom, that propaganda was not a temporary expedient, but a major feature of British colonial imperialism. It concludes that British application of this strategy in Nigeria led to the defeat of postwar militant nationalism, and the transfer of power to the pliable wing of the emergent elite at independence.


Many brain regions involved in perception and movement are characterized by orderly maps, with neighboring neurons responding to similar features of sensory input or motor output. For example, brain circuits involved in motor control contain maps for distinct muscle groups and preferred direction of movement. However, it has not been clear whether higher-order features, such as time in a movement sequence or serial order, are represented topographically (see Fig 1). Even though temporal sequence generation is integral to many forms of learned behavior, the underlying mechanisms are not well understood.

Fig 1

Is time represented with spatially disorganized (left) or locally organized (right) structure?

One attractive brain region for addressing the question of how time is mapped in space is the premotor nucleus HVC in songbirds. This brain region plays a crucial role in the learning and production of bird song and is responsible for generating extremely precise, learned temporal sequences. HVC neural activity drives downstream areas controlling the vocal organ and also projects to the basal ganglia, which is thought to guide exploratory trial-and-error learning. However, past technical limitations have prevented scientists from exploring the spatiotemporal organization of HVC activity in singing birds.

In a study published this week in PLOS Biology, Timothy Gardner of Boston University and his collaborators provide the first experimental evidence of how HVC ensemble activity is organized in space and time in singing zebra finches. To accomplish this feat, they developed new methods for multi-channel electrophysiology and calcium imaging in singing birds. They found that the activity patterns of HVC neurons are spatially clustered, and that two HVC cell types fire in alternating phases of a 30 Hz rhythm. According to the authors, this spatial and temporal organization may be an evolutionarily conserved feature of motor circuits across species.

Using calcium imaging in freely behaving, singing zebra finches, the researchers examined the spatial organization of the neural activity of projection neurons, which send signals from the HVC to the vocal organ and basal ganglia. They found that neighboring neurons showed similar patterns of neural activity, but cells that did not fire at the same time were not located close to one another. The spatial correlations in HVC calcium activity were characterized by a patchwork of domains organized in stereotyped sequences, with an average distance of 143 μm separating coactive cells.

The researchers next addressed whether inhibitory interneurons in HVC show a similar spatial and temporal organization as projection neurons. Because the timescale of the calcium indicator they used could not resolve the fast firing patterns of the interneurons, they combined multi-channel electrophysiology with local field potentials (LFP) recordings, which can reflect synchronous ensemble neural activity over roughly 100 μm. They found that HVC neurons fired in synchrony about 30 times per second, or 30 Hz. Moreover, LFPs recorded from nearby electrodes were more similar than those recorded from electrodes separated by about 200 μm. Averaging over all recording sites in all birds, they found that synchronous neural activity at 30 Hz occurred across a distance of 108–125 μm. Taken together with the calcium imaging results, these findings indicate that HVC activity during singing is correlated over a distance of roughly 100 μm.

When comparing the timing of activity in the two cell types, the researchers found that projection neurons fire during peaks in the 30 Hz LFP, whereas interneurons fire in the troughs. These observations indicate that the two cell types fire in opposition to generate a local 30 Hz rhythm in the LFP, and that synchronous pauses in inhibition could provide a window of opportunity for projection neurons to fire. Given that little was previously known about the interaction between inhibitory neurons and projections neurons in singing birds, the findings shed new light on the fundamental rules that relate the activity of these two classes of cells.

More broadly, a comparison with past studies reveals commonalities across species and behavioral contexts. For example, the 100 μm length scale observed during singing has also been observed in the motor cortex of mammals in the context of running, grooming, and simple forelimb movements. In addition, the 30 Hz rhythm has parallels in primate motor control as well as speech perception and production in humans. According to the authors, the recurrence of these length scales and timescales raises the possibility that spatial clustering and 30 Hz rhythmic alternation of excitatory and inhibitory neural activity may be a fundamental feature of motor circuits and could be critical for the sequential organization of behavior.


Non-verbal communication is important in HRI, particularly when humans and robots do not need to actively engage in a task together, but rather they co-exist in a shared space. Robots might still need to communicate states such as urgency or availability, and where they intend to go, to avoid collisions and disruptions. Sounds could be used to communicate such states and intentions in an intuitive and non-disruptive way. Here, we propose a multi-layer classification system for displaying various robot information simultaneously via sound. We first conceptualise which robot features could be displayed (robot size, speed, availability for interaction, urgency, and directionality); we then map them to a set of audio parameters. The designed sounds were then evaluated in 5 online studies, where people listened to the sounds and were asked to identify the associated robot features. The sounds were generally understood as intended by participants, especially when they were evaluated one feature at a time, and partially when they were evaluated two features simultaneously. The results of these evaluations suggest that sounds can be successfully used to communicate robot states and intended actions implicitly and intuitively.


We sought to investigate effects of exercise training on apoptosis-related microRNAs (miRs) and their validated targets, discussing molecular mechanism of the exercise-induced benefit in heart. Male C57BL/6 mice were randomly assigned to three groups: sedentary (SE), exercise training 1 (ET1) and exercise training 2 (ET2). ET1 swam for 8 weeks, once a day and 5 days per week with incremental load. ET2 performed the same work as ET1 and switched to twice a day by the end of the 5th week. In ET2, positive cell rate (%) tested by TUNEL assay decreased significantly (p < 0.05), and the load decreased miR-1 level by 29% (p < 0.01), also increased miR-30b and miR-21 levels by 32% (p < 0.01) and 18% (p < 0.05) respectively. In addition, Bcl-2 expression was increased by 98% (p < 0.01). p53, PDCD4 and Drp-1 expressions were decreased by 45% (p < 0.01), 6% (p > 0.05) and 36% (p < 0.01) respectively, compared with SE. In ET1, only miR-30b level was increased by 22% (p < 0.05) with a 48% decrease in p53 level (p < 0.01). Both swimming groups increased Bcl-2/Bax ratio significantly (p < 0.01). This study indicated that apoptosis-related miRs and their downstream proteins in heart can be influenced by swimming training that may be responsible for the exercise-induced cardioprotection.


Introduction Tyrosinaemia type 1 (TT1) is a rare disorder of tyrosine metabolism leading to accumulation of toxic metabolites such as succinylacetone (SA) and a high risk of hepatocellular carcinoma. Children with TT1 traditionally required liver transplantation (OLT) and while the need for this has reduced since the introduction of nitisinone some still go on to require OLT. Circulating SA inhibits the enzyme porphobilinogen (PBG) synthase and its activity can be used as a marker of functional circulating SA. Elevated urinary SA post OLT thought to be due to local production has been reported. Aim This study describes a novel finding of elevated plasma SA following OLT for TT1. Method A retrospective analysis was performed of patients treated for TT1 at our institution from 1989 to 2010. Results In patients who received nitisinone prior to OLT mean urinary SA was elevated at presentation (159.6 mmol/mol creatinine, ref. range <1) as was plasma SA (17.58 mol/l, ref. range <0.01) but both became undetectable on nitisinone prior to OLT (p<0.05). This was associated with increased mean PBG synthase activity from 0.032 to 0.99 nkat/g Hb (ref. range 0.58 1.25). In patients who did not receive nitisinone, mean urinary SA was 274.6 mmol/mol creatinine immediately prior to transplant. Plasma SA levels/PBG synthase activity prior to OLT were not available in this group. Following OLT in patients treated with nitisinone, mean urinary SA levels quickly rose and remained elevated for the duration of follow-up. Plasma SA levels also rose with a progressive decrease in mean PBG synthase activity to low-normal levels. In patients who had not received nitisinone, mean urinary SA fell quickly by 1 year post OLT but remained above normal at levels similar to those seen in the nitisinone treated group. No data were available for plasma SA/PBG synthase activity in this group until 13 years post OLT. However, from this point onwards mean plasma SA remained elevated with a low-normal PBG synthase activity similar to that seen in nitisinone treated patients. There was no apparent correlation between SA levels and renal function. Despite reduced PBG synthase levels, no patients developed porphyria-like symptoms. Conclusion Urinary and plasma SA levels are elevated following OLT for TT1. Low-normal PBG synthase activity suggests the circulating SA may be functional. The clinical significance of this is unclear.


Low-permeability gas-bearing sandstones present in basins of the Rocky Mountain area are commonly bounded by lithologies that are not barriers to hydraulically induced fracture migration. Use of standard hydraulic fracture treatments commonly results in most of the induced fracture area developing outside of the pay zone. Modified hydraulic fracturing techniques may be employed to optimize placement and penetration of the induced fracture area when the geologic and in-situ stress properties of boundary and pay zone lithologies are known. Laboratory and field efforts have been made to improve stimulation treatments in the Mancos B formation within the North Douglas Creek Arch field near Rangely, Colorado. To evaluate these efforts, a combination of core analyses and in-situ stress measurements was used in developing a modified hydraulic fracturing program. Whole core samples were taken from upper and lower boundary lithologies as well as within the Mancos B pay zone for special core tests including gas permeabilities, static elastic moduli, fracture toughness, and fluid compatibility tests measured at simulated in-situ conditions. Reservoir quality within pay zones was determined by a combination of petrography, x-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. In-situ minimal horizontal stress was determined in the field from instantaneous shut-in pressure (ISIP) data which were measured in all three lithologies. One modified hydraulic fracturing technique that has been field tested and shows promising results is based on fracture initiation placement (perforation placement). A second technique to be tested in the near future will use lightweight additives in fracturing fluids to help seal vertical propagation of hydraulically induced fractures, thereby insuring a deep penetrating fracture into the pay zone. End_of_Article - Last_Page 938------------


e5 Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women. In comparison with men, women have greater cardiovascular mortality, report more morbidity, and have greater reductions in quality of life. Furthermore, sex disparities in cardiovascular health exist among women of all ages, socioeconomic backgrounds, and racial subgroups, which likely reflect both lingering diagnostic and treatment disparities, and underlying biological sex differences, as well. For example, there is a largely female predominance of stress-induced (Takotsubo) cardiomyopathy after menopause, a greater occurrence of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, particularly in elderly women, and a higher incidence of rheumatic mitral stenosis among women in developing countries. In addition, after 55 years of age, hypertension is more prevalent in women than in men, particularly in black women. Clinical outcomes also differ by sex. Women with atrial fibrillation have a higher risk of thromboembolic events in comparison with men, and, among individuals younger than 55 years of age, the rate of acute myocardial infarction in the past decade has declined in men, but not in women. As the importance and impact of cardiovascular disease in women is increasingly recognized, we are learning how heart disease is distinct between the sexes, both in its pathophysiology and in our ability to diagnose and treat women. To better understand and appreciate sex differences in cardiovascular disease, there needs to be a compilation of current knowledge and an accessible tool that increases awareness of these differences. Heart Disease in Women, by Drs Navin Nanda and Nurgul Keser, is that clinical tool and an excellent resource for all providers of women's health. Heart Disease in Women brings greater awareness to sex-specific differences in heart disease and emphasizes the unique features of cardiovascular disease in women. The book consists of 34 chapters organized into 8 sections covering prevention and risk factors, coronary heart disease, noninvasive testing, heart failure and cardiomyopathies, arrhythmias, valvular heart disease, heart disease in pregnancy, and a final segment on largely underrecognized issues in women, including peripheral arterial disease, cardio-oncology, and the current status of evidence-based medicine for the treatment of heart disease in women. Many of the chapters are written by leaders in the field of women's cardiovascular health who have been instrumental in bringing attention to the sex-specific nature of heart disease pathophysiology and sex disparities that exist in cardiac care. It would be of great benefit to any practitioner to read this book cover to cover, but unfortunately time often dictates a more abbreviated approach to acquiring new knowledge. The following are particularly noteworthy chapters to be read if time precludes an extensive review of this topic. Chapter 3, by Sanne Peters and colleagues, provides a very well-articulated overview of the current literature on sex differences in conventional cardiovascular risk factors and their association with heart disease and stroke in women and men. Chapters 10 and 11 address the nontraditional, and often overlooked, risk factors of psychosocial stress and autoimmune disease, respectively, which can contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease in women. Dr Nanette Wenger and colleagues author the well-written and very comprehensive chapter on stable ischemic heart disease in women, expertly highlighting the sex-specific differences in treatment. Chapters 18 and 19 provide a thorough review of the literature on noninvasive stress testing in women with clinically relevant and useful guidance that would be an asset to any medical practitioner. The management of women with heart failure is expertly reviewed in Chapter 20 by Dr Ileana Pina and colleagues. This chapter incorporates supporting data from many contemporary trials, both completed and ongoing; however, a noticeable omission was the lack of emphasis on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction that is considerably more prevalent among women than men. Chapter 21 provides an interesting discussion about sex hormones, immunity, and myocarditis, and compliments the following chapter, a well-written overview on Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy. Dr Anne Curtis and Deepika Narasimha eloquently explore the sex-specific differences in cardiac electrophysiology in Chapter 23. Chapter 28 summarizes cardiac hemodynamics during pregnancy and the frequently encountered cardiac conditions in pregnant women including both preexisting and acquired heart disease; however, a discussion on spontaneous coronary artery dissection, a condition with increased incidence in the peripartum period, is noticeably absent. Dr Reema Chugh authored the chapter entitled, "Management of Heart Disease in Pregnancy: A Clinician's Approach," which provides extremely helpful clinical recommendations on a multitude of cardiac issues that can arise during pregnancy and emphasizes the importance of a multispecialty team to optimize the health of both mother and child during the peripartum period. Speculative statements occasionally punctuate the text, but likely reflect the lack of rigorous study data on sex-specific differences in certain areas of cardiovascular disease and treatment. Knowledge of heart disease in women is constantly evolving and data are emerging that female-specific risk factors, such as complications of pregnancy (preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and pregnancy-induced hypertension), are predictors for the development of heart disease later in life. Greater emphasis on these nontraditional risk factors and a discussion of risk scores for women (eg, Reynolds risk score) would have further complimented the current content. This text was published after the most recent updates to the evidence-based guidelines on the management of hyperlipidemia and high blood pressure in adults (Eighth Joint National Committee). These new guidelines are referenced in Chapter 2, which discusses the prevention of heart disease in women, but unfortunately are not included in the dedicated chapters on Dyslipidemia in Women (Chapter 4) or Hypertension in Women (Chapter 7). Additionally, there is some redundancy, overlap, and, at times, even contradictions in the content, but this text largely reflects our contemporary understanding of heart disease in women and demonstrates that, although much has been learned, knowledge gaps in women's cardiovascular health still remain and are in need of further study. The combination of expert contributions to Heart Disease in Women results in an indispensable resource for all medical professionals, but particularly those in cardiology, internal medicine, and obstetrics and gynecology. For the busy practitioner, this text can be used as a single point of reference for a spectrum of women's cardiac issues ranging from anticoagulation management during pregnancy to the recommended diagnostic strategy


Experiments were undertaken to determine whether hexavalent chromium was released during corrosion of orthopedic implants. Uptake of chromium (Cr) by cells and separation using amberlite resin were the methods used to determine that hexavalent Cr was present. We used salts of chromium as trivalent chromium (chromic chloride) and hexavalent chromium (potassium dichromate) to verify that the amberlite separation technique separates hexavalent Cr into the upper phase and trivalent Cr into the lower phase. The use of the salts also verified that only the hexavalent Cr became red blood cell-associated and that most of this was intracellular rather than membrane bound. The use of the amberlite separation technique demonstrated that the hexavalent Cr in the red blood cells was rapidly reduced to trivalent Cr. Cellular uptake of chromium was documented in red blood cells following corrosion of stainless-steel and cobalt-chromium implants in vivo, in the red blood cells of patients undergoing total joint revisions, and in fibroblasts subjected to products of fretting corrosion of stainless-steel and cobalt-chromium implants. Thus, corrosion of implants can lead to the release of the biologically active hexavalent chromium into the body. This chromium is rapidly reduced to trivalent chromium in cells.


This article provides an overview of initial discussions emerging from the Creative Methods Network, an informal organisation concerned with the use of the creative arts in research, teaching and practice in health and social care. Key issues are presented and contextualised with regard to the current conditions in which health and social care research and education is practised. Our own discussions have come to question the seeming dominance of governance within professional education programmes in which there is a primary focus on developing technical skill and capacity. Such governance often extends itself to the measurement of the implementation of these technical skills and this is set against concerns about the absence of creativity and the humanities in the educational programmes of caring for human beings. Consequently, the article reflects a view that the use of the creative arts and humanities in the education of the human caring professions is being eroded away in favour of technical-rational reasoning. It is argued that this then presents an important problem manifested in an emphasis on established and quantifiable knowledge transfer which inhibits other forms of knowledge generation. For the purposes of this discussion we have viewed this problem through the lenses offered by Foucault and Bourdieu.


Sugarcane production is one of the most important activities in the Huasteca region of Mexico, which requires plans to increase productivity and reduce uncertainty caused by limitations and the market. By zoning the crop using a multi-criteria evaluation AHP (analytic hierarchy process) in GIS (Landsat 7 ETM+), thematic maps (climate and soil) were generated associated with the variables of cane using ILWIS and ESRI ArcGIS 9.2. The AHP methodology provides a framework for assessing and zoning the crop in order to synthesize the interaction between the variables that determine crop productivity and represent the key point of agronomic management of space in Huasteca. The results showed that the methodology of remote sensing, GIS and AHP, can also serve as an effective, low cost tool.


We report here a case with malignant mesothelioma of testicular tunica vaginalis. An 81‐year‐old Japanese man with left hydrocele was referred for operation. When hydrocelectomy was performed, a thick wall of tunica vaginalis without malignancy was observed. Seven months after hydrocelectomy, a hard irregular mass was noticed in the left scrotum, therefore inguinal orchiectomy was performed. Pathologically, the mass showed severe atypia and mitosis. The diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma was made. He refused any adjuvant treatment and died 1 year later from multiple metastases to the paraaortic lymph nodes and lumbar supine.


Introduction/Background To describe the clinical and sonographic characteristics of extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumors (eGISTs). Methodology This is a retrospective multicentric study. From the database of 9 large European gynecologic oncology centers we identified patients with a histological diagnosis of eGIST, who had undergone preoperative ultrasound. One author from each center reviewed stored images and ultrasound reports, and described the lesions using IOTA and MUSA nomenclatures following ultrasound evaluation form. In addition, clinical information, surgical and pathological reports were recorded. Results Thirty-five women with eGISTs were identified, 17 incidental findings and 18 symptomatic cases. Median age was 57 years (range 21–85). Two patients (6%) had ascites and median CA 125 was 23 U/mL (range 7–403 U/mL). The vast majority of eGISTs were intraperitoneal lesions (33/35, 94%) with few retroperitoneally (2/35, 6%). The most common site was abdomen (23/35, 65.7%), and 12 lesions (34%) were in the pelvis. eGISTs were typically large (median of 79 mm) and solid tumors (31/35, 89%), the remaining eGISTs were multilocular-solid tumors (4/35, 11%). The tumor shape was mainly lobulated (20/35, 57%) or irregular (10/35, 29%). The echogenicity of solid tumors was less often uniform (8/35, 23%) but always hypoechogenic. More frequently solid tumors were non-uniform due to mixed echogenicity (13/27, 40%) or small irregular cysts (14/27, 37%). eGISTs were typically richly vascularized (color score 3 and 4, 31/35, 89%) with no shadowing (31/35, 89%). Based on pattern recognition, eGISTs were usually correctly classified as malignant lesion (32/35, 91%) and the specific diagnosis of eGIST was the most frequent among the presumed diagnosis (16/35, 46%). Conclusion On ultrasound, eGISTs were usually solid non-uniform intraperitoneal tumors with rich vascularization and no shadowing. They may mimic ovarian fibroma or uterine fibroids but the extra-genital origin in the combination with ultrasound characteristics in experienced hands point to the diagnosis of these uncommon tumors. Disclosure This work was supported by Charles University in Prague (UNCE 204065 and PROGRES Q28/LF1). None of the authors declare any conflict of interest.


This study investigated the dearth of collection and reading promotion programmes in school library media centres (SLMC) in Nigerian schools. The survey research design method was adopted for the study while questionnaire was used as the major instrument of data collection. One hundred and thirty seven (137) copies of questionnaire were administered on school librarians/school library media specialists/teacher-librarians, heads of library, and proprietors/proprietress of schools that were among the participants that attended the 25th and 26th Annual Conferences of the Nigerian School Library Association at Abeokuta, 2010 and Ado Ekiti, 2011 respectively. However, only ninety two (92) copies of the questionnaire were found to have useful responses that were used for the study. The findings of the study revealed a dearth of learning resources such as periodical literature and audiovisual resources to be used in promoting and developing favourable reading culture among pupils in Nigerian schools. Also, the study revealed a dearth of reading promotion programmes such as story hour and book talks in SLMC in Nigerian schools. The study highlights the need for the provision of adequate funding for schools and SLMCs in Nigeria to enable schools stock their SLMCs with adequate and relevant collection and also to enable them carry out programmes that will help in developing the reading culture of Nigerian children. Keywords: School library collection, Reading programme, Reading culture, Reading preference


The course of C language in the specialty of the computer science and technology is transferred to the embedded platform to prompt the teaching effect. Correspondingly, Keil C is used as the development environment, and the new experiment board with a serial of external peripherals is designed based on the 8051 family MCU. The case teaching method is adopted to increase the appeal, in which the full knowledge of C language is trained. By forming the practical systems or devices with C language on the boards, the students' passion is stimulated for programming due to their recognition for the power and practicality of C language. At last the students are familiar with C language, and begin to cognize the embedded system.


Tax havens and tax avoidance have gathered much interest, e.g., in the United Nations (UN) negotiations on the post-2015 development goals. The analyses of initiatives against corporate tax avoidance typically focus on developments from the mid-1990s onward. This article shows that contrary to the common perception, the country-by-country reporting initiative and many of the other contemporary policy responses had already been developed and discussed in the 1970s by the United Nations Commission and Centre for Transnational Corporations. I demonstrate how the weakening of the policy community of the UN and the failure of the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to refer to the earlier discussions, not only in the UN but also in the OECD, contributed to the passing into oblivion of these ideas. Other factors were the reframing of the UN work on multinational enterprises to human rights issues and the transformation of academic theories of the firm. The examples demonstrate how ideas shape world politics and how the oblivion of certain ideas can have concrete impacts on the power relations between its actors. The oblivion of the earlier debates paved the way for the triumph of more business-friendly discourses centred on the anti-corruption and corporate social responsibility arguments.


Secondary and tertiary structure predictions of oligopeptide systems have been done by Monte Carlo simulations based on simulated annealing and multicanonical algorithm. Two oligopeptides, C-peptide of ribonuclease A and the fragment BPTI(1636) of bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor were studied. Only the amino-acid sequence information was used as input and initial conformations were randomly generated. The lowest-energy conformations obtained have α-helix structure and β-sheet structure for C-peptide and BPTI(16-36), respectively, in remarkable with experimental results.


The CLP-dyncry molecular dynamics (MD) program suite and force field environment is introduced and validated with its ad hoc features for the treatment of organic crystalline matter. The package, stemming from a preliminary implementation on organic liquids (Gavezzotti & Lo Presti, 2019), includes modules for the preliminary generation of molecular force field files from ab initio derived force constants, and for the preparation of crystalline simulation boxes from general crystallographic information, including Cambridge Structural Database CIFs. The intermolecular potential is the atom–atom Coulomb–London–Pauli force field, well tested as calibrated on sublimation enthalpies of organic crystals. These products are then submitted to a main MD module that drives the time integration and produces dynamic information in the form of coordinate and energy trajectories, which are in turn processed by several kinds of crystal-oriented analytic modules. The whole setup is tested on a variety of bulk crystals of rigid, non-rigid and hydrogen-bonded compounds for the reproduction of radial distribution functions and of crystal-specific collective orientational variables against X-ray data. In a series of parallel tests, some advantages of a dedicated program as opposed to software more oriented to biomolecular simulation (Gromacs) are highlighted. The different and improved view of crystal packing that results from joining static structural information from X-ray analysis with dynamic upgrades is also pointed out. The package is available for free distribution with I/O examples and Fortran source codes.


Based upon Granger causality and Pesaran-Shin's generalized impulse-response functions, this paper studies the link between the term structure and economic growth, and the link between the term structure and actual and expected percent changes of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Chile. Our measure of economic growth is the percent variation in the Monthly Indicator of Economic Activity of the Central Bank of Chile (IMACEC). The slope and the level of the term structure are captured, respectively, by the spread of long and short-term interest rates -in real and nominal terms-, and the short real rate. Our main findings can be summarized as follows. First, when considering a short-term horizon, the relationship between the percent change in the IMACEC, the spread of nominal and real rates, and the level of the short real rate is, in general, weak in statistical terms. For a longer-term horizon, the strongest relationship is that observed between the level of the short real rate and the 12-month percent variation in the IMACEC. Second, the link between inflation and the nominal spread of interest rates is weak, especially for a long-term horizon. Moreover, changes in the CPI seem to have more predictive power to explain changes in the spread of nominal interest rates than vice versa. We believe that one explanation may be the price inertia existing in the Chilean economy due to indexation. Indeed, it is possible that changes in expected inflation transmit to the spread of nominal interest rates faster than they do to actual inflation.


In late December 2019, COVID-19 was first identified in Wuhan, China and resulted in a formidable outbreak in provinces and cities in China that became a pandemic. The outbreak likely began as several cases caused by probable zoonotic transmission, followed by human-to-human transmission via droplets or contact with infected bodily fluids or contaminated items. COVID-19 mainly affects the lower respiratory tract and manifests as pneumonia in human, and severely affected patients may have multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Despite recent progress in vaccine development, the management of multiple organ failure caused by immune injury is mainly supportive. COVID-19 is more contagious than SARS and MERS, although it has a lower mortality rate. The 2019 outbreak of COVID-19 has been classified by the WHO as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, which has drawn attention to the challenge of the disease and caused questioning of scientific strategies for preventing infection and improving clinical outcomes. This article reviews the latest developments on transmission and clinical management and control of COVID-19 infection.


This article introduces and provides an overview of the main theme of this volume and explores the possibility of localizing humanitarian assistance frameworks with regard to East African pastoralists. It is incorrect to depict the livelihood of East African pastoralists without considering humanitarian assistance and its secondary effects. However, too little attention has been paid to the issue. Many studies have revealed that humanitarian assistance is not necessarily a neutral, impartial, and apolitical act. In addition, cultural diversity has not yet been examined thoroughly in humanitarian research, although humanitarian assistance is not an acultural practice. To respond to cultural diversity and current reality of the transformation, I introduce the "articulation-sphere approach," which focuses on the intermediate realm between the local and the universal. This approach may not only show us an initial sign of the self-help efforts of the victims themselves after disasters, but also opens up the possibility of localizing universal humanitarian assistance frameworks from below. With this approach, I reexamine the personal, temporal, and spatial frameworks of humanitarian assistance in East African pastoral societies. Subsequently, I also give an overview of the articulation of the primary frameworks of humanitarian assistance and East African pastoralism. Lastly, I show the perspective and significance of the articulation sphere approach.


There has been a long-standing desire in computer science for a way of collecting and using libraries of standard software components. Unfortunately, there has been only limited success in actually doing this. We believe that the lack of success stems not from any resistance to the idea, nor from any lack of trying, but rather from the difficulty of choosing an appropriate formalism for representing components. In this paper we define five desiderata for a good formalization of reusable software components and discuss many of the formalisms which have been used for representing components in light of these desiderata. We then briefly describe a formalism we are developing - the Plan Calculus - which seeks to satisfy these desiderata by combining together the best features of prior formalisms.


The need for the annotated training dataset on which data-hungry machine learning algorithms feed has increased dramatically with advanced acclaim of machine learning applications. To annotate the data, people with domain expertise are needed, but they are seldom available and expensive to hire. This has lead to the thriving of crowdsourcing platforms such as Amazon Mechanical Turk (AMT). However, the annotations provided by one worker cannot be used directly to train the model due to the lack of expertise. Existing literature in annotation aggregation focuses on binary and multi-choice problems. In contrast, little work has been done on complex tasks such as sequence labeling with imbalanced classes, a ubiquitous task in Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Bio-Informatics. We propose OptSLA, an Optimization-based Sequential Label Aggregation method, that jointly considers the characteristics of sequential labeling tasks, workers reliabilities, and advanced deep learning techniques to conquer the challenge. We evaluate our model on crowdsourced data for named entity recognition task. Our results show that the proposed OptSLA outperforms the state-of-the-art aggregation methods, and the results are easier to interpret.


Relatively rich conodont faunas from sections in the Prague Synform (Barrandian area, Czech Republic) include a number of indexes and other important guide conodonts that can be correlated with other regions, especially with Nevada and the Spanish Central Pyrenees. The collation and detailed correlation of conodont data from the Lochkovian in two parallel sections in the Požáry quarries, together with biostratigraphic control of additional data from several (incomplete) sections with changing facies development, is the basis for a new detailed regional biozonal scale for the Lochkovian in the Prague Synform. The new subdivision follows, with modification, the global threefold conodont subdivision of the Lochkovian. Data from the Prague Synform enable further detailed subdivision of the lower, middle and upper Lochkovian into small‐scale units. The conodont distribution shows a large proportional discrepancy between the late Lochkovian elsewhere; the conodont record in the latest Lochkovian in the Prague Synform area, which appears to be rather restricted and requires further discussion. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The pine bark beetle, Dendroctonus armandi, is a native pest restricted to forests in the Qinling Mountains in China. There was an outbreak of this species there that affected over 0.36 million hectares of pine forest. We hypothesized that there are differences between the numbers of beetles captured by traps baited with various combinations of candidate semiochemicals extracted from the hindguts of D. armandi. In order to determine whether a better operational lure could be developed for D. armandi, we analyzed the volatiles in extracts of the hindgut of D. armandi and tested various combinations of candidate semiochemicals. The GC-MS and GC-FID analyses of volatiles in the extracts of the hindguts of D. armandi collected at different stages of the attack revealed that they are mainly a-pinene, b-caryophyllene and (+)-3-carene with minor amounts of myrcene, limonene, verbenol and verbenone. We tested various combinations of these candidate semiochemicals in order to determine an optimal blend. Our results suggest that the addition of b-caryophyllene to either a-pinene, or blends of a-pinene and other candidate semiochemicals, significantly enhanced the attractiveness of the lures for D. armandi. Field trapping experiments indicated that the blends that included b-caryophyllene, myrcene and other candidate semiochemicals resulted in significantly higher trap catches (161-243% higher) than a-pinene alone. Therefore, a simple lure consisting of a-pinene and b-caryophyllene would be an optimal blend for D. armandi. We conclude that this blend of semiochemicals may provide a better method of reducing the numbers of D. armandi in forest ecosystem.


Techniques of the lifetime data repertoire are used for detection of the disintegration pattern of fecal pellets of Holothuria mexicana and Isostichopus badionotus (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea), two deposit-feeders that play an important role in the cycling of nutrients in Thalassia beds. Pellet mounds could have different composition and be exposed to different disintegrating forces resulting in diverse patterns of disintegration. Traditional methods for lifetime analysis would have resulted in discarding about half of the data. Pellets of I . badionotus disintegrate completely in about 8 hours, suggesting a higher probability for being resuspended than those of H. mexicana which remain on the substrate after 25 hours. The hazard function of I. badionotus suggests a wearing disintegration process, probably due to the internal unconsolidation activity of bacterial and fungal growth. The hazard function found for H. Mexica na suggests an accidental pattern of disintegration, probably due to the picking inspection of marine motile organisms.


SUMMARY Although psychologists have urgedpolice officers to use double blind line-up procedures during their investigations, police officers state that these would be difficult to administer and most have been reluctant to implement this change. Four studies examine whether lay people's judgements about the guilt of a suspect vary according to whether a brief written summary of a case described the identification procedure as double blind or non-double blind. The effects were all small (and almost all non-significant). Most people do not treat double blind line-ups differently from non-double blind line-ups when assessing the guilt of a defendant. Either police investigators should stop using this biased method or police investigators and others in the judicial system (e.g. jurors, judges) should be informed of this bias when evaluating results from any line-up. Copyright # 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


High-throughput technology has facilitated genome-scale analyses of transcriptomic adjustments in response to environmental perturbations with an oxygen deprivation component, such as transient hypoxia or anoxia, root waterlogging, or complete submergence. We showed previously that Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedlings elevate the levels of hundreds of transcripts, including a core group of 49 genes that are prioritized for translation across cell types of both shoots and roots. To recognize low-oxygen responses that are evolutionarily conserved versus species specific, we compared the transcriptomic reconfiguration in 21 organisms from four kingdoms (Plantae, Animalia, Fungi, and Bacteria). Sorting of organism proteomes into clusters of putative orthologs identified broadly conserved responses associated with glycolysis, fermentation, alternative respiration, metabolite transport, reactive oxygen species amelioration, chaperone activity, and ribosome biogenesis. Differentially regulated genes involved in signaling and transcriptional regulation were poorly conserved across kingdoms. Strikingly, nearly half of the induced mRNAs of Arabidopsis seedlings encode proteins of unknown function, of which over 40% had up-regulated orthologs in poplar (Populus trichocarpa), rice (Oryza sativa), or Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Sixteen HYPOXIA-RESPONSIVE UNKNOWN PROTEIN (HUP) genes, including four that are Arabidopsis specific, were ectopically overexpressed and evaluated for their effect on seedling tolerance to oxygen deprivation. This allowed the identification of HUPs coregulated with genes associated with anaerobic metabolism and other processes that significantly enhance or reduce stress survival when ectopically overexpressed. These findings illuminate both broadly conserved and plant-specific low-oxygen stress responses and confirm that plant-specific HUPs with limited phylogenetic distribution influence low-oxygen stress endurance.


In rats intravenous injections of E. coli endotoxin at thermoneutral or slightly warmer environmental temperatures resulted in biphasic febrile response: two rises of temperature being separated by a transient fall. At an ambient temperature of 20 degrees C the change in body temperature still had a biphasic pattern, however, the fall was the dominant change. Each part of the response was the result of a coordinated reaction which involved heat production mechanisms (including interscapular and periaortic brown fat thermogenesis) and heat loss effectors (tail vasomotor changes) separately or in combination. Beside ambient temperature, the initial body temperature at the start of endotoxin action exerted an important role in determining which of the effector functions would be involved in the response.


Temporary use of vacant urban spaces has received increased attention during the last 20 years, especially in German-speaking countries, as a viable strategy in urban planning to revitalize unused vacant lots and buildings, which result from ongoing structural changes in industrialized countries. Particularly in the eastern inner-city districts of Berlin, a high number of vacant lots and buildings existed after the fall of the Berlin Wall. For many of these spaces, temporary uses, such as art houses, galleries, music clubs, bars, urban gardens, and alternative living spaces, were established during the 1990s and 2000s. From the end of the 1990s, in a particular area along the River Spree in Berlin's former eastern inner-city district Friedrichshain, a high concentration of temporary uses have been observed. The reasons for this concentration have not been studied in detail. Therefore, this study clarifies the reasons for this geographic concentration by examining three case studies of temporary uses, using surveys and interviews conducted in 2013 and 2014. Additionally, this study exemplifies the characteristics of temporary uses in the surveyed area and shows what can be learned from the conflicts regarding temporary uses. The study concludes that temporary uses can be more than an interim utilization of vacant spaces and are a viable long-term alternative for sustainable urban planning in post-growth cities.


An implantable TAH must be able to maintain physiologic atrial pressures over a range of left side shunt flows, which in humans can range up to 5% of the total cardiac output (CO). The authors describe the characteristics of an atrial hydraulic shunt in an electrohydraulic TAH. A small (10 cc stroke) chamber placed in line between the left atrial cuff and the inflow valve is shunted to the right hydraulic chamber. High left atrial pressure increases the volume displaced by this chamber; this concurrently reduces the right chamber stroke volume and flow relative to the left side. For left atrial pressures (LAP) between 0 and 15 mmHg, CO increased from approximately 3 to > 9 L/min (Starling-like behavior). This was attainable with bronchial flow settings between 0.2 to 0.7 L/min, satisfying physiologic needs. Left atrial pressure and RAP (right atrial pressure) tracked each other. The mean difference, LAP-RAP, remained within 5 mmHg at low filling pressures and approached 0 mmHg difference at high filling pressures. The results showed that the atrial hydraulic shunt method can adequately compensate for and manage physiologic left-right flow differences.


Abstract The biota of Antarctica is amazingly rich and highly endemic. The phylogenetics of notothenioid fishes has been extensively investigated through analyses of morphological characters, DNA sequences from mitochondrial genes, and single copy nuclear genes. These phylogenetic analyses have produced reasonably similar phylogenetic trees of notothenioids, however a number of phylogenetic questions remain. The nototheniid clade Trematomus is an example of a group where phylogenetic relationships remain unresolved. In this paper we revisit the phylogenetic relationships of Trematomus using both increased taxon sampling and an expanded dataset which includes DNA sequences from two mitochondrial genes (ND2 and 16S rRNA) and one single-copy nuclear gene (RPS7). The Bayesian phylogeny resulting from the analysis of the combined mitochondrial and nuclear gene datasets was well resolved and contained more interspecific nodes supported with significant Bayesian posteriors than either the mitochondrial or nuclear gene phylogenies alone. This demonstrates that the addition of nuclear gene sequence data to mitochondrial data can enhance phylogenetic resolution and increase node support. Additionally, the results of the combined mitochondrial and nuclear Bayesian analyses provide further support for the inclusion of species previously classified as Pagothenia and Cryothenia in Trematomus.


An unstructured grid CFD code capable of handling arbitrary polyhedra, named ''LS-FLOW,'' is developed for aerodynamic analyses of complex geometries. Through a series of numerical test cases, it is demonstrated that LS-FLOW can handle both structured and body-fitted/Cartesian hybrid unstructured grids successfully. Then, the code is validated by comparison with experimental data and theoretical solutions. In addition, it is shown that when a Baldwin-Lomax algebraic turbulence model is employed on the body-fitted/Cartesian grid, the portion of the body-fitted grid should be large enough to contain the whole boundary-layer. Finally, LS-FLOW is applied to a rocket configuration, and its future prospects are addressed.


The current work deals with the methodology and results for the numerical modeling, research and implementation of an unconventional propulsion system for an airship with an innovative shape. It is a part of a global study (European Project MAAT) that investigates the possibilities of using the cruiser/feeders concept for passengers and cargo transportation.Based on an initial research for the airship shape, aerodynamic features at given altitudes, and the propulsion needs, were analyzed by means of numerical simulations for different flow conditions and propulsion concepts. The propulsion system is a set of air-jets, distributed in a circular row around the airship. The air-jets are working with an ambient air that is sucked/blowned from channels positioned in the upper and bottom sides of the airship body. These jets generate thrust to drive the airship in horizontal direction.The flow is modeled using the RANS equations with an appropriate model for turbulence effects simulation. The environmental conditions are varied in order to be representative of several altitude positions for the airship. Boundary zones that were set are "pressure far field", "mass flow inlet", "wall" and "fluid".Attention is focused on the performance of the air-jets working with high mass flow rates and low jet flow speeds. They should also work in different combinations to ensure the needed thrust and direction of flight.The results provide opportunities for future developments of these propulsion concepts for airships.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


OBJECTIVE: The present study was aimed at sonographically determining the liver size in healthy newborns, infants and children under 7 years of age, correlating results with age, sex, height, body weight and body mass index. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 584 healthy children subdivided into 11 age groups were evaluated with measurements of the left lobe craniocaudal diameter at the midsternal line, and the craniocaudal diameter of the right lobe posterior surface at the midclavicular line. The following tests were utilized for statistical analysis: a) Pearson's correlation coefficient (correlation study); b) non-paired Student's t-test (comparison of measures between sexes); c) nonlinear regression models (nomograms). RESULTS: The liver size presented a progressive growth from the birth up to the age of 7, proportionally lower than the body growth, in correlation with age, height and body weight (r > 0.70). Correlation with the body mass index was not observed (r < 0.11). There was no significant difference in liver size between male and female individuals. CONCLUSION: Liver size was sonographically determined in healthy children under the age of 7 by means of a standardized method, demonstrating a strong correlation with age and anthropometric indicators. Nomograms demonstrate the typical variations of the liver size in the population evaluated with a different growth pattern for each hepatic lobe.


The first (namely, inner) fission barriers for even-A N = 152 nuclei have been studied systematically in the framework of macroscopic-microscopic model by means of potential energy surface (PES) calculations in the three-dimensional ( β 2 , γ , β 4 ) deformation space. Their collective properties, such as ground-state deformations, are compared with previous calculations and available observations, showing a consistent trend. In addition, it has been found that the microscopic shell correction energy plays an important role on surviving fission in these N = 152 deformed shell nuclei. The inclusion of non-axial symmetric degree of freedom γ will pull the fission barrier down more significantly with respect to the calculation involving in hexadecapole deformation β4. Furthermore, the calculated Woods-Saxon (WS) single particle levels indicate that the large microscopic shell correction energies due to low level densities may be responsible for such a reduction on the inner fission barrier.


Ti6Al4V alloys have a narrow processing window, which complicates temperature control, especially during large-scale production. Therefore, a numerical simulation and experimental study on the ultrasonic induction heating process of a Ti6Al4V titanium alloy tube were conducted to obtain stable heating. The electromagnetic and thermal fields in the process of ultrasonic frequency induction heating were calculated. The effects of the current frequency and current value on the thermal and current fields were numerically analyzed. The increase in current frequency enhances the skin and edge effects, but heat permeability was achieved in the super audio frequency range, and the temperature difference between the interior and exterior of the tube was less than 1%. An increase in the applied current value and current frequency caused an increase in the tube's temperature, but the influence of current was more prominent. Therefore, the influence of stepwise feeding, reciprocating motion, and stepwise feeding superimposed motion on the heating temperature field of the tube blank was evaluated. The coil reciprocating with the roll can maintain the temperature of the tube within the target temperature range during the deformation stage. The simulation results were validated experimentally, which demonstrated good agreement between the results. The numerical simulation method can be used to monitor the temperature distribution of Ti6Al4V alloy tubes during the super-frequency induction heating process. This is an economical and effective tool for predicting the induction heating process of Ti6Al4V alloy tubes. Moreover, online induction heating in the form of reciprocating motion is a feasible strategy for processing Ti6Al4V alloy tubes.


Mobile networks are undergoing fast evolution to software-defined networking (SDN) infrastructure in order to accommodate the ever-growing mobile traffic and overcome the network management nightmares caused by unremitting acceleration in technology innovations and evolution of the service market.Enabled by virtualized network functionalities, evolving carrier wireless networks tend to share radio access network (RAN) among multiple (virtual) network operators so as to increase network capacity and reduce expenses.However, existing RAN sharing models are operator-oriented, which expose extensive resource details, e.g. infrastructure and spectrum,to participating network operators for resource-sharing purposes. These old-fashioned models violate the design principles of SDN abstraction and are infeasible to manage the thriving traffic of on-demand customized services. This paper presents SOARAN, a service-oriented framework for RAN sharing in mobile networks evolving from LTE/LTE advanced to software-defined carrier wireless networks(SD-CWNs), which decouples network operators from radio resource by providing application-level differentiated services. SOARAN defines a serial of abstract applications with distinct Quality of Experience (QoE) requirements. The central controller periodically computes application-level resource allocation for each radio element with respect to runtime traffic demands and channel conditions, and disseminate these allocation decisions as service-oriented policies to respect element. The radio elements then independently determine flow-level resource allocation within each application to accomplish these policies. We formulate the application-level resource allocation as an optimization problem and develop a fast algorithm to solve it with a provably approximate guarantee.