This study reports on an overview of sustainability in nonformal education policy in Indonesia setting. A policy is set as a foundation to attain regularity in the development of a country. A policy is considered a success when it can be implemented by the targets of the policy itself, while a failure if the targets of the policy reject it and when its implementation finds many obstacles. Therefore, it is necessary to find out the main factors encouraging sustainable development of a policy in education sector, especially in nonformal education. This research employed a qualitative design and a case study method. The data were collected from 5 respondent in three areas in West Java, Indonesia. The results showed that factors supported to a policy success was economy value obtained by individuals and targeted institution of the policy. Meanwhile, obstacles found to inhibit sustainable development of a policy were attributed to firstly, discontinuity at rules set by central government to be further followed up by regional government and secondly, lack of engagement between institution and government in the implementation of the policy and short term implementation of the policy itself. Keywords— sustainablity, policy, nonformal education


Surgical treatment has been shown to be able to improve vision that is lost as a result of age‐related macular degeneration. Surgery is complex, such that improvement has always to be weighed against risk of complications. The availability of Ranibizumab and Bevacizumab is set to dramatically alter our management options. Surgical treatment will have a limited role to play in the next few years.


The first paper of the series, which focused on the effect of polydispersity on the self-assembly of block copolymer vesicles, showed that an increase in the width of the poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) block length distribution resulted in a decrease in the size of the vesicles formed. In this paper, the rest of the phase diagram is explored. For the present study, a series of polystyrene-b-poly(acrylic acid) copolymers of an identical polystyrene length of 325 units but of varying degrees of polymerization of PAA was synthesized. Mixtures of the copolymers were made to artificially broaden the molecular weight distribution of PAA at a constant number average of 48 in the polydispersity index (PDI) range of 1.1-3.3. The mixtures were dissolved in dioxane, and water was added slowly to predetermined amounts. Transmission electron microscopy was used to observe aggregate morphologies at different water contents and PAA PDIs. At low water contents, dynamic light scattering was also used to measure the sizes of the aggregates. A partial phase diagram as a function of the water content and PAA PDI was obtained. Large compound micelles and spherical micelles (average diameter of 40 nm) were found at low water contents; however, at a water content of 12% (w/w), a continuum of morphologies from spheres to rods to vesicles was found with increasing PAA PDI. In addition, each copolymer was investigated by itself under identical conditions to those used for the mixtures to determine if there was any segregation of the individual polymers into separate aggregates. No evidence for such segregation was found.


BACKGROUND
Limited evidence exists on the comparative effectiveness of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) vs invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) in acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) patients with respiratory failure.

OBJECTIVES
To characterize the use of NIV and IMV, and to compare the effectiveness of NIV vs IMV in AECOPD.

DESIGN AND PATIENTS
Retrospective cohort study using data from the 2006-2008 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample. Emergency department visits for AECOPD with acute respiratory failure were identified with codes from the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification.

MEASURES
The outcome measures were inpatient mortality, hospital length of stay, hospital charges, and complications.

RESULTS
There were an estimated 101,000 visits annually for AECOPD with acute respiratory failure; 96% were admitted to the hospital. Of these, NIV use increased from 14% in 2006 to 16% in 2008 (P=0.049). Use of NIV, however, varied widely between hospitals, ranging from 0% to 100% with a median of 11%. Noninvasive ventilation was more often used in higher-case volume, Northeastern hospitals. In a propensity score analysis, NIV use, compared with IMV, was associated with lower inpatient mortality (risk ratio: 0.54, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.50-0.59), shortened hospital length of stay (-3.2 days; 95% CI: -3.4 to -2.9 days), lower hospital charges (-$35,012; 95% CI: -$36,848 to -$33,176), and lower risk of iatrogenic pneumothorax (0.05% vs 0.5%, P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS
Although NIV use is increasing in US hospitals, its adoption remains low and varies widely between hospitals. Our observational study suggests NIV appears to be more effective and safer than IMV for AECOPD in the real-world setting.


In this study, we have fabricated the high-power GaN based vertical light-emitting diodes (VLEDs) by exploiting a thermally stable nano-scaled Ni-Ag-Ni-Au mirror. After being treated at 600 °C for 1 min in air ambient, the nano-scaled Ni-Ag-Ni-Au (5/2000/1000/2000 A) mirror shows the specific contact resistance of 6.0 × 10-4 Ω·cm2 and its reflectivity has increased from 89.5% to 93.0%. The increment in the reflectivity is due to the diffusion of Ni contact layer into Ag layer. Moreover, the reflectivity of the mirror has hardly deteriorated even after the wafer was thermally bonded with graphite substrate at 320 °C for 5 min, meaning that the proposed mirror is thermally reliable. The light output power of the nano-scaled VLED (Chip size: 1 × 1 mm2) with thermal treatment at 600 °C for 1 min is enhanced by 8% as compared to one without thermal treatment at an injection current of 350 mA. To our knowledge, our nano-scaled mirror has the highest reflec tivity among other Ag-based multilayered reflectors, and thus it is a promising candidate for high-performance VLED.


The aim of this study: To assess consequences due to chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting on patients' functional daily living. Research design: Descriptive design was utilized to conduct this study. Setting: The study was conducted in the internal oncology department at Qena Health Insurance Hospital. Sample: Forty-eight male and female patients admitted in the internal oncology department of the above mentioned hospital. Tools: Tool (I): Patient assessment sheet. Tool (II): Functional Living Index for Emesis (FLIE) Questionnaire. Results: About one third of studied patients suffered from consequences in the form of malnutrition, electrolyte imbalance, Mallory_ Weiss Syndrome (31.3%), delayed treatment, salivation and fever, high antiemetic cost, ( 33.3%,18.8%, 20.8% respectively)which reflected on their functional daily living as 97% had worse condition before chemotherapy and all patents had worse condition of functional daily living after chemotherapy too.Conclusion: Consequences due to Chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting had a maximum impact on nearly all patients' functional daily living either before or after chemotherapy. Recommendation: Colorectal cancer patients who receive chemotherapy in need to intensive nursing care and appropriate strategies to manage chemotherapy side effects and consequences related to these side effects which can improve their functional daily living.


Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to explore the changes in epidemiological, clinical and laboratory characteristics of Kawasaki disease (KD) over a 12-year period in this area. Methods: The medical records of KD patients hospitalized in the Children's Hospital of Soochow University from January 2006 to December 2017 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed. To elucidate the changes more clearly in these years, we divided all patients into three groups according to the time of admission, 5-year time intervals apart. Results: We found the number of KD had increased in recent years, although the age compositions had some variances. The male-to-female ratio peaked in patients aged 6–11 months and then decreased with ages. Incidence rates of clinical characteristics were almost the same except for cervical lymphadenopathy. Significant differences were noted in percentage of neutrophils, albumin, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and platelets. However, only ESR and platelets were significantly different after adjusting the days of disease onset. A trend showing a shorter fever duration before intravenous immunoglobulin treatment was also noted. Conclusions: The number of KD was increasing annually. Our results were indicative of a possibly changed etiology of the disease. However, further large-scale long-term surveillance is warranted.


The oolitic ironstones of the Minette were deposited during Toarcian/Aalenian times in a nearshore environment of the Paris Basin. The sedimentary sequence comprises up to 13 coarsening upward depositional cycles. The development of the cycles and different facies types are described. The iron ooids accumulated in a subtidal environment under the effects of tidal currents. Sand waves, which form an important part of the Minette sediments, were deposited under both time-velocity symmetrical and time-velocity asymmetrical tides. From the study of their internal structures the time-velocity patterns of the currents, current speeds (up to 0±9m s−1) and net transport rates have been estimated (29 g m−1 s−1 in the case of large-scale sand waves controlled by time-velocity symmetrical tides). Sand wave heights and calculated near-bed current speeds suggest a mesotidal regime. Sedimentary facies include large-scale and waves, subtidal shoals with channels and an offshore muddy shelf. Conclusions as to bathymetry are drawn from ichnofaunal associations and from the study of wave ripple marks. Finally a depositional model of the Minette iron formation is proposed which may be applicable to other oolitic ironstones.


aim of the present study was to review the tasks that have been used to assess the functioning of the episodic buffer in Baddeley's multicomponent model of working memory. A systematic review of studies published from January 2000 to February 2013 was conducted. The search term "episodic buffer" was used in the Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, PubMed, Embase, and BVS-Psi databases. The selected articles consisted of empirical studies that used tasks to assess the episodic buffer. Theoretical and review papers and studies with animals were excluded. The final sample comprised 36 papers. The tasks were categorized as experimental tasks or standardized tests. The experimental tasks were grouped by modality (unimodal or crossmodal) and described according to four criteria: task to be performed, type of stimulus used, secondary task employed, if any, and retention interval. The standardized tests included classical measures of working memory. Some tasks were found to not meet the experimental criteria that were needed to evaluate the episodic buffer. Moreover, some of the standardized tests did not provide theoretical arguments or empirical evidence that the episodic buffer is recruited to perform them. The results are discussed in the context of the multicomponent model of working memory. Keywords: working memory, episodic buffer, binding, experimental task, standardized test.


An effort was made to assess the utility of 650 bp partial Cytochrome C oxidase subunit I (DNA barcode) gene in delineating the members of taxonomically ambiguous marine fin fishes (Family: Mugilidae). To address the issue we used all the 95 barcode sequences of Mugilidae family available at NCBI (National Centre for Biotechnological Information) along with the barcode data generated from Mugilidae fishes of Parangipettai coastal waters. The average GC content of Mugilidae was found to be 46.46%. Crenimugil crenilabis showed less GC content (44.55%) whereas Liza macrolepis showed high GC content (48.53%) among the mullet species studied. The phylogenetic and genetic distance data showed that Mugil platanus and M. liza represent the continuum of same species. Among the members of family Mugilidae, the genus Mugil might possibly contains more haplotype diversity as revealed by intra-species genetic distance data. Species within genera of Mugilidae family invariably clustered in single clade with high bootstrap value. We conclude that partial COI sequencing (barcoding) in identifying the members of the family and that way has resolved the taxonomic ambiguity among the members of the family Mugilidae.


This article analyses the effects of capital controls over the time-path of several macroeconomic variables of developing economies by means of a post-Keynesian macroeconomic model for an open economy without government activities. First of all, we present a macroeconomic model that embodies capital controls as an economic policy instrument. After the stability analysis of the model, we deduce a set of economic plausible values for the parameters. Using these parameter values, we describe the dynamical behavior of capacity utilization level, external debt, net exports and interest rate under different initial conditions. Next, we analyze the effects of exogenous shocks - as changes in foreign interest rate or in international trade flow - over our artificial economy. This exercise make us to realize that capital controls can contribute to the reduction of external debt volatility face an exogenous shock, but they enlarge the effects of these shocks over capacity utilization level. So we can state that the desirability of capital controls is conditional to social preferences over volatility of capacity utilization level vis-a-vis volatility of external debt.


Purpose:
 Ischemic stroke patients with low cerebral blood volume (CBV), low apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and increased microvascular permeability (K2) have increased risk of parenchymal hemorrhage (PH) after recanalization therapies. We have developed a predictive model to examine the risk of PH following revascularization therapies using combined MR perfusion and diffusion biomarkers.

 Methods:
 Voxel-based values of rCBV, K2, and ADC from the infarction core were obtained using pre-treatment MRI data from patients enrolled in the Mechanical Retrieval and Recanalization of Stroke Clots Using Embolectomy (MR RESCUE) clinical trial. Using histogram analyses the 10
 th
 and 90
 th
 percentile values were calculated for the rCBV, ADC, and K2 variables for each patient. The associations between PH and extreme values of CBV (10%rCBV), ADC (10%ADC), and K2 (90%K2) in each patient were assessed in univariate and multivariate analyses. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed to determine the optimal parameter/s and threshold for predicting PH.

 Results:
 In 83 patients included in this analysis, 20 (24%, 13 PH1, 7 PH2) developed PH. Univariate analysis showed significantly lower 10%rCBV and 10%ADC values and significantly higher 90%K2 values in patients with PH. After controlling for age, baseline NIHSS, infarct volume, and status of recanalization, multivariate logistic regression analysis identified 10%rCBV (p=0.002) and 90%K2 (p=0.03), but not 10%ADC (p=0.07), as independent predictors of PH. For 10%RCBV, ROC analysis showed the greatest AUC (0.87) at a threshold < 0.45 with sensitivity/specificity of 95%70%. For 90%K2, the greatest AUC (0.75) was obtained at a threshold of > 0.27 with sensitivity/specificity of 90%/60%. In a separate model, a combined K2-rCBV classifier remained the single independent predictor of PH (OR=33).

 Conclusion:
 Our results suggest that combined increased permeability and decreased rCBV derived from MR perfusion can be used for risk stratification in patients with AIS before undergoing revascularization therapies.


working modes. We aimed to examine the impact of COVID19 on the mental health of UK workers by industry and social class category and to investigate whether any observed impacts differed by age, gender, and country of residence within the UK. Methods We used the UK Household Longitudinal Study (Understanding Society) to analyse data from adults in paid employment, who participated in pre-COVID-19 Waves [9 (2017/19) and 10/11(2018/20)] and in at least one COVID-19 wave. Our primary outcome was probable psychological distress, defined by 'caseness' (a score of 4+) in the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) and exposures included industrial sectors (classified using the UK Standard Industrial Classification) and social class (using the Eight Class National Statistics Socio-economic Classification). We fitted mixedeffects logistic regression models, adjusting for age, gender, employment type, financial situation and UK country of residence and used inverse probability weights to account for attrition and non-response, to estimate odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). Subsequently, we stratified by gender, UK country of residence, and age group. Results Our final sample includes 44,500 observations (Prepandemic period=13,314, pandemic period=31,186) across 7,075 individuals. GHQ-caseness increased for workers in most industries during the pandemic; especially in 'Accommodation and Food Services' (OR:3.2; 95%CI:1.9,5.4). Analysis by social class showed that 'Small employers and own account' workers were the most affected (OR:2.9; 95% CI:2.1,4.0). Our stratified analysis by industry demonstrated the largest increase in GHQ-caseness between the pre and pandemic periods to be by gender in the 'Accommodation and Food Services' sector (OR:9.6; 95%CI:3.2,29.0 for men; OR:2.0; 95%CI:1.2,3.4 for women); whereas by social class the largest increase was observed when stratifying by UK country of residence for 'Small employers and own account' workers (non-England: OR:8.8; 95%CI:4.1,18.8; England: OR:2.5; 95%CI:1.6,3.9). Conclusion Our findings indicate that the pandemic has significantly affected the mental health of UK workers. Policies with a decentralised element are needed, prioritising support to certain industrial sectors and the self-employed/small business owners, as well as for particular demographic groups (e. g. men in the 'Accommodation and Food Services' industry) who are in an excessively high risk.


One of the most mysterious aspects of Saito's theory of Hodge modules are the Hodge and weight filtrations that accompany the pushforward of a Hodge module under an open embedding. In this paper we consider the open embedding in a product of complementary Grassmannians given by pairs of transverse subspaces. The pushforward of the structure sheaf under this open embedding is an important Hodge module from the viewpoint of geometric representation theory and homological knot invariants. We compute the associated graded of this push-forward with respect to the induced Hodge filtration as well as the resulting weight filtration. The main tool is a categorical sl2 action on the category of Dh-modules on Grassmannians. Along the way we also clarify the interaction of kernels for Dh-modules with the associated graded functor. Both of these results may be of independent interest. Mathematics Subject Classification 32S35 · 14M15 · 17B37


A 17-item true-false Death Depression Scale with good internal consistency and face validity was constructed and found to have six factors--death despair, death loneliness, death dread, death sadness, death depression, and death finality. It correlated positively with death anxiety, general depression, and general anxiety. Feasibility of a Likert format was explored.


A 43-year-old white woman presented with a sudden pain and protrusion of the right eye, along with decreased vision. Orbital CT revealed a well-demarcated lesion in the right intraconal space. After surgical excision, the histopathologic examination revealed a malignant melanoma with a predominant epithelioid cell type, probably arising in a blue nevus. The patient was treated with exenteration followed by radiotherapy.


A number of 2,8-dibenzylcyclooctanone analogues inhibited the HMG-CoA reductases activity of Holtzman male rat liver, whereas only 2-octanone, 2-hexadecanone, 2,8-dibenzylcyclooctanone derivatives, and 2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-3,5-dimethyltetrahydro-4-pyrone inhibited fatty acid synthetase activity. 2-Octanone significantly lowered serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and glycerol levels in Holtzman male rats and serlm cholesterol in male CF1 mice. Serum lipase activity was significantly elevated in rats administered 20 mg/kg/day of 2-octanone for 16 days. The activity of liver HMG-CoA reductase was inhibited in mice administered 10 mg/kg/day of 2-octanone for 10 days and in mouse and rat liver in vitro by 10 mg of 2-octanone. In mice, fecal excretion of [14C]cholesterol and tripalmitin was accelerated whereas palmitic acid and cholesteryl oleate were not affected by 10 mg/kg/day of 2-octanone. The LD50 in male mice for 2-octanone was 1.6g/kg.


Traditional wireless sensor networks (WSNs) often do not consider interoperability between WSNs and access networks. To address the issue, this paper investigates interoperable publish/subscribe communication in WSNs. The proposed middleware, called TinyDDS, provides two types of interoperability, programming language interoperability and protocol interoperability, by customizing standard data types, data representation and session protocol. Evaluation results show that TinyDDS simplifies the development of publish/subscribe applications and it is implemented efficient in memory footprint and power consumption.


The tendency exists among scholars unconsciously to permit the conclusions that they want to be true to influence the way they read and interpret the data before them. This was clearly the case with those who accepted the identification of what had previously been called "The Egyptian Church Order" as the Apostolic Tradition composed by Hippolytus of Rome in the early third century. Nearly everything mentioned in it was assumed to be authentically of third-century origin rather than possibly a later interpolation. Inconsistencies or roughnesses in the received versions were attributed to copyists and translators rather than to the original, and any inconvenient obstacles to acceptance of its attribution were explained away rather than taken seriously as possible pointers to a different conclusion. The existence of major doublets in the text and of grammatical shifts were not seen as signs of more than one hand generally at work on the document. Nor were differences from the later liturgical practices of Rome, and especially its eucharistic prayer, thought sufficient to raise questions about its place of origin. It therefore stands as a warning not to allow one's enthusiasm to reach favoured conclusions to override the need to examine the evidence dispassionately.


Sigal Ben-Porath objects to the educational strategies of a number of high commitment charter schools, arguing that they do not pay sufficient attention to the need to develop and exercise the civic virtues of students. This response article highlights a number of philosophical disagreements concerning the traits of character that are central to good citizenship. It also discusses some of the difficulties involved in assessing how effective different types of schools are in the promotion of a particular set of civic virtues.


Machine learning technologies using deep neural networks (DNNs), especially convolutional neural networks (CNNs), have made automated, accurate, and fast medical image analysis a reality for many applications, and some DNN-based medical image analysis systems have even been FDA-cleared. Despite the progress, challenges remain to build DNNs as reliable as human expert doctors. It is known that DNN classifiers may not be robust to noises: by adding a small amount of noise to an input image, a DNN classifier may make a wrong classification of the noisy image (i.e., in-distribution adversarial sample), whereas it makes the right classification of the clean image. Another issue is caused by out-of-distribution samples that are not similar to any sample in the training set. Given such a sample as input, the output of a DNN will become meaningless. In this study, we investigated the in-distribution (IND) and out-of-distribution (OOD) adversarial robustness of a representative CNN for lumbar disk shape reconstruction from spine MR images. To study the relationship between dataset size and robustness to IND adversarial attacks, we used a data augmentation method to create training sets with different levels of shape variations. We utilized the PGD-based algorithm for IND adversarial attacks and extended it for OOD adversarial attacks to generate OOD adversarial samples for model testing. The results show that IND adversarial training can improve the CNN robustness to IND adversarial attacks, and larger training datasets may lead to higher IND robustness. However, it is still a challenge to defend against OOD adversarial attacks.


Singlet fission, the generation of two triplet excited states from the absorption of a single photon, may potentially increase solar energy conversion efficiency. A major roadblock in realizing this potential is the limited number of molecules available with high singlet fission yields and sufficient chemical stability. Here, we demonstrate a strategy for developing singlet fission materials in which we start with a stable molecular platform and use strain to tune the singlet and triplet energies. Using perylene diimide as a model system, we tune the singlet fission energetics from endoergic to exoergic or iso-energetic by straining the molecular backbone. The result is an increase in the singlet fission rate by two orders of magnitude. This demonstration opens a door to greatly expanding the molecular toolbox for singlet fission.


The present paper is concerned with the Dictatorship legislative texts (1967-1974) related to issues about the Greek-speaking education of the Greeks abroad. The legislative texts about education are presented as discourse in which the cultural and political practice is articulated; and is also composed by other cultural and political practices conducive to its dialectic association with other dimensions of society. The critical analysis of the Dictatorship legislative texts focuses on the discourse verbal practices and the ideological scenario. Thus, an attempt is made to depict: a) discourse practices and b) broader social and political structures and standpoints in the legislation which are related to the broader theoretical frameworks of the democratic regime and, particularly, special issues about the nation-state definition. The fact that should definitely be made obvious is how the discourse practices in legislation are conducive to the reproduction of political-educational standpoints of the Greek nation-state in association with the Greek population abroad on the basis of a broader political framework of dictatorship. Norman Fairclough's discourse critical analysis was chosen because there is interest in: the linguistic characteristics of the text and how they are attuned to the regime's political practice. Therefore, throughout the discourse educational levels, in which legislation is introduced, the regime's structure of ideology is elevated.


A technically simple approach for rapid, high-yielding and site-selective bioconjugation has been developed for both in vitro and cellular applications. This method involves the generation of maleimido-phosphonium ylides via 4-nitrophenol catalysis under physiological conditions followed by their Wittig reactions with aldehyde-appended biomolecules.


Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has received considerable attention in the field of trauma studies. Yet trauma survivors suffer from other psychological and physical symptoms including somatic complaints, or somatization. The extent to which the same emotional processes that predict PTSD are implicated in somatization has remained relatively unexamined. We contend that emotion regulation difficulties and alexithymia are also implicated in somatization, and the way in which these factors interact differentially place one at risk for somatization or PTSD. Regression analyses revealed that emotion regulation difficulties were more highly correlated with somatization for individuals who also reported greater alexithymia. This interaction was not observed for PTSD symptoms where both alexithymia and emotion regulation difficulties uniquely predicted PTSD symptoms.


Urinary incontinence is defined as involuntary leakage of any amount of urine that negatively affects the individual's hygienic and social status. It is an important public health problem because it has a high prevalence and incidence. Due to various social prejudices, it is often neglected and unreported. It is also characterized by its chronic appearance and complications such as decreased quality of life, sexual dysfunction and symptoms of anxiety and depression. The financial burden for symptomatic, conservative and surgical treatment of urinary incontinence is high. Both women and men are reluctant to seek medical help, and they most often use coping strategies to deal with urinary incontinence symptoms, which include the use of incontinence aids such as adult diapers and pads. We conducted a systematic review of high-quality randomized controlled studies and of other review articles to compare circumstances surrounding the diagnostic evaluation and first-line treatment of urinary incontinence in women and men according to International Continence Society guidelines. Because urinary incontinence can occur during any stage of life, diagnostic and therapeutic approach is different in women and men. Social stigmatization created due to urinary incontinence may harm a person's self-confidence and cause many negativities at a social level. Timely recognition of the type and severity of symptoms of urinary incontinence is necessary to reduce the occurrence of the aforementioned complications. (Radoja I, Degmecic* D. Urinary Incontinence: Diagnostic Evaluation and First-Line Treatment. SEEMEDJ 2020; 4(1); 63-73)


Consistency of lay theories of emotion across particular emotional states and the cognitive differentiation of those states was assessed. In Study 1, the Lay Theories of Emotion (LTE) questionnaires was completed with reference to four negative emotions. In Study 2, subjects answered the LTE with reference to four positive emotions. In Study 3, the LTE was filled out with reference to two negative emotions and two positive emotions. In Study 4, the LTE was filled out every day for a period of four weeks with reference to a person's current mood. Results indicated that subjects' scores in the LTE factors were found to be consistent across various positive and negative emotions. The findings also indicated that an emotion-specific component contributed to the explanation of intraindividual variance in the appraisal of different emotions. Specifically, individual differences in the appraisal process remained fairly stable over a variety of emotions and moods and the LTE factors were found to significantly discriminate among the various emotions assessed.


There was a lot of interaction about benchmarking in institutions of higher learning, but there seemed to be no clarity on whether these institutions shared an understanding of the benchmarking concept. There also did not seem to be a clear comprehension of what criteria the institutions employed to measure benchmarking as a determinant of quality in higher education. This lack of clarity motivated the study, and the motivation was irrevocably strengthened by the encouragement some governments and international organisations made to their national institutions of higher learning to adopt benchmarking as a quality enhancement mechanism. The qualitative paradigm was adopted as it enabled the researcher to carry out an in-depth interrogation of benchmarking practices in the study. The case study method facilitated the researcher's interaction with the benchmarking phenomenon within the context of the institution. The population of the study was composed of all the ODL institutions in the SADC region, from which a sample of three institutions, from three countries, was chosen. An average of five participants was purposively selected from each institution because they possessed the required data and these came from the ranks of Senior Management, Middle Management and Lower Management. The researcher used in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, document analysis and observation to generate the requisite data. The generated data were coded, analysed and interpreted to arrive at findings and conclusions. The three institutions consciously practised benchmarking. However, the institutions practised a different type of benchmarking from the approaches contained in the review of related literature. The employees of one institution visited other institutions on staff exchange programmes, as assessors and markers and to attend academic gatherings at which information, experiences and new insights were shared. The institutions belonged to professional associations for collaborative benchmarking purposes and shared a common understanding of benchmarking. It was concluded that the three institutions of higher learning consciously practised benchmarking but the practice was not formalised and not documented, leading to the absence of a feedback loop. As a way forward, the three institutions, and others, needed to formalise and institutionalise their benchmarking practices, and create a feedback loop.


This study investigates the effects of prior experience, task instruction, and choice on creative performance. Although extant research suggests that giving people choice in how they approach a task could enhance creative performance, we propose that this view needs to be circumscribed.

Specifically, we argue that when choice is administered during problem solving by varying the number of available resources, the high combinatorial flexibility conferred by a large choice set of resources can be overwhelming. Through two experiments, we found that only individuals with high prior experience in the task domain and given explicit instruction to be creative produced more creative outcomes when given more choice. When either of these two conditions is not met (i.e., low prior experience or given non-creativity instruction), more choice did not lead to more creative performance. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.


Solid-state (11)B NMR measurements of Lewis acid-base adducts of the form R3AsBR'3 (R = Me, Et, Ph; R' = H, Ph, C6F5) were carried out at several magnetic field strengths (e.g., B0 = 21.14, 11.75, and 7.05 T). The (11)B NMR spectra of these adducts exhibit residual dipolar coupling under MAS conditions, allowing for the determination of effective dipolar coupling constants, Reff((75)As,(11)B), as well as the sign of the (75)As nuclear quadrupolar coupling constants. Values of Reff((75)As,(11)B) range from 500 to 700 Hz. Small isotropic J-couplings are resolved in some cases, and the sign of (1)J((75)As,(11)B) is determined. Values of CQ((75)As) measured at B0 = 21.14 T for these triarylborane Lewis acid-base adducts range from -82 ± 2 MHz for Et3AsB(C6F5)3 to -146 ± 1 MHz for Ph3AsBPh3. For Ph3AsBH3, two crystallographically nonequivalent sites are identified with CQ((75)As) values of -153 and -151 ± 1 MHz. For the uncoordinated Lewis base, Ph3As, four (75)As sites with CQ((75)As) values ranging from 193.5 to 194.4 ± 2 MHz are identified. At these applied magnetic field strengths, the (75)As quadrupolar interaction does not satisfy high-field approximation criteria, and thus, an exact treatment was used to describe this interaction in (11)B and (75)As NMR spectral simulations. NMR parameters calculated using the ADF and CASTEP program packages support the experimentally derived parameters in both magnitude and sign. These experiments add to the limited body of literature on solid-state (75)As NMR spectroscopy and serve as examples of spin-spin-coupled quadrupolar spin pairs, which are also rarely treated in the literature.


The management of produced water (PW) discharges from offshore oil and gas installations in the North Atlantic is under the auspices of OSPAR (Oslo/Paris convention for Protection of the Marine Environment of the North‐East Atlantic). In 2010, OSPAR introduced the risk‐based approach (RBA) for PW management. The RBA includes a hazard assessment estimating PW ecotoxicity using two approaches: whole‐effluent toxicity (WET) and substance‐based (SB). Set against the framework of the WET and SB approach, we conducted a literature review on the magnitude and cause of PW ecotoxicity, respectively, and on the challenges of estimating these. A large variability in the reported magnitude of PW WET was found, with EC50 or LC50 values ranging from <1% to >100%, and a median of 11% (n = 301). Across the literature, metals, hydrocarbons, and production chemicals were identified as causing ecotoxicity. However, this review reveals how knowledge gaps on PW composition and high sample and species dependency of PW ecotoxicity make clear identification and generalization difficult. It also highlights how limitations regarding the availability and reliability of ecotoxicity data result in large uncertainties in the subsequent risk estimates, which is not adequately reflected in the RBA output (e.g., environmental impact factors). Thus, it is recommended to increase the focus on improving ecotoxicity data quality before further use in the RBA, and that WET should play a more pronounced role in the testing strategy. To increase the reliability of the SB approach, more attention should be paid to the actual composition of PW. Bioassay‐directed chemical analysis, combining outcomes of WET and SB in toxicity identification evaluations, may hold the key to identifying drivers of ecotoxicity in PW. Finally, an uncertainty appraisal must be an integrated part of all reporting of risk estimates in the RBA, to avoid mitigation actions based on uncertainties rather than reliable ecotoxicity estimations. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2023;19:1172–1187. © 2022 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).


Background: Smoking is generally known to be carcinogenic and health hazardous. What is not clear is whether the smoking impacts on the woman's reproductive process. There have been medical debates on whether a woman in the child bearing age may delay her pregnancy due to smoking. A definitive conclusion on this issue has not been reached perhaps due to a lack of appropriate data evidence. The missing link to answer the question might be exercising a suitable model to extract the pertinent data information on the number of missed menstrual cycles by smoking women versus non-smoking women . This article develops and demonstrates a statistical methodology to answer the question. Methods: To construct such a needed methodology, a new statistical distribution is introduced as an underlying model for the data on the number of missed menstrual cycles by women who smoke. This new distribution is named Tweaked Geometric Distribution (TGD). Several useful properties of the TGD are derived and explained using a historical data in the literature. Results: In the data of 100 smokers and 486 non-smokers, on the average, smoking women missed 3.22 menstrual cycles and non-smoking women missed only 1.96 menstrual cycles before becoming pregnant. The smoking women exhibited more variation than the non-smoking women and it suggests that the non-smoking women are more homogeneous while the smoking women are more heterogeneous . Furthermore, the impairment level to pregnancy due to smoking among the 486 women is estimated to be 5% in a possible scale of zero to one. The 5% impairment level appears like a small amount , but its impact can be felt once it is cast in terms of fecundity . What is fecundity? The terminology fecundity refers the chance for a woman to become pregnant. The fecundity is 0.24 for smoking woman while it is 0.34 for non-smoking woman. The fecundity of a non-smoking woman is more than twice the fecundity of a smoking woman. Conclusion: The smoking is really disadvantageous to any one in general and particularly to a woman who wants to become pregnant.


Abstract A large-scale survey was conducted on 173 dairy goat farms in Northern Italy to provide an updated view on farm management practices and to investigate relations among management factors, herd traits and milk yield and quality with particular focus on milk somatic cell count (SCC) and milk fat/protein reversion syndrome. Monthly individual milk analyses (fat, protein and lactose percentages, SCC) and bulk tank milk analyses (fat, protein and lactose percentages, standard plate count (SPC), urea and casein) from 91 farms out of the 173 farms were collected for a year. Farming systems showed wide variability and were characterised by the coexistence of intensive farms adopting advanced technologies and extensive traditional ones. Average milk production was 1.25 kg/milking with high variability, significantly influenced by days in milk, month of kidding, herd size and parity. Out-of-season breeding was predicted to cause a slight reduction of milk production. The reversion syndrome between milk fat and protein contents affected more than half of samples. It worsened after 100 d of lactation and occurred earlier during lactation when kidding was in the late season (April–June) compared to kidding in the first months of the year. The defect was associated with high SCC in milk. The yearly average milk SCC was 5.8 log10 cells/mL; it was higher at the end of lactation and in goats kidding in the late season. A negative relationship between SCC and milk yield was found with an estimated loss of 0.23 kg per milking for each additional point of log10 SCC.


According to the emission characteristics of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the petrochemical plants of China, the storage stability of VOCs for two different bags, polyester aluminum (PEA) and polyvinyl fluoride (PVF), was investigated in this study by comparing the adsorption of gas samples. A series of experiments were carried out to study the impact of different factors of sampling in the petrochemical industry. The results showed that the C2∼C3 substances can be adsorbed by the Tedlar bag, and after being refilled with pure nitrogen, the VOCs adsorbed previously by the bag material can be released. The aromatic hydrocarbon VOCs with larger molecular weight had a relatively lower recovery rate than the smaller molecular weights. And the average recovery of PEA airbags was significantly better than that of PVF airbags for storing stationary VOCs in the refinery of China. More kinds of substances can be detected in the airbags that had been added with helium protective gas, and it had a higher recovery rate for both kinds of simple bags after 24 hours of storage time, which indicated that the airbags without protective gas had adsorbed these substances.


Damage-induced ductile fracture is a strongly heterogeneous process where micro-voids nucleate, grow and coalesce within particle clusters. To capture the localized nature of ductile fracture, a damage percolation model has been developed to predict damage development in the actual particle distribution obtained from tessellated particle fields. Percolation modeling allows for the characterization of void nucleation and coalescence under various loading conditions within a heterogeneous particle distribution. Particularly, void nucleation can be characterized under different stress states for individual particles. The objective of the present work is to apply the percolation model to a damage-sensitive aluminum alloy, AA5182, to develop a nucleation criterion as a function of stress state and particle morphology. The nucleation model is calibrated by subjecting three particle fields to different levels of uniaxial and biaxial stretching in order to achieve fracture predictions in agreement with an experimental forming limit curve.


Vertebral fractures leading to low back pain, spinal deformity, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and cardiopulmonary dysfunctions decrease the quality of life (QOL) in patients with osteoporosis. We had investigated the change of QOL in osteoporosis patients with back pain for 6 months. The relief of the pain improved "activities of daily living" , but did not "leisure, social activities" , "health perception" , "posture, figure" , and "fall, mental factors" . The control of pain and social approach such as fall prevention program are necessary to improve the QOL in patients with vertebral fractures.


Background: Fludarabine, cytarabine and G-CSF (FLAG) based regimens have resulted in marked improvement in newly diagnosed core binding factor (CBF) acute myelogenous leukemia (AML)(1-3). Addition of gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO) to chemotherapy has also improved survival outcomes in CBF-AML(4). In 2007 we initiated a frontline study of FLAG-GO in newly diagnosed CBF-AML but after withdrawal of GO from US market, GO was replaced with idarubicin (FLAG-Ida). We report on mature data including early molecular response in patients treated in these sequential protocols.
 Methods: One hundred and forty five patients [Median age, 48 years (range, 19-78 years) were treated in these sequential protocols (FLAG=GO=50, FLAG-Ida= 95 patients). The treatment groups were comparable for age and distribution of cytogenetic (T8;21 or Inv16) subgroups (p≥0.5). FLAG regimen has been published before(2), GO was administered at 3 mg/m2 on day 1 in induction and in 2 consolidations out of planned 6 and idarubicin was administered at 6 mg/m2 on days 3 and 4 in induction and on day 2 in one of the consolidation cycles out of planned 6. Serial assessment of fusion transcript product relevant to the cytogenetic abnormality was performed in bone marrow samples at baseline, end of induction and every 2-3 cycles thereafter.
 Results: All except 3 patients (2 induction deaths) achieved remission (98%). After median follow up of 5 years, 5 year overall survival (OS) and relapse free survival (RFS) for the entire cohort is 77% and 72% respectively. There were no differences in OS among FLAG-GO vs FLAG-Ida (p=0.3) and Inv16 vs T(8;21) (p=0.6). While RFS was similar among Inv 16 and T(8;21) subgroups, it was significantly better among the cohort treated with FLAG-GO compared to FLAG-Ida (p=0.04)(Fig 1). We confirmed our earlier report of higher than 3 log reduction of fusion transcript ratio at end of induction(5) being most indicative of sustained RFS (p=0.006) (Fig 2) and this end point was more frequently achieved in the FLAG-GO cohort (57%) compared to FLAG-Ida cohort (29%) (p=0.002). On the other hand, within each regimen there was no difference in RFS between Inv 16 andf T(8;21) subgroups (p=0.3) (Fig. 3).
 SAEs were mostly related to cytopenias and associated infectious complications for both regimens and no hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD) was encountered. Presence of KIT, RAS, FLT3 mutations individually or in combination did not have any impact on outcomes.
 Conclusion: Compared to idarubicin, GO when added to FLAG based frontline induction/consolidation regimen results in better early molecular responses and improved relapse free survival in CBF AML. Our current frontline protocol is exploring safety and efficacy of addition of both GO and Ida to FLAG based regimen.
 ReferencesBorthakur G, Cortes JE, Estey EE, Jabbour E, Faderl S, O'Brien S, et al. Gemtuzumab ozogamicin with fludarabine, cytarabine, and granulocyte colony stimulating factor (FLAG-GO) as front-line regimen in patients with core binding factor acute myelogenous leukemia. Am J Hematol. 2014;89(10):964-8.Borthakur G, Kantarjian H, Wang X, Plunkett WK, Jr., Gandhi VV, Faderl S, et al. Treatment of core-binding-factor in acute myelogenous leukemia with fludarabine, cytarabine, and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor results in improved event-free survival. Cancer. 2008;113(11):3181-5.Burnett AK, Russell NH, Hills RK, Hunter AE, Kjeldsen L, Yin J, et al. Optimization of Chemotherapy for Younger Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Results of the Medical Research Council AML15 Trial. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2013;31(27):3360-8.Hills RK, Castaigne S, Appelbaum FR, Delaunay J, Petersdorf S, Othus M, et al. Addition of gemtuzumab ozogamicin to induction chemotherapy in adult patients with acute myeloid leukaemia: a meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomised controlled trials. The Lancet Oncology. 2014;15(9):986-96.Boddu P, Gurguis C, Sanford D, Cortes J, Akosile M, Ravandi F, et al. Response kinetics and factors predicting survival in core-binding factor leukemia. 2018.

 Cortes: novartis: Research Funding. Ravandi:Jazz: Honoraria; Sunesis: Honoraria; Jazz: Honoraria; Astellas Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Honoraria; Abbvie: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Abbvie: Research Funding; Amgen: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Macrogenix: Honoraria, Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Xencor: Research Funding; Orsenix: Honoraria; Xencor: Research Funding; Macrogenix: Honoraria, Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Astellas Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Honoraria; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Amgen: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Sunesis: Honoraria; Orsenix: Honoraria. Kadia:Novartis: Consultancy; Celgene: Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding; BMS: Research Funding; Jazz: Consultancy, Research Funding; Takeda: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding; BMS: Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding; Abbvie: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; Jazz: Consultancy, Research Funding; Abbvie: Consultancy; Takeda: Consultancy. Pemmaraju:SagerStrong Foundation: Research Funding; Affymetrix: Research Funding; plexxikon: Research Funding; daiichi sankyo: Research Funding; samus: Research Funding; celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria; abbvie: Research Funding; cellectis: Research Funding; stemline: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; novartis: Research Funding. Daver:ARIAD: Research Funding; Daiichi-Sankyo: Research Funding; Kiromic: Research Funding; Alexion: Consultancy; Otsuka: Consultancy; Sunesis: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; BMS: Research Funding; Karyopharm: Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy; Incyte: Consultancy; Sunesis: Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy; Novartis: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; ImmunoGen: Consultancy.


BACKGROUND
Randomized controlled trials of sufficient power testing the long-term effect of screening for colorectal neoplasia only exist for faecal occult blood testing (FOBT). There is indirect evidence that flexible sigmoidoscopy (FS) may have a greater yield. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic yield of screening with FS or a combination of FS and FOBT in an average-risk population in an urban and combined urban and rural population in Norway.

METHODS
20,780 men and women (1:1), aged 50-64 years, were invited for once-only screening (FS only or a combination of FS and FOBT (1:1)) by randomization from the population registry. A positive FS was defined as a finding of any neoplasia or any polyp > or = 10 mm. A positive FS or FOBT qualified for colonoscopy.

RESULTS
Overall attendance was 65%. Forty-one (0.3%) cases of CRC were detected. Any adenoma was found in 2208 (17%) participants and 545 (4.2%) had high-risk adenomas. There was no difference in diagnostic yield between the FS and the FS and FOBT group regarding CRC or high-risk adenoma. Work-up load comprised 2821 colonoscopies in 2524 (20%) screenees and 10% of screenees were recommended later colonoscopy surveillance. There were no severe complications at FS, but six perforations after therapeutic colonoscopy (1:336).

CONCLUSIONS
The present study bodes well for future management of a national screening programme, provided that follow-up results reflect adequate proof of a net benefit. It is highly questionable whether the addition of once-only FOBT to FS will contribute to this effect.


Epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS) is a genodermatosis caused by mutations in keratins 5 and 14 (K5 and K14), which leads to fragility of basal keratinocytes and eventually epidermal cytolysis and blistering. Depending upon the severity of symptoms, EBS is classified into three major subtypes. In order of increasing severity these classes are EBS, localized (EBS-loc), EBS, other generalized (EBS, gen-nonDM), and EBS, Dowling-Meara (EBS-DM). We have searched and assembled 36 previously reported point mutations located on the 2B domain of K5/K14 in order to investigate the effects of point mutations. By performing a comprehensive in silico analysis we determine the underlying relationship between the mutation and its phenotypic effects. Our result showed that all pathogenic point mutations exert their dominant negative effect on the K5/K14 coiled-coil heterodimer complex by altering interchain interaction, leading to the changes in stability and assembly competence of the heterodimer complex. The physico-chemical properties of substituted amino acid and location of the mutation are also deeply correlated with disease severity. In addition, we found a SNP previously reported as non-pathogenic (K14 p.M338R) that likely affects the stability of the dimer structure due to the loss of interchain interaction and steric clashes. Overall, our finding demonstrates the significance of in silico characterization of EBS severity and would allow for accurate genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis.


The controversial 2015 federal rule defining "waters of the United States" -- the jurisdictional determinant for regulation under the Clean Water Act (CWA), now the subject of numerous lawsuits -- has been attacked largely for its alleged federal overreaching. Actually, the rule is under inclusive, for it categorically exempted all groundwater from CWA regulation. We think this exclusion conflicts with the purposes, terms, and judicial interpretations of the statute -- including those of the Supreme Court -- all of which have consistently interpreted the jurisdictional scope of the statute on the basis of a "significant effects" test, not an unscientific pronouncement based on administrative convenience. We explain the case for inclusion of tributary groundwater in this Article, even though the impending litigation over the rule is unlikely to address the issue.


Objective(s): Sodium arsenite (SA) exposure is toxic to the body. Zingerone (ZNG) is a flavonoid with many biological properties found naturally in honey and plants. This study aimed to determine the effects of ZNG on SA-induced rat lung toxicity. Materials and Methods: Thirty-five male Sprague rats were divided into Control, SA, ZNG, SA+ZNG25, and SA+ZNG50 groups (n=7). SA 10 mg/kg and ZNG were administered at two doses (25 and 50 mg/kg) (orally, 14 days). Analysis of oxidative stress, inflammation damage, apoptosis damage, and autophagic damage markers in lung tissue were determined by biochemical and histological methods. Results: The administration of ZNG reduced oxidative stress by increasing SA-induced decreased antioxidant enzyme activities, increasing Nrf-2, HO-1, and NQO1, and decreasing MDA level. ZNG administration reduced inflammation marker levels. Anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 increased and apoptotic Bax and Caspase-3 decreased with ZNG. ZNG promoted the regression of autophagy by reducing Beclin-1, LC3A, and LC3B levels. Conclusion: Evaluating all data showed that SA caused toxic damage to lung tissue by increasing inflammation, apoptosis, autophagy, and oxidant levels, whereas ZNG had a protective effect by reducing this damage.


Tle liver has a number of important functions in innate and adaptive immunity. Contributions to the innate (nonspecific) immune system include production of acute phase proteins, nonspecific phagocytosis of particles, nonspecific pinocytosis of molecules, and nonspecific cell killing. Hepatic involvement in innate immunity contributes to the systemic response to local inflammation, clearance of particles and soluble molecules from the circulation, and killing of invading cells such as neoplastic cells. Liver involvement in the adaptive (specific) immune system includes deletion of activated T cells, induction of tolerance to ingested and self-antigens, extrathymic proliferation of T cells, and deletion of many of the signaling and effector molecules. Hepatic involvement in adaptive immunity allows clearance of activated T cells and signaling molecules following inflammatory reactions, and promotes immunologic tolerance toward potentially antigenic proteins that are absorbed from the intestinal tract. The liver is a major site of extrathymic T cell development, which assumes increasing significance with aging in mammals. Perturbations in hepatic structure or function can result in significant ramifications in both the innate and adaptive immune systems.


Large-volume cubic high-pressure apparatus is commonly used to produce synthetic diamond. Due to the high pressure, high temperature and alternative stresses in practical production, cracks often occur in the carbide anvil, thereby resulting in significant economic losses or even casualties. Conventional methods are unsuitable for crack detection of the carbide anvil. This paper is concerned with acoustic emission-based crack detection of carbide anvils, regarded as a pattern recognition problem; this is achieved using a microphone, with methods including sound pulse detection, feature extraction, feature optimization and classifier design. Through analyzing the characteristics of background noise, the cracked sound pulses are separated accurately from the originally continuous signal. Subsequently, three different kinds of features including a zero-crossing rate, sound pressure levels, and linear prediction cepstrum coefficients are presented for characterizing the cracked sound pulses. The original high-dimensional features are adaptively optimized using principal component analysis. A hybrid framework of a support vector machine with k nearest neighbors is designed to recognize the cracked sound pulses. Finally, experiments are conducted in a practical diamond workshop to validate the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed method.


Article history: Received 28 October 2018 Received in revised form 24 November 2018 Accepted 2 December 2018 Available online 12 December 2018 In this study, the energy and exergy analysis of a combined cycle was carried out. This cycle consists of an organic Rankine cycle and a vapor compression refrigeration cycle for producing the cooling effect. Three organic fluids were used as working fluids: the first is isentropic (R123), the second is wet (R134a) and the last is dry (R600). The parametric analysis allowed us to characterize the combined system and to study the effect of some parameters that were used to estimate the thermal and exergy efficiency of the studied system. The comparative study of the combined cycle performance working with organic fluids showed that the isentropic fluid gives the highest value of both thermal end exergy efficiency 51.2% and 25.1%, respectively. The results showed that the operating parameters have a significant impact on the performance of the combined system. On the other hand, the results of the exergy destruction distribution showed also that the exergy is strongly destroyed in the condenser followed by the ORC Evaporator.


The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is one of the most extensively studied receptor tyrosine kinases, as it is involved in a wide range of cellular processes and severe diseases. Recent works reveal that the single-helix transmembrane domains and cytoplasmic juxtamembrane regions play an important role in the receptor activation process. Here we present the results of our investigation of the spatial structure and mobility of the EGFR transmembrane domain and juxtamembrane regions in various membranelike environments, which shed light on the effects of the membrane physical properties and composition on the behavior of the juxtamembrane domain.


Summarization of literary data on immobilization in calcium alginates as published in the last two years. The review focuses on those papers in which the new knowledge of immobilized enzymes, cells and tissues expands their biotechnological applications.


The purpose of this study is to propose an original methodology to study the action of a goalkeeper facing a free kick. This methodology is based on a virtual reality setup in which a real goalkeeper is facing a virtual player and a virtual defensive wall. The setup has been improved to provide a total freedom of movement to the goalkeeper in order to have a realistic interaction between the goalkeeper and the player. The goalkeeper's movements are captured in real-time to accurately analyze his reactions. Such a methodology not only represents a valuable research tool but also provides a relevant training tool. Using this setup, this paper shows that goalkeepers are more performant during free kick with a wall composed of 5 defenders whatever its position.


ABSTRACT Garcia, I.; Negro, V.; López, J.S.; Esteban, M.D., and Del Campo, J.M., 2020. Coastal morphological response to the effect of structures of protection against erosion. In: Malvárez, G. and Navas, F. (eds.), Global Coastal Issues of 2020. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 95, pp. 220–224. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The prediction of sandy tombolo formation by the presence of detached breakwaters is key to the use of these elements as beach protection systems. The distance from the shoreline is a relevant factor and must be determined based on the characteristics of the incident waves, the dimensions of the artificial protections themselves, the typologies of the beach and the coastal sedimentary transport zone. In the cases analysed of detached breakwater systems with sandy tombolo formation, linear trends are obtained in between said characteristics. These results can be extrapolated to other cases located in other countries on the Mediterranean coast. Obtaining these relationships has led us to propose a new sizing method that sets the separation of the structures from the shore.


As for the purpose and benefits of this research is to know the extent to which the understanding of management are registered on the KPP Pratama Tanjung Karang in understanding taxation regulations in Cape Coral and to analyze the relationship between managements understanding of the KPP Pratama Tanjung is listed on the Reef about compliance with tax regulations tax payers of existing agencies in Cape Coral as well as add insight/understanding of taxation regulations against the Taxpayers compliance with the Agency. Based on the above issues, then set the following hypothesis:% u201CTerdapat relationship between managements understanding of the law No. 36 year 2008 against Taxpayer compliance Agency on law No. 28 of 2007


This paper proposes a new scheduling algorithm for IEEE 802.16-2005 Broadband Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks in TDD mode. The proposed algorithm focuses on an efficient mechanism to serve high priority traffic in congested networks, without violating the right of lower-priority-traffic to be served in adequate manner. In this work, a detailed simulation study is carried out for the proposed scheduling algorithm as well as comparing its performance with some known algorithms such as Proportional Fairness (PF)[12], Round Robin (RR), and Strict-Priority. Analysis and evaluation of the performance of the scheduler to support the different QoS classes is given as well. The simulation is carried out via the OpNet modeler simulator [13]. The results show the proposed algorithm is capable to handle different users' requirements under congestion conditions.


There has been increased interest recently in the implications of Darwinian theory on psychology, psychiatry and in medicine generally. As a result a large number of publications have appeared that attempt to reformulate a range of psychiatric disorders in the light of evolutionary theory. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the subject of suicide from the evolutionary perspective with some notable exceptions. The purpose of this brief paper is to bring the Darwinian perspective to the notice of a wider psychiatric readership hoping that this will add a further dimension to the debate on suicide and selfdestructive behaviour. Darwinia n theory had found it difficult to account for the existence of altruistic behavioural strategies in social animals until it was explained by Hamilton that the focus for selection was not the individual but the gene. Altruism here refers to any behaviour that reduces the reproductive fitness of the donor while increasing the reproductive fitness of the recipient. According to Hamilton's formulation (the kin selection theory) the individual will behave in a nepotistic manner (ie. altruistically towards kin) as this will enhance the overall chances of his genes to pass to the next generation not only through his own descendants but through non-descendant kin, a measure he termed 'inclusive fitness'. Therefore it would not be surprising that individuals would be more likely to behave altruistically towards kin than non-kin.


Casing treatments are used to extend the stability margin of fans or compressors. These typically have an axisymmetric arrangement, but for a fan exposed to non-axisymmetric distortion, a casing treatment applied to a fraction of the annulus is of interest to target a particular distortion feature. In this paper, a partial casing treatment has been designed with axial-skewed slots, and an experimental investigation has been carried out to determine the effects of its extent and position. Three inlet conditions were tested for each extent of casing treatment; clean, radial tip-low distortion and half-annulus tip-low distortion. For axisymmetric inlet conditions, the stall margin and efficiency penalty increased approximately linearly with casing treatment extent. However, for half-annulus tip-low distortion, there was a strong dependence between the position of the casing treatment relative to the distorted sector and the stall margin improvement. If the casing treatment is positioned where the rotor enters the distorted sector, unsteady disturbances in the rotor tip flow are minimized. However, if the rotor meets the casing treatment later in the distorted sector, the disturbances are able to grow, leading to earlier stall inception. Overall, this shows that partial casing treatments can target a distorted flow to give a disproportionately positive impact compared a full annulus casing treatment. For example, it was found that a 72° casing treatment extent could be positioned to achieve over 50% of the full annulus casing treatment stall margin improvement with only 20% of the efficiency penalty.


In many dynamic gas-phase reaction processes, there is great interest to measure the distribution of minor constituents, i.e. <10−3 by volume (1000 ppm). One such case is the after-treatment of automotive gasoline engine exhaust by catalytic conversion, where a characteristic challenge is to image the distribution of 10 ppm (average) of carbon monoxide (CO) at 1000 frames per second across a 50 mm diameter exhaust pipe; this particular problem has been pursued as a case study. In this paper, we present a novel electronic scheme that achieves the required measurement of around 10−3 absorption with 10−4 precision at kHz bandwidth. This was not previously achievable with any known technology. We call the new scheme Auto-Digital Gain Balancing. It is amenable to replication for many simultaneous measurement channels, and it permits simultaneous measurement of multiple species, in some circumstances. Experimental demonstrations are presented in the near-infrared. In single scans of a tunable diode laser, measurements of both CO and CO2 have been made with 20 dB signal-to-noise ratio at peak absorption. This work paves the way for chemical species tomography of minor constituents in many dynamic gas-phase systems.


Decoupling of direct payments can be expected to have complex effects and the net effect on crop and fodder acreage is unclear. A literature review reveals that various simulation models uniformly project a decline of the cereal and silage maize acreage as well as ruminant production in the EU-15 in the course of decoupling of direct payments. In contrast, model results are mixed with respect to the direction of the decoupling effect on oilseed and pasture as well as voluntary set aside area. The model type is not found to have a systematic effect on model results. It is rather the assumptions about the effects of direct payments on production which differ widely and drive model results to a large extent. A model analysis which is based on the partial agricultural sector model ESIM-2005 highlights the importance of the level of pasture acreage allocation elasticities in the determination of decoupling effects on the distribution of Grandes Cultures and fodder & pasture area.


Gene disruptions in the diploid opportunistic human fungal pathogen Candida albicans are usually created using multiple rounds of targeted integration called the 'ura-blaster' method. Resulting heterozygous and homozygous null mutants can be auxotrophic (Ura(-)) or prototrophic (Ura(+)) for uracil biosynthesis. Here we demonstrate that the Ura-status of otherwise isogenic mutants affected the adhesion of C. albicans. Moreover the effect of Ura-status on adhesion was also dependent on the null mutant background, the nature of the underlying surface and the carbon source for growth. Therefore the Ura-status is not neutral in determining adhesive properties of C. albicans mutants that are generated via the ura-blaster protocol.


BACKGROUND
Abdominal tuberculosis remains a serious health threat. This retrospective report aimed to analyze patients after the development of the tuberculosis control program by the Center of Disease Control (Taiwan) in January 2000. The study was conducted at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital-Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

METHODS
Between January 2000 and December 2006, we evaluated 14 adult patients with abdominal tuberculosis by reviewing their clinical information, therapeutic methods and outcomes. Diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis was made based on clinical features of abdominal infection with microbiological results from culture, acid-fast bacilli stain and polymerase chain reaction for Mycobacterium tuberculosis and/or histopathological confirmation from biopsy and ascites.

RESULTS
Tuberculous peritonitis and intestinal tuberculosis were the most common type of infections followed by hepatic tuberculosis, and intra-abdominal tuberculoma. 35.7% of these patients had the coexistence of extra-abdominal infection. The most common clinical symptoms and signs were abdominal pain, abdominal distension, ascites and body weight loss. Fever was found in 35.7% of patients and peritoneal signs were noted in 7.1%. Immunocompromised states and old age are relevant to adult abdominal tuberculosis. Overall, patients were diagnosed by bacteriology (35.7%), biopsy materials from laparotomy (42.8%), liver biopsy (14.3%), and biopsy materials from colonoscopy (7.2%). Patients were cured after taking antituberculous drugs for at least 6 months without relapse during regular follow-up for at least 2 years. However, three patients died of sepsis and decompensated liver cirrhosis during treatment.

CONCLUSION
Extra vigilance in dealing with patients who present with unexplained abdominal conditions is the key to the diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis. Early diagnosis, early antituberculous therapy and surgical treatment of the associated complications are essential for the survival of the patient.


The Chinese government implemented a national household energy transition program that replaced residential coal heating stoves with electricity-powered heat pumps for space heating in northern China. As part of a baseline assessment of the program, this study investigated variability in personal air pollution exposures within villages and between villages and evaluated exposure patterns by sociodemographic factors. We randomly recruited 446 participants in 50 villages in four districts in rural Beijing and measured 24 h personal exposures to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and black carbon (BC). The geometric mean personal exposure to PM2.5 and BC was 72 and 2.5 μg/m3, respectively. The variability in PM2.5 and BC exposures was greater within villages than between villages. Study participants who used traditional stoves as their dominant source of space heating were exposed to the highest levels of PM2.5 and BC. Wealthier households tended to burn more coal for space heating, whereas less wealthy households used more biomass. PM2.5 and BC exposures were almost uniformly distributed by socioeconomic status. Future work that combines these results with PM2.5 chemical composition analysis will shed light on whether air pollution source contributors (e.g., industrial, traffic, and household solid fuel burning) follow similar distributions.


You've probably heard of Cleopatra. She's dead famous for: having a fling with Julius Caesar, and Mark Antony; getting carried away with her eyeliner, and having a nasty accident with an asp. But did you know that Cleo married, both her brothers, was dead brainy and spoke nine languages, and had her little sister killed? Yes - even though she's dead, Cleo's still full of surprises.


Walton has distinguished among several sorts of argumentative dialogues (persuasion, negotiation, information seeking, deliberation, inquiry, and eristic). This paper continues the project of measuring individuals' self-reported preferences for each dialogue type. In this study, long-term romantic couples were surveyed to examine if their dialogue preferences matched, and whether their preferences were, in turn, related to their relational


We study the dependence of the quantum yield of photoluminescence of a dense, periodic array of semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) on the level of doping and NC size. Electrons introduced to NCs via doping quench photoluminescence by the Auger process, so that practically only NCs without electrons contribute to the photoluminescence. Computer simulation and analytical theory are used to find a fraction of such empty NCs as a function of the average number of donors per NC and NC size. For an array of small spherical NCs, the quantization gap between 1S and 1P levels leads to transfer of electrons from NCs with large number of donors to those without donors. As a result, empty NCs become extinct, and photoluminescence is quenched abruptly at an average number of donors per NC close to 1.8. The relative intensity of photoluminescence is shown to correlate with the type of hopping conductivity of an array of NCs.


Assembly instructions is an important means for supporting operator performance in final assembly. An operator at a production line, whether experienced or novice, will encounter situations that include the assembly of new products or new variants. Instructions that are developed without consideration of these processes can cause unnecessary cognitive load and lead to poor operator performance. This paper describes an LEGO experiment that shows that assembly instructions can increase operator performance and present 5 simple guidelines. The Importance of including the operator view is pressed and how the guidelines should be implemented in practicae is discussed.


Since the release of sugarcane variety N29 (genotype 84E1334) for commercial planting in the spring of 1997, severe infections of brown rust (Puccinia melanocephala) have been reported in this cultivar. Many growers have persevered with N29, risking substantial yield losses should the crop become infected. Two fungicide trials were established to assess the effect of brown rust on the yield of N29 in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands where the disease is prevalent. The results of these trials are discussed.


Ionic liquids (ILs) are salts formed by a bulky nitrogenor phosphorous-containing dissymmetrical organic cations such as alkyl-imidazolium, pyridinium or pyrrolidinium, ammonium or phosphonium and a variety of organic anions: triflate, dicyanamide, acetate, trifluoroacetate, trifluoromethylsulfate or inorganic: bromide, chloride, nitrate, perchlorate, chloroaluminate, tetrafluoroborate, or hexafluorophosphate. The number of possible combinations of anion-cation amounts 1018, which makes this class of substances one of the biggest in chemical chest of substances. Properties of ILs depend on their structure. In order to obtain ionic liquid of desirable properties, with the specific melting point, viscosity, density, miscibility with water and organic solvents, one should select appropriate ions. For this reason ionic liquids are often called "designer" solvents. There are certain common characteristics which definitely distinguish this class of chemical compounds. They have the ability of dissolving inorganic and organic compounds, including enzymes, simultaneously retaining their activity. They are stable chemically and thermally. The difference between the boiling point and of melting is of 300 °C. They possess low vapor pressure, which is why ionic liquids don't produce volatile environmental pollution. The most specific feature of these compounds is the low melting temperature -below 100 °C. If melting point is below room temperature (25 °C), the IL is called room-temperature ionic liquid (RTIL). ILs found applications as new non-molecular types of solvents with unique properties in different areas of chemistry like organic synthesis, electrochemistry, extraction, spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The growing interest in ILs has been observed also in chromatographic methods: gas chromatography (GC), capillary electrophoresis (CE) and liquid chromatography (LC). From a point of view of separation techniques, an important property of ILs is a possibility of generating strong donor-acceptor interactions and ability of undergoing coulombian interactions (chromatography), good electrical conduction (capillary electrophoresis), the great viscosity, the surface tension, the thermal stability (gas chromatography), excellent solvent properties (extraction). Worth noting are critical reviews emphasizing specific advantageous of ILs application in chromatographic and electromigration techniques (Buszewski & Studzińska, 2008; Marszałł & Kaliszan, 2007; Berthod et al., 2008; Pandey, 2006; Koel, 2005; Stalcup & Cabovska, 2004; Poole, 2007; Sun & Armstrong, 2010; Poole, 2004).


Previous studies based on the 'Quantal Model' for synaptic transmission suggested that neurotransmitter release is mediated by a single release site at individual synaptic contacts in the neocortex. However, recent studies seem to contradict this hypothesis and indicate that multi-vesicular release (MVR) could better explain the synaptic response variability observed in vitro. In this study we present a novel method to estimate the number of release sites per synapse, also known as the size of the readily-releasable pool (NRRP), from paired whole-cell recordings of layer 5 thick tufted pyramidal cell (L5_TTPC) connections in the somatosensory neocortex. Our approach extends the work of Loebel and colleagues to take advantage of a recently reported data-driven biophysical model of neocortical tissue. Using this approach, we estimated NRRP to be between two to three for connections between L5-TTPC. To constrain NRRP values for other connections in the microcircuit, we developed and validated a generalization approach using data on post-synaptic potential (PSP) coefficient of variations (CVs) from literature and matching to in silico experiments. Our study shows that synaptic connections in the neocortex generally are mediated by MVR and provides a data-driven approach to constrain the MVR model parameters of the microcircuit.


Addison's disease is an uncommon but potentially life-threatening condition characterized by adrenal failure. All patients require lifelong glucocorticoid replacement to maintain life and most also need aldosterone substitution. There has been some recent interest in the physiological role in humans of the adrenal androgen, dehydroepiandrosterone. This paper reviews optimal glucocorticoid and mineralo-corticoid replacement therapy and provides the available data on dehydroepiandrosterone replacement.


Air-dried preparations of Trichoderma harzianum and T. virens were evaluated for their survival and
potential as biocontrol candidates against Sclerotium foot mt of chilli (Capsicum annuum, L) singly or as
mixtures incorporated into organic fertilizers Amina, Avanti Green and Green Supergro as carriers. T.
harzianum and T. virens incorporated singly into Amina and Avanti Green remained viable for 180 days but
when incorporated into Green Supergro lost viability rapidly to zero after 30 days storage. The performance of the
biocontrol candidates was also significant with Amina when tested in the artificially-inoculated soils. In the field,
the incorporation of an organic carrier only improved initial establishment of the biocontrol candidates. The
incidence of Sclerotium foot rot was significantly reduced with the reduction in the viable sclerotia of the
pathogen and recovery of the biocontrol candidates in the chilli Thizosphere and mots was high. T. virens was
a better candidate, giving 100 and 92.1 % control of Sclerotium foot rot in the artificially-inoculated and
naturally - infested soils respectively.


Surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry is a powerful tool for rapidly generating protein expression data (peptide and protein profiles) from a large number of samples. However, as with any technology, it must be optimized and reproducible for one to have confidence in the results. Using a classical statistical method called the fractional factorial design of experiments, we assessed the effects of 11 different experimental factors. We also developed several metrics that reflect trace quality and reproducibility. These were used to measure the effect of each individual factor, and the interactions between factors, to determine optimal factor settings and thus ultimately produce the best possible traces. Significant improvements to output traces were seen by simultaneously altering several parameters, either in the sample preparation procedure or during the matrix preparation and application procedure. This has led to the implementation of an improved method that gives a better quality, reproducible, and robust output.


One literature documents a significant, black-white gap in average test scores, while another finds a substantial narrowing of the gap during the 1980's, and stagnation in convergence after. We use two data sources – the Long Term Trends NAEP and AFQT scores for the universe of applicants to the U.S. military between 1976 and 1991 – to show: 1) the 1980's convergence is due to relative improvements across successive cohorts of blacks born between 1963 and the early 1970's and not a secular narrowing in the gap over time; and 2) the across-cohort gains were concentrated among blacks in the South. We then demonstrate that the timing and variation across states in the AFQT convergence closely tracks racial convergence in measures of health and hospital access in the years immediately following birth. We show that the AFQT convergence is highly correlated with post-neonatal mortality rates and not with neonatal mortality and low birth weight rates, and that this result cannot be explained by schooling desegregation and changes in family background. We conclude that investments in health through increased access at very early ages have large, long-term effects on achievement, and that the integration of hospitals during the 1960's affected the test performance of black teenagers in the 1980's. Kenneth Y. Chay Jonathan Guryan Bhashkar Mazumder Department of Economics Booth School of Business Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Brown University University of Chicago 230 S. Lasalle Street Box B 5807 S. Woodlawn Avenue Chicago, IL 60604 Providence, RI 02912 Chicago, IL 60637 firstname.lastname@example.com and NBER and NBER firstname.lastname@example.com firstname.lastname@example.com


The term Traditional European Medicine (TEM) was coined analogous to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). In the German-speaking areas, the so called Hildegard Medicine (HM) is very popular and according to a national survey, about 3% of German residents believe in HM. Their thoughts of unity and holistic care are based on the belief that cure and salvation are only possible in the devotion to God, who is the "great healer". Disease is an imbalance and health a balance of the soul. Her works are written in Latin and a visionary language and are therefore not intended for use by laymen. They are difficult to understand and leave a lot of room for interpretation. The currently popular term "Hildegard Medicine" cannot be found in her original writings. About 30 years ago, the ideas of Hildegard von Bingen have been readdressed by two physicians, Gottfried Hertzka and Wighard Strehlow. They are suggesting the drugs as well as Hildegard's dietary recommendations as an appropriate medical healing system for today. Hertzka and Strehlow follow a highly commercialized attempt while suggesting that the medical recommendations by Hildegard are of divine origin. This, however, cannot be true as the medical texts compiled by Hildegard are not relying on her visionary experiences as do their religious treatises. In conclusion, HM represents a typical example of current complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Thus, one should state that the actual importance of the remarkable person Hildegard must not be seen as a recommendation for today's therapy but in the fact that she compiled medieval medical knowledge. Under the name of HM, poorly defined overpriced preparations are distributed. Treatment following the principles of HM for serious or malignant disorders is strongly discouraged.


Background

The medical personnel act as the guardians of people's health by preventing, controlling, and curing emerging diseases, including coronavirus, a highly infectious and contagious disease which has presented the caregivers in the Iranian healthcare system with many clinical challenges. The aim in present study was to describe the caregivers' experiences of the caring challenges in patients with coronavirus (COVID-19).
Methods

The present study is a qualitative work with a phenomenological-descriptive design. Data were collected via semi-structured, in-depth, individual interviews. The collected data was analyzed according to Colaizzi's method. The participants were 23 members of the medical staff responsible for coronavirus patients in Iran who met the inclusion criteria. The participants were selected via purposeful sampling which was continued to the point of data saturation. The study lasted from February to May2020.
Results

The results yielded 3 main themes "invasion of psychological tension", "inefficient management", and "contextual factors" with 11 categories.
Conclusion

In dealing with coronavirus patients and providing quality care to them, medical personnel face a variety of clinical challenges which affect their performance. Administrators must, alongside giving instructions to people on how to prevent the coronavirus disease and taking effective security measures, make sure that clinical centers are managed efficiently in order for medical personnel to fulfill their caring objectives satisfactorily.


The aim of our study is to examine intoxication cases treated in the intensive care unit during the covid-19 pandemic, to reveal the effect of these cases on the number of intensive care patients and their relationship with the pandemic period. The patient records of the pandemic period and the year before the pandemic were retrospectively reviewed. During the pandemic period, the ratio of intoxication cases to other intensive care patients treated in the same period decreased. Among the intoxication cases, the use of drugs for suicide was increased. The average age of intoxication cases and length of stay in the hospital increased. Although the covid-19 pandemic does not add an additional burden to the workload in intensive care, it has changed the demographics of intoxications.


Abstract Osteosarcopenia is defined by the loss of skeletal muscle and bone mass and/or function usually associated with aging. Osteosarcopenia shares common risk factors and pathophysiological mechanisms with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), including obesity and endocrine aberrations. Relationship between osteosarcopenia and PCOS has biological plausibility yet remains unclear. We hypothesized (1) reproductive-aged women with PCOS would exhibit early signs of osteosarcopenia evidenced by decreased appendicular skeletal muscle index (appendicular skeletal muscle mass/weight (kg) × 100 = SMI%), and bone mineral density (BMD); and (2) SMI% and BMD are aggravated by endocrine disruptions in PCOS. The SMI% and BMD of 203 women (18 – 48 y) were compared across 4 groups: (1) PCOS (hyperandrogenism and oligoamenorrhea), (2) hyperandrogenism and eumenorrhea (HA), (3) normoandrogenic oligoamenorrhea (OA), and (4) Controls. Associations between endocrine measures and SMI% and BMD were evaluated by partial correlations and all comparisons were adjusted for age and obesity. Women with PCOS exhibited reduced total SMI% (mean [95% confidence interval]; 26.2% [25.1 – 27.3] vs. 28.8% [27.7 – 29.8]), lower-extremity SMI% (LESMI%; 57.6% [56.7 – 60.0] vs. 62.5% [60.3 – 64.6]), and total BMD (1.11 [1.08 – 1.14] vs. 1.17 [1.14 – 1.20] g/cm2) compared to Controls. Women with PCOS also had decreased upper (0.72 [0.70 – 0.74] vs. 0.73 [0.71 – 0.76] g/cm2) and lower (1.13 [1.10 – 1.16] vs. 1.15 [1.12–1.18] g/cm2) limb BMD compared to the HA group. Insulin sensitivity evidenced by Matsuda index was declined in PCOS group compared to Controls, yet was positively associated with SMI% in all groups (All: P ≤ 0.05). The OA group exhibited exaggerated insulin-like-growth-factor-1 (IGF-1) compared to Controls (P = 0.01) that had negative associations with LESMI% (r = -0.90; P < 0.01). Only Controls showed positive associations between IGF-1 and upper (r = 0.84) and lower (r = 0.72) limb BMD (All: P < 0.01). Unlike PCOS group, estradiol (r = 0.64) and the ratio of luteinizing hormone to follicle-stimulating hormone (r = 0.54) were positively associated with BMD (All: P < 0.05) in OA group. Also, unlike PCOS group, IGF binding protein-2 (IGFBP-2) was positively associated with muscle or bone mass in other groups. Specifically, IGFBP2 was associated with SMI% in Controls (r = 0.45) and HA (r = 0.67), with LESMI% in OA (r = 0.91), and with upper limb BMD (r = 0.98) in HA groups (All: P < 0.05). Reproductive-aged women with PCOS exhibited early signs of osteosarcopenia likely owing to their unique metabolic and endocrine alterations. Perturbations in insulin signaling and function may drive muscle and bone loss in PCOS. Understanding the biological mechanisms and management strategies that may delay or prevent the development of osteosarcopenia is recommended to improve the musculoskeletal health and associated long-term comorbidities of PCOS.


Thirty patients with intractable idiopathic epistaxis were treated with endovascular therapy. Embolization of the internal maxillary artery controlled the epistaxis in 87% of the patients, and the success rate was increased to 97% after supplemental embolization of the facial artery. The only complication observed was transient postembolization hemiparesis, which occurred in one of the 30 patients. Intractable idiopathic epistaxis is defined as epistaxis of unknown cause that is refractory to nasal packing. Such epistaxis is commonly treated with surgical intervention, including ligation of the terminal segments of the internal maxillary artery and the ethmoid arteries. An alternative approach is performance of endovascular therapy. In our opinion, embolization is a safe and effective procedure when it is carried out by appropriately trained personnel. In most patients, its performance requires use of only neuroleptanalgesia; surgery can be avoided, and the duration of hospitalization is significantly shortened. We recommend that embolization be adopted as the primary modality for the treatment of idiopathic intractable epistaxis.


The development objective of the Fourth Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Project for Tajikistan is to contribute to improving the learning conditions and quality in pre-school and general education. Some of the negative impacts and mitigation measures include: as compensation, Vaysidin allocated land plot with area 1.5 hectares from arable land of reserve fund of Rudaki district on the territory of the same Sarikishti Jamoat and on its characteristics identical to the previous property. Crop losses will not be because provided all rights and conditions without losses to harvest grain.


Objective: To determine the impact of tumor characteristics and treatment approach on (1) local recurrence, (2) scoliosis development, and (3) patient-reported quality of life in children with sarcoma of the chest wall. Summary of Background Data: Children with chest wall sarcoma require multimodal therapy including chemotherapy, surgery, and/or radiation. Despite aggressive therapy which places them at risk for functional impairment and scoliosis, these patients are also at significant risk for local recurrence. Methods: A multi-institutional review of 175 children (median age 13 years) with chest wall sarcoma treated at seventeen Pediatric Surgical Oncology Research Collaborative institutions between 2008 and 2017 was performed. Patient-reported quality of life was assessed prospectively using PROMIS surveys. Results: The most common diagnoses were Ewing sarcoma (67%) and osteosarcoma (9%). Surgical resection was performed in 85% and radiation in 55%. A median of 2 ribs were resected (interquartile range = 1–3), and number of ribs resected did not correlate with margin status (P = 0.36). Local recurrence occurred in 23% and margin status was the only predictive factor (HR 2.24, P = 0.039). With a median follow-up of 5 years, 13% developed scoliosis (median Cobb angle 26) and 5% required corrective spine surgery. Scoliosis was associated with posteriorrib resection (HR 8.43; P= 0.003) and increased number of ribs resected (HR 1.78; P = 0.02). Overall, patient-reported quality of life is not impaired after chest wall tumor resection. Conclusions: Local recurrence occurs in one-quarter of children with chest wall sarcoma and is independent of tumor type. Scoliosis occurs in 13% of patients, but patient-reported quality of life is excellent.


Fault detection, diagnosis, and accommodation play an important role in the operation of autonomous robotic systems. Incipient faults in the actuators, sensors or in the dynamics of a robotic manipulator can lead to deterioration in performance and unsafe operating conditions. This paper presents a robust nonlinear fault diagnosis scheme for detecting and approximating faults occurring in a class of nonlinear MIMO systems. The proposed approach utilizes online approximators and adaptive nonlinear filtering techniques to obtain estimates of the fault functions. Performance of the nonlinear fault diagnosis scheme is analyzed by investigating its robustness and fault sensitivity properties in the presence of slowly developing or abrupt faults. A simulation example is presented to illustrate the ability of the fault diagnosis scheme to detect faults in a single link robotic manipulator with a revolute elastic joint.


Solidworks is selected for modeling the 3D-solid structure of the deep-hole drilling machine. Based on parametric modeling and structural optimization theory, the parametric model of column is established. The equivalent stress and maximum principal stress on the column are solved by FEA. The two parameters (column thickness and inner rib thickness) are included. According to the design variables, the main target method is applied for the purpose of optimizing the weight of the column (Chen, Ding, & Guo, 2010). Topology optimization is used to determine the location of the sand holes by ansys software with density method.


We propose a visualization approach to interactively explore the structure of clusters of lines in 3D space. We introduce cluster consistency fields to indicate the local consistency of the lines in a cluster depending on line density and dispersion of line directions. Via brushing the user can select a focus region where lines are shown, and the consistency fields are used to automatically control the density of displayed lines according to information content. The brush is automatically continued along the gradient of the consistency field towards high information regions, or along a derived mean direction field to reveal major pathways. For a given line clustering, visualizations of cluster hulls are added to preserve context information.


The present study aims to evaluate a comprehensive metabolic profiling of patients with chronic prostatitis (PT) by investigating their urine samples and compare it with the prostate cancer (PCa) patients and healthy controls (HC) using 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) metabolomics. The metabolic profile of chronic prostatitis patients falls between that seen for PCa and HC. This pilot study showed that NMR metabolomics may be useful to differentiate patients with PT from PCa and HC.