An international perspective on self-determination in South Africa
By recognising "the notion of the right of self-determination of any community sharing a common cultural and language heritage", South Africa's Constitution of 1996 (article 235) acknowledges what is a salient principle of both international law and modern world politics. However, precious little practical effect has thus far been given to this principle in South Africa - not least because other provisions of the Constitution restrict the actual granting of self-determination to cultural and language groups. This narrowly circumscribed right to communal self-determination falls well short of universal standards of self-determination enshrined in international conventions and expressed in state practice elsewhere. Meaningful self-determination for language and cultural groups in South Africa requires some devolution of power on both a territorial and non-territorial basis to groups that claim this right. If territorial self-determination is to be exercised at more than the municipal level, constitutional changes would be called for.


In the health informatics era, modeling longitudinal data remains problematic. The issue is method: health data are highly nonlinear and dynamic, multilevel and multidimensional, comprised of multiple major/minor trends, and causally complex – making curve fitting, modeling and prediction difficult. The current study is fourth in a series exploring a case-based density (CBD) approach for modeling complex trajectories; which has the following advantages: it can (1) convert databases into sets of cases (k dimensional row vectors; i.e., rows containing k elements); (2) compute the trajectory (velocity vector) for each case based on (3) a set of bio-social variables called traces; (4) construct a theoretical map to explain these traces; (5) use vector quantization (i.e., k-means, topographical neural nets) to longitudinally cluster case trajectories into major/minor trends; (6) employ genetic algorithms and ordinary di.erential equations to create a microscopic (vector field) model (the inverse problem) of these trajectories; (7) look for complex steady-state behaviors (e.g., spiraling sources, etc) in the microscopic model; (8) draw from thermodynamics, synergetics and transport theory to translate the vector field (microscopic model) into the linear movement of macroscopic densities; (9) use the macroscopic model to simulate known and novel case-based scenarios (the forward problem); and (10) construct multiple accounts of the data by linking the theoretical map and k dimensional profile with the macroscopic, microscopic and cluster models. Given the utility of this approach, our purpose here is to organize our method (as applied to recent research) so it can be employed by others.


Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of 90-day complications after urethroplasty and identify factors associated with them. Materials and Methods: A single-institution, 2-surgeon retrospective review was performed on patients undergoing urethroplasty from August 2003–June 2020. Variables included the incidence, type and Clavien-Dindo grade of complications, patient age, individual comorbidities, comorbidity component of the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), smoking status, obesity (body mass index ≥35 kg/m2), bacteriuria, type of urethroplasty, stricture etiology, length, location, prior endoscopic procedures, previous urethroplasty and preoperative suprapubic catheterization. The primary outcome was the incidence of significant 90-day complications defined as Clavien grade ≥2. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the results and binary logistic regression was used to examine the factors associated with 90-day complications. Results: Of the 1,611 patients included in the analysis, 90-day complications (Clavien ≥2) occurred in 7.9% (128/1,611) and were wound related (3.5%), urinary tract infection (3.4%), cardiovascular (0.4%), catheter-related (0.2%), hematuria (0.1%) or retention (0.1%). On univariable binary logistic regression stricture location (p=0.04), stricture length (p=0.009), CCI (p <0.0001), prior urethroplasty (p=0.01) and bacteriuria (p=0.002) were associated with complications, while age (p=0.3), etiology (p=0.2), smoking (p=0.2), obesity (p=0.3), failed endoscopic treatment (p=0.8), indwelling suprapubic catheter (p=0.7) and type of urethroplasty (p=0.09) were not. On multivariable analysis, increasing CCI (Odds Ratio 1.31, 95% CI 1.10–1.56; p=0.003), prior urethroplasty (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.09–3.17; p=0.02) and preoperative bacteriuria (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.14–2.45; p=0.009) remained associated with 90-day complications. Conclusions: Patients with increased comorbidities, prior urethroplasty and preoperative bacteriuria are at higher risk for complications after urethroplasty and should be counseled accordingly in a shared decision-making model of care.


The nasopharyngeal area in 149 patients with cleft lip and palate and 157 normal individuals was evaluated by cephalometric radiography. The patients were male and female Caucasians, ranging in age from 12 to 16 years. Linear cephalometric parameters: (Ptm'-Sl; Ptm'-IPPF; IPPF-I, I-Ptm'), ANS angle and nasopharyngeal area were utilized. From comparative analysis of nasopharyngeal area in the cleft and the control groups, the following conclusions were made: 1) The nasopharyngeal area was smaller in the cleft group. 2) There was no correlation between ANS angle and nasopharyngeal area in either group.


OBJECTIVE
To measure the loads required to induce lateral luxation of the Iowa State University (ISU) elbow implant, a modified elbow implant, and the normal canine elbow with the ligaments and joint capsule removed.

STUDY DESIGN
Mechanical testing on cadaveric specimens

SAMPLE POPULATION
Twelve thoracic limbs were harvested from adult, medium sized dogs that had been euthanatized for reasons unrelated to the study.

METHODS
The torque needed for luxation was identified on potted cadaver elbows under variable axial load and compared to ISU implants and modified implants. Shear force needed to induce medial and lateral luxation were collected for the 2-implant designs at 10, 109, 209, and 342 N of axial load based on. Shear force needed to induce lateral luxation were collected for the normal elbows (with and without an anconeal process) at 10 N of axial load.

RESULTS
The modified implant had 5× higher torque at luxation than the ISU implant and cadavers elbows for both internal and external rotation. Luxation during shear testing was significantly higher in cadaver elbows when compared to either implant but the modified implant was 4-7× more resistant then the ISU implant.

CONCLUSION
The modified total elbow replacement implant may reduce lateral luxation in vivo by increased resistance to shear and torsional forces.


Dissection and a variety of absorption and fluorescent cytochemical methods have demonstrated that Antrodiaetus unicolor females have only one type of silk gland and spigot and, consequently, the simplest silk production system of any spider yet investigated histochemically. The small spherical to pear‐shaped glands are grouped into four clusters, each cluster serving one of the four spinnerets. The spigots are long, slender, and slightly bent distally. Although all gland cells are structurally similar, each gland simultaneously produces two different secretory products, the secretion of the distal hemisphere being rich in basic protein and sulfhydryl groups, and the proximal hemisphere secretion being an acidic protein containing a high concentration of histochemically demonstrable C‐terminal carboxyl groups. The two products remain segregated as they pass through the duct, where the acidic protein forms a thin outer layer around a core of basic protein. It is suggested that this segregation may persist in the silk strand after it exits from the spigot and that the outer acidic protein may be an adhesive agent.


A comparative study of the efficiency of contaminant removal between five emergent plant species and between vegetated and unvegetated wetlands was conducted in small-scale (2.0 m × 1.0 m × 0.7 m, length × width × depth) constructed wetlands for domestic wastewater treatment in order to evaluate the decontaminated effects of different wetland plants. There was generally a significant difference in the removal of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP), but no significant difference in the removal of organic matter between vegetated and unvegetated wetlands. Wetlands planted with Canna indica Linn., Pennisetum purpureum Schum., and Phragmites communis Trin. had generally higher removal rates for TN and TP than wetlands planted with other species. Plant growth and fine root (root diameter 3 mm) biomass were related to removal efficiency. Fine root biomass rather than the mass of the entire root system played an important role in wastewater treatment. Removal efficiency varied with season and plant growth. Wetlands vegetated by P. purpureum significantly outperformed wetlands with other plants in May and June, whereas wetlands vegetated by P. communis and C. indica demonstrated higher removal efficiency from August to December. These findings suggest that abundance of fine roots is an important factor to consider in selecting for highly effective wetland plants. It also suggested that a plant community consisting of multiple plant species with different seasonal growth patterns and root characteristics may be able to enhance wetland performance.


The incidence of apoptosis and the expression of Fas antigen (Fas)/Fas ligand (FasL) mRNA in bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice were examined. Male ICR mice were intratracheally instilled with bleomycin (5 U/kg of body weight). The controls were injected with sterile saline. The animals were anesthetized and killed at 1, 6, and 12 h, and 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 14 days after bleomycin instillation. We assessed the incidence of apoptosis in lung tissues by DNA fragmentation on agarose gel electrophoresis, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP biotin nick end-labeling, and electron microscopy. The expression of Fas and FasL mRNA was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The localization of Fas mRNA was analyzed by in situ hybridization and that of FasL mRNA was analyzed by RT in situ PCR. The results showed that (1) a single instillation of bleomycin leads to the rapid appearance of apoptosis in bronchial and alveolar epithelial cells, which resolves within 1 day, and (2) apoptosis reappears on day 7 and continues for over 14 days after bleomycin instillation. This was accompanied with a progression of fibrosis. Corticosteroid administration completely blocked both apoptosis and fibrosis. The expression of Fas mRNA was upregulated in the alveolar epithelial cells by the bleomycin instillation. FasL mRNA was also upregulated in infiltrating lymphocytes after bleomycin treatment, but not in the control mice. The administration of corticosteroids suppressed the expression of Fas and FasL mRNA as well as apoptosis and fibrosis. Although these results do not show that apoptosis mediated by the Fas/FasL system is directly linked to bleomycin-induced fibrosis, we speculate that excessive apoptosis and the Fas/FasL system play a role in the pathogenesis of bleomycin-induced lung injury.


Purpose: To evaluate lung motion variations in repeated, amplitude‐based 4D CT studies using inverse consistent image registration.Method and Materials: Three patients with lungcancers were scanned twice with our 4D CT protocol. A 4D CT dataset was reconstructed using the amplitude and direction of an external respiratory signal. A thresholding‐based method was used to segment the lung. An inverse consistent image registration was used to estimate the intrafraction motion within each 4D study and the interfraction motion between two studies. This diffeomorphic registration jointly estimates the forward and reverse transformations providing more accurate correspondence between two images. We evaluated the lung motion variations in repeated 4D studies. Results: On average, the mean respiratory period changed by 11.5%, and the mean peak to peak amplitude changed by 6.8% for the three patients. The consistent image registration generated dense displacement vector fields which represented physiologically reasonable lung motion. In one patient, we observed that the motion patterns are similar in the inferior and posterior parts of the lung, but are different at the superior and anterior parts of the lung. In the other two patients, we observed less variation in lung motion patterns between the two studies. The interfraction motion at end of exhalation is generally small (< 3 mm). Conclusions: The results suggest that lung motion variation may be large for some parts of the lung in some patients. An updated 4D CT study may be needed on a treatment day for some patients. For other patients, one may use the 4D model built on a planning day to estimate lung motion with an external respiratory signal. Quantitative evaluations are under investigation.


In this study, silver-functionalized bismuth oxide (AgBi2O3) nanoparticles (SBO NPs) were successfully synthesized by a highly efficient hydrothermal method. The as-synthesized SBO nanoparticles were characterized using FT-IR, P-XRD, XPS, HR-SEM, and HR-TEM analytical methods. It was found that the NPs were in spherical shape and hexagonal crystal phase. The newly prepared SBO electrode was further utilized for the detection of glucose, NO2− and H2O2 by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and amperometric methods. The electrodes exhibited high sensitivity (2.153 μA mM−1 cm−2 for glucose, 22 μA mM−1 cm−2 for NO2− and 1.72 μA mM−1 cm−2 for H2O2), low LOD (0.87 μM for glucose, 2.8 μM for NO2− and 1.15 μM for H2O2) and quick response time (3 s for glucose, 2 s for both NO2− and H2O2 respectively). The sensor exhibited outstanding selectivity despite the presence of various interferences. The developed sensor exhibited good repeatability, reproducibility, and stability. In addition, the sensor was used to measure glucose, H2O2 in human serum, and NO2− in milk and river water samples, demonstrating its potential for use in the real sample.


Tus comment analyzes the current doctrine of forum non conveniens in federal courts and criticizes its departure from the policies of the original doctrine. This departure has inequitably resulted in dismissals of foreign plaintiffs and limited liability for U.S. corporate defendants. After considering a number of factors, including the need for even-handedness in the administration of justice and the US. interest in regulating and deterring the conduct of its corporations, this comment proposes appropriate changes in the doctrine. It is proposed that the definition of an adequate alternative forum be narrowed and the public/private interest factors be more equitably balanced. Finally, this novel framewvork is applied to the pending Bhopal litigation.


During early development in vertebrates, Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is produced by the notochord and the floor plate. A ventrodorsal gradient of Shh directs ventrodorsal patterning of the neural tube. However, Shh is also required for the survival of neuroepithelial cells. We show that Patched (Ptc) induces apoptotic cell death unless its ligand Shh is present to block the signal. Moreover, the blockade of Ptc-induced cell death partly rescues the chick spinal cord defect provoked by Shh deprivation. Thus, the proapoptotic activity of unbound Ptc and the positive effect of Shh-bound Ptc on cell differentiation probably cooperate to achieve the appropriate spinal cord development.


Pedestrian lane detection is a core component in many assistive and autonomous navigation systems. These systems are usually deployed in environments that require realtime processing. Many state-of-the-art deep neural networks only focus on detection accuracy but not inference speed. Without further modifications, they are not suitable for real-time applications. Furthermore, the task of designing a high-performing deep neural network is time-consuming and requires experience. To tackle these issues, we propose a neural architecture search algorithm that can find the best deep network for pedestrian lane detection automatically. The proposed method searches in a network-level space using the gradient descent algorithm. Evaluated on a dataset of 5,000 images, the deep network found by the proposed algorithm achieves comparable segmentation accuracy, while being significantly faster than other state-of-the-art methods. The proposed method has been successfully implemented as a real-time pedestrian lane detection tool.


Catheter ablation using radiofrequency energy has gained acceptance as an effective treatment for atrial fibrillation
(AF). Several technical approaches have been developed that correspond to pathophysiological concepts of AF initiation and maintenance.Isolation of pulmonary veins is identified as the cornerstone of any ablation approach.The additional ablation of fragmented or complex ostial or nonostial potentials or left atrial
linear ablation has been recently introduced to modify the substrate
besides isolating the triggerin order to improve the success
rate of AF ablation, especially in patients with persistent
AF. In our non-randomized, single-center, observational study we evaluated the acute effects of complex fractionated atrial
electrogram (CFAE) ablation guided by automated detection on dominant frequency (DF) and regulatory index (RI) for the fibrillatory process.The termination rate by CFAE ablation was low (12.5% in paroxysmal and 10% in persistent AF). Changes in DF and RI after CFAE ablation were not significant (<0.25 Hz and max. 0.02 increase for RI) in comparison with other ablation steps. Based on our results CFAE ablation guided by a dedicated software algorithm and performed after standard pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) without CFAE remapping does not influence the fibrillatory process significantly. By virtue of the latter CFAE mapping and ablation should be performed always after PVI. With introduction of additional extensive left atrial (LA) ablations the risk of complications
have been increased. One of the most devastating complication of AF ablation is atrioesophageal fistula (AEF).Esophageal ulcerations (EU) have been proposed to be potential precursor lesions. In our
large single-center study of more than 260 patients, we
consistently screened patients for evidence of esophageal injury
after AF ablation. In total, we found 2.2% of patients (6 of 267) presenting with EU. Parameters exposing a specific patient to risk of developing EU were persistent AF (5 of 95), additional lines performed (roofline: 6 of 114; LA isthmus: 4 of 49; coronary sinus: 5 of 66), and LA enlargement leading to sandwiching of the esophagus between the LA and thoracic spine. Multivariate analysis
revealed LA-to-esophagus distance as the only significant
risk factor. Not a single patient with PVI alone developed EU.
With the use of a reasonable energy maximum of 25 W at the posterior LA wall using open irrigation catheters, we showed a low percentage of EU creation compared with other studies published.
Identifying high-risk patients for esophageal injury 7 potentially has an impact on follow-up or treatment of these individuals by endoscopy or prophylactic treatment. In our substudy (including 31 patients) we assessed the acute effect of radiofrequency ablation
(RFA) on distal esophageal acidity using leadless pH-metry capsules. We found that a significant number of patients (19.2%)
undergoing RFA of AF develop pathologic acid reflux after ablation. In addition, a subgroup of patients (16.1%) has a preexisting condition of asymptomatic reflux prior to ablation. This finding may explain a potential mechanism for progression of esophageal injury to atrio-esophageal fistulas. We recommend a regular screening for EU in high-risk patients with an extensive lesion set and treatment
with proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) medication if EU is discovered.
Moreover prophylactic PPI treatment of all patients undergoing RFA of AF have to be considered.


The authors study features of development of spinal cord compression, neurological affections and quality of life in patients with polyorganic tuberculosis. As shown by examination and treatment of 72 patients having pulmonary and spinal tuberculosis vs 46 control patients with spinal tuberculosis only, patients with pulmonary and spinal tuberculosis demonstrate faster development of spinal cord compression, neurological disorders, more severe and faster loss in motor activity and quality of life than patients with isolated spinal lesion.


Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are vascular malformations causing seizures and cerebral hemorrhages. We report a 20-month old male with multiple CCMs associated with Krev interaction trapped 1 (KRIT1) c.845 + 1 G > C heterozygous transversion mutation. This case demonstrates the importance of molecular genetic analysis in cases of multiple CCM.


A major goal in regenerative medicine is the predictable manipulation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) to defined cell fates that faithfully represent their somatic counterparts. Directed differentiation of hESCs into neuronal populations has galvanized much interest into their potential application in modelling neurodegenerative disease. However, neurodegenerative diseases are age-related, and therefore establishing the maturational comparability of hESC-derived neural derivatives is critical to generating accurate in vitro model systems. We address this issue by comparing genome-wide, exon-specific expression analyses of pluripotent hESCs, multipotent neural precursor cells and a terminally differentiated enriched neuronal population to expression data from post-mortem foetal and adult human brain samples. We show that hESC-derived neuronal cultures (using a midbrain differentiation protocol as a prototypic example of lineage restriction), while successful in generating physiologically functional neurons, are closer to foetal than adult human brain in terms of molecular maturation. These findings suggest that developmental stage has a more dominant influence on the cellular have significant implications for studies aiming to recapitulate an adult neurodegenerative disorder using human pluripotent stem cells, and provide a robust platform for studies aiming to uncover the molecular pathobiology of ageing and neurodegeneration. transcriptome regional identity. addition, we demonstrate that developmentally regulated gene splicing is common, and potentially a more sensitive measure of maturational state than gene expression profiling alone. In summary, this study highlights the value of genomic indices in refining and validating optimal cell populations appropriate for modelling ageing and neurodegeneration.


In this paper, we investigate the communication channel capacity among hippocampal pyramidal neurons. To this aim, we study the processes included in this communication and model them with realistic communication system components based on the existing reports in the physiology literature. We consider the communication between two neurons and reveal the effects of the existence of multiple terminals between these neurons on the achievable rate per spike. To this objective, we derive the power spectral density (PSD) of the signal in the output neuron and utilize it to calculate the rate region of the channel. Moreover, we evaluate the impacts of vesicle availability on the achievable rate by deriving the expected number of available vesicles in input neuron using a realistic vesicle release model. Simulation results show that number of available vesicles for release does not affect the achievable rate of neuro-spike communication with univesicular release model. However, in neurons that multiple vesicles can release from each synaptic terminal, achievable rate is significantly affected by depletion of vesicles. Moreover, we show that increasing the number of synaptic terminals between two neurons makes the synaptic connection stronger. Hence, it is an important factor in learning and memory, which occur in the hippocampal region of the brain based on the synaptic connectivity.


Unlike other Cirsium in Korea, Cirsium nipponicum (Island thistle) is distributed only on Ulleung Island, a volcanic island off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, and a unique thistle with none or very small thorns. Although many researchers have questioned the origin and evolution of C. nipponicum, there is not much genomic information to estimate it. We thus assembled the complete chloroplast of C. nipponicum and reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships within the genus Cirsium. The chloroplast genome was 152,586 bp, encoding 133 genes consisting of 8 rRNA genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 88 protein-coding genes. We found 833 polymorphic sites and eight highly variable regions in chloroplast genomes of six Cirsium species by calculating nucleotide diversity, as well as 18 specific variable regions distinguished C. nipponicum from other Cirsium. As a result of phylogenetic analysis, C. nipponicum was closer to C. arvense and C. vulgare than native Cirsium in Korea: C. rhinoceros and C. japonicum. These results indicate that C. nipponicum is likely introduced through the north Eurasian root, not the mainland, and evolved independently in Ulleung Island. This study contributes to further understanding the evolutionary process and the biodiversity conservation of C. nipponicum on Ulleung Island.


Pregnant women are more susceptible to malaria than non-pregnant women. Thissusceptibility is highest in first and second pregnancies of continuous malaria exposure.Placental malaria leads to poor birth outcomes and poor maternal outcomes whichinclude low birth weight (LBW), intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), abortions, stillbirths, anaemia and mortality. This study set out to characterize placental pathologicalchanges in baboons infected with Plasmodium knowlesi parasites in order to develop amodel that can be used to study placental malaria. Third trimester placentas werecollected via caesarean section (CS) from four pregnant P. knowlesi infected and threepregnant-non infected baboons (Papio anubis). The placentas from all the animals wereexamined for gross pathology and histopathology. Findings of the study revealed thatparasitaemia was six to eight folds higher in the placenta compared to peripheral blood ofthe same baboon. Gross pathology revealed that placentas were intact and had normalmorphological features except in one baboon which showed slight fibrinoids.Histopathological findings showed that placentas from the control baboons had intactvilli, good tissue perfusion and no aggregation of erythrocytes. The placentas frominfected baboons on the other hand showed massive congestion of various layers,disruption of the villi, aggregation of erythrocytes, inflammatory cell infiltration,presence of infected erythrocytes and malaria pigment (haemozoin). The placental tissuesfrom the infected baboons had significantly more pathological changes as compared tothose obtained from the non infected baboons. This was evident when the median scoreswere compared for each parameter using the Mann-Whitney U test. Plasmodium knowlesiinfected placentas had significantly higher scores for damage (MedI = 22.5) compared tothe controls (MedC=13; p 0.05) when tested by Spearman's Rank correlationtest. This study demonstrates that P. knowlesi sequesters in the placenta of baboons anddamages it just like P. falciparum does in the placenta of humans. Consequently, thebaboon model of malaria is expected to gain prominence in the study of control measuresagainst placental malaria.Key Words: Papio anubis, Plasmodium knowlesi, placental malaria, histopathology.


This article examines passages in two works by Johannes Stoffler (1452–1531), namely his commentary on Ptolemy's Geography and his commentary on pseudo-Proclus's Sphaera, that reveal his ample knowledge of the discovery of the New World, and yet his reluctance to incorporate that knowledge into discussions and depictions of the world. This reluctance is interesting in light of Stoffler's willingness to criticize Ptolemy in his other works. Evidence from Stoffler's writings demonstrate that he was consulting Martin Waldseemuller's 1507 world map, which both adds to the evidence for his knowledge of the cartography of the New World, and adds a new data point regarding the circulation of that map.


PURPOSE
Many researchers have studied the acoustics, physiology, and perceptual characteristics of the voice source, but despite significant attention, it remains unclear which aspects of the source should be quantified and how measurements should be made. In this study, the authors examined the relationships among a number of existing measures of the glottal source spectrum, along with the association of these measures to overall spectral shapes and to glottal pulse shapes, to determine which measures of the source best capture information about the shapes of glottal pulses and glottal source spectra.

METHOD
Seventy-eight different measures of source spectral shapes were made on the voices of 70 speakers. Principal components analysis was applied to measurement data, and the resulting factors were compared with factors similarly derived from oral speech spectra and glottal pulses.

RESULTS
Results revealed high levels of duplication and overlap among existing measures of source spectral slope. Further, existing measures were not well aligned with patterns of spectral variability. In particular, existing spectral measures do not appear to model the higher frequency parts of the source spectrum adequately.

CONCLUSION
The failure of existing measures to adequately quantify spectral variability may explain why results of studies examining the perceptual importance of spectral slope have not produced consistent results. Because variability in the speech signal is often perceptually salient, these results suggest that most existing measures of source spectral slope are unlikely to be good predictors of voice quality.


Natural language inference (NLI) is an important task for producing useful models of human language. Unfortunately large-scale NLI dataset production relies on crowdworkers who are prone to introduce biases in the sentences they write. In particular, without quality control they produce hypotheses from which the relational label can be predicted, without the premise, better than chance. We introduce a model-driven, unsupervised technique to find "bias clusters" in a learned embedding space of the hypotheses in NLI datasets, from which interventions and additional rounds of labeling can be performed to ameliorate the semantic bias of the hypothesis distribution of a dataset.


Abstract We manipulated brood sizes of Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) in 1996 and 1997 to test for the existence of intra- and intergenerational costs of reproduction. Modal clutch size was six eggs, but experimental brood sizes ranged from two to nine young. Nestling starvation was higher in 1996 (and dependent on brood size) than in 1997, but in both years enlargement of brood size resulted in increased productivity. Nestling mass near fledging was negatively correlated with brood size, but tarsus length and wing chord were not. Food deliveries by parents increased steadily between broods of two to six young but then remained constant between broods of six to nine young. The loss of female mass between incubation and the end of the nestling period was positively related to the pair's total feeding effort, and female mass near fledging declined with increasing brood size. The latter decline disappeared, however, when broods of nine were omitted. Adult return rate (1996 to 1997) was highest among birds that raised enlarged broods. Our results, and a review of other studies of Tree Swallows, suggest that broods of seven or eight young can be raised without costs to the parents or young, and it appears that costs associated with feeding young have not influenced annual fecundity of Tree Swallows. Rather, egg production is most likely limited by energy availability to laying females. A major cost of reproduction for Tree Swallows probably arises from nest-site competition in that early arrival in spring to obtain nest sites exposes adults to high risks of death from starvation.


This chapter examines a conflict over water resources for irrigation in a rapidly developing agricultural valley in Chile's semi-arid Norte Chico. It explores escalating demand for new water resources, in particular groundwater, for export-oriented fruit plantations, and its implications in terms of water resources management and access to water rights between commercial and peasant farmers. Situated within the broadly defined political ecology tradition, the chapter draws on emerging theorizations of human-nature relations to analyze how the nature of the conflict is shaped by social power, discourse and nature's agency, as well as how the conflict, and attempts to address it through the production of a physical hydrological assessment, configure uneven socio-ecological outcomes at the basin scale.


Cellular materials have a wide range of applications, including structural optimization and biomedical applications. Due to their porous topology, which promotes cell adhesion and proliferation, cellular materials are particularly suited for tissue engineering and the development of new structural solutions for biomechanical applications. Furthermore, cellular materials can be effective in adjusting mechanical properties, which is especially important in the design of implants where low stiffness and high strength are required to avoid stress shielding and promote bone growth. The mechanical response of such scaffolds can be improved further by employing functional gradients of the scaffold's porosity and other approaches, including traditional structural optimization frameworks; modified algorithms; bio-inspired phenomena; and artificial intelligence via machine learning (or deep learning). Multiscale tools are also useful in the topological design of said materials. This paper provides a state-of-the-art review of the aforementioned techniques, aiming to identify current and future trends in orthopedic biomechanics research, specifically implant and scaffold design.


Given the status of XML as a standard for storing and exchanging data in Internet and the Growing interest in XML security, various access control schemes have been proposed recently. In this paper, we propose a novel approach to realize the access control. In this approach, we realize the function of access control by several classes, which construct an object with some parameter when a user accesses a XML document with his (or her) authorization. The class can be inherited just like the programming. We demonstrate the model and show the result of our approach. Keyword: Object oriented, XML, Fine-Granularity, Access Control


This study sought to assess the effectiveness of school based HIV prevention education in sexual behaviors among secondary school youths. One of the limitations of this study was students concern over disclosing their real life sexual practices following its sensitivity. The study was a mixed evaluative case study based on CIPP evaluation model which involved 384 students who were selected through systematic sampling and 8 students were selected through purposive sampling. Closed ended questionnaire, face to face interview and document review were used for data collection. The study findings revealed that HIV education in secondary schools is provided by being integrated mainly into Biology syllabus and slightly in Civics. However, majority of students 173 (71.1%) perceive that the education provided is not adequate due to incompetent teachers, lack of supportive training materials and shortage of time committed for teaching. HIV prevention education had raised knowledge and awareness on HIV prevention strategies, however this knowledge and awareness didn"t helped to change students behaviours as significant number of the respondents were sexually active during the time of the study, and nearly half of those who are sexually active never use condom and some have multiple partners. It was concluded that HIV education has been addressed in secondary school curriculum and integrated into two subjects and has been taught in class but the strategies used to teach this education only helps to improve knowledge of students regarding HIV and AIDS but do not go beyond creating self-awareness toward sexual behavior change of the students, thus the study recommended that schools need to make sure that HIV education is taught in more recommended participatory and interactive approaches rather than didactics for positive results.


The impact of stratospheric representation is investigated using the Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate Atmospheric General Circulation Model (MIROC-AGCM) run with different model-lid heights and stratospheric vertical resolutions, but unchanged horizontal resolutions (~1.125°) and subgrid parameterizations. One-hundred-year integrations of the model were conducted using configurations with 34, 42, 72, and 168 vertical layers and model-lid heights of ~27 km (L34), 47 km (L42), 47 km (L72), and 100 km (L168). Analysis of the results focused on the Northern Hemisphere in winter. Compared with the L42 model, the L34 model produces a poorer simulation of the stratospheric Brewer–Dobson circulation (BDC) in the lower stratosphere, with weaker polar downwelling and accompanying cold-pole and westerly jet biases. The westerly bias extends into the troposphere and even to the surface. The tropospheric westerlies and zone of baroclinic wave activity shift northward; surface pressure has negative (positive) biases in the high (mid-) latitudes, with concomitant precipitation shifts. The L72 and L168 models generate a quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) while the L34 and 42 models do not. The L168 model includes the mesosphere, and thus resolves the upper branch of the BDC. The L72 model simulates stronger polar downwelling associated with the BDC than does the L42 model. However, experiments with prescribed nudging of the tropical stratospheric winds suggest differences in the QBO representation cannot account for L72 − L42 differences in the climatological polar night jet structure. The results show that the stratospheric vertical resolution and inclusion of the full middle atmosphere significantly affect tropospheric circulations.


An interactive and participative approach to involve and mobilise rural communities in water quality control programmes was investigated. Agro-rural watersheds are experiencing serious environmental degradation mainly because of inappropriate land use practices due to various competing and opposing priorities in the community. The communities tend to concentrate on availability of land and water for their activities regardless of the state of that resource. The methodology is designed to bring awareness to the rural farmers of the amounts of pollutants they contribute to a river system and the benefits of adhering to good land-use and farming practices both in terms of production and environmental protection. It is based on a pilot project, dealing with an agro-rural watershed in a semi-arid developing area. A strong emphasis was put on stakeholder participation, an area neglected by many researchers. It became clear that pollutant flushes from the catchments are influenced by many factors, of which agricultural practices is only one.


The purpose of this article is to test hypotheses that meaning in life can be a mediator in the relations between religiousness expressed in terms of a meaning system and subjective well-being. Previous research on religion and well-being has left some questions unanswered. Associations of the religious meaning system and subjective well-being turn out to be complex and suggest the possibility of meaning-oriented mediators in their relations. The results obtained in the current study demonstrated that personal meaning and presence of meaning were partial mediators between the religious meaning system and the cognitive dimension of subjective well-being (i.e., life satisfaction). In contrast, search for meaning did not have a significant mediational role in those relations and there were no direct or indirect relationships between the religious meaning system and the affective dimension of subjective well-being (i.e., positive and negative affect). The findings suggest indirect relations between religiousness and well-being which are partially mediated by structures of meaning and purpose.


Pose estimation that locates objects in a bin is necessary for a robotic bin picking system. Although many algorithms have shown high performance in pose estimation, most algorithms estimate the poses of objects regardless of their occlusion. This can reduce the success rate in picking up the object. To resolve this issue, we propose a novel pipeline that estimates a pose only for occlusion-free objects based on point pair feature-based pose estimation with multiple edge appearance model (PPF-MEAM). The proposed method detects occlusion-free objects in the 2D image captured by a camera with a convolutional neural network framework. Next, corresponding point clouds of occlusion-free objects need to be extracted by using their locations in the 2D image. we propose a robust extraction method that finds the 3D points corresponding to image pixels in the 2D image to reduce the effect of the calibration errors between the camera and 3D sensor. The point cloud of the occlusion-free objects is finally input into a pipeline of PPF-MEAM to estimate the pose of the object. The experiment results prove that the proposed method is about 50% faster 30% higher in terms of pose estimation success rate compared with the original PPF. Moreover, it increases the success rate of picking tasks compared with the original PPF-MEAM.


W ith the current challenges in the healthcare system, patients and professionals are uncertain about the role, responsibilities, and communication patterns of primary care professionals during cancer care. It is time to understand the best practices for primary care nurses and cancer nurses that contribute to cancer care quality patient outcomes. Only with coordinated approaches between these two can we ensure better processes and outcomes. Consider this scenario. A 70-year-old male patient from a rural community has never had an illness except for hypertension and has never been hospitalized. He has a 20-year clinical relationship with a primary care nurse practitioner. He is diagnosed with terminal cancer and sent to an oncologist at a comprehensive cancer center (CCC) 120 miles away from his home. The oncologist takes over careVbasically to do no treatment but symptom management. The patient is to return periodically to the CCC for scans and follow-up. The family has a 15-minute conversation with the oncologist and receives a clear message about the poor prognosis. Overwhelmed, the family returned home with the life-threatening diagnosis and an appointment to return in 6 weeks. Constipation and obstruction occurred, likely associated with the pain medication, 120 miles from the CCC. His primary care professional admitted him to the local small hospital where treatment focused only on the constipation without awareness of others involved in care. Then a small stroke occurred. What role did primary care have with the family, the patient, or care articulation with the CCC? The family was overwhelmed and had not shared the CCC's plan of care. What would be the best practice for the CCC and the primary care office to meet the palliative care (at diagnosis) needs of the patient? What resources for the primary care professionals, the wife, and the family were needed? Who should coordinate this care? A newly diagnosed patient enters an unfamiliar system of care often in strange and overwhelming locations and sees more professional providers in a day than he may have seen in a lifetime. Patients and families are overwhelmed and lost in a huge complex system they alone are expected to coordinate. What scientific knowledge do we have to support these care situations? What approaches result in coordinated quality cancer care? What are the standards of care? What are the expected outcomes for primary care? For cancer care? In 2005, the Institute of Medicine released the report ''From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition.'' This report outlined challenges across the care continuum with a clear focus on survivorship. In this report, the importance of better integration between primary and cancer care was indicated as essential to ensure continuity, patient support, and improved quality of life. Seven years later, there remains limited attention to this interface. Researchers have identified that problems exist at the interface of cancer care that include unmet patient information needs, psychosocial, and family needs. They describe a lack of communication between providers at transition points and a lack of clear responsibilities. Few interventions to promote quality patient outcomes have been described. But there are major research questions to examine at the interface between primary and cancer care:


Early onset of Batten disease (EBD), one of the most lethal neurodegenerative storage disorders of childhood, is caused by inactivating mutations in the Ceroid Lipofuscinosis, Neuronal (CLN1) gene. Neurogranin, a calmodulin-binding protein, is expressed in the brain and participates in the protein kinase C (PKC) signaling pathway. While oxidative stress is the suggested cause of neurodegeneration in EBD, its molecular mechanism(s) remains obscure. In this research, we examined the levels of neurogranin in the brain mRNA of wild-type (WT) mice and EBD knockout (KO) mice, as well as the proteins. We also performed neuronal cultures to measure the expression levels of neurgranin and phosphorylated-neurogranin with or without oxidative stress inducers and anti-oxidants. Results showed that neurogranin in both EBD KO mice brain mRNA and protein extracts decreased in an age dependent manner. However, high amounts of phosphorylated-neurogranin were detected in the 6-month brain. This pattern was also confirmed by cultured neurospheres samples. Moreover, neurospheres treated with , an oxidative stress inducer, showed increased phosphorylated-neurogranin patterns. Interestingly, this pattern returned to normal status when treated with N-acetyl-L-cystein, an anti-oxidant, after treatment was performed. Our results suggest that the phosphorylation of neurogranin is affected by oxidative stress status in EBD, and appropriate anti-oxidant treatment will relieve hyper-phosphorylation of neurogranin.


The article analyses the impact of the Paris Agreement on a country's tax policy framework, following the end of the OECD's Base Erosion Profit Shifting (BEPS) programme. Following from the premise that the BEPS programme was devised with the intent to increase countries' revenue collection ability by fighting tax evasion and avoidance transactions, the article discusses how the Paris Agreement could be used as a devise for further revenue accumulation. In doing so, the article examines the underlying history pursuant to climate change agreements, identifying the context under which the Paris Agreement was received by countries and why it has the potential to be the first agreement to derive a positive outcome to the environment.


A comprehensive theoretical/numerical framework has been established to treat the combustion of liquid oxygen (LOX) and methane under supercritical conditions. The model accounts for detailed LOX/methane reaction mechanisms, and accommodates the effect of scalar dissipation on finite-rate chemistry. Turbulence closure is achieved by a large-eddy simulation technique. Several different turbulent combustion models are implemented and assessed by comparing the chemical and turbulence time scales at conditions typical of liquid-propellant engine rocket operation. Results indicate that the flamelet assumption is appropriate. The direct-closure approach may over-predict the reaction rate. The supercritical mixing and combustion LOX and methane downstream of a splitter are analyzed systemically, and the effects of real-fluid thermodynamics on the cryogenic-fluid flame evolution are quantified.


Primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy is a condition characterized by clubbing, arthropathy and periostosis of long tubular bones. Three variants of primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy are distinguished: pachydermoperiostosis, which shows as additional symptom pachydermia; cranio-osteoarthropathy, which has a decreased neurocranium ossification as additional feature; and a secondary form. Primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy is also genetically heterogeneous, with evidence for both autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive inheritance. We describe two sibs with cranio-osteoarthropathy and briefly review previously reported cases. The present cases demonstrate the phenotypic variability of the condition. The consanguinity in the present family and analysis of previously described cases support autosomal recessive inheritance for cranio-osteoarthropathy.


In the current economic climate, destinations increasingly attempt to differentiate themselves. Brand personality (BP) is a useful tool for understanding differentiation in terms of identity and image perceptions. The authors are unaware of any prior study that develops and analyses to what extent Jennifer Aaker's BP scale is reliable and valid in destination branding.

This paper studies UK visitors to two specific Spanish destinations: Granada and Torremolinos. The study concludes that the BP model is second-order. The results help to more adequately establish the personality trait dimensions that create favourable evaluations of tourism destinations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Background Despite the Common Training Framework project, routes to becoming an hospital pharmacist in Europe remain extremely patchy. Enrolment in a post-graduate Hospital Pharmacy School (SHP) is the way to become a hospital pharmacist in our country. Despite a harmonising effort that occurred in 2015, students still describe a heterogeneous real-life situation of SHPs between different universities, which results in learning difficulties and lack of scholarship. Purpose The main purpose of our study is to evaluate, through the first national survey, the possible differences in the educational pathway of Italian SHP students. Material and methods This is an observational cross-sectional students-oriented study. We investigated, through a questionnaire, five main topics: structure of residency training, study plan adherence, relationship between students and tutors, economic compensation and research activity. Results Sixty-eight per cent (172/278) of national SHP students voluntarily participated in the survey. Eighty-seven per cent of residents regularly attended the rotation among assigned hospitals, but lessons' schedule frequently didn't fit with residency (66%). Students felt confident about drugs distribution, drugs' appropriateness and pharmacoeconomics, whereas they described poor competency in ethics committee, vigilance on community pharmacy, HTA and clinical trials. Despite this, the educational programme required a full-time residency, but only 24% of students received a scholarship funded by the university. An analysis of the remaining 76% described an uneven situation: 28% were employed by hospitals, 20% by community pharmacies, 6% worked out of the pharmaceutical field and 22% did not receiv any salary. Students receiving an academic scholarship attributed a statistically significant higher score to their education pathway compared to the other (p<0.001) and they published significantly more. Finally, we investigated the relationship between residents and tutors. In most cases this was satisfying except for students employed in community pharmacies. The perceived quality of tutoring was related to the degree of working independence of the resident (p=0.008). Conclusion National SHPs still present a patchwork organisation and as long as an academic scholarship is not granted to all SHP students, the competing interests of employer institutions and academia may lead to important differences in training. Thus, we hope that our results encourage more investment in SHPs, in view of the growing responsibility of our profession. No conflict of interest


The Islamization of knowledge since its inception in the second half of 1970 has attracted the interest of Muslim intellectuals and activists throughout the world. It is a highly debated contemporary issue especially among the academia. Two academic Institutions spearhead the process; the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC) and the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT). This article attempts to examine the process from the IIIT perspective, due to its tremendous efforts in promotion and dissemination of the process by means of publication, seminars and workshops. A conceptual analysis of the process and its historical background is also dealt with in this paper. Some of the pioneers" view from the IIIT group and their strategy for Islamization of knowledge and their road-map for the process are also delineated. Using an analytical approach the article concludes the urgency of the need for the designation of an Islamic paradigm of knowledge based on the Islamic world view, by means of which Islamic intellectual heritage can be reactivated and made capable of providing solutions to problems of contemporary society.


Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) commonly affects women and men during the reproductive years.The effect of the disease burden on fertility in these patients is a common concern for them. ECCO guidelines establish that active disease is associated with decreased fertility in women but studies regarding this topic are of low quality and outdated.

 to investigate the effect of CD on fertility, studying ovarian reserve in women as well as global Sertoli cell function in men, - To compare these results of CD patients with the healthy control group. (HC) - To assess the related factors to subfertility in women and males with CD.

 This was a cross-sectional, prospective and case-control study, including CD patients, aged 18-40 years-old, and HC matched by gender and age (ratio 2:1). Morning baseline IB was measured in men using ELISA. Serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) was measured by ECLIA. Sociodemographic and phenotypic features of CD patients and controls were collected.Subfertility was defined as IB < 89pg/mL, AMH <1.66 ug/L in 0-24 years old group; <1.18 ug/L in 25-29 years old group; <0.67 ug/L in 30-34 years old group; <0.77 ug/L in 35-39 years old group; and <0.01 ug/L in 40-44 years old group. AMH <2 ug/L in women under 40 was considered low.

 A total of 163 individuals were included: 83 men (58 CD, median 28 years old, RIQ 24-36; 25 HC, median 31 years old, RIQ 26-37) and 80 women (50 CD, median 26 years old, RIQ 21-36; 30 HC, median 28, RIQ 26-32). Sedentary lifestyle was more frequent in women with CD vs HC (46% vs 3,3%, p<0,001). 24% of women with CD and 8% of males had clinical activity (IHB >4). Low AMH (<2ug/L) in women older than 30 was more frequent in CD vs HC: 95% (18/19) vs 44% (4/9) p=0.001, with an OR of presenting AMH < 2 ug/L of 3.28 (IC 95%, 1.6-6.4) for women with CD >30 years old. The average AMH serum level was similar between women with CD and HC [1.83 (1.04-3.34) vs. 2.74 (1.05-4.12) g/L, p=0.4]. Abnormal AMH rate by age rank was not different between groups in global population (11/50, 22% EC vs. 7/30, 23% in CS, p=0.9,). IB levels were significantly lower in men with CD vs HC [169 (140-217) vs 232 ug/L (178-274) p=0.001]. IB <89 pg/mL was not detected in any control vs 6% (n=3) in CD. In multivariate analysis, only AMH was associated with lower levels of IB in CD men, no association with clinical activity or treatments in CD was found.

 Women with CD and >30 years old have a higher risk than general population of presenting low AMH (<2).These data could be helpful at council of women with CD that desire to have progeny. IB concentration was lower in men with CD compared to HC.


This brief research report presents findings from an investigation conducted in an academic writing class for college students in a tertiary institution in the Philippines. It first describes the role of academic writing in the site of investigation and proceeds with a description of actualizing principles of critical pedagogy in the classroom. Through the use of meaningful texts and tasks that sensitizes the learners' awareness on the use of language to counter existing discourses of dominance, this research posits that adopting critical pedagogy in the ELT classroom can help students problematize issues imparted by texts as it applies to the wider context of society.


In the article the facts of influence of German literature and art on the formation of a creative person of the Russian poetess and translator of the first third of the XIXth century E.B.Kulman are for the first time elicited, and also echoes of her creativity in German art culture of the subsequent time are systematized. The facts of the appeal of E.B.Kulman to the translations of works of antique authors, to free interpretations of the texts of I.-V.Goethe, I.-G. Foss, S.Gesner, etc., and also influence of the first edition of her "Poetic attempts" on the Russian literature are noted ("imagination" in A.V.Timofeev's verses "Elizabeth Kulman", B.M.Fedorov's poem "To Elizabeth Kulman's portrait", etc.). As the most considerable event in posthumous history of E.B.Kulman's works is considered the appeal to them of the composer R. Schuman who created two vocal cycles in 1851 – "Maiden songs" (op. 103, for two voices and a piano) and "Seven songs" (op. 104, for a voice and a piano). The special attention in the article is paid to a question of possible influence of E.B.Kulman's fairy tale "The fisherman and his wife" (along with the fairy tale of the same name of brothers Grimm) on A.S.Pushkin in the period of creation of "The tale of the fisherman and a small fish". In E.B.Kulman's fairy tale "The fisherman and his wife", as well as in the earlier work of brothers Grimm, heroes of the fairy tales – not so much characters, as elements of plot making; at A.S.Pushkin's work the plot becomes simpler and fantastic motives are filled with the lyrical contents, the accent is transferred from the plot to the general lyrical action, characters and pictures. The authors of the article for the first time establish community and distinctions in the text of three fantastic works, and in each text both traditions of national culture and poetry, and rich art world of the German and Russian writers are found. Finally in the article the considerable materials allowing to speak not only about a bilingualism of E.B.Kulman, but also about the development of her creativity on a joint of Russian and a number of West European cultures are generalized, the specified value of her creativity for the development of the Russian literary translation of the XIXth century, the Russian translated fiction, need of preparation of the scientific publication of works of E.B.Kulman which exit could become the beginning of a new stage in studying of works of the talented poetess is noted. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n3s3p139


The aim of this study was to determine if there is difference between the vastus medialis oblique and vastus lateralis longus (VMO/ VLL) muscles activation during treadmill gait level and ascending to 5% degree between healthy subjects and others with patellofemoral pain syndrome. Electromyographic data from the VMO and VLL muscles were obtained in 15 subjects without and 12 with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) during treadmill gait with and without 5 degrees inclination. The value of the VMO/VLL ratio was determined from the mean of 8 strides, in each condition, during 12 s. The t-Student test did not show significant difference in the VMO/VLL ratio between the two groups, regardless the condition. Although there was not significant difference, the subjects of the control group showed higher values in the VMO/ VLL ratio in the two tested conditions than the subject of the PFPS group. The findings suggest that the ratio of the electric activity of the VMO and VLL muscles in individuals with and without SDFP is equal in the gait on flat surface as well as slanted to 5 degrees.


Supervisory Committee Dr. Jessica Ball, Supervisor (School of Child & Youth Care) Dr. Veronica Pacini-Ketchabaw, Departmental Member (School of Child & Youth Care) Dr. Peter H. Stephenson, Outside Member (Department of Anthropology)


Aim:
 Immune globulin is the most effective treatment of Kawasaki Disease, however, 15-20% of patients with Kawasaki disease (KD) is resistant to 2g/kg of IVIG (refractory case), and those patients are high risk for complication of coronary artery abnormalities, to detect these refractory KD before treatment of acute phase is very important to determine their treatment, but the methods to predict the refractory case is not yet established. We analyze the relation of IVIG-resistant Kawasaki disease and serum levels of procalcitonin (PCT) or serum amyloid A (SAA).

 Method:
 192 patients with KD were involved in this study, and 48 were IVIG-resistant cases. Refractory case was defined as patients who needed additional treatment with IVIG and/or steroid after the first treatment with total 2g/kg of IVIG. Serum levels of PCT and SAA were measured before treatment, and the relationship to clinical course was analyzed.

 Result:
 Median level of PCT of patients with IVIG-resistant KD was 2.24 ng/ml and those with non- IVIG-resistant KD was 0.47 ng/ml, and median levels of PCT of patients with IVIG-resistant KD was significantly higher than those with non- IVIG-resistant KD (p<0.01). Median level of SAA of patients with IVIG-resistant KD was 753.6 μg/ml and those with non- IVIG-resistant KD was 635.9μg/ml and there was no significant difference. We compared the accuracy of prediction of IVIG resistant KD by PCT and SAA using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve(AUC) of PCT, SAA and CRP was 0.75, 0.57 and 0.63 respectively. For identification of IVIG-resistant patients, a cut-off point, sensitivity and specificity of PCT, SAA and CRP were as follows, 1.5 ng/ml, 77% and 61%, 444 μg/ml, 83% and 32% and 7.7 mg/dl, 73% and 59%, respectively.

 Conclusion:
 As PCT levels of patients with IVIG-resistant Kawasaki disease were significantly higher than those with non- IVIG-resistant KD, PCT could be one of the predictor of IVIG-resistant KD.


We provide cytogenetic data for the threatened species Gymnogeophagus setequedas, and the first record of that species collected in the Iguaçu River, within the Iguaçu National Park's area of environmental preservation, which is an unexpected occurrence for that species. We verified a diploid number of 2n = 48 chromosomes (4sm + 24st + 20a) and the presence of heterochromatin in centromeric and pericentromeric regions, which are conserved characters in the Geophagini. The multiple nucleolar organizer regions observed in G. setequedas are considered to be apomorphic characters in the Geophagini, whereas the simple 5S rDNA cistrons located interstitially on the long arm of subtelocentric chromosomes represent a plesiomorphic character. Because G. setequedas is a threatened species that occurs in lotic waters, we recommend the maintenance of undammed environments within its known area of distribution.


This paper presents a new approach which is applied for increase or improved the quality of image of the highly bad focused satellite image. The main aim of this method is to increase resolution of satellite image by using resolution algorithm. The algorithm proposed in this paper is an automatic algorithm to pre-process such bad focused or corrupted satellite images. It reduces the effect of blur and noise and composed of several successive independent processing steps which suppress noise, enhance contrast, preserves the edge and increase the resolution of the image In this work, an effective method for image contrast enhancement is presented with a mapping function, which is a mixture of global and local transformation functions that improve both the brightness and fine details of the input image. Finally various image quality metrics were calculated for evaluating the performance of the proposed approach such as PSNR, MSE,SSIM etc. Keywords— Resolution, satellite image, Contrast setting.


Spread ALOHA as an advanced multiple access technique has shown several advantages over existing conventional and spread spectrum based wireless systems. Spread ALOHA is currently recognised as a simplified wireless multiple access system which provides a higher bandwidth and may accommodate high number of users. Over the last decade, several models have been developed to predict and estimate the performance of Spread ALOHA. Various combinations of protocols have been employed to enhance performance. This paper investigates the employment of a unique spreading code in conjunction with Spread ALOHA as opposed to the common method of employing distinct spreading codes for all users on the communication channel. In this paper we have modeled and simulated a Single Code Spread ALOHA (SCSA) system together with a conventional CDMA ALOHA system in order to analyse and compare the performance of both systems. Two types of PN codes were used in the simulation models, namely m-sequence and Gold codes. The simulation results showed comparable performance of both systems, and verified the suitability of m-sequence for SCSA and Gold codes for CDMA respectively.


Many multi-microphone algorithms depend on knowing the relative acoustic transfer functions (RTFs) of the individual sound sources in the acoustic scene. However, accurate joint RTF estimation for multiple sources is a challenging problem. Existing methods to jointly estimate the RTF for multiple sources have either no satisfying performance, or, suffer from a very large computational complexity. In this paper, we propose a method for robust estimation of the individual RTFs in a multi-source acoustic scenario. The presented algorithm is based on linear algebraic concepts and therefore of lower computational complexity compared to a recently presented state-of-the-art algorithm, while having a similar performance. Experimental results are presented to demonstrate the RTF estimation performance as well as the noise reduction performance when combining the estimated RTFs with a beamformer.


This work presents the design, manufacturing process, calibration and validation of a new microwave ten-port waveguide reflectometer based on the use of neural networks. This low-cost novel device solves some of the shortcomings of previous reflectometers such as non-linear behavior of power sensors, noise presence and the complexity of the calibration procedure, which is often based on complex mathematical equations. These problems, which imply the reduction of the reflection coefficient measurement accuracy, have been overcome by using a higher number of probes than usual six-port configurations and by means of the use of Radial Basis Function (RBF) neural networks in order to reduce the influence of noise and non-linear processes over the measurements. Additionally, this sensor can be reconfigured whenever some of the eight coaxial power detectors fail, still providing accurate values in real time. The ten-port performance has been compared against a high-cost measurement instrument such as a vector network analyzer and applied to the measurement and optimization of energy efficiency of microwave ovens, with good results.


ABSTRACT
 Spinosad consisting of spinosyn A and D is derived from a naturally occurring, soil-dwelling bacterium, Saccharopolyspora spinosa. Spinosyns are neurotoxins that activate postsynaptic nicotinic acetylcholine and gamma-aminobutyric acid receptors and cause rapid excitation of the insect nervous system and ultimately exhaustion and death of the targets. During the past 30 yr, numerous spinosad-based formulations have been developed and applied to control various arthropod pests of agricultural importance. Natular T-30 is a new slow-release formulation containing 8.33% spinosad for use in mosquito larval control programs. High-level larvicidal activity, as indicated by low LC50 and LC90 levels, was demonstrated against Culex quinquefasciatus Say in the laboratory. Larvicidal efficacy was evaluated in semifield microcosms, field mesocosms, and underground storm drains. Fair performance against larval populations of Culex spp. and other mosquito species was achieved, although low efficacy during the initial few days posttreatment was encountered. This slow-release formulation will play an important role in controlling mosquitoes in persistent breeding sources.


Biomedical image registration or geometrical alignment of 2-D/2-D image data is increasingly important in diagnosis, treatment planning, computer-guided therapies and in biomedical research. In this paper we present affine registration of same modality images and different (MR & CT) modality images. Automatic registration is achieved by maximization of a similarity metric, which is mutual information (MI) or relative entropy, based on the concept of information theory. Registration based on MI usually requires an optimization technique to achieve correctly aligned images. There exist many optimization schemes, most of which are local and require a starting point. Unfortunately the functions of similarity metric used in the present problem are nonconvex and irregular and therefore global methods are often required. In this paper, we have implemented genetic algorithm as an optimization technique to overcome these problems. Experimental results show our algorithm is a robust and efficient method.


In situ synthesized MWNT-CuS hybrid nanostructures were fabricated into ultrasensitive photodetectors. Upon exposure to light illumination, the MWNT-CuS devices showed pronounced photocurrent with a response time less than 0.5 s even under zero bias. The response mechanism could be attributed to a fast charge dissociation process at the interfaces of MWNTs and CuS nanoparticles due to the formation of the Schottky junctions.


Phytosterols were analyzed in 34 different quinoa accessions, which were obtained from the same field trial. Twenty different sterols were detected, and 17 could be structurally assigned by means of gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. Sterols were quantitated in selected ion monitoring mode (GC/MS-SIM) with the novel internal standard 3-O-tert-butyldimethylsilyl-cholestanol (cholestanyl-TBDMS). GC/MS-SIM response factors of minor sterols were determined after enrichment by countercurrent chromatography. The total sterol contents varied from 120 to 180 mg/100 g of seeds, which is higher than has been described in quinoa before. This was due to the fact that Δ7-sterols (e.g., Δ7-sitosterol, spinasterol, and Δ7-avenasterol) were quantitated for the first time in quinoa and contributed ∼64% to the total sterol content. Clustering allowed distributing of the 34 different quinoa accessions into four distinct groups on the basis of the different sterol patterns.


We present the results of an experimental investigation of the effect of a magnetic field on the stability of convection in a liquid metal. A rectangular container of gallium is subjected to a horizontal temperature gradient and a uniform magnetic field is applied separately in three directions. The magnetic field suppresses the oscillation most effectively when it is applied in the vertical direction and is least efficient when applied in the direction of the temperature gradient. The critical temperature difference required for the onset of oscillations is found to scale exponentially with the magnitude of the magnetic field for all three orientations. Comparisons are made with available theory and qualitative differences are discussed.


We propose an effective method to design multibeam dielectric lens antennas. A genetic algorithm (GA) with multi-objective optimization is adopted to balance gain against sidelobe level. The lens shapes and the position of each feed are associated with chromosomes. The gain and sidelobe level are evaluated in a pareto ranking method. The method yields the distribution of the objective function values and the corresponding antenna structures.


Aiming at the main issues in the design process of Launch Vehicle, this paper applied desktop grid technology into the area of Launch Vehicle design, established collaborative design platform of Launch Vehicle based on desktop grid, designed a kind of load balance arithmetic based on comprehensive evaluation of computer load using many factors, solved the problems of resource management and model load balance in Launch Vehicle collaborative design. This research provided a new technical approach for improving the efficiency of Launch Vehicle collaborative design. This platform has been successfully applied to a kind of Launch Vehicle collaborative analysis and design. The Effectiveness and accuracy are verified.


Investigation of a group of 231 patients with viral hepatitis non-A, non-B (HNANB) revealed that the majority of cases is of the parenteral type (60.17%) and the remainder was without parenteral procedures. The course of HNANB was icteric in the majority (72.55%). On check-up examination one year after the onset of the acute stage the pathological clinical and laboratory finding, i.e. chronic liver disease still persisted in 31.6%. A follow-up of the patients in the course of six years revealed that the ratio of serious sequelae (chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis of the liver) is significant and increases with time and thus already after two years these serious diagnoses predominate over the number of patients with chronic persistent hepatitis. The chi2 test revealed that there is no sexual difference as regards the development of the chronic stage of HNANB, that the chronic stage develops in both basic types of HNANB (in the parenteral and the epidemic type) but it is significantly more frequent in the parenteral type. The development of the chronic stage is equally frequent after icteric and anicteric forms. In patients who recovered completely within one year (68.39%) the convalescence was protracted and normalization of the clinical and biochemical finding occurred later than in patients with viral hepatitis A and B, hospitalized during the same period.


Neptunian dykes containing a unique fossil assemblage were found in the Upper Devonian limestones of a reef-complex on the Dalnia Hill in the Holy Cross Mts. Fissures of the tectonic origin were opened and filled under subaqueous conditions. The conodont fauna they contain indicates that a repeated filling and re-opening of the fissures took place in the Famennian and Tournaisian. The filling of a main dyke and ,the fauna it contains correspond to a condensed sequence deposited on a submarine rule. The reconstructed outline of the area of a condensed sedimentation ,in the Famennian and Tournaisian approximately coincides with the outline of a dead Frasnian table reef. The trace of facial boundaries in the Upper Devonian and Tournaisian is to a considerable degree determined by a block-faulting simultaneous with the sedimentation. The facies pattern here presented seems to exert a 'certain influence on later, post-Carboniferous tectonics. The paleontological part of the present paper inc1udesa systematic description of 29 conodont species, mostly Tournaisian ones, which have not so far been described from the Lower Carboniferous of the Holy Cross Mts.


A regularized set operation on two solids can be separated into four steps: partition the faces of the boundaries of the two solids to impose respect, obtain an eight-way classification of the faces, create a solid according to the set operation, and reduce the representation to its minimal form. Of these four steps, the first step is the most difficult. This paper presents and proves correct a general approach for imposing respect on two boundary representations. The approach is based on a data-driven, binary form of decomposition.


Continuous treatment of polyester/cotton blended fabric samples was carried with hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) plasma on the pilot scale atmospheric pressure plasma reactor. The mixture of helium and argon was used as carrier gas for generating dielectric barrier discharge plasma. The effect of discharge power and treatment time on the water repellent properties of samples were evaluated with contact angle (CA) and spray test measurements. Spray test and CA results showed improved resistance to wetting with water. The effect of discharge conditions on the surface morphology and surface chemistry of plasma treated samples were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic analysis, respectively. The presence of Si-O-Si and Si-CH3 groups in the structure of plasma polymer deposited at the surface of P/C samples was revealed by FTIR spectroscopy. Further, structural differences in HMDSO plasma polymer deposited under different discharge conditions were reported with reference to organic/inorganic nature of plasma polymer. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011.


In this study, we propose a new mathematical model of dissolved SO3 transport in a glass melting furnace, considering secondary decomposition of sulfate. The calculated concentration of SO3 agrees with measured data near the maximum temperature area, hot spot, in an actual glass tank furnace. The effect of onset temperature of secondary decomposition, the maximum solubility of SO3 and concentration of inlet SO3 on sulfate fining is quantified by simulation.


The year 2007 is the turning point for Maritime English training at Oshima College of Maritime Technology where new trials were planned and implemented in order to make Maritime English courses more communicative and practical. This change has been hoped by the Japanese shipping industry and National Institute for Sea Training (NIST). The former operates its fleet with multinational crew and expects Japanese seafarers to play a management role with effective communication skills while the latter introduced English as a communication language of its practical onboard training several years ago. This effort is supported and funded by the Education Ministry as a "Good Practice (GP) project" and consists of two main programs. One is the introduction of English communication to college training ship that gives basic onboard training to the college students during their shore-based study. The other is development of English language self-study modules by means of e-learning. The paper will present first year trials for communicative approach in maritime English training at the Oshima college, particularly "onboard training through English" and self-learning methods with multimedia technology. Effectiveness of the combination of different learning methods will be discussed. Practical learning experience will be proposed for improving English communication skills of the college students.


The nature of the substituents present on the calix-tetrapyrrole tetra-anion ligand [[R2C(C4H2N)]4]4- (R = [-(CH2)5-]0.5, Et) determines the type of reactivity of the corresponding SmII compounds with acetylene. With R = [-(CH2)5-]0.5, dehydrogenation occurred to yield the nearly colorless dinuclear diacetylide complex [[[[-(CH2)5-]4-calix-tetrapyrrole]SmIII]2(mu-C2Li4)].THF as the only detectable reaction product. Conversely, with R = Et, acetylene coupling in addition to dehydrogenation resulted in the formation of a dimeric butatrienediyl enolate derivative [[(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)SmIII[Li[Li(thf)]2(mu-OCH=CH2)]]2(mu,eta2,eta'2-HC=C=C=CH)]. Reaction of the trivalent hydride [(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)(thf)SmIII[(mu-H)[Li(thf)]]2 or of the terminally bonded methyl derivative [(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)(CH3)SmIII[[Li(thf)]2[Li(thf)2](mu3-Cl)]] with acetylene resulted in a mixture of the carbide [[(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)SmIII]2(mu-C2Li4)].Et2O with the dimerization product [[(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)SmIII[Li[Li(thf)]2(mu3-OCH=CH2)]]2-mu,eta2,eta'2-HC=C=C=CH)]. The same reaction also yielded a third product, a trivalent complex [[(Et8-calix-tetrapyrrole)SmIII[Li(thf)2]]2], in which the macrocycle was isomerized by shifting the ring attachment of one of the four pyrrole rings.


Antigenic recombinants obtained by crossing of different human and animal influenza viruses were studied for some genetic markers and specific proteins in the resulting recombinants were analyses. In a number of cases the origin of inner virion proteins (NP and M) from one or the other parent and nonstructural NS proteins was established.


© 2012, Cambridge University Press."the thinking about others thinking of us... excites a blush" Darwin ([1872] 1965, 325) Ordinary self-consciousness When one walks into a room full of strangers one may describe oneself as "feeling self-conscious." To feel self-conscious is to be conscious of oneself as an object represented by others. It seems to me that this kind of self-consciousness is a pervasive phenomenon that is worthy of our attention. It has, however, been rather overlooked in philosophy. When philosophy has focused on self-consciousness it has been the kind of self-consciousness that characterizes our ability to think about ourselves in the first person. While that ability might be required for feeling self-conscious, the latter self-consciousness is I think a distinct and important phenomenon. In this chapter I will explore the nature of what I will call 'ordinary self-consciousness' (OSC) and offer an analysis that aims to identify its key components. My main aim is to identify, and to look closely at the phenomenon. However, I will also raise the suggestion that the phenomenon has a crucial role to play in explaining and understanding the nature of the self-conscious emotions of guilt, shame, pride, and embarrassment. Darwin has tended to be slightly mocked by psychologists of the emotions for his tendency to treat all self-conscious emotions as if they were like embarrassment, and to treat embarrassment as merely being the focus of attention of others. Surely, not all emotions that involve "the thinking about others thinking of us" excite the blush associated with embarrassment, and surely more is needed for embarrassment than just being the focus of others. Guilt, shame, pride, and hubris all involve others thinking about us, but often do not, and certainly need not, make us blush. It is of course right that not all self-conscious emotions are like embarrassment. Nevertheless, I think that Darwin might be right in thinking that a relatively simple self-conscious emotion is at the heart of the family of self-conscious emotions. It is not that the relevant emotion is an emotion of which the other self-conscious emotions are a variety. Rather it is what we might call an 'ur-self-conscious emotion' – an emotion which will enable us to understand the others, and out of which the others develop. Nor do I think the relevant emotion is embarrassment, rather it is ordinary self-consciousness. I will not, in this piece, try to account for the particular relations between ordinary self-conscious and the distinct self-conscious emotions. Rather, I will table a general hypothesis that ordinary self-consciousness is a phenomenon that has a role to play in our ability to have self-conscious emotions at all.


Failure of practical engineering systems could be induced by several correlated failure modes, and consequently reliability analysis are conducted with multiple disjointed failure regions in the system random input space. Problems with disjointed failure regions create a great challenge for existing reliability analysis approaches due to the discontinuity of the system performance function between these regions. This paper presents a new enhanced Monte Carlo simulation (EMCS) approach for reliability analysis and design considering disjointed failure regions. The ordinary Kriging method is adopted to construct surrogate model for the performance function so that Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) can be used to estimate the reliability. A maximum failure potential based sampling scheme is developed to iteratively search failure samples and update the Kriging model. Two case studies are used to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed methodology.Copyright © 2015 by ASME


BACKGROUND
In DSM-IV, the diagnostic threshold for alcohol dependence (AD) is met when a patient presents with at least 3 of 7 criteria. We have computed the predictive value for each individual DSM-IV AD criterion, and examined subtypes of AD criteria endorsement patterns and their associated severity indicators for community-dwelling AD individuals.

METHODS
We utilized data from the 2001 to 2002 National Epidemiological Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). Positive predictive values (PPV) for DSM-IV AD were computed for each of the individual criteria. Patterns of criteria endorsements were identified by latent class analysis (LCA). Sociodemographic status, age of onset and duration of AD, patterns of drinking, and drinking treatment history, were conditional on DSM criteria endorsement clusters, as indicators of the respondents' clinical severity.

RESULTS
At the individual criterion level, the single criterion with the greatest PPV was D7--"Activities given up" with approximately 95% of drinking individuals who endorsed this DSM criterion correctly diagnosed as having DSM-IV AD. In addition to D7, only D5--"Physical/Psychological problems", and D6--"Time spent" had a PPV for AD substantially >50%. The LCA of AD endorsement patterns yielded a 6-cluster solution. The most common response pattern (34.5% of those with AD) was endorsement of 5 criteria: D1--"Quit/Control," D2--"Larger/Longer," D3--"Tolerance," D4--"Withdrawal," and D5--"Physical/Psychological problems." The most severe cluster (14%) was comprised of those who were likely to endorse 7/7 criteria. Cluster 1 (8.3%) did not include an endorsement of withdrawal, despite a heavy pattern of alcohol consumption. Unmarried status was associated with more severe criteria endorsement patterns.

CONCLUSIONS
The present findings indicate a Guttman-like scaling of endorsement which yielded associations with severity for some of the concurrent indicators included in the analysis. However, severity measures did not always increase with DSM-IV AD criterion endorsement counts. Although endorsement of 6/7 or 7/7 criteria was associated with greater severity across a variety of indicators, fewer criteria were randomly associated with these measures. These data do not support the use of AD symptom counts as a phenotypic dependent variable. At least 2 extant diagnostic criteria showed relatively low PPV for AD, indicating a need for further assessment of these criteria with new symptoms or re-wording of the current symptom items.


Using MS/MS, we have identified ions at m/z 399, 421, 609.4, and 819.9 as those of tris (2-butoxyethyl) phosphate, originating in the gray rubber stoppers commonly used as closures in commercial sources of peptides and proteins. The compound is readily extracted by contact with organic solvents such as alcohol or acetic acid and even by water alone. Zinc salts of proteins are also observed, presumably from zinc oxide fillers present in the stoppers.


In order to carry out research in the field of possible existence of a sterile neutrino the laboratory based on SM-3 reactor (Dimitrovgrad, Russia) was created to search for oscillations of reactor antineutrino. The prototype of a multi-section neutrino detector with liquid scintillator volume of 350 l was installed in the middle of 2015. It is a moveable inside the passive shielding detector, which can be set at distance range from 6 to 11 meters from the reactor core. Measurements of antineutrino flux at such short distances from the reactor core are carried out with moveable detector for the first time. The measurements with full-scale detector with liquid scintillator volume of 3m3 (5x10 sections) was started only in June, 2016. The today available data is presented in the article.


A MEMS capacitive sensor is emulated on a PCB for quick validation of CMOS interface circuit. In capacitive sensor, capacitance changes with external force; to mimic similar changes, controlled magnetic field is applied on emulated PCB capacitor. The dimension optimizations of interdigital capacitor are performed using CST software. The simulated values are milled on a FR4 sheet to make PCB capacitor. The simulated capacitance values are cross checked by making measurement using LCR meter on PCB capacitor and have a deviation of 6.5%. The complete MEMS emulator consists of PCB capacitor, permanent magnet controlled by screw gauge and gauss meter. A minimum change of 50 aF achieved over a base capacitance 1.9 pF.


Animal farm by George Orwell published in 1945 seems to be a plainly written tale at a cursory glance but it with an in depth study we could fathom the scope of it. Animal farm is rich at diverse flavours all well mixed to give the perfect taste for sensibilities and intellect. Richness of literary techniques, multidimensional narratives, characters and symbolic delicacies is offered by animal farm. The literary richness is exhibited in a simple allegorical form which represents perfect craftsmanship. This paper will discuss the various vital aspects of the novel including its multidimensional themes, felicitous characters, diverse narratives and precise symbols along with the well established techniques of social settlements.
George Orwell the writer had an intimate experience of the brutal dealings during World War II, as he corresponded for BBC. He was instigated by the communism at USSR and his desire to bring to light the factual conditions and real reasons which gave birth to the novella Animal Farm. The variety of themes strikes the correct chord of thought. The novella is written in a form of political allegory based on the political and social fervour; where the characters replicate the leaders, common populace, bureaucrats and enterprise-grade at USSR during and after the Russian revolution of 1917.


Yogurt supplemented with brewer's yeast cell wall (BYC) was administered to 24 constipated female volunteers, and the effect on the stool frequencies, fecal quantities, fecal characteristics, and fecal microflora were examined. Yogurt contained 6 g of BYC per 200 ml, and the other batch without BYC served as control diet. The volunteers ingested BYC-yogurt (BYC-Y) or control yogurt (CONT) every day for one week in a crossover experiment. Stool frequencies and fecal quantities of the subjects during the entire period of BYC-Y intake were found to be significantly higher than those under the CONT diet. It was observed that the proportion of Bifidobacterium in the fecal microflora significantly increased (p < 0.05), and those of Clostridium perfringens and Streptococcus significantly decreased (p < 0.05) with the ingestion of BYC-Y. The fecal water content and levels of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in feces were also higher in subjects with BYC-Y intake than in CONT diet. Furthermore, because of the fermentation of SCFAs, BYC-Y administration significantly lowered fecal pH. A similar effect was observed with CONT intake; however, it was less evident than in the BYC-Y intake. These results indicate that the BYC-Y intake is effective to prevent the constipation. Furthermore, these findings suggest that the synergistic effects of beneficial bacteria in yogurt and BYC in improving the intestinal environment and bowel movement. These effects of BYC are related to such properties as fermentation, water-holding capacity, and swelling force in the large intestine.


Objective: To examine the effects of using cognitive reappraisal to find positive gains on caregivers' depressive symptoms, burden, and psychological well-being. Method: Ninety-six caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease were randomly assigned to receive a benefit-finding intervention or 1 of 2 treatment-as-usual conditions, namely, simplified psychoeducation (lectures only; SIM-PE) or standard psychoeducation (STD-PE). Each participant received 4 biweekly interventions of 3 hr each, over a 2-month period, at home. Results: Results showed that benefit-finding participants reported lower depressive symptoms after treatment, when compared with either SIM-PE (d = −0.46) or STD-PE (d = −0.50) participants. They also reported less role overload when compared with STD-PE participants (d = −0.46). Self-efficacy in controlling upsetting thoughts was a mediator for some of the treatment effects. Conclusion: Finding positive gains is an effective intervention to reduce depressive symptoms among Alzheimer caregivers.


Civic participation is a broad and far-reaching concept that means different things to different people and in different contexts. Botswana is highly regarded in Africa and the world as a model of democracy and good governance, a regard that is associated with the liberal democratic credentials of the country and with regular elections, which have been declared by commentators and observers to be 'free and fair'. However, despite the accolades bestowed on Botswana, civic participation in the political affairs of the country has been poor. There has been low voter turnout in most general elections since independence in 1965 and there has been a downward trend in civic engagement. This calls into question the much-celebrated democratic credentials of the country.


Bupivacaine is a local ocular anesthetic with a long duration of action when administered by retrobulbar injection. To determine the potential for the use of bupivacaine as a topical ocular anesthetic, the onset and duration of action and toxicity of various concentrations of bupivacaine were studied after instillation in rabbit eyes. The onset and duration of action were not significantly different from that of topical 0.5% proparacaine. Increasing the pH of the bupivacaine solution from 5.7 to 6.5 nearly doubled the duration of action, but the increase was not sufficient to be clinically important. Slit lamp biomicroscopic examination and scanning electron microscopy showed that bupivacaine was less toxic to the corneal epithelium than 0.5% proparacaine. Healing after keratectomy was significantly more rapid in eyes treated with 0.75% bupivacaine, compared with eyes treated with 0.5% proparacaine. These results suggest that bupivacaine may be less toxic to the corneal epithelium than proparacaine and could be clinically useful for topical ocular anesthesia, particularly if pharmacologic modifications can increase the duration of anesthesia provided by this drug.


Eyelid, orbit, and eye position asymmetry may adversely affect overall facial aesthetics. Armed with the knowledge of important periocular measures and landmarks, asymmetries can be easily identified and consideration may be given to correction or camouflage.


Xiakemycin A (XKA), a new pyranonaphthoquinone antibiotic, is isolated from the fermentation broth of Streptomyces sp. CC8-201. It exerts potent suppression of cell proliferation on some types of tumor cells. In the present study, its underlying mechanism on tumor cells has been investigated. In contrast to the specific AKT inhibitor triciribine hydrate, XKA demonstrated a weak inhibition of the AKT kinase activity in vitro. Knockdown of AKT protein levels reduced XKA-inhibitory action on prostate carcinoma PC-3 cells. Degradation of AKT protein was markedly observed in the XKA-treated PC-3 cells in comparison with triciribine hydrate treatment. There was no typical apoptosis induced by XKA in PC-3 cells. The propidium iodide-stained cells increased concentration-dependently when the cells were treated with XKA. Degradation of apoptosis-related proteins, such as p53 and PARP-1, was also detected in the XKA-treated PC-3 cells. Knockdown of p53 protein levels potentiated XKA action on non-small lung cancer A549 cells. Collectively, the mechanism of XKA potent inhibition was due to degradation of AKT protein and low endogenous p53 levels. As a leading compound, new derivatives based on XKA will be developed to precisely treat tumor cells which have high AKT and low p53 protein levels.


Optical shaking with feedback is proposed as a new method for laser cooling of atoms and molecules to high phase-space density and without the loss of particles typical of evaporative cooling.