Restrictions in nature conservations are increasing the influence of forest management. Nobel broadleaved forests are more influenced than other forests, because they are considered to be more valuable than other forest types in Skane. There has been a lack of knowledge about the amount that is set-aside for nature conservation and what types of forest that is concerned.
These are the main questions to be answered in this thesis. Moreover has the timber quality been compared between set-aside and non-set-aside areas since it affect the financial conditions for the forestry in nobel broadleved forests. The last asked question deals with the financial consequences of set-aside. The thesis is limited to Scania.
The work is based on data from forest management plans from Sodra Skogsagarna.
The aim of set-aside is too keep the biodiversity and to reach environmental political goals.
Forest land is set aside either voluntarily by the forest owner or by the government as
Governmental set-aside. Voluntarily set-aside are areas which the owner have decided to setaside. These include areas which are left without management for protection (NO) and areas where the land needs maintenance too keep the biodiversity (NS). Governmental set-aside areas are nature reserves and other kinds of reserves where the owner has been compensated by the government.
The result shows that biotope set-aside is the most common of the official set-aside.
Voluntarily set aside is in total volume, 11.5 % of the beech, 26.6 % of the oak and 30.7 % of the other nobel tree species is set-aside. The quality of the timber in the set-aside stands is lower than in stands without protection.
To estimate the financial consequences of the set-asides for nature conservation, different management alternatives was applied for beech respectively oak. The volumes and
assortments of the timber quality was the base data for the economical calculations. The
present values were greatest in the best quality and highest site index.
The lowest cost for setaside was in the lowest site index with lowest site index. The majority of the set-aside areas had a low timber quality and was therefore more economically favourable to set aside than stands with higher timber quality.


This paper draws on the available literature, as well as unpublished data, to reconstruct the often chaotic early childhood experiences of homeless adolescents and to describe the problematic ways of relating that may result from these troubled life histories. We also examine the processes by which homeless youth become separated from their families, and we make connections between socio-emotional problems on the street and early neglect and abuse at home. The risk-amplification model is offered as a theoretically compelling explanation of the adolescent homeless experience, high rates of victimization on the streets, and mental health problems that arise out of these circumstances. Finally, we present a promising approach for intervening with homeless youth, one that explicitly targets this cycle of ineffective interpersonal relationships.


Temporal networks are data structures for representing and reasoning about temporal constraints on activities. Many kinds of temporal networks have been defined in the literature, differing in their expressiveness. The simplest kinds of networks have polynomial algorithms for determining their consistency or controllability, but corresponding algorithms for more expressive networks (e.g., Those that include observation nodes or disjunctive constraints) have so far been unavailable. However, recent work has introduced a new approach to such algorithms based on translating temporal networks into Timed Game Automata (TGAs) and then using off-the-shelf software to synthesize execution strategies -- or determine that none exist. So far, that approach has only been used on Simple Temporal Networks with Uncertainty, for which polynomial algorithms already exist. This paper extends the temporal-network-to-TGA approach to accommodate observation nodes and disjunctive constraints. Insodoing the paper presents, for the first time, sound and complete algorithms for checking the dynamic controllability of these more expressive networks. The translations also highlight the theoretical relationships between various kinds of temporal networks and the TGA model. The new algorithms have immediate applications in the workflow models being developed to automate business processes, including in the health-care domain.


Explants from embryonic chick tectum maintained in culture for at least two weeks contained presynaptic dendrites, characterised by focal presynaptic specialisations in addition to the usual fine structural features of dendrites. The explants also contained bouton-like structures with both pre- and postsynaptic specialisations, interpreted as the terminal parts and appendages of the presynaptic dendrites. The dendrites and their appendages engaged in various serial synapses including triplet and reciprocal synapses. Although it is known that cells which do not normally have presynaptic dendrites may be induced to develop them under abnormal developmental or pathological conditions, the development of presynaptic dendrites in the present material is more likely to be a manifestation of organotypic development, since the adult avian tectum normally contains cells with presynaptic dendrites.


A novel reconfigurable microwave photonic filter structure with positive and negative coefficients is proposed and demonstrated. The filter structure comprises two arrayed waveguide gratings, a custom-made fiber array, high-dispersion fibres, and a reconfigurable opto-VLSI processor. Positive and negative filter weights can flexibly be synthesised to realise arbitrary transfer functions. Experimental results are presented, which demonstrate the principle of the proposed filter structure.


Potential output and the related concept of output gap play a central role in the macroeconomic policy interventions and evaluations. In particular, the output gap, defined as the difference between actual and potential output, conveys useful information on the cyclical position of a given economy.
The aim of this paper is to propose estimates of the Italian potential GDP based on structural VAR models. With respect to other techniques, like the univariate filters (i.e. the Hodrick-Prescott filter), the estimates obtained through the SVAR methodology are free from end-of-sample problems, thus resulting particularly useful for short-term analysis.
In order to provide information on the economic fluctuations, data coming from business surveys are considered in the model. This kind of data, given their cyclical profile, are particularly useful for detrending purposes, as they allow to include information concerning the business cycle activity.
To assess the estimate reliability, an end-of-sample revision evaluation is performed. The ability of the cyclical GDP component to detect business cycle turning points is then performed by comparing the estimated output gaps, extracted with different detrending methods, over the expansion and recession phases of the Italian business cycle chronology.


The bias of dark matter halos and galaxies is a crucial quantity in many cosmological analyses. In this work, using large cosmological simulations, we explore the halo mass function and halo bias within cosmic voids. For the first time to date, we show that they are scale dependent along the void profile, and provide a predictive theoretical model of both the halo mass function and halo bias inside voids, recovering for the latter a 1% accuracy against simulated data. These findings may help shed light on the dynamics of halo formation within voids and improve the analysis of several void statistics from ongoing and upcoming galaxy surveys.


We evaluated the quality of guidelines on thromboprophylaxis in orthopaedic surgery by examining how they adhere to validated methodological standards in their development. A structured review was performed for guidelines that were published between January 2005 and April 2013 in medical journals or on the Internet. A pre-defined computerised search was used in MEDLINE, Scopus and Google to identify the guidelines. The AGREE II assessment tool was used to evaluate the quality of the guidelines in the study. Seven international and national guidelines were identified. The overall methodological quality of the individual guidelines was good. 'Scope and Purpose' (median score 98% interquartile range (IQR)) 86% to 98%) and 'Clarity of Presentation' (median score 90%, IQR 90% to 95%) were the two domains that received the highest scores. 'Applicability' (median score 68%, IQR 45% to 75%) and 'Editorial Independence' (median score 71%, IQR 68% to 75%) had the lowest scores. These findings reveal that although the overall methodological quality of guidelines on thromboprophylaxis in orthopaedic surgery is good, domains within their development, such as 'Applicability' and 'Editorial Independence', need to be improved. Application of the AGREE II instrument by the authors of guidelines may improve the quality of future guidelines and provide increased focus on aspects of methodology used in their development that are not robust.


Two cases of squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus of limited extent were treated one by local excision and the other by segmental resection with end-to-end esophageal anastomosis. The former, an intramucous tumor, recurred seven years after surgery; the latter, infiltrating the muscular wall, recurred after 18 months. It is concluded that local excision or segmental resection for localised squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus is justified only in poor-risk patients and that failures are due to intramural extension of the disease. It is also suggested that the progression of squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus is silent and slow when the tumor is still confined to the mucosa and that it becomes aggressive and swift when the wall of the viscus is invaded.


Off-chip serial buses are the most common interfaces between sensors and processing elements in embedded systems. Due to their length, these connections dissipate a large amount of energy, contributing significantly to the total consumption of the system. The error-tolerant feature of many sensor applications can be leveraged to reduce this energy contribution by means of an approximate serial data encoding. In this paper, we propose one such encoding called Serial T0, particularly, effective for image sensors data. By exploiting the correlation among pixels colors, Serial T0 significantly reduces the energy dissipation on a serial connection, with minimal impact on image quality, and extremely low codec overheads. Moreover, it allows runtime quality reconfiguration, and can be integrated with standard serial protocols (SPI, I2C, CSI-2, and so on) without requiring modifications to legacy peripherals. We show that Serial T0 is superior to both accurate and approximate state-of-the-art encodings, not only in terms of pure energy saving, but also when combined with realistic error tolerant applications (OCR and face recognition). In the best case, the energy on the bus can be reduced of more than 75% with less than 4% maximum error on the decoded data.


Article history: Received on: 21/11/2015 Revised on: 20/12/2015 Accepted on: 09/01/2016 Available online: 19/02/2016 The major gut microflora colonizing the hind gut of higher termites, include morphologically diverse microorganisms. The objective of this study was to identify by morphological and biochemical methods of the antibiotic producing microorganisms in the gut of Macrotermes michaelseni. Macrotermes michaelseni harbor dense population of actinobacteria, which are known to produce a wide variety of secondary metabolites including many commercially important enzymes and antibiotics. In this study the Macrotermes michaelseni were collected from actively growing mound in Maseno University compound. Hind gut homogenates were serially diluted in sterile basal salt solution (10 4 , 10 5 and 10 6 ) then pasteurized in a hot water bath at a temperature of 63 °C for 30 minutes and finally transferred onto plates containing the solid media MM7 and MM7 + glucose + Asparagine. The isolates obtained were different morphologically. Gram stain determination showed that majority of the isolates had gram negative bacteria. Indole, Citrate utilization and Triple sugar iron tests were carried out on the nine out of the seventeen isolates that showed particularly strong inhibition patterns. Biochemical tests carried out confirmed that termite gut harbour different additional indigenous microorganisms where Salmonella paratyphi, Shigella species and Shigella flexneri were identified.


Abstract Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) with tailored properties are needed to meet consumer demands regarding the use of eco-compatible biobased polymeric materials and relevant plastic items. Inserting 3-hydroxvalerate (3HV) monomeric units in PHA biopolyesters results in poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyvalerate] (PHBHV) copolyesters aimed at their conversion into production of biodegradable eco-friendly plastic items. As inexpensive novel precursor substrate structurally related to 3HV, a mixture of odd-numbered carboxylic acids with 9–17 carbon atoms was produced by oxidative ozonolysis of alkenes. This mixture was successfully applied for biomediated PHBHV production by Cupriavidus necator. Applying this mixture as carbon substrate, a molar 3HV fraction exceeding 0.12 was obtained. The isolated copolyesters featured a low degree of crystallinity, narrow molar mass distribution, and low melting temperatures. These properties should make application of the novel 3HV-precursors interesting for large-scale production of easily processable copolyesters.


Invasive fungal infections are a major problem in immunocompromised patients. The recent expansion of antifungal drug research has occurred because there is a critical need for new antifungal agents to treat these life-threatening invasive infections. The overview of the development of antifungal therapy which is provided herein reflects the increased interest in this very special area of infectious diseases. Although we have newer, less toxic, antifungal agents that are available for clinical use, their clinical efficacy in some invasive fungal infections, such as aspergillosis and fusariosis, is not optimal. Thus, intense efforts in antifungal drug discovery are still needed to develop more promising and effective antifungal agents for use in the clinical arena.


Vitamin D insufficiency is common in athletes and may lower physical performance. Many cross-sectional studies associate vitamin D status with physical performance in athletes; however, there have been few prospective randomized controlled trials with adequate statistical power to test this relationship, and none in the southern hemisphere. Thus, a prospective double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled intervention trial was conducted involving 57 professional rugby union players in New Zealand. Participants were randomized to receive 50,000 IU of cholecalciferol (equivalent to 3,570 IU/day) or placebo once every two weeks over 11-12 weeks. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations and physical performance were measured at baseline, weeks 5-6, and weeks 11-12. Mean (SD) serum 25(OH)D concentrations for all participants at baseline was 94 (18) nmol/L, with all players above 50 nmol/L. Vitamin D supplementation significantly increased serum 25(OH)D concentrations compared to placebo, with a 32 nmol/L difference between groups at 11-12 weeks (95% CI, 26-38; p < 0.001). Performance in five of the six tests at study completion, including the primary outcome variable of 30-m sprint time, did not differ between the vitamin D supplemented and placebo groups (p > 0.05). Performance on the weighted reverse-grip chin up was significantly higher in players receiving vitamin D compared with placebo, by 5.5 kg (95% CI, 2.0-8.9; p = 0.002). Despite significantly improving vitamin D status in these professional rugby union players, vitamin D supplementation had little impact on physical performance outcomes. Thus, it is unlikely that vitamin D supplementation is an ergogenic aid in this group of athletes.


Magnetic devices with a cloth structure have a plain shape, large inductance value and large current capacity. By introducing the idea of divided windings, we realized a cloth-transfer which has an arbitrary winding ratio and small stray capacitance between the windings. In order to improve the characteristics of the device, we tried to use both annealed amorphous wire and thinner wire in the device core. The permeability of the amorphous wire is controlled by the tension during annealing. It was suggested that improvement of the frequency characteristics can be achieved by decreasing the wire diameter.


Combining a dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cell for hydrogen production based on a SnO2 photoanode in series with a dye-sensitized photovoltaic solar cell using a TiO2 photoanode yields a tandem system for the generation of H2 from hydroquinone using only light energy and no applied electrical bias. To target distinct portions of the solar spectrum, a more blue-absorbing free base porphyrin and a more red-absorbing Si phthalocyanine chromophore are used at the two photoelectrodes. With incorporation of a suitable water oxidation catalyst, a similar approach could enable tandem photochemical water splitting without the need for p-type semiconductors.


Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA

LIN28A and LIN28B are RNA-binding protein paralogs expressed in embryonic stem cells and in early developing tissues. Through blocking the terminal processing of let-7 miRNAs and regulating the translation of a number of mRNA binding targets, LIN28 controls an array of targets that mediate proliferation, pluripotency, differentiation and metabolism. While highly expressed in the early embryos, the levels of LIN28A/B are downregulated as differentiation and development proceed. However, aberrant overexpression of LIN28 is often observed in human malignancies especially those with poor prognosis. We have demonstrated that LIN28 promotes cellular transformation in vitro, yet it is unknown how LIN28 regulates tumorigenesis in vivo. Here, we investigate the role of LIN28 in colorectal cancer (CRC) in humans and in mouse models. We first investigated the status of LIN28A/B in 1000 CRC patients and observed 35-60% of the cancer samples express LIN28A and/or LIN28B. Furthermore, we generated intestinal-specific LIN28 overexpressing mice, and observed intestinal adenoma as well as invasive adenocarcinoma that highly resemble the histology of human CRCs. Moreover, in Apcmin/+ animals, additional LIN28 expression significantly increased tumor incidence and accelerated disease onset, as their tumors are poorly differentiated and more invasive compared with Apcmin/+ tumors. Together, our study shows that LIN28 drives intestinal tumorigenesis and further promotes tumor progression in vivo. CRC is one of the major contributors to cancer-related mortality; however, current mouse models seldom progress to later stages of the disease, which greatly impedes efforts to developing more effective therapies. Based on the knowledge gained from this research, we hope to provide novel insights into designing therapeutics targeting late-stage CRC.

Citation Format: Sarah Schwitalla, Ho-Chou Tu, Srinivas Viswanathan, Hao Zhu, Zhirong Qian, Samar Shah, Shuji Ogino, George Q. Daley. The pluripotency factor LIN28 promotes colorectal tumorigenesis and tumor progression. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 2975. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-2975


Purpose The mass and uncontrolled spreading of infections with the SARS-CoV-2 virus resulted in significant disruptions affecting most areas of the social and economic life all over the world. The most important changes concerned problems related to functioning of health care systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical consequences associated with the COVID-19 pandemic for patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer, treated at our centre.Methods The study participants were patients first time diagnosed with breast cancer, treated between January 2019 and March 2021, who were provided any type of cancer treatment at our centre. The study determined the grade of clinical and pathological progress of the disease and types of cancer treatment applied in patients.Results 2863 patients in total were included in the analysis. The number of hospitalised patients was 1228 (1123 treated surgically, 105 receiving conservative treatment) in 2019, 1318 (1206 and 112 patients, respectively) in 2020, and 317 (288 and 29 patients, respectively) in 2021. Conclusions Despite many hazards associated with the new epidemiological situation, we were able to maintain the continuous operation of our centre. We have achieved a measurable success, and even managed to increase the number of treated breast cancer patients.


This study first approaches the history of the observer's gaze, that is, as observers, we are forming or constructing our way of visualizing moving images. Secondly, it reaffirms the importance and need of resistance of the teaching / learning of Art as a compulsory curricular component for high school. Finally, the third part reports an experience with video art production in a class of first year high school students, establishing an interrelationship between theory and practice, that is, we study video art content to reach the production of videos, aiming as a final result, the art videos created by the students of the Reference Center in Environmental Education Forest School Prof. Eidorfe Moreira High School. The first and second stages of this research share a theoretical part of the Master 's thesis, Making films on the Island: audiovisual production as an escape line in Cotijuba, periphery of Belem, completed in 2013.


Activation of the phenolic pathway is known to be part of a defense response against cell wall-derived elicitors from pathogens. Many examples of a defense response by increasing the synthesis of phenolic compound against the elicitor were demonstrated in the past, but the elicitor structure has so far been poorly characterized. Our results indicate that a disaccharide fraction containing the following structure: alpha-D-mannopyranosyl (1-->2)alpha/beta-D-glucopyranosyl and alpha-D-mannopyranosyl (1-->x) inositol, isolated from Fusarium oxysporum L., promotes rapid and transient phenylalanine ammonia lyase activity in Rubus fructicosus cells at nanomolar concentration. The disaccharides were isolated by size-exclusion chromatography directly from extracts obtained by alkaline treatment of F. oxysporum mycelium. Their structure was determined by 500-MHz-1H-NMR spectroscopy combined with methylation analysis and fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry.


Sixty-four representative samples of the 20 cm of shallow soil were taken in an Oxic Dystrudept of the Eastern Mountain Ridge foothills (Casanare, Colombia), on a 58-hectare farm using a nested sampling of four levels. The measured properties correspond to those that determine crop yields. The principal components technique was used for data analysis. Thus, we generated a variable to classify soil with a comprehensive approach called First Principal Component (PC1), which explained 78% of the variation found in the data of the properties that affect specifically crop production. PC1 proved to be a regionalized variable and interpolated via Kriging on the map of the farm. The positive and negative values of this new variable (PC1) determined the UMH for the establishment of commercial crops in the farm.


Recent molecular cytogenetic analysis of uterine leiomyoma cell lines with chromosome 12 aberrations has indicated that their chromosome 12 breakpoints map between linkage locus D12S8 and the CHOP gene. Here, we report fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and molecular cloning studies of the chromosome 12 breakpoints in a panel of seven such uterine leiomyoma cell lines; five with the frequently observed t(12; 14)(q15;q24), one with t(12;15)(q15;q24), and one with ins(12;11)(q14;q21 qter). Directional chromosome walking studies starting from D12S8 and the CHOP gene resulted in the isolation of a relatively large number of overlapping YAC clones, including Y5355 (465 kbp), Y7673 (360 kbp), and Y9899 (275 kbp). In total, the inserts of these three YAC clones span an 800 kbp long and presumably contiguous stretch of human genomic DNA. All chromosome 12 breakpoints of the uterine leiomyoma cell lines studied were found by FISH analysis to be mapping within a 445 kbp subfragment of this region and, furthermore, to be dispersed over a DNA region which is at least 150 kbp in size. The chromosome 12 breakpoint of t(12;14)(q15;q24) in uterine leiomyoma cell line LM‐30.1/SV40 was tentatively mapped within the 60 kbp region between YAC clones Y9899 and Y5355. From this 60 kbp region and close to sequencetagged site RM99, we isolated probe pRM 118‐A, which showed in Southern blot analysis that it detected a rearrangement in LM‐30.1/SV40 DNA, and generated restriction maps of the normal and rearranged genomic DNA regions detected with this probe. Finally, we molecularly cloned part of one of those rearranged DNA fragments using a vectorette‐PCR‐based technique and demonstrated that it consisted of 12q13‐q15 sequences fused to DNA sequences derived from 14q23‐24 and most likely represented the translocation junction on der(14) in LM‐30.1/SV40 cells. Our studies strongly suggest that we have identified and isolated the uterine leiomyoma cluster region of chromosome 12 breakpoints, which we designate ULCR12, and molecularly cloned and characterized the der(14) translocation junction in cells derived from a uterine leiomyoma carrying the frequently observed t(12;14)(q15;q24).


A general practitioner-staffed direct access telephone advice line was made available for 30 minutes every morning at an inner-London practice to advise patients with urgent problems. Users valued the service, but the impact on surgery consultations was too small for this to be advocated as an alternative to emergency consultations.


The interactions of small organic molecules with a recently designed molecular tweezer have been modeled using density functional theory approaches. The weak values of the complexation constants of the different compounds make the computations particularly challenging. Nevertheless, the selected theoretical approach is shown to be able to detect several outliers that have been then reexamined by experimental means. The autoassociation, as cyclic dimers, of two carboxylic acids is shown to significantly disturb the 1:1 ligand@host equilibrium constants. Indeed, in CH2Cl2 solutions, the complexes mainly present a 2:1 ligand@host structure. This investigation is a further step toward the rational design of molecular tweezers.


The paper deals with the study of the influence of the seeds ageing and calibration on the percent of the raised plants at the main hybrids cultivated in Transylvania. The age of seed is an important factor which depends on the capacity of germination and seed. During seed aging, significant changes occur from the accumulation of substances inhibiting growth, metabolic breakdown of reserve substances, proteins and lipids distortion, while abnormal increase germs, reduce germination ability and can be reached in Finally the death of all germs. Seed size expressed usually by 1000 grain weight (MMB) that are directly related, is of particular importance to agricultural practice as compared to the seed medium and especially large, having a higher content of nutrients and better embryo develop, manage to give seedlings a better start, with a higher power to travel with a rooting, growth and better development. The correlation between the indications established through laboratory analyses and field raising represents an important part of the control of the seeds vigour. The raising uniformity was made through the daily counting of the plants raised for three days and was expressed through the percent of the plants raised every day, at those three experimental hybrids from four calibrations of the seed derived from different years of obtaining. Research has been conducted in the experimental field of Jucu Research Station during the years 2007-2008, and biologic material taken into study was created at SDCA Turda from hybrids that were in production and on perspective hybrids that were in production and on perspective , namely: Turda 201-trilinear hybrid, semiearly, created at SCDA Turda, group FAO 340, Turda 200 double hybrid, early, registered in 1976, reinscribed in The Official Cataloque in 2000 and Turda 165-trilinear hybrid, early, belonging to group FAO 270. The obtained results show that the ageing of corn seeds and their caliber may influence the raising rhythm of the plants at the hybrids cultivated through the production conditions, maturation and keeping from the production year until the insemination year. .


In this paper, we propose a space-time least-squares isogeometric method to solve parabolic evolution problems, well suited for high-degree smooth splines in the space-time domain. We focus on the linear solver and its computational efficiency: thanks to the proposed formulation and to the tensor-product construction of space-time splines, we can design a preconditioner whose application requires the solution of a Sylvester-like equation, which is performed efficiently by the fast diagonalization method. The preconditioner is robust w.r.t. spline degree and mesh size. The computational time required for its application, for a serial execution, is almost proportional to the number of degrees-of-freedom and independent of the polynomial degree. The proposed approach is also well-suited for parallelization.


The non-invasive detection of breast tumor in vivo and in situ was first investigated by FTIR fiber optics technique. The experiment result indicates that there are significant differences between the spectra of skin outside breast tumor and normal breast tissues in the peak position and relative intensity. The in vivo FTIR spectroscopy can provide the information concerning whether the suspected tissue is cancerous or not. This recent result means that in situ FTIR spectroscopic method with fiber optics can be developed as a non-invasive, rapid and in vivo technique for early breast tumor detection.


SARS-CoV-2, appeared in winter 2019, in Wuhan State of Hubei Province in China, which has already marched more than 210 countries with 5,418,496 cases and 344,206 fatalities. Through an ongoing unprecedented global public health effort, the pandemic is now slowing down slightly after 6 months of its original occurrence. Until now, the media coverage is incredibly accurate and has been providing worldwide pictures to enrich scientific data. As of May 25, 2019, there are more than 21000 citations related to SARS-CoV-2 in the medical literature according to the WHO on global research on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, among these citations, only 5-10% are related to laboratory experimental data. This review is aimed to analyze the unique laboratory experiment aspects of SARS-CoV-2, to describe the epidemiology, threat to pediatric and women health, mutational intimidation, diagnostics and treatment of the SARS-CoV-2 in regard to future epidemics, and to use the SARS-CoV-2 experience as a model for future pandemics.


Objectives : This study focused on developing high performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) quantitative analysis method for compound D, a major anti-inflammatory compound in Zingiber cassumunar extract. In addition, the amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) technique was applied to explore the genetic differentiation relating to the yield of compound D. Methods: HPTLC method validation included linearity, precisions, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ) and robustness was performed according to ICH guideline. For genetic differentiation in Z. cassumunar , AFLP method was applied to this study. Results: Linearity of the developed method showed a regression coefficient at 0.9958 and covered concentration range of 84 - 420 ng/band. The precisions were less than 2% (RSD). The accuracy demonstrated the average recovery value of 98.31%. The LOD and LOQ were 10 and 40 ng.  The results on robustness of the method were also less than 2% (RSD). When applied this method to determine the amounts of compound D in Z. cassumunar rhizome extracts from 17 locations in Thailand, the results indicated some correlation between amount of compound D and major genetic differentiation in Z. cassumunar. Conclusion: The validated HPTLC method has high potential in application of quality control of compound D in raw material of different variety of Z. cassumunar rhizomes, and its herbal pharmaceutical products.


Experimental evidence shows that there is a feedback between cell shape and cell motion. How this feedback impacts the collective behavior of dense cell monolayers remains an open question. We investigate the effect of a feedback that tends to align the cell crawling direction with cell elongation in a biological tissue model. We find that the alignment interaction promotes nematic patterns in the fluid phase that eventually undergo a nonequilibrium phase transition into a quasihexagonal solid. Meanwhile, highly asymmetric cells do not undergo the liquid-to-solid transition for any value of the alignment coupling. In this regime, the dynamics of cell centers and shape fluctuation show features typical of glassy systems.


Implementing a Prolog Runtime System in a language like Java which provides its own automatic memory management and safety features such as built--in index checking and array initialization requires a consistent approach to memory management based on a simple ultimate goal: minimizing total memory management time and extra space involved. The total memory management time for Jinni is made up of garbage collection time both for Java and Jinni itself. Extra space is usually requested at Jinni's garbage collection. This goal motivates us to find a simple and practical garbage collection algorithm and implementation for our Prolog engine. In this thesis we survey various algorithms already proposed and offer our own contribution to the study of garbage collection by improvements and optimizations for some classic algorithms. We implemented these algorithms based on the dynamic array algorithm for an all--dynamic Prolog engine (JINNI 2000). The comparisons of our implementations versus the originally proposed algorithm allow us to draw informative conclusions on their theoretical complexity model and their empirical effectiveness.


Herbs have been used permanently as the major source of medicine. Medicinal plants are important by secondary metabolites such as Silymarin, it is a mixture of flavonoids. Silybum marianum is a safe herb, rare reactions were reported if the dosage is high. There are medical confirmations for anticarcinogenic and hepatoprotective activities of Milk thistle. Silybum marianum is used vigorously in cirrhosis, prostate, skin and breast cancer, cervical cells and kidney ailments. This review is about the Phytochemistry and Ethnomedicinal uses of Silybum marianum.


Angiotensin II (ANG II) promotes vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) growth, stimulates Ca(2+)-calmodulin (CaM)-dependent kinase II (CaMKII), and activates cytosolic Ca(2+)-dependent phospholipase A2 (cPLA2), which releases arachidonic acid (AA). ANG II also generates H2O2 and activates Akt, which have been implicated in ANG II actions in VSMC. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship of these signaling molecules to Akt activation in rat aortic VSMC. ANG II increased Akt activity, as measured by its phosphorylation at serine-473. ANG II (200 nM)-induced Akt phosphorylation was decreased by extracellular Ca2+ depletion and calcium chelator EGTA and inhibitors of CaM [N-(6-aminohexyl)-5-chloro-1-naphthalenesulfonamide] and CaMKII [(2-[N-(2-hydroxyethyl)]-N-(4-me-thoxybenzenesulfonyl)]amino-N-(4-chlorocinnamyl)-N-methylbenzyl-amine)]. cPLA2 inhibitor pyrrolidine-1, antisense oligonucleotide, and retroviral small interfering RNA also attenuated ANG II-induced Akt phosphorylation. AA increased Akt phosphorylation, and AA metabolism inhibitor 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid (ETYA) blocked ANG II- and AA-induced Akt phosphorylation (199.03 +/- 27.91% with ANG II and 110.18 +/- 22.40% with ETYA + ANG II; 405.00 +/- 86.22% with AA and 153.97 +/- 63.26% with ETYA + AA). Inhibitors of lipoxygenase (cinnamyl-3,4-dihydroxy-alpha-cyanocinnamate) and cytochrome P-450 (ketoconazole and 17-octadecynoic acid), but not cyclooxygenase (indomethacin), attenuated ANG II- and AA-induced Akt phosphorylation. Furthermore, 5(S)-, 12(S)-, 15(S)-, and 20-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids and 5,6-, 11,12-, and 14,15-epoxyeicosatrienoic acids increased Akt phosphorylation. Catalase inhibited ANG II-increased H2O2 production but not Akt phosphorylation. Oleic acid, which also increased H2O2 production, did not cause Akt phosphorylation. These data suggest that ANG II-induced Akt activation in VSMC is mediated by AA metabolites, most likely generated via lipoxygenase and cytochrome P-450 consequent to AA released by CaMKII-activated cPLA2 and independent of H2O2 production.


Several pathophysiological mechanisms have been proposed in the development of pregnancy complications, including endothelial dysfunction, an inflammatory pathway and oxidative stress. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the correlation between proinflammatory cytokines TNF-alpha, IL-6 and dual cytokine IL-10 in the mother's peripheral blood and blood pressure, risk of preeclampsia and low birth weight in gestational diabetes (GDM). We observed 40 women with GDM divided into a gestational hypertension group (n=20) and comparison group (n=20) with normal blood pressure. We found a significant positive correlation between TNF-alpha; IL-6; IL-10 levels and systolic blood pressure (SBP) in the second trimester (p<0.001; p<0.001; p<0.001); the third trimester (p<0.001; p<0.001; p<0.05). We also proved correlations for diastolic blood pressure (DBP) during the second; third trimester (p<0.001; p<0.001; p<0.001); (p<0.001; p<0.001; p<0.0015). We demonstrated a statistically significant positive association between high TNF-alpha group and preeclampsia risk in the third trimester (p=0.04). We also determined the negative correlation in the second trimester between birth weight and TNF-alpha; IL-6, IL-10 levels (p<0.05; p<0.001; p<0.001). To conclude, our data highlight the importance of cytokines TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-10 in blood pressure regulation. In addition high levels of TNF-alpha have been associated with increased risk of preeclampsia. We found a significant negative correlation between levels of TNF-alpha, IL-6, IL-10 and birth weight.


A multiband GLRT-LQ (generalized likelihood ratio test-linear quadratic), MBGLRT-LQ, detector is derived for the coherent radar target detection against a compound-Gaussian clutter background. This scheme is an extension to the multiband case of the asymptotically optimum detector (AOD) of Conte et al. (see IEEE Trans. on AES, vol.31, no.2, p.617-24, 1995), also derived under the name of GLRT-LQ by Gini (see IEE Proc. RSN, vol.144, no.1, p.39-48). The proposed multiband version of the algorithm shows two main advantages with respect to the original single band algorithm: (i) for the adaptive implementation, it requires a much smaller area of homogeneous clutter echoes to estimate the covariance matrix of the interference; (ii) it provides an optimum processing of the radar echoes when the radar operates in frequency agility, as the ECCM strategy. A closed form performance analysis is provided for the MBGLRT-LQ detector, which is used to compare it to the single band version.


In this work, I present a new matrix-based model for biological stage-structured populations (SSPs) that greatly improves the characterisation of variation in development times by tracking individual histories within each stage. Neglecting such heterogeneity has historically limited the realism and predictive performance of most SSP modelling approaches. The key idea of the new model is to augment a classic Lefkovitch matrix with stage-specific integral projection models (IPMs) that track within-stage dynamics. This new "integral projection Lefkovitch matrix" (IPLM) model drastically reduces stage-duration errors; is robust to stage distribution instabilities arising from perturbations; permits parsimonious parameterisation with random variables or time-varying covariates; and can be fitted, even when within-stage development is unmeasurable, using developmental cohort data. By using maturation-time (and not size) data, our methods greatly improve the precision of stage-structured IPMs whenever size is a poor, or unavailable, predictor of stage duration. This scenario is ubiquitous in ecology: egg (e.g. fish, bird, insects) and exoskeleton (e.g. Ecdysozoa) dimensions often remain relatively constant, and more appropriate developmental metrics can be too expensive or difficult to collect routinely. Furthermore, by incorporating a combination of laboratory and field data, Bayesian methods permit the estimation of cryptic parameters in natura, such as the strength of regulatory density-dependent mechanisms or environmental stochasticity in vital rates. Thus, by assimilating time series data – even of incomplete life-cycles – IPLMs permit upscaling from the laboratory to the field. Initially, the identifiability of IPLM parameters is studied with simulated data from marked cohort studies where individual qualities correlate maturation-times. Results demonstrate that accurate sojourn-time distributions are reproduced even from small samples. Next, a temperature-dependent model is fitted to Culicoides (biting midge) unmarked laboratory cohort data to assess the relative role of transient and asymptotic dynamics in constant and seasonal climates. Results demonstrate that the traditional negligence of individual developmental heterogeneity affects asymptotic dynamic metrics in various ways and greatly underestimates the importance (both amplitude and duration) of transient dynamics. Three applications/extensions of the Culicoides IPLM are studied. First, the fitted model is used to assess the validity and robustness of linearity assumptions of classic degree-day insect development models. Results show that linearity only provides a robust developmental model over extremely narrow temperature intervals. Secondly, projections of adult densities are used to assess transient and asymptotic dynamics in the basic reproduction ratio (R 0) of bluetongue following the initialisation of a hypothetical adulticide-based vector control program. Results show that R 0 drops suddenly following a reduction in adult survival. But this is only a transitory effect when the vector population growth rate is not brought below one. Whether or not, and for how long, a given adulticide can maintain R 0 < 1 is temperature dependent, a result that has implications for integrated vector management. Finally, the Culicoides IPLM is used to construct a state-space model (SSM) for analysing typical multi- annual time series data from vector abundance studies. With simulated time-series of weekly adult flight-trap data, the SSM is used to explore the identifiability of key cryptic parameters in natura, including the level of environmental stochasticity in mortality; the strength of density dependent mortality among larvae; the initial population density; and the expected efficiency of flight-traps. Results show that when flight-trap efficiency is known, the parameters are identifiable to a high level of precision using simulated weekly trap counts over three years. However, when trying to estimate flight-trap efficiency, a very strong correlation with the density- dependence parameter is detected, suggesting that additional data sources are required to calibrate the model for epidemiological purposes. Applications for many state-structured populations - particularly those where cryptic developmental status has to date prevented study with IPMs - are foreseen in fields including ecological forecasting, mechanistic niche modelling, demographic compensation studies or eco-evolutionary analysis. Diverse applications are expected for conservation, agricultural, epidemiological or theoretical purposes. (Resume d'auteur)


The purpose of this present investigation is to evaluate the moisturizing effects of cosmetic creams containing extract of Moringa oleifera leaves (Sohajana) by non-invasive bioengineering techniques. The study was conducted during the winter months (October to January). A total of eleven healthy male volunteers with ages between 20 and 35 years contributed to accomplish this single blind study. The active cream and base were applied twice daily to the face (cheeks) for a period of 12 weeks. The instrumental measurements were carried out with tewameter and corneometer under a draught-free room, with controlled temperature (18.0 to 20.6°C) and relative humidity (55 to 65%). The results recommended that the assessed outcome was very well accepted, and improved skin hydration and skin barrier function by the test product. There was a significant decrease in skin transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and increase in skin hydration achieved when ANOVA and paired t-sample test were applied.

 Key words: Moringa oleifera, extract, cream, corneometer, tewameter, moisturizer


In recent years, considerable advances have been made in treating primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH). These have provided a series of therapeutic options, ranging from the oral administration of calcium channel blockers to the continuous infusion of prostacyclin and/or lung transplantation. These therapeutic advances have highlighted the need for the better understanding of etiology and pathogenesis. Among the key uncertainties, the following are defined as leading uncertainties: (1) the nature of the initiating lesion; (2) the shared pathogenetic mechanisms that culminate in the pathologic lesions of PPH; (3) the molecular genetic bases for familial PPH and for susceptibility to PPH; (4) understanding of the obliterative-proliferative occlusive process in the small muscular pulmonary arteries; and (5) redefinition of "primary" and "secondary," ie, a revised nomenclature of pulmonary hypertension. A revised classification based on etiology is presented.


This paper provides an overview of student activities during 2010 summer and beyond in projects titled Aerial Imaging and Remote Sensing for Precision Agriculture and Environmental Stewardship (AIRSPACES) and Environmentally Conscious Precision Agriculture: A Platform for Active Learning and Community Engagement led by the primary author. The paper highlights the kite aerial photography (KAP), remote controlled/autonomous instrumented boat (Aquabot), and optical sensor based nitrogen management efforts. Kite Aerial Photography (KAP), and the Remote Controlled Boat (Aquabot) endeavors were inspired by the remote sensing and environmental run-off monitoring facets of the ongoing "Precision Agriculture (PA)" project. The KAP and Aquabot projects were initiated by the NASA support for the Minority Serving Institute Partnership (MSIP) program in 2009 summer. Sustained involvement of students to address engineering challenges for sustainable agriculture and environmental stewardship has been facilitated by continued support from Maryland Space Grant Consortium/NASA and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The faculty and staff from programs in Natural Sciences, Agriculture, Aviation Sciences, Engineering, and Technology have partnered effectively in these multidisciplinary undertakings. Active collaborations and campus visits of scientists and engineers at the USDA and NASA have not only promoted project goals, but also opened pathways for career opportunities and professional development for participating students and faculty


The idea of preconditioning transmit waveforms for optimal clutter rejection in radar imaging is presented. Waveform preconditioning involves determining a map on the space of transmit waveforms, and then applying this map to the waveforms before transmission. The work applies to systems with an arbitrary number of transmit- and receive-antenna elements, and makes no assumptions about the elements being co-located. Waveform preconditioning for clutter rejection achieves efficient use of power and computational resources by distributing power over a frequency band in an effective way and by eliminating clutter filtering in receive processing.


Listening is crucial to master as it reveals the ability to comprehend and produce effective communication. In fact, listening becomes an unfavorable skill and is considered less important that it does not appear in most school textbooks. This study aimed at the development of an English audio e-workbook as a language learning media to improve students' listening skill in the classroom. This study is a mixed method study that involved 25 students of 7th grade at junior high school in Ngawi, East Java, Indonesia. The result showed that the designed audio e-workbook showed a significant improvement on the student's listening skill and considered properly to use and support students' listening skill based on the feedback availability and experts. The data was collected through interviews, questionnaires, and tests to determine the targets and needs of students. Most of the students achieved upgrading scores from the pre-test to their post-test. The pre-test resulted that students who passed the minimum grade, score averages is below 50.00, were below 50% while the post-test showed an upgrade of almost 75% of students having an increase in grades.


Cirrus clouds, thin ice clouds in the upper troposphere, have a net warming effect on Earth's climate. Consequently, a reduction in cirrus cloud amount or optical thickness would cool the climate. Recent research indicates that by seeding cirrus clouds with particles that promote ice nucleation, their lifetimes and coverage could be reduced. We have tested this hypothesis in a global climate model with a state‐of‐the‐art representation of cirrus clouds and find that cirrus cloud seeding has the potential to cancel the entire warming caused by human activity from pre‐industrial times to present day. However, the desired effect is only obtained for seeding particle concentrations that lie within an optimal range. With lower than optimal particle concentrations, a seeding exercise would have no effect. Moreover, a higher than optimal concentration results in an over‐seeding that could have the deleterious effect of prolonging cirrus lifetime and contributing to global warming.


As VLSI design frameworks evolve, a distributed control mechanism for CAD tools has become a central research issue. In this paper, we present an object oriented tool integration methodology that treats the tools as objects. This approach simplifies CAD tool control within a design framework making the framework more general, easier to use, and more capable of supporting a large population of CAD tools.


The ros gene was originally found because it can, when mutated, induce malignant transformation. The protooncogene encodes an orphan receptor tyrosine kinase. We report here the isolation and characterization of the mouse c-ros cDNA and, in addition, the biochemical characterization of the receptor. Both, the endogenous c-ros protein from embryonal tissues and the recombinant protein are glycosylated molecules with an apparent molecular weight of 260,000. Pulse-chase analysis in Sf9 cells demonstrates that the c-ros protein is synthesized as a single chain, uncleaved molecule. Since the specific ligand of c-ros is not known, a hybrid receptor (trk/c-ros) which transmits c-ros-specific signals in response to nerve growth factor (NGF) was used to study the biological activities. In NIH3T3 cells, this trk/c-ros hybrid induces growth, a fusiform cell shape, and loss of contact inhibition of growth. However, the active hybrid receptor cannot replace IL-3 as survival factor in 32D myeloid cells. Compared to other receptors, the active c-ros tyrosine kinase domain displays thus overlapping, but not identical signalling specificities.


This study has investigated the patterns of membrane 2H4 (CD45RA) andUCHL1 (CD45RO) expression by CD4+ and CD8 + lymphocyte subpopulations in 10 adults and seven children with common variable immunodeficiency (CVI) and X‐linked hypogammaglobulinaemia (XLA). Of the 10 adults (CVI, n= 8; XLA, n= 2), only one with a diagnosis of CVI showed normal CD45R expression. For the remaining seven adult CVI patients the abnormal CD45R profiles were primarily associated with CD4+ lymphocytes in three and CD8+ lymphocytes in four. Specific increases in CD45RA‐CD45RO+ fractions were found in four CVI patients and in all of these there was a concomitant reduction in circulating CD19+ B‐cell numbers. Two of the CVI cases were identical twin sisters and both had the same CD45R abnormality. The two adults with XLA also showed abnormal CD45R expression (increased CD45RA+CD45RO∼ components) but of particular note, in view of the fact that these were brothers, one was associated with the CD4+ subpopulation and the other with the CD8+ fraction. Similar analyses for the paediatric group revealed, in distinct contrast to the adult patients, no significant abnormalities of CD45R expression suggesting that these defects may not become apparent until a later age. Further investigations of in vitro lymphocyte proliferation (PHA and PWM) in the eight adults with CVI showed a significant correlation between abnormal responses and disordered CD45R expression. It is proposed that these abnormal patterns of CD45R expression by lymphocyte subpopulations in CVI and XLA may be of fundamental importance with respect to the pathogenesis of these particular immunodeficiencies.


This article presents the current importance of ensuring the students' psychological health in higher education, the empirical research results. The research results on the students' psychological health contain specific conclusions about the various psychological health indicators and the behavior relationship with the internal health picture, such as emotional, cognitive and behavioral areas. The article describes the obtained results analysis on the basis of set of the psychodiagnostic methods application to study the student' psychological health components of higher education.


The ASEAN Way of security cooperation – based on principles of sovereignty, non-intervention, peaceful resolution of conflict, and consultation and consensus decision-making – has maintained intra-ASEAN harmony since the grouping's formation in 1967. It has also enabled ASEAN to play a central role in regional integration by successfully engaging external major powers in an overlapping regional network of ASEAN-led organizations such as the ASEAN Regional Forum, East Asia Summit and ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus. However, exercising decisive influence within the wider Asia-Pacific environment is beyond ASEAN's limited strategic resources. Moreover, the consensus-seeking, shallowly institutionalized ASEAN Way approach has seemed poorly equipped to handle Chinese assertive divide-and-rule diplomacy that has accompanied its power projection in the South China Sea. As China mounts its maritime claims and seeks to expand its regional influence relative to the United States, ASEAN is challenged to maintain intra-ASEAN unity, deepen intra-ASEAN integration and effectively engage the United States, China and other powers in safeguarding peace and stability in the region. Despite shortcomings in the ASEAN Way of security cooperation, it is argued that, given the inability of China and Japan to provide cooperative leadership in establishing an alternative multilateral security mechanism, ASEAN will continue to serve as the default instrumentality for maintaining a modest level of multilateral security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific.


Although sleep is a familiar phenomenon, its functions are yet to be elucidated. Understanding these functions of sleep is an important focus area in neuroscience. Electroencephalography (EEG) has been the predominantly used method in human sleep research but does not provide detailed spatial information about brain activation during sleep. To supplement the spatial information provided by this method, researchers have started using a combination of EEG and various advanced neuroimaging techniques that have been recently developed, including positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In this paper, we will review the recent progress in sleep studies, especially studies that have used such advanced neuroimaging techniques. First, we will briefly introduce several neuroimaging techniques available for use in sleep studies. Next, we will review the spatiotemporal brain activation patterns during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the dynamics of functional connectivity during sleep, and the consolidation of learning and memory during sleep; studies on the neural correlates of dreams, which have not yet been identified, will also be discussed. Lastly, possible directions for future research in this area will be discussed.


BACKGROUND
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and reconstruction in the skeletally immature patient are becoming more common. The purpose of this study was to develop a reproducible anatomic ACL reconstruction technique, based on intra-articular and extra-articular landmarks, that reliably produces a femoral tunnel of adequate length and diameter while avoiding the distal femoral physis.

METHODS
Magnetic resonance images (MRIs) of one hundred and eighty-eight children (age range, six to seventeen years) were evaluated. Two extra-articular landmarks, the femoral insertion of the popliteus tendon and the lateral femoral epicondyle, and one intra-articular landmark, the central portion of the femoral footprint of the ACL, were identified. Computer software was used to plot these landmarks in all three planes and to draw lines representing two potential femoral tunnels. The first line connected the center of the ACL femoral footprint with the insertion of the popliteus tendon, and the second connected the center of the ACL femoral footprint with the lateral femoral epicondyle. The length of each tunnel, the shortest distance from the center of each tunnel to the distal femoral physis, and the height of the lateral femoral condyle from the physis to the chondral surface and to the base of the cartilage cap were calculated. A three-dimensional MRI reconstruction was used to confirm that placement of a femoral tunnel with use of the chosen landmarks would avoid the distal femoral physis.

RESULTS
The mean distance from the center of the preferred ACL tunnel, which connected the center of the ACL femoral footprint with the insertion of the popliteus tendon, to the distal femoral physis was 12 mm, independent of sex (p = 0.94) or age, and the shortest distance was 8 mm. The length of this proposed tunnel averaged 30.1 mm in the boys and 27.4 mm in the girls (p < 0.001), and it averaged 25.4 mm at an age of six years and 29.7 mm at an age of seventeen years. The mean distance from the center of the alternative tunnel, which connected the center of the ACL femoral footprint with the lateral epicondyle, to the distal femoral physis was 8.8 mm in the boys and 8.9 mm in the girls (p = 0.55). The mean length of this alternative tunnel was 34.3 mm in the boys and 31.6 mm in the girls (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS
Drilling from the center of the ACL femoral footprint to the insertion of the popliteus tendon would have resulted in a mean tunnel length of 27 to 30 mm, and it would have allowed the safe placement of a femoral tunnel at least 7 mm in diameter in a patient six to seventeen years old. The center of the ACL femoral footprint and the popliteus insertion are easily identifiable landmarks and will allow safe, reproducible, anatomic ACL reconstruction in the skeletally immature patient.


Summary This paper reports a retrospective study of the microneurosurgical management of intracranial aneurysm in 133 patients. Good or fair results were obtained in 76%, 12% of patients had a poor result and the mortality was 12%. Major factors which were found to influence the outcome of surgery were: pre-operatively, the Botterell grade of the patient, preexisting systemic hypertension and the time interval between the last subarachnoid haemorrhage and surgery. Post-operatively, the development of cerebral vasospasm was associated with a poor outcome from surgery. Better results might be obtained from the surgery of intraoranial aneurysm by delaying operation to the second week after subarachnoid haemorrhage and by better management of hypertensive patients lore-operatively and patients who develop cerebral vasospasm post-operatively.


sion. This rate falls within usual ones.4 All patients showed symptoms of viral infection or respiratory symptoms that the attending pediatricians considered consistent with COVID-19 on presentation.5 Diagnoses of the 41 patients admitted with COVID-19 are stated in the first paragraph of the second page. There were no asymptomatic carriers. Only 2 coinfections were found.1 There is no overestimation in describing that 25 of 41 children (60%) with confirmed infection were admitted. Relating to the patients admitted in the pediatric intensive care units (PICUs), the syndromic diagnoses were asthma flare, bronchiolitis, and 2 pneumonia cases. Three of them required ventilatory support beyond nasal prongs, which is a common criterion for PICU admission. An additional child received high-flow therapy out of the PICU. All were admitted following pediatric intensivists' criteria. Opposite to the authors' remark, the PICU admission rate was lower than the 12.6% reported by the Spanish Authorities on April 23, 2020.6 Reasons for the high rate of hospital and PICU admissions were discussed in the last paragraph of the discussion, where we also stated that these results must be interpreted with caution.


The terrestrial decay rate of "natural" tritium has been re-determined from measurements of the tritium content of old snow samples from Greenland. The finding by CRAIG and BEGEMANN and LIBBY has been confirmed that the tritium decay rate is about 10 times higher than was anticipated previously. Two mechanisms to explain the discrepancy are discussed, a) production by the low energy component of the cosmic radiation and b) the accretion of solar tritium by the earth, as suggested by FELD and ARNOLD. It is shown that in case all the tritium is produced by cosmic radiation the tropospheric production rate may be expected to vary in antiphase with the sunspot cycle, whereas in case of accretion of solar tritium by the earth the variation should be in phase with the sunspot cycle. In both cases a phase shift between the stratospheric production rate and the amount of tropospheric tritium is to be expected because of the residence time of tritium in the stratosphere. A measurement of the phase shift should allow to determine this residence time. The data obtained on the Greenland samples appear to show such a variation of the production rate. The results can be explained best by assuming that all the tritium is produced by cosmic radiation. This result, however, is only preliminary. More systematic measurements are required to decide between the two possibilities.


As the global market becomes fiercely competitive, Operations Research has gained significance in strategic business decisions. The growth of global markets and the resulting increase in competition have lightened the need for Operations Research. Today it is one of the popular decision science tools used by profit and nonprofit organizations. Operational Research as a new field started in the British Military in the second half of the 1930s as a response to the mobilization of the German air force. But it is starting point based on Archimedes's studies. Archimedes collected empirical data, analyzed those data using mathematics and used the results to doing equipment and formulated method for countering the Roman siege to Syracuse in 213 B.C. He can be considered the first operations analyst and his studies can be accepted starting point of operations research. Taylorism is often mentioned as a precursor of Operations Research and it is a scientific origin of operations research. After Second World War, Operations Research is developed as academic discipline in academic and business environment. Many new Operation Research techniques are developed by distinguished scientists and applied at many different fields by them. The paper aims to outline historical development of Operations Research as a starting point, a scientific origin, a new field and an academic discipline in some countries like Turkey of the world. Besides, in this study it's given eleven different definition of operations research and by those definitions it's eleven different features which is not considered in Turkish literature is explained.


Although basal cell carcinoma (BCC) accounts for as high as 75% of all malignant skin tumors, its metastatic rate is only 0.1%. Predisposing factors for metastasis are generally thought to be: 1. a head and neck primary BCC; 2. a long standing lesion; 3. deep local invasion with ulceration. This paper presents a patient with metastatic BCC with a history of other malignancies and probable immune system compromise. These factors should also alert the clinician to the possibility of metastatic BCC.


In their 2017 article on "Digital Modeling and the Infrastructures of Shakespeare Editing", Alan Galey and Rebecca Niles describe Shakespeare's "mechanical mediation" as existing "on a continuum reaching into the present age of digital editing" (23). Drawing on the work of Willard McCarty (2004) and Julia Flanders and Fotis Jannidis (2015), Galey and Niles propose modeling — a conceptual mapping of "the relationships between texts, machines and humans" (23) — as "a promising foundation for forms of humanities computing that do not merely apply digital tools to humanities research questions unidirectionally but also apply humanistic ways of thinking within computing practices" (25). In their new collection on Shakespeare's Language in Digital Media, Janelle Jenstad, Mark Kaethler and Jennifer Roberts-Smith bring together essays that attempt similarly to stretch from old to new, from traditional print editing of Shakespeare to digital analysis and electronic editing. Usefully, the essays describe and explain some of the digital tools developed and used by language historians and linguistic scholars in constructing the new models. The book is divided into three sections: "Old Words through New Tools: Re-Reading Shakespeare with EEBO-TCP and LEME"; "Old Words, New Worlds: Shakespeare's Language in Digital Editions"; and "Old Words, New Codes: Shakespeare and the Languages of Markup". The emphatic repetition of the words "old" and "new" reveals a challenge of the collection: the essays vary widely in their approach to a readership that will have different levels of experience with either Shakespearean textual scholarship or digital linguistic analysis. The authors recognize that for some potential readers, Shakespeare is a known quantity and digital technology is less familiar, but the contributors give various levels of attention to this difference. For example, some readers will be rebuffed by the free use of acronyms. On page 7 we are informed that "when referring to electronic databases, online projects, or digital tools [. . .] each essay presumes that the reader is aware" of what the acronyms stand for. Consequently, in the essays the "abbreviations are not accompanied by the full title", but acronyms are listed as "new tools" in the back of the book. However, the reader has already been faced with a page (5) which included more than a dozen of these abbre-


A high-temperature (HT) superconducting transition around 120 K and enhanced Tc (R=0) were obtained in bulk polycrystalline Bi1.6Pb0.4Sr2Ca1Cu2O8+x samples. In order to understand the physical origin of the HT transition, different studies such as (i) XRD, TEM/SAD, SEM and EDAX and (ii) effects of post-sintering treatments in O2 and Na atmospheres and Ca-excess incorporation have been carried out. From all the structural, microstructural and compositional studies, it appears that the major superconducting bulk consists of Bi-2212 phase without any noticeable amount/intergrowth of the most expected second phase (e.g. Bi-2223) in the sample. Moreover, observed behaviours, which are not expected from the Bi-2223 phase, such as displacement of the HT transition and change in Tc (R=0) value towards (i) high-temperature side on N2 and (ii) lower temperature side on O2 annealing and on Ca-excess incorporation suggest that both the HT transition and enhanced Tc (R=0) are not because of any Bi-2223 phase and on the contrary indicate that they are due to the low-Tc Bi-2212 phase. In addition, the increase in the commensurate modulation periodicity observed from SAD studies suggests that the increase in the order due to an ordered arrangement of oxygen vacancies has resulted in Tc enhancement of the Bi-2212 phase.


ABSTRACT This study is aimed at establishing a linear holding (LH) procedure instead of a conventional air holding stack to minimize the effects of airborne delays in terms of air traffic management and fuel consumption. This paper uses both actual flight data and the Base of Aircraft Database (BADA) model to obtain fuel consumption for level flight and descent segments, separately. The total fuel savings obtained by using actual flight data (16%) and the BADA model (10%) indicate that the LH is found to be more advantageous compared to a conventional holding procedure. Furthermore, the recommended LH procedure could be a promising solution for keeping aircraft in a narrow area that could be considered to be an effective method for airspace usage.


Enceladus' southern plume is one of the major discoveries of the Cassini mission. The water neutrals and water ice particles (dust) ejected by the cryovolcanic activity populate Saturn's E ring and the neutral torus, and they interact with the plasma environment of Saturn's magnetosphere. The plasma neutrality inside Enceladus' plume has been shown by the Langmuir probe measurement to be modified by the presence of the dust particles. We present an independent method of determining the electron density inside the plume. Sometimes, after dust impacts, plasma oscillations (ringing) were detected by the Cassini Radio and Plasma Wave Science instrument. The frequencies of these oscillations have been shown to be consistent with the local plasma frequency, thus providing a measurement of the local electron density.


Cyclophosphamide (CY)-induced neutropenia exacerbates septic shock and acute lung injury during Candida albicans (CA) fungemia in conscious rats. We hypothesized that treatment of such animals with recombinant murine granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) improves host defense during disseminated candidiasis by increasing peripheral neutrophils (PMNs) and enhancing endogenous production of antifungal cytokines including tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF). Naive (neutrophil-replete) or neutropenic rats were infected with 10(7) yeast-phase CA; subgroups received GM-CSF (25 micrograms/kg sc) or sterile 0.9% NaCl (NS) twice a day beginning 3 days before CA infection. Arterial hemodynamics, formed blood elements, bioactive TNF in serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and lung histopathology were monitored for up to 72 h after infection. All naive animals receiving GM-CSF (n = 5) and 78% of naive rats given NS (n = 9) remained normotensive through 72 h with no lung injury, differing principally in baseline PMNs before CA infection (8.8 +/- 1.8 x 10(3)/microliters, mean +/- SE, vs. 3.7 +/- 0.4 x 10(3)/microliters, respectively, P < 0.01). Neutropenic rats given NS (baseline PMN = 41 +/- 10/microliters, n = 7) were sensitized to CA, and 100% died of hypothermic shock with severe respiratory distress within 56 h of infection. Pulmonary periarterial and alveolar hemorrhage were prominent. Although GM-CSF did not increase baseline PMNs in CY animals by the outset of infection (162 +/- 58/microliters, n = 8), 62% of these rats remained normotensive and eupneic through 72 h (P < 0.01), and their lungs showed no perivascular hemorrhage, alveolar disruption, or fungi.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Background: Since 2013 a competency-oriented student progress test (SKPT) has been administered at a number of German medical schools. The questions are generated on the basis of a two-dimensional blueprint, on which one axis contains the five competency domains – communicative competence (CO), practical clinical competence (CP), theoretical clinical competence (CT), scientific competence (SC), and professional decision-making competence (PR) – that form part of the competency model of the National Competency-based Catalogue of Learning Objectives for Undergraduate Medicine (NKLM). The feedback for students is structured in part according to these domains. The aim of our study is to examine if the results differentiated by competency domain show adequate measurement accuracy and if the results for the different domains also contain different information. Methods: The SKPTs for the years 2013 to 2017, taken by a total of 3,027 students, were examined. The measurement accuracy was determined using the coefficient glb (greatest bound to reliability) and the standard error of measurement; discriminant analysis of the principal components was carried out to demonstrate differentiation between the competency domains. Results: The reliability of the competency domains was above 0.8 for all SKPTs; exceptions to this were seen in two of the tests for CO and PR that had a reliability of 0.7–0.8. The results for all of the individual competency domains differed in their informational content compared to the overall of the other domains; the same applies for all pairwise comparisons, with the exceptions of CP and CT. Discussion: The SKPT feedback for students that is differentiated by competency domains basically fulfills the requirements for measurement reliability and distinctness. An improvement of the measurement quality for CO and PR and a better differentiation between CP and CT is desirable.


Because of the increasing accuracy of Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) on different tasks, a lot of real times systems are utilizing DNNs. These DNNs are vulnerable to adversarial perturbations and corruptions. Specifically, natural corruptions like fog, blur, contrast etc can affect the prediction of DNN in an autonomous vehicle. In real time, these corruptions are needed to be detected and also the corrupted inputs are needed to be denoised to be predicted correctly. In this work, we propose CorrGAN approach, which can generate benign input when a corrupted input is provided. In this framework, we train Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) with novel intermediate output-based loss function. The GAN can denoise the corrupted input and generate benign input. Through experimentation, we show that up to 75.2% of the corrupted misclassified inputs can be classified correctly by DNN using CorrGAN.


Large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic generation (PV) plant is an important development direction of photovol-taic technology. The three-level inverter which is suitable for the environment of the high-voltage and high-power has been attracted more and more attention. This paper presents a simplified space vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) algorithm which is used to large-capacity grid-connected photovoltaic generation system. This method uses a diamond which was determined by the vertex coordinate in the 60° coordinate system. Though this simple SVPWM algorithm, three nearest compound vectors can be selected easily for the reference voltage vector in each sector, and the action time of the three basic vectors can be calculated quickly. Simulation results verify the correctness and validity of the proposed algorithm.


This paper describes the first stage of a prototype that is being developed using a personal digital assistant (PDA) and Bluetooth communication to build an information system to supervise automated robotic maintenance systems. This work is being done under collaboration between different university departments with different specialties. The work focuses on the programming of PDA devices and its usage in monitoring systems with domotic applicability. One of the desired goals is to apply new technologies for deploying an information system on mobile and wireless devices. The first results, system architecture and main blocks are presented in this paper


We consider the investor dynamic choice among standardized long term portfolios, invested on cash, bond and stock. We present the intertemporal optimization problem with commonly used utility functions. We provide a method to determine the optimal investor's choice, based on the knowledge of investor's type (risk aversion and time horizon) and on market performances. We compute, for the utility functions envisaged, the losses from not having access to a customized portfolio and show these losses may be severe. Given the distribution of investors' risk aversion, the financial institution wishes to minimize the discrepancy between the portfolios offered and the investor aversion. In the first case, the financial institution minimizes the average cost incurred by the investors. Alternatively, investors are fully compensated for the lack of customization and the financial institution minimizes the average compensation. Our results suggest that much more could be done to improve the portfolio positioning offered by the financial institutions.


Conventional spontaneous Raman micro-spectroscopy was used for the investigation of bone and calcium phosphate coatings on bone-implant surfaces. Chemical and structural changes at the bone-coating interface could be monitored on a microscopic scale. It was shown that the crystallinity did not vary within the crystalline apatite and amorphous calcium phosphate coatings, while the density within each coating did vary. Different degrees of crystallinity in coatings were investigated for a series of plasma-sprayed apatite coatings. It is concluded that Raman rnicrospectroscopy is an easy non-destructive way to obtain information about the apatite structure and the degree of crystallinity.


OBJECTIVE
In Europe, urogenital schistosomiasis was not endemic, however in 2014 the first cases of a European autochthonous infection outbreak appeared in Corsica (France). In this work a search and description of cases, both import and native urogenital schistosomiasis, published in the European Union (EU) during the last 20 years was made. In addition, a qualitative risk assessment in Spain was carried out.

METHODS
A bibliographic search of European Union published cases over the last 20 years (1997-2017) was performed using PubMed. Works that evidenced the presence of intermediate hosts Bulinus truncatus and Planorbarius metidjensis in our country were searched in PubMed, ResearchGate and Google Scholar. Finally, a risk assessment of urogenital schistosomiasis in Spain using the 2011 ECDC guide was made.

RESULTS
481 cases in the EU were found. 328 were imported and 152 autochthonous. All from the autochthonous cases were focused in Corsica, where people from different nationalities got sicked. The presence of two potential host species was documented in different locations of our geography. The result of the risk assessment in Spain was low risk.

CONCLUSIONS
Although the risk assessment in Spain was low risk, several factors as the presence of intermediate hosts in Spain, the increase on migratory flows, and the role that the S. haematobium-bovis hybrid had in the outbreak of Corsica, must alert community and health authorities about the possibility that autochthonous cases in our country appear.


The aim of the 'Genders and Sexualities in History' series is to 'accommodate and foster new approaches to historical research in the fields of genders and sexualities' (Springer, 2017). The following review shall give readers an idea of how the currently Denmark-based social scientist Andrew D. Shield lives up to the claim of 'promoting world-class scholarship' by describing and analysing straight as well as gay and lesbian immigrant stories in Denmark and the Netherlands from the 1960s to the 1980s.


A central lever steering mechanism has been synthesized to obtain five precision points for a four-wheel vehicle using Hooke and Jeeves optimization method. This compound mechanism has been studied as two identical crossed four-bar mechanisms arranged in series. The optimization has been carried out for one crossed four-bar mechanism only instead of the entire mechanism. The number of design parameters considered for the optimization is two. The inner wheel has been considered to rotate up to 52 degrees. The steering error, pressure angle and mechanical advantage of the proposed mechanism have been compared with those achieved by the Ackermann steering mechanism. The proposed mechanism has less steering error, more favourable pressure angle and increased mechanical advantage. The method of compounding the mechanism is also applicable when the central lever is offset from the longitudinal axis of the vehicle.


The current accession countries experience an observable slowness in the pace of their European Union (EU) negotiations. This article aims to assess the impact of the EU's changing enlargement strategy on this accession inertia. Our comparative analysis of the post-2004 negotiation experiences reveal that the variation in the technical accession progress can be explained by modalities of the new negotiation framework including the Copenhagen-plus pre-accession criteria, settlement of border conflicts, benchmarks and the increased focus on the rule of law chapters, which all together provided a new opportunity structure to those veto players seeking to suspend the accession of the current candidates.


We consider the problem of quantifying the degree of association between pairs of discrete event time series, with potential applications in forensic and cybersecurity settings. We focus in particular on the case where two associated event series exhibit temporal clustering such that the occurrence of one type of event at a particular time increases the likelihood that an event of the other type will also occur nearby in time. We pursue a non‐parametric approach to the problem and investigate various score functions to quantify association, including characteristics of marked point processes and summary statistics of interevent times. Two techniques are proposed for assessing the significance of the measured degree of association: a population‐based approach to calculating score‐based likelihood ratios when a sample from a relevant population is available, and a resampling approach to computing coincidental match probabilities when only a single pair of event series is available. The methods are applied to simulated data and to two real world data sets consisting of logs of computer activity and achieve accurate results across all data sets.


Summary Phloem sap contains a large number of macromolecules, including proteins and RNAs from different classes. Proteome analyses of phloem samples from different plant species under denaturing conditions identified hundreds of proteins potentially involved in diverse processes. Surprisingly, these studies also found a significant number of ribosomal and proteasomal proteins. This led to the suggestion that active ribosome and proteasome complexes might be present in the phloem, challenging the paradigm that protein synthesis and turnover are absent from the enucleate sieve elements of angiosperms. However, the existence of such complexes has as yet not been demonstrated. In this study we used three‐dimensional gel electrophoresis to separate several protein complexes from native phloem sap from Brassica napus. Matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization‐time of flight MS analyses identified more than 100 proteins in the three major protein‐containing complexes. All three complexes contained proteins belonging to different ribosomal fragments and blue native northern blot confirmed the existence of ribonucleoprotein complexes. In addition, one complex contained proteasome components and further functional analyses confirmed activity of a proteasomal degradation pathway and showed a large number of ubiquitinated phloem proteins. Our results suggest specialized roles for ubiquitin modification and proteasome‐mediated degradation in the phloem.


Four phenolic compounds were isolated from Japanese butterbur (Petasites japonicus) by preparative RP-HPLC technique, and were identified as chlorogenic acid (CGA), fukinolic acid (FA), 3,5-dicaffeoyl quinic acid, and 3,4,5-tricaffeoyl quinic acid. Since the antioxidant activity of FA among these four compounds has not been reported in detail, we investigated the scavenging activity of FA against several active oxygens and radicals, compared with CGA, gallic acid (GA) and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), using ESR spectroscopy. The order of potency of scavenging superoxide anion, nitric oxide (NO) and DPPH was EGCG>FA>CGA. The order of potency of scavenging hydroxyl radical was EGCG>FA>GA. FA inhibited the lipopolysaccharide-stimulated NO production and inducible NO synthase protein and mRNA expression by mouse macrophage-like cells Raw 264.7 more potently than CGA. The present study suggests the usefulness of FA as an antioxidant.


Abstract. Large volcanic eruptions occurring in the last glacial period can be detected in terms of their deposited sulfuric acid in continuous ice cores. Here we employ continuous sulfate and sulfur records from three Greenland and three Antarctic ice cores to estimate the emission strength, the frequency and the climatic forcing of large volcanic eruptions that occurred during the second half of the last glacial period and the early Holocene, 60–9 ka years before AD 2000 (b2k). The ice cores are synchronized over most of the investigated interval making it possible to distinguish large eruptions with a global sulfate distribution from eruptions detectable in one hemisphere only. Due to limited data resolution and to a large variability in the sulfate background signal, particularly in the Greenland glacial climate, we only detect Greenland sulfate depositions larger than 20 kg km−2 and Antarctic sulfate depositions larger than 10 kg km−2. With those restrictions, we identify 1113 volcanic eruptions in Greenland and 740 eruptions in Antarctica within the 51 ka period – where the sulfate deposition of 85 eruptions is defined at both poles (bipolar eruptions). Based on the relative Greenland and Antarctic sulfate deposition, we estimate the latitudinal band of the bipolar eruptions and assess their approximate climatic forcing based on established methods. The climate forcing of the five largest eruptions is estimated to be higher than −70 W m−2. Twenty-seven of the identified bipolar eruptions are larger than any volcanic eruption occurring in the last 2500 years and 69 eruptions are estimated to have larger sulfur emission strengths than the VEI-7 Tambora eruption that occurred in Indonesia in 1815 AD. The frequency of eruptions larger than the typical VEI-7 (VEI-8) eruption by the comparison of sulfur emission strength is found to be 5.3 (7) times higher than estimated from geological evidence. Throughout the investigated period, the frequency of volcanic eruptions is rather constant and comparable to that of recent times. During the deglacial period (16–9 ka b2k), however, there is a notable increase in the frequency of volcanic events recorded in Greenland and an obvious increase in the fraction of very large eruptions. For Antarctica, the deglacial period cannot be distinguished from other periods. These volcanoes documented in ice cores provide atmospheric sulfate burden and climate forcing for further research on climate impact and understanding the mechanism of the Earth system.


The fracture mechanics approach to structural reliability accepts that some flaws will be present, but that conditions can be established to assure that flaws do not grow to an unacceptable size during the life of the structure. Fracture mechanics life prediction requires calculation of crack tip stress intensity factors to quantify both stable crack growth and the conditions for unstable fracture in complex geometries under complex elastic loading conditions which lead to high stress gradients. The BIGIF computer code has been developed to perform accurately and inexpensively these life predictions for a wide range of two- and three-dimensional stress fields and cracks and structural geometries, given that the elastic stress solution for the uncracked structure is available from another independent source.


The Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm is studied to perform channel estimation in a low cost and high data rate impulse radio UWB receiver. The system under consideration uses a pulse position modulation with a simple analog energy detector. In order to overcome the problems inherent to high data rates, such as inter-symbol interferences, a probabilistic equalizer is used. The EM algorithm and the equalizer are embedded into the loop of an iterative channel decoder. This permits to refine both the channel parameters and the signal probability at each iteration. We present numerical results performed on the channel models from the IEEE 802.15.3 a task group. These results show that the EM algorithm contributes to achieve data rate greater than 100 Mb/s with a simple impulse radio UWB receiver.


We discuss optimization of locations for the nonlinear crystal in intracavity generation of second-harmonic radiation and show that optimizing the distance between the nonlinear crystal and the two-wave end mirror in the laser cavity may support nearly a 100% increase in the maximum emission power of the second harmonic. The optimum distance depends on the type of end mirror used. We describe a variety of effects that mask the advantages conferred by the optimum location of the nonlinear crystal when performing experiments on intracavity generation of strong second-harmonic laser radiation. We describe various approaches for experimental determination of the optimal location of the nonlinear crystal in the cavity.


The purpose of this study is to produce an exploratory survey for 1998 of the scientific contributions of representative economics research groups in France, based on the EconLit database, using tree indicators: 1) overall visibility, 2) net production, and 3) international presence. Results indicate a clear dichotomy between two major categories of representative groups, raising serious questions about the way the public university operates in France until that time.


This paper proposes a new array architecture for MPEG-4 image compositing and 3D rendering. The emerging MPEG-4 standard for multimedia applications allows VRML-like script-based compositing of audio-visual scenes from multiple audio and visual objects. MPEG-4 supports both natural (video) and synthetic (3D) visual objects or a combination of both. Objects can be manipulated e.g. positioned, rotated, warped or duplicated by user interaction. A coprocessor architecture is presented, that works in parallel to an MPEG-4 video and audio-decoder and a floating-point geometry-processor. It performs computation and bandwidth intensive low-level tasks for image compositing and rasterization. The processor consists of a SIMD array of 16 identical DSPs to reach the required processing power for real-time image warping, alpha-blending, z-buffering and phong-shading. The processor has an object-oriented parallel cache architecture with 2D virtual address space (e.g. textures) that allows concurrent and conflict-free access to shared image data objects for all 16 DSPs.


The purpose of this article is to encourage more frequent use of psychophysiological methods and psychophysiological perspectives in counselling research. Three questions are addressed: how counselling psychology has been studied up to now using psychophysiological methods, which psychophysiological methods may prove useful for future research, and what are some important questions to be answered using these methods.


Critical Care Medicine • Volume 46 • Number 1 (Supplement) www.ccmjournal.org Learning Objectives: Fibromyalgia (FM) is a common condition of unclear etiology, affecting predominantly women. Although FM is a symptom-based diagnosis, affected patients have broadly dysregulated stress response and high comorbidity burden. It can be postulated that among critically ill patients, a diagnosis of FM would either have no impact or an adverse effect on shortterm outcomes. Methods: We used the Texas Inpatient Public Use Data File to identify ICU admissions of women aged 18–64 years in 2014. FM was identified by ICD-9-CM code 729.1. The association of FM with short-term mortality (defined as hospital death or discharge to hospice [MH]) was modeled using: 1) multivariate logistic regression and 2) propensity score-matched analysis. Models were adjusted for socio-demographic characteristics, comorbidities and (for logistic models) organ failure (OF), life support interventions, and APR-DRG severity of illness (SOI) and risk of death (ROD) categories. Results: There were 151,422 ICU admissions, including a diagnosis of FM in 4,274 (2.8%). When compared to non-FM, FM admissions were older (p < 0.0001), with higher number of comorbidities (p < 0.0001) and higher SOI (p = 0.0315), although with similar occurrence of OF (p = 0.1890) and ROD (p = 0.9957). Crude MH rate among FM vs non-FM ICU admissions was 2.8% vs 4.7%, respectively (p < 0.0001). On multivariate logistic regression, those with FM had MH aOR (95% CI) 0.6693 (0.4988– 0.8902); p = 0.0060. Propensity-score matching was successful in 3,616 ICU admissions with FM, who had MH aOR (95% CI) 0.4695 (0.3323–0.6633); p < 0.0001. Conclusions: In a population-based cohort of ICU-managed nonelderly women, FM had unexpectedly lower adjusted odds of MH. While FM is generally not considered consequential among ICUmanaged patients, our findings, coupled with a well-documented multidomain dysfunction of stress response in FM patients, suggest that further insights into their response to critical illness may inform preventive and interventional efforts in the critically ill in the general population. Additional studies are warranted to corroborate these results.


Extended Petri nets are proposed. This extended Petri net, containing the ordinary Petri net as a subclass, can model the vague conditions and can use the ordinary net theoretical technique to analyze the structural properties of the extended Petri net. Using this extended Petri net, the modeling methods of the fuzzy inference engine are derived. The boundedness, liveness, and reachability of this extended Petri net model of the fuzzy inference engines are analyzed and clarified theoretically. The properties of a previously published model and the proposed model are compared.<<ETX>>


Safety is a key challenge in robotics, in particular for mobile robots operating in an open and unpredictable environment. To address the safety challenge, various software-based approaches have been proposed, but none of them provide a clearly specified and isolated safety layer. In this paper, we propose that safety-critical concerns regarding the robot software be explicitly declared separately from the main program, in terms of externally observable properties of the software. Concretely, we use a Domain-Specific Language (DSL) to declaratively specify a set of safety-related rules that the software must obey, as well as corresponding corrective actions that trigger when rules are violated. Our DSL, integrated with ROS, is shown to be capable of specifying safety-related constraints, and is experimentally demonstrated to enforce safety behaviour in existing robot software. We believe our approach could be extended to other fields to similarly simplify safety certification.


Published work on computer network reliability frequently uses availability as a performance measure. However, although several ways of defining availability have been proposed, none capture the overall level of service obtained by client hosts in a modern n-tier client/server architecture. We propose such a measure by calculating the fraction of client hosts receiving complete services from the network. We also extend a published, efficient heuristic method for calculating availability to take into account our new proposed measure. The end result is a procedure of polynomial complexity O(nt4), where nt is the total number of components (hosts, links and interconnection equipment) in the network. Numerical results of applying the method to several networks are given.


Crystallized p-type small-molecule semiconductors have great potential as efficient and stable hole transporting materials (HTMs) for perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to their relatively high hole mobility, good stability and tunable HOMOs depending on the molecular orientation. Here, a thienoacene-based organic semiconductor, 2,9diphenyldinaphtho[2,3-b:2',3'-f]thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (DPh-DNTT), was thermally evaporated and employed as the dopant-free HTM that can be scaled up for large-area fabrication. By controlling the deposition temperature, the molecular orientation was modulated into a dominated face-on orientation possessing π-π stacking direction 2 towards the surface normal to maximize the out-of-plane carrier mobility. With an engineered face-on orientation, the DPh-DNTT film shows an improved out-of-plane mobility of 3.3 ×10 cmVs, outperforming the HTMs reported so far. Such orientation-reinforced mobility contributes to a remarkable efficiency of 20.2% for CH3NH3PbI3 inverted PSCs with enhanced stability. The results reported here provide insights into engineering the orientation of molecules for the dopant-free organic HTMs for PSCs.