Extravasation of contrast media through ruptured intracranial aneurysm has been reported as an unusual case. Among the reported cases, a ventricular opacification is very rare, and in such cases, the prognosis is worst. In this paper, two cases with an aneurysm bleeding into the ventricular system were reported. Case 1. A 37-year-old woman was admitted because of severe headache and disturbance of consciousness. On admission, she was deeply comatose with decerebrate rigidity. Carotid angiogram taken 2 hours and 30 minutes after the attack revealed an aneurysm of the anterior communicating artery and an extravasation of contrast media into the lateral ventricle. Although a continuous ventricular drainage was instituted immediately, the patient died after five days. Case 2. A 33-year-old man suddenly developed severe headache with subsequent loss of consciousness. Two hours after the onset, the patient was admitted in comatose state. Angiography taken 3 hours after the attack demonstrated an aneurysm of the anterior communicating artery. The posterior horns of the lateral ventricles were opacificated. The patient died after 24 hours. In case 1, it was interesting that a remarkable stenosis of the cisternal portion of the internal carotid artery was demonstrated at the 2nd carotid angiography (lateral view), but the third carotid angiography taken after the continuous ventricular drainage showed a complete recovery from the stenosis. This stenosis was supposed to be caused by a compression of the internal carotid artery against the interclinoid ligamentum. Moreover, a rapid enlargement of the aneurysm was noticed by repeated angiography.


This paper describes the design and implementation of multimedia data processing elements for a home server platform. Generally, a home server can be considered as an integrated form of a multimedia data server, home control server, and home information server. As a multimedia data server, the proposed scheme has a digital TV receiver module and a multimedia codec module. Thus, watching digital TV and remote multimedia services are available in this platform. In addition, an error resilient scheme using digital watermarking is implemented to correct transmission errors in a noisy channel.


Aim: To study the knowledge attitude and practice regarding administration of intravenous drugs among dental students. Background: Intravenous drugs is often used because of the control it provides over the dosage and in some situations, the patient may require quick medication. This's includes medical emergencies such as heart attack stroke poisoning etc. Intravenous drug administration sends the medication directly into the blood stream, thus it has better bio availability. It has two types of administration depending on the duration of need. They are short term need , immediate need and long term need . For short term needs standard catheter or a needle is used , this is to administer pain medications or antibiotics during the patient's stay in the hospital. For immediate need an IV push or bolus is given which quickly sends a one time dose of drug into the patients bloodstream. For long term need IV infusion can be used .This is precise and can be controlled.IV medications are generally safe but if it exceeds dosage limits it can cause both mild and dangerous side effects. To prevent this the doctor should be aware of the dosage to be given and the side effects it leads to. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire was designed to evaluate the knowledge and awareness of intravenous drugs among dental students . The questionnaire consisted of 10 questions. The survey was conducted for the students of saveetha dental college ,Chennai , who are in their undergraduate course of dentistry according to dental council of India and were undergoing one year mandatory internship. Result: From the above research it has been inferred that almost 94% of the students donot have enough awareness about intravenous drugs and their administration which has to given a thought about . But most of them had a superficial knowledge about intravenous drugs which can be improved by conferences and seminars regarding this subject. Conclusion: Knowledge about intravenous drugs and their administration was found to be inadequate among dental students.The results of this study emphasise the need for the improvement of training of dentists regarding intravenous drugs and their administration at undergraduate level


The strain space multiple mechanism model idealizes the behavior of granular materials based on a multitude of virtual simple shear mechanisms oriented in arbitrary directions. Within this modeling framework, the virtual simple shear stress is defined as a quantity that depends on the contact distribution function as well as the normal and tangential components of inter‐particle contact forces, which evolve independently during the loading process. In other terms, the virtual simple shear stress is an intermediate quantity in the upscaling process from the microscopic level (characterized by the contact distribution and inter‐particle contact forces). The stress space fabric (i.e. the orientation distribution of the virtual simple shear stress) produces macroscopic stress through the tensorial average. Thus, the stress space fabric characterizes the fundamental and higher modes of anisotropy induced in granular materials. Comparing an induced fabric associated with the biaxial shear of plane granular assemblies obtained via a simulation using Discrete Element Method to the strain space multiple mechanism model suggests that the strain space multiple mechanism model has the capability to capture the essential features in the evolution of an induced fabric in granular materials. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The last decade has greatly enriched the science of nutrition, but two achievements stand out most prominently. They are the discovery of vitamins and the proof that not all proteins are of equal nutritive value; that some, particularly most vegetable proteins, are incomplete, while most animal proteins are complete in that they contain the components necessary for growth, repair and replacement. A number of diseases whose etiology was heretofore unknown have been definitely proved to be caused by lack of vitamins, and of late, considerable evidence has been brought forth to prove that resistance to disease, particularly infection, and even reproduction, may be dependent on vitamins and the quality of proteins, or both. These facts have collectively been called "the newer knowledge of nutrition," and they prove that there is more to food than calories. The proper selection of foods both in quality and in quantity is not merely an


A biocomplex of DNA nanotube-peptide, consisting of six concatenated DNA strands, three locked DNA strands, and a cell-penetrating peptide, is reported. The barrel-structured DNA nanotube-peptide was successfully applied as a codrug-delivery system for targeting cancer therapy. The mucin 1 protein (MUC-1) aptamer is part of a DNA nanotube that can specifically recognize MUC-1 protein on the surface of MCF-7 cells. Cyclo (Arg-Gly-Asp-d-Phe-Lys; cRGD), as a cell-penetrating peptide, facilitates recruitment and uptake of targeting drugs by binding to integrin receptors (αv β3 ) of the cytomembrane surface. Anticancer drugs doxorubicin (DOX) and paclitaxel (PTX) were loaded into the capsulated DNA nanotube-peptide (CDNP), which was used as codrug cargo models. The as-prepared biocomplex can be utilized not only to deliver drugs, but also to achieve anticancer effects in vivo. Experimental results suggested that the treatment efficacy of the codrug delivery platform (CDNP/DOX/PTX) was better than that of a single-drug delivery platform (CDNP/DOX or CDNP/PTX). This system, which is composed of DNA strands and peptide, has good biocompatibility and biodegradability. Furthermore, the system can readily detect target mRNA in MCF-7 cells in vitro. The detection limits of mRNA are 9.7×10-8 and 1.8×10-8  m with CDNP/DOX and CDNP/PTX-FITC (FITC=fluorescein isothiocyanate), respectively, as probes.


Chest radiography is a significant diagnostic tool used to detect diseases afflicting the chest. The automatic detection techniques associated with computer vision are being adopted in medical imaging research. Over the last decade, several remarkable advancements have been made in the field of medical diagnostics with the application of deep learning techniques. Various automated systems have been proposed for the rapid detection of pneumonia from chest X-rays. Although several algorithms are currently available for pneumonia detection, a detailed review summarizing the literature and offering guidelines for medical practitioners is lacking. This study will help practitioners to select the most effective and efficient methods from a real-time perspective, review the available datasets, and understand the results obtained in this domain. It will also present an overview of the literature on intelligent pneumonia identification from chest X-rays. The usability, goodness factors, and computational complexities of the algorithms employed for intelligent pneumonia identification are analyzed. Additionally, this study discusses the quality, usability, and size of the available chest X-ray datasets and techniques for coping with unbalanced datasets. A detailed comparison of the available studies reveals that the majority of the applied datasets are highly unbalanced and limited, providing unreliable results and rendering methods that are unsuitable for large-scale use. Large-scale balanced datasets can be obtained via smart techniques, such as generative adversarial networks. Current literature has indicated that deep learning-based algorithms achieve the best results for pneumonia classification with an accuracy of 98.7%, a sensitivity of 0.99, and a specificity of 0.98. The higher accuracy offered by deep-learning algorithms in addition to their appropriate class balancing techniques serves as a good reference for further research.


Perron-Frobenius operators and their eigendecompositions are
increasingly being used as tools of global analysis for higher
dimensional systems. The numerical computation of large, isolated
eigenvalues and their corresponding eigenfunctions can reveal
important persistent structures such as almost-invariant sets,
however, often little can be said rigorously about such
calculations. We attempt to explain some of the numerically
observed behaviour by constructing a hyperbolic map with a
Perron-Frobenius operator whose eigendecomposition is
representative of numerical calculations for hyperbolic systems.
We explicitly construct an eigenfunction associated with an
isolated eigenvalue and prove that a special form of Ulam's method
well approximates the isolated spectrum and eigenfunctions of this
map.


This paper proposes an innovative approach to improve the performance of solar cooling systems by utilizing a cascaded absorption cooling (CAC) system. The paper also examines the viability of coupling an NH3-H2O absorption system with an H2O-LiBr absorption system to simultaneously satisfy both a refrigeration load and an air-conditioning load. Results of this analysis shows that the CAC system uses 7.1% less thermal energy than the sum of the energies used by the ammonia absorption system and the LiBr absorption system if they were to operate separately to meet the same cooling load. In addition, the paper investigates the impact of a performance-enhanced parabolic trough collector (PEPTC) on the thermal and exergetic efficiencies of the solar cooling system. By employing a PEPTC, the area required for the solar field in a given solar cooling system will be reduced by 14% compared to the area required by a conventional PTC. Combining the CAC system with the PEPTC results in a 22% increase in the overall efficiency of a cooling plant compared to a conventional PTC coupled with an ammonia system and a LiBr system in the same plant. In summary, it is suggested that the simultaneous utilization of the proposed CAC system and the PEPTC can considerably improve the efficiency of solar cooling systems. Doing so, will lead to sustainable cooling alternatives.


Students' discipline becomes a problem in grade XII IPS-2 SMA NU 05 Brangsong year 2019/2020. There are 33 students consisting of 17 boys and 16 girls. The research goes through pre-cycle, cycle 1 and cycle 2. In pre-cycle, the research is based on data on students' attendance list. In cycle 2, it is conducted by preparing a smart-phone based class. The teachers make an account in class dojo-application connected to teachers, homeroom teachers, school counselors, parents and students. The application record students' attendance. In cycle 2,  the use of application is maximized by asking teachers and parents to be more active in using the application through their comments. The result is that among 33 students in pre-cycle during 39 learning days, 19 students (58%) are present or have a good discipline and  14 students (42%) are absent and truant or don't have one. Then, the result in cycle 1 is that the 33 students (81%) are present and 6 students (19%) are absent. Finally in cycle 2, the result is that all students (100%) are present and none (0%) is absent. Based on the data the researcher concludes that Smart-phone based class by using class dojo application can increase students' discipline.


Growth fractions in the cell cycle were demonstrated by flow cytometry with monoclonal antibody Ki-67 for gastric cancer. By setting the cut off line at the lowest channel number of S-phase, the Ki-67 labeling rate was calculated by Ki-DNA dual fluorescence analysis. In addition to 32 gastric cancers, we examined three cell lines (Colo 320, NUGC4 and MKN28) and compared the result with the BrdUrd labeling rate. The G0G1 ratio obtained with BrdUrd was generally correlated with the G0 + G1 ratio obtained with Ki-67. The S-phase fractions obtained with Ki-67, however were a little different from those obtained with BrdUrd because of the existence of S0. The mean Ki-67 labeling rate of gastric cancer was 45.1% (16.2-66.3%). Fifteen cases received Ki-67 immunohistochemical study in the same samples. The results of flow cytometric analysis were parallel to those of microscopic study, and a correlation line: y = 0.626x + 15.9145, r = 0.8031, (p less than 0.001) was obtained. Ki-67 antibodies may provide useful information on cell kinetics.


It is assumed in the evolutionary multi-objective optimization (EMO) community that a final solution is selected by a decision maker from a non-dominated solution set obtained by an EMO algorithm. The number of solutions to be presented to the decision maker can be totally different. In some cases, the decision maker may want to examine only a few representative solutions from which a final solution is selected. In other cases, a large number of non-dominated solutions may be needed to visualize the Pareto front. In this paper, we suggest the use of a general EMO framework with three solution sets to handle various situations with respect to the required number of solutions. The three solution sets are the main population of an EMO algorithm, an external archive to store promising solutions, and a final solution set which is presented to the decision maker. The final solution set is selected from the archive. Thus the population size and the archive size can be arbitrarily specified as long as the archive size is not smaller than the required number of solutions. The final population is not necessarily to be a good solution set since it is not presented to the decision maker. Through computational experiments, we show the advantages of this framework over the standard final population and final archive frameworks. We also discuss how to select a final solution set and how to explain the reason for the selection, which is the first attempt towards an explainable EMO framework.


Contents Introduction Revising the Canon: Italian Women Writers/Maria O. Marotti Part I: Canon Formation/Canon Revision 1. Women Writers and the Canon in Contemporary Italy/JoAnn Cannon 2. From One Closet to Another? Feminism, Literary Archaeology, and the Canon/Beverly Allen 3. Italian "Difference Theory": A New Canon?/Renate Holub Part II: Renaissance Women: Rethinking the Canon 4. Renaissance Women Defending Women: Arguments Against Patriarchy/Constance Jordan 5. Selling the Self, or the Epistolary Production of Renaissance Courtesans/Fiora A. Bassanese Part III: At the Turn of the Century: Women Writers at the Margins of the Canon 6. Double Marginality: Matilde Serao and the Politics of Ambiguity/Nancy Harrowitz 7. The Diaries of Sibilla Aleramo: Constructing Female Subjectivity/Bernadette Luciano 8. Narrative Voice and the Regional Experience: Redefining Female Images in the Works of Maria Messina/Elise Magistro Part IV: Contemporary Women Writers: Toward a New Canon 9. Brushing Benjamin Against the Grain: Elsa Morante and the Jetzeit of Marginal History/Maurizia Boscagli 10. From Genealogy to Gynealogy and Beyond: Fausta Cialente's Le Quattro Ragazze Wieselberger/Graziella Parati 11. Ethnic Matriarchy: Fabrizia Ramondino's Neapolitan World/Maria Ornella Marotti 12. Mythic Revisionism: Women Poets and Philosophers in Italy Today/Lucia Re Part V: Women as Filmmakers: Images of Women/Images by Women/Images for Women 13. Monica Vitti: The Image and the Word/Marga Cottino-Jones 14. Signifying the Holocaust: Liliana Cavani's Portiere di notte/Marguerite Waller


PURPOSE
To compare the clinical effects of two different hydroxyapatite bone graft materials in maxillary sinus lifting surgery with bone grafting and implantation at the same time.

METHODS
Seventy-two patients with implantation in the maxillary posterior dental area and insufficient bone mass admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College were collected from March 2018 to April 2019, and they were divided into experimental group(n=36) and control group(n=36) by random number table. Patients in the control group used hydroxyapatite composite material, while patients in the experimental group used nano-hydroxyapatite composite material. The clinical effects, bone increment and bone density changes of the two groups of implants were compared, and postoperative implant stability and complications of the two groups were compared. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 18.0 software package.

RESULTS
The survival rate of implants in the experimental group was significantly higher than that in the control group at 24 months (P<0.05). Alveolar bone resorption in the experimental group was significantly lower than the control group 6 months after surgery(P<0.05). The bone mineral density of implants in the experimental group was significantly higher than the control group 6 months and 12 months after operation(P<0.05). The implant stability coefficient value of the experimental group was significantly higher than the control group 12 months after operation(P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the total complication rate between the two groups(P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
In maxillary sinus lift, the survival rate of nano-hydroxyapatite composite material implanted in the same period is high, which can improve postoperative bone metabolism and increase implant stability with good safety.


In a controlled trial chloramphenicol proved as effective and much cheaper than penicillin for the treatment of group A meningococcal meningitis in Zaria, Nigeria. A short course of five days cured most patients. Adults and older children were soon able to take chloramphenicol by mouth, which reduced the cost and simplified treatment. It is suggested that chloramphenicol is a suitable alternative to sulphonamides for the treatment of meningococcal meningitis in those parts of Africa where the organism is sulphonamide-resistant.


Height-lent h relationship in Crassostrea madrasensis (Preston) showed an exponential trend and relation in the form, H=ALB. Deviations of actual values from the mean values consequent to the increase in size were noticed. eight and length approximated in oysters of less than 3.5 cm in height resulting in orbicular shape. In oyster of shell height 3.5 cm to 8 cm, increase in height is faster leading to an oval shape. Above 8 cm in height, the oysters become further elongated. Height-length relation is non-linear with an index (B value) of 1.1156. A linear relationship also holds good as the B value is not very much different from unity (H = —2.5424 + 2.0036L).


AIMS AND METHOD To establish the proportion of psychiatrists in Northern Ireland who
currently work part-time and the proportion of those working full-time who
wish to work part-time. A postal questionnaire was forwarded to psychiatrists
and repeated 30 months later. RESULTS In 2004, only 18.3% of respondents were working part-time, and 26.8% in
2006. A great majority stated their intent was to always work part-time, the
most frequent reason being to achieve work-life balance. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS A significant number of staff working part-time will have implications for
the staffing of the service. Policy makers must plan for the adequate
provision of part-time working arrangements.


While the rapid economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region was receiving great attention, its political consequences were being largely ignored, except for the widespread assumption that since nearly everyone wanted growth, it must be a good thing. But was growth having a stabilizing or destabilizing effect on the governments involved? Was it driving them in more authoritarian or more democratic directions? How to explain that high growth in China was compatible with communism, in Japan, with democracy, and in the other countries of the region with a bewildering variety of authoritarian, quasi-democratic, or democratic regimes? Had growth no political bearing? Or were the dynamics of its impact too subtle to analyze? The product of the Pacific Basin Program at Columbia University's East Asian Institute, this volume addresses these key issues.


Introduction: present study aimed to investigate the effect of P. atlantica extract and essential oil in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. Materials and Methods: Different doses of hydroalcoholic extract and essential oil of P. atlantica subsp. kurdica (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg) were given to streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice in separate groups for three weeks. At the end of treatment, blood samples were collected; then, oxidative stress markers, TNF- α , and lipid pro fi le were determined in its serum samples. Results: Our fi ndings showed that the administration of P. atlantica extract for three consecutive weeks signi fi cantly improved the lipid pro fi le, oxidative stress, and in fl ammation process by reducing lipid peroxidation and increasing total antioxidant capacity. Conclusion: This study showed that P. atlantica subsp. kurdica has antioxidant and blood lipid-lowering effects that can be used as a supplement to improve diabetes complications.


Effective classroom management represents some of the things that teachers do to maintain an atmosphere that enhances learning. This provides a safe and productive environment for students. Creating a nurturing environment is decreasing the authority differential between the teacher and students. It defines good teaching classroom practice and promotes positive character development among students. This study assessed the classroom learning environment as experienced by college students enrolled in biological science courses at the City College of Angeles, Angeles City. It also determined the relationship between students' profile and their assessment on the type of learning environment they experienced. The study was conducted among students enrolled in biological science courses during the Academic Year 2017-2018. Cronbach's alpha , Factorial Analysis, Descriptive Statistics, Pearson r correlation and Chi square were used in the analysis and interpretation of data. Results revealed that in terms of academic environment, instructors engaged their students in the classroom by employing Outcomes-based Education strategies to assist them in achieving and exceeding educational goals. In terms of participatory learning, instructors incorporated active learning exercises into a course, maintained students' interest and attentiveness during class periods, and created more relevance to course material. In terms of caring environment, teachers created opportunities for student-teacher interaction and built students' social and emotional competencies. In terms of safe and structures environment, students feel respected and free from bullying, intimidation, and harassment. Significant relationship was noted between students' age and type of learning environment and significant difference was obtained between students' grades and type of learning environment. Based from the results of the study, biology education could be improved by creating a classroom environment that is responsive to the needs of the students. Thus, instruction can become more focused and relevant and student engagement could be more improved to create positive effect on students' behavior.


The modification of 3H-thymidine incorporation method of Tanigawa was used to the estimation of anchorage-independent growth of virally and chemically transformed rat cells. The relationship between colony forming assay and 3H-TdR incorporation test was determined, depends on the composition of culture medium and the period of incubation of rat sarcoma (XC) cells with thymidine. The influence of exogenous mitogens (RFG, TGF beta 1 and insulin) and autocrine factor (at different step of purification) on the growth of Morris hepatoma 7777 (MH) cells was estimated by both methods. Regression analysis comparing the results of colony counting and thymidine incorporation revealed good correlation between the two methods. The modification can be used the determination of growth stimulating or growth inhibiting activity and in multistep purification procedure of autocrine growth factors.


In this paper we consider the motion planning problem for a 3D-Dubins system consisting of a pair of Dubins vehicles moving in a 3D space while maintaining constant distance. We provide a motion planning algorithm and sufficient conditions on the initial and final configurations that guarantee the existence of admissible controls, moving a first step towards the complete controllability characterization of such type of systems. Results obtained in this paper are particularly relevant in order to solve formation control problem for multiple robots as aerial or underwater vehicles, which move in 3D spaces. Simulation results demonstrate the feasibility of the motion planning algorithm proposed in this paper.


I consider vortical structures in superfluid helium in the form of knots and links. Then I give some basic notions and facts from knot theory, necessary to understand the rest of the paper. I consider framed knotted vortices and identify these frames with some excitations. The statistics of these excitations is actually fermionic.


We studied the optical counterpart of the intermediate-mass black hole candidate HLX-1 in ESO 243−49. We used a set of Very Large Telescope imaging observations from 2010 November, integrated by Swift X-ray data from the same epoch. We measured standard Vega brightnesses U= 23.89 ± 0.18 mag, B= 25.19 ± 0.30 mag, V= 24.79 ± 0.34 mag and R= 24.71 ± 0.40 mag. Therefore, the source was ≈1 mag fainter in each band than in a set of Hubble Space Telescope images taken a couple of months earlier, when the X-ray flux was a factor of 2 higher. We conclude that during the 2010 September observations, the optical counterpart was dominated by emission from an irradiated disc (which responds to the varying X-ray luminosity), rather than by a star cluster around the black hole (which would not change). We modelled the Comptonized, irradiated X-ray spectrum of the disc, and found that the optical luminosity and colours in the 2010 November data are still consistent with emission from the irradiated disc, with a characteristic outer radius rout≈ 2800rin∼ 1013 cm and a reprocessing fraction ≈2 × 10−3. The optical colours are also consistent with a stellar population with age ≲6 Myr (at solar metallicity) and mass ≈104 M⊙; this is only an upper limit to the mass, if there is also a significant contribution from an irradiated disc. We strongly rule out the presence of a young superstar cluster, which would be too bright. An old globular cluster might be associated with HLX-1, as long as its mass ≲2 × 106 M⊙ for an age of 10 Gyr, but it cannot significantly contribute to the observed very blue and variable optical/ultraviolet emission.


There will be 18 space missions using expendable vehicles through the end of September 1981, according to Joseph B. Mahon, director of the Expendable Launch Vehicles Program for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The busy schedule involves launching a variety of scientific, weather, communications, and Department of Defense satellites from launch sites located at the Eastern Space and Missile Center, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California; and the Italian-operated San Marco launch platform in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Kenya. Seven of the 18 missions will be flown on Delta launch vehicles, seven on the Atlas Centaur, three will use the solid fuel Scout, and one, the Atlas-F.


The beaches of Espirito Santo encompass the most important nesting sites of the loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758), in the South Atlantic Ocean. Previous research has shown that, unlike other nesting sites in Brazil, Espirito Santo harbors a large percentage of male individuals, which play an important role in maintaining the equilibrium of C. caretta populations in the South Atlantic. During the 2006/2007 reproductive season, four beaches presenting considerable geologic differences were monitored. The sedimentary features of the nesting sites (mineral composition, albedo, and grain size), nesting dates, and clutch sizes were correlated with hatching success and incubation duration. Results show that hatching success is mostly affected by clutch size _ and to a lesser extent, by grain size and albedo. Incubation duration is more sensitive to the characteristics of the nesting site, being affected by nesting date, clutch size, mineral composition, and grain size. However, results from one nesting site cannot be generalized or extended to other sites, because sediment properties are functions of the geological framework of the area and the interaction among environmental variables is far too complex. Our results reveal the importance of protecting areas with large geologic diversity, since sedimentary characteristics may affect incubation duration and embryo survival. Our findings are important in the scope of management activities, as nest transfer may alter nest microenvironment, impacting incubation duration and hatching success.


Near-infrared (NIR) spectral analysis usually needs to take advantage of multivariate calibration. However, not all the variables in the spectra have equal contributions to a calibration model. Identification of informative variables is a key step to build a high performance model. According to the influence of a variable on the calibration model, influential variable (IV) is defined and a method for identification of IVs is proposed in this work. In the method, a set of partial least squares (PLS) models are built using a subset of variables selected randomly by Monte Carlo re-sampling, and then the clustering of these models are investigated by means of principal component analysis. The variables that make the models grouping can be identified as the IVs. Finally, the PLS model built with the selected IVs is adopted as the calibration model. Five NIR spectral datasets are used to test the performance and applicability of the method. The results show that the identified IVs are reasonable and the calibration model is efficient enough to produce accurate and reliable predictions.


Recently, a large-scale production system of softwood-derived poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-modified glycol lignin (GL) was developed to produce high-quality lignin derivatives with substantially controlled chemical structures and attractive thermal properties. In this study, the further upgrading of GL properties with carboxy functionalization was demonstrated through the room-temperature hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) treatment with the mass ratio of H2O2 to GL, 1:1 and 1:3, for 7 d. The changes in the chemical structure, carboxy group content, molecular weight, and thermal properties of the insoluble portions of partially oxidized glycol lignins (OGLs) were then investigated. Nuclear magnetic resonance and thioacidolysis data revealed that the oxidative functionalization involved the cleavage of β–O–4 linkages and the oxidative cleavage of guaiacyl aromatic rings into muconic acid-type structures. This was validated by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy and potentiometric titration. Overall, the results suggested that the varying outcomes of carboxy group content (0.81–2.04 mmol/g OGL) after 7-d treatment depended on the type of the GL origin having varying amounts of the retained native lignin structure (e.g., β–O–4 linkages), which were prepared from different source-wood-meal sizes and PEG molecular masses.


The Ghost has been developed to create a merger between the standard MIDI keyboard controller, MIDI/digital guitars and alternative desktop controllers. Using a custom software editor, The Ghost's controls can be mapped to suit the users performative needs. The interface takes its interaction and gestural cues from the guitar but it is not a MIDI guitar. The Ghost's hardware, firmware and software will be open sourced with the hopes of creating a community of users that are invested in creating music with controller.


Designing and implementing applications that can handle multiple recognition-based interaction technologies such as speech and gesture inputs is a difficult task. IMBuilder and MEngine are the two components of a new toolkit for rapidly creating and testing multimodal interface designs. First, an interaction model is specified in the form of a collection of finite state machines, using a simple graphical tool (IMBuilder). Then, this interaction model can be tested in a multimodal framework (MEngine) that automatically performs input recognition (speech and gesture) and modality integration. Developers can build complete multimodal applications without concerning themselves with the recognition engine internals and modality integration. Furthermore, several interaction models can be rapidly tested in order to achieve the best use and combination of input modalities with minimal implementation effort.


Orientia tsutsugamushi, an obligate intracellular bacterium, is the causative agent of scrub typhus. TNF-α and IFN-β mRNAs were induced after infection with O. tsutsugamushi. Western blot analysis shows that O. tsutsugamushi-stimulation leads to phosphorylation of ERK1/2, JNK1/2, and p38 MAPKs. Selective inhibitors of ERK1/2, JNK1/2, p38 MAPKs could all completely prevent TNF-α secretion. Host TNF-α production via p38 & JNK pathways by this bacterium was found to be regulated by post-transcriptional mechanism. In contrast, ERK pathway mainly control the transcription step of TNF-α gene regulation. Orientia inactivation by heat did not abolish induction of TNF-α production. However, heat inactivation of bacterium or treatment of host cell with cytochalasin D led to a complete loss of IFN-β induction, suggesting requirement of internalization and escape into cytoplasm by bacteria for host IFN-β response. Selective inhibitors of ERK1/2, p38 MAPKs, or NF-κB could all completely prevent IFN-β induction. In conclusion, our data suggest that distinct mechanism of pathogen detection is involved in activation of TNF-α and IFN-β genes in response to Orientia tsutsugamushi infection.
 This study was supported by Brain Korea 21 (BK21) program in 2007.


Simple Summary Myocarditis is the inflammation of the heart muscle, and viral infections are a common cause of this disease. Myocarditis in some patients can progress to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The mouse model of coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) is commonly used to understand this disease progression in DCM patients. In this paper, we have attempted to analyze antibodies for heart antigens that could be produced as a result of heart damage in animals infected with CVB3 using a technique called Phage ImmunoPrecipitation Sequencing (PhIP-Seq). The analyses led us to identify antibodies for several proteins that were not previously reported that may have relevance to human disease. Abstract Enteroviruses such as group B coxsackieviruses (CVB) are commonly suspected as causes of myocarditis that can lead to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), and the mouse model of CVB3 myocarditis is routinely used to understand DCM pathogenesis. Mechanistically, autoimmunity is suspected due to the presence of autoantibodies for select antigens. However, their role continues to be enigmatic, which also raises the question of whether the breadth of autoantibodies is sufficiently characterized. Here, we attempted to comprehensively analyze the autoantibody repertoire using Phage ImmunoPrecipitation Sequencing (PhIP-Seq), a versatile and high-throughput platform, in the mouse model of CVB3 myocarditis. First, PhIP-Seq analysis using the VirScan library revealed antibody reactivity only to CVB3 in the infected group but not in controls, thus validating the technique in this model. Second, using the mouse peptide library, we detected autoantibodies to 32 peptides from 25 proteins in infected animals that are ubiquitously expressed and have not been previously reported. Third, by using ELISA as a secondary assay, we confirmed antibody reactivity in sera from CVB3-infected animals to cytochrome c oxidase assembly factor 4 homolog (COA4) and phosphoinositide-3-kinase adaptor protein 1 (PIK3AP1), indicating the specificity of antibody detection by PhIP-Seq technology. Fourth, we noted similar antibody reactivity patterns in CVB3 and CVB4 infections, suggesting that the COA4- and PIK3AP1-reactive antibodies could be common to multiple CVB infections. The specificity of the autoantibodies was affirmed with influenza-infected animals that showed no reactivity to any of the antigens tested. Taken together, our data suggest that the autoantibodies identified by PhIP-Seq may have relevance to CVB pathogenesis, with a possibility that similar reactivity could be expected in human DCM patients.


Software systems are increasingly regulated. Software engineers therefore must determine which requirements have met or exceeded their legal obligations and which requirements have not. Requirements that have met or exceeded their legal obligations are legally implementation ready, whereas requirements that have not met or exceeded their legal obligations need further refinement. In this paper, we examine how software engineers make these determinations using a multi-case study with three cases. Each case involves assessment of requirements for an electronic health record system that must comply with the US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and is measured against the evaluations of HIPAA compliance subject matter experts. Our first case examines how individual graduate-level software engineering students assess whether the requirements met or exceeded their HIPAA obligations. Our second case replicates the findings from our first case using a different set of participants. Our third case examines how graduate-level software engineering students assess requirements using the Wideband Delphi approach to deriving consensus in groups. Our findings suggest that the average graduate-level software engineering student is ill-prepared to write legally compliant software with any confidence and that domain experts are an absolute necessity.


Honey adulterations can be carried out by addition of inexpensive sugar syrups, such as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and inverted syrup (IS). Carbohydrate composition of 20 honey samples (16 nectar and 4 honeydew honeys) and 6 syrups has been studied by GC and GC-MS in order to detect differences between both sample groups. The presence of difructose anhydrides (DFAs) in these syrups is described for the first time in this paper; their proportions were dependent on the syrup type considered. As these compounds were not detected in any of the 20 honey samples analyzed, their presence in honey is proposed as a marker of adulteration. Detection of honey adulteration with HFCS and IS requires a previous enrichment step to remove major sugars (monosaccharides) and to preconcentrate DFAs. A new methodology based on yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) treatment has been developed to allow the detection of DFAs in adulterated honeys in concentrations as low as 5% (w/w).


This paper presents experimental results on the measurement of the magnitude and phase response of RF and baseband signal paths made with a power detector. The frequency response is obtained by measuring the magnitude and phase of the output of the power detector when the forward path is excited by a pair of tones. This technique provides a means for making vector measurements using a scalar detector. Instruments, like network analyzers, commonly use a mixer and sinusoidal source to downconvert the signal for digitization and measurement. The downconversion in this paper is performed using a power detector and an extra tone in the excitation signal itself, drastically reducing hardware complexity. Important applications of this technique include the characterization of the digital-to-antenna path of a software radio and the equalization of the antialiasing filter in a wide-band arbitrary waveform generator. Three examples of measurement, one at low frequency and two others at radio frequencies, show that the errors in the measured response are comparable to those obtained using conventional network analyzers.


Ink-based semiconductors that come to mind today include conjugated molecules and polymers, colloidal quantum dots, metal halide hybrid perovskites, and transition metal oxides. These materials form an ink (solution/ suspension/ sol-gel) that can be applied and dried in ambient air to form high-quality films for optoelectronic devices. In this study, we will introduce the current understanding of ink-based lead and lead-free hybrid perovskite and perovskite-inspired thin films. Examples will be presented through time-resolved studies of the solidification to link the solidstate microstructure and device figures of merit to the ink's formulation, drying, and solidification process. The perovskite crystallization kinetics characterized in situ during the solution process indicates an essential role by the inclusion of Cs and K alkali metal cations in perovskite inks. The film and device characterizations indicate the functions of mixed cation and halides in determining the optoelectronic properties. The further sophisticated design of perovskite inks enables significantly optimized charge dynamics, including exciton separation, inter-grain charge transfer, trap density, charge mobility, and charge collection efficiency. The considerably improved optoelectronic properties lead to higher charge collection efficiency and, therefore, better open-circuit voltage and fill factor for the Cs-containing 3D perovskite devices in contrast to the control FAPbI3 one. Recent developments in ink formulation and processing that enable scalable ambient fabrication of high-quality perovskite semiconductor films will also be presented. These findings raise the possibility of developing more controlled perovskites for systematically addressing both charge dynamics and degradation mechanisms in concert for the timely commercialization of perovskite solar cells.


. Beedanahalli Watershed, hydrogeochemical experiments were conducted to evalu - ate the quality and suitability of groundwater for drinking. Thirty-one groundwater samples were taken in 2022's pre and post-monsoon seasons. Groundwater's physiochemical char - acteristics, including pH, EC, TDS, Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Na + , K + , HCO 3-, Cl - , SO 42, and NO 3-, were measured. The overall hydrochemistry of the groundwater samples in both seasons is shown in Gibb's (1970) diagrams as occurring in the rock dominance field. Assessment of groundwater quality is important in the current situation. The primary goals of the current study are to evaluate and classify the groundwater quality for drinking. To evaluate the subsurface water in the study area, 14 distinct physiochemical parameters were examined. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) was attracted to make a comparative analysis of the values . The water quality index is one of the finest ways to determine whether groundwater is safe to drink (WQI). The extracted components show that topography, agronomi c , rainfall, domestic sewerage, and production drain water were among the factors that caused the sources to exceed the allowable limit. The recent study indicated that some groundwater samples had extremely poor water quality, showing that the region is mostly affected by rock weathering and salt evaporating from the bedrock into the water supplies, posing a major threat to the natural ecosystem.58% and 51% of groundwater samples taken before and after the monsoon, respectively, were determined by the WQI index to be appropriate for drinking.


Ion exchange resins (IER) are insoluble polymers that contain acidic or basic functional groups and have the ability to exchange counter-ions within aqueous solutions surrounding them. Based on the nature of the exchangeable ion of the resin as a cation or anion, it is classified as cationic or anionic exchange resins, respectively. The efficacy of ion exchange resins mainly depends upon their physical properties such as degree of cross-linking, porosity, acid base strength, stability, purity and particle size. Modified release of drugs from resinate (drug-resin complexes) is another potential application of ion exchange resins. Due to the versatile utility of ion exchange resins, they are being used for various drug delivery and therapeutic applications. Resins used are polymers that contain appropriately substituted acidic groups, such as carboxylic and sulfonic for cation exchangers; or basic groups, such as quaternary ammonium group for anion exchangers. This review addresses different types of ion exchange resin, their properties, the chemistry; role of IER in controlled drug delivery systems, its therapeutic applications, methods of preparation of IER along with their resonates.


In this paper, a fuzzy operator of max-product is defined at first, and the fuzzy bi-directional associative memory (FBAM) based on the fuzzy operator of max-product is given. Then the properties and the Lyapunov stability of equilibriums of the networks are studied.


Purpose. To evaluate the clinical outcomes and in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) features of keratoconus patients who underwent deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK). Methods. DALK was performed using the big bubble technique in all the patients. If the bubble was not successful to bare the descemet membrane, a manual dissection layer-by layer was performed to expose a deep stromal plane close to the DM. The patients were divided in two groups depending on the intraoperative baring of the descemet membrane: predescemetic DALK (PD-DALK) and descemetic DALK (D-DALK) group. Results. One month after surgery the D-DALK patients show an increase of mean BCVA. In the PD-DALK group mean BCVA did not show significant improvement as compared to preoperative values. At 6 months after surgery mean BCVA was found to be similar in both groups. At 1 month IVCM the peak of reflectivity of the interface was lower in D-DALK group compared to PD-DALK. At 6 months the values of reflectivity were comparable. Conclusions. At 1 month D-DALK seems to lead to a minor interface reflectivity and to a better BCVA; these differences disappear after 6 months and the values of interface reflectivity and BCVA are comparable between D-DALK and PD-DALK.


---------------------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT-----------------------------------------------------------------As computer network grow larger and more complex, there is a need for a new simple kind of approach to configure them. SDN has emerged as promising network architecture. It takes the control plane away from the individual nodes and centralize the network control by utilizing a flow based traffic management. Mininet is a cost effective and an efficient way to emulate and study SDN.This paper presents a study of programmable networks with basics of Mininet.


The ergot alkaloids, a class of fungal-derived natural products with important biological activities, are derived from a common intermediate, chanoclavine-I, which is elaborated into a set of diverse structures. Herein we report the discovery of the biosynthetic pathway of cycloclavine, a complex ergot alkaloid containing a cyclopropyl moiety. We used a yeast-based expression platform along with in vitro biochemical experiments to identify the enzyme that catalyzes a rearrangement of the chanoclavine-I intermediate to form a cyclopropyl moiety. The resulting compound, cycloclavine, was produced in yeast at titers of >500 mg L−1, thus demonstrating the feasibility of the heterologous expression of these complex alkaloids.


AIM
To describe a case of aqueous misdirection complicated by subsequent persistent choroidal effusions following implantation of a Preserflo MicroShunt (PMS) device to treat advanced closed angle glaucoma.

METHODS
A 67-year-old caucasian female with advanced primary angle-closure glaucoma on four medications with an intraocular pressure (IOP) of 26 mm Hg was listed for a PMS insertion with mitomycin C (MMC).

RESULTS
Past ocular history was significant for pseudophakia and previous yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) peripheral iridotomy. Surgery was uneventful but on the first postoperative day, she developed aqueous misdirection complicated by subsequent development of persistent uveal effusions. Conventional treatment strategies including atropine drops, YAG hyaloidotomy and choroidal effusion drainage proved ineffective. A combination of oral steroids and pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) along with an irido-zonulo-hyloidectomy (IZH) proved efficacious.

CONCLUSION
To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first published case of aqueous misdirection complicated with the presence of significant, unresolving choroidal effusions, highlighting the possibility and sequelae of comorbid pathology in nanophthalmic eyes.


Regiospecific protodebromination of ring-substituted bromophenols derived from 2-, 3-, or 4-methylphenol can be effected by heating them with aqueous hydrogen iodide; the synthetic scope of this reaction has been explored. These di- and poly-bromophenols can generally be converted by further bromination in aqueous acetic acid into dienones, which have now been shown to have the 4-bromo-2,5-dienone rather than the 2-bromo-3,5-dienone structure. The rearrangements of these dienones to ring-substituted polybromophenols by treatment with sulphuric acid have been investigated; where more than one product is formed, the regioselectivity differs from that prevailing in the corresponding direct bromination of the phenol with liquid bromine. The alternative rearrangements of these dienones in aprotic solvents with and without illumination have been compared with results obtained by reaction of the methylphenols with bromine under the same conditions. Characteristic differences between the behaviours of 2-, 3-, and 4-methyl-substituted compounds reflect the specific reactions available to the particular dienones.


One of the problems confronting the pharmacologist is the question whether a given agent will enter the brain. This volume is an attempt to summarize the extensive studies of the author on the technique of intraventricular injection developed for the purpose of circumventing the problem of blood-brain permeability. A portion of the monograph is devoted to discussing the techniques and their rationale, while the major part deals with the various symptoms observed with a variety of autonomic and centrally active agents. Much of the work arising from the use of this technique has been widely criticized, and the author fails to allude either to its shortcomings or to the question of why much of the symptomatology is so different from what is observed when the given agent is administered systemically.


Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common irreversible neurodegenerative disease associated with cognitive impairment. To investigate the serum level of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) and the distribution of the genotypes and alleles of 3 PI3K single-nucleotide polymorphisms (RS37,30,087, RS37,30,088, and RS37,30,089) in PD patients with different clinical characteristics. A total of 54 PD patients and 50 healthy individuals were recruited. The serum PI3K level was measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The severity of PD was assessed using the modified Hoehn-Yahr scale. The cognitive function of PD patients was evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination scale and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. The distribution of the alleles and genotypes of PI3K single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was calculated using the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. PD patients showed a significantly higher serum level of PI3K compared to healthy individuals. Increased serum PI3K level was observed in PD patients with more severe disease, longer disease duration, and impaired cognitive function. Additionally, no significant differences were observed in the distributions of the genotypes and alleles of 3 PI3K SNPs between PD patients with normal cognitive function and those with cognitive impairment. PD patients with different levels of disease severity, disease duration, and cognitive function had significantly different serum levels of PI3K. However, the PI3K SNPs in patients with normal cognitive function were not significantly different from those in patients with cognitive impairment. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the roles of PI3K and SNPs of the PI3K gene in PD.


We have measured the alignment A20 of Xe+ ions after L3 photoionization via the anisotropy of Lℓ x-radiation using linearly polarized synchrotron radiation with energies of 4.814 and 5.055 keV, i.e. 27 and 268 eV above the L3 ionization energy, respectively. The alignment values are −0.061(43) and −0.044(70) for the respective photon energies. The experimental values are smaller in magnitude by roughly a factor of 2–3 than the theoretical ones which have been calculated for an extended energy range of photons within the Hartree–Fock approximation.


We describe HDL, an algorithm that learns HTN domain descriptions by examining plan traces produced by an expert problem-solver. Prior work on learning HTN methods requires that all the methods' information except for their preconditions be given in advance so that the learner can learn the preconditions. In contrast, HDL has no prior information about the methods. In our experiments, in most cases HDL converged fully with no more than about 200 plan traces. Furthermore, even when HDL was given only half the plan traces it required to fully converge, it usually was able to produce HTN methods that were sufficient to solve more than 3/4 of the planning problems in the test set.


Title: Development of Virtual Expo Architectural Model as an Alternative Media for Entrepreneurship Learning

Participating in an exhibition plays a vital role in the learning process of entrepreneurship. Exhibitions can be a means to practice selling and introducing products or services, exploring competitor activities, dialogue and demonstrations with potential buyers, and establishing networks with distributors and investors. During the pandemic, there were limited exhibitions due to physical distancing. Although technological developments have made virtual expos possible, MSME players often need help to keep up with the ever-growing digital transformation. Therefore, entrepreneurship education should integrate digital literacy competencies to increase future generations' resilience. This research uses the Research and Development (R&D) method with the ADDIE (Analyze, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluate) development model. This study proposes a virtual expo model developed using SketchUp, Enscape, and Blender. Virtual Expo as a learning medium has feature criteria that allow participants to practice basic skills in entrepreneurship, including the ability to do promotions (pitching), formulate branding and marketing strategies, make prototypes, and present business plans. The metaverse-based prototype is more recommended for entrepreneurial learning media because it can facilitate real-time interactions such as presentations with visible cameras and gestures, booth designs displayed with three-dimensional models, and more interactive product presentations.


Ancestor worship was profound in pre-modern China, so how was it originally related to architecture and how was it associated with a notion of quiddity? This essay unravels an integration of triadic notions linking ancestry to architecture and quiddity (essence of being), even though they may be seen as discrete from a modern perspective. Architecture was viewed as an important representation of ancestry and an indicator of the sanctity of ancestors in pre-modern China. The triadic interconnected relationship can first be found in the overlapping meanings of words in ancient Chinese. It is then observed through the composition and implication of miaohao (literally the name of the temple, but in practice, a posthumous title for the emperor) and tanghao (literally, the formal name of the hall). The essay suggests that from regular reflection upon the quiddity between architecture and ancestor worship, the triad formed a mutually interconnected and mutually enhanced relationship. Although seemingly unique to pre-modern Chinese architecture, the ultimate need to periodically reflect upon the quiddity of architecture and the quiddity of family may in fact be a universal pursuit.


The performance of current supervised AI systems is tightly connected to the availability of annotated datasets. Annotations are usually collected through annotation tools, which are often designed for specific tasks and are difficult to customize. Moreover, existing annotation tools with an active learning mechanism often only support limited use cases. To address these limitations, we present EASE, an Easily-Customized Annotation System Powered by Efficiency Enhancement Mechanisms. \sysname provides modular annotation units for building customized annotation interfaces and also provides multiple back-end options that suggest annotations using (1) multi-task active learning; (2) demographic feature based active learning; (3) a prompt system that can query the API of large language models. We conduct multiple experiments and user studies to evaluate our system's flexibility and effectiveness. Our results show that our system can meet the diverse needs of NLP researchers and significantly accelerate the annotation process.


This paper addresses the job and device scheduling problems in flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) using an automated guided vehicle system (AGV) by simultaneously dealing with material processing and transportation functions. The problem is solved using a two stage iterative approach which includes optimization and computer simulation. An iterative procedure is developed. At the first stage, a meta-heuristic determines the AGV schedule, i.e., the order in which the job transfers by AGVs are made. At the second stage, a discrete event simulation model is used to evaluate the makespan depending on the AGVs schedule. This evaluation is used by the meta-heuristic to improve the initial AGV schedule. Finally, the iterative procedure determines jobs and AGV schedules which minimize the makespan (the schedule length). The investigated meta-heuristics are based on the iterated local search method and simulated annealing. An efficient neighboring system used inside meta-heuristic schemes is proposed. Our approach is numerically tested under different experimental conditions.


INTRODUCTIONChina and Bangladesh are separated by the formidable geographical obstacles of the Himalayas. China and Bangladesh today share a border along the Himalayas with Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar acting as buffer states. Bangladesh sees China situated at the crossroads of overland trading routes. From beginning of history China knew about enormous properties and wealth of Bengal and Bengal also knew about China what was the cradle of Civilization. But in the medieval age this relation has been becoming multidimensional way. many monks, scholars and traders, craftsmen, service holder and officers came to Bengal and many people went to China for same reasons. Our thesis therefore will describe the Relation between Bangladesh and China from the 1st century to 13th century A.D.From the very beginning of the history , a trade route build a relation between Bangladesh and the Chinese seaport, sea-trade no doubt came from ports of India viz. Daybul, Nirun, Patala, Suparaka. Barygaza, Tagara, Muziris, Nelkynda, Ariake, Tamralipti, Gange, Saptagrama, Sarandib, etc. and passed through the Canton(Guangzhou), Shanghai, Beihai, Shenzen, Ningho, Dalian, Dandong, Fuzhou, Guangzhou,Nanjing and many Ports. The ancient city ports of Bengal viz. Tamralipti, Gange, Vanga1 and Saptagrama i.e Satgoan2 were great centers of maritime trade and commerce in ancient days, attracting sailors and merchants from both the eastern and western seas. This contact continued throughout the medieval period. Here Chinese Accounts, a very important source material of Bengal history, have been dealt with in two sections: Ancient and Medieval.Chinese monks, scholars and traders of the Qin Dynasty, visited the ancient Vedic kingdom of Pundravardhana, located in present-day Bogra and Rangpur,(Bangladesh) asearly as the 2nd century BCE, by travelling across the south-west Silk Road. The history of Bengal from the fall of the Mauryas (2nd century BC) to the rise of the Guptas (4th century AD) is obscure. The discovery of some beautiful terracotta figurines at Mahasthana, tamralipti and chandraketugarh, datable in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, proves that Bengal continued to flourish in the Subga and Kusana periods. It appears from the accounts of The Periplus of the Erythrean Sea and Ptolemy that in the first two centuries of the Christian era the whole of deltaic Bengal was organized into a powerful kingdom with its capital at Gange, a great market town on the banks of the Ganges. We have evidence of widespread trade between Bengal and China as well as other countries. The Milinda-Panho mentions Yanga in a list of maritime countries where ships congregated for trade.Bangladesh and China have a rich heritage of cultural interactions and trade which developed on the south-west silk route , the ancient tea route and the maritime silk road. The Silk Route in Sikkim is an offshoot of an ancient trade route which came from Lhasa, crossing Chumbi (Cumbi) Valley and passed through Nathula Pass and finally took the port of Tamralipti (present West Bengal). From Tamralipti, this trade route took to the sea and reached Samatata, Harikela, Sri Lanka, Bali, Java and other parts of the Far East. We find the mention of Tamralipti Gange and Herikela (Chittagong) as a busy sea-route on Bay of Bengal in Fa Hein's accounts as early as AD. 400. This portion of the Old Silk route through Bhutan, East Sikkim and West Bengal was quite less travelled but is expected to have been discovered by traders as early as First Century AD. Most of the Mountain Passes in this region of the Eastern Himalayas are around 14,000 feet above sea-level and stays snow covered from November to April, which makes this route one of the most inhospitable regions on earth. The distance between Lhasa and Tamralipti through this nearly obscure part of the Ancient Silk Route was around 900 kms, which is significantly less than other seaports from Lhasa and this route was comparatively a safer land route option for the traders' caravans. …


A molecular modeling strategy using aryl diketo acid (ADK) derivatives recently reported in the literature as hepatitis C virus (HCV) polymerase inhibitors was designed. A 3D chemical-feature-based pharmacophore model was developed using Catalyst software, which produced 10 pharmacophore hypotheses. The top-ranked one (Hypo 1), characterized by a high correlation coefficient (r = 0.965), consisted of two hydrogen bond acceptors, one negative ionizable moiety, and two hydrophobic aromatics. This model was used to predict the anti-RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (anti-RdRp) activity of 6-(1-arylmethylpyrrol-2-yl)-1,4-dioxo-5-hexenoic acids and other ADK derivatives previously synthesized in our laboratories as HIV-1 integrase inhibitors. Furthermore, the experimental IC50 values of 9 compounds, tested in vitro against recombinant HCV polymerase, were compared with the corresponding values predicted using Hypo1. A good agreement between experimental and simulated data was obtained. The results demonstrate that the hypothesis derived in this study can be considered to be a useful tool in designing new leads based on ADK scaffolds as HCV RdRp inhibitors.


ABSTRACT Recent advances in technology have allowed athletes with physical conditions to perform at increasingly high levels. After the ruling that one such athlete had an advantage over "able-bodied" athletes before the 2008 Olympics, many question whether these technological advances have even augmented athletic abilities. Although much progress has been achieved, technology for "disabled" athletes must be far advanced to allow them to reach and surpass the ability level of able-bodied athletes. Here, we review the current state of assistive devices created to assist athletes with physical conditions affecting their mobility. We form a quantitative comparison between athletes with and without physical conditions, lay out recent advancements in the development of sports-related assistive devices, and discuss the implications of these devices. Using the Paralympics as a guide, this work serves as an overview of the current state of assistive technology for athletes with mobility conditions and a tool for future researchers attempting to bridge the gap between athletes with and without physical conditions.


PURPOSE: To report an experimental study evaluating, through digital morphometry, the intimal thickening of the arterial wall after the implant of auto-expandable stainless steel stents covered or not with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) in the pig aorta. METHODS: In three groups of pigs a 12 F sheath was inserted in distal abdominal aorta. Group I animals (n=5) served as control. Group II animals (n=10) received an auto-expandable uncovered metallic stent. On group III animals (n=10) an auto-expandable stent covered with PTFE was inserted. After four weeks the animals were killed, the specimens were harvested and the intimal thickening was quantified by morphometric analysis. RESULTS: In the comparison among groups I, II and III referring to intimal, medial area and intimal index, it was not observed statistically significant variation. Differences were identified among groups referring to luminal proximal (p=0,036) and distal areas (p=0,044). Through multiple comparison tests for Kruskal-Wallis it was identified a difference between groups I and II. However, when these variables were controlled by weigh factor (luminal area/weigh relation), this difference was not observed anymore. CONCLUSION: In this short term study, the PTFE covering is not associated to further intimal thickening besides that promoted by the metallic mesh in large arteries and in high flow conditions.


Based on the assumption that cultural orientations affect interpersonal conflicts, the study examined conflict styles across two national cultures of neighboring European countries, i.e. Lithuania and Poland. Whereas Poland and Lithuania score relatively high in terms of individualism, they differ in terms of power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity-femininity. For the research purposes, a conflict resolving style questionnaire was applied, which was prepared by T. Wach according to the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument. The questionnaire was administered to 520 participants aged 13–15. Conflict style comparisons demonstrated that the Lithuanians chose dominating and accommodating styles more often than the Polish did, and the Polish chose integrating more often than the Lithuanians. The research findings can be a valuable source in predicting conflict resolution patterns.


Despite extensive attention being paid to the effects of the Universal Basic Income (UBI) on society at large, little critical analysis has been developed on the relationship between gender inequality and UBI. The purpose of this article is to first reflect on the feminist arguments in favour of UBI and then problematises some of these points by also reflecting on other available policies. By looking into the role of women's work in both productive and reproductive activities, it is argued that UBI should not be disregarded as a social policy. However, its transformative capacity to empower women and to strengthen their role in society should not be overestimated. In order to address this gap, policymakers should address misconceptions around gender norms and acknowledge the multiple forms of women's work across the social relations of production and reproduction.


Abstract. The establishment of commercial forestry plantations in natural grassland vegetation, results in increased transpiration and interception which in turn, results in a streamflow reduction. Methods to quantify this impact typically require LAI as an input into the various equations and process models that are applied. The use of remote sensing technology as a tool to estimate leaf area index (LAI) for use in estimating canopy interception is described in this paper. Remote sensing provides a potential solution to effectively monitor the spatial and temporal variability of LAI. This is illustrated using Hyperion hyperspectral imagery and three vegetation indices, namely the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), soil adjusted vegetation index (SAVI) and Vogelmann index 1 to estimate LAI in a catchment afforested with Eucalyptus, Pinus and Acacia genera in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands of South Africa. Of the three vegetation indices used in this study, it was found that the Vogelmann index 1 was the most robust index with an R2 and root mean square error (RMSE) values of 0.7 and 0.3 respectively. However, both NDVI and SAVI could be used to estimate the LAI of 12 year old Pinus patula accurately. If the interception component is to be quantified independently, estimates of maximum storage capacity and canopy interception are required. Thus, the spatial distribution of LAI in the catchment is used to estimate maximum canopy storage capacity in the study area.


Client-server database systems based on a data shipping model can exploit client memory resources by caching copies of data items across transaction boundaries. Caching reduces the need to obtain data from servers or other sites on the network. In order to ensure that such caching does not result in the violation of transaction semantics, a transactional cache consistency maintenance algorithm is required. Many such algorithms have been proposed in the literature and, as all provide the same functionality, performance is a primary concern in choosing among them. In this article we present a taxonomy that describes the design space for transactional cache consistency maintenance algorithms and show how proposed algorithms relate to one another. We then investigate the performance of six of these algorithms, and use these results to examine the tradeoffs inherent in the design choices identified in the taxonomy. The results show that the interactions among dimensions of the design space impact performance in many ways, and that classifications of algorithms as simply "pessimistic" or "optimistic" do not accurately characterize the similarities and differences among the many possible cache consistency algorithms.


Resistivity as a function of ion-fluence has been measured in situ in thin films of oxide superconductor EuBa 2 Cu 3 O y irradiated with various heavy ions in a wide energy range of 90 MeV–3.84 GeV. From the resistivity measurements, the quantities characterizing the irradiation-induced columnar defects, such as the diameter of the columnar defect and the inside-resistivity (the resistivity inside the columnar defect), have been estimated. It is found that they are not scaled with the electronic stopping power, while they are strongly correlated with the primary ionization rate which is the number of atoms primarily ionized by an incident ion per unit path length. This result suggests that the defect production is triggered by Coulomb repulsion of ionized atoms. Based on the results of thermal annealing of irradiated samples, structure of the columnar defects has also been discussed.


We construct a model describing the response of a hybrid system where the electromagnetic field - in particular, surface plasmon polaritons - couples strongly with electronic excitations of atoms or molecules. Our approach is based on the input-output theory of quantum optics, and in particular it takes into account the thermal and quantum vibrations of the molecules. The latter is taken into account by the $P(E)$ theory analogous to that used in the theory of dynamical Coulomb blockade. As a result, we are able to include the effect of the molecular Stokes shift on the strongly coupled response of the system. Our model then accounts for the asymmetric emission from upper and lower polariton modes. It also allows for an accurate description of the partial decoherence of the light emission from the strongly coupled system. Our results can be readily used to connect the response of the hybrid modes to the emission and fluorescence properties of the individual molecules, and thus are relevant in understanding any utilization of such systems, like coherent light harvesting.


With the development of accelerated acquisition protocols, it is possible to achieve functional brain mapping with submillimeter resolution. This permits studying the human brain at the mesoscopic scale. Typical submillimeter images measure 0.8 mm. isotropic voxels, barely enough to study human functional mesoscopic responses. Here we acquire functional images at 10.5 T with the unprecedented spatial resolution of 0.4 mm. isotropic voxels. Using NORDIC to suppress thermal noise, we demonstrate the feasibility of achieving meaningful brain mapping at these ultra-high resolutions, where single voxels contains but a few thousand cells, further bridging the gap between fMRI and optical imaging


Turmeric rhizome (Curcuma longa L.) has been used without concern for safety as a culinary spice and traditional medicine under the ancient Ayurvedic medicinal system of India dating back nearly 4000 years. This preclinical safety evaluation was done to determine the safety of an oleoresin-based turmeric extract (CURCUGEN®). Guidelines from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) directed the assessment of safety for the in vitro and in vivo application of CURCUGEN®. Safety of the herbal medicine was evaluated through the toxicological assessment of acute, oral, and 90-day repeated dosing, genotoxicity, and mutagenicity study. Genotoxicity tests included the in vitro bacterial reverse mutation test, chromosomal aberration test, and in vivo micronucleus test. The single dose of CURCUGEN® administered orally (gavage) to Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats resulted in a LD50 of >5000 mg/kg body weight. The subchronic assessment of CURCUGEN®, as administered to SD rats over 90 days resulted in a no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) of 2000 mg/kg body weight/day. CURCUGEN® did not elicit any genotoxic or clastogenic effect in genotoxicity tests. The battery of safety studies carried out demonstrated that CURCUGEN® showed no evidence of general toxicity or genotoxicity.


Darier disease is an autosomal dominant genodermatosis of abnormal keratinization characterized by hyperkeratotic papules and plaques with a predilection for seborrheic areas. We report a case of a rare vesiculobullous variant of treatment-resistant Darier disease in a 55-year-old woman that failed topical tacrolimus and topical and oral glucocorticoids. Cetirizine was initiated at 10 mg daily and increased to 40 mg daily over four weeks, with resultant marked improvement of the patient's burning sensation. A punch biopsy revealed a perivascular infiltrate of eosinophils. This patient's symptomatic improvement with cetirizine, which has antagonizing properties against eosinophils, highlights the potential role of eosinophils in the pathogenesis of vesiculobullous Darier disease. We suggest that major basic protein secreted by eosinophils may propagate blister formation in vesiculobullous Darier disease by disrupting desmosomes.

J Drugs Dermatol. 2019;18(2):213-214.


Synopsis A series of gels differing in ionic content was prepared by derivatizing starch with varying amounts of carboxymethyl add-on. Some derivatives were lightly crosslinked with epichlorohydrin to reduce soluble material and increase the amount of gel. The gel fraction of each batch was isolated. and viscosity 1]. shear modulus G. and swelling in water and salt solution were then determined. One gel suspension. examined in more detail. was demonstrated to behave as a closely packed gel thick ening agent. thereby warranting use of the three reduced functions: reduced concentration cQ (c is weight concentration of polymer. Q is swelling capacity in excess fluidl,1]/cQ. and G/cJi:l. At cQ greater than about 2. 1]/cQ. and G/cli:l reach constant plateau values. as is typical of other examples of closely packed gel thickeners. In a comparison among the gel suspensions. plateau values of the reduced viscosity function were nearly proportional to the apparent crosslink density G/c Ii:J. in agreement with other closely packed gel thickeners. but were not affected by ionic content of dry polymer. The water swelling capacities of the different gels ranged from 47 to 450 gig and were correlated with both ionic contents and apparent crosslink densities. but the effects of these variables were less than suggested by theory.


Endocrine therapy (ET) is one of a number of targeted therapies for estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer (BRCA); however, resistance to ET has become the primary issue affecting treatment outcome. In the present study, a predictive classifier was created using a DNA methylation dataset to identify patients susceptible to endocrine resistance. DNA methylation and RNA sequencing data, and the clinicopathological features of BRCA, were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Stringent criteria were set to select and classify patients into two groups, namely those resistant to ET (n=11) and sensitive to ET (n=21) groups. Bump hunting analysis revealed that 502 out of 135,418 genomic regions were differentially methylated between these two groups; these regions were differentially methylated regions (DMRs). The majority of the CpG sites contained in the DMRs mapped to the promoter region. Functional enrichment analyses indicated that a total of 562 specific genes encompassing these DMRs were primarily associated with 'biological progress of organ morphogenesis and development' and 'cell-cell adhesion' gene ontologies. Logistic regression and Pearson's correlation analysis were conducted to construct a predictive classifier for distinguishing patients resistant or sensitive to ET. The highest areas under the curve and relatively low Akaike information criterion values were associated with a total of 60 DMRs; a risk score retained from this classifier was revealed to be an unfavorable predictor of survival in two additional independent datasets. Furthermore, the majority of genes (55/63) exhibited a statistically significant association between DNA methylation and mRNA expression (P<0.05). The association between the mRNA expression of a number of genes (namely calcium release activated channel regulator 2A, Schlafen family member 12, chromosome 3 open reading frame 18, zinc finger protein 880, dual oxidase 1, major histocompatibility complex, class II, DP β1, C-terminal binding protein 1, ALG13 UDP-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase subunit and RAS protein activator like 2) and the prognosis of patients with estrogen receptor-positive BRCA and ET resistance was determined using Kaplan-Meier Plotter. In summary, the predictive classifier proposed in the present study may aid the identification of patients sensitive or resistant to ET, and numerous genes maybe potential therapeutic targets to delay the development of resistance to ET.


The purpose of this study was to improve the segmentation performance of the level set method for magnetic resonance images (MRI), such as fuzzy boundary or low contrast. In this paper, a level set method was presented in which fuzzy c-means (FCM) was used to prevent boundary leaking during the curve propagated. Firstly, FCM algorithm was used to compute the fuzzy membership values for each pixel, and the edge indicator function was redefined on the basis of FCM. Then the result of FCM segmentation was introduced to obtain the initial contour of level set method. Finally, with the new edge indicator function, the result of brain MR image segmentation showed that the improved algorithm could exactly extract the corresponding tissues of the brain and improve the evolution of the level set function.


For years, great attention has been drawn to the Dilemma Zone (DZ) problem as it has been questioned as one of the causes to the high traffic accident records at signalized junctions. This problem has far been investigated in engineering perspectives, but few attempt to investigate influences of drivers' decision making behavior. Since Zegeer and Dean (1978), Logistic regression model has commonly been adopted to simulate drivers' STOP/GO decision and figure out DZ boundary; Discrete choice model, for instance Logit model which has similar underlying nature as the Logistic regression model has however few been used. The un-popularity of the Logit model might be because it requires individual attributes for establishing utility functions of STOP and GO decisions; only field observed data cannot be used for this purpose. Therefore, a new measure termed generalized distance was proposed. The proposed measure is of two folds: (1) it is used to quantify and assess drivers' decision making behavior; and (2) it can be used to establish utility functions of STOP and GO decisions and thus Logit model was adopted in this study. The results reveal that, during the observation period, drivers were more likely to GO at amber; and, interestingly, drivers who maneuvered over speed limit were more likely to STOP. The findings of this study also suggest that drivers' decision making behavior should first be assessed as to decide appropriate road safety interventions for the reported problem.


In common finance literature, Black-Scholes partial differential equation of option pricing is usually derived with no-arbitrage principle. Considering an asset market, Merton applied the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman techniques of his continuous-time consumption-portfolio problem, deriving general equilibrium relationships among the securities in the asset market. In special case where the interest rate is constant, he rederived the Black-Scholes partial differential equation from the general equilibrium asset market. In this work, I follow Cox-Ingersoll-Ross formulation to consider an economy which includes (1) uncertain production processes, and (2) the random technology change. Assuming a random production stochastic process of constant drift and variance, and assuming a random technology change to follow a log normal process, the equilibrium point of this economy will lead to the Black-Scholes partial differential equation for option pricing.


- The ECG is used for diagnosis of heart diseases. Generally, the recorded ECG signal is often contaminated by noise. In order to extract useful information from the noisy ECG signals, the raw ECG signal has to be processed. The baseline wandering is significant and can strongly affect ECG signal analysis. The detection of QRS complexes in an ECG signal provides information about the heart rate, the conduction velocity, the condition of tissues within the heart as well as various abnormalities. Supplies evidence for the diagnosis of cardiac diseases. An algorithm based on wavelet transforms (WT's) has been developed for detecting ECG characteristic points. Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) has been used to extract relevant information from the ECG signal in order to perform classification. The QRS complex can be distinguished from high P or T waves, noise, baseline drift, and artifacts. By using this method, the detection of QRS complexes and the P and T waves can also be detected, even with serious base line drift and noise.


Molecular structure is fundamental for understanding mechanisms of molecular interactions. This applies not least to understanding biological function: every biological cell, whether bacterial or human, is an immensely complex system of thousands of molecules that exist in constant motion and interaction with each other. Structural properties of the two main classes of biological macromolecules, nucleic acids and proteins, have been studied in this Thesis focusing on functional interactions of both DNA and the DNA-binding enzyme human recombinase Rad51.

DNA is a highly polymorphic molecule and its plasticity may be important for its function. Conformational mechanics of the DNA helix was addressed to understand interactions with dumbbell-shaped ruthenium(II) polypyridyl compounds, known for their remarkable ability to slowly thread one of their bulky centres through a tightly packed DNA stack, probably invoking large transient conformational rearrangements of the helix. Thread-intercalation rate is accelerated by several orders of magnitude if the DNA target sequence is a stretch of at least ten base pairs of AT, as well as by the hydrophobicity of the auxiliary "dumbbell" ligands: counterintuitively, a smaller and less hydrophobic compound takes longer times to thread. It is hypothesized that thread-intercalation might be facilitated by an A-like DNA conformation, induced by the outside binding of the Ru(II) compounds. An NMR study, aiming to solve a thread-intercalated structure of the binuclear Ru(II)-DNA complex, resulted in a groove-binding geometry, probably representing an initial binding mode preceding intercalation, a result emphasizing the elusiveness and immense complexity of the threading process. Turning back to simpler monomeric propeller-shaped Ru(II) compounds it was deduced that, despite acting as classic intercalators, they can "read out" the chirality of the DNA helix by enantiospecifically kinking it, in a fashion analogous to several families of operatory DNA binding proteins.
Another operatory protein, human recombinase Rad51, that facilitates homologous recombination, the process of exchanging near identical-sequence DNA strands, is also mechanically acting on DNA, by stretching it. A 3-D high-resolution model structure of human Rad51 filament was solved by a combination of polarized-light spectroscopic data and molecular modelling. Highlighted by the model some interesting structural features could be addressed: strategic locations of two putative DNA binding loops inside the protein filament; as well as location of a putative ATP binding site at the interface between two protein subunits and in direct proximity to a supposed location of DNA – could hint about DNA docking mechanism and potential role of ATP in the protein function.
The Rad51-DNA model has proven itself useful also in a follow-up study on the stimulatory role of Ca2+ in the strand exchange reaction by human Rad51. A mechanism is proposed involving a high affinity DNA binding state of the Rad51 filament induced by Ca2+, regulatorily crucial for the search of homology and subsequent DNA strands exchange.


Background: Despite increasing worldwide incidence of Parkinson's disease, the therapy is still suboptimal due to the diversified clinical manifestations, lack of sufficient treatment, the poor adherence in advanced patients, and varied response. Proper intake of medications regarding food and managing drug-food interactions may optimize Parkinson's disease treatment. Objectives: We investigated potential effects that food, beverages, and dietary supplements may have on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs used by parkinsonian patients; identified the most probable interactions; and shaped recommendations for the optimal intake of drugs regarding food. Methods: We performed a systematic review in adherence to PRISMA guidelines, and included a total of 81 studies in the qualitative synthesis. Results and Conclusion: We found evidence for levodopa positive interaction with coffee, fiber and vitamin C, as well as for the potential beneficial impact of low-fat and protein redistribution diet. Contrastingly, high-protein diet and ferrous sulfate supplements can negatively affect levodopa pharmacokinetics and effectiveness. For other drugs, the data of food impact are scarce. Based on the available limited evidence, all dopamine agonists (bromocriptine, cabergoline, ropinirole), tolcapone, rasagiline, selegiline in tablets, safinamide, amantadine and pimavanserin can be taken with or without a meal. Opicapone and orally disintegrating selegiline tablets should be administered on an empty stomach. Of monoamine oxidase B inhibitors, safinamide is the least susceptible for interaction with the tyramine-rich food, whereas selegiline and rasagiline may lose selectivity to monoamine oxidase B when administered in supratherapeutic doses. The level of presented evidence is low due to the poor studies design, their insufficient actuality, and missing data.


OBJECTIVE
To study the incidence, location, pre- and postoperative symptoms (hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, facial palsy), preoperative diagnostic imaging, and surgical treatment of labyrinthine fistulae (LF).

DESIGN
Retrospective case review.

PATIENTS
Twenty-two cases of LF over 382 mastoid operations performed in a 168-month period.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Clinical, imaging, and surgical correlation of extensive fistulae and bone fistulae.

RESULTS
LF prevalence was 5.8%. The main primary symptoms were otorrhea and hypoacusis. Only four patients presented vertigo as their main complaint. All patients underwent preoperative computed tomographic (CT) scans and preoperative audiometry. LF diagnosis was made before surgery for 100% of patients on the basis of CT scan. A second fistula was, however, misdiagnosed by imaging in two patients. With respect to surgical technique, a canal wall down procedure was performed in 77% and a conservative procedure was performed in 23%. Fistula was located in the horizontal semicircular canal in 100% of cases, and in 9%, a second fistula was operatively diagnosed. In 91% of cases, the matrix was removed, whereas it was left in the course of a canal down procedure in 9%. With a follow-up of 5.7 years, hearing remained unchanged in 80% of patients.

CONCLUSIONS
Surgery with removal of the cholesteatoma matrix and sealing of the fistula with temporalis fascia is a safe procedure that can help preserve cochlear function. The choice of a canal down procedure would be influenced by cholesteatoma characteristics rather than by the finding of an LF.


An application of regression relationships depend- ing on geomorphic parameters is proposed to predict the amount of the average annual suspended sediment yield at different sections of the drainage network. Simple and mul- tiple regression relationships, utilising the drainage density and the hierarchical anomaly index as independent variables, based on data from 20 river basins of different size located in Italy, are here tested. An application is also shown for a small river basin located in central Italy where it is possible to compare the obtained suspended sediment yield estimates with reservoirs siltation data. The results confirm the poten- tial applicability of regression equations for estimating the suspended sediment yield depending on the topological be- haviours of the river network. A discussion of the reliability of the method for ungauged basins is also provided, which puts in light the necessity of additional tests to support the application of the approach to small size watersheds.


Glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-protein interactions mediate critical physiological and pathological processes, such as neuronal plasticity, development, and viral invasion. However, mapping GAG-protein interaction networks is challenging as these interactions often require specific GAG sulfation patterns and involve transmembrane receptors or extracellular matrix-associated proteins. Here, we report the first GAG polysaccharide-based photoaffinity probes for the system-wide identification of GAG-binding proteins in living cells. A general platform for the modular, efficient assembly of various chondroitin sulfate (CS)-based photoaffinity probes was developed. Systematic evaluations led to benzophenone-containing probes that efficiently and selectively captured known CS-E-binding proteins in vitro and in cells. Importantly, the probes also enabled the identification of >50 new proteins from living neurons that interact with the neuroplasticity-relevant CS-E sulfation motif. Several candidates were independently validated and included membrane receptors important for axon guidance, innate immunity, synapse development, and synaptic plasticity. Overall, our studies provide a powerful approach for mapping GAG-protein interaction networks, revealing new potential functions for these polysaccharides and linking them to diseases such as Alzheimer's and autism.


Successful design of electrical machines hinges on a knowledge of the likely temperature rise within the machine. The ability to predict an accurate temperature distribution, in turn, requires a knowledge of the iron loss distribution, thermal characteristics of the materials, and the cooling conditions, all of which are very difficult to quantify. A temperature–time method is proposed to evaluate accurately the iron loss density distribution in the stator of an induction motor by measurement of temperature gradients in the machine. This method is used to determine the iron loss density distributions, under various load conditions, in a specially constructed 3-phase, 4-pole, 4 kW frameless induction motor. Accurate stray load losses are then computed from the resulting loss density distributions. The experimental results were validated against those obtained with standard test procedures, as well as predicted results from finite element analysis.


The debate on the value of providing corrective feedback on L2 writing has been
prominent since Truscott's (1996) claim on its inefficacy and harmful effects. With the
aim of contributing to the discussion, this study reports on the effectiveness of different
types of corrective feedback (focused direct, focused indirect, unfocused direct,
unfocused indirect) in improving the written grammatical accuracy of ESL learners and
whether such difference in efficacy is influenced by its efficacy in promoting the noticing
function of the Output Hypothesis. 125 ESL learners were divided into four experimental
groups and one control group and their progress in written grammatical accuracy was
monitored through two treatment and three tests (pretest, posttest, delayed posttest). The
results reveal that short-term improvement is demonstrated by the focused direct,
unfocused direct, and focused indirect feedback while longitudinal improvement is only
recorded by the focused direct feedback. Meanwhile, the unfocused indirect does not
show much improvement as compared to the control group. The result also reveals the
superior efficacy of direct feedback in playing its role as the facilitator for noticing as
opposed to the indirect approach of CF provision.


This article introduces the application of automatic modulation classification (AMC) algorithm for the signal sensing and detection of the primary user (PU) in cognitive radio (CR) environments. The algorithm was developed using an artificial neural network (ANN). Computer simulations of 12 combined analog and digitally modulated signals corrupted by additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) have been carried out.


TWELVE years ago Clark (7) surveyed the literature on the social effectiveness of education. It has been 10 years since the appearance of the general report of the American Youth Commission, Youth and the Future (1), which examined education of youth in relation to occupational adjustment, leisure activities, marriage and the home, and health and fitness. Eight years ago Warner, Havighurst, and Loeb introduced an alternate way of estimating the social effects and correlates of education in Who Shall Be Educated? (40). The present chapter, focusing upon the literature of the past four years, follows the outline of the Clark report and the concerns of the American Youth Commission. In addition it takes account of variability of influences such as family background and mobility drive.