Diet is a component in the etiology of the two major causes of death in the United States, namely, cardiovascular disease and cancer. During the last decade, various organizations have suggested that we alter the "typical" American diet in order to decrease the incidence of these diseases even though both diseases are indisputably of multiple etiology. An implication behind these recommendations is that individuals will increase their longevity by changing their diets. The burden of proof falls on those proposing changes to the diet that such alterations will be safe and effective. In spite of our often indicted diet, mortality from heart disease and stroke continue to fall and deaths from diet-related cancers are static or dropping. Longevity in the U.S. is exceeded by only five countries, whose populations consume a diet similar to ours in four, and that in the fifth is approaching ours. While low-fat high-fiber diets probably have some beneficial effect vis-a-vis chronic diseases, it is likely that other risk factors contribute more to the total risk of disease. Therefore, it is illogical to expect dietary manipulation to offset significantly other concurrent risks such as heredity, tobacco use, hypertension, and obesity. Individuals who are at high risk for specific diseases should modify their diets to minimize this particular risk factor. Most Americans can safely reduce their intake of total calories, fat, sugar, and salt. Although this can be achieved most readily on a population basis by following a form of "prudent" diet, it is premature to promise medical benefits to individuals.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The new Iglesias resectoscope with continuous irrigation has been described. Advantages of this instrument include: no interruption of the TUR, better endoscopic vision, decreased and equally strong intravesical pressure, shorter operating time, less bleeding, easier teaching and performing of transurethral resections.


Motivation The peptide-centric identification methodologies of data-independent acquisition (DIA) data mainly rely on scores for the mass spectrometric signals of targeted peptides. Among these scores, the coelution scores of peak groups constructed by the chromatograms of peptide fragment ions have a significant influence on the identification. Most of the existing coelution scores are achieved by artificially designing some functions in terms of the shape similarity, retention time shift of peak groups. However, these scores cannot characterize the coelution robustly when the peak group is in the circumstance of interference. Results On the basis that the neural network is more powerful to learn the implicit features of data robustly from a large number of samples, and thus minimizing the influence of data noise, in this work, we propose Alpha-XIC, a neural network-based model to score the coelution. By learning the characteristics of the coelution of peak groups derived from identified peptides, Alpha-XIC is capable of reporting robust coelution scores even for peak groups with interference. With this score appending to initial scores generated by the accompanying identification engine, the ensuing statistical validation tool can update the identification result and recover the misidentified peptides. In our evaluation of the HeLa dataset with gradient lengths ranging from 0.5h to 2h, Alpha-XIC delivered 16.7% ~ 49.1% improvements in the number of identified precursors at 1% FDR. Furthermore, Alpha-XIC was tested on LFQbench, a mixed-species dataset with known ratios, and increased the number of peptides and proteins fell within valid ratios by up to 16.6% and 13.8%, respectively, compared to the initial identification. Availability and Implementation Source code are available at www.github.com/YuAirLab/Alpha-XIC.


A female patient with right sided nodular goitre who presented with thyrotoxic symptoms is described. She was diagnosed as a case of hemiagenesis of the left lobe of the thyroid gland with chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis and treated with propranolol; she became euthyroid over eight weeks.


Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS) have revolutionized the genetic analysis of complex traits but the functional consequences of most of the over one thousand detected genetic associations remain unknown. Whole transcriptome sequencing followed by expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) analysis represents a powerful tool to help overcome, this limitation by systematically assessing the impact of the associated variants on gene expression. Accordingly, different large-scale transcriptome efforts have been conducted in the last few years to define a catalog of variants affecting gene expression. The vast majority of these studies focused on the PolyA(+) fractions of the RNA which may provide more robust data but also miss transcript that lack the polyA tail. In this thesis, we performed a pilot study sequencing the transcriptome using both PolyA(+) selection and whole transcriptome rRNA-depletion libraries in 68 individuals to compare these two protocols in the context of an eQTL study. All the individuals were enrolled in the SardiNIA longitudinal project and were already sequenced at the genomic level and phenotyped for over 500 quantitative variables. We mapped genomic variances associated with the expression levels of protein coding genes, long non-coding RNAs, splice site and isoforms ratios. The PolyA(+) selection resulted in a greater number of discoveries and was hence adopted for the transcriptome characterization of a larger dataset (608 individuals).


The problem of the geopolitical stability of the country has always been the basis of sustainable economic development. CIS countries and their closest neighbours are the international centres where important transport and communication routes from Asia to Europe intersect. They have a wide range of various raw material reserves, which focuses the world community's attention and builds a separate vector of economic relations. The transformation processes that have taken place in recent years in countries have been due to scientific and technological progress, the intensity of global innovation, and globalization trends, which encourage the country to move to a new level of development. This article summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the place and prospects of CIS countries' international economic position in the formation of the basis for innovative development. The main purpose of the study is to confirm the hypothesis about the functional links between foreign trade and investment activities of countries and the level of innovative development of the country according to the level of economical development. The study's methodological tools were the methods of correlation-regression analysis and simultaneous structural equations, which allow formalizing both explicit and latent relationships between the studied objects. The study period was chosen from 2011 to 2018 because of statistical data availability. In this regard, the array of input data is presented in the form of regressors which identify the level of innovation development countries and three dependent variables (regressands) which indicate the dynamics of foreign trade turnover, doing business and total internal economic conditions. Besides, the variables from each defined block participate as both dependent and independent variables during the construction of the structural model. The results of the study could be useful for The Innovation Agencies, which are established under the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of these countries that assist local business entities in acquiring modern technologies and technological solutions


A new water permeability sensor based on the sensitivity of polyimide to humidity has been fabricated for the measurement of the water penetration of thin metal films. To evaluate the sensitivity of the polyimide layer a special humidity sensor was also fabricated. This humidity sensor demonstrates good linearity, a relatively fast response time (1.5-2 min), and good sensitivity. To evaluate the permeability sensor a 5000 AA gold film with a pinhole density of approximately 100 per cm2 was measured. The results show a capacity change from 100 to 109 pF and saturation after 300 h.


BACKGROUND: In many states of the U.S.A., people with moderately reduced visual acuity e.g., 20/50 - 20/200) can legally drive with the aid of a small, spectacle-mounted ("bioptic") telescope. We conducted a demonstration project to assess the viability of implementing bioptic driving in The Netherlands. In this paper we describe the framework of the project from conception through to realization of our primary objective - the introduction of bioptic driving as a legal option for visually impaired people in The Netherlands. METHODS: The project was based on bioptic driving programs in the U.S.A., which were adapted to fit within current driving training and assessment practices in The Netherlands. The project convened a consortium of organizations including the Netherlands Bureau of Driving Skills Certificates (CBR), service organizations for the visually impaired, and research departments at universities investigating driving and vision. All organizations were educated about bioptic driving and participating professionals were trained in their specific aspects of the project. Media publicity led to significant interest and helped recruitment that enabled the screening and selection of potential participants. OUTCOMES: The project demonstrated that people with moderately reduced visual acuity can be trained to achieve an adequate level of proficient and safe driving (as assessed by the local official driving licensing professionals) when using a bioptic telescope for the road conditions in the Netherlands. Based on the successful project outcomes, a request was made to the Minister to allow bioptic driving in the Netherlands. This request has been accepted; the legal procedures for implementation are in process.


Polarisation-mode dispersion (PMD) in optical fibres causes a time-varying power penalty for the receiver. This variation has the same time-scale as low bit error rate (BER) measurements. Hereby, power penalty statistics can be difficult to determine with traditional BER measurements. A method where the statistics can be measured both quickly and accurately is proposed.


Abstract : Today, China remains relatively weak in the crucially important middle domain of maritime power, that between commercial prowess and hard military power, which is concerned with maritime governance--enforcing a nation's own laws and ensuring good order off its coasts. Despite major improvements over the last decade, China's maritime enforcement authorities remain balkanized and relatively weak--described in a derogatory fashion by many Chinese experts as so many dragons stirring up the sea. In Northeast Asia, China's weak maritime enforcement capacities are the exception, especially when compared to the coast guard capacities of Japan (or, outside the region, of the United States). China's relative weakness in this area is a mystery, one that forms the central research question of the present study. This condition of relative weakness is outlined in the paper's first part. The second part describes and analyzes the current situation of each of the five most important bureaucratic agencies responsible for maritime enforcement and governance in China today. The third part of this paper raises the question of what relationships these entities, and any future unified Chinese coast guard, would have with the Chinese navy. Before turning to implications and prospects, the fourth delves into a variety of macroexplanations for the weakness of China's coast guard entities today. Part five analyzes the possibilities for future maritime security cooperation, by looking closely at U.S.-China civil maritime engagement between coast guard entities over the last decade. The final part elaborates on three possible strategic implications of enhanced Chinese coast guard capabilities. This study, as a whole, draws on hundreds of Chinese-language sources, interviews in China, and, especially, a highly detailed and remarkably candid 2007 survey by Professor He Zhonglong and three other faculty members at the Border Guards Maritime Police Academy in Ningbo.


Objectives: Knee alignment is thought to have some bearing on the development of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) lesions.1 The effect of proximal tibial morphology on the risk of OCD, however, is unknown. The purpose of this study was to evaluate proximal tibial morphology and its relationship to OCD lesions. The null hypothesis was that patients with OCD lesions would have no difference in medial and posterior tibial slope when comparing the affected side to the unaffected side and age matched controls. Methods: Using CPT codes, we identified 61 patients with unilateral OCD lesions of the medial femoral condyle seen at our institution from 2005-2010. On plain radiographs, medial tibial slope and posterior tibial slope were assessed by 2 residents and 1 attending. (Figure 1) Measurements were completed on affected, contralateral normal, and control knees. The controls were height, weight, and gender matched. In addition, a comparison was made between OCD patients requiring surgery and those without surgery. Inter-observer reliability for each measurement was determined using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs). A student's t-test was used to compare the results of the affected and normal sides. Results: The average patient age was 15.1 years. There were 31 right-sided lesions and 30 left- sided lesions. Medial tibial slope of the affected knee averaged 67.81 ± 3.92 (ICC(2,1) =.771, p<.01) compared to 69.44 ±3.63 (ICC(2,1) =.785, p<.01) for the normal side (p=.0070). The average posterior tibial slope for the affected knee was 80.03 ± 3.91 (ICC(2,1) =.783, p<.01) and 79.62 ± 4.37 (ICC(2,1) =.844, p<.01) for the normal side (p=.19). Matched controls had an average medial tibial slope 68.73° ± 5.81° (ICC(2,1) =.732, p<.01) which was statistically different from affected knees (p=.043). Matched controls had an average posterior tibial slope 81.13° ± 2.90° (ICC(2,1) =.797, p<.01), which was also statistically different from affected knees (p=.0068). Thirty-one patients with OCD lesions had undergone surgery while thirty patients were treated non-operatively. In the operative group, the average medial tibial slope was 69.17° ± 4.64° and the average posterior slope was 76.94° ± 3.55°. The nonoperative group had significantly different values, with a medial slope 66.66° ± 9.04 and posterior slope 80.28° ± 3.77. (p=.040 and.0071). Conclusion: For medial OCD lesions, the affected knee had a greater medial tibial slope than the unaffected knee. When compared to matched controls, affected knees had a greater medial and posterior slope. In addition, patients who required surgery for the OCD lesion had greater medial and posterior slopes than did patients who did not require surgery. Future studies will be necessary to determine if these differences are clinically significant.


Neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) endangers quality of life in children; but effective cure is rare. Neurogenesis plays an important role in neural repair following brain damage. Recent studies have demonstrated that telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) was involved in neurogenesis regulation. However, whether TERT participates in the regulation of neurogenesis after hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) is unclear. Here, we established a model of HIBD in neonatal rats both in vivo and in vitro, and used lentivirus and adenovirus transfection for TERT overexpression to investigate its role in neurogenesis after HIBD in developmental stage. Using immunofluorescence staining, cell counting Kit-8 staining, TUNEL, and western blotting, we observed that TERT attenuated apoptosis and promoted proliferation, migration, and differentiation in neural stem cells (NSCs). Furthermore, TERT induced myelination in the brain of neonatal rats after HIBD. Neurobehavioral tests revealed that TERT could improve learning, memory, and neurological function after HIBD in neonatal rats, and thus promote the recovery of neurological function after HIBD. In addition, we investigated the regulatory mechanism of TERT during neurogenesis after HIBD in developmental stage. We found that TERT may regulate neurogenesis after HIBD through the Sonic Hedgehog/Gli1 signaling pathway. Our study demonstrated that TERT could promote neural repair and neurological function recovery after HIBD in neonatal rats. The new neuroprotective pathway regulated by TERT during HIBD described here could provide a basis for developing therapeutic strategy for neonatal HIE. Furthermore, TERT may be a potential target during neural repair and reconstruction in various diseases affecting nervous system.


A study was carried out on 25 patients who underwent open heart surgery, with cross-clamping o{ the aorta but without perfusion of the coronary arteries to ascertain whether this produced any adverse effect on the myocardium. Serum enzyme levels (glutamic oxalacetic transaminase and glutamic pyruvic transaminase) were estimated on the first, third, seventh, and twenty-first postoperative days, these results being compared with two groups of controls; the first, 19patients who had lung resection, and the second, 20 patients who underwent closed mitral valvotomy. The mean levels remained normal in the two control groups, but were markedly elevated on the first and third days after operation in the open heart patients, in whom they had returned to normal by the twenty-first day. No correlation was found between the transaminase levels and the duration of either the perfusion or the coronary occlusion. Four deaths occurred in the 25 patients, in only one of which could death be attributed to the technique. The survivors have shown no evidence ofimpaired myocardial function, and the technique appears effective and safe when limited to a maximum of 60 minutes of continuous aortic occlusion.


The impact of the European financial crisis on adopting innovation for healthcare management following clinical research and development, seems to include more than a matter of adequate funding. There are arguments that changes are needed in approaches adopted to research conducted within health systems. The "Europe 2020" policy project builds arguments from this initial premise. This is one of the reasons why one of its key aims is to identify ways to remove barriers from clinical research and technology transfer and sustain innovation in healthcare. Large, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and universities are to be the engine of innovation for healthcare. However, they are challenged by escalating costs of clinical trials and the long time-frame for the development of health care products. Solutions put forward within "Europe 2020", include the setting of a single market for innovation and that funding would be better coordinated along the innovation chain - from basic research down to launching new products and services to the market and the creation of public-private partnerships to bring more innovations to market faster.


More than 50% of the worlwide population are city dwellers, this percentage reaching up to 80% in Europe. Urban heat island effect and global climate change are therefore expected to put the population at stress, with well-being or health related issues. In this contibution, we propose to investigate the wind field in a model urban environment in outdoor conditions. Atmospheric flows in urban environments are complex (3D and turbulent). Field measurement techniques such as particle image velocimetry (PIV) can bring valuable information, in comparison with usual pointwise sensors such as sonic anemometers. In this contribution, large scale stereoscopic PIV measurements are undertaken in a 2m by 2m cross section of an outdoor Canyon street at the 1 : 5 scale. Handling fluctuating wind conditions, achieving sufficient seeding, and coping with natural light are important challenges for the PIV technique in outdoor environments. Several datasets could be acquired with a good global datarate, under various conditions of wind directions and convection regimes. The analysis of mean velocity fields reveals the influence of thermal effects near the building walls on the flowfield. The conditions of appearance of a windwise vortex in the cross section of the street are also discussed.


Dynamic-analysis results of a 300-m-long bottom-set gillnet are presented under wave excitations and current. A bottom-set-gillnet design is based on one of existing types utilized in South Korea. Environmental conditions are chosen based on measured wave and current data obtained from the southwest coast of South Korea. The cruder equivalent net model is designed by matching projected drag area and wet weight to save computational time in time-domain simulations. The Morison-force model is utilized to calculate hydrodynamic forces acting on the entire gillnet. Stretching performance of the modelled gillnet is good even at low current velocity. Motions induced by wave excitations are small in operational conditions at given submergence depth, whereas significant variations occur for the fishery-prohibition condition.


The period that starts in 1940 is crucial for the creation of Mexico's modern health system. The Institute of Sanitary and Tropical Diseases is the pioneer institution in health research and on its first two decades it achieved maturity and consolidated lines of research expressed in almost 1700 publications. It also obtained notorious international visibility and was selected as a regional reference for epidemiological surveillance of influenza, streptococcus and salmonella. Its evolution took place with an innovation rhythm that would be decreasing by the end of this period. It faced limitations to renew lines of research, researchers and laboratory equipment. However, its role in public health decisions of the country remained central.


Conjugated isomerization of free linoleic acid and polyunsaturated vegetable oils can be catalysed by transition metals in homogeneous and heterogeneous systems. The most efficient organometallic complexes for conjugated isomerization of linoleic acid and its esters, and vegetable oils, under mild conditions in homogeneous systems are based on rhodium [H-Rh((p-CH3C6H4)3P)2] and ruthenium [Ru(η6-naphtalene)(η4-cycloocta-l,5-diene)]. They lead to a quantitative yield of conjugated products, where the two main CLA isomers are in configuration (9-cis,11-trans) and (l0-trans,12-cis). Moreover, when Ru and Rh organometallic complexes are dissolved in BMI.NTf2 or NBu4.Br ionic liquids, the products phase is simply collected by decantation. In heterogeneous catalytic systems, conjugated and cis–trans isomerizations of polyunsaturated fats are competing parallel reactions with hydrogenation. Nevertheless, gas–liquid mass transfer limitation conditions occurred at low hydrogen pressure, low stirring rate, high catalyst content, and high reaction temperature favored the production of CLAs. In these operating conditions, Ru/C, Ru/Cs-USY, S-Rh/SBA-15 and Ag/SiO2 exhibited an interesting conjugated isomerization activity. Complexation of the double bond with the metal is the key step in the conjugation. The alkyl mechanism occurs especially with unsaturated metal hydride complexes, and the allylic mechanism is typical of metals that preferably form π-allyl complexes.


evelopment. In its contemporary formulation, the theory grows directly from advances in understanding complex and nonlinear systems in physics and mathematics, but it also follows a long and rich tradition of systems thinking in biology and psychology. The term dynamic system, in its most generic form, means systems of elements that change over time. The more technical use, dynamical systems, refers to a class of mathematical equations that describe time-based systems with particular properties. These branches of mathematics include control theory, homotopy theory, and matroid theory. As a complement to these varied perspectives, the approach of this paper is the study of algebraic Conditions for decomposition of large–scale linear dynamic systems.There are many articles concerning decompositions of polynomials (Alagar and Thanh, 1985; Bartoni and Zippel, 1985; Borodin et al. , 1985; Coulter et al. , 2001; 1998; Gathen, 1990; Giesbrecht and May, 2005; Kozen et al. , [1, 2, 3, 4 & 5]1989; Kozen and Landau, 1989; Watt, 2008). These methods deal with polynomials in numerical forms. The main idea is to find a decomposition f ( x ) = g [ h ( x )]. For example, let f ( x ) =  +6 + +9 + 3 x− 5. It is possible to decompose this polynomial, where y = h ( x ) = + 3 x and g ( x ) = + y − 5. For this type of decomposition, if possible, various algorithms are presented. In this article, a general method for decomposition of polynomials in the symbolic form f ( x ) = , ai ∈ is presented. Using computer algebra systems, it is possible to decompose polynomials of very high degrees. Decomposition of large-scale linear systems into smaller dynamic systems is always possible if the eigenvalues of the state matrices which characterize the systems are known (Gorecki and Popek, 1987). On the other hand, it is well known that, in general, algebraic equations of the degree n ≥ 5 cannot be solved in radicals when their coefficients belong to the rational field; see the theorem of Ruffini and Abel. evelopment. In its contemporary formulation, the theory grows directly from advances in understanding complex and nonlinear systems in physics and mathematics, but it also follows a long and rich tradition of systems thinking in biology and psychology. The term dynamic system, in its most generic form, means systems of elements that change over time. The more technical use, dynamical systems, refers to a class of mathematical equations that describe time-based systems with particular properties. These branches of mathematics include control theory, homotopy theory, and matroid theory. As a complement to these varied perspectives, the approach of this paper is the study of algebraic Conditions for decomposition of large–scale linear dynamic systems.There are many articles concerning decompositions of polynomials (Alagar and Thanh, 1985; Bartoni and Zippel, 1985; Borodin et al. , 1985; Coulter et al. , 2001; 1998; Gathen, 1990; Giesbrecht and May, 2005; Kozen et al. , [1, 2, 3, 4 & 5]1989; Kozen and Landau, 1989; Watt, 2008). These methods deal with polynomials in numerical forms. The main idea is to find a decomposition f ( x ) = g [ h ( x )]. For example, let f ( x ) =  +6 + +9 + 3 x− 5. It is possible to decompose this polynomial, where y = h ( x ) = + 3 x and g ( x ) = + y − 5. For this type of decomposition, if possible, various algorithms are presented. In this article, a general method for decomposition of polynomials in the symbolic form f ( x ) = , ai ∈ is presented. Using computer algebra systems, it is possible to decompose polynomials of very high degrees. Decomposition of large-scale linear systems into smaller dynamic systems is always possible if the eigenvalues of the state matrices which characterize the systems are known (Gorecki and Popek, 1987). On the other hand, it is well known that, in general, algebraic equations of the degree n ≥ 5 cannot be solved in radicals when their coefficients belong to the rational field; see the theorem of Ruffini and Abel.


Industry is moving from co-located form of development to a distributed development in order to achieve different benefits such as cost reduction, access to skillful labor and around the clock working etc. This transfer requires industry to face different challenges such as communication, coordination and monitoring problems. Risk of project failure can be increased, if industry does not address these problems. This book is about providing the solutions of these problems in term of effective roles and responsibilities that may have positive impact on global software development team. This book presents a framework for suggesting roles and responsibilities for global software development team. This framework consists of problems and casual dependencies between them which are related to teams ineffectiveness, then suggestions in terms of roles and responsibilities have been presented in order to have an effective team. For state-of-practice, This framework, further, has been validated in industry through a survey that determines the effective roles and responsibilities in global software development.


We report the results of electronic structure calculations for the bulk and layers of the alkaline earths (Be-Ba) made using the linearized muffin-tin orbital method within the local density approximation. In agreement with experiments, bulk calcium and strontium are found to undergo a metal-semi-metal transition under compression, whereas for each of these elements a single (100) layer is found to have vanishing density of states at the Fermi energy at normal pressure. A layer of Ba, on the other hand, exhibits a similar behaviour under expansion. As compared to the bond length for the bulk, there is an expansion for a single layer in all of the cases. This expansion is large for Mg, which is consistent with the large bond length of the Mg dimer. The binding energy for a single layer is close to its value for dimers but it increases by a large amount for three layers. These results are discussed in terms of the changes in the s-p/d hybridization with the reduction in the coordination, and its importance for understanding the properties of clusters of transition metals.


We describe herein the synthesis of a series of multi-end functionalized poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) additives bearing two or three C8F17 fluoroalkyl (CF) groups, designed as additives to modify surface properties. The PVP additives were prepared by reversible addition–fragmentation transfer (RAFT) polymerization, with end functionality imparted via the use of CF functionalized chain transfer agents (CTAs). The resulting PVP additives, when used in modest quantities dispersed in thin films of an unmodified PVP matrix significantly reduce the surface energy, rendering their surfaces more hydrophobic and lipophobic. This is achieved by virtue of the low surface energy of the pendant C8F17 end groups which cause the additive to spontaneously surface segregate during the spin coating process. The resulting thin films have been characterized by static contact angle measurements using dodecane as the contact fluid, and the impact of additive molecular weight, matrix molecular weight, the number of CF groups and additive concentration upon surface properties is reported herein. Significant increases in contact angle were observed with increasing additive concentration, up to a critical aggregation concentration (CAC). Increasing the number of CF groups (from 2 to 3); reducing additive molecular weight or increasing the matrix molecular weight, resulted in increased contact angles and hence surface lipophobicity. Rutherford backscattering (RBS) analysis was performed on films containing varying concentrations of additive, in order to quantitatively measure the near-surface fluorine concentration of these films. The results of these experiments were in excellent agreement with those obtained by contact angle analysis, confirming the surface activity and low surface energy of the additives.


SasX is a known virulence factor of Staphylococcus aureus involved in colonisation and immune evasion of the bacterium. The sasX gene, which is located on the ϕSPβ prophage, is frequently found in the sequence type (ST) 239 S. aureus lineage, which is the predominant healthcare-associated clone in Asian countries. In Japan, ST239 clones have rarely been identified, and sasX-positive strains have not been reported to date. Here, we report the first identification of 18 sasX-positive methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains in Japanese hospitals between 2009 and 2011. All sasX-positive isolates belonged to an ST239-staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec type III (ST239-III) lineage. However, we were unable to identify additional sasX-positive MRSA strains from 2012 to 2016, indicating that the small epidemic of sasX-positive isolates observed in this study was temporary. The sequence surrounding sasX in the strain TOHH628 lacked 51 genes that encode phage packaging and structural proteins, and no bacteriophage was induced by mitomycin C. Additionally, in the TOHH628 strain, the region (64.6 kb) containing sasX showed high identity to the ϕSPβ-like element (71.3 kb) of the Taiwanese MRSA strain Z172. The data strongly suggest that the present sasX-positive isolates found in Japanese hospitals were transmitted incidentally from other countries.


In neuropsychology, many computerized solutions have been proposed in order to assess patients' functioning in activities of daily living, via realistic interactive simulation. In this context, most developed systems are based on simple devices, real time 2D interaction, and monoscopic 3D computer graphics environment. Behavioral analysis has drawn the interest of many domains, such as neuropsychology, ergonomics, web design, or virtual reality. However, advances on this topic remains fragmented in their respective areas. Thus, in computerized solutions applied to neuropsychology, the behavioral analysis does not take into account the data from interaction. The potential interest of computerized solutions is hence underexploited. In this paper, we propose a transdisciplinary solution, based on a finer analysis of 2D interaction data, such as stop duration. This method could reveal interesting aspects of users' behaviors.


Based on Technology of Time-Frequency Masking, we raise a blind separation algorithm of speech mixtures, which can be used for separating any number of source using only two mixtures. The method is valid when sources are satisfying W-disjoint orthogonal, that is, when the supports of the windowed Fourier transform of the signals in mixture are disjoint. In time-frequency domain, Performance is compared for floating-point and fixed-point implementations. A Weighted K-means clustering algorithm is presented as an alternative to gradient descent methods for peak tracking and demonstrated to achieve excellent performance without adversely affecting computational load. extract the spatial cues of speech signal, which are relative attenuation-delay pairs, then Motivated by the maximum likelihood mixing parameter estimators, we define a power weighted two-dimensional (2-D) histogram constructed from the ratio of the time-frequency representations of the mixtures that is shown to have one peak for each source with peak location corresponding to the relative attenuation and delay mixing parameters. Then, mark the time-frequency binary masking and using this technique separate the source in time-frequency domain. Finally, I-STFT is used to transform the separated source back to time domain and separated the signal. In a word, the proposed algorithm will give a new prospect to the research of blind separation of speech.


We analyze the wavelength dependence of the far-infrared polarization fraction toward the OMC-1 star-forming region using observations from HAWC+/SOFIA at 53, 89, 154, and 214 μm. We find that the shape of the far-infrared polarization spectrum is variable across the cloud and that there is evidence of a correlation between the slope of the polarization spectrum and the average line-of-sight temperature. The slope of the polarization spectrum tends to be negative (falling toward longer wavelengths) in cooler regions and positive or flat in warmer regions. This is very similar to what was discovered in ρ Oph A via SOFIA polarimetry at 89 and 154 μm. Like the authors of this earlier work, we argue that the most natural explanation for our falling spectra is line-of-sight superposition of differing grain populations, with polarized emission from the warmer regions and less-polarized emission from the cooler ones. In contrast with the earlier work on ρ Oph A, we do not find a clear correlation of polarization spectrum slope with column density. This suggests that falling spectra are attributable to variations in grain alignment efficiency in a heterogeneous cloud consistent with radiative torques theory. Alternative explanations in which variations in grain alignment efficiency are caused by varying gas density rather than by varying radiation intensity are disfavored.


Background: According to the WHO, depression is a common condition that affects about 121 million people worldwide. Although the pathophysiological origin of this condition is still unknown, most of the known antidepressants enhance the extracellular availability of brain monoamines (serotonin and/or noradrenaline). Objective/method: We have searched for the potential drugs and targets addressed in the most recent patents. Hence, we have explored the Patent Database of the European Patent Office using the esp@cenet search engine for the period 2005 – 2008, looking for "anti depressants". In addition, a search in the Medtrack database yielded information on pharmaceutical companies developing compounds as antidepressants, market size and their market prospects. Conclusions: We have found that, in general, the preferred targets to develop antidepressants continue to be those aiming the serotoninergic system and, in a less extend, the noradrenergic one; but, more particularly, those that aim several targets are preferred due to problems concerning the efficacy of highly selective drugs. Additionally, a small number of new systems are being targeted, such as the melatonergic. However, when looking at the pharma-market and the antidepressants in the pipeline, a new trend is observed in the developing of dual-action drugs that could be used in depression and schizophrenia therapy.


This work concerns software product lines (SPL); it comes from the experience gained collaborating with Berger-Levrault, a French society leader in Human Resources systems. This enterprise serves many French and European territorial communities. They had a variability problem associated to the differences of applicable legal rights in different countries or territories, and this activity was performed manually at a high cost. On the other hand, functionalities were common and mandatory and did not vary much. The crucial issue in SPL development and practice is to manage the correct selection of variants. However, no standard methods have been developed yet, and industry builds SPL using on-the-market or in-house techniques and methods, aware of the benefits a product line can provide; nevertheless, this development must return the investment, and this is not always the case. In this work an approach to variability management in case of legal rights applicability to different entities is proposed. This architecture-centric and quality-based approach uses a reference architecture that has been built with a bottom-up strategy. Variability is incorporated to the reference architecture at abstract level considering non-functional properties. A "production plan" to reduce the gap between abstraction and implementation levels is defined.


In this paper, we propose a model to investigate the cascading failures in the coupled system (smart grid) that comprises a power grid and a coupling cyber network. In this model, we take into consideration the effects of power overloading, contagion, and interdependence between power grids and cyber networks on failure propagations in the coupled system, and then use a stochastic method to generate the time intervals between failures, thus producing the dynamic profile of the cascading failures caused by the attack of cyber malwares. We study several coupled systems generated by coupling the UIUC 150 Bus System with cyber networks of different structures and coupling patterns. Simulation results show that the dynamic profile of the cascading failures in a coupled system displays a "staircaselike" pattern which can be interpreted as a combined feature of the typical step propagation profile triggered repeatedly by cyber attacks due to network coupling. Results also show that cyber coupling can intensify both the extent and rapidity of power blackouts. Moreover, the cyber network structure and the coupling patterns affect the propagation of the cascading failures in smart grids. Scale-free cyber networks promote failure spreading, and the higher average cyber node degree also intensifies the spreading. Coupling power nodes with high-degree cyber nodes accelerates the failure propagation compared with random or low-degree couplings.


Over the years branding has been the concern of many businesses across the globe, however the fashion world has not been exempted, many studies has also been carried out to investigate relationship that exist between fashion and branding. Brand images and identity has been the major point for competition among fashion customers, clients, investors and brand owners. This call for this research to find out impact of brand image and brand identity has on fashion entrepreneurs. The population was drawn from Accra metropolis covering areas such as McCarthy hill, and North-Kaneshie, Accra. Purposive sampling was used to select 50 respondents made up of fashion entrepreneurs (14), fashion students (18) and consumers (18). The questionnaire was the main tool used for this study. Four research questions were tested in this study using simple percentage, piecharts and frequencies respectively. The results show that the essence of branding on fashion entrepreneurs is inseparable. Logo, symbol/ colors of a fashion enterprise contribute to the progress of fashion entrepreneurs. It was also discovered that brand name has an influence on purchase decision of their clients and that brand identity increases investors and customer awareness and customer loyalty. It was concluded that the impact of brand image and identity such as logo, symbols, colors among others, contribute significantly to customers and loyalty. This study recommends that fashion entrepreneurs should give adequate time to come up with brands that speak for them anytime and anywhere, fashion entrepreneurs should cultivate the habit of setting fund aside for their business needs, as funds will be required to enhance their businesses, relying on government, non-governmental organization or others for loans may not always be available, creativity should be the focus of fashion entrepreneurs, because we live in a world where change is constant.


The gas-phase reactivity of the vanadium hydroxides [VO(2)(OH)(2)](-) and [V(2)O(5)(OH)](-) toward methanol was examined using a combination of ion-molecule reactions (IMRs) and collision-induced dissociation (CID) in a quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer. Isotope-labeling experiments with CD(3)OH, (13)CH(3)OH, and CH(3)(18)OH were used to confirm the stoichiometry of ions and the observed sequence of reactions. The experimental data were interpreted with the aid of density functional theory calculations, carried out at the B3LYP/SDD6-311++G** level of theory. While [VO(2)(OH)(2)](-) is unreactive, [V(2)O(5)(OH)](-) undergoes a metathesis reaction to yield [V(2)O(5)(OCH(3))](-). The DFT calculations reveal that the metathesis reaction of methanol with [VO(2)(OH)(2)](-) suffers from a barrier of +0.52 eV (relative to separated reactants) but that the reaction of [V(2)O(5)(OH)](-) with methanol readily proceeds via addition/elimination reactions with both transition states being below the energy of the separated reactants. CID of [V(2)O(5)(OCH(3))](-) (m/z 213) yields three ions arising from activation of the methoxo ligand: [V(2), O(6), C, H](-) (m/z 211); [V(2), O(5), H](-) (m/z 183); and [V(2), O(4), H](-) (m/z 167). Additional experiments and DFT calculations suggest that these ions arise from losses of H(2), formaldehyde and the sequential losses of H(2) and CO(2), respectively. The use of an (18)O-labeled methoxo ligand in [V(2)O(5)((18)OCH(3))](-) (m/z 215) showed the competing losses of H(2)C(16)O and H(2)C(18)O and [H(2) and C(16)O(18)O] and [H(2) and C(16)O(2)], highlighting that (16)O/(18)O exchange between the methoxo ligand and the vanadium oxide occurs prior to the subsequent fragmentation of the ligand. DFT calculations reveal that a key step involves hydrogen atom transfer from the methoxo ligand to the oxo ligand of the same vanadium center, producing the intermediate [V(2)O(4)(OH)(OCH(2))](-) containing a ketyl radical ligand and a hydroxo ligand. This intermediate can either undergo CH(2)O loss, or the ketyl radical can couple with an oxo ligand of the adjacent vanadium center, producing [V(2)O(3)(μ(2)-O(2)CH(2))](-), which is a key intermediate in the (16)O/(18)O scrambling and in the H(2) loss channel.


This paper report progress on a technique to accelerate the convergence to steady solutions when the streamline-upwind/Petrov-Galerkin (SUPG) technique is used. Both the description of a SUPG formulation and the documentation of the development of a code for the finite element solution of transonic and supersonic flows are reported. The aim of this work is to present a formulation to be able to treat domains of any configuration and to use the appropriate physical boundary conditions, which are the major stumbling blocks of the finite difference schemes, together with an appropriate convergence rate to the steady solution.

The implemented code has the following features: the Hughes' SUPG-type formulation with an oscillation-free shock-capturing operator, adaptive refinement, explicit integration with local time-step and hourglassing control. An automatic scheme for dealing with slip boundary conditions and a boundary-augmented lumped mass matrix for speeding up convergence.

It is shown that the velocities at which the error is absorbed in and ejected from the domain (that is damping and group velocities respectively) are strongly affected by the time step used, and that damping gives an O(N2) algorithm contrasting with the O(N) one given by absorption at the boundaries. Nonetheless, the absorbing effect is very low when very different eigenvalues are present, such as in the transonic case, because the stability condition imposes a too slow group velocity for the smaller eigenvalues. To overcome this drawback we present a new mass matrix that provides us with a scheme having the highest group velocity attainable in all the components.

In Section 1 we will describe briefly the theoretical background of the SUPG formulation. In Section 2 it is described how the foregoing formulation was used in the finite element code and which are the appropriate boundary conditions to be used. Finally in Section 3 we will show some results obtained with this code.


ABSTRACT We acquired firm-level data from 27 post-communist economies in Eastern Europe and Central Asia during 2002–08, and we estimated financial constraints' longitudinal impacts on firms' innovating activities. Overall, we found financial constraints to significantly impede firms' innovation input and output, as we had expected. Through further studies, we also found the impacts of financial constraints to be contingent on multiple factors, such as an overall economy's development level and firms' exporting statuses. After grouping firms based on their countries' income levels, we found financial constraints to significantly reduce innovations in developing countries, but not in developed countries. Meanwhile, we found financial constraints to significantly impede innovations in non-exporting firms, but not in exporting firms. On an extended timeline, financial constraints still significantly affect firms' long-term innovation outputs, but not inputs.


CD40-ligand (CD154) is expressed on the surface of activated CD4 T cells and as a soluble cytokine. CD154 is a critical regulator of the immune response via its interaction with CD40 on various cell types, and, therefore, it is not surprising that its expression is tightly controlled. Current reports have described abnormal expression (increased and prolonged levels) of CD154 in adult patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), similar to observations in lupus-prone mice. We have recently confirmed these findings in paediatric SLE patients. Normally, like several tumour necrosis factor cytokine family members, CD154 expression is primarily controlled at the level of gene transcription and mRNA stability. Moreover, regulatory defects in intracellular signalling pathways that may effect cytokine mRNA levels have recently been described in CD4 T cells from patients with SLE. Using real-time quantitative PCR we have found that CD154 mRNA levels are increased in SLE patients versus matched controls. Preliminary results from nuclear run-on assays also suggest that increased CD154 transcription plays a role in CD154 hyper-expression in SLE. The CD154 cis-element (s) responsible for this increase in transcription is unknown. Although we had previously identified a relatively weak proximal 5′ flank transcriptional promoter, very little is known about the cis- and trans-regulatory elements that contribute to CD154 gene expression. We have recently identified a NFκB-responsive transcriptional enhancer element located within and just downstream of the 3′ CD154 untranslated region. Moreover, using nuclei from primary human CD4 T cells, we have identified a novel DNase I hypersensitive site located approximately 1 kb upstream of the proximal promoter. This novel site is flanked by several potential T cell transcription factor binding sites and, thus, may function as a transcriptional enhancer. We are currently comparing the transcriptional activities of these various CD154 cis-regulatory elements in T cells from SLE patients and controls in order to identify region (s) that contribute to enhanced CD154 expression in SLE. Ultimately, we hope to be able to target the cis- or trans-regulatory elements that lead to the abnormal expression of CD154 in SLE and various other autoimmune disorders.


As part of the 2019 American Society of Preventative Oncology (ASPO) annual meeting, the Early Career Investigator Special Interest Group organized a session entitled "Strategies for Success: Landing Your First Academic Position and Navigating the Early Years."* This session was designed to provide senior doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows with strategies for preparing successful faculty job applications. Furthermore, strategies and best practices to help guide early career faculty through the initial years of their academic positions were also discussed. This report summarizes the main themes of the session, including advice and recommendations from the panelists.


Kidney biopsies from Pima Indians with type II diabetes were analyzed. Subjects were classified clinically as having early diabetes (n = 10), microalbuminuria (n = 17), normoalbuminuria, despite a duration of diabetes equal to that of the subjects with microalbuminuria (n = 12), or clinical nephropathy (n = 12). Subjects with microalbuminuria exhibited moderate increases in glomerular and mesangial volume when compared with those with early diabetes, but could not be distinguished from subjects who remained normoalbuminuric after an equal duration of diabetes. Subjects with clinical nephropathy exhibited global glomerular sclerosis and more prominent structural abnormalities in nonsclerosed glomeruli. Marked mesangial expansion was accompanied by a further increase in total glomerular volume. Glomerular capillary surface area remained stable, but the glomerular basement membrane thickness was increased and podocyte foot processes were broadened. Broadening of podocyte foot processes was associated with a reduction in the number of podocytes per glomerulus and an increase in the surface area covered by remaining podocytes. These findings suggest that podocyte loss contributes to the progression of diabetic nephropathy.


One of the most significant changes in the global economy over the last few decades is the shift of power, in shaping the market demand from producers to consumers. In the ever growingly competitive environment, manufacturers are forced to continuously respond to market changes for their survival. The pressure of competitive pricing, short delivery dates, and high customization has shifted the manufacturing system design emphasis to flexibility and responsiveness. It has reduced traditional manufacturing systems to sub-optimal and paved the way for newer ideas of technical and managerial innovations. A number of newer manufacturing system paradigms have emerged over the years to cater to these modern day manufacturing challenges. Group Technology, the management philosophy of handling common problems together, has found central place in most of these paradigms. The present paper is an attempt to provide a succinct review of the literature on this issue in three parts. First part deals with review of drawbacks of various classical manufacturing system paradigms. In the second part the emergence of various modern manufacturing system paradigms is chronologically discussed in the light of drawbacks of classical paradigms. The second part will also attempt to bring out how Group Technology has emerged as the backbone of all these paradigms. In the third part of the paper, an exhaustive review of the research works on part classification (and/or machine groups' formation) used across various modern manufacturing systems has been presented. Literature is classified chronologically as well as on the basis of various approaches such as coding and classification, clustering, knowledge based systems, heuristics, soft computing, simulation etc. The paper also attempts to classify the literature on the basis of parameters used, objectives considered and the focus orientation. Finally, it sums up with a vision for future research in this area.


The Department of Health's four-hour operational standard for waiting times in emergency departments (EDs) was introduced in 2001 to speed up treatment and improve the patient experience. Studies and media reports have shown, however, that the standard has increased pressure on ED staff, particularly nurses. This article refers to an analysis of the literature in an attempt to determine whether the implementation of the standard has been beneficial or detrimental to nurses' work, and offers advice to help nurses meet it with minimum stress.


In modern paper manufacturing free liquid jets are used to distribute the fibre suspension to the paper machine. It is believed that the homogeneity of the jet flow is of vital importance to obtain a good quality paper. The present investigation has been undertaken in order to better understand the development of free, plane liquid jets. Both the development of the basic laminar flow as well as its stability have been investigated. This includes both the formulation of the problem with the appropriate boundary conditions, obtaining solutions for the basic flow field and to the stability equations for two-dimensional wave disturbances as well as comparisons with experiments. The experiments have been made with two different nozzles, a plane channel flow nozzle giving a nearly parabolic outflow velocity distribution and a slit nozzle which closely approximates an inviscid jet. Both flow visualization and velocity measurements of the jet flow have been made. The basic flow of the channel flow jet was analyzed and the relaxation length determined. The stability analysis showed that the boundary conditions at the jet surface were important for the instability, assuming an inviscid ambient gas overestimated the instability considerably as compared to a viscous gas. The stability calculations show that two types of wave disturbances may exist, either sinuous or varicose. Depending on the parameters of the problem (such as the Reynolds number and the basic velocity distribution) one or several modes may be unstable. These modes were mapped in the parameter range of the present experiments and the sinuous modes were found to be the most unstable. Hot wire anemometry measurements of controlled forced disturbances showed that these waves also were sinuous. When the waves reach a certain amplitude they break up which creates strong streaky structures in the jet. To my wife and my children


The Manuscripts Department of the Russian National Library has an album of pencil portraits of Francis I, members of his family, and his court. The majority of this collection represents a range of replications of Clouet's school drawings and contains the signature identification that reflects a title or a family name of the depicted characters. Such portrait galleries were created during the 16th century; they were collected, descended,and, finally, included into library holdings and museum collections. This album of pencil portraits was brought from France by P. Dubrovsky who was a Russian statesman and a bibliophile. The authors have performed palaeographicand codicological analysis of this manuscript and identified the depicted characters. As a result, the research of this album allowed us to conclude that the corpus facing us isn't just a miscellaneous collection; it is the album whose contents were intended by a customer. Many of extant albums came down to us fragmented.The manuscript of P. Dubrovsky was bound during the regency of Catherine de Medicis, though the drawings were probably executed under the reign of Francis I. This album is not only a pictorial source, but also part of Renaissance bookbinding culture.


Acquiring photorealistic 3D computer models of objects has been a very active research area with most important applications in Virtual Reality and Multimedia systems. This paper deals with a generalization of dense stereo reconstruction, which forms the basis for incremental fusing of stereo sequences to construct a 3-D model of underwater natural objects. The approach is fast and robust. Initialized with a set of robust feature matches over the left and right images, efficient left-to-right and right-to-left stereo matching are carried out by match propagation [Q. Chen, G. Medioni, 1999]. Symmetry relation between the two stereo matchings is utilized to guide robust fusion. Where a large difference exists between the two dense stereo reconstructions, it is most probable that at least one estimate is erroneous, thus is rejected. Conversely, small differences are expected because of the discrete nature of the disparity values. When fused these two estimates, better results are expected. Experimental results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed approach.


Over the years, urban regeneration projects have affected many Italian cities, demonstrating an extraordinary vitality and a surprising ability to implement strategies for relaunching. Many redevelopment of industrial and infrastructural sites have been completed, producing positive effects in attracting new activities, investments and benefits in terms of improving urban quality. At the same time, from several fronts attention is also drawn to small towns, the true territorial armor of our country. The volume presents the results of the Conference "Urban regeneration and real estate market" that wanted to take stock of the relationships and opportunities that urban regeneration has and can have on the complex world of the real estate market, comparing the points of view of the Academy with those of the industry and the institutions involved.


Malaria control relies on first-line treatments that use artemisinin-combination therapies (ACT). Unfortunately, mutations in the plasmodium falciparum kelch13 gene result in delayed parasite clearance. Research on what is causing ACT failure is non-existent in northwestern Nigeria. Thus, the presence of mutations in kelch13 in P. falciparum isolates from Kano, Nigeria was investigated in this study. Microscopic examination of 154 blood samples obtained from patients revealed a high prevalence of P. falciparum infection (114 positive individuals, slide positivity rate = 74.03%). The 114 patients were administered Cartef® (ACT) and out of the 50 patients that returned for the 14-day follow up, 11 were positive for P. falciparum (slide positivity rate = 22%). On day 0, 80 samples out of 114 and 11 samples on day 14 (91 out of 125 microscopy-positive samples) were positive with Plasmodium according to the PCR of cytochrome oxidase I, which corresponds to 72.8%. A fragment of the kelch13 gene encompassing the propeller domains was sequenced in 49 samples, alongside samples of the susceptible strain pf_3D7. Low polymorphism was observed, suggesting a lack of selection on this gene, and only six mutations (Glu433Gly, Phe434Ile, Phe434Ser, Ile684Asn, Ile684Thr and Glu688Lys) were found. The epidemiologic impact of these mutations and their potential role in ACT resistance needs to be investigated further.


Abduction is the problem of finding the best explanation for a given set of observations. Cost-based abduction approaches attempt to prove the observation by assuming some hypotheses. Hypotheses have associated ``costs'''' and the best proof is the one which assumes the least costly set. Previous approaches have formalized minimum cost-based abduction as a search problem. Heuristics were then sought to aid in the search for the best proof. However, efficient admissible heuristics seem to be difficult to find. In this paper, we present an approach to the problem from the standpoint of optimization. By using linear constraints to represent causal relationships, we provide a new framework capable of modeling cost-based abduction. Moreover, we are able to utilize the highly efficient optimization tools of operations research, thus yielding a computationally efficient method for solving cost-based abduction problems.


Objective:The aim of this study was to determine if omeprazole improves pulmonary function and quality of life in asthmatics with gastroesophageal reflux.Methods:This was a double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over trial. After a 4-wk lead-in period, nine patients with documented asthma and gastroesophageal reflux, were prescribed either omeprazole 20 mg, daily or placebo for 8 wk and then crossed over to the alternate treatment. Outcome measurements included: forced expiratory volume at 1 s (FEV1), peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR), and responses on the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire, a validated disease specific measure of functional status.Results:After omeprazole treatment, compared with placebo, patients had higher mean morning and evening PEFR, mean absolute difference (95% CI): morning: 37.8 L/min. (10.9–64.6), evening: 31.2 (3.2–59.2). Omeprazole treatment led to higher mean overall scores on the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire, and on the subdomains of activity limitation, symptoms, and emotions (p= 0.039, 0.049, 0.024, 0.040). A trend toward higher FEV1 (mean: 15.6% difference) with omeprazole failed to reach statistical significance (p > 0.2).Conclusions:After taking omeprazole for 8 wk, asthmatics with GER have better PEFR and quality of life than after placebo.


Liquid-propellant rocket engines are widely used all over the world, thanks to their high performances thrust, in particular high thrust-to-weight ratio. The sucess rate of the launching of the liquid propulsion is similar to the solid one even though it has more complex mechanical system. In general, liquid propulsion is seemed as a mature technology, the requirements of a renewed interest for space exploration has led to the development of a family of new engines, with more design margins, simpler to use and to produce associated with a wide variety of thrust and life requirements.


An attempt was made to study the effects of cyproterone acetate (CA), an antiandrogen, on the testicular activity of the frog Rana temporaria, employing histological and histochemical methods. Each treated frog received a total dose of 4 mg during the period of 4 weeks. Light-microscopic examinations revealed that CA blocked the formation of spermatids and mature sperms; however, the early stages of spermatogenesis, i.e. proliferation and development of spermatogonia and spermatocytes, remained unaffected. CA caused interstitial tissue disruption and degeneration, and led to the shrinkage of Leydig cells; the drug stopped the production of lipoidal material in the interstitial tissues. Also, a loss of testicular weight was documented in the frogs treated with CA.


This paper reports the key development steps of a Bi-Frequency Bi-Polarization (BiFBiP) laser system that generates from a single externally-modulated Distributed Feedback (DFB) laser source two phase-coherent optical lines resonant on the Cs D1 line (894.6 nm), frequency-splitted by 9.192 GHz and exhibiting linear crossed polarizations. Two different architectures, based on electro-optic modulators as key components for optical sidebands generation, are presented. Residual frequency stability performances of the DFB laser source are measured to be less than 10−11 for integration times up to 200 s. Phase noise performances of the optically carried microwave signal as well as polarization analysis at the output of the BiFBiP system are reported. Using this laser system, Coherent Population Trapping (CPT) resonances with contrast up to 5.8 % in a mm-scale vapor cell and 22 % in a cm-scale cell are preliminary reported.


Electrostatic forces cause spontaneous movement of charged particles; subsequently, electrostatic technology is attracting attention because of its application in powder handling processes, such as separation, classification, dispersion, and collection. Dielectric and conductive particles are charged by induction in a strong electric field and moved by Coulomb forces. The magnitude and polarity of the transferred charges are controlled by the strength and direction of the electric field. The dielectric particles are also polarized in the electric field, and dipole interactions occur between particles or in the particle layers, complicating the particle behavior. This review paper presents induction charging, agglomeration, levitation, and other behaviors resulting from particle layers in electric fields. A series of particle phenomena occur in parallel electrode systems, which consist of a lower plate electrode and an upper mesh electrode. Charged agglomerates are formed on the particle layers, levitated by the Coulomb forces, and disintegrated with rotation when approaching the mesh electrode. The mechanisms of agglomeration and disintegration have been elucidated in multiple studies, including microscopic observations and theoretical analyses of particle motion, based on numerical calculations of the electric field. Furthermore, a new system is proposed for continuous feeding of dispersed particles using electric fields and vibration.


Male Norway rats of the Wistar strain, aged 30, 75, 90, 150, 180, and 360 days, were given ad libitum diets with optimum nutrient contents at every age. Determining the net protein utilization, the values of protein retention were calculated from protein intake. The energy demand per unit of protein retention was determined from the saccharide and fat intake. The energy ratios of proteins, fat, and saccharide were calculated from the optimum nutrition values; this ratio was 13:(57-29):(30-58) in the period of rapid growth (30-90 days old animals). 12:28:60 in the period of maturing (slower growth, 150 days old animals), and 10.5:28:61.5 at maturity (finished growth, 180-360 days old animals). The daily weight gains of the animals given optimum diets (5.52, 5.22, 5.09-3.73-2.11, 1.85 g daily) and the values of protein retention also corresponded to the division of the animals according to their growth (after administration of the standard Larsen diet). In the period of rapid growth, protein retention was increasing up to the age of 90 days--this suggests that the proteins are utilized for building the body and for its development. A decrease in protein retention in 150 days old animals means that the animals have entered the stage of slow growth. Finally, the low retention values at adult age suggest that the proteins are utilized only for the regeneration of worn tissues and for maintenance. It is indicated by the higher values of energy demand per unit of body protein retention at adult age that more energy (mainly the energy of saccharides--starch) is needed to secure the processes of tissue maintenance and regeneration.


The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) be prepared whenever a proposed federal project will significantly harm the environment The EIS must include an analysis of the environmental impacts of the project and an evaluation of alternatives. Federal regulations implementing NEPA mandate that an EIS include an evaluation of reasonable alternatives. Unfortunately, the regulations do not specify what constitutes a reasonable alternative. The courts have attempted for more than thirty years to come to grips with the problem of what makes an alternative reasonable. In this paper, I discuss court decisions that have significantly influenced our understanding. I offer my own interpretation, relying on a distinction between the essential purposes of a project and the non-essential, merely desirable, purposes. An alternative that satisfies the essential purposes of a project is reasonable and must be given an in-depth evaluation in the EIS. If adopted, my interpretation would enable NEPA to be more effective in promoting environmental values in the actions of federal agencies.


Fish samples were collected from River Melet between November 2004 and October 2005 and
 evaluated from the taxonomic point of view. Sampling were made in the river mouth where is
 between the Ordu Dam which is planning to build on River Melet and from the location where
 is offered for HES to the coast of the Black Sea. In this research, seven species were determined
 belonging to three families. Barbus tauricus (Kessler, 1877) (50 %) was dominant species
 and followed by the other species in turn Vimba vimba (Linnaeus, 1758) (14%), Capoeta
 banarescui (Turan, Kottelat, Ekmekci & Imamoglu, 2006) (14%), Neogobius kessleri
 (Gunther, 1861) (9%), Neogobius fluviatilis (Pallas, 1814) (8 %), Leuciscus cephalus (Linnaeus,
 1758) (4%) and Mugil cephalus (Linnaeus, 1758) (1%). Capoeta banarescui and Neogobius
kessleri species are new records for Middle Black Sea Region.


Knowledge of the impacts of invasive species is important for their management, prioritisation of control efforts and policy decisions. We investigated how British and Irish botanical experts assessed impacts at smaller scales in areas where they were familiar with the flora. Experts were asked to select the 10 plants that they considered were having the largest impacts in their areas. They also scored the local impacts of 10 plant species that had been previously scored to have the highest impacts at the scale of Great Britain. Impacts were scored using the modified classification scheme of the EICAT framework (Environmental Impact Classification for Alien Taxa). A total of 782 species/score combinations were received, of which 123 were non-native plants in 86 recording areas. Impatiens glandulifera, Reynoutria japonica and Rhododendron ponticum were the three species considered to have the highest impacts across all regions. Four of the species included in the list of the 10 highest impact species in Great Britain were also in the top 10 of species reported in our study. Species in the higher impact categories had, on average, a wider distribution than species with impacts categorised at lower levels. The main habitat types affected were woodlands, followed by linear/boundary features and freshwater habitats. Thirty-nine native plant species were reported to be negatively affected. In comparison to the overall non-native flora of Britain and Ireland, the lifeform spectrum of the species reported was significantly different, with higher percentages of aquatic plants and trees, but a lower proportion of annuals. The study demonstrates the value of local knowledge and expertise in identifying invasive species with negative impacts on the environment. Local knowledge is useful to both confirm national assessments and to identify species and impacts on native species and habitats that may not have gained national attention.


Abstract This study aims to determine whether there is influence between Quality Auditor and Quality of Financial Statement of Audit Opinion. Financial Report provides information for the parties concerned are expected to give a reflection of the company's financial condition without any actual earnings manipulation practices that may mislead users of financial statements. Audit is expected to restrict the practice of earnings management and help maintain and enhance public confidence to the financial statements. In this study assessed the quality of auditors' Big four auditors grouping with non big four and the quality of financial reports can be viewed on the basis of presence or absence of actions that intentionally flattening profits made by companies judged by Eckel index. Data analysis method used is to use statistical methods that is by binary logistic regression. Results of the study is that there are several affiliated companies in 45 LQ 1 August 2008-31 period January 2011 to do the leveling profits. The results of the first test of the alternative hypothesis accepted means that the quality of auditors and quality of financial reporting is a significant simultaneously on the audit opinion. The second alternative acceptable Hipotesisi means that the quality of financial reporting significantly affect the audit opinion. As for the third alternative hypothesis is rejected it means that the quality of auditors do not have a significant impact on the audit opinion. Keyword: a uditor q uality, f inancial r eport q uality , a udit o pinion


Among the different types of robots, modular and self-reconfigurable robots such as SuperBot have less limitations than their counterparts due to their versatility of gaits and increased dynamic adaptability. This results in a highly dexterous and adjustable robot suitable for many environments. This however, usually comes at the expense of a necessary human observer required to monitor and control the robot manually resulting in a waste of power and time. Thus, an intelligent system would be indispensable in optimzing the behavior and control of modular and self-reconfigurable robots. This paper presents an Intelligent Online Reconfiguration System (IORS) which through a combination of learning and reasoning, increases the efficiency in control and movement of the modular and self-reconfigurable robot called Superbot. Using this system, Superbot is able to learn and choose the best gait automatically by sensing its current environment (e.g., friction or slope). As a result, the IORS implementation in SuperBot achieves: 1) correct slope gradient sensing, 2) best gait learning to traverse different slopes, and 3) rational decision making for choosing the best gait.


Neural-Fuzzy Performance Evaluation Model [NFPEM] is a user-centric model developed to evaluate the performance of Distributed Software System Architecture [DSSA]. Parameters used for evaluation are contextual organizational variables. The emphasis in this paper is to simulate NFPEM in four different Information Technology oriented environments where Distributed Software System [DSS] is used for service delivery, with the ultimate aim of establishing and evaluating its utility. The results of the simulation point to the responsiveness of the DSSA to the contextual organizational factors during the project life cycle.


The last century, the world experienced 25 economy crises. Usury system claimed to be the main elements of the crisis. In this case, the financial institution; bank or non-conventional bank become main cast. One of them is the capital market which provides a considerable contribution to the cashflow for the economy of a country. So, non-usurious system is needed in order to minimizing the crisis. Islamic economic system through Islamic financial institution is considered to be the solution and alternative for the investors who have excess capital to be invested in non-usurious system. One of the instrument in Islamic capital market is sukuk, which is currently competing with conventional products. This research was qualitative descriptive research which aimed to analyze how the opportunities and threats of sukuk in Indonesia. Then, the instrument analysis was SWOT analysis. Based on the analysis it was found that overview of the implementation strategy of sukuk in Indonesia still had substantial opportunities. Stakeholders were expected to synergize and have a good commitment in the context of minimizing the weaknesses and the threats.


In a recent Journal of Perinatal Medicine, HOCHULI et al, [2] state that there is no doubt that intranatal monitoring iseffective and that the reduction of perinatal mortality amply demonstrates this. The authors quote 14 articles to support this Statement. None of the series quoted give more than circumstantial evidence based upon the coincidence of a reduction of mortality with the introduction of intranatal monitoring and this does not exclude the possibility of other factors contributing partiaUy or wholly to the decline in perinatal mortality. The following may influence perinatal mortality: Social characteristics of the population, general health of the obstetric population, clinical expertise of staff and Organisation of obstetrics Services. The authors of the papers concerned with intranatal monitoring were unable to exclude the possibility of one or more of these factors causing the decline of perinatal mortality. Only properly controlled prospective trials can test the efficacy of newly introduced techniques. Two randomised controlled trials testing the efficacy of intranatal monitoring have been completed; unfortunately, the results differed [2, 3]. Therefore the value of fetal monitoring is not äs clear cut äs HOCHULI and other authors claim. The purpose of the present article is to compare the two controlled trials and to determine, if possible, why the results differed.


This paper discusses the digital skills literacy of the Malaysian youth through five main characteristics, namely Operational skills, Information Navigation skills, Social skills, Creative skills and Mobile skills. A survey has been employed as the research design and a set of questionnaire was used as the instrument to collect the data. A total of 1220 respondents from the age of 16 to 40 involved in this study. The result shows that the majority of the youth is tending to have a high level of three characteristics digital skills, which are Operational skills, Social skills, and Mobile skills. However, they were slightly weak in Information Navigation skills and Creative skills. The results also show that there is no significant difference in all digital skills from gender and location of residence aspect. However, there is a significant difference in Creative skills between the youth from the urban and rural area. The findings of this study may be the references for those educators or trainer to design the training curriculum in training the youth through the e-learning platform.


The amplitude and phase response of the two-tone intermodulation product, as the tone spacing is swept in frequency, may be used to predict memory-related distortion in power amplifiers. Previously, the methods used to measure the phase response were slow and limited to narrow bandwidths. This new measurement method is extremely fast, proposes a method for normalization or calibration of the phase response, and is extremely broadband, making it suitable for measurements of wide band amplifiers such as those used in satellite communication systems.


The consumer's perspective of over-the-counter medication should be one of the most important determinants of strategy for individuals and companies manufacturing and distributing such products. The consumers, buyers, and users have been telling industry for a long time that they are concerned with safety, cost, effectiveness, and availability of choice. The wise producers have begun to heed the signs and the public is responding.


In this work, penetrometry with a sphere was employed to study the flow properties of non-consolidated pharmaceutical powder excipients: sodium chloride, sodium citrate, boric acid, and sorbitol. In order to estimate flow rate, the pressure of penetration in Pascals was used. Penetrometry measurement with a sphere requires modification of the measurement container, in particular by decreasing the diameter of the container, to prevent undesirable movement of material in a direction opposite to that in which the sphere penetrates. Thus penetrometry by a sphere seems to be similar to indentation by the Brinell hardness tester. The pressure of penetration was determined from the depth of penetration by analogy with the Brinell hardness number and an equation for the inter conversion of the two variables is presented. The penetration pressure allowed direct estimation of the flow rate only for those powder excipients with a size fraction in the range of 0.250-0.630 mm. Using the ratio of penetration pressure to bulk density, a polynomial quadratic equation was generated from which the flow rates for the group of all tested powders could be estimated. Finally, if the inverse ratio of bulk density and penetration pressure was used as an independent variable, the flow rate could be estimated by linear regression with the coefficient of determination r2 = 0.9941. In conclusion, using sphere penetrometry, the flow properties of non-consolidated powder samples could be investigated by indentation. As a result, a linear regression in which the flow rate was directly proportional to the powder bulk density and inversely proportional to the penetration pressure could be best recommended for the estimation of the flow rate of powder excipients.


The development of any software product depends on how efficiently design documents are created. The various kind of design document which are required to be created for the development of software product are High level Design (HLD), Low Level Design (LLD) and Change Request Design (CRD) Document . Low level design document gives the design of the actual software application. Low level design document is based on High Level Design document [2]. After an application is implemented at client site, there can be changes which the client may ask during the implementation or maintenance phase. For such changes, Change Request Design documents are created. A good design document will make the application very easy to develop/maintain by the developer. CR Designer tool is designed and developed to create a standard Change Request Design (CRD) documents and tracing the changes done in processes of the module in different versions of CRD document released. This paper presents a new dimension tool for Change Request Design Document.


Nucleotide 34 in tRNA is extensively modified to ensure translational fidelity and efficacy in cells. The deamination of adenosine at this site catalyzed by the enzyme TadA gives rise to inosine (I), which serves as a typical example of the wobble hypothesis due to its diverse basepairing capability. However, recent studies have shown that tRNAArgACG in Mycoplasma capricolum contains unmodified adenosine, in order to decode the CGG codon. The structural basis behind the poorly performing enzyme M. capricolum TadA (named McTadA) is largely unclear. Here we present the structures of the WT and a mutant form of McTadA determined at high resolutions. Through structural comparison between McTadA and other active TadA enzymes as well as modeling efforts, we found that McTadA presents multiple structural conflicts with RNA substrates and thus offered support to previous studies from a structural perspective. These clashes would potentially lead to reduced substrate binding affinity of McTadA, consistent with our in-vitro deamination activity and binding assays. To rescue the deamination activity of McTadA, we carried out two rounds of protein engineering through structure-guided design. The unsuccessful attempts of activity restoration could be attributed to altered dimer interface and stereo hindrance from the non-catalytic subunit of McTadA, which could be the inevitable outcome of the natural evolution. Our study provides structural insight into an alternative decoding and evolutionary strategy by a compromised TadA enzyme at a molecular level.


Cecal amounts of mucin and immunoglobulin A (IgA) were examined through the cecal fermentation pattern in Wistar (WS) or Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats fed inulin-type fructans differing in their degree of polymerization (DP). The animals were fed a control diet or a diet containing one of the fructans with an average DP of 4, 8, 16, or 23, at 60 g/kg diet for 10 d. Cecal fermentation products substantially differed between WS and SD rats fed DP8 fructan, with short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as the major organic acids in the former but lactate predominating in the latter. Cecal fermentability of fructans in both strains generally decreased with increasing DP of fructans, and this was especially manifest in reduction of the amounts of lactate in DP16 and 23. In WS rats, cecal mucin and IgA were greater in all fructan groups than in the control group. In SD rats, cecal mucin was greater only in the DP8, 16, and 23 groups as compared to the control group, while IgA was greater in the DP4 and 8 groups. In both strains, cecal mucin correlated with the sum of cecal SCFAs, but not with lactate, succinate, or total organic acids. In contrast, only cecal lactate correlated with cecal IgA in both strains. The present study shows that the different fermentation patterns of fructans affect cecal mucin and IgA; mucin is likely to respond to cecal SCFA production, whereas IgA increases when fermentation occurs rapidly and lactate is a major fermentation product.


This paper presents the procedure developed at SCL for the calibration of loop antennas for test frequencies from 9 kHz to 30 MHz in accordance with CISPR 16-1-6:2014+AMD1:2017. The background, measurement model and uncertainty components are introduced and discussed. The expanded measurement uncertainty is estimated as 1.2 dB.


The firm of Cammell Laird originated in a boiler works in 1824 before growing and diversifying to become one of a small number of companies worldwide which could build, armour and arm the largest warships from the operations of a single company group. After World War I, it was reconstructed as a naval and mercantile shipbuilder with important financial interests in steel and rolling stock manufacture. Booming activity in World War II and continuing prosperity until the late 1950s was followed by increasing competition and deepening problems. By the 1980s the firm's remaining steel interests had failed; in 1993 the once great Birkenhead shipyard closed. How and why did the businesses grow, then experience such problems and eventually collapse? This book tries to find answers.


An attic cholesteatoma is defined as an epidermoid cyst found in the attic. This is differentiated from an infected retraction pocket of the pars tensa or a retraction pocket cholesteatoma. Stratified squamous epithelium may also be present in the middle ear as other clinical or pathological entities, such as metaplastic islands of the mucosa in chronic ears with central perforations. Histological examination of 22 temporal bones with attic cholesteatomas has shown them to reside mainly medial to the ossicular chain. This explains the difficulty they have in self-cleansing, as well as the ensuing secondary infection. When a similar process occurs lateral to the ossicles, a self-cleansing nature's atticotomy may be formed. The aetiology of an attic epidermoid cyst, i.e., an attic cholesteatoma, is usually considered to be an invasive retraction from the external ear. However, it is difficult to accept invasion of external canal skin into the upper medial attic. This is especially so in the face of such biological phenomena as epithelial contact inhibition, or the invariable outward migration of stratified squamous epithelium from the edges of retraction pockets as well as from cholesteatoma perforations. Also, large cholesteatomas usually present themselves from the "beginning" simultaneously with their perforations; no documentation of an evolving process from a pre-existing perforation exists at present. Marginal perforations, which have later evolved into attic cholesteatomas have so far not been documented. On the other hand, retraction pockets of the pars tensa or pars flaccida associated with some middle ear negative pressure do occur, however, it is yet to be shown that such retractions can reach the medial part of the ossicular chain and form epidermoid-like cysts there. Therefore, the possibility that an attic cholesteatoma often arises primarily in the attic and presents itself secondarily in the external canal as a "perforated" epidermoid cyst, is to be considered. The possibility that a congenital rest is responsible for such an epidermoid cyst has often been put forward, but evidence that such rests actually exist has not yet been presented. The frequency with which cholesteatoma sacs found in the attic show mucosal cells as part of their lining, suggests a metaplastic phenomenon. This means that the epithelial cells of the middle ear lining may have changed from mucosal into keratinizing cells (or even vice versa). Metaplastic changes of mucosas into keratinizing epithelium occur very frequently in the bronchi, nose, ears and genitourinary system. Attic epidermoid cysts may, therefore, be seen as an analogous formation to glandular cysts in the attic -- the latter being very frequently seen in there in chronically infected ears. Such "organ" formations (glands or epidermoid cysts) may arise when their respective cells (forming mucus or keratin) grow in the midst of connective tissue rather than on the surface...


In this invited article, the authors review the history and development of
the Indiana University School of Social Work from its origin in 1911 as a small
department to its current status as a large organization offering educational programs
to nearly 900 students on five campuses. One of the nation's oldest, it is the
only school to offer the full continuum of social work education from the associate
through the doctoral levels. In many respects, the evolution of the School mirrors the
experiences of other schools and departments of social work.As such, the article may
be enlightening to those interested in the history of social work education in this
country.


In this paper, we have suggested a finite difference algorithm for resistivity forward and inverse modeling with electrically anisotropic media in applied geophysics. Electrical anisotropy affects the surface measurement in a fashion that may make interpretation erroneous. This means that the resistivity section obtained by an inversion method that does not incorporate electrical anisotropy gives the wrong subsurface structure. We used a classical multielectrode dataset of a profile for estimating not only horizontal but vertical resistivity as well. Thus, the electrical anisotropy can be calculated. Finally, the finite difference mesh can be corrected by using the estimated anisotropic coefficient. The result of the developed algorithm was verified with a 2-layered analytic solution. Furthermore, the present method was also tested on a field dataset.


The study of biochemical responses in aquatic animals comprises a vigorous area of inquiry within ecotoxicology for a number of reasons, including the perceived need for basic research in the field, the desire for highly sensitive biomarkers useful for biomonitoring and the particular concern for elevated rates of neoplasia observed in some aquatic systems. In this paper, an approach only recently investigated by aquatic toxicologists will be described and reviewed in detail. This approach is based on theories of oxyradical generation and subsequent oxidative stress in biological systems. Of particular concern to environmental toxicologists with respect to these phenomena are the abilities of a number of common and diverse compounds to undergo enzymatically facilitated redox cycling in cells and thereby generate oxyradicals under aerobic conditions. Mechanisms of oxyradical generation, toxicological consequences of these processes and endogenous antioxidant defense systems are described. In addition, methodologies for studying these phenomena are discussed and recent studies demonstrating their applicability to aquatic toxicology are reviewed.


Orthopaedic 3D is driving major innovations in many areas, such as manufacturing, engineering, art, education and medicine (1). Especially, the orthopaedic field is greatly becoming interested in this technology with the ability to create solutions specific tailored to the patient. From the creation of 3D models that help surgeons plan operations to the fabrication of patient-specific titanium implants, 3D printing is already changing traditional musculoskeletal industry (2).


Preface 1. Introduction: social structure and economic change in late medieval England S. H. Rigby 2. An age of deference Peter Coss 3. The enterprise of war Michael Prestwich 4. Order and law Simon Walker 5. Social mobility Philippa C. Maddern 6. Town life Richard Britnell 7. The land Bruce M. S. Campbell 8. A consumer economy Maryanne Kowaleski 9. Moving around Wendy R. Childs 10. Work and leisure Mavis E. Mate 11. Religious belief Eamon Duffy 12. A magic universe Valerie I. J. Flint 13. Renunciation Janet Burton 14. Ritual constructions of society Charles Phythian-Adams 15. Identities Miri Rubin 16. Life and death: the ages of man P. J. P. Goldberg 17. The wider world Robin Frame 18. Writing and reading Paul Strohm 19. Conclusion Rosemary Horrox Further reading Index.


The ZERSSEN Mood Scale or " Befindlichkeits-Skala " is the only self-rating scale that is altogether specific (adjectives on mood states essentially), actual and therefore sensitive (lack of adjectives on the habitual state, on personality traits), bipolar (possible detection of a manic or depressive shift), easy to administrate and analyze, existing under 2 statistically equivalent forms. Each BS and BS' form contains 28 pairs of antonymic everyday adjectives, whose French translation has been checked by back-translation. The subject has to cross if he feels right now " rather... ", " rather... " or " neither nor ". The French translation was tested on 100 depressed and 6 manic newly hospitalized patients, on 30 depressed patients in the course of a 6-week antidepressant trial, and on 46 academic and administrative members of the staff. Various calculations on the validity, reliability and sensitivity of the scale confirm the original German data. The product-moment correlation between BS and BS' (split-half reliability) reaches .89 in the control group, .79 in the newly hospitalized depressives and .93 to .96 in the anti-depressant trial, a p less than .001 in all three studies. The correlation does not reach a significant level in neurotic depressives, who are a mean 11 y. younger than psychotic depressives and score significantly lower than the latter. Age, sex and sequence of administration do not influence the means, the standard deviations and the correlation between BS and BS'. The original German studies and our original French ones give convergent results as for means and extreme scores of the main mood levels, with a cutting score for mania at 6 and for depression at 27 : (see article) Thanks to their high intercorrelation, the BS and BS' scales may be given independently, thus allowing a daily or even twice daily administration. The range of application of the ZERSSEN Mood Scale is not limited to psychiatry but includes numerous medical, surgical and psychological fields.


In the solder bump chip on glass process, for the connection of the driver chip to Al pad on the glass substrate, the process of the electroless plating was developed to coat Ni on Al/photoresist system. It is necessary to pretreat Al surface to remove the oxide layer before the plating. In order to find the pretreatment process which does not damage photoresist or the substrate glass, the alkaline and fluoridic zincate processes have been investigated. Because the photoresist and Al thin film could be easily dissolved in the alkaline solution, it was considered that the fluoridic zincate process was a suitable one. After immersion in the zincate solution containing 1.5 g/ l NH4HF2 and 100 g/ l ZnSO4, electroless Ni plating was performed well. The additives in the zincate solution and thiourea in the plating solution enhanced the flatness of deposited surface. Acid dip improved the uniformity of the surface.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to identify predictive factors for hemorrhagic cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome (hCHS) after direct bypass surgery in adult nonhemorrhagic moyamoya disease (non-hMMD) using quantitative parameters on rapid processing of perfusion and diffusion (RAPID) perfusion CT software.

METHODS
A total of 277 hemispheres in 223 patients with non-hMMD who underwent combined bypass were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative volumes of time to maximum (Tmax) > 4 seconds and > 6 seconds were obtained from RAPID analysis of perfusion CT. These quantitative parameters, along with other clinical and angiographic factors, were statistically analyzed to determine the significant predictors for hCHS after bypass surgery.

RESULTS
Intra- or postoperative hCHS occurred in 13 hemispheres (4.7%). In 7 hemispheres, subarachnoid hemorrhage occurred intraoperatively, and in 6 hemispheres, intracerebral hemorrhage was detected postoperatively. All hCHS occurred within the 4 days after bypass. Advanced age (OR 1.096, 95% CI 1.039-1.163, p = 0.001) and a large volume of Tmax > 6 seconds (OR 1.011, 95% CI 1.004-1.018, p = 0.002) were statistically significant factors in predicting the risk of hCHS after surgery. The cutoff values of patient age and volume of Tmax > 6 seconds were 43.5 years old (area under the curve [AUC] 0.761) and 80.5 ml (AUC 0.762), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
In adult patients with non-hMMD older than 43.5 years or with a large volume of Tmax > 6 seconds over 80.5 ml, more prudence is required in the decision to undergo bypass surgery and in postoperative management.