The authors propose a new case of Buschke- Ollendorff syndrome: a female patient aged 54 years presents 17 tumoral lesions out of which some are dermatofibromas and other elastomas . Deafness appeared 5 years after the cutaneous lesions and seems to be the result of a pathological condensation of petrous bones.


The analysis of the so-called Decommunization Act's application, after several years of its being in force, points to a significant legal problem. The recent decisions of the Supreme Administrative Court further expose said problem. The issue can be encompassed in the following question: what is, ultimately, the scope of voivodes' duties with regard to investigating the facts of decommunization proceedings, especially in view of the opinions drawn up by the Institute of National Remembrance (Instytut Pamięci Narodowej, IPN) for the purposes of these proceedings? The answer to this question depends largely on the weight given to these opinions. In particular, if the voivodes are not bound by the IPN's decisions, one may argue that they should be required to investigate the factual background on the issues on which the IPN had already fi led an opinion. Consequently, voivodes should make historical and legal decisions against the analyzed factual background independently.Analyses included in the current study suggest that, considering the recent decisions of the Supreme Administrative Court of Poland (which have a significant impact on the legal practice), voivodes are not bound by the IPN's opinions. There is a strong emphasis on the view that the IPN's opinions should each time be treated as part of evidence subject to verification, constituting grounds for proceedings pursuant to the provisions on the Decommunization Act. Therefore, in each case, verifying those opinions should be the obligation of the voivode. At the conceptual level, there was a condition that voivodes' verifications of opinions should not interfere in substantive issues and should only examine methodological issues. At the practical level, however, there are cases in which verifying the IPN's opinions beyond the methodological scope is allowed. The findings indicated above are considered in the context of the author's belief that:
— the analysis of the text of the Decommunization Act must lead to the conclusion that the legislator decided on the binding force of the IPN's opinions, especially with regards to voivodes;
— considering the legal status of the IPN, the scope of its tasks and competences, and the scope of tasks, capacity and competences of voivodes — as well as the specific nature of activities and proceedings based on the Decommunization Act — the opinions of the IPN cannot be treated as a regular part of evidence, requiring verification by the voivodes; from a systemic perspective, they should be treated as statements of knowledge by a competent state institution cooperating with the voivodes in activities and proceedings related to the Decommunization Act.


The dynamical behaviour of two coupled oscillators depend on two parameters: The frequency ratio and the amount of the non linearities. Experimental results, obtained on free Rayleigh-Bénard convection, are reported; at nearly constant Ra value, a complex dynamical behaviour with the rotation number is evidenced near the onset of chaos. Regimes with weak or more developed chaos are observed in the vicinity of phase-locked states as it was first pointed out by numerical studies.


Administration of alpha alpha-crosslinked stroma-free hemoglobin (SFH) as a cell-free resuscitation fluid is associated with multiple organ toxicities. Many of these toxicities are characteristic of the pathophysiological effects of bacterial endotoxins (lipopolysaccharide, LPS). To better understand the potential role of LPS in the observed in vivo toxicities of SFH, we examined mixtures of SFH and E. coli LPS for evidence of LPS-SFH complex formation. LPS-SFH complexes were demonstrated by three techniques: ultrafiltration through 300 kDa cut-off membranes, which distinguished LPS in complexes (87-89% < 300 kDa) from LPS alone (90% > 300 kDa); density centrifugation through 5% sucrose, which distinguished denser LPS alone from LPS-SFH complexes; and precipitation by 67% ethanol, which demonstrated 2-3 fold increased precipitability of complexes compared to SFH alone. Interaction of LPS with SFH was also associated with markedly increased biological activity of LPS, as manifested by enhancement of LPS activation of Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL), increased release of human mononuclear cell tissue factor, and enhanced production of cultured human endothelial cell tissue factor. These results demonstrated that hemoglobin can serve as an endotoxin binding protein, and that this interaction results in the alteration of several LPS physical characteristics and enhancement of LPS biological activities.


Background:Neoadjuvant therapy with radiation +/− chemotherapy is an accepted management for soft tissue sarcomas (STS). The incidence of post-therapy lymphedema is around 30%. The purpose of this study was to identify variables that predict for post-therapy lymphedema. Methods:From 2000 to 2010, 132 patients with STS were treated with neoadjuvant radiation +/− chemotherapy followed by resection. Patient variables and treatment outcomes were reviewed. Presence of lymphedema was determined by the treating physician. The Fisher exact test was used for univariate analysis and logistic regression was used for multivariate analysis. Results:Median follow-up was 3.1 years. Of the lower extremity STS, major veins were sacrificed in 34% of patients. Lymphedema occurred in 22.4% of patients. Smoking negatively predicted for lymphedema on univariate analysis (P=0.007), and sacrifice of a major vein was associated with an increased risk of lymphedema (P=0.02). On multivariate analysis, smoking (P=0.02, odds ratio 0.31) negatively predicted for and sacrifice of a major vein (P=0.03, odds ratio 2.7) positively predicted for lymphedema. Conclusions:There may be an association between smoking and decrease post-therapy lymphedema. Also, patients who undergo resection of a major vein seem to be more prone to post-therapy lymphedema.


4993 Occupational exposure to asbestos is associated with the development of asbestosis, malignant mesothelioma, and lung cancer. Asbestos fibers have been shown to act as genotoxic and cytotoxic agents that can produce both DNA and chromosomal damage. Both direct and indirect interaction of asbestos fibers and target cells are assumed to lead to DNA damage despite the exact mechanisms are yet to be discovered. We performed DNA copy number and gene expression microarrays on lung tumor samples from 14 highly asbestos-exposed and from 14 non-exposed patients with the aim to identify potential asbestos-associated aberrations. To identify chromosomal regions with DNA copy number and expressional differences between the tumors of exposed and non-exposed patients, the gene expression data was combined with CGH microarray data and analyzed at group level. The identification of exposure-related areas was performed by using overlapping 0.5-1 Mbp segments, and each segment was tested for differences in copy numbers and gene expression between the exposed and non-exposed groups. The exposure-associated regions were identified by means of hypothesis testing. By combining the gene expression data with the DNA copy number data, we identified six chromosomal regions showing association to asbestos-exposure on both DNA and mRNA level. One of these regions, namely 19p13.3.-13.1, was further characterized by microsatellite analysis in 62 patients for allelic imbalance differences between tumors of non-exposed and exposed patients. Our results suggest that the loss of the 19p-region is significantly associated with asbestos-exposure. Furthermore, in tumors of asbestos-exposed patients, AI in 19p seems to appear regardless of the histological tumor type whereas in tumors of non-exposed patients AI is more restricted to certain tumor types.


In most of the work dealing with the analysis of protein-protein interfaces, a single X-ray structure is available or selected, and implicitly it is assumed that this structure corresponds to the optimal complex for this pair of proteins. However, we have found a degenerate interface in a high-affinity antibody-antigen complex: the two independent complexes of the camel variable domain antibody fragment cAb-Lys3 and its antigen hen egg white lysozyme present in the asymmetric unit of our crystals show a difference in relative orientation between antibody and antigen, leading to important differences at the protein-protein interface. A third cAb-Lys3-hen lysozyme complex in a different crystal form adopts yet another relative orientation. Our results show that protein-protein interface characteristics can vary significantly between different specimens of the same high-affinity antibody-protein antigen complex. Consideration should be given to this type of observation when trying to establish general protein-protein interface characteristics.


Following encouraging preclinical evidence suggesting anticancer synergy when docetaxel (Taxotere; Rhône-Poulenc Rorer, Antony, France) and vinorelbine are administered together, a clinical trial was designed to determine the maximum tolerated dose of the combination when given with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor support to 27 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Doses were escalated in stages to a maximum of 45 mg/m2 vinorelbine and 60 mg/m2 docetaxel, both administered on day 1 of a 2-week cycle. Hematologic toxicity was mild, with febrile neutropenia complicating only four of the 209 cycles delivered. Clinically significant fluid retention and peripheral neuropathy were also uncommon. Major response was seen in 37% of patients. The median survival was 9 months and 1-year survival was approximately 35%. The combination of 45 mg/m2 vinorelbine and 60 mg/m2 docetaxel has now moved into a phase II trial.


The blood vessels (BV) of the brain stem show different patterns of development, and nutrient requeriments, metabolism and the activity of the different nuclei of the mesencephalon differ from one nucleus to another. The density of BV indirectly explains the blood flow intensity and physiological activity of the nuclei, and may explain the varying degrees of vulnerability of neurons to pathologies. To ascertain the different vascular densities of the mesencephalic nuclei, in the present work we used stereological methods to measure BV density in the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA), the Substantia Nigra pars compacta (SNpc), the A8 Catecholaminergic Cell group (A8), the Periaqueductal Grey Matter (PAG) and the Locus Coeruleus (LC) of two intact macaques. The results pointed to a high density of BV in the LC; a low density in the SNpc, and an intermediate density in the VTA, A8 and PAG. These results confirm the high blood metabolism of the LC and suggest that the vulnerability of SNpc neurons may be related to the observed low density of BV.


In teleconferencing systems, undesired echoes due to coupling between the loudspeaker and the microphone can be reduced using acoustic echo cancellers (AECs). In order to introduce better performance in terms of sound localization, at least stereophonic AECs (SAECs) have to be employed. In this case, the correlation between the two channels prevents a correct identification of the echo paths and a signal decorrelation is needed. In this paper, a novel mixed approach to signal decorrelation is proposed based on the estimation of the fundamental frequency. The principle of the proposed structure is to use an approach based on the "missing-fundamental" phenomenon at low frequencies (below 500 Hz), a time-varying all-pass filter controlled by the fundamental frequency at medium and high frequencies, and a time-varying multi-notch filter for improving performance in the upper part of the spectrum. Experiments confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach in terms of correct identification of the echo paths and stereo perception preservation.


Several studies have shown that mastectomy causes psychosocial disturbances and problems with body image. Patients experience inconvenience with an external prosthesis. Reconstruction can correct these disturbances and make prosthesis redundant. This prospective study was designed to evaluate satisfaction among women who underwent delayed breast reconstruction. The study population consisted of 75 women operated at Töölö Hospital from August to December 1999. Sixty-seven operations were free microvascular transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous reconstructions and eight were latissimus dorsi flap reconstructions. The response rate was 80% at both 3 and 6 months postoperatively. The main reason why the women sought reconstruction was the inconvenience of the prosthesis. Preoperative expectations were fulfilled in 90% of patients. An overwhelming majority expressed satisfaction with the outcome. The most often reported benefit was having a new breast of one's own. The main drawbacks were the difficult operation and the unexpectedly long recovery time. Reconstruction alleviated markedly neck, shoulder, and back pain. There was no change in patient self-esteem but there was a substantial positive change in how they felt about their looks. The authors suggest that breast reconstruction should be offered as an option to all women undergoing mastectomy.


Electrical energy is essential in today's society. Accurate electrical load forecasting is beneficial for better scheduling of electricity generation and saving electrical energy. In this paper, we propose theory-guided deep-learning load forecasting 2.0 (TgDLF2.0) to solve this issue, which is an improved version of the theory-guided deep-learning framework for load forecasting via ensemble long short-term memory (TgDLF). TgDLF2.0 introduces the deep-learning model Transformer and transfer learning on the basis of dividing the electrical load into dimensionless trends and local fluctuations, which realizes the utilization of domain knowledge, captures the long-term dependency of the load series, and is more appropriate for realistic scenarios with scarce samples. Cross-validation experiments on different districts show that TgDLF2.0 is approximately 16% more accurate than TgDLF and saves more than half of the training time. TgDLF2.0 with 50% weather noise has the same accuracy as TgDLF without noise, which proves its robustness. We also preliminarily mine the interpretability of Transformer in TgDLF2.0, which may provide future potential for better theory guidance. Furthermore, experiments demonstrate that transfer learning can accelerate convergence of the model in half the number of training epochs and achieve better performance.


Several mature fields in the North Sea experience significant challenges relating to high pressures and temperatures accompanied with the infill drilling challenge of very narrow margins between pore and fracture pressures. To navigate these narrow mud weight windows, it is critical to understand the bottom hole pressure. However, in the cases of fractured formations above the target zones, severe losses can be encountered during drilling and cementing operations often leading to the inability to maintain a full mud column at all times and even threaten the ability to reach TD.
 The operator therefore decided to investigate the use of a new acoustic telemetry system that could provide internal and external pressure measurements, (along with other downhole measurements) independently of traditional mud pulse telemetry in the drilling assembly. Real-time distributed pressure data essential to understanding the downhole conditions could therefore be provided regardless of circulation, even under severe losses or during tripping and cementing operations.
 This acoustic telemetry network was deployed on several wells through multiple hole sizes and including losses management, liner running and cementing operations.
 The initial primary purpose of running the network was the ability to monitor the top of the mud at all times, even in significant loss situations. As real-time data was acquired it became apparent that the data could also be used in real-time to aid and help quantify the actual downhole pressures. The use of this downhole data was modified and new calculations designed for simpler visualization of equivalent circulating densities at the shoe, bit and identified weak zones in the well at depths beyond the acoustic tools themselves. This data was used to manage the bottom hole pressure within a 300 psi mud weight window to ultimately enable the well to be delivered to planned TD.
 The tool and calculations helped verify managed pressure connections and subsequent pump ramp up and down operations to minimize pressure fluctuations in the well. Additionally the data was used during dynamic formation integrity testing and to measure and calculate ECD at various positions along the drillstring and casing when downhole PWD measurements were unavailable.
 This paper will describe how the implementation of new technology through the downhole acoustic network was deployed and the lessons learned in how the real-time data was used, changed and adapted in this particular well. Due to this deployment the acoustic telemetry network will now be used on upcoming equally challenging wells and its range of operations expanded to include drilling, tripping and liner cementing operations.


Objective To understand the operation status of the direct online report system for notifiable diseases in Nanning city,and provide scientific supports for the infectious disease epidemics management in Nanning city.Methods The construction,staff,and operation status of the direct online report system for notifiable diseases in medical institutions of Nanning city were investigated.Analysis of the collected data was carried out by SPSS13.0 software.Results Up to the year 2007,a total of 200 medical institutions in Nanning city had been equipped to enable direct online report for infectious diseases,with a fraction of coverage of 99.01%.All the 200 medical institutions were able to report via wide-band.Among the 200 medical institutions,88.12%(178/202) of them were equipped with computers special for infectious disease report.A total of 263 staffs were responsible for the direct online report in Nanning city,among which 188 were full-time staffs(71.48%).As for the job title,there were 9 staffs with high title,65 staffs with middle title,180 staffs with primary title,and 9 staffs with no title.The report staffs were various on their educational background.There were 44 staffs with basic university degree,129 staffs with associate degree,85 staffs with associate middle school degree,and 5 staffs with high school degree or below.The specialities of the staffs focus on the following areas: 69 staffs on preventive medicine,133 staffs on clinical medicine,43 staffs on nursing,and 19 staffs on other specialities.Conclusion The operation status of the direct online report system for notifiable diseases in Nanning city is generally good.The constructions,staff disposition,as well as the operation of network have been improved compared with those in the year 2005.


Objectives Type 2 diabetes exerts a significant impact on the patient's quality of life. Its chronic nature, incurability and complications weaken the motivation of patients to fight the disease and its acceptance. The aim of research was to determine whether and to what extent diabetes modulates the quality of life of patients and in particular which domain of the patient's life is most limited. In addition, we looked at whether the quality of life perceived by patients is determined by gender and whether and to what extent they accept their illness. Material and methods A study on 100 patients with type 2 diabetes from the Wielkopolska region in Poland was carried out at the end of 2013/beginning of 2014 using a diagnostic survey, and the research techniques were a standardized questionnaire – ADDQoL19 (Audit of Diabetes-Dependent Quality of Life 19) and the AIS questionnaire (Acceptance of Illness Scale) developed by Felton and modified by Juczyński. Results The results suggest that the quality of life of the patients was "neither good nor bad", whereby women perceive it as being lower than men. While analysing the impact of diabetes on the different domains of the lives of men and women, it should be stressed that most affected were diet, satisfying appetite, independence, financial position, feelings about the future, sex life, and freedom in the consumption of drinks. More than half of men and women did not accept their illness; however, younger persons unlike older accepted diabetes to a much greater degree. Conclusions Type 2 diabetes negatively affects the quality of life of patients and its impact is felt more by women. In both sexes, the most affected domain of quality of life is the lack of nutritional freedom. The acceptance of illness is dependent upon age.


Background: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks are a well-known complication of posterior fossa neurosurgery. The use of dural repair adjuncts has been associated with fewer CSF leaks and subsequently, lower medical costs. Objectives: To determine if the use of polyethylene glycol hydrogel sealant (DuraSeal dural sealant system [DuraSeal]), resulted in cost savings in the United States compared to use of fibrin glue in posterior fossa neurosurgery based on a published study of these two products. Methods: Primary analysis was based on a published cohort study (100 patients per cohort). Adjustments were made to account for the longer follow-up time of the fibrin glue cohort to better capture the incidence of CSF leaks, pseudomeningocele, wound infection, and meningitis using additional data from the literature. Resource utilization was calculated from literature studies and confirmed with consultations from two practicing neurosurgeons. The effective time horizon was 19 months. Undiscounted Medicare payments were used to calculate unit costs from a payer's perspective based on hospital stay, cost of sealant application, and cost of complications. One-way sensitivity analysis was used to examine changes in costs as a result of model input changes. Results: In the base case, the cost of the hospital stay for the original surgery, which excludes the cost of complications, dominated costs for both cohorts. On a per patient basis, the use of fibrin glue cost $1666 more than the use of DuraSeal. Sensitivity analysis showed that using lumbar drainage instead of operative repair for a CSF leak reduced cost savings to $680. Holding the incidence of CSF leaks constant for the fibrin glue cohort while increasing the incidence for the DuraSeal cohort by 50% or 300% resulted in cost savings of $1438 and $755, respectively. Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrate a positive, consistent cost-benefit of DuraSeal compared to fibrin glue based on a cohort study of real world patients who underwent posterior fossa neurosurgery.


A Heideggerian hermeneutical phenomenological research method was used to investigate the experience of memory loss in twelve individuals with early Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment. Data analysis proceeded as described by Diekelmann, Allen, and Tanner (1989), and incorporated the methods of Benner (1994), Thomas and Pollio (2002), and van Manen (1990). Three constitutive patterns with relational themes were identified. The first pattern, experiencing breakdown, consisted of two themes: awakening to breakdown and living with forgetting. The second pattern, temporality, consisted of three themes: being in the nothing, forgetting the past, and looking ahead. The third pattern, managing forgetting, consisted of the themes: remembering with cues, writing things down, recognizing what made remembering better or worse, and using laughter. The finding show that early Alzheimer's disease is more than an illness of cognitive losses and that forgetting is significant in light of the meaning that it has within everyday life.


Papillary muscle rupture is a rare but life-threatening complication of myocardial infarction (MI). Here, we describe a case of papillary muscle rupture caused by a microscopic MI. A 76-year-old woman was referred to our institution, where she developed cardiac arrest upon admission. Severe mitral regurgitation was noted without significant coronary artery lesions. Emergency surgery was performed, and posteromedial papillary muscle rupture was observed. Postoperatively, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging revealed a microscopic MI of the posteromedial papillary muscle.


270 photo ionization models of planetary nebulae luminescence was calculated. Free parametersfor the models grid were energy distribution at the wavelengths 6912˚A, filling factor and chemical composition.T∗ and r∗ in models were selected from Blocker's evolutional tracks. Energy distributions in nuclei radiationspectra at the wavelengths 6912˚A were taken from Clegg-Middlemass stellar atmosphere models, revised on thestellar wind presence. The nebular shell was assumed to be spherically-symmetrical. The radial distribution ofnebular gas density was given by the empirical expression, which was derived by approximating surface brightnessdistribution for the real planetary nebulae. Density fluctuations were randomly imposed on this distribution. Forthe grid modeling we used the Cloudy 94 Ferland's code. Obtained integrated spectra were analyzed, using commonnebular gas diagnostic method. Relative abundances of different ions, calculated by this method, were used fordetermination of analytical expressions for ICFs. Under this spectra analysis the emission lines, for which the influence of density fluctuations may be neglected, were taken into account. As a result, new ICFs were found, andwe would going to use these ICFs for obtaining chemical abundances of galactic planetary nebulae more exactly.


: Traditional structural health monitoring (SHM) practices dictate centralized collection and processing of structural response data. The centralized paradigm, however, may be impractical for wireless SHM systems on account of the limited power autonomy of wireless sensor nodes, the limited reliability of wireless communication, and the centralized data repository bearing the risk of becoming a "single point of failure". Considering the limitations of wireless SHM systems and focusing on avoiding centralized data collection, this paper presents an embedded physics-based modeling concept for wireless SHM systems in form of a work-in-progress report. The idea behind the proposed concept is to exploit the processing capabilities of wireless sensor nodes and the analysis capabilities of physics-based models in structural engineering to obtain estimates of structural conditions that cannot be derived from data-driven models. A major challenge of the embedded phys-ics-based concept is to ensure that the merits of embedding physics-based models undeniably outweigh the centralized collection and offline analysis of structural response data. To this end, the quality of embedded physics-based models is tested with respect to performance. Upon presenting the embedded physics-based concept, future work on potential implementation of the concept into wireless SHM systems are discussed.


Toxin antitoxin (TA) operons are encoded on almost all freeliving microorganisms' chromosome. By far the most abundant TA operon family is VapBC, which represents over 42% of total identified TA operons. These proteins were first identified on the bacterial plasmids' fall-back maintenance mechanism, also known as Post-Segregational Killing (PSK). All TA operons to date are known to be bacteriostatic or bacteriocidal when expressed. These attributes together make the TA family a potential alternative as a bacteriocide to address the multi-drug resistance of bacteria. Because of the relative large size of this family, a considerable amount of sequence divergence has been observed, but all known structures are very similar. Many of these toxin antitoxin proteins have been considered to be regulators instead of killers by Gerdes and Hayes, but all TA proteins found to date have some role in inhibiting one of the housekeeping functions of the cell, such as replication or translation. The potential regulatory function of these proteins has not been addressed and must be well understood before their use in medicine. We report the characterization and first scientific evidence for a unique non-toxic VapBC-like operon in Pyrococcus furiosus. The operon investigated here encodes one extra gene besides the TA proteins, a Glycohydrolase Superfamily 1 enzyme. The novel antitoxin protein, PF0355.1p, of this operon binds DNA as shown by DNaseI footprinting. The protein PF0355p that is annotated as the toxin, has no toxic function, but binds adenosine-diphosphate as demonstrated by ITC. PF0355p also protected the PF0355.1p from proteolysis and PF0355.1p inhibited PF0355p's ADP binding. We propose that this operon is proof that these chromosomal TA proteins regulate cellular functions other than death, which is the ultimate way of regulation. The structure of PF0355p was determined here using Single Wavelength Anomalous Scattering to 2.3Å. The structure of the protein contains eight α helices and five β sheets as seen in the previous VapC homolog structures solved. The carboxy terminal α helix is the main difference among those structures. The other notable differences are the divergent residues that make-up the predicted active sites. The structure of PF0355 allowed us to demonstrate why this protein lacks enzymatic function. The lack of killer activity demonstrated by PF0355 is also presented here based on the structure of PF0355 and the functional characterization of the proteins. The structure also gave insights as to what makes those plasmid maintenance-associated PIN domains killers. These data suggests that the hundreds of VapBC homologs found in microbes contain divergent functions that are not always killing. Index Words: Toxin antitoxin (TA), Post-Segregational Killing (PSK), VapBC-like operon in Pyrococcus furiosus, PIN domain, Single Wavelength Anomalous Scattering, "Not a toxin but a regulator:" Structure guided conclusions by


Abstract The paper reflects the dynamics of changes in standard of living in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania during the post-Soviet period. Background The more than twenty years that have passed since perestroika failed to lead to the expected positive shifts in economy in RNO-Alania. In ratings of regions by population living standards, the republic was consistently among the last places. Aim To show the discrepancy between the modern level of economic development and the standard of life in the RNO-Alania. Method The work uses comparative analysis of indicators of living standard and indicators reflecting the structural and dynamic characteristics of economic processes. Results Official statistics show growth in almost all socio-economic indicators in RNO-Alania. This apparent increase in living standards does not correspond to the low ranking of RNO-Alania, which is consistently in the bottom ten of the rating of Russian regions. The analysis of other indicators determining the population's quality of life, such as: the ecological condition of the territory, the developmental level of health and education institutions, life expectancy, and availability of transport, information and communication networks all correlated weakly with the real socio-economic situation in the region. The study of the republic's districts showed a high unemployment rate due to the lack of industrial and agricultural production, the underdevelopment of small and medium-sized businesses, and low wages. There is an outflow of working-age population to the city of Vladikavkaz and from the districts to outside the republic. Conclusions The deficit in the republic's budget persisted during the research period, despite the apparent growth in the gross product and revenue part of the budget, but the volume of expenditures is growing at a faster rate. The main reason for this is the sharp decline in industrial production, and the influence of loss-making enterprises that do not generate income in the budget. Living standards are rising only thanks to grants from the federal centre. Recommendation In order to remove the republic from its depressed state it is necessary to increase the fixed capital, to control the process of effective use of the available production capacities, and to invest in a recreational industry that uses natural resources and does not require significant investment.


Introduction: Scant data are available on the 30-day financial burden associated with incident complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs) in a cohort of predominately elderly patients. This study sought to examine total and cUTI-related 30-day Medicare spending (MS), a proxy for healthcare costs, among Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries who resided in the community with newly diagnosed cUTIs. Methods: A retrospective multicenter cohort study of adult beneficiaries in the Medicare FFS database with a cUTI between 2017 and 2018 was performed. Patients were included if they were enrolled in Medicare FFS and Medicare Part D from 2016 to 2019, had a cUTI first diagnosis in 2017–2018, no evidence of any UTI diagnoses in 2016, and residence in the community between 2016 and 2018. Results: During the study period, 723,324 cases occurred in Medicare beneficiaries who met the study criteria. Overall and cUTI-related 30-day MS were $7.6 and $4.5 billion, respectively. The average overall and cUTI-related 30-day MS per beneficiary were $10,527 and $6181, respectively. The major driver of cUTI-related 30-day MS was acute care hospitalizations ($3.2 billion) and the average overall and cUTI-related 30-day MS per hospitalizations were $16,431 and $15,438, respectively. Conclusion: Overall 30-day MS for Medicare FSS patients who resided in the community with incident cUTIs was substantial, with cUTI-related MS accounting for 59%. As the major driver of cUTI-related 30-day MS was acute care hospitalizations, healthcare systems should develop well-defined criteria for hospital admissions that aim to avert hospitalizations in clinically stable patients and expedite the transition of patients to the outpatient setting to complete their care.


The magnetic field and current density profiles of a steady-state tokamak are determined by assuming that the plasma relaxes to a state having the minimum rate of Ohmic dissipation. Since tokamaks do not operate with flux conservers, the constraints employed in the minimization are different from those used for RFPs or spheromaks. Energy and helicity conservation are imposed for given values of the applied electric and toroidal fields at the edge of the plasma.


234 Journal of Neurosciences in Rural Practice | April June 2013 | Vol 4 | Issue 2 Meningiomas are the commonest intracranial tumors to which systemic metastases occur.[2,3] In meningiomas, the meningothelial variety appears to be the commonest and to the best of our knowledge there are no reports of metastasis to a psammomatous meningioma.[3] Tumor to tumor metastasis are differentiated from collision tumors by Chamber's[4] but if stricter criteria of Campbell et al., are used the phenomenon appears to be exceedingly rare with less than 100 cases in reported literature and very few to intracranial tumors.[5] Several theories have been proposed to explain the proclivity of metastasis to meningiomas these include rich vascularity, slow growth rate of meningiomas, hormonal factors and low metabolic rate but the conclusive causes remain unknown.


A first-of-its-kind pacemaker that regulates heart rate without lead wires has received FDA approval. The Micra Transcatheter Pacing System is a self-contained, 1-inch-long device that is implanted directly into the heart's right ventricle (http://1.usa.gov/23iwftQ).

In a traditional single-chamber pacemaker implanted under the skin near the collarbone, lead wires run from the device through a vein directly into the right ventricle. The leads deliver electric pulses to help coordinate the timing of contractions in the ventricle. But leads sometimes malfunction or cause complications if an infection develops in surrounding tissue, requiring surgery to remove the device.


BACKGROUND It was previously demonstrated that CMC-20, a nitazoxanide and N-methyl-1H-benzimidazole hybrid molecule, had higher in vitro activity against Giardia intestinalis WB strain than metronidazole and albendazole and similar to nitazoxanide. OBJETIVES To evaluate the in vitro activity of CMC-20 against G. intestinalis strains with different susceptibility/resistance to albendazole and nitazoxanide and evaluate its effect on the distribution of parasite cytoskeletal proteins and its in vivo giardicidal activity. METHODS CMC-20 activity was tested against two isolates from patients with chronic and acute giardiasis, an experimentally induced albendazole resistant strain and a nitazoxanide resistant clinical isolate. CMC-20 effect on the distribution of parasite cytoskeletal proteins was analysed by indirect immunofluorescence and its activity was evaluated in a murine model of giardiasis. FINDINGS CMC-20 showed broad activity against susceptible and resistant strains to albendazole and nitaxozanide. It affected the parasite microtubule reservoir and triggered the parasite encystation. In this process, alpha-7.2 giardin co-localised with CWP-1 protein. CMC-20 reduced the infection time and cyst load in feces of G. muris infected mice similar to albendazole. MAIN CONCLUSIONS The in vitro and in vivo giardicidal activity of CMC-20 suggests its potential use in the treatment of giardiasis.


Single-crystal X-ray diffraction with synchrotron radiation enabled the structure of microcrystalline SSZ-23 (see drawing on the right), the first zeolite with channels bounded by seven- and nine-membered rings, to be solved.


Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity has been induced by tumor promoter 12- O -tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) in rat hepatoma cells cultured under various medium conditions and growth states. A single application of 1.6 µm TPA was capable of inducing the ODC activity in 5- or 7-day-old cells maintained in the presence or absence of serum during promoter treatment. In the 5-day-old cells, TPA-mediated maximal ODC activity occurred by 3 hr and rapidly declined to control levels by 5 hr. The magnitudes of ODC inductions under serum-containing and serum-free conditions were comparable; however, due to variation in control levels of ODC at 0 hr, the relative increases in ODC activity were about 10-fold and 33-fold for cultures with and without serum, respectively. In the 7-day-old cells, the maximal activity of ODC occurred at 4 to 5 hr following TPA treatment. TPA caused a 100-fold increase in ODC activity in the 7-day cultures with serum and a 256-fold increase in those without serum. The ODC activity was slightly higher at 4 hr in the cells cultured with serum and remained at a high level for an additional 2 hr compared with cells cultured for 24 hr in the absence of serum.

The effect of various concentrations of TPA upon the induction of ODC activity was dose dependent in the range of 1.6 × 10-8 m to 3.2 × 10-6 m. The 50% maximal increase in ODC activity was calculated to be 1.8 × 10-7 m and 4.3 × 10-7 m for cultures with and without serum, respectively. This suggests that the cells were more sensitive to TPA in the conditioned medium. Studies of TPA-stimulated ODC induction of cells at different growth states, i.e. , comparing log-phase cultures to confluent or stationary-phase cultures, indicated an increased responsiveness of cultures to TPA as the cultures reached 100% confluency. This increased responsiveness found in TPA-treated confluent cultures, however, did not occur when either dibutyryl cyclic adenosine 3′:5′-monophosphate or dexamethasone was used to induce ODC. In contrast, both agents appeared to be more effective in inducing ODC activity in the nonconfluent rapidly growing cultures.

The intracellular concentrations of the polyamines were elevated following TPA treatment in cultures throughout the growth states, i.e. , from Day 3 to Day 8. In accord with ODC induction, putrescine concentration accumulated significantly within 3 hr, reached a maximal level by 6 hr, and then declined gradually to the basal level by 12 hr. While significant increase in spermidine concentration occurred at 8 hr, no changes in spermine concentration brought about by TPA occurred in any cultures studied. Our data also showed an apparent discrepancy between TPA-mediated maximal ODC induction and putrescine accumulation in cultures at different growth states. The maximal level to which ODC activity increased following incubation of the H35 cell cultures in various states with TPA was inversely proportional to the increase in intracellular putrescine. These data reinforce the suggestion that intracellular putrescine may play an important regulatory role in modulating ODC activity.


In this paper, we present the design, simulation, and experimental verification of a dual-band free-standing metamaterial filter operating in a frequency range of 1 THz–30 THz. The proposed structure consists of periodically arranged composite air holes, and exhibits two broad and flat transmission bands. To clarify the effects of the structural parameters on both resonant transmission bands, three sets of experiments are performed. The first resonant transmission band shows a shift towards higher frequency when the side width w 1 of the main air hole is increased. In contrast, the second resonant transmission band displays a shift towards lower frequency when the side width w 2 of the sub-holes is increased, while the first resonant transmission band is unchanged. The measured results indicate that these resonant bands can be modulated individually by simply optimizing the relevant structural parameters (w 1 or w 2) for the required band. In addition, these resonant bands merge into a single resonant band with a bandwidth of 7.7 THz when w 1 and w 2 are optimized simultaneously. The structure proposed in this paper adopts different resonant mechanisms for transmission at different frequencies and thus offers a method to achieve a dual-band and low-loss filter.


BACKGROUND The circular RNA circ-PRKCI is an endogenous non-coding RNA that forms a covalently closed ring after reverse splicing, which plays a key role in the occurrence and development of multiple digestive system tumors. AIM To investigate the role and mechanism of circ-PRKCI in the occurrence and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS This study used real-time polymerase chain reaction to detect the expression of circ-PRKCI in tumor tissues, tumor adjacent tissues, and blood in patients with HCC and other digestive system tumor cells. A series of functional tests were performed to explore whether circ-PRKCI affects the growth of HCC cells and what is its mechanism in HCC. Meanwhile, fluorescence in situ hybridization was used to detect the subcellular localization of circ-PRKCI. Survival analysis was performed to predict the correlation between circ-PRKCI and the prognosis of HCC. Chi-square test and t-test were performed for statistical analyses. RESULTS The level of circ-PRKCI was significantly higher in HCC tissues than in tumor adjacent tissues, and in HCC cell lines than in cells lines of esophageal, liver, stomach, and colon cancers. A series of functional tests showed that circ-PRKCI substantially inhibited cell apoptosis and promoted cell invasion. It was found that circ-PRKCI can act as the sponge of miRNA-545 to reduce the expression of AKT3 protein. Moreover, the result of survival analysis showed that circ-PRKCI target gene E2F7 can reduce liver cancer patients' survival rate. And clinical data suggested that the distribution of circ-PRKCI rose with the depth of invasion, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and TNM stage, indicating that circ-PRKCI may affect the survival and prognosis of patients with HCC by regulating E2E7. CONCLUSION This study explores the role and mechanism of circ-PRKCI in HCC, which provides a new research direction and theoretical basis for the treatment of HCC.


Acetic acid (HOAc) was selected as a bio-oil model compound for the steam reforming of bio-oil for hydrogen production. The influence of temperature and steam-to-carbon ratio (S/C) on the steam reforming of HOAc over hydrogen-type Zeolite Socony Mobil-5 (HZSM-5) and the catalyst with added Pd (Pd/HZSM-5) have been investigated in a fixed-bed reactor. Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area measurements, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were performed to characterize the texture and structure of the catalysts. Upon addition of Pd to HZSM-5, the selectivity of the products was modified and the H2 yield was greatly increased. The hydrogen yield and potential hydrogen yield from the steam reforming of HOAc were as high as 60.2% and 87.5%, respectively, under optimized reaction conditions. Both the conversion of HOAc and the H2 yield over Pd/HZSM-5 were significantly enhanced with increasing S/C ratio and reaction temperature below 600 oC, whereas the H2 yield did not significantly increase at temperatures above 600 oC. The mechanism of HOAc decomposition on the Pd(111) surface was calculated via density functional theory. The optimal decomposition route was found to be CH3COOH* → CH3CO* → CH3* + CO*.


Background: Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are not frequently because of ignorance but are because of carelessness,
thoughtlessness, and overconfidence, and it can lead to permanent disability. Hence, it is very important to determine the
students' attitude and knowledge toward the road traffic regulation in Saudi Arabia.
Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of male students at the
Health Science College in Taif University, Taif, KSA, toward road traffic regulations.
Materials and Methods: This study was performed during the second semester of the academic year 2013 among the
students studying at the Health Science College for Boys in Taif University, Taif, KSA. A questionnaire of 18 different
questions was distributed to all available students and asked to respond under the direct supervision of the heads of the
four departments of the college. The questionnaire consisted of three main parts: the first was about the sociodemographic
and scientific data of the students; the second on the knowledge of road traffic regulations; and the third dealt with the
attitudes of driving and the use of seat belts.
Results: One hundred twenty students participated in this study. The mean age of the participants was 21 years; 30% lived
in cities, and 60% and 100% had cars and driving licenses, respectively. More than half of the students had been involved
in RTAs; 83.3% of these had been injured in these RTAs and 41.6% admitted to hospital for an average of 11 ± 1.3 days.
High speed was the main cause of their RTAs. The percentage of knowledge of road traffic regulation was moderate in
more than 90% of the students, while more than 85% of them believed in the importance of the use of seat belts.
Conclusion: This study revealed that many students had been involved in RTAs as a result of driving at high speed. Most
of the students had good attitude toward the use of seat belts.


MILADINOVA, K., K. IVANOVA, T. GEORGIEVA, M. GENEVA and Y. MARKOVSKA, 2013. The salinity effect on morphology and pigments content in three Paulownia clones grown ex vitro. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., Supplement 2, 19: 52–56 We evaluated the effect of salt stress on growth parameters, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoids content in Paulownia clones (P. elongata x fortunei x elongata – T2, P. elongata x elongata – T4, P. elongata x kawakarnii – EK) grew as hydroponic culture at three levels of salinity, 50 mmol.l –1 , 100 mmol.l –1 , 200 mmol.l –1 sodium chloride (NaCl) solution. The root and stem length, as well as leaf number and total leaf area of T2 clone were reduced insignifi cantly in comparison with these of T4 and EK clones during NaCl treatment. Control of T2 clone was characterized with approximately twice higher total dry mass per plant than EK and T4 clones. The root dry mass to shoot dry mass ratios of three clones changed in a different manner with increasing salinity levels and was highest in EK clone at 200 mmol.l –1 NaCl, followed by T4 and T2. The total leaf area showed the capability of a plant in forming of photosynthetic surface and was reduced more in T4 and EK clones under salt stress. Our results suggest that T2 clone was more tolerant to salt stress than EK and T4 clones.


Natural forests are disappearing in many tropical countries, resulting in loss of biodiversity and erosion of forest-dependent livelihoods. The maintenance and restoration of forests as well as a search for alternative natural resources that can concurrently improve the environment and enhance incomes of local communities has become crucial. Bamboo is suggested as a resource, which could substitute trees for socio-economic and ecological purposes in developing countries in the (sub)tropics. However, the relative importance of bamboos and trees for socio-economic and ecological purposes in bamboo-growing communities is not yet studied. Here, we present a study conducted to compare the socio-economic and ecological benefits of bamboo and trees from the perspectives of three bamboo-growing communities in the Wassa East District of Ghana. The compared benefits were ranked on a five-point Likert scale and significance of differences was tested at the 95% confidence level. For socio-economic benefits, trees were ranked significantly higher than bamboo for domestic energy, medicinal use and commercial harvesting; however, furniture, building and construction were not significantly different. For ecological benefits, bamboo was ranked significantly higher than trees for erosion control and riverbank protection. Trees, on the other hand, were ranked significantly higher than bamboo for biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration and oxygen generation. The results imply that transforming bamboo into suitable products to meet communities' energy needs could alleviate pressure on trees in natural forests.


The research work on alternate fuels has been the topic of wider interest in the context of depletion of fossil fuels and increasing of pollution levels of the engines with conventional fossil fuels. Alcohols and vegetable oils are considered to replace diesel fuels as they are renewable in nature. However, use of alcohols in internal combustion engines is limited in India, as these fuels are diverted to PetroChemical industries and hence much emphasis is given to the non-edible vegetable oils as alternate fuels in internal combustion engines. However, the drawbacks of low volatility and high viscosity associated with non-edible vegetable oils call for hot combustion chamber, provided by low heat rejection (LHR) diesel engine. Investigations are carried out on a LHR diesel engine with varied air gap thicknesses and injection pressures with jatropha oil based bio-diesel at normal temperature. Performance is improved with high degree of insulation with LHR engine with vegetable oil in comparison with conventional engine (CE) with pure diesel operation.


In attempts to reduce the cost of mental health treatment, health insurers are turning to mechanisms for intensive oversight that fall under the rubric of managed care. These approaches have implications for the potential liability of clinicians and managed care entities. Clinicians may be confronted with legal duties to appeal adverse decisions, to disclose the impact of managed care on patients' treatment, and in some circumstances, to continue treatment after payment has been denied. Managed care entities are being held to duties to conduct review in a reasonable fashion, and may also have a duty to disclose the limitations managed care may place on patients' access to treatment, and to select appropriate providers of care. The law in this area is in an early stage of development and is likely to be refined.


We consider a nonlinear Dirichlet elliptic equation driven by a nonhomogeneous differential operator and with a Caratheodory reaction , whose primitive is -superlinear near , but need not satisfy the usual in such cases, the Ambrosetti-Rabinowitz condition. Using a combination of variational methods with the Morse theory (critical groups), we show that the problem has at least three nontrivial smooth solutions. Our result unifies the study of "superlinear" equations monitored by some differential operators of interest like the -Laplacian, the -Laplacian, and the -generalized mean curvature operator.


In mammalian cells the pH gradient between the organelles, cytoplasm and extracellular space is strictly regulated. Maintenance of pH homeostasis is crucial for the normal function of the cell and its organelles. In solid tumours, cells often suffer from hypoxia, deprivation of nutrients and acidic extracellular milieu as a result of inadequate vascularisation. Cancer cells are also known to suffer from other pH abnormalities. Defective acidification of intracellular organelles as well as a reversed pH gradient across the plasma membrane have been detected in numerous tumour tissues and cells. Aberrant secretion of lysosomal hydrolases, loss of cell polarity and increased expression of tumour-specific proteins are common phenotypic changes of cancer cells. In this study, secretion of cathepsin D, a lysosomal aspartic hydrolase, was shown to result from the acidification defect of cancer cells. In normal cells cathepsin D is sorted in the Golgi complex by mannose-6phosphate receptors and transported via endosomes to lysosomes. In breast and colorectal cancer cells having abnormally neutral endosomes receptors were shown to accumulate in endosomes resulting in the aberrant secretion of newly synthesised cathepsin D from the cells. Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is an oncofetal protein widely used as a tumour follow-up marker. It is normally expressed at low levels and is localised at the apical surface of epithelial cells via a glycosyl phosphatidyl inositol (GPI) anchor. In cancer cells the expression of CEA is increased and the protein is found over the entire surface of cells. In this study, the tumour microenvironmental factors, hypoxia and abnormal pH homeostasis, were shown to increase the expression of carcinoembryonic antigen in cancer cells. In addition, the absence of acidic organelles was shown to induce mistargeting of CEA to the basolateral membrane in polarised cells. The abnormally neutral Golgi was found to interfere with the complex formation of carcinoembryonic antigen, a phenomenon recently associated with the apical sorting of other GPIanchored proteins. Altogether these results emphasise the role of tumour-related factors – altered pH homeostasis and hypoxia – in the phenotypic changes of cancer cells.


Polycrystalline pyrite, deformed in triaxial compression tests at a confining pressure of 300 MPa, strain rates of 10 (super -4) sec (super -1) to 10 (super -5) sec (super -1) , and temperatures above about 450 degrees C, shortens by dislocation flow mechanisms. Above 500 degrees C dynamic recovery and recrystallization are important, and steady state flow is attained after 10 to 20 percent shortening. The dynamically recrystallized grain size (d) (in mu m) is related to the flow stress (Sigma ) by the relationSigma / G = k (d/b) (super -0.9) ,where k = 16.2, G = 7.8 X 10 4 MPa, and b = 5.42 X 10 (super -4) mu m. Below about 450 degrees C polycrystalline pyrite deforms by brittle mechanisms after less than a few percent strain by dislocation flow.The strength of polycrystalline pyrite decreases significantly with increasing temperature and decreasing strain rate. Over the temperature interval 500 degrees to 700 degrees C, at strain rates of 2 X 10 (super -5) sec (super -1) , the steady state flow stress drops from about 500 to 70 MPa.Pyrite single crystals shortened in the and orientations at 600 degrees C, about 10 (super -5) sec (super -1) , and 300 MPa confining pressure exhibit three-stage work-hardening behavior in which the stage 2 work-hardening rates are nearly as high as the elastic modulus. For shortening the yield stress (280 MPa) and the differential stress at the commencement of stage 3 (800 MPa) are several times larger than for shortening. The strength during shortening is comparable to that of the polycrystalline pyrite tested.The single crystal strength data, structural considerations, and transmission electron microscopy suggest that {100} and possibly {100} are major slip systems. The {110} dislocation glide may also be important but has a critical resolved shear stress several times higher than {100} glide.The present data indicate that pyrite can be considerably weaker and more ductile than indicated by previous studies, and that pyrite is likely to be deformed by dislocation flow mechanisms under a range of geologically realistic conditions.


The review covers the reactivity of enamines and ynamines of vinylacetylene series in electrophilic and nucleophilic addition with participation of mono- and bi-functionalised reagents. Amines of this type are synthons for preparing five-, six-, seven- and eight-membered rings with two heteroatoms as well as condensed ring systems. The effect of the structure of the acetylenic compound on the mode of interaction has been analysed. Special features of the intra- and inter-molecular pathways of the reaction were discussed. Peculiarities of cycloaddition of all three types of amines with the participation of polar aprotic systems containing multiple bonds as well as 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition are noted. The bibliography contains 108 references.


particular, we believe that a software system must be capable of deThe Infrastructure of modern society is controlled by software systecting its own malfunction and it must be capable of repairing itself. tems that are vulnerable to attack. Successful attacks on these sysBut this means that it must first be able to diagnose the form of the tems can lead to catastrophic results; the survivability of such inforfailure; in particular, it must both localize and characterize the breakmation systems in the face of attacks is therefore an area of extreme down. importance to society. This paper presents model-based techniques Our work is set in the difficult context in which there is a confor the diagnosis of potentially compromised software systems; these certed and coordinated attack by a determined adversary. This contechniques can be used to aid the self-diagnosis and recovery from text places an extra burden on the diagnostic component. It is no failure of critical software systems. It introduces Information Survivlonger adequate merely to determine which component of a comability as a new domain of application for model-baesed diagnosis putation has failed to achieve its goal, in addition we wish to deand it presents new modeling and reasoning techniques relevant to termine whether that failure is indicative of a compromise to the the domain. In particular: 1) We develop techniques for the diagunderlying infrastructure and whether that compromise is likely to nosis of compromised software systems (previous work on modellead to failures of other computations at other times. Furthermore, base diagnosis has been primarily cconcemed with physical compowe wish to determine what kind of attack compromised the resource nents); 2) We develop methods for dealing with model-based diagnoand whether this attack is likely to have compromised other resources sis as a mixture of symbolic and Bayesian inference; 3) We develop that share a vulnerability. This paper focuses on the diagnostic comtechniques for dealing with common-mode failures; 4) We develop ponent of self adaptive survivable systems. unified representational techniques for reasoning about information attacks, the vulnerabilities and compromises of computational re2 Contributions of this Work sources, and the observed behavior of computations; 5) We highlght additional information that should be part of the goal of model-based We build on previous work in Model-Based diagnosis [2, 3, 4, 5, 8]. diagnosis. However, the context of our research is significantly different from that of the prior research, leading us to confront several important 1 Background and Motivation issues that have not previously been addressed. In particular, we present several new advances in representation and reasoning techThe infrastructure of modern society is controlled by computational niques for model-based diagnosis: systems that are vulnerabile to information attacks. The system and application software of these systems possess vulnerabilities that en1. We develop representation and reasoning techniques for describable attacks capable of compromising the resources used by the softing and reasoning about the behaviors and failures of software sysware systems. A skillful attack could lead to consequences as dire as tens (most previous work has focussed on hardware, particularly those of modern warfare. In every exercise conducted by the governdigital hardware). ment so far, the attacking team has managed to completely the target 2. We develop mixed symbolic and Bayesian reasoning technique systems with little difficulty. There is a dire need for new approaches for model-based diagnosis. The statistical component of the techto protect the computational infrastructure from such attacks and to nique utilizes Bayesian networks to calculate accurate posterior enable it to continue functioning even when attacks have been sucprobabilities. cessfully launched. 3. We develop a unified framework for reasoning about the failures Our presmise is that to protect the infrastructure we need to reof the computations, about how these failures are related to comstructure these software systems as Adaptive Survivable Systems. In promises of the underlying resources, about the vulnerabilities of This article describe research conducted at the Artificial Intelligence Labthese resources and how these vulnerabilities enable attacks. oratory of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Support for this re4. We develop techniques for reasoning about common-mode failsearch was provided by the Information Systems Office of the Defense Adures. A common-mode failure occurs when the probabilites of the vanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under Space and Naval Warfailure modes of two or more components are not independent. fare Systems Center San Diego Contract Number N66001-00-C-8078. The views presented are those of the author alone and do not represent This issue has not been substantially addressed in the previous litthe view of DARPA or SPAWAR. erature on model-based diagnosis. 5. We develop diagnostic techniques that lead to an estimate of the The completeness of the diagnostic process is dependent on having trustability of the computational resources that are used in a spebi-directional simulation models for each component of the system. cific computation. These techniques also help us to assess which Such models produce both a set of assertions recording what values attacks have occurred and the likelihood that specific attacks have are expected and a dependency network linking these assertions to been successful. one another and to assertions stating which components must be in a particular behavioral mode for those values to appear. These are crucial issues when failure is caused by a concerted and Our work builds on the framework in Sherlock [4] and on the probcoordinated attack by a malicious opponent. There are many modes abilistic techniques in [8]. In Sherlock the description of a component of attacking computational systems but the most pernicious attackincludes multiple simulation models, one for each behavioral mode ers seek to avoid detection; therefore they attempt to scaffold the atof the component. One distinguished mode is the normal mode, but tack slowly, at a nearly undetectable rate. These scaffolding actions behavioral models for known failure modes may also be provided. It will typically appear as minor misbehaviors (i.e. they will cause the is also typical to include a null model to account for unknown modes system to behave somewhat outside its normal range), but skillful of behavior. Finally, each of the behavioral modes of a component is attackers will space out the attacks so that the misbehaviors are inassigned an a priori probability. Sherlock uses these to guide a best frequent and they will attempt to make the resulting misbehaviors first search for a set of behavioral modes, one for each component, seem as close to normal behavior as possible. This makes it crucial such that the models for those modes predict the observed behavior. that our diagnostic techniques be capable of extracting information This is the most likely diagnosis. However, these techniques i defrom low-frequency events that closely resemble normal modes of pend on the assumption that the failure modes of the components are operation. independent; as we will see this assumption doesn't hold in our enviAttackers aim at high leverage points of the infrastructure, such ronment. Later work [8] introduced techniques for applying Bayesian as operating systems or middleware. This leads to common-mode networks in the context of model-based diagnosis, allowing depenfaults, because once the operating system has been compromised all dencies to be modeled; [10] presents techniques within this frameapplication components can be caused to fail simultaneously. work for generating several likely diagnoses in order of decreasing The paper first briefly reviews the current state of the art in modellikelihood. based diagnosis; this work has mainly been concerned with breakBecause our focus is on detecting the intentional compromise of downs caused by the deterioration of hardware components. In parsoftware components we are forced to face a number of new issues. ticular, we adopt the framework in [4] where each component has These include: How to model software components in the spirit of models for each of several behavioral modes and each model is given model-based diagnosis; How to deal with the fact that a compromise a probability. We will then turn to the question of how to extend these to the computational infrastructure (e.g. the operating system) can techniques so as to apply them to the diagnosis of software systems. manifest itself in the malfunction of many application components; We extend our modeling framework to account for the fact that softHow to deal with the fact that compromised components may behave ware systems are built in layers of infrastructure, with compromises in ways that are difficult to distinquish from normal behavior; How to one layer affecting all higher levels. A software system has a great to reason about the system so as to extract as much information about deal of hidden state; what we are actually capable of observing is the possible compromises as we can. In particular, we deal with how to behavior of a specific computation; but this particular computation use both symbolic and Bayesian techniques. uses a variety of resources (e.g. the operating system and middleware, data-sets, etc.). These resources may have been subject to a variety of compromises, each of which might lead to a different mis4 Modeling Software Computations behavior of the computation. Compromises to the resources occur Model-Based Diagnosis requires completely invertible models of the because the resources possess vulnerabilities that allow specific atcomponents in order to guarantee completeness of its analysis. Bu


Mortality rates (MRs) per 100 000 for ischaemic heart disease (IHD) of White males and females in the RSA in the age group 15-64 years decreased substantially in 1980 compared with 1970, the male rates decreasing from 256,1/100 000 to 200,3/100 000 (-22%) and the female rates decreasing from 79,3/100 000 to 56,6/100 000 (-29%). In this period, the White male population increased from 1,20 to 1,48 million and the White female population from 1,18 to 1,45 million, but the number of deaths from IHD fell from 3 064 to 2 720 in males and from 936 to 756 in females. For the year 1980 MRs for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and IHD in White males and females of the RSA were compared with the MRs of males and females in the USA, Australia, England and Wales, and Scotland. The MRs for both AMI and IHD of males in the USA and Australia fell well below the figure for England and Wales, which contrasted markedly with the situation in 1970. The MRs for AMI and IHD of males in Scotland and the RSA were similar and were much higher than the MRs of males in the other countries. The MRs for AMI and IHD of females in the USA, Australia, and England and Wales were similar and well below the MRs of females in Scotland and the RSA, the MRs of females in Scotland being higher than the MRs of females in all the countries studied.


Objective To evaluate auditory dysfunction in workers exposed to low doses of solvent mixtures. Methods 77 workers exposed to solvents as well as a control group of 84 non-exposed individuals were studied. Fourteen solvents were measured, including toluene, xylene, and n-hexane. Pure tone audiometries were performed at 125 Hz to 8 KHz, as well as brainstem evoked response. Results In the exposed group, subjects' hearing decreased in the measured frequencies, in both ears. Robust multiple linear regression models for frequency means between 125 Hz and 8 KHz, for the left ear R2 = 33.3%, exposed β = 4.1 (p<0.001) and for the right ear R2 = 38%, exposed β = 4.8 (p<0.001), adjusted by age, chronic pathologies and environmental noise exposure. There was major latency in waves III and V and in intervals I-V and I-III (p<0.05), in both ears, adjusted for age and chronic pathologies. Conclusions It is likely that low exposures to solvent mixtures affect hearing and their central pathways. It is important to elucidate whether this affection could indicate incipient ototoxicity and neurotoxicity.


This work explores the traditional method of measuring stress2field of deforming plate , and points out the shortage of the old method. And it gives a method based on Digital Image Analysis to measure the stress2field of deforming plate. The principle of the method is given. It also gives the improvement of the new method. And finally it not only shows the future of the method , but points how to improve the method. n l0 (1) 或是工程应变 :


In order to investigate the taxonomic value of a number of characters in the elucidation of relationships within the collective genus Polygonum L., and segregate genera Atraphaxis L., Calligonum L., Pteropyrum Jaub. & Spach., Oxygonum Burch., Fagopyrum Mill., Harpagocarpus Hutch. & Dandy and Polygonella Michx., 83 species of the tribe Polygoneae emend. Jaretzky were studied. The following floral characters were examined: stamen number, insertion and external morphology; structure and morphology of the floral nectaries; vasculature and surface morphology of the tepals.

Problems in floral morphology in Polygonaceae are discussed, together with relationships within the Family. The tribal division proposed by Haraldson (1978) is supported, but a new and different delimitation of genera is proposed. The present data support a division of Polygonum L. sensu lato and its related taxa into two tribes: Polygoneae (containing Polygonum L. sensu stricto, Fallopia Adans., Oxygonum Burch., Pteropyrum Jaub. & Sparh., Atraphaxis L. and Calligonum L.), and Persicarieae (containing Fagopyrum Mill., Harpagocarpus Hutch. & Dandy, Persicaria Mill. and Koenigia L.). The genus Reynoutria Houtt. is included as a section of Fallopia Adans.; Bislorta Mill., Aconogonon Reichenb. and Tovara Adans. are included within Persicaria Mill.

A number of new combinations are proposed in Persicaria and Fallopia.


Islamic Bank is a bank that applies Islamic principles in running the business. Until 2015, there were 12 Islamic Bank in Indonesia; one of them already listed on the stock market. The purpose of this study was to analyze differences in the bank's soundness was assessed using a bank's risk profile, good corporate governance, income, and capital (RGEC) between listed Islamic Banks and the unlisted ones. Using the data period 2011-2015 used the independent t-test to test for differences. Statistical tests showed that there is no significant difference in credit risk as measured by NPF and Earning as measured by BOPO that represent cost efficiency between the two groups of companies. Listed Islamic banks have lower credit risk and greater efficiency than the unlisted ones DOI: 10.15408/aiq.v9i1.4011


The purpose of this paper is to theoretically and empirically explore how organizations can enable radical product innovations to cumulate as stable designs. Radical product innovations are organizational responses to external triggers that cause transitions. To manage in transitions, it is necessary for radical product innovations to cumulate as stable designs. Organizations ability to co-evolve with the environment does influence innovations to cumulate as stable designs; to examine this, the author selected public procurement that uses IT as radical product innovation with pronounced environmental influence, government's interventionist approach. The author used multiple case-study and obtained diverse analytic and heuristic views. From the cases, the author noted that actors did consider local and contingent factors only that resulted in certain radical innovations cumulating as stable designs. As an initial starting point, such actions are appropriate but organizational actions to expand their initial actions with a co-evolutionary framework that considers social contexts.


Globalization has increased economic competition within and between countries and the world's regions. Economic competitiveness is commonly seen as a valid index for judging a country's level of economic prosperity. Many recent large-scale education reforms have been justified by the urgent need to increase labor productivity and promote economic development and growth through expanded and improved education. It is generally assumed that to increase economic competitiveness, citizens must acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for civic success and the knowledge-based economy. This article argues that what schools are expected to do in order to promote economic competitiveness often contradicts commonly accepted global education reform thinking. Experience in many countries indicates that increased standardization of teaching and learning, for example, may be counterproductive to the expectations of enhanced economic competitiveness. The conclusion is that rather than competition between education systems, schools and students, what is needed is networking, deeper co-operation and open sharing of ideas at all levels if the role of education in economic competitiveness is to be strengthened. The key features of education reform policies that are compatible with competitiveness are those that encourage flexibility in education systems, creativity in schools and risk-taking without fear on the part of individuals.


Canadian community colleges operate within a trying market environment. They compete against a diversified group of post-secondary institutions, ranging from small and relatively unknown for-profit vocational colleges to larger and more prestigious public universities. To date, there has been no effort to empirically examine how Canadian community colleges market their services within this contemporary environment. This study provides a first empirical look at how Canadian community colleges render themselves appealing through promotional materials. Using novel web-scraping techniques and a combination of quantitative and qualitative content analysis procedures, it finds that this institutional type primarily showcases their: (1) linkages to their local community, and (2) modern physical facilities to convey an attractive organizational image. Canadian community colleges are also found to (3) rely primarily on unconventional organizational symbols.


First published in the proceedings of the EBRF 2007 conference "Research Forum to
Understand Business in Knowledge Society", September 25-27, Jyvaskyla, Finland


Three cationic complexes containing the [Re((V))O](3+) core (general formula [ReO(dien-H)(aa)](+), dien=diethylenetriamine, aa=glycine, alanine, valine) were studied on polycrystalline Au electrodes employing cyclic voltammetry techniques. The electrochemical behavior of the amino acids (aa) was also evaluated. Experiments were performed at pH 7.0 aqueous solutions at room temperature. The voltammogram of the complex showed current contributions related to the [Re((VI))O](4+)/[Re((V))O](3+) redox couple, the counterion, and the amino acid ligand.


AIM
To give a panorama of the selectivity and agreement of French university hospitals' drug formularies (HDF) for nine competitive classes.

METHODS
All university hospitals were asked to send their HDF and selection criteria as of January 2009 for nine competitive pharmacological classes (proton pump inhibitors, serotonin antagonists, low molecular weight heparins, erythropoietins, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor antagonists, statins, α-adrenoreceptor antagonists and selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors). Selectivity of HDF was estimated by the percentage of drug entities selected by the hospital within the pharmacological class. Agreement between hospitals was assessed with modified kappa coefficients for multi-raters.

RESULTS
Twenty-one out of the 29 hospitals agreed to participate. These hospitals selected between 34% and 63% of the drug entities available for the nine classes, which represented 18 to 35 agents. Regarding the nature of chosen drug entities, the overall level of agreement was 'fair' and varied with pharmacological classes. Selection criteria were sent by only 12 hospitals. The technical component was the most important element in all hospitals. The weight of the economic component varied between 20% and 40% in the tender's grade.

DISCUSSION
Large variations were seen in the number and nature of drugs selected by university hospitals which can be attributable to two successive decision-making processes (evaluation by the Drug and Therapeutics Committee followed by the purchasing process).


An 86-year-old male underwent pancreatoduodenectomy with resection and reconstruction of portal vein for pancreatic cancer. He was admitted to our hospital because of severe anemia and dyspnea ten months later. Computed tomography showed varices at the biliary-enteric anastomosis in the elevated jejunum caused by portal venous stenosis, which was suspected as the cause of anemia. Therefore, the patient underwent balloon dilatation of the portal vein followed by stent placement and coil embolization of the collaterals using a transileocolic portal vein approach. After the procedure, portal venous flow was improved, and the collaterals disappeared. The patient has been asymptomatic with no recurrence for three years and four months.


Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a double stranded DNA virus of the family Herpesviridae. EBV is associated with a variety of lymphomas, and the mechanisms by which it promotes lymphomagenesis have been elucidated; this includes, for example, by translocation/activation of Myc in Burkitt lymphoma. However, the mechanisms by which it induces lymphoid tumors other than Burkitt lymphoma are unclear. Recently, we reported that the genome of EBV present in EBV-associated lymphomas harbors frequent intragenic deletions and that the deletion of a gene essential for virus replication promotes lymphomagenesis in a mouse model. Although intragenic deletions have been detected in other tumor viruses, little is known about the effects and importance of those of EBV, a large DNA virus whose genome encodes more than 70 genes. In this review, we summarize the role of EBV in lymphomagenesis with a focus on the impact of intragenic deletions.


We develop an iterative code-division multiple-access (CDMA) receiver for multipath block-fading channels in the uplink. The mean-square error (MSE) of the channel estimates is reduced iteratively by using soft data estimates as additional pilots. The multiuser detector performs parallel interference cancellation (PIC) with subsequent linear filtering. We consider a single-user matched filter (SUMF) and develop a low-complexity linear minimum MSE (LMMSE) filter for intersymbol interference (ISI) channels that allows for 33% more users than the SUMF. We investigate two choices of training sequences for initial channel estimation. The first is a random pilot symbol sequence modulated by a short spreading sequence (RAND), and the second is a perfect root of unity sequence (PRUS) used as long sounding chip sequence. We observe that the RAND scheme approaches the single-user bound up to 2 dB and in case of PRUS up to 1 dB at a target bit error rate (BER) of 10-3. Further, several channel estimators are developed that use various combinations of soft decision symbols and statistical a priori knowledge about the channel. These are the approximated least-squares (ALS), approximated linear MMSE (ALMMSE), and linear MMSE (LMMSE) estimators. The iterative estimators show an improvement of 2.5 and 5 dB with PRUS and RAND pilots, respectively, over estimators that do not exploit soft feedback symbols at a BER of 10 -3. The ALS is sacrificing less than 0.6 dB to obtain a BER of 10-3 in a system at load 1.5 when compared with the ALMMSE and LMMSE schemes. The load is understood as the ratio of the number of users to the spreading factor. This paper shows that significant improvements in system capacity can be achieved in multipath scenarios with low-complexity choices of multiuser detectors and channel estimators


Background: Visfatin is a newly characterized adipokines which is highly expressed in visceral adipose tissue and may play a role in insulin resistance. The aim of this study was assessing the effect of 12 weeks aerobic exercise on Visfatin level and insulin resistance in obese women. Methods : This study was a semi-experimental research. Twenty obese volunteer women (age 37±9.89 yr, body mass index 35.8±3.67 kg/m 2 , fat percentage 43.98±4.02% and waist-hip ratio 1.03±0.05(means ±SD) were randomly divided into two equal groups (each with 10 individuals), experimental and control. Aerobic training program was included three sessions per week in 12 weeks that was performed with treadmill (starting with 60-65%, heart rate max/15-20 min, final with 80-85%, heart rate max/ 45-50 min). Body composition, glucose, insulin and Visfatin levels were measured in two groups before and after intervention. Insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) was measured by the calculation of relevant equation. For inter group comparison, paired t-test and between group comparison independent-t test was used (significance level p<0.05). Results: The obtained result showed that after 12 weeks, no significant differences in fat percentage, WHR, glucose, insulin, and Visfatin levels and insulin resistance index among the two groups were detected. Significant decrease in body composition including weight, and BMI was observed in case group (p<0.05). Conclusions: O ne can conclude that the 12-week aerobic exercise cannot reduce the levels of visfatin, but can reduce the BMI.


The calycophoran siphonophore Muggiaea atlantica was recorded for the first time in the marine lakes of Mljet Island (South Adriatic) in 2001. The presence of M. atlantica in such semi-enclosed environments provided a unique opportunity to describe its life cycle based on in situ observations of the annual variability of its asexual nectophore stage, sexual eudoxid stage (produces gonophores) and calyconula larvae. Muggiaea atlantica was present the whole year in the Malo jezero (Small Lake, SL), where it was actively reproducing between May and September 2001, with a maximum density of gonophores in May (141 gonophores m 3 ) and nectophores and larvae in June (37 nectophores m 3 and 80 larvae m 3 ). Higher temperatures below the thermocline (average 14.5–15.6 °C), and the availability of prey (e.g. small copepods, chaetognaths and bivalve larvae) were the main environmental factors related to successful reproduction of M. atlantica in SL. In the Veliko jezero (Great Lake, GL) nectophores and gonophores of M. atlantica were found in low numbers, mainly in the upper 20 m, between September and November 2001 and no larvae were recorded. In 2001, Muggiaea kochi, the sole calycophoran siphonophore previously reported in the GL, was not recorded in the Mljet lakes. We hypothesize that the cold (<13 °C) conditions over winter of 2000/2001 were not suitable for the warm-temperate M. kochi and may have favoured its coldtemperate congener, M. atlantica, which has progressively colonized the southern Adriatic since the mid-1990s.


Surgery for the relief of seizures is a well-known technique since the early 1930s; however, only approximately 250 procedures are done for the relief of epilepsy each year. Various techniques have been developed which include hemispherectomy, stereotactic ablations, corticectomy and lobectomy, most often of the temporal lobe and a section of the corpus callosum. Recent advances have been in the development of techniques to isolate the seizure focus and thereby enhance its definition for surgery. The authors present their format for this, and show examples of subdural electrodes in place. An analysis of the data is included.


Milk and Minas frescal cheese were evaluated from crossbred Holstein × Gir cows that were fed diets enriched with 0, 33, 66 and 100% inclusion levels of palm kernel cake in a concentrated supplement in replace of soybean meal. Eight crossbred lactating cows were distributed (four animals × four treatments × four periods) in the experimental design of double 4 × 4 Latin squares. The capric (C : 10, P = 0·0270), undecylic (C : 11, P = 0·0134), and lauric (C : 12, P = 0·0342) saturated fatty acid concentrations and CLA (C18 : 2c9t11, P = 0·0164) of the milk fat decreased linearly with an increasing percentage of peanut cake in the diet. The increased peanut cake content (100%) in the diet was associated with a linear decrease in C : 10 (P = 0·0447), C : 12 (P = 0·0002), mirystic (C : 14, P < 0·0001) and palmitic (C : 16, P < 0·0001) saturated fatty acid concentrations and an increase in arachidic, lignoceric, palmitoleic and elaidic acid levels in the Minas frescal cheese fat made from the milk. Both the milk and the Minas frescal cheese showed a linear decrease in the concentration of monosaturated fatty acids (P < 0·0001), atherogenicity index, and thrombogenicity index (P < 0·05), while the hypocholesterolaemic: hypercholesterolaemic and omega 6: omega 3 (P > 0·05) ratios were not influenced by the different peanut cake levels. The inclusion of up to 100% peanut cake as a substitution for soybean meal in the concentrate of grazing lactating cows resulted in changes in the nutritional quality of their milk products, as indicated by the increase in polyunsaturated fatty acids and the decrease of saturated fatty acids (lauric, myristic, and palmitic).


Activity recognition with wearable sensors could motivate people to perform a variety of different sports and other physical exercises. We have earlier developed algorithms for offline analysis of activity data collected with wearable sensors. In this paper, we present our current progress in advancing the platform for the existing algorithms to an online version, onto a PDA. Acceleration data are obtained from wireless motion bands which send the 3D raw acceleration signals via a Bluetooth link to the PDA which then performs the data collection, feature extraction and activity classification. As a proof-of-concept, the online activity system was tested with three subjects. All of them performed at least 5 minutes of each of the following activities: lying, sitting, standing, walking, running and cycling with an exercise bike. The average second-by-second classification accuracies for the subjects were 99%, 97%, and 82 %. These results suggest that earlier developed offline analysis methods for the acceleration data obtained from wearable sensors can be successfully implemented in an online activity recognition application.


Ordered intermetallic alloys, such as iron aluminides, are a unique class of metallic materials which form long- range-ordered crystal structures below their melting points (Tm) or critical order ing temperatures (Tc). Iron aluminides, which are brittle at room temperature, have been ductilized at Oak Ridge National Laboratory using physical metal lurgy principles. A key issue in the devel opment of these alloys for engineering applications is weldability. An investigation was carried out to determine the weldability of a class of binary and higher order iron aluminides. Thin sheets of iron aluminides were gas tungsten arc and electron beam welded at different travel speeds and power levels. The results indicate that the weld ability of these alloys is very sensitive to the welding conditions, producing good welds sometimes and severely cracked welds at other times. Alloys containing TiE>2 additions for improved strength and ductility cracked severely upon welding. The results of the hot ductility tests show that the modified iron aluminide alloys are very ductile at elevated temperatures and show no evidence of heat-affected zone (HAZ) cracking.


Abstract This case describes a young man with severe haemophilia B who uses the "avoiding" mode of behaviour, leading to isolation and reduced ambulation. Health care providers promoting health change behaviour were able to empower the patient to direct his care toward his desired outcomes. As his self-awareness increases, he begins to use another mode of behaviour: compromising. Thomas- Kilmann's conflict management framework is a novel approach to bringing two sides together in a working partnership. This challenging case shows the balance between a patient's self-care and symbiotic interaction with HCPs to achieve successful health outcomes.


Corticosteroids are anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant drugs. Topical corticosteroids formulations (ointments, creams, gels) are used in the treatment of different types of dermatitis and urticaria. Considering their therapeutic and whitening effects, they are frequently used for counterfeiting of cosmetic products. Corticosteroids can cause different local and systemic side effects. HPLC method is often chosen for their analysis, because it is selective, sensitive, precise, simple and fast.
 The aim of this study was optimization and validation of RP-HPLC method with UV detection for determination of trace levels of corticosteroids in ambiphilic creams. This method is used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of evaluated corticosteroids.
 Mometasone furoate, hydrocortisone acetate, fluocinonide, fluocinolone acetonide, betamethasone, betamethasone dipropionate and triamcinolone acetonide were evaluated. Separation was performed on Inertsil® ODS-3V 250 × 4.6 mm, 5 μm chromatographic column. Mobile phase was mixture of acetonitrile and water 50:50 (v/v) with gradient elution and flow rate 1 mL min−1. Column temperature was held on 40 °C and UV detection was performed at 240 nm.
 Selectivity, linearity, accuracy, precision and limit of quantification (LOQ) were evaluated. Method is selective because ambiphilic cream base peaks and corticosteroids peaks were not overlapping. Linearity was confirmed since correlation coefficient was 1 for all compounds. Accuracy and precision were evaluated for hydrocortisone acetate and betamethasone dipropionate. Determined Recovery values were in range of 70–130%. Both RSD values (21.46% and 9.59%) were lower than 30%. Method is highly sensitive since LOQ concentrations were in ng mL−1 range.
 All evaluated parameters of validation were in accordance with regulatory requirements. Validated RP-HPLC method can be used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of selected corticosteroids in ambiphilic creams.


: This exploratory and experimental research aims to describe randomness expressed in 5 to 6-year-old children's drawings. This study considers a six-day activity developed in 5 Chilean kindergartens, with a total of 142 participants. The activity on the mosquito's flight considered the corporal movements to generate the idea of randomness in children. The children drew the mosquito flight and described the flight. We qualitatively analyzed and categorized the children's drawings and verbal descriptions, dividing them into static or dynamic representations. A second grouping was established in the dynamic drawings: in one direction and random. The third division considers only random drawings: (1) uncertain walk, (2) possible walk, and (3) casual walk. The results show that children in this stage of development can express in their drawings some of the three basic notions of randomness. The children expressed randomness through random stops, circular paths, and arrows to mark positions or make decision possibilities of the mosquito.


Using numerical simulations, we analyze the time evolution of the pitch-angle distribution of 500 MeV and 1 GeV solar protons, released impulsively near the Sun, at 1 au. The numerical model solves the equations of motion of an ensemble of particles that move in both the average Parker spiral field and a large-scale turbulent interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). Our model also includes the heliospheric current sheet (HCS). The focus of this study is to determine the effect of the large-scale turbulent IMF on the pitch-angle distribution of GV-rigidity protons and its time variations in terms of understanding variations in ground-level enhancement (GLE) events. Our particular interest is to explain the two distinct opposite-directed fluxes of the unusual event on 1989 October 22 (GLE#44). The results show that by adding the large-scale turbulence to the average Parker IMF, the pitch-angle distribution at 1 au depends strongly on the observer's location relative to the release location of the particles at the Sun. Even a 0.2° displacement in latitude or longitude leads to a significant change in the observed distribution and/or its variation in time. We find that there are some observer locations for which the distinct sunward and antisunward fluxes coexist at certain times of the events. We also find that the HCS has an important effect. For instance, even in locations of poor magnetic connection with the release location at the Sun, but near the HCS, there can be two fluxes moving in different directions at the same time.


In semiarid southern Alberta where irrigation accounts for the majority of water consumed, improved effi ciency in this sector has been advocated as a means to reduce water use and increase availability to new users, including in-stream users. This chapter evaluates the importance of improved irrigation technologies and management practices in improving water use effi ciency and assessing whether subsidizing the improved technology is likely to reduce water use and promote more sustainable irrigation. The results fi nd that water savings do not necessarily translate into water conservation as the saved water can be used to intensify irrigation, resulting in reduced return river fl ows. However, subsidy programs linked to reduced irrigated areas, and thereby water conservation, might work in southern Alberta since the main driver of adoption is cost saving, quality improvement or increased yield while very little importance is placed on increasing the irrigated area.


We introduce a stochastic price model where, together with a random component , a moving average of logarithmic prices contributes to the price formation. Our model is tested against financial datasets, showing an extremely good agreement with them. It suggests how to construct trading strategies which imply a capital growth rate larger than the growth rate of the underlying asset, with also the effect of reducing the fluctuations. These results are a clear evidence that some hidden information is not fully integrated in price dynamics, and therefore financial markets are partially inefficient. In simple terms, we give a recipe for speculators to make money as long as only few investors follow it.


Since the new dispensation, all stakeholders in the school are expected to play an active role in the governance of schools. It is not the responsibility of government alone to see that schools are up and running. Parents, educators, non-teaching staff, learners (in Secondary Schools) and the community must also share their ideas on how the school is to be administered. This study has focused on the knowledge that the School Governing Bodies (SGB's) should posses in relation to legislations and the application of the knowledge make an impact in the administration and management of the school in the Klerksdorp-area. For schools to function effectively, the School Governing Bodies need to know that the Constitution (Act 108 of 1996) is the supreme law that has an impact in all education legislations, policies and regulations. Therefore, whatever school policy is to be developed should take cognizance of the Constitution. Central to the study is the SGBs' understanding of their roles and functions as stipulated in the Schools Act, (Act 84 of 1996) to avoid conflict of interest and administer the school efficiently and effectively. It is expected that the SGBs should transfer their knowledge into action by formulating policies that govern the school. By formulating school policies the SGB will then be able to have an influence since clear directions will be stipulated in the school policy on how the school is to be managed and administered. School Governing Bodies, as governors of the school are also accountable to people that elected them. It is their responsibility to provide feedback to their constituency and to inform them on the progress made.