Involvement of the lower urinary tract by advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) has been reported in up to 13% of cases, but primary NHL of the urinary bladder is very rare. A 35-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with a chief complaint of gross hematuria with left flank pain on April 12, 2001. Cystoscopy revealed an edematous broad-based mass on the left lateral wall of the bladder, and transurethral biopsy showed NHL, diffuse large B-cell type. Abdomino-pelvic CT scan demonstrated left-side hydronephrosis and hydroureter with left proximal ureter infiltration and thickening of the left lateral wall of the bladder with perivesical fat infiltration without lymph node enlargement. Full-scale staging work-up revealed the bone marrow as the solely involved site. The lesions of the bladder and left urinary tract were nearly completely regressed after two cycles of systemic cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and predinisone (CHOP) chemotherapy with simultaneous restoration of urinary function.


This study aimed to improve the overall fatigue properties of WAAM-produced SDSS by changing the interpass temperatures. Micro-computed tomography was used to quantitatively characterise the internal defects, such as porosity, in large-volume WAAM-fabricated SDSS materials. An increase in the interpass temperature led to a reduction in the ferrite phase balance by up to 20%. The fatigue anisotropy was still evident, but the fatigue limit in the weakest (transverse) direction was increased to 250 MPa or by approximately 40%. Meanwhile, the increased interpass temperature had no significant effect on fatigue resistance in the longitudinal direction. This study suggests that the interpass temperature can be critical for both achieving isotropic mechanical properties and increasing fatigue life of structural components fabricated with the WAAM method.


'A Few Crusted Characters' in Life's Little Ironies (1894) by Thomas Hardy seems to pose a quite interesting question of narrative mode. This tale or a set of tales contains nine episodes of long-departed people of the village of Longpuddle, apparently adopting the narrative framework of Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron or Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. The narrator of the whole tales recedes into the background to depict time, place and people through a camera eye, while the episodes of the people are told severally by each of the passengers of the carrier's van which starts from the White Hart Inn at a well-known market town to Longpuddle. The main listener, Lackland, who has returned here after 35 years of absence, is to assemble the fragmentary episodes of the Longpuddle people of the past into the reconstructed image of the village in the old days. One of the most interesting episode, or a tale, is 'The History of the Hardcomes.' With the seemingly traditional story-telling style and somewhat sensational ending, 'the question of matrimonial divergence, the immortal puzzle - given the man and woman, how to find a basis for their sexual relation,' as Hardy puts it in the preface to The Woodlanders, seems to be presented to us readers with radically new aspects. In this paper 'The History of the Hardcomes' is analyzed from the viewpoints of the narrative mode and the theme of hankering for 'a congenial channel,' as part of a whole study of Life's Little Ironies.


300 patients with traumatic frontobasal CSF-fistulae were treated neurosurgically from 1967 to 1989. CT was introduced in 1980, allowing a definitive detection of intracranial lesions including appraisal of cerebral edema, direct detection of fistulae (metrizamide-CT) and of brain hernias and far better imaging of osseous lesions, also of fine structures, such as a better apprasial of paranasal sinus pathology. Classical radiology is, however, still indispensable for imaging certain fracture types and localization of a pneumocranium. Computer Tomography allows an improvement of postoperative results, influencing indication, timing of operation, such as surgical approach.


Faces are one of the most potent social stimuli conveying information about social categories (e.g., sex, age, race), mental states (e.g., puzzled), emotional states (e.g., angry), attractiveness, and identity. People also infer a host of personality characteristics from facial appearance such as trustworthiness and competence (Todorov, Said, & Verosky, 2011), although these inferences are not necessarily accurate (Olivola & Todorov, 2010a). People can rapidly extract information from faces about:


Studies on the prospective memory performance of adults suggest that in everyday tasks like sending postcards at appointed times there is no age deficit for older subjects compared to younger adults. In contrast, laboratory prospective memory tasks often find age deficits. In a study with young and old adults we tested the hypothesis of older people being better in prospective memory performance in a number of different prospective memory tasks. We also related the performances in everyday and laboratory prospective memory tasks. In addition, we compared performances with respect to the amount of cognitive resources demanded by the different prospective memory tasks. Our results suggest that age deficits in prospective memory tasks are more likely the more laboratory-like a task is, that there is no simple relationship between performances in everyday and laboratory tasks, and that older adults are particularly handicapped when a prospective memory task makes high monitoring demands.


Background: Up to 50% of people with GAD fail to respond to fi rst-line pharmacotherapies for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), partly due to poor treatment compliance rates and partly due to the complex physiology underlying GAD. Thus, new non-invasive techniques, like repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) are being investigated. Methods: Participants were recruited from two di ff erent mood disorder sites: Kingston, Ontario, Canada and So fi a, Bulgaria. Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS) scores were reported from patients diagnosed with GAD following treatment with high-frequency (20 Hz) rTMS applied to the right dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Results: By the end of 25 rTMS treatments, the ACTIVE (n = 15) treatment group showed a clinically signi fi cant reduction in the HARS scores compared to the SHAM (n = 25) group. Hedge's g at visit 4 (following 25 rTMS treatments) was 2.1 between ACTIVE and SHAM treatments. Furthermore, at 2 and 4 weeks follow-up (after the end of treatment) HARS scores of the ACTIVE group remained stable and even slightly improved, demonstrating a sustained e ff ect of the response. Limitations: Relatively small sample size of the ACTIVE group as well as the SHAM procedure may limit the generalizability of the results. Conclusions: Thus, participants receiving rTMS treatment showed a clinically signi fi cant decrease in reported anxiety symptoms as measured by the HARS. rTMS may be a treatment options for patients treatment refractory to pharmacotherapies.


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Rathke's cleft cyst (RCC) are a slow-growing, benign, cystic lesions that arises from the remnants of the primitive ectoderm and Rathke's pouch. They present a common origin with pituitary adenomas (PA), however, the concomitant presentation of a PA and a RCC rarely occur. We present a case of a 41-year-old female with Cushing's disease. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed two synchronic lesions in the sellar region. An endoscopic transnasal approach was performed, with complete excision of both. The histological studies revealed an ACTH secreting PA and a RCC. The patient presented clinical and endocrinological remission six months after surgery. With the presence of cystic lesion at the sellar region, and the concomitant finding of a pituitary adenoma, RCC should be considered.


Using Gillian Flynn's 2012 novel Gone Girl as a starting point, this paper explores the nexus between law and media by analysing how three television series about law self-reflexively explore the media saturation of legal practice. CSI, Murder One and Broadchurch each represent what such interrelations with media might mean for legal processes and participants and how these subsequently re-shape the spaces in which law and media are articulated. From this analysis three aspects of media saturation are identified: within the courtroom, outside the courtroom and through the operation of media themselves as jurisprudential texts. The paper concludes with the suggestion that these popular media texts reveal how profoundly the traditionally rigid and contained space of the courtroom can itself be remade into a more liminal, fluid and heterotopic space through media saturation.


Reduction of unwanted light reflection from a surface of a substance is very essential for improvement of the performance of optical and photonic devices. Antireflective coatings (ARCs) made of single or stacking layers of dielectrics, nano/microstructures or a mixture of both are the conventional design geometry for suppression of reflection. Recent progress in theoretical nanophotonics and nanofabrication has enabled more flexibility in design and fabrication of miniaturized coatings which has in turn advanced the field of ARCs considerably. In particular, the emergence of plasmonic and metasurfaces allows for the realization of broadband and angular-insensitive ARC coatings at an order of magnitude thinner than the operational wavelengths. In this review, a short overview of the development of ARCs, with particular attention paid to the state-of-the-art plasmonic- and metasurface-based antireflective surfaces, is presented.


Norms of sleep EEG patterns for a healthy population aged from 20 to 59 years are presented from which it was concluded that this age group forms a relatively stable pattern during the ontogenesis of sleep. The collected data were compared with data found in the literature.


In this study, a low Reynolds flow around a blade is studied by experimental and numerical methods and characteristic curves are extracted. In the experimental static test, the results of thrust force, engine power, current and voltage in different speed for a rotor were recorded. Considering the importance of the flow field around the blade, the static and dynamic numerical simulations of the flow through a blade of Quadrotor are investigated. In addition to the blade aerodynamic results, the statistical of the computational domain are also analyzed. For the numerical simulation, a commercial software (Fluent) is used with the assumption of compressible viscous flow and turbulence model simulations. In this study, the characteristic curves of the rotor blade are extracted by the two mentioned methods. Comparison of numerical and experimental results show good agreement and confirm the accuracy of the measurement. According to the simulation of the flow field around the blade using the numerical method, the effective distance of the blades in order to find the optimum Quadrotor structure is studied.


We investigate an approach to matroid complexity that involves describing a matroid via a list of independent sets, bases, circuits, or some other family of subsets of the ground set. The computational complexity of algorithmic problems under this scheme appears to be highly dependent on the choice of input-type. We define an order on the various methods of description, and we show how this order acts upon ten types of input. We also show that under this approach several natural algorithmic problems for matroids are complete in classes thought not to be equal to P.


XPC polymorphisms may alter DNA repair capacity, thus leading to genetic instability and carcinogenesis. Numerous studies have investigated the associations of XPC Lys939Gln (rs2228001) and Ala499Val (rs2228000) polymorphisms with cancer susceptibility; however, the findings are inconclusive. We searched literature from MEDLINE and EMBASE for eligible publications that assessed the associations between these two polymorphisms and cancer risk. We also assessed genotype‐mRNA expression correlation data from HapMap for rs2228001 and rs2228000 in normal cell lines derived from 270 subjects with different ethnicities. The final analysis included 62 published studies of 25,708 cases and 30,432 controls for the Lys939Gln and 34 studies with 14,877 cases and 17,888 controls for the Ala499Val. Overall, Lys939Gln was significantly associated with an increased overall cancer risk (Gln/Gln vs. Lys/Lys: OR = 1.16, 95% CI = 1.07 − 1.25, p < 0.001; recessive model: OR = 1.14, 95% CI = 1.06 − 1.22, p < 0.001; dominant model: OR = 1.06, 95% CI = 1.01 − 1.11, p = 0.015 and Gln vs. Lys: OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 1.03 − 1.10, p < 0.001) and further stratifications showed an increased risk for bladder, lung and colorectal cancer, Asian populations and population‐based studies. Likewise, Ala499Val was also significantly associated with an increased overall cancer risk (Val/Val vs. Ala/Ala: OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.07 − 1.36, p = 0.003 and recessive model: OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.08 − 1.34, p = 0.001) and further stratification showed an increased risk for breast and bladder cancer, particularly in Asian populations. Interestingly, significantly correlation between XPC genotypes and mRNA expression was found only for Asian populations as well. Despite some limitations, this meta‐analysis established some solid statistical evidence for an association between XPC polymorphisms and cancer risk, which warrants further validation in single large studies.


The Corona virus is growing rapidly throughout the world, including in Indonesia. The development of the virus causes many activities related to humans to be stopped first. One of the activities that is not allowed is Posyandu (Pos Pelayanan Terpadu), even though posyandu is very important to do. Due to the importance of the posyandu, the posyandu cadres conduct a mobile posyandu (sweeping). The problem that arises from sweeping is that people who have toddlers are not at home. Even though they are at home, they usually don't want to meet with posyandu cadres because they are afraid of the spread of the Corona Virus. Technological developments can help prevent the spread of the Corona Virus to humans. Any activity related to other people can be done online. In this study, trying to design a system that can monitor the growth of toddlers without having to meet directly with posyandu cadres. The system design is also expected to help Poskeskel (Pos Kesehatan Kelurahan) and Puskesmas (Pusat Kesehatan Masyarakat) to view and print weighing reports without having to ask for monthly weighing data reports for toddlers to Posyandu in Bandar Lampung. In addition, this system is expected to make it easier for posyandu cadres to report every posyandu activity and to report the growth and development of toddlers who are registered at the Flamboyan 9 Posyandu.


The gall wasp, Leptocybe invasa, is a devastating pest of eucalypt plantations, woodlots, and urban trees in the Middle East, the Mediterranean basin, Africa, India, South-East Asia, and China. It was first observed in Israel in 2000 and has since spread rapidly south and east. It reached southern Vietnam in 2002 and has since moved northward devastating nurseries and young plantations. Eighteen species of eucalypts were selected for a sentinel trial in northern Vietnam to determine their susceptibility to pathogens in the region. They were also rated for the impact of Leptocybe invasa. Leptocybe invasa was capable of feeding and forming galls on 13 species from six sections within Eucalyptus and one species of Corymbia. The impact was greater in the nursery. Five of the Eucalyptus spp. which were susceptible in the nursery were not damaged in the field. The most susceptible hosts in Vietnam were E. camaldulenis, E. grandis, and E. tereticornis, both in the nursery and field trial. Variation in the susceptibility of provenances of E. camaldulensis, E. urophylla, and E. grandis were observed, which is promising for breeding for resistance and long-term control.


The COVID-19 pandemic led to a sudden shift to virtual work and events, with the last two years enabling an appropriated and rather simulated togetherness—the hybrid mode. As we return to in-person events, it is important to reflect on not only what we learned about technologies and social justice, but about the types of events we desire, and how to re-design them accordingly. This SIG aims to reflect on hybrid events and their execution: scaling them across sectors, communities, and industries; considering trade-offs when choosing technologies; studying best practices and defining measures of "success" for hybrid events; and finally, identifying and charting the wider social, ethical, and legal implications of hybrid formats. This SIG will consolidate these topics by inviting participants to collaboratively reflect on previous hybrid experiences and what can be learned from them.


Studies have shown that vitamin D status might be associated with dyslipidaemia, but results are conflicting and there might exist sex differences. The aim of our study was to explore the sex-specific association between vitamin D status and serum lipids and atherogenic index of plasma (AIP, a predictor for atherosclerosis) among Chinese middle-aged and elderly adults. A total of 4,021 middle-aged and elderly participants from a health management centre were included in this cross-sectional study. The individuals were classified into tertiles according to serum 25(OH)D. Linear and logistic regression models were used to estimate the association between vitamin D levels and serum lipids among the tertiles. The mean serum 25(OH)D level was 21.60 (16.60-27.20) ng/mL in all participants. After adjusting for potential confounders, a 10 ng/mL increase in 25(OH)D was associated with decreases of 1.156 mmol/L in triglycerides (TGs) and 0.068 in the AIP and an increase of 0.051 mmol/L in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in all subjects. In addition, 25(OH)D deficiency was associated with an increased prevalence of hypertriglyceridaemia (odds ratio (OR), 1.880; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.351-2.615), hypoalphalipoproteinaemia/HDL (OR, 1.505; 95% CI, 1.146-1.977) and abnormal AIP (OR, 1.933; 95% CI, 1.474-2.534) in males, and 25(OH)D-deficient women had a 2.02-fold higher risk for hypoalphalipoproteinaemia/HDL than women with sufficient 25(OH)D levels (95% CI, 1.044-3.904; all p values <0.05). Vitamin D deficiency was positively associated with the prevalence of dyslipidaemia and abnormal AIP in the middle-aged and elderly Chinese population. And this association was stronger in men than in women.


Preface Part I. Introduction: 1. An agenda Part II. Modeling an Open economy: 2. The structure of the model 3. Solving the model 4. Comparative statics: goods-market disturbances 5. Comparative statics: asset-market and compound disturbance 6. Dynamics under pegged and flexible exchange rates Part III. Extending the Model: 7. Claims, caveas, and simplifications 8. On money, income, and insulation 9. Expectations, speculation, and exchange-rate stability 10. On the specification of fiscal policy Part IV. Analyzing Interdependence: 11. A two-country model 12. Similarities and symmetries in goods and asset markets 13. Comparative statics in the two-country model Part V. The Theory of Financial Integration: 14. Dimensions of integration 15. Market integration, interdependence, and monetary policy under pegged exchange rates 16. The analytics of a monetary union 17. Market integration, interdependence, and fiscal policy under pegged exchange rates 18. Fiscal policy in a monetary union Appendixes Glossary Index.


A robust water oxidation catalyst based on copper oxide was prepared by facile electrodeposition of Cu2+ from borate buffer solution under near neutral conditions. The Cu–Bi thin film exhibits high activity and long-term stability in Cu2+-free pH 9 borate buffer. A steady current density of 1.2 mA/cm2 was sustained for at least 10 h at 1.3 V versus NHE without iR compensation, which sets a new benchmark for copper-based OEC.


The black rhinoceros have declined across Africa both in numbers and range distribution, making long-term population persistence of this iconic species uncertain. We conducted simulation models to predict population performance of black rhinoceros in Lake Nakuru National Park under different scenarios of environmental variation and translocation regimes. A decade-long (1987-1997) demographic data were used to construct stochastic simulation models using VORTEX computer program. In addition, we assessed extinction risks and patterns of heterozygosity among the modelled populations (reported every five years) to characterize the dynamics of this population over a hundred years. The population of black rhinoceros showed varying patterns of fluctuations under different scenarios. The best-case scenario showed a considerable increase in the modelled population with the population attaining the highest growth (population growth (λ)=1.04) after 40 years. The mean final population size for the successful cases was 70.85 ± 2.0 animals, which was relatively close to the carrying capacity used in the simulation. The expected heterozygosity was 0.912 ± 0.02 suggesting that the remaining population may be genetically viable. Further, environmental variation of 1-2% magnitude across the various age categories, and without translocation, had no significant effect on the deterministic growth rate of the population. Maintaining the translocation of 2 males and 2 females on yearly basis would significantly boost and sustain the population of black rhinoceros in the study area.


Abstract Background Here we present the results from a two-year bee survey conducted on 18 managed emergent wetlands in the lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley of Arkansas, USA. Sample methods included pan traps, sweep netting and blue-vane traps. We document 83 bee species and morphospecies in 5 families and 31 genera, of which 37 species represent first published state records for Arkansas. The majority of species were opportunistic wetland species; only a small number were wetland-dependent species or species largely restricted to alluvial plains. New information We present new distributional records for bee species not previously recorded in managed emergent wetlands and report specimens of thirty-seven species for which no published Arkansas records exist, expanding the known ranges of Ceratina cockerelli, Diadasia enavata, Lasioglossum creberrimum, Svastra cressonii and Dieunomia triangulifera. We also distinguish opportunistic wetland bee species from wetland-dependent and alluvial plain-restricted species.


Abstract Human tissues, obtained at autopsy in several geographical locations in the United States exposed primarily to atmospheric fallout from weapons testing and those from individuals who formerly worked with plutonium, have been analyzed quantitatively for plutonium in a continuing study at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. This article contains additional data accumulated since publication of LASL report LA-4875, "Plutonium in Autopsy Tissue", in 1973 and includes some reanalyses of questionable results included in that report. The primary objectives of the present study are to determine the baseline concentrations of plutonium in the general population and to monitor for changes that may be related to growth of the nuclear industry; obtain data on the long-range time dependence of fallout plutonium incorporation into the body; determine plutonium distribution in the body from various routes of intake; and provide a means for evaluating the validity of in vivo estimates of plutonium body burdens in occupationally exposed workers. The tissues analyzed include lung, tracheobronchial lymph nodes, liver, bone, kidney, and recently, gonads, thyroid, and spleen. The median concentrations observed in the general population (dis/min per kg of tissue wet weight) are: tracheobronchial lymph node (360), 5.8; liver (701), 1.6; vertebrae (325), 0.6; rib (95); thyroid (184), 0.6; lung (705), 0.4; gonad (264), 0.3; spleen (325), 0.2; and kidney (631), 0.1. The parenthetical numbers indicate the number of samples analyzed. The results of the analyses of tissues from occupationally exposed workers are reported in a subsequent article.


This paper documents a time series dataset on the evolution of seventeen object-oriented metrics extracted from ten open- source systems. By making this dataset public our goal is to assist researchers with interest in software evolution analysis and modeling.


Ramaz Khomeriki, Jérôme Leon, Stefano Ruffo, Sandro Wimberger Dipartimento di Energetica "S. Stecco" and CSDC, Università di Firenze and INFN, via s. Marta, 3, 50139 Firenze (Italy) Department of Exact and Natural Sciences, Tbilisi State University, 3 Chavchavadze, 0128 Tbilisi (Georgia) (3) Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Astroparticules CNRS-UMR5207, Université Montpellier 2, 34095 Montpellier (France) CNR-INFM and Dipartimento di Fisica "E. Fermi", Università degli Studi di Pisa, Largo Pontecorvo 3, 56127 Pisa, Italy Abstract Considering the coherent nonlinear dynamics in double square well potential we find the example of coexistence of Josephson oscillations with a self-trapping regime. This macroscopic bistability is explained by proving analytically the simultaneous existence of symmetric, antisymmetric and asymmetric stationary solutions of the associated Gross-Pitaevskii equation. The effect is illustrated and confirmed by numerical simulations. This property allows to make suggestions on possible experiments using Bose-Einstein condensates in engineered optical lattices or weakly coupled optical waveguide arrays.


Objectives Effective treatments for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are urgently needed. We hypothesized that colchicine, by counteracting proinflammatory pathways implicated in the uncontrolled inflammatory response of COVID-19 patients, reduces pulmonary complications, and improves survival. Methods This retrospective study included 71 consecutive COVID-19 patients (hospitalized with pneumonia on CT scan or outpatients) who received colchicine and compared with 70 control patients who did not receive colchicine in two serial time periods at the same institution. We used inverse probability of treatment propensity-score weighting to examine differences in mortality, clinical improvement (using a 7-point ordinary scale), and inflammatory markers between the two groups. Results Amongst the 141 COVID-19 patients (118 [83.7%] hospitalized), 70 (50%) received colchicine. The 21-day crude cumulative mortality was 7.5% in the colchicine group and 28.5% in the control group (P = 0.006; adjusted hazard ratio: 0.24 [95%CI: 0.09 to 0.67]); 21-day clinical improvement occurred in 40.0% of the patients on colchicine and in 26.6% of control patients (adjusted relative improvement rate: 1.80 [95%CI: 1.00 to 3.22]). The strong association between the use of colchicine and reduced mortality was further supported by the diverging linear trends of percent daily change in lymphocyte count (P = 0.018), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (P = 0.003), and in C-reactive protein levels (P = 0.009). Colchicine was stopped because of transient side effects (diarrhea or skin rashes) in 7% of patients. Conclusion In this retrospective cohort study colchicine was associated with reduced mortality and accelerated recovery in COVID-19 patients. This support the rationale for current larger randomized controlled trials testing the safety/efficacy profile of colchicine in COVID-19 patients.


Background: The National board of medical examination ("UKMPPD) has been implemented since August 2014 and has emerged a new challenge for medicine faculty in Indonesia in which there are 2769 "UKMPPD CBT" retakers in November 2017. It is the same challenge for Faculty of medicine, university of baiturrahmah (FMUNBRAH) where there are 82 CBT retakers in February 2018. The "UKMPPD" as a determinant of graduation should represent the process of conducting competency-based curriculum during preclinical and clinical program. Thus the GPA as a measure of student performance in conducting the curriculum is expected to correlate in  achieving the "UKMPPD CBT".
Aims: To determine the correlation between preclinical GPA score of students with achieving the "UKMPPD CBT".
Methods: It was cross sectional design consisting subject of 749 students who joined "UKMPPD CBT" as firstaker since November 2014-February 2018. Data obtained were preclinical GPA and the results of "UKMPPD CBT". GPA data was grouped into three categories with satisfying, very satifying, and cum laude predicate. The results of "UKMPPD CBT" were grouped by achieving and not achieving. Furthermore, the data was analyzed using Sommers'd correlation test.
Results: The median value of preclinical GPA were 3.00 (2.35-3.76). There is a weak negative correlation between preclinical GPA with achieving of "UKMPPD CBT" (p <0.001; value r = -0.221).
Conclusion: There is a weak negative correlation between GPA with the accomplishement of UKMPPD CBT. This result can provide feedback to institutional managers regarding the process of implementing the curriculum based competency.


Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) caused by Vibrio parahaemolyticus has caused severe damage to the shrimp farming industry of Vietnam. Probiotics are chosen as a prophylactic method to mitigate the outbreak of diseases. We report in this article the isolation and evaluation of the effect of a potential probiotic, Bacillus subtilis BLD01, which enhances the survival rates and changes gut microbiota of whiteleg shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) after challenge with AHPND V. parahaemolyticus. After seven days of the challenge, the treatment where shrimps were fed with B. subtilis BLD01 strain (106 CFU/g) and challenge with AHPND V. parahaemolyticus (106 CFU/mL) showed high survival rates of 71% as compared to 33% in the treatment where shrimp were given standard feed without probiotics supplementation and challenged with AHPND V. parahaemolyticus. 16S rRNA amplicon data of the gut microbiomes of shrimps in four treatments were carried out using Illumina sequencing. A total of 231 436 reads were obtained, and a total of 14 phyla, 28 classes, 142 genera were revealed. The most abundant phyla in all subjects were Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes. The sequence number of the Vibrio genus was the highest with 28% in treatment without B. subtillis BLD01 in-feed addition and shrimps challenged with AHPND V. parahaemolyticus. The sequence number of Bacillus genus was the highest with 3% in the treatment with B. subtillis BLD01 addition and without AHPND V. parahaemolyticus challenge. These results contribute to confirming the mechanism of action of B. subtilis against V. parahaemolyticus in the experimental model, creating a scientific basis for the development and use of probiotics products applied in shrimp farming in Vietnam.


The genesis of cohesive horizons in some soils is not well known yet and, in many cases, it is conflicting. The purpose of this study was to evaluate physical, chemical and mineralogical mechanisms that cause hardening in soils with cohesive horizons, fragipan and duripan in Brazilian Coastal Plain soils. Soil samples of two toposequences were sampled and the taxonomic classes of the soils were identified as Argisolic Eutrophic Red Latosol, Latosolic Dystrophic Yellow Argisol for the first toposequence, and Abruptic Dystrophic Yellow Argisol, Dystrophic Typic Yellow Argisol and Duric Orthic Carbic Spodosol, for the second sequence. The chemical analysis performed were Fe, Si, and Al extraction with sodium dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) and ammonium oxalate. The clay fraction mineralogy was evaluated by X-ray diffraction. Soils with cohesive horizons presented very low Fe, Si, and Al contents extracted with both DCB and oxalate. Nevertheless, soil with fragipan and duripan showed high Si and Al content extracted with oxalate, indicating their role as cementing agents. The Argisol clay fraction is predominantly kaolinitic, and gibbsite was only found in the Bt1, Bt2 and Bw horizons of the Latosolic Yellow Argisol. Gibbsite was found in soils with fragipan and duripan (Duric Orthic Carbic Spodosol), and despite being considered a disorganizing agent of kaolinite adjustment, the hardpan characteristics were maintained. Thus, the hardening mechanisms of these soils seem different for cohesive, fragipan and duripan horizons.


A study has been made of the age-distribution of neutralizing antibodies against the Lansing strain of poliomyelitis in three groups of the population of Israel. Two groups were chosen from the local population, and the third consisted of new immigrants from Yemen. Altogether 392 sera were examined, and the distribution of Lansing antibodies was found to be similar in the three groups. In the Yemen group and in one of the Israeli groups, 50% or more of the sera examined contained Lansing antibodies from the age of two years onwards; while in the second Israeli group this figure was reached at the age of three years. In the higher age-groups, 90-100% of the sera were Lansing positive. A correlation existed between the age specific rates of poliomyelitis during the 1950 epidemic in Israel and the age-distribution of Lansing antibodies found in this study. Comparative figures for Egypt and other parts of the world are discussed.


The Colour Rendering Index (CRI) has many flaws and is unreliable especially when new high efficient lights are introduced (e.g. LEDs). Even when used for its original intended purpose, assessing lighting for industrial and architectural situations. It is even less meaningful if used in a television environment. Even Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) meters are misleading and inaccurate if used with fluorescent or LED light sources. In the framework of the EBU's LED group, Alan Roberts (retiree from BBC R&D) helped put together the Television Lightning Consistency Index (TLCI-2012) as a solution to this problem. Although not an approved international standard yet (it is currently under standardisation within the SMPTE 10-E Group), the EBU recommends the method. This article will be of interest to those looking to find out more about how these measurements came to be. The TLCI-2012 results are supplied by Alan Roberts from his measurements conducted on various lighting fixtures.


Plasticity of the acoustic startle reflex was measured in rats in which a complete transection between the forebrain and midbrain was made. During a period from 60 to 100 min after surgery, startle amplitude in the transected rats was relatively stable and comparable with that of the controls (which had been anesthetized with halothane and placed in a stereotaxic instrument). During this period the transection did not alter the temporal recovery process (with intervals of 2, 4, 8, or 16 sec) or auditory prepulse inhibition (with intervals of 25, 50, 100, 500, or 1,000 msec) or the normal reduction in startle caused by high levels of background noise. The transection did prevent the normal increase in startle caused by moderate levels of background noise and eliminated within-session habituation. The effect on habituation was particularly convincing since the curves of the transected and nontransected rats actually crossed. The results are discussed in terms of how the transection procedure can be used to evaluate various hypotheses about underlying mechanisms of startle plasticity.


—This is a pioneering study on lateral zoning of groundwater chemistry and authigenic mineralogy in the Oxfordian regional reservoir of the Nadym–Taz interfluve. According to thermodynamic calculations, the nonequilibrium–equilibrium water–rock system lacks equilibrium with primary magmatic minerals, such as albite, anorthite, and microcline, though the water is moderately saline (up to 63.3 g/L) and has been in interaction with rocks for ~165 million years. Authigenic minerals form continuously and successively (kaolinite–montmorillonite–illite–micas–chlorite–albite–microcline) from waters that have certain рH and contents of SiO2, Al, Na, K, Ca, and Mg. The equilibrium of groundwater with primary aluminosilicate minerals impinges on a carbonate barrier, and almost all rocks are more or less strongly carbonatized. Authigenic mineral assemblages from the southern Nadym–Taz interfluve include kaolinite unlike those from the northern part of the region, where albitization is more common. Authigenesis generally decays in the eastern direction.


Parts of the Sum is an installation of ceramic, wood, and drawn components which examines the symbiosis of individual and cultural identity: a recursive relationship which engenders unceasing di-versity. The installation uses patterns and rule-based compositions as vehicles to address the development of complexity from compounded simplicity as it relates to personality. A n immersive meta-network that emulates the complexity underlying identity, Parts of the Sum ultimately relies on the active participation and inclusion of the viewer for completion.


In engineering design and research work, it is almost always require numerical modelling for the prediction of structural behaviour. The most common modelling tools are finite element method (FEM), boundary element method (BEM) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This paper deals
only with FEM. A brief introduction to the finite element method as a research tool for engineers and applied scientist and brief review of the current FEM software available and their capabilities are made. It also presents the results for crash behaviour of composite cylinders and cones and push fit elastomeric steel spigot and socket joints and identifies software package houses and companies
requiring specific analysis as potential source for funding. The development of material constitutive equations, integration of FEM with CAD/CAM and expert systems, application to biomechanics and medical science areas, inclusive of advanced materials and failure analysis as the main areas for research in the field of numerical modelling are also identified.


The Monte Carlo method was used to calculate backscatter factors for a cylindrical water phantom (diameter, 33 cm; thickness along the beam direction, 20 cm) irradiated by X-rays of various radiation qualities generated at voltages between 10 and 280 kV and three monoenergetic radiations with energies up to 661 keV. To study the influence of the irradiation geometry on the backscatter factor, the calculations were performed for conical photon beams of field diameters between 1 and 20 cm at the phantom front face and at source-to-phantom distances between 10 and 100 cm. The numerical results-the statistical uncertainties of which are less than 0.5%-are compared with other known data.


Abstract. Saputro TB, Muslihatin W, Wahyuni DK, Nurhidayati T, Wardhani FO, Rosalia E. 2019. Variation induction of Glycine max through low dose gamma irradiation produces genetic and physiological alteration as source of tolerant variants in waterlogging conditions. Biodiversitas 20: 3299-3308. Soybean (Glycine max L.) is the main food commodity that contains high proteins, oils, and carbohydrates. Waterlogging is considered as the dominant factor and major constraint responsible for the decrements of soybean production in Indonesia. The development of promising G.max that tolerates waterlogging is essentially needed. In this study, induction of variation was conducted by gamma rays irradiation with doses of 25Gy, 50Gy, 75Gy, and 100Gy. The mutant or variants lines were then selected under waterlogging conditions with 100%, 150%, 200%, and 250% of field capacity. The results showed that, in 250% waterlogging condition, plants irradiated with 25Gy shows the best performance in amount of roots, adventitious roots and number of pods parameters, while plants irradiated with 50Gy have the highest growth indicated by amount of root nodules, plant heights, dry weights, leaf area, and chlorophyll contents. The genotypes then were assayed by the Inter Simple Sequence Repeats (ISSR) to confirm that the mutants differ compared to its wild type. Out of 10 ISSR primers, seven primers showed polymorphic patterns. The best primer to differentiate the mutant lines and its wild type is primer ISSR1 [ (AC)8G] that able to generate the highest level of polymorphism with 44.0%. The comparison of protein profiles among the mutant lines showed that proteins with molecular weight 53,78 KDa; 43,12 KDa; and 20,62 Kda are all overexpressed for plants irradiated at 25Gy and treated with 250% waterlogging stress. All those three proteins are predicted as 1-amino cyclopropane-1-carboxylate synthase (ACS), Alcohol-dehydrogenase (ADH), and Superoxide dismutase (SOD) respectively.


Diagnosis of coeliac disease rests in jejunal biopsy. This is recognised as a traumatic examination which today may perhaps be replaced by a biological test produced by Pharmacia in which the anti-gluten IgA is measured by the ELISA method. The sensitivity of the test reaches 100% and the specificity to 96%. This biological test makes it possible to follow the development of the coeliac illness under diet, since the anti-gluten IgA diminishes significantly, often to the normal level.


The successful development and diffusion of improved maize seed in Zambia during the 1970s–80s was a major achievement of African agriculture but was predicated on a government commitment to parastatal grain and seed marketing, the provision of services to maize growers, and a pan-territorial pricing scheme that was fiscally unsustainable. Declining maize output when this system was dismantled contributed to the reinstatement in 2002 of subsidies for maize seed and fertilizer through the Fertilizer and Farmer Input Support Programs (FISP). In the meantime, seed liberalization has led to an array of new, improved maize varieties, most of which are hybrids. This analysis explores the determinants of demand for first-generation (F1) hybrid maize seed in Zambia based on a survey of maize growers during the 2010/11 cropping season. We estimate the determinants of demand with a control function approach to handle the potential endogeneity of the binary variable measuring subsidy receipt and compare determinants of demand between female and male seed decisionmakers. We find that hybrid seed use in Zambia is still very much an "affair of state" in that farmers' use of F1 hybrids is explained largely by inclusion in FISP. The quality (literacy) of the labor supply, the ratio of active labor to dependents in the household, sources of information, and length of residence in the village are predictors of maize seed subsidy receipt. Overall, we find that male and female seed decisionmakers may represent distinct demand segments. The fact that the percentage of seed decisionmakers who are women is much higher than the percentage of women who are de jure or de facto household heads has implications for the design of extension strategies and variety promotion.


Abstract A small X-band bistatic Doppler radar originally developed for use in automated weather stations as a Precipitation Occurrence Sensor System (POSS) can also measure real time raindrop size distributions. In contrast to large-scale pulsed Doppler radars this system is continuous wave and the measurement volume is relatively small. The drop size distribution is retrieved from the Doppler power spectrum by using an iterative inversion method. The sampling requirements for a representative average power spectrum are estimated. The effect of winds on the measurement is discussed. The POSS measures rates that are consistent with conventional gauges assuming a 6 dB transmission loss due to water on the radomes. Average drop size distributions measured in stratiform rain are typically negative exponential for diameters greater than 0.7 mm. One-minute averages in rain showers show the multimodal character of the distribution.


Spatial sampling is applied in the majority of electro-optical displays. Too economical sampling densities lead to visible artefacts like dot and line structures, the staircase effect and moire. Low-pass optical filters can reduce the visibility of these artefacts. However, these filters also reduce the sharpness. This paper describes two experiments using circular and elliptical filters, respectively. In these experiments observers were asked to rate the quality of spatially sampled and optically filtered images as a function of the cut-off frequency of the optical filters. Sampling geometry and sampling density of the displayed images were used as parameters. The experimental results show that there is a perceptual optimum for which the visibility of sampling artefacts is reduced, yet the annoyance of blur is still negligible.


Objective: Breast cancer patients who have a rapid diagnosis have been better prognosis than late diagnosis. The popular screening is mammogram or ultrasound. In recent years, researchers try to develop data driven models to predict early cancer staging from the first screening. However, data elements are not complete such as lymph node status. Therefore, the Integrated dataset approach will be challenging. Methods: Because the data elements are not collected from the same source, joining between mammography and biopsy data were performed using latent variables that determine by tumor severity. The datasets consist of 445 mammography reports and 183 pathological reports. The latent variables of the mammogram dataset were determined by the severity of mass, while latent variables of the pathological dataset were determined by TNM Staging. The latent variables were used to join between two datasets. Then, the prediction models were built using the machine learning technique. The modeling is divided into three steps; staging prediction, lymph node prediction, and prognosis. Results: Integrated dataset from mammography and biopsy extend more factors and built the models to predict breast cancer staging in the mammography process. The staging prediction is 100% accuracy. The lymph node prediction are 72.47% accuracy, 73.94% specificity, and 72.5% sensitivity. An area under ROC curve is 0.74. The prognosis model prediction are 72.72% accuracy, 80% specificity, and 77% sensitivity. An area under ROC curve is 0.87. There are also built the rule for early staging, diagnosis, and prognosis. Conclusion: This study aims to build the models for early staging, diagnosis, and prognosis using the less aggressive method. The advantages are (1) predict staging from the first screening (2) estimate the lymph node metastases for planning to ALND or SLNB (3) evaluate overall survival time. These advantages help the physician planning the best treatment for cancer patients.


Nucleic acid therapeutics have demonstrated an impressive acceleration in recent years. They work through multiple mechanisms of action, including the downregulation of gene expression and the modulation of RNA splicing. While several drugs based on the former mechanism have been approved, few target the latter, despite the promise of RNA splicing modulation. To improve our ability to discover novel RNA splicing-modulating therapies, we developed HCS-Splice, a robust cell-based High-Content Screening (HCS) assay. By implementing the use of a two-colour (GFP/RFP) fluorescent splicing reporter plasmid, we developed a versatile, effective, rapid, and robust high-throughput strategy for the identification of potent splicing-modulating molecules. The HCS-Splice strategy can also be used to functionally confirm splicing mutations in human genetic disorders or to screen drug candidates. As a proof-of-concept, we introduced a dementia-related splice-switching mutation in the Microtubule-Associated Protein Tau (MAPT) exon 10 splicing reporter. We applied HCS-Splice to the wild-type and mutant reporters and measured the functional change in exon 10 inclusion. To demonstrate the applicability of the method in cell-based drug discovery, HCS-Splice was used to evaluate the efficacy of an exon 10-targeting siRNA, which was able to restore the correct alternative splicing balance.


This work provides entrepreneurs with building blocks to help their companies sustain high performance, play a leadership role in their industries, and remain successful for generations. Readers will discover the five key elements involved in guiding a company to lasting success, a blueprint for managing a thriving company, and plenty of real-world examples.


This research investigates the adsorption capacity of a novel composite material, namely nano zero-valent iron coated coffee grounds (nZVI-CG), for removal of zinc (Zn) and nickel (Ni). nZVI particles were synthesized and immobilized to the surface of waste coffee grounds (CG) using the ultrasonic-assisted liquid phase method. Characterization of synthesized nZVI-CG composite and bare CG showed that nZVI coating has increased the surface area significantly. Batch tests were conducted to examine the effects of pH, reaction time and initial metal concentrations on Zn2+ and Ni2+ removal. At an initial metal concentration of 10 mg-Ni/L and 10 mg-Zn/L, nZVI-CG removal rates for Zn2+ and Ni2+ were observed as 98.89% and 97.29%, respectively; while removal rates of bare CG have remained at 51% (Zn2+) and 48.1% (Ni2+). Moreover, acidic conditions were observed to deteriorate Ni2+ and Zn2+ adsorption since most functional groups of the metals were protonated. Increasing initial nickel and zinc concentrations decreased removal rates. While the model fittings improved with increasing pH, in the case of nZVI-CG, Langmuir isotherm gave the best fits for Ni2+ and Zn2+ at pH 5 and 7. Also, our experimental results followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, regardless of the used adsorbent. Consequently, our results showed that nZVI-CG composite material is a promising alternative adsorbent for pilot scale metal removal/recovery applications.


The properties of polymers can be significantly changed by incorporating nanoparticles, which yields a great potential for applications. In the present study, we use nanocomposites of new polyurea elastomers filled with 0.1, 0.5, and 1 wt.% MoS2 nanotubes. Using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) measurements we show, that the glass transition temperatures Tg of the nanocomposites are increased by small amounts of inorganic nanotubes. In line with results from computer simulations of polymer melts with nanoscopic particles, we explain the observed shift of Tg to be due to a gradual slowing down of polymer chain dynamics in the proximity of nanotubes.


An increased plasma plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) level is a risk factor for myocardial infarction, particularly when associated with visceral obesity. Although the link between PAI-1 and obesity is well documented, little is known about the physiological relevance of PAI-1 production by adipose tissue. Therefore, we have compared adipose tissue development and insulin resistance plasma parameters in PAI-1-deficient mice (PAI-1(-/-)) and wild-type littermates (PAI-1(+/+)) in a model of nutritionally induced obesity. After 17 weeks of consuming a high-fat diet (HFD), PAI-1(+/+) mice showed marked obesity, with a 52% increase in body weight compared with mice that were kept on a standard fat diet (P<0.0001). This weight gain was accompanied by adipocyte hypertrophy and an increase in the number of stroma cells in the gonadal fat pad, expressed as stroma cells/adipocytes (0.67+/-0.05 versus 0.43+/-0. 02; P<0.001). In plasma, the HFD induced a marked increase in PAI-1 antigen (5.1+/-0.56 versus 2+/-0.22 ng/mL; P<0.001), fasting insulinemia (1.1+/-0.21 versus 0.21+/-0.04 ng/mL; P<0.001), and glycemia (7.4+/-0.5 versus 5+/-0.3 mmol/L; P<0.001), whereas plasma triglyceride levels were not affected. When we compared PAI-1(-/-) and PAI-1(+/+) mice on the HFD, PAI-1(-/-) mice gained weight faster than did PAI-1(+/+) mice, with a significant difference in body weight between 3 and 8 weeks of the diet (32+/-1.7 versus 26+/-1.6 g at 6 weeks; P<0.05). After 17 weeks of the HFD, its effect on weight gain and the number and size of adipocytes was similar in PAI-1(+/+) and PAI-1(-/-) mice. By contrast, the increase in the number of stroma cells presented by PAI-1(+/+) mice was not observed in PAI-1(-/-) mice. In obese PAI-1(-/-) mice, tissue-type PA activity and antigen levels in the gonadal fat pad were significantly higher than in obese PAI-1(+/+) mice (230+/-50 versus 47+/-20 arbitrary units/g, P<0.01; 40+/-13 versus 17+/-13 ng/g, P<0.05, respectively), whereas urokinase-type PA activity and antigen levels were similar in both groups. In plasma, nonobese PAI-1(-/-) mice displayed 62% higher insulin levels (P<0.05) than did PAI-1(+/+) mice. Obese PAI-1(-/-) mice displayed 68% higher triglyceride levels (P<0.01) and 21% lower glucose levels (P<0.05) than did PAI-1(+/+) mice. These data support an effect of PAI-1 on weight gain and adipose tissue cellularity in the induction of obesity in mice. Moreover, PAI-1 influences glucidolipidic metabolism. The elevated expression of PAI-1 observed in human obesity could be involved in mechanisms that control adipose tissue development.


This is the first in a series of articles on malaria. It is intended for everyone in South Sudan who diagnoses and treats malaria, and advises on how to prevent it. This article gives an overview of the epidemiology of malaria, the parasite's lifecycle and the pathophysiology of the disease. There is more information in items listed at the end of the article. Also in this issue of the journal are two articles on the diagnosis of malaria. Treatment and prevention will be covered in future issues.


This thesis aims to describe 1) whether and to what extent the optimizing of Mind Mapping can improve students' thinking skill in reading comprehension; 2) the difficulties of the implementation of Mind Mapping to improve students' thinking skill in reading comprehension.This action research is conducted collaboratively with one of reading lecturer of IKIP PGRI Madiun, in 4A class. This action research was carried out in two cycles which consist of planning, implementing, observing and reflecting. The qualitative data are collected using field notes, diary, questionnaire,interview and documentation. Then, the qualitative data are analyzed through data reduction, data display, and conclusion and verification .  The quantitative data are collected using test.  The test consists of pre-test and post test. The quantitative data are analyzed through descriptive statistics to compare the result of pre-test and post test.The research findings show that Mind Mapping can improve students' thinking skill in reading comprehension such as: 1) the mean score of the students' thinking skill was increased from 80,7 to 96,6 and all of students' scores were higher than the passing grade; 2) the total of students' right answer of each thinking skill indicator was increased such as: part-whole relation from 192 to 228, conclusion from 141 to 192, similarities from 172 to 200 and differences from 181 to 203; 3) in the implementation of mind mapping, the students got some difficulties such as: the students were confused when they cannot find supporting statements in all of their articles, they were confused to choose the key words or shorten the sentences for the mind mapping step 3, and they were confused to put the key words in mind mapping step 3, It was quite difficult to find articles with the same topic but comes from different resources that consist of the same subtopics inside it as seen in the interview result in attachment, It was needed 2 meetings to do all the mind mapping process that means the mind mapping technique is timeconsuming.  From all of the findings, it can be concluded that Mind Mapping can improve the students' thinking skill in reading comprehension. It can be seen from the students' score improvement.In using Mind Mapping to improve the students' thinking skill, the lecturer should let the student to find their own articles and provide the students a time to consult all their problems in doing the mind mapping.Key words: Mind Mapping, thinking skill, reading comprehension, action research.


Research shows charter schools are more segregated by race and class than are traditional public schools. I investigate an underexamined mechanism for this segregation: Charter schools project identities corresponding to parents' race- and class-specific parenting styles and educational values. I use computational text analysis to detect the emphasis on inquiry-based learning in the websites of all charter schools operating in 2015–16. I then estimate mixed linear regression models to test the relationships between ideological emphasis and school- and district-level poverty and ethnicity. I thereby transcend methodological problems in scholarship on charter school identities by collecting contemporary, populationwide data and by blending text analysis with hypothesis testing. Findings suggest charter school identities are both race and class specific, outlining a new mechanism by which school choice may consolidate parents by race and class—and paving the way for behavioral and longitudinal studies. This project contributes to literatures on school choice and educational stratification.


With Canada becoming more accessible due to travel, the number of separated minors fleeing to Ontario is increasing. Under provincial legislation Child and Family Services Act, Ontario's child protection system unfortunately only has an age of protection up to 16 years. Consequently any separated minor arriving in Ontario who is 16 or 17 years old is left unprotected and alone. This paper will explore the settlement experiences of these specific separated minors through two perspectives. The opinions and criticisms of associates who work with Ontario's protection system and with separated minors will be explored, as well as the lived experiences of separated minors settling in Ontario will be examined. Ultimately this paper will highlight the importance of protection for all minors up to the age of 18.


Innate immunity is the principal sensor responsible of the local immune response to control mucosal bacterial contamination of the reproductive tract after parturition, triggering a pro-inflammatory process in the mucosa of the uterus, the vaginal and the cervix. However, knowledge about the inflammation process and outcome of the cervix in dairy cows is scarce even though it plays an important anatomic and functional role between the vagina and the uterus. The objective of the present study was to describe the cellular and humoral local innate immune response during clinical cervicitis (CC) in the uterus and vaginal fornix in pre- and post-partum periods of dairy cows. A retrospective descriptive study was performed involving 26 animals, characterized as clinical cervicitis cows (n = 19) and healthy cows (n = 7). Blood and mucus of the different compartments of the genital tract were sampled and records of the cows' genital exam were performed four times: −1 w (day −7 ± 2, prepartum), +1 w (day +7 ± 4), +3 w (day +21 ± 4) and +5 w (day +35 ± 4) postpartum. Clinical cervicitis was defined as cows exhibiting a cervix grade−2 and healthy cows were defined as a cow clinically normal with a grade-0 cervix at time +5 w. Blood white cell count, vaginal fornix and endometrial neutrophils percentage, and the concentrations of interleukin 1α (IL1), interleukin 8 (IL8), and α1-acid glycoprotein (AGP) in mucus were determined. The results showed that 23% of the cows were categorized as CC at time +5 w. Cases of CC with purulent vaginal discharge or subclinical endometritis shown the highest cytokine production. At +3 w, IL1, IL8, and AGP concentrations in the uterus and the fornix were significantly higher in CC than healthy cows (CH). In conclusion, the 3-week postpartum is a critical point to evaluate cytokines and acute phase proteins; where IL1 and IL8 variation kept a direct relation with neutrophils numbers and function. The presence of AGP in the endometrium infer a homeostatic proinflammatory protective balance effect, modulating the local uterine innate immune response during peripartum.


The shift towards a rights-based approach to health which has taken place over the past decade has strengthened the role of civil society and their organizations in raising and claiming the entitlements of different social groups. It has become obvious that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are central to any successful multi-stakeholder partnership, and they have become more recognized as key actors in health policy and programme development and implementation. There is a broad spectrum of NGOs active in the area of mental health in Europe which aim to empower people with mental health problems and their families, give them a voice in health policy development and implementation and in service design and delivery, to raise awareness and fight stigma and discrimination, and foster implementation of obligations set by internationally agreed mental health policy documents. With the endorsement of the Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020 and the European Mental Health Action Plan stakeholders agree to strengthen capacity of service user and family advocacy groups and to secure their participation as partners in activities for mental health promotion, disorder prevention and improving mental health services.


Aortic aneurysm (AA) is a potentially fatal disease with the possibility of rupture, causing high mortality rates with no effective drugs for the treatment of AA. The mechanism of AA, as well as its therapeutic potential to inhibit aneurysm expansion, has been minimally explored. Small non-coding RNA (miRNAs and miRs) is emerging as a new fundamental regulator of gene expression. This study aimed to explore the role and mechanism of miR-193a-5p in abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA). In AAA vascular tissue and Angiotensin II (Ang II)-treated vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), the expression of miR-193a-5 was determined using real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). Western blotting was used to detect the effects of miR-193a-5p on PCNA, CCND1, CCNE1, and CXCR4. To detect the effect of miR-193a-5p on the proliferation and migration of VSMCs, CCK-8, and EdU immunostaining, flow cytometry, wound healing, and Transwell Chamber analysis were performed. In vitro results suggest that overexpression of miR-193a-5p inhibited the proliferation and migration of VSMCs, and its inhibition aggravated their proliferation and migration. In VSMCs, miR-193a-5p mediated proliferation by regulating CCNE1 and CCND1 genes and migration by regulating CXCR4. Further, in the Ang II-induced abdominal aorta of mice, the expression of miR-193a-5p was reduced and significantly downregulated in the serum of patients with aortic aneurysm (AA). In vitro studies confirmed that Ang II-induced downregulation of miR-193a-5p in VSMCs by upregulation of the expression of the transcriptional repressor RelB in the promoter region. This study may provide new intervention targets for the prevention and treatment of AA.


Purpose The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of root planing on the reduction of probing pocket depth and the gain of clinical attachment depending on the pattern of bone resorption (vertical versus horizontal bone loss) in the interproximal aspect of premolar teeth that showed an initial probing pocket depth of 4-6 mm. Methods In this study, we analyzed 68 teeth (15 from the maxilla and 53 from the mandible) from 32 patients with chronic periodontitis (17 men and 15 women; mean age, 53.6 years). The probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level at all six sites around each tooth were recorded before treatment to establish a baseline value, and then three months and six months after root planing. Results The reduction in interdental pocket depth was 1.1 mm in teeth that experienced horizontal bone loss and 0.7 mm in teeth that experienced vertical bone loss. Interdental attachment was increased by 1.0 mm in teeth with horizontal bone loss and by 0.7 mm in teeth with vertical bone loss. The reduction of probing pocket depth and the gain of clinical attachment occurred regardless of defect patterns three and six months after root planing. Conclusions The reduction of pocket depth and gain in the clinical attachment level were significantly larger in horizontally patterned interproximal bone defects than in vertical bone defects.


The purpose of this report is to establish the role of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in mitigating and adapting to the adverse effects of climate change. To achieve this, a comparative analysis was made between the measures in force in previous periods and the guidelines of the New CAP: 2023 - 2027. From a methodological point of view, the comparison is based on existing official documents of the European Union (EU), incl. strategies, evaluation reports, as well as the National Program for Rural Development of Bulgaria for several programming periods. The results of the study show that the importance of the CAP in tackling climate change is growing and the measures taken are increasing, but at the same time the progress made is insufficient. The main conclusion is that in the future, small farms will be the driving force for adapting to climate change and reducing adverse effects.


A common evidence network is a data structure that integrates evidence for relationships between genes from disparate data sources and across data types. It is an undirected weighted graph where nodes represent genes and edge weights are quantitative measures of confidence in the evidence linking two genes. We describe methods for producing edge weights for two evidence types: literature co-citation and similarity of Gene Ontology annotations. A tool was developed for identifying genes across multiple databases and consolidating selected annotations. Using gene synonym lists obtained from this tool, we extracted co-citations of genes from annotated biomedical abstracts as evidence. We developed a novel approach to interpreting the similarity of Gene Ontology terms annotated to genes. The method produces a score that quantitatively describes the similarity of Gene Ontology term annotations between two genes. We tested both methods on a set of genes sharing a common sequence feature.


Certain alterations have been revealed in the postnatal ontogenesis parameters of albino mongrel rats and their descendants constantly kept within the thirty-kilometer zone of the Chernobyl A.P.S. Structural disturbances have been found in bone marrow cell chromosomes.


To each generic tangle projection from the three-dimensional real vector space onto the plane, we associate a derived endofunctor on a graded parabolic version of the Bernstein-Gel'fand category $\mathcal{O}$. We show that this assignment is (up to shifts) invariant under tangle isotopies and Reidemeister moves and defines therefore invariants of tangles. The occurring functors are defined via so-called projective functors. The first part of the paper deals with the indecomposability of such functors and their connection with generalised Temperley-Lieb algebras which are known to have a realisation via decorated tangles. The second part of the paper describes a categorification of the Temperley-Lieb category and proves the main conjectures of [BFK]. Moreover, we describe a functor from the category of 2-cobordisms into a category of projective functors.


Committing Suicide is an awful way to die as well as a historical psycho-social problem of human community worldwide. Suicide is an action deliberately initiated and performed by a person with complete awareness of its fatal outcome, prevalence of which is very rare in developed countries, but it is reported with more frequency in Baltic region, Africa (including Egypt), The Middle East (including Iran), The Far East, particularly India and Vietnam. Its rate has ranged from10 per 100,000 people/year in Egypt, and up to 35 per 100,000 people/year in Baltic region (including Lithuania, Finland, and Russia). Categorically Iran is the 93th country of the world in terms of suicide Rate, but self immolation in the reported suicides is very high. There are many different approaches of suicides based on culture, symbols, religion, geographical regions, genders and socioeconomic factors. Self-inflicted burn or self immolation is a common suicidal method. According to the American Burn Association, self- immolation is placed in burn injury category that required long-term treatment as well as social and emotional rehabilitations. Deliberative burn injuries are classified into self- inflicted (self-immolation) or else-inflicted burn (assault burn). In this review study, we try to focus on self- inflicted burn or self- immolation as the most dramatic and violent method of suicide. The present review article was aimed to assess the epidemiology of self immolation phenomenon and its associated factors as a worldwide problem, particularly in Iran and other developing communities. The main victims of this awful way of death are women who are considered the most vulnerable group in such societies.


The purpose of this study is to evaluate the association of abdominal fat thickness with obesity-associated metabolic risk factors. A total of 186 men and 350 women aged 30-78, who were voluntary participants in a community-based health screening program, were examined for body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and WC-stature ratio (WCSR). Using the ultrasonographic method, the maximum thickness of the preperitoneal fat layer (Pmax) and the minimum and maximum thicknesses of the subcutaneous fat layer (Smin and Smax) in the abdominal region were measured and the abdominal wall fat index (AFI=Pmax/Smin) was calculated. Each measurement was used as a main predictor in the logistic model where the presence of a metabolic risk factor (high blood pressure, high triglyceride, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high glucose, and high uric acid) was predicted. Common covariates in the models were age, smoking status, drinking habit, and overall physical activity. Both WC and WCSR, which behaved in the same manner as BMI, showed a significant association with the majority of metabolic risk factors, but these anthropometric indices were not independent of the confounding effect of BMI. In relationship with atherogenic dyslipidemia, Smax in women and Pmax in both men and women were significant predictors independent of BMI. AFI was also found to be a BMI-independent predictor of atherogenic dyslipidemia in both genders. In men, AFI and high glucose were not significantly associated; in women, they were inversely associated. No measurement showed a significant association with high uric acid. Results suggest that ultrasonographic evaluation of abdominal fat is useful for identifying those at atherogenic risk. A larger sample of subjects in terms of body composition may be required to confirm the usefulness of ultrasonographic evaluation of high glucose.


BACKGROUND
Despite reluctance to conceive, approximately 30% of couples do not use any method of contraception. Health concerns, side effects, failure of the method and some demographic issues such as education, age, residential region and number of living children have a major effect on contraceptive use.

OBJECTIVE
The aim of the present study was to determine those factors which influence contraceptive use in Tehran.

METHODS
Data from the project "The Study of the Effectiveness of Postpartum Consultation about Family Planning on Contraceptive Practice during 2 years after Parturition in University Hospitals of Tehran in 1996" were applied for the analysis of those factors which influence contraceptive use by Iranian couples. A total of 4177 women of reproductive age who gave birth in one of the 12 hospitals in Tehran during the 24 hours following the interview of the initial study and had at least one living child were enrolled in the present study. The questionnaire used included some questions about socio-demographic status, fertility history, knowledge of contraceptives and the source of this knowledge, and previous contraception practice and its effectiveness.

RESULTS
Using a logistic regression model, it was found that age, women's level of education, their husbands' level of education and previous familiarity with contraceptive methods were the most significant factors influencing contraceptive use.

CONCLUSIONS
It is suggested that health policy makers strengthen the family planning services through providing appropriate counselling in family planning clinics.


Infection with the epidemic virulent strain of Streptococcus suis serotype 2 (SS2) can cause septicemia in swine and humans, leading to pneumonia, meningitis and even cytokine storm of Streptococcal toxic shock-like syndrome. Despite some progress concerning the contribution of bacterial adhesion, biofilm, toxicity and stress response to the SS2 systemic infection, the precise mechanism underlying bacterial survival and growth within the host bloodstream remains elusive. Here, we reported the SS2 virulent strains with a more than 20 kb endoSS-related insertion region that showed significantly higher proliferative ability in swine serum than low-virulent strains. Further study identified a complete N-glycans degradation system encoded within this insertion region, and found that both GH92 and EndoSS contribute to bacterial virulence, but that only DndoSS was required for optimal growth of SS2 in host serum. The supplement of hydrolyzed high-mannose-containing glycoprotein by GH92 and EndoSS could completely restore the growth deficiency of endoSS deletion mutant in swine serum. EndoSS only hydrolyzed a part of the model glycoprotein RNase B with high-mannose N-linked glycoforms into a low molecular weight form, and the solo activity of GH92 could not show any changes comparing with the blank control in SDS-PAGE gel. However, complete hydrolyzation was observed under the co-incubation of EndoSS and GH92, suggesting GH92 may degrade the high-mannose arms of N-glycans to generate a substrate for EndoSS. In summary, these findings provide compelling evidences that EndoSS-related N-glycans degradation system may enable SS2 to adapt to host serum-specific availability of carbon sources from glycoforms, and be required for optimal colonization and full virulence during systemic infection.


We present a case of a 19-year-old woman treated in the Neurosurgery Department of Collegium Medicum of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków because of the clival chordoma. The patient with one year anamnesis, treated surgically and then rehabilitated, was examined 12 years after she left our department. Radiologically we did not find tumor regrowth. We only found diplopia, but this sign was present from the time of the operation. Such a long time of katamnesis proves possibility of total removal in this type of tumors.


We generalise the existence of combinatorial designs to the setting of subset sums in lattices with coordinates indexed by labelled faces of simplicial complexes. This general framework includes the problem of decomposing hypergraphs with extra edge data, such as colours and orders, and so incorporates a wide range of variations on the basic design problem, notably Baranyai-type generalisations, such as resolvable hypergraph designs, large sets of hypergraph designs and decompositions of designs by designs. Our method also gives approximate counting results, which is new for many structures whose existence was previously known, such as high dimensional permutations or Sudoku squares.


ABSTRACT Pattern recognition receptors (PRR) sense certain molecular patterns uniquely expressed by pathogens. Retinoic-acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) is a cytosolic PRR that senses viral nucleic acids and induces innate immune activation and secretion of type I interferons (IFNs). Here, using influenza vaccine antigens, we investigated the consequences of activating the RIG-I pathway for antigen-specific adaptive immune responses. We found that mice immunized with influenza vaccine antigens coadministered with 5′ppp-double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), a RIG-I ligand, developed robust levels of hemagglutination-inhibiting antibodies, enhanced germinal center reaction, and T follicular helper cell responses. In addition, RIG-I activation enhanced antibody affinity maturation and plasma cell responses in the draining lymph nodes, spleen, and bone marrow and conferred protective immunity against virus challenge. Importantly, activation of the RIG-I pathway was able to reduce the antigen requirement by 10- to 100-fold in inducing optimal influenza-specific cellular and humoral responses, including protective immunity. The effects induced by 5′ppp-dsRNA were significantly dependent on type I IFN and IPS-1 (an adapter protein downstream of the RIG-I pathway) signaling but were independent of the MyD88- and TLR3-mediated pathways. Our results show that activation of the RIG-I-like receptor pathway programs the innate immunity to achieve qualitatively and quantitatively enhanced protective cellular adaptive immune responses even at low antigen doses, and this indicates the potential utility of RIG-I ligands as molecular adjuvants for viral vaccines. IMPORTANCE The recently discovered RNA helicase family of RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs) is a critical component of host defense mechanisms responsible for detecting viruses and triggering innate antiviral cytokines that help control viral replication and dissemination. In this study, we show that the RLR pathway can be effectively exploited to enhance adaptive immunity and protective immune memory against viral infection. Our results show that activation of the RIG-I pathway along with influenza vaccination programs the innate immunity to induce qualitatively and quantitatively superior protective adaptive immunity against pandemic influenza viruses. More importantly, RIG-I activation at the time of vaccination allows induction of robust adaptive responses even at low vaccine antigen doses. These results highlight the potential utility of exploiting the RIG-I pathway to enhance viral-vaccine-specific immunity and have broader implications for designing better vaccines in general.


In this work, an analytical approach is presented for modeling the capacitance of crystalline silicon solar cells. Based on a one-dimensional modeling of the cell, the excess minority carrier density, the photovoltage, and the capacitance are calculated. The motivation of this work are two-fold: to show base doping density and illumination effects on the capacitance of silicon solar cells, and to propose a determination technique for both dark capacitance and base doping density from C-V characteristics.


We have recently demonstrated a passive, picosecond, Si optical-limiting switch for 1 micron radiation. Since this device functions below, at, and above the Si melting threshold, its operating characteristics are determined by a large number of mechanisms including nonlinear transmission, self-diffraction, nonlinear reflection, phase transitions, and resolidification morphologies. Here, we review measurements in which we apply a wide variety of picosecond spectroscopic techniques in order to characterize these optically-induced phenomena.


In a retrospective study of 4,946 cerebral palsied patients, 624 (14%) had acquired the disease. This varied with the type of cerebral palsy, from 5% in athetoids to 30% in spastic hemiplegics. Encephalopathies accounted for 57% of acquired cerebral palsy, skull traumas for 18%, meningitis for 12%, vascular accidents for 8%, and all others for 5%. Sixty-five percent was acquired before the age of 2 years and 92% before 8 years. The type of cerebral palsy varies with etiology, spastic hemiplegia being most common in the vascular group. Males predominate except in the vascular accidents group. Acquired juvenile cerebral palsy is a connecting link between the congenital forms and those acquired in adult and senile life.


We report the electroluminescence (EL) enhancement of polymer light-emitting diodes made by the dispersion of poly[2-methoxy-5-(2′-ethyl hexyloxy)–1,4-phenylene vinylene] (MEH–PPV) into poly(9-vinylcarbazole) (PVK). From the photoluminescence and EL spectra of the polymer blend films, we found that, because of the dilution effect, interchain interactions in MEH–PPV were reduced markedly. The EL spectrum indicated that the charge-trapping effect contributed to the formation of excitons at the MEH–PPV centers and, thus, strongly enhanced EL. Because of the balance between increasing trapping centers and suppressing interchain interactions, the best device performance was achieved when the polymer blend contained 12% MEH–PPV and 88% PVK (weight ratio), and this also led to improved color purity of the polymer blend devices. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010


In 2011 researchers published a paper that exposed a puzzling paradox: the happiest states in the U.S. also tend to have the highest suicide rates. In the current study, we re-examine this relationship by combining data from the Multiple Mortality Cause-ofDeath Records, the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, and the American Communities Survey to determine how subjective well-being and suicide are related across 1563 U.S. counties. We extend the original study in important ways: by incorporating both absolute and relative measures of subjective well-being; by examining the happinesssuicide association at a more suitable level of analysis; and by including a more robust set of control variables in the model. Contrary to the previous study, we do not observe any significant relationship, negative or positive, between the absolute and relative well-being of places and suicide rates at the county-level. Implications for the study of suicide rates and relative deprivation are discussed.


Asthma is successfully treated in most patients through the use of conventional corticosteroid therapy. The majority (90 to 95%) of patients respond effectively to moderate doses of inhaled corticosteroids with minimal side effects. Nevertheless, there is a small population of asthmatic patients, including present and ex-cigarette smokers, who fail to respond adequately to corticosteroid treatment even at high doses or with the addition of supplementary therapy. These patients account for a disproportionate amount of healthcare costs because they exacerbate more frequently and are more likely to be admitted to hospital due to their asthma. Cigarette smoking is an important factor associated with corticosteroid resistance in asthmatics, and there is scope for the development of novel therapies to target this subgroup of asthmatics. This review summarizes the various hypotheses underlying corticosteroid insensitivity in smoking asthmatics and discusses the development of potential novel therapies based on these concepts.


FENG SHI: Modeling Networks and Dynamics in Complex Systems: from Nano-Composites to Opinion Formation (Under the direction of M. Gregory Forest and Peter J. Mucha) Complex networks are ubiquitous in systems of physical, biological, social or technological origin. Components in those systems range from as large as cities in power grids, to as small as molecules in metabolic networks. Since the dawn of network science, significant attention has focused on the implications of dynamics in establishing network structure and the impact of structural properties on dynamics on those networks. The first part of the thesis follows this direction, studying the network formed by conductive nanorods in nano-materials, and focuses on the electrical response of the composite to the structure change of the network. New scaling laws for the shear-induced anisotropic percolation are introduced and a robust exponential tail of the current distribution across the network is identified. These results are relevant especially to "active" composite materials where materials are exposed to mechanical loading and strain deformations. However, in many real-world networks the evolution of the network topology is tied to the states of the vertices and vice versa. Networks that exhibit such a feedback are called adaptive or coevolutionary networks. The second part of the thesis examines two closely related variants of a simple, abstract model for coevolution of a network and the opinions of its members. As a representative model for adaptive networks, it displays the feature of self-organization of the system into a stable configuration due to the interplay between the network topology and the dynamics on the network. This simple model yields interesting dynamics and the slight change in the rewiring strategy results in qualitatively different behaviors of the system. In conclusion, the dissertation aims to develop


El'gygytgyn (Chukotka, Arctic Russia) is a well‐preserved impact structure, mostly excavated in siliceous volcanic rocks. For this reason, the El'gygytgyn structure has been investigated in recent years and drilled in 2009 in the framework of an ICDP (International Continental Scientific Drilling Program) project. The target rocks mostly consist of rhyodacitic ignimbrites and tuffs, which make it difficult to distinguish impact melt clasts from fragments of unshocked target rock within the impact breccia. Several chemical and petrologic attempts, other than dating individual clasts, have been considered to distinguish impact melt from unshocked volcanic rock of the targets, but none has proven reliable. Here, we propose to use cathodoluminescence (imaging and spectrometry), whose intensity is inversely correlated with the degree of shock metamorphism experienced by the investigated lithology, to aid in such a distinction. Specifically, impact melt rocks display low cathodoluminescence intensity, whereas unshocked volcanic rocks from the area typically show high luminescence. This high luminescence decreases with the degree of shock experienced by the individual clasts in the impact breccia, down to almost undetectable when the groundmass is completely molten. This might apply only to El'gygytgyn, because the luminescence in volcanic rocks might be due to devitrification and recrystallization processes of the relatively old (Cretaceous) target rock with respect to the young impactites (3.58 Ma). The alteration that affects most samples from the drill core does not have a significant effect on the cathodoluminescence response. In conclusion, cathodoluminescence imaging and spectra, supported by Raman spectroscopy, potentially provide a useful tool for in situ characterization of siliceous impactites formed in volcanic target.


Oral leukoplakia is the most common potentially malignant oral disorder. Oral leukoplakia's malignant potential is independent of the histopathological grade, and the malignant transformation rate varies greatly from 3% to 50% even in the case of severe epithelial dysplasia. Ethnic & environmental variables may contribute to this variation. C-kit immunohistochemistry was performed on 15 oral leukoplakia (OL), two oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and two dentigerous cysts (DC). The objective of this study was to evaluate the c-kit expression in oral leukoplakia. The use of various immunohistochemical markers to differentiate between OLs with a high and low risk of malignant transformation has been investigated. Only four OL exhibited a faint cytoplasmic expression in basal cells. Whereas, OSCC and DC were devoid of c-kit expression. Thus, this may not be a unique marker for identifying OL at high-risk. Further research with larger sample size is required. Key Words: CD 117, Disease progression, Oral dysplasia, Oral leukoplakia, Risk prediction.


The World Health Organization has a 5-point family planning program. They give counseling to the subfertile, to women who wish to monitor or regulate their fertile periods, to parents concerning their family responsibility, and to people who need any kind of counseling for emotional or sexual problems. Scientific research in the areas of sterility and fertility comprises the 5th point of the program.


The per diagnosis basis of payment provides an incentive for hospitals to place Medicare patients in a nonacute care setting as soon as medically appropriate. As a result, there has been growing interest among hospitals in developing "arrangements" with nearby nursing homes to reserve beds for hospital patients who no longer require acute care. Before entering into a bed reserve agreement, a hospital and nursing home must carefully examine the economic considerations--cost, revenue, and price. Such an analysis will determine if a bed reserve agreement benefits both the parties concerned.


Electronic warfare (EW) is an important capability that can advance desired military, diplomatic, and economic objectives or, conversely, impede undesired ones. In a military application, EW provides the means to counter, in all battle phases, hostile actions that involve the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum-from the beginning when enemy forces are mobilized for an attack, through to the final engagement. EW exploits the EM environment by sensing and analyzing an adversary's application of the spectrum and imposing appropriate countermeasures (CMs) to hostile spectrum use. EW sensors are one means by which the military gathers tactical intelligence from noncooperative forces. EW sensors, together with EW CMs, mitigate the effectiveness of an adversary's electrooptic/infrared, and radio frequency-controlled weapons. EW enhances the survivability of the host force through control and manipulation of the EM environment and denies or limits its use by an adversary. EM spectrum CMs to threat systems can be selectively applied on a time- and/or frequency-multiplexed basis so that host force use of the EM spectrum is uninhibited.


In this response to Ribeiro and Lima's paper on interactional expertise, we argue that, by not incorporating the insights of constructivist social science, their analysis goes backwards rather than advancing the debate. We show that much of the evidence they present does not lead to the conclusions they draw. We also critically examine the idea of physical contiguity, which forms a central part of Ribeiro and Lima's position. We show that its meaning is ambiguous. We conclude by suggesting that more research on the nature and influence of physical contiguity would be interesting in its own right but that it would not bear on the notion of interactional expertise.


Using an auditory variant of task switching, we examined the ability to intentionally switch attention in a dichotic-listening task. In our study, participants responded selectively to one of two simultaneously presented auditory number words (spoken by a female and a male, one for each ear) by categorizing its numerical magnitude. The mapping of gender (female vs. male) and ear (left vs. right) was unpredictable. The to-be-attended feature for gender or ear, respectively, was indicated by a visual selection cue prior to auditory stimulus onset. In Experiment 1, explicitly cued switches of the relevant feature dimension (e.g., from gender to ear) and switches of the relevant feature within a dimension (e.g., from male to female) occurred in an unpredictable manner. We found large performance costs when the relevant feature switched, but switches of the relevant feature dimension incurred only small additional costs. The feature-switch costs were larger in ear-relevant than in gender-relevant trials. In Experiment 2, we replicated these findings using a simplified design (i.e., only within-dimension switches with blocked dimensions). In Experiment 3, we examined preparation effects by manipulating the cueing interval and found a preparation benefit only when ear was cued. Together, our data suggest that the large part of attentional switch costs arises from reconfiguration at the level of relevant auditory features (e.g., left vs. right) rather than feature dimensions (ear vs. gender). Additionally, our findings suggest that ear-based target selection benefits more from preparation time (i.e., time to direct attention to one ear) than gender-based target selection.


Steady flattening of the tumor, increasing reflectivity and decreasing vascularity are echographic signs of successful irradiation treatment. The specific example of an irradiated choroidal melanoma shows that the absence of echographic changes by no means excludes tumor destruction. Because of a dense vitreous body hemorrhage, the melanoma could only be evaluated echographically. Since the echogram lacked evidence of regression, the tumor was locally resected 5 months later. Histology, however, revealed an amorphous mass of dead tissue pervaded by intact vessels. Apparently a successfully irradiated melanoma may generate an echo typical of vital melanoma tissue. The authors therefore draw the conclusion that only a steady tumor growth, as substantiated by an echogram, may be considered an unambiguous sign of tumor vitality.


Fiqh as Islamic law that regulates the pattern of human relations with God and each other, takes part in discussing the relationship between humans and their environment. The role of fiqh in the matter of efforts to maintain environmental harmony by providing rules or codes of ethics for human relations with their environment. Such as the prohibition of damaging the environment and the obligation to preserve the environment. The arrangement of environmental law is based on tafsiliy arguments, namely al-Qur'an-al-Hadith, and general principles of legal legislation.
When fiqh takes part in environmental preservation, it is hoped that there will be new awareness for all mukallaf, especially awareness related to environmental problems. They have a high concern for the environment. Giving rights that belong to the environment, such as the right to live and the right to develop, not to seize and exploit. That way the environment remains sustainable, beautiful and conducive. Humans and all other creatures will peacefully inhabit this rice field. There is no longer the threat of global catastrophe that currently haunts people's days.


The paper studies the development of migration processes to and from Bulgaria and their impact on the country's economic development. More specifically, it addresses the characteristics and trends of emigration from Bulgaria and those of immigration to the country. Its aim is to explore the complex internal structure and trends in individual migration flows in a very interesting historical period in which two strong external factors influence Bulgaria, the EU and the whole world in general – the global financial and economic crisis and the refugee crisis. In this environment, the processes are developing dynamically, changing the balances in the various migrant groups and increasing the unpredictability of migration. The paper firstly presents the European labour market and the free movement of people as external environment of migratory movements. It studies all structural features of outgoing migration, then the characteristics of incoming migration to the country. Lastly, it assesses the demographic and economic effects of immigration. Instead of a conclusion, the paper draws some recommendations on some effective policies to deal with the negative effects of emigration.


Mycorrhizae are symbiotic associations between soil fungi and plant roots, which enhance mineral nutrition for the plant, and might play an important role in metals acquisition and accumulation. The processes allowing metals mobilization in the soil, absorption by the root and/or the fungus, transfer or bioaccumulation are still poorly understood. However, the properties of mycorrhizal fungi could be used for phytoremediation, a soft technique using plants for the clean-up of metal polluted soils. In this work, mycorrhized roots of tomato plants grown in a Zn-contaminated soil were investigated. The distribution of metals and the speciation of Zn were studied at the micron scale using micro synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence (pSXRF) and micro X-ray absorption spectroscopy (μEXAFS). Zn associated to the root was Zn malate and/or Zn citrate, and Zn associated to the fungus was Zn phyllosilicate. This study illustrates the great potential of X-ray microbeams for the study of biological samples containing various amounts of metals.


Modern construction projects are operated in extremely uncertain environments. Uncertainties affect the performance of projects. Despite an extensive body of literature in the area of performance assessment, there is a gap in knowledge pertaining to an integrated methodology for ex-ante evaluation of vulnerability of project organizations to the impacts of uncertainties. The objective of this paper is to address this gap in knowledge by creating a framework for ex-ante assessment of vulnerability in construction project organizations. In the proposed framework, construction project organizations are conceptualized as complex meta-networks and analyzed using dynamic network analysis. Accordingly, the impacts of the uncertain events (e.g., late design deliverables, equipment breakdown, safety accident and injury, and severe weather conditions) are translated into perturbations in different node entities (i.e., human agent, information, resource and task) and the corresponding links in project meta-networks. These uncertainty-induced perturbations cause transformations in the project topological structure, and thus, negatively affect the efficiency of project organizations' meta-networks. The extent of the variation in the efficiency is used as an indicator of a project organization's vulnerability to uncertainties. The application of the proposed framework is shown in a numerical example related to a tunneling project. Various scenarios related to different uncertain events were simulated to quantitatively investigate the vulnerability of the project and evaluate the impacts of different planning strategies on mitigating vulnerability. The results demonstrate the capability of the proposed framework for quantitative assessment of vulnerability and evaluation of planning strategies in construction projects. Hence, it provides a tool for proactive evaluation and mitigation of vulnerability in construction project organizations.