Abstract Building upon the transactional model of brain development, we explore the impact of early maternal deprivation on neural development and plasticity in three neural systems: hyperactivity/impulsivity, executive function, and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis functioning across rodent, nonhuman primate, and human studies. Recognizing the complexity of early maternal–infant interactions, we limit our cross-species comparisons to data from rodent models of artificial rearing, nonhuman primate studies of peer rearing, and the relations between these two experimental approaches and human studies of children exposed to the early severe psychosocial deprivation associated with institutional care. In addition to discussing the strengths and limitations of these paradigms, we present the current state of research on the neurobiological impact of early maternal deprivation and the evidence of sensitive periods, noting methodological challenges. Integrating data across preclinical animal models and human studies, we speculate about the underlying biological mechanisms; the differential impact of deprivation due to temporal factors including onset, offset, and duration of the exposure; and the possibility and consequences of reopening of sensitive periods during adolescence.


While people often carry mobile phones for communication purposes, they are generally underutilized as productivity tools, especially in the workplace. In this paper we present Courier, a system that leverages the storage capacity and communication capabilities of the mobile phone to facilitate the viewing and exchange of PC-based documents when users are away from their desks. We describe a formative evaluation of Courier"s use in a collaborative meeting setting and report on the results. While participants were enthusiastic about Courier overall, our study also highlighted usability issues that will require further refinement, such as users" concerns with privacy, reliability and speed.


Emigration among Afrikaners today
In contrast to the optimistic belief that a new dispensation would lead to reconciliation and harmony in the heterogeneous South African population, the post-1994 period has been characterised by an exodus of highly skilled South Africans - mostly Afrikaners. This article focuses on theorising about and research on current emigration trends among Afrikaners. A questionnaire survey among a random countrywide sample of 2 530 respondents in October/November 2001 is discussed. The results confirm that the intention to emigrate was highest among Afrikaans-speaking whites. Factors rated as most important in intentions to emigrate were personal and family security, the security of belongings, career opportunities and maintaining language and culture. Afrikaans-speaking whites rated their racial and ethnic groups as their most important social identities. It further appears that emigration may be fostered by an attachment to Western culture, and could be counteracted by strong ethnic identification.


Pretend play is a quintessential activity of early childhood, and adults supply children with many toys to encourage it. Do young children actually prefer to pretend, or do they do it because they are unable to engage in some activities for real? Here we examined, for nine different activities, American middle-class preschoolers' preferences for pretend and real activities. The 100 children we tested (M = 58.5 months, range 36 to 82 months) overwhelmingly preferred real activities to pretend ones, and this preference increased from age 3 to age 4, then remained steady through age 6. Children provided cogent justifications for their preferences. The results are discussed with reference to other domains in which children show reality preferences and with respect to the content of preschool curricula.


Abstract This article examines approaches and official discrepancies characterizing Western European rhetoric with regard to the Kosovo status question. Since the early 1980s, Kosovo has been increasingly present in European debates, culminating with the 1999 international intervention in the region and subsequent talks about its final status. Although the Kosovo Albanians proclaimed independence in February 2008 and the majority of the EU member-states decided to recognize Kosovo as an independent state, Western European rhetoric has been rather divided. This article shows that in addition to the five EU members who decided not to recognize Kosovo from the very beginning, and thus are powerful enough to affect its further progress both locally and internationally, some of the recognizers, although they have abandoned the policy of 'standards before status', have also struggled to develop full support for the province – a discrepancy that surely questions the overall Western support for Kosovo's independence.


Small nucleolar RNA host genes (SNHGs) as a subset of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have critical roles in the pathogenesis of multiple malignancies, however, the role and molecular mechanisms of lncRNA SNHG8 in osteosarcoma (OS) remain unclear. In the present study, the correlation of SNHG8 or miR-542-3p with clinicopathological elements and prognosis in OS patents was estimated by TCGA cohort. Cell viability and invasion were assessed by MTT and Transwell assays. The interplay between SNHG8 and miR-542-3p was affirmed by a luciferase report assay. The effects of SNHG8 on miR-542-3p expression were examined in MG-63 and SW-1353 cells by qRT-PCR analysis. The results showed that incremental expression of SNHG8 or reduced expression of miR-542-3p was related to poor survival and tumor recurrence in OS patients. Overexpressing SNHG8 accelerated the growth and invasion of MG-63 cells, but silencing SNHG8 harbored an opposite effect in SW-1353 cells. Additionally, SNHG8 could negatively regulate miR-542-3p expression and bind with miR-542-3p, which attenuated SNHG8 induced cell proliferation. Taken together, these findings indicate that lncRNA SNHG8 promotes the proliferation of OS cells by downregulating miR-542-3p.


The incidence and prevalence of alcoholism in the elderly population are tendentially underestimated. There are some reasons for this fact. The pathway to the diagnosis of alcoholism may be considerably compromised in the often comorbid or multimorbid patient. To live up to an advanced age seems to be a good argument against chronic substance abuse. Elderly people and their relatives are often still more reluctant to report about socially stigmatizing disorders. On top of that, the amount of social control is reduced after the end of employment and upon entering retirement. Yet, if alcohol-withdrawal symptoms occur, e.g., following an admission of the addicted patient to a hospital, the missed diagnosis of alcoholism means a delay of the correct interpretation of such complications and of the necessary treatment. Aged patients with reduced physical and mental reserve capacity are at special risk of developing further serious complications. Progressive, sometimes irreversible decay of the cognitive functions in long lasting delirious states or, as an aftermath of withdrawal, epileptic seizures are of particular importance.


The mechanisms for access to the physical channel used in the data link layer are one of the most controversial issues in Fieldbusses. Two approaches are widely used, the centralised and the distributed ones, the performance of which strictly depends on the traffic features. Whereas a centralised approach is efficient for cyclic traffic, the same does not apply to asynchronous traffic. In this paper we discuss and evaluate a new protocol, called the Slot Swapping Protocol (SSP), which is suitable for ring networks and makes it possible to meet the requirements of both cyclic and asynchronous traffic. The protocol, which is fully distributed, operates on a slotted ring and uses the principle of slot swapping to exchange data travelling on the ring. The ring is covered uninterruptedly by a slot train (with slots of a fixed length) which pass sequentially through all the stations. When a station needs to transmit information it uses a free slot, if there is one, or makes a swap, forcibly freeing a slot (in the way provided for by the protocol) and storing the swapped data in its local queue. This operation makes it possible to meet the time constraints of single messages and, although the system operates in a distributed fashion, it gives each station a global view of the traffic's time constraints. SSP guarantees respect of the time constraints of cyclic traffic, even when the workload is heavy, and the transmission of asynchronous traffic in as short a time as possible. Lastly, by using priorities, it allows critical variables (e.g. alarm signals) to be delivered in a very short time.


The validity of a comprehensive hypothesis such as the "new global tectonics" may be tested on the basis of either pragmatic usefulness or scientific acceptability. Unquestionably, this hypothesis has been extremely successful pragmatically in relating diverse geological and geographical observations and conjectures, thus sparking a revolution in the earth sciences, the effects of which will determine the dominant directions of research for years to come. Tests of the scientific validity of such a wide-ranging hypothesis are difficult to design and apply. The most convincing tests will involve prediction of behavior unrelated to the phenomena which the hypothesis was devised to explain. It is not surprising that the hypothesis is especially successful for the oceans. However, its application to orogenic belts, to deformation within continents, and to paleogeologic and paleoclimatic reconstructions is less obvious and has yet to be evaluated. These are difficult exercises. The demonstration that diverse geologic facts and inferences can be rationalized is permissive, but not compelling, evidence of scientific validity; essentially the same data have served to validate other quite different hypotheses. This paper points out some of the apparent weaknesses of the new-global-tectonics hypothesis and suggests some possible tests of the major tenets of the hypothesis.


In order to model fuse operation during circuit interruption, a detailed mass and energy transport analysis is needed. In this paper, using a novel method, the mass flow of the fuse element material, silver for this example, is presented. By neutron activation of part of the element, we are able, after interruption, to trace the distribution of the dispersed element material. We show that there is a silver mass coming from the arc ignition zone to the extremities, mainly in the direction of the anode.


Accelerated in vitro release testing methodology has been developed as an indicator of product performance to be used as a discriminatory quality control (QC) technique for the release of clinical and commercial batches of biodegradable microspheres. While product performance of biodegradable microspheres can be verified by in vivo and/or in vitro experiments, such evaluation can be particularly challenging because of slow polymer degradation, resulting in extended study times, labor, and expense. Three batches of Leuprolide poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) microspheres having varying morphology (process variants having different particle size and specific surface area) were manufactured by the solvent extraction/evaporation technique. Tests involving in vitro release, polymer degradation and hydration of the microspheres were performed on the three batches at 55°C. In vitro peptide release at 55°C was analyzed using a previously derived modification of the Weibull function termed the modified Weibull equation (MWE). Experimental observations and data analysis confirm excellent reproducibility studies within and between batches of the microsphere formulations demonstrating the predictability of the accelerated experiments at 55°C. The accelerated test method was also successfully able to distinguish the in vitro product performance between the three batches having varying morphology (process variants), indicating that it is a suitable QC tool to discriminate product or process variants in clinical or commercial batches of microspheres. Additionally, data analysis utilized the MWE to further quantify the differences obtained from the accelerated in vitro product performance test between process variants, thereby enhancing the discriminatory power of the accelerated methodology at 55°C.


In this article, I consider the importance of philosophy in the dialogue between religious believers and non-believers. I begin by arguing that a new epistemology of epistemic peer disagreement is required if the dialogue is to progress. Rather than viewing the differences between the positions as due to a deficit of understanding, I argue that differences result from the existential anchoring of such enquiries in life projects and the under-determination of interpretations by experience.  I then explore a central issue which is often implicit in these dialogues, namely the ontological status of God-world relations. Drawing on the reflections of Hegel on the infinite and the finite, I argue that his version of panentheism provides an insightful way to conceptualise God-world relations that avoids both dualistic and monistic approaches and helps to explicate a holistic ontology of transcendence from within the world of experience.


INTRODUCTION
The objectives of coronal restoration in the Endodontically Treated Teeth (ETT) include rehabilitation of aesthetics, function and prevention of coronal leakage. The long axis of root and the coronal segment in the maxillary anterior teeth varies according to the occlusal scheme. The restorative dentist is required to fabricate the post angulation in compatibility to contour of the adjacent teeth.

AIM
To evaluate the influence of the angle between the long axes of core facial surface and the radicular segment of the post on fracture resistance of ETT.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Total of 30 maxillary intact canines was root canal treated, sectioned 2 mm above the CEJ. The custom made nickel-chromium endodontic posts were fabricated using direct method. The samples were divided among three groups of 10 each. The angle between coronal segment and radicular segment of post in Group-I, Group-II, Group-III were 5°, 10° and 15° respectively. The teeth samples were cemented with full veneer metal crown and tested under universal testing machine. The static load at the angle of 130° was applied until the fracture to record the fracture strength. The obtained data was statistically analysed with ANOVA and Tukey post-hoc test.

RESULTS
The Group-III showed the highest fracture strength with 666.15 N. The Group-II and Group-I recorded the mean fracture strength at 443.37 N and 276.74 N respectively.

CONCLUSION
The endodontic post with higher angle between the long axis of facial surface and radicular segment long axis had the positive correlation to the fracture strength in ETT.


The main aim of the trip was to find an enigmatic aroid that was first collected as a sterile plant by the Australian plant enthusiast Dr. A. Dearden in 1990. The true identity of this Nephthytis-like plant, as we called it in the meantime, remained unclear and we thought that it was probably a new genus. It was collected in flower shortly (6 February 1994) before our trip by Dr. A. Hay of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney. We also collected this aroid in the rain forest and in relictual regrowth near Bintulu. It grows as scattered individuals on the forest floor. Living plants brought back to Germany and England have grown very slowly, although one plant has flowered in the Botanischer Garten Munchen. A thorough study of this aroid, including fruiting material, pollen morphology and chromosome count has shown it to be a new species of Nephthytis, a genus hitherto known only from the rain forest areas of tropical Africa. This is the first record of the genus Nephthytis in Asia. A similar disjunction of distribution occurs in the genera Amorphophallus, Arisaema, Remusatia, Rhaphidophora, Sauromatum, and Pothos (the last one in Madagascar and the Comores, not on the African mainland). However these occur in the Indian subcontinent as well. Nephthytis does not. The new Asian species has been described as Nephthytis bintuluensis by Hay, Bogner & Boyce (1994). Another interesting observation made during our trip was that Pedicellarum paiei M. Hotta (the only aroid with pedicellate flowers) has four growth stages: a monopodial juvenile 'shingle plant' with nearly sessile ovate to round leaves appressed to the trunk of the climbing support, a monopodial sterile semi-mature stage with differently shaped, petiolate leaves, a fertile sympodial stage with the inflorescences carried on numerous abbreviated side branches and a flagellate stage, with long whip-like growths bearing scale-like leaves, arising from the sympodial flowering stage. The flagellate shoots reach a length of several metres and continue to grow until they reach the ground or another tree at which point they produce roots and resume the second growth pattern described above.


This practice-led research is the result of an interest in graphic design as a specific critical activity. Existing in the context of the 2008 financial and subsequent political crisis, both this thesis and my work are situated in an expaded field of graphic design.
This research examines the emergence of the terms critical design and critical practice,and aims to develop methods that use criticism during the design process from a practitioner's perspective. Central aims of this research are to address a gap in design discourse in relation to this terminology and impact designers operating under the banner of such terms, as well as challenging practitioners to develop a more critical design practice. The central argument of this thesis is that in order to develop a critical practice, a designer must approach design as criticism.

Adopting a mixed methods approach to research, this thesis draws on 'action research'(Schon, 1983) and is aligned with the proposition of 'problem setting' instead of the established 'problem solving' approach to design, using the following methods: 1)workshops at the Royal College of Art, Sandberg Institute, University of Westminster and London College of Communication; 2) selection of projects from professional practice; 3) self-initiated research projects; 4) critical writing, including essays, reviews,interviews and in particular the publication 'Modes of Criticism'.

Following the theorisation of the terms critical design and critical practice, historical survey of criticism, politics and ideology in relation to graphic design, and reflection on the workshops and methods detailed above, this thesis proposes a critical method consisting of three dimensions: visual criticality, critical reflexivity and design fiction.
It argues that criticism as design method offers a fundamental opportunity to develop a reflected and critical approach to design, and more importantly, society. This method creates opportunities to develop a critical practice; one that shapes a continuous agency and interest in wicked, systemic and infrastructural problems with a constant ability to critically adapt and research their multi-layered nature. That will on the one hand help the designer to become a substantial agent of change and on the other, in particularly difficult circumstances of conflicted personal, private, disciplinary and public interest such as commercial practice, to find opportunities for criticality.


SummarySingle biomolecule sensing often involves quantification of multiple fluorescent species, coupled for example to different DNAs or proteins resides. While chromatic separation of the fluorescent species is well-established and broadly used it involves several limitations, particularly when the total photon budget is limited. Here we theoretically and experimentally explore the use of time-resolved fluorescence via Time Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC) to accurately quantify multiple fluorescent species. A modified maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) is introduced to include two fluorophore species, with the compensation of the instrument response. We apply this algorithm to simulated data of a simplified two fluorescent species model, as well as to experimental data of free fluorophores mixtures and doubly labelled proteins in order to estimate the errors in the two species ratios as a function of photon budget available. Moreover, focusing on the case of labeled proteins in which the ratios of the two species per molecule is a discrete variable subject to the chemical labeling numbers of the two dyes, we obtain that between 1,000 to 2,000 photons can already provide an accurate estimation of the dyes' ratio in labelled Ovalbumin proteins. These values correspond to roughly 100 to 200 photons per fluorophore suggesting a realistic path for dyes ratio determination from a single passage of a protein in the detection volume in roughly 10 ms timescale. Our results highlight the way in which temporal limitations of the TCSPC technique could hinder its implementation in systems with fast occurring events such as translocation of biomolecules through nanopores, or fast diffusion in single-molecule burst analyses experiments and provide estimation for the desired photon integration time.


Based on practical industrial process control, a typical configuration for networked cascade control systems (NCCSs) is analyzed. This kind of NCCSs with state feedback controllers, in which the network-induced delay is uncertain and less than a sampling period, is studied. The sufficient condition for the stabilizability of the NCCSs without disturbances is proposed, and the state feedback stabilization control laws are derived via Lyapunov stability theory and linear matrix inequality (LMI) approach. For the NCCSs with disturbances, the criterion of its robust asymptotically stability is derived and the ¿ -suboptimal state feedback H ¿ control laws are designed. The ¿-optimal state feedback H ¿ control laws are also put forward by optimizing a set of LMIs. A simulation example of a NCCS for the main steam temperature in a power plant is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approaches.


This paper proposes a type-2 self-organizing neural fuzzy system (T2SONFS) and its hardware implementation. The antecedent parts in each T2SONFS fuzzy rule are interval type-2 fuzzy sets, and the consequent part is of Mamdani type. Using interval type-2 fuzzy sets in T2SONFS enables it to be more robust than type-1 fuzzy systems. T2SONFS learning consists of structure and parameter identification. For structure identification, an online clustering algorithm is proposed to generate rules automatically and flexibly distribute them in the input space. For parameter identification, a rule-ordered Kalman filter algorithm is proposed to tune the consequent-part parameters. The learned T2SONFS is hardware implemented, and implementation techniques are proposed to simplify the complex computation process of a type-2 fuzzy system. The T2SONFS is applied to nonlinear system identification and truck backing control problems with clean and noisy training data. Comparisons between type-1 and type-2 neural fuzzy systems verify the learning ability and robustness of the T2SONFS. The learned T2SONFS is hardware implemented in a field-programmable gate array chip to verify functionality of the designed circuits.


In this work, we focus on estimating the proportion of gel created by Alkali-Silica Reaction (ASR) in concrete that can enter the Interface Transition Zone (ITZ) surrounding an aggregate at a given pressure. We consider the gel as a non-Newtonian fluid following a Darcy law with a threshold pressure gradient while invading a porous medium. We show that at equilibrium, the mass of gel that penetrates in the ITZ can be considered as proportional to the pressure surrounding the aggregates while the ITZ is not full yet, and then constant once the ITZ is full. This is fairly consistent with the common use of a "connected porosity" in the models dealing with mechanical features of ASR to estimate the volume of gel lost in the porosity. We also study briefly the kinetics of this process and the influence of the gel compressibility.


The Internet of Things (IoT) is enabling a multitude of new applications. Current systems exhibit inefficiencies which stem from applications being isolated and opportunities for sharing and contention resolution ignored. We propose a new system called Constellation that enables synergies between applications which we believe can make IoT systems more efficient. We explore such synergies and provide preliminary results to legitimize our approach.


The measurements of wafers' surface profile are crucial for safeguarding the fabrication quality of integrated circuits and MEMS devices. The current techniques measure the profile mainly by moving a capacitive or optical spacing sensing probe along multiple lines, which is high-cost and inefficient. This paper presents the calculation, simulation and experiment of a method for measuring the surface profile with arrayed capacitive spacing transducers. The calculation agreed well with the simulation and experiment. Finally, the proposed method was utilized for measuring the profile of a silicon wafer. The result is consistent with that measured by a commercial instrument. As a movement system is not required, the proposed method is promising for industry applications with superior cost and efficiency to the existing technology.


OBJECTIVE: Women with a history of preeclampsia have an increased risk of developing chronic hypertension and cardiovascular disease. However, little is known about the mechanism responsible for vascular disease in formerly preeclamptic women. The aim of our study was to test whether preeclampsia predisposes to central hemodynamic and renal impairments 20 years after pregnancy. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 22 formerly preeclamptic women and 29 parous controls participated, matched for body mass index, age, and date of birth. All women delivered in the period of 1979–1987. Measures included automated blood pressure, Doppler echocardiography, microalbuminuria, paraaminohippurate, and creatinine clearances. Hypertension was defined as blood pressure at or above 140/90 mm Hg, using antihypertensive drugs, or both. RESULTS: Hypertension was present in 55% of the formerly preeclamptic women and 7% of the women in the control group (P<.01). Mean arterial pressure was higher in the formerly preeclamptic women compared with those in the control group (100 and 88 mm Hg, respectively, P<.01). Peripheral vascular resistance was about 20% higher, renal vascular resistance about 30% higher, and renal blood flow about 15% lower in the formerly preeclamptic women compared with those in the control group (P<.05). Similar results were observed after stratification for hypertension in both groups. CONCLUSION: Both normotensive and hypertensive middle-aged, formerly preeclamptic women showed impaired central hemodynamic and renal function compared with parous controls. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II


This study was undertaken to establish the tartar control efficacy and long-term safety of a new dentifrice containing sodium hexametaphosphate. In a randomized, examiner blind, parallel group clinical trial, the experimental dentifrice with 7% sodium hexametaphosphate (5% hexametaphosphate anion), a non-abrasive cleaning agent that provides whitening and tartar control benefits, was compared to two currently marketed controls, a regular sodium fluoride dentifrice and a triclosan/copolymer dentifrice. The 8-month trial model included a 2-month pretest period to establish calculus formation after prophylaxis, and a 6-month test period to evaluate anti-calculus efficacy and safety. Following the pretest period, 551 subjects were allocated to one of the three treatment groups and then monitored for calculus accumulation and soft tissue tolerance. After 6 months, the sodium hexametaphosphate group exhibited superior calculus inhibition compared to the regular sodium fluoride dentifrice and triclosan/copolymer dentifrice (p < 0.01). Over the 6-month observation period, the sodium hexametaphosphate and the marketed control dentifrices were comparable in terms of adverse event type and severity, and no subject discontinued treatment due to an oral soft tissue adverse event.


Abstract Attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neuropsychiatric disorder that impairs academic, social and occupational functioning in children, adolescents and adults. It is characterized by excessive activity, restlessness, and nervousness. The disease occurs in general at children before the age of 7 and usually is not easy to be detected, due to various symptoms. When the diagnosis is established the physician can prescribe two types of drugs, stimulants: amphetamine, dexamphetamine, lisdexamphetamine, methylphenidate, and non-stimulants such as: guanfacine, atomoxetine, and clonidine. So what can be done for a person who has ADHD, and wants to be an elite athlete? Due to the rules established by the World Anti-Doping Agency the stimulant drugs are prohibited in competition and if traces of a prohibited substance are detected in the sample of blood of the athlete his access to competition can be blocked from 2-4 years, from that date of the incident. Fortunately for some athletes the disease was acute in childhood but as they grew up the symptoms were reminiscent and they could concentrate at the sporting task that was supposed to be achieved. What about those athletes that still have the symptoms? Well, they can be treated with the non-stimulant drugs, but their doctor must monthly verify if the list of prohibited drugs has been changed. In conclusion we can say that ADHD can be an impediment, but with the help of parents, teachers, and physicians the athlete can achieve very good performances.


Background The instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) is a vasodilator-free pressure-only measure of the haemodynamic severity of a coronary stenosis comparable to fractional flow reserve (FFR) in diagnostic categorisation. In this study we use hyperaemic stenosis resistance (HSR), a combined pressure-and-flow index as an arbiter to determine when iFR and FFR disagree, which index is most representative of the hemodynamic significance of the stenosis. We then test whether administering adenosine significantly improves diagnostic performance of iFR. Methods In 51 vessels intra-coronary pressure and flow velocity was measured distal to the stenosis at rest and during adenosine mediated hyperaemia. iFR (at rest and during adenosine administration, iFRa), FFR, HSR, baseline and hyperaemic microvascular resistance were calculated using automated algorithms. Results iFRa had significantly lower values than FFR and iFR (median iFRa 0.73 (0.58, 0.85) versus median FFR 0.84 (0.70, 0.89) and median iFR 0.93 (0.83, 0.98) p<0.001 for both). Despite this, differences in magnitude of microvascular resistance between indices did not significantly alter diagnostic agreement with HSR (ROC AUC: iFR 0.93 vs iFRa 0.94 and FFR 0.96, p=0.45). When iFR and FFR disagreed (4 cases, 7.7% of the study population), HSR agreed with iFR in 50% of cases and with FFR in 50% of cases. Conclusion iFR and FFR had equivalent agreement with classification of coronary stenosis severity by HSR. Further reduction in resistance by the administration of adenosine did not improve diagnostic categorisation. This suggests that basal iFR flow is sufficient to allow accurate discrimination of stenosis severity.


The Open Assembly Design Environment (OpenADE) project is an initiative at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to provide an integrated and augmented CAD environment for assembly design. The goals of the project are: (1) to identify representations and issues for the next generation of assembly-related standards and (2) assist designers with assembly considerations throughout the phases of a product's design— from conception to final process plan development. OpenADE's open architecture provides standard interfaces that allow it to link to commercial and non-commercial design tools: parametric design systems, virtual reality environments, assembly analysis tools, and assembly process planners. The OpenADE project has explored issues relating to knowledge representations, virtual reality, assembly-level tolerances, constraint-based specifications, and assembly process management. This article describes the OpenADE architecture and the components that have already been implemented. It also describes plans for extending OpenADE's assembly knowledge representations and handling of geometric and kinematic constraints.


Abstract: This work has as objective identifies the consumer's preferences about the consumption of salads from processed fruit in Vicosa, Minas Gerais. Specifically, it's identified the kinds of fruit to make the salad; the price the end user would be willing to afford for the product; the quantity of the product per package; the consumer's profile; these among other determining conditions for the consumption. From the collected data it was made a characterized statistics. The potential consumer has a profile of someone who has a tendency to make new acquisitions. It's a index to show that a product that was undergone to a research probably will be well accepted in the market. Related to the package, it could choose among five sizes: 50g, 100g, 150g, 200g and 250g. In a general way,  it's noticed that the fruit salad can be a market opportunity to the fruit sector of that region and it can be a specific market to flow the local production, specially that one from the Minas Gerais' Rural Area. Kewwords : Demand; Processing; Act of consuming.


John Duca reviews three episodes of "missing money," periods during which one of the monetary aggregates was unusually weak. Duca finds that in each of these episodes, an increased regulatory burden on banks encouraged households and firms to bypass the banking system in favor of nonbank financial liabilities and assets. Using a standard analytical framework, he shows how these shifts by investors can lead to cases of missing money and declines in banks' role in providing credit. Duca further shows that increases in bank regulatory burden can create potential problems for analysts in using either interest rates or real-time monetary aggregates as indicators of nominal economic activity. Given these findings, Duca argues that because regulatory changes have implications for conducting monetary policy, the Federal Reserve should continue to have a role in formulating bank regulations.


Thoracic spine pain (TSP) is a very common condition and can be just as disabling as cervical and lumbar pain. The causes of thoracic spine pain are numerous, ranging from less serious non-specific mechanical causes to serious specific underlying pathology. Chiropractors used to request routine radiographs as part of their diagnostic work-up, however limited correlation currently exists between radiographical findings and clinical symptoms in non-specific mechanical thoracic spine pain. The overutilization of plain film radiographs worldwide emphasises the need to investigate which clinical conditions in patients with TSP are sent for radiographs and if they were ethically indicated. Literature is currently limited on the role of thoracic spine x-rays and their influence on the management of patients with TSP. Objectives: The objectives of this retrospective study were: 1) to record the consultation at which thoracic spine radiographs were requested by the student or clinician and the reasons therefore, 2) to determine the number of incidental radiographic findings in the selected patients" radiographs, 3) to determine the suspected clinical diagnosis and management of the selected patients prior to referral for thoracic spine radiographs, 4) to determine any change in the clinical diagnoses and management following radiographic reporting of the selected patient"s radiographs, 5) to determine the correlation between the suspected clinical diagnosis and the radiographic diagnosis of patients with thoracic spine pain. Method: The archives of the Chiropractic Day Clinic (CDC) at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) were searched for all available thoracic spine radiographs and corresponding patient files of patients who presented to the clinic with thoracic spine pain from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2014. The ABCS (Alignment, Bone, Cartilage, Soft tissue) System was utilised to record data of the radiographs without any knowledge of the patient"s main compliant. The corresponding patient files were then evaluated with selected clinical variables being recorded. Statistical analysis and interpretation included frequency counts, percentages, mean, standard deviation and ranges for the descriptive objectives. The radiographic and clinical diagnoses were then compared in a two-by-two table to determine any possible relationships in diagnoses of patients with thoracic spine pain. Results: Thirty clinical files and their corresponding thoracic spine radiographs were analysed in this study. The mean age of the patients was 43.6 (± 19.1) years with a gender distribution of 40% males and 60% females. Statistical testing using paired t-tests in order to assess the correlation between the clinical and radiological diagnoses was not possible, as the categories were too different. The most frequent primary radiological diagnosis was both old trauma and scoliosis at 33.3%, followed by thoracic spondylosis at 20%. The majority of thoracic spine radiographs were requested at the initial consultation. The most common reasons for radiographic referral were severe, progressive TSP at 58.6%, trauma at 48.3% and persistent, localised TSP for more than four weeks at 37.9%. The diagnosis remained unchanged in 70% of the patients following radiographic examination. However, in 30% of the cases the clinical diagnosis was changed following radiographic examination. Most patients were diagnosed with non-specific mechanical causes of thoracic spine pain. A wide variety of treatment modalities were utilised before and after radiographic examination, including soft tissue therapy, electro modalities, spinal manipulative therapy and dry needling. A total of 66.6% of the patients in the study had changes made to their management protocol following radiographic evaluation. There was a greater use of spinal manipulative therapy, following radiographic evaluation at 56.7% versus only 26.7% of cases prior to radiographic imaging. Conclusion: Thoracic spine radiographs have little impact on the diagnosis and management of patients with thoracic spine pain as the majority of clinical diagnoses were non- specific mechanical causes of thoracic spine pain. Thoracic spine radiographs were influential in the diagnosis and management of 30% of the cases. Thoracic spine radiographs may therefore be over-utilised at the DUT CDC. However, the use of spinal manipulative therapy more than doubled following radiographic evaluation of the thoracic spine in patients with thoracic spine pain.


A palladium-catalyzed arylboration of norbornene or norbornadiene with aryl halides and bis(pinacolato)diboron has been disclosed. Mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction proceeds under a Catellani-type coupling to render versatile multifunctionalized alkylboranes in good yields. This reaction is complementary to the existing methods and is well tolerable with a variety of functional groups and readily scaled-up to a gram scale without deteriorating the yield.


Fractal dimensional analysis was employed to obtain a quantitative measure of the morphology of polymer networks formed by UV irradiation induced polymerization of photo-reactive mesogenic monomers dissolved in a liquid crystal host medium. The fractal dimensions obtained, may be interpreted by polymer network growth following a percolation-like model for monomer concentrations well below the solubility limit. On passing the solubility limit, the polymerization process changes from a (radical chain) solution polymerization to a dispersion polymerization, with fractal dimensions decreasing and suggesting a cluster–cluster aggregation process for monomer concentrations above the solubility limit, similar to the aggregation of colloidal particles.


Methods of estimating potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) crop nitrogen (N) requirement were compared by measuring petiole nitrate, total plant N content, or leaf area using data from an experiment with cv. Russet Burbank at Lincoln in the 1999-2000 season. The petiole test and the total plant N uptake test were difficult to translate into the amount of N required by the crop or to use in order to predict final yield. The relationship between petiole nitrate and yield varied considerably among this and other experiments. There was a close linear relationship between N content of the whole plant and plant fresh weight, but the relationship depended on the rate and timing of fertiliser application. There was a linear relationship between leaf area and plant N uptake, and maximum leaf area index was also closely related to final yield, suggesting that measuring leaf area could be a way of predicting plant N requirements and final yield.


Despite the growing interest of lexicological and lexicographical studies in frozen word combinations, some multiword lexemes are still partially unexplored. This paper focuses on a specific type of multiword lexical units: prepositional phrases functioning as noun modifiers (Multiword Adjectives - e.g. macchina a benzina , medico di turno , uomo in divisa , lavoro su commissione ). Multiword Adjectives are extensively used in Italian and remarkably spread across Romance languages. The analysis is based on two main assumptions: i. this kind of lexemes can be analyzed only considering the simultaneous interaction of multiple levels of analysis; ii. the notion of multiword has a scalar nature and has to be modulated along a continuum of frozenness. On the one hand this study aims at showing that these sequences represent a large and very productive class of multiword lexemes, sharing the same functions of adjectives. On the other hand, this paper intends to show the morpho-syntactic, semantic and distributional properties of different classes of Multiword Adjectives, using data extracted from a corpus of written Italian language.


Relationships between lobster postlarval supply and benthic recruitment were evaluated within and between oceanographically distinct segments of the range of the American lobster. Postlarvae (PL) were sampled by neuston nets in western Rhode Island Sound and the western Gulf of Maine, USA, from June to September 1989–95. Benthic lobsters were sampled in sublittoral cobble habitat by using a diver-operated airlift at the end of the settlement season. Average annual recruitment densities of young-of-year (YOY) lobsters ranged from 0.3 to 1.7 m-2. YOY recruitment was positively correlated between areas. Integrated seasonal abundance of postlarvae was often much greater in Rhode Island than Maine, but production estimates (PL 1000 m-2 season-1), calculated from moult cycle stages and temperature-dependent growth rates, differed by a factor of <0.5. PL production was positively correlated between areas and explained ≥81% of the annual variation in recruitment in each area and 90% for the two areas combined. In Maine, among-site differences in YOY recruitment persisted for a year after settlement and then began to lessen, at least in part because larger individuals moved into areas of initially lower recruitment


In this paper, a new approach to disclose the impact of politics on economic growth is presented: we use data derived from content analysis of party manifestos as measures of party preferences. In a panel of 23 OECD countries, we detect a positive impact of party support for various market-liberal policies on economic performance. In particular, we show that parties which were more concerned with market interventions and – to a lesser extent – welfare state policies impacted on growth negatively; those which proposed incentives for business as well as technology and infrastructure had a positive impact. Moreover, the robustness of the results is demonstrated in a model averaging framework. Classification: O40, H11, P16


This study investigated the impacts of playing in a natural environment on motor development in children. Methods from landscape ecology were applied for landscape analysis and entered into a Geographic Information System (GIS). Localization of play habitats was done by use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS). A quasi-experimental study was conducted on five-, six-, and seven-year old children with an experimental group playing in a natural environment and a control group playing in a more traditional playground. When provided with a natural landscape in which to play, children showed a statistically significant increase in motor fitness. There were also significant differences between the two groups in balance and co-ordination in favor of the experimental group. The findings indicate that landscape features influence physical activity play and motor development in children.


STUDIES REVIEWED Marin JM, Augusti A, Villar I, et al. Association between treated and untreated obstructive sleep apnea and risk of hypertension. JAMA. 2012;307(20): 2169–2176. Barbe F, Duran-Cantolla J, Sanchez-de-la-Torre M, et al. Effect of continuous positive airway pressure on the incidence of hypertension and cardiovascular events in nonsleepy patients with obstructive sleep apnea: a randomized trial. JAMA. 2012;307(20):2161–2168.


Novel HPLC methods were developed for the analytical and semipreparative resolution of new antianginal drug ranolazine enantiomers. Good baseline enantioseparation was achieved using cellulose tris (3,5-dimethylphenylcarbamate) (CDMPC) chiral stationary phases (CSPs) under both normal-phase and polar organic modes. The validation of the analytical methods including linearity, LODs, recovery, and precision, and the semipreparative resolution of ranolazine racemate were carried out using methanol as mobile phase without any basic and acidic additives under polar organic mode, using CDMPC CSPs. At analytical scale, the elution times of both enantiomers were less than 7.5 min at 20 degrees C and 1.0 mL/min, with the separation factor (a) 1.88 and the resolution factor (R(s)) 2.95. At semipreparative scale, about 14.3 mg/h enantiomers could be isolated and elution times of both enantiomers were less than 13 min at 2.0 mL/min. To increase the throughput, the technique of overlapping injections was used. The first eluted enantiomer was isolated with a purity of 99.6% enantiomer excess (e.e.) and > 99.0% yield. The second enantiomer was isolated with a purity of 98.8% e.e. and > 99.0% yield. In addition, optical rotation and circular dichroism spectroscopy of both ranolazine enantiomers isolated were also investigated.


Adequate blood supply is essential for tumor survival, growth and metastasis. The tumor microenvironment (TME) is dynamic and complex, comprising cancer cells, cancer-associated stromal cells and their extracellular products. The TME serves an important role in tumor progression. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are the principal component of stromal cells within the TME, and contribute to tumor neo-angiogenesis by altering the proteome and degradome. The present paper reviews previous studies of the molecular signaling pathways by which CAFs promote tumor neo-angiogenesis and highlights therapeutic response targets. Also discussed are potential strategies for antitumor neo-angiogenesis to improve tumor treatment efficacy.


Infection and pathological disorders, such as cellular disorders, ischaemia, neuropathy and angiogenesis, are considered the most critical factors which cause a delay in the wound healing process in patients with diabetes. This study aimed to investigate the effect of an ointment based on ostrich oil containing honey, beeswax, and ethanolic extracts of Nigella sativa, propolis and Cassia angustifolia on the wound healing process of diabetic rats. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis showed caffeic acid and pinostrobin chalcone molecules present in propolis, giving antibacterial and antifungal properties to the compound. The antibacterial assessment showed the ointment had remarkable antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (8.6±0.28mm), Escherichia coli (9.4±0.31mm), Acinetobacter baumannii (7.2±0.23mm) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (13.9±0.42mm). In vivo results showed the ointment significantly accelerated wound healing and increased collagen deposition compared with the control (p<0.05). Histopathology evaluation also showed hair follicles, sebaceous glands and vessels in the group that used the ointment. These results proved successful and diabetic wound healing was rapid. Therefore, it could be concluded that the fabricated ointment could be a suitable candidate for wound healing.


Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) address different business needs for manufacturers. There are several factors to be considered when integrating PLM and ERP which cover many different areas such as organization and cultural, business practice and technology factors. There are various approaches that a company can take to accomplish integration between PLM and ERP. Each approach will provide differing levels and complexity of integration, functionality, scope, and cost of implementation and support. Companies need to assess the issues described previously and select the best approach based on their specific needs, future plans, current infrastructure, and estimated cost. In this context, the data to be exchanged between PLM and ERP is identified and these data have to be communicated to the ERP from PLM. Data related to the manufacturing system should be stored and managed into PLM system. Also, the interaction frequency among PLM and ERP varies depending on the degree of product customization and needs to be addressed for integration. The main objective of the present work is to develop a framework for PLM and ERP integration module, based on ontologies, which resolves syntactic and semantic data conflicts. The proposed model would help in the optimization of enterprise systems, business processes and product development systems by the integration of complimentary desktop productivity applications, heterogeneous Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems, enterprise systems and Product Data Management (PDM) databases. ©2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of Conference Committee Members of 5th International Conference of Materials Processing and Characterization (ICMPC 2016).


We monitored the population size of the agile frog (Ranadalmatina) and the common toad (Bufobufo) from 2011 or 2012, respectively, to the year 2017 at a syntopic breeding site in the vicinity of Belgrade. Adult R.dalmatina population size had minor fluctuations during the years of study (from 351 to 108 frogs). On the contrary, the adult B.bufo population was widely fluctuating towards decline (from 1158 to 141 toads). In both species, population fluctuations were not significantly related to variation of meteorological parameters (air temperature, humidity, precipitation). Density dependence effects on population size were not detected in either species. Apart from possible effects of climate change, the indicated trend towards decline of the monitored B.bufo population could also be the outcome of common population fluctuations or of increasing anthropogenic impact (vicinity of settlement and agricultural land). More years of monitoring more than one population are required to obtain precise information. Nevertheless, our results seem to be coherent with other studies that recommend conservation action for this species.


Consider first the set of all possible n-way multinomial tables defined by certain mean cell proportions with a given number of total counts. Consider next the subset of these n-way tables that, in addition, satisfies certain one-way marginal totals obtained by summing the cell counts over all but one subscript. The subset of tables that satisfies these marginal constraints is said to have the multivariate extended hypergeometric (MXH) distribution. In this paper we develop a general algorithm for calculating the asymptotic variance of n-way MXH tables and present some explicit covariance formulas under independence and in other special cases. We also note that permutation tests defined by certain mean cell proportions and one-way marginal constraints essentially enumerate the entire set of MXH tables with those proportions and constraints. Thus, one can use the asymptotic MXH distribution to approximate the finite sample variances of statistics calculated un- der permutation tests for various null and alternative hypotheses. One can then use these results to construct confidence intervals for parameters of interest and to approximate the percentiles of test statistics under permutation tests, which is a significant advantage when these tests are computationally prohibitive. We illustrate the use of methods based on the asymptotic MXH distribution as com- plements and alternatives to permutation tests in the analysis of epidemiological studies of gene-environment interactions.


By using rigid microtubules (MTs) prepared by polymerization with guanylyl-(alpha, beta)-methylene-diphosphonate GMPCPP, giant straight-shaped MT bundles were selectively obtained through a dynamic self-assembly process. We demonstrate the effect of the rigidity on the shape and motility of MT bundle composed of GMPCPP-polymerized MTs (GMPCPP-MTs) compared with control MTs that were polymerized with GTP and stabilized with paclitaxel.


Background. X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH) is a rare, hereditary, progressive, and lifelong phosphate wasting disorder characterized by pathological elevations in fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 23 serum concentration and activity. In the oral cavity, spontaneous abscesses can occur often without any clinical signs of alteration of the causal tooth. The objective of our study was to evaluate the readability of the oral care pathway and the oral quality of life of patients followed in an expert oral medicine department located within a Parisian hospital and working in close collaboration with an endocrinology department expert in this pathology. Methods. This study employed a qualitative descriptive design including semi-structured interviews using guiding themes. Results. Twenty-one patients were included in the study, with an average age of 28 years. The topics discussed exceeded the initial objectives as the patients largely addressed the alteration of their oral and general quality of life, a very chaotic oral health care pathway with oral health professionals not aware of their pathology, consequences on their social, professional, and school integration and access to care complicated by financial factors. Patients reported the importance of having a multidisciplinary team around them, including medical and dental professionals.Conclusions. The variety of manifestations in patients with XLH necessitates a high coordination of multidisciplinary patient care to optimize quality of life and reduce disease burden. Education of oral health professionals on this disease is essential to enable patients to receive the best possible care as early as possible.


Mucosotropic human papillomaviruses (HPVs) cause prevalent anogenital infections, some of which can progress to cancers. It is imperative to identify efficacious drug candidates, as there are few therapeutic options. We have recapitulated a robust productive program of HPV-18 in organotypic raft cultures of primary human keratinocytes. The HPV E7 protein induces S phase reentry, along with DNA damage response (DDR) in differentiated cells to support viral DNA amplification. A number of small molecule inhibitors of DDR regulators are in clinical use or clinical trials to treat cancers. Here, we used our raft culture system to examine effects of inhibitors of ATR/Chk1 and ATM/Chk2 on HPV infection. The inhibitors impaired S-phase reentry and progression as well as HPV DNA amplification. The Chk1 inhibitor MK-8776 was most effective, reducing viral DNA amplification by 90–99% and caused DNA damage and apoptosis, preferentially in HPV infected cells. We found that this sensitivity was imparted by the E7 protein and report that MK-8776 also caused extensive cell death of cervical cancer cell lines. Furthermore, it sensitized the cells to cisplatin, commonly used to treat advanced cervical cancer. Based on these observations, the Chk1 inhibitors could be potential effective agents to be re-purposed to treat the spectrum of HPV infections in single or combination therapy.


Do investment disputes reduce foreign direct investment (FDI)? Investors may perceive host governments involved in arbitration as riskier. Yet a dispute may also signal new economic opportunities for firms hoping to enter the same industry as the disputant firm. These competing pressures mean the impact of disputes on FDI is ex ante unclear. However, the balance of risk and opportunity varies across industry fixed asset intensity (FAI). FAI is associated with both the irreversibility of investment, which influences risk, as well as the structure of the market, which shapes competitive opportunities arising from a dispute. We expect the rewards from investment to exceed risk as industry FAI increases. Using new data on industry-level greenfield FDI between countries from 2003 to 2015, we find that a coindustrial dispute reduces investment in industries with low FAI but increases FDI in those with high FAI. These results highlight the importance of heterogeneous investors.


In this paper, we develop a pseudo empirical likelihood approach to in- corporating auxiliary information into estimates from complex surveys. In simple random sampling without replacement, the method reduces to the empirical likeli- hood approach of Chen and Qin (1993). We show that the method is asymptotically equivalent to a generalized regression estimator in the case of estimating a mean or population distribution function with known population means for a vector of auxiliary variables. We go on to investigate, in a simple case, the incorporation of more complex auxiliary information, and demonstrate the resulting increase in efficiency using the proposed approach both theoretically and through a limited simulation.


[1] A chemistry-climate model has been applied to study the radiative forcings generated by aircraft NOx emissions through changes in ozone and methane. Four numerical experiments, where an extra pulse of aircraft NOx was emitted into the model atmosphere for a single month (January, April, July, or October), were compared to a control experiment, allowing the aircraft impact to be isolated. The extra NOx produces a short-lived (few months) pulse of ozone that generates a positive radiative forcing. However, the NOx and O3 both generate OH, which leads to a reduction in CH4. A detailed analysis of the OH budget reveals the spatial structure and chemical reactions responsible for the generation of the OH perturbation. Methane's long lifetime means that the CH4 anomaly decays slowly (perturbation lifetime of 11.1 years). The negative CH4 anomaly also has an associated negative O3 anomaly, and both of these introduce a negative radiative forcing. There are important seasonal differences in the response of O3 and CH4 to aircraft NOx, related to the annual cycle in photochemistry; the O3 radiative forcing calculations also have a seasonal dependence. The long-term globally integrated annual mean net forcing calculated here is approximately zero, although earlier work suggests a small net positive forcing. The model design (e.g., upper tropospheric chemistry, convection parameterization) and experimental setup (pulse magnitude and duration) may somewhat influence the results: further work with a range of models is required to confirm these results quantitatively.


The Arabidopsis aldehyde oxidase 3 (AAO3) gene encodes an enzyme that catalyzes the final step of ABA biosynthesis. AAO3 has been shown to be the major AAO involved in ABA biosynthesis in leaves under stress conditions. On the other hand, less severe phenotypes of the aao3 seeds suggested that other AAO(s) might also be involved in ABA biosynthesis in seeds. Among four AAOs (AAO1-AAO4), AAO1 and AAO4 were the AAO expressed most abundantly in dry seeds and developing siliques, respectively. Unlike aao3, single loss-of-function mutants for AAO1 and AAO4 (aao1 and aao4), failed to show significant changes in endogenous ABA levels in seeds when compared with wild type. While aao3 seed germination was resistant to the gibberellin biosynthesis inhibitor, uniconazole, aao1 and aao4 showed no resistance and were similar to wild type. These results indicate that AAO3, but not AAO1 or AAO4, plays an important role in ABA biosynthesis in seeds. Mutations of AAO1 or AAO4 in the aao3 mutant background enhanced ABA deficiency in seeds, demonstrating that both gene products contribute partially to ABA biosynthesis in the aao3 mutant background. However, considering the enzymatic characters of AAO1 and AAO4, their involvement in ABA biosynthesis in wild-type seeds may be negligible. We have concluded that AAO3 is the AAO that plays a major role in ABA biosynthesis in Arabidopsis seeds as well as in leaves.


We suggest a three-stage procedure to recover discontinuous regression surfaces when noisy data are present. In the first stage, jump candidate points are detected using a jump detection criterion. A local principal component line is then fitted through these points in a neighborhood of a design point. This line provides a first-order approximation to the true jump location curve in that neighborhood. In the third stage, observations on the same side of the line as the given point are combined using a weighted average procedure to fit the surface at that point. If there are no jump candidate points in the neighborhood, then all observations in that neighborhood are used in the surface fitting. If, however, the center of the neighborhood is on a jump location curve, only those observations on one side of the line are used. Thus blurring is automatically avoided around the jump locations. This methodology requires O(N(k * ) 2 ) computation, where N is the sample size and k * is the window width. Its assumptions on the model are flexible. Some numerical results are presented to evaluate the surface fit and to discuss the selection of the window widths.


Holliday Junctions are critical DNA intermediates central to double strand break repair and homologous recombination. The junctions can adopt two general forms: open and stacked-X, which are induced by protein or ion binding. In this work, fluorescence spectroscopy, metal ion luminescence and thermodynamic measurements are used to elucidate the ion binding site and the mechanism of junction conformational change. Förster resonance energy transfer measurements of end-labeled junctions monitored junction conformation and ion binding affinity, and reported higher affinities for multi-valent ions. Thermodynamic measurements provided evidence for two classes of binding sites. The higher affinity ion-binding interaction is an enthalpy driven process with an apparent stoichiometry of 2.1 ± 0.2. As revealed by Eu3+ luminescence, this binding class is homogeneous, and results in slight dehydration of the ion with one direct coordination site to the junction. Luminescence resonance energy transfer experiments confirmed the presence of two ions and indicated they are 6–7 Å apart. These findings are in good agreement with previous molecular dynamics simulations, which identified two symmetrical regions of high ion density in the center of stacked junctions. These results support a model in which site-specific binding of two ions in close proximity is required for folding of DNA Holliday junctions into the stacked-X conformation.


Broadbent's formulation is explicitly based on the concepts and language of information theory. The reviewer believes that such language should be employed freely in psychosomatic medicine because the one thing that is common to the psyche and to the soma and that can cross the barrier between the physiological and the psychological is information. If psychological functional relationships can be described clearly and accurately in this kind of language, the physiologist can seek similar patterns in the functions of the sense organs and the nervous system. Information theory applies to human observers, to nervous systems, and to electronic computers alike. Its generalizations are as powerful as the laws of thermodynamics, which have united physics, chemistry, and biology in a single conceptual system.


Objective and Background: To describe three Gypsy families with Marinesco–Sjögren syndrome (MSS), demyelinating neuropathy, and recurrent episodes of myoglobinuria in five of the six affected subjects. Because these families originated from the same genetically isolated founder population as did patients with congenital cataracts facial dysmorphism neuropathy (CCFDN) syndrome, and because the two syndromes have clinical manifestations in common, we hypothesized that the two related, albeit distinct, syndromes may represent clinical variants of a single genetic disorder. Methods: Clinical studies were conducted and linkage and haplotype analyses were performed for the three families. A total of 16 individuals, including the 6 with MSS and 10 unaffected relatives, were genotyped for six polymorphic microsatellite markers from the CCFDN region on 18qter. Results: Linkage analysis of markers in the 18qter region, where we previously had located the CCFDN gene, produced a lod score of 3.55, demonstrating colocalization of the gene responsible for MSS with demyelinating neuropathy and myoglobinuria with the CCFDN gene. Moreover, the patients with MSS shared the conserved marker haplotype found in CCFDN chromosomes. Conclusions: These data suggest that Marinesco–Sjögren syndrome with peripheral neuropathy and myoglobinuria, and congenital cataracts facial dysmorphism neuropathy syndrome are genetically identical and are caused by a single founder mutation.


Recent studies have shown that traffic safety and efficiency can be substantially improved by vehicle platooning, in which vehicles periodically broadcast their kinetic status to neighbors, known as  beacon message dissemination. As a networked control system, vehicle platoon has attracted significant attention from both the control and networking areas. However, few studies consider the practical traffic scenario with both platoons and individual vehicles, and the proposed beaconing schemes lack the deep understanding of relationship between the beaconing performance and the requirements of the control mechanism. To address these challenging issues, we propose a joint control–communication design to achieve reliable vehicle platooning in a more realistic traffic scenario, wherein the traffic consists of both platoons and individual vehicles, and both periodic beacon messages and event-based safety messages shall be delivered together. Specifically, we first develop a comprehensive control-theoretical analysis to understand how the vehicular communication can affect features of platoon driving; based on the understanding, we then propose and analyze an adaptive platoon-based message dissemination scheme; finally, we conduct extensive numerical experiments to validate the effectiveness of the protocol and to confirm the accuracy of the our theoretical analysis.


Abstract : An attempt was made to purify human erythrocyte transketolase (EC 184.108.40.206) by the use of solvent denaturation as the initial isolation step. This involved the use of 95% ethanol solution (-20 C) to denature a large amount of the hemoglobin and other non-transketolase proteins. Although the data obtained from this study did not contribute to sound statistical values because of the small sample size, they tended to support the application of the method as an effective initial step in the purification of human erythrocyte transketolase. The mean recovery of the enzyme for five trials conducted with blood obtained from three donors was 61 + or - 3%. The purification ranged from 21 to 23. The method permitted the removal of nearly 95% of the hemoglobin initially present. (Author)


We introduce a notion of Jacobi-Bernoulli cohomology associated to a semi-simplicial Lie algebra (SELA). For an algebraic scheme $X$ over $\C$, we construct a tangent SELA $\t_X$ and show that the Jacobi-Bernoulli cohomology of $\t_X$ is related to infinitesimal deformations of $X$.


Demonstrating the Xq27 fragile site in men with X-linked mental retardation and in obligate carriers is a continuing problem. I report two additional families with this disorder (Families F and G) and present cytogenetic data on females from four families (D-G). These data and those previously published suggest that there are two types of families in regard to fragile Xq expression in carrier females. One type shows no apparent phenotypic effect in the female and the demonstration on the fragile Xq becomes more difficult with increasing age, whereas the second type is associated with some phenotypic effect (ie, reduction in mental ability), and the fragile Xq can be demonstrated regardless of age.


Reference values for blood cell count are not established at birth in Mali. This study aimed to determine reference values for erythrocyte and leukocyte at birth in Bamako. Blood was collected from the umbilical cord immediately following its clamping and studied for complete blood cell count in 481 newborns with a birth weight > 2500g, Apgar score ≤ 7 at 5 or 10 minutes, without abnormal hemoglobin mutations and whose mothers were willing in Bamako, Mali. Other than the median and mean values, 2.5 and 97.5 percentiles were calculated. The findings suggest that the normal reference values following a timely clamping of the umbilical cord were (mean ± 1SD and range): RBC = 4,00 ± 0,46.1012/L (3,13 - 4,89), Hb = 14,12 ± 1,49 g/dL (11,20 - 17,00), Hct = 40,27 ± 4,71% (31,62 - 50,18), MCV = 101 ± 5 fl (91 - 112), MCHC = 35,37 ± 2,16 pg/cellule (30,70 - 39,59), MCH = 35,06 ± 0,93 g/dL (33,40 - 36,90), RDW = 17,79 ± 7,33% (15,50 - 20,39), Reticulocytes (109/L) = 133,081 ± 29,95 (66,62 - 200,86), GB (109/L) = 13,24 ± 7,23 (7,20 - 23,70), PMN (109/L) = 7,16 ± 4,70 (3,07 - 14,22), PME (109/L) = 0,28 ± 0,26 (0 - 0,98), PMB(109/L) = 0,05 ± 0,09 (0 - 0,31), Lymphocytes (109/L) = 4,49 ± 2,45 (1,96 - 9,42), Monocytes (109/L) = 1,06 ± 0,73 (0,21 - 2,54), myelocytes = 1.43 ± 1.51%, erythroblasts = 4.52 ± 7.83%. It should be noted that male babies had a lower neutrophil count than female newborns. By taking into account these results when interpreting the blood cell count in Malian newborn infants, costly misdiagnoses should be considerably decreased in a population struggling with low incomes.


There is increasing evidence that plant-associated microorganisms play important roles in shaping interactions between plants and insect herbivores. Studies of both pathogenic and beneficial plant microbes have documented wide-ranging effects on herbivore behavior and performance. Some studies, for example, have reported enhanced insect-repellent traits or reduced performance of herbivores on microbe-associated plants, while others have documented increased herbivore attraction or performance. Insect herbivores frequently rely on plant cues during foraging and oviposition, suggesting that plant-associated microbes affecting these cues can indirectly influence herbivore preference. We review and synthesize recent literature to provide new insights into the ways pathogenic and beneficial plant-associated microbes alter visual, olfactory, and gustatory cues of plants that affect host-plant selection by insect herbivores. We discuss the underlying mechanisms, ecological implications, and future directions for studies of plant-microbial symbionts that indirectly influence herbivore behavior by altering plant traits.


This paper details the development and application of a novel pressure-tight sampler with a metal seal capable of acquiring high-purity fluid samples from deep-sea hydrothermal vents. The sampler has a titanium diaphragm valve for sampling and a flexible titanium foil bag to store the fluid sample. Hence, all parts of the sampler in contact with the sample are made of titanium without elastomer O-ring seals to minimize the organic carbon blank of the sampler, which makes it suitable for collecting organic samples. A pressure-tight structure was specially designed to maintain the sample at in situ pressure during the recovery of the sampler. The sampler has been successfully tested in a sea trial from November 2018 to March 2019, and pressure-tight hydrothermal fluid samples have been collected.


The aim of the present study was to verify the expression of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha mRNA by semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in unstimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (MNCs) of 15 relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who underwent treatment with IFN-beta 1a (6 millions of international units (MIU) i.m. once a week) and in 15 untreated MS patients matched for age and expanded disability status score (EDSS). At the same time the expression of TNF-alpha mRNA was assessed in 10 healthy age-matched control subjects. All MS patients were assessed at the basal time and after 6 months. At the basal time, the band of TNF-alpha mRNA was detectable in 12 out of the 15 untreated patients and in 13 out of the 15 patients who underwent IFN-beta 1a treatment. The higher TNF-alpha mRNA was evident in patients with gadolinium-enhancing lesions. At the 6-month follow-up, 13 out of the 15 untreated patients still had detectable values of TNF-alpha mRNA and no significant difference emerged when compared with basal time. On the contrary, the expression of TNF-alpha mRNA was absent at the same time in nine out of the 15 patients treated with IFN-beta 1a. A longitudinal analysis carried out monthly in eight MS patients (four untreated and four treated) revealed a transient increase in TNF-alpha mRNA expression in MNCs of all four treated patients in the first 3 months, supporting previous findings of an early immunoenhancing effect of IFN-beta 1a. This early activation is followed by an inhibitory effect of IFN-beta 1a on TNF-alpha mRNA expression in about 2/3 of treated MS patients when assessed at 6 months. Further long-term studies are needed to confirm this immunomodulatory effect of IFN-beta 1a not only on TNF-alpha but also on other cytokines of Th(1)and Th(2)types.


Abstract: This repeated measure experiment study aimed to explore LINUS students or Low Achiever (LA) students' improvement in learning English language vocabularies using Mobile Augmented Visual Reality (MAVR). It specifically tried to analyse the effect of MAVR on the English vocabulary development of 45 primary school students from the LINUS programme in Selangor. In this study, they were provided access to an AVR-game based apps in learning English vocabularies with mobile computing devices. Vocabulary size was later measured using the British Picture Vocabulary Scale II and analysed with repeated measures ANOVA. Analysis showed that there was an increase in the scores and the differences between the levels of the within-subjects factor was significant. This implies that Mobile Augmented Visual Reality (MAVR) materials can be used as an interactive tool for LA learners in learning a language. Findings highlight the role of teachers in the implementation process and point out possible directions for more effective application of MAVR in this field.

Keywords: Augmented Reality (AR), LINUS students, Mobile Augmented Reality (MAVR), Visual Reality (VR), Vocabulary.


The paper discusses air (Ta) and sea surface temperature (SST) year-to-year variability due to warming of the Kara Sea, using the data from regular observations at the meteorological stations Roshydromet (GMS) in 1978–2017, NOAA optimum interpolation and reanalysis data. We use the methods of cluster, correlation analysis and Empirical Orthogonal Functions (EOF). We investigate possible cause and effect relationships of these changes with the variations of the wind field components, climatic indices and the sea ice concentration field. The cluster analysis of the three main EOF components has allowed us to identify four areas on the basis of the nature of changes of the water temperature anomalies field. The climatic changes in these areas, in the coastal and island zones of the Kara Sea have manifested themselves in the steady increase of the annual air temperature at GMS from 0,47–0,77 °C/10 years on the southwest coast to 1,33–1,49 °C/10 years in the north of the sea. This is equivalent to warming from 1,9 to 6,0 °C in the last 40 years. For the open sea the value of the Ta trend is about 1,22 °C/10 years, which corresponds to an increase in the average Ta by 4,9 °C in the last 40 years. This value is approximately 3 times greater than that for all the Northern hemisphere for the same period.Annualy, the maximal trend was observed in November and April mainly and exceeded 2–3 °C/10 years at some of the stations. We identify anomalously warm (2016 and 2012) and anomalously cold (1978, 1979, 1992 and 1998) years: the warmest year was 2012, the coldest — 1979. Positive SST trends were observed over all the sea area during the warm period of year (to 1 °C/10 years). SST increased to 2,4 °C, which is approximately 1,5 times greater than the corresponding SST values for the Northern hemisphere. The maximum SST trend (0,4 °C/10 years) was observed in the northwest and southwest parts of the sea. From June to August the trends of SST exceed the annual ones 1,5–2 times. Interannual SST and Ta variations are characterized by close correlation links. Until approximately 1998–2004 the warming was rather insignificant, and after that the growth rate of Ta and SST increased many fold. Apparently it indicates changes in the mode and the large-scale atmospheric circulation in the early 2000s. We also observed a trend of strengthening of the southern wind during the cold period of the year and the northern one — in the warm period (0,5–0,6 m/s in 40 years). It is shown that there is a close correlation between the Ta increase and the changes in the meridional component of the wind speed during the cold period of the year for all the sea areas. For the warm period it is statistically insignificant both for Ta and SST. For the cold season we observed a contribution of the large-scale mode of atmospheric circulation into the variability of V component of the wind speed. The conribution was expressed through the indeces NAO, SCAND, Pol/EUR, AZOR, ISL and the differences of ISLSIB. For the warm season this contribution is expressed through the NAO, SCAND and AO only. For the warm period we showed statistically significant correlation between the increase in SST, Ta and the processes parametrized by the AMO, EA/WR and AZOR indeces. For the cold period the indeces are AMO, Pol/Eur, SIB and ISL SIB. The interannual variations of the sea ice concentration field are characterized by close correlation with Ta changes both in the annual cycle and during the periods of ice cover formation and evolution (R = –0,7... –0,9). For these periods we showed statistically significant relationships between the first EOF mode fluctuations and two climatic indeces — AMO (R = 0,5) and Pol/Eur (R = 0,4). The relationships between the temporary variability of the sea ice concentration and the wind field characteristics are weaker and statistically significant only for the meridional component of the wind speed (R = –0,4).


AbstractThis theoretical paper addresses issues associated with the hierarchical concept of the "pyramid of wisdom" to suggest that progressive organisations can implement management systems that capture and apply personal and organisational talents at various levels. A phenomenological hermeneutic approach is used to re-conceptualise components of practical wisdom in organisations. After briefly examining what constitutes Western and Eastern wisdom traditions, the paper provides various hierarchies associated with a postulated model of the pyramid of wisdom. It is argued that understanding how wisdom develops in an organisation can lead to new approaches to strategic reflection, to alternative notions of leadership, and to more holistic and democratic ways of expressing authority. Without understanding of, and practice within, the pyramid of wisdom, the personal and organisational roads to success are likely to be bleak, illusions overpowering, and accomplishments short-lived.


This study aimed to investigate the impact of the electronic mind map (IMindMap) on the development of reading comprehension among the ninth grade students in Jordan. The sample of the study consisted of two ninth grade sections from two public schools in Irbid First Directorate during the academic 2016-2017. Each section consisted of (30) students and the two sections were assigned randomly to an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group was taught the chosen texts using the Electronic Mind Mapping strategy while the control group was taught the same texts using the traditional method. The study data were collected using a reading comprehension test that was administered for both groups as a pre and a posttest. The statistical analysis showed a significant difference at the level of (α=0.05) between the mean scores of both groups in favor of the experimental group. Besides, the findings showed that the effect of applying the electronic mind maps in teaching reading texts was medium. Based on the findings of the study, a number of recommendations were made for both teachers and the Ministry of Education. The most notable recommendation was to train teachers in general and English teachers in particular on how to design electronic mind maps and apply them in their teaching practices.


Abstract. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all societies worldwide. The heightened levels of stress that accompanied the crisis were also expected to affect parenting in many families. Since it is known that high levels of stress in the parenting domain can lead to a condition that has severe consequences for health and well-being, we examined whether the prevalence of parental burnout in 26 countries (9,923 parents; 75% mothers; mean age 40) increased during COVID-19 compared to few years before the pandemic. In most (but not all) countries, analyses showed a significant increase in the prevalence of parental burnout during the pandemic. The results further revealed that next to governmental measures (e.g., number of days locked down, homeschooling) and factors at the individual and family level (e.g., gender, number of children), parents in less (vs. more) indulgent countries suffered more from parental burnout. The findings suggest that stricter norms regarding their parenting roles and duties in general and during the pandemic in particular might have increased their levels of parental burnout.


A thematic analysis of New Zealand's historical Speeches from the Throne (10 speeches, from 1860-1899) investigated rhetorical strategies used by Governors during colonisation, to mobilise both settler and indigenous people's participation in the British Empire. Identity leadership (Reicher & Hopkins, 2001, https://doi.org/10.1111/0162-895X.00246), augmented by critical theories of emotion (Williams, 1977, Marxism and literature. Oxford University Press) under the cultural framework of hierarchical relationalism (Liu, 2015, https://doi.org/10.1111/jtsb.12058) was applied to show how unequal but reciprocal relationships were invoked by Governors, as representatives of the Crown and advocates for the general public in New Zealand. Governors attempted to mediate a positive shared identity within the British Empire; but at the same time to isolate those who excluded from subjecthood by their hostility to the Crown. Governors alternated between efforts to mobilise people against indigenous Māori who challenged them, and offers to include Māori who conformed to the conventions required of a hierarchical relationship between Crown and subject. We reflect on how these dynamics of rhetorical performance may still be relevant today, especially in contexts of hierarchy and in the domain of leader-follower relations more broadly.


Preclinical risk assessment of drug-induced arrhythmias is critical for drug development and relies on heart rate corrected QT interval (QT) prolongation as a biomarker for arrhythmia risk. However, the methods used to correct QT vary in complexity and don't account for all changes in the QT-rate relationship. Thus, we developed the novel Ratio QT correction method which characterizes that relationship at each timepoint using the ratio between QT, adjusted for a species-specific constant, and rate (RR interval). This ratio represents the slope between the intercept and the datapoint being corrected, which is then used in a linear equation like individual methods. A unique correction coefficient for each datapoint avoids assuming static relationships. We hypothesize that the simple and dynamic nature of the Ratio method will provide more consistent rate correction and error reduction compared to Bazett's and individual regression methods. Comparisons were made using ECG data from non-human primates (NHPs) treated with dofetilide or moxifloxacin, separated into small groups (n = 4). The methods were compared based on corrected QT vs RR slopes, standard error, and minimal detectable difference (MDD) for each method. The Ratio method resulted in smaller corrected QT-rate relationship slopes than Bazett's, more closely matching those of individual methods. It produced similar or lower MDDs compared to individual and Bazett's correction, respectively, with more consistent reduction in standard error. This simple and effective method has the potential for easy translatability across species.


BACKGROUND Estimation of the functional reserve of the remnant liver is important to reduce morbidity and mortality. AIM To estimate the functional reserve of the remnant liver in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS We reviewed the medical records of 199 patients who underwent resection of HCC. Hepatic clearance of the remnant liver was calculated using fusion images of 99mTc-labelled galactosyl-human serum albumin liver scintigraphy and computed tomography. Posthepatectomy liver failure (PHLF) was classified according to the International Study Group of Liver Surgery. Complications was classified according to Clavien–Dindo classification. We analyzed by the risk factors for PHLF, morbidity and mortality with multivariate analysis. RESULTS Twenty-seven (30%) patients had major complications and 23 (12%) developed PHLF. The incidence of major complications increased with increasing albumin–bilirubin (ALBI) grade. The area under the curve values for hepatic clearance of the remnant liver, liver to heart-plus-liver radioactivity at 15 min (LHL15), and ALBI score predicting PHLF were 0.868, 0.629, and 0.655, respectively. The area under the curve for hepatic clearance of the remnant liver, LHL15, and ALBI score predicting major complications were 0.758, 0.594, and 0.647, respectively. The risk factors for PHLF and major complications were hepatic clearance of the remnant liver and intraoperative bleeding. CONCLUSION The measurement of hepatic clearance may predict PHLF and major complications for patients undergoing resection of HCC.


In this paper, through the example of international lunar exploration mission the equipment was to investigate, and the amount of data transferred per day were identified. Data storage and the data transfer rate (8.4Mbps less) for the satisfaction of the value within the range of available S and X bands was confirmed by using the communication link budget. The result is to define the range of the sensor information can be obtained, as well as from the values of the parameters calculated for the transmission communication systems will be able to define the specifications.


We present three cases of a surgical approach to close a patent ductus arteriosus in the elderly. In each case a transcatheter closure was not indicated for different reasons: Patient No. 1 had an extremely calcified aortic arch; Patient No. 2 was operated on under the erroneous diagnosis of an aortopulmonary window; Patient No. 3 concomitantly suffered a high-grade valvular aortic stenosis. The patent ductus arteriosus was closed transpulmonally via a median sternotomy under the conditions of extracorporal circulation in each of the three patients. Patient No. 3 additionally underwent an aortic valve replacement. We discuss the differential indications for a surgical closure of a patent ductus arteriosus in the elderly.


The main focus of this research was analyzing the normative procedural decision of Sultan Adam Law which was applied by Sultan Adam during 1835 AD. Its emergence was for strengthening Islam Aqeedah for its believers and clinging on to Syafii Madhhab. Sultan Adam Law was remarkable to scrutinize, especially when associated with the modern law aspect. By employing the law history approach, this research attempted to respond to Sultan Adam Law procedural decision document issues which were associated with the modern law aspect. It could be seen through several sides such as political law, law substance, arrangement system as well as procedural aspect. The research also responded on how several factors explained Sultan Adam Law included in modern law. Based on the analysis result, it could be concluded that Sultan Adam Law was a written law decision which its existence in Banjarese people contained principles and legal norms as well as several procedural law decisions in a modern way. Although it was simple systematics which did not classify based on article and section, it contained several decision or principles and legal norms.


This study investigates the suitability of the asynchronous ensemble Kalman filter (AEnKF) and a partitioned updating scheme for hydrological forecasting. The AEnKF requires forward integration of the model for the analysis and enables assimilation of current and past observations simultaneously at a single analysis step. The results of discharge assimilation into a grid-based hydrological model (using a soil moisture error model) for the Upper Ourthe catchment in the Belgian Ardennes show that including past predictions and observations in the data assimilation method improves the model forecasts. Additionally, we show that elimination of the strongly non-linear relation between the soil moisture storage and assimilated discharge observations from the model update becomes beneficial for improved operational forecasting, which is evaluated using several validation measures.


A private network supports the information interchange requirements of a community of interest. It is a system consisting of transmission, demultiplexing, and switching components providing an information movement and management (IMM) infrastructure. The networks provide a customized operations environment with predictable service objectives and cost. The market drivers, legislative events, and enabling technologies that have instigated user-operated networks, often making them more advanced than those of the common carriers, are examined. The roles of T-1 multiplexing, corporate data processing, and frame relay services in the growth of private data networks are discussed. Issues driving the evolution of private data communication towards broadband networks are presented. The major trends in the future development of the private data networks are summarized.<<ETX>>


Back pain is a common clinical syndrome that may be the expression of an uncommon pathological process. We describe an unusual case of adenocarcinoma mimicking unilateral sacroiliitis. When progressive symptoms are unresponsive to conventional therapy, diagnosis should always be reconsidered, with appropriate imaging studies. We discuss mechanisms of joint space involvement and review the literature.


ABSTRACT Purpose: We surveyed bioptic and non-bioptic low-vision drivers in Illinois, USA, to determine their usage of global positioning system (GPS) devices. Methods: Low-vision patients completed an IRB-approved phone survey regarding driving demographics and usage of GPS while driving. Participants were required to be active drivers with an Illinois driver's license, and met one of the following criteria: best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) less than or equal to 20/40, central or significant peripheral visual field defects, or a combination of both. Results: Of 27 low-vision drivers, 10 (37%) used GPS while driving. The average age for GPS users was 54.3 and for non-users was 77.6. All 10 drivers who used GPS while driving reported increased comfort or safety level. Conclusions: Since non-GPS users were significantly older than GPS users, it is likely that older participants would benefit from GPS technology training from their low-vision eye care professionals.


We report a strong performance improvement for 1.55-μm AIN-GaN-based intersubband photodetectors. Thanks to the use of quantum dots (QDs) instead of quantum wells (QWs), a factor of 60 could be gained in terms of maximum responsivity. In addition, this performance was achieved at a considerably higher temperature of 160 K instead of 80 K as typically seen for QWs. The responsivity of these photodetectors, which are based on optical rectification, is strongly influenced by their excited state lifetime. We believe that a much longer electron lifetime in the upper QD states and an increased lateral electron displacement are responsible for the observed improvement.


Recently, deep learning has been widely used in the field of vehicle re-identification. When training a deep model, softmax loss is usually used as a supervision tool. However, the softmax loss performs well for closed-set tasks, but not very well for open-set tasks. In this paper, we sum up five shortcomings of center loss and solved all of them by proposing a dual distance center loss (DDCL). Especially we solve the shortcoming that center loss must combine with the softmax loss to supervise training the model, which provides us with a new perspective to examine the center loss. In addition, we verify the inconsistency between the proposed DDCL and softmax loss in the feature space, which makes the center loss no longer be limited by the softmax loss in the feature space after removing the softmax loss. To be specifically, we add the Pearson distance on the basis of the Euclidean distance to the same center, which makes all features of the same class be confined to the intersection of a hypersphere and a hypercube in the feature space. The proposed Pearson distance strengthens the intra-class compactness of the center loss and enhances the generalization ability of center loss. Moreover, by designing a Euclidean distance threshold between all center pairs, which not only strengthens the inter-class separability of center loss, but also makes the center loss (or DDCL) works well without the combination of softmax loss. We apply DDCL in the field of vehicle re-identification named VeRi-776 dataset and VehicleID dataset. And in order to verify its good generalization ability, we also verify it in two datasets commonly used in the field of person re-identification named MSMT17 dataset and Market1501 dataset.


In conventional networks, such as the Internet, it is assumed that there exists a fully connected path between any pair of nodes at any time. In delay tolerant networks (DTN), however, the connected path may be broken, and nodes may be partitioned into two disconnected subsets because of the movement or failure of some nodes. Thus, the data transmission requirements can not be satisfied by traditional routing schemes. How to efficiently route data in DTNs has therefore become a critical and challenging issue. To address the problem, we propose a contact-duration-based probabilistic routing scheme (PR_CD) based on the probabilistic routing scheme PRoPHET (PR). Each node in the PRCD scheme predicts the current network condition by using contact information, and then chooses appropriate relay nodes to improve the delivery rate as well as reduce the transmission latency and transmission overhead. To evaluate the efficacy of the proposed scheme, we use simulations to conduct a comprehensive study of different DTN routing mechanisms. We believe such a study is important because the ability to characterize the behavior and performance of routing schemes plays a key role in the understanding and design of DTNs.


INTRODUCTION
Solid-organ transplant recipients are at risk of hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection. We analyzed the seroprevalence/risk factors of HEV in Croatian liver transplant recipients.

METHODS
Two hundred forty-two serum samples were tested for HEV immunoglobuline IgG/IgM and HEV RNA. Sociodemographic data and risk factors were collected using a questionnaire.

RESULTS
HEV IgG seroprevalence rate was 24.4%. Positive/equivocal HEV IgM were found in two patients. HEV RNA was not detected. Logistic regression showed that older age, female gender, rural area/farm, water well, and septic tank were associated with HEV seropositivity.

CONCLUSIONS
This study revealed a high exposure rate to HEV in Croatian liver recipients.


The study focuses on one of the outstanding Hungarian examples of wordless picturebook (silent book), the so called Design book series from Csimota Kiadó publishing house, which has produced 23 volumes since 2006. In the series five different graphical designer recreates a classic tale in a separate volume each, without any text, only with pictures. In the small sized (12x12 cm), hard cover volumes 20 pages were dedicated for retelling a world famous fable. The first series in 2006 introduced the story of Little Red riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs followed in 2007, then Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (2009), Puss in Boots (2012) and the most recent one is Sleeping Beauty (2015-2016) with only three volumes so far. The study examines the expression of the stories by analysing the narrative tools (picture-text relationship, colours, visual metaphors, intermediality etc.).