Rare earth elements (REEs) or lanthanides are often found together in nature, and they are used in multiple anthropogenic activities from green energy and medical technologies to telecommunications and defense systems. However, the current understanding on the concentration and behavior of REEs in oceans and marine organisms is limited, and no regulatory information or limits have been settled. Here, we present a review of the concentrations of lanthanides in marine waters and biota. REEs reach aquatic ecosystems mainly by continental contributions, and the maximum reported concentrations of REEs are found on the platform surface near the coast due to their continental origin. For coastal waters, we find maximum REE levels in the surface water that decrease with depth until a certain stability. Their concentrations diminish as they move toward the open ocean, where concentrations tend to increase vertically with depth in the water column. Only cerium (Ce) showed different patterns from other REEs caused by Ce different redox states: III and IV, reflecting the oxidation of dissolved Ce (III) to particulate Ce (IV) when reacting with the O2 to form CeO2. In seawater, heavy REEs tend to remain in solution forming complexes usually unavailable for organisms, while light REEs are most likely to be assimilated by them, posing potential biological implications. Bioaccumulation of REEs decreases as marine trophic level increases, showing a trophic dilution pattern. Generally, higher concentrations are found in organisms such as phytoplankton, zooplankton, and algae species, while the lowest concentrations are found in mollusks, corals, and fish species. According to the current trend in the REE industry, the increasing anthropogenic emissions are a fact; therefore, more studies will be needed regarding their fractionation, the transformation processes with which they become bioavailable, and their pathways in marine systems. Graphical Abstract


Numerical simulation is performed for a bubble inkjet process, in which droplet ejection is driven by an evaporating bubble. The liquid-vapor and liquid-air interfaces are tracked by a level set method which is modified to include the effects of phase change and bubble compressibility and is extended to treat the contact angle condition at an immersed solid surface. The whole process of bubble inkjet is simulated without employing a simplified bubble growth model. The present computation demonstrates the inkjet process including jet breaking, satellite droplet formation and ink refill motion as well as bubble growth and collapse.


In this chapter we present organizational aspects that appear when considering the case of interconnecting and integrating different compartments of a modern hospital. While the information and communication technologies provide advanced and powerful means for the creation of coherent information supply services, such as the Web service and ontology technologies, there is a lack of appropriate organizational metaphors that will enable the successful assimilation of these technologies, helping to aid in the improvement of critical cost parameters that concentrate a large part of the hospital's management resources, while also helping to improve the knowledge capital and the intangible and immaterial assets of any particular hospital, which are considered as the most essential and scarce resource. In this paper we presents a technology-based approach for solving interoperability problems at the service level, and we deliberately adopt a problem-solving approach that has successfully been adopted by the European IST Project ARTEMIS.


The aim of this study was the quantitative analysis of the phenomena of pain radiation in the case of rotator cuff tear. The clinical material concerns 97 patients, age range from 45 to 86 years. Radiating pain was noted in 33 cases; radiation into distal part of arm--12.4%, elbow--9.3%, forearm--6.2%, hand--1%, hand and thumb 2.1%, 5th finger--1.0%, neck--1.0% and into axilla--1.0%. The radiation of pain was provoked by one finger pressure over tender point (84.8%) or by impingement sign (15.2%). Next the impingement test was performed and additionally supplemented by intraarticular lidocaine injection in 5 cases. Radiation of pain disappeared completely in 26 cases, partly in 6 and persisted in one.


In this article, we present Jacques Le Goff's (1972) and Pierre Gallais' (1974) different points of view on the origins and the scope of the term roman; we confront their opinions with those of some other specialists on the topic in order to understand their positions and find a balance in the controversy. For a deeper understanding, we follow the evolution of the term since the Middle Ages until its present meaning and then we reflect on the so-called romans antiques, analyzing the crucial aspects that Le Goff focuses on to consider them as romans, in contrast to Gallais. In addition, we briefly focus on the first episodes of Chrétien de Troyes' Le Chevalier de la Charrette, considered by critics as one of the most representative texts of the so-called medieval roman; we review de Troyes' historical context to establish correlations and finally we offer our own view on the subject.


Twenty-four UCLA students, in groups of four or five participated in a mission design for a manned expedition to Mars that was based on the concept of mid-course refueling from electrically propelled tankers launched ahead of the manned mission. This study was conducted during the 1991 spring term. Some of the student groups opted for non-nuclear propulsion of the manned ship, based on LOX and LH2, others opted for one based on nuclear-thermal propulsion. By way of example, the first option is presented below.


Abstract Objective This study was aimed to describe our institutional experience on characteristics and treatment outcomes of sinonasal sarcomas invading the anterior skull base. Design Present study is a retrospective review. Setting The study was conducted at an academic cancer care center. Participants Thirty-one patients with skull base sarcomas treated with primary surgery from 1979 to 2015 were identified for this study from a preexisting database. Main Outcome Measures Survival and recurrence outcomes using the Kaplan–Meier method were the focus areas of the study. Results The median age was 44 years (range: 13–69 years). Twenty patients were male (64.5%). Twenty-nine patients underwent open craniofacial resection (93.5%) and two patients underwent endoscopic resection (6.5%). The majority of tumors were staged pT4 (77.4%). The most common pathologies were leiomyosarcoma (19.4%), osteosarcoma (16.1%), and chondrosarcoma (12.9%). Of those with known margin status, 10 patients had positive/close margins (32.2%) and 16 patients had negative margins (51.6%). Most tumors were high grade (74.2%). Twenty-three patients (74.2%) received adjuvant radiation and four patients (12.9%) received adjuvant chemotherapy. There were nine postoperative complications (29%) including one mortality and three cerebrospinal fluid leaks. There were 10 local, 2 regional, and 5 distant recurrences over a median follow-up of 74 months (range: 1–300 months). The 5-year disease-specific survival (DSS) was 69.8%. The 5-year locoregional recurrence-free probability (RFP) was 63.2% and the 10-year distant RFP was 71.7%. The 5-year DSS for high grade tumors was 64.2 and 85.7% for low grade tumors (p = 0.117). Conclusion This study contributes an updated analysis of anterior skull base sarcomas. Five-year DSS is approximately 70%. Analysis of survival outcomes based on grade, tumor size, and other factors is limited by small sample size and the rarity of these tumors.


Spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA) is a rare X‐linked motor neuron degenerative disease caused by an expanded trinucleotide repeat. Unlike most other trinucleotide repeat diseases, SBMA shows limited meiotic instability, and evidence thus far indicates absence of somatic instability in adults. Data regarding the presence of fetal tissue somatic mosaicism is unavailable. We present a family in which a woman whose father had SBMA requested prenatal testing. After informed consent, molecular genetic evaluation showed the male fetus to carry the SBMA repeat elongation. Testing of fetal tissues after elective pregnancy termination showed no somatic mosaicism in the CAG repeat length. This is the first report of molecular genetic analysis of multiple tissues in an affected fetus, and only the second report of prenatal diagnosis in SBMA.


The origin of 5-HMF (5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde) in a Shengmaiyin decoction was investigated by the RP-HPLC method below. A C(18) column (250 mm x 4.6 mm, i.d. 5 microm) with a column temperature of 25 degrees C was used. The mobile phase was a mixture of ultra-pure water-acetonitrile (95:5, V/V) and the flow rate was 1.0 ml/min. The detection wavelength was 280 nm. The injection volume was 1 microl and the running time was about 20 min. The addition of Schisandra was regulated to assess the contribution of an acid environment to the production of 5-HMF. In order to confirm the role of saccharides in the production of 5-HMF, different amount of fructose was used. The 5-HMF level in decoctions of processed and unprocessed Schisandra was investigated in order to determine the origin of 5-HMF. The results showed that 5-HMF was derived mainly from the decoction of Schisandra only and not the mixed decoction of Ophionpogon and Schisandra. The appearance of 5-HMF is not simply the result of the decomposition of saccharides under the acid environment created by Schisandra, but the processing procedure plays an important role in the production of 5-HMF.


Intramuscular fat (IMF) is recognized as the predominant factor affecting meat quality due to its positive correlation with tenderness, juiciness, and flavor. Chicken IMF deposition depends on the balance among lipid synthesis, transport, uptake, and subsequent metabolism, involving a lot of genes and pathways, however, its precise molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. In the present study, the breast muscle tissue of female Wenchang chickens (WC) (higher IMF content, 1.24 in D120 and 1.62 in D180) and female White Recessive Rock chickens (WRR; lower IMF content, 0.53 in D120 and 0.90 in D180) were subjected to RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis. Results showed that many genes related to lipid catabolism, such as SLC27A1, LPL, ABCA1, and CPT1A were down-regulated in WC chickens, and these genes were involved in the PPAR signaling pathway and formed an IPA® network related to lipid metabolism. Furthermore, SLC27A1 was more down-regulated in WRR.D180.B than in WRR.D120.B. Decreased cellular triglyceride (TG) and up-regulated CPT1A were observed in the SLC27A1 overexpression QM-7 cells, and increased cellular triglyceride (TG) and down-regulated CPT1A were observed in the SLC27A1 knockdown QM-7 cells. These results suggest that lower lipid catabolism exists in WC chickens but not in WRR chickens, and lower expression of SLC27A1 facilitate IMF deposition in chicken via down-regulated fatty acid oxidation mediated by CPT1A. These findings indicate that reduced lipid catabolism, rather than increased lipid anabolism, contributes to chicken IMF deposition.


I am most honored and perhaps also startled to read these comprehensive scholarly essays dedicated to the question of the appropriation of Gender Trouble in Asian studies. Sometimes "appropriation" is a problematic activity, such as the cultural appropriation of artworks and styles from minority communities, such as the indigenous, for the purposes of market circulation, profit, or the augmentation of human capital. But when texts such as Gender Trouble enter the global market of books, a different kind of appropriation becomes possible. The book is at once taken up and refused, indicating the limits of translation or marking a resistance to cultural imperialism.


ABSTRACT Developing countries must adjust wildlife conservation policies within a changing social context and emerging economic demand. Nepal has achieved success in wildlife conservation through the establishment of a protected area network and the support of local people; however, trade-offs between conservation and development continue to be debated. In this article, we evaluated the developmental history of wildlife conservation policy in Nepal using the policy arrangement approach. Based on a policy analysis and literature review, we explored wildlife conservation policy from the dimensions of actors, discourses, rules, and resources. Conservation history of Nepal has shown discursive shifts and actor coalitions in policy arrangement, resulting in a policy transformation from restrictive conservation to participatory conservation. Through our analysis, we found that future policies should consider the development demand of the country and focus on sustainable financing for wildlife conservation in order to achieve sustainable solutions.


The aim of this paper is to analyse the use of online platforms of people affected by chronic pain without organic cause. This is an emergent and growing malaise in globalized, technologized, western societies, that affects women in 90% of the cases). This malaise has been captured on the clinical category of fibromialgia. The study begins in the studies of biopower and the medicalization of experience, and the gender perspective in health. We ask if online platforms are sufficient to facilitate subjective agencement processes, that make possible a significant corporal, subjective, social and political transformation. We do this from a qualitative methodological approach. Our data source are the interactions in four different blogs and online forums. The results and discussions tackle the recovery and later symbolization of the conflictive experience in the forums, as its reach and limits regarding agencement processes.


The corneas of 26 cats were irradiated by a 3,250 K source at dose rates of 7.04 gcal/sec cm2. The incidence of cataract, corneal leukoma, and other anomalies was related to total dose levels which ranged from 25–400 gcal/cm2. Generation of lenticular opacities and associated long latent periods was related to current theory, corneal transmission, and intraocular absorption. Corneal spectral transmittance curves which cover the 200–3,200-mμ band were presented. An integration of the corneal transmission in the 700–2,700-mμ band indicates a mean transmission of 43%. Implications for studies of corneal sensibility using infrared stimuli are discussed. thermal psychophysics; infrared cataract; psychophysiology Submitted on March 11, 1963


Introduction and objective: The World Health Organization estimates that about 8 to 10 million new Tuberculosis (TB) cases occur annually worldwide and its incidence is currently increasing. There are two million deaths from TB each year. The plants are an important source of new antimicrobial agents. In this study, antibacterial activity of Allium ascalonicum against Mycobacterium tuberculosis was evaluated. Materials and methods: To extraction antibacterial agent from this plant, 100g of underground root of A. ascalonicum was mixed with 100ml ethyl acetate and shacked gently. Partially purified antibacterial compound was isolated by organic solvents. Antibacterial activity of this fraction against M. tuberculosis was performed using the E test. Results: Shallot extract showed antimycobacterial activity with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of 500μg/ml. Conclusion: It is implied that A. ascalonicum extract could be used as an effective antibacterial agent against M. tuberculosis, which is a resistant infection in pulmonary tuberculosis.


This overview summarizes the research results on depression and dementia in ethnic Chinese elderly conducted by the Gerontology Research Programme of the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore. Health policies are dependent on information of evidence-based studies and it is of utmost importance to encourage research on preventive psychiatry. Interventional strategies in psycho-social therapy, diet and stability of chronic illnesses like diabetes mellitus and hypertension, are critical in lowering the rates of depression and dementia in late life. The challenge is how to translate research results into public policies. Preventive psychiatry is not just an endeavor from the government but should also be from the private sector and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). If measures are taken collectively, it is plausible that the quiet epidemic of elderly depression and dementia this century can be averted.


The relationship between racial identity attitudes and psychological closeness to various African American groups was examined in 171 African American college students at a predominantly White southeastern university. The data were collected using the Racial Identity Attitude Scale (Helms & Parham, 1985), and a scale measuring Perceived Psychological Closeness to African Americans. The closeness scale is a 14-item instrument that was found to represent (in this sample) psychological closeness to 4 African American groups. Internalized racial identity attitudes indicated positive feelings toward various groups of African Americans. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that internalized racial identity attitudes were predictive of psychological closeness to African Americans, although this varied somewhat depending on the subgroup.


The aim of this study was to evaluate hospital admissions assigned to DRG 124 because attributable to the diagnosis and therapy of cardiovascular diseases and the performance of an angiocardiographic exam with contrast and/or cardiac catheterism. As part of the hospital activity evaluations performed by the Lazio Region between 1 January 2002 and 30 June 2005 in four healthcare institutions in the Rome metropolitan area, 136 admissions assigned to DRG 124 were evaluated. An evaluation grid was used to verify information recorded in the hospital discharge forms and hospital medical records for these admissions. Overall 89% (121/136) of medical records were found to be incongruent with the corresponding hospital discharge form and 53% of admissions (72/136) were reassigned a different DRG after evaluation. In most of these cases (n=54; 76%) the selection of a different DRG was required because an incorrect main diagnosis had originally been chosen. The mean relative weight of admissions in which DRG reassignment was required was 1.4189 before recoding and 0.7545 after these were assigned to a new DRG.


The purpose of this clinical commentary is to provide an evidence-based review of the examination process and diagnostic challenges associated with acetabular labral tears of the hip. Once considered an uncommon entity, labral tears have recently received wider recognition as a source of symptoms and functional limitation. Information regarding acetabular labral tears and their association to capsular laxity, femoral acetabular impingement (FAI), dysplasia of the acetabulum, and chondral lesions is emerging. Physical therapists should understand the anatomical structures of the hip and recognize how the clinical presentation of labral tears is difficult to view isolated from other hip articular pathologies. Clinical examination should consider lumbopelvic and extra-articular pathologies in addition to intra-articular pathologies when assessing for the source of symptoms and functional limitation. If a labral tear is suspected, further diagnostic testing may be indicated. Although up-and-coming evidence suggests that information obtained from patient history and clinical examination can be useful, continued research is warranted to determine the diagnostic accuracy of our examination techniques.


Vulnerable areas of the world, including many developing countries, are increasingly exposed to natural disasters. New technologies, such as geospatial technologies, could help them manage the risks of extreme events and cope with disaster aftershock. However, new technologies are often disseminated slowly among the relevant stakeholders. Assuming that knowledge exchange through stakeholder networks can effectively enhance the uptake of innovation, this research applied a social network approach focussing on the structural patterns of communication and collaboration networks regarding landslide-related disasters in Nepal and floods in Kenya. Using methods of formal social network analysis, we reveal centrally positioned stakeholders and discuss their actual and potential roles in outscaling innovations between the different sectors and upscaling them to different levels within the disaster management communities under study. In doing so, this case study demonstrates the potential of social network analysis for improving the dissemination of innovations for disaster risk management.


Lethality and oncogenic transformation were measured in C3H/10T1/2 murine fibroblasts exposed to neutrons and X-rays at doses between 0.5 and 11 Gy. Transformation results with X-rays and low-energy, reactor-produced neutrons were used as a baseline to compare and evaluate the results obtained with high-energy, cyclotron-produced neutrons. The radiations were 100-kVp X-rays at 0.49 Gy min-1, reactor fission neutrons at 0.10 to 0.31 Gy min-1 with an 8 to 20 per cent gamma dose component, and cyclotron-produced neutrons at 0.51 Gy min-1 with mean energy 38 MeV and an 8 per cent gamma dose component. The radiobiological effectiveness (r.b.e.) for cell lethality was 2.4 +/- 0.2 for fission neutrons and 1.7 +/- 0.1 for high-energy neutrons. The maximum proportions of transformants per thousand surviving cells were, respectively, 3.7 +/- 0.8, 6.5 +/- 0.7, and 2.3 +/- 0.6 for X-rays, fission neutrons, and cyclotron-produced neutrons. The maximum observed r.b.e. for transformation induction was 3.8 for fission neutrons and 1.2 for cyclotron neutrons. Thus, high-energy neutrons exhibit a higher r.b.e. for cell killing capacity than for oncogenic transformation in C3H/10T1/2 cells.


[Aim] To attempt methylome analysis in multiple myeloma (MM) cells using high-throuput next-generation sequencer, and assess the association between the methylome status and aneuploidy status detected by array CGH analysis in MM cells. [Methods] After the extraction of DNA from 2 MM cell lines and 9 primary MM samples, we enriched sheared fragments of methylated DNA using MethylminerTM Methylated DNA Enrichment Kit (invitrogen). Fragment libraries were then prepared followed by emulsion PCR and templated beads preparation. Sequencing analysis using SOLiDTM3 system (life technologies) was performed for these fragment libraries from enriched methylated DNA. In this study, using adoptors with individual barcodes when library preration, we could analyse at 12 samples (including input samples) at one run. Analyses after sequencing were the following. We counted tag numbers in promoter region of each gene (determined by sequences between +/− 100 bp from transcription start site (TSS)) read by sequencing. The number of the tags quantitatively reflects methylation levels of corresponding DNA sequences. We also performed array CGH analysis in the 82 primary MM samples. Combining these methods, we can assess the association between DNA methylation and chromosomal instability. [Results and comments] Of all RefSeq genes which have CpG islands in their promoter region (18592/30638 genes, determined by unique accession number in NCBI36/hg18), the number of genes which showed at least one tag was 6549 (35.2%). Referring to the results of mRNA expression analysis using cDNA microarray (Agilent, matched by the accession number), we found a significant reduction of expression levels according to the tag number increase. Also, a very high correlation between tag numbers and mRNA expression levels (Rs = −0.562. We also analysed the genome-wide association between expression up-regulation by decitabine (DAC) and DNA methylation. A correlation between tag numbers and fold-up regulation by DAC was significant, although correlation coefficient was not that high (Rs=0.239). This result means DAC could affect gene expression by a mechanism not depending on demethylation effect. We have also performed the same analysis with genes in which there are no CpG islands. Without CpG islands, only almost no correlations were found between mRNA expression levels (Rs=−0.087), fold up-regulation by DAC (Rs=0.067) and tag numbers. Interestingly, in genes without promoter methylation, gene ontology (GO) analysis demonstrated that genes related to immune response were significantly up-regulated by DAC. This could reflect the direct cytotoxic effect of DAC or some other mechanism. We are now performing the array CGH analysis in primary MM samples to assess the association between methylome status and aneuploidy status in MM. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-175. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-LB-175


In this paper we present a single SLM color holographic 3D display with spatial only multiplexing method. SLM is illuminated simultaneously with three beams. A color (RGB) filter mask placed in front of the SLM surface distributes illuminating beams accordingly to component holograms. After propagation modulated wavefronts overlap in space and create a real color 3D image. The display works with native SLM frame rate, but with the cost of spatial bandwidth product reduction. In the paper we present the method capabilities and discuss its limitations. Finally, we present the display implementation and resulting color holographic reconstruction of computer generated 3D object. Full Text: PDF References T. Kozacki, G. Finke, P. Garbat, W. Zaperty, M. Kujawinska, "Wide angle holographic display system with spatiotemporal multiplexing", Opt. Express 20, 27473-27481 (2012) CrossRef F. Yaras, H. Kang, L. Onural, "Real-time phase-only color holographic video display system using LED illumination", Appl. Opt. 48, p.48-53 (2009) CrossRef T. Shimobaba, A. Shiraki, N. Masuda, T. Ito, "An electroholographic color reconstruction by time division switching of reference lights", J. Opt. A, v. 9, p. 757-760 (2007) CrossRef H. Sasaki, K. Yamamoto, Y. Ichihashi, T. Senoh, "Image Size Scalable Full-parallax Coloured Three-dimensional Video by Electronic Holography", Scientific Reports, 4, pp.1-6 (2014) CrossRef M. Makowski et al., "Simple holographic projection in color", Opt. Express 20, 25130-25136 (2012) CrossRef M. Makowski et al., "Extremely simple holographic projection of color images", Proc. of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering, 8280, art. no. 82800V (2012) CrossRef W. Zaperty, T. Kozacki, M. Kujawinska, "Color holographic 3D display unit with aperture field division", International Conference of 3D Displays and Systems, Korea (2014) DirectLink T. Kozacki, "On resolution and viewing of holographic image generated by 3D holographic display", Opt. Express 18, 27118-27129 (2010) CrossRef A. Lizana, et al., "Wavelength dependence of polarimetric and phase-shift characterization of liquid crystal on silicon display", J. Europ. Opt. Soc.Rap. Public, (3), 08012 (2008) CrossRef M. Kujawinska et al., "Multiwavefront digital holographic television", Opt. Express 22, 2324-2336 (2014) CrossRef M. Kujawinska, et al., Generation of holographic content based on coherent and noncoherent capture (International Conference of 3D Displays and Systems, Korea, 2014) DirectLink


Queso Chihuahua, a semi-hard cheese manufactured from raw milk (RM) in northern Mexico, is being replaced by pasteurized milk (PM) versions because of food safety concerns and the desire for longer shelf life. In this study, the functional traits of authentic Mexican Queso Chihuahua made from RM or PM were characterized to identify sources of variation and to determine if pasteurization of the cheese milk resulted in changes to the functional properties. Two brands of RM cheese and 2 brands of PM cheese obtained in 3 seasons of the year from 4 manufacturers in Chihuahua, Mexico, were analyzed after 0, 4, 8, 12, and 16 wk of storage at 4°C. A color measurement spectrophotometer was used to collect color data before and after heating at 232°C for 5 min or 130°C for 75 min. Meltability was measured using the Schreiber Melt Test on samples heated to 232°C for 5 min. Sliceability (the force required to cut through a sample) was measured using a texture analyzer fitted with a wire cutter attachment. Proteolysis was tracked using sodium dodecyl sulfate-PAGE. Compared with PM cheeses, RM cheeses showed less browning upon heating, melted more at 232°C, and initially required a greater cutting force. With aging, cheeses increased in meltability, decreased in whiteness when measured before heating, and required less cutting force to slice. Seasonal variations in the cheesemilk had minimal or no effect on the functional properties. The differences in the functional properties can be attributed, in part, to the mixed microflora present in the RM cheeses compared with the more homogeneous microflora added during the manufacture of PM cheeses. The degree of proteolysis and subsequent integrity of the cheese matrix contribute to melt, slice, and color properties of the RM and PM cheeses. Understanding the functional properties of the authentic RM cheeses will help researchers and cheesemakers develop pasteurized versions that maintain the traditional traits desired in the cheeses.


The accuracy of microwave radiometers is affected by the deviation of the detector from the ideal square-law behaviour. A method is presented for determining the error caused by higher order nonlinearities, based on the experimental characterisation of the nonlinearities with a two-tone test. In actual operation with Gaussian noise as the input signal, the error caused by higher order nonlinearities is found to be greater than that with sinusoidal input signal.


In basic magmas the oxides of iron and titanium and in part of chromium, along with volatiles, become enriched in the residual magma, and are the last, or among the last, minerals to crystallize. This heavy residual liquid trickles down through the interstices of early crystallized silicates to form a late gravitative liquid accumulation, which rests upon a floor of early crystallized silicates. The down trickling heavy residual liquid makes room for itself by causing plagioclase crystals to float upward, bending and jostling some of them, to form overlying anorthosite. The residual liquid accumulation undergoes purification by eliminating the remaining silicate constituents; the degree of this purification determines the richness of the resulting ore deposit. If the residual liquid accumulation crystallizes under quiescent conditions a concordant or stratiform deposit results, e.g., Bushveld titanomagnetite layers. If pressure is exerted before final consolidation, the mobile residual liquid accumulation is squirted elsewhere, either along the structure of the host rock or transgressing structure, to form late magmatic injections somewhat similar to, but differing from, filter pressing, e.g., Kiruna and Taberg, Sweden, Adirondacks, Allard Lake, Quebec, platinum pipes of South Africa. Residual liquid accumulation accounts for many purified magnetite and ilmenite deposits, and some chrome deposits, that lie concordantly within the parent rocks where evidence of squeezing is lacking, and for many late magmatic injected deposits.


The face is a part of the body that is frequently affected by burn injury. Post-burn scar sequelae in this area often result in invalidity and psychological upsets for the patients. The methods of plastic surgery widely employed have their drawbacks. In particular, it is very important for surgical reconstruction of the face to find plastic material with the same properties: texture, colour, thickness, and natural elasticity. For this purpose, at the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, A.V. Vishnevsky Institute of Surgery, Russian Academy of Medical Science, we use the fat-cutaneous neck flap mobilized according to the anatomical distribution of the vessels. We describe some typical clinical situations and possible variants of plastic surgery using the neck flap, based on the experience of surgical treatment in 248 patients. It is our opinion that application of the neck flap is preferable to other reconstructive techniques in the lower part of the face in patients with preserved skin in the neck and anterior surface of the chest.


To evaluate the usefulness of MR cisternography fourteen patients that had hemifacial spasm and 20 control patients underwent MR cisternography. All the patients with hemifacial spasm had a confirmed vascular compression after surgery. MR cisternography was performed using a 1.5-tesla superconducting MR magnet in which a 3D (dimensional) heavily T2-weighted turbo spin-echo sequence was used. In 34 randomly selected individuals, we retrospectively determined whether MR cisternography images could be used to evaluate symptoms, and what the benefits of obtaining this image was. The results were correlated with the surgical findings. The sensitivity was 100% and the specificity was 94% in all patients having a hemifacial spasm. The offending vessels were the anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) in six patients cases, the posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) in six, both the vertebral artery and PICA in one, and the vertebral artery in one. All the images showed good resolution and contrast, and also showed the exact correlation between the facial nerve and intracranial vessels in the multiplaner image. The findings of neurovascular compression were well correlated with the surgical findings. We believe that high-resolution 3D MR cisternography is a very useful method for evaluating the neurovascular compression in patients that have hemifacial spasm.


We propose a cylindrical invisibility cloak achieved utilizing two dimensional split-ring resonator structured metamaterials at microwave frequencies. The cloak has spatially uniform parameters in the axial direction, and can work very well even when the cloak shell is very thin compared with the concealed object and the working wavelength. Numerical simulation is performed to verify the functionality of the cloak, where the cloak layer is only around 1/4 of the operating wavelength. Our work provides a feasible solution to the experimental realization of cloaks with ideal parameters.


There is a clearly visible dichotomy in architectural sustainability approaches today. While there are several housing solutions available fulfilling sustainability criteria, most of these follow the high-tech industrial approach. In main-stream architecture these are often referred to as "green" or "sustainable" architecture. "Natural" or "regenerative" building practices stand at the other end of the continuum, representing a low-tech-high-knowledge and handcrafted-labour intensive solution, often originating from traditional building practices. The architectural and aesthetical qualities of these are often questionable according to the mainstream architectural discourse. Nevertheless, with growing climate change and environmental awareness, the importance of these previously marginal, so called "alternative construction methods" is increasing rapidly. This project proposes that it is possible to create fully renewable material and natural building techniques based, eco-designed, easy-to-assemble, modular and expandable housing solutions that fulfil even the toughest sustainability and building requirements (humidity, energy efficiency, indoor comfort, etc.). The propositions of the study are based on critical observations of existing high-tech / low-tech sustainable housing solutions, written and digital sources and technical-constructional data derived from manufacturers, NGOs, research organizations and authorities. This master thesis proposes various actual building designs aimed for real-life practical use in different environments. Through these it aims to examine the circumstances around and the available opportunities for creating such a low-tech-high-knowledge, easy-to-assemble, element based, modular and expandable construction within the constraints of the "Attefall" house size, that also both fulfils the three sustainability and the C2C-system criteria, while only utilizing -possibly locally procured- renewable, re- or upcycled materials. Through these building designs the project aims to illustrate that industrialisation of alternative building techniques helps to overcome the short-comings of these methods, such as labour intensiveness, humidity and fire safety issues, etc.. (Less)


OBJECTIVES
This study aims to evaluate the possible relationship between oral consumption of hot black tea and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) nasal carriage in a mid-sized town population in central Anatolia.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Nasal swabs were taken from a total of 109 subjects (53 females, 56 males; mean age 34.4 years; range 18 to 65 years) including 55 non-tea drinkers and 54 subjects consuming more than 10 cups of tea a day. The MRSA positivity in the nasal cultures was investigated.

RESULTS
In the tea consumer group MRSA was cultured in 10 subjects. Twenty-one subjects' nasal cultures were positive for MRSA in the non-tea drinkers. We found a statistically significant difference in the nasal MRSA carriage among tea drinkers and non-tea drinkers.

CONCLUSION
Our study findings indicate a lower incidence of nasal MRSA carriage in tea drinkers, suggesting that certain soluble tea compounds may exhibit some antibacterial properties when consumed orally.


Operational processes are at the core of many organisations. The failure and misuse of these processes can cause significant economic losses to businesses or, in the worst cases, endanger human life. As a result, there has been significant research effort focused on the development of techniques and tools for the model-based analysis and verification of reliability, performance and quality-of-service properties of processes.
Constructing models which accurately represent the behaviour of real-world systems is very challenging. The complexity and stochastic nature of real-world phenomena requires the use of modelling assumptions which introduce errors that can significantly impact the results of model-based analysis. Where inaccurate analyses are used as the basis of engineering or business decisions, the consequences can be catastrophic.
Many operational processes are now routinely instrumented and capture information about component interactions and the behaviour of human operators. This thesis introduces a set of tool-supported techniques which exploit these logs in conjunction with tried and tested probabilistic model checking. This produces Markov models and formal analysis techniques which more accurately capture process behaviours and improve the quality of model-based analysis for operational processes.
We show how observation data can be used to improve the modelling and analysis of continuous time systems by refining continuous-time Markov models (CTMCs) to more accurately reflect real-world behaviours. We apply the tools and techniques developed to real-world processes and demonstrate how we may avoid the invalid decisions which arise from traditional CTMC modelling and analysis techniques.
We also show how observation-enhanced discrete time Markov models may be used to characterise the behaviour of users within an operational process. The self-adaptive role based access control approach we develop uses a formal definition of adaptation policies to identify potential threats in a real-world IT support system and mitigates risks to the system.


This paper presents a comparison of two measures of performance suitable to characterise operational performance of mine hunting sonars in various environmental conditions. The first measure is a direct adaptation of information theory and bounds the capability of a sonar to distinguish between objects, i.e., a classification capability. The bounds take into account the amount of distinguishable pixels between objects and the statistical information content of each pixel. Successfully applied in Radar, this approach has also demonstrated the performance of synthetic aperture sonar at NURC using a Rayleigh distribution for statistical pixel distribution. The measure is now being further developed to include high resolution distributions such as K‐law which readily appear in high resolution images. The second measure, Johnson's criteria aims to provide guidance on resolution required for operator detection, classification and identification. This measure originally derived from experiments on night vision images is now being modified to simultaneously incorporate target highlight and shadow information in varying environmental conditions. Finally, the predictions of these measures will in the future be compared to each other and to current system performances.


Industrial Revolution 4.0 has influenced many sectors, which are now a lot changes entering to human life by the presence of information technology.The use of power and data in the massive digital technology has become unlimited caused by its development at this present time. This study is aimed at developing the appropriate blended course materials of English for Specific Purposes for students of English Education Study Program, Languages and Arts Faculty, Universitas Negeri Medan. This study is focused on ESP Blended Learning Course Materials for Students of Seventh Semester of English Education Study Program. Research and Development (R & D) design is applied through six stages, there are 1). collecting information and data, 2). data analysis, 3). new materials design based on the needs analysis, 4). experts validation, 5). new material revision, and 6). final product. The instruments of collecting data are by applying two strategies: interview and questionnaires. The results show that the materials used in the 7th semester of English Education Study Program is developed through the implementation of the R&D simplification. The response of questionnaires signified low standard for the students after being analyzed. This results of the study developed ESP Blended Learning Course materials which focused on the following materials: Models and Teaching Strategies in ESP; Language Features: Linguistics and Grammar; Language Skills (Listening, Reading, Speaking, and Writing); Genre Text in ESP (Descriptive Text, Procedure Text, Analytical Exposition Text, and Argumentative Text).


An automated medical trend detection program, TrenDx, was developed in earlier work by Haimowitz [1] and Le [2]. It was evaluated on its ability to discern growth abnormalities by matching templates of expected growth patterns. The results of these evaluations were somewhat disappointing because the program was inefficient and could not reach the level of sensitivity and specificity of human physicians in referral decisions. This thesis involved engineering improvements in the original program and evaluations of the new updated program. The engineering changes allow the program to run on faster machines and eliminate the long run times. The revised scoring algorithms effectively prevent the program from reaching erroneous conclusions from too little data. Reevaluation of previous data and analysis of newly collected data show genuine improvements in the performance of TrenDx, which now performs at a level comparable to physicians and may soon be used in a clinical setting. Thesis Supervisor: Peter Szolovits Title: Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science


AIMS: To describe: 1) our cohort of patients diagnosed with NCPH in a HIV academic clinic in North America, and 2) longitudinal follow-up and outcomes of patients following NCPH diagnosis. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case series. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Owen clinic, University of California, San Diego, United States, between October 1990 and December 2010. METHODOLOGY: We describe a cohort of patients diagnosed with NCPH in a HIV academic clinic with emphasis on their follow-up and outcomes after NCPH diagnosis. RESULTS: During the study period, eight HIV-infected men were diagnosed with NCPH. All patients were exposed to Didanosine (ddI) for a median of 37 months. One patient died soon after NCPH diagnosis due to a condition unrelated to NCPH. The other seven patients have received B-blocker therapy and annual esophago-gastro-duodenectomy screenings with banding of esophageal varices when indicated and remain still alive. Three patients were on ddI at the time of NCPH diagnosis. In one patient ddI was discontinued shortly after NCPH diagnosis. The other two patients continued to use ddI after NCPH diagnosis and developed recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding in the subsequent 2 years, requiring revascularization interventions. The four patients that were already off ddI at the time of NCPH diagnosis have been followed for a median of 6 years. These four patients remained minimally symptomatic for up to 16 years of follow-up from NCPH diagnosis. CONCLUSION: When ddI was discontinued before portal hypertension was clinically apparent the progression of NCPH appeared to subside without major clinical complications.


Flow injection analysis has been developed for the spectrophotometric determination of silicon in silicate rocks at 415 nm. A powdered sample was decomposed with small amounts of hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids in a Tuf-tainer vial by microwave heating. The contents in the vial were diluted with water after the addition of boric acid. The sample solution thus obtained contains silicon in concentrations of 200 - 380 ώg g^-1 as silicon dioxide. It was injected to the FIA system without any dilution. Analytical results for silicon in 22 standard rocks from United States Geological Survey, Geological Survey of Japan and Canadian Certified Reference Materials Project agreed well with the proposed values. This method permitted 30 determinations per hour.


Web-based intelligent tutoring technologies present a great improvement from traditional computer aided learning in K-12 settings. We created a Web-based intelligent tutoring system to teach a reading comprehension approach to elementary and middle school students. This paper reports on each phase of the waterfall design process: analysis, design, development, and implementation of the system. The audience for this paper includes software designers working to develop learning technologies


Clinical applications of magnesium (Mg)-based screws have reported gas cavity formation in the surrounding tissue, which sometimes delays the fixation of the bone fracture. The gas cavity formation is considered to depend on the balance between hydrogen generation by Mg corrosion reacting with water in the body fluid and its diffusion into the surrounding tissue by capillary flow. In order to understand the gas cavity formation behavior by Mg-based material implantation, we developed a new in vitro model system to recreate this cavity formation phenomenon: the hydrogen generation by corrosion and its diffusion into the medium. A model tissue is prepared by gelation of the cell culture medium in a sterile condition. The immersion of Mg alloy samples was performed under 5% CO2 atmosphere with periodic observation by X-ray computed tomography, which enabled us to observe gas cavity growth up to 28 d. For demonstrating the usefulness of our model system, Mg alloy samples with different corrosion rates were prepared by a biodegradable polymer coating. AZ31 screws were spin-coated by poly-l-lactide (PLLA) and classified into three groups by their coating thickness as 1.0 ± 0.0, 1.6 ± 0.2, and 2.0 ± 0.1 μm (ave. ± s.d.). Upon their immersion into the model tissue, the gas cavity volumes formed were 1.57 ± 0.23, 1.06 ± 0.22, and 0.38 ± 0.09 mm3/mm2 for 1.0, 1.6, and 2.0 μm coating samples, having the weight loss of 20.2 ± 2.93, 18.5 ± 2.84, and 11.3 ± 3.54 μg/mm2, respectively (ave. ± s.d.). This result clearly indicates the dependence of gas cavity formation on the corrosion rate of the sample. The gas cavity volume was only 3.3∼7.5% of the total hydrogen gas volume estimated based on the weight loss of the samples at 28 d, which is in the range of those calculated from the clinical report (3.2∼9.4% at 4w). This system can be an effective tool to investigate the gas cavity formation behavior and contribute to understand the mechanisms and controlling factors of this phenomenon.


Some cannabispiro compounds and tetrahydrocannabidiolic acid were tested for antibacterial plasmid curing activity and inhibition of plasmid transfer. MIC values of the compound were above 1500 micrograms/ml. Cannabispirol and tetrahydrocannabidiolic acid eliminated the F'lac plasmid from Escherichia coli, but acetylcannabispirol, cannabispirone and cannabispirenone were ineffective as curing agents. Each compound, except acetyl-cannabispirol, selectively killed plasmid carrying bacteria. The compounds inhibited R144 plasmid transfer from E. coli into E. coli cells via inhibition of mating pair formation, zygotic killing and inhibition of transconjugal DNA synthesis in a lesser extent. All of the cannabispiro compounds and tetrahydrocannabidiolic acid inhibited the transformation with pBR322 plasmid DNA when the bacteria were pretreated with the compounds, via inhibition of the DNA penetration or decreasing the synthesis of plasmid DNA during bacterial growth. Although each of the compounds, except acetyl-cannabispirol, had a weak antibacterial effect which was more definite on plasmid carrying bacteria than plasmidless ones, and inhibited intercellular plasmid transfer and transforming activity of plasmid DNA, only two of them were able to cure F'lac plasmid showing that plasmid elimination is a complex process which strictly depends on the stereochemical configuration of curing agents.


The early stages of engineering design are critical, as the decisions made at this point have the most impact on the final product. However, little software is available to support engineers during the initial, conceptual design phase. In addition, at this and all other stages of design, engineers are increasingly tasked with utilizing unwieldy collections of data such as databases of legacy designs and catalogs. This work addresses both of these issues. A conceptual design interface with several advancements crucial to industrial deployment is developed and used to aid design. Among these are provisions for real-time collaboration and security. A representation of mechanical devices based on intended function is developed and used by the conceptual design interface to capture design semantics. This representation is defined using a description logic, enabling automated reasoning. The descriptions created using the conceptual design interface can thus be employed to annotate designs, create search queries, and to organize collections of designs. Further, this work incorporates Semantic Web technology, enabling conceptual design knowledge to be published and accessed effectively on the World Wide Web. New applications of design repositories are made possible by this but new issues must be investigated and addressed, as discussed here.Copyright © 2005 by ASME


Either internalization (INT) or externalization (EXT) of MNC's business is in fact one side or the other of the same shield and the degree of either is determined by the same underlying factors surrounding the MNC's decision-making on advancing into a particular foreign market. The frm chooses an optimal scale of production (and sales) most appropriate for a given size of demand (or market) either internally within a frm or externally thro_14gh cooperative arrangements-and also, very often, to adopt an optimal combination of the two modes (INT plus EXT simultaneously) as an integral whole of its international operations. Business cooperation is synonymous with EXT through joint ventures, Iicensing, OEM, and other contractual arrangements, which, by complementing INT, increases efficiency and scope of activity among the MNCs. And EXT can be best enhanced by the principle of agreed specialization, a form of cooperation that can promote intra-industry trade, direct investment, and collaborative business arrangements.


I visited Soldado Rock on 9-10 July 1966 in company with Richard ffrench and collected a small number of invertebrates which were later identified. Two species of cockroaches seemed to be well established. The American cockroach Periplaneta americana (L.) (Blattinae) was numerous especially in the gully. The much larger and more sluggish cockroach Blaberus diseoidalis Serville (Blaberinae) was was represented by three adult females caught at night. Several predators were collecterd at night, hunting in the open. Two species of scolopendrid centipede were identified by R.L. Hoffman of Radford College, Virginia, USA. Scolopendra angulata (Newport) (Scolopendrinae) is a large, robust species identified from two specimens. Rhysida nuda (Newport) (Otostigminae) was identified from a single juvenile. A small solifugid (Chelicerata; Solpugidae) 2 cm long was identified by D.J. Clark of the British Museum (Natural History), London, as Ammotrechella geniculata (C.L. Koch). I also found two live queens of the bachac ant Alta cephalotes L. on the shore above high water mark. The crab Grapsus grapsus (L.) and the snail Littorina zic-zac Gmelin were abundant, as was also a robust isopod identified by Ligia (Hirtiligia) baudiniana .


The binding of biotinylated BPA to parraffin sections of 18 normal gastrointestinal tract mucosa, 5 nonneoplastic polyps (NNP), 12 adenomas, and 59 carcinomas was studied by using avidinbiotin peroxidase complex (ABC) technique. In normal mucosa BPA appeared to bind both mucus and nonmucus glycoproteins but goblet cell mucus showed a decrease in binding and increase in binding of nonmucus glycoproteins as the cells lose their differentiation. BPA showed characteristic binding patterns in adenoma and carcinoma that differed from the pattern in normal mucosa. In normal mucosa linear binding to the apical cytoplasm in the columnar cells of the surface epithelium was observed, whereas in adenomas and carcinomas, in addition to the linear binding to the apical cytoplasm, diffuse cytoplasmic and granular deposits in the supranuclear, paranuclear or infranuclear zones were seen. Our findings suggest that BPA binding patterns in normal and neoplastic mucosa are related to the degree of cellular differentiation. In the process of malignant transformation the carbohydrate distribution undergoes progressive changes through the adenoma carcinoma sequence. These changes are related to the degree of dysplasia in adenomas and to the degree of differentiation in carcinomas.


To model Web services handling data from an infinite domain, or with multiple sessions, we introduce fresh-variable automata, a simple extension of finite-state automata in which some transitions are labeled with variables that can be refreshed in some specified states. We prove several closure properties for this class of automata and study their decision problems. We then introduce a notion of simulation that enables us to reduce the Web service composition problem to the construction of a simulation of a target service by the asynchronous product of existing services, and prove that this construction is computable.


A simple post-column ion-pair extraction system was constructed from commercially available tees and tubing (made of chemically inert polymeric materials) and evaluated for the liquid chromatographic (LC) determination of cyclamate and related sweeteners. Ion-pair extraction was studied using several different dyes including methylene blue, methyl violet 2B and crystal violet with absorbance detection in the visible range (546 nm). Cyclamate (20 ng) produced a 1-cm peak (4% full scale) whereas the same response was obtained with 10 ng of either saccharin or acesulfam. The sweetener aspartame was not detected with the system. Other food additives, such as benzoate and sorbate, gave weak responses, whereas caffeine was not detected. Cyclamate was easily detected in spiked beverages by direct injection into the LC system.


PURPOSE
As educators have implemented competency-based medical education (CBME) as a framework for training and assessment, they have made decisions based on available evidence and on the medical education community's assumptions about CBME. This critical narrative review aimed to collect, synthesize, and judge the existing evidence underpinning assumptions the community has made about CBME.

METHOD
The authors searched Ovid MEDLINE to identify empirical studies published January 2000 to November 2018 reporting on competence, competency, and CBME. The knowledge synthesis focused on "core" assumptions about CBME, selected via a survey of stakeholders who judged 31 previously identified assumptions. The authors judged, independently and in pairs, whether evidence from included studies supported, did not support, or was mixed related to each of the core assumptions. Assumptions were also analyzed to categorize their shared or contrasting purposes and foci.

RESULTS
From 8,086 unique articles, the authors reviewed 709 full-text articles and included 189 studies reporting evidence related to 15 core assumptions. Most studies (80%; n = 152) used a quantitative design. Many focused on procedural skills (48%; n = 90) and assessed behavior in clinical settings (37%; n = 69). On aggregate, the studies produced a mixed evidence base, reporting 362 data points related to the core assumptions (169 supportive, 138 not supportive, and 55 mixed). The 31 assumptions were organized into 3 categories: aspirations, conceptualizations, and assessment practices.

CONCLUSIONS
The reviewed evidence base is significant but mixed, with limited diversity in research designs and the types of competencies studied. This review pinpoints tensions to resolve (where evidence is mixed) and research questions to ask (where evidence is absent). The findings will help the community make explicit their assumptions about CBME, consider the value of those assumptions, and generate timely research questions to produce evidence about how and why CBME functions (or not).


We revisit the reliability of metallicity estimates of high velocity clouds with the help of hydrodynamical simulations. We quantify the effect of accretion and viewing angle on metallicity estimates derived from absorption lines. Model parameters are chosen to provide strong lower limits on cloud contamination by ambient gas. Consistent with previous results, a cloud traveling through a stratified halo is contaminated by ambient material to the point that < 10% of its mass in neutral hydrogen consists of original cloud material. Contamination progresses nearly linearly with time, and it increases from head to tail. Therefore, metallicity estimates will depend on the evolutionary state of the cloud, and on position. While metallicities change with time by more than a factor of 10, well beyond observational uncertainties, most lines-of-sight range only within those uncertainties at any given time over all positions. Metallicity estimates vary with the cloud's inclination angle within observational uncertainties. The cloud survives the infall through the halo because ambient gas continuously condenses and cools in the cloud's wake and thus appears in the neutral phase. Therefore, the cloud observed at any fixed time is not a well-defined structure across time, since material gets constantly replaced. The thermal phases of the cloud are largely determined by the ambient pressure. Internal cloud dynamics evolve from drag gradients caused by shear instabilities, to complex patterns due to ram-pressure shielding, leading to a peloton effect, in which initially lagging gas can catch up to and even overtake the head of the cloud.


When a student is asked to perform a given task, her subjective estimate of the difficulty of that task has a strong influence on her performance. There exists a rich literature on the impact of perceived task difficulty on performance and motivation. Yet, there is another topic that is closely related to the subject of the influence of perceived task difficulty that did not receive any attention in previous research - the influence of revealing the true difficulty of a task to the student. This paper investigates the impact of revealing the task difficulty on the student's performance, motivation, self-efficacy and subjective task value via an experiment in which workers are asked to solve matchstick riddles. Furthermore, we discuss how the experiment results might be relevant for Al-aided education. Specifically, we elaborate on the question of how a student's learning experience might be improved by supporting her with two types of AI systems: an AI system that predicts task difficulty and an AI system that determines when task difficulty should be revealed and when not.


Abstract:On March 18th, 2019, settler scholar Sam McKegney and Anishinaabe scholar Mike Auksi conducted an interview with Eugene Arcand at Queen's University's Isabelle Bader Centre in Kingston, Ontario in the territories of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe Peoples. Arcand had travelled to Kingston to act as a Keynote Speaker the following day at the "Roundtable on Racism in Hockey." On Arcand's insistence that the efforts, experiences, and ideas of roundtable participants be honoured in ways that promote tangible change, the roundtable's organizers Courtney Szto, Bob Dawson, McKegney, and Auksi distilled the event's findings into the Policy Paper for Anti-Racism in Canadian Hockey, which has since been downloaded over 7,500 times. The interview below is supplemented by a brief excerpt from a recorded conversation McKegney had with Arcand, his wife Lorna, and Craig McCallum at the Arcands' home on Whitecap Reserve in Saskatchewan in the Spring of 2019.


The development of SC devices based on HTSC tapes requires a deep knowledge of the current distribution in both pre-saturation and post-saturation regimes. Magnetic measurements have shown the possibilities to derive the current distribution by Inverse Problem Solution in finite sized bulks, based on a non destructive measurement of the magnetic field created by the own current flowing in the SC. In this work, the QR inversion strategy is extended to non finite systems by considering the effect of the boundaries. We present a method to derive the current distribution in a cross-section of a tape based on Hall magnetic mapping by using a specifically designed inverse problem solver. This method is applied to a series of Hall measurements corresponding to a full magnetization cycle of a commercial tape, produced by applying a set of the currents applied to the tape of several intensities. Details of the experiments and the calculation method are reported and the applicability as homogeneity test and losses studies is discussed.


On the surface, pulse sequence optimization seems like a difficult problem because of the many variables involved. In practice, however, the simple strategy of obtaining both T1- and T2-weighted images of the body part in question is adequate in most musculoskeletal imaging. This strategy virtually guarantees the production of images with adequate contrast between normal and abnormal tissue, no matter which of the common background tissues is considered. Although intravenous contrast agents can improve the already excellent contrast between musculoskeletal tissues, it is too early to tell the exact role they will play in the work-up of musculoskeletal disease.


There seems to be an efficient order in the recruitment of thermo-effectors, which allows for body temperature regulation at minimal cost of nutrients and water. But how does thermal behaviour fit in this order? In this edition Schlader et al. hypothesized that thermal behavior fits in the orderly recruitment of thermo-effectors as follows: 1) vasomotor responses, 2) behavioral responses, and 3) sweating or metabolic responses. Their results support this hypothesis by showing consistently for heating and cooling that non-glabrous skin blood flow changes immediately with changes in skin temperature, followed by the initiation of a behavioral response. The editorial focus is on old and new questions that are raised by the findings of Schlader et al, and how they pave the way to better understand the underlying regulatory and integrative human physiology of thermoregulation.


The establishment of a positive therapeutic relationship has been widely acknowledged internationally as an intrinsic part of therapy and caring services, even healing and restorative in its own right. In this paper, current understandings of the therapeutic relationship are presented and reconsidered within the context of caring for patients with anorexia in hospital in the UK. The relevance of interpersonal processes and the expectations of care and recovery are re-evaluated and the question posed as to whether these principles can be wholly employed in this setting. The service in which the therapeutic relationship exists (eating disorder services), current understandings of 'therapeutic relationship', responsibility, and tensions that exist in attaining a relationship are examined.


Primary ciliar dyskinesia is а rare orphan disease known for its multiple and variable symptoms caused by the marked genetic heterogenity beyond. As per the abundant symptoms in pediatric patients, a frequent inflammatory diseases of both upper and lower respiratory tract segments are the key points. A Sieberth-Kartagener Syndrome is a classical form of the primary ciliary dyskinesia covered such symptoms as the reversal placement of internal organs, chronic bronchoectases, nasal cavity hypoplasia and/or sinusitis. According to some foreign research, the age mediana value estimated in Eastern and Western European countries for a "Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia" diagnosis is equal to about 5 years. A lack of early diagnosis is nothing but a direct consequence of the poor level of awareness, so common for a primary health care system. This itself leads to increased rates of patients disability. This report deals with clinical peculiarities, diagnostics and treatment details observed and administered in a primary ciliary dyskinesia (Kartagener Syndrome) patient. Noteworthy, both mother's tough obstetric-gynecological profile and a harsh course of this particular pregnancy were indeed taken into account. Up until 11 months, this patient was subjected to a non-clinical treatment on numerous respiratory infection occasions. A "Kartagener Syndrome" diagnosis was estimated in our clinic on the basis of laboratory and instrumental tests data. Thus, the latter prove a complete reversal of internal organs placement. Further, this diagnosis was re-confirmed by histomorphological patterns revealed in the nasal epithelial biopsy study. A difficulty to come up with the Kartagener Syndrome diagnosis at the pre-hospital treatment stage is in a focus of this specific case report. Noteworthy, we have succeed with the early diagnosis of Kartagener Syndrome and then with a following efficient therapy conducted in our clinic.


human-robot interaction, interactive humanoid robots must simultaneously consider interaction with multiple people in real environments such as stations and museums. To interact with a group simultaneously, we must estimate whether a group's state is suitable for the robot's intended task. This paper presents a method that estimates the states of a group of people for interaction between an interactive humanoid robot and multiple people by focusing on the position relationships between clusters of people. In addition, we also focused on the position relationships between clusters of people and the robot. The proposed method extracts the feature vectors from position relationships between the group of people and the robot and then estimates the group states by using Support Vector Machine with extracted feature vectors. We investigate the performance of the proposed method through a field experiment whose results achieved an 80.4% successful estimation rate for a group state. We believe these results will allow us to develop interactive humanoid robots that can interact effectively with groups of people.


Dissemination of primary cutaneous nocardiosis is a rare event. An interesting case of a 20 year old female labourer with progressive weakness in both the lower limbs and large multiple subcutaneous abscesses over the back, since 4 years, is presented. MRI showed an epidural abscess compressing the cord. Histopathology of skin lesions suggested a chronic suppurative lesion. Microbiological tests on the aspirate from the skin lesion identified the causative organism as Nocardia brasiliensis.


Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions have been identified as the channels through which youth can acquire innovative skills for adaptation; innovations as well as for either salaried or self employment. Consequently and in recognition of the role that TVET graduates are expected to play in achievement of the Kenya Vision 2030 among other achievements in the Kenyan economic development, the government has put in place interventions geared towards enhancing technical capabilities amongst the youth. These interventions include improvement of the business environment through appropriate policy frameworks for the TVET graduate owned micro and small enterprises (MSEs) to thrive.

This study aimed at: determining innovative skills prevalent amongst TVET graduate businesses; investigating effects of innovative skills to TVET graduate business performance; and discovering challenges faced by TVET graduate enterprises in applying innovative skills for sustainable development. The study focused on micro and small enterprises owned by TVET graduates in Embu District of Kenya. A descriptive research design was used to carry out the study. Stratified random sampling technique was employed to select the sample. A questionnaire and a focused group discussion were the main methods applied for data collection. Quantitative data was electronically analyzed using the Excel computer software.

From the study, it was found that despite a lot of relevant skills being imparted to the youth in TVET institutions, access to credit, technical support, and access to technology and information still remain the main impediments to growth and sustainability of TVET graduate enterprises. Among key recommendations from the study are that TVET graduate enterprises need to be provided with adequate finances, tools and equipment and frequent field visits to performing enterprises for benchmarking and to upgrade their business skills.


Investment into multi-wall Immersive Virtual Environments is often motivated by the potential for small groups of users to work collaboratively, yet most systems only allow for stereographic rendering from a single viewpoint. This paper discusses approaches for supporting copresent head-tracked users in an immersive projection environment, such as the CAVETM, without relying on additional projection and frame-multiplexing technology. The primary technique presented here is called Image Blending and consists of rendering independent views for each head-tracked user to an off-screen buffer and blending the images into a final composite view using view-vector incidence angles as weighting factors. Additionally, users whose view-vectors intersect a projection screen at similar locations are grouped into a view-cluster. Clustered user views are rendered from the average head position and orientation of all users in that cluster. The clustering approach minimizes users' exposure to undesirable display artifacts such as inverted stereo pairs and nonlinear object projections by distributing projection error over all tracked viewers. These techniques have the added advantage that they can be easily integrated into existing systems with minimally increased hardware and software requirements. We compare Image Blending and View Clustering with previously published techniques and discuss possible implementation optimizations and their tradeoffs.


Author(s): Yazell, Bryan | Abstract: Near the end of the nineteenth century, the "tramp" embodied the most extreme aspects of the boom-and-bust economy in the US. More than any other writer of his day, the ethnographer Josiah Flynt assisted both the public and government officials in visualizing the lives of tramps with the intent of rehabilitating this population. The key text in this effort, Flynt's Tramping with Tramps (1899) hinges on a comparison between US and European vagrancy. For reform-minded authors like Flynt, tramping in Europe provides a point of comparison for evaluating key areas of concern in the US—namely, the problem of idleness among sectors of the American population. The depiction of tramping abroad in Flynt's work—as well as in accounts by writers like Mark Twain—ultimately reflects the international nexus shaping both the discourse surrounding vagrancy as well as antitramp legislation.


The Darboux rotation for a null curve in Minkowski 3- space is decomposed into two simultaneous rotations. The axes of these simultaneous rotations are joined by a simple mechanism. One of these axes is a parallel of the principal normal vector of the curve, the direction of the other axis is the direction of the Darboux vector of  the curve.


War is one of the most challenging environments that persons may experience. The cognitive, emotional and physical demands of combat environments place enormous stress on even the best-prepared military personnel. The OIF/OEF combat theatre, with its ubiquitous battlefronts, ambiguous enemy identification, and repeated extended deployments have resulted in a significant number of returning American SMs with PTSD and other mental disorders. As a result, military leaders and clinicians in training need to develop clinical skills for identifying potential stress related disorders. Although traditional approaches make use of standard clinic patients to teach, there is limited ability to evaluate skills in a systematic fashion. There is the concern related to the time and money needed to train those involved in the role play for standardized patients. Perhaps most difficult is the "standardization" of standardized patients—will they in fact consistently proffer psychometrically reliable and valid interactions with the training clinicians. Virtual Human technology has evolved to a point where researchers are developing mental health applications that make use of virtual standardized patients. These virtual patients are embodied characters that have the ability to recognize speech, respond to questions and generate verbal and non-verbal behavior. We have conducted several pilot studies with clinical residents at USC's Keck School of Medicine and will describe the ongoing study and methodology of our virtual patient approach that allows novice mental health clinicians to conduct an interview with a character emulating PTSD. The paper will summarize the data from the studies and discuss the preliminary standardization of the interactions with the virtual patients. The underlying virtual patient technology will be described. Finally future work will be discussed and recommendations related to the ways in which these characters may enable future leaders to learn, train and win.


Ovarian surface epithelial cells are positionally organized as a single cell layer by a sheet of basement membrane. It is believed that the contact of the ovarian surface epithelial cells with the basement membrane regulates cell growth and ensures the organization of the epithelium. Disabled‐2 (Dab2), a signal transduction protein and a candidate tumor suppressor of ovarian carcinoma, functions in positional organization of ovarian surface epithelial cells. In ovarian carcinomas, genetic and epigenetic changes enable the tumor cells to escape positional control and proliferate in a disorganized fashion. Alterations in the extracellular environment may also be critical for tumor initiation and progression.


Background: P wave dispersion (PWD) is defined as the difference between the maximum P wave duration (P max ) and the minimum P wave duration (P min ) in 12-leads of the surface electrocardiography. The aim of this study was to evaluate the values of PWD during atrial fibrillation (AF) after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: We prospectively evaluated atrial rhythms of 350 patients (251 males, 99 females) at their first AMI. The measurements included left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and left atrial dimensions (LAD) by means of echocardiography. On admission an ECG was obtained and repeated daily during hospitalization . Results: Fifty patients had AF after AMI. P max was significantly higher (140.8±18.9 ms) among patients with AF than patients without AF (106.5±17.3 ms). This was also true about P min (66.4±18.3 ms vs. 57.7±15.7 ms), PWD (74.4±20.6 ms vs. 48.7±18.9 ms) and LVEF (35.2±9.4% vs. 39.3±10.9%). Whereas, there was no significant difference between the two groups in respect to LAD (36.5±7.4 mm vs. 35.1± 5.9 mm) Conclusion: Based on the univariate analysis results, P min , P max , PWD, LVEF and age were significant predictors of atrial fibrillation in patients with first acute myocardial infarction. However, multivariate analysis failed to disclose such independent predictors for atrial fibrillation in these patients.


The paradigm of shared decision making in patientphysician relationships is well documented. Moreover, it is an integral aspect of sound patient centric healthcare delivery. Implementing such an approach within established healthcare processes has yet to be successfully realized. This void is causing problems in healthcare delivery in particular in EU countries such as Germany because knowledge sources are distributed and underlie strict privacy policies; while the lack of adequate shared decision making compromises the quality of healthcare delivery and can lead to errors and inefficient workflow. This paper serves to analyze the provision of personal guidance services for shared decision making in eHealth service networks. By doing so, we address the problem of distributed and privacy-aware knowledge sharing by the formation of agent-based organizations to represent the relationships of patients and physicians and study this problem from the perspective of multiagent systems; i.e. we develop technology enabled collaboration solutions. The efficacy of the proffered decision support system will be demonstrated by a scenario-based evaluation. We contend that such an approach will address the current void.


In the 25th anniversary year of Leslea Newman's groundbreaking picture book Heather Has Two Mommies, this column considers children's literature featuring gays and lesbians available today.THIS YEAR MARKS the 25th anniversary of the publishing of the groundbreaking picture book Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman (1989). Although not the first picture book to include or even feature gay and/or lesbian couples, Newman's book, republished in 1990 with Michael Willhoite's (1990) Daddy's Roommate, launched the Alyson Wonderland imprint, the children's publishing wing of Alyson Publications that became a significant promoter of U.S. books for children featuring gay and lesbian characters for over a decade. In the 25 years since Newman's book was published, the United States has experienced tremendous shifts in its political, cultural, and publishing landscapes.Political and cultural change since the turn of the century has been significant-and positive overall, if not linearly so-in the direction of equal rights for members of the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community in the United States. In June 2013, the Supreme Court ruled parts of the national Defense of Marriage Act (1996), which defined marriage as between a man and a woman, and California's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional (Reilly & Siddiqui, 2013). By the end of 2013, 16 U.S. states, along with Washington, DC, had legalized same-sex marriage, although 33 still had explicit bans in place1 (ProCon.org, 2013). In 2011, the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" allowed gays and lesbians to serve openly in the U.S. military (Jelinek, 2010). In 2012, Tammy Baldwin became the first openly gay politician to win a Senate seat (Grinberg, 2012).These changes have impacted and been impacted by a gradually growing openness in the U.S. cultural landscape. Consistently since May 2012, the majority (50-54%) of U.S. residents polled have responded in favor of recognizing same-sex marriages "by the law as valid, with the same rights as traditional marriages" (Gallup, 2013, para. 1)-up from 27% in 1996. A recent Pew Research Center (2013) study found that 92% of U.S. LGBT adults "say society has become more accepting of them in the past decade...[and] expect it to grow even more accepting in the decade ahead" (para. 1). However, large numbers also note that they face rejection, slurs, threats, physical attacks, employment issues, and an overall lack of strong acceptance. Many legal inequalities continue (American Civil Liberties Union, 2011; Nichols, 2013). Clearly, the pace of change is unjustly slow, and there is much more work to be done to create acceptance, respect, and equal rights for this community.With regard to publishing, a key book released at the turn of the century was Day's (2000) informative bibliography of recommended and available books featuring gay and lesbian characters and topics, including clear guidelines for selection and evaluation. She discussed 27 picture books, 16 of which were Alyson publications, attesting to the impact that Alyson Wonderland had on the market before gradually ending its run as a print label. As I reported a decade ago (Moller, 2004), for a time, new small and independent publishers filled the gap, leading to increased access to newly published titles and reissues of older books. A key player was Two Lives Publishing. In 2004, Two Lives had a richly informative, multipage website, offering books across a broad reader age range. This important resource is also no longer available. Recently, the trend of established publishers offering limited numbers of books with gay and lesbian characters has been supplemented by self-published books of varying quality, released through sites such as CreateSpace and Lulu or through limited liability corporations.A more recent bibliographic resource that offers a rich guide for LGBTQ books as well as a detailed overview of the field, including awards, history, publishing shifts, and evaluation guidelines, is by Naidoo (2012). …


ABSTRACT To design an outline of a user-focused marketing model and its implication in academic libraries is the goal of this article. The determinants for the proposed model were primarily derived from the success factors of customer-focused marketing noted in earlier research, and views and insights from a number of allied constituencies in Bangladesh. Doing this job, the study used exploratory investigation in the form of executive interview, focus group discussion, and questionnaire survey. To examine reliability of the determinants "item-total correlation" was applied. The proposed model shows quality service has been seen as a direct result of the quality of library products, services, and service providers that leads to ensure user satisfaction and loyalty. It also demonstrates how users are the central theme from all functional perspectives of library services. The model emphasizes the quality improvement and operational efficiencies are to be working together to achieve a competitive advantage. The model may help librarians understand how to set the users as the central theme from all functional perspectives of the library services.


A child developed eyelid swelling that was diagnosed in succession as an abscess, eosinophilic granuloma, malignancy, and inflammatory pseudotumor. Treatment modalities included antibiotics, radiation and corticosteroids. Repeated histologic examination finally provided the diagnosis of orbital mycosis, most consistent with aspergillosis. Despite six weeks of therapy with Amphotericin B, an exenteration was required. Amphotericin B was continued for another six weeks, and there has been no evidence of recurrent disease after two years of follow-up. The problems encountered in the diagnosis and management of this unusual infectious disease of the orbit in children are discussed in detail.


The aim of the present study was to clarify the expression of fibroblast growth factor-inducible 14 (Fn14), a type I transmembrane protein, in breast carcinoma and its correlation with clinicopathological features. We examined the expression of Fn14 in normal breast epithelial cells as well as in breast carcinoma cells, and in 12 cases of breast carcinoma tissues and the paired normal breast tissues by RT-PCR and Western blot analysis. In addition, we analyzed Fn14 protein expression in 171 clinicopathologically characterized breast carcinoma cases by immunohistochemistry. Statistical analyses were applied to test for prognostic and diagnostic associations. The results show that the level of Fn14 mRNA and protein were higher in the cancer cell lines and most cancer tissues than in normal control tissues. Immunohistochemistry showed that Fn14 was expressed in 148 of 171 cases (86.5%). Statistical analysis of cases showed that there was a significant difference of Fn14 expression in patients categorized according to HER-2 expression, lymph node metastasis and clinical stage. Our results suggest that Fn14 protein is a valuable marker of breast carcinoma progression. Fn14 might be used as a valuable prognostic marker for breast carcinoma patients.


(1) Background: Children spend a lot of time within schools. The school setting generally has many ergonomic hazards and reinforced behavior patterns which put children at greater risk of environmental hazards than adults during their critical developmental stages. (2) Objective: The aim of the current study was to investigate the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and detect spinal deformities amongst general and technical secondary school students. (3) Methods: A total of 418 students from the second grade of secondary school in Shaquira governorate, Egypt participated in this cross-sectional study. Each student in the study was screened via Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) and had their upper limb posture measured via RULA (Rapid Upper Limb assessment), and the deviation in their thoracic curve was measured using a scoliometer. (4) Results: There was a prevalence of MSDs amongst students as there were 69.7% of general school students and 83.8% of the technical school students suffering from MSDs with a statistically significant difference between both technical and general school students in RULA score and musculoskeletal complaints, whereas there were non-statistical differences in the scoliometer scale in both general and technical education students. (5) Conclusions: Musculoskeletal problems are prevalent among Egyptian secondary school students, with higher prevalence between technical school students. Therefore, preventive measures and strategies are recommended to overcome the future complications of these musculoskeletal disorders.


The Syriac translation of the New Testament produced by Thomas of Harkel in AD 616 provides a rich source for studying the transmission of the Greek New Testament. In this case, its relationship to the Byzantine text in the Catholic Epistles is used to test the results of the Coherence-Based Genealogical Method ( CBGM ), a new computerized tool being used to edit the standard editions of the Greek New Testament (NA28/UBS5). Against claims that the CBGM is not useful for understanding textual history, this study shows that, when used carefully, it can provide valuable clarity to our understanding. The results of this test have implications for the CBGM , for the textual worth of the Byzantine text, and for how all "texts" are related and evaluated.


This paper explores the problem of avoiding local minima solutions in entropy-based synthetic aperture radar (SAR) autofocus. These autofocus algorithms correct defocused SAR images by determining the phase error estimate that produces the image with minimum entropy. However, the optimization strategy may converge to local minima solutions that correspond to incorrect image restorations. We propose two methods for reducing the likelihood of achieving such solutions. The first is a novel wavelet-based decomposition technique that determines the neighborhood of the global entropy minimum. A second strategy is the application of simulated annealing techniques to the optimization. We explore the performance of these methods using simulated SAR data, and provide a justification for how they work. Worst case phase errors in which the phase is random and uncorrelated between elements are considered.


This volume focuses on the contributions of feminist theory to a critical evaluation of neoclassical economics and the contributions of economic theory to ethical reflection. Julie Nelson argues that women and nature share a similar treatment in neoclassical economics. They are made invisible or pushed into the background. John Broome argues that formal techniques used in economics can contribute to ethical theory.Five articles give outlines of studies on ethics and economics. Per Sundman makes a critical analysis of a neo-Aristotelian approach to the managerial role in business ethics. Gert Helgesson discusses ethical preconditions in economic theory. Malin Lofstedt deals with the neoclassical view of humans, Ann-Cathrin Jarl writes about the conceprions of equality in feminist economics, and Carl-Ake Elmersjo deals with economic analysis in health care.


Inverse Correlation of Incidence Between Headache and Mental Impairment Traumatic Head Injuries A statistical study was performed using Chi square test on 371 patients, each of those claimed compensation for the various sequelae of the work-related head in jury. Head injury was classified as the following two groups: Severe head injury (duration of coma for 6 hours or more in the accident, and/or long·term existence of neurologic deficit) and mild head injury (alert or had brief unconsciousness for less than 6 hours and non existence of neurologic deficit) . The author inter viewed all patients with neurological examination and routine checking of X-rays and CT (sometimes EEG and MRI were added). Additional psychological tests or interview by a psychiatrist were ordered in case of need. Dementia, severe memory disturbance, or personality change were considered to be mental impair ment. As a result, incidence of headache was high in mild head injury group and low in severe head injury one:167/223, and 76/148, respectively (p < 0.001). Incidence of mental impairment was low in mild head injury group and high in severe head injury: 11/223 and 81/148, respectively (p < 0.001). Incidence of mental impairment in headache group was 50/243 and that in non-HA group was 42/128 (p < 0.01). An inverse correlation was proved between incidence of headache and that of mental impairment. Moreover, the group of severe head in jury was subdivided into diffuse axonal injury (DAI) and focal contusion. Inci dence of headache in DAI was 37/56, and that in focal contusion was 21/51 (p < 0.02) . Incidence of mental impairment was low in DAI and high in focal con· tusion: 27/56 and 38/51, respectively (p < 0.02). These results might be due to (1) the relation of posttraumatic complaint and compensation after the work related head injury, and (2) the poverty of the psychological energy in severely head-injured patients.


Purpose of review Adolescent obesity continues to be a significant public health issue. To date, there are no medical therapies that provide significant, durable weight loss. Bariatric surgery has been shown in the adult and now the adolescent population to provide a reasonable alternative for weight loss. Recent findings Recent publications have focused on the revision of the current guidelines for bariatric surgery in adolescents to more closely align with their well-established adult counterparts. These guidelines now introduce the establishment of multidisciplinary teams for the care of this subset of adolescent surgical patients. Numerous manuscripts in the past 2–3 years have demonstrated the overall effectiveness of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, adjustable gastric banding, and most recently sleeve gastrectomy for both significant weight loss and comorbidity reduction with safety profiles similar to those found in adults. Despite these data, a recently published study showed that the trend for adolescent bariatric surgery has been stagnant over a 6-year period. There is also an ongoing shift in the type of procedure performed for morbid obesity in the United States toward sleeve gastrectomy and away from the adjustable gastric band. Summary With the growing number of morbidly obese adolescents in the United States coupled with the relative ineffectiveness of medical therapy in this group of patients, bariatric surgery consistently provides a means for significant weight loss and the resolution of substantial comorbidities. Its approval is slowly increasing, and the growing fund of knowledge in regard to complication rates and the efficacy of bariatric surgery will ultimately result in its more widespread acceptance.


The objective was to develop and test a procedure for applying variable rates of fertilizers and evaluate yield response in coffee (Coffea arabica L.) with regard to the application of phosphorus and potassium. The work was conducted during the 2004 season in a 6.4 ha field located in central Sao Paulo state. Two treatments were applied with alternating strips of fixed and variable rates during the whole season: one following the fertilizing procedures recommended locally, and the other based on a grid soil sampling. A prototype pneumatic fertilizer applicator was used, carrying two conveyor belts, one for each row. Harvesting was done with a commercial harvester equipped with a customized volumetric yield monitor, separating the two treatments. Data were analyzed based on geostatistics, correlations and regressions. The procedure showed to be feasible and effective. The area that received fertilizer applications at a variable rate showed a 34% yield increase compared to the area that received a fixed rate. The variable rate fertilizer resulted in a savings of 23% in phosphate fertilizer and a 13% increase in potassium fertilizer, when compared to fixed rate fertilizer. Yield in 2005, the year after the variable rate treatments, still presented residual effect from treatments carried out during the previous cycle.


Running neural networks (NNs) on microcontroller units (MCUs) is becoming increasingly important, but is very difficult due to the tiny SRAM size of MCU. Prior work proposes many algorithm-level techniques to reduce NN memory footprints, but all at the cost of sacrificing accuracy and generality, which disqualifies MCUs for many important use cases. We investigate a system solution for MCUs to execute NNs out of core: dynamically swapping NN data chunks between an MCU's tiny SRAM and its large, low-cost external flash. Out-of-core NNs on MCUs raise multiple concerns: execution slowdown, storage wear out, energy consumption, and data security. We present a study showing that none is a showstopper; the key benefit -- MCUs being able to run large NNs with full accuracy and generality -- triumphs the overheads. Our findings suggest that MCUs can play a much greater role in edge intelligence.


Researchers have considered the potential utilization of waste plastics in concrete and mortar production. However, there is paucity of research on the use of waste plastic as an encapsulate in the manufacture of eco-bricks. This paper assesses the characterization of eco-bricks under uniaxial compressive loading with respect to soil materials and compaction. Three compaction layers and three types of soil materials (laterite, sharp sand, and stone dust) were used to produce 81 specimens of eco-bricks. The study reveals that the compressive strength of eco-bricks made with laterite has a positive linear relationship with the number of compaction layers, but eco-bricks that are made with sharp sand and stone dust as filler material have a negative linear relationship with the number of compaction layers. The compressive strength of laterite-filled eco-bricks for one, two and three layers of compaction was 31.92 N/mm2, 40.91 N/mm2 and 46.79 N/mm2, respectively. In comparison, stone dust has a density of 12.18 N/mm2, N/mm2, and 6.51 N/mm2 and sharp sand have a density of 3.38 N/mm2, 2.42 N/mm2, and 2.17 N/mm2. The study revealed that at a high level of compaction, laterite bottle bricks are suitable for use as masonry units for construction of walls, while sharp sand and stone dust bottle bricks are only suitable for use as masonry units at a low level of compaction. It is advised to choose filler materials and compaction layers carefully while manufacturing bottle bricks because the performance of eco-bricks depends significantly on these parameters.


Carbon is a chemical element has the ability of forming long carbonic chain. Due to its special electronic structure, each carbon atom can be linked with another carbon atom or with another element via single, double or triple covalent bonds. The special electronic structure of carbon atom affecting on its properties also affecting on its ability of existing in different forms called allotropes. During few last decades, new carbon-based nanomaterials have been described including fullerene, carbon nanotube, graphene and nanodiamond. These new allotropes attracted the interest of science and industry and became as a new and important class of materials due to its outstanding features which candidate for numerous applications. In parallel with new developments in nanomedicine especially in drug delivery field, the targeted delivery systems became an important to overcome the limitations of the old fashion systems. So, it become very important to translate this idea into reality. Fullerene and nanodiamond have a unique combination of structure, morphology and biological properties that make them as a powerful tools for targeted delivery system. So, this chapter will focus on two major aspects: synthesis routes of fullerenes and nanodiamonds, and their role in nanomedicine as drug delivery systems.