Currently in Australia information from electoral ballot papers is obtained by individuas who sort and count each paper by hand, and then type this handwritten information into a computer system. The process is laboriously slow, expensive, and potentially erroneous A system that optically scans and interprets handwritten data on ballot papers, and inputs the information directly into the existing computer system would save time and money, and increase its accuracy. Software for a scanning device that fulfills this aim has been developed. Full integration with the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) computer system is required, along with further developments in scanning hardware before this system can become operational. At that time, a fully automated ballot0reading system that is accurate, reliable and has a fast processing time will be possible.


INTRODUCTION Tobacco product characteristics convey product attributes to potential users. This study aimed to assess independent contributions of specific e-cigarette and smokeless tobacco product characteristics to adolescents' perceptions about these products. METHODS In 2019–2020, students (N=1003) attending a convenience sample of 7 high schools in California (USA) were individually randomized to one of two discrete choice experiments, featuring either electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) or moist snuff. Participants were presented like-product pairs of randomlygenerated hypothetical tobacco products differing in device type, flavor, vapor cloud, and nicotine amount (for e-cigarettes) or differing in brand, flavor, cut, and price (for moist snuff). Within pairs, participants were asked about which product they were more curious, was more dangerous, would give a greater 'buzz,' and would be easier to use. Conditional logistic regression was used to quantify independent associations of product characteristics to participants' choices. RESULTS Each e-cigarette and moist snuff characteristic was independently associated with multiple product perceptions. All non-tobacco flavors were associated with more curiosity and perceived ease-of-use but lower perceived danger. Tank and pod-type e-cigarettes were viewed as easier to use and garnered more curiosity than 'cigalike' or 'drip-mod' devices. Smaller vapor cloud e-cigarettes and lower-price moist snuff were viewed as less dangerous, less buzz-inducing, and easier to use. Product ever users held stronger perceptions than never users about device type (e-cigarettes) and brands (moist snuff), while product naïve participants more strongly associated flavor with danger and buzz. CONCLUSIONS Tobacco product characteristics convey product attributes to adolescents that may increase appeal. Restricting specific characteristics, including flavors, could reduce positive perceptions of these products among youth.


Background. Pulmonary hypertension (PH) treatment decisions are driven by randomized controlled trials (RCTs) results. Subgroup analyses are often performed to assess whether the intervention effect will change due to the patient's characteristics. As subgroup claims may mislead clinician treatment decisions, there is a need for standards of such analyses.Objective. To evaluate the appropriateness and interpretation of subgroup analysis performed in pulmonary hypertension-specific therapy RCTs.Methods. A systematic review of the literature for pulmonary hypertension-specific therapy RCTs published between January 2000 and December 2020 was conducted. Claims of subgroup effects were evaluated with Sun X et al., 2012 criteria.Results. 30 RCTs were included. Evaluated subgroup analyses presented: a high number of subgroup analyses reported, lack of prespecification, and interaction test. The trial protocol was not available for most RCTs; significant differences were found in those articles which published the protocol. Authors reported 13 claims of subgroup effect, with 12 claims meeting 4 or fewer Sun criteria. Conclusion. Subgroup analyses in pulmonary hypertension-specific therapies are of poor quality. The lack of published protocols limited our capability to assess whether the published results correspond to the initially predefined analyses. Most claims of subgroup effect did not meet critical criteria.


A multi-sender-controlled quantum teleportation scheme is proposed to teleport several secret quantum states from different senders to a distance receiver based on only one Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen (EPR) pair with controlled-NOT (CNOT) gates. In the present scheme, several secret single-qubit quantum states are encoded into a multi-qubit entangled quantum state. Two communication modes, i.e., the detecting mode and the message mode, are employed so that the eavesdropping can be detected easily and the teleported message may be recovered efficiently. It has an advantage over teleporting several different quantum states for one scheme run with more efficiency than the previous quantum teleportation schemes.


Abstract: To boost employees' performance, firms often offer monetary bonuses when production goals are reached. However, the evidence suggests that the particular level of a goal is critical to the effectiveness of this practice. Goals must be challenging yet achievable. Computing optimal goals when employees have private information about their own abilities is often not feasible for the firm. To solve this problem, we propose a compensation scheme in which workers set their own production goals. We provide a simple model of self-chosen goals and test its predictions in the laboratory. The evidence we find in the laboratory confirms our model's predictions for men, but not for women. Men exert greater effort under the self-chosen goal contract system than under a piece rate contract. In contrast, women perform worse under the self-chosen goal contract. Further analysis suggests that this is because women fail to set goals that are challenging enough, because they are less likely to update their goals to take into account their improving performance as they repeat the task.


This experiment was concerned with a detailed description of the emission of forces by rats in a substantially conventional Skinner box as the animals proceeded through various stages of the learning process (specifically, operant level determinations, regular reinforcement, and extinction) without any experimentermanipulated exteroceptive discriminative stimuli. Rudimentary data of this type were obtained by Skinner (1938, p. 312), but they are—for present purposes—deficient in two respects: the measure of force used by Skinner was not linear with actual force, and the technique employed did not permit measuring the force of single responses. A subsequent major contribution to the systematic description of free force emission was made by Trotter (1956). Unfortunately, although he apparently had the instrumentation capability, Trotter failed to keep records during the acquisition phase of a knob-pressing operant, thereby precluding the kind of response-by-response analysis presented here. Nonetheless, his comments concerning "the physical properties of bar pressing behaviour" remain the clearest exposition of the physics of bar pressing to date.


Entrepreneurship has gained importance in the field of research due to its ability to dynamize the economy. Knowing how technological expertise and access to financing influence business performance will enable micro-entrepreneurs to make decisions about technological training strategies within their company. Therefore, the aim of this investigation is to analyse and identify the influence between the Technological Training of Human Resources and awareness on the use of ICTs in business management on an ICT development level and access to finance, by micro-entrepreneurs of Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico. The methodology is quantitative and transversal, with data collection taking place between 2016-2017 and the informants being the owners or partners of micro businesses located in the municipality of Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico. Obtaining from a population of 24100 economic units according to the National Statistical Directory of Economic Units of INEGI, establishing a sample of 379 companies with a confidence level of 95% and 5% sample error, via simple random sampling. The share corresponds to 21.11% of the total sample, and it is a representative sample as entrepreneurs have low participation due to the insecurity in the region. A model based on quantitative indicators which have an influence on business performance of Mexican micro-entrepreneurs is proposed. Nine indicators are taken into consideration; three from the Business Performance variable: 1) Customer Retention, 2) Asset yield, 3) Return on equity, and five from the Technological Expertise of Micro-Enterprises: 4) Technological Preparation of Human Resources, 5) ICT access, 6) awareness of the use of ICTs, 7) Use of ICT in the administration of the company, 8) Level of ICT development, and one from access to financing 9) Financing for technological preparation of the company. Concluding that while micro-entrepreneurs are aware of the importance of ICTs in their businesses, Celaya's micro-enterprises have a low level of technological expertise.


Ischemic stroke related to tandem internal carotid and middle cerebral artery (TIM) occlusion is a challenging condition where endovascular treatment (EVT) is an emerging revascularization option. The identification of factors influencing clinical outcomes can assist in creating appropriate therapeutic algorithms for such patients. This study aimed to evaluate prognostic factors in the context of EVT for TIM occlusion. We performed a retrospective study of consecutive patients with TIM occlusion admitted within 6 h from symptom onset to two tertiary stroke centers. We recorded the etiology of stroke, clinical deficits at stroke onset and discharge, details of EVT, final infarct volume (FIV), in-hospital mortality, and outcome at three months. Among 73 patients with TIM occlusion, 53 were treated with EVT. The median age was 75.9 years (interquartile range (IQR) 64.6–82.6), with the most common etiology of cardioembolism (51.9%). Intravenous thrombolysis with tissue-plasminogen activator (t-PA) was performed in the majority (69.8%) of cases. EVT achieved successful recanalization with a thrombolysis in cerebral infarction (TICI) grade of 2b or 3 in 67.9%. A good outcome (modified Rankin score of 0–2 at three months) was observed in 37.7%. After adjustment for age, the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) at admission, and success of recanalization, smaller final infarct volume (odds ratio (OR) 0.021 for FIV above 25th percentile (95% CI 0.001–0.332, p = 0.005)) and administration of intravenous t-PA (OR 12.04 (95% CI 1.004–144.392, p = 0.049)) were associated with a good outcome at three months. Our study demonstrates that bridging with t-PA is associated with improved outcomes in the setting of tandem ICA and MCA occlusions treated with EVT and should therefore not be withheld in eligible patients.


With the benefit of hindsight, I had probably been unwell for weeks or even months before the worsening of my condition was sufficient for me to allow my wife to finally seek medical advice on my behalf. I can therefore really only directly relate parts of my acute illness as I retain sketchy recollections of this time, so my wife (Sue) has filled in many of the blank bits.

Things were probably first really noticeable when one evening, we were at a concert and I had become acutely confused. Sue became worried when I had not returned after a comfort break. She had to send an attendant to look for me. When he located me, he clearly thought I was intoxicated and we made a hasty retreat back home.

Shortly afterwards on a weekend break to London the same thing happened when, on the third morning, I could not locate the breakfast buffet (even though I had used it the previous two mornings). Then as we disembarked from the plane home later that day, I told my wife that she was in no fit state to drive as she had had too much to drink…. It was 10 am.

At this point, Sue finally persuaded me to seek advice from my neurological colleagues (she had been at me for weeks to do so) and one of my colleagues, who was on call that weekend, kindly came out to see me at home that day. He immediately realised that there was indeed something wrong and arranged an urgent MRI. I had this the next day (probably a case of not what you know but who you know). As Sue was driving me home, we got the phone call that no one really wants:Turn the car around, and get back to …


Caragana arborescens Lam. is an exotic ornamental that can also be somewhat invasive. In July 2002, powdery mildew was observed on C. arborescens along the Idaho-Washington border in Moscow and Pullman, respectively. Leaves were colonized as soon as they emerged, and entire plants were affected. The fungus covered both leaf surfaces, but cleistothecia were more abundant on abaxial surfaces. The mean diameter of the cleistothecia was 91 (± 9.8) μm. Short-stalked asci averaged 67 (± 7.1) μm × 37 (± 5.2) μm, and the ascospores were 21 (± 2.0) μm × 13 (± 0.8) μm. There are records of four species of Microsphaera on C. arborescens in Europe and Asia. The measurements fit the description of Microsphaera palczewskii Jacz. (1), and the identification was confirmed by comparison with specimens of this fungus on C. arborescens from Sweden (U.S. National Fungus Collections: BPI 749057 and 749058). Specimens of M. grossulariae (Wallr. ex Fr.) Lev. on Ribes divaricatum Dougl. from California (BPI 558266) were also examined, but the cleistothecial appendages were distinctly different from those of the Idaho specimens. To our knowledge, this is the first reported occurrence in North America of powdery mildew on C. arborescens and the first report of M. palczewskii. The latter may have been introduced recently into North America because there are areas in southern Canada and the northern United States in which C. arborescens is unaffected by powdery mildew. Interestingly, it is only in recent decades that M. palczewskii has spread from Asia into Europe (2). Now, host and parasite have been reunited in North America as well. Specimens have been deposited in the U.S. National Fungus Collections (BPI). References: (1) U. Braun. A monograph of the Erysiphales (powdery mildews) J. Cramer, Berlin-Stuttgarg, 1987. (2) S. Huhtinen et al. Karstenia 41:31, 2001.


Controllability analysis and the determination of the reachable states for a nonlinear model of plug flow non-isothermal reactors with control constraints are investigated. The main results reduce this problem to the determination of the reachable states, by means of admissible controls, for the approximate linear systems. The approach is developed using a state space system framework and is based on the application of a result from coincidence of the topological degree theory. The paper also gives a procedure to generate an admissible control which steers the system to a reachable desired state.


Traditional dress for women in Ghana, known as "slit and kaba", previously required no standardised sizing and fit, but as this dress has undergone an evolution and taken on more western features, the fit and manufacturing quality have become increasingly important. This paper evaluates the effect of the evolution of the slit and kaba on the current manufacturing processes adopted by the micro and small scale enterprises in Ghana. A qualitative approach was adopted to collect data in three metropolitan centres in Ghana from dressmakers of the traditional dress. An inductive approach through the grounded theory technique was utilised to analyse the data and the findings revealed that the traditional dress has undergone a considerable change in fit and form. The over reliance on trainee apprentices as workers has affected the quality of garments produced in relation to standardisation. It is also evident that most of the dressmakers rely on domestic equipment which is rudimentary in terms of technological development. This paper highlights the importance of skills and adequate equipment in the achievement of fit and quality in the area of garment manufacture in Ghana. Keywords: Garmentmanufacture;Qualitystandards;Fit;Traditionaldress;Evolution.


Nitric oxide (NO)—an endogenous diatomic molecule—plays key roles in various physiological and pathological processes, including smooth muscle relaxation in blood vessels, immune response, neurotransmission, respiration, and cell apoptosis. The biological functions of this molecule greatly depend on the location, timing, and dosage at which it is released. It is important to develop NO-delivery platforms capable of holding NO stably during storage and subsequently release optimal amounts of NO spatiotemporally at the desired location and time. In this review, recent advancements in the preparation of new exogenous NO donors including diazeniumdiolates, S-nitrosothiols, nitrobenzene, and metal-nitrosyl complexes are discussed. The integration of these NO donors with various nanoplatforms for controlled NO delivery and their potential applications in the biomedical field are highlighted.


Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a common type of cardiomyopathy. The pathogenesis of DCM remains unclear and involves varied genes. AXIN1 is a crucial gene in regulating various functions in cells, it encodes protein Axin1, which regulates the assembly and disassembly of β-catenin destruction complex. In addition, Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays an important role in cardiogenesis. We aimed to detect whether AXIN1 polymorphisms contribute to the susceptibility and prognosis of DCM in a Chinese Han population. A total of 340 DCM patients and 430 controls were enrolled, and patients who had complete contact information were followed up for a median period of 49 months. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism was carried out to genotype the two AXIN1 tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs12921862 and rs1805105). All data were analyzed using the statistical software package, SPSS 21.0. The frequencies of allele A in rs12921862 and allele C in rs1805015 were increased in DCM patients compared with healthy controls (p < 0.001). Genotypic frequencies of rs12921862 and rs1805105 were associated with the susceptibility of DCM in codominant, dominant, and overdominant models (p < 0.01). AA/AC and AC genotypes of rs12921862 in the dominant and the overdominant genetic models also presented a correlation with poor prognosis of DCM in both univariate (p < 0.01) and multivariate analyses (p < 0.01) after adjusting for age, gender, left ventricular (LV) end-diastolic diameter, and LV ejection fraction. Our results suggest that AXIN1 polymorphisms are associated with the susceptibility and prognosis of DCM in a Chinese Han population.


This study sought to determine whether Perceived Organisational Support for Strengths Use (POSSU) and Proactive Behaviour towards Strengths Use (PBSU) predict engagement and productivity in a sample of South African call centre operators. Participants were 218 call centre operators within the financial services sector (females=51%, males = 49%), representative of the South African population, and predominantly holding secondary educational qualifications. Information was gathered through a cross-sectional quantitative research design comprising self-report measures. The measures were administered on site within a call centre of one of the country's largest financial service providers. Structural equation modelling methods were implemented to establish the model fit of the constructs in the study and to explain structural paths between the variables. Findings showed that POSSU and PBSU are significant predictors of work engagement. PBSU predicted productivity. In addition, engagement mediated the relationship between POSSU/PBSU and productivity. This supports the theoretical context of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model and provides grounds for further exploration of the strengths-based approach (on both organisational and individual levels) as a developmental approach to utilise within organisations to enhance engagement and productivity.


The invention relates to the field of household hardware, in particular to a manual egg beater. The manual egg beater comprises a handle, a connecting rod and multiple egg beating strips. The connecting rod is connected with the handle, a first connecting piece and a second connecting piece are arranged at the two ends of the connecting rod respectively, the first connecting piece comprises multiple connecting positions, the second connecting piece comprises multiple fixing positions, a containing position is arranged between every two adjacent connecting positions, the containing positions are used for containing the ends of the egg beating strips when the ends of the egg beating strips are away from the connecting positions, each egg beating strip corresponds to one connecting position and one fixing position, one end of each egg beating strip is detachably arranged on the corresponding connecting position, and the other end of each egg beating strip is detachably arranged on the corresponding fixing position. According to the manual egg beater, egg liquid is prevented from splashing in the egg beating process, the egg beater can be placed on a tabletop through a telescopic rod and a tripod, and meanwhile the egg beating strips can be collected and washed.


terms, denying the concept the richness and variety that Moussa gave it at the outset. In practice, heterotopia becomes a catch-all phrase for any space that disrupts the bourgeois realist order, whereas in Foucault, heterotopias also have a constitutive function in creating utopia or its illusion. Highlighting the range and various functions of heterotopias in poetic realism would have enhanced the analysis and the usefulness of this term for the epoch. Nonetheless, in Heterotopien im poetischen Realismus, Brahim Moussa offers a strong contribution to scholarship on both space and poetic realism. His monograph compels us to rethink traditional interpretations of both the epoch and the concept of space associated with it and, in doing so, makes this literature relevant to contemporary readers. It will be a useful resource for scholars and students of poetic realism and those interested in the "spatial turn."


Fully suppressing edge-localized modes (ELMs), e.g., with resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs), is essential to reach and sustain high-performance steady-state H-mode plasmas because large ELMs can significantly reduce the lifetime of divertor components in future tokamak reactors. RMP-driven ELM suppression in KSTAR has been modeled by coupling the neoclassical transport code PENTRC to the nonlinear 3D MHD code JOREK. We have found that the radial transport from the combined effects of the kink-peeling, tearing response, and neoclassical toroidal viscosity can explain the pedestal degradation observed in experiments. In addition, it has been found that the RMP response can increase the inter-ELM heat flux on the lower outer divertor by redistributing the heat transport between the divertor plates. In addition to the degraded pedestal, ELM suppression is also attributable to the RMP-induced mode interactions. While the linear stability of peeling-ballooning mode (PBMs) improves owing to the degraded pedestal, the PBM and RMP interaction increases the spectral transfer between edge harmonics, preventing catastrophic growth and the crash of unstable modes. Here, it turns out that the magnetic islands near the pedestal top can play a vital role in mediating the mode interactions.


Estimation of ideological positions among voters, legislators, and other actors is central to many subfields of political science. Recent applications include large data sets of various types including roll calls, surveys, and textual and social media data. To overcome the resulting computational challenges, we propose fast estimation methods for ideal points with massive data. We derive the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithms to estimate the standard ideal point model with binary, ordinal, and continuous outcome variables. We then extend this methodology to dynamic and hierarchical ideal point models by developing variational EM algorithms for approximate inference. We demonstrate the computational efficiency and scalability of our methodology through a variety of real and simulated data. In cases where a standard Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm would require several days to compute ideal points, the proposed algorithm can produce essentially identical estimates within minutes. Open-source software is available for implementing the proposed methods.


Background: Sensation is decreased or absent after breast reconstruction. This leaves reconstructed breasts vulnerable to injury from common household thermal sources such as heating pads and hot water bottles. We sought to categorize these injuries, provide a treatment plan, and prevent these injuries in the future. Methods: A retrospective review of patients who had sustained burns to reconstructed breasts with household devices was performed at a single institution. A PubMed search was performed to identify and summarize articles cataloguing patients who had suffered burns to breast reconstructions. Results: Five patients in our practice were affected. Fifteen articles were identified in the literature search. A total of 40 patients had sustained thermal injury to reconstructed breasts, with the majority being full thickness burns (67.5%). Patients who sustained full thickness burns to reconstructed breasts were more likely to require an operative procedure compared with patients who sustained partial thickness burns (P = 0.0076). Conclusions: Reconstructed breasts are at risk for injury from commonly used household warming devices and ambient heat from the sun. As a result, patients should be counseled about these risks accordingly, to avoid injury or loss of reconstruction. These injuries require immediate vigilant treatment.


Edge computing is shaping the way to run services in the Internet by allowing the computations to become available close to the user's proximity. Many implementations have been recently proposed to facilitate the service delivery in data centers and distributed networks. However, we argue that those implementations cannot fully support the operations in Community Mesh Networks (CMNs) since the network connection is highly intermittent and unreliable. In this paper, we propose PiCasso, a novel multi-access edge computing platform that combines the advances in lightweight virtualisation and Information-Centric Networking (ICN). PiCasso utilises in-network caching and name based routing of ICN to optimise the forwarding path of service delivery. We analyse the data collected from Guifi.net, the biggest CMN worldwide, to develop smart heuristic for the service deployment. Through a real deployment in Guifi.net, we show that our service deployment heuristic HANET (HArdware and NETwork Resources), improves the response time up to 53% and 28.7% for stateless and stateful services respectively. Finally, using PiCasso for the service delivery in Guifi.net, we achieve 43% traffic reduction compared to the traditional host-centric communication.


In the skin vitamin D3 is synthesized from cholesterol, which leaves the question whether a feedback mechanism controlling the level of blood cholesterol exists. Here we investigate the effects of vitamin D3 supplementation on serum lipids in professional rowers. The rowers were divided into two groups following the same training schedule for 4 wk: one received placebo (TP) while the second received 5,000 IU of vitamin D3 every day (TD3). Plasma total antioxidant status, total triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol (LDL-C) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D3) were determined in pre- and post-intervention. The ratios of TC/HDL-C and LDL-C/HDL-C were also calculated. Furthermore, maximal oxygen uptake was also measured at baseline. There were significant decreases over time in the TD3 group in TC 186±18 vs 163±21 (p<0.05) and HDL-C; LDL-C also decreased, but the changes were not statistically significant. Moreover, the supplementation caused a significant rise in blood 25-OH-D3 (+98%). Neither training nor vitamin D3 supplementation had an effect on total antioxidant status. In conclusion, the alterations in the lipoprotein profile seen in this study would suggest that effects of regular exercise on lipoprotein profile may linked to vitamin D3 status.


Belemnites have been regarded in the past as one of the most suitable fossil groups for paleotemperature determinations. We have investigated the isotopic composition of carbon and oxygen of about 200 carefully selected belemnite samples. We have made special efforts to elucidate questions of preservation of primary isotopic composition and of possible metabolic effects. The two most striking results of our measurements are: (1) The existence of variations of as much as l4‰ in δC 13 and 5‰ in δO 18 within single belemnite specimens have been found. (2) The aragonite samples, taken from conotheca and septa of Megateutbis giganteus (v. Schloth.), show a broader variation than calcite. In two examples, in which a sequence of five or six septa could be prepared separately, a correlation exists between very light δC 13 and δO 18 values, indicating—at least partially—a metabolic source of the CO 2 . The relevance of these results for studying paleotemperatures based on belemnites is discussed.


On 24 June 2015 the Dutch District Court in The Hague established that the Dutch government has a duty of care to mitigate dangerous effects of climate change and ordered a reduction of GHG emissions. The claimant, a Dutch Environmental group (the Urgenda Foundation), could not, according to the Court, rely directly on international agreements related to climate change, as these are inherently inter-state by nature. Instead, the Court interpreted the liability of the Dutch Government based in the tort of negligence (onrechtmatige daad) with reference to international law obligations, more specifically the international 'no harm' principle. In this regard the Court finds that specific obligations for the Dutch government arise from amongst others the UNFCCC, its protocols and COP decisions. This case is deemed a landmark case in climate change litigation because it is the first time that a court orders GHG emissions limitations on the basis of sources other than statutory mandates. This paper will discuss the court's reliance on international law and international policy and place it in the broader context of domestic courts role in enforcing and qualifying climate change 'law' as the bridge between scientific knowledge and political action.


The microbiota of fish intestine is the most complex of all organs that interact closely with the immune system. This can be used as biological control agents that can control the disease caused by pathogenic bacteria. Thirty isolates were identified based on 16s rRNA gene sequencing. These bacteria were then tested for their pathogenicity and antagonistic activity. The bioassay was conducted by administering selected bacteria into the fish and inoculating with Aeromonas. Total 30 bacterial isolates were successfully isolated from the carp intestine. Morphology and DNA marker analysis shows wide diversity of bacterial consortium within the fish intestine. These bacterial community are dominated by Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. The pathogenicity test showed that 20 isolates were non-pathogenic at a density of 106 cfu/ mL, while the rest were pathogenic to the fish. The antagonistic test showed that some isolates strongly or mildly inhibit Aeromonas and Vibrio and the rest weakly or do not inhibit the assayed bacteria. Two isolates (CgM8=Bacillus sp. and CgM37=Bacillus subtilis) are significantly better than control to protect the fish from Aeromonas infection. Two species of commensal bacteria originated from fish intestine are potential to be used as biological control agents against Aeromonas for common carp.


We describe the case of a man, previously affected by B-CLL, who developed Sweet's syndrome four months later the previous diagnosis. Sweet's syndrome was diagnosed by cutaneous biopsy. Neither infections nor drugs administration were demonstrated, in order to explain beginning of Sweet's syndrome. Altered immune responsiveness, as seen in B-CLL, could cause Sweet's syndrome.


The nano-indentation and friction/wear properties of a magnetron sputtered SiC (silicon carbon) films on nanostructured titanium (produced by severe plastic deformation) substrate were investigated. The results show that the films exhibited low nano-hardness (10.6 GPa), low Young's modulus (83.3 GPa) and high hardness-to-modulus ratio (0.128). As sliding against Si3N4 (silicon nitride) balls (2 mm in radius) under Kokubo simulation body fluid (SBF) at room temperature, the films displayed superior friction/wear properties at the considerably high normal load of 1000g, with the friction coefficient of about 0.18, the special wear rate on the order of 10−6 mm3 N-1m-1 without film cracking and interface delaminating. The impressive film cracking and interface delaminating resistance is in accordance with the low hardness (high ductility) of the films and the small film-substrate modulus difference that was caused by the low modulus of the films.


In this article I criticize the choice of the Italian legislator concerning the implementation of the Consumer Sales Directive 99/44 by means of a separate statutory instrument (decreto legislativo). I try to explain that this is not a suitable choice on the grounds of two main arguments. Firstly, two different regimes on sales are going to co-exist, their application depending on the status of the parties. Secondly, this implementation merely permits deadlines to be met but does not allow a thorough reflection on the issue. I further advocate a conscious policy choice by our legislator in relation to the emergence of a (schizophrenic) European contract law.


We explore how to build a blind certificate authority (CA). Unlike conventional CAs, which learn the exact identity of those registering a public key, a blind CA can simultaneously validate an identity and provide a certificate binding a public key to it, without ever learning the identity. Blind CAs would therefore allow bootstrapping truly anonymous systems in which no party ever learns who participates. In this work we focus on constructing blind CAs that can bind an email address to a public key. To do so, we first introduce secure channel injection (SCI) protocols. These allow one party (in our setting, the blind CA) to insert a private message into another party's encrypted communications. We construct an efficient SCI protocol for communications delivered over TLS, and use it to realize anonymous proofs of account ownership for SMTP servers. Combined with a zero-knowledge certificate signing protocol, we build the first blind CA that allows Alice to obtain a X.509 certificate binding her email address firstname.lastname@example.com to a public key of her choosing without ever revealing ``alice'' to the CA. We show experimentally that our system works with standard email server implementations as well as Gmail.


Plant secondary metabolites are unique sources for pharmaceuticals, food additives, flavors, and industrially important biochemicals. Accumulation of such metabolites often occurs in plants subjected to stresses including various elicitors or signal molecules. Secondary metabolites play a major role in the adaptation of plants to the environment and in overcoming stress conditions. Environmental factors viz. temperature, humidity, light intensity, the supply of water, minerals, and CO2 influence the growth of a plant and secondary metabolite production. Drought, high salinity, and freezing temperatures are environmental conditions that cause adverse effects on the growth of plants and the productivity of crops. Plant cell culture technologies have been effective tools for both studying and producing plant secondary metabolites under in vitro conditions and for plant improvement. This brief review summarizes the influence of different abiotic factors include salt, drought, light, heavy metals, frost etc. on secondary metabolites in plants. The focus of the present review is the influence of abiotic factors on secondary metabolite production and some of important plant pharmaceuticals. Also, we describe the results of in vitro cultures and production of some important secondary metabolites obtained in our laboratory.


Strength training is a form of physical activity shown to provide numerous benefits, and is recommended for all adults in addition to aerobic exercise. Participation rates are low, especially with adult women. Group fitness classes may be a valuable resource for women to undertake strength training. An encouraging, knowledgeable instructor and supportive peers can facilitate skill development and internalizing values. The current study examined factors associated with women who routinely strength train. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected from women who had exercised in a group fitness setting for at least six months and were either strength training or aerobic participants. Strength training group fitness instructors were interviewed to determine correspondence to group fitness participant perceptions. Statistical analyses demonstrated significant differences in muscular development and weight management motives, and strength and aerobic activity knowledge between women who do and do not strength train. Among all women who reported using more strategies to maintain their exercise behavior, more self-determined behavioral regulation and stronger motivation for muscle development were observed. The overarching concept of trust emerged from the qualitative data. Women who strength trained described trust in their instructor and the group fitness setting, as well as trust in their body's capabilities and capacity for strength. Both groups of women described concurrent internal and external motivating factors for exercise. The focus of this study was on strength training; however, insight from women who have successfully adopted and maintained any exercise habit can be valuable for any effort designed to encourage women to initiate physical activity behaviors.


Hospital medicine ward rounds are often conducted away from patients' bedsides, but it is unknown if more time-at-bedside is associated with improved patient outcomes. Our objective is to measure the association between "time-at-bedside," patient experience, and patient–clinician care agreement during ward rounds. Research assistants directly observed medicine services to quantify the amount of time spent discussing each patient's care inside versus outside the patient's room. "Time-at-bedside" was defined as the proportion of time spent discussing a patient's care in his or her room. Patient experience and patient–clinician care agreement both were measured immediately after ward rounds. Results demonstrated that the majority of patient and physicians completely agreement on planned tests (66.3%), planned procedures (79.7%), medication changes (50.6%), and discharge location (66.9%), but had no agreement on the patient's main concern (74.4%) and discharge date (50.6%). Time-at-bedside was not correlated with care agreement or patient experience (P > .05 for all comparisons). This study demonstrates that spending more time at the bedside during ward rounds, alone, is insufficient to improve patient experience.


Sn(IV) has a sensitive polarographic wave in the system of H2SO4-KI-VitC-V (IV). We examined the factors influencing the polarographic wave and found that the concentration of sulfuric acid and temperature were critical factors for the determination. The sensitivity of the method was increased nearly 50-fold by decreasing the concentration of sulfuric acid from 0.8 mol/L to 0.1 mol/L. The coefficient of variation (CV) percentages of the method were less than 5% and 8% for 6-7 determinations of Sn (IV) standard and sample respectively. The recovery ranged from 97.3% to 101%. The proposed method is suitable for direct determination of trace Sn (IV) in most natural water samples.


The non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse is widely used model Type 1 diabetes (T1D), a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by destruction of the insulin producing β cells in the islets of Langerhans by immune cells. The classical symptoms include increased glucose levels in urine and blood, frequent urination and enhanced thirst. The disease has a strong genetic component and is also influenced by the environment. NOD mice develop T1D spontaneously. The disease occurs in two phases; insulitis - the infiltration of immune cells in the islets of Langerhans and overt diabetes caused by the destruction of insulin producing β cells. Several disease associated gene regions or loci [termed insulin dependent diabetes (Idd) loci] have been associated with T1D development. Although, T1D is recognized as a T cell mediated disease in both mouse and man, many studies have shown the importance of B cells in the pathogenesis of the disease. Autoantibodies appear prior to islet infiltration and several molecular and cellular events precede this beta-cell autoimmunity. Although the pathogenesis of T1D is well characterized, less is known about the environmental and immunological factors that trigger the disease.In this thesis, we studied the contribution of B cell anomalies to the skewed immune response observed in the NOD mouse. In our studies covered in the thesis we observed that NOD mice display enhanced IgE in the serum already at one week of age. In addition, upon treatment of pre-diabetic NOD mice with anti-IgE antibodies, diabetes incidence was delayed. We hypothesize that the presence of IgE in the system may be explained due to enhanced class switching. Antibody feedback however, is an essential component of the immune response and can lead to either enhanced or dampened responses. Thus, increased IgE may provide positive feedback that might sustain an immune response. We also aimed to analyze the biological consequence of this feature. In vitro stimulation of B cells by the TACI ligand APRIL resulted in enhanced plasma cell differentiation accompanied with increased class switching and IgG production. In addition, TACI+ cells were observed in NOD germinal centers facilitating increased BAFF uptake and subsequent escape of low affinity antibody producing clones. NOD mice elicited an enhanced and prolonged immune response towards T-dependent antigens such as hen-egg lysozyme (HEL). Serum HEL-specific IgG level was significantly increased and was predominantly of the IgG1 isotype. Immunofluorescence analysis of NOD spleen revealed the presence of spontaneous germinal centers which others have perceived to provide a ready niche for the entry of naive B cells that encountered novel antigen. Adoptive transfer experiments of purified B and T cells from NOD into NOD.Rag2-/- (NOD-RAG) mice illustrated the importance of B cell intrinsic defects in the reproduction of the original phenotype as observed in NOD.


We describe 9 patients who presented Becker's nevus (BN) together with a malignant melanoma (MM). Eight patients were male. In 5 patients the MM was on the same body site as the BN. The melanoma was of the superficial-spreading type in 7 cases and in 1 patient was within the BN. Twice a dysplastic-nevus syndrome was diagnosed and in 2 patients a familial melanoma. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report of the co-occurrence of BN and MM.


Background: The emergence of a novel plasmid-mediated colistin resistance mechanism, encoded by the mcr-1 gene, represents a major public health concern. The mechanism of resistance to colistin, mediated by plasmids, is a serious problem, both for its ability to be transferred to other species, and for infections caused by carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative, in which colistin is used as an antimicrobial drug of last line for the treatment of these infections. The present study highlights the first isolation and genetic evaluation of detecting plasmid-mediated resistance to colistin in a multidrug-resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli (E. coli) isolated from a clinical sample in the metropolitan city of Naples, Italy. Results: Colistin-resistant E. coli isolate was identified in August 2020 from the blood culture of a male patient with multiple comorbidities. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of colistin was 8 mg/L. In addition to colistin, the isolate was resistant to third-generation cephalosporins (cefotaxime and ceftazidime), penicillin (amoxicillin and piperacillin), aminoglycosides (gentamicin and tobramycin), and fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin). However, it showed susceptibility to carbapenems (ertapenem, imipenem, and meropenem), tetracyclines (tigecycline), and piperacillin-tazobactam. The results of the PCR confirmed the presence of the mcr-1 resistance gene. Conclusion: This study confirms the presence of resistance to colistin mediated by the mcr-1 gene in a clinical isolate of E. coli. Although resistance to colistin caused by the mcr-1 gene is not common in our region, it should not be ignored. Therefore, further surveillance studies are recommended to monitor the spread of plasmid-mediated colistin resistance genes in Gram-negative MDR bacteria.


Piles or a hemorrhoid is one of the most common ailments today. It is a varicose and often inflamed condition of the veins, inside or just outside the rectum. Hemorrhoids are swollen dilated or bulging inflamed veins that develop in the lower rectum caused by increased pressure in the rectal veins. Here are things you can do that usually stop the hemorrhoids from bothering you: Eat foods high in fiber. Good sources of fiber are: Fresh fruit. Raw or cooked vegetables. Asparagus, cabbage, carrots, corn, and broccoli are especially high in fiber. Whole-grain cereals with bran. Try shredded wheat or bran flakes. Drink lots of water (6 to 8 glasses a day). Sit in lukewarm water 2 or 3 times a day for 15 minutes. Put cold packs on the anus to relieve pain. Try creams or ointments. Your health care provider may put a tight band around the enlarged vein. He or she will then cut the hemorrhoid open and take out the blood clot. The vein will heal. The hemorrhoid will fall off. There are other ways to take away or shrink hemorrhoids.All of these herbs is also more effective way to treat it.


Cu and Ag nanoparticle (NP) paste has emerged as a promising choice for high-power devices because of its excellent thermal and electrical properties. However, easy oxidation, high sintering temperature of Cu NPs, high cost, and high porosity of Ag NPs restrict the practical application. Although Cu–Ag composite paste can improve bonding reliability, there have been no reports of fabricating stable and reliable Cu–Ag composite paste joints. In this work, we reported a novel method for fabricating a nano Cu–Ag composite paste with excellent dispersibility and relatively uniform particle size distribution via polyol one-step reduction. These composite NPs exhibit outstanding antioxidant capacity. The sintering behavior of the composite NPs at different temperatures was analyzed. The electrical and mechanical reliability of nano Cu–Ag composite paste joints with different ratios were investigated. With the increase in Ag content, the porosity and resistivity of the joint decrease, and the shear strength increases. The bonding joint presents a low porosity of 1.92% and a high shear strength of 32.6 MPa under a 1:3 ratio of Cu to Ag. The molecular dynamics (MDs) simulation results imply that Ag-rich composite system can achieve low-temperature sintering and maintain the stability of the sintering process.


Since satellite channel can be used as a part of an heterogeneous network, researchers attention is focused on the optimization of the use of that resource. Unfortunately, protocols studied for wired traditional network, and widely used for Internet services, performs very poorly on this transmission medium, in particular the TCP. In the last years a lot of works have been published about this topic, but up to now there is not a standardized solution able to solve all the problems created to heterogeneous networks by satellite links. In this paper we present a possible solution to the problem of TCP data transmission over satellite links that have as characteristics easy implementation and compatibility to existent standard and protocols. We implemented our solution and tested it on a emulated heterogeneous network scenario and on a real satellite link, and we demonstrate how, adding a very simple mechanism of selective repeat combined to an additional congestion control, the TCP performances over a satellite channel are improved.


Author(s): Nguyen, Darlene | Advisor(s): Moore, Bradley S | Abstract: Bacterial meroterpenoids are hybrid natural products that partially originate from polyketide synthesis and become highly specialized upon prenylation with terpenoid products. The prenylation event is catalyzed by prenyltransferases (PTases), a class of enzymes that are essential to the biosynthesis of terpenoid compounds such as the napyradiomycins, merochlorins, and marinones. Biochemical assays confirm the prenylation activity of prenyltransferases NapT8 and NapT9 from the napyradiomycin pathway and Mcl23 from the merochlorin pathway in Streptomyces. The study of these PTases was extended to further investigate their structure and specifically focused on studying the substrate promiscuity of NapT8. Results confirmed that NapT8 is highly specific for its prenyl substrate in physiological assay conditions and R58 is speculated to be one of the active site residues responsible for this specificity. Additionally, NapT8 activity has been expanded in the presence of a reducing agent, seemingly producing dechlorinated side products that has not been observed before.In a parallel study, the activity and specificity of related prenyltransferases CnqP3 and CnqP4 derived from marine Streptomyces sp. CNQ-509 were investigated in the context of a putative neomarinone/marinone gene cluster. Despite confirmation of their prenylation capabilities, results show that CnqP3 and CnqP4 did not produce any observable products with the proposed starter units of the neomarinone pathway or the marinone pathway.


Background Smoking in pregnancy increases the risk of foetal and maternal problems; therefore reducing smoking in pregnancy is a public health priority. In 2005, licensing arrangements for nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in the United Kingdom were broadened such that NRT could be prescribed to pregnant smokers. However, little is known about trends and uptake of NRT by pregnant women. We aimed to quantify annual trends of NRT uptake in and around pregnancy and variation in prescribing by maternal characteristics. Methods In The Health Improvement Network primary care database we identified all pregnancies from 2000 to 2010 in women aged 15–49 years and used READ codes to determine women's smoking status. NRT prescriptions were identified in all women during three time periods: up to 9 months before conception, during pregnancy, and up to 9 months after delivery. Annual proportions of pregnancies where NRT was prescribed were calculated and variations by age and socio-economic deprivation were assessed using logistic regression. Results Women were classified as smokers in 19% of 227,552 pregnancies identified in 215,703 women. NRT was prescribed in 4,827 of all pregnancies which represented a prescribing prevalence of 9% of pregnancies in smokers and 2% of pregnancies overall. The rate of NRT prescribing was approximately 50% lower 9 months before and after pregnancy, compared to during pregnancy. There was a gradual increase in the annual rate of prescribing until 2005, after which the rate became stable. The rate of prescribing during pregnancy in smokers was higher in older age groups such that the rate in 30–35 years age group was 17% higher (95% CI 1.05, 1.31) and the rate in 15–20 year age group was 4% lower (0.85, 1.08) than the rate of prescribing in the 25–30 year age group. The rate of prescribing during pregnancy in smokers also increased with deprivation such that it was 34% (1.16, 1.54) higher in the most deprived group than in the least deprived group. Pregnant smokers with asthma and mental illness were 22% (1.11, 1.34) and (1.38, 1.58) more likely to receive a prescription for NRT respectively as compared to pregnant smokers without these comorbidities. Conclusion Uptake of NRT is higher during pregnancy compared to time periods outside pregnancy and is higher in smokers from older and more socio-economically deprived groups.


In this paper, a super-imposed scheme for timing and frequency synchronization is proposed for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems. The proposed architecture includes a pre-defined pseudo-noise (PN) sequence, which is added to both the OFDM symbol and the cyclic prefix (CP) in time domain. In contrast to existing synchronization schemes, the proposed architecture has the advantage of better bandwidth utilization since it does not require extra pilot symbols. The peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) is also significantly decreased. Both the timing and frequency offset estimators are derived using the maximum likelihood (ML) criterion. Efficiencies of the estimators are analyzed mathematically in AWGN channels. Simulation experiments are also conducted in frequency selective fading channels. Moreover, the optimal power allocation factor of the PN sequence is determined by minimizing the bit error rate using simulation experiments


A two-dimensional incompressible flow model is presented to study the occurrence of rotating
stall in vaneless diffusers of centrifugal compressors. The diffuser considered has two parallel
walls, and the undisturbed flow is assumed to be circumferentially uniform, isentropic, and to
have no axial velocity. The linearized 2D Euler equations for an incompressible flow in a fixed
frame of the coordinate system are considered. After discretization by a spectral collocation
method based on Chebyshev-Gauss-Lobatto points, the generalized eigenvalue problem is
solved through the QZ algorithm. The compressor stability is judged by the imaginary part
of the eigenvalue obtained. Based on the 2D stability analysis, the influence of inflow angle,
radius ratio and wave number are studied. The results from the present stability analysis
are compared with some experimental measurement and Shen's model. It is showed that
diffuser instability increases rapidly and the stall rotational speed decreases quickly with an
increase in the diffuser radius ratio. The largest critical inflow angle can be obtained when
the wave number is around 3 ∼ 5 for the radius ratio between 1.5 to 2.2. It is also verified
that the stability model proposed in this paper agrees well with experimental data and has
the capability to predict the onset of rotating stall, especially for wide diffusers.


This study demonstrates the isolation and characterization of cDNA encoding a phosphoinositide phosphatase (PIP) from a stem cell cDNA library of Chinese cabbage ( Brassica rapa ) seedling. The full length gene ( BrSAC1 ; GenBank accession no., GU434275) contained 1999 base pairs (bp), with an open reading frame of 1785 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 594 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 65 kDa, including a putative N-terminal signal peptide (the signal peptide counted within the 594 residues). Other regions found within the sequence include a conserved KXKXX COPI-binding motif and a consensus Cx5R (T/S) catalytic motif. BrSAC1 protein shares 92% identity with AtSac1B, and 86% identity with AtRHD4 at the amino acid level. Gene expression analyses revealed that BrsSAC1 was constitutively expressed at high levels in the pistil, stamen and flower bud, whereas it was expressed at low levels in the leaf and stem. In addition to injury, BrSAC1 expression was also induced in response to different types of stress condition, namely cold, desiccation, salt, submergence, abscisic acid and heavy metals. Overexpression of BrSAC1 in transgenic tobacco conferred tolerance to cold, dehydration, and salt stress at the seed germination/seedling stage as reflected by the percentage of germination/green seedlings, the fresh weight of seedlings and their development pattern. Our data suggest that BrSAC1 is an important stress response determinant in plants. Keywords: Abiotic stress, Brassica rapa , phosphoinositide phosphatase, transgenic plant African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(15), pp. 1782-1792


Aim Hospital autopsy rates have been falling steadily over recent decades. One factor that has been implicated in this decline is the perception that the general public views postmortem examinations unfavourably and that this often makes clinicians reluctant to discuss autopsy with families and seek their consent. The aim of this study was to test this assumption. Objectives/methods In the division of lymphoid malignancies at St Bartholomew's Hospital, we suggested autopsy and discussed it in depth with the families of all the patients who died in hospital in an 8-month period in order to assess whether the autopsy rate could be increased by improving the approach to the relatives. Results Consent for a postmortem examination was requested in 18 of 23 cases and granted in 16 cases, giving a consent rate of 89%, and an overall rate of autopsy of 69.5%. Conclusion The attitude of the general public is positive overall, and translates into high autopsy rates when the value of the examination is presented honestly and the details of the procedure are adequately explained.


This paper introduces a lossless data compression competition that benchmarks solutions (computer programs) by the compressed size of the 44,981 concatenated SARS-CoV-2 sequences, with a total uncompressed size of 1,339,868,341 bytes. The data, downloaded on 13 December 2020, from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 data hub of ncbi.nlm.nih.gov is presented in FASTA and 2Bit format. The aim of this competition is to encourage multidisciplinary research to find the shortest lossless description for the sequences and to demonstrate that data compression can serve as an objective and repeatable measure to align scientific breakthroughs across disciplines. The shortest description of the data is the best model;therefore, further reducing the size of this description requires a fundamental understanding of the underlying context and data. This paper presents preliminary results with multiple well-known compression algorithms for baseline measurements, and insights regarding promising research avenues. The competition's progress will be reported at \url{https://coronavirus.innar.com}, and the benchmark is open for all to participate and contribute.


A newborn infant with hyaline membrane disease and aspiration pneumonia developed purulent meningitis on day 19, three days after discontinuation of ampicillin sodium and gentamicin sulfate therapy. Therapy with gentamicin, both systemically and intrathecally, for two weeks was ineffective. During this time each of four specimens of cerebrospinal fluid contained two serotypes of Escherichia coli, namely, O83:H4 and O75:H5. The antibiograms of the two strains were identical, both being susceptible to gentamicin and ampicillin. Treatment with ampicillin resulted in prompt disappearance of the infecting microorganisms and recovery from the infection. One of the strains (O75:H5) produced an antigen cross-reacting with the capsular antigen of Haemophilus influenzae type B; the other did not. The patient developed O antibodies in substantial titers against E coli O83 but not against E coli O75.


Analyzing and working with big data could be very difficult using classical means like relational database management systems or desktop software packages for statistics and visualization. Instead, big data requires large clusters with hundreds or even thousands of computing nodes. Official statistics is increasingly considering big data for deriving new statistics because big data sources could produce more relevant and timely statistics than traditional sources. One of the software tools successfully and wide spread used for storage and processing of big data sets on clusters of commodity hardware is Hadoop. Hadoop framework contains libraries, a distributed file-system (HDFS), a resource-management platform and implements a version of the MapReduce programming model for large scale data processing. In this paper we investigate the possibilities of integrating Hadoop with R which is a popular software used for statistical computing and data visualization. We present three ways of integrating them: R with Streaming, Rhipe and RHadoop and we emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of each solution.


Analytic three-dimensional thermoelasticity solutions are presented for static problems of simply supported sandwich panels and cylindrical shells subjected to mechanical and thermal loads. The panels and shells have laminated composite face sheets of arbitrary thickness separated by a core. Each of the individual layers of the face sheets and the core is modeled as a three-dimensional continuum. Analytic first-order sensitivity coefficients are evaluated to assess the sensitivity of the responses to variations in material parameters of the face sheets and the core, as well as to variations in the curvatures and thicknesses of the sandwich and face sheets. Also, the strain energy associated with various stress components in the face sheets and core are calculated and compared. The information obtained in the present study can aid the development and assessment of two-dimensional models for sandwich structures and illuminate the role of particular material parameters in an equivalent model for the core.


MTConnect is an open and extensible protocol designed for the exchange of data between shop floor devices and software applications. MTConnect allows manufacturers to facilitate retrieval of information and data from factory devices, such as machine tools, sensors, and controllers. Currently, MTConnect users read data from sensors through proprietary sensor interfaces using adaptors. The suite of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 1451 standards defines a set of open, common communication interfaces for sensor networks, including both sensor interfaces and network interfaces.This paper proposes an integration architecture of MTConnect with IEEE 1451 standard-based sensor networks. In the architecture, MTConnect plays a network interface role in the IEEE 1451 standard-based sensor networks via an MTConnect Agent. An adaptor is used to provide the mapping between the MTConnect Agent and the IEEE 1451 sensor network. A prototype system integrating MTConnect with IEEE 1451.2-based sensor network has been developed. Two case studies are provided to illustrate the integration.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


The increase of demand for energy, stimulated by developing countries and consequent decrease of power sources, is leading to an unsustainable future. These way renewable and clean energies are necessary to be used, particularly solar energy. It can produce heat or be directly converted into electricity, called photovoltaic (PV) energy. To achieve the grid parity the cost of components necessary to build a PV system has to decrease, specially the price of silicon. Focusing the sunlight into smaller cells, the expensive cells are substituted by cheaper elements (Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV)). Associated to CPV there is the parabolic concentrator mirrors which are one of the vital component of many solar energy systems. The main objectives of this thesis were to study and use the optical testing tools to assist in solar concentrator development and maintenance using experimental and mathematical technique. This technique will use to measure and evaluate an optical performance of solar parabolic trough concentrator for photovoltaic system by comparing it with the ideal profile of the solar parabolic reflector. A prototype model was built to evaluate and measure the solar parabolic trough where two series of experiments is presented with different parabolic contour respectively. Before that, a mathematical formulation related with optical profile is being study to be combined and collaborated with the experimental model. The result of the measurement which is as the surface reflection angle and slope error is presented and analyzed which by then shows that a prototype model to measure a parabolic reflector which is demonstrated and analysed using mathematical modelling and experimental prototype has been achieved together with a method approach to evaluate the solar parabolic trough concentrator.


In this paper, we propose a novel constrained sparse-representation-based binary hypothesis model for target detection in hyperspectral imagery. This model is based on the concept that a target pixel can only be linearly represented by the union dictionary combined by the background dictionary and target dictionary, while a background pixel can be linearly represented by both the background dictionary and the union dictionary. To be physically meaningful, the non-negativity constraint is imposed to the weight vector. To suppress the target signals in the background dictionary, the upper bound constraint is also imposed to the weight vector. These upper bounds are adaptively estimated by the similarities between the atoms in the background dictionary and target. Then, the weight vectors under different hypotheses are recovered by a fast coordinate descent method. Finally, both the residual difference and weight difference between the two hypotheses are used to perform the target detection. An important advantage of the proposed method is the robustness to varying target contamination. Extensive experiments conducted on real and synthetic hyperspectral datasets have demonstrated the superiority of the proposed detector in detection performance and computational cost. Specifically, for the Avon dataset, our method achieves the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 99.91%, and achieves the shortest runtime of 109.76 s.


Abstract The most important piece of road infrastructure is bridges. Wooden bridges have advanced constantly during the past decades. The trend began in Scandinavian countries but has also now gained significant ground in Russia. This research studies experimental endurance potential of the joints of the wooden beam while considering the coefficient of asymmetry of the cycle, which corresponds to the actual operating conditions. Performance analysis of the composite bars is carried out based on the experiment; the development of a special methodology for calculating the joints of wooden elements with the dowel plates for their better endurance is also introduced in this paper. The results of experimental studies on the performance of bending composite wooden bridge bars based on dowel plates operating under cyclic influences thus determine the endurance limit of wood for composite wooden bridge beams based on dowel plates. The calculation technique and interdependence of the endurance coefficient affecting the asymmetry coefficient of the bent composite wooden bridge bars on the dowel plates under cyclic loading are considered. The experimental data on the endurance of composite wooden bridge beams have been obtained, and separate analysis has been made of the compounds under cyclic loading performance; a method has been developed for calculating the bent composite wooden bridge bars reinforced by the dowel plates under cyclic influences.


The relative importance of texture, structure, organic matter and clay mineralogy to the nature of the soil moisture characteristic is examined for an extensive group of Australian soils using numerical classification and diagnostic methods. The presence of pedality, particle size composition and grade of structure were the soil properties most consistently associated with differences between the groups of soils with similar moisture characteristics. By association, field texture was shown to be a useful property. Although the presence of pedality and grade of structure were important, the shape and size of ped had only weak associations with differences in the soil moisture retention. Montmorillonite, iron oxide, vermiculite and quartz were the minerals in the clay size fraction which appeared to be important if they were present. In contrast, the presence of illite did not show any strong associations with a particular position or form of the moisture characteristic. The soil moisture characteristic was successfully modelled as a power function. It appears that being able to group and classify the soil moisture characteristic and then to provide a description of these groups both in terms of soil properties and model parameters is a valuable means of developing simple predictive models for field soils. The error of our predictions for 44 horizons based on this simple approach appears to be only marginally larger than that encountered in conventional laboratory methods, and in view of soil heterogeneity it is argued that following further development these predictions may be adequate in many hydrological and agricultural applications.


Software usability is a quality attribute found in a number of classifications (IEEE, 1998), (ISO9126, 1991), (Boehm, 1978). Nielsen gave one of the most well-known descriptions related to software system learnability and memorability, efficiency of use, ability to avoid and manage user errors, and user satisfaction (Nielsen, 1993). In spite of the relevance of usability in software development it is still insufficient in most software systems (Seffah, 2004) (Bias, 2005).


A highly integrated transmit integrated circuit intended for dual-band (CELL/PCS) and triple-mode (CDMA/TDMA/AMPS) cellular mobile stations is presented. It features a linear-in-dB gain-control range of 90 dB and provides a high output power of 9 dBm (PCS band) while meeting linearity requirements (-53-dBc ACPR) and achieving the receive-band noise floor of -133 dBm/Hz. It consumes only 130-mA current (3-V supply) in the PCS band. A dynamic-biasing feature results in additional power savings at lower signal levels. The circuit is fabricated in a 30-GHz f/sub T/ BiCMOS technology.


The purpose of this paper is to present a set of analysis procedures to design leachate recirculation systems. The analysis procedures presented are useful for designing leachate recirculation systems and developing operational procedures intended to maximize the benefits of recirculating leachate while avoiding potential detrimental effects from doing so. The following analyses are described in this paper: (i) evaluation of the effect of recirculating leachate on the hydraulic head on the liner; (ii) evaluation of the absorptive capacity of waste; and (iii) evaluation of leachate injection structure capacity. Previously published analysis procedures for selecting the spacing between injection structures are also presented. Based on the results of these analyses, the amount and frequency of leachate injection can be planned to make efficient use of the absorptive capacity of the waste mass and to avoid violating regulatory limitations regarding the hydraulic head on the liner. INTRODUCTION Controlled leachate recirculation (i.e., recirculation at lined facilities with leachate collection systems) has been utilized as a leachate management method at landfills in Europe and the United States since the 1980s (Reinhart, 1996). Extensive research efforts over the last two decades have shown that recirculation of landfill leachate into the refuse mass can accelerate waste stabilization, enhance gas production, and reduce the volume of leachate that must be treated compared to single-pass leaching operations. (Maier and Vasuki, 1996; Reinhart and AlYousfi, 1996). Literature regarding leachate recirculation generally focuses on maximizing the rate of waste decomposition and depicts leachate recirculation as a continuous flow of liquid from top to bottom in a landfill, with the same liquid making numerous passes through the landfill. However, numerous landfill operators have found undesirable side effects from aggressive leachate recirculation such as leachate seeps, increased odors and interference with landfill operations (e.g., Maier et al., 1995; Reinhart, 1996). In addition, a recent slope stability failure at a landfill in Bogota, Colombia (El Tiempo, 1997) was partially caused by leachate recirculation. Therefore, many operators are now considering a less aggressive approach to leachate recirculation in order to obtain the benefits of the process while avoiding its potential problems. In contrast to the typical multiple-pass paradigm for leachate recirculation, the less aggressive approach seeks to wet the waste mass uniformly without causing the development of pore pressures in large areas within the landfill (inevitably, localized pore pressures will exist where perched liquid is retained by low permeability waste or cover soil materials). The development of pore pressure leads to leachate seeps and reduces the factor of safety against slope instability. Because of the heterogeneous nature of waste, pore pressures can develop prior to saturation. Therefore, a conservative approach to leachate recirculation is to wet waste to approximately its field capacity moisture content (on average throughout the entire waste mass); that is, leachate is reinjected into the waste to the extent that the waste mass can absorb it without creating a potential for undesirable effects. At facilities where aggressive leachate recirculation is performed to maximize the rate of waste decomposition (i.e., bioreactor landfills), the author strongly recommends that pore pressure monitoring be performed and, that the presence of pore pressures be accounted for in slope stability analyses performed for these facilities. The conservative approach could be referred to as the "one-and-a-half " pass approach; the initial drainage of the leachate being the first pass and the reinjection of leachate that is then stored in the waste being the half pass. Note that the leachate storage capacity of a volume of waste will decrease over time because decomposition and


Electro-osmosis consolidation is an innovative and effective ground improvement method for soft clays. But electro-osmosis is also a very complicated process, as the mechanical behaviour, and hydraulic and electrical properties of the soil are changing rapidly during the treatment process; this makes electroosmosis hard to describe and simulate. Traditional electro-osmosis consolidation theory cannot provide a satisfactory solution, because it does not directly consider the mechanical behaviour of the soil and the coupling between the soil deformation, electro-osmosis flow and pore pressure. A numerical model for the electro-osmosis consolidation of clay in multi-dimensional domains is presented, with the coupling of the soil mechanical behaviour, pore water transport and electrical fields being considered. Three fully coupled governing equations considering force equilibrium, pore water transport and electrical distribution are presented and solved using COMSOL. The model is verified against the well-known classical analytical solution for electro-osmosis consolidation. A two-dimensional numerical model is then simulated to investigate the settlement and excess pore pressure profile during the electro-osmosis consolidation process. It is found that the peak excess pore pressure is developed near the bottom of the anode and that the maximum settlement is developed near the top of the anode. Moreover, excess pore pressures and settlements develop very rapidly at the beginning of the electro-osmosis treatment, but then become slower with time.


DNA fingerprinting is a powerful tool for plant diversity studies, cultivar identification, and germplasm conservation and management. In breeding programs, fingerprinting and diversity analysis provide an insight into the extent of genetic variability available in the breeding material, which in turn helps breeders to maintain a pool of highly diverse genotypes by avoiding the selection of closely related parents. Oblong-long tubers with russeting skin characterize Russet potato, a primary potato market class in the United States, and especially in the western production regions. The aim of this study was to estimate the level of genetic diversity within this market class potato, utilizing clones and varieties from various breeding programs across the United States. A collection of 264 Russet and non-Russet breeding clones and varieties was fingerprinted using 23 highly polymorphic genome-wide simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, resulting in 142 polymorphic alleles. The number of alleles produced per SSR varied from 2 to 10, with an average of 6.2 alleles per marker. The polymorphic information content and expected heterozygosity of SSRs ranged from 0.37 to 0.89 and 0.50 to 0.89 with an average of 0.77 and 0.81, respectively. Out of these 23 markers, we propose nine SSR markers best suited for fingerprinting Russet potatoes based on polymorphic information content, heterozygosity and ease of scoring. Diversity analysis of these clones suggest that there is significant diversity across the breeding material and the diversity has been evenly distributed among all the regional breeding programs.


The advent of the omics area has created new research systems, including genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, as well as the associated bio-informatics science, and databases. At the same time, progress in traditional western medical research has reached a bottleneck, as single compound drugs are costly to create, synthesize, or engineer. If we are to see real and sustained progress in research, we must find approaches to utilize traditional remedies to develop advanced medicines. Instrumental systems for transcriptome, including the microarray of different messenger RNA, microRNA and other non-gene sequence-related RNA products, have already been developed; functional genomics studies using these systems have been remarkably successful. However, the candidate genes involved in specific functions often need further verifications for revealing their roles in the signal pathways. The difficulty may also arise from the high variety and seemingly unrelated responsive genes and complex signaling or regulatory systems involved. Proteomic analysis has its disadvantages, although two-dimensional (2-D) gels can display viable candidate proteins for study. Up to two thousand proteins of biological systems can often be analyzed in sensitive 2-D gel systems. There are other proteins, such as cytokines or chemokines of most leukocyte cells are expressed at relatively low levels, and often are not detectable by 2-D gels. More sensitive methods, such as LC/MS and other fractionation systems, need to be used for such cases. Metabolomics faces an even greater challenge: a 2-D or one run display of the components of a metabolome has not been defined and cannot be systematically evaluated. Therefore, sequential analyses, e.g. the LC/MS followed by NMR, were developed to address the "overall" or more comprehensive picture of metabolomes. Several phyto-medicinal studies, including some in traditional Chinese herbal medicine (TCM), have been considered as metabolome investigations. New strategies employing omics approaches may be especially useful for phytomedicinal research, as conventional phytomedicines often employ multiple components and they often are believed to interact with multiple molecular targets related to cellular and physiological (e.g., immunemodulatory) effects. In order to successfully evaluate the effects of phytomedicines, various omics approaches are being systematically combined. New computational and cross-


This paper addresses two types of technological media convergence: media convergence based on mobile technology, and also convergence based on the unification between IT and media industry. These forms are influenced by the multimedia aspects of the content. The research interest in this study is related to media landscape in Romania and its state. Even if many academics and practitioners consider media convergence only at the content level from journalistic perspective, this topic has many more detail aspects and trends. Thus, media convergence in terms of content can be now interpreted together with the user's content and takes into consideration the unification between paid, owned, shared and earned content. This paper proposes a theoretical and practical perspective for the relationship between convergence and multimedia for online media products. This perspective belongs both to media producers and to online consumers of information. The paper is interesting in that it reveals the challenges facing the media industries, and shows approaches of convergence that are related to multimedia for media products. The methodological framework uses the content analysis and the hierarchical cluster analysis to discover different forms of convergence in online media. The main conclusion of this study shows that due to various technologies and their partnerships, convergence can be directed both from the users to the media industry, and conversely.


Abstract The interaction between an individual's abilities and the perceived demands of the workplace appears to make a unique contribution to job-related stress above and beyond that of dispositional or situational factors alone (R. S. Lazarus, 1990). In the present study, the author evaluated this contention among 245 male intercollegiate athletic directors by assessing the combined influence of leadership style and program goals on occupational stress. Regression analyses revealed the presence of both significant main effects and interaction effects of leadership style and program goals in the prediction of emotional exhaustion, daily job stress, and personal accomplishment. Findings are discussed in terms of person–environment fit theory (J. R. P. French, R. D. Caplan, & R. V. Harrison, 1982) and the notion of perceived control within the occupational setting.


Space suit simulators are used for extravehicular activities (EVAs) during Mars analog missions. Flight planning and EVA productivity require accurate time estimates of activities to be performed with such simulators, such as experiment execution or traverse walking. We present a benchmarking methodology for the Aouda.X space suit simulator of the Austrian Space Forum. By measuring and comparing the times needed to perform a set of 10 test activities with and without Aouda.X, an average time delay was derived in the form of a multiplicative factor. This statistical value (a second-over-second time ratio) is 1.30 and shows that operations in Aouda.X take on average a third longer than the same operations without the suit. We also show that activities predominantly requiring fine motor skills are associated with larger time delays (between 1.17 and 1.59) than those requiring short-distance locomotion or short-term muscle strain (between 1.10 and 1.16). The results of the DELTA experiment performed during the MARS2013 field mission increase analog mission planning reliability and thus EVA efficiency and productivity when using Aouda.X.


In the context of poverty reduction, the Government mandates the distribution of Non-Cash Food Assistance. Non-Cash Food Aid, hereinafter abbreviated as BPNT, is a policy of the Central Government in the form of food social assistance in the form of non-cash given to Beneficiary Families (KPM) every month through electronic accounts and is only used to buy food in E-warong in collaboration with banks. In BPNT distribution management in Rembang Regency, the planning aspect begins with the data collection and validation of population data, with the aim of channeling BPNT on target. Organizing is done in coordination between the Ministry of Social Affairs, Social Services, Women's Empowerment and Family Planning District. Rembang, BNI, and e-warong agents in each district. The implementation was carried out in stages, by distributing non-cash assistance of Rp 110,000.00 per family. Supervision is carried out in coordination with BNI, because the distribution system uses electronic money. The obstacle faced is that there are still residents who are eligible for assistance, but have not been distributed by BPNT. So in the future there needs to be up to date data validation. In the future, the distribution will be more on target.


The idea of a miracle is the most important, and sometimes even the main component of religious cultures: "faith" and "miracle" in many cases are closely connected, and even identical. Unusual, amazing events leave an indelible imprint on the emotions and consciousness of the people involved and can be the basis for emerging beliefs. Belief in miracles, as well as miracles as the faith basis, is found in almost all the peoples of the world, although they are differently recognized, described and explained. What is a miracle, what is its mechanism, and how should it be treated?


At the 2019 annual meeting of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA), members received updates on several ongoing efforts. Among them were updates on research, including the trainee symposium, pilot research grants, and the Collaborative Research Network; GRAPPA's patient research partners; education, including the slide collection; treatment recommendations; and additional work related to advancing the understanding of disease aspects, including the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT)-GRAPPA outcome measure, axial involvement, and ultrasound enthesitis projects; as well as the early psoriatic disease systematic literature review and magnetic resonance imaging.


The latest human development report of Uttar Pradesh (2008) estimated HDI for 2001 and 2005. No such attempt has been made by the state or any other entity for all the districts on the basis of recent data i.e. data of Census 2011. The present paper analyses the performance of districts of Uttar Pradesh in terms of human development based on latest available district-level data. Methodology adopted is same as that of UPHDR (2008) HDI computation. The paper does two separate exercises to calculate HDI scores of the districts. The first exercise takes IMR, literacy rate and PCI (PPP) as variables for HDI calculations whereas the second is more inclusive and considers IMR & institutional delivery, literacy rate & GER and PCI (PPP$) i.e. five indicators. The present study is an important contribution to policy making and research as it provides latest estimates of district-level human development for a range of indicators.


As the value-added service providing system in the Next-Generation Networks (NGN), Application Servers (AS) are required to provide the carrier-class reliability. To increase the reliability of AS, the fault-tolerant technology is often adopted. This paper proposes a fault-tolerant architecture for AS against single-point faults. The result of analysis shows that the architecture has a good reliability and is easily extendable. Such an advantage is attributed to a kind of special fault-tolerant design, which is different from others in that two Service Logic Program(SLP) instances do not only provide backups to each other, but also share them in the service traffic.


The integration of heterogeneous wireless networks has been studied for some time. Wireless networks can be complementary by providing additional resources to one another if properly integrated. For example, 3G networks offer increased coverage, but they have a low capacity for data transmission. In contrast, WLANs (Wireless Local Networks) offer a limited coverage range while allowing high rates of data transmission. Some aspects of integration and interoperation between these network technologies have been analysed in articles, books and tutorials. However, video delivery services involving these networks still deserve further attention, especially scenarios in which the two technologies are properly integrated. In this paper, we introduce a novel QoS Architecture composed of a provider-independent CAC (PI-CAC) for mobile network selection, a session proxy (SP) for video session management during handovers, and a specialized MIP implementation (S-MIP) to reduce native MIP latency into a scenario in which Wireless Local Network (WLAN) and 3G cellular networks are integrated using peer-to-peer architecture. This solution attempts to preserve the quality of the streaming video during each handover and recover the user video session damaged by high delays caused by MIP. The performance of our solution was evaluated using a testbed implementation into a real scenario and the results were better when compared with solutions based on traditional approaches.


Objective:We explored the role of CT scan in the diagnosis of eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) in sinus osteitis for a better guidance of clinic and treatment. Method:A total of 127 patients with chronic rhinosinusitis who underwent primary surgery were collected(52 patients were ECRS). Seventy-five patients with NonECRS performed global osteitis scoring scale (GOSS) osteitis score on the patient's preoperative sinus CT. Mamn-Whitney U analysis was used to compare the GOSS osteitis scores between the two groups. A binary logistic regression analysis was performed on the statistically significant indicators to find predictive GOSS osteitis scores. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC curve) analysis was performed on meaningful indicators to analyze the relationship among the cutoff values the sensitivity and the specificity to find the best cutoff value. Result:The osteitis evaluation index GOSS osteitis total score,ethmoid osteitis scores(GOSS-E), ethmoid osteitis score compared with the maxillary osteitis score (GOSS-E/M), posterior group ethmoid sinus osteitis score compared with the former group ethmoid sinus osteitis score (GOSS-PE/AE), anterior ethmoid osteitis scores (GOSS-AE), posterior ethmoid osteitis scores (GOSS-PE), sphenoid osteitis scores (GOSS-S), ECRS significantly higher than NonECRS(P<0.05); binary logistic regression analysis and ROC curve analysis were performed. When the cut-off value of the ethmoid osteitis score was >4.5 (area under the curve was 0.690), the corresponding sensitivity and specificity were 62% and 71%, respectively. Conclusion:When the ethmoid sinus CT is used to obtain a ethmoid osteitis score of >4.5,the ECRS can be diagnosed clinically.


Lipid droplets (LDs) are highly dynamic organelles that store neutral lipids, primarily triacylglycerols (TAGs), and are found in many cell types. While their primary function is to store excess energy, LDs are also modified in different disease states and during developmental processes. In many cases, not only the presence, but also the composition, of LDs can be equally important. In humans, LD composition has been linked to diseases such as type 2 diabetes; in plants and yeast, LD composition is relevant for engineering these organisms into biological factories in, e.g., algal bioenergy or food oil production. Therefore, lipid analysis of biological LDs with high speed and accuracy in situ is a very active area of research. Here we present an approach for in situ, quantitative TAG analysis using label-free, coherent Raman microscopy to decipher LD TAG composition in different biochemically complex samples. Our method allows direct visualization of inter-LD compositional heterogeneity of physiological quantities – TAG chain length and number of C=C bonds – with sub-micrometer spatial resolution within 5-100 milliseconds. Combined with virtually no sample preparation, this approach should enable rapid and accurate TAG LD analysis for a variety of applications.


This paper examines the risk profile of a selection of Australian Superannuation Funds over the period 1994 - 2004. In the context of rising domestic and international equity investments, coupled with an apparent lack of members effecting investment choice when available, the potential for an increasing gap between member and trustee expectations of fund risk is explored. To evaluate this potential gap, the incremental value at risk method is used to quantify the market risk faced by funds for each year from 1994 - 2004. Comparison of this longitudinal series yields the long-run impact of changing asset allocation on fund risk. The results suggest that the market risk faced by superannuation funds has increased on average by 1-2% of capital over the decade as a result of changing asset allocation. The implications for fund members and the effect of increased risk on their benefits is considered, as well as trustee disclosure obligations, and the ability of the government to implement member choice under such asymmetric information conditions is examined.


The high-affinity human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) receptor (GMR) consists of an alpha (GMRalpha) and a common beta (betac) subunit. The intracellular domain of betac has been extensively characterized and has been shown to be critical for the activation of both the JAK/STAT and MAP kinase pathways. The function of the intracellular domain of GMRalpha, however, is not as well characterized. To determine the role of this domain in GMR signaling, an extensive structure-function analysis was performed. Truncation mutants alpha362, alpha371, and alpha375 were generated, as well as the site-directed mutants alphaVQVQ and alphaVVVV. Although alpha375beta, alphaVQNQbeta, and alphaVVVVbeta stimulated proliferation in response to human GM-CSF, the truncation mutants alpha362beta and alpha371beta were incapable of transducing a proliferative signal. In addition, both alpha371 and alphaVVVV were expressed at markedly reduced levels, indicating the importance of residues 372 to 374 for proper protein expression. More importantly, we show that GMRalpha plays a direct role in the activation of the JAK/STAT pathway, and electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA) indicate that both GMRalpha and betac play a role in determining the STAT5 DNA binding complex activated by the GMR. Thus, the intracellular domain of the human GMRalpha is important for activation of the JAK/STAT pathway and protein stabilization.


With the rapid development of medical information, the medical cyber system is rapidly transforming, and medical information sharing faces new challenges. Blockchain technology is a revolutionary technology. It has the characteristics of tamper-proof and privacy-preserving, and has natural protection for big data systems, that can be used in medical systems. In this paper,we proposed to store medical cyber physical data in a mixed blockchain with private blockchain and consortium blockchain in order to realize the secure storage of medical cyber physical data by the tamper-resistant and sharing of blockchain technology. In the system, a threshold signature system based on blockhain is also proposed. Aiming at the situation that medical accidents are easy to occur in multidisciplinary joint consultation in the medical process, this paper proposes to use threshold signature for joint consultation. Using the security and threshold of threshold signature, treatment can be carried out when the threshold number is reached, and medical data can be uploaded to the consortium blockchain. The security analysis and performance analysis show that the scheme has advantages in safety and performance and is suitable for the medical environment to a certain extent.


Abstract The use of geographic information, digital mapping software and GIS is ever increasing. Maps can be created by anyone with access to a computer with appropriate software. But what is this 'democratisation' of cartography doing to the quality of the map? Unfortunately, some maps do not communicate their message at all well. A poorly designed map can at least diminish effective communication of information to users and at worst mislead, perhaps seriously. The Better Mapping Campaign was launched by The British Cartographic Society to demonstrate the importance of good map design and to illustrate through the application of a few basic design principles that the end result can be much improved.


The renin-angiotensin system plays an important role in cardiovascular homeostasis by contributing to the regulation of blood volume, blood pressure, and vascular tone. Because AT(1) receptors have been described in the coronary microcirculation, we investigated whether ANG II contributes to the regulation of coronary vascular tone and whether its contribution is altered during exercise. Since the renin-angiotensin system is activated after myocardial infarction, resulting in an increase in circulating ANG II, we also investigated whether the contribution of ANG II to the regulation of vasomotor tone is altered after infarction. Twenty-six chronically instrumented swine were studied at rest and while running on a treadmill at 1-4 km/h. In 13 swine, myocardial infarction was induced by ligation of the left circumflex coronary artery. Blockade of AT(1) receptors (irbesartan, 1 mg/kg iv) had no effect on myocardial O(2) consumption but resulted in an increase in coronary venous O(2) tension and saturation both at rest and during exercise, reflecting coronary vasodilation. Despite increased plasma levels of ANG II after infarction and maintained coronary arteriolar AT(1) receptor levels, the vasodilation evoked by irbesartan was significantly reduced both at rest and during exercise. In conclusion, despite elevated plasma levels, the vasoconstrictor influence of ANG II on the coronary circulation in vivo is reduced after myocardial infarction. This reduction in ANG II-induced coronary vasoconstriction may serve to maintain perfusion of the remodeled myocardium.