952 April 2015 To the Editor: We read the publication by Farag et al.1 entitled "Comparison of Three Techniques for Ultrasound-guided Femoral Nerve Catheter Insertion: A Randomized, Blinded Trial" with interest and feel compelled to share our views with the readership of ANesThesIology. The intention of this letter is not to criticize the study, but to reflect on an increasingly common problem where a complex statistical analysis obscures the clinical relevance of a simple question. This large study was conducted like a National Institutes of health clinical trial using the analytic capabilities of Ph.D.-level statisticians. We appreciated the statistical treatment of measurements taken over time. For instance, the verbal response scale was averaged for each patient using a time-weighted formula, and opioid administrations were converted to morphine equivalents and totaled. This statistical approach ideally would be followed even in studies with smaller sample sizes. We also appreciated the authors' recognition that not all variables are normally distributed and that they took appropriate steps to account for this in their statistical analysis. specifically, the distribution of total opioid requirement was found to be lognormal; hence, the effect of catheter insertion technique estimates "the ratio (or percent difference) of geometric means."1 In addition, opioid requirement was tested in "a linear regression model of log-transformed total intravenous morphine equivalent observations as the response and randomized catheter insertion technique as the treatment of interest."1 Nonetheless, although the study aimed to answer a simple clinical question, the article is so heavily statistical that clinicians are likely to gloss over much of it in search of what is relevant to their practice. For instance, the juxtaposition of "noninferiority" and "superiority" throughout the article is a challenge to read and keep track of, particularly for those without a strong background in statistics. Although crucial to the statistical approach, we believe that many clinicians may gloss over these terms without truly understanding their meaning. Moreover, although the authors appropriately document and cite the newer (Mascha & Turan) and older (holm, o'Brien) statistical procedures that are less likely to be familiar to the readership, we remain doubtful that these would be meaningful to the average clinician who may be interested in applying these findings to their clinical practice. Despite the complex and comprehensive statistical analysis, we feel that the study design does not actually allow for any clinically meaningful conclusions on the choice of catheter. This is because most patients having total knee arthroplasty with femoral nerve block alone have residual pain in the sciatic territory2; something the authors did not control for in a systematic way.1 Because nearly all patients will have pain, the methodology is inherently biased toward finding no difference between groups. Moreover, there is no information about the success or duration of the blocks as this was not tested at all—without information on sensory or motor distribution, it is not possible to draw conclusions on the success of the technique. Most fundamentally, the research questions asked are of little relevance for today's anesthesiologist. The study was conducted over several years during which time substantial changes in techniques and technology have occurred. The question of whether or not to stimulate via the catheter was relevant before the advent of ultrasound guidance in regional anesthesia. however, with ultrasound, the primary determinant of whether a catheter is adequately positioned is not the presence or absence of evoked motor response but visualization of anesthetic spread in the desired tissue plane.3,4 In addition, it seems obvious that techniques that require extra steps and more equipment will take longer to perform and have additional costs. so, testing hypotheses of increased block performance time and costs focuses on significance or nonsignificance based on the P value and takes us away from appreciating that a difference in mean block performance time of approximately 1 min may not have a whole lot of clinical relevance. Finally, the design and conclusions seem "to close the door" to further novel research—for example, with respect to different techniques (in-plane vs. out-of-plane), equipment (different needle gauges and catheter designs), volume of injectate, and research outcomes such as safety. Indeed, by advocating the use of ultrasound alone for femoral catheter placement, the authors ignore the potential safety benefits of using nerve stimulation to warn the clinician of potentially harmful needle-nerve contact and intraneural injection.5 In summary, this article demonstrates that even when meticulous data collection and advanced statistical analysis are applied to a research design with little clinical relevance, the practicing clinician may be left without any data of significance to their clinical practice.


Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to describe the degree of ethnic residential segregation and diversification in Dutch neighbourhoods. Design/methodology/approach - Using data on neighbourhood level, the authors calculate segregation and diversification indices, and illustrate the distribution of main origin groups by cumulative distribution functions. A preliminary analysis is conducted to quantify the relationship between neighbourhood ethnic composition and economic outcomes (income and welfare dependency). Findings - No evidence is found on the existence of mono-ethnic neighbourhoods in The Netherlands. The higher concentration of non-Western immigrants in the large cities occurs in neighbourhoods with a high degree of diversity from several origins. An apparent strong correlation between the concentration of non-Western immigrants and the prevalence of social benefits is likely due to the composition effect. The findings counter the public opinion that ghetto-like neighbourhoods are dominant. They suggest that neighbourhood housing composition plays possibly an important role to attract immigrants with a weak socio-economic position, who are often from a variety of non-Western countries, rather than from a single origin. Practical implications - Social policies aimed at improving neighbourhood quality affect non-Western immigrants from different source countries simultaneously, as they tend to live together in immigrant neighbourhoods. But integration policies targeted at neighbourhoods are insufficient, as many immigrants live in areas with low immigrant density: policies targeted at individuals (and families) remain indispensable. Originality/value - This is the first paper to document segregation and diversity in The Netherlands, using unique neighbourhood level data. Applying cumulative distribution functions to these issues is also novel.


Objective: The short and long-term success of bariatric surgery is determined by patient adherence to post-operative dietary recommendations. Nutritional education programs are reported to be effective in increasing patient adherence to dietary recommendations. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of nutritional education on nutritional knowledge related to post-bariatric dietary recommendations on Saudi bariatric patients and the impact of time on their knowledge retention following the education. Methods: In this repeated measure pre- to post-intervention study, 55 patients (19 male, 36 female), aged between 20-65 years, were recruited from the Surgical Clinics at King AbdulAziz University Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Patients were asked to complete an Eating after bariatric surgery (EABS) questionnaire before receiving nutritional education and three times after the education: immediately and at one and three months post-nutritional education. Results: The nutritional knowledge of patients, measured by EABS, improved significantly (p<0.001) after the educational session; however, total scores after one and three months showed no significant improvement in knowledge compared to the pre-educational period. Hence, nutritional education improved post-bariatric nutritional knowledge in bariatric patients in the short-term; however, this nutritional knowledge was not retained after one to three months. Conclusion: We conclude that it is important for nutritional education to be delivered prior to surgery, with ongoing follow-up after surgery, to improve the long-term adherence of patients to dietary recommendations.


The discovery of antibiotics was one of the greatest achievements of the twentieth century. The subsequent introduction of sulphonamides, penicillin and streptomycin, broad spectrum bacteriostatic antibiotics, bactericidal antibiotics, synthetic chemicals and highly specific narrow spectrum antibiotics to clinical medicine transformed the treatment of bacterial diseases (Baldry, 1976). However, due to the excessive and inappropriate use of antibiotics there has been a gradual emergence of populations of antibiotic –resistant bacteria, which pose a global public health problem (Komolafe, 2003).


This study will examine the insulative effectiveness of bird's nests from Mockingbirds, Bluebirds, Red Winged Blackbirds, and Tree Swallows. The idea of the study is based on biomimicry, a field of science which studies the use of nature to find solutions to man-made problems. While many studies have examined the physical characteristics of bird's nests, very few have examined the materials that the nests are built out of and how effective those nests are as insulators. This study hopes to examine that void. Eight different nests were utilized, two from each species of bird listed above. The nests were weighed initially for their total mass. Then, their surface area, volume, and percent by mass composition of the materials that made up the nest were measured. Approximate r-values were taken from an online table.(1) The percent by volume of the nests were calculated and the composite r-values of the nests were calculated. The specific r value per thickness of each nest was calculated. This study hopes to develop an effective and natural alternative to modern man-made insulation through the utilization of the material composition of the bird's nests. Results demonstrate that the nests used were less effective insulators than fiberglass.


Abstract
By increasing the world population and more need to supply food, farmers attend to use of chemical fertilizers, organic manures and pesticides. Also, applications of these agents without attention to their side effects, cause more problems to human health and environment. Nitrate is one of the most important elements of organic manures, which leach through soil to surface and ground waters by irrigation or precipitation. So, it's necessary to monitor the behavior of it. The purpose of this study was to determine the nitrate transport through two different soil textures, loam and silt loam via application of organic fertilizers. In this study, experiments were carried out by cylindrical drained plastic lysimeters with 100 cm height and 60 cm diameter, filled by uncondensed soil up to 60 cm height. Three different organic manures (poultry, cow and sewage sludge) were used on top soil of lysimeters by the rate of 35 tone/ha (upon the average use amounts of farmer's). 24 lysimeters were prepared; 9 lysimeters for 3 types of manure with 3 replicates and 3 without manure used as control for each soil type. The results were analyzed by a factorial experiment in a completely randomized form statistical design. Irrigation was done by one week intervals, totally three times with well water. Five drainage water samples (100 ml each sample) were taken through the first pore volume drained after irrigating of lysimeters. It means that each pore volume divided to 5 equal parts for sampling. The results showed that the nitrate concentration in loam soil was more than silt loam soil in drainage water samples, so it can be attributed to the effect of soil texture. Also for both soil textures, sewage sludge treatment was caused the most nitrate concentration, and the least was monitored in control treatment. The amounts of poultry and cow NO3 in drainage water samples were between them, respectively. Considering the one week irrigation intervals and three consecutive irrigations which were done, the amount of contamination in both soils in the first week was highest and in the third week was the lowest; it can be related to nitrate leaching by irrigations done.

Keywords: Water pollution, Nitrate leaching, Lysimeter, Organic manure


African American caregivers in low-income, urban communities have high rates of food insecurity. Unemployment, education, smoking, stress, and depressive symptoms are associated with household food insecurity. A cumulative risk model suggests that accumulation of risk may compound food insecurity risk, and certain risk factors are more likely to co-occur. This study utilizes two approaches to examine food insecurity risk among African American caregivers with an adolescent daughter-a cumulative risk index to examine accumulation of risk and food insecurity risk; latent class analysis (LCA) to determine if certain risk profiles exist and their relation to food insecurity risk. Caregivers completed surveys including demographic, psychosocial, and behavioral questions (to create a cumulative risk index) and a validated 2-item food insecurity screen. LCA was used to identify risk profiles. Logistic regression was used to examine relations between cumulative risk, risk profiles, and food insecurity risk. Each additional cumulative risk index factor was associated with a 54% increase in odds of risk of food insecurity. LCA identified three subgroups: high stress/depression (class #1), low education/low stress and depression (class #2), and low risk overall (class #3). Odds of food insecurity risk were 4.7 times higher for class #1, and 1.5 times higher for class #2 compared with class #3. This study contributes to understanding of how food insecurity risk relates to cumulative risk and risk profiles. Findings can be used to improve food insecurity risk screening in clinical settings, enhancing intervention/referral for food security risk and mental health among African American caregivers and their households.


Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have been broadly studied for several years due to their outstanding regenerative potential. Moreover, these cells might be a valuable source of genetic information for the preservation of endangered animal species. However, a controversy regarding their characterization still exists. The aim of this study was to isolate and compare the rabbit peripheral blood- and bone marrow-derived EPCs with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in terms of their phenotype and morphology that could be affected by the passage number or cryopreservation as well as to assess their possible neuro-differentiation potential. Briefly, cells were isolated and cultured under standard endothelial conditions until passage 3. The morphological changes during the culture were monitored and each passage was analyzed for the typical phenotype using flow cytometry, quantitative real–time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and novel digital droplet PCR (ddPCR), and compared to HUVECs. The neurogenic differentiation was induced using a commercial kit. Rabbit cells were also cryopreserved for at least 3 months and then analyzed after thawing. According to the obtained results, both rabbit EPCs exhibit a spindle-shaped morphology and high proliferation rate. The both cell lines possess same stable phenotype: CD14−CD29+CD31−CD34−CD44+CD45−CD49f+CD73+CD90+CD105+CD133−CD146−CD166+VE-cadherin+VEGFR-2+SSEA-4+MSCA-1−vWF+eNOS+AcLDL+ALDH+vimentin+desmin+α-SMA+, slightly different from HUVECs. Moreover, both induced rabbit EPCs exhibit neuron-like morphological changes and expression of neuronal markers ENO2 and MAP2. In addition, cryopreserved rabbit cells maintained high viability (>85%) and endothelial phenotype after thawing. In conclusion, our findings suggest that cells expanded from the rabbit peripheral blood and bone marrow are of the endothelial origin with a stable marker expression and interesting proliferation and differentiation capacity.


We evaluated the capacity of the plant growth regulator thidiazuron (TDZ), a substituted phenylurea with high cytokinin-like activity, to promote organogenesis in petals and leaves of several carnation cultivars (Dianthus spp.), combined with 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). The involvement of the endogenous auxin indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and purine-type cytokinins was also studied. Shoot differentiation was found to depend on the explant, cultivar and balance of growth regulators. TDZ alone (0.5 and 5.0 micromol/L) as well as synergistically with NAA (0.5 and 5.0 micromol/L) promoted shoot organogenesis in petals, and was more active than N6-benzyladenine. In petals of the White Sim cultivar, TDZ induced cell proliferation in a concentration-dependent manner and, on day 7 of culture, the proportion of meristematic regions in those petals allowed the prediction of shoot regeneration capacity after 30 days of culture. Immunolocalization of CK ribosides, N6-(delta2-isopentenyl)adenosine, zeatin riboside (ZR) and dihydrozeatin riboside (DHZR), in organogenic petals showed them to be highly concentrated in the tips of bud primordia and in the regions with proliferation capacity. All of them may play a role in cell proliferation, and possibly in differentiation, during the organogenic process. After seven days of culture of White Sim petals, NAA may account for the changes found in the levels of IAA and DHZR, whereas TDZ may be responsible for the remarkable increases in N6-(delta2-isopentenyl)adenine (iP) and ZR. ZR is induced by low TDZ concentrations (0.0-0.005 micromol/L), whereas iP, that correlates with massive cell proliferation and the onset of shoot differentiation, is associated with high TDZ levels (0.5 micromol/L). In addition to the changes observed in quantification and in situ localization of endogenous phytohormones during TDZ-induced shoot organogenesis, we propose that TDZ also promotes growth directly, through its own biological activity. To our knowledge, this study is the first to evaluate the effect of TDZ on endogenous phytohormones in an organogenic process.


Tobacco smoking is a factor claimed to be of influence on alveolar bone loss. The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether the effect of changed smoking habits is associated with the progress of proximal marginal alveolar bone loss as measured on intraoral radiographs. The study comprised 349 individuals with twenty or more remaining teeth examined in 1970 and 1980. The bone loss in the period was measured as the difference in the ratios "bone height/root length" at proximal tooth sides between the two examinations. It was found that the marginal bone loss in "Non smokers in 1970 and 1980" was as a mean 3.9 per cent of the root length. The corresponding value among "Smokers 1970 and 1980" was 6.0 per cent. The difference is statistically significant (p = 0.001). In individuals who had given up smoking during the 10-year period (bone loss: 4.4 per cent) as compared with those who had smoked regularly, the progression of bone loss was significantly (p < 0.05) retarded. The result is in agreement with the hypothesis that giving up smoking produces favourable effects also with regard to the attachment of the teeth in the jaw-bone.


This survey, conducted with 461 racehorse owners-breeders in Algeria between 2009 and 2011, investigates their perceptions, objectives and practices regarding selective breeding. Racehorse breeding is a full-time professional activity for a third of interviewees. The holdings are small-sized with 77% owning one or two mares. The regular practice of mating is here used to categorize breeders according to their degree of professionalization (38.4% professional vs. 61.6% occasional breeders). Experience in the sector was also used to classify breeders, considering as "junior" the breeders under 10 years experience (38.8%) and as "senior" those above 10 years (61.2%). More than professionalization, experience shows a significant impact on practices and objectives. Thus, experience influences breed choice (junior breeders tend to specialize while senior own both Arabian and Thoroughbreds), age at first foaling (sooner among senior breeders), information sources considered for selecting stallions (senior use more diversified sources), the importance granted to the price of mating (greater for junior breeders), the importance granted to the ranking compared to earnings (the ranking being more important to junior breeders), and the priority given to breeding (junior breeders give higher priority to a buy-race-resell activity). Finally, racehorse breeding is poorly professionalized, the only financial goal being cost coverage. Despite inappropriate practices, an interest for selection is noticed.


An isotope dilution mass spectrometric (ID/MS) method for cholesterol is described that uses capillary gas chromatography with cholesterol-13C3 as the labeled internal standard. Labeled and unlabeled cholesterol are converted to the trimethylsilyl ether. Combined capillary column gas chromatography and electron impact mass spectrometry are used to obtain the abundance ratio of the unlabeled and labeled [M+.] ions from the derivative. Quantitation is achieved by measurement of each sample between measurements of two standards whose unlabeled/labeled ratios bracket that of the sample. Seven pools were analyzed by this method: standard reference material (SRM) 1951, which consists of three frozen serum pools with low, medium, and high levels of cholesterol; SRM 1952, which consists of three freeze-dried serum pools with low, medium, and high levels of cholesterol; and SRM 909, a freeze-dried serum pool. The method is a modification of our original definitive method for cholesterol. The modified method uses much better chromatographic separations to assure specificity and a new method of implementing selected ion monitoring on a magnetic mass spectrometer to obtain high-precision measurements of ion intensity ratios on narrow gas chromatographic peaks. The modified method has a coefficient of variation (CV) of 0.22%, which is an improvement over the original method's CV of 0.36%. The measurements were found to be free of interference. The high precision and absence of bias qualify this method as a candidate definitive method.


Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of death in men. Approximately 258000 men in worldwide die each year from prostate cancer. The Jak/Stat pathway (Jak - Janus kinase, Stat - signal transducer and activators of transcription) is an important signaling cascade in prostate cancer. Stat3 seems to play a fundamental role in the regulation of proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis and hormone-resistance in prostate cancer. Although there has been evidence for an oncogenic function of Stat3, observations from several laboratories suggest the opposite. Under certain conditions activation of Stat3 leads to decreased growth of prostate cancer cells in vitro (LNCaP) and can exert an inhibitory effect on prostate cancer xenografts. To elucidate the role of IL-6/Stat3 signaling in prostate cancer (PCa), we have established Pten-deficient (Pten pc-/ − ) PCa mouse models with additional deletion of IL-6 or Stat3. Ablation of IL-6 in Pten pc-/ − mice led to increased tumor formation and signs of massive chronic inflammation. In addition, Pten pc-/- IL-6 −/- mice showed decreased expression of p53-dependent cellular senescence markers when compared to PCa in Pten pc-/- mice. The concomitant Pten and Stat3 inactivation (Pten/Stat3 pc-/ − ) enhanced cell proliferation and accelerated the prostate cancer progression as well as production of inflammatory cytokines. Pten/Stat3 pc-/ − mice showed also significant downregulation of crucial components of the p53-dependent cellular senescence pathway. Furthermore, Pten/Stat3 pc-/- PCa mice revealed high expression of AR and P-Akt correlated with advanced prostate cancer. These data suggest that disruption of IL-6/Stat3 signaling promotes tumorigenesis in Pten pc-/- induced prostate cancer via p53 inactivation. Citation Format: Jan Pencik. Loss of IL-6 or Stat3 drives advanced prostate cancer by promoting p53 inactivation. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 309. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-309


The pending spectre of Brexit and its impact on Europe and the United Kingdom (UK) along with the political uncertainty of a major world power in turmoil following the 2016 United States elections, calls into question the path that many social and economic policies may take in the future. The balance of social policy and economic efficiency is nowhere more evident than in the treatment of employees during bankruptcy/insolvency procedures, which may provide a barometer of changes yet to come.

As a member of the European Union (EU), the UK continues to be subject to Regulations and Directives that implement EU social policy objectives and influence the functioning of the rescue culture throughout the Member States. The EU has had a significant influence on the direction the UK has taken in matters of social policy since its accession in 1973. Arguably, this has forced the UK into a socially liberal and protective framework that it might not otherwise have adopted to such a degree had it not been within the EU's sphere of influence. EU policy also had an influence on the UK's adoption of the rescue culture, which is now the foundation for insolvency systems throughout the EU and in many modern world economies, though it is possible that the UK may have been a natural development on the legal path of the of the British insolvency system.

Now that Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon has been invoked, the UK is making its way toward a deal or no deal Brexit scenario. If and when Brexit becomes a reality, and Britain begins to untangle itself from the influence of the EU, how will the rescue culture and the social protections present within it under the current legal regime be changed? In what direction is the UK likely to go? While difficult to predict, the direction that the UK may take in the event that the European Communities Act of 1972 is eventually repealed and the UK is once again left to its own legislative devices, current conversations in Parliament give a certain flavour of potential futures. In addition, a consideration of different jurisdictions, such as America, Canada and Australia, each having a similar English common law origin and historical links to the UK, can be instructive in relation to which direction the UK may have taken had it never joined the EU. An analysis of this counterfactual position may then also provide a clue as to the direction that the UK may take

The UK has ever been the "odd man out" in the EU, springing as it does from a significantly different legal origin than the Franco/German model at the heart of the EU. By examining the developmental path of the United States, Australia and the UK in this area of law prior to EU accession, the behaviour and reactions of the UK during EU membership, and comparing this to similar developments in the comparator countries, it may be possible to forecast the eventual direction that the law of Post-Brexit Britain may take in relation to the social protections that may or may not be available during insolvency procedures in the future.


Drought prone, arid and semi-arid ecosystems are challenging to restore once degraded due to low levels of natural recruitment and survival of reintroduced plants. This is evident in the restoration of degraded succulent thicket habitats in the Albany Subtropical Thicket Biome located in South Africa. The current restoration practice for this ecosystem focuses predominantly on reintroducing Portulacaria afra L. Jacq., which is naturally dominant in terms of cover and biomass, but largely absent in regions degraded by domestic livestock. This has been achieved by planting unrooted cuttings with limited consideration of soil water availability in a drought-prone ecosystem. This study tests the effects of the timing of water availability after planting on the root development of P. afra cuttings. Cuttings were harvested from seven individual plants and grown in a glasshouse setting. Eighty four cuttings were taken from each individual, twelve for each of the seven watering treatments per individual plant. The treatments represented a time-staggered initial watering after planting, including: on the day of planting, 4 days, 7 days, 14 days, 21 days, and 28 days after planting. After 32 days, all treatments were watered on a bi-weekly basis for two weeks; a control treatment with no watering throughout the experiment was included. The proportion of rooted cuttings per treatment and dry root mass were determined at the end of the experimental period (day 42). The early onset of watering was associated with a higher percentage of rooting (X2(5) = 11.352, p = 0.045) and had a weak, but non-significant, impact on the final dry root mass (F5,36 = 2.109, p = 0.0631). Importantly, no clear rooting window within 28 days was detected as the majority of cuttings exhibited root development (greater than 50% of cuttings rooted for each individual parent-plant); this suggests that watering at the time of planting P. afra cuttings in-field for restoration may not be necessary. An unexpected, but important, result was that parent-plant identity had a strong interaction with the accumulation of root mass (F36,460 = 5.026, p < 0.001; LR7 = 122.99, p < 0.001). The control treatment, which had no water throughout the experiment, had no root development. These findings suggest that water availability is required for the onset of rooting in P. afra cutting. However, the duration of the experiment was insufficient to detect the point at which P. afra cuttings could no longer initiate rooting once exposed to soil moisture, and thus no rooting window could be defined. Despite harvesting material from the same source population, parent-plant identity strongly impacted root development. Further work is required to characterise the rooting window, and to explore the effect of parent-plant condition on in-field and experimental restoration results; we urge that experiments using P. afra closely track the parent-source at the individual level as this may be a factor that may have a major impact on results.


The purpose of this paper is to present a nonencyclopedic review of this rapidly growing field. The focus will be on the new methodologies involved, their accomplishments, their limitations, and their potentialities, in the hope of enabling the reader to examine with more understanding the many publications appearing in the clinical literature on the chromosomes of man. Development within the last 3 to 4 years of techniques involving in vitro culture and cytogenetic analysis, which have made possible routine examination of the human chromosomes, represents one of the important recent achievements in human genetics. Cell samples from various organs can easily be taken from any patient and grown into stable cultures suitable for mitotic examination, without change in chromosomal constitution. 1 The carriers of the hereditary elements of cells, the chromosomes, are linear, threadlike bodies which are morphologically distinct only during the mitotic phase of the nucleus. They have a


The Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA) cut the top tax rate on long-term capital gains from 20 percent to 15 percent, the lowest level since World War II. JGTRRA also cut the rate on dividends to 15 percent; previously dividends had been taxed as ordinary income. In contrast, capital gains have been taxed at lower rates than ordinary income for most of the history of the income tax. And reductions in capital gains tax rates have usually corresponded with reductions in tax rates on ordinary income.


Ovarian function and fertility was studied in 46 female New Zealand White rabbits after isthmic-isthmic reanastomosis of the oviduct. Postoperative ovarian function was slightly suppressed and returned to normal after two month. No significant differences were found between the control side and the side of anastomosis. Fertility was reduced directly after surgery on the side of anastomosis as well as on the control side. On the side of reanastomosis a continuous increase of tubal function occurred up to two month after surgery. At this time tubal function was reduced to 30%, the nidation index was about 0.6. Tubal function of the untreated oviduct was nearly normal (nidation index 0.8) two weeks after surgery.


The dynamic steering of a beam reflected from a photonic structure supporting Tamm plasmon polariton is demonstrated. The phase and amplitude of the reflected wave are adjusted by modulating the refractive index of a transparent conductive oxide layer by applying a bias voltage. It is shown that the proposed design allows for two-dimensional beam steering by deflecting the light beam along the polar and azimuthal angles.


BACKGROUND
Laparoscopic splenectomy (LS) has several advantages over the open procedure but can be technically demanding when performed in patients with massive splenomegaly. We hypothesized that patients who undergo hand-assisted LS (HALS) may experience the benefits of LS while having their enlarged spleens removed safely.

METHODS
We reviewed the charts of patients who underwent HALS or LS between January 2003 and June 2008. Evaluated parameters included intraoperative and early postoperative morbidity and mortality, conversion to open surgery, need for blood transfusion, length of postoperative hospital stay, patient demographics, diagnosis leading to splenectomy, splenic weight and number of postoperative days to resuming normal diet. Differences were analyzed while controlling for splenic weight and malignant diagnosis using multiple linear and logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS
In all, 103 patients underwent splenectomy (23 HALS, 80 LS). Patients who had HALS were older and had larger spleens, and a greater proportion had malignant diagnoses. We observed no significant differences in morbidity, conversion to open surgery or need for blood transfusion. The mean length of postoperative stay, duration of surgery and days to resuming full diet were longer in the HALS group. No patients died. No group differences were significant after controlling for splenic weight and malignant diagnosis.

CONCLUSION
The morbidity associated with HALS is comparable to that with LS. The longer duration of surgery and hospital stay for HALS patients was likely related to greater splenic weight, older age and greater proportion of malignant diagnoses. Hand-assisted LS is a viable alternative to open surgery in patients with massive spleens.


Exosomes are gaining importance because they show great promise in therapeutic applications for several diseases. Particularly in stroke, exosomes derived from mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy work as paracrine effectors responsible for promoting neurovascular remodeling and functional recovery. Adult male rats were subjected to intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) by intrastriatal injection of collagenase type IV; 24 h after surgery, MSC-derived exosomes were administered through the tail vein. The rats were euthanized at 7 or 28 days after treatment. Functional evaluation, lesion size, fiber tract integrity, axonal sprouting and white matter repair markers, biodistribution of exosomes and secretome proteomics were analyzed. DiI-labeled exosomes were found in the brains of the ICH-treated group and in the liver, lung and spleen. Animals receiving treatment with exosomes showed significantly better results in terms of functional recovery, lesion size, fiber tract integrity, axonal sprouting and white matter repair markers compared with the control group 28 days after stroke. Proteomics analysis of the exosomes identified more than 2000 proteins that could be implicated in brain repair function. In conclusion, white matter integrity was partly restored by exosome administration mediated by molecular repair factors. Exosomes as a treatment could be a heterogeneous process by nature and presents many factors that can influence brain plasticity in an adaptable and versatile manner.


Paleoecological reconstructions using lake sediments provide important information about ecological dynamics and forest disturbance processes that occurred prior to the historic period of scientific observation. In high-altitude and high-latitude ecosystems where landscape-scale disturbances recur at time intervals exceeding observation in many regions, e.g. western North America, reconstructed environmental data are essential in providing context for land managers. During the most recent two decades eruptive populations of bark beetles (Dendroctonus spp.) have rapidly and profoundly altered subalpine forest ecosystems across western North America. Outbreaks of these insects are unprecedented in scale and severity, at least historically. Currently, little information exists about these destructive outbreaks and in general, the information that exists, does not extend beyond the most recent few centuries. The research presented here examines sedimentary pollen records from six subalpine basins affected by severe spruce beetle (D. rufipennis) epidemics during the 20th century in the high-elevation plateaus and mountain ranges of south-central Utah. Reciprocal exchanges in dominance between pollen abundance of host spruce (Picea engelmannii) and non-host subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa) associated with historic outbreaks are conspicuous. Calculating simple ratios of host and non-host pollen accumulations offers a useful metric to visually identify spruce beetle outbreaks using sedimentary records. However, supporting lines of evidence may be required to identify these disturbances with greater certainty over the Holocene. Our data and findings provide a platform with which to begin exploration of other paleoecological proxy methods for the ultimate purpose of generating more temporally extensive reconstructions of bark beetle disturbances using sedimentary records.


Introduction: the paper deals with the study of the intellectual aspect of law, its democratic nature in the context of the introduction of innovative technologies in electronic law. The digital transformation of society is based on the "breakthrough" innovations in the economic, political, social and legal spheres. The purpose of the study is to show the influence of mental processes on the origin and change of law. The objectives of the research are to identify the true nature of law, its purpose, the need to create electronic law, to show the opportunities and risks of the digitalization of law, the impact of information technologies on the disclosure of its potential. Methods: a pluralistic methodology that combines universal, general, and specific scientific research methods. The main methods were the dialectical and materialistic, synergetic and transdisciplinary ones. Results: being reasonable in its nature and purpose law is a combination of mathematically precise forms (sources) of law and natural human rights and freedoms, as a condition for the implementation of genuine democracy in a state-civil society. The legal world is a special, abstract, metaphysical reality artificially created by the conventional, creative genius of man. The technology expands the possibilities of the human mind, creating both challenges and risks. Many modern social processes in the conditions of synergetic, nonlinear development, the growth of entropy, disorder, risk, and a massive increase in digital information (BigData), can only be managed and predicted with the help of artificial intelligence (AI). Conclusions: the language of the human brain, neurophysiology, and digital society must be translated into the language of electronic law. To do this, it is necessary to adapt the legal engineering, to digitize the forms (sources) of law, to use the information and communication technologies, the educational platforms in the training of lawyers, to develop the special legislation on the electronic state, electronic government, AI and robotics. The metatheory of digital law, its legislative consolidation, and the mechanism of the law enforcement implementation (including the automatic one) will help to solve this problem.


In acoustic conditions with reverberation and coherent sources, various spatial filtering techniques, such as the linearly constrained minimum variance (LCMV) beamformer, require accurate estimates of the relative transfer functions (RTFs) between the sensors with respect to the desired speech source. However, the time-domain support of these RTFs may affect the estimation accuracy in several ways. First, short RTFs justify the multiplicative transfer function (MTF) assumption when the length of the signal time frames is limited. Second, they require fewer parameters to be estimated, hence reducing the effect of noise and model errors. In this paper, a spherical microphone array based framework for RTF estimation is presented, where the signals are transformed to the spherical harmonics (SH)-domain. The RTF time-domain supports are studied under different acoustic conditions, showing that SH-domain RTFs are shorter compared to conventional space-domain RTFs.


Marketing system in important part in agribusiness system with forming connectivity of agriculture produck from farmer's to the final consumer. The marketing system wil influence product purchasing including divides of benefit. Use of descriptive method Analysis in this research is aims to clarify how are the potato producing in Hatu-Builiko Sub-District delivery to the market consume. The purpose of the research to determine how far the channel marketing involve, how's the marketing function applied to the condition of the market and which marketing channel mostly  efficient trough margin marketing and farmer share. The sample of location and sample of farmer were selected by purposive sampling method; and the sample of trades was selected trough snowbowling sampling method. The number of farmer's was selected 20 peoples and the number of trades was selected fourteen peoples.the technical coleteing data was by observation and direct interview. The research conducted in Hatu-Builiko Sub District at Ainaro District of Timor Leste. The result, there were three channel of marketing applied, mostly the three marketing channel function were selling potatoin Ainaro District market. Market structure was conducted as monophony for the farmer's, monopoly for the trade collector and free competition for the retailer and wholesalers. The market behavior was elaborate in good way between farmer's and trade collector and either between trade collector and retailer and also trade collector and wholesalers. The payment procedure was cash based. The most efficient marketing channel wascontributing the best value as the result of margin marketing and farmer share which is was third marketing channel.


Design, fabrication and testing of a frequency-steerable acoustic transducer (FSAT) is presented in this paper. The proposed device concept allows directional guided wave sensing for structural health monitoring (SHM) applications. The direction of an incoming wave is univocally encoded in the spectrum of the output signal thanks to the spatial filtering effect produced by the peculiar shape of the FSAT. Accurate localization of acoustic events within a two-dimensional half-plane can thus be performed with very small hardware and software complexity by processing the time-trace recorded by a single device. Photolithography-based fabrication on a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) substrate provides a flexible and lightweight transducer with a number of attractive features for integrated and wireless SHM.


Small rodents (Rodentia, subfam. Murinae: real mice, Arvicoline voles) greatly affect natural regeneration, stability and dynamics of forest communities worldwide. Every 3–4 years rodent damage in Croatian state forests is the most severe in forest regeneration stands, especially in pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) and narrow-leaved ash (Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl.) forests, where rodents can seriously impede natural regeneration by damaging seeds, stems and roots of saplings. These negative interactions are an even bigger challenge nowdays as pedunculate oak and narrow-leaved ash have become more vunerable in the last decades and are known as the most sensitive species of lowland forests in Croatia due to microclimatic and macroclimatic changes and the unfavourable interaction of a whole series of anthropogenic, abiotic and biotic factors. In the last 40 years, in Croatian state forests, rodent management consisted of monitoring and mainly rodenticide use. Trying to implement IPM (Integrated Pest Management) postulates into practice over the years, different prevention methods against small rodents were tested, but not many came to use. The aim of this research was to look into different logging residue management approaches and their effect on the rodent damage in two pedunculate oak forest regeneration stands in central Posavina in Croatia. Rodent damage on stem and root of tree saplings was recorded by visual inspection on three plots (5x5 m) with scattered logging residue, and one plot (5x5 m) with no residue at one micro-depression site (95 m a.s.l.), and on one micro-elevation (99 m a.s.l.) site. Plots with scattered logging residue represented a type of forest residue management in which logging debris (branches) is cut to smaller lengths and distributed evenly at the forest regeneration stand. Plot with no logging debris represented a residue management method in which wood mass is completely removed from the regeneration stand after felling. We counted, determined and inspected tree saplings found at chosen plots for rodent damage (on stem and roots) and also determined the average weight and moisture content of logging residue (branches around 5–7 cm in diameter) found at the site. In spring 2017, 3380 tree saplings (2978; 81% pedunculate oak, 7; 0.2% narrow-leaved ash and 395; 11.7% other deciduous species) were inspected for rodent damage. At micro-depression site, on a plot with no logging residue, only 13.4% of the saplings were damaged, while the average share of damaged saplings on three plots with scattered residue was more than six times higher; 87.8%. The average mass of the logging residue weighed at site with scattered residue was 10.14 kg kg/m2 and moisture content was 19.2%. At micro-elevation site, 25.4% of the saplings were damaged on a plot with no logging residue, while the average share of damaged saplings on three plots with scattered residue was two times higher; 51.4%. The average mass of the logging residue weighed at SRP 1–3 was 5.1 kg/m2. We also determined moderately strong positive correlation (R=0.69133) between the mass of logging residue and rodent damage and strong negative correlation (R=–0.89598) between wood moisture content of the logging residue and rodent damage. In years ahead, with unpredictable climate effects and potentially very variable small rodent dynamics, removing the logging residue after the felling could represent a residue management that contributes to a more effective and ecologically based rodent management. It could also become a usable preventive method within IPM and help prevent sever rodent damage, even during the outbreaks in pedunculate oak regeneration stands.


This review is a tribute to Professor Jes Olesen involvement in the genetics of migraine and tension-type headache as it is coming up to his 60th birthday.


Abstract
Background: Though women comprise a large proportion of a given society, still many of them in developing countries are at a greater disadvantage in terms of high maternal morbidity and mortality. A large number of women are dying due to factors related to pregnancy and childbirth in these countries.
Objective: This study assessed safe delivery services utilization and associated factors among mothers who gave birth during five years preceding a survey conducted in North Gondar Administrative Zone, Amhara Regional State.
Method: A community-based cross-sectional comparative survey was conducted in November and December 2002. A total of 1,242 women who had at least one live birth in the five years preceding the survey were selected randomly. Results: The study revealed that a total of 13.5% of mothers gave birth to their last babies in health facilities. Only about 25 of the rural women gave birth in the health institutions. Untrained traditional birth attendants and relatives attended 76.4% of the deliveries. The reported reasons were: absence of health problems, short duration of labor, preferring the attention of relatives and trust in traditional birth attendants.
Educational status of the mothers, place of residence, access to radio, monthly income, prenatal care, history of intrapartum complications and other selected obstetric behaviors of the respondents showed statistically significant association with the utilization of safe delivery services (p<0.05, for each factor).
Conclusion: In general, this study revealed that the proportion of births delivered in health facilities is low in the area.
Demographic and socio-cultural factors were found to be barriers to the utilization of safe delivery services. Enhancing the establishment of more emergency obstetric care centers within reasonable access, providing Information, Education and Communication (IEC) on maternity services utilization and harmful traditional practices and improving the status of women in the community are recommended. [Ethiop.J.Health Dev. 2004;18(3):145-152]


We encountered two patients with complete trachea and esophagus transection due to suicide and traffic accident respectively. Primary repair of both trachea and esophagus with tracheostomy and adequate drainage were performed. Nothing per oral, and intermittent suction in oral and nasogastric tube, followed by hyperalimentation and broad spectrum antibiotics. The patients were discharged in good condition without dysphagia and chocking.


In this paper, we propose a new method of suppressing the wrinkle and torsional springback in sheet metal forming by FE simulation. The key technique is the determination of the optimum shape and height of drawbeads by an optimization technique. To demonstrate this technique for the forming of a Stepped-shape beam using a high-strength steel sheet, we show a new approach to evaluating the degree of wrinkle based on the curvature distribution in wrinkle areas. The optimization problem, where the objective function to be minimized is the degree of wrinkle and the design variables are geometric parameters of drawbead shape, is solved under several constraints on torsional springback, fracture, sheet thickness and so on. Using the thus-determined drawbeads, we have succeeded in reducing wrinkle and torsional springback markedly, which was confirmed in a Stepped-beam forming experiment.


The role that the non-governmental organizations can play with respect to the proceedings in front of the International Court of Justice has been always a thorny issue. The, relevantly recent, Practice Direction XII has not substantially ameliorated this situation. Although providing an avenue for the views of civil society to be represented, it can also be argued that from an interpretative point of view it is more restrictive than the Statute of the Court itself, a fact which reinforces the debate on the advantages and pitfalls of an amendment of the Statute of the Court. However, other problems remain; the definition of international organization, whether it includes NGOs as well or not, seems to differ not only from tribunal to tribunal e.g. PCIJ and ICJ but also from case to case. Other possibilities of submitting information to the Court, as for instance as experts, have been rarely put to use. The possible benefits of a greater participation of NGOs in the international judicial process have, nevertheless, up till now not changed the most likely of NGO submissions; they either end up being placed to the Peace Palace Library for consultation purposes or they are more seriously considered but only through the intermediary of a State involved in the proceedings.


Indoor wireless positioning system uses ranging information of beacons in order to precisely estimate a tag location. To estimate distance between each beacons and tag, the system calculates arrival time of a tag pulse with clock of each beacon including independent clock offset. This clock offset seriously affects the performance of ranging and positioning. We propose in this paper a clock offset compensation method to solve this problem. To verify the performance of the proposed method, we simulated location estimation with random clock offset between -1,000ppm and 1,000ppm, and the result shows that the proposed scheme effectively solves the clock offset problem.


On April 1, 2015, Professor Hansun Waring's doctoral seminar had the great pleasure and honor of being joined over Skype by Dr. Hugh (Bud) Mehan, Professor Emeritus at the University of California, San Diego and author of the 1979 classic Learning Lesson: Social Organization in the Classroom. Dr. Mehan has done extensive research on classroom organization and interaction, educational testing, tracking and untracking, construction of student identities in the classroom, and so on. He has managed to achieve the delicate and yet crucial balance that so many educators and education researchers aspire to—the balance between doing research and improving the world. He has not only shaped the academic discourse on education issues but has been directly working with the most vulnerable members of our society in overcoming and amending those issues. His work has been an inspiration to so many of us whose research passions and real-life concerns lie in education, classroom interaction, and social inequity.


This article describes the development, implementation, and second-year evaluation of Project Autism Competencies for Endorsement (ACE), a web-based professional development (PD) program that is designed to train teachers currently working in the field to meet the unique and diverse needs of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). A description of the rationale for the project and an overview of the program of study are followed by the presentation of the second-year evaluation activities and their results. Preliminary findings of this study suggested that the web-based PD program was effective in helping teachers develop and improve their competencies, knowledge, and skills. Moreover, teachers felt comfortable using the teaching strategies they learned in the program and reported some application of these strategies in their practices. Also, most teachers reported their satisfaction with the web-based courses offered in the program. Implications for the future research and practice are presented.


The Second World War has been romanticized almost beyond recognition by 'the sentimental, the loony patriotic, the ignorant, and the bloodthirsty.' In this readable and penetrating study, Paul Fussell goes behind the familiar diplomacy and heroics of history to examine the blunders, petty tyrannies, inconveniences, and deprivations that are many British and American people's memory of the War. There are lively sections on the role of drinking, tobacco, and sex in the war and on the home front; on propaganda; about writers and magazines who recorded the war or who attempted to keep aloft literary standards in a difficult time; on wartime slang and graphic recollections of the nightmare of combat. Written with a keen intelligence and deep emotion, Wartime is a worthy companion to Fussell's The Great War And Modern Memory , which won an American National Book Award and the National Critics Circle prize.


We determined antigliadin antibodies in 95 ataxia patients and 73 controls. Antibodies were positive in 8% of the controls, 19% of patients with sporadic ataxia, 8% of patients with recessive ataxia, and 15% of patients with dominant ataxia. Statistical comparison using χ2 statistics did not reveal significant differences between the groups. Although we found a trend toward a higher prevalence of antigliadin antibodies in patients with sporadic ataxia and dominant ataxia, our data do not support an association of ataxia with antigliadin antibodies.


Many companies seek to promote a family-like atmosphere to foster loyalty and collegial bonding. But researchers found that one potential downside is that employees who work in a family-like culture are less likely to blow the whistle on a colleague's misbehavior. To reap the benefits of promoting strong bonds without the costs, organizations may need to take extra steps, including ensuring their culture values fairness over loyalty and protects victims, and framing reporting a transgression as an opportunity to provide help to a fellow employee.


HCV genotype 2a strain JFH-1 replicates and produces viral particles efficiently in human hepatocellular carcinoma (huh) 7.5 cells, which provide a stable in vitro cell infection system for the hepatitis C virus (HCVcc system). Natural killer (NK) cells are large lymphoid cells that recognize and kill virus-infected cells. In this study, we investigated the interaction between NK cells and the HCVcc system. IL-10 is a typical immune regulatory cytokine that is produced mostly by NK cells and macrophages. IL-21 is one of the main cytokines that stimulate the activation of NK cells. First, we used anti-IL-10 to neutralize IL-10 in a coculture of NK cells and HCVcc. Anti-IL-10 treatment increased the maturation of NK cells by enhancing the frequency of the CD56+dim population in NK-92 cells. However, with anti-IL-10 treatment of NK cells in coculture with J6/JFH-1-huh 7.5 cells, there was a significant decrease in the expression of STAT1 and STAT5 proteins in NK-92 cells and an increase in the HCV Core and NS3 proteins. In addition, rIL-21 treatment increased the frequency of the CD56+dim population in NK-92 cells, Also, there was a dramatic increase in the expression of STAT1 and STAT5 proteins in rIL-21 pre-stimulated NK cells and a decrease in the expression of HCV Core protein in coculture with J6/JFH-1-huh 7.5 cells. In summary, we found that the functional activation of NK cells can be modulated by anti-IL-10 or rIL-21, which controls the expression of HCV proteins as well as HCV RNA replication.


Fragment ion-photon coincidence (FIPCO) spectra by 120 eV electron impact on trifluoromethane (CHF3) have been observed, in which optical emission in the 200-600 nm region has been detected. The CF3+, CHF2+, CF2+ and CF+ ions were observed in the FIPCO spectra. The kinetic energy distributions of these ions were estimated on the basis of the Monte Carlo simulation of their observed band shapes. Considering the total kinetic energy release in the dissociation processes producing CF3+ and CHF2+, we have concluded that the production of CF3+ and CHF2+ follows the D-B and D-C emissions of the parent ion, respectively. The CF2+ and CF+ ions were correlated with the Balmer emission from the excited hydrogen atom. These dissociation processes producing CF2+ and CF+ take place after the excitation to singly charged superexcited states of CHF3.


Glasses, which date back to about 2500 BC, originated in Mesopotamia and were later brought to Egypt in approximately 1450 BC. In contrast to the long-range order materials (crystalline materials), the atoms and molecules of glasses, which are noncrystalline materials (short-range order) are not organized in a definite lattice pattern. Metallic glassy materials with amorphous structure, which are rather new members of the advanced materials family, were discovered in 1960. Due to their amorphous structure, metallic glassy alloys, particularly in the supercooled liquid region, behave differently when compared with crystalline alloys. They reveal unique and unusual mechanical, physical, and chemical characteristics that make them desirable materials for many advanced applications. Although metallic glasses can be produced using different techniques, many of these methods cannot be utilized to produce amorphous alloys when the system has high-melting temperature alloys (above 1500 °C) and/or is immiscible. As a result, such constraints may limit the ability to fabricate high-thermal stable metallic glassy families. The purpose of this research is to fabricate metallic glassy (Zr70Ni25Al5)100-xWx (x; 0, 2, 10, 20, and 35 at. %) by cold rolling the constituent powders and then mechanically alloying them in a high-energy ball mill. The as-prepared metallic glassy powders demonstrated high-thermal stability and glass forming ability, as evidenced by a broad supercooled liquid region and a high crystallization temperature. The glassy powders were then consolidated into full-dense bulk metallic glasses using a spark plasma sintering technique. This consolidation method did not result in the crystallization of the materials, as the consolidated buttons retained their short-range order fashion. Additionally, the current work demonstrated the capability of fabricating very large bulk metallic glassy buttons with diameters ranging from 20 to 50 mm. The results indicated that the microhardness of the synthesized metallic glassy alloys increased as the W concentration increased. As far as the authors are aware, this is the first time this metallic glassy system has been reported.


The negative molecular ion C6H- has been detected in the radio band in the laboratory and has been identified in the molecular envelope of IRC +10216 and in the dense molecular cloud TMC-1. The spectroscopic constants derived from laboratory measurements of 17 rotational lines between 8 and 187 GHz are identical to those derived from the astronomical data, establishing unambiguously that C6H- is the carrier of the series of lines with rotational constant 1377 MHz first observed by K. Kawaguchi et al. in IRC +10216. The column density of C6H- toward both sources is 1%-5% that of neutral C6H. These surprisingly high abundances for a negative ion imply that if other molecular anions are similarly abundant with respect to their neutral counterparts, they may be detectable both in the laboratory at high resolution and in interstellar molecular clouds.


Wavefield extrapolation, or redatuming, is a critical step for imaging. It is particularly challenging in areas such as subsalt or under complex overburdens. The framework of Marchenko redatuming allows for the retrieval of up- and downgoing fields at chosen locations in the subsurface that contain primary arrivals and internal multiples, while requiring relatively little knowledge of the subsurface model. In this paper, we present a new form of the Marchenko system for perturbed fields. Based on this system, we present a new iterative scheme that explicitly reconstructs only the unknown perturbations to the Marchenko focusing functions, and by consequence only the perturbed/scattered up- and downgoing Green's functions. This new scheme departs from previous versions of the method in that it requires additional inputs, which include an extra initial focusing operator and perturbations to the surface reflection data. We validate our method with numerical tests, showing that it is particularly well-suited to properly handle complex models with large/sharp constrasts such as salt boundaries. We foresee this new approach to be of use not only in general imaging applications, but also for time-lapse studies as it can directly redatum time-lapse changes.


In recent years a growing number of philosophers writing about the methodology of philosophy have defended the surprising claim that philosophers do not use intuitions as evidence. In this paper I defend the contrary view that philosophers do use intuitions as evidence. I argue that this thesis is the best explanation of several salient facts about philosophical practice. First, philosophers tend to believe propositions which they find intuitive. Second, philosophers offer error theories for intuitions that conflict with their theories. Finally, philosophers are more confident in rejecting theories to the extent that they have several (intuitive) counter examples involving diverse cases. I argue that these facts are better explained by philosophers' using intuitions as evidence than by any plausible contrary explanations. I further argue that aspects of philosophical practice that my thesis may initially seem ill-suited to explain are in fact unsurprising whether or not my thesis is true.


Asserting the right to meaningful representation, challenging the epistemological and methodological expansion of global corporate capitalism and its impacts on Indigenous Peoples' territories and cultures, aligns with the implementation of global treaties and conventions that are part of key international laws regarding issues of climate change, biodiversity conservation, education, global health, human rights, and sustainable development. Indigenous Peoples have been consistently excluded from nation state visions of modernity and development, which continues to limit their full participation in global sustainable development initiatives and their meaningful representation therein. Increasing the visibility of this struggle is imperative for Indigenous Peoples, particularly around the strategic areas in which the implementation of global sustainable development treaties, policies, and goals continues to affect their rights. This article inquires whether Indigenous Peoples' emancipatory appropriation of media means from a transnational perspective that breaks their regional enclosure can contribute to decolonize the world. More specifically, it questions how a new Indigenous global media network would contribute to decolonize the relations between Indigenous Peoples and nation states. A wider mapping of Indigeneity that decolonizes sustainable development becomes critical in order to formally document the efforts of Indigenous Peoples to reconstruct and restore their epistemic and material relations. This article questions how an Indigenous global media network around new nexus research can benefit Indigenous Peoples, and make visible the incorporation of the recommendations and principles from international law emanated from the self-determined voices of Indigenous leaders, experts, and policy makers to decolonize global sustainable development goals.


Data on body weight and linear body measurements (LBMs) namely body height (BH), body length (BL), breast circumference (BC), thigh length (TL), bill length (BiL), wing length (WL) and shank length (SL) were taken from 120 ducks (i. e. 60 Muscovy and 60 Mallard ducks) at 4 and 8 weeks of age were analysed to obtain the phenotypic correlation between LBMs and body weight. The value of the pearson's linear correlation coefficient to determine the level of relationship between the body weight and linear body measurement. This ranged from 0.488 (SL) – 0.996 (BH) and (0.729 (SL) – 0.996 (Bil) in Muscovy and Mallard duck at week 4 respectively. While, at week 8, the value of the pearson's linear correlation coefficient ranges from 0.126 (Bil) – 0.960 (BL) and 0.735(BC) – 0.978 (BH) respectively. This positive and mostly significantly phenotypic relationship between the body weight and linear body measurements indicates that an improvement in one trait could leads to an improvement in the other. Correlation coefficients indicate the strength of a linear relation between traits and thus provide useful information about the traits involved for the purpose of breeding and improvement plan. This shows that favourable relationships exist among traits that have higher correlation coefficients, it further explains that such traits could be collectively included in the selection index to achieve positive phenotypic progress.


Graphics processing units (GPUs) can deliver considerable performance gains over general purpose processors. However, GPU performance improvement vary considerably across applications. Porting applications to GPUs by rewriting code with GPU-specific languages requires significant effort. In consequence, it is desirable to predict which applications would benefit most before porting to the GPU. This paper shows that machine learning techniques can build accurate predictive models for GPU acceleration. This study presents an approach which applies supervised learning algorithms to infer predictive models, based on dynamic profile data collected via instrumented runs on general purpose processors. For a set of 18 parallel benchmarks, the results show that a small set of easily-obtainable features can predict the magnitude of GPU speedups on two different high-end GPUs, with accuracies varying between 77% and 90%, depending on the prediction mechanism and scenario. For already-ported applications, similar models can predict the best device to run an application with an effective accuracy of 91%.


Empiricism has frequently been said to appeal to non-empirical principles to defend empirical knowledge, which is why it has been accused of falling into some form of self-refutation. With the advent of logical empiricism, this objection beca- me a questioning of the empiricist criterion of meaning, noting that since it is neither a logical nor an empirical proposition, it does not fulfill its own conditions of mea- ningfulness. This paper intends to show that responses to this criticism, consistent enough to resist the objection of self-refutation, have been developed whithin logical empiricism. In addition, the article claims that the assertion that the empiricist criterion of meaning is self-refuting is based on an inadequate understanding of the linguistic levels involved in its formulation, as well as on some unspecified assumptions regarding its status.


Today, the most frequently used signaling system for telecommunication is called Signaling System No. 7 (SS7). The growing usage of mobile telephones and mobile data communica-tion, and the development of new services mean that the risk of intrusion and exploitation of the SS7 signaling networks increases. The increasing problem with unauthorized access to sensitive information and the operators' growing demand for security is the origin of our work. This thesis presents a prototype design and implementation of a Security Gateway (SEG), which is a fundamental part of the TCAP user security (TCAPsec) concept. TCAPsec is a security concept for introducing security mechanisms to the signaling system. The proto-type includes three different protection modes that provide security services, ranging from almost no protection to full protection with the use of encryption algorithms. The thesis also contains an evaluation study of the delay penalties caused by the use of these security services. With regards to the restrictions on the prototype, the conclusion drawn from the evaluation results was that the protection mechanisms in the different protection modes did not inflict any significant time penalties. Instead, the results of the study indicate that the routing process of messages in the network is a more significant delaying part in the communication between different nodes. This result implies that the routing process takes longer time than the security services. The thesis also presents a number of discovered features that will require further investigation and development before the TCAPsec concept can be realized.


The creation of new knowledge is the primary goal of the academic research community, including researchers into interaction and networks in business markets. There are other stakeholders besides marketing practitioners who have a legitimate interest in the efforts of business academics. Nevertheless, many business-to-business researchers feel an affinity for the managerial community, within which many of them have either worked, or plied their trade as consultants, or both. Accordingly, they believe that managerial relevance is an important consideration in the research that they undertake. For a variety of reasons, they do not believe that interaction and networks research has made as much impact on management practice as they would like. Most obviously, academic researchers generally feel obliged to write interminable, abstruse articles in journals that managers never read (indeed have seldom ever heard of). How might we go about improving this state of affairs?


This paper describes a simple and economical way to improve the behaviour of a stall control wind turbine with fixed speed induction generator during faults. It proposes using the existing thyristor bridge and capacitors in combination with new resistors, to create a self-exciting system isolated from the grid during faults, controlling the terminal voltage and speed generator in order to reduce the reactive consumption and peak speed. This is possible as a result of the thyristor bridge and resistor acting as a variable load.

Dynamic simulations show that fault ride-through capability for symmetrical and asymmetrical faults of a stall wind turbine can be achieved by using this proposal. A comparison between this solution and the standard static compensator solution demonstrates that the proposed solution works better, mainly because of the absence of overspeed problems when the overspeed protection is set at around 1.04 p.u. (a typical level for these wind turbines). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Introduction to the series. Dedication. Editorial staff. List of contributors. 1. Remarks on the Chinese Mesozoic-Cenozoic Sedimentary Basins (X. Zhu). References. 2. Unstable Cratonic and Paleozoic Basins of China (H. Chen, D. Qin). Introduction. The basement of Paleozoic basins and their principal characteristics. Prototypes and distribution of Paleozoic basins. Conclusions. References. 3. Tectonic Features of the Junggar Basin and Their Relationship with Oil and Gas Distribution (X. Peng, G. Zhang). Introduction. Regional background, basement and the basin's general characteristics. Stages of the basin's formation and development. Delimitation of contemporary tectonic provinces. Structural evolution and distribution of hydrocarbons. References. 4. Tectonic Evolution of the Tarim Basin (Z. Tian et al.). Introduction. Phases of evolution. Evolution of the tectonic framework. Regional tectonic characteristics. Petroleum prospect. References. 5. Mechanism of Formation of the Qaidam Basin and its Control on Petroleum (S. Gu, H. Di). Introduction. The basement. The Paleozoic evolution. Formation and formation of the basin. Structural units and oil/gas distribution. Other mineral resources. References. 6. Tectonic Characteristics and Hydrocarbons of the Hexi Corridor (W. Xu et al.). Introduction. Regional stratigraphy and sedimentary environment. Characteristics of the regional tectonics. Stages of tectonic evolution. Hydrocarbon accumulation and their relation to faults. References. 7. Ordos Basin - A Typical Example of an Unstable Cratonic Interior Superimposed Basin (Z. Sun et al.). Introduction. Regional setting. Basement rock and its structure. The development history of the cover sediments and the superimposed characteristics of the basin. Geothermal history and economic mineral deposits. References. 8. Songliao Basin - An Intracratonic Continental Sedimentary Basin of Combination Type (L. Ma et al.). Introduction. The deep and shallow structures and stratigraphy of the basin. The sedimentary characteristics. The nature and evolution of the basin. The features of the geothermal field and the generation of hydrocarbons. The type and distribution of oil and gas pools. References. 9. The Bohai Bay Basin (J. Hu et al.). Introduction. Formation and evolution of the Bohai Bay Basin. Sedimentary characteristics of the Tertiary in the Bohai Bay Basin. Diagenetic epigenesis and evolution of organic matter. Petroleum geology and petroleum resources in the Bohai Bay Basin. References. 10. The North Jiangsu-South Yellow Sea Basin (Y. Zhang et al.). Introduction. The nature of the basement. Cratonic marginal subsidence during the Sinian-Early Paleozoic. Late Paleozoic-Early Mesozoic cratonic depression. Basement decoupling basin in the Jurassic-Cretaceous. Transformation from Tertiary downfault to downwarp. The prospects of oil and gas traps. References. 11. The Generation and Evolution of the Hehuai Basin (J. Han et al.). Introduction.


Genetic studies in familial lung fibrosis have demonstrated an association with surfactant protein C genes: two mutations have been found resulting in protein misfolding and causing type-II epithelial cell injury. Remarkably, different histological patterns were observed in the affected subjects, suggesting the influence of modifier genes and/or environmental factors. Surfactant protein C gene variations have not, however, been associated with sporadic cases, i.e. idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Susceptibility to IPF probably involves a combination of polymorphisms related to epithelial cell injury and abnormal wound healing. To date, the genetic associations with IPF that have been reported in different cohorts include the genes encoding tumour necrosis factor (TNF; −308 adenine), interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (+2018 thymidine) and association with severity and progression (interleukin-6/TNF receptor II and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGFB1; +869 cytosine)), but none of these associations have been replicated by others. Unlike in IPF, immunological inflammation seems to be more prominent in the pathogenesis of scleroderma lung fibrosis, being an autoimmune disease with specific autoantibodies, such as antitopoisomerase antibodies, in patients with diffuse lung disease, and anticentromere antibodies, in patients with pulmonary vascular disease. Antitopoisomerase antibody positivity is associated with the carriage of human leukocyte antigen DRB1*11 and DPB1*1301 alleles, suggesting the recognition of a specific amino-acid motif. Extended haplotype analysis also supports the conclusion that TNF may be the primary association with anticentromere positivity. Intriguingly, associations with TGFB1 and genes involved in extracellular matrix homeostasis have been reported in this disease. In conclusion, significant steps forward have been taken in the understanding of the genetic contribution to fibrosing lung diseases, but major challenges lay ahead. It is the present authors' opinion that only a combined approach studying large numbers of familial and sporadic cases, all clinically well phenotyped, using multiple distinct cohorts, and genotyped according to relevant gene ontologies will be successful. It will be necessary to be particularly vigilant with regard to phenotype; the absence of very strong reproducible associations may be because of the rigidity of phenotype definition, coupled with the possibility that idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis may still be a heterogeneous group of diseases, despite the more rigid definition set out by the European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society statement.


Y box-binding protein-1 (YB-1), a member of the DNA binding protein family, interacts with inverted CCAAT boxes (Y-boxes). Y-boxes are located on the promoter of numerous genes, such as DNA topoisomerase IIalpha (Topo IIalpha), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and multidrug resistance 1 (MDR1). In this study, we used immunohistochemical (IHC) staining to detect YB-1 expression in 59 lung cancer tissues and to evaluate whether YB-1 expression was associated with the expression of YB-1 target genes such as Topo IIalpha, PCNA and MDR1 in human lung carcinoma. Twenty-eight out of 59 cases (47.5%) were stained positive for YB-1 in the cytoplasm, while 30 out of 59 cases (50.8%) were positive for PCNA in the nuclei. Topo IIalpha-positive cells were detected in 16 out of 59 cases (27.1%). Eight out of 59 cases (13.6%) had greater than 5% P-gp positive cells expression. There was a significant correlation between the YB-1 and Topo IIalpha expression in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) (p=0.0242). YB-1 expression also correlated with PCNA expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (p=0.0001). Higher levels of YB-1 expression were associated with T3-4 and Stage III-IV tumors in adenocarcinomas (p=0.0072; p=0.0168). In contrast, no relationship was found between YB-1 expression and P-gp expression. Our study suggests that YB-1 expression correlates with Topo IIalpha and PCNA expression in lung cancer.


Seismically Kutch peninsula is very active. The distribution of seismicity in Peninsular Shield region from 1902 to 2001 show 12 earthquakes of M ≥ 6. The energy ratio from Kutch basin to Deccan trap is 20:1 and from trap to rest of the shield is 5:1. The last one hundred years seismicity data show Kutch basin is seismically more active than Deccan trap and the rest of the Peninsular Shield. The maximum magnitude of earthquake in the Kutch region is 7.7. The generations of large earthquakes in the region are difficult to explain, as plate boundary does not exist. In order to understand the physical processes that are taking place in the region to generate such large events the detailed analyses of geophysical and geological data have been examined in the light of development of rift, subsidence of basin, vertical tectonics and recent geophysical findings. In such regions, petrologic model can provide better explanation for release of fluid that generates large earthquakes, sprouting of sands, liquefaction, and large number of aftershocks activities and direction of stresses for aftershock sequences. The presence of magma in the Kutch upper mantle could be derived from various geological (subsidence of basin, development of rift faults) and geophysical observations (high heat flow over Cambay region, prominent positive Bouguer gravity anomalies and low shear velocity in the upper mantle). The inspection of seismological data shows all the medium size to large earthquake have occurred in shear zone of large gravity gradients or along the four major faults of the region. In view of geological and geophysical observations, petrologic model is proposed for generation of earthquakes in the region. The number of aftershocks and direction of stresses in the focal region of aftershocks would depend on the direction of movement of fluid incursion in the focal region after the occurrence of the main events. The recent Bhuj earthquake also shows more than 3000 aftershocks from Jan 29 to April 15, 2001. The expanding swarm activity in the focal region and the direction of stresses derived from first motion data of aftershocks for focal depths 2 to 8 km, 8 to 25 km, and 25 to 38 km supports the proposed model. Also, shear wave tomography studies in this region have revealed low shear wave velocity in the upper mantle of Cambay from shallow depth to 200 km depth showing high temperature zone. The analyses reveal the presence of conducting fluid in the focal zone, which is the main cause for generation of medium size to large earthquake in the region.


A 1.2V 600µW SC double-sampled pseudodifferential Sample&Hold circuit is realized in a standard 0.5µm CMOS technology without using on-chip voltage multiplier. With a 600m Vpp signal at 2MHz using a 40MHz sampling frequency, the S&H exhibits a THD better than -50dB and a CMR better than -40dB.


This paper describes a study incorporating sociopleasure elements in digital storybook. This paper aims at demonstrating the incorporation of the aspects of socio-pleasure as suggested by the THE Medium model into the digital storybook. First, the THE Medium model is adapted in determining the aspects of socio-pleasure. Having identified the aspects, a storybook was designed and developed. Then, users' reactions on the digital storybook were observed in their pre-school setting. It was found that the children were engaged with the digital storybook that incorporates the adapted aspects of socio-pleasure by the THE Medium model.


Hyper-Kamiokande is the next generation underground water Cherenkov detector that builds on the highly successful Super-Kamiokande experiment. The detector which has an 8.4~times larger effective volume than its predecessor will be located along the T2K neutrino beamline and utilize an upgraded J-PARC beam with 2.6~times beam power. Hyper-K's low energy threshold combined with the very large fiducial volume make the detector unique, that is expected to acquire an unprecedented exposure of 3.8~Mton$\cdot$year over a period of 20~years of operation. Hyper-Kamiokande combines an extremely diverse science program including nucleon decays, long-baseline neutrino oscillations, atmospheric neutrinos, and neutrinos from astrophysical origins. The scientific scope of this program is highly complementary to liquid-argon detectors for example in sensitivity to nucleon decay channels or supernova detection modes. Hyper-Kamiokande construction has started in early 2020 and the experiment is expected to start operations in 2027. The Hyper-Kamiokande collaboration is presently being formed amongst groups from 19 countries including the United States, whose community has a long history of making significant contributions to the neutrino physics program in Japan. US physicists have played leading roles in the Kamiokande, Super-Kamiokande, EGADS, K2K, and T2K programs.


We provide a new image retrieval model which integrates the spatial distributing information of colors and the shape features. The color features are represented by an amelioration of HSV color model: color sector. To describe the relative position and orientation of objects within the image, hue edges in the image, computed using Canny approach, are processed by Hough transform to generate the spatial histogram which is used as shape representation. To address matching of image, we define two global distance measures based on the accumulative distance and vector-based distance to compare the similarity of two images. Experimental results indicate that our approach provides higher retrieval rate than that of single feature (color), is a better tradeoff between high efficiency and reasonable precision.


The catalogue of this exhibition draws upon the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology's world-class collection of barkcloth, dating from the eighteenth century to the present day. The exhibition took place at the Ikon Gallery in Birmingham (1 May 2013 - 14/07/2013) and at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology (25 March 2014 - 19 April 2014).

Exceptional barkcloths, rarely displayed, will be featured including two works by women of the Omie community of Papua New Guinea, acquired in 2012 with the support of the Art Fund and other donors.

For millennia, Pacific Islanders have made cloth from the bark of trees. Often taking on ceremonial significance, its decoration is extraordinary, with patterns that are enjoyed for their abstraction as much as their symbolism. Today, the practice of barkcloth- making remains a vital aspect of many Pacific Island communities.

Barkcloth is made by soaking and beating the inner bark of specific trees, most commonly the Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera). In some places it takes the form of huge sheets featuring optically dynamic patterns, while elsewhere barkcloth features plants and animal life, sacred creatures and mythic narratives. Some cloths were wealth objects, spectacular fabrics many metres in size, which were presented by one clan to another on great ceremonial occasions. Cloth was often understood as a kind of skin, a powerful wrapping for the body which revealed its inner state and identity. Primarily created by women using inherited clan designs, the manufacture of barkcloth formed a major vehicle for both creative expression and social cohesion, maintaining and communicating the artists' deep connection to their ancestors and country.


Salmonellosis is a major public health problem around the world affecting both animals and humans. A
study was carried out to elucidate the prevalence of Salmonella spp. and antibiogram of the isolates in quails in
a commercial farm located in Kelantan, Malaysia using cloacal swabs and standard isolation techniques for
Salmonella species and the standard disk diffusion method for the antibiotic sensitivity tests. Ninety quails in
two groups of 45 each, aged 3 weeks and 2 months, were sampled using sterile cotton swabs and transport
media. The results showed that the prevalence of Salmonella spp. in the quails was 11.11% (CI= 6.19, 19.28)
and all the isolates were resistant to ampicillin. There was no significant difference (P>0.05) between the
prevalence of Salmonella spp. in birds aged 3 weeks compared with the birds aged 2 months using Chi square at
95% confidence level. The positive identification of Salmonella spp. in quails may have public health
implications due to the rising outbreak of Salmonella spp. associated food poisoning cases. The resistance of the
Salmonella spp. to ampicillin which is a common antibiotic in man and animals adds weight to the growing call
for the prudent use of antibiotics in human and animal populations around the globe. Farms and food handlers
should maintain strict hygiene to protect public health at all times.


Excited state degenerate four-wave mixing in a four-level saturable system is treated theoretically and experimentally. The results show that the external pump feild influences intensely the intensities of the PC signals.


For original paper see ibid., vol. 14, no. 4, p. 930-8 (1999). The authors discuss the original paper by I. Blokhintsev et al., "Field Experiences on the Measurement of Partial Discharges on Rotating Equipment". They welcome the opportunity to discuss the paper, since the original authors have spent considerable time and effort to compare their results with the results of a partial discharge (PD) measuring system the discussers helped to develop.


This paper presents a method to discriminate pixel differences according to their impact toward perceived visual quality. Noticeable local contrast changes are formulated firstly since contrast is the basic sensory feature in the human visual system (HVS) perception. The analysis aims at quantifying the actual impact of such changes (further divided into increases and decreases on edges) in different signal contexts. An associated full-reference distortion metric proposed next provides better match with the HVS viewing. Experiments have used two independent visual data sets and the related subjective viewing results, and demonstrated the performance improvement of the proposed metric over the relevant existing ones with various video/images and under diversified test conditions. The proposed metric is particularly effective to visual signal with blurring and luminance fluctuations as the major artifacts, and brings about the fundamental improvement when sharpened image edges are involved.


The controlled release of growth factors from porous, polymer scaffolds is being studied for potential use as tissue-engineered scaffolds. Biodegradable polymer microspheres were coated with a biocompatible polymer membrane to permit the incorporation of the microspheres into tissueengineered scaffolds. Surface studies with poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) [PLGA], and poly(vinyl alcohol) [PVA] were conducted. Polymer films were dip-coated onto glass slides and water contact angles were measured. The contact angles revealed an initially hydrophobic PLGA film, which became hydrophilic after PVA coating. After immersion in water, the PVA coating was removed and a hydrophobic PLGA film remained. Following optimization using these 2D contact angle studies, biodegradable PLGA microspheres were prepared, characterized, and coated with PVA. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to further characterize coated slides and microspheres. The release of the model protein bovine serum albumin from PVA-coated PLGA microspheres was studied over 8 days. The release of BSA from PVA-coated PLGA microspheres embedded in porous PLGA scaffolds over 24 days was also examined. Coating of the PLGA microspheres with PVA permitted their incorporation into tissue-engineered scaffolds and resulted in a controlled release of BSA.


Do culture and commerce conflict? The assumption that trade is incompatible with cultural diversity has disrupted economic liberalization, distorted world trade law, and caused lasting damage to Europe's film industry. Collateral injuries from cultural protectionism now threaten to engulf e-commerce governance. Yet, American appeals to fully liberalize audiovisual markets continue to fall on deaf ears. The real question is therefore not whether to protect culture, but how. South Korea shows there is a better way. Eschewing the top-down model of European patronage, South Korean policy-makers employed decentralized mechanisms to set in motion the remarkable flowering of audiovisual expression known as the "Korean Wave." By harnessing economies of scale developed through exports, Korea reveals the potential to realize diversity through trade. South Korea's experience is bolstered case studies from India, Hong Kong, and Nigeria, which further demonstrate that, by tapping into global markets, commercial success can drive cultural vitality. These audiovisual success stories, combined with the promise of digital technologies, argue strongly for a reconceptualization of cultural protection in a decentralized, trade-friendly guise. As part of such effort, this Article proposes an innovative "diversity quota" regime that would expand global markets for diverse filmmaking while remaining within the strictures of current WTO law.


To explore an association between values and risk behaviors among early adolescents, baseline data from 689 Bahamian youth (median age = 10) were collected from the Portrait Values Questionnaire (Schwartz et al., 2001) and The Bahamian Youth Health Risk Behavioral Inventory. Latent class analysis identified three classes of youth in differing patterns of risk behavior: (7.8%) high levels of drug and delinquency risk behaviors; (2.8%) high levels of sexual risk behavior; (89.4%) low risk takers. Results showed low risk takers included more females, while at least twice as many males comprised the two risk behavior classes. ANOVA found Benevolence, Conformity, Security, Tradition and Universalism values were associated with low risk takers, and logistic regressions for ordered categorical (ordinal) dependent variables showed both values and latent class predicted intentions for future risk behavior. Latent class analysis and values assessment are discussed as tools to guide adolescent risk-reduction interventions.


In the immunosuppression accompanying the lethal systemic graft-versus-host reaction (GVHR) directed against minor histocompatibility antigens in irradiated adult mice, we previously determined that non-T, non-B, L-leucine methyl ester (LME)-sensitive cells were implicated via two different mechanisms: one, which is interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma)-dependent and affects both T-cell proliferative responses and thymus-independent antibody production by CD5(+) B cells; and a second, which is IFN-gamma-independent and affects B-cell proliferative responses. Because IFN-gamma induces the production of nitric oxide (NO), a potent immunosuppressive molecule, we investigated the involvement of NO in the suppression mediated by the LME-sensitive cells. Inducible NO synthase (iNOS) mRNA, iNOS protein, and the stable end products of iNOS pathway, L-citrulline and nitrite, were detected early in GVHR in LME-sensitive spleen cells taken ex vivo and could be amplified in vitro by T and B mitogens. Inhibition of NO production with arginine analogs (aminoguanidine, N(G)-monomethyl-L-arginine [LMMA]), like anti-IFN-gamma antibodies, reversed suppression of both T-cell responses to concanavalin A and CD5(+) B-cell responses, but not of B-cell response to lipopolysaccharides (LPS). The GVHR-associated, IFN-gamma-dependent immunosuppression of T-cell proliferation and of antibody synthesis by CD5(+) B cells is the consequence of NO production by LME-sensitive cells. Immunohistochemical analyses indicate that these cells belong to the macrophage lineage.


This book carefully and realistically introduces and evaluates American law by combining elements of the theoretical with elements of the practical. It examines the overall nature of modern American justice both civil and criminal focusing the reader's attention on fundamental principals and drawing comparisons between the U.S. and foreign legal systems. In describing the processes, participants and institutions of the American judicial system, coverage emphasizes the objectives of each figure at each stage, the strategies that are employed, and the social benefits and drawbacks that accrue from their efforts. "


In this paper detailed studies on modification of structural and magnetic properties of Ni-doped hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ) thin films are reported. We used 200 keV Ni beam for doping of Ni. For homogeneous dispersion and activation of doped Ni ions, 120 MeV Ni swift heavy ions (SHI) irradiation was used. This unique combination of Ni doping by ion beam and dispersing and activating by Ni SHI irradiation of HfO 2 films is reported for the first time. The origin of ferromagnetism in the Ni-doped HfO 2 thin films is investigated. We demonstrate the cluster free nature of our film using cross-sectional high resolution transmission microscopy and magnetization versus temperature data. Rutherford backscattering data are used to establish that Ni ions are implanted in the HfO 2 matrix at the predicted location. Dispersion of implanted Ni and lattice defects such as oxygen vacancies are attributed to be the main source of ferromagnetism. The observed magnetic moment is too large to be attributed to any secondary phase/magnetic clusters.