Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC) with progressively increased transmissibility between humans is a threat to global public health. Omicron variant also evades immunity from natural infection or vaccines1. It is unclear whether its exceptional transmissibility is due to immune evasion or inherent virological properties.We compared the replication competence and cellular tropism of the wild type (WT) virus, D614G, Alpha, Beta, Delta and Omicron variants in ex vivo explant cultures of human bronchus and lung. Dependence on TMPRSS2 for infection was also evaluated. We show that Omicron replicated faster than all other SARS-CoV-2 in the bronchus but less efficiently in the lung parenchyma. All VOCs had similar cellular tropism as the WT. Delta was more dependent on serine protease than other VOCs tested.Our findings demonstrate that Omicron is inherently able to replicate faster than other variants known to date and this likely contributes to its inherently higher transmissibility, irrespective of its ability to evade antibody immunity. The lower replication competence of Omicron in human lung may be compatible with reduced severity but the determinants of severe disease are multifactorial. These findings provide important biological clues to the transmissibility and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.


We address the issue of localization of bond energy in a molecule by stopping intramolecular vibrational relaxation (IVR). We show through model calculations that appropriate frequency sweeps permit selective locking over a well‐defined range of resonance frequencies, with little excitation outside that range. We also propose a modified version of an adiabatic half passage experiment that will perform photon locking without complications from inhomogeneities or partial excitation of other transitions for a bright state coupled to a finite number of dark states.


ADAMTS-1 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin-like motifs) is a multifunctional protease that is expressed in periovulatory follicles. Herein we show that induction of ADAMTS-1 message in vivo and transcription of the ADAMTS-1 promoter in cultured granulosa cells are dependent on separable but coordinate actions of LH and the progesterone receptor (PR). To analyze the molecular mechanisms by which LH and PR regulate this gene, truncations and site-specific mutants of ADAMTS-1 promoter-luciferase reporter constructs (ADAMTS-1-Luc) were generated and transfected into rat granulosa cell cultures. Three regions of the promoter were found to be important for basal activity, two of which were guanine cytosine-rich binding sites for specificity proteins Sp1/Sp3 and the third bound a nuclear factor 1-like factor. Despite the absence of a consensus PR DNA response element in the proximal ADAMTS-1 promoter, cotransfection of a PRA (or PRB) expression vector stimulated ADAMTS-1 promoter activity, a response that was reduced by the PR antagonist ZK98299. Forskolin plus phorbol myristate acetate also increased promoter activity and, when added to cells cotransfected with PRA, ADAMTS-1 promoter activity increased further. Activation of the ADAMTS-1 promoter by PRA involves functional CAAT enhancer binding protein beta, nuclear factor 1-like factor, and three Sp1/Sp3 binding sites as demonstrated by transfection of mutated promoter constructs. In summary, LH and PRA/B exert distinct but coordinate effects on transactivation of the ADAMTS-1 gene in granulosa cells in vivo and in vitro with PR acting as an inducible coregulator of the ADAMTS-1 gene.


Theworld of publishing,whether it ismedical journals or the lay press, is a rapidly evolvingone, andweat JAMAPediatrics and The JAMA Network are dedicated to being at the forefront of this evolution. This month's issue represents the first major redesign of the print journal inmore than 2 decades. Starting with the table of contents nowappearing on the cover, the entire journal format has been updated to improve the presentation and readability both in print and on the web. Each issuewill leadwithahighlightspage, followedbyopinionpieces includingviewpointsandeditorials.Original investigationswill continue to make up the bulk of the journal. All of the journals in The JAMA Network share the same design, making it easier for you tonavigate and findwhat youwant across these journals. As the oldest pediatric journal in theworld (established in 1911), our vision is that JAMA Pediatrics will be the mostrespected source of information for investigators, health care providers, and policymakers seeking the highest-quality evidence toguidedecisionmaking.Our commitment toour readers is clearly stated in our mission statement: JAMA Pediatrics seeks toprovidestate-of-the-art information to individuals and organizations working to advance the health and wellbeing of infants, children, and adolescents. The journal also provides a forum for discussion of themost important issues and policies affecting child and adolescent health and health care. JAMAPediatricswill use themost current technology to make timely information available to readers wherever and whenever it is needed. Providing this information in as accessible and readable a form as possible will occur through both our print and digital publications. As part of The JAMA Network, we have a redesigned website that through semantic tagging allows readers to search content not only within JAMA Pediatrics but also across the 10 journals ofThe JAMANetwork.Thenewappprovides users with the content of the entire JAMA Network on virtually any device or platform. We will also use social media to foster conversationsabout topics important to thehealth and health care of children both here in theUnited States and abroad. As pediatricians,we revel in observing and are fascinated by the growth and development of the children and adolescents for whom we care. With its name change, more attractive style,newtechnologies, andcloser relationshipwithother journals inTheJAMANetwork, JAMAPediatrics too isanevolving, dynamic entity that generates a similar sense of excitement.


An important aspect of motor function is our ability to rapidly generate goal-directed corrections for disturbances to the limb or behavioural goal. Primary motor cortex (M1) is a key region involved in feedback processing, yet we know little about how different sources of feedback are processed by M1. We examined feedback-related activity in M1 to compare how different sources (visual versus proprioceptive) and types of information (limb versus goal) are represented. We found sensory feedback had a broad influence on M1 activity with ∼73% of neurons responding to at least one of the feedback sources. Information was also organized such that limb and goal feedback targeted the same neurons and evoked similar responses at the single-neuron and population levels indicating a strong convergence of feedback sources in M1.


In computer-aided production of fixed dental restorations, the process chain always starts with digitizing, independent of the type of further (data) processing, the material used, and the kind of restoration to be produced. The quality of the digitized data, followed by the influences of further data processing and the production parameters, decisively influence the fitting accuracy of the dental restoration to be fabricated. The accuracy with which individually measured 3D data sets in the form of point clouds can be matched for further processing in one common system of coordinates was the object of the present study. Casts of the maxilla and mandible were digitized in several partial measurements comprising two to three teeth in each case, using an optical three-coordinate measuring system. The individual segments were sequentially aligned to surfaces that were created on the basis of partial point clouds. The mean deviation between surfaces and point clouds was between 1.90 microns and 18.24 microns. The accuracy of the alignment was determined by the RMS (root mean square) error, and was on average 14.2 microns (SD 7 microns) for the maxilla and 17.2 microns (SD 9.4 microns) for the mandible. Combining a larger number of smaller segments did not improve the result, since the errors of the individual registrations are summed in sequential matching. In this study, the errors arising in matching are not negligible and can possibly negatively influence the quality (fitting accuracy) of the restoration produced on the basis of the matched data records.


Ciprofloxacin has been a major advance in the treatment of chronic respiratory infections. Three patients with cystic fibrosis and colonized by 5 nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae strains exhibiting low- (MIC, 2 microg/mL) and high-level ciprofloxacin resistance (MICs, 16-32 microg/mL) are described. The patients had received several courses of ciprofloxacin. These MICs represent a decrease in ciprofloxacin susceptibility of 200-3200 times. Molecular epidemiologic methods demonstrated that 2 patients were chronically colonized by their own ciprofloxacin-resistant strains for > or = 15-17 months. Three strains showed simultaneous resistance to ampicillin and chloramphenicol by enzyme inactivation, and 2 had ampicillin resistance without beta-lactamase activity. These data suggest that the emergence and long-term persistence of ciprofloxacin-resistant H. influenzae in patients with cystic fibrosis can be a consequence of antibiotic treatment.


Objective To create a dynamic surveillance system for implying a real time surveillance of the change of causative pathogens and antimicrobial resistance in neonatal bacterial infections,find out their current patterns and the transition,forecast their short-term trends,build up a foundation for tracking and forecasting in a long-term and grasp the epidemiological features of the patterns and the transition,and provide the information for empirical administration of antimicrobial agents.Methods A total of 2 strains of bacteria were isolated from hospitalized neonates and detected for antimicrobial susceptibility.All data were built up 12 tables of a database with full functions by structured query language(SQL).The surveillance system was programmed by using PowerScript and embedding Statistical Package for the Social Science(SPSS)by object linking and embedding(OLE).Time series data were produced by our system and analyzed by embedded SPSS.Results Between 2000 to 2004,Klebsiella pneumoniae(20.7%),E coli(18.0%)and coagulase-negative staphylococci(CNS)(16.2%)were predominant causative pathogens in neonatal infections in our unit.The proportion of opportunistic pathogens was increasing in total causative pathogens annually.The patterns of causative pathogens were scatteringly distributed and had less and less difference between nosocomial infections and infections acquired outside of hospital(P0.05).The majority of antimicrobial agents had deterioration of susceptibility,especially cephalosporins.Extended spectrum β-lactamase(ESBL)(70.9%)and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus(MRS)(58.0%)were the prominent problem of antimicrobial resistance both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria.There were no significant changes of total sensitive rates in most antimicrobial agents(P0.05);a lot of changes were slight decreasing,but some antimicrobial agents had increasing susceptibility in last two years.In time series,greater part of antimicrobial agents could be estimated and forecasted well with ordinary precision(MAPE50).Conclusion This system can successfully grasp the dynamic changes of causative pathogens and antimicrobial susceptibility,find out the changes in composition ratio of causative pathogens,find uncommon pathogens caused infections and emerging antimicrobial resistant strains,discover new variation of antimicrobial susceptibility,estimate and forecast future trends of antimicrobial sensitive rates well.


This paper examines the initial development of Black Police Associations in England and Wales, giving special attention to the first association-the Metropolitan Police Black Police Association. It is argued that a background of change from an individualistic to a collective understanding of race relations within constabularies can be identified in key public documents. This change has had important implications for police understandings of the problems faced by ethnic-minority police staff. A process of change from ethnic minority officers as individuals to membership of an ethnic network and, subsequently, an ethnic association will be analysed. The emergence of Black Police Associations represents a new articulation of race within constabularies and an organizational form of relevance to both the profile and influence of ethnic minority police staff, as well as the managerialism of New Labour, implemented in constabularies by chief officers.


The Limadou collaboration includes all Italian scientists working on the project CSES (China Seismo-Electromagnetic Satellite), a constellation of satellites equipped with the most advanced technologies for correlating ionosphere perturbations with the occurrence of seismic events [2]. For the launch of CSES-02, scheduled for mid-2022, the collaboration is realizing the high-energy particle detector [1], aimed at detecting electrons and protons trapped in Earth's magnetosphere, with energies 5 MeV–100 MeV and 30 MeV–300 MeV respectively. This payload consists of a particle tracker, a trigger system and a calorimeter, which work in time-coincidence to accurately identify particles and measure their energy and trajectory. The tracker is based on monolithic active pixel sensors ALPIDE [4], an innovative platform with superior performances in the field of pixel detectors, developed for the upgrade of the ALICE experiment [5] at the LHC, at CERN. The challenge in the construction of the tracker has been to adapt the ALPIDE technology to the space environment and to the specifications of the space register. Lightness and stiffness, essential features for structures in a tracker module, needed to balance with the need for withstanding structural and vibrational stress in the extended range of temperature occurring in the launch phase. Proper material choice with high thermal conductivity for the heat dissipation, innovative design of thermal paths and structural test results guided the project of mechanics. The modular particle tracker consists of 5 turrets, each one made of 3 stacked staves, with 150 pixel sensors in total. For readout and control purposes, ALPIDE sensors are wire-bonded to flexible printed circuits, which enhances the fragility of the system and makes handling critical. Sensor supports in carbon fiber reinforced plastic and an external aluminum frame preserve the mechanical integrity and provide the essential thermal bridges for heat dissipation. We provide results from the intense campaign of structural, thermal and vibrational qualification tests that have been performed in compliance with the procedures required by the space register. It regards structure, module and turret elements. The envisaged solution is a novelty in the field of space applications and paves the way for important developments for particle and astroparticle physics experiments.


This study sets out to explain why Biblical Hebrew distinguishes three syntactically different temporal constructions which apparently have, from a sentence semantic point of view, the same meaning. For these purposes it utilises, firstly, the concept (current) reference time as developed by English grammarians and, secondly, aspects of the results of a major study of BH word order by Walter Gross to determine the difference between topicalised, sentence final and temporal constructions separated by a waw from the rest of the clause (they are supposed to be part of). It then establishes the following: (1) The difference between topicalised and sentence final temporal constituents is most probably due to a difference in the information structure of the sentences in which they are used. (2) The difference between, on the one hand, topicalised and sentence final temporal constituents and, on the other hand, temporal constructions separated by a waw from the rest of the clause, is of a different nature. The latter are used exclusively to specify or update the temporal vantage point of an event, i.e. its (current) reference time. This is in contrast to topicalised and sentence final temporal constituents that specify the temporal profile of an event or state of affairs. It may be the time the event took place, its duration or frequency.


Cognitive processes are mediated by communication among multiple brain areas that individually exhibit oscillatory neuro-electromagnetic signals emerging from a cascade of complex physiological processes. Several studies have reported that aging changes the intrinsic properties of neural oscillations, both in resting state and in the context of cognitive tasks. For example, the amplitude of resting and motor-related beta band oscillations (16-25 Hz) is typically found to be higher in the older population compared to the younger population. Similarly, a substantial number of reports have highlighted that peak alpha frequency (8-12 Hz) is lowered in neurodegenerative disorders and in healthy aging. How such observations emerge from underlying neuronal signal processing mechanisms remains elusive. Furthermore, how do the spatiotemporal organization of these rhythms support the current neurobiological theories of aging is poorly understood. Here we addressed these issues using the resting state magnetoencephalogram (MEG) data from a large cross-sectional cohort consisting of 650 human participants with age range 18-90 covering the entire adult lifespan. Concurring with previous research in smaller cohorts, we found a consistent increase in the power of beta oscillations and a decrease in the peak alpha frequency as a function of age. Subsequently, we found significant posterior to anterior shifts in the spectral topographies of both alpha and beta bands. To reconcile these observations with a comprehensive theory at the level of network level signal processing, we computed the whole-brain global coherence that captures the degree of communication among nodes of a large-scale network as a function of aging. The global coherence among MEG signals increased with age in slower time-scales i.e. delta (1-3 Hz) and theta (3-7 Hz) frequencies. Simultaneously, global coherence decreased for faster timescales i.e. alpha (8-12 Hz) and beta (16-25 Hz) frequencies. Further, using the measure of metastability that quantifies the divergence of a network from a stable synchronous state, we characterized the dispersion of information processing in different frequency bands. Putting together, our study reveals how neurobiological theories of aging such as posterior to anterior shifts of sensory and cognitive processing, dynamic workspace hypothesis can all be reconciled using resting-state MEG data. We could highlight how the temporal structure of MEG signals is representative of a more comprehensive understanding of large-scale network mechanisms that govern lifespan dynamics.


A technique is presented for the fabrication of an esthetic, provisional fixed partial denture that compensates for a pontic-site ridge defect. This provisional restoration enables both the dentist and the patient to evaluate whether this prosthetic approach will adequately camouflage the pontic-site defect or whether surgical correction of the pontic site should also be considered.


Music has been demonstrated to induce strong emotional responses in listeners, but listeners' capacity to regulate this response has not yet been experimentally examined. In this study, 32 participants (Mage = 20.22 years, SD = 2.45; 72% female) listened to short music excerpts (four "happy" and four "sad" pieces) with instructions to "feel" or to "regulate" (specifically, "reduce" sadness or "strengthen" happiness) the emotional response to the music. Self-reported "sadness" and "happiness" ratings and physiological responses (skin conductance and heart rate) were recorded at baseline and continuously across all conditions. Under the "feel" instruction, both "happy" and "sad" music resulted in an increase in self-reported emotion ratings, and a decline in skin conductance and heart rate. These responses were effectively regulated for both "happy" and "sad" music across all measures except heart rate response. These findings partially support the prediction that music would induce coherent changes across self-reported and physiological measures during both emotion induction and emotion regulation.


A novel coronavirus disease known as Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread quickly throughout the world, and it was declared a pandemic in March 2022. Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a diverse group of genetic disorders characterized by recurrent bacterial and fungal infections, resulting in granulomas due to the inability of phagocytes to destroy microbes. Even though it is thought that impaired neutrophil activity is a protective mechanism against severe COVID-19-induced cytokine storms and hyper-inflammatory responses, patients with CGD have normal immunity to most viruses. Here, we present two CGD patients who were hospitalized due to severe COVID-19 infections, which suggests that COVID-19 might have a different pathogenesis than other viruses.


Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a complex trait influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Geographic isolation and natural selection present fundamental forces to diversify genetic backgrounds during human evolution and migration. In this study, we attempted to assess whether human geographic isolation affects the genetic predisposition of CAD. Methods: We first included 21 genetic association studies of the methyl enetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene polymorphism C677T and CAD from 16 geographic regions consisting of 9,008 participants and performed a meta-ana lysis based on the distributions of these studies. Results: It was found that the positive signals for the association of C677T with CAD were mainly enriched in the regions of northern Afri ca (pooled OR=1.73, 95% CI=1.45–2.06, Z=3.17, P<0.0001) and India (pooled OR=1.61, 95% CI=1.30– 2.00, Z=4.38, P<0.0001). To validate the potential geographic effects on the genetic polymorphism of CAD, we then carried out two additional metaanalyses involving 30 and 13 studies on genetic associations of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/deletion (I/D) and APOA5 gene T1131C polymorphisms for CAD consisting of 22,190 and 12,322 participants, respectively. We found that the associations of T1131C with CAD were concentrated in East Asia (pooled OR=1.35, 95% CI=1.22–1.49, Z=6.00, P<10–5), whereas the associations of I/D polymorphism with CAD were clustering in Europe and America (pooled OR=1.20, 95% Kratak sadr`aj


To face High Velocity Impacts, the aerospace industry has a constant need for innovative materials that can be used as debris shielding components. Bulk Metallic Glasses (BMG) revealed interesting mechanical properties in case of static and quasi-static loading conditions: high elasticity, high toughness, low density and high fracture threshold. The department of Mechanics and Glass of the Institute of Physics Rennes conducted laser shock experiments (ELFIE facility) to study compositional effects on the behavior of a ternary ZrCuAl BMG under high strain rate, up-to the fragmentation process. Ejecta velocities were measured by Photonic Doppler Velocimetry and debris morphologies were observed by shadowgraphy. Scanning Electron Microscopy observations revealed the influence of the composition on fracture surfaces morphologies. A dependency of spalling process has been correlated to Poisson's ratio (i.e. zirconium content).To face High Velocity Impacts, the aerospace industry has a constant need for innovative materials that can be used as debris shielding components. Bulk Metallic Glasses (BMG) revealed interesting mechanical properties in case of static and quasi-static loading conditions: high elasticity, high toughness, low density and high fracture threshold. The department of Mechanics and Glass of the Institute of Physics Rennes conducted laser shock experiments (ELFIE facility) to study compositional effects on the behavior of a ternary ZrCuAl BMG under high strain rate, up-to the fragmentation process. Ejecta velocities were measured by Photonic Doppler Velocimetry and debris morphologies were observed by shadowgraphy. Scanning Electron Microscopy observations revealed the influence of the composition on fracture surfaces morphologies. A dependency of spalling process has been correlated to Poisson's ratio (i.e. zirconium content).


The development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a complex process, and HCC arises from the accumulation of multiple genetic alterations leading to changes in the genomic landscape. Current advances in genomic technologies have revolutionized the search for genetic alterations in cancer genomes. Recent studies in which all coding exons in HCC were sequenced have shed new light on the genomic landscape of this malignant disease. Catalogues of these somatic mutations and systematic analysis of catalogued mutations will lead us to uncover candidate HCC driver genes, although further functional validation is needed to determine whether these genes play a causal role in the development of HCC. This review provides an overview of previously known oncogenes and new oncogene candidates in HCC that were uncovered from recent exome or whole-genome sequencing studies. This knowledge provides direction for future personalized treatment approaches for patients with HCC.


Abstract From an economic point of view, protected areas do not bring in high profits, in comparison to other possible ways of land usage. National parks and nature reserves are costly in their creation, as well as in their subsequent upkeep and management. In developing countries, their operation can be the source of many political and economic problems. Usually, local communities neighboring protected areas perceive the existence of a protected zone negatively, although they are often able to avail themselves of park resources in various ways. Besides being given the opportunity to rationally make use of certain park resources, community members may be employed as park attendants, which is a practice that is widespread. A part of the profits obtained from the developing tourist industry may be allocated towards local development programs, e.g. the building of a new hospital or school. Some national parks, while lacking the adequate infrastructure necessary for tourism, grapple with a lack of funds. The lack of earning opportunities in connection with the development of tourism results in the local community's over-exploitation of park resources. This often manifests itself in an increased incidence of poaching in the protected area.


In the operation and design planning for the power system, the most significant and beneficial approach for the investigation of problems relating to power systems can be done by means of load flow analysis or design power flow. In light of a predefined structured power system and transmission system, the load flow analysis provides steady state characteristic data for voltage phase angles and its magnitude, the flow of reactive power in the transmission lines, losses in the system, generation and consumption of reactive power in the bus bar load. In this paper, an endeavor has been made to explore power flow in the 132kV grid by utilizing ETAP. The data is collected from Kohat 132KV substation over a period of one year, specifically in summer and winter peak loads.


Background
Oxidative stress is an imbalance between free radical's production and the body's ability to counteract or detoxify their harmful effects through neutralization by antioxidants, oxidative stress is thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy. One of the key enzymatic antioxidants is glutathione peroxidase (GPx), which plays an important protective function in diabetes complications, by reducing the rising state of oxidative stress and removing toxicity from peroxides and converting them into a non-toxic substance. The objective of this research was to evaluate the rule of glutathione peroxidase in regulate oxidants/antioxidants levels diabetic patients with nephropathy.

Methods
In a case-control study, we assessed serum GPx activity (Se-Dependent, non-selenium dependent and total GPx), total oxidant, lipid peroxidation, total antioxidant, and catalase in healthy control subjects (group 1), in diabetic patients without diabetic nephropathy (group 2) and diabetic patients with nephropathy (group 3).

Results
GPx activity was significantly lower in T2D patients with and without nephropathy compared to healthy subject's control. Total oxidants and lipids peroxidation have a negative correlation with the GPx and other antioxidants.

Conclusion
Decreased GPx activity indicate a relationship between GPx activity and diabetic nephropathy.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate how adolescents with marijuana problems who received a research-based treatment (five sessions of motivational enhancement therapy plus cognitive behavioral therapy [MET/CBT5]) in an experimental setting would have fared had they received exemplary community-based outpatient treatment.

METHOD
Twelve-month outcomes representing six domains (substance use problems, substance use frequency, emotional problems, illegal activities, recovery, and institutionalization) were assessed for youth who received MET/CBT5 in the Cannabis Youth Treatment study and youth who received outpatient treatment from one of three community-based programs selected for evidence of efficacy. Groups were matched on pretreatment characteristics using a propensity score weighting strategy.

RESULTS
Youth who received MET/CBT5 exhibited greater reductions in substance use frequency, substance use problems, and illegal behaviors 12 months after treatment entry than had they entered the community based outpatient programs. Results showed no evidence that youth who received MET/CBT5 would have fared better with respect to emotional problems, the likelihood of being institutionalized, or achieving a "recovery" status at 12 months had they received community-based treatments.

CONCLUSIONS
The community-based treatments used in this study have not been assessed relative to "treatment as usual" but were selected as "exemplary" models of adolescent treatment. There is no evidence in this study that these exemplary programs yielded superior 12-month outcomes for the treatment of adolescents with marijuana problems; youth receiving MET/CBT5 experienced greater reductions in substance use and illegal activities. Thus, MET/CBT5 may be a promising treatment for community-based providers to adopt to treat these clients.


Objectives The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of l-[methyl-(11)C]methionine (11C-MET) PET/CT and MRI (with the inclusion of advanced imaging techniques, namely, MR spectroscopy and MR perfusion) in the assessment of tumor recurrence in high-grade gliomas. Patients and Methods Twenty-nine patients with high-grade gliomas who underwent surgical resection, external beam radiation therapy, and standard regimens of chemotherapy were subjected to MRI (conventional, MR perfusion, and MR spectroscopy) and 11C-MET PET/CT scans. A definitive diagnosis was made based on histopathology and/or long-term clinical and radiological follow-up. Several indices were obtained for lesion characterization, namely, SUVmean, SUVmax, and mean lesion-to-normal tissue on PET/CT, as well as relative cerebral blood volume and choline-to-creatine ratio on MRI. Results Histological examination revealed viable tumor cells in 19 cases, whereas the remaining 10 were deemed to be negative based on histology (3 cases) or long-term follow-up (7 cases). All the quantitative indices mentioned previously tended to be higher in patients with tumor recurrence/residual. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 11C-MET PET/CT in identifying tumor recurrence/residual were 94.7%, 80%, and 89.6%, respectively, whereas that of MRI were 84.2%, 90%, and 86.2%, respectively. Conclusions Both 11C-MET PET/CT and MRI (with the inclusion of advanced MRI techniques) demonstrated a high diagnostic performance in the identification of tumor residual/recurrence in high-grade gliomas posttherapy. Although 11C-MET PET/CT seemed to be more sensitive, whereas advanced MRI seemed more specific, there was no statistically significant difference in the diagnostic performance of either modality in the present study. Further studies with a larger group of patients are warranted.


The more signal path ways close to each other in digital circuits, the greater the coupling effects. The coupling effects can led to an increasing number of signal integrity related faults such as crosstalk faults. In this paper, the glitch faults of crosstalk effects are studied. First of all, the test vector generation using signal paths of circuits is given. Secondly, a new test method for crosstalk faults in digital circuits is presented, which is based on the genetic algorithm with niche. The test method can detect the maximal crosstalk effects, i.e. the test vectors to be produced is to switch a set of aggressors that maximizes the switching of total coupling effects. The test method is also used to produce the test vectors of multiple crosstalk faults. The experimental results show that the method proposed in this paper can get the test vectors of the multiple crosstalk faults if the faults are testable.


This paper describes the implementation of a new dispersion relation and energy-dissipation equation obtained from a viscous two-layer model schematization in the state-of-the-art wave forecasting model SWAN to simulate wave damping in coastal areas by fluid mud deposits. This new dispersion relation is derived for a nonviscous, nonhydrostatic upper layer and a viscous, hydrostatic lower layer, covering most conditions encountered in nature. An algorithm is developed for a robust numerical solution of this new implicit dispersion relation through proper starting values in the iteration procedure. The implementation is tested against a series of analytical solutions and three schematic test cases. Next, four dispersion relations published in the literature are evaluated and compared with the new dispersion relation. The solution of the dispersion relations forms a multidimensional space. Comparison of the various model solutions through one-dimensional graphs can therefore become quite misleading, as shown in the discussion of a two-dimensional representation of the solution space, explaining for instance the variation in ambient conditions at which maximum wave damping is to be expected. The various models have been developed for a variety of conditions, such as shallow and deep water and shallow and thick mud layers; the various models agree well in their domain of applicability, but they show significant deviations when used outside their domain. Because the ambient and mud conditions may vary considerable in space and time at a particular site, the use of the new model is advocated because it covers most water depths and fluid mud thicknesses encountered in nature. The strength of the new SWAN-mud model lies in its large-scale applicability, assessing the two-dimensional evolution of wave fields in coastal areas. Therefore, the new implementation is evaluated with respect to the behavior of waves on a sloping seabed, representing real-world coasts. In all cases, the new SWAN-mud model behaves satisfactorily; a critical remaining issue, though, is the assessment of the relevant fluid mud paramet


Assessing the Barack Obama administration at mid-term is no easy task. The first step must be to delineate Obama's own legalistic thinking and its effects on both his domestic agenda and his attempt to present a different and possibly radical new American face to the world.


Abstract:Mao Dun (the pen name of Shen Dehong, 1896–1981), a prolific translator, novelist and literary critic, was one of the most influential figures in modern Chinese literature. Mao Dun was also Walter Scott's first Chinese critic who, in 1924, systematically presented Scott's works to the Chinese through his work, 'A Critical Biography of Walter Scott'. He was therefore regarded as the first Scott expert in China. In his masterpiece and best-known novel Midnight (Ziye, 1933), a comprehensive account of life in Shanghai in the uneventful period from May to July 1930, Mao Dun not only embedded Ivanhoe into the narrative of the story but also emulated Scott's approach in illustrating enormous changes in society within a short period of time. This mode of writing is not to be found in classical Chinese novels, and this technique is most likely borrowed from Scott and other European writers. It is therefore this paper's intention to carry out research on Scott's influence on the fictional writing of Mao Dun, as well as to explore the impact of Scott's novels on the rise of modern Chinese fiction in the early decades of the twentieth century.


A method is proposed for the extraction of Lanthanum(III) and Neodymium(III) using Hexaacetato Calix(6)arene. The optimum extraction conditions are evaluated from a critical study of the effect of pH, concentration of extractant, shaking time, concentration of various mineral acids used as stripping agents, different types of polar and non polar diluents and effect of diverse ions. Solvent extraction of La(III) and Nd(III) was carried out using Hexaacetato Calix(6)arene in Xylene. Lanthanum(III) and Neodymium(III) are quantitatively extracted with 1 x 10 -4 M of the ligand in Xylene at pH 8 and pH 6 when equilibrated for 10 and 12 minutes respectively. 0.1M NaNO 3 has to be added for the quantitative extraction of La(III).  Lanthanum and Neodymium in the organic phase were stripped with 1 M and 5 M Nitric acid and determined spectrophotometrically by the Arsenazo(III) method at 655 nm and Xylenol Orange method at 530 nm respectively. The metal loading capacity of the reagents is also studied. The extraction of La(III) and Nd(III) was carried out in the presence of various ions to ascertain the tolerance limit of individual ions. The method is extended for the determination of La(III) and Nd(III) in real samples.


We performed comparative DFT (B3LYP/Lanl2dz) studies of the structural and electronic properties of bare and NH3-, SCH3-, and OPH3-capped Cd33Se33 and Cd33Te33 quantum dots (QDs). The capping groups were chosen as simple models for capping ligands used broadly in experiments. We explored the effects of the capping ligands, coordinated to the QDs via N, S, and O atoms, on the stabilization/destabilization of the QD HOMO and LUMO energies, and on the HOMO/LUMO energy related quantities: vertical ionization potentials and electron affinities. The effects of solvents commonly used in experimental studies of capped QDs (water, toluene, and acetonitrile) on QD structures and electronic properties were investigated as well. Analysis of the bare and capped QD frontier orbital composition was performed using the projected density of states approach. We also studied Cd33Se33 and Cd33Te33 QDs capped with N(CH3)3 and SCH2CO2H ligands.


How the results obtained by computer simulation of molecular systems can be validated is considered. The overall quality of the simulated properties of a molecular system will depend on (i) the quality of the theory or model, (ii) the accuracy of the interatomic interaction function or force field, (iii) the degree of sampling, statistics and convergence reached in the simulation, (iv) the quality of the simulation software, and (v) how competently the simulation software is used. These five validation issues are discussed and illustrated with examples. Guidelines for different members of the scientific community are formulated which are aimed at enabling and improving the validation of simulation results in the literature.


We present measurements from the Radio and Plasma Wave (RPW) instrument suite onboard the Solar Orbiter mission during the first Venus encounter. RPW consists of several units and is capable of measuring both the electric and magnetic field fluctuations with three electric antennas and a search-coil magnetometer: The Low Frequency Receiver (LFR) cover the range from DC up to 10kHz when measuring the electric and magnetic waveform and spectra; the Thermal Noise and High Frequency Receiver (TNR-HFR) determines the electric power spectra and magnetic power spectra from 4kHz-20MHz, and 4kHz to 500kHz, respectively, to determine properties of the electron population; the Time Domain Sampler (TDS) measures and digitizes onboard the electric and magnetic field waveforms from 100 Hz to 250 kHz. The BIAS subunit measures DC and LF electric fields as well as the spacecraft potential, which gives a high cadence measure of the local plasma density when calibrated to the low-cadence tracking of the plasma peak from the TNR. Solar Orbiter approached Venus from the induced magnetotail and had its closest approach at an altitude of 7500 km over the north pole of Venus on 27 Dec 2020. The RPW instruments observed a tail region that extended several 10’s of Venus radii downstream of the planet. The induced magnetosphere was characterized to be a highly dynamic environment as Solar Orbiter traversed the downstream tail and magnetosheath before it crossed the Bow Shock outbound at ~12:40 UT. Polarized whistler waves, high frequency electrostatic waves, narrow-banded emissions, possible electron double layers were observed. The fine structure of the bow shock could also be investigated in detail. Solar Orbiter could hence enhance the knowledge of the structure of the solar wind-Venus interaction.


Based primarily on the renowned and best-selling Burchfield's "The New Fowler's Modern English Usage 3/e", this pocket edition gives clear, concise and authoritative guidance on grammar, usage, syntax and style for the English language. With a reduction in the number of entries from the parent work, Robert Allen has been able to take the key elements and definitive judgements, and rewrite entries to present the arguments and recommendations in a more accessible form to allow quicker consultation. There are about 150 completely new topics, including American English, new words, and gender-neutrality, and with numerous panel and tabular entries, data is presented with greater clarity and in an easily digestible form. A total of over 4200 entries provide comprehensive and authoritative advice on correct English and cover the differing views held on contentious issues. Subjects covered include political correctness, computer terminology, and foreign words and phrases.


Difficulties arise when using non-invasive methods to measure changes in regional left ventricular function. With the increasing recognition of the entity of hibernating myocardium, and the known asymmetric effects of coronary artery disease, this is an important problem, as it prevents detailed investigation of the effects of revascularization upon ventricular function. We investigated the use of tomographic radionuclide ventriculography in assessing such changes. Twenty consecutive patients (18 males, 2 females, mean age 60 years), undergoing elective coronary artery bypass surgery, were identified and imaged prior to and after surgery. The mean global left ventricular ejection fraction was 42 and 45% pre- and post-surgery, respectively. Following revascularization, it was improved in 9 patients, unchanged in 3 and deteriorated in 8. By comparison with pooled normal data from 25 subjects, 10 patients were noted to have overall resting phase values within normal limits. After surgery, an improvement was seen in 5 patients, no significant change in 11 and a deterioration in 4. With respect to regional ejection fraction, 24 of 80 segments improved, 25 remained unchanged and 31 deteriorated. For regional phase analysis, 26 improved, 45 remained unchanged and 9 deteriorated. confirmed that important regional changes in left ventricular function occur following revascularization, even without a change in global ejection fraction.


The socio-political changes expected from the introduction of Panchayati raj system have not fulfilled and remained largely unfulfilled for long. More importantly the objectives like social equality, gender equity and changes at the grassroots level leadership envisaged as the main objectives of panchayati raj are not achieved in a meaningful manner. There is a need to change the system of planning at all India level. A gradual shift from sectorial planning to area planning is necessary in the context of increasing people's participation in the planning process. The panchayats must be given adequate powers to use resources and undertake integrated local development. This paper is intended to emphasize the rural development role of panchayats and measures to improve their functioning.


This paper presents the results of circuit simulation and design of a car-based antenna integrated RF filter structure for 3G wideband code-division multiple access (W-CDMA) mobile phone communication system. Printed-on-thin film microstrip filter layout has been optimized to miniaturize the filter dimensions and to provide seamless integration with the feed line of a printed-on-glass antenna element. Side-coupled bandpass filter structure has been optimized to meet strict passband/stopband specification as well as to minimize the total loss of the filter circuit. The dependence of the filter transmission characteristics on the material properties of the thin film has also been numerically investigated.


This work presents a feasible solution to the problem of book losses prediction from financial and general data in companies. The specific problem tackled in this work corresponds to a real dataset of Spanish companies. A Mutual Information-based criterion has been applied in order to reduce the initial set of variables, and a Support Vector Machine classifier has been designed to perform the prediction. The results show that the proposed approach obtains an important reduction of the number of variables needed to perform the prediction, improving the generalization capabilities of the model. The accuracy rates were above the 84% in the test set, much better than those obtained by other soft-computing algorithms (such as Genetic Programming, Self-Organizing Maps or Artificial Neural Networks) working with the same dataset and presented in previous works. The proposed approach shows to be promising and could be determinant in providing the experts with the right tools for the selection of the relevant factors and for the prediction in this difficult problem.


The association between ectopic pregnancy and the use of the IUD was analyzed using 62,321 cases of pregnant women who came to the Drum Tower Hospital of Medical College, Nanjing University, China, in the 7 years between January 1984 an December 1990. Among these pregnant women, 2040 (3.3%) become pregnant with the IUD in situ, 504 (0.81%) had ectopic pregnancies, including 107 IUD users. The incidence of ectopic pregnancy showed a significant increase over the years. When studying ectopic pregnancies in IUD users and non-users, it was found that the incidence of ectopic pregnancy was increasing for both groups. However, the ratio between intra-uterine pregnancy and ectopic pregnancy for IUD users increased 7.6 times from 1984-1990. In 1990, the increase in ectopic pregnancy among IUD users was significantly higher than among non-users. An ultra-sound examination of 107 cases of ectopic pregnancy in IUD users suggested an association between ectopic pregnancy and the disposition if the IUD in the uterine cavity A comparison of the incidence of ectopic pregnancy by duration of IUD use showed that the occurrence of ectopic pregnancy decreases with the increase in duration of IUD use. Pathologic examination showed no increased inflammatory changes in the uterine cavity among the cases of ectopic pregnancy in IUD users, which did not confirm the theory of association between inflammation of the uterine cavity with ectopic pregnancy. Further investigation is needed to explore the causes of ectopic pregnancy in IUD users.


Extensive literature on the efficacy and
safety of various contraceptive methods already
exists, while the effects of these methods on vaginal
flora is less certain and are yet to be substantiated.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of
the contraceptive method on the prevalence of
vaginal infection by using the Papanicolaou staining
method. The study group consisted of 759
consecutive women attending the outpatient
gynecology clinic of a tertiary center for various
reasons. Four groups of contraceptive methods were
defined: Coitus interruptus, condom, combined oral
contraceptive, and intrauterine device. Coitus
interruptus group was used as comparison group.
There were no significant differences among the
groups regarding Candidiasis and Trichomonas
Vaginalis rates. Bacterial vaginosis rate was similar
in coitus interruptus and intrauterine device groups;
while it was significantly reduced in condom and
combined oral contraceptive groups. Intrauterine
device use was not associated with bacterial
vaginosis. The results demonstrate the necessity of
frequent clinical attendance and laboratory tests for
women using contraceptive methods.


A NH3 gas sensor based on a ZnO nanorod array is fabricated by hydrothermal decomposition on a Au electrode. The as-grown ZnO nanorods have uniform diameter distribution and good crystal structure, shown by scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and photoluminescence emission characterizations. The gas sensing results show that the ZnO nanorod-based device responds well to ammonia gas at room temperature (sensitivity S is about 8).


PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
This study aimed to evaluate a method for the treatment of upper tibial metaphyseal fractures using an external epiphysodiaphyseal fixation with the double-frame Hoffmann device.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
The study included 48 patients (37 men and 11 women) aged 16 to 82 years. The tibial fracture was simple in 15 cases, included a metaphyseal comminution, partial in 3 cases and total in 30. In 13 patients, there was also a simple articular fracture. The fracture was opened in 24 cases (type I in 10, type II in 7 and type III in 7 cases).

METHODS
The gap and displacement evaluation between the fragments after reduction was made on postsurgical roentgenograms; its was considered as complete when all fragments were in contact with each other, without frontal or anteroposterior translation above 5 mm. Healing was defined as a complete bone continuity providing a painless load bearing. The patients were clinically and radiologically reexamined with a mean follow-up of 15.45 months (5 to 62 months).

RESULTS
After healing, there were 2 cases of angular deformities in patients whose autonomy was otherwise already reduced. Twenty-three patients had a minor pin tract infection. There was 3 cases of secondary osteitis after a type-III open fractures and 3 other deep septic complications without functional consequences. Forty-one fractures healed without bone graft in a mean time of 18 +/- 7.6 weeks. Healing did not seem to statistically depend on the opening nor on the type of fracture, but rather on the association with a peroneal fracture and the loss of cohesion between the fragments. The duration of professional invalidity evaluated in 20 cases, varied between 4 to 21 months (means: 11.3 months), and none of the patients had to modify his activity because of the tibial fracture. At follow-up, no patient complained of invalidating pain. Thirty-two patients recovered a satisfactory knee joint mobility and among the 16 others, in only 3 no particular reason was found to explain the deficit.

DISCUSSION
While good anatomic and functional results lead us to keep the principle of external fixation, it seems however necessary to modify the modalities of the treatment in order to improve healing conditions, especially by improving the cohesion of the fragments through secondary minimal internal fixation. The use of dynamic axial fixation devices could therefore bring a theoretical advantage, but it must be proven that they produce in this site a primary stabilization which is a good as that obtained with Hoffmann's device.


Radiocarbon dates from the base of Serpent Mound in Ohio demonstrate that it was built 2,100–2,300 years ago during the Adena period but was subsequently rebuilt or repaired about 900 years ago during the Fort Ancient period. We describe the basis for supporting the chronology of this building sequence, why it is the best and most complete explanation from the data at hand, and discuss the errors and misconceptions that critics of it have put forth. Our interest is in establishing a chronology of mound construction in order to address questions about cultural continuity/discontinuity, appropriation, and reuse of cultural monuments and religious/political symbols. We also plead that researchers jointly collect new data from Serpent Mound to end the back-and-forth questioning of chronological context and research competence.


Fractures of coronary guidewires during percutaneous coronary intervention within a coronary vessel lumen are a rare but serious complication. There have been several cases reported in the literature, some managed with surgical intervention, others with medical therapy. We present two prospective cases from our center. Both cases were managed successfully with medical therapy.


The uniquely parsimonious approach to treatment of end-stage renal disease patients in the U.K. was initially developed under the imprimatur of the nation's medical elite and sanctioned by the central government. Public value for public money and an equitable balance of scarce resources among many social and medical claims still guide the National Health Service. But these clinically dominated allocative decisions are imperfect, often counter-productive, and, ultimately, political. There is a marked dissonance between compassionate and bureaucratic themes.


In this paper, we present for the first time an asymmetric source/drain extension (SDE) transistor structure which can achieve high I/sub DSAT/ at gate dimensions below 50 nm. We demonstrate that this structure alleviates the severe I/sub DSAT/ degradation reported in the literature for devices when gate to source/drain overlap dimensions are reduced to under 20 nm/side (Thomson et al, 1998). Sub-15 nm gate to source/drain overlap is mandatory for supporting gate dimensions below 50 nm (Ghani et al, 2000). Moreover, fabrication of this structure employs a standard process flow in which SDE regions are formed by ion implantation and a subsequent drive-in anneal. Fundamental principles of device operation of the asymmetric SDE transistor are presented followed by a description of the process flow and an in-depth analysis of electrical characteristics and associated trade-offs.


Zebrafish, Danio rerio belonging to the family Cyprinidae is one of the most important native ornamental model species used in fisheries research globally. The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of sex ratio on the spawning of zebrafish and to observe the ovarian maturity in the laboratory condition. This experiment was conducted for 12 weeks in the glass aquaria (25×16×26 cm3 in size) and the zebrafish were reared in five different sex ratio treatments like -T1 (1m:1f), T2 (1m:2f), T3 (1m:3f), T4 (2m:1f) and T5 (3m:1f) and the fertilized eggs were collected daily from the aquaria. The results showed that mean number of eggs was found to be highest at T3 (821±67.11) and the average egg lay day interval was 1.9 days which significantly (p<0.05) differ from other treatments. These research findings will provide a guideline to small scale fish farmers, entrepreneurs and hatchery owners to develop the spawning of zebrafish in the laboratory settings with a little investment. It will also provide opportunities to construct zebrafish hatchery and produce commercially zebrafish fry in a large extent.
Progressive Agriculture 32 (1): 78-83, 2021


INTRODUCTION
Food intake during binge eating episodes has been found to be associated with symptoms of depression and anxiety in individuals with eating disorders.

OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the association between caloric intake during binge eating episodes (BEE) and psychopathology in individuals with binge eating spectrum disorders (BSD).

METHODS
One-hundred and fourteen outpatients diagnosed with bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder were sequentially assessed. MINI PLUS was used to assess psychiatric diagnoses. Validated self-report instruments were used to assess general and eating-related psychopathology. The assessment of caloric consumption during BEE was performed through Dietpro Clinical Program. Data analysis was performed with independent Student's t test, effect size (Cohen's d) and Pearson's correlation.

RESULTS
Participants with BSD comorbid with a depressive disorder consumed significantly more calories during BEE than those without depression. Furthermore, participants with BSD and higher levels of impulsivity had a greater caloric intake during the episode. Specifically, regarding BN, participants with greater disease severity consumed more calories during the episode than those with less severity.

CONCLUSIONS
Overall, depression and high impulsivity were associated with a higher caloric intake during BEE in individuals with BSD. For those with BN, the disease severity was associated with greater caloric consumption during the episode. Our results support the relevance of early identification of psychiatric comorbidities and the implementation of strategies to control mood and impulsivity aiming at a better prognosis in the treatment of BSD.


Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor has always had an enthusiastic following, but scholarship on it has been limited and scholars fairly restrained in response to it. This essay examines questions about Mayhew's sample set (the working-class or the lumpenproleteriat? the poor or the marginal?), the veracity of his interviews, his relations with his subjects, and the publication history of his text. While he has been read as a proto-sociologist, this essay, following Christopher Herbert, suggests that it is more fruitful to view Mayhew's project as an early-ethnographic effort. The review of Mayhew criticism concludes with a brief reading of Mayhew's presentation of the street-folk involved in reclaiming wastes – a project that has clear affinities with Mayhew's own work.


Background:The transaxillary approach plays a useful role for breast augmentation due to scar placement in a less visible position. However, the future impact of the procedure on the lymphatic drainage patterns and sentinel lymph node (SLN) detection remains controversial. To date, no information is available regarding the feasibility of SLN identification in patients with previous transaxillary breast augmentation (TBA). Methods:Twenty-six patients underwent primary TBA. Mean follow-up was 8.3 months. All patients were submitted to lymphoscintigraphy (LSG), with a dose of 0.1 mCi 99m-technetium-labeled dextran 1 week before (preop-LSG) and 10 days (Po10 days-LSG) after TBA. Results:Preop-LSG was successful in all patients. Mean number of SLN detected was 2 per patient (range, 1 to 4) in the right axilla and 2.2 (range, 1 to 5) in the left. In Po10 days-LSG, SLN detection was successful in 92.3%. Mean number of SLN detected was 2.3 per patient (range, 0 to 7) in the right axilla and 1.8 (range, 0 to 6) on the left. Two patients (7.6%) failed to reveal the accumulation of radioactivity in Po10 days-LSG. Comparing bilaterally, in the number of SLN detected (P = 0.838) and the SLN uptake (P = 0.067) between Preop-LSG and Po10 days-LSG, no significant differences were observed. No major complication was noted. Conclusion:The initial data illustrate that SLN detection in the setting of prior TBA is feasible in a great part of patients. Additional long-term studies are necessary to investigate the accuracy of SLN biopsy in subgroups of breast cancer patients with previous breast implants.


A method to calculate the electron Landau damping of toroidal Alfven eigenmodes (TAE) is presented. Owing to the presence of a small current produced by thermal electrons near the trapped - passing boundary, a jump in the electrostatic potential near the surface occurs. An analytic expression for this jump is derived in the low-, large-aspect-ratio limit, and is suitable for incorporation into either numerical eigenvalue codes or analytic models. In the limit of small magnetic shear, the calculation is performed analytically, giving a simple local expression for the damping.


OBJECTIVE
Introduction: Somatic illness, objectively and subjectively, can become a difficult life situation for a person. The adolescent's experience of illness is determined by the specifics of a particular age period. To develop an effective rehabilitation program, it is necessary to study the personal characteristics of the adolescent and his social environment, which may be resourceful. The aim: To conduct a theoretical analysis of publications about psychological resources coping with somatic illness in adolescents.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Materials and methods: The analysis of scientific publications on this topic.

RESULTS
Review and conclusions: In the process of overcoming the illness, the adolescent accumulates his internal and external resources. External resources are mostly described as support from the family. Personal resources are described by a wide range of personal qualities. It is necessary to develop a system of psychological resources for coping with somatic illness in adolescents.


Information Technology (IT) enables an organisation to gain competitive advantage by exploiting new opportunities and capabilities offered by evolving technologies. Therefore, it is required to holistically align IT strategy with organisational strategy, and Enterprise Architecture (EA) is considered as a means to achieve such alignment. However, EA adoption is impacted by many organizational barriers and in particular organisational culture factors. Knowledge Management (KM) is a candidate to address these organisational culture issues. Therefore, the purpose of this study, was to understand the barriers to EA adoption, as well as the KM interventions likely to increase the success of EA initiatives. The study was conducted in the South African motor vehicle and asset finance industry and the lack of understanding the purpose of EA, as well as employees not actively participating in the development of EA, were identified as major barriers. The KM interventions identified to be effective in overcoming the barriers pointed to the promotion of knowledge sharing between employees and the EA team, and the increased involvement of EA stakeholders and users in EA development. By considering the research findings, organisations may apply KM, in overcoming barriers that prevent the successful implementation of EA initiatives.


The overarching goal of this study is to facilitate Cameroon's strategic objective of ensuring that the country has a well-educated human resources base to support its quest to emerge as a strong middle-income economy by 2035. This study is intended to support Cameroon in preparing a national strategy for skills development, related policies and institutions to boost competitiveness and productivity, and job creation. The study also notes that many factors other than skills can limit productivity and job creation, including weak governance, bureaucracy, infrastructure, and taxation policies that directly affect the business environment. The study focuses on skills development for the informal and formal labor markets. The study reviews the education and training system and its potential to build a skilled workforce through the accumulation approach. This report also presents a comprehensive diagnostic of skills development policies and institutions in Cameroon. It analyzes the various mechanisms for skills development and their alignment with emerging sector demand. The study bridges the knowledge gap about the skills mismatch in Cameroon, and addresses the question of how education and training can make valuable contributions to developing skills, spurring growth, increasing competitiveness, and helping Cameroon evolve into higher-value products and services. The study also complements the detailed analysis by the national institute of statistics on employment, the role of the informal sector, and labor characteristics, including skills levels, based on the second enterprise surveys data set.


Globally resources of petro-fuels are diminishing at a rapid rate. Efforts are underway to develop sources of bio-fuels. Out of the known sources of bio-fuels, Jatropha is one of the most promising option. The purpose of this study was to evaluate primarily the regional and global experiences to assess the potential of Jatropha farming in Pakistan and to conduct a comparative economic analysis of alternate feasible options e.g. production of oilseeds, which are also being imported in large quantities. Temporal analysis (1950-09) for edible oil consumption, production and imports is made. Projections for edible oil are worked out up to 2030. As there have been large variations in yield of Jatropha reported by various studies conducted in India and other countries, therefore most reliable data have been selected for analysis to assess the prospects in Pakistan. Comparative economic analysis is made in terms of oil contents, number of crops per year, yield and gross returns of oilseed crops and Jatropha. Analysis shows that increase in production of edible oil over the time is negligible against the large increase in requirement resulted in higher production gap being filled through imports. Projections made for edible oils illustrated that production gap is going to be wider, which is currently 1.86 million tonnes (mt) and projected to be 3.4 mt by 2030. Jatropha seed production analysis of water-yield functions revealed that yield varies from 1.1 t ha-1 in drought or dry spells to 12.75 t ha-1 with full irrigation in favorable environments. Benefit-cost analysis shows that break-even point can be achieved in fourth year of plantation of Jatropha. The projected consumption in Pakistan for petro-fuel for 2025 is 35.1 mt, which is almost double of the current consumption. Thus, the target projections for replacement of petro-fuel with bio-diesel will be 3.51 mt for which 3.5 mha of land is required, as Jatropha has to be grown in marginal areas with marginal yields. Comparative economic analysis shows that for sunflower and canola all conditions are favorable, as per frequency of crops, price and returns as oilseed get returns of 166% higher than Jatropha. Oil contents of sunflower and canola are higher than Jatropha. Analysis concludes that it is more feasible to grow oilseeds because in trade-off between food and fuel, food should win. Before launching commercial production of Jatropha in Pakistan key issues need to be addressed including maintaining the goal of food security, water scarcity, cost-effectivity, and feasibility of Jatropha in comparison with oilseeds, pulses, feed crops and fuel-wood plants.


Rapid direct plant regeneration of Andrographis paniculata was achieved from leaf and stem explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with 1.5 to 3.0 mg/l 6-benzyladenine (BA), 50 mg/l adenine sulfate (Ads) and 3% (m/v) sucrose. Inclusion of 1.0 mg/l 1-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) in the culture medium along with BA + Ads promoted a higher rate of shoot bud regeneration. Maximum mean number of shoot bud per explant (28.6) was achieved on the MS medium supplemented with 3.0 mg/l BA, 50 mg/l Ads and 1.0 mg/l NAA after six weeks of culture. The percent of regeneration varied depending on the culture medium. The elongated shoots were rooted within 9 to 11 days on ½ strength MS medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/l indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) or 1-naphthaleneacetic (NAA) acid with 2% sucrose. Maximum percentage of rooting (76.24%) was obtained on medium having 0.5 mg/l IBA and 2% sucrose. Basal region of the micro-shoots became callusing when transferred to higher concentrations of either IBA or NAA. The rooted plantlets were survived in the greenhouse. The in vitro raised plantlets were grown normally under soil condition. This result will facilitate the conservation and propagation of the important medicinal plant. Keywords : In vitro , shoot bud regeneration, growth regulators, medicinal plants. African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(39), pp. 5738-5742


The validation of physical models of fire spread requires comparing simulated results and experimental observation. Fire tests conducted at laboratory scale are appropriate to measure the finest physical mechanisms that cannot be recorded at field scale. However, particular attention must be paid concerning the influence of the experimental configuration on the fire and the way to take them into account for the simulation. Indeed, one must be sure that the main effects due to the experimental device and design are well reproduced by the models before to investigate the validation of such model by comparison with thermodynamics quantities measured. In this paper a methodology is proposed to be able to test a physical model against experiments conducted in a Large Scale Heat Release calorimeter. The hood effects as well as the ignition are investigated with WFDS, a physical model of wildland fire.


Background
For several years, there has been broad consensus that nipple-sparing mastectomy is a safe surgical treatment for breast cancer. However, the technique is associated with a relatively high risk of local recurrence (LR) behind the nipple-areola complex (NAC). It is for this reason that some years ago we introduced intraoperative radiotherapy with electrons (ELIOT) targeted specifically to the NAC to reduce the probability of recurrence there. However, in some cases we preferred to avoid ELIOT when the NAC appears to have a poor blood supply to ensuring the best chance of NAC survival.

Methods
From July 2003 to April 2010 at our institute, 30 patients received nipple-sparing mastectomy but neither ELIOT nor external radiotherapy, as the surgeon considered the irradiation would markedly compromise the chances of NAC survival, because of sub-optimal vascularization.

Results
After a median follow-up of 5 years there were no LRs with minor post-operative complications.

Conclusions
This preliminary case series indicates that the presented technique can be a safe procedure in breast cancer surgery, but requires greater number of cases and a longer follow-up to confirm the oncological safety.


In most European countries, the energy industry continues to undergo dramatic changes. Customer relationship management concepts and their central focus - customer retention - are playing an increasingly significant role in the marketing considerations of energy supply companies. However, little is known about the reasons why customers remain loyal to a particular energy supplier or why they switch suppliers. The purpose of this study was to identify customers' switching motives, to investigate the relationship between customer satisfaction and switching intentions as well as to identify switching segments. A total of 462 customers of a German energy supplier were surveyed regarding their perceptions and future intentions in relation to their energy provider. Results using regression analysis show that customer satisfaction had a significant effect on switching intentions. Cluster analysis identified three distinct switching clusters; dissatisfied customers, relative satisfied customers seeking change, and dissatisfied customers seeking change. Results of this study are discussed in light of its theoretical as well as practical implications.


We report a low noise continuous-wave (CW) single-frequency 1.5-μm laser source obtained by a singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO) based on periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN). The SRO was pumped by a CW single-frequency Nd:YVO4 laser at 1.06 μm. The 1.02 W of CW single-frequency signal laser at 1.5 μm was obtained at pump power of 6 W. At the output power of around 0.75 W, the power stability was better than ±1.5% and no mode-hopping was observed in 30 min and frequency stability was better than 8.5 MHz in 1 min. The signal wavelength could be tuned from 1.57 to 1.59 μm by varying the PPLN temperature. The 1.5-μm laser exhibits low noise characteristics, the intensity noise of the laser reaches the shot noise limit (SNL) at an analysis frequency of 4 MHz and the phase noise is less than 1 dB above the SNL at analysis frequencies above 10 MHz.


There has been a shift in the public debate in Germany: following years of structural reform, aspects of redistribution of wealth and equality of income have become more important. However, this focus on social justice ignores the facts about the development of incomes in Germany. It also underestimates the negative effects of redistribution on incentives for economic activity. Instead of engaging in debates about redistribution of wealth, we should be reducing the pressures, particularly on the middle classes and on top performers. A policy for growth is essential. German economic policy should not be deflected from its course.


Abstract: At this time there is a tendency in the community for a moral crisis and behavior change which is considered to collapse of humanism values in the community itself. The word "forbidden" listed on billboards or appeals in public places at this time is no longer a reference guide and appeal for "not to do". Eventhough the word "forbidden" is very clear in its intent and purpose, and written in capital letters, but the people still tend to ignore, so the writing of appeals tend to be sarcasm, threats, which are likely to create skeptical and apathetic people. For example, a statement of appeal in a place that is not laystall "forbidden to throw garbage here" because many people throw garbage not in a right place, the appeal seems unable to prevent the community from not throwing garbage in the prohibited place. It means, the sentence of the prohibition is no longer able and does not give a conscious effect not to throw of garbage there. So that, many sentences that tend to be rude, sarcasm, threats, etc. are found. Likewise in the statement on cigarette packs, billboards, advertisements, that "smoking can cause heart disease, hypertension, infertility", but the appeal was also unable to reduce the number of active smokers. And at this time the sentence changed more strikingly, namely "Smoking, Killing You". The text changes indicate a decline in humanism values and a moral crisis in the community in the urban area.


This study examines the acquisition of non-pleonastic English constructions by first-language (L1) Saudi Arabic speakers in second language (L2) English comprising two types of pleonasm: acronym pleonasms and semantics pleonasms. It is known that Arabic speakers tend to use redundant expressions in their native language to emphasize their ideas or clarify foreign terms. This study focuses on whether advanced Saudi Arabic speakers can reset their L1 parameters in the final state of English non-pleonastic construction acquisition. The acceptability judgment task was devised to elicit participants' judgments on these two types of pleonasms. Two groups joined the study: advanced Saudi Arabic speakers as the experiment group (n=40) and native English speakers as the control group (n=32). The experiment's results suggested that the advanced Saudi Arabic speakers failed to reset the L1 parameters in their judgments on acronym pleonasms. However, the findings showed the Saudi Arabic speakers' performance resembled that of the native English speakers with respect to semantics pleonasms. This study reveals that Saudi native speakers transfer their L1 properties in their L2 acquisition and fail to access UG to restructure their grammar because they lack extensive exposure to the L2 input of these constructions. The study supports the full transfer hypothesis in the acquisition of L2 constructions. In conclusion, this study provides valuable recommendations to the educational system in Saudi Arabia for implementing these constructions in curricula to enhance L2 input.


The objective of this paper is to prioritize entrepreneurial activities in higher education institutions to inculcate enterprise development pursuit among university graduates. Various phases of enterprise development process are determined along with prominent activities of entrepreneurial universities through literature review. Problem formulation is done by structuring goal, objectives and alternatives into a hierarchical model in order to prioritize factors with the help of Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP). Experts of academic entrepreneurship are approached for pairwise comparison of factors on the preference scale of nine levels with the help of software tool Expert Choice 11. After recording judgments, preferences of all experts are combined in order to get overall priorities of objectives and alternatives. Results show that Internal Motivation has highest and Business Growth and Sustainability have lowest priority along with priorities of all other objectives of enterprise formation process falling between both. Moreover, University Incubation Center is prioritized among alternatives in order to achieve objectives. Sensitivity analysis of results is carried out with the help of Expert Choice in which weight of a single objective is varied to observe effect on hierarchical model. Research presents a complete picture to academicians and policy makers to determine role of universities for entrepreneurship development in country. It will also help government officials to allocate resources in a prioritized way in order to achieve specific objectives.


BACKGROUND
In recent years, infrared drying has gained popularity as an alternative drying method for a va- riety of agricultural products. The use of infrared radiation technology in drying agricultural products has several advantages. These may include decreased drying time, high energy efficiency, high-quality finished products and uniform temperature in the product. With intermittent infrared and convection heating of a thick porous material, the drying time can be reduced compared to convection alone, while keeping good food quality and high energy efficiency.

METHODS
Response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to optimize the drying con- ditions of mooseer under infrared-convective drying. Experiments were performed at air temperatures of  40, 55 and 70°C, infrared powers of 500, 1000 and 1500 W, air velocities of 0.5, 1.5 and 2.5 m/s and slice thicknesses of 2, 4, and 6 mm. In this study, effective moisture diffusivity (Deff), shrinkage, color changes and specific energy consumption (SEC) were investigated. The central composite design (CCD) was selected for the design and optimization of the process.

RESULTS
Deff was obtained between 1.4×10 and 3.57×10    m /s. With increasing air temperature and slice –10                                  –9       2 thickness, Deff also increased. The level of shrinkage rose as slice thickness increased. The highest and lowest values of color changes were calculated at air temperatures of 70°C (52.3%) and 40°C (5.65%), respectively. Increasing air velocity led to an increase in SEC.

CONCLUSIONS
Optimum conditions for mooseer drying were achieved at air temperature of 70°C, infrared power of 867.46, air velocity of 0.59 m/s and slice thickness of 2 mm. At this point, Deff, shrinkage, color changes and SEC was obtained as 1.32×10–9 m2/s, 29.58%, 17.62% and 4.64 MJ/kg, respectively. The desir- ability value of 0.689 was achieved for the drying process.  .


BACKGROUND
Lombardy was the epicenter in Italy of the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic. To face the contagion growth, from March 8 to May 8 2020, a regional law re-designed the hub-and-spoke system for time-dependent diseases to better allocate resources for COVID-19 patients.

METHODS
We report the reorganization of the major hospital in Lombardy during COVID-19 pandemic, including the rearrangement of its ICU beds to face COVID-19 pandemic and fulfill its role as extended hub for time-dependent diseases while preserving transplant activity. To highlight the impact of the emergently planned hub-and-spoke system, all patients admitted to a COVID-19-free ICU hub for trauma, neurosurgical emergencies and stroke during the two-month period were retrospectively collected and compared to 2019 cohort. Regional data on organ procurement was retrieved. Observed-to-expected (OE) in-ICU mortality ratios were computed to test the impact of the pandemic on patients affected by time-dependent diseases.

RESULTS
Dynamic changes in ICU resource allocation occurred according to local COVID-19 epidemiology/trends of patients referred for time-dependent diseases. The absolute increase of admissions for trauma, neurosurgical emergencies and stroke was roughly two-fold. Patients referred to the hub were older and characterized by more severe conditions. An increase in crude mortality was observed, though OE ratios for in-ICU mortality were not statistically different when comparing 2020 vs. 2019. An increase in local organ procurement was observed, limiting the debacle of regional transplant activity.

CONCLUSIONS
We described the effects of a regional emergently planned hub-and-spoke system for time-dependent diseases settled in the epicenter of COVID-19 pandemic in Italy.


The article analyses the selection of profitability indicators for the evaluation of corporate financial performance. Both theory and practice, address a variety of profitability indicators, therefore, it is essential to understand the possibilities of using the information they provide, as well as to be able to identify potential reasons of indicator value deviations, and to assess the conditions causing the analysis performed based on these indicators to provide incomplete or unreliable information. The aim of the study is to analyse the main profitability indicators, their potential disadvantages, and possible issues in the analysis and interpretation of these indicators. Methods of logical and comparative analysis of the scientific literature, synthesis and generalisation, statistical data analysis and interpretation were used in this article. The results of the analysis show that there is no universal profitability indicator, that would cover all areas of company performance, because profitability indicators' reliability, as well as objectivity of comparison to other entities, are influenced by national accounting standards, different prime cost calculation methods, long-term assets depreciation methods, reserve assessment, and other methods.


This paper describes an equipment for continuous measurement and identification of gamma radioactivity in aerosols developed by the Nuclear Engineering Research Group (NERG) at the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC) and Raditel Serveis i Subministraments Tecnològics, Ltd. A spectrometric analysis code has been specially designed for it. Spectrum analysis identifies and determines activity concentration of aerosol emitters captured by a fiberglass paper filter. This new equipment is currently operating in three radioactivity monitoring stations of the Environmental Radiological Surveillance Network of the Generalitat of Catalunya (local Catalan government): two near Ascó and Vandellòs Nuclear Power Plants in the province of Tarragona and one in the city of Barcelona. Two more monitors are expected to be deployed at Roses (province of Girona) and Puigcerdà (province of Barcelona). Measurements and evolution analysis results of emitters identified at these stations were also provided.


PHYSICIANS, by virtue of their access to and understanding of new scientific knowledge in the field of health, are usually leaders in the adoption of proven advances in prevention of disease and injury. Recent data on the use and promotion of automobile seat belts by members of the American Academy of Pediatrics are a good case in point, but illustrate also that, even among the well-informed, further information is needed.
 In 1960 the Committee on Accident Prevention surveyed Academy members on the availability and use of seat belts in their own family cars through a questionnaire which accompanied the February News Letter. Approximately one-third responded. Of these, 33% had safety belts in their family cars (Table I), 6 to 10 times as many as reported from studies of the general public. However, only one-half of those with belts used them routinely. Even more surprising, only 38% of members with seat belts recommended them to the families of their patients, and this was identical to the percentage of members without seat belts who made similar recommendations!
 In 1961, on the strong advice of physicians and others, American automobile manufacturers agreed to include seat belt attachments as standard equipment on most cars, and several state legislatures, including California and New York, made such attachments mandatory for the sale of all new cars. The facts that convinced the manufacturers and legislators still need full dissemination before seat belts will actually be widely used. The American Medical Association, the National Safety Council, the United States Public Health Service, and others are currently sponsoring a nationwide advertising campaign to bring these facts to the people.


In 1981, June Huntington published a study of social work and general practice which rapidly became influential. In it she offered a sociological analysis of these two occupations to explain the difficulties and conflicts which had arisen between them and to predict the future course of their relationship. In this paper we revisit Huntington's propositions and assess the extent to which her predictions have been realised in the UK context. We adopt her perspective of the two organisational cultures of general practice and social work to consider her claims, particularly with respect to developments in social work. We then outline her depiction of the likely evolution of interprofessional relationships over the past two decades, considering the generalisability of experiments in collaboration, conflict with the medical profession, tensions within social work itself, and the sense of 'crisis' in relationships between professions. To promote debate with colleagues in different disciplines, this paper ends with a series of questions about the likely impact of care trust formation on social work.


Summary Survival time was increased over 90% in mice with hereditary muscular dystrophy treated orally with a serotonin antagonist, methysergide bimaleate. There was a concurrent increase in body weight in treated animals. Short term treatment for 3 weeks with the drug caused a significant enlargement of the ovaries of dystrophic mice, but had no effect on body weight or other endocrine organ weights of normal mice.


An array of non-Hermitian optical waveguides can operate as a laser or as a coherent perfect absorber, which corresponds to a spectral singularity of the underlying discrete complex potential. We show that all lattice potentials with spectral singularities are characterized by the universal form of the gain-and-loss distribution. Using this result, we systematically construct potentials characterized by several spectral singularities at arbitrary wavelengths, as well as potentials with second-order spectral singularities in their spectra. Higher-order spectral singularities demonstrate a greatly enhanced response to incident beams, resulting in the excitation of high-intensity lasing modes.


This paper
addresses the problem of single-channel speech enhancement in the adverse environment. The critical-band rate scale based on improved multi-band spectral subtraction is investigated in this study
for enhancement of single-channel speech. In this work, the whole speech spectrum is
divided into different non-uniformly spaced frequency bands in accordance with the critical-band rate scale of the psycho-acoustic model and the spectral over-subtraction is carried-out separately in each band. In
addition, for the estimation of the noise from
each band, the adaptive noise estimation approach is
used and does not
require explicit speech silence detection. The noise is estimated and updated by
adaptively smoothing the
noisy signal power in each band. The
smoothing parameter is controlled by a-posteriori signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). For the performance analysis of the proposed
algorithm, the objective measures, such as, SNR, segmental SNR, and perceptual
evaluations of the speech quality are conducted for the variety of noises
at different levels of SNRs. The speech spectrogram and objective evaluations of the proposed algorithm are compared with other standard speech enhancement
algorithms and proved that the musical
structure of the remnant noise and
background noise is better suppressed by the proposed algorithm.


ABSTRACT Qiao, Z.; Dong D.; Kuai, X., and Zou, J., 2015. Test of horizontal force in cart balance beam of quayside container crane. As cracks occurred widely on the webs of cart balance beam of quayside container cranes, a proposal has been offered that we should know about the value of horizontal force of quayside container crane under operating conditions based on the force analysis. In view of this, a site test has been carried out. By testing the variation of stresses of cart balance beam under different working conditions, the scope of horizontal force has been obtained. In the end, the factors which may influence the variation of horizontal force have been discussed.


Studies on cardiovascular complications in hypertensive patients have been extensively progressed in basic and clinical researches. The molecular mechanism of sensing system of mechanical stress have not been fully understood. Rho/Rho kinase and oxidative stress are molecules activated by stretch and are highly possible to contribute to cardiovascular complications. One of clinical progress in this area is the development and wide distribution of noninvasive diagnostic devices for atherosclerosis. Some of these devices are used as an surrogate markers in large scale randomized clinical trials. Currently, new therapeutic targets and strategies have been investigated and tailored medicine using pharmacogenetics is expected in the near future to manage hypertensive complications.


There is a perception by some anaesthetists that fentanyl vials contained in their blister package are sterile. As a result it is common practice in some hospitals, to place the fentanyl vial directly on to the sterile area when performing neuroaxial blockade. We contacted one manufacturer, Martindale Pharmaceuticals, whose official reply was ... the sealed glass ampoules... are processed and packed in general environment before being placed in the plastic blisters. These blisters are not sterile and the ampoule exterior is not claimed to be sterile . We feel it is important to emphasise the possible infective complications of this practice and urge anaesthetists to remove the drug by needle and syringe in a sterile fashion.


Permanently increasing penetration of converter-interfaced generation and renewable energy sources (RESs) makes modern electrical power systems more vulnerable to low probability and high impact events, such as extreme weather, which could lead to severe contingencies, even blackouts. These contingencies can be further propagated to neighboring energy systems over coupling components/technologies and consequently negatively influence the entire multi-energy system (MES) (such as gas, heating and electricity) operation and its resilience. In recent years, machine learning-based techniques (MLBTs) have been intensively applied to solve various power system problems, including system planning, or security and reliability assessment. This paper aims to review MES resilience quantification methods and the application of MLBTs to assess the resilience level of future sustainable energy systems. The open research questions are identified and discussed, whereas the future research directions are identified.


Background: The aim of the present study was to investigate risk factors for developing more severe pancreatitis, including moderately severe (MSAP) and severe acute pancreatitis (SAP), in patients admitted with mild acute pancreatitis (MAP). Material/Methods: This was a hospital based retrospective and prospective study conducted in the Department of Gastroentrology, SKIMS Soura,Srinagar, Kashmir for a period of 2 years w.e.f. September 2017 to September 2019 on patients of all age groups with clinical/Laboratory/imaging findings suggestive of acute pancreatitis. The protocol of the study was approved by the Institutional Ethical Committee. Patients admitted with MAP to our hospital were included and prospectively evaluated. Possible risk factors for developing MSAP or SAP were Evaluated. Results: Risk factors like BMI >25kg/m 2 was observed in 61 (19.3%) patients with mild pancreatitis and 142 (42.5%) patients with moderate to severe pancreatitis. Waist circumference >100cm was observed in 23 (7.3%) and 129 (38.6%) patients of mild and moderate to severe pancreatitis. High blood sugar >200mg/dl was observed in 37 (11.7%) patients with mild pancreatitis and 152 (45.2%) patients with moderate to severe pancreatitis. 27 (8.5%) and 167 (50%) patients of mild and moderate to severe pancreatitis had hematocrit >44 whereas 13 (4.1%) patients with mild pancreatitis and 140 (41.9%) patients with moderate to severe pancreatitis had CRP >150mg/dl. This table concluded that there is statistically significant association between high BMI >25 Kg/m 2 , waist circumference >100 cm, high blood sugar >200 mg /dl, hematocrit >44, CRP >150 mg/d and worsening of AP. Conclusions: Significant risk factors for developing MSAP or SAP in patients admitted with MAP included BMI (≥25 kg/m 2 ), APACHE-II (≥5), and blood glucose level on admission (>11.1 mmol/L). These factors should be used in the prediction of more severe pancreatitis in patients admitted with MAP.


Electrical storm is the clustering of hemodynamically destabilizing ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation that typically requires multiple electrical cardioversions or defibrillations within a 24-hour period. Electrical storm is frequently seen in the acute phase of myocardial infarction, in patients with the genetic arrhythmia syndromes, and in patients with implanted cardioverters-defibrillators. The evaluation and management should focus on the immediate suppression of the arrhythmia, a search for possible reversible causes, and attempts to prevent recurrences. In this review we present the most common conditions associated with electrical storm, therapeutic options for suppression of electrical storm, and new investigational techniques emerging for the treatment of electrical storm in refractory cases. The management of this life threatening arrhythmia typically requires the coordinated efforts of emergency medicine, critical care, cardiology, cardiac electrophysiology, and pacemaker experts.


There has been a strong surge in aggregate productivity growth in India since 1990, following significant economic reforms. Three recent studies have used two distinct methodologies to decompose the sources of growth, and all conclude that it has been driven by within-plant increases in technical efficiency and not between-plant reallocation of inputs. Given the nature of the reforms, where many barriers to input reallocation were removed, this finding has surprised researchers and been dubbed "India's Mysterious Manufacturing Miracle." In this paper, we show that the methodologies used may artificially understate the extent of reallocation. One approach, using growth in value added, counts all reallocation growth arising from the movement of intermediate inputs as technical efficiency growth. The second approach, using the Olley-Pakes decomposition, uses estimates of plant-level total factor productivity (TFP) as a proxy for the marginal product of inputs. However, in equilibrium, TFP and the marginal product of inputs are unrelated. Using microdata on manufacturing from five countries – India, the U.S., Chile, Colombia, and Slovenia – we show that both approaches significantly understate the true role of reallocation in economic growth. In particular, reallocation of materials is responsible for over half of aggregate Indian manufacturing productivity growth since 2000, substantially larger than either the contribution of primary inputs or the change in the covariance of productivity and size.


New pedagogical approaches are required to prepare future professionals. The educational model must be in consonance with the information and communication technologies. They help to improve knowledge dissemination and reduce space and time limitations between teachers and students. They should also motivate students and stimulate communication and collaboration among students, improving the learning process. Currently, the Institute of Exact and Applied Sciences of the Federal University of Ouro Preto (IEAS/UFOP) has no institutionalized tools of information and communication for teaching support. This allows the identification of some problems and difficulties on the educational process, such as absence of a centralized way to provide and access didactic resources, unavailability of a good communication tool between teachers and students, and lack of easy access to academic performance information for self evaluation. This chapter presents the authors' experience in choosing and evaluating a Learning Management System (LMS) to support classroom teaching at the IEAS. The authors investigate how the use of a LMS may improve teaching in the following aspects: (1) availability of didactic resources; (2) class planning and following up; (3) teacher-student communication; (4) monitoring of the academic performance of students during the course; (5) collaboration among students.