The metabolic adaptation of eukaryotic cells to hypoxia involves increasing dependence upon glycolytic adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production, an event with consequences for cellular bioenergetics and cell fate. This response is regulated at the transcriptional level by the hypoxia-inducible factor-1(HIF-1)-dependent transcriptional upregulation of glycolytic enzymes (GEs) and glucose transporters. However, this transcriptional upregulation alone is unlikely to account fully for the levels of glycolytic ATP produced during hypoxia. Here, we investigated additional mechanisms regulating glycolysis in hypoxia. We observed that intestinal epithelial cells treated with inhibitors of transcription or translation and human platelets (which lack nuclei and the capacity for canonical transcriptional activity) maintained the capacity for hypoxia-induced glycolysis, a finding which suggests the involvement of a nontranscriptional component to the hypoxia-induced metabolic switch to a highly glycolytic phenotype. In our investigations into potential nontranscriptional mechanisms for glycolytic induction, we identified a hypoxia-sensitive formation of complexes comprising GEs and glucose transporters in intestinal epithelial cells. Surprisingly, the formation of such glycolytic complexes occurs independent of HIF-1-driven transcription. Finally, we provide evidence for the presence of HIF-1α in cytosolic fractions of hypoxic cells which physically interacts with the glucose transporter GLUT1 and the GEs in a hypoxia-sensitive manner. In conclusion, we provide insights into the nontranscriptional regulation of hypoxia-induced glycolysis in intestinal epithelial cells.


Premna mucronata Roxb. commonly known as agyon, is a plant of family Lamiaceae. This study dealt with the phytochemical analysis of leaves essential oil of Premna mucronata Roxb. (PMLO) using GC/MS technique and screening of its antioxidant activity using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH), metal chelating and reducing power assays, anti-inflammatory activity using in-vitro albumin denaturation assay and antibacterial activity using well diffusion method against pathogenic bacterial strains Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The phytochemical analysis of PMLO revealed the presence of over 71 compounds. 3-octanone was found to be the major constituent that accounts for 23.6% of the total oil composition. The other major constituents identified were ethyl-hexanol (13.9%), 1-octen-3-ol (9.6%), linalool (5.5%), methyl salicylate (2.9%) and E-caryophyllene (2.9%). It was found that PMLO possessed antioxidant activity in terms of DPPH (IC50=11.18±0.03 µg/mL), metal chelating (IC50=18.82±0.46 µg/mL), and reducing power activities (IC50=21.69±0.02 µg/mL) and in-vitro anti-inflammatory activity was also shown by essential oil with IC50=30.27±0.005 µg/mL. Antibacterial activity of PMLO at higher concentration (1000ppm) showed zone of inhibition of 14.33±0.58mm against E. coli and 14.66±0.58mm against S. aureus. The essential oil of leave P.mucronata contains 3-Octanone, 1-octen-3-ol, ethyl-hexanol, linalool, and have antioxidant, anti-inflammation and antibacterial acitivities.


Abstract. The study was conducted in a glasshouse to examine the possibility of producing paprika plug seedlings in a newly developed inert phenolic foam growing medium. Plug seedlings of 'Fascinato' paprika were grown in five media, Grodan rockwool (Grodan Co. Ltd., Denmark), UR rockwool (UR Co. Ltd., Korea), phenolic foam LC (Smithers Oasis Korea Co. Ltd., Korea), phenolic foam RC, and phenolic foam 3813-4 all in a pellet type. Seeds were germinated in a growth chamber (25℃, 90% RH, dark) for 4-5 days and then seedlings were grown in a glasshouse with nutrient solution supplied by an overhead irrigation system. Seedling growths were measured 20 days after sowing. The medium pH was the highest in the Grodan rockwool, and medium EC was the highest in phenolic foam 3813-4, although no nutritional excess disorders were observed. Germination rates of paprika were higher than 90% in all the media. Plant height, stem diameter, T/R ratio, leaf area, and chlorophyll showed a similar to those in the rockwool medium. Number of leaves, length of the longest root and dry weights of shoot were not significantly different among treatments. Overall, phenolic foam LC and RC produced seedlings with a similar growth as the rockwool medium. The results obtained suggest that rockwool can be replaced with a new material such as phenolic foam in the commercial scale production of plug seedlings of 'Fascinato' paprika.


A public showcase by the Philippine tourism authorities, and rightly so, are the "Chocolate Hills" of Bohol (Philippines), the strangest karst landform known. These numerous residual relief forms are so perfectly symmetrical that, in order to explain their existence, natural explanations are systematically sidelined by legends, myths and many so-called "scientific" explanations. The object of many television broadcasts related to travel, these karst hills are a particularly original example of mogotes tropical karst; their almost "perfect" aspect had intrigued those who have studied their formation and have given birth to many hypotheses. The genesis of the "Chocolate Hills" is due to the emergence of the Pliocene limestone coralline platform, then to its karstification in a particularly homogeneous tropical climate conditions: rainfall, temperature, wind, pedologic and vegetable covers. In other aspects, their good overall porosity explains their mass impregnation by the runoffs as well as the appearance of important aquifers, exploited for the development of irrigated rice fields. Karst models are present, notably the caves and underground networks of which very few have been explored. Finally this original context (insularity, virgin tropical forest undisturbed for a long time) permitted the sustainability of a particularly original endemic fauna including the famous Bohol tarsier. In June 1998 the "Chocolate Hills" were declared the National Geologic Monument and this national park definitely merits a visit.


Effect of the over pressure processing on the distribution of the critical current density in mono-core tapes was measured in detail using Campbell's method. It was found that the magnetic flux profile is more straight in the over-pressured specimen, suggesting that the critical current density is more uniform. This seems to be partly caused by the improved uniformity of the thickness due to the disappearance of voids and the reduction in sausaging of superconducting layer by application of the over pressure. The possibility of the further improvement of the critical current density is discussed


In this paper, a novel method to model, track control and synchronize the Rossler's chaotic system is proposed. The fuzzy logical system is used so that the fuzzy inference rule is transferred into a type of variable coef ficient nonlinear ordinary differential equation. Consequently the model of the chaotic system is obtained. Then a fuzzy tracking control and a fuzzy synchronization for chaotic systems is proposed as well. First, a known tracking control for the Rossler's system is used in this paper. We represent the Rossler's chaotic and control systems into fuzzy inference rules. Then the variable coefficient nonlinear ordinary differential equation is also got. Simulation results show that such an approach is effective and has a high precision.


The prognosis of multiple myeloma (MM) patients has significantly improved over the last decades. However, the disease is still incurable, and eventually all patients will relapse. Therefore, there is a continuing need for improvement of existing therapies and development of new, more effective treatments. In this thesis, we investigated two immunotherapeutic modalities used in MM: allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) and immunomodulatory agents (IMiDs). In chapter 2 we outlined our single-center experience with allo-SCT in 147 patients with MM. We show that although we obtained beneficial results with allo-SCT as part of first line treatment, allo-SCT should not be considered an option for first line treatment due to the high treatment-related mortality (TRM) and superior alternatives with novel agent-based therapy, regardless of cytogenetic risk. For the relapsed/refractory setting the data are less clear. If applied at all, strategies to lower non-relapse mortality and graft-versus-host disease incidence should be actively explored. In chapter 3 we demonstrated the feasibility, safety and efficacy of minor histocompatibility antigen (mHag)-peptide-loaded donor dendritic cell (DC) vaccination combined with donor lymphocyte infusions (DLI) in patients with persistent or relapsed disease after allo-SCT and previous DLI. The use of this vaccination was shown to be feasible and safe. However, immune-responses were variable and clinical responses were lacking. The mechanisms behind this lack of clinical response should be evaluated in future studies, but as has been described in chapter 4, it seems highly plausible that the expansion or even the cytotoxic function of tumor-specific CTLs can be actively suppressed by tumor (microenvironment)-related factors. In chapter 5 we investigated in a phase 1/2 trial, the maximum tolerated dose as well as the safety and efficacy of the combination of lenalidomide, cyclophosphamide and prednisone (REP) in heavily pretreated, lenalidomide-refractory MM patients. The REP regimen was well tolerated and highly active with an overall response rate (≥ partial response of 67% and a clinical benefit rate (≥ minimal response) of 82%. The median PFS was 12.1 months, and the median OS was 29.0 months. In chapter 6, to gain insight into the expression levels of lenalidomide targets in lenalidomide-refractory patients, we analyzed the protein expression of Cereblon, Ikaros, Aiolos, IRF4 and c-Myc in BM-localized plasma cells. We show that Cereblon downregulation and c-Myc upregulation in MM cells are two of the characteristics of lenalidomide refractory disease. In chapter 7 we further investigated the hypothesis that despite the presence of lenalidomide resistance in the MM cells, the immune system might still be susceptible to lenalidomide-induced activation. Our results indicate that the Cereblon-mediated immunomodulatory properties of lenalidomide are maintained in lenalidomide-refractory myeloma patients and contribute to immune-mediated killing of MM cells. Therefore, combining lenalidomide with other drugs can still have potent effects, even in patients considered to be lenalidomide-refractory.


The aim of this study is to investigate the quantitative accuracy of the closed-form least-squares solution (LSS) for single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). The main limitation for employing this method in actual clinical reconstructions is the computational cost related to operations with a large-sized system matrix. However, in some clinical situations, the size of the system matrix can be decreased using targeted reconstruction. For example, some oncology SPECT studies are characterized by intense tracer uptakes that are localized in relatively small areas, while the remaining parts of the patient body have only a low activity background. Conventional procedures reconstruct the activity distribution in the whole object, which leads to relatively poor image accuracy/resolution for tumors while computer resources are wasted, trying to rebuild diagnostically useless background. In this study, we apply a concept of targeted reconstruction to SPECT phantom experiments imitating such oncology scans. Our approach includes two major components: (i) disconnection of the entire imaging system of equations and extraction of only those parts that correspond to the targets, i.e., regions of interest (ROI) encompassing active containers/tumors and (ii) generation of the closed-form LSS for each target ROI. We compared these ROI-based LSS with those reconstructed by the conventional MLEM approach. The analysis of the five processed cases from two phantom experiments demonstrated that the LSS approach outperformed MLEM in terms of the noise level inside ROI. On the other hand, MLEM better recovered total activity if the number of iterations was large enough. For the experiment without background activity, the ROI-based LSS led to noticeably better spatial activity distribution inside ROI. However, the distributions pertaining to both approaches were practically identical for the experiment with the concentration ratio 7:1 between the containers and the background.


Applying a procedure similar to that of E.S. Bring, by using a 4th degree Tschirnhaus transformation, it was possible to transform the Bring-Jerrard normal quintic (BJQ) equation into a De Moivre form (DMQ), so that it could be solved by radicals. The general solution by radicals of the De Moivre equations of any degree is presented. By the same procedure the BJSx (normal sextic) equation was taken to another one without the 2nd, 4th and 6th terms which was transformed into a cubic (solvable) equation. By applying a 6th degree Tschirnhaus transformation to the BJSp (normal septic) equation its Bring-Jerrard binormal (without the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th terms) form was obtained.


Acute tests (0.25 to 96 h) and chronic (full life-cycle) tests were conducted with mysid shrimp (Mysidopsis bahia) and sheepshead minnows (Cyprinodon variegatus) to determine the toxicity of an acidic effluent and an alkaline effluent. In acute tests with the acidic effluent, the unaltered effluent (pH <0.1) was much more toxic to shrimp and fish than was the pH-adjusted effluent (pH 7 ′ 0.2). However, both shrimp and fish were similar in their sensitivity to each of the test materials. Also, three life stages (juvenile, subadult, and adult) of sheepshead minnows exposed to both unaltered and pH-adjusted effluent were very similar in their sensitivity to each of the test materials. In acute tests with the alkaline effluent, there was little difference between the toxicity of the unaltered effluent (pH 13.0) and that of the pH-adjusted effluent (pH 8.0) to shrimp or fish. Similarly, there was little difference in the sensitivities of the three life stages (juvenile, subadult, and adult) of sheepshead minnows exposed to unaltered or pH-adjusted effluent. During a chronic exposure of mysid shrimp to the acidic effluent, concentrations of unaltered effluent ≤75 ppm (μl/litre) caused no adverse effects, and in a chronic exposure of sheepshead minnows to the unaltered effluent, concentrations ≤100 ppm caused no adverse effects. Exposure to concentrations of the pH-adjusted alkaline effluent ≤750 ppm caused no adverse effect on mysid shrimp or sheepshead minnows during chronic exposures. Histopathological examination of the fish from the chronic test showed no effluent-related effects.


In order to improve the accuracy and reliability of scanning coordinate measure machines (CMM), the dynamic errors of the CMM axes have to be continuously monitored and compensated in the measurement process. This paper proposes a novel method and develops an Integrated Sensing System (ISS) to on-machine determine the three error components of a precision linear slide [1]: the straightness motion, the yaw and the roll under the effect of thermal distortion caused by friction and drive. The ISS is proposed for an illustrative model of a linear slide. It consist of eight distance sensors installed in a stationary stage, and five temperature sensors mounted at various parts of the working machine. The stationary stage is mounted opposite to the profile of the moving slide axis. The error separation algorithm of this novel method is based on Fourier series techniques. A pre-built thermal error model [2] based on thermal modal analysis [3] is used to obtain the deformations of different machine components. Then thermal looping [3] technique is used to estimate thermally-induced profile variations of the slide. The Fourier series technique is then applied to the pre-processed outputs of the distance sensors to obtain the profiles and the motion errors. Computer simulation confirmed the effectiveness of the ISS by comparing the calculated results with the pre-define inputs under thermal compensation [2] and no thermal compensation situations.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


It is demonstrated that, for the recently introduced classical magnetized Kepler problems in dimension 2k + 1, the non-colliding orbits in the "external configuration space" R \ {0} are all conics, moreover, a conic orbit is an ellipse, a parabola, and a branch of a hyperbola according as the total energy is negative, zero, and positive. It is also demonstrated that the Lie group SO(1, 2k+1)×R+ acts transitively on both the set of oriented elliptic orbits and the set of oriented parabolic orbits.


In this paper I investigate sources of motivation. In particular, I address what sort of thing—what kind of entity—we are motivated by when we are motivated. I argue against two accounts of sources of motivation, in the sense I intend, in favour of a third. On my view, sources of motivation are not, as some think, to be identified with psychological states; nor are they, as others think, to be identified with facts. Instead, sources of motivation should be identified as the contents of psychological states, in particular, the contents of cognitive states.


Background: The spate of psychoactive substance use is unprecedented. The determination of associated factors will be critical to tackling this  menace. However, most studies were conducted in school which would have excluded the population of out-ofschool children. Thus, this studyassessed the correlates of adolescents' psychoactive substance use at the community level.Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted among 500 adolescents (258 male and 242 female) in  Ilorin West LGA between December 2016 and October 2017. A stratified multistage sampling technique was used for subject selection and a pretested WHO substance use questionnaire wasused to collect data. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were employed to identify the predictors of substance use.Results: The lifetime prevalence of psychoactive substance use is 43.4% while the prevalence of current use is 31.2%. The most commonly used substances were stimulants (caffeine); 14.4%, codeine- containing cough syrup; 10.4% and alcohol; 10.2%. Socioeconomic class and the use of substances by friends were predictors of current use. The current use of alcohol and opiates is significantly higher among in-school subjects (p = 0.001, 0.042). Current use of cannabis, alcohol, hallucinogen, cocaine, correlated positively with educational status of respondents in school.Conclusions: The current use rate of psychoactive substance is high among the adolescents with socioeconomic class, use of substance by friends and educational status as its predictors. Urgent multipronged measures are therefore, crucial to curb this trend.
Keywords: Psychoactive substances, Adolescents, current use, lifetime use, educational status


– The aim of the present paper was to develop a multiresidue method based on GC×GC-TOF/MS in order to investigate changes induced by cooking in the composition of a complex food matrix spiked with 226 dioxin-related micropollutants. In a first step, a GC×GC-TOF/MS method was developed to achieve a satisfactory separation of the 209 PCBs and the 17 toxic PCDD/Fs in hexane. The best GC×GC-TOF/MS conditions determined according to peak shape (width and symmetry) and resolution enabled to separate 206 dioxin-related micropollutants. Starting with meat as a model matrix, the second step enabled to set up procedures for both micropollutant spiking and sample preparation. The later included accelerated solvent extraction (ASE), centrifugal evaporation and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). Recoveries in the acceptable range of 70 – 130% and satisfactory standard deviations ( ≤ 10%) were obtained for most of the compounds studied. Limits of detection of the GC × GC-TOF/MS method ranged between 50 and 100 pg/g of spiked fresh meat for PCBs and between 65 and 227 pg/g for PCDD/Fs. Finally, the multiresidue method was implemented to assess the modulating influence of cooking on meat content on the 206 dioxin-related micropollutants.


Abstract  Phylogeography has been one major focus of evolutionary biology in recent years, with many important advances in Chinese species. In this issue, we collected 11 phylogeographic studies of plants by Chinese laboratories. We further synthesized the main findings and patterns emerging from these and previous phylogeographic studies in China and asked where phylogeographic research should be directed in the coming years. Numerous examples have shown that phylogeographic patterns in China did not show an expected expansion–contraction pattern at large scale, mirroring the geological records showing that no unified ice sheet had developed in China during the Quaternary Period. Instead, regional expansions and intraspecific divergences are very common in most studied species during the Quaternary oscillations. Different intraspecific lineages or alleles (haplotypes) were detected in multiple localized refugia, from where regional or local expansions are likely to have started. Hybridizations and introgressions are frequent between intraspecific lineages or between different species. We also reviewed computational methods for phylogeographic analyses. Despite the great progress made in recent years, there remains much to discover about the spatial–temporal dimensions and underlying speciation mechanisms of Chinese plants. Phylogeographic studies represent a key knot that connects the genus phylogeny (macroevolution) and speciation and adaptation (microevolution). Therefore, we advocate that: (i) phylogeographic studies of plants in China should be directed to the closely related species or a monophyletic group (for example, a genus or a section) in the coming years; and (ii) population genetic data based on direct sequencing multiple loci, especially those from nuclear genome and statistical tests should be widely adopted and enforced. The recovered intraspecific divergences and phylogeographic patterns of multiple‐species may allow us to better understand the high plant diversity in China and set up concrete hypotheses for studying plant speciation and diversification mechanisms in this region.


The PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway is frequently deregulated in breast cancer. Specific inhibition of its key signaling nodes results in cell death and tumor growth arrest, but also in activation of feedback loops that ultimately limit therapeutic activity. The subcellular localization and activity of Forkhead box O3 (FOXO3) transcription factor is heavily regulated by the PI3K pathway. Phosphorylation of FOXO3 by AKT inhibits its transcriptional functions leading to cell survival and growth. Although our understanding of the transcription function of FOXO3 downstream of the PI3K pathway has increased significantly in recent years, it is still unclear how FOXO3 acts in concert with other cofactors of the transcription machinery. We conjectured that inhibition of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling by specific agents targeting the pathway at different nodes leads to unique FOXO3-mediated transcriptional programs unveiling a complex network of regulation. We therefore sought to identify proteins that differentially co-immunoprecipitate with FOXO3 upon PI3K, AKT or mTOR blockade. To target the pathway at different levels, we used BYL719, a PI3Kα inhibitor; MK2206, an allosteric AKT inhibitor; and RAD001, an allosteric mTORC1 inhibitor. Upon treatment, we immunopreciptated endogenous FOXO3 and searched for FOXO3 interactors by mass spectrometry analysis. In parallel RNA samples from each treatment were analyzed using gene expression microarrays. Gene expression analyses revealed that each specific compound originated distinct transcriptional signatures. Accordingly, mass spectrometry analysis revealed novel FOXO3 co-interactors engaging in different transcriptional complexes at each treatment conditions. We identified some of these proteins as CUL1, the core component of the SCF (SKP1-CUL1-F-BOX protein) E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase complex, the cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK5), the upstream binding transcription factor (UBTF), and the core component of RNA polymerase I POLR1C (polymerase RNA I polypeptide C). We performed coimmunoprecipitation analyses to confirm that these cofactors are bona fide FOXO3-interacting proteins. We then analyzed the effects of overexpressing these proteins on FOXO3 transcriptional activity. Luciferase assays demonstrated an increase in FOXO3 transcriptional activity when CUL1, UBTF, CDK5 or POLR1C were overexpressed. The overexpression of cofactors also induced the expression of FOXO3 target genes such as TRAIL or IRS2. Furthermore, overexpression of these co-interactors enhanced the binding of FOXO3 to its target gene promoters. We are now engaged in both elucidating how these cofactors can modulate the transcriptional activity of FOXO3 upon PI3K/AKT/mTOR inhibition and understanding the therapeutic implications of these FOXO3-containing complexes. Citation Format: Vasilis Hristidis, James Cownie, Ana Bosch, Joanne Soong, Pau Castel, Maurizio Scaltriti, Baselga Jose. Mechanisms of transcriptional regulation of FOXO3 by cofactors upon PI3K/AKT/mTOR inhibition. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 2868.


Climate change may be considered, in more ways than one, to be among the hot topics at present. Concern over our lack of understanding of many key aspects of the global climate system, and the ways in which it may change even during our lifetime in response to the buildup of 'greenhouse' gases, have spurred numerous studies. This volume, the result of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop held in October 1985 at St Hugues de Biviers (France) discusses various aspects of abrupt changes in climate. The book is divided into seven sections, each of which comprises four to seven papers. Some of these papers represent extended abstracts but most are detailed summaries incorporating fair amounts of new data. The sections are: I, Introduction; II, The last millenium; III, Abrupt climatic change during the Holocene; IV, Glacial-Holocene transition: land records; V, Glacial-Holocene transition: ice core record; VI, Glacial-Holocene transition: deep-sea record; VII, Modelling climate and its record. The papers generally fit well into these divisions with the glaring exception of the paper by Jones et al. on modelling of CO2induced climate change which is unaccountably put in the introduction instead of section VII where it belongs. I received several overall impressions from reading the book. First, it is interesting to see the discord among workers as to what actually constitutes rapid climate change, and several rather conflicting definitions are given. Not all workers stick to even their own definitions; for example, Goossens & Berger (pp. 31-45) call an abrupt climate change ' an abrupt and permanent change during the period of record from one average value to another', yet their own data show that the warming during the first half of this century (their type example) in no way constitutes a permanent change. Both the magnitude and rapidity of climate changes clearly vary very widely, depending on the scale at which each author is working. The changes vary in magnitude from the 0.3 °C warming between 1976 and 1985 to the glacial—interglacial changes which may exceed 10-20 °C over much of the continental northern hemisphere. The rate of change varies immensely, but fluctuations of up to 2 °C per century seem to represent an approximate preCO2-forcing maximum on a glacial scale, controlled largely by the thermal inertia of the oceans. However, regional temperatures, especially in Europe where the influences of the North Atlantic circulation pattern and icecap sizes were paramount, seem to be able to vary by rates of up to 20 °C per century. There is richness in diversity but the lack of a common framework among the authors of this book as to what actually constitutes 'rapid climatic change' is rather confusing.


It's the time of year that every employer looks to with trepidation--employee evaluation, which will determine individual workers' salaries for the coming year. Besides personal performance, employers must also take into account a number of other factors to ensure they are fairly compensating their employees in a manner that will enable them to retain the best and the brightest. What are their competitors paying? What is the rate of compensation inflation over the years? What "extra perks" make employees more likely to stay on? Knowing these factors can help employers tremendously in maintaining a satisfied and loyal workforce. Each year, the Hospital and Healthcare Compensation Service (HCS) gives home care and hospice providers easy access to this crucial information.


Computer applications to research in pure mathematics during the past several years have concentrated on using the data processing and logical capabilities of computers to carry out exhaustive and exhausting combinatorial or logical manipulations. Computers can also be used to suggest entirely new theorems and results, but this sort of application has not yet been particularly widely investigated.The addition of an interactive graphics terminal to even a small to medium-sized computer enables one to construct "n-dimensional blackboard." On this device a mathematician can display and manipulate two-dimensional projections of n-dimensional geometrical constructs with much greater speed and accuracy than he can bring to his usual blackboard sketches. This sort of facility can be particularly helpful to the type of mathematician who thinks geometrically, and who relies a great deal on geometrical visualizations to suggest new theorems and proofs. Using control dials, joysticks, and other analog input devices, a mathematician can get immediate portrayal of the geometric effect of continuously varying parameters. He also has finger-tip control over the current values of these parameters, encouraging the development of a visceral feeling for the effect of these parameter variations.Early experience with such an "n-dimensional blackboard," implemented in a prototype version on the microprogrammed mini-computer BUGS system at Brown University, is extremely promising. This BUGS blackboard, used in the area of singularities of algebraic curves in complex two-space, has suggested several new theorems and areas for further investigation.A description is given of the facilities of the BUGS blackboard. Also, the observed interaction between the physical facilities available on the BUGS system is mentioned, as well as the sorts of mathematical results that the use of these facilities in the BUGS blackboard seems to encourage.


This article examines the case of a Chinese firm that has upgraded to lead firm position in the global biomass power plant industry mainly through acquisitions of technological frontier firms in Denmark. Sustaining the lead firm position was, however, challenged by difficulties in developing innovative capability. Drawing on the literature on (i) firm-level technological capability and (ii) knowledge transfer in international acquisitions, we explain the reasons for insufficient innovative capability building. Based on these empirical findings, we suggest maintaining the existing upgrading framework but applying it analytically in a more flexible manner that avoids linearity, hierarchy and segmentation while stressing the co-existence of and inter-relationships between the different types of upgrading.


When developing aeroderivative gas turbines at Siemens Energy, engine models are subject to complex simulation campaigns for finite element analysis carried out by a legacy simulation tool. This paper presents results of a multi-year software modernization project to provide a software-as-a-service (SaaS) framework that enables the distributed and automated execution of simulation jobs over a hybrid cloud platform containing both private cloud and public cloud nodes. Our framework allows to significantly reduce the net time required for completing complex simulation campaigns, thus increasing the effectiveness of engineers. The performance of our framework is evaluated in various cloud configurations with complex simulation campaigns performed in the context of a real simulation task.


The syntheses and characterization of two organozinc compounds were accomplished by reacting phenalenyl (PLY)-based ligands with ZnMe2. Reactions of [HN(Cy),O-PLY] and [HN(Cy),N(Cy)-PLY] ligands with ZnMe2 led to the formation of the dimeric orange-colored organozinc compound [N(Cy),O-PLY-ZnMe]2 (1) and red-colored monomeric organozinc compound [N(Cy),N(Cy)-PLY-ZnMe] (2) under evolution of methane. Both 1 and 2 were characterized by NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction study. The organozinc compound 2 was tested as a catalyst for intramolecular hydroamination of both unactivated primary and secondary aminoalkenes in the presence of an externally added activator, which generated the zinc-based cation in situ. The catalytic result obtained from the present catalyst 2 was compared with the catalysts having similar structure from previous studies. The DFT calculation indicates that the stability of the in situ generated cation plays a significant role in the catalytic act...


We investigate fragments of intuitionistic propositional logic containing implication but not disjunction. These fragments are finite, but their size grows superexponentially with the number of generators. Exact models are used to characterize the fragments.


We study bilateral exchange, both direct trade and indirect trade that happens through chains of intermediaries or middlemen. We develop a model of this activity and present applications. This illustrates how, and how many, intermediaries get involved, and how the terms of trade are determined. We show how bargaining with one intermediary depends on upcoming negotiations with downstream intermediaries, leading to holdup problems. We discuss the roles of buyers and sellers in bilateral exchanges, and how to interpret prices. We develop a particular bargaining solution and relate it to other solutions. In addition to contrasting our framework with other models of middlemen, we discuss the connection to different branches of search theory. We also illustrate how bubbles can emerge in intermediation.


The nostalgic consumption of images, which only a few years ago was practised mainly by adults, has lately become prevalent among Israeli teenage girls. Girls often describe themselves as 'nostalgic' and nostalgia has become a desired emotion. Unlike the nostalgia of former generations, this nostalgia is cumulative and not necessarily based on a strong dichotomous contrast between past and present. The transformation of nostalgia is closely related to developments in technology (the camera-phone and the internet) and in the possession-patterns of devices. Personal mobile phones are used by teenagers for production, archiving and consumption of documentary images on a daily basis. These images, not unrelated to those of mass media, are consumed by teenagers in order to evoke nostalgia and other emotions, as a technology of self. This trend also contributes to blur the ontic distinction between events and their representations.


Background Subepithelial corneal infiltrates (SEIs) are caused by adenoviral infection, a highly contagious infection that involves the surface of the eye; it is a common chronic ocular condition that typically presents significant patient symptomatology. Long term topical steroid use is usually effective but with severe side effects. Tacrolimus has demonstrated effectiveness without significant side effects. Good pharmaceutical care assistants are important for adherence and efficacy. Purpose Our aim was to evaluate the safety and tolerability of topical tacrolimus treatment for SEIs after adenovirus keratoconjunctivitis. Material and methods This transversal retrospective study included patients treated with tacrolimus 0.03% (TC0.03%) eye drops twice daily or tacrolimus 0.2% ointment (TC0.02%) once daily over the past year. Demographic data were recorded from the clinical history; safety and tolerability were measured by a survey that patients completed when the drug was dispensed. There were seven questions covering symptoms before and after treatment, local and systemic adverse events, improved vision and overall satisfaction. All were measured on a scale from 1 to 10. Results We analysed 63 patients (99 eyes), 57.1% were affected bilaterally. Mean age was 46.85 years (SD 14.93). TC0.02% was given to 26 patients (41.3%) and TC0.03% to 37 patients (58.7%). Treatment with TC0.03% in 33 patients (52.38%) was well tolerated: 1 patient (1.58%) had an allergic reaction, 1 patient (1.58%) had itching and there were no data for 2 patients (3.17%). In the TC0.02% group, the treatment was well tolerated in 20 patients (31.74%) and 6 patients (9.52%) had itching and chemosis. Mean survey results: (1) symptoms before treatment: 6.5/10.2; symptoms after treatment: 3.75/10.3; adverse events because of the drug, and their intensity: 1.85/10.4; any systemic adverse effect: 1.7/10.5; intensity of the itching: 2.65/10.6; vision improvement: 6.4/10.7; and general satisfaction with the treatment: 7.5/10. Conclusion Topical tacrolimus, which is compounded in the pharmacy service, seems to be a safe and well tolerated treatment for SEIs after adenovirus keratoconjunctivitis. No conflict of interest


BACKGROUND/AIM
Nitrosylcobalamin (NO-Cbl) is a cobalamin-based anti-tumor agent. This study evaluated the pharmacokinetic parameters of NO-Cbl following intravenous administration in dogs.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Four dogs received 10 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg and 40 mg/kg intravenous bolus doses of NO-Cbl, with a 14-day washout period between doses. Blood samples were collected at baseline and post-dosing, and noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameters were determined.

RESULTS
Average peak serum concentrations of 2265, 5523 and 13,866 pg/mL were achieved following single-dose bolus intravenous administration of 10 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg and 40 mg/kg of NO-Cbl respectively. The average area under the curve was 12,697 h × pg/mL, 24,497 h × pg/mL and 44,976 h × pg/mL respectively, with an average elimination half-life of 16.2 h, 13.5 h and 13.1 h respectively.

CONCLUSION
These results can be used to determine the dose and dosing intervals for clinical trials evaluating NO-Cbl in humans and companion animals.


Stencil computations in real-world scientific applications may contain multiple interrelated stencils, have multiple input grids, and use higher order discretizations with high arithmetic intensity and complex expression structures. In combination, these properties place immense demands on the memory hierarchy that limit performance. Blocking techniques like tiling are used to exploit reuse in caches. Additional fine-grain data blocking can also reduce TLB, hardware prefetch, and cache pressure. In this paper, we present a code generation approach designed to further improve tiled stencil performance by exploiting reuse within the block, increasing instruction-level parallelism, and exposing opportunities for the backend compiler to eliminate redundant computation. It also enables efficient vector code generation for CPUs and GPUs. For a wide range of complex stencil computations, we are able to achieve substantial speedups over tiled baselines for the Intel KNL, Intel Skylake-X, and NVIDIA P100 architectures.


Lay concepts of 'mental disorder' were investigated in three countries (U.S.A., Romania and Brazil). Participants judged whether a sample of conditions – some falling inside and some outside the borders defined by DSM-IV – were mental disorders, and rated them on features invoked in professional understandings of 'mental disorder.' The concept of mental disorder was considerably more inclusive and convergent with the DSM-IV in the American sample than in the Brazilian sample, and disorder judgments showed only moderate agreement across cultures. Several features of the concept were culturally distinctive, amounting to a more 'internalist' or intrapsychic understanding in the American sample.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to investigate and interpret the trends in tourniquet use and the accuracy of knowledge among Turkish orthopedic physicians through face-to-face survey.

METHODS
Turkish orthopedic physicians actively practicing operative orthopedics were questioned in a 12 question face-to-face survey. Personal information of physicians, preferred cuff pressure (CP) and tourniquet inflation time (TIT) and the source of the information for these preferences were questioned. Answers gathered were analyzed statistically.

RESULTS
The survey was completed by 211 orthopedic physicians. Mean preferred CP and TIT was 247.1 mmHg and 108.6 minutes, respectively, in the upper limb (UL) and 345.02 mmHg and 122.4 minutes, respectively, in the lower limb (LL). A statistically significant correlation was found between the amount of pressure preferred in the LL and the years of practice; longer the years in practice, higher the amount of pressure preferred (r=0.144, p=0.04). Tourniquets were used for a maximum period of 120 minutes for the UL by 95.7% of participants and for the LL by 84.8%.

CONCLUSION
The amount of CP used by the orthopedic physicians surveyed is inconsistent with the literature with frequent use of CP higher than those scientifically recommended. The outcomes of the survey should be cautionary for orthopedic physicians to review the current utilization and replace personal teachings and experience-based methods with evidence-based best practices for tourniquet application.


Recent progress in the understanding and prediction of the tungsten behaviour in the core of JET H-mode plasmas with ITER-like wall is presented. Particular emphasis is given to the impact of poloidal asymmetries of the impurity density. In particular, it is shown that the predicted reduction of temperature screening induced by the presence of low field side localization of the tungsten density produced by the centrifugal force is consistent with the observed tungsten behaviour in a JET discharge in H-mode baseline scenario. This provides first evidence of the role of poloidal asymmetries in reducing the strength of temperature screening. The main differences between plasma parameters in JET baseline and hybrid scenario discharges which affect the impact of poloidally asymmetric density on the tungsten radial transport are identified. This allows the conditions by which tungsten accumulation can be avoided to be more precisely defined.


To research piezoelectric immunosensor array for rapid detecting HIV(1+2), piezoelectric immunosensor array matrix was designed. HIV(1+2)C1 antigen was immobilized onto the silver electrodes of quartz-crystal microbalance, which was modified with adsorption and cross-linked method. In the clean air flow and monitoring environment, standard quality control and clinical serum sample were detected. The linear range for the measurement of HIV(1+2) was 0.01-0.2 NCU/ml. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of HIV(1+2) piezoelectric protein sensor array were 91.7%, 93.3% and 92.7% respectively.


Developments such as smart cities, the Internet of Things (IoT) and the Infrastructure for Spatial Information in Europe (INSPIRE) are causing a growing amount of observation data to be produced. The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) has developed Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) standards for modelling and publishing this data online. However, their use is currently limited to geo information specialists, who have knowledge about which data services are available and how to access them. With the use of the semantic web, online processes can automatically find and understand observation metadata. This opens up the SWE services to a large user audience. Therefore, this thesis has designed a conceptual system architecture that uses the semantic web to improve sensor data discovery as well as the integration and aggregation of sensor data from multiple sources. A conceptual system architecture is presented containing two web processes. The first process automatically creates an online semantic knowledge base of sensor metadata, by harvesting Sensor Observation Services. Metadata based on the Observations and Measurements (O&M) data model are retrieved, which includes the location of deployed sensors, what they observe, how they observe it and at which SWE service their data can be requested. The second process automatically translates logical queries of users into observation data requests. It also performs further processing before returning the observation data to the user. Both of these processes have been tested in a proof of concept implementation. A Web Processing Service (WPS) has been created as a proof of concept, making the two processes available online. The proof of concept is able to harvest sensor metadata, convert it to linked data, and publish it on the semantic web with links to and from other metadata. It results in a semantic knowledge base of sensor metadata, which improves the discovery in a machine understandable way. It allows multiple Sensor Observation Services to be used in combination with each other, due to the harmonisation involved in creating linked data. The WPS is therefore able to retrieve and process observation data from multiple Sensor Observation Services, using queries such as: What are the average particulate matter levels per month in neighbourhoods of Delft over the last five years? In conclusion, the presented conceptual system architecture contains two processes which improve the discovery, retrieval and aggregation of sensor data from multiple Sensor Observation Services using the semantic web. However, creating a completely automated process for harvesting metadata, which works with every Sensor Observation Service is not yet feasible, as non-meaningful identifiers are allowed to be used according to the SWE standards. Linked data ontologies should also be extended to include all available metadata. Currently there are no ontologies able to define the concept of a geo web service. Another conclusion is that the SPARQL endpoints used in this thesis cannot cope with complex vector geometries. This is due to their inability to handle verbose queries. Nevertheless, the proof of concept shows that the semantic web can enable current SWE services to be used in new ways, making observation data available to a larger user audience.


It was Ford' who first suggested that advantages and disadvantages, such as susceptibility to certain diseases, would be found to be associated with the human blood groups. Nevertheless, it was many years before practical work was started on the subject and only when Aird et al.2 had shown that a significantly high proportion of patients with cancer of the stomach belong to group A and of those with peptic ulcer to group 0 did the idea become widely accepted. Though of great theoretical interest, such associations between blood groups and disease are not of help to individual patients, and the purpose of this paper is to draw attention to other situations which do have medical (or veterinary) implications in particular cases and yet which also play a part in maintaining the polymorphisms. Such, for instance, are disorders due to interactions between the blood groups of mother and fetus which may result in the various types of haemolytic disease of the newborn, and, though this is more speculative, where blood group compatibility may influence the course of certain types of cancer. The keynote of haemolytic disease of the newborn, whether it be due to ABO or Rh incompatibility, is how infrequently the fetus is affected compared with the chances of how often it might be. This is because there are several naturally occurring protective mechanisms, and it was one of these which led to a successful method of preventing rhesus haemolytic disease.


Polyketide synthase 1 (PKS1) from Huperzia serrata is a plant-specific type III polyketide synthase that shows an unusually versatile catalytic potential, producing various aromatic tetraketides, including chalcones, benzophenones, phlorogulucinols and acridones. Recombinant H. serrata PKS1 expressed in Escherichia coli was crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. The crystals belonged to space group I222 or I2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 73.3, b = 85.0, c = 137.7 A, alpha = beta = gamma = 90.0 degrees. Diffraction data were collected to 2.0 A resolution using synchrotron radiation at BL24XU of SPring-8.


The thesis describes a piece of research undertaken by a group of social work practitioners who experimented with different techniques and practices in their work-place in an attempt to include fathers. The research took place over a thirty-six month period in a Local Authority Children's Service in London. The research was supported by senior managers within Children Social Care and by the Local Safeguarding Children Board.
The research asks why and how fathers have been excluded from children and family social work. The research goes on to asks what strategies, methods, conditions and techniques promote inclusive practice for fathers whilst examining the role of 'the self' as a researcher, practitioner and participant. The research strategy was based on the participation of practitioners in a co-operative inquiry supported by 'a before and after' case file audit designed to test whether the co-operative inquiry, which operated within a 'front-line' child protection service, brought about practice change.
The aims of the research were; to design and implement a co-operative inquiry, instigate a range of inclusive targets to support the implementation of a father inclusive strategy across the whole system.
The research concluded that children and family social work is one of the few institutions to confront the perversities and abuses of traditional gender and power relations and this confrontation has led to 'paternal alienation'.
The work of the co-operative inquiry led to an increase in fathers identified and assessed. An increase in fathers attending meetings and reviews and an increase in fathers recorded as having parental responsibility and an increase in contact arrangements for fathers. There was also a sizeable increase in social workers' considering the father's situation in ongoing planning for the child.
We learnt that we can include fathers if there is 'a whole system and a participative approach' which identifies how covert power and gender relations influence behaviour in practice. To achieve greater father inclusion social workers' anxieties need to be contained through safety planning systems and quality reflective supervision. For fathers to be included senior managers must support the activity in the long term, (ten to fifteen years), collect data and set targets whilst strategically committing and realigning resources to meaningfully address domestic abuse.
The research identified that organisational change is possible if the conditions to foster emergence are in place, if the culture that operates in the organisation

supports emergent creativity whilst espousing staff cohesion simultaneously championing social worker empowerment.
This research adds to knowledge in the areas of; father inclusion, risk assessment in child protection, domestic abuse, management, gender and power relations, leadership, group work, participation and collaboration in achieving organisational change.


but even in this short time some recent advances have been missed; for instance, chromosome abnormalities are mentioned once only in connexion with cleft lip and palate; and while there is no doubt that the results of the Swenson type of recto-sigmoidectomy for Hirschsprung's disease are very good, the Duhamel operation gets but a superficial mention and a rather inaccurate description. No reference at all could be found to a few rare conditions, such as foetal ascites, chylous ascites and nasal glioma. It is easy for a reviewer to be destructive. In fact this is an excellent textbook with clear descriptions of embryological processes and physiological changes. The sections on the embryology of the heart and great vessels and on cardio-pulmonary physiology are of particular value. The bibliography is extensive and the book should be of value to both surgeon and paediatrician. The presentation is excellent, illustrations both line and half-tone being of high quality, and very few printing errors were found. A work of this size and quality is an expensive production, but for the paediatric and for the general surgeon and also the paediatrician it will be a very valuable reference.


In 2003, the French government decided to reform th e system managing the different minimum wage regulations and the targeted reduction s to employers' social security contributions. The main objective of the reform was to simplify the complex regulations that were created by the progressive introduction of the 35-hour week. The reform incidentally created large variations in labour costs, depending o the type of firm and the wage level within the firm. This paper presents an evaluation of the impact of this reform on employment using a balanced panel of firms with more than five employees, drawn from a matching between several administrative data sources from 20 00 to 2005. In both types of firm, significant employment elasticities can be found with respect to labour costs that have the expected signs: a rise of 1% in average labour costs reduces employment by 0.4%. As the majority of firms that remained on the 39-hour week received greater reductions, the Fillon reform allowed them to raise th ir level of employment. Firms that adopted the 35-hour week experienced the opposite: the reform led to a fall in employment. Ultimately, the Fillon reform has had no clear effe ct on aggregate employment, measured either in job numbers or full-time equivalents (FTE ).


Fall Saturdays and college football. The March Madness basketball tournament. The NCAA plays an important role in many Americans' lives. But for decades, the association has justified its restrictions on compensation to student-athletes on the basis of "amateurism." Those attempts just ran into the brick wall of NCAA v. Alston. This Article is adapted from a brief we filed on behalf of 65 professors in the Alston case. Because the arguments made by the NCAA and the athletic conferences (together, "NCAA") have been employed so frequently and are so misguided, we address them here. After addressing them, we describe the Supreme Court's rejection of the NCAA's arguments. Central to the Alston case is the NCAA's pursuit of "amateurism." For decades, the NCAA has relied on this concept, which involves some version of student-athletes not being paid or being paid limited amounts of money. In the Alston case, the NCAA restricted not only payments unrelated to education but also those related to education—covering, for example, tutoring, scientific equipment, and computers. Part I of this Article shows how the NCAA's attempt to obtain immunity is not consistent with fundamental underpinnings of antitrust law. Part II focuses on the Supreme Court's 1984 decision in NCAA v. Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma, in which the Court discussed amateurism in dicta in the course of holding that the NCAA's restrictions on television contracts violated antitrust law. Part III focuses on the Rule of Reason, the form of antitrust analysis used by most courts today, to show how the NCAA's restrictions were anticompetitive. We conclude that in Alston, the NCAA sought the knockout punch of antitrust immunity. To put it mildly, it was not successful. Student-athletes will be the beneficiaries.


The objective of this study was to determine the association between body weight of pigs at 7 wk of age, specific management factors, and previous body weight. Among 3736 pigs from 8 commercial farms, greater 7-wk weight was associated with greater birth weight (P = 0.001), greater weaning weight (P = 0.001), and earlier age at weaning (P = 0.001). Farms with the earliest average weaning age had the highest health status. Farms with later weaning ages tended to use nurse sows for light-weight pigs. Pigs from farms using all-in/all-out management in the nursery had greater 7-wk weights (P = 0.01). The total mortality and culling rate during the nursery phase (weaning to approximately 7 wk of age) was 6.8%. Higher losses were observed among pigs with low weaning weights (< 4.1 kg) compared with those with higher weaning weights. More of the variation due to 7-wk weight was due to individual sow rather than to farm of origin.


Several biomolecules potentially serve as promoters or inhibitors of calcification in dialysis patients which include fetuin A, matrix gla protein, osteopontin, osteoprotegerin, etc. The primary aim was to compare the biomarkers of coronary artery calcification (CAC) and to study its role as predictors of CAC in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Of 126 patients undergoing chronic HD, 100 patients completed the study. Blood samples were drawn for serum creatinine, electrolytes, calcium, phosphorus, Vitamin D3, parathyroid hormone (PTH), lipid profile, high sensitivity C-reactive protein, ferritin, fetuin A, and fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23). Non-contrast Computed Tomography scan of the coronary arteries was conducted on all participants. Participants who were positive for CAC (P group) were compared with those negative for CAC (N group) using two sample t-test. Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the predictors of CAC. The prevalence of vascular calcification (VC) was 60% with higher prevalence seen in males (71%), older age group, patients with dialysis vintage >5 years (27%), and diabetic population (62%). Mean serum phosphorus was significantly higher (P <0.001) and fetuin A (P <0.001) was significantly lower in the P group. Age (OR: 1.2, P = 0.004), serum phosphorus (OR: 1.8, P = 0.024), and fetuin A (OR: 0.0006, P = 0.001) were found as predictors of CAC. CAC was more prevalent in males, patients with higher age group and in those with longer dialysis vintage and diabetic population. Participants with CAC exhibited significantly high phosphorus and low fetuin A levels. Age, phosphorus level, and fetuin A were found to be predictors of CAC in dialysis patients. FGF-23 could not predict CAC.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare what criteria novice and habitual entrepreneurs use while adding members to the founding team.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses conjoint analysis (CA) to provide the order of preference for the "choice attributes." The logic of CA is that even if two or more attributes influence the choice, it is unlikely that those attributes will have equal importance for founders with different entrepreneurial experiences.

Findings
This paper found a significant difference in the ranking of the attributes by novice and habitual entrepreneurs. In novice entrepreneurs, the effect of direct ties in the form of kinship ties has the highest preference, followed by prior social contact and prior work relations. However, personal friendships and resource dependency received lesser importance than interpersonal attraction because of the similarity in vision, beliefs and values. Habitual entrepreneurs, however, valued resource dependency and prior work relations more than kinship ties. Also, unlike novice entrepreneurs, habitual entrepreneurs sought cofounders from their indirect ties.

Practical implications
There has been an explosion of interest and funding for programs that help entrepreneurs establish a cofounding team. The authors inform these programs related to the decision concerning assisting novice and habitual entrepreneurs.

Originality/value
While prior studies examined a single attribute at a time, the strength of this study lies in simultaneously tapping all attributes, along with multiple indicators for each attribute. Additionally, this study distinguishes the selection criteria of cofounders based on the entrepreneurial expertise of the lead founder.


Achieving the cost threshold required for fuel cell commercialization necessitates a significant reduction in the operating temperature of solid oxide fuel cells. A reduction in system cost and an improvement in long term performance stability are expected at the lower operating temperature. Even with demonstrated high power density operation using thin film zirconia at 800°C, additional reduction in operating temperature may necessitate the use of an alternate electrolyte material. Lanthanum gallate, with its high conductivity and material stability has shown the potential for 600 - 700°C operation. Chemical reactions at the electrode-electrolyte interface are considered to be the source of performance degradation in gallate electrolyte system. A modified anode composition has been shown to be substantially non-reactive, within the detection limits of X-ray diffraction. The single cell performance with the new electrode was verified in an electrolyte-supported cell configuration. Processing techniques are under evaluation to fabricate and characterize the gallate in an electrode-supported thin film configuration.


Modulated self-assembly protocols are used to develop facile, HF-free syntheses of the archetypal flexible PCP, MIL-53(Cr), and novel isoreticular analogues MIL-53(Cr)-Br and MIL-53(Cr)-NO2. All three PCPs show good SO2 uptake (298 K, 1 bar) and high chemical stabilities against dry and wet SO2. Solid-state photoluminescence spectroscopy indicates all three PCPs exhibit turn-off sensing of SO2, in particular MIL-53(Cr)-Br, which shows a 2.7-fold decrease in emission on exposure to SO2 at room temperature, indicating potential sensing applications.


There is a sizable Kazakh diaspora living in Turkey and Europe. Since their initial migration, these Kazakhs have been involved in actions aiming to preserve their group's cultural and ethnic boundaries. By studying these actions and related discourses, this article seeks to explain how these groups formulated and reformulated their identities and loyalties in their host states over generations. Many Kazakhs in Turkey and Europe originally came from Eastern Turkestan (Xinjiang) and considered this area their homeland. However, Kazakhstan's independence in 1991 led to an important change in their homeland orientation and, after 1991, the activities of an increasing number of Kazakh diaspora organizations shifted toward Kazakhstan as the homeland. Therefore, this article focuses mainly on two periods: the period before and the period after Kazakhstan's independence. The fieldwork was conducted in Turkey, Germany, France, and the Netherlands and includes interviews with leaders of Kazakh diaspora organizations and other members of the diaspora.


Reduced material consumption is a contributing factor when reducing environmental impact.
Reusing current resources can save energy as well. Furthermore these two aspects can be linked
to how BLDC machines are designed and operated. Normally they are operated with Hall
sensors to detect the rotor position, which is necessary for the transistors to commutate at a
correct point. However, there is another method for detecting the rotor position. When an electric
motor is operating, it also generates voltage, so-called back electromotive force (back-EMF),
which can be used as signal for detection the rotor position. BLDC motors are normally operated
with three-phase inverter bridges. By adjusting the commutation of the transistors in the inverter
bridge so that it matches the phase of the back-EMF, hall sensors may be completely excluded.
This can cause a reduction in material consumption during production and thus also reduce
impact on the environment. In addition to using less material, control can also be streamlined
further due to measuring directly on the stator windings. For further attempt to improve
efficiency and reduce environmental impact this project has experimented with magnetic
bearings. This was made successful with an exception for the magnetic bearings. Consequently a
self-designed engine could be controlled by back-EMF as a feedback mechanism. The engine
managed lighter load, but there are however still areas which can be developed further. An
example of a development point is to create a more flexible control which can automatically
adjust itself to the connected motor.


Abstract The African genus Austracarus Lawrence, 1949 was revised based on type specimens and literature data. Two species were transferred to this genus from Acomatacarus Ewing, 1942—A. gateri (Radford, 1942) and A. theileri Radford, 1947. Re-descriptions of these species based on their holotypes and one topotypic specimen were prepared. Two species were re-described based on their paratypes—Austracarus procaviae Lawrence, 1949 and A. dendrohyracis (Vercammen-Grandjean, 1957). The monotypic genus Austrombicula Lawrence, 1949 was synonymized with Austracarus. An updated diagnosis and a key to species of Austracarus are provided.


Objective Little is known about health-related quality of life (HRQoL) responsiveness in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients, compared to other chronic diseases. This review summarizes the available data in HRQoL responsiveness and sensitivity to change in SLE, and recommends directions for research and clinical application. Methods A review of the literature was conducted reporting on HRQoL responsiveness in adult SLE patients between 1984 and 2018. HRQoL studies were assessed for responsiveness, sensitivity of change, minimal important differences, minimal clinical important differences, or change in improvement or deterioration. Results Responsiveness or sensitivity to change in health-related status was observed in Medical Outcome Survey Short Form-36, SLE Symptom Checklist, EuroQoL, and Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 6D. SLE-specific quality of life questionnaire demonstrated greater responsiveness than the individual domains of SF-36. Lupus quality of life showed large responsiveness when there was improvement. LupusPRO and its derivative Lupus Impact Tracker were found to be responsive to change in disease activity, reflecting both improvement and worsening. Lupus Impact Tracker and physical health and pain domains of Lupus quality of life were responsive to SLE composite responder index. Conclusion This review highlights the need for further studies that capture responsiveness and change in HRQoL that are clinically meaningful and sustained. Most importantly, the choice of one measure over another is influenced by the purpose of the HRQoL measure, the particular HRQoL domain, and the SLE disease state that are relevant to the research question.


In the two decades leading up to the 2008 financial crisis, numerous significant changes in federal law greatly reduced transactions costs in financial markets and made possible new types of trading in new types of financial instruments. The driving policy assumption behind these and similar regulatory changes was that making financial markets more complete would increase social welfare by moving financial markets closer toward Arrow-Debreu.

In this paper, we present a model that can explain why, contrary to this policy assumption, regulatory changes that made financial markets more complete in the years leading up to 2008 seemed to produce the opposite effect. Our model shows how when agents have heterogeneous expectations, making financial markets more complete can reduce social welfare by increasing aggregate risk; reducing aggregate returns; and skewing perceptions of wealth in ways that inefficiently distort aggregate consumption decisions, causing agents to over-consume in some periods so that they are forced to cut back consumption sub-optimally in subsequent periods. The intuition underlying our model is that when agents have heterogeneous expectations, making markets for financial instruments more complete amplifies the magnitude of the "winner's curse" observed in many common-value auctions with the detrimental welfare effects we describe.

This paper remains in draft form because of the untimely death of the first author. The second author is posting it to honor her memory and to share what is some of her last work. She will be missed.


Background Belimumab, an anti-BLyS monoclonal antibody, is the first biologic available for SLE treatment. We studied its effectiveness and safety in clinical practice. Methods Multicentric cohort study of SLE patients, fulfilling the 2012 SLICC classification criteria, treated with belimumab in rheumatology departments and registered in the Portuguese registry Reuma.pt. Results Thirty-eight patients were included: 37 (97.4%) female, aged 46.2±13.9 years, mean disease duration of 11.9±8.6 years. The reasons for prescribing belimumab were: multiorgan involvement in 20 (52.6%), haematologic disorders in 9 (23.7%), cutaneous manifestations in 5 (13.0%), arthritis in 3 (7.9%), necrotizing vasculitis in 1 (2.6%). Belimumab was administered intravenously for a mean of 22.3±20.3 months. SRI response was achieved in 14/27 (51.9%), 12/20 (60%) and 11/12 (91.7%) at 6, 12 and 24 months of belimumab treatment, respectively. Mean SLEDAI significantly decreased from 8.2±3.9 at baseline to 3.8±2.2, 4.1±3.2 and 3.1±1.6 at 6, 12 and 24 months, respectively. Anti-dsDNA antibodies significantly decreased at 6, 12 and 24 months and C3 increased at 12 months of belimumab (table 1). We found a significant reduction in mean daily prednisolone dosage (p<0.001) from baseline (10.8±5.1 mg) to the last evaluation under belimumab (5.5±3.0 mg).Abstract P131 Table 1 Evolution of SLEDAI, anti-dsDNA antibodies and C3 levels at 6, 12 and 24 months of belimumab and its significance compared to baseline values. Baseline 6 months 12 months 24 months SLEDAI - mean±SD 8.2±3.9 3.8±2.2(p<0.001) 4.1±3.2(p<0.001) 3.1±1.6(p=0.002) Anti-dsDNA antibodies (UI/mL) - mean±SD 231.6±238.3 155.3±198.7 (p=0.025) 157.9±341.1 (p=0.031) 107.4±132.2 (p=0.003) C3 (mg/dL) - mean±SD 82.6±28.8 89.6±27.1(p=0.223) 94.6±25.8(p=0.018) 100.9±36.9 (p=0.139) Eleven (28.9%) patients discontinued belimumab: loss of effectiveness in 4, lost to follow-up in 4, adverse events in 3 (urinary tract infections, acute myocardial infarction, breast cancer). Three presented infections related to belimumab. Conclusions We confirmed belimumab effectiveness and safety in real-life active SLE patients.


Retrospective data have suggested an increased survival benefit for patients undergoing partial nephrectomy compared to radical nephrectomy, possibly as a result of the avoidance of long‐term renalin sufficiency and subsequent sequelae. However, recent level‐one evidence has questioned this benefit. Both retrospective studies and randomized controlled trials are not without limitations. There are few population‐based data available with respect to the outcomes of partial nephrectomy vs radical nephrectomy. Additionally, there are no population‐based studies analyzing the surgical approach (minimally‐invasive vs open), as well as other modalities, such as ablation and surveillance. Finally, there is very little information available on the potential differences in cost for each approach. The present study comprises the first comprehensive population‐based analysis of the trends, outcomes and costs of all treatment modalities for T1a renal masses from 2005 to 2007.


Introduction: This systematic review was conducted to analyze the impact and describe simulation-based training and the acquisition of laparoscopic surgery skills during medical school and residency programs. Methods: This systematic review focused on the published literature that used randomized controlled trials to examine the effectiveness of simulation-based training to develop laparoscopic surgery skills. Searching PubMed from the inception of the databases to May 1, 2014 and specific hand journal searches identified the studies. This current review of the literature addresses the question of whether laparoscopic simulation translates the acquisition of surgical skills to the operating room (OR). Results: This systematic review of simulation-based training and laparoscopic surgery found that specific skills could be translatable to the OR. Twenty-one studies reported learning outcomes measured in five behavioral categories: economy of movement (8 studies); suturing (3 studies); performance time (13 studies); error rates (7 studies), and global rating (7 studies). Conclusion: Simulation-based training can lead to demonstrable benefits of surgical skills in the OR environment. This review suggests that simulation-based training is an effective way to teach laparoscopic surgery skills, increase translation of laparoscopic surgery skills to the OR, and increase patient safety; however, more research should be conducted to determine if and how simulation can become apart of surgical curriculum.


Social networking sites are more common to the young generation worldwide. Pakistan's major population is comprised of young generation. Thus, usage of social networking sites has become the trend among the youth of Pakistan which has strong effect on the student's performance and habits. Thus, this study aims to examine the impact of social network usage on the university student's academic performance of Lahore, Pakistan. Cross sectional survey technique has used in the current study. The self-administered questionnaire distributed to the 260 students of four universities of Lahore through convenient random sampling. Descriptive analysis was used to analyze the data while Chi-square (X 2 ) analysis has performed to test the research hypotheses. The findings of the current study show that the university students of Lahore, Pakistan are using different social networking sites which has negative effect on the student's academic performance and habits.  Int. J. Soc. Sc. Manage. Vol. 3, Issue-4: 267-276


Teesta River basin, located in the northwest of Bangladesh, is more vulnerable to floods if compared to other parts of the country. In this context, daily rainfall data of ten raingauge stations located in the catchment of the Jamuneswari River, part of the Teesta River basin, were analysed to study the impact of climate change on rainfall. Length of wet and dry series and mean monthly rainfalls along with their variances were used for validating Long Ashton Research Station Weather Generator (LARS‐WG). The analysis was carried out for A1B, A2 and B1 emission scenarios using 15 Global Climate Models GCMs simulations for the periods 2011–2030 centred at 2020, 2046–2065 centred at 2055 and 2080–2099 centred at 2090. The analysis of the data shows that the uncertainty in the prediction increases with the timescale. It was also found that the variability in the predictions is smaller in annual values followed by seasonal. Ensemble of seasonal analysis shows that most of the GCM are in agreement for changes in monsoon season. The LARS‐WG has reasonable skill to downscale the point rainfall data and the results obtained so are useful to analyse the impact of climate change on the hydrology of the basin.


Many unique functional properties of starch have been utilized for industrial applications. These properties are influenced by the granular and molecular structures of starch.The amylose/amylopectin content in two maize starch samples of differing cultivars were measured. The starches were then subjected to enzymatic digestibility by α- amylase. The degree of hydrolysis of each starch sample was compared with amylose/amylopectin content. Starches from the two varieties of maize showed variable susceptibilities to B. cereus α-amylase attack. The degrees of hydrolysis are 37.5 % (yellow maize) and 42.0% (white maize). The amylopectin content of the two starches are 59.33 % (white maize) and 64.24 % (yellow maize). This suggests that the amylopectin content was inversely related to susceptibility by B.cereus α-amylase attack. The maize starch with the higher amylose content has the higher value of dextrose equivalent


The prognostic impact of the tumor microenvironment in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma has not been systematically assessed. We analyzed mRNA and antigen expression of monocytes, macrophages, lymphocytes, dendritic and natural killer cells in pretreatment tumor samples of patients with high-risk diffuse large B-cell lymphoma using gene expression microarray and immunohistochemistry. The patients were treated in a Nordic phase II study with dose-dense chemoimmunotherapy and central nervous system prophylaxis. Of the studied markers for non-malignant inflammatory cells, CD68 expression and CD68+ macrophage counts correlated with favorable outcome. Five-year progression-free survival rates were 83% and 43% for the patients with high and low CD68 mRNA levels, respectively (P=0.007), while overall survival rates were 83% and 64%, respectively (P=ns). The patients with high CD68+ macrophage counts had better 5-year progression-free survival (74% versus 40%; P=0.003) and overall survival (90% versus 60%; P=0.009) than the patients with low macrophage counts. Low CD68+ macrophage count retained its prognostic impact on overall survival with age-adjusted International Prognostic Index [RR=5.0 (95% CI 1.024–19.088); P=0.017]. The findings were validated in three independent cohorts of patients treated with chemoimmunotherapy. In contrast, in patients treated with chemotherapy, high CD68+ macrophage count was associated with poor progression-free survival (40% versus 72%; P=0.021) and overall survival (39% versus 72%; P=0.015). Together, the data suggest that macrophages exhibit a dual, treatment-specific role in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. For the patients treated with chemoimmunotherapy, high pretreatment CD68 mRNA levels and CD68+ macrophage numbers predict a favorable outcome.


This paper deals with image denoising under standard assumption of additive white Gaussian noise presence. We study potential of denoising effectiveness for a typical representative of orthogonal transform based techniques — a filter based on discrete cosine transform (DCT) with fixed size blocks. It is shown that its performance depends upon many different factors where threshold setting is of prime importance. Possibility of setting individual threshold for each block is considered and it is demonstrated that it opens a certain perspective for further improving performance compared to known versions of DCT-based filter. Performance comparison is done for several denoising techniques including the benchmark BM3D filter. It is shown that potentially DCT-based filter with properly set thresholds adapted to block properties can perform the same or sometimes even better than BM3D filter.


Florida Bay is a large and shallow estuary that is linked to the Everglades watershed and is a target of the Greater Everglades ecosystem restoration effort. The conceptual ecological model presented here is a qualitative and minimal depiction of those ecosystem components and linkages that are considered essential for understanding historic changes in the bay ecosystem, the role of human activities as drivers of these changes, and how restoration efforts are likely to affect the ecosystem in the future. The conceptual model serves as a guide for monitoring and research within an adaptive management framework. Historic changes in Florida Bay that are of primary concern are the occurrence of seagrass mass mortality and subsequent phytoplankton blooms in the 1980s and 1990s. These changes are hypothesized to have been caused by long-term changes in the salinity regime of the bay that were driven by water management. However, historic ecological changes also may have been influenced by other human activities, including occlusion of passes between the Florida Keys and increased nutrient loading. The key to Florida Bay restoration is hypothesized to be seagrass community restoration. This community is the central ecosystem element, providing habitat for upper trophic level species and strongly influencing productivity patterns, sediment resuspension, light penetration, nutrient availability, and phytoplankton dynamics. An expectation of Everglades restoration is that changing patterns of freshwater flow toward more natural patterns will drive Florida Bay's structure and function toward its pre-drainage condition. However, considerable uncertainty exists regarding the indirect effects of changing freshwater flow, particularly with regard to the potential for changing the export of dissolved organic matter from the Everglades and the fate and effects of this nutrient source. Adaptive management of Florida Bay, as an integral part of Everglades restoration, requires an integrated program of monitoring, research to decrease uncertainties, and development of quantitative models (especially hydrodynamic and water quality) to synthesize data, develop and test hypotheses, and improve predictive capabilities. Understanding and quantitatively predicting changes in the nature of watershed-estuarine linkages is the highest priority scientific need for Florida Bay restoration.


Egypt is one of the highest prevalence rates of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection worldwide. HCV is among major reasons for chronic liver diseases. MicroRNA (miRNAs), small noncoding regulatory molecules play a key role in the pathogenesis of liver. Circulating miRNAs represent potential noninvasive biomarkers for diagnosis and monitoring patients with liver diseases progression. To investigate the potential role of circulating miRNAs for surveillance of liver disease progression, we assessed the expression of 20 liver‐related miRNAs in sera of 47 chronic hepatitis C Egyptian patients compared with 25 controls using quantitative reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction assay. The sensitivity and specificity were evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The correlations between their levels and the clinicopathological features were assessed. Fourteen miRNAs showed upregulation and six miRNAs showed downregulation. ROC curve analyses revealed that the explored miRNAs could serve as valuable biomarkers for chronic hepatitis with an area under the curve ranged from 0.708 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.587 to 0.829; P = 0.004) for miR‐199 up to 0.974 (95% CI, 0.943 to 1.00; P < 0.001) for miR‐23b. The expression level of miR‐21 demonstrated significant correlation with age, liver enzymes, ALT/AST, and α‐fetoprotein level. AST level was directly correlated with miR‐122, while an inversely correlated with miR‐23b. Fibrosis and steatosis stages possessed positive correlation with miR‐199 expression and negative correlation with miR‐27a and miR‐93. In conclusion, miR‐23b and miR‐106 might be a useful biomarker for chronic hepatitis C (CHC). MiR‐27a, miR‐93, and miR‐199 might have a potential role in the progression of liver diseases. Unravel the role of these miRNAs in CHC patients might lead to precise prognosis and management.


Polar glaciers are inhabited by numerous microorganisms including representa-tives of bacteria, archaea, microeukaryotes, and viruses. Low temperature is a main factor when considering polar glaciers as extreme environments. However, desiccation, low nutrients availability, ultraviolet irradiation, and photoreactive chemistry do also significantly influence their challenging life. Glaciers are highly selective and confined habitats, which make them favorable environments for adaptation and speciation. Depending on the glacier area studied, microorganisms establish a vertical food chain, from the surface photosynthesizers in upper illuminated layers to chemoautotrophs and heterotrophs confined to the inner part. These regions are rich not only in biodiversity but also in new mechanisms of adaptation to the environment, since selection acts with a particular intensity. Glaciers are retreating in many areas of the world due to global warming. When glaciers have ultimately withdrawn, microorganisms play a main role, carrying out key processes in the development of soil and facilitating plant colonization. These features make them unique and interesting for the study and protection of the biological heritage. Metagenomics have allowed a deeper understanding of microbial ecology and function of polar glacier microbial communities. In this review, we present a complete analysis of the microbial diversity in these ecosystems and include a thorough overview of the metabolic potentials and biogeochemical cycles in polar glacier habitats.


The dynamic Young's moduli and the internal friction of fused quartz, Pyrex glass, and soft glass rods were measured at a frequency of 37 kilocycles, in longitudinal vibration, within the temperature range −170° to 1000°C. The moduli of Pyrex and quartz increased with rising temperature, up to the softening point of the glass, while that of soft glass decreased. All three moduli were approximately linear with respect to the temperature over most of the measurement interval. Internal friction maxima were noted at high temperatures, while at the lowest measurement temperatures a significant increase in background damping occurred. A brief recapitulation of existing theory is given and employed to interpret the internal friction data. It is suggested that, in microscopically inhomogeneous media, the diffusion measurement by internal friction methods is not equivalent to the determination by other techniques.


The article describes the features of Chinese students that complicate the use of video aids at the lessons of Russian as a foreign language. The materials help to organize an educational process aiming at acquiring a high level of linguistic and communicative competence of Chinese students.


Using constrained factor mixture models (FMM) for careless response identification is still in its infancy. Existing models have overly restrictive statistical assumptions that do not identify all types of careless respondents. The current paper presents a novel constrained FMM model with more reasonable assumptions that capture both longstring and random careless respondents. We provide a comprehensive comparison of the statistical assumptions between the proposed model and two previous constrained models. The proposed model was evaluated using both real data ( N = 1,455) and statistical simulation. The results showed that the model had a superior fit, stronger convergent validity with other indicators of careless responding, more accurate parameter recovery and more accurate identification of careless respondents when compared to its predecessors. The proposed model does not require additional data collection effort, and thus researchers can routinely use it to control careless responses. We provide user-friendly syntax with detailed explanations online to facilitate its use.


Background: Praziquantel, as the only drug for the treatment of schistosomiasis, is under serious threat due to the emergence of resistant strains of Schistosoma species. There is an urgent need to search for alternative chemotherapy to supplement or complement praziquantel. Schistosoma dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) has been recommended as a druggable target for schistosomiasis chemotherapy. The development of novel molecular modeling approaches, alongside with computational tools and rapid sequencing of pathogen genomes, have facilitated drug discovery. Therefore, the aim of this study was to employ computational approaches to screen compounds against Schistosoma mansoni DHODH. Methods: In this study, DHODH was used to blast on the latest version of DrugBank that contained 12,110 compounds, resulting in 26 drugs that can bind. Results: In silico docking shows that 13 drugs can bind strongly with an estimated free energy of binding, total intermolecular energy and estimated inhibition constant (Ki) greater than or equal to -8.6 kcal/mol, -8.12 kcal/mol and 1.12 μM, respectively. These compounds include the approved drugs manitimus, capecitabine, brequinar analog and leflunomide. Conclusions: These results indicate that these drugs have the potential for use in the control of schistosomiasis in the future.


Women's history had its origins in the women's movement and in the new social history, and like other areas of social history, it has seen relatively few interchanges with world history as both have developed over the past twenty years. This article suggests some of the reasons for this lack of intersection; assesses recent scholarship that brings world history and the history of women, gender, and sexuality together; and suggests future directions.


This is the first book in any language to explore the cultural connotations of childhood in the early phases of Chinese history. Drawing upon both traditional and archeological materials, this study encompasses the stages of human development that begin with the embryo and extend to late adolescence. While texts from China's most ancient period scarcely mention children, rather suddenly, in Han times (206 BC-AD 220), the written record begins to feature fairly detailed references to children and the childhoods of famous figures. The aim of this book is to identify the cultural conditions that place children and childhood near the center of intellectual debate during this period. These conditions are related to the establishment of a centralized empire and are expressed in the discourse surrounding cosmology, medicine, law, statecraft, and-most important-dynastic history. The book describes the dangers that haunted children of high status, with the rules of succession, shifting power structures at court, and traditional views on patriarchy and parental authority (including the right of life and death over children) contributing to their vulnerability.


5 [1] A two-dimensional cloud resolving model with explicit bin microphysics is used to 6 study the maintenance of tropical tropopause layer (TTL) cirrus. Numerical simulations 7 using this model show that a TTL cirrus with a maximum radiative heating rate of 3 K/day 8 is able to self-maintain for as long as 2 days if it contains ice crystals whose initial 9 mean radius is smaller than about 5 mm. The key to the maintenance of the cloud is the 10 circulation thermally forced by the cloud radiative heating. When the cloud layer is at ice 11 saturation and temperature decreases with height, advection of water vapor by the 12 thermally forced circulation results in water vapor flux convergence in the cloud. This 13 leads to growth of ice crystals despite the diabatic warming produced by the radiative 14 heating. The source of water vapor for the growth of ice crystals is outside the cloud 15 lateral edge, which is outside the vertical column that contains the initial cloud. The 16 conversion of water vapor into ice in the simulated TTL cirrus indicates its potential to 17 dehydrate the surrounding environment. This dehydration mechanism does not involve 18 adiabatic cooling associated with external large-scale uplift.


For droop control in voltage source converter based multi-terminal HVDC systems, the determination of droop coefficients is a key issue, which directly affects both power distribution and DC control performances. This paper proposes a novel design of droop coefficients considering the requirements of power distribution, DC voltage control and system stability. Considering the power margins of different converters, the ratio relationship among droop coefficients is established. Converters with larger power margins take bigger portion of power mismatch to avoid overload problem. Furthermore, the integral square error of converters DC voltage is adopted as the DC voltage control performance index, and optimization of droop coefficients to achieve coordinated DC voltage control of steady-state deviation and transient variation, is derived. Finally, the constraint of droop coefficients is established to guarantee the DC system stability after power disturbance. Case studies are conducted on the Nordic 32 system with an embedded 4-terminal DC grid to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed droop control scheme.


Lattice Heat Transfer (LHT) structures provide superior structural support while improving the heat transfer coefficient through their high surface-to-volume ratios. By using current Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies, LHT with highly complex structures is possible. In this study, the design concept of LHT is further improved by implementing a thermomechanical topology optimization method. With utilization of design-dependent heat source, the method can be applied to generate stiffer LHT structures under mechanical and thermomechanical loads, without decreasing their thermal performance; relative to a design made of a uniform LHT having the same mass fraction. Two numerical examples are presented to illustrate how to use the proposed approach to design LHT sections. The results show that the mechanical performance can be improved more than 50% compared to a uniform LHT with the same mass fraction, without decreasing the thermal performance. The method does not require a fluid mechanics model, thus it is computational effective and particularly suitable for the conceptual design stage. The resulting optimized lattice is made possible by utilizing additive manufacturing technologies.


The clinical success of islet transplantation is limited by factors including acute ischemia, stress upon transplantation, and delayed vascularization. Islets experience high levels of oxidative stress due to delayed vascularization after transplantation and this can be further aggravated by their encapsulation and undesirable cell-biomaterial interactions. To identify biomaterials that would not further increase oxidative stress levels and that are also suitable for manufacturing a beta cell encapsulation device, we studied five clinically approved polymers for their effect on oxidative stress and islet (alpha and beta cell) function. We found that 300 poly(ethylene oxide terephthalate) 55/poly(butylene terephthalate) 45 (PEOT/PBT300) was more resistant to breakage and more elastic than other biomaterials, which is important for its immunoprotective function. In addition, PEOT/PBT300 did not induce oxidative stress or reduce viability in MIN6 beta cells, and even promoted protective endogenous antioxidant expression over 7 days. Importantly, PEOT/PBT300 is one of the biomaterials we studied that did not interfere with insulin secretion in human islets. These data indicate that PEOT/PBT300 may be a suitable biomaterial for an islet encapsulation device.


Objective To explore the alternative operating position that could maximize the comfort and safety for patients on operating table for cancer excision in the lower rectum.Methods Fifty-eight patients undergoing radical excision with rectal cancer were randomly divided into 2 groups.Group A was traditional position referred to conventional lithotomy position as controls.Group B was alteration position,with altered height,angle and the direction of the thighs-flat and leg pad.The time of setting patient's position,post-surgical comfortable degree,and visualization of operation area were compared between the 2 groups.Results The setting time in group B was significantly shorter than that in group A(P0.01).The patients in group B felt more comfortable than those in group A after operation(P0.05).Both the two groups had satisfying visualization of operation area.Conclusion The altered operating position is more useful and easier to operate.It could save time and force for nurses at operating room.Moreover,the patients felt more comfortable after being operated.


Using a new Granger no-causality testing procedure, developed by Toda and Yamamoto (1995), this study contributes to recent debate on immigration and unemployment in Australia by investigating the causal linkage between immigration and unemployment in a six-variable vector autoregresion (VAR) model. The VAR model in the paper is built upon a general unemployment equation developed by Pope and Withers (1993), using quarterly time series data covering the 1983:3 to 1995:4 period. The question that whether "immigrants rob jobs" is examined by identifying the sources of unemployment through causal linkages between unemployment and other key variables such as immigration. The research finds no Granger causality between immigration and unemployment. Instead, there is evidence of Granger causality running from structural change, as measured by the Stoikov Index, to unemployment and from other key variables to unemployment.


The research had as objective to characterize pineapple (Ananas comosus) growers of the region of the Papaloapan in Veracruz, Mexico. A total of 315 growers belonging to the municipalities of Juan Rodriguez Clara and Isla, Veracruz, were interviewed using an instrument of 55 items. They were interviewed on the local markets known as the "bascule†. The main problem the farmers face is the lack of organization in terms of marketing issues and the effect of low prices, as the product is marketed in the national market and the most important variety is the Cayena, which does not compete with international varieties such as the MD2. In terms of technical consulting, this is normally given by the providers of agrochemical products; hence the institutions of research and education are not relevant in the region. It can be concluded that in order to increase the competitiveness of the growers is necessary to improve their training programs and their marketing chains with direct agreements with other agents of the metropolitan regions of the country.


Corporate governance is one of the most topical and controversial areas of business and finance. This article provides an overview of the questions that it raises and proposed policy responses. It points to the diversity in systems of corporate governance around the world, the apparently paradoxical performance of different systems and an association with different forms of corporate-governance failures. The article discusses a range of proposed remedies including the restructuring of boards, regulation of markets in corporate control and limitations on executive remuneration. It also considers whether the need for harmonized corporate-governance rules can be diminished by freedom of mobility of corporations and competition between legal systems.