The present study compared the differences in severity of violence and number of injuries of couples between couples with reciprocal violence and non-reciprocal violence in Arequipa, Peru. Two hundred and eighty adults of both genders, who were married and/or cohabiting with a partner at the time of the study participated. The sample was obtained from three districts in Arequipa city and participants were approached and interviewed at their homes. They completed a socio-demographic questionnaire and the Conflicts Tactics Scale Revised, which included questions about physical abuse incidents perpetrated by both partners. Sixty one percent of the participants reported reciprocal violence, and 11.4% of the participants reported nonreciprocal violence in their relationship. The results showed significant differences between reciprocally and non-reciprocally violent couples in minor (t = -11.77, p<.001) and severe (t = 9.03, p<.001) physical abuse incidents, and also in minor (t = -7.02, p<.001) and severe (t = 4.83, p<.001) reported injuries. Participants in reciprocally violent couples reported more incidents of minor and severe physical abuse and more minor and severe injuries.


The results of investigations of thermal properties of chlorosulfonated polyethylene CSM24 or CSM43 with styrene-butadiene rubber SBR crosslinked blends are presented. The blends were crosslinked at temp. 160 °C in the presence of zinc oxide (ZnO) or nano- zinc oxide (nZnO). Thermal curves (DSC, TG) obtained in an inert gas atmosphere were interpreted from the points of view of phase transitions and accompanying chemical reactions carried out with polymer blends' components (Fig.1―5). A good comiscibility of CSM and SBR, resulting from the formation of nonconventional inter-elastomer network during the crosslinking process, has been found. The results showed clear effect of chlorine content in CSM on the value of glass transition temperature of the crosslinked blend (Table 1). It was stated that CSM/SBR blends in the presence of nZnO undergo two-stage thermal crosslinking and keep their elastic properties in wider temperature range.


AIM
To quantify the relationship between any general practitioner (GP) visit and hazardous alcohol use, and whether this differs by sociodemographic factors.

METHOD
Hazardous alcohol use (scores 8+ Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) and any past year GP visits were examined using 2016/17 New Zealand Health Survey data from 13,598 adults. Sub-group analyses examined whether the association differed by age, sex or ethnicity (Māori/non-Māori), and socioeconomic status (NZDep2013) in post-hoc analyses.

RESULTS
Results differed for Māori and non-Māori. Regardless of drinking behaviour, Māori males aged 15-24 years were least likely to visit a GP. Among Māori in each demographic group, GP visits were similar for people meeting hazardous drinking criteria and safer drinkers. Conversely, among non-Māori males aged under 45 and non-Māori females aged 15-24 and 45-64 years, GP visits were 10-13 percentage points higher among people meeting hazardous drinking criteria than safer drinkers. GP visits were lower for people meeting hazardous drinking criteria living in more deprived areas.

CONCLUSION
Multiple strategies need to be prioritised to address service access particularly for young Māori, and support people drinking at hazardous levels. This includes increasing access to services in various settings, enhancing existing primary health services (eg, cultural responsiveness, alcohol screening, brief interventions), addressing access barriers, and health promotion.


Duplicate question detection (DQD) is important to increase efficiency of community and automatic question answering systems. Unfortunately, gathering supervised data in a domain is time-consuming and expensive, and our ability to leverage annotations across domains is minimal. In this work, we leverage neural representations and study nearest neighbors for cross-domain generalization in DQD. We first encode question pairs of the source and target domain in a rich representation space and then using a k-nearest neighbour retrieval-based method, we aggregate the neighbors' labels and distances to rank pairs. We observe robust performance of this method in different cross-domain scenarios of StackExchange, Spring and Quora datasets, outperforming cross-entropy classification in multiple cases.


Animal models of neurological disorders are critical for determining underlying disease mechanisms and developing new therapeutic modalities. In general, the utility of an animal model for a particular disease is often dependent on how closely the model replicates all or part of the human condition. In Parkinson's disease (PD) and related parkinsonian disorders there now exists a variety of animal models, each of which makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the human condition. These models have been derived in a variety of species (pig, nonhuman primate, rodent, and cat) using multiple techniques, including (1) surgical lesioning, (2) pharmacological manipulation, (3) administration of neurotoxicants, and (4) genetic alterations. While these models are not identical to the human condition with respect to behavioral characteristics, brain anatomy, or disease progression, they have provided significant advancements in our understanding of the underlying mechanisms and treatment of movement disorders such as PD.


The topic of "IKN" is not just a discourse. This is good news for Indonesia which is trying to be free from prosperity conflicts, which so far have only been concentrated in one area. What is more crucial is that the struggle for economic resources is also always won by regions that have inclusive GRDP growth, competitive workers, and solid infrastructure facilities, especially in Java. This is because regions such as Kalimantan, their economic prospects are sinking because the transformation of consumption and purchasing power is not working. Therefore, this paper initiates the relationship between population, electricity, water production, and regional/GRDP growth in the center of IKN and 4 buffer zones. Systematics in data extraction uses panel regression which presents time-series data (8 periods). Valuable insights conclude some important findings. The population has been proven to increase electricity in PPU, Paser, Balikpapan and Samarinda. Positive causality also indicates the effect of population on water production in PPU and Balikpapan. However, it also influences positively. On the other hand, electric power has a positive impact on economic growth in PPU, while in Paser, water production actually increases economic growth. Population as the only variable that has no effect on economic growth in all cases. Only Kukar has all the opposite variables and has a negative effect. Finally, preparations towards a fair IKN development perspective consider long and short term policy packages.


The intrinsic basis of cancer-related anemia (CRA) is erythropoiesis disorder, which is a common complication of cancer and exerts a negative influence on the life quality of cancer patients. Cell therapy using mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) is considered as a promising method in cancer treatment. Furthermore, MSCs have been used to cure few type of anemia and be considered as a potential strategy to recover anemia radically. However, none reports its application in CRA treatment. In CRA model mice, we found that the number of lin-c-kit+Sca-1+ and Sca-1+ MSCs was decreased. And CRA resulted in an increased number of proerythroblasts and basophilic erythroblasts and decreased number of orthochromatic erythroblasts. Furthermore, in CRA model mice transplanted with Sca-1+ MSCs and MSCs, the levels of red blood cell count and Hb in peripheral blood were obviously increased. And the accumulation of proerythroblasts and basophilic erythroblasts was inhibited. In addition, the expression patterns of GATA-1 and GATA-2, which is pivotal to anemia, were remarkably recovered. Our results demonstrated that either MSCs or its subpopulation could effectively recover CRA erythropoiesis through GATA-1/GATA-2 signaling, which outstrips the traditional symptomatic therapy.


Coca (Erythroxylum coca) is a native bush from the Amazon rainforest in South America. The leaves of this bush have been used traditionally for thousands of years in Peru and Bolivia, especially by indigenous populations. Traditional uses include chewing coca leaves as a stimulant to overcome fatigue, hunger and thirst; drinking coca tea to combat altitude sickness; and coca leaf offerings during religious ceremonies. Moreover, indigenous people exchange coca leaves socially to show affection and respect. Coca is, therefore, a social cohesion facilitator and an important part of indigenous Andean cultural heritage.


Senile plaques (SPs) and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) in the brains of five aged (20-26 years old) cynomolgus monkeys were investigated immunohistochemically using two monoclonal antibodies (anti-A beta 40 (BA27) and anti-A beta 42(43) (BC05)) that can differentiate the carboxyl termini of amyloid beta protein (A beta) subtypes. In four of five animals, all types of SPs (i.e. diffuse, primitive, and classical plaques; DPs, PPs, and CPs, respectively) were identified by BC05. However, BA27 did not label DPs and stained only about one third of PPs and CPs, mainly labeling granular structures and cored portions, respectively. In CAA, lesions of cortical capillaries reacted to BC05 in four of five cases, but rarely and weakly to BA27 in two of five cases. On the other hand, lesions of parenchymal and meningeal arterioles were stained by both BA27 and BC05. These staining profiles of SPs in cynomolgus monkeys correspond well to those in humans, although there are two remarkable features in cynomolgus monkeys. First, BA27 stained PPs associated with granular structures. Secondly, capillary A beta reacted intensely to BC05 but only slightly to BA27. Despite these unique features, the results suggest that aged cynomolgus monkeys can be used to investigate the pathogenesis of A beta deposition in SPs and CAA.


In this letter, we express the Cramer-Rao bound (CRB) for carrier phase estimation from a noisy linearly modulated signal with encoded data symbols, in terms of the marginal a posteriori probabilities (APPs) of the coded symbols. For a wide range of classical codes (block codes, convolutional codes, and trellis-coded modulation), these marginal APPs can be computed efficiently by means of the Bahl-Cocke-Jelinke-Raviv (BCJR) algorithm, whereas for codes that involve interleaving (turbo codes and bit interleaved coded modulation), iterated application of the BCJR algorithm is required. Our numerical results show that when the BER of the coded system is less than about 10/sup -3/, the resulting CRB is essentially the same as when transmitting a training sequence.


The authors report the case of a 65-year-old, right-hand-dominant man who had severe Dupuytren's disease with multiple cords and flexion contractures of the metacarpophalangeal and proximal interphalangeal joints of both hands and underwent repeated collagenase injections for treatment. Collagenase has been shown to be safe and effective in the treatment of Dupuytren's contractures when administered as a single dose, but the results of multiple injections over a prolonged period are unknown. Antibodies to collagenase develop in all patients after several treatments, raising concerns about safety and efficacy as a result of sensitization from repeated exposures. The antibodies generated as a result of repeated exposure to collagenase could theoretically render it less effective with time and could also lead to immune reactions as severe as anaphylaxis. The authors present the case of a single patient who experienced continued correction of his contractures with only minor and self-limited adverse reactions after administration of 12 collagenase doses through 15 injections during a 4-year period. Over time, the injections continued to be effective at correcting metacarpophalangeal joint contractures, but less effective at correcting proximal interphalangeal joint contractures. The patient did eventually require a fasciectomy, but the safety and modest success of the repeated collagenase injections shows promise for a less invasive treatment with a better risk profile than open fasciectomy. Although further studies are needed, repeated administration of collagenase appears to be safe and modestly effective for severe Dupuytren's contractures, although a fasciectomy may ultimately be required in the most severe cases.


Summarizes the current status of pastoral care and counseling in South Africa and notes the variety of implications resulting from the uncritical acceptance of the Western Europe and North American styles of pastoral care and counseling. Outlines and details the necessary project of contextualizing which now faces pastoral caregivers in South Africa as it attempts to integrate its unique cultural and religious heritages into developing a relevant pastoral theology that will serve pastoral practice and pedagogical necessity.


Gneiss domes in the Maryland Piedmont near Baltimore contain a wide variety of metamorphic rock types, all metamorphosed to amphibolite grade and collectively named Baltimore Gneiss. Most were derived from interlayered sedimentary and volcanic rocks into which granitic plutons were emplaced in both Precambrian and Paleozoic time. Migmatitic features are common in the Baltimore Gneiss. Most seem to refl ect either original sedimentary layering or original layering that has been enhanced by later metamorphic differentiation, but some involved partial melting, perhaps during the Precambrian metamorphism. We fi nd no evidence for widespread melting in rocks at the present level of exposure during the Paleozoic. Limited fl uid-driven K-metasomatism may well have occurred locally, but we fi nd no evidence for metasomatism on a regional scale. Pressure-temperature conditions for the Baltimore Gneiss during the Paleozoic metamorphism are estimated to be 7–9 kb and 625–675 °C. For half a century, the anticlinal structures exposing basement gneiss at Baltimore have been cited as classic examples of mantled gneiss domes, but more recent fi eld studies and geophysical investigations suggest that they are the result of interference between late upright folds and early nappe structures formed by a combination of isoclinal folding along subhorizontal axial surfaces and thrust faults rooted in a regional decollement.


The radiotherapy of lung cancer with curative total doses (56-60 Gy), is limited by the presence of critical organs (esophagus, spinal cord). The use of computed TPS (Therapy Planning System) allows to the radiotherapist to calculate the values and to obtain dose distribution to the organs at risk, in the limit of biological tolerance levels. In our work, we present the calculation of the absorbed doses of Co60, at the spinal cord, at a patient with a cancer of the right lung, during irradiation.


This article is a case study of an undergraduate course in positive psychology taught by Dr Tal Ben-Shahar. The course has been taught three times between 2004 and 2008 in the Department of Psychology at the Harvard University. It is currently being taught at the School of Psychology, 'Interdisciplinary Center', Herzliya (one of Israel's leading colleges), in both English and Hebrew. The course's main emphasis is on transformation rather than information, while exploring the main question: 'How can we help ourselves and others – individuals, communities, and society – to become happier?' The course was innovative in its content as well as in its teaching methods. When taught, it was the most popular course at Harvard with the largest attendance in the history of the psychology department – with enrollment reaching over 855 students (about one out of every seven undergraduate students). Understanding the uniqueness of this course could contribute to the development of teaching the popular and broad field of positive psychology at the undergraduate level and to varied populations.


195 populations of Epacris impressa in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania were surveyed for corolla colour composition. Of these, 75 consisted entirely of plants with white, or pink, or scarlet corollas. These monomorphic populations showed a consistent association between corolla colour, corolla length and anther colour, which suggested that corolla colour is a marker of racial development in this species. Most of the other 120 populations were polymorphic for pink- and white-flowered plants, the content of white-flowered plants ranging from 1 to 99 %. Twenty-six of these polymorphic populations were located in the Grampians and belong to the previously recognized grandiflora race. Four races are distinguished in E. impressa, marked respectively by short white corollas, long pink corollas, long scarlet corollas, and broad pink or white corollas (grandiflora). Corolla colour and length in the genus Epacris, and the potential importance of corolla colour and other differences in successful pollination are discussed.


We derive several equations that determine the stability of purely hydrodynamic flow of an electrically conducting fluid with respect to creation of magnetic field. One equation determines the evolution of arbitrarily large disturbances of the hydrodynamic flow and provides extension of the Reynolds-Orr equation that includes the magnetic degrees of freedom. This equation allows to demonstrate that, for hydrodynamic and magnetic Reynolds numbers below a threshold, the purely hydrodynamic flow is non-linearly stable and magnetic field of an arbitrary initial amplitude decays. In the case of high Reynolds number turbulence, the non-linear stability bound is provided via properties of ordinary hydrodynamic turbulence and an unknown constant of order one. In the case where the perturbations of magnetic field are small, the so-called kinematic dynamo, we revisit Childress and Backus bounds and provide equation for logarithmic growth rate of the magnetic energy. This equation demonstrates that the rate has the form of infinite-dimensional generalization of the Lyapunov exponent. Thus it is plausible that the rate can be determined from a single realization of evolution similarly to the Lyapunov exponents. The form could also provide a shortcut to the numerical determination of the growth rate. We illustrate its usage by providing an estimate for the critical magnetic Reynolds number below which the magnetic field decays in turbulence exponentially.


Scholars have long noted the role that college literary anthologies play in the rising and falling reputations of American authors. Canons by Consensus examines this classroom fixture in detail to challenge and correct a number of assumptions about the development of the literary canon throughout the 20th century. Joseph Csicsila examines more than 80 anthologies published since 1919 and traces not only the critical fortunes of individual authors, but also the treatment of entire genres and groupings of authors by race, region, gender, and formal approach. In doing so, he calls into question accusations of deliberate or inadvertent sexism and racism. For instance, the space allocated to many women writers in the classroom textbooks assigned for college courses of the 1920s and 1930s is found to match or exceed these writers' presence in literature textbooks of the 1980s and 1990s. In addition, the selections by anthology editors, Csicsila demonstrates, have always been governed far more by prevailing trends in academic criticism than by personal bias. Academic anthologies are found to constitute a rich and often overlooked resource for studying American literature, as well as an irrefutable record of the academy's changing literary tastes throughout the last century.


This study attempted to determine whether the CCR5 Delta32 deletion affected progression to certain first AIDS-defining illnesses in human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected patients enrolled in the French SEROCO/HEMOCO/SEROGEST cohorts. Toxoplasmosis onset as a first AIDS-defining illness was significantly delayed in 253 heterozygous patients, compared with 1404 wild type patients. The relative risk of toxoplasmosis associated with heterozygosity was 0. 39 (95% confidence interval, 0.16-0.96) after adjustment for age, CD4 cell count, and primary specific prophylaxis. A nonsignificant protective trend was observed with regard to the onset of mycobacterial, cytomegalovirus, and herpesvirus diseases, but these events were less frequent than toxoplasmosis. Progression to other conditions (e.g., wasting, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Kaposi's sarcoma) was similar in the 2 groups as was the frequency of toxoplasmosis as a subsequent AIDS-defining illness. As chemokines are involved in numerous infectious processes, the Delta32 deletion could delay progression to certain opportunistic infections such as toxoplasmosis.


The identification and characterization of enzyme function is largely lacking behind the rapidly increasing availability of large numbers of sequences and associated high-resolution structures. This is often hampered by lack of knowledge on in vivo relevant substrates. Here, we present a case study of a high-resolution structure of an unusual orphan lipase in complex with an endogenous C18 monoacylglycerol ester reaction intermediate from the expression host, which is insoluble under aqueous conditions and thus not accessible for studies in solution. The data allowed its functional characterization as a prototypic long-chain monoacylglycerol lipase, which uses a minimal lid domain to position the substrate through a hydrophobic tunnel directly to the enzyme's active site. Knowledge about the molecular details of the substrate binding site allowed us to modulate the enzymatic activity by adjusting protein/substrate interactions, demonstrating the potential of our findings for future biotechnology applications.


The shift from institution-based mental healthcare system toward integrated care system is - not only but also- a question of organisation. Recognising the organisational dimension of this shift is a pre-requisite for improving the design of mental healthcare researches. In Belgium, the shift toward integrated care follows a change strategy inspired by the WHO: it is stimulated through pilot projects encouraging the transformation of mental healthcare delivery at the local level. Scientific evaluations of these projects evidenced that, despite the development of innovative practices, the shift is still not complete. The question of how innovative practices are arising and how to support their generalisation nevertheless remained overlooked. Theory: In this paper, we argue for reconsidering the design of scientific research on mental healthcare reforms, by integrating key learnings from organisational theories. Organisation theorists showed that talks are constitutive of organising process, particularly in complex environments where multiple interests, ideologies, and types of expertise are coexisting. The importance of talk in re-organising work processes, particularly inter-professional meetings, has been particularly emphasised in mental health services. We analysed the impact of inter-professional meetings on the reorganisation of mental healthcare in Belgium by relying on qualitative methods and the principle of triangulation: inter-professional meetings n=72 were observed as part of two scientific researches[1]; the meeting participants were interviewed n=57 and interview and observation data were confronted to documents linked to the observed meetings. Results: Based on excerpts of interviews and transcripts of observation, the paper evidences that: - meetings most of the time fail to reach their expected outcomes; - the meeting context and leadership style of the chair importantly influence their real outcomes; - despite the feeling that meetings are useless, they bring about changes in mental health professionals' representations and ways of working. Discussions: Mental healthcare researches have underestimated the influence of inter-professional meetings on mental healthcare services' transformation. Designing scientific researches integrating meeting as a research object to understand how the transformation occurs and instrument to experiment with different meeting techniques might help to address this gap. Conclusion: Two factors explaining the meeting contribution to innovation are: - the level of connectedness/separateness between the meeting context and institutional environment: increased separateness means increased possibilities to experiment with new roles and representations; -  the management of meeting conversation: the meeting contribution to innovation is related to the level of ambiguity afforded by the conversation. Lessons: if meetings are supposed to bring solution to complex problems, they have first to be carefully prepared and managed, thus both researchers and practitioners might consider that meeting is a problem before being a solution. Limitations: the research was limited to the Belgian context and the results have not been generalised and tested in other countries and based on quantitative methods. Perspectives: Testing the results in other contexts and designing experimentation with meeting techniques for stimulating innovation in mental healthcare systems. References: 1- 2009-2011 KnowP 2011-2015/2015-2017 – doctoral/post-doctoral researches funded by the National Fund for Scientific Research F.R.S – FNRS.


BACKGROUND: Responsibility of individuals in adapting to life events depends on the intertwined cooperation of intellectual and emotional capacities, and a person's success in life depends on his emotional responses. Given that health-care providers are at the forefront of providing health services, they need to improve their job performance with better control of their emotions and better social relationships. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between emotional intelligence, social responsibility, and job performance in health-care providers and caregivers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional correlational study was performed on 270 health workers working in the western cities of Isfahan province in the first quarter of 1998 by random classification sampling method. To collect information, two questionnaires of Bradbury emotional intelligence, responsibility, social responsibility, whose validity and reliability had been proven in previous studies, and job performance scores of the samples were used. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive tests and Pearson correlation. RESULTS: The participants were 270 health workers and caregivers with a mean age of 34.54 ± 7.26. 87.5% of the samples were female and 21.5% were male. The mean score of social responsibility was 124.95 ± 10.41, the mean score of emotional intelligence was 125.58 ± 15.86, and the mean score of job performance was 86.91 ± 9.0.18. The results of Pearson correlation showed that all four components of social responsibility and total emotional intelligence have a significant correlation at the level of 0.01. Total emotional intelligence and each of its components did not show a significant correlation with job performance. Between social responsibility and job performance of health workers, only the moral component significantly predicts job performance (r = 0.133 and P = 0.026). CONCLUSION: Although the results of the study showed that the job performance, social responsibility, and emotional intelligence of the study group were desirable, the score of some components of social responsibility and emotional intelligence is lower than their maximum score. In addition, according to the results of the study that showed the relationship between emotional intelligence and social responsibility and some of their components with job performance, improving the knowledge and skills of health-care providers and caregivers in the field of social responsibility and emotional intelligence and their components seems necessary.


Alan Greenspan argues that the crisis was unpredictable and inevitable, given the 'excessive' leverage of the financial intermediaries. I focus upon the housing sector, which has been at the origin of the financial crisis because the value of the financial derivatives ultimately depended upon the ability of the mortgagors to repay their debts. The uncertainty concerns the capital gains – housing price appreciation – and the rate of interest. I explain why the application of stochastic optimal control (SOC) is an effective approach to determine the optimal degree of leverage, the optimum and excessive risk and the probability of a debt crisis. I show that the theoretically derived early warning signal of a crisis is the excess debt ratio, equal to the difference between the actual and optimal ratio. The excess debt of households starting from 2004-05 indicated that a housing crisis was most likely.


BACKGROUND/AIMS
The recovery of liver function after biliary drainage in patients with obstructive jaundice may be different depending on the severity and duration of the obstruction. We conducted this study to determine whether there are any clinical factors that can be used to monitor the course of recovery.

METHODOLOGY
Serum and bile from 12 patients were collected for biochemical testing on the day of drainage and every 3 days for 6 days. Liver function was evaluated by the indocyanine green retention test (ICG R15) before and 6 days after decompression. Patients with an ICG R15 reduction ratio of less than 50% were considered to have a poor recovery (group 1, n = 6), while a good recovery was indicated by a reduction ratio higher than 50% (group 2, n = 6). Sequential data were compared between the groups and correlated with the results of the ICG test.

RESULTS
After drainage, the patients in group 1 had less bile acid excretion on day 3 (1.0 +/- 0.8 vs. 3.4 +/- 1.1 mmol/day, p < 0.05), a slower reduction ratio of serum bilirubin on day 3 (0.38 +/- 0.14 vs. 0.60 +/- 0.12, p < 0.05) and more biliary output on day 6 (1.11 +/- 0.25 vs. 0.60 +/- 0.25 L/day, p < 0.05). The ICG R15 reduction ratio was well correlated with the bilirubin reduction ratio, the bile volume and the amount of excreted bile acids checked on day 3 (gamma = 0.73, -0.71 and 0.74, respectively, p < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS
The presence of choleresis implies ductular cell hyperplasia, while decreased excretion of bile acids and a slow reduction of hyperbilirubinemia represents severe liver damage. Both conditions are sequelae of prolonged obstruction; therefore, they might indicate a long and poor recovery.


This paper begins by reviewing the problem of tax evasion measurement. Based on available data, I conclude that this problem is far from being negligible, both for developed and developing countries. I also present in more detail the reasons that justify worrying about tax evasion, and thus the need to study more rigorously this phenomenon. I also revise some of the main results that appear in the theoretical, empirical, and experimental literature of personnel income tax evasion and the theoretical contributions on firmsÂ' tax evasion. Finally, I present policy implications and illustrate them with real case studies.


Background: Children with intellectual disability (ID) are known to have a deficit in self-care, social interaction, and learning abilities. Families raising these children experience a range of difficulties that require supportive systems to meet the physical, psychological, and social safety rights of children with ID. The study explored the safety of children with ID through the experiences of their families in the rural Capricorn District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Methods: In-depth individual interviews and focus group discussion were conducted with 26 families directly involved in raising the children with ID. An inductive thematic analysis of data on the experiences of raising children with ID was undertaken with the aid of ATLAS.ti 8 computer programme. Results: The study revealed that children with ID lack safety at home, schools, and day care centre environments due to a lack of active involvement by nuclear family members, neighbours, and communities, including interaction with their peers and professional service providers in facilities. Safety of children with ID is compromised through exploitation and injuries, leading to marginalisation as they feared further humiliation. Conclusion: The study highlighted that active involvement of family members, communities, and governmental and non-governmental organisations is crucial in ensuring safe environments for children with ID.


As in the developed nations, developing countries in the Southeast Asian region increasingly are recognising the important role higher education plays in enhancing the human resources of a nation for promoting its development in a world of depleting natural resources. Advances and pervasiveness of ICT in the society mean that higher education systems in the region are increasingly leveraging ICT in handling the many arising challenges faced by higher education systems in Southeast Asia. Some of the possible roles of ICT in higher education in the face of these challenges discussed in this paper are what and how students learn, when and where students learn, who the new faces of students and lecturers are, and ways to reduce the cost of education. However, research-based knowledge on how ICT has been and can be used to enhance the design, delivery and management of higher education programs in the Southeast Asia region is not readily available. Furthermore, countries in Southeast Asia are at different stages of development in the use of ICT in education. Thus, success stories, experiences and lessons learnt from the use of ICT in higher education will be of immense importance for educators and administrators who are at the forefront of integrating ICT for higher education in countries in the region.


Abstract Nowadays, traffic engineers employ a variety of intelligent tools for decision support in the field of transportation planning and management. However, not a one available tool is useful without precise travel demand information which is actually the key input data in simulation models used for traffic prediction in urban road areas. Thus, it is no wonder that the problem of estimation of travel demand values between intersections in a road network is a challenge of high urgency. The present paper is devoted to this urgent problem and investigates its properties from computational and mathematical perspectives. We rigorously define the travel demand estimation problem as directly inverse to traffic assignment in a form of a bi-level optimization program avoiding usage of any pre-given (a priori) information on trips. The computational study of the obtained optimization program demonstrates that generally it has no clear descent direction, while the mathematical study advances our understanding on rigor existence and uniqueness conditions of its solution. We prove that once a traffic engineer recognizes the travel demand locations, then their values in the road network can be found uniquely. On the contrary, we discover a non-continuous dependence between the travel demand locations and absolute difference of observed and modeled traffic values. Therefore, the results of the present paper reveal that the actual problem to be solved when dealing with travel demand estimation is the problem of recognition of travel demand locations. The obtained findings contribute in the theory of travel demand estimation and give fresh managerial insights for traffic engineers.


Increasing generation to meet the load growth and interconnections between systems to improve reliability and power transfer capability are likely to increase the fault current levels. If the resultant short circuit current exceeds the existing equipment rating, they must either be upgraded or replaced or reconfigure its system to reduce the new available fault current. Both of which are very costly or time escalated process. Hence it is preferred to explore the feasibility of utilization of existing equipment with current limiting devices. Current limiting using passive element like series inductor reduces system stability and load flow. To overcome this problem, the series reactor is made to come into services only for the duration of fault. This paper proposes new methods for fast acting current limiting using Solid State Fault Current Limiters (SSFCL) that employs power electronic switches to overcome the limitation of the passive current limiters. Modeling and simulations of these methods are performed on a typical 400 kV power system using PSCAD/EMTDC. The results of which confirm that the fault level can be effectively reduced.Increasing generation to meet the load growth and interconnections between systems to improve reliability and power transfer capability are likely to increase the fault current levels. If the resultant short circuit current exceeds the existing equipment rating, they must either be upgraded or replaced or reconfigure its system to reduce the new available fault current. Both of which are very costly or time escalated process. Hence it is preferred to explore the feasibility of utilization of existing equipment with current limiting devices. Current limiting using passive element like series inductor reduces system stability and load flow. To overcome this problem, the series reactor is made to come into services only for the duration of fault. This paper proposes new methods for fast acting current limiting using Solid State Fault Current Limiters (SSFCL) that employs power electronic switches to overcome the limitation of the passive current limiters. Modeling and simulations of these methods are perform...


The ionic contrast media used so far have been associated with considerable risks in infants and children. The high osmolality of these media did not always permit a dosage sufficient for kidney imaging in the nephrographic and in the pyelographic phase. The new non-ionic contrast media have largely reduced these risks so that their general application in infants and young children should be recommended. Intravenous urographies using the non-ionic contrast medium Iopamidol 300 (Solutrast 300) were performed in 195 children aged one day to 12 years. Good to superior urograms were obtained in 85% of the investigations. No adverse reactions caused by the osmolality of the contrast media had been observed in spite of the relative high dosage. As a result of their low osmolality and non-ionic property a safe application of high doses was possible.


Abstract The basic global distributional facts of inequality within and between countries are structuring a range of debates on policy issues which have analytical import. This paper raises three such questions: (1) Should Middle Income Countries like India continue to receive concessional development assistance from agencies like the World Bank? (2) Should the borders of richer countries be more open than they currently are to economic migration from poorer countries? (3) How does the equality of opportunity discourse within a country translate to equality of opportunity in a global perspective? But these questions appear not to have been as thoroughly investigated in the capability framework as their urgency and importance demands. They are worthy of deep and sustained investigation by the Human Development and Capability Association's members, and beyond.


The cross-sectional survey design was used in the 'Study to elicit "data in Edo State, Nigeria to assess the strategies employed by households to cope with the financial . costs of healthcare. Questionnaire data were collected from 508 household respondents in three randomly-selected Local Government Areas of the state including Esan-west, Etsako-west and Egor. Twelve Focus Group Discussions complemented survey data. The main strategies to cope with the financial costs' of health care were mobilization of cas1i and savings (40.5%), and sale of produce and assets (16.0%). Level of income was a significant factors, affecting the ability to mobilize cash and savings to cope with the financial costs of health care (X2 = 31.787, 4df, p<0.05, critical value = 9.49). Diversion of money intended for food, education; -and clothes to cope with the financial costs of health care was common, relatively, to respondents with low income level (X2 = 13.050, 4df, p<0.05, critical value = 9.94). Thefindings of the study indicate that urban households have the ability to cope with the financial costs of health care, than rural households. It is therefore imperative that government should not only make healthcare facilities available but should also alleviate poverty in society to enable people defray the cost of healthcare with minimal effort. o


The gas turbine combustion chamber is a vital part of a gas turbine engine. Proper mixing of air in the combustor plays an important role in combustion. Increasing mixing rate is an important factor for better combustion efficiency. The injection of air in crossflow is widely studied over the years. The air injected at an angle in upstream direction gives better mixing by colliding with the crossflow. The computational analysis of the injected jet in cross flow is performed with different angles in the upstream direction. The k-omega SST turbulence model was used to investigate the mixing behavior. The air is injected at different angles and observed that with an increase in angle from 60° to 135°, the rate of mixing and turbulent intensity increased. The jet inclination in the upstream direction greatly influenced the mixing behavior. The jet penetration in perpendicular direction was almost the same for 120° and 135°. But there is added penalty in the form of the pressure loss at the angle 135°. So considering the pressure loss and ease of manufacturing the 120° jet inclination is preferable for better mixing among the four cases studied here. The idea of inclining jet in upstream direction can be implemented on the combustor for increased performance and shorter size.


Today, 3D models are utilized during a good kind of fields. The medical industry uses detailed models of organs; these could even be created with multiple 2-D image slices from an MRI or CT scan. The movie industry uses them as characters and objects for animated and real-life motion pictures. the pc game industry uses them as assets for computer and video games. The science sector uses them as highly detailed models of chemical compounds. The architecture industry uses them to demonstrate proposed buildings and landscapes in lieu of traditional, physical architectural models. The engineering community utilizes them as designs of latest devices, vehicles and structures also as variety of other uses. In recent decades the planet science community has begun to construct 3D geological models as a typical practice. 3D models can also be the thought for physical devices that are built with 3D printers or CNC machines


Under climate change framework, methanogens activity is expected to be strongly affected, eventually resulting in positive feedback on global climate, with higher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the Arctic. This work aimed to evaluate the effect of increasing temperature on methane production rate and archaeal community of lake sediments and wetland soils from Denali to Toolik regions in Alaska (USA). For that, anaerobic acetate-amended microcosms were incubated at 5, 10, 15 and 20 °C. The acetate-derived methanogenic rate was determined and the methanogenic communities were analyzed by qPCR and 16S rRNA sequencing. Warmer temperatures yielded 4-6 times higher methane production rates and organic matter content (OM) showed significant positive correlation to methane production. Different patterns were observed in the archaeal communities after incubation at higher temperatures, with an increase in Methanosarcina abundance for most of the samples and Methanosaeta in one of the lakes tested, showing the adaptation of key acetoclastic groups among different temperatures. Our results demonstrate the impact of increasing temperature on methane production, bringing insights on key drivers involved in the process of acetoclastic methanogenic potential occurring in these ecosystems in Alaska.


CUTANEOUS testing for susceptibility to diphtheria and scarlet fever has been a widespread practice for many years. The reliability of the former is generally accepted. To immunize against diphtheria three antigens are now in use. Immunization of certain groups of persons, especially nurses and physicians, against scarlet fever is practicable,1but the reactions encountered in giving Dick toxin have been such that it has never become officially recommended as public health procedure. The following report is a survey of twenty years of cutaneous testing and immunization of student nurses at the contagious department of Cleveland City Hospital. Since 1925, all student nurses who entered contagious service have been given Schick and Dick tests routinely. Those who had positive reactions were immunized against the antigen to which they were susceptible. For about ten years all tests and injections for our own and for nurses from other hospitals affiliated with City Hospital


With the exponential proliferation of mobile devices in the consumer market, wireless e-business is emerging as a key area to revolutionise industries. In the past few years, industry has witnessed an increase in the adoption of mobile payment and billing methods that leverage on wireless technologies. Yet, the success of mobile payments in businesses much depends on many factors such as, type of wireless technologies used, security options available, the players involved and their influencing m-business models. This paper examines mobile payments in both technical as well as business perspectives. It identifies and analyses the influencing factors from multi-dimensions that would be useful for adopting mobile payments.


In this essay we study two-dimensional electronic systems that exhibit quadratic band touching (QBT) in their low energy dispersion. A lattice realization is shown to introduce the emergence of a QBT in the framework of the tight binding approximation. We then make a continuum limit, which allows for a more general approach on the level of low energy Hamiltonians. The basic concepts and the applied methods are introduced via a simplified problem, a system of spinless fermions. We use a renormalization group (RG) approach to examine the effects of short-range electron-electron interactions. Once it is found that the system is unstable toward ordered phases, we use the mean field approximation to investigate how the phases compete energetically. We then introduce the spin degree of freedom of the electrons and follow analogous calculations using the RG approach. A number of ordered phases are identified, and the flow equations of the susceptibilities are calculated. We find a symmetry of the action that is larger than what we start with and emerges under some plausible conditions.


The polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) may play an important role in the pathogenesis of lung disease associated with cigarette smoking. To investigate its potential for oxidant-mediated lung injury in cigarette smokers, we studied PMN oxidative metabolism in asymptomatic cigarette smokers and nonsmoking control subjects. We found a marked increase in oxidant release in a group of cigarette smokers. After stimulation by phorbol myristate acetate, release of superoxide anion (O-2) by PMN in smokers with white blood counts (WBC) greater than 9,000 was 50% greater than in nonsmokers with similar WBC or smokers and nonsmokers with WBC less than 9,000. Abstinence from smoking did not affect the alterations in O-2 release nor did a serum factor appear responsible. The changes appeared to be part of a generalized increase in oxidative metabolism, as there was greater oxidation of glucose (1-14C) and chemiluminescence by PMN from smokers with WBC greater than 9,000. A further estimate of lung oxidant load was determined by evaluating the marginated pool of PMN. Smokers with WBC greater than 9,000 showed a 70% increase in WBC after epinephrine, and PMN oxidative metabolism remained increased in this group. This study demonstrates that cigarette smokers with elevated WBC have increased release of potentially toxic oxygen metabolites. These cigarette smokers also demonstrated increased oxidant release from the marginated PMN pool. Because leukocyte-generated oxygen metabolites are highly reactive and can cause tissue injury, these findings may have important implications in the pathogenesis of smoking-related lung disease.


The behavior of commodities is critical for developing and developed countries alike. This paper contributes to the empirical evidence on the co-movement and determinants of commodity prices. Using nonstationary panel methods, we document a statistically significant degree of co-movement due to a common factor. Within a Factor Augmented VAR approach, real interest rate and uncertainty, as postulated by a simple asset pricing model, are both found to be negatively related to this common factor. This evidence is robust to the inclusion of demand and supply shocks, which both positively impact on the co-movement of commodity prices.


We demonstrate Pd metallene as an efficient catalyst for electrocatalytic NO reduction to NH3 (NORR), showing the maximum NO-to-NH3 faradaic efficiency of 89.6% with a corresponding NH3 yield rate of 112.5 μmol h-1 cm-2 at -0.3 V in neutral media. Theoretical calculations unveil that NO can be effectively activated and hydrogenated on the hcp site of Pd through a mixed pathway with a low energy barrier.


This paper presents a numerical and experimental study on hydrodynamic behavior of thin liquid films in rectangular domains. Three-dimensional computer simulations were performed using the lattice Boltzmann equation method (LBM). The liquid films laying on solid and liquid substrates are considered. The rupture of liq- uid films in computations is initiated via the thermocapillary (Marangoni) effect by applying an initial spatially localized temperature perturbation. The rupture scenario is found to depend on the shape of the temperature distribution and on the wettability of the solid substrate. For a wettable solid substrate, complete rupture does not occur: a residual thin liquid film remains at the substrate in the region of pseudo-rupture. For a non-wettable solid substrate, a sharp-peaked axisymmetric temperature distribution induces the rupture at the center of symmetry where the temperature is maximal. Ax- isymmetric temperature distribution with a flat-peaked temperature profile initiates rupture of the liquid film along a circle at some distance from the center of symmetry. The outer boundary of the rupture expands, while the inner liquid disk transforms into a toroidal figure and ultimately into an oscillating droplet. We also apply the LBM to simulations of an evolution of one or two holes in liquid films for two-layer systems of immiscible fluids in a rectangular cell. The computed patterns are successfully compared against the results of experimental visualizations. Both the experiments and the simulations demonstrate that the initially circular holes evolved in the rectangular cell undergoing drastic changes of their shape under the effects of the surface tension and gravity. In the case of two interacting holes, the disruption of the liquid bridge separating two holes is experimentally observed and numerically simulated. AMS subject classifications: 76M28, 76T30, 76M25, 65Z05


ABSTRACT The article introduces the concept and content of facilities management (FM) services. The paper presents the concept of customer satisfaction and discusses the key factors which influence the opinions of customers and their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the services provided. The article presents two studies: a brief survey of several FM service providers and a survey of customer satisfaction with FM services in Lithuania. The conclusions are given at the end of the article.


Smoking is the leading preventable risk factor of mortality in the United States. The threat of smoking is severer in prisons. Compared with the general US population, prisoners have a higher prevalence of smoking, as well as a higher smoking-related mortality. Nowadays, smoking bans have been enacted in 49 states' federal correctional facilities, including 100% smoke-free and tobacco-free indoors and outdoors on all grounds (20 states), 100% smoke-free indoors and outdoors on all grounds (1 state), 100% smoke-free and tobacco-free indoors (16 states), and 100% smoke-free indoors (12 states). After implementation, a mortality reduction has been achieved, especially for cancers and respiratory diseases. In addition, a more comprehensive restriction (e.g., smoking and tobacco bans indoors and outdoors) and a longer implementation contribute to a higher reduction of mortality. However, some obstacles should not be ignored, such as the high relapse rate of smoking after release, existence of smoking in smoking-free prisons, nicotine dependence and nicotine withdrawal symptoms led by the bans, potentially high prevalence of mental illnesses among prisoners who also smoke, etc. Given the impact and obstacle of the current smoking bans, the author recommends that: (I) smoking bans should be kept enacting according to the mortality reduction after implementation; (II) more restrictive bans should be considered across the U.S. States, such as smoking-free insides and outsides on the ground; (III) further efforts should be made for reducing the high relapse rate of smoking after release; (IV) other implementations combining with smoking bans should be considered for smoking inmates with mental illnesses.


The creep deformation and eventual breaking of polymeric samples under a constant tensile load F is investigated by molecular dynamics based on a particle representation of the fiber bundle model. The results of the virtual testing of fibrous samples consisting of 40000 particles arranged on Nc=400 chains reproduce characteristic stages seen in the experimental investigations of creep in polymeric materials. A logarithmic plot of the bundle lifetime τ versus load F displays a marked curvature, ruling out a simple power-law dependence of τ on F. A power law τ∼F-4, however, is recovered at high load. We discuss the role of reversible bond breaking and formation on the eventual fate of the sample and simulate a different type of creep testing, imposing a constant stress rate on the sample up to its breaking point. Our simulations, relying on a coarse-grained representation of the polymer structure, introduce new features into the standard fiber bundle model, such as real-time dynamics, inertia, and entropy, and open the way to more detailed models, aiming at material science aspects of polymeric fibers, investigated within a sound statistical mechanics framework.


This study was undertaken to understand the migratory strategies of the Dunlins (Calidris alpina) caught in Eilat, Israel, before and after they accomplish the crossing of the combined ecological barrier of the Sinai, Sahara and Sahel deserts. Between 1999–2001, a total of 410 adults and 342 juveniles were banded. The significant difference in mean wing length between birds caught in autumn and spring reflects the degree of abrasion of the outer primaries during over-wintering in Africa. Dunlins caught in Eilat in autumn and early winter had a mean wing length 1.4–1.9mm longer than in the spring. The rate of body mass increase was comparatively high and the mean body mass of the heaviest 10% of Dunlin at Eilat was 56.2g (SE ± 0.6, N = 80). The heaviest birds from Eilat carried on average about 10g of fat with a lipid index (fat mass as a percentage of total body mass) of 18%. These reserves allow a flight of approximately 1 000km, which is probably sufficient for continued migration to more southerly wintering grounds.


The entire sequence of a 541 bp insert in recombinant plasmid pHb1003 has been determined. This plasmid, which was shown to carry a cloned cDNA copy of the chicken alpha-globin mRNA, contains the complete structural gene as well as 19 bp of the 5'-untranslated region and 99 bp of the 3'-untranslated region. This sequence may encode a non-adult alpha-globin gene, especially since the cDNA clones were generated from phenylhydrazine-induced, globin-specific mRNA extracted from anemic white leghorns. The possibility that this alpha-globin might represent a stress globin is considered.


Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the Boardroom heterogeneity affects IPO underpricing for entrepreneurial firms, where Boardroom heterogeneity was classified in terms of functional background, educational background, age and length of tenure.

Design/methodology/approach

A national research design was conducted using data collected from 355 firms listed on China's Growth Enterprise Market from its start in 2009 to 2012.

Findings

The author found that IPO underpricing has a significant negative correlation with functional heterogeneity, a positive correlation with educational heterogeneity, a significant negative correlation with age heterogeneity, but it does not show significant correlation with heterogeneity in tenure. Board heterogeneity affects IPO underpricing of entrepreneurial firms partially, which means functional, educational and age heterogeneity conveys signals to potential investors regarding a firm's quality.

Research/limitations/implications

More entrepreneurial firms in more years for data and long-term performance research design in future research would be required for further understanding of the relationships among the variables in this study.

Practical/implications

This paper suggests that IPO firms may make use of such an influencing mechanism to determine the issue price or to control the IPO underpricing by showing the Boardroom heterogeneity.

Originality/value

This paper revealed the influence of the characteristics of board members of such firms on IPO underpricing, which is rare in recent studies comparing to the study for the top management team; also this study provides empirical support for such effect.


This study examined the relationship between people's cognitive styles and their feedback- seeking behaviours, using a sample of 457 employees from four different organisations (two Human Resources consulting companies and two Information Technology consulting firms) in Belgium. This way, we respond to repeated calls in the cognitive styles literature to link individuals' cognitive style differences to observable behaviours. In addition, this study extends feedback-seeking literature by demonstrating that individual differences in cognitive styles have differential effects on people's feedback-seeking patterns. Cognitive styles were measured by means of the Cognitive Style Indicator (CoSI; Cools and Van den Broeck, 2007), whereas an adapted version of the scale by Ashford and Tsui (1991) was used to assess people's feedback- seeking behaviours. Generalised linear models (GLMs) were used to analyse the data. We found that people with a knowing style solely use self-appraisal to seek feedback, while planners also inquire feedback from their supervisors. People with a creating style tend to use a broad range of feedback-seeking patterns, involving both self-appraisal and monitoring and inquiry from diverse sources. Drawing on these findings, we argue that organisations and learning institutes alike should take into account individual cognitive profiles to enhance the learning process and outcomes for all and in this sense develop a lifelong learning attitude. Whereas feedback seeking is a well-acknowledged strategy in the workplace context to optimise one's performance, the lifelong learning paradigm additionally demands a focus on feedback seeking in education to equip students with the necessary skills and competences to face today's business needs.


Significant natural attenuation may occur on the passage of groundwater plumes through streambed sediments because of the transition from anaerobic to aerobic conditions and an increased microbial activity. Varying directions and magnitudes of water flow in the streambed may enhance or inhibit the supply of oxygen to the streambed and thus influence the redox zoning. In a field study at a small stream in the industrial area of Bitterfeld‐Wolfen, we observed the variability of hydraulic gradients, streambed temperatures, redox conditions and monochlorobenzene (MCB) concentrations in the streambed over the course of 5 months. During the observation period, the hydrologic conditions changed from losing to gaining. Accordingly, the temperature‐derived water fluxes changed from recharge to discharge. Redox conditions were highly variable between − 170 and 368 mV in the shallow streambed at a depth of 0·1 m below the streambed surface. Deeper in the streambed, at depths of 0·3 m and 0·5 m, the redox conditions were more stable between − 198 and − 81 mV and comparable to those typically found in the aquifer. MCB concentrations in the streambed at 0·3 and 0·5 m depth increased with increasing upward water flux. The MCB concentrations in the shallow streambed at 0·1 m depth appeared to be independent of the hydrologic conditions suggesting that degradation of MCB may have occured. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A yellow-coloured, aerobic, Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated B-I(T), was isolated from the water of a shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) mariculture pond in Taiwan. No species with a validly published name showed 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity of more than 96.5 % to this novel isolate. The highest sequence similarities displayed by strain B-I(T) (93.2-96.1 %) were to members of the genus Tenacibaculum. The phenotypic properties of this organism were consistent with its classification in the genus Tenacibaculum. The novel isolate could be distinguished from all Tenacibaculum species by several phenotypic characteristics. The major fatty acids were iso-C(15 : 0) (22 %), summed feature 3 (C(16 : 1)omega7c and/or iso-C(15 : 0) 2-OH; 21.3 %), iso-C(17 : 0) 3-OH (12.7 %) and iso-C(15 : 1) (8.7 %). The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 35.2 mol%. Hence, genotypic and phenotypic data demonstrate that strain B-I(T) should be classified within a novel species in the genus Tenacibaculum, for which the name Tenacibaculum litopenaei sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is B-I(T) (=BCRC 17590(T)=LMG 23706(T)).


Introduction A fundamental objective of cryptography is to enable two persons to communicate over an insecure channel (a public channel such as the internet) in such a way that any other person is unable to recover their message (called the plaintext ) from what is sent in its place over the channel (the ciphertext ). The transformation of the plaintext into the ciphertext is called encryption , or enciphering. Encryption-decryption is the most ancient cryptographic activity (ciphers already existed four centuries b.c.), but its nature has deeply changed with the invention of computers, because the cryptanalysis (the activity of the third person, the eavesdropper, who aims at recovering the message) can use their power. The encryption algorithm takes as input the plaintext and an encryption key K E , and it outputs the ciphertext. If the encryption key is secret, then we speak of conventional cryptography , of private key cryptography , or of symmetric cryptography . In practice, the principle of conventional cryptography relies on the sharing of a private key between the sender of a message (often called Alice in cryptography) and its receiver (often called Bob). If, on the contrary, the encryption key is public, then we speak of public key cryptography . Public key cryptography appeared in the literature in the late 1970s.


Primary hyperparathyroidism is caused by a single adenoma in the majority of patients. In five patients (2 men aged 74 and 78 and 3 women aged 78, 58 an 73 years) a recently introduced approach for intraoperative identification of pathological parathyroid glands was applied using intravenously injected technetium-99m(99mTc)-sestamibi and a gamma probe. For two patients this was a reoperation in this region. All patients had one adenoma removed and became normocalcaemic postoperatively. The time between the start of the operation until the extirpation of the adenoma was 13-25 min, a lot shorter than bilateral cervical exploration takes, even in the two reoperations. These results confirm the literature that this approach minimizes operative intervention, thereby shortening operative time and reducing potential surgical complications.


In numerical simulations of planetary dynamos there is an abrupt transition in the dynamics of both the velocity and magnetic fields at a 'local' Rossby number of 0.1. For smaller Rossby numbers there are helical columnar structures aligned with the rotation axis, which efficiently maintain a dipolar field. However, when the thermal forcing is increased, these columns break down and the field becomes multi-polar. Similarly, in rotating turbulence experiments and simulations there is a sharp transition at a Rossby number of ${\sim}0.4$ . Again, helical axial columnar structures are found for lower Rossby numbers, and there is strong evidence that these columns are created by inertial waves, at least on short time scales. We perform direct numerical simulations of the flow induced by a layer of buoyant anomalies subject to strong rotation, inspired by the equatorially biased heat flux in convective planetary dynamos. We assess the role of inertial waves in generating columnar structures. At high rotation rates (or weak forcing) we find columnar flow structures that segregate helicity either side of the buoyant layer, whose axial length scale increases linearly, as predicted by the theory of low-frequency inertial waves. As the rotation rate is weakened and the magnitude of the buoyant perturbations is increased, we identify a portion of the flow which is more strongly three-dimensional. We show that the flow in this region is turbulent, and has a Rossby number above a critical value $Ro^{crit}\sim 0.4$ , consistent with previous findings in rotating turbulence. We suggest that the discrepancy between the transition value found here (and in rotating turbulence experiments), and that seen in the numerical dynamos ( $Ro^{crit}\sim 0.1$ ), is a result of a different choice of the length scale used to define the local $Ro$ . We show that when a proxy for the flow length scale perpendicular to the rotation axis is used in this definition, the numerical dynamo transition lies at $Ro^{crit}\sim 0.5$ . Based on this we hypothesise that inertial waves, continually launched by buoyant anomalies, sustain the columnar structures in dynamo simulations, and that the transition documented in these simulations is due to the inability of inertial waves to propagate for $Ro>Ro^{crit}$ .


The main purpose of the study is to predict the magnitude of the Covid-19 pandemic by using epidemiological wavelength models in Turkey and at international level. Therefore, firstly, the first 36 days of wavelengths based on the number of daily coronavirus cases in Turkey were calculated. In addition, 114 countries were compared in terms of Covid-19 wavelengths considering the cumulative number of the pandemic cases occured at the end of the first 36 days for evaluation on an equal plane. In the last part of the study, the wavelengths of 185 countries were examined comparatively based on the cumulative number of cases at the end of the time frame from the first epidemic case until 2020-04-16 (including that date). According to the findings of wavelength obtained in Turkey, it was observed that case wavelength on 2020-04-11, death and recovered case wavelength on 2020-04-16, and net wavelength on 2020-03-26 reached its peak. China was the country having the highest wavelength of case, death, and recovered case wavelengths in 114 countries at the end of the first 36 days since the first case occurred. In that country, wavelengths of case, death and recovered case were 33.6, 23.5 and 30.7, respectively. The first three countries with the highest net wavelength at the end of the first 36 days were Serbia (36.5), Netherlands (33.5) and Portugal (30.3), respectively. On the other hand, the country having the highest case and death wavelengths among 185 countries in the time interval from the first case until the date of 2020-04-16 (including that date) was the USA, and case and death wavelengths were 39.7 and 30.7, respectively. The country with the highest recovered case wavelength was China (33.3). The first 3 countries with the highest wavelengths are Canada (51.4), England (45.0) and Serbia (39.2), respectively.


Traditional grey wolf optimizers (GWOs) have difficulty balancing convergence and diversity when used for multimodal optimization problems (MMOPs), resulting in low-quality solutions and slow convergence. To address these drawbacks of GWOs, a fuzzy strategy grey wolf optimizer (FSGWO) is proposed in this paper. Binary joint normal distribution is used as a fuzzy method to realize the adaptive adjustment of the control parameters of the FSGWO. Next, the fuzzy mutation operator and the fuzzy crossover operator are designed to generate new individuals based on the fuzzy control parameters. Moreover, a noninferior selection strategy is employed to update the grey wolf population, which makes the entire population available for estimating the location of the optimal solution. Finally, the FSGWO is verified on 30 test functions of IEEE CEC2014 and five engineering application problems. Comparing FSGWO with state-of-the-art competitive algorithms, the results show that FSGWO is superior. Specifically, for the 50D test functions of CEC2014, the average calculation accuracy of FSGWO is 33.63%, 46.45%, 62.94%, 64.99%, and 59.82% higher than those of the equilibrium optimizer algorithm, modified particle swarm optimization, original GWO, hybrid particle swarm optimization and GWO, and selective opposition-based GWO, respectively. For the 30D and 50D test functions of CEC2014, the results of the Wilcoxon signed-rank test show that FSGWO is better than the competitive algorithms.


In a naturalistic study of the effectiveness of atypical antipsychotics for the long-term outpatient treatment of persons with severe and persistent mental illness, 19 patients began taking risperidone and were prospectively evaluated. Nine patients dropped out of risperidone treatment before three months; four of them later responded to clozapine. The ten patients who completed the study on risperidone were less severely ill at baseline. Three completers with unremitting negative symptoms required a combination of risperidone and typical antipsychotics. The results suggest that risperidone is effective for about half of patients with severe and persistent mental illness. Very ill patients who are not responsive to risperidone or combined antipsychotic therapy will likely benefit from clozapine.


The substitution of cooling method from water quenching to air cooling after solution heat treatment was aimed for the development of a convenient and economical heat treatment process of duplex stainless steels without deterioration of mechanical and corrosion resistant properties for the industry. In order to achieve this goal, the mechanical properties and corrosion properties of a ASTM A890-4A duplex stainless steel were systematically investigated as functions of casting condition and cooling method after solution heat treatment. A 3-stepped sand mold and a permanent Y-block mold were used to check the effects of solidification structure and cooling rate after solution heat treatment. The microstructural characteristics such as the ferrite/austenite phase ratio and the precipitation behavior of phase and carbides were investigated by combined analysis of OM and SEM-EDX with an aid of TTT diagram. Hardness and tension test were performed to evaluate the mechanical properties. Impact property at and corrosion resistance were also examined to check the possibility of the industrial application of this basic study. Throughout this investigation, air-cooling method was proved to effectively substitute for water-quenching process after the solution heat treatment, when the duplex stainless steel was sand mold cast with a thickness below 15 mm or permanent mold cast with a thickness below 20 mm.


Introduction Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a multisystem, debilitating, chronic disorder of breathing during sleep, resulting in a relatively consistent pattern of cognitive deficits. More recently, it has been argued that those cognitive deficits, especially in middle-aged patients, may be driven by cardiovascular and metabolic comorbidities, rather than by distinct OSA-processes, such as are for example ensuing nocturnal intermittent hypoxaemia, oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and sleep fragmentation. Methods Thus, we undertook to define cognitive performance in a group of 27 middle-aged male patients with untreated OSA, who had no concomitant comorbidities, compared with seven matched controls (AHI mean ± S.D.: 1.9 ± 1.4 events/h; mean age 34.0 ± 9.3 years; mean BMI 23.8 ± 2.3 kg/m2). Of the 27 patients, 16 had mild OSA (AHI mean ± S.D.:11.7 ± 4.0 events/h; mean age 42.6 ± 8.2 years; mean BMI 26.7 ± 4.1 kg/m2), and 11 severe OSA (AHI 41.8 ± 20.7 events/h; age: 46.9 ± 10.9 years, BMI: 28.0 ± 3.2 kg/m2). Results In our patient cohort, we demonstrate poorer executive-functioning, visuospatial memory, and deficits in vigilance sustained attention, psychomotor and impulse control. Remarkably, we also report, for the first time, effects on social cognition in this group of male, middle-aged OSA patients. Conclusion Our findings suggest that distinct, OSA-driven processes may be sufficient for cognitive changes to occur as early as in middle age, in otherwise healthy individuals.


Abstract Electromagnetic interference (EMI) have become very serious in a variety of different electronic equipments, such as personal computers (frequency at several GHz), mobile devices (0.9 – 2.4 GHz) and similar. This imposes the need for setting boundaries for EM emission of electric and electronic devices in order to minimize the possibility of interference with radio and wireless communications. Functional textiles can offer protective properties against EM radiation. The aim of this study is to investigate the degree of protection against EM radiation provided by polyamide copper-coated interlining fabric before and after dry cleaning treatment. EM protection efficiency of the interlining functional fabric is explored on both sides at the frequencies of 0.9; 1.8; 2.1 and 2.4 GHz. The results obtained have shown that the interlining fabric has good protective properties against EM radiation, but after dry cleaning, treatment reduction is observed. Scanning electron microscopy micrographs of the interlining surface confirms shield effect decline due to degradation and firing of the copper layers during the process of dry cleaning.


Variations in size and complexity of the cerebral cortex result from differences in neuron number and composition, which are rooted in evolutionary changes in direct and indirect neurogenesis (dNG and iNG) mediated by radial glial progenitors and intermediate progenitors, respectively. How dNG and iNG differentially contribute to cortical neuronal number, diversity, and connectivity are unknown. Establishing a genetic fate-mapping method to differentially visualize dNG and iNG in mice, we found that while both dNG and iNG contribute to all cortical structures, iNG contributes the largest relative proportions to the hippocampus and neocortex compared to insular and piriform cortex, claustrum, and the pallial amygdala. Within the neocortex, whereas dNG generates all major glutamatergic projection neuron (PN) classes, iNG differentially amplifies and diversifies PNs within each class; the two neurogenic pathways generate distinct PN types and assemble fine mosaics of lineage-based cortical subnetworks. Our results establish a ground-level lineage framework for understanding cortical development and evolution by linking foundational progenitor types and neurogenic pathways to PN types. Highlights - A genetic strategy for differential visualization of direct and indirect neurogenesis in the same animal. - dNG and iNG differentially contribute to piriform cortex, basolateral amygdala, hippocampus, and neocortex - Whereas dNG generates all major PN classes, iNG differentially amplifies and diversifies PNs within each class - dNG and iNG construct distinct cortical projection subnetworks.


Voltage sag is one of the major power quality problem which results in a failure or a mis-operation of end use equipments. Sensitive industrial loads and Utility distribution networks all suffer from various types of outages and service interruptions which can cost significant financial 1oss per incident. The aim therefore, is to recommend measures that can improve voltage sag. In this paper a method of determining the exact amount of voltage injection required to systematically correct voltage sag with active power injection with the help of energy storage system (ESS) is described. This paper presents the Dynamic Voltage Restorer (DVR) with ESS based PI Controller method to compensate balanced voltage sag. Simulation results show that this proposed method can compensate balanced voltage sag effectively.


BACKGROUND
Hearing loss is linked to loneliness and social isolation, but evidence is typically based on self-reported hearing. This study quantifies the associations of objective and subjective hearing loss with loneliness and social network characteristics among older adults with untreated hearing loss.

METHODS
This study uses baseline data (N=933) from The Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders (ACHIEVE) study. Hearing loss was quantified by the better ear, speech-frequency pure tone average (PTA), Quick Speech-in-Noise test, and hearing related quality of life. Outcomes were validated measures of loneliness and social network characteristics. Associations were assessed by Poisson, negative binomial, and linear regression adjusted for demographic, health, and study design characteristics.

RESULTS
Participants were mean of 76.8 (4.0) years, 54.0% female, and 87.6% White. Prevalence of loneliness was 38%. Worse PTA was associated with 19% greater prevalence of moderate or greater loneliness (PR: 1.19.95% CI: 1.06, 1.33). Better speech-in-noise recognition was associated with greater social network characteristics (e.g., larger social network size [IRR: 1.04, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.07]). Worse hearing related quality of life was associated with 29% greater prevalence of moderate or greater loneliness (PR: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.19, 1.39) and worse social network characteristics (e.g., more constricted social network size [IRR: 0.96, 95% CI: 0.91, 1.00]).

CONCLUSION
Results suggest the importance of multiple dimensions of hearing to loneliness and social connectedness. Hearing related quality of life may be a potentially useful, easily administered clinical tool for identifying older adults with hearing loss associated with greater loneliness and social isolation.


The motion of an electron in a uniform magnetic field and positive point charge is not integrable. Phase space is often divided between regular regions farther from the positive charge and chaotic regions nearby. As the electron transits the chaotic region, intermittent chaotic behavior ensues. An analytic method to estimate the location of the transit parameters is also developed.


Aim of work is a study of the clinical picture peculiarities in patients with a stable stenocardia of tension and attendant chronic obstructive disease of lungs (ChODL) for a combined pathology early diagnosis improvement. Materials and methods. A retrospective analysis of 1267 case histories of patients is made. An attendant ChODL is revealed in 352 examined patients (27.8%). A comparison of two groups is made according to selected criteria. The patients with IHD combined with ChODL were in the first (investigating) group (n=251). The patients (n=656) with a stable stenocardia only were included into the second (control) group. Results. The typical for stenocardia complaints to pains in chest were from 130 examined patients (51.8%), the pains were absent in 121 patients (48.2%) in the first group. 180 patients (71.7%) complained of inspiratory-expiratory dyspnea. The complaints to palpitation were in 152 patients (60.5%). A complaint to pains in breast of anginal character was more frequently encountered in 510 patients (77.7%) among the 2nd group patients; a mixed dyspnea was rarely observed in 329 patients (50.2%) and a palpitation was in 186 patients (28.4%). Conclusion. There is an attendant ChODL in almost third (27.7%) of the hospitalized in a cardiologic department patients with a chronic IHD. A high rate of the considered diseases, the IHD forming at the background of a present ChODL and the common pathogenetic mechanisms as well substantiates a necessity to interpret a ChODL not only as an attendant pathology, but as a risk factor of IHD development, negatively modifying its flow.


This presentation will summarize work on the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project. A key element of the project is development and implementation of a technique referred to as transactive control. Transactive control will provide a means of coordinating the response of smart grid assets at all levels of the power system. In simple terms transactive control may be thought of as extending the notion of locational marginal pricing throughout the power system from generation to end-use. The transactional nature of the technique, however, introduces a new element in the use of a pair of signals to implement an equivalent to market closing distributed in space and time.


The General Assembly of the United Nations approved the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The SDG try to be ambitious goals that affect the causes of global poverty. The SDG wants to build societies more equalitarian and productive in 2030. On the other hand, United States and European Union are negotiation an agreement for Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with propose of create the biggest economic and trade relations worldwide. The goal of this paper is to analyze if the TTIP will contribute achieve satisfactorily the SDG and if United States and the European Union are considering the new Development Agenda in the negotiations of this treaty.


Research on the early modern Italian Jewish communities shows that this period witnessed a decline of rabbinic authority. From our point of view, one of the signs of this process is the widened scope of situations in which terms previously bound mostly to ritual contexts appear. The article deals with the usage and meaning of the term "minyan" (a quorum of ten men who have reached the age of the religious adulthood necessary for public liturgy) in the first part of the Hevrat Shomerim la-Boker minute book manuscript. Hevrat Shomerim la-Boker is one of the voluntary communal associations of the Venetian Jewish community that was active in the 16–17th centuries. The article examines textual contexts from both chapter and dated notes that contain the term as well as the broader historical context in which these formulae exist. In the first part of the minute book, the term is mentioned five times, three times at the dated notes, two times in the chapter. The analysis of the usage contexts of the term "minyan" revealed that this meaning starts to appear at a wider scope, namely, in administrative contexts. The term also became a part of an idiom that the compiler of the dated notes or scribe used to highlight that a certain procedure was carried out according to the procedural norm and its results are legitimate and accurate.


Spectrally constrained diffuse optical tomography (SCDOT) is known to improve reconstruction in diffuse optical imaging; constraining the reconstruction by coupling the optical properties across multiple wavelengths suppresses artefacts in the resulting reconstructed images. In other work, L1-norm regularization has been shown to improve certain types of image reconstruction problems as its sparsity-promoting properties render it robust against noise and enable the preservation of edges in images, but because the L1-norm is non-differentiable, it is not always simple to implement. In this work, we show how to incorporate L1 regularization into SCDOT. Three popular algorithms for L1 regularization are assessed for application in SCDOT: iteratively reweighted least square algorithm (IRLS), alternating directional method of multipliers (ADMM), and fast iterative shrinkage-thresholding algorithm (FISTA). 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Biophysical restoration or rehabilitation measures of land have demonstrated to be effective in many scientific projects and small-scale environmental experiments. However circumstances such as poverty, weak policies, or inefficient scientific knowledge transmission can hinder the effective upscaling of land restoration and the long term maintenance of proven sustainable use of soil and water. This may be especially worrisome in lands with harsh environmental conditions. This review covers recent efforts in landscape restoration and rehabilitation with a functional perspective aiming to simultaneously achieve ecosystem sustainability, economic efficiency, and social wellbeing. Water management and rehabilitation of ecosystem services in croplands, rangelands, forests, and coastlands are reviewed. The joint analysis of such diverse ecosystems provides a wide perspective to determine: (i) multifaceted impacts on biophysical and socio-economic factors; and (ii) elements influencing effective upscaling of sustainable land management practices. One conclusion can be highlighted: voluntary adoption is based on different pillars, i.e. external material and economic support, and spread of success information at the local scale to demonstrate the multidimensional benefits of sustainable land management. For the successful upscaling of land management, more attention must be paid to the social system from the first involvement stage, up to the long term maintenance.


Speaking is one of the important skills in language learning. Speaking is the act, utterance or discourse of one who speaks. It also can be defined as an activity in giving and asking information as if dialoguing by two or more people. In speaking, there is a process of communication between speaker and listener. People put ideas into words, talking about perceptions and feeling they want other people to understand. The writer observed that most students are difficult to put ideas into word through communication in speaking English. To solve the problem, the writer conducted classroom action research, by implementing debate. The writer applied two cycles in this research. Each cycle consist of three meetings. The participant of this study was one class consists of 32 students. The instrument for collecting the data was speaking test, observation sheet and document. Based on the research result, showed the progressive mean of the students. The first meeting was 46,87, second meeting was 50,09, third meeting was 60,28, the fourth meeting was 65,12, the fifth meeting was 73,56 and the sixth meeting was 77,81. So, the mean in the second cycle was higher than the first cycle.It is indicated that the application of debate technique improve students' speaking skill.