Mobile WiMAX is an emerging broadband wireless communication technology. The IEEE 802.16e standard for Mobile WiMAX, the enhanced version of the IEEE 802.16 standard with mobility support, defines that the implementation of hard handover is mandatory. However, the long interruption of hard handover is horrible for delay and packet loss sensitive real-time applications such as IPTV and VoIP. To solve this problem without many changes to 802.16e equipments, we propose some improvements at various stages of the handover, including the principle for selection of target base station depending on the type of traffic connection managed by subscriber station. Simulation results prove that the scheme accelerates handover process and make Real-time downlink data transmission interruption so brief that users will not perceive the interruption.


A growing amount of evidence suggests that the downregulation of protein synthesis is an adaptive response during physiological aging, which positively contributes to longevity and can be modulated by nutritional interventions like caloric restriction (CR). The expression of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is one of the main determinants of translational rate, and epigenetic modifications finely contribute to its regulation. Previous reports suggest that hypermethylation of ribosomal DNA (rDNA) locus occurs with aging, although with some species- and tissue- specificity. In the present study, we experimentally measured DNA methylation of three regions (the promoter, the 5′ of the 18S and the 5′ of 28S sequences) in the rDNA locus in liver tissues from rats at two, four, 10, and 18 months. We confirm previous findings, showing age-related hypermethylation, and describe, for the first time, that this gain in methylation also occurs in human hepatocytes. Furthermore, we show that age-related hypermethylation is enhanced in livers of rat upon CR at two and 10 months, and that at two months a trend towards the reduction of rRNA expression occurs. Collectively, our results suggest that CR modulates age-related regulation of methylation at the rDNA locus, thus providing an epigenetic readout of the pro-longevity effects of CR.


This paper proposes a novel method for solving the two-sided matching problem, in which the preferences provided by agents are in the form of scores. Firstly, the problem description of two-sided matching with scores is given. Then the related concepts on satisfaction degree are given. Considering the satisfaction degree of each agent, a multi-objective optimization model is set up. The linear weighted method is used to convert the multi-objective optimization model into a single objective model. The matching result is obtained by solving the model. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate the use of the proposed method.


ABSTRACT Multicolor upconversion luminescence of Er3+ was successfully enhanced by optimizing the interface in dye-coordinated nanoparticles with a core/shell structure. Red and green upconversion emissions of Er3+ were obtained at the interface of oxide nanoparticles via the intramolecular energy transfer from the coordinating squaraine dye with high light-absorption ability, which was more efficient than emissions through the energy transfer from metal ions such as Yb3+. Additionally, CaF2 nanoparticles as a core material minimized the energy loss with nonradiative downward relaxations in Er3+, resulting in the observation of unusual blue upconversion emissions from the upper energy level of Er3+ by nonlaser excitation using a continuous-wave (CW) Xe lamp at an excitation power of 1.2 mW/cm2. Graphical Abstract


Measurements of sonic wave velocity and of porosity have been carried out on the Campanian so-called "craie blanche" (white chalk) of the Mons Basin. They have been made on cores collected perpendicular to normal fault planes, at different distances, between 0 (fault plane) and 30 cm. The applications of the continuity index, deduced from the sonic velocity, to these measurements allow us to estimate the amount of microcracking. A new evaluation of the used coefficients, after the physical characteristics of the intact material, has been necessary. The systematic comparison of the values of both velocity and porosity highlight the matrix transformations (decreasing of porosity by calcitic cementation) in a narrow band of about 10 cm on both sides of the fault planes. Depending on the stratigraphic level, the porosity of the intact chalk ranges between 40 and 44% and the sonic wave velocity between 2300 and 2600 m/s. Close to the fault planes, the porosity is about 30 to 35% and the sonic wave velocity about 2700 to 2900 m/s. Along the fault planes, the rock material has an anisotropic behaviour, due to both vertical tectonic microcracking and calcitic barriers resulting from cementation.


: Fetal pulmonic maturity is currently predicted by the lecithin/sphingomyelin (L/S) ratio which utilizes the changes with increased gestation in the lecithin component of amniotic fluid surfactant. The surface tension lowering property of lipids extracted from the amniotic fluid of 45 patients was measured directly. The surface tension (gamma) of various aliquots of the amniotic fluid lipid extract was measured by a modification of the Wilhelmy plate method. At 80 gamma of the extract, a gamma of 67 dynes/cm or less indicated pulmonic maturity, while a gamma of greater than 67 dynes/cm suggested immaturity, provided that the gamma at 200 gamma was greater than 56 dynes/cm. The fluid was termed transitional if the gamma was greater than 67 dynes/cm at 80 gama, but less than 56 dynes/cm at 200 gamma. A comparison was made with the L/S ratio; there were no false positive values and only 13.6% false negative surface tension values. Addition of blood to amniotic fluid, mature and immature, yielded the same results as with the L/S ratio. Two infants with respiratory distress syndrome had both immature L/S ratios and surface tension results. Results indicate that the surface tension of the amniotic fluid lipid extracts is a reliable and rapid means of antenatally predicting fetal pulmonic maturity.


A key challenge for the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is to develop an overall system architecture that can perform optimal coordination of the UAVs and reconfigure to account for changes in the dynamic environment with uncertainty. This paper presents a multi-task allocation and path planning optimal coordination algorithm for UAVs based on Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) perceiving architecture, which leads to solve above autonomous problems in dynamic aerospace surroundings. Learning and inference will be based on Bayesian approach, by representing uncertainty in observed data, and by using probability techniques to compute the goal attributes given the observation data. Under given missions and guidelines, learning, inference and prediction can be carried out by the same principle and these clarify the new direction for the decision-making optimization. The valid overall approach is demonstrated on example scenarios which show that, during execution, the coordination tasks of multi-task allocation and path planning for UAVs, which react to changes in the dynamic aerospace environments, can be achieved autonomously.


Polystyrene-clay and polystyrene-graphite nanocomposites have been prepared and used to explore the process by which the presence of clay or graphite in a nanocomposite enhances the thermal stability of polymers. This study has been designed to determine if the presence of paramagnetic iron in the matrix can result in radical trapping and thus enhance thermal stability. Nanocomposites were prepared by bulk polymerization using both iron-containing and iron-depleted clays and graphites, and they were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and cone calorimetry. The presence of structural iron, rather than that present as an impurity, significantly increases the onset temperature of thermal degradation in polymer-clay nanocomposites. Intercalated nanocomposites show an iron effect, but this is less important for exfoliated systems. Polymer-graphite nanocomposites show no difference between iron-free and iron-containing nanocomposites, presumably because the iron is not nanodispersed in the graphite.


The distribution of 67Ga-citrate in the hepatoma of rat induced by 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene was studied. 67Ga uptake ratio resected specimen, autoradiography and histological specimen were compared each other. 67Ga uptake ratio of the tumor was increased 1.6 to 7.2 times (average 4.4) to control group. Regardless of the size of the tumor, macroautoradiographically observed distribution of 67Ga-citrate in the hepatoma was higher in the peripheral zone than in the central zone. Histologically the degeneration of tumor cell was low or absent in the peripheral zone of tumor, whereas it was intense in the central zone. 67Ga-citrate was highly accumulated in the zone which the degeneration was low or absent. We, however, could not demonstrate the site where 67Ga-citrate was incorporated.


BACKGROUND
Stereotactic biopsy represents the gold standard for tissue diagnosis surgically inaccessible gliomas, tumors and cystic lesions. Tissue samples can be obtained by minimally invasive technique. Moreover, the combination of the neuro-endoscope with stereotactic method is possible.

MATERIAL AND METHOD
23 patients underwent 43 stereotactic biopsy procedures for diagnosis diffuse, deep-seated and eloquent site tumors at Neurosurgery Department Jagiellonian University in Krakow since February 2003. Stereotactic frame "P.N." type (TatraMed S.r.o.) was used. In one case the combined method was used for third ventriculostomy. The specimen was obtained from the target point of CT scan by the aspiration method under local anesthesia in 17 patients and under general anesthesia in 6 patients. The lesion was located in 9 cases of cerebral hemisphere and basal ganglia, in 8 cases of spreading site, in 5 cases of eloquent area and in 1 case of corpus callosum and third-ventricle.

RESULTS
Material from the stereotactic biopsy has been examined neuropathologically. Astrocytoma II(o) WHO were diagnosed in 6 cases, Astrocytoma III(o) WHO in 11 cases, Astrocytoma IV(o) WHO in 3 cases, Metastatic adenocarcinoma in 1 case and in 2 cases the neoplasm was not found. The diagnosis was histologically confirmed in 91.3%. Emergency craniotomy was performed in one patient. In 3 cases the increased intracranial pressure produced by tumor cysts was reduced by the use of biopsy.

CONCLUSIONS
Our data confirm that the "P.N." frame is useful in stereotactic biopsies and operations even with the use of neuroendoscope. The procedure is safe, easy to follow as a tool for patients with various tumors.


Income distribution is perceived to affect crime (Becker 1968; Thurow 1971; Merlo 2003). Consequently, economists have been modeling crime-employing inequality indicators as one of the explanatory variables, yielding mixed results. This paper argues that income polarization rather than inequality should be taken into account in the context of crime analysis. Technically, in addition to income gaps as captured by inequality indicators, the recently developed polarization index of Duclos, Esteban, and Ray (2004) also measures social segregation, which implies immobility and alienation, both of which are closely related to social tensions and conflicts. Thus, this polarization index is expected to be a better variable in explaining crime. To substantiate our arguments, provincial panel data from the People's Republic of China (PRC) are used to model the crime–income distribution relationship. Income polarization is found to be positively and significantly associated with crime. When both income polarization and inequality indicators are included in the models, the former remains a positive and significant determinant while the latter becomes insignificant. JEL Classification: D31, K4 ADBI Working Paper 704 Wang, Wan, and Zhang


In the hyper competitive environment of education sector, the branding of higher education has become an essential element to gain competitive advantage. In order to match the demand and supply gap and to attract the prospective students, the higher educational institutions should focus on the activities of their brand building and recognition. The study focuses on need and importance of various promotional strategies adopted by the colleges/universities as a part of their overall marketing campaign and its impact on their brand recognition. More specifically the objectives are to study the influence of branding of higher educational institutions on the decision making process of students while taking admission, to identify the important sources of information gathering and to suggest effective strategies for higher education branding. The primary data required for this is collected from the students of few renowned colleges/universities of Bangalore city with sample size of 150 students. Data has been further analyzed using SPSS 20. The findings of the study suggest that various factors and promotional measures associated with branding show a positive influence on student's choice of selecting Higher Education Institutions.


Introduction: The coir industry processes fibers from coconuts and is important for a high number of people in Sri Lanka. Coir workers handle several dangerous machines. This project has studied occupational injuries among coir workers.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed in six medium-sized coir industries in Sri Lanka, each with 15-100 employees. The workers who were present at work on the two days the researchers visited the respective industries (128 of total 214 workers) were interviewed on socio-demographics, work tasks they normally perform and occupational injuries they had experienced in the last three months. Independent T-tests and Chi-square tests were used to analyze for differences between groups.
Results: The mean age of the 128 interviewed workers was 45 years and 53.9% were male. Totally 34 (26.6%) of the workers had experienced at least one injury each during the past three months. Women reported significantly more injuries than men (38.9% vs 15.9%). The workers operating machines reported significantly more injuries than workers who performed other types of work (42.3% vs 22.0%). Slipped, tripped, and fall (64%) were the most common events of injury seen among the injured workers followed by cuts by sharp objects or machines (20%). The most common type of injury among the workers reporting injuries were cuts and bruises (50%).
Conclusion: More than one-fourth of the workers reported to have been injured in the last three months, indicating a high injury risk. This raises concerns and highlights the need for preventative measures to minimize risks.


This paper reports on the design and implementation of the database used in the Quantitative Sentinal, a commercial patient data management system. This system was designed and has been in clinical use at the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems, in Baltimore, Maryland, for over 5 years. The system has also been installed at several other medical facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

The report emphasizes a "model" for clinical information which describes clinical data as a collection of discrete value functions with certain properties.

A database design based on the "functional" model is described. Typical data accesses of the database are examined in relationship to sample clinical questions. Within the implementation discussion, a special emphasis on database redundancy is also provided.


The authors report a case of angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophils in a 45-year-old Syrian man working in Saudi Arabia. His skin lesions recurred eighteen months after they were surgically excised.


Abstract Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a viral infection involving multi-organ manifestations. The main oral symptoms of COVID-19 associated are taste loss and xerostomia, but literature has reported other oral manifestation, such as oral blisters, ulcers, vesicles and other immunological lesions. This case report showed an Erythema Multiforme (EM) manifesting as oral mucosa lesions in a patient with a late diagnosis of COVID-19 infection. Case Presentation: A 30 years-old Caucasian woman was sent to an oral medicine office, in order to manage painful and oral mucosa lesions associated with target symmetrical skin lesions. Oral examination revealed extensive ulcers in the mouth and crusts on the lips. Based on clinical examinations, a diagnosis of Erythema Multiforme major was made and a drug therapy with steroids was administered. Five days after the specialist visit, the patient discovered that she was positive for COVID-19. The complete recovery occurred in 3 weeks. Conclusion: Confirming the literature studies, EM is an early disease associated with COVID-19 infection.


We examined the stability of nondisabling and disabling cerebral palsy at age 2 in a longitudinally followed tri-county low-birth-weight (<2000 g) birth cohort. A total of 1105 newborns were enrolled, 901 (81.5%) survived to age 2, and 86% (n = 777) were followed up. Of the 113 cerebral palsy diagnoses at age 2, 61 (9% of the cohort, n = 61/777) had disabling cerebral palsy and 52 (7%, n = 52/777) had nondisabling cerebral palsy. Of 48 followed children diagnosed with disabling cerebral palsy at age 2, 98% were again classified as having cerebral palsy at school age, and 1 had an uncertain cerebral palsy status. By contrast, 41% (n = 17) of the 43 children diagnosed with nondisabling cerebral palsy at age 2 were classified as not having cerebral palsy. Of the 517 followed children who were not diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 2, 7% (n = 35) were classified as having late emerging nondisabling cerebral palsy at school age.


The purpose of this master's thesis is to explore innovative architecture and how it relates to environmental assessments methods for buildings. An increased awareness
of the building sector's environmental impact is expressed through various innovative ideas and design concepts as well as a growing number of green building certifications.
In this research, the link between these different pathways towards sustainable architecture is investigated. This is done through a review of innovation theory, design
concepts related to circular resource use and green building assessment methods. It is further explored in a case study of the project Brata Pavilion and the environmental
assessment methods BREEAM SE, LEED and Miljobyggnad. An analysis of the
correlations between Brata Pavilion and the performance based criteria in the methods
provides an indication of how circular design is managed by the certification schemes.
This study shows the benefits of an increased recognition of reused material and the
complex relation between future and current reuse potential. The existing
environmental assessments methods contribute to a future circular resource use which
currently limits the implementation possibilities of reused material today. This study
also highlights the importance of different pathways towards sustainable architecture
but also a need for bringing them closer to each other.


The stability of a dispersion is frequently denoted by a rate constant which is a quantitative measure of the time required for the initial concentration of particles to be reduced to some critical value. The flocculation of hydrophobic sols has been treated in a kinetic study by Smoluchowski (1916, 1917) and a second-order reaction process was found to hold. The kinetics of coalescence of emulsion globules has been studied by van den Tempe1 (1953), who reported that coalescence is a first-order reaction process which occurs only between adjacent drops in an aggregate and which is independent of the number of droplets in the aggregate. An emulsion cannot be thermodynamically stable, but it can display a high degree of permanence in the kinetic sense. Therefore, the factors determining the kinetics of degradation of emulsion systems are of great importance. The first elaborate study of the kinetics of emulsion breakdown was made by King & Mukherjee (1939) on emulsions of olive oil and kerosene in aqueous solutions of soaps. They surmised that emulsion instability was due to the preponderance of a large interfacial area of the disperse phase and decided that a reasonable representation of the process of coalescence would be a measure of the decrease with time in the specific interfacial area S of emulsified oil.


The paper aims at investigating an innovative approach in the field of sustainability assessment of territorial transformations, where the necessity of decision support tools permitting to consider simultaneously the different aspects of the problem is becoming more and more apparent. In particular, we propose an interactive use of the Dominance-based Rough Sets Approach (DRSA, Greco et al., 2001). The methodology well facilitates the discussion among Decision Makers (DMs) and technical experts. The method is based on the use of a preference model expressed in terms of easily understandable "if … then" decision rules, induced from a preference information easily given by the DM in terms of indication of relatively good actions from a given sample. The method consists of organizing the search of the most preferred action by alternating stages of calculation and dialogue. The calculation stage aims at inducing decision rules and applying them to new actions, while in the dialogue stage the DMs react to the proposal revealing them preferences, that are taken into account in the next stage of calculation. The procedure stops when the DMs find an action satisfactory to be selected. We propose to apply this methodology in decisions-aiding processes concerning urban and territorial projects. In particular, we present an application to the choice of the location for a municipal solid waste plant in the Province of Turin (Italy). In the application, 39 sites are analysed and compared through the use of the DRSA on the basis of different attributes, such as presence of population, hydrogeological risk, agricultural value, interferences on transport infrastructures and economic cost. From the point of view of Multiple Criteria Decision Aid, the results of the application show that the DRSA offers a useful tool for reasoning about the data involved in the decision problem at hand and that it is suitable to elicitate the DMs' preferences and to support them by explaining and justifying the final choice


Ni-based catalysts supported on nanosheet (S), nanofiber (F) and particle (P) alumina were successfully designed for the dry (CO2) reforming of methane reaction. The Ni/Al2O3-S catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activity because the (110) plane of Al2O3-S provides a superior anchoring surface for Ni nanoparticles. During the stability test, the Ni/Al2O3-F catalyst achieved the highest stability with no sign of deactivation, whereas the other catalysts were obviously deactivated under the same reaction conditions. This is because confined spaces were introduced by the nest-like structure of the Al2O3-F support for the confinement of Ni particles. Furthermore, the surface characteristics of the alumina supports and catalysts were analyzed via in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy using CO2 as a probe molecule. In situ DRIFT spectroscopy suggested that the coordinated environment of Al3+ and the surface hydroxyl groups of alumina were altered by the different morphologies. Al2O3-F possessed more basic sites, which readily and stably adsorbed bicarbonate (b-HCO3−) species on the Ni/Al2O3-F catalyst. On the contrary, Ni/Al2O3-S possessed more acidic sites, which adsorbed mono-dentate carbonate (m-CO32−) species, and its chemisorption was less robust and unsteady. The results suggest that the alumina morphology affects the catalytic performance of the dry reforming of methane reaction.


Background and Aims: Modified radical mastectomy (MRM) is the commonest surgical procedure performed for carcinoma breasts. MRM is associated with considerable postoperative pain. This study was aimed to compare the analgesic efficacy of erector spinae plane (ESP) block and pectoral nerve (PECS) block. Materials and Methods: A total 70 female patients, American Society of Anesthesiologist Physical Status I-II, aged between 18 and 65 years, undergoing MRM surgery. Patients were randomly divided into two equal groups of 35 each, by computer-generated random number table. Group E patients, received ESP block with 20 mL of 0.25% levobupivacaine, and Group P patients, received PECS block with 30 mL of 0.25% of levobupivacaine. The surgical procedure was conducted under general anesthesia in both groups. The primary objective was total morphine consumption in the first 24 h and secondary objectives were intraoperative fentanyl needed, duration of analgesia, numeric rating scale (NRS) score, postoperative complications, and patient's satisfaction. The Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) software version 22.0 used for statistical analysis. Results: Demographic data, hemodynamic parameters, and intraoperative fentanyl consumption were comparable between the two groups (P > 0.05). Postoperative morphine consumed in the first 24 h was less in the Group P compared to Group E (P = 0.018). The duration of analgesia was significantly prolonged in the Group P than Group E (P < 0.0001). The NRS score, postoperative complications, and patient's satisfaction were comparable. Conclusion: The PECS block is more effective analgesic modality compared to ESP blocks in patients undergoing MRM surgeries.


We introduce a novel hybrid failure model, which facilitates an accurate and detailed analysis of round-based synchronous, partially synchronous and asynchronous distributed algorithms under both process and link failures. Granting every process in the system up to f/sub /spl lscr// send and receive link failures (with f/sub /spl lscr///sup a/ arbitrary faulty ones among those) in every round, without being considered faulty, we show that the well-known randomized Byzantine agreement algorithm of (Srikanth & Toueg 1987) needs just n /spl ges/ 4f/sub /spl lscr// + 2ff/sub /spl lscr///sup a/+ 3f/sub a/ + 1 processes for coping with f/sub a/ Byzantine faulty processes. The probability of disagreement after R iterations is only 2/sup -R/, which is the same as in the FLP model and thus much smaller than the lower bound 0(1/R) known for synchronous systems with lossy links. Moreover, we show that 2-stubborn links are sufficient for this algorithm. Hence, contrasting widespread belief, a perfect communications subsystem is not required for efficiently solving randomized Byzantine agreement.


Context: The sizes of dust in the interstellar medium follows a distribution where most of the dust mass is in smaller grains. However, the re-distribution from larger grains towards smaller sizes especially by means of rotational disruption is poorly understood. Aims: We aim to study the dynamics of porous grain aggregates under accelerated ration. Especially, we determine the deformation of the grains and the maximal angular velocity up to the rotational disruption event by caused by centrifugal forces. Methods: We pre-calculate aggregates my means of ballistic aggregation analogous to the interstellar dust as input for subsequent numerical simulations. In detail, we perform three-dimensional N-body simulations mimicking the radiative torque spin-up process up to the point where the grain aggregates become rotationally disrupted. Results: Our simulations results are in agreement with theoretical models predicting a characteristic angular velocity $\omega_{\mathrm{disr}}$ of the order of ${ 10^8 - 10^9\ \mathrm{rad\ s^{-1}} }$, where grains become rotationally disrupted. In contrast to theoretical predictions, we show that for large porous aggregates ($<300\ \mathrm{nm}$) $\omega_{\mathrm{disr}}$ reaches a lower asymptotic value. Hence, such grains can withstand an accelerated ration more efficiently up to a factor of 10 because the displacement of mass by centrifugal forces and the subsequent mechanical deformation supports the buildup of new connections within the aggregate. Furthermore, we report that the rapid rotation of grains deforms an ensemble with initially 50:50 prolate and oblate shapes, respectively, preferentially into oblate shapes. Finally, we present a best fit formula to predict the average rotational disruption of an ensemble of porous dust aggregates dependent on internal grain structure, total number of monomers, and applied material properties.


The association between thrombotic events and primary or secondary antiphospholipid/anticardiolipin syndrome is now well recognized. A spectrum of renal involvement ranging from glomerular thrombosis to renal infarction has been described. A case of systemic lupus erythematosus with immunoglobulin G and M antiphospholipid/anticardiolipin antibodies is reported. The patient developed catastrophic thrombosis in multiple organs, and glomerular thrombosis was documented by renal biopsy. The patient had an acquired antithrombin III deficiency, and the combination of secondary antiphospholipid syndrome with accompanying antithrombin III deficiency predisposed to thrombosis. Several mechanisms by which antiphospholipid/anticardiolipin antibodies cause thrombosis have been proposed and are briefly reviewed.


This Part of AMERICAN VOICES IN A CHANGING DEMOCRACY: WOMEN, LOBBYING, AND TAX 1924-1936 turns from a general examination of women and lobbying during the 1924–1936 time period to a specific look at some women's tax lobbying Although women's groups generally did not focus on tax issues, there were occasions when they did so.

The Part demonstrates the variety of tax activities women's groups engaged in by briefly describing the activities of four groups: the National Housewives' League, the Women's Nonpartisan Fair Tariff Committee, the National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs (NFBPWC) and the League of Women Voters. Together, these groups, as their names indicate, represented women in a variety of their roles ranging from their traditional domestic roles as housewives to women in their more public roles as newly enfranchised citizens and growing participants in the paid work force. The tax issues they engaged in reflected their membership running the gamut from housewives concerned with taxes on consumer products to income tax exemptions for single businesswomen.

In my research for this path-breaking survey of early women's tax lobbying book, I have found evidence of several other clubs' involvement with tax issues but not specifics. I believe that an extended, methodical (and laborious) searching through individual collections of clubs' meetings and reports as well as papers of some of the important women members would uncover more details about women's groups' activities in tax lobbying. Even such a search, however, might not reveal the full extent of women's activities because I have discovered that many women's groups did not keep detailed official records and written evidence, if it ever existed, may have disappeared or be hidden in someone's attic.


The passage from India - indentured immigrants come to Natal 1860-1911 heaven on earth in Springfield flats - the peasant option the edge of town - Durban and the Indian working class 1900-30 "It is my work" - labour segmentation and militancy 1935-60 destroying communities - the impact of group areas 1950-80 insiders and outsiders - the working class of the Apartheid era 1960-90.


Background: WHO denes drug as, "Any substance or product that is used or intended to be used to modify or explore physiological systems or pathological states for the benet of the recipient". This denition appears more in compliance with the terms of Ayurveda, which aims at the preservation of health apart from mitigation of disease. Aim: The present study was aimed at setting up a standard prole of Drakshadi Gutika (Tablet) on the terms of its pharmacognostical and physico-chemical aspects. Materials & Methods: The trial drug Drakshadi Gutika was subjected to authentication by subjecting it to above analysis as per standard procedures and the observations were systematically recorded. Results: Pharmacognostical ndings like scleroids of Haritaki, parenchyma of Draksha, stone cells of Draksha, silica crystals of Sita conrms the presence of authentic ingredients of Draksha, Haritaki and Sita in Drakshadi Gutika. HPTLC was carried out after organizing appropriate solvent system in which maximum 3 spots were distinguished at 254 nm and 4 spots at 366 nm. Conclusion: After the analysis of the various pharmacognostical and physic-chemical parameters of Drakshaadi Gutika it was concluded that the formulation meets the minimum qualitative standards as reported in the API at a preliminary level.


This paper presents Kernel Graph Attention Network (KGAT), which conducts more fine-grained evidence selection and reasoning for the fact verification task. Given a claim and a set of potential supporting evidence sentences, KGAT constructs a graph attention network using the evidence sentences as its nodes and learns to verify the claim integrity using its edge kernels and node kernels, where the edge kernels learn to propagate information across the evidence graph, and the node kernels learn to merge node level information to the graph level. KGAT reaches a comparable performance (69.4%) on FEVER, a large-scale benchmark for fact verification. Our experiments find that KGAT thrives on verification scenarios where multiple evidence pieces are required. This advantage mainly comes from the sparse and fine-grained attention mechanisms from our kernel technique.


The abundance of diatoms in Neogene lacustrine sediments and their apparent scarcity in Paleogene deposits have long perplexed geoscientists, but siliceous shales from Eocene lake beds of central British Columbia provide new insights. Major element geochemistry, X-ray diffraction patterns, and relict diatom frustules suggest that Eocene beds at Horsefly, McAbee, and Princeton originated as lacustrine diatomite that underwent diagenetic alteration to produce siliceous shale. The combination of high SiO2 and low Al2O3 values and the presence of opal-CT X-ray diffraction peaks provide a distinctive geochemical fingerprint for biogenic silica deposits that have been remineralized. The discovery of diatomaceous geochemical signatures in siliceous shales may prove to be a useful tool for extending the geologic record of diatoms, perhaps helping to reduce the apparent discrepancy between fossil evidence and evolutionary interpretations based extant species.


Zinc oxide has been used for many applications, for example optoelectronic devices, ceramics, catalysts, pigments, varistors and many other important applications. In this study, ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by mixture of fuel approach in solution combustion method. Mixtures of urea, glycine and citric acid were mixed at room temperature with Zinc nitrates as fuels resulting in spontane-ous ignition resulting in production of ZnO nanopowder. The crystal structure and size of the synthesized powder were determined by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), which revealed that the synthesized ZnO nanopowder has the pure wurtzite structure having crystallite size 26–40 nm. Optical studies of nanomaterial were examined by FTIR and UV-Visible absorption spectrum. The luminescence studies also investigated in the visible region 360–800 nm with excitation 325 nm laser. These nanomaterials may be used in solid-state lightening devices. of fuel content on luminescence and antibacterial properties of zinc oxide nanocrystalline powders synthesized by the combustion method."


Oilseeds have been known for centuries, their importance as a major source of both fats and proteins has been realized only during 19th century especially after the end of the World War II. No other farm commodity can really meet simultaneously in so large a measure the energy and protein requirements of human body as oil seeds do. Since oil seeds supply the major energy protein needs of the livestock population as well, they are the primary source of even such valuable animal fats and proteins as milk, meat and eggs. Apart from their use in human foods and animal feeds, oil seeds also have a wide variety of industrial applications. The use of vegetable oils in soaps, paints and varnishes and even in lubricating oils has been known for quite sometime. In recent years oil seeds are finding their way in such diverse industrial uses as fatty acids, glycerin, tannin and even chemicals, to mention a few. The industrial uses of oil seeds are actually increasing with new technological break-through. As a result, the developed and developing economies like India are trying to increase the production and productivity of oil seeds.


The concern over links between drug use and acquisitive crime has become a central debate within the drug-crime relationship. This concern has facilitated the implementation of drug strategies to treat problematic drug use, in the quest to reduce this link. The government in England and Wales implemented the Drug Testing and Treatment Order (DTTO) in 2000. However this Order has essentially been 'replaced' by the Drug Rehabilitation Requirement (DRR), which is attached to the Community Order. It is the primary criminal justice response to this concern today. However this sentence is relatively new, introduced April 2005, and therefore is little literature available. As such this dissertation focuses upon the DTTO. This dissertation aims to research the effectiveness of the DTTO and evaluate ethical concerns, in order to present 'concerns for the future' in drug treatment via the criminal justice system. The initial concern of this dissertation is relating the drug-crime relationship to the implementation of the Drug Treatment and Testing Order. This is in order to assess whether or not the DTTO understand and implements crucial aspects of the drug-crime relationship, and is achieved through analysis of criminological theories. The Drug Treatment and Testing Order (DTTO) is assessed in terms of implementation, efficiency, effectiveness and accessibility, and voices concerns by academics, professionals and the media to the practices and ethics of the DTTO. It is concluded that there are several theoretical, practical and ethical limitations to the DTTO. Suggestions are made that these limitations be addressed to create better, more effective treatment in the criminal justice system. It is found that the DTTO fails to fully implement practices which deal with the causes of the drug-crime connection and as such, should aim to incorporate a variety of interventions. Crucial to the success of treatment is an increased understanding and implementation of addiction and motivation theories and practices. This dissertation assumes that lessons can be learnt from the successes and failures of the DTTO and implemented into the current DRR.


The Monte Carlo program CATCH (Capture And Transport of CHarged particles in a crystal) for the simulation of planar channelling in bent crystals is presented. The program tracks a charged particle through the distorted-crystal lattice with the use of continuous-potential approximation and the non-diusion approach to the processes of scattering on electrons and nuclei. The output consists of the exit angular distributions, the energy loss spectra, and the spectra of any close-encounter process of interest. The curvature variability, face twist, and various surface imperfections of the real crystal can be taken into account.


The petition concerned the second phase of a re-ordering of this Grade II∗ listed mediaeval church. The proposals included the removal of a recently introduced Victorian screen to allow for the creation of a glazed room to serve as a chapel, children's area and meeting space, and the removal of pews, save for the retention of a block of five rows of shortened pews. The proposals relating to the pews and the screen/chapel were opposed by a local party opponent, who requested an oral hearing. Applying the Duffield test, the court found that the removal of pews would harm the significance of the building, but that this was outweighed by the justification, being the provision of a more flexible space for certain community activities. As far as the screen and proposed chapel/meeting room was concerned, the removal of the screen would cause a very low degree of harm to the significance of the building, and the new glazed construction none at all. The party opponent's criticism of the proposal related to the use rather than construction of the space. The party opponent had sought to introduce new evidence at the hearing, in the form of a poll he had carried out in the village. The court found that the material was inherently unreliable, that the leaflet produced by the party opponent was tendentious and misleading, and that numerous voting slips appeared to have been completed by the same individual. The court held that the evidence was inadmissible, but in any event of no assistance to the court. The party opponent's conduct in requesting an oral hearing of the petition insofar as it related to the pews was reasonable. However, his approach to the screen/chapel issue was unreasonable. Further, his conduct of matters before and at the hearing was unreasonable. This included failure to comply with court directions, reliance on irrelevant matters, repeated use of inflammatory and denigrating language on paper and in court, and culpably misleading and inaccurate communications. He was ordered to pay 50 per cent of the court costs attributable to the oral hearing, and 50 per cent of the petitioners' costs. [David Willink]


Abstract Field experiments were conducted in 1999 and 2000 to evaluate early POST (EPOST) and late POST (LPOST) control of common ragweed and giant foxtail with mesotrione at 70, 105, and 140 g ai/ha alone and in mixtures with glufosinate at 300 g ai/ha in glufosinate-resistant corn. Glufosinate-resistant corn injury was frequently higher with mixtures of mesotrione plus glufosinate than with mesotrione applied alone. Mixtures of mesotrione with glufosinate applied EPOST injured corn 6 to 21% in 1999, but in 2000, injury from mixtures was 23 to 30% from LPOST applications. Common ragweed control was above 77% with all treatments, which included 105 g/ha mesotrione. Giant foxtail control was higher at 76 to 78% by mixtures of mesotrione with glufosinate applied LPOST than by mesotrione alone. Corn yields were highest when glufosinate was included in treatments at either application timing. In the greenhouse, mixtures of mesotrione with glufosinate-injured glufosinate-resistant corn 11% or less, but corn biomass was reduced by 25% for the mixture of mesotrione at 105 g/ha plus glufosinate at 350 g/ha. Mixtures of mesotrione with glufosinate can be more effective than mesotrione alone but control of common ragweed and giant foxtail might not be commercially acceptable. Nomenclature: Glufosinate; mesotrione; common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. AMBEL; giant foxtail, Setaria faberi Herrm. SETFA; corn, Zea mays L


Histamine is a central nervous system (CNS) neurotransmitter. It acts in the brain via three receptors, H(1), H(2), and H(3). It is a mediator of "wakefulness" and its activity is necessary to maintain wakefulness, alertness, and reaction time. These activities can be impaired by H(1)-antagonists (reverse agonists) capable of penetrating the blood-brain barrier. By blocking the homeostatic effects of histamine in the CNS, drowsiness and functional impairment with or without drowsiness can occur. Several tests have been designed to assess the effects of antihistamines on the CNS. These include subjective measurements of drowsiness and more objective measurements of impairment. Second-generation antihistamines have been designed to minimize blood-brain barrier penetration by reducing lipophilicity and increasing the affinity for P-aminnoglycoprotein.


The contribution is devoted to the study of image segmentation and texture analysis to find image features invariant to image components rotation and translation. The main part of the paper presents the principle of Radon transform and its use in combination with the wavelet transform to find features minimizing their variance due to image components rotation. Proposed methods have been verified for simulated structures and then used for analysis of biomedical images including magnetic resonance images of the brain and orthodontic images. The goal of image processing included in all cases (i) segmentation of selected biomedical objects and (ii) detection of their features.


Author(s): George, Leigh-Michil | Advisor(s): Grossman, Jonathan H; Nussbaum, Felicity A | Abstract: This dissertation examines how late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century British novelists—major authors, Laurence Sterne and Jane Austen, and lesser-known writers, Pierce Egan, Charles Jenner, and Alexander Bicknell—challenged Henry Fielding's mid-eighteenth-century critique of caricature as unrealistic and un-novelistic. In this study, I argue that Sterne, Austen, Egan, and others translated visual tropes of caricature into literary form in order to make their comic writings appear more "realistic." In doing so, these authors not only bridged the character-caricature divide, but a visual-verbal divide as well. As I demonstrate, the desire to connect caricature with character, and the visual with the verbal, grew out of larger ethical and aesthetic concerns regarding the relationship between laughter, sensibility, and novelistic form. This study begins with Fielding's Joseph Andrews (1742) and its antagonistic stance towards caricature and the laughter it evokes, a laughter that both Fielding and William Hogarth portray as detrimental to the knowledge of character and sensibility. My second chapter looks at how, increasingly, in the late eighteenth century tears and laughter were integrated into the sentimental experience. Sterne's readers wept sentimental tears for Tristram Shandy's (1759-1767) heartbroken Maria, but they also sought "delicate laughter" in the verbal and visual caricature of Dr. Slop. In the third chapter, I explore how Jane Austen's Persuasion (1818) mocks Sternean sensibility and its problematic idealization of fragile, female bodies by adapting tropes of visual caricature into literary form. The fourth chapter examines Pierce Egan's Life in London (1821), rarely read today, but hugely popular in the 1820s. Egan's protagonists are "men of feeling" who thrive on the thrills of "real life," which in the novel is best exemplified by caricature. The novelist follows in the comic realist tradition of Fielding, but embraces Sternean sensibility and its enthusiasm for caricature. Egan sees caricature and sensibility as interconnected, rather than opposed.


College students (N = 78) completed a series of questionnaires dealing with their personal value systems, perceptions and attitudes concerning persons with mental retardation, volunteer experience, and attitudes and beliefs regarding volunteer work with persons with mental retardation. They were then questioned as to their interest in doing such volunteer work. Data on the students who expressed an interest in volunteer work and those who did not were compared. Results showed that the importance that students placed on certain values in their personal lives was the best predictor of volunteer interest. The importance of these findings for better understanding the nature of people's receptivity to persons with mental retardation was discussed.


—Millimeter wave (mmWave) communication is one of the technologies to meet the ever increasing demand of high quality entertainment services inside the passenger car. In accordance with the gigabit class backhaul technology for the high speed trains, the target is to achieve gigabit class link throughput at almost all (99%) the seats inside the passenger car of high speed trains (PCoHST). However 60GHz band mmWave communication suffers from huge human blockage besides severer propagation loss than the 2.4GHz band, hence the area of gigabit class link throughput that one mmWave AP (MAP) can support is smaller. We have shown that at least 4 MAPs are necessary to meet the above target. This paper proposes two topographic allocation types for the 4 MAPs taking into account of the physical structure of the PCoHST, the propagation characteristics and human blockage in the mmWave band. We evaluate the allocation types by ray tracing simulations under 4 typical human blockage scenarios with 3 typical occupancy rates. Simulation results show that the straight in-line allocation type on the ceiling at the center of the vehicular width is more feasible.


Although smooth muscle hypertrophy is present in asthmatic airways, little is known about the biochemical pathways regulating airway smooth muscle protein synthesis, cell size, or accumulation of contractile apparatus proteins. We sought to develop a model of airway smooth muscle hypertrophy in primary cells using a physiologically relevant stimulus. We hypothesized that transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta induces hypertrophy in primary bronchial smooth muscle cells. Primary human bronchial smooth muscle cells isolated from unacceptable lung donor tissue were studied. Cells were seeded on uncoated plastic dishes at 50% confluence and TGF-beta was added. Experiments were performed in the absence of serum. TGF-beta increased cell size and total protein synthesis, expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin and smooth muscle myosin heavy chain, formation of actomyosin filaments, and cell shortening to acetylcholine. Further, TGF-beta increased airway smooth muscle alpha-actin synthesis in the presence of the transcriptional inhibitor actinomycin D, evidence that translational control is a physiologically important element of the observed hypertrophy. TGF-beta induced the phosphorylation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor-4E-binding protein, a signaling event specifically involved in translational control. Finally, two inhibitors of 4E-binding protein phosphorylation, the phosphoinositol 3-kinase inhibitor LY294002 and a phosphorylation site mutant of 4E-binding protein-1 that dominantly inhibits eukaryotic initiation factor-4E, each blocked TGF-beta-induced alpha-actin expression and cell enlargement. We conclude that TGF-beta induces hypertrophy of primary bronchial smooth muscle cells. Further, phosphorylation of 4E-binding protein is required for the observed hypertrophy.


With increasing frequency and self-assurance, the scientific objectivity of American social science is proclaimed by some of its prominent practitioners. Various explanations are offered for the onset of social science's Golden Age, but central to most of them is the claim that modern social science has managed to resolve Mannheim's Paradox, namely, that in the pursuit of the truth the social scientist himself is handicapped by the narrow focus and distortions implicit in ideological thought. Presumably, the social scientist can now probe any aspect of human organization and behavior as dispassionately as physical scientists observe the structure of the atom or chemical reactions. For this reason, it is claimed by some that the ideologically liberated social scientists—at least in the United States—can expect to be co-opted into the Scientific Culture, or that segment of society that is presumably aloof from and disdainful toward the moralistic speculations and the tender-heartedness of the literary intellectuals. The behaviorial "revolution" in political science may have run its course, but it has left in its wake both obscurantist criticisms of empiricism, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, an unquestioning belief in "science." Quite often the latter belief is not merely anti-historical and anti-philosophical but also uncritical about the extent to which empirical observations can be colored by the very orientation to values that one seeks to control in rigorous empirical research. The claims of modern social scientists are greatly buttressed by the views of Talcott Parsons.


An alternative to the point scattering model approach for simulating reverberation is discussed. Reverberation is synthesized by passing a vector white noise process through a multichannel IIR (infinite-impulse response) filter whose time-varying transfer function matches the time-evolving spectral characteristics of the expected auto and cross range-Doppler maps.<<ETX>>


Histopathological and electron microscopic analyses of pemphigus herpetiformis in a 64-year old woman with a previously operated atoxic goitre and suffering from a nephrotic syndrome and a chronic non-aggressive hepatitis revealed acantholysis preceded by eosinophilic spongiosis. Light microscopically the acantholysis is characterized by the occurrence of necrobiotic epidermal cells. No dyskeratotic cells are found. The mechanism of acantholysis depends on an exuberant elongation of desmosomes, leading to their disruption, spongiotic acantholysis. A conspicuous convolution of specific tight intercellular spaces is observed. Intracytoplasmatic occurrence of such tight intercellular spaces is seen in sections. Pseudomyeloid bodies of various types seem to be of significance. Particles closely similar to pox viruses are observed. The acantholytic process is compared with other acantholytic disorders in which the above-mentioned findings were not observed.


The frequentist interpretation of measurement results requires the specification of an ensemble of independent replications of the same experiment. For complex calculations of bias, coverage, significance, etc., this ensemble is often simulated by running Monte Carlo pseudo-experiments. In order to be valid, the latter must obey the Frequentist Principle and the Anticipation Criterion. We formulate these two principles and describe some of their consequences in relation to stopping rules, conditioning, and nuisance parameters. The discussion is illustrated with examples taken from high-energy physics.


Objective: to describe the profile of nurses and the occurrence and frequency of risk factors regarding moral distress. Method: a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study, with 268 nurses working in hospitals and primary health care units in the Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), between the months of March and July, 2016. Data collection was performed using the online Google Docs tool. A moral distress risk scale and a set of variables were used to characterize the participants and their context. Results: the sample mainly consisted of young women who worked between 36 and 40 hours a week, with an average monthly income between five and seven minimum wages and about ten years of nursing experience. The risk of moral distress was considered moderate, with a considerable percentage of professionals showing an intention to abandon their current job. Conclusion: moral distress is a reality experienced by the nurses under study, and the identification of risk factors is one of the tools used to create coping strategies


This paper proposes a type of quasi-elliptic filter with controllable electric and magnetic mixed coupling based on substrate integrated waveguide cavity resonators using two-layer printed circuit board process. For the second-order mixed coupling filter, an embedded short-ended strip line is combined with a conventional inductive window between two cavities to create the mixed coupling, in which the electric and magnetic coupling can be separately controlled by adjusting the width of the strip line and the inductive window, and a controllable transmission zero can be produced below or above the passband. For local multipoint distribution service application, three directly coupled quasi-elliptic filters and two cross-coupled quasi-elliptic filters are designed, simulated, and fabricated using the mixed electric and magnetic coupling second-order filtering units at the Ka-band. For the N-order filter, a maximum of N-1 finite transmission zeros can be realized. The proposed filters show the advantages of good selectivity with controlled transmission zeros, wide upper stopband, and easy integration with other planar circuits. Good agreements have been observed between the measured results and the simulated ones.


We have shown previously that T cells, tagged with biotinylated anti-CD3 antibody fragments, can exert avidin-dependent cytolytic activity on suitably biotinylated tumor cells in vitro. In this study, we demonstrate that avidin-driven CTL-tumor bridging in vivo leads to growth inhibition of murine tumors WEHI-164 fibrosarcoma and RMA lymphoma. The biodistribution of biotin-tagged 111In-labeled T cells demonstrated a selective avidin-dependent and time-dependent accumulation of radioactivity at tumor sites. The specificity of lymphocyte tumor localization was demonstrated by the concurrent time-dependent decrease of radioactivity in the blood and in all other organs. Furthermore, we documented a therapeutic effect of the adoptively transferred T cells, i.e., a significant delay of tumor growth at early stages. All of the experiments included a control group of mice, which received all of the reagents, except avidin. These avidin-minus mice showed no specific localization and no delay in tumor growth, indicating that avidin bridging was essential for T-cell activity at tumor sites.


OBJECTIVE. In this article, we provide an updated review on the role of imaging in initial staging, treatment monitoring, and follow-up of cervical cancer with a focus on the role of MRI and FDG PET/CT. In addition, the 2018 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics staging system and its implication on management of cervical cancer are explored. CONCLUSION. Imaging plays a major role in treatment planning and as a prognostic indicator in patients with cervical cancer. MRI and PET/CT have complementary roles: MRI is essential for the local staging of the primary tumor, and PET/CT is the most useful modality for detecting regional nodal and distant metastases.


Chronic kidney disease (CKD)-related cachexia increases the risks of reduced physical activity and mortality. However, the physiological phenotype of skeletal muscle fatigue and changes in intramuscular metabolites during muscle fatigue in CKD-related cachexia remain unclear. In the present study, we performed detailed muscle physiological evaluation, analysis of mitochondrial function, and comprehensive analysis of metabolic changes before and after muscle fatigue in a 5/6 nephrectomized rat model of CKD. Wistar rats were randomized to a sham-operation (Sham) group that served as a control group or a 5/6 nephrectomy (Nx) group. Eight weeks after the operation, in situ torque and force measurements in plantar flexor muscles in Nx rats using electrical stimulation revealed a significant decrease in muscle endurance during subacute phase related to mitochondrial function. Muscle mass was reduced without changes in the proportions of fiber type-specific myosin heavy chain isoforms in Nx rats. Pyruvate-malate-driven state 3 respiration in isolated mitochondria were impaired in Nx rats. Protein expression levels of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes III and V were decreased in Nx rats. Metabolome analysis revealed that the increased supply of acetyl CoA in response to fatigue was blunted in Nx rats. These findings suggest that CKD deteriorates skeletal muscle endurance in association with mitochondrial dysfunction and inadequate supply of acetyl-CoA during muscle fatigue.


UDK 630*8/.9
The Bologna process thrusts forestry and forestry education into the context of an evolving global economy as well as worldwide concerns about environmental protection and climate change. It stimulates the integration of forestry into the framework of sustainable land-use practices and the combination of forest management experience with new scientific knowledge and research methodology. Forest professionals need a comprehensive educational background if they are to tackle rapidly changing social, economic and political problems. At the same time they need to understand the evolving and locally specific social and cultural aspects of forestry. This demands a joint approach to forest management, environment protection and landscape conservation. Maintaining the natural resource base and managing forests in a sustainable manner will require teaching programme combining policy and law, business economics and management, and forest resource and environmental economics components.


OBJECTIVE
To clone and identify gastric cancer-related genes and explore the possible pathogenic mechanism of gastric cancer.

METHODS
The differentially expressed cDNA bands were isolated by fluorescent mRNA differential display in gastric cancer specimens, matched normal gastric mucosa and premalignant lesions. The motility-related protein-1 (MRP-1/CD9) gene was one of the down-regulated genes. MRP-1/CD9 gene expression in different kinds of gastric tissue was analyzed by Northern blot and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

RESULTS
MRP-1/CD9 expression was down-regulated in all gastric cancer tissues. Northern blot analysis confirmed this differential expression. RT-PCR analysis showed that the MRP-1/CD9 gene expression was much lower in gastric cancers(0.31+/-0.18) than in the matched normal gastric tissue (0.49+/-0.24) and in the premalignant lesions (0.47+/-0.18) (P<0.05), and its expression in intestinal type gastric cancer (0.38+/-0.16) was higher than that in diffuse type gastric cancer (0.22+/-0.17) (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION
The MRP-1/CD9 gene expression was down-regulated in gastric cancer, its expression was probably related to the carcinogenesis and histology types of gastric cancer.


With the development of electric vehicles, more and more electric vehicles have difficulties in parking and charging. One of the reasons is that the number of charging piles is difficult to support the energy supply of electric vehicles, and a large number of private charging piles have a long idle time, so the energy supply problem of electric vehicles can be solved by sharing charging piles. The shared charging pile scheme uses Paillier encryption scheme and improved scheme to effectively protect user data. The scheme has homomorphism of addition and subtraction, and can process information without decryption. However, considering that different users have different needs, the matching is carried out after calculating the needs put forward by users. This scheme can effectively protect users' privacy and provide matching mechanisms with different requirements, so that users can better match the appropriate charging piles. The final result shows that its efficiency is better than the original Paillier scheme, and it can also meet the security requirements.


The purpose of this descriptive survey study was to determine the extent to which student teachers deem traditional student teaching skills and activities relevant as part of the capstone student teaching experience. The study population consisted of all (N = 140) fall 2012 and spring 2013 agricultural education student teachers in the North Central Region of the American Association for Agricultural Education (NC-AAAE). The findings shed light on student teachers' perspectives regarding the relevance of student teaching activities. Student teachers considered the activities associated with the eight constructs in this study relevant or very relevant. Future research should determine if all teacher preparation programs require similar student teaching experiences. Little is known about how student teaching experiences are reviewed and how recommendations are handled at each teacher preparation institution. This study provides feedback to university agricultural education student teaching coordinators regarding the skills and activities student teachers believe are relevant to their capstone student teaching experience.


Adult male interference in agonistic episodes is strongly biased against adolescent and adult male participants, whereas adult female interference is biased in favor of kin and in support of younger animals against older animals. Although natal males also are biased in favor of their kin, their selective targeting of sexually mature males is independent of kinship. Adolescent males target adult males, but only in defense of kin. This selective interference against adolescent and adult males by adult males has the potential to profoundly modify male agonistic participation in intragroup encounters after puberty. Because female support is influenced primarily by kinship, females less consistently interfere against male agonistic participants. Adult males may therefore play an important role in the socialization of male agonistic expression.


The reaction of chemical carcinogens with DNA is well documented, but whether this interaction occurs at specific sites in chromatin is unknown. We have examined in vivo the reaction of a known carcinogen, chloroacetaldehyde, with the active and inactive major immediate early gene of human cytomegalovirus. We found that during active transcription of the gene, this chemical carcinogen reacts with a unique DNA site in the 5′ flanking sequence of the major immediate early gene. However, no reaction was detected in infected nonpermissive cells in which the gene was inactive. The chloroacetaldehyde‐reactive site is located at ‐836 pmn 10 bp from the mRNA cap site in the part of the regulatory region that can both negatively and positively affect promoter activity [Nelson et al., Mol Cell Biol 7:4125–4129, 1987]. These results suggest, at least in the case of chloroacetaldehyde, the possibility that the molecular mechanism of chemical carcinogenesis involves a chemical reaction at specific sites in chromatin within the sequences responsible for regulation of gene expression. Such carcinogen‐DNA interaction occurs as a consequence of a non‐B DNA structure that contains unpaired DNA bases existing at specific sites in chromatin.


A small group (n=9), whose complaints of low frequency noise had not been resolved by Environmental Health Officers and related care professionals, were invited to attend a series of intervention sessions led by a psychotherapist. The aims of the sessions were to improve the participants' coping strategies and their quality of life, in order to relieve them from some of the distress caused by their belief that they were exposed to low frequency noise. Prior to the psychotherapy sessions the group was evaluated on a number of self report questionnaires, which measured individual responses for reaction to low frequency noise, quality of life, quality of coping and a personality questionnaire (Insights™ Discovery Preference Evaluator). A before and after, within group analysis of responses was based upon repeat measures of the three behavioural response questionnaires for noise reactivity, quality of life and coping. A general reduction in the subjects' stress levels was shown, suggesting positive effects of psychotherapy upon symptoms that had, in this group's case, proved resistant to improvement by conventional local authority and specialist interventions. This 'therapeutic' approach to LFN interventions could lead to improved health and effectiveness and fewer demands on local services. Although the techniques of tinnitus management were informative, analogy between the problems of low frequency noise sufferers and those of tinnitus sufferers fails at the point where low frequency noise sufferers believe that an external agency is the cause of their problems.


We quantify and compare two competing transmitter technologies: vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) and quantum-well modulator (QWM) for the interchip communication using high-speed optical links. VCSEL-based links are power favorable compared to QWM-based links at higher bandwidths (20 Gb/s) and larger distances. However, the QWM is better for lower detector capacitances. We also extend the comparison to high-speed electrical links and quantify the critical length beyond which optical links are power favorable compared to electrical links for both VCSEL and QWM transmitters


The presence and distribution of two groups of enzymes has been determined histochemically on sections of the schistosome-bearing snail Australorbis glabratus. By the use of specific inhibitors, attempts have been made to characterize further the enzymes occurring in the various organs and tissues.

As a result of this study it has been found that alkaline and acid phosphatase are widely distributed but have identical localizations only in the kidney and albumen gland. Both enzymes react typically to the action of the usual inhibitors.

Among the non-specific esterases. an enzyme corresponding to the mammalian A-type esterase (aromesterase) is present in the brain; while a B-type esterase (aliesterase) is located in the digestive gland, intestine, and on the glandular region of the foot surface.

A "true" lipase (an esterase acting on an undissolved substrate) is found principally in the albumen gland, with an indication of its presence in the digestive gland and in portions of the digestive tract.

An enzyme with the properties of an acetylcholinesterase occurs in the radula sac, oesophagus, preputium, junction of carrefour and oviduct, and amoebocytes. A positive reaction for cholinesterase is also obtained with frozen sections of brain but, although this enzyme has been shown biochemically to hydrolyse acetylcholine and is inhibited by low concentrations of eserine. it is remarkably resistant to the action of organophosphorous compounds, and its true nature cannot he stated with certainty.


This paper uses the Indian tariff reforms of the early nineties to estimate how households responded to the negative income shocks caused by the tariff decreases. Households more hurt by the tariff reform decreased overall expenditure, but the response is not uniform across food items. In particular, households more hurt by the reform did not change their consumption of cereals, but decreased their consumption of all other food items. Although this coping mechanism helped maintain overall levels of calorie consumption, diet diversity and the associated benefits were sacrificed.


Because habitat loss is a leading cause of extinction, it is important to identify what kind of species is most vulnerable. Here, I use algebraic and graphical techniques to study metacommunity models of weak competition or locally facultative mutualism in which species may coexist within patches. Because a competition–colonization trade-off is not required for regional coexistence of competitors, poor competitors are often regionally rare and most prone to extinction, in contrast to results from previous models of strongly competitive metapopulations. Metacommunities of mutualists can suffer the abrupt extinction of both species as habitat destruction is increased. These highlight the importance of identifying the mechanisms by which species coexist to predict their response to habitat loss.


A new blood access system for hemodialysis (HD) addresses the major shortcomings of current accessing techniques and helps overcome patient adversity with available choices. The system uses new methods, devices and compositions comprising several novel elements: (1) totally implanted port, elementally simple in design, small and robust with improved safety features, (2) engineered transcutaneous tissue tract (TTT) to precisely guide a tubular conduit to engage the implanted port, (3) viscoelastic gel prophylaxis for internal passages and surface interfaces of the port and TTT, (4) the tool kit aligns the TTT with the port and initiates TTT formation at the time of port placement, (5) an integrated external bloodline circuit comprising the interface between the implanted port and HD machine which can be reused for several treatment sessions. The system provides bloodless, painless, and fail-safe connections with redundant sealing along the complete blood path. It is substantially more robust than current access options and more convenient to use. TTT construct is durable, permanently aligned and fixed to the port enabling non-compromised tissue integrity during access penetration. A bullet-pointed tubular assembly enters and passes through the TTT confining the tubular device to advance towards the port and entering it to engage a solid tactually sensed stop indicating the correct position. The system may be used within a few days of port placement. The access is unobtrusive and preserves patient self-image.


The hunting methods of the Neanderthals are rarely evident in detail in the archaeological record. Here, the rare and important discovery of a fragment of broken Levallois point, embedded in the neck-bones of a wild ass, provokes plenty of discussion of the methods of hafting and killing game in the Middle Palaeolithic of Syria.


Introduction:

Patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD) are usually exposed to a high dialysate calcium concentration (D[Ca]), which is associated with undesirable effects. Low D[Ca] might overstimulate parathyroid hormone (PTH), as shown by previous studies carried out before the incorporation of calcimimetics in clinical practice. We hypothesized that a reduction in D[Ca] is safe and without risk for a rise in serum PTH.
Methods

in this prospective study, the D[Ca] was reduced from 1.75 mmol/L to 1.25 mmol/L for one year in prevalent patients on PD. Demographic, clinical, and biochemical parameters were evaluated at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months of follow-up.
Results

Patients (N = 20) aged 56 ± 16 years, 50% male, 25% diabetic. There was no significant change in calcium, phosphate, alkaline phosphatase, 25(OH)-vitamin D or PTH over time. Medication adjustments included an increase in calcitriol and sevelamer. After 1 year, absolute and percentual change in PTH levels were 36 (-58, 139) pg/ml, and 20% (-28, 45) respectively. The proportion of patients with PTH > 300 pg/ml did not change during the follow-up (p = 0.173).
Conclusion

Low D[Ca] concentration should be considered to patients on PD as a valuable and safe option. Medication adjustments to detain PTH rising, however, are advised.


OBJECTIVE
To observe the clinical effect of Manlyman Spray in the treatment of premature ejaculation (PE).

METHODS
From January 2021 to March 2022, a total of 123 patients with PE were enrolled in clinical observation. Manlyman Spray was sprayed on the surface of the glans penis, corona of the glans and frenulum of the penis qd for 4 weeks. Before and after medication and at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal, the intravaginal ejaculation latency time (IELT), Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT) scores and Chinese Index of Sexual Function for Premature Ejaculation (ClPE) scores of the patients were obtained and compared.

RESULTS
Compared with the baseline, the IELT of the patients was significantly prolonged after 4 weeks of medication ([1.51 ± 0.42] vs [3.79 ± 1.69] min, P < 0.05) and at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal ([1.51 ± 0.42] vs [3.55 ± 1.62] min, P < 0.05), the PEDT scores were remarkably improved after 4 weeks of medication (14.0 ± 1.9 vs 7.7 ± 2.1, P < 0.05) and at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal (14.0 ± 1.9 vs 7.8 ± 2.0, P < 0.05), and so were the CIPE scores (9.0 ± 1.6 vs 20.0 ± 1.7, P < 0.05, and 9.0 ± 1.6 vs 17.3 ± 1.6, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
Manlyman Spray has a definite effect in the treatment of PE.


Background & Objective: The ability of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to form biofilm has an important role in establishment of chronic phase of infections. Biofilm formation can be affected by antibiotics sub-MIC concentrations. The principal aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of gentamicin at sub-MIC concentrations on biofilm formation in 100 Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. Methods: Determination of minimal inhibitory concentration of gentamicin for clinical isolates was done using micro broth dilution method. The amount of biofilm formation in the treated and untreated isolates with gentamicin sub-MIC (1/2&1/4MIC) concentrations was evaluated using microtitre plate assay. pelA and pslA genes were detected in clinical isolates by PCR method. Results: 99% of clinical isolates were biofilm producer. Different changes in amount of biofilm formation were observed in the treated clinical isolates with sub-MIC concentrations of gentamicin. Two dominant changes were observed in 80% of clinical isolates. These concentrations had inhibitory effect on biofilm formation in 46.4% of isolates and caused a significant decrease in its amount. While in 31.3% of the isolates, the biofilm formation was significantly increased. The frequency of pelA and pslA genes among clinical isolates was 100%. Conclusion: gentamicin sub-MIC concentrations cause different changes on biofilm formation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. Therefore, further studies are needed for discovering new treatment strategies and using sub-MIC concentrations of the antibiotic in prevention and treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections.


Although tumor hypoxia is associated with the complex processes of tumor metastasis and resistance, and poses significant challenges against traditional cancer treatments, it provides a target for therapy by bioreductive drugs with enhanced cytotoxic activity in the reduced microenvironment of tumors. We identified a potent synthetic quinoxaline di-N-oxide (DCQ) which preferentially targets hypoxic tumors. Here we show that DCQ: 1) Reduces the viability of breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231, MCF-7), 2) Induces reactive oxygen species (ROS)-dependent p53-independent apoptosis, 3) Inhibits the accumulation of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF-1α) via distinct mechanisms in the two cell lines and 4) Significantly reduces hypoxia-induced invasion of breast cancer cell lines in vitro and in vivo. DCQ-induced ROS was associated with increased DNA damage in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells. The inhibition of HIF-1α accumulation in MCF-7 was in part via the activation of p53 and was accompanied by a decrease in the levels of phosphorylated mTOR, indicating that DCQ-induced reduction of HIF-1α is possibly occurring at the translational level of the protein. HIF-1α reduction was associated with a decrease in p21 and a reversal of the hypoxia-induced VEGF secretion and invasion, which are key processes in tumor metastasis. In MDA-MB-231 cells; however, DCQ reduced HIF-1α through proteasomal degradation, which was accompanied by a reduction of TWIST, a major player in epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). The inhibitory effect of DCQ on hypoxia induced breast cancer invasion was validated in the xenograft model of subdermally injected MDA-MB-231 cells in immune-compromised mice. DCQ significantly increased the survival rate of treated animals. This increase was associated with a reduction of the metastatic dissemination of breast cancer cells into the liver and lungs of DCQ treated mice.

Citation Format: Khaled I. Ghattass, Sally El Sitt, Kazem Zibara, Makhlouf MJ Haddadin, Marwan El-Sabban, Hala Ghali-Muhtasib. DCQ is a hypoxia-activated quinoxaline 1,4-dioxide that reduces breast cancer metastasis. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Tumor Invasion and Metastasis; Jan 20-23, 2013; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(3 Suppl):Abstract nr A99.


tory ulcerative colitis (UC), although the subsequent loss of response to biologics during maintenance therapy remains a challenging clinical issue. This study was to evaluate the shortand long-term efficacy of IFX and ADA in patients with moderately to severely active UC and are anti-TNF naïve, as well as those with prior exposure to an anti-TNF. Methods: In a single-centre retrospective setting, 111 consecutive patients with moderately to severely active UC refractory to corticosteroids were included. In total, 76 patients were treated with IFX; 64 naïve to an anti-TNF and 12 had switched from another anti-TNF, the remaining 35 patients were treated with ADA; 21 naïve, and 14 had switched. At week 8, clinical response rates were compared amongst the 4 groups. Clinical response was defined as Rachmilewitz's clinical activity index (CAI) ≤ 4. The subsequent loss of response was defined as CAI ≥ 7. Patients with remission had received maintenance IFX (5 mg/kg) every 8 weeks or ADA (40mg) at 2 weeks intervals. All patients were followed for 52 weeks. The cumulative remission maintenance rates were compared by the Kaplan–Meier estimator graphs. Results: At week 8, 59 of 76 patients (77.6%) in the IFX group had responded; 50 of 64 in the naïve sub-group (78.1%) and 9 of 12 in the switched sub-group (75.0%). In the ADA group, 24 of 35 patients (68.6%) had responded; 15 of 21 in the naïve sub-group (71.4%) and 9 of 14 in the switched sub-group (64.3%). There was no significant difference amongst the 4 groups. Further, after 52 weeks, 65% in the IFX-naïve group had maintained remission vs 85.7% in the IFX switched, 69.2% in the ADA naïve, and 37.5% in the ADA switched (ADA switched vs ADA naïve and IFX group, p < 0.05). The fraction of patients in the IFX-naïve group with the loss of response was 25.0% vs 14.3% in the IFX switched, 30.8% in the ADA naïve, and 62.5% in the ADA switched (ADA switched vs ADA naïve and IFX group, p < 0.05). The Kaplan–Meier survival analysis showed significantly highest loss of response in the ADA switched sub-group (p < 0.05). Conclusions: In this retrospective study, with respect to the initial clinical response rate in patients with steroid-refractory UC receiving anti-TNF therapy, there was no significant difference between IFX and ADA, regardless of prior exposure to an anti-TNF. However, the long-term remission maintenance rate was significantly lower in the ADA sub-group with prior exposure to an anti-TNF as compared with the other 3 sub-groups, but this finding is limited by the small sample size of the patients with prior exposure to an anti-TNF.


This special issue on minicomputer systems in business is motivated by my personal philosophy of computing. I call this philosophy the common computer attitude. This attitude has come about because systems are being dispersed into local standalone systems or as local stations that are part of networked mini/microcomputer systems. The user is less knowledgeable and yet intensely involved in such local computing.


For all of capital markets, trading strategies through online system is very important. Most players in stock trading are seeking a strategy that appropriate to their expectation about profit. They concern about a prediction of taking profit in one or two days trading in the stock exchange. For those who expect high profit in short time, may be a day or a week, trading strategies are very crucial and most wanted thing. Traders use a trading strategy to help make wiser buying or selling (entry and exit) in order to minimize the risk while maximizing profit. Besides, with a proper trading strategy traders can eliminate emotional bias that brings the unbearable risk. They can use the system operate within the parameters that familiar enough by traders. The parameters can be reliable because the system is set based on the historical analysis and real world market studies (forward testing based on backward testing). Hence, an appropriate trading strategy can have confidence in selecting the timing to entry and exit of stock trading. This article is aim to review some strategies that most traders practicing in some stock exchange. This article adopt the meta-analysis approach in extracting some of trading strategies which is popular in daily stock trading all over the world such as entry at break out trend (buy high and sell higher), buy on weaknesses and sell on strength (BOW and SOS), Cut Loss at 5%, select the stock at up trend, etc. These samples of stock trading strategies programs are presented on the online publication by the securities companies. Those programs are crated in theoretical and practical approach explanations by some securities companies all over the world. Therefore, it is very crucial for all traders to be familiar with those systems to minimize the risk while maximizing the profits.


Variations in fish communities of shallow lakes in the Yangtze basins were investigated from September 2007 to September 2009. Six lakes were chosen for comparative study of species composition and diversity in relation to environmental variations. Lake heterogeneity was described with environmental physico-chemical variables, using principal component analysis. Sixteen families, composed of 75 species of fish were found in the studied lakes, Cyprinidae being the dominant group. Fish species were divided by habitat preference and trophic guild: benthopelagic and herbivorous fish were the most common guilds in all lakes. Species diversity and richness were significantly higher in spring, while the evenness, expressed by equitability of Simpson's index, was not significantly different among seasons. Species richness and diversity were significantly higher in vegetated lakes (e. g. Liangzihu Lake) than in non-vegetated lakes (e. g. Biandantang Lake), with the largest area (Liangzihu Lake) harbouring the largest species richness and the greatest diversity. The relationship between environmental variables and fish assemblage were analysed using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). The dominant gradients describing species composition and abundance among the sampling sites were: total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll a, transparency and water depth. Our study led to the following conclusions: 1) the water quality was better - i.e. high transparency, low total phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN) and chlorophyll a- in vegetated lakes than in unvegetated lakes; 2) vegetated lakes had higher fish diversity than unvegetated lakes; 3) fish relative abundance (CPUE: number of fish per fishing pass) was significantly related to water chemical parameters. Consequently, the details of the findings are useful and relevant for developing suitable conservation strategies to sustain the integrity of fish communities in these lakes.


In this thesis, we study the preprocessing phase of the ALT algorithm. ALT is a well known preprocessing-based speed-up technique for Dijkstra's algorithm, which allows fast computations of shortest paths in large scale road networks. The preprocessing of the ALT algorithm has some degree of freedom, in that it must select a subset of nodes in the graph, called landmarks, that fulfill a special role; optimally choosing these landmarks is NP-hard, hence no effective exact solution algorithm exists. In this thesis, we study the landmark selection process; we propose several solution methods, including a greedy algorithm as well as a new heuristic. Furthermore, we propose a new model for the search space of an ALT shortest path computation, which allows us to reduce the problem of optimally choosing k landmarks to the maximum coverage problem, for which approximation results are known, and to formulate the landmark selection problem as an integer linear program.


Summary Leaf shape in Arabidopsis is modulated by patterning events in the margin that utilize a PIN‐based auxin exporter/CUC2 transcription factor system to define regions of promotion and retardation of growth, leading to morphogenesis. In addition to auxin exporters, leaves also express auxin importers, notably members of the AUX1/LAX family. In contrast to their established roles in embryogenesis, lateral root and leaf initiation, the function of these transporters in leaf development is poorly understood. We report that three of these genes (AUX1, LAX1 and LAX2) show specific and dynamic patterns of expression during early leaf development in Arabidopsis, and that loss of expression of all three genes is required for observation of a phenotype in which morphogenesis (serration) is decreased. We used these expression patterns and mutant phenotypes to develop a margin‐patterning model that incorporates an AUX1/LAX1/LAX2 auxin import module that influences the extent of leaf serration. Testing of this model by margin‐localized expression of axr3–1 (AXR17) provides further insight into the role of auxin in leaf morphogenesis.


Provided are: a separator-integrated electrode which is capable of suppressing the occurrence of short-circuit between electrodes by suppressing deposition of lithium metal on the surface of an electrode mixture layer; and a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery. A positive electrode (12), which constitutes this separator-integrated electrode, comprises: a positive electrode mixture layer (24) which is formed on the surface of a positive electrode collector (22); a first porous layer (26) which is formed on the surface of the positive electrode mixture layer (24) and contains particles that are formed of an inorganic material; and a second porous layer (28) which is formed on the surface of the first porous layer (26). The second porous layer (28) is configured from fibers that are formed of a resin material.


OBJECTIVE. Despite the widespread use of the Maternal and Child Health Bureau definition of children with special health care needs, no published studies have considered the "at-risk" component of the definition. The purpose of this article is to present a conceptual model of risk for special health care needs. METHODOLOGY. The conceptual model presented here was developed based on a comprehensive review of the literature on the determinants of population health and the etiologic literature for selected representative childhood chronic conditions. RESULTS. Our conceptual model is built on 5 key pillars derived from the literature. First, determinants of health have been demonstrated to include genetic endowment, the physical and social environment, health-related behaviors, and the health care system. Second, the model recognizes that the relative importance of each of these domains in contributing to the presence of a special health care need is likely to vary across the major chronic conditions experienced by children. Third, these domains can be conceptualized as acting at the child, family, community, or societal level. Fourth, the model recognizes the presence of a complex interplay of causal factors influencing the development of chronic conditions and associated special health care needs. Fifth, the model incorporates a temporal aspect to the development of special health care needs. CONCLUSIONS. The conceptual model presented here represents a starting point for thinking about the risk factors that influence the occurrence and severity of a special health care need. The model incorporates many of the important breakthroughs by social epidemiologists over the past 25 years by including a broad range of genetic, social, and environmental risk factors; multiple pathways by which they operate; a time dimension; the notion of differential susceptibility and resilience; and a multilevel approach to considering risk. Nevertheless, we recognize that the conceptual model represents an oversimplification of reality. The study of risk factors for special health care needs remains largely in its infancy and is ripe for additional development.


Abstract Nitrilase (NLase) was covalently immobilized on modified Relizyme supports or adsorbed on montmorillonite K-10 or entrapped in polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel. Although 80–90% of initial loaded protein was immobilized, however, unsatisfactory activity recoveries was obtained in both covalent immobilization and adsorption studies. Entrapping NLase in polyvinyl alcohol allowed us to obtain an immobilized NLase with 80% activity recovery and 100% initial protein recovery. The characterization studies showed that the free and entrapped NLase samples had both maximum activity at pH 7.5 and 30 °C. The free nitrilase completely lost its initial activity at 30 °C after 24 h pre-incubation. However, the entrapped NLase retained 60% of its initial activity under the same conditions. Acrylonitrile with a initial concentration of 0.1 M was all converted to acrylic acid by entrapped NLase in 30 min whereas the same yield was achieved by soluble enzyme in 60 min. The entrapped NLase retained 84% of its initial activity after 15 reuses for the hydrolysis of acrylonitrile. These results show that the entrapped NLase can be of great interest as a biocatalyst to synthesize acrylic acid under mild reaction conditions.


The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) system encompasses the world's largest and most frequently used educational database. This database contains over 900,000 records with approximately 13,000 new documents added each year. These include journal articles, research papers, books, conference proceedings, government documents, and many others. One of the greatest strengths of the database is the interdis ciplinary nature of its holdings. The selected documents below include coverage from fields as diverse as science, rhetoric, and journalism, as well as the more traditional social studies. The "EJ" designation at the beginning of the record identifies the source as an educational journal. These are easily located in most academic libraries or are available through interlibrary loan. Those items preceded by an "ED" designation are also available in many libraries, or copies may be ordered from the ERIC Docu ment Reproduction Service (EDRS). For additional information, contact EDRS, 7420 Fullerton Road, Suite 110, Springfield, VA 22153-2852 or call (800) 443-3742 or e-mail . The ERIC Clearinghouse on Social Studies/Social Science Education (ChESS) welcomes requests for searches regarding any aspect of social studies from lesson plans/instructional materials to research articles and/or general information. Please contact: Matthew Paris, ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education at (800) 266-3815 or e-mail . Mr. Paris is an informa tion specialist and occasional actor. He holds a B.S. in Education with an emphasis in Social Studies and a Master s in Library and Information Science from Indiana University.


The value and place of residential treatment for disturbed children and adolescents have been increasingly questioned in recent years. Possible reasons for this are examined. The place of residential treatment, and its value as a specialized form of therapy, are discussed. The treatment of disturbed young people in residential settings should only be undertaken as part of a wider therapeutic plan. The need for placement away from home, for the protection of the community or for other reasons not directly concerned with the child's treatment, must be distinguished from the need for residential treatment. The rationale and goals of treatment must always be defined in advance, and the needs of the system to which the child belongs must be considered along with those of the presenting patient.


The analysis of dietary patterns has recently drawn considerable attention as a method of investigating the association between the overall whole diet and the risk of colorectal cancer. However, the results have yielded conflicting findings. Here, we carried out a meta-analysis to identify the association between dietary patterns and the risk of colorectal cancer. A total of 40 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were included in this meta-analysis. The highest category of 'healthy' dietary pattern compared with the lowest category was apparently associated with a decreased risk for colorectal cancer [odds ratio (OR)=0.75; confidence interval (CI): 0.68–0.83; P<0.00001]. An increased risk of colorectal cancer was shown for the highest compared with the lowest category of a 'western-style' dietary pattern (OR=1.40; CI: 1.26–1.56; P<0.00001). There was an increased risk of colorectal cancer in the highest compared with the lowest category of 'alcohol-consumption' pattern (OR=1.44; CI: 1.13–1.82; P=0.003). The results of this meta-analysis indicate that a 'healthy' dietary pattern may decrease the risk of colorectal cancer, whereas 'western-style' and 'alcohol-consumption' patterns may increase the risk of colorectal cancer.


Although the philosophy of sustainable community development does not give the cure-all solutions for the major problems faced in the communities, it is theoretically and practically recognized as a newly emerging paradigm toward community development theoretically and practically. However, more specific tasks and issues of sustainable community development remain unchallenged and descriptive statements. The main objective of this study was to find out the extensive community development practices through the review of current works in the area of sustainable community development indicator, local agenda 21 and the relative issues. The recommendations of this study were the following; 1) The sustainable community development indicators available in the community level should be selected. Also, how to integrate the objective condition and subjective perception in community development practices, and how to weigh the indicator item should be solved in order to compare and measure the implementation of community development works. 2) In relation to local agenda 21, how to secure the implementation mechanism is more important than the developing the local agenda 21. 3) The policies aimed to raise the resident's awareness, formation of community field, create community social capitals, and define strategies to the selective community development programs should be considered to make the philosophy of sustainable community development active in the field level.